Luna stood next to a table on a hill in a familiar valley, one where she and her sister had played when they were younger and wanted to escape for a day. This hill also had another important feature, however; when the two were younger they had made it a point to always have a tea party while they were here. In fact, Celestia had perfected her own brew using only local ingredients here.
But that had been ages ago, and those days were long over now, however. Her melancholic memories were cut short when she heard the flaps of her guest's wings and felt the gusts from said flaps. Her sister had arrived.
Luna paused for a moment, not believing that her sister had actually shown, but all the same, before her stood the imposing white creature that had once been her closest friend.
"Hello Corona, you're looking...pleasant."
"Indeed, you look fine as well," Corona awkwardly replied, all ice.
"Right, well I called you here to hopefully prompt a civil afternoon between two siblings, maybe we can work out our differences?" Luna half asked half stated as she began to set the table for the tea she had prepared.
"Tea?" Corona asked, glaring at her sister.
"Well I thought it'd be a nice gesture, considering how much you like the stuff," Luna explained, returning Corona's glare.
"Indeed I do." Corona replied through a sigh, "But you probably didn't brew it right." She continued in a grumble, snatching the kettle Luna brought away and dumping the liquid inside. "Allow me to prepare real tea." Corona seethed, plodding off to fetch the necessary items.
Luna sighed, already things were off to a bad start.
Corona had returned within a few minutes of leaving and she begun to work on making the tea right away, doing little to start a conversation as she worked. Not that Luna minded, she always preferred to let her sister do what she loved, especially since Luna couldn't make tea to save her life. She remembered the time she did, Celestia had been so mad when she came to the kitchen and found it somehow on fire. And-
She was brought back to reality as she heard the sound of a saucer being slid toward her. "Here's your tea Luna." Corona huffed, sitting down opposite her and beginning to enjoy her drink.
"Thanks...sister," Luna awkwardly replied, taking a sip of the bitter beverage before looking down at her cup nervously. Why was it so hard to talk to her sister? They had been together through so much! Why was this issue the one that broke them! Did she miss something? Was she inattentive as a sister? Did-
"More sugar, sister?"
Luna snapped out of her trance and looked up at her sister. Cel- Corona, was levitating a small dish of sugar cubes. She took the proferred dish and added a few cubes into her cup.
"I'd love some, no sense in being bitter if one can help it, is there?"
"Cute..." Corona replied with a glower.
"Quite. I'll admit I missed our tea times. You're the only pony I know who can brew it quite like this." Luna bemoaned, sighing before she took a long, slow draught of her tea.
"I figured I'd do you a favor, since you called this meeting under a white flag-" She paused, noticing Luna's nod of contentment before continuing, "- and I figured why not treat you. After all, there's only one possible reason you called this meeting, and I see no reason why we can't discuss how we proceed civilly."
Luna smiled, "Of course. So how soon will you be rejoining me?"
"WHAT!?"
"What? I thought it'd be obvious why I called this meeting?"
"I thought you had come to your senses and were going to offer me the title empress!" Screeched Corona, eyes now burning. "I came here and expected you to make sense! But you continue to defy all logic! Why!? WHY!?" Corona screamed.
"I assumed it would be obvious sister. Ponies don't need a dictator who tells them they're free but restricts them by protecting them too much. You want to baby them Corona, and I can't allow it," Luna replied in between sips of her tea, as if it were the simplest thing in the world.
"OF COURSE I DO! MY LITTLE PONIES NEED SOMEONE TO LOOK OUT FOR THEM! I REFUSE TO ALLOW WHAT HAPPENED ALL THOSE YEARS AGO REPEAT! ...Not again...." Corona choked out, looking dejectedly at the ground, only jerking up when she felt a familiar hoof around her neck.
"Celestia... what happened to you?" Luna whispered into her sister's neck.
"I grew wiser Luna. I saw our ponies being tortured as they were and I just.... it hurt me so much Luna." She cried out. "You remember what happened, do you not?"
"Yes sister, I do as well as you."
Two sisters, stood atop a hill, staring unbelieving at the sights before them.
The ground below them resembled a giant chess board, roughly, at least, considering how many holes there were in the board; created, no doubt by the rocks levitating above it. The closer the sister looked, however, the worse things seemed. Instead of pieces, statues of ponies stood vigil as the pawns, terror etched in the marble in a likeness too real to be a replica. Surrounding the pawns were various monsters wearing collars, each roughly done up to resemble pieces of higher value. To the side lay a mountain of vaguely pony shaped rubble, and atop that, their target.
Discord. At the moment the demon was sitting before a partially rebuilt stone pony. In his hands he held two pieces of stone, and was mashing them together like a child trying to force a piece into a puzzle. "Fit, darn you!" He grunted, smashing the two pieces together once more before glaring at them and throwing them back on the pile.
"DISCORD!" Shouted Celestia, voice carrying through the valley in her rage.
"Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?" Discord groaned, appearing with a sharp crack. "Can't you see I'm playing a nice game of chess? I thought you always told me to expand my horizons Celestia!" He whined.
"How is that expanding your horizons! You're doing the same task, only in a new way!"
"It's not my fault ponies are such great toys! And I'm not even hurting them!`I'm repairing the ones I break aren't I?" He huffed.
"By the way, before I forget you look ravishing today Celly! You too Lulu! Did you do your manes different or something?"
Celestia smirked, "Not quite." She chuckled before materializing the elements, handing half to her sister.
"Ooooh jewellerly! I must admit I'm partial to things that glitter! And they do quite match your eyes Celestia." Discord chuckled. "But I doubt some pretty jewels will be enough to defeat me," he declared before snapping his fingers and causing the pile of pony rubble in the valley to rumble. "I'm sorry to run but I've got things to do. But no need to worry!" He sing-songed to Celestia as the rubble formed into a giant golem."I've called a babysitter so you won't get lonely! Instructions are one the fridge!" He shouted to the petrified colossus before disappearing.
Celestia smiled grimly as she and her sister charged and fired their weapons to fight this monster; Discord had another emotion in his eyes besides boredom, and she knew she had already won.
Her smile faded when their weapon's bolt hit the creature and undid the magic to them... only for the sounds of wet splatters to be heard all throughout the valley.
"What does that have to do with our ponies today?" Luna asked, returned to her seat with a new drink.
"What do you mean what does it have to do with anything? It has everything to do with our situation!" She shrieked, rising out of her chair and unfurling her impressive wingspan. "MY PONIES have never managed to survive on their own! Tirek! Discord! Sombra! All those lives lost because I wasn't there to protect them! They do much better if I'm there to shield them, and allow them to grow!"
"You mean, if you are there to baby them. They learn nothing if you don't let them grow! And they'll never be happy if they're never allowed to try new things! You know as well as I do sister that if you love something you should let it go! Personally, I think the truth is you need to make up for your past mistakes an-" She was interrupted by a sharp crack and a stinging cheek as her sister slapped her face.
"Don't...you...EVER...say...that...again!" Corona seethed, before abruptly turning around and stretching her wings.
'W-Wait! Celestia!" Luna pleaded, only continuing when her sister paused. "...thank you for the tea..." she whispered, before she heard a rush of wind and was alone.