A Dance to Remember

To some, a thousand years can feel immeasurably long. To others, it is but a drop of water in an endless ocean, with time spanning farther than one can perceive. An alicorn's lifespan is determined not by their fortune or their biological gifts, but by the way they choose to live their life.

For two alicorns, both Princess Celestia and her counterpart Princess Luna, a path has been chosen for them. They live in a relatively peaceful manner. Despite the constant surprises and major threats, the two share innumerable assets both far and wide. Whether it be the allies they have carefully selected and built upon over their lifespans or the acquaintances they have chosen to bring in close, the ones they trust offer something no other being can possess. Friendship.

The an alicorn, such a word is a bittersweet subject. Friends are the ones who are there to entertain, comfort, and even love one another until eventually time catches up. Unfortunately, that battle is clearly one-sided a majority of the time. With a shortage of acquaintances like themselves, the co-rulers of Equestria have made due with reaching out and grabbing at the most friendly amongst their circles.

In time, one such friend has come to join their ranks as an immortal being, and her journey there provided her with the numerous trials and tribulations needed to prepare her. One Twilight Sparkle, Celestia's personal student and confidant, became an alicorn after realizing her destiny through hardship. And while it was a shock to many, to the one named Luna, it was a miracle sent from the stars.

One she trusted, and one she already had a degree of familiarity with, had joined the eternal bond of alicornship and ascended into immortality. Thrust into the role of princess, however, there was still much that the young pony needed to learn. It was not until she began *teaching Luna various subjects did she truly earn the respect of her peers.*

Since then, Princess Luna has shed the husk of her doubts and cast aside her fear of others. While she did not trust everyone, she now knew that she did not need to become hostile with them.

This is not to say that the princess of the night was an exceptionally social creature. Even before her banishment to the moon, Luna had always been the type to prefer solitude - it came with being a nocturnal creature. When the land you rule over hides away when you arrive, you tend to get used to the silence.

And that is what has led to what may as well be a monumental challenge for Princess Luna. In only a few days time, an event known as the "Grand Galloping Gala" would arrive at the Canterlot Castle in full glory, and hordes of ponies would come pouring in wanting to socialize.

Though she was no stranger to this event, considering she had attended the very first Gala after the construction of Canterlot Castle, it had never boded well for the princess of the night. She always felt a looming sense of dread when it came close, and a striking feeling of nervousness when it had finally arrived to greet her.

It became a custom of Luna's to lock herself away in her observatory and gaze at the stars until dawn, when the Gala finally came to a stop. But the more time that Luna spent around Twilight Sparkle, the more she realized that the tradition needed to come to an end. Putting aside her fears and bracing herself for embarrassment, she decided that this Gala would be different.

She would be going, and she would enjoy it.

"The time hath come again," Luna spoke inwardly as she gazed out over her balcony, her moonlight pouring over the land. She stood serene and tranquil, waiting patiently for her night to give way to Celestia's day. After a few minutes of this, her nerves got the better of her and she began to fidget.

"Oh, this shall not do," she said, quickly rising and moving away from the balcony. She paced the large observatory, gazing around at all of its furnishings. Whilst she was entirely familiar with all of them, having seen it hundreds upon thousands of times, she still found solace in their company.

Star charts, relics of ancient travelers by sea, magical artifacts aiding astronomers; if it was related to the night sky, Luna had tirelessly worked to obtain it and treasure it within her observatory. What was not so familiar was the untidy stack of books that was amassing in one section of the room, isolated from the grandeur of the other scenery.

The sight brought a small smile to her face and a pang of comfort to her heart. "Twilight Sparkle," she said to herself. "Thou hast a way of leaving thine possessions where thee lay."

Moving over to the stack of literature, she began to levitate some books in front of her to take a look at what her new acquaintance was studying. "Advanced Starcharting: Volume Nine," she said, turning her gaze to another book, "and What Lies in our Skies. Oh, Twilight Sparkle. Thine interest of our stars is flattering. If only thou wouldst request a lesson; we would teach thee all we know."

Laying the books down to rest where they previously were, Luna moved on with a heavy-hearted sigh as she made her way towards the dining hall. If she could not find solace is silence, maybe she could find it within company. More often than not, Twilight or her assistant could be found within the dining hall - assuming that the hour was still young.

Her assistant had a healthy sleeping habit, or so Celestia had once proclaimed. To Luna, it only meant that she might never get a chance to properly get acquainted with the young drake. She only caught minor glimpses of him regularly, and had only spoken to him on a very rare occasion following the Changeling invasion.

He was no longer a "baby dragon" as so many had called him. She had preferred the term "whelp", but her sister warned her away from such a term, deeming it rude. It mattered not to her the political correctness of the term; it was the same one used by adult dragons. In any case, she settled upon changing her mannerism when speaking in public about the young drake; if only to please her sister.

He was, biologically, still very young. As a member of the draconic species, he would not hit physical maturity for several decades, if not a few centuries. His mind, however, had been put through more trials than many within her kingdom could lay claim to. To say she respected Twilight Sparkle's assistant was an understatement.

For the life of her, however, Luna could not remember his name. It was something simple, she knew, but she could not bring his name to the forefront of her memory. She knew it had an "s" in it somewhere, but otherwise it did not ring any bells.

"Sam? Soar? Star.. Something with star, surely? Twilight Sparkle would enjoy that," Luna mumbled to herself as she moved about the corridors leading up to the dining hall. Along the way she passed various guards, all of them saluting her dutifully. Having gotten so used to it, she simply pressed forward all whilst speaking to herself.

If the guards had been wary of Luna's habit before, they did not show it now - she was constantly speaking to herself quietly or thinking aloud absently. It had become commonplace within the castle, especially among the royal guard, and all who worked there accepted it as nothing more than force of habit.

"Looking for someone, Princess?" came the voice of a batpony guarding on of the many royal libraries. "May we assist you in some way?" The batponies. Creatures of mysterious origin that loyally followed Luna as if she were more than a princess, more than an alicorn. They revered her beyond measure, and would gladly lay their life on the line at any moment for her.

For now, however, such drastic measures were far and away from what she needed. Luna gave pause and turned towards her servant, speaking low and calm towards them, "Twilight Sparkle - dost thou know of her current whereabouts?"

"I do not, Princess. Last I saw her, she was heading out the castle and talking about her home in Ponyville. My best guess is that she went to visit it," the batpony responded, her voice laced with regret. It seemed as if she considered it a failure, and Luna picked up on this.

"Thank you, guardsman. Thou hath done well by us," she replied, bowing her head gently in respect at her guard's information. The expression upon their face immediately changed to one of admiration, and they perked up to salute her once more. The Princess excused herself silently, moving towards her destination once more.

Perhaps she should have inquired about the assistant's name. It was well and truly weighing upon her now that she realized how lost she was upon the subject. He was such a kind young dragon, and she had forgotten his name as easily as breakfast. It could be that seeing his face would hold the key to remembrance, and this thought alone drove Luna back into a comfortable mindset.

Instead, her thoughts turned to focus upon just how kind the assistant actually was. In all of the friendship letters sent by Twilight Sparkle, Princess Luna found that the ones involving her assistant always seemed to end in him acknowledging his own shortcomings or praising others for their hard work. Upon meeting Princess Luna on friendlier terms than Nightmare Night, he did not offer any trepidation or even nervousness at speaking with her.

Where many felt she held on to trace amounts of dark magic left over from her transformation, it seemed that the drake was entirely convinced she was a new mare. To Luna, this was beyond kindness; it was the work of a good heart. And while many did not give him the credit he deserved due to his age, she understood all-too-well that he face many a problem bravely and never let that slow him or his beliefs down.

And for that, she respected him all the more sincerely. In her heart she now held a secret hope that it was not her friend Twilight Sparkle that she might find within the dinging hall, but her assistant. Whose name was on the tip of her tongue. It would give her a chance to speak with him on a purely natural ground, with no ulterior motives pushing her to do so.

Aside from the loneliness that was plaguing her tonight, that is. The Grand Galloping gala still weighed heavily on her mind. Questions such as "What shall we wear?" and "How shall we speak?" brought along with them the inevitable indecision that Luna so fearfully dreaded. If there was one thing that bothered her more than any other, it was not having a clear and level head about important matters.

"Nothing a cup of tea won't fix," she told herself with a gracious sigh, rounding the final corner leading into the great dining hall. If her potential friend was to be found, it would not be here. She gave another, more disappointed sigh, and cursed her luck. "Make that two cups of tea."

"Good evening, Princess," came a slightly rough voice off to the side. Jerking her head in reaction, she felt both relieved and joyful at the sight before her. There, sitting at a lone table with a small plate of food, was Twilight Sparkle's assistant.

That joy was short-lived, however, as Luna remembered all-too-late another one of her previous problems. As she searched for clues hinting at the name of Twilight Sparkle's assistant, her eyes settled upon the green protrusions upon his scaly back. "Ah, hello.. Spike?" she said with no amount of hiding her uncertainty.

"You got it," he said with a kind smile before taking a sip of his drink. It seemed like it was coffee, but it also had a faint blue tint to it. It was a drink she was only vaguely familiar with due to her sister's boasting of its potency. Rather appropriate, considering a dragon's anatomy was more resistant to the effects of pony beverages.

"We apologize, young drake," she began, not catching the slip-up of dialect, "it has just been a long while since you and I have partaken in conversation." She could feel her face heating up, but took solace in the fact that she had gotten his name right on the first try, rather than with multiple attempts.

"No worries, Princess. We don't really chat all that much, so I understand. I have an unfair advantage anyway, considering your title," he said with a friendly tone. His words put Luna at ease, at least enough for her to calm her nerves and take a seat across the table from him.

He sat in a cross-legged position with his back slightly hunched over, and it gave him a bit of a relaxed air about him. It wasn't a major development, but at least Luna knew he wasn't tense about speaking with her. "You speak with ease," she commented curiously, "Most creatures tend to shy away from us - uh.. Me."

Before she could be embarrassed by her mistake, however, Spike stopped her with another kind smile. "It comes with a lot of practice. And don't worry about your speech; I actually find it pretty fascinating."

This brought a smile to the Princess' lips; not many would be so bold as to compliment her in such a way. Normally she might shy away from the flattery or even keep a cold expression in the face of kindness, but she could allow a small smile at the very least. "It is not often we are encouraged to speak as we may. Thine generosity dost not go unnoticed."

"No problem," he said casually, accompanying it with a nod. "I've spent enough time around royalty to know that you're just like any other pony - albeit a bit unique. But in a good way." There was another compliment. Twilight Sparkle mentioned that he tended to "lay it on thick" with his flattery. She found it to be a bit odd, but pleasant nonetheless.

Moving on with the conversation, Luna wished to see if she could perhaps get a bit of advice from the dragon pertaining to the upcoming Gala. He chaperoned the Elements of Harmony, after all; surely he might know something about enjoying the festivities properly.

"Excuse me, Spike, but may we ask of thee a personal question?" she asked carefully as she put together her next sentence. When confirmation came from Spike, she continued, "What can thou tell us of the Grand Galloping Gala? We have been.. Distant, when it comes to our subjects, and we wish to ensure that we connect with them properly in this event."

"Well, actually, I don't really know much about it," he admitted, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. "Last time I went with the girls, - the Elements, I mean - I actually kinda stuck to myself. Didn't do much other than checking out the buffet." he finished with a small laugh at his own jesting, but it left Luna a bit desperate nonetheless. What would she do for help now that her only two confidants were unavailable?

She could ask her sister, but Celestia had her own way of attending the festivities. She wished to make herown mark upon her subjects, not mimic the successes of her sibling. She had begun to believe this year may be a repeat of her other Gala experiences up until Spike spoke up with a suggestion.

"Do you know how to dance at least?" he asked curiously, his brow raising in accordance with his tone. Luna couldn't remember the last time she had danced - with anyone. It felt like a lost art to her, and her confidence in the plan began to wane.

"No, we cannot say we do," she admitted abashedly. One would think that royalty would at least be able to carry themselves gracefully during a dance, but Luna had never been fond of it. She tended to stumble clumsily during the steps even when the partner was familiar to her.

"I could teach you!" he suggested happily. The prospect of dancing with a stranger, even one she had a mutual acquaintance with, threw Luna for a loop. It made her stomach turn and she felt a rising desire to return to her observatory.

"Oh, no. We could not possible bother thee with such a ta-" she began, trying to ease her way out of the conversation with grace and charisma. It failed rather quickly.

"Come on," he said after taking a final sip of his coffee and laying the cup to rest on the table. He stood up and extended a hand towards her gently, beckoning her to take his hand. "It'll be a nice change of pace for me at least."

After a few moments of consideration, Luna dawned upon a realization. If she was going to make a change, she would have to take a few risks. She felt rather strongly that this event would be the beginning of that change, but it would not come without a bit of embarrassment. That being said, she would not settle with sitting idly by whilst she sank slowly into isolation.

Setting her fears aside, she reached out a hoof and took Spike's offer. "Okay," she said with a voice as loud as her night sky. While she didn't quite know how this would end, she did know this is how it would begin.

It was time to start anew.