The last solstice
Chapter 20: Breakthrough – Part 1.
“You’re back!” the white alicorn exclaimed, her voice revealing disbelief.
There was a moment when Nocturnal Mirage thought Celestia’s going to hug him. The way and the speed of how the Princess re-assumed control over herself after the first shock also surprised and fascinated the stallion. There was an entire slideshow of different emotions on Celestia’s face, before she acquired the pose of the reserved, distant ruler. Even though she hasn’t acted as the First Mare of the Kingdom for over a decade, blood doesn’t turn to water. A thousand years in power could not be erased so easily. As his eyes slowly traveled upwards on the majestic form of the alicorn, the blue earth pónei, pônei realized Celestia was glaring at him with judgmental eyes.
“Where were you?” the sun goddess questioned coldly.
“I’m truly sorry, Princess, I was on vacation.”
“Vacation?!” Celestia called out making the stallion cringe a little por her sharp tone.
“Well...yes...”
“And what exactly do you think you’re doing?” the alicorn’s tone changed to a calmer, but mais menacing fashion. “You cannot just come and go around whenever you like!"
The solar Princess took a step closer to Mirage. The stallion winced but held his ground.
“You started this! You came here and broke my solitude, not the other way around! You awakened a feeling I thought I’ve suppressed long ago: the desire for company.”
Mirage turned speechless, he wasn’t expecting such vehement, yet honest reaction. Actually he wasn’t expecting to see the Princess ever again, for she’ll no longer allow him inside her suite. Celestia began to pace back and forth and swiftly swung into another mood. She stayed quiet for a few segundos and when she turned around, Mirage spotted a sparkly teardrop in the corner of her eyes, which increased his surprise even further.
“How… How could you just leave without any notice?! How… How can you be so inconsiderate? So… so… cruel?!” she asked suddenly.
“I am truly sorry, Princess; I didn’t know you’d take it that seriously. I thought it wasn’t a big deal.” It was an obvious lie of course, but Mirage determined he’ll play the risky game he’d started to the end.
“Wouldn’t I?” Celestia yelled, absolutely outraged and mortified. “How would you like if I’d starve you until you can barely stand then put a three-course meal in front of you, but have it taken away after a few bites?!”
“I…” Mirage began, but was cut short immediately por the solar alicorn.
“Oh, no my friend! You aroused my hunger…” she said as she was approaching the stallion with slow, stringent steps. “… the hunger for presence. You are going to urso the consequences of your decision and keep me company as long as I see fit! Do you understand?”
“Nothing would make me happier.” the royal blue earth pónei, pônei replied without hesitation and couldn’t decide that the words left his mouth were pretended or not.
“Good. There’s a book waiting for you on the table. I thought you might enjoy it. It has been there for over a week now…” Celestia remarked venomously as she walked to her sofa and made herself comfortable.
*** ***
The breakthrough occurred four days later. Everything seemed to have returned to normal, since Mirage was on duty again. His afternoon leitura sessions with the solar Princess resumed, like nothing happened. None of them said a word about their odd conversation, and as the stallion spent many silent hours with Celestia, observing her while she was reading, he was beginning to think his plan did not work out after all.
On the fourth dia however, Mirage noticed that the Princess was unusually anxious about something. The cobalt pónei, pônei pretended to be reading, lost in the book, but he always watched Celestia from the corner of his eye. Of course, she was atuação the same way, but her constant tumbling on the sofa and her fluttering wings blew away her alabaster disguise. The white alicorn opened her mouth several times during the afternoon, like if she was trying to say something, but closed it, when she changed her mind. Once she performed this motion so hard, that her perfectly shaped, snow white teeth clashed a little. She often looked at Mirage in a way like she was measuring the distance between them, but the stallion didn’t give any sign of his awareness.
“Would you…” Celestia began, clipping her words.
Mirage turned his head toward her. The sunlight shone inside the room from behind, the bright rays seemed to be dancing on the alicorn’s sky blue and rosa, -de-rosa mane. Her all-suffusing look felt like the finest purple velvet, as she pierced her eyes into Mirage’s. In this light, there was something enchanting about her. Even though she was over a thousand years old, she looked mais like a perplexed young mare as she was searching for the best way to convey her thoughts. She also seemed to be fighting with another part of her being, as she bit on her upper lip. The cobalt stallion waited quietly, locking his eyes onto the Princess, aware of the relevance of the moment.
“Would you like to… chat over a cup of tea?” Celestia eventually asked, after a few mais segundos of awkward quietness.
“Of course.” the earth pónei, pônei replied with a satisfied, but warm smile.
Even though the moment would seem trivial or completely meaningless to an outside observer, Mirage knew it was mais than that. This was the first time Celestia herself proposed the interaction, which Mirage found pretty impressive, especially considering her unstable mental condition. The stallion took that as a sign that the Princess is ready to take the seguinte step toward recovery.
Mirage knew he broke through the barricades of the sun goddess and it was just a matter of time now. Unfortunately, the same statement was valid to the entire Kingdom of Equestria: the first leaves have fallen; the wind got colder, the skies turned grey and cloudy, marking that Fall was approaching.
Every hora inevitably brought closer to the dia of the Solstice... perhaps the last one ponykind will ever see.
Chapter 20: Breakthrough – Part 1.
“You’re back!” the white alicorn exclaimed, her voice revealing disbelief.
There was a moment when Nocturnal Mirage thought Celestia’s going to hug him. The way and the speed of how the Princess re-assumed control over herself after the first shock also surprised and fascinated the stallion. There was an entire slideshow of different emotions on Celestia’s face, before she acquired the pose of the reserved, distant ruler. Even though she hasn’t acted as the First Mare of the Kingdom for over a decade, blood doesn’t turn to water. A thousand years in power could not be erased so easily. As his eyes slowly traveled upwards on the majestic form of the alicorn, the blue earth pónei, pônei realized Celestia was glaring at him with judgmental eyes.
“Where were you?” the sun goddess questioned coldly.
“I’m truly sorry, Princess, I was on vacation.”
“Vacation?!” Celestia called out making the stallion cringe a little por her sharp tone.
“Well...yes...”
“And what exactly do you think you’re doing?” the alicorn’s tone changed to a calmer, but mais menacing fashion. “You cannot just come and go around whenever you like!"
The solar Princess took a step closer to Mirage. The stallion winced but held his ground.
“You started this! You came here and broke my solitude, not the other way around! You awakened a feeling I thought I’ve suppressed long ago: the desire for company.”
Mirage turned speechless, he wasn’t expecting such vehement, yet honest reaction. Actually he wasn’t expecting to see the Princess ever again, for she’ll no longer allow him inside her suite. Celestia began to pace back and forth and swiftly swung into another mood. She stayed quiet for a few segundos and when she turned around, Mirage spotted a sparkly teardrop in the corner of her eyes, which increased his surprise even further.
“How… How could you just leave without any notice?! How… How can you be so inconsiderate? So… so… cruel?!” she asked suddenly.
“I am truly sorry, Princess; I didn’t know you’d take it that seriously. I thought it wasn’t a big deal.” It was an obvious lie of course, but Mirage determined he’ll play the risky game he’d started to the end.
“Wouldn’t I?” Celestia yelled, absolutely outraged and mortified. “How would you like if I’d starve you until you can barely stand then put a three-course meal in front of you, but have it taken away after a few bites?!”
“I…” Mirage began, but was cut short immediately por the solar alicorn.
“Oh, no my friend! You aroused my hunger…” she said as she was approaching the stallion with slow, stringent steps. “… the hunger for presence. You are going to urso the consequences of your decision and keep me company as long as I see fit! Do you understand?”
“Nothing would make me happier.” the royal blue earth pónei, pônei replied without hesitation and couldn’t decide that the words left his mouth were pretended or not.
“Good. There’s a book waiting for you on the table. I thought you might enjoy it. It has been there for over a week now…” Celestia remarked venomously as she walked to her sofa and made herself comfortable.
*** ***
The breakthrough occurred four days later. Everything seemed to have returned to normal, since Mirage was on duty again. His afternoon leitura sessions with the solar Princess resumed, like nothing happened. None of them said a word about their odd conversation, and as the stallion spent many silent hours with Celestia, observing her while she was reading, he was beginning to think his plan did not work out after all.
On the fourth dia however, Mirage noticed that the Princess was unusually anxious about something. The cobalt pónei, pônei pretended to be reading, lost in the book, but he always watched Celestia from the corner of his eye. Of course, she was atuação the same way, but her constant tumbling on the sofa and her fluttering wings blew away her alabaster disguise. The white alicorn opened her mouth several times during the afternoon, like if she was trying to say something, but closed it, when she changed her mind. Once she performed this motion so hard, that her perfectly shaped, snow white teeth clashed a little. She often looked at Mirage in a way like she was measuring the distance between them, but the stallion didn’t give any sign of his awareness.
“Would you…” Celestia began, clipping her words.
Mirage turned his head toward her. The sunlight shone inside the room from behind, the bright rays seemed to be dancing on the alicorn’s sky blue and rosa, -de-rosa mane. Her all-suffusing look felt like the finest purple velvet, as she pierced her eyes into Mirage’s. In this light, there was something enchanting about her. Even though she was over a thousand years old, she looked mais like a perplexed young mare as she was searching for the best way to convey her thoughts. She also seemed to be fighting with another part of her being, as she bit on her upper lip. The cobalt stallion waited quietly, locking his eyes onto the Princess, aware of the relevance of the moment.
“Would you like to… chat over a cup of tea?” Celestia eventually asked, after a few mais segundos of awkward quietness.
“Of course.” the earth pónei, pônei replied with a satisfied, but warm smile.
Even though the moment would seem trivial or completely meaningless to an outside observer, Mirage knew it was mais than that. This was the first time Celestia herself proposed the interaction, which Mirage found pretty impressive, especially considering her unstable mental condition. The stallion took that as a sign that the Princess is ready to take the seguinte step toward recovery.
Mirage knew he broke through the barricades of the sun goddess and it was just a matter of time now. Unfortunately, the same statement was valid to the entire Kingdom of Equestria: the first leaves have fallen; the wind got colder, the skies turned grey and cloudy, marking that Fall was approaching.
Every hora inevitably brought closer to the dia of the Solstice... perhaps the last one ponykind will ever see.