Hi again,

First turning point, I guess. There will still be many more to come; this is only the beginning of their rule, after all.

Enjoy!

…Which fell dark upon the young sister she loved…

They lasted two months before Luna lost it.

The crown suited them well, and they had settled into quite the hectic routine, always managing the country and their own separate duty, somewhat still finding time to listen to their ponies' pleas and questions; for those two months, all had gone well for the three sisters.

Well, except for one.

"I'm so bloody sick of it!"

Staria choked on her drink in surprise, regarding her sister with wide eyes. In the past few days, Luna had seemed to gain quite a few inches and finally started to look like a mare, rather than a filly; or maybe her duties had forced her to mature beyond her years. She'd matured, that was for certain, but when had she learned such foul words?

"Language, Luna," Celestia said, sipping her tea without a care in the world. She did not seem surprised at the words. Had she heard them before? It made her suspicious.

Staria usually didn't share breakfast with them –she stayed up all night and crashed in her bed at dawn. This morning was an exception, she'd fallen asleep maybe two hours ago, in the middle of her duties, only to wake right before dawn in a panic. She'd have to catch up tonight. And since she was already late in her duties, she'd decided she might as well catch breakfast with her sisters first.

"We barely see each other, you two are always neck-deep in your duties! And when one of you is free, the other is asleep! This cannot go on any longer!" Luna fumed, glaring daggers at her sisters. Staria cleared her throat, trying to get rid of whatever was left of her drink in her lungs. To no avail. The young mare looked at her sister.

"We can't exactly push our duties to the side, Luna." She tried, wanting to solve the issue peacefully. "If we don't have time-"

"That's because you refuse to make time, Sister. Both of you." Luna huffed, moodily nibbling on her cake. "Star, I get it that you have many duties, and I'm grateful that you're taking mine over until I can handle them, but if you could just make it to breakfast instead of immediately going to sleep, then we'd have time to be together! You can always go to sleep afterwards. And you, Tia, if you stopped carrying the whole kingdom on your shoulders instead of delegating, then you could have a real breakfast instead of a ten minutes break to start your day, and you'd have time for us."

Staria barely had time to think not everyone has the luxury of doing the bare minimum like you do before Celestia directed a gentle smile at her.

"She's right, Sister. It is not good if we don't see each other regularly –and not as princesses only, but as sisters also. Doing otherwise will end up being detrimental to our rule, as Luna so eloquently demonstrated." Luna refused to blush, and Staria opened her mouth and closed it again. She sighed. Of course, it would be good that they could see each other; she wanted nothing more than to spend time with her sisters again. The question was, when? She did not see where she could fit these meetings in her schedule.

"Then we're doing this?" Luna asked, smiling brightly. "We stop scheduling royal duties until after breakfast, so this way, the first meal of the day could be when we have time together? Which means you will start your day later," she motioned to Celestia, "and you will end your day later." She gestured to Staria. "How does this sound?"

Once upon a time, Luna would have been jumping on her seat –but her position as a princess had made her a lot calmer. As it stood, her eyes only sparkled with eagerness and her tail twitched restlessly behind her. Staria made to voice her protests, but Celestia spoke before she could.

"I believe it is a great idea, Luna. I shall go to sleep once night has fallen, I'll manage."

"Then it's settled!" Luna grinned, her eyes shining brighter than the Sun itself. The happy filly had taken the place of the moody mare. "Breakfasts will be our private time together! And no excuses to skip our sisterly-bonding time!"

Celestia readily agreed, both unconsciously dismissing Staria. The Alicorn sighed. Of course. Both of you sleep the night away, for you two it's no burden. You're just asking me to stay up for about thirteen hours, after having been working nonstop and alone, trying to fulfil twice the duties I have in half the time you have. I can't possibly see how that would be a problem, she thought sarcastically. And then she blanched. They expect me to join them everyday. How will I manage staying up an hour more –when I can barely stay standing at the end of the night?

Mindless chatter filled her ears as she drifted further into her thoughts, trying to find a solution. It wasn't for lack of trying that she didn't have time for her sisters. Her time was fully occupied, she barely had a moment to herself; she didn't think she'd be able to make room for her sisters. But they are an important part of my life, she thought. They deserve some of my time. Even if it gets me even more exhausted than I was before.

She offered a tentative smile to her sisters, doing her best to participate in the chatter and to stay awake. Once it was over, Staria went to bed promising herself to rise earlier, so she would have time to catch up on the duties she had missed the night before –and stay up for her sisters. Maybe. She already knew she wouldn't manage, but maybe the night after…