The dream began anew.
It was the same dream, played over and over again, and it never changed with the times. Every detail was the same, down to the littlest detail. Like a video tape that had been run through a million times.
It had a peaceful beginning, at least. It began in a peaceful meadow, sometime before dusk. The grass was a lush shade of green, the birds were chirping peacefully, and there were no signs of civilization for miles. And if there were any, they were of simple folk, a few ponies learning about civilization for the first time.
In the midst of this wilderness, two young fillies ran through the meadow. One was white and the other light blue, and neither had their cutie marks yet. They were getting exhausted after running for so long, but they kept running forward, their wings spread far to catch the drift.
"I'm going to make it this time, Tia!" the blue one promised.
"No way! I'm flying first, Luna!" the white filly responded.
More determined than ever, the two young alicorns flapped their wings as hard as they could. Neither one wanted to give up hope on this dream today.
Luna managed to pull out in fromt, and she stuck her tongue out at her sister. Her hooves stopped feeling the grass underneath, and felt a cool breeze blowing around them. She looked below her neck, and gleamed when she was hovering above the ground at last.
"I'm flying, Celestia! I'm really flying!"
Celestia stopped in her tracks, and her jaw hit the floor when she realized Luna had beaten her at something. Her sister went higher and higher, a full two feet off the ground.
"No fair! You're faster than me! You always were!"
"That's just an excuse! I win!"
But as soon as her dream of the week came true, it came to a crashing halt. Luna saw how high she was getting, and freaked out. Her wings snapped shut, and she fell head over hooves. She kicked up a bunch of dirt as she hit the ground with a thud, and she landed right on her flank.
Celestia ran as fast as she could, and came to her aid. "Luna! Are you alright? Is anything broken? You didn't break your horn, did you?"
"I'm fine," Luna replied, as she got back up on all four legs. "My hind legs hurt, but nothing's broken. I think..."
"We should probably stop for the day. I'm wiped out after all that running. And she'll be looking for us if we don't get home before sunset."
"Good idea."
They trotted back to the dip in the meadow, where their caretaker would be waiting for them. She always was one of their favorite caretakers, and for good reason.
"I still beat you first," Luna boasted.
"You flew two feet off the ground. When I fly for the first time, I'll beat that."
"As if."
They arrived back at the dip, right in the middle of the meadow. There, their babysitter was looking over the horizon, making sure everything was still and calm.
But something was most unusual about this pony. She carried around four golden sandals, a neck plate, and the symbol for the sun on her big flank. A crown on top of her head told the world that she was the ruler of this kingdom. In short, she was the filly Celestia, all grown up.
She could see the two sisters coming her way, and she got up to greet them. She extended her wings out for a hug, and they ran right into her grasp.
"Its good to see you again," said the elder Celestia. "Did you have a good time out there?"
"I flew today!" Luna exclaimed. "I flew two feet off the ground!"
"Its amazing, isn't it? Nothing is like flying. The wind in your mane, feeling the current on your hooves."
But the filly Celestia dropped her ears down. She didn't want to be reminded that she lost the race to be the first flyer. But when the mare saw that, she brought her hoof to the filly's chin.
"Don't worry, Celestia, you'll be a great flyer too. I can tell," she said with a slight smirk to her voice.
"I know. I just want to fly now."
"And you will, one day. Now go off and play. We only have a few minutes before it gets dark."
The fillies nodded, and ran off to play again. They wrestled like earth ponies in the dirt, enjoying themselves as two young sisters did.
Meanwhile, the grown Celestia sat back down on her hind legs. As it had always happened since the dream cycle began, she felt nostalgia hit her like an ocean wave at the beach. She remembered the joy she felt when she finally did get off the ground, and the unspeakable triumph when she earned her cutie mark.
But her attention was also brought to the blue little filly. They were competitive back then, but they were also deep friends.
Luna tried to grab filly Celestia's hind legs, only to feel a hoof tickle her belly. She laughed and fell on her back, and Celestia assaulted her stomach with endless belly rubs.
But the grown up Celestia felt tears in her eyes at that point. She knew where this would end. They would grow up, and Luna would grow jealous of her day...
She brought her eyes to the rising moon. It stung her heart when she saw that familiar sight, the Mare in the Moon, reminding her of Luna's ultimate fate, and the thousand years of heartache that would follow...
Then she would turn to see the fillies again. But her younger self would always disappear. Luna was still there, but she hunched over in pain. Her body expanded before her eyes, and she grew into a mare. She aged years in seconds, and she couldn't bear the pain. Her coat turned from light blue to the darkest shade of purple imaginable.
When the transformation was finished, she ceased to be her sister any longer, and in her place was Nightmare Moon. She bared her fangs for everyone to see, and charged at Celestia with the intent to kill.
"Your end has come, Princess Celestia!"
----
Celestia sprung up from her bed, sweat drenching her entire body. No matter how many times she had the same nightmare, it was still horrifying to go through again.
She covered her face with her front hooves and took several deep breaths. It was just that dream again. Everything was fine. Luna was back to her old self right now.
It took a few minutes for her to get over it, even when she knew that. She levitated a wash cloth from her bathroom over to her bed, and wiped all the sweat off her body. After she was finished, she climbed out of bed and took a deep sigh.
A mirror was resting on the other side of the bedroom. She examined herself on its reflection, and saw that she was as divine as ever. It didnt go to her head, of course, but it helped to know that the dream didn't haunt her to the point where she looked like a wreck.
A trip to the bathroom and some dressing up later, Celestia was her old self again. Her crown rested neatly on her head, and her golden sandals fit perfectly on her hooves. Another deep breath later, she was ready for the day.
But what WAS she supposed to do, anyways?
She opened the door to the hallway, and a middle aged unicorn mare, wearing glasses and a white dress shirt, was waiting for her along with a notepad in her magical grip.
"Are you ready for your carriage, Your Majesty?" she greeted.
"What for? I'm afraid I don't remember what's on the schedule."
"You have an appearance for the Summer Sun Festival in Ponyville, later in the day."
"Ah, now I remember. Its been a full two years since the festival where Nightmare Moon came back, is it not?"
"It is. A lot has changed since then."
"Indeed. Let us go down there in an hour. I need some breakfast before the trip."
----
Several hours went by. The summer sun was a few minutes away from setting over the mountains, and the moon was about to take its place.
Perfect for what she was about to do.
Princess Luna opened up the doors to the balcony next to her own bedroom. A warm breeze greeted her at once, and she remembered how much she loved the summer air. But no matter. She had business to attend to.
She spread her wings out at their full span and lifted herself into the golden sky. She concentrated all of her magic to the moon, moving it where it needed to go.
Her horn beamed as brightly as it could, and her muscles strained from the pull of the moon on her body. But she won the fight, and the moon emerged from the mountains to the nighttime sky. Her royal duty had been completed for the day.
She descended down to the balcony, and her thoughts turned to another matter at hoof. Her sister had left for the Summer Sun Festival, and she was supposed to return later in the day. But where would she be?
Luna left the comforts of her bedroom, and made way to the hallways of her castle. Every nearby Guard stopped to salute her, consisting of the bat ponies that made up her own Guard. But that was all she saw for a while.
To her delight, she found a white stallion carrying the armor of Celestia's Guard, standing watch near her study foyer. Maybe he would know.
"Fellow Guard, halt."
The Sun Guard stopped in his tracks, and removed his helmet in respect. "Princess Luna, what are you doing here?"
"I wish to see my sister Celestia. Do you know where I could find her?"
"Of course. She's having dinner in the second floor dining hall."
"Thank you. As you were."
And so Luna made her way to the dining hall, going through countless hallways and long rooms. After such a demanding visit to Ponyville, Luna figured the best thing Celestia could do was have a nice quiet dinner with her sister. It seemed like the right thing to do.
She eventually found the small, golden pair of doors that led to the dining hall. She brought herself in quietly, not wanting to interrupt anything.
Here, a few round tables made up the dining hall, along with a cozy fireplace. It wasn't luxurious in design, but it wasn't supposed to be. It was made to be a quiet escape when Celestia wished to dine in private.
And surely enough, Luna found Celestia sitting at one of those tables. Her back was facing the entrance, so the moon princess came over to see how she was doing.
"I hope I'm not interrupting anything, sister. I would hate to bother..."
Celestia's face was buried in her bowl of salad. Her snout was covered in sauces and lettuce, and she was snoring quite loudly.
Luna panicked and almost thought her sister had been poisoned, until the snoring made her realize she was asleep. When was the last time Tia slept in her own food? she thought. She patted the sun princess carefully on the shoulder, hoping this wouldn't bother her too much.
Celestia snapped up straight, waking up in no time. Her muzzle felt like it was itchy, and she discovered it was covered in ranch dressing. She cleaned it up with a napkin, and then realized that Luna was watching her every move. She blushed and covered her snout in embarrassment.
"I'm really sorry you had to see that. Its just been a long day."
"So I see. The Summer Sun Festival has given you nothing but trouble in recent years."
"I know, but they love it when I make an appearance. Especially Twilight."
"Yes, but let's talk about this problem," she said, as she took a seat next to Tia. "Were you really so exhausted, that you couldn't finish an appetizer without passing out?"
The white alicorn found herself blushing again. "I don't know what has gotten into me. But I promise I'm fine, Luna. You don't have to feel sorry about me."
And so she returned to enjoying her meal. Even then, she appeared to Luna like she was exhausted. She also noted that Tia wasn't wearing her sandals, which wasn't the best of signs.
Soon after, Luna discovered that she was growing exhausted herself. She was wishing she could take a day off or something...
Which gave her an idea.
"Celestia, when was the last time you took a day off?"
"Why do you ask?"
"Ever since I have returned from my banishment, I have never seen you stop working. Even when you are having time to yourself, you're studying a book or going over some royal decrees. You never take a moment to relax, except for when you sleep. And that is never enough, is it?"
"I appreciate your concern. But I am fine."
"You didn't answer my question."
Celestia sighed, knowing her sister wouldn't let it go.
"Fine. If you must know, the last day I had a day to myself was before you became Nightmare Moon. A full month before that, to be exact."
The dark blue alicorn couldn't believe her ears. "You mean, you have worked without end for over a thousand years?"
"I had no choice for a period of time. While you were gone, I had to take over your royal duties on top of my own. I couldn't stop, or else the celestial patterns might be thrown into chaos."
"But I'm here now. You don't have to do this to yourself any longer."
That was a revelation to Celestia. Was all this stress she had put herself through really that unnecessary? She hadn't thought about that, it was just the way she was used to. And she could do it well.
She brought her hooves to her snout, pondering the idea.
"So you're suggesting that I should take a day off soon?"
"I was thinking of doing the same thing with you, as well. We could spend the day together as sisters, like we did in our youth."
That nightmare came back to Tia's memory. She shook it off immediately, knowing Luna meant no harm.
"But who would take over for us? That leaves no princess in charge."
"We could have some of the lower princes and princesses to look over Equestria for us. It is only for one day after all."
"But nopony else can raise the sun and moon like we do."
"I thought about that too, and I came to a plan. You raise the sun like you always do, and we'll spend the day together as sisters. Then we come back in time for me to raise the moon."
Now that was an idea Celestia could get behind. And in the end, she enjoyed the thought a lot more than she would imagine. Many were the nights that she wished they could have fun like they used to, and now they could do just that.
After going over the idea one more time, she nodded her head.
"Yes, that sounds like a wonderful idea. We have to wait until things quiet down in Canterlot, but next Tuesday is perfect."
Luna smiled, happy to see her wish come true. "I promise you won't regret this, my sister. We'll have the best time out there."
"I already know we will," Tia grinned. "I already know."
----
After the next few days passed with time, next Tuesday had arrived at last. Celestia was done raising the sun, and nothing was going to get in the way of their day off. Hopefully.
The Royal Guard opened the gates of the castle, and bowed before the princesses as they left the premise. But one by one, they opened their eyes in surprise. Never in a million years have they seen their rulers like that.
When Celestia and Luna walked by them, they were wearing nothing at all. No sandals, no neck plates, no crown either. The only thing they carried around was a large bag full of bits, hung aroung Luna's neck. Sure, most ponies were naturally naked, but those two never were in public.
"See, I told you it would be OK," Luna reassured.
"OK? They're looking at us like we're dragons or griffons," Celestia laughed.
"At least they're not asking what is wrong with us. That's a good sign."
They moved along out of the castle grounds, and arrived at the streets of Canterlot.
It was in the middle of the morning hours, so the streets were packed with ponies running off to work, or maybe they just wanted to have a good start to the day. One thing was for sure. As soon as they saw Celestia and Luna come over, they stopped where they were to stare at them.
Luna didn't seem to mind one bit, and trotted ahead like nothing was happening. Celestia followed ahead, occasionally waving to the townponies.
"You don't have to do that today, my sister," Luna advised.
"But they keep looking at us. Its to be expected."
"But you're just a normal pony for now. Just act like you're any other mare. And I have to say, these stones feel amazing on my hooves."
Celestia took note of that as they kept walking. And surely enough, her hooves did feel good. The stones didn't feel as easy to the touch as some nice warm grass, but after years of wearing those golden sandals, it was a massive improvement.
Soon enough, she began to look past all the gawking ponies, and just trotted along with Luna. She held her head high, and marveled at all the beautiful buildings that made up Canterlot.
It was truly a marvelous city, with its warm colors and sense of luxury no city could match today. She had never really "gotten" her town, all lost within the castle, and she didn't know why she hadn't done this sooner.
Luna turned to see how Tia was doing. And for the first time in her life, her older sister seemed to be without a care in the world. She kept looking at what else they could see....
Only to find out that they were at the entrance gates of Canterlot already. Celestia paused at the sight, tilting her head to the side.
"I don't believe we planned this out very well. We're almost out of the city, and its been all of ten minutes."
Luna thought about this problem for a second. "Well, what do you want to do? There are many things we can do while we're here."
"Come to think of it, I haven't had anything to eat. Maybe we should go out for breakfast."
She looked around the streets surrounding them, curious what was nearby. It seemed like they had a ton of options for dining. There was a restaurant with huge windows behind them, where she could see a luxurious hall not unlike her castle. Pass, much too similar.
But what got her attention was something much more simplier. It was a cafe with both indoor and outdoor seating, and the simple yet refined design seemed much more alluring to her.
"Let's go to that cafe over there."
"Very well. It looks appealing to me as well."
There was an empty table in the middle of the cafe, and ponies of all backgrounds surrounded them. They turned to see the princesses arrive near their spot, not sure what to make of them eating at their spot.
The sisters took their seats opposite each other, and Celestia exhaled a deep breath of air. She extended her limbs and gave them a good stretch. Luna kicked back, relaxed, and completely ignored everyone around her. And sure enough, the ponies went back to their regular business.
Except for one. A unicorn wearing a tuxedo, working as the waiter, could barely believe what was happening. He was about to serve Celestia and Luna. He could NOT screw this up. They would take off his head if he messed up. Or so he was told.
He came to their table quietly, his hooves shaking uncontrollably. His horn used magic to bring out two menus for them, and tried his best to speak.
"Here are your...MENUS!" he said, his voice sounding like a mice to a full grown elephant within the span of one sentence.
Celestia and Luna looked at each other, not sure how they should handle this. They awkwardly smiled at him, and took their menus to their sides.
"THANK....you," he yelled and mumbled, running back to his hiding spot inside the restaurant as fast as he could.
As soon as he was gone, both of them burst out laughing at the top of their lungs.
"Is that really how everypony reacts around us? Thinking we want them dead if they get one detail wrong?" Luna asked.
"Pretty much. I don't really execute ponies, and I haven't for centuries. But they tend to be so paranoid about what I might do to them. Here, watch what happens."
Another waiter was writing down orders for a customer next to them, and Celestia tapped him on the shoulder. He almost panicked when he saw it was the princess, but managed to calm himself down.
"Could you make a latte for everypony out here? If you don't mind," she asked.
"No, no, its no problem, Your Majesty. I'll get working on it immediately."
He ran inside the restaurant in no time, not wanting to delay a second. Celestia counted the seconds one by one, waiting for it...
And sure enough, a whole team of waiters emerged from the place, carrying entire plates full of lattes. They handed them to the customers one by one, and left no stone unturned.
Luna couldnt believe it herself, as she watched a latte being delivered to her own table. She had to do everything in her power not to laugh.
The same waiter came back to their side, bowing before Tia. "I hope this is pleasing to you, Your Majesty."
The blue alicorn grinned, with an idea of her own to put to the test.
"There is one thing you could do for me. Can you tell us what the time is?"
"I will go check. It won't be too long."
He made another trip down to the cafe, and Celestia took a sip of her latte. She overheard the other ponies saying this service was far faster than what the place usually delivered.
Still, what was the point of that joke Luna pulled?
"I'm curious what you were thinking when you asked that waiter what--"
"PRINCESS LUNA WANTS TO KNOW WHAT TIME IT IS!" a yell emitted from the cafe. "PLEASE TELL ME! I DONT WANT TO KNOW HOW SHE PUNISHES HER SUBJECTS!"
And sure enough, Celestia's own jaw dropped to the ground. Luna's jaw was dropped too. And pretty much everypony that was there.
The waiter returned to see the princesses, his calm trotting totally betraying his real emotions.
"It is a quarter past 8, Princess Luna."
"I...thank you."
The waiter left the premises once more, leaving the alicorns alone with their thoughts, two lattes that dropped to the ground, and two dropped jaws.
"I'm not that terrible to my subjects, am I?" Celestia asked herself.
"When you banish your sister to the moon for one thousand years, ponies assume things. But no, you are not half as bad as you think. They just don't want to disappoint their fair ruler."
Was Luna going out of her way to remind her of that dream? Tia was strongly beginning to suspect that.
Either way, the rest of their visit was quiet and peaceful. They ordered two more lattes, enjoyed a good biscuit or two, and the waiters even managed to act more naturally around them. That is, after Celestia promised them that the worst torture method they gave prisoners was tummy rubs.
As the early morning hours gave way to the late morning hours, the paths of Canterlot grew quieter. There were still a few mares and stallions walking around, but most of them were off to work at their jobs.
And after the fourth latte between the two, both of them were finished with breakfast. They paid the staff for every drink, even when they insisted that it should all be free.
As they left the cafe, Luna stretched out her wings and shook her head around. She needed to break free with all that caffeine in her system.
"So what should we do next, Tia? I'll let you pick again."
At that moment, a warm summer gust of wind whistled around the city. Pieces of paper flew around them, and their celestial manes flapped against their backsides.
Celestia looked to the sky, seeing how peaceful and inviting it was to her. There were a few clouds here and there, but there was plenty of open space for a pegasus to fly around in.
She spread her wings out to their full span, all while keeping her eyes to the sky. Luna didn't have to be told what was about to happen, as she got her wings ready for flight as well.
There was an empty street leading to the entrance gates, and they galloped down that way. Their wings flapped slowly at first, gaining traction as they kept going.
Celestia couldn't help but smile as she felt her hooves lifting her off the ground. Luna was keeping pace with her, not wanting to be left behind this time.
The Guards at the gate saw the sisters approaching, and thinking they had done something wrong, bowed before them. However, they found their helmets flying off their heads, as two alicorns flew past them only feet away. They left a huge gust of wind in their wake, even stronger than the natural one.
Celestia screamed in delight as she took off into the air. The confines of Canterlot disappeared behind her, and up ahead was nothing but the beautiful daytime sky and more clouds than she could count.
One gigantic cloud was in her sights, and she flew right into it. She felt moisture and cloud streaks hit her face as the cloud broke apart in her wake, and it was one of the most refreshing things she ever felt, like the middle of a warm waterfall.
Luna was ahead of her, flying backwards to give her sister some time to catch up. But Tia was too busy doing barrel rolls left and right, breaking up clouds everywhere she was.
"You love this a lot more than you should be!" Luna laughed, sticking her tongue out.
"I forgot how fun this was!" Celestia responded. "Flying without a care in the world, the wind in your face. How could I let this slip my mind? I should do it more often."
Luna giggled, as her bright idea was paying off more by the second.
They kept flying together in the atmosphere, staying close to one another. The wind was howling in their ears, but they were stronger than the air. They pushed ahead, arriving at a current in the middle. It lifted their wings up naturally, and they hovered up there without having to flap their wings much.
The moon princess pulled up ahead, a sly smile to her face.
"I was always the fastest flyer of the two, you know."
"As if! You might have gotten a headstart on flying, but I can best you every time."
"Then we shall settle it on a race! We'll go around the griffon mountains, through the lakes, around Ponyville, and whoever reaches Cloudsdale first will win. Does this sound promising to you?"
"You're on, Luna! One, two, three, go!"
She shot out of the current, leaving Luna with a mouthful of air.
"You cheat!" Luna accused. "I will still emerge the victor!"
She escaped the current as well, doing everything she could to catch up with Celestia.
But the sun princess managed to gain a big headstart on her. She was halfway to the mountains by now, and she was making great speed as well.
The only way you beat that, is by going even faster.
Luna went off like a rocket in the direction of the mountains to the east, miles of meadows and forest rushing by her wings. She focused all of her attention to the white speck with yellow on its flanks.
Celestia looked forward to the mountains up ahead. The mountains where the griffons called their home was quite lush. They had snow tops as always, and the middle had numerous holes working as caves, but the base was dense with forests.
And she was going to be there first.
She pointed her hooves to the east, and her wings flapped as relentlessly as they could. The wind sheared around her, and she felt good about her pace.
But to her surprise, a dark blue blur ran by her, and the wind around it caught her off guard. She spun around in circles, and slapped herself in the face when she realized who it was.
"Eat my lunar dust, sister!" Luna shouted.
"Don't make me send you to the sun!" Celestia shot back.
And so two streaks of power, one white with yellow tinting, and one blue, raced around the top of the mountain.
Out of the caves, a bunch of griffons poked their head out of their homes to see what was going on. They heard what sounded like two jets approaching, and they had to know what was the cause of it. And to their surprise, they saw the rulers of the neighboring pony kingdom come by their doorstep.
They weren't sure what this meant, as the sisters flew around the peak of the mountain. But as soon as they had arrived, they left their premises, leaving the whole thing in a veil of mystery.
Once the mountains were in hindsight, Luna was cheering at the top of her lungs.
"You got a headstart on me, and I still won!"
"Not for very long!"
The lakes were the next destination. The rugged mountains gave way to lakes the size of Ponyville. They were almost connected to each other, yet they were all separate by tiny paths of earth.
Luna dove close to the surface, touching the water with her hooves. It kicked up the water, trying to spray Celestia if she could. She figured that Tia would be tailing her, so it was worth a shot. And she would still kick her flank in pure speed, right?
Wrong. Celestia blazed by her this time, wiping the water from her face. She waved over to Luna as she took the lead.
"Thanks for the shower, I needed that. I was getting sweaty for a moment!"
She went and regained her head start, becoming nothing but a white blur to Luna again.
It could not end this way.
The moon sister raised herself up, wiping the sweat off her brow. She regained her focus and came back to the air current to relax. Celestia seemed to be slowing down as well, as they turned their sights to Ponyville.
Anything that would help her out was needed at this point, especially as her wings were beginning to ache. She did find some rest in the current, and it was enough to get her back in the game.
On the way to Ponyville, the area changed from vast lakes to vast meadows. Ponyville was surrounded by them in all directions, save for the Everfree Forest. Meaning that there was nothing to distract them this time.
Luna put everything she had into those wings, and she closed in the distance between her and Celestia. They entered the meadows of the small town, and the town hall would be in view within seconds.
Meanwhile, Rainbow Dash was taking a peaceful nap on a cloud near Twilight's house. She snored as she always did, dreaming of wearing a real Wonderbolt uniform. And then a date with Soarin. Or Spitfire. Or somepony else. It always changed with the dream for some reason.
She was the middle of her date when she heard something in her ear. It sounded like a bushel of bees, and they got closer and closer. In the dream, she was stung by a whole hoofful of them, and she woke up from the pain.
But as she came to, her eyes widened as she saw a huge white and blue blur coming right for her. She sprung out of her cloud and ran for the cover of Twilight's treehouse. She watched in horror as the most comfortable cloud in existence was torn apart before her eyes.
"NOOOOO! I didn't get to make out with Spitfire yet! Oh wait..."
Ponyville was far behind the sisters now, and they were neck to neck. They flew upwind to Cloudsdale, the imaginary finish line in sight.
Both of them flew as fast as their long wings could carry them. They sweated from the pressure of finishing first. They had put a bunch of effort into winning this race, and there was no way they were going to end on a whimper.
As they came closer to the city of the pegasi, the sky filled up with nothing but clouds. Everywhere they looked,there was a narrow path surrounded by the thickest clouds they had ever seen.
But one path lead straight to Cloudsdale's weather factory. It was narrow, but the two of them could still squeeze through if they had to. And it was looking like that was going to happen.
As the clouds narrowed in on them, Celestia and Luna were squeezed next to each other. Their nerves got more jumpy as the finish came closer, and their wings almost touched, they were that tight together.
Their wing tips even brushed the clouds, slowing them down a bit. But Luna managed to pull out just a little...
And then the clouds opened up again. They had reached the finish line. And it was Luna by a pony's length.
She cheered and hollered as she flew over the top of the weather factory, taking in her win over her elder sister.
"Yes! I knew I would be the victor! It took a lot of effort, but I won all the same!"
But she heard nothing behind her. Curious, she looked behind her backside to see what Celestia was up to.
Celestia was sitting on a small cloud, breathing a little bit to catch her breath, but she stomped the cloud's base to applaud Luna.
"Congradulations. You won, fair in square. I can't argue with that, since I cheated at the beginning."
Luna grinned, and grabbed her own small cloud to rest on. She brought it near Celestia and took the time to rest.
"Even then, you did not make it easy for me. I did have to fly without ceasing to stand a chance."
"Yes, I'll admit that. But that was still a fun race."
"What do you think those griffons were thinking when they saw us pass by?"
"That we look good naked."
Luna burst out laughing, slapping her hoof on the cloud. "You have a good sense of humor when you choose to have one, my sister."
"So I've been told. So what next? You get to pick the next activity."
The moon sister looked around the place, trying to get some ideas. She noted that they had a bunch of clouds around them, and they weren't very far away from those miles of lakes out here.
"This might take some time to set up, but you'll agree that it will be worth it."
----
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Celestia shouted. 'I'm not so sure I should be doing this."
"I did it myself. Its the most fun thing I've ever done in my lifetime."
"You said that when you discovered cheesecake for the first time."
"What? It is a divine cake. But trust me, you will be safe."
Celestia still gulped before she did the deed. This was just insane. Only pegasi, and very few of them at all, would consider this a good idea. But still, it held a lot of promise for fun.
So she gripped the sides carefully with her front limbs. She brought out her hind legs over the top, and took a deep breath to get ready for it.
She was the princess of Equestria, she shouldn't be afraid of a simple slide.
After a few seconds of mental preparation, she let go.
She screamed with delight and terror as she went down what was the biggest slide she had ever seen. It was made entirely out of cloud, and went up for an entire two thirds of a mile into the air.
Her body went down the slide at a high speed, and she put her hooves in the air and screamed. It was actually pretty fun, and the cloud backside felt so good on her own backside.
She kept going and going, sliding for a good half minute. But the bottom curved out, and she didn't do anything as she fell off the slide, dropping down to the lake below.
The water splashed all around her as she cannonballed downhill. She must have gone a full five feet below the surface of the lake, since it took some swimming to reach the top. She gasped for air as she emerged.
Luna was laughing her butt off, seeing her sister flap around the water like a filly. "So what do you think of my cloud slide? Is it as fun as I promised?"
"I don't know how you talked me into this!" Celestia groaned. "I might have been to a few theme parks in my lifetime, but there was nothing half as intense as that!"
"But you seemed to love it when you were sliding down."
"Yes, and I'm going again."
"Exactly."
Celestia brought her wings out of the water, and flew back to the top of the slide. It took some time to get back up, but she got there in no time. She got herself adjusted for another dip, and let herself go.
Luna listened in on Tia carefully this time, and she was screaming out of delight this time, not out of terror. She crashed back down to the lake, and came out feeling alive.
"Now its your turn, Luna. I want to see you scream."
"Very well. I made it by hoof, and I shall enjoy it myself."
She brought her dark blue wings to the surface and hovered out of the lake. Her sister waited for her down at the bottom, kicking her limbs around. This was going to be fun.
Luna focused on getting to the top of the slide, not minding how tall it was. She wanted to make it enormous after all. And she was halfway there in no time at all.
However, she found herself facing a new problem up there. Her body was soaking wet, and it was getting windy up there. These things combined were starting to make her cold. She shivered and tried to warm her chest with her front hooves.
"Is something wrong up there?" Celestia asked.
"No. Nothing at all. I'll be fine."
She went back and esclated the slide some more, wanting to get one more drop before she left. But when she did get to the top, something bad had happened while she was gone.
The top of the slide was missing. She didn't know what could be the cause of it....until she saw that part of the slide floating away, having been blown off. The wind had broken it off.
Oh no. This slide isn't going to be around for much longer, if the wind doesn't die down.
But she had to enjoy it one last time, just one last time.
And that's what she did. She climbed over to the new top of the slide, and got her flank over the side. She took a deep breath and let go.
She panicked almost immediately when she could feel THAT top of the slide break apart. The wind was howling now, and she could feel the slide trying to break apart below her body. But she was sliding down with no end in sight now.
A hole opened up in the middle of the slide, and she was heading straight for it. She forced her body to get to the left, missing the hole by inches.
But then there was a hole on the left side too. She scooted over and managed to miss it as well. Looking behind, she witnessed the slide breaking apart piece by piece.
And it took a whole three hours to make....
But she hit the bottom of the slide just fine. She fell down to the lake in a hurry, splashing around Celestia just for fun.
She came to the surface again, just in time to see her precious cloud slide drift apart before her eyes.
Celestia watched the whole rdeal with her, drifting on the surface. "You know, you could have just flown yourself off the slide instead of doing that."
"I would have if I fell, but that was amazing. I felt like I was in a Daring Do book for a moment, avoiding danger with no problem."
"That does make sense. Now that you mention it, it did look fun, and like a Daring Do adventure..."
By then, it was in the middle of the afternoon. Sunset wouldn't be for another few hours, but it was getting close. And there wasn't much to do out by the lake, now that the slide was gone.
"We should head back for Canterlot soon," Luna suggested. "There is one thing I want to do before we have to head back."
----
Another hour had passed, and it was late in the afternoon. Most ponies had gotten out of work, and they spent their free time socializing around the town of Canterlot. Of course, considering it was summer, a lot of fillies, colts, and young adults would spend the next few hours enjoying themselves however they could.
At that time, hardly anypony would be down at the downtown bookstore. It was a good sized store and carried around a nice selection of books, but that didn't mean ponies would hang around there that often.
"So why do you want to come down here?" Celestia inquired. "We have libraries back in the castle, and there has to be thousands of books in those shelves."
"I am aware of that, and I appreciate your wide and varied collection. But with these places, I always seem to find a book I never heard of before. And its always interesting to find what I might discover."
"If you insist. We need to come home in an hour, though. It won't be long until you need to raise the moon."
"Very well, I won't be long."
She opened the door and went inside, with Tia following closely behind.
The bookstore owner, a mare in her mid thirties, was astonished to see Celestia inside her store. She blinked to make sure what she was seeing was real. But when she saw Luna, she waved and smiled.
"Do you two know each other?" asked Celestia.
"Yes, sometimes I like to come in here from time to time. It is where I go when I need a moment to myself away from the castle, and for good reasons."
But before Tia could say anything else, Luna was already at a bookshelf near the front of the store. She pulled out a book with a "NEW!" sticker on the top right corner, and it was the latest Daring Do book.
"I shall write to Rainbow Dash that this has just been released. Twilight told me that she enjoys them dearly."
She browsed through the new releases, seeing what new treasures she would find, and putting any tempting items into a green bag on her shoulder.
Celestia turned to the owner, curious as to how Luna could know this pony, and she had never known about it.
The owner realized that THE Princess Celestia was looking right at her, and brought out a sign to the desk. It read, "30% off everything for princes and princesses alike", with a smaller note reading "70% off for Princess Luna."
"That won't be necessary," Celestia replied.
"No, I insist. You have enough things to worry about now, don't you?" said the owner.
Tia sighed, and decided to look through the shelves herself. What would she find that she didn't own yet?
She went to the section she secretly enjoyed more than most, the romance section. When they were written well, she enjoyed those stories like nothing else.
Nothing there seemed to catch her eye though, to her disappointment. They looked fine enough, but nothing jumped out at her. They seemed to be much more grounded stories than the ones she usually read.
Luna was having better luck than her sister was. She carried around three books, and found one romance story she liked. She grabbed two copies of the same title. "I think you will love this one, sister. You will relate to it well."
Tia looked over the back cover, curious what the book would be about.
A princess of the griffon kingdom, falling in love with a guard she couldn't be with. They had a secret romance nobody could know about, regardless if it made sense or not.
"I am not like that!" she sternly replied. Her cheeks turned to a deep shade of red.
"I know you were once like that. Especially when you were young. It is nothing to be ashamed of. I was once like that myself, before I had a good head between my shoulders."
Celestia brushed the thought away, but she was still curious about that title. Either way, she went off to her other favorite genre, history, across the store from the romance section.
Most of the stuff she found was stuff she already had stored for her own library. And the stuff she didn't have were, realistically, nothing more than juicy gossip and flat out lies.
All except one title she had never seen before.
It was a book on the tyranny of Nightmare Moon, one that collected both historical notes and art that was inspired by those events. It called out for Celestia, almost like it had a voice of its own.
She made sure Luna couldn't see what she was about to see. And Luna wouldn't. She was too caught up reading the new Daring Do book.
So Tia opened the cover to the Nightmare Moon title and began to read.
The historical stuff was nothing new, but nothing bad either. The author knew her stuff, with the amount of research she had done for this book.
But the art section was what got to her. Countless pieces of art were there for her to see. All of it breathtaking in its quality.
The piece that got to her the most, though, was one that spanned two pages. It must have taken years to make, with its attention to detail and its amazing, painterly quality.
It was a progression of Luna throughout the years. It started with her as a foal, and each proceeding sketch of her showed the princess growing up. And the one of her as a filly looked exactly like the one from Celestia's dream. And just like that nightmare, it ended with her turning into Nightmare Moon.
As soon as it hit her, she shut the book tight and put it back into the shelf. She didn't want to see it again, and she left the section to do just that.
Luna was at the counter, coughing up the bits for the four books. A small sum, but given the huge discount...
"Thank you very much," Luna complimented. "Your services are much appreciated."
"No, thank you," the owner responded. "Your business really helps us out."
The moon princess carried the bag around her shoulder, and turned to see her sister. But something seemed wrong with her. She didn't seem as happy as she did throughout the day, and it stood out to her.
"Sister, is something bothering you?"
Seeing that Luna was worrying over her, Celestia pushed the idea out of her head. "No. I'm fine. Really, I'm fine. But we need to get going, you need to raise the moon in 30 minutes."
"Is it that late? We must leave right away."
They left the confines of the bookstore, and went straight for the castle grounds. Sunset wasn't very far away, and the moon needed to be raised soon after.
By then, the air outside was getting cooler, and the wind had calmed down gradually. All in all, it was looking like a pretty good night for strolling around in the streets.
When the sisters came to the gate, Celestia stopped Luna in her tracks with a wing. Luna turned to Tia, feeling like something bad night happen.
"Luna....thank you for spending this day with me. I cannot say how much I needed it, and I think we need to do it more often. I haven't had this much fun since the one Grand Galloping Gala where Twilight and her friends managed to liven things up a bit."
Luna didn't say anything at first. She had a feeling what it was that bothered her sister, but at the same time, at least this was an improvement.
So she smiled back. "You're welcome, Celestia. Spending time with you was a gift I had missed for those thousand years, but now that I have it again, I will never let it go."
Celestia grinned. "Me too. But I'm sure we can spend dinner together tonight. That is, if you want to."
"I would love that, actually."
With that said, they trotted together back to the castle, the castle they called home.
----
All in all, even the evening dinner was pleasant. They had the dining hall all to themselves that night for once, and it turned out to be the right call. They laughed, they shared jokes with each other, and they were even considering their plans for the next day off.
But it had to come to an end eventually, and Celestia needed her sleep. She dismissed herself from the dining hall, checked her schedule for the next few days, and went to her bedroom for the night.
By the time she opened the door to her chambers, she was exhausted. After all she did with Luna that day, her hooves were almost giving out on her. She needed her beauty sleep, and she needed it now.
She came to the side of her bed and pulled the blanket over for her to make way. After some adjusting, she slipped her hooves into the covers and laid down on her left side.
Ah, that was exactly what she needed.
She made herseld comfortable, getting her front hooves out of the blanket and making sure her mane wasn't itchy. She thought for sure that she would fall asleep in no time.
But she didn't. She stayed awake for minutes, and she grew restless with time. What was it going to take for her to get some much needed shut eye?
Maybe she didn't want to go through that dream again. All throughout the day, Luna or somepony else had reminded her about Nightmare Moon, and how she was the one who banished the moon princess. Was she feeling....no, it couldn't be.
The door opened again, and she turned to see who it was. She expected a Guard to come in or an advisor, but it was Princess Luna that arrived. She was a bit nervous, but determined as well.
"Are you alright if I come in for a few moments?" she asked.
"Yes, go ahead."
Luna closed the door behind her, and sat down on her flank next to Celestia's bed. She was still free of her royal clothing, and she appeared to be more than a little depressed.
"Do you remember that it is my duty to come into the dreams of ponies as they sleep?"
"Of course I do. I wouldn't forget it for a second. Mother wouldn't let me, anyways."
"Then would it offend you if I confess that I looked into your dreams numerous times?"
"You did what?"
"I am so sorry, sister. I wish you no harm, but there are times where I grow curious as to what happens when you dream?"
"I...I don't know what to say. I would say it is a invasion of privacy, but then again, I really don't have any, do I?"
"That is one way to look at it, but even then I don't think it is justified."
"It is your duty, that is one thing you can argue, but did you see...that dream?"
Luna sniffed a bit, and held back the tears that began to form. "Every time I looked into your dreams. It is always the same thing, and I have checked numerous times since I have returned. The way we were as fillies, and how I am replaced by Nightmare Moon."
Now Celestia was the one trying not to cry. "I'm so sorry, Luna. I should have said something about it."
"How do you react to the dream?"
"What do you mean?"
"When you have the dream, what do you do when you wake up?"
The silence that followed could have been cut with a knife. It was the worst kind of all, the uncomfortable silence.
"I feel regret about what I did at the time. I felt it back then, but it grew stronger with the years. I couldn't find any other way to stop you, but I didn't want to let you go. We were sisters and friends when we were young, and I was the one who broke that friendship. You might have fought me, but I finished you."
Luna was stunned, almost without words. "Celestia..."
"I only had the dreams occasionally during your banishment, but when you returned, they happened nightly. I wanted to apologize for what I did to you, but I didn't know how to do it.
"But now that you're here, can you forgive me?"
As soon as Celestia closed her mouth, Luna climbed into bed, threw the covers away, and hugged her sister tightly with her front limbs. Tears poured out of her eyes as she gave Celestia the most heartfelt hug she could ever give.
"I already have, just as you had forgiven me."
Celestia hugged her back, as she was brought down to tears as well. She held onto her sister as much as she could, smiling from ear to ear.
"Thank you, Luna...please, let's not do this to each other as long as we live. Let's be more like we were as fillies, and as we were today, OK?"
"In my mind, we already are. And...thank you for giving me a second chance at all."
They shared their sisterly embrace for a while, and the tears faded away. The regret was washed away from their minds, and a sense of peace took its place. There wouldn't be any more hidden feelings for a while.
Neither one of them said it, but they agreed to share the same bed for that one night, sleeping together like sisters would in a sleepover. It sounded like something they needed after that long rollercoaster of a day.
They tucked themselves into Celestia's bed, and it didn't take long for them to get sleepy again. They shared their embrace one last time, before the curtain of sleep went over their eyes.
"I promise I'll never let you go, Luna..."
"And I promise that I'll never leave you again, Celestia..."
----
The dream didn't come back that night.