The Perfect Night Sky

by Twilight_Crow

Rating: everyone
Tags: Slice of Life, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Princess Luna, Princess Celestia, Twilight Sparkle
Length: 5730

Twilight learns a very special lesson about astronomy from Celestia.

It seems as if Twilight Sparkle knows all there is about the night sky. During a fateful astronomy exam, however, she learns that sometimes the most amazing things to learn come from her teachers, and not from a star chart.

This is a little tribute to 3 of my favorite Ponies and to all the team of MLP:FIM, those guys totally rule.

Original DA post featured on EQD.

Published 2012-08-04 21:04:03 UTC
Last updated 2012-08-04 21:04:03 UTC

The Perfect Night Sky

The Perfect Night Sky

The Perfect Night Sky.

a MLP:FiM FanFic.
by Twilight_Crow and PhilomenaSage
All My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic is property of Hasbro, Inc.

Young unicorn Twilight Sparkle silently stood in the open balcony of the astronomy tower of Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns. The city of Canterlot gleamed below, the sun almost setting in the afternoon.

“Any moment now.” she said to herself while trying to steady her breathing. She was nervous. She kept staring through the part of the day that was her namesake, anticipating.

Inside the tower room a door opened, and an earth pony came in. He had a sky blue coat and a deep blue mane, a pair of glasses on his nose, and a blue telescope cutie mark on his flank. He carried a box filled with papers and scrolls in his mouth.

As he walked into the room, he acknowledged the purple unicorn´s presence in the balcony. He stared at her quietly. Always early, always one step ahead, always prepared. He raised an eyebrow as he proceeded to leave the box on a table in the middle of the room.

He then walked towards a big crystal case in the back. The black telescope inside almost gleamed. Yes, this time he´ll use it, the best telescope manufactured in all of Equestria. The Princess would of course approve; it was her prized student after all. The pony grinned with joy; he had been waiting for an excuse to use this.

Outside, the time had come, and Celestia’s sun was magically sinking on the horizon.

Twilight gulped. Why was she so nervous? She knew Astronomy, all the stars, all the constellations, all its movements throughout the three hundred and sixty days of the year. She had already read every single book and chart in Canterlot… probably.

Most importantly, she loved astronomy. It was she who had asked Princess Celestia to allow her to add the subject to her classes. To her surprise, her mentor not only gleefully accepted, but had immediately got her student a brand new telescope, and by the next day her room in the castle was already filled with tons of material on the subject.

She laughed at the memory, “Yes, Princess Celestia loves astronomy,” she had her own observatory after all. And, In fact, Twilight had read somewhere that the Princess had influenced the creation of the science itself. That´s it, that was why she was so nervous.

Twilight had to admit it: unlike magic, astronomy was harder to learn for her. It had been quite a challenge at first. She put all of her effort into it though, and it had been totally worth it, not only because the topic was indeed enjoyable, but also because of the Princess.

She always seemed especially joyful every time Twilight discussed the theme with her, always more than willing to help her, always fascinated with Twilight’s long reports on it. She felt so lucky; the fact that she could consult the pony that actually 'put' the stars on the night sky, that was priceless, and it greatly helped her grades.

So yes, she was in fact nervous. Astronomy meant a lot to her and the Princess, and she wanted Celestia to be proud.

By now the night had come, the stars steadily appearing, the moon moving gently through the clear sky, the mare in the moon covering its face.

“Ready, are we?”

The voice of the earth pony snapped Twilight out of her thoughts, and she turned to look at him in a flash. “Professor Sky Gazer! Ugh… yes sir, I´m ready,” she said, an awkward smile on her face.

The professor laughed. “Relax, Twilight Sparkle. You know the night sky is not ready yet. Let’s start easy. You will complete these star charts I have prepared for you. Then, you will show me how to set a telescope properly. After that, we’ll look onto the stars.”

Twilight, just stood there, staring at him.

The professor cleared his throat. “You may begin now.”

“Yes professor!” said a very shaky Twilight Sparkle as she ran through the door.

Sky Gazer stood there for a moment longer, looking up at the sky. It was crystal clear, the stars shining brightly. “So, you tried too hard on tonight’s sky for her? Well, at least it will help her, no doubt.” And with that the professor entered the tower.

Once Twilight got inside, she immediately noticed the telescope out of its case, ready to be set, and a bunch of star charts and pencils spread on the table waiting for her.

Sky Gazer talked while entering the room. “Completing those star charts fully by heart will give you some extra credit. Keep in mind, however, that you only have a short amount of time to complete this assignment.”

Without another word Twilight set up to work, a pencil magically filling the charts already. Sky Gazer intently watched his student. He grabbed a notebook, holding it with one of his rear legs, and started scribbling on it with a pencil in his mouth.

A couple of hours went by before time was up. Sky Gazer wondered why the unicorn kept scribbling; he knew how good she was. It was simply impossible to think she had not finished yet. “Time’s up!”

Twilight dropped the pencil she had been holding with her magic and stood up from the table.
Sky Gazer slowly got closer and looked onto her work. He knew it, they were all complete… what in Celestia’s mane? Who asked for all that extra information? What´s with this girl; not even a proper astronomy student walks the extra mile like this. He didn’t show his surprise, but calmly wrote on his notebook while skimming chart by chart.

"Now, Twilight, it is time for you to assemble the telescope. Take your time. I will have questions for you once you are finished."

While the professor was still talking Twilight hastily grabbed the black telescope with her magic and ran towards the balcony, the telescope barely touching a chandelier on the ceiling. Her professor freaked out. “I said take your time… goodness be careful with that!”

Twilight slid on the floor landing on her haunches and then stopped. She smiled at her teacher and apologized. Sky Gazer composed himself. “Ehem, carefully… no, very carefully set the telescope outside, please.”

Twilight slowly moved the telescope outside and put it on the floor of the balcony before she noticed. “No way!” She turned her head towards her teacher, who was having trouble carrying papers and scrolls. She used her magic to help him right away, spreading the empty charts on the floor and putting the rest of the papers tidily beside him. “Oh thank you, Twilight.”

“Professor Sky Gazer, we are really going to use… this!... For real?”

Sky Gazer smiled and walked towards the telescope. “Indeed Twilight, we… ehem, more like you, are going to use the Made Lx2000, enjoy… but in the name of Celestia, be careful!” Twilight gave a nod. She looked at the shiny telescope and smiled.

“You realize telescopes don’t assemble themselves, correct? Go on, set it up.”

Twilight gave another look over the glossy black components of the telescope. It had two main parts to it. The first was the tripod designed to hold the telescope in place. Twilight magically unfolded the tripod and set it next to her. The second was the telescope itself. It was bulkier than the tripod; at the end was a concave lens that, in tandem with the other lenses, helped to magnify a star to a size more easily visible. Twilight used magic to safely remove the protective coverings guarding the lenses of the telescope from dust. She then mounted the telescope sturdily on top of the tripod.

“A little more careful next time, if you don’t mind? Anyways, good job. Now, let me start with some questions.” He grabbed his notebook one more time and read out loud. “Tell me, Twilight, what is the finder scope, and where is it located on the telescope in front of you?”

Twilight’s brow furrowed momentarily as she sought the information out. “The finder scope is a small, auxiliary telescope fixed on top of the main telescope and pointed in the same direction. It has a smaller magnification than the main telescope and aids in finding whatever celestial object the user is looking for.”

“Very well, you know your instrument well, it seems. Next question.” He read from his notebook again. “Twilight, on each eyepiece there is a measurement printed. What do these numbers mean?”

“Oh, that one’s easy,” Twilight replied. “The measurement on each eyepiece denotes the amount of magnification it has, and also its field of view. Eyepieces with a larger measurement are able to magnify the image greater and display a larger field of vision to the user.”

Easy? What is she, a living manual? Sky Gazer gave a little laugh. “Moving on then.”

Sky Gazer kept up with the questions, about the knobs and the lens, and the distances the instrument could take. Twilight answered each one of them with relative ease, completely focused on the task. It was a long quiz; nearly an hour passed before it was finished. Finally Sky stopped, scribbled a bit more in his notebook, and finished the interrogatory.

Twilight felt a lot less nervous now. The worst had passed. Now she had to use the telescope to find the stars, and that she did even in her dreams.

“Alright, starting easy: find me Orion. It must show complete, but focus specifically on Rigel.”

Twilight took hold of the telescope and instinctively used her magic to adjust the controls of the telescope, finding Orion and bringing Rigel into sharp relief. She tweaked the knobs until she thought it looked perfect, then stepped aside for her teacher to take a look.

Sky Gazer took a peek in the eyepiece. Disappointed, he lifted his head and gave Twilight a severe look. “This is really unfocused.”

Twilight thought for a moment. “No, I’m sure it’s perfect.” Suddenly she smiled at her teacher. With a bit of telekinetic magic, she took hold of Sky Gazer's glasses and carefully cleaned them with her fur, gently setting them back down on her teacher's muzzle.

Sky Gazer stared at her, eyes narrowed, then looked through the telescope again.

“Er, yes perfect... ugh sorry.” He took his notebook and wrote something on it, closed it fast, and went back to Twilight.

“Grab your pencil, we’re going to do the star chart now.” Twilight did as told, ready to follow her teacher’s commands. “This time you do have to write all the information on the constellations and stars I´ll ask for: distances, coordinates, colors, and properties of the stars.”

Twilight started working right away, charting Orion’s Rigel. She knew from now on she had to focus only on the stars her teacher mentioned; it would have been impossible to chart the entire night sky on one night.

Twilight located every constellation and star Sky Gazer told her, carefully taking notes about all the details. The seven stars of The Progenitor. The Lyra constellation, whose main star is Vega. Regulus, the tail of the Lion. Aponius, with its multicolored stars. Castor and Pollux, from Gemini. Hours went by; neither Twilight nor her teacher felt them. This wasn´t work, this was no exam, they were just doing something they loved.

Finally, Sky Gazer watched through the eyepiece one last time. There it was, Spica, from the Virgin Mare, looking beautifully and perfectly as close as the Made Lx2000 made it possible. Perfect, to the last one, this girl is supernatural! No wonder why she’s the Princess’ private pupil.

“Job well done.”He gave Twilight a reassuring smile and moved towards the chart where she had just finished scribbling. “It is over; now the only thing I have to do is check this last chart in more detail. Excuse me.” Twilight took a few steps away. Then the professor took his notebook and carefully examined the star chart, little by little.

There she went again, the nerves. There was nothing she could do now; it was up to her teacher. Twilight took some deep breaths and turned her head towards the sky.

And holy Celestia! What a sky! She had been so busy charting and watching through the telescope she hadn´t noticed the big picture: the night sky in all its glory. She was sure the stars were brighter tonight; it was so beautiful, so perfect. Twilight smiled, and for a moment she forgot about everything, letting her eyes wander, finding all the stars again with ease, just for fun, embellishing on it who knows for how long.

“So, how did it go?”

Twilight knew that voice, and its sound made her smile wider, if it was possible. She immediately turned towards the balcony door. “Princess Celestia!” The filly walked towards the big, white alicorn pony, her beloved teacher, and let her hug her neck gently. “Twilight Sparkle, my faithful student. I couldn't resist the temptation to come and see the results of tonight.”

“Welcome, Your Majesty.” Sky Gazer bowed before the Sun Princess. She gave a small nod in return and spoke to him. “My dear Sky Gazer, tell me, how did my pupil do?”

Sky Gazer stared into his notebook. “Well, I could lie to you and tell you that she did perfectly, but...” Twilight ears sunk for a moment. “The fact is that she got a hundred and fifty points on an a hundred point exam, so... what do you call that? Overperfect?”

“YES! Yesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyes!” Twilight jumped around the balcony as happy as she could be, until she noticed Sky Gazer’s stare. She quit jumping and smiled at him, a little blush on her cheeks.

Princess Celestia candidly smiled. “I’m glad my student has left you with such a good impression, Sky Gazer.”

He gave the Princess a nod. “What can I say? She is good.” He turned to face Twilight. “Keep up the good work. I’m sure you’ll go far.”

Twilight was beaming. “Thank you, Professor Sky Gazer, for everything. Oh and thank you Princess Celestia for tonight’s beautiful night sky!”

“Ah, do you like it? I hope it helped.”

Sky Gazer gave a big laugh. “Indeed it helped, Your Highness, but I’m sure it would have been the same results with any other night sky. If anything, it made things a bit faster.”

Twilight didn’t notice any difference during the test, but she did notice the stars a bit brighter just a moment ago. “I’m not sure how it helped, but I do like tonight's sky. It’s wonderful, Princess.”

Sky Gazer laughed hard again. Twilight didn´t find anything funny. She stared at the Princess. She was still smiling, however, and when she did talk it was as if she was telling a joke. “What? You don´t like my night sky, my friend?”

“No,” was Sky Gazer’s answer.

Twilight’s eye twitched. She couldn´t believe her ears. “Uh but... What!?”

Sky Gazer gave her a smile. “Well, all the stars are shining too much, and even worse they are shining the same, except for a few. There is no balance at all, and that is just the obvious mistake.”

“Huh!?” Twilight was dumbfounded. Mistake? MISTAKE? How could anypony not like this night sky? How could anypony dare to say that Princess Celestia made a mistake? But, most importantly, why was Princess Celestia still smiling? And... laughing?

The Princess was indeed chuckling, before she stopped and gazed back to the sky. “Oh my, they are indeed all the same; too bright for sure. Forgive me, I was enthusiastic for Twilight's exam tonight.“

Sky Gazer got closer to the Princess and stared to the sky the same way. “I guessed that was the reason. Do you want to guess what else is wrong?”

The Princess looked back at Sky Gazer, her smile transformed into a smirk. The astronomer pony gave a sigh. “Please look at Scorpio, my Princess.” There should be no doubt; Celestia knew where each and every star was, at each and every day of the year. She didn´t need to look for Scorpio, she just looked at it, and stared for a while.

“Oh I see...!” From below her wing a multitude of small papers flew toward her face, all magically moved by her. The Princess looked through the papers, until she found what she was looking for; then she looked at Scorpio again. “As I thought, twenty four degrees farther... that’s not bad. I can´t believe you think that is a problem, Sky Gazer.”

Sky Gazer sighed again. “Oh no, it’s not; actually that one looks good.” Sky Gazer give a little smile to Celestia then proceeded. “The problem is that all the other constellations and stars are methodically on place. This sky is just a giant grid with the stars fitted right in. There is no harmony between them. Of course, having a grid helps finding the stars a lot faster, and when it’s given to you this naturally, what can one do?” Everypony just kept staring at the sky. “So, what would you say this night sky is, Your Majesty?”

“It’s methodical and cold,” she answered as she lowered her head for a moment. Sky Gazer nodded. “That’s right, just like the day we met.”

Celestia wasn’t smiling anymore. She just stood there staring to the sky, the small papers still floating around her. She actually looked a bit sad. Twilight had been trying to understand the conversation, but she had remained quiet; they were both her teachers, and they seemed closer than she thought, so she respected their conversation. But she couldn´t handle the sadness of the Princess, even if it was slight.

“Princess Celestia, are you alright?”

The princess look at her, her serene smile reappearing almost instantly. “Don´t you worry, my dear Twilight, I´m fine. I just discovered that, in my attempt to create a wonderful sky for you tonight, I... well, first I tried too hard. Second, I used my cheat notes far too much, and third, I forgot to use my imagination.”

“I... I don´t understand Princess, just a little ago I was just thinking this night sky is the most beautiful I’ve ever seen, so bright and lovely, I even thought it was perfect, how could it be cold?”

Sky Gazer had started gathering his stuff, his notebook already tied firmly around his neck. He was readying himself to call it a night. Seeing as the Princess seemed to be taking too long, he decided to answer Twilight’s question himself while clearing the balcony from papers.

“Twilight, first thing, there is a matter of taste. I think you are just the kind of pony who´d just like this sky. Nothing wrong with that. Second, all of the night skies you’ve ever seen are like copies of another painting.”

Twilight stared at Sky Gazer. “What? What painting?”

“Well you see, Twilight Sparkle, I´m not only an astronomer, I’m an artist as well. I´ve always loved painting, and as you may imagine, the favorite theme of my paintings is the night sky. What happens when you want to paint something you can´t see? You have to either use your imagination, or copy another painting of it. And if you choose to copy another artist, and you try to fit every single line drawn and brushed given by him, you end up with a subpar work that will never match the original and will carry no value. It would be cold and empty. However, if instead you choose to give that work your own touch, and dare to use your imagination, even if you are copying someone else’s work, it will be a tribute, and it will, at least, be something special and different.

“I’m speculating here, but do you see all those little papers surrounding our dear Princess? I think those are notes on an original painting, and every night, Princess Celestia does us the favor of copying it into the sky canvas, the best she can.”

“I try hard, but like tonight, sometimes I fail. In days like this, your paintings give more justice to the night than my ‘copied sky’,” said Princess Celestia.

Twilight turned and looked at the Princess, the small papers still surrounding her. She just smiled at Twilight and Sky Gazer.

“I fear I may be losing it again Sky Gazer, that artistic view. I must do something about it. I´ve never been a natural artist, and I never will be. But my little ponies deserve a beautiful night sky. Thinking clearly, there’s been years since the last time we got together to paint and talk about art. Would you have time for it, perhaps next week?”

“I do think I’m done with my teaching labors by then. It would be an honor, Your Majesty.”

“It is settled then. I´ll send you a proper invitation, once my assistants clean my agenda.”

Sky Gazer smiled at the thought. “Very well, have a good night, Your Majesty. And congratulations again, Twilight Sparkle.”

The earth pony got into the tower, put the flaming black telescope back in its case, and went out the tower’s room, leaving the unicorn and alicorn alone.

Twilight was the first to speak again. “Well, that was interesting. Professor Sky Gazer knows more about the night sky than I could ever imagine.” Then she noticed the princess returning all the small papers to their places under her wing. Twilight was very curious, and the Princess knew her enough to answer her questions before being asked.

“These are like my proper kind of star charts, cheat notes that carry information in a way I can easily retrieve and understand. No, they are not as important as you think, at least not now.”

“What do you mean?”

“Long ago, when I took it upon myself to recreate the starry night sky every night, I made the notes to aid myself. They, and my memory, were all I had to work with. And let us say it took some time to learn the places, colors, brightness and distances of all the stars, but I think that is something you know by experience.”

“Ah of course, but now you know them all. Why do you still use those notes, Princess?”

“Just in case I miss some detail. Details can be forgotten in the big scheme of the night.”

Twilight again turned her head towards the sky; it still mesmerized her. “You know, Princess, even if it is just a copy, and even if it’s just because I personally like it, I think this is my perfect night sky.”

“Don’t say that,” Celestia replied.

Twilight turn around to look at her teacher with sad eyes. “Why not?”

“Because I know you, and I´m sure if you ever get to see a perfect night sky, you would agree it is far better than this.”

“Have you seen a perfect night sky, Princess?”

“Yes, I have.”

“What is it like?”

Celestia closed her eyes, trying hard to remember. “It’s like a place to explore. Even if you look at it twice, it’s not the same. You may be surprised by shooting stars, and your eyes can easily create your own constellations with the stars, to a truly magical effect. Sometimes the sky looks like it’s covered by a dome and the stars appear to be closer. In the perfect night sky, it’s truly impossible to look beyond the captivating stars. It has no order, but it is harmony. Layer after layer of bright colorful stars, all shining differently, some beating as hearts. It is an image engraved in my mind... and is much, much more than pretty.”

Twilight looked at Princess Celestia with disbelief. “It sounds... amazing! How can that be possible?”

“Don´t ask me. There´s been a while since I gave up recreating it. I just can´t. Only the original artist can.” Twilight stared, her eyes wide in amazement, the Princess an unreadable mask of patience and wisdom.

“There is an original artist? Didn’t you create the original night sky?”

“I told you. I am not an artist so, obviously, no.”

“Then who did?”

The princess turned around and looked at the moon, mostly hidden behind the mountain that supported Canterlot. “Someone long gone and long missed.”

Her words were not sad, but melancholic. Twilight knew her teacher, and immediately felt that pressing the topic wouldn´t do. Those words were all that the Princess was willing to share with her on that matter. “Princess Celestia, that perfect night sky you mentioned must be spectacular, but I still like your nights, they are beautiful.”

Princess Celestia beamed at Twilight. “Why thank you, Twilight Sparkle. That makes me really happy.” The Princess gently nuzzled Twilight. She just smiled back, then gave a sudden yawn.

The Princess gave a little laugh. “Oh my dear, I think is time for you to go to sleep.”

“Uhg, yes, I do feel tired, and I have lots to study tomorrow.”

The Princess raised an eyebrow. “Twilight, I think it is all right for you to take tomorrow off,” a subtle tone of a scold in her voice.

“Uh? You think so?” Twilight scratched her head. “I guess I could. I may go to the library and find a new topic, I think I haven’t studied... the moon, yeah, I’ll get a copy of The Total Guide to Tidal Waves and Their Terrific Regent. Been wanting to read it.”

The Princess’ eye gave a twitch, but then just sighed. “Not what I had in mind, but... if it makes you happy.” Being awake so late at night was finally getting to her.

Twilight’s mind was already racing towards the idea of learning something new, questions sprouting in her head, excitement in her face. “Yes, It will be very interesting, and after I read it, you could tell me how you figured out about the moon making tidal waves.”

“It wasn´t m... er, sure Twilight. I’m glad you are willing to learn about the importance of the moon.”

Twilight hugged her teacher one last time, and directed herself towards the room. The Sun Princess, however, stood still. “Princess?”

“Uh? Oh I think I’ll stay a little longer. Somepony told me the sky was beautiful tonight.” Twilight laughed. “Goodnight, my faithful student.”

“Goodnight, Princess Celestia,” and Twilight left the tower.

And so, Celestia was left alone with her thoughts and her “poor impression” of the original night sky.

The perfect night sky. Celestia closed her eyes, remembering. She felt afraid, yet eager at the same time. The emotions that sprouted during tonight’s conversation help the eagerness win, and so, in her memory, she walked down a dark corridor, in another castle, in another time...

Tia!...

She was tired that night too, but also stressed; during those old days she was always stressed.

Tia!...

That voice... she missed that voice. But that night it sounded like someone screaming in her ears.

TI-A!

She didn´t want to stop. She didn´t feel like dealing with her little sister.

“I finished it! I finished it!”

Celestia gave up and stopped walking. “Tell me that what you finished is the tax reform.”

“Er... no, but it’s almost finished. You’ll have it by the morning.”

She slowly turned around. “Then what is it, Luna?” Can´t you see what time is it? And if it’s this late and I’m awake it means I hadn´t finished all I have to do; thus, I´m busy!” Princess Celestia was a mess. Her eyes were puffy and red, her expression the total opposite of calm, of her usual self. She was indeed as stressed as can be.

“Precisely!” answered the smaller and younger dark blue alicorn now standing before her, a shy smile on her face. “You need a break. Aaaand I have just the thing.” She cleared her throat, and smiled widely. “Tia, I finished the night sky!”

Celestia just stared. “You finished... mmm what does that mean?”

“It means I did it, the perfect night sky! Not only I do not need to add any more stars, but I also found the perfect balance in light and color. It’s finished!” The moon princess seemed so happy she could prance.

“Really?” Celestia showed an insincere smile. “Well good for you. Now that you have decided to stop playing with the night, maybe you can help me a bit more.” She started to turn around, ready to leave.

Luna stopped her, holding one of her rear legs with her hooves. “Tia please, I´d like you to see it, and you could use the break and the night air.” Luna look at her, the sweetest puppy eyes anyone could imagine.

Celestia was stressed, fed up and tired, yet she still loved her sister. A moment of peace. ”Alright, alright, but just for a minute.” Luna jumped up in cheerfulness and glided towards the nearest terrace, crossing a large hall. Celestia followed her.

Celestia slowly walked outside to the terrace. She indeed felt the night air refreshing. She looked at Luna; she was standing tall, a proud smile in her face.

Then she turned her face towards the night sky. “Okay, I´m watching.”

It was indeed glorious. It seemed alive, as if the sky could breathe, the stars shining and tinkling, it was overwhelming... or would have been had Celestia not had that many things in her mind...

Here I am, watching at the stars...

She wasn´t going to sleep tonight, she knew it, she hadn´t finished reviewing the harvest reports of all of Equestria´s towns. It was a big ordeal, but she had to do it. Who else would?

Stars, shining all together...

And the artisans guild were complaining about lack of material, she needed to write a letter to Stalliongard right away, then she will have to go there to make sure nopony was slacking.

Oh... together they look quite nice actually...

Wait, what was she doing? She had no time for this. She had left the education reform unfinished; she didn´t know enough about education and had to study. Reforms didn’t write themselves.

I need to stop staring at this... seriously... enough!

Celestia forced herself to stop watching. She looked at Luna, offered her a smile and said “Pretty,” then turned around and walked inside the castle.

Luna frowned deeply, it took her a second before following her sister. “But Celestia, you barely saw it.”

The big sister turned around, lowered her head, and came face to face with her sibling. “Luna, your night is pretty. What else do you want me to say? Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a lot of things to do. And you know what? You should totally go and finish that tax reform now.”

She walked down the hall, and into the corridor, then something nagged in the back of her head. She turned around and saw Luna siting on her haunches, her head as low as the floor. She stared at her sister for a moment and felt bad. Maybe she should go back to her side. It was at that moment that something bumped into her, scrolls flying all over the place.

The brown pegasus pony apologized over and over, while she picked all the scrolls with magic. Of course, this had to be harvest reports... wait, weren’t those already waiting for her in her office? She opened the first scroll. “Saddleton... where the buck is that?”

The pegasus pony decided to answer her Princess. “Near the western board, Your Majesty. All of these reports come from there.”

Of course, the new western settlements... “Horseapples!” She had forgotten those, and now she was so far behind reading those harvest reports she´d be lucky if she could sleep by next week. And of course she had to use magic to read them because it’s dark... wait! Ideeeeeea!

“Luna!” she screamed to her sister, who was still sulking on the other side of the hall. “Luna, I need you to lower the moon earlier tonight: four o’clock will do... could you, please?”

From who knows where, Luna managed to gather a small smile. “Sure sis’, whatever helps you.”

“Thank you!” shouted Celestia, while rushing away, carrying all the scrolls with her magic.

The younger Princess’ smile disappeared in an instant. She turned around and sulkily walked back to the terrace. It was a quiet night. Everyone slept, what else could they do? They worked so hard during the day, no one had time to watch her night sky... not even her sister, and that hurt the most.

Princess Luna cried.

In the astronomy tower, Princess Celestia cried. She was an imbecile back then, and a terrible ruler; after that it only got worse. Still, Luna was always there for her, but she was never there for Luna. Then Luna finally tried to stand up for herself, and everything went terribly wrong.

She looked up at her messy night sky. She wiped her tears and stood tall, resolution on her face. Tomorrow she will do better, tomorrow the night sky will be a tribute to her sister’s art, a tribute to her sister’s brilliant mind, that mind that even after her banishment still kept aiding in making Equestria a better place day by day.

After all, who figured out tidal waves? Who thought of a three hundred and sixty-day a year calendar with shorter days in cold seasons and longer in the hot ones? And who wrote such a good tax reform that Celestia have barely had the need to change it in a thousand years?

It´s almost a thousand years. Celestia smiled; she had to have hope. Her sister will come back, and by then all the ponies will love the night sky, as most already did. Luna will raise the moon again, and there will be a celebration just for her, and this time everypony will stay awake to see the perfect night sky.

Author's Note

The Background conceived for this story has been written.

A/N:Thank you to my cowritter and editor PhilomenaSage (~lunaticpsychoflare on DA), for being awesome, and digging out astronomy stuff.

Thanks to our prereaders: Tails86, Xkhaos, Minilicious, Objection_Blaster, Donth8theplaya. For their opinions and help.

And Thank you for reading, hope you enjoyed, even if a bit.