"Okay Philomena, let's run through your training course one more time for the evening, then you can depart for some rest," Princess Celestia said, giving her beloved phoenix an encouraging nudge to proceed with the course. Ever since Philomena was old and stable enough to fly on her own, Celestia has put her through relentless hours of strength and endurance exercises to keep Philomena healthy, and it definitely paid off in the long run. Celestia has had her little firebird since she was a foal, a quaint 200 years old to be exact. Now only a couple thousand years later, the two are still going strong doing the same routines flawlessly like neither of them has aged a day.
But they have aged. Celestia, now with droops below her eyes at times and some minor old-age pains, and Philomena has started flying a bit slower and her wings were beginning to get that floof that comes with an overabundance of use, typically associated with growing old. Celestia knew this too; She knew herself and Philomena were growing older, but that was okay. Especially for Philomena, since she has the ability to rise up from her ashes, reborn anew. Or rather, almost anew.
While the phoenix does have natural immortality, it does not make them immune to illness, the effects of aging, etc. While they gain a new body, the internal issues that came from the life before still reside in the new phoenix. With this, a phoenix can suffer through multiple lives, over thousands of years, constantly getting worse and worse before they lose the will to allow themselves to be reborn. But as Celestia watched Philomena soar her way through the course she set up, she didn't have a single worry about her.
"It seems like every day she is getting faster and faster, like she used to be," Princess Luna said, suddenly appearing in the doorway.
Celestia smiled at her younger sister. "Indeed, Luna. We definitely know not to skip the training on our vacations anymore," she replied, giggling at the thought of her and Philomena laying on the beaches of Califoalnia again. That was their last vacation together, and it was almost due time for another. Celestia pushed the thought to the back of her head as she resumed watching the firebird excel at the course.
"You know as well as I that Philomena deserves the rest now and again. She works really hard to stay in shape." Luna begins to follow Philomena too, her head bobbing up and down as she makes her rounds through the loops in the middle of the dance hall. "I mean, look at that elegance; She's been trained well by you. You must be proud."
Of course, Celestia was proud of the phoenix. For centuries the bird has been exceeding her expectations in everything from flying to playing jokes on other ponies in Equestria. She never seemed to be disappointed in her, nor easily won over by her antics. Celestia had the highest expectations of anypony, for good reason. Even so, those expectations were always met when it came to Philomena. She was a real firebird.
After 100 laps, specified by Celestia from the start, Philomena took a nose dive straight at her owner, inverting her flight pattern just in time to circle around and land at the tip of Celestia's horn, her smoldering red wings floating back down to her sides and perched there like she was a statue. Smiling, Celestia gave her releasing nod, sending Philomena to freely traverse without specifications, deciding to go back to her perch and get some water from the bowl connected to the bar. "Good job, Philomena," Celestia started, "That was the best trial in weeks. I'm definitely seeing improvement in your abilities." The bird gave a small, almost innocent chirp in response, the flames surrounding her glowing brighter than before.
You can tell how a phoenix is feeling by the tone and brightness of their fur. Red and orange are the colors, but there are thousands of tints, resulting in thousands of possible feelings. The brightness indicates how strongly the phoenix is feeling emotions. The brighter the coat, the more intense they are feeling whatever feeling they are feeling. With this, it was safe for Celestia to assume that Philomena was very pleased in that moment since her fur shone brighter than the lights in the hall.
"You know, I've always wondered what it'd be like if I had gotten my own phoenix like you did, sister. I've always thought about what it's like to have such a connection to an animal for so long. What's it like for you?" Luna asked, giving her sister a look of curiosity.
"It's just like having any other pet, only longer." This wasn't completely false; Celestia did really feel this way. But her actual feelings for Philomena was much more. The bird wasn't just a pet, she was family, and as long as Celestia has anything to do with it, she will always be family. It was a good thing everyone loved Philomena and her vibrant and attractive colors.
"I can only imagine," Luna said before departing. It was getting late and the Sun still needed to be set. That is probably where Luna was heading now, to begin raising the Moon for the evening.
Celestia gave one more look towards Philomena before following Luna. "Get some rest," she said, "you're gonna need it for tomorrow." And with a wink, Celestia was off to lower the Sun for the night and rest.
But Philomena had other plans. As soon as Celestia was about to close the door behind her, the phoenix shot through the gap and swirled around to meet the Princess' eyes. Celestia tilted her head. "What is it Philomena?" she asked. She tried to make sense of the noises coming from the phoenix - even after years with her she still couldn't make much of her babble - and that was the case now. "Would you care to help me lower the Sun? Is that it?" she tried, hoping that's what she wanted. The noises picked up; she assumed that was a yes.
Her assumptions were further reasonable as Philomena started flying towards the castle observation deck, where Luna and Celestia do their Sun and Moon rituals every day and night. Luna was already there, in the middle of raising the Moon already. Celestia made her way outside to the deck, Philomena still floating next to her.
The night was turning cold. A bitter fall night was brewing, the wind starting to howl, blowing a few leaves across the wood beneath Celestia's hooves. One got caught in her shoe, but instead of just plucking it and releasing it back into the night, she admired it. She could tell the leaf was a bright red at one point, thanks to the fall changing the colors of the leaves. But it wasn't red anymore. Now it was a dark brown, almost seemingly plagued by death, the edges of the leaf crumbling off as the wind hit it. after a moment or two, Celestia reached down to remove it, but as her hoof made contact, the leaf dissipated and flew off into the night like scattered ashes across the grave darkness that was the night. Celestia’s eyes followed the ashes out of existence, only losing her focus to her sister, who appeared next to her, “Are you ready Tia?” she asked.
As much as Celestia wanted to go, fly and find the pieces of the leaf and put it back together, she had a royal duty to uphold. “Indeed, Luna. Let us begin.” As Luna began to rise, she turned to look at Philomena. “You remember what to do, right? I know it has been quite a while.” Without delay, Philomena outstretched her wings, the fiery feathers stretching as wide as Celestia’s. Smiling, Celestia began her ascent towards the sky.
It’s as if a day hasn’t passed since the two have done this last. Philomena started to rise with Celestia, lining her body up with hers and resting just against the underbarrel of the Princess. Their wings began to intertwine, casting red and orange rings around them as they rose. Celestia could feel the heat from the phoenix’s body. She didn’t mind it; She has been through worse over her years as a Princess.
The Moon was at its peak, giving the signal for Celestia to lower the Sun. With Philomena there, the glow of her horn was not yellow, though, but a bright orange, the tip sparking in flames as she cast her aura around the Sun. She was sure anypony who was observing tonight was definitely getting a treat. It was definitely a light show.
Once the Sun was hidden from the sky, they began to lower themselves, slowly rotating as they did. Only when her hooves hit the ground did Celestia feel the heat disappear from her body and the crisp night hit her fur again. Philomena was swirling the Sisters happily, the sparks from her wings tickling their noses.
“That was quite a sight, Tia,” Luna spoke up, admiring the bird flying around, “I was impressed with the visual appearance. I do not believe I will ever see anything as graceful as that.”
“Well I guess that means that Philomena here will get a little treat before bed,” she replied, sending Philomena into a spiral of flames and excited noises. Celestia giggled, “C’mon you crazy old bird. It’s time to go back inside.” The phoenix flew through the door to the deck before Celestia had even taken another step. With a roll of her eyes towards the overly eager firebird, she made her way inside back to the dance hall where Philomena resided.
The lights in there were out now, only lit by the brightness of Philomena, who was flying circles around the chandelier when Celestia went inside. Celestia had always thought of phoenixes as gentle and majestic creatures, even though they could do an incredible amount of damage of given the task to do so. But now, watching her little firebird just float around a chandelier seemed to graceful to be harmful. Philomena was a good phoenix. She’s always been a good phoenix.
Celestia can only remember one time where the phoenix was forced to become hostile with another being. It was her first battle with Discord, the God of Chaos. Celestia may have been fighting valiantly, but she was no match for the overpowered Draconequus. She started losing badly, getting thrown left and right, her armor beginning to evaporate from her body. It was a losing battle, but Celestia refused to lay down and accept her defeat.
Philomena was with her at the time, but the phoenix did not get hostile until Discord hit Celestia hard, sending her flying into the side of the mountain nearby, the stone masterpiece crumbling and falling atop her limp body. It was a brutal scene, and Philomena couldn’t stand by anymore while her owner was being killed. The rage inside boiled over and she shot herself towards Discord, doing everything in her power to take him out.
By the time Celestia emerged from the rubble, more torn and shaken than ever, it was nothing but flashes of searing hot light coming from where Discord once was. Philomena, she thought. The phoenix wasn't letting up for anything, slashing and thrashing the enemy with precise strikes and flawless movements. I've taught her well. It served as the perfect distraction for Celestia to bring Discord down in that battle. And even though the two are on somewhat decent terms as of late, Discord still holds a large amount of hatred for Philomena, even though all she was doing was protecting her owner, which isn't her fault, but his.
Philomena has not fought in a battle since.
Celestia whistled a tune, making Philomena fly to her, repeating the same notes just played. "Good girl, Philomena. You've done great today. Maybe we can skip the training tomorrow? How does that sound to you?" Celestia asked, already knowing the answer would be yes, whether she could understand the phoenix or not. The bird began to buzz about, her coat glowing brighter than usual and filling the room with more light. "But don't expect me to go easy on you the following days. I think one day of leisure is plenty for you. We don't want our training to falter like before do we?"
Celestia always talked to Philomena like this, as if Philomena could produce the correct sounds to make words out of them and speak back to her. Some found it cute, others annoying. Regardless, it didn't stop Celestia. It was just something she adopted at a younger age, a few years after hatching Philomena. It's stuck with her since.
"But now I would like for you to get some rest, okay? You must be even a little tired after today," Celestia said, rifling through the phoenix's feathers as it landed on the table next to her. "You really did have an outstanding performance and I'm so proud of you, my little Philomena." She kissed the bird's beak, smiling as she nudged it to go to its perch to sleep.
"I love you, Philomena. I will see you tomorrow. Maybe we can relax together? I know I'm due for a little leisure time myself." Philomena flew up to her perch and pecked at herself for a minute before burying her head into the crook of her wings, indicating she was trying to sleep. "Goodnight, Philomena," Celestia said, closing the door.
"Sister? Sister, please wake up. I need you to get up."
"Mm, yes Twilight, you lift up to get to the clown museum.."
"No Sister, please!" Luna began to shake Celestia awake.
"H-Huh? Luna?" Celestia asked, her voice slurred out of grogginess. "Whatever is the matter?"
"Celestia it's.. It's Philomena. I need you to get up.."
Suddenly Celestia didn't feel tired anymore, but wide awake. "What about Philomena?" she asked, sitting up in her bed quickly, almost making Luna stumble backward from the speed.
"I-I'm not sure Sister, but it does not look good. She was not responding to me and I thought she would to you.. Please, let us go to the dance hall." Luna said.
Celestia didn't need to be told twice. Without hesitation in her step, she was up and almost galloping towards Philomena's room. When she got to the door, she stopped for a moment. "Luna, when I go in here, there will be nothing dreadful will there?" Celestia asked, turning quickly towards her younger sister.
"I... I cannot answer that question for you, Tia."
Celestia turned back and took in a long and steady breath, then opened the door cautiously. All seemed normal until she spotted Philomena, her beloved phoenix, lying motionless on the floor, no longer glowing a luscious amber red and enclosed in a charred ring of black smoldered into the tiling.
