Chapters PonyProse I - Celestial Concerns
"Surprise!"
"Wh- No, wait!" His warning came too late. The white-and-blue blur had barrelled into the room without notice and the stool had no chance. Getting trampled and hurled across the room was a high price to pay for being in front of the door at the wrong moment. He sighed heavily as the stool's former occupants, consisting of three-hundred-odd carefully stacked pages of notes, fluttered around his head. The blur shakily stood up, rubbing its head. "Great, are you happy now? Those took all morning to sort."
"Aww, I'm sorry Bee," the blur said, eyes downcast. "You've been in here for so long I wanted to see if you were asleep or... something..." She trailed off as she saw the devastated pile of notes strewn about the room. "Why did you even have that in front of the door? That was very silly of you, somepony could have hurt themselves!"
He knelt down and patted her head with his hoof. "Well at least they didn't eh?" He couldn't stay angry for long, not with that innocent, fun-loving little face staring up at him. "C'mon, help me get this cleared up. It'll be much quicker with your help."
"You're not angry?" She gasped as she clutched his foreleg, beaming from ear to ear.
"Of course not," he chuckled, "it was my fault, absolutely. Now how about helping me clear this mess up?"
"Allow me!" she squealed. The stool incident had ruffled her mane into an unsightly mess, but with a toss of her head, a shiny white horn was revealed. Her brow furrowed slightly as the horn glowed. Suddenly every stray page was lifted off the floor, causing a great rustling din. She winced.
"Steady on, Sky! I'd like these pages in one piece, please," Bee laughed as he retrieved the stool. With renewed determination to make up for her clumsiness, Sky floated the pages towards her and began sorting them by number. Her big brother watched as the pages danced around each other. His little sister's eyes flicked back and forth, reading the page numbers. Her horn continued to glow as the paper quickly filed itself into a neat stack.
"Er, Bee, would you mind taking this pile I've done so far?" She gently floated a thick stack towards him. "It's easier if I do it in bits and pieces." He gingerly caught the stack of paper as it wafted past.
"Take your time, it took me half a day to sort that lot out, there's no need for you to rush through it in three minutes." He carefully eyed how she manipulated the paper in the air around her head. Scattered sheets were methodically being grouped by general page number, before being further sorted into correct order. She has much more control over delicate magic than she used to, Bee thought to himself. She'll get there in the end.
The rest of the afternoon passed without much ado. The denizens of Canterlot went about their business far below Bee's study, perched near the top of Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns. He wasn't actually a unicorn, but as an official researcher working under the auspices of Princess Celestia herself, he was granted accommodation at the School. His sister was also permitted to live there, of course. She didn’t usually bother him that much, what with her private lessons with the Princess taking up most of her days and all.
For many years the Princess had taught her own personal protégé in the form of a very gifted unicorn filly named Twilight Sparkle, but as the filly grew into a young mare, the Princess wondered if any other truly exceptional foals had undiscovered potential, which required focused study to unlock.
Then Bee arrived on the scene with Sky in tow.
His actual name was Wonderwhy, but his very distinctive and very striking black-and-yellow coat, mane and tail quickly earned him the nickname 'Bee' among anypony who got to know him. His colours weren't the only unusual things about his appearance, however. He was huge, with a thickset body supported by powerful muscle, and he stood taller than everypony else he knew except the Princess, with whom he stood eye-to-eye. As a pegasus he had wings, but they too were unusual. Apart from being predictably sizeable, they were not feathery as one would expect, but tough and leathery. More like dragon wings.
Wonderwhy's incredible enthusiasm for learning anything and everything about anything and everything, along with his noteworthy appearance, quickly caught the attention of Princess Celestia who was in need of somepony to help keep her informed and up-to-date on happenings in Equestria. Her interest was also piqued by Bee's appearance, but despite several years of research between the two of them, they failed to find any solid information about Bee's ancestors.
"They had reason to lie low it seems," he would often remark after chasing down yet another red herring. His current family was just as clueless.
Whatever unique bloodline ran through Bee, however, had a far more profound effect on his sister.
Brightlight Bluesky, or Brightsky for short and Sky for even shorter, was a sweet little thing that had a surprisingly tough side when the situation required it. Her normally unkempt mane shielded her white horn most of the time. Nothing is unusual about a unicorn filly, so initially Celestia had no reason to think her anything important.
That changed very quickly once she got on less formal terms with Bee, and he spoke more openly about his sister. Very few ponies knew her special secret, and she kept it well hidden under a starry red-and-white cloak which she loved very much. Maybe everypony would accept her as she was, but her family wanted to keep her 'special condition' under wraps, both literally and figuratively, until they knew just what it meant for the little filly's future.
Once Twilight had matured enough to be more independent of the Princess with her studies, Sky was offered the role of personal protégé too. So far she hadn't managed to perform any magical feats of any significance. During her entrance exam for the School, by contrast, Twilight had hatched a dragon egg, making the baby instantly grow to a ridiculous size, while also levitating the examiners and transforming her parents into plants.
Celestia was able to repair the damage, but so far such a need hadn't arisen with Sky. Which was a good thing in a way, but Bee and the Princess couldn’t help but wonder what was going on inside Sky's little body. She already had her cutie mark; she had obtained it while aimlessly stargazing one night, which was another surprise. Cutie marks normally appear after some noteworthy event, not just out of the blue.
Whatever mystery surrounded Brightsky, Wonderwhy and Princess Celestia felt sure that one day all would be revealed and she would be mysterious no more. Celestia hoped to be present when the filly's unseen magical power finally surfaced, not only out of curiosity, but to safeguard Brightsky and everything around her from whatever accidental havoc she could cause.
Brightlight Bluesky, little sister of towering dragon-winged Wonderwhy, was a pegasus unicorn.
An alicorn.
PonyProse I - Celestial Concerns
Bee securely locked away his stack of notes in a drawer. Good luck getting knocked over now, he thought. After making sure that everything was in its proper place for the night, he went to close the shutters on his study window. As he did so, a bright-yellow scrap of paper flitted from between the wooden slats and presented itself to his nose, making him sneeze loudly. Sky stuck her head through the door to see what was going on. "Was that you sneezing Bee?"
"No, it was the desk."
"Pardon?"
"Yes, that was me, this bit of paper attacked my face," he explained as he irritably kicked it away. Sky's horn glowed as she levitated the scrap to eye-level. "Is it yours by any chance? I haven't see-"
"Oh yes this is mine!" the filly suddenly bellowed as she started bouncing up and down. "Can we go? Can we can we can we?"
"Can we go to wh- Achoo!" Sky attempted to float the paper back to Bee but overshot and it went up his nose again.
"S-sorry Bee, haha!" she laughed. Bee pushed his glasses back into place with one hoof while he snatched the paper from Sky's magical grasp with the other.
"Sky, this is an advertisement for the Summer Sun Celebration," he said, frowning. She nodded vigorously, beaming all the while. "Which is tomorrow." She nodded once more. "In Ponyville." Another nod. Bee sighed dramatically and screwed his eyes shut. Sky's ecstatic expression froze on her face. "Surely you haven't already forgotten that we discussed this only yesterday? We even talked to Celestia about it, and we all agreed that the two of us should just stay here in Canterlot, and the Princess can tell us all about it when she gets back. Someone needs to take care of the School for the day, after all." Sky's expression barely changed, save for a mild twitch in her right eye. Bee knew that twitch well and it made him groan every time. "I'm in the middle of some complicated stuff right now and Celestia wants you to practise what she showed you the other day. Remember?" Sky's ears slowly drooped, from being pricked upright and pointing eagerly at Bee to hanging down off the back of her head. Sure, they were normally thus arranged, but not so sorrowfully laid flat. Her beaming smile thinned to a close and her eyelids relaxed until they were actually in front of her eyes again.
"B-but, I really wanted to see her raise the Sun..."
"Oh come on, you know she does that every morning. She raises the Moon every night, too." This prompted Sky to stamp her front hooves.
"Bee! You know what I mean! She normally does all that quietly, while she's doing other things as well! It's only one day a year that she makes a celebration about it!"
Bee sat himself on the floor while massaging his eyes behind his glasses. "Think about it Sky. Just for a moment, think about it. Celestia is raising the Moon as we speak. The Summer Sun Celebration is tomorrow morning. Tomorrow morning. There's no way we could get to Ponyville on time now. Besides, you can't just turn up in a town, out of thin air, and expect to find a place to stay. How many times has somepony knocked at the door to our living space here and demanded to stay the night? Hmm? Zero times, Sky. Absolutely ze-"
A knocking from down the corridor made both ponies jump with fright. Bee's glasses jolted off his face and skittered under the desk. "Hehe, don't worry Bee, you find those and I'll see who that is..." Sky hastily excused herself from the study. She knew she'd annoyed her brother and he wanted her at a reasonable distance for a minute or two. Pausing at the door which separated their living quarters from the rest of the School, Sky quickly ruffled her mane into a slightly more presentable shape. She cleared her throat before calling upon her magic to open the door. "Ahem. Good evening and welcome to Wonderwhy's study area-AH!"
The visitor chuckled at the filly's startlement. She shook her head to shift her magnificent ethereal mane away from her slender white face, its rainbow of colours shimmering even in the relatively low light of the corridor. "Good evening to you, Brightlight Bluesky. How are you, my faithful student?"
While rubbing the lenses of his glasses to clean them, Bee had heard his sister cry out down the corridor, followed by muffled laughter. He sprang out of the study, his yellow wings flapping to control the sharp left-hand turn towards the door guarding his general purpose work/living area. He was just within comfortable earshot when the visitor asked,
"How are you, my faithful student?" His forelegs scrabbled on the polished wooden floor as he abruptly halted his mad dash. He breathed a deep sigh of relief as he realised nothing untoward had befallen his sister after all. She was fine, in fact, and hugging the visitor's foreleg when Bee casually trotted into view.
"Why, Princess Celestia, what a pleasant surprise."
"Good evening Wonderwhy," she replied. "Young Brightsky over here is a bit overdue for bed, don't you think so?" The Princess gently shook her entrapped leg. "It's already been a while since I raised the Moon."
"Aww, really?" Sky pouted. Predictably however, it had no effect.
"Yes my dear, you need to rest now so that you're able to focus on your practising tomorrow."
With this reference to what the Princess had taught her a few days ago, Sky knew there would be little point in bringing up the subject of tomorrow's Summer Sun Celebration.
"Okay Princess, I'll get ready for bed," she sighed as she relinquished the mare's leg and slowly trotted away down the corridor. The door to her bedroom magically opened and shut itself to grant her passage.
"Her fine magic control is really improving you know. Operating a door doesn't require much control, admittedly, but earlier she helped me sort a large pile of numbered pages," Bee said, chuckling.
Celestia nodded. "She's doing very well with me, too. She never shies from a new challenge either." Bee chuckled again.
"That's just a polite way of saying she's stubborn and refuses to believe she can't do everything." He gazed out of the nearest window at the Moon, now a good distance above the horizon. "She'd even have a go at raising the Sun and Moon if you gave her the all-clear."
The Princess shuffled her forelegs. This was something Bee had never noticed her do before, and he immediately grew serious.
"Actually, Wonderwhy, that's related to what I've come to discuss with you." She raised her head to meet his eye. "Presumably I'm not interrupting anything at this hour?"
"No no, of course not," Bee affirmed, "but please, let's not stand here and talk. Come through to my study or the kitchen. Would you like someth-"
"I'd rather we go somewhere a bit more private," Celestia nodded towards Sky's bedroom door. "There are certain secrets which I do not want little blue ears to overhear."
Bee cocked his head. "Oh?" He started smiling again. "Are you going to inform me of your next test for her or something? I'll go plug her ears with wool then, back in a minute." He made to turn away.
"Bee, please."
There are very, very few things Princess Celestia could have said to still Bee's heart more effectively. In all the years she had known him, watching his sister grow up and him blossom under her employ, she had never once called him Bee. Not once. That nickname was too informal for the likes of her to use. It was always 'Wonderwhy' and never a syllable less. What chilled his blood even more, though, was an equally uncommon feature that had accompanied his nickname: a tremble.
It had been slight, and almost nopony would have picked up on it, but Celestia's voice had definitely acquired a shaky quality when she had said those two words.
Bee swallowed heavily.
"Right then," he whispered without turning back to face her, "just give me a moment to settle Sky in bed." He quietly knocked on her bedroom door. "Sky? You alright in there?"
He pushed open the door gently. Her usual attire of a big red bow for her mane, her starry cloak, and her red coverall outfit with purple pastern bands and dorsal stripes had been neatly folded and set upon her bedside table, ready for tomorrow's magic practise. Sky herself was also neatly folded. Her legs and head were tucked towards her chest and her tail made a neat semicircular bump under her bedsheets. Her large brown eyes were lightly hidden by her gently vibrating eyelids. Bee pulled the sheets up around her shoulders a bit more before tucking in her left wing. He kissed her forehead as he whispered, "Sweet dreams, Sky. I'll be back soon."
He returned to the Princess once he'd donned his orange vest and cloak. "Are you sure you don't need to wrap up a bit? It must be cool out by now."
Celestia gently shook her head. Her horn briefly glowed.
"I'll be fine."
PonyProse I - Celestial Concerns
She didn't have anywhere particular in mind. She just needed to walk, to be out in the fresh air for a while. She had to relax and calm her nerves before she set out tonight to do what she had to do. Oh how she wished she didn’t have to go.
A simple walk with a friend was the perfect thing to calm her mind. Not being up in her throne room in the royal castle, having everypony call her 'Princess' and 'your majesty'. Well, Wonderwhy usually called her 'Princess' but he said it kindly, as if it was her name and not her title. In the company of such a friend, though, she preferred just Celestia. She hadn't meant to frighten him so by addressing him as 'Bee' but she could understand his misinterpretation of her friendliness.
They walked around Canterlot in silence, save for the gentle clip-clopping of their hooves. They encountered nopony else, as expected at this hour. Finally, long after the pair had lost track of time, they sat together on the grassy bank of one of Canterlot's many streams. The Moon was a bright circle hovering directly above them. The Mare in the Moon cast a beady eye over proceedings. Wonderwhy didn't quite realise just how tangible the dark shapes on the heavenly body's surface would soon become.
Nothing was said for a while more, until Bee remembered that Celestia wanted to tell him something about the Moon. He squinted up at its tranquil form and decided to break the ice. "When I have time to ponder such things, I've often meant to ask you, Princess, about raising the Sun and Moon. For instance, once you've got them above the horizon, is that it as far as you're concerned? Do you just let them trace across the sky, or do you need to constantly think about their movements?"
Celestia blinked but didn’t turn to face him. She carried on gazing off into the distance.
"They require the presence of great magical power to remain in balance. Since they are both under the control of just one alicorn, they can remain perfectly in balance forever. Once I have raised either the Sun or Moon, the influence of the other keeps both in check until it's time for them to swap places. I simply need to be alive and well."
Bee pulled a contemplative face. He was more aware of Celestia's past than most ponies, so he didn’t react much when she continued, "They have been perfectly balanced for one thousand years now, guided by my magic. However," she said with a certain strained undertone in her voice, "it is not meant to be so. One pony's power cannot sustain such balance indefinitely." Bee knew full well what was coming next, yet couldn’t help but twitch his head in surprise when she concluded, "I... Equestria needs my sister back."
"Wasn't Twilight Sparkle reading about your sister the other day? I was walking just near here and I saw her lying on some grass. She was reading a book aloud to herself, and I distinctly heard phrases such as 'two regal sisters' and 'refused to lower the Moon'. Does she know what I do?"
One corner of Celestia's mouth reluctantly turned up. "Probably. You said Brightlight Bluesky was stubborn, but Twilight's not one to give in easily either. She even wrote me a letter asking what was to be done." Bee frowned. "Given that my sister returns tomorrow."
"Whoa, what? Tomorrow?" Suddenly he smacked his forehead with his hoof. "Ugh, I was right after all!" Now it was Celestia's turn to look puzzled. "Ah, you see, I was going over some numbers I came across in various ancient prophecy books, and out of curiosity I used them to calculate when Princess Luna should return, if the 'thousand years' part of the legends are true, and my answer was in fact tomorrow." He sighed. "I should have said something, but I assumed I was wrong." He smiled. "And of course you obviously knew it would be tomorrow, so I needn't have informed you anyway." He was jolted from his rambling by a drop of water landing on his hoof, which he quizzically raised in front of his glasses. There was indeed a small wet patch, but the sky was clear of clouds. He shrugged. "So anyway, what did you tell... Twilight?" His voice faded to a mumble when he saw the Princess had closed her eyes. "Celestia?"
The mystery of the water drop was solved by its companion peeking out from between Celestia's eyelashes, before it too plummeted earthwards with an inaudible plop. "My sister was lost to the world when her power became corrupted, and she transformed into..." The Princess momentarily choked up. Bee tried to comfort her by way of nudging his hoof into contact with hers. "I did not banish Luna; instead I rid the world of Night Mare Moon, and it is she, not Luna, who will return tomorrow."
"Sorry," mumbled Bee, "I just called her that because... well, I don't know. I'm sorry." He retrieved a hoofkerchief from one of his orange vest's many pockets and hesitantly offered it. She smiled weakly in reply and it floated across to her. Bee averted his gaze, embarrassed.
"My sister was only able to become so... misguided, shall we say, because our powers over the Sun and Moon grew terribly unbalanced. The price of sharing the burden of my task is that the forces inevitably shift into different patterns." The hoofkerchief magically wafted to the stream and washed itself. Bee watched as it wrung out the water and folded in midair, before drifting slowly up the bank and into his pocket.
"So why did something like this not happen earlier? Why was a thousand years ago the first time your powers got so uncoordinated that they corrupted?"
"Strictly speaking, the imbalance required correcting at least twice a year, sometimes as often as five times in one year. We couldn't do it ourselves, though. We needed a third source of great magic to fix the differences between us."
"A third source?" asked Bee in amazement. "Who could you possibly call on for that? Surely only alicorns possess the power to control the Sun and Moon. Well, you could have assembled thousands of unicorns I suppose, but you said 'a third source' of power, not thousands. Who was it?"
The Princess inhaled sharply. "His name and life have been lost from general knowledge for countless generations." She relaxed again. "I will never forget him though. It was so shocking when he turned against us, we were as close as siblings could be."
Now Bee stiffened. "Wait, siblings?"
Celestia nodded slowly. "I had a brother once." Her eyes suddenly widened as she looked up at the Moon, which was now well on its way down again. "I still do, really, and if I don't get going right now, the rest of Equestria will remember him too."
