Princess Celestia went over the checklist on the clipboard hovering above her nose, carefully combing through her list of belongings to see if she had everything. In two days, she and Luna would transfer control of the kingdom of Equestria to Twilight, and she wanted to ensure she was thoroughly prepared. She and Luna had already agreed that, once they lost their consistent magic, they would move to a small retirement community just outside of Canterlot. That way, they could be around to offer advice to Twilight as she took the biggest step of her entire life.
Celestia sighed as millions of memories flooded through her mind. She remembered all the happiness she and her sister had shared during their time there. But she knew it was time to move on, and experience a lot of the aspects of life that they had been unable to during their reign. They each wanted a family of their own, and determined to marry a stallion as soon as they could. That shouldn't be too hard, Celestia said to herself, I know we'll look a little different. Our manes won't constantly be flowing, but I thought we were rather pretty mares before we became princesses.
Suddenly, a voice shattered her daydream. "Reminiscing, Tia?" Luna asked as she entered the room and sat next to her sister. Celestia smiled at her, grateful for the use of her nickname. It was nice to be called something so informal. "Yes, Luna, I am," she said, "I was just thinking of all the great times we've had in this palace."
"I know what you mean," her sister replied, "I've been doing the exact same thing."
Celestia's look turned extremely pensive. "Do you ever wonder what the future holds for us?"
"Now, Tia, we've been over this multiple times. You and I both know that we want to retire, settle down, meet a couple of stallions, and start families of our own. We also want to travel and see the world beyond Equestria. That's what the future holds."
"But how do you know that's what the future holds?"
"I don't," Luna said, "but I'm confident enough in us that I know we'll make it there. After all, princesses can have dreams, too."
Celestia wanted to believe that her sister was right, but some nagging part of her dammed up her faith. Even though she didn't show it in front of anypony, she was scared of the future. She didn't know anything but the royal life. The magic inside her that gave her the gift of a long life would soon be gone and she would be constrained to the life expectancy of a normal pony. Would there be enough time for she and Luna to do everything?
"Your faith in what our future holds is strong, my dear sister," she said, "but I'm afraid mine…isn't."
"Look, Tia," Luna said soothingly, "I'm scared too. I know I have a strong faith in that area, but I also have a lot of fears and doubts. I don't want us to leave Canterlot and be on our own forever. I want us to have friends and families and hopes and dreams. I want us to be able to live normal lives, as anypony does."
"Do you think we should start a business?" Celestia suddenly asked.
"Business? But, Tia, our income from thousands of years as princesses has us set for the rest of our lives. We've saved every bit we ever made, and at last count, we had made 1.4 billion bits. So why on earth would we need to start a business?"
Celestia sighed. "I guess I just don't know how to meet ponies on a friendship level, and I thought starting a business would help with that."
"That's ridiculous, Celestia!" Luna said sharply, "of course you know how to meet ponies on that level! I mean, for crying out loud, you're the pony who taught Twilight everything she knows about friendship!"
"That doesn't mean I'm comfortable with it!" Celestia yelled back, "I'm used to everypony bowing to me and addressing me as 'Your Majesty' and using royal etiquette and all that. I don't know how to just be…one of the mares."
Luna realized that her sister was incredibly distressed over this notion. She scooted closer and nuzzled up against her, trying to offer the same support that she had for thousands of years. Her eyes glistened as she gave her sister a look that eschewed hatred in favor of a deep love. She wasn't upset with Celestia for speaking with her that way, but rather she understood the depth of Celestia's troubles.
"I get it, Tia," she said, "you're scared of what's going to happen to us the minute we step hoof outside this castle. Like I said, I'm scared too. But you just can't live your life in fear of other ponies. Where's the confident Tia? The regal Tia? The Tia that won't let anypony get in the way of her goals? I remember, when we were fillies, that was the Tia I knew. It was the same one that became the kind, compassionate, yet fiercely determined ruler of all Equestria. It was the same pony…" Here the princess stopped and shuddered, "…who sent me to exile on the moon for a thousand years."
Celestia's eyes widened as her mind suddenly relived the horrible night when her sister transformed into Nightmare Moon. One regal princess had battled another until the demonic presence was dispatched into the great orb of the night sky. She looked down at her sister and saw that she was reliving the same terrible experience.
"I…" Celestia started, but was stopped by Luna's hoof on her face.
"No," Luna said, "you don't need to say anything. I live with the guilt of Nightmare Moon on a daily and nightly basis. Every time I go into somepony's dreams and it turns out to be a nightmare, I am terrified. I relive everything I ever did as Nightmare Moon, and the pain is nearly too much for me to bear. I would have killed ponies in that form. I would have slaughtered the innocent and caused unborn foals to be put to death. I would have…"
Here Luna stopped and burst into tears. She crumpled to the floor and sobbed. In an instant, Celestia crouched down and put her hooves around her. "It's ok," she said, "you don't have to live that way anymore. You haven't had to for a long time. You forgave yourself for that, remember? The Tantabus can't get you anymore!"
"I can't help it, Tia!" Luna wailed, "I became that horrible she-demon! I was that awful pony! It lives within me, and I can't help but remember it!"
Celestia said nothing but kept her hooves around Luna, cradling her just like she did when they were small fillies. Back then, she had made a vow to always protect her sister, and that vow had been sorely tested over their lifespans. But through it all, it had remained intact, and she had done everything for her beloved sibling.
Suddenly, Celestia opened her mouth and began singing a sweet song. Her voice was like honey to Luna's ears and it calmed her nerves. The fragrant refrains filled the room, and soon Luna was singing as well. The sisters harmonized perfectly as they sang a song of their youth. It was one their mother used to sing to them so long ago, and it spoke of the never ending love that she had for them. In this case, Celestia used it to express the never ending love she had for Luna.
When they finished, Luna smiled at her sister. "Thank you, Celestia," she said, "I needed to hear that."
"You're welcome, my dearest Luna," Celestia replied with a smile of her own, "I needed to hear it as well. Now, come. We have more work to do prepare to leave."