One Thousand Years

by Afterwards

Rating: everyone
Tags: Princess Celestia, Twilight Sparkle, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Nightmare Moon, Princess Luna, Spike, Adventure
Length: 5490

When Twilight finds a mysterious entry in her book, she decides to confront Luna about something that's been bugging her for a while: The Mare on the Moon.

Twilight Sparkle finds herself poring over an old book of hers, one she hasn't read in over a year. When she rereads the entry on Nightmare Moon, something strikes her as odd. Is there something left of the lunar mare? Is there more secrets that Princess Luna may be hiding?

Published 2013-10-16 00:00:03 UTC
Last updated 2013-10-30 00:52:39 UTC

Fear

I
Fear

The Mare on the Moon: myth from olden pony times. A powerful pony who wanted to rule Equestria, defeated by the Elements of Harmony and imprisoned on the moon. Legend has it that on the longest day of the thousandth year, the stars will aid in her escape, and she will bring about nighttime eternal…

Twilight Sparkle read the paragraph again, and another time, and then once more just to make sure she’d read it right. It just didn't make sense. Well, it did, but something about it just bothered her, and she couldn't quite put her hoof on it.

“Spike!” she called out to her number one assistant, who was instantly by her side.

“Yes, Twilight?” he asked. “How may I help?”

Twilight placed her hoof beneath the offending words, motioning where to read. “Tell me what’s wrong with this paragraph.”

Spike read the page, taking in the information and thinking about it a little. “Uh, I dunno. Why are you so worried about it? We defeated Nightmare Moon already, remember?”

“Yeah,” said Twilight, “Right.” But here was something else there, she knew it. Reading over the paragraph again, she still couldn't figure it out, though she knew it would be bothering her until she did.

“Anything else I can help you with, Twilight?” asked Spike expectantly.

“No, not really,” she replied. “But thanks anyway.”

Princess Luna awoke from her slumber suddenly and painfully. Specifically, she awoke the second she made contact with the floor, her right wing folded beneath her at am uncomfortable angle.

“Ow,” she said, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. “What was that for?”

“You’re late,” replied her sister Celestia, tough she didn’t seem as bothered by it as one might expect. “I thought maybe you were just running behind and would be there soon, but no; an hour later I find you here in bed, snoring away like a-“

“I don’t snore,” denied Luna, getting up slowly and stretching her wings. “And you didn’t have to push me out of the bed.”

Celestia merely rolled her eyes and smiled. “Come on. Moon’s not going to raise itself, you know.”

“Can’t you do it?” wondered Luna as she followed her sister out of the room and down the long castle hallways. “I’m really,” here her speech was interrupted by a loud yawn, “Tired.”

“I can’t see how, considering you’ve done nothing but sleep all day.”

“I could say the same of you, sleeping during the night. Who even does that?”

The sisters shared a hearty laugh before walking up to the balcony, looking out at their equine kingdom.

“I’m so glad to have you back after all these years,” Celestia said, her voice full of sincerity. “You have no idea how hard it was, ruling without you.”

Luna sighed. “I’m ever grateful to be back as well. And…” Luna trailed off. Maybe now was the wrong time to be sharing her thoughts.

“And what…? Is something wrong?” Her sister looked concerned.

“No… No, it’s nothing. All in the past, right?” Luna tried to put on a smile, but wasn’t sure Celestia had fallen for it, so she decided to quickly change the subject. “We should… probably take care of that moon.”

“Yes, right. The moon.”

And so the two sisters began their nightly ritual: Lowering the sun to make room for the moon. As the sun’s rays slowly disappeared over the horizon, the stars began to shine here and there, twinkling in the heavens. In no time at all, the moon was in place, ever so slowly making its way across the sky.

A rush of memories suddenly made their way into Luna’s head. The moon: Barren, lifeless, not a soul in sight. But more jarring than the lifelessness of the moon was the…

Stop, Luna told herself. Bad memories. All in the past.

Dear Princess Celestia,

Today I learned that

Twilight stopped, her mind at a blank. After staring at the parchment for a little longer, she crumpled it up and threw it away. “I sure hope the others are keeping up on their promises,” she muttered. “I haven’t learned anything about friendship in the past month.”

With a sigh, she retired off to her bed, pulling the covers over herself as she stared longingly up at the moon. It still looked weird to her, without the mare’s face on its surface. She’d gotten so used to it being there all her life, the glowing orb just seemed rather empty without it.

She also couldn’t help but notice how much the stars reminded her of her cutie mark. It was obviously supposed to mimic them to a degree, seeing how star-like shapes are often associated with magic. Twilight sometimes wondered how many different cutie marks there were for each special talent. Surely lots of ponies have the same special talent, but not the same cutie mark. Had anyone ever counted? Twilight thought maybe she ought to look into that sometime soon.

She turned back to the book lying next to her bed. With a sigh, she used her magic to bring it over to her and flipped to the
page she was on.

“Legend has it that on the longest day of the thousandth year, the stars will aid in her escape, and she will bring about everlasting night,” she read aloud, quietly so as not to wake Spike. The whole entry still seemed wrong to her. Sure, it had been almost a year since it had stopped mattering, but it still bugged her.

Nevertheless, it wasn’t long before sleep overtook her and she drifted off into the dream world.

When Twilight awoke, she was floating in the air, the entire light spectrum floating around her.

“Well that’s certainly not normal,” she observed. “This doesn’t look anything like… Anything. I wonder if…”

It was then that suddenly the colors around her began to shift into the shape of a strange creature. It had the head of an alligator, the ears of a bunny, the shell of a tortoise, the wings of an owl, and the large, furry tail of a cat. When the creature was fully formed, it began barking like a dog.

“What an odd creature,” noted Twilight, “And yet it seems awfully familiar. Almost as if…” Suddenly, she realized why she recognized this creature, and what it was. “Of course! That’s the sign I’ve made to tell myself that I’m dreaming!”

As soon as she said that, everything suddenly came into sharp contrast, the wide array of colors beginning to hurt her eyes.

“So now that I’ve achieved lucid dreaming,” she said to herself, “I should get rid of this awful background.” She decided to start with the familiar, and placed herself in Ponyville. The night sky above looked exactly the same as it had outside her window. The odd dream creature was gone, though she didn’t really need it anymore.

“Oh look, I can see my house from here,” she said. “I should pay myself a visit. Or would I still be there, since I’m dreaming?” Twilight decided she might as well find out, making sure to record all this in her dream journal after she awoke. She calmly trotted over to her house, climbed up to her window, and looked inside, expecting to see herself sound asleep, or at least an empty bed.

She was quite surprised, however, when she found Princess Luna occupying her bedroom.

“Enjoying your dream, Twilight Sparkle?” she asked.

“Um,” replied Twilight, getting over her initial shock. “Well, not exactly, seeing as it’s barely started.”

Luna smiled. “Well, I’m sorry to interrupt, but I sensed something was troubling you. Dreams are my domain, after all. Is anything on your mind?”

It was awfully convenient for Princess Luna to appear in her dreams at this particular time. The lines from the book echoed over her head once more, just as they had over and over again that day. Who better to ask than the Mare on the Moon herself?

Twilight opened her window a bit more before climbing in, leading Luna to where the book lay beside her bed. Using her magic, she brought the book over to them and flipped to the page she’d been staring at before she’d fallen asleep.

“The Mare on the Moon,” she read aloud, keeping an eye on Luna for her reaction. “Myth from olden pony times. A powerful pony who wanted to rule Equestria, defeated by the elements of harmony and imprisoned on the moon. Legend has it that on the longest day of the thousandth year, the stars will aid in her escape, and she will bring about-“

“Yes, eternal night, I know,” interrupted Luna in a rather spiteful tone. “Why are you worried about that? Nightmare Moon is all in the past.”

“That’s just the thing,” said Twilight. “I don’t know why I’m so worried about it. I was just reading over it earlier today when I
noticed how odd that struck me. I just can’t place my hoof on it…”

Luna gently took the book with her own magic and inspected it again, not a hint of emotion betrayed by her face.

“What was it like on the moon, Princess Luna?” asked Twilight. “Was anything… Up there?”

Princess Luna shut the book and shook her head forlornly. “The moon is barren and lifeless, Twilight Sparkle. I wandered there aimlessly for a thousand years, trapped inside my own head; nothing but a blank, rocky expanse as far as the eye can see. But it’s not the moon that worried me most. It was…”

Her voice trailed off, and Twilight was left wondering what it was Luna was about to say. “It was what? What had you so worried? What could have worried you, as Nightmare Moon?”

Luna shut her eyes and sighed. “These are memories I would rather not relive, Twilight Sparkle,” she said abruptly. “And if you value your sanity, you would prefer not to live them either. It’s all in the past. It’s not important anymore. Do not investigate this further, or you will regret it.”

And with that, Luna stormed over to the window and climbed out onto the balcony, opening her wings wide. “Consider this dream over, Twilight Sparkle,” she said as she took off into the night sky.

Twilight awoke three feet from where she had been standing, bewildered and confused to an infuriating degree. She couldn’t understand why Luna had gotten so upset.

“Was it something I said?” she asked herself as she got up, seemingly unable to sleep now.

Despite Luna’s warning, she was now only more curious. Something had obviously angered her, something she didn’t want to remember. She seemed almost afraid of it. Something on the moon. Or, not on the moon. Inside it? The only thing inside the moon would be more rock. Above it? But what could possibly be above…

“On the longest day of the thousandth year,” Twilight recited, “The stars will aid in her escape…”

Stars.

Yes, it definitely had something to do with stars.

Deceit

II
Deceit

“On the longest day of the thousandth year the stars will aid in her escape,” Twilight Sparkle recited once more as she paced around the library. “Why would they aid in her escape? And how? It just doesn't make any sense!”

“Okay, no need to panic,” she said to herself. “You know all sorts of things about stars. This is nothing a little research can’t solve. Spike!”

There was a yell and a loud thump from upstairs A few seconds later, Spike came walking down, yawning loudly. “What is it, Twilight?” he asked sleepily. “It’s like 6 in the morning.”

“Sorry about that, Spike,” said Twilight, “But I need you to do me a favor and bring me the Astronomical Astronomer’s Almanac-“

“Uh…,” interrupted Spike, “You wouldn't be talking about that book I accidentally burned that one time, would you?”

Twilight paused for a moment. It took a while for her to recall, but then she remembered: The night of the meteor shower, when Owloysius had first flown through her window. “Yes, actually.”

“Bummer. Because, you know… I accidentally burned it.”

Twilight continued pacing once more. “In that case, we’ll be making a trip to the Canterlot library, to study everything we can about stars.”

“Can’t it wait?” asked Spike. “I at least want to catch up on my sleep.”

“Spike, there’s no time for that, this is important! Now let’s go get the others and make our way over to Canterlot.”

“You’re early,” noted Luna as her sister Celestia walked up to the balcony behind her.

“Unlike someone I know,” Celestia smiled as she took her place beside her sister. There was a short silence as both seemed to contemplate what to say next.

“You seemed bothered by something yesterday,” said Celestia. “Is everything alright?”

“Yes,” Luna lied, “Everything is great. Want to raise the sun now?”

Celestia frowned a bit, but said nothing as they began to work their magic.

“You know, you can tell me anything,” Celestia said as the sun was slowly rising. “I’m your older sister, and I care about you. You know that, right?”

Then why did you send me to the moon? Luna thought, then instantly regretted it. I shouldn't be acting so spiteful, she told herself. She only did what she thought was best.

“Well, you see…,” started Luna. Maybe I shouldn't tell her, she though. “See, the thing is…” It doesn't even matter, right? “What’s been bothering me…” It’s all in the past.

“I haven’t seen my friends in Ponyville in a long time, and I was wondering if I should pay them a visit, but what if they’re busy?” Luna tried to pass it off as if that really was all that was bothering her, and by the looks of it, Celestia had bought it.

“Well, no need to worry any longer,” said Celestia, looking over Luna’s shoulder. “Looks like they’re on their way over here right now.”

The moon stopped dead in its tracks.

“They’re what?!” Luna exclaimed, turning to face where Celestia was looking. Sure enough, Twilight and her friends were just getting off the train and making their way over to the library.

“Isn’t that what you wanted?” asked Celestia, looking up at the moon, which was still halfway beneath the horizon. “Luna, would you mind moving the moon the rest of the way?”

“Yes, of course,” answered Luna, focusing her magic once more. She finished lowering the moon twice as fast as usual, then quickly excused herself and withdrew from the balcony, leaving a bewildered Celestia in her wake.

“Do we really have to be going all the way to Canterlot this early in the morning?” questioned Rainbow Dash as they made their way over to the library. “Some of us need our beauty sleep, you know.”

“Well, I think that, as her friends, it is our duty to help Twilight in any way we can,” said Rarity. “Isn't that right, Applejack?”

“Er, yeah, thas' right,” said Applejack. “Speaking of, why is it you wanted us here again, Twilight?”

Twilight opened her mouth to speak, but was quickly interrupted by a large shadow passing overhead. The six ponies looked up to see a dark blue alicorn flying overhead, circling like a hawk.

“Twilight Sparkle,” said Princess Luna as she landed on the ground with the grace of a swan, the six ponies (plus the dragon) bowing before her. “We need to talk. In private, preferably.”

“Of course, Princess Luna,” said Twilight. “You guys can go ahead to the library,” she said to her friends, “I’ll meet you there.”

“What was it you wanted to talk to me about, Princess Luna?” Twilight asked as her friends wandered off towards the library.

Luna looked around to make sure no one was listening before changing her voice to a whisper. “What are you doing here, Twilight Sparkle? I thought I told you not to press the matter any further.”

Twilight knew this was coming, and decided to play her cards wisely. She could tell Luna that she wasn’t going to change her mind… or she could tell a half-truth and have her believe that she was here for a different reason. Deciding she didn’t want to deceive Luna like that, Twilight went with the former.

“I’m sorry, Princess Luna,” said Twilight, “But this is something I must know. You know me; I can’t stand the thought of not knowing things. If you refuse to tell me… Then I’ll have to figure it out myself.”

“Mark my words, Twilight Sparkle; you do not want to do this. There are things up there… Things you have no business knowing about.”

“I’m sorry, Princess. But I’m afraid you already have my answer.” Twilight turned around and began to head toward the library. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have some research to do.”

“What are we looking for again?” asked Pinkie Pie as she bounced from here to there, glancing at the bookshelves for anything interesting.

“Something about stars,” said Spike, “Preferably, the Astronomical Astronomer’s Almanac to All Things Astronomy.”

“Would that be…,” started Fluttershy.

“But doesn't Twilight already know everything there is to know about stars?” asked Rainbow Dash as she flew past the rows and rows of books and scrolls. “Why does she even need this book?”

“Something about Nightmare Moon and Princess Luna,” explained Spike, scanning the titles for anything resembling astronomy. “Let’s just humor her and find the book.”

“Do you mean…,” started Fluttershy again.

“But didn't we defeat Nightmare Moon?” asked Applejack. “Why would she be worryin’ about that now?”

“That’s what I’m wondering,” said Spike.

“Um, guys, I think…”

Suddenly, the doors to the library slammed open. “Sorry I’m late,” apologized Twilight. “Anyone find anything yet?”

“Well, I…”

“So Twilight, what did Luna want to talk to you about?” asked Rainbow Dash, flying over to her.

“Oh, you know, just…”

“I’m pretty sure I just found the book!” exclaimed Fluttershy, getting about as close to yelling as Fluttershy can get.

“Well, why didn't you just say so, silly?” asked Pinkie. “Twilight, Fluttershy found your book!”

“Why thank you, Fluttershy,” said Twilight, picking up the book with her magic and flipping to the table of contents. “Let’s see… Hmmm… No… I don’t think any of this would really help…”

“Do you mean to tell me,” asked Rainbow Dash “That we came all the way over here for nothing?”

“No, there must be more to it than this,” said Twilight. “Keep searching, girls! Meanwhile, I’ll see if I can get any information from this book.”

“If I may ask,” said Rarity, “What exactly is it you’re looking for?”

“I’m not sure exactly,” explained Twilight, “But see, the entry on Nightmare Moon in the book that I have says that the stars will aid in her escape; And sure enough, I distinctly remember four stars moving towards the moon, and freeing Nightmare Moon when they got there.”

“But Twilight,” said Pinkie, “Stars are giant balls of gas, burning millions of miles away! How could they do that?”

“That’s what I’m wondering,” said Twilight. “They’re basically suns, which leads to another question. The sun needs Princess Celestia's magic in order to orbit around the planet. So, how do the stars maintain their orbit? What’s keeping them aloft?”

“You sure seem to have a lot of questions, Twilight,” noted Applejack. “Was this entry on Nightmare Moon what prompted them all?”

“I’m wondering why you hadn't thought of these questions earlier,” confessed Fluttershy.

“And there’s no answers to any of them in that book?” asked Rainbow Dash.

Twilight shook her head. “Judging by the table of contents, no; though I might find some after a more detailed read.”

“Guess we’d better keep searching then,” sighed Rarity.

“Back already?” asked Celestia. “Didn't you want to spend more time with them?”

“Oh, yes, right…,” said Luna. “Well, see, Twilight was… Really busy with… things.”

Celestia raised an eyebrow. “What kind of things?”

“Just… things,” said Luna. “If you’ll excuse me…”

Before her sister could respond, Luna sped off to her room, locking the door behind her.

When did I resort to this? Keeping secrets from my sister... No, I have to tell her the truth. She’ll understand… won't she?

Many, many hours later, the six ponies and their dragon friend had completely ransacked the entire library, and still Twilight had found nothing about what she was looking for.

“Thanks for the help anyway,” she said, stifling a yawn.

“I wasted a whole day on this,” muttered Rainbow Dash.

“I missed my spa appointment,” lamented Rarity as she looked up at a clock on the wall.

“Well, guess I’ll just have to double the workload tomorrow,” said Applejack.

“Oh, the poor animals must be so hungry,” said Fluttershy.

Pinkie Pie merely bounced across the halls, glad to have spent the whole day with her friends.

“I’m sorry for putting you all through this,” said Twilight sincerely. “I really thought it wouldn’t take this long.”

“It’s really no problem, sugarcube,” Applejack assured her. “After all, what are friends for?”

“So what are you gonna do now that you didn't find what you were looking for?” asked Pinkie, still bouncing along happily.

“Hmmm,” thought Twilight. The library had proved absolutely useless, even after poring through book after book after book. Think, Twilight. What would Starswirl do?

When faced with a problem, Starswirl the Bearded was known for solving it in any way possible. Twilight decided that if studying wielded no results, then the only way she could solve this problem was through hands on experience.

“Girls,” said Twilight, “I am going to the moon.”

Rage

III

Rage

"The moon?!" exclaimed five ponies and a dragon, their various bewildered faces glaring at their violet friend.

"You heard me," said Twilight. "The moon."

"But Twilight, darling, why ever would you want to go to a place like the moon?" asked Rarity.

"This is something I need to know," said Twilight. "Princess Luna is keeping some sort of secret, and it bugs me. The only way to really find out what's going on is by going to the moon."

"Twilight, have you gone out of your mind?" asked Rainbow Dash. "There is no way we're letting you go to the moon."

"Please, I have to do this. You guys don't have to come if you don't want to. But I need to know what's really happening."

"There isn't even anything happening," muttered Spike. "All you've got is a hunch from reading one sentence in your book and a bunch of paranoia over Luna's weird mannerisms."

"That's the thing, though." Twilight started pacing. "Luna doesn't want us to know something. Something that has to do with Nightmare Moon. What if the Mare is coming back? Then the stars must have something to do with it."

"Would you just quit obsessing over this?" asked Rainbow Dash. "It's probably no big deal. And it's not healthy to overreact to things that are probably no big deal."

Twilight sighed. "But on the small chance that it is a big deal, what then? We have to be prepared for it. Now, I'm going to the moon, and you guys can come if you want, or not if you don't. It's your choice."

"Luna," called Celestia, "May I speak to you for a moment?"

"Yes, of course," answered Luna. "Come in, sister."

Celestia willed the door open, entering her sister's room. Luna had been acting distant recently, and Celestia was sure she was keeping something from her. What's worse, she was actually lying. Even when she had been turning into Nightmare Moon, her sister had never lied to her.

"Luna," said Celestia, taking a seat on the floor next to her sister. "I know something's been bothering you, and it worries me that you would actually resort to lying in order to keep it from me. Please, Luna. Tell me what's wrong."

Luna sighed, seeming to drag out the silence as long as possible. Celestia had no idea what was going on in her sister's head, but judging by the way her eyes seemed to be avoiding her, and her mouth would open, as if to say something, only to close once more; it almost seemed as if Luna was afraid to tell her.

"I…" she started. "Why… Why did you send me there? To the moon?"

Celestia was so taken aback by this question; she actually stopped thinking for a second. "Why," she said, after having regained her composure, "You do realize what you were requesting, right? Without sunlight, the plants couldn't grow, and everypony would starve, and-"

"But that wasn't me," interrupted Luna.

Surprised once more by this strange outburst, Celestia nevertheless continued explaining. "Yes, I realize you've changed now, but why are you worrying-"

"No," Luna interrupted again. "No, I mean that wasn't me."

"Of course it was you," said Celestia, ever more confused by the second, but nevertheless keeping cool and collected. "It may have been one thousand years ago, but it was definitely you who was asking for eternal night…"

"No." Luna's eyes were starting to look frantic; her voice rose in a way that was very unlike the Royal Canterlot Voice. "I mean it wasn't me! I was there, trapped in my head, while she demanded that you cease to raise the sun! I stood there, horrified, as you banished me to the otherworld; I lay powerless as I watched those things observe me endlessly for a thousand years! A whole millennium of my life, wasted on that stupid satellite, trapped in a body that was no longer mine, while you stood there, completely ignorant of my despair!

"So I ask you, dear sister. Why? Why did you banish me to the moon, when you had much better alternatives? Why didn't you pay attention to the signs? And why… Why did you forget about the stars?"

This was all too much. Was Luna telling her that there was something else to this whole Nightmare Moon thing? There seemed to have been something else going on the entire time, something Celestia had been utterly oblivious to. And Princess Celestia was not used to being oblivious.

"What are you saying?" she asked, getting up. "What signs? And what's this about the stars? And who are you talking about, if it's not you who did these things?"

Luna opened her mouth to speak, when she was interrupted by a loud knock at the door.

"Princess Celestia, you are requested an audience with Miss Twilight Sparkle," said the voice of the Royal Guard.

"Oh no," muttered Luna. "No, no, no, no."

The door swung open with a flash of dark blue magic, and the Princess of the Night galloped out into the hallway, leaving her sister behind to fumble after her.

Princess Luna was already in the throne room by the time Princess Celestia got there, arguing vividly with Twilight Sparkle. As soon as Celestia entered, both ponies stopped talking and turned to face her. This was so unlike either of them that Celestia was beginning to get worried. Well, more so than she already was.

"All right, what's going on here?" she asked. "What were you two arguing about?"

"Well, I-"

"Your student," interrupted Luna, "Wishes to take a trip. A trip to the moon."

"Is this true?" asked Celestia, eyeing Luna suspiciously.

"It is," admitted Twilight. "My friends have decided to stay, but I shall not sway from my decision. To the moon or bust."

Celestia actually backed away a few steps before answering. "But why would you possibly want to go to the moon?"

"The moon holds secrets yet unknown to ponykind. Well," here Twilight gave an accusatory glance at Luna. "Most of ponykind. These secrets have to do with Nightmare Moon, and may have something to do with her return."

Luna scoffed. "Are you accusing me…?"

"So what if I am?" asked Twilight, narrowing her eyes at Luna.

Celestia sighed. "When did both of you stop making sense? And why are you two suddenly so angry at each other? Nightmare Moon is a thing of the past, and…" Celestia stopped herself. Luna was acting eerily similar to how she had when she was turning into Nightmare Moon, and Twilight wasn't acting much different. Was the lunar mare really fully gone?

"Princess Celestia," said Twilight, bringing her out of her thoughts. "I suppose there is another alternative to visiting the moon…"

"And what would that be?" asked Celestia suspiciously.

"What do you know about stars?"

Both her student and her sister stared at Celestia intently, both with the same questioning glare, both expecting a different answer.

"Well," started Celestia, "Stars are giant balls of gas, burning millions of miles away…"

"Like the sun, right? So how are they able to move without your magic?"

"I…," started Celestia, "I'm not sure…"

"You've forgotten," Luna corrected. "I wish I had."

"So you know?" asked Twilight. "What is it?"

"There are some things you have no business knowing, Twilight Sparkle," said Luna, standing up and walking off towards the exit. "This is one of them."

"And why not?" asked Twilight. "What is it about them that I can't possibly know?"

Luna ignored the question, but continued talking as she walked off. "I suppose I cannot change your mind, but remember this: You have been warned. Even if my sister does somehow agree with this, you'll have no one to blame but yourself."

And with that, the doors slammed behind her, leaving the teacher and her student alone in the throne room.

"What was that all about?" Celestia asked, trying to keep her usual calm demeanor.

"She's hiding something," insisted Twilight, "I know it."

"Well, I'll talk to her about it later. However, I'm afraid I cannot allow you to go to the moon. That is a punishment reserved only for the most dangerous criminals."

"But if there really is nothing up there, it won't matter if I go, right?"

"Well…"

"And surely you can bring me back whenever you need to, right?"

"Well yes but…"

"So what's the problem?"

Celestia thought about it for a moment. What Twilight said made sense, and if she went up there just to find nothing, then so be it. But what if Luna was right and there really was something up there? And what was this about stars?

"Fine," said Celestia after thinking about it some more. "But on one condition. You must promise to contact me the second you see something potentially dangerous. And by potentially dangerous, I mean anything that isn't rock. Understand?"

"Got it," Twilight nodded. "Thank you so much, Princess Celestia!"

"Now go get the others, and I'll tell you what to do nest. Twilight nodded and ran off. After the doors shut behind her, Celestia shook her head and went off to get the Elements of Harmony. "I am so going to regret this," she muttered.

Sometime later, five ponies sat in a circle, with Twilight in the middle, Spike standing from a distance, and Princess Celestia watching from her throne. Each of the ponies wore their Elements of Harmony, each of them facing Twilight, giving her looks that said, You don't have to do this.

"Now, the Elements are needed in order to send you to the moon," explained Celestia, "as well as to bring you back. The Element of Magic will be used as a beacon to tell us your general location. Any flare from your magic, and the other Elements will tell us."

Twilight nodded. "Wait, hold on a second…"

"Yes?" asked Celestia.

Twilight shook her head. "No, never mind, it's nothing. Carry on."

Celestia contemplated for a bit longer. Was Twilight having second thoughts? Or was something else on her mind?

"… In any case," Celestia continued, "There's a spell that will send you to the moon. You all have to repeat exactly as I say."

The ponies nodded in unison. Celestia was about to open her mouth to continue, when Spike spoke up.

"Actually, I change my mind," he said, running into the middle of the circle. "I want to go too."

Celestia nodded. "Alright then. Now, repeat after me…"

As they began chanting, Twilight whispered to Spike, "You don't have to do this if you really don't want to."

"But I do want to, Twilight," whispered Spike. "If something happens, and you need my help, I wouldn't want to have to live through the guilt of not being there for you."

Twilight smiled at this sweet sentiment, and pulled Spike closer to herself with one hoof.

"Thanks, Spike."

The other five finished their chant, and the two of them were suddenly surrounded by a giant swirl of rainbow colors. The rainbow pulled and contorted itself around them, then in a bright flash of light, they were gone.