All Celestia could do was gawk at Twilight’s most recent letter, her jaw hanging agape. Another alicorn and one living so near Ponyville no less. It was a shocking discovery that not even Celestia could fully wrap her mind around. The letter had arrived shortly after Luna had already left to raise the moon, so Celestia was just about to lie down to sleep. She had almost opted to set the letter aside to read in the morning, but something told her that she had to read it immediately. She was about to storm out of the room to alert the guards and head to Ponyville when she stopped herself and thought about it for a moment. If she suddenly appeared in Ponyville with an entire platoon of guards at her back, not only would she cause a panic among the town’s residents, but she might also scare off this new alicorn, if what Twilight said about this Winter’s less than enthusiastic approach to other ponies was true. So instead, Celestia decided to go visit Twilight alone and off the chart. She would speak to Luna about it first though so that she wouldn't panic at Celestia’s sudden disappearance.
Luna was still sitting in the garden, staring up at her charge when Celestia came and sat beside her, stretching a wing to encompass her little sister. Luna leaned into the embrace, thankful to have a moment to speak to her sister without the nagging interruptions of the Canterlot nobles, whose only cares were how they were going to make their next profit. “How come you are not asleep yet sister?” asked Luna, looking at her sister questioningly. “Something… important… has come up that requires my immediate attention.” said Celestia, hoping that her sister would not question further. It is not that she did not trust her younger sister, but rather that she wished to be sure of this new alicorn herself before she revealed it to anyone else. A new alicorn not under her lead could cause... problems... further down the road, just as Twilight had. “No need to cause a panic.” thought Celestia. “Alright, I hope it does not take you too long to handle You know how much I despise those pesky nobles. I don’t know how long I would be able to handle double the amount of headaches.” complained Luna, causing Celestia to laugh. “Do not fret, dear sister. I will not be long.” said Celestia. “At least I hope not.” thought Celestia to herself as she flared her wings and took flight into the sky.
The stars of Luna’s skies showed bright above Celestia as she flew through the cloudless skies, her pristine white wings catching the shafts of moonlight, making her appear almost like a specter to any who might spot her below. Luna’s moon lit the way as she came upon the quaint town of Ponyville. Although she had come to visit Twilight and her friends multiple times, Celestia had never actually seen the town nor cared to do so, aside from the occasional visit to the Carousel Boutique.The Golden Oaks Library came into view as she coasted in to land, her wings tilting in order to slow her descent. She landed softly upon the balcony that led into Twilight’s room, not making a sound as she did so. She was just about to open the balcony door when she noticed something out of place in her room. She leaned in closer to get a better look when she noticed the blue showmare nestled against Twilight’s side, held close by Twilight’s protective wing. Celestia’s eyes widened upon seeing the mare, as Twilight had told her nothing about any sort of relationship. She was so shocked at the sight that she stumbled back, her hoof snagging on the balcony railing, sending Celestia toppling over the side to the streets below. Celestia sneezed as she inhaled the dust scattered by her less than preferred landing. A steely glare settled into Celestia’s eyes as she thought about somepony else being with her former student.
She felt the need to barge into the library and confront her former student and this mysterious mare that had stolen Twilight’s heart, but then she stopped as a thought crossed her mind. “I’m jealous of a simple unicorn mare that I haven't even met. And I was just about to barge into Twilight’s home uninvited. How foolish that would have been?” thought Celestia as she chuckled to herself. “And what would Twilight have thought of me just appearing on her doorstep, asking about a mare I don’t even know.” thought Celestia. Celestia instead gently opened the door to the library and walked inside, feeling a bit nostalgic about the last time she had been in the library, which had been when she had come to Ponyville for the element of Laughter, Pinkie Pie’s, birthday. That had been a party that she would never forget, as the pink party pony had made it all too memorable. Celestia also learned from that party, that when Pinkie mentioned a Party Cannon, it was best to duck. She opted to lie on the couch in the living room, as it appeared to be large enough to support her larger size. Celestia laid her head down in her hooves as she shut her eyes, waiting for sleep to take her. Celestia would confront her former student in the morning, as it would be more appropriate and polite to do so after she was already awake rather than wake her in the middle of the night.
Twilight woke with a start as she realized that her warm barrel heater was missing. At a cough from the doorway, Twilight raised her head, stretching her wings in the process as she climbed down off of the bed. Trixie was standing in the doorway, her mane still disheveled from last night, and a nervous expression on her face. Twilight walked over and nuzzled the side of Trixie’s face, happy that the first thing she saw in the morning was her love’s face. She was surprised when Trixie did not return the gesture, choosing instead to gesture for Twilight to follow her. Twilight was surprised, but not overly concerned as she followed Trixie to the bottom of the stairs and into the living room. It was not until she saw who was waiting in the living room that a knot of fear began to tie itself in the pit of her stomach. “C-Celestia!!” cried Twilight, staring at the regent of the sun standing in her living room, a stormy expression on her face.
Rainbow Dash twisted in her sleep, tossing and turning as she was caught in her dreams. She was flying high above the clouds as usual, performing breath taking stunts and dives as she went along. Her mane streamed behind her, taking on that familiar chromatic trail as the wind obeyed her commands. The shafts of sunlight showed brightly against the white clouds, promising a beautiful day. But then suddenly the clouds started to swirl around her, taking on a dark tone that flashed with lightning. Before she could react, rain started to fall, each drop like a miniature explosion as they hit her. The cold was freezing her to her very core and her wings were becoming stiff and unresponsive. Tears started rolling down her face as she plummeted towards the ground below, unable to spread her wings and take flight once more.
Without even realizing she was doing it, she called out the one name she wanted to save her most of all. “Winter, save me!!!” cried Rainbow, her limbs flailing in the wind. Almost instantly she was surrounded by a wave of snow that quickly encompassed her form, slowing her descent until eventually stopping her completely. She expected it to be even colder than the rain had been, but it wasn’t. It was warm, accepting, and loving as it slowly took form. Rainbow only shut her eyes for a few seconds, but when she opened them, she wasn’t sitting on a cloud of snow anymore. She was sitting on Winter’s back as she flew through the sky, her head turned so that her deep green eyes were staring back at Rainbow. “Hello dear. Are you alright?” asked dream Winter. Rainbow Dash was overjoyed at the appearance of Winter in her dream and held onto the alicorn's back as she completed a few loops and curls in the empty air. Rainbow once again felt that warm feeling stir in her chest, warming her from the inside out as she clung to Winter, her muzzle buried in the alicorn's soft blue fur.
But before she could continue to enjoy the dream, something started to pull Rainbow away. She looked behind her and saw the dream world beginning to fade away and turned back to see the dream Winter suffering the same fate. “No. NOOO.” cried Rainbow as she woke up in a cold sweat. She almost started to cry as she remembered the dream she had just been having. She had accepted that she had strong feelings for the alicorn when she had come home from Winter’s the other night, but she was afraid that Winter may not return her feelings. Rainbow then rocketed out of bed as another round of knocks echoed throughout her home, a little more forceful this time. She grumpily walked through the halls of her house until she reached her front door, her dream still at the forefront of her mind. She was about to grudgingly yell at the pony that had interrupted her dream, but when she saw who was at her front door, the words froze in her throat.
Princess Luna stood at Rainbow’s doorstep, her usual travelling cloak adorning her figure. Her expression was a mixture of shock, anger, bewilderment, and curiosity as Rainbow quickly stepped back into her home, inviting the princess in. Luna looked genuinely curious as she stepped into the Pegasus’s sky home, having never seen one like it before. “Rainbow Dash I presume.” said Luna as she sat down on the cloud couch. “Y-yes princess. How can I help you?” asked Rainbow Dash as she looked at the flustered alicorn. “I was just coasting through the dream realm when I came across your… ahem… dream.” muttered Luna, looking away, a heavy blush on her face. Rainbow looked away, an even heavier blush adorning her face. “O-oh. You saw… that dream.” said Rainbow Dash. “I-indeed. But, um, that is not why I have come. I have actually come because of who I saw in that dream.” said Luna as she towered to her full height over Rainbow Dash, whose nose was practically touching the floor in a submissive bow. “What about her?” asked Rainbow Dash. “Who was that other alicorn?” demanded Luna, forcing Rainbow Dash to explain.
“So she is real, Twilight. Your letter wasn’t just some joke?” asked Celestia, Twilight and Trixie shivering beneath her icy glare. “Y-yes Celestia. I promise you it’s the truth.” said Twilight. Although Twilight was a princess as well, she still knew how much power Celestia had locked away and was not willing to upset Celestia without good reason. Celestia then turned and started towards the front door of the library, her golden magic opening the door before her. “Celestia, where are you going?” asked Twilight as she followed the irate princess.
“A new alicorn. And Celestia told me nothing of it. How dare she keep such important information from me?" said Luna as she paced in front of Rainbow, who was looking at her with a mix of concern and worry. More for Winter really than Princess Luna. "Well, I guess I shall just have to find this new alicorn myself and get to the bottom of things” said Luna as she headed towards the door of the Pegasus’s house, her dark blue magic practically wrenching it off of it's hinges. “Where are you going princess?” asked Rainbow Dash, cautiously following her at a safe distance.
“TO FIND THIS ALICORN!!” yelled the two princesses in unison.