She does not know how long it has been since she left Canterlot to take to the skies. Most nights she doesn't, but that's alright—it's the journey that matters, not the destination.
Isn't it?
Celestia does not stop her flight to dwell on it. Her mind is clear of anchors; those heavy thoughts and bothersome—sometimes even disturbing—notions that try so hard to ground her. They haven't worked yet and they won't work now; she's had too much time to let them go.
She soars higher and higher into the night sky. Some ponies would call her flight silent, yet those ponies are wrong, for they do not hear the stars whisper or the soft, faint sounds the feathers of her angelic wings make as she continues on.
The trip is always somber and bittersweet, but it is never silent—sometimes her thoughts scream out and make sure of that. She pushes these away as her wings cup the air, her ears pricked forward at the sound of the wind. Her eyes are determined, but not fierce.
This trend, her precious flight has gone on for so long. It did not cease even when she took on students. None questioned this ritual for they all thought it was plain and simply something she did to relax and ease her mind off of her royal duties.
Every day she lowered the moon to make way for the sun. Keeping her emotions at bay while doing this was something she also had practice in. Every night she lowered the sun and coaxed the moon out of the sky. The stars followed soon after. At least when she was feeling down, they drew her eyes away from the now cratered surface.
It helped almost as much as these flights did. Sometimes, she wondered if this was the only time she could breathe. Whenever the sun was up, from dawn to dusk, it felt like she was holding her breath with only the students she cared so deeply for taking her mind off the inevitable path her thoughts could stray into.
The stars were stunning tonight and the cool summer air felt wonderful against her coat. Sure, the stars were not what they once were she was never the artistically inclined one like she had been, but at least they still glowed even if their sparkle wasn't quite there. The stars, so different now from what they had been, that Celestia refused to call her own was much more like a dusting of glitter across the often-blue canvas of the sky. They really weren't quite as breathtaking when she attempted to bring about the night.
How had ponies not noticed, this and everything else? She had long since passed the phase where she blamed herself for what had happened.
When she did that it had been like a cloud was covering the sky. A large, pitch-black storm cloud that covered everything up with confusion and misery that drowned out everything else and swallowing out every bit of light. It was so different from the clouds she saw now: thin layers of blue, purple, pink, and orange touched with gold. They floated on lazily, going about their dreamy existence without a care in the world.
Celestia was gliding now, eyes fixed towards some point she could never reach. The clouds below her vanished as her speed increased and soon the stars blurred until all she could see were the waving streaks of her pastel mane and flashes of white feathers. All around her the air was growing thin, even a pegasus would find it hard to stay at this point for long but Celestia was no ordinary pony, she could handle such a thing. Compared to other trials, this was easy.
She had to go higher this time. It's what she told herself every time. Perhaps it could make a difference and they would feel close again.
Celestia was almost there; all she needed to do was fly even farther up into the vast sky just to get closer to her. She desperately wished to be able to fly far enough to reach the spot in the sky where the moon hung waiting as it did every night, with her sealed inside.
There was a world between them.
Celestia had reached her limit. This was as far as Celestia could go; to the point where everything felt cold and open—where she was oh-so-alone—but the stars here were as radiant as when she was still here
It's been too long.
She reached a forehoof out into the darkness. Even there was so much distance between them, she had to try. There was a delicate layer of frost weaving its way across her coat and regalia, and even though the cold made her shiver, it didn't matter, because her heart was still aching for the pony who mattered most to her and the impossible boundaries that separated them for the longest time.
The outstretched forehoof waited in vain for somepony to take it up in their own, she could fly up no more but desperation took over as it did every time she came up here and she wasn't afraid to show anything since nopony would be watching.
Here, her mouth formed a single name but no sound came out, even the stars were silent. Even though they were barely any closer Celestia tried to touch the cold, shadowy surface of the moon that she loved and hated so much. Or rather she loved who was inside the moon, the precious pony that was in such distress all these years and she could do nothing... she'd done nothing... and all she wanted was to see her again and tell her everything was going to be okay, she would try again. They both deserved a second chance after all that had happened between them.
Celestia looked up as much as she could because up here she was as close to her sister as possible and that haunting, mock-eye of stone was no longer a reminder but a spear that pierced through her with its lifeless gaze.
Except it wasn't there tonight.
She gasped in horror. How could this be? Surely it was not the time for her sister, a bitter nightmare, to be released? The stars were not in their proper positions! Where was she? The surface of the moon was now the smooth white it had once been, and it was glowing brightly.
Celestia swallowed. What could have happened? How could her sister just disappear? This wasn't right, where could she be?
"Tia...!"
There it was, a single voice, a single word in this cold silence. Celestia snapped to attention, only to realize how numb she felt. The voice was familiar, but where was it coming from?
"Tia! What art thou doing, all the way up yonder?"
She relaxed, the voice was an echo in her own mind. It was the result of a spell only one other pony knew and there was no need to worry.
Old habits are hard to break, and this nightly trip was automatic at this point. How had she forgotten the castle with Twilight and the Elements?
But most of all how could she forget—
As a result of her sister's impatience, worry, or perhaps both an image was projected in Celestia's mind, it was fuzzy at first and then the colors became clear, leaking their way in. There was a large white castle trimmed with gold and purple. A mare stood on the balcony, overlooking a city that she was a stranger to. Her short, light blue mane was caught in a breeze. She really did look worried and Celestia knew she had to head back.
How could she forget the most important thing that happened today? It was the only thing that mattered to her, what she had spent so much dwelling and wishing upon.
Luna was home.
Author's Note
