//------------------------------//
// Epilogue Part One 
// Story: Life and Death 
// by Protector of Light 
//------------------------------//

Princess Luna, one thousand years later…
I have gazed at the sun each morning as I raised it for the last millennia, always hoping to see some sign that Celestia is alright. I had given up on ever seeing my sister. Perhaps the Elements of Harmony overstepped their bounds this time, destroying the target rather than the previous, gentler sentences that it had previously doled out. But in the sun, I saw a ray of hope. Perhaps, one day, Celestia will come back. I have seen the signs: her face in the sun, much like they say my face was in the moon; the way that the stars are aligning themselves; and the Elements themselves have been reacting. They have become dormant, Spike, Cadance, and my links to them growing weaker to the point that we can no longer use them. No, we have to find ponies that can do it in our place. And in my student that I took on much as Celestia took on Twilight Sparkle all of those years ago, I have found a glimmer of hope. She even has a group of five friends that seem to fit the bill.

Nevertheless, I wish that my sister would come home. That is all that I ask for. That is all that I need.

And if the signs are correct, today is the day.


***

Princess Celestia
For a thousand years I have slept to keep away the pain of constant fire surrounding me. For a thousand years I have grown angrier and angrier with Luna, Cadance, and Spike. Yet each day, a part of me that thinks that they did what was right grows stronger. No. it is unforgivable, I have been trapped on the sun for the past thousand years. I have only survived because I have been able to sleep. It keeps me sane. Mostly.

What I did was wrong. Ponies have to die. I know that now. But that doesn’t make it any easier to stop myself from being furious over my so called friends using the Elements of Harmony on me… Then again, I guess that two thousand years ago I used the Elements on Luna myself.

If I could do it all again, I’d still do it. I wouldn’t change a thing. I learned an important lesson that I would not have learned otherwise. A lesson that changed me. I will come to forgive Luna, Cadance, and Spike, with time, particularly when I get out of here. That is, if I am not overtaken by anger and fear once again. I want to be Celestia again, not the monster that I had become. But I believe that I will be fine. I don’t know what will come, but I will come through in the end stronger and braver than before.

I am being pulled away. I open my weary eyes to see that the flames no longer surround me. I find myself in the Everfree forest, where I was cast away. Though I do not know what happened, I see that I’m surrounded by six ponies wielding the Elements of Harmony. They look prepared to fight, and I feel as though they should. I look up at the moon. I’m ready not. I’m ready to go home. I feel the Elements’ magic hit me, but this time it is a gentle tingling rather than an overwhelming force. I look around and see the ponies’ surprised faces, wondering why I’m not putting up any fight. ‘Is this a trick?’ they seem to wonder. I want my sister back. No, I want all of my friends back. I just want my life again. I see the flames of my mane fizzle out, changing my hair to a pink hue that it had once been when I was young and innocent. I fall to the ground. I see the ponies staring, wondering whether I was going to hurt them. They’re terrified.

From the moon comes Luna. I look into her eyes. “I’m so sorry!” we say simultaneously. She comes over and embraces me. And just like that, all is forgiven, everything is fine.

And I will never leave my friends again, until death do us part. And I will let it.