//------------------------------// // Okay, so... // Story: The Princesses' Secret // by Sleepy Panda //------------------------------// The two royal sisters sat around a table in the kitchen, eating a casual breakfast while planning for what would happen if they decided to make a revelation about their mother. They'd requested that their personal guards stand outside the room rather than inside, as they didn't particularly want to be overheard. "How's this: When Princess Celestia was young and naive, she-" "Okay, absolutely no," Celestia interrupted her younger sister. "Why not?" said Luna, confused. "It gives you an excuse for deciding to lock your mother in a vault." "I see two flaws with that," Celestia informed her. "Enlighten me." Luna set her speech down on the table and raised an eyebrow at her sister. "Very well then. First of all, I was never naive. I have always been perfect," Celestia insisted. Luna rolled her eyes at this. "You cannot be serious," she scoffed. "I am," Celestia said seriously. "But whether you accept that as a legitimate fault is of no concern to me, for you will understand the second one." "Humor me." "Since I am no longer young and naive, our subjects would expect us to release our dear mother, would they not?" Celestia questioned. "...You have a point," Luna agreed. She then picked up her speech and flicked it over her shoulder, where it landed in the fireplace. A second later, however, she realized something. "Wait just a moment. If what you've been saying about the ponies of modern Equestria is true, then wouldn't they be reluctant to have us step down from the throne to make way for a new ruler they've never heard of?" Celestia abruptly stopped chewing her muffin and swallowed it whole in surprise. She started choking, and Luna had to thump her on the back a few times before she was able to speak again. "I forgot about that," Celestia admitted. It was true. She took it so much for granted that she often forgot just how devoted her subjects were to her. "Yes. So even if we released our mother, we wouldn't be pressured into letting her rule again. But sister, must we reveal her existence in the first place?" Luna asked. "I believe so. We've kept it a secret for too long now, and I think our mother has served her time," Celestia decided. "Then it's settled. Now, for that speech..." One week later... "Please rise for Princess Celestia and Princess Luna!" a guard shouted into the crowd as Luna and Celestia walked out onto the balcony, his voice amplified by some sort of spell. Celestia smiled at her subjects, waving in greeting with a wing. Luna stood to her left and slightly behind her, not smiling. There was no point; it was Celestia the ponies loved, not her. When the ponies finally quieted down, Celestia stepped forward to the very edge of the balcony. "My sister and I have decided to make a very important decision," she announced. "While it may not impact you greatly, it means a lot to Princess Luna and I and we hope that you can take the news maturely and intelligently." Celestia nodded at Luna, who took a deep breath and stepped forwards to stand directly side-by-side with her sister. "Many ponies have been wondering why Luna and I are princesses rather than queens. It's not because of any political issues or cultural differences, or any other reason you might be thinking of. No, there is a reason, but it's slightly different. We are princesses because our mother is still the queen of Equestria." A shocked murmur ran through the crowd, and a few ponies started shouting. "Why have we never heard of the queen?" "Why are you two ruling rather than her?" "Could you repeat that please? I had my head stuck in a bucket and couldn't hear." "Is your mother still alive?" "Silence," Celestia commanded. Nobody silenced themselves, so one of Celestia's guard repeated her command with an extremely amplified voice. Everypony became quiet, but only to wince and cover their ears in pain. "Our mother is very much alive," Celestia confirmed. "When we were younger, we became aware that she was abusing her power" - Luna stifled a giggle at this, earning herself a glare from her older sister - "and we were forced to lock her in a vault." "What type of abuse? What was she doing? Slavery? Executions?" someone asked. "Oh no, nothing like that!" Celestia exclaimed. "She was enforcing unfair rules upon the younger generation of Equestria." "Abusing her power by making dumb rules makes her unfit to rule?" someone shouted. "You cannot be serious. The whole Nightmare Moon incident happened and Luna's still standing by your side." Luna stiffened and clenched her teeth, ready to find the source of the shout and destroy it. Before she could leap off the balcony, however, a dozen of her guard tackled her to the ground. One of the guards quietly said, "Princess, attacking your citizens would not be wise. Pardon me saying, but I believe you are tired and your judgement is rather clouded, so we're going to escort you inside. You're not used to being awake so late into the day." Luna sighed and let her guards escort her inside. They were right, after all. She hadn't slept in over 24 hours. Luckily for her, the entire crowd was too busy shouting at Celestia to notice the scene. Of course, this wasn't lucky for Celestia. "I think that you should release your mother!" somepony demanded. Celestia looked towards the source of the voice and... oh no. It was one of those famous ponies that everyone tried to copy. "This is cruel and unnecessary!" "I agree!" someone cheered, then another, then another. Pretty soon, the whole crowd was in agreement. "Okay, my little ponies!" Celestia finally yelled after some indecision, immediately making everyone go quiet. "I'll release her from the vault, but she will have to stay confined within the castle. She's not fit to rule and she's too powerful to live among society." "Not fit to rule? Please!" a mare laughed. "If anything, you're not fit to rule, Your Majesty. Your judgement has been simply awful lately. You're willing to let your sister continue ruling despite the fact that she tried to overthrow you and destroy the planet with eternal night, yet you refuse to let your mother rule because she imposed a few rules that you didn't like. I say let your mother take the throne and step down so that you can be taught how to actually be a leader!" "Yeah!" the crowd shouted. Celestia felt trapped. On one hoof, she couldn't let her mother rule - she was crazy! On the other, she couldn't disappoint her little ponies. And when it comes down to it... the latter was more important. "Alright..." Celestia decided, "my sister and I will give the throne to our mother."