Fragments

by Vinylshadow

Rating: mature
Tags: Main 6, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Alternate Universe, Human, Nightmare Moon, Romance, Princess Luna, Original Character, Random, Princess Celestia
Length: 29033

A collection of short stories that I pop out now and again, featuring ponies old and new.

Collection of short stories, ideas that never panned out, and whatever else comes to mind for writing out little ponyfics.

Published 2014-06-15 20:20:03 UTC
Last updated 2024-11-06 17:16:55 UTC

Fragments: Questions

Everyone knew there were dungeons below Canterlot palace. Everyone knew there were criminals housed there for one crime or another. What they didn’t know was the identity or history of these criminals. No one knew what they had done to be imprisoned in the heavily guarded dungeons, even the guards were tight-lipped about it.

Princess Luna often visited the prisoners at night, when they were more susceptible to her nightmares and unique interrogation methods. Some would say she even took pleasure in taking her anger out on the prisoners, often falling back into her Nightmare Moon antics, which caused quite a stir when she had emerged from a particular session covered in blood. She had assured her worried sister she was fine and had reverted to the small Alicorn she usually was.

Tonight, she was visiting a newer arrival to the dungeons. This prisoner was proving to be a challenge to break, which irritated Princess Luna. She wasn’t used to failure, but when she had looked into his mind, the darkness she had found there had almost swallowed her whole. A shiver ran over her body at the mere thought of the touch of his thoughts and she steeled herself as she approached the cell where the prisoner was.

He was chained; his forehooves bound and raised while his rear were chained to the floor. There was enough slack to allow him some relaxation; he could lift himself so he balanced on his rear hooves, which allowed his forelegs some degree of respite from their raised position.

He looked up as she approached and an amused smile danced over his muzzle. His coat was a deep gray, making him hard to locate among the shadows of the cell, but his red and silver mane and tail stood out easily enough, dirty as they were.

“Hello again, Princess Luna,” he said in his quiet voice, which Luna honestly found rather hypnotic. She wondered who he truly was and where he was really from, but he refused to answer that question with a straight answer and any dreams he may have had of his home were so dark and corrupted they were painful to interact with.

Luna didn’t say anything and simply watched him silently. He matched her gaze and she found his silver eyes almost as hypnotic as his voice. When they had brought him in, they had given him a cursory physical to determine his health. He was a young pegasus stallion, hardly older than Princess Celestia’s protégé, Twilight Sparkle, if not even younger.

“So, going to be a little more talkative this time?” Luna asked, breaking the silence. The dark-coated Pegasus smiled slightly.

“That depends if you ask the right questions, and how I feel at the time you ask them,” he replied, his voice once again giving away nothing about his mood. Luna narrowed her eyes and looked at him thoughtfully.

“Well, we might as well start off with the basics,” she said, leaning against the bars of the cell, her eyes never leaving the dark Pegasus. “What is your name?”

“Midnight Runner.”

Luna knew that much, at least, from his dreams. Plus he had introduced himself when they had found him wandering near the southern Equestrian border. What they still didn’t know was why he had been near the border.

“Do you know where you are?” Luna asked.

“Beneath Canterlot’s Royal Palace, in the rarely used dungeons,” he replied, sounding bored.

“Do you know why?” she continued.

“Because apparently you think I’m dangerous." There was definitely a tone of amusement in his voice.

“Aren’t assassins trained to appear innocent and unthreatening?” Luna countered.

“Fair enough,” Midnight conceded. Luna frowned at his easy submission and fought back an annoyed growl.

“Why were you poking around the southern border?” she asked.

“Because that’s where I had come from,” came the deadpan reply. Luna sighed. That had been his answer every time she had asked.

“Why, though?” she pressed him.

“Because the southern kingdom was getting…” here, he hesitated, as if trying to find the right words. “Corrupt, I guess you could say. Its rulers had started abusing their power to bring their subjects under complete control. They began using the military to put down even small fights.”

Luna again knew that much from other refugees fleeing the south, but it didn’t explain why he had come north and crossed the border. There were several border-crossing stations and refugees had been coming across slowly. Some settled in Princess Celestia’s land, others kept going north or branched out to the east and west borders.

“Why didn’t you cross at a station?” she prodded and she heard him sigh and saw his mane move as if he was shaking his head.

“Because they ask too many questions that I don’t have the answers to.”

Luna felt his eyes bore into her.

“Much like you, actually,” he said, his tone turning musing.

“I only ask them to see if you’re a threat to my sister’s rule,” Luna said curtly and she sensed his amusement.

“Who, me? All I am is a Pegasus trying to start a new life without having everything I do questioned and analyzed,” Midnight said softly, shifting in the chains.

Luna pricked her ears at his words and she tilted her head as she mulled over his words before proceeding.

“Why would they question your work?” she asked carefully.

“Because they thought I was a threat to the peace and stability they had so…carefully constructed.” It was clear from his scathing tone he didn’t think much of those with authority, which Luna had to admit rubbed her the wrong way.

“And what was the nature of your work?” she asked.

“Magic,” he said curtly, which made Luna pause and consider her reply. She opened her mouth, only to close it as she tried to formulate a question for the next round of verbal fencing.

“You’re a Pegasus, why would you research magic?” she asked slowly, which caused him to smile and shake his head.

“Of course you wouldn’t understand,” he replied, stretching as much as he could in the shackles’ embrace. “I’ve always been fascinated by magic,” he looked at her again. “Haven’t you always wondered about why unicorns can use magic while earth ponies can’t? Or how pegasi can fly despite having wings that are too small to provide the necessary lift?”

Luna blinked and was silent for a while before she finally spoke.

“We have teams of unicorns, pegasi and earth ponies working on solving those mysteries, actually,” she said, causing Midnight to perk up and lean forward. “They’ve come to a few rather interesting conclusions about magic among the different pony breeds,” she smiled at him and he sighed. “Unfortunately, I can’t share the results with prisoners,” she said sweetly and he dropped his gaze.

Luna frowned as he seemed to lose interest in her and she wondered if she’d be able to draw him back out.

“Tell me, Princess, why do you only come by at night to ask questions?” he asked, surprising her by starting off with a question.

“I don’t have to answer your questions,” she replied, letting a hint of frost coat her words and he looked at her with a raised brow.

“Either you’re hiding something or you don’t know the answer yourself.” he said, making her tense up. Luna fought back the strange wave of anger that threatened to break over her and she regarded him coolly.

“Unlike you, I am not the one at fault here,” she replied with an amused smile and Midnight laughed.

“That’s a good one, I’ll have to remember it,” he relaxed in his chains and looked at her with amusement in his silver eyes.

“Of course you’re at fault here. All I want is a new life away from scrutiny, and yet here I am, being scrutinized by the Princess of the Night herself, about a topic she has under control already,” Midnight said, causing Luna’s eyes to flash.

She flung open the cell door and she loomed over the bound Pegasus. He matched her stare and she hesitated.

“So, what should I do with you then?” she replied, her face inches from his own. He gazed at her for a moment and tilted his head.

“The easy solution would be letting me go, but I can tell you want to keep me close so you can keep an eye on me and report any odd behavior to your sister,” he said, not at all disturbed at the proximity of the volatile princess.

Luna backed off a step and gazed down at him, her expression thoughtful.

“What you say is true,” she admitted. “Perhaps my sister will allow me to keep you as a…” her voice trailed off as she sought a suitable word.

“A pet, perhaps?” Midnight offered. Luna snorted in amusement, but she didn’t dismiss the idea.

“More like a…pet project, I guess,” she finally said. Her horn flashed and she gripped Midnight in her magic, pulling him close to her.

“Hopefully you’ll last longer than my other projects. I feel like there’s a lot I can learn from you,” Her voice was a low purr and Midnight saw a flicker of something in her eyes that suggested her teaching methods were far from gentle.

“Sounds interesting,” He said.

Luna wondered which of them would break first.

-

If there was one thing Midnight Runner hated the most about underground dungeons, it was a lack of light.

No windows. No torches. No light. The dungeons were designed to dull the sense of time passing. Midnight had no idea how long he had been here. Maybe it had been days, maybe it had been weeks.

Even the meals were given at seemingly random times. Sometimes he went hungry for a long time, and then was fed one or two meals in quick succession. The food was delivered magically to him. The only way he even had an idea of where it was located was by the smell.

Midnight pricked his ears as he heard the sound of hooves headed his way. He waited patiently, eyes closed as they grew louder. Finally, they stopped and he cracked open his eyes.

A pony stood in front of his cage, their horn glowing faintly, not bright enough to hurt his light-deprived eyes.

He found himself gazing upwards at a very large, yet slim, Alicorn. He let his eyes wander over her pearly white coat, her golden-shod hooves and her golden regalia before he met her gaze.

“Princess Celestia,” he murmured. “What an honor it is to meet you. Forgive me if I don’t bow,” he added, somewhat sarcastically as he jangled his shackles, causing the Princess to wince at the noise.

“I apologize for the treatment,” she said, sighing as she glanced around the dark dungeons. “I honestly wish we didn’t have to use these, but the nobles demanded them.”

Midnight smiled thinly. “Ah, yes, the nobles; the real power in Canterlot. Didn’t you spend a millennia stripping them of their power over the common pony, to bring about an era of peace and prosperity under your kind and just rule?”

Celestia didn’t meet his eyes and she shook her head. “They’ve made it difficult. Their laws are getting harder and harder to decipher. Most of them are designed to restore power to them. Lately, I’ve taken to denying their requests, especially ones that allow them to keep armed ponies in their employ.”

“Preventing them from raising up an army against you,” Midnight murmured. “Heh…clever inbred hicks.” He looked at the Princess of the Sun and tilted his head. “But that’s not why you’re really here, is it?” he asked.

Celestia bit her lip as she regarded the dark-colored pegasus. “No, it’s not,” she admitted before her horn flared and the door to his cell opened. “My sister has decided to take you under her wing.”

“Yet she sent you to bring me out?” Midnight asked, raising an eyebrow. Celestia gritted her teeth.

“The nobles sent me to bring you out. They don’t like my sister.”

Midnight Runner sighed as his shackles dropped from his hooves and he rubbed them together, wincing as he stroked over the sensitive skin, where the fur had been rubbed away.

“You’ll need to have those looked at,” Celestia murmured, gently taking his hoof in hers and examined the raw skin carefully. Turning, she called for a guard, who stepped forward and regarded Midnight Runner with poorly hidden disgust.

“Shining Armor, carry him to the medical wing.”

Her wing snapped out and stopped Shining Armor. He turned to look at Princess Celestia, who regarded him carefully.

“Mistreat him in any way, and you’ll be taking his place down here. He is to be given the same treatment as if he was royalty, do I make myself clear?” Celestia’s voice was icy cold and Midnight shivered involuntarily and he saw Shining do the same.

“Of course, your Majesty,” Shining replied, trotting over to Midnight and knelt down. Celestia’s magic enveloped the colt and draped him over Shining’s back.

“Inform the nurses that he’s to be kept until his hooves heal. No visitors other than my sister and I…” Celestia hesitated. “And Twilight Sparkle, I suppose. She’s been begging me nonstop to interview him.”

Shining turned his head to regard the colt. “She wants to interview him? Why?” he asked, unable to hide the venom in his voice.

Celestia arched an eyebrow. “She wants to learn about the south. What better victim to get the information from than one who can’t run away?”

Midnight might have been worried had he not fallen asleep as soon as he had been carried out of the cell.

-

Midnight yawned and stretched as he came awake. He blinked in surprise when he didn’t hear the usual sound of rattling chains and he had a moment of panic when he felt something move against his coat. He sat bolt upright and the sheet covering him fell off.

He looked around, noting the white walls and ceiling of his room. It had been a few days since he had been taken to the hospital and he still had some trouble getting used to the change.

“Oh good, you’re awake!”

This time, Midnight let out a yelp and leaped away from the voice, falling out of the bed completely. He bit back a snarl of pain as his tender hooves protested the rought treatment by sending bolts of pain lancing through his legs. He peeked over the edge of the bed at the lavender-colored unicorn who eyed him in concern.

“You alright? That looked like it hurt. The nurses aren’t going to be very happy if you hurt yourself after they went through the trouble of patching your hooves up.”

Midnight looked at his hooves, which were swathed in bandages and he looked around the room again as his heart went back to a steady beat.

“I’m alright…just…still getting used to not waking up chained to a wall,” he murmured, shaking his head and carefully got back into the bed. “Who are you?” he asked, taking a good look at the lavender-coated unicorn.

Who turned out to be an Alicorn, just like Princess Luna and Princess Celestia. Tucked against the mare's sides were feathered wings. Midnight sighed and rubbed a hoof against his face.

“Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship,” the young Alicorn declared. Midnight dipped his head respectfully.

“And how may I assist you?” he asked as the Alicorn’s eyes lit up. A quill, inkwell and parchment floated up as Twilight opened her mouth. Before she could speak, however, a dark blue wing cut across her vision and she let out a startled squeak as she was gently pushed aside.

“I know you want to pick his brain about where he’s from, but now is not the time for that,” Princess Luna said firmly, ushering Twilight Sparkle out of the room. She closed the door on the protesting mare and locked it, then her horn flared briefly and a glow encased the door. Sighing, the Princess of the Night turned to look at Midnight Runner.

“You’ll have to forgive Twilight, she’s always eager to learn new things. As soon as she heard we had a southerner, she was on the train to Canterlot in minutes,” Luna said, letting her eyes run over Midnight’s body carefully. “You appear much healthier; have they been treating you alright?”

Midnight nodded as he carefully extended his wings, wincing as the muscles protested. “Yeah, a few more days and I’ll be right as rain. I expect,” he said as he folded his wings and laid back on the soft bed. “Been sleeping more than anything.” He said, resting a hoof across his eyes to shield them from the harsh white lights.

“Oh, I’m sorry, would you like me to leave you alone?” Luna asked, stepping back towards the door. Midnight felt an odd twitch in his chest at the thought of her leaving. He looked at the Night Mare as she matched gazes with him.

“You…don’t have to, if you don’t want to,” Midnight said softly, feeling his cheeks heat up. Luna smiled nervously and took a seat beside his bed, her height allowing her to converse with Midnight despite their positions.

“So, Celestia said you wanted to take me under your wing?” he asked her curiously. Luna nodded as she played idly with her hooves.

“I’m not really sure how to explain why,” Luna said hesitantly. “It...when I look at you, I see myself; does that make sense?” she asked. Midnight was silent for a moment before he slowly shook his head.

Luna sighed and rubbed a hoof over her face. “Well, as I’ve said, I’d like to get to know you, where you came from, that sort of thing.”

Midnight nodded slowly and started back from the beginning.

“The south was a place that was swathed in corruption…”

Author's Note

If there's one thing I'm good at, it's not having a complete story. Hope you enjoy these fragments. If they interest you, you're welcome to take a shot at continuing them yourself.

3/6/2015 - Added and expanded on the story

Fragments: Dreams

Luna had her forehooves wrapped around Midnight’s body and had pulled him close to her for the night. Anyone looking in would probably have compared it to a mother holding her son who had had a bad dream or something similar.

However, most mothers probably wouldn’t have had sex with their sons before turning in for the night, like the two had done.

Despite the insurmountable age gap between the two, Midnight barely coming out of colthood (he had yet to get his cutie mark, yet the fact didn’t seem to bother him) and Luna being an immortal alicorn with millennia of life behind and ahead of her, the two had connected on a level far deeper than a physical one.

It was more of an understanding of each other. They both detested the public spotlight, each having suffered from public scrutiny, both good and bad and preferred to hang back while other ponies took the limelight; Luna letting her sister deal with most of the affairs of running a country whereas she tended to their subjects at night, walking in their dreams and comforting those that needed it. Luna hadn’t been able to resist peeking into her sister’s dreams about a particular lavender alicorn and she never knew her sister had a thing for restraints and gags.

A while ago, when she had first taken Midnight under her wing as her personal student, she had looked into his own dreams, which had startled her in their maturity.

Most colts his age tended to dream about silly things like sports and the occasional horror story about fillies being harbingers of evil, yet his were more practical. He dreamed of studying, learning and being around those he cared about; Luna had been surprised to see herself among that number, yet there hadn’t been any ponies that could have been his parents or siblings.

She wondered why, since he never had anything bad to say about his family, having come from an average pegasus household in Las Pegasus. He had shown remarkable intelligence for his age and had gotten a scholarship for a school in Canterlot.

It was here that he had first met and interacted with Luna during a fieldtrip to the Royal Palace. While the rest of his classmates had focused on Princess Celestia, he only had eyes for the smaller, yet no less regal, dark blue mare beside her.

-

Luna watched as Celestia talked with the group of young colts and fillies from one of Canterlot’s many schools. She was bored out of her mind, but years of practice had allowed her to hide her discomfort behind a mask she could take on and off with ease. She let her eyes wander over the group, most of whom were looking at her sister with expressions of poorly-concealed awe and wonder. She found it terribly amusing. Yet there was one who wasn’t looking at her sister and the reason that the pony wasn’t looking at the Princess of the Sun was because he was looking directly at the Princess of the Moon.

‘Sister…’

Luna’s thoughts were directed at the white alicorn beside her. They could exchange words mentally, which was useful when dealing with some ponies, zebras, dragons or other creatures, as it let them come up with ideas and plans without giving anything away. Luna felt her sister’s attention shift to her, yet she didn’t break stride in talking with the curious foals.

‘There’s one student who is looking at me.’

‘Nothing wrong with that, I’m rather surprised it hasn’t happened before .’

Celestia’s mental voice held an undercurrent of amusement that confused Luna.

‘Your point?’

‘Relax, sister dear, why not invite him to one of the side chambers for a chat?'

There was something in her voice that made Luna pause, and she felt her face warm at the innuendo.

‘And how am I supposed to do that without drawing attention?'

‘You’re a smart pony, I’m sure you’ll think of something .’

She felt Celestia withdraw her mental contact and Luna let her gaze settle on the dark-coated colt who still gazed at her.

Luna focused her thoughts and sent out an inquiring probe towards the colt. She could touch the minds of other ponies, even when awake, although depending on the pony, it was sometimes hard to get past their mental walls. Some had firmly shielded minds, which meant they were shy and introverted. Others had minds like open books.

The colt was among the latter category, his mind was open and Luna was rather surprised. She again met his eyes and she could see the question there.

‘Is there something on your mind, little one? Just think what you want to say.'

The colt’s silver eyes narrowed slightly.

‘I’d rather hear about you.’

Luna nodded slightly, impressed by the clearness of his reply, especially given his apparent young age. Most ponies his age tended to scream their thoughts. She contemplated what to do next. A small grin formed on her muzzle.

‘Ask your teacher you…ah…have to use the little foals room. I’ll meet you outside.'

She saw a sourly bemused look pass over the colt and he rolled his eyes. He got to his hooves and went over to his teacher, exchanging a few words with her. Luna saw an exasperated look on the middle-aged mares face and she shooed him towards the door.

‘Sister, I have some business to attend to.’

Celestia flicked her ears in dismissal and Luna got to her hooves and departed from the room herself.

She took a few twists and turns and came up through the hallway outside the throne room, seeing the young black-coated colt sitting patiently outside. Luna saw the guards looking at him curiously, yet they had the discipline of years of training and didn’t bother him.

“That’s one way to arrange a meeting.” Luna remarked as she came up to him. He jumped slightly and scrambled to his hooves. He stood uncertainly, shifting his weight from one hoof to another as he looked at her. Luna looked at him. “You wanted to see me?”

His cheeks turned pink and he stammered. Luna sighed and knelt in front of him.

“Hush, it’s okay," she murmured. She moved by his side and gently nudged him forward. “Walk with me.” After a few steps he managed to get himself under control and followed her.

They went higher up into the palace, heading towards one of the many spires that topped the ivory and gold structure. As they continued, the décor faded from the whites and golds to blues and silvers. Eventually they came to a large pair of doors inscribed with a crescent moon, much like Luna’s cutie mark. Luna opened the door, paying no attention to the two bat-winged guards flanking the door who looked at the colt behind Luna curiously.

It was a rather simple room they entered, most of it being taken up by a large four poster bed with numerous pillows scattered about. The ceiling was adorned with countless sparkles of white, mimicking the night sky. Luna flopped on the bed with a tired sigh.

“Well? Sit down, relax. Leave the royal dignity outside, it’s far too boring for a chat," Luna said, stretching.

The colt sat on a pillow and smiled slightly. “I’m hardly royalty, uh…Princess,” he said, looking around the room.

A soft forehoof on his cheek made him flinch and he looked up into Luna’s blue eyes.

“Call me Luna, please, titles make my skin crawl," she said, retrieving her hoof. She hadn’t missed his flinch and she wondered why.

“So, what’s your name?” Luna asked.

“Midnight Runner," the young pony replied softly.

“Where did you grow up?”

“Las Pegasus.”

Luna pricked her ears. “What was your childhood like?” she asked gently. She had a feeling he wasn’t really comfortable talking about it, but she knew the best way to solve a problem was to face it directly.

Midnight looked at her and shrugged. “Wasn’t terrible, wasn’t enjoyable,” he replied. His wings shifted against his sides and he looked down at his hooves. Luna nodded.

“Were you happy to get the scholarship to Canterlot?”

His only answer was a nod. Luna looked at the gems embedded in the ceiling for a moment before turning her eyes back to the silver-eyed colt.

“Would you prefer living here permanently?”

The way his ears shot up and his eyes lit up, it was almost startling at the change.

“More than anything,” he replied, his voice earnest. Luna blinked and hid a smile behind a hoof.

Something flickered in the colt’s silver gaze and he looked back down. “But if my parents don’t hear from me, they’ll disown me. I’m already enough of a disappointment to them as I am.”

Luna’s voice held a slightly sing-song quality to it as she spoke. “Oh, I’ll think they’ll be singing a new tune when they learn what you’ll be doing as part of your permanent residence here.”

Midnight looked back up at her. “What makes you say that?” he asked warily. Luna blinked and spoke slowly.

“Because you’ll be studying under me, as my personal student.”

Midnight stared at Luna, an expression bordering between disbelief and longing dancing on his face. Swallowing nervously, he managed to find his voice.

“You’d be willing to take me on as your student?” he asked, his voice clear. Luna remembered when Celestia had told her about Twilight Sparkle’s exam, where she had managed to turn both her parents into plants, hatch a dragon and cause that same baby dragon to grow to full size in a matter of seconds. After Celestia had fixed everything, she had offered to teach Twilight personally. If Luna remembered her sisters words correctly, Twilight’s question, which was probably similar to Midnight’s had consisted of the words ‘You’, ‘student’, and ‘me’ along with some ‘squees’ and other inarticulate noises of joy.

Usually a lack of enthusiasm was grounds for dismissal, yet Midnight’s expression was carefully neutral, although she could sense his eagerness in the way he held himself. His wings trembled, as if he was trying to keep himself from leaping with joy.

It was rare for either of the royal sisters to take on students; even more rare if they were common ponies. Whereas Twilight Sparkle had been something of a magical prodigy, she had come from a simple household. With Midnight, his origins were even more mundane. Luna let her mind wander over several possibilities as to what might happen if she took the colt under her wing.

No doubt, the tabloids would be in an uproar, probably start some rumors about less-than-ethical practices going on behind closed doors. She recalled a newspaper article that had been printed more than a century ago that claimed she was brainwashing ponies through their dreams. That had caused a massive increase in charms and dream catchers that supposedly blocked her from entering ponies’ dreams, which was hogwash. She pushed the past away and focused on the present.

Midnight Runner also appeared to be mulling over her proposal. Finally, he let out a determined sigh. “Alright, so if I do become your student, how would it work?” He settled on his haunches comfortably and looked up at her with clear eyes.

“Basically, I would become your teacher in everyday subjects. Think of it as home-schooling, but with royalty as your teacher,” Luna explained, to which Midnight nodded. “You’d also join me when I hold court, where I settle disputes ponies bring to my attention.” Luna grimaced. “It’s not exactly exciting, but maybe you’ll learn something about how to deal with ponies.” Midnight arched an eyebrow.

“Sounds interesting enough; if they don’t have a problem, most ponies seem willing to create their own.” Luna blinked in surprise as Midnight continued. “I’ve had to deal with ponies like that in foalschool," he pouted. “They kept taking all the good toys, probably even broke a few they know I enjoyed just to make my life miserable.” An amused grin played over his muzzle. “I had my revenge in the end though, I got a scholarship to Canterlot and they’re stuck in Las Pegasus.”

“I notice you don’t have your cutie mark yet, is there any reason why?” Luna asked, her eyes tracing the colt’s unadorned flank. Midnight shifted his hips as he turned to gaze at his blank flank.

“Would it make sense if I said I don’t think it’s the right time for getting my cutie mark?” he replied, turning to meet her gaze. Luna went silent, a thoughtful frown on her face.

“A little…?” she replied uncertainly. Midnight smiled slightly. He idly stroked over his tail as his gaze turned blank. Luna was reminded of a unicorn meditating. He looked detached, yet she could sense that he was searching for the words to put what he wanted to say in understandable terms.

“Cutie marks don’t decide what you can and cannot do.” he said finally. “Most ponies seem to think that whatever their cutie mark is, that determines what they’re capable of, and once they get it, they stop trying to learn new things.” He looked up at her, uncertainty dancing in his silver orbs. “Does that make sense?”

Luna nodded. “Certainly. Just because your cutie mark is…say, a moon, doesn’t mean you can’t cook or ice skate or pull off sonic rainbooms.” Midnight arched an amused eyebrow.

“And can you cook, ice skate or pull off a sonic rainboom?” he asked teasingly. Luna stuck out her tongue.

“Not very well, not at all and no.” she replied. “But that doesn’t mean I haven’t tried.” She looked up at the gem-studded ceiling. “I think it took Celestia a week to get the taste of my cooking out of her mouth.” Midnight snorted softly and smiled.

“I was usually the one to cook in our home. Mum was a drunk, dad was hopeless and my sister never got the hang of it.” Luna picked up the subtle softening of Midnight’s voice when he mentioned his sister. His tone went past the usual level of affection a sibling would have for another of their blood, much like how Luna felt about her sister.

Instead, his voice was that of a lover, one who knew and understood another on a level that most ponies never dreamed of.

“Your sister was somepony…special to you?” she asked gently, afraid she might drive him back into his shell where his family was concerned. She saw the emotions warring on his face. He seemed afraid to express it, yet at the same time desperate to get it out in the open, off his chest.

“I loved her.” he murmured, looking back down at his hooves. “More than a brother should.”

Luna tucked her legs under herself as she watched him. He seemed old for his apparent age, barely out of foalhood; from what she could see, he would probably grow up to be a very handsome stallion.

“Aren’t you a little…young for romance?” Luna asked. Midnight tilted his head as he rolled onto his back on the cushion. “You make it sound like we were intimate,” he replied, stretching his hooves above him.

“So you weren’t?” Luna pressed. Midnight closed his eyes. “No…maybe one day we would have been, but with the scholarship, we had to put those plans on hold.” he said quietly. Luna frowned and went silent. Midnight gazed at the ceiling.

“Rather impressive, did you make it yourself?” Midnight asked as his eyes traced over the subtle patterns in the gemwork, showing off the night sky as accurate as the real thing. Luna didn’t try pressing him further on his sister; that wasn’t any of her business and she was glad for the change of topic.

“I didn’t trust anypony else to do it accurately, so I made it myself,” she murmured. Midnight raised his head from his supine position. “Seems rather wasteful if you sleep on the bed though,” he remarked. Luna rolled her eyes and rolled off the bed, landing on her front next to him, making him jump in surprise.

Luna lay next to him on her back and wiggled, making herself comfortable. “You’re right.” she remarked, ignoring his discomfort at her proximity. “The view from down here is much better, wouldn’t you agree?”

Midnight let his eyes wander over the Night Mare’s body slowly and he blinked and shook his head as he lifted his eyes to view her bemused expression.

“I was talking about the stars,” she remarked, making his cheeks flare up in embarrassment.

“Oh, don’t be so shy, I’m not stranger to ponies staring at me,” she rolled on her back and relaxed, stretching her body sensually.

Midnight Runner looked back at the ceiling, trying to lose himself in the intricate gemwork of the patchwork of stars. He heard Luna mutter “Colts…” under her breath and he looked back at her. She had rolled back over onto her belly and had tucked her hooves under her, avoiding his eyes.

“I…I’m sorry, it’s just that…” Midnight wasn’t sure how to find the words that could properly express how he felt without seeming insensitive to Luna’s feelings. “I’m new to this sort of thing," he said and cringed. Even to him, the words sounded inadequate.

Luna smiled and lifted her head off of her hooves to regard him with a clear eye. “Trust me, we have a while to get to know one another, so don’t rush it, alright?” she said gently. Midnight could only stare at her and sigh as he tried to make himself comfortable.

Luna’s horn lit up as she levitated a quill, inkwell and parchment over to her. Wetting the feather, she started writing on the parchment.

Midnight watched her curiously as she wrote.

“Writing a letter to your family, so they won’t think you’ve died or something when you don’t come back,” Luna said.

“That will disappoint them,” Midnight replied as Luna finished, rolling up the paper and it vanished in a flash of blue fire.

Luna frowned as she turned her gaze towards him. Midnight was lying on his back, wings spread out on the floor, eyes closed. She wanted to say something, but the right words eluded her.

Author's Note

As I've stated before, these are fragments, they don't tie into each other, yet I don't want to spread them out over multiple stories with no end to them. Better to have them all in one place and work it out from there.

Fragments: Human

I do not know how it happened. I do not know how I ended up in the land of Equestria. I was a normal young adult, living a normal life in a small backwater town on the edge of a lake. All I remember was going to bed one night, and the next morning, I was waking up in the middle of an apple orchard with a horse speaking to me.

I stared at the impossible sight before me. The lips that formed the words acted like human lips, easily forming the shapes of the words that came from them. The head wasn’t even remotely horse-shaped, instead, it was a lot rounder, or maybe they really were horse-shaped and the nose wasn’t as long. I didn’t know, I never studied equines. The eyes both faced forwards, that much, I knew was wrong; horses back home had eyes that were wide apart. She spoke to me again.

“What are you? How did you get here?” She seemed awfully curious for a girl her apparent age. Most young girls I knew would probably have fled in terror if something that looked nothing like them appeared in front of them. Then again, wherever I was, apparently the laws of the universe had given up. Before I could answer, a voice called out from somewhere else in the orchard.

“Apple Bloom? Where’d you run off to? Your chores ain’t done, missy!” Within a few seconds of the voice sounding, yet another impossibility walked into view. Or was it ‘cantered’? This horse, (I really didn’t like calling them that, they were a lot smaller than any horse I had encountered, they were more like…little ponies, or something), was bright orange in color, while the even younger pony who had found me appeared to be some sort of light olive yellow.

“Apple Blo-“ The new pony started to say, then she caught sight of me and froze. Those large eyes got even larger, or maybe it was her pupils shrinking to dots. While she stared at me, the younger pony spoke up. While she explained what she had been doing before she had found me, I took a moment to study them closely. The olive-yellow pony, (Filly? My mind supplied), had a bright red mane with an even larger red bow tied in it while the slightly older pony had straw-colored hair that matched nicely with her orange coat. She wore what appeared to be an old Stetson ten-gallon hat on her head and she had three apples on her flank. I found myself staring at those apples. Why on earth, or wherever we were, did she have a tattoo on her flank?

“Hey! Don’t you know it’s rude to stare?” The pony’s irate voice broke me out of my study and I ducked my head sheepishly.

“My apologies, miss…uh…” I stammered. Both ponies’ jaws dropped.

“Sweet Celestia, it talks.” The orange mare said softly. Apple Bloom danced around me, which earned her a stern look from the older mare which she ignored.

“Can we keep it, Applejack?” She asked, looking at me closely in a way I found rather unnerving. “Maybe if we care for it, I’ll finally earn my cutie mark!” As she said this, she glanced her own flank, which I noticed was bare, unlike the older pony.

“Apple Bloom!” Applejack snapped, causing the young filly to stop her prancing around me. “Go find Twilight, she should know what this thing is, and if she doesn’t, maybe the Princess will.” I perked up at the name ‘Twilight’ and then frowned.

“Um…can I say something, Miss Applejack?” I said softly. She turned to look at me while Apple Bloom turned and galloped away.

“I don’t see why not.” She said warily, sitting a safe distance from me, but still within earshot. “What’s on your mind?” She seemed more nervous than I was, and here, I was the stranger in a strange land.

Before I could respond, I heard multiple hoof beats and I turned to see yet more ponies coming towards us.

“Well, come on, might as well meet them halfway.” Applejack said, getting to her hooves and trotting off towards the group. I followed along behind her a little more warily.

There were six of the ponies in the group, counting Applejack. Two of them had feathered wings tucked against their sides and two of them had horns in the middle of their heads. The only other remotely normal-looking pony was anything but. She appeared to be trampling over the laws of nature with appalling ease, hopping around on all four of her hooves while the other five conversed in low tones.

Seeing me looking at her, the hopping pony trotted over to me. She craned her head back to look up at me. “Hey there! My name’s Pinkie Pie, what’s yours?” Her bright blue eyes stood out in sharp contrast to her pink coat and hot pink mane and tail which oddly reminded me of cotton candy. She had three balloons gracing her flank and she seemed to have an inexhaustible supply of energy.

“Uh, my name is Midnight-“ I began but Pinkie Pie gave out a gasp and zoomed back to whisper something in the ear of the purple unicorn who had a violet straight-haired mane and tail. She seemed surprised at what Pinkie Pie had to say to her and she looked at me for a moment before resuming her conversation. Pinkie Pie seemed hurt at the way the unicorn seemingly ignored her and she trotted back to me with a silly grin on her face.

I had taken to sitting down on the ground against a tree, resting my back against the trunk while the other ponies were chatting amongst themselves. Without a word, Pinkie Pie climbed into my lap, turned a few lazy circles before flopping down and looked up at me. We locked eyes for a few moments then Pinkie Pie slowly crossed hers and I chuckled. I reached my hand out towards her head and she examined my fingers curiously, holding up her own hoof for comparison.

I lightly scratched behind her ear and she closed her eyes in bliss, letting out a small happy noise. She acted like some sort of creature being petted, like a cat or a dog, leaning into the scratching. I touched her mane, slightly unsure about what it would feel like, yet it just felt like regular soft curly hair. I stroked over her mane, scratching behind both her ears as she let out a contented sigh.

I looked over at the other five ponies who seemed to be wrapping up their conversation. The purple unicorn trotted over to where I was sitting. Even with me sitting, she was still barely eye level with me and I could tell she was nervous. One of the two pegasi, a bright cyan mare, with a shocking rainbow-hued mane hovered in the air above, keeping an eye on me. I had a feeling she could easily trounce me in a fight and I had no desire to even try. The purple unicorn paused as she looked at the pink mare in my lap, who seemed half-asleep under my fingers and cleared her throat.

“Hello, my name is Twilight Sparkle, personal protégé of Princess Celestia.” She looked at me expectantly and I raised an eyebrow.

“You do realize I am a complete stranger here, who has no idea how he arrived here, doesn’t know any of the natives, much less the…ah…ponies in charge, right?” I asked. Twilight flushed and ducked her head.

“R-right, sorry. Well, I sent a letter to the princess, so she should be here any moment to meet you personally. Hopefully, she should be able to explain things better than I could.” Behind her, I could see the other unicorn, a white-coated mare, (was it just me, or had every pony I had met so far was female?), who was prancing, looking at me with some sort of gleam in her eyes. Finally, she trotted over and stood beside Twilight Sparkle, her own purple mane a deeper shade than the other unicorns. Her blue eyes were a little paler than Pinkie Pies but no less inquisitive.

“What on earth have you done to your mane?” She asked. I looked at her and ran a hand self-consciously through my shoulder length brown hair. Doing so, I revealed my ears and she took a step back. “And your ears…!” She flicked her own and I shrugged.

“As you can see, I’m nothing like you, so I highly doubt I would share anything in common with you.” I replied and the white unicorn gazed at me thoughtfully.

“Well, regardless, I’m sure I could whip some outfits together for you. What you have now…when was the last time you changed them? Why wear them at all?” I stared at her, then cast an eye over the other mares in the group. They were all naked, yet their natural physiology seemed adequate enough to provide them with some kind of modesty.

“Well…ah…where I’m from, we wear clothes all day, every day.” I said slowly. Before the unicorn could respond, there was a rumble followed by a bright flash and a loud crack. I shielded my eyes with my arms as the flare dimmed. When I lowered my arms and opened my eyes I stared with shock at the sight before me.

Unlike the other ponies around me, this one was nearly as tall as I was. Its coat was a bright white that looked as if it was glowing under its own power. A golden chest piece adorned its breast and its hooves were shod in what appeared to be solid gold. A blazing sun adorned its flank and a golden crown was perched on its head with a massive horn that added nearly a foot to the ponies already impressive height. The mane and tail were constantly in motion, flowing through various shades of pale blues, greens and purples. It was rather gaudy, but it seemed to suit the majestic pony quite well.

“P-Princess Celestia!” Twilight Sparkle stammered. Ah, so this was the Princess in charge of the land. She flicked her light pink eyes at the unicorn mare and Twilight fell silent. Princess Celestia strode up to me and gazed at me. We were about the same height, yet I could see the power in her lithe frame. If the rainbow-maned pony could trounce me in a fight, Princess Celestia could destroy me with three hooves tied behind her back.

“So you’re the stranger my little ponies have discovered.” She said in an emotionless voice. I had a feeling she was analyzing me, trying to figure out if I was a threat to her or her subjects. I nodded slowly, not taking my eyes off of her. She matched my gaze with hers and I saw a flicker of something in her eyes.

“Well then, I can see you’re not a pony.” She said at length. Celestia paused for a moment, then nodded to herself. “Well, we’ll just have to fix that.” She said. I blinked as she took a step towards me.

“Wait…” I started, but then I was enveloped in a golden aura and I felt everything melt away from me. I couldn’t feel my body, I couldn’t see, hear or feel anything. Yet, as sudden as the feeling was, I didn’t panic. Whatever was happening to me wasn’t dangerous.

Then, with a roar, everything returned. Sight, sound, smell, touch, taste…everything was so sharp and fresh. I blinked and looked around. Everything seemed the same, yet at the same time, I felt something had changed, drastically. I looked around at the group of ponies surrounding me, each had a look of concern on their faces.

“What…was that? What happened?” I asked. I started to get a feel for my body-my body! I looked down at myself and felt my eyes go wide. Instead of arms and hands, I was staring down at…hooves? I twisted my head around and looked at the rest of me. “What is this?!” I cried.

I was a pony.

I stared at my suddenly equine body. I flicked my tail, watching it respond to my thoughts. I felt something midway down my body and I saw the wings tucked against my sides.

“Wh….what is this?” I said weakly as I flexed newly developed muscles to flap the wings slowly.
I turned my gaze on Celestia and paused. The Princess looked drained, tired. Her flowing mane was gone, it was now a solid light violet.

“That was not what I had expected.” She said, her voice subdued. I looked at her, trying to sort through my feelings. She looked at me and shook her head. Her mane flickered back to its normal dizzying flow as she regained her strength. “I simply drew out your inner pony.” She said simply, getting to her hooves.

It felt odd to have to look up at her. She looked down at me, her expression apologetic as she tried to smooth over the change.
“As you were, Equestria would never have really been home to you.” She said softly. “As a human, you would have been shunned, hated, and possibly persecuted. I simply changed what you looked like to help you adapt easier.” I looked at her then sighed heavily.

“Fine, so now I’m a pony. What do I do now? Eat hay and apples for the rest of my life?” I said with a trace of bitterness in my voice.

A snort caught my attention and I turned to see Applejack shaking her head.

“We’re not savages.” She said with an amused chuckle. “We’re civilized ponies, and the six of us will try our hardest to help you fit in.” She suddenly looked nervous. “That is, if you want…”

I looked around the six ponies and princess and wondered where my anger had gone. I should have been angry I had what made me unique taken from me.

Yet here I was, a black-coated, silver-eyed Pegasus stallion, the same as any other pony around me, yet still completely new to this land. I took a breath and smiled at them.

“Well, I think I’m going to be here a while, might as well get to know what’s what and who’s who.”

Twilight stepped forward and looked me over with a critical eye. I shifted a little uncomfortably under her intense stare and then she nodded firmly. “Well, why not start with your name and go from there?” She asked.

I grimaced and looked at her a little sheepishly. “My name is Midnight Runner.” The unicorn mare’s mouth dropped open in a small ‘o’ and she looked at her friends and the princess. Celestia cleared her throat and we all turned to face her.

“So be it, welcome, Midnight Runner, to the land of Equestria. I’ll let these six sort out all the other details. Stop by Canterlot sometime, I’d love for you to meet my sister.”

And then she was gone, this time without any of the previous noise and light. I turned to regard the six mares who all looked at me expectantly. I ruffled my wings (It seemed like a natural thing to do to show discomfort; I had a feeling I'd be spending a lot of time with the pegasi to better learn about my wings) and looked at them nervously.

"Well, where do we begin?"

Author's Note

I can honestly say I am surprised this ended up as long as it did...

Fragments: Wasteland

Words?

I was never good with words. Did not have the talent for it, could never say what was really on my mind properly. Yet here I am, writing down my thoughts as they come to me, the ideas I’ve had and places I’ve been.

Might as well start from the beginning, just like any other tale.

I was born long before the war; long before we even started bringing major industry into daily Equestrian lives. It feels like I’ve been alive forever. I don’t know how or why, I’m not sure what makes me…endure…like I have.

I’ve survived destructive megaspell detonations, I survived a direct Balefire explosion. It wiped Cloudsdale from the face of Equestria. I had screamed for days as my skin regrew, even after my voice had given out.

I have tasted death, seen it, embraced it, walked with it, yet it never claims me.

“Not your time,” it had whispered to me. “You’ve got a long road ahead of you, but we’ll probably meet again along the way. Maybe one of those meetings, I’ll be able to claim you.”

I was looking forward to that day. The day I could finally leave this world.

What used to be bright, vibrant, alive…was now dull and dead. Everypony blamed the zebras for the ruin of the land, yet I knew ponies were just as much at fault for destroying this bright country and turning it into a living hell where everyone, pony, zebra, griffon, ghoul and whatever else roamed the land had to fight to survive another day.

I wasn’t spared that struggle either. I wandered the Wasteland, helping wherever I could. I knew I wasn’t the only one. There were others out there, each facing their own trials and hardships, yet overcoming them regardless.

Maybe it was by themselves, maybe it was with the help of their friends.

Friends…

What a strange thing to have.

I’ve had others follow me, yet they’ve always succumbed to the Wasteland, taken by radiation, Taint, and violence.

Yet all those leave me alone.

Well…mostly.

Violence still managed to find me with appalling regularity.

There were ponies out there who had heard of the seemingly immortal pegasus and they were determined to get their hooves on me and find a way to benefit from it.

Pretty sure I’ve left plenty of my blood lying around for them to suck up and analyze by now.

Unless of course they wanted to see how durable I really was.

I was sorely tempted to give in, hand myself over and let them do who-knows-what to me.

Maybe they’d finally allow me to rest.

Yet there was still a part of me that rebelled against the idea. Pegasi were notorious for their stubborn streaks, miles wide and long and I still had a ways to go before it ran out, apparently.

-

I could not express how much I hated unicorns. Trotting around with their magic, acting as if they owned the Wasteland. They lorded it up, demanding and taking whatever they damn well pleased, subjugating or eliminating everyone else around them.

They enslaved the earth ponies, putting them to work rebuilding the ruined cities, making a comfortable place for their masters to live while the workers died by the hundreds.

Many of the pegasi had abandoned the Wasteland, closing the sky behind them when they fled. Any pegasi that spoke about helping the land below the clouds were sent down to experience it themselves. They all shared one thing in common: they had their cutie marks branded off, replaced with the symbol of the pegasus who had been considered the ultimate traitor when she turned her back on her own kind and went down to the Wasteland.

When the call went out to every pegasus to go above the clouds, I ignored the call. I didn’t care what they called me, all I could think about was finding the ponies that meant everything to me.

I was searching for the princesses.

Everyone said they had died in Canterlot, holding the shield that kept the deadly radiation and pink cloud from spreading all over middle Equestria. Yet even the shield had failed and everyone assumed the royal sisters were dead.

But I held hope. If I, an ordinary pegasus, was immune to radiation, surely the princesses could withstand it as well? Reports about the pink cloud were scattered at best; nopony ever went to the Canterlot ruins, which still held lethal concentrations of the deadly zebra weapon.

Canterlot was my goal, yet these idiotic slavers, or raiders, or whatever the heck they were, stood in my way.

I ducked down as shots pinged off the window I was hiding under. I could hear their mocking cries echoing among the empty buildings.

“Come out, little chicken! There’s a healthy sized bounty on pegasi, and yours in particular is very interesting!”

I tuned them out and let my eyes sweep around the area. Several red bars dotted my vision, marking hostiles.

My vision would seem rather odd if ponies ever saw my memories.

It was hard to describe, it was basically a heads-up-display that allowed me quick info about my immediate area.

I flicked my wings nervously. I wasn’t afraid for my life, but getting shot still hurt. Took me months to recover from a nasty headshot that I received after wandering too close to a unicorn walled city.

When I finally awoke, I had been stripped of everything except the PipBuck on my left foreleg. I counted myself lucky someone hadn’t sawn or ripped it off. The morbid part of my mind wondered if I could regrow a lost limb…probably, since apparently I could grow a new brain with no problem.

Shaking my head, I focused on the here and now. I pricked my ears as I heard a sound right outside my window, then bit back a curse as an apple-shaped object was tossed in. A grenade, joy. I flapped my wings hard, sending it flying further away from me, but it was enveloped in a magic field and tossed back towards me.

Oh…they had a unicorn with them.

Buck me.

The explosion demolished what remained of the structure I had been taking shelter in, leaving me battered and exposed. I looked around, seeing what I could only describe as a Raider army surrounding me. Everywhere I looked, there were red bars. Out of options, I took the only course left to me.

I raised my hooves above my head…

And slammed them down onto the ground, launching me skywards much faster than a normal take-off would have. I spread my wings and arched away from the center of the Raiders that had surrounded me. It took them a second to realize I was no longer there and soon enough shots were being fired skywards at me. Luckily, I was high enough that most went wild, yet it appeared a few had some long-range weapons with them because some shots were a lot more accurate than others.

I swerved in an erratic pattern, my eyes scanning the ground below for any options. My eyes highlighted two of their ponies and I focused in on them. One was a mint-colored unicorn who was sniping at me with what appeared to be a heavily modified sniper rifle with all sorts of bells and whistles. The other was…

Buck me again sideways.

Covered from head to hoof and muzzle to tail in armor, the Steel Ranger was tracking me through the sky with its own weapons.

I bit back a curse and folded my wings just as the twin muzzles of the weapons mounted on the Ranger’s armor flashed and twin beams of something shot past me, leaving a burning smell in the air itself.

I rocketed toward the ground, well aware I was taking a risk. A skilled sniper could lead their target and here I was, going in a straight line downwards. All I could do was hope something obscured their line of sight-

A shot hammered into my side, sending me into a spin.

-Never mind, they could see me easily enough. I watched the ground rush and I closed my eyes, bracing myself.

This was gonna hurt…

I was rather proud of the crater I made with my impact. It was a good three feet deep and roughly three times my size, radiating away from me.

I carefully flexed my hooves and limbs, checking for any injuries. Everything moved the way it was supposed to, which I guess was a good sign.

The sound of guns being primed and aimed at me caused me to look up at the Raiders surrounding the crater.

I waved cheerfully to them.

-

Alright, maybe that could have gone better.

Maybe instead of flying down, I should have flown away from the ponies that seemed all too eager to get their hooves on me.

Of course, what’s done is done and I can cheerfully admit I’m more than a few apples short of a bushel, or whatever analogy ponies nowadays were using to identify idiots.

The rusty collar chafed against the skin of my neck (I swear to the Goddesses, if it stained my coat, I was going to start screaming) as I craned my head, looking towards the horizon. It glowed an interesting shade of pink, whereas the rest of the sky was getting on towards a dark blue.

Oh, right, forgot to mention that, didn’t I?

Somepony had opened the sky a few months ago.

When that happened, I could almost feel the Wasteland pause as every single living thing stopped and looked upwards as the clouds dispersed.

It was nice to see her moon again, as well as her sun. I could feel them clearly now. My Goddesses were alive.

But…

Something was off.

They weren’t together.

Celestia’s presence was…flying, or somewhere in the sky, whereas Luna’s was even more vague.

Yet I couldn’t really focus on that as something stung against my flank. I twitched, jumping away from the direction the blow had come from and snapped a glare at the unicorn who was holding the willow switch he had struck me with.

“Well, not so tough now are you-eeaaargh!” His voice turned into a squeal as I tackled him and started biting and thrashing him with my hooves. I felt a hoof connect with his groin and his voice went through a spectacular pitch switch.

It took three other unicorn slavers to pull me off my victim and force me back into line.

I trotted onwards with my head held high. One way or another I would get away from this and get back to finding my princesses.

“So…where’re we headed?” I asked the pony ahead of me, a completely average young buck, dark green coat with a red and yellow mane. He looked back at me in surprise.

“You…you’ve never heard of Rose Eye?” He asked incredulously. I tilted my head. “Nope, I’ve had other ponies on my mind.” The buck shook his head and turned forward, but I still heard him talking. “She’s the pony who took over Red Eye’s operations in Fillydelphia.”

Ah, that explained a few things. I’d been starting to wonder why I hadn’t seen any of Red Eye’s banners flying in the midst of some slave gangs I’d seen wandering the Wastes. Instead, now it was a faded rose…eye…

Well, that made sense, I guess. Either way, it looked like I was headed towards Fillydelphia.

-

Some things never change.

I was small for my age. A lot of ponies seemed to be runts nowadays. Not all of them, but a significant portion of the slaves who worked around me were my size, some larger, some smaller. Most of them would never get a chance to get any larger, killed by sickness, slavers or an accident while working one of the deadly machines that helped keep this place going.

I have seen ponies ripped apart, cut to pieces, beaten to a pulp and vaporized. I have seen ponies raped by their masters for no other reason than to hear them scream. Slavers would beat a slave if they so much as dipped their head too low, or looked away from their work.

We were nothing to them. Property, cattle, beasts of burden. A lot of us were uneducated, illiterate. All we knew was the back-breaking grind of everyday labor. And we were expected to repeat the process day after day, month after month, year after year, until we either keeled over from exhaustion or gave our masters a reason to give us to another master.

Some of us prayed for death, others prayed for salvation.

I didn’t pray. I knew I was going to be free. One day. I had seen it. I know the future isn’t set in stone; that it is constantly in motion, always changing, shadows of alternate futures clouding our view.

Yet every time I had looked into my own future, I had seen myself free, flying across a green Equestria, cleansed of evil, radiation and every other foul thing the war had brought into this land.

Maybe I was merely seeing my death. Either way, I knew that what I saw was better than anything I had now.

So I waited.

I served my masters quietly and diligently; rising up in the slave ranks until I had reached the unlikely position of what every other slave called the ‘master slave.’

I had power. I could order slaves around, make them do my bidding. Yet any slaves that offered their services to me and the area of the city I was given control of, I treated them as if they were ponies.

I worked right alongside them; I helped them when they injured themselves. Soon I had reached my maximum amount of slaves that any slaver could own.

I could sense the other slavers’ jealousy; their envious glances cast my way. My section of the city was almost fully repaired, through the efforts of a mere 25 slaves and one slaver.

Then I was called into a meeting with the pony who ran the entire city.

She called herself Rose Eye.

She was the only pony I ever called “Master” with respect. She had power. She had Alicorns. She seemed surprised at my work methods, at the way I treated my slaves.

“You work with them, even though you have no reason to?” she asked me, as I was working on removing a pile of rubble from a doorway. She seemed reluctant to be here, down where I worked. I could tell she was deluding herself into thinking she was doing a good thing, that the deaths of thousands of slaves would eventually allow her to create a peaceful Equestria

I didn’t know how to answer her in words she would understand. I had a feeling that Rose Eye herself had been a lot like me, fighting her way into power, into a position where she could control those who had used to control her.

She offered me a position under her, as one of her advisors. I asked her if I would be able to work at improving the way slaves were treated.

“After all,” I had pointed out, “healthy slaves work faster, harder and with more enthusiasm than starving abused ones.”

Rose Eye had replied, with no small amount of regret, that, while I would be able to put forth the ideas, they would likely never be implemented, since the other slavers who ran their own sections of the city would never dirty themselves with helping their slaves.

As I cleared the last of the rubble and swept the doorway clean, I had asked Rose Eye if I would be able to order around the slavers.

“Why do you want to know that?” she had replied, his tone curious, but wary.

“Could I make them my slaves?”

That had surprised her. “They would revolt against you; you wouldn’t be safe anywhere you went in the city.”

“I would be if I had the same kind of protection you do.”

That had confused her and I had merely pointed at her silent Alicorn shadows.

She hesitated. “Most of my Alicorns only listen to me because I took up Red Eye’s position after his death…” she shook her head. “There’s not many of them left, most joined with the Followers of the Apocalypse or took off to restart their own lives.”

“You could at least ask,” I replied calmly as I trotted towards the next pile of rubble. A few of my slaves (I didn’t like calling them that, but that was what they were) called out cautious greetings that I returned. I helped a trio clear away a broken wall while Rose Eye watched us for a bit before she turned and spoke quietly to one of the Alicorns with her.

Three days later, I had a purple Alicorn with a blue mane and green eyes simply appear in my quarters and offered her services to me as a guardian.

She was a curious creature, a lot more prone to making conversation than I would have thought. She had introduced herself as Eclipse and when I asked what her powers were, she had simply stated “Whatever the situation calls for.”

I knew a little about Alicorns. All of them had very powerful telekinesis and seemed to favor using heavy weapons like chain guns and rocket launchers. The purple Alicorns were able to teleport long distances and bring ponies with them, as well as being able to erect a weak shield for protection. The green Alicorns always seemed to come in pairs and could erect very powerful shields as well as boost the powers of any other Alicorns nearby. Blue ones could turn completely invisible, which made them excellent scouts and snipers.

After the death of the Goddess at the hooves of the Lightbringer, every Alicorn suddenly found itself with free will and they were in a land where they had been one of the most terrifying breed of pony to ever walk the land. Some became mercenaries, some became slavers, others joined up with Velvet Remedy’s Followers of the Apocalypse.

Eclipse seemed to be a mix of all three Alicorn breeds, able to manifest shields that were stronger than the purples, but weaker than the greens, She could turn invisible like the blues, but only herself, meaning any equipment she wore would still be visible. I found the idea of a pair of saddlebags hovering along behind me rather hilarious, but I knew that I would carry all my own supplies.

Alicorn or not, she was still a pony.

Two days later I received a summons from Rose Eye. Eclipse offered to teleport me to her, but I wanted to say goodbye to my slaves. As I made my rounds, I let my mind wander over the implications of what being one of Rose Eye’s Advisers meant. She seemed rather independent, so I assumed that any advisers were simply there to run Fillydelphia in her absence.

Rather than walk or teleport to her base of operations, I opted to fly there. As I soared over the ruins of Fillydelphia, I scanned the ground below. I could see where progress had been made in restoring the city and I was rather impressed. Great strides had been made throughout the city and I could see that slavers had already marked their territories. I frowned and shook my head. Slavers were little more than Raiders with authority, which I wasn’t a fan of, and I doubted that Rose Eye would be pleased if I punted them into the radioactive crater that marred the city and bathed the sky in a hellish glow, at odds with the blue sky.

Oh well, I could dream.

Author's Note

Obligatory Fallout Equestria Fragment
All rights reserved, etc etc
Not canon to the original story

Fragments: Statues

The Statue Gardens of Canterlot were one of its prime attractions. Many statues of famous and well-known ponies dotted the pathways, each bearing plaques that gave the pony’s name and a short bio about what they had contributed to Equestria that earned them a right to have a statue made for them.

Set apart from the rest of the statues were other areas, where lone statues stood. Some areas were gated off, where only Royalty or other high-ranking nobles could enter. A pair of guards were stationed on either side of one gateway that led to the area reserved for ponies that had fallen in wars.

A lone dark-blue-coated Alicorn trotted down one winding pathway silently. Her eyes were downcast, tracing a well-worn path that only her hooves had ever traveled. Finally, she came into a small clearing. In the center stood a lone statue of a small pegasus colt, barely older than a foal.

His wings were flared, his front hooves raised. His body was lean, with slim limbs and even in stone, his mane and tail seemed to have a life of their own, conveying a sense of movement, as if he had been moving forward when sculpted. On his flank was a curious blend of what looked like a cross and a fleur de lis. His expression was a strange one. Most statues had blank looks.

His expression screamed of a great loss, his mouth open in an eternal scream.

Luna’s eyes fell to the plaque that adorned the pedestal and read the name engraved there.

“Oh, Midnight, I am so sorry…” Luna’s voice was quiet as she knelt in front of the statue. “Why didn’t I listen to you? You saw what was happening to me, tried to save me, yet all I did was push you away…” She looked up at the statue. “I am so sorry,” she repeated and buried her face in her hooves.

It was almost night before she roused herself. Ever since she had returned from her exile, she had raised the moon while her older sister raised the sun. She cast one last look at the statue before she turned and slowly left the clearing and its lone occupant.

-

Celestia was flicking through various reports from the nobles when she heard the doors to the throne room open. She lifted her eyes from the barely legible scrawls and frowned at the sight of her sister walking in. She saw an Alicorn on edge, teetering on a wire, ready to either stand tall and move on or fall back into madness. Luna came up to Celestia, slowly climbed the few steps onto the dais and flopped on her smaller throne and stared blankly at the ground.

“You’ve been to see him again?” Celestia asked gently. Luna simply nodded. “How is he?” Celestia continued. Luna let out a harsh laugh.

“As well as he can be, I expect,” she said, her voice strained. “Celestia…sister…was there ever a special somepony in your life?” Luna looked up at Celestia, who saw the plea in her eyes. She wanted to be told a lie, given something to latch onto, to keep her mind off of her own special somepony.

Celestia knew she couldn’t be so kind. “Yes, I have,” she said, rolling up the parchments and tucking them away. “You’ve seen his statue, surely?” she asked, looking down at Luna, who looked perplexed as she tried to recall anything.

“Long beard, wore a ridiculous robe and hat with bells on it? Ring any…uh…bells?” Celestia asked, grimacing at the terrible pun. Luna looked at her and slowly shook her head.

“Starswirl?” she asked skeptically. Celestia let out a self-conscious cough and looked away awkwardly, shuffling her hooves. “He was a fine piece of flank back in the day.”

“And you laid him to rest like many others,” Luna murmured. Celestia sighed and draped a wing over her, pulling her close.

“It’s just how it is,” she said, nuzzling her gently. “There’s nothing we-“ She was cut off by an ominous rumble and she pricked her ears, looking upwards. “Oh, I forgot about that. We had one heck of a storm scheduled for tonight.”

Luna extricated herself from her sister’s embrace and smiled a little. “I’ll try to get some rest, see you tomorrow.” She turned and left the room. Celestia watched her go and stifled a yawn herself. Yet she still had work to do. One of these days, she decided, she was going to put out a notice for a secretary.

-

Luna woke up the next morning to lower the moon and once again made her way to the statue gardens. She watched as other ponies wandered around, looking over the statues of some of the founding ponies of Equestria. She made a small detour towards a rather prominent statue of a heavily bearded pony and she stopped to regard it.

“Meh…” she said, casting an eye over Starswirl. “I’ve seen better.”

She moved aside as a group of nobleponies wandered over and made her way towards Midnight’s grove. She wandered the ever-familiar path and found herself once again in front of the small pegasus.

Something about the statue seemed off, however and Luna looked at it closely. To her surprise, she noticed several small cracks over the wings and even as she watched, the stone flaked and broke off. Luna’s eyes widened in horror as the entire statue simply crumbled to dust.

She fanned her wings to clear the air and as the dust settled, she saw a very bizarre sight.

A small black-coated pegasus was standing in place of the statue, a picture-perfect copy of the statue that formally stood there. He was covered in a fine layer of rock powder. He coughed and blinked, his eyes a startling bright clear silver with no pupils. His eyes met Luna’s and he froze.

Luna fell into those eyes, just like she had long before. She stepped forward, hesitant, as if he would disappear if she moved quickly. She saw the muscles in his body tense, as if he was fighting the urge to flee. Luna could understand the feeling; she had had a similar reaction after the Nightmare had been cleansed from her.

“Who are you?” the pegasus asked, his voice hoarse from disuse. Luna couldn’t find her voice; all she could do was stare at the impossible sight in front of her.

“Where am I?” he asked, flicking his wings, shaking the dust from them as he rubbed a hoof over his leg, grimacing as he stretched. Luna shook herself and stepped forward carefully.

“You’re in the gardens of Canterlot,” she replied. She saw something flicker in his eyes. They then widened and he gasped, inhaling a cloud of rock dust, which caused him to burst into a violent coughing fit that sent him toppling from the pedestal.

Luna’s horn flashed to life, a dark blue aura enveloping the colt, and settled him gently on his hooves. He shook himself and blinked a few times.

“Canterlot? How did I get here…the last thing I remember was Nightmare Moon…” his voice trailed off as he looked at Luna. She stood quietly as he gazed at her.

“Impossible…” he said. He took a step back, shaking his head. “You look like her, but…my Luna had…” he blinked in confusion. Luna felt her heart twist when he referred to her as ‘his’ Luna.

“Midnight, it’s me. Your Luna,” she said gently. He shook his head sharply, his eyes smoldering. He snapped his wings out, taking another step back.

“My Luna had light blue hair, a lighter coat and her horn wasn’t as long as yours. You’re not her,” he said. Luna felt her heart drop.

“I found you after the battle with Discord. You were trapped under a wall, crying for your sister,” Luna said gently. “I took you under my wing and nursed you back to health. You told me I was beautiful after you recovered.”

She saw his wings tremble as he stared at her.

“You saw my fall into darkness, you tried to save me, but all I did was push you away. You loved me even after I became Nightmare Moon, you never gave up hope that I could be saved. I watched as the Nightmare cast you aside after you took that blast meant for Celestia.”

Midnight looked down at his hooves as he folded his wings back to his sides. He took a deep shuddering breath. “I was ready to cast my life away if it meant that I could save you,” he said quietly, not lifting his head. His mane covered his face as he sat down on his rump.

Luna looked at him, torn between wanting to embrace the colt and leaving him alone. She knew he was out of his depth here. She hesitated, then grimaced. “Midnight…?” she called softly. She saw his ears flick and he slowly lifted his head. Luna gazed at him with a small smile and stepped forward.

“I know what you’re going through right now,” she said gently. “I went through the same thing after I had the Nightmare purged from me.” She saw a flicker of interest in his eyes and he got to his hooves. “Do you remember Celestia?” Luna asked. Midnight paused, then nodded. Luna glanced towards the Palace. “I think she would want to see you, know that you’re back.”

Midnight nodded and Luna turned, heading down the winding path. Part of her was sad that she would probably never walk it again, yet it was tempered by the fact that her lover had returned.

Author's Note

Because I've written and re-written this scenario on more than one occasion...curse my inability to come up with a solid foundation for my characters

Fragments: Midnight

Author's Note

I wasn't really sure what to title this...any other one word suggestions that aren't insults to my lack of writing skill?

Just some rambling about Midnight Runner in Ponyville

Fragments: Midnight

Pinkie Pie watched Midnight Runner as he trotted through Ponyville. She had been trying to talk to the colt ever since he had arrived in Ponyville a few weeks ago, yet at every turn, he seemed to be three steps ahead of her.

She could never ambush him. He neatly avoided every single one of her hiding spots and when she tried to follow him, he lost her with startling ease. Her Pinkie Sense couldn’t be used to actively track somepony; it more of an early-warning system that let her know if she was needed somewhere or if something bad was going to happen.

Pinkie Pie had brought up her frustrations with her friends, and they were all rather unsympathetically blunt towards her.

“Pinkie, you need to let him adjust. Princess Luna sent him here for more or less the same reason Princess Celestia sent me,” Twilight Sparkle had said. “I know you like to greet new ponies and throw them parties, but not every pony reacts the same. Remember Cranky?”

Pinkie hated being reminded of the times she went overboard and made ponies (or any other species, for that matter) uncomfortable. She had started learning about newcomers, trying to figure out what they liked and disliked before she approached them and tried to be their friend.

“He did come by the Boutique, which I found rather strange. I rarely get males,” Rarity had replied. “He said he was simply looking; although he was eyeing some of my…ahm…lingerie and asked if I had anything in Luna’s size…” she had giggled like a school filly and went on. “I was rather curious as to how he got her measurements, although thinking back…he IS her right-hoof pony who has to deal with her every night and day…I’ll have to ask him for details later.”

Pinkie was still trying to wrap her mind around the fact Rarity kept a lingerie line. Turned out she ran a small side-branch of Maretoria’s Secret called Rarity’s Secret. The sheer number of straps in some of the designs had baffled her and she had yet to work up the nerve to buy one.

Midnight Runner and Rainbow Dash got along famously. As soon as Rainbow Dash had heard the newcomer to Ponyville was a pegasus, she had challenged him to a race. What surprised everypony who had watched the race was the ease with which the smaller colt had kept pace with Rainbow Dash, who was said to be the fastest flier in Equestria. Yet he was rather self-deprecating in describing his flight skill. Rainbow Dash had won that race, but every pony who had seen it knew that Midnight could have flown rings around the egotistical mare and some were rather disappointed with the outcome. When the polychromatic-maned mare had asked where he had learned to fly, she had rather gobsmacked to hear he'd trained under one of the earlier heads of the Wonderbolts.

Applejack wasn’t a fan of the small colt.

“He’s not natural. Have you seen his eyes? Silver isn’t a normal color. I’ve never seen a pony whose entire eye is colored either. Not unless they're blind, and he ain't. He’s also a lot wiser than a pony his age has any right to be. He’s hiding something, and I don’t like it one bit.”

Her younger sister - Apple Bloom - seemed rather taken with the small pegasus and the two were often seen curled up together with their homework from school.

Whether or not there was anything romantic going on between the two was up for debate, since neither pony mentioned the other, nor would they give a definite answer when asked about it.

He also got along well with both of the other Cutie Mark Crusaders, for which the entire town was secretly thankful. Ever since he had arrived, the CMC seemed less focused on finding their talents (which often ended in some rather spectacular property damages) and more focused on becoming better ponies.

Scootaloo had stated, rather bluntly, that she was going to be his special somepony when she grew up. This had promptly started a three-way argument between the three fillies and Midnight Runner had easily broken it apart by explaining the concept of herds to them, keeping it simple enough for them to understand without going into details they weren’t ready to hear.

Cheerilee, the schoolteacher, had nothing bad to say about him either.

“He’s more-or-less the perfect role model in class. He doesn’t blurt out answers, he lets other students answer first, and if nopony knows the answer to my questions, he manages to answer them in a way that the other students understand and can easily remember,” The mulberry-coated mare shook her head. “Whatever his talent is, it seems to be something with getting ponies to understand things.” Her only real gripe about the colt was the fact the students often paid more attention to him and he had taken to sitting in the back of the classroom so he wouldn’t be a distraction.

When Midnight Runner had first arrived in Ponyville, nearly every pony who saw him thought he was a mare. He had the build and grace of one, and he wore his red and white mane rather long and kept it in a fairly simple braid.

He had even agreed to model some of Rarity’s clothing lines for younger ponies, both for fillies and colts, since every other colt Rarity had approached had said they wouldn’t be caught dead in the Boutique, and the CMC simply lacked the attention span to hold still for more than a few seconds.

(There were rumours that Rarity had a scrapbook of pictures of Midnight Runner in dresses, yet nopony has been able to verify the legitimacy of the claim.)

When Midnight Runner had gone to Sugarcube Corner, Mr. and Mrs. Cake had been rather surprised when their children, Pound and Pumpkin had both behaved around the colt. Not even Pinkie Pie had that kind of control over them and she had been worried the Cakes would ask him to babysit their foals instead of her. He had politely declined, stating that he had neither the time nor experience to deal with foals for extended periods of time and Pinkie had a feeling he knew she was jealous of him.

Pinkie scowled as she watched him stop at Roseluck’s stand to talk with the flower pony.

It seemed like every mare in town had fallen in love with the strange colt at first sight and he was often seen accompanied by a mare or two whenever he did spend time outside of the house he was renting.

Pinkie Pie had overheard some rather strange things when she followed him. It seemed like the mares he spoke with all had their own kinds of problems, whether it be with their loved ones, family, themselves or something else.

It seemed like he had an answer to every question they asked him on any topic. He seemed very knowledgeable about how to comfort ponies without making the pony in question grow attached to him in the process.

Pinkie Pie wondered how old the colt was, because he talked casually about things that she hadn’t learned until she was nearly twice the age he appeared to be. He discussed topics ranging from aborting an unwanted foal, to sex, to religion and even politics with a sense of understanding and conviction that said he dealt with them constantly.

Pinkie Pie watched as Midnight Runner purchased some pink, yellow and blue flowers from Roseluck and he trotted off. Sure enough, when she followed him, he had once again vanished without a trace.

Dispirited, Pinkie wandered to the park and sat on a bench with a sigh. She looked up at the blue sky and wondered what else she could do to talk to the elusive colt.

“Mind if I sit here?” asked a voice.

“Free country,” Pinkie said absently, watching as Rainbow Dash directed her weather team to gather come clouds for a storm later that week.

“You seem troubled,” the voice continued, as whoever it belonged to sat next to her. Pinkie Pie could feel the heat from the proximity of the pony’s coat, yet it wasn’t an invasive heat. She let it coat and comfort her and she looked to see who had sat next to her.

Blue eyes met silver over a bouquet of pink, yellow and blue flowers.

Pinkie Pie blinked slowly, her eyes darting from the flowers to the dark-coated colt who held them.

“Funny…usually I’m the one getting flowers for ponies feeling down,” Pinkie said, taking them.

“Sometimes roles reverse themselves when we least expect it,” Midnight Runner replied, sitting in a peculiar fashion that Pinkie could have sworn she had seen before.

Most ponies sat on their stomachs, with their legs tucked beneath them. Midnight was sitting on his rump with his legs dangling off the edge of the bench and his forelegs on either side of his thin hips.

Some ponies would probably consider it a rather provocative position, since his legs were spread and it would give a pony passing by a rather direct view of his crotch.

Midnight Runner seemed to have had considered that possibility and had draped his tail over his lap.

“I’ve been trying to talk to you for a week,” Pinkie Pie said, trying to keep the ire from her voice.

“I apologize, I’ve had a lot on my mind recently. Helping the Crusaders with their schoolwork, helping Rarity with her fashion lines, keeping Luna appraised of my progress, helping several distraught ponies with personal problems…” he spread his forehooves. “I’m just a pegasus, I don’t know what draws them to confide in me.”

“Maybe it has something to do with your talent?” Pinkie suggested. She cast a quick glance at his flank and saw the white sigil that somewhat resembled a mix between a cross and a fleur-de-lis.

“My special talent is part of the reason you’ve never been able to catch me,” Midnight replied. Pinkie Pie stared at him in confusion. He went on.

“My special talent is to be a nopony. I can fade from your perception and you’d never be able to pick me out of a crowd.”

Before Pinkie’s eyes, he suddenly became unimportant and despite the fact she could still see him, her brain simply said he was just another uninteresting pony and Pinkie felt herself growing bored and felt like going somewhere else.

Midnight Runner suddenly snapped back into focus and Pinkie Pie shook her head to clear it.

“That’s…an interesting talent. I assume it also works in reverse?” she asked. Midnight Runner smiled slightly and suddenly Pinkie found herself unable to look away from him. She wanted to confide in him, talk to him about her insecurities, her fears that her friends would abandon her, the darkness she battled with daily…

Once again, he seemed to fade away then back. Pinkie Pie shivered and looked away.

“It’s not an easy talent to live with, but I’ve put it to good use in Canterlot,” Midnight said, his voice suddenly subdued. Pinkie looked at him and frowned.

“In what way?” she asked carefully. A grim look settled on Midnight’s face.

“I used it to close down several…less-than-legal organizations, whose interests ranged from selling drugs to selling foals and weapons…” he sighed and seemed to deflate. “Every place has its own dark side…even Ponyville.”

Pinkie Pie nodded slowly. “I know everypony in town, and while most of them are good, there are some who wear a mask to cover their true nature, but my talent is to understand ponies and make them happy, and I can see right through them. It makes me sad that I can’t make them happy by doing what they want, since the things they enjoy are highly illegal…” Something in her mind clicked. “Were you part of that group who shut down that foal-smuggling operation that operated out of Sofas and Quills?”

Midnight Runner tilted his head. “I was part of the investigation, yes. I helped close down their Canterlot branch, and their paperwork led us to locations in Manehatten, Fillydelphia, Stalliongrad and Ponyville. I’ve washed my hooves of it though, there are ponies much better suited for that line of work than I am.”

Pinkie noted the change in his voice, looked at him, and saw he was watching the sky with a relaxed expression on his face.

“So what do you do now?” Pinkie asked. She knew from her friends who had talked to him that he was Princess Luna’s student, consort and right-hoof pony.

“Luna sent me here to make some friends, pretty much what her sister sent Twilight to do, if I’m not mistaken?” Midnight replied with an amused smile.

“Who’s managing her affairs though? I thought most of that got dumped on the right-hoof pony,” Pinkie asked. Midnight chuckled and stroked his tail lightly.

“I still do. Luna sends the various requests sent to her by ponies and it’s my job to filter through them and prioritize them in terms of importance. Some ponies seem to think they can sneak their plans past Luna, but they severely underestimate her intellect,” Midnight said, his voice little more than an amused purr.

“I love watching her knock the nobles down a peg or three. They make the silliest expressions when she demolishes their plans on setting up a monopoly on things ranging from dresses to imported artifacts.”

Pinkie stared at him for a moment. “That seems…” she really didn’t know how to put it and she sighed in frustration.

“It’s been over a thousand years since nobles have had any real influence in Canterlot. Some of them were conspiring on using Twilight Sparkle against Princess Celestia. Others sought to use me against Luna.”

“What happened?” Pinkie asked, eyes wide.

“That is classified information,” Midnight said flatly, his tone losing its amused lilt and gaining a hard edge that made Pinkie shiver.

“Well, Pinkie, I’ve enjoyed this chat, and I hope we’ll be able to have more in the future. In the meantime, I have some fillies and a draconequus to coax out of building an ICBM.”

With that remark, Midnight hopped forward onto the ground in a quick trot and was soon swallowed up by the streets of Ponyville.

Fragments: Sacrifice

Author's Note

I've had this done for months, but was never really satisfied with it. But then again, that's what a Fragment is all about.

Enjoy

Fragments: Sacrifice

Sacrifice.

Sacrifice is not something that comes naturally to anyone. It takes a certain mental state to achieve, to be willing to give up something for someone else. One waver, one second of hesitation, and you’ll fail.

I sacrificed my life for her without a second thought. Even as she turned from the one I loved into a bitter and dark mirror of herself, I was willing to risk everything, risk anything, for her.

She wanted attention; attention to her work, to step out from under her sister’s large shadow, to be able to stand on her own. She wanted the same reverence that they gave to her sister, the warm light she brought them.

They betrayed her, blamed her for things beyond her control. They demonized her, willing to throw her under the train if it meant that they could get to bask in her sister’s light.

The elder ruled the day, the younger ruled the night. They didn’t seem to realize that, when they turned in for the night, they were placing their hopes that they would wake up the next day to her sister’s light in the hooves of the very pony they loathed.

Normally, sleep brought with it peace and comfort. She took those away from them. She made them afraid to close their eyes.

Neither I nor her sister could comfort her. We weren’t enough and she pushed us both away. She fell into her darkness and emerged as something no one recognized.

Gone was the night-blue coat, gone was the light blue mane and tail that I admired. Gone was the sparkle in her eyes, the smile on her lips. Gone was the mare I loved.

In its place was a Nightmare come to life. Black as the darkest night, teal eyes slitted like a dragon’s, her mane and tail pure malevolent energy, a constant maelstrom of power that came from her stars and moon.

And I was still willing to sacrifice anything for her. If I had to die so that she could return to the way she was, so be it.

One way or another, I’d get my Luna back.

- A dark place, surrounded by everything and nothing; where am I? -

I knew Celestia was holding back. She wasn’t fighting at full strength; she was afraid to hurt her sister.

Nightmare Moon, on the other hoof, had no such deterrents, and her magic lashed out at the Solar Princess. Her magic raged, out of control, blasting holes in the walls, shattering windows and making craters in the ground. Celestia could evade easily enough, but she was afraid to strike back.

I could only watch helplessly from the sidelines, helping to clear non-combatants from the palace. I wanted to help, but to be honest, I wasn’t sure who to help.

Help Celestia in subduing her sister, or try to help Luna regain control of her mind and body? I could see it in the way Nightmare Moon moved. There was just the barest hint of restraint in her movements and her spell casting. I had a feeling if Nightmare Moon had been in complete control, Celestia would have had a much more brutal battle.

Then Celestia made a mistake. Nightmare Moon had faked with casting a bolt, and when Celestia had flinched, she had launched her real attack. I could only watch in horror as the bolt of dark energy raced towards the startled Sun Princess.

One second, I had been helping a wounded palace maremaid, the next, I found myself in front of Celestia, shielding her with my small body.

I could hear her scream, felt her trying to push me out of the way, yet I fought against her, and I felt the dark magic strike me in the chest.

The pain was unreal. It felt like every molecule of my being was set on fire, flash frozen, torn inside out, electrocuted and crushed.

One second, I was between the feuding sisters, trying to save both of them; the next, I was floating in darkness.

Dying was a strange sensation. No one would describe it the same way, and no one has ever come back from it to describe their own experience.

What surprised me was how quiet it was. While I sure as heck didn’t expect to see demons dragging my soul into eternal damnation or being guided into a light by a multitude of hosts, I certainly didn’t expect a complete lack of sound.

I opened my eyes. At least…I think I did. I could think the thought ‘open your eyes’ but I couldn’t feel the sensation of my eyes opening. I couldn’t feel anything either. No wind against my coat, the feel of my mane draped down my neck, or ground beneath my hooves. All my senses were dead. I couldn’t see, hear, smell, touch or taste anything.

While I had heard stories of sensory deprivation experiments, I had never had it done to me and it was a rather surreal experience. Was this how foals felt in the womb? Safe and warm? I was in my own little world

How long had I been in the dark? Seconds? Years? I couldn’t tell.

If this was death, it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be.

But how had I arrived at this point? My memory was hazy; all I got were scattered and distorted images of a black mare with a blue mane.

Nightmare Moon

Nightmare Moon? She had been…the pony that had overthrown Celestia, banished her from Equestria and cast Equestria into eternal night. I knew that much, and that unnerved me. I knew of a mare in my thoughts, but I didn’t know why she was there.

Luna

Luna? Luna…the name sounded familiar to me; I felt my heart warm at the mere thought of her. Had she been somepony important to me?

~Noise~

My entire mind went white at the force of the sound and my entire world suddenly erupted into a mix of colors and sound.

I realized I was screaming.

I clamped my mouth shut, feeling my eyes water as what felt like every nerve in my body flared in pain. Hissing in agony, I blinked my eyes to clear them and the colors snapped into focus.

From what I could see and feel, I was resting on my side on a cold stone surface. Across from me, I saw a dark blue-coated mare slowly getting to her hooves. I could hear ponies shouting and making noises, but they were dull and muted in my ears. I only had eyes for the Alicorn.

Her coat was a deep blue, the same shade as a night sky, while her mane was a flowing tapestry of stars.

Luna?

She looked nothing like the mare from my memories, but she had the same eyes and cutie mark. She wasn’t wearing her royal regalia, which I found odd.

I became aware of a weight pressing down on my body and I tried to lift my head to get a look at what was pinning me.

Something smacked sharply against the side of my head, below my ear, forcing it back to the ground. I hissed in pain as my head connected with the hard stone.

“Don’t move,” a voice snarled from above me. The dark-coated Alicorn cast a brief glance at me, but there was nothing that I could make out in her expression.

“Leave him be, Descent,” she said softly, her voice strained, “there’s a lot to go over and we need him alive.”

The Lunar Princess got to her hooves and I felt the pony named Descent move away from me and step toward her. He was a dark-coated pegasus with a dark blue mane. Luna took a few careful steps before she stretched her body. A pained grimace flicked over her face. From my prone position, I could see Descent’s tail twitching slightly and I felt my body warm with anger.

How dare you…

As much as I wanted to get to my hooves and strangle him, my body wouldn’t move, so I settled with glaring at him and imagined gelding him. He looked back at me and rolled his eyes with an amused snort before moving so that he blocked my view of Luna. I closed my eyes and rested my head on the floor.

Shattered; broken…a mirror? Why does it fill me with longing? -

I was woken rather abruptly by somepony shaking me. I opened my eyes slowly and blinked to clear them. I was lying on my back in a clean white room. The soft beeping of machinery led me to guess I was in an infirmary. I tilted my head up to see a white earth pony mare with a pink mane standing beside my bed. The look on her face was one of careful neutrality, yet I could see that she was hiding her nervousness by the way she kept looking around the room.

“I’m…um…supposed to inform you…that…er…” she stammered as she tried to get her thoughts in order. I watched her in silent amusement as she took a deep breath and spoke in a rush. “When you’re feeling better, you are to make your way outside and take the carriage to the Palace to speak with the Princesses,” she said in a single breath before dashing out of the room.

Shaking my head, I sighed as I slowly moved my limbs and was pleasantly surprised to find that they finally listened to my brain. I cast off the sheets and stretched each limb, moving it through its full range of movement before I trotted in place and flexed my wings. I eyed them for a moment, contemplating preening them, yet they appeared to be fine. I wondered if the mare had preened them and that was part of why she was nervous. Shaking my head, I opened the door and trotted down the hallway, following the signs to get to the front entrance.

Looking through the glass doors, I could see the carriage that was to take me to the Palace. I thought about ignoring it and flying directly to the palace, but I had a feeling the Princesses wouldn’t appreciate my disregard for their generosity.

That, and I had no idea where it was.

I nudged the door open and stepped outside, making my way towards the carriage. Two burly Earth ponies garbed in golden armor stood at the front and a pony in a suit was standing by the door.

“You’re that Midnight bloke, then? Well, come on, we don’t have all day; hurry up!” he barked at me and I flinched, making my way meekly into the opened carriage. I sat on the one of the seats and relaxed. The curtains were drawn over the windows, darkening the interior of the carriage. With a jolt, we started moving.

A voice suddenly spoke up from across me and I bit back a startled yelp.

“It’s good to see you again, Midnight Runner.”

I blinked and gazed across the interior of the carriage to see Princess Luna sitting across from me. I felt my mouth go dry and I swallowed nervously. I saw something flicker over her face but it was too dark for me to make it out completely.

“So you don’t remember me?” she asked. I didn’t know what to say, so I simply remained silent. Luna gazed at me thoughtfully for a moment and then leaned across the seat and pressed her lips firmly to mine.

The feel of her soft lips touching mine ignited something in me and I felt my wings snap to attention as my lips conformed to hers.

I remember this…

“MINE.”

My body trembled from the contact and I felt Luna wrap her hooves around me, slowly stroking over my body as she deepened the kiss. I melted under her touch and barely registered the feeling of her pulling away from me.

I blinked and shook my head to clear it to see Luna smiling. “Did that help?” she asked gently. I nodded slowly.

“I’m a patient mare; I’ll wait for as long as I need to for you to come to love me, or hate me. Either way, so long as you’re happy,” Luna said softly. “I don’t want to force you into a relationship that you don’t remember.”

“I take it I was somepony important to you?” I asked, curious about the past. I grimaced at the rasp in my voice and Luna pulled a bottle of water from under the seat and offered it to me. I took a drink and sighed silently as I felt it soothe my throat.

Luna looked at the floor for a moment then raised her eyes to mine. “You were important to a lot of ponies, Midnight, not just me,” she chuckled softly. “You were somepony very near and dear to my sister as well.”

I blinked stupidly. “Sister…?” I tried to recall anything on Luna’s sister. I felt the name at the edge of my mind, but it eluded me.

“Princess Celestia,” Luna replied and something in my mind clicked.

Celestia had been overthrown and banished from Equestria…

“After Nightmare Moon was…I don’t know if I can say ‘defeated’ or not…Celestia was able to return to Equestria and return the day and night cycles to normal,” Luna said. “We are hoping you would be able to provide us with some answers.”

I looked at her in confusion. “Answers?” I asked.

Fragments, flickers, glimpses, insight…

Luna looked out the window of the carriage. “When I woke up, you were the only other pony in the room…” she shook her head. “We’ll be able to go into more detail once we’re with Celestia.”

She sank into a thoughtful silence while I tried to remember what had happened. But my mind remained a dark blur to me and I sighed in frustration, shaking my head.

“All I have are fragments…” I sighed, looking down at my hooves. I felt Luna’s gaze linger on me for a moment before she took her eyes off me.

“There are times when Fragments are better than nothing,” she said softly, tucked her hooves under her, and closed her eyes as the carriage rolled on.

Fragments: Fortress

Author's Note

Just a quick little TF2/MLP story - Might revisit this from time to time

Happy New Year

Fragments: Fortress

Scout and Rainbow Dash ran side-by-side through the battlefield. All around them, their teammates were providing covering fire. Scout felt the Medic’s Medigun beam touch him and he shot a thankful look at the doctor as they ran by.

Scout saw the telltale sign of a sniper rifle’s laser dot and he leaped to the side, wrapping an arm around Rainbow Dash as he knocked her out of the line of fire. At her angry look, he pointed to the place where she had been flying, and her rose-colored eyes widened at the sight of the bullet hole.

Dash smiled at Scout and they both turned to contemplate how they were going to get past the Sniper.

Scout motioned for his teammates to fall back and protect the intelligence. If there was a Sniper here, that probably meant the other team was going to make a break for the intel.

“Alright, what do you think?” Scout asked. The cyan-coated mare tapped a hoof against her chin. Her wings started flapping and Scout quickly pulled her down before her head rose above their cover. “Careful!”

She grinned sheepishly and sat down. “Well…hm…Sniper, eh?” she gazed around and then her grin widened. “Did you bring your Bonk Punch?”

Scout dug around in his knapsack and pulled out a can of the radioactive drink. “There’s not a lot left, unfortunately.” Dash carefully poked her head out to the side, since the Sniper was covering the other side of the pathway.

“Alright; I think I can fly up to him and distract him for a moment. Do you think you could take him out while he’s focused on me?”

Scout quickly poked his head out and looked up at where the Sniper was positioned. Idiot was still scanning the other side of the path.

“Oh, yeah, definitely,” he said with a nod. Dash took the drink and gave him a salute.

She drank the can and flew out from behind cover. As she did, Scout waited a heartbeat before following her. He ran towards a pile of discarded crates, jumped up then in a blur of movement then leaped towards the Sniper, his bat cocked back to deliver the mother of all homeruns to the Sniper’s face.

As he did so, his eyes caught sight of a body on the ground below the Sniper.

“Whoa, Dash, abort! Friendly!” he called out, flailing and crashing into the Sniper. They collapsed in a heap and Scout quickly got up and pulled the Sniper to his feet. “Sorry, Spy; thought you were someone else.”

The Sniper sighed and lifted a gloved hand to his face. His entire body shimmered and a thin man in a snappy striped suit replaced the Outdoorsman. “Just meant I was doing my job well, Scout. Nice idea using Bonk to draw attention away from the real threat.”

Scout nodded and looked around. “Where’s Rarity? I thought she was with you.”

Spy arched an eyebrow and shook his head. “She’s harassing the enemy team at the moment. It’s never wise to have two Spies working together. We work better alone, since it makes it all that more confusing to the enemy. Where’s Dash?”

“Here!” The rainbow-maned daredevil hovered into view, reloading her modified Scattergun. “There was a Pyro lurking around,” she grumbled, flicking her tail, which was smoking.

We have secured the enemy intelligence; RED Team wins the round

The voice echoed from various speakers around them and Scout grinned. “Aw, yeah; man that was fun! Time to go hang out with the others and BLU Team’s buying!” he said, looking at the Spy. “You coming?”

Spy almost looked like he was about to decline, but then said, “Sure, why not. It’s been a long day…”

Chatting about their match, they made their way to the bar.

-

“…and then Soldier saw the sticky bombs at his feet, but it was too late!” Demoman said as he gesticulated broadly, nearly knocking Pyro into Pyro’s soup. Nobody knew why Pyro ordered the soup. Nobody questioned the Pyro.

“You got lucky with that Crit Sticky,” Soldier said with a grin as he poured another cup of foul-smelling coffee. Demoman laughed and patted him on the shoulder.

Sitting off in the corner, Engineer strummed his guitar as he watched his teammates banter. They had adapted well to life in Equestria after being sent here after Soldier angered Merasmus yet again. The first time they had been sent here they had enjoyed it so much that Engineer had Merasmus enchant a teleporter that would take them there whenever they wanted.

After Gray Mann had bought Mann Co, from Saxton Hale, the Mercenaries had been out of a job. Not pleased with being pawns in some grand game between the Administrator and Saxton Hale, the Mercs had packed their things and moved to Equestria.

The sudden appearance of eight humans and a Pyro from another dimension had startled the residents of Equestria. After learning of who and what they were, Princess Celestia had given the Mercs free reign over the Badlands. They had surprised everypony by proceeding to build a mind-blowing sprawl of buildings that ran along a complicated series of tracks, which allowed the Mercs to re-arrange the land so that they could play their games any way they wanted.

Engineer and Medic had been intrigued by the natives’ use of magic and had worked with several unicorns in enchanting everything so that in case it got damaged, it fixed itself.

There had been talk about incorporating magic into their games; similar to how Merasmus created the spellbooks that allowed the Mercs to use magic during Full Moons, but Medic advised against it due to not having enough knowledge about Equestrian magic to be sure it wouldn’t affect them permanently. None of the Mercs were interested in being turned into ponies or something worse by a spell, so they eventually scrapped the idea.

There were cameras throughout the map that allowed pony viewers to watch the games and soon there was a betting scene set up.

The Respawn system that allowed the Mercs to be killed without fear of permanent death had confused many ponies and even the Mercs didn’t fully understand it; but it made their games all the more fun and nobody questioned it.

Over time, a few residents had approached the Mercs, curious about their games and wanting to play as well.

Rainbow Dash functioned as a Scout. She was the only one who could keep up with him when he really got moving and they worked well with each other.

Spike functioned as a Soldier. He had even gotten Twilight to enchant him so that he looked more like his grown-up self whenever he played.

Pinkie Pie functioned as a Pyro. The two were often seen working together both on and off the playing field and Pyro seemed fond of the pink party pony.

Applejack functioned as an Engineer. She found his buildings fascinating and the two often talked about complicated mechanical things that nobody else understood.

Big Mac functioned as a Heavy. They were both soft-spoken and a lot wiser than they appeared.

Zecora functioned as a Demo. No one was sure why the two got along so well; most attributed it to the fact Zecora was usually the odd one out, or it might have had something to do with her many brews that the Demo helped concoct.

Fluttershy functioned as a Medic. She wasn’t very good at direct combat, but she put her heart into her work to keep her teammates alive.

Twilight Sparkle functioned as a Sniper. She had surprisingly keen eyes and an uncanny ability to predict the movements of her opponents. She was absolutely deadly at long-range, but when someone got close to her she usually panicked and ended up in respawn.

Rarity functioned as a Spy. When Rarity played, she was like a completely different pony. She was a superb actress and she could pull off a very convincing disguise.

The recent match had pitched Scout, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Spy, Twilight, Pinkie, Zecora, Heavy and Medic against everyone else.

It was a good way to blow off some steam after a hard day and after a match, everyone went out to wind down and go over what had happened.

“I heard Celestia lost some bits today,” Rarity said as she sipped at a small glass of cider.

“Apparently she was betting on BLU for once, seeing as how they won the last…three matches, wasn’t it?” Applejack asked, looking at Spy, who shook his head.

“Last two matches and there was one stalemate,” he replied as he took a drag on his cigarette. Twilight’s horn glowed as she instinctively broke down the smoke before it be inhaled by anyone else.

Spy then proceeded to blow out a complicated series of smoke shapes that included Twilight’s Cutie Mark, Demoman’s Eyelander and Pyro’s Balloonicorn, much to the amusement of the other mercs and jaw drops of the ponies.

“Well, my little ponies, here’s to many more matches in the future and friendship and harmony for all,” Soldier said, raising his mug. Everyone mirrored the toast with the exception of Pyro, who lifted its soup to show that it had somehow managed to drain the liquid from the bowl.

Nobody questioned it.

Fragments: Doctor

It all started with a mare sniffing a stallion.

It took the stallion a few moments to realize what was happening, and by that time, she was already sniffing his neck and ears. He turned his head to look at the pony sniffing him.

The mare appeared to be a strange conglomerate of green goo and cybernetics in the rough shape of an anthropomorphic pony. She had both wings and a horn, signifying her status as one of the rare Alicorn breed of pony, yet no one had ever heard of a Goo Pony for countless years apart from vague references from thousands of years ago. One of her eyes looked more like a camera aperture while the other was a piercing red. The stallion was a rather unassuming dark-coated pegasus with a red and white mane with clear silver eyes.

The pegasus smelled strongly of onions and the alicorn blinked in confusion while the target of her nose did the same.

“Sorry, I’m…uh…new in town and…where I’m from, that’s how we greet ponies,” the Alicorn said, stepping back and looking down at the smaller pony curiously.

The pegasus simply smiled and nodded. “That’s alright. I’ve gotten stranger greetings before…” his voice trailed off as he took in her features. “Alicorn? Who was your mother, if you don’t mind my asking?”

The goo pony looked surprised for a moment then averted her eyes while mumbling something. At the pegasus’ confused glance, she muttered louder: “Luna, the Princess of the Moon, while she was in her Nightmare period.”

A comical look of alarm flashed over the darker pony’s face. “Oh…dear, not one of mine, I hope?”

Now it was time for a similar look of alarm to speed across the Goony’s face. “Wh-what? No, no it…w-was Discord.”

The pegasus relaxed and smiled sheepishly. “Ah, I’m glad to hear that. Luna’s scared me on more than one occasion with stories of children brought on by…er…well…” he trailed off awkwardly and smiled uneasily.

“Most of my friends call me Darkscratch, or Darkie, what’s your name?” the goo pony asked.

“I…lost my name a long time ago.”

Darkscratch tilted her head as her right eye’s opening widened then narrowed. “I’m not finding any matches of your coloration or Cutie Mark in the Equestrian census…except…” she frowned. “Well…there was one…nearly 500 years ago, known simply as “The Doctor.”

A grimace passed over the winged pony’s visage and he looked away. “That’s a title I haven’t worn in…eons,” he murmured, his face clouded.

Darkscratch peered at him, her myriad sensors noting his agitated state. “If it’s a sore subject…I didn’t mean to bring it up.” The Doctor shook his head and smiled.

“No, it’s alright. That name has…countless pleasant memories attached to it. For the sake of conversation, you may refer to me as ‘Doctor.’”

“Doctor who?” Darkscratch asked curiously.

He chuckled and shook his head. “Everything, as the case usually turns out to be. While I don’t excel in any one area, I’m very talented in dozens of professions.”

The Goony’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “You didn’t answer my question.”

The Doctor flinched and hesitated. “A friend of mine once said: ‘You’ve been asking a question. And it’s time someone told you you’ve been getting it wrong. His name…is the Doctor. All the name he needs. Everything you need to know about him.’” He spread his hooves and wobbled slightly as he balanced solely on his hind hooves despite his barrel being perpendicular to the ground. “That’s me: The Doctor.”

There was a sadness to his tone and Darkscratch gazed at him silently.

“You’re not a pony,” she declared suddenly. The Doctor looked at her, startled.

“You can’t be, not with the age you claim to be, at any rate, especially if you’re claiming to be Luna’s special somepony. Far as I know, she was with Discord for a couple hundred years at least.”

The Doctor nodded. “You’re right, I’m not a normal pony, I’m a Time Lord from the lost planet Gallifrey and this is one of my Regenerations, which, to put it simply, is a cheap way to cheat death.” He paused, then stared down at his small body forlornly. “Not sure what good I am as a Time Lord that’s smaller than a Dalek though.”

He trotted around the Goo pony curiously. “But…what exactly are you? In my three thousand and some odd years, I’ve never seen your kind…well…there were a few living goo greatures here and there, but nothing as…complex as you,” he murmured.

Darkscratch’s face heated up as the small pony examined her. “Well, I was born from an egg sired by Discord, mixed with Luna’s magic…that’s about it, really. Nothing really fancy,” she said with a shrug.

The Doctor raised a hoof and opened his mouth, then a strange expression, a mix of revulsion and amusement flickered over his face. He closed his mouth and rummaged through his saddlebags. After a few moments, he withdrew a simple bottle and took a swig from it.

Darkscratch watched him as he sighed, then jumped as he belched a small torrent of flame, if ‘the-size-of-one’s-own-body’ could be considered small.

“What…what was that?” she asked. The Doctor smiled and patted his belly.

“Merely the result of having twelve stomachs,” he said cheerfully. Darkscratch’s processors had trouble with that statement.

“Twe-!?” the words caught in her throat, her eyes widening. The Doctor nodded firmly.

“I am an impossibility. One day, I wake up without wings, sometimes I have three hearts. That's the problem when you're made from Equestrian magic, there's so many KINDS: Chaos, Alicorn, Unicorn, Earth, Pegasus, Changeling, Zebra, Griffon, Dragon, Crystal and many, many more. As long as there’s magic, I don’t think I’ll ever truly be able to die while I’m in this body.”

With a soft sigh, Darkscratch shook her head, placing a hand upon her eyes. “You and I are quite common on the magic part.” She paused for a moment, then both her eyes went wide and she giggled.

“You’re both my step-father and my step-brother, since you’re made from Discord’s magic, as well as being Luna’s special somepony!”

The Doctor appeared thoughtful before letting out an amused snort. “So it would seem,” he said quietly, his mind elsewhere.

Darkscratch’s eyes wandered over the Doctor’s small frame and settled on his Cutie Mark.

“What does your mark mean?” she asked, zooming in on the strange white sigil. The Doctor craned his neck and stared at it for a moment before shrugging.

“I have no idea. It was there when I was formed. There’s no similar mark in any Gallifreyan text, and no one I’ve asked has seen anything like it.”

His eyes wandered over Darkie’s body and settled on her curious mark. “And yours?”

It looked like a film reel, with different symbols on each gap.

Whilst she pointed to each symbol, she explained what they represented. “Music, programming, scriptwriting, nocturnal magic, 3D modeling…” She motioned to the entire thing. “…and animation.” She smiled slightly. “And yes, it does move depending on which I am currently doing.”

The Doctor nodded. “Very impressive. I like seeing people with multiple talents and being able to do them all without going insane.”

The winged Doctor looked over the rest of the mare’s body curiously. “So…how does the goo…stay on?” Darkscratch looked at him with a curious expression.

“The cybernetics are actually made of goo themselves, believe it or not. So, my body is made of 100% goo.”

The Doctor reached into his saddlebags again and removed a small silver and bronze tube. With a flick of his wing, the tip opened around a green crystal and lit up with a buzz. He traced it briefly over Darkscratch’s body and she recoiled from it, her cybernetics sparking.

Startled, the Doctor swiftly shut the Sonic Screwdriver off and stepped back. “Sorry, are you okay? What happened?” Darkscratch shook her head and blinked a few times.

“Please don’t do that again. It takes a lot of CPU power to block things like that…”

The Doctor looked at his screwdriver thoughtfully before stowing it away, his expression unreadable.

Darkscratch sat on the ground and looked at the stoic pony. She could see his hearts, two of them, beating faster and she knew he was reliving some memories where he had caused deaths with his scientific instrument and wasn’t proud of it.

“If you wanted, I could give you the blueprints to the technology part…” she said softly, drawing the Doctor’s attention. He was silent for a moment before he started walking towards the center of town. Darkscratch followed behind curiously, her mind whirling through things to say.

She pricked her ears as the Doctor spoke.

“I'm not a nice person; I've seen what I'm capable of if I...don't have someone to...remind me of why I chose to protect life.”

The mare took in a deep breath, her cheeks warm.

“Like family…?”

That brought the Doctor up short and Darkscratch had to do some fancy footwork to avoid tripping over him.

“...I've been married; four times, and I could only save one of them.”

With a deepened blush, she began to expand on that small idea. “What if…what if that family member didn’t need to be saved…what if they were immortal?”

The duo reached a street corner where a strange blue box rested. On top was a light, currently off, and around the top edge, lit from behind were the words "Police Public Call Box"
Under that were some opaque windows, glowing an inviting shade of white.

“I…” She sighed, her ears flat on her head. “This is probably the strangest question to ask, but…” Her voice trailed off before she could complete the sentence. The Doctor simply waited for her to gather her nerve.

“It’s fine if you don’t want to say it,” he said gently.

Her eyes widened immediately, her gaze darting back up. “No, I do! It’s just…it’s a little embarrassing to…ask to be…” she took a deep breath in, and said softly “...your daughter.” She looked down at the ground again, her face red.

The Doctor’s eyes widened slightly as the words registered and he went silent for a moment, his gaze turning inward.

Finally, he nodded. "Come along then, daughter of mine, we have places to explore!” He turned and opened the door to the Police box.

That last statement basically froze Darkscratch in place. Her eyes widened immediately, as she looked right up. “Y-you’re…”

The Doctor poked his head out of the box with a slightly irritated look on his face. "I wasn't aware I stuttered, and since I am your father, I do have the power to ground you."

She remained still, caught within the disbelief. But, within moments, she inched her way closer. “You’re not entirely my father just yet though…” she said indignantly.

The Doctor smiled cheekily. "Step-father, since you're the daughter of Nightmare Moon and Discord. Ever since you were born, actually."

“I mean, does this form really need to have a step-father?” she continued, a smirk across her lips. The Doctor arched an eyebrow and vanished into the box, his voice echoing from within.

"Of course; someone has to be the responsible adult on this ship." There then followed a series of crashes and bangs that ended up with the Doctor's voice calling out "I MEANT TO DO THAT."

Alarmed, the mare herself jumped inwards, observing the damage. “Clumsy, eh?” she asked with amusement. The Doctor was tangled in a mess of wires he had pulled out of the center console of the large central room and was busy freeing himself.

The entire room was bathed in a warm amber glow emanating from a series of lights around the room. From the door, a ramp led up to a modest-sized platform with a large pillar-like construct reaching towards the roof. Set in a clear tube were several rods, which glowed orange. Set around and attached to the tupe were no fewer than six consoles covered in all kinds of weird buttons, knobs and levers. Two monitors sat on rotating rings and extendable arms, each showing different scenes.

"Nonsense, this is going exactly as I planned," he grumbled. A roll of her eyes, whilst the mare trotted over, she began to assist him. Her goo spread upon the stallion’s body, whilst pulling the wires away. Within a few minutes, he was free, but covered in goo.

He stared at the strange substance and rotated his hoof, watching as the light played over the slime. "So...what is the nature of your goo?" he asked.

The alicorn cocked her head towards the side in a bit of confusion. “If you mean how edible it is, and what it’s effects are…it’s completely edible, and I can easily control what it would do…”

The Doctor stopped with his tongue inches from the goo. “I have a feeling you're trying to become something a little closer than my daughter, and I can't say I'm fond of having something that could possibly control me in my body that isn't under my control..."

A meep escaped her lips immediately. “Oh no no! I wouldn’t do anything that you wouldn’t ask for!”

With an amused grin, the Doctor raised his hoof to his lips. "Hm...nothing ventured nothing gained~allons~y!"

Strangely enough, despite it’s appearance, the mare’s goo didn’t taste terrible in any way. Rather, it’s flavor related a lot to…

"Hm...mint; been a while since I've tasted mint," he said, licking his lips.

She giggled in response, shaking her head. One thing she knew for certain was that any time spent in the company of the Doctor was going to be far from boring.

Author's Note

This all started from a chat I had with Vinyl Darkscratch that I then decided to turn into a short story.

While it's heavily implied this is The Doctor, it takes place way down his timeline, in another universe or twelve or something so it's not Time Turner/Doctor Whooves himself per se...

I'm not sure; you know how wonky time travel is...plus, every Regeneration has its own unique personality...

Fragments: Blues

Stable 108 was not known as a tourist spot in the Equestrian Wasteland.

The fact its entrance had been thoroughly glassed by a Balefire strike - one of thousands to strike the Equestrian mainland - was just one reason nobody went there. Other factors were its remote location, far to the northeast of Canterlot, and general lack of knowledge about where Stables were for safety concerns.

However, such deterrents meant nothing to some creatures, and a familiar sound echoed through its corridors, atriums, and rooms filled with pods of various shapes and sizes, their occupants unaware of the outside world.

A blue box, slowly materialized in an empty side room, a light atop it slowly pulsing before going dark as the box landed with a dull clunk. The door opened and three ponies trotted out of the box - a feat that surely would've boggled the mind if witnessed, given the sizes of the ponies relative to the box.

"I never expected to be back here," one of them said, ears flat against his head. His coat was a dull brownish-gray, and a pair of spectacular white eyebrows graced his face, a small matching beard jutting from his chin. Red eyes, one slightly larger than the other, gazed around the decrepit Stable and his lip curled as his horn lit up, casting a yellow glow around the area. "You always take us to the nicest places, Turner."

A pink alicorn gave him a nudge with a hind hoof, clicking her tongue disapprovingly. "Don't blame her, we agreed to this a long time ago, remember?"

"So you keep reminding me," the stallion said.

The last member of the trio, a pegasus mare who was dwarfed by her companions, glanced at them with an amused smile on her muzzle before she went over to the door and opened it. Poking her head out, she looked both ways. "I don't suppose either of you remember if Bon Bon had said whether or not the Party clones were out and about before we woke up?"

Cadence frowned, wracking her brain. Discord did the same, and the two shook their heads in unison.

"She did mention some were dead when she woke up though," Discord said, his battle saddle already humming in anticipation, chaos-imbued weapons purring warmly.

"Settle down there, bucko," Cadence said. "Something tells me we'd have known if someone had discharged unstable energy. Besides, wasn't your entire shtick that you couldn't sense any chaos energy in the Stable, only a dim feeling?"

Discord nodded slowly, cycling over to ballistic ammo. "Fair enough," he said. "Now, Turner, you said we had to make it to the lockers at the Cutie Mark Vault to make the stable time loop?"

"How else would you explain the Pip-Bucks we found?" Time Turner asked, stepping down the hall. She looked at the computer clamped to her foreleg and sighed. "It's gonna be weird saying goodbye to this after all we've been through. But without it, I don't think we'd have made it out of the Stable."

"I'm sure you could have made the one in a hundred shot straight into a raging alicorn's eye without SATS," Discord said dryly, looking through the windows they passed. "Oh hey, there's my pod!"

"No," Cadence said as he moved towards the door. Discord stuck his tongue out at her and pouted, continuing on, passing through several rooms, tracing an invisible path back to the start of their adventure.

"Weren't these doors locked when we went through here?" Cadence asked as Time Turner opened a door leading to a stairwell.

"They were," Discord confirmed. "I guess we can lock them on our way back. Although I have to ask why we didn't materialize directly in the vault room."

Time Turner shrugged, flicking her wings. "Sexy's never been one to make things easy. She's stubborn like that. Or maybe she wanted us to take the scenic route."

"As good an explanation as any, I suppose," Discord said, rolling his eyes.

Before long, they found themselves in front of the vault door, and Time Turner opened it. The room before them was eerily familiar, with a massive wall of Cutie Marks against the far wall, bathing everything within in a soft blue light. The tank holding the clone of the Stable Overmare hummed in the background and Discord glared at it.

"Imagine if we blew her sky high right now," he said wistfully. "Save ourselves the trouble later."

"Imagine if doing so caused the Stable to wake up prematurely and the paradoxes started wiping out the timeline," Time Turner said grimly.

Discord grimaced and turned his attention to a row of lockers against a wall. Cutie Marks were etched on some of them, some holding belongings put there before the war for the Stable inhabitants to use, others empty, others holding various supplies and junk.

Time Turner opened the one with an hourglass on it, and glanced at her Pip-Buck, making sure all the files were properly organized, encrypted, and everything like it was the day she first picked it up, so long ago. She removed it and placed it on one of the shelves within the locker. Something on the floor of the locker caught her attention and her jaw dropped.

"Clever, clever, clever," she chuckled, scooping up her precious Sonic Screwdriver. "No wonder I could never find you."

"When did you leave that?" Cadence asked, closing her locker, foreleg bare of her Pip-Buck.

"I don't know, so I suspect I do it later in my life," Time Turner mused.

"You mean you come back here a third time?!" Discord said, aghast. "Who in their right mind would do that? No, wait," he said, holding up a hoof. "Stupid question."

Cadence chuckled, shaking her head. "Well, that's that. Shall we go?"

"We have all of time and space at our hooftips," Time Turner said, as they began the trek back towards the TARDIS. "I do believe I promised you a trip somewhere not apocalyptic for our first trip?"

"Somewhere the sun is hot and the mares are hotter, preferably," Discord said, eyes gleaming.

"A beach would be nice. Wash off the grime of the wastes, relax, and yes, a warm sun would be absolutely divine," Cadence said. "A time when Twilight and Shining are alive would be perfect."

"And Fluttershy, and Celestia..." Discord said. "We'd have quite the story to tell them. I imagine Ditzy would be glad to see you as well," he added slyly, glancing at Time Turner.

"Not this body," Time Turner said. "She's more into stallions."

"You forget who you're talking to," Discord said dryly, as they entered the room where the TARDIS stood patiently.

"I do that a fair bit, don't I?" Time Turner said with a small smile, opening the door, waving the others through first. Casting one last look at Stable 108, she closed the door and the TARDIS dematerialized as the sky outside turned green from a Balefire detonation several miles away, in the old Maripony military base, sending a silent signal to a slumbering Stable...

Author's Note

Based off an old Fo:E RP back from 2015 or so.

Fragments: Occluded

“I do not like this.”

Midnight Runner, former captain of Luna’s royal night guard, flicked his ear in his princess’s direction, eyes never leaving their forward-facing position. He kept his silence, knowing Luna was simply venting, rather than looking for a conversation partner.

“This is not fair. We do not deserve this.”

The alicorn loomed over the small pegasus, then leaned down to peer at her consort. “Do you not agree?”

Midnight turned only his head to look at her, blinking sightless silver eyes in acknowledgment, before tilting his head to the side. “I do not understand what you are trying to say.”

Luna sat back on her carriage seat, wings shuffling against her sides. She spread her hooves to take in the rest of the plush carriage interior. “All…this.”

Midnight looked at her, then blinked slowly, deliberately widening his pale eyes. Luna blushed, looking down at her hooves. “I do not think my sister sending us away was wise,” she said after a few minutes of getting her thoughts in order.

“We are two ponies a thousand years out of time,” Midnight pointed out. “We would be getting in her way if we stayed in Canterlot.”

“She could’ve kept us as statues.”

Midnight frowned, ears twitching. “I do not think that was her doing.”

Luna stared at Midnight, then at his white muzzle, then down his coal-colored neck, and over the rest of his dark form, broken up by white-tipped wings and hooves. She smiled slightly. “Rock was never really your color.”

“I do not understand.”

Luna sighed. “Come here.”

Midnight got to his hooves, setting them on the floor of the carriage, then stepped over to Luna, who looked down at the little pegasus that barely came up to her barrel, then guided him to the seat beside her. He sat down, pulling his hooves under himself, and looked at his princess.

She brushed his silver-red striped mane back from his face, tsking softly. “You should have gotten it cut before we left.”

“Because it gets in the way.”

Luna’s lips twitched. “It blocks your pretty eyes, yes.”

Midnight snorted at that. “So did your sister tell you where she was sending us?”

“A little rustic town called Ponyville.” Luna’s voice tightened. “Just outside the old castle.”

“Is that where we will be staying?”

Luna laughed, a sharp bitter bark. “It is but a crumbling inhospitable ruin.” She shook her head, her mane brushing against Midnight’s cheek. “We will have lodgings elsewhere in town.”

“Is that what you want?”

Luna breathed in, inhaling Midnight’s scent. Her body reacted almost reflexively, a hoof reaching out towards the pegasus, to draw him close, and she froze, her silver-clad hoof an inch from his chest. She forced her leg back and down, and she glared at it, lips peeling back over her teeth-

Fangs

-and she shuddered, exhaling sharply as her body rippled. Midnight’s ears came up and he pressed forward, head gently butting against hers as his eyes caught hers, anchoring her as she fell into the blackest void she had ever known, where a fanged mouth awaited to swallow her whole.

She pulled back sharply, mentally and physically, and blinked to clear the tears from her eyes as she re-centered herself. She was safe. The Nightmare was gone. Her sister had promised. Her…sister.

“So great was her reign,” she muttered harshly. “So brilliant her glory…”

“That long was the shadow she cast. Which fell dark upon the young sister she loved, and grew only darker as days and nights passed.”

Luna blinked in surprise then stared at Midnight. “So you could hear it too?”

Midnight’s smile was the saddest thing she had ever seen. “Every night, for a thousand years, she sang that lullaby to you.” He reached towards her, leaning forward when his hoof couldn’t reach her, and pressed his hoof against her heaving chest. Her heart pounded against his frog and she leaned into the physical touch gratefully. “Every night, for a thousand years, she regretted everything she had done to you.”

Luna looked away. “I know.” She rested her head against the carriage window’s cool glass. “I just wish the rest of me agreed with that sentiment.”

She didn’t have to look at Midnight to sense his confusion and she smiled grimly. She shook herself, slapping herself with her hooves lightly. “Well, that is in the past. We are in the present, and one could even say we are in the future, from a certain point of view.”

Midnight regarded his princess curiously. “A lot can change in a thousand years. Like my job.”

Luna nodded. “I do not think Equestria will need an assassin.” She looked out the window again. “One thing definitely has changed in our absence.” Her brow furrowed. “Equestria is at peace.” Her wings itched. “That feels…wrong.” She rested her front hooves on the windowsill. “What else has happened in our absence, I wonder?”

“We can always look into that in town.”

Luna twitched an ear. “Something tells me a ‘rustic’ town isn’t going to have a comprehensive library, much less ancient history.”

Midnight nodded. “True, but perhaps the local history will shed some light on matters. On what has changed.”

“Depends on the age of the town,” Luna murmured, more to herself, before she sensed the carriage starting to descend. “Well, either way, it seems we are about to meet the locals.”

Ivory Scroll, mayor mare of Ponyville, watched as the royal air carriage came to a smooth landing in front of town hall. The golden-clad pegasi that pulled it came to a stop with military precision and became still as statues, and Ivory stepped forward as the door opened and the steps came down.

A dark-coated pegasus foal came out first, to her surprise, jumping to the ground, white-tipped wings flaring as he landed. His head snapped around in her direction and she caught a flash of silver eyes, partially hidden by a long silver-red striped mane.

“Clear,” he said in a soft voice that carried far too much weight for one so young.

“You are taking this much too seriously,” came a chiding voice as a mature unicorn mare stepped out of the carriage.

“It is my job,” the little pegasus said, before nodding at Ivory Scroll. “Well-met, ma’am.”

The unicorn turned to the earth pony and nodded politely.

“You the pair from Canterlot then?” Ivory said.

The briefest look of annoyance passed over the unicorn mare’s face before she nodded. “Correct.”

“Everything’s set for your stay. The Golden Oak library should be to your liking.”

“Library?” The unicorn mare asked slowly. “Is that not a public building?”

“A lot of places in Ponyville have lodging above stores and businesses. Helps save on space to spare the farmland,” Ivory explained.

“Ah, that would explain the acres of apple trees and farm fields…” The unicorn nodded. “That is acceptable.” She turned to the pegasus foal. “Midnight?”

He nodded. “Of course-” His ears twitched, wings flared, then twisted-

“Midnight, NO!”

An orange pegasus filly, riding a speeding scooter careened toward them, and at the unicorn’s bark, Midnight’s wings softened from their killing edge, instead catching the filly, redirecting her around the other pegasus.

With a shriek of surprise, the filly went flying toward a house wall. Her body was enveloped in a bright glow, matched by the unicorn’s corona, and what would’ve been a heavy crash instead turned into a gentle bump.

The unicorn released the filly, who stood staring at the pair with wide purple eyes.

“That… Was… AWESOME!” she squealed, rising into the air on a pair of tiny humming wings, before darting toward the other pegasus, who stepped back. “How did you do that? What’s wrong with your wings? And your eyes! How did you get eyes like that?”

“Scootaloo,” Ivory said warningly, and tiredly. “We’ve been over this-”

“No one was hurt,” the unicorn interrupted, stepping forward. “It is no trouble. We will be on our way.”

Ivory glanced at her with a frown. “Ponyville isn’t that large, but you’ll still need a guide.”

“Pinkie Pie can handle it,” Scootaloo cut in. “I passed her on the way here.”

The flurry of emotions that passed over Ivory’s face was too fast for the unicorn to follow, who tilted her head.

“What’s a… Pinkie Pie?”

“She’s the…welcoming committee, for lack of a better term. She likes parties.”

The pegasus and unicorn stiffened, exchanging glances.

“Only if you want, of course,” Ivory added hastily. “She’s understanding like that, thankfully.”

“To a point,” Scootaloo said, wings buzzing excitedly. “Everyone in Ponyville gets a party eventually-”

She trailed off, looking past the pair of newcomers. “And that’s my aunts coming to get me, so I guess this is goodbye for now.” The little pegasus looked at Midnight. “I want to see you again some time though. Where are you staying?”

“Scootaloo…” Ivory warned, voice almost a growl. “Go home.”

Scootaloo sighed, and with a roll of her eyes, collected her scooter. She brushed it off and set off toward a pair of mares, who welcomed her with bowed heads and hushed words, before moving away.

“I must apologize for Scootaloo. She means well, but…well, kids…” Ivory said sheepishly.

“Kids…” the unicorn echoed thoughtfully, before looking at Midnight. “Is that not a familiar story.”

Ivory noted the amusement in her voice, then looked at Midnight again, and blinked in surprise. At first glance, he appeared a foal, but the way he carried himself was definitely that of an adult. He smiled and shook his head. “Kids indeed,” he said in amusement.

Ivory caught a flash of pink out of the corner of her eye and braced herself for the premier party planner of Ponyville to introduce herself.

“Hello Luna, hello Midnight Runner,” said a painfully pink-colored pony with bright clear blue eyes.

Ivory felt her jaw drop. This was…abnormally reserved for Pinkie. She then did a double-take at the fact she hadn’t asked for their names upon their arrival, and she stepped back, grateful for the distraction.

“I’d love to give you a proper Ponyville welcome, but neither of you seem like the type,” Pinkie Pie said, mane and tail drooping ever-so slightly. “So, you two are staying at the library?” She nodded. “Cozy lodgings. Quiet.” Her eyes ran over the two for a moment, then she smiled knowingly. “Private.” She stepped back, turning slightly. “If you’ll follow me, I can take you there?”

Luna and Midnight exchanged glances, then looked towards Ivory Scroll, then noticed she had vanished. Luna turned back to Pinkie Pie. “Lead on.”

Pinkie set off at a slow pace, allowing the other two to dictate their travel speed.

“Ivory said you are the… welcoming committee?” Luna asked. “What does that entail?”

“Usually a little welcome song and dance, maybe some local cuisine, but I just…felt like that wouldn’t suit you.”

Luna stared at the pink earth pony blankly, who chuckled with a wink. “That’s exactly why.” She turned, walking backwards as she regarded the pair curiously. Her eyes rested on Luna for a few extra seconds. “You’re not a unicorn, are you?” She waved a hoof. “Don’t ask me how I know things, please. It makes even my head spin sometimes.” She smiled slightly. “One common phrase you’ll hear around here is ‘it’s Pinkie Pie. Don’t question it’ and…I’d say that’s pretty solid advice.” Her gaze turned sad for a moment and Luna could swear her mane deflated slightly. Then it passed and the mare was all bright again.

“There’s Sugarcube Corner, and the library just beyond it. Will you be okay from here or shall I walk you to the door?”

“I think we will be fine on our own, thank you,” Luna said. “Thank you for your welcome, and your understanding.”

“I don’t suppose I can get a party promise out of you?”

“That will not be necessary.”

Pinkie shrugged. “Fair enough.” She looked at Midnight. “Take care of her, please.”

Without waiting for a reply, she turned and hopped away, lost in her own little world.

“She scares me,” Midnight said after a few moments of watching her go, startling Luna. “I am not entirely sure why, but there is something about her that makes her hard to…see. Beyond the obvious, I mean.”

“She is Touched,” Luna said softly. “One of His.” She stared at Sugarcube Corner for a few moments before starting forward. “Might as well see what we will be living with.”

The library was…a library. Luna briefly glanced at the shelves, admiring the way the interior of the library reflected that it was part of a tree, with tables, chairs, benches, nooks, crannies, and windows all derived from the same wood, branches, leaves, roots, pulp, and bark, and she wondered how long it had taken to build.

Different doors led to a cozy private kitchen and dining room, and stairs leading up to private quarters and a basement were discreetly squirreled away from the public area, with plenty of natural insulation to dampen sounds from above and below for total privacy.

“I think my sister went a little overboard with her idea of lodging,” Luna sighed as she poked at a soft bed. Big enough for two ponies, which meant it was just barely large enough for her and Midnight, but there was a second bed that folded out of the wall. “I know she means well, but I would have settled just fine for a hotel or motel room.”

Midnight nodded, before flapping his wings a few times. He flexed the feathers, then ran through a quick series of stretches before tucking them comfortably against his sides. He could feel Luna looking at him, but for whatever reason, she was holding her silence, and he didn’t press her.

“We are creatures of the night, you and I,” Luna said. “And that makes me wonder how well Ponyville will acclimate to us.”

“Not well, I imagine,” Midnight said. “Quiet towns like this tend to have quiet nights as well, but I suspect it will be much busier in the morning once the farms wake up.”

“I look forward to it, as much as one can, at any rate,” Luna said with a yawn. She went through her own series of stretches, dispelling the glamour that hid her wings as she did so. “I do not look forward to how they will react to an alicorn among them, but I suppose it will be better to get that out of the way sooner rather than later.” She regarded herself in a mirror, then turned to look at Midnight, who was already asleep in the double bed.

Shaking her head, she joined him.

The next morning dawned bright and early, light slowly creeping through the bedroom windows. Luna’s wings felt the gentle morning heat and twitched, groggily rousing her from sleep.

She slowly opened her eyes, blinked them owlishly, then tucked her nose back down to her chest. It bumped against something and she stirred more, wings abruptly flicking the blanket she’d cocooned herself in away, and she looked down to see Midnight snuggled close. Luna smiled and nuzzled him, before slowly standing up. His hooves wrapped around her neck and he was carried up with her, and she sighed, before supporting him with a hoof.

Stepping off the bed, she looked around the bedroom. Trotting past the windows, she entered the bathroom and stared at the shower.

“Do not even think about it,” Midnight muttered drowsily.

“But I need to be clean for the townsponies.”

“Then use magic.”

“But they have warm and cold water.”

“Magic.”

“Water.”

Luna turned the water on with a huff, and stepped into the stream. She dunked her head into it and burbled happily, before spitting water onto Midnight, who glared at her. He dropped from her neck and hid under her, peering up at her.

“Most pegasi are used to water, but you are not most pegasi,” Luna mused, letting the water soak through her wings before straining most of it out with magic. She stepped back, letting Midnight get drenched. He sighed heavily, blowing water from his muzzle, face completely obscured by a bedraggled mane.

Luna saw a comb nestled against the soaps, lotions, conditioners, and other care products, and set about taming Midnight’s hair as the bathroom steamed around them.

A scant number of minutes later had them both clean and ready for the day.

Luna looked out a window, where the sun was barely cresting the horizon.

“Doubt many ponies are going to be awake, so it is good time to go for a walk, you think?” Luna asked. “Get used to some of the main thoroughfares before they get clogged by the locals.”

“Or we could simply fly above them,” Midnight pointed out. “Get them used to seeing an alicorn fly overhead.”

“Or we could simply teleport,” Luna mused.

“I would most rather not get caught inside something again because you have no idea where you are going,” Midnight countered.

“That has only happened one…two…thrice…dozens…a mere hoof-full of times,” Luna said breezily. “We will be fine.”

“Walking is fine.”

Luna flicked her tail, snickering under her breath as Midnight pretended not to hear her.

Despite the early hour, there were still a few ponies also awake and out, who regarded the pair curiously, but didn’t interact with the two newcomers.

“I was thinking about what the pink one said,” Midnight said after watching an extremely pale yellow unicorn with a blue mane and thick purple sunglasses amble away, swaying to music only she could hear. “That party of hers might be a way to break the ice with the locals.”

Luna side-eyed him curiously. “Like a diplomatic meeting. My sister’s version, at least,” she amended.

“Something tells me the pink one’s parties will put Celestia’s to shame.”

Luna stopped at that and turned to stare dumbfounded at Midnight. “You…know my sister, yes?”

Midnight met her gaze evenly.

Luna shuddered. “That bad, huh.” She looked off for a moment. “Some day soon, then.”

Midnight sniffed the air. “Apples…” he murmured. “Someone is cooking apples.”

“This early?” Luna asked, raising a brow.

“Farmers always get up early, if not with the sun itself,” Midnight pointed out. “Especially earth ponies.”

“Well, you are the one with the nose, so lead on.”

The farm was…a farm. Acres of fields stretching off over hills far as the eye could see, trees thick with apples, even at this time of year, courtesy of earth pony magic, and even fields for corn, carrots, grapes, strawberries, and several other kinds of fruits and vegetables.

Luna let out a low whistle at the sheer scope of the place. “The family that runs this place must be quite impressive.”

“We make do.”

Luna jumped in surprise as a stout earth pony mare appeared from the trees. She carried herself well, confident, green eyes bright, a simple brown hat perched atop her hay-colored mane.

“You must be the newcomers Pinkie was going on about. She warned me you might swing by today.”

“She did?” Luna asked. The “how?” slipped out on reflex and the other mare simply shook her head with a knowing grin.

“Name’s Applejack, and this here’s Sweet Apple Acres.”

The mare’s hoof grip was firm, but friendly. She eyed Midnight and Luna saw her tense slightly. If he noticed, he gave no sign, simply giving her a polite nod. Luna looked between them and frowned.

“Does he bother you?” she asked bluntly, and Applejack winced.

“Family’s always been a wee bit wary of dark coats.”

Midnight’s ears came forward. “’Dark coats breed dark minds’, as the old saying goes.”

Applejack looked abashed, and ducked her head. “I know it’s a load of hogwash, but…DUCK!”

Midnight had heard the sound of displaced wind and was already pushing Luna out of the way, then leaped to the side as a prismatic blur shot by. It angled low to the ground, then shot high into the air, burning off speed, before a cyan pegasus mare circled back around, landing in front of Applejack.

“I smelled apples,” the mare said eagerly, cerise eyes almost glowing with greed.

“Did you smell the ponies you almost plowed through?”

The pegasus mare brushed a shock of rainbow mane out of her eyes and looked back. “Oh, geez, sorry, I didn’t see you ther- Oh, are you an alicorn? OH, you-!” She caught sight of Midnight and turned around, tail sticking straight out. “YOU!”

“Me,” Midnight said bemusedly.

“You’re all over the Wonderbolt history books! Not as a Wonderbolt obviously, but back in the day, there was this wicked cool black pegasus who set all manner of records, training regiments, and restructured the entire pegasian military after the Unification War-”

The mare caught herself, coughed, then introduced herself as one Rainbow Dash, the town’s lead weather coordinator. She eyed Midnight curiously. “You look a lot like the mare in the books…”

“I get that a lot,” Midnight said, letting his voice drop from its natural state, and Rainbow blinked.

“Something tells me you get hit on a lot.”

“Physically, emotionally, and romantically, yes,” Midnight replied, fluttering his eyelashes. “I’m quite used to it, and make heavy use of it as need be.”

“Really?” Rainbow asked. “’Cause I feel like that wouldn’t work past the first lifted tail-”

Applejack loudly cleared her throat. “If you ain’t gonna eat…”

Rainbow turned to her. “Look-” She blinked at the wide array of apple-related goods that had appeared on a table seemingly out of nowhere. “Oh. Right.” She glanced at Midnight. “Another time then.”

“That is two pegasus mares I need to talk to,” Midnight mused, nosing the delicacies curiously.

“Two…? Oh, so you met Scootaloo?” Rainbow Dash winced. “She didn’t run you over, did she? She tends to not pay attention when she’s riding around.”

“We have met, yes. Good kid. Means well.”

“Must be nice,” Applejack drawled as a young olive-coated earth pony with a striking red mane set out a plate filled with apple delicacies in front of Luna.

“It does, don’t it,” the younger filly said with a grin. “Here’s hoping she rubs off on you some day.”

“That’s my line, sis,” Applejack said, brow twitching. “Apple Bloom,” she said by way of introduction. “And the big galoot who set this up while you weren’t looking is Big Mac, but he’s got too much to do to stick around and chat.”

“It is not just you three on this farm, surely.” Luna said in surprise.

“We just had the rest of the family over for the Summer Sun Celebration-” Luna bit into her apples with a little more force than needed. “-but they’ve all gone, so it’s just us three and Granny Smith, who’s somewhere in town doing who-knows-what.”

“And you didn’t accompany her?” Luna asked.

“She’d smack us if we tried,” Apple Bloom said with a grin. “She wants us to get as much work in before the market opens up, so we have a good haul to sell.”

“Which means we need to get moving,” Applejack said, expertly dismantling and tucking away the tables and leftover food, leaving the plates Luna took in her magic to save them to the alicorn. “You can keep those and give them back later. Or don’t. Sun knows we get enough plates every year from the family that two going missing isn’t going to make a dent in it.”

Luna nibbled on a cobbler thoughtfully before nodding. “Our thanks, for the hospitality and meal. Perhaps some day we will be able to meet longer.” Her eyes roved over the farmland and she smiled. “This is a beautiful place.”

Applejack pulled her hat low to hide her blush.

Rainbow Dash joined them as they left the acres.

“You two seem like more interesting company than sitting in a tree until work starts,” she said. “Plus, I can introduce you to some of the locals.” She nodded down the path towards town, where Luna could hear and see the start of a farmer’s market forming.

Rainbow peered at Midnight. “So, you’re blind? How’d you land a mare like Luna?”

“I do not understand.”

“I think she is asking how you came to be in my service?” Luna’s ears turned towards the weather pony. “With some undertones of jealousy, if I am not mistaken.”

“I take all kinds,” Rainbow Dash said without shame. “Could always start a herd, ya know?”

Luna laughed at that. “I could. I have. But that was a long time ago, and the breakup was not worth the heartache.”

“It happens,” Dash said with a shrug. “Could always tell your story to Rarity. She loves a good tragedy.” She looked up at the sky with a furrowed brow. “Except she won’t be awake for hours yet.” She then perked up. “Hey Fluttershy! You’re early!” The mare took off towards a yellow pegasus with a long pink mane and tail.

“She’s…lively,” Midnight noted, watching the prismatic pegasus interact with her friend.

“She’s a pegasus. Flighty, easily distracted. Pretty fast though. Might have some Hurricane blood in her line.”

They entered the market, where ponies were quietly hawking their wares. Luna perused some flowers while Midnight followed along, ears twitching this way and that.

“That orange filly from before has been following us,” he said as Luna stepped away from a stall.

“Probably eager to barrage you with questions about your…everything,” Luna remarked.

“The little apple seed has joined her.”

Luna glanced back to see a tell-tale bow peeking over the back of an empty market stall marked with a trio of apples. “Not the most stealthy girls in town. Why not go and say hello?”

“By your leave.”

“Have they moved?”

Apple Bloom peered around the stall, watching as the light blue pony talked with Daisy and Lily. “I can see the tall one, but the other has disappeared.” She frowned. “Hold on, didn’t you say she was a unicorn? ‘Cause I can see wings.”

“What?” Scootaloo poked her head out and squinted. “Huh. Weird. I know she was the one that caught me. Does that mean she’s like Princess Celestia?”

“Wouldn’t she have said something to the country if they’d found another alicorn?”

Scootaloo pulled back and tapped her chin thoughtfully. “Maybe… Except that feels like something she would’ve brought up during the celebration…”

“Maybe… Her mark’s a moon. Do you think she’s related to Princess Celestia? Kind of a sun/moon…sim…sym…uh…pairing?”

“Could be…” Scootaloo mused, before stepping around Midnight. She did a double-take, then leaped back in surprise.

“May I inquire as to why you two are following us?”

“Just curious,” Scootaloo said defensively.

“Then why not approach us?”

“You don’t just…approach ponies you don’t know.”

Midnight blinked. “Then how do you get to know them?”

Scootaloo’s wings drooped and she looked away. Apple Bloom stepped forward. “Usually during one of Pinkie’s parties, where it’s a little less awkward to introduce yourself since everyone else is as well.” She nudged Scootaloo. “That also doesn’t immediately make you their best friend.”

“You and Sweetie approached me,” Scootaloo said, cheeks coloring. “We joined the crusade so we wouldn’t be lonely and markless forever.”

“There you are, Midnight. I was wondering where you had gotten to. Find anything interesting?” Luna asked as she approached. She looked at the two fillies curiously. “I do not think we can keep these though.”

Scootaloo’s cheeks turned pink and her ears went flat. Apple Bloom stared up at Luna curiously.

“Are you related to Princess Celestia?”

“She is my sister,” Luna confirmed with a nod.

“Where’d you come from?”

“We share a mother.”

It was Apple Bloom’s turn to blush as Scootaloo choked back a snort and Luna’s lips twitched slightly.

“You have seen the mare in the moon, correct?”

The two fillies nodded, then looked at Luna, glanced at each other with matching frowns as the gears turned.

“You’re…the mare in the moon?” Apple Bloom suggested.

“I thought there was something off about the moon recently…” Scootaloo muttered. “So…like what, you were stuck in the moon for some reason?”

“In a manner of speaking,” Luna said.

“No, wait, hold on. Before you tell us this, it might actually be better to save it for Pinkie’s party, so you can tell everyone at once instead of having to repeat it to everyone you meet,” Apple Bloom said, waving her hooves. “Have you set a date for that yet?”

“I would much rather settle in first before rushing through introductions,” Luna replied.

Apple Bloom nodded slowly. “Makes sense. Scootaloo rushed hers, so she has to keep telling everyone she isn’t an orphan, and is living with her aunts.” She bumped her hip affectionately against the other filly’s. “Not helped by you only ever being seen around town either by yourself or with the other Crusaders.”

“What are the… Crusaders?” Luna asked.

“Schoolponies, with and without their marks, each helping one another figure out what they’re good at, with branches spread out through several major cities all over Equestria,” Scootaloo said proudly.

“Morning, girls,” Rainbow Dash said as she flew other, followed by the yellow pegasus she had flown off to meet. She tousled Scootaloo’s hair and flicked her tail at the mare behind her as she spoke to Luna and Midnight. “This here’s Fluttershy, the most aptly-named mare in Equestria.”

Fluttershy rolled her eyes. “She’s exaggerating.” Luna and Midnight craned their ears towards her quiet voice. “Maybe back when I was a filly, sure, but I’ve changed a lot since flight camp.” She looked at Midnight and Luna, dipping her head politely. “Hello, it’s nice to meet you.” She looked around, then at the stall they were all standing around. “Applejack’s not here yet?”

“She was putting things together when we left the Acres,” Rainbow explained.

Fluttershy brushed her mane out of her eyes, then giggled as Midnight mirrored her, before noticing his eyes. “Oh. You have such lovely eyes. You should get Rarity to cut your mane so others can see them better.”

“I keep telling him he needs his mane cut, but he ignores me at every turn,” Luna lamented.

Fluttershy’s grin was almost feral. “It’s very hard to say no to Rarity, although she at least knows when to stop pushing. Sometimes.”

“Speaking from experience,” Rainbow said in a stage whisper that had Scootaloo and Apple Bloom snickering into their hooves.

“Sounds like a fun mare,” Luna said, stepping away from the stall. “However, there are still parts of Ponyville I would like to see, so if you’ll excuse me…”

Midnight fell into step beside her and everyone watched them go.

“She seems aloof,” Fluttershy said. “Like she doesn’t want to be here.”

“What did you expect from a princess?” Rainbow Dash asked, as Scootaloo and Apple Bloom ran off to do that which only Crusaders could do. “Still, she at least seems friendly enough, which is a nice change of pace from how most newcomers or visitors are.”

“Speaking from experience,” Fluttershy said slyly, causing the other pegasus to wince. Looking around, Rainbow brightened.

“Hey Applejack! You sure took your sweet time!”

“I think I understand why our sister sent us here,” Luna said as she and Midnight wandered the streets of Ponyville. “She wants me to make friends, to… socialize.”

“And is that a bad thing?”

Luna looked towards Canterlot. “No, of course not. It’s just a little irritating when you’re not told about it before getting sent off.” She stopped, and rested a wing on Midnight’s back. “Plus, it is always strange making friends with those so much younger than yourself.”

“You do not look a day over six hundred,” Midnight remarked. “The prime of your life.”

Luna sighed and tipped him over with her wing. “There are times I wonder why I love you.”

Midnight tilted his head and the alicorn mare shook hers. “Maybe I am just stupid, you know?”

“At least you can be stupid with someone you love, and who loves you as well?”

“Maybe.”