--------- Finale ---------

Lily stood on the shore, the wind whipping her fiery red curls off of her shoulders. She groaned and rubbed her eyes before returning them to the distant horizon.

"Hey." Twilight said softly. Lily glanced at her with a soft smile before turning back to the slowly setting sun.

"Couldn't sleep."

"Yeah, me either..."

"The kids?"

"Sleeping peacefully."

"Good..." They both stood side-by-side, looking out over the breaking waves, the sun painting the ocean a fiery, deep gold... Like the flames of a new world setting fire to everything they ever held dear. Burning it away to nothing.

"Lily?" Twilight said softly... There was hurt in her voice... Smoothly, Lily took Twilight's hand in her own. The words Twilight spoke next made Lily shiver.

"Are... Are we going to be okay?"

The only sound for a few very long moments was the sound of the waves breaking on the shore. The wind rustling through the waist-high grass. Whistling in their ears. To Lily, it was deafening.

"Twilight," She said at last, heaving a sigh. "I don't know. I really don't." She turned to Twilight, her face blank of emotion for a few moments. Twilight's throat contracted as she swallowed. "But..." Lily squeezed her hand with a wide smile. The kind that lit up the day more than the setting sun.

"I know I wouldn't try with anyone else. I love you, Twilight. If I didn't just spend four hours pulling two children out of you, I don't know what the definition of love is." Twilight laughed at that. They both did. Standing on the edge of the dying world, holding one another close, the two women laughed their cares away.

"Come on, Lily." Twilight said softly. "I'm starving." Holding hands, they turned their backs on the fiery ocean and made their way back to the house sitting on the edge of the clearing. Together, they ascended the steps, into the living room. Their makeshift bed still sat on the floor, both children snoozing peacefully as they lay on the floor. Lily smiled down at them. Two serene, beautiful faces. Completely oblivious to everything around them. Twilight went ahead, leaving Lily standing over them.

"What do you want to eat?" Twilight called to her.

"Anything." Lily fought to keep from choking as she said that single word. As Twilight began busying herself with the meal, Lily slowly sank to the floor. Shakily, her hands reached out to each of the children, her fingers quivering visibly... Hesitantly, she touched her fingertips to the soft skin on Melody's forehead.

She was warm. Very warm. This poor, fragile little thing, just a lump of flesh and bone and blood. Underdeveloped. Fragile. Weak. If Chrysalis saw them, she'd more than likely stomp on their skulls and be done with it. If Lily were younger, and still loyal to her queen, she might have done the same...

But now... In ten short years...

Lily, highest lieutenant of the changeling army, most powerful being to walk the face of Equestria save the queen herself, ruthless, heartless, brutal Liliana...

Wept.

Tears spilled unabated from her face as she cried, her shaking fingers tenderly caressing the soft skin on Melody's forehead.

"Lily?" Twilight said quietly, seemingly coming from nowhere. She sunk down next to her love, running a hand over her back. "You okay?" Lily choked and sniffled, managing a nod as she pulled her hand away. She turned into Twilight's gentle embrace, weeping into her lover's hold.

"I'm sorry," She muttered, wiping tears away. "Just... A lot to absorb... Still."

"Want to talk about it?" Twilight always had a way of dragging an answer from her... They slipped up onto a nearby couch, still holding one another as Lily fought to find the words to say.

"It's just... Well, I'll start from the beginning." Lily sniffled and picked her head up, wiping away the last few tears. "I am not a kind person, Twilight... I've done things that some of the darkest and most depraved people would call tame." The memory of what she did in Trottngham came to her then. The memory of the blood, of the broken bodies... She shuddered before shaking them off. Best not to describe it to Twilight. At least, not in detail... "Ajax and I did things that still give me nightmares. They didn't back then, but they do now. Hell... Everything does now..." She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose, dark memories flowing fast and free.

"What did you do in Trottingham...?" Twilight asked quietly. Lily looked at her with wide eyes, shocked.

"How did you know...?"

"I may have been young, but the killings were all over the news, Lily..." Twilight said softly. "I never knew that was you and Ajax... What... What did you two do?" Lily swallowed, suddenly VERY embarrassed about her past.

"We were on assignment from Chrysalis..." Lily decided to give her the abridged version. "She wanted us to study Naga. You remember, right?" Twilight nodded as the memory returned... A long three days, locked magic, and MANY orgasms... Lily had had to resort to shifting to a form she seldom if ever used to reign twilight in. "Well, we were in Trottingham studying the texts. It was the one and only library that had any sort of clue we could use to shift into an extinct species... Ajax and I spent a whole year impersonating one person or another... Each time we were found out, we killed who we were staying with and moved on. Sometimes it was Ajax... Sometimes it was..." Lily shook her head and tried to move on...

"We killed seventeen families in a year. We tried to look for couples... Young married people, elderly, or very small families... Mostly with infants." Lily could FEEL Twilight tense next to her as she spoke. But she didn't stop. "All-in-all, we killed forty-seven people in Trottingham." Lily fought the bile that threatened to rise up her throat. To her surprise, Twilight pulled away.

"What are you-"

"I'm sorry, Lily..." Twilight said softly, shaking her head. "I... I need a minute." Then she was gone. A brief flash of purple magic, and she was gone. Lily was left alone, sitting on the couch, tears spilling from her eyes.

-----------------

She found Twilight an hour later, sitting on the beach. She saw her from a distance, and Twilight hadn't seen her yet. Lily struggled with going to meet her on the sand and continue talking, but instead, she left her there... Lily needed to straighten her thoughts as well. Padding back to the house in the steadily-falling night, Lily had no more tears left to cry. She mounted the steps on the creaking porch, and went to lay next to the children. In a moment like this, Lily felt like she needed some counseling... The link came to life, and she was caught in the midst of a VERY heated argument.

She fucking KILLED Him, AJ! How the hell do you think I can forgive that?!

Because you love her.

I don't know about that anymore....

Don't say that. You love her, and you know it. Don' deny it.

How can you love the person who murdered your uncle?

Lily froze. They had to have felt her. She was in the link. But Twilight continued ranting. Raving, really...

She and that other changeling... What was his name?

Ajax.

Ajax. They spent a whole year in Trottingham killing couples, going from home to home, murdering as they went! Over forty people! Dead! FUCKING DEAD! The words hit her in the gut over and again. Lily curled up on the floor, listening to Twilight's thoughts pour into her mind through the link. Each one like a lance through her heart.

Calm down, sugar-

I WON'T! SHE FUCKING KILLED HIM! Do you have ANY idea how long we spent looking for the killer? Do you know the time and tears we WASTED on it?! She was crying now. Lily could feel it. Her mind sank with the depression Twilight was suffering.

And for what? So Chrysalis could add another mask? So Lily could become more powerful than she was? So Ajax could... Could... Have fun?!

You know it isn't like that, Twilight... Fluttershy. That was over ten years ago... Longer, even... Lily's a different person now. Much different. You know just as well as we do...

I doubt that very much

Hey! Dash now... She sounded angry. That's unfair, Twilight! You know better than ANY of us what Lily is really like... You've seen her at moments no other person ever has, or ever will. Go back to your home, Twilight. Look at what you two did. Look at your children's faces and tell me that you don't love her any more.

Lily's changed a whole lot, sugar... You cain't say she's the same anymore. Rarity wouldn't have given her the element if she didn't feel the same way. An' I don' think you two would have done what you did if she was this... Cold killer y'all are sayin' she is... Relief flowed through Lily's mind as her friends started sticking up for her. Still, she curled on the floor of the living room, praying she could just go a little longer without being-

Twi.

Y-yeah?

She's here. Lily sniffled and struggled to sit up, to put her back against the couch...

Twilight, I-

Shut up. Twilight went dark on the link, but not before appearing in the living room before her. Lily looked up at her with wide, bloodshot eyes.

Twi? Wh-where'd you g- Lily shut off the link, but only because Twilight had her hair gripped in a firm fist. There was no magic. Twilight didn't need it. Her skinny little body, fueled by anger and rage, dragged a screaming Lily out of the house. Down the steps, each one feeling like a hammer against her hips, out into the grassy front yard, and into the waist-high grass. Twilight deposited her there, huffing from the exertion.

"Twilight, I-"

"I SAID SHUT UP!" Twilight screamed. Back in the house, the children began crying. "SHUT UP! JUST SHUT UP!" Twilight sobbed, tears streaming fast and free down her face. Her hands erupted in a pure, purple essence of magic, gripping Lily in a powerful hold. Lily's head was wrenched upwards, her neck exposed. She gasped in pain and discomfort. Not the pleasurable kind, either... Quite the opposite, in fact. Lily broke out in a cold sweat as Twilight raised her other hand. Her magic began to grow thinner... Sharper... Twilight held in her hand a blade of pure power, shining and glowing. It looked solid. Dense. Lily knew, this was the kind of magic that could end kingdoms.

"Twilight." Lily whimpered, swallowing. Her throat brushed the edge of the blade. It was so thin, even that small bit of pressure opened her skin. "Please..." She trembled, still crying. Her tears hissed as they dripped onto the blade Twilight held.

"Apologize." Twilight growled. The next words Lily spoke were the hardest of her life.

"I will not."

Lily was damned when Twilight didn't cut her throat then and there. Instead, her voice cracked with suppressed rage.

"Why." It wasn't a question. It wasn't a request. It was a demand. For an explanation.

"Because I remember him." Twilight's eyes widened slightly. "More than all the others, I remember him the most..." The blade lowered half an inch. Still there, still humming with her power... Still just as deadly as ever. The dark sky rumbled as it began to rain... "So help me, Twilight, I remember him... I remember his eyes. His purple, brilliant eyes. They looked up at me as I did it..." Lily cried now, harder than ever. Her entire body shook with the power of her sobs, shaking and convulsing in Twilight's magic as she cried. "He haunts me the most! I see his face every time I dream, every time I remember that night! Damnit, Twilight, tell me his name!" She whimpered and cried, shaking in midair. "I want to know the name of the man I killed..." She sobbed and fought to bring her tears under control. "I want to know the name of the man who never feared me..." Lily closed her eyes, tears spilling from her lids.

"So kill me. Cut my throat and be done with it." She sighed. "Send me to my grave outside the home our children lie in. I'll be the first to admit, I deserve it. More so than anything else, I deserve this... But please. Tell me the name of the man..."

Minutes passed. The rain hissed as it evaporated on Twilight's magic. The sound of the pure, undiluted power she wielded overpowered even the sound of the falling rain. Lily's hair matted to her head and neck as she dangled there, completely and utterly helpless.

She could have shifted. She could have become a naga and defended herself. She could have become an Ursa Minor and ran away. She could have done one of a number of things...

But...

What kind of a person would that make her?

"Eclipse." Twilight said softly. The hum of her magic was replaced by the sound of the torrential rain all about them. Lily slumped to the ground, looking up at Twilight with wide eyes. "His name... Was Eclipse." Twilight looked down at her, sad as ever. Her purple eyes brimmed with tears. "And he was the last to bear the oath the Sparkle family held... With his death, my father was named heir to the Sparkle line." Twilight slowly sank to her knees. "Because he died, I..." She sobbed audibly. "I..."

Lily never heard what she said next.

---------------------

Months passed. They seldom spoke, slept with their backs turned to one another, and spent more than a few days in utter silence. When one would enter the link, the other would leave. It was Tuesday in early December when Twilight spoke the first full sentence to Lily, almost half a year later.

"What happened to us?" She asked softly. Lily had been washing dishes. Now, she set the plate she had been scrubbing down, looking out the window above the sink. The cold grey sky looked like snow, but Lily knew it would just be rain. It was always rain. This late in the season... She picked the plate back up and kept scrubbing at a stubborn spot.

"I don't know..." She responded quietly, trying to make a show of focusing on the spot.

"Lily, we discovered a sort of magic that the entire world hasn't seen in thousands of years." Twilight continued quietly. "We gave birth to two children using that magic... Something that NO ONE in the history of... Well... EVER... Has ever been able to do... So... Why are we like this now? What happened to us?" Lily set her plate aside and dried her hands, her eyes closed as she tried to swallow the lump in her throat.

"Apparently," She muttered softly. "It's because I'm a heartless killer with no room for compassion in my heart." Lily crossed her arms beneath her breasts and stared at the floor, waiting for Twilight's response.

"Maybe you were..." Twilight finally said quietly. "But I doubt that's the case anymore..."

"Why the change of heart? Six months ago, you were ready to cut my throat for that same fact." Lily's tone was cold. She kind of felt bad for saying it, but at the same time, it was the truth... At least, she thought it was... Twilight was dark on the link. No one would know the shift in her emotions at that moment...

"I'd be lying if I said that wasn't a dark time for me." Twilight shivered. "Probably the worst I've ever felt... Ever..." She sniffled and wiped a tear away. "Worse than when Rarity died... I... I wasn't myself." Lily didn't have a response. So she let Twilight continue. "I just... Lost it... Eclipse dying was probably some of the worse news I've ever had in my life... It wasn't too long before I moved to Ponyville, though... Rumor has it Eclipse was the last one to..."

"Twilight, you don't have to say it if you don't want to." Lily said quietly. This had been the point Twilight had stopped at six months ago, the night she tried to kill her... Twilight shook her head and tried to continue, fighting with her words. She paused often, struggling with what to say, how to say it...

"Rumor has it that Eclipse... Was the last person... To study the magic of friendship..."

Lily let the news process in her mind for a few minutes. She struggled to wrap her mind around what all that entailed...

"Wait, that means..." Twilight nodded as Lily connected the dots. The purple-haired magi finished her thought for her.

"If Eclipse hadn't died, I wouldn't have studied the magic of friendship. I wouldn't have moved to Ponyville. I wouldn't have met all the others, and I most definitely wouldn't have met you... I wouldn't have found the elements of harmony, I wouldn't have been able to stop Nightmare Moon, I wouldn't have had the ability to stop Discord... A lot of things changed for me when Eclipse died... Most importantly, though..." Twilight shivered visibly. Lily swallowed hard. "Because Eclipse died, I had to leave Celestia..."

"Was it really that bad?" Lily asked. There was no sarcasm in her voice. She was truly sincere. Twilight sighed and hugged herself.

"It really was... As soon as I became her student, Celestia was... She was like... I don't know. More than a teacher. She was a friend. A mentor. More of a mother to me than my own was sometimes..."

"That's harsh..."

"Like your mother was any better." They both shared a nervous laugh before Twilight continued.

"She was, admittedly, my mistress as well... More strict and rough than you were, but it was what I needed... Well, not needed, but I sure as hell liked it..." Twilight sighed wistfully. Lily's smile still hadn't faded. It felt like they were coming back to some sense of normalcy now... Like it used to be. "I was so upset, though, when I had to leave... To me, it was much more than feeling like I was being sent away or anything like that... I was just on the verge of a breakthrough with Nightmare Moon, feeling stressed and neglected, and just..." She sighed. "It was probably the hardest thing I've ever had to do. I didn't really have a choice. I mean... It was CELESTIA asking me. She's not just my mistress, or my teacher... She's my monarch. I couldn't really say no, could I? I guess, finding out that you were the one behind it... I just kind of... Lost it."

"Kind of?" Lily teased, nudging Twilight. It was the first contact they had intentionally had in six months. It felt warm. Twilight smiled at her, flushing with embarrassment.

"Okay, a lot... And I'm sorry, Lily... I really am."

"I should be the one apologizing..."

"No, don't... You were right..." Twilight sighed, smoothly finding Lily's hand. They twined their fingers together gently, smiling at one another. "If it didn't happen, then a lot of other things wouldn't have come to fruition... If it didn't happen, I never would have met the others, or stopped Nightmare Moon, or... Or... Well, a lot of things." Twilight sighed and rubbed her eyes, smiling back up at Lily once again.

"I was a different person back then, Twilight." Lily said gently. "I really was... So much has changed since then. And, admittedly, I owe it to you and the other five for it all. It was that year in Ponyville that changed me..." Lily sighed and pulled Twilight up out of her chair, into a gentle hug. Twilight easily fell into the embrace, both of them hugging one another for a few long moments.

"I know... Both of us have changed a lot." Twilight said gently, her hands clutching Lily's shirt. The hug was slowly turning more desparate, the first real contact they had had in a long, long time... Lily sighed into the embrace, feeling relaxed and comforted all together. "I mean... If we can overcome... THAT... What we just did, then... I don't think there's anything we can't do..." Twilight chuckled. Lily snickered and then both of them devolved into a happy, gut-rolling sort of laughter. Clutching one another, they laughed and wiped tears of mirth away. Finally, the laughter died, and they caught one another's eyes. Lily stared deep into Twilight's purple eyes, Twilight stared back into Lily's...

The bed met them before the next thought came to Lily's mind. Gasping softly, Lily's lips were soon invaded by Twilight's. The slender magi straddled her, their bodies pressed tight together. They were gone now, completely oblivious to anything else. Clothes were soon stripped away in the heat of the moment. Lily and Twilight's hands were a flurry of motion, grabbing, stripping, and generally just trying to get one another bare... It didn't take long. Not long at all... They broke the heated kiss for just a moment, and only so they could strip shirts off. From there, they never broke for more than a shaky breath or a kiss to be pressed to the neck, along the other's jawline.

"Haah..." Twilight groaned as Lily dug her fingernails into her soft sides, making the magi writhe atop her love. The devious smile she got in return only urged Lily onward. She slid her hand up, dragging white lines along Twilight's flesh. Twilight gasped and threw her head back, her bared chest thrusting outward in that moment. Lily seized the opportunity to firmly wrap her lips around Twilight's nipple, giving the flesh a gentle nibble. "Lily!" Twilight gasped. "E-easy... You forget I'm-"

"It's okay." Lily said softly. "I don't mind the taste..." She sucked gingerly, ignoring the liquid, focusing more on the pleasure she was granting her love. Her one love.

Her true love.

Twilight whimpered and ran a hand into Lily's fiery red curls, stroking and massaging her scalp. Lily groaned and sucked a little harder, her fingers riding low on the hem of Twilight's shorts. Enough of the messing around... Lily pushed at the fabric, very clumsily removing Twilight's shorts. The magi adjusted, swinging a leg out so she could get rid of the last bit of clothing between Lily and her goal.

"Shaved?" Lily teased with an arched eyebrow. Twilight blushed. SO damn cute...

"It was getting annoying..." She admitted. Lily smiled and rested the palm of her hand against Twilight's entire crotch, cupping her hot sex tenderly.

"I like it..."

"Hnn..." Twilight groaned as Lily's fingers pressed into her flesh, exploring and probing her soft, tender folds...

"A lot..." Lily pressed her lips back into Twilight's breast, seizing the opportunity to switch places. Twilight stretched out underneath Lily, her legs parted just enough... "Ready?" Lily asked softly. Twilight nodded, her lip slowly drawn inbetween her teeth. Smooth, easy, and gentle, Lily bent a single finger, and moved her way in...

"Ooohh..." Twilight groaned softly, her form relaxing atop the sheets. Lily smiled and slid the rest of her finger in, not moving or pressing against anything yet, just letting Twilight feel her. The magi responded in kind, exhaling a shuddering breath. Her hands fell to the sheets, and as Lily began to gingerly slide out, she twisted them into her fists. "So long..." Twilight managed to whimper, making Lily smile as she pressed a tender kiss into the magi's flat, twitching stomach.

"Too long," She affirmed, smiling up at the panting magi. "Far too long for comfort... Let it go, Twilight." She said softly. "Let it all go."

"Aahh!" Twilight gasped as Lily slid a second finger inside of her, finally testing the magi's elasticity. She flexed them both in opposite directions, spreading Twilight apart, REALLY letting her feel it now... "Lily, I'm..."

"Already?" She teased. Twilight nodded and writhed atop the bed, twisting the sheets as her hips squirmed seductively. Lily shrugged. They had time. With a gentle touch, she slid out and spun Twilight's swollen clitoris in a quick circle, pushing her love over the edge.

"AAHN!" Twilight gasped and cried out with a clipped breath, her entrance pulsing visibly as the orgasm flooded her veins. Lily smiled and slowly brought her down, still rotating her clit slowly, keeping the pleasure a soft, gentle constant... "Ooohh..." She groaned, relaxing at last into the sheets. "WAY too long..." She and Lily shared a look, Twilight's expression rather blissful.

"My turn?" Lily asked, pulling away. She stood up onto her knees, her fingers working at the hem of her jeans. The zipper slid down slowly, even as Twilight's eyes lingered on Lily's flat, toned stomach... At long last, the magi nodded, gnawing on her lip still. Lily pushed her panties down along with the jeans, kicking both of them off the edge of the bed. Seductively, she sunk down to her rear, her knees together as she watched Twilight struggle with her desire... "Like what you see?" She teased, smiling deviously...

"Very much..." Twilight whimpered. Lily glanced down the magi's bare body, to the spot inbetween her legs. Twilight's hand had not been idle in the absence of her love's... She played with herself shamelessly, watching the erotic display before her eyes.

"How much is very much?" Lily's voice was husky with seduction. It worked. Twilight groaned and stopped her gentle ministrations, rolling up onto her hands and knees.

"Enough to pin you down if I have to." Twilight growled, low and eager. She crawled across the bed towards the changeling, her eyes flashing with desire and lust. Lily didn't resist as Twilight pushed her down, using one hand to spread her knees apart. "Relax." Twilight urged, pulling one of Lily's thighs up over her shoulder. Lily had no choice but to oblige as the first hot breath against her crotch came with a teasing, quick lick.

"Oooh..." Lily laid back, her eyes closing so she could focus... Twilight's hot breath washed over her entire middle as the magi set to her task eagerly, her tongue sliding up and down Lily's dripping slit. Now it was Lily's turn to twist the sheets into her fists... The thought idly passed her mind that she was going to have to replace the sheets thanks to the wrinkles alone, not to mention what was bound to be spilled...

"AH!" Lily gasped as Twilight's lips pulled her clitoris inbetween her teeth, flicking it rapidly back and forth over the hard surface. She shuddered, her thighs jerking with the sudden convulsions. "T-twilight!" She whimpered, back arching underneath the magi's expert touch. "Th-that's... Ooh! AH!"

"Hmm..." That gentle vibration didn't just push Lily over the edge... It might as well have launched her into the void, a freefall into the abyss of pleasure.

Lily was almost thankful she didn't have a parachute.

"Ppbth!" Twilight sputtered as Lily released a stream of clear fluid, choking on the sudden invasion of her mouth. Not that Lily was even aware of what was happening... Her body was quivering as she came, jerking and shuddering underneath Twilight's expert touch. The flood of juice soaked into the sheets underneath her rear (and even a foot or two away) as Twilight watched the whole display. The purple-haired magi couldn't stop the descent of her hand at the erotic display...

"F-fuck..." Lily gasped as she recovered, her eyes blinking unevenly as she fought to comprehend the situation slowly piecing itself together around her... The large dark spot underneath her, the sound of Twilight's pleasure as she twisted and played with her own clit, the motions of her uncoordinated muscles.

"That long?" Twilight groaned, smiling down at her with a dripping mouth.

"S-since a few days before that night..." Lily admitted. She just hadn't felt it before then... Six months was a long time for anyone to go without release. Let alone someone with a libido like hers...

"It shows..."

"Shut up and kiss me." Lily pulled Twilight down, wrapping her legs and arm around the magi smoothly. Their lips met heatedly, kissing and undulating together. The taste of her own orgasm lingered on Lily's lips as she slowly rolled on top, Twilight stretched out underneath her. Lily pulled away, a thin stream of saliva connecting their mouths for a few moments. Smooth and easy, she spun around, pushing her head inbetween Twilight's readily-spread legs. Her hips hovered above Twilight's face, her shining slit still dripping a little...

Both women set in on one another eagerly, licking and kissing, teasing, nipping, and doing all they could to express six months of absence, sorrow, and desparation... Each simple motion felt amplified by about seven, and when Lily reached her next orgasm, Twilight didn't pull away... Whimpering and kissing her core still, Twilight came upon her next orgasm within moments. Lily licked through it, the juices covering her chin and face, even as Twilight shuddered and gasped.

"F-fuck..." Twilight's moan mirrored Lily's from earlier, only slightly more husky...

"Good?" Lily teased, sitting up. She looked down at Twilight's form underneath hers, the slight sheen of sweat on her taut skin.

"Very good..." Lily took a few moments to adjust, straddling Twilight the right way now. Saliva and feminine cum mixed as they kissed once more, tongues tangling and wrestling for a few moments. Twilight's hands raised slowly, pulling Lily down for a firm embrace. There wasn't a single inch of their bodies that wasn't neglected... Lily pressed as close as she possibly could, kissing with the suppressed emotions of six months spent without so much as a kiss from the woman she truly loved. When the kiss broke, though, it wasn't without a breathy proposal.

"Round two?"

----------------

"Hey." Twilight stepped up to Lily's side. Both women were nude after the intense session, though it had been over for about six hours. Lily nursed a cup of coffee with her hands, though she spared one to pull Twilight into a gentle hug.

"Couldn't sleep either?" She asked, smiling as she kissed Twilight's cheek. The magi shook her head and nuzzled into Lily's neck, leaning against her. In the dark pre-dawn, both women looked out over the grassy meadow towards the black ocean. Off to the east, the sun was just now turning the horizon from a midnight black to a deep purple, and overhead, the countless stars shined in their magnificent, dark glory... Luna had painted a truly beautiful night, despite...

"Worried about the war?" Twilight asked quietly. Lily nodded and set her coffee aside, holding Twilight closer.

"We're so far away from it all... But is it far ENOUGH?" Lily mused... She sighed and turned around on the porch, towards the north. "We've got miles of trackless forest, Appleoosa, and an army between us and them. But somehow, I just don't feel..." She shivered slightly. "Safe." Twilight pressed against her side, giving her a warm hug.

"Don't worry about it, Lily... I think if the past year or so together has taught us anything, it's that we can do extraordinary things... Things that no one had ever considered before." She sighed and found Lily's hand, squeezing their fingers together. "I love you, Lily. That is what really matters. That's all that matters, if Celestia's book has anything to say about this..." Lily sighed again and pulled Twilight close. Together, they turned back to the south, their eyes taking in everything...

The immense, dark ocean, almost indiscernible from the starry sky... The slightly redder tinge of the rising sun... The soft swishing of the long grass in the slight breeze... It all came together to paint a picture Lily hoped she would never grow tired of seeing. She squeezed Twilight's hand again, voicing one last doubt in her mind.

"Somehow..." She said softly. "I get the feeling this is just the beginning..."