"No." I stared at her without a flinch as she glared right back at me.

Celestia cleared her throat, trying to hide her annoyed glare. "You don't seem to understand–"

"No."

"Twiligh–"

"No." I had to stop the smirk from crossing my lips.

She huffed and stepped loudly, but hardly as hard as what I'd consider a stomp. "If something bad happens to her, then it could have serious repercussions with the binding spell." Oh Mothers, she was pouting.

"Nothing bad will happen to her if she's with Twilight." I said. My eyebrows twitched when she perked up. "Your Twilight." I narrowed my eyes at her. "Not me."

"You can't be certain with all the changes I'm planning to make to the time line to prevent what occurred." She narrowed her eyes in return. "I won't allow that to happen to my subjects again, no matter what stakes you thinkwe are against."

"I don't think." I shook my head, the freshly crafted iron bands in my quad ponytail clanked against each other and my chest plate, which I also enchanted to limit my magic. I felt my back bones shift again and shuffled my hooves into a more comfortable position; my wings would be growing very soon. "I know what is at stake. You're just too childish to admit I'm right and you are wrong."

She looked out over Canterlot from her personal balcony. "Don't you want to save these ponies? I read in your journals how you would've given anything for a second chance."

"I was younger then." I waved a hoof at her, joining her in glancing over the city below. The city had grown ever quickly since she had popped into the future to ruin the rest of my nigh eternal existence. "I've had a lot of time to think about this, I know the best option is to leave things on their current course. What happened has to happen to pave the way for new life to emerge on some other world." I closed my eye, "The lives who crawl around on the puny space mote called Equuis are not the only lives we should be considering."

"That's where you are wrong. When you become a Princess of Equestria, you pledge your allegiance to Equestria." She stormed off the balcony, stomping off into her room like a brat. "I may value life, but I would rather commit mass genocide than allow what happened to Equestria happen again."

"You're biased!" I turned toward her furiously, subconsciously waving a wing and feeling empty at the lack of gesture. I then awkwardly wave my hoof instead, several seconds too late.

"Of course I'm biased! These are my subjects! This is my country!" She actually stomped her point into the ground. "Beyond any other form of life on or off Equuis, my subjects come first! Even if what you think will happen happens, I will let it happen if it means they are safe!"

"Then why did you risk them all by dragging me back here?" I whispered to her, seething. "Why did you think that putting your subjects lives on the line—without even giving them a choice in the matter—was the best course of action?" I jabbed her chest, my hoof guard clinking against her chest plate. "Because if–No, when it happens, do you honestly think that little spell Twilight put in place will prevent the cataclysm that follows?"

"If I didn't, they'd all die one day anyway." She retorted, closing her eyes and lowering her head. She looked back up and stared at me. "And for my plan to work, I need you to cooperate."

"You need to use me like a tool." I snorted. She didn't actually care at all. In a way this upset me, but more than anything it was a relief. At least her intentions were... Okay no, her intentions were still horrible. Scratch that. This was worse than if she were a blinded, doting mother figure. "I will not help you jeopardize every life in the universe."

"Then everypony will die for nothing." She sighed. Her horn started to glow and the light waned from outside. Night was falling. "Twilight, I have a lot of paperwork to do. Can we discuss this later. "

I snorted. "I'm not done here. You wanted me back? Now I get to nag you about how you're bucking things up."

"I'm asking you to leave out of the kindness of your heart—to please let me have a bit of peace and quiet to run this country." She looked up at me. "Please, Twilight. We can discuss this in the morning. Go see Glowheart, I know you've missed her a lot for quite a long time." I stared at her before turning and walking away. "Thank you." She sighed. "And Twilight?" She called but I didn't stop. "I don't see you as a tool, Twilight. I do love you with all my heart, please don't doubt that."

"Keep lying to yourself." I muttered under my breath. I then stopped at the doorway, holding it open in my magic as I glared at her. "I will not be her teacher. That is no longer my job." She didn't respond, so I closed the door and continued on my way.

"Who're you?" She stared up in awe at me. Glowheart; she was so tiny now. "Are you my new teacher Princess Celestia told me about?"

I bent down to my knees, yet still towered a head over her on the already–taller–than–her hospital bed. I tried to smile as warmly as I could, but I could feel my heart breaking at the sight of her. "How do you feel, Glowheart?" My eyes lingered on the slight discoloration on her chest; I couldn't even scan the protective charm on her heart or I might risk setting it off. "Do you know why you are here?"

She tilted her head, "Kinda.. The royal guard came to my house and talked to my mom, then she said that I had to go to the royal hospital to see sir Gravy." She glanced around. "Have you seen him? I still haven't met him and I'm feeling really guilty about it." She pouted at me.

I chuckled, "No, no, Glowheart. Sir Gravy is not a pony." I magicked a panel in front of myself as she scrunched her nose up confusedly and wrote the word on it before showing it to her. "Surgery is a type of healing practice which involves cutting a pony open and fixing what's wrong inside them manually." Except there was nothing wrong inside of her, she was here because of Celestia stupid plan. I doodled a little stickpony demonstration of surgery, the patient smiling and cheering as the doctor comically cut him open, shoving band–aids inside.

She tilted her head and squinted her eyes at the word in thought, though giggled lightly at the doodle. "So are you my teacher? The doctor said I had a sick day and I didn't have to go to school today, does that mean you're bringing school to me?" She opened her eyes wide and innocently, tilting her head to the other side.

Damn Celestia. Damn her to Tartarus. I will personally do the damning when I leave this room; I will march into her room and damn her and damn her oh so important paperwork to Tartarus. She knew how Glowheart would affect me, and I fell for it out of nostalgia. I opened my mouth for a moment, "I–I'm not–" I coughed, covering my stuttered words. "No." The word finally exited my mouth, a smile still managing to hold to my lips.

She frowned. "Oh." Then looked back at the word still hovering over her, "Well I hope my teacher is half as nice as you are. Or at least as tall." She giggled. I smiled at her then frowned as my bones shifted again. "Miss?"

"I have to go. I'm sorry, I'll be back later though, I promise." She pouted.

"What's your name?"

"Twi–" I stopped myself. She blinked at my pause. I shift my eyes ever so slightly in thought. "My name is Magister." I finished, forcing a smile.

I stand up and dispel the panel, "Oh okay. Bye Ms. Magister!" She waved excitedly as though to hammer her words in with joy.

I returned her smile before I closed my eyes.

Blink

The world cracked and fizzed before it snapped into place. I was back in the room Celestia had so 'graciously' given me to stay in 'temporarily'. More like until she has a use of me. I groaned in frustration as I walked up to the mirror and regarded myself in time to see my wings bulging against the splitting inside of my upper back. No one understands anything! I know what is best for life to continue, if that means letting ponies die out than that's what it means! It's not my choice to make. "I'm not a Goddess." I told the mare in the mirror.

I flexed my new wings tenderly. The joints were sore; they popped with relief as I arced them. Such a long and boring process. I liked the first time way more. A flash, a bang. A pat on the head like a good little pet and boom. Princess wings. This time it was just waiting for them to push through my back and grow right. A little active magic pushed the process along faster, but I couldn't rush it too much.

Not that I actually cared or anything.

The castle halls were almost devoid of even the royal guard. I suppose Celestia doesn't want the public, or worse, Twilight catching wind of the second Twilight roaming Canterlot castle. I hummed an old song, I don't even remember where I heard it anymore, but I hum it quite often. My tail swished in the air to the tune. I haven't banded it with iron yet, but I don't think it's risking any real magical outbursts just yet. "Oh come off thy high saddle! Thee must be cheating! Come hither and we shalt give you a violent frisking worthy of the Mothers themselves!" I heard echo down the halls. I recognized that voice and tone.

I passed the guards, casting a minor silencing charm over them as they started to protest, and entered the royal quarters quietly, casting an incredibly weak shield spell over the doorway. "Watch the halls of the apartment building!" The tiny voice I barely even heard yelled in the lunar Princess' ear. Luna. Even now she spent her days and nights playing games. "Not those halls, the other building you idiot!" And failing just as miserably as in the future.

"We would like to see you attempt such a task with the pathetic amount of information you've tried to give us!"

"Still playing that silly old game? I thought by now the next one was out." I said, idly taking a seat behind her.

She flinched, but her focus was admirable. "Twilight Sparkle? I was not informed of your visit, nor your uninvited entrance to my personal bedchamber." Trying to put on a show with her modern dialect. Though bedchamber was still archaic, perhaps she's already growing into her future style of speech. "But the gesture of familiarity is appreciated I suppose."

I glanced over the map and listened to the raging orders from her headset. "They're going to ambush you there." I focused on the point of the map, a purple dot of light appearing in front of it. "Don't fall into their trap, head around to the far side of that building first and attack them. That'll give your teammates the upper hoof." I drew an arrow over the map.

"Are you sure, Twilight Sparkle? I do have more experience in war time efforts after all." She started to look back for me.

"Eyes forward–Look right, quick!" I yelled as I saw an opportunity. She jumped and gunned the advancing player in the skull. "Around the building, now!" I took regard of her shock and turned it to my advantage. She followed my orders blindly, the panic of combat muddling her thoughts. She galloped around the building. She peaked around the corner and sure enough, my assumption was right. She could see the approaching ambush. She muttered into her headset absently, relaying the plan to her fellows. "See that one in the middle with the red cap? Everypony's following him. Take him out, they'll probably scatter." She aimed and popped him in the head. ...And was then immediately taken out by a rouge player.

"Unholy buck!" She nearly tossed the controller. "See?!" She hoofed towards the screen angrily.

"Watch." I whispered as I edged closer, lowering my head to hers at eye level.

We watched, waiting for her to respawn. The dots on her map moved in an impressive formation for a multiplayer game, half splitting off and going around. That split was her addition to the strategy. Five seconds. The dots halted, having encountered the confused enemy. We both watched as the once formidable enemy is mowed down without their leader. Two, one. Luna respawned and was met with great praise from her teammates through the headset. "Huzzah!" She hopped to her hooves, jumping once in place victoriously for good measure. I sat to my normal height happily. I was right of course. "Our enemy has been defeated!" She turned towards me, her eyes blinking rapidly as they adjusted to the near pitch black around her. "How did you know th–"

She stared at my chest plate in shock as her vision adjusted, before turning her gaze up at my face. Her mouth moved in confusion before she teleported back, her horn alighting the numerous light sources in the room. "Who are you?!" I blinked away the slightly annoying pain caused by the lights. "What have you done with Princess Twilight Sparkle?! How did you gain her voice?!" She aimed her glowing horn at me, "Speak now or perish!"

I stared at her, quite honestly annoyed. "Celestia never told you? You didn't even question it when your castle was repeatedly flooded with my magic?"

She moved her mouth, echoing my words with her brow creased. "You're ignoring my question." She narrowed her eyes.

I leaned down so she could see my face under her aggression. "You're ignoring your eyes."

She stared at me strangely. I honestly don't know what's going through her head right now. What lies has Celestia fed her to keep her docile? She peaks past me to where her guards are waving their forelegs and panicking silently in the doorway. She shakes her head and mouths, 'What are you idiots doing?' to them before looking back at me. "You silenced my guards."

"How else did you think I came in without the royal guard announcing it?"

She continued to aim her horn at me in silence, peaking around me again. "You're an alicorn."

"You're very observant." I soaked very in sarcasm on purpose, leaning back to her level.

She grunted angrily. "You two!" She regarded the two guards sitting on their butts looking very disappointed in themselves. They stood at attention, saluting with their forelegs. "Go and retrieve my sister." They nodded and galloped off.

"This might be fun."

She didn't respond as we stared each other down. And by that, I mean that she tried to stare me down but I instead glanced around her room curiously. It's not like she actually posed much of a threat anyway. She had a few dozen of the present day games, a couple actual arcade machines. Oh and her bed was big enough for around two dozen ponies if they were comfy with each other. "You're repeatedly dying in your match."

She spared the screen a glance before staring back at me, though her eyes shot at the screen over and over again. "Tis of little concern."

I flip my ears as the tiny sound finally reaches them. "Your teammates are getting angry."

She eyed the controller half a hoof in front of her. "Tis a less important matter than one of personal security, I'm sure they would understand."

"Or they'll buck you out of the guild." I snorted as she cringed. "I will close my eyes if you want to quit the match. It would give you the excuse of having an advantage over me." I said closing my eyes. After a moment I heard the gunshots in the match end abruptly. I open my eyes to see her having edged a tad closer, the game on the start menu. Her horn almost poking me, I shifted my focus at her hooves, "Your stance is off."

"No it's not."

"Yes it is."

"No it's not."

"Yes it is."

She dared a glance down. "No, it really is–" I brought a hoof up and pushed her horn in the other direction. Her focus broke with a yelp of confusion and her spell misfired across the room, impacting the wall with a disappointing thud.

"You're right, but you were too close." I teleported her back another five hoofs. "Try there."

She glared, her horn glowing brighter. Probably a more aggressive spell. "Don't try to undermine us!"

"I'm not trying." I considered letting out a yawn to annoy her, but decided against further prodding the prideful lion.

Her features stayed the same then twitched, finally understanding my meaning. "Luna!" Celestia barged into the room, "Twilight!"

"Celestia!" Luna shouted, her voice full of relief.

"Princess Fluffy Flanks!" I cheered in mock joy, clapping my hooves while aimed in Celestia's direction.

"Who is she?! How did she gain access to the castle, much less my bedchambers?!" She cast a hoof in my direction. I allowed the yawn this time now that Celestia was here to corral her sister in if things went south.

Celestia frowned. She ignored Luna and glared at me. "Really? You had to waltz right into Luna's room–Of all the things you could do." She took a sharp breath. Luna shifted from hoof to hoof confusedly. "Stand down, Luna. Let me explain the situation around our" She waved her hoof while searching for a word, "Guest here."

Celestia was such a liar. "So you saved Twilight Sparkle's life in the far future six decades ago and brought her back her to help you save the future?" Luna recapped what her sister had taken an hour to explain. Celestia nodded. Luna regarded her sister, then me. Then her sister again. Then she gave me a silly look, then her sister an even sillier one.

"Are we finished here?" I asked, utterly bored out of my mind.

Luna looked back at me, "Yes." Before Celestia could protest, she quickly added. "And thank you for your assistance."

I blinked at her.

Blink

When my eyes opened, my vision was already finished settling. I had teleported to the hospital wing again. I passed the nurse trying to greet me without even a glance. Don't interfere. Even doing this is interfering, but talking to her could make it worse. I entered into Glowheart's room again, "Magister!" She yelled happily, trying—and failing—to lift up an incredibly large book. "After you helped me with that word, I asked the nurses to bring me a–" She paused, looking down at the cover studiously. "Dic–tion–ary. It's a big book of really super cool words!" Somewhere in my mind I was reeling, I've contaminated the time stream without even realizing it. Will she even ascend to being an alicorn now? If she does, will she be Princess of Super–Cool–Words now? But I let a smile grace my features, regardless of my fear. "That's wonderful, Glowheart. I'm glad to see you've taken an interest in Equestrian language. So few ponies do nowadays"

I sat beside her bed again, calling a gasp from it's tiny inhabitant. "Whoa! I didn't notice you had wings earlier! Are you a Princess?!" She clapped her hooves together, the book nearly falling before I caught it with my magic. "Why haven't I heard of you?" She gasped again, inhaling more air than I thought a normal pony capable of holding, "Are you like... Some kinda secret Princess Magister of the Secret Teachers Club?"

I chuckled. "No, but I am a secret Princess. So if you could keep this just between us." I trailed off, giving her a wink.

She grinned widely, winking back with a giggle. "Can you teach me a ton of really cool words now?"

In the back of my mind, I heard Celestia laughing her fluffy cake flanks off. But for then, in that peaceful little moment? I couldn't say no. I could be as bitter and horrible as I liked to everypony else, but even I couldn't honestly say I haven't wanted to see Glowheart smile again. Even if she is a filly.

Glowheart yawned loudly, we'd been studying words almost all night—in fact I could feel Celestia pulling on the sun now. "Princess Magister, I'm tired."

I closed the book with my magic, levitating it to a nearby table. "Then lets take a break. Do you want to sleep?"

She nodded. "Yeah." I smiled and nodded. But just as I was going to teleport, "Can you sing me a lullaby? I know I'm a big filly, but Princesses must know really good ones, right?" I worked my mouth a little, absorbing the words. "Super secret Princesses who are really nice especially." She whispered with a giggle.

I smiled, "I think I know just the song." She squealed with glee, tucking herself under the covers as I magicked the lights off. She grinned excitedly with her head on her pillow. My horn glowed; I was casting a diluted silencing charm to keep my singing quiet. I clear my throat before humming the beginning of the song. I hummed, lifting a hoof and petting her head gently. "Birds," I called the words from memory, the words and the memory itself both incredibly old in my mind. "In the sky. Carry these words for me."

Her expression shifted from excitement to one of awe. "Life: tasted sweet. It let me live!" The silencing charm kept my yelled line quiet. "Let me breathe."

"Love: hurt so bad. But still," I pulled a quick breath, almost choking. "Saved my soul." I felt those deep and long buried emotions stir in my throat and swallowed them with an audible gulp. "Flowers of a brighter past. They bloomed so free-beneath the sun."

"Memories; I want to give them to you." A tear burned like brimstone in my eye, but I blinked it away. Glowheart was staring at me with this unreadable expression, sitting up slowly as my hoof fell away. "So you can see-" I trailed off, drawing another breath to hide a sob. "-What we left there."

I forgot. I forgot Glowheart was there, I forgot my hidden tears and swallowed sobs, I forgot the dangers to the time stream. But I remembered the song—who sang it and why. "When all hope bleeds out, what remains is doubt. Should've left it all for you–For tomorrow."

"As your time draws near, will you live in fear?" I felt something release in my heart, like a great flood. "Could've left it all for you, but we let–" I accidentally sobbed quietly, "–Go." I trailed off, tears flowing freely.

"Princess Magister..." Glowheart sat on the hospital bed quietly, a couple tears streaking her cheeks. "Are-" She swallowed, "Are you okay?"

I nodded and hugged her with my foreleg, a hug which she returned. "Yes, my little pony. Don't worry, I'm okay." I wiped her tears with a flicker of my horn, mine too. "I'm sorry for upsetting you. Princesses can get sad sometimes too though." I tuck her back under. "We're not perfect."

"But Princess Celestia and Princess Twilight and Princess Luna and Princess Cadence and Princess Flurry Heart all seem perfect?" The sheer number of times she used the word and and how horrible it sounded in a sentence made me nauseous. We'd talk a lot about sentence structure and grammar when she woke up if I had anything to do with it.

"They're no where near perfect." I stood up. "Like, Princess Luna? She plays video games all night but she still sucks at them." I said with a small laugh. Glowheart giggled with me. "Now sleep, there's always another day."

She closed her eyes, a small snore soon following. I sighed, then too closing my eyes.

Blink

When I opened my eyes in my room, Celestia was standing by my window. "I just received a letter from Twilight." She said without looking at me. "She found a fault in the spell she created. She doesn't know how dangerous it could be though." I stared at the back of her head. "And another of her friends passed away today. She's grown depressed lately, which is why I think her spell had the fault."

"What do you want me to do about it?"

She sighed. "I want you to stop being so apathetic. These are your subjects too, it's your responsibility if they all die. And if the spell creating the pocket for our time line destabilizes, everypony will die." I glared. "Glowheart will die." I growled, she's trying to toy with my emotions.

I hated her. I really hated her. I found my voice, stifling a scream. "She's died before, and this time won't be my fault."

"You're being selfish."

"Says the stuck up mare who bucked everything up in the first place." I took a deep breath, closing my eyes. I then waved my emotions away with a hoof. "This is not my mess, nor is it not my problem anymore. You made sure of that." I opened my eyes, staring her down apathetically. "Fix it yourself."

She stared at me. "You're no better than a murderer if you do that."

I laughed. "I am a murderer!" She didn't share in my strained joy however. She merely stared at me with an unreadable expression before teleporting out of my room. I walked to where she was before she left and leaned against the wall, staring out over Canterlot. "I'm a murderer."

Tomorrow is the funeral, I remember today. I think I'll go.

"The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires."

― William Arthur Ward

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