A Saucerful of Secrets
About one year earlier:
It was a warm summer morning in Canterlot, and Twilight was aglow within and without. Without, from the mounting summer heat. Within, from the hot tea she was sharing with Princess Celestia and from the excitement at seeing her mentor once again.
Celestia and Twilight had chosen a gazebo outside the Royal Gardens as their meeting-place. After Twilight had gotten her fill of the scenery, she talked of her travels, her friends, and the various quibbles she had with the Canterlot library staff on the library's new filing system.
After a few minutes, Twilight noticed that Celestia hadn't replied in some time, and was looking out at the garden with a serene expression. She cleared her throat uncertainly.
“Oh! Excuse me, Twilight, I was lost in thought,” Celestia said with a regretful smile.
“Something wrong?”
Celestia set down her teacup, and turned to face Twilight with a more subdued expression.
“I've been doing quite a bit of thinking since Princess Cadence and Shining Armor's wedding,” she said at last.
The wind started to pick up in small gusts, nearly spilling the tea, though it went unnoticed by the both of them. Twilight studied her mentor's face, surprised and sympathetic. Unsure how to proceed, she hesitantly asked, “Is it.. is it because of the Changeling Queen? Every text I read about Changelings mentioned that-”
“No, Twilight,” Celestia gently corrected, “while my... defeat... was indeed distressing, I think it may have been a blessing in disguise.”
“I think that it acted as a sort of memento mori.”
Twilight thought back to her knowledge of Old Equestrian.
“'Remember you must die'? How is that a blessing in disguise?”
Celestia bowed her head, and began to explain, “Twilight, I have ruled over Equestria for thousands of years. I have inured myself to the pain of losing those close to me. I have accepted that my life is eternal, or nearly so, and that that has made some things easier and some things more difficult.”
She paused, struggling to bridge the gap between immortality and everyday existence with mere words. “I realized,” she finally managed, “when all seemed its darkest, when the Changelings seemed to be unstoppable, that mortality is what truly gives life its meaning.”
“I lived more in the rest of that day than in the entirety of the millennium when Luna had been banished. I was connected once more with the ponies around me, and it was because we shared mortality, vulnerability.”
Twilight pensively considered this as Celestia continued, “Without mortality, I am lifeless. I continue to draw breath, but there can be no ultimate significance, no purpose.”
Celestia favored Twilight with a crafty smile as her pupil raised a teacup to her lips.
“That's why I've decided I'm going to die.”
There was a great deal of spilled tea and sputtering at this, and Celestia's smile grew wickedly.
“What?! Princess, you can't- I mean, you literally can't as well as shouldn't, but you can't die, you're-”
“Please calm down, Twilight,” Celestia chuckled, “I didn't mean to upset you.”
Twilight scowled darkly at this, knowing her mentor all too well, and asked, “But what on Equestria do you mean by that, Princess?”
“I mean, Twilight, that I intend to become mortal.”
Twilight's burgeoning questions had a brief, yet fierce inner struggle before one won out over the others.
“How can an alicorn even become mortal?” she asked simply.
Celestia stood at this, and began to pace uneasily before stopping at the edge of the gazebo and turning back to face her student.
“There are but few methods of taking an alicorn's immortality,” she quietly admitted, “and it is well that they are not known, even to you, Twilight Sparkle, for most of them are fell and terrible. Their knowledge would bring you no joy.”
“However, even more recondite than those methods is the knowledge that an alicorn's immortality is not automatic; it must be renewed, every year.”
Almost unconsciously, the unicorn's mind began to process this information, and returned an answer that fit what she knew.
“The Summer Sun celebration,” murmured Twilight.
“Indeed. Luna has a more private ceremony during the Winter Solstice of which I will not speak without her leave.”
Drawing nearer to her pupil so that only she could hear, Celestia said, “Cadence has chosen to be mortal, further testament, if I am not mistaken, to her love for Shining Armor.”
Celestia allowed a brief frown to flicker across her face at this, and continued, “That is why although she is an alicorn, she is not,” and here she shrugged helplessly with her wings, “like me.”
Twilight allowed herself a few minutes to process this, and then could contain her questions no longer, and they spilled out, one after the other.
“But why do you want to be mortal? What of Luna? And.. and... how long would you live if you gave up immortality?”
Celestia closed her eyes, slightly pained at this litany of questioning.
“Twilight, I know what life would be with mortality and without, and I know that the time I share with Luna and with everyone else would be far more precious if I am mortal. I will live life as it is meant to be lived, cherishing more deeply the moments I have with those around me.”
Celestia took a breath and looked back at the Castle before returning her gaze to Twilight, now a little unsteady.
“As for Luna... I hope that she will understand.”
Celestia mused a bit longer, and then straightened.
“Twilight, I'm not going anywhere anytime soon. I would have about as long a lifespan as you if I chose not to renew myself at the next solstice.”
Twilight searched Celestia's eyes at this, staring hard. Anger finally managed to replace bewilderment.
“I can't believe this. I can't believe that you're seriously considering this! What happens if you change your mind after next summer? Can you become immortal again?”
Celestia considered Twilight evenly before replying, “I didn't expect you to understand at once, Twilight. And no, once I've made my decision, it will be final.”
At this, Twilight's teacup, forgotten amid the conversation, gave a momentary creaking sound before wrenching itself apart. The liquid and shards of ceramic stayed locked within the grip of her magic, floating absently in a strange cloud.
Twilight turned from the Princess to face the castle, breathing heavily. Celestia craned her neck, trying to glimpse Twilight's face, but it was in vain. After a few long seconds of tense silence, she made to speak, when Twilight glanced over, and allowed the remnants of the teacup to fall to the floor, cracking into even smaller pieces.
In a flat voice unlike any she had spoken before, Twilight said, “I think it would be for the best if I left now before I did or said something I regret. Goodbye, Princess. I'll be in touch.”
With that, she stepped briskly off the gazebo towards the castle. With an incredible flash, seeming for a moment to be a giant purple flame, Twilight vanished. The air rushing to fill the space where she had stood sounded almost as loud and severe as a thunderclap.
Celestia blinked, and looked forlornly at the broken teacup. The set had been a gift, she remembered absently, from a Griffin monarch in the 3rd, or was it the 4th-
“Is everything okay, your Highness?” asked a guard, investigating the unusual disturbance.
“I-” Celestia looked at him uncertainly for a few moments, “I think it will be. Thank you.”
Authors note: Whew. Finals, what are those? In all seriousness, I probably won't be able to do any updates this quickly for a while, as a variety of things are demanding my time. Expect an update next Monday?
Stats
Page generated in 0.023 seconds
Total duration
991 users online
1,516,377 hits today, 1,996,409 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Erm. Can't say that I'm any too thrilled with this premise.
And Cadence is not an alicorn. Those "wings" were merely a recurring animation error.
522937
I promise I know what I'm doing. Or at least, I think I do.
But... But... Then who will raise the sun?
Interesting idea with the renewing immortality, but can see why Twilight would get mad, Celestia is her role model after all.
518001
Good point. How would Discord respond to being freed by the pony who trapped him in stone in the first place.
I can't wait to see where he goes with that.
Glad to see my picture attached to such an interesting story. I'm definitely going to continue reading this.
523728 Yeah...but his powers would probably be too weak to kick her face inside-out, so I wonder.....
522937 No, I think Cadance IS an Alicorn.
524188 Oh you poor deluded foal...
524300 http://www.google.com/imgres?hl=en&biw=1024&bih=624&gbv=2&tbm=isch&tbnid=l25-XjxXwzAXVM:&imgrefurl=http://mlpforums.com/topic/15078-ask-princess-mi-amore-cadenza/&docid=vLp828IX4FvjLM&imgurl=http://images4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120422094453/mlp/images/c/c6/Princess_Mi_Amore_Cadenza.jpg&w=250&h=241&ei=3fWeT5PeKYLn0QGb3MmSDw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=421&vpy=179&dur=3056&hovh=192&hovw=200&tx=114&ty=144&sig=107988642290829446416&page=1&tbnh=120&tbnw=124&start=0&ndsp=18&ved=1t:429,r:2,s:0,i:78 Here's a picture with wings. http://www.google.com/imgres?hl=en&biw=1024&bih=624&gbv=2&tbm=isch&tbnid=8Scwa_Cc_6LPcM:&imgrefurl=http://cresento.deviantart.com/art/Princess-Cadance-276136320&docid=iqpqe-CkUudTkM&imgurl=http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2012/112/0/2/princess_cadance_by_cresento-d4kek5c.png&w=400&h=325&ei=3fWeT5PeKYLn0QGb3MmSDw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=98&vpy=292&dur=299&hovh=202&hovw=249&tx=138&ty=126&sig=107988642290829446416&page=2&tbnh=134&tbnw=165&start=18&ndsp=20&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:18,i:118 Oh, hey! Another one! http://www.google.com/imgres?hl=en&biw=1024&bih=624&gbv=2&tbm=isch&tbnid=wVfdpoTh5wt-GM:&imgrefurl=http://www.fanpop.com/spots/princess-cadence/images/30031417/title/princess-cadence-photo&docid=NBY93AIDN209pM&imgurl=http://images5.fanpop.com/image/photos/30000000/Princess-Cadence-princess-cadence-30031417-353-361.jpg&w=353&h=361&ei=3fWeT5PeKYLn0QGb3MmSDw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=757&vpy=229&dur=5590&hovh=227&hovw=222&tx=148&ty=115&sig=107988642290829446416&page=2&tbnh=130&tbnw=128&start=18&ndsp=20&ved=1t:429,r:9,s:18,i:137 Oh? What's this? http://www.google.com/imgres?start=80&hl=en&biw=1024&bih=624&gbv=2&tbm=isch&tbnid=Vl_BazXFLuCNEM:&imgrefurl=http://mlp.wikia.com/wiki/Category:Princess_Cadence_images&docid=2EZ58dn2ggz7TM&imgurl=http://images.wikia.com/mlp/images/1/1a/Cadence_surprised_S2E25.png&w=636&h=360&ei=XPaeT92VJ6Tc0QGM2OmvDw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=280&vpy=344&dur=2140&hovh=169&hovw=299&tx=143&ty=106&sig=107988642290829446416&page=5&tbnh=105&tbnw=185&ndsp=20&ved=1t:429,r:1,s:80,i:7 So...who is the delusional foal now?
523929
Glad to hear you like it!
524625 Zobeid is very quiet after I proved it wrong! I put four links, all of them pictures of Princess Cadance, and all of them giving a clear shot of her wings. You are welcome, sir!
524300 So, what do you think about that?
524754 I'm almost completely positive that he was joking.
524898 Not so sure....
What do I think about it?
We know that when the story was originally written, when Lauren Faust was still on board, Cadence was written as a unicorn. In the TV show no character ever gave any explanation whatsoever for Cadence being an alicorn, or even mentioned the fact in passing. It had no relevance to the story, which could have taken place exactly the same way, line-for-line, without her wings.
I'm quite sure somebody in the Hasbro toy division gave the producers a call and said, "The retailers are clamoring for something pink! And we've got a ton of those pink alicorn toys already sitting in a warehouse in China. We need you to put a pink alicorn in the show!" And because Hasbro pays the bills, they slapped some wings onto Cadence.
I'm a fanfic writer. Hasbro doesn't pay my bills, and I don't have to accept things like that. My stories will continue to take place in a world where Derpy can be called "Derpy", Vinyl Scratch has beautiful ruby red eyes, and the only alicorns are Celestia and Luna. (And possibly Nyx. Hey, at least Nyx has a background story explaining where she came from, and doesn't just suddenly appear out of nowhere to be immediately Loved By All.)
522937
524188
It's something that's going to differ from person to person.
Some people will go with her being a Winged Unicorn/Pegacorn. Something along the lines of a rare genetic mutation while in the womb, mortal as any other pony.
Some people will go with her being an Alicorn, just like Celestia and Luna.
Stop bloody fighting about it. I've already had a big row about Ditzy 'Derpy' Doo (Derpy being her nickname) / Derpy Whooves, with people being rude as hell to an artist for DARING to use the fanon name Ditzy, over the other fanon name Derpy Whooves. (Yes, anything beyond simply Derpy is fanon).
Stop being rude to THIS artist (Literature or otherwise) by complaining about something that fits into canon just as well as the alternative.
532954
Wut? 
Anyways, pretty much everywhere, it is an Alicorn.
Veeeeery very interested in this premise. Hoping you come back from the dead soon.
FINISH THIS!!
Seriously, you can't leave me hanging like this.
And I really hope Celestia doesn't croak. I hate it when Celestia croaks. Anyway, I think I know why Twilight was freeing Discord in the previous chapter. I HOPE I get to find out if I'm right or not...