Those shooting stars look like as though they are about to bombard the two ponies’ area.

“Clover, my child, come here. Come outside and see this marvel.”  
“What is it Starswirl? Is it a new spell?”  
“Even better. It’s a meteor shower.”  
“How is that better? It’s just a bunch of extra lights.”  
“Heheh. I thought you wouldn’t understand, dear Clover.”  
“What do you mean?”  
“The magic of nature, Clover. Seasons turn. Oceans rise and fall. Plants grow. The sky changes. These are things we simply know how to affect, we don’t understand why it is affected. That, that, is better than all the spells in all of history, don’t you think?”  
“Hmmm. No, not really. Ponies change the seasons all the time. The sun doesn’t rise on it’s own. The tides are controlled by the moon. Without magic, all of this would be impossible.”  
“I once thought that way too. But then, I saw things. Things like this. Changes that occur spontaneously and without reason. Things that made me question everything I knew. Maybe we don’t influence the sun and moon: Maybe it influences us.”  
“That’s just silly.”  
“Is it? Has there ever been a recorded instance when the sun did not get moved by magic?”  
“I- I don’t know.”  
“Exactly.”  
“…”  
“I’m getting old, Clover.”  
“What do you mean?”  
“Simple, child. I’m getting old. Soon, I’ll be too weak to even feed myself.”  
“Th-then I’ll feed you myself!”  
“That won’t be necessary. I know the day I’m meant to go, and I welcome it.”  
“You do?”  
“Yes. Death is a natural part of life. To resist for longer than you are able is against the very nature of the world.”  
“But, what about the Amulet? Can’t it extend life?”  
“It can.”  
“Then why don’t you use it?”  
“But I have been, child. Once a day, every day, for nearly eighty years. But, it only extends life, it doesn’t grant immortality.”  
“There must be a way!”  
“There is not. Many before me have tried to find the secret to eternal life, and all have failed. Even my predecessor, who was skilled beyond belief in the art of resurrection could not extend his time by any more than a little bit. It is a fools errand.”  
“But Starswirl, I don’t want you to go!”  
“And that is what’s been holding you back in your studies. To be a true mage, one must be able to let go.”  
“Huh?”  
“Why do you think I brought it up? It’s your final lesson. A little ‘parting gift’ if you will.”  
“What do you mean?”  
“The hardest thing for most Unicorns to grasp is to let go of their worldly desires. It’s why we don’t thrive as much as the other tribes. Pegasi are born without a connection to the world; Earth Ponies can accept loss on a personal level. Unicorns, however, never truly accept loss. Why, many are still erecting memorial shrines in the name of the Princess’ late father, nearly a decade after his death.”  
“… I must go and think on what you have said, Starswirl.”  
“Then go. Don’t let it keep you up, I certainly won’t.”
 
When Clover the Clever returned to that hilltop in the morning, she found is immobile form still slumped in the same position she left him in. Thinking he had simply fallen asleep, she tried to wake him for nearly an hour. When she realized what had happened, she rushed to the nearby village, dreading what she suspected. When she returned with the Village Chief and a dozen healers of exceptional skill, they found no body, but instead a pile of blue star-spangled robes neatly folded, with a note on top. Nobody but Clover ever knew what the note said, for literacy wasn’t exactly common in those days, but some suspect it was one final spell that was to be passed down from master to apprentice when they parted from this world.