Pessimism
Three days have passed since the Royal Wedding in Canterlot, and the time has finally come for the six friends from Ponyville to make their way home. They leave the palace in the early afternoon, accompanied by Princess Celestia, who has insisted on escorting them as far as the train station.
She walks near the front of the group, speaking with Twilight, whilst the rest follow close, smiling and sharing anecdotes of the hectic past few days. But unbeknownst to the others, one of their number lags behind with an uncharacteristic frown on her face...
Pinkie Pie narrows her eyes at the back of Applejack's head, as the farmpony tries and fails to hide her giggling along with Rainbow Dash. Fluttershy and Rarity are off to one side, talking about dresses or some such, so they don't notice. Nor do Twilight and the princess. But Pinkie Pie does.
It seems that every time those two are alone together, even for a second, they start talking in hushed voices and laughing at private little jokes. Pinkie wasn't born yesterday – she knows there's obviously something going on between them – but she doesn't care about that.
...Well, maybe she cares just a little bit. But that's not important. The thing that's really bothering her is that she's feeling left out...
“Are you alright, my dear?” comes a voice from beside Pinkie.
She turns and sees Princess Celestia standing beside her, with a questioning smile on her face. Twilight has been left at the front of the group, but she doesn't seem to mind, except that she casts a couple of funny glances over her shoulder every now and then.
For her part, Pinkie lets out a grumpy 'harrumph'. “Dashie and Applejack have been sneaking around and laughing all day,” she explains. “But whenever I ask what they're laughing at, they say it's nothing.”
She hardens her glare on the back of Applejack's hat. “...Inside jokes are no fun.”
“I see,” says the princess calmly. “I enjoy the occasional joke myself, but I certainly agree that they are more fun when shared with friends.”
Pinkie Pie nods at the wise words. There is a pause, during which she continues to stare at the offending farmpony. All this talk of inside jokes gets the parts of her mind that aren't busy glaring to start thinking, and she recalls something from the wedding. Her ears perk up with interest as she turns to the princess.
“Hey, in that case, can I ask you something?”
The princess tilts her head and smiles expectantly.
“How come you laughed when Princess Luna asked whether she'd missed anything?”
Celestia blinks. “I beg your pardon, dear?”
Pinkie rolls her eyes. “You know, after the wedding, when Shining Armour and Cadance started dancing. Princess Luna appeared out of nowhere and said 'Did I miss anything?' You laughed, and so did she.”
“You... cannot possibly have heard that,” Celestia says, and her smile falters a little. She almost sounds surprised.
“Duh, I can hear even the teeniest laugh from a mile away!” Pinkie informs her. “So c'mon, tell me the joke!”
Celestia has slowed down a little now. Her smile has been replaced by an unreadable frown, and she's looking ahead, instead of at Pinkie. “...Why should it not be simply because my sister was being ironic?” she asks.
Pinkie shook her head. “Nope. I thought about that. It wasn't that kind of laugh. It was that kind of laugh--” She points at Applejack, who is shaking as if laughing, though no sound is coming out. At her side, Rainbow Dash is smirking and fluttering her wings proudly.
There is another silence. Pinkie looks expectantly up at the princess, whilst Celestia stares, in thought, at Applejack and Rainbow. After a long moment, Celestia lets out a sigh through her nose.
“It is clear that there is no fooling you, Pinkie Pie. I assure you, it is not my intention to deceive--”
“Great! Then tell me the joke!”
“It is not a joke, in the way that you think of them,” says the princess sternly. “We laughed, certainly, but it was not out of humour. More of understanding, and relief...” She breathes a quiet huff. “If you wish for answers, then I will grant them. You have earned that much. But I can promise that you will not find such answers to your amusement.”
Pinkie hesitates. That there is no joke to be had is a little disheartening, but she finds herself becoming more curious now. If not a joke, then what was Celestia laughing at?
Refocusing, Pinkie bounces in the air and resumes her smile. “Okie dokie lokie! I wish for answers!”
“...Very well,” says Celestia. She pauses for a moment, as if deciding where to begin, then closes her eyes. “Did you think it at all odd that my sister was absent during the entire changeling attack? That she only appeared at the very end, after the danger was gone?”
Pinkie curls her lip. “Kind of, but I just thought she was sleeping. Or maybe that she got locked in the bathroom.”
“Locked in the bathroom...” Celestia repeats thoughtfully. Her smile returns to her, and she gives a little chuckle. “Yes, I suppose that is an appropriate metaphor.”
The princess pauses to look up at the Sun, still high in the sky. “I have ruled over Equestria for more than millennium now,” she says. “Ponies do not simply rely on me for advice and guidance, as they once did. A structure has been established. I preside over disputes, I am an ambassador to other races, I make decisions affecting the entire land every day.
“...What do you suppose would happen if I were to suddenly disappear?”
Pinkie quirks a brow. “Disappear? Like, go invisible?”
Celestia shakes her head and smiles. “When Queen Chrysalis revealed herself, for example. You saw how she overpowered me with her magic. If she had not stopped when she did, I could easily have been lost in that battle.”
“Oh, I get it!” says Pinkie happily. “You don't have to worry about that, we'd find you. Promise!”
Celestia doesn't laugh, she just gives Pinkie a sidelong look. “...And if you could not? If I was lost to you forever?”
Pinkie's smile falls as she racks her brain for the answer. “Then... you'd win at hide and seek?” she guesses.
“The structure would collapse,” says Celestia darkly. “Relations would become unsteady, confusion and panic would spread. There would be chaos, perhaps even enough to unleash Discord again. If that were to happen, not even the Elements of Harmony would be enough to keep Equestria from falling into darkness.”
Pinkie's ear twitches nervously. “Well, that's not very optimistic,” she mutters.
“It is a realistic scenario,” says the princess. “I have no doubt that, in time, ponies would find a new ruler, or a new system of government entirely, so that they would be able to thrive without me. But Discord's release would make that all but impossible. That is why Luna was absent from the attack.”
At this point, Pinkie furrows her brow and looks down at the pavement. Even she has trouble making the connection between Luna's absence and Discord.
Luckily for her, the princess notices her confusion, and explains. “Shortly before I sent your invitations to the wedding, I sensed a great and imminent threat to Canterlot. I made many preparations – Shining Armour's shield and the increase in guard, to name a couple – but in the end I had no idea what we were about to face.
“Then, the night before the wedding ceremony itself, the sense of danger grew much stronger. I knew it was close, but still there was nothing more I could do. Except for one thing...”
“Princess Luna?” Pinkie guesses.
Celestia nods.
After giving it a moment's thought, Pinkie gasps in realisation. “You locked her in the bathroom?”
“So to speak,” says Celestia. “I sent her away from Canterlot, so that she would not be here when the danger arrived.”
“But why? Didn't you think she could've helped?” says Pinkie. “I mean, if she was there, you two might've been able to beat Chrysalis all by yourselves!”
Celestia inclines her head. “Might being the operative word. I had no way to know that we would overcome the threat, nor that either of us would emerge from it unscathed. I sent Luna away to make sure that she was safe...”
She pauses and smiles beside herself. “...She is stubborn, my sister, and we argued for much of the night. Ultimately, she submitted... albeit reluctantly, and only after I explained that my decision was not made for her safety, but for that of Equestria.
Pinkie Pie blinks dumbly. Despite the look on her face, the pieces are starting to fall together. The safety of Equestria, the 'structure'... it all makes sense now that she thinks about it. The excitement makes her ears perk up again.
“I get it! Equestria needs somepony to look after it, otherwise Discord gets out and all the rain turns to chocolate. And looking after Equestria is your job, but Princess Luna used to do it too, so if you were poorly or something, she could probably take over for a bit. So when you thought there was trouble coming, you sent Princess Luna away so that she could take over when you--”
Pinkie breaks off, and her ears begin to droop sadly as she understands. She's not sure that she wants to finish the explanation, but even if she doesn't, she'll still know. Her frown deepens as she concedes and mutters...
“...When you got lost forever.”
Celestia isn't looking at Pinkie. Pinkie isn't looking at Celestia.
It's hard to think of anything else to say, and that feeling is both uncommon and unpleasant to Pinkie Pie. She understands serious things. Ponies never believe her when she says so, but she really does. She understands sacrifice – giving up something special or fun to you, in order to make somepony else happy.
That the princess is willing to sacrifice herself for Equestria is noble and brave and selfless... But that she has actually thought about it – planned it – is just... wrong.
“That's wrong,” Pinkie says aloud.
Celestia looks at her sidelong, while Pinkie turns to give her a full-blown frown.
“You're not supposed to think like that. It's p-- per-- press--” She screws up her eyes and tries to focus. This is important. “It's pessimistic!” she finishes.
“It's realistic,” says Celestia. “And it is my duty as a ruler to think as such.”
Pinkie shakes her head violently and plants her hooves on the pavement, coming to an abrupt stop. “No, that's wrong!”
A silence seems to fall over the entire street. The group stops, and every one of them turns to Pinkie with shocked or quizzical eyes. A few passers-by stare at her with interest and awe, whilst the guardsponies – who had been escorting them from a respectful distance – begin to look uneasy.
“P-Pinkie Pie?” breathes Twilight, eyes wide and jaw slack as she glances between Pinkie and the princess.
Under everypony's gaze – including Dashie's – Pinkie begins to realise how she must look, glaring at the princess and being all shouty. She hadn't meant to get all grumpy, but--
“It's alright, Twilight,” says the princess calmly, waving a gentle hoof and offering her a smile. “That was my fault – I said something that I should not have...”
Twilight creases her brow and works her jaw for a moment, before closing her mouth and throwing a questioning look at the others.
Celestia turns back to Pinkie and bows her head. “Please, forgive me, I did not mean to upset you.”
“I... No, you--” Pinkie begins, though she is cut off by a stern look from Dashie. The pegasus with the tasty rainbow mane shakes her head, like she always does when she's trying to stop Pinkie from saying something dumb.
Pinkie stares at her for a moment, before frowning deeply and hanging her head. “Okie dokie, princess...” she mumbles. “I'm sorry too.”
“That is quite alright,” says Celestia. She offers a faint smile.
An uncomfortable silence falls over the group again. Pinkie Pie continues to look down at the ground. Nopony moves.
“Oh! Look where we are!” says Twilight, in a loud and deliberate voice. “The train station is right around that corner, ha ha!”
Celestia grunts and looks around, then she chuckles. “So it is. I suppose that we should part ways here then. If you hurry, you may just catch the next train.”
“Yes! Of course, princess!” says Twilight brightly. “Thank you for walking us here! We'll send you a letter when we get home. Come on girls!”
Looking up, Pinkie receives a deliberately toothy smile from Twilight. It makes her feel a bit better, and the little boost is enough to get her up and trotting forwards.
“Pinkie Pie,” says Celestia, after only a few steps.
Pinkie turns around to see a small smile on the princess' lips.
“I trust that our... 'conversation' will stay between us,” Celestia says. “I would not want it to upset anypony else. Especially Twilight...”
Pinkie opens her mouth and hesitates, another experience that is rather uncommon to her. She would never want to upset anypony, of course... but, for some reason, it isn't so easy to just say 'Okie dokie lokie' to this one. Something here is decidedly wrong, and she can't just keep quiet about it, can she?
“Pinkie Pie, come on! The train will be here any second!” Twilight calls from around the corner.
The princess and the party pony stare at one another for a long moment. Ultimately, Pinkie is forced to resign to the fact that there is nothing she can do right now. A problem like this is going to take a lot of time, planning, and possibly partying, to solve.
She gives Celestia a slow and measured nod, but deliberately avoids a Pinkie Promise.
Then she blinks, breaks out a smile, and skips after her friends.
So, this was intended to be a one-shot, but I left the ending open because I can see how I could take this in a further shipping/friendshipping direction. For now, it's marked as complete and should considered a snippet, but I'll be putting some thought into continuing it.
I've now decided that I will continue this at some point, thus the tag change to 'On Hiatus'. I've still got a LOT to do beforehand - so don't expect it any time soon - but you can rest assured that it will be done.
It's been aaages since I wrote this and I've only just realised it's still 'on hiatus'. I'll have to go back on my original word unfortunately, and say that this is not going to be continued. Any ideas or inspiration I did have for it are plain gone by now. Sorry on the off chance that anyone was waiting for this to be continued 
Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it!
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I agree with Pinkie Pie. Celestia's not thinking. If something takes her out, Luna's almost certainly buggered if and when she gets back. Better to put all your resources on the table and gang-bang the threat down with overwhelming force.
There is no such thing as Overkill. There is only Open Fire and Reload.
2529507
I think that may be true sometimes, but not always. Celestia might be lost through a lucky hit, or maybe one powerful spell that's a one-time-only-deal for an aggressor. Or an enemy might have an exploitable weakness that would only be found after Celestia was sent to that great pasture in the sky. With so much unknown about the threat, if it were my decision, I think I'd reach the same conclusion as Celestia. Even in military engagements in the real world, you keep reserves.
2529507
Well you are thinking of it as a direct fight but this strategy is actually for more of an assassination attempt. Yes in a direct fight it is good to have all of your forces but this was not that kind of situation. Celestia did not know who, what, or where the attack was going to happen. In an assassination attempt keeping your important people apart makes sure you cannot take both out at once in a surprise attack. One bomb (or similar) can take out both with no need for power at all.
This is precisely the reason why the President and the Vice President of the USA are rarely in the same place at the same time.
I'd love another chapter, it is an interesting idea. Pinkie yelling at Princess Celestia saying that she is wrong is pretty powerful, and then they sweep it under the rug because everyone reins Pinkie in after that point. I don't know kind of leaves me wanting more.
An interesting view into the 'Celestia is, in fact, as vulnerable as any other pony' mind-frame... I can appreciate that for what it is, and I do think that Pinkie did behave true to character, actually, even if I personally would have added a bit of mane deflation for good measure.
My personal view regarding Celestia falling was actually her 'taking the hit' for the good of her ponies. I think she could have taken things a great deal further, but not without somepony being seriously hurt, maybe even killed, during the conflict. After all which is easier to believe: Celestia, Her Majesty of the Dawn, the pony that raised the sun and moon and brought forth the stars as well for one thousand years by herself losing to something who had been chewing on love for awhile in a battle of raw power (horn lazer pewpew) because she couldn't overpower Chrysalis.... or because she recognized that she could but shouldn't use the kind of power it'd take in the middle of a city precariously perched on a mountain side?
In any case that's just my view, the story is a very interesting look for me into the alternative and I would love to see more.
How will you take it in s shipping/friendshipping direction, I must ask?
I wonder if we have learnt the real reason behind the Pinkie Pie arm in "Too Many Pinkie Pies". The only way she can be sure none of her friends are lost forever is if she stays with them all the time... and everypony is Pinkie Pie's friend!
2529507 When you don't know what, who, or if you're fighting, that doesn't work. Remember, they received a threat, they didn't have any idea on what was happening. It's like a game of chess, putting strong pieces around your king (Which would be Celesta or Luna) to protect it. This might work, but it leaves too much room for error. When a king is put into check another piece must move to block it, or the king itself must move out of its favored position. That's when the structure falls apart, your plans change. Now imagine a chess game where you couldn't even see the pieces, you don't even know if there are pieces! Also Changelings are obviously more powerful than ponies, since they have wings and a horn, they captured all of Canterlot easily. So the enemy doesn't even have pawns, they only have bishops, knights, rooks, and a king/queen. So to keep one piece hidden yourself is smart. Going with your strategy is both reckless and simple.
2529686
2529754
2532340 Fine, I'll grant that keeping Luna away at first is a good idea. Not keeping in constant contact with her, however, is idiotic. Ultimately when facing a simple military force, if something can take out Celestia it can take out Luna too.
We know there are ways to send messages instantly. The moment the threat was realized, Luna should have been contacted. We know she was in Canterlot as little as the night before the attack, so she couldn't have gotten far. Once Luna was contacted she comes in with the battalion they left her with (don't you DARE tell me they ONLY kept her in reserve, you send your Princess with hundreds of guards if you really fear active military action) to flak the enemy and screw their day up.
When talking about Luna and Celestia, we're not talking about simple military resources. We're talking about weapons of mass destruction. They're immortal and super powerful -- maybe not as much as the fandom likes to pretend, but certainly more than average ponies... and let's not forget that the six elements took out literally dozens of Changelings apiece. Six regular ponies. Well, four regular ponies, one special forces level magic user and Pinkie Pie.
2532367 Chrysalis struck down Celestia, if Luna came to attack her Chrysalis would probably use Celestia's love for Luna against her.
At least that's what I would do, and considering how she is a being of god like proportions and a cunning strategist, I would assume she would do the same.
2532367
I'm still not sure.
If it were me, I'd have Luna in an undisclosed location with several guards, but near a major garrison. So say she's messaged, heads to the garrison and picks up a batallion of troops. Assume the garrison is already set up to deploy troops, provisioned for a few days' battle, armored, etc. I think just getting them all briefed on what's going on, selecting a plan of battle, and getting unicorns onto pegasus-towed chariots would take the better part of an hour. That and flight time could easily make it over an hour, and by the time that was done, the Force Field of Love had already expelled the invaders.
So Luna gets another message while in transit to Canterlot saying "Ya know, that invasion? Never mind." She goes back, drops off her armor, has a drink at the bar, complains to the bartender that no doubt Celestia's going to get more love and Luna more hate from this whole thing, and flies off to the party, where she ironically asks if she missed anything. All the while working on her true plot, a kingdom without... cake!
None of that was shown here, of course, but conservation of detail and all. And not having cake might scare younger viewers. And me.
It's true that a pure pegasus force could move faster, but if I were Luna I'd want at least unicorns along, and earth ponies too if I could manage it. When going to battle you don't just take tanks because they're faster than infantry.
It's possible that Luna could've handled the invasion herself if she came straight away, but given Celestia's rather quick defeat, I wouldn't've wagered the kingdom on it.
And not that it would have had to work that way, but it reasonably coulda, I think.
We do the same thing with the president and vice president. If anything it is kind of dumb that Luna and Celestia are in such close proximity so very often due to them being the only ones able to move the celestial bodies.
But I do see Pinkie Pie being disturbed by the gravity of the situation and this is one thing she would NOT let drop.
I do think a good fic could spring from this with a very serious Pinkie Pie that we do not very often see but exists. Often times in canon she is the only sane pony (like with the parasprites).
I'm actually not clear on why Celestia laughed. I understand the reasoning behind keeping Luna at a separate location, it makes sense. Pinkie's reaction also makes perfect sense, completely in character. This was an interesting little snip of a story in spite of its utter lack of a resolution. Was there any reason you wrote this in present tense? The story doesn't seem to benefit from it in any way besides making it slightly awkward to read at first, and breaking from the norm for no reason other than to break from the norm is almost always a bad idea.
Still, what's the inside joke? Is Celestia laughing because she didn't die? Or because sending Luna away proved unnecessary? Or because Luna did miss something and she'd done it on purpose?
I put my vote in for you to continue this. It is a marvelous idea and well written!
2534008
They are laughing because luna did not actually want to leave. So when she came back and acted like she was being rude or ignorant it was a lie. Luna pretending not to care was a ridiculous thought to them so they laughed.
When a joke is explained it takes all the humor out of it
A rather interesting take on Luna's absence from the attack. Like having that one person physically absent from every State of the Dis-union address.
I quite liked this story. Celestia's reasoning makes perfect sense, and I like how you built a little joke from the episode into this nice vignette. I don't think there is any need to expand this into a bigger story. It definitely could work as the first chapter of an interesting Pinkie/Celestia story, but it also stands perfectly well on its own IMHO. I don't think we really need to know what Pinkie will do, just that she wants to cheer the Princess up and that she isn't okay with pessimism.
You handled Pinkie really well, and she's so often misused. Thumb'd and Fav'd.
2529507
Now there's a saying I can get on board with!
2530214 It leaves me wanting to write more too, if I'm honest
Rest assured that I'm going to be putting lots of thought into it when I can.
2530728 I remember once reading a story (or part of one at least) where Celestia lost by choice. I'm quite fond of the concept myself - that she would take the hit, rather than fight back and risk somepony getting hurt in the crossfire. It makes a lot of sense.
As you say, this is an alternative, which I really just came up with off the top of my head. That you found it interesting is great to hear! Thanks!
2531093 I was thinking along the lines of playing off of Celestia's 'pessimism/realism'. Pinkie, believing that optimism is the way to go, is obviously not okay with this, so she makes it her quest to get the princess 'back on track'. She'd probably pay some visits to the castle - maybe write letters - or try to get Celestia away from her duties and teach her to 'think positive'.
Whether she succeeds or not, it's important that she cares enough to want to help Celestia. I can see it working, and I'm eager to explore it.
2532046 That's true, and an interesting way to look at it. This is why Pinkie is my favourite pony - she's friends with everypony, and wants nothing more than to keep them all smiling
It must be exhausting for her though, even with so much energy!
2532873 Indeed, it makes sense not to put all your eggs in one basket, as it were. If Celestia and Luna were both captured/disabled/lost without teaching anypony their spells, it could be disastrous. Thankfully, they don't have to think too much about that in Equestria. Or I like to think so, at least.
Anyway, thanks! I certainly hope that I can build a story from this at some point, but as I say it'll be a while because of everything else I'm also hoping to do
2534008 The point of the fic was simply to explore that line from A Canterlot Wedding in a new light to that which I'm used to. I didn't really intend on anything going into it, other than that. I think I have yet to grasp the concept of 'one-shot'
Anyways, in regards to the joke - all of the above, coupled with what ~grimmred said. Part of the laugh is for the irony, but most of it is for the relief of seeing each other again without anything going seriously wrong (or 'according to plan', depending on how you look at it). As Celestia says, it's not really a 'joke' so much as it is a gesture of wibbly-wobbly, emotiony-thoughtful stuff (<- paraphrasing)
As for the present tense, I don't know. I wrote it that way because it seemed like the right thing to do. I did start writing it in past tense, but about two paragraphs in I thought 'this would look better in present tense'. And so it did. I like it better like this.
2535416 Well thank you! Your vote and kind words are more incentive to get it done, and that's always welcome
2536850 Thanks! And yes, that's a perfect analogy. You've got to make sure that someone stays around to take over if something goes wrong.
2537386 Thank you! It's reassuring to hear that it can stand on its own. I'm still considering a continuation, but not feeling that I have to rush is always nice. And I'm glad you liked my Pinkie Pie
It's my goal to get to a point where I can write her POV convincingly, including her whole trail of seemingly-random (but actually logical) thought. I think that would be cool. After Twice as Bright, I know that it's a load of fun to read, and I bet it'd be just as much fun to write.
2538862
Lol and I picked it because it has my favorite pony casting everybody's favorite 1st level D&D spell!
Also opens another explanation for why Celestia sent Twilight to Ponyville when NmM was coming back. Nice.
2539399 Virtual high-five? l)
2539688 I didn't actually consider that, but it's a very good point. I'll be keeping it in mind. Thanks!
Hmmm. That is a very interesting thought, and it's a pretty good reason as to why Luna was absent. It's also nice to hear a different theory than Luna is still nightmare moon pretending to be "healed" by the elements of harmony and transformed into Chrysalis to test if she can beat Celestia and the elements of harmony without anyone knowing nightmare moon still exist... Gah ever since I heard that theory it's been stuck in my head... Probably because of the catchy quote they used
Also I'd love to see you continue this. It sounds interesting.
This does indeed feels like a first chapter of a longer fic so I do hope you decide to continue the story in the future
and I'll follow it just in case 
I thought it was going to be that Luna was actually in disguise as Chrysalis.
Oh that's exactly what I was thinking Celestia did when I watched the show! Lol. The sametging happened in Canada... Kind of. During most world crysises that never really affected us the prim minister would send the Vice-Prime Minister to a nuclear bomb shelter in the arctic circle. However the chaos of the crysise's never seem to affect us as I said. I guess being nice to people really pays off.
2631612 That's quite an interesting theory too. Can't say it occurred to me that Luna could still be 'a bad guy' but now that I think about it, it could probably make for some good stories.
Thanks! I'm getting more and more interested in continuing this actually. It'll definitely get done, right now it's just a matter of when to do it (since I've got a longfic to finish and a short sequel that I've promised to write afterwards).
2637027 Thank you, I certainly will do. I think I'll change the tag to 'On Hiatus' so everyone knows I've decided to continue it eventually.
2637626 Like the whole thing was just a Royal Sisters' practical joke or something? Hehe, that would be a cool twist
Or maybe something more like a training drill for everyone? So many possibilities! Good thought 
2658616 Great minds think alike!
Yes, it's apparently quite a common thing - leaving one leader in charge whilst getting another to safety, in case something goes wrong. Being nice to people certainly does pay off!
2661245
Yeah I saw it in a video I watched and it blew my mind... But I also have trouble seeing Luna as evil, so that's why I'm kind of annoyed that that theory got stuck in my head.
I know I am late to this party and I don't know if anyone is going to read this comment, but I still wanted to express my thoughts on this story.
I can understand Celestia's point of view; it does make perfect sense when you are thinking about trying to preserve a whole kingdom. However, one thing that Celestia isn't thinking of (and what I have yet to read in the past comments) is how constantly thinking about worst case scenarios can effect someone. In the story, Celestia is pretty much saying that it is realistic to prepare for the worst, and she is not wrong. But it seems that her train of thought has gone from preparing for the worst to expecting the worst. When you expect the worst, that changes your mindset and effects the decisions and actions you make. It can get so bad that the person who is expecting the worst may start making choices that help the worst case scenario come true. In other words, a self-fulfilling prophecy has being created.
Despite what some people thing, being realistic is different from being pessimistic; there is a fine line between the two, but it does exist. Yes, realistically there is a chance that both Princesses could have been overpowered if Luna stayed. However, it also realistic to think that they could have won if Luna stayed; after all she is pretty powerful herself and Chrysalis may not have been able to overpower two Princesses at the same time. By making Luna (and possibly her contingent of guards) leave before the attack it is possible that she made it far easier for Chrysalis to and her army to cause as much havoc as they did.
Again, there is nothing wrong preparing for the worst; having an exit strategy and putting away some of your resources is a smart just in case things don't go the way you wanted them to go. However, Pinkie is not angry about that. She is angry because Celestia is expecting the worst case scenario to come true. Like I said expecting the worst can and will effect the decisions people make, and not always in a good way.
I do hope you still plan to continue with this story. I would love to see where this can go.
I like this little one-shot. It was interesting to see Celestia and Pinkie having a serious conversation - one on one. And of course Celestia handled the undue attention with utter grace. This was quite engaging. Thank you kindly for the read. Also...
Haha!
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I agree. Luna might have made a big difference in the battle. After all she probably not as close to Cadence as Twilight or Celestia because that whole nightmare moon thing plus most of her work is the night shift which she works alone.