1

Premonition

"Come now, Luna."

A white filly gestured to open balcony doors with a flourish of a wing. A smaller blue filly stuck out her bottom lip and sat resolutely. The white filly smiled and walked over to her sister.

"Luna," she said gently, "Equestria needeth it to be morning."

"Celestia, do we have to?"

"I fear so," said Celestia in mock graveness. "The night hath been too long already. There are ponies who awaiteth the light of day." She motioned for Luna to stand. "And it is too late for thee already. Thou shouldst have been asleep by now."

"But I am not..." Luna fought against yawn, but it won. Celestia smiled, and Luna crossed her hooves. "I am not tired."

Celestia rolled her eyes. "Luna."

"I mean it! I..." Another yawn cut her off, and she looked at Celestia smirking. Luna stood and sighed dramatically, walking dutifully to the balcony. Celestia chuckled to herself and followed.

The moon sat lazily above the mountains in the west, and an azure sky was already appearing in the east. The few clouds present were soft shades of pink and purple. The early air was still chilly, and Celestia shivered, making Luna giggle.

"I suppose I earned that." Celestia turned and faced east. "Now, let us do our duties, shall we?" Luna nodded and turned west, their backs now to each other. They lit their horns and, with their magic, surrounded the sun and moon. Luna still struggled to keep the moon on a straight and graceful path down. She glanced behind at her sister, and it seemed almost second nature to Celestia. Finally, Luna managed to push her moon out of sight. The stars above took their cue and, one by one, quickly vanished.

"Alright, Tia." She closed her eyes and stretched her wings, turning around. "I am off to bed now. Good—" Luna stopped. Celestia hadn't moved. The sun had sunken back down behind the mountains. Luna timidly walked to her sister's side. "Tia? Art thou alright?" Celestia didn't so much as flinch. Luna stomped on the ground. "Tia! What art thou doing?" She went to nudge Celestia with a hoof, but she passed right through her.

She retracted her hoof quickly and froze, staring at it. "Tia?" She looked at her sister's face. Celestia's eyes were glowing white, but the rest of her face was expressionless. A powder began softly swirling around Luna's hooves. She looked down and traced them back to her sister's hooves. Her eyes widened, ears falling flat. Celestia was turning to dust.

"Tia!" Luna yelled, turning back to her sister's face. "W-what hath happened to thee?" Celestia said nothing. She stood, motionless, not even breathing, staring at where her sun was moments before. Luna, desperate to do something, ran to hug her sister, hoping to make it all better. She passed through, kicking up more dust, and she skidded across the marble floor. Luna felt the air get colder. She looked up and saw the clouds congregating, no longer colorful, darkening the sky. The wind picked up, howling around the balcony. Celestia cried glowing tears yet was still stoic, growing fainter and blurring into the surroundings.

"Tia! No!" Luna stood and watched in horror. "Do not leave me! I do not want thee to leave! I cannot be alone again!" Luna began sobbing and tried in vain to hold her sister. "Is this my fault? What did I do? Tia? Tia! Talk to me!"

The sky grew darker. Celestia faded even more. Luna tried to hug her sister again, but again felt nothing. Celestia looked at her, now with a faint smile on her face. Luna stopped, staring at her sister. Celestia spoke, but Luna couldn't hear over the wind. She held her breath and stood on the tips of her hooves. Celestia appeared to sigh, parts of her chest now disappearing. "Luna. This was not thy doing. I will be fine."

"No!" Luna's small voice broke. "Do not say that!"

"We shall meet again someday," Celestia said, her mane and tail mere wisps.

"Please!" Luna sobbed. "Do not leave me!"

Most of Celestia's body had now vanished. "Do not be discouraged, for thou shalt have strength. I love thee."

"No, Tia, wait! Tia!"

Celestia closed her eyes, and the wind blew the remaining specks of her visage away.

"Tia! Do not go! Tia! Tia!"

The sky, giving what little light it could, had all at once become dark, hushing the wind, engulfing Luna in silent blackness.

Luna sat upright, breathing heavily. She brushed away her flowing mane from her face and glanced quickly around her room; everything was okay. Her clock read a quarter past five, and the sun was suspended in the western sky. She shakily lied back on her bed, still attempting to catch her breath.

"How...? What...? What was that?" She felt her forehead. It was warm and coated in a thin layer of sweat. Wiping it off, she closed her eyes in thought. "I have not had a nightmare since... since the Tantabus. But no..." Luna rolled to the side of the bed and got up, passing over her black shoes. "It could not have been that."

She paced her room feverishly, trying to retain her dream. "We had been fillies," she muttered, "Celestia raised the sun... no, did she? Yes... yes, she did. But then it went back down. Then she disappeared... and everything went dark." She felt something was missing from her memory but was unsure of what.

She sat back on her bed, somewhat defeated. What could it mean? She looked at the door and thought about telling Celestia. What would she know? Maybe it could wait until dinner. She glanced back at the clock. That would be over an hour from now. Should she tell Celestia? After all, if it was only a dream, why worry her about it? She huffed. It wasn't. She was sure it wasn't. Deciding it couldn't wait, she stood and went through her door.

She walked down a flight of stairs and turned into a hallway, racking her brain as to where her sister might be. She thought she recalled something about a meeting with some dignitaries... or was that the day before? Or tomorrow? She shook her head, trying to rattle the weariness out of her system. She remembered now. The meeting was being held today. As she approached the end of the hallway, she opened two solid oak doors. She walked past a guard, but he stopped her.

"Princess Luna?" he asked. She stopped, feigning a smile. He glanced around himself and behind her. "Is everything alright? Why are you up so early? And where are your, uh..." He gestured to his head and head. "Regalia?"

She felt her head and mentally kicked herself. She stared at the marble floor, trying to come up with a viable reason. "Er... I was just famished. Terribly so. Is... is my sister available? For an early dinner, that is?"

The guard scratched his head. "Well, I'd think so. She should be done with her meeting in..." He pulled out a pocket watch. "Around five minutes or so. She's probably sending them off from the main staircase right now, actually."

Luna gave a sheepish grin. "Many thanks." She turned and resumed walking, setting her crown and necklace to the corner of her mind. As she got out of sight of the guard, she began to trot, her hoofsteps echoing in the sterile marble hallway.

As she passed the many paintings and busts of this or whoever noteworthy pony, she turned over in her mind questions about her dream. How would she start telling it? Why did Celestia disappear? Why was it in the past? What did the wind, the sun disappearing, the clouds, and everything else mean, if anything at all? Why did she have a nightmare? Shouldn't she be able to control her dreams best of all? She then thought she might be wasting her time. Who else was better than the princess of the night at interpreting dreams? What could her sister add that she wouldn't already know?

What really worried Luna was how she interpreted the meaning. She could only see it one of two ways: Nightmare Moon was coming back, or Celestia was going to die—maybe a combination of the two, she thought rather helplessly. She shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts. She was just spooking herself. There's no use in making things seem more dire than they probably were. Besides, there would be no harm in seeking an outside opinion. Maybe a more fresh and untainted point of view would cast a more positive spin on the dream, or at least reassure her it wasn't as bad as she made it out to be, or just something different.

While she was lost in her thoughts, meandering down the hallway, she nearly fell down the stairs leading to the landing where her sister would be. After regaining her balance, she properly walked down the stairs. Luckily, the dignitaries seemed to be leaving, and Celestia was alone.

"Tia?" Luna called down the banister. Celestia looked up and seemed surprised at Luna's presence. Luna cleared her throat. "Perchance, could we have our dinner early today?"

"So, how was the meeting, Tia?"

It was now a quarter to six. The sun drifted ever closer to the horizon. Celestia was having her evening tea, and Luna her coffee, both waiting in the dining hall for their meals. Luna had, while the drinks were being prepared, made herself more presentable to her sister, now wearing her necklace and crown. She wanted to tell her sister of the dream, but couldn't quite figure out how to reach the subject tactfully.

Celestia shrugged. "It was quite interesting, actually. I met two ambassadors of countries of which I have not heard from in quite some time. I think they might surprise even you." Luna slowly became more occupied planning her own part of the conversation, still hearing but not really listening.

Celestia sipped a bit of her tea and set the cup down. "The first to arrive was a little blue dragon named Ember, who is now apparently the new Dragon Lord. Twilight told me a little about Ember after her excursion there. Yet, when she introduced herself, I could not help but be both surprised and impressed she would visit so soon after receiving her new title. She was very formal for a dragon, and it also surprised me as to how different she was compared to the previous Dragon Lord, whom she told me was her father.

"Now, the second one, who was actually an entire day early, was a griffon by the name of Greta, I believe. She wasn't a government official per se, but she represented a group of griffons across the sea and requested a meeting with me nonetheless. She seemed to be new to her job as well, but she was nowhere near as prepared as Ember. She was nervous, stuttering a little, but she managed to maintain her composure."

Upon hearing Celestia sip more tea, Luna stepped out of her thoughts momentarily. "What did they ask?"

Celestia's face became pensive. "It was rather serious. Ember wanted a formal treaty between our nations, something Twilight had hinted would happen. Greta wanted only to speak with me, or rather warn me of something. They both said there was discontent in their countries. Since Greta had arrive a day early, and we were already pressed for time, the two agreed to have their meetings combined with me.

"Ember was rather straight-forward; she claimed there were dragons that would have pillaged and scorched our nation had she not earned her title. She knows her rule is unpopular with the dragons, but with her father still there, all seems stable. Greta said her situation was similar but degenerating rapidly. No one is really in control there, but an anti-Equestrian faction is rapidly gaining popularity, something she very much insisted I be aware of."

"Wait," Luna said, her dream being pushed to the back of her mind, "I thought you and Twilight Sparkle were at a Friendship Summit in Griffonstone not long ago."

Celestia nodded. "We were, and I thought it went well. When I asked Greta about this, she said the faction's influence hadn't made its way to Griffonstone yet. Granted, there were a few there who perhaps thought the whole event to be..." Celestia spun a hoof in the air in thought. "... distasteful, but there wasn't open hatred towards us."

"So what did you say to them, Greta and Ember?"

"Well, I dealt with Ember first, telling her to come back in two days' time to discuss with both me and you the finer details of a treaty. As for Greta, however..." Celestia tapped her hoof softly on the table. "I wasn't sure what to say. I asked her if she believes the faction is hostile, or rather, if they had the means with which to carry out an attack. Ember actually spoke up then. She said, on occasion, bands of griffons would murder a dragon and loot their caves.

"Greta then said the faction often holds rallies in an attempt to stir up hatred in the griffons. I asked how many griffons actually took part in these gatherings, and she guessed around three hundred or so attended the last one she saw. I then asked what she would like us to do, and she recommended a few actions. Speak with the faction leader to try and diffuse tensions with them. Send more guards to the eastern coast and tighten security there. Give a notice to Manehattan and the other costal cities to be vigilant."

She shook her head. "Don't you see, Luna?" Luna looked at Celestia, hoping she wasn't just asked a question. "Greta wouldn't say it outright, but she wants us to prepare for a possible war."

Luna choked a bit on some of her coffee. She cleared her throat. "War? But... but that makes no sense. We have been at peace with all for centuries." She paused, thinking. "Well, nearly. There was that incident with the prince of Yakyakistan, but war was only ever declared, never fought. Why would the griffons want war?"

Celestia shrugged and shook her head solemnly. "I assured Greta we would take the necessary actions to maintain peace between our nations. She then asked, rather sheepishly, if everything works out for the better, if the remnants of the Griffon Kingdom could merge and become a part of Equestria."

"Really? Could that be possible?"

"Well, Twilight said her friends, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie, went there a few months ago, and they mentioned the last griffon king had died several decades ago. Their account confirms Greta's claim, that there isn't any government in Griffonstone. I told Greta if the faction there does simmer down, and if the majority of the griffons agree with it, we would see if a union of some sort or even a peaceful annexation could work out."

Celestia attempted to sip some more of her tea, which she realized had run dry. Pouring herself some more, she turned to her sister. "Anyway, enough of this talk of dread. How are you, Luna? Why did you want an early dinner today?"

All that time she stalled for was lost with talk of war. Luna sighed. "Well, I... I dreamt about you. Dying, I believe."

Celestia stared blankly for a moment. "Oh." After a pause, she chuckled nervously. "So the dread continues. Well, Luna," she took a sip of tea, "how did I die?"

Luna's ears fell flat. "That is what bothers me. We were fillies, and it was early morning." She looked down. "After we had done our duties, the sun hid back behind the mountains again, and it grew terribly dark and windy. Then you started just to... vanish." She looked back at Celestia. "Turning into dust. Your eyes glowed, and for a while, you did not speak. I could not hold you or hug you or..." She shook her head. "But then you told me everything would be okay, that it was not my fault, and then you disappeared. Everything went black, and then I woke up. It felt so real. Too real.

"I do not think it is just a dream, or, rather, a nightmare. I fear it is a vision of sorts, that it foretells of something bad for you. I cannot help but think this means something more, but at the same time, I am afraid of what it could represent. Why were we fillies? Why did the sun disappear? Why did you turn to dust? I..." She winced. "I cannot help but think it has something to do with Nightmare Moon."

Celestia thought for a moment, studying her sister's face. "Now, Luna," she said soothingly, "however terrible or real it seemed, it was just a bad dream." Luna groaned inwardly, and Celestia continued. "What constitutes a vision is different than a dream or nightmare. You remember well of Tirek's return. That was no fantasy. Us being fillies in your dream already disproves of it being a vision. But, I can assure you, I'm not going to die any time now."

Luna closed her eyes. She wasn't going to get anywhere with this. "Thanks," she said finally, cutting off her sister's reassurances. "I shall see what is holding up dinner." She got up and trotted towards the kitchens. As soon as she was out of sight, she turned and ambled down a different hallway, her head low and hooves dragging.

Her thoughts drifted between the dream and Celestia, her feelings between anxiety and annoyance. She debated with herself on going back and trying to reexplain the dream. She assured herself Celestia would get it, that she would understand and not simply brush it off. Maybe she didn't emphasize her worries enough, or perhaps there wasn't enough detail for Celestia to understand what it could mean past a nightmare. Or, more likely, Celestia was right. She might not have sensed anything was wrong to begin with. Despite how much she reasoned with herself, a sense of unease lingered.

Luna passed a pair of open doors to a balcony and stopped. Looking around, she realized with slight amusement she had wandered to the other side of the castle. Walking outside, she leaned on the balcony rail. The sky was already darkening on its own. She lit her horn and began idly dotting the evening stars.

She let out a heavy sigh. It wasn't just a dream. She knew, somewhere, it wasn't. But when she pondered back on what it was, what it could mean, she shuddered. She soon just wanted to forget about it, pushing it down into the depths of her subconscious, but it would resurface with new questions and fears.

She paused to look at her sky. She had placed too many stars, or at least too many before the moon itself should be up. Shrugging, she lit her horn again and caused the tiny lights to ripple like sparkling lily pads in a deep blue lake. Her magic aura sifted between each star, making it dance in the sky. Luna loved her little pastime. Sometimes, she would idly trace lines or circles as she was thinking; other times, she would act like a conductor of an orchestra and make grand sweeps in the sky.

Somepony cleared their throat behind her, and Luna yelped. Spinning around, she saw Celestia chuckling. Luna glared and smiled. "Tia!" She pushed Celestia's shoulder, laughing too. "You know not to sneak up on me like that."

"Oh, come now. It's not my fault you're so jittery. You didn't even eat dinner."

Luna shrugged, leaning on the rail again. "I can eat later."

"We can eat later."

Luna turned to Celestia. "You ate not?"

Celestia walked over to the rail. "I came looking for you."

Luna waved a dismissing hoof. "I am fine." She looked up. "'Tis about time, is it not?"

Celestia nodded. They lit their horns, turned, and stood back to back. Luna, for a fleeting moment, had a flashback of her dream, and she tried not to say anything, shaking the feeling off. They were fine, she assured herself. This wasn't her dream. It was evening, not morning. They were adults, not fillies. All was well. Celestia lowered the sun ever so gently below the horizon. Luna raised the moon to its proper position in the night sky, making it a new moon to better emphasize the glittering specks of light.

Celestia looked around at the sky. She opened her mouth to speak, then shook her head slightly. She turned to Luna, who had dotted a few more stars. "Oh, you did a marvelous job." Luna smiled. Her stomach grumbled, and she looked at her sister. Celestia smirked and nodded, and they walked back to the dining hall.