For Want of a Nail: The Lunar Paradox

Chapters

Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2

Prologue

The Nightmare was always the same.

Once again, she found herself standing in a familiar location. Only, it was different now. Where once stood strong pillars, now lay shattered fragments of stone and dust. The carpet, once bright and pristine had been burned to pieces from the fighter's traded blows. What few shards still remained, were dark and frayed. The golden throne, which had stood tall and proud, now laid broken and hidden beneath piles of rubble.

The mare of darkness moved towards the last standing window, while trampling upon the shards of its fallen brethren. A warm wind blew through one of the gaps in the wall, blowing through her ethereal mane and bringing the cries of despair from below. Standing tall despite her injuries, the mare gazed down upon her new kingdom. The city below did not fare much better than its centerpiece. Flames swept across the buildings, destroying all that stood in their path. Ponies of all types rushed about, desperately trying to escape into the forest and away from the destruction and death that completely enveloped them.

Just try and run, she thought to herself with a perverted smiled. There was nowhere in Equestria that was safe anymore. Her reach now expanded throughout all the land. Everypony everywhere was going to feel her wrath. They would all share in the pain and misery that they had foolishly caused her. She would make them suffer, as long as her radiant moon hung in the sky and until her unappreciated night came to an end.

That was going to be a while, she cruelly giggled. For this night was going to last for a very long time.

This night was going to last forever.

The sound of groaning rising above the serenade of destruction, brought her away from her own thoughts. Turning around, she glared at its source. Across the room sat the one who dared to call her sister, lying helplessly along the ground. All around her lay feathers, torn from her own broken wings during the intense duel the pair had engaged in. Her pink hair was a mess, tangled and frayed all around her head. Her once gleaming white coat was dirty and scattered, many parts died red from the trickles of blood that escaped from her. She was still breathing, though each breath was slow and deliberate to reduce the pain her rising chest caused.

For the briefest of moments, a tiny sliver of guilt crept through the mind of the black mare. However, she quickly snuffed out the thought, burning it in the midst of her utter hatred. This dying creature deserved none of her sympathy. She who sat upon a throne, basking in her own glory while her younger sister sat alone, crying and forgotten. Luna had been too weak to do or say anything. Nightmare Moon on the other hoof, would not accept such frailties to herself. She had conquered those who dared to mock her and struck down the very one who would have destroyed her.

Turning back towards the window, the dark mare smiled sinisterly. Yes, this fire was just the beginning. She would cleanse this world of its wickedness. Like the princess lying broken behind her, she would destroy all who dared to oppose her. She began to chuckle, slowly building until the shattered room was filled with her chackling. She would destroy them all.

Then, something completely unexpected caught her eye. Off in the distance, the tiniest glimmer of light appeared. It started as nothing more than a speck, but slowly grew in size much like the rising dawn. She stopped laughing. Leaning forward, she glared at the glowing fragment. It was not possible for the sun to be rising. Her moon still hung high in the sky amidst the diamond covered blackness while she herself held the sun away beneath the horizon. The only other capable of grasping such an object was lying in a heap behind her, broken and slowly fading into nothing.

Yet, there it was, just as clear as could be. The inexplicable light pulsed with an otherworldly energy, beating light a heart as it continued to grow brighter and brighter. Although it frightened her, the black mare could not bring herself to look away from it. Her curiosity held her, forcing her to glance as the light continued to expand, slowly filling her entire vision. It wasn't until it was too late, that she had a terrifying realization.

The light was not coming from the horizon. It was merely a reflection.

She spun around just as the light exploded forth, filling every inch of the destroyed castle with its heavenly glow. The mare attempted to shield her eyes with one of her wings, but the burning brightness merely poured through it, blinding her to all else. With great effort, she turned her head, glancing towards its source. Where had before been laying the broken mare, now floated a beaming, majestic being. Her white coat shone while her mane flowed ethereally behind her.

Anger clenched the heart of the darkened mare. A simple light show was not enough to discourage her. She had already defeated this mare once before and would destroy her again if needs be. Her horn glowed an empty color as she summoned up her magic. With a wave of her head, she released the compressed magic into a dark orb, flinging it towards her opponent. The spell never even came close, glancing off the side and bouncing away before fizzling into nothing. She tried again, and was terrified as the same fate as its former befell it as well. Beginning to panic, she released a large volley of shots all at once, only to watch in terror as they all dissipated one after another.

Before she could charge up again, the white mare reacted. Opening her eyes, she glanced down upon the now terrified alicorn. Her eyes were filled with a heavenly light, far brighter than the sun on a noon day. It seemed almost to pierce straight through the dark mare, leaving her feeling cold and vulnerable. The air shifted around the room, as it began to swirl around the glowing mare. Then, the light shattered, bursting forth in an array of color that launched forward until it encircled the dark one completely.

No sooner did the dancing colors fall upon her, did the mare feel herself being torn apart. In desperation, she attempted to strike back with her magic, only to find that her magical reserves would not respond. She attempted to spread her wings and flee, but was held in place by some unseen force. The more she struggled, the harder it grasped until the force was so great that it forced her to the ground.

As she felt her body slowly begin to disappear, she looked up into the glowing eyes of her captor. Her face contorting into a scowl, she spat out a single question. "Why?"

She never heard the answer. The rushing wind of magic pressed in against her as the last remaining pieces were stripped from the world and hurled through the sky. She tumbled and turned as she flew through the magical stream, twisting and turning as the light continued to bounce around her consciousness. Then, without warning, the light dispersed and was gone.

Breathing heavily, the mare looked around her. There was nothing; no light, no sound, absolutely nothing. She tried to move, but couldn't. She tried to call out, but there was no sound. All there was, was her own thoughts and the cold, emptiness that completely surrounded her.

So, she did the only thing that she could do. She screamed. Within her head, she let loose every emotion bottled up inside. She screamed out in anger. She screamed out in sadness.

But most of all, she screamed out in fear.

Chapter 1

There are few things worse to wake up from than by thrashing around in your sleep. Amongst those is managing to get yourself tied up within your bed sheets, restricting your movements and causing you to panic while your brain is still caught within your dreams. Somehow managing to fall off your bed and onto the hard stone floor beneath would also be high on that list.

But managing to do all three at once? That is a most unpleasant experience.

As her brain slowly settled down from its terrors, Luna quit attempting to struggle out of the cocoon she'd managed to wrap herself in. With a sigh of defeat, she rested her head against the cool granite flooring she now found herself lying against. The chill sent a shiver down her spine, helping pull her even more from her stupor. As her mind began to clear, her horn glowed with a dark blue light. The sheets surrounding her began to shine the same color, as she slowly began unraveling the twists and knots that held her down.

Levitating the mess out from underneath her, Luna finally was able to stand on her own hooves again. She glared at the evil fabric hovering in the air, briefly considering setting it alight to teach it a lesson for destroying a princess' slumber. Instead, she decided it wasn't worth the effort and tossed the jumbled pile onto her bed for somepony else to deal with later.

Silently, the moon princess made her way to the large bathroom that was connected to her bedroom. It was decorated much like the rest of her quarters, with dark tiles on the floors and violet trim along the edges. There was a large bath, plated with fine silver that shone brightly despite the dimness of the lighting in the room. Beneath a large mirror which covered almost an entire wall, there were several small sinks, each of which similar in color and design to the bath.

The one nearest to the main entrance was Luna's destination. Placing the stopper in the bottom of the sink, she turned on the water. She watched it flow, waiting for the basin to fill with the ice-cold, crystal clear liquid. As soon as the water was nearing the top, she took a large breath, before promptly dunking her head directly into it.

She could only stand the bitter cold for a few seconds. Quickly, she pulled her head out from the sink, gasping heavily as she did so. Fully alert now, she pulled the stopper, allowing the water to drain as she attempted to catch her breath.

Looking up in the mirror, Luna shuddered as she saw her own reflection. Water drops were still dripping from her now disheveled coat. Her ethereal mane, hung limply to the side of her head, missing a lot of its normal majesty. Her eyes were bloodshot, though from the cold water or the poor night's sleep she couldn't quite tell. Her head throbbed as the headache, not previously noticed thanks to her stupor, made itself painfully known.

Groaning aloud, Luna exited the bathroom, dragging herself over the large windows adorning the eastern side of her bedroom. Once again inhaling deeply in an attempt to prepare herself, she grabbed both of the large blinds before tearing them open. The sunlight immediately poured into the room, seeming to light almost every crevice of the previously darkened room. Instinctively, Luna raised her hooves up attempting the shield out the sunlight as it burst over her, blinding her vision.

Blinking repeatedly as her eyes slowly adjusted, she looked out the window to the scene outside. The sun was high in the sky, shining over all of Equestria. Down below, ponies were busily going about their day, many tending to the gardens that surrounded the castle's ground. Several royal guards were patrolling about, getting ready to swap out with the noon shift.

Again, Luna groaned. It was much too early to be awake already.

With a sigh of contempt, Luna made her way over to the large desk seated in her room. Sleep was no longer an option, she thought as she gave another angry glare to the bed sheets still crumpled on top of the bed. As such, she figured she might as well attempt to do something worthwhile with her time.

Still, the thought of sleep caused her to pause. The memories from last night were still etched vividly on her own mind. This had been the fourth time this month that she had been awoken in a similar fashion, and it wasn't even halfway through the month yet. The nightmares were getting worse it seemed. Every memory of that event gnawed at her like a rat after cheese. Even now, she could still smell the burning city, feel the chill of the midnight air, hear the cries of the hopeless, and the sight of her sister...

Her belly growled loudly, thankfully pulling her away from her own memories. With a sigh, she gave one last look at the stacks of books and papers awaiting her attention before turning towards the large oak doors the exited her room. It would have to wait until after breakfast.

~~~

While Canterlot Castle held several large dining halls, they were rarely used during the lunchtime hours in the summer. Most ponies who worked at the castle much preferred to spend the time outdoors, soaking in the midday's sun and breathing the fresh open air. For this purpose, several small gardens were converted into small cafés, with a number of simple wooden tables set up around the area. Among these was a simple flower garden, located just outside the main event hall. This garden was often time used to host parties for the nobles and higher-ups in Canterlot. Beyond that however, it was also the favorite place for Princess Celestia to enjoy her afternoon tea and salad.

So it was this particular day, as the Solar Princess sat idly at a table in the center of the garden. She smiled as the melodic songs of the birds soared through the sky. A gently breeze blew through her mane, bringing with it the comforting fragrance of the blooming roses.

Most ponies knew better than to bother the Princess during this time. It was one of the few times of solace that she was granted from her duties. Unless there was some sort of emergency, everypony was willing to keep their distance and grant her this small moment of peace. As such, when she heard the sound of hooves, plodding across the lawn as they dragged themselves to the table, Celestia had a pretty good idea who the owner of those hooves was.

"Good afternoon sister," Celestia said perkily. "Or shall I say good morning? You're up awfully early today."

Luna didn't answer directly as she approached the table. Instead, she dropped her head, planting it firmly against the table with a large groan.

Not a moment after her arrival, a rather well-groomed pony appeared, levitating a cup in front of him. "Your tea, your highness," he respectfully said with a bow, placing the cup down perfectly in front of Celestia. Turning, he looked at Luna, her head still firmly examining the grain of the table. "And... for you madam?"

Luna didn't bother lifting her head. "Coffee."

"...Coffee madam?" he asked hesitantly. "And what else can I..."

"Coffee," Luna repeated, rolling her head around so that she could look at the stallion. "Just coffee. Just a cup of plain, black coffee." And with that, she rolled her head back down before he could push the issue.

The waiter's eyebrow rose up as he looked over to the other Princess. Celestia just giggled at her sister's strange antics. "Just bring her the same as my order as well," she said with a warm smile. The stallion nodded and turned to walk away, though not before taking one last look at the eccentric princess lying across the table.

As soon as he had disappeared, Luna raised her head back up. "Honestly," she said with another groan. "You would assume that nopony had ever heard of coffee before now."

Celestia laughed. "You can't be too hard on him," she said lifting up her teacup and taking a small sip. "Before your return, I don't think that anypony in the castle was aware that the stuff even existed. Heaven knows I've never been able to stomach it myself."

"It is an acquired taste," Luna agreed sitting up just a bit straighter. And not a moment too soon as well, as the stallion returned with a steaming hot mug in his magical grasp. "Your coffee, your highness," he said, again bowing as he placed the cup in front of Luna. She didn't bother to thank him. Grabbing the mug as soon as he placed in in front of her, she immediately started drinking. She kept the cup up to her muzzle for quite a while, even surpassing the point that Celestia started wondering if she had drowned in it. Finally, she pulled it back down, licking her lips with a satisfied sigh. "Yes, that is most satisfactory."

The change that came over the princess was almost immediate. The color seemed to come back into her face as she began to sit up straighter. Her eyes became more focused and her voice much clearer when she spoke. Her mane, which had previously been hanging limply, once again was full of life as it waved in an ethereal wind.

Celestia laughed as she took a sip of her own tea. "Welcome back to the land of the living," she said with a chuckle.

"Well, forgive me," Luna retorted with a sarcastic smile of her own. "Not all of us are quite as used to being awake at an ungodly hour such as this."

"I'm not the one who decided that you needed to be awake right now," Celestia retorted. "As I've told you before, you do plenty with your reign after night falls. You have the right to sleep in as long as necessary."

"No. I should be awake during the day as well. I need to be available to help out when most of our subjects are awake."

Celestia sighed. "Look Luna, I know that we haven't had the chance to talk about it, but... if this has anything to do with Cadence and Shining Armor's wedding..."

"This has nothing to do with that," Luna quickly interrupted, bowing her head down and clutching her coffee cup just a bit tighter. It had only been a week since the wedding ended and in all honesty, her concerns had everything to do with that day. Luna had not actually been in Canterlot at the time the Changelings began their siege. Celestia had come to her early that morning, telling her that there was evidence that the threat against Canterlot had come from the Griffon Empire and that Luna was to leave at once and look into that claim. By the time she returned, nightfall had already passed, the wedding was over and the reception was well under way. She'd managed to miss the entire invasion.

Celestia claimed that it was all a misunderstanding. It was just coincidence that Luna had been sent away from Canterlot during that time. It had absolutely nothing to do with trying to protect Luna and keep her away from the danger. Nothing at all...

Celestia seemed to be able to read Luna's thoughts as she sat in silence. "Look Luna," she quietly began. "I know you don't want to, but I really think that we should..."

"So," Luna said, again cutting off her sister quickly to change the subject. "What are your plans for the rest of the day? Anything exciting I should be aware of?"

Celestia sighed. As much as she wanted to push the issue, she decided to save it for another day. "Not much I'm afraid," she said taking another sip of her tea. "I get to sit in on some budget meetings for a couple of hours, before the midday court begins." She paused for a moment as a smile began to form across her lips. "After that however, Twilight is coming over for dinner to visit."

"Oh? She is still in Canterlot then? I would have assumed that she would have returned to Ponyville by now."

"Yes, she's still in town," Celestia responded with a nod. "She decided after the wedding to spend some time with her family, but she still wanted the chance to visit with me and talk like we used to." The smile grew larger as Celestia thought back to all the good times the two had studying together. "In fact, she has some spell that she recently discovered that's she's been dying to discuss with me for a while."

"Yes, that does sound like Twilight," Luna said with a grin of her own, remembering her own experience with the unicorn at Nightmare Night a few months ago. "Which spell in particular does she wish to discuss?"

Celestia chuckled. With a shake of her head, she answered, "Starswirl the Bearded's First Theory of Time Travel."

That was not a good time for Luna to have been talking a drink. Coffee spewed from her mouth, as she was unable to prevent it. "Starswirl's First Theory of Time Travel?" Luna repeated still not believing it herself. "The paradox spell? The spell that sends its caster back in time a number of days, with the only intention being that it will ensure it is cast in the first place? The spell that Starswirl himself described as, 'a complete and absolute joke' and 'an utter waste of time'? That spell?"

Taking a sip of tea, Celestia smiled. "That's the one."

Luna chucked as she took another sip of her coffee. "And how, might I ask, did she manage to uncover this particular spell?"

"Apparently, she had an experience with it about a month ago. She was visited by herself from the future and spent the week panicking, assuming that the world was going to end. Ended up breaking into the restricted area of the library to find something to stop it and found that spell instead."

"Now THAT sounds like Twilight," Luna smiled with a laugh. "Figures she'd manage to get her hooves on the one spell that nopony can understand. I still wonder how it is that Starswirl managed to come up with the thing."

Celestia grinned. "Oh, you get a couple of drinks in him and he can come up with all sorts of crazy ideas, let me tell you."

"And how would you know that?" Luna asked with a raised eyebrow. "Starswirl died long before you and I ever came to Equestria."

"Let's just say that my own experience with the spell may or may not have accidently sent me back a little farther than I had at first assumed. And let's also say that I may or may not have accidently gotten Starswirl just a little bit tipsy. And let's also say that I may or may not have given him the idea for it in the first place."

This time, Luna managed to keep the coffee contained in her mouth, though she was not able to stop the fit of coughing that came afterwards. She looked at her sister awaiting the punch line to the joke. When it never came, she set down the cup and laughed. "And Twilight actually thinks that she will be able to understand such a spell."

Celestia smiled. "Well, if anypony is able to, it would definitely be her. Her understanding of magical theory has gotten rather impressive recently."

"Oh?" Luna asked curiously. "Does this mean... that she's finally ready?"

"Not quite yet," Celestia said with a shake of her head. "There are still a few things that she needs to learn before we give her Starswirl's unfinished spell to work with. But I do believe that she's getting very close to that point. It shouldn't be too much longer now."

"Yes well, I am sure that it will be an interesting meeting regardless," Luna said before taking another sip of her coffee. "You must give her my regards when she arrives."

Celestia paused for a moment, looking down at her teacup. "Why don't you tell her yourself?" she said at length.

Luna sighed. "Tia..." she began.

"After all," Celestia interrupted. "I know for a fact that she would just love to have the chance to talk with you again. She hasn't really had the chance since Nightmare Night." Looking up, she smiled at her younger sister. "So, what do you say? Would you please join us for dinner?"

Luna sat silently; slowly stirring what little remained of her coffee. She watched as it sloshed around in her cup for a minute. "I... cannot..." she said at length.

This time, Celestia wasn't going to let the issue go so easily. "And why not Luna? Really what would be the harm in socializing once in a while?"

"It's..." Luna started to say, but found the words catching in her mouth. The memory of the nightmares came rushing back to her, filling her mind with their terrors. She shuddered as she thought back, seeing the dark mare of her dreams sneering down at her. "It's complicated..." she finally managed to say.

"Luna, whatever the problem is, keeping it bottled up to yourself isn't the answer. Please sister. Give me the chance to help you."

"I am afraid you can't," Luna said sadly. "This is a punishment that I must bare alone."

Before Celestia could interject, the waiter returned, this time carrying two plates of food with him. Gently, he placed the silver trays down in front of each princess, before removing the coverings and revealing the contents. Each plate contained a small salad, along with a lovely looking dandelion sandwich and a thin slice of lemon cake. Proudly he bowed. "Your lunch is served."

Luna looked down at the food. Although she was still hungry, it no longer looked appetizing to her. "I've lost my appetite," she muttered, pushing the food away and standing. "Enjoy your meal," she quickly said, turning and trotting away before Celestia could protest.

The solar princess thought about calling out to her sister, but stopped herself at the last minute. She watched as Luna sadly trotted away, until she had turned the corner and disappeared. "Oh Luna," she said with a sigh. "The world has already forgiven you sister. I just hope that someday you'll be ready to forgive yourself."

Chapter 2

Following the second great Griffon War, Equestria was once again free to begin an era of peace. Unfortunately, internal struggles between the ruling classes made this impossible, with each clan attempting to take claim over the victory for themselves. Family rose up against family and the entire nation was posed on the edge of combat once again. Thankfully, war did not occur due to the negotiations carried out by Princess Celestia. Still, tensions ran high and many ponies rebelled against the kingdom. Some of the more foolish attempted to overthrow the ruling parties, but none succeeded. Those who attempted this were in many cases stripped of their title and forced to work off their punishment or were banished from the Kingdom. The few that refused such punishments were unfortunately, put to death.

Luna yawned loudly. Her eyes were fluttering shut as she tried to keep her focus, but was failing miserably. Her head, currently resting on her left hoof kept slipping off as she would start to doze. For a moment, she wished that she was one of those select few ponies that were put to death, just to be put out of her own misery.

With a large groan, she slammed the large tome shut, tossing it onto the table with a thud. In between the many forms and papers she had to work through during her day, she had decided that it would be a good idea to try and catch up on Equestria history in her spare time. Celestia, eager to help, recommended this particular book as a good entry point since it did a fantastic job covering the basics of the country's history.

What she had failed to mention was how insanely boring it actually was.

Sighing loudly, she levitated the book back up to her face. She really did intend to crack it open and start reading again. However, no matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't find the strength to do so. It was just too much to ask on a day like today.

Setting the book back down again, Luna leaned backwards, gazing up at the ceiling. She'd had bad days before (VERY bad days), but few had been quite like this one. No matter how hard she tried, she simply couldn't get those dark memories out of her mind.

It had been like that ever since her return to Equestria of course. When she first came back they were all that she could think of. Overtime however, she was able to focus on other things and drive them to the back of her mind. The nightmares were the one time that it came back, but even they eventually began to grow farther and farther apart.

At least, that's how it was until the Royal Wedding. For some inexplicable reason, something about the changeling's invasion reignited the bad memories to a blaze. Nothing, not even the return of Discord nor her Adventures on Nightmare Night had managed to stir these memories like the wedding. Ever since that day, the nightmares had been pushed to the very forefront of her mind. Now, whenever she closed her eyes she could vividly see the City of Everfree burning below her hooves while the cackling voice of its destructor echoed through the air.

Her voice.
She shuddered as the maniacal laugher bounced through her head once again. It was a sound that stalked her daily and haunted her dreams. It summed up every pain, every mistake, and every regret that the princess carried. No matter how hard she tried or how far she ran, the voice never relented its pursuit. It was going to follow her for the rest of her life.

Levitating the water pitcher on the desk, Luna poured herself another glass of water. She lifted it to her lips, but stopped when she looked down into it. Vaguely, her own reflection stared back up at her. The waves however bent the image, twisting it just a bit. The image seemed to smirk at her as it glared with sinister, serpentine eyes.

"ARRRRGGGHHH!!!"

Luna screamed as she stood and hurled the glass across the room, letting it shatter into a thousand tiny shards. She scowled at it as the water burst outwards, soaking the wall and the carpet below. Breathing deeply, she watched as the pieces bounced down and settled, leaving only the soggy mess behind.

Sighing, she sat back down and buried her head in her hooves. She desperately wanted to scream out again, but what good would it have done? As much as she hated to admit it, Nightmare Moon was always going to be a part of her, and she had nopony to blame but herself. Over a thousand years ago, she gave in to the darkness that nudged at her own heart. She could have tried harder, fought back, talked to somepony about her concerns, but she didn't. Instead, she let it take root, nurturing it to the point that it choked out the light and consumed her and nearly took everypony else with it.

So much pain and misery, and she was the only one that could be blamed for any of it. She tried her best to hold back the tears as she thought back to all those years and lives wasted from her own selfishness. All because she let one single mistake control her entire life.

But what could she do about it now? Celestia kept insisting that the best course of action was to try and simply ignore it. She kept pushing Luna to talk about it and to try socializing a bit more, as if, somehow that would magically destroy the monster that still dwelt within Luna's heart.

But Luna couldn't bring herself to do that. Not while she knew that Nightmare Moon was still in there, lurking in the shadows. She was always watching, waiting for just the right moment. All Luna had to do was let her guard down for one moment, and the Nightmare would strike yet again.

She thought back, all those many years ago. If only she could have been a bit more forgiving, a bit more open with her own feelings, maybe she could have prevented all the pain that she caused for so many. If only she could go back and fix this; make it so that Nightmare Moon never existed. If only she could stop the seeds of hatred from taking root.

Unfortunately, there was no way to change the past. No magic existed that could cure her of her guilty conscious. No, this was a pain that she was going to be forced to bear for a very long time.

Still, she could wish couldn't she?

The rumbling of her stomach pulled her thoughts back to the present. Since she had foolishly walked away at lunch, she had ended up going hungry at that time. Now, as the sun was beginning to make its decent, she had still not eaten anything for the day.

She sighed again as she thought about dinner. It was probably just being finished up right about now. Soon enough, the dining room would be cleared and all the food would be put away. All she had to do was go down and grab something to eat. But with Twilight and Celestia both down there, she wasn't willing to risk it. They'd both try to talk to her, and that would eventually lead to them asking how she was, which in turn would lead to them wanting to help her out.

Luna couldn't help but chuckle. Here she was wishing that she had the strength to speak her mind a thousand years ago, even though she still wasn't able to do so now. Perhaps Celestia is right, she thought to herself. Maybe I should go down and talk with them. At the very least it would...

She suddenly froze as the sound of hoofsteps and voices echoed through the hallway. Catching her breath, she paused hoping that the voices would fade away as the ponies just walked past. To her dismay however, the voices continued to get louder and clearer as they approached.

Panicking, Luna did the only thing that she could think to do. Her horn glowed softly, as her body began to dematerialize. Her form melted away, until all that remained was a dark cloud, hardly distinguishable from a shadow. The cloud floated in place for only a moment, before darting for a dark corner of the room.

The door began to creek open, just as the last remnants of the shadowy essence disappeared into the darkness. From beyond the doorway, a purple unicorn poked her head into the room and looked around expectantly. "Princess Luna?" she asked curiously.

Pushing the door open the rest of the way, Twilight Sparkle entered into the room. She levitated a plate of food alongside her. "Princess Luna?" she started again, this time a bit more loudly. "Are you in right now? I hope we're not disturbing you. We brought you some dinner."

Coming in just behind her was Princess Celestia. She had a worried expression on her face and didn't bother to call out for her sister. Rather, she stepped into the room and began to look around. For a second, her eyes rested on the location Luna was hiding, causing the lunar princess to freeze in place. But soon enough, her eyes turned back to her student with a sigh. "It appears that we have just missed her," she said sadly. "I am sorry Twilight. I know how much you wanted to see her today."

Twilight's ears fell flat against her head. Gently she set the plate down on the desk, taking a brief moment to look over the books sitting there as well. "Yeah..." she answered sadly, "I was hoping that we could at least catch her; just for a moment at least. It's been too long since I really got the chance to talk with her."

"Well, as I told you she's been very busy lately. I'm sure that she'd love to talk with you if she only had the time."

Luna felt a twinge of guilt from Celestia's words and the downtrodden look on Twilight's face. Still, there wasn't much that she could do about it now.

Celestia turned and started for the door. "Well, we best be on our way Twilight. I'll be sure to let Luna know that you stopped by."

"Wait," Twilight responded quickly. She paused, kicking at the ground for a moment. "Can't we wait for her to come back?"

Celestia sighed. "I don't think that would be wise. I think..."

"Please Princess," Twilight pleaded, "just for a couple of minutes? We can still continue our discussion in here while we wait."

Pausing to think about it, Celestia finally relented with a nod of her head. "Alright Twilight. Just for a couple of minutes though."

Luna had to stop herself from groaning as the pair made themselves comfortable. Celestia sat down upon the large cushion that sat in front of Luna's desk, while Twilight took her seat in the middle of the rug in the center of the room. Once the pair were settled, Celestia spoke up. "Now, where was it that we left off?"

Twilight smiled. "We were discussing the problem I found with Starswirl the Bearded's First Theory of Time Travel."

"Ah yes," Celestia responded, returning the smile. "You were saying that the problem with the spell deals in the transference of matter correct?"

"Exactly," Twilight responded with a nod. "See, my theory is that the reason the spell works the way that it does, is that the caster is physically sent back in time. Because of this, the world still recognizes their presence and won't change because of it."

"It's an interesting theory, I must admit," Celestia mused. "But I do believe that ponies have tried combining the spell with a far-sight spell as well. If I'm not mistaken, I do believe that the results of those tests were that they had the ability to view things in the past, but it seemed to have no bearing on the events that happened then."

"Yes, I looked into that as well. The problem with that I think is that far-sight spells only give the caster the ability to see what is going on in a particular area to begin with. Due to the nature of casting the spell, it makes it difficult for the caster to perform other spells at the same time as well. Both could potentially be reasons as to why combining the two still doesn't let you change the past."

"Yes, I can see your reasoning behind that," Celestia answered, rubbing her chin thoughtfully. "Then what would you suggest would be a better spell to use for this purpose?"

Twilight hesitated for a moment. She looked around the room nervously before turning back towards the princess. "An Autoscopy spell."

Celestia's expression immediately turned to one of concern. "Twilight..." she began.

"Yes, I know, I know." Twilight immediately responded cutting her off. "Out-of-body spells are not widely accepted and are still considered illegal when performed by untrained unicorns."

"You're also forgetting incredibly dangerous," Celestia cut in. "There have been countless unicorns that have lost their lives attempting to control those spells. The pattern is simply too wild and difficult to maintain once the unicorn's mind has separated from their own body."

"But that's the thing about it," Twilight exclaimed. Reaching into the bag she was carrying with her, she levitated out a large roll of parchment, laying it on the ground between the pair and unfurling it. "You see," she continued, pointing towards the large glyphs drawn in the center of the chart, "Both Starswirl's spell and the Autoscopy spell share a similar pattern right here. By adding in a linking spell between those two, they naturally help provide the stabilization to keep the spell going."

Celestia lifted the chart up to her muzzle in order to get a better look at the chart. Neither her nor Twilight noticed the dark shadow that slunk out of the corner and crawled along the ceiling in order to get a better look as well.

After a moment of studying, Celestia set back down the scroll with a sigh. "It is a very well thought out theory, Twilight." Her smile soon turned to a frown, "but I'm afraid that it's still far too dangerous for you to--"

"I've already cast it," Twilight interrupted suddenly.

Celestia eyes narrowed. "You did what?"

"I've already cast it," Twilight said timidly. "I know I probably should have talked to you about it first, but I was just so excited and everything seemed to be correct that I just couldn't help myself." She seemed to shrink under her mentor's harsh gaze. "I'm sorry..."

Celestia stared down Twilight for a moment, before softening her gaze. "What's done is done I suppose," she said with a soft smile. "Though the next time that you decide to try out a spell like this, please at least let me know before, alright? I don't want you doing something that could harm yourself like that."

Twilight weakly smiled and nodded.

Leaning back, Celestia chuckled. "Well, seeing as how you are still here talking with me instead of lost somewhere in time, I might as well ask you how your experiment went."

Twilight's eyes immediately lit up. Reaching back into her bag, she pulled out another scroll and laid it over the top. "Very well actually," she answered excitedly. "I ran a few separate tests different times to see if I could do something to change the past. And so far, the results are fairly promising."

"Promising? You mean you were not able to tell if anything changed?"

Twilight paused, looking rather sheepish for a moment. "Well, the problem that I'm having is that maintaining the linking spell drains magic far too quickly. The best that I've been able to figure is that I could travel back a maximum of ten seconds, before my magic is completely drained. Unfortunately, that's not long enough to really tell if it made any difference or not."

"I see," Celestia said, once again peering over Twilight's notes. "So, even if the spell was working correctly, no unicorn alive to provide it with enough magic to make a significant difference."

Twilight shook her head with a sigh. "Unless I can figure out some way to reduce the magic drain, I don't think so. And with how much magic it takes right now, I doubt that even you would be able to travel back more than a couple of minutes at most. Um... no offence..."

"That's quite alright," Celestia answered with another smile as she rolled up the chart and handing it back to Twilight. "Have you considered the option of using a magical supplement, such as a crystal, to increase its power?"

Taking the scroll, and rolling up the other one as well, Twilight responded with a nod. "I've considered it, but it would have to be a very powerful crystal, full of raw magic to feed the entire spell. I just don't know if there's a crystal out there that could be feasible for this."

"Well, we'll have to look into it at some other time, I'm afraid," Celestia said, rising up to her hooves. "Unfortunately, I'm afraid that we've overstayed our welcome here, and I do have some matters that need attending to before sundown."

"Of course," Twilight said, again looking around the room sadly. "Your duties come first. Still, I wish that I could have at least seen Princess Luna today."

Trotting over to the door, Celestia pulled it open for her pupil. "Don't worry about that," she said warmly. "Luna will turn around eventually. She just needs a bit of time."

Twilight nodded as she exited the room. Just before she left, she gave one last sad look back, before leaving with a sigh. Celestia exited right behind her, pulling the large oak door shut as well.

As the sound of the pairs hooves against the stone floors slowly faded to nothingness, the dark shadow crawled down from the ceiling, rematerializing until Luna was standing where the others had been moments ago. Her mind was racing as the words of the evening flowed through her mind. Could it possibly be that Twilight had actually managed to discover a spell that could change the past? If that was the case, then perhaps there was a way to finally rid herself of her guilt once and for all. She just needed a way to provide the spell with an infinite source of pure, raw magic.

She couldn't help but smile. She had a pretty good idea where to find one.