It was already after sunset, and she was just now leaving for the ridge. It wasn’t so long ago that her late start would have put her into more of a panic, the stress building and making her a bit snappish. However, these days she was better about taking minor changes in stride, even though it really would have been better if she had left a few minutes ago.
At least she had made sure not to schedule anything first thing in the morning, so if she stayed out a bit later it was okay. She took a deep breath. Schedules could change, tonight was going to be magical, and she was going to enjoy what she could.
By her own calculations, tonight should be one of the evenings with quite a few meteors streaking across the sky. There were always a few, this time of year, but she’d scoured records of seasons past, and asked around for the conditions of this year’s season, so tonight should be one of the better ones. When she’d woken up there had been large, puffy clouds filling the sky, but as the heat built and a dry breeze rustled through they had gradually dispersed, so the conditions seemed perfect.
The ridge she was headed to wasn’t one of the areas she heard of other ponies going to frequently, a bit far away and no clear path at night, but she knew it would be perfect for gazing at the stars. She was a bit surprised when she arrived and there was already a soquili there, gazing at the stars.
Not that a stranger would stop her from her perfectly researched night of watching the meteor showers.
“Good evening,” she called out as she approached.
Polaris wasn’t anticipating an interruption, but he turned his head at the greeting, taking in the approaching mare. She didn’t seem to be armed, and there were obvious reasons that someone would be coming to the ridge on a night like this, so he quickly responded. “Hello. Please, come join me.”
The invitation might have sounded odd, it was a public place after all, but what he hoped the newcomer wouldn’t notice was the guard fading back into the shadows, cautiously reassured.
“If you’re here to see the meteors, I’m afraid you’ve missed the first one, but I feel fairly confident there will be more.”
The invitation was weird, but the lung sounded friendly enough, so she joined him on the ridge, dragging her eyes away from his crown of stars to the celestial sky she’d actually come to watch tonight. “By my calculations there should be,” she replied, trying to hide her disappointment that she’d indeed missed the start. “I’m Twilight Sparkle by the way, I don’t think we’ve met.”
“Polaris,” he offered back, “and this is Sydera.” The small creature made a soft noise, but he too was gazing at the stars, stretched out along Polaris’ back.
“Oh, Owlowiscious is around somewhere, I think he wanted to find a snack.”
Just then a streak of light shot across the sky, and she gasped, momentarily mesmerized.
Polaris smiled at the familiar streak of light, there and gone in just a second, but beautiful nonetheless. It was her gasp though that delighted him, enjoying her awe at the sight. He had seen many meteor showers in his time, the skies above more familiar than the land he walked upon. It was always good to be reminded of the magic and joy a simple meteor shower could cause. “Is this your first meteor shower?”
“On purpose, yes,” she admitted. “I’ve seen a shooting star before, last year, and that led me into researching them. When I found out there was a typical season to see them I decided I wanted to seek them out this year. I forgot how quick they were.”
Just then another light blazed across the sky, followed by a softer, reddish toned light a mere moment later. A proper shower tonight then, it seemed as if the little researcher was good at what she did. “Unfortunately, stars they are not,” he mused. “Just small chunks of rock burning through the sky. Not part of my domain, so I’m relying on luck as much as you.”
For a while they watched in silence, sometimes a few going by in quick succession, sometimes long minutes stretching out in between. There was peace in simply watching the universe do what it did best, continuing on whether they did anything to influence it or not, a source of wonder for all who witnessed it. For a time, Polaris simply longed to join the meteors, sprinting across the sky. Nothing in particular tied him to this land, no one would truly miss him if he left to join the stars, but alas, he couldn’t fly that high, trapped in the world below.
As the meteors streaked across the sky, Twilight couldn’t help but to watch in awe, delighting in the phenomenon. In the space between, her brain buzzed, with questions, theories, threads she would research until the next perfect night came again and she once again could gaze out at the night sky.
Eventually the gaps became longer and longer, and she could no longer fight the yawns.
“Was it everything you hoped it would be?”
She turned her gaze back to the stallion, a wonder-filled smile lighting her face. “It was, though they’re faster than I remembered. I wish I could see it again, but I suppose I’ll just have to figure out the best night for next year. It seems as though my formula worked.”
“Yes, you did choose a good evening to come out,” Polaris agreed. “If you wouldn’t mind staying just a moment longer though, I’d like to try something, and I could use a second opinion. Would you might looking at the sky once again?”
He waited until her gaze drifted up, then closed his own eyes, drawing on his memories of countless summer and winter skies, filled with the streaks of meteors. Shooting stars. They really should be part of his domain.
Polaris could feel the pinpricks of light in the stars above, and with a soft exhale he summoned a small light above them, sending it streaking across the sky with a thought. It wasn’t quite right when he looked up, just a touch too bright, so the next two he aimed for a bit of a softer light, whizzing away until it faded into the distance. For a couple of minutes he repeated the exercise, varying the lights, the angles, just enough to feel a bit more organic.
When the display of magic ended, a feat that showed a rather remarkable control, Twilight blinked and then looked over at Polaris with more than a bit of respect. “That was astounding. It actually looked like meteors.”
An embarrassed blush suffused his cheeks, and he glanced away. “Not nearly as good as the real thing, but thank you. I hope you have a safe journey home.”
“You as well,” Twilight responded, “who knows, perhaps we’ll meet again next year.” She turned then, heading back the way she had come, Owloscious departing a nearby tree to fly quietly ahead of her, showing her the way in the faint light of the moon and stars above. Leaving the slightly mysterious stallion behind as her thoughts turned to what magic might be able to replicate the elemental powers of an Ulun’suti, and what data she’d need to collect about this season to ensure that she could experience this phenomenon once more.
