Jumping off the edge, Celestia landed on the island below. Though it had been a year, the floating islands that used to make up Canterlot stayed where they were, slowly revolving around the spot Twilight had died. Just the mere thought of her most faithful sent a jolt of pain through her heart.

Gazing off into the distance, she could clearly see the sun, a mere fifteen degrees above the horizon,where it would stay for the next three days. A tribute to the final days of darkness, when the Bearers of Harmony took down Nightmare Moon, and became alicorns in their struggle with Discord. To think it had already been a year, and a busy year at that. If it wasn't trying to get money, talking to those annoying gryphons, or rebuilding, it was a disaster of some sort.

With a sigh, the white alicorn levitated the memory crystal around her neck so that it'd line up with their sun. Oh how she missed her most faithful's organizational skills. It was a good thing Spike managed to pick up of some her habits, otherwise Celestia would have been lost. Then again, it was naive to think that eight alicorns would decrease her load. If anything, it had increased since the ascensions. After all, eight princesses meant more work could be done, and considering they were all relatively new to the job, that meant Celestia had to supervise and double check everything they did.

Shaking her head, Celestia began walking towards the epicenter of the gravitational pull. To her surprise, there was already a pony sitting before the statue. It was a good thing the area was considered extremely hazardous and near impossible to get to, otherwise she'd have to explain why there was a statue of Twilight Sparkle made out of marble. Just the mere thought of that gave her a migraine.

"Rainbow Dash?" Eyes widening, Celestia broke into a gallop. "Rainbow! What are you doing here? We weren't sure you were going to make it."

"Ha! And leave you all hanging? As if." Standing up, the two exchanged hugs and nuzzles. "So how are you holding up Celestia? You look a bit... well..."

"Tired? Yeah, haven't slept these past few days thanks to the gryphon ambassador." Settling down next to her friend, Celestia let her gaze wander over Dash's face. "And you? Last we heard, you were in Trottingham before vanishing off the radar. How many dog tags do you have left to go?"

"Just over a hundred. I should be done by the end of this week." Dash ran a hoof through her hair. "And thanks for letting me take the month off to finish what I started. It really means a lot."

"No need for thanks. Since we finished the reconstruction of Manehattan, everything's really dropped down. We can handle it for a while, plus, you didn't take any of your days off and you worked all through the night."

"Heh." A blush crept across Dash's face as she looked away. "You all knew about that?"

"You are the Spirit of Loyalty for a reason. There's nothing to be ashamed of."

The two lapsed into silence as they gazed at the statue of Twilight. It was a perfect replica, right down to the last hair. Considering it was created straight from Celestia's memory, it wasn't really a surprise, but... Gazing upon that statue made her heart ache in ways she thought was impossible.

If only she had been a little bit stronger.

"So how are the others doing? How's Applejack?" asked Dash.

"Applejack is..." A sigh escaped. "She had another episode last week, except this time it was during a public consultation meeting. We were forced to tell the public what happened to her soul, and she's back in rehab – if you can call it that. From what the psychiatrists tell me, she's getting better. The reason these Truth explosions are happening is because Truth is fighting back harder than ever in order to remain in her soul."

"So... no soul ripping itself apart?"

"It looks that way."

The cyan alicorn let out the breath she had been holding. "Okay. That's definitely good news."

"What's good news?" Looking to the right, they watched as Rarity approached. "And Rainbow Dash, it's so good to see you again."

"Rarity! I can't believe I'm saying this, but it's good to see you too." Shuffling to the right, Dash made room for Rarity to sit down. "Still having nightmares?"

"Is it that obvious? I swear I covered up with makeup and an illusion spell before coming out."

Dash simply shook her head. "Nah, just a lucky guess. Considering what Discord did to you, I'm not surprised you still have nightmares over it." A shudder ran through her body. "I still have nightmares about the war."

"We all do," whispered Celestia sadly. "I wish I could say it gets easier, but even Luna and I still have the occasional dream of wars in ages past. And neither of us went through what you did my dear."

"I'll... I'll be alright. Sweetie Belle has been a great help, as have mom and dad." Rarity gave them a weak smile meant to reassure, but it only made Celestia's heart ache more.

"So tell me darling, just how has your little personal adventure been going?"

"Not bad, not bad. Not all the families were willing to forgive me, but the majority were understanding." Dash looked away sheepishly. "I was actually wondering if it was possible to make a large monument honoring the dead. I mean, I know money is tight, but..."

"Rarity? You're the best with minute details like these."

"Hm... If the trade agreement with the zebras goes through, it'll drastically drop the costs of rebuilding, and that should free up enough money for something suitable," mused Rarity. "We could probably get one up now, but it wouldn't be suitable for what it's meant to represent."

"Then don't bother," replied Dash. "It has to be epic."

A dark blue gate opened, drawing their attention away from the conversation.

"We're free! Free at last!" Stepping out, Luna shook out her fur. "You would not believe the things that ambassador is willing to say or do. Tell me Celly, why did I ever agree to become a princess again?"

"Because it's for the good of Equestria?" chuckled the elder sister.

"Ha! Considering how much they argue, you could have fooled me."

"Luna, please calm down." Trotting out from the portal was Fluttershy. "You know they don't mean anything by the questions they ask."

"Fluttershy!" Dash was suddenly before the shy alicorn, her eyes raking over her friend's form. "Are you alright? I heard about what happened – the... incident... I mean. Should you be out and about? You really shou-"

"Dash, please, I'm fine." Shrinking back, her mane wrapped around her neck to hide the self-inflicted wounds. "And there's no need to dance around the issue. I... I tried to kill myself. I just couldn't deal with it anymore! I killed those ponies. All those ponies. I was their doctor! It was my job, my duty to help them, and I turned my back on them. They found the mass grave and... and..."

"It was the kind thing t-"

"No!" Tears freely leaked down her cheeks. "Don't say that! D- Don't! Just. Don't. Please. Don't try and justify it. It wasn't the kind thing to do. It wasn't the right thing to do. I'm a bad pony. An evil pony. I shou- I should be in jail. Rotting away somewhere. Banished maybe..."

Collapsing onto the ground, sobs racked her body.

The group was immediately there, pressing against her from all sides as they whispered tender words and reassuring nuzzles. Each touch though, just reminded Celestiaof how blind she had been. How blind they had all been. No matter where she nuzzled, no matter where she laid a reassuring hoof, she could feel the tender skin underneath. It was a good thing it was Applejack who found Fluttershy hanging from the ceiling with a noose around her neck; if it had been one of the fillies...

Celestia didn't want to think of that possibility.

"Group hug!" Pinkie Pie crashed into the pile with a happy giggle.

The two sisters exchanged a subtle look. Though it felt dishonest and it hurt to do so, they had been keeping a close eye on the pink mare. Her ability to bend reality was much too similar to Discord for Celestia's liking, and there was a fear that her three personalities could get into a serious argument and snap. That, and Pinkamina was not the most... moral... of ponies. She had settled down after experiencing enough interesting things, but it was still difficult to keep a hoof on her at times.

Maybe she was being a bit too paranoid.

"Is Applejack coming?" asked Fluttershy with a weak smile.

"She better be! I did invite her to the party after all," said Pinkie.

"As if Ah'd miss this for the world." The farmpony appeared in a flash of red light. "Fluttershy?" Applejack was suddenly there, helping to comfort the distort mare.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," cried the yellow alicorn. "This... this was meant to be about Twilight and all those other ponies who died and now... now... Now you're all here comforting me. Please don't hate me. Please... I-I- I didn't mean to..."

"Shhhh, it's fine my little pony." Celestia brushed Fluttershy's mane lovingly. "It's as much about those who are alive as those who are no longer with us. We love you, we all do, and we hate seeing you so distraught."

And so they sat there, beneath the statue of the greatest mare that had ever lived, with the eternal sun off in the distance. No more words were spoken, nor did any pony move. Trixie did not come, nor would she come, and while it was a rift for all those concerned, it was her choice.

There wasn't anything special about today. Not really. Celestia would often visit – at least once a week – and many times, she'd meet one of the others, already there, telling Twilight about what had happened that week, or some story from their foalhood. In many ways, despite being gone, she was still an integral part of their lives, and Celestia would not have had it any other way. At least they honored her.

Plus, in another couple hundred, or thousand, years, the story would change, names would be forgotten, and Celestia could start working behind the scenes to alter the ’truth’. It was a long term goal, but what was time for an immortal? A couple years of being hated, then before she knew it, her most faithful would become a national hero. A couple years of hate for an eternity of fame. That sounded like a fair trade to her.

And then, someday, the world would know about their sun.

Maybe.

“Watch out below!” Acting on nothing, but pure instinct and routine, I threw up a shielding spell. A second later, a very familiar blue pegasus found herself upside and looking into my very irritated expression. “Uh… oops?”

“Rainbow Dash, this is the third time today you’ve come flying in through that window!” I stomped my hoof for emphasis. “How many times do I have to tell you to practice elsewhere, or do you want to help me clean up the library? Again.”

“But that’s the only free patch of clear sky that’s large enough to contain my awesomeness. Plus, I know when I crash I’ve got someone looking out for me, or would you prefer I crash somewhere away from Ponyville, where no one would know if I got injured, and with no help nearby?”

“Nice try Dash.” Throwing open the door, I shoved her out. “But we all know Pinkie’s Pinkie Sense would warn us in time.”

“Wait!” I held the door steady, ready to slam it in her face in case she was about to make another egghead joke. “Look, I’m sorry alright?”

Breathing out slowly, I sighed. If Dash didn’t normally apologize, I would have seriously considered walking away. Instead, I took a deep breath to calm myself down. “No, it’s my fault. I just sent off my thesis last night, and I’ve been waiting anxiously for the reply. I know it’ll take a while, but the wait is killing me.”

“Yeah, I know that feeling.” She must have seen my confused expression because she added with wry smile, “Best Young Fliers Competition?”

“What? I don’t-“ A sharp pain pierced my head and I dropped onto my knees.

“Twi!” Looking up at her magenta eyes, a sense of wrongness enveloped me. “Twi, you alright?”

“Ye- Yeah.” Standing up on shaky hooves, I gave her the most reassuring smile I could. “Just haven’t been able to sleep thanks to my nerves.”

“Sure?”

“Yep!”

It was obvious that she didn’t believe me, but she didn’t pry. She never pried. After all, being loyal also meant trusting friends to ask for help when they needed it. With a final parting look my way, she leapt into the air with a mighty flap of her wings.To my surprise, she veered off to the north west– the opposite direction from whereshe had been training for the entirety of today.

Before I had even managed to get one step in, there was a knock on the door. With yet another sigh, I turned around and opened the door.

“Hello and welcome to Pon-“

“Twilight!” My eye twitched as I stared at Pinkie Pie exploding out of a present that was far too small to contain a pony of her mass. Or hyperness.“Dashie told me about your thesis and how you sent it off and how all the ponies must be going ‘Whoa’ and ‘Wow’ and ‘This pony is really super-duper, extra super, with triple duper and sunshine, smart!’ And I thought to myself, how could I celebrate my closest smartest friend getting a piece of paper and funny hat and I thought to myself-“

“A party?” I deadpanned.

“Yes!” The squeal she released could have powered Mannehattanfor a year.

“Pinkie, I appreciate your enthusiasm, but I’ve only just sent it in. It’ll take a week before they get back to me at least, and even then, there’s no guarantee my work is good enough.”

“Silly Twilight, it will be!”

“Let me guess, your Pinkie Sense?”

The pink mare looked at me as though I was the insane one. “My Pinkie Sense doesn’t work that way!”

“Of course.”

“Tonight at six! Don’t forget!” And just like that, she was gone in a puff of pink smoke. It was days like these that made me eternally grateful that Pinkamina did not like the taste of coffee. Just the mere thought of a caffeine char-

Wait, Pinkamina? Where had that come from?

I searched my mind for some sort of explanation, but with each passing second, a pounding headache grew. Eyes squeezing shut, I felt myself collapse onto the ground, tears leaking down my cheek. Just as suddenly as the pain appeared, it was gone, leaving me a trembling mess on the ground.

What was going on?

Opening my eyes slowly, I blinked in confusion. There, standing before me, was me. Another version of me. A replica of me. A clone.

“Who are-“ My words died in my throat as I looked down at my ghostly hoof. Once more pain flooded my mind and this time, memories accompanied it.

Spinning around, I conjured a pair of flaming swords. “Discord!”

The world froze around me.

“I know this is a trick. You won’t win! I will defeat you.”

“Do not mention his name to me, mortal.”Teleporting back, I came face to face with a small black alicorn with a blindfold over his eyes. He took a step forward,and the world shattered like a pane of glass, leaving us in nothing but darkness. The only source of light was my spell.

"Where am I? And who are you?"

A chuckle echoed through the darkness.

"You are such a curious creature. My... brother, I suppose you could call him, felt motivated to help you and your friends, though I cannot see why. I gaze upon you now, with your life and thoughts laid bare to me, and yet everything is still such a mystery. Your actions are illogical."

"Who. Are. You?"

"I am Justice."

"I suppose it was stupid of me to think I could run from you."

“Indeed. So tell me, why did you want to die?"

"It was the right thing to do."

"Lie."

"How would you know, you're not Truth."

"But I am Justice, and with it come abilities. Why did you want to die?"

"It was the only way to get Celestia back."

"Lie. Why did you want to die? Why did you want your soul to be broken apart?"

"I wanted no such thing!"

"Lie. Why did you want to die? Why did you want your soul to be broken apart? What are you so afraid of?"

"I had to stop Discord."

"Lie. Why di-"

"Because I'm a coward, alright!? I'd rather have my soul obliterated than be sent to Tartarus where I'd be punished, and where I'd be forced to remember everything I had done. To be reincarnated again and again, each time to only come back to my nightmares. To face those whom I had killed in cold blood, and see the loathing and hate in their eyes, knowing I'd never be able to be forgiven or hide. I wanted my soul to stop existing because it meant not having to face justice."

"And yet here you are."

"Here I am. So what now?"

"Now? Now, you face your punishment.”

“And that is?”

His laughter filled my ears as the world faded back into existence. There I was, or rather, there the other me was, chatting and talking to AJ and Rarity, while other ponies, ponies I didn’t know, came up to congratulate me- us- her. Congratulated her on her thesis getting accepted. Though I did not know who they were, it was clear the other me did. She easily laughed and chatted with them as though they were old friends.

This… this was what could have been? Fluttershy with both her wings, AJ with her soul intact, Spike with a mother…And look at me; I was fit and healthy, without a single scar on me, and probably no nightmares either. The party banner said I had just gotten my PhD, and that meant I was one step closer to achieving my hopes and dreams. I was… I was happy.

Just look at me! I was happy. I was smiling, laughing, chatting, giggling. And- And- And-

I could feel tears leaking out the corner of my eyes.

“This is a world where you made friends and did your duty on the day before the Summer Sun Celebration, like Celestia wished you to.” His voice brushed against my ear. “Enjoy, Twilight Sparkle, for this shall be your punishment.To see what could have been, but was not.”

I felt a tug on my body, drawing me into the real Twilight.

“Oh, and every so often I’ll let you enjoy this world.” Though I could not see him, I just knew he had a smirk that would rival Nightmare Moon’s. “Just so you can experience first hoof what you gave up. This shall be your eternal punishment.”