Celestia’s legs refused to work but she wouldn’t accept her body’s demands to rest. She supported herself by the wall on her left, waiting for the dizziness to leave her. She had been hit hard and her vision had gotten blurry, but her ears worked fine and were calling on her to pay attention.

She tried to focus through the blow she had received. Her head was aching, but it was nothing compared to the beat of her heart, screaming at her. Something was happening and if she didn’t hurry she was going to be too late.

It was dark, too dark. She shook her head, and more light filled the world, but everything was still an indistinct blur. Then she heard the cry of pain, and with the voice’s recognition came sharpness, like a knife cutting at her.

Luna. Her little sister was crying out in pain.

There. Luna was thrown on the ground, and Celestia’s heart skipped a beat when she saw the scores of wounds upon her beloved sister, her dark coat marred by blood. A tall figure, standing on two legs, was towering over her. A weapon rose over its head, still as a rock when it reached the pinnacle of its arc. There was a gleam of metal.

“No more your fools,” the figure stated.

Celestia rushed forward. Her magic wasn’t working, but she didn’t stop to wonder why. She pushed herself to go as fast as she could go, to block the blow or get in the way. She moved faster than she ever had before.

“Luna!” Celestia cried out.

The weapon came down on Luna’s head. Her sister’s eyes found hers a moment before the weapon crushed her skull. Blood and bone erupted in a fan-like arc, and the life behind her teal eyes was blown out like the flame of a candle. The world broke as Celestia lost her sister one more final time.

Celestia’s scream of pure anguish echoed around her, a pale expression of the fear in her soul.

She was too late.

Paisley Leaf, Celestia’s trusted old majordomo, walked next to her as she made her way to one of the myriad of meeting rooms in the castle. Celestia’s legs had slowed down to accommodate the old stallion without conscious thinking.

“As it is, Princess, I really don’t see why we can’t have Princess Luna’s personal guard share domiciles with the Royal Guards stationed here. There is ample room available, even if your royal sister has doubled or tripled the number of ponies she has recruited thus far.”

“Two reasons, Paisley:” Celestia said, though not completely kindly. “First, the Lunar Guard should have no less than what is afforded to the Solar Guard. Secondly, this is something you should pick up with Luna herself. It’s her decision to make, not mine.”

Paisley Leaf hummed in thought, making notes. “I simply intended to have everything ready for her arrival, Princess, like any good servant should. I do not need to be reminded I serve two equal princesses from now on,” he admonished her on the sly.

Celestia smiled at him, accepting the stab good naturedly. Paisley Leaf was indeed one of the few who accepted Luna as an equal Diarch, and she was well aware of the efforts he made to drill the same into everypony under his command.

She was well aware that even he hadn’t accepted Luna out of her own merits but simply because Celestia said so. Luna’s power as a Diarch was… shaky, as her sister had complained to her. Luna had been right. Almost nopony was accepting her authority as her own, but merely something granted by Celestia.

And even that was not enough in some cases. The tide was turning though. Her sister was out there once more, and this time ponies would pay attention to her. This time all would be done the right way. Luna would prove herself Celestia’s equal to their ponies when they saw the sacrifices she was willing to do for them.

“Are you alright, Princess? Your eyes seem slightly puffed up.”

“I didn’t sleep that well,” Celestia confessed. “I had a bad dream, though for the life of me I cannot remember what it was. I think it was important, but it slips away from memory every time I try to catch it.”

“Too much sugar in your tea, Princess. You should tone it down. We’re here. I’ll have your guests ushered in as soon as they arrive. Would you like me to bring you something? Some plain tea, perhaps?” Paisley Leaf asked, standing by the door. The two Solar guards escorting her took position next to it.

Celestia thought about the offer for a second. It was midday and she already had quite a number of cups. Frankly, a little more and she might find herself pulling a Twilight if she was poked hard enough. “No tea, thank you, Paisley. Some fruit wouldn’t be amiss though.”

“I’ll have it brought up immediately, Princess,” the aged stallion said, and rushed, in the slow way old ponies do, to perform the rest of his duties. Celestia opened the door, managing to get the handle before the guard next to it had time to, and went inside.

She made herself comfortable on the chair at the head of the table, and used her magic to open the windows, letting the slight breeze of the sunny day flow into the room. She placed the folder she had been carrying on the table, opened it, and started reading the report from Manehattan again. She didn’t know when she would get tired of it. She felt so proud for Luna.

She should be focusing her time on other things. Raegdan, foolish Raegdan, had given her enough tips without meaning to. Celestia believed he wasn’t evil, not anymore, simply mislead, but he did have a habit to monologue at times, even if he caught himself doing it pretty fast and stopped. It was endearing in a way, and very informative. Spending so much time with Twilight hadn’t helped him any on that respect.

Raegdan believed that Luna would become a lightning rod for everything foul that happened. He believed she would get blamed for current or past actions, and he believed that she wasn’t safe enough in Equestria. Celestia halted her train of thought, thinking of Raegdan’s armor instead. She wondered if he was trying to make himself a bigger target to that kind of thinking… or attacks.

The truth was this however; Somepony or someponies were trying to kill her little sister, her family. The griffins, locked in her deepest, coldest dungeon were only those they certainly knew of. Celestia was determined to find the rest or at least make everypony understand that what they were trying to do was a very bad idea. The griffins weren’t talking, and Celestia was this close to breaking her own rules on mind spells or torture. She considered letting Raegdan have a talk with them. Scare them a bit only of course. Nothing else.

Unless she happened to look sideways and didn’t have time to stop him from—no, this way of thinking would only lead to ruin. She couldn’t allow herself to do this, even if there was a good excuse. Good excuses, bad excuses… they’re all excuses in the end. She had options yet, and she trusted her sister’s safety with all those she had surrounded herself with. Raegdan, the guards, and Twilight would keep her safe.

She always did her best to keep to her rules, even if she broke them from time to time. Every time she did so it always came back to haunt her. The latest had been a year ago when she lied to Raegdan about Nightmare Moon’s return.

Her eyes skimmed over the after action report on the drug bust. From what she understood, reading between the lines, Luna’s guards didn’t do much more other than block the main exits of that horrid warehouse where the drug manufacture was taking place. That sounded easier than what it actually was though. Most of the arrests were theirs as they took down the ponies that were rushing to escape. It was a testament to them that there had been no serious injuries from either side. Though from what she read the thestrals had been a little too keen on… subjugating the prisoners, but the presence of Solid Charge and Leaf Stream worked good enough as a deterrent to any excesses.

Celestia flipped a page. Of course, that only referred to those captured that were trying to escape, and the reason they were so fast to get out of there. While the guards were waiting for them to run to them, Raegdan and Luna had taken the fight inside. She wasn’t sure how they did it, the reports were mysteriously unclear on what exactly they did, but from assembling the bits and pieces she figured that they suddenly appeared right in the midst of the warehouse, and…

Where was that page? Ah, yes. Nine ponies hospitalized. All of them would need a lot of physical therapy when they were healed, as well as the services of very good dentists. At least nopony got killed, though Celestia wondered what was the purpose of that powerful light and immense noise before the fight started.

This wasn’t what made Celestia proud however. No, what made her smile so fondly, and await anxiously to hug her sister on her return, was the report she got from the press conference Luna gave.

Luna. Giving a press conference. Celestia thought she might shed a tear.

She was very glad that her agent in Manehattan had decided to be so detailed in this one, giving her a description of what she saw and heard, instead of the sterile lines she so often read. Celestia had already decided that her agent was getting a good bonus, just for that.

The small amphitheater is packed to the brim. There are chairs placed in rows for every guest and every reporter, but they’re not enough. Too many ponies stand to the side, and photographers have packed together to what they expect will be the best possible angles for their photos.

A hint of starry mane drifts from beyond the side of the stage. The crowd goes quiet.

Princess Luna comes in view out of the right. She stops when she sees the crowd. Evidently she doesn’t have much experience with them, and for a moment she takes an almost unnoticed step back. She looks back, towards where she came, and a mare’s voice mumbles something behind her. The princess smiles, nods, and takes her place on the seat prepared for her.

Hushed whispers overtake the hall as the white bandage on her side is spotted. The word “Leviathan” is the one that can be made clearer over the others.

Surprisingly, nopony else comes out with her. Almost everypony expected to see the Commander of the Lunar Guard or at least her unique bodyguard. Instead, she sits alone.

The reporters stand up, pens, wings, and magic clamoring up for attention as questions are shouted. I am close enough to spot the doubt in the princess’ face. She looks to the side, not where she came from, but the opposite way. There is something hidden there in the shadows, and it moves at her gaze. The princess smiles confidently once more, and turns back to the reporters.

“I will take no questions,” she speaks loudly. “Please be quiet.”

Everypony does, though it takes some time, but Princess Luna stares down at them as if she would be content to wait forever.

Everypony waits to hear about her recent attack on the criminal underground of Manehattan. There have been speculations of what the princess would speak of. About more similar operations, boasting of her success, perhaps a detailed explanation of the reasons she has had two wealthy ponies arrested on the charge of drug trafficking with no solid evidence. Various rumors of her being seen in unsavory parts of the town.

Princess Luna speaks of none of these.

Instead, she tells everypony present of a pony. A Thestral. She speaks of a young pony who was raised, as all Thestrals were, to fight in defense of their fellow Equestrians despite the lack of acknowledgment of their struggles. She tells tales of her childhood, and shares jokes she has told. She details her fears and her hopes, and she uses her magic to create a stunning illusion that shows us a young mare with a white mane, smiling sweetly.

Princess Luna narrates how this mare died. Not fighting a monster, a war, or protecting innocents. She died when she opened a door to let a trapped pony out, and she was killed for her trouble.

The princess stops, and looks down sadly. Nopony dares raise their voice. We all wait.

“How do you define a hero?” Princess Luna asks rhetorically. “Are heroes defined by the odds they face? The threats they combat? Is a hero’s worth as much as that of what he fights and the multitudes he saves?”

Princess Luna takes a moment to glance at both sides. “Heroes… deserve our pity. They are driven by a selfless desire to offer everything they are, holding nothing back. They will rush to their deaths like fools, and carry on their backs weight that they cannot endure. They will die for a pony or a cause, and the tragedy of their death is that they are often forgotten. How many stood up against monsters and tyrants, refusing to bow down, to let them win? Where are their names, their deeds? Do we define them by their success then? Only those who triumphed are worthy of the title? Are those who fell, who died trying, fools and victims?”

“It was a fire. Fire has no malevolence, no spite. It simply burns. It was a pony trapped behind a door, terrified and seeking to escape. There was no fight, no threat extinguished, yet at the end of it a pony lay dying in return for the safety of others. Three ponies who wouldn’t have made it out of that burning building in return for this one. Night Lilly.”

“She deserves our pity. She died, and she died afraid. Nopony dies without fear. When the unknown comes, in the form of blade or teeth, fire or bleeding, we all seek comfort. Night Lilly did not want to go into that building. Night Lilly did not want to face the flames, and Night Lilly did not want to die. But she did.”

“What defines a hero? Fear. It is fear that defines them. They are afraid, like everypony is. When that fear rises, when death stares them in the face… they go on despite it. Like complete fools, they will march into the jaws of death. Heroes face one common enemy. All of them, known and unknown, remembered and forgotten, have faced this one. Night Lilly faced the enemy that heroes must defeat. She won, and went into that building.”

The princess stands up, raising a hoof to stop any comment or motion from the ponies listening to her. “You came here to listen about the drug den we took down yesterday. It had been planned. We were ready. We knew what to do, and we were certain of the outcome. There was no heroism there, there was no fear. It was a job, more akin to a chore.”

The princess spends some time staring everypony in the eyes. Her eyes seem to capture everypony at once. “You are reporters. Your job is to let our ponies know of everything important that has occurred. Do your jobs.”

Princess Luna leaves, exiting to the left. Nopony speaks for a while, muted by her words.

Celestia spent some time checking the newspapers clips she had been sent from Manehattan, smiling fondly at the memory of Night Lilly. She had met the young mare only briefly, a couple of minutes at most. She wished she had known her more than that.

So many ponies she had wished she had known more. She always tried to remember as many of them as she could, and her sister’s words only reinforced her determination to do so.

Almost every headline and front page was dedicated to her. Luna’s success in taking down the drug manufacturers was a distant second or even a third as many newspapers had decided to dedicate a few of their pages to Thestrals, their history and society. She nibbled on some grapes out of the fruit plates she had been brought while reading.

There was a knocking on the door, dragging Celestia out of her thoughts. She put the papers back in the folder and waited.

Paisley Leaf came in. “Princess, Lord Garand of the Griffin embassy has arrived.” Garand, an old griffin, short beaked and with a brown plume turning white, greeted her and sat on the table.

“Princess,” Garand greeted, after pointedly looking around. “I see the minotaur envoy has not arrived yet.”

It would only be the three of them today. Celestia was not expecting responses from others for a few days yet, and to be honest, it was these two that she was most concerned about.

Celestia’s ears had picked up the heavy hoofsteps, even through the closed doors. “Oh, I believe they’re on their way.” She knew who was coming, and she could recognize the synchronous march of his bodyguards any time.

The door opened again, and Paisley Leaf was pulled back, not allowed to announce their guest. “There’s no need for that,” a jolly voice said.

Garand stood up in surprise. “King Crucible!”

“You may be seated,” the Minotaur King said, smirking at the griffin. He hadn’t changed much since the last time Celestia had seen him. Tall as Raegdan himself, and with an impressive physique, even among minotaurs. Crucible liked to consider himself a warrior king, even though he never started any battles or wars. He liked to finish them though.

“Princess Celestia,” King Crucible said, barely bowing his head. “It’s a pleasure to see you again.” He took off his short cloak and threw it over an unused chair.

“Likewise, King Crucible. Please, be seated. Now, may we begin?”

Garand had reclaimed his calm. He expected an envoy like him, not the King himself. However, he was an old player at this game, and he didn’t let this deter him for long. “Very well,” he said, sitting straight. “The Griffin Coalition demands the return of the prisoners currently languishing in your dungeons.”

“Ah,” Celestia said, her eyes narrowing. “Return, you say? I presume that to mean that you were the ones to send them?”

Garand snorted. “Of course not. They are, however, griffin citizens, and we believe they should be extradited to us.”

“These ‘citizens’ as you call them tried to assassinate a Diarch of Equestria,” Celestia said, her tone severe.

King Crucible had half laid on his chair, making himself comfortable, and taken an apple from the table. “Diarch,” he snorted mockingly, taking a bite. Apple juice ran down his chin.

“And what is this supposed to mean, King Crucible?”

The minotaur king took his time chewing, looking thoughtfully towards the ceiling. “Everyone knows that your sister has no real power. Face facts. If she says something, and you say something else, who will everyone obey?”

“I am well aware that she hasn’t been accepted yet in the public consciousness, but I assure you, she is taking steps to correct the issue. As am I.”

“Really? Oh right. The Leviathan.” He took another bite, thinking. Swallowing, he addressed Celestia once more. “I would like to offer my support to the Griffin Coalition’s demand that the prisoners be delivered to them immediately.”

“Thank you, King Crucible,” Garand said, bowing his head.

“Their request is denied,” Celestia declared. “The investigation is still ongoing, and they will not leave my dungeons until they confess the name of their employers.”

“Princess Celestia, I assure you, the Griffin Coalition will continue the investigation and share every result.”

“Am I supposed to believe that?” Celestia challenged.

“Not really,” Kind Crucible answered her. “I certainly don’t, but I don’t care either way. Mostly I want to make it clear to anyone else who wants to try to kill your sister that there will be as few repercussions as possible.”

Celestia closed her eyes and held her breath, making herself completely still. For a moment her vision had been overtaken by a film of red. She tried to remember the last time she had felt such anger and came up with nothing. She cleared her mind, and brought a happier time to the forefront instead, seeing a smiling blue filly look up at her, the image calming her enough.

“King Crucible,” Celestia said, her voice dripping honey, “I would like to offer you a chance to detract that statement.”

The minotaur smiled at her. “Offer denied.”

“This is my sister you are talking about,” Celestia hissed.

“No, this is Nightmare Moon. If you think—”

Celestia’s hoof struck the table. “Nightmare Moon is gone!”

King Crucible stood up and struck his own fist on the table in turn. “That means nothing! Do you think we forget so easily? The Nightmare didn’t take her out of the blue. Your sister summoned it out of her own will. She cast the spell, she invited it in. What she did once she might do again.”

Celestia tried another route. “I have been on this throne for over a thousand years. I would think that after all this time you would have learned to trust me. I have offered you all nothing but friendship and aid through the centuries. I believed I had your trust! That you were my friend, King Crucible.”

“I am, and you do have my trust. The trust of everyone,” the king said, standing up and crossing his arms. “Why do you think none of us ever raised the issue of you being the only person in the world that controls the sun? Which is exactly why we don’t want to see you slain and replaced by this abomination—”

“Tread lightly,” Celestia warned, her voice shaking with fury.

King Crucible paused. “I am your friend, but as far as I am concerned, the Kingdom of Minos won’t shed a tear to see her go. In fact, we might even have a parade. It would be in your own best interests too, Celestia. It would have been far better if she had never returned or if you had killed her. Failing that, it would be better if… someone else does so if you can’t.”

Garand stood up, shaking a little. “The- The Griffin Coalition agrees with King Crucible.”

“I see,” Celestia said. She smiled, and raised her head once more. “I suppose this is how it has to be. Would you mind following me, please? I believe there is something you should know before making such a rash decision.”

King Crucible glanced at Garand, and picked up his cloak off the chair. “Certainly, Princess Celestia. Please, lead the way.”

“Thank you,” Celestia said pleasantly, still smiling. She lead them out the door, and bid her guards to wait. King Crucible did the same with his, and the Royal guards assigned to Garand stayed behind as well.

Celestia lead them out of the castle, taking the shortest route possible. The midday sun greeted them, and Celestia kept walking towards the gardens, where she knew a perfect spot with admirable view, and away from sight. They passed by various statues, some of them pure art, others memorials of long gone heroes. She made a point of taking them past Discord’s form, encased in stone.

Her coat shone white under her sun. Celestia raised her head and looked straight at it, unaffected by the pain it would have brought to anypony else. Seconds passed with Celestia saying nothing. She could hear the two leaders shift awkwardly behind her.

“Princess Celestia, what are we—” Garand started before he was interjected by Celestia.

“Please, look at the sun,” she requested conversationally.

She noticed them trying for a few moments, squinting and averting their eyes almost instantly.

“Neither of us has the connection you have with it,” King Crucible pointed out. “Is there a point to this?”

“It is a pity that you don’t. It’s beautiful, and I do not mean that just in the literal sense. There’s the sun, high above us, giving off its ample light and warmth with no distinction between powerful and weak, rich or poor. We all receive its sunlight,” Celestia said, still staring right into the heart of the sun.

“Some choose to stand in the shade,” King Crucible reminded her. “Or the dark.”

“Can you blame them?” Celestia asked. “Too much of it would be as catastrophic as its absence. We need our rest away from it, and the night always embraces us all, giving everypony the chance for rest. Day and night… they work together.”

The minotaur king huffed, amused. “Well, be that as it may, you have been doing perfectly well so far on your own. This little lecture will not change our mind, Princess Celestia.”

“Perhaps… perhaps not. This is not what was meant to change your mind. This is;” Celestia stopped staring and turned back to them. Celestia had never done this before. She did have her values and her rules, but she also had those she treasured even more. Her sister was one of them. It was time to make a point how much she treasured her to the rest of the world.

Both King Crucible and Garand were startled. They didn’t see eyes, but a pure white glow, scalding in its brilliance.

“Hurt or threaten my sister again and you will beg for the soothing coolness of the night.”