Twilight walked down the dimly lit flight of stairs, nervous. She was heading far deeper into the Canterlot library than she ever had before. The bleak surroundings were hardly surprising—she was going into the Forbidden Wing, which was protected almost as well as the Elements of Harmony.
It had been a dream of hers since she was a filly, second only to becoming a princess. As soon as she discovered its existence, she sent a letter to Celestia asking for permission to conduct research in there. Celestia declined, sending back a very short reply: "You're not ready yet." Every year since, in blind optimism, Twilight continued sending that letter, and the same thing happened each time. Celestia sent back that short reply: "You're not ready yet."
Twilight always wondered exactly what that meant, but knew it would be almost impossible to find out. Celestia worked in mysterious ways, after all.
She had all but given up this year, so she was more than a bit shocked when she sent out the letter and received, in reply, a key and another short letter: "It's time."
It didn't make much sense, but she wasn't about to complain. This was the opportunity of a lifetime, and she wasn't about to turn it down.
Finally, she reached the door, and took the key out. It looked like a normal wooden door, but if Twilight knew Celestia, it most likely was protected by a multitude of spells. If she tried to open it without unlocking it, it might take her to a completely different room or even kill her. Exercising due caution, she placed the key in the slot and turned it. The door made some cranking sounds, then slowly began opening on its own. When a space large enough to walk through appeared, Twilight squeezed in.
Under normal circumstances, Twilight would consider this room the tiniest, worst kept library she had seen. But these were not normal circumstances.
Because she knew every book on these shelves had been deemed unreadable to the public.
– – – –
For the most part, it was fairly obvious how each book had ended up on these shelves. In between all the books on how to assassinate Celestia, how to assassinate everybody but Celestia, how to get away with every sex crime under the sun, books supporting male supremacy, books supporting female supremacy, book supporting unicorn supremacy, and so on, Twilight wondered why Celestia just didn't throw the things away. They certainly didn't have any literary value, aside from being so offensive they could induce laughter within seconds.
She had picked up a couple random titles to look over, but nothing really caught her eye until she saw those books. One shelf had nothing but the most ancient books Twilight had seen, written in a dialect so old most other ponies would find it incomprehensible. From the titles, she could get the gist of what they were about—they were all history books.
Now that was interesting. Hardly anything accurately depicted history before Nightmare Moon, and those books looked at least that old. Maybe one of the writers had portrayed Celestia a little too negatively for her tastes? Regardless, Twilight was excited. She set down the boring books she had collected earlier, and carefully grasped one of these old volumes in magic.
It took great skill and precision to carry something that old without breaking it. Twilight suspected that if she had attempted to do so even a year before, she would've accidentally crushed the book with force. Maybe this is why the wing is so protected, Twilight thought. Celestia just doesn't want the books damaged.
She set the volume on the single table in the room, and blew over the top of the book, raising a cloud of dust. Even through all the dust and scratches, she could tell the book was beautiful. It was a large, hardback volume with gold rimmed pages hardly thicker than a blade of grass. The binding was thick and intricate—through the grime, it was clear parts of this were golden as well.
She slowly opened it up, and was blown away all again. While the invention of the printing press had made books accessible to a larger audience, nothing quite equaled the precision and dedication that went into a homespun volume from ancient days. Each letter was a work of calligraphic art, the designs around the margins were better than most paintings, and the artwork… while the perspective and proportions were sometimes mangled, each line, each color had so much passion within it. Twilight thought newer books sometimes lacked that passion, and she had never seen clearer evidence of that than what lay in front of her right now. She wondered what could possibly be wrong with this book. It was a national treasure. A work of art.
She started going through the text, formulating ways to convince Celestia to release the book to the public. Nothing seemed wrong with the content. If anything, it seemed to focus on Celestia too much. Maybe she was embarrassed by that? It seemed like an awfully petty reason to put a book under such high security, especially when it had such obvious cultural value.
Then, she stopped. As she went through the pages, deciphering the arcane text, something was bugging her. Something that wasn't immediately obvious. She flipped through the pages, trying to prove her suspicion wrong. No luck. Something… no, someone was entirely missing.
She went back to the bookshelf, pulled out the volume on Celestia's early life, and double checked.
What she read made her leave the book open and sprint out the room as fast as she could.
– – – –
"P-Princess," Twilight got out, panting.
"Celestia," Celestia corrected automatically, setting down her much oversugared tea. It appeared Twilight had run all the way up to her room, forgetting she had wings as usual. "What is it?" Celestia said, even though she was fairly sure she knew.
"It's… about some books I found in the Forbidden Wing."
Celestia paused. "Go on."
Twilight composed herself. "Why is there a collection of ancient history books that completely omit Luna? How did they even get produced? A series like that would have taken decades to write. If someone was going to that much trouble to write and sell that many books intentionally trying to erase your sister, wouldn't you hear about it at some point? I mean, at the very least you wouldn't let the authors write a complete set, would you?"
Celestia was silent.
"I'm sorry, but this is just bugging me too much. They don't mention her at all. Nothing in the text, nothing in the pictures, nothing. They describe how you defeated Discord alone, the minutia of how you managed the nighttime court alone… they attribute everything she did to you. They even say it's impossible for naturally born alicorns to have siblings, because they siphon their mother's lifesource. I hate to admit it, but their theory seems incredibly well substantiated, to the point where I think forging it would've been more difficult than doing legitimate research."
Twilight looked down. "I just can't figure out why. Why would they go to such effort to exclude her? They were most likely risking their lives for it, and for what? It was 200 years before Luna turned to Nightmare Moon! Apparently one of the most peaceful times in Equestria's history! There's no motivation! And no matter how careful they were, I can't imagine how they could've kept their activities hidden from you. Is there some reason you let them do this? Is that why those books are locked away in the Forbidden Wing?"
Celestia looked away. She slowly got up, walked to a window, and traced the glass. "I knew this day would come," she said.
Twilight got closer. "What day?"
Celestia turned her head. "You're right. I let them do that. That's why the books are in the Forbidden Wing," she said. "I figured you'd find them, but I never thought you'd notice something was wrong with them this quickly. I suppose I shouldn't underestimate you."
"Then… can you tell me why?"
Celestia looked at Twilight. "Of course," she said. "I've been planning to tell you ever since you became a princess. I've been searching for someone to tell for 1000 years now. And now, I know you're ready."
"Ready for what?"
Celestia's horn lit. Every window and door in the room shut simultaneously, and outside, Twilight could see a shimmering shield—an extra privacy spell, she figured. "Everything I say to you now must stay in this room for all eternity," Celestia said. "It is of vital importance for the safety of everyone in this country—no, this world. Do you understand?"
Twilight nodded.
Celestia sighed, and started nervously pacing, an odd sight. "The truth is," she said, hesitantly, "those are the real history books, Twilight."
Twilight froze. "What? You mean—"
"Alicorns can never have siblings, yes. Luna is not my sister."
"Then what is she?"
Celestia struggled to find the words. "She's… she's a façade. An illusion." She looked at Twilight. "Perhaps I should start at the beginning. For you, anyway. What do you think happened when you reformed Nightmare Moon?"
Twilight blinked. "What?"
"Humor me."
Twilight thought back. "Well, I suppose the magic of the Elements resolved all the problems she had in her mind?"
"But what if those problems were not resolvable? What if she had firmly made up her mind to oppose me?"
Twilight stared. "Then the Elements… changed her mind?"
"So, basically," Celestia said, "they restored her to what she was like before."
That sounded a bit more pleasant. "Yes," Twilight said. "I guess they did."
"Now, how did the Elements know what she was like before?"
"What?" Twilight was beginning to wonder the relevance of this. "They… scanned her mind? Found the good memories she had of the past?"
"Through 1000 years of moon rocks? And all the memory holes that must've caused? I doubt it. The Elements were not designed to be used on sane people, Twilight."
Realization dawned. "They… scanned our minds."
"And tell me, how did you all know what Luna was like?"
Twilight looked at Celestia in horror. "From… from history."
Celestia started pacing again. "1005 years ago, for the first time in millennia, a new alicorn came to this part of the world. Her name was Nightmare Moon. For reasons unfathomable to me, she almost immediately declared war on us. I don't think she had any goal, other than destruction. For 5 years, Equestria was locked into the most brutal war it had faced—all against one alicorn. Her strength was formidable, and more importantly, she had the power to enter dreams. Just remembering the things she made us see…" Celestia shook her head. "She made sure none of us got the rest we needed. We found out later we were unusual for our tenacity. We saw, from the charred husk of the world she left in her wake, that she usually brought kingdoms to their knees in weeks. She didn't even have to lift a hoof—the exhaustion did the work for her. If we fought back with traditional methods, we would've been doomed." Celestia smiled lightly. "Luckily, I know quite a few untraditional methods."
Twilight was silent.
"I tried everything. I couldn't afford to hold back with her. But she just wouldn't die. She must've been a very young, naturally born alicorn, which meant she had nearly limitless power. There was only one thing I could do—a temporary solution. Seal her on the moon. Buy time to think of something more permanent."
Twilight scoffed. "Buy time?"
"1000 years might be long to you, but for me it's a drop in the bucket," Celestia said. "Even after she was gone, I could hardly sleep, because I knew she would be back. And she wouldn't be weaker—just angrier, and even more deranged. I had no idea what to do with her. And then, something happened.
"A rumor spread. Who knows who started it, but someone said Nightmare Moon was my scorned sister, and people began to believe it. It was ridiculous, of course—I knew that alicorns couldn't have sisters. But then, I realized not many people did. And I got an idea.
"The Elements depend on belief. I couldn't reform Nightmare Moon with them, because I didn't believe she had a conscience. I couldn't kill her with them, because she was too powerful. So sealing her in the moon was the only option. But what if I could convince people she had a conscience, and then use them to reform her? It was the only thing I could think of that sounded even slightly feasible, so I went for it. I waited a couple hundred years, and then I confirmed those rumors. I said Nightmare Moon was my sister, and I had hidden this because the memories were too painful.
"I gave her the name Luna, and said she was in charge of the night, to contrast with my command of the day. My sun shaped cutie mark made that seem credible. I invented a childhood with her, gave her quirks, habits, a personality. I said anything I could think of. Before I knew it, history books were filled with passages about this 'Luna,' and it was common knowledge she was my sister. Everyone knew what she was like, even though no one had ever met her."
Twilight was pale. "So, when you had us 'reform' her…"
"I depended on all of your memories, all of your belief in 'Luna' to change Nightmare Moon into a different person," Celestia said. "I couldn't do it myself, because no matter how much I deluded myself, I would always know that Luna was a lie, and the Elements wouldn't work."
"Celestia, I…" Twilight said, backing away. She looked away. "We… just wiped someone's mind clean and put her in there. I can't believe it. I just can't."
"It was the only option!" Celestia said. "Believe me when I said I tried everything! I did. I tried attacking. I tried negotiating. I even tried unconditionally surrendering, offering my life so that she might spare just this one country, but she wouldn't have it. She wanted everything to burn and that was the end of it."
Twilight shook her head. "That can't be true. It can't. No one could be like that…"
"She could," Celestia said. "But you're right. I might have been able to do something different. Something better. Sometimes I think that. But then, I realize… she's happier now. She's probably happier than she's been in her entire life." She smiled, tears forming. "Isn't that what matters? She has a family now. I have a family now. I'm not sure I can ever forgive what she did, but I have a sister now, regardless of where she came from. That's all that matters."
Twilight shook her head again, and walked off a bit, attempting to keep control of herself. "Then why tell me?" she says. "Why keep those books around? If Luna ever found out…"
"That's why I'm telling you," Celestia said. "Someone besides me needs to know. If the effects of the Elements begin to wear off, or she starts to remember her other life, or something, I don't know, someone else needs to know. I might not always be around, you know. Imagine what it would be like if she turned back and no one knew what was happening?" She looked out the window. "And the books? They're a reminder. A reminder of just how terrible my power can be. When you live as long as I have, you get… sentimental. Maybe I will get rid of them."
Twilight looked distraught. She edged towards the door. "I'm sorry, this is just… a lot to take in. Do you mind if I…?"
Celestia undid the protective magic and opened the door. "Of course. Take whatever time you need." She paused. "Just… don't do anything rash, okay?"
"I won't, Princess," Twilight said, and rushed out.
Celestia watched. Twilight looked like she was having trouble with the news, but… who else could she tell? She had gambled so much on Twilight already. She had no choice but to trust her.
She walked to her room, looking at the relics strewn about. So many of them related to Luna. So many of them contributed to the illusion.
One in particular always caught her eye. She stared at a tapestry, hung opposite to her bed, that depicted the two as children.
She would always remember that tapestry. It was the first time she had to describe Luna to an artist. She remembered how scared she was when she screwed up some details. She apologized profusely for her faulty memory, but the artist assured her it was fine, and filled in the gaps herself.
That one artist's decisions ended up impacting every depiction of Luna since, including the one that was currently sleeping in the other wing of the castle.
"Sister…"
