Celestia stood on the balcony outside of her bedchamber. The golden glow of her horn faded. Another beautiful day had arrived for her little ponies. That thought had a bittersweet feel to it, though. Did she still have the right to think that? True, she had yet to see an angry mob of ponies from the town of Ponyville, but that did nothing to change the way they looked at her. Even her subjects around the castle had stopped seeing their princess in the same light as before.
A heavy sigh escaped her as she looked to the sky. Her magenta eyes lingered on a familiar place far away and her thoughts turned back to the most recent memory of her mother. Mathew had left her with something important in that mote which contained the Life Giver’s dying words… words meant for Celestia.
“Celestia… my beloved daughter… do not mourn my passing. I have lived through the ages… giving life to countless children. There is nothing I regret, save one… should you see her again, tell Abyss that I am truly sorry for betraying her trust... I was foolish. I allowed myself to fall victim to the oldest trickster in existence… all because I thought he could change for the better. He used my own love against me, and in doing so, has left you without me. Beware those who use the power of chaos, my child… but place your trust in the one who finds this sliver of my hope in the cosmos…
They will be… your guiding light…”
Those were her mother’s final words, and Celestia knew she could trust them. It was a wonder how Mathew had found that memory. Celestia was grateful to him beyond words for allowing her to see the one thing that would allow her closure. Part of her original goal was to attempt an ancient spell to attempt to bring her mother’s soul back. Celestia’s heart had always pined to hear her mother just one more time and Mathew had granted that wish.
A warm smile spread across Celestia’s features before she took in a deep breath of the mid-summer air. Things had never felt so right in the world…
~~***~~
Twilight stopped as a pleasant breeze swept over her fur. A feeling of contentment took hold in her heart and she smiled up into the sky. It seems the princess is happy again, she thought warmly. It had been hard for Twilight, seeing Princess Celestia so angry and broken, but it felt like harmony had finally been restored. She sighed happily and turned her attention back to her current task.
The last of the Apple trees landed gently in its new home within the western orchard. Twilight huffed and looked over to see her friend Rarity put down her tree as well, with the help of Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy. Applejack and Pinkie Pie made themselves busy with patting down the soil around the last two trees. The Apple Family farm had successfully avoided the loss of an entire orchard.
The feeling of accomplishment soon faded as Applejack looked around at all of the trees. Her smile faded away into a more subdued melancholy. Twilight quickly took notice and moved closer to offer her friend some sympathy, but was actually surprised to see Rainbow Dash suddenly appear right beside Applejack and embrace the farmpony.
Applejack was shocked, to say the least, but she understood her friend’s intent and returned the hug as her eyes misted. “Ah miss him, ya know?” she said quietly.
Rainbow tightened her hug and nodded faintly as a small smile spread across her lips. “Yeah… he really was a cool guy…”
Twilight and the rest soon joined in the hug.
~~***~~
Luna found herself walking down one of the corridors of the castle. It was a path she had grown used to traveling. She passed a few guards, offering a small smile to them in greeting even though she held no desire to show such an expression. Her hooves came to a stop in front of a door that was guarded by four elite members of the royal guard. She did not smile for them.
A small nod was all it took for one of the guards to turn and open the door for the lunar princess and she walked inside. The room had been left the same since the last time she entered it. The sheets were still folded back in the same manner and the silver silk pajama bottoms had been left sprawled out in the corner of the room beside the dresser.
A soft gust of wind drew Luna’s attention to the far side of the room where Nightmare Moon stood in front of the open window enjoying the sunrise. The dark-coated Alicorn goddess glanced over to her daughter and offered a kind smile. Luna returned it… before her eyes turned down with a sigh. “Might I ask… how is he?” she whispered.
Nightmare’s eyes flashed white and the invisibility spell dropped. A large pale blue crystal floated above the bed. Inside of that prism rested the frozen form of Mathew Reese, still dressed in his war torn clothing and smiling serenely. Nightmare walked over to the side of the bed and gently touched her horn to the side of the large gem. “He is… still slumbering peacefully. He is currently dreaming of you, my daughter. It is a happy dream,” she said softly.
Luna smiled genuinely and looked upon the sleeping face of her friend. “That is good…” she said and her face lost the happy smile as her sadness slowly returned. “Will he ever awaken?” she asked.
Nightmare turned away from the crystal and gently nuzzled Luna. “I do not know… but I have hope that he will. The last time I tried to stop death… I failed completely. My friend did not come back to me. This time is different. Mathew lives… but something reacted within him. He may wake at any time, yet he remains frozen in that crystal. I almost wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that you occupy his dreams so often…”
Luna chuckled softly and shook her head. “Still such a lovable fool… I hope he comes back to us soon,” she said as she tenderly touched her hoof to the side of the prism.
“As do I,” Nightmare replied softly, “since there are many things I need to thank him for.”
The two mares of the night continued to watch over Mathew’s still form; both eagerly awaiting the day he would return to the world of the living…