The Bright Equestrian Moon

I am sitting down at a long table with Luna in a dining hall as we wait for our breakfast. I had ordered pancakes with lemon juice and sugar, whilst Luna had ordered a fruit salad. Just like the bedroom I came from, the floor is tiled in a checker pattern and spotlessly clean. The ceiling is very high up, adding to the grandeur of the dining hall. Along one wall there is a row of tall windows, each with fancy curtains. There are also banners set up between the windows and evenly spaced on the opposite wall.

I wait quietly, not really sure of what to talk about. After all, small talk is not my forte. I fidget with my fingers a little, feeling out of place in such a magnificent castle. The silence gradually begins to feel somewhat awkward.

Luna must take note of it and she breaks the awkward silence. “Have you never been in a castle before?”

I look up at her and shake my head. “No, at least, not a real castle… Why ask?”

She tries to give me a comforting smile. “You seem to be giving off an impression of being lost.”

I can’t help but give her a deadpan look. “Really? You don’t say…” I shake my head. “I just appeared in an unfamiliar garden and talked to a pony princess last night. This morning I wake up in a bedroom and learn that there are many other ponies. These ponies are also magical and have an entire civilisation, along with a cloud city.

“I am far from being anywhere recognisable… If you suddenly appeared on Earth, I’m sure you would feel the same way.” I notice that Luna seems a little taken aback at my attitude. “Sorry if I sound rude, I’m still coming to terms with things and meant no offense towards you.”

Luna nods and recomposes herself. “I understand, thinking on it I realise that it was a rather apparent observation that did not need to be pointed out.”

I nod quietly, unsure of what to say or talk about now. I fidget with my fingers a little more and close my eyes. Another awkward silence fills the hall. As much as I hope to possibly start a new life here, I still have to deal with my social awkwardness and shyness.

Luna attempts to get through the silence once more as she asks another question. “What did you do back home as a living?”

I open my eyes to look back at Luna. “Not much to be honest. I was about to start university, and I was looking for a part time job to make some money. Other than that, I was just being lazy around the house and sometimes hanging out with Jack.”

“Did you enjoy your time around Jack?”

I softly smile. “I suppose so, I mean, he was my only friend back home. Learning things about magic and supernatural stuff from him was quite interesting. It also gave me something to do other than mope about.”

She smiles as well. “Would you like to return to Earth to reunite with Jack?”

Hmmm, that is a conflicting question. I have to think about this one. I would love to be able to hang out with Jack more… But I also don’t want to really be back on Earth… “I… Am unsure.”

Luna gives me a confused look. “Why?”

“Well, as much as I want to be able to enjoy Jack’s company again -” I look down “- I also don’t want to live on Earth anymore. As I said during my interview, I was an outsider on Earth. I never really fit in, and I never really felt at home there.”

“I know the feeling…”

I bring my gaze up to see Luna who has a distant look on her face. “Is it to do with what you mentioned before the interview?”

She slowly nods, not speaking her answer. I guess it’s something that weighs heavily on her. Should I try help her, or leave it be? I suppose I could at least ask.

“Would you like to talk about it, Luna?”

She is quiet and still for some time, before speaking. “Tia always said that talking helps… So, yes, I would like to talk about it.”

I give her my best attempt at a comforting smile. This is somewhat outside of my comfort zone. I’m not good at this stuff when it’s face to face. If I want to start a new life though, I should probably put in some effort to becoming better at interacting with others. “I’m listening, start when you want to.”

Luna clears her throat nervously. “Just over a thousand years ago, I was upset and jealous. The ponies of Equestria loved Celestia greatly, enjoying and praising her day. They seemed to ignore my beautiful night however, sleeping through it. My sister would receive many visitors during day court… I received none.

“I felt alone and unloved” – Luna’s eyes begin to water – “I allowed the nightmare forces to corrupt me. They promised me power and recognition throughout all Equestria. I became Nightmare Moon, a terrible mare who threatened to bring eternal night to Equestria. As Nightmare Moon, I tried to kill Celestia, my dear sister…” She can no longer hold back her tears as she cries openly.

I get up from my seat and push through my discomfort of closeness as I give her a hug. It is somewhat awkward due to both her shape and me not being used to giving hugs.

Luna sniffles and hugs me back as she continues her story. “In the end, Celestia was forced to use the elements of harmony. She banished me to the moon for a thousand years. Once those thousand years were over, I returned to Equestria as Nightmare Moon. I tried again to bring eternal night, but I was stopped by the elements of harmony.

“They were used by Twilight Sparkle and her friends. This time the nightmare forces were purged from me and I was myself once more.” Luna lets me go as she is finished crying. “However, during those thousand years that I was locked away, Equestria had changed very much. I now almost feel as if I’m in a world that is no longer Equestria.

“I am still learning to fit in this new Equestria and connect with the local populace. Also, my nights remain rather lonely and ignored, Nightmare Night being one of the few exceptions.”

I move back to the seat I was in previously and sit down. I wonder what this Nightmare Night is, it sounds like some form of event. “Nightmare Night?”

Luna nods, smiling a little. “It is a reminder of my time as Nightmare Moon, but nowadays it is quite fun. Ponies dress up in costumes and collect sweets during the night. My first Nightmare Night was in the town of Ponyville and began poorly, but Twilight helped me turn it around.

“I even became accepted by the ponies of Ponyville as a friendly princess and not some terrifying monster.”

“That sounds like a celebration back on Earth that we called Halloween. People dress up, mainly children, and go door to door to get treats.”

Luna smiles more. “It is interesting to hear that you have a celebration similar to Nightmare Night.”

I nod. “Yeah, I wonder what other events may have a parallel version… Anyway, I’m glad that you’ve started to reconnect to your subjects.”

“Thank you for listening to my story, Travis. I feel a little better now.”

I smile as well. It feels kind of good to have helped her. I suppose I didn’t make any major mistakes in my attempt to help. I’m about to speak, when I hear the doors to the hall open. A grey unicorn with a brown mane and tail enters, pushing a trolley carrying our breakfast.

The unicorn sounds like a mare as she places Luna’s bowl of cut fruit in front of her. “A fruit salad for Princess Luna -” she then walks to me and places my meal down in front of me “- and pancakes with a lemon to juice and sugar to sprinkle for a certain Travis.” She finishes by placing down serviettes and cutlery on the table.

Luna and I thank the waiter? Servant? Before she leaves the hall with the trolley. I grab a spoon and use it to sprinkle sugar over my pancakes, trying to keep it even across. Then I grab the lemon and cut it in half with a knife, squeezing the juice onto the pancakes. I finally get to eating my pancakes with a fork. “Mmm -” I smile as I finish my mouthful of pancake “- I’ve never had such delicious pancakes.”

Luna looks up at me after eating a piece of apple. “The cooks here are some of the best in Equestria.” She gets back to eating her fruit salad.

I keep eating my brilliant pancakes in silence, just enjoying my meal. I cannot doubt that claim for even a moment. It probably comes with working at a royal castle, you’d be expected to be a master of cooking. Luna is also quiet as she eats her breakfast too. I watch her for a moment as she uses her telekinesis to lift the fruit pieces to her mouth. It’ll probably take some time before I get used to telekinesis being a common thing.

Luna finishes her breakfast before me and politely wipes her mouth clean with a serviette. I gradually finish my pancakes and lick my lips. Then I grab a serviette and dry my mouth, self-conscious of my own cleanliness and politeness in front of Luna.

The doors open again and the unicorn mare comes back with an empty trolley. How the hell did she time it so perfectly? Luck and coincidence? Maybe she was watching somehow… Whatever. She gives Luna and I a smile. “Were these meals to your satisfaction?”

Luna answers first, returning the smile. “Yes, thank you, I do enjoy a great fruit salad.”

I smile as well as the servant turns to me. “Yeah, those were the best pancakes I’ve ever had.”

The servant nods happily. “May I take the dishes back?”

Luna and I both nod, and the servant levitates the bowl, plate and cutlery to the trolley. She then leaves us alone in the dining hall once more.

Luna stands up from her seat and looks at me. “Ready for me to give you a tour of Canterlot Castle?”

I look back at her. “Uh, sure, sounds good.” – I stand up too – “Lead the way.”

“Of course.” Luna leads me out of the dining hall and into the corridor we came through to get here. There are arched windows paced along the whole length of the corridor and the usual checker pattern, tiled floor. I also notice that there is a red carpet spanning the whole corridor. As beautiful as the castle is, it’s pretty much the same, clean design throughout.

Luna takes me outside through a door into a familiar setting. It’s the garden where I first arrived in last night. “This is the castle garden. I’m sure that you will recognise it, after all, it is where I found you in the night.”

I nod and look around. “Yeah, although I wasn’t able to see it in full detail. I was far too exhausted and confused to truly enjoy its beauty.”

“Indeed, it is beautiful. I love to walk through the garden during the night.” She smiles at me sweetly.

I smile back. “I could imagine. Perhaps I’ll walk with you tonight, as no doubt it looks different during the night.” I hope that I’m going well with my attempt as socialising with Luna.

You’re meant to make plans and set up hang out days with friends, right? One of the reasons I wasn’t very good at socialising was that I would always make plans to play a game, or hang out with Jack. Socialising seemed like such a bother at the time that only got in the way of things. Then again, I don’t really have any sort of commitments in this place.

Luna takes me back inside. “That would be lovely, Travis. I don’t usually have company on my walks.” She then shows me the way to a rather impressive library. It consists of a main corridor branching off to different wings. Looking through the doors to each wing, I notice that the shelves are insanely big. “Here is the castle library.”

My eyes are open wide in wonder. The ceilings are also very high up, and each room is extremely expansive. “This place is massive, there must be tens of thousands of books at least!”

Luna giggles softly. “The library catalogue is rather extensive. I take it that you like to read?”

I continue to look around the grand library. “Yeah, although it really depends. There are times when I read intensely, and other times when I don’t read much at all. Overall though, I do appreciate books and this library is mind blowingly big.”

“You would probably get along with Twilight. This was her favourite part of the castle and she spent so much time here. She certainly has a major interest in books.”

I can understand why this would be Twilight’s favourite part of this place. It would still be very impressive even to somebody who barely reads. “I see… I look forward to meeting her then.”

“Shall we move on?” Luna gestures towards the door.

“Yeah, I wonder what else this castle has.”

She nods and leads me back to the main section of the castle, taking me to a very open room with an intersection in the middle. It has wide stairs that split at the back of the room, connecting the ground floor to either side of the first floor. On the opposite side of the stairs must be the entrance to the castle. The red carpet I noticed in the corridor seems to highlight the intersection of the room, connecting the entrance, stairs and archways on either side.

The whole place looks so royal; I can still hardly believe that I’m actually here. I suppose Luna picks up on my feelings of disbelief and amazement. “I take it that you are impressed with what you have seen so far of the castle?” Luna asks me.

I give her a wide smile. “Most definitely, I mean, yesterday I never thought that much would happen. Not only did I end up in another world, but at a castle. A castle which houses the two rulers of the new land I’ve found myself in.

“This is like all of a sudden being in Buckingham Palace in England, another land on Earth. Which is the estate of the Queen of the United Kingdom. As I’ve mentioned before, back home, I was essentially a commoner without a job.”

Luna smiles. “I am glad that you like the castle. I myself am not so amazed with it, not to say that it is not grand. It is better than the castle I used to live in before I was banished to the moon, but I am accustomed to living this way.” Her smile falters. “Rather distant from my subjects, in more ways than one.”

“Would you prefer to live in a town or village with the common people, uh, ponies?”

Luna is quiet for a little bit of time. “I am not quite sure. Perhaps I would like to try living in a town for some time to see what it is like.”

I nod a bit. “I think I understand. Do you find it lonely living in a castle like this?”

She nods back, seeming somewhat down. “Yes, it is quite lonely here. There are guards, but they aren’t very good conversationalists, and are stuck with duties. The servants are also always busy doing one thing or another. The only company I have here is my dear sister, Celestia, but even she is often busy with royal duties.”

I look around awkwardly for a moment. Should I volunteer myself to keep her company? I’m not used to that kind of thing, but I do need a friend here. Now that I’m in another world, I don’t have Jack to hang out with anymore. I turn back to Luna, here goes nothing. “I don’t have any duties or jobs here… Would you like me to keep you company?”

Luna perks up at the suggestion, smiling hopefully. “Yes, that sounds great… You would truly keep me company?”

That is a good question, do I really want to hang out with her more? Her smile and brightened mood makes me feel good. There’s no way I could say no and disappoint her, besides, what have I got to lose? “Yeah, I really will, Luna.”

She gives me a brief hug with her forelegs, it feels nice, although still as odd as the first time. “Thank you, Travis. It really brightens my day to know that I will now have company not bogged down in duties and jobs.”

I awkwardly hug her back. I’m not really used to hugs. Her alicorn shape makes it a little harder to know the best way to hug her and it’s different from before now that she’s standing. I let go and my hand brushes against her back and a wing as I pull away. This causes her to blush and step away for a moment, her wings seemingly twitching. “Oh no, sorry, did I do something wrong?”

Luna slowly calms herself. “Y-Yes, but I know it was not on purpose.” She looks away nervously, still taming her blushing. “Ponies with wings are sensitive around their wings and flight muscles.”

I look away as well slightly, keeping her in the edge of my vision. “Oh, was it that bad?”

She gets herself back together and turns back to me, only a slight blush remaining. “It is considered a rather intimate action.”

Oh man, I can’t believe that. I accidentally hit on her in a physical manner. As if the hug wasn’t already awkward enough. “Oh… I’m really sorry then.”

She giggles lightly, possibly to try to rebuild her confidence. “Do not worry, for you did not know. Just keep it in mind from now on.”

I nod quietly. I mean, what do I say now? I’m so embarrassed that I made such a mistake. I nervously look down and twiddle my thumbs a bit. A long silence begins to build up.

Luna softly clears her throat to break the silence. “Shall we continue the tour?”

“Uh, y-yeah, sure.” I look back up and let Luna lead the way. She shows me around the rest of the castle, but I don’t pay much attention. I’m far too distracted by how awkward I made things.