Chapters Author's Note
Celestia's character has long been a subject of interest to me, so I couldn't help jotting this down when an idea came to me, even though I really shouldn't add more unfinished stories to my plate. Updates will probably be sporadic.
Prologue
Luna had time to think whenever there was a lull between dreams that needed tending to, even as she kept her vigil over all of them. Recently, as an indirect result of Starlight Glimmer's aid, she had been thinking about her sister's well-being. While the friendship problem with her sister had been resolved, being in her horseshoes had opened her eyes to more than just what her sister had to deal with on the surface: the incident with Daybreaker had given her insight into a potential personal problem.
True, Daybreaker had been a creation of Starlight Glimmer's mind, borne of her own fear, but she could certainly imagine what such a fear could be based on. Daybreaker had been rather brazen, after all, which was far and away from her sister's public face, so it was plain to see where the identity came from: contrary behavior. Unlike her sister, Daybreaker was immodest, self-centered, and didn't care about holding back the potential of her power or its usage. She wasn't what her sister wanted to be but couldn't, as the apparition in Starlight Glimmer's dream may have suggested, but the shadow cast by the facade that her sister had built for her role.
That shadow made her realize that, even if her sister did not do battle on those specific fronts, that did not mean that there was no internal struggle behind the facade, either because of it, for it, or both. It shamed her to think that she did not know and could not tell what troubles her sister had, if any actually existed, and she feared that her sister's true self had assumed most or all of the mask that she had worn for a millennium. If only she had more freedom, herself, to spend time with her sister and discover who she truly and fully was...
She couldn't, sadly, and her sister did not seem keen to open up all that much to anypony — as far as she could tell. That brought her to her latest idea, which consisted of providing a place in the dream realm where her sister would be beyond the kind of scrutiny and rumor that she tried to avoid as a princess, and thus feel free to be herself. The desired privacy would extend to herself, as well: not only because she would not have been a reliable presence anyway, what with her nightly responsibilities, but also due to the thought that it would be more likely for her sister to open up to someone whose experience with her couldn't find its way to anyone on their world.
The challenge wouldn't be contacting someone in another dream realm, but in having the time and opportunity to do so. Given that most of her free time was random in both timing and duration, opening a portal to another dream realm multiple times would be draining, which could spell disaster if there was an emergency. On top of that, it would make it difficult to observe prospective companions for her sister. Basically, if she wanted to provide help to her sister any time soon, she would have to select someone who was merely adequate instead of perfect.
At the very least, though, her pick would need to have a good character; she wasn't about to introduce her sister to someone that would mistreat her or be a bad influence. Their appearance would need to be familiar and relatable, she felt, but that was easy enough to achieve since the manifestation of one's self in the dream realm was mutable. On that note, they would also need to be female, in order to avoid any complications that a romantic relationship would bring — and because the thought of her sister getting into an intimate relationship ignited a strong need to be protective of her.
Hopefully it wouldn't take too long, or be too hard, to find someone who could keep her sister company while she dreamed.
Chapter 1: A Meeting of Minds
Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter. Celestia's biological clock roused her from sleep at the usual time, but it was with an unusual amount of purpose that she got out of bed to perform her duty. She planned to discuss Empyrean with her sister, after all, and intended to do so right after she raised the sun.
Once she was ready to leave her bedroom and present herself to the world, she made her way to the balcony doors. When she drew the curtains aside with her magic, she saw that Luna had chosen to wait for her outside. She was facing the moon, which was brushing the horizon, but she looked over her shoulder to acknowledge her when she heard the doors open, then turned her attention back to the fore and began to lower the moon.
Celestia made it to Luna's side by the time the moon could no longer be seen, at which point she took hold of the sun and raised it into view. She turned her attention to her sister when she was done, who couldn't entirely hide her apprehension, no doubt expecting her to be against her idea.
"I have some questions," she began, not wanting her sister to stress over her intentions any longer than necessary.
Slightly relieved, but still a bit tense with worry, Luna drew herself up and prompted, "Yes?"
"What do you know about Empyrean?" Celestia levelly asked. "Why did you pick her?"
Not sensing that her sister was upset, Luna calmly replied, "I don't know much. To save time trying to find the perfect candidate, I did little beyond manipulating her dreams, to conduct personality tests and using the results to acquire a profile. I chose her because I found her personality acceptable, as well as finding her pleasant to talk to once I engaged her directly."
Celestia digested that before inquiring, "Did you learn anything about her personal life?"
"I didn't think it relevant," Luna admitted. "I watched a few dreams before I intervened, and from those I gathered that she might be directionless."
"I see," Celestia responded, understanding that her sister was comparing Empyrean to a pony who had yet to attain their cutie mark. She looked down at the city of Canterlot and thought about that, watching the stirrings of morning activity as she did so.
Wanting to know the reason for the questions, and the lack of any complaint, Luna queried, "Why do you ask? Is something the matter?"
Celestia didn't answer immediately. She couldn't help thinking about the opportunities that Empyrean presented to her, which would certainly tempt her if she offered aid where others had not — or had and failed. After weighing all of the factors on a scale, she turned to her sister and said, "I've decided to accept this arrangement with Empyrean."
"Truly?" Came Luna's surprised reply.
Turning about to leave, Celestia suppressed a smile as she explained, "She is in need of aid, and I'm in a position to provide it."
Luna barely began to feel relief and triumph when shock snuffed them out. "What? B-but—"
"Since she looks like a pony," Celestia casually continued, as she began to walk toward her room, "it'll almost be like attending one of our own subjects."
She knew it was a bit mean, but the irony was simply too good to pass up. That, and she hoped that it would discourage her sister from meddling any further. She appreciated the concern, but there were certain things that she was determined to do on her own, and in her own way.
As she left her speechless sister, she began to think about the topics that she could bring up with Empyrean while she helped her out. It would be nice to have something new and interesting to talk about, and the best part was that she was certain that it would be safe to indulge in.
Celestia found herself in the throne room once again. Rather than think about that, she got up from her throne and walked down to the floor, where she would wait for Empyrean's arrival. Hopefully she would also appear in the same place, so they wouldn't need to look for each other.
She wasn't sure how much time had passed when Empyrean arrived, but the wait had felt a bit long. Understandably, Empyrean was a bit confused as she took in the familiar surroundings. When Empyrean's attention fell upon her, the human-turned-mare remarked, "I thought I wouldn't be seeing you again."
"I changed my mind," Celestia responded, with a slight smile. "It seemed like you could use a vacation while you slept, and I'm not adverse to facilitating that."
Empyrean stared for a moment before shrugging and saying, "Well, if that's the kind of thing you like to do, I'm still willing to oblige."
"It is," Celestia confirmed, secretly appreciating Empyrean's shrewdness. "I happen to like helping my little ponies, so pretending to do that here — despite not being so little — is," she smiled with some amusement, "well, a dream."
"Are you sure?" Empyrean asked, just to make sure. "You're not going to burn yourself out doing what you enjoy?"
Celestia shook her head. "I'll be fine. So," she closed her eyes and focused, "let's get comfortable and have a little chat."
The world around them became a blur of motion and color, which quickly resolved itself into a new place. It was the conservatory that Celestia had pointed out to Empyrean while she had been showing her around the palace gardens. The inside was mainly occupied and decorated by plants, for the pleasant smells and relaxing atmosphere, and there were multiple lounging areas to accommodate for the time of day and whether one wanted to be in the sunlight or shade, as well as having a view of the grounds outside. In the middle of the conservatory was a sizeable fountain that added to the audial element of the atmosphere, which was the area where they were currently located.
She focused again and a low table appeared nearby, in addition to two large cushions for them to lounge on at opposite ends of it. On the table was a tea set, with steam wafting from the spout of the teapot, which was there for mood and distraction rather than for slaking thirst.
While Empyrean looked around and admired her surroundings, Celestia eased herself onto the cushion nearest to her and casually said, "To start, exactly how much input did you have in your appearance? I've been wondering about that."
Empyrean settled onto the other cushion and unconcernedly replied, "Oh, just the colors and the hair. It's not like I know anything about a pony's," she paused to recall the word that she was looking for, "physiognomy, so I had no problem with Luna handling everything else."
Nodding her head, Celestia queried, "And what inspired you to make the choices that you did?"
A brief look of realization crossed Empyrean's face, who had no doubt figured out that Celestia was trying to learn more about her character rather than trying to find any fault in Luna's actions. "Well, grey and silver are my favorite colors. And your sister's hair reminded me of the camping trips I used to go on in my youth, so I thought it would be neat to have hair that's based on the flames of a campfire."
"It looks warm and inviting as one as well," Celestia complimented, causing Empyrean to look away self-consciously. "Do you still go camping?"
Empyrean shook her head and evenly replied, "These days it's hard to motivate myself to go out anywhere. I kind of got into the habit of staying home to save on fuel, when times were particularly tough, and it felt easy to continue that when I could save money instead of limiting my expenses." She shrugged her shoulders. "Eventually I noticed that I just didn't have much interest in anything outside of my home. When I have some free time, I usually spend it on the Internet, watching movies or playing video games."
While Celestia was curious about the things mentioned in Empyrean's final sentence, she put that aside for a more relevant subject. "I thought you were open to doing new things?"
Turning her head aside, Empyrean rubbed the back of her neck and replied, "I am. It's just, uh... different here, like this. It's hard to explain, but I don't feel... I think world-weary is what it is."
After carefully thinking about it for a moment, Celestia offered Empyrean a look of sympathy and said, "I think I understand. You don't feel tethered here, by your circumstances or the usual worries that you have about your actions and behavior."
"More or less," Empyrean conceded after a slight bit of hesitation.
Noting that she had hit upon a sensitive subject, as well as one that was a bit too close to home, Celestia abandoned that tangent and tried to lighten the mood. "Well, I'm here to help and offer you a break, if you don't mind spending time with an old mare like myself."
Grinning wryly, Empyrean said, "I can't tell how old you are, so I'll have to take your word for it. Beyond that, I guess we'll just have to see."
Taking that to mean that Empyrean had accepted her offer, Celestia smiled and prompted, "In that case, is there any particular place you'd like to go to, or activity you'd like to do?"
Empyrean furrowed her brow and ruminated for a while, at times emoting with her mouth and eyes as she considered ideas. She eventually came to one that lit up her face before she could restrain herself. After some hesitation, she finally revealed what was on her mind. "How do you feel about an entire island made of cake?"
Chapter 2: Feeling Things Out
Celestia joined Empyrean at the door and said, "Allow me," as she stopped by her side and opened the door for her.
"Thanks," Empyrean acknowledged.
"One moment," Celestia spoke up, causing Empyrean to pause with one leg raised. "Did my sister not give you time to learn about your body?"
Empyrean shook her head. "Not really. She said that you could help me with that, to add to the things that we could bond over."
"Oh?" Celestia voiced, a little amused by Empyrean's candidness. "That wasn't part of a secret plan?"
With a shrug of the shoulders, Empyrean unconcernedly revealed, "I never indicated that I was on board with that either way: just that I understood what she wanted for you and that I was willing to help." She cocked her head a bit and added, "I mean, it wouldn't feel right to be someone I'm not in order to help someone else be themselves."
Celestia hummed her agreement. "And I appreciate the transparency." She offered a slight smile. "The least I could do is offer to be your tour guide."
With a cocked eyebrow, Empyrean quipped, "Is that your dream job?"
"Truthfully," Celestia levelly started, as she turned her gaze toward the open doorway, "I would rather be the one being guided on the tour."
Empyrean was silent for a moment, placidly regarding Celestia, before offering, "I could show you some places from my world, if you're interested. Your sister said that I can project my own environment with your permission."
"I'll consider it," Celestia granted, giving Empyrean points for not persuing personal information with her bait. She then proposed, "Perhaps while I show you the castle?"
"Sure," Empyrean accepted, who brightened a little. "I've never thought about touring a castle before, but — then again — they weren't the kind found in a fantasy setting, either."
As Celestia began to lead them out of the throne room, she inquired, "What makes this a fantasy setting for you?"
"The magic," Empyrean immediately replied. A few steps later, she looked over at Celestia and lightheartedly added, "And intelligent, talking horses, I suppose."
"We're ponies, actually," Celestia gently corrected. "Though we are closely related to horses."
"Speaking of differences," she continued, as she glanced down at Empyrean's legs, "your gait looks very natural. Were you able to practice?"
Empyrean kept her eyes on Celestia as she responded. "A little. Your sister recommended that I not think about how my legs operated, and it worked out after a bit. If I wanted to do more than walk, I'd have to learn from you."
Nodding her head in understanding, Celestia said, "Well, you're welcome to assume your human form if that is more comfortable for you. To be honest, I'm curious to see what you look like."
"I agreed to use this form exclusively for the duration of this arrangement," Empyrean evenly informed Celestia. "But don't worry: I consider this an interesting opportunity, and I'm sure I can get accustomed to this body if given enough time."
Celestia wasn't sure if the unspoken question was intentional, but had to put the thought aside when Empyrean continue to speak, saying, "Of course, your sister cast a spell to ensure I maintained this form, so I can't be human even if I wanted to be."
Stopping in her tracks, Celestia regarded Empyrean with a questioning look as she came to a stop as well. "That seems a bit excessive."
"Nah," Empyrean replied, with a light shake of her head. "Like I said: your sister wanted a peer. Without proper attention, though, I would revert to what my self-image was, and she wanted all of my concentration on you."
Celestia studied Empyrean with a measured stare before observing, "You seem rather easygoing."
"Not usually," Empyrean sheepishly admitted. "Life and all that."
"Oh?" Celestial casually encouraged Empyrean to elaborate, even as she motioned for them to continue walking.
Having stopped ahead of Celestia, Empyrean waited until they were abreast before moving forward and answering, "Yeah. Just the usual stresses of trying to make ends meet, trouble finding time for myself, and other people making things more problematic and complicated than they need to be."
"I see," Celestia responded, not knowing what else to say.
"How about you?" Empyrean ventured, with an expression of curiosity on her face. "Is the grass any greener for a princess?"
"Don't you know?" Celestia said with a slight, playful smile, who wished to evade the subject concerning the problems that her sister thought existed. "You're a princess, too, after all."
Empyrean stopped walking and blinked her eyes in befuddlement. "Huh?"
Amused by her reaction, Celestia paused and explained, "Alicorns, who possess the traits of pegasi, unicorns and earth ponies, are princesses."
"There are different kinds of ponies?" Empyrean inquired. Upon receiving confirmation, she said, "Huh. I was under the impression that there were only alicorns, although my name for them had been 'pegacorn.'"
Catching the portmanteau, Celestia asked, "You are familiar with pegasi and unicorns?"
Empyrean nodded her head. "From mythology and fiction, yeah."
"Interesting," Celestia opined, as she began to walk again. "Is that why you're comfortable in an alien body? It's familiar?"
"Partly," Empyrean acknowledged, as she clumsily caught up with Celestia. "Mostly, though, I'm just really open to new things right now."
Celestia thought on that in silence, not willing to ask anything too personal just yet. It did give her an idea, though, so she eventually suggested, "Let's take a little detour."
She led the amenable Empyrean to a nearby balcony, one that she had made more use out of in the past few years. The doors to the balcony were already open, and the curtains drawn, so they were unimpeded as they stepped out into the sunlight. Stopping at the railing, they were afforded a view of the countryside, and in the distance was the river valley where Ponyville resided.
Empyrean closed her eyes as she inhaled through her nose, held her breath for a second, then exhaled with a contented sigh. "I can't remember the last time I got to enjoy something like this. The view is really picturesque, and the air is so crisp." Turning her head to regard Celestia, she queried, "Is this how it really is? I'm not used to dreams feeling so real."
"Mm," Celestia hummed in the positive. "When my sister creates a domain, you're not strictly in a dream state anymore. I've lived in this castle for hundreds of years, so the details and sensations are particularly strong."
Empyrean's eyes widened as she blurted out, "Ponies can live for hundreds of years?"
"That's right," Celestia replied, before tilting her head and venturing, "I take it that humans don't live that long?"
With a shake of her head, Empyrean said, "We're lucky to reach a hundred."
Celestia saw an opportunity to get a better understanding of Empyrean's character and decided to do a bit of probing. "Would you like to have the lifespan of a pony?"
Empyrean blinked her eyes, caught off guard by the question, then pursed her lips and furrowed her brow in thought. When she was ready to answer, she deliberately said, "Probably not." Turning her gaze back to the countryside, she continued in a more casual manner. "I'd prefer a shorter lifespan if the overall quality of life continues to suck for whatever reason. And I can only assume that I'd be decrepit and dependent even longer in old age, which I wasn't looking forward to as-is."
Celestia considered Empyrean in silence, wondering if she was simply being candid or trying to make a play on her emotions. With so little interaction and time to observe her, she couldn't tell one way or the other. For all that she knew, her sister could have specifically picked Empyrean to play upon her heartstrings, so she wouldn't turn her away outright.
She didn't want to jump to any conclusions about anyone, particularly any that cast someone in a bad light, so she decided that she would confront her sister and find out what she could about the situation. Regardless of what she learned, though, she was sure that her sister wouldn't care for either of the two choices that she would make.
With her decision made, she turned to Empyrean and asked, "Are you ready to continue the tour?"
"Sure," Empyrean replied, seemingly unbothered by the spell of silence that had followed after her last statement.
