Celestia set Silver down on her hooves. "Do you think I truly don't care how you feel?"

Silver tilted her head at Celestia a little. "You make it easy to think that, but it's hard to hold that thought when we're face-to-face like right now. I wonder a little when you seem eager to taunt me."

Celestia brought in her wings, tickling Silver along her sides gently. "I do care. I want you to be happy, which is why I acted as I have. I want all of my little ponies to be happy."

Silver wriggled in the tickling, trying to swallow back the giggles, but they escaped in fits and starts. "You don't run around trying to help every pony out there. Why focus on me? I'm not that special. I'm not even the only human turned pony. How is she, by the way?"

Celestia sighed gently. "Testing me, as all humans seemed destined to do. She is a good pony, and wishes to remain that way. Now that she is considered an adult as a pony, she is claiming the right to decide her own destiny."

Silver tilted her head. "If she is happy, and being good, why not let her?"

Celestia smiled gently. "Perhaps I am overthinking this." She stroked down Silver's back with her wings, making Sliver shudder. "You are also a good pony. I heard of your struggles in the Crystal Empire."

Silver flipped her ears back. "I... did what I could. They're good people. No one deserves to be torn apart like that."

Celestia nodded slowly. "You made a spell for Cadance and Shining Armor. They say it was very rough around the edges, but it worked admirably." She raised Silver's muzzle up to face her directly. "Will you help Twilight as well?"

Silver looked away from Celestia. "Questions like that make me wonder how well you know me..."

Celestia leaned in, nose-to-nose with Silver. "I thought you said you wanted us to ask more, instead of assuming?"

Silver let an immature impulse get the better of her and raised a hoof, resting it on Celestia's nose in a boop. "I did say that. I will do everything I can to help Twilight. She is a wonderful soul. Aren't you mad that I made such a destructive spell? I thought I'd be hearing more about that."

Celestia brought her wings out wide. "One, my little pony, you made it and gave it to the highest authority in the land. You did not use it yourself. Two, it was used in defense of innocent life. Three, it was destroyed afterwards. Four, it only harmed shadow creatures, not any ponies."

Silver gave a slow nod, then a thought came to her and she sat up straight. "I asked Cadance once, but I'll ask you. You're more powerful and wise, in your own way."

"Yes?"

Silver pointed down at her lower belly with a hoof. "Can you do a birth blessing of any kind?"

Celestia's face brightened, seeming to make the entire room brighten along with it. "It has been many years since a heavy mare asked for that. I knew you would be a fine mare." Before Silver could object, Celestia rolled her over onto her back and leaned in. Celestia gently kissed the swell of new life and Silver gasped loudly. Golden light flowed from Celestia's snout into Silver, filling her body with an intense heat. "May you enter motherhood with all the grace of the sun."

Silver rolled up to her haunches, panting as the heat washed through her. It was intense, but it also felt good in some alien way. "The sun is... not very graceful, but thank you." She flashed a fanged smile. "Mother or father, this child is mine, and I want the best for them."

Celestia softly snorted. "Are you calling me clumsy?" She smirked with a jesting expression. "You should go. I have other business to tend to."

Silver rose up to her hooves and after a final parting exchange with the sun princess, she trotted out into the hallway, practically bumping into Twilight on the way. "There you are! Come on, let's get going." Twilight grabbed Silver in her magic and was soon trotting out of the castle with her passenger. "I hope the discussion went well? You look happy."

Silver hugged Twilight's neck as they took off and began sailing towards Ponyville. "Yes, I think it did. I... still think Celestia is dangerously out of touch with the ponies she loves, but she really does love them."

Twilight swiveled an ear back at Silver. "What makes you say that? She's always been so kind and understanding whenever I've seen her."

Silver gently nudged Twilight with a hoof. "Which is why she didn't tell you for the entire time between the return of the Crystal Empire to your solving of Star Swirl's last spell that she was preparing you quite immediately for being an alicorn?"

Twilight's flight became a bit wobbly. "What? She knew for that long? How?"

Silver sighed out gently. "I saw it, in the show. When you left to go to the Crystal Empire, she was speaking to Luna about your being prepared for 'the next level'. She knew exactly what she was doing, but never shared it with you, even after it was done."

Twilight's expression darkened. "It was... for the best. She didn't want to worry me. I would have... freaked out..."

Silver hugged Twilight gently from on top of her. "You deserved the chance to freak out a little. It was a big deal. You died, Twilight."

Twilight shuddered in a wave of small spasms. "Don't say that!"

Silver shook her head. "I saw it. The girls eradicated you. Celestia gave you a new body."

Twilight shook her entire body back and forth in denial, making Silver clutch tightly for dear life. "Don't say that!"

Before either could argue the point further, a bolt of magic flew up from below. Silver saw it coming. "Incoming!"

Twilight looked around in confusion before she was struck. She was knocked violently off course, and Silver began to fall. As the ground began to speed towards her, Silver prayed that some amount of cartoon physics might help her. Heart thundering, death rushing on her, she couldn't focus well enough to try grabbing herself in her magic. She felt the impact, and all was dark.

"I told you cutie marks bring misery and despair," said a female voice. Silver cracked open an eye, feeling grateful that she was still alive to do that. She was in a very small cage, barely large enough to stand in. She could feel her magic stopped up in her horn. The owner of the voice came into view, smiling gently at her. "Oh you're awake! You're tougher than you look. Just relax there, dear, you've been through so much already."

Silver struggled to sit up. Everything felt sore, but she didn't feel any sharp pains that would imply an outright break. "Who are you?"

The pink pony with purple mane and tail shook her head. "Don't you worry your pretty little head about that." She reached through the bars and stroked Silver along the side. "You poor thing. Nopony told me you were pregnant. You'll be a good little pony, won't you?"

Silver looked around nervously. They seemed to be underground, if the uneven stone wall behind the mare was any hint. She could hear others moving around, but could only see the pony before her. "This will sound cliche as hell, but my friends will find me. Just let me go."

She drew her hoof back and slapped it against the metal bars with a ringing sound. "I think not. That Twilight Sparkle won't stop me a second time. No, you're coming with us. Somepony is paying far too large a sum for your ghastly little cutie mark, extra with your pretty little flank attached."

"Starlight," came a masculine voice. "We're ready to move."

Starlight smiled and reached up, pulling down a cloth covering from above and plunging Silver into darkness. "You stay right there. If you're good, Starlight will come play with you later."

Silver was certain she didn't like the way Starlight said that. She waited a moment for her eyes to adjust to the gloom and began inspecting her surroundings. She found the door, but it was locked with a large keyhole set into it. The keyhole seemed much larger than it needed to be, but that didn't really help much. On a lark, Silver shoved her horn into the hole and tried wiggling her head about, but that accomplished little.

The room jostled, then began to shake back and forth like it was moving. Was she on a wagon? Silver frowned in thought. Her horn was blocked, but she could still channel through her teeth, but that wasn't very useful. Teeth couldn't play unicorn spells! Silver sat up and patted herself down, finding her heart crystal still dangling in place. She batted at it listlessly a moment before an idea came to her. She brought up the crystal to her mouth and touched her teeth to it and focused on her intense helplessness for a moment, then switched to hope. She flipped back and forth for a small while before letting the crystal flop back against her chest. She had no idea if it worked or not, but it couldn't hurt, right?

Author's Notes:

Why can't Silver get a break? Because breaks are boring, I think.

I bet typos could pick that lock.