The sun would be setting soon and the castle was just beginning to wind down for the evening shift. The guests and ambassadors who had requested meetings with Celestia were filing out of the castle and headed back to their homes. Luna stood before the great doors to the throne room, terror and anxiety clenching at her heart. She and Discord had been up all night trying to find a way to talk to Celestia about what had happened. At first the Lord of Chaos suggested ‘getting rid of the problem’ and sweeping this entire mess under the rug, but Luna could clearly tell that the idea bothered him the more he talked about it. In truth it bothered her as well. As nice as it would be to fix this problem as quickly and quietly as possible, a part of her was excited for what could come of this. Ever since she had ascended the throne alongside her sister, thousands years ago, the Princes of the Night had learned not to trust lovers or suitors and over time she accepted that she would likely never bare her own children. But now…
 
Her eyes turned to one of the windows behind her. The sun was lowering in the sky. Now or never, she decided.
 
Luna pushed open the door, stepped inside, and closed it behind her. Celestia stood by one of the stain glass windows, her horn aglow in gold as she lowered the sun over the horizon. A lump was beginning to form in Luna’s throat. Once the sunlight had completely faded, Celestia turned and smiled kindly at her sister.
 
“Good evening, Luna. Do you have a meeting this evening?”
 
Luna looked up, puzzled. “Wha- OH. No, I came here hoping to find you before you retired to your quarters for the night.”
 
Celestia’s smile grew. “Well, I’ll always welcome time with my sister.” Luna felt as though a knife was being shoved into her heart. “Are you going to raise the moon?” Celestia asked after a few moments of silence.
 
“Oh. Yes, I supposed I should, shouldn’t I?” Luna quickly, but steadily pulled the moon into the sky and lit the stars so that they covered the dark sky above.
 
“Something is troubling you.” Celestia stated. The smile was gone, now replace with a look of worry. “Is that why you wished to speak with me?”
 
“Y-yes.” Luna stuttered. Her feathers were beginning to puff up as her nerves and heart raced. She took a deep breath and sighed. “My sister, there is something I must admit to you, but before I do I want to say that I am so very, terribly sorry and that I had no intention of hurting you when I- when I made the choices that I made. Please believe me when I say that I am truly sorry, sister.” Celestia said nothing. Luna continued. “My dear Celestia I have wronged you. Not hours after you had last ended your courting with Discord, I took him in my bed. I betrayed your trust and laid with one whom I knew you love so deeply. What’s more I kept this from you and intended to do so for the rest of my days if I’d been given the chance, even after you had taken the Chaos Lord back. But… but it seems fate has other plans.” tears were beginning to well up in Luna’s eyes, though she refused to let them fall. “My sister, I am with child. This union between your lover and I has resulted in a child, which is why I have come to you now. I could never hope to hide this from you. Not when I have chosen to keep the foal. I will not be so foolish as to ask for your blessing or even your forgiveness. I only ask that you accept my apology and know that I regret my actions that night. I pray that this does not cause you any undo grief.” Luna bowed her head low and waited, not daring to look her sister in the eye.
 
The silence dragged on and Luna felt as though hours were passing between them. She could feel the other alicorn’s eyes boring down on her and she knew they were filled with hate. She knew it. There was no other reasonable response to such treachery. After all of her faults and all the times she had stumbled down the wrong path, only to be pulled back by the grace of Celestia and the Elements, here she was again making the wrong choices and hurting others in the process. Luna’s shoulders began to shake as she tried to hold in her sobs. Tears burned at her eyes and she fought to keep them from falling. She would be banished for this. It was the most mild of punishments she could hope for. She’d seen ponies in years past banished for less. The tears began to fall.
 
Then, all at once, Luna was being dragged to the ground. For a split second she thought she was being attacked, but no. Strong arms wrapped around her and pulled her close. Large wings spread out and covered her from view. Warmth and comfort surrounded her and she barely understood what was happening. Then a gentle and impossibly kind voice spoke in her ear.
 
“Of course I forgive you, my sister.” Celestia said, holding Luna close as they sat on the floor. A tear escaped her eye and landed on Luna’s cheek. “I am saddened, but now that I know what has happened I can begin to heal and understand better. Thank you, for being honest with me in the end.” Luna couldn’t hold it in any longer. The last echos of her graceful facade fell away and she openly cried into Celestia’s shoulder. “Shhhhh shhhh. It’s alright, Luna. We’ll figure this out, don’t you worry.” Celestia said. Tears were streaming down her own cheeks as she held her little sister on the floor of the throne room as the moonlight fell upon the both of them.
 
 
Finally got around to writing this. Been sitting on this bit for a while trying to think of just how it would go down. Still not sold on Celestia’s word choice, but she’s always been hard for me to write. Also, changed the filters on the image so that they fit the night time bit in the story better.
 
MLP:FIM (C) Hasbro  
Art (C) PamPoke