In the wake of a Nightmare
Arise, Sleeper, and face reality
"Princess!"
Stand Fast galloped through the Castle of the Two Sisters, heading towards the throne room. "Princess! Are you alright? Princess!"
Emerging through the doors, the guard-stallion felt a huge weight leave his shoulders at seeing Celestia alive and moving. "Princess, you're alright! When we saw the battle, we thought - gack!"
In an incredible display of masculine discipline and grace, Stand Fast tripped on a piece of rubble and fell smack on his muzzle.
Princess Celestia, her face slick with sweat and tears, let out a hiccup.
Grunting with pain and wounded dignity, Stand Fast pulled himself to his hooves. "Princess...?"
"Hic... heh... hic..." Celestia's barrel moved up and down erratically. "Heh... he..." Despite covering her mouth with her hoof, it did nothing to disguise the fact that her 'breathing problems' were her trying to hold in her giggles.
Stand Fast rubbed the side of his head with one hoof. "Princess...?" He repeated in confusion. The Solar Princess had never been known for laughing at other ponies.
"I'm..." Celestia said, regaining some control over herself. "...I'm fine. How is everypony else?"
"Scared out of their fur, but everypony's okay." Stand Fast reported. Proving his point, several other ponies cautiously looked into the throne room. One, a pegusus mare named Cloth Bandage, gasped at the state her princess was in. She rushed over, brushing rubble out of Celestia's mane.
"I'm fine." Celestia protested, putting up a pained smile.
"You are not fine." Cloth Bandage stated firmly. "Your sister just attacked you, screaming that she would destroy you loud enough for the whole castle to hear. No matter what happened after that, you are not fine."
But Celestia just shook her head. "Not my sister. Nightmare Moon."
Stand Fast growled. "Nightmare Moon is your sister."
"The..." Celestia grimaced, looking like she was tasting something foul. "The story mustn't go like that."
"What do you want us to say?!" Stand Fast demanded of the princess. "There were two sisters, one for night and one for day, and one tried to kill the other?"
To Stand Fast's annoyance, Celestia immediately perked up, an absurdly hopeful smile plastered on her face. "Would you?"
The guardspony scowled. "Princess, nopony will be fooled by that!"
"Luna mustn't be remembered like this. She doesn't deserve it. ...not after how I failed her."
"Princess - "
"And I did fail her." Celestia turned her head away, but Stand Fast thought he caught a glimpse of a tear. "She was in such a dark place, and I never even noticed... heh. Some 'wise ruler' I turned out to be."
Stand Fast's brain began to itch. The princess is never this upfront. Never this... 'cheerful'. Never this defensive of ponies in the wrong.
...
Honesty, Laughter and Loyalty?
Stand Fast's eyes dropped to the floor. Now that he was looking, he easily spotted six gemstones scattered amongst the stone rubble.
"P-princess!" He blurted out.
Celestia's head turn around and her eyes focused on him. Stand Fast gulped, suddenly nervous. "Are - are those the - "
"Celestia!"
The sound of his bells impossible to notice under his roaring voice, Star Swirl the Bearded swept into the throne room; fury, confusion and concern warring on his face. "I came as soon as - are those the Elements?!"
"Hello Star Swirl." Celestia greeted, her smile turning slightly maniac.
The old unicorn studied the scene furiously, gears turning in his head. "...you used the Elements on your sister?"
"She's gone, Star Swirl." Celestia hiccuped again. "Gone to the moon, never to see anypony ever again. And..." She sniffed, before continuing quietly. "And I'm the one who put her there."
"She's been banished?!" Star Swirl let out a strangled cry. "Now who will lower the moon?!"
"It - it might be worse then that." Stand Fast stammered, a half-remembered tale coming to mind. "Don't the Nyx live on the moon?"
"The dream-weavers?" Cloth Bandage jerked in alarm.
"Right where 'Nightmare Moon' can get her hooves on them." Star Swirl confirmed. "Celestia, I must teach you how to keep others out of your head - quickly, before you may sleep tonight."
Celestia looked away from everypony. "So, not only will I never see my sister again, but my failure will literally haunt my dreams forever...?"
"Celestia - "
"Don't." Celestia sighed. "You were always my friend, Star Swirl, not hers. I was the pony closest to her. I... am the one who failed her completely."
Star Swirl stomped the ground, surprising loud for such an old pony. "The Elements, Celestia. What did you do with the Elements?"
"Whenever we were in over our heads, the Elements would fix everything." Celestia remembered, her telling of fond memories clouded by her down state. "They stopped Discord. They scared away Sombra. They undid the damage Tirek caused..."
Star Swirl's eyes softened slightly. "Celestia..."
"They were supposed to fix her." Celestia whispered. Star Swirl trotted forward firmly, and Celestia embraced him without a word. "Why didn't they fix her, Star Swirl? Why did they take her from me? She is my sister!"
Because Star Swirl thought but did not say. even the Magic of Friendship cannot repair bridges that are, even now, still burning.
Stand Fast definitely wasn't imagining things this time: tears were pooling in Celestia's eyes. "I'll never see her again, will I?"
Star Swirl said nothing, merely patting her back as she sobbed softly.
...
Down in the rubble, the Element of Kindness glowed weakly. Then, Honesty followed suit. A chorus of voices seemed to come from the magical jewels:
"Our chains are not unbreakable,
our punishment not unbearable.
On the thousandth year, on the longest day;
Your burden shall be taken away."
Everypony stared at the normally silent gemstones. All of them were in shock at the unexpected declaration.
...all of them except Celestia.
"...a thousand years?" She shook slightly, head still buried in Star Swirl's shoulder. "I ask you, desperately, for help and the best you can give me is a thousand years?!"
The jewels remained silent once more.
Celestia stood abruptly, breaking off the embrace with Star Swirl. Without looking at anypony, she trotted out of the room. Those still hovering at the door stood well back as the alicorn made her way down the hall, shoulders still shaking as she failed to hold back tears.