~Shae~

In truth, I’m not sure why I expected anything more than this. I had a small sliver of an expectation, born of her omniscient appearance in the world of dreams, that she would be a paragon of knowledge and kindness. As odd as it may sound, I prefer the little alicorn child before me.

Luna is as much a foal as one would imagine her to be. She waddles about the tent, looking at everything there is to take in, her wide eyes constantly darting about with curiosity. It only makes sense; this is her first time witnessing the world beyond her ethereal form in the dream world. She hasn’t even used her eyes until just a few minutes ago.

How does one speak to an alicorn child? I suppose I may as well go about this like I would with any other little one. “Luna,” I say to her softly.

She doesn’t respond. She waddles to Rosemary’s bag and opens one of the flaps. Many of the gems Rosemary recovered in the lair spill out. Luna squeaks and tries to gallop away, only to fall flat on her stomach. She sniffles, and her muzzle scrunches up.

I step over to her the moment she starts sobbing. She doesn’t burst into tears, at least. I lend her my gentle touch, and that’s enough to calm her. She shakes off her minor flub and makes an attempt at standing back up. I’m tempted to use my magic to help her. In any case, she manages to get back on her hooves on her third attempt.

“There you are, dear,” I say.

Come to think of it, she’s also never used her hooves until just a few minutes ago.

She’s not quite a baby, nor is she a grown child, despite how I may have referred to her before. Her being an immortal alicorn only complicates the issue of age further. Celina… She came from the sun a year and a half ago. Will Luna appear as an adolescent in that time? Or will she age naturally until— Aw, she fell over again.

This time, she stands up on her own without so much as a fuss, making a little noise that sounds somewhat like a laugh. I recall her speaking once or twice in the dreams, but her words were broken and unfocused. Here, it’s become obvious that she cannot speak. Not yet, at any rate.

“Luna,” I say again. This time, she stops prancing about and looks at me. She tilts her head, making a humming noise as she wonders what it is I could possibly want from her. I can tell what she’s thinking, even if she can’t say it. That will have to do until she can speak. I lie down on my makeshift bed and gesture to the pillow. “Could you come here, please?”

With another hum, she waddles over to me, finding a comfortable spot on the bed next to me before plopping down on the spot. She looks up at me expectantly.

“Luna, my name is Shae Sparkle. Please nod if you understand me.”

She nods.

“Did you know that already?”

She nods again. Amazing. I didn’t even need to tell her the difference between yes and no. I’ve already formed a bridge. This is much easier than I thought it would be.

“Good…” I tap my chin and think of what else there is to say. I don’t wish to unleash a barrage of questions on a baby… toddler… erm… newborn. I’ll keep this concise. “Does the name Celina mean anything to you?”

She nods. Her wings start to buzz with excitement.

I feel as though I could sing. Any errant concerns that this isn’t going to work are fast dwindling. “Tomorrow, we're leaving to see her together. I’m sure she will be very happy to meet you.”

Luna lets out a squeak similar to the one she made earlier, only this time it’s one of glee. She hops in place, her wings still flapping erratically. As expected, they don’t take her into the air at all, but it is very adorable.

I let out a yawn. Now the pillow seems even more inviting than before. My eyelids are starting to droop. With all of my questions out of the way, the excitement of this day finally leaves me, and I’m left with a sudden desire to sleep. But I don’t want to leave Luna…I blink a few times, and in those few moments, Luna has stepped away. I look around the tent for her.

“Where did you…”

I feel a small hoof prodding at my stomach. Well, not quite my stomach. Luna is touching somewhere a little lower. The realization dawns on me; how insensitive was I to not bring any food for her? Then again, it would have been for naught in the cold, and Sacred Rite’s intervention wouldn’t have helped matters anyway…

It’s not too awful, I suppose. I am a willing and able mare, and I can’t let Luna starve until I can procure a substitute for milk.

“Just a moment, dear.” I begin to disrobe.

~Vision End~

“I expected I would be the one to take Luna’s hoof as she emerged from the world of dreams into this world, but evidently, that is something that must be taken away from me as well.”

Caro paces about the campsite, foregoing the use of Rosemary’s newly kindled fire to breathe heavily. His frown slowly breaks into a smirk. After a moment of silence passes, he laughs at his own shallowness.

“I suppose I shouldn’t have expected anything else,” he says. “After all, I was the one so preoccupied with my own training. I suppose Luna grew impatient and sought out a new pony to welcome her.”

Rosemary removes another log from her bag of holding and tosses it onto the fire with a grunt. “Yep, I definitely be sensin’ a twinge of jealousy there.” She lies down on a dry patch of ground with a small flask in hoof.

Tohro fans the fire with his wings, though he isn’t so focused that he can’t make a jape. “Caro Dragonborn. Bloodthirsty. Fearless. Stoic. Jealous of a schoolmare.” He receives a light tap on the head from said Dragonborn.

“Schoolmare?” Rosemary says incredulously. “Ya numpty, I don’t think ya were lookin’ at the same lassie I was.”

“How do you mean?” Caro stops his pacing. “Shae is—”

“The mare that caught the wee bairn that fell from the sky? That ain’t the same Shae y’all dragged into the forge several months ago.” Rosemary pauses to take a long drink from her flask. “That Shae was kind, thoughtful, innocent. Yet, she was also scared. Reluctant. She didn’t quite have an adventurer’s spirit, but I saw the potential in her wide eyes. Now, she’s all of those things sans the scared and reluctant bits. She’s found that spirit. But she’s also found something else.”

“Like what?” Caro asks.

Rosemary smiles as she stands up and approaches Caro. “Tell me honestly, Dragonborn. You didn’t see it? The look upon her pretty wee mug as she held Luna? She ain’t no schoolmare, laddie. She’s become somethin’ more.”

The yellow earthwalker trots to the tent Shae disappeared into, looking keen to open the flap and reveal what could possibly be occurring inside. She waves Caro and Tohro over. As they go up to her, she holds her hoof to her mouth. “Be quiet for the little one…” She opens the tent flap.

Caro and Tohro look inside. The sight they see causes the former to back up a step, and the latter simply tilts his head in bewildered curiosity.

Shae has her eyes closed as she lies on her side. She is entirely disrobed, her clothes discarded behind her. Below her torso sits Luna, who eagerly nurses from Shae’s teats.

Rosemary looks inside, still smiling as she looks upon the unusual sight. “Huh. Perhaps I underestimated my suspicions…”

The lavender unicorn tenses up in discomfort as Luna bites down harder than necessary. “Not so rough, love…” She opens her eyes, and she’s greeted by the mixed expressions of her companions. “Hello.”

“Shae…” Tohro begins, slowly letting out his words. “Why… are you… nursing… the black alicorn?”

Shae glares at Tohro. Her lowered eyelids and straight mouth don’t imply amusement. “She’s more of a midnight blue.”

Tohro flinches, as if that response could actually be felt on his face. “That… uh....”

“She was hungry.” Shae strokes Luna’s mane. Due to her resting position, that’s all she can do, even though she would prefer to hold her. “What was I supposed to do? Let her go wanting? That’d be quite the welcome into our world.”

Tohro shrugs, unable to find any legitimate argument against such reasoning, except for one. “One would think you’d come to us for some sort of substitute. But, you have a point. Who would we be to welcome the long awaited dream child with anything but legitimate milk?” The pegasus gives pause to his words as he steps into the tent. “Come to think of it, how are you able to nurse her?”

“It’s a spell… Urgh.” Shae grunts again. Luna is a nippy one, far more eager than anticipated. “Easy there, dear… Alteration magic, tier five. I stimulated my body to produce milk without any reproduction cycle.” At that note, Luna has finished with her meal. She sits down, and Shae scoots over by her haunches to hold the little one. “According to my mother, nuns in Gran Magus did so all the time to nurse orphaned children.”

Rosemary and Tohro both are left with unusually large blushes on their faces. Only Caro seems to take such information in stride. “Wonderful,” says Rosemary. "Got spells to stimulate anythin' else, lassie?" she asks with a sly smirk.

“Decency, Rose.” Shae has her hooves against Luna’s ears. This does nothing to damper the wide smile on the alicorn filly’s little face.

Rosemary chortles as she kneels down to Luna’s level. “Cut me some slack. I’m a northerner.” She reaches out to Luna, who accepts her touch. Rosemary gives the child’s long mane an affectionate tousle. “You know, I dreamed of you a few times. Passed it off as a fever dream when it happened. Honestly, I can’t imagine why I’d need you. I’m perfectly happy.”

As she says that, her eye twitches, which doesn’t go unseen by Luna or Shae. The little one tilts her head as her smile disappears.

“Aw, don’t let that smile go. Let’s have it back. Come on.” Rosemary imitates the largest, silliest, unforgivably toothy grin she can manage. After keeping it on for a moment, Luna imitates the look.

The earthwalker just keeps grinning.

“Uh, Rose? Sweetie?” Shae waves her hoof in front of her face, causing Rosemary’s uncomfortable expression to fade. “You’re awfully pale.”

“Oh. Am I?”

Shae nods as she pats the pillow next to hers. “I think you should lie down.”

“Right, right…”

As Rosemary does as she’s advised, disposing of her hat and coat, Tohro and Caro both approach Luna. She mostly seems occupied with Caro, looking up at him with a twinkle of familiarity in her large eyes. “Ah, she recognizes me,” the Dragonborn says. He offers Luna a soft smile, the best his rugged face can muster. “I’ve dreamed of you since the beginning of my journey. You’ve offered me much comfort. I can only hope you’ll do the same for Celina.”

Shae looks at Rosemary. "We've become quite the family, haven't we?"

"Yeah... I guess..."

"Is something the matter?" Shae leans in closer.

"No, no... just... nothin..." Rosemary grins. Her eyes reflect the opposite as she keeps a concentrated gaze on Luna. "We just have to make sure we keep this lil' one safe this time."

"This time?" Shae cocks a brow. "What do you mean?"

"I don't mean nothin'!" Rosemary picks herself up, still wearing her dissonant expression, and nearly tears the tent flap off as she storms out.

"What's gotten into her?" Shae frowns, holding Luna close. The child is humming again, this time with worry in her tone. “Doesn’t she know she can tell us anything? We can help her.”

"Anypony have any idea what's bothering her? Do you suppose she’s harboring a secret?" Caro nods in the direction of the mare, who has taken up rest next to the dwindling fire. As both stallions watch her, she slowly looks up to the sky.

"I’ll look into it later," Tohro mutters as he unbuckles his gauntlets. The last thing he wishes for is to scare a newborn with a hidden blade. He offers Luna his hoof, only to have her whinge. Tohro frowns, much to Caro’s amusement. “Aw, don’t be cruel. I’m sorry I got your color wrong.”

“You never dreamed about her; she doesn’t know you,” Caro says bluntly. “Plus, I think she’s a little offput from…” He looks back at Rosemary again. She’s still looking skyward. “Yeah.”

“Shame…” Tohro retracts his hoof, though even he still falls victim to Luna’s infectious pleasantry. He settles for sitting across from her. “Perhaps she’ll warm up in a bit. Can I hold her then, Shae?”

The unicorn tightens her grip on Luna, who giggles with excitement from the sudden lurch. “No. She’s mine.”

Caro and Tohro share the same amused, yet not surprised in the slightest expression. They share a look at each other and chuckle softly. “Rosemary was right,” Caro notes.

Shae tilts her head, utterly perplexed. “What?”

Luna mimics her action. “Ouh?”

~Shae~

It was my assumption that Everfree would appear the same as it always has since Clover’s attack. The same polished buildings, the same gem encrusted streets, the same posh citizens with their fancy robes and golden trimmings. Yet, none of the radiant sunlight or constant presence of tranquility that once held this glorious city remains, hidden beyond a perpetual veil of sorrowful black clouds. Not a single street or building shines, nor does the diamond moat beneath this arched bridge.

While Caro and Tohro discuss the best plan of approach for what we’re about to do, I can’t help but look at a nearby malt parlor. “Celina…” I murmur.

Rosemary’s muzzle brushes against my cheek, causing my heart to flutter. A smidge of my worry fades at her smile. All traces of her unusual behavior atop the spire have disappeared, for the time being. She reaches behind me to give Luna a brush through her mane and a scratch behind the ears. Luna hums at her touch, though I can’t help but feel that’s how you would treat a cat rather than a foal.

“This is where I leave you,” Rosemary says.

I nod, having expected this. Never before has Rosemary set hoof in the Rainbow Palace, only coming to the gates to beckon for me during the long while I spent taking care of Celina. I don’t think she wishes to break any new ground, especially in a dire time like this.

“I’d just be in the way. I don’t know the princess like you do, and she only needs those close to her right now.”

I return her earlier nuzzle. “Thank you. For everything.”

“Only for you, lassie,” she says, giving me a very welcome kiss on the lips. It doesn’t last nearly as long as I’d like it to. “I’ll be in the market district if you be needin’ me.” She turns on a single hoof and trots off, eventually becoming lost to my sight in the crowd of sullen townsfolk.

Luna waves as I do, albeit with a bit more energy. I can imagine all this darkness means little to her when she’s so thrilled to meet Celina. I can only hope Celina feels the same.

I approach Caro and Tohro. By the way they stand at attention, they seem to have been waiting for me. “Shae, after much consideration, we’ve decided that you should do what you think is best for this mission,” says Tohro.

“You know Celina better than anypony in Equestria, I’d warrant,” Caro adds. “We’ll follow, and if you wish anything of us, it will be done.”

So, I’m the helm of the quest. I suppose stranger things have happened as of late. “Are you ready to meet Celina, darling?” I ask the filly on my back.

Luna’s wings continue to buzz as I take steps towards the Rainbow Palace with Caro and Tohro following closely behind.

How I wish I could teleport over long distances. Looking upon the townsfolk suffering beneath such memetic depression is a horror that I fear will never truly leave me. I see a vegetable salespony with a near barren, rancid stock, selling off a small collection of celery for a measly two bits. The lack of sun to grace the farmlands has taken its toll on trade.

Beggars. Under any other circumstances, beggars wouldn’t be out of the ordinary, but Everfree should be the city of luxury and comfort… I can’t imagine how these poor fellows found themselves in such a sordid state. In silence, Tohro and I give a hungry looking couple a few coins, and Caro passes them a few slices of garlic bread.

The ponies of Everfree aren’t dying, nor are they injured in a physical sense. More than all else, they are simply miserable, unable to see the sun or the sky, enduring a constant internal struggle. All for reasons beyond their understanding. This is Celina’s pain given form.

“Are you scared, love?” I ask Luna.

She nods.

I reach to her and squeeze her hoof. “So am I.”

The gates of the Rainbow Palace are guarded, as expected. After two months of living in the palace, I am not a stranger here, and I’ve always been let in on sight. I doubt the soldiers will make any effort to change that, even if they do look exhausted and weak.

They smile halfheartedly as I trot by, the gate swinging open silently.

The infinitely black sky only makes the interior of the palace darker. It no longer has the mien of a place of royalty. Deathly sadness fills the air and causes the heart to sink. The darkness has already taken its toll on Tohro, who huddles close to Caro.

We trot up the main stairs, following the path to Celina’s room. She can only be there. She wouldn’t have reason to be anywhere else.

The winding staircase is the darkest place of all. Tohro takes the steps one hoof at a time, and Caro stays with him through it. I grow impatient, but not irritated. Luna, however, only seems to grow more excited as Celina’s room grows closer. In fact, she seems more happy in darkness than anywhere else.

Finally, the entrance to the room is before us. I straighten out my coat and robes, take a deep breath and reach for the handle.

My hind leg touches something.

“Aurgh.” Something sentient. I look down and see a bundle of blankets, a wrapped present, and a red mane.

Tohro taps the blankets a few times. “Captain?”

Gauntlet’s head rises from the blankets, his face dark with exhaustion. He lets out a tired groan. “Good evening, Tohro… Dragonborn.” He turns to me. “Ah, Miss Shae… Wonderful to see you again… When did you get back?”

I decide to save him the trouble of hearing what I had to go through at the spire. “A few minutes ago, actually…”

“Asleep on the job, are we?” Tohro asks with a chuckle.

Gauntlet nickers. “You laugh, soldier… I happen to be off duty for the moment.” He slowly rises up, revealing he is clad in only local robes and sleeves. He takes notice of Tohro’s naughty expression; the pegasus looks keen to not let Gauntlet live this one down. “I’ll have you know, this is a matter of personal importance…” He levitates the package off the ground.

“Or one of affinity?” Tohro asks.

“I am neither confirming it, nor…” Gauntlet brings his hoof to his forehead, wrinkling his brow with a long grunt. “I’m not denying it. I’m here for my princess.” He smiles pathetically as he looks at me. “Miss Shae, ever since you disappeared, Everfree has only become bleaker. I felt Celina needed somepony willing to reach out to her, so once I was returned here from my patrol outside Baltimare and saw how horrid matters have become, I decided to—”

I interrupt him. “Sleep out here until Celina leaves her room?”

“That is correct.” Gauntlet touches the door. “Of course, it’s locked, but she can only stay in there for so long. Eventually, she’ll have to leave… She has to eat sometime.”

I sigh, shaking my head. “No, Gauntlet.” I honestly cannot believe he doesn’t have a grasp on Celina’s situation. “She wouldn’t speak to you while I was here. That’s not about to change.”

“But I can—”

I, a plain unicorn with scrawny legs and no muscle to speak of, manage to make Gauntlet back down with a single powerful stare. “Gauntlet, you can try, and I would appreciate it, but two months of my care and Celina never once smiled. She is in her own definition of hell. Do you think you can pull her out of hell?”

“...Maybe.”

“Maybe.” I can see Gauntlet’s will faltering. I don’t intend to demoralize him. “Well, I tried, and I can’t fault you for trying either. It just wasn’t good enough.”

“Then… what am I supposed to do?”

I would likely be detained for doing such a thing in any other circumstance, but I touch Gauntlet’s cheek reassuringly. “You can’t. Not at the moment, anyway. You’ll need to be there for Celina when I can’t.”

Gauntlet stays still, likely pondering my words. After a moment that lasts longer than it should, he exhales and removes my hoof from his cheek. “Okay… But, do tell me, what makes you think you can help her now?”

“We can’t possibly understand what she’s going through. As such, I thought it best to find somepony who does.” I turn my head. “Say hello, little one.”

Luna pokes her head out from behind me. Even the surrounding darkness cannot hide her wide smile. She makes a particularly loud hum as she waves to Gauntlet.

Gauntlet is agape as he approaches Luna. I can tell he’s having difficulty comprehending what he’s seeing. “Another one… Miss Shae, the Divines bless us.”

“Perhaps they do.”

With his shock, and Luna’s reluctance to let him touch her, it’s apparent that Gauntlet hasn’t been having the dreams. Perhaps he’s too occupied to even remember if he has dreamed about her.

“It’s okay, Luna. He’s a friend.”

My reassurance is all she needs to let him to pet her. “Amazing… Another immortal alicorn to share Celina’s troubles… I don’t see why you bother speaking to me.” He gestures to the door and stands aside. “Go on, then.”

“We can’t do that right away,” I say. “It’d be for the best that I ease Celina into this. It wouldn’t be wise of me to give her more reason to be upset.”

I levitate Luna off of my back and let her putter around the floor for a little bit. The little one touches everything; the carpet, the walls, the drapery… She has a naturally curious spirit. Something that has become so mundane to me is so fascinating to her.

“Luna.”

She looks up at me.

“I need you to stay here with Gauntlet for a moment while I speak to Celina.”

Luna’s eyes widen. She stumbles over to me and grabs onto my foreleg, squeezing tight without any intention of letting go.

I kneel down and try to comfort her with my touch, but she keeps squirming and resisting me. I gently grab her in my aura and lift her up. I give her a soft kiss on the forehead which seems to quell her a little bit.

“I won’t be long, I promise. You’ll be able to meet Celina very soon.”

Luna smiles at that notion, even though she still looks keen to squirm some more.

“You’re a very good filly,” I tell her to keep her spirits up. By the way she plops down and stays still, it seems to work, at least for the moment. It’s far more difficult for me to set her down than it should be.

“We have one more problem,” Tohro says. “How are we supposed to talk to Celina when she locked the door?” He chuckles as he reaches into his pouch. “I bring that up rhetorically, of course. I’ll take care of this. Altair gave me some enchanted picks, so—”

Celina’s door becomes enveloped in a familiar gold aura. It’s faint and inconsistent, but it’s strong enough to slowly open the door. The even greater darkness of what lies beyond does not bode well.

“Come in…” says a weak, broken voice.

So she does want to see me. Or she knows that I won’t leave without seeing her. Either way, I start walking.

Celina’s room is…

Ever since I left Wintercolt for the first time, I have endured horrors that I’m surprised haven’t destroyed me. I have been assaulted and nearly violated by bandits. I have been infected by a skeever. I had to face skeletal remains of Precursors. I have nearly been crushed by a dragon’s corpse. I have encountered a god of chaos. I have watched innocent bystanders get cut apart. I went through a hallucinogenic nightmare. I survived getting stabbed in the gut. I watched my headmaster die. I was betrayed by my idol. I suffered for days at the hooves of an insane zealot, starving and filthy, waiting for death at the teeth of an unwilling beast…

Nothing I have endured or ever will endure compares to how destroyed I feel as I look at the remains of Celina’s room.

Her mirror is shattered, its glass littering the floor. Pillows are torn and mangled, thrown about in heaps of feathers at the corners. Shredded remains of pink and magenta blankets are strung up on the wallbound lamps. Pieces of cups and plates are scattered everywhere, and whatever food they held is rotted and shriveled.

The worst of it, the part that makes me sick to my stomach, is the blood. Every jagged shard of the mirror is stained with blood. The walls, the carpet, even the ceiling, it’s all soaked in more blood than anypony could ever stand to lose. The stench is just short of unbearable, but the way it crushes my heart is incomprehensible.

“So… You’ve returned…”

The hollow remains of what was once the most beautiful voice in the world. Celina’s words are a stark and barren wasteland now. She rises from her bed, with only bloody sheets to hide her wings. She looks at me with faded, bloodshot eyes which look painted on her skeletal face. I nearly step back and shriek at how like a draugr she has become, but I have to stay strong for her. I know that beyond that hellish face, my Celina is in there. “I returned for you.”

“To watch me suffer, I’m sure…” she replies. There is no life to her words, only dry monotone. “Say your farewells before you inevitably face the cold, bitter claws of death… Leave me alone to waste away while others join you in the beyond… A beyond I will never see…”

I look back at Caro and Tohro. They may not be much assistance to me here, but they’re here nonetheless. That’s more than enough.

I gather my thoughts and speak again. “I will not watch you suffer.”

“Then go.”

I smile. “No.”

Celina bares her teeth. “Why?”

“You’re too important to me. I cannot let you tear yourself apart. Your people need you. I need you.”

She snaps her gaze to the broken window. A draft pours in, making the tattered drapes wave and causing the room to feel cold and harsh beyond how it already is. “What does it matter? At least they have death to look forward to at the end. They can find their own happiness.” She looks back at me. “And as for you… You never needed me. You’re so strong. So high and mighty. Gifted with power beyond any other mortal. You don’t know what suffering is. No matter what you’ve been through, you have always found a way out! Even life itself has its escape for you!”

Celina stands, causing the sheet to fall off of her and reveal her eviscerated, twiglike body, blemished with mottled fur and decayed wings. She is little more than a skeleton with skin.

“Never for me!”

She leaps from her bed and lands right in front of me. Her horn is aglow and her horrifying skull of a face stares right at me. The whole room becomes a maelstrom of chaos right out of my worst nightmares, with her drawers, tables and furniture rising from the floor and flying about aimlessly.

This does not phase me. I’ve come too far to be scared off. “Why do you torture yourself?” I ask. “Let yourself starve, make yourself bleed… Why do you do such horrible things?”

“Isn’t it obvious to you?!” Celina screams. “If there is even the slightest possibility that I do not have to face eternity, I will gladly tear myself apart and let time end my suffering. Even a life as ashes or wisps in the air is better than the fate that has been bestowed upon me.”

That serves as a morbid explanation for the blood and rotten sustenance...

“You don’t have to live such a life. What you have is a gift.”

“It’s a curse! Do you know nothing?!”

She is seething, bent on breaking at any moment. But I’m calm. I can bring her to calm with words. Before, I had cried. I even shouted in desperation for her to come back to her senses. But now, all I need are words.

“You’re a princess, Celina. If you ascend the throne, you can be the greatest ruler ponykind has ever known. You can be kind to your subjects and they will be kind in return. You can show them a world of happiness they’ve only dreamed of. And with your power, you can protect them from those that would do harm to them. What is so awful about that?”

The objects flying about the room fall as Celina’s aura fades from her horn. It all comes down in a loud clatter. Caro and Tohro stumble, but Celina and I remain still.

Celina’s lip quivers. “They’ll die anyway…”

I recall when she first discovered her gift, and what the queen said to her. “Platinum said you have the power to make their lives worthwhile. That is something I realized a long time ago, after my mother and father passed away… I learned that death is just a natural part of life.”

“Then…” Celina’s lip quivers. “What… does that make… me?”

That is something I do not have an answer to. I could remind her that she’s a legendary alicorn, or a princess, but at the worst, that would only set her back to how she was before… I can’t bring in Luna just yet. The moment just isn’t right…

“Celina,” Caro says, taking a step forward. “I can’t say I know what it’s like to be infinite. None of us can understand what you’re going through, and we won’t pretend that we ever will. But I do know what it’s like to suffer.”

“How?” Celina asks, her voice less than a whisper.

“I had to lose my master and go through days of pain and suffering to become what I am now. Despite all of that misery, I am now free to shape my own destiny.”

“Yes, yes, that’s right!” Tohro nods and points to himself. “I used to serve a monster, but I broke free of those shackles and became my own master. Even now, as I serve the Legion, I am at nopony’s beck and call, not even the Divines. I choose my path.”

Those wonderful stallions couldn’t have found a finer thing to say if they tried.

I look back at Celina, watching as she falters and lays down. I step a bit closer to her. She doesn’t resist, even as I continue speaking. “We are what we choose to be. With your gift, you have more freedom than anypony else. You can be as you wish. You don’t even have to be a princess. You can have anything you ever wanted.”

I touch her chin and gently urge her to look at me. She does so, allowing me to see that same glimmer I saw when I first met her. Skin and bones be damned, it’s still there.

“What is it you want, Celina?”

I now see what that sparkle is. Fresh tears fall from her eyes like waterfalls, drenching the carpet. She breaks, collapsing entirely, burying her face in her forelegs and sobbing uncontrollably. “I want to die…”

Aside from her faint crying and the stray wind, silence is all to be known.

Even though I’ve held on without letting the pain of watching Celina suffer get to me, hearing her say that is physically painful. I have to turn my head and let a few errant tears fall. I don’t speak until I’ve wiped them clean off my face.

There is nothing left for me to say. Any word uttered now would just be wasted prose. There is only one thing left for me to do.

I turn to the open door, where my frightened little Luna stands, waiting patiently for my beckon. I raise my hoof and wave her over. She trots slowly, taking care to avoid the bloodstains on the floor. Even though she can comprehend her immortality, I wonder if she even knows what blood is. She does know Celina on sight, though. She looks at her as if she’s known her all her life, like a sister.

Luna glances up at me. She’s wondering if I’m going to do anything else, but my work is finished here. I nod my head towards Celina, telling Luna it’s all up to her now. I trust her to know what Celina needs. After all, I know now that she came to this world for her.

Luna approaches Celina, who is still hiding her face away, crying beneath the cover of her forelegs. Even a few hums don’t get her attention.

Luna opens her mouth. “Tia?”

I have to hold back my gasp. Tohro has his hoof over his mouth and Caro’s eyes have widened.

Celina comes out of hiding. She looks upon Luna, and the moment she realizes she’s looking at an alicorn, she stands up and backs away in surprise. “A-another…?” She lets Luna get closer, still gaping as the little one nuzzles up against her leg, humming happily all the while. Celina, however, doesn’t seem to share that happiness. She doesn’t appear angry either. She looks at me. “What...?”

“I found her… Or she found me.”

“She…” Celina carefully graces Luna’s mane, as if to make sure she’s even real. “She isn’t… some sort of projection?”

“What do you think?”

Celina kneels down to Luna and holds her still. She takes an extended look at her, gently brushing her fur and attempting to touch her wings, which buzz whenever Celina’s hoof gets close. She even taps Luna’s horn, which flashes turquoise and makes Luna giggle. “Tia!” she calls out.

“No, m-my name is Celina.”

Luna shakes her head. “Tia.”

“Celina.”

“Tia!”

It takes a long time for it to happen, but Celina’s lips eventually curl into a smile. “Okay, you can call me Tia… What’s your name, little one?”

Luna hums especially loud, struggling to say yet another word. The very idea that she’s even talking to begin with has me plastered with shock and pride. “W… W…. Woona.”

“Woona?” Celina tilts her head.

“Her name is Luna,” I say. I will admit, my hooves are itching to hold the little one. I can’t stand not having her right next to me. Regardless, I hold still. “She really wanted to meet you. She may not look the part, but she’s a smart filly.”

“So she knows? About everything?”

I nod. "Everything. And more, I'm sure. She's only ever spoken to me in my dreams, but I'm sure she knows more than I do, and she definitely knows you, Celina. She came because she wishes to share the burden of immortality with you. She can take in your pain when it becomes too much to bear, and stand strong for you when you can’t. You’ll never be alone.”

“I…” Celina keeps opening her mouth, but she makes no words. I would recognize that face from a mile away. She’s happy. She’s so happy she can’t comprehend it. All she can do is look at me, agape, and ask, “Why?”

“Why what?” I reply with a chuckle.

“Everything.” Celina sets Luna down and stands, gradually approaching me. “You stayed with me even when I acted out in rage. I hurt you. I said absolutely horrible things to you. And yet you stayed, doing everything within your power to make me happy…” She looks down, watching as Luna wraps herself around her leg. “When that didn’t work, you went so far as to find me a little sister. Why did you go so far for me?”

She asks that as if it isn’t obvious. "Because I love you. All I ever want is for you to be happy. Even when I'm gone, I want you to remember that.” I step up to her and wrap my forelegs around her neck. “I love you, Celina."

As I press my cheek up against hers, I feel a fresh stream of tears. These are different. They aren’t born of anguish. These are tears of newfound elation.

“I love you too…” Celina says.

Her returning of my embrace is accompanied by her mane becoming wreathed with light. It rises, flowing like an ethereal curtain. Her body feels less skeletal by the moment, returning to a strong and healthy state, and her coat regains its alabaster shimmer.

When I finally release my grip on the ever-so-beautiful alicorn, it takes me a moment to realize I’m still standing in her room. The blood and mold are gone. The decimated pillows are back on the bed, which appears newly made. Shards of glass no longer litter the floor, as they have all returned to the mirror.

Celina embraces Luna and nuzzles her like a sister would. “Tia!” Luna squeaks.

“Thank you…” Celina says. I’m not entirely sure if she means that for Luna or me. In all likelihood, it’s for both of us.

The quiet and serenity of the moment is all thrown to the wind when I hear Gauntlet shouting. “Your Majesty, do calm down!”

“Oh, I do believe we have company…” Tohro says with a mischievous giggle.

Queen Platinum comes galloping into the room, stumbling over her own gold bedrobes. Her mane is all a mess. I suppose that, once again, I am responsible for interrupting the royal nap.

“Shae?! I thought you were...” She pauses, hanging her head as she catches her breath. “Not that I am unhappy to see you, but... You could have awoken me with something other than that ruckus…”

Her Majesty looks about, seeing how glowingly clean everything is. She then looks at Luna, who huddles closer to Celina. Platinum’s mouth opens in appall at that, but she gapes even more when she sees the white alicorn she once called her daughter is no longer a living skeleton. “Celina, you… What in the name of Epona happened here?”

Celina looks to the open window. The breeze feels calmer than before; less harsh and menacing. It’s like a breeze on a perfect summer day, or at least the greatest equivalent in the middle of an extended winter.

Celina sighs with contentment. “The sun is coming out.”

I refuse to be anywhere else than right beside her. Celina stares out into the city as a hopeful smile graces her lips. The harsh winds and the blackness of the sky are lessening by the second.

The townsponies of Everfree, perhaps sensing that their shining beacon of warmth and love is returning to them, have started opening their doors and pouring out into the streets, all making their way calmly and orderly towards the palace gates. It seems Celina’s memetic influence extends to more than just the sky above.

Celina smiles down upon all of them as a murmur in the gathering crowd becomes a staccato rumble of hooves striking cobble.

“I’m not afraid anymore,” my princess says.

I feel magic gathering in the air and realize what she is about to do, and I can't help it when tears come to my eyes for the second time today. The thrumming beat coalesces until the entire town is marching in a dance-step. They have formed neat rows below their princess' bedroom. Pegasi bearing the cloud insignia of the Weather Guild are collecting the remaining storm clouds, adding their voices to the music. The rumbles and crackles coming from the clouds sound almost like drums and cymbals.

Celina drops her robe and spreads her wings.

The crowd falls silent, at least for a moment.

Luna, wrapped in Celina's warm yellow aura, begins dancing through the sky above the crowd. The citizens of Everfree add their voices in a grand cheer along with the beat of their hooves. I will admit, I’d be more enamoured with their celebration if I weren’t so concerned for Luna. I trust Celina to keep her safe, but the fear is still there. I’m able to relax when she returns to her sister’s embrace.

Among the cheers is the voice of a familiar zebra. I look out beyond the crowd and see none other than Xephyr himself, sitting upon a rooftop and strumming his lute. By some means of passive enchantment or otherwise, his voice is audible over the fraptious glee of the citizens.

"Oh princess, our princess, it's lovely to see, that you're shining brightly above Everfree!
Your music and loving was tenderly missed, with you in our hearts, we've known that greatest of bliss!"

Celina laughs aloud, keeping her wings spread as she steps forward. With a simple wave of her hoof, the crowd falls silent. “Children of Everfree, the torment you must have felt in the time of my absence must have been a living horror. I speak with a heart burdened by regret when I say I am to blame for your sorrows. I know now, more than ever, that this great city needs its princess as much as it needs heroes.”

She gestures to Caro and Tohro, who humbly stand behind her. Caro had requested they not be given a second ceremony. This day belongs to Celina.

She beckons to me, looking down at the package in my hoof. I open it, revealing a diamond encrusted tiara with a magenta jewel in its center. Normally, I would levitate the tiara onto Celina’s head, but I decide to take it in my hoof and give it to her personally.

“How do I look?” she asks, pursing her lips in a moment of sheepishness.

I grace her cheek and urge her to hold her head up high. “I think you know the answer.”

Celina adjusts her tiara, puts her smile back on, and resumes her speech. “I cannot wallow in the shadows of my immortality any longer. From now on, I take responsibility. I take responsibility for this gift. Whether I be a blessing upon this land from the divines or an anomaly in this ever-evolving kingdom, I will forever be your ruler from the day of Queen Platinum’s passing, Epona save her.”

Celina releases Luna, who stands before her with her chest puffed out and a face of confidence. It’s an adorably exaggerated stance of propriety that makes me laugh.

“I take responsibility for my sister, Luna, who will rule by my side. Her mere existence has saved me from the depths of despair, and I can only hope she does the same for the rest of Equestria when the time comes. This is as much my return to the land of the living as it is her coronation.”

This is something I wasn’t informed of. In fact, the way the guards at the edge of the balcony share confused expressions with Queen Platinum, it seems Celina has just made this up on the spot.

“She is my sister. It only seems fair that she should be as much a princess as I am.” Celina levitates her tiara off her head and onto Luna’s. It’s far too big for the little one, but she leaps around, humming merrily regardless.

“Above all,” Celina continues, “I take responsibility for the future. What lies ahead will not be easy. There will be pain, and there will be burden. There may be times when we cannot see any light on the horizon.” She looks to the sky. “But there is always light.”

A streak of sun pierces the clouds, creating a shaft of blinding radiance the likes of which I’ve never witnessed in all my life.

“No matter how far we’ve fallen, there is always light. Even when our hearts are swallowed by darkness, our minds clouded and our judgment poor, there is, and always will be, light.”

Celina glances at me.

“Somepony very close to me taught me that.”

If it weren’t for the eyes of Everfree looking upon me, I would collapse with tears of pride and happiness for her. For now, I can only express how I feel through a warm smile and a little wave.

Celina scoops up Luna in her forelegs, flaps her wings and takes to the sky, hovering beyond the balcony for all to see. “I am your princess of light.” She holds Luna up high. “This is Luna, my dear sister.” Her horn comes alight. Every last cloud in the sky begins to fade until nothing but blue sky and wisps of white. “We will be your eternal rulers. Long live Equestria!”

Caro and Tohro raise their hooves and chant. “Long live Equestria!”

How could I do anything less than cheer along with them? I raise my hoof as well. So does Platinum, along with the guards. “Long live Equestria!” we all shout.

“Long live Equestria!” chants Xephyr.

“Long live Equestria!” chants little Treesap, who sits atop a fruit stand to wave at Tohro.

“Long live Equestria!” chants Rosemary as she blows me a kiss.

“Long live Equestria!” chants Gauntlet. He can’t keep his eyes off of Celina.

“Long live Equestria!” chants all of Everfree.

The chanting continues long after Celina stops, and I don’t think there’s any chance it’ll stop any time soon. I cannot blame the ponies of Everfree. They have waited too long for something worth cheering for.

Celina returns to the balcony, clutching Luna tightly to her chest. Luna is squirming, making needy hums. “What do you need, sister?” Celina asks her quietly. I can barely hear her among the ongoing shouting.

Luna is reaching for me, trying to break free from the forelegs holding her. Celina realizes this and lets her go, setting her down gently with her magic.

I kneel down and reach for Luna in turn. She leaps into my embrace, then looks up at me with her wide eyes, which are even more precious and adorable in the sunlight.

“Mommy!” she shouts.

The chanting goes silent. At least, for me.

I don’t know why I’m running. It’s not as if I have anything to run from anymore. For the moment, Equestria, or at least a part of it, has been made a better place. Celina is happy, Luna is happy… So, why can’t I stop running? I’m sure somepony is calling for me. I can hear my name through the pounding of blood in my ears, which only escalates in volume as I keep running.

I’ve galloped down the spiral stairs and have reached the main staircase. This is where I slow down, heaving with every breath. My heart won’t stop pounding. I can feel my chest thumping with every beat. I try to stay focused on descending these stairs, but with a hiccup, I lose my hoofing and slip. I tumble down the last few steps, landing at the bottom on my side.

“Agh…” I choke out.

Queen Platinum is at the height of the stairs, her eyes wide with worry. While she is dressed in her ornate, fur-trimmed robes, her mane is still a mess; she hardly had time to compose herself before Celina gave her impromptu speech to the masses. She only looks more haggard with the panic on her face. “Shae! Oh, Divines…” She takes the steps two and a time, landing right next to me. She reaches out with both forelegs. “Are you hurt?”

With my crash landing, the pounding in my ears has halted, but my chest still won’t be quelled. I try to steady myself with several slow, deep breaths. “I… I don’t… I don’t… don’t know. I think… I… I’m going to just lie here for a while.”

Platinum sighs. My legs are pulled by her pink aura until I’m forcibly made to stand up again. “You put Luna down and made off like the wind. Now, as your queen and benefactor, I advise that you tell me what happened.”

The memory keeps replaying in my head beyond my desire. Luna looking up at me expectantly. The two syllables coming from her tiny mouth. The way they were spoken with such innocence, without a doubt in her mind.

“I’m… She… She called me...”

“Mommy!” That’s Luna’s voice. It’s not in my head this time. It echoes through the palace corridors. My legs become further glued to the carpet every time she calls out to me. “Mommy!”

“So, that’s the way of it…” Platinum says, nodding her head affirmingly.

“Why… Why does she say that?” I find it difficult to put my words together, on account of how much I’m trembling. “Why does she call me that? I’m not her m… m...” I can’t bring myself to even say the word. It sticks in my throat like lumpy oatmeal.

“Hmm…” Platinum taps her chin, then she starts pacing. “Are you against the idea of motherhood, child?”

“What sort of question is that?” I say, shooting the queen a glare that would likely end in anypony else’s arrest. I immediately retract it. “I’m sorry… No. I hoped to become one, sometime in the future… But this isn’t—”

“Ideal?”

I can’t think of any word I could have used to justify my feelings. “That’s not it…”

“I see the way you look at Luna and Celina. It is the same look I wore once in my life, when my dear Squall was born.” Platinum pauses, making a long and weary sigh. “That... isn’t the best example. But I wore the same look when Celina came to me. I knew in my heart that I would have to call myself her mother. Yet, she doesn’t seem to return the sentiment anymore… Why should she? By all accounts, I was a horrible mother. I had the palace servants tend to her needs rather than care for her myself. I never lent her any emotional armor when she felt weak. My worst sin was never being able to see past her lineage.”

“We all make mistakes, Your Majesty…” I say softly. However, what she is saying does make me search my feelings and my prior actions.

I remember as Luna fell from the moon, I caught her, holding her close without any intent of letting her go. My immediate goal was to keep her safe and warm from the elements, along with anything else that could have harmed her.

I remember watching her waddle around the tent with her innate curiosity every night on the way here. Even though she had only existed for mere days, I still felt so proud of her whenever she found something new.

I remember how empty and scared I felt whenever she somehow fell out of my line of sight, and how relieved I felt when she inevitably returned to me. She never left me. She let Caro, Tohro and Rosemary pet her as much as they wished, but when it came to holding her, I was the only one she wanted.

I remember bathing her in only the freshest water I could find. She deserved nothing better. If I couldn’t find the perfect bath for her, I simply conjured up my own water and used that instead. I did so if even the slightest amount of dirt got on her hooves.

I remember forgoing the use of any substitute other than my own milk to nurse her. At first, the nursing was a simple obligation; she needed her strength, and I had the means to provide. However, it gradually became something I eagerly awaited, eventually becoming something I needed as much as she did.

The realization is like a warm, refreshing splash of spring water, washing away the involuntary panic. The filly I held, watched, bathed, nursed… I’m her mother.

“Mommy?”

Luna is at the top of the stairs, illuminated by the stained glass window above.

Now that my heart is slowing, I’m questioning why I even ran from her to begin with. Being a mother isn’t something I can escape, nor do I ever want to escape it. Perhaps my heart knew what I had become before my mind did, and the realization became too much for me to bear, at least for a moment… It doesn’t matter anymore. I’m not afraid.

I ascend the stairs to Luna.

My daughter.

The sun was up when I took a spot by the fireplace with Luna. The events of the day have finally caught up with me, rendering me exhausted to the point of near immobility. Even if I haven’t done much in the way of muscle, the galloping my heart and soul have done today has been more than enough to equal a battle with a thousand draugr. In the last few hours alone, I have withstood sadness, euphoria and panic, amongst other things that would overwhelm anypony else.

A humorous thought occurs to me as I wake from the umpteenth doze I’ve taken tonight. I wonder how Sundance, Eavesdrop, and Lancer will feel about me being the only student of Wintercolt Academy who has a child. I’ve long outgrown the idea that I’ll ever continue my studies there, but there is no doubt in my mind that I’ll return there a fine mage, with Luna in tow.

She’s still snuggled up against me, shielded by my forelegs. Her muzzle nestles into the folds of my robe.

Another thought… If I am to keep this up, my adventuring with Dragonrein will likely be put on hold for quite a while. I’m in no hurry to be captured by another cult, and I certainly don’t wish to witness any more death than I have to, but I’ll be saying goodbye to an opportunity to make a difference in the world, stopping dragons and corruption throughout Equestria.

Would... that be so bad?

I hear a knock at the door. It opens, letting the light of the bustling palace corridors pour into my room. Celina comes trotting in, sighing quietly. “An endless parade of townsfolk bidding me a good return to the public eye.” She chuckles. “I shouldn’t have expected anything less when I allowed the gates open.”

“You should be thankful for their appreciation,” I say.

“I am, believe me. But even a princess must escape from so much talk. It grows tiresome after a while.” She trots across the room to one of the cushions, testing it with her hoof. “Do you mind if I rest here for a while? In all likelihood, they’d be less able to find me.”

I smile at her. “I don’t mind at all, Princess. Please, take my bed.”

“You’re certain?” she asks.

“Of course.” I look down at Luna. “I don’t plan on moving anywhere for the rest of tonight.”

“As you wish.” Celina steps over to the four poster bed and lies down, stretching out her legs. “So… how is my new little sister?”

“Sleeping soundly as ever,” I say. “Huh. I wonder if she’s able to take control of her own dreams? Such power within such a small pony…” I glance at Celina, who has gotten under the covers. “Did she ever appear to you?”

“No. Mostly because, well… I never slept.” She shudders. “I’ve never truly needed to, but I have missed the sensation of letting myself drift away for a while. This will be the first time I’ve gone to bed in ages.” She lays her head on the pillow, quickly melting into its embrace. “Aaaah… I’m sure Luna and I will be able to make up for lost time within my dreams.”

“You can sleep here every night if you want Luna close by.”

“I’d like that…”

I expect Celina to close her eyes and fall asleep in a heartbeat, but she keeps her eyes open. I can see a bit of conflict within her. It’s not as prevalent as it was during her time of darkness, but I’ve grown to recognize it over time. I can’t let her sleep on something unresolved, whatever it may be. “Is something wrong?” I ask her.

“Miss Shae…” She rises from the pillow, seemingly avoiding looking me in the eye. “If Luna is my sister, and you’re her mother… what does that make me?”

I find myself looking away from Celina, pondering such a question while I watch the gentle flow of the fire before me.

To say the thought hasn’t made passes through my conscience since my earlier revelation would be a complete and utter lie. I had a feeling Celina would ask this eventually.

“You did take good care of me for a while, and even if I never showed it, I did appreciate it… Even before that, you did help me overcome my self hatred for being… well, who I am. I know I’m immortal, and I know you will be…” She stammers over the word, understandably. “You’ll be gone, someday…”

I’ve long since come to terms with that. “That doesn’t mean I can’t be here for you and Luna while I’m still alive.”

“And I will forever be grateful for that.”

Aside from our breaths, along with a few nonsensical mutterings from Luna, a long moment of silence occupies the room.

Several minutes pass before Celina finally speaks again. “Platinum and I both had the idea I could, somehow, show how much you mean to me, but… It’s a foolish idea.”

That couldn’t be further from the truth. However, Caro and Tohro both emphasized before that Celina has a right to choose her path, and I will adhere to their words. “You can call me whatever you wish. I’ll never ask you to do anything that makes you uncomfortable.”

Celina smiles wanly, her eyes shimmering. She removes herself from the covers of my bed, levitating the pillow and comforter as she trots over to me and Luna. “May I sleep next to you?”

“If you wish, Princess.”

I close my eyes as the blanket falls over me. I welcome its comfort, but it could never be as warm as my heart. I cannot imagine how I could ever be as happy as I am now.

Celina rests her head on my back.

“Thank you, Mother,” she whispers.

Author's Notes:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-NuSlA47mI