2

✶So that was that, then.
✶I was an alicorn now.
✶A Princess.
✶To tell the truth, I had always daydreamed of becoming a Princess myself.
✶An equal. All of the knowledge of the Canterlot Royal Library at my disposal, ancient secrets revealed...
✶I didn't think it'd come true.
✶All of the fiction books I'd read had explored it. A young mare is taken in by the Princess and shown her true destiny.
✶In hindsight, maybe it made a lot of sense.
✶Celestia had explained that it was customary for me to ascend to my own throne.
✶Ponies would worship me, look to me for guidance. They always looked up to alicorns, and I couldn't outrun the responsibility thrust upon me.

✶"The stars, as foretold, have chosen their bond... in you."
✶Myself, Celestia and my friends all sat together in the center of the Golden Oaks library, the windows shuttered and the door locked. I was shaken still, but needed to hear whatever my mentor had to say.
✶"The stars are perhaps the most unpredictable of any of the Aspects, and they choose as a collective rather than as a singular entity or embodiment."
✶"Luna and myself are granted the ability to commune with, and control, the moon and sun respectively. Not by magic, but by something deeper."
✶"The truth is that the stars had not chosen a bonded entity since our births over two-thousand years ago... Until I witnessed your act of magical capability in my school, Twilight"
✶Celestia had tried her best to explain, she really did. But I was still staring at her, dumbfounded, as my life turned itself upside down.
✶"The mark that adorns you is the Element of Magic, true. But it is also the mark of the stars themselves. You were meant to become their guardian and their bonded..."
"So when I hatched Spike's egg... They chose me?"
✶"Yes. Your act, for better or for worse, impressed them."
"Meaning?"
✶Celestia chuckled,
✶"The stars have been known by Luna to be quite mischievous in nature... I'm sure you will have many such instances in the future, when you are able to commune with them properly."
✶Applejack stepped forward.
✶"So Princess... Ah barely understand a word 'o what's been said, all due respect o'course. Ah reckon Twi's gonna have to go with ya, back t' Canterlot?"
✶"Yes, I'm afraid so. A coronation is in order, among other such things that would need to be conducted on the castle grounds."
✶"Aww..." Pinkie Pie's mane deflated slightly as the others expressed their sadness.
✶"Well I for one am astonished! Such mysterious things that concern our Princesses, Twilight! And now... well, I suppose it's only natural you join them, darling." Rarity smiled, though I could sense her sadness as well.
✶"Don't forget us at the top, okay Egghead?" Rainbow Dash sniffled. It was entirely unlike RD to be so distraught. She even stopped hovering.
"Girls, it's not like I'm leaving forever... I can visit!"
✶"But you need to learn about how to talk to the stars... When would we be able to meet again?" Fluttershy spoke quietly, as always.
"How about after the coronation? We can meet up before you come back to Ponyville!"
✶"...I will leave you to say your goodbyes, my little ponies. I will be outside when you are ready to depart, Twilight."
"Thanks, Princess..."

✶The chariot ride back to Canterlot in the dead of night should have been calm, but my mind was anything but.
✶I had to say goodbye to my friends. It didn't feel real. I just... I had only just gotten them. Then again, Celestia hardly ever warned me before such life-altering changes.
✶I was only 6 when she took me in to live at the castle, only 12 when she finally entrusted Spike to my care, and only 19 when she sent me away to Ponyville.
✶Now I was 21, and already being ascended to what was practically godhood to most ponies, even if they didn't say it like that.
✶My life had only just begun in mortal terms.
✶Now I had thousands of years to look forward to...
✶When the distant lights of the capitol city twinkled in my vision, I thought back to the stars.
✶They had said they'd always been watching and waiting for me... 
✶It tracked with what Celestia had said regarding my cutie mark and magical surge as a filly, but I still couldn't hardly wrap my head around why. 
✶Surely a gathering of billions upon trillions of stars would not all be individually impressed by one foal's arcane explosion, right?
✶How did they even decide who to pick? Did they have arguments? Did they fall in love? How did stars have the capacity to decide anything?
✶"Twilight."
✶Celestia's voice breached my thoughts, and I looked up at her, dazed.
✶"We've arrived. Perhaps you would like to take your things to the observation tower?"
✶Just like old times, I suppose. Except I had opted to leave Spike back in Ponyville, and would be dreadfully alone until the coronation.

✶As I laid upon my old bed, my mind continued to swim with thoughts. Mostly panicked thoughts, but some were logical, to my credit.
✶Eventually, my mind drifted away into dreams.
✶Dreams full of stars.

✶I had been terrified to talk to Luna, to be quite honest. The night sky was her creation, and I had simply stolen half of it away.
✶However, when I entered the dining hall of the castle, I was shocked to find Luna laughing and eating breakfast with Celestia. 
✶How could she be so happy? It was a mystery to me.
"Um... Good morning Princesses."
✶"Good morning, Twilight Sparkle," Luna seemed pleased to see me, which was... confusing.
✶"Please, take a seat, Twilight," Celestia invited.
"Okay..."
✶I sat across from the two sisters, and before I could blink, an earth pony maid trotted into the hall and placed chocolate chip waffles before me. Ah, my favorite breakfast item!
✶The taste of the waffles made me entirely forget the awkwardness of sitting among the Princesses as an equal for the very first time.
✶By time I had finished, so too had the sisters completed their meals.
✶"So, Twilight... Thou hast requisitioned the stars for thyself, at last."
✶The serious tone of her voice caught me off-guard, and I blanched a little. Had she been upset after all?
✶Suddenly, Luna smiled.
✶"Relax, Twilight Sparkle. I jest. I have always known somepony would eventually claim the stars. If I may be sentimental for a moment... I am glad it was you, a dear friend to me."
✶Luna reached across the table, putting her hooves over my own.
✶"You are now privy to the mysteries of the night, Twilight. You are no longer merely a friend to me, but kin. You and I will begin your training at nightfall."
✶Celestia rolled her eyes at the grave tone of Luna, and sighed.
✶"Yes, and until then, we must begin planning your coronation. I plan to hold it in three days' time."
"So soon!"
✶Luna spoke up at that.
✶"It would be best to raise you to the throne as soon as possible, I'm afraid. Many nobles and other political figures will demand your instatement, and..."
✶Luna glanced at Celestia, who continued.
✶"It was hard enough to keep you safe from politicans as my charge, but it will be exponentially so now that you are an alicorn, Twilight..."
✶"There are ponies and other beings who would see a new alicorn as a threat... and as an opportunity. Whether bringing you harm or raising negative press, you will be a target."
"I... see."
✶I was unsure, and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous.
"We... we can be hurt? We can... die?"
✶"Not in the same sense as others, no. We do not age, and most illnesses are expelled by our magic. We are protected by our Aspects so long as we maintain our connection..." Celestia explained to me.
✶"However, there are rare cases... Forbidden knowledge is such for a reason, but anypony desperate enough could find stray spells or toxins that- Well..."
✶Luna took over for Celestia, who seemed to have a hard time explaining. It was foreign to see Celestia at a loss for words, which caused my stomach to flip-flop.
✶"We are not the first bonded to the sun and moon, Twilight. Our souls are forever intertwined, destinies bound to them as much as the Elements of Harmony bind you and your friends together."
✶"There were ponies, perhaps other beings, before me that communed with the moon... We do not recall these 'past lives', but we have found pieces of history that describe there always being creatures bonded to Aspects."
"So... there's an alicorn of everything?"
✶"Not exactly. Aspects only bind with a being when there is a great need, or a mighty feat that earned them the right... Or so it is said. I cannot say what earned my sister and myself the right to be bound to the sun and moon. That cause lies eons before our time."
✶"So to answer your question... Yes, we can die. But we are always reborn and destined to reclaim our power in time."
"But I wasn't reborn... I'm just some pony who impressed the stars enough to earn my wings?" 
✶I was a bit saddened. I shouldn't have been... I knew I was being ungrateful. I thought there really was a reason for this, that I was chosen for something great!
✶Luna frowned, but answered.
✶"We know very little in that regard. The stars are like nature. They are unpredictable, self-contradictory and always have secrets to uncover. There could be an unseen threat or challenge to overcome that requires you be bonded to the stars, or perhaps you really did just 'impress the stars enough'. Even so, I could not commune effectively with the stars. Perhaps you will find better luck as their bonded."
✶"Twilight, do not discredit your efforts," Celestia smiled warmly at me.
✶"You are the most powerful magus in Equestria, brave and true. You are devoted, compassionate, charitable, integrous, optimistic and most of all you are a guiding light for your friends. I could ask for no finer pony in all of Equestria to become my equal."
"Thanks Princess..."
✶Celestia chuckled, and shook her head.
✶"From now on, it's just 'Celestia'."
✶That felt very different... I wasn't sure if I could break out of my that habit.
✶Celestia had always been on some pedestal I couldn't reach.
✶Now, I knew the truth. She was not all-knowing. Wise? Yes. Powerful? Yes.
✶Alicorns were not the gods ponies thought they were, and that... that scared me.
✶I swallowed, and nodded. 
✶It was going to be a long... well, eternity.