A Painful Reminder

The smoke faded, and there he was, standing a few yards away with a shocked expression on his face. She couldn't stop her heart from beating faster as a smile stretched across her face.

But Hope had to go and put her hooves around his neck.

Celestia's heart broke as she realized that even though this version of her love was good, he wasn't the same as the stallion on the other side of the mirror. This was just another reminder of the fact that she would never see her Sombra again.

Still, she plastered a fake smile on her face and welcomed this new Sombra back. All the while, Hope was grinning ear to ear. It made Celestia feel ten times worse.

Finally, Sombra and Hope walked away, chatting and Celestia let out a sigh. Luna eyed her warily, but the Mane 6 didn't notice anything happening behind them as they strolled to the castle. Luna motioned for Celestia to stay back.

"Are you okay? I know these events must be… challenging to face, knowing your connection to the other Sombra."

Celestia knew that her sister was only trying to help, but her words tore at her heart. "It's painful, Luna. It's just another painful reminder of the heartache I had to go through. There's just so much pain."

Almost as if she sensed Celestia's frustration, Luna said soothingly, "Well, I am here for you no matter what. If you need some time, I can arrange for a servant to bring you dinner in your rooms." When Celestia gave her a playful glare, Luna stuttered, "On second thought, I could always… get it myself." She groaned, and Celestia laughed. But she spotted Hope and Sombra in the distance again. Luna followed her gaze and ushered her away.

But it was too late.

The pain grew.

Celestia launched herself into the sky and flew to her balcony. She blinked away tears as she stumbled into her room and collapsed on her bed.

He's not my Sombra, she thought, so why does it hurt to see him with Hope?

But she realized she could answer that even as she asked the question. Hope gets what I can't have. Happiness. She rolled over and stared at the ceiling. But I don't want that Sombra. I need… Celestia thought about how she had last seen him. His eyes were dripping with purple ooze, his horn smoking red. No, even if she got him back, he'd still be-

Evil. Pillows bounced off the bed as Celestia bolted upright, thoughts flying through her head. If this Sombra was reformed, what happened on the other side of the mirror? Could she really hope that something drastic happened there to thrust him into the light?

She heard a knock from her door. "If you want me to come in, I can keep you company, but if you need more time alone, that's fine too."

"You can come in, Luna," Celestia called, and a few moments later Luna had brought in a tray piled high with desserts and other various comfort foods.

Luna used her magic to raise a cupcake to her mouth. "How are you doing?"

"Fine. Listen, I have-"

"That will have to wait, Celestia. Cadence and Shining Armor are wondering where you are. I didn't tell them anything, but since you didn't tell them all the details about the mirror, they request your presence for a celebration feast before Hope and Sombra set off to recover Princess Amore. What should I use as your excuse?"

Celestia shook her head, saying, "I don't need any excuse. I'll attend. I don't want anypony to worry about me."

"Celestia, that ship has sailed. Twilight and her friends are aware of the situation, and I barely managed to convince them to stay back and give you space."

"I'm fine, Luna." Celestia rolled her eyes and shakily got up off the bed. "But this has me thinking about balance." For a second, Luna looked at her in confusion, but realization slowly dawned on her, bringing an expression of wariness to her face.

"I don't think that's a good idea, Celestia. Remember what happened last time you gave in to the temptation? Both of our worlds were in grave danger because of the rift. Every time you've been forced to stop going into the mirror, you become heartbroken for weeks. Not only will this hurt everypony else, but I don't know how well you'd do with more pain."

Celestia leaned her head back and looked at the crystal ceiling. "I know, but that was because of the evil version of myself. And now that both of us are good and Sombra reformed, the dimension has to make some change in some way to keep the balance."

"First of all, yes, it was you who created the rift. Our counterparts did make it worse, but it was you who started it, Celestia, whether you want to admit it or not." At this Celestia flopped back onto the bed with a huff. Luna rolled her eyes, but the princess of night continued "Second, don't you remember that the evil energy had to go somewhere, so I believe that the other Equestria is a complete wasteland because the balance forced the other Celestia and Luna to go dark. Third-"

"But you know that," Celestia argued. "My Sombra could have reformed too."

Luna replied calmly, "I know that you want that to happen, but all the evidence tells us that is unlikely. And my third point is, You have no method of traversing between worlds. The mirror has been shattered. The pieces have been discarded. Even if we knew for sure, a visit to that dimension would be impossible."

"I suppose it would be," Celestia admitted with a sigh. "Wishful thinking, that's all. Let's go to the feast."

"Are you sure?"

"I'll be fine."

"Just promise me you won't think too much about the idea of returning to the other world."

"I won't."

But Celestia was already making plans to visit Star Swirl's library and do some research on the mirror. If it was possible, she needed to know her Sombra's fate for sure.

Thanks for reading! Please comment if you have any questions or feedback. Hopefully I'm better at updating this than TTOL!