Chapter 1- The Perfect Night
"No one is alone in the world"
The soft breeze brushed my mane as the Moon gracefully rose over the horizon under my command. Stars were starting to show themselves on the now darkened sky. It was a beautiful night, not that the rest of them weren't lovely as well, but this one was especially gorgeous, and also very opportune. There was not even one lonely cloud in the sky and the blend between the temperature and winds was perfect for a gratifying flight, and thanks to the annual restoration of statues, paintings and artifacts that swarmed the castle, the night court wasn't going to be held that day.
It was my opportunity.
After my recent return, my inclusion to Equestria's leadership along my sister was rushed. After a mere few days I was already needed in trials, meetings, courts and the list goes on and on. Being reunited with Tia once again was indescribably wonderful, but still, the weight abruptly dropped over my shoulders was exhausting to say the least. Also, the hesitation shown by a few subjects about my "reformation", therefore convincing my sister of the need to protect me against any possible treason, clearly didn't help at all. A delightful trip to the outside without an escort two feet away was what I needed, a chance to see closely how much ponies lives changed, to be capable of maybe connecting with them.
After analyzing the situation and cautiously choosing the words I would use, I left my room and headed to Celestia's. With a barely visible nod I regarded the guards in front of the door, their pose rigid and expression neutral as usual, only broken for a brief second to return the salutation with the same gesture.
I shifted towards the doors and knocked a few times, hoping for my sister to still be awake.
"Come in." I heard Celestia's voice coming from the room. Using my magic I took hold of the knob and slowly slipped inside the room. My sister was sitting on the bed, a wide smile drawn over her tired expression.
She stood on her hooves and faced me. "Oh, Luna, I was already going to bed. What is it that you need?" She wearily asked.
I opted to get to the point as quick and simple as possible, every time I tried to conceal intentions behind pretty words Celestia somehow managed to read me. Call it a sibling advantage if you may, although it wasn't truly an advantage in my situation. "Sister, I hath completed all the royal duties requested for the night, and haven't felt any distress coming from the dream world, so..." I started to feel a lump forming in my throat, obstructing every word I tried to get out.
I hope she doesn't get upset.
"Something wrong, dear sister?" Tia asked with a concerned look as she slowly stepped closer.
I took a deep breath and exhaled it, moving my foreleg to imitate an in-out motion. A little trick my niece Cadence taught me to calm the nerves. "Do not worry, everything's fine." I waved it off. "I came by because I wanted to ask thee something..." The apprehension of being scolded by Celestia for 'placing myself in a potentially dangerous situation' (As she said herself on a couple of occasions) incapacitating me from uttering complex sentences. "If thou..." I repeated the exercise. Quick and simple Luna, quick and simple. "If thou could let me go out and enjoy the night's perfection... Without any sort of escort whatsoever." I sputtered.
Instead of berating me, she just widened her eyes and glanced around with a small frown. "Luna, you know I just send those guards because I'm worried about you. Remember that since being brought back by the elements you aren't as strong as before. You need more time."
I gave her a reassuring smile, of course I was elated to know how much my sister cared about my well being, but even after living a thousand years longer than I did in Equestria she seemed to forget the fact that we weren't just regular ponies. I smiled. "I understand, and I am very grateful, but weakened or not, I'm an alicorn princess. I think I can take care of myself."
Celestia took a moment, carefully contemplating my words. She shifted her gaze from the ground to me and vice versa, before concluding her musing with a sigh of defeat. "I suppose you're right about that Luna. You may go out, but please, be careful and don't take too long." Her last words were accompanied by a mildly stern look.
I disregarded completely her grimace as my excitement bursted out to the outside in its full glory. YES! SHE SAID YES!
"Thank you so much big sister!" I squealed as I squeezed her in an embrace, a gleeful grin crowning my expression. Before she could even respond I was already on my way out. I hastily ran towards the balcony and leaped over the rail, feeling the wind going through my flowing mane as I plummeted. Before reaching the ground I released my wings and started hovering over the landscape, pondering about what I could do next to make the most of the time I had.
As I glided through the sky above the city, I realized something. Something that brought back old, and yet so familiar feelings. There was not a single soul on the streets. Everyone stayed in their houses as usual, nopony caring to even reward such a beautiful night with an awed look, or even a smile at its complexity. I felt so... lonely all of a sudden.
Any hope still lingering within quickly faded into sorrow as the same scenario was presented before me in every town and village. Every pony who was still awake was either rushing towards their home or busy. I could feel a frown growing bigger and bigger on my expression. "One thousand years have passed, and still I'm stuck in the same situation."
After checking in Ponyville to once again be dissapointed, I hovered towards a huge rock and sat on it, letting myself ponder about why still nothing had changed. After several minutes had passed, I gloomily decided to fly back home. Sluggshly, I stood on my four hooves and launched myself in the air. Mere moments later I was already soaring over the Everfree Forest. Before reaching its borders, something caught my attention. A motionless figure was laying on the grass in the middle of the forest.
Gingerly I scanned the area to detect any possible threats, and when I found none, I slowly approached the ground.
Stepping closer, I finally was able to make out what the mysterious shape was. What is that pony doing here?. It was a stallion, to be precise. Judging by his immobile state, either he was sleeping, or, considering his surroundings, wounded. I warily walked towards him fearing the worst, only to release a profound sigh of relief as I saw the steady motion of breathing on his chest. Thanks Celestia, he's al-
*crack*
I had stepped over a twig on the ground, and as soon as the sound was heard, the stallion was already fleeing through the trees.
"Wait!" I tried to call, but he was long gone.
"He must be disoriented, I should call the guard to find him..."
A putrid stink strayed me from my thoughts as it invaded my nostrils. I had to cover my muzzle with a hoof to lessen the piercing stench.
Wasting no time, I prepared to leave with haste to warn the guard about the supposedly lost pony. After stretching out my wings at their full length with the purpose of taking off as fast as possible, I heard the sound of grass being repeatedly stomped upon.
I didn't have time to react as I was atacked from behind, harshly hammering my head against a boulder on the ground. I felt a horrid pain in my head as I noticed blood leaking from the wound and streaming down my face. Struggling with the weight on my back, I tried to stand up only to feel the most unfathomable pain I had ever went through. Both my wings, now soaked in blood, were being chewed by two hideous creatures that resembled wolves, although composed purely from wood. Soon enough I realized that the beasts on my back weren't the only ones who made their acquaitance, a handful of them had already surrounded me.
The realization of what was happening took me to the most desperate state I've ever suffered. They were predators, and right now, hopeless, I was their prey. Without any success I tried to fight them back, writhing, franticly launching my hooves in every direction with the distant hope of freeing myself. And to aggravate even more the situation, I was in such a frenzied and pained state that I couldn't concentrate enough to use my magic.
Sorrow. Remorse. Dread. Guilt. Fear. There were no words to describe everything that crossed through my mind during those hideous moments. "I can't do anything! No! No! No! " The mere thought of my sister receiving the bad news made me feel awful, she would've thought that she was responsible for my passing.
As my weakened body gave up on the fight and any hope of escape vanished, two beams of magic flew through the air over me. The weight upon my back instatly dissapeared as the beasts that were ravaging my wings were consumed into a pile of scorced twigs and sticks. The remainder of the pack quickly adopted a defensive stance, but soon enough they cowered in total fright as tens of stones were launched in their direction. The beasts had no time to flee as the stones crashed upon them, sending them all to oblivion.
Noticing that the threat had been dealt with, I tried to stand up, miserably falling down on my legs right after. I was so drained that I was barely able to move.
When the adrenalin that kept me conciouss finally consumed, the real pain showed up. It was undoubtedly the most abominable and nauseating sensation that I'd ever felt in the entirety of my years.
My eyes started clossing, darkness invading my vision. I couldn't fight it, I was passing out. The pain, exhaustion and bleeding were absolutely insufferable, getting to the point where I wasn't even able to hold my craned neck anymore, therefore leting my head drop numb on the ground.
I glanced up one last time to see a set of hooves hastily coming towards me, and then...
Everything was black.
I started gaining conciousness, although as strange as it sounds, I wasn't able to move an inch. Essentially, I was paralized. The dizziness quickly faded away and got replaced by a bothersome soreness over my whole body. My wings felt stiff and very awkward, as if something was holding them against my sides. Trying to analyze my current condition, I noticed that I was laying on a soft surface, a bed. Well, it wasn't soft, considering that it was the most unbelievably uncomfortable matress I had ever slept on, at least during my time in Equestria, but much to my relief it certainly wasn't a hole in the ground or a sack filled with rocks.
Why am I here? What is this place?
Then it hit me. The memories of the recent events swarmed my still befuddled mind. There was a pony, he ran away and I was ambushed by fierce beasts. As I struggled to finally solve the puzzle, I realized that my body was, though in a lethergic manner, responding at my will. My eyes slowly opened. Everything was blurry, the only distinguishable component of my obscure surroundings being a dim light, a dark shape obstructing a portion of its faint shimmer. After frantically rubbing both my eyes with my hooves, I was once and for all able to see clearly.
I was inside a cave. The dim light originated from the entrace, and the previously obscured shape was, once again, that mysterious stallion. To my surprise, he was much larger than I thought, actually, he seemed to be even larger than me. His coat was a dull grey, almost black, and his sloppy mane was sheer white. Regarding his behaviour, it was quite intriguing. He just kept staring outside, completely motionless. Something was completely seizing his interest. It looked like he wasn't even breathing.
Eventually the expectation of any reaction from him faded, thus I gradually uprooted my gaze from the unusual fellow and focused on the remaining portion of the apparent shelter.
The first thing that struck me was the writing on the walls. Countless words, letters, expressions and drawings covered almost the entirety of the wall, written using a wide selection of small peddles that were nicely organized across the floor. The words and characters were continuously repeated multiple times, one aside the other. Some of them seemed to be purposed to help to improve, or to maintain a decent grammar, and others looked like mementos of some sort. Next, there were the drawings, these being meticulously depicted over a darker portion of the rock. To my bewilderment, they portrayed several creatures, plants and literal monsters, each one seconded by even more notes that presented various lists of traits, possible uses, among other things of the sort. My gaze kept moving over the long hall of scribbled rock before another conjuction of symbols caught my interest. Hundreds of lines were displayed inside a bordered space to discern them from the rest of the scrawling. The lines were organized in separated groups of four vertical lines crossed by a horizontal one. It didn't take long to realize its purpose, it was a calendar. And judging by the large amount of marks, whoever drew it lived there for a very, very long time.
Being consumed by sheer intrigue, I genuinely considered standing up and counting every little line. Apparently, the mere idea of moving was able to bring back the niggling sore on my back and wings, so I decided, although apprehensively, to check the damage. If my mind wasn't betraying me, the beasts had almost chewed my wings off.
First of all, my regalia was gone. It must've fallen off during the atack. I shifted my gaze over my sides, and to my relief, there were barely any signs of blood, even when the size of the wounds were horribly large if I recalled correctly. All the cuts and bruises they were carefully cleaned and sanitized. Bandages composed of some leaves, herbs and vines, along with a stick to keep the wings stiff in their place covered my whole torso. Also, considering that most of my wounds partially sealed, I concluded that I had slept for a whole day. Celestia's going to shave me for this.... Lowering my gaze I found out that I was laying over a pile of hay held together by a some twigs and sticks tied together to resemble a normal bed.
Once again I shifted my gaze over the stagnant stallion. According to all the hints I could muster and sheer logic it was obvious that he lived there, and that he had for a long time. It was also obvious that it was him who saved me from those beasts before and the one who healed me.
Realizing I was continuously rambling in my thoughts instead of spitting a single word, I forced myself to ignore the pain as best as I could and speak. "Hello." I muttered, half expecting the stallion to be sleeping in his current pose.
He lifted his ears and slowly turned his head, staring at me with a semblance that I could only describe as a mix between fright and sheer surprise. Now having his face turned in my direction, I was able to make out the rest of his features. A unicorn with dark gray coat, white mane, blue eyes and... white marks painted on his face. One over his snout, a rectangle with 3 triangles on top, and another one, a triangle at the side of his eyes. He also had another square shaped one on his chest. It was quite strange. Even after several seconds he still continued with his inquisive look, not sparing a single word.
Soon enough I realized why he was looking at me in such a way, it was because he couldn't see in the dark as well as I. "Apologies." I said with a nod, proceeding by casting a basic light spell. As soon as the emanating shimmer of my horn lightened the cave and my frame became totally visible for him he adopted the expression of someone who'd just seen a ghost.
It wasn't surprising, many ponies are frightened when they're standing in front of royalty, especially when it comes to my sister and I. "Do not fret, we a-"
"T-that's a... B-but you have wings..." He interrupted stammering, his eyes focusing on my gleaming horn. Without any furter ado, he rushed towards the scratched walls, searching high and low among several carved images for something unknown to me.
Minutes passed, and I could sense the simmering rage within the stranger's being. Before the situation could get unstable, I decided to interrupt his fruitless rummage. "Excuse us, bu-"
"ACK! Wings, horn, wings and horn." He was now holding his temples, and sheer frustration tainted his nonsensical rambling. But what truly baffled me, was that he seemed in pain.
"Doth thee feel well?" My words didn't stir any response.
Without apparent reason, a dim, almost skeptical smile found its way on his face. Employing a boulder he traced a line on top of the head of one of the drawings, a pegasus that now resembled an alicorn. He gazed upon his work for a moment, and then turned to face me with eyes of astonishment.
"Alicorn... You're an alicorn." Once again, his hoof panged and placed itself over his forehead. "Princess... Princesses."
I tried to find any hint of a jest on his expression, but I perceived none. "But of couse we art. How is it possible that thou didn't realize before?" I bemusedly questioned whilst trying to raise from the mound of dried grass, only to stumble and start falling face-first to the ground. Unexpectedly, an ethereal force quickly snatched and placed me on the fodder just in time to prevent the smashing of the last wholesome portion of my body.
Even though manipulating a princess would in most cases be considered a crime worthy of a season in the dungeons, just by noticing his horrified grimace I decided to ignore it, giving him a reassuring nod to show that everything was okay.
"Thank thee for helping us, mister...?" I finished gesturing towards him with a hoof to end the sentence.
His name, that's all I asked, and even then his short moment of clarity came to a blunt end. "Name...?"
I didn't question him, but I was indeed flabbergasted by his oblivious behaviour. Regally craning my neck and closing my eyes I answered, hoping for him to follow. "We are the ruler of the night and raiser of the Moon, Princess Luna."
After spending a handful of seconds in pure silence awaiting an answer, I opened one eye to make sure that he was still there. His eyes were locked on the floor and a single hoof was placed on his mouth, hinting that he was deeply musing over something. Both his eyes slowly widened until he let out a brusque gasp.
"Princess Luna... Possessed and banished to the moon and..." He violently shook his head "I don't remember why I know all of this..." He retorted ambiguously, a frightened tone at the end of the sentence.
I didn't understand. I couldnt understand. Every time he spoke the situation turned more and more bizarre. Concealing my awkwardness as finely as possible, I tried to drift him away from his current rambling by repeating my question.
"What's thy name?"
This time, he didn't succumb to a state of frenzy. What I saw there was nothing else but deep, insightful contemplation. "My name..." He sat on the cold floor and took a hoof to his mouth, presumably facing some sort of difficulty to answer such question. As if the entire world were waiting for his response, sheer silence took prominence; not even the faint sighing of the forest could break it.
He halted rubbing his chin as his look turned even more confused than mere seconds ago. "I don't think I have one of those... Should I have one?
What?
"B-but of course thou should! Ugh." I shant lie, I was truly confused at that point, exasperated even. I fell victim of vicious creatures, and then saved by a random stranger who doesn't know what his name is. It couldn't be a simple joke directed towards the amusement of some wicked individual, neither it seemed like the stallion's attitude and reactions were a faux. Was he a lunatic? He didn't seem like one at all, if anything he had the air of a loftily healthy and balanced pony, hence bringing several questions that most certainly I was going to ask at some point. Although to my dispair, it didn't appeared like I was going to receive any proper answers as of then, though rest assured that I tried.
I stood upright, doing my very best to conceal the soreness, and cleared my throat. "It doesn't matter, wouldst thou mind if we asketh a couple of questions?"
He took a step back, concern starting to drift over his face. "W-what kind of questions?"
I went straight to the point. "Why and how long hath thou been living here? This place is far too dangerous for a pony."
Upon hearing those words, his look of concern was instantly replaced with a somber expression. As he started turning back to the entrance of the cave, he opened his mouth. "Is it...?" Tears subtly started forming on his now glazed eyes. Words seemed to get lost in his throat. Gloomily he shook his lowered head, trudging to the same place he was sitting on earlier. Releasing a deep sigh, he leaned his body against the stone wall and locked his gaze upwards.
I had botched up badly. "We ask for thy forgiveness, We didn't know it would bother thee so much." I regretfully alleged.
He shook his head once again. "Don't worry, I don't know why I felt like this all of sudden neither. It's... weird."
Considering my period of banishment, it would be an understatement to say that I wasn't empathetic of his situation. As much as I wanted to know why somepony would be dwelling in a cave inside one of the most hazardous places in Equestria, It was obvious that discussing the matter was extremely despiriting for him. Hence, I tried to leave the topic for a quite trivial query that had been nagging me for a while.
"Don't worry, I shall not press on with the subject." I supported my head on a hoof. "However, if thou don't mind us asking, what were thee doing laying in the grass last night? We thought thou were asleep, but it sems like that was not the case."
Immediately his head raised, energy visibly filling his body at the right words. He turned his head towards me, now with a faint smile on his face. "I was stargazing," the now rejuvenated stallion proudly replied.
I gave out an enthusiastic smile. "Thou dost enjoy stargazing?"
He took another glance at the sky. "I love, I always did. Those little dots... stars, are just too beautiful to ignored." He snorted, growing a full grin. "Or maybe I just like to find funny shapes in them. In either case I'll still take it." Given his sudden nonchalance I couldn't help myself but giggle.
Eagerly, he stepped closer and sat down in front of me. "Princess, would you like to stargaze too? If you want I can help you to walk and then move the straw closer to the entrance for you to rest."
Matter-of-factly, I actually liked the idea. If I was bound to rest over an uneven pile of straw, at least the distracting beauty of the stars would help a lot to pass the time. However, the idea of receiving assistance to step around wasn't something of my liking, but taking in account that my last attempt at walking was futile I didn't complain, or at least not much.
"Is it really necessary to assist us?" I huffed.
Heartily chuckling, he approached and extended a hoof. "I wouldn't like you to smash your face on the ground. I was lucky the first time."
Wincing at the idea, I took hold of his hoof. "Very well then."
He lowered his head and placed my foreleg around his neck. As I clumsily attempted to stand up with his help, Shadow's magic took hold of the straw, smoothly swaying it in the direction of the entrance, neatly placing the hay close to the edge of the cave afterwards. After a couple of failed attempts, I finally rose up at my full height.
Slowly and taking every possible precaution, he walked me over to the entrance and placed me upon the improvised mattress. From our angle we could now see a big portion of the sky. Sighing contentedly, the stranger stretched out over the ground, his gaze locked on the stars.
"Fascinating, aren't they?" He whispered. "Ever since I can remember I spent a good times observing them."
Upon hearing 'every night' something felt a bit off. "What doth thou mean by 'ever since'? Dost thou not sleep enough?"
"Uh?" He shrugged. "I thing I sleep well enough, I'm out as soon as the sun rises." He clarified nonchalantly. "Once I couldn't sleep normally due to a storm, and I assure you that I've never felt worse. When that thing is out I feel a bit drained," he took a glance at his cutie mark "I think this might have something to do with it, I don't even know why it's there."
There was no use in uttering another inquiry. I had neither the volition to pour once again uneasiness into the situation, nor felt the need to. After all, it wasn't astounding to find out that a pony who didn't acquaint with his own name was oblivious of the meaning behind his mark as well. This, however, didn't stopped me from formulating more and more questions.
I stared at him one last time, his mane was dropping over the right side of his face and his blue eyes were completely captivated by the black veil upon us. Smiling at his astonishment, I followed his steps and shifted my gaze over the silent spectacle.
Time passed quickly, and the Moon descended upon the horizon. Thankfully my sister was able to control both astros, for I was too weak to command the Moon that night. As the orange shimmer of the bright sun filled the skies and concealed the stars, the inexorable need to repose slowly invaded me.
"We shall sleep now, have a good rest." I announced as I nuzzled the straw.
Smiling, he replied. "Of course, sleep well Luna." As his words left his mouth he immediatly widened his eyes in apparent apprehension. "I-I mean Princess."
Diverted by his reaction, I decided to just shrug it off. Truth be told, I was elated that someone finally avoided including my title. It felt more personal, more me. Softly shaking my head I assure him that everything was alright. "Fret not, thou may calle us Luna if thou wishes."
Lowering my head, being now curled up against the welcome relative softness of the hay pile, I mused about the recent turn of events. But one thing stood out from everything else, and as the drowsiness invaded my mind, it was the last thought that succumbed to its might.
The thought, the feeling that maybe, just maybe, I had made a friend. An odd one, that is, but a friend nonetheless.
