//------------------------------//
// Tears of Angels 
// Story: Don't you remember? 
// by PinkieIsMahWaifu 
//------------------------------//

She laid there on the bed, still sleeping. You hadn't been able to leave her side. For a while, Zecora stayed with you, monitoring the Princess while she rested. 
'It was the tears, her crying drained her power,' The zebra said softly. 'She must wake before the sundown hour.'
'What does it all mean?' You couldn't understand why crying would affect the Princess.
'We've been here for a while; let us walk. On the way, we may talk.' Zecora led you out of the room.
And so, Zecora explained everything. About just how powerful the tears of an alicorn are. About how Luna was unaffected, as while she lowered the moon, she was too young for her tears to have developed powers. About how it was in the blood of an alicorn to serve the sun and moon, so they understood how to move the celestial bodies without knocking the world out of orbit. An hour or two passed while you spoke, and you realized you should probably go and check on the Princess. As the two of you entered the bedchambers again, you were met by the kind white unicorn from earlier.       

As he saw you both, you could have sworn a fleeting look of panic passed his face. He wasted no time in running up to you. 
'Ah! Um, allow me to introduce myself.' The unicorn removed his helmet, revealing a tousled blue mane that matched his mustache. 'My name is General S. Pants, I am the leader of the royal guard. I have heard many great things about you, Miss Zecora.' The zebra blushed. 'And as a filly, the Princess told me wonderful things about you, Sir Discord.' You raised an eyebrow at the moustachioed unicorn.
'Actually, it's just Discord.' Your voice took on a skeptical tone. 'And what might the 'S' in your name stand for, Sir Pants?' 
'Um, Smarty. It stands for Smarty Pants.' His rather thick Canterlot accent made you not want to trust him; generally ponies from that town were not the kindest to your type.
'Okay, Marty.' 
'No, it's 'Smarty',' You gave a rather un-called for glare to the unicorn. 'Uh, fine. You were saying?'
'Where's Tia?' You tried to walk over to the bed, but General Pants blocked your way. He was surprisingly muscular. However, you weren't going to let him stop you from getting to her. You simply flew over him and landed a few feet away from the bed. A white light flashed in front of you as the General teleported in front of you.
'Woah, that was pretty awesome Marty.' The white unicorn winced at his apparent new nickname. 'You'll have to teach me sometime. Now let me see her.' You growled. It never became clear to you why you were so outwardly angry towards 'Marty' when you first met him. He was one of the nicest ponies you had the pleasure of knowing. You just didn't see that at first. 
'She's not here.' The General blurted. 'When the room was left unguarded she must have woken and run off. We've checked the grounds, but nopony has been able to find her.' Zecora gasped, and you all turned to face her. She pointed a hoof toward a clock on the mantle. 

'It is nearly time for the sun to set. She is not strong enough to do it yet!
If she attempts the setting on her own, the pattern of the planets will be thrown.
Equestria will plunge into fire and flame; the world will never be the same!'
The zebra's tail swished as she spoke, like a metronome. You turned back to the General. 
'You said you checked the grounds, huh?' You said. 
'Yes, we thought she might have gone back there to find you. I mean, she didn't know where you were and-'
'And you thought she assumed I was kicked out of the castle by the Royal Guard.'
'Well, uh, yes.' 
'And you only checked the grounds?' 
'Yes.'
'And you didn't think of checking the castle?'
'Umm, no.'
'And it didn't occur to you she might still be here. You just guessed 'Oh, she must have run off after the freak.' Huh?'
'Uh-'
'That's the only answer I needed.' You beat your enormous wings, flicking the General with your tail as you turned and flew out of the room. You sped through the corridors, passing ornate glass windows and decorated doors until you reached where you knew you had to be. 

The hall was an absolute wreck, still in the condition it was after the fight. The floor was stained red in some places, no doubt from your father's blood as they dragged his corpse away. Your eye searched the room until they found her. 
Celestia sat with her back to you, looking up at the frozen faces of her parents. Knowing this was probably going to be a delicate moment, you approached slowly. As you got closer, she heard your footsteps and turned around. Her cheeks were matted with tears. She wasted no time in throwing her forelegs around you in an embrace. You gently stroked her mane with your paw. 
'You know...' You whispered. 'You shouldn't cry. You're gonna harm yourself.' You pulled back out of the hug and looked at her soft pink eyes. 'Anyway... we might be able to turn them back to normal...' 
'No, we won't.' She sniffed. 'Both of the beings that cast the spell have to be the ones that remove it. Since your father is dead, and your mother is hidden, there is no chance of it being undone.' She wiped her eyes with her hoof. It sparkled as the tears sank into her fur. 'And even if there was a way, they would still be dead.'
'How so?' You asked.
'When an alicorn passes on their cutie mark to another, it is time for them to die. They must have cast a spell before they were frozen that meant Luna and myself would move the sun and moon today and become the new rulers of Equestria.' Her face was riddled with anguish. You knew nothing else could be done at this moment to help her except comforting her. You held her closely as she sobbed over your shoulder. The tears ran down your back and seeped into your fur. The magic in them took hold again as one dripped into the cast on your leg and the bones started to heal. You barely noticed, too caught up in the moment. Celestia took her head off your shoulder, instead just looking you in the eyes. You held onto her front hooves as you both stood on your back legs. Her face was just a few inches away from yours. A brief look of conflicting emotions passed her face, but it seemed clear what she wanted to do. She started to lean in closer, and your heartbeat quickened. Was she going to...? You prepared yourself for what surely was about to happen. Her eyes closed as the gap between you shrank. 

However, instead of the moment you wished for, Tia had collapsed again. The tears had taken it out of her and she couldn't go on any longer. You caught her in your arms. The entrance to the hall creaked open as Zecora and the General entered.
'What happened? Did you find her like this?' Marty ran up to you, followed by the medicinal zebra.
'No, she was fine a minute ago... she just...' You stopped as Zecora came closer, looking at the Princess's face.
'Tears stain her face. Oh, what can be done?' The zebra paused, turning to face you. Her tone became very serious. 
'Discord. You will have to lower the sun.'


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Author's Note
Again, sorry about another short chapter, and also for all the drama. This long stretch of drama is nearly over however, and there will be some d'awww chapters before, well, a heckload more drama. But C'est la Vie!
Also, chapters will not be as frequent as this in the future, I just had a little spare time on my hands today.