The mild breeze of a late autumn afternoon swept through the streets leading to the footings of the Crystal Castle and the pedestal of the Crystal Heart. I stood with my hooves planted along with my friends, Princesses, and Starswirl, all focusing our magic on the event horizon of the spell holding open the portal to the lost dimension. The signal sent, and the doorway opened, we waited.

The strain on my magic wasn’t nearly as taxing as was the waiting. It had been nearly an hour since we began, and only now did we have something to show for our efforts. The crowd broke into a cheer as the Crystal Queen ventured through the portal.

I waited until the last of her flowing tail passed through before letting the magic collapse back into itself. The gateway sealed, and the promise I had made to myself stood fulfilled.

“Welcome home, Your Majesty,” I said, nearly falling into a bow with my legs wobbling precariously beneath me.

A royal fanfare played. Streamers and confetti rained down from the castle above. Pinkie made sure to go all out for the royal welcome home party.

“It is good to be back,” the Queen said amidst the cheers from her crystal ponies.

The rest of the day was mainly a blur. Another celebration to mark to the return of balance and harmony followed, much like the others. There had been so many celebrations lately that I had almost lost count. I hadn’t forgotten about the Queen, but it had taken a while to prepare for this moment. I was still getting used to my magic and exploring the limits of my new potential.

Not to mention the wedding.

It had only been a week ago that I said goodbye to Seachelle. Following her release from the Guardian’s service, she mustered the courage to ask Buckaneer for his hoof in marriage. I was honored that they asked me to officiate. My heart swelled with joy when I saw them off on their honeymoon, the Flying Dutchmare able to carry them wherever they wanted to go.

She told me they would return soon and often, but I wouldn’t hold her to any promise like that. Seeing her happy for the first time in her life was all I could hope to ask for; the occasional visit would be a welcome bonus. They had the rest of their lives to spend together, a destiny of their own to fulfill. I was glad I could be a part of it, if even for a short while.

She did promise to return the following month, and I wouldn’t object to that. The entire kingdom was invited to attend. I finally found the courage and followed her lead in doing some asking of my own. Although it might be awkward to have seven Mares of Honor, she had definitely earned her place.

The ultimate adventure awaited, and I don’t think I could have been more ready for it. Though it might seem weird, I was actually looking forward to becoming Missus Starswirl the Bearded.

Author's Notes:

So, there you have it. Nearly a year since I started writing, I made it to the end of what is still technically my first story. I never imagined it would take this long or go this far. It's been a fun ride, and I've learned a lot on my journey.

I hope you all enjoyed it as well.

I want to take a minute and thank the fandom. Without the help from a long list of people, I wouldn't have been able to write this. Starting from rejections and harsh critique, I got a swift introduction to the world of fimfiction. Ocalhoun, Sir Truffles, Present Perfect - they were only a few of the many folks that took the time to help me become a better writer. By no means am I anything amazing, but I can say I'm better because I met you. Same goes to everyone involved in the Writeoff Association. Your amazing feedback fuels my creative fire and pushes me to always try and do better.

To the great musicians and artists in the fandom, I don't think I'll ever compare with your amazing talents. BlackGryph0n and Baasik's music inspired a lot of what I wrote, if not directly then indirectly by keeping me in the right mindset to write. Going off the first and last track in in their Immortal album, I want to leave this thought that basically sums up the entire journey of this story for me:

{Faster Than You Know)
A hundred thousand stories have filled my head
As I look for the answers in what I've read
Secretly waiting for my life to change
And with this transformation, something's strange

Now my world is bigger than I know
I'm losing all control
I never thought I'd make it...

Now I know
This world spins faster than you know
And I'd give anything to show what I'm trying for
Just what I'm fighting for, oh...
This world spins faster than you know...

(Another End)
It never felt like a life risk, slight miscalculation of the heart.
Never wrong, never once tried mending what we knew was bound to fall apart.
And I think we know by now
It's time to show somehow
That what we had in the past still lasts and was worth it from the start.

And now it shows
And you can see
That I'll turn back, eventually
And we can just pretend, cause we have something that should never end.
And we both know
That we can be
The one we want
The one we need
And we can just pretend; another story with another end.

Another lifetime
Another photograph
Another memory that leads us down another path.
Another night time
Another life to spend
Another story with another end.

Thank you all for reading. Let me know what you think in the comments. If you want to read more, like, favorite, or follow and I'll do my best not to disappoint.