The young filly Celestia slowly but steadily climbed up the small hill. Once she had crested the top, she took a deep, steadying breath, held it for a moment, then slowly exhaled.
She looked up. It was still dark, and the moon and stars were shining brightly overhead. She was earlier than the scheduled sunrise, to beat the unicorns tasked with the raising of the sun today.
She fidgeted in place, her hooves lifting up and going right back down where they were. Images of those unicorns, needing to be helped or in some cases carried down the mountain because their mana pools were drained from the exertion required to raise the sun, flashed unbidden through her mind. Those were grown unicorns and she was just a filly. An alicorn filly, to be sure (which prompted more than a few questions), but still a precutiescent filly.
But Celestia was determined. Something about the sun had awoken something deep inside her. It was as if it were… calling to her. Reaching for her. They were connected, somehow. She just knew it!
She looked up at the sky one more time. Determinedly, she lit her horn…
Only for her to frown and let the magic fizzle out. Too late, she realized that she didn't know what spell they cast to raise the sun.
But she had come this far. She wouldn't stop now. She tried again. Maybe it was like telekinesis? She reached out, further than she had ever tried before, and the golden magic glow lit up the grass around her hooves and made the fur on her ears stand on end as she channeled her magic, more than she ever had before, reaching out for something she wasn't even sure was-
Wait.
Her ears pricked. She thought she'd felt something. Like she'd brushed against something warm. Was that it?
If it was, it felt like it was huge.
Which made sense, now that she thought about it.
Her tongue poked out of her mouth as she tried again, her magic more focused and exploring this time.
It was enormous and brilliant and bright, like a fire, but it didn't feel dangerous. Instead, it felt warm, comforting, like a blanket, or a hug from her sister.
But touching it wasn't going to be enough. No. She was going to raise it.
She shifted the spell again, trying to wrap her magic around it. She'd expected it to feel heavy, and it did; but not in a ponderous, threatening way. More like it was just large because it happened to be large. But even so, it didn't feel too foreboding. In fact, it almost seemed to be resonating with her magic, maybe? Starswirl might know something more specific.
Her eyes widened and the spell flickered at the thought of her teacher waking up and rushing over to try and stop her. She didn't know quite as many spells as he did, and she was running out of time before he was due to appear with today’s five.
With a renewed sense of urgency, she dug her hooves into the ground to brace herself and strengthened the spell. She could feel the sun there, and she knew it needed to go up to its proper spot in the sky, and so she would raise it.
She tried lifting it, like she was doing a magic practice exercise. It was different than anything else she had lifted.
Her eyes widened.
She’d felt it move.
Buoyed by this small success, she pushed harder, and slowly, steadily, the sun rose, and night gave way into day. Sunlight peeked over the horizon, growing steadily brighter before the dawn of a new day shone across Equestria.
Celestia sank to her haunches, her chest heaving and her ears drooping, but her smile wide. “I did it,” she panted, exhausted but exhilarated. “I… I did it! I raised the sun!” The magnitude of what she had just done hit her, and she let out a bemused laugh. “I just raised the sun!” By all rights, she should be completely tapped out, but she wasn't. She felt tired, sure, but like she'd gone for a long run, not drained or debilitated or anything like that. In fact, she felt pretty good. Except for that itching on her flanks, that was odd. Her hind leg kicked. Hopefully she hadn't stepped in an anthill or anything.
Before she could look, she saw movement out of the corner of her eye. She turned, ready to defend herself.
But it wasn't Starswirl. It wasn't even Luna.
It was a chicken.
“Hello,” she said, fully aware that she was talking to an animal, but she was still riding on the high of her success. She pointed. “I raised the sun!”
The chicken considered this for a moment.
And then it let loose a shrill, “Cock a doodle doo!”
As it turns out, ponies aren't the only ones looking forward to the sun rising every morning.
Startled by the unexpected sound, Celestia reared up and lit her horn. Magic surged as she tried to escape, and she teleported with a flash of light.
She sat up, disoriented, her multi-colored mane covering her eyes. She wasn't sure where she had ended up. She raised her hooves and parted it like a curtain, but quickly wished she hadn't.
Because that random burst of teleportation had somehow sent her directly into the chicken coop.
And all of the chickens were looking right at her.
Sawdust and discarded feathers slowly fluttered to the ground, scattered in the air by her sudden appearance. One of the chickens clucked.
“Um… hello,” she started hesitantly.
The chickens stared at her.
And they sensed weakness.
For a brief moment, all was silent; and then a series of ear-splitting screeches filled the air, interspersed with the angry cries of poultry.
As Celestia stared, aghast, Luna took a dainty sip and gently set her mug down. “And that is why Celestia is terrified of chickens,” she said primly.