Nine Hundred Years of Longing

Chapters

One Day
Day One: Dusk
Day One: Dawn
Day Thirty Thousand Six Hundred Sixty One

One Day

Celestia glided across the crumpling bridge to the Tower of Time.

Her hooves landed at what remained of the front entrance. Muted white stones rose from the ground before her, climbing higher and higher till they split around a small opening. Orange light flowed from the paneless window. Day clashed with night on the conical roof above it, their battlefield its splintered green timbers. Celestia returned to the ground and the battered iron frame where a door once rested. She entered the tower and began her ascent up the spiral staircase within, never seeing a silver moonbeam cut through the darkness behind her. Celestia did see the shadows cast by her lit horn, bouncing off the carved steps and dancing on the drab walls.

She came to a small landing at the top and found a studded oak door slightly ajar. Through the narrow opening she glimpsed a figure hunched over a blackboard. Colored etchings littered the coal black surface, but from this angle the scribblings appeared fractured and indecipherable. Hushed murmurings came from under the faded brown cloak the figure wore. "The stars will aid in her escape…" Celestia gently knocked and pushed the door open. The cloak turned at the noise and he saw her standing on the threshold.

"I've gazed upon the flame of Hearth's Warming, but you are the hottest thing I ever laid eyes on," remarked Clover.

Celestia snorted at the old greeting and proceeded into the room. The tavern in Trottingham where they first met had reeked of stale ale and burnt hay mixed with the sickeningly sweet stench of chocolate rain. The tower’s chamber, however, smelled of chalk, fresh scrolls, and a crisp autumn night. Star Swirl's mirror and oversized hourglass had been moved to storage. The center was now occupied by a large table; an empty water skin, loose papyrus, a bamboo abacus with jade beads, broken quills, carved wax tablet, and a bronze orrery littered the top of it.

"Did that line ever work on anypony?"

Clover scrunched his nose when he thought. Age had dulled his vibrant green coat. Wispy strands of graying hair rested on his head, the bold yellow streak in his mane had long since gone completely white. "No,” he admitted, a small smile crept up his face, “not even with my wife. She told me, 'I know Clover. I was there,' then laughed at the shock on my face.” Celestia laughed at that too, not unkindly. “One night, and one apology drink, later and we got to reminiscing. We ended up talking till dawn." His smile spread further and the years washed away in its wake. “I look forward to speaking to her again, some day."

Not soon, she hoped. Silly philander that he used to be, his flame was a great comfort in dark times. Thank Harmony, Luna intervened before I knocked his drunken head off. She always kept me from making the worst mistakes. The thought sent a stab of guilt through her chest. She pushed past the pain and refocused on her friend. "Until then, I brought these for you," she said, glad her voice came out calmly.

Avoiding the cluttered table, she moved to the desk in the corner. Using her magic, Celestia slid the beeswax candle and its brass holder aside to make room. Water zested with lime sloshed as the pewter pitcher and cup settled on the wooden surface. Steam rose out of the clay bowl of oatmeal drizzled with honey and a pinch of cinnamon.

Clover eyed the meal indifferently, “That’s very kind, but I ate this afternoon.”

Celestia regarded him with a highly dubious look. “I see no food scraps around, the bridge is still broken from the battle, last I checked the castle scullions can’t self-levitate, and you haven't been sighted out of this tower in two whole days,” she listed. "Pray, where did you acquire this meal, Purgatory?"

“Two days.” Clover had learned to keep the shock off his face, but there was a flash of it in his sage eyes; however, it was gone before Celestia could even fully notice. “Well, it seems like I lost track of time in this tower,” his lips curled slightly.

The raise of her royal eyebrow had broken countless jabbering diplomats and at least half a dozen warlords. It also worked well against a certain friend who should have been more clever.

Clover sighed. “Fine, I… work better when I’m famished,” he shrugged and tightened the braided drawstring around his neck. One of the bronze aglets got caught in a gap in the wool. He quickly gave up on retrieving it, shaking his head. “I shall eat shortly, but first, I believe I’ve dithered long enough,” the wrinkled patches on his weathered cloak flattened as he stood as tall as his old frame would allow. “I have something for you as well,” he announced suddenly solemn.

Celestia resisted the urge to stiffen at the shift in tone, instead, she gave one sure nod and approached. He shuffled slowly aside and pointed his hoof. Following the aged limb led to the blackboard she loathed. Months had been spent bashing her head against its black depths; alone, writing and rewriting a litany of futile equations. Until the day Clover walked into the throne room and offered his services. Now at the very bottom, past all their depictions of the moon, fragments of sentences, and arcane inscriptions, was an M circled in white chalk.

Her eyes widened at the Romane numeral. “Days!?” Faded green fur blew back with the force of the question. Celestia didn’t notice, too consumed with the sums racing through her mind. The smile came unbidden. That means her banishment ends in a few-

“Years,” he answered grimly. “On the day of the thousandth summer solstice to be precise.”

Celestia blinked. The room blurred in a haze of light and shadows. She felt not the breeze through the open window nor the beating of her own heart. Only the hiss of the candle broke through her stupor; it wrapped around her ears and plunged inside her mind, strangling all her thoughts. She shook herself loose after a minute. Faced with crushing reality, Celestia fell back on the thing she was best at. “Could you be wrong?” she argued.

"Perhaps, divination is a tricky thing, but we-"

“Perhaps you forgot something?”

Clover’s mouth formed a thin hard line. A chill entered the room that had nothing to do with the night air. Celestia winced internally upon realizing what she had said and to whom. “As I’ve attested repeatedly, the memory stone did not permanently affect my mind. Every piece that witch took I got back,” he replied bitterly, eyes sullen in the candlelight.

Some familiar part of Celestia wanted to quarrel, to stem the tide of her sorrow with blazing anger, if merely for one pointless night. She had recently realized there was a different path; it was long and winding, and finding it had cost her dearly. Celestia bowed her head. “I’m sorry. That was inconsiderate of me to say. She is your friend, this must be painful for you as well.”

His features softened. “No apology necessary. She is your sister. I cannot fathom the depths of pain you must feel.” Clover looked at his work frowning. “Fate has dealt us a cruel hoof in this.”

Indeed. The old stallion and the old soul leaned against each other, staring at the board for several silent minutes. Then Celestia reached a hoof out and pressed it to the outline of a crescent moon surrounded by six colored orbs. “Perhaps this is for the best. Without her, I can’t harness the Elements again, and without them, I can’t vanquish the Nightmare.” She removed her hoof, smearing the moon’s blue border, allowing the black to seep in. “I must find a different way.” Celestia’s eyes bore into the M, its snowy twin peaks etched against the dark. Strange, such a small thing left her feeling so alone, even standing next to a friend. Friend. Her ears swiveled forward.

The lone stone structure in her village had been the church. She remembered staring up at its spires with foalish wonder; to her, they seemed to touch the very sky. When she asked how such a thing was even built, her father pointed to the white cornerstone set in its wall, laid down when there was nothing but a patch of empty dirt. “Anything is possible”, he said, “with time and a solid foundation”.

Celestia laid her foundation. “I can find new Element bearers.”

Clover nodded slow and steadily. “Exceedingly difficult, but not impossible. You’ll need quite a gifted unicorn to lead them.”

“Yes.” Wheels clicked in her head. “Yes” she repeated.

“It will be the work of a lifetime… or several. But if anypony can do it, it’s you. You were always like my Smart Cookie. Brighter than the rest of us combined,” he fought back an exhausted yawn.

After everything tonight, it felt good to smile at the comparison, even a little. Celestia hadn’t visited her grave yet this year; any of their graves. All my plans must wait for the morrow though. Glancing out the window at the black sky, she was relieved to see the moon remained hidden behind nebulous clouds. Keen to avoid its face and the melancholy it induced, she declared, “The night grows late, I think it’s time for us to retire.”

“Here I thought I came out of retirement to help you,” he quipped wryly.

Celestia extended a foreleg. ‘Would you help once more? The bridge is out and the rooms are such a frightful long ways away in the dark, I could use some good company.”

He gave her a sleepy smirk. “A princess escorting me to the castle bedchambers? Perhaps that line finally worked after all.” Clover grabbed the outstretched limb and held tight. Celestia whickered as he levitated the cup of water from the desk to his lips. After wiping his mouth, he shook his head.

“You know I think I may continue,” he announced while sipping on the bowl of oats. “How so?” Celestia asked as they gradually made their way to the stairs together.

“Now that we’ve predicted Nightmare Moon’s return, I might try my hoof at the other principal mysteries. I could root out Tambelon, discern where the Crystal Empire vanished to, or finally find the unbreakable stick Star Swirl had up his arse.” She snorted and shook her head at that. Grabbing the door handle in her magic, Celestia gave the board one last long look.

“What? I’m still a spry young stallion,” he shakily climbed down the top step. “Seven is such an overdone magical number anyhow. The Nine Trials of Clover the Clever… on second thought I don’t like the ring of that. Oh, if I find Grogar’s bell that makes te-,” the door closed shut and their muffled voices faded away.

The candle they left behind continued to cast its light over the room and onto the blackboard, illuminating the rightmost corner where a single small number sat alone. Looking much like a crescent moon, was a C they forgot to take from the total.

100 years before the prophesied return of Nightmare Moon

She stalked the filly from behind a tree.

The lime green earth pony had their back turned. Her two blond braids jostled as she worked. The apple pie on her thigh stretched as she reached for the fruit. She was completely unaware of the monster lurking a few yards away.

Monster pressed her hoof lightly against the trunk as she leaned to watch. Applying too much pressure would snap the wood and reveal herself. It was a shame she couldn't feel the warm supple bark of the tree. Nor enjoy the sun bathing the orchard in bright white light, or the cool breeze blowing through the verdant leaves above. Nothing registered save the endless throb of her empty stomach.

The filly reached up to the waiting branches and pulled another rainbow apple down. Despite being short statured, she easily plucked the fruit from its perch. The wicker basket at her hooves shook as she dropped it in. It fell next to its siblings, a delicious riot of colors ripe for the taking.

Behind the tree, she wet cracked lips and moved her free hoof a few inches to the side. The unseen branch shattered beneath her. A thunderous crack ripped through the peaceful orchard. The green filly spun around at the frightful noise. Sweat trickled down her quivering muzzle, but there was no movement in the surrounding woods. She whirled back around to hurriedly finish her work. Monster peeked a slitted pupil out from her hiding place.

Cupping the last apple in her hooves, the child gave it a quick once over. It appeared perfectly fine, until the multi-colored flesh started to ripple and melt, exposing a core of withering black worms. A yelp escaped the filly and she hurled the thing away from herself. The rotten fruit struck the tree in front of her and oozed down the side, leaving behind a pulsating trail. Brown branches began to jerk erratically, violently twisting in the high wind that came wailing down from nowhere. The leaves curled in on themselves, as the bark decayed into ashy gray flesh.

Day darkened and a pale moon rose, casting its harsh light across the orchard. Grass withered under the night, as the rest of the trees began to atrophy and die. Soon only a forest of lifeless trunks remained standing in the desert. "Pa!!! Ma!!!" the filly cried desperately.

A piercing howl answered.

The timberwolves appeared out of nothing. Hulking slabs of wooden flesh and spiky branches, bristling with stake sharp teeth and oak spears for claws. The pack began to circle the lone pony. Poisonous green orbs bored into their trapped quarry. She backed against a blackened trunk, overturning her basket.

Flames ignited inside Monster's cold heart at the sight. She stepped out from behind the tree and towered threateningly above the timberwolves. They sensed the newcomer approach; one glance and they all bowed before her.

The filly spotted her standing over the wolves, and blood drained from her petrified face. Beads of water splashed onto the trampled brown grass. Monster leaned down and gazed at her reflection in the teary-eyed pools of the frightened child. True to her name, a vast ebony timberwolf stared back. Its glassy cobalt blue orbs narrowed to pinpricks. Arid wind carried the pungent odor of fear and ruin. Drums pounded in her head. When her pack howled, the last warm embers in Monster's heart snuffed out. Gnashing rotten silver teeth the size of short swords, she braced herself; the urge to rip and tear were overwhelming.

The filly shrieked as the monster pounced.

Luna awoke staring at nothing. Only the dull ache in her horn and the suffocating weight of her armor greeted her. She sat up at the bottom of the crater and sighed, frosty breath raising from bloodless lips. It was going to be a lucid day.

The more and more these days came, the larger the venomous leech inside Luna seemed to grow.Ignoring the squirming around her numb heart, she stood. Jet black wings popped as they stretched; her stomach rumbled faintly. Luna peered up at the vacant inky sky above, silently begging the heavens to return. They always rejected her pleas, but continued to keep her prison well lit. Somepony else might have said that was a welcome concession, but to Luna, it only felt like mockery.

Climbing out of the crater was easy, she had done it countless times. Looking back was the hardest part; the pain of her landing still ached after all these years. No matter how far she ran, or how deep she dug, the crater forever beckoned. Whether it was a day, a year, or a decade, she always woke in the same spot eventually. Always returned to the monument of her banishment. The testament to everything she lost.

Luna tapped a metal-clad hoof on the rim of the crater, sending a flurry of gray pebbles tumbling down the slope. Perhaps a return to the Batri is in order. There is still that carving I have been meaning to-

Four chimes rang out joyfully in the void.

Luna spun around gobsmacked. Pockmarks littered the silver-gray desolation she called home. Above the depressions a stream of star dust churned in the wind. Looking much like a slate snake shedding its skin, particulates fell and scattered throughout the barren wastes. Nothing else moved. Could she have invaded another pony's dreams without realizing?

The chimes laughed merrily again, above her.

Luna peered up into the nothingness. The vast black ceiling of her prison remained enduring. That's when the most beautiful sparkle of light pierced the dark, followed by several others. Luna gasped at the sight of the stars.

Colors only dreamed of unfurled before her. First came the whites of the clouds, then scattered blues swirled around the edges of the cream. Here and there the waters coalesced into large clusters of rich ocean. Finally, Luna beheld a vast expanse of caramel flecked with sumptuous green. Riveted, she gawked at her homeworld, a dazzling crystal sphere turning on a boundless stygian table.

Warm tears flowed down her face, while magic coursed its way through her veins. Wondrous pain gripped her heart; Luna put a hoof to her chest. Then the dark lifted further and she glimpsed the glorious sun. Her sun.

Ringing filled Luna's ears that had nothing to do with chimes. Drums mixed with the buzzing, as her blood boiled. Tears gave way to inky slime which slithered to the dirt and sizzled. Somewhere far away a filly cried out. Luna tried to resist the urge, but the thing inside drowned everything out in a bloodthirsty wail.

All sound stopped. Glimmering smoke swirled around her hooves. Midnight blue light burned in the dark alicorn's horn. No more weakness. No more surviving off scraps. She was free.

The first thing Nightmare Moon did was tear down the roof of her prison.

Gripping the sky in her magic, she yanked. A vast ripping was heard as she drew the nightveil to her. Like a master smith at her forge, she hammered the darkness to her design. The wheels were smelt of oblivion. Reins and yoke fashioned out of endless shadows. Into the black chassis, she poured her cruelty, her malice, and her will to dominate all light.

With her chariot complete, Nightmare Moon turned to the next task. One flick of her horn was all that was needed. Hooves veined with ice erupted through the soil at the bottom of the crater. Dirt poured off the granite skin of the thirteen bat ponies that wretched themselves out of the gray ground. Dead frost blue eyes squinted in the light. Spotting their mistress, they hastily shuffled up the crater and began to prepare the carriage. Once harnessed, they bowed their heads somberly.

Sauntering over, Nightmare Moon stepped in. She took a last look around, before snapping the reins, leaving deep gorges in stone backs. I am coming home sweet Celestia. Rock legs charged and spiked wheels spun as the chariot picked up speed. With a great beating of wings it soared off the ground and headed for the world above.

For the first time in nine hundred years, there was no mare on the moon's face.

Day One: Dusk

Two years later

Uproarious laughter resounded across the ballroom and mixed with the music from the stage.

Luna followed her joke with a deep drink from the antique wooden tankard. She slammed it on the counter, startling a server behind her and nearly causing them to drop the tray of caramelized carrot slices they carried. The iron band around the cup's lip vibrated from the impact. Why in Equestria did these go out of style at galas? They make them so much more tolerable.

Thick droplets hit the top of Luna's silver chestplate and started to run. Amber coursed through the spindly limb of the bow on its way down to the drawn arrow. Rushing past the shaft it reached the pegasus’ fetlock and spread over the rest of her face. For a moment, her wild mane flared a lustrous brownish-yellow in the light from the chandeliers. Steam rose off the metal engraving of the hunter and past Luna’s glittering horn as the liquid evaporated. She was sober enough to remember there would be a reckoning with the seamstress if she stained her azure dress hemmed with real platinum stars.

“Was that the toughest foe you faced?” asked the commander of Equestria’s armed forces. The soldier's cheeks were red from the cider, but the color went well with his copper coat.

“Sombra? Nooo. You should try learning modern syntax.”

“You do it better than me,” replied General Steel Hauberk.

“Aye… the drinks help though.” They both snorted into their cups. A tall shadow fell across the open bar. Hauberk immediately jumped up from his seat and snapped to attention; metals clinked on his creased green tunic. Luna furrowed her brow at the behavior and swung around in her stool.

Princess Celestia, ruler of the Equestrian empire, was resplendent in a honey gold ballroom gown streaked with purple and black stripes. The sturdy gilded necklace she wore had a pomegranate-sized amethyst encrusted in its center. Incised on half the necklace were knots of slender olive branches frozen in an unseen breeze. Bouquets of pencil-thin geraniums frolicked up the other half and disappeared behind a creamy white neck. Today her jeweled crown had been replaced by a garland of fresh sunflowers fastened around a red coral strand. A gift from the students at her school, it rested gently on top of her flowing prismatic mane.

Luna recovered from her surprise quickly. “Sister, good to see you! Come join us. General Hauberk and I,” she pointed her hoof playfully at the commander, “are swapping war stories.” An excited gasp escaped her lips. “You can talk about the raid on the Hydian blood acolytes! Remember Reeka’s face when you smashed the Sunstone down on her!?”

The sun princess focused shimmering violet eyes on the general, raising her left hoof. Hauberk nodded and hastened through the castle's main ballroom, into the sea of cashmere suits and satin dresses. Deftly, he dodged the partygoers swaying on the dance floor and made for the raised platform, and the white-maned vermilion mare with the cracked bronze bell cutiemark standing beneath it.

Luna watched the retreating general go, as Celestia settled down next to her. “Sister, there's no need to be so loud. Oh, and I brought this for you.”

Luna stared at the cup of thick brown coffee placed in front of her. From the looks of it, the cider in her tankard had also been swapped with water. “Right,” she said, not touching either drink. “Sober up and shush up. No talking about the old days. It frightens the young ones.” Luna put one dark blue feather to her two dark blue lips.

Celestia looked down and fixed her dress. “Certainly not. You are free to talk to your friends about whatever you wish. I merely wanted to check on how you were enjoying your first gala. And make sure you were hydrated and had your nightl-”

The silver spoon striking the porcelain cup sent reverberations through the entire ballroom. Elegantly carved panes of glass shuddered slightly in the arched windows. Perplexity colored Celestia's face. Luna stood a little ways away from her sister, checking the bottom of the raised cup to make sure her vibration spell hadn’t broken it.

“Esteemed friends of the throne! I wanted to speak to you about something!” she began when the eyes of everypony were upon her.

“Luna, what are you doing?”

“But first, tonight is a celebration,” Luna continued, pointedly ignoring the question. She raised the coffee cup higher in the air. “Cheers to the 892nd Summer Sun Celebration and Evenfall Gala!” The nobleponies all raised their glasses and applauded.

“And a big cheers to our gorgeous host and ruler, Princess Celestia!” More enthusiastic clapping and a wolf whistle from the vermilion mare followed. The sunflowers on Celestia’s head threatened to burst into flames with how red her face got.

“Finally, cheers to this, the second anniversary of the defeat of Nightmare Moon!” Everypony stomped their hooves and roared loudest at this.

“Yes, yes. Cheer. Cheer for my defeat.”

The hurrahs died a quick death, and a heavy silence followed this pronouncement. Two hundred pairs of eyes regarded her hesitantly. Luna held up her wings in surrender. A string on the cellist's instrument broke. “Woah, everypony, no need for the hush. It’s okay to cheer my downfall. I was a monster."

“Luna, no don't."

“No, Celestia, it's alright. They all know what happened that night. You all know the details, right?” The crowd silently stared back, hanging on her every word. “Guess not.” The moon moved towards the light at the center of the ballroom, while the sun sat frozen on its stool.

“Most of you have heard the story of my first defeat. Your parents read it to you as foals. For those that don’t, I’ll give you the abbreviated version: Long ago, two royal sisters ruled in perfect harmony. The elder raised the sun, while the younger lifted the moon. For a time, they were like night and day… balanced together. However, the neglected night soon grew resentful of the brilliant day. She transformed into a demon and her sister was forced to banish her to the moon for a thousand years.

“Most of this is true. I was jealous, I was bitter, I was Nightmare Moon… although I was also smoking hot. Literally, my mane was made of star smoke." Some scattered laughter was heard. Mustachioed Earl Lionpaw coughed into a lace handkerchief.

“In all seriousness, I let myself become a monster, and was punished accordingly. I betrayed my friends, my country, and the pony I care about most.” Luna tipped her head to Celestia, whose expression was unreadable.

“The only part that’s not true is the last. I wasn’t banished for a millennia. Two years ago, I returned home earlier than anypony expected to finish the work I had started. Storming into this very castle, I planned to imprison my sister in her precious sun and rule, night eternal.

“I burst into the throne room and there she was… working overnight of course. All alone reading a railway expanse report. You should have seen the look on her face. Gen-u-wine shock. No plans in place. No backup for those plans. No cards to play at all. She simply stared at me. I locked the doors and said… something threatening and villainous.

“But then she started talking. And as I listened it hit me. There was no clever manipulation in her words. No meticulous maneuvering. This wasn’t perfect Princess Celestia pontificating to me. It was only Tia… the first friend I ever had. The same Tia who ate the last slice of cheesecake I bought on my thirteenth birthday, then, when I confronted her, used all her brilliance to blame it on the, and I quote, ‘windigoats’.” Chuckles rippled through the crowd.

“That was my moment of clarity, like a light she sent cutting through the darkness. At that moment, I could succumb to the night, or embrace the dawn. As I watched her raise the radiant sun this morning, I can say without a doubt I chose correctly.

“So, this evening I’d like to give one last cheers. To Tia! The best cake stealing friend a monster could ever ask for!” Luna raised her cup and emptied it. Everypony erupted into applause.

Luna’s brow shot up when the crowd excitedly surged forward. A well-dressed wave threatened to crash down on top of her. Fortunately, the guards stepped in to restrain the over-eager attendees. Several minutes of chaotic scrambling took place, until a relatively safe circle was placed around the princess of the night.

“Princess Luna, what did Princess Celestia say to you?” Gaudy Cufflinks and his spouse, Mint Julep, asked together, their question swallowed by the general cacophony.

“Your Highness, begging your pardon, but could you tell us what the moon was like?" Baroness Thurible inquired with a bow.

“No, your Grace, save it! Your story will make a national bestseller,” urged Lord Harp Coltins as he jostled for attention.

“That’s not really what this was abou-”

Prince Springblood shoved the book publisher aside, “Forget the horrid moon. Auntie, what’s been your favorite thing since you returned? It’s alright if you say the debonair royal company.” He smirked and straightened his clip-on bow tie proudly.

The room dimmed ever so slightly, unnoticed by the nobles jockeying for her attention. A single sun-touched petal rested on an empty stool. Golden guards at the door straightened and stood aside.

Cyan eyes watched Celestia’s every step as she left.

Three hours passed until Luna saw the last guest out.

She handed Lord Coltins' business card to Advisor Whynnie and headed for the royal apartments. Moonlight bathed the hallways and exquisite carpets of Canterlot Castle. Sweat trickled down her neck and settled underneath the silver plate while she walked. Luna paused by an open window and soaked in the chilly breeze. Dense periwinkle curtains waved faintly next to her while she gazed out at the city below; the pegasi down there had arranged a rare brisk midsummer night. Luna made a mental note to thank them before continuing on.

Rounding a sculpted pillar brought her final destination into sight. The night guards stationed at the entrance both snapped to salute as their princess approached, leathery wings folded tightly against magenta armor. Luna raised her right hoof and moved it in a circular fashion. When she tapped a dot in the middle, the two nodded and marched off to clear the floor. She took a calming breath and entered their rooms. Closing the doors behind her completed the symbol embossed on them: a flowing sun joined together with a swirling moon.

The royal suites lacked the grandiose architecture and imperial majesty of the rest of the palace. She suspected this was a deliberate attempt by a certain sun monarch born in their backwater village to keep grounded and not succumb completely to the bottomless wealth she possessed. Luna passed the plain elm table in the corner as she made her way down the foyer and to the hearth room. Sturdy old oak did little to block her path, the light shining from under the door, though, let her know the pony she was seeking was not far away. Oiled iron hinges made no sound, but swollen wood groaned softly as she entered.

The hearth room was the center of the suites, and the fireplace its beating heart. Luna’s tower could be reached by following the hall to the right and up a flight of stairs, while the passage facing it led to Celestia’s bedchamber. Two doorways flanked the hearth itself. One led to the keeping room and kitchen, and the other to the guest quarters. Despite summer outside, flames crackled inside the firebox. Gray smoke wafted above the sooty panels. The carved white sandstone was crowned with a mantle of simple walnut. Usually barren, tonight it was adorned with an ornate tiara and necklace. Amethysts shone vividly in the firelight.

Beside the royal regalia, the furnishings were the only other pieces in the room where the bits started to show a little. The outsized breezie’s dark blue forelegs grasped the top of the bronze crescent moon she danced naked in. Staring directly at her from the opposite corner was the bust of a wreathed white unicorn, its marble base resting on a ebonized mahogany stand. Light gray rugs interwoven with charcoal fibers supported the furniture between the two statues. Polished rosewood legs gave way to the white upholstery of the chairs. On the snowy couch in the middle sat the princess of the day flipping through a book. Gone were the gown and the garland, in their place a cerulean shawl streaked with orange now covered her shoulders and wings.

Oak scraped against stone. “You missed the Gold and Silver Waltz you know? It felt far too long and tedious without my preferred dance partner.”

Celestia straightened an inch without turning. “I’m sorry. I needed time to focus on something," she answered regally.

Luna rolled her eyes at the response. Typical Tia, a bit perturbed and she immediately flew back to the cold comfort of work. Blue feathers grazed the right arm of the sofa as she crossed the room and stood with her back to the white alicorn. A small gesture of her head, and Luna felt the tug at the back straps of her dress.

“Did you dance with Jubilee Bell again? You and the Marchioness made a lovely pair," her sister asked, unlacing the fabric with her magic.

Strands of silver fell and a smile came to Luna's lips. “No… that mare is quite the firecracker though. Here I thought nobles were all hoity toity whingers.” Celestia drew the dress gently back and down, and Luna started to shimmy out of it. Falling cloth revealed the crescent moon on her shaking flank. “I’ve invited her and the general to dine with us next Sunday.”

“That’s an excellent idea," a shade of something like excitement eked into Celestia's voice.

Careful not to tread on a star, Luna stepped over the collapsed dress and onto the hardwood. Enclosed in indigo light the bundle was levitated smoothly onto a chair. The small discomfort of the chestplate remained. She didn’t mind; it helped prepare her for what was next. Luna took the free chair and faced her sister.

Celestia was sweating more than she expected from the fire, but kept the shawl on. Orange light shaded her strangely placid features. “So,” Luna began.

Parchment crinkled as the cobtic bound book was moved from couch to coffee table. The papers inside were yellowed with age. “So, we need to talk,” she replied.

“Yes,” Luna agreed, surprised at the lack of an immediate dodge, “first, you should know my little speech wasn’t meant to upset you.”

“Oh, I wasn’t upset with you,” she responded swiftly. “It was your story to tell. The crowd certainly enjoyed it.”

Cushions squeaked as Luna sat back and huffed. “Yes, they did. Not exactly what I intended.”

“You didn’t like their reaction?” Black were the eyebrows that rose high on Celestia's surprised face.

“No. Maybe… a little. Though I had hoped knowing the truth might dampen their enthusiasm for me a bit. They already fawn over me and try to curry favors. Now nothing will keep the portgates closed."

“Isn’t that normal ‘hoity toity’ behavior? Is their adoration so wrong?”

Luna chewed the inside of her cheek. “It’s what she wanted. I don’t know if it’s what I want… much less deserve,” she threw in quietly.

Violet eyes flicked to the book. “You weren’t worried about them hating you for telling the truth?”

Several strands of starry blue hair fell as her head shook. Luna pushed them back with a hoof. “No, I’d rather they hate me with the truth, then love me in lies.”

Celestia’s mouth twisted up in response, and she tightened the shawl around her withers. Luna noticed her sister seemed to shrink away slightly.She frowned at the behavior. “Tia, why did you leave early?"

Her sister let loose a borderline maniacal giggle in response. Luna tilted her head at this reaction. “I’ve spent years carefully crafting my words. Tartarus knows why I thought a few hours would be enough to get ready to tell the actual truth." Celestia sighed heavily. For a moment, Luna glimpsed the centuries of fatigue beneath the youthful porcelain mask she presented to the realm. "Luna, I adored your speech… but by the end I couldn’t stand myself any longer. Not after the terrible pony I’ve been to you.”

“What in Equestria are you talking about?” asked the one pony who considered herself a verifiable expert on treating their loved ones terribly.

Celestia picked up the book and offered it to her, a guilty prisoner giving their allocution to the presiding judge. Indigo light shaded the borders as Luna brought it close enough to examine. Ruby and onyx eyes stared back at her. The orange diamond phoenix and black opal bat circled each other on the cover. In the firegleam, they seemed to dance together.

She carefully turned to the first page. Much of the ink on the mathematical formula had flaked off, but the number one thousand was clear at the bottom, surrounded by four stars and a familiar passage. The next six pages were devoted entirely to the Elements of Harmony; each breaking down an individual stone’s characteristics and attributes. A rough sketch of Canterlot followed a long journal entry. The first enrollment list for the School of Magic preceded a plethora of family trees, some of which seemed to have died off. Luna stopped on a page so charred it was unreadable. It struck her then that this book may not have been a complete work, but merely the collection of pages that had survived. “Tia this is-”

“Princess Celestia’s Perfect Plan to Defeat Nightmare Moon.” She waved her hooves in mock celebration, then grimaced, and dug the same hooves deep into the upholstery.

“Shortly after making our erroneous prophecy on your return, Clover passed away. I was truly alone then… left with only our friend’s magical legacy and centuries ahead of me. I mercilessly used the former during the latter. You remember, not far from our old castle was Mount Canterhorn. Due to their resonance and use in spellcraft, the precious gems of its crystal caves had attracted a number of unicorns. The capital I built there attracted far more.

“Once reeled in, I encouraged couples to settle down and start families. Filtering their offspring, and the foals after them, through the School for Gifted Unicorns was time-consuming, but what did I care? I had eons to spare. Like panning for gold, bit by bit I shifted through the generations and noted the best possible bloodlines. Turn to the end of the book, there you’ll find the final roster of grandparents. Given a few more decades I would have certainly found my Element of Magic.” Her tone was best described as complicated: Pride laced with anger, and a pinch of bitterness added to sorrow and self-loathing.

Luna did as instructed. The second to last page was brand new paper; names in black ink stood out clearly on the crisp white sheet: Lamplight, Oleander Breeze, Burns Brightly, Eventide Frost, Twilight Velutina, Radiance Sunbeam, Whistle Wishes, Umberblood, Pale Moonlight, Eveline Fall, Silver Swirl, Primrose Glow. She flipped to the last page and found it blank. Luna ignored the hiss of the fire as she processed her thoughts. “Tia, I’m disappointed," she concluded.

Celestia’s ears flattened against her head and her face crumpled. “I know,” she croaked.

“No, you don’t. Where’s your heartfelt speech to Nightmare Moon? How can you not have it here?”

Confusion painted Celestia's ghostly expression. “I-I didn’t plan that. That was me being… honest.”

Celestia jumped when Luna snapped the book close, dust and soot flew from its pages. “Exactly! A terrible pony couldn’t say those words. Tia, this doesn’t make you awful. At worst you seem a tad over prepared.” She smirked. “As your now unofficial book editor, I have to tell you, you can get rid of the Blood family. That plot line is going nowhere”.

Celestia bristled, but found a way to direct most of her fury inward. “This isn’t funny! My first thought when learning you were imprisoned in the moon for a millennia wasn’t to try and break you out, or even to talk to you! Instead, I concocted a centuries-long scheme to find champions to defeat you! I never even stopped to wonder what the Elements would do to you a second time! And you said it yourself tonight, ‘No cards to play at all’! Only with my plan in ashes and backed into a corner did I finally treat you with a modicum of respect! It’s probably the one time I wasn’t a neglectful conniving nag!” Rage gave way to anguish, then sorrow in its turn, as Celestia curled into herself with a heart-rending sob. “How can you even call me your best friend?” she wept.

Luna chewed her tongue as she thought of the best reply. Letting her know a moon prison break was an amazing setup for a story would most likely only upset her further. Like the shafts of sunlight that morning, the image slowly bloomed in her mind. A tired filly stood small within the wide open doorway, her back moonlit. Luna turned the thought over. Settling on a risky maneuver, she stood and placed the book on the mantle. Gazing down upon the alicorn in front of her, she prepared herself. “Alright, up and at ‘em,” extending her hoof, “time to leave. We’re going to have a… call it a bonding exercise.”

Celestia didn’t move an inch from her corner of the couch. “Luna, I don’t think either of us are really in the mood for whatever you have in mind," her voice hollow. "Please leave me be. I’ll make a proper apology in the morning and we can decide how best to part ways then."

Luna wondered at the strangeness of this new age. She was mildly disappointed to find out she had lost her spotas the broody princess.Her hoof came closer. “Trust me?” Cruel play, but you know what they now say about desperate times.

Celestia almost hesitated, but took the offered hoof. Luna pulled the larger alicorn off the couch, with a little too much vigor, their horns crossed briefly, a blue spark flashed, and a tingle passed between them.

Luna made sure her sister was secure on all four hooves. “Okay, embrace what you feel, let it flow through you. Oh, and try not to panic, it’s easier if you don’t fight it. Remember everything will be alright in the end.”

Celestia’s eyes blinked rapidly and her pupils were dilated. “I’m not following. Aren’t we going somewhere?”

Luna grinned. "We’re already there.” Thick smoke started to billow from her mane, first blue then jet black. Celestia gaped at the approaching wave of nothingness. The last thing she saw before the darkness completely enclosed her was Luna’s pearly white smile, then it too dissolved into the black abyss.

Day One: Dawn

Celestia reached a hoof out for the light of her life, but touched only darkness.

“Luna? Luna!? Luna!!!” The void swallowed her shouts and spit back emptiness. “Lulu,” she whispered to no pony.

After a minute her eyes refused to adjust to the dark surroundings. Or there is nothing out there. Celestia's wings flapped against her sides, now unrestrained by cloth. She pawed one hoof at the ground in front of her and found it solid stone-like material. Carefully, a step became a walk, which transitioned into a light trot.

Celestia had no idea how long she traveled in the blackness, when her back hoof caught on something. Instinctively she twisted around to look and that’s when the distance light flickered into view. Feeling blossomed in Celestia's chest; initially, she took it for joy, but as her brow furrowed and muscles clenched she began to doubt her judgment. Several good shakes of her head dispelled the strange sensation.

Moving closer to investigate the lightsource, she realized that it was a torch in a bronze sconce bolted onto a whitestone wall. Inside the glow was a large dark circular object surrounded by smaller misshapen gray lumps. As she stepped into the light, Celestia was too preoccupied with the peculiar objects to notice that no heat came off the blazing torch. In front of her lay a spiked wheel darker than midnight. She squinted at the smaller things around it. They were chunks of some unearthly stone, veined with an odd thin material, perhaps baby blue sapphires.

All at once, sights and sounds came to Celestia unbidden. The pony she saw every day in the mirror now glared down at her. Instead of old tired eyes, hers were young and alight with contempt. A grinding noise stopped ominously. The crowned alicorn opened her mouth revealing rows of perfect teeth. She spoke three words that slashed Celestia into three thousand pieces, cutting deeper than three million swords. Ponies danced in masks of white and pink, blue and green. Celestia's sobs were seized by their cheers and drowned in the castle's lake; her tears spilled onto dark fur, invisible in the rising light of day. Shadows smooth as sin wrapped around Celestia like a cloak. Their singing soothed the burning gashes in her soul. A high cold laugh came from her black lips, defiant against the sun that stood opposite her in hues of rainbow light and swirling gemstones.

Celestia wretched her mind out of the turmoil, gasping for breath as a shipwrecked sailor grasped for a piece of driftwood in a spring storm. The images were gone, but it did little to quell the tempest inside her. Clammy legs shook, bowels twisted, and her stomach roiled. Worst of all was her heart; something moved around it, slimy and suffocating and whispering. She shut her eyes and concentrated on slowing the pounding in her head. The wheel and cracked stones at her hooves melted away into darkness.

“Where is she?” she heard herself say in a queer voice, part fury and part impatient, part desperate and part longing.

Opening her eyes revealed the great double doors across from her. Something told her they had always been there. Made from thick ironwood ringed with steel, varnished in hazel and shining with the sunrise and sunset, she simultaneously knew everything about them and nothing. These were the doors that countless creatures passed through to come kneel before her and make their pleas. These were the unknown doors that led to her true desire.

Celestia raised an armored black hoof to open them. She stared blankly at the elegant and cruel indigo hoofguard she now wore. She registered the icy metal slide down over her chest, and the pressure from a helmet resting on her head. Drums thundered behind the cold metal. The thing covering her heart started to crawl upwards; bile reached her mouth first. Her mind screamed in pure panic.

Embrace what you feel, let it flow through you, chimed a voice that always made her smile, even in her darkest days. Everything will be alright in the end. Celestia took a cleansing breath. Trusting the night, she let the darkness consume her.

It devoured her greedily, yet the emptiness in Nightmare Moon’s stomach remained. Enraged, she charged forward and thrust her horn at the offending doors, they blew wide open with the mighty gust she summoned. Dark fur flattened as the wind rushed back and slammed the doors closed behind her.

The sun looked up at the disturbance. Princess Celestia’s jaw dropped along with the scroll and tube she held. The items spiraled to the floor and landed hard on the long burgundy carpet connecting the throne to the doors. An image of a strange black cart was stamped on the side of the tube. It was cracked and broken from the fall, much like her sister was about to be.

Nightmare Moon spun back to the doors. A wicked silver light lanced their seam from top to bottom. Runnels of molten steel ran down the entire length and scorched the floor; the scent of charred wood filled her nostrils.

Now that they wouldn’t be disturbed, she lazily surveyed the unfamiliar room. Brightly colored tapestries of silk and gleaming thread hung on the walls between magnificent stained glass windows that rose from the sleek marble floor and nearly touched the ceiling. A gilded fountain built into the dais itself trickled quietly, its waters crystal clear and sparkling. The splendor of the throne room was surpassed by the look on Celestia’s face. Her eyes were large as saucers and her mouth hung open dumbly. Limp was the once proud flowing mane that fell at her back, which spooled messily onto the seat.

Torchglow cast Nightmare Moon’s shadow long across the western wall. It twisted into a grotesque grin, laughing a moment before she did. The shrill cackle pealed around the throne room, stained glass ponies shivered and lights along the walls guttered.

“Greetings sister!” she strolled to the middle of the room as Celestia continued to stare at her, saying nothing. “Oh dear, it seems I caught you unawares. What a shame,” she chortled, nearly prancing the rest of the way.

It wasn’t until she reached the base of the dais that her sister finally spoke. “Is this a dream?” she said in a voice barely above a whisper.

“For me, yes. For you… it’s something else entirely.” Nightmare Moon's saccharine grin exposed every one of her sharp fangs.

“You are back?” Celestia lamely responded.

Her face twitched at the stupid question and slitted pupils narrowed. Nightmare Moon put all her repressed venom into the reply. “Yes,” she spat, “I’m back… and I find myself already bored of the braying of wearisome old nags. I spent too many frigid days on the moon to have this night ruined by you. Fear not, sweet sister, the place I'm sending you isn't quite so chilly.” Darkness enveloped her horn, blacker than black. A strand of white glided from the inky tip, down the curve of her horn, and upon reaching her forehead split in twain and spewed burning light into her irises. “It’ll be the hottest thing you ever laid eyes on!” she mocked cruelly.

“It’s really you!” Celestia shouted and nearly tumbled down the steps as she leapt from the throne. One of her hooves tore through the scroll and another crushed the tube, but she paid it no heed. Nightmare Moon halted and leaned back from the cry. Thesheer joy in it sent shivers all throughout her body. Even the thing inside her quavered. A distance wail compelled her to continue the spell, yet she found herself silently awaiting her sister’s next move.

Celestia took the steps two at a time, chest heaving, and was level with her in an instant. Nightmare Moon flinched at the speed and took several unsteady step backs, horn aglow. “Wait, wait, listen please!?”

Nightmare Moon found she couldn’t look away from the sorrowful eyes, no matter how confusing they made her feel. Mercifully, Celestia closed them as she raised a hoof to her chest, pushing out a ragged breath. Then they opened again and poured right down to her black soul.

“I-I know you’ll never forgive me! And I don’t fault you. I wouldn’t forgive me either. I was arrogant, hypocritical, and callous towards you.” Celestia levitated the jeweled crown off her head and placed it delicately at Nightmare Moon’s hooves. “You can banish me to the sun, you can hate me for eternity… and all of that will be okay,” her voice hitched, “because I was an awful sister, and a terrible friend. But before I go I want you to know… I will never be disappointed in you, my marvelous moon.” Rivulets of tears ran down her cheeks, “rule well knowing that you were always right. I am just a stupid cake thief.”

Nightmare Moon’s breath quickened. The thing inside bellowed and rattled her ribcage, yet, it was as if a lightning storm tried to strike down an ancient mountain. No matter how dark and powerful, it could never reach the core. Something bubbled up from within her heart, and the thing trembled.

All at once, sights and sounds came to Nightmare Moon unbidden. A white filly stumbled through the open barn door, moonlight at her back. She plopped herself down on the dirty straw bed they shared, exhausted after a long day of work. Crawling under the moth-eaten blanket she began to sing a lullaby. Nightmare Moon fell asleep wrapped safely in her warm embrace. The pale unicorn dragged her soaked from the flooded river bank. Covered in mud, blood, and tears she carried her to a nearby glade. The look of relief on the unicorn’s face when Nightmare Moon took a shuddering breath was something she would never forget. The young pony cradled her gently as they wept together. Nightmare Moon stormed down the rotten stairs of the abandoned granary in a fury. The lanky alabaster teenager froze mid-chew, hastily swallowed, and tried to act casual. Nightmare Moon sneered and thrust a hoof accusingly at the cake crumbs on her ivory cheeks. The teen's lie was equal parts boldfaced and incredibly insulting. They stared each other down for five agonizing seconds. The laughing fit they had afterwards lasted five minutes. It was one of the happiest moments of their lives.

Luna felt the metal chestplate hit the throne room's floor more than she heard it. With both hooves she removed her helm and tossed it aside. Black ooze flowed down her shrinking body, revealing smooth blue fur. The thing inside her perished as only a pathetic creature could, friendless and in misery. Luna didn’t bother to watch the smoking remains of the parasite slither into a corner to die. She was wholly focused on the most important thing in the world.

"Come here Tia! My big dumb windigoat!” Forelegs opened wide.

“Lulu!?” Celestia sniffled. Without waiting for an answer she filled the remaining distance between them and lifted the smaller alicorn off her hooves, twirling her round and round. Luna wasn’t an expert on the room, but she could have sworn there weren’t that many stars a minute ago. She landed laughing on her hooves. Celestia leaned in and nuzzled their noses together. The sun beamed down at her, letting out a giggle that bordered on a whine. “You do know I made up windigoats, right? They were never a thing.”

A blue wing reached up and moved a green lock away from the face Luna adored. “Of course, Tia. You’re awful at acting… but you do make the most wonderful speeches.”

Celestia hiccupped and gave her a small lopsided smile. Luna's heart melted at the sight. She drew the pony she loved most into a fierce hug. “I’m so sorry! I missed you so much, big sister!”

“I missed you too," she cried.

The stars shone beyond the glass windows, brighter than they had in centuries.

The roar of the fireplace was the first thing heard when they returned.

Luna hastily looked around to see if any embers had ignited the rugs or furnishings. Subconscious spellcasting was a confirmed phenomena. In its rawest form magic would usually flow towards the primal leylines first, such as heat. After confirming the royal suites weren’t on fire, she checked on the fiery royal.

Celestia wobbled on her hooves, teetering to and fro.

“Woah there big girl!” Luna exclaimed. She kicked the coffee table out of the way in case Celestia fell, then braced her with both hooves. At her touch, Celestia seemed to stir gradually.

“Luna… Lulu… that was…” she murmured.

“Underhoofed? Convoluted? Reckless?”

“Incredible,” she answered and licked her lips. Her face screwed up.

“Right, apologies about the aftertaste. Daydream magic and memories are a potent mixture. And I’m a little rusty on the former.” She smacked her own lips together before wiping her mouth with her foreleg. “Blegh! Metal and coconut.”

Celestia’s wings rustled the shawl covering them and wool drooped limply onto the floor. “Thank you… I didn't know… had almost forgotten…" She took a deep breath and woke fully.

Princess Celestia looked down at her, pretending to be composed, "I appreciate you sharing, truly. But returning to the matter of my plan. I still feel I should apologize for-” tender blue feathers covered her mouth, bringing the princess up short.

“Nothing,” Luna finished, dropping the wing. “You never need to apologize for what you did.” Indigo light surrounded the fallen edge of the shawl and lifted it back onto Celestia’s shoulders. Luna made sure her grip on both sides was tight.

“Tia, youliterally moved a mountain for me.”

“Technically, I only moved to a mountain."

They both laughed at that and Luna positioned herself. “Your plan was ruthless and cunning… but also incredibly sweet and thoughtful. It was everything I loveabout you.” She pulled Celestia down by the shawl and kissed her.

Metal met cloth as they pressed against each other. Luna delighted in the taste of the full sun. Coconut quickly yielded to the mango and honeysuckle they had served downstairs. Celestia’s lips were soft and pleasantly humid. Their tongues wrestled each other, two titans enjoying the nimble competition.

Celestia broke off first at a loud snap from the roaring fire. “Lulu, we can’t,” she said breathlessly.

“I know,” Luna whispered. Silver bit into her rising chest. She took a sharp breath and the fluttering slowed. “I know,” she said firmly.

“We can’t, she’s my sister. It won’t work, they’ll make us marry stallions. I love her, but this is complicated. We shouldn’t, our subjects need stability not uncertainty. Tia, I had all those thoughts and came to the same conclusion as you.”

With her right hoof she lifted Celestia’s left. “But I know what it feels to be without you.” Luna brought the hoof to the metal chestplate. The tip pressed right over the hunter's cold empty heart.

Still holding the hoof, she ignited her horn. The iron mooncrest buckles on Luna's back collapsed under the weight of her magic, and the plate dropped onto the rug with a dull thud. Matted fur rose from her glistening chest along with a whiff of lavender. Celestia bite her lip.

"And with you," Luna moved the hoof to her chest again, this time it pressed against a warm damp coat. She could feel the blazing beat of her heart through it, like a miniature sun. The hoof eagerly dug into the fluff. Swan bumps rose under its touch and all over Luna's skin.

“We've spent countless days apart, each one its own terrible solitude. After nine hundred years of longing, all I ask is one night together. But before you answer, I want you to know… I will always love you, my splendid sun. No matter what."

The fire crackled in the hearth. Light and shadows played off the statues. A cerulean shawl fell next to a polished chestplate.

The red oak doors to Celestia's bedchamber nearly burst off their hinges as they entered, tangled around each other.

Brass rods shook as their lilac drapes flapped noisily. Several thickset candles blew out in the sudden blast of air, slivers of ghost-gray smoke rising from their wicks. Rising with the smoke was a dark blue alicorn, held aloft in cloudlike hooves. For a moment, she seemed posed to ascend to the heavens, until the stars came crashing back down.

Luna landed on her back on the plush mattress with an oomph. Chuckling, she wrapped her hooves around Celestia and dragged her in close. They rolled. The bed sank further as Luna straddled Celestia's midriff. Grinning savagely she attacked the veiny white neck below her. Celestia moaned under the assault of bites and kisses, large wings flared wide on top of purple covers. A hoof pressed against Luna's bare chest. "Lulu, wait."

Luna nibbled at her chin before straightening. "Oh, of course!" She climbed off Celestia and made for the open doors. Taken into indigo magic they were closed as best as possible. One leaned like a drunkard and a sinister crack ran the length of the other; a repair spell was in order, which Luna promptly decided could wait till morn.

Incandescent blue light suffused her horn, and a flick sent a pulse through the entire chamber. Gleaming strands leaked underneath the doors to the hallway beyond. For a split second, the entire room was bathed in a translucent shimmer. The drapes continued to sway in the night air, but no noise escaped their folds.

"No- well actually good thinking." A white hoof played with a clump in the exposed silk sheets. Celestia looked up. "I had a different idea altogether."

"Okay," Luna responded, intrigued.

Horn lit, Celestia sat up and wiggled closer to the edge, staring off into the ether. Luna noticed her pupils darting around, till they briefly flashed back to her. "A couple years ago," Celestia started after the pause, "I struggled to fall asleep, so I spent uh… several nights browsing a book on advancements made in copulation techniques between partners in the last half-century."

"And I suppose there wasn't a section on dirty talk?" Luna smirked.

Celestia ignored the sally and continued her search. "I was thinking it might inspire us. You could take a look and we can have a discussion about it. If you're completely comfortable with it, that is." Round pupils halted their wandering in the upper right corner of her violet eyes. White light sucked back into her horn. The light returned a moment later in front of Luna. First as a pink ball, which then materialized into a red hardbound book. Near the bottom, written in graceful cursive, were the names of the authors in black ink.

Flaxena Falik was a modest unicorn spellslinger when she met bubbly pegasi librarian Silvia Sitzfleisch. Together the two mares learned to sling more than spells and books. With Silvia's help, and many helpings of Silvia, Flaxena wrote the premier guide on intimacy in the last two hundred years. New editions were still being printed by the couple's descendants to this day, helping consenting adults throughout the realm. Luna didn't know any of this.

Luna also didn't know what to be more surprised by: The thickness of the book or the innumerable markings sticking out of the top in a kaleidoscope of colors. She took a second book in her magic. If there's a third tonight, I qualify for my expert license, she mused, turning curiously to the sole mark in blue. It highlighted the first pages of section F, an upturned color sketch of two mares accompanied the text and authors’ note.

Titling the book sideways allowed her to fully grasp what she was looking at. The art was immaculately drawn. Luna drank in the fierce determination on Gold's detailed face, then followed across the full lengthof the page and ended on the rapture in Silver's exquisite expression. She levitated the book back to Celestia, rotating it so it was readable.

"Yes," Luna said comfortably, concluding the discussion.

Celestia hopped off the bed, her smile as bright as the gold in her glowing horn.

She buried her nose into the midnight mane, inhaling the aroma of lavender, stars, jasmine, and sweat.

They lay together amongst crimpled sheets. A single white pillow remained on the bed, the rest littered the floor in front of them. On the opposite side, stained covers slumped against the wood frame. Half-hard wax pooled on the nightstand while orange candles burned low, bathing the room in ever softer hues. Beyond the glow, moonless shadows crawled closer, lacking any real menace. The only threat they posed now was as a reminder.

Luna snuggled closer to her, driving thoughts of sworn duties far away. Celestia felt a slight stirring between her back legs. The dark alicorn hugged the white foreleg draped around her tighter. Lips gently kissed the appendage. Celestia giggled when the hot breath tickled her fine hairs. She prayed to all the gods this moment would last forever.

After the briefest minute, the goddess of the night sighed, the breath exhaled noticeably cooler. Luna started to rise out of bed. It seems the gods weren't listening today, but Celestia didn’t surrender to deities that easily. Her foreleg refused to release its grasp. "And where does my moon think she's going, hmmm?"

Luna turned, mane tussled, mischief written on her face, "To get ready to lower the actual moon. Or else a certain silly sun will never be able to bring the dawn. Remember?" she asked playfully, but the kiss she gave felt like goodbye.

Celestia remembered many dawns in her long life. There was the dawn after the inaugural Summer Sun Festival, where she woke blurry eyed and dehydrated. Taste of salt still on her lips, she clambered out of bed then. Ignoring the stains of wine and thousand shards of the smashed tankard, Celestia had stumbled her way to the balcony. When the first wisps of light emerged over the horizon it struck her. She spun around. The room stood out starkly in the rising sun, all dark blues and grays painted in golden white. Then Celestia remembered why she had been crying. The room no longer smelled of lavender and jasmine, only regret. The scent she wanted had been taken far away, up into the night sky, leaving her with nothing but the dawn.

Luna's smile faltered for a moment. "Besides, we agreed on only one night."

"I swore no such oath," Celestia said.

Blue ears perked up at the earnestness in her tone. Luna tapped the limb covering her, assuring its owner she wasn't trying to escape. Celestia brought the foreleg in as Luna rose and turned fully; her haunches sunk into the mattress. Dark wings flexed and folded in on themselves. She gave her a long searching look. "What do you mean?" she almost asked it evenly, butthe slightest hint of something like hopecrept in towards the end.

Celestia pushed herself off the bed and folded into a seated position, close across from the dark alicorn. “I think we should reconsider our stance on… well us. There is no real need to stop after one night, is there?”

“Do you know what you are saying? Truly?” Luna asked nonplussed, eyes disbelieving.

Celestia was done being coy, and tired of lonely dawns. “Yes,” she declared adamantly.

“Lulu, we raise the harmony-forsaken heavens, I think we can manage being together." White feathers shook. “It all comes down to planning and a little discretion. We start with the suites, they already serve as our sanctum. Then we carve out safe rooms in the castle to meet. Modifying our hoofcodes should be simple. And, inevitably, when we desire to get away from it all, we simply arrange 'diplomatic trips' together. To Zebrica or perhaps Gryphonia. Busy places that don’t dote on us and lack proper scrying"- she noticed the way Luna's ears folded back-"spells. Did I say something wrong?"

Luna smiled, the light never reaching her eyes. "Nothing… that I haven't already thought of. As much as I relish the notion of stuffing you in a closet, it won't work. Eventually, the novelty of sneaking around like promiscuous youths will wear thin. Either we'll grow overly bold and get caught, or become bitter with the whole arrangement." She scowled, "I don't desire the latter."

Her scowl fell away and was replaced with a reticent look. She said her next words slowly, "We could roll the dice and openly court each other?"

The scowl rose again, this time on Celestia’s face. "Remember Fullamb? Those are loaded dice, except they aren’t in our favor now. Oh, I’m reasonably certain our subjects would acquiesce to us… for a year maybe. But what happens when summer whispers become autumn curses, and turn to the whetting of knives in winter? At best, our ponies would think you seduced me with some kind of dark magic." Luna shrugged, gesticulating to the disheveled bed they sat on together.

"More likely, come spring, they would denounce you as a demon returned… and try to kill you."

"Oh, right.” Luna huffed, “My speech tonight was a nice convenient reminder of that, wasn't it?”

Celestia nodded dismally. "I wouldn't let that come to pass… but I don't want to don the Hammer of the Sun unless I absolutely have to," she suppressed a snarl at the old moniker. "We can't do this by taking a page from Nightmare Moon's book." Celestia hated to see Luna look so crushed, but better than crushing their ponies.

Ears swiveled forward above a swirling mane of glittering stars. "Or can we."

Celestia looked at her askew. "Did that bump on the headboard cause you to take leave of your senses?"

"No," Luna shook her slightly tender head, "no, we only need to borrow a page from the right book. Because anything is possible, with time and a solid foundation.” Her black opal pupils glowed in the orange candlelight, cyan irises sparkling like diamonds.

"Yes," Celestia remembered, eyes wide. "Yes," Luna repeated.

They would build their foundation together. In the meantime, Celestia couldn’t stop the thoughts now cascading through her head. Nourish public sentiment… win them, and the nobles will follow readily… then change becomes triumph, not tragedy. "This, this could work." she nodded.

Luna had an unfocused look, thinking, " Winning hearts and hooves to the idea will take years, decades really. Are you prepared for that?" she added absentmindedly.

The wheels spinning in Celestia's head came to a screeching halt. One broke off its axle and went rampaging down the cobblestone streets. "Did you seriously ask me that question?" the words were harsh, but her smile was as gentle as summer clouds.

"Uh-yes, it seems I did," Luna responded, cheeks reddened. That's the second time tonight, Celestia noted. Luna rarely showed her vulnerable side, so when she blushed, Celestia positively adored every second of it. Much like the first time, it elicited the same electrifying reaction in her.

Luna inhaled and let out a long breath, dark blue returning to her features. Celestia watched her straighten, steeling herself. "If we are truly going to do this, then we need to be resolute in the days ahead. Us together. That spell. All of it must be held aside after tonight." She frowned. "If we're discovered, or harmony-forbid one of us gets with foal too soon, then we lose any chance we have at a plan succeeding."

"Too soon?"After all the things said tonight, that truly took Celestia aback.

Luna turned a deep crimson. Third time. "A slip of the tongue," she sputtered. Clearing her throat, she valiantly attempted to get ahold of herself. She failed. "All I meant was, that spell carries little risk and high reward-I mean it’s a huge reward. No, it’s- forget about the whole-" a hoof cut her stammering short.

The silence seemed to stretch for an eternity. Somewhere far away a filly cried out. Their shout of joy was followed by the merry drumbeat of tiny hooves. Celestia lowered her hoof from Luna’s mouth to her chin. Luminous cyan rose to meet radiant violet.

“You asked me for one night, well, I promise you one day: We will talk. We will work it out. And whatever we decide, we will do together.”

White wings pulled Luna into a tight embrace. Dark forelegs encircled her back. “One day,” she vowed, nuzzling into the soft blue neck. As Luna pressed her warm body closer, Celestia's resolve stiffened.

Luna must have felt the stiffening, for velvety lips soon grazed her ear. “One day,” she agreed, in a voice that promised the night wasn’t quite over yet.

Celestia broke off the hug and gazed at her. A sultry predator leered back, looking like the roc that caught the drake. The drake gulped, flushing. Score one for Luna, she thought. Other thoughts fled the moment the searing kiss touched her neck. Then her mind blanked completely when the moist tongue stroked her cheek. Preoccupied, she was unable to figure out where the intense throbbing in her body was coming from: her heart or elsewhere. As Luna descended to find the answer, Celestia heard herself repeating the same mantra with every new caress.

“One day,” she pledged.

“One day,” she swore.

“One day,” she promised.

“One - da. Da. DAYYY.”

Day Thirty Thousand Six Hundred Sixty One

“The dark one is gone. We attack now, storm the castle, and destroy the abomination,” ordered the General of Fort Daybreaker.

Light gleamed off the scimitar at their side, black rippling through the cruel bronze. They surveyed the battlefield beyond the high walls one final time. Stubby mounds rose and fell across the windswept badlands; unseen sorcerers rolled sand clouds off the barren dunes. The heat shimmer from the blazing sun made monstrous shapes take form in the dust: tawny manticores, ashy basilisks, and beige tatzlwurms withered and coiled. Looming above the haze was the mountain of power. There on its sun-bleached and chalky surface they would meet their fate. Either the crown would be sundered, or they would be.

“But sir,” appealed the Lieutenant, “we can’t attack directly… their spellcasters… their archers… hundreds will die.”

“Thousands,” corrected the General gruffly.

The parapet they stood upon darkened slightly; a shadow soared above them, perhaps from a great eagle. The General took that as an auspicious sign.

“ATTACK!”

With the swords of a million warriors at their back, they trampled over the walls of the fort. General and Lieutenant charged through the wastes, tendrils of fine powder rose behind them. Adrenaline pumped through their legs, which was sure to carry them to victory. Within a stone's throw of the mountain, their conquest turned to catastrophe.

Two amethysts appeared suddenly at the foot of the rocky base. Unnaturally large gemstones swiveled to peer at the invading army. Earth rumbled, ridges splintered, cliffs twisted and popped when the mountain moved. As it moved, it grew; higher and higher it rose, nearly eclipsing the very sun. Twin protrusions emerged from behind the towering mountain, overflowing with massive barbs of pale flint.

The General and Lieutenant skidded to a stop beneath the moving mountain of doom. Hooves dug deep into the coarse earth; a good start on the graves they were about to require.

“RETREAT!”

Ever loyal, the Lieutenant whirled to follow the General’s command. Yet, it was too late for them both. Untold feathery arrows descended on the army; white tips caught the sunlight at the right angle and shined like a thousand deadly will-o'-wisps. Where they landed, there were no standing survivors.

The fillies squealed as their mother tickled them.

“This is for not listening to each other. This is for not working together,” Celestia grinned. Her youngest was laughing and squirming in the sand as the primaries played off her cute lavender belly. Next to her, white feathers danced around the flailing amber legs of her oldest, before diving back in.

“And this is for calling me an abomination… although I commend the use of your vocabulary.”

The howling amber filly fought off the feathers long enough to open her mouth and take a large breath, whatever she planned on yelling was cut off by the clump of sand-covered mane she accidentally inhaled. The feathers halted and hung above the huffing fillies, looking like a thousand colorless leaves growing from a cloud canopy.

Her oldest daughter lifted her head and coughed out a lock of hair as red as her face. “You heard that!? How!?” she demanded, incensed. A single scarlet curl fell back into place between livid cyan eyes.

Celestia sat down, retracting her wings in bafflement. “Sunset, sweetie,” she thrust a hoof at Fort Daybreaker.

The curtain wall of the mighty citadel collapsed as if by sheer force of the point. Sand sung as the powerful drum tower crumpled without its supports. Its twin warbled and wobbled frantically until the weight sticking out of the top brought it fully down. The small plastic green shovel fell to the ground with a low plop. Celestia heard all this over the hum of the waves and the distant beachgoers, because the aspiring crownbreakers had erected their sandcastle… four yards away.

Sunset’s ears folded back at the sight of her closeby, and now demolished, fort. “Right,” she said sheepishly.

Celestia leaned down. “Next time you plot regicide try to whisper, '' she whispered. “Oh, and don’t shout ‘attack’ when making your move. It kind of takes the ‘surprise’ out of a ‘surprise attack’.”

She picked up the swords her would-be usurpers had brandished in their foolhardy assault. Gold light surrounded the wooden butter knives as they were levitated to the open basket resting on its red towel. A white seagull with gray in its wings had landed to investigate the uncovered contents; she shooed it away before putting the knives back in their place. They were set down next to the other utensils, a large bottle of sunscreen, bag of fruit snacks, and the remnants of the afternoon lunch. She closed the lid.

Her youngest sat up, the raspberry and purple stripes in her dark sapphire hair were flecked with brown grains. She shook the sand out of her mane and tail, angrily. “I told you!” Twilight shouted at Sunset, wings flaring.

Sunset stood up, growling, half an inch taller than her sister. Her wings fluttered furiously. “Did not!”

“Did so!” said Twilight.

“Don’t talk that way to a superior officer!” commanded Sunset.

“Well, excuuuse meee, General Shimmer!” Twilight responded boldly. “General Plothead more like,” she muttered.

“Don’t call me a plothead, you dillweed!” Sunset countered.

“You’re the dillweed!” Twilight shot back.

Celestia made a mental note to look up what “dillweed” meant later. First… The shadow that fell across the bickering fillies was long and heavy. Sweat formed on their brows despite the shade. They lapsed into silence, as their ears flattened on instinct and fur stood on end. Both timidly looked up to Mother Sun.

“Girls,” Celestia said sternly. “What did we tell you about arguing?”

The sand around their hooves suddenly appeared quite attractive. “If we’re going to argue, be respectful,” Sunset recited, head down. “And no name-calling,” Twilight finished.

“Sorry Mother,” they said in unison.

Celestia wasn’t through yet. “Good, and don’t you have somecreature else to apologize to?” she prompted.

Sunset turned first, resigned to the fact that her longest streak of not getting in trouble had been broken. It had been a really strong three days too, Celestia observed. “I’m sorry for calling you a dillweed, Sparks,” Sunset conceded.

Twilight looked up at her, eyes defiant. “Well, I’m sorry your leadership was wretched, your plan was ill-advised, and the only strategy you had amounted to nothing but a tactical blunder… General, sir,” she closed with a half-bow.

Celestia’s mouth twitched. With great effort, she swallowed the laugh building in her throat. The dictionary Twilight asked for over the summer seems to have made its way from her hooves to her mouth. Sunset sucked in air again, face crimson with rage, there was nothing to stop her shout this time.

“Oh good, I didn’t miss the second round of fighting. Or is this the third?” Luna asked.

Her wide brim hat matched the sands she stood upon. Silver ribbon threaded through the braid that fell to her withers, complementing the simple choker on her neck. A streak of white sunscreen was visible on the bridge of her muzzle, resting on an amused face. The smile she wore was bright in the light of the late day sun.

Sunset huffed at her sister and marched purposefully towards her mom. “Empress Luna,” she saluted. Luna’s brow quirked up. “General Sunset Shimmer requesting to have Lieutenant Twilight Sparkle imprisoned in Tartarus forever.”

Luna doffed the sun hat, giving her daughter a thoughtful look, cyan met cyan. “On what charges, Commander?”

“Gross insubordination,” Sunset snarled.

The newly installed empress put a hoof to her chin, thinking deeply.

“Mom!” Twilight implored.

Luna ignored the pleas of the accused. “It would save us a lot on the cost of books,” she thought out loud.

“Luna!” Celestia chided.

Luna laughed. “Request denied, General”. She cracked a smirk at Sunset and mouthed, “for now.” Sunset said nothing, but her smug smile spoke volumes.

Twilight stomped her hooves and tramped over to Celestia, indignant. She fell back into her mother's comfy thigh and slid down, legs firmly crossed. “Mother likes that I read,” she pouted.

Hooves massaged the bridge of Celestia’s nose, right between her eyes, holding the headache at bay. How did I end up with three children? she wondered. Her ear perked up at the kiss from her wife. Celestia opened her eyes to see Luna nuzzling Twilight. "We all love your reading my twinkling star.” The peck on the lavender forehead, right under the horn, did nothing to upend the frown on the filly's face.

Luna’s lower lip quivered, her expression apologetic. "Alright, to truly repay this terrible injustice done to you, what do you say we finish reading the final chapters of Chalice Quest tonight?”

Twilight eyed her mom tentatively. “No matter how long it takes?”

“I won’t fall asleep, if you don’t.”

Her face lit up like the stars that would soon emerge; all signs of distress, gone. She sprang forward, wings shaking, hips jiggling, and bouncing on the tips of her hooves. “Yes!” she exclaimed.

Sunset appeared beside her mom, scoffing at the display of excitement. A dark wing ruffled her mane, sending the last remaining kernels of sand to the ground. “Oh, what’s that Miss 'I’m Too Old To Be Read To'? Yet, whose head do I always see peeking out from behind the door frame, hmm?” Sunset had the good grace to look bashful. Twilight snickered. Luna scooped one up with a wing and the other with her foreleg, hugging their girls tightly to her chest. Muffled giggles were heard as they snuggled into the warm fluff.

Celestia checked the sun. It was a good way on its descent to the horizon. Oranges deepened and blues darkened in the sky around it. The few cumulus clouds out had begun to be filled in; the gray splotches inside them leaving only the top edges in white. Small bluish green waves washed onto the shore, white foam prominent in the receding dayglow.

She turned back to see Luna release the fillies onto the beach. “Girls,” she said leaning in, “we have some time left. Why don’t you finish playing before we pack up and head to the pier?”

“I passed by a snow cone vendor,” Luna supplied. “After you’re done, we can stop there on the way to the fireworks.” The girls high-fived.

"Alright! Now it’s my time to choose the game,” Twilight remarked.

“Is not!” Sunset retorted. Oh dear.

“Is so! You swore after we played soldiers, that it was my turn. You said, ‘Cross my heart and hope to die, may a phoenix never fly’.” Twilight reminded her.

Sunset screwed up her face, struggling to find a way to break the promise without cursing herself or her avian friend. “Fine,” she said, defeated. “But when we’re married I get to choose all the games, because I’m the oldest,” she added haughtily.

“That’s not fair-”

“Married?” Luna’s voice was low and bewildered, but cut through every other sound. She strode around the girls to sit alongside her wife. “You two are thinking about getting married?”

The fillies eyed each other. Uncertain cyan spoke silently to anxious purple. “Aren’t you going to make us get married?” asked Sunset hesitantly.

“What!?” the mothers cried in sync. “What in the world gave you that idea?” probed Celestia.

Sunset took a small step forward, hoof fussing with the sand. “Well, it was about a month ago. I was wandering the halls during class and overheard somecreature say Mother’s name in a room-”

“Why weren’t you in class?” she questioned. Luna waved her off and encouraged Sunset to continue.

“It was Duke Roseblood and Lord Saffron talking about all of us. Roseblood was angry his son would never get to sit the throne, ‘when the ruddy heirs marry each other.’ Saffron said if they buy the Landsmot they could force the crown to do what they want.”

“Did they say anything else?” Celestia inquired.

“Why? Do you need more evidence?” Luna fumed. “Don’t bother there won’t be any juries where I send them.” Celestia silenced her wife with a look.

“Umm, they mentioned a buckball game. Then they talked about the new teacher, Ms. Harshwhinny. They said she had something sweet under her skirt, but I was confused because she keeps the candy on her desk. Roseblood said, ‘I bet she’d whinny harsh if I lick-”

“Okay, so they said the word ‘marry’! How’d that lead to us forcing you two to wed?” Celestia hastily interjected.

Twilight stepped forward. “Oh well, Sunset told me, and after we couldn’t find anything on hidden skirt pockets for candy, I looked up royal marriages. Royals made their children get married all the time, to end wars, or trade land, or keep the throne in the family. We’re not at war, and we don’t need land, so the only logical answer was-”

“To keep the throne with the family,” Celestia concluded.

Luna cut straight to the core of the issue. “Girls, we are never going to make you marry each other… or any other creature for that matter.”

“Really?” asked Twilight.

“Yes. First, you are far too young to concern yourselves with marriage. Second, all those things you read about were done in the past. Those laws and traditions were torn down ages and ages ago. Your mother and I certainly aren’t going to continue them,” Luna explained.

Celestia went down to their eye level. “We spent a long time building an Equestria of acceptance, where any adult creature can fall in love with, and marry, one another.” She nuzzled Sunset. “Or, never worry about getting married at all,” she said nuzzling Twilight.

The sisters looked immensely relieved. “That’s great. I love Sparks, but I don’t want to marry her. If we share a room, what would I do with all my toys and her books?” Sunset put forward, asking the important question. “Yea,” Twilight picked up, “and Philomena’s snores would wake Owlowiscious, so it could never ever work.” They nodded in vigorous agreement.

Luna chuckled, “good to settle all of that.” She adopted a serious expression, “unfortunately, there is one ancient law royals must follow.” She stepped between them and Celestia, bending down; an amber and lavender ear each rose as she whispered to them. The ears fell as Luna backed up and gave them one grave nod. Celestia tilted her head, distracted by the girls’ moping faces and tearful eyes. Luna struck without warning, silent as a viper.

Celestia found herself tackled onto her back among soft sand, held down by two strong hooves. “The Law of Surprise!” Luna roared triumphantly. “Get her girls!” Sand crunched underneath small hooves. The first sign of trouble for Celestia was the sensation of tiny wings gliding over her sides.

“NoNoooHAHA!”

The second sign was the tyrannical grin Luna gave. “Girls,” she sang.

“Don’t you dare-”

“She’s really ticklish at the elbow joints.”

Celestia tried to wiggle out of the grasp, but to no avail. She kept her forelegs firmly tucked to her sides, in the hopes of avoiding the feathers of the little adorable demons sent after her. It failed spectacularly.

“HAHaaaStopHAIamyourquuuuuuuHAeen”

“And we’re the princesses of the universe!” Luna chanted.

There was only one thing Celestia could do against such overwhelming odds. “I surrender!” she blurted out. Her chest rose and fell as the tickling subsided. She breathed in deeply, only for the air to be shot out rapidly.

“Victory!” Sunset and Twilight declared, gloating on top of their mother’s chest. A dark blue wing smothered the girls, preventing them from tap-dancing on her heart.

She knelt down beside her.

“Hey you,” said the moon above.

“Hey you,” replied the sun below.

Their kiss was warm and dusk and dawn and happy. They pressed their foreheads together, smiling. Tap tap tap tap drummed their horns playfully striking each other.

Two heads emerged from the feathery depths of the wing.

“Blegh,” said Sunset, upon seeing their parents.

“Ugh,” agreed Twilight.

The fillies swam out of the downy ocean and hopped onto the sands, leaving their mothers to their laughter and their love. “Okay Sparks, what’s the plan?” Sunset asked.

“That’s Captain Starbeard to you, First Mate Clovis the Red! And we’re going to be sailing the dark and briny seas for treasure!” Twilight hoisted her hoof high into the air.

“The Red?” Sunset’s face fell further. “Aww, and last time we were pirates we got scurvy.”

Twilight grinned, her horn glowing magenta; the lid of the nearby basket opened and a bag levitated out. “Not today, I packed orange slices!”

Sunset beamed at the treats, tail wagging. “Aho Captain!” The two fillies ran off to go play in the shallows.

Their shouts and splashing attracted some attention. A kirin colt strode forward confidently, tan scales glistening over cinnamon fur. Twilight smiled at him, an orange rind covering her teeth. He jumped back at the abrupt sight, a puff of smoke rising from his ivy mane, before he guffawed. Behind the smoke came a khaki white-spotted fawn on spindly legs. The deerkin's shaking stopped at Sunset's grin, and she gladly took the fruit slice given to her. Sand quivered as the large red calf came bounding towards them. They paused a heartbeat before bowling into everycreature, and delicately bent down to receive the snack offered by Twilight. A seagull landed next to Sunset, black coat glossy and green wings phosphorescent, pecking at the slice in her cyan magic. Sunset snatched the gull in her hooves, ignored the flames that surrounded it, and hugged the changeling nymph tighter. Their compound peach eyes shone and arctic blue carapace sparkled as they hugged back. Lastly, the baby dragon waddled his chubby legs through the shallows to the group; purple scales and emerald spikes dazzling in the daylight. He sniffed the orange slice presented to him curiously, and with too much zeal. It lodged up one nostril, only to be sneezed out a second later half-charred and smoking. The dusky air rang with mirth and friendship, and the wind carried the joyous laughter of two alicorn fillies, the daughters of Night and Day.