Can't a Princess Get Some Sleep?

Chapters

Chapter 1 – A Rude Awakening
Chapter 2 – Why Can’t I Just Sleep In Peace?!
Chapter 3 – Perils Of Sleeping Through A Pinkie Pie Party
Chapter 4 – That’s It, I’m Done

Chapter 1 – A Rude Awakening

Can’t a Princess Get Some Sleep?
By Garrett Tate (runner2)

Chapter 1 – A Rude Awakening

It had been a long night of keeping watch over Canterlot for Luna. She was tired, exhausted, and quite ready to sleep the day away. After returning from her end of the night patrol around Canterlot, she made her way directly to her room in the castle. Before she even got to her room she was beginning to take off her crown, shoes, and regalia.

Luna’s room was a midnight blue color, similar to her fur, with star patterns and charts haphazardly scattered around. It was a mess after her recent changes with constellations and other celestial phenomenon. Groggily making her way to her bed, Luna tossed her attire into the corner before tossing herself onto her bed.

“Canterlot is safe for another night.” Luna mumbled before drifting off to a restful sleep.

A frantic knocking on her door was what greeted Luna upon awaking. Glancing at a nearby clock she seen the time… 7am. Groaning and rolling over, she tried to get back to sleep. When the knocking continued she was forced to get out of her comfortable bed and answer her door.

The instant she opened the door she was assaulted by a blur of pink. Pushing the unknown assailant off she rolled to her hooves and was preparing to attack when she noticed who it was. Luna just stood there blinking for a moment before she could grasp what was happening. Pinkie Pie was standing in her room with a massive smile on her face, it was extremely early and she was still very tried, and she had been awakened for… what?

“Pinkie Pie?” Luna asked, to which Pinkie rapidly nodded in reply, “Why have you woken me up so early? Is there an emergency?”

Pinkie Pie slightly tilter her head, still with the massive smile, and replied, “Nope.”

Becoming a bit annoyed now, Luna asked again when Pinkie didn’t continue, “Pinkie, why have you awoken me?”

With a large inhale, Pinkie began, “I was asked by Princess Celestia to throw a party for the citizens to Canterlot to celebrate the completion of a new trading outpost with both the zebra lands and the dragon lands thus establishing ties to both of their nations and promoting peace between our races since Princess Celestia feared their reactions to Canterlot’s recent completion of a trading outpost with the griffon lands thinking that they might see it as favoritism.”

Luna just stood there, mouth hanging open, trying to process all of what Pinkie just said. It took her a moment, but she finally responded, “Umm… Pinkie. Did you just wake me up this early for a party to promote the completion of a trading outpost?”

Pinkie just nodded and started bouncing around while humming some unknown tune and said, “It wouldn’t be a great party if everyone wasn’t invited!”

Completely at a loss on what to do, Luna decided to ask to do something she really wanted to, “So… can I go back to bed now?”

Pinkie paused mid jump and gasped, “No silly. You gotta come join in on the party! Everypony is already there! Princess Celestia and Twilight and Dashie and AJ and Rarity and –“ Pinkie was halted mid-sentence by a hoof over her mouth.

“I get it Pinkie.” Luna sighed.

After that rude awakening, Luna just decided to force herself to go to this party. She was mostly afraid of what Pinkie would do if she decided to skip it, but she was also somewhat interested in what kind of party Pinkie would throw. Reequipping her crown, shoes, and regalia, Luna made her way out of the castle. Yawning and making her way out into the halls she noticed the lack of guards and figured that they would be at this random party as well and began walking toward the entrance.

The closer to the gate she got, the louder the music and talking became. After a few minutes of making her way to the entrance, she noticed the lack of anypony in the castle. Figuring Celestia would have it covered, she exited the front doors and was instantly assaulted with the blasting music coming from outside. The whole city seemed to be participating in this party, despite how early it was.

Wandering around for a while, Luna visited several snack tables set up throughout the city and managed to speak with some of her subjects as well. This party was massive. With a few streets turned into impromptu dance floors, Luna had to take flight to get around to some areas. She eventually found the center of the excitement, the grounds around the trading outpost.

Setting down on a nearby shaded building, Luna watched as Pinkie Pie was bouncing all around giving out snacks to anyone and everyone. Celestia was down there as well enjoying the party. Chuckling a bit at her sister’s attempt at dancing, she decided to lay in the shade at the corner of building she was on and just watch. Still very tired and laying far enough away to avoid most of the noise, Luna ended up nodding off to sleep.

The sound of somepony landing roughly nearby startled Luna enough to jump up awake. Taking a defensive stance she started scanning around until she heard a small chuckle. Turning to look at the source she spotted Rainbow Dash. Relaxing her stance, Luna turned to greet Rainbow Dash.

“Hello Miss Dash.” Luna said, giving a slight nod.

With a dismissive hoof wave, Rainbow said, “No need for the ‘Miss’ stuff. Just Dash is fine.” She walked over and asked, “So. What are you doing sleeping up here when the party is down there?”

Luna hung her head a bit and simply replied, “I’m just tired. I had a late night and was trying to sleep when Pinkie Pie started pounding on my door to wake me so I can come to this party.”

“Oh. Well, has she at least seen you here?” Rainbow Dash asked, “If she sees you here at least she knows you attended, even if only for a short time.” Rainbow was speaking from experience. She knew that turning down Pinkie can lead to unpredictable outcomes.

“I suppose I could go down there for a little while. But then I really must get some sleep.” Luna gave a nod, “See you later Rainbow Dash.”

Rainbow Dash responded with a simple ‘later’ before Luna took off. Making sure Luna was gone, she creeped over to where Luna was sleeping and decided to take a nap of her own.

Rejoining the party for a short while, Luna tried to make sure that Pinkie seen that she was there before meeting with a few of Pinkie’s friends. A short talk about Canterlot fashions with Rarity, a lengthy talk about astronomy with Twilight, and a quiet talk with Fluttershy about nocturnal animals later and Luna was ready to get back to bed. After bidding them all a good day, she returned to the castle.

A short flight later and Luna was entering the front doors. Guards seemed to be back on patrol at least as Luna made her way back toward her room. Every guard she passed seemed to tense up and slightly move away from her… but in her sleep deprived state she barely even noticed it. At last she arrived at her room and went right past the guards standing outside her door to get at her bed. Quickly removing her attire and tossing it into the corner, she jumped in bed and got comfortable before finally falling to sleep.

Chapter 2 – Why Can’t I Just Sleep In Peace?!

Chapter 2 – Why Can’t I Just Sleep In Peace?!

Luna was in the middle of a wonderful dream when she was awoken again, not by noise or someone trying to get her attention; but by someone using some strong magic in and around the castle. Rolling over to look at the time it displayed it to be about 2pm. As tempting as it was to remain in bed, Luna couldn’t ignore such a strong unknown magic signature so she rolled out of bet and stood. Putting her attire back on, she walked to the door and tried to open it… only to find it sealed with magic.

Confused and somewhat alarmed by this she started to scan the magic to try to find the source. After a moment of scanning she detected the source coming from the two guards outside her door… but they seemed off. Her normal guards didn’t have sickly green magic signatures and certainly wouldn’t seal her own door. Something about the magic seemed strangely familiar so she thought on it for a bit. That’s when it hit her… changelings.

Using her power to detect the two false guards outside her door, she levitated them and slammed then into each other, knocking them both out. Opening the door she saw the two changelings unconscious on the floor and a few more patrolling down the hall. She quietly tied up the two changelings with a rope from her curtains and placed them in a wardrobe to be dealt with later. After securing those two she used her magic to blend into the shadows and quietly search for the source of the powerful spell.

After a short search she discovered one strong source… a group of changelings near the front doors using magic to seal off the castle from outside interference. Ignoring them for now she continued her search. Reaching the throne room she discovered several changelings using their strange green substance to block off the windows. She passed them for now since they weren’t much of a threat and continued on toward the treasury.

After bypassing a few more changeling patrols, she finally discovered the source of the powerful magic. Queen Chrysalis was standing in front of the doors to the Elements of Harmony trying to use raw magic to breech them. Alerting Celestia by giving a slight tug on the sun, Luna sealed off the room since Chrysalis was the only one in there aside from her, and stepped out of the shadows to approach her. Luna made it a few lengths behind Chrysalis before she spoke.

“CHRYSALIS! What are you doing here!?”

The changeling queen jumped and lost concentration on her spell before turning to face who shouted. She relaxed a bit upon seeing who it was.

“Oh look who it is. The little night princess.” Chrysalis smirked and started pacing around Luna, “You should go back to bed before you get hurt.”

After Chrysalis faced her, Luna noticed how weak she looked now. The several months since the changelings were tossed from Canterlot haven’t been kind to them it seemed.

“It is not I who would be hurt if you attacked. I would like to know why you are trying to get into that chamber. Only Celestia, Twilight, and I have the ability to access it.” Luna stated.

Chrysalis sneered, “I was able to defeat your sister easily enough. I can defeat you without any effort.”

Chrysalis lunged toward Luna, only to be stopped short by a magical barrier. After sliding to the floor, Chrysalis managed to stand and glare at Luna.

“Chrysalis. You can’t hope to win against me. I am nearly as strong as my sister and you only defeated her by siphoning off the love of Shining Armor for an extended amount of time.” Luna sighed and began pacing toward the angered queen, “Just give up and go home. Take your changelings and go.”

“I can’t!” shouted Chrysalis, “I need those artifacts to be able to provide for my changelings! If I can’t get them then we could all starve.” Chrysalis just sat down, knowing she stood no chance against Luna in her current condition.

Luna decided to try speaking with Chrysalis and find out a few things. “Chrysalis, if you and your changelings feed on love, why did you attack Canterlot several months ago? Attacking us would get you no love. Only hate.”

Chrysalis looked up with wide eyes. “I… I expected to force ponies to give up love. We were running low on reserves back then and my subjects demanded something be done to restock… so I came up with the plan on a whim, never expecting it to go so badly.” Chrysalis said before lowering her head.

“I understand the need to provide for your subjects… but why resort to violence immediately? If you and your changelings would have made yourselves known then we could have lived together peacefully. Equestria has plenty of love to give… but doing what you are now will never get you any of it. I know that your kind conceals yourselves among ponies to gain love that way, but if you were to show who you really are, act kindly, and not try to steal it then ponies would be more willing to give it to you freely.” Luna stated after sitting across from Chrysalis.

Chrysalis gave a small smile but it quickly dropped, “Ponies would never allow us to openly live in Equestria with what I have done. I might have doomed my subjects and myself by my actions.”

“Just give it time and do it gradually. I will speak with Celestia about it and maybe we can come to some sort of agreement. But for now you should probably go, Celestia is on her way and I don’t know how she might react to seeing you again.” Luna said.

Chrysalis winced at that, but nodded and said, “I know. Please don’t take long with your response.” Chrysalis then stood and gave a slight bow before turning toward the exit.

Luna thought for a moment and decided to do something to help. Gathering some of her own love for her sister, she directed it toward Chrysalis. Chrysalis stopped mid step and turned around to see what Luna was doing. Luna just smiled and nodded.

“Thank you.” Chrysalis said with a bow.

“You’re welcome. If you would like I can teleport you and any changelings you brought to the edge of the Bad Lands so you don’t have to waste energy returning.” Luna suggested.

“I would like appreciate it if you could.” Chrysalis replied.

After gathering all of the changelings that were in the castle, as well as the two unconscious ones, Luna wished them well and teleported the group back to their home land. After finishing the teleport there was a bright flash from Luna’s side and Celestia appeared.

“Luna! What is wrong? I felt you pull at the sun to get my attention and came as quick as I could without arousing suspicion.” Celestia asked while approaching Luna.

Luna smiled and sleepily nuzzled Celestia before replying, “Everything is fine now sister. I was awoken by the changeling queen as she was trying to breech the door to the Elements of Harmony. I confronted her and we spoke for a while about why she was doing it. I found out that she wanted the Elements to try to provide for her subjects. I suggested to her to try and peacefully come to Equestria, rather than try to conquer it since that would gain them no love. She agreed to try a peaceful approach and allowed me to teleport her and her changelings back to their homeland so I could speak with you about allowing negotiations with them.”

Celestia just stood there speechless. She had no idea how they could have gotten into the castle but was thankful that Luna was able to deal with them peacefully.

While Celestia was thinking things over, Luna stated, “I’m going to try to get back to bed now. Please don’t disturb me unless it is important.”

Snapped out of her thoughts, Celestia just replied, “Umm, alright sister. Sleep well.”

The pair nodded to each other before Luna made her way back down the halls toward her room. She thought ‘Hopefully this time there will be no interruptions’. She tossed her royal attire into the corner again before throwing herself into her bed where she swiftly drifted off to sleep.

Chapter 3 – Perils Of Sleeping Through A Pinkie Pie Party

Chapter 3 – Perils Of Sleeping Through A Pinkie Pie Party

The party was still going on in the town outside while Luna slept. Ponies were still playing party games, singing, dancing, and raiding the snack and beverage tables. Although the party was a very happy place, Pinkie Pie was a bit upset… Luna had left very shortly after arriving and she didn’t even get to try any games or snacks. Thinking on it while pacing around the streets of Canterlot, she noticed a rainbow tail hanging from the side of a building, and got an idea.

Pinkie had grabbed several bottles of Applejack’s hard cider before making her way up to where Rainbow Dash was sleeping. Placing the bottles down on the roof, she snuck up on Dash and yelled, “Surprise!”

Rainbow Dash was awoken by the exclamation and instantly lifted off into the air to hover and look around for the source of the yell. Some snickering caught her attention coming from the rooftop, so she looked down and spied Pinkie Pie struggling not to collapse into a laughing fit. Sighing, Dash lowered herself back down to the rooftop to speak with Pinkie. After landing, Pinkie finally couldn’t hold it anymore and broke into a fit of giggles and laughter.

A few minutes later Pinkie finally calmed down enough to allow Rainbow to talk.

“Pinkie. Why did you have to wake me up? I was having a nice little nap up here.” Rainbow asked, stifling a yawn.

“Hey Rainbow! I was wondering where you were when I noticed your tail sticking over the side of the building so I decided to come up here and see if you wanted a drink!” Pinkie rapidly stated.

“Oh? Well, I guess I could go for a drink. What type of punch was there?” Rainbow asked.

Giggling, Pinkie replied, “Silly Dashie. I’m not talking about punch.” Pinkie moved to the side, revealing the numerous bottles of AJ’s hard cider sitting behind her.

Rainbow’s eyes widened when she seen the label on the bottles. “I didn’t know AJ brought the good stuff!” She exclaimed before diving toward the nearest bottle and starting to drink the wonderful golden liquid.

Pinkie was just smiling off to the side as she watched Dash down several more bottles. ‘All going according to plan.’ She silently thought to herself.

“Are you shure this is ok Pinkie? I don’t wanna get in trouble or anything.” Rainbow Dash said as she unsteadily followed Pinkie into the castle.

“Of course it’s ok Dashie! Princess Luna loves seeing you preform aerobatic stunts! So I figured why not show her how much you have improved recently?” Pinkie said with a grin.

Now normally, Rainbow would know something was up with that logic… but in her inebriated state, she couldn’t tell. Nodding to what Pinkie said, she just continued to unsteadily fly and walk after Pinkie toward Princess Luna’s room.

The guards were still around town enjoying the party and Celestia had since returned as well after getting called away earlier. The pair slowly made their way to the door and pushed it open. Lying on the large bed in the corner of the room was Princess Luna, still asleep. Pinkie turned to Dash pulled her into a hug, and secretly placing a note on her back, before producing a record player from nowhere and giving it to Dash.

“Now get in there and show Princess Luna why you are the best flier in Equestria.” Pinkie said before pushing Dash through the door and closing it.

Shakily standing there with just a record player held in one foreleg, she eventually made her way over to a table sitting in the middle of the room. Placing the record player down, she fumbled getting it started for a while before she eventually got it going. It was just starting on the silent portion before the actual music started so Rainbow made sure it was as loud as it could go and started to hover, waiting for her queue.

The music started with an earsplitting guitar riff before continuing with the song. The instant it started, Dash started to fly around the room pulling off different stunts in the confined space. Bumping into various things and barely avoiding crashing the whole time. Eventually she got into a slight, unsteady rhythm.

Luna shot up in bed after the start of the song, looking around to find out what was going on. After blinking a few times, she noticed Rainbow Dash flying around her room and doing various stunts. Just staring at the scene before her, she couldn’t decide what to do. Why was Rainbow Dash in her room, playing music, and trying to pull off various stunts? Why did she wake me up at… 5pm?! Why can’t she just get some sleep without being woken up? Why is she letting this continue when she could stop it easily enough?

After a moment’s though, Luna reached out with her magic and turned off the record player. The abrupt stop to the music broke Rainbow Dash’s concentration and led to her crashing into a nearby dresser. Getting out of bed, Luna walked over to check on Dash. She was fast asleep and smelled very strongly of alcohol. Deciding that she couldn’t leave the intoxicated pegasus laying on her floor, Luna gently picked her up to take her to one of the nearby guest rooms.

After lifting her out into the hall, Luna noticed a piece of paper taped to Rainbow Dash’s back. Curious about what it was, she picked the note up and looked at the front of it. It simply read ‘Luna’. While still walking toward the guest room with Dash levitating beside her, she opened the letter and began to read.

Princess Luna,
It is not nice to sleep through a Pinkie Pie party. Don’t do it again.
-- Pinkie Pie

Just blinking at the absurdity of it all, Luna closed the note and teleported it back to a desk in her room. Finally reaching the guest room door, she gently opened it and levitated Rainbow Dash over to the bed before covering her and turning off the light. Thankful that that was taken care of, she groggily walked back to her room to hopefully get back to sleep. She stumbled through her door and made her way into bed before promptly passing out again.

Chapter 4 – That’s It, I’m Done

Chapter 4 – That’s It, I’m Done

The party in town continued going strong for a few more hours before it eventually started to wind down. Ponies and even a few zebras, griffons, and smaller dragons that had shown up, finally started to head home. It was about 7pm and the shift change for the princesses would be happening before long. Twilight Sparkle and her friends were helping to clean up after the party. Eventually Applejack asked, “Where’s Rainbow at? I haven’t seen her around here for a few hours at least.”

Twilight paused what she was doing and began scanning the skies but failed to find any trace of their rainbow maned friend. “I’m not sure. Pinkie!” Twilight called out, “Have you seen Rainbow Dash around lately?”

The party pony just bounced over with a grin and stated, “Last time I seen her, she was going to see Princess Luna for some reason or another.”

Confused by that, Twilight made her way over to Celestia, who was still standing around speaking with some guests. “Princess, have you seen Rainbow Dash around anywhere?” Twilight asked after she approached Celestia.

“I don’t believe I have recently, no. Do you need help finding her?” Celestia answered.

“Oh, no need to do that Princess. I was just asking.” Twilight said, then pondered as to why Dash would need to visit Princess Luna.

“Alright Twilight. Just ask me if you need any help locating her.” Celestia said with a smile, before turning back to the ponies she was talking with.

Gathering up Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie, they went to the castle to find Dash. The guards were starting to get back into their positions but were still very unorganized and many of them were simply trying to stay awake after drinking too much at the party. The trio made their way toward Princess Luna’s room to ask her about Rainbow Dash’s location. Not realizing that the princess was still asleep, Twilight just barged in to ask.

The sound of the door being opened followed by Twilight Sparkle talking, startled her and caused her to roll out of bed and onto the floor. After a moment of untangling herself from the blankets she poked her head out and glared at who interrupted her sleep this time. Relaxing a bit at the concerned expression on Twilight’s face, she said, “Twilight Sparkle. Why have you woken me up? Is there an emergency?”

Twilight shuffled in place awkwardly before replying, “Sorry for waking you Princess, but Pinkie Pie said that you might know where Rainbow Dash is.”

Luna’s eyes widened a bit and she looked at an area behind Twilight. Pinkie Pie was standing there with a mischievous grin on her face and mouthed ‘don’t do it again’. Luna suppressed an involuntary shudder before turning her attention back to Twilight.

“I do. She showed up here a while ago quite intoxicated and began trying to do aerial maneuvers in my room before crashing into a dresser and passing out. I brought her to the guest room down the hall to sleep it off.” Luna said.

Fluttershy, who had been quiet and standing back in the hall, spoke up, “I think I can hear her snoring coming from down this way.” She said before slowly making her way to the guest room door.

Twilight gave her thanks and turned to walk toward the guest room. Luna managed to crawl back into bed before glancing toward her door again. Pinkie was standing there with a serious look on her face then did the ‘I’m watching you’ expression before going back to all smiles and bouncing away down the hall. Luna just shook her head and used her magic to close the door again so she could get some more sleep.

A short time later, Luna’s alarm went off to signal that it was her time to watch the night. Groaning, she slowly forced herself out of bed and into her bathroom to straighten out her mane and tail. Finishing her evening preparations she put on her crown, shoes, and regalia before making her way down to breakfast/dinner.

She got through the meal fairly quickly with only some slight conversation between herself and Celestia about the day. The sisters then said their goodnights before Celestia made her way to her room and Luna went out to patrol the night. Thankfully Celestia had taken control of all matters of the court, so Luna was free to enjoy her nights rather than stay cooped up in the throne room. Still quite tired, Luna made her way outside to start her patrols.

The patrols were very uneventful with only a curious manticore that had to be ordered back into the forest. She had several close calls while on patrol with nearly colliding into building when she ended up sleep flying. Thankfully she didn’t have any crashes when she did pass out mid-flight. Eventually, it was time for the sun to rise and thankfully time for her to get some much needed sleep.

Lowering her moon on her way back to the castle, she stopped in the dining hall to get some dinner before heading off to bed. Celestia was already up and waiting for her by the time she arrived. Making her way to the table, she sat down near Celestia and asked the cooks for something simple. Before turning to greet Celestia.

“Good morning sister.” Luna said with a smile, still fighting to remain awake.

“Good morning Luna. I trust everything went well during the night?” Celestia asked.

“Everything remained peaceful throughout the night. There were no problems to report.” Luna answered.

Luna’s meal was finally brought out along with Celestia’s and the sisters sat in silence to eat. The meal was simple as she requested and was quite filling. During the meal, Celestia got a letter delivered to her and started reading it. After getting her empty plate taken away, Luna was getting ready to go to her room and get to bed when Celestia halted her.

“Luna. It seems that I am going to need your help with a few tasks today.” Celestia said, “It seems that the donkeys have heard about our recent trading agreements with the dragons and zebras and they want a part of the trade as well. Their ruler has requested that both Equestrian rulers attend a meeting they are having today to start discussion on opening trade between our countries.”

Luna just groaned before asking, “Do I really have to go? I am very tired sister and would really like to get some sleep.”

Celestia sighed and said, “Yes Luna, you have to go. It is part of their request for the agreement. I am also having Twilight accompany us to lend her knowledge to the proceedings as well. She has the know how to help us come to an agreement but can’t interact directly due to her status as not being a ruler of Equestria, despite her recent princess coronation.”

Laying her head on the table, Luna asked, “How long will this take? I suppose I can force myself to stay awake for another hour or two if I must.”

Celestia just chuckled awkwardly before responding, “It will take about 3 hours for the dealings, roughly 2 for the trip there, and another 4 to finalize the paperwork after coming to an agreement.”

Luna shot up out of her chair and began to make an argument before a thought crossed her mind. “Do you still have that old rulebook on our rights and privileges as princesses?” she asked with a smirk.

Celestia just blinked at the random question but responded, “Yes. I do still have it and the updated one from a few centuries ago. Why?”

Luna smiled, “Can you let me look at it for a moment?”

Celestia just shrugged and didn’t see any harm in it, so replied, “I suppose so.”

A small flash of light later and the book appeared floating near Celestia. Luna took it into her own magic and scanned through the contents before stopping on a specific page. Luna’s smile broke out into a full blow grin by the time she was done reading. She closed the book and passed it back to Celestia.

“Is Twilight currently in the castle?” Luna asked.

“She should be. Did you wish to speak with her about something?” Celestia said after a bit of though.

“Yes please. This is something of a pressing matter for me.” Luna said, still grinning.

Celestia was confused by Luna’s behavior but complied. She sent a small note off to Twilight asking her to come to the dining hall. A short time later, Twilight came stumbling in and gave a quick bow. She looked over to see Luna standing there with a massive grin on her face. Turning to Celestia she silently gave a look that asked ‘what’s up with her?’

Celestia shrugged and turned to Luna, “So. What did you need to see Twilight for?”

Still smiling, Luna walked over to stand next to Twilight before responding, “Do you remember chapter 347 of the Princess Rulebook?”

Celestia tilted her head to the side and pondered on it for a while. 347…. 347…. That was the one that dealt with taking a vacation and appointing somepony to stand in as princess. Celestia’s eyes widened when she realized what Luna was about to do. Before she could protest Luna was already turning to Twilight to speak.

“Twilight. By my power as the Lunar Princess of Equestria, I hereby grant you the position of Temporary Lunar Princess. I have decided to take a vacation and you are the perfect pony to be my substitute. Do you accept the position?” Luna asked.

Twilight was just standing there wide eyed and Celestia was still at the table with her face in her hoof. “I-I suppose I could accept if it is not for too long.” Twilight responded uncertainly.

“Glorious!” Luna exclaimed. “You shall begin immediately. I shouldn’t be gone for more than a few months. Thank you for accepting this Twilight!” Luna reached down and gave Twilight a hug.

Twilight was just stunned speechless. Celestia was lightly slamming her head into the table. And Luna was practically bouncing with joy. Eventually Luna rushed off to her room to pack a few things before rushing back to the dining hall.

Luna came back in with a suitcase levitating beside her and said, “Thank you again Twilight! And don’t worry… Celestia will help you with the moon if you don’t manage to get it at first. Well! I’m off!” Before anypony could protest, she teleported out of the room to a secluded cabin on the northern side of Equestria.

After a long silence, Twilight asked, “What just happened?”