Chapter 1
The mare gave a small shiver as a cool summer breeze entered through her only barred window. As she shivered, her hoof shot right out to the blanket that rested at the very tip of her hooves. While it was very refreshing from the heatwave she had endured over the past few days, she now felt rather cold. This in turn caused her to slowly raise her head up from the pillow and glare at the guard with something in mind. It caught the Lunar guard’s attention instantly and he met her glare with an equally intimidating one.
“Can you make sure it doesn’t get too cold in here?” The black-coated mare asked, “I’d rather not freeze in my sleep...not that it would be any consequence to you.” This however received no physical or even a verbal response. He merely went back to sitting quietly at the desk in the room. She could only assume that he would do at least that for her before once again lowering her body onto the pillow, brushing aside her exceedingly long and messy purple mane as she did in attempts to get comfortable again.
As she closed her eyes in an attempt to catch at least a few hours of sleep to pass the untold amount of time she had at her access. Which she soon found to be more difficult than it actually sounded, for at the very instant she closed her eyes a familiar sound entered her ears. It was a sound that she had grown rather accustomed to over the past five years of being in this cell. The familiar scratching noise of a quill on a piece of parchment from the guard.
‘Perfect timing...’ she cursed, one of her eyes snapping open to observe him for just a few seconds. She noticed right away that his gaze shifted between her and the parchment, knowing full well what it meant, especially as the unicorn guard rolled it up with his magic and shifted to the door. The entire time he was doing this though, his gaze never seemed to leave the mare, which left her feeling rather annoyed and seemingly violated as he handed off the parchment to a guard just outside the door. Could she not get a moment’s privacy? Could she not be looked at like a slab of meat? Then again, she could at least understand to a degree why they gave her such looks. This factor lied within the armor all the guards that watched over her wore, which was a purple and black armor, with the purple residing mostly on the helmet, while the torso was more along the lines of black. In the center of the torso too, was a crescent moon. Which was the symbol of the guard they belonged to, not that it was a concern to her anymore as all she really cared about was getting a little bit of sleep. Even with the racket of the door slamming shut just seconds before she’d finally drift off. Pulling her from any hope of sleep for maybe another ten minutes.
That ten minutes proved to be the most blissful however, as nary a sound seemed to come from the guards or the room itself. It was absolutely perfect for drifting off and as she finally reached the very edge of slumber another sound echoed through the room. One she expected to hear after the guard had written that note. It was a very loud ‘pop’ and in the center of the room appeared a dark blue mare with a flowing mane and tail like the night sky.
“Good morning, Nightmare Moon,” A familiar and very grating voice spoke up, which immediately caused her to pull the pillow over her entire head. This seemed to hurt the mare a little as she gestured for the guard to leave the room. “Why won’t you talk to me?” she asked in a rather gentle voice. One that simply made her wish she could claw her own ears out. A silence incurred after she had spoken, as if trying to tell the new arrival to leave her be. Nightmare knew though that it wouldn’t be that easy as the mare probably wouldn’t leave until either her court began or she received a response, the latter of which she wasn’t going to get. “Please Nightmare...” the voice virtually begged, “I just want to know how you’re faring...” before she knew it though, a pillow struck the bars rather aggressively.
“You want to know how I’m faring?!” Nightmare hissed, “You really want to know how I’m faring?! I’m just lovely thank you! Oh wait...NO I’M NOT! I’m in a prison cell with the most boring guards in Equestrian history! As well as a deck of really worn out poker cards! You know what would be nice though? If a certain princess would also stop visiting me when I’m trying to get some sleep!” The volume of Nightmare’s voice made the mare wince, especially coupled with the anger.
“But...Nightmare...” she began, “I...just want to help a little...”
“Help? HELP?!” Nightmare roared, before leaping right to the front of her cell. This revealed just how much she had changed over the past five years. Not only had she grown much more scraggly, with her mane having grown fairly long. On top of that, her once-fine black coat even seemed to be an absolute disaster. Couple that with the slightly crazy look in her eyes and that added up to quite a scary sight. “You really want to know how you can HELP ME LUNA?! HOW’S ABOUT YOU LET ME GET SOME FRESH AIR NOW AND AGAIN! LET ME STRETCH MY WINGS AND GET SOME EXERCISE!” Luna winced again at the thought, it was very clear why she wanted that too, as visible by the weight she had gained around her midsection. While it wasn’t too much, it was still fairly visible.
“You know very well why I can’t do that...” she attempted to argue,
“Oh! Because the whole castle would freak out!” Nightmare snapped, “Oh and might I add...because your rotten sister would freak out too! And probably send us both to the moon! Not that I would care, at least the moon would be a step up from THIS PLACE!”
“I’m...sorry...” Luna muttered, shifting her gaze away from Nightmare as she attempted to reach out from the bars and swipe at Luna.
“Sorry...SORRY?!” Nightmare’s voice rose, “Were you SORRY WHEN YOU DESTROYED MY HORN?!” At the top of her head, wrapped in bandages was her horn. It was very neatly and tightly wrapped too, showing just how badly damaged it was. The strange part though was, even after five years it still hadn’t recovered in the least, but it did make some sense though as she did have her magic drained.
“I honestly thought that...you would cease to exist if I took your magic!” Luna argued, “I mean...that was the only thing keeping your body maintained, am I right?”
“Far as I know...this has never happened in the history of Equestria...” Nightmare muttered, “But then again...I DON’T KNOW ANYTHING OUTSIDE OF WHAT YOU KNEW OR TELL ME!” For the third time that night, Luna winced at the volume of her voice.
“Is...there anything I can do for you...to apologize for your horn?”
“Unless it involves giving me a chance to stretch my wings properly or a book on games involving playing cards,” Nightmare replied, “Although...it would be nice if you could get me a new deck of playing cards at least...” Her head shifted at that point, glancing over to the table in her cell, which had a very old and worn out deck of poker cards before returning her glance to Luna. “Unless its one of those three things...you can sincerely go buck yourself. Oh wait...if you’re still with that rather sexy unicorn stallion...what was his name? Emerald?” This made Luna nod very slowly, “Yeah, go buck him instead!” she spat, before turning her back on the lunar princess and returning to her bed with the pillow in hoof.
“Well...if you figure out why you didn’t just vanish...or you simply want to talk, just tell the guards,” Luna said calmly, despite the verbal abuse she had just endured. “I’ll see you soon...hopefully with you in a better mood too.”
Nightmare seemed astonished that Luna hadn’t completely blown up in her face and made the sentence worse. She had really changed since they had been one pony, not that she really cared. About the only thing she seemed to care about was keeping up the appearance that she didn’t seem to have a clue as to why she still lived, of why she was still bound to this form. When in fact she actually had a potential clue as to why and that she had been living with the secret for this entire time.
‘I hope your father is taking really good care of you...’ she thought, a small smile slowly creeping across her face and a single tear moving down her cheek very slowly. ‘Eclipse...please have a good life...’ As she drifted off into her much desired slumber for the day, her mind and heart were filled with the last memories and hopeful thoughts of her daughter.
In the higher towers of the castle, just as the sun had reached past the horizon. A very dark blue alicorn with a presently-messy silvery mane was just beginning to stir. As the sun struck his face, he began to stir. Making an attempt to block it out with his pillow as to get just a couple extra minutes of sleep. Unfortunately for him though, the extra sleep would become impossible over the course of the next couple of seconds as he began to feel a strange, but very familiar bouncing on his bed. He knew the origins of said bouncing very well too, not needing to peek out from a small crevice to see the source.
“Time to get up daddy!” an energetic and youthful voice called out from the opposite end of the pillow. Yet, the stallion simply remained motionless, not even twitching in attempts to trick the little filly now bouncing on the bed right next to him. “Today’s the day! And you’re not tricking me this morning! I WILL meet her today and this time I’ll be awake for it!” The filly’s energy was absolutely boundless, but it was to be expected after all. She was just a little filly, no older than five years of age. After what seemed like forever in bouncing on the bed and nudging her father endlessly he finally tossed aside the pillow to simply gaze at his daughter with very tired eyes.
While on the outside she looked like a completely normal filly, there was something just a tiny bit different for a pony her age. Some would think it was the combination of her dark blue coat, which was just a shade or two darker than her father’s along with her violet mane. Maybe even the bright golden eyes that matched her father’s, but no, it was something else entirely. Something that her father had noticed over the course of the past five years that seemed to make him relatively curious. Not only was her speech significantly more developed compared to most fillies her age, but she was significantly larger than most her age. It was fairly strange, but easily explained as her father wasn’t quite the average pony himself.
In fact, he was the farthest thing from the average pony even if he acted like one just past six thirty in the morning. Not only did he have a horn, but as he stretched himself out; it would become apparent that he was actually an alicorn, which was the farthest thing from average. Then again living in a castle wasn’t average either, but was anything in his life actually average?
“Eclipse...its six-thirty,” he muttered, looking fairly tired as the filly slowly ceased her bouncing on the bed and his eyes briefly shifted to the alarm clock on the nightstand. “Although its very likely she’s awake, I still doubt she is at this hour. Granted its Sunday...”
“B-but...” Eclipse began, her lip already beginning to tremble and her eyes growing wide. Which was possibly one of the most evil things ever created by children, especially little fillies who wanted to get something out of their fathers. “Y-you promised...” the tone of her sweet voice broke his heart instantly, while at the same time he even seemed to curse his own luck inwardly.
‘Even her mother wasn’t this evil...’ he thought, ‘Where in Equestria did she learn that face...I swear...’ It took several seconds before he finally sighed in defeat, knowing full well he couldn’t handle that sweet and very evil face for more than a couple of seconds. “Fine, fine...we’ll go see her after I have my morning tea...” said face seemed to melt into a quick smile followed by a very joyous cheer as she climbed off the bed.
In a very pitiful attempt at stalling for time, the stallion slowly climbed from the bed while his horn lit up and fixed it. Straightening the covers and placing the pillow ever so neatly at the head before he crossed the room, making a beeline straight for the bathroom. The visit didn’t take more than ten minutes as he quickly fixed his hair and took care of his business fairly quickly, which included brushing his teeth. All the while, the little filly waited just outside the closed door for him.
Once he had freshened himself he stepped out, taking a couple of seconds to stretch his wings with a small, but very pleased grunt before making his way over to the table in the room. In the center of this table sat a teapot which he quickly emptied out of the old, dried teabags and replaced it with fresh ones at least after rinsing out at the sink very quickly. This was followed by his horn lighting up a bit brighter compared to the normal telekinesis spell and as Eclipse observed this, a smile moved across her face, fascinated by the magic her father was performing just to heat up the water in the teapot.
“Daddy, why are you drinking hot tea during summer?” she asked the very instant the question popped into her mind. Not even hesitating to think about it. Unfortunately the timing for this question was rather bad, as the stallion’s mind hadn’t had the time to fully start up yet. This left him scratching his head very clearly as he tried to figure out just why he was drinking hot tea in the morning. That was, until he realized how pointless that was which made him laugh. The chuckle seemed to confuse Eclipse though as she tilted her head slightly to the left, growing curious as to why her father was laughing at her question.
“While it may not make much sense...” her father explained, “I love tea...and its a great way to start the morning. At least, better than coffee.” he smiled at that point, turning to his daughter as the water in the pot reached the boiling point. Which in turn caused steam to begin rising from the spout as well as from any small hole that may be in the pot.
“Why is that?” she asked, which he should’ve expected, yet didn’t.
“Coffee is overly processed with less than natural ingredients, while tea...” he began, “To this day remains mostly natural, at least depending on what brand you buy or if you make it yourself.”
“You can make it yourself?” Eclipse inquired further, to which his smile widened.
“Don’t worry...I’m sure Twilight has a book she’ll give you on the subject,” he cooed, leaning down to mess up the filly’s mane. Which seemed to make her smile, but it only lasted for a couple of seconds as another thought crossed the young filly’s mind at that point.
“You think she’ll like me?” Eclipse asked, looking almost down in a matter of seconds.
“She’ll love you,” he assured, “You two already have quite a bit in common, accounting for your love of books.”
“But...what if she doesn’t like me?” her ears lowered at that point, “I...wouldn’t want to...be in the way of your special somepony...”
“Eclipse!” he said, “What did I say about saying those kinds of things?” The filly froze when her father’s voice rose just a tiny bit. Seeming almost angry at her.
“Uhh...” she tried to speak, but no words seemed to come to mind. It was almost as if she had blocked out what her father had told her on countless occasions.
“I said not to ever say things like that,” he scolded, “While I’m confident that she’ll absolutely love you...even if she doesn’t by some chance, it won’t change a thing and nothing she says or does will make it change either.” This was followed briefly by him nuzzling Eclipse. Which seemed to cheer her up in an instant, causing her to nuzzle back instinctively. ‘Even Celestia adores you, I doubt even Twilight could resist that charm of yours. Why are you so worried?’ He smiled softly as he poured his cup of tea. Steam rose from the green liquid as it was poured and along with it came the pungent aroma of mint and a very strong aroma too which quickly filled the room.
Without more than a few seconds in between the time he had poured it and the time he lifted his head, the cup containing the tea had already levitated right up to a comfortable position and he proceeded to sip on it. While it was scalding hot, he didn’t seem to mind, able to muddle through the short burst of pain that the liquid caused. Instead he found himself enjoying just the sweet, minty reprieve that the tea brought him. Sending his mind on a short journey and relaxing every muscle he had. In a matter of seconds too, the liquid had vanished from the cup and he began to feel a burst of energy surge through every hair in his body. From the tips of his hooves to the pointed end of his horn.
Excitement began to well up in Eclipse after her father had drunken his tea, knowing full well what was going to come next. It would be soon that she’d meet his marefriend, very soon. She could hardly contain her excitement as she even began to shiver a little where she stood. Even her father saw this and chuckled very softly before making his way to the door with the filly right by his side.
“Now...let’s go give Twilight a good morning she won’t forget!” he remarked as they made their way into the hall.
Lost in a sea of books, the mulberry mare lied sprawled out on her own bed with a single book covering her face as she slept peacefully. Even a faint snoring could be heard in the room as its two occupants slept peacefully. However, it didn’t come from the dragon that slept in a basket nearby, oh no. It actually came from the alicorn mare that was sleeping ever so gracefully on the bed.
It wouldn’t be more than five minutes later that a knock soon came to the door of the room, which was followed by some rather faint grumbling from the dragon and another series of knocks. At which point, said purple dragon sluggishly climbed from his basket and made his way slowly over to the door, dragging his blanket behind him and rubbing the sleep from his eyes at the same time. To which he was met with none other than the dark blue alicorn and his daughter, Eclipse.
“Uh...Morning Silver...” the dragon muttered, still clearly very drowsy.
“Morning Spike,” he began, seeming almost cheerful now as compared to before, “I take it...from your demeanor that even Twilight isn’t awake yet.”
“Uh...Twilight?” Spike asked at first, a tiny bit confused as he stepped aside to allow the two to enter the room. It was at this point where Silver’s eyes rested on the previously mentioned mare, where he almost died of laughter in an instant.
Silver’s eyes had never seen such a hilarious sight in his life, the book covering her face was just the tip of the iceberg to him. As he witnessed Twilight using a series of other books as a blanket. While there weren’t that many, a fair number of them were huddled against her for what he could only think to be warmth or personal comfort or even the simple fact that she had just fallen asleep while reading a book. Not only was it a very hilarious sight, one that could possibly be on the front page of the Canterlot paper, but it was also one of the most adorable sights he could ever rest his eyes upon.
“Daddy...is that your special somepony?” Eclipse inquired almost immediately, turning up to him.
“Yes...yes it is,” he smiled, “And daddy’s a very lucky pony too. Now can you and Spike please go wait in the hall? I must wake her.”
“Hey!” Spike cried out, “I want to go back to bed! Its only seven o’clock on a Sunday no less! I want to sleep in!” Silver’s eyes flashed as he turned to the dragon, immediately leaning down to whisper something that Eclipse couldn’t hear to him, which immediately caused a one hundred eighty degree turn in his words. “Come on Eclipse! Your father wants us to wait in the hall!” He even seemed to be wide awake, quickly balling up his blanket and tossing it right over to the basket before dashing to the hall.
“Awww...but I wanted to help daddy wake her...” Eclipse complained.
“Sorry Sweetie, but this is something only daddy can do,” Silver said, “I think your wakeup call might be a little too much for her right now.” The filly seemed to drag her feet out of the room after hearing that, rather sadly too in attempts to get her father to change his mind, but he didn’t waver in the least. He moved silently after the door had closed, reaching the bedside with a small smile on his face. With that, he leaned in very, very close to her. To the point where his mouth was right at her ear, where he whispered: “Twilight...you’re late for the big test...”
There was an instant reaction after those few words were spoken. The first of which was the book on her face went flying and the resting form of the mare shot straight up into the air, almost to the point where she even hit the ceiling. Had Silver not actually been there, using his magic to reign her down before that happened, she would’ve hit the ceiling without question. After which, he brought her back down to the bed where he was receiving possibly one of the most frustrated and annoyed glares he had ever received.
“Silver...” Twilight muttered, clearly annoyed with the stallion. “Why did you do that to me? You know how I don’t like being late for anything...especially tests...” she paused, glancing up at the ceiling afterward. “And worse yet...I could’ve actually hurt myself! What were you thinking?!”
“Relax Twilight...” Silver replied, “I was just having a little fun, I had everything perfectly under control; I wouldn’t dream of doing something that actually hurt you.”
“Well...since you did stop me from hitting the ceiling...I suppose I could forgive you,” she whispered, before leaning in to nuzzle him softly. “Plus...none of your childish pranks have hurt me yet...” He nuzzled her in return, before placing a very soft kiss on her lips. This sent a shiver right down her spine. “And you’re just lucky those lips of yours are so soothing too...otherwise I’d smack you for doing things like that.”
“Oh you like it,” Silver teased with a devious smirk on his face,
“If only for those lips of yours,” Twilight added, a smile on her face. “But...please...don’t ever wake me up like that again.” For a few moments, Silver seemed hesitant at actually agreeing to this, but in the end he nodded.
“Oh, alright,” he muttered, before quickly placing a kiss on her lips which in turn brought upon another quick smile to her face. “Now what do you say we go get breakfast? My treat.” This in turn caused her to shift a very quick glare in his direction as they began to move to the door. She didn’t even need to say a thing to him, mostly due to the fact he already knew what the glare had meant. Especially after what he did to wake her. “Oh...and one more quick thing Twilight...” he began, pulling the door open for her.
In that instant, the alicorn mare found herself met with the boundless energy of a young filly, whom had been patiently waiting just outside the door with Spike. Caught a little off guard by the filly’s seemingly boundless energy, which was second only to a good friend of hers at this present moment, it brought a smile right to her face to see it. Not only was the filly excited, but she even seemed absolutely ecstatic at the fact she was meeting Twilight for the first time too.
“Good morning, Princess Twilight!” Eclipse smiled, still bouncing on the end of her hooves essentially. “Its nice to finally meet my daddy’s very special somepony!” That particular line caused a very faint blush to appear on Silver’s cheeks as Twilight shifted a glance in his direction.
“What can I say...she’s been determined to meet you for months,” he chuckled, rubbing the back of his head in a reflex, “Even with her...surprising amounts of energy...she always passes out before you show up as you recall.” Twilight giggled softly before returning her attention to the still-bouncing filly. “Now...shall we go get some breakfast?” The very instant those words had been spoken, it seemed like everyone’s stomach growled.
“Yes...let’s,” Twilight smiled, “Your treat!”
“I wouldn’t mind getting a few extra gems for breakfast...” Spike added and upon hearing all of it, Silver simply whimpered, realizing just what he had gotten himself into.
Chapter 2
Eyes heavy with exhaustion, mind heavy with frustration; Luna entered her private quarters quietly. As she did, she stepped very casually out of her shoes like it was nothing. A trick she had learned from her sister since her return several years ago. This was followed by her detaching her regalia and gently setting it aside before trudging onto her bed and finally collapsing with a grunt. The comfort was instantaneous as it filled every inch of her body. Being a much sought after sensation after the night she had, which is what made it all the better as she finally began to unwind.
Luna snuggled right into the bed, adjusting her position just a tiny bit as she yawned fairly loudly, knowing full well that there wasn’t a single pony in the room for the moment. She didn’t even bother being polite either due to that. It was the time where she could truly be comfortable without a care in the world. What made it all the better was the fact that the curtains were even drawn, making it far easier for her to feel the sweet embrace of sleep beginning to take her.
As it did, all the stress in her body seemed to drift away as she found that perfectly blissful spot on her bed. It was in that moment where she glanced at the empty side of her bed and a tiny wave of loneliness washed over her. Despite knowing the reason why it was empty, it didn’t fill the void very well as she moved her hoof over the spot very casually as her mind drifted off to a certain stallion that shared the bed with her.
Despite all of her power and influence, this was still one of the downsides of being a leader. Being torn away from someone she cared very deeply for was rough, even if it was just for a short time. Even knowing this, she didn’t like it even if there wasn’t a thing she could do about it. All she could really do was wish he would return soon or enter a deep slumber as so she could join him in his dreams. With another heavy sigh she finally turned away from the door, attempting to keep her mind off of the issue. Instead returning her focus to the problems at hand.
‘How did Tia not lose her mind for over a thousand years...?’ she grumbled, yawning once again as her gaze focused onto a flowing curtain. ‘Petitioners, politics...prisoners...I’m amazed she’s not locked in a padded cell...’ Luna paused a moment at her own thoughts, laughing very softly, ‘Then again, she never had to deal with her psychotic alter ego locked in a dungeon...’ A groan escaped her throat the more she thought about it. Perhaps she should try another tactic with Nightmare? With how slow progress had been over the past few years it made her wonder if she should actually just release her. ‘No...Tia would lose her mind if she knew Nightmare was actually still alive! Plus...it would send Equestria into a panic just knowing it...’ this thought was followed by another yawn as exhaustion continued to creep up on the mare. “How could this possibly get any worse?” she voiced in the yawn.
The very instant Luna had asked that single question, the door opened and shut very quickly. The sound alone was enough to re-energize her, knowing full well there was only one pony that didn’t knock upon entering her room. It was the tall and fairly muscular unicorn with a fine forest green coat and a wild brown mane. Instantly she flipped to face the stallion with a wide smile. With the clear desire to snuggle him to death, but not wanting to leave the comfort of the bed, she cleverly scooted on it, gesturing her hooves out much like a newborn foal would when it wanted attention from its parents. With a face that would cause a heart attack from adorableness overload in lesser ponies.
“As they say, get your flank over here and give me some snuggles!” she ordered, wiggling her hooves as she did, virtually begging for them. “After the day I’ve had, I need them!”
“You may want to wait a few minutes for that Luna...” he muttered, much to her own dismay as by not only the expression on his face, but by the mannerism in which he stood before her the news wasn’t good.
“Oh come on! Can I not have one day where Equestria isn’t in danger of being destroyed or taken over by some creature?” she sighed, “Why can’t I just have a few minutes without everything going to Tartarus!?” Luna’s hooves dropped, which came along with a look of extreme displeasure and annoyance. “Emerald...can we at least have a proper greeting before you give me any news? I’ve had a long day and I haven’t seen you in a week...”
“But...” Emerald attempted to argue, only knowing it was futile as her horn lit up. This immediately resulted in her taking ahold of his ear and virtually dragging him across the room. It was a fairly painful process on his part, but relatively short-lived as he was soon met with the sweet, sweet embrace of the lunar mare. The kiss washed away all of Luna’s cares in a matter of moments as a shiver ran up her spine. No matter how many times it happened, she always enjoyed it and she couldn’t ever quite explain why this happened. She didn’t care why or how it happened either, as it just melted away all of her troubles before she finally pulled away.
“Now that’s a proper greeting...” Luna cooed, gently caressing his cheek, “Now...what do you need to tell me?” It took Emerald a couple of seconds to regain his focus before actually speaking, as he too seemed to be in need of that kiss.
“Well...the emergency at the small outpost south of Las Pegasus was resolved,” he started,
“Excellent! What was it?” Luna interrupted,
“Bring her in!” Emerald called out.
Two unicorn guards entered very quietly, between them however was the shock of Luna’s life. At that moment, she felt as though she would’ve had a heart attack from the sheer shock alone, having not expected to ever see it with her own eyes. It even caused her to shoot upright from the lying position. Bound and gagged with a magic-restricting device attached to her horn was a black, pony-like figure. She had a long, scraggly looking mane with insect wings, holes in her hooves and cat-like green eyes. The very last thing Luna took notice of though was the crown that sat atop her head, right next to her horn.
“SHE was the disturbance at the outpost?” Luna inquired, astonished that they were even able to capture her.
“Yes...apparently she was attempting to steal some medical supplies and food,” Emerald nodded, “It took at least six unicorns, including myself to subdue her...she’s surprisingly strong.”
“Was anypony seriously injured?” she asked further,
“Thankfully, no...but the building will require repair...”
“If that’s the only problem...then I’m relieved, because as you know...” Luna began, shifting a gaze over the creature. “She did nearly kill my sister several months back.” A few muffled shouts came from the creature at that point, her eyes telling part of the story. Shifting from angry to sad in a relatively short amount of time. She even tried to struggle in the chains to use her hooves as a form of communication. It was to no avail however, as her bindings had been fairly well placed, thus severely limiting her communication capabilities. It eventually reached a point where she just completely gave up in trying to talk or even emote her way out of the situation and just lowered her head in despair.
In the past, Luna would’ve just ignored another’s body language. However, recent experiences had taught her that in these days, it was actually a necessity in figuring what a pony truly wanted and needed. It had become one of the most useful skills in her arsenal, especially when dealing with politicians and the occasional petitioner for her court. The prisoner’s body language spoke volumes alone of what she had been after, thus causing her to give a small gesture to dismiss the guards on either side. This left the two of them seeming rather confused for just a moment before taking their leave.
“If you will, Emerald...” she whispered, leaving even the unicorn a bit confused. “Please...remove the gag at least, I want to hear what she desires to say.”
“Are you sure that’s wise?” Emerald asked, his ear twitching just a tiny bit in curiosity. “I mean...she is a Changeling...and she could use just her words to seduce the two of us to escape...” The particular words that slipped from Emerald’s mouth though seemed to cause an uproar with the changeling. It made her begin to struggle in the chains and shout incoherently through the gag with rather annoyed and a very angry look in her eyes. She even reached out at the unicorn, whom was forced to take a step back. Luna laughed softly at the reaction.
“Emerald...how much do you know about Changelings?” Luna inquired, “Because...words alone will not seduce us and judging by her body language alone. Aside from the fact she wants to strangle you now...she won’t try anything. She has little to lose at this point.”
“How do you know for sure!?” he argued,
“I...just happen to have a bit of experience with Changelings...a little...but not very much...” she pointed out, “And...I know that they can’t seduce a pony through their voice alone. Even a changeling queen can’t do it...” This caused another, far more agreeable muffled cry from the changeling queen before finally beginning to calm down. She seemed rather insulted by everything that had been said by the pony before it seemed a realization dawned on her. It was at that point that her gaze seemed to focus a bit more on Emerald, where, even gagged she tried to ask a question. It was useless though, at least until Emerald reached up and finally unhooked it.
“She did call you Emerald, right?” were the first words from her mouth, “As in...Emerald Crescent?” his ears twitched just a little as the initial shock of the changeling queen actually knowing his name. It was a befuddling moment, even for Luna. Was his reputation really that well known? It almost seemed like she knew him too as her gaze drew closer. Making him very clearly uncomfortable.
“What’s...it to you?” he asked, tilting his head with a great deal of curiosity, “How...do you even KNOW my name?” This made her freeze for just a couple of moments as she considered her words very carefully. She knew all too well that a single wrong move now could cost her quite a bit more than she had and she couldn’t risk anymore at this point. A little battered, exhausted and without magic wasn’t a very good combination when it came to facing an Equestrian Princess...especially Princess Luna.
“Well...” she began, after a few seconds of thought, “I was...your brother’s lover for a very long time...” she finally admitted. Emerald’s mind went blank the very instant the words registered, however it seemed as though they didn’t want to register. Because for as far back as he could recall, his brother didn’t ever have any Changeling lovers. This made him relatively confused and once it finally clicked in his mind, he turned his head at Luna. Whom seemed just as dumbstruck as her own lover was.
“You...were...” she stammered, trying to wrap her head around the thought before a shiver traveled up her spine. It wasn’t until she finally turned back to the unicorn that everything finally began to click into place.
“Wait a second...you were that mare that...broke his heart...weren’t you?” he finally asked, only receiving a very slow and almost saddened nod. What happened next though was something that not even Luna despite all the years of experience she had in similar situations, saw coming. Crack! Within a moment, the changeling found herself completely floored, flung right into the wall with only a single hoof to the jaw. On top of the minor injuries now, she even had a massive, throbbing pain in her jaw. Making her wonder if that single strike had actually broken it. “That was for driving my brother away and wrecking what was left of our family!”
“Emerald! We don’t attack prisoners for personal reasons!” Luna stated, actually having to hold him back before he took a second swing. She had just been thankful that Emerald didn’t seem to fight back very much against her grip before finally calming himself down again. “Now if you please...go into the hall or onto the balcony until you cool off a bit more...Chrysalis and I must chat.” Like before, this seemed to cause a bit of confusion within the unicorn. Whom turned to Luna with a rather curious look on his face.
“Once again, are you sure that’s wise Luna?” he asked, concerned about what had happened to her sister not that long ago. “I mean...she did nearly...” Before he could finish though, a very familiar expression appeared on the princess’ face. It was a gaze of pure frustration and annoyance. One he recognized from endless hours of court as well as any sort of contact with a certain other pony that caused the entire castle a great deal of stress.
“I know Emerald, but aside from that mouth of hers...”
“Hey!” Chrysalis snapped, taking offense to just the tone of Luna’s voice, still rubbing the portion of her jaw that Emerald had struck. The act of speaking alone causing another wave of pain to blast over her. “Ow...” she whimpered, ‘Were unicorns always this strong or is it just him?’
“...She is bound completely...movement is restricted and she can’t even use her magic,” Luna added, “Now...please go into the hall or onto the balcony...” Emerald opened his mouth to argue, but instead was met with his lover’s hoof right over it. Luna wasn’t about to have an argument in this situation, he could clearly see this just by the look in her eyes. Regardless of the fact he felt it could end rather badly if she lost her temper. He sighed very softly and nodded before placing a very quick kiss on her lips.
Chrysalis’ stomach growled from the sight and a bit of drool fell from the corner of her mouth. Oh how she wished she could feed off of this love right now, despite only being able to feel it. It was a very sweet kind of love, one that could sustain her for a month after just a few moments of siphoning. The contact with them would have to be enough though and thankfully for her it was. Giving just a tiny bit of relief from the gnawing hunger she had upon entering the room. By the time Emerald had vanished behind the balcony doors, the emptiness in her stomach had all but vanished.
“You love him quite a bit...don’t you?” she finally posed, wiping her mouth of the drool.
“That’s not your business,” Luna stated, her tone growing rather aggressive, “And let me make this very clear...if it wasn’t for the laws requiring my sister’s decision too...I would’ve splattered you all over these walls the moment you entered.” Chrysalis gulped at the sheer directness of the lunar mare. It was rare to see such a blunt sentence from a royal, let alone from one of the pony sisters.
“A-and...why, dare I ask would you do that?” Chrysalis asked, even though she could simply guess at the answer.
“Because of not only the damage you and your people have caused...” Luna began, “But for nearly ruining Cadence and Shining Armor’s wedding AND nearly killing my sister. The latter of which...is likely to result in your execution.” The words sent a chill down Chrysalis’ spine the likes of which she hadn’t ever felt before. The mixture of hurt and anger she could feel didn’t seem to come from just what Luna had mentioned, but it was as if she was redirecting some of her problems onto her.
“If...that’s going to be the case...” Chrysalis finally spoke up, beginning to approach Luna. “Can you at least grant me a last request?” she paused, her gaze shifting over to the balcony for just a moment before returning to the lunar mare. ‘If...Emerald is here...then...he might be here too...’ It was in that one moment another thought popped into her head. One that nearly overtook the original thought on what she could do with a last request. “If you can...make it two requests....”
“While they are rare...those given the death sentence are usually given a last request,” Luna mentioned, “But you’re only granted ONE request within reason. Give me a reason why I should grant you two.” This would prove to be a challenge for the changeling as she considered which request would be for the better or at least a very good reason for why she should have two.
“As you’re aware...we did invade Canterlot...however...the result ended up being fairly bad,” she pointed out, “And...well...many of my people are now scattered across Equestria, severely injured. I’ve sent several search parties out for many of them, but we lack the resources to transport any of the injured. My first request is...you send help to them. Its the least Equestria can do for us should I be executed...”
“I’ll talk to my sister about that one...” Luna muttered, a pang of remorse appearing on her face. As if she was trying to relate to the changeling queen. It was almost as if she actually did want to help, but was holding back out of the anger she still had lingering for her. “As for the other one?”
“That one is a personal request...” Chrysalis muttered, “I...want to see Emerald’s brother again. Be able to talk to him one final time.” Her ears visibly lowered as she mentioned him, a bit of guilt becoming visible on her face as if she had done something in the past that she really regretted. Even more than the devastation she had caused to her own people. This was a feeling even Luna could relate to and it was heartbreaking to see.
“Swear to me you won’t try anything foolish,” Luna began, “And you won’t try to seduce him either...as he’s smitten with another.” This seemed to hit home with Chrysalis visibly as a bit of heartache struck her. It even seemed to pile on with everything else she was feeling, making her head lower just a bit more than it had been a second earlier.
‘So...he’s moved on?’ she thought, despite the pain it caused her to think about it, a very tiny smile began to move across her face. “I understand...” she finally nodded. “When can I see him though?”
“Today actually...” Luna smirked, “I have an idea that’ll work out perfectly for this situation....” It was true too, along with that though she had an ulterior motive to this plan and while Chrysalis could actually feel the deceptive nature of the plan. She couldn’t exactly tell what it was or what it meant for her. Which, perhaps was a good thing for the lunar mare as she didn’t want another living soul to know about Nightmare’s existence. At least, not yet.
