Count the Stars, My Twilight
The pair walked side by side through the empty field, the light breeze of the Summer Solstice making Twilight’s mane and tail billow across her shoulders and back as gracefully as her teacher’s. The empty plains continued on in every direction for a seemingly infinite amount of time, though a number of chirping crickets and tiny fireflies kept the two ponies company.
The stars were shining like gems above the young filly, and she constantly turned her head, taking in every constellation, every cluster. The full moon slowly climbed across the open expanse, bathing both ponies in pure, white light, and making Celestia’s coat shimmer as though it were underwater.
Never before had Twilight seen the full glory of the night sky. Living in Canterlot had made her used to light pollution, but the miles and miles between her and the nearest artificial light made Luna’s art come to life; an arm of the Milky Way stretched across more than half the sky, hundreds and thousands of stars visible within it. Constellations like Equuleus, Cygnus and Vulpecula were proudly displayed, and Twilight allowed herself to believe that they were shining just for her and her mentor tonight.
Celestia looked down at her student, and seeing the awe and wonder in her violet eyes brought a smile of content to her ageless, ancient face.
“I take it you’re enjoying the view?” The princess was almost sad to have shattered the peaceful silence between them, but the look on her student’s face was too good to pass up.
Twilight smiled broadly, and every one of her features was highlighted by the moon above. “It’s amazing.” She whispered. “And your sister made all of these by herself?”
The alicorn turned to the moon, answering to the celestial orb. “She did. While there were such things as stars before her birth, Luna was the one that created the constellations and encouraged them to come out every night. And that, my student,” Celestia gently laid a wing on Twilight’s back, bringing them both to a halt and kneeling down in the cool grass. “Is what we’re here to study tonight.”
The filly frowned, asking her question while laying down next to her teacher. “What do you mean, there were stars beforehoof? Where did they come from?”
“Each star in the night sky was created by a pony that once lived on earth. They were once reclusive and did not like being seen, but Luna saw how much ponies enjoyed the way they twinkled and danced on the rare nights they were visible. She convinced the stars to stay out at night so they could make the sky more beautiful. The stars found that they liked being admired, and asked Luna if she could make them even prettier. That’s where the constellations come from.”
Again, Twilight frowned. “Ponies create the stars?”
“Yes, Twilight. I can actually remember having a conversation similar to this one with my mother when I was your age. She used to sing a nursery rhyme to teach me about the stars. If you’d like, I could do the same for you.”
Twilight’s eyes lit up, her violet orbs filled with the light of the sky. “Are you a good singer?”
The alicorn laughed gently, giving her student an affectionate nuzzle. “I can’t really remember; an old mare like myself does not get many opportunities to do so. I’ll let you decide, shall I?”
The filly nodded vigorously, grinning in anticipation and excitement. As Celestia started to sing, Twilight brought her head to rest against the warm, white coat next to her, watching a thin cloud in the sky obscure the light of the moon for a moment.
“Every little star is a pony, just like you,
And all of them are looking down and watching over you.
So if you ever feel sad or lonely or blue,
Just know that somepony up there loves you.”
As her princess continued to sing, Twilight adjusted her position, climbing atop her teacher and resting her chest on the white withers. The filly listened to the soft, beautiful tones, stifling a yawn as she watched the sky with violet eyes.
“Twilight, my Twilight, they’re calling out to you,
I can hear their voices, and I think you can, too.
Count the stars, my Twilight, and know that as you do,
There’s a shining star up there, who’s love for you will renew.
As Celestia finished the lullaby, Twilight glimpsed a star twinkling brighter than the others around it. “Princess! Look!” She exclaimed, holding herself up with three hooves and pointing the fourth towards the sparkling light.
The alicorn followed her student’s extended foreleg, and she smiled genuinely, albeit sadly, upon seeing the little gem in the sky. “Yes, my student, I see it.” The mare turned to the excited filly. “Does it remind you of anypony in particular?”
Twilight put her hoof back down, settling back onto her teacher before answering slowly. “I think... I think it’s my brother.”
“Shining Armor?” The thing that startled the princess the most was the calmness with which her student spoke when talking of her deceased sibling.
The alicorn felt Twilight nod. “I can’t... I can’t really remember him all that much, but when I close my eyes, I can see his white coat, and his blue mane, and his smile, and I can hear him saying, ‘Love you, Twily’.” The unicorn tried in a poor imitation of Shining Armor’s voice, making Celestia giggle lightly. “He always used to say that to me.”
Celestia glanced at her student, seeing a tear running down her cheek from reddened eyes, though a small smile adorned Twilight’s features. The old mare looked up at the star, closing her own eyes.
“Twilight, listen.” She commanded gently.
Celestia’s student wiped some of the moisture from her eyes, turning to her teacher in confusion. “Listen for...?” Twilight’s ears perked up as the wind shifted, hitting the pair from behind instead of the front, and the faintest of voices could be heard in the summer’s breeze. The filly’s head shot up as the voice of her brother echoed through the empty field, carried by the wind.
“Shining?!” Twilight looked all around her, trying to see some hint of his white coat, but when Celestia caught her eye and looked back up to the star, the unicorn realized what her teacher had been singing about. “Up there?” She asked, looking both for her brother and an explanation from the alicorn.
“I was not lying when I said that there are ponies looking down on us, Twilight. That star is your brother. Listen.”
The young filly closed her eyes tightly, conjuring up all the memories of Shining Armor she could. When she thought of his voice, she didn’t need to imagine the words; they were spoken aloud, for both ponies in the field to hear. “Love ya, Twily.”
Twilight smiled, and fresh tears gathered around her eyes. “Love you too, B.B.B.F.F.”
The wind changed once more, this time slowing to a halt for the remainder of the night. With it, Shining’s star gave a final twinkle and faded back into the night, becoming just another pinprick of light in the sky.
“But... wait!” She cried out, reaching out for the star with her hoof, as though she could snatch it from the sky. “Where’d he go?” Twilight faced her teacher, seemingly on the verge of panic.
Celestia nuzzled her student gently, trying to offer her comfort. “The stars find it difficult to stay down on earth; it pains them to do so. They can only be with us for a short time, but that’s better than no time at all, yes?”
The filly’s jaw clenched a few times as she held back her tears, feeling like her brother had been right next to her one moment, only to run away the next. Still, the unicorn felt comforted by the fact that Shining Armor was not completely lost; he would be in the stars, should she ever want to see him again.
“Yes, you’re right.” Twilight managed to smile, even as a tear fell from her cheek and onto the white fur below. Celestia smiled back, wiping her student’s tear away with a soft lick of her tongue and making Twilight giggle in the process. “Thank you, Princess.” She sniffled, wiping her eyes dry with a hoof.
Celestia merely smiled, nodding and returning her gaze to the stars. Twilight did the same, but immediately after seeing another twinkle from a star right next to the moon, another question came to her.
“You said that all the stars are ponies?”
“Yes. Every star in the sky can speak to us, Twilight. There’s a star or two winking down at the earth for everypony, even for me.”
Twilight glanced around, seeing thousands and thousands of stars up above and wondering which could possibly belong to her Princess. “Who’s up there for you?”
Celestia smiled that same, sad smile from before. “Well, my mother would be up there, as would my father. Unfortunately, my dad passed away shortly after my sister Luna’s birth, so I never truly met him. I don’t even remember what either of their names were, but I can recall my mother quite clearly.”
The alicorn looked directly at the brightest star of the Canes Venatici constellation, finding her parents easily.
“Before I took control of the sun, my mother manipulated the fires of Sol to warm the planet. Her coat was a brilliant, vibrant gold that sparkled like crystal in the right light, and her mane was a crimson plume of everlasting fire that was always perfect and warm to the touch.”
“Just like yours.” Twilight interjected, nuzzling her cheek against Celestia’s multicolored hair.
The white mare smiled. “Just like mine.” She repeated. “She watched over all of the ponies in the land for her entire life. In fact, she did so from right here in this field.” The old alicorn turned to her student, who was resting very serenely on her teacher’s back, and smirked. “Would you like to know something that only one pony in the entire world knows?”
Celestia got the exact reaction she was expecting from the filly; Twilight shifted from peaceful to fully alert in a heartbeat, and her eyes were wide enough to reflect the entire moon. “Yes! Pretty pretty please one million times yes!”
Celestia stifled her laugh, answering once her student had calmed down. “There was once an entire kingdom, many, many times larger than Canterlot, located in this field. It was from here my mother ruled, and judging from the position of the stars and the current time, I was born in a tower that used to sit in this exact spot. Give or take a few feet.”
Twilight went wide-eyed at this and whipped her head around, presumably looking for an entire kingdom to appear out of thin air.
“There’s no point in searching, dear; the kingdom fell when I was only an adolescent. There’s no trace of it left.”
“But how? Where’d it go?”
“The winds have blown the ashes to all corners of the earth.” Celestia sighed, looking up at her the bright star of her parents and speaking to it. “I know not how long it has been anymore, but I do remember why it fell; both the alicorns that had ruled it perished. My father first, for reasons forgotten to time, and then my mother to illness a century or two later. Without rulers, the kingdom crumbled to dust. Canterlot will do the same, someday.” She said somberly. The white princess turned to the nervous-looking filly, realizing the implications behind her words and smiling comfortingly. “But you need not worry about that in your lifetime, Twilight. I’m not joining the stars anytime soon.”
The unicorn smiled back, nuzzling her teacher and wrapping her pudgy forelegs around her neck. Her teacher’s mane was perfect and warm, just like it had always been. “I know,” The unicorn whispered, closing her eyes and breathing deeply. “I wouldn’t let you.”
Celestia froze for a moment, not quite sure of what she could possibly say as emotion welled in her chest. Deciding that spoken language could not equal her little Twilight’s promise, the alicorn slowly turned and lightly kissed the filly on the forehead, just below her horn. As the lavender pony smiled lightly, Celestia's gaze returned to her parent’s star.
Hi, Mom. The princess thought to herself. It’s been a few years.
The bright light winked back at her, as if to greet her daughter.
How’s Dad?
In response, the star seemed to double its luminosity. The white alicorn chuckled gently, enjoying the company of her parents for a moment before realizing her mistake.
Oh, I’m so sorry, where are my manners? This is Twilight Sparkle. Celestia indicated the filly on her back with a nod of her head. She’s my faithful student. Always eager to learn, always excited to receive a new book. She’s very powerful, especially for a filly, but...
The old mare frowned, watching her student peacefully rest on her withers for a moment. Well, she’s rather lonely. With her brother gone, she has nopony besides me and her baby dragon. The worst part is, I don’t believe she realizes this; she knows nothing of the magic of friendship and doesn’t believe she needs to learn about it.
Celestia found the surface of the moon once more. Perhaps, were Luna here, she would be able to help...
The princess may have sat there, gazing longingly at the celestial orb for the rest of the night, had not a lavender unicorn interrupted her vigil with a soft question.
“Princess Celestia?”
“Yes, Twilight Sparkle?” Celestia smirked at the usage of their full names, but did not take her eyes off of the moon. Her student could be so formal, sometimes.
”Can the stars talk to each other, like they can to us?”
The alicorn glanced at her parents’ fading light, watching as they sparkled brightly one last time and rejoined the others around them. Until next time. Love you.
“Yes, I believe that they can.” She said, facing her student again.
“So that means... when I get to make my own star, I’ll be with Shining again?”
Celestia hesitantly nodded, smiling warmly even though the thought of Twilight leaving her behind made her teeth clench very firmly.
“And then, even though it won’t be for a long time, you can join us?”
Another short, halted nod from the alicorn.
“And we’ll always be together, right?”
Twilight’s words echoed in her head, freezing Celestia in place once more. She moved forward after a moment, wrapping her neck around the filly’s and pressing against her firmly, both to reassure herself and to hide the brimming tears in her eyes. “Yes, my Twilight. I promise.”
The white alicorn thought to the star that had sparkled right next to the blank moon, the same one that Twilight had noticed earlier, as a single tear fell from her cheek.
Someday, Luna. We’ll be back together.