Rediscovering The Sun

Chapter Three

The day following their excursion to the bay found Celestia alone in her house, doing a bit of tidying on her own behalf. She knew she could do it via magic, as Luna often reminded her, but the idea of doing it with her own two hooves rather than just magical will felt more fulfilling. The dusting rag followed along the windowsill, moved by her magic, the alicorn humming an idle tune to herself. The sunlight outside peeked through the blinds, letting her see the neighborhood outside. It was quiet, and Celestia felt a pang go through her form from head to hind leg that had echoed since that morning.

It was quiet because he wasn’t in the room.

Luna’s teasing hadn’t ceased with her leaving; instead, she’d been cheeky enough to drop an envelope by the house while Celestia had still been sleeping. Somehow, she’d gotten a few photographs of the two walking together, one of the photos being with her wing around him as they went. Celestia’s cheeks had burned from the photo proof, as well as Luna’s scribble under the photo, reading: ‘Tis a nice photo of a lovely couple, is it not?’

Burning the photograph would only have given Luna more credit, she felt. So she instead stuck it on the mantle and did her best to ignore it.

The subject continued to trail after Celestia’s thoughts as she continued, stopping at the small wood-carved table that sat under the window to sit down for a moment. She let her stare wander upon the tiny grooves and nicks of the carved wood while her horn lit up, the photograph hovering back into view for her to look upon. Sunburst’s smiling face, looking up to her while she was looking back at him, the pair talking about Sunburst’s time while helping at the school in Ponyville. They could’ve been honestly discussing anything, she reasoned, and she’d have still looked that happy in his presence.

Lowering the photo and resting her head in her forehooves, Celestia felt her body give off a cross between a shiver and a pulse centered in her barrel and spreading throughout her, all from the thought of the unicorn. Did it make her strange, to feel attraction towards the stallion? Would it not be strange for anypony like her to be suddenly so struck with such a fixation? She was a Princess, a pillar of history and society who’d seen the development of the kingdom from scattered tribes to a united population. Such figures tended to be without such wants. But did those titles hold true any longer, now that the crown was no longer upon her head?

She looked at the photo again.

‘Tis nothing to be shamed by, dear sister.’

“Would there be anything without the magic’s influence?” She murmured aloud. “Or would I be left alone to wonder?”

“To wonder what?”

Celestia jumped in her seat, turning to the doorway. Her heart leapt as the very subject of her thinking was standing there at the doorway, closing the front door behind him and bearing a small brown bag. The alicorn could make out the tips of carrots peeking out from the top of the bag, shuffling as he walked in.

“S-Sunburst. I thought you’d said you were going to be away today, checking in on Ponyville and the Empire.”

“Oh, that was the plan. But then I remembered: I’m a unicorn!” He said with a chuckle as he set the bag down on the side of the table opposite her. “So instead of needing to physically go there, I just made use of a long-distance contact spell to reach them. Twilight showed it to me once where she projected herself onto a smaller object to communicate. Of course, I didn’t want to be a pirouetting pony, myself. Starlight was pretty surprised when her paperweight started talking to her.”

Celestia nodded before looking at the bag. “And what might this be?”

“This,” Sunburst gave the bag a small tap, causing an onion to roll out over the top before he caught it with a sheepish look and put it back, “is some ingredients for a lunch. I thought maybe it’d be nice to eat in and cook for you.”

“I was unaware you could cook, Sunburst. You surely don’t have to, if you feel obligated or-”

Sunburst’s raised hoof cut off her train of words, the unicorn only offering a confident smile. She only hoped she wasn’t blushing. “It’s not an obligation or anything. I wanted to do something nice for you. You’ve been treating me out all this time; what kind of guest would I be if I didn’t repay my host somehow?”

Celestia would have been more insistent, but curiosity and...other emotions, kept her from doing so. “Only if you’re wishing to. I’m hardly going to complain about somepony offering to cook for me.”

“Well, I wish to. So, there’s that.” Sunburst declared before chuckling, drawing another smile out of the alicorn. “If you’re hungry now, I could get started?”

“Certainly. I was just tidying up.” She replied before her eyes shifted to see the face up photo of the two resting on the table. A quick glance back to Sunburst saw that he hadn’t noticed it, prompting her to slip it under the flower vase on the table with her magic when he looked about the room. “Lunch sounds delightful.”

“Great! I’ll get started. You can come with me and watch if you want, or relax here. Either way’s fine.” He told her before going into her kitchen. A moment’s pondering kept Celestia seated until she chose to follow him, curiosity itching to see what he had in mind to make.

The kitchen wasn’t an overly large room, altogether, but there was enough space to let Sunburst work while she sat to one side near the window. The view of the town beyond the house added to the charm of the house, the lifted blinds allowing sunlight to pour in over the tiled floor and whitewood countertop. Sunburst undid his cape, letting it hang on a nearby rack by the door before slipping on a nearby apron. Well, he attempted to; he neglected to account for it being Celestia’s size and was left with the front trailing against the floor even after tying it twice.

The alicorn couldn’t help a small giggle at the sight, before Sunburst joined her in laughing and undid the apron. Without that or his cape to cover him, Celestia could better look upon his form. In her experience, unicorns typically favored a body type that echoed their habits of using magic over physical might. There would be small bits of fat that would cling to one’s barrel, neck, face, even the flanks. But Sunburst was a stark contrast. Celestia’s trained eye could see muscle, firm but not unyielding along his barrel and legs. Did he exercise?

“So you were wondering something, you said?” Sunburst asked. His back was to her now, a knife moving beside him to work at chopping up an arranged tray of carrots into neat little slices. “What was it?”

Celestia was unsure how exactly to politely explain to the unicorn it was him she was pondering on. It wasn’t rude, but still…

“O-oh. Well. Just...a personal thought or two, really.” She replied, keeping it vague for the time being. “Sometimes I lose my focus amongst my thoughts.”

“I can understand that. One moment, I’m studying the dialect of a forgotten civilization, trying to understand how to make their sentences work like ours. Then I’m wondering if they had sentences at all. Then I’m asking about grammar, and who came up with it, and why.” Sunburst spoke as he finished chopping the carrots up and moved on to the onions. “By the time the train’s stopped, I’m asking how I got to a debate on a teacher’s salary being a basket of apples versus oranges, and why they didn’t arrange for a substitute.”

Celestia let her imagination wander to the image of a studious Sunburst hard at work, and found it fit him entirely. “You’re quite the learner, are you not? You must be in your position.”

“I like to think that I just try to learn as much as I can as best I’m able. Some days I only get to really learn a little, but it’s that crucial little that can make a whole lot of things click together.” He replied.

Celestia rested her chin on her forehooves, the two pressed together to cradle her as she observed him. She let him work in peace for a few moments, his words floating through her mind and shuffling her thoughts around until she spoke before she could stop herself.

“Sunburst, do you think I can ever be like a normal mare?”

The query made the unicorn’s chopping motions slow, and he cast a look over his shoulder to the alicorn.

“How do you mean?”

“It’s...hard to explain,” she told him, “but it’s something that’s been itching at my mind of late.”

The tap of metal on wood persisted, staying consistently slow while Sunburst listened. Not hearing him reply prompted her to continue. “I’ve been a Princess for so long, ruling over the kingdom. Watching for threats past the horizon, trying to keep so many on a course of fortune and wellness. But it made me into this...well. This.” She gestured at herself with a forehoof before sighing. “And sometimes I think to myself that it’s all I’ll ever be. The Princess. The Ruler. But not...a mare.”

“Sounds like it’s a heavy thought for you.”

“As one who lifted and lowered the sun and moon for a thousand years, I certainly can agree to that assessment.”

Sunburst nodded. “And now that you’re here, the crown behind you, you’re thinking you’re still stuck with it on sometimes, right? Like you might wake up and suddenly, there it is.”

Celestia’s gaze settled on the back of Sunburst’s head as he spoke. “...yes. That’s surprisingly close.”

“Class dunce.”

The phrase was from so far out of left field, Celestia had to ask. “Come again?”

“That was me. Way back when I was a teen colt.” He told her, sliding the now sliced onions aside with the carrots. He turned the sink on with his magic and began washing the green vegetables he was going to work with next. “We had a lot of nicknames on the playgrounds and the hallways for everypony. Some of them were funny. Some were nice. And some, not so nice. I was the class dunce, because I could never get my magic to work the right way I wanted. I could study the spell, figure out the theoretical work, solve its inner workings and know it inside out. But performing was where I always stumbled.”

He turned the sink off and sat the greens in the large bowl he’d plucked from under the counter earlier. He could’ve used his magic, but instead used his knife to make sure they all got in the bowl properly. Celestia continued to listen.

“It stuck with me a lot. Harsh words and nicknames stick with a teen a lot more than we think. As adults we always say to the youths that ‘words can’t hurt you’ or any variant of that little nugget. But words can hurt. We see it as adults as much as we did while we were all kids and wondering who could swing the highest on the swing set, or run the fastest. Or in my case, who could perform magic properly and who couldn’t, for whatever reason. Fast forward to now, and I can still hear it clear as day.”

“But you’ve come so far since then. Look at you now! The you that you were then is not the you that you are now!” Celestia said.

“You’re exactly right. Royal Crystaller, Vice Headpony of the School of Friendship. And still a class dunce,” He told her, “in some ponies’ eyes. But they don’t get to decide what or who I am. I decide that. So I can’t perform magic the likes of which Starlight or Trixie or Twilight can do. That’s just one avenue of my life that I have to accept as part of me. I still decide who I am and what I am. Not anypony else.” Sunburst turned away from the counter finally and looked at the attentive alicorn with a smile.

“You get to decide how and who you want to be, Celly. It’s your choice. If you want to be a mare like anypony else who enjoys the little things, things like gardening or traveling or whatever appeals to you, then I say go for it. Be a mare. Heck, be the best mare you can be. You’ve got the brains, the ability, the looks. You know tons of mares see you as the pinnacle of beauty, right?”

“Do you?”

“Well. I’m not exactly a mare you know.” he replied, chuckling as he turned back to the vegetables. There was a tear of plastic, and he poured some croutons out into the building salad.

Celestia persisted. “...but do you think I am?”

The question gave Sunburst pause, and Celestia feared she’d pushed it too far. She shouldn’t have exposed her lack of confidence before him like that. It was too personal.

“Are you sure my opinion’s the one that matters?”

“It...it does to me. Right now.”

There was calm for a few more elongated moments before Sunburst looked back at her again. In his expression, his shyness showed in the color rising in his cheeks. But when she met his gaze, he didn’t look away.

“W-well. In for a bit, out for a bag they say.” he muttered before clearing his throat. “Yes. To answer your question. I think you’re...you’re very beautiful.”

Celestia’s heartbeat quickened, but she steadied herself. “Is it the Princess who is beautiful? The one in the stained glass windows, and the history books?”

“Yes and no.” He scrunched his muzzle in thought before speaking slowly. “Yes, because...that’s still you. But no, because that’s not the you that you are right now.” He paused and rubbed his cheek. “...that came out weird. Look, what I mean is,” he stepped over to the table next to her, and looked up at her again, “you being you right now, just Celestia. Celly. That’s somepony I think is very lovely.”

“Why?”

“Wh...why?” Sunburst almost scoffed, “You’re...you’re amazing! You’re radiant. Your smile can light up a whole room. You laugh and the world seems brighter for it. T-there’s all kinds of reasons.” He sputtered for a second before finding himself. “I-I’m not the best with this kind of thing. I’m not...I’m not a smooth charmer. But if you’re asking for a judgment call on your looks, trust me; you’ve got nothing to worry for. You just have to be you; that’s all you need.”

The smile upon her muzzle was ever-growing the longer Sunburst went on, taking delight in his mixed reaction of earnest sincerity and bashful awareness of who he was talking to. But through all of it, she knew he was speaking from his heart. His appraisal hummed in her ears, and she sighed as the tension of her worries left her, like a weight from her shoulders.

“Thank you, Sunburst. Truly.”

“Y-you’re welcome. Just uh...you know. Very lovely. All of you.” He mumbled out before returning to the countertop. “There was...some old term I remembered. Ancient texts of flattery and praise for you and Luna I found once.”

Celestia tilted her head while listening. “Oh? Do tell.”

“It said...oh, what was it?” He muttered under his breath, reciting ancient ponish while she waited. “...Callipygous. That’s what it was. You’re callipygous.”

It took all of three seconds before Celestia started laughing, making Sunburst almost drop his knife before setting it on the counter. “W-what? Oh, don’t tell me I actually just insulted you in the old tongue.” He asked.

“No, no,” she reassured him, “but I’m very flattered you think I have a generous and healthy backside.”

Sunburst’s entire face lit up like a lit ember, and she laughed once more as he stammered through numerous apologies. She, of course, reassured him that he caused no offense, and the atmosphere of the kitchen stayed light for the rest of the lunch. Sunburst was still a touch sheepish as he joined her for the salad he’d created, but she enjoyed his presence no less, his words still rolling around in her mind. Two things did stay more prominent than the rest though.

He had meant every word he said to encourage her. Which means he really did think of and see her as not just a Princess, but as a mare and a living breathing being like he was. And he didn’t deny that he liked her rump.

After lunch, Celestia had continued to chat with Sunburst in the living room, discussing more of the findings he had of the tome he’d brought to her. As it turned out, the book was one of several different tomes that each involved magics particularly keyed to a species of pony. Unicorns and Alicorns were obvious enough, but magic designed specifically for Pegasi and even Earth ponies was fascinating to consider. They stopped their discussion when Celestia noted the time, as the sun was lowering on the horizon thanks to Twilight’s guidance. The small wobble it still gave as it sank down only made her feel humored by her student’s learning.

With Sunburst away, the house was quiet again, leaving Celestia to ponder on what to do with her evening. Her wandering hoofsteps brought her back to the kitchen, the memory of their earlier discussion making her smile. Turning about the room, she paused at seeing a spot of color she didn’t recognize amongst the wood colored furniture, only to realize it was Sunburst’s cloak that he’d left behind by accident.

“Silly me. We were so busy talking, I forgot he left this up here.” She told herself before plucking it down and holding it up with her hoof. The material was incredibly soft, surprising the alicorn given how much he wore it to just about anywhere he went. She moved back to the living room, still holding onto the cape and debating on how to return it to him. Absent-minded, she lifted the cape up and nuzzled it against her cheek, making herself stop when she realized what she was doing.

Idle curiosity tugged at Celestia’s mind, and she looked about the room before her horn glowed and the door to the house was locked shut. The blinds were drawn as well, leaving her in a darker living room that was shifting from the ambient glow of the sunset to the luminescent shine of the rising moon. Nopony could see her right now. It was just her, alone. She lifted the cape up and sniffed it, taking a deep breath of the cloth where it would clip around his neck.

She shivered. Amongst the smell of parchment and ink was the hint of cologne, a subtle fragrance intermixed with the smell of stallion on the cloth. Her whole body trembled, and she took another breath in. Her body fell back against the sofa cushions as it washed over her, a sensation of want growing within her. A feeling of desire.

Lust.

Warmth surged in her middle, spreading down to her nethers as well as up through her chest as she continued to inhale Sunburst’s scent left on his cloak. Each inhale was like oil upon a growing fire that was burning within her, making her breathe deeper of Sunburst’s scent as her hoof wandered aimlessly along her prone form. Her mind’s addled imagination saw the hoof as Sunburst’s hoof, exploring the curves of the alicorn’s body. He’d slip through the fur of her chest, the fluff and softness giving way to her barrel, a slow circle forming at her midriff and making her whine. Her wings were twitching behind her, yearning to reach out to an invisible lover to pull them closer. Celestia’s eyes closed as she nuzzled the cloak again, thinking for a moment of it being Sunburst’s chest, small but firm against her cheek.

Her hoof’s contact with her teat made her shudder and her eyes opened again, gazing down her barrel to her wandering touch. This was so...so...dirty, to be doing this in reaction to merely Sunburst’s scent upon his cape. But she couldn’t stop herself; a shuddered moan escaping her as her hooftip circled around a hardening nipple, a tease but also more fuel to the flames. Would Sunburst like her teats? They were fitting to her larger form, more ample than a normal mare’s. She prodded and even tugged a little at them, thinking of him nipping at her buds like a thirsty colt for a mother’s milk.

Another deep breath. Sweat was forming at her brow and running down her neck as she worked herself up. The heat was throughout her now, making everything feel almost sluggish, languid. Her hoof circled the other teat before it slipped down, coming across wet, soaked fur. Further exploration had her gasping as she came into contact with her swollen, needy marehood. Her gaze stared down to where she could see herself touching her nethers, heat rising in her cheeks. This was dirty, for a princess to be doing this.

But...if it was Sunburst doing it…

Her hoof carried on with the idea, tugging at her mound and pawing at it to bring more sparks of pleasure. Thinking of it being him touching her, exploring her, made her throw her head back and allow the cape to rest under her chin and on her neck. She rolled onto her back, hind legs spreading as her second hoof, now freed, came to join its sibling and worked at pleasuring her. The pair worked in tandem, leaving Celestia to bask in the ecstasy of such efforts upon her form. Luna’s teasings before came to mind: stallions galore all had dreams of a night of debauchery with her. Could Sunburst be one of them?

Her hooves dug in deeper, reaching into her entrance and prodding at her folds enough to make a moan escape her lips. The alicorn’s hips wiggled, trying to beg for a deeper touch from the image of Sunburst in her mind. He’d oblige, and she moaned again as her hooves reached deeper still. She was flowing down there, she imagined, no doubt staining the couch with her sexual essence. Sunburst could wash his hooves in it, it felt like, or maybe he’d want a closer look. He could lick her clean and drink straight from the tap, a thought that made her back arch a little as her pussy winked from the thought. Her scent would be all he’d breathe in, the lustful arousal flooding his senses as much as hers.

Her hooves let go of her marehood as her horn glowed, magic working to form a long, smooth tube at her nethers. And when he was aroused enough, unsheathed and throbbing in need, he’d...he’d…

Celestia cried out as the magically formed dildo penetrated her, sliding into her with ease as she clamped down on it. Her breathing was ragged, catching in her throat before she exhaled as the dildo withdrew, then started to pump in and out of her. For all her renewed might, Celestia was powerless in denying the carnal delight of her actions, envisioning a lustful Sunburst taking out all of his wants, his yearnings upon her hungry snatch. Another dose of magic added to the scene, a faux pair of balls attaching themselves to the base of the magic toy stimulating her. The air was soon mixed with the audible slap of balls against ass as the pace quickened.

“S-Sunburst...oh, Sunburst, claim me! Take me!” She whimpered to the ceiling, eyes closed as she rode out every thrust her imagination saw him give. He worked himself into a frenzy, huffing and groaning above her as he laid claim to her marehood’s depths. It was too much to handle for Celestia. She cried out again, and her whole body seemed to tighten before stars exploded behind her eyes, a wail of ecstasy leaving her muzzle as her orgasm crashed into her. She drove the toy into her and held it there, thinking of him flooding her with his seed as he clung to her. Her juices squirted out onto the sofa around the toy, dots of moisture left on the fabric and darkening where they fell.

The orgasm left her mind numb, the alicorn all but collapsing against the sofa as her magic ceased. The only sound in the room now was her gasping breaths, Celestia’s eyes opening finally to look up at the ceiling. She envisioned that she looked a mess now, and would surely need a bath to freshen herself before bed. But more prominent than that was the still smoldering need for the stallion that she’d been thinking of, the one who’s cloak she picked up and held against her cheek, breathing in his smell again. Her hoof traveled down to her nethers again, a slow and loving stroke caressing her folds.

“Sunburst…”