Bonus - Nightmare Night
The moon, as always, felt leaden and dull to Celestia’s magic, quite unlike the graceful motions of her own sun which had been eased over the horizon just moments ago this evening. She was not sure if the feeling was actually due to the moon itself, or the enveloping darkness she could feel in her own heart at the touch of her corrupted sister held within. Every evening, she swore not to cry; after all, it was one evening closer to the day when Luna would return. And yet every evening she could feel the tears welling up, fighting to the surface in sorrow for the loneliness that they both had to endure.
“Good evening, little sister. I hope you had a pleasant day. Forgive me for being a few minutes late, the meeting ran longer than I expected it to.”
There was no reply, as always, and Celestia sniffled a bit while she contemplated the moon. It was hard to believe that it had been nearly a thousand years since that fateful day, but Celestia was grateful that Luna’s banishment would soon be at an end.
“Just a couple of decades, dear sister, and then I will be able to right all of the wrongs I have committed against you.”
“Princess? Who are you talking to?”
Celestia inhaled, put on her best fake smile, and turned to the pony who had just strolled up to her. “I was just talking to myself, Mayor. Tell me, were you able to settle the right-of-way issues?”
Mayor Roulette glanced up to the moon quickly before replying. “We have come to terms, Princess, and I can’t thank you enough for your valuable insight and support. Las Pegasus will receive the water we need, and I believe things should run much smoother now.”
“I am glad to hear that, Mayor,” Celestia replied with her usual neverending grace. “Should you need any further assistance, please feel free to contact me.”
“I’ll remember that, and thank you.” The Mayor glanced up once more at the star-filled sky, shook her head, and offered a smile that reeked of a potential political scheme. “If it’s not too impertinent, Your Highness, may I ask what your plans are for Nightmare Night? If you should happen to have an opening in your schedule, I’m sure you would find an enjoyable time here in town.”
Celestia smiled and politely shook her head. “I’m afraid I do have some important matters to attend to back in Canterlot. I greatly appreciate the offer, however, and perhaps I can make arrangements to attend another festival to make up for it.”
“We would be delighted to have you for Hearth’s Warming, Princess. I’ll have my ponies contact your ponies, and we’ll see what can be arranged.”
“Of course. Miss Sorrel will make the necessary arrangements, and I look forward to enjoying the holiday with you and my little ponies here.”
Celestia then paused. Across the street from where her carriage was parked sat a young colt. He was dressed in a snazzy and fairly accurate Wonderbolt costume, but he looked lost and frightened. Large tears were streaming down his face while he searched the street, and Celestia felt her heart break at the sight of it. “Mayor, forgive me for being rude, but I do believe I see another pony who is in need of my assistance. Would you excuse me?”
Mayor Roulette nodded, and curious eyes remained on the Princess while she quickly trotted across the street and over to the troubled colt. He retreated a step or two back when she approached him, but Celestia gently dipped her head and offered the most comforting smile she could.
“Good evening, my little pony,” she said in her best, most friendly voice. “Forgive me for intruding, but you look like you could use some help.”
“I lost my Gramma.” He sniffled, and he quickly tried to wipe away his tears. “She was just right here, but then I saw some balloons, and when I went to ask her if I could have one, she was gone.”
“That is quite frightening, I must admit,” Celestia replied with a nod. “If I may, I would like to help you find her again.”
The young colt hesitated. “Grams says I shouldn’t talk to strangers.”
“And she is right. If you will remain right here, I can summon a nice policemare to come assist you. Would that be better?”
Again he hesitated, but then he shook his head. “You can help me, if you want to. I think I can trust you.”
Celestia felt a wave of delight grow in her heart, and she nodded while that joy spread to her smile. “I would be honored, Captain.”
“Captain?” Two adorable sea-green eyes gazed at her in confusion, and Celestia fought back the urge to scoop up the little yellow colt and squeeze all of his worries away.
“You are Captain Wind Rider, are you not?” Celestia asked with a playful giggle. “I certainly hope I know who the legendary leader of my Wonderbolts is.”
The little colt’s frown began to invert, and Celestia could almost see the dots connecting in his mind. “Oh, yeah. That’s me, Captain Wind Rider, at your service!”
“Well, Captain, shall we go?”
Captain Rider, Junior, nodded again. He stood, and Celestia admired the bravery he was trying to project, despite his young age. “So, how do we find Grams?”
“Well, I imagine she is looking for you as well, so the best place to start would be to retrace your steps. Where were you before you saw the balloons?”
Wind Rider Junior sniffled and wiped his nose with a hoof. “Well, we were at her restaurant, and we were going to go to the Nightmare Night Carnival.”
“Why don’t we walk back towards the restaurant, then. If we do not see your Grandma, then we can wait for her there. Do you have any other family members who might be looking for you?”
“Mom and Dad, and my Aunt See, but they’re working tonight. I don’t think they’ll be looking.”
“Where do they work at?”
“At Grams’ restaurant. They’re chefs there. One day, I’m gonna be a chef, too.”
“Oh, you are?” Celestia laughed. “You’re quite the talented young stallion. Not many ponies could be a Wonderbolt and a chef at the same time.”
“Oh, I’ll never be a Wonderbolt. These wings are fake.” The young Rider shook his barrel to waggle them slightly, but then he took a long look at Celestia, and his eyes lingered on her wings. “Your costume is really, really good. Are your wings real?”
Celestia just didn’t have the heart to tell him the full truth, so she opted for a standard diplomatic diversion. “They are. Why don’t you ride on my back? You might be able to see your Grams from a higher vantage point.”
Rider gave her a curious glance now. “What’s a ‘vantage?’”
“A place where you can have a good view of everything,” Celestia replied. “You will be able to see over the entire crowd up here.”
“Oh! Yeah, that’s a good idea. I won’t hurt you, will I?”
“Not at all! Here we go.” Celestia picked up Rider in her hooves, suppressed the desire to give him a hug and a nuzzle, and then gently tucked him in between her outstretched wings. He seemed rather delighted to be up so high, and he took a moment to poke at her feathers before beginning to scan the crowd around them.
“Do you see her?” Celestia asked.
“No, I don’t.”
“Which way do we need to go to get to your restaurant?”
Rider glanced around, then pointed with a hoof. “That way. I think.”
Celestia began to walk in the direction Rider had indicated, and she surreptitiously motioned for her guards to fall back and follow at a short distance. Rider’s family would already be worried sick over their missing little one, and she could easily imagine that they would be highly embarrassed as well if they found that their Princess was the one who had found and returned him. With luck, Celestia would be able to return Rider without exposing herself, but if she did, she would simply claim to be in costume as well.
“Have you been enjoying Nightmare Night, Rider?” she called over her shoulder.
“Yeah, it’s been pretty fun, but I really hope I can still go to the carnival. There’s a haunted house, and Jackpot the Magician is going to hypnotize a bunch of ponies and make them cluck like chickens, and there’s a bunch of really cool rides I wanna go on. There’s one Quilt Patch was telling me about, called The Shadow. She says it’s so inte … insen … um, in tents that you’ll throw up everything you’ve eaten since last week. Oh! And then, then there’s gonna be a huge candy hunt! I got a super big bag so I can get a ton of candy, and then I’m gonna eat it all tonight before Mom takes it away. I really hope I get a lot of those chocolate wafer things. I love those.”
“My goodness! You have quite the night ahead of you.”
“Yeah, but I bet Grams won’t let me go now. She’ll be mad that I got lost. I bet she takes me home.”
“Have faith, my little pony. All of this was just an accident, and I am sure your Grams will still allow you to attend.”
“Do you have any family here?”
The question cut Celestia deeply, but she refused to show the pain. She did glance up at the moon, however, and the long familiar twinge of regret introduced itself once again, kicked off its muddy boots on her heart, and settled into its favorite chair in her soul. “I’m afraid I do not. I am missing a pony very important to me, in fact.”
“You are?”
“Indeed. I have lost my sister.”
“Oh.” The sadness in Rider’s voice matched Celestia’s emotion perfectly. “Do you need me to help you find her?”
Celestia gave a small chuckle to that. “No, but thank you. I believe I know where she is.”
“Well, what does she look like? I can look for her too.”
Celestia thought for a moment on how best to answer his question. “I would appreciate that, Captain. She is tall, with a dark navy blue coat and cyan eyes.”
“Cyan?”
“Blue and green mixed together,” Celestia clarified. “Her husband once said that they were like looking into the depths of the sea.”
“Do you think he’s looking for her too?”
“I am hopeful that he is, and that he will comfort her once she is found.” Celestia again gazed at the moon. “She deserves to have it.”
“The moon is pretty tonight, isn’t it?” Rider remarked, and Celestia glanced back at him. “It’s like a big silver plate, and you’d put all your favorite food on it and then share it with your family. Do you have a favorite food?”
Celestia giggled again. She needed to find his Grams, and quickly, or else there was a good chance Celestia would try to adopt him for herself. “I admit I like cakes, but I think I like them too much. I’ve been trying to cut back lately and to eat healthier.”
“You could always try carrot cake, or maybe rice cakes, I guess. When my Mom says she needs to lose weight, she eat a lot of rice cakes. I think she just eats her own cooking too much, you know. She sneaks tastes of everything.”
“I imagine that is always a problem for good chefs.”
“Yeah, but Dad just says there’s more of her to love, and then she gets all red in the face. I don’t get grown-ups sometimes. Mom always says she hates it when he says that, yet it seems like she wants him to keep doing it.”
“Grown-ups can be a bit strange, I have to admit.”
“Yeah. Mom and Dad just say they’ll explain it to me when I’m older, but I don’t like it when they tell me that. I’m not a little foal anymore, but they still treat me like one.”
“Don’t be too hard on them, Rider. They do want what is best for you, after all.”
“I know,” the little passenger huffed. “Does your Mom and Dad tell you what to do all the time?”
Celestia nodded and smiled to a passing pony before replying. “They did, yes. They were very strict with me, but they loved me, too.”
“Is that why your sister is missing? Did she run away?”
“No, I’m afraid my sister is lost because of me.”
“Really?”
“Yes.” Celestia took a moment to compose herself. “You see, I wasn’t very nice to her, either. I said a lot of mean things, and I hurt her feelings very badly. She got really mad with me one day, and … well, we got into a fight.”
“You fought with your sister? Why?”
“Do you not have a brother or a sister, Rider?”
“No, not yet. Mom and Dad sometimes talk about it, but then they say I’m all they can handle.”
Celestia giggled. “I hope not. It would not do for the captain of the Wonderbolts to be a rablerouser.”
“Yeah, Mom says that, too.”
“Well, sometimes siblings fight over silly things, and I didn’t want to listen to what my sister had to say. This fight was as bad as a fight can get, and in the end … hmm.”
“What?”
“Well, I suppose, in the end, my sister did run away, in a manner of speaking.” Celestia thought over the odd notion for a moment, but then she shook her head slightly. “Anyway, I know where she ran away to, so I just need to wait for her to calm down. Once she does, I will ask her to forgive me, and hopefully we can be friends again.”
“So, it’s kinda like she’s in time out?”
“In a way,” Celestia replied with a badly suppressed giggle.
“I hope your sister forgives you. I hate it when ponies fight. It’s always so mean, and nopony really listens when they yell. I don’t ever want to fight with anypony. I’d much rather be their friend.”
“My dear little pony, never lose that.” Celestia felt a deep happiness spread outward from her chest. “You will be able to accomplish great things if you try to be a friend to any pony you meet.”
“You think so?” Rider asked.
“I know so. Everypony needs at least one friend, I think. There is great magic in friendship, and ponies can draw much strength from others.”
“I guess that means I need to go tell Maple I’m sorry for saying she has cooties?”
“That would be a good idea, yes,” Celestia replied with a small laugh. “Are we near your restaurant?”
“Yeah, it’s right over there,” Rider replied with a bit of fear in his voice. “And Grams is there already, talking to Aunt See.”
“You should hurry back, then,” Celestia replied. She gently placed Rider down but couldn’t stop herself from giving him a quick hug. “And go have fun! I hope you get lots of candy.”
“Are you sure you don’t want me to help find your sister?” Rider asked.
“I appreciate your offer, but it’s more important for you to get back to your Grams. Go on.”
Celestia giggled when Rider gave her a quick hug around her neck, then skittered quickly over to his awaiting family. From her vantage point, she could see a great wave of relief come over both of his relatives when he appeared with a cry and a cheer, and she quickly cast an invisibility spell over herself while Rider was scooped up and hugged tightly by his Grams.
The Princess withdrew slowly, watching as the small Wonderbolt told his family about what had transpired, but she saw him frown when he pointed in her direction. It was short lived, however, and soon Rider was on the ground, his hoof firmly being held by his Grams, and his smile grew larger with each step they took towards the Carnival.
“What a delightful little stallion,” she remarked to herself while she began to walk back to her waiting carriage. “I certainly hope I will be able to meet him again someday.”
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I'm pretty sure you end up marrying him. :P
9263426
I am ashamed to say it took me right up to the end to figure out who the young colt was, well done.
Awww that was cute.
Also first!
9263433
I maybe could have done a bit better with that, but it's a tad bit difficult to not give too many details.
9263437
9263450
I think the details are just there enough, much less and people may not get it, any more and it's just breaking out the clue-by-four.
Awwwwww, so cute <3
9263426
XD it's bad when I read this and I think the cradle done robbed Celestia in a hilarious role reversal.
Yeah, this is way better than my Celestia swan theory. also it's nice to know that Luna had a hoof in Celestia meeting her future husband, albeit indirectly.
9263454
You just got a natural 20 win
Huh. I'm usually slow on the uptake on these things, but I was able to figure it out once you mentioned yellow fur and chef parents. Every other piece clicked after those two linked.
And that! Is how Cheese Sandwich met Celestia!
9263528
And Equestria will never be the same!
Wait a minute. Was that Baked Bean back when he was still a colt?
9263542
Indeed yes. :)
9263555
All of my yes for the Bean-ex-Machina!
Great story, cute and heart warming but what realy takes the cake is the site adds
Twilight and fluff pony frenching... these adds sometimes... and on a romance story no less.
And now he's missing again...
9263669
I'm getting diamond ring ads, for what it's worth.
9263681
“It’s so nice that you and Bean came to visit, Celly.”
“After everything that’s happened, Lima, we could definetly use the good company.”
“Awful business. That Tirek brute deserves whatever punishment Princess Twilight gave him.”
“Ten times. So what are you doing?”
“Oh just going through old pictures.”
“Really? Can I see?”
“Of course, I suppose you don’t really have those of yourself and Luna do you dear? Just...paintings?”
“Paintings of Paintings. Oh....my...”
“Oh that’s during a Nightmare Night in Las Pegasus, Little Baked gave is quite a scare, wandered off and said....Princess...Celestia... Celly are you alright? You look like you’ve see a ghost.
delightful little interlude!
Awwwwww, even as a colt he manegd to charm Celestia, those two were made for each other!
I nearly lost it when she thought about adopting him xD
Well that certainly makes their relationship a bit stranger.
Hehe cute!
*Ahem* EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!
That is all.
Such a sweet store of how Celestia met Been the first time.
I kinda hope this gets a mention somewhere in *canon* but if not it's nice as always.
Happy spoopsmas to you and to you a good night.
I read this earlier in the day, thought it was a heartwarming edition to the story, and went on my way.
It wasn't until later in the evening that I was gaming, and while doing so, had my mind started wandering and reflecting about the details of this chapter. I was envisioning a possible continuation after the ending sentence; “I certainly hope I will be able to meet him again someday.”
Then my mind went full stop with the realization of just who the colt actually was, and I had to take a minute physically from playing for it to sink in.
Case in point, you got me good on that one, props to you, Irrespective
And wow...... the CMC have yet to encounter this much sugary sap. Well done.
9265382
I only realized once he started talking about the restaurant.
But yeah. The subtlety really makes this chapter pop. And it was very cute, even if it never connected to the main story.
I liked the chapter it was cute, but I'm kinda iffy on what it does for the story as a whole. It makes the beginning feel more a fateful encounter instead of an accidental one now. The nose touch when reading it felt like that was the moment Bean's life would forever change, and it had such a strong impact because the assumption was that Bean had never met Celestia before. It was THE moment. Now you've taken the impact of that scene and shifted it to this chapter, one that has no bearing on the story at all. It just cheapens it for me.
9271218
I think that's the reason it's a bonus chapter, just stamp it with a "Non-Canon" and move one.
9263699
We need this in a chapter.
9720432
I agree
9263699
*That felling you get when you realize you almost adopted your husband....
Celestia: *thousand year stare* .....
Bean and Celestia were always meant to be
10070692
Wait. Hol’ up…
THAT WAS BEAN?!
Harmony was like: "I ship them, so in a few years I have to think of something to get them together..."
But bean would have remembered that right? This is adorable but is this cannon? Hah. Love your books by the way!