Repercussions
Twilight was falling upon Equestria. As Celestia, Princess of the Eternal Sun, released the last of her power holding the vast orb of life-giving light over the land, Luna, Mistress of the Moon and Stars, took reign over her domain, willing the moon into the sky.
The transition was the same as ever; as the sun, released from the magic holding it above the western horizon gently sank lower and the moon begain its ascent, the bright blues and yellows of the world faded to purple and orange, the first stars of the night sprinkling the far eastern horizon. The pegasi weather teams had coordinated the cloud placement perfectly tonight; puffy tufts sprinlked the western sky, slowly parting into the clear dark sky of the east. While gentle winds from the last of the day-shift weather crews blew them ever further towards the setting sun. The normally starkly white clouds now caught the last rays of sulight, turning them to a pearly pink and purple, haloing them in bright yellow, fading to a burning orange toward the sun, and softening to the muted greens and deep blues of the night.
The crowds gathered in Canterlot uttered a collective gasp as the Eternal Sisters smiled upon their work. This day and night, the first recognition of the perfect balance of day and night in over a thousand years, would be forever known as the first True Equinox.
Unbeknownst to either, it would mark the begining of one of the greatest tragedies in Equestria's history, as deep below the land, an ancient, unstoppable force stirred within its tomb of obsidian in a chamber of magma.
Chapter 1: Early-Night Ponderings
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With the pandemonium of the changling invasion over, and the wedding of princess Cadence and Captain Shining Armor over a month past, the sovereigns of Equestria had realized that nearly a year and a half had gone by since the return of Nighmare Moon and the redemption of Princess Luna.
Celestia was understandibly surprised by this. Time meant less to the immortals, and this was no different for the Eternal Sisters, so the fact that the Summer Sun Celebration had come and gone went unnoticed by Celestia, at least until she retired after the setting of the sun.
Her sister's hooftiwork was as beautiful as ever, and Celestia couln't help but smile as she admired the silently sparkling skies from her private balcony. She loved the warmth and familiarity of her day, but her sister's night was something truly special to behold. The silence, gentle darkness, and grace of the nights embrace was something she had struggled with during the time of her sisters banishment. She sighed as she turned to away from the beautiful sky. She had never truly managed to capture the grace that Luna seemed to radiate when she worked her art.
Celestia was mulling over these thoughts as she made her way to her bed. Her steps slowed to a stop as the pieces clicked together, and her mouth formed a small "o" as she realized what she had inadvertantly done. A single tear welled in her eye.
"Oh Luna, how careless I have been."
All thoughts of sleep dispelled, she turned and all but glided to the door, so gracefull were her steps. she stepped through the giant golden doors, and her Royal Guard, already standing proud and tall, snapped further to attention. Celestia chuckled gently. She had repeatedly insisted though the years that her guard relax in her presence, but they had always insisted that they maintain an air of rigid military bearing. No Princess, they argued, should be served by a bunch of loaffing layabouts in underpolished armor. And so the staunch and silent Royal Guard remained thus, the image of strength and dependability.
Celestia moved quickly and silently, despite her stature. Standing head and shoulders over most ponies, the bright alicorn was nonetheless as stealthy as her nocturnal sister when she wanted to be. She made her way to the castle forum, wherein lay the Court of Canterlot. There, the sisters would convene their respective Day Council and Night Court, the two sisters systems for handling the affairs and practices of law. Many ponys of all types clustered the forum, though not nearly as much as during the day, all talking in low, soft tones on various matters of state. As celestia began to move through the court, the crowd dropped to their knees in respect. As always, this irritated her. While Celestia appreciated admiration, she had grown tired of the reverent servility most ponies displayed in her presence. However, no amount of soothing assurances or barked orders would ever change this, so, as always, she took it in stride and continued toward her destination.
As she came to the doors to the Court Chambers proper, she was surprised to find the Night Court scibe, Inkwell, standing just outside, as if guarding the iron doors. Scrolls and books littered the ground at his feet. Inkwell bowed.
"Princess Celestia," he began, "How may I be of service, Milady?"
"Inkwell? Why are you out here? Hasn't my sister convened the Night Court yet?" Celestia asked, confused. It wasn't like her sister to be late for her court.
"No, milady," Replied the khaki colored stallion evenly. "She made an announcement to the court shortly after moonrise that Court was adjourned for the night. She said that we should take some time to 'enjoy her night and break from the mundane paperwork we normally surround her with,' to put it in her words." He chuckled "I am here to ensure any especially pressing matters are noted and handled quickly."
"And have there been any especially pressing matters?" Celestia asked.
"No, milady."
"Then why are you and all these ponies still here?"
"Milady?"
"I believe my sister gave an order. She asked you all to enjoy the night. Best do as she says." In a low voice, Celestia added, "My sister works very hard on her night sky. The least anyone can do is take some time from their busy schedule to appreciate just how beautiful the world is under her influence."
Straightening and turning to face the crowd, Celestia did not raise her voice, yet it seemed to carry and reverberate through the forum all the same. The murmuring croud quieted at her bright but powerful words.
"My dear and loyal subjects, you have been very diligent in your work throughout your days and nights. For that you have the gratitude of myself and my sister. And I'm sure that all of you have a great deal of responsibility and work to do. But all of you deserve a little time to yourselves. I believe that Princess Luna also made this clear. I would hope you respect her authority as much as my own. Please, take this night and relax. Do something fun with friends or family. And enjoy the night. So few ponies do. I don't want to hear of anyone else in the forum or Court for the rest of this night."
Turning away from the now frantically muttering and jostling crowd, she once again approached a rather flustered Inkwell.
"Milady, please. What if something were to happen?" He asked frantically, rebellious strands popping free from his carefully brushed mane and tail.
"Inkwell," Celestia said, adopting a soothing tone while restraining the urge to laugh at his comical overrraction, "I think this is exactly what Luna is trying to alleviate." She gestured with a hoof to the unicorn's mane. "The courtiers are far too stressed with things. We've had a lot happen in the last year. Please take some time and forget about these things for a time. The Courts will be here when you get back."
Inkwell looked longingly at the doors to the courts, then sighed.
"Milady knows best. I... believe I do need a little time for some rest. Writing the workings of the Courts has taken so much of my time..." He shook his head. "I almost forget about taking care of myself. Thank you, my Princess."
The crowd had nearly dispersed at this point, and Inkwell had begun to gather the papers and tomes scattered about him and stow them in his saddle pack.
"Of course, Inkwell." Celestia said, smiling benevolently. "Before you go, do you know where my sister is?"
Pausing in his task, Inkwell ignited a small aura about his horn and fished a small journal from his pack. He flipped a few pages to his most recent notes. Inkwell cleared his throat and recited an entry.
"'June 27, 1503 AD. 2236: Princess Luna Arrives 6 minutes late for Night Court. The Princess announces that Night Court is adjorned for the night, and orders all present to go home and enjoy the night. I expressed my concerns on the issue. The Princess rebuked me, ordering me to go buy a Apple Acres Sour Apple Reserve and stop acting like a "overworked paper addict and have a little fun." The princess then retired to her private observatory.'"
Inkwell then promptly closed his notebook, blushing slightly. Smirking slyly, Celestia leaned in.
"Something tells me you were paraphrasing."
The court scribe grimaced.
"Perhaps a bit," he said. "She was a bit more detaied on 'having a bit of fun' part."
Celestia dropped the smirk and smiled at the nervous stallion.
"I'd listen to her advice if I were you. That... particular part of a pony's life is part of her domain. She knows what she's talking about, and she actually feels a small portion of that passion whenever lovers embrace. It's part of why she is so passionate about the night."
The stallion looked at the Solar Princess with a mix of embarrassment and wonder.
"I never knew that. In its own way, its like a tribute to her, then?"
"Exactly. So, once more, please enjoy yourself tonight."
With a final bow and enthused "Thank you, Milady," the ever-dilligent court scribe packed the last of his documents and strode from the forum. Celestia watched him go, smiling. She sincerely hoped that the young stallion would take her words to heart. Very few appreciated Luna's domain.
That was one of the reasons for Luna's tragic transformation into the Nightmare so long ago...
No. No, she, Celestia, would not let that happen again. Her sister had been right. The world needed to see just how beautiful the night was. And she'd make sure that happened.
But first thing's first...
She needed to know what her sister was up to.
Celestia closed her eyes and focused, reaching into the flow of magic through her horn. The fey currents of the worlds lifeblood washed through her briefly before she directed it though her and towards the swirling cloud of glimmers and sparkles that was her sister's magical manifestation. Celestia's corporeal body flashed out of existence from the forum, and alighted itself upon the small platform within Luna's magically attuned astrodome. A faint, calm melody emanated from nowhere. At once joyful and tragic, it spoke of happy times lost and happy times to come. It was vaguely familiar to Celestia.
In the center, staring up at the surrounding heavens, stood Princess Luna herself, her horn and front hooves surrounded by stars as she swirled and rearranged them into new glimmering constellations. Flashes of her horn created ephemeral nebulae. Flicks of her hoof sent stars falling across endless expanse of space. And at all times she twirled and spun. Eyes closed, completely unaware of her new guest, completely absorbed by her task and passion, she danced to the melody, her work in perfect harmony with the symphony. Her mane fanned out, creating a beautiful cloud of twinkling darkness
Celestia watched, enraptured. She had seen her sister work her art precious few times, and each time took her breath away. Tears of happiness welled in her eyes to see her sister so hard at work and so passionate.
After what seemed all to short a time, in which Luna seemed to rewrite the entire cosmos, the music finally stopped, and Luna stopped her dance. Dropping to stand on all four hooves, she seemed to draw in on herself, then spread both wings wide, horn flashing. Beautiful green-and-blue aurorae burst across the sky, ribbons of light and color so beautiful, Celestia let out an involuntary gasp.
Luna whirled, horn igniting as she did so. The beautiful sea of stars faded away, leaving abolute, perfect blackness.
"Tia! What are you doing here?!" Luna asked, a mixture of anger and embarrassment coloring her words and dark cheeks.
Celestia backpedaled immediately.
"I'm sorry, Luna! I didn't mean to startle you, it was just so beautiful. When was the last time you did that?"
Luna blushed even deeper. Her words now carried a slightly darker tone.
"I think you remember."
Celestia did. It was the night before she had asked to have a whole day of night. The night before the argument. The night before the Nightmare. She lowered her head.
"I'm sorry, Luna. I'm... I can't say how sorry I am. Everything that happened between us is my fault. There really isn't anything I can say to make up for what happened between us."
"No, you can't."
Celestia recoiled, stung at the blunt response.
"But that doesn't mean you aren't my sister," came Luna's voice. "And no matter what, I love you."
She felt a pair of cool, strong forelegs enclose themselves around her neck in a gentle but strong embrace. Celestia broke down and threw herself into it, sobbing, apologizing, anything, to make the bitterness go away.
"It's ok, Tia. It's ok. You've been strong for far too long. I'm sorry I made you do that." Luna broke the hug and stood from her sister. "But we are together now. We've got each other's back's no matter what, right Big Sister?" And she raised a hoof and offered it to Celestia.
Celestia sniffled and looked up at her younger sibling. She smiled
"No matter what."
And she took the hoof.
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First chapter. Tell me what you think, please, and whether you want more or not. KTHXBAI.
