I was flying around early in the morning because I had received multiple letters from ponies about a large bird and rainbows magically appearing in the sky yesterday. I found this quite intriguing, so I decided to investigate. I wasn’t going to question anypony, because I figured that magically appearing rainbows and a giant bird would be obvious, and I was sure that nopony would be able to provide assistance in figuring out why they were appearing.
That’s when I saw it; out of the corner of my eye, I saw a thick band of colors and a giant, red bird flying majestically through the sky. It was one of the most beautiful creatures I had ever seen. Of course I still had to inquire its presence in Equestria.
I sped up my pace and changed my course. I was gaining rapidly, and I’m sure it noticed me coming. It actually slowed down and waited for me to catch up. I had no idea how I was going to speak to it; did it talk or something?
“Um… good morning.” I said to the bird.
Not my strongest start to a conversation, but I had never talked to a giant, mysterious bird before, so I was feeling a bit nervous.
“Greetings.” It said without moving its mouth. Its voice echoed inside of my mind a little.
“You communicate through telepathy?” I asked.
It nodded.
“Let’s continue this conversation on the ground, shall we?” I asked it.
Once again the bird nodded.
We descended smoothly, and once again I thought about how elegant this bird was. It was unlike anything I had ever seen before.
I spotted a clearing in the middle of nowhere, where the majestic creature would be unseen by all but me. It seemed like it was friendly enough, but how had it appeared in Equestria?
“I don’t know how it is that I’m here.”
I was startled.
“You can hear my thoughts?”
It shook its head.
“No, but I’d be wondering the same thing if I were you.”
This bird was very smart. I liked it already.
“Where are you from?” I asked it.
“A world far different from yours. You are the leader here; I can tell. Can you tell me your name?”
“My name is Celestia. And yours is?”
“I am Ho-Oh.”
I found myself laughing a lot, despite the fact that I could have been talking to the ruler of another world. The name just killed me.
“Is something humoring you?”
“Huh? Oh, no it’s nothing.” I managed to say through giggles.
“Celestia, what is that marking?”
It meant my cutie mark.
“That’s called a cutie mark. We all get one when we discover our special talent.”
“Special talent? Like your most powerful attack?”
“Attacks? You mean like spells? Do you know spells too?” I asked.
Now we were both confused. Luckily Ho-Oh had something else to ask.
“Celestia, why is your cutie mark the sun?”
“Because I am the one who raises the sun every day. And my sister, Luna, is the one who raises the…”
It killed me to remember. Luna was on the moon, and I didn’t know if I was going to be able to see her again. I had sentenced her to one thousand years on the moon, and she had been there for almost half her sentence now. I missed Luna so much. I was always so lonely without her now…
Before I knew it, my eyes were drowning in tears, and a few fell to the ground.
“Celestia… Is something the matter?”
Silly me. Here I was, sitting right next to someone that could be considered my equal, and I was showing liquid weakness.
“It’s nothing… Just, just…” I tried to act strong, but my chin quivered and my voice faltered. I knew right then that there were going to be a lot more tears.
I fell to the ground and bawled my poor eyes out. I tried not to think about it, but every time I thought about what I had done to Luna, I became an emotional wreck. To my surprise, Ho-Oh said nothing, but wrapped one of its wings around me in a comforting gesture.
It was as soothing as the warmth from the sun, and it lit up my heart like the brightest ray on a sunny day.
“It’s okay, Celestia… Please don’t cry.”
In the warm embrace of Ho-Oh, I eventually found the strength to stop crying.
“Let us enjoy the sun together.”
Ho-Oh lowered the tip of its wing on the ground, and I wondered what it wanted me to do.
“Climb on my back.”
I did so, and as I did, I felt the same warmth I had felt earlier. If Ho-Oh had told me the warmth came from its heart, I would have believed it. I still felt bad about Luna, but on Ho-Oh’s back, the warmth caused a fiery conviction to flare up inside of me. I had only punished Luna…
No, I had only punished Nightmare Moon because it was what needed to be done. For her own good, and for the good of Equestria.
"Hold on, Celestia."
I wrapped my hooves around Ho-Oh's neck, and it began flapping its wings to get us off the ground. When we got up high enough, Ho-Oh stopped flapping its wings so much, and we just floated about lazily under the rays of the sun. It felt good.
It was nice to finally have someone who appreciated my sun so much. I wanted to share the sun with Ho-Oh for many days to come, that way I wouldn't be so lonely anymore. I turned around and looked back at the sky.
The rainbow trail Ho-Oh was leaving behind was incredible. Just looking at it made me feel like everything was going to be okay.
We flew around for a few hours, but I wished it could have been forever. We talked about the many things that had occurred in our long lives,and we talked a bit about our worlds.
But eventually came the time for me to raise the moon.
I found myself thinking about Luna again, and I hoped that Ho-Oh would be there to take my mind off of her like it had today.
I focused my magic and wrapped it around the sun, gently pushing it over the horizon. The moon came up on the opposite side, and I assisted it in its ascension to the top of the sky.
We began our descent back to the ground bathed in the light from the moon. When we landed, I got off of Ho-Oh's back and turned to face him.
"Thank you for everything you've done today. I fear our day together is over, and I must be heading back to my castle now. Will you spend the night here?"
Ho-Oh shook its head.
The phrase "free as a bird" passed through my mind. For Ho-Oh, it must have been amazing to be able to fly around carelessly and not have to worry about the future of your nation. It was truly free, and I could respect that.
I felt my eyes well up with tears again, and then felt the same warm embrace that had made me feel better earlier. I looked up at Ho-Oh and smiled.
"Goodbye, Ho-Oh."
Ho-Oh flew up into the sky and bellowed a cry that could be heard across Equestria. This world may not have been the same as its, but the sky in every world belonged to the birds, and nothing could stop that. Ho-Oh soon disappeared from my sight. Today had been a great day. I hadn't had this much fun since before Luna was sent to the moon.
I began to cry again, but a voice echoed inside of my head.
"Celestia... Please don't cry."
I looked up at the sky and wondered if Ho-Oh could see me crying. I caught no sight of it. It was just a memory. I sat there for a few minutes more, then flew back to Canterlot Castle. I entered my room, ready to go to sleep.
I was just about to, but something on my bed caught my eye. It was a book. I opened it, but was disappointed to see that the pages were blank. I wondered what to do with it, then I decided to record today's events inside of it.
I got some paint, then I drew a sun on the first page. I also dipped my hoof in some, and then I pressed it up against the bottom half of the page. I wrote down every little thing that had happened today, then shoved the book under my bed and fell asleep.
I woke up the next morning, and my day proceeded as normal. Nopony had sent any letters about a large bird and rainbows appearing in the sky. Ho-Oh was gone.
I would never forget that day. I made sure of it.
* * *
"Tia! What are you doing? Hurry up!" Luna yelled at me.
"Coming!" I called back, closing the book and putting it back under the bed.
I hoped I would find it again in another hundred years.