//------------------------------// // Chapter 11 // Story: Little Sun // by Rated Ponystar //------------------------------// Celestia wasn’t sure she understood that at first, but upon hearing it again in her head she felt a dark pit in her stomach. “Make you... an alicorn?” asked Princess Celestia in disbelief. “Yes! I read it was possible. There have been other alicorns in the past,” said Sunset, growling. “I may not be an alicorn, but I have alicorn blood in me thanks to you. You will make me an alicorn so that I can become strong! Strong enough so that I never have to feel so helpless again!” Celestia bit her lip and closed her eyes. “It doesn’t work like that...” “Then how?! How does it work?!” demanded Sunset, stomping her hooves on the bed. “Ever since I saw my destiny in that mirror I’ve been trying to find out what it is that makes a normal pony become an alicorn! I’ve tried so many spells, looked up so many books, and I even tried making my own magic! What do I need to do to become stronger?!” “My Little Sun, you are strong, and stronger you will become...” Celestia sighed and lowered her head. “But becoming an alicorn is not your destiny.” The piercing hateful eyes on her daughter’s face made Celestia feel like she was being shot in the heart by Nightmare Moon’s magic all over again. No, this was worse. She was failing another pony all over again, only this was her daughter. Why... why do I always hurt the ones I love the most? “I’m sorry, Sunset, but I cannot make you an alicorn. Only magic and destiny itself can do so. It is beyond my power,” Celestia answered honestly. “But I will do everything in my power to make up what I have done to you. Please, just give me a chance to make it up.” “... Just leave me alone,” whispered Sunset, turning her head away. Celestia tried once again to touch her daughter, but Sunset snapped her hoof away. It hurt to see her daughter reject her like this, but she couldn’t blame her. Everything that had happened the past few days had to have been devastating to her mind and heart; not helped by the fact that she didn’t know how to handle this. Worse, she didn’t know if she should give Sunset space or have her see a therapist. While leaving the room, Celestia heard the soft sounds of Sunset crying from behind the wall. She wanted to go back in and just embrace her daughter, her hooves were even turned in the direction of the door. Even if Sunset never forgave her, it would be worth it just to have her cry on her shoulders. Yet, Celestia knew she herself was the problem. It took all of her willpower to not just head back in before she finally arrived in her room and cried herself. *** “I’m sorry, Princess. She refuses to have visitors,” said the doctor she put in charge of Sunset’s conditions. “I see,” whispered Celestia, lowering her head in disappointment. She levitated a bouquet of flowers. “Please give these to her, along with my love.” “Of course,” said the doctor before heading back into the room. A week since their fight and Sunset still refused to see Princess Celestia, not that she was surprised. She had barely been able to do anything but worry about Sunset Shimmer. She literally put everything on hold and she was getting complaints that she could give less than two bits about. The economy could collapse. War could be declared. Even Discord could be released from his statue prison and she could care less. All that mattered was her Little Sun. *** “Has she been going through the Starswirl the Bearded Wing again?” asked Celestia to her loyal guard that bowed before her. She had assigned him to trail her daughter in secret after she was released from the hospital, all of which she did on her own. “Yes, I even managed to get a glimpse of the books she was reading and wrote them down,” he replied as he handed her his list. Levitating it to her face, Celestia narrowed her eyes in worry. All of these are about alicorns, dimension magic, and transmogrification spells. She even looked up the Elements of Harmony. She lowered the list and bit her lip. What are you planning, Sunset? Is she trying to become an alicorn? None of this will help her, even if she did have access to the Element of Magic. “You are dismissed,” ordered Celestia which the guard bowed again before leaving her alone in her chambers. Two weeks had her apprentice been doing this. Refusing her summons and locking herself inside her own room with only the servants to bring food and water. I haven’t seen my daughter’s face in nearly a month. Is she truly this angry with me? To make matters worse, she was too busy dealing with new problems. Eyeing the resignation papers in front of her, she now wished she hadn’t ordered the complete extermination of the Nightmare Cult. Many of the soldiers under her command that night had resigned, unable to deal with the fact they had committed genocide and slain foals. Celestia didn’t blame them, she was still having nightmares of the faces of those she personally slew. Am I no different then Nightmare Moon, then? wondered Celestia as she sighed and rubbed her forehead. Oh, Luna. You were always right about me. I never stopped to think the consequences of my actions when my emotions take control. Even after living for so long, I am like a foal at times. She didn’t know what it was that would make it right for her former guards, the lives she had taken, or her daughter, but she would do what she could. *** The news her guard had given her tonight had Celestia most troubled. Sunset didn’t go to the library again. She had stayed in her room. This made Celestia feel that something was wrong and decided it was best to finally have that conversation she had been dreading to have with Sunset. Celestia walked towards her apprentice’s room and knocked on the door. “Sunset? It’s me, Princess Celestia. I... we need to talk.” There was no answer, as expected. Celestia closed her eyes and sighed. “I know you can hear me in there. I know you hate me, but you have no idea how much I hate myself. I know you think I abandoned you, refused you the love and comfort that all foals are supposed to feel when born. Looking back now I realize that sending you to that orphanage was a mistake, a risk that I thought would prove beneficial to you in the long run but I see that it wasn’t. I will not deny I made a mistake. I... I’ve made so many.” Celestia thought about the little sister she once called “Lulu” when they were younger. How they used to play in the secret passages of their once great castle that was now ruins and stained with blood. “But I’m going to make up for it. I... I want to announce the truth to the world. The truth that you are my daughter, and a princess. My heir to the throne should I pass away from some reason. You would be ranked higher than even the Blueblood clan. Anypony who has an issue with this I will deal with, and I will protect you from anypony who seeks to harm you in anyway.” She pressed her hoof on the door and a small smile decorated her face. “For the last one thousand years, I have had precious few happy memories. I put a smile on my face, but in truth I haven’t been happy since I sent my sister, your aunt, to the moon. Seeing you born and looking at me with your innocent and curious eyes is the brightest memory I have that keeps me going, despite my sorrow.” Still nothing. “Please, Sunset,” begged Celestia with tears in her eyes, her voice growing softer with each word. “I know I haven’t been the best mother, but I promise to do better. I love you so much that I... I need you my Little Sun. I need you so badly. Sunset, I-” she pressed on the door only for it to open. To her shock there was nopony inside. Entering the room, she saw that there were tons of books and notes scattered on the floor. All of them with complex math equations and diagrams. Lifting some of them she recognized the drawings as the mirror she once showed Sunset so long ago that was a gateway to another world. There was also a calendar... that was being counted off with the last day being circled. Suddenly, the realization of what her daughter had been doing all this time hit Celestia like the Friendship Express. And she teleported as fast as she could. It took only a second to arrive at the entrance of the room where the mirror was being kept, the magical locks already broken. She smashed through the door and saw Sunset reaching into the glowing portal mirror. “Sunset!” she screamed as loud as she could. Sunset took one glance with a glare to follow... and then she jumped in. Celestia screamed as she dived for the mirror, determined to follow her. But just as she was about to touch it, the magic ended and the mirror turned to glass once again. She slammed into the mirror, barely making a dent. With horror, she realized the magic time for the portal to be activated was over. She was too late. Sunset was gone. That day a cry of woe echoed across Canterlot that anypony who heard it felt like crying for some reason. *** Silence echoed across the room as Celestia wept silently. Whatever anger Twilight held for Celestia was now replaced with pity. Wordlessly, Twilight walked over and hugged her mentor who replied by crying on her shoulder. “I failed her... I failed her like I failed Luna... and you, Twilight,” whispered Celestia. “No matter what I do, I’ll never be able to forgive myself for hurting those I love... I truly am the sun. I shine brightly and warm those I care about... but those close to me will always get burned.” “That’s not true, Princess,” whispered Twilight as she nuzzled her mentor. “You care about us... and you made mistakes, but you never stopped loving us and doing what’s right. I feel that you can when Sunset comes home.” “Home?” asked Celestia in shock. “She... she wants to come home?” “I have a feeling she’ll want to come home one day,” said Twilight with a smile. “She just needs to find out who she really is. And make up for all the wrong she’s caused.” “I hope you’re right, Twilight. I really do.”