Orange skies slowly darkened above two lone ponies. The pair, a large yellow stallion wearing a Stetson hat followed closely by a young orange filly with a blonde mane filled with sticks and bits of hay, were trotting down a worn path along the borders of Sweet Apple Acres. They crossed into denser woods just as Celestia's sun met the horizon.
"Are we there yet, Pa?" whined the little filly.
"Almost, sugarcube, no need tah fuss. I promised ya a special story iffen ya finished all yer chores early tonight and Ah'm gonna deliver," replied stallion as he smiled back at his daughter. "It'll be worth the sore legs."
Pouting Applejack replied, "But why do we have ta go so far away jus fer you ta tell me a story?"
"Tell ya what, AJ" -Apple Orchard stopped, lifting the little filly onto his shoulders- "How 'bout Ah start the story now. That should make the time go by faster, don'tcha think?"
The young filly's face immediately lit up "Ah reckon so!"
"Ya know about Princess Celestia, right?" he asked while avoiding some low branches over the path.
"O'course Ah do, Pa!" AJ responded with hooves on her hips, "She raises the Sun an the Moon! Everypony knows that!" punctuating her last statement with huff.
"Well, miss smartybritches," he teased. "Did ya know she had a sister?"
"Really!?" Applejack blushed as her Pa winced "But Ah don't remember hearin' about her before."
Trying to rub the ringing out of his ears, he pressed on "Most ponies don't. Except us Apples. See AJ, we've been here longer than most ponies. In fact we was the ones who founded Ponyville."
Giving her Pa a light shove to the back of his head she laughed "Yer pullin mah leg, Pa."
Apple Orchard bumped his shoulders slightly, causing Applejack to jump in surprise, "Honest truth, kiddo. The thing about Apples is we may not write stuff down as much as other ponies, but we keep our own history alive in the stories we pass down to our youngins."
"Is that why ya tell all those stories before bed?" She asked as she took her Pa's hat and put it on. It immediately slipped down over the fillies eyes making her pout indignantly at the stubborn leather.
Doing his level best to hold in his laughter he continued, "Right as rain, sugarcube. Now like Ah said, Princess Celestia had a sister an' the two of 'em watched over all the little ponies in Equestria. Celestia during the day, an' her sister at night. Now most ponies praised the her fer all the fun they had durin' the day. This left the sister feelin' more than a might left out, and very unappreciated"
Peeking out from under the hat she retorted "But ponies ain't allowed to play after bedtime! We're supposed to sleep!"
"Right again, AJ," Apple Orchard chuckled. "But that don't mean we should take the night fer granted. Ya can already see some o' them stars peekin' out now. There's just as much beauty at night, it's just most folk don't take the time tah look. That is, o'course, except fer one pony. He worked well into the night tah feed his family, an' he saw all o' the beautiful night skies the sister made. All of the patterns and stories that hide in the stars gave that pony comfort. Like a whole other world jus fer him He wanted tah show her how much it meant tah him, but he wasn't sure what he could do, bein an Earth pony an' all."
"Like us?" Applejack asked quietly.
"Eeyup, just like us. See he didn't have no wings or horns or anything like that tah change the weather or cast a spell, but he had something different. Something only us Earth ponies have." he said as he smiled back at his daughter.
"What's that Pa?"
Turning to look her in the eye he casually answered, "A connection tah the land."
Applejack raised an eyebrow and tilted her head to the side quizzically.
"All Earth ponies have a connection tah nature. Plants, animals, even the ground under yer hooves. We feel nature in ways that don't make much sense to other ponies. It's a special magic that lets us work miracles all our own. So one night, he got an idea. He spent each night fer almost a whole year talkin' an' workin' with the fireflies in his field."
"Ah love fireflies! -gasp- Are we gonna see some tonight?" she squealed in delight.
"Ah reckon we might, sugarcube, but these fireflies were special. That ol' pony found a way tah make 'em look like no other fireflies in all of Equestria. They glowed blue!" Orchard said, emphasizing the last word.
Applejack's eyes grew to the size of dinner plates, "Really!?"
"An' they glowed fer minutes at a time instead of jus a few flashes. He gathered as many as he could find an' he did somethin' magical. He remade the night sky down here on the ground. He spent the rest o' his days tellin' the night sky stories through them fireflies, an' she'd do the same with her stars," Apple Orchard's voice lowered slightly, "But time went on an' eventually that ol' pony went tah rest. A few years after that the sister disappeared."
Suddenly worried, the filly asked "What happened to her?"
"Ah'm not sure, sugarcube." Apple Orchard returned his hat to its normal spot above his ears. "Truth be told Ah reckon only Princess Celestia herself knows the truth. There are some stories here an' there, but Ah can't make heads or tails out o' any of 'em. Heck there are even some tales about them fireflies being ghost or spirits."
"G-Ghosts?" Applejack asked, eyes darting between the ever growing shadows of the forest.
"Eeyup, but that's nothin' tah fret about," he said while ruffling up her mane. "After they lost their friends, those fireflies started movin' farther an' farther away from town. So few ponies saw 'em that they became the stuff o' bedtime stories."
"But ain't that what they are anyway?" Applejack asked.
Smiling as he rounded a curve on the path, Apple Orchard said proudly, "You tell me."
******************************************** Years Later **************************************************
"I am still most confused, fair Applejack, as to why you have asked me to meet you so far from your home," Princess Luna announced as she ducked below yet another branch.
"Begin yer pardon, yer highness, but you'll just have tah wait a lil' longer. Ah promise it'll be worth the trip," the orange mare called back while hopping over a fallen tree.
Luna let out a weary sigh as they rounded a large curve on the path "As the Element of Honesty I will trust you, but I do hope our journey will not take much longer for I... must..." The word faded into the night air as Luna stared at the grove in front of her. Hovering just above the grass were thousands of soft blue lights. They danced together in small patterns, some fading out while others shown brighter. The blue alicorn's hooves started carrying her forward before her brain had time to process what she was seeing. "I-I thought them lost during my banishment. How did..."
Applejack smiled warmly at the princess, "My Pa used tah take me out here and tell me stories about a pony who shared stories with a princess at night with these critters. After you came back Ah put two an' two together an' figured ya might want tah see 'em again."
Tears glistened in Luna's eyes as she knelt down amongst the fireflies. She giggled brightly as a particularly fat one landed on the tip of her snout. It stayed there for a few moments before returning to its slow waltz with the others. "I do not know of any way I can repay the happiness you have returned to me Applejack."
"Aw shucks, sugarcube, uh... Ah mean yer highness, no thanks necessary. Way Ah see it they're jus as happy tah see you. Ah don't think Ah've ever seen 'em this lively before."
Quickly wiping her cheek Luna stood and extended a hoof towards the other pony. "Nay. I must show you my appreciation, fair Applejack, and I know just how to do so. Please take my hoof."
Applejack hesitated a moment, "An' jus how are ya gonna do that?"
A sly smile spread across the alicorn's lips "You'll just have to wait and see."
"Alright," Applejack chucked as she grabbed the extended hoof, "whatever ya say, princess."
She immediately felt herself pulled onto Luna's back as the princess let out a bright laugh and spread her wings. Applejack had barely enough time to grab ahold of her hat before she watched the ground shrink beneath her. Terrified she slammed her eyes shut and held on to Luna as tightly as she could manage while yelling, "Tarnation! Where in the hay are ya takin' me?"
Stifling a giggle the princess of the moon called back, "I am sorry I let my excitement get the better of me, but now you can see the true beauty of what you have returned to me. A sight I have not seen in over a thousand years."
Curiosity getting the better of her, Applejack slowly opened her eyes. What she saw took her breath away.
Right below them was the clearing, but from up here it looked as if she was staring at a chunk of the sky that had fallen to the ground. What had seemed like random patterns on the ground turned into constellations. It was like a moving tapestry of all the stories her Pa told around the fireplace. Applejack could almost hear his voice recounting each tale being played out below. She felt warmth trickling down her cheeks, "I reckon we're even now, yer highness."