The Dance of the Sun
The Sun in Gentle Repose
Princess Celestia always knew when she was about to die. It would have been so embarrassing otherwise. Much like the first time.
Dying was really such an inconvenience. Ever since that first unexpected occasion, she was constantly miffed that the times of her departures could not be known very far in advance. If so, she could arrange a place on the calendar, make arrangements ahead of the event, and such. She could even reliably acquire flowers for afterward.
Death always left a certain taste in her mouth that took days to go away. Roses helped a great deal, and the modern invention of ‘toothpaste’ had finally made the aftereffects mostly tolerable. Still, it was not worth making a fuss over something so simple that she was unable to change. Plus it had some advantages.
So when she felt the signs, Celestia made sure to write a note for her sister, left an extra candlenut in Philomena’s food bowl, and retired to her bedroom for the evening. Normally, the staff would abide by her request for privacy so she did not lock the door at night, but with Twilight Sparkle occupying the same chunk of space-time, it was a wise precaution.
It reminded Celestia that even though Twilight would probably not die for another decade or two, she really needed to have the whole thing explained to her first, or the resulting panic fit would be worthy of the history books. Maybe she could convince Cadence to pass along this special lesson on what it meant to be an alicorn. Of course, that meant Celestia would have to tell her first, yet another troublesome task that the immortal had been putting off until later.
Celestia added it to the things she needed to remember as she settled down in her bed with a toothbrush and a bouquet of hastily acquired roses on the bedstand for snacking on later. She relaxed her wings, put her head down on her lace pillow, and breathed in its fresh scent. It was always nice for the staff to—
And then she died.
The Realm of the Blessed Dead always felt new to Celestia’s senses when she emerged from the fog that concealed it from the rest of the universe. With every step, her heart beat faster as she took in the sky filled with a radiant moon and stars, glittering and dancing in the ebon veil to cast their light over a pleasant green pasture.
With a familiar occupant.
His coat shone silver in the moonlight, with just the faintest hint of yellow as if it had been gold some odd number of centuries ago and weathered as time passed. However, his sparkling blue eyes and his subdued smile had not changed a bit. It was a point of particular pride in Celestia’s heart that his smile only broadened when he spotted her, and the sparkles in his eyes glowed brighter with joy.
The stallion took a step toward her with his wings tented ever so slightly over his flanks and an eternal etheric wind blowing the wan colors of his pale mane over his back. Sparkles of light reflected from the vanes of his feathers as he strolled forward, matching her similar slow pace until the two of them were nearly nose-to-nose.
“Celestia,” he breathed. “Beg pardon for the nighttime surroundings. I was expecting your sister.”
She leaned forward and met his lips, allowing herself to flow into the long-delayed kiss which lasted far too short a time. “She has been freed, and returned to rule by my side, but it is not her time to be with you yet. Are you disappointed, Mortis?”
“Never. I am twice blessed, both with your presence and your news.” It was his turn to lean into their kiss, releasing a hunger inside Celestia that only her will could hold in check. After all, they had the whole evening before she was to return. A very short time together for their long times apart, and she was determined to make every moment count.
She broke off the kiss while she still could and fanned herself with one wing. “My, it has been a long time.”
“Indeed.” Mortis smiled in that quiet way that always made her heart beat faster, then stood up and gestured in the direction of his large home, a low-slung building of polished stone which fairly blended into the grassy hillside until it was difficult to tell where one started and the other ended. No towers or castles stretched up around them, or chattering of royal servants filled the air, just the quiet burbling of a stream winding its way through sculpted rocks which were surrounded by low green hillocks of sweet grass and the scent of mint.
His realm was so different than her own complicated home on the mountain, and yet its natural simplicity called to her soul. She was so enormously grateful that for one brief night out of so many, she was able to share it with the stallion who had captured her heart so long ago.
“My Lady, please come and dine with me. Nothing elaborate, of course, since I was expecting to celebrate Luna’s release with her, and she is far more interested in the stars than fine cuisine.”
“As you wish,” said Celestia, moving up to his side and strolling with him, close enough that their wings touched and their tails brushed against each other’s flanks. “After all, I am a guest in your realm.”
“A most honored guest, My Lady,” clarified Mortis. “Your beloved ponies all pass through my realm so rapidly that I only get a fleeting glance of their lives and their love for you and Luna. To be blessed with your radiant countenance, even for one brief evening in so many, is a gift beyond all others.”
“I’m certain you do not treat your other guests as well as myself and my sister,” said Celestia with a wink. “Elsewise, they too would return and compete for your affection. As it is, you will have two new repeating guests to prepare for, both my niece Cadence and my student, Twilight Sparkle.”
Mortis widened his eyes and slid into a warm hug, feeling almost like a furnace against her own coat which had cooled with the evening air. “My Lady! Extend my congratulations to your sister on the birth of her child, and for your student.”
Celestia could not help but giggle in his embrace, then nip lightly at his ear. “Cadence is not Luna’s child. She was a ward of the Crown who I adopted, and since then she has blossomed into a beautiful married princess of her own Empire, while Twilight Sparkle… Well, hers is a story that takes some telling. Not with you n-n-nibbling there,” she added as Mortis returned her ear-nibble, with interest.
His radiant smile returned when Mortis broke the hug and gazed into her eyes once again. “Very well, My Lady. As we dine, we can talk of things and catch up on the years since our last brief encounter. Perhaps this time I can entice you to dance with me?”
“Oh, no. I mean…” Celestia nudged an errant curl of her flowing mane back from over her eye. “I couldn’t. Really.”
“Someday, we shall dance, and I shall show you how wrong you are.” Mortis captured the hoof she had just used to brush her mane back and blessed it with a soft kiss, then gave her a mischievous look from under raised eyebrows. “Perhaps tonight?”
“Behave,” said Celestia without any sincerity at all.
For something that was not supposed to be elaborate, dinner was exquisite, a light repast of small dishes so delicious that she could not help but lick a few of the bowls, as well as nibble a few crumbs from Mortis’ lips as they exchanged kisses between stories. They rejoiced in Luna’s return, laughed together at the adventures of Twilight, and mourned those who had passed during their most recent years apart. Then as the meal was complete and the conversation slowed to a few words spoken at nose’s length, they made a slow but inevitable progress to a darkened dance floor surrounded by her favorite music drifting through the cool night air.
Despite her weak protestations, they eventually found themselves swaying to the music, pressed together as if they had become one pony with two hearts beating together. It was delightful, far better than she had ever expected in that wonderful evening, leading to… other things which a lady does not divulge to just anypony.
And she was very much a lady that night.
The Dance of the Sun
The Sun Ascendant
Returning to life just before the sun needed to be raised was always a little disconcerting. Celestia pried one eye open and regarded the relative dimness of the sky outside her window, then let her magic flow until the sun rose up and bathed the world in blessed light.
Part of her wanted to just pull the covers over her head and go to sleep until noon, while the rest of her wanted to rise up into the sky and sing until the entire city could hear how happy she was in her heart. The first would only panic the servants, and the second… well, ponies might get ideas about their solemn and calm Princess of the Sun. She snuggled down in the covers a little and giggled. They would be correct ideas, and the only regret that she had was the inordinately large amount of time until her next visit.
“Sister?” The quiet voice from the hallway distracted Celestia from her delightful memories and gave her a moment to straighten up her expression before the bedroom door gave a click of an unlocking spell and Luna’s nose poked inside. “Are you… back?”
“Yes, Luna.” She stretched, feeling the twinges and aches of her night of passion, then vanished under the sheets again. “Give me another hour or twelve.”
The sheets whisked away, and Luna favored her revealed sister with a wry smirk. “Nay, the sun is risen, so you too must rise to meet your responsibilities. Lie slugabed all day, and our subjects might think you have passed away.”
The sisters shared a giggle before Luna hopped up into the bed, shoes and all, in order to cuddle despite Celestia’s weak objections. They shared the gossip that Celestia had learned and talked of their trips to Mortis’ realm until the sun was quite high in the sky. Only then did they reluctantly emerge from her room when the sound of ponies scurrying up to the bedroom door and then scurrying away grew too frequent.
While they were walking back to the court, Luna took a moment in a less-traveled hallway to confess to her sister, “I must say, Celly, that I am glad that you told Mortis of Equestria’s newest alicorns. I would almost have thought you would be too caught up in his embrace to even speak.”
“Oh, we talked. A little. And we danced. As well as… other things this time,” admitted Celestia with a youthful giggle. “I almost think he is looking forward to your visit as much as he enjoyed my own. In a slightly different way, of course.”
“He always makes such a mess of the sky,” admitted Luna. “By the time I have it organized and we discuss the matters which have passed in my absence, it is nearly time for me to return. Besides, I prefer my romantic dalliances to take place for more than one evening every decade or two.”
“That’s your prerogative.” Celestia laughed again with her wings outspread and swirled around the hallway, drifting up into the air and landing gentle as a feather on the carpet. “Oh, I feel positively giddy. I want to take the afternoon off and do all of the things I’ve never done before.”
“The nobles will be aghast,” said Luna, as solemn as she could be with the smile she was concealing rather poorly.
“Let them,” said Celestia. “Come with me, Luna. We’ll dance across the mountaintops and race the wind down into the valley. It will be exciting, much as when we were young.” The newly risen Alicorn of the Sun paused in a wing-spread pose in the middle of the hallway, then settled back down to the marble floor and rubbed her back for a few moments. “Although we might fly a little slower than we did back then.”
It was Luna’s turn to laugh at that. “Oh, Sister. You are such a silly goose.”
Celestia gave out a loud honk that set several nearby guards into startled motion and made a servant drop his stack of paperwork awaiting signatures. While both alicorns laughed, Celestia swept her sister up and danced around the castle corridors, stopping only when they were so out of breath that they could not continue.
“We should continue our dance at this year’s Gala,” said Luna as soon as she could breathe again. “The nobles will certainly wonder what has gotten into you.”
“Again, let them wonder. For now…” Celestia’s magic swept open a nearby window, and she sprang to the sill. “Race you to the mountain peak? Onetwothreego!”
And all of Canterlot looked up with a smile at the sight of their princesses dancing through the sky, ascending until they could no longer be seen, although their laughter danced around the city for the rest of the day, and the night that followed.
