An Unexpected Party

by Gallifrey

Silver and Gold

Celestia poked her head out of the pavilion; Luna and Twilight had been gone a while now, she wasn’t worried about them, but she did miss their company. Something in the sky caught her attention, she looked up, smiled and drew her head back in. Fluttershy smiled at her from across the room, she was playing slower music now, and conducting an orchestra of birds with a look of pure delight on her butterscotch face.

Celestia looked around as she peeled a banana with her magic and started eating it. Applejack and Rainbow Dash were slow dancing together, surprisingly gracefully to Celestia’s eyes. She smiled: she thought they looked cute, and made a mental note to ask Twilight what was going on between those two sometime. She was sure they had disappeared for a short while earlier, before Twilight and Luna left. Rarity and Pinkie were sitting down a short distance from Celestia, taking a short break. It was always a sign of a good party if even the pink party pony got worn out by it every so often. As Pinkie and Rarity got up to talk to Fluttershy, the entrance of the tent ruffled as Twilight and Luna returned. Celestia trotted over to them, levitating two mugs of cider as she went.

“Ah, girls, I was beginning to think you left us for more concupiscent activities,” said Celestia slyly to them. Twilight’s face flushed bright red, but Luna was far too used to her sister’s teasing to care.

“Play nice Celly,” she said, in a slightly bored voice, “you’re embarrassing her.”

Celestia looked at Twilight’s face.

“Sorry Twilight,” she said sincerely, though a shadow of a grin remained on her face, “you have been gone long though.” She handed them a mug each, full of zap apple cider. Luna sniffed it tentatively, then sipped. Her eyes lit up and she drank some more.

“Yes, Luna and I were talking at the dolphin statue.”

“Quite understandable, it seems as though you have helped calm her nerves well,” she said, looking at Luna, who was eagerly lapping up her cider. The white alicorn laughed.

“What?” asked Luna.

“Nothing Lunes,” she said gently.

Fluttershy picked up a new record to put on the player: it was a waltz. A fitting last song she thought. She turned to the birds around her.

“Is everyone ready?” she asked kindly. The birds around her nodded in unison.

“Excellent - a one, a two, a one, two, three…”

Celestia looked towards Luna as the song came on, a plan formulating in her head.

“Do you remember this one Luna?”

“Huh?” She was about to take a huge bite of cake, but paused, ears perking up, listening.

“All those long years ago? On every Hearth’s Warming Eve? When we used to dance together?”

Luna actually paid attention to what was being played. It was like flying back through time, to those ancient days, thousands of years ago.

“Yes,” she said distantly, “yes, we do. My, that was so long ago.”

“Would you care to join me?”

“But of course, sister.”

Celestia and Luna took to the dance floor, as Applejack and Rainbow retired. The goddess alicorns rose on their hind legs and pressed their forehooves together as they started to dance. The others gathered around Fluttershy as they watched, Pinkie prepared with a big bag of popcorn.

Their dancing was complex and graceful, and transcended any dancing a mortal pony could ever hope to achieve. Celestia decided to use magic to lower the huge tent and cast it to one side, so that Celestia and Luna were dancing under starlight. Luna’s mane sparkled like the sky above, while Celestia’s mane glowed faintly in a similar fashion to the aurora above. Five of the six ponies watching looked up at the sky in awe. Twilight meanwhile was looking curiously at the Princesses’ horns. Celestia’s was shining with golden light, and Luna’s was silver. As they continued to dance, more as one soul in two bodies than two separate ponies, orbs of gold and silver light left the horns and ascended high into the sky, very high. Right up to the aurorae itself, and melting into their own glowing metallic bands of light. As the song came to an end, the Princesses looked up, apparently unaware of the spectacle they had performed. The others hurried over to them. Teal eyes met magenta, both welling up with tears. They embraced each other tightly.

“You have no idea how much I’ve missed that,” murmured Celestia and Luna at the same time. They both chuckled, wiping their eyes.

“What happened?” asked Twilight, “How did you do that?”

“The mysteries of magic are lost even unto us, Twilight Sparkle,” said Luna solemnly and importantly.

“Don’t mind her,” said Celestia, “It is because we both command cosmic entities, and in much the same way as the eclipse was magical because of the Sun and Moon’s interaction, so were we then in our dance.”

“Ah’ll never understand what them three go on about,” muttered Applejack to Rainbow, looking at Celestia, Luna and Twilight.

“S’magic, duh!”

Rarity got a picnic blanket and unfurled it on the grass before them. Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy brought over some more cake, while Applejack and Rainbow got some more cider. Celestia decided to lie on her back, looking up at the sky; the others followed suit, snuggling up to one another as they gazed up, chatting idly, eating and drinking in sublime happiness, and generally unwinding. The evening was warm and calm, much like the atmosphere between all the ponies, all revelling in the strong bonds of friendship they shared.

Twilight was next to Celestia, and as they both looked up at the heavens, Celestia said:

“Thank you for today Twilight Sparkle, it has been the best birthday I can remember.”

Twilight felt pride rush up inside her at the praise, which meant so much coming from her Princess, her mentor, her friend.

“It’s the least I could do, it’s been quite an eventful day hasn’t it?”

“It has Twilight, the best day I’ve had in a long, long time.”

“I’m so glad to hear that,” said Twilight contentedly, nuzzling up to her, “happy birthday Princess.”

“Thank you so much,” whispered Celestia, nuzzling her in return, eyes closed in simple joy, “my faithful student.”