Chapter Text
Twilight stood on her balcony, gazing at the millions of stars that illuminated the sky over Canterlot. The last week had been something out of a dream for her. All of her friends were in town and they all regularly met at the castle. Her relationship with Fluttershy, while still very young, was going better than she could have ever hoped for. She felt truly happy for the first time in years.
Yet here she would find herself almost every night. Sleep, while not hard to come by, would elude her for longer than she hoped. Fluttershy was already fast asleep in her bed, and she wished to join her. But as the sun would set on another day, the night served as a reminder for the fact that her days of being carefree were running low.
Celestia would be returning to retirement in a week’s time. Once she did, this meant Twilight would have to resume her duties as ruler of Equestria. The thought of going back to being so busy all the time filled her with dread. Being a ruler was supposed to be something exciting for her. To be next in the royal lineage, right next to the likes of the great Princess Celestia was at once an idea she thought near impossible. Now it was one she wished was not at all.
This taste of the life she left behind was bittersweet. Sweet in that every day could be the beginning of a new adventure. And the only thing guaranteed, aside from the sun rising, was the notion that as long as her friends were around, she would be with them. Bitter in the sense that she knew it could not last. The immense power she held ironically had become a prison which she was powerless to escape from.
“Having trouble sleeping again, Twilight?”
Fluttershy had gotten out of bed and walked over to Twilight while she was so lost in thought.
Twilight sighed and looked down. “Yeah. It’s been getting harder every night, too.”
Fluttershy got up close and nuzzled her. “What’s on your mind? You seem like you’ve been feeling good the past week.”
“I am,” she began, “But… every day that goes by is one less day until I have to go back to my duties. One less day I’ll have to spend with all of you.”
“I’m sure everypony will try to make more time to come out and see you, Twilight,” Fluttershy reassured.
“It’s not just that,” Twilight lamented, “Even if they make more time, there’s nothing saying I’ll be able to make time too. Eventually we’ll run into the same problem we did that got us here in the first place. They won’t come around as much if they can’t guarantee I’ll be here, and that if I am available I won’t suddenly be pulled away by something.”
She paused as the two stood close to each other gazing at the night sky. Twilight agonized over what she wanted to say, but knew she owed it to Fluttershy to be honest about her feelings.
“And… what about you?” she asked.
“What about me?” Fluttershy repeated her question.
“I can’t ask you to stay here in Canterlot with me even if we’re together,” she explained, “You have your own place in Ponyville, and you have your sanctuary too. Even if I could ask, I don’t even know if you’d want to stay here.”
“Of course I want to stay,” Fluttershy answered.
“How can you be so sure, though? I don’t doubt your feelings, but Canterlot is much different than Ponyville. There are so many more ponies, and if we’re partners then everypony’s going to know who you are. You won’t be able to go anywhere without somepony noticing you. ”
“Twilight,” Fluttershy spoke softly as she looked up at her.
Twilight continued to look up and explain. “And with me being so busy, I can’t guarantee we’ll get to spend as much time together as you need.”
“Twilight,” Fluttershy tried again, her voice still soft.
Once again, Twilight continued to explain, growing more frantic and emotional with every word. “If I can’t make time for you, what if you fall out of love with me? Even if you go back to Ponyville everypony will still know you. Things won’t be the same anymore and it’ll be all my-”
“Twilight!” Fluttershy said sternly.
Twilight jumped, stopping mid sentence and turning toward Fluttershy. Her eyes met with her lover's. A few seconds of silence went by. Followed by a smile, and another gentle nuzzle from Fluttershy.
“I know.” Her voice lowered in volume, her tone was soft again. “Everything you’re saying is something I’ve thought about, too.”
Her eyes turned to the sky again. “When I told Dash about our meeting, she brought up a lot of the same concerns you're bringing up now. In fact, the whole reason I let her talk me into flying to Canterlot in the first place was because those thoughts were eating away at me.”
Twilight felt herself begin to calm down as she looked at Fluttershy. She looked back up to the sky as well.
“Do you remember the day I confessed to you?” Fluttershy asked, “I told you about a weird dream I was having before you woke me up.”
Twilight looked at her and nodded, “Yeah, it sounded really similar to the dream I had a few days earlier.”
Fluttershy nodded back. “I told you I didn’t remember much about it other than we needed each other,” she recounted, “I remember you told me you felt that same thing in your dream. And that night you came to me because you needed love and understanding. Somepony to be there for you in a way nopony else could.”
She paused and averted her eyes from the sky back into Twilight’s eyes. “When I was flying to Canterlot with Rainbow Dash, I remember just a few moments before we flew off course, I felt like I was reliving something. And after we crashed, I remember thinking about how bad I needed you. How I knew there was nopony else who could save me from being trapped in that valley. I think I understand the dream now.”
She nuzzled close to Twilight again. “You went through so much and pushed yourself so hard just because you thought I was in danger. Nopony has ever been so brave and protective of me. I’m always so anxious about everything, but even before that day I always felt I didn’t have to be as anxious around you. And now I know I don’t have to. You proved that to me.”
Both their eyes began to well with tears as they looked into each other’s eyes. “Adjusting won’t be easy. I don’t know what it’s like to live in such a big place, to be the kind of pony everypony knows,” she admitted. “It’s a really scary thought, but I think I’ll learn how to manage. Because I love you, Twilight. And I want to be what you need – just like I know you’ll be for me.”
Twilight couldn’t hold back any longer. She could feel the tears streaming down her face as she collapsed into Fluttershy’s embrace. The whole week they spent together, Fluttershy did so much to teach her what true love feels like. But feeling her wings surround her in a hug in this moment made her feel so loved. Loved in a way she never knew one could be. She could feel a gentle peck from Fluttershy’s lips on the top of her head, followed by the drops of a few tears.
Their future together was uncertain. It would be a challenge for Fluttershy to acclimate to this new setting. It would be difficult for Twilight to balance her time around having enough time for her romantic interest and her friends. But both of them were sure of one thing: as long as they were together, there was no difficulty they couldn’t face, and no challenge they couldn’t overcome.
A long, dark chapter of uncertainty in the storybook of their lives would come to a close that night. And tomorrow would mark the beginning of a new one.