JUN 20 Tuesday / JUN 21 Wednesday.

I move my hooves and field in repetitive motions to cut up and de-core apples.

I use my field to hold two knives at once to cut apples in half before using my hooves and field to wield a spoon each to scoop out the apple cores and seeds. I've gone through about half of the apples so far and I'm almost done with all I'll need to make a lot of pie.

I've already got the dough ready and the oven is preheated, I even asked Daisy to borrow her pie pans so I could make more than one pie at a time. I decided to try out the new pie recipe I got as a gift from the Apple's and with how many apples I bought I decided to go big or go home.

I finish the last of the apples and start to mix everything I'll need for the pies while letting my thoughts wander while doing the motions of these simple tasks. Mostly my inner thoughts focus on two things, my plans for tonight and tomorrow, and my thoughts on seeing Pear Butter and the other Apple's.

My plans are simple and I've already set everything up over the last week. Celestia said she could meet me after she raises the sun for the celebration, so I just asked her to meet me at Gaia's Eden when she could, she agreed and even said she'd be there an hour after the sun rises.

I was planning to bake her a cake, but instead, I decided to treat her to an Apple Family pie, twelve actually. I'll need to bake them all and then get some early sleep so I can wake up before dawn, I have another plan for dawn itself but for now, it's just the repetitive actions of filling pies and baking them.

I sit down with Entropy as the pies bake and look out the window to see the afternoon sky over a busier-than-normal Canterlot. The other more somber topic on my mind is the Apple Family, specifically Pear Butter. Seeing her in the state she was in definitely affected me, I'm still sorting the entire thing in my mind honestly.

It's, dividing for me. On one hoof it's not hitting me all that hard, I'm simply not that close to them, and even though I care about other beings my human life made me hardened to such things to a point. I have no problem seeing the darker side of the world, even if I don't like it, and I am far from blind about such things.

On the other hoof, I do feel I have some responsibility in all this. The fact is I could have done more but didn't because of a few selfish decisions, mainly my wish to stay unknown and unseen. I may hate fame, but does that mean I can ignore a life being affected or lost?

My inaction caused this situation, plain and simple there is no denying it. Or, maybe there is? I'm not sure honestly, it's all just so complicated. If I kept a closer eye on them or helped more I might have been able to prevent everything. Another part of my mind thinks something else though. Or I might have gotten myself killed in the mess that happened.

The situation was clearly dangerous and me running it might have made things worse, or better. That is the crux of the whole thing, isn't it? The uncertainty of it all? How unknown it all is. I guess that's a problem I will always have, it's the price of knowing the future and what might happen.

As for Pear, well it's all done and dusted, isn't it? I can't turn back time and I can't undo my choices. And if I look at this with a more positive twist things aren't all that bad. She may have suffered but she is still alive and that affects more than just her, it also means her children have a mother.

Especially Applebloom, the poor filly lost one parent but she still has one left and that can be a world of difference for her. On top of that, she may be crippled but there are solutions for that. My long project with Avalon has already helped give her some hope for a decent recovery.

I breathe out after a moment and get up to put in more pies and take out the done ones before casting a spell on them to keep them warm a lot longer. I think I'll get some sleep a little earlier than planned, I need it. I finish off the rest of the pies after a few hours and feed me and Entropy before getting some rest.

time skip

My mind comes to awareness with an annoying grogginess. I dismiss the alarm spell that woke me up and crawl out of my bed in the pitch-black darkness. I check the time and see it's almost sunrise, I have half an hour to get there in time.

I spent a few minutes making some tea and a very early breakfast for me and Entropy as she also woke up when I started walking around with a light spell. Once I'm a bit more awake and lucid enough to function and get where I'm going I gather everything I normally carry with me. As I descend the stairs I notice that the streets are still just as busy as before, if not more so.

I normally prefer not to fly in the dark, but I can navigate just fine with my senses so after a moment I cast a spell and take to the skies to follow many other ponies to our destination. The very large street I'm heading to is more of a lengthy courtyard and directly in view of the palace in the upper city.

It's not hard to find as it's lit up like it's day already with all the ponies here, I approach and decide to land and watch from a building top instead of on the ground. Even up here though it's packed, many Pegasi and Batponies are here already as everypony waits while talking and celebrating.

After the time hits six thirty we all see Celestia fly down in full royal regalia surrounded by many guards. Cue the crowd going wild at her presence like she's about to break out into a rock solo. I chuckle at that thought while sitting on a building edge facing the elevated stage Celestia lands on to address everypony.

Everypony goes quiet as she starts to speak in her royal voice, loud and clear even at this distance. It's not really all that interesting to me, she mentions harmony and diplomacy and all that good ruler stuff. Eventually, though, we get to the main event and everything goes mostly silent as she turns to face the sky.

We all do the same as her horn glows brighter and brighter, the sky shifts in color rapidly and a moment later the sun rises above the horizon and ascends into the sky like it does every other day. Once again I almost have to cover my ears as every pony goes batshit insane about the sight.

I stand up and look down to see Celestia waving at her ponies and looking stunning on stage... Nope, not thinking about that. I shake my head a little and drag my mind out of the gutter before looking back and freezing a little. Turns out Celestia also looked up to wave at ponies on the rooftops and because I'm in the front she spots me.

I see her smile widely seeing me and I just wave a bit before moving back from the roof edge. This was fun, but I need to get home and get everything ready for today, and this crowd is starting to annoy me a little. It took me a while to fly home but all the excitement woke me up if nothing else.

When I arrive home with Entropy she hops over to one of the several pies on the counter and gives me a slightly pleading look. I just sigh, "No, not yet, but soon I promise." I chuckled at the downcast look and tried to look pleading by tilting her head. I just smile, "If you help me get them to Gaia's Eden we can speed things up a bit."

That's all it takes for her to teleport onto my back and start hopping from leg to leg impatiently. I laughed openly at her before picking up the pies to take with us, I got a box to carry them all securely. I also grab anything else I'll need before having her teleport me to Gaia's Eden.

When we arrive I move over to the pavilion to unpack the box I have and set everything up properly before Celestia arrives. I start with some basic colored streams and hang them around the pavilion. Next, I spend a moment filling the table in the pavilion with all the pies and a wrapped gift.

Beyond the pie’s and the wrapped folded cloth Rarity made for me, there is something else already set up. To one side of the pavilion is Celestia's other gift currently under a small magical shield as it's too big to wrap up and I didn't want her to see it if she visited before today. The shield itself is very basic and just blocks out the view in a dome shield.

The final thing I do is pick out one of the pies and place three candles on top. I check the time and start to wait while reading a certain book I was given. Celestia really should make more books to read, she's pretty good at it. I don't have to wait too long as I feel space bending soon enough after I settle.

I quickly light the candles with a fire spell and my muzzle upturns as she pops into existence. She stands in the grass field and to my surprise she's still wearing her full regalia, full crown and everything. She smiles widely at me but stops when she sees everything I've set up.

"Surprise! Happy birthday!" I shout out across the short distance between us and she walks over quickly.

"Happy!!" Entropy shouts out as well while I keep my smirk as she walks into the pavilion. Philomena flies off to join Entropy in the support beams above us to play out of the way.

Before she can say anything I push the pie closer to her. "Candles first, we can't have you missing your wish."

She smiles wider but stops while looking at the candles before giving me an 'Are you serious' look. "Really?" She asks with a chuckle while looking at the three question mark-shaped candles on the pie. "I'm not sure if this is clever or a subtle prank." She says amused and I just shrug unhelpfully with a smile.

She takes a moment to close her eyes and blow out the candles and I clap a little bit like she did for me in the past. She looks back up at me with a happy expression, "Thank you, this is lovely." She says while removing her crown and horseshoes to put them to the side. "Also, did you enjoy the ceremony? It's always a spectacle." She lays down to get comfortable.

I get out some forks while passing her an entire pie with a fork in it. She raises a brow and looks at all the pies. "A little much huh? Do you buy this many for a single party of two? You must love pie." She weakly teases me but keeps a curious tone while taking the pie happily.

I nod and move two pies to the side for the birds to go nuts on. "Go crazy you two." They don't need any more encouragement than that. "Well, first of all, I take some pride in making all of these," I say with a slight pride and she looks happily surprised again. "It wasn't the first time I've seen the celebration, but that was when I was much younger, and It was certainly special." I agree while also settling in.

I then follow her eyes to all the pies on the table "As for the pies? I, Well, I bought too many apples on a trip and I didn't want to waste them, so, pie." She laughs after swallowing and I roll my eyes. "The candles though, it was honestly the best I could come up with." I shrug again and she just keeps laughing.

Celestia eats her way through the pies quickly and I stare a little amazed. "Wow, I only know one pony that can eat pie that fast, but she's still quicker." I tease a little in turn while she stops picking up a second pie. I chuckle, "I didn't say you need to stop, I made far too much so go for it." I encourage her before smiling mischievously. "It's your birthday, so you can cheat on any diet you have," I say with some humor.

I laugh as my second attempt at teasing causes her to blush slightly. She huffs a bit and in response distracts me by picking up her wrapped gift before looking at the shield. "I presume that's a gift? Because I'm very curious how you've outdone yourself this year if you outdid yourself that is." She changes the subject blatantly knowing I'd won as she eats another pie happily.

I smile and leave it be for the moment. :Cake and pies are a weakness, good to know: "I think? Sadly I couldn't think of anything to make you. But I got something commissioned, and added something big and fun for some flavor." I motioned to the gifts in order. "Now go on, I want to see you act like a filly again." I tease her more but that attempt seems to fall flat.

She smiles and shakes the gift a little. "Hmm, maybe a new crown? I rather liked the last one." I blush a bit at that and give her a deadpan look in return. She giggles a little before ripping over the flimsy paper and opening her gift, she raises a brow at the folded cloth and unfurls it while holding it in the air with her magic.

Her smile grows more and more as the full tapestry unfolds in the air, the large bright fabric hangs there for a few moments before Celestia turns back to me. "This is absolutely lovely, simple yet well made. You got this commissioned?" She asks and keeps looking over the fabric with a happy and content look.

I nod and feel a warmth at her reaction. "Yes, a small boutique with a rather skilled mare running it. It was a bit of a rushed job because I only had two weeks when I ordered it, but it did come out well." I will be a little vague to avoid mentioning Rarity. "Come on though, we still have the big gift, and this one is... We'll see, I guess." I finish some more of my pie and stand up while motioning with my head.

She also stands up and looks a little excited at the large present. "Agreed, this should be interesting. But-" I raise a brow at that. "I'm still going to guess." I just give her another blank stare and she just laughs. "Now, large, needs to be covered. Furniture? No. A plant?" She seems to decide on her guess.

I roll my eyes a little and shake my head but feel happy as she gets to act silly. "Wrong on both accounts." I deactivate the shield with a hidden switch and reveal the gift. What greets us is a full grand piano, bench and all. It's a high-end piano too, it was also a bitch and a half to get my hoofs on. Buying it was only a little annoying, but I had to wait for them to deliver it to a store room I rented before taking it to Gaia's Eden and that took time.

The entire thing is made from solid Oak and is heavy as fuck. The weight wasn't much of a problem with the help of a few spells, but getting it in position without breaking anything was another thing entirely. Celestia looks stunned at the sight and turns to me, I just smile widely in response. "I remember you mentioned liking it, I know I didn't really double-check, but I thought you might li-"

That's as far as I got before being enveloped in one of her double hugs. "I love it! Thank you, thank you, Shade!" She exclaims more excitedly than I thought she would. I hug her back and enjoy the comfortable feeling of her feathers and fur. :Why does she smell like lavender?: That thought gets my body a little too excited.

Luckily she pulled back from the hug before anything happened, thank magic for that. She smiles down at me and she looks utterly thrilled. "It's been so long since I've gotten to play, do you know the maker?" She asks while swiftly moving over to inspect the piano more thoroughly.

I laugh a little as she acts like an excited filly about her gift. "I'm glad I picked well then. And no? I had literally no idea what I was buying, so take my choice with a grain of salt." She looks too excited to care in the slightest about my uncertain answer and just opens the top of the piano to look inside. "I would have thought you'd own one already though. It's not like you lack space." I ask curiously.

She moves her hooves to press a few keys and makes sure things are working properly, it seems to, not that I'd know the difference. She keeps her blinding smile and shakes her head a bit. "I do, but sadly I don't get to play all that often. As much as I love my ponies, they have expectations of me." She explains while moving on to pressing keys with her magic.

It sounds like there is a story behind that, but I'm not going to drag down the mood by going into that. I just nod, "Well, tell me if you need anything for it. I honestly wouldn't know better. I am happy to see you so... Well, happy about it." She chuckles at that and moves to fully sit after moving the too-small bench out of the way.

She hesitates for a moment before looking back at me questioningly. "Would you, like to hear something? To test it." She hesitates adorably while I stand there for a moment a little shocked at the offer. I kind of thought this was something she'd keep private from the way she just talked about it.

I show her an excited look of my own and sit down on the spot. "I'd be honored, it's not every day you hear music from a princess after all." She doesn't say anything to that and instead focuses on the piano keys, a few beats of silence later she starts to play.

( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGnvlW89-Us )

At the start it's a slow few keys that form a mellow tempo, it's almost hesitant in a way. But as she continues to play it starts to speed up and it sounds more confident with each note that passes, until it picks up into several keys being pressed every few moments.

The music has an upbeat and building feeling that reminds me of some music from my old world. But even with the subtle complexity it sounds, longing in a way I can't quite describe in words. It brings to mind a mix of wonder and adventure, or maybe a long journey's bittersweet end.

It's an odd mix that only music may ever be able to fully convey, but beyond all that, it feels, emotional. I watch from the side as Celestia shows a smile I've never seen from her before, both sad and happy, excited and muted. A war of emotions unknown to everybody except herself.

As she holds down the last keys and the sound hangs in the air for a moment she finishes. I don't hold back and just clap loudly at the performance I just witnessed while Entropy caws out in agreement. "Bravo! A true musician at work." I say without a hint of sarcasm or humor, she truly is skilled at the piano.

It also seems she got a little too absorbed in the moment and forgot I was listening in. She turns to me with a large renewed smile and a slight embarrassment, she then moves to sit down with me again. She looks me directly in the eyes, " I wouldn't call myself a master, but it is flattering to hear... Thank you, Shade, today is... It's been forever since I had a day like this and it means, so much to me." Het tone is still happy, but it also holds much more emotion than I expected.

I nod to her and give her my best smile. "That's what friends are for, right? Plus, you deserved it, plain and simple. Happy Birthday, Celestia Solis." I make a small tease and pass her another pie. "Now come on, those two are already on their third pie and it'd be shameful to be outdone by them." I joke a little while continuing to eat my half-finished pie.

She just gives me this thankful and happy look before laughing and picking up her fork. "Now that sounds like a worthwhile reason to eat pie." That happy look never left her face even when she left a few hours later.

Author's Note

Thanks for reading. :D
Current year is 995

Yup, a nice and simple chapter about gifts and good feels. Also, this sadly won't be continued into a third Chapter, I'd like to move things long a bit. Plus there with be another opportunity for them to talk more soon.

Also... HA! You all thought I forgot about the piano line of dialog 114 chapters ago! Jokes on you I love piano music and having an excuse to add them to this story is an opportunity I'd never miss! HAHAHAHA!!

I did have a little trouble decided what music to start with though, but I was listening to this while writing this and decided it would fit well enough.