Day 3, 7 a.m. 3 minutes, 59 seconds
But for every bide, there must be a time of attack…
The solar alicorn was close to collapsing while Nightstare Moon was flaunting about, giggling and whispering to herself like a little school girl.
Through the window… the sun was rising. As was revealed in the pageant play every year, common unicorns, if enough were gathered en masse, could rotate the sun and moon. This was now typically done only in emergencies, for they could not do it as nearly as well as the princesses, but this was an appropriate occasion.
A small sliver of light poked through the curtain farthest from her, exactly where Celestia had hoped, onto the floor.
Minutes passed and it kept on traveling across the carpet, intensifying as the sun rose up into the sky.
A half hour later, it was almost in place.
“Nightstare moon, I have a proposition.” Celestia put on her best negotiating face, which was getting harder to keep with the shriveling eye sacks.
“Hmm?” she hummed, half intrigued.
“If I win, you need to… excuse me, guard?” she motioned with her hoof for him to come over. She whispered the orders into his ear to which he promptly delivered to Nightstare Moon.
“That’s preposterous! I accept. And when I win?”
“Guard?”
He came back over, received instructions once more and then relayed the message.
“Ooooh… that’s very tempting. And will this be included with what I already plan to do?”
“Yes.”
With a nod, the two powers of the universe resumed (though it never really stopped) the contest.
A/N: The conclusion arrives soon...