“And so this is where it began for her.” Pinkie touched the steps of the orphanage with a sense of wonder on her face. “And then six years later, you became her mother.” At the moment, the two were on a fairly empty street in South Canterlot. As most of the festivities were being held in the northern and western districts, the eastern and southern ones were living their normal lives. And the orphanage they stood in front of was no exception.

“I hadn’t expected what happened that day. I hadn’t even planned to visit the orphanage,” Princess Celestia admitted. Spreading her wings to encompass the street, she added, “My original plan was to attend the commemoration of a new library for the southern district of town.” She gave a nostalgic smile. “Of course, my plans were changed by one special little filly and I am very glad for that.”

“A special filly for a special mother,” Pinkie said with a soft smile.

A brief look of pain came over the alicorn’s face. “Perhaps…but by no means the best one, I’m afraid,” she admitted. “I’m sure my daughter has told you about the difficulties we’ve had in our lives.”

“Yes. And she’s also told me about how much she absolutely loves you despite all that. Besides, I know a thing or two about being distant from my own mother.” Pinkie then went into a brief explanation of her own home life and how she was mostly raised by her aunt and uncle and how that impacted her relationship with her parents. “Mom and I get along like oil and water. Now, don’t get me wrong: I love her and I’m going to guess she loves me, even if she doesn’t know I’m bi, but…well, it is what it is.”

“I see.” Princess Celestia looked at the human that was her daughter’s lover, protestations to the contrary. “Miss Pie, I dislike interfering in Sunset’s affairs, given that she is an adult by our standards, but…she seems pensive about the two of you. Please, don’t get me wrong; I can clearly see there is something between you two – I don’t need my niece’s talents to discern that – but at the same time, there’s also something that seems to be keeping you two from being together.”

Pinkie looked at the mare that was Sunset’s mother. Adopted or not, this was the person that had set Sunset on a course that had ended her up on Earth and into Pinkie’s life. The teen was forever grateful for that, but at the same time, there was the undeniable fact that Princess Celestia was the ruler of this nation. It underscored the fact that Pinkie’s girlfriend was a literal princess, and not just that of a French house in pretense, but a living, breathing royal.

“PDA, maybe?”

“PDA?”

“Public displays of affection,” Pinkie clarified. “Apparently on Earth, the royals we have aren’t very big on it. Especially the British, the Thai, the Saudis and the Japanese, as I recall. I’m not saying they’re sticks in the mud, but they rarely express themselves in public.”

“Well, we don’t have any sort of things like that here,” Celestia assured the girl. “Even if we did, I don’t think Cadance would stand for it, given her aspect.”

“Well,” Pinkie admitted, “It could be another thing I haven’t mentioned. Because of what happened to us, Sunny knows our future – especially mine and hers. Moreover, she knows that I know it, too. I think it scares her, because she’s never been one that has let things just happen to her. She’s always been the type to fight against fate and I love that about her. But this isn’t the sort of thing that you fight against. This…well, it just happens.”

“You sound as though everything is set in stone.”

Pinkie gave a smile. “I’m a wife. I’m not saying I want to be. I’m not saying that I know I’ll be. I am Sunset’s wife. I am her sword and her heart. I am going to be the mother of our children. I’m….” Pinkie sighed and walked away from the orphanage, heading to a small bench that was just over by the street. “I’m trying to be vague, because no one should know their future and yet I do. It was all laid out for me before I was even born. I will marry an alien that is the same sex as me, and I have no choice in the matter. Not that I mind; I love her and this is what I want. But predestination is a scary thing, Princess.”

“Well, my sister and I – and likely Twilight as well – suspected that you were Sunset’s Swordbearer. But I should tell you that it doesn’t mean that you two will be lovers. Yes, my sister’s fiancé was her Swordbearer, and Shining is Cadance’s. But my mother’s Swordbearer, the Megan, was said to be her closest friend and confidante, not her lover; and as for my own, Starswirl was far too much older than I to be anything other than an avuncular figure to me. I know he thought of me like a precious niece.”

From the way Princess Celestia had mentioned the Megan, it sounded as though she were talking about someone that was long gone. And given her conversations with the stranger, it made Pinkie wonder if she’d been talking to a ghost. Either way, it was not the best time to bring it up. “And what happened to them all?”

“I don’t know about the Megan,” the day alicorn answered. “Sometimes I wonder if she was even real. As for Bucephalus, he was betrayed and murdered by his so-called best friend. And as for my own…my mother told me that Starswirl vanished after having been betrayed by a monster that he couldn’t defeat. Sometimes I think my mother was worried I’d be broken hearted over losing the closest thing to a father figure that I had and so spared me news of his death. And yes, I miss him dearly, and I know the cenotaph in the Royal Cemetery is the closest thing I’ll have to closure over the issue.

“But it also makes me think of something else, Miss Pie. If you truly are her Swordbearer, you will live an eternal life with her; moreover, as you grow into your power, you will match the strongest of magic users in this world and clearly outpower anything on your own. But you will merely be ageless, not immortal. Something as deadly as a blade or as simple as a virus could kill you. I do not wish for my daughter to suffer being alone.”

“I would never do that to her.”

“It is not my place to say yes or no. Given that she is an adult, I’m not even sure it’s my place to give my blessing to such a union, though it wouldn’t surprise me that her adopted parents might have some position on that, given you are both minors on your world. But as her mother…if you two are truly to be together, please: make her happy. Give her the joy and peace she so desperately deserves, the wither to cry on when she needs it and the wing to wrap around her when she feels frail. Give her the strength of your hooves when she….” Celestia chuckled. “And here I’d rehearsed this speech in my mind the day my Little Sun finally found somepony, and her ‘somepony’ isn’t one at all.”

Pinkie laughed. “That’s okay, I know what you mean. Besides, I suspect Auntie Cup and Uncle Carrot probably have something similar to tell her.”

“Well, since we’re here, we may as well go in and meet the staff. They still remember Sunset with fondness, and I’m sure the colts and fillies here will be thrilled to meet a human.”

Pinkie couldn’t help but smile. “Okay then! Lead the way!”

“Okay, ladies, take a break,” Sable told the assembled SIRENs. “You won’t oversee security tonight at the coronation ball, and tomorrow you’ll be busy being the escort for Princess Sunset. So we need to get this right, understood?”

Currently, the dozen SIRENs were in one of the Army’s private training fields, where they were working on their formation marching. Normally it wouldn’t be anything of concern, since their stock in trade was guerilla warfare and not precision drill marching, but military formalities were universal everywhere. The Army, the regular Navy, the Guard, the Guild and even the Agency had their own marching groups ready to go, and as the ones that would escort their princess down the road to the dais where she would be invested as the newest princess of Equestria, they had to make sure things were better than perfect.

“Awww, c’mon!” Moonblazer groaned. “We should be able to do this! We used to fly in formation all the time in my old squadron!”

Ekene rolled her eyes. “In case reconnaissance is not your thing, please note we all are lacking wings.”

“Um…we all used to be part of the other services, so we’re used to marching,” Embiggen said in her soft voice. Towering over them all, she looked down at them with hope. “I know we can do this. We’re a team now, right? So we should be able to succeed at this or at anything.”

“She’s right, you know.” Aria looked at the others. “We all have had military training of some sort, so we should be able to do this. And speaking from a personal perspective – not as Cmdr. Blaze, REN, but as Aria Blaze? It would mean a lot to me if we did. Not because we want to look like the superelite troops that we are, but because this is my cousin’s time to shine. I want to make her look good because I’m proud of the point she got to.”

“Same goes for me,” Sonata added.

“That would be three of us,” Adagio chimed in.

“Well, I’m not related to her, but I’ve seen how much she’s worked to get where she is and all the good she’s done,” Sable said, “so speaking off the record, I would like it to happen as well. Both for Princess Sunset’s sake and to show ponies that the SIRENs are the best in the business. Whatever must be done.”

“Sounds like a new motto, sir,” Sonata said.

“What was the old one?”

“Ultimum Surgere, or The Last Ones Standing,” Adagio explained.

“So what’s our new one in Latin?”

Sonata looked it up on her phone. “Id Agendum,” she replied.

“Then we’ll go with that. So, now that we’ve taken our breaks, ladies, back to the marching practice. Everyone back in formation.”

“Like we formin’ the forms in formation?” Tomahawk giggled.

“I see someone did not turn her brain on,” Ushanka said curtly, but at this point they knew her sense of humor, especially as it was followed up by the ghost of a smile a second later.

“Adm. Loam!” Sable looked up to see a royal page approaching from the air, soaring across the sky and coming to a stop just before the group. “I’m glad I found you, sir. We have an update from the Coronation Events Committee!” The pegasus reached into a pouch at her side and pulled out a letter for him. “Now if you’ll excuse me, sir, I need to go let several other VIPs know. It’s going to be a busy afternoon for me.” She gave a brief bow, then launched herself into the air again towards the continuation of her tireless mission.

Sable immediately opened the envelope and looked at the news within. Folding it and putting it in his pocket, he shook his head in bemusement. “Okay, ladies, listen up: I’ve got some good news and some bad news – and they’re actually the same thing.”

“Wouldn’t that just be ‘news’, sir?” Tomahawk asked with a lackadaisical smile that held a touch of mischief.

“I suppose. In any case, because of the much larger than expected crowds, the Coronation Events Committee has decided that it would be in the best interest to delay things by a day. They’re announcing it to the VIPs and foreign dignitaries right now and the public announcement will be in an hour.”

“Oh, that’s gotta suck for Sunny,” Sonata told her sisters. “She’s already nervous as hell about this.”

“Yeah, but that just gives us time to perfect all that we need to,” Adagio commented. “So, ladies, break’s over. We got a job to do and we’re going to do it, right?”

“Aye aye, ma’am!” the other SIRENs said in unison.

As the news was read to both Sunset and Princess Luna, the younger alicorn deflated with relief. “Good,” she said softly. “I can be normal for just one more day.”

Princess Luna, however, heard that. “What, don’t you think you were normal to begin with, my dearest niece?”

“I already told you my opinions on that.”

“Yes, and I’d hoped that you would already stop feeling sorry for yourself. Guilt can be a powerful thing; believe me, I still go through it myself often enough. But you can’t do this to yourself forever, Sunset. That way lies madness. Trust me on that. Besides, I really don’t think you want to make your own Tantabus. They can be problematic to control if they get out of hand.”

Sunset looked at her aunt oddly. “Huh?”

The night alicorn tittered, discreetly covering her mouth. “It would take too long to explain. In any case, we can schedule an additional practice for tomorrow, so we can end this. Truth be told, this does get old. And Cellie has the easy part: she only has to sit there and look regal. We agreed that I would be the one to do the speeches this time around, so I’m the one with all the difficulty. In any case, are you up for lunch? I know this great little bistro in the eastern district of town that I think you might just enjoy.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Sunset replied, glad to get out of yet another round of discomfort. She would be glad that this whole ordeal would be over soon, even if it would take a day longer than planned. At this point she relished going back to school, her afterschool job and all the other things she did as a normal girl, as well as all of her duties as the Alicorn of Earth.

I guess in the end, the trappings of a princess of Equestria were never really for me, she mused. I guess I’d rather be a princess like Shimmy, in the end.

She made a note to make sure she visited her “twin sister” after this was all over. She was pretty sure that they would have a lot to talk about.

As the crowd dispersed and the two alicorns teleported away, a shadowy figure watching from the sidelines took notes. She doesn’t seem particularly powerful. I wonder if all the news of her being the strongest of the alicorns was mere propaganda from the Crown. The figure jotted down more notes, eyes darting to and fro and looking at all the attendants present. Light amount of guards, even less than when Princess Twilight was coronated. These fools are too confident.

With that done, the figure slipped the notes into a sidesaddle pouch as well as the limited hiding cloak that was being used. Once that was completed, the figure moved away from the practice grounds, towards the public and soon blended into the crowd, yet another faceless pony amongst the increasing crowds that were flowing into the city. It was becoming to the point that the central, western and northern districts were reaching capacity, and the eastern and southern districts would have to pick up the slack. Certain roads were already being designated “cart only” traffic, as the foot traffic was now so heavy that it would be too hard to move the vehicles through. Additionally, the fact that the sidewalks were being blocked off in order to install the seating for tomorrow’s event also added to the crush of bodies.

That would be to our benefit, the figure thought. With this many in town, it will be hard to control both a panicked crowd and additional combatants – because we know there will be. We will finally have our due.

The figure looked above, looking at the sheer number of fliers in the air, far more than normal. There were already some guards in the air, starting to direct traffic and soon there would be an air grid similar to that of the ground one, something that only happened when there were so many fliers in the air that it affected localized weather and some magical patterns. That, too, would be a benefit, as the panicked fliers would either scatter, inadvertently overwhelming any defenders; or head to the ground, causing a burden to the ground support. Either way, it would result in precious time lost for “Canterlot’s defenders” to act and more time for the Covenant to do what needed to be done.

The figure smiled. The day of the coronation would be a grand day, indeed: it would see the crowning of the newest princess of Equestria, it would be the pinnacle of a moment between Princess Celestia and her beloved daughter…

…and it would be the end of the alicorns, paving the way for Sombra, the true lord and master of ponydom.

The paramedic shook his head. “This is weird. Are you serious about this?” he asked the guard.

“That’s the statement from the witness,” the guardspony told him. “She reported that this stallion got on the roof of that building, declared that he wished he was a pegasus and he would now be one and then he jumped from the top as if he was going to fly. Even tried flapping his forelegs like he was just going to get airborne or something.”

The paramedic looked at the place where the unfortunate stallion “descended to the ground”. “Yeah, well, fortunately for him, the building wasn’t too tall, and plus, he landed in all this garbage,” she noted. “That being said, he’s got a broken left forecannon and his croup is cracked. He’ll be lucky to get out of the hospital after a couple of weeks. Wonder what made him do something that dumb?”

The guardspony shrugged. “Dunno, but personally, we’ve seen our share of more than a few ponies ‘celebrating’ Princess Sunset’s coronation a little early, if you get my drift. They either hit the cider bottle a little too much or partake in a salt lick or twelve. Heard a few are even using things they shouldn’t, like nostrums – we’re looking into that. Just…expect a lot more of this.”

“With the crowds larger than normal? No kidding. I just hope this doesn’t get out of hoof.”

The two ponies continued to trade notes as was the norm in their profession and were so engrossed in that, neither noticed the beautiful prismatic butterfly that flitted away from the scene. It seemed to glow a little more brightly than last time, as it was no longer starving, but still required sustenance. And in this town, it had to be picky in order to find the best food around. After all, it still needed to fly back to its homelands and find a mate.

“Thanks for coming with us, Whiskey,” Octavia told the kitsune. At the moment, both she and Fluttershy were headed off to Tierfenbucker’s. Since they had an extra day, the raven-haired musician thought she’d show her friend and fellow musician the store and maybe play a mini-concert. Given the crowds she’d been drawing during the week, she was more than certain Quick Note wouldn’t mind in the least.

“Plus, having a cute little guard walk with us is just totes dorbz!” Fluttershy said with a smile.

Whiskey blushed and Octavia laughed. “Flutters, the ‘cute little guard’ is nearly three hundred years old.”

“Seriously?” When the disguised fox nodded, it was Fluttershy’s turn to be flustered. “I’m sorry about that.”

“No need to apologize,” Whiskey pointed out. “In this form, I am human. Not a kitsune in disguise, but completely human, with a human lifespan and everything. We kitsunes aren’t like most other shapeshifting species, where we’re able to keep a part of ourselves in our true natures while shapeshifting. Because our ability to take on the guises of other creatures differs from the norm, I suppose we’re an ‘all or nothing’ species. So you can just figure that I’m fourteen – that’s what Princess Sunset figured I was after doing some age conversions.”

“Well, I’m glad that you’re more comfortable around us than you were a week ago,” Octavia noted.

“I’m not Kashingo anymore,” the youngest teen said sardonically. “She was weak and foolish.”

“You shouldn’t think about yourself that way.”

“I don’t. She had dreams and hopes of being a better retainer and a valued vassal of a kitsune prince that abused her, all in order to earn fame for a clan that disgracefully got rid of her first chance they had because of a simple mistake.” Placing a hand on her chest, she said, “I am a SIREN. A valued ally and follower of Princess Sunset and one of her guards. I’ve been told that I will probably be issued a petty officer’s rank because of my experience, even though I don’t yet have the ability to lead. But I’m okay with that, because I have a chance to grow and become the best person I can be. If I were Kashingo, I’d be dead already…by my own paw, no less.”

“Well, let’s not talk about that,” Fluttershy suggested. “This is a time to celebrate, isn’t it? We should be happy!”

“Yup, and that’s why we’re headed towards this place.” The trio arrived at Tierfenbucker’s and based on the newest addition to the storefront window – a photograph of Octavia playing, as well as a type of guitar that she had been using – it was clear that the store was doing very well. As for Fluttershy, she could see the quality of the instruments present.

As they walked in, Quick Note noticed and instantly gave a wide smile. “If it isn’t my favorite human!” he crowed cheerfully. “Welcome! And I see you brought more of them. Musicians also, I presume?”

“Well, I am,” Fluttershy admitted, “though I don’t know about Ms. Whiskey here.”

“I can play the biwa, but I don’t consider myself a professional musician, sorry.”

“Well, I sent your instruments over to the palace as per your request,” Note told her, “but were you looking for some new instruments, by any chance?”

“I thought my friend here would appreciate the gesture,” Octavia told him, “and in return, I think we can perform one more mini-concert, if you’re interested.”

“We can’t stay long, though, as we do have that ball tonight,” Whiskey reminded them.

“True, but at least we can have a little fun before the drudgery,” Fluttershy said.

“Not a fan of that sort of stuff?”

“I’ve been to a couple of formal dances, and truthfully, no.”

“Wow, Twily,” Princess Twilight said as the group sat down to lunch. “I am extremely impressed. For someone not versed in politics, you were able to deal with the Gamali and work out an agreement with them on behalf of Equestria!” At her side, the Bearers that were present all nodded, agreeing with their friend’s words.

Given the teenager’s amazing feat of dealing diplomatically with a species not particularly known for diplomacy, the alicorn chose to take the group out to lunch at one of the best restaurants in Equestria, on restaurant row. The Tasty Treat was a new place specializing in ponjabi dishes, and from some of the discussions that Twilight had with the restaurant’s owner, they had meals that would satisfy both pony and non-pony tastes. While it was vegetarian, human Rainbow was willing to put up with it, given that she liked the Indian restaurant that her family usually went to.

“Yes, you should really be a noblepony!” Pinkie chirped, practically bouncing up and down in her chair, the earth pony’s mane and tail bobbing up and down in time with her hopping on the seat.

“Sounds like something Ah’d agree with,” Applejack replied. “Ever think about going into politics back home, Twily?”

“Not really. I mean, my mom deals with it enough, and I never really thought of myself as politically minded.”

“Well, maybe you could be a kickass politician or something, like Long Ball or Louisville Slugger!” Rainbow cheered, thrusting a fist in the air.

Applejack facepalmed. “Rainbow, those are baseball players, not politicians. Even Ah know that.”

The wide smile on Rainbow’s face vanished. “Um…I knew that!” she said awkwardly, and the group giggled.

“And here I thought I could be bad at times,” Rainbow’s counterpart replied, bending over to whisper to pony Fluttershy.

“Oh, you are, Rainbow,” Fluttershy teased, “but we love you anyway.”

Unknown to the others, at the other end of the restaurant, Blueblood sat, eating lunch. He was currently in one of his disguises, that of a brick-red unicorn stallion with a white mane and a cutie mark of interlinked circles. As Circlesong, he’d eaten here a number of times. It was a good way to put his ear to the ground, in a manner of speaking, to discover and find out about what he couldn’t hear when he was trying to find out what threatened the kingdom. Even merchants and traders had to eat, and that meant restaurants, and just like that, merchants and traders had loose lips.

But right now, it was all he could do to concentrate on his own food. All he could do was to steal looks at the humans with Twilight and his fellow ponies…and to hope that one particular one was with them. But she wasn’t.

Why was that? And more importantly, why wasn’t she?

“Thanks for waiting!” Rubbing her head, Octavia Melody slipped into the chair across from him. She already knew about this disguise, as she did many others, and it didn’t matter now, as the earth mare had a splitting headache.

He immediately cast the all-too familiar spell. “I thought you promised me that you were going to take it easy, Octy.”

“Well, I did sleep in the other day when I was at your place. And I appreciate you bringing me breakfast, even after I offered to cook.”

He felt relieved by that; it had gotten him out of a messy explanation. “You needed your rest. You were obviously working too hard on your project. By the way, I took the time to order your usual.”

She smiled. “I owe you, you know that? For everything.”

“We’re family, are we not?” he told her. “You know I would take care of you.”

She nodded. “Well, let’s just forget about everything right now and just relax. Thanks to the overwhelming interest of Princess Sunset’s coronation, things have gotten so busy, they’ve had to push everything back an extra day, which gives me one more day to practice. I just hope I survive the ordeal,” she groaned.

“And it is a pleasure as always for you to spend time with us, Your Majesty.” An aged mare stood by the door to the orphanage; though normally she would have bowed, both age and the insistence of her visitor had convinced her otherwise. “It is always an honor to have you come here to the South Canterlot Foals’ Home,” she said, a genuine smile on her face.

Princess Celestia nodded. “No, the eternal pleasure has always been mine, Miss Heart,” the day alicorn stated. “Ever since the day you and your husband showed me the beautiful little filly that would come into my life, I have forever owed this orphanage a debt I feel I can never repay.”

Dreamy Heart moved aside, allowing the alicorn in. “Your Majesty, your attention to this place is more than enough,” she assured her.

“No, it’s not. I wish I could do for all the foals and children of Equestria what I did for Sunset, but I am one mare. I am at least glad I was able to give this place my personal patronage and ensure that youth that end up here have a chance at a life they deserve.”

“And we appreciate it, Princess.” She then looked at the stranger that had accompanied the princess and was currently talking to the extremely inquisitive foals. “And if I may venture, Your Majesty, who is that?”

The princess smirked. “One who is very dear to my daughter,” she explained. “One that wanted to know where she came from and how things began for her.”

“I see. And how is Princess Sunset doing, if I may ask? I haven’t seen her in quite some time, and when I’d heard the stories about how she and you fought, I’d worried. But now that I know they are nothing but falsehoods, I am eager to see how that little filly has fared after all this time.”

“I shall ask her to come see you when she has an opportunity,” Celestia stated, wincing at the reminder of the official lie she had set. “As for Sunset, she is enjoying her new duties with a verve and panache that I had always hoped for her, and she seems much happier with that than the original duties I had planned. She has built a life for herself amongst the humans and I am proud of the mare she’s become.”

“As are we, Princess, as are we.”

It was then that one of the foals ran over to Dreamy Heart and asked, “Miss Heart! Miss Heart! Can we go outside and play with Miss Pinkie?” As the foal asked, it was already clear that was the intent of the other foals, as they were both pushing and dragging Pinkie, who was clearly amused at their attention.

“Miss Pie, if you don’t mind?” the princess asked. “It will give me a brief moment or two to catch up on business here in the orphanage.”

“No, Princess, I don’t mind at all,” Pinkie said, reaching down to pick up one particularly young one that looked like she was slightly overwhelmed by the older foals. “I like kids, human or otherwise.”

“Thank you.”

“No, it’s not a problem!” Pinkie said, a wide smile on her face. “Like I said, I like kids.”

With that, she walked out into the orphanage’s spacious backyard, where there were swings and slides and a dozen fillies and colts following her. As they stepped onto the grass, she turned and asked, “So, what do you want to do?”

The answer to that was a billion questions asked at once, a cacophony of the type that only overexcited children could create. Pinkie gave them all a sweet smile; they were happy and it was infectious. It reminded her briefly of her childhood at Riverstone Elementary and how she loved the school. Unfortunately, the school no longer existed, as it was old and eventually replaced by Greengrass Elementary, a few blocks down from where the old Riverstone site was. At least the site was now a park, and some of the buildings repurposed into a community center.

Finally, one shy little filly with a bright blue coat and a red mane came up to her and tugged on her pants. “Miss Human?” she said softly. “Will you tell me a story?”

“Valley, nobody wants to hear a story!” a colt with a dark green coat and an unruly yellow mane commented. “Ugh! Stories are filled with flowery princesses and tea parties and stuff like that!”

“Stories are good, Rockwall!” Valley countered.

“Are not!”

“Are too!”

“Are not!”

“Are too!”

“Waitaminit!” Pinkie interjecting, an idea coming to her mind. “How would you like to hear a story from my world? And yes, it has a princess in it…but it’s Princess Sunset!”

A couple dozen eyes suddenly looked at Pinkie in wide-eyed wonder. “Really?” they asked in unison.

“Yup! And it’s a story filled with action and good guys winning the day!” Sitting down on the grass, she patted the earth in front of her, and instantly the foals listened, wondering what this was going to be about.

“Ith it really a thtory about Princeth Thunthet?” a little colt with thick glasses and a clear lisp asked.

Pinkie nodded. “Yup! I was there and watched it all.” Inwardly, even though the teen winced at those horrific memories, she wanted to give the foals an understanding of the world, and so she would heavily embellish the story. After all, they didn’t need to know what that bastard Divine Right had nearly done to her world and how his hubris had come close to bringing hell on Earth. “So why don’t you sit right on down and let Auntie Pinkie tell you about how Princess Sunset beat the demon Chernabog!”

After being delayed due to a couple of other trains being at platforms awaiting debarking, the Friendship Express finally arrived at its appointed location. As Applejack and Boomer got off the train, they were met with a press of crowds, the onslaught of ponies so deep that a guard in his dress uniform and one of the legendary Bearers weren’t noticed at all as they tried to move through the crowd.

“Wow, I don’t think I’ve ever seen Canterlot this crowded,” Boomer said. “I mean, it’s always been busy, but….”

“Yeah, Ah getcha, sugarcube,” Applejack agreed. “Maybe we c’n find a taxi that’ll take us t’ the palace?”

“I’m afraid not,” an older pony at her side commented. An earth stallion with a plum coat, caramel mane and kind brown eyes, he held a cane and was seated on two large steamer trunks that looked as though he’d somehow managed to drag here himself. He had a build that once hinted at great strength, but that it had been stolen from him by the rigors of age. “Apparently, because the Guard had to put in some new traffic rules because of the crowds,” the pony told her, “the taxi stand’s been moved from the front of the station to about two blocks away. Kinda annoying, especially to an oldtimer like me, with my luggage.” He groaned. “If it wasn’t for my rheumatism, I’d probably walk the whole way without a problem. Sadly, I’m just not as young as I used to be.”

“Why are you here, sir?” Boomer asked.

“Ah, well, unlike the rest, I’m not here for Princess Sunset’s coronation, though I wouldn’t mind seeing it,” he told them. “Actually, I’m here to visit my daughter, son-in-law and grandfoals. Getting on up in years, and with the missus now gone, I don’t get much chance to travel anymore. Honestly, they’ve been trying to get me to move in with them, but then I’d have to leave my home. And I got too many memories there, you know?”

“Well, Ah would think that they’d be here t’ help ya, sir,” Applejack ventured, seeing nopony around that looked like they were coming towards them.

“Well….” A sheepish look came onto his face. “Ah…kinda didn’t tell them I was coming. They worry enough about me as is, and I want Wind Honey and her family not to fret anymore.”

Applejack looked at Boomer, and a silent agreement was shared between them. Grabbing the larger trunk by her teeth, Applejack slung it onto her back. “Boomer, make sure th’ straps ‘re on good an’ tight, else they’ll chafe,” she reminded him.

“Sure thing. After that, you can slip the other one on me,” he told her.

The old stallion looked at them both with surprise. “No, no, you don’t have to go that far for an old coot like me—”

“Sir, Ah wuz raised t’ respect yer elders, an’ that’s what Ah’m gonna do,” she told him. “B’sides, it’s clear ya care ‘bout yer family, an’ as an Apple, Ah know ain’t nothin’ more important than family.”

“Are you sure about this? I don’t want to take you out of your way, Miss, especially since you and your coltfriend seem to be here on official business.” When Boomer looked at the old stallion, he smiled. “I used to be in the Army when I was your age, kid, stationed at Fort Baltimare. That’s where I met my dearest wife.” A smile of sweet nostalgia came over his face. “But anyway, I couldn’t impose, Sergeant.”

“You’re not imposing,” Boomer told him. “We’d be honored to help out a pony in need.”

The old stallion’s eyes widened. “You’d do that for me?” He bowed. “I’m…honored. Both of you, I’m honored beyond words.”

“Oh, shoot, hun, don’t say that. Ah’m not one fer sappy stuff.” She offered a hoof. “Just call me Applejack, an’ Ah’m okay with that. An’ this here’s Boomer,” she said, gesturing to her companion as he flipped the second steamer chest onto his back. “An’ yer name is, sir?”

The old stallion bumped her hoof in gesture. “I’m Smokechaser.”

Boomer blinked. “Smokechaser? The Smokechaser?” He turned to Applejack. “This guy’s a legend, Jackie! His combat magic is to turn into smoke so he can’t be hit; or teleport via smoke! It’s so unusual for non-unicorns to use fulminothurgy that he became a legend!”

Smokechaser laughed. “Well, glad to see that somepony appreciates the good old days.”

“Well, we just gotta get you to where you need to go, sir,” Boomer insisted as Applejack tightened the straps. “Let’s get going, then.” Excited, Boomer took a couple of steps before he stopped and facehoofed, realizing what he was doing. “Oh, crap – this is going to affect your meeting up with the others, isn’t it, Jackie?”

Applejack shook her head. “Don’t you fret none, Boomer. We agreed t’ this, an’ that’s what we’re gonna do.” Applejack didn’t admit to him that she didn’t mind having an excuse to avoid facing her friends a little longer.

A flare from a teleport occurred, and a split second later, both Princess Celestia and Pinkie arrived at the palace. “Thank you for taking me there,” Pinkie immediately told the alicorn. “While I wish I could have seen it with Sunny, it was something that I wanted to see for myself. Plus, I had a fun time with the colts and fillies.”

Celestia smiled at the human. “You don’t know how much that means to me, Miss Pie. I can’t state enough how important that orphanage is to me. While the well-being and welfare of all of Equestria’s orphans are concerns of mine, there is only one that gave me my beloved daughter.”

“I know. And now I’m indebted to them as well: without Mrs. Heart, I wouldn’t have the girl I love in my life,” Pinkie said. “I don’t know how often I’ll be here in Equestria, but you have my word that if you need me to go help out at the orphanage, I’ll do so. It’s a Pinkie Promise.”

“I would expect nothing less of my daughter’s Swordbearer,” Celestia said, coming to a stop. “Miss Pie…Pinkie…I know I said this before, but I don’t feel I can express this enough: The path you are walking will be a difficult one. Time is an immortal’s greatest ally…and heaviest burden.”

Pinkie opened her mouth to interject, but Celestia continued unabated. “Yes, you will not be a true immortal, but functionally there isn’t much difference. The more time passes for those of us who are ageless, the more we are weighted down by loneliness as those we care about pass on without us.” Celestia sighed, “There have been moments in my life where I considered simply allowing the weight of time to crush me, so that I would join the countless many that I’ve lost. So I’d at least know peace.”

Seeing the scared, lost look on the girl’s face before her, Celestia gently lifted her chin and held her gaze. “I know this isn’t what you want to hear, but you have to know: Destiny is not an ironclad track you must move along like a train. It’s…more like a road that’s been paved for you. Whether you choose to follow that road is up to you.”

Pinkie and Celestia held each other’s gaze, time seeming meaningless in that moment – fitting for a pair of ageless beings.

“What made you keep going?” Pinkie finally asked. “You’re thousands of years old, right? So why haven’t you let go of that weight?”

The solar alicorn was quiet for a time before she answered, “Others were depending on me.”

“Then that’s where I’ll find my strength,” Pinkie answered with an immediate certainty that surprised Celestia, though the alicorn didn’t show it. “If the burden of time is as heavy as you say, then Sunny will need me by her side more than anything.” Then with a resigned smile, she added, “We’ll find strength in each other.”

Princess Celestia looked at the girl, who in turn looked at her. Blue and lilac eyes met, and within them was an understanding.

“You are far more than what I thought you were, Pinkie,” Celestia said with a smile. “You are more than I could have ever hoped for in a spouse for my daughter. Just…don’t hurt Sunset. It’s all I ask.”

“To do that would be to hurt myself a thousand times over,” Pinkie replied with a sincerity that Celestia knew was unshakable.

“Well then,” Celestia commented after a second as an impish grin came to her face. “I believe there’s something else you may wish to see. Another place that’s somewhat important to my filly’s life.”

“Oh?”

“Yes. Even after all these years, there’s still a burn mark in the kitchen from the time she blew it up while trying to steal some cookies after they were baked. Care to see?”

The grin on Pinkie’s face was nearly serene. “Oh, please, lead the way!”

In the office that was assigned to them, Softwing finished up the rest of her paperwork, then looked at the time. It was already close to late afternoon, which meant that she had just enough time to get some of this paperwork over to the other offices before she closed shop for the day. After that, she would have to make it to her appointment with the Royal Facilities Caretaker Agency; as she would be living on Earth most of her time now, she would have to have her apartment here watched over and the RFCA would assign a maid to come by the apartment once a week to take care of the place in case Softwing had to stay back in Canterlot for an extended period. After that, she had to return to her bedroom in the palace to figure out what to wear for tonight.

And that’s going to be a challenge in and of itself, she realized. Because she had to be at the ball tonight as well, she’d had a dress prepared, but the dress had been for her griffoness form. Given her rising profile, many of the more important members of griffin society in Equestria were paying attention to her; in truth, yesterday afternoon while she was in her griffin form she’d happened to run into Capt. Gallard, one of the Navy’s top combat fliers and the Commanding Officer of the Thunderheads, Equestria’s all-griffin squadron. He’d been pleasant to chat with and under different circumstances, she probably would have liked to get to know him a little better.

But now that she’d spent most of the past few days in human form, she was beginning to see the benefits of a human lifestyle. They certainly didn’t have the claws of griffins or the ability to fly, and walking upright was taking some getting used to, but as a griffin who felt she was more pony than that of her own species, living the life of a third species seemed, as strange as it was, more natural. Plus, the ball wasn’t for her sake, it was for Sunset’s. Sunset herself would be attending in a specially-made dress that would convert as she went along, because she would have to move between her alicorn and human forms for the majority of the night. Softwing didn’t have that luxury.

It was at that point that Jewel came in. “Um…I’m going to head home to go get ready for the big ball tonight!” she chirped. “Looking forward to dancing with my sweetie!”

I wonder what Guard she has her eye on? Softwing wasn’t the most versed in relationships, but she’d have to have been blind to see the amount of suggestive clothing and items that Jewel had been using all week. Given that there was a heightened number of guardponies around the palace this week due to the festivities, it made it rather obvious that somepony was clearly the unicorn’s attention.

Softwing smiled. “Think you’ll land the apple of your eye?” she asked.

“Oh, I know I will! We’re fated to be together, after all!”

“I’m glad to hear that.” Softwing patted the stack of documents on her desk. “If you can deliver these for me, you can head out afterwards. I need to get to my appointment with the RFCA. See you tonight!”

“Will do!” Jewel responded as she went to retrieve the paperwork while Softwing walked out.

A few seconds later after the human woman had departed, the mare sighed. She didn’t mind delivering the paperwork – it was her job, after all – but it also meant that she would have less time to prepare for her ultimate victory at winning Princess Sunset’s heart.

What am I worried about? I mean, I know we’re destined to be together! Jewel reminded herself. She could see in her mind’s eye now, the loving eyes that Sunset was giving her, the touch of her kisses and horn rubs….

Jewel immediately forced herself to cast a brief enstilling spell on herself, lest somepony come in and misunderstand. Not that she didn’t want her loving princess when it came time but being raring and willing to go even right now was going to be a problem if a certain pony wasn’t around to share that moment with….

As she reluctantly felt the effects of the enstilling spell upon her, calming her down, she picked up the papers and decided to get back to work. After all, the sooner she was done with that the sooner she could get home and get to work with her ultimate plan.

Between the spell and her focus, she didn’t even notice the prismatic butterfly lifting away from the back of her mane, heading out the window.

“And I want to thank you again for escorting me to my daughter’s place,” Smokechaser told Boomer and Applejack. “Really, I can’t thank you enough.”

“No thanks needed, sugarcube,” Applejack told him. “Just listening to yer stories while walkin’ was fun.”

“I’ll say!” Boomer agreed. “Especially the one about the jackalope stampede! Seriously, was the town in that much danger?”

Smokechaser laughed. “Normally, no. Even with their antlers, jackalopes are rather harmless. But when you have tens of thousands rushing into town for no reason, somepony’s bound to get hurt. So we had to do what we could to keep them out of Baltimare before things got too bad. I’m just glad some of our troops knew how to play vuvuzelas or we could have had a real problem on our hooves.”

“Yes, but from what it sounds like, nopony except for you seemed to know that a vuvuzela sounds like the howl of the prairiefrog, the natural enemy of jackalopes.”

Smokechaser shrugged. “Just something I read. I tend to memorize a lot of useless things. Anyway, thanks again for getting me where I need to be.”

“It was an honor,” Boomer said with sincerity.

“Yeah, Ah hafta agree with this big lug,” Applejack replied. “Ah l’ved listenin’ t’ yer stories, sugarcube. But we hafta go. Hope t’ see ya again, though!”

The three said their goodbyes and Smokechaser waited patiently until the two ponies walked towards their goals, vanishing into the distance. After a few more minutes of pleasantly watching his two saviors depart, Smokechaser opened the door to his daughter’s home, threw the cane in, then hefted both steamer cases onto his back and walked in.

As he walked in, a young pegasus mare with a golden swept mane and honey-brown coat stood there, holding his cane. “Hi Dad,” she said with a bemused look on her face. “Doing the old ‘can’t hack it no more’ bit?”

The wrinkles around the edge of his eyes crinkled as he smiled. “Well, an old stallion’s gotta have a hobby,” Smokechaser commented. “‘Sides, I’ve gotta know if today’s troops are just as good as when your mom and I were in uniform.”

A smile came over Wind Honey’s face. “And?”

He shook his head. “Sad sacks, for the most of them. Bunch of soldiers and guards passed me by without a thought. Hmph – think they’d have some respect for their elders. That being said, there is some hope for the future.”

“Oh?”

With that, Smokechaser then began to regale his daughter over running into both Applejack and Boomer, and how they instantly offered to assist, wanting no compensation and having enjoyed the time in his presence. Furthermore, the guardspony acted like the perfect gentlestallion and the mare, though he wasn’t too familiar with her, must have been of good upbringing as well. When his tale was done, he found it odd that his daughter was gently snickering at his story.

“Did I say something funny?” he asked her.

“I don’t know who the sergeant you ran into was, Dad, but the mare sounds like Lady Applejack. She’s the Bearer of one of the Elements of Harmony and a knight in Princess Twilight’s service. She’s a celebrity, nearly as famous as the princesses themselves! I’m surprised you didn’t know!”

Smokechaser gave a sheepish shrug. “Remember, I’ve been out of the country for the past few years, hon. I barely heard about this new third alicorn—”

“Five, Dad. There are five alicorns now; six if you count the old queen.”

The old stallion blinked. “Looks like I’ve been gone longer than I thought. Guess I should check in with the field marshall, then.” He paused for thought. “That’s still Gen. Hammersmash, isn’t it?”

As the train from the Crystal Empire arrived on time, Shining Armor tugged on his shirt collar. He normally wore a suit now as an FBI agent as opposed to the days when he’d been just a CPD officer, but he had never really liked ties. Furthermore, once they arrived back at the palace, he was going to have to get ready for tonight’s ball and change into a tuxedo, which he liked even less.

“Oh, don’t be such a baby,” he heard at his side and thought it was Cadance chiding him until he turned to see Princess Cadance giving her husband grief instead.

“You know how much I hate wearing the dress uniform,” the unicorn stallion whined to his wife.

“Would you prefer to wear the official office of station as the Prince Consort of the Crystal Empire?”

Recalling how ridiculous it was the last time he saw it, he shuddered. “No, I think I’ll stick with the uniform.”

“See?” the alicorn crowed. “I see your counterpart isn’t complaining!”

At that, Shining felt his fiancée squeeze his hand and give him a look that distinctly said, I’ll keep your secret safe. For now.

As they pulled into the station, the first one aboard was Arrowswift. “Shining, did you guys get the update?” she said to the unicorn.

He nodded. “Yeah. How bad are we talking?”

“Remember the wall-to-wall crowds we had when your sister got coronated? It’s worse. We’ve got all the wellwishers, the ones here to gawk at the humans – no offense – the protesters, the fancolts and -fillies, and everything in between. We’ve had to activate the Crown Office’s Plan B to handle the crowds and right now we’re starting to set up designated air grids. The street grids were activated this morning.”

“This sounds like it’s going to be a mess,” he groaned.

“Yeah – apparently it’s so bad Nobility House is calling in the Church knights to assist. Anyway, we have a chariot outside. We need to shuttle you to an emergency meeting with the other military heads and VIPs as well.” She then turned to Princess Cadance. “Cadance, we’re going to have a second chariot arrive shortly in order to take you and your guests to the palace. I know you normally like to walk, but with the crowds in town it’s going to take you hours to get down to Strawberry St.”

The princess nickered in surprise. “Wow, that is bad.”

“Yup. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to make sure that the groundskeepers aren’t rioting in the streets again – yesterday somepony stepped on a painstakingly hooficured petunia bed and the Royal Landscaper vowed ‘death to the infidel’ or something like that.” Wasting no more time, Arrowswift launched herself skyward, off towards her destination.

The human Cadance looked at the massive press of ponies and other species, noticing that some were starting to gawk at her and her fiancé. “Wow, I don’t know whether I should be impressed for Sunny’s sake or worry about her,” she replied.

“Yeah,” was all Shining could say as he took her hand in his. “I have a bad feeling about this.”

There was a flash of light and two figures appeared in front of Rarity’s Canterlot Boutique. Nudging Pinkie slightly, Princess Celestia gestured towards the door. “Go on.”

“I dunno.”

“I recall a famous line that was said by one of my generals a long time ago, Miss Pie,” the solar alicorn told her. “‘Fortune favors the bold’, he told me. And he was right. You are certainly bold – are you willing to go for your fortune?”

Pinkie steeled herself. “You’re right. See you tonight?”

Celestia merely gave a wide smile and teleported away as Pinkie walked into the store, where the two Raritys, Coco and Sassy were idly chatting while working on the gowns for tonight’s surprise.

“Ah, welcome, welcome to the Canterlot Carousel—” Sassy immediately stopped the moment she saw who it was. “Another human?”

“Pinkie?” The human Rarity looked at her friend. “Darling, what are you doing here? We were all supposed to meet at our bedchambers to get ready for tonight.”

“Indeed,” the unicorn of the same name agreed. “We’ve worked on your dress in particular, Pinkie dear. We think the dress we’ve made will match wonderfully with your counterpart.”

“Yeah,” Pinkie said awkwardly. “About that….”

“Is something the matter?” both Raritys said at once.

Pinkie told them.

The unicorn blinked in utter confusion. The human, on the other hand, was more direct, facepalming and muttering, “Oh, fuck this.”

Pinkie went over to the Rarity she knew and took her hands in her own. “Rares? Please?”

“Pinkie, we went to great effort to make sure that—”

“For me?”

“Pinkamena, you have to realize that—”

“I do.” Pinkie’s blue eyes met Rarity’s own. “I wouldn’t do this if I didn’t love her, Rares. You know that.”

The human sighed. “I just know I’m going to regret this.”

In her personal chambers, a bevvy of maids helped Sunset with her outfit. “You are going to look beautiful, Your Highness,” one of them commented as they ran a brush through the alicorn’s mane.

“I just hope that you don’t spend too much time as a human,” another one said. “No offense intended in the least, Your Highness, but this is your chance to look good in front of a lot of eligible bachelors and bachelorettes. Just about every available eye tonight is going to be on you.”

“I’d rather not think about that,” Sunset replied.

“Oh, that’s right!” a third mare chirped. “You have that humaness that you’re dating, right? I heard Her Majesty talking with her earlier today.”

Sunset spun and looked at the mare. “What?”

“Oh, you didn’t know? I suppose the Princess was doing the traditional marriage interview. After all, it’s been a while since she did it for Princess Cadance and arguably, given that you’re her daughter, she wants to make extra sure that you end up with your loved one.”

Sunset muttered something under her breath.

“Uh, could you say that in Equish, Princess? I don’t think any of us here understands Burroñeso….”

“Don’t….” She sighed. “Don’t worry about it. Nerves.”

It was then that a knock on the door sounded. A second later, it opened, revealing the triplets in their dress uniforms. “You look good, Your Highness,” Adagio told her.

“Dagi, please not now,” Sunset said in a plaintive voice.

Adagio looked at the maids. “Ladies, if you could give us just a second, please?” The three maids nodded and departing, leaving the alicorn with the SIREN, cousin with cousin, sister with sister. “Sunny…don’t be a dipshit, okay?”

Sunset smiled. “Much better.”

Despite the smile on her own face, Adagio tried to be serious. “Look, this is an important night for you, okay? You have no idea how proud the family is of you right now, and I’m just speaking of our own. I’m not even mentioning your pony side. You’ve reached a point where very few have ever been and you have every right to be proud of your accomplishments. I know you’re nervous, but you know we’re all here by your side – we’re always going to be here by your side.”

“You promise?”

Adagio laughed. “It’s always better when sisters are together, right?”

“I am so regretting ever telling Twily about that.”

“Maybe in the old timeline; in the new timeline we all found out about it because Shiny had the actual video.”

“What?” Sunset gasped and the triplet laughed all the harder.

“Feel better?”

“Yeah. Thanks, Dagi.”

“We’re family, Sunny.” The alicorn and the girl looked warmly at each other for a few minutes before saying, “Well, shall I call the maids back in so they can finish whatever beauty torture they were doing to you?”

“I suppose I should get this torture over with,” Sunset admitted.

“Hey, it’s just a dance, right? What’s the worst that could happen?”

In the basement of the shop owned by Simple Science, a massive pressurized vat began to bubble and boil over, as he was currently under arrest and there was nopony to tend the alchemy works. Seated under eternally burning witchfire, the oversized cauldron began to shiver and shake based on the churning of the internal liquids cooked within. Of course, no soul was there to pay any heed to that, or to the gauge whose needle was currently deeply buried in the red, multicolored puffs of steam venting from the buckling pipes attached to the structure. Likewise, there was not a single being present to realize the hazard presented by the unwatched device or to read its label:

A second later it didn’t matter in any case, as there was a massive boom that shook the immediate grounds. Viscous blue fluid spread throughout the heavily damaged basement, while a rainbow-colored jet of steam rushed upwards, through the vents and outdoors.

Next Chapter: Day Seven, Evening: We Can Dream Estimated time remaining: 1 Hour, 15 Minutes