It was early morning in the capital city of Canterlot. So early in fact, that the sun wasn't even up. But even at this early hour the streets were alive with the presence of many ponies. The talking and cheering of everypony could be heard even from skies above by passing pegasi. The city was celebrating one of Equestia's biggest annual events, the Summer Sun Celebration. An event matched only by the Grand Galloping Gala and Hearths Warming Eve. But this year it was not the ordinary routine. It was the 500th anniversary of the holiday. As such, this was anticipated to be the grandest celebration yet.
Soon dawn was on the horizon. In the courtyard of the palace, a very large and elaborate stage had been set up. It had four large golden fanfare horns on either side of it. And in the middle of the stage was a golden sculpture of a crescent sun with solar rays coming out of it. Ponies began to gather in front of the stage. A crowd of thousands of ponies was soon assembled to watch what was to come. Dozens of other viewing points had been set up throughout the city to accommodate all those who had traveled to canterlot for the event.
Eight gray unicorns from the Royal Guard walked onto the stage. Four went to each side and took their positions in front of each horn. All at once, the guards blew into the horns and sounded off a mighty blow. The sound of the horns signaled the beginning of the main event and announced the arrival of the most important pony of the hour. A tall white mare with a sun cutie mark walked elegantly onto the stage the way only a royal with years of practice could. She had a very long horn on her head and a pair of very broad wings. Her aurora colored mane and tail were ever flowing with magic, thus only enhancing her presence. This was Princess Celestia of Equestia. And everypony waited in anticipation for her to raise the sun. Celestia looked out over the crowd and smiled as she nodded her head.
With one last look, Celestia closed her eyes and started to flap her wings. She started to hover in the air gracefully. Her horn lit up with a golden glow as she concentrated on raising the sun. Celestia slowly rose into the air on her broad wings and the sun started to rise from eastern horizon. As the white alicorn rose higher so did the sun. Within moments, both Celestia and the sun aligned with the crescent sun on the stage. At that moment, the sun glowed with a bright intensity and outlined Celestia's silhouette in front of the entire crowd. The light faded and the sun returned it's normal glow. Celestia descended back to the ground. The crowd of ponies stated to cheer and clap their hooves. The princess smiled once again at all of her subjects. She could tell that they were all in awe and what they were waiting for next.
Celestia looked out over the crowd and announced "PONIES OF EQUESTRIA! I now declare the 500th Summer Sun Celebration, officially begun!". She then walked off the stage to a of white royal pegasus guards who there to escort her and they flew off to her next appearance.
With that, the crowd began to disperse. Some returned to the streets of Canterlot to play the carnival game that had been set
up. Some went into the palace. The ballroom had been opened to the public and entertainment was being provided. Both nobles and commoners were welcome to dance as a band of the finest musicians played songs fast and slow. The main dining hall was also open and a feast , quite literally, large enough to feed an army had been set out.
A large stadium had been set up near the palace. It was to be used for the games and air show that were a part of the festivities. Among the many seats in the stands, a section had been specially built as the royal box. Princess Celestia flew into the stadium with her two guards. She landed gently in the royal box and poised herself to address everypony there. All stands had already been filled full with a sea of spectators waiting for the games to begin. And all competitors and participant of the games had assembled into rows of teams await the opening announcement.
Celestia cleared her throat and readied to speak into the megaphone on a stand in front of her. "Ponies and competitors! Thank you all for being here to celebrate grand occasion. I am glad to welcome you all to the Summer Sun Games in honor of the 500th anniversary of the of our celebration and all those who have come before us to give Equestria the peace it knows. It is only because their works, that we know the prosperity we enjoy today. So it is my pleasure declare the beginning of these games. May you all compete with honor. Let the games begin!"
The crowd erupted into applause and the competitors started to cheer. Celestia took her seat on the throne that had been placed in the royal box for her. The games then got underway. The first event was jousting between the best knights that Equestria had. The second event was the fine art of ice archery. A number of other popular events followed throughout the morning. By midday the game were finished and Celestia gave out the awards. The games were then closed with an airshow by the WonderBolts, Equestia's best teams of flyers. This year also marked their 500th anniversary. After leaving the stadium, Celestia and her escort flew back to the palace for her final public appearance of the day.
As Celestia and her guards landed at the front entrance, two unicorn guards lit their horns and opened the grand palace doors her. She walked into the entrance hall only to be greeted by somepony she knew. Standing in front of her was a light green pegasus mare with a light red mane and tail, and she had a musical note in front of a cloud for a cutie mark. The mare ran up to Celestia's side before starting to walk with her.
"Hello, Your Highness!" said the mare.
"Hello, Cloud Melody. Are you enjoy today's festivities so far?" replied Celestia.
"Yes, thank you for asking. You did wonderfully raising the sun this morning." said Cloud Melody.
"Thank you. But it was only one part of today's celebration. I'm sure what you've contributed will be just as good." said Celestia.
Your too kind, Your Highness. I can't thank you enough for letting us put on these plays in the palace, or for agreeing to attend them as well." said Cloud Melody.
The two continued walk together though the palace. Cloud Melody was one of Celestia's closest friends and Canterlot's best singer. She also owned one of Canterlot's best theaters. Celestia had approved letting her put on some of her best plays for the Summer Sun Celebration. She even let her use the palace showroom, which was usually used for the Hearth's Warming Eve pageant.
( Imagine the room decorated for summer )
The plays were going to be multiple short acts based on Equestria's most popular legends. Celestia and Clould Melody came to a large set of doors at the end of a hall. Another pair of unicorn guards lit their horns and opened the doors. Both friend walked into the theater and up a set of stairs on the side. At the top, they were in a balcony seat with a throne for Celestia.
Cloud Melody turned to Celestia and said "Well, this is where we part ways. It's almost curtain time".
Celestia smiled at Cloud Melody and replied "Go. The audience is waiting".
With that, the pegasus mare flew out of the balcony and towards the stage. Celestia took her seat in the throne and waited for the show to begin. All other seats in the theater had already been filled. Other balconies and good seats were taken by nobles and the Canterlot elite. All the floor seats were taken by commoners. Anypony else that was there was standing.
The lights in the room started to dim. Cloud Melody appeared on the stage and a unicorn on one of the balconies shined a light spell on her.
With the spotlight on her, Cloud Melody started to address the audience. "Mares and gentlecolts! I welcome you to this special production by the Canterlot Prime Theater. We will be preforming plays on all of your favorite legends and fairytales as part of the Summer Sun Celebration. I'm Cloud Melody, and this afternoon I will be your host and narrator".
Cloudy Melody then walked to the side of the stage. The curtains drew back and revealed a stages set. A number of actors and actresses came out onto the stage and took their positions. The first play started and went on for at least an hour with Cloud Melody narrating the whole time. Several more plays and short skits were preformed over the next few hours. At that time, a short intermission was taken for the audience. Celestia ordered herself some cake and tea. As she was finishing her refreshments, the show resumed and Cloud Melody once again step out onto the stage.
The spotlight was again cast on Cloud Melody. "And now, mares and gentlecolts. I give you our final act of the day. A legend that some believe to be related to the origin of the Summer Sun Celebration. I give you, The Mare in the Moon".
Celestia's eyes went wide. The Mare in the Moon? As in the legend of "Nightmare Moon"? Why did it have to be this story? Of all the stories in Equestia's history, why this one? A wave of worry swept over Celestia. (That or the tea was bad). That story held so much more meaning to her than others. And here it was being acted out in front of her.
The curtains drew back to reveal a set depicting Equestria how it was hundreds of years ago. Of course, Celestia knew better than anypony. All the actors took their places and the play began. As Cloud Melody narrated the story, Celestia started to think to herself. Memories and emotions came flooding into her mind. Memories of her younger sister, Luna.
The narration went on "Once, in the magical land of Equestria, there lived two regal sisters...".
It was true. Celestia and her sister had been the most regal of all ponies And they use to have so much fun together. They had done so much good. Until Luna noticed that her work was unnoticed.
"...As time went on...".
Yes, time. After hundreds of years ruling together, Luna's emotions started to grow dark. Celestia had years, decades even, to fix things with her. To prevent that tragedy. But she did nothing. She had been too distracted by her secret romance. Not even her only real friend, Star Swirl the Breaded, had noticed.
"...One morning, the younger sister refused to lower the moon...".
That night... That night would forever be the worst night of her life. The Nightmare Force took her sister from her. In mere moments Luna was turned into a monster, tried to make night eternal, was forced to attack her sister, and Celestia had to banish her. Celestia had whole decades to save her sister, and lost her in just a few minutes.
"Since then, peace has been maintained in Equestria. THE END!" finished the narration.
Celestia snapped out of her memories and back into the present. The curtains closed onstage and the play was over. With all the plays over, ponies soon began to make their way out of the theater. Celestia came out of her balcony seat to meet Cloud Melody waiting for her. The two were joined by the guard escort and started to walk out the theater. Celestia tried to keep a stoic expression on her face the time, but found it hard. She knew that, in addition to the holiday, it was also the 500th anniversary of Luna's banishment. And seeing that play had only served to strengthen her feelings of regret and how much she missed Luna.
Cloudy Melody looked at Celestia and said "So, what did you like the show, your Highness?".
"Yes, very much so! You and your actors were amazing. I was especially surprised by that "Mare in the Moon" story. Where did you ever get the idea for it?" said Celestia.
"I did some research and found out the legend is from around the same time of the Summer Sun Celebration was first started." replied Cloud Melody.
"Well, That certainly is impressive. I'm sure you put a lot of work into that production. And I know it was a huge success." said Celestia.
Cloud Melody said "Thank you, Princess. Your too kind".
The two made their way out of theater and into the palace halls. Cloud Melody went her separate way from Celestia to enjoy the rest of her day. Celestia started to make her way to her next appointment. She was on her way to the throne room for the Honor Ceremony. An event where her subject would be lining up to pay her homage for all she does. Celestia felt that such a thing was giving her too much credit. But both the nobles and even the commoners had insisted they do it anyway. Celestia suspected that some of the elite might just be trying to get her favor. But she knew every other pony was being honest.
As Celestia walked through the palace, she thought about the play she had just seen. It really did take her by surprise. But, Cloud Melody was right. The story was from around the time of the first Summer Sun Celebration. That was because it had happened the year before. Celestia had banished Luna in the moon exactly one year before the first celebration. In fact, the holiday had been made to commemorate Celestia's "victory" over Nightmare Moon. The exact reason why that day only served as a reminder of her regret and what she was forced to do.
Celestia soon made it to the throne room. Many ponies were already lined at the large doorway, so Celestia had to go in through a side door. Once inside, Celestia took her seat on the throne. The sound of the miniature waterfalls on the sides of the platform helped to sooth her nerves.
When she was ready, Celestia gave the order for the doors to be opened. "Guards, you may let them in".
The unicorn guards lit their horn and opened the large set of doors to the throne room. The long crowd of ponies fell silent as their princess became visible. The Honor Ceremony was about to begin.
Celestia looked at the crowd and said "Welcome, my little ponies. And thank you all for being here today. As you all appreciate what I do for you, I am touched that you are here to show your appreciation".
With that, the ceremony commenced. Ponies came forward one after another to present their gifts to the Princess. The guards announced the names of each pony or group that to pay homage. First were a number of nobles, those who wanted to be first. They gave Celestia jewelry, art work, and even dresses. (She didn't even wear clothes normally, if ever!). Then came a long line of commoners. Most of them brought Celestia's favorite cakes, books, and sewed goods such as quilts. Ironically, she also got many bouquets of sunflowers.
After a couple of hours, only two ponies were left in the line. As the first one was finishing up, the last one came though the door. He was a unicorn stallion with a gray coat and silver mane and tail. Despite his hair color, he was clearly in his prime. And a silver colored flame for a cutie mark. Based on the custom designed saddlebags he wore, it was clear he was a noble.
One of the guards announced the stallion's name "Announcing, Duke Silver Blaze!".
The unicorn walked forward and stopped a shot distance from the throne. He bowed to Celestia then raised to look at her with a smile.
"Duke Silver Blaze! I'm glad you could be here today!" greeted Celestia.
"Thank you, your Highness. And I'm glad you've taken the time to let the ponies of Equestria show their appreciation to you" replied the Duke.
Celestia smiled and said "I'm always glad to see my little ponies".
"I'm here today to on behalf of my family to tell you how much we appreciate all you've done for us. My daughters were simply thrilled that you were able to make it to their birthday party. And Me and My Wife know how busy your schedule is." said the Duke.
Celestia replied "It was no problem. I'm always happy when I can bring some joy to young fillies' lives".
The Duke lit his horn with a silver glow. The flap of one of his bags opened and an object wrapped in a fine silk clothe was levitated out. Silver Blaze floated the object by his head and said "To show our appreciation, Me and My Wife found a very special item. And with it being the proper occasion, We thought it only right to give it to you as a gift". And with that, He floated the gift over to Celestia.
Celestia lit her horn and caught the object in her golden aura. Using her magic to unwrap the silk clothe, she revealed what seemed to be a fine piece of jewelry. It was a heart-shaped ruby in a solid-gold frame, and it seemed to give off an almost mystical glow.
Celestia stared at the red jewel in awe for a moment then said "Why, it's very beautiful Duke Silver Blaze. What an amazing fire ruby".
Silver Blaze smiled then said "That is no ordinary kind of fire ruby, your highness. It's the Burning Heart Ruby. Legend says that It can grant any one wishful desire to a pony with a good and noble heart. It was supposedly crafted by the most pure hearted unicorn mages of the pre classical era, around the time that Star Swirl the Bearded was in his prime. I acquired it while leading an expedition into the Everfree Forest with a team of scholars. In the middle of the forest, we came upon the ruins of an old castle. I found the ruby in what we assumed was the main library".
Celestia's awe struck expression turned into one of surprise. "An expedition to the Everfree Forest? It sounds exciting. Tell me, was there anything unique about the castle ruins?".
Duke Silver Blaze thought for a moment then replied "Why yes, there were some very interesting details to the site. In the main entry hall there was a very large pedestal with six arms branching out. And on each arm seemed to be a stone orb, with the image of a jewel carved into each. There was also the castle throne room. It was decorated with tapestries that depicted two different alicorns. A white one and a blue one. And most striking point, the room had two thrones in it, spaced evenly apart. Does any of this seem familiar to you, your highness?"
Celestia looked at the ruby floating in her magic while trying to think of an answer. “I don’t think so, Duke Silver Blaze. There have been a fair number of castles built in Equestria throughout its history. Some of them are even older than me. I would guess the ruins you found were centuries old”.
Duke Silver Blaze processed Celestia’s answer then said “Maybe so, your highness. But for now we are trying to, at least, develop a theory about the history of the ruins. That being said, I am glad you like your gift, and thank you for your time, your highness. But I must take my leave now. Good day, Princess Celestia.
“Good day, Duke Silver Blaze” said Celestia.
With that, the unicorn noble turn around and exited the throne room. When the Duke had left the throne room, the unicorn guards closed the large doors. Celestia looked out one of the windows and saw the sun was nearing the western horizon. Even after all she had done today it was only late in the day, one of the advantages to “the longest day of the year”. She wrapped the ruby back in the silk clothe then tucked it under one of her wings.
Celestia got up from her throne and walked toward the door she had entered from. Upon exiting the throne room, she was greeted, once again, by two unicorn guards in the hall for an escort.
One of the guards noticed the silk wrapped object under Celestia’s wing and said “Your majesty, would you like us to store that gift with the others unit you can look at them later.”
Celestia paused for a moment then said “No, thank you. I’ll just keep this one with me for now.” For some reason, she couldn’t help but feel she should keep the incredible jewel with her.
With all her duties and appointments met for the day, Celestia decided it was time for her to relax a bit. The guards escorted Celestia toward her room, obviously in the fanciest part of the palace. While walking, Celestia could not help thinking about the Burning Heart Ruby. After all these years, it had found its way back into her possession. This very object had been created by Star Swirl the Bearded himself. One of his many pet projects. He had gotten the idea for it after one their many trips to Mirror Equestria. But Star Swirl had never meant for it to actually be used, he never even knew if it worked. After he had made, Star Swirl had Celestia put it in safe storage. But after the Nightmare Moon incident, she abandoned the old castle and forgot the jewel. As she wondered in her thoughts, Celestia looked at her surroundings and noticed she was almost to her room. In moments she found herself at the door of her bed chamber.
Celestia turned to the guards and said "Thank you for the escort. Good evening, Sirs."
"Your welcome, Your Majesty" they replied.
With that, Celestia entered her bed chamber and closed the doors behind her, after which the guards took their positions on each side of the door. Once inside, Celestia went over to her bed and laid down on her knees. She levitated the silk wrapped jewel out from under her wing and floated it in front of herself. Thoughts and questions started race though her head. Why was this jewel given to her? was it a coincidence? Or was it fate? Could she actually make a wish with it? And if so, what would she wish for?
As all these questions raced through her mind, Celestia could help but also think of one name. "LUNA!" she said out loud.
Celestia's horn began to glow, a book at the bottom of a stack by her bed was bathed in a golden glow and floated from it's resting place over to the white alicorn and was plopped down in front of her. Her horn continued to glow and Celestia started flipping through the pages. This particular book was full of notes and discoveries that she had started taking just shortly after Luna's banishment. And this was only one book, Celestia had an entire chest of research hidden away somewhere. But this book had what she wanted to know now. Celestia paused on one page about half way through the book.
"There!" she said to herself. Looking closely, Celestia read aloud "Therefore, I can defiantly confirm that the force which took control of Luna was, in fact, somehow a being made of dark power. The only thing I can think of that could purge it out of her would the Elements Of Harmony, or an equally strong source of light magic."
"That's it!" Celestia said, "Is it possible that, just maybe, this jewel has enough light magic to free Luna?"
Celestia thought about actually trying use the ruby. But it didn't take long to make up her mind.
"Alright, I do it!" Celestia declared "It's at least worth trying."
Celestia got up from her bed and walked across the room to her closet door and opened it. As a princess, her closet was rather large to accommodate her wardrobe, accessories, and other important items. Walking into the closet, Celestia looked carefully for what she needed. The first thing she found was her custom made saddlebags, which she levitated off the rack and onto her back. As that was the main item she needed, Celestia turn to exit, but something caught her eye. In one of the slightly opened drawers she saw a particular item gleaming in the light. Using her magic, Celestia opened the draw to see hat it was. It was a scarf, but not just any scarf, it had Luna's cutie mark on it. This had been that Celestia had once given her. Thinking it could be useful, Celestia levitated out then closed the drawer and exited her closet.
Setting her saddlebag onto her bed, Celestia opened both flaps. She then levitated her note book and scarf into one bag and the ruby into the other. After closing both bags, she levitated them onto her back and fastened them securely. It had been a while since the last time Celestia used her own saddle bags. Having everything she needed, Celestia turned toward her balcony used her magic to open the doors. She walked out to the balcony and looked out at the sky. Celestia could see it was almost time for her to set the sun, but for today she was going to do something special.
Celestia lit her horn once again. The sun was setting in the west and it was getting dark in the east. But then the moon started rise over the eastern horizon, bringing its gentle glow with it. This evening, Celestia would let all of Equestia see the sun and moon together.
With the sun and moon in their places, Celestia looked out over all of Canterlot. She looked to the outside of the city and noticed the river running down the mountain. Her eyes followed the waterfall up to it's peak, that was the place.
"If this ruby really does work, then I can't make my wish right here in the palace. It would raise to many questions." Celestia told herself.
Locking her eyes onto the summit of the waterfall, Celestia spread her wings out wide and with one flap she was air born. While in flight, she cast a spell to make herself invisible, so no pony would notice the princess flying unescorted. Within minutes Celestia was at the top of the waterfall. She could see that all the sky was at the hour of twilight, with the west in sunlight and the east in moonlight. What an appropriate setting for she was about to do.
Celestia lit her horn and the ruby was levitated out of her saddlebag. The Burning Heart Ruby glowed a brilliant shade of crimson between the sunset and Celestia's aura. Holding it in her magic, she concentrated and made her wish.
Celestia said out loud "Hear me Ruby Of The Burning Heart and please heed my desire. I wish to have the sister I know and love with me and by my side again, free of the evil that traps her."
With that, the ruby started to glow a bright red and gold light. Celestia released her magic grip and the jewel start the float on it's own. Looking into the sky, Celestia could see the alicorn head on the moon's face start to glow. Then, right in front of her, another light of blue and silver started to appear. Celestia had to squint her eyes not to be blinded. Within moments, the lights faded. The ruby fell to the ground, having granted the wish. Celestia fully opened her eyes again. With the lights faded, she could something on the ground in front of her. It was the form of a dusk-blue alicorn laying there. IT WAS LUNA! Celestia found her self speechless.
Moments later, Luna began to open her eyes. "Ooohhh... w-where am I? ...Wait! Is this Equestria? But how is this possible?" Luna asked as she started to pick herself up.
At that moment, Luna heard something. She look up to see the all-to-familiar face her sister welling up with tears. Celestia couldn't believe it. It actually worked, Luna was back. She was really back. Celestia wasted no time running over to her and scooping the smaller alicorn up into a hug the likes never seen before.
Celestia couldn't help but say "I can't believe it's you, Luna! It's really you! I missed you so, so, so much!" while a stream of joyful tears ran down her face.
Luna replied "I so happy to see you to Celestia. But, how am I here? I thought I had to be banished in the moon. I have so many questions." while tears started to appear in her eyes too.
"I know Luna, and I'll answer all your questions. But the important thing is that you are here, with me. And I couldn't be happier." said Celestia.
With that, the two sisters continued to share the moment for what seemed like hours (but was really minutes). Then Celestia lit her horn and levitated the scarf she had brought out of her bag.
"Luna, do you remember this?" Celestia asked while still holding her sister.
Luna looked up and her eyes went wide. "It's the scarf you gave me for my 100th birthday. You saved it?" Luna said.
Celestia magically slipped the scarf around Luna's neck and replied "Of course I did. It always reminded me of you."
By this time the sun had set all the way and it was night. Looking at Luna, Celestia thought they could both use some rest.
"Luna, what do you say we both got some rest?" Celestia asked.
"I would like that very much" Luna replied.
Celestia lit her horn once more. The ruby was levitated back into her bag. And a moment later, they were both gone in a flash.
The sisters reappeared in Celestia's bed chamber. Once there, Celestia took off her saddlebags and placed them by her bed. She then pulled back the covers on her bed and started to get under them. Then she waved for Luna to join her. Luna got under the covers and Celestia wrapped them both up tightly under the blankets and the sisters closed their eyes.
"Luna..." said Celestia.
"Yes, sister" replied Luna.
"I love you..." said Celestia.
"I love you too..." replied Luna.
With that the two sisters drifted off to sleep together for the first time in centuries.
Author's Note
This is my very first try at making an original story. And I think it's going to be great. Please leave some feedback so I know what you think.
