As Celestia broke the kiss, the silence hit her like the proverbial ton of bricks. Everypony was staring at her and Lieia. You could hear a pin drop. Lieia pulled herself up, grinning sheepishly and whispered to Celestia.

“Well, I guess it’s official, then.” The ponies still stared at them. Lieia turned to them, scratching her head, thinking of what to say, but Twilight beat her to it.

“WHAT THE BUCK?”

As if a dam had been blown, the rest of the ponies joined in, clamouring at what had just taken place.

“…what is the meaning of this?”

“…Princess, why did…”

“…she just walked up and…”

“…how dare she…”

“ENOUGH!” Celestia thundered, standing up to her full length, and glaring at the crowd, before smiling apologetically.

“Sorry about that, but you all have to understand. I’m in love with Lieia.” She gestured to Lieia with her hoof who smiled bashfully.

“And I love her back.” The ponies still stared, mouths agape.

“So, uh, yeah. That’s about it.”

“So, Princess, when did you have your revelation?” Twilight asked, and Celestia smiled a bit distantly.

“I believe it was a couple of days earlier, give or take. When I woke up in the hospital after that Diamond Dog shot me and Lieia was there to greet me, I was taken aback by how caring she’d turned. When I fell asleep minutes later, I had a very strange dream.” She explained the dream.

“Then I woke up, just as Lieia arrived, bearing news of the Coalition’s arrival. I still don’t know if she suspected of my feelings back then.” She cast a sly glance towards Lieia, who shrugged.

“I had my suspicions, but nothing concrete.”

“Princess, I assume you know that you have Lieia to thank for saving your life.”

“What? I didn’t know that. Could you explain, Twilight?” Lieia shifted uncomfortably as Twilight beamed happily.

“She ran right into the thick of it, braving Diamond Dog gunfire and carried you back all the way where their medic treated your wounds. I saw the gunshot wounds on Lieia’s back. She risked her life to save you, so I guess there’s no doubting how she feels.” Surprised, Celestia turned to Lieia.

“You really did that?”

Nod.

“Could you let me see those wounds?” Reluctantly, Lieia turns around, hefting her shirt and jacket, which Celestia sees are covered in fresh patches. She gasped as she saw the stitches on Lieia’s back.

“It’s nothing, really. My bones and muscles were too tough for those stupid flintlocks. You needed the medical aid more than mMMMMMMMH.” Her eyes widened in surprise as Celestia kissed her. Twilight and her friends blushed slightly. After what seemed like eternity, Celestia broke the kiss, leaving Lieia a bit winded.

“You saved my life that day, Lieia, and you have my love. You have no longer anything to be ashamed of.” She nuzzled the human’s cheek, smiling gratefully.

“Yeah, well, I’m not that good with words and… stuff. So, if there isn’t anything else, I think I’ll be getting some sleep.” Celestia stood up after her and whispered in her ear.

“Would you join me in my room tonight? I do believe we have some… catching up to do.” She wore a decidedly sultry look on her face, which Lieia returned.

“You just read my mind.”

Rainbow Dash looked like she’d puke any moment.

“All this romantic stuff is making me sick. Get a room, you two!”

“Oh, we intend to. Follow me, Lieia.”

“Damn, nice room, Celly.”

“That’s nice of you to say, Lieia. Won’t you come in?”

“Well, no, I was going to stand right here for the rest of my life.” Lieia deadpanned, and then entered, closing the door behind her. Celestia was busily picking through a bookshelf and Lieia took the chance to cast an appraising eye over Celestia. Her eyes wandered over Celestia’s shapely, slender legs, the long, graceful curve of her neck, her round pl-

“Do you like what you see, hmm?” Celestia turned her head, regarding Lieia with a piercing eye.

“Uhhhh…”

“You could have just asked, you know.” Her gaze softened and she smirked. “I’m still waiting for an answer from you. Do you like what you see?”

“I suppose I do.” Lieia removed her jacket, tossing it in a nearby chair. “So, what do you want to do?”

“You know, I really didn’t think it through that far.” She sat down on a pillow in front of the fireplace, and Lieia joined her, smiling mischievously.

“I think I have an idea or two.” She reached up, kissing Celestia’s cheek softly. Another kiss followed and, before she knew it, she was on top of Celestia, letting her lips run rampant across the alicorn’s neck.

“Oh, Lieiaaaaaaah…” Celestia’s voice trailed off as she craned her head back, a low moan escaping her throat. Lieia crawled forwards a bit, coming face to face with Celestia. The sun goddess was panting, her cheeks flushed.

“That was, ah… refreshing.”

“You’ll like what’s coming next.” Lieia grinned, leaning in closer to Celestia. Before she could say anything, Lieia had locked their lips together, and was trying to snake her tongue in Celestia’s mouth. Unfortunately, Luna chose to make her appearance, so deep in thoughts she forgot to knock on the door of her sister’s bedroom, and was treated to the sight of Lieia on top of Celestia, her tongue deep in the alicorn’s mouth. Said alicorn was returning the gesture.

“Holy shit! Luna! Were you born in a tram or something? Knock first!” Lieia rolled off Luna’s sister, taking cover behind Celestia’s body. Said mare rolled on her side, gulping air greedily.

“Ah… Ah… Luna. What is it…? Is there trouble?” Luna was rooted to the spot, racking her brain for anything to say, anything to break the terrible silence that filled the air.

“Luna? Maybe you could come back at a later time. Me an’ your sister are a bit busy at the moment.” She tickled Celestia, who laughed despite the situation.

“I, uh, I will go now. Um…” She backed out, and locked the door behind her.

“Well, that was awkward. What’s with her wings, anyways?”

“They’re, uh… sensitive.”

“You mean that-oh. Oh.” A sly smile passed over her face and she rubbed her fingers gently across Celestia’s plumage, and the alicorn bit back a gasp.

“Lieia, what are you…?” She let out something between a gasp and a moan as Lieia’s fingers danced across the wing again, and she kept at it for a couple of minutes, even as Celestia begged her to stop, until she cried out, her wings unfurling to their full width, sending Lieia tumbling across the floor.

“Wow. Did I just…?” Lieia muttered disbelievingly, picking herself up from the floor, crawling slowly back to Celestia, who was sprawled on the floor, her sides heaving as she panted.

“Ah… ah… Lieia, that was… quite something…”

“Wait, so you’re not mad at me for not stopping?”

“Quite the opposite.” Celestia stood up with some difficulty, her legs trembling slightly. “That… I haven’t had myself teased quite like that in a long time. I do think I’ll return the favour someday. When I will, you won’t even see it coming.”

“I guess there’s more to you than meets the eye, eh?”

“I suppose you could say that. Anyways, enough talk for this day. Will you sleep with me?” Celestia removed her regalia, climbing in the bed, with Lieia following her moments later, taking a couple of seconds to extricate herself from her clothes. She sighed happily as she felt Celestia curl up around her. Was this how real love felt? She didn’t know. But she didn’t care, either. She wouldn’t swap this for anything.

She woke up a couple of hours later, mouth drier than a desert. At first disoriented slightly, she calmed down upon seeing her surroundings. She was pressed up against Celestia’s stomach, her long, slender legs cradling Lieia. Celestia radiated a lot of heat and she felt like she was being cooked alive. She needed a drink. Celestia didn’t make it easy, whimpering softly as Lieia tried to disentangle herself from Celestia’s grasp, holding the human in her embrace.

“Celestia.”

“Mrrrhhmmm…”

“Celestia.”

“Mhh. What is it, Lieia? Is something wrong?”

“No, everything’s alright. I just need some water. But you’re being clingy.” At this, the half-awake mare grinned sheepishly.

“Sorry. Promise you won’t run away.” Lieia gave her a quick peck on her nose, smiling gently.

“I wouldn’t dream of it.” Even though she needed the drink, she was reluctant to leave her lover’s embrace. She wandered inside the bathroom, finding an empty glass and filling it with water. She drank three glasses before her thirst was slaked. As she returned, she noticed something unorthodox about the shadows dancing across the wall. She wasn’t alone, she guessed. As she tossed another couple of logs in the fire, she sensed someone sit down beside her.

“We need to talk, Lieia.”

She turned to see Luna looking at her, her face completely serious.

“I know what this is about. You’ll probably tell me not to betray your sister, lest my soul be damned.”

“Not only that.”

“Do tell.”

“She hasn’t had anypony to love in her life, though she has always tried to find somepony to fill the hole in her heart. But she has been rejected many times.”

“Why? You’d think everyone would be falling head over heels for her attention.” Luna shook her head.

“Those who did often only thought of themselves, caring only for fame and recognition. They did not last long. You, however, aren’t after her riches or recognition.”

“I am not.”

“Though Celestia would not admit it, she needs you.”

“I won’t leave her again. You have my word on it.” Luna nodded satisfiedly, before melting back in the shadows.

Celestia groggily sat up, seeing Lieia sitting in front of the fireplace, gazing at the fire. After a moment, she sat down beside her.

“A bit for your thoughts?”

“Why me?” Celestia sighed at that, obviously expecting the question sooner or later.

“Everypony else who has tried to woo me is either arrogant or a snob. They just walk up to me, declaring their weight in gold and more or less demanding that I fall head over heels for them. Needless to say, I sent them packing. You, however, are none of those things.”

“Yep. Instead, I’m a loud, rude, insubordinate bitch, who somehow fell in love with you. Logic, eh?”

“No, Lieia. You are brash, but brave. You are selfless, but not suicidal. You do not tolerate fools easily, but you care about those close to you. That’s why I love you. You are one of a kind.”

“All these compliments are gonna go to my head, Celly. But thanks. Coming from you, it means a lot to me. Look, I haven’t been entirely honest with you. You know that I got the replacement parts for my lost organs. But it’s only half the story.”

“Lieia, I will not make fun of you. I love you too much for that. I do not… I do not want to lose you.” Lieia rubbed her face against Celestia’s neck lovingly at that.

“Thanks. I mean it. Okay, here goes.” She drew a shaky breath and Celestia wrapped her wing around Lieia’s shoulders.

“When they removed my destroyed lungs, heart, and what remained of my left arm and shoulder, I had no way of surviving on my own. I had to remain hooked up to a machine that kept my blood rich with oxygen.” She pulled free of the wing embrace, and guided Celestia’s hoof across the long, pale scar running down her chest, splitting up at her neck, curving along her collarbone, and then let Celestia’s hoof rest on a small, curved scar just above Lieia’s left breast.

“That’s where the tubes went in. Since my lungs were gone, I couldn’t speak or breathe. I was kept nourished through an IV drip. As it was, most of the time I was too weak to even move my head. Occasionally, I’d have panic attacks, trying to draw a breath on my own, even though I wasn’t able to. I had to be kept sedated most of the time.

“Last time was the worst one. I had been alone too long. Had another panic attack, nastiest one to date. I tried to rip those tubes out of my chest, but I was too weak. Then, I tried to break the machine keeping me alive. A bunch of guards rushed in, restraining me and tying me down on the bed. I remember screaming, crying, pleading them to just kill me. Of course, they heard nothing.”

“L-Lieia, please, say no more! I-I can’t believe you’d try to kill yourself!” Celestia became aware of tears running down her face, as Lieia grimly looked at her.

“I was a complete mess. I didn’t want to live the rest of my life as a useless cripple, hardly capable taking care of herself. There was the chance that my body would reject the replacements, too. I didn’t want to remain a shell of what I was. A husk that can’t be called a person. A nothing.”

“Lieia, that changes nothing between us. I still love you. I always will.”

Lieia said nothing for a few seconds, before burying her face in Celestia’s neck, weeping silently, while Celestia whispered soothingly. After a few minutes, Lieia calmed down enough, smiling at Celestia.

“Thanks. Felt good to talk about it.”

“You have suffered much. It isn’t healthy to keep all those feelings bottled up in yourself. Want to get back in the bed?”

“You read me like a book, Celly.” They shared another kiss, before climbing in the bed.

When Lieia woke again, it was bright outside. She was still with Celestia. Carefully, she got out of the bed, taking care not to wake her up. She slipped back in her clothes, and looked around for a piece of paper. After leaving a message for Celestia, she cast a loving glance towards the sleeping alicorn.

Celestia woke up some time later. At first worried about Lieia’s absence, she calmed down when she read the note left for her.

Meet me in the courtyard.

She recognised Lieia’s handwriting instantly, and she wondered what the human had in mind.

Lieia smiled when Celestia cantered up to her.

“Hey there.”

“Hello. So, what do you want to do?”

“Well, I have something special in mind. I’m going to Hope for that neural lace surgery. Thought you’d like to come along for a little tour.”

“I’d love to, Lieia. Could Luna, Twilight and her friends come too?”

“Who’s going to fill in for you while you’re away?”

“I have a couple of trustworthy nobleponies in mind. Just let me notify them.”

A couple of minutes later, Luna joined them, still seemingly uncomfortable.

“You saw nothing last evening.”

Nod.

“Cool beans, Luna. So, you ready for a tour?”

“As soon as we pick up Twilight and her friends, yes.”

“I called Arcelia a couple of minutes ago. She’s collected them already. They’ll be here in a couple of minutes.”

After said few minutes passed, the hulking shape of the dropship appeared over the gardens, alighting in their front.

“I’m here, Captain. The ponies are safe and sound in the cargo hold. Shall we depart?”

“By all means. I thought Briggs was piloting you.”

“Sergeant Briggs is busy at the moment, as is the rest of Reaver Squad.”

“Okay, I get it. They’re not available. I’ll be the pilot then. A’ight, then, you two, let’s get on.”

“This is your pilot speaking; we’ll be airborne in a couple of moments. Please stay seated while I skip the pre-flight checklist.” Celestia didn’t know what that meant, but it sounded ominous. Ignoring other’s protests; she stood up, joining Lieia in the cockpit. Lieia was busily flipping through several holographic screens, before connecting her music player to one of the dashboards. She turned to look at Celestia for a moment, the turned back, flipping a number of switches.

“I told you to get seated. My flying skills are a bit rusty.”

“What is a pre-flight checklist and why would you skip it?”

“Relax, I was just kiddin’. You’re too important to die in a horrific crash.” She smiled wrily, before finishing whatever she was doing. A low, dull rumble started. Lieia grabbed the controls, applying more thrust until Arcelia lifted off.

“Now comes the fun part.” The vectored-thrust jets swivelled, and Celestia nearly fell over as the dropship hurtled off into the skies. As she heard Lieia cackle gleefully, she could now hear the words blasting from the speakers.

Gimme fuel, gimme fire

Gimme that which I desire

Turn on, I see red

Adrenaline crash and crack my head

Nitro junkie, paint me dead

And I see red…

Celestia shook her head in disbelief.

Sky above, she’ll be the end of me someday.

Next Chapter: Chapter 13 Estimated time remaining: 3 Hours, 53 Minutes