Silence
In the quietest corners of her mind she found solace from the hostile chattering of the world around her. All the voices faded as she focused on nothing but the silence every utterance was fighting to drown out. The sound demanded her attention, but she would not give it the satisfaction of stealing away the last of her peace, not yet. She refused to hear anything apart from the dimming serenity she so dearly hoped would prevent her from becoming overwhelmed, and for a moment she was lost to the vibrant echos of imagination. She willed herself into solitude, but wishing would not make it so. She could only pretend for the briefest of intervals. She could block it out, but only for a second.
Silence. How she yearned for silence.
Only moments had passed when she opened her eyes, a sea of angry faces and boisterous voices all directing their fury at her. She didn't deserve this. She didn't deserve any of it. She had tried so hard. But in the end... what difference had it all even made?
"Enough!" she heard a voice say from beside her. The tone was firm and authoritative.
The sea of shouting softened to a murmur before gradually melting into nothing. It was better than the loathed rantings, but it was not the sort of silence that afforded her the peace she had sought. It was the mere absence of sound, but the soul-piercing fire of discontention still roared rebelliously beneath the surface. One could hear a pin drop.
"You have been misinformed," the voice at her side said loudly, yet calmly, its bearer staring down the throng of colors with righteous conviction. "All that has happened would merely have come to pass regardless. If anything you should all be thanking my sister for the efforts she has made in reducing the damage. She may have even delayed the inevitable outcome."
A few voices rise up violently, scattered across the silent crowd. The anger of the previous outburst is born anew, and soon all is shouts of fury again. I close my eyes and turn away, for I am she, and I cannot endure this any longer. I leave my sister to face them alone. They are not angry with her. Their hateful utterances are meant only for me.
With every step upon the cold marble, the sound of my hooves' echos gradually overpowers the clamor. With the lengthening distance the voices begin to dissolve into nothing. I turn a corner and pause, looking about the corridor I set my eyes on a rigid white figure clad in gold armor against the wall. His expression is set, and there is no discernible degree of emotion there. But I saw it in his eyes. I know I saw it.
"You agree with them, do you not?" I ask him.
He does not move. He remains still. There is no discernible reaction apart from a slight flicker of surprise in his eyes.
"ANSWER THY PRINCESS!" I demand harshly. My stare upon him is cold and my voice carries through the hall farther than I had meant it to, reverberating with a shock that leaves the air sullen.
"Luna," the soft voice of my sister calls from behind me.
My eyes widen and my ears flatten against my head. I feel like a filly caught in the act of a foalish misbehavior. I close my eyes and turn my head away from it all. Again, I will that everything would simply melt away and leave me in peace. I feel the soft brush of a wing over my back.
"Come," my sister says. Her voice is gentle, serene, and insistent all at once.
I open my eyes to gaze at the tips of my hooves. I wish to be sure of my steps as I follow along beside her, her wing is still draped around me. I do not need to look up to know the room she has led me to. Double doors close behind us. There are no guards here. There is only my sister and I. For a while we simply stand there. All is silence, but it is the sort that is tinged with my mortification at being caught off-guard and exposed.
I feel her wing pull away, and she walks a short distance forward before turning to face me. I still do not look her in the eyes. I know she is looking at me, but I can't bring myself to reciprocate the action.
"Luna," she repeats softly.
The tenderness of her tone is so comforting. It is always comforting. After all the sting of the cruel words I have felt assailing my ears with venomous passion, her voice is as balm that seeps into my wounds and whispers of quiet understanding. She knows that I did all I could, even when every other voice condemns me she does not. She comprehends the immense burdens that are even in this moment weighing on my heart. She has been where I have been, and her warmth breathes an air of hope that there will come a time when I no longer feel this paralyzing despair.
My thoughts are realized as tears, and I screw my eyes shut in a feeble attempt to make them cease. Without meaning to, I sob. My sister leans in, and I feel the side of her face against mine. She nuzzles me.
"I know, Luna," she whispers. "I know."
For a while I cry. The sound of my weeping now the culprit preventing me from hearing the silence I seek. But it is alright. I feel a portion of the heaviness in my chest draining away, and the warmth of my sister's fur against mine begins to replace it with an emotion resembling a reserved contentment. I sniffle and rub away the moisture in my eyes with a foreleg, and she gives me the room to do so.
"They did not believe thee, sister." I do my best to keep my voice strong, but it quivers helplessly all the same. "I knew they would not. They shall not. I have failed thee."
"No, Luna," she utters with a voice of satin. "You have not failed me. You have not failed our ponies. You have failed no one."
I turn my eyes to meet hers, and they are empathetic. She has a small, reassuring smile, and her demeanor radiates the soft glow of the most soothing warmth. Were I a Changeling, I suspect that the love I felt from her in this one moment could sustain me for a lifetime.
"I am proud of you, Luna." Her smile widens slightly. "So very proud."
I feel the corners of my mouth drift upwards and with filled eyes I return her smile. I take a few steps closer to her and press my neck against hers in a modest embrace. From this time I will gather the strength to face all the difficult moments that will follow. I lose myself in the feeling of sisterly closeness and the genuine affection I so acutely longed for during these turbulent hours. Not another word is uttered, and with a sense of relief felt even to the depths of my very soul... I exhale. In the wake of my released breath is that which my grieved heart has so restlessly, fervently longed for... as sweet to feel as it is beautiful to say...
Silence.
December 2nd, 2018: Henceforth, please direct your grammar and spelling corrections to PM. Thank you. 
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A nice bit of sisterly love, but I'm afraid that this would be much stronger if it was made clearer of what Celestia was so proud of and what these ponies didn't believe. I didn't quite catch it, if it was mentioned.
9310617
The specifics of the situation aren't revealed. It is merely meant as an emotional fic.
9310618
Well then, I think it's still a nice little look at the less-than-shining moments of the two sisters. The emotions and body langaage were nicely done. Have an upvote!
9310621
Thank you!
This was good. But it feels incomplete because we don't know what happened to cause this. And that ruins it for me. Emotional fics work better if we have an idea of what the problem was.
9310699
Well, everyone is entitled to their own thoughts on the way emotional fics should be written, I suppose. Thanks for the read.
Wow... For such a short story, you really packed a lot of emotion into it. I'm impressed. And a little envious.
9310769
Thank you so much!
Worth the read looking forward to more
9310823
Yay! Thank you! 
Meh. I won't vote either way.
9310849
*Shrugs*
Hm
9311263
Hmm.
Ha, this was good, and it doesn't even require you to know what happened to get the true story. Well written, congratulations!
Haha, my man, you know how we start these. But only one significant nitpick hit me, so that's something!
Because you haven't used a question mark, and because the context doesn't completely clarify the situation, it sounds as though you've tried to say 'But it is alright.' In fact, I think that is what you've tried to say, but you mixed up the word order by mistake.
Now, I read lower down in the comments that someone else wondered what, exactly, this story's circumstances are and agree that the story could be stronger were these elaborated. However, I get what you've done here and think that it fulfils your intention – it's about the emotions and not the circumstances. I mean, I can't say they hit me too hard, because it's hard to care when you don't really know why you should. But I do like good writing, haha, and the writing is certainly that. Once again, very good use of language and balanced pacing. That we don't know the circumstances does, at first, help pull the reader in, but I think, when it comes to a story like this (where it's about feeling), if you want the reader to appreciate those of the characters more, you'd have to bulk up the whole thing to build truly that path to his/her heart.
It's nice to see you're trying lots of things! Heck, you're certainly producing a lot right now.
I wish I were too. You know how this comment will end:Good job! Haha! Thanks for the story, T.S., and see you at the next one.
9311639
Thank you for sharing your thoughts.
9311425
Thank you! I'm so happy you enjoyed it!
So...gonna be utterly ugly and blunt about this....What the fuck is this wall of words even referring to? We cannot begin to feel any kind of feelings for anyone in this situation without having some kind of background. So...yeah....*waits for reason to be spelled out*
9313020
I'm afraid I'm going to have to politely agree to disagree with you on this one. The story was meant to highlight the more emotional, supportive aspects of the relationship between Luna and Celestia. The specifics of the political situation could be many things, but the point is that Luna is being unfairly blamed for that which was beyond her control, and Celestia comforts her and encourages her when others condemn Luna without the proper understanding.
As for you feeling that you simply can't care about all this without knowing the specifics, you are welcome to feel that way. I on the other hand quite like to see how quiet moments play out between these two, and I don't need to know more because I already find their interactions interesting on their own. I merely wished to try my hand at a more dramatic style with this little one-shot. I wasn't trying to think up a long, complicated, and exact technical explanation as to how it all came to be.
It's unfortunate that the story wasn't to your liking, but I'm actually quite pleased with the way it turned out in regard to my intentions.
Aww. I love the prose in this. I like the way Luna speaks while she's thinking.
9314280
Glad you liked it.
Nobody shouts at my Luna
9347841
Tis true!
Very sad but hearthwarming for Celestia to comfort her sister.
I take it this is set after the season 1 premiere?
9645414
I expect so.
I enjoyed it. The wider context of the story wasn't needed, simply the emotional fallout of what had transpired. I do like the way you wrote the sisters; like actual sisters. I see many stories where they're simply written as two characters who know eachother, you know?
Anyways, Luna didn't fail the ponies; the ponies failed Luna.
10184238
Thank you. I'm happy you liked this one.