The throne room in Canterlot echoed with the soft sound of hooves clopping against marble, Twilight nervously waiting for the arrival of her teacher. But she wasn't really a teacher any more was she, at least not like before. Twilight spread her new-found wings, looking at them with an uneasy gaze. Where these really necessary?

Suddenly from the entrance came the sound of voices, the door opening to reveal Princess Luna flanked by her guard. “You may leave us now.” They swiftly obeyed, closing the doors behind them as they left the two princesses alone. “So, Twilight Sparkle you are thou who believes she can be the new Princess, are we correct?”

Twilight made a rather loud gulp before speaking in a rather hushed tone. “Well, I guess so.”

The Princess of the Night did not seem all too convinced. “My sister has asked us to teach you the ways of our own household, just as you did for me a year ago. We shall address your responsibilities as they come, but for now we are simply here to briefly cover your schedule.”

“Schedule?”

“Yes, you are after all a princess. You will have certain tasks to uphold.”

Twilight nervously rubbed the back of her head, a thought still weighing heavy on her mind. “So, will I be able to return to Ponyville?”

Luna stopped her pacing and turned to face the lavender mare directly. “Why do you ask?”

“Well, I assumed that since I’ll have to do all this, you know… royal stuff…  I won’t be able to see my friends for a while.”

Luna stood back, almost a bit shocked. “Why of course you shall be returning to Ponyville. These tasks do not require your attendance here in the city.”

A sigh of relief was let out after the news. “Thank you Luna, I won’t let you down.”

“We certainly hope not. You are in charge of the Raising of the stars so they may shine all the brighter.”

“Well tha- wait, what? No pony said anything about raising the stars!”

Luna placed a hoof over the panicking mares shoulder. “Calm yourself, Sparkle. We shall explain all to you.” They both momentarily rested on the steps to the throne, Twilight taking a deep breath in order to keep her cool. “It has been tradition in our family for three thousand years that me and my sister are to raise the sun and the moon. After all that has happened we find that our power has lessened. Neither I nor my sister are what we once were in those days, our links to the harmony stones have been cut mong ago, be it my own doing. Cadence  was a hope that we  may find some balance between us, but now we see that you are what is needed. The Alicorn race will not last forever, for few are chosen and we must path a way for the next of kin.”

It was obvious Twilight was finding the news hard to take, her eyes nearly welling up with her words. “I-I’m sorry. I had no idea. Does this mean that one day you’ll…”

“Move on?” Luna stepped in, relieving Twilight of the heavy words. “Yes, someday yet to come. But do not fear, nor should any others. We will remain for many decades yet to come. Take heart, Twilight Sparkle, you have plenty of time to learn.”

Twilight rubbed her eyes a bit, realizing her groomed mane was now a bit messed up. “You’re right of course. It’s just quite a burden to bear.”

“Everypony passes in their own time; it is the inevitable fact of life. Everything changes and everything dies. We must simply choose to honor what is left behind.

“Tonight we will demonstrate how to raise the stars to you. In the morning we shall allow you lower them. It is not too difficult once you begin to get the hang of it, although when we first started it did make us a bit restless.”

Twilight seemed to have recovered well and went back to being nervous about what she had to do. “You think I can do it?”

“We know you can. After tonight you shan’t have to return to Canterlot to complete your task. You will see your friends again soon.”

“Thank you Luna.” Twilight nuzzled her affectionately, the princess only returning g a small blush.

“Well, um, yes. We must go now. Sister will be wondering what has taken us so long. Goodbye Twilight Sparkle.” Luna stood up tall once again and made her way towards the doors. Twilight brushed the hair out of her face before speaking again.

“Yeah, I’ll see you tonight then.”

“I can’t do this Spike, I can’t raise the stars! I’ve never done that kind of magic!”

Spike sat on the window frame looking at Twilight with a confused expression while she paced around the room. “I thought you said you were just going to be lowering the stars?”

“That’s not the point! I've never done any magic that remotely concerns constellations! What if I completely ruin everything? What if I-“

“Twilight, calm down. I though you sorted all these anxiety issues out when we were trying to impress the Games Official. Remember?”

“This is serious Spike, I can’t just solve this with a few deep breaths. I have to tread up on this, but where would I find books on raising the stars?!”

“Lowering.”

“Shut up Spike!”

The young dragon fell of his position on the window pain and slammed into the marble floor. He peeled himself off the slick surface and rubbed his temples. “Okay, okay. Just try not to be too nervous okay. Luna said she would show you how to raise them tonight and you can have a go in the morning. Simple.”

Twilight lowered the number of books in her magical grasp, shutting her eyes and lowering her head. “I just don’t want to ruin everything.”

“And you want, Celestia knew that, otherwise she wouldn't have made you a princess would she?”

“No, I guess you’re right.”

“See Twilight, you can do it no sweat. You just have to remember that the Princess believes it as well.”

Twilight hugged her assistant tightly, the dragon returning the favor. “Thanks Spike, I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“Heh, not a lot.”

They both shared a brief chuckle before a loud knock echoed from the doors. “Princess Twilight.” The deep voices of the guard were unmistakable. “You are required to meet Celestia at the courtyard immediately.”

Twilight opened the doors with her magic and allowed the guards to enter. “What’s wrong? Is everything okay?”

“A messenger has arrived at our gates. He claims to be that of our eastern kin.”

“I-I've never heard of any ponies beyond Equestria’s borders, except those that dwell with the griffons to the north.”

“Nor did I till this day.”

Spike ran up to Twilight's side, a concerned look on his face. “What’s wrong Twi? Anything I can help with.”

Her expression turned to a more stern one that before as she turned to face her assistant. “No, you must stay here. I will be back soon, I promise. This is something I have to deal with without you, It’s my duty as a princess.”

“But-“

“No ‘buts’ spike! I have to go now.” The guards flanked both sides of her, closing the doors as they departed. Spike was left alone in their chambers, not sure if he should be worried or frightened.

“I only wanted to help.”

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