//------------------------------// // 15 – Two Suns // Story: Acts of Love // by Krickis //------------------------------// Chapter Fifteen Two Suns ⠀ ⠀ It hadn’t been easy to arrange. If Raven hadn’t been on Sunset’s side, it probably wouldn’t even have been possible. But Sunset was nothing if not determined, and this was something she had set her mind to doing. She was a little nervous, which was silly. It wasn’t a big deal. She was just going to see Celestia, someone she’d known for most of her life. She was probably one of the only ponies alive who could usually see Celestia without being nervous about it. Still, today she was nervous. Just a little. It was an important day, and she wanted it to go perfectly. She didn’t let her nerves show, however. She was dressed up for the occasion, and she was carefully finishing up her makeup. Sunset was wearing a nice flowing dress accentuated by a necklace and earrings, with just a light application of makeup. She had been careful to not dress too ritzy; she would be underdressed at a formal event among the Canterlot Elite, but that was what she wanted. She wasn’t going to a formal event, after all. Just an informal meeting between two ponies who had known each other for many years. There, that should do it. Sunset grinned at her reflection. She looked stunning, as always. Confident in her appearance, she left her room and walked along the hallways towards Princess Celestia’s meeting room. Along the way, she thought about how far she’d come. She used to make this walk regularly, always thinking about what the day’s lesson would be, or what new breakthrough she could share with her teacher. Now she was going to have tea, and they’d talk about things, and that would be enough. Her mood was lifted slightly by the fact that every guard she saw saluted her as she walked past. Although her title was almost an honorary one, she was still the Captain of the Twilit Guard, which made her a higher ranking officer than anyone present in the castle. Even if these were Solar Guards rather than Twilit Guards and thus not under her command, they still greeted her as a superior officer. All in all, Sunset’s ego was stroked and her mood high by the time she reached Celestia’s reception. Raven smiled at her as she came in. “Hello, Sunset. I’ll send a note to the princess that you’re here.” “Thanks, Raven.” Sunset took a seat while the secretary sent a message with magic into the next room. “So is your family still in town?” Raven asked. “No, they went back to Ponyville.” Sunset glanced away. “I just stuck around for today.” “Yeah, I understand.” “Thanks for helping set it up, by the way.” Clearing Celestia’s schedule for the majority of the day would never have worked without Raven’s help. Sunset had put in her request in advance to get as much time with Celestia as she could, but nopony got to spend more than an hour or so with the princess, especially on a Sunday. But when Raven heard about what Sunset was trying to do, she cleared as much of the princess’s schedule as she could. Raven just smiled and adjusted her glasses. “Don’t mention it. I was happy to help.” The two mares exchanged pleasantries and small talk while they waited for Celestia. It didn’t take long before she opened the door with her magic and called from the room inside. “Come in, Sunset.” Sunset stood up, gave one more nod to Raven, then walked into the room. The door closed behind her, while in front of her, Celestia smiled warmly. “Good morning, Sunset. It’s nice to see you.” Sunset smiled as well. Celestia was reclining on a large pile of pillows, while a smaller pile lay across from her. In between the two, there was a tea set served for two. Without needing to be asked to sit, Sunset took her seat as Celestia prepared their tea. “I was pleasantly surprised to see I had so much time with you today.” Celestia passed Sunset her cup of tea, sweetened with honey. “Careful, it’s hot.” Sunset sipped it gingerly and smiled. “You know it was never too hot for me.” Celestia smiled as well. “Yes, I recall. I was always afraid you’d burn yourself.” “Like you were any better.” Sunset pointed a hoof accusatively. Celestia chuckled. “I suppose that is a bad habit you picked up from me, hmm?” “Yeah, I suppose it was.” They both sipped their tea in silence. Sunset had never realized how much she enjoyed these quiet moments with Celestia. Or rather, she hadn’t properly enjoyed them as a teenager. With a different pony, it might be uncomfortable, but with Celestia, Sunset’s smile never faltered. It was Celestia who spoke next. “Morning and the others are back in Ponyville, correct?” “That’s right.” “Is it hard to be away from them after just adding Morning to your family?” “A little,” Sunset admitted. “I wonder about what they’re doing and if they made it back okay, and I’m so used to sharing the bed with someone that sleeping alone is a little weird. But I’m fine and I know they are too. Plus it’s only until tomorrow.” “Yes, indeed. Then back to life as a mother.” Sunset chuckled. “I’m learning that being away from Morning isn’t being away from being a mom. I can’t stop thinking about her, hoping she’s behaving herself, that she’s not giving Twilight and Fluttershy a hard time.” “I can see how much you care about her already.” “It happened pretty quickly, really.” Sunset smiled slightly at the memory. “Right from when I met her, it was just this instant connection. Not exactly like I knew I was going to be her mom or anything, just… there was something that told me she was different.” “She reminds me a bit of Twilight when she was a filly. You were always more reserved and polite.” “Yeah, what happened?” Sunset chuckled. “I think Twi struggles a bit more. Or, no, ‘struggle’ is the wrong word I think. It just… wasn’t as instant for Twilight as it was for Fluttershy and me.” “Twilight seems quite taken with her now,” Celestia observed. Sunset nodded. “Yeah, I think Morning grew on her. She just needed time to warm up to the idea. She didn’t want to have foals for a long time, you know?” “I see. I wasn’t aware she felt that way. Still, I think she’ll make an excellent mother. All three of you will.” Sunset smiled more at the praise. “Thank you, princess.” Celestia sipped her tea. “That’s one joy I’ve never known, though I’ve always wanted it.” “What do you mean?” “Being a parent. I’ve lived a long life and done almost everything I’ve wanted to do at least once. But I’ve never been a parent.” “Oh.” Sunset sipped her tea to hide her fading smile. “Really?” “Well, as I’m sure you know, Luna and I are long past fertile age, and we were never able to have foals with normal ponies anyway.” Sunset nodded. It wasn’t a well-known fact, but natural-born alicorns like Celestia were technically a separate species from other ponies, and there were more questions than answers when it came to how similar the two were. And as they were the last of their kind – as far as anypony knew – it would be quite impossible for either of them to mate with anyone. And if that wasn’t enough, there was their age. As Celestia said, they had missed the mark to have children by some unknown amount of time; they were both aged even among a long-lived race. Even so, Sunset wasn’t quite sure why that mattered. “But what about adoption? It’s not like any of us care less about Morning because she’s adopted.” “It’s true, and I’ve thought of it many times.” Celestia sighed. “But the truth is that I’m uncertain.” “About what?” “Many things. But perhaps most of all… I worry I wouldn’t be terribly good at it. I am… not unaware that I can be emotionally distant. You made me aware of that more than anypony.” Sunset frowned openly at that. “I don’t… You know I don’t blame you for how I turned out, right?” Celestia smiled sadly. “I wish I felt the same. But the truth is I was in charge of your wellbeing and I failed you. If I can’t even raise somepony as a teacher, how would I be as a mother?” “That’s not true though!” Sunset set down her teacup. “You were a great teacher, and if my opinion doesn’t count because of what happened, just look at Twilight.” “I am glad you feel that way, but in truth, Twilight only flourished when I sent her to Ponyville. You, too, learned best when you were away from me.” It wasn’t like Celestia to be so unsure of herself, and Sunset wasn’t exactly sure how to deal with it. “I was a special case. Besides, my parents screwed me up long before you were in the picture.” “That is what I thought until I had to send Twilight away for my lessons to sink in.” Celestia smiled and shook her head a little. “I seem to be very good at teaching lessons that only take hold later in life.” “You’re being too hard on yourself.” Sunset smiled as a thought occurred to her. “And besides, there’s a lesson both me and Twilight learned that would help you here: Sometimes you need to ask for help. If you adopt a kid and need some advice, well… you know some parents you can turn to.” “I suppose you have a point there.” Celestia sipped her tea. “I’ll think about it, but I don’t plan on rushing into something as big as parenting. Though knowing I’d have your support does mean a lot to me.” Sunset blushed a little. “Well, you know. I just want you to be happy.” “I appreciate that, Sunset.” Unsure of what to say, Sunset returned to her tea. “Now then, I hardly think you requested this time to talk to me about me being a mother. What can I do for you?” Sunset sipped her tea while thinking about how wrong Celestia was. But her former mentor’s words stuck in her head and gave her pause from answering with the full truth. “Honestly? I just wanted to spend the day with you.” “Really?” Celestia cocked her head to the side. “That is unexpected.” Sunset looked down at the floor. “Well, you see… it’s actually a holiday today. Not a pony holiday, obviously, but a human one. It’s… well, it’s sort of like Family Appreciation Day.” Celestia’s mouth formed an O for a moment, then she smiled uncertainly. “I’m touched, Sunset. But I’m also surprised. Why would you choose to spend a day like this with me and not your family?” Sunset felt a tug on her heart as she wondered if Celestia was really excluding herself from that category. “I’ll spend the Equestrian holidays with them, of course. But this day, it doesn’t mean anything to them. It doesn’t mean anything to anypony, just me. So… I thought since I’m already spending other holidays with them, I could spend this one with you.” “Oh, Sunset…” Celestia’s smile grew bigger and warmer. “I’m honored. Truly, you have no idea how happy this makes me.” Sunset smiled as well, thinking that Celestia was wrong once again. She knew exactly how happy Celestia was, because she felt the same way. Celestia finished her tea and set the cup aside. “Did you have anything in particular you wanted to do today?” “No, I’m okay with anything.” Sunset finished her tea as well. Celestia nodded. “Then perhaps I could show you something special. Something I don’t often show other ponies.” “I’d love to see it.” Celestia stood up, so Sunset did as well. They walked into the reception room, where Celestia stopped. “Raven?” “Yes, Princess?” “Can you reschedule the rest of my appointments for the day?” Celestia turned to Sunset and smiled. “Something else came up, and I believe I’ll be indisposed until tomorrow.” Raven nodded. “Of course, right away, Princess.” Sunset couldn’t believe it. She’d never known Celestia to cancel appointments over anything. But there was no time to stand around in a stupor, Celestia was already moving on, and Sunset followed. “Where are we going?” Sunset asked as they walked. “You’ll see,” was the only answer Celestia gave. Not that Sunset pressed for more. She was content to follow along and wait to see what this big surprise was. Knowing Celestia, it was something of majestic beauty, like her stained-glass windows. They seemed to be heading towards Celestia’s solar, and that was where Sunset expected them to wind up. But they walked past that door and down the hall. Sunset frowned slightly, more out of curiosity than anything negative. Wherever they were going was somewhere very near Celestia’s private quarters, but not quite her bedroom or solar. Instead, they came to an unassuming door, where they stopped. “Is this the place?” Sunset asked. “It is,” Celestia said. Her horn lit up, and there was the sound of a lock undoing itself. The door itself didn’t have a keyhole, meaning magic was the only way to unlock it. That said, the lock itself sounded mechanical, not magical, so any sufficiently skilled unicorn could get into this room. It was a bizarre combination of low and high security, leaving Sunset even more confused. Once inside, Sunset saw the room was full of clutter, though nothing seemed valuable. There were various arts and crafts projects, both stored in boxes and hanging on the wall. There was also a stairway leading up to a higher room, which Sunset suspected wouldn’t have a door of its own; no matter how many floors this room had, the door they entered from was likely the only entryway. She walked further into the room, looking around to try and find a common theme. It looked a bit like a school art room, only it was impossible to tell the grade level. There was kindergartner level macaroni art alongside rather decent pottery and sculptures. Decent, but nothing was expert level. Like everything in the room was made by novices of different skill levels. “Do you have any idea what this is?” Celestia asked. “No, I don’t,” Sunset admitted. She looked closer, which was when she saw it – a scarf draped on a ponyquin. “Is… is that what I think it is?” “That depends,” Celestia said. “If you think it’s a precious gift that was given to me a long time ago, then yes, it is indeed what you think it is.” Sunset walked over to the scarf, which was really rather hideous. It was an unassuming red color, and it was uneven in width throughout it. A bit too short, especially for somepony as big as Celestia, because the filly who had made it had underestimated how long it would take to make, and had run out of time before Hearth’s Warming. She had been a filly who believed she could do anything because she was the best, and there was no reason that couldn’t include sewing. It had been the first gift she had ever made for somepony, the first gift she had ever wanted to give to somepony in the first place. Sunset reached out to touch it. “I can’t believe you still have this thing.” “Now then, my gifted student. Do you know what this room is yet?” Sunset looked around again, and she began to notice a theme. There was a vase with a crude sun etched on it. A necklace of plastic beads the same colors as Celestia’s mane. A poor quality painting of Celestia herself raising the sun. Not everything, but many of these items looked like they were made in honor of Celestia. Or, Sunset thought, were perhaps made for her. “Are… are these all gifts from your students?” Celestia smiled. “Yes, they are. They’re my most prized possessions.” Sunset looked around and could almost imagine the fillies and colts who had made these things. “But they’re all novice work. Some of your students have gone on to be amazing artists, poets, songwriters… Where are the masterpieces?” “These are masterpieces, Sunset.” Celestia used a wing to guide Sunset over to the painting that she had noticed earlier. “Twilight painted this for me. She was twelve, and had never tried painting before.” Sunset blinked and couldn’t help but grin. “Twilight painted that?” Celestia nodded. “She went through an artist phase, or so her parents told me. But this was her first painting.” “She’s… not much of a painter.” Celestia regarded Sunset for a moment, then chuckled. “No, she isn’t. Not then, and I doubt she is now. But I cherish these things more than any master’s work. Would you like to know why?” Celestia was usually one to make Sunset guess, but for once, it seemed like she was content to simply explain. “Why?” “Two reasons. For one, consider yourself. You’re an esteemed inventor. You could invent something for me that I never even knew I needed, something I could never even imagine until you gave it to me. But it would never mean as much to me as that scarf. Because, Sunset, you are an inventor, it’s something you do. A painter must paint, a singer must sing, and an inventor must invent. This is not to say I don’t appreciate the paintings and songs that have been made in my honor, but when the painter tries his hoof at songwriting for one pony who inspired him to do something different? That’s something special, Sunset.” “So… it’s because Twilight’s not a painter, and I’m not a seamstress?” Celestia smiled. “Yes. I want all of my students to try as many things as possible, I want them to try things they may hate and then to try something else when they’re done. So every time my students try something new… that’s special to me.” Sunset thought about that, and about Morning. Before Morning, she couldn’t have really understood. Maybe she’d realize the words had meaning, but she’d never have felt them. But now… now she knew exactly what Celestia meant. “You said there were two reasons.” “Very astute, my gifted student.” Celestia bowed her head for a moment, then gingerly stretched out her wing to cover Sunset’s back. Sunset blushed a little at the touch. It was the most intimate gesture Celestia had ever made for her. “You are an inventor, Sunset, and I am so proud of what you have accomplished. All of Equestria knows you, or at least they know your work.” Sunset realized the significance of her earlier assessment. This room looked like a school art room because all the creations were made by fillies and colts. “But… they don’t know me like you know me.” “They don’t know you as the filly who once tried her hoof at sewing, and they never will. That memory of Sunset Shimmer is mine, and it’s one I don’t have to share with the rest of the world.” Sunset didn’t know what to say. Just knowing that Celestia still had that ugly old scarf meant a lot to Sunset. To hear her speak so highly of it left Sunset speechless. “Could I… show you some of them?” “I’d love that, Princess.” Celestia smiled and took back her wing, then she went through the memories in each item. Despite the large assortment of gifts, Celestia seemed to remember each and every pony who had given them to her. Many of them were hundreds of years old, some of them were only being held together by magic enchantments Celestia had put on them to preserve her memories. There was a warmth to Celestia, as was befitting of the Solar Princess. Everypony knew that. But as she went through explaining her memories to Sunset, she radiated. Although she was far from the emotional sort, Sunset found herself almost moved to tears to see her former mentor so sentimental. Not Celestia, though. She seemed to feel nothing but pure joy at getting to talk about all these ponies who had made an impact on her. She smiled as she explained a crude statue, and how the pony who made it went on to be a celebrated author. It all made Sunset feel small, in a way. There were so many students, and Celestia cared about them all so much. Sunset was just one of many, a long line of pupils that had all stood in her place. “Is it… ever hard to keep track of us all?” Sunset said with a smirk. “No. Every student is special to me in their own way.” Celestia’s mouth curved into a smirk of her own. “It helps that I rarely take two students as close in time as you and Twilight. It’s not uncommon for fifty years to go by without me taking a personal student of my own.” “So… why me?” Sunset asked for the first time ever. She had always taken her role with Celestia as a given, but this experience had proven humbling. “I’m afraid you won’t find the answer to be very special.” Celestia’s smile faded as she spoke. “You were the youngest student ever at my school. I took an interest in you, and realized that you might be the brightest mind since Starswirl the Bearded. Possibly even greater than him, if you applied yourself in the right way. I wanted to help you along the path.” Sunset sighed. “So my parents pushing me actually did get me everything I have.” “I’m sorry it was not the answer you wanted.” Celestia reached up a hoof to spin a mobile that hung from the ceiling. “I have thought often about that. If you had been born to other parents who didn’t push you, would I have still taken note of your brilliant mind? I’d like to believe I would have, somehow, but it’s impossible to say.” Sunset nodded. “Yeah, well…” Refusing to be bitter on a day like today, Sunset broke into a grin once again. “Hey, why don’t we do something? You showed me something special, now let me show you something I don’t think you’ve seen much of.” “Oh? What’s that.” “Canterlot.” Celestia chuckled. “I assure you, I have seen Canterlot.” “Yeah, from a castle. Come on, let’s go out on the town! We’ll catch a local play, eat at a hole in the wall restaurant, go places regular ponies go that a princess would never be caught dead in.” “I think you underestimate the places my sister would be seen frequenting.” “Yeah, well, take a cue from her once in a while! At least Luna knows what city life is really about.” Celestia seemed to consider it for a moment, then she smiled. “Alright, sure. I’ll let you decide our itinerary for the day.” “Great!” Sunset said, leading them out of the room. “You’re going to love this.” The day was fun, in no small part because the endless sea of faces shocked to find themselves face to face with Princess Celestia was a constant source of amusement. Sunset tried to focus on more humble locations. They ate tacos from a cart, which allowed Sunset to see Celestia make a mess of herself; they visited a school to watch the students put on a play, where Celestia led the audience in a standing ovation; they went to an arcade because Celestia had never been to one, and they discovered she was extremely fond of skeeball despite being horrible at it. They had fun doing the sorts of things that everyday ponies did, though they did make it back in time for Celestia to lower the sun. They did that together too, climbing up to Celestia’s balcony to watch the sun set. “Do you remember when we used to do this?” Celestia asked. “Every year on my birthday,” Sunset answered. “I remember. It… it meant a lot to me, actually.” “Me as well,” Celestia said softly. They watched as the sun made its slow descent. Sunset took a chance and scooted closer to Celestia, and she was rewarded with a wing draped around her. “I… I must apologize, Sunset,” Celestia said. Sunset looked up at her former mentor. “For what?” “I have not been fair to you. Or to your wives.” It was strange for Celestia to call them wives; usually she danced around the topic without directly addressing what they were to each other. “What do you mean?” Celestia closed her eyes. “I… I have never liked polyamory. You’re far from the first ones I know to practice it, even Luna has from time to time, but… I’ve never understood it. For myself, I could never imagine dividing my attention between lovers. Just as I’ve never taken more than one student at a time. Where I choose to give my attention, I give it fully.” Sunset cast her eyes down. “But I’ve come to realize I do not need to understand it. I only need to accept that you understand it, and that’s not something I’ve done.” “It… it’s okay.” Sunset put on a weak smile. “I never really thought you’d get it, you know? I don’t expect that of you.” Celestia looked Sunset in the eyes for a moment, then turned away. “It… pains me to hear you say that. Mostly because I deserve it. I wish you had higher expectations of me, but mostly, I wish I deserved higher expectations from you.” “I didn’t mean it like that,” Sunset replied quickly. “No, I know. But I want to do better by you. By all three of you, but by you most of all. And so I’m going to speak with Luna about this, and with her help, I’m going to see what I can do to support Twilight’s legal reform.” “What… what are you saying?” Celestia turned back to Sunset and smiled. “I’m saying that we’re going to legalize your marriage to Twilight and Fluttershy. Things shouldn’t be this way, but alas, with my word backing legal reform, all objections to it will fade away.” “That’s… that’s amazing!” Sunset beamed at Celestia. “Thank you so much, Princess.” “No, this is just something I should have done long ago.” Sunset could scarcely believe what she was doing even as she did it, but without thinking, she threw her forelegs around Celestia. It seemed to catch Celestia off guard for a moment, then she returned the hug. Sunset pulled away after a moment. “Sorry, it’s just… wow.” “There’s no need for apologies, my gifted student.” Celestia looked up at the sky. The sun had set, and the moon was now rising. “Luna’s moonrise looks exceptionally pretty tonight.” Sunset was far too happy by the turn of events to focus on that, but she agreed anyway. They continued to watch as the moon rose and the stars came out, then they eventually adjourned when the mosquitoes came out and ruined the mood. Still, Sunset felt lighter than air as she walked back into the castle. Celestia guided her as far as her room, where they stopped in the hallway. “Today was nice, Sunset,” Celestia said. “Thank you for it. It’s a day I’ll treasure.” “We could do it again, you know,” Sunset said. “Next year, maybe?” “I think that would be a lovely idea.” Sunset nodded. “Well, guess we should get to sleep. I have an early train out tomorrow.” “And I have early Monday meetings.” Celestia smiled. “Since I probably won’t see you on the way out, have a safe trip to Ponyville, and give my best to your family.” “Of course, Princess. Good night.” “Good night, my gifted student.” Sunset turned and walked away down the hall with a smile on her face. The day had been everything she had wanted from it and more. She stopped when she heard Celestia’s door open and close. Turning back, she saw the princess was nowhere in sight. Sunset sighed contently and spoke the words she couldn’t bring herself to say to Celestia’s face. “Happy Mother’s Day.”