"Princess!" Yelled a very excited Twilight Sparkle.

"Twilight! How was your trip?" Princess Celestia had to suppress her own excitement at finally seeing her favorite student after so long. She couldn't think of a better way to spend her spare time than by catching up with Twilight.

The last time they had seen each other was just after the wedding between Shining Armor and Princess Cadence. That time, Twilight and her friends had stood their ground against the army of changelings that attacked Canterlot, saved Princess Cadence, and revealed Queen Chrysalis before her plans came to fruition. And before that, they defeated Discord, the spirit of chaos and disharmony. As Princess Celestia and Twilight walked out into the garden, the princess couldn't help but be proud of how far her little filly had come.

Of course, Twilight had long since stopped being a filly. But that didn't stop the Princess from remembering their early years as student and teacher.

"Oh Twilight, I remember the night you got lost in the royal maze, and all the guards got lost looking for you!"

"Princess, please! That was so long ago!" said a very red-faced Twilight.

This was one of Celestia's favorite memories, and not only because her silly guards didn't have the foresight to simply fly over the maze to look for Twilight. She loved this memory because it was one of the first times that Twilight showed her cleverness and problem-solving skills.

"Do you remember how you got out, my little pony?" asked the princess.

"Of course, princess! I was there! I got my bearings from the position of the stars that night, and I headed towards the exit." Twilight recalled with more pride in her voice than she meant to use.

"And what about the time you opened the gates of Tartarus?" Princess Celestia still had night terrors about this story, but she liked to remember it because only the most powerful witches and warlocks had managed to open the gates, and Twilight had done it as a filly.

"Princess, that was an accident! I've apologized at least hundred times! And we managed to rebuild the orphanage!" Twilight was red with embarrassment.

"Oh Twilight...I'll never regret the day you took the entrance exam for my school. I would never have gained such a special, talented student." The princess extended a wing, and Twilight moved in close for a hug she and her mentor shared since she was little.

And just like those old days, the princess levitated the crown off her head and placed it on Twilight's. Celestia could endure months of politics and the royal duties she needed to attend to as ruler of Equestria, as long as she could spend a day with Twilight once in a while. She had filled the void that Luna left for a thousand years, and if anyone could succeed the throne from Celestia, she was confident that Twilight would steer Equestria on the right path, always.

"Oh, Princess! I just remembered! I've been practicing Shining Armor's shield spell! Would you mind?"

"Of course not Twilight, go right ahead." Shining Armor's shield spell was one of the strongest among any Celestia had seen.

In fact, not since Star Swirl the Bearded had Celestia seen a sturdier wall of magic. Celestia wondered if talent for magic just happened to run in Twilight's family, but quickly snapped her attention back to Twilight, who was preparing for the spell. After quick breath, Twilight pointed her horn skyward and shot a beam of magical energy up into the air. It cascaded in every direction, forming a protective barrier around the castle. Celestia was thoroughly impressed with her student's amazing ability for magic. She was so young, and yet she was able to copy her brother's famous defensive spell.

"TWILY, THAT'S AMAZING!" shouted a very familiar-sounding stallion...

"Shining!" Twilight was elated to see her brother, since they hadn't seen each other for several months.

"Where's Cadence?" she asked.

"She wasn't feeling well, so she just went to bed. I guess being heavily pregnant will do that to ya." said Shining, very nonchalantly.

The instant the words left his lips though, Shining Armor wished he knew a time-reversal spell as both Twilight and Her Majesty let loose on the poor horse.

"Are you insane? Don't you know how young she is?!" yelled a very angry sun goddess.

"When were you gonna tell me? Or were you just going to wait until the kid's first birthday to send me an invitation?!" yelled Twilight.

As they unleashed their wrath on him, Shining could swear both his sister and the princess were about to burst into flames, as they usually did when they got this angry.

"Well congratulations, I'm happy for you both." said the princess.

"When is the baby due, Shining?" asked Twilight as if she and the princess hadn't just ripped Shining Armor a new one.

"Uhh...sometime next month." said Shining.

"Oh, I can't wait to be an auntie!" Twilight said giddily.

-

"OK, I've gotta get back to Ponyville now." said Twilight at the train station. "Princess, I'll send you a letter once I'm home."

"Please do Twilight. And remember to keep up with your friendship reports." said the Princess as she hugged Twilight for the last time.

"I will." Twilight replied confidently. "And Shining, if I find out the baby was born from a piece of parchment, I'll hunt you down, you hear me?"

"Loud and clear, little sis." said Shining Armor, a bead of sweat stealthily sliding down the side of his face.

As the train departed, Twilight waved goodbye to her parents, her brother, her pregnant sister-in-law, and of course her teacher. They all parted ways, and Princess Celestia got herself ready for another day of paper-pushing and meetings with foreign ambassadors that would be sure to follow the next morning.

Just as she was recounting her wonderful day with her favorite pupil, a flash of sparkly green smoke came through the window and materialized as a sheet of parchment, obviously the note Twilight promised to send once she had safely returned to Ponyville. Celestia opened the letter expecting Spike's pleasant cursive handwriting with a message from Twilight. But scrawled hastily and incredibly messy, was a message Celestia was barely able to make out:

URSA MJOR ATTCK PNYVIL

TWILIT HURT

HELP!!!