Artemis watched the sunset while Twilight sat at his desk and began to grade papers. After raising the moon and stars, he turned to Twilight and saw what she was doing. “Oh, no you don’t. You’re coming to bed.”

Twilight gasped as he levitated her to the bed and climbed in after her. “But I-”

Artemis silenced her with a kiss. “You fought for us to be able to spend our evenings together. I’m not going to let you spend them doing paperwork.”

Twilight opened her mouth to respond but he kissed her again, pulled her into his hooves and lit his horn. She moaned as the muscles in her back and shoulders warmed and immediately relaxed. His magic also reminded her how tired she was. As her eyes began to close, she mumbled “That’s cheating”

Artemis laughed softly “I’m sorry, my love, but it’s for your own good. You need your sleep. Not only did you deal with fourteen foals today, mostly by yourself, you also helped with court. There’s also the fact that you’re carrying our foal.”

“Only two weeks.” She mumbled “Not far enough to be tired.”

He chuckled as she struggled to stay awake. “Your body says otherwise.” Smiling, he watched as she finally gave in and fell asleep in his hooves. He pulled a blanket over them and cast a sleeping spell on himself.

In the dream realm, Midnight Armor looked up as Artemis appeared next to the cloud, lit his horn and brought Celestia and Twilight into his dream. The three of them flew over to give their parents a hug but paused as they noticed that Sundance was asleep. They looked at Midnight Armor as he shook his head. Instead of saying anything, Twilight stepped closer and nuzzled their father. Celestia and Artemis followed suit. Midnight Armor smiled at them before lighting his horn.

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight watched the conversation their parents had this morning, after they left the dream realm. As their father’s memory ended, Celestia and Artemis looked at Twilight. Noticing this, Midnight Armor did the same.

Twilight had a thoughtful expression on her face as she looked at Sundance, noticing the tear tracks on her face. I need to talk to Mom about this. It doesn’t seem like she knows why she thought I used the amulet. Still, I want to know what she thinks about all of this. I need to hear it from her, but I don’t want to wake her. Instead, I think I’ll join her. Yawning, she walked over and lay down next to Sundance. Looking up, she saw that everypony was looking at her. “The memory of Mom and Dad’s conversation was one thing, and I’m glad I saw it. However, I need to talk to her about this before I make up my mind on what to do next. But I’m not going to wake her. Instead, I’ll get some sleep as well. Somepony wake me when she’s awake and ready to talk about it.” She closed her eyes and fell asleep.

“I’m not sure why I didn’t expect that from her,” Midnight Armor said slowly “but I should have.”

Celestia and Artemis looked at their father, both asking the same thing. “What?”

Midnight Armor smiled as he looked at his youngest. “She may not be fifteen hundred years old, like the two of you, but she’s repeatedly shown wisdom beyond her years.” He looked at Celestia and Artemis “I’m referring to how she was able to figure out the reasons behind both of your actions as well as come up with the plan to combine your courts so you can actually spend time together. If I add everything else that she’s done and consider the intelligence it must have taken to accomplish all of that . . .”

Celestia smiled “You’re right, Father”

Before anypony could say anything else, Sundance opened her eyes and saw Celestia and Artemis sitting in front of her. Glancing to either side of them, she was immediately saddened when she didn’t see Twilight. Sighing, she closed her eyes again. I don’t blame her. After all, I- She was pulled from her thoughts by a soft nuzzle and a gentle voice.

“Mother”

Sundance opened her eyes again as Artemis nodded at something to her right. Curious, she looked in that direction. Her eyes widened when she saw that Twilight was lying next to her, sound asleep. “What?!” She winced when she realized how loud her outburst had been. Holding her breath, she watched her youngest carefully. I hope I didn’t wake her!

Fortunately, Twilight just buried her face in Sundance’s shoulder before mumbling. "Too loud."

Sighing in relief, Sundance turned to the rest of her family before whispering “What's going on?”

Celestia smiled “Don’t worry, Mother, I’ll show you.”

Sundance closed her eyes as Celestia leaned forward. As soon as their horns touched, Celestia shared her memory of what happened after they arrived in the dream realm. As the memory ended, Sundance opened her eyes and looked at Twilight. I’m not sure why I’m surprised by this. Midnight’s right, she clearly has more wisdom than the average twenty one year old. She was torn from her thoughts when she felt magic surround her. Looking up, she saw that Artemis was in the process of casting a shield and soundproofing spell. “What are you doing, Artemis?”

Artemis paused his spells, and glanced at Celestia, before turning back to their mother. “Twilight once told us that a conversation needed to be held with just the two of us and she didn’t belong in it. I was confused at the time, but now I understand what she meant. This is something the two of you have to discuss on your own.”

Sundance stared at her son “Twilight said that?”

Artemis nodded

Celestia nodded as well “It was when she discovered that I was afraid of Artemis. She said that Artemis and I had to talk about it alone.”

Midnight Armor smiled and shook his head “That just proves my earlier statement. She’s wise beyond her years.”

Artemis nodded “You’re right, Father. But there are other times, like this morning, when she-” He suddenly stopped, glancing at their mother. I shouldn’t have said that!

Sundance simply said “Show us”

Artemis shook his head “I don’t think that’s a good idea, Mother.” I doubt they’ll listen, but I have to try. Mother’s obviously upset and this will only make her feel worse.

Midnight Armor sighed “That means this is something we should see. Perhaps you’re referring to Twilight’s real reaction to what happened last night?”

Artemis hesitated for a moment before nodding.

Sundance’s eyes widened “I need to see it before I talk to her.”

Artemis didn’t respond

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow “Should we ask your sister?”

“You could, but it wouldn’t help you. She didn’t hear what Twilight said. I’m the only one that did.” Sighing, Artemis looked at their mother “You’re not going to like this.”

Sundance shook her head “That doesn’t matter, I need to see it.”

Artemis reluctantly nodded and lit his horn, showing them what happened.

Sundance and Midnight Armor winced as Twilight began to cry as soon as she woke up.

“I thought she took it a little too well.” Sundance said, ears drooping Now that I think about it, she didn’t seem surprised when I told her that I had thought that she had used the Alicorn Amulet. In fact, it’s almost as if she was expecting it. She returned her attention to Artemis’ magic and gasped as she heard Twilight’s questions. Each word felt like a knife through her heart.

Artemis saw his mother’s eyes fill with tears and paused the memory. I’ll show them the rest later. He quickly finished his spells and glanced at Celestia.

Celestia nodded and lit her horn as well, turning her brother’s shield opaque. She saw the expression on their father’s face and explained. “Twilight stayed in a different room for our conversation. We can’t do that here so these measures are to give them a little privacy.”

Midnight Armor nodded “Well done, both of you.”

Artemis looked at his shield, clearly upset. He glanced up in surprise as he felt a weight against his side but didn’t resist as his father pulled him into a hug.

Midnight Armor nuzzled his son before spreading a wing over him. “You did the right thing, Artemis. They need to talk about this.”

Celestia moved to lay on their father’s other side and smiled at him as he spread a wing over her as well. She looked at the shield and sighed “Now we wait.”

Artemis and Midnight Armor nodded

Inside Artemis’ shield, Sundance considered waking Twilight right away but shook her head. I need to get control of my emotions first. This conversation will be hard enough without me crying before we start it.

After a few minutes, Sundance felt that she was calm enough. She leaned down and nuzzled Twilight, smiling slightly as Twilight snuggled closer. So we’re doing that again. She nuzzled Twilight a little harder and watched as Twilight yawned. Maybe not.

Twilight opened her eyes and looked around. After blinking a few times to make sure she wasn’t seeing things, she turned to Sundance. “Why did Artemis put us in a shield? Is that a soundproofing spell? I think I sense Celestia’s magic as well. What’s going on?”

At least those questions are easy to answer. Sundance gave Twilight a small smile. “Yes, that’s a soundproofing spell. I’m not sure what Celestia did because she did it after the shield was completed. Artemis put us in a shield because he wanted to make sure we’d be able to speak privately.”

Twilight examined the shield, trying to give herself a chance to collect her thoughts. “I see what Celestia did. She turned Artemis’ shield opaque. They can’t see in and we can’t see out.”

Sundance’s eyes widened “I’m not sure what impresses me more. That she did that or that you figured it out so quickly.”

Twilight shrugged “Shields are my brother’s specialty. Shiny made sure I can identify almost every kind of shield and taught me how to break several of them.”

Sundance just stared at Twilight for a minute. “Is there anything you can’t do?”

Blushing, Twilight muttered something about being a horrible dancer.

Sundance shook her head “That’s not what I meant. I was referring to your abilities with magic."

“Oh” Twilight responded “I can’t cast my brother’s most powerful shield, that’s why I created my force field. When we faced Night-Terror Knight for the first time, the girls and I got separated. I wasn’t able to defeat him by myself and had to wait for the girls to find me. The first time we faced Discord, he tricked us into behaving exactly the opposite of our Elements so we couldn’t use them. I had to cast a memory spell on each of the girls to get them back to normal so we could turn him back to stone.”

“I wasn’t able to prove that Chrysalis had disguised herself as Cadance. As a result, all of my friends turned on me and left me alone with her. That allowed her to send me to the caves below the castle. It was just luck that she placed me near the real Cadance.” Twilight paused “Maybe that wasn’t luck. Chrysalis taunted me into attacking the reflections of her. One of my attacks broke the wall between the real Cadance and myself. At first, I thought it was the imposter and attacked her. It wasn’t until Cadance started singing a song we made up when she was my foal sitter that I realized it was really her. It’s possible that Chrysalis wanted me to kill Cadance.”

Twilight saw Sundance’s stunned expression and mistook it for impatience. “Sorry, I got a little off track.” Twilight told her. She shook her head, trying to clear it. “Anyway, Cadance and I worked together to escape the caves. After that, we interrupted the wedding of my brother and Chrysalis, still disguised as Cadance. After she revealed herself, Chrysalis used the strength she gained by feeding off of my brother’s love for Cadance to defeat Celestia.” She paused as Sundance gasped “Celestia sent me and the girls to get the Elements of Harmony. We fought through one swarm of changelings, but were stopped by another and brought back to Chrysalis. It was Cadance and Shining Armor that used the power of their love for each other to defeat Chrysalis.”

“What happened next?” Twilight asked thoughtfully “Oh yeah, Celestia sent me to the Crystal Empire as a test.”

“What?” Sundance asked, surprised

Twilight nodded again “I was supposed to be the one to find the Crystal Heart and get it to Cadance. I was able to figure out where Sombra had hidden the heart and find it. Unfortunately, when I removed it, I got caught in his trap. At the time, Sombra’s spirit, or ghost, was attacking and we needed the Crystal Heart to stop him. That’s why I told Spike to bring it to Cadance. Even though I wasn’t the one who brought the Crystal Heart to Cadance, Celestia told me that I passed the test anyway. She was happy that I understood the meaning of self-sacrifice.”

Sundance wasn’t sure what to say, so she just looked at Twilight.

Twilight thought for a moment and continued. “When Tirek attacked, Celestia, Artemis and Cadance didn’t want me to face him because they were afraid that he would steal my magic. Instead, they sent Discord. We thought he had been reformed and was on our side. We were wrong. He joined Tirek and helped him steal magic from ponies all over Equestria. As soon as they realized this, Celestia, Artemis and Cadance transferred their alicorn magic to me.”

“WHAT?!”

Twilight blinked and looked over to find Sundance staring at her in half shock, half horror. “P-please tell me you weren’t a unicorn for that.”

Twilight nodded “I had ascended fairly recently and was still adjusting to the changes, but I was an alicorn.”

Sundance sighed in relief “Good” She paused “Wait. That means you had the magic of . . .”

“Four alicorns, including my own.” Twilight finished, nodding “They didn’t want Tirek to get their magic and, at the time, Tirek didn’t know that there was a fourth alicorn. For a while, he didn’t know where the alicorn magic had gone. Then Discord told him about me. He also told Tirek about my friends. Tirek captured them and stole their magic before finding and challenging me. Tirek had the magic of everypony in Equestria, minus the alicorns, and Discord. Yes, he stole Discord’s magic too. I had the magic of four alicorns. Somehow, we were evenly matched. That’s when Tirek brought out my friends and Discord and offered to trade them for my magic. I couldn’t let him kill my friends, so I agreed. Once he was released, Discord gave me a medallion in gratitude. That’s what turned into my key for the chest at the base of the Tree of Harmony.”

“That’s when something strange happened. The girls and I still represent our Elements, but we seem to have awakened a new type of power.” Twilight paused “We still call it the Elements of Harmony, mainly because it’s easier for everypony to understand. However, I’m pretty sure that what we use now is called Rainbow Power.”

Sundance gasped “You’ve awakened the Rainbow Power?”

Twilight nodded again “That’s what we used to defeat Tirek and return everypony’s stolen magic.” Twilight paused for a moment, trying to get her thoughts back on track. “My point is, I wasn’t able to do any of that by myself. I tried and found that I needed my friends.”

Sundance shook her head “I see your point, but that doesn’t change the question. When something you tried failed, you were able to find a different option. As for Night-Terror Knight, you may have had help the first time, but I know you faced him by yourself for the second.”

“Yes, I did face him alone that time.” Twilight replied, blushing “I blocked the only attack he launched in my direction. After that, he put a barrier, trying to keep me out.”

Sundance raised an eyebrow “I hope you don’t expect me to believe that stopped you.”

Twilight’s blush deepened as she shook her head. “I walked right through it.”

Sundance laughed “I thought so”

“A-anyway,” Twilight continued, still blushing “I enclosed both of us in my force field so he couldn’t go anywhere. But it wasn’t my magic that stopped him. We talked for a few minutes. He told me that he didn’t want to attack me and the first attack was an attempt to scare me away. When I asked him if he could let Artemis out or if I needed to call the girls, he went with the first option.”

Sundance stared “Y-you asked him to release Artemis? And he listened to you?”

Twilight nodded “I thought it was weird, but wasn’t going to ask questions.” She paused “There’s another thing I couldn’t take care of with my magic or by myself.”

Why does she seem nervous? Sundance tilted her head “What are you talking about?”

Twilight looked at the cloud under her “The Alicorn Amulet”

Sundance flinched “That’s true.”

“Dad showed us the conversation you two had after we left this morning.” Twilight looked up at Sundance “I don’t want to decide something like this by going off of somepony else’s memory, regardless of who that pony is. It’s not that I don’t believe him, it’s just that I’d rather talk to you about this before I decide what to do next.”

Twilight sighed “If you can’t tell me why you thought I would use the Alicorn Amulet right now, that’s fine. For now, I’m willing to say that it’s because you don’t know me very well. Eventually, I would appreciate an answer because I need to know what it is about me that made you think I would do that. It’s obviously something that I need to change, but I can’t do so until I know what needs to be changed.”

Hearing this, Sundance’s eyes filled with tears. What have I done? She thinks there’s something wrong with her because of what I said? Using her wing to pull Twilight closer, Sundance whispered “No, Twilight. You don’t need to change anything.”

Tightening her wing around Twilight, Sundance continued in a louder voice. “After thinking about it, I realized that my reaction had to do with the amulet itself.” She saw Twilight’s confusion and nuzzled her. “I’m not sure who created it, but that amulet has been around for a very long time. Over the years, I’ve seen it corrupt several ponies so deeply that their original selves were lost. Midnight and I had to kill those ponies because they were a threat to everypony around them.”

Twilight turned to Sundance “Why weren’t you able to save those ponies?”

Sundance shook her head “When the corruption gets to a certain point, there’s no way to save the pony using the amulet. The only thing that can be done is to make sure they can no longer harm those around them. The amulet had given those ponies so much power that, each time, we were the only ones that were powerful enough to stop them. As for Trixie, she hadn’t been wearing the amulet for very long when she challenged you. That meant that the corruption in her was still at a point where it could be reversed. That’s why you were able to save her. She may not know it, but she’s a very lucky pony.”

Twilight laughed “I would tell her that, but she’d never believe me.”

Sundance nuzzled Twilight, trying to get back on topic. “I was angry because I thought you had put yourself in danger. I don’t want you anywhere near the Alicorn Amulet.” She shuddered “I don’t want you to have to die because of that thing.”

Twilight returned Sundance’s nuzzle “There are many dangers that I won’t be able to avoid. Bearing the Elements of Harmony means that the girls and I have to face the most dangerous enemies that come to Equestria. But I promise you that the Alicorn Amulet is something I’ll never use.”

Sundance pulled her into a tight hug. “Thank you, Twilight” she whispered

“Of course, Mom” Twilight closed her eyes and relaxed into Sundance’s hug. She didn’t notice Sundance’s eyes fill with tears again, of happiness this time.

They lay like that for several minutes before Sundance glanced at the shield. “We should ask Artemis to release his shield. I’m sure they’re wondering what’s taking so long.”

Twilight nodded and stood, moving over so Sundance could stand as well.

Sundance touched her horn to the shield for a moment before turning to Twilight. “I don’t sense anything. Can you try?”

Twilight touched her horn to the shield. After a moment, she shook her head. “I don’t sense anything either.” She sighed “I’m going to have to break the shield. I just need a minute to figure out exactly which one he used. Hopefully, it’s one of the ones that Shiny taught me to break. If it’s not, I’m going to have to figure out how to break it myself and that could take hours.”

Sundance nodded and lay down, watching Twilight carefully.

Twilight touched the shield again, analyzing the magic. A little over a minute later, she groaned. “Of course he used that one.” She glanced at Sundance “The good news is that I know how to break it. The bad news is that it’s the hardest one to break.”

Sundance sensed that something wasn’t being said “Is there anything else?”

Twilight nodded “This is going to take a lot of magic.”

Sundance smiled “That’s not a problem.” As soon as it appears that she needs help, I’m adding my magic to her spell. I will not allow her to drain herself.

Twilight returned her smile, closed her eyes and lit her horn again.

Sundance watched as the magic surrounding Twilight’s horn doubled, then tripled, in strength. A minute later, the shield shuddered and began to dissolve.

Outside the shield, Artemis was getting worried. “I should have felt or heard something by now.”

Midnight Armor nuzzled his son “I’m sure they’re fine. Your mother would never allow Twilight to come to any harm.”

All three of them looked over as the shield shuddered before beginning to dissolve. Their eyes widened as enough of the shield disappeared for them to see Sundance carefully watching something next to her. As more of the shield disappeared, they saw Twilight facing them with her horn glowing brightly.

“She broke my shield” Artemis whispered in awe “That’s my most powerful defensive technique!”

Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis gasped as Twilight collapsed as soon as the shield vanished completely.

“Don’t worry, she just needs to rest. It took a large amount of magic to break Artemis’ shield.” Sundance levitated her daughter to her side and covered her with a wing before looking at Artemis. “We tried to ask you to release your shield, but you didn’t notice when either of us touched our horns to your magic. Twilight had no choice but to break your shield. Thank goodness you used one of the shields that her brother taught her how to break. Otherwise, we may have been trapped for hours.”

Artemis winced “I’m sorry, Mother. I must have forgotten to include that part.”

“That’s alright” Sundance answered before looking at each of them. “I’m sure you want to know what happened.”

Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis nodded

Sundance nodded as well “I’ll show you but you’re going to have to come closer.” She nuzzled Twilight “I have no intention of getting up right now.”

Midnight Armor folded his wings and stood before walking over to lay next to his wife. Artemis lay next to Twilight and Celestia lay next to Midnight Armor.

Sundance nuzzled each of them and lit her horn. A sphere of light blue magic appeared in front of everypony as she played her memory of their conversation.

When it got to Twilight’s comment about Chrysalis possibly wanting her to kill Cadance, Celestia nodded thoughtfully. “I wondered about that. The rest of Chrysalis’ plan was executed flawlessly. If she just wanted Twilight out of the way, she wouldn’t have put those two where they could find each other. If Twilight’s theory is correct, it answers a few questions.” She paused “I’m sorry, Mother. I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

Sundance smiled “It’s alright, Celestia” She let the memory continue.

Midnight Armor gasped “They’ve awakened the Rainbow Power?! We thought that was gone forever.” He paused, looking at Artemis “Didn’t you tell us that Twilight and her friends were tested by the Elements after she returned them to the Tree of Harmony?”

Artemis nodded

Midnight Armor said “Only ponies that truly embody their Elements would have been able to pass those tests. The Tree of Harmony must have believed that they would be able to properly wield that power.”

Sundance nodded “It was quickly proven right as the first thing those girls did with that power was defeat Tirek and return everypony’s magic.”

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow as Twilight told his wife about the second time she faced Night-Terror Knight. “She asked him to release you, Artemis?”

Artemis shrugged “I’m not sure. I don’t remember what happened while Night had control of my body.”

Celestia turned to her brother. “Twilight appeared out of nowhere, used the Royal Voice to tell everypony to stop running and move to the edges of the room, approached Night, didn’t bat an eye when he launched a bolt of darkness at her, dissipated it with a barrier, walked through his like it didn’t exist, enclosed them both in her force field, talked to him for a few minutes and asked him if he could “let you out” or if she needed to call the girls. He immediately released you.”

Midnight Armor shook his head “Every time I think I’m done being surprised by this mare, I hear something like this. Where did you find her again, Celestia?”

Celestia laughed harder “My school for Gifted Unicorns, Father. She hatched a dragon and sent his head through the roof.”

“I couldn’t help it! I had a magic flare!”

Everypony gasped and looked next to Sundance as Twilight yawned and looked at the sphere of Sundance’s magic. She glanced up at their mother. “You’re showing them what happened?”

Sundance nodded “Is that a problem?”

Twilight snuggled closer “No. Celestia and Artemis were going to ask me as soon as we woke up, anyway.” She giggled as Artemis and Celestia smiled sheepishly.

Midnight Armor laughed “She certainly knows you two well.”

Sundance smiled and moved onto the part of the conversation where she explained what happened to the other ponies who used the Alicorn Amulet and her reason for not wanting Twilight anywhere near it.

As the sphere of Sundance’s magic disappeared, Midnight Armor nodded thoughtfully. “When you put it that way, your reaction was actually normal. We never wanted anypony to use that amulet but you always had a rather severe reaction to the possibility of our children using it. The fact that you instantly reacted that way, without knowing why, means that we truly do have a second daughter.” He chuckled as Sundance blushed “Didn’t you say Celestia was being overprotective?”

Sundance immediately turned to him “There’s a big difference between an older sister and a mother!”

Midnight Armor kissed his wife “I never said there wasn’t.”

“You said-” Sundance stopped as she felt a gentle nuzzle into her neck, just above her shoulder, and looked down at Twilight.

Twilight giggled “Works every time”

Sundance, Midnight Armor, Celestia and Artemis said the same thing. “What?”

Twilight shrugged. “It’s something I learned as a filly. Every time it looked like my parents or Shiny were going to raise their voices, I’d do that. It always stopped them.”

Artemis shook his head “I wish I knew that trick when we were foals.” He shuddered “You don’t know what it’s like when your parents get angry at you and both of them can use the Royal Voice.”

“You’ve never heard my mother yell.” Twilight paused, glancing up at Sundance. “Um, I mean the one that’s a unicorn.” She thought for a moment. “You’ve never heard Shiny yell either. They can’t use the Royal Voice, but I’m pretty sure they’re both about to learn it.”

Celestia laughed “I know what you mean. One time, I asked your brother to personally train a couple of troublesome teenagers that had just entered the Royal Guard Academy. I still don’t know what they did to anger your brother. All I know is that they were in the training yard and I clearly heard Shining Armor from the throne room.” She shook her head “As for Twilight Velvet, she visited me shortly after you moved into the castle because she wanted to know exactly what I was teaching her daughter. She didn’t like the plan I had come up with.”

Twilight laughed as well “I remember that!”

Celestia smiled at Twilight “You really helped me that day.”

Midnight Armor looked between Celestia and Twilight “What do you mean?”

Celestia laughed “It’s better if I show you what happened.”

- - -Celestia’s Flashback- - -

Velvet’s eyes widened “It’s much too soon for Twilight to learn such complicated magic! There’s no way she can master teleportation yet, she’s only eight years old!” She glared at Celestia “She looks up to you and she’s going to be heartbroken when she can’t do as you’ve asked!”

Celestia opened her mouth to respond but was distracted when a little lavender unicorn teleported into the room.

Before either of them could say anything, Twilight turned to her mother. “Stop it, Mommy! I’m trying to do my homework and you’re being too loud! Besides, it’s not nice to yell at Princess Celestia! She taught me new magic today. I can teleport!”

Smiling, Celestia walked forward and nuzzled Twilight. “I’m sorry, Twilight. We didn’t mean to interrupt your studies. You can go back to your room and finish your homework. We’ll eat dinner when you’re done. I asked the chefs to make macaroni and cheese with broccoli tonight.”

“Yay! Thank you, princess!” Twilight nuzzled Celestia and teleported back to her room.

Velvet just stared at the space where her daughter had been standing. She looked up as Celestia cleared her throat.

“I trust you no longer believe that your daughter is unable to master teleportation, Mrs. Sparkle?”

Velvet opened and closed her mouth a few times. “H-how did you teach her that?”

Celestia smiled “You seem to have underestimated your daughter’s abilities. It’s easy to make such a mistake when a parent focuses on their foal’s age. However, I am well aware of young Twilight Sparkle’s abilities and intend to use them to her advantage. I promise that I will not ask anything of her that she isn’t capable of doing.”

Velvet bowed “My apologies, princess. I shouldn’t have raised my voice.”

Celestia nodded “It’s alright, Mrs. Sparkle, I understand. You want what’s best for your daughter.” She glanced at the clock “Twilight should be done soon, if she isn’t already.”

A couple of minutes later, a guard walked into the room and bowed. “Princess Celestia, your student is waiting for you in the dining room.”

Velvet winced “She’s not causing any trouble, is she?”

The guard laughed “Not at all, Mrs. Sparkle. She’s going over the armor of the guards stationed there, naming each piece and pointing out what parts need to be cleaned and oiled. She’s a very smart filly.”

Velvet smiled “She used to help Shining Armor clean and oil his armor.”

Celestia laughed “In that case, I’d better get there before she decides to clean their armor herself.”

Velvet nodded “Have a good night, princess.”

- - -End Flashback- - -

Artemis grinned at his sister “You needed help from a filly, sister?”

Celestia gave her brother a sad smile and nodded. “That night, she helped me again, far more than she knows. If I’m right, you did as well.”

Artemis paused, nervous at the sudden change in his sister’s mood. “What do you mean?”

Sundance and Midnight Armor glanced at each other before turning to their oldest child. “This sounds important. Please show us what happened.”

Celestia nodded and created a sphere of golden magic, much larger than usual. Everypony turned their attention to the memory.

- - -Celestia’s Flashback- - -

Celestia was standing on a balcony, crying as she looked up at the silhouette of her brother on the moon.

A pair of Night Guards stood behind her. One turned to the other and whispered “I don’t like this, Silver Shadow. She does this almost every night but won’t tell us what’s wrong.”

Silver Shadow, clearly a new guard, nodded “Even if we can’t help, I wish she would tell us what’s bothering her.”

Both of them turned at the sound of tiny hoofsteps.

The first guard stared “What’s the princess’ student doing up at this hour? Should we stop her?”

Silver Shadow shook his head “Leave her be. There’s something special about that filly. Besides, she may be able to help Princess Celestia.”

Twilight walked up to Celestia, reared up and hugged her foreleg.

Startled, Celestia looked down before gently nuzzling her. “What are you doing up, Twilight?” she asked softly

Twilight put her hooves back on the floor as Celestia lay down and used a wing to bring her closer.

Twilight nuzzled Celestia “Why are you crying, princess?”

Celestia returned Twilight’s nuzzle and looked up at the moon. “A very long time ago, somepony very special to me had to go away. Even though it makes me sad, I come out here to make sure I don’t forget him.”

Twilight shifted nervously and quietly asked “A-are you talking about your brother?”

Celestia couldn’t believe her ears. “H-how did you know I have a brother?” she whispered, staring at Twilight

Twilight looked down “P-promise you won’t laugh?”

Celestia gently lifted Twilight’s head and nuzzled her “I promise”

Twilight smiled at her teacher “I was having a scary nightmare when it suddenly stopped. Everything was black except for something dark blue in front of me. It told me that it wanted me to do it a favor. It sounded like a colt’s voice. I said that I would help him if I could. He said that his sister was sad and I was the only one that he could count on to help her feel better. I asked how I was supposed to find his sister because there are lots of ponies in the castle. He laughed and said that I already know who she is. Then he said that his sister’s the only mare that’s still awake.” She shrugged “I woke up and started walking around. That’s when I saw you crying, princess.”

That was definitely Artemis, he’s the only one that could have entered her dream. Celestia smiled and hugged Twilight tighter “Thank you, Twilight. Let’s get some sleep.”

“Yes, princess” Twilight stood, turned and started to walk to her room but suddenly found herself caught in Celestia’s magic.

Celestia smiled “How would you like to sleep in my room? We can have a sleepover.”

“I-it’s really OK if I do that?” Twilight asked nervously

Celestia laughed and placed Twilight on her back as she walked off of the balcony. “Yes, my little student”

A few minutes later, they were in Celestia’s room. Celestia levitated Twilight to her bed as she took off her royal finery.

Twilight watched in wonder “I’ve never seen you without that stuff on, princess.”

Celestia laughed “I take it off at bedtime because it’s really hard and uncomfortable to sleep in.” She climbed into her bed, lay down next to Twilight and covered her with a wing.

After a moment, Twilight’s head popped up from under the blanket of feathers. Specifically, in between the feathers.

Celestia giggled “What are you doing, Twilight?”

Twilight giggled as well “Hide and seek! You have to find me!” She pulled her head under Celestia’s wing again, only to pop up somewhere else.

The game continued until Celestia lifted both wings but couldn’t find Twilight. She was getting worried when a lavender hoof reached out of her mane and bopped her on the nose. Celestia laughed and pulled Twilight into a hug. “You win, Twilight.”

“Yay!”

Smiling, Celestia nuzzled her little student “It’s time for bed now.”

Twilight curled up next to Celestia, yawning. “Good Night, princess.” She lay her head on the bed, but didn’t close her eyes.

“Good Night, Twilight” Celestia replied, looking at the moon. “Thank you, Artemis” She whispered, laying her head on a pillow and falling asleep.

Twilight smiled, snuggled closer and fell asleep as well.

- - -End Flashback- - -

Sundance and Midnight Armor smiled at each other before she reached over Twilight to nuzzle their son. “Well done, Artemis. Even though you were possessed by the Nightmare and trapped on the moon, you still found a way to help your sister.”

Artemis had a strange look on his face, as if he was straining to remember something. Suddenly, there was a flash of black magic and his eyes widened. How could I have forgotten this?!

Twilight gasped as Celestia’s memory brought another memory rushing back to her. “How could I have been so stupid?” She asked “I can’t believe I didn’t remember this, or the dream that followed, until now!”

Celestia looked down

Midnight Armor glanced at his wife. “What was that about?” he whispered

Sundance shrugged and turned to Twilight “You’re not stupid at all, Twilight.” She said, nuzzling her. “Perhaps it’ll help if you tell us what you’re talking about.”

Twilight returned Sundance’s nuzzle and created a sphere of magenta magic. “This is the dream that I had after I fell asleep again.”

- - -Twilight’s Flashback- - -

Twilight opened her eyes and looked around to see that she was surrounded by darkness again. “H-hello? Is anypony there?” she called

“Shh! I don’t want him to find us!”

Twilight turned to see the dark blue thing from before next to her. “Who are you talking about?”

“What’s a filly doing here?”

The blue thing gulped and moved in front of her.

“You think you can protect your little friend? You can’t even protect yourself.”

Twilight looked around, trying to figure out where the owner of the voice was. “This pony isn’t being nice. I’m gonna make him say he’s sorry!”

“I don’t know where you’ve been hiding, but it doesn’t matter. Now that you’re here, I’ll destroy the last piece of you.”

Twilight’s eyes widened as she saw the blue thing in front of her shudder and heard him whimper. Still trying to figure out where this pony was, she lit her horn and glared at the darkness around them. I won’t let him hurt anypony!

“Go away, you big meanie!” Given extra power by her anger and desire to protect the one next to her, Twilight’s magic flared. Suddenly, the darkness was gone.

Looking around, Twilight noticed a blue pony with a light blue mane and tail lying in front her. She thought it was a Pegasus but, as she walked closer, she saw a horn. “Hey, you look like the princess! She has wings and a horn, too!”

The blue pony shuddered “Shh!”

Twilight lay down next to him. “It’s OK, the scary voice is gone.”

The blue pony lifted his head a little and looked at her. “R-really?”

Twilight nodded “I told him to go away and he did.”

He stared at her, eyes wide “H-how did you do that?”

Twilight shrugged “I just did.” She paused “My name’s Twilight. What’s yours?”

For the first time, he smiled “Artemis”

That’s the same name Princess Celestia said. Twilight smiled “Are you the one who asked me to help your sister, Artemis?”

Artemis nodded “Were you able to help her?”

Twilight nodded “I found Princess Celestia on a balcony. She was looking at the moon and crying.”

Artemis looked scared “D-did she say why she was crying?”

Twilight nodded “She told me that somepony special to her had to go away a long time ago and she doesn’t want to forget him. So she looks at the moon, even though she gets sad when she does.”

“B-big sister hasn’t forgotten me?” Artemis asked hopefully

Twilight smiled and shook her head “She said she wanted a sleepover, so she brought me to her room tonight. I played with her and made her laugh. Before we fell asleep, she looked at the moon again and said “Thank you, Artemis”.”

Artemis gave Twilight a tight hug. “T-thank you, Twilight!”

Twilight returned his hug and nuzzled him. Suddenly, she noticed that she was starting to disappear. “W-what’s going on?”

Artemis let her go and smiled sadly “You’re waking up.”

Twilight looked at him “Will I see you again?”

Artemis’ smile became wistful “I hope so. You’re nice.” He blushed “Can I ask you to do one more thing for me?”

Twilight nodded

Artemis gave her another hug “Please give my sister a hug and tell her that I’m alright.”

Twilight returned his hug “I will” As soon as she said that, she woke up.

- - -End Flashback- - -

Sundance and Midnight Armor stared at Twilight for several moments.

“Y-you repelled the Nightmare?” Midnight Armor shook his head “That must have been a very powerful magic flare.”

Before Twilight could say anything, Artemis turned to their parents. “Yes, she did. The space she created protected me for the next nine years.”

Twilight stared at Artemis “I-I did that?!”

“Yes, Twilight” Artemis kissed her “I’m starting to lose track of how many times you’ve saved me.”

Midnight Armor smiled as he saw Twilight’s stunned expression. “I could count them, but I’m not going to bother. Instead, I’m just going to say that I’m very glad our son chose you, Twilight.” He paused “Though, after hearing about all of the things you’ve done, I don’t think it’s possible for him have chosen anypony else.”

Wide eyed, Sundance nodded

Celestia looked at Artemis. “The next morning, the first thing Twilight did was tell me that she had met a pony “with wings and a horn like me” named Artemis in her dream. She gave me a hug and told me that you were alright, saying that you had asked her to do so. I asked her to tell me everything she remembered from her dream. As she did, I became certain that she was the bearer of the Element of Magic. For the first time, in a very long time, I had hope that I would see you again.”

Celestia turned to Twilight “It’s not your fault you didn’t remember this, Twilight. After you told me about your dream, I suppressed your memory of what happened. I knew you would eventually face Night-Terror Knight. I also knew that, if I didn’t do something, you would figure out that Artemis was trapped inside him. If that happened, you wouldn’t have been able to bring yourself to use the full strength of the Elements of Harmony because you would have been afraid of hurting Artemis.”

Sundance nodded thoughtfully “You’re right, Celestia. As under hoofed as it seems, you made the right choice.”

Celestia nodded to their mother and turned back to Twilight. “I didn’t want to permanently take the memory from you, so I wove a trigger into the spell. When you heard my memory of that night, you would regain your memory. I wanted to tell you a long time ago, but I couldn’t find the right time to bring up the topic.”

Midnight Armor looked at Twilight thoughtfully “I believe this is why Twilight was able to see Artemis’ soul when she faced Night-Terror Knight. Even though she didn’t remember it, she had already met him in that form. Additionally, she protected him once before, so some part of her must have known that she needed to do it again.”

Sundance nodded “That makes sense. In fact, that may have been what connected their souls. That would also explain why the bond between them is so powerful.”

Celestia looked at their mother “How can you tell how strong the bond between Artemis and Twilight is?”

Midnight Armor smiled “I could answer your question, Celestia, but I have a better idea.” He smiled at his wife before they both turned to their youngest. “Twilight? Will you show you sister what we’re talking about, please?”

Twilight nodded and focused on the link between Artemis and herself.

Celestia’s eyes widened as her siblings began to glow. “I didn’t think it would be this powerful.”

Sundance’s eyes also widened as she noticed how bright it was and turned to her husband. “Does it seem like their bond stronger than it was yesterday?”

Midnight Armor nodded, staring at Artemis and Twilight.

As they stopped glowing, Artemis nuzzled Twilight. “What did you think would happen after we regained such powerful memories?”

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Celestia smiled

“Speaking of those memories,” Artemis said slowly “Celestia explained why Twilight didn’t remember, but why did I forget? I only remembered what happened after Celestia told us how Twilight helped her.”

“That was my doing, Artemis. Twilight’s magic flare made it impossible for me to get to you. However, I was able to make you forget what happened. After hearing Celestia’s tale, I decided to return your memories.”

Sundance immediately lifted her wing and spread it over Artemis and Twilight.

Midnight Armor spread his over Celestia and lit his horn “Stay away from my children!”

There was a pause before Night replied.

“I understand why you feel that way, Midnight Armor. However, I no longer mean your son any harm. The Elements of Harmony have purified me as they purified Artemis. They also bound our souls together, making it impossible for me to leave his body. However, here in the dream realm, I have a little more freedom. As such, I will leave his dream. Good Night.”

Artemis closed his eyes I’m sorry, Night. It’s probably going to be a long time before my parents are willing to talk to you.

It’s alright, Artemis, I understand. We can talk about this later. For now, you should enjoy your time with your family.

Artemis opened his eyes “He left my dream.”

His parents sighed in relief before his mother shook her head. “Purified or not, I’d like to keep him as far away as possible.” She said “Especially after everything he put you through, Artemis.”

We should talk about something else. Twilight nuzzled Sundance “Why don’t we tell you how our day went? Some of it was kind of funny.”

Sundance smiled, immediately understanding the reason behind her daughter’s suggestion, and returned her nuzzle. “Thank you, Twilight”

Midnight Armor also smiled “Good idea. We didn’t get to hear how your day went last night, so why don’t you go first?”

Twilight shook her head “We’re going to have to take turns. Artemis or Celestia should start.”

Artemis smiled and continued playing his memory of what happened when they woke up.

Sundance smiled as she heard Artemis and Celestia talk about which of them was better able to figure out what she was saying and laughed when it was Twilight that figured out the reason behind her anger.

Twilight showed them what happened when she met the foals and their parents.

Midnight Armor heard a young Pegasus whine and gasped as Twilight pulled a piece of plaster out of his wing. “Is that the foal that had to be pulled out of the wall?”

Twilight nodded “Yes, that’s Cobalt. His parents had gotten most of the pieces of plaster out of his wings. They missed that one because it was deep in between his feathers and tucked into the bend of his right wing.”

Midnight Armor reached around his wife to nuzzle Twilight. “It seems that it was wise for you check that foal’s wings after all, Twilight.”

Celestia showed them the beginning of court and how the nobles tried to separate Artemis and Celestia.

Sundance shook her head as the nobles got louder. “You should have let your brother yell at them, Celestia. It’s clear he wanted to.”

Celestia nodded and paused her memory. “At the time, I was trying to explain that we don’t do that anymore. Besides, they don’t usually do this.”

Midnight Armor looked at her “Why did they do it then?”

Artemis smiled “You’ll find out. Twilight, I think it’s your turn.”

Twilight nodded and showed them her arranging the desks in her classroom.

Celestia smiled “I like that set up. I wish I had thought of it years ago.”

Artemis frowned as he heard Twilight comment on the noise from court. “I can’t believe it got that loud.”

Celestia shook her head as it got louder. “You weren’t kidding. You really could hear them from halfway across the castle.”

Twilight nodded and paused her memory.

Artemis showed their parents how the nobles suddenly stopped as they heard a loud voice. Everypony turned to see Twilight and her guards standing in the door.

Sundance laughed “That certainly stopped them. Well done, Twilight.”

Midnight Armor nodded “I see. They must have thought that, if they were loud enough, they could separate the two of you. That would have allowed them to trick Artemis into approving something he shouldn’t.”

Celestia smiled “Yes, but Twilight was louder.”

Everypony listened as Twilight listed her first three reasons for her idea to combine the courts and smiled as they heard her fourth reason.

Artemis shook his head “I still don’t see why that was so hard to understand.”

Sundance was about to ask Artemis what he was talking about but paused as Twilight lost her temper and simplified her fourth reason to words that everypony understood. Eyes wide, Sundance just stared at the image for a moment. Then she fell against her husband, laughing so hard that she was unable to speak for a couple of minutes. Finally calm enough to speak, she nuzzled Twilight. “Well said!”

Midnight Armor laughed as well “Well done, Twilight. I don’t think they’ll try that again.”

Twilight blushed “I-I didn’t mean to lose my temper, but they weren’t listening.”

“It’s completely understandable, Twilight.” Sundance replied, still laughing. “Your father’s right about them not trying that again. Though, if they do, they’ll learn a very important lesson.”

Twilight looked at her, confused “What lesson is that?”

“A lesson the nobles of our day learned the hard way.” Midnight Armor replied, smiling at his wife

Sundance laughed “When a pregnant mare wants something, she’s going to get it. This is especially true when that pregnant mare is an alicorn. We thought they learned that lesson when I was pregnant with Celestia.”

“They learned, or relearned, that lesson very quickly when she was pregnant with Artemis.” Midnight Armor added, laughing as well “For some reason, your mother had quite the temper for the entire length of that pregnancy. Even I had to be careful.”

Sundance turned to him “You did not!”

“Yes he did, Mother! I did as well!” Celestia told her, laughing

Sundance blushed “You try dealing with those nobles, and a young daughter, while pregnant. You’d have a temper too.”

Artemis shuddered “I hope Twilight doesn’t develop a temper like that. Can you imagine a pony with Twilight’s power and abilities having that kind of temper?”

Twilight looked at him “Huh?”

Wide eyed, Celestia looked at Twilight as she thought back to just before Artemis had been born. Remembering how their mother had acted, she imagined what it would be like if it was Twilight instead. “Oh no”

Midnight Armor shuddered as well “Your mother was bad enough. I don’t even want to think about Twilight having that kind of temper.”

Artemis shook his head and nuzzled Twilight “Getting back to our day, I’d like to move on to recess. I think Mother and Father would like to see that.”

Celestia smiled “I bet they would.”

Twilight smiled and showed their parents how she separated the foals by race and asked Artemis and Celestia to help her.

Sundance smiled as she saw Celestia’s game of aerial tag. “Having them weave between the clouds was a good idea, Celestia. Even though clouds aren’t usually fast, they do move. That will help those foals.”

Midnight Armor laughed as he watched Artemis work with the earth pony foals. "The best way to get them to build their strength is to have them move. Even though things are more peaceful, it’s a good idea for them to learn those skills.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor’s eyes widened as they watched Twilight work with the unicorns. “Where did you come up with that idea?” Sundance asked, nuzzling Twilight

Twilight returned her nuzzle “That’s one of the exercises Celestia made me do when I was their age.”

Celestia laughed “I came up with that a few centuries ago.” She gave Twilight a mischievous smile. “I like the technique you came up with.”

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow “What’s she talking about, Twilight?”

Artemis smiled “Twilight came up with a unique way to help the foals improve their reading.”

Sundance immediately said “Show us”

Midnight Armor smiled “I’d like to see this as well.”

Celestia smiled and showed their parents what happened in the library. Once the memory was over, Sundance and Midnight Armor stared at Twilight for a long moment.

Sundance shook her head “I’ve never seen anything quite like it.”

Midnight Armor smiled “Yes, but it clearly works”

Everypony laughed as Twilight blushed

Midnight Armor reached around his wife and nuzzled Twilight. “I have a question about something that was said last night.

Twilight looked at him “What’s that, Dad?”

Midnight Armor smiled at her “How did you get those foals to understand that they needed to leave the Everfree Forest alone?”

Twilight shrugged “I asked the foals how they would feel if they found a stranger in their house. Several of them said that they would fight to get the stranger to leave. I told them that those creatures would do the same thing because the forest is their home. They immediately said that they needed to leave the forest alone because it isn’t nice to go into somepony’s home.”

Midnight Armor and Sundance stared at Twilight for several minutes before turning to each other.

“I wish we had thought of that, it would have made things much easier.” Sundance commented “How many foals did we save from the creatures of that forest?”

Midnight Armor shrugged “There were so many that I stopped counting.”

Artemis turned to his sister “That doesn’t include the ones we saved.”

Celestia nodded

Sundance raised an eyebrow “We never allowed you two to help us.”

“No,” Artemis replied “but you let us play with the foals that lived in that small village. Whenever somepony went missing, we had to go into the forest to save them.”

Sundance gasped “What? Why didn’t you tell us?”

“We tried to tell you,” Celestia answered “but you didn’t let us explain why we were going into the forest. You just spent the night yelling at us because we disobeyed you.”

Artemis nodded “We never brought it up again.”

Midnight Armor glanced at his wife “We stopped receiving requests to save ponies from the forest and assumed that they learned to stay out of it.”

Sundance’s ears drooped “Instead, our children were doing our job for us.” She paused “That explains why the mayor of that village thanked us every time he saw us.”

Midnight Armor nodded thoughtfully “I just thought he was happy that we were allowing our children to play with the village foals. Instead, Artemis and Celestia were saving the villagers.”

Sundance nodded

Midnight Armor had the feeling that he was missing something. After thinking for a moment, his eyes widened “Now it all makes sense.”

Sundance turned to her husband “Midnight?”

He looked at his wife “I think it’s best if I show you what I’m talking about. Besides, I’m sure Celestia and Twilight would also appreciate an explanation.”

- - -Midnight Armor’s Flashback- - -

Midnight Armor stood in a small clearing in a dense part of the forest. He was breathing heavily and bleeding from a large gash on his left side. There was also an injury to his left wing, making it impossible for him to fly. Undeterred, he glared at the three Manticores in front of him. Growling, the largest one spread its wings and flew straight at him.

Midnight Armor glanced at the four foals behind him. He’d been forced to use the last of his available magic because, when he found the fillies, they were just about to be attacked by five Manticores and pack of Timberwolves. Here in the clearing, he’d thought they were safe, but then the three Manticores suddenly appeared. I’m not sure how we’re going to get out of this, I don’t even have enough magic for a shield. Making sure he was in front of the foals, he closed his eyes and braced for the impact.

Nothing happened.

Suddenly, one of the fillies shouted “Prince Artemis!”

What?! Midnight Armor’s eyes flew open. He noticed that the Manticores were looking to the right. Following their gazes, he saw his thirteen year old son standing not far from them. He was horrified when all three of the Manticores turned towards his son. This is bad, he hasn’t had any combat training!

Artemis created a shield around his father and the foals before turning his attention to the Manticores. He dodged the first Manticore by taking to the air. Immediately, the other two charged him. Artemis used his magic to launch one of them to the other side of the forest and put up a shield to block the second. Glancing behind him, Artemis saw the first Manticore rise into the air.

The larger Manticore tried to bite Artemis’ neck while the smaller one tried to take a swipe out of his right side. At the right moment, Artemis flew up so that the Manticores attacked each other. Both of them were bleeding heavily but they still turned to Artemis and charged. Artemis fired a beam of dark blue magic directly at them. Once the light faded, everypony on the ground looked around to find that there was no trace of either Manticore.

Midnight Armor stared at his son. When did he learn to do that?! He should only know defensive and healing spells! Sundance wanted them to focus on their studies, so she forbid me from teaching either of our children combat skills until they turned sixteen.

Artemis landed in front of Midnight Armor, released his barrier and cast a healing spell on his father. Then he turned to the fillies. “Why did you come into the forest?”

As one the foals bowed “We’re sorry, Prince Artemis.”

One of the foals lifted her head “We wanted to pick mushrooms and everypony knows that the best ones grow in the forest.”

Sighing, Artemis lit his horn. A couple of minutes later, over a dozen mushrooms were floating next to him. “These are all of the mushrooms that were growing nearby. Well, the ones that are safe to eat, anyway. Are any of these what you’re looking for, Strawberry Breeze?”

Strawberry Breeze, an earth pony filly, nodded “Mommy wants the big ones for dinner and Lily’s mommy asked her to get the small ones.”

“Do you have a basket?” Artemis asked

Lily stood, revealing her saddlebags

Artemis placed the mushrooms in the saddlebags. “We need to leave. It’s going to get dark soon and we don’t want to be in the forest at night.”

The fillies nodded “Yes, Prince Artemis”

Artemis examined his father’s injuries. “Celestia needs to take a look at this, she’s better at healing spells than I am.” Raising his head, he looked at his father. “She should be in the village, making sure nopony else enters the forest. Can you walk, Father?”

Midnight Armor nodded. He may only be thirteen, but I’m going to try to convince Sundance to let me train him. If he hadn’t arrived when he did, I’d probably be dead.

A little over an hour later, they finally made it out of the forest. They found Celestia and the parents of the fillies waiting for them. The fillies immediately ran to their parents, who bowed to the alicorns and took their children home.

Celestia walked forward but, before she could say anything, Artemis spoke up.

“It was three Manticores, sister.” He told her “Father was injured and apparently out of magic. I launched one of the Manticores to the other side of the forest and destroyed the other two. As for Father’s injuries, you need to take a look at his left side and wing. I tried to heal his injuries, but you’re better at it.”

Celestia nodded and surrounded their father’s left side and wing in her magic.

Midnight Armor sighed in relief as his injuries fully healed and the pain faded.

Artemis noticed and bowed his head “I’m sorry, Father”

“No, Artemis, don’t apologize.” Midnight Armor nuzzled his son “I don’t care that you weren’t able to heal my injuries. Instead, I want to thank you. If you hadn’t arrived when you did, those fillies and I would all be dead.”

Artemis still looked nervous “You’re not angry with me?”

Midnight Armor shook his head, confused “Why would I be angry?”

“I went into the forest.” Artemis sighed, looking at the forest. “Mother is going to kill me.”

Midnight Armor smiled “Leave your mother to me.”

- - -End Flashback- - -

Next Chapter: Chapter 47 Estimated time remaining: 24 Hours, 34 Minutes