Luna awoke on her bed, greeted by the cool air. She got up and stretched before walking over to her dresser, ready to pick out her outfit for the day. However, the dresser was empty and actually quite dusty. She really must punish the maid whom was in charge of her wardrobe. She hadn’t had anything decent to wear for far too long. She made a mental note of this and put on her usual soft blue adornments. She really didn’t need anything else though. When she looked at herself in the mirror, she looked as beautiful as her glorious night. She smiled as she admired the true master piece she was. She beamed with pride as she left her quarters. That didn’t last long though, for her mood was dampened once again by the loud creaking her door made as it swung open. She cursed under her breathe. She thought she had told the maintenance pony to fix that ages ago. She made another mental note to throw him in the dungeon as well.
She trotted down the hall, giving the guards approving glances. Even her watchful eyes never caught them move. Almost like statues. She laughed to herself at the thought that they’d start collecting dust if they stood any stiller. She then came to the dining room where an assortment of food awaited her. She took her seat at the end of the table before levitating an oat cake to her muzzle. She smiled as she inspected it within her magic then took a bite. The oat cake was terribly dry and hard, more than the typical oat cakes she had. If she had bitten down any harder she may have broken a tooth! She felt her appetite diminish the more she chewed. She begrudgingly swallowed the icky mush that littered her mouth and quickly washed it down with water. She rubbed her throat as she gave the chef across the table a fierce glare. He looked down at the floor in apology, but it was too late. Luna stomped her hoof, signaling the nearest guards to send him to the dungeons. She quickly left, her nose held up high as the guards began to drag him to his fate.
She huffed down the corridor, her hooves pounding loudly on the ground, alerting everypony within ear shot of her sour mood and the greater potential of them joining the chef in the dungeons to rot. Her heavy hoofsteps also brought something else to her attention. A thick layer of white dust was being kicked up with every stomp. She scowled. She thought that when she threw half of the cleaning staff in the dungeon, it would set an example for the other half. Apparently not… She groaned as she continued on…
The more dust invaded her nose, the more she ground her teeth. Her patience was growing very thin at this point. Luna then found herself wondering how her sister always kept her level head with these ponies. Celestia always did have a way with ponies that made them respect her. Unfortunately, Luna didn’t. She had other methods to make them respect her. That obviously didn’t work very well. Aside from that, the castle had gone through many changes since Celestia disappeared. The ponies used to at least whisper when Luna was around, but now, nopony ever said anything.The silence was peaceful, but it made her feel lonely at times. She wasn’t new to the feeling of being lonely though. Even before her sister vanished, Luna didn’t have many friends. She would always roam the streets at night to see if she could find any lingering peasants to talk to. But whenever she did meet somepony, they ran in fear.
Her head hung low as she remembered how alone she truly was. Even when she tried her hardest to make her night as beautiful as her sister’s day, nopony would ever stay up late enough to witness it. That didn’t matter anymore though. After Celestia left, the sun no longer rose or set, as if she took it with her. Or so she thought. Luna never actually went outside anymore. She only saw occasional glimpses of the sky from the small window in her room and it was always night. She assumed that the kingdom was alright because nopony ever came to see her about any problems or issues. Maybe they were finally appreciating her wondrous night. She smiled at the thought. Though she still waited in the throne room, waiting for anypony to come, for anything to happen. Nothing ever did, but it was still her duty as one of the princesses… Wait correction, the princess of Equestria to uphold the court and its laws, even if unnecessary.
She finally reached the end of the foyer of the throne room. Empty as usual with the exception of the few guards posted around the room. She climbed the milky white steps to her throne. At the top she took a look at the golden throne beside her’s, decorated by a sun, the symbol of her sister. She sighed as she felt the cold, untouched cushion. She no longer felt sad about it, she didn’t have time to. No time for tears or mourning, she had to be strong for her kingdom, at least until Celestia came back. If she came back... Luna shook her head, discarding the absurd thought. Of course Celestia would come back and she would wait for her, no matter how long it took. Celestia would never just abandon her…
Right?...
The princess sat upon her cold, hard stone throne. She shifted for a couple moments, fruitlessly trying to find a comfy spot on the rock. Groaning in frustration, she gave up, sat up tall and stared out towards her kingdom with her cool blue eyes. Her cloudy blue mane flowed in the air as if there was a breeze. There was never a breeze though. Never was and never will be on the desolate rock she called her castle. Her castle, slowly falling apart, like the fantasy she wrapped herself in. The only thing to disturb the white dust that covered everything was her hoofsteps. The rocks she called her subjects never moved unless touched by the princess herself. The sky was unchanging, for it was a ceiling of darkness, matched only by her black fur. If it weren’t for her sparkling mane, tail, and armor, she would just be another shadow on the barren surface of this land. Day and night blurred into one endless time span as she sat upon her boulder and stared out distantly toward Equestria, resting in a sea of darkness.
Sitting, forlorn, living a fantasy, her only companion the bleak lapse of time in this nightmare. On this nightmare moon...
