Etheria-Midnight Castle
Night has once more fallen over the peaceful land. The moon rising slowly into the the slowly darkening sky. One by the thousands of star that twinkled each and every night, burst to life and joined their celestial partner. Both moon and stars blanketed the land in the faintest of light, giving a sense of serenity that is all to common with the ending of the day.
It was at this time that a lone stallion stood upon a solitary hill, looking upon into the vastness of the now active night sky. As has gaze passed over the thousands of stars, thoughts ran through the stallion’s mind about a certain mare he had know his entire life, and about the circumstances that lead to their eventual parting. Yet as the gentle night air blew through his silvery mane, he wondered if she was indeed thinking about him as well. How was she dong? Did she even miss him?
“Lunar?”
The stallion was jarred from his thoughts at the sound of his name. He turned his head and there approaching him from the bottom of the hill was a young alicorn mare. Her coat was the deepest of blues. Her flank marked by blotch of black accompanied by a white crescent moon. Both her mane and tail, though not as deep in color as her coat were also a deep shade of blue but were peppered by twinkling lights, making them feel as though the night sky was part of her very being. Her teal eyes sparkled with an inner light. But to anypony that saw them, they would swear that because of their similar colors, that they were brother and sister.
As the younger mare approached, the stallion turned his gaze back to the night sky. “Why are we here Luna?” He would ask.
“We are not sure what thou means Lunar?” She replied.
“I was just thinking Luna, could we have done things differently? Did we have to leave Equestria like we did? I mean you and Celestia are sisters...” Lunar turned his head to look the younger mare in the eye. “Surly you and she could have come to some kind of solution?”
Luna just shook her head. “Nothing we had told sister worked. She refused to listen to us, even with thee behind us. She forced us to this end Lunar, thou knows this because thou was there.”
The stallion sighed deeply before returning his gaze to the night sky. “I still feel like there might have been something other then what we did.”
Luna reached up a hoof to the stallion’s chin and gently turned his head to look at her. A look of concern but at the same time a deep love she held for the stallion she considered her brother was plastered upon her face. “We know Lunar, we know how thee feels about Celestia. We know that leaving Equestria and to an extent, the mare thou loves was one of the hardest things that thou has ever done. But know that what thou did was for a noble cause. By taking our subjects from Equestria we saved them from the hardships and persecution they would have endured. If sister can not see that then she is not worthy of thy affections. We know how harsh that may sound Lunar but there are seldom things that even the strongest magic can control. Now please big brother come inside, we are certain that Crescent Shine has dinner prepared for us.”
The two stood there looking into each other’s eyes before the stallion smiled. He turned his entire body before pulling the smaller mare into himself. He wrapped both his fore-hooves and wings around her and lightly nuzzled her head. “Thank you little sister. I know I do not say this often enough but I am grateful to have you with me.”
The younger mare nuzzled into the stallion’s chest but soon pulled from his embrace. “Come, before it gets cold.”
Lunar nodded and began to follow the mare down from the hill upon which they stood. He followed her through the large garden and up to a set of double door leading into a large castle. The stallion stopped at the doors as the mare walked through them and turned his head to give one more glance up at the night sky and walked into the castle, closing the doors behind himself.
Equestria-Canterlot Castle
Celestia stood out on the balcony which connected to her room. She looked up to the night sky in thought, that is until a soft knock came to her bedroom door. The large mare turned her head and very sweetly called out from across the room. “Enter.”
The door to her room slowly and in stepped a younger unicorn mare. Her coat was a shade of lavender. her mane and tail were straight cut and were a dark blue with only a strip of purple and pink. Her deep purple eye flickered in the light coming from the large fireplace.
“You wanted to see me Princess?” The mare asked.
Celestia turned and walked back into the bedroom. “I thank you for coming Twilight. I know it is late my student but I have a few things to discuss with you.”
Without batting an eye the unicorn mare pulled out a scroll, inkwell and quill from her saddlebag but before she could start jotting anything down, a golden aura enveloped everything she had set up and removed it, placing it on the other side of the room upon a desk.
“No Twilight, you will not need to be taking notes this time. What is about to be spoken is very important and I want to make sure you hear everything, understood?” Celestia asked to which Twilight nodded.
“In the morning I will be sending a letter to Etheria. I am hoping that my sister Princess Luna will accept my invitation.” She said with a deep sigh.
Twilight tilted her head in confusion. “You’re hoping? Why wouldn’t she? I mean she is your sister, isn’t she?”
Celestia nodded her head but had her eye hidden by her mane. “She is but over the years I have sent many such letters and each one was never returned. I hope to the Allmother that she accepts this one.”
“How long has it been since the two of you spoke Princess?” Twilight asked.
The white alicorn mare walked over to the fireplace and looked up to the portrait which hung over it. The painting depicted both Celestia and Luna but a third pony stood behind both mares. The pony in question stood just taller then Celestia herself. The pony’s coat was closely matching that of her sister but the pony’s mane was silver in color.
Twilight walked up beside her mentor and looked up to the painting as well. “You know I have been in this room many times since you first took me on as your student and I never asked who that third pony was.”
The older mare took a deep breath before she spoke. “His name is Lunar Star. Back when Luna and I ruled Equestria together he was our champion, and our closest friend. Yet he left with my sister over twenty years ago. In that time they founded and built the kingdom of Etheria with the night ponies they took with them.”
“Why did they leave?”
Celestia sighed. “That is not something I am willing to talk about, not yet. So to answer your question Twilight, it has been nearly twenty years since we have spoken. Not a day goes by where I do not miss either of them.”
But Twilight could see something in her mentor’s eyes as she spoke of the stallion. Since she had been living at the castle she had never seen Celestia with anypony, not like she could have been if she wanted to with all the duties she has. Still wouldn’t hurt to ask more about him would it?
“Princess, if I could ask you something personal?”
Celestia smiled to her student. “You can ask me anything Twilight.”
“What was he like?” She asked.
Celestia was silent for a moment, looking into the fire. “He was strong, compassionate and well loved by everypony. But at the same time he was seen as brutal and cruel, though I suppose the only ponies that saw that were those on the other side of his sword. He was and is a warrior from an age long gone.”
“Did you love him?”
“Of course I did, as did Luna.” Celestia replied.
Twilight shook her head before she spoke again. “That’s not what I mean Princess. I mean did you love him?”
Again Celestia was silent. This was not something she had expected her student ask. She was beginning to read the alicorn mare just as well as she could read Twilight. “I do Twilight, throughout our long lives Lunar is the only pony able to steal my heart.”
Twilight suddenly yawned and it came to Celestia’s attention that they didn’t discuss about everything that she wanted to. “I am sorry Twilight. There was more I wanted to talk with you about but it can wait till tomorrow, for now rest.”
The young mare nodded and smiled to her mentor before heading for the door. She opened the door but just before she walked out she turned and smiled to Celestia. “Good night Princess.”
Celestia returned her smile. “Good night Twilight.”
Twilight then closed the door behind herself and trotted down the hall to her room.
“....my daughter.”
Etheria-Midnight Castle-Lunar’s room
The large stallion opened the door to his bed chambers and walked in then quickly closed the door behind himself. Off in the corner a growl echos through the room promptly getting the stallion’s attention. Two golden eyes glowed in the dimly lit room as a shape of wolf. But unlike timber wolves or even that of the common wolf, the one that stood within the stallion’s room was ethereal blue and covered in stars.
“Easy Astra, it’s only me.” He spoke is a calm and soothing tone. This seemed to settle the stellar canid as she slowly approached the stallion and nuzzled his side. Lunar smiled and with a fore-hoof he lightly patted Astra’s head.
Lunar had found Astra when she was just a pup in the forest that was once where Midnight Castle now stood. Astra’s mother was killed before their arrival so when the guards found the pup they were about to throw her out before both Luna and Lunar stepped in. It was Luna’s idea for her brother to take the pup as a pet.
The stallion walked over to a wooden pony form and with his magic, unstraps his armor from his chest and drapes it over the frame. He then steps out of each of his horseshoes, sliding them under the pony frame. He sighs deeply when all was said and done and walked over to the large window. He looked out over the land before a voice echoed through the room.
“What is troubling you Lunar?”
The stallion looked over to the stellar wolf. Yes one thing no pony realized, not even Luna or Lunar was that after a few years of living with them, Astra developed the ability to speak.
“I have just been thinking Astra, nothing more.” Lunar walked over to his bed and climbed into it before covering himself with his comforters. The wolfess knew better then to pry further when her master did not wish to speak of things. Eventually, when he is ready they would discuss it.
Author's Note
(( Sorry I have not posted anything as of late guys, have a really bad case of writer's block. With school and work and the like I just haven't felt to drive to write much anymore but I'm trying to change that so here's an idea I was thinking about for a while now. Hope you enjoy it.))
