By: Starwin
It had been sunset for hours by the time Twilight Sparkle arrived in Canterlot. Even here, high atop the mountain, the sky remained golden with streaks of pink and purple between the silver clouds. To the West the sun was stuck on the horizon's edge, while in the East there was nothing but starless blackness, with no trace of the moon.
Back in Ponyville there had been confusion and fear. Nothing good ever happened when the sun stopped moving. Twilight and her friends had managed to help calm some of the towns folk. Just as they were starting to get a hoof on the situation a summons for Twilight arrived. It had been sent by Princess Celestia herself and called Twilight to Canterlot at once.
Much to Twilight's surprise the letter had asked only for her and not her friends. She had thought this a mistake at first. Yet, the instructions were very clear, only Twilight was needed, and as quickly as possible. So she left everpony behind with assurances that she would call on them if they could do anything to help.
Part of the reason she had to come alone was the urgency of the request. Taking the train would have been far too slow and while some of her friends could fly, most were ground bound. Flying was not her preferred means of travel. She was okay at it — lots of practice and reading had certainly helped her improve, as had tips from her friend Rainbow Dash — but Twilight had been born a unicorn and trotting was what came most naturally to her. Yet by hoof Canterlot was days away, and by train it was hours. By wing, she made the trip in a mere thirty minutes.
Not landing at the front gates, Twilight flew directly to were the letter had instructed, the second tallest tower of the castle. Two dozen pegasus guards hovered around the balcony like a protective barrier, watching as she approached. They moved to let her pass, closing in again when she landed. Standing on the balcony were a dozen more unicorn guards, spears held out as if expecting an enemy attack at any moment. They too parted as Twilight moved towards them.
Twilight trotted quickly into the chamber beyond. The room was hung with dark shades of blue and deep purple fabrics, all dotted with glinting stars. Several firefly lamps glowed dimly on the walls, casting the room into flickering shadows. Spread across the ceiling were patterns of the night sky, complete with a silvery moon. And at the far end of the chamber, opposite the balcony, was an enormous circular bed. Twilight could just barely make out the dark shape of Princess Luna under her star patterned sheets.
Standing at her side, white coat in bright contrast to the rest of the room, was Princess Celestia. She was watching over her slumbering sister with a concerned, unwavering, gaze. Twilight felt a strong sense of deja vu as she hurried across the room towards the Princess.
“Thank you for coming so quickly,” whispered Celestia as Twilight drew near. Twilight nodded, even though Celestia's did not glance at her. “We still cannot wake Luna from her sleep and no spell has had any affect.”
It was a silly thing to be whispering. If what Celestia's message had said was true, no amount of talking at any volume would rouse Luna. Yet, it still felt like the right way to speak, so Twilight whispered too. “Has this ever happened before?”
“No,” answered Celestia quietly with a shake of her head. Somehow, that statement felt wrong, but Twilight didn't know why. “Whatever power has taken hold of my sister prevents me from setting the sun. I have tried, yet night will not come. I fear that without my sister, we shall be trapped in eternal twilight.
“And it appears things are even more dire,” continued Celestia, as she gently stroked her sleeping sisters mane. “It is not only Luna who is under this spell, but any pony who has fallen asleep cannot be woken.” Something in Celestia's words tickled the back of Twilight's brain, like an itch that was just out of reach.
“Everypony in Equestria?” exclaimed Twilight, raising her voice against the stillness of the room. Her eyes fell on Luna as if expecting the sudden outburst to have roused her, yet Luna remained motionless, her eyes still blissfully closed.
“So far, it is only affecting those who are already sleeping,” said Celestia with a nod. “But if we cannot wake my sister I fear that soon it will be everypony. I believe whatever has happened, it started with Luna. We need her help,” Celestia's gaze finally shifted to Twilight, “I need your help.”
“I'm not sure what I can do,” said Twilight, doubting her own words as she said them. She knew she could help, but she wasn't sure why, or how.
“You have aided my sister with her nightmares in the past,” replied Celestia, “both real and imagined.”
“Me, and my friends,” corrected Twilight. She was starting to wonder if leaving her friends behind had really been the right thing to do. It had seemed perfectly logical at the time.
“This is not a task they would be able to help with,” explained Celestia. “I believe my sister to be trapped in a nightmare. Perhaps one of her own design. While my knowledge of dream magic is limited, I am certain that she can be woken from within. Therefore, I need you to travel inside her sleeping thoughts and bring her back to us.”
“But why me?” asked Twilight. “Why not go yourself?”
“I can cast a spell that will let you move within her dreams,” answered Celestia. “But—“
“But if you sent yourself, you wouldn't be able to wake,” muttered Twilight, pressing her hoof against her bottom chin.
“Yes. Do you know the spell?” asked Celestia in mild surprise. Twilight shook her head.
“No,” said Twilight. “At least... I don't think so...”
“I will remain here,” explained Celestia, her horn starting to glow with swirling magic. “You must try and remember your task, least you become lost in her nightmares as well. I asked you here to do this, because you are her friend. She has sought out your help many times before and I believe you can help her now. You have to wake up Luna.”
The bright light streaming in through the windows made Twilight Sparkle squint. She raised a hoof to shield her bleary eyes against the sun. Blinking, Twilight took in her unfamiliar surroundings. She was out of place in a strange room. The walls were the wrong color, the wrong height. There were bookshelves set into the wood and the strong smell of oak in the air.
In the next moment the room became recognizable. For the life of her, Twilight couldn't fathom how she ever could have forgotten this place. This was the Golden Oak Library. This was her room, her bed, her books in the shelves on the wall. This was her home. Or... at least it had been.
Twilight sat up abruptly, jolted fully awake as her eyes darted around the room. It couldn't be. It wasn't possible, her home had been... it had been... She couldn't recall what had happened to it. Or even why she had thought something had happened to it. No, she decided at last, it had just been a dream.
Already the foggy memories were fading from her mind. She tried to recall details as they slipped away. She had been a princess, with wings, and a castle, and everything. And they had fought and ancient evil and.. and... no, it was all gone. Twilight put a hoof against her head. What a strange dream it had been.
Twilight pressed her hoof against her back and stretched. She felt her soft matted fur as she rubbed at an ache. The spot felt odd, but for the life of her, she couldn't reason out why.
Looking out her window Twilight saw that it was already noon, with the sun high up in the cloudless blue sky. She couldn't believe she had slept in so late. “Spike!” Twilight shouted in panic, looking down towards his empty basket. Spike was up before her! She couldn't believe that he had let her sleep in! “Spike!” Twilight shouted again.
There was the soft patter of rushed footsteps climbing the stairs. A moment later Spike appeared at the bedroom door, panting and slightly out of breath. He clutched the door frame as he worked to slow his breathing.
“Twilight! What's—wrong?” Spike asked between gasps.
“Why didn't you wake me up!” cried Twilight, pointing out the window. “It's already noon and we haven't done anything today!”
“Oh, is that why you're shouting?” asked Spike, finally recovering. “We don't have anything to do today!” Spike held up a scroll of parchment which he let unroll onto the floor. It should have contained today's to-do list, yet it was completely blank.
“That's because we haven't written it!” cried Twilight, leaning slightly too far over the edge of her bed and tumbling out of it onto the floor with a thud.
“Relax, Twilight,” said Spike, as he stood over her.
“Spike... are you eating ice cream?” asked Twilight, watching has he shoveled spoonful after spoonful into his mouth.
“Yeah,” said Spike between bites. “Look, the only thing we have to do today is go to the party for the new pegasus in town. And Pinkie is handling all the planning so we just get to sit back and relax!”
“I guess you're right,” said Twilight, sitting up and leaning against her bed. She rubbed at the continuing ache in her back. Although, the ache felt like something more. Like something was missing. Like something was wrong.
“Have you met her yet?” asked Spike excitedly as he munched on a mouthful of gems.
“Pinkie?” Twilight asked in confusion.
“No, the new pegasus,” Spike said rolling his eyes.
“I haven't, but I've heard good things about her. She's nice and funny and kind and beautiful and...” Twilight trailed off. That... was odd. For a moment strange thoughts had filled her mind. Twilight shook her head. Nopony had told her about a new pegasus in town, and yet... hadn't she heard something. She couldn't recall when, or from whom.
“Well, I'm gonna take a nap,” said Spike, settling down in his basket. “Wake me up for the party,” he yawned.
“Alright,” sighed Twilight, getting up and running a hoof through her tangled mane. Twilight froze, her eyes fixed on Spike as his eyelids shut. “No! Spike! Wait! Don't!” Twilight rushed over to him and shook the baby dragon, but he did not wake. “Spike! Spike! Oh no, not again! Spike!”
However, for all the good her shouting did, she could not wake him.
She...
Couldn't...
Wake them...
It was like the lights in her mind had finally clicked on. This was wrong, this was all wrong! Her house shouldn't be here. She shouldn't be here. This wasn't real! She was... dreaming?
Twilight's panic abruptly stopped. She was dreaming. She had cast a spell to travel into dreams. No, Celestia had cast the spell that sent her here. And Twilight had to find… to find… Luna. This was a dream! This was Luna’s dream! She knew this was a dream. She had been expecting a nightmare but, this-this didn't seem nightmare like at all.
“It isn't real,” whispered Twilight to herself, closing her eyes tightly and trying to focus. “This is a dream. And I have to find Luna. I have to wake her.” When she opened her eyes again everything had a strangely unfocused feel to it, as if Twilight could somehow see the dream. “I have to find Luna,” Twilight repeated, as her moment of clarity began to fade. “Luna, Luna, Luna.” Twilight chanted trying to hold on to her realization as she made her way out of the bedroom.
The lower level of the library was crowded with ponies, streamers and balloons. Twilight remembered that the welcome party was being held here. She remembered that she had volunteered her house. She could see the memories so clearly. Yet, at the same time, she knew they were false, made up for the dream.
Twilight shook her head. None of it was true. It was her mind filling in the blanks and trying to make sense of the strangeness.
Luna, she needed to find Luna and... do... something.
As Twilight took a step forward, she found herself downstairs, stumbling through the crowd. Faces seemed to float in and out of existence. Some ponies said jumbled up greetings while others just glanced at her with unreadable expressions. Staying alert was becoming harder and harder to do. Her mind kept trying to slip into the dream, to relax and give in to the flow. But Twilight knew she had to remain lucid, to stay in control as long as possible.
“Luna,” mumbled Twilight. “Find Luna.”
“Oh, Twilight!” cried Pinkie Pie, stepping out of nowhere to stand in front of Twilight. “You made it!”
“Pinkie,” said Twilight. “I have to find—“
“This is Luna!” cried Pinkie. She reached impossibly far into the crowd of ponies and pulled out an indigo pegasus with a light blue pastel mane. For a moment, the two ponies just stared at each other, then Luna smiled and Twilight gaped. “She’s the new pegasus in town, but you already know that, because I told you that already, which is why we’re at your house!”
This was not the Luna she had been expecting. For one, the pony had no horn, just wings. She was simply a pegasus, rather than a princess. And secondly, she was actually shorter, maybe even younger, than Twilight. Yet, she still recognized the face, the eyes, the crescent moon cutie mark on her flank. IT was Princess Luna she was looking at, but not like Twilight had ever seen her.
“I'll let you two chat while I get us more punch!” cried Pinkie, before vanishing in puff of pink smoke, like some kind of party ninja.
Neither Twilight nor Luna spoke, choosing instead to look awkwardly elsewhere. At last their eyes met and Luna smiled politely while Twilight continued to gape.
Finally, Twilight managed regained herself. Her mouth moved on its own and said words before her brain could come up with any. “Princess! I found you! We’ve been so worried. I have to bring you back. We need to get you out of here.”
“Uh,” said Luna, blushing slightly. “I'm not a Princess.” She tapped the top of her head where there should have been a horn. “I’m just a pegasus. I arrived here this morning from Los Alicorn.” Twilight shook her head.
“No, you're Luna, Princess of the Night! Me and my friends freed you from being Nightmare Moon and—“ the music playing in the background abruptly stopped and there was a gasps from the crowd. Everypony was looking at them, looking at Twilight, in shock.
“I—I have to go, thank you for the party,” said Luna, turning and pushing her way towards the door. The crowd closed in around her like ocean waves, and she was gone.
“Luna, wait!” cried Twilight, trying to follow after. However, unlike Luna, the party ponies did not move out of Twilight's way and she had to squeeze passed them while uttering apologies. She caught the briefest glimpse of Luna's pastel mane, but lost it again almost immediately. Pinkie chose that exact moment to reappear, carrying three red cups full of punch in her mane.
“I got the punch!” exclaimed Pinkie happily before looking around. “Hey, where did Luna go?” Twilight was trying to look around Pinkie, attempting find Luna again, but it was no good, the Princess—the pegasus—had vanished.
“Pinkie,” said Twilight desperately as she took hold of her friend. “You have to listen to me. I need to find Luna. It's very important. None of this is real!” Pinkie looked blankly at Twilight for a long moment, than she pulled one of the cups out of her mane and held it out for Twilight.
“Punch?” she asked. Twilight put her head in her hoof in frustration.
“Pinkie, look, this might be hard to accept, but this isn't real! This is a dream!” said Twilight. “We need to find the others so they can help us find Luna and wake her up.”
“Oh, they can't help us,” said Pinkie with a small giggle. She popped a cupcake into her mouth. Twilight gave her a surprised, searching look. “They aren't asleep yet, silly.”
“Wait, Pinkie, do you know this is a dream?” asked Twilight in confusion. Pinkie was now in the middle of devouring a whole five tiered cake.
“Well duh, of course it is,” said Pinkie between mouthfuls.
“And why do you and Spike always dream about eating?” Twilight asked rhetorically. Pinkie shrugged. “You said the others weren't asleep, what did you mean?”
“Well, after you left us in Ponyville to fly off to help the Princess, the rest of us tried to stay awake and keep the other ponies awake, but we couldn't and ponies started falling asleep, and we couldn't wake them up, and Spike fell asleep and he looked so peaceful that I fell asleep and then I was here working on a party!” said Pinkie, very fast and without pausing. Twilight thought she had caught the gist of it though. And it sounded familiar, parts of it were coming back to her.
“And the sky was stuck in twilight,” Twilight said.
“No silly, you weren't stuck in the sky,” said Pinkie with a giggling-snort.
“No, I mean, the time of day,” said Twilight with a slight blush.
“Oh, yeah, that's right, the sun did get stuck on the horizon,” said Pinkie nodding.
“This must be some kind of shared dream,” mumbled Twilight. “Or, me dreaming of you in it. Or Luna dreaming of you, whose dreaming of me, dreaming of you...” Twilight shook her head, she felt herself losing focus again. “We need to find Luna.”
“Okie-dokie-pokie,” said Pinkie with a grin. She turned to one of the party ponies next to her and, much more loudly than she needed to, shouted, “HEY! HAVE YOU SEEN LUNA?!” Slightly in shock the pony shook his head, taking a step away from the crazy-shouting-pink-pony. Pinkie, however did not seem to notice and instead turned to the next pony and shouted the same thing at her, much to the same response. Twilight let her head fall into her hoof for the second time.
While Pinkie moved from pony to pony shouting for Luna, Twilight took a much more subtle approach, moving through the crowd and simply looking for the pegasus. However, the going was slow. The downstairs area of the library was much larger than Twilight remembered. It seemed to go on for ever-and-ever, with endless crowds. Twilight found herself wishing she had wings so she could get a better vantage point.
Wandering through the crowd, Twilight tried to head in roughly the same way she thought Luna had gone, although it was hard to tell. Every direction seemed to be the same, every pony, seemed to be the same.
Pinkie's shouting had faded into the background and the music had started playing again. Craning her neck up, Twilight tried to look over the other guests, to get a sense of where she was in the room. But while she could see over most of their heads, what she saw didn't make any sense. She should have been only a dozen hooves from the wall, yet when she continued forward she never reached it. There was nothing but an endless sea of ponies, all of them not Luna.
An odd sound made Twilight stop in her tracks. Her ears twitched as she tried to figure out what it was. Somepony was shouting a name, her name, she realized. And it was getting closer and louder. Twilight looked behind her to see a pink blur bouncing up and down, rapidly approaching the spot she was standing.
“Hey Twilight! Hey Twilight! Hey Twilight! Hey Twilight! Hey Twilight! Hey Twilight!" shouted Pinkie, her voice growing ever louder as she approached. At last she finally leapt out of the mass ponies and landed with a thud on top of Twilight. “HEY TWILIGHT!” Pinkie screamed happily.
“What Pinkie?!” exclaimed Twilight in frustration.
“I found her!” proclaimed the pink pony proudly.
“You found Luna?” Twilight asked hopefully.
“Oh, was that who I was supposed to be looking for?” asked Pinkie with an apologetic giggle. Twilight hoofpalmed her face in frustration. “Anyhow, she should be able to help us find Luna faster.” There was a flutter of wings and a sky blue pegasus landed in front of them.
“Yo,” said Rainbow Dash. “You okay, Twilight?”
“Please get this crazy pony off me,” pleaded Twilight. Rainbow grabbed Twilight's hoof and pulled her out from under Pinkie, who tumbled backwards, still giggling. “So, you're asleep too than?”
“Yeah, I guess,” said Rainbow rubbing the back of her neck. “I don't know, Pinkie kind of explained it to me, but, you know, in that super fast way that nopony can really understand.”
“We need to find Luna, except, she doesn't look how she normally looks. She's just a regular pegasus, with a light blue mane, and she's a little shorter than me,” said Twilight, holding a hoof to indicate height. “If you could fly up and look for her that would really help us.”
“Uh, is that her?” asked Rainbow, pointing her hoof towards a spot just behind Twilight. Slowly, Twilight turned her head to see Luna, red party cup at her lips, taking a sip of punch and looking right at them with an expression of surprise, as if she had been caught with her hoof in the cookie jar.
They both stood frozen for a long moment, than Luna dropped the cup and galloped away. Twilight didn't hesitate, she galloped after her, with Rainbow flying along side and Pinkie Pie bouncing up and down in their wake. Party ponies parted as they charged through them, chasing after the fleeing pegasus that, for some reason, hadn't simply taken to the air.
Luna flung open the front door and dashed outside into the night, with Twilight and friends close on her heels. However, Luna skidded to a halt almost the moment she had gone outside. She seemed transfixed by the sky above. Twilight, Rainbow and Pinkie all similarly came to a stop just a few paces away from her.
“No,” whispered Luna as her eyes swept across the starless night sky. “No this isn't what I wanted. It isn't supposed to end like this. I don't want to go back.”
“Princess, what's going on?” asked Twilight. Luna visibly winced, turning slowly to face Twilight and her friends. Luna took a deep breath then let out a sigh.
“This... this isn't real,” Luna admitted. Pinkie gasped in shock before leaning slightly to her right and taking a lick of a huge lollipop suck in the ground beside her. “This is a dream, my dream. I cast a spell on myself to dream of a world where Nightmare Moon never existed. A world where I was never a princess... just a normal pony...”
“But somehow this dream is spreading out to everpony in Equestria,” said Twilight. “Once a pony falls asleep they can't be woken up, including you. And while you're asleep, Celestia cannot set the sun.”
“I... am sorry,” said Luna hanging her head. “I simply wanted a nice dream, an... escape.” Twilight trotted forward and put a hoof on Luna's shoulder, smiling reassuringly. Luna moved forward and hugged Twilight fiercely. “I'm sorry,” said Luna crying softly, “I'm so sorry...”
Twilight blinked as the glow of magic faded from her vision. In the bed in front of her, the Princess of the Night stirred under her star patterned sheets. Her head turned and her eyes opened, looking first at Twilight before drifting to Celestia.
“Sister,” whispered Luna apologetically. Celestia said nothing but leaned over and nuzzled Luna instead.
“I am so glad you are back,” whispered Celestia, and Twilight could see the faintest twinkle of tears in Celestia's eyes. Twilight looked away feeling slightly embarrassed. Her gaze fell upon the twilight outside the castle. She watched as the sun lowered below the horizon and night washed across the sky.
There was a gentle knock upon the door and a messenger pony let himself in, trotting over to Celestia. He whispered to Celestia, his voice filled with excitement and loud enough for Twilight to hear his words. “Princess, they are waking up, ponies all across Equestria are waking up! You did it!”
“No,” said Celestia with a smile at Twilight. “Princess Twilight Sparkle did it.” Twilight smiled, feeling her cheeks become even warmer. She glanced out the balcony again at the night sky. Stars were starting to twinkle in the dark blue but something was still nagging at her. 'They're waking up.' Something about that... was... wrong. But Twilight just didn't know what. Celestia dismissed the messenger and her focus returned to her sister.
“I should be getting back to Ponyville,” said Twilight, unfolding her wings to leave. It seemed like the two needed some time alone. “I need to make sure that everypony is alright.”
“Stay,” said Luna softly. “For just a while longer.” Twilight hesitated, than nodded. She did want to get back to her friends, but she also wanted to know why Luna had done this. Luna looked away from Twilight's gaze as if sensing the question.
“Why Luna?” asked Twilight. “Why did you put yourself to sleep like this?”
“I did not realize my spell would have such an impact,” explained Luna. “At least, not at first. I thought that once it was time for me to wake it would be like any other night. Yet, when the time came, I could not bring myself to leave. You saw but a small moment of the world I made for myself. Yet, for me, that dream has lasted a life time.”
“Luna,” whispered Celestia. The Princess look far sadder than Twilight had ever seen her.
“I just wanted to be normal for a change. To have friends, to be awake during the day. To go to school, to grow up,” said Luna. “I got to do all that in my dream. But the longer it went on the less I wanted to come home. If you hadn't come looking for me, I'm not sure I ever could have woken up, Twilight. Wake up.” Luna was looking right at her as she spoke.
“Wake up,” mumbled Twilight to herself. That strange tickle from before was in the back of her mind again. There was something else she was forgetting.
“Well, I am just glad you are back safe,” said Celestia, hugging her sister tightly. “I have missed you so much.”
“Wake up,” Twilight repeated. “Wait, wait!” shouted Twilight suddenly. “This isn't real. This is still a dream.” Celestia looked at Twilight in confusion, but Luna seemed impassive. “This is a dream. I remember. I was up late, studying. And—and I finished the book I was reading!” Luna and Celestia shared and uncertain glance. “Don't you see!” asked Twilight desperately.
“I am afraid I do not,” said Celestia.
“You do tend to read a lot of books,” Luna pointed out.
“Oh, right, right,” said Twilight, running a hoof through her disheveled mane. She was working hard to hold on to her alertness, to keep remembering that this too wasn't real. “The book I was reading should have taken me days to finish. I expected to not even be a third of the way through by morning. But I finished it and it was still night time.”
“Perhaps you read faster than you thought,” suggested Luna. But Twilight shook her head.
“I thought that at first too, or that I had read all through the day and it was night again,” said Twilight to herself, pacing back and forth. “But something was off. When I tried to wake up Spike, I couldn't. I rushed him to the hospital, but everypony there was asleep too, and I couldn't wake them either.
“Everypony in Ponyville was asleep and I couldn't wake any of them!” rambled Twilight, unable to stop herself now that she had started. It was all coming back to her, flooding into her mind like a burst damn. “So I flew to Canterlot. And it was the same as Ponyville, everypony was asleep and I couldn't wake any of them. I couldn't wake you, Luna. That's when I knew something was really wrong.
“So I used the spell to send myself into your dreams,” continued Twilight. “The same spell that Celestia used to send me into your dreams. That's why it was so familiar. I have to wake you up, Luna, so that you can wake me. So that you can wake everypony!” Twilight turned to Luna, looking at her pleadingly. “Because, we both sent ourselves into your dreams, so neither of us can wake on our own. We have to wake each other. You must wake up, Luna! And once you do, I think so will everypony else who is trapped in this dream!”
Luna looked sadly down. “I really didn't think it would affect anypony else,” said Luna. “I've never used my magic on myself like this. But if I wake up now... the life I had, the friends I made... they will all vanish... my dream will end.”
“If you don't wake up, Luna, all of the real world wont wake up either,” said Twilight. Luna was silent for a long moment, then she nodded.
“Very well,” said Luna. “Wake me, Twilight.”
“Uh, how exactly?” asked Twilight. “I didn't have a lot of time to research this spell, and it kind of didn't go into detail...”
“Like all sleep spells,” said Luna blushing slightly, “with a kiss.”
“Oh,” said Twilight, also blushing. Slightly hesitant, Twilight leaned forward. But Luna put a soft hoof against Twilight's chest to stop her.
“I am only teasing,” said Luna with a smile. Around her the world began to fade into white.
It was the gentle nuzzle that roused Twilight. Her surroundings were unfamiliar at first. The high vaulted ceilings, the patterns of silver stars, and the dark mare with an ethereal mane that hovered over her.
Then, all at once, Twilight's brain clicked and she sat bolt upright as her cheeks burned with embarrassment. Luna was looking at her with an amused smile. Quickly Twilight glanced around, realizing she was indeed in Princess Luna's sleeping chambers, laying on the floor beside her bed, right where she had cast her spell to enter Luna's dreams.
“Princess Luna,” said Twilight. “You're awake.” She paused. “We are awake... right?” Luna giggled.
“Yes,” said Luna. “We are indeed awake.” Twilight let out a sigh of relief.
The first rays of warm sunlight were starting to stream in through the high windows. Twilight could smell the fresh morning air and feel the stillness of night lifting.
“Thank you,” said Luna. Twilight turned back to the mare still in bed. Even though she was physically larger than Twilight, under her covers she looked so small. “I... I didn't want to wake up. Not really. It was so nice just being somepony else for once, just having a regular life and friends. And I didn't mean for it to get so out of hoof. I could feel that the spell was becoming unstable, pulling in more than just myself, so I created a second dream just for me. And it worked, for a time.
“Until that dream too began to catch up with me and ponies put to sleep by the first dream were also drawn into the second. I continued to tell myself it was alright, that nothing was wrong. They all continued to treat me like just another pegasus. Until you arrived, and called me Princess.
“Even then I didn't want to believe it, I didn't want it to be over,” explained Luna. She lifted up her hooves and looked at them as though she had never seen them properly. Leaning forward, Twilight put her hooves around Luna and hugged her. Luna sniffled into Twilight's fur.
“It's alright,” whispered Twilight. “We've all had dreams we didn't want to end. But they are just dreams.” Luna nodded into Twilight's hug. “And now its time to wake up.”
Author's Note
Hello Everyone! I hope you enjoyed this short little story. You might think its inception inspired, and, I guess, maybe? In a round about sort of way? (but not really). Actually, the inspiration for this story came from, of all things, the fan song (and animation) Lullaby for a Princess, which if you have not watched I highly recommend (I have been listening to it nearly non-stop through this story's creation).
A couple fun tidbits about the artwork, I had three other possible contenders, only one of which I sketched out. The first was the moment with Pinkie sitting on top of Twilight, with Twilight in the hoofpalm position, still makes me chuckle. The second was of Luna taking a sip of punch while looking like she had been caught, also a fun moment. And the last was Twi and Luna about to kiss (admittedly, click bait (and story miss direction)). Bet you can't guess which one I roughed out! Huh-nudge-nudge-wink-wink (it was Luna sipping from the red party cup, because one character is way easier to layout).
My tagging dilemma continues, and I just have to admit, I'm not good at tagging stuff. I guess this is an adventure into the mind? So, adventure it is. I'm hesitant to use the comedy tag here because while it has some silly stuff, it isn't really made to make you laugh. And, at least I think so, it has enough structure that it's not really random... And, for me at least, the whole thing is sad, because of the song that inspired it, specifically the line "Luna you're loved so much more than you know" just makes me feel sad, but the story isn't, so...
Anyhow. Thanks for reading, I hope you had fun!
