Celestia was in her throne room working on a bill when a guard came in.
“Your Highness,” the guard said, “Princess Twilight Sparkle is here to see you.”
“I wasn’t expecting her,” Celestia said, “I’ve hardly seen her since her wedding to Big Macintosh in Ponyville when we defeated Hades. Very well, send her in.”
“Greetings, Celestia,” Twilight said upon entrance into the throne room, “I hope I’m not being an intrusion.”
“Nonsense,” Celestia said, “I’m just in the middle of a little tax reform. Easily my least favorite of my duties.”
“Tax reform?” Twilight asked, “But our tax system is just fine. What would you need to reform?”
“Well,” Celestia said, “I’m just trying to ease up a little more on our poorer citizens. Life is hard enough for them already. To what do I owe the pleasure?”
“It’s a personal matter, actually,” Twilight said, “A favor to a family member of a friend.”
“Twilight,” Celestia said exasperatingly, “You know I don’t meddle in personal affairs. It’s just that if I did, ponies would come to expect it, and then where would it end? I need to draw a firm, clear line, or else my already busy schedule would descend into chaos.”
“I know,” Twilight said, “I get that. But this young mare is only coming to you as a last resort. She’s tried everything she can and she’s hit a dead end.”
“What’s the problem anyway?” Celestia asked, “I’m not going to do anything about it, but I might as well hear about it. Is it a legal matter?”
“Of sorts,” Twilight said.
“What kind?” Celestia asked, “Criminal or civil?”
“Nothing involving the courts, per se,” Twilight said, “More of a document situation. The one she’s looking for isn’t anywhere to be found in Equestria’s records.”
“That’s odd,” Celestia said, “Is it an old document? Might just be tucked away in a forgotten section of the archives, or perhaps it was lost in some disaster.”
“Fairly new, actually,” Twilight said, “The document in question should only be about 40 years old or so.”
“Strange,” Celestia said, “Who is this young mare and what exactly is she looking for?”
“Her name is Sweet Breeze,” Twilight said, “She’s looking for the birth certificate of her adoptive mother, a nearly 39-year-old unicorn named Sunrise.”
Celestia started at the names of the young mare and her mother. She knew about Sunrise and her progeny, but didn’t want to let on anything, lest she give away clues to her secret.
“Tell me more,” Celestia said, “Where was Sunrise born?”
“She and Sweet Breeze think she was born in Canterlot,” Twilight said.
“They think?” Celestia asked with mock surprise, “You mean, they don’t know?”
“Well,” Twilight said, “It was recently discovered that Sunrise was adopted herself, by Stellar Flare and Solar Wind of Sire’s Hollow.”
“Oh,” Celestia said, realizing another connection to Sunrise, “I thought I recognized the name. Sunrise was one of my best students, along with her younger sister Sunset Shimmer. I always thought they looked different from each other, but they never mentioned it and I never asked. Their younger brother Sunburst was also a student, although he flunked out.”
“Yes,” Twilight said, “Sunset mentioned it. It’s actually through her that I know Sweet Breeze. She was Sunset’s plus one to my wedding. I needed to facilitate communications between them about the wedding.”
“That’s right,” Celestia said, “I must have given you my old journal that can be used to communicate with Sunset. I wondered where that went.”
“Yes, well, back to matter at hoof,” Twilight said, “Sunrise and Sweet Breeze recently found adoption records at the Canterlot Orphanage, but nothing from before that. Not even anything about how Sunrise came to be at the orphanage or who her birth parents were. It’s like Sunrise didn’t exist until she was about a year old, but no one knows for sure how old she was when she was adopted because there’s no way to confirm her exact birth date.”
“Does Sunset know about this?” Celestia asked.
“I have been talking to her about this,” Twilight said, “I thought she had a right to know since she is Sunrise’s younger sister, even if not by blood. Even she’s stumped as to what Sunrise and Sweet Breeze’s other options are besides you.”
“It’s been a while since I’ve seen Sunrise,” Celestia said, “Tell me, where does she live now?”
“In Salt Lick City,” Twilight said, “It’s the hometown of her ex-husband and where they raised their four children. The other three besides Sweet Breeze are biological. I am told she also had stillborn foal.”
“Ex-husband?” Celestia asked, “Stillbirth? My goodness, Sunrise’s life doesn’t sound anything like I imagined her future after graduation being like. You know, I always have time for my former students. I can’t promise I’ll help with their search, but it would be nice to have Sunrise and Sweet Breeze over for a visit. I’ll tell them myself. Thanks for telling me about this, Twilight. It’ll be nice to reconnect.”
“You’re welcome, Celestia,” Twilight said, “It’s not what I had in mind, but I guess a visit is better than nothing. I’m sure Sunrise will enjoy seeing you again and Sweet Breeze would be honored to meet you. I’ll let you get back to work. Goodbye, Celestia.”
“Yes, goodbye, Twilight,” Celestia said.
After Twilight left the throne room, Celestia’s face fell. She couldn’t believe she’d just said that. She worried about what to do next.