Sudden, absolute silence rang in Twilight's ears. The tornado of power was gone, everything utterly still. The unbearable, blinding light was gone.

Her eyes slowly opened.

Stars. That was her first impression. Nothing but stars, tiny shards of coloured light set in unfathomable blackness, above and all around her. Instinctively, she glanced down, and her heart juddered in her chest as she saw only stars beneath her as well. "Ahhh!" she cried, stumbling, both terrified of falling, and with nothing to fall from. She was standing on empty space.

For a moment, her panicked, gasping breathing was the only sound, before she slowly wrested control of herself again. Okay. She was breathing, even if she wasn't sure whether there was really anything there to breathe. She held her breath for a moment, before her body rebelled and sucked in a gasp, then held up her hand as she exhaled. Warm, soft breath tickled against her skin.

That suggested she was still alive. On the other hand, being trapped in infinite space, standing on nothing, was a contradictory piece of evidence.

She was stark naked, she noticed in a distant, uninvolved way. Her hand absently rubbed over the complex lines and circles marking her bare skin, still new enough to keep noticing them each time she saw them in her peripheral vision.

She had faced Celestia. She'd lost - all but lost, at least, as the sabotaged Elements of Harmony had betrayed her, and her friends were stolen, one by one. Then, at the very last, her desperate gamble with Luna had paid off. Luna had given her everything she had, and then...

And then...

White light.

And then...

This.

She was probably dead.

She should feel more upset about that, Twilight thought distantly. Shock. That's what this was. That's why she felt so far away from her emotions, and why she seemed to be coping with the situation.

At least she'd have plenty of time to get over it.

In the silence between worlds, shaky, slightly hysterical laughter rang out.

Eventually, Twilight sobered up, wiping her eyes. Methodically, she ran her hands over her body, pinching her skin and testing herself with her nails. No apparent wounds. Her responses seemed to be intact, both pleasurable and painful. She scuffed her foot against the nothing on which she stood, and felt nothing but a glassy smoothness. Very carefully crouching, her groping hands encountered the same surface.

Tentatively, she rested on all fours, then eased herself down onto her side. Rolling onto the back, she stared up into the endless stars. Lying this way, she could almost persuade herself that there was ground beneath her, almost make herself forget the tingling fear that she might fall at any moment, and never stop.

A minute crawled past, then another, counted by her breath and her pulse.

Was this all there was? If she was trapped here forever with only masturbation to distract her... maybe that was some kind of ironic punishment for all the lust-driven decisions she'd made, that had brought her to this place.

At least the view was pretty.

As her eyes adjusted, she was picking out more and more stars and galaxies in the darkness. Colourful nebulae glowed softly, red and brown and blue. It was beautiful. She leaned her head back further. Straddling the invisible horizon between stars below and stars above, there was a vast, misty nebula, like an unfurling cloud.

She jerked, rolling over onto all fours, her heart hammering as she momentarily came face to face with the nothing she was lying on, before she rose to her feet.

That wasn't a nebula. That was a cloud.

She took a step towards it. Another. Before she really knew what she was doing, she was running, gasping for breath. The cloud was getting closer. It was! More lay beyond it, an avenue of soft, pale clouds that glowed under the pure starlight. She stumbled to a stop as she entered it, feeling a ghostly tingle of coolness around her ankles. She swiped a hand through the misty surface, teasing it out of shape, and felt such gratitude that she almost cried with relief. She stood there for a while, sniffing and wiping her eyes, before calmness returned.

Clearly, there was something else going on here. The trail of clouds was a path. Paths were meant to be walked.

She set off. At first, she was conscious of nothing but the billows and curls of clouds around her, but then, as she lifted her head, she realised that shimmering shapes were forming either side of the path. Windows, hanging in the air without anything to hold them, looking out onto - her breath quickened - Equestria!

Hurrying forward, she peered hungrily into the nearest. It was a classroom, with a large, purple spotted egg sat on a bed of straw. With a small jerk of surprise, she saw herself as a foal, struggling to use her magic to open it. She saw the final burst of power that hatched Spike, that flashed through the palace, drawing Celestia to her side, to help control herself.

She dashed to the next window, and saw her younger self studying hard, surrounded by so many books that she was invisible to ponies walking by.

This was her past.

The windows flowed past either side of her as she walked. There she was, learning to teleport for the first time, and ending up trapped in a locked broom cupboard. There she was, levitating an Ursa Minor and rocking it back to sleep. In many of the windows, she stood with her friends, and a pang of heartache touched her. Celestia would look after them. They wouldn't have to suffer.

She moved on. There she was with Trixie, developing the rune circle. This one showed her battle with Luna, overwhelming her in a place she had never expected to need to defend herself. Purple and gold light flashed across Twilight's face as she watched her process of wrestling Celestia's magic into the shape of a new charm from the outside.

The last window was almost solid white, looking out onto a swirling storm of power with a single small figure almost lost in its heart. That, too, fell behind her.

Twilight drew to a stop, in a circle of cloud, or misty nebulae, speckled with starlight from below. "I understand," she said finally. Her hand came to rest on her cutie mark. "This is all showing me the way my life has been shaped by my magic. All the magic I've done. That's what brought me here."

As if in answer, a pure white light shone in the centre of her chest. Twilight gasped in surprise as her body began to lift into the air, speeding streaks of energy flashing around her and over her, the light brightening moment by moment. She was being transformed into light. With bittersweet acceptance, she gave herself to it fully.

For a moment, she was everywhere and nowhere, spread throughout the universe, touching every star. She knew it, and it knew her. The feeling was beyond beauty, beyond grandeur. Beyond description.

Then darkness.

She could hear... hear sizzling, as something cooled. A distant clatter announced something falling, and bouncing to a stop. That didn't fit at all. She reached up to rub her ear, then realised with a profound shock that she had hands and ears again. Her eyes snapped open.

Wrecked furniture was piled against the walls, decorated with fragments of torn rugs and carpets. Windows gaped without glass, looking out onto clear blue skies, and sunlight. A vast, radial scorch mark had been burned into the stone beneath her, fringed with the remains of wooden floorboards that were still smoking. A matching burn scarred the ceiling. Along the furthest wall, pony after pony, unfamiliar guards and her dearest friends, windswept but unharmed. In front of them, Luna and Celestia, side by side.

Every pony in the chamber was on their knees. Every blank gaze was locked on her.

She was alive.

"I... I don't understand..." she whispered. A sudden thought struck her. "Trixie!" Twisting around, she saw the blue mare kneeling in the doorway, her clothes in profound disarray and her hair a tangled mess, but with no sign of harm.

Breathing a jerky sigh of relief, Twilight gathered her feet under her and tried to stand. Her wings flexed instinctively.

Wings?!

"Ahhhh!" Twilight yelped, as she grabbed at her wings and pulled them around her to stare at them. Letting go, she straightened them to their full span, then let them droop, not sure how to properly fold them again. "Ahhhhh!" she cried again as she grabbed her head with both hands. She wobbled, on legs that were - were longer than they had been before, as she staggered out of her self-made crater. "What happened? What happened?"

Mindlessly attentive faces stared at her, drinking in every word without comment. If she spoke the right words and woke them up, she'd be faced with the guards, with her friends, with Luna, with everypony! She wasn't ready! She didn't understand, how could this have happened?!

Her gaze landed on Celestia. It was her doing! It had to be! Stuttering, she demanded "Celestia! C-Come with me!"

"I will come with you, Twilight," the Princess replied in a soft monotone, and rose smoothly to follow.

Yanking open the relatively intact door to Celestia's inner chambers, Twilight tried twice to enter, before eventually sidling awkwardly in sideways, struggling to control her wings, she had wings. Beckoning Celestia in and shutting the door behind her, Twilight struggled to think straight, and spoke rapidly.

"You're aware I just charmed you, you won't use magic until I tell you you can, you won't try to defeat me, you won't say 'Awaken' ever again without my direct permission don't repeat that, just do it, you won't cast the charm again without my direct permission, you will not seek to deceive me in any way, you will obey every command I give you. Slumber! I mean - I am satisfied!"

Life flooded back into Celestia's face and she looked around, blinking at finding herself in a different room. Her gaze settled on Twilight. Her eyes widened.

Far too panicked to care she was naked, Twilight gestured frantically at herself with her arms and wings at the same time. "What happened? What is this? What did you do?"

Celestia's lips slowly parted, as she stared wordlessly. Her hand rose to cover her lips, as if she couldn't believe what she was seeing. Then, a small but unmistakable sound escaped her.

She sniggered.

Twilight's mouth worked soundlessly.

A growing smile emerged from behind Celestia's hand, and her shoulders shook. Another snigger escaped her. Then, softly, she began to laugh.

"Princess! This - this isn't funny! What did you do?" Twilight howled, confused and infuriated.

"I'm - I'm sorry, Twilight, it's just -" Celestia managed, then broke into giggles again, quickly escalating into helpless laughter. Her entire body shook as she leaned against the wall with one hand, breaking into fresh gales of laughter every time she took in Twilight's indignant, incredulous expression.

"Princess!"

Bit by bit, the Princess's laughter tapered away. Finally composing herself, wiping her eyes, Celestia shook her head. "Forgive me, Twilight. I was merely surprised."

Twilight drew herself up to her full height, then wobbled as she found herself taller than she was meant to be. Her wings paddled awkwardly at the air as she struggled for balance, before she recovered with a glare that said no pony had seen anything. "Princess Celestia, I order you to tell me what happened! What is so funny?"

An interested expression crossed Celestia's face. "I can't disobey. So that's what it feels like. A certainty that I'll do as you demand."

"I said-"

"I will, of course. Though you didn't say immediately." Celestia laughed to herself again. "You were so clever, Twilight. I see. I must not have phrased my questions the right way."

"Princess!"

"I do have a name, you know, Twilight." Celestia gazed at her soulfully, humour in the quirked corners of her lips.

Twilight gaped at her again. Who was this pony, so playful and infuriating? "Celestia, please."

"You're a Princess, Twilight. Isn't it obvious? I had imagined that the wings would be something of a clue. My, Twilight, have you gained a cup size too?"

Twilight's gaze jerked down to her tattooed breasts, then instinctively wrapped her arms across them. They did seem larger than she remembered. A crimson flush on her cheeks, she stammered, "How? How did you do this?" She paused, then added in bewilderment, "Why?"

"I didn't do this." Celestia's eyes sparkled merrily, her smile irrepressible. "You did this. After all I'd tried, you did this all by yourself."

Stopping herself before she demanded answers again, Twilight paused to think. "The spell I cast on you."

"Yes. That's right."

"It's because I... conquered you. I beat you, so I get to be an alicorn too? No, that's nonsense... and beat Luna, and nothing happened then. It's because she gave all her strength to me, and I tried to... internalise it," she said slowly, then looked up at Celestia reflexively for confirmation.

"Not exactly. If it were so simple, there would not be so few of us." Celestia stepped forward, gently resting her hand on Twilight's shoulder. "Becoming an alicorn is the result of becoming the embodiment of something, through your words and deeds, through your feelings and beliefs. But that alone is not enough. There have been many ponies which had the potential to embody part of the world, and they have lived good and worthy lives without becoming more. The final transformation can only be ignited by a feat of magic, of ultimate magic. Of comprehension and creation of something new, something tremendously powerful."

A small secretive smile curled her lips, and Celestia said softly, "Have you ever wondered why you have faced quite so many dangers, Twilight? So many challenges to overcome?"

Sudden comprehension flooded Twilight, her eyes widening. "You."

"Me," Celestia agreed. "I saw your potential, and guided you to embody friendship in word and deed. I knew you were capable of awakening, Twilight, but you needed to be pushed to make that final step. I took such risks. I'm sorry about that."

She shook her head, still smiling. "I'd been contemplating giving you a spell that Starswirl the Bearded worked on, one that can rewrite the very destiny of a pony's life. He thought it so dangerous that he never dared complete it. I was willing to go that far." Breaking into laughter, she added, "I even thought of releasing Discord again. Can you imagine?"

Twilight stared at Celestia, no longer conscious of her own nudity, searching the face that she'd always thought was so serene. "But that... can't be true. You risked so much, trying to make me into... into this? Was that what this was all about? The charm, the game, everything?"

"No. Not at all." Sobering, Celestia released Twilight, some of the levity leaving her eyes. "When I realised what you had done, what my carelessness had done, in leaving the charm where you could find it, I believed that route was closed to you. How could you be an embodiment of friendship, when you'd enslaved your friends for your own pleasure? I gave up. I resigned myself. Truly, Twilight, I fear I lashed out at those around me. Even, perhaps, you. I was furious with myself. With both of us," she added, glancing away.

A sharp pang struck Twilight, piercing her chest, sinking to a hollowness in her stomach. She'd never made Celestia angry with her, before. Even after everything, hearing those words felt like her world crumbling. "I'm sorry," she said very quietly.

Celestia shook her head, her billowing mane momentarily concealing one eye. "You shouldn't apologise to me, Twilight. It was I who behaved the worse, by far. After hoping that you could one day rise to be my equal, I made you a puppet instead. But then, you surprised me." Celestia's gaze touched Twilight's face, then her wings, before she continued.

"You saw me, when I'd ordered you not to, and then pretended you hadn't. Or so it seemed. At first, I didn't trust my suspicions, though I left a message for you regardless. It was impossible for you to remember what had happened. It was impossible for you to fight back, after I had won. But little by little, I came to believe that was exactly what was happening. I cannot tell you how delighted I was by that idea. You were challenging me, as an equal. I could have ended things there, but I didn't wish to. I wanted to see the full extent of what you were capable of. Then Luna returned, and I learned everything." She paused. "Almost everything. That was cruel, Twilight, but I cannot deny how effective it was."

"But - aren't you angry, that you lost?"

Celestia shook her head, drawing Twilight against her and enfolding the younger mare in her smooth, pale arms. Her voice was very soft. "After I had given up hope completely, I have everything I desired. You will stay with me, you will live. After I refused to give up my responsibility, you took it from me. A simple unicorn, and you defeated me! I cannot imagine what you will become capable of, as you grow into your new power. Equestria will never be the same. My heart will never be the same. I know you remember everything between us. I wanted to be close to you, and I could not, for the knowledge that you would leave me so soon. Now everything has changed." Celestia's head came to rest atop Twilight's. "If belonging to you is the price of your company, I pay it gladly."

Twilight's head spun as Celestia held her close, barely noticing the soft slopes of the other mare's chest that she rested against. She was a Princess. Celestia wanted to be with her. If she really understood what Celestia had just said, she might live for thousands of years, like her. Maybe forever.

Her mind rebelled at the concept. She couldn't process it, it was too big. Come back to it later.

"Magic," she said finally.

Celestia lifted her head a little, looking down at her.

"I'm the Princess of Magic," Twilight whispered, mostly to herself.

"Yes. You found your own path, Twilight. I'm so proud of you."

It was all too much. She had to go and check on all the ponies in the next room, to wake them and make sure they were all okay. She had to undo whatever Celestia had done to her guards. She had to undo what she'd done to the Wonderbolts, once she figured out the gentlest way to free them without pulling a week's worth of memories out of their minds. She had to find some clothes.

"Princess? I... I mean, Celestia, will you just hold me, for a minute?"

Celestia's embrace tightened, her wings unfurling and curling around them both. "Anything you desire, Twilight. Wasn't that the point of all of this?"

It was only when Celestia's wings encircled them that Twilight realised that, without her noticing, her own wings had folded against her back. Clinging to the taller mare, she gently kissed the upper slopes of Celestia's chest before closing her eyes. She stood there for a few moments, just breathing, inhaling the subtle scent of Celestia's skin, clearing her mind.

Finally, she felt calm.

"Fetch me some clothes, Celestia. Soon, we're going to sit down together and talk, about so many things. But first, I need to free the others. Tell me, are there any preparations you've made that I need to stop right away?"

A smile touched Celestia's lips, and she stepped back, bowing slightly. "I've made no preparations for my defeat. As for clothing, you will receive anything you desire, Twilight. Everything within my power to grant is now yours." Without a backward glance, Celestia disappeared through an inner doorway, leaving Twilight alone.

Breathe deeply, Twilight told herself. Carefully, she ran her hands up and down her new body, her wings half-unfurling again. It was such a strange feeling to have a whole new set of limbs. Experimentally, she stretched her wings out, then folded them again. As long as she didn't think about it too hard, they furled naturally when she pulled them inwards. Otherwise, if she focused too much on it, she got into tangles.

Her feathers felt so soft against her skin. Honestly, she could just spend a while stroking herself with her wings, to get used to the feeling. Maybe that was something pegasi did.

She had wings.

She was an alicorn.

Princess Celestia was her slave.

She was going to live forever.

It couldn't fit into her head. It was going to take time, a lot of time which she now had to make sense of it all. But right then, her ponies needed her - that had to come first.

Tentatively opening the door to the wrecked audience chamber again, Twilight winced as every face turned towards her, their blank eyes focused on her naked body. Now that she was less panicked, it was embarrassing standing nude before so many ponies that she didn't know.

Clearing her throat, she asked carefully, "Is anypony badly hurt? Speak now if you are in serious pain."

Silence. That was a relief. Assuming that charmed ponies could even feel pain; she'd never tested that.

"Princess Luna, please enter the doors behind me and wait in front of the chairs. Everypony else, I'd like you to move into comfortable positions, and if your body is hurting or in distress, please say so."

An instant medley of voices filled the chamber, overlapping and blurring together as the thoughtless ponies spoke as one.

"Quiet!" Twilight commanded loudly over the din, cutting it off instantly. She hadn't said seriously hurt that time, and every pony here was bruised and sore from being battered, kicked, knocked down and fought off. This was no good. She couldn't think of a good way to get the injured ponies to assess themselves, not when she couldn't be sure how much pain they felt under the charm. She needed to get them fully awake.

A door opened in the room behind her. Turning around, she hurried back inside.

Luna knelt thoughtlessly on the carpet before a soft chair. Celestia stood in the doorway, a bundle of fabric in one hand, gazing at her sister. A complex expression was on her face, of tenderness and awkwardness, even shame.

"I'll bring her around now, Celestia. She's going to be fine," Twilight said.

"Yes, Twilight. Thank you. I'm simply aware that Luna will recall everything that has happened between us. Including all those years ago. It is... difficult, to imagine facing her, after that. It had not occurred to me, until I saw her here. That is what it means for me to have lost."

Reaching out to Celestia, Twilight moved to stroke her cheek. "It's going to be okay. She forgave me, for what I did to her. She loves you, more than anypony. More than me, I think."

Celestia's ageless smile was touched by trepidation. "I did not choose to free her, as you did. She chose you over me, Twilight, when deciding whom to stand by in this conflict. It may be you are wrong."

"You freed her first! You gave up the charm. Just because that happened a long time ago doesn't mean that isn't important. I... I don't think I could have pulled myself back, if I hadn't lost to you. I had a chance to start over, from the beginning. Now you do, too."

"If I were free to act, perhaps. As your thrall, I won't have to bear the choice of whether or how to use it, at all. Here is your dress, Twilight. I'm certain you will look quite lovely in it."

Twilight gently, slightly awkwardly, took the dress from Celestia's fingers. Straightening it out and stepping into it, she drew the silken fabric up her body, feeling a little tingle as it stroked against her bare skin. The back was cut daringly low, low enough not to obstruct her new wings, and the front showed off a good portion of her newly enhanced cleavage. Reaching behind herself to do up the fastenings, she gave Celestia a look of mingled awkwardness and pride. "Do I look okay? You didn't bring me any underwear."

"You look wonderful, Twilight. If you need underwear, I will fetch you some, but that dress is made to be worn without. It suits you."

The Princess's gaze lingered on her body, in a way that Twilight had never seen before. Blushing heavily, she moved to the chair in front of Luna and sat down, awkwardly arranging her wings behind her. "Princess- Celestia, I mean. I swear I'll stop doing that eventually. Celestia. Stand at my side, please."

"Whatever you wish." Celestia moved to Twilight's side, and whatever fears she held over Luna's awakening were now hidden behind her calm, composed smile.

Twilight's mouth went dry, as an impulse occurred to her. "Celestia. Clasp your hands together at the small of your back. Spread your feet a little, and - and arch your back. To push your chest out." Twilight's breathing was shaky, her entire body lit up with instinctual terror at commanding the submissive pose from the demigoddess.

The significance of the pose certainly wasn't lost on Celestia, who nodded once in compliance. Her hands clasped behind her, and she arched as Twilight had commanded. Her large, soft breasts rose against the low neckline of her sun dress, presenting a vision of milk-white cleavage.

Now, Twilight was ready. She took a steadying breath, and uttered, "Princess Luna. I am satisfied."

Luna's eyes flickered. For an instant, her gaze darted around her, surprised by finding herself somewhere other than the audience chamber, before she took in Celestia, and finally, Twilight. Her mouth dropped open.

"T-Twilight! You hath ascended? When did - how - you hath ascended by charming my sister?" Jerking upwards off her knees, she reached out towards Twilight as though unable to believe what she was seeing.

Warmth swelled in Twilight's heart, and she took Luna's hand, guiding it to caress her face. Her eyes glistening with the surge of emotion, she breathed, "Yes. Yes, Luna. I... I'll be able to stay with you."

Shocked to her core, Luna looked as though she might cry. Stroking Twilight's cheek as though the young mare might disappear the moment she let go, she looked up at her sister. "Truly? Celestia... is it over? Hath this battle between you ended?"

Celestia nodded, a slight jerkiness to the motion. "Yes, Luna. Twilight has triumphed, and so our conflict is over. Though I never anticipated things turning out this way, I don't regret it. Things will be very different now."

With a final caress, Luna stepped away from Twilight, and up to her sister. Her arms wound around the pure white mare, and she squeezed her tightly. Her head resting on Celestia's shoulder, she said softly, "I remember everything, now."

Pinned in place by Twilight's order, Celestia tensed, but held her pose. Not quite meeting Luna's eyes, she said quietly, "I began with the wish to make things better between us. The temptation proved too much for me." After a pause, she finally murmured awkwardly, "I apologise."

"You chose to degrade me, sister mine. Though I did not know it, you treated me as badly as I treated you, in your own way. A secretive way, which you hid from all. Even myself."

"Luna-"

"I forgive you," Luna said simply.

Celestia said nothing for a moment, before glancing at Twilight in mute request.

"You can move freely, Princess," Twilight said at once, understanding what she desired.

With a small sigh of relief, Celestia embraced Luna in return, holding her sister tightly. Even so, she still seemed to find it difficult to look directly at her. "I think you speak too quickly, Luna. I changed our relationship to something very different. Even if it has been a long time, I may not deserve forgiveness, without repentance." She gently stroked back a curl of Luna's ethereal mane. "Knowing that you know, and are free to judge me for it all - that is by far the hardest part of my defeat to accept. I am sorry. Even now, if I could hide it from you, I would."

"You are ashamed, sister. That is good. Better shamed than unrepentant." Luna looked down, turning her head away. "You have not understood the shame I have felt, as the one who failed. I gave in to temptation. I hurt the ones I loved. I became something that was not the self I wished to be. You warded all the ponies that I left behind, while I did nothing but seethe in bitter anger, for so long. My sins remain greater than yours. But Celestia-"

Luna's head lifted, meeting her sister's eyes. "You cannot know how hard it was, knowing that you were pure and perfect, always measuring my failure against you. Now you have made mistakes. Now you have been tempted and corrupted by power, and you stand before me, ashamed of what you've done. Can you imagine the relief I feel? I forgive you, as you forgave me. We have both fallen victim to our baser natures. Let us be there for each other, that we may not fail again."

Celestia nodded once, slowly, though she didn't reply.

Watching, fascinated, Twilight had dared not interrupt. Now, as silence fell, she said softly, "Celestia will be mine, just like you, Luna. You'll be together. It's going to be wonderful."

"Only if my sister wishes to be thine, Twilight."

Absolute rejection flashed through her. Celestia was hers. She'd earned this. "Luna, after everything that's happened, it's my turn to-"

"No. Twilight, you must not take my sister out of revenge."

Luna met Celestia's eyes, and added to her, "Yes, it must be that you will no longer use the charm for your own ends, nor seek to take those who have given themselves over to Twilight away from her. That would cause more harm than good, no matter how it has come to this. But that is all. You do not have to allow a single touch to thy body that you do not invite, nor a change to thy thoughts."

Twilight's hands tightened at her sides in frustration. This wasn't fair. It would take a moment, a heartbeat, to change Luna's mind. "She's right, Celestia," she heard herself say. "I won't take you if you don't want to be close to me." That was deeply unfair of her. She knew that Celestia wanted her, wanted to be with her. The abortive pretence of being her marefriend, Celestia's sheer joy at her ascension to Princess (What - no, no, save that freak out for later), everything told her that Celestia had feelings for her, and Twilight was holding those feelings hostage. Be mine, or nothing.

Celestia looked from Luna to Twilight, quiet, her face slipping into a habitual expression of neutral consideration. "Twilight, I will speak with you later, alone. For now, you have your friends to take care of." In her tone, Twilight heard a reasserted authority. Celestia was making the decisions again.

Twilight took a steadying breath. Later. Fine.

"Yes, you're right. I want to get everypony woken up, so I can make sure they're okay. Follow me." If Celestia was still bound to obey her every order for the time being, well, changing that would have to wait until later too.

Leading the Princesses she was a Princess she was the Princess of Magic into the main chamber, she looked thoughtfully at her friends, and the guards standing among them. She could free her lovers first, but she wanted to be able to take time with them after. "Perhaps it would be best if I freed the guards and the Wonderbolts first," she thought aloud, "so I can relax."

Luna nodded understandingly. "That may be best."

Twilight raised her voice. "Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Zecora, Trixie - please remove the helmets of the ponies near you, then enter the next room through those doors, and close them behind you."

An overlapping chorus of 'yes Ma'am, yes Mistress, yes Master' rose from her blank-eyed slaves, and turning to the guards and the Wonderbolts, they began working to unlock the helmets from the armour they were attached to, setting them down on the floor. Pinkie carelessly tossed one aside with a resounding clang that made Twilight's feathers (she had feathers) fluff out in surprise, then one by one, they walked through the devastation to disappear into the next room. The doors closed behind them with a soft click.

"What will you do to my guards, Twilight?" Celestia's question was asked simply, without warning or judgement.

"I'm going to have them believe that something attacked us here. I don't want them to remember being enslaved, or us fighting each other, but they got hurt, and they deserve to feel like they did their jobs well in protecting you. The same for the Wonderbolts." Twilight smiled wryly. "I don't think anypony would have trouble believing that something attacked Canterlot again. Celestia, would you write down what I say to them? I want to keep records of their instructions."

"You've always been very organised. Very well." Celestia nodded, crossing the room to her dresser. At the edge of the chaos, it had been spared serious damage, though she touched a fresh scar in the wood with a faintly regretful expression as she fetched out quill and parchment.

Remaining at Twilight's side while her sister retrieved the writing materials, Luna spoke softly. "I appreciate thy restraint in not taking these ponies for thy own." Looking down at the ground, she added after a moment, "I cannot tell thee how much I admire thy achievements. Had I been fully in control of myself, I might have hesitated; such power as I poured down upon thee would have been the end of a lesser pony. Thy ascension was well earned. Now I shall stay at thy side, in ways I had never dreamt possible. My Mistress." The last words were said almost in a whisper, a gentle embarrassment to the way Luna's gaze flicked back towards her returning sister.

Luna was ashamed of her submission. At least, ashamed of showing it in front of her sister. Of course. That was okay; it would fade with time, as they got used to serving her together. Twilight stroked a hand down Luna's arm, smiling affectionately at the dusk-skinned pony. "I could never have done this without you." Switching her attention to the approaching Princess, she added, "Celestia, are you ready?"

"I am, Twilight."

"Okay." Twilight raised her voice and began speaking, pausing between each sentence to let Celestia's quill catch up. "Do not repeat what I am about to say. Guards, I am not speaking to you. Wonderbolts, listen. Your loyalty to Celestia and trust in her judgement are restored to their natural state. You know that a week ago, Spitfire received a message from Celestia to travel to the edge of the forest, and meet me. You remember meeting me, and receiving the instructions I gave you to practise together. You remember fighting ponies made of shadow at the vault doors, with the aid of my friends, and the guards there.

"Guards, Wonderbolts, listen closely. In this room, you remember seeing a crack in the air open, and fighting shadow ponies that crawled out of it. The guards, my friends and the Wonderbolts were all working together. You remember seeing the magic that Princess Luna poured into me, and the spell I cast, but remember it was directed at the crack in the air. You remember seeing the blinding light, and my emerging as I am now. You remember that the light had faded, and I have sent my friends out of the room to recover.

"None of you remember being under the control of a spell. Any conflicting memories should be fitted into what you now remember happening if possible, or ignored." She stopped, turning to Celestia. "Have I missed anything?"

Celestia shook her head, glancing at Luna, who echoed the gesture. "A benevolent gesture, Twilight. I wouldn't wish my little ponies to remember fighting each other the way they did."

"My friends will. But I don't want to bring these ponies into this anymore than I have to." Taking the scroll from Celestia's fingers, she rolled it up. "I am satisfied!"

Around the chamber, ponies stirred, shaking their heads. A few groans sounded. Spitfire approached, with a well-built mare who seemed to be the leader of Celestia's personal guard, and saluted.

"It seems to be over, Ma'am," Spitfire said. "What are your orders?"

Twilight opened her mouth, only to be pre-empted by Celestia, who told them, "I am very proud of both of you, and the ponies under your leadership. You have protected Canterlot from a grave threat today. Please scour the castle for anypony else who remains, and have them escorted here. If they are motionless, like sleepwalkers, leave them where they stand and report their locations and names to me once you have swept the castle. Thank you."

Of course. They were reporting to Celestia, not her. Twilight tamped down the irrational feeling of jealousy and annoyance, something made a little easier by the awed, disbelieving looks she was receiving from the ponies moving around the chamber.

"Yes, Princess!" Both bent to one knee, then backed away, gathering the ponies and forming them into squads. The guard captain lingered with three of her guards, and asked, "Princess, are you certain you do not wish a remnant guard left here?"

"Thank you, Geode, but no. I will be perfectly safe, especially in the company of my beloved sister, and Canterlot's newest Princess."

Geode's eyes widened, flicking to Twilight's wings again, before she pulled an impassive look over her face and saluted again. "My apologies, Princess! Please excuse us." The chamber echoed with their departing footsteps.

Twilight hesitated. It was time to wake up her friends, though she felt an odd shyness about the prospect. She was transformed. She was probably immortal. There was a tiny gap between them now, that hadn't been there before.

Celestia seemed to read her mind. "Go to your friends, Twilight. I will wait here, and tend to any who are found to have been affected."

"I shall stay with my sister," Luna added.

"...okay. Princess Luna, if there are any ponies that were charmed by my spell, I give you permission to cast the original charm upon them and modify their memories to match the story I told. Write down what you tell them, and their names. Oh - yes. Celestia, please make a list of the guards who were present, too. I had better keep a close track of which ponies are vulnerable to my voice."

It was probably better to wake the others without the Princesses anyway, she told herself. There might be conscious ponies around the castle that needed to be told the 'true' story of what had happened, or if the blast had been large enough, ponies standing blankly waiting for her voice. It was better that Luna recharmed them and helped them. It was fine that they had other priorities than standing at Twilight's side, as her sensual sex toys.

Talk to Celestia later. Yes.

The door opened under her hand, revealing her collection of enslaved friends kneeling in a neat row in front of the chair. Perhaps making them kneel when the charm was cast had changed some sort of default, leaving them kneeling when told to go somewhere unless told otherwise. Her gaze trailed over them, one by one, taking in their dishevelled manes, torn clothes and blank eyes. A fierce pang of love and longing struck her heart unexpectedly, bringing tears to her eyes that she blinked away as she sat down in the chair. She couldn't leave this a moment longer.

"I am satisfied." Her voice rang in the quiet room. The seven mares before her blinked and shifted as the charm's grip upon them faded. Then, as they saw her, shock flashed across one face after another.

The moment of silence was different to that which had come before; this was the silence of seven ponies breathing in sharply as one.

Trixie leapt to her feet and jabbed her finger at Twilight. "The glorious and slutty Trixie wants to be a Princess too!"

"Twilight?" asked Applejack, stunned and baffled. "Ah don't - is this some kind've trick? What'n the hay happened? Did we win? How'd we even get in here?"

"Wow. I mean... have you looked at yourself? With the wings, and the long legs, and the boobs, you're at least - you got hot. You had some kind of sexy upgrade spell?"

"You have changed - I must know how. But where is the pony ruler now?" Zecora rose up onto her knees, her tone urgent.

"Oh. My. Gosh. You've got wings! You've got wings!" Pinkie sprang onto Twilight's lap, peering into her face, then hugged her tightly before tugging at her feathers. "You've got wings!"

Rarity looked as though she could have been knocked over with one of Twilight's new feathers. Fluttershy simply looked paralysed with uncomprehending surprise.

"Pinkie!" Twilight flailed with both hands at the excitable pony, her wings jerking halfway open. "Less excitement! Less!"

"Are you crazy? This is the most exciting thing to happen ever!" Pinkie bounced up and down on Twilight's lap, mashing her chest into Twilight's face.

Dear Celestia, she was going to get bounced to death. "Pinkie! Down!"

"Aww! Okee dokey, Master. We won? Did we win? Is this winning? You have wings." Pinkie slid down to the ground and looked up at her owlishly.

Twilight gathered her scattered thoughts, looking around at the ponies surrounding her. "We won. Celestia is under my control." She got no further as the ponies around her broke into a spontaneous cheer of victory, hugging each other in delight.

"We won, we won! Ah can't believe it!"

"My Lady, are you - are you quite sure? You overcame Celestia? What has happened to you?" Rarity finally found her voice, moving forward to grab Twilight's hand beseechingly.

"When does Trixie get to be a Princess?"

Opening her mouth to yell at everypony to sit down and be quiet while she explained, Twilight stopped herself suddenly. The ponies around her were happy. Uncertain, confused, but happy. Twilight watched Rainbow Dash tackle Fluttershy clean off her feet, and couldn't help but smile. As Applejack grabbed Trixie from behind and hugged the startled, protesting pony, Twilight laughed aloud.

Reaching out to pull Rarity closer and hugging her tightly, Twilight's laughter grew freer and louder. Pinkie latched onto her leg, giggling happily, and the look of worry on Rarity's face slowly turned into a bewildered smile. One by one, the other ponies pressed close, Fluttershy settling by the side of the chair and pushing her pink-maned head under Twilight's hand to be stroked.

Twilight laughed until her chest ached, growing lightheaded. Her friends were all here with her. She never had to fear the charm being used against her again. She had a wonderland of pleasure and love to look forward to. There were so many things she could do that she couldn't imagine where to start. She'd won.

Wiping her eyes, Twilight rested her head against Rarity's, breathing deeply. "Whoo. Now I know why she did that. Oh, that helps. That's better. Is everypony okay?"

Applejack looked up at her fondly, cuddling Twilight's leg beside Pinkie. "Sure am, Ma'am."

"Could we get back to Trixie becoming a Princess?"

"Trixie, hush," Twilight told her mildly, before a flicker of guilt made her reconsider. Momentarily ceasing to caress Fluttershy's mane, she squeezed Trixie's hand and added, "I'm sorry. Trixie, you were wonderful. You got the timing exactly right. Well done for waiting, I know it couldn't have been easy."

Trixie blushed as Twilight's gaze met hers, lifting her head imperiously at once to hide the reaction. "Of course! The slutty and submissive Trixie knows exactly how to carry out your impeccable orders, Mistress. Why, even when she doubted that things would play out as you had foretold, she held her trembling heart firm, and told herself, 'The pony that can conquer the Great and Powerful Trixie knows what she is doing!' And her faith was vindicated."

Resting her head against Twilight's shoulder, Rarity looked up at her. "My Lady, how did you win? How did... all this happen?"

Twilight touched the upper rim of the inked ritual pattern, exposed by the bodice of her new dress. "I tricked Celestia. She thought Luna was under her control, but she was mine. At the last moment, Luna gave me all of her strength, and I turned it against Celestia. After all the magic she'd expended fighting me, she couldn't withstand it. Then... then I'm not sure what happened. I changed. Later, I'll help all of you remember what happened while you were charmed. For now, Celestia and Luna are making sure that everyone in the castle is okay. I just want to stay with you all."

"Then... it's incredible, my Lady. I can scarcely believe this. I wanted to believe that you would triumph, but I could not entirely persuade myself, not when you faced Princess Celestia. Now you are like her. I hardly know what to feel." Rarity's smile was a little wobbly at the edges.

Twilight turned her head and gently lifted Rarity's chin, kissing the other pony softly and deeply. She felt the tension melt from Rarity's body, as her slave pushed softly against Twilight and returned the kiss with loving warmth. As their lips finally parted, Twilight smoothed her fingers across Rarity's cheek and breathed, "I love you. Thank you for being brave."

"I - I - anything for you. Anything." A rich red blush coloured Rarity's cheeks, her chest rising and falling rapidly.

Gentle envy coloured the faces of the ponies around them, each longing and yearning to be the pony on Twilight's lap. Looking around herself at them, a deep and powerful craving rose in Twilight to dominate and use every last one of them, then and there. Only the shreds of her rationality restrained her, insisting that she had to make sure Celestia was safely and securely under her control before she fully abandoned herself. She hadn't come this far to lose now, through sheer lust and carelessness.

Taking a steadying breath, Twilight steeled herself, ramming her desire back down with as much force as she could muster, and placating it with promises that soon, soon she would give in to it entirely. "Pinkie! I know just what we need now. We need a party!"

"Party!" Pinkie leapt into the air with a sudden explosion of confetti (how) and blew a paper squeaker that she absolutely, definitely hadn't had in her hand a moment before. "Victory party!"

"Victory party," Twilight agreed. "Everypony, will you help Pinkie set up? The castle has been emptied, I think, but you can find your way to the pantries. Princess Luna is helping supervise the checking of the castle, but you can ask her which way to go, and pick out a nice big bedroom for us all to celebrate."

"Sure thing, Ma'am. Can't you show us the way, though? You lived here a while, y'must know."

With a look of regret, Rarity slid off Twilight's lap. "You need to tend to the Princess, do you not?"

"I'm afraid so. I won't take too long. Make everything nice, and get the party going, okay? I want to come back and find you're all having a wonderful time."

The wrecked audience chamber was deserted.

Oh, and don't leave the castle. That would have been a really sensible addition to Celestia's orders, Twilight thought. Heart thudding in her chest, she hurried out of the main doors into the main corridor. No guards. No pony in sight.

She walked briskly through the castle, running through a list of the most likely places in her head. The throne room; empty. The banquet hall; barren. Pushing open a pair of wide double doors, Twilight emerged into brilliant sunlight, and breathed a sigh of relief as she saw Celestia standing further out on the balcony.

Though she probably shouldn't relax completely, not yet. The Princess could fly. Celestia could still leave at any moment.

Twilight could fly. Probably. In theory. She tensed herself, ready to shout the words of the charm if she had to.

It wasn't necessary. Celestia turned to face her as Twilight approached, breaking into a fond smile. There was warmth and contentment on her face, and the tension slowly melted from Twilight's shoulders as she moved to lean on the railing at the Princess's side.

"...hey," she said finally.

"Hey, yourself," replied Celestia with a smile, reaching out to stroke her fingers through Twilight's mane.

Twilight blinked as a question suddenly occurred to her. "Shouldn't I have a beautiful mane like yours?" She winced the moment the question left her lips, immediately regretting blurting out the thought.

Celestia laughed to herself. "I'll tell you more when you're older. A thousand or so."

Memories flashed through Twilight's mind. She'd been stood right here when Celestia had chosen to entrance her, for the first time since their confrontation. The first time Celestia had yielded to the temptation to use her.

"...the first time you kissed me," Twilight murmured aloud.

"And now, I am the one who can never refuse you anything." Celestia's voice was soft, a little wryness tugging at the corners of her smile.

"Only if you decide that's what you want."

"It bothers you, doesn't it. That Luna pulled you up short, when you were about to take your just reward." Celestia leaned against the railing by Twilight's side, watching her from the corner of her eye.

Twilight's lips twitched. A breath of wind gently ruffled her mane as she gazed into the distance, before she finally responded, "Yes, it bothers me. But I still made the choice to let her say so. All my ponies can tell me when I've gone too far. All can refuse my orders if they need to."

"You're worried that you'll go too far. But there's a temptation to simply stop caring as well. You haven't done any harm."

"But I have. Fear, and uncertainty, and knowing they've been changed against their will. Ponies have been hurt, because of me. Because of us."

"If you didn't use the charm at all, Twilight, it couldn't harm anypony. If you used it without hesitation, no pony would be unhappy either. Only this, using it, but hesitating, can hurt ponies. Don't you agree?"

Celestia's gaze seemed to look right through her. Twilight's spirit rebelled; a firmer note entered her voice. "No, Princess. I don't. You can hurt ponies even if they don't know they're hurt. You can destroy ponies without them even noticing. Using the charm without regard for the consequences isn't an answer. But I'm not going to throw it away, either. It can bring happiness. It can bring ponies together. They just have to be given a choice."

"As you're giving me a choice," Celestia replied mildly. "I understand the compromise you've come to, Twilight. You have withstood the test of your spirit well."

Even when under the charm, Celestia still had an air of absolute authority, of knowing more about Twilight than she could know herself. Twilight found herself slightly irritated. "You know, Princess, I understand what you're feeling, too."

"Oh?" A snow-white brow arched with calm interest.

"You're grateful that Luna forgave you. Incredibly grateful. You thought that you'd lost her, because you gave in to desires you weren't meant to have, and then, with a couple of words, she made it all better."

The Princess nodded, her voice soft. "Yes. I am truly grateful. She showed supreme grace."

"But that's not all. You're still angry."

Celestia's chin lifted slightly.

There. There was the look in Celestia's eyes that Twilight knew had touched her own. "You resent her for judging you. She was never meant to find out about what you did together. That was the promise of the charm. Whatever you want, with no consequences. That's why you felt you do could all of it, could do anything. But then she was standing in front of you, and she remembered it all. It's my fault - that would never have happened, not without me. But you're not angry with me. You're angry with her."

Silence, from the divine pony next to her.

"What's worse is that you know she must have felt like this, too. Resented you for forgiving her, at least a little. But she couldn't let herself feel that, because that's how it all began in the first place. She had to forgive you for forgiving her."

The quiet stretched, and just as the rebellious spark in Twilight's chest was fading into a feeling that she'd gone too far, Celestia finally nodded.

"After everything, I keep underestimating you, Twilight. I wonder when I'll learn. I wonder if you are capable of teaching me." Her gaze met Twilight's.

A shiver ran through the younger pony. Abruptly, it felt as though the balcony was subtly unsteady beneath her feet. "Are you making a decision, Celestia?"

"No. There was never a decision to make." Turning towards Twilight, Celestia breathed in deeply, then slowly moved down to one knee.

Twilight's lips parted slowly, some part of her in profound shock despite everything, as the divine Princess of the Sun knelt before her.

"You know I care for you, Twilight. I trust in your judgement. You will help me protect all my little ponies, and I will be with you, however you desire. You have earned this, and I deserve it."

Twilight reached out, and slowly, carefully, she rested her hand on Celestia's bowed head. "Celestia. You need to know that if you give yourself to me, I won't hold back. There's so much I fantasised about doing to you." She paused to laugh a little, shaking her head. "I swore I'd punish you for giving me a phrase ponies could say in conversation, and I kind of meant it. I can give you a period under me, then let you decide again if you like it, but from what I've seen... what I've felt, being under the charm is kind of addictive. If you don't step back now, you might not be able to later."

"Ten years. If it will make you feel less conflicted, Twilight, you may promise to free me and ask again, then." A smile tugged at her lips. "When you do this, you will be ultimately responsible for the life and happiness of every pony in Equestria. I will enjoy my holiday from responsibility, and if it becomes too much for you, you can ask me to take charge again. Now take what you fought so hard for."

How did Celestia keep making losing seem like winning? Twilight drew herself to her full height, several inches higher than she remembered. The sun shone down upon the two of them, glowing warmly on Celestia's pure white skin, and Twilight was suddenly aware of the wide, wide landscape beyond the balcony, encompassing the city, the forests and towns beyond, stretching all the way to the far-off boundaries of the beautiful, tranquil land that sheltered so many.

She nodded.

"Obey your Empress."

Author's Notes:

We made it.

It's wonderful to have gotten here at last, the secrets revealed, the cards on the table. It's been a long, sometimes stressful journey from Canterlot Castle and back again. Twilight found out the true origin of the charm, and defeated its maker, gathering a devoted stable of adoring pets and becoming a Princess along the way. Under New Management is finished.

Still, even though the conflict between Celestia and Twilight is over, I'm not quite done. Twilight has a whole new life to explore. I'm going to spend a little time exploring what comes next, with a few chapters devoted to the last mini-arc: Consequences.

Next time: The Training of Princess Celestia.

-

Proofed by Setokaiva, who has been tireless in helping improve Friendship is Mind Control, and is just all-round fantastic.