#queen solstice

It was the darkest of days all over Equestria. Everypony was sad, downtrodden, and the weather matched their hearts. A downpour of sorrowful rain coated all the kingdom. It was impossible to tell which tears were tears, and which were simply the rain.

Before I tell you why, let's start at the beginning. A normal day in Canterlot, like any other. The King and Queen were in a meeting with the Kirin King, negotiating a trade contract to help both the kingdoms. Things weren't going well, tensions were high.

In an attempt to save the situation, Queen Solstice offered to go to the Kirin Stronghold in the mountains. Of course, King Eclipse wouldn't let her go alone. It was agreed they'd both go away for the weekend, to complete the negotiations.

Their departure went well, everypony in Canterlot showed up to wave them off. Even I showed up, in pony form of course. Little did any of us know...they wouldn't be returning.

The journey took them across the Desert of Eternal Daylight. Its sweltering heat would be too much for any normal pony. The Kirin-folk had no trouble with it, being cold blooded. But the King and Queen had to be kept sheltered in cold wagon. Things were going well, within half a day, they'd made it a third of the way across the sands. That's when things turned for the worse. The grounds quaked, and the dunes shook. Mountainous fins broke through the desert floor.

Dusty Fiends...a rare breed of dragon that makes its home in the desert. Their bodies are like fish of the land, able to swim through the sand with ease. But don't think that means they can't fly. Their fins are so massive, they work like wings.

The ultimate carnivores, they don't care what they eat, as long as it's meat. The attack was quick, a swarm of only a dozen, but that was enough. In a matter of moments, the caravan was in pieces, and only a few of the Kirin diplomats survived.

Most of them continued on home, but one returned to Canterlot to bear the bad nose. The King and Queen, were dead. Devoured by Dusty Fiends out in the Desert. After giving his deepest regards to the Princesses, he departed.

Everypony had been preparing a celebration for their return. They knew they would have succeeded with the negotiations. But the celebration was cancelled, and turned into a funeral. Though, with no bodies to bury, all they could put in the coffins, were some of their belongings.

Before the proceedings were finished, Celestia bolted out of the Great Hall where they were being held. She was in a fit of tears. I soon gave chase while Luna remained behind to keep everypony calm.

I searched high and low, and strangely enough, found her in our special spot. Deep in the garden maze, underneath that young tree. She lay in a pool of her own tears. I said nothing, and simply joined her, an arm draped over her form.

She started talking, reminiscing about her parents, about her childhood. Some parts of it I knew, I was there after all. But, it seemed, the times before I met her, were her happiest. They were a true family, not just royalty. They'd have picnics, play dates, all sorts of get-togethers.

But recently, everything's been about negotiations and diplomacy. They'd been working hard, to prevent a possible calamity, especially war. This left them no time to be with the girls.

It seemed, that I was the only bit of happiness she had left. I sat there and listened to her words. Never speaking one myself...I just let her remember, saw her go through every emotion in the rainbow thinking about her past.

And when all was said and done, she fell asleep in my arms. I carried her back through the castle, told everypony that she needed some time to herself, and put her to bed.

She woke up, with me gone, and a white water lily on her bedside. I'd always be there from then on, to be her little light of happiness. That is, until my fall into chaos. But, you already know that story.