Artemis looked at Twilight “Let’s go to my room. It’s going to be more comfortable for me to check on the Dream Realm there. As for you, I’m not sure if you’ll be able to sleep but you should relax.”

Twilight nodded as they walked out of the throne room. Steel Night and Midnight Fang followed them as the four of them headed to Artemis’ room. The two guards stayed in the hallway as Artemis and Twilight went inside.

Artemis walked into his bathroom while Twilight climbed into bed. A couple of minutes later, he walked back into the room and saw Twilight laying in his bed, shaking slightly. He climbed in next to her and pulled her close. Immediately, she snuggled closer and nuzzled him before closing her eyes. He returned her nuzzle and held her tight until she stopped shaking. Only then did he close his eyes and enter the dream realm. There were a few foals having nightmares but only one of them was severe. He decided to enter that one first.

Artemis entered the nightmare to find that he was in back the throne room. Looking in front of him, he saw that Silver Spark was lying next to Twilight and sobbing. Walking closer, Artemis quickly discovered why. W-what?! N-no, it can’t be! We protected her!

Calm down, Artemis, she’s fine. Remember, you’re in the dream realm.

Artemis lifted his head in surprise as he heard Night’s voice, before letting out a sigh of relief. I-it’s not real, it’s just a nightmare. He told himself, as he looked down at a bloodied version of the mare he loved that wasn’t moving or breathing. Wanting to get rid of the image as fast as possible, Artemis lit his horn. The entire scene faded as he moved closer to Silver Spark and dropped down next to him.

Silver Spark looked up as Artemis draped a wing over him and pulled him into a hug. “P-prince Artemis?” he asked, trying to wipe the tears from his eyes

“Yes, Silver Spark, it’s me” Artemis replied, nuzzling him “You’re alright, you were just having a nightmare.”

“R-really?” Silver Spark sniffed, looking over at where Twilight had been lying a moment ago. “B-but-”

Artemis hugged him tighter “Shh, I promise you that Twilight is alright. You saw her less than an hour ago, remember?”

“A-are you sure Princess Twilight’s OK?”

“Yes” Artemis answered “She’s resting for a while before she goes to sleep.” Suddenly, Artemis raised his head and closed his eyes for a moment. “Actually, she just fell asleep. If you want, I can bring her into your dream for a couple of minutes before I send her into hers.”

Silver Spark looked up at him “R-really? You can do that?”

Artemis nodded “Would you like me to bring her in?”

Silver Spark nodded rapidly “Yes, please!”

Artemis smiled and lit his horn. Twilight appeared a few feet away, looking around in confusion.

Silver Spark ran over and looked up at her with tears in his eyes. “P-princess Twilight! Y-you’re OK!”

Twilight looked down at him, even more confused. “Um, yes?” She sat down and hugged Silver Spark, trying to calm him, before looking up at Artemis. “What’s going on?” she asked

Artemis lit his horn again, merging Silver Spark’s dream with Orchid Rain’s.

Orchid Rain looked around in surprise as her dream suddenly changed. In front of her, she saw Prince Artemis, Princess Twilight and her son. She noticed that her son was in tears while Princess Twilight was hugging him, trying to calm him. As she walked towards them, she heard Prince Artemis speaking to Princess Twilight.

“I had just entered the dream realm when I found a severe nightmare.” Artemis said “It appears that Silver Spark was dreaming that Dahlia’s attack was successful. He was lying next to a bloodied version of you that wasn’t moving or breathing and wouldn’t believe that you are alright unless I brought you into his dream. I’ll only keep you here for another minute or so but it was the best way to calm him.”

He looked down at Silver Spark and nuzzled him. “I’m going to change your dream now. Let’s try something fun instead of scary. What would you like to dream about?”

Silver Spark thought for a moment before looking up as Orchid Rain walked over to stand next to him. “Can Mommy come with me to an amusement park?”

Artemis smiled and nodded before lighting his horn. Suddenly, they were surrounded by the largest amusement park that Silver Spark or Orchid Rain had ever seen. The best part was that they had the whole park to themselves.

“I have to send Twilight into her dream now but I’m sure you’ll see her soon.” Artemis told Silver Spark before he nuzzled Twilight and lit his horn. “I’ll visit your dream as soon as I can.” He whispered to her before she vanished.

Artemis looked at Silver Spark and Orchid Rain “There are other foals that are also having nightmares, so I have to leave as well. Before I go, do you have any questions, Orchid Rain?”

She shook her head “I heard what you told Princess Twilight. Thank you for taking care of my son, Prince Artemis.”

“Of course” Artemis replied as he nuzzled Silver Spark “I’ve made it so that neither of you will have any more nightmares tonight.” The last thing he heard as he left the dream was Silver Spark’s laughter. That’s much better than tears.

Twilight opened her eyes to see that she was standing in an open field, staring up at the stars. I wish he was here with me, but he said he’ll come see me as soon as he’s finished taking care of the other foals that are having nightmares. Knowing that she was dreaming and Artemis would never allow her to be harmed here, she lay down before rolling onto her back to watch the stars.

Fortunately for Artemis, the rest of the nightmares for the night were the usual fears of foals. There were a couple of foals that were afraid of the dark. They were too young for him to really talk to them about it. Instead, he made a mental note to visit their dreams as they got older to work with them about these fears. For now, he created fireflies that followed them around as they explored. That taken care of, he checked the dreams of the foals of Equestria once more before turning his attention to Twilight’s dream.

Artemis appeared in Twilight’s dream and smiled as he saw her lying on her back, looking up at the stars.

She smiled up at him. “Are we going to see Sundance and Midnight Armor?” She asked as she rolled over

Artemis shook his head as he walked over, lay next to her and pulled her into his hooves. “Celestia hasn’t seen our parents in six months. Since they’re going to be here for a week, I decided to let them spend some quality time with her tonight.”

Twilight noticed how tight he was holding her and nuzzled him. “Is something wrong?”

He tightened his grip “I-I know it was a dream, but I- just seeing you like that . . .” He shuddered and buried his face in her neck.

Twilight nuzzled him again “What are you talking about?”

Artemis kept his eyes closed, not wanting to see it again, and showed her Silver Spark’s nightmare.

Twilight gasped as she watched the nightmare. So that’s why Silver Spark reacted like that when Artemis brought me into his dream. I know Artemis told me about this, but actually seeing it is something else entirely. She glanced at Artemis If I saw Artemis in that condition, I’d probably be reacting the same way.

She used her magic to raise his head and kissed him. “I know that wasn’t a pleasant thing to see,” she whispered “but it was just a dream, I promise. I wasn’t hurt in the attack, you and Night made sure of that.”

Artemis’ response was to roll them over and pull her into another kiss. This one went on for a minute. I could have lost her, and our foal, in that attack! He shuddered as he briefly allowed himself to think about it. Suddenly, an entirely different emotion overcame him. I-I want my mare. “Twilight” he whispered, before kissing her again.

“N-not here” She panted, moaning as Artemis began kissing her neck. “I-I don’t want to just dream about-” She paused as she saw Artemis light his horn, waking her, before he left the dream realm. They opened their eyes at the same time.

Before he could say anything, Twilight raised her head and pulled him into another long kiss. As it broke, Artemis lit his horn and cast a soundproofing spell around his room. He saw the look on her face and nuzzled her. “I’m going to make sure you’re screaming by the time I’m done.” He whispered, smiling as she blushed. He rolled them over so that she was on her back, with him on top of her, and pulled her into another kiss.

As it broke, she lit her horn and spread his wings before running her magic through them, warming the muscles and cleaning his feathers. After a moment’s thought, she ran her magic over his shoulders and back, warming those muscles as well. She smiled, hearing him gasp in surprise, before moaning as he ran his tongue along her horn. She let out a gasp of her own as he took it into his mouth.

He sucked on her horn for a couple of minutes, enjoying her moans of pleasure, until he felt another wave of warmth move through his wings, shoulders and back. Releasing her horn, he let out his own moan of pleasure before kissing his way down her body. Stopping at her stomach, he nuzzled the spot above her womb. He smiled, hearing a soft sigh from her in response, before lifting his head and giving her another kiss. Moving over her, he pressed his tip against her entrance and paused for a moment, teasing her a little.

She let out a quiet whine, wondering why he stopped, before gasping as he slowly entered her. She moaned softly as she felt him slowly push deeper. After a minute or so, she screamed in pleasure as their hips met and she felt him touch the entrance to her womb. Wings flaring, she pulled him into a kiss.

He returned her kiss and pulled out as slowly as he entered. He slowly thrust in and out of her for a couple of minutes before gradually increasing his speed. As he did, her moans increased in both frequency and volume. When he suddenly sped up, those moans turned into screams. He noticed that her screams were quieter than usual. Looking down, he saw that she was biting on a hoof, trying to muffle her screams of pleasure. Oh no you don’t, I want to hear those screams. Lifting her head, he pulled her into a kiss as he began to thrust faster.

Surprised, she gasped into the kiss before the sudden increase in speed pushed her over the edge. She let out a scream that shook the room.

He smiled as she screamed in pleasure before moaning as her passage began to pulse and contract around him. A couple of thrusts later, his own orgasm hit. He groaned and released his seed before collapsing on top of her, breathing hard. After catching his breath, he opened his eyes and looked down at his mare, seeing that her eyes were closed and her chest was heaving as she panted. I hope she’s ready for another round. He knew that he wouldn’t be able to stand for a few minutes so he rolled them over. He heard her gasp in surprise as she suddenly found herself on top of him. Not give her a chance to ask, he began bucking his hips.

She gasped in surprise as he rolled them over but, before she could say anything, he began thrusting again. Moaning, she held herself to him as tightly as she could. It didn’t take long, only a couple of minutes, for her to reach another peak. The only reason her scream of pleasure didn’t penetrate his soundproofing spell was that she buried her face into his chest. She felt him wrap his hooves around her and hold her tight as he sped up, no longer holding back. His hard and fast thrusts extended her orgasm, making her scream in pleasure.

He felt her second orgasm hit her even before she screamed and, with her face buried in his chest, felt her scream more than he heard it. Noticing how hard she was shaking, he wrapped his hooves around her as he sped up again, unable to hold back. He smiled as her screams of pleasure grew louder and kept thrusting until his second orgasm hit, much harder than the first. With a final thrust into her, he released more of his seed. It spilled back out almost immediately but, not caring about the mess he was making, he pumped more into her.

Between the fact that her womb had their foal growing inside it and her passage had what he had already pumped into her during his first orgasm, she couldn’t take anymore inside her. His second release had nowhere to go and spilled back out. She let out another scream, shaking in pleasure, as he continued pumping anyway.

He heard, and felt, her scream again and hugged her tighter as her body shook from so much pleasure. After his orgasm passed, he relaxed beneath her, panting.

Catching his breath, he kissed her and held her tight, moaning softly as her passage continued to pulse around him. “I love you, Twilight”

Still shaking slightly, she returned his kiss and nuzzled into his chest, enjoying the feeling of him inside her. “I love you, too”

He looked up in surprise as he felt the pull of the moon. “It’s that time already?” Not bothering to move, he lit his horn, lowering his moon and stars.

They lay like that for several minutes, each enjoying the warmth and closeness that came with the fact that he was still inside her, before he nuzzled her. “We should take a bath before we head to breakfast.”

She reluctantly nodded and shifted, letting him slide out of her. After kissing him, she rolled over, got off of the bed and stretched. Then she walked to the door to his bathroom, waiting as he got out of bed and stretched as well.

He joined her at the door to his bathroom before they walked in together. After starting the water, he looked over at her and saw how much of his seed she had covering her backside and hind legs. “That usually fits inside you.” He commented

She stared at him for a moment before she laughed. “Yes, but I have something, actually somepony, growing inside me at the moment. I’m pretty sure I’m far enough along that my womb isn’t allowing anything else inside it until after our foal is born.”

He smiled, very happy to hear her say “our foal”, before walking over to her and pulling her into a long kiss. “Should we stop until after you give birth?”

She shook her head “We may have to when I get big enough, but that probably won’t happen for at least a few months.” She shrugged “We’ll just be making a mess for a while.” She blushed as she looked up at him. “I don’t know about you, but I don’t think I can wait eleven months before we do that again.”

His eyes widened and his breath caught as he heard her response, especially the last part, before he pulled her into another long kiss. When it finally broke, they were breathing heavily as he rested his forehead on hers.

She noticed that the tub was full and nuzzled him before walking into it, laying down in the center. She smiled as he walked in as well and joined her.

For a few minutes, they just relaxed and enjoyed the warm water. Then Artemis lit his horn and brought several bottles of soap and shampoo over to them. Twilight chose the peach scent and began to wash off his seed before moving on to the rest of her body.

Fifteen minutes later, they walked out into the bedroom. Twilight paused at Artemis’ desk to get her saddlebags and the star charts before they went into hallway and headed towards the dining room for breakfast. Steel Night and Midnight Fang fell into step behind them.

Pausing at the door to the dining room, Twilight turned to their guards. “My brother can be tough, especially when it comes to protecting those he cares about or members of the Royal Family that he feels needs to be protected. At the moment, I am both.” She told them “However, I’m sure that you both will pass his test. Artemis trusts you both enough to be his personal guards and has specifically chosen you to protect me, so I’m sure you can handle whatever my brother throws at you.”

Silver Shadow had walked up and waited for his princess to finish speaking. “I was going to give you a pep talk before your test and training with Prince Shining Armor. However, I think Princess Twilight did better than I would have. She clearly believes that you both have what it takes. Do not let her down.”

Steel Night and Midnight Fang looked at each other, eyes wide, before bowing to Twilight and nodding to Silver Shadow.

They all looked up as Celestia walked up to them, carrying Fire Fly’s lesson plans in her magic. He must have altered his lesson plans after they were approved because these are not appropriate for that, or any, class. Ordinarily I’d handle this myself, but I want to see what Twilight does. If I’m right, she’ll scrap these and come up with her own. If that’s what she does, the only one that will be able to approve them on such short notice will be me.

Twilight smiled as soon as she saw the lesson plans. “Good. I want to go over those this weekend so I have an idea of what I need to do on Monday. I’ll give you the star charts. I’m sorry but, with everything that happened yesterday, I wasn’t able to return them to the Archives.” She pulled the star charts out of her saddlebags and levitated them over as Celestia placed the lesson plans in Twilight’s bags.

Celestia took the star charts from Twilight and teleported them to her room. I’ll bring them to the Archives myself because I want to make sure Magic Scrolls won’t start copying them again.

Celestia also smiled and nodded “That’s alright, I’ll return them to the Archives after breakfast.” She turned to her brother. “Good Morning, Artemis. Why didn’t you two join us last night?”

Artemis smiled and nuzzled her “Good Morning, Sister. It had been six months since you last saw them because you didn’t see them when they were here three months ago either. I thought it would be nice for you to have some quality time with them. I wanted it to be just the three of you. Don’t worry, we’ll join you tonight.”

Celestia’s eyes lit up and she returned his nuzzle “Thank you, little brother.” She turned to Twilight and gave her a slight glare “As for you, little sister, I’m not happy that you didn’t inform me of their arrival.”

Twilight ducked her head “I’m sorry, I wanted it to be a surprise. Especially since you didn’t see them the last time they were here and I did.”

Celestia dropped the act and giggled “I know, that’s what they told me” She nuzzled Twilight “Thank you. That was a very nice surprise.” She looked at Artemis and Twilight “Let’s get some breakfast before you two go to Ponyville.”

Twilight sighed in relief as they walked into the dining room.

In the hallway, Steel Night and Midnight Fang looked at each other in confusion.

“What was that about? It sounded like they were having a secret conversation right in front of us.” Midnight Fang asked

Steel Night shook his head “I have no idea”

Silver Shadow shrugged “Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis have conversations like that every three months or so. Everypony around them has absolutely no idea what they’re talking about but nopony bothers trying to ask them what’s going on. Princess Twilight joined in this one and seemed to know what was going on. Who knows, maybe it’s a royalty thing.”

The three of them shrugged and followed the alicorns into the dining room.

Twilight, Artemis and Celestia found Cadance and Shining Armor waiting for them in the dining room.

Twilight glanced at Artemis before turning to Midnight Fang and Steel Night. “You two should go get some sleep. I’m sure my brother can wait until after lunch for his test.” She looked at Shining Armor “Before you protest, Shiny, they were up all night guarding us.”

Artemis nodded “Twilight’s right. I have nothing against you testing my guards, Shining Armor. However, there is little chance that they’d be able to pass, if you test them without allowing them to get some rest first.”

Shining Armor glanced at the guards before nodding as well. “Fair enough. Steel Night and Midnight Fang, meet me on the training grounds at one o clock. Bring your armor but anything else you need will be provided for you during the test.”

Steel Night and Midnight Fang nodded, bowed and left the room. Out in the hall, they turned to each other.

“Thank goodness Princess Twilight said something to her brother.” Midnight Fang said “There’s no way I’ve got the energy to take any kind of test right now.”

Steel Night nodded “I’m glad Prince Artemis spoke up as well. Otherwise, Prince Shining Armor may have just thought our princess was being too nice to us.” He paused “We should meet up around noon and have a light lunch before heading to the training grounds. If we get there early enough, we can stretch and warm up before the test starts. For some reason, I have a feeling that he’s not going to go easy on us.”

“You’re probably right” Midnight Fang replied, nodding “See you then.”

They had arrived at the side entrance to the castle by then, so they spread their wings and headed their separate ways.

In the dining room, Twilight and Artemis ate the pancakes that were placed in front of them. When they were done, everypony headed for the side entrance to the castle.

“How are we traveling, Artemis?” Twilight asked “Are we flying again?”

Twilight was looking up at Artemis so she didn’t see the looks on the faces of Shining Armor, Cadance and Celestia.

Artemis did. Decided not to push their luck, he laughed “Not this time, Twilight. Celestia might kill me if I let you do that. We’ll take a chariot.”

“What? Why?” Twilight asked “I’m almost two weeks into the pregnancy. That’s not far enough along to affect my flight.” She stopped as she saw the expressions on the faces of her big brother and both of her big sisters. “Are you going to restrict everything I do for the next eleven months?”

Celestia was about to say yes but Cadance spoke up first. “No, Twilight. Trust me, I know what it feels like to be restricted like that because everypony did the same to me when I was pregnant. The reaction we’re having right now has more to do with the attack yesterday.”

Twilight sighed “How long will this last?”

“Eleven months” Celestia immediately replied “Maybe twelve”

Twilight glared at her “Remember what I said about me not being made of glass? I gave in to the demand for guards. In fact, after yesterday, I agree that having them around is a good idea. Do not expect me to give in like that every time you ask for something.”

Celestia looked at Twilight, surprised “But-“

“I agree with Twilight, sister. There’s a difference between protecting her and telling her to sit still for a year.” Artemis told Celestia before giving her a look, anticipating her next comment. “And no, you’re not going to put her in a bubble until our foal is born.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow as she looked between Artemis and Celestia. A bubble? Perhaps it’s best if I don’t ask about that. I have a feeling I don’t want to know the answer to that one. She saw the look on Celestia’s face and stepped closer to her. “Should I ask Sundance and Midnight Armor for their opinions as well?” she whispered “I’m pretty sure they don’t want the pony that they’re already calling one of their daughters living in a bubble for any length of time, let alone a year.”

Celestia’s eyes widened as she bent down to Twilight and quietly asked “Mother and Father called you their daughter?”

Twilight nodded “They both did when Artemis and I saw them yesterday.”

Celestia smiled and raised her head. She was so happy that the sun actually shone brighter for a moment. “Very well” She said in a louder voice “I’ll leave these restrictions on you for one week.” She paused, looking at Twilight “That’s the best you’re going to get, Little Sister. Yesterday, you and my little niece or nephew were attacked and could have been killed. There’s no way that I’m going to calm down from that quickly.”

Cadance looked at Shining Armor before both of them nodded. “Aunt Celestia’s right, Twilight. The three of us are in Protective Big Brother and Big Sister mode right now, and probably will be for a while. We’re not going to allow you to do anything that can be even remotely considered dangerous until we’re certain that you, and your foal, will be safe.”

Twilight saw the expressions on their faces and realized that she wasn’t going to be able to convince her big brother and big sisters otherwise. “I can see that there’s no point in trying to reason with you right now.” She sighed in resignation and shook her head before giving them a look, clearly angry. “The three of you are treating me like I’m a foal, instead of carrying one.”

Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor gasped.

Twilight decided that she didn’t want to start an argument so, before they had a chance to respond, she turned and walked outside.

Artemis looked at the door she had just gone through for a moment before he turned to Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor. “Sister, I will ensure that she is careful and stays safe this weekend. However, I want to make something clear.” He fixed the three of them with a glare. “I do not enjoy being forced to treat her like this. Neither of us will be able to relax if I have to tell her that she’s not allowed to do something at every turn, just to keep the three of you happy.” With that said, Artemis followed Twilight outside.

Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor looked at each other.

“They’re right,” Cadance said, ears drooping “we’ve gone overboard.” She saw Celestia open her mouth, about to protest, and shook her head. “Aunt Celestia, how would you feel if the rest of us told you that you are not allowed to fly, or do something else that you love, just because we think it’s too dangerous? Twilight had more freedom when she was a foal than we’re allowing her now. I was her foal sitter, so I should know.”

Shining Armor sighed “You’re right, Cadance. If I know my sister, she’s only going along with this is because she feels that she has to be a good little sister and do as we tell her.” He looked at Celestia “I bet Artemis is only playing his part because he knows that it’s what you want him to do, princess.” He lowered his head and let out a deeper sigh. “We’ve turned him into the jailer for the pony that he loves.”

Celestia’s eyes widened but she didn’t say anything as the three of the walked outside. Everypony looked up as one of Artemis’ chariots landed in front of them, pulled by a pair of bat pony guards. They both saluted before one of them turned to Artemis. “We’re ready for the flight to Ponyville and await your orders, Prince Artemis.”

Artemis and Twilight turned to Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor.

“We’ll be back either tomorrow night or Monday morning.” Twilight told them “Probably tomorrow night because I don’t want to be rushing before class on Monday morning.” She looked at Celestia “Can you have a room, classroom or otherwise, set aside for me to use? We will likely be making regular trips there, but I don’t want to teach the foals in the library.”

Celestia nodded “Of course, Twilight. I’ll let you know which one it is when you get back.” I was going to suggest that, but she beat me to it. I’m glad that she’s taking things like that into consideration. She was about to say something to Twilight about the restrictions they had placed on her but didn’t get the chance as both Artemis and Twilight turned away. She watched them climb into the chariot before Artemis gave the order to take off. They must be angry, or at least really annoyed, at us. They didn’t even say goodbye or allow us to say anything else.

Shining Armor looked at Celestia and Cadance. “Was it just me, or did they both seem almost angry at us?”

Silver Shadow cleared his throat, catching their attention. “May I say something, your highnesses?”

Celestia nodded, seeing the expression on his face. “You have my permission to speak freely, Silver Shadow.”

“I’ve been the Captain of Prince Artemis’ Night Guard since he returned and have only seen him act like this a few times, including today. Each time, it was because he disagreed with you on something, princess.” Silver Shadow told Celestia, making sure that he was careful with his tone of voice. Princess Celestia may have given me permission to speak freely, but I still have to be careful. I don’t want to anger her because, if I do, it’s Prince Artemis that will have to deal with it. “He tries to avoid doing anything that will anger you so, if he believes that he won’t be able to convince you otherwise, he usually goes along with whatever you say. He has decided not to say anything to you about this because he believes that it will only upset you, something else that he tries not to do.”

Celestia’s eyes went wide as she gasped, but allowed Silver Shadow to continue.

“Prince Artemis truly loves Princess Twilight and has put several measures in place to ensure that she remains safe, while restricting her as little as possible. He began doing this even before we knew of her pregnancy. As soon as he discovered that she is carrying his foal, he turned to his most trusted guards and reassigned them to protect her instead. He trusts very few ponies with his safety, yet he immediately assigned his personal guards to protect our princess because he values her safety above his own. All of the ponies in the Night Guard have already altered our oaths so that they include Princess Twilight. We will protect her, and any foals they have, as we do Prince Artemis.”

Silver Shadow looked Celestia, Shining Armor and Cadance each in the eye before continuing. “As for Princess Twilight, I haven’t known her for very long but I can already tell that she values her family and friends above everything else. I believe that she’s going along with this treatment, only because it’s the three of you doing it. If anypony else even suggested the restrictions you have placed on her, she’d never allow it. It’s obvious that being treated like a foal has angered her. However, with all three of you against her, she knows that there isn’t much she can do about it.”

He paused, glancing towards Ponyville. “It was clear that neither of them wanted to start an argument. I believe that is why they decided to leave before any of you could say anything else.”

With his piece said, he bowed to each of them. “I must head to my office to finish some paperwork before getting some sleep. Prince Shining Armor, if it’s alright with you, I will be checking in on your training of Steel Night and Midnight Fang. If there are any changes to their training regimen that have to be made, I need to know about it so that I can alter their schedules.”

Shining Armor, stunned because of what Silver Shadow had told them, just nodded.

Celestia, Cadance and Shining Armor watched as Silver Shadow bowed again before spreading his wings and taking flight. They watched him until he was out of sight before looking at each other.

“I’ll talk to them both tonight. Artemis has already told me that he plans for the three of us to have a shared dream tonight.” Celestia told Shining Armor and Cadance before sighing. “I just hope that we haven’t angered them so much that he changes his mind. If he does, I’ll talk to them when they get back tomorrow night.” I’m not looking forward to tonight’s dream because I may have to tell Mother and Father how I’m treating Twilight. If they truly see her as another daughter, they may be angry with me as well. Still, this must be said and the sooner I do it, the better. “I’m heading to the Archives. Enjoy your day.”

The flight to Ponyville was quiet. Twilight was getting tired, so she snuggled close to Artemis’ side and closed her eyes. Just as she was about to fall asleep, she heard one of the guards speak up. “We are now entering the airspace of Ponyville. Where would you like us to land, your highnesses?”

Twilight opened her eyes and raised her head “In front of my castle, please.”

The guards responded as one “Yes, princess”

As the chariot got closer, they saw that all of Ponyville had gathered in front of Twilight’s castle and were waiting for them. After they got off of the chariot, Artemis turned to the guards. “Please return at five o clock tomorrow afternoon to bring us back to Canterlot.”

“Yes, Prince Artemis” They replied before taking off towards Canterlot.

Artemis lit his horn, levitated Twilight’s saddlebags off her back and teleported them to her room in her castle. Then he and Twilight walked over to greet the citizens of Ponyville.

They were met with cheers as Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, Pound and Pumpkin ran forward and tackled Twilight in a hug, knocking her to the ground.

Twilight heard a whimper and looked down to see tears in Pumpkin’s eyes as she asked “A-are you OK, Twilight?” She looked around to see that the foals all had tears in their eyes. Why are they so upset? Wait, did the girls tell everypony about the attack?

She nuzzled Pumpkin “Yes. I’m not hurt at all.” Then, she looked up at the girls and Spike. “How much did you tell them?”

“All of it” Applejack replied

Mayor Mare stepped forward as well before Twilight could respond. “Of course we told them everything, princess! They had to know what happened and why.”

Everypony in Ponyville nodded.

Twilight sighed and returned her attention to the foals, trying to calm them.

A slight movement caught his attention so Artemis looked off to the side and found that Big Macintosh was looking at him. Curious, he walked over. I don’t believe I’ve ever heard this pony say anything, but I think he’s Applejack and Apple Bloom’s older brother. I wonder what he wants to talk about.

“Prince Artemis” Big Mac said, bowing slightly “Are ya sure Twilight’s gonna be safe? Your guards didn’t stay.”

Artemis nodded “I know that there isn’t anypony living here that wants to harm her. Besides, if the girls aren’t with her, I will be.”

They both looked up as they heard a loud boom that was quickly followed by Twilight’s scream. Artemis immediately took off running towards her. Please don’t let it be another attack!

While Artemis was talking to Big Mac and Twilight was calming the foals, Pinkie pulled out her party cannon.

“U-um Pinkie,” Fluttershy stammered, louder than usual, catching the attention of the rest of the girls and Spike. “I-I don’t think that’s a good idea . . .”

“Of course it is, silly!” Pinkie responded “We gotta get set up for the party!”

“Pinkie, no!” Rarity shouted, but it was too late.

Pinkie yanked on the string of her party cannon.

Boom!!!

As soon as she heard the boom, Twilight did three things at the same time. She screamed, instinctively curled herself around Pound and Pumpkin and lit her horn, creating a shield over herself and all of the foals near her.

Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow, Fluttershy and Spike heard rapid hoofsteps and looked up as Artemis ran over to them. Everypony watched as he lit his horn before touching Twilight’s shield with the tip of it. As he walked inside, they turned to their friend. “PINKIE!” they shouted

Pinkie stared, wide eyed, at Twilight’s shield “Oops” she whispered

“Fluttershy said that wasn’t a good idea!” Rainbow yelled, right in Pinkie’s face “Twilight was attacked yesterday! She’s still scared and you made it worse!”

Inside Twilight’s shield, Artemis saw her curled around Pound and Pumpkin, shaking in fear. Dropping to the ground next to her, he covered her with a wing and nuzzled her. “It’s alright, Twilight, it’s not an attack. Pinkie just used her party cannon.”

Twilight nodded but didn’t lower her shield yet. She pressed herself closer to his side and took several deep breaths as she tried to calm down.

Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo saw how scared she was, so they nuzzled her and snuggled close.

A few minutes later, everypony watched Twilight’s shield fade. They saw that she had curled her body around Pound and Pumpkin and pressed herself as close as possible to Artemis’ side with his wing over her. Slowly, she stretched out a little and let Pound and Pumpkin get up.

She’s already instinctively protecting foals near her. Mrs. Cake thought with a smile.

Pound and Pumpkin nuzzled Twilight before walking over to Pinkie.

“That wasn’t nice. Now she’s scared!” Pound complained

“You have to say you’re sorry!” Pumpkin told her

Pinkie walked over to Twilight and lay down in front of her. “I’m sorry, Twilight. I just wanted to get everything ready for your baby party.”

“I-it’s OK, Pinkie. Just warn me next time. What really scared me was that I didn’t know it was coming.” Twilight replied, still shaking slightly

“Actually,” Artemis said “There won’t be a next time. At least, not today.” He paused as Twilight yawned “Twilight and I were in Night court until late last night. I’m alright but I think Twilight could use a nap. It’s going to take me a while to calm her to the point that she’ll allow herself to fall asleep. You can use that time to get ready for the party.”

He nuzzled Twilight before folding his wing. “Let’s find a spot that’s out of the way and lay down. After you fall asleep, I’ll help with the party preparations.”

Twilight yawned again, stood and walked over to a nearby tree before laying down again. Artemis followed her and lay down beside her before covering her with a wing and pulling her close.

The ponies of Ponyville looked on as Artemis hugged and nuzzled Twilight. Deciding to give the couple some quiet time, they went to help Pinkie set up the party the old fashioned way. Almost half an hour later, they looked over to see that Twilight had laid her head on Artemis’ shoulder, eyes closed. They watched as Artemis lit his horn for a moment before he smiled and nodded.

Mayor Mare walked up to the couple, worried. “Prince Artemis, did you cast a sleeping spell on Princess Twilight?”

Artemis shook his head “I don’t know of any sleeping spells that are safe to use on a pregnant mare. I merely calmed her enough that she fell asleep on her own. She was already tired because we were awake for most of last night, so it didn’t take much for her to fall asleep. What you just saw me do was make sure that she won’t have any nightmares.” I also sent her to see Mother and Father. As soon as they notice that she’s scared, I’m sure they’ll help her.

Everypony sighed in relief and smiled, happy to know that Twilight would be able to rest peacefully.

“Artemis, you should stay here with Twi.” Applejack told him as she walked up with a couple of bottles of apple juice. “We’ll take care of the party preparations but Twi’s gonna be scared if you’re not there when she wakes up.”

Artemis looked at her “Are you sure that you don’t want me to help?”

Fluttershy nodded as she walked up to them. “We don’t want her to panic when she wakes up. According to Princess Cadance, the best way to make sure that she doesn’t is for you to be there with her.”

Artemis nodded “Very well. When it’s time for her to join the party, tell me. I’ll go into the dream realm and enter her dream. That way, I can wake her without scaring her.”

“Good idea” Rarity replied, walking up as well. “We should be able to give her at least a couple of hours of sleep. After the party, she can really get some rest. We’ll tell everypony that the two of you will be sleeping in tomorrow.”

Artemis nodded, lay his head on his forehooves and closed his eyes. He didn’t go to sleep, he just wanted to relax.

Next Chapter: Chapter 41 Estimated time remaining: 28 Hours, 38 Minutes