The Leaf Turning Festival carried on through the rest of the week with as much merriment as when it had started. Luna and Celestia still found themselves immersed in the matters of it all, assisting every night in the changing of the leaves. Many times Luna had to retire early to their room, and Celestia was left alone to work with the townsponies. This ended up being much more to her liking, not having to watch after her younger sister. The ponies she worked with expressed their gratitude to her every time they caught her alone, and Celestia accepted it with embarrassment.
On the final night even Luna managed to stay awake, and when all the other trees had been changed the entire town gathered around in the center of the community, where a large tree was planted. It towered higher than all the others, and was said to have been there since before the three kingdoms had come to their new land. The mayor of the town hosted the event with great enthusiasm. Celestia came to learn that every year, one single pony was given the honor of changing the tree. This fall was the time for a large colt to shine; he was one of the Apple family who had apparently helped the town in a great time of drought. The colt went by the name of Little Sprout, and was a pale green earth pony with a large girth. His Talent Brand was that of a seed with a small sprout emerging from the top.
Little Sprout began bucking the tree after a short ceremony, and the town cheered him on as bits of green showered down on the ground. It was very dark in the night, but the light from the lanterns around the gathering gave them enough of a view. The point of the ceremony was for the pony to shake the leaves clean before the dawn came, and Little Sprout seemed tireless as he continued to kick at the tree with his back legs. It took a while for him to wear out, but the cheering crowd seemed to fuel him as he worked on. Just as the dawn began to break the last of the greens were freed from the tree, and Little Sprout collapsed on the ground, panting. Several of his family members ran out to support him, congratulating and praising him profusely as the sun rose, staining the leaves the color of autumn.
Celestia watched the sun with a great smile on her face. Such a simple thing had such profound meaning to the ponies here, and with the thought of it her chest swelled with warmth. Luna was standing on her back, her blue hooves planted on her older sister’s head.
“What a night!” she exclaimed, her voice heavy and tired. “Tia, let’s go back now, OK?” Celestia gazed at the sunrise for a moment longer, almost unable to look away. She eventually closed her eyes, still seeing its rays dance in her head in its vibrant yellows and reds. “Tia? Are you asleep?”
“Oh! Sorry Lulu, let’s go.”
The two of them dragged themselves back to the Goldenrod Inn and retired exhaustedly into their room. Luna immediately fell onto the bed, squirming under the covers. Celestia let out a sigh, moving over to the desk to write in her journal.
“Are you doing that diary thing again?” Luna asked, sitting up to look as her sister lit a candle.
“It’s a journal, and yes. I’ll forget everything if I don’t put it down before I go to sleep,” Celestia replied, opening the book to the next blank page. She had been faithfully putting everything she possibly could into its pages. Clover had said she would regret it if she didn’t, after all. Though it had only been a week, the book was already full of such precious memories and emotions, and Celestia shuddered at the thought of losing it. The sun was already up into the sky when she finally finished her account of the day and retired to bed. As she slept she dreamt of being back in Unicornia Castle, back with Clover the Clever and her books. When she woke she felt something heavy in her chest, almost like a longing, but she didn’t want to go home quite yet. There were still many things she didn’t know.
It was afternoon when Celestia and Luna finally packed up their things and prepared to leave. They couldn’t afford to spend another night at the Inn, as much as they may have wanted to. They bid a reluctant goodbye to Strawberry Creme, who gave them some food for their trip.
“Good luck on yer journey, youngins,” she told them, patting Luna on the head. “Be sure ta visit once in a while.” The unicorn sisters left town while there was still daylight, Celestia burying her face in her map while Luna skipped down the path, shouting to farmers working in their fields as they passed.
“Well, Luna, looks like the trail goes through a forest,” Celestia said, turning the map this way and that with her magic. “It says here that it’s called Everfree.” The older sister lowered the map to look at Luna. “Isn’t that the magic forest that no pony goes through because it grows on its own?” Luna shrugged.
“Who knows. I don’t know!” She trotted ahead down the path, leaving Celestia to fumble with her bags as she put the map away. “Keep up Tia, or the headless horse will get you!”
“That’s an old pony tale!” she called back, trotting to keep pace. When the sun began to set they could see the forest off in the distance, and Celestia felt a seed of worry plant itself in her chest. There was something unsettling about it, but she couldn’t quite place the feeling. Luna had wandered off the path, and called over to her sister. Celestia came after her to find that her sister had planted herself beneath a tree and had shed her saddlebags.
“Let’s sleep here tonight, sis!” she suggested, patting the ground with a hoof. “Like camping!”
“It is camping, Luna,” Celestia said, working her saddlebags off and placing them next to Luna’s. The younger filly romped around in the field chasing insects as Celestia wrote in her journal. The stars soon came out, and the two of them lay on their backs and stared into the sky.
“Look, Tia, that one’s the North Star,” Luna said, motioning to a particularly bright dot in the sky with her hoof. Celestia had admittedly skipped a few lessons in astronomy, and stared hard at the star.
“How do you know?” she asked.
“How do you NOT?” Luna sounded almost offended. “Clover gave us all those astronomy books, didn’t you read them?” Celestia sat up with a start.
“Wait, you mean you actually read them?” That would have been a first.
“Yeah!” Luna said proudly. “Stars are super cool!” Celestia sat in wonder as her sister rattled of the names of different stars and constellations in the sky, pointing every one of them out expertly. “And tonight the moon is waxing, so in a few days it should be full! That’s when it’s best to practice lunar magic!” Celestia had to admit, she was impressed with her sister’s knowledge of the night. Though it had never been particularly interesting to her, Luna seemed to love it the most.
“Maybe you’ll get a Talent Brand in astronomy,” she joked.
“That would be sooooooo cool!”
Celestia stayed up for a little while, examining the map in the moonlight as Luna drifted off into sleep. She was really looking for a way around the Everfree Forest, but it seemed that they would just have to pass through. To its south was a huge gorge, and to the north a rough range of rubble and stone. Besides, it would probably take them many days more to go around than to take the path straight through, and time was of the essence if they wanted to eat every day. Defeated, she put the map away and fell asleep beneath the stars.
Celestia awoke late in the morning with Luna atop her, still snoozing. The filly was awoken, and both complained mildly of being sore in the neck or back as they ate apples for breakfast. They set off when the sun was high in the sky, and in no time at all the two sisters reached the Everfree Forest. The fillies lingered at its mouth, peering doen the ending path that snaked its way through the gnarled and dark trees. Bits of the path were overgrown with foliage here and there, and all sorts of strange noises emanated from the gloom.
Celestia gulped, pawing at the ground as she looked down the path. She still hated the idea of going through the forest. There was a sickening sort of magic aura within it that frightened her to no end. Luna, however, seemed eager to explore it.
“Come ooooon, Tia, let’s go!” she whined, starting to head down the path. “Quit being such a scaredy pony!” Celestia followed her sister nervously, feeling a shiver pass through her body as she was covered by the shadow of the trees. The trail wound this way and that, curling around trees and passing through streams. The most unsettling thing to Celestia was that she could not see the sun. She could feel the passing of time, but the only light she could see was the tiny flecks that forced their ways to the forest floor through tiny spaces in the canopy. Luna was enjoying herself immensely, wandering off the path to look at small insects that happened to catch her eye.
“Please don’t leave the path, Luna,” Celestia called nervously as her sister rooted around in the undergrowth. “You don’t know what’s out there, really!” Luna looked up, levitating a very large centipede over her head. Celestia cringed slightly, watching it squirm about. “Please put that back.” Luna released her magical spell, and the insect fell to the ground and scuttled away into the brush. When the splotches of light had turned a pale orange and they were still not out of the forest, Celestia began to grow worried. Surely they wouldn’t have to spend the night here? If only they had woken up earlier, then maybe…
“Hey, Tia, look!” Celestia blinked her way back into reality, suddenly faced with a field of bright blue flowers. Luna was by her side, and as she moved to get a closer look her older sister stuck out a hoof, stopping her.
“Hold on a minute,” she told her sister, approaching the flowers tentatively. Upon closer inspection she stood up straight, nodding. “As I thought. Poison Joke.”
“Poison what? Don’t you mean poison oak?” Celestia shook her head.
“Poison Joke is a very powerful magical plant, and it’s very difficult to reverse its effects. Clover the Clever told me about it a while ago.” She craned her neck, trying to see if they could go through at all. The vibrant plants covered the path for a long ways, completely blocking the way. Her breath caught in her throat. “I guess we… we have to go around.”
“Cool! Bushwhacking!” Luna immediately stomped her way off of the path, lifting her legs high as she crashed through the plants. Celestia followed, glancing back at the pathways. As long as she could remember where it was they wouldn’t get lost. They’d have to get back on the path as soon as they possibly could. It took a little while for them to finally move around the field of poison joke, which fanned out across a wide area. The sisters had to make some turns to avoid deep ditches or clumps of bramble, and Celestia began to panic when the path reached its end at the edge of a steep cliff. They had broken from the cover of the canopy, and above them was the night sky.
Celestia dropped down, defeated. Luna was too busy looking over the edge of the cliff to notice her sister’s distress, spitting over the edge and leaning down to watch it fall.
“Hey Tia, you got a rock or something?” Luna asked, coming up to her sister. Celestia shook her head, slowly sliding down to her belly.
“I can’t believe it,” she muttered. “We’re lost. In the forest. At night.” Luna eventually found a rock somehow or other, and tossed it off the cliff. It took a few seconds before they could hear the small clatter of it shattering on the ground.
“Well, ain’t that just the way.” Luna reported back to her sister. “It’s too high to climb down, I think. We should go back around.” Her stomach grumbled, and she slid off her saddlebags. “Let’s just eat now, OK? Tia?” Celestia blankly removed her bags as well, pushing them over to Luna as she stared off into the forest. How could she have let this happen? She was the older sister, it was up to her to take care of Luna, and now they were going to die in this forsaken maze. What would Clover say? No, would Clover even know what happened to them? Maybe they would become savages and live off of beetles! Or even worse, maybe- Celestia’s thoughts were interrupted by the grumbling of her stomach. Luna passed her sister a bag of oats.
“Thanks,” Celestia mumbled, forcing herself to down a few mouthfuls of the bland grain. Suddenly there was a high pitched sound that rang out through the forest, and Celestia looked up, eyes wide. “Luna, you heard that, right?” Her sister nodded, scooting a little bit closer.
“You know Tia, I’m not saying that sounded like howl, but it totally-” Luna was cut off by a chorus of noises, seemingly in response to the first one. Celestia quickly put her bags back on, coaxing Luna to do the same.
“Timber wolves,” she whispered, frantically adjusting the straps on their bags. “We must have wandered into their territory when we left the path…”
“Well what do we do?” Luna asked, panic rising in her voice. Howls resonated in the air again. They seemed to be coming from both sides of the fillies, though still a little ways off. Celestia trotted up to the cliff edge, her stomach dropping when she saw the height they were at. It wasn’t a completely straight drop, maybe they could climb down… There was a loud crashing in the brush behind them, and Luna backed towards her sister, eyes wide.
“Hey, Tia, you better do something real quick.”
“I’m thinking, give me some time!” She tried to run through all the spells she knew in her head, but she only drew blanks. How could she not remember at a time as crucial as this? There was a shriek from Luna, and Celestia turned her head to see a timber wolf slowly emerging into the open. Its body was wooden and gnarled, its eyes glowing in the dim as its limbs rattled from moving. The fillies backed to the edge of the cliff as a second and a third flanked their pack mate. Celestia glanced over at Luna, who was trembling as she looked at the wolves. Was there nothing she could do? They were coming closer now, panting and clacking their splintered jaws. Without a second thought Celestia drew her sister close and, bracing herself, slid over the edge of the cliff.
The face of it was steep and covered with rocks and roots, and Celestia held tightly to Luna as they began to roll head over hooves, battering their bodies on the rough ground. After what seemed like an eternity they crashed to the ground, Celestia groaning as she struggled to stand. Casting a glance back to the top, she saw the timber wolves peering over the edge for a moment before veering off to both sides and disappearing. Luna was sniveling, still lying in the dirt.
“Come on Luna, get up!” her sister encouraged, nudging the blue filly. There was a loud howl again, and panic consumed Celestia’s mind. She hoisted Luna’s small body onto her back and galloped off into the forest. There wasn’t a single thought in her mind now. What was there to think about? It took every ounce of her being to focus on the path she was taking, her hooves crashing through the underbrush and snagging on roots and stones. She stumbled, landing on her forelegs. She cried out in pain, legs wobbling and dribbling blood as she forced herself to stand. There was the howling again, that terrible howling! Celestia limped on, feeling the burden of her sister on her back. In an effort to lighten the load she used her magic to pull of Luna’s tattered saddle bags and toss them to the side.
They came to a large river flowing quickly through the forest, and Celestia stopped a moment to even out her labored breathing. Her thoughts were beginning to return now, and she realized that maybe if they followed the water, they could find a way out. Wasn’t there a river on the map? Did she have time to check? Howling filled her ears. No time. She galloped downstream, panting with the effort being put on her body. The filly was wearing out quickly. Soon the timber wolves would be able to catch her, and then…! Celestia pushed on, letting out her voice in pain with every step she took. Luna was now a silent and dead weight on her back. The trees appeared to be thinning out ahead of her. Maybe they would make it!
Celestia put on a spurt of energy filled with hope, but it was short lived. A timber wolf leapt from the foliage in front of her, and she skidded to a harsh stop. Wheeling around she found herself facing another, and from the corner of her eye she could see the third coming towards her from the side. Surrounded. She slowly turned so she could see all of them at once, closing in on her. This was it? After all they had done, this was how it was going to end? She could feel their hot breath burning on her pelt, their eyes petrifying her with their almost lifeless glow. They were growing closer still.
“No,” she whispered, digging her hooves into the dirt. “Not here.” The timber wolves let out a throaty growl at the sound of her voice. Whatever happened, she had to keep Luna safe. The timber wolf in front of her had broken from the formation, clacking its jaws. Celestia felt a strange power rising up in her chest as she looked in its eyes. There were so many feelings coursing through her; anger, fear, love. Love for Clover the Clever, love for Luna.
Her head began to grow dizzy, and her eyes began to blur with light. She loved them so much. Not just them, but every pony in Equestria she had met so far. She loved all of them so dearly! Her body was suddenly racked with a splitting pain, and she squeezed her eyes closed, shouting in agony. Celestia could hear the timber wolves moving about, their limbs creaking. She felt her head grow unbearably heavy, and suddenly a great spurt of magic shot forth form her horn, her eyes shooting open. Everything around her was a blinding white for a moment, and she felt her body grow limp as it went to black.