Two Kinds Of Beauty
It was a cold and brittle night in the land of Equestria. Twilight Sparkle, the famed Princess of Magic that Celestia herself trained, shivered in the dark. She found little comfort in the soft glow of candle light and even less in the smell of her many books. She sighed softly and blew out the the candle with her exhale. She crawled into her warm, royal bed quietly, as to not disturb the, now two feet taller than her, sleeping pile of purple and green scales. She folded her wings onto her sides, but still couldn't get comfortable in the itchy bedsheets. Twilight sighed in frustration and hopped of her bed with a flap of her wings so she could land softly enough to not disturb Spike. She walked out onto the balcony and closed the door behind her lightly. She inhaled the cool night air deeply through her nose, picking out scents of jasmine, rose, frankincense, and, her personal favorite, lavender with her heightened Earth Pony senses. She exhaled a small mist and a light, nostalgic smile spread across her face. Her half-lidded violet eyes drifted over the crisply white land scape until they spotted a familiar town. She quickly averted her purple gaze to the uniquely hoof-crafted ivory on the railing.
"Twilight Sparkle?" A curious, yet majestic voice called from behind her. Her eyes snapped back to their full sized lamps and she turned slowly to face the Princess Of The Night.
"H-Hello, Luna..." Twilight's sadder voice betrayed her composure.
"What art thou doing awake at this hour?" The Lunar Princess asked.
"Please, Luna, we may both be princesses now, but we are still friends." Twilight said, not having the patience to decipher Luna's ancient word choice, no matter how easy and cute she thought it was. The midnight blue Alicorn blushed and mentally cursed herself for her habits.
"Sorry. So, what has you up?" Luna rephrased her question. Twilight sighed deeply for the third time that night.
"Couldn't sleep." She half lied.
"Lying is unbecoming of you. What would Applejack think?" Luna asked. It was usually her sister who diffused such situations, but since Celestia was resting and Luna could not bare to see Twilight like this until morning, it was left to the Lunar Princess to do her best.
"Nothing." Twilight answered coldly. "She can't..." She added with a softer, and sadder, tone. Luna frowned and draped a comforting wing across the lavender Alicorn. Luna looked up at the sky and closed her eyes. A magical teal aura lightly spiraled up her horn, allowing her to move the stars in a swirling manner and constructing an image in her mind as well as the sky. She opened her eyes and saw a familiar face staring smugly back at her through the stars. She looked back down at Twilight, who was still sadly studying the intricate engravings on the ivory railing, and smiled.
"Twilight." The lavender mare gazed up at Luna with sad eyes. "What is the most beautiful thing in the world?"
"Friendship, of course." Twilight answered almost instantly.
"That is the most beautiful mental aspect, yes. Now, tell me, what is the most physically beautiful thing?" Luna asked. Twilight thought about it for a long time, constantly gazing at the land far below.
"Equestria..." She finally answered, "I have never noticed its beauty before. It usually looks so... bland. Now it's calm, beautiful, peaceful, and serene..." Twilight said, then hesitated.
"Yes, go on," Luna urged.
"The way the snow crystals refract the moonlight back at you, creating an attractive, unequestrian glow. The way the stars unlock fragrances and how the cool breeze brings them to our nostrils in the perfect amount. The way that the moon casts dancing shadow's among the dark..." Twilight trailed off for a minute, looking deep in thought. She finally rose her head up to look at Luna with a small smile. "The night sky. The way it's bright moon and twinkling stars filled with love and beauty smile at you... Equestria is not the most beautiful physical thing. The night sky is. Your night sky is." Twilight breathed out and averted her gaze to the vast expanse of stars. She let out a nostalgia-filled chuckle when she saw the smug face of her old friend.
"What happens when you combine the two most beautiful things?" Luna asked with a small smile.
"You get something perfect." Twilight answered and stared deep into Luna's aquatic green eyes, seeing the entire night sky sparkling at once. She gave the Lunar Princess an affectionate nuzzle and the two rested on each others bodies while Luna played with the sky. She rearranged the stars into different shapes and sizes, then created a meteor shower overhead as she sung in her low, majestic tone. Twilight could almost hear the Moonlight Sonata by Ludwig Van Beethoofen in the background.
"Laying beneath the starry skies
Viewing this beauty with my eyes.
It's a wonderous attraction to me
That I stay up every night just to see.
Dear Princess,
You should never feel alone.
Because I will always be there,
Even when you don't seem to care.
Just remember as you sit at your throne.
May this song bring you a smile,
My Princess Of Magic
You are never alone..." Luna's slow, beautiful voice faded with Twilight's consciousness as she fell into the best sleep of her eternal life.
She awoke in her bed the next morning, feeling energized and ready to go instead of sluggish and groggy. It felt good to finally be rid of her depression. The lavender mare hopped out the bed and looked out the window. She was a little sad that the night was gone and the sun had taken its place, but smiled nonetheless. She was happy for once in one hundred and fifty years.
"Good morning, my student." Celestia's kind voice floated from the doorway. Twilight looked over to see her pearly white mentor standing under her arched door.
"I suppose it is, isn't it, Celestia." She answered with a dreamy smile, still recalling the previous night. "It definitely is."