Dream Life

by Crescent Pulsar

Chapter 1: A Meeting of Minds

After closing her bedroom door behind her, Celestia paused for a moment before visibly relaxing and releasing a sigh. Another typical day had gone by, where she had simply performed her duties as princess and nothing unusual or threatening had occurred. She had also tried to act more approachable to somepony, but as was almost always the case they hadn't known how to respond and ultimately pretended that it hadn't happened.

She considered relaxing by the fireplace and reading a book before turning in, when something on her bed caught her eye. A closer look revealed that it was a sealed scroll, one that bore her sister's insignia. Curious, she unfurled the scroll after unsealing it and began to peruse its contents.

"My beloved sister," she read internally, "it has come to my attention that you rarely get any 'me time,' as they say. I cannot, in good conscience, allow this to continue. Therefor, I have made a special arrangement for you in the dream realm."

Her eyes widened as she began to grasp the nature of the letter.

"Tonight, until you desire otherwise, you shall be lucid while you dream, and have the ability to make happen whatever you can imagine. I have also provided a dreamer from another universe to keep you company, so you can have a real entity to interact with. They have agreed to have their dream state linked with your own and lend you a hoof in whatever capacity they can."

Despite how much the implications made her mind race, she continued reading.

"Yes, I could have asked you first, but I suspected what your answer would be and I worry about you. If you have questions, you may direct them to Empyrean. If that proves to be insufficient, you may pose them to me after you wake. And if you are truly against this arrangement, I shall dissolve it."

"Know, however, that I have ensured your privacy. Not only will I not be able to view your dream unless you will it, but I have instructed Empyrean to not share what occurs in yours dreams to me."

"Sincerely," she softly spoke aloud, "Luna."

She stared at the letter for a time, not really seeing it, as she considered the situation. Her sister had been right, of course: she would have turned down this opportunity if it had been offered to her first. While she didn't exactly have an issue with accepting this kind of help, she could imagine how many of her little ponies would react if they thought themselves even the least bit culpable for her wanting an escape from reality.

However, with sleep acting as a cover for the escape being offered, and not wanting to distrust her sister with the secret, the real obstacle was whether or not she was willing to allow herself such an indulgence. While she was amenable to having a little fun from time to time, she had been very wary of exercising selfish behavior ever since her sister's fall, and Daybreaker — who was very much focused on her own desires — was a recent reminder of what she could risk if she didn't keep herself in check.

That's not to say that was the only factor behind her reservation. Minimizing her needs had also gone a long way to help make her rule smooth and unchallenged while she slowly, subtly shifted the way Equestria was governed, transferring her control to peer-elected ponies over time. One day the ponies of Equestria will be completely self-sufficient and she would be free to move on, which would be the appropriate time to think more about her own needs, within the context of a simpler life.

She glanced at her pillow and worried her bottom lip.

Despite her plans, though, she didn't want to spurn her sister's help outright. And while she didn't want to admit it, the opportunity to chat with an alien creature really piqued her interest. Not only because they could offer something new and/or strange to talk about, which those from Equestria and other lands have sorely lacked for ages, but there were some things that she wished to share without having to worry about what others might think, or how they would react — which included those closest to her.

So, in the end, she decided, "I'll humor my sister for one night."

---

When Celestia became aware that she was dreaming, she found herself sitting on her throne, looking out over the throne room. She wasn't all that surprised that her mind would establish this setting as a default, considering it was the place that she viewed more often than anything else by far, and for that reason she felt a pang of sorrow at the sight. It was fortunate that she would live long after her rule, because she planned to move around and explore for a while, to make up for her extremely sedentary life.

Before she could begin to decide on what to do, she suddenly noticed that she wasn't alone: one moment she saw no one else present, then there was a pony standing in the middle of the room, on the red carpet, after blinking her eyes. Said pony was a mare, an alicorn like herself, and her overall dimensions were somewhere between her sister's and her own. She had a medium grey coat, burnt orange eyes, and her mane and tail had the appearance of flames when seen in slow motion, colored carrot orange at their core and transitioning to persimmon along the border. Then there were the feathers of her wings, which gradually turned from grey to silver, and her hooves were silver as well. Finally, and curiously, her flank was bereft of a cutie mark.

Her guest was facing the windows, and appeared to be in the process of becoming aware. Not wishing to speak to them from on high, she stood up and began to approach them at a leisurely pace. By the time she reached a comfortable distance and stopped, her guest was gazing at the large, stained glass windows in awe.

To get their attention, she spoke up and said, "Empyrean, I presume?"

The other mare jerked slightly in surprise, but smiled easily when she turned to face her. "That's me. You must be Celestia."

Celestia nodded her head before getting directly down to business. "Tell me: is this your normal form, or one that you have assumed?"

Empyrean spared a second to glance down at herself, which was enough of an answer for Celestia, but she allowed her to reply regardless. "Oh, no," came the nonchalant response, "I'm a human, normally. Your sister wanted you to be with a peer, 'cause, y'know..."

"Mm," Celestia hummed noncommittally, trying to glean as much as she could of Empyrean's character even as her curiosity was piqued. "By human, are you referring to a plantigrade, bipedal mammal with opposable thumbs among their phalanges?"

Blinking her eyes a few times, Empyrean seemed uncertain when she finally replied. "...I guess? Most of that sounds right, anyway."

After a light chuckle, Celestia said, "Sorry. My knowledge of the human species comes secondhoof, and I'm afraid the friend that I learned about them from tends to fall back on traditional and official terms. I usually have to use such language myself, rather than what is used by the commonpony."

"No problem," Empyrean replied, with a dismissive wave of a hoof. "Coming from different worlds and cultures, we'll probably say some unfamiliar terms either way."

"Indeed," Celestia agreed, before assuming a more serious demeanor. "Now, I'm not sure what my sister has told you about me, but I want to make it clear that I'm not interested in this arrangement of hers — thoughtful as it is."

Nodding her head once in acknowledgement, Empyrean replied, "Yeah, your sister said that you'd probably be against it. May I ask why?"

"Let's just say that I'm being patient," was all that Celestia was willing to offer.

"Fair enough," Empyrean evenly replied.

They stood silently and stared at each other for a moment. When the silence was on the verge of becoming awkward, Empyrean released a sigh of disappointment before turning about and walking toward the exit.

"Where are you going?" Celestia inquired.

While continuing onward, Empyrean tossed over her shoulder, "Figured I might as well check the place out and have a bit of something interesting to remember when I wake up."

Celestia watched as Empyrean reached the double doors, who stopped and scratched the back of her head as she tried to figure out how to open them. It hadn't crossed her mind that the other party might benefit from the arrangement that her sister had made, but — then again — she had been under the impression that it had been done for her sake alone. She felt a little bad about denying Empyrean whatever she had been looking forward to, but she was determined to remain resolute in her decision to be self-sacrificing until she could move on from being Equestria's princess.

Speaking of self-sacrifice... Perhaps she should ask her sister about Empyrean before settling on a course of action. Even if only her sister would know about it, she would still feel bad if she turned a blind eye to someone in need, if that turned out to be the case.

Until then, she supposed that it wouldn't hurt to give Empyrean a tour of the castle.

Author's Note:

Seven Serenity wanted to draw something, for drawing's sake, and Empyrean wound up being the subject.