Dreams of a Princess

Chapters

Chapter 2: Dreams of an Everburning Sun
Chapter 1: Dreams of Impeachment
Chapter 3: Dreams of Constriction
Chapter 4: Dreams of Guilt
Chapter 5: Dreams of Fate
Chapter 6: A Simple Maid's Dream
Chapter 7: Dreams of Fire
Chapter 8: Dreams of Falling
Epilogue: Dreams of a Princess

Chapter 2: Dreams of an Everburning Sun

Warm sweat ran down Celestia’s neck. Wind as hot as a dragon’s breath pulled at her long, pink mane. She set one hoof in front of the other, her eyes stinging from the grains of sand that blew into them.

The Sun glared down on Luna and her without mercy. Celestia wished she had wings, so that she could fly away and give her aching legs some rest, maybe even escape the heat as she would get to higher altitudes. But she was just a regular unicorn, so she had to slowly fight her way through the sand, barely protected by the scarf and the shabby tunic she was wearing.

As she turned her head, she could see the dark form of her sister behind her.

“Do you need a break?” Luna asked. Her short, blue mane was ragged from the wind, and loose strings hung from the quilt she wore around her body like a cape, ripped out by the sharp claws of the sand. Despite being taller, she struggled almost as much as Celestia did.

“I am fine,” Celestia answered. “Let’s keep going.” She didn’t want to rest, even though she was barely able to hold her head up against the wind. All she wanted was to leave this place.

It was hard to tell how quickly time passed, because the Sun stood still in its zenith and did not want to move ever again. They didn’t know why. All messages sent to Unicornia had been left unanswered, and rumor had it that Princess Platinum, who used to watch over the schedule of day and night with an iron hoof, was not in charge anymore. When the last river had run dry, Celestia and Luna had left their home on a quest to find out the reason.

She wished she could just take the burning orb and put it away for a while, but that, of course, was impossible. A whole squad of unicorns at Princess Platinum’s court was necessary to set the Sun, and Celestia wasn’t talented enough to even dream about joining them, let alone do it all on her own.

The wind grew stronger. Blasts of sand swept through the many tears in her tunic, stinging her skin. With worry she stopped and observed the horizon.

“A sandstorm is coming up,” Luna confirmed. “We should prepare ourselves.”

A hint of panic crept into Celestia’s voice as she replied. “Again?”

“Don’t worry, Tia. We are going to be alright.”

Celestia tried to control herself, seeking confidence in her sister’s words. They dug with their hooves, creating a hole just big enough for both of them to fit in it together, then lying down and waiting. Luna took the blanket she had wrapped around her waist and unfolded it over their heads, to protect them against the growing turmoil of sand.

Soon, the noise of the storm and its nagging at the quilt became so loud that a conversation was entirely impossible. Their bodies were covered up to the neck in sand, and soon a heavy layer of it weighed on their makeshift tent, turning the everlasting day into night. Celestia’s insides cringed, and panic built up in her chest as they were buried alive. But her sister’s presence reassured her. Luna’s neck brushed against hers with every tiny movement, and Celestia could feel her heartbeat, slow and hypnotizing next to her own. Luna was the only thing that allowed her to endure this. She was the only thing that mattered.

She couldn’t tell whether it took hours or mere minutes, but eventually the noise of the storm faded away. Celestia wanted to say something, only to find herself with a mouth full of sand.

“Pf!” She spat it out, grimacing at the bitter taste. “Do you think we can try to get up?”

Luna’s neck twisted slightly. “I think we are safe.”

They shifted in their molds until the sand’s grip loosened around their bodies. Celestia managed to get one of her hooves free, then the next, then her upper body. She pushed against the quilt, making the sand fall off. Fresh air reached her nostrils and, even though it was hot and dry, she took a deep lung full of it, like a diver returning from the ground of the ocean.

With a final effort, she pulled herself out completely. Luna followed, and they shook their bodies in an effort to get rid of the sand in their coats.

“We made it!” Celestia leaned against her sister and buried her face in her side. She was near tears.

“Indeed we did.” Luna stroked Celestia’s back. “It is all good now, see? I told you we were going to be alright.”

“You did. You’re the best big sister in the world. I love you so much.”

Luna smiled faintly. “I love you too, Tia.”

With a last squeeze, Celestia let go of her. After being stuck in the ground for so long, she couldn’t wait to continue the journey.

A day could have come and gone and they would not have known. They just kept walking, from one dune to the next, and the next …

She was about to ask Luna for a break when, all of a sudden, the wind changed its direction. Instead of blowing into their faces, the sand now brushed against their backs. They stopped.

“This is unusual,” Luna remarked, and she was right – it was the first time something like this happened.

Shrugging, Luna searched her saddlebags for the compass and held it up. She narrowed her eyebrows, and when Celestia looked over her shoulder she saw the small iron needle spinning around wildly.

“What does this mean, Lulu?”

“I don’t know.” Luna moved a few steps to the side and the needle aligned itself, although in a different direction than before.

“Something isn’t right with the magnetic field,” Luna said, going back to where she had stood before. The needle went crazy again.

“What do we do now?” Celestia asked, panicking.

“We follow the needle. If we don’t, we might get lost completely. Or do you have a better idea?”

Celestia shook her head. “Wherever you go, I will go.”

“You’re cute. Let’s move on, then.”

It didn’t take long until they they found the oasis. White walls stood against the restless wind, promising safety and shelter, and Celestia’s ears perked up as they recognized the faint splashing of water.

“Good that we decided to change directions,” Luna said, looking at the compass. “Otherwise we would not have found this place.”

Celestia silently agreed. She couldn’t say why, but seeing this place made her feel happy.

The structure had the shape of a perfect circle. Where they faced away from the wind, the high walls were interrupted, leaving a small entrance. The compass needle turned as they walked, always pointing straight towards the center of the oasis.

“Any idea why it’s behaving like this?” Celestia asked her sister.

“Not really. There has to be an explanation, though. Maybe the ground is rich with magnetite.”

As they passed the entrance, they were embraced by shades of green, a sight for sore eyes after the vastness of the desert. Pink dots broke the image, which at a closer look turned out to be the blossoms of mallows. It all seemed strangely familiar to Celestia, just as if she had been here before, even though she knew too well that this was her first time so far away from home.

In the very center of the oasis was a fountain, made out of artfully hewn white marble. The sisters all but sprinted towards it, dipping their muzzles into the stream of crystal clear water.

Celestia swallowed in large gulps, relishing in the taste. It was as pure and soft as a morning in spring. “Is this paradise?”

“It must be something similar, at least.” Luna, being larger than her, took a moment longer until she had her fill. “Let us stay here for the night.”

They found themselves a nice and cool spot beneath a palm tree and settled down. Celestia leaned against her sister and felt a wing being draped over her like a blanket. She had always admired her sister’s wings – they were so soft and silky, shimmering like an ocean in the light of a full moon.

“Lulu …”

“Hm?”

Celestia felt her sister nuzzle her neck, and a warm shiver rushed down her back.

“Do you remember?” she asked. “The last time we were here?”

A hoof traced the line of Celestia’s spine. “Yes. You kissed me.”

“I did that.” Celestia remembered. Of course she did. How could she ever forget the soft sensation of her sister’s lips?

“Why do you ask, Tia?”

“Is it … weird? I mean, you are my sister. Sisters aren’t supposed to do things like that, right?”

The hoof stopped, and Luna sat up. “We did, though.”

“But it doesn’t bother you?” Celestia pressed.

“Not at all. We were a little caught up in the moment, I suppose. But it was just a kiss.”

“You’re right. I was just worried you would find it weird, is all.”

“Don’t be,” Luna bid. “I do love you more than anypony, and you know that. You’re my little sister after all.” She lay down with a content look on her face.

Celestia snuggled into her side. But then, after a moment, Luna raised her voice again.

“Tia?”

“Yes?”

“About that kiss …” Luna stopped, biting her lip and avoiding Celestia’s gaze.

“What is it?” Celestia asked.

“Can we do it again?”

Celestia twisted beneath her blanket. “Luna …” she mumbled, searching for her sister with a hoof.

“Your Highness?” said a voice.

With a groan, Celestia turned onto her belly and shoved the blanket off her back with a flick of her wings. That brought a sudden chill to her, pulling her out of her dream. She forced herself to get up, swaying on her hooves and squinting her burning eyes. Who would ever invent a day-and-night cycle this obnoxious?

“Anything Your Highness desires today?” the servant asked.

“Actually, could you have a batch of muffins or two brought to my room?”

He bowed and left. Sunrise was all but overdue, so Celestia focused her magic and shoved the Sun onto its path. She stretched her legs and yawned, before leaving her room.

These dreams were getting out of hoof. If it were only that one time she could put them off as a random artifact of her imagination, but twice, in two consecutive nights? She couldn’t help but worry.

Just like the day before, Peachy Sweet was waiting for her in the baths, but today Celestia sent her away. She needed to be alone. Steam arose from the bathtub, and she didn’t hesitate to dive in, pushing her head under water and staying there as long as she could hold her breath. She tried to blend out everything else. Submerged in the liquid she was without weight, without shame.

As she emerged from the bottom of the tub, savoring the feeling of warm water running through her coat, she felt better. Her mane became a floating pastel rainbow just beneath the surface. Celestia leaned back in the warmness of the water.

The kiss had felt like the purest and most natural thing in the world. It shouldn’t, should it? But apparently, her dream self did not care about any of the implications. The only consolation was that she at least still seemed to care about how her sister felt, even if she was only a product of her dreaming mind.

Celestia wondered whether there would be more dreams like this one, and what she should do if that was the case. But as she climbed out of the tub, she shoved the thought into the back of her head where it belonged.

She condensed the wetness in her coat with a spell, which made it puff out and shine like the Sun itself. Her mane needed a more careful treatment, though, unless she wanted to walk around with an oversized pom-pom on her head. After letting the long wavy strands soak in a generous amount of conditioner for a few minutes, she wrapped them into an assortment of towels, creating a gigantic tower on her head.

With that out of the way she headed straight back to her room. There was a lot of work to do, and today, she decided, was the day to do it.

Celestia was sitting at her desk. Scrolls and books flooded the space in front of her. At the side stood a muffin tray which, aside from a few crumbs, was now bare of any muffins. Celestia could have sent a maid down to the kitchens to fetch a new one, but that would mean getting up from her work, which she was not willing to do. She was in the middle of the draft for a letter to the Supreme Court.

“The category ‘force majeure,’” she recited as she wrote, “therefore clearly applies to any damages caused by non-pony-controlled beings, including, but not limited to, the aforementioned species of sentient tentacle plants. Thus, according to §34 of the Equestrian insurance law …”

A knock on the door interrupted her.

“For the love of me,” she muttered to herself and lay down the pen. “What is it?”

“Tia? It is me, your sister.”

Celestia felt heat rushing into her cheeks. She opened the door for Luna to enter. “What can I do for you?”

Luna looked at her, and Celestia could see the concern in her eyes. “You did not appear for breakfast.”

“I had a long bath, and had my breakfast brought to my room as to not waste any more time.” She pointed at the empty tray on her desk as evidence.

“Fair. I just was wanted to check if Twilight had banished you to the Sun.” Despite her joking around, Luna did not seem completely reassured.

“No, you will still have to bear with me, I’m afraid. Though, not today.”

“Busy, I see. Then … well.”

“Yes.”

“I shall see you later. Love you, sister.”

Forcing a smile, Celestia turned back towards her work and waited for Luna to leave. This was sweet of her, but at the moment Celestia really didn’t think it would be a good idea to have her around.

When Luna was gone, Celestia tried to get back to work. However, it appeared that she was too tired to concentrate, especially since the image of Luna’s face would not let go of her.

Celestia raised her hoof to cover her glowing face and groaned. “As if running a country were not enough trouble. What is wrong with me?”

Five minutes later, she was surprised by a maid who brought a batch of still-warm muffins, with her sister’s best regards.

Chapter 1: Dreams of Impeachment

Princess Celestia of Equestria, ruler over day and night and righteous sovereign of all of ponydom, looked at the stars and let out a long, painful sigh, for she knew that this night would be her last.

For a thousand years, she had raised the Sun every morning and raised the Moon every evening on her own. Never on a single day had she failed her task. Even if the cold touch of the Moon was a daily reminder of her past failures, she had never let Equestria down.

Until tonight.

Nopony else expected Nightmare Moon’s return. Nightmare Moon, a foe whom Celestia feared more than the beasts of Tartarus, and more than the unnamed horrors that lurked at the borders of this world and beyond. Not because she might lose the fight against her, but because she might win.

She couldn’t bear the thought of losing her little sister a second time.

Celestia’s senses caught a faint twist in the fabric of reality, making her look up again. Something was moving in the distance of the night sky, and while she couldn’t see it, she could feel a presence that slowly awoke, lashing out with tendrils of magic to test its surroundings.

“Luna,” she whispered, and the echo of her words was picked up by the wind and carried into the sky, all the way up to her sister.

The next moment, a tremor went through all things like the clash of a massive gong. A force was throwing itself against the prison Celestia had built for it, sending a shock through all the magical connections that linked the Moon to the sky and the sky to the land. A jolt of pain made Celestia let go of them, just for a second. When her senses searched for the celestial bodies again, she wasn’t alone.

“Luna,” she whispered again. “It has been a long time.”

Celestia woke up with beads of sweat on her forehead. Only after a second did she realize that she was alone in her room. Her senses searched for the touch of the Moon, finding it resting in the firmament, placid as ever. It was the middle of the night. Everypony was fast asleep.

With shaking legs, Celestia slipped out of bed and went over to her desk to fetch a glass of water, which she emptied in a few gulps. She decided to pour another glassful over her face, letting the cold splash cleanse her from the distant feeling of horror.

“She’s gone,” Celestia said firmly, letting the echo of her own voice reassure her. “The Nightmare is gone.”

She went back to bed, snuggling into the blanket that was still moist with sweat. Her heartbeat slowed down. Dreams like this one had plagued her ever since her sister’s return, but they were getting rarer. And Luna would be there in the morning to talk to about it.

Hugging the pillow tight, Celestia closed her eyes. She was just glad to have her back.

In the second half of the night, Celestia found herself in Neighsopotamia. She was cowering in the dirt, surrounded by windowless walls made out of mud bricks.

“Twilight, please, I never meant to let you face her alone. I wish I could have helped you, but there was nothing I could do.”

Her former student looked down at her with an unforgiving glare. “Lies! You left my friends and me to die. You sold us to her!”

“No, I –”

“Does she really mean more to you than I do? More than all of us?”

Ponies came up the street behind her: Celestia’s guards, her servants, ponies that she had seen in Ponyville. Mothers with foals appeared in the wooden door frames among elders with walking sticks, looking at her in disgust. “Traitor!” they yelled. Torches and forks were raised.

The mob gathered behind Twilight, who was now dressed in the scarlet robe of a judge. “You fool nopony – you would let us die in a heartbeat if she asked for it. You have failed us, Princess. We, the ponies of Equestria, demand that justice be done.”

“Justice!” the ponies shouted as one. “Justice!”

Twilight grabbed Celestia’s hoof and dragged her along. The roaring crowd split, leaving a path wide enough for them to pass through. At its end stood a guillotine, the angled blade suspended high in the air, gleaming viciously.

Celestia’s eyes grew wide. “Twilight! How can you do this?”

“I don’t need a Princess who lets me fight against Nightmare Moon all on my own.” Twilight flared her wings, which cast huge shadows on the sandy ground. “I’m the Princess now!”

The crowd cheered. “Justice! Justice! Jus–“

“Enough!” came a shout from above. At the same time, the sound of flapping wings reached Celestia’s ears and, looking up, she saw Luna. She touched right in front of her, shoving Twilight aside and shielding Celestia from the angry views.

“What is the meaning of this?” Luna yelled. “We demand an explanation!”

Twilight shrunk to a fracture of her size as she had to face the much older and much more powerful alicorn. “We, um … we wanted to give your sister the punishment she deserves, Your Highness.”

“We shall not let any harm be done to our sister! Dost thou understand?”

Getting but a whimper in response, Luna turned towards Celestia. Her features softened, and she lowered her voice when addressing her. “We do not have to put up with this folly.“

Celestia gladly took the hoof her sister offered to her. “Let us go away,” she whispered. “Somewhere we can be alone.”

“How far?” Luna asked.

“To the end of the world, if that is what it takes.”

Not looking back, they took off and fled.

After a long flight over the clouds they reached the secret garden. It was an abandoned oasis, built by a tribe of nomads that had long vanished from the surface of the Earth. Flowers and ferns prospered inside its circumference, protected from the burning Sun by large palm trees, and in the center stood a fountain chiseled out of white stone. A little paradise in the middle of the desert.

“You saved me,” Celestia said as they touched down inside the circle.

“Any day,” Luna brushed it off, but she smiled at her all the same.

They sat down against the wall, seeking the cool touch of the stone. Short, sturdy grass tickled Celestia’s legs, giving off a faint yet appetizing scent.

“So this is it?” Luna asked. “You are giving up all of Equestria, just for me?”

Celestia looked at her. She knew that she held responsibility for her subjects, that she held responsibility for this world. But right here, right now, she could not care less about it.

“To me it is all just as good, so long as I have you.”

Suddenly, Luna was a lot closer, almost intimidatingly so. “And if I fell into darkness again? If I abused your grace and goodwill to do evil?”

“If you insist you can have your eternal night. I won’t try to stop you again.” She ran her hoof over Luna’s neck. “So, what do you choose, Luna? The night, or me?”

“Tia, you’re a mad pony.”

“Maybe.”

Luna sighed, brushing Celestia’s hoof off herself. “You know that you mean more to me than any power I could find in this world or another, right?”

“Is that so?” Celestia smirked. She leaned forward, grabbing Luna’s ears to pull her closer still. “Luna, have I ever told you how much I missed you when you were gone?”

“You have.” Luna briefly nuzzled her cheek. “And I missed you too. But that is over now.”

Celestia licked her lips. She could feel her sister’s hot breath roll over her muzzle.

“Luna …”

In the shadow of the oasis they kissed.

“Sunrise in ten minutes, Your Highness.”

Celestia groaned and twisted in her bed. When she didn’t respond, her servant’s voice became hesitant.

“Your Highness?”

She wished the nagging would just go away and let her return to her dream, even though she knew that she needed to get up. The Sun had to be raised, even on a Monday morning.

She forced her eyes open and slid out of bed, trying to remember what she had just dreamed about.

“I’m fine,” she told her servant, who was still waiting around in case she had any wishes. “You can leave now.”

A few seconds ago in her slumber, the dream had been crystal clear, but now it was already fading away. What had it been about, again? It had been a nice one, that much she recalled. Her tongue absently licked over her lips. There had been a kiss …

Then it came back to her: a pair of blue lips, a muffled purr, and a spark of desire in her sister’s eye. “Mother of mine …” She rubbed her forehead and went ahead with raising the Sun.

Nopony had to know. What would ponies think – worse, what would Luna think if she found out?

For a second, she stopped herself in her thought. Luna did have the ability to dreamwalk. What if she … ?

But no, that was paranoid. They had an agreement concerning her privacy, and Celestia trusted her sister to respect it. She had promised.

There was no harm done, and if she just went on about her business and pretended nothing happened it would stay that way.

Celestia left her room, already regaining her confidence, and headed down the stairs to her private baths. They were located in the basement of the east tower, in a big chamber with bare stone walls and a low ceiling. As she opened the door, she was embraced by warm, moist air. Inhaling the scent of essential oils emitted by the flickering candles made the lingering visions of her dream fade further away, and she relaxed.

A maid approached to greet her with a curtsy. “Your Highness, do you wish for any assistance this morning?”

“I think I would like a massage, thank you.”

With another curtsy, the maid walked her over to a massage table, covering it with a towel for Celestia to lay down on. She had hoof-selected Peachy Sweet for her massaging skills, which had made many mornings less sore in the six years of her employment.

With a decisive yet soft touch the maid began to spread warm oil on her coat, gently rubbing it into her. Her hooves had a magic of their own as they brushed over Celestia’s back, caressing it with growing intensity and coaxing a low moan out of her.

“Pray tell,” Celestia asked, “is everything going well for the big day?”

“Very. I can’t believe how beautiful the venue is. I am a lucky mare, aren’t I?”

Celestia gave her a cordial smile. “Are you nervous?”

“Oh, I don’t have the time for that. There’s still so much to plan! Besides, I can’t really grasp it all yet. Feels like a dream.” She got carried away for a moment, her hooves briefly leaving their perfectly aimed path between Celestia’s shoulders before she refocused. “But you should see Goldie. She is the nervous one.”

“I noticed. You would almost think she is scared of you saying no on Thursday.”

A soft giggle. “As if I’d ever.”

They fell into silence after that, Peachy Sweet just continuing to knead her, digging into all the right spots. If it hadn’t been for her royal duties, Celestia would have been quite content to extend the treatment for a while. As it was, though, the massage had to end soon.

“Thank you, Peachy Sweet,” she said, sliding off the table onto her wobbly hooves. “You really are this government’s most important employee.”

“N-not at all.” Peachy curtsied, blushing. “Should we move on?”

Leaving the baths twenty minutes later, Celestia felt at least one thousand years younger than she had entering them. The only need to sate now was her hunger. She followed the corridor that lead to the southern wing of the castle, passing through a gallery from which she caught a glimpse at a team of gardeners on their way over to the labyrinth, shouldering large pruning shears. Such a peaceful spring day, Celestia thought.

When she arrived in the dining hall, Luna already waited for her, looking up from her meal as she entered. “Morning, Tia,” she greeted, before digging her muzzle into a doughnut. A variety of baked goods was set up on the table for them: cakes, pastries, anything that contained at least two hundred percent more sugar than healthy for a normal pony. Oh, the perks of an alicorn’s metabolism.

Celestia did the best she could to meet her sister’s eye, swallowing her discomfort as she was reminded of the dream again. “Good morning, Lulu. How was your night?”

Luna shrugged. “Nothing to complain about. And yourself?”

“Oh, I … it was alright.” The memory brought a blush to Celestia’s cheeks, which she hid behind her mane with a discrete tilt of her head.

She felt a skeptical glance from her sister. They often talked about her dreams over breakfast, especially the ones that bothered her. After all, nightmares were Luna’s field of expertise. She wished she could share this one, too – that might make it all better.

Since she couldn't, though, she just grabbed a few slices of cake. Cake was the solution to everything.

“What’s on the agenda?” she asked Luna in between bites, skipping over the headlines of the newspaper.

“The usual: making some appearances, negotiating with the supreme court, feeding Blueblood in the dungeon …”

Celestia snickered. “I wish.”

“You and me both, sister. But it appears to be a calm week. I was musing whether we could go flying together in the afternoon. How long has it been? Four months?”

“Three and a half. I don’t know, Luna, there are still a few laws on my desk waiting for a revision, and I should better start working on my speech to the griffin council soon. Not to forget that Miss Sweet’s and Miss Banner’s wedding will take a good chunk of my schedule.”

“Right. Well, it was just a thought …”

“Sorry. I promise that I will make the time soon.”

“I will hold you to your word.” Shoving one last doughnut into her mouth, Luna got up. “I shall be in the library, then. Good luck with those laws.”

“Thank you.”

Luna walked off. As she left the room, Celestia let out the breath she had been holding. She finished off her meal and then headed back to her private quarters. Thankfully, the dream stayed off her mind for the rest of the day.

Chapter 3: Dreams of Constriction

Celestia turned her back against the wind and inspected the array of smooth, black cobblestones beneath her hooves. They told a long story of merchants pulling their carts over the road, of upswing and wealth. The edges and corners of the cuboid stones were rounded by the steady stream of sand blowing against them, which told of decline and, finally, the fall into oblivion.

Luna walked up to her. “I am not sure who built this route, but it has to be old. Perhaps older than ponykind.”

The black band of stones led through the plane of the desert, becoming thinner and thinner on its way towards the horizon. There, in the distance, the shapes of giant mountains eclipsed the sky, flickering in the heat.

The sisters’ hooves clopped on the hard surface of the road like clockwork, a welcome change for their tired legs after weeks of wading through the sand. In the Sun, the black cobblestones radiated heat like ember. Soon, the biting smell of burnt keratin emerged from the ground and made Celestia scrunch her nose.

“We should cover our hooves,” Luna said. They stopped, and Luna took off the lumpy quilt that she was carrying on her back, splitting it evenly until she had eight pieces of cloth.

Celestia lifted her right forehoof, holding it up for her sister to wrap one of the pieces around it. Luna’s hoof gently brushed against her leg, tickling her.

“You have to hold still,” Luna complained as Celestia started to wiggle on her three hooves, almost toppling over. Gritting her teeth, she tried her best to stay still so that Luna could complete her work, tying the corners of the fabric together.

Luna went on hoof by hoof, until she made it around her and nuzzled the last one playfully with her mouth.

Celestia giggled. “Thank you, Lulu.” She returned the favor, and made sure to treat each of Luna’s hooves with a little kiss as she was done wrapping it up.

The playful mood didn’t last long, though. Celestia saw the worry growing in Luna’s face, clouding her eyes until she couldn’t ignore it any longer.

“What is troubling you, sister?”

“I was thinking about yesterday,” Luna said, avoiding eye contact. “I should not have kissed you again. I’m sorry.”

Celestia shook her head. “I really didn’t mind.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positively so. You see, if I were to die from the heat, then I would rather I had kissed my sister before the end.”

“Yes, me too.” But Luna still seemed concerned. “Just promise that you will tell me if anything is bothering you, will you?”

Celestia leaned over and gave her a peck on the cheek. “I promise.”

That did the trick of making Luna smile again. “Very well. Now let us focus on the task at hoof – we’re almost there, after all.”

Looking up, Celestia could see that they were indeed closing in on the mountains. From down here they looked even larger than from afar, with cliffs towering over her so steep that she wondered whether they could make it over them, and peaks that seemed to scratch the ceiling of the sky.

The road sloped upwards, and the landscape around them changed. Sharp rocks emerged from the sand like flowers, growing higher the further they went. The desert finally lay behind them.

They came across a rock arch that stretched over them, hollowed out by millennia of wind rushing through it. Right behind that natural bridge, the way split in two. The road turned left, continuing through the outskirts of the mountains. On their right hoof, however, was a path that climbed up the mountain.

“Where do you think we should go?” Luna asked.

Celestia looked up to her in confusion. Were they lost? If Luna didn’t know where they were, how could she?

“It’s alright,” Luna quickly assured her, “you don’t have to decide. Let us just go up the mountains and leave that desert as far behind as we can, shan’t we?”

Nodding, Celestia left the road, but she still had an odd feeling about this. Her sister always knew what to do!

Rocks were scattered across the path, which became steeper with each minute they walked, leading up the flank of the mountain. Before long, Celestia was soaking with sweat and breathed in quick bursts. As they made it halfway around the mountain, Luna offered to take a break, and Celestia sank down against the warm rock.

They had gained quite some altitude, and she couldn’t deny that the view from up here was marvelous. Behind the field of rock shards that they had crossed, the desert extended as far as the eye could reach. The horizon was smudged with clouds of sand, and somewhere in the distance a sandstorm slowly rolled across the plane. It looked tiny and harmless from up here, yet Celestia shivered at the memory of the masses of sand rolling over her and pounding onto the ground.

Luna sat down next to her, and Celestia hugged her torso like a stuffed animal. “How do we find Unicornia now?”

Luna petted Celestia’s head. “I don’t know, Tia. All we can do is go on and hope for the best.”

Celestia tightened her hug. “But … what if we don’t find a way?”

“You need to have a little faith. Sometimes the solutions just come to you when you least expect them. It’s all going to be fine.” Luna was returning the embrace now, comforting her, and Celestia closed her eyes.

She must have drifted off into slumber like this, because all of a sudden the wind had grown stronger and made the scarf she wore dance on her flank, tickling her. She let go of her sister, waking her up as well.

A cloud of sand had arisen from the desert. It had followed them all the way up into the mountains, now sitting below them and reaching upwards.

In a blink, Luna was up on her hooves. “We need to find shelter, or we’ll be blown off the cliffs!”

Celestia pulled the scarf around herself. She jumped to her hooves and ran, urged by her sister who stayed close behind her.

They followed the path deeper into the mountains, still upwards, looking for a place – a tunnel, a niche – to sit out the storm. They couldn’t find any any. There were only rocks, hard and unforgiving and with edges as sharp as blades.

Behind them, the roar of the wind grew louder. Celestia gave all her strength into her legs, but the storm came nearer and nearer still.

They reached the crest. Luna passed her, now leading the way. Somewhere behind them, they could hear sandstone being crushed in the merciless claw of the wind.

“Over there!” Luna yelled over the noise. Ahead of them, a hole became visible in the crag, large enough for them to pass through.

Celestia couldn’t tell how deep it went into the mountain. It was possible that they would be stuck in there, without any protection against the shrapnel of stone splinters. But what else could they do? So they left the path and, with a final effort, sprinted over to the hole.

They were lucky. The hole turned out to be the entrance to a cave, reaching deep into the stone, so deep in fact that they couldn’t see the other end in the darkness. They both lit up their horns in order to see where they were going. The narrow ceiling spanning a good thirty feet from one side to the other, glistening in the light of their magic.

As the storm reached them, all light from outside was blocked. Sand, dust, and small rocks were blown through the entrance. Thunder rumbled through the rocky ceiling. Celestia winced and clung to Luna, who wrapped a protective wing around her.

Something large crashed against the roof of the entrance, sending a shiver through the whole cave.

Celestia’s grip around her sister tightened as little bits of stone rained down on them. Hooves wrapped around her. Tears found their way into her eyes, and she shook in her sister’s forelegs while hell was coming alive.

Then, all of a sudden, it was quiet.

“Shh,” Luna whispered. “It’s over.”

Celestia’s heart was still pounding. She sniffed and opened her wet eyes to look around. The cave was dark, save for the glow of Luna’s horn. Luna cast a beam of light towards the entrance, but it was jammed by a pile of rocks.

Celestia got up on her shaky legs and tried to stay as close to her sister as possible. The shadows that Luna’s light cast onto the walls seemed to stalk them with every movement she made.

“Lulu, can we get out of here, please?”

Luna turned towards the entrance. “Let’s see what we can do.”

Her horn lit up, and a blue aura wrapped around the rocks that blocked their way. Celestia helped her, pushing against the obstacles with all the force she could summon. Small stones fell off, clacking on the floor, but other than that, nothing happened.

“Let me try pulling,” Luna said. Her horn lit up even brighter, and Celestia could see her face tense up. But the rubble didn’t move a single bit.

“It’s no use. I could try to detonate us a way out, but that would be dangerous.”

Celestia’s ears flattened against her head, but Luna put a reassuring hoof on her shoulder. “Let’s see if there is another exit, shall we?”

They approached the back end of the cave, turning up the light of their horns. And indeed, in the dark, it instead transitioned into a narrow tunnel, just wide enough for one pony to pass at a time. She cast a beam of light into it, but the tunnel went around a corner, so they couldn’t see how far it went.

“Are you ready to go?” Luna asked carefully.

“I just want to get out of here.”

She gulped when Luna crouched and crawled into the tunnel, barely fitting through the opening with her wings tucked firmly to her sides.

Celestia got down on her haunches and followed. She was fortunate enough to be smaller than her sister, and thus had less difficulties squeezing through the opening. Still, it felt like entering her own grave.

Coldness radiated from the rock walls that enclosed her. She forced herself to breathe slowly and not think about the mass of rock sitting right on top of her.

A cold bite went up Celestia’s spine when her flank touched the wall of the tunnel. She yanked away from it, but in the narrowness of the tunnel, all she achieved was hitting her head against the roof and scratching her flank at a sharp rock.

Luna stopped. “Everything alright?”

“Don’t worry, just keep going. Please keep going.”

Luna didn’t have enough space to turn her head and look after Celestia, but she seemed to feel her distress, because she crawled forward as fast as her restricted legs allowed her to.

After a while, Celestia’s legs started aching from sliding across the uneven rock. Every time her sides touched the cold walls, she could barely keep herself from panicking. She focused on her steps, keeping her eyes locked on the ground. Her hooves appeared before her, the left, the right, then the left again. One step, two steps, repeat.

Only when Luna came to a halt did Celestia look up. Was that a breeze of fresh air she smelled? Were they getting close to the outside? But she couldn’t see any sunlight yet.

Luna climbed out of the tunnel in front of her, and now Celestia could see what they had found. It was a cave, huge like a castle, its walls illuminated by a soft glow emerging from an underground lake. Only the cave ceiling lay in darkness, too high to be reached by it.

Still in awe, she let Luna help her out of the tunnel. The walls of the cave were full of holes and tunnels and entrances to side caves. The lake began a few feet to their hooves, its surface as smooth as a mirror, speckled with gem-crusted rocks that glistened in a multitude of colors.

“This,” Luna whispered, “is the Cave of Dreams. It is the place where the dreams of all ponies flow together, or so says the legend. One who is foolish enough to wade into the water will forever be lost in a world between here and there. Fortunately, there is a path around it. We wouldn’t want to get stuck in a dream, would we?”

Celestia smirked and bumped her bottom against her sister’s as she passed her. “I would only dream of you, anyway.”

As they closed the distance to the water, the light became even more intense. It wasn’t a steady glow, but an assortment of little patches flickering beneath the blue surface like thousands of fireflies. Even though they were still underground, the coolness of the air and the blue glow of the lake made Celestia feel at ease. Maybe, she mused, that was because the color reminded her so much of Luna’s mane.

As they walked along the waterline, a bold shape grew out of the distance. It was a tower of stone cubes, big as houses, that were stacked in a spiral pattern all the way up into the darkness.

At first its meaning didn’t occur to Celestia, but as they approached it, she noticed a staircase that was set into the bottom cube. Beginning at ground level, it went around and all the way up to the top of the block, to then continue on the next one, reaching the block above that and so forth. Which could only mean one thing.

“This is our way out,” Luna confirmed what Celestia had just been thinking.

She couldn’t believe it. They would make it back to the surface! When they arrived at the staircase, she ran ahead of Luna, dashing up the stairs.

“One,” she counted, “two, three …”

Up close, the blocks were even larger than they had looked from afar.

“… twenty-six, twenty-seven …”

She had to be about halfway up. Looking back, she could see Luna following her below.

“Forty-eight, forty-nine, fifty!” Celestia jumped up the final step, finding herself on top of the first stone cube. Its surface was smooth, but not so much that her hooves would slip on it. She looked up – if each of those cubes was fifty steps high, it would easily be a thousand steps or more to the top.

Luna caught up with her, giving her neck a brief nuzzle as she walked past. “We can stand here and wonder, or we can go and climb.”

Celestia hurried up, making sure not to stay too far behind her sister.

The stairs flew by faster than she expected. After reaching the top of each cube, they would stop for a moment to look down upon the shrinking lake. Its light faded more and more the higher they got, and at some point they had to summon their magical lights again to make sure they didn’t fall off the staircase.

After twenty cubes – exactly one thousand steps, Celestia calculated – the stairs ended. By now they were surrounded by utter darkness, and only when they crossed the final step did they notice that the light of their horns fell onto the stone ceiling of the cave.

Celestia turned back toward the lake one last time, which was reduced to a faintly sparkling puddle beneath them. Luna brushed against her side.

“It feels weird to leave this place,” Celestia said, leaning into her sister. “I liked it here.”

“Me too,” Luna agreed. “Maybe we can come back one day, but for now, our way leads onwards.”

Of course. The most important thing was to find out what was wrong with the Sun. Turning their backs at the Cave of Dreams they went on through a large tunnel, and before Celestia knew, the light of day embraced them again.

Stepping outside it took some moments until her eyes adjusted to the blinding brightness. When they had, though, the view was breathtaking. Even the other mountains appearing to be nothing but molehills, so high up were they.

A small path went from the cave exit around the mountain. Celestia nestled against Luna’s side, resting her head against her sister’s. “You were right. Maybe faith was all I needed.”

Luna beamed at her. “So you feel better now?”

“I do. And I’m ready for the things to come.”

She gave Luna a peck on the nose, who giggled, before planting a loving kiss on her lips in return.

“Don’t worry,” Luna said, “I will be with you. I promise.”

Chapter 4: Dreams of Guilt

Celestia greeted Peachy casually as she entered the baths, covering her mouth when a long yawn escaped her.

“Good morning, Princess,” the maid responded. “Would you like any assistance today?”

But Celestia was already arranging herself on the massage table. Its wooden surface was covered with only a thin towel, but this morning, it might as well have been made out of clouds.

“You look tired,” Peachy commented.

“I am the Princess of the Day, Peachy Sweet, not the Princess of Mornings.”

The truth was that she had worked until far too late the past evening. She wasn’t eight hundred anymore, and so the effects hit her with full force.

But despite her tiredness, she also felt good, much better than she had before. The dream had returned once again, but somewhere between the fluffy white cloud of half-awakeness this morning and the knowledge of how much work she had to do, she had stopped caring. So what if she kissed her sister? It was only a dream, so she might as well make the most out of it and enjoy it.

As usual, a bath followed the massage. This time, Celestia made sure to pin up her mane to protect it from the water, securing it with two large wooden needles. They had been a gift from Luna for her last birthday, with stylized heads of ponies carved into the knobs at the ends, one happy, and one sad. Celestia usually had little appreciation for her own birthdays, but this gift she kept as a treasure.

While she soaked in the tub, she talked to Peachy about the last details concerning the wedding. She had offered to be the officiant and, as a wedding gift to her two loyal servants, also payed some of the bills.

“I saw the invitation list,” Celestia remarked. “Is it true that you are only inviting the staff? Not even your parents?”

Peachy shook her head. She sat next to the tub, thoughtfully dipping a hoof in the water. “It wouldn’t feel right to have my parents there. I haven’t talked to them in years.”

“That is sad to hear,” Celestia said, but Peachy waved her hoof dismissively.

“It’s alright, really. I have a new home and family here in the castle, and for that I consider myself very lucky.”

She was indeed lucky, Celestia thought. Discovering this world with young, naive eyes. She would even get to marry the love of her life. What more could a pony wish for?

Their conversation was interrupted by a knock on the door. Without waiting for a response, a guard entered the room.

“Goldie!” Peachy jumped to her hooves to greet her fiancée. Golden Banner kissed her and stroked her cheek for a second, but Celestia could feel that something was not right.

“Princess,” Golden said, “we have a bit of a mess up there. The griffin ambassador just landed on castle ground, and nopony knows what to do with her.”

“Ambassador Perr?” Celestia asked in surprise. “She was not supposed to be here until next week.”

She stood up, water dripping out of her coat with a splash. “I will talk to her.”

“Now that I’m here, there’s one more thing, Princess. I just found out that I’m scheduled for guard duty tomorrow. I wouldn’t normally bother you with it, but I can’t find anypony who’s responsible and, you know, it sort of is my wedding day …”

Celestia nodded quickly. “Don’t worry. I will personally make sure you can take leave as originally scheduled.”

Of course they would not be stripped of their special day. She would never allow for that. She remembered once marrying a couple under siege, a young general and a Wonderbolt. They died two days later as enemy reinforcements arrived and overrun the gates.

A frown crossed Celestia’s lips. She dried herself off and hurried upstairs.

Half a day later, Celestia sat in front of her desk and let her eyes wander over the cluster of parchment and history books.

The ambassador, it had turned out, had antedated her visit so that she and Celestia could go through Celestia’s speech together. It had taken a while to find out why nopony knew about it, but it appeared that the assistant who had organized the visit recently resigned, and had been replaced by a young stallion who could not tell his left hoof from his right. He was also the one who had put Golden Banner on guard detail for the same ambassador. But all that was sorted out now.

The other side, though, was that she needed a speech to discuss, and so she had sat down right after court to work on it, tossing aside her other obligations for the day. It helped that she had witnessed the events of the Griffin Revolution firsthoof, even though she found that her memories had faded a surprising amount over the centuries. Seven hundred years were a long time, even for her, and thus, knowing how sensitive Griffins could be when it came to these things, she had spent most of the day doing research.

This meant, of course, keeping her from spending time with her little sister even further. Part of her was grateful for the excuse to keep avoiding her. However, she could not deny that another part of her longed to see her.

Celestia yawned and looked out of the window at the Moon that shone bright into her room. She had set the Sun hours ago. Her work was progressing much slower than she had hoped. Maybe she should just call it a day and finish the rest tomorrow. The last thing she wanted was to fall asleep at the wedding.

She put down the quill and got up, stretching her sore limbs. She put out the oil lamp with a flick of her magic, then walked over to her bed, crawling under the blanket.

It was so soft after the long day of work. Almost as soft as Luna’s wings. She fell asleep immediately.

Celestia found herself in the ancient Griffinid Empire.

She was standing at the edge of Emperor’s Square, a large square in the Emerald City district, surrounded by buildings painted in radiant colors. This was where the oldest and most powerful griffin families lived. Uphill, their domes and pointed roofs peeked over the town hall, looking down on the lives of the less privileged. Behind them, on the very top of the hill, was the Emperor’s Palace, visible from everywhere in the city. It was a constant reminder that the citizens’ lives lay in the Emperor’s very claw.

Usually, the Emperor’s Square was not a busy place. No markets were held in Emerald City, since the griffin nobles had merchants delivering to them personally, receiving only the finest, most exclusive goods.

On this particular day, however, the place was flooded with ponies from Equestria.

The crowd filled the space from the center all the way back to the walls of the mansions and towers. A few of them who were especially eager jumped on the spot to try and catch a glimpse of what was going on, but most were standing still.

In the center of the square, on a wooden stage, stood Twilight Sparkle, speaking with a magically amplified voice. She wore a suit of polished plate armor that shimmered in the light of the Sun. Her crown she had taken off. Behind her was a pony wearing a plump leather mask, fumbling with the mechanisms of two guillotines.

“… during many years of their unrighteous rule,” Twilight’s voice wavered across the place. “Their guilt is unforgivable. Therefore, in the name of the ponies of Equestria, the sentence shall be the following: Princess Celestia of the Day, and Princess Luna of the Night, shall be put to death by decapitation. May Faust, our All-Mother, have mercy on their souls.”

The crowd cheered. Celestia looked at Peachy Sweet, who was standing at her side, holding her hoof. The mare looked straight forward towards Twilight, just like everypony else – Princess Twilight Sparkle, her new mistress. Celestia saw a hint of regret in Peachy’s eyes, but then, to judge was not the place of a maid. She was living to serve the crown, and serve whomever was wearing it.

Celestia started forwards. Peachy released her hoof, whispering a goodbye as the ponies stepped aside to make way for their former sovereign. Luna walked at her side, searching her gaze.

They had lived together. They had ruled together. And now they would die together.

Thick magical chains dragged over the ground behind them with each one of their steps, keeping them grounded. Twilight looked down at them from the stage with gratification.

“My little ponies. After all those years, today is the day on which we shall finally receive justice!”

The executioner offered Celestia a hoof when she climbed up the stairs, but she refused to take it, lifting the heavy chains on her own.

“Justice!” the ponies shouted. “Justice! Justice!”

Next to Celestia, Luna had reached the top of the stairs as well. They looked at each other one last time. Celestia dipped her head at her. Luna should know that she was ready. Ready to follow her wherever she went. Then they stepped forwards and bent their necks, resting them on the round cut-out of the lunette.

The headspony closed the upper half of the lunette, locking Celestia in place. The crowd fell silent.

A sharp noise cleaved the air.

Chapter 5: Dreams of Fate

Waking up, Celestia was panting as if she had just run a mare-a-thon.

“Tia?” she heard her sister say, voice filled with concern. “Sister, what is the matter?”

Looking around, she found herself under Luna’s wing, which she had draped over her like a blanket. They were lying in the shadow of the cave exit, the cave of dreams behind them, the mountains to their hooves.

Celestia pressed her face against her sister’s neck, forcing herself to exhale slowly. “I had a bad dream.”

Luna embraced her protectively, and Celestia felt tears escaping her, seeping into her sister’s coat.

“Do you want to tell me what happened?” Luna asked.

Pictures flashed across Celestia’s mind: her sister’s head sticking out of the lunette. The thirsty blade waiting above her.

“I … I was losing you.”

Luna squeezed her, holding her close. “Oh. Oh, Tia.”

They stayed like that for a while, Luna not letting go of her until she stopped shaking and her breath was slow and steady again. When the grip around her did loosen, Celestia was confronted with a pair of inquiring blue eyes.

“I’m alright, Lulu,” she said. “It was just a dream.”

Luna kissed her gently. “Do you think we can go on?”

Celestia nodded and got up, licking her lips. They shouldn’t waste any more time.

They followed the small path towards the crest, ducking their heads against the harsh wind that blew into their faces and tried to push them back. Luna, who was walking in front of Celestia, pulled her wings close to her body.

Where it got steeper, stairs were let into the ground. Celestia wondered who had build them – judging by the hoof-sized gouges in the steps, as well as the rounded edges and the missing bits, they must have been in place for quite a while.

On top of the crest, Luna stopped, and Celestia hurried up to see what awaited them. Coming to a halt next to her sister, she cast her gaze ahead, to find … nothing.

At first Celestia thought it was just the end of the mountains. The landscape before them fell off in a smooth downward slope for a few miles. Behind that point, though, it just ended in a bottomless abyss.

“We’re about to reach the end,” Luna remarked.

“The end of the world?”

“Yes.”

They stood and looked down the path, which continued through the border area, up to the very edge.

“Let’s take a look at this,” Luna said.

At first, Celestia hesitated to follow her. The thought that everything just gave way into eternal nothingness was unsettling. What if she fell down? Would she fall forever? Would she cease to exist? But she went on anyway, if just because she didn’t want to stay apart from Luna.

Huge, funnel-shaped craters gaped next to their path, some of them twenty feet deep. Big, round stones had collected on the bottom of most. Smaller pieces of rock were shattered across the ground, making it challenging to walk. They focused on their steps in silence, and only ever looked up to make sure they were still headed in the right direction.

The wind had vanished, and soon Celestia’s coat was soaking wet with sweat. Next to her, Luna had unfolded her wings, letting them hang off to her sides. Smears of white foam formed on her chest and around her wing joints.

Celestia was about to ask her about a break when a sudden movement appeared in the corner of her eye.

She didn’t have time to think, let alone yell a warning – all she could do was jump aside and tackle Luna out of the way. Mere inches from her ear, she heard something heavy fly past.

Turning around, she spotted a sleek form with sharp claws and pointy teeth crouching in front of them. Luna positioned herself front of Celestia to shield her from the aggressor, ears pressed flat against her head.

On light paws, the creature dashed towards them.

Luna shifted her weight onto her hindlegs, ready to kick at any time, but the cat-like animal dodged and got around her in a single swift motion, pouncing at her flank. Luna turned, but she was too slow to stop the attack.

Celestia had been stunned in shock the first second, but now she caught herself and jumped forwards, her hind legs catapulting her directly at the creature. She saw it turn its head and look at her, eyes growing wide in surprise. Then her hooves hit something squishy.

A sharp hiss tore the air as the impact threw the aggressor off Luna.

Celestia didn’t stop. She pounced onto the creature before it could roll back on its feet, holding it down. It was a feline, about the size of a small sheep, with a short muzzle and small, rounded ears. He writhed beneath Celestia’s hooves like an eel, trying to escape her grip, but she pinned him down with her full weight.

“Mercy!” he cried, giving up his resistance. “I admit defeat!”

“Who are you?” Luna growled. “Why did you attack us?”

“I am the Guardian. It is my task to patrol the Path to Eternity, to keep watch over the Peaks of Heaven and protect the Passage from intruders. I swear that I did not wish to harm you, oh mighty horses, but I am bound to my duty.”

Celestia kept holding on to him. “How do we know that you won’t turn against us as soon as we release you?”

“You have my word!”

Luna put a hoof on Celestia’s shoulder. “Let him go. Mountain lions might be cunning in battle, but they are true to their word.”

Reluctantly, Celestia let go. She remained wary, though, not letting her eyes off the creature as he bent to lick his wounds. Strong muscles showed through his fur. Celestia couldn’t deny that, despite his sleek build, he possessed a certain majesty, a sense of old wisdom that showed in the way he held himself.

“What is your name, cougar?” Luna asked.

“The name that I have been given once is forgotten, and has been for a long time. I am the Guardian. That is all you need to know about me, just as all I need to know about you is that you are two who seek for eternity.”

Celestia shook her head. “Actually, we are just trying to get to Unicornia.”

“Are you? Or is eternity calling upon you, similar to how you are calling upon eternity?”

Celestia looked to her sister for support, but Luna just said, “chance is a word that does not exist in these realms.”

“You need not understand yet, horse,” the cougar assured Celestia. “If you let me lead the way to the edge, you will find what you seek.”

Not giving her any time to reply, he jumped to his paws and started along the path. His motions were swift and elegant, even though a slight limp indicated that his right foreleg was hurting. Celestia and Luna hurried to follow him.

“Would you please to hear a story?” the cougar asked.

“Does it matter what I answer to that?”

She heard him chuckle. “In the end, no. But it is still polite to ask.”

He looked back at Celestia, his paws carrying him across the gravel with blind precision.

“The times in which we meet are difficult. I fulfilled my duty longer than any living creature could remember, but I struggle now. That you were able to defeat me is the final sign that the time has come to open the Twilight Passage.”

“What is the Twilight Passage?”

“I speak of a legend amongst my people. In ancient times, there was a pony who wanted to bring the heat of a neverending day to this world.”

“A pony, you say?” Celestia furrowed her brow. “Who?”

“Patience, horse. You have to understand that she who controls the Sun possesses a power not matched by any mortal.”

The cougar’s voice became low and raspy, almost a whisper.

“One is rising, one is falling, and the holy circle goes on. End is near, end is calling; the source is where the cure lies upon.”

He stopped in front of Celestia, looking her in the eye. She almost stumbled as she met the gaze of his slit-pupiled eyes.

“There is a place which lies beyond this world,” he said, “and which we call Solar Island. It is as old as the beginning of time. One thousand years ago, a young unicorn mare, much like you, came here. It is said that she was haunted by unrequited love, fleeing from it until she reached the end of the world. In her desperation, she took the power that no mortal being was meant to hold, seeking to burn and destroy the one who had rejected her, along with everything else she had once loved. Since then she is known as Nightmare Sun.”

“Nightmare Sun?”

“It is not known how she was stopped, just that the Unicorns then took upon themselves the task of controlling of the Sun. My people, on the other paw, chose one of their own to guard these lands, so that no mortal would be able to claim a power like hers again.”

They were close to the edge now. Celestia could see the world falling off, and to her surprise, deep inside her, she felt a desire to get closer to the abyss. As soon as she realized that, she involuntarily took a few steps forward, as if a physical force were pulling her. The Guardian shot her a knowing glance.

“Over the centuries, all kinds of creatures came here and tested my strength, and all of them I fought off. But I am old, and the heat tires me. Nightmare Sun has returned, and if you do not stop her, all things will come to an end.

”One is rising, one is falling,” Luna recited, “and the holy circle goes on. End is near, end is calling; the source is where the cure lies upon.”

“So,” Celestia mused, “if Solar Island is the source of this evil …”

“ … then it is where you need to go,” Luna finished the sentence for her.

The Guardian seemed pleased. “Now you understand.”

They proceeded to the end of the path, the strange pulling sensation inside Celestia only growing. She stared into the void. The sky arced downwards over the edge, where it turned orange and finally purple. Beneath them, in the shadow of the world, lay hidden a moonless night.

“Here it is,” the Guardian said. “The Twilight Passage. Let me show you the way.”

He jumped off the cliff. Celestia gasped, but instead of falling down, the cougar landed on invisible ground.

“The bridge is small, so be careful. One wrong step and you will fall off. Are you ready?”

Celestia looked down the abyss, which she regretted instantly. “I am not sure.”

But despite her words, she knew she had to go. Unable to control herself, she made a step forward. Her hoof slipped, and little stones fell over the edge.

“Tia!” Luna was at her side in an instant, holding her back. Celestia allowed for her sister to embrace her and pull her back from the edge.

“He is right,” Celestia said. “It is calling for me.”

“I wish I could go with you. I do not want to leave you alone.”

“Neither do I. But we don’t have a choice.”

Luna still held on to her. “I know. But before you go, I need to tell you that I …” She hesitated. “… that I wish you the best of luck.”

Celestia pressed her muzzle against Luna’s in a short yet passionate kiss. “I love you too. So long, my sister.”

Luna blushed. “I will await your return.”

Celestia started towards the edge again, reaching with her hoof where the Guardian was waiting. In what appeared to be thin air she found resistance, and carefully set her hoof on it.

The invisible material was cold. She took a few more steps, and a twinge of fear crept into her as she looked down, now completely hovering on top of the abyss. The cougar passed her and leaped back to the safety of the cliffs.

“Whatever happens,” he said, “never turn around. You have to keep going forwards. Once you have crossed the border, there will be no way back.”

Celestia understood. She did not plan on turning back. This was something she needed to do. For Luna. For herself. For Equestria.

She went down onto her haunches and crept forwards, careful not to leave the solid ground. Keeping balance was tricky without a focal point for her eyes, and a few times her legs wobbled beneath her when she had to shift her weight from one hoof to the next.

Even though she still felt the Sun shining on her back, it didn’t reach through to her. Celestia was cold, so cold, and became colder with every second.

The air around her changed. First a faint blur, fuzzy shapes of black and white manifested around her. She wanted to look back at Luna and the Guardian, but did not dare to, too scared of losing balance.

Her ears and nostrils froze, and her eyes burned.

Colors began to mix into her surroundings, stretching beneath her, turning from faint smudges into a diamond blue plane, like a lake, or a field of flowers. Lights danced around Celestia, but when she reached out with a hoof she couldn’t catch them.

Then it became warmer again, until reaching the temperature of a cozy late summer morning. In the distance she saw a light, brighter than everything around her. She knew without knowing that this light was her destination. Somewhere hidden in its glow lay Solar Island.

She wasn’t able to control herself anymore. She trotted forwards in blind confidence, pulled by a strange force. Her head was filled with white noise.

She was close. The light burned in her eyes, but it didn’t bother her.

She was almost in reach.

She –

“Your Highness”, a voice said, “sunrise is in ten minutes.”

After the years, Celestia knew the face of her servant, which hovered over her, far better than she liked. She grunted and turned in her bed, trying to escape its gaze, but that didn’t help.

“Your Highness, please,” he said, almost apologetic.

Celestia buried her head in a pile of pillows. “Yes, I’m awake.”

Before her inner eye she could still see the light of Solar Island. She wanted to go there. It was as if the call of her destiny had followed her from her dreams into the waking world.

She decided to lie in bed for just another couple of minutes. Just until she was more awake. If she could resist falling asleep again … just a few minutes … to get going …

She was almost in reach.

She kept going forwards, and the light embraced her, pulling at her limbs ever so gently. This was it. This was truth. This was power. This was –

“Y-Your Highness? Are you falling back asleep?”

Her servant winced as Celestia gave him a sinister eye, but didn’t move out of the way. “I am obliged to make sure you g-get up and raise the Sun …”

“I know, I know!” Celestia slipped out of her bed, her head swimming like a ship.

The Sun was calling for her. Celestia searched for its familiar touch, bringing the celestial body into her grip. Luna was already lowering the Moon, so she hurried to get it into position.

Had raising the Sun not been an ancient routine of hers, she doubted she had been able to do in her current state. She was barely able to keep her eyes open, let alone mess with primal forces of nature.

How tempting it was to just go back to bed. Back to Luna. Just hiding for a little longer from the hustle and the bustle of day, safe underneath her cozy blanket.

But she couldn’t. Princess Celestia of Equestria did not simply go back to sleep.

Chapter 6: A Simple Maid's Dream

“I hereby pronounce you mare and wife,” Celestia announced. Under storming applause, Peachy Sweet leaned forwards and united with her bride in a kiss. Her nostrils flared.

Celestia tried her best to hide her exhaustion behind a smile, patiently waiting for the noise to abate and for the two mares to separate. The massive gears of the old quartz mill turned slowly but steadily above their heads. Celestia had witnessed its commissioning nine hundred years ago, when Canterlot had been a small settlement of miners and workers, using the mill to grind down rocks. But that had been long ago.

She was glad that she had made it in time for the wedding. Court had occupied most of her day so far, and then there had been more confusion about the griffin ambassador’s visit. She remembered hurrying up the stairs of the mill, everypony already waiting for her. Now all she wanted was the ceremony to be over so that she could get to the buffet to make up for her missed lunch break.

Peachy Sweet and Golden Banner only hesitantly broke the kiss, their tongues still clinging to each other as their mouths parted. Hardly what most ponies would consider appropriate for a wedding kiss, Celestia thought, but she knew that Golden was a passionate mare in all things she did, if her accomplishments at the Guard were anything to go by. As for Peachy, well, she seemed simply too happy to care.

The newly-wed couple glanced at her gratefully, and Celestia’s smile broadened. Marrying ponies was one of the more pleasant duties and privileges that came with her position.

“I don’t want to bore you with a long and heavy-hoofed speech,” Peachy addressed the crowd, a little overwhelmed. “I just … I just wanted to say that it means so much to me that you could be here. You all have been like a family to me ever since I started out in the castle. Thank you. I might be just a simple maid, but I am able to do what I always wanted to do, and I can’t say how grateful I am.”

A snicker went through the crowd when Peachy, caught up in her habit, curtsied before them.

“Me too,” Golden said. “Only one thing I have to add. There’s a pony who had certain things to say to me.” She pointed at a middle-aged mare who sat in the back of the circular room, about to get up and now freezing in place. “You can stick it, Mom! Yeah, that’s right. I married a mare and I don’t give a stinking bit about what you think!”

The crowd went dead silent, the only noise remaining the constant creaking of the mill’s gears. After a second of shock, the mare in question got up and fled, storming out the door.

Golden looked after her, then she turned her attention back to the other ponies in the room, her features softening. “Oh, and Dad, I love you.”

A stallion in the front row saluted, tears in his eyes, and his daughter saluted back. A chorus of awws arose. But the crowd immediately turned their attention back to Peachy as she turned them her back, holding on to her bouquet.

A sudden rustle arose as young mares and stallions alike got up from their seats. Celestia saw Peachy squeezing her eyes shut in concentration and then, with a large sweeping motion, throwing the bouquet wide over her shoulder.

A little too wide, it turned out. While the mill was rather spacious, built to process large volumes of sediment rock every day, its stone chamber was still not a gym, and so the projectile went into the ceiling and bounced off one of the supporting beams. In a blur of green, white, and orange, it dropped right onto Celestia.

She instinctively raised her hooves to protect her head and squinted her eyes shut. As she opened them again, she found in her outstretched hoof a bundle of white daisies and orange daylilies, arranged with wheatgrass in accordance to earth pony tradition. A bouquet as beautiful as it was delicious.

Every eye in the hall stared at her. It took the crowd a second to react, but then they started to cheer, almost as loud as they had for the pair of brides themselves. Even Peachy, who had spun around in confusion, now congratulated her. Hastily, Celestia threw the bouquet away into the crowd, where a pegasus caught it out of the air with a gleeful grin, but the damage was already done.

Of course, catching the bride’s bouquet was a silly old tradition, a fun part of the ceremony but almost bare any meaning. Nopony expected her to fulfill the promise it brought and be the next pony to get married. Still, she stood in shock, unable to do or say anything.

Golden finally woke her from her stasis by clearing her throat and announcing that the buffet was now open. Celestia managed an awkward shrug, before turning to leave the stage and follow the other guests downstairs.

The windmill was a popular wedding location these days, and thus well-prepared for such occasions. The old storage room had been turned into a dining hall, which was now swarmed by the chattering guests, settling around the small, round tables.

Celestia relaxed a little, even if her face still felt hot. Quickly her stomach won over, and she made her way through the small clusters of guests towards the long white tables that were set up on one side of the room.

The cooks had spared neither trouble nor expense – Celestia knew, for she was paying the bill. Fruits, nuts, and vegetables from all over the world had been arranged to playful shapes and patterns, which reminded more of Chineighse mandala than of salads. The scents of the warm meals teased Celestia’s nose: stewed carrots in wine sauce, hay crackling, stuffed paprika, baked potatoes with pumpkin spice …

In the end, Celestia had to take two plates at once, balancing them in the aura of her magic, to sample all of her favorites on the first go. It earned her a few looks, but they were amused rather than disapproving, which reminded her of why she was glad that none of the Canterlot nobles was invited. There was just castle staff and a few of Golden’s relatives – she was among family, as Peachy had put it.

Celestia searched herself a quiet spot on one of the unoccupied tables in the corner. It had been a while since she had last been speechless, she thought to herself while biting into an absolutely tender slice of medium rare zucchini. This was not like her. In her millennia, she had certainly done more embarrassing things than catching a bride’s bouquet.

A voice snapped her out of her thoughts. Its owner was a stallion with a thin mustache who stood before her, hinting a bow. “My Princess, you won’t mind if I join you.”

Almost choking on the carrot she had been chewing on, Celestia pressed out an “of course.”

She didn’t want him to sit with her, but she wouldn’t refuse, either, instead falling back behind the mask of politeness she had built up over the centuries. She was Princess Celestia of Equestria. Her discipline was as unshakable as the cycle of day and night.

“My name is …” he began, and Celestia stopped listening. He had to be part of Golden’s family, she thought. Maybe an uncle. She grabbed a potato and took a polite bit which pressed softly against her tongue, warming it and filling her mouth with the rich, sweet taste. She was almost done with her two plates.

“I believe it is not necessary I introduced myself,” she said when his word flow came to a pause, and he chuckled. This was not a joke, she thought as she smiled. You better believe that I will send you to the Moon if you do not shut up.

As she finished the potato, he went on about how glad he was that his niece had made it to such a prestigious position, and how he had always known that she would make it when everyone else had doubted her.

“And you will excuse my sister,” he added. “You understand that she is just worried about her daughter.”

“I understand,” Celestia said. She did understand that the sister in question had to be Golden’s mother, the same mare who had run away earlier. Now that she thought about it, she remembered Golden’s struggle in the first few months of her training. She would often appear with puffy eyes that betrayed her having cried, and when Celestia asked her if there was anything bothering her, she reluctantly told her that her mother didn’t want her to join the Guard, and in fact didn’t believe that she could make it. Only over time, as she worked her way up to the top of her regiment, had Golden learned to ignore her mother’s nagging.

“But,” the uncle said, finishing some anecdote that Celestia must have missed, “you never know about these things nowadays.”

Finding her plate empty she got up, glad that she had a reason to leave. “Quite. If you would please excuse me.”

As she went across the room, she realized how tired her body was from being held up to all these ponies. Her eyes wanted to fall shut, and her mouth twinged slightly, demanding a break from the smiles and pleasantries. Celestia went to search for the mares of the evening and congratulate them, as well as politely bid her farewell. She was certain that nopony would mind if she grabbed herself a slice of wedding cake on the go.

Reality, however, seemed to have different plans, because the brides were still busy accepting gifts and posing for photos, and Celestia did not have the heart to interrupt them on their special day. So she waited, trying her best not to gather the attention of the surrounding guests, which proved difficult given the fact that she was two heads taller than them, had an ethereally floating, polychromatic mane, and wore her precious golden regalia.

“Your Highness,” said a mare who was waiting for her turn to present her gift to the couple. Again, it was one of Golden’s relatives. Of course it was, Celestia thought. The staff knew better than to annoy her like this.

“Your Highness,” she said again, not really seeming to know what she wanted to convey. “It is such an honor to know that Miss Banner is allowed to work for you.”

“Aha?”

A slight rustle went through the mare’s nose. “Now, if you don’t mind me asking, is there a reason why the lucky mares were not allowed to hold their ceremony in Canterlot Castle?”

Celestia raised an eyebrow. “They would have been welcome to. Serving my sister and me with such dedication more than earned them the special honor.”

“Really? Why are we here, then?”

“They just liked it better,” Celestia said. “Which I can completely understand. The castle is their workplace, you should not forget. I would not want it to be the venue for my wedding either.”

“Oh! I’m sorry, you’re right. I didn’t think about it this way.”

Deciding that she wasn’t as bad as the uncle, Celestia decided to give the mare a genuine smile. “If I were to get married, I would choose a place far distant, somewhere away from all the public attention. The top of a mountain, a shady grove, or some place else like that.”

Before her appeared the vision of the oasis from her dreams. Wind shook the heads of the palm trees that grew over the white walls, and its whistling mixed with the bubbling of water.

“Nice and private,” she whispered. She wished she were there, in her secret little paradise. Just her and Luna and a lazy afternoon.

“That sounds, um, nice?” the mare offered, jerking Celestia back into reality. “I would prefer a more glamorous setting personally but, you know what they say, to each their own.”

“Not that I will get married,” Celestia said quickly. “So in any case it’s not more than a speculative thought.”

The mare giggled. “Are you sure? After all you did catch the bouquet.”

“So I did.” Celestia looked over to the brides, who were taking a group photo with a few of the chamber maids, laughing as they tried to outdo each other with questionable poses. The queue was getting shorter, but there were still three ponies in front of her.

“Princess,” said a voice behind her, and, without looking, Celestia knew that it belonged to the uncle. She sighed quietly before turning around to face him.

“I wanted to be so bold,” he said, “and ask if you will share the first dance with me.”

“Excuse me,” Celestia huffed, “I am talking to this Miss.”

The stallion did not seem intimidated the slightest. “Give me an answer, and I will be on my way.”

The temperature in the room climbed by a few degrees as Celestia replied. “How about instead you leave immediately?”

He was about to say something, but Celestia shot him a glare that made him change his mind. Sparks flew from the corner of her eyes, leaving black spots on the wooden floor.

She tried to get a hold of herself. This was not good. The surrounding ponies stared at her.

“Are you alright?” Peachy asked hesitantly. All color had left her face, and Celestia realized that even her loyal maid, in all the years, had never seen her like this.

Was she alright? That was a good question indeed.

The silence was broken by a distant muttering that came from outside. They turned around, and a second later the door burst open.

In the entrance appeared a griffin, crest feathers angrily protruding from her head. The ones among the guests who were Royal Guards stepped in between her and Celestia in a loose protective formation.

“There you are, Princess,” the griffin bellowed. Golden Banner fondled with the straps of her dress, as it drastically would impair her movement in combat. But Celestia knew the intruder: it was ambassador Perr. What she was upset about, though, she had no idea.

And, whatever it was, why did it have to come up now of all times?

“I’m sick of being treated like this,” the ambassador bellowed. “I’ve been waiting for over an hour!”

Celestia forced herself to keep her voice calm. “What in Equestria are you talking about?”

“Our meeting was scheduled for three o’clock today. But I see that amusing yourself is more important to you than international relations.”

Celestia wondered how many more appointments there were that she didn’t know about. She groaned in agony. Did she have to do everything on her own?

“Can you come back tomorrow?” she asked, no longer able to prevent her voice from slipping. “I am sure that whatever it is you wanted to talk about can wait.”

Perr ruffled her chest, fluffing out her feathers in protest. “If this is how you treat the history of my people, I shall write to the council and see to it that the invitation is canceled.”

With that, the griffin turned around and flew off.

“Rude,” Golden commented. But Celestia didn’t wait to see everypony else’s reactions. She teleported out of the hall, as far as she could reach, and flew back to the castle.

It didn’t take more than a few minutes after she had arrived in her room before a shy knock appeared at her door. Celestia knew who it was. Wordlessly, she reached out with her magic and opened the door to let Peachy Sweet enter, who immediately rushed to Celestia’s side.

“You should get back to your bride,” Celestia said. “I do not wish to ruin this even more for you.”

As if on cue, there was another knock, more demanding this time, and Golden Banner stormed in through the still-open door. “Can you maybe not run off like that?”

“Goldie, please,” Peachy tried to appease her, “now’s not the time.”

Golden huffed, clearly not happy with that answer. “Not the time, huh? Well, excuse me for barging in, just wanted to see what my wife is up to on the day of our wedding.”

Peachy opened her mouth, but didn’t bring out any words.

“Oh yeah, how could I forget,” Golden said. “It’s always about her, isn’t it?”

“Please …”

“You should hear yourself talking sometimes. The Princess this, the Princess that. Are you sure you married the right pony?”

Celestia backed off from them. She could have said something, but with today’s luck she was afraid of making things worse.

“Are you … are you jealous?” Peachy asked.

“No!” Golden turned away, looking at the wall. “I mean, maybe. Do you know how it feels being left behind on your own wedding?”

Peachy leaned forwards to bump her nose. “We talked about this.”

“I know, I know. Anyway, I told Minty and Star to handle the guests for us until we come back, but I suggest we don’t take too long.”

Only now she seemed to remember that Celestia was present, and sighed. “I’m sorry Princess. I didn’t mean to snap like this, and I certainly am not blaming you.”

“You have every right to,” Celestia said. “I can assure you, however, that you need not fear. I have never had an affair with any of my subjects in the millennia that I have lived, and that is certainly not changing now.”

“I didn’t mean to imply –” Golden sunk her head. “It’s just been a pretty exhausting day.”

“For you and me both, Golden Banner, for you and me both.”

“You know that I am doing what is in my power to serve and protect you.” Golden looked at Peachy for support, who took her hoof. “We’ll always be here for you, both of us. Even today, if there is anything we can do for you, please do not hesitate to ask.”

“There is one thing,” Celestia said. “Could you have somepony bring me a slice of the cake? I’m afraid that, in all the hurry, I wasn’t able to taste it.”

The mares laughed, and it was good to hear. “Of course, Princess.”

“Now go and enjoy your day,” Celestia concluded. “And your night.”

Golden walked away, dragging a blushing Peachy with her. “Sure will.”

Celestia looked after them, letting her head sink back onto her forelegs. She should probably be flattered that such a young mare was getting territorial because of her. But instead she just felt tired, and lost.

It was true, she could never be in a relationship with a pony whose lifespan was like that of a fly compared to hers. How could she? They would always be like children in her eyes. Nopony had gone through the same that she had.

Nopony, except one. And that was bad enough. Luna could never be to her what Peachy was to Golden. Celestia couldn’t ask her to.

She really needed that cake.

On the night from Thursday to Friday, Celestia dreamed about cake, taxes, and impertinent uncles, but not about Luna. It was the same the next night and the night after that. Each morning she woke up a little more disappointed.

Her days were not any better. She invested a lot of resources into apologizing to ambassador Perr and trying to resolve the mess she had made, as well as catching up with the everyday madness that was leading a country. The worst was that she didn’t get to see Luna. It was a silly notion, because her sister was right there, but every time she looked at her Celestia’s chest tightened, and a physical ache spread from her heart all over her body. So she made excuses to avoid her.

She missed the Luna of her dreams. She missed the Luna who would hold her when she was scared and kiss her when she was lonely, because she was both.

Sunday morning was no different. Celestia had spent the past evening hunched over her desk until late in the night, trying get some of the work done that was left over from the past week. The view outside did not do much to ease her mood, as the sky was muddied with a layer of altostratus.

She had just finished raising the Sun when somepony knocked on her door. Who could that be, this early in the morning? Celestia blinked a few times, trying to get her eyes to cooperate. “Yes?”

“Sister? Are you available for a minute?”

Upon hearing Luna’s voice Celestia frowned, but still she opened the door.

“I was about to …” she began, but the determined look on Luna’s face made her stop. “How can I help you?”

Her sister entered the room, stopping in front of the door. Celestia could see that she was gathering all her courage to speak up to her. “You did not show up to breakfast for half of the week, you rarely talk to me, and your lights are on long past midnight.”

When Celestia didn’t answer, gentle hoofsteps clacked on the floor.

“Please, tell me what is wrong.”

“It’s just one of those weeks,” Celestia insisted, backing away. “Nothing is wrong.”

“I can tell there is.” Luna kept closing in, careful, as if approaching a wounded animal. “Did we not make a promise, when I returned from my exile, to stop withholding things like these from each other?”

“You don’t understand.”

“I think I do,” Luna said with sadness in her voice. “I have been through this. The feeling of being alone. Of nopony understanding.”

Somewhere in the back of her head, Celestia wondered whether this was what had happened to Luna a thousand years ago.

“But you showed me that it was not true,” Luna said. “The Elements might have destroyed my nightmare form, but it was your kindness and understanding that allowed me to heal, to become myself again.” She stopped in front of her. “So please let me help you now.”

Celestia shivered. Luna’s presence was like a tidal force, pulling her forwards into her hooves. But no matter how easy it would be, she couldn’t give in to it. If she allowed her feelings to take over now, she feared, she would never be free of them.

“You can help me by going away,” Celestia said. She didn’t see Luna’s disbelieving stare, but felt it all too well, burning on her forehead.

She snapped. “Just leave me alone!”

She did not mean to, but the words jumped right out of her mouth. The tears crawling out of her eyes vaporized into steam.

Luna backed away, and Celestia could not tell whether it was in compliance or fear.

“If you need me, you know where to find me,” Luna said quietly. “I love you, sister. No matter what happens. I hope that you know that.”

And then she left. Celestia sunk onto the floor, disappointed that Luna had not stayed and fought her. Fought like they had a thousand years ago. It would be easier than seeing her walk off with droopy ears and pretend that it did not cut her heart right open.

She noticed the prints of her own hooves burning themselves into the floor and wondered whether the cleaning staff would be able to get them off somehow. She should go after Luna and apologize, a remaining rational part of her brain thought. But at the same time she could not think of anything worse.

That night, Celestia cried herself to sleep. “Luna,” she whispered, pleaded.

Unbeknownst to her, she was heard.

Chapter 7: Dreams of Fire

Celestia’s hooves sunk an inch into the white sand of the beach. A small wave rolled over them, caressing her fetlocks. Before her, the horizon bent into a perfect circle around Solar Island, as the four dimensions of time and space squeezed into a hamster ball that floated in a space as void as her heart.

“Luna,” she pleaded, but no answer came – she was alone, trapped.

In the distance she sensed the barrier that separated wherever she was from reality. She had tried to swim out there to follow back the path that had taken her to this place, but it was just as the Guardian had said: Once you have crossed the border, there will be no way back.

The Sun’s blinding light was more intense in these domains than anywhere else. She could feel its heat, its power, which was now hers to control. But it was useless to her, and she had never wanted it in the first place.

She could almost hear Luna’s voice calling for her from the other side. She had to be waiting for her back at the Passage. To get back to her and see her again was all that Celestia wished for.

She noticed briefly that she started glowing as she thought about that, but payed it no attention. With her eyes closed, she summoned the image of her sister.

Her wish took form.

As she opened her eyes again, two wings had grown just below her shoulders. She spread them, and wind began to bristle her feathers, lifting her off the ground and sending a pleasant warmth through her.

Celestia tilted her new wing joints, beat down, and feel the air flow across the surfaces, propelling her across the beach. It was so easy! She felt as if she could do anything.

And then Celestia understood. She was not a regular pony anymore. Rules that applied to others simply did not apply to her.

She flapped her wings again, harder this time, and headed away from the light of the Sun, towards the rifts and fissures of reality. The wish that had emerged honest from her heart carried her onwards.

She flew through the blue fields of light and the monochromatic instances, approaching the barrier, never stopping to look back.

She braced herself as it came closer. Any second now …

But the impact never happened. Instead, a joyous cry greeted her on the other side. Grinning wide, Celestia dove down towards the ground where her sister was waiting.

“Lulu! I made it!”

Luna didn’t wait for her to land; she flapped her wings to jump at Celestia and pull her into a crushing hug mid-air. Together they fell to the ground.

Celestia felt her sister land on top of her, pinning her down. A shaggy blue mane fell over her face, obscuring her vision, and a soft pair of lips brushed against Celestia’s own. She moaned hungrily and pulled Luna closer.

A few minutes later, they lay side by side on the ground, staring up into the ever blue sky. For the first time ever, Celestia was able to drape a wing around Luna, her feathers tingling as they brushed against her sister’s coat.

“I was so worried you wouldn’t come back,” Luna whispered.

“Really? But I was only gone for a couple of hours.”

“Hours? It has been a week since you left, if not longer! The Guardian told me to stay here and keep waiting. I was tempted to follow you, but he told me that I couldn’t.”

“Oh, Lulu. But I am here now.” She kissed her sister again, not failing to notice a hint of tentativeness in her at first. But it only lasted for a less than a second.

“I know now what we have to do,” Celestia said. “I cannot get the Sun to move as long as Nightmare Sun is holding it in place, but I can sense where she is.”

“Will it take long to get there?”

“Not if we fly.”

Luna nuzzled Celestia’s cheek before getting up and shaking the dust off herself.

“Then let’s fly together, sister.”

The Land of Wind appeared before them as a gray-brown plane of burnt plants. Charred stumps of trees stuck out here and there, surrounded by patches of ash. It was a land promising death.

They descended to escape a crosswind that threatened to push them off their course, and kept close to the ground. However, an even fiercer wind blew down below, tackling them again and again while teasingly blowing into their ears. Celestia clenched her teeth as a particularly strong gust almost knocked her against the ground. This was no ordinary air current. It was the same wind that had brought them sandstorms in the desert, the same wind that had forced them into the cave and then blocked their exit. It had to be an ally of Nightmare Sun.

On the horizon appeared golden walls, giant domes, and high towers. The presence of Nightmare Sun was overwhelming now, hot and destructive like a thousand fires burning at once. Celestia wasn’t sure whether they could take her on – after all, Nightmare had infinitely more experience with her powers that her.

She threw a glance behind her. Luna, who was flying in her slipstream, met her with a determined look on her face. She seemed ready to fight. Celestia swallowed. They had no choice.

They landed in front of the polished walls of the golden castle, which reflected the light of the Sun so brightly that Celestia had to lower her gaze. The air rumbled as the main gate’s wings slowly moved, indicating that their arrival had not remained unnoticed.

A voice arose that was as piercing as the Sun and as dry as the desert. “Now look who decided to drop by.”

Behind the gate appeared the form of a tall alicorn, taller than even Luna. Her coat was ash gray, and her mane looked like a flame winding up her neck. A spiked coat of armor covered her upper body, complete with a helmet sitting on her head.

Celestia stepped forwards. “Nightmare Sun! This scheme has been going on for too long – lower the Sun or you will regret it!”

“Too long? Petty little pony. I say my reign has just begun.”

Celestia braced herself.

Nightmare snickered. “There is no way you of all ponies can best me, Celestia. This day shall last forever!” Her armor flared up, forcing Celestia to squeeze her eyes shut in pain. But she still heard Nightmare moving towards her and took a step aside, blindly throwing kicks.

“Mwahahaha,” Nightmare laughed. “I’m over here, silly.”

Celestia turned around again, unsure of what to do. She couldn’t fight like this.

Something crashed into her back. She kicked after it with her hindlegs, but missed.

Her shoulder was hit next. A sharp pain made Celestia cry in agony, but then it was taken away.

“Tia,” Luna whispered into her ear. “Open your eyes.”

Celestia peeked through her eyelids, and found herself wrapped in an aura of darkness. Luna stood right next to her, midnight purple smoke pouring out of her horn and enveloping them in a smoke screen that blocked out Nightmare Sun’s light.

“What a lovely party trick,” she heard Nightmare’s voice. “But you cannot hide in there forever.”

“Get ready,” Luna whispered. The smoke lightened up, just so much that Celestia could see through it while still being protected from the flash of Nightmare’s armor.

Nightmare Sun grinned arrogantly. “Do you want to know why you cannot defeat me?”

She looked Celestia in the eye. Her pupils were slits, like those of a snake.

“Because I am you.”

Celestia, about to unleash a spell, hesitated. What did she mean by that?

Nightmare Sun turned towards Luna and shot a fiery blast at her, which send her flying a few feet through the air. Celestia yelled in rage and jumped at Nightmare’s back, but it was covered in armor right up to the head, with nasty spikes that threatened to rip open any attacker’s limbs. Thinking quickly, Celestia stretched her neck and bit down on Nightmare’s ear, who buckled and backed away with a yelp.

Celestia spat out a bloody patch of hair. “Luna! Luna, are you alright?”

Luna crawled back onto her hooves, shaking. “I’m fine, keep going. We have to stop her.”

“Right.”

Another blast flew towards them, but this time, Celestia was ready and summoned a shield of light to block it. She wouldn’t let Luna down again. She would protect her, and if it was the last thing she did.

Focusing herself she summoned her magic, unleashing a ray of light at Nightmare, but the cackling mare got out of the way with a lazy flap of her wings. Instead, the spell went into the golden castle wall, forcing Celestia and Luna to dodge a cascade of debris and loose bricks raining down.

A cloud of dust emerged, while Nightmare returned a volley of fireballs that rained onto Celestia’s magical shield.

“Let’s take that nag down,” Luna pressed between her teeth.

Celestia took off, shooting a barrage of spells to keep Nightmare locked in place. She flew over the castle wall, grabbed a nearby tower with her magic, and threw it onto Nightmare Sun. But instead of dodging, Nightmare didn’t move from her position, instead making the tower detonate in a wave of heat that hit Celestia straight in the face.

Wincing in pain, she summoned a blizzard around herself and Luna that kept them cool and blew away the pieces of debris that were shooting all over the place. She then transformed the snow into water and let it fall onto Nightmare Sun, who yelped when she was hit with the ice cold liquid.

“Afraid of water?” Luna yelled, summoning a storm of dark clouds above them. With a beat of thunder they burst into rain so dense that it was almost impossible to see through. Bolts of lightning burst down onto Nightmare, illuminating the scene in flashes of light.

“The Sun!” Celestia yelled over the noise of the storm. “Your clouds are blocking the Sun out. Keep that up!”

She flew towards the rain, preparing her final attack. She felt her own powers fading as well, but her struggle was nothing compared to that of her enemy, who was trapped in the very center of the storm.

“You were right, Nightmare – I cannot defeat you. But we can together.”

If she managed to strike now, this would be over for good. Her horn prickled with magic as she lined herself up.

“Tia!”

Celestia spun her head around, but her sister’s warning was too late. A blast of wind hit her in the side, throwing off her aim. Her spell went off into the sky, creating a nova of light, while Celestia crashed into the castle wall.

She didn’t even have a chance to get up before Nightmare Sun appeared in front of her, water vaporizing from her coat and forming a cloud of steam. The clouds above her busted into shreds. Whatever had happened to Luna, Celestia couldn’t see.

The wall crumbled beneath her, little bits of it breaking free and forming arms that grabbed her legs. She tried to cast a spell – any spell – but her efforts were disrupted by a blast of fire burning her face.

She yelped in pain. The smell of singed hair filled her nostrils.

“Luna …”

“Ugh.” Nightmare Sun appeared in front of her, grimacing. “Crying for your sister – when will you grow up and do things on your own? You’re a shame for both of us, Celestia, and the sooner I eradicate you, the sooner I will be free!”

“What do you mean by that?”

“I have told you before: I am you. I have set hoof upon sacred ground, and so have you. I have returned from the island outside of this world, and so have you. We are two sides of the same coin, only that you seek weakness while I seek strength. In the end, there can only be one of us. And now excuse me if I am being short, but you bore me. May my reign be bright and never end.”

She grinned as a blade of blazing sunfire materialized in her hoof.

Celestia shut her eyes. “I’m sorry, Luna.”

With an ugly noise, flesh crashed into flesh. Looking up again, Celestia saw Luna tackle Nightmare Sun aside.

“Lulu! I thought you were done for!”

Luna shot her a grin. Her face was covered in bruises, and blood was dripping from her chin.

“Not that easily, Sis. I could not just leave you hanging.”

She turned towards Nightmare Sun again, dodging a swing of her blade.

Celestia thought quickly. One versus one, Luna had no chance of winning the fight. Celestia was stuck, and if she targeted Nightmare with a spell while she and Luna were engaged in their fight, she might as well hit the wrong target. So what could she do?

We are the two sides of the same coin, really. Nightmare drew her power from the Sun, but Celestia shared the very same connection. If only she could find a way to cut it off – to take the power from both of them. That would give Luna the upper hoof.

She felt for the connection to the Sun. It was sitting in the sky, still immovable. Even while fighting, Nightmare Sun had it under her total control.

But there was another presence. Somewhere deep beneath the earth, another celestial body rested, put to sleep for as long a the eternal day would last.

Celestia’s eyes widened at the realization. She pulled gently at the Moon, and it moved ever so slightly, responding to her touch.

Celestia blended out the fight, blended out the pain. She concentrated solely on pulling the Moon. Soon, its shape appeared above the horizon, rising higher and higher. Nightmare and Luna first didn’t notice it, and only when the light of the Sun began to fade did they hold on for a second and look up.

“No!” Nightmare shrieked. She flapped her wings to shoot towards Celestia, but Luna grabbed her leg and held her back. The wall started moving again, pulling Celestia deeper inside and covering her mouth. She held her breath, slowly draping the Moon over the Sun.

She could feel her own power shrinking. The pain in her sides grew as the wall threatened to crush her ribcage, and black patches appeared in Celestia’s vision as her body revolted against the lack of oxygen.

Darkness fell over the land, and of the Sun remained only a glimmering corona as it was entirely eclipsed by the Moon. Nightmare’s blade had vanished, and she now looked desperate in trying to fight off Luna’s attacks. Celestia smiled. She had done her part – Luna could take it from here.

She had protected her.

A bolt of lightning striking Nightmare Sun was the last thing Celestia saw. Then her mind slipped into darkness.

Chapter 8: Dreams of Falling

Celestia dreamed of falling. Or did she? Was this reality? She could not tell.

She wanted to spread her wings to slow down, to take control of her descent, but she couldn’t. Was she a unicorn again? Had her powers been taken from her?

Was she dying?

But this did not feel like dying. She felt alive. The darkness around her faded.

Celestia was standing in a field of rubble. The only thing remaining of the castle was its very foundation. Looking down at herself, she saw that a layer of ash covered her coat, mixed with the blood dribbling from her many scratches and cuts.

In the sky lingered still the corona of the solar eclipse, enveloping the world in shadow. Time seemed to have stopped, the land frozen in its current state, not yet dead, but not healing either.

“Lulu?” Celestia called. “Luna, where are you?” But no answer came.

Celestia tried to touch the Sun, and found that she could move it with ease. It could only mean one thing – that, ultimately, they had succeeded, and Nightmare Sun was no more. But at which prize?

“Please, Luna. I need you.”

She wandered around in the remains of the castle, knowing that it was time for her to move on and set the Sun, granting the land its well-earned rest. But she couldn’t bring herself to. Without Luna, the energy to merely keep the world turning seemed like a waste.

She walked. She would not stop walking until she had Luna back.

Celestia twisted in her bed, blinking as she woke up. The Moon shone through a crack in her curtains, right into her face.

Maybe that was what had woken her up, or maybe it was her throat, dry as any desert. She rubbed crumbles of dried tears out of her eyes and got up.

The tapping of her hooves on the floor echoed through the quiet room as she sneaked across the floor towards the carafe of water on her desk. As she passed a set of black hoofprints, she frowned.

She loved Luna. She loved her in every single way a pony could love another pony, and she needed to tell her that, or else she would go insane.

Pouring the water, she mused whether Luna might still be awake. Due to her nightly duties she did have a fairly irregular sleep cycle. On the other hoof, if she really was sleeping Celestia did not want to wake her.

She stood there for a moment in indecision, the glass of water floating next to her in the grip of her magic. It would probably best to get back to bed and wait until the next morning …

A few minutes later, Celestia found herself in the corridors, on her way to Luna’s quarters.

Exploring the nightly castle was an experience she rarely made. Everything was so much calmer, so much more serene. Even the main floor which, during the working hours, accommodated swarms of binder-laden government employees, lay now deserted. The only ponies Celestia came across were two sleepy guards on duty who hastily saluted upon seeing her approach.

She would knock quietly. If Luna didn’t answer she was probably asleep, and in that case, Celestia wouldn’t bother her, but come back the next morning.

But what if Luna did answer? What should she say?

Apologize. That was the first and most important thing. And then let Luna know how much she meant to her, or attempt to, anyway.

With that plan in her head she arrived at the door to her sister’s bedroom. She raised her hoof and gave it a gentle rap. No response. Her ears dropped slightly, and she already turned to leave, when she heard the sniffing.

“Luna?” she asked through the door. Muffled hoofsteps were the answer, then it slid open.

Luna peeked the crack and looked at Celestia with watery eyes. Forgetting about everything she was going to say, Celestia pushed herself in.

“Luna? What is wrong?”

She pulled Luna into a half-attempted wing hug, which ended up in a somewhat awkward mess of appendages, but Luna leaned into it all the same.

“Is it because of yesterday?” Celestia asked. “I am so sorry. I do not know what I did. I came to apologize for –“

“No! It is not that.” Luna freed herself from the embrace, pulling back, which made Celestia shiver just a bit.

With her gaze on the floor, Luna walked over to her bed and sat down on the edge. “I have to make a confession.”

Celestia followed her and took place next to her, closing the door behind herself. “Me too. But you can go first if you want to.”

Luna avoided her gaze. “I know that you do not want me to enter your dreams,” she began. “And I respect your wish, I really do.”

Blood rushed into Celestia’s face when it dawned on her where Luna was going with this. “So?”

“Dreams are a complicated matter, and even I cannot always foresee whose mind I land in. One week ago, it was yours. It was an accident, I swear! You were in Neighsopotamia, and Twilight Sparkle was threatening you. I know I should have just left, but you looked so scared! I could not turn my back on you.”

Celestia remembered her descending from the sky to come to her aid. “That is it?”

Luna shook her head. “I remained with you afterwards. Worse, I returned on several nights. We crossed the desert and the mountains, together, found the end of the world, and fought the Nightmare. It was me this entire time. I’m sorry.”

Celestia laughed with unease. “Why are you so sorry?”

“I could see how much it affected you in real life – saw you in pain. I even tried to quit for a few nights, but then I felt your unconsciousness reaching out for me tonight, and I could not ignore it. I am so selfish. You must hate me.”

Celestia flinched. “Do you know what my worst fear is, Luna?”

Luna did not answer, only peering at her from the corner of her eye.

“It is losing you again,” Celestia said. “I am not saying what you did wasn’t wrong, but I could never hate you. If anything, I am sorry that the only way for you to spend time with me was to sneak into my dreams.”

She extended a wing to gently stroked her sister’s shoulder. “Plus, I wouldn’t trade the experiences we made for anything. Wasn’t this quite the journey? I don’t know about you, but I certainly hope to return there with you.”

Luna gasped. “Do you mean that?”

“If you want to, that is. Nightmare Sun might be defeated, but who knows what kinds of adventures there are still left for us.”

Luna covered Celestia’s wing with her own, feathers brushing against feathers. “Thank you.”

They stayed like that for a while, neither wanting to pull back their wing, until Celestia’s tiredness returned to her. “Shall we finish what we have started?”

“You could stay here with me for tonight,” Luna offered.

Smiling, Celestia let herself sink onto the bed. “I would like that.”

A moment later, she felt her sister’s warm body nestle against her chest and draped her wing over her.

It was then that she knew that her fear had been for nothing. Luna would always be at her side.

“Good night, sister,” she mumbled, nuzzling Luna’s cheek. “I love you.”

Luna purred, moving just a little closer. “I love you too,” she mumbled. “Sweet dreams.”

Epilogue: Dreams of a Princess

“Luna!”

Celestia sprinted forward, towards her sister who emerged from the debris. She looked fairly beaten, but she was alive, limping towards her.

“Thank Mother you’re alright!”

“It seems that I am,” Luna said, smiling weakly.

As they met beneath the solar corona, Celestia resisted the urge to squeeze her sister, scared of furthering her injuries. Instead, she sent out her magic and carefully wrapped it around Luna’s body, cleaning away the dirt and closing her wounds.

“Thank you. For healing me, and for saving me.” Luna bumped their noses together and planted a soft kiss on Celestia’s muzzle.

Celestia gladly returned the favor. “We defeated her together.”

“Indeed. No force in this world or another shall dare to oppose you and me.” She giggled and rested her head on Celestia’s shoulder. Celestia brushed through her sister’s mane, smiling.

She felt for the Moon and the Sun in the sky, deciding to finally let it be night. The Sun slowly sunk towards the horizon, and the light of the eclipse transitioned into a warmer one, as Sun and Moon stood in the sky next to each other. Then, the Sun reddened, and the sky was painted purple, peppered with shaggy little clouds that were the remains of Luna’s thunderstorm.

“How long has it been since we’ve seen the Sun set?” Luna asked.

“Too long. I almost want to keep this up for a while.”

“Maybe you should – just a little longer.”

Celestia grinned and slowed down the movement of the Sun, keeping the world in dusk. “Fine, but only for you, sister.”

They walked towards the edge of the area of destruction and passed through a series of stone arcs, only some of which were broken. In the sinking Sun, they cast long shadows on the ground.

“Look at that,” Luna remarked, pointing ahead. “The castle gardens are almost undamaged.”

Rose stocks lay ahead of them, gray and dead, with dry, crumpled petals. They had not survived the heat of the endless day. This place had a tragic beauty, morbid almost. Luna inched closer to her.

“Tia …” She looked down onto her hooves.

“What is it?”

“I’m sorry to bring this up, but we need to talk about something. We always said that we could be close as sisters and only sisters – that, even as we kissed, we meant nothing of it. And as long as we were both in agreement, nothing would be wrong that, right?”

“Yes. Why do you bring it up?”

“It … it doesn’t feel right anymore.”

Celestia’s ear flopped. “I’m sorry to hear that. I never wanted to make you feel uncomfortable.”

“No – that is not it. I want this, but not if it means nothing. Not if I have to look at you and pretend that I don’t long for you. Pretend that I have not fallen in love with you.”

Silence. The sunset was shining onto Luna’s face, touching her with its soft, warm shine. Celestia stared at Luna for a few seconds. She started giggling, quiet at first, but soon bursting out with laughter.

“Do you understand what this means?” Luna asked.

“It means that you are a very silly pony. Lulu. It always meant something. I cannot put my hoof on when it happened but, yes, I do feel the same way. I thought that was obvious.”

The sunset was reaching its climax, tinting the world in an unreal rose red light. Luna was close, so close now.

“Tia …”

Luna licked her lips.

A pair of hooves grabbed Celestia’s neck. She closed her eyes, letting her sister pull her closer.

“Lulu …”

And as the very last ray of sunlight shot over the horizon, they kissed.