//------------------------------//
// And Counting 
// Story: Celestia's 999th Hearth's Warming 
// by Jioplip 
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Celestia's life worked on a schedule, not a daily one, or even a weekly or monthly schedule. Celestia's schedule was a yearly one, filled with celebrations and observances that had long since stopped holding any special meaning to her.

That is, until her student arrived.

Celestia's schedule was upended by the unexpected appearance of Twilight Sparkle. Others called her a prodigy, a brilliant spellcaster who might one day rival the standards set by the old masters, but to Celestia she was a miracle, the very miracle she had been searching for over nearly a thousand years.

And as her schedule went out the window, she found that the many holidays celebrated each year held special meaning again, or at least most of them did. And while experiencing her student's glee at Nightmare Night helped to ease Celestia's memory of why the celebration was held, there was one holiday in particular that felt even emptier than before her student's arrival.

Hearth's Warming was a day one spent with friends and family, and it was a day Celestia always spent alone. Seeing her student off the week before the celebration was difficult, but she knew it would be an intrusion to go with her.

This year marked the nine-hundred and ninety-ninth Hearth's Warming since the defeat of Nightmare Moon, which meant that in a mere half-year all of Celestia's meticulous planning would finally pay off, but that was a matter for another day. Twilight had grown so much in the few years Celestia had known her, though to Twilight it was around half of her life, and the Princess was certain that her student would be able to do what she herself could not.

Celestia stood on her balcony watching the stars, thinking about the night she'd had. She at least had gotten to attend the Hearth's Warming Eve play with Twilight's family, it was always her favourite part of the holiday, but now all that stood between Celestia and the loneliest day of her year was the few short hours before she raised the sun.

She shook her head to dispel her thoughts, clearly she needed something to take her mind off of things. A smirk crawled onto Celestia's face as a thought occurred to her, there was only a skeleton staff in the castle thanks to the holiday, so nopony would notice if she took a quick evening flight.

With one flap of her great wings she was airborne, feeling the rush of air on her coat and the sensation of wind through her feathers, the cold was bracing and it reminded her of happier days, of moonlit flights long past. As the memories flowed through her she couldn't help but gaze toward the moon, toward the wretched mark she'd left there so many years past.

Celestia squeezed her eyes shut, willing away the tears that threatened to flow past her guarded features, she'd vowed not to cry over that day again, not while Equestria needed her. The solar monarch exhaled deeply, not even having realised that she was holding her breath, but when she opened her eyes she found herself in the middle of a blizzard. Celestia smirked as she glanced up at the errant stormclouds, evidently the result of less than thorough weather management in the festive season.

Celestia lit her horn to push back the darkness around her, momentarily marveling at the way the light reflected off of hundreds of tiny snowdrops. Her reverie was broken when she spotted a dark shape against the snowy slope beneath her. Wasting no time, she dove for the splotch of colour, if somepony collapsed on the mountainside they wouldn't stand a chance against the cold and the storm.

Upon landing Celestia stopped momentarily upon seeing the figure sprawled on the snow before her, an unconscious griffon with grey feathers and a dark grey coat already being obscured by the falling snowdrops, if Celestia had arrived much later she might not have noticed him. Brushing away her grim thoughts she quickly levitated him onto her back, lifting off with only minor difficulty and flying back to the castle, which had ended up rather farther away than she would have liked.

Celestia alighted on her balcony, wasting no time to move the griffon in front her fireplace. His breathing was shallow and his left wing looked as though it was dislocated, evidently the cause of his current circumstances. After she surveyed the damage with a quick magical prodding, the princess began administering first-aid spells: heating the body, numbing the shoulder, relocating the wing joint...

Celestia winced as she felt the joint snap back into place, even through her magic it was hardly a pleasant experience. A few more sweeps of her magic confirmed that his condition was stabilizing, though he'd likely have a sore shoulder when he woke up. Fittingly enough the griffon chose that exact moment to begin stirring, and Celestia quickly composed herself.

"Agh, what has happened to me?" the griffon slowly stood up, his physical discomfort obvious, and slowly looked over his surroundings. After nearly thirty seconds his eyes finally alighted on Celestia, at which point they widened until they looked more like golden saucers and his beak fell open uselessly.

"There's no need to be alarmed," this kind of shock was no surprise to the sun princess, it was one of about three or four stock reactions to seeing her, "I was flying through the storm when I noticed you on the ground, you dislocated your wing so try not to move it too much."

"Ah, oui," he winced upon testing the wing in question, "I apologize for ze trouble princess, ze train to Canterlot was stalled for maintenance so I thought I might take a scenic flight, I was not expecting such fierce weather so near the city."

"I must apologise for that," Celestia turned her head down and to the side, an expression both sad and sheepish planted on her features, "it seems that our policies regarding weather control aren't strict enough, a storm like that could have killed someone."

"Ah er, non, non!" this time it was the griffon's turn to look sheepish, "I am not ze strongest of flyers, I should have simply waited for ze train to be repaired."

"Still, I feel some responsibility for what happened to you," Celestia refocused her gaze on the griffon, "it was only by chance that I found you, and if I hadn't..."

Celestia closed her eyes as the unsaid possibility seemed to thicken the air around them, choking out any possibility of further conversation. Both griffon and alicorn simply stood around awkwardly, neither attempting to catch the other's gaze, until the griffon's eyes suddenly brightened as a thought occurred to him.

"Oh but how silly of me," Celestia looked back to the griffon as he spoke, "I have yet to introduce myself, I am Gustave Le Grand!" Upon saying his name he moved to flare his wings out dramatically, only to retract them instantly with a pained expression.

Being the princess of the sun, the sole ruler of Equestria, and a nigh-immortal being whose memory stretched back further than any known history, Celestia had mastered near-perfect self-discipline. Which is exactly why only a slight chuckle emerged from her upon seeing Gustave's slightly pitiful display.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't laugh," Celestia's expression sobered as she glanced to her clock, "I also shouldn't keep you, I assume you came to Canterlot for a reason?"

"Well, not really," Gustave shuffled his legs and looked away, "I only came to see ze sights, though I suppose I should have considered your schedule. Doubtless you have your own plans, so I won't take up any more of your time."

Gustave moved for the door, but Celestia's voice stopped him, "Actually, I don't have anything to do," the griffon turned to look quizzically at the princess behind him, "I don't usually do anything special for Hearth's Warming, but if you don't have any plans either... I wouldn't mind the company."

Wordlessly Gustave returned to where Celestia stood and they both lay down opposite one-another. Silence reigned over the room again, but this time it was much more welcome than before. But the grip of silence is a slippery one, and it can't keep hold of a conversation for very long. The sounds of idle chatter quickly filled the room as the two beings talked about nothing in particular, and even the banal small-talk that tended to bog down any conversation was not quite as intolerable in that moment.

It wasn't long before the conversation became more personal, with topics ranging from Gustave's job as a baker to the ins and outs of dealing with bureaucracy. Though neither Celestia nor the griffon opposite her seemed particularly invested in the latter topics. And throughout the whole of their unruly shared train of thought Gustave continued to act in the rather flamboyant and somewhat cocky manner he'd adopted since introducing himself.

"He seems so... boorish when he speaks that way," Celestia smiled as she only half-listened to Gustave's tirade about inelegant dessert creation, "but I know he means well." After seeing the way he'd acted upon first waking up Celestia could tell that his bravado was just an act, it reminded her somewhat of her own serene guise. And while they both hid their true selves, Celestia was sure that it was as innocuous for Gustave as it was for her. It was nice, she decided, to be able to spend time interacting with someone who could understand her circumstance somewhat.

"You would expect royalty to be... different, I suppose," Gustave grinned as Celestia nearly broke out laughing at his best 'eclair explosion' story, of which he had too many, "I hardly expected her to be so personable, it seems rather silly to have been afriad of her earlier." He still clearly remembered the shock of seeing Equestria's fabled monarch in the flesh. The expression of utter neutrality on her face was the most terrifying thing he'd ever seen, of course it had evaporated into a smile the moment she started talking, but the effect was not diminished. And yet after speaking, and laughing, with her it was clear that she was no different that any other pony, save her unique physiology. It was nice, he thought, to be able to meet such a kind woman, even through such strange circumstances.

Gustave and Celestia talked long into the night and before long a slight gong resounded through the room, signalling the first scheduled daylight hour. Celestia excused herself for a moment to raise the sun, an action that Gustave found momentarily difficult to reconcile with the image of the kind mare he'd come to know. As the princess made her way back to Gustave, the sunlight now streaming in from behind her, she noticed for the first time the bloodshot look of his normally golden eyes.

"Oh my, have I been keeping you from sleep?" she blushed, an embarrassed smile blooming to complement her now rosy cheeks, "I'm sorry, it's just been so long since I've gotten a chance to just talk like this."

"Non, not at all princess, I enjoyed our time immensely," Gustave smiled warmly, "although, I do have to return home tomorrow, so I had better rest up before then."

"Oh, yes that's right," Celestia tried not to sound disappointed, but truthfully she was, "since it's somewhat my fault that you were delayed getting into the city I'd like to offer you a room here in the castle."

"Zat would be very kind of you princess." Gustave hesitated, he hadn't missed Celestia's tone and his own feelings seemed to mirror hers, "Though, I was wondering, will we be able to meet again? I mean, you have a very busy schedule and I don't exactly live nearby so..."

For a moment Celestia found herself unable to answer, for a moment she thought the answer might not be one she liked. Even though she'd only known him for a short time she felt connected to Gustave, so naturally she had trouble hiding her smile when a rather welcome thought occurred to her.

"Have you heard of the National Dessert Competition held annually in Canterlot?"