The train ride was long, really long. Luna looked out the window as there was nothing else to do in their private compartment. Twilight was asleep, and Spike had stepped out for the moment. The view was nothing but vast fields that lay shining in the moonlight due to the rain that morning. It was the same as it was four hours ago and it would be the same for another two until they reached the border between Equestria and the Griffon Empire. From there they would take an airship to Saddle Arabia, and another train to Pandai. There was no telling how long they might take to find what they needed, but with everything they read, all signs pointed to Pandai as a starting point.

The books that Starswirl had provided were only manuals and diary entries from before Celestia and Luna took control of the sun and moon. The notes only contained suggestions on how to conserve magic when moving the sun or how to set the moon to rise automatically. She always did wonder how Celestia was able to move it in her absence, and the books helped to answer that question. However, nothing in the books had a clue as to what could be intruding on her territory. That was until they found that three books seemed to have broken entries that finished each other.

They contained passages about three beings of the night, beings that seemed ancient though Luna had a hard time recalling whether or not she ever heard of them. The three beings were the Lunar Rabbit, Celestial Serpent, and the Night Child. Luna had heard of them before somewhere, but it had been so long that she didn't quite remember where or how she did. The one they found any leads on was the Lunar Rabbit in the lands of Pandai. It was where a legend originated that told of a rabbit on the moon. In all her time controlling and being banished to the moon, Luna had never encountered such a being. Though, in her banishment, she only had revenge in mind.

She was startled out of her thoughts by the door opening and Spike stepping in with two mugs full of hot cider. He offered on to her and sat down on the opposite side.

"Not resting Princess?" he asked while taking a sip from the mug.

"No Spike, and please just Luna is fine as we are friends."

"Oh, sorry about that Luna. What's got you troubled? I mean, I get you're the princess of the night, but we still have a long trip ahead, and I would think you would want as much rest as possible."

"I was just trying to remember where I had previously heard about this Lunar Rabbit. My time spent in banishment clouded a lot of my senses to focus on my eventual return." She became downcast at the thought of her past. It had been a long time since her return, but the thought of truly giving in to the darkness of her heart haunted her every moment.

Spike put his mug down and walked across to place a claw on Luna's foreleg. "Luna, it is perfectly ok not to forget about past sins, but you can't let them continue to drag you down after working so hard to let others see who you are now. I've turned into a full grown dragon because of my greed and nearly destroyed Ponyville. If it wasn't for Rarity and realizing who I was, I'm sure everything would have turned out differently. I can't let the past shape who I am and neither can you Luna." Spike squeezed a bit and received a smile while Luna tried to wipe away the tears she didn't realize were falling.

Spike sat down next to her, and they both sat in silence while Luna tried to regain her composure. Luna offered another smile at the young drake and regarded him for the first time as more than just Twilight's assistant and family. Throughout the years she had known him, Spike had grown into a fine drake. He was no longer the baby dragon she once knew and was the size of an adult male pony on all fours. He didn't have wings like he would have liked, but his form could rival even Applejack's brother. His scales smooth and polished and his mannerisms finally fit his age as gentledrake. It had truly been a wonder to everypony as to how mature he had gotten over years once he put aside his childish actions. Actions he still kept in private, but would otherwise know when the time to indulge in them was appropriate.

"Spike, I must thank you again. I know that it is not healthy to keep such things in my heart, but it'll always be there regardless of how much time passes. I will, however, take your advice and use it to shape my actions to show what kind of pony I am to everypony." She took a sip of her slightly warm cider and admired her work on tonight's sky.

"Its' what friends do Luna, if my experience with such a stigma can in any way help you to improve then by all means let me help."

"I will certainly ask for help when I need it, Spike. On this journey, I have no doubt that even the smallest amount of help can prove invaluable."

They sat in silence to admire the flickering of lights caused by the moonlight dancing on the fields of dew laden grass. It was a while before either of them said anything as they were lost in the majesty that Luna's night sky created before them. A sudden sound snapped them out of it, and they noticed Twilight had shifted while sleeping on the bedroom side of the compartment to be half falling out of her bed. They turned to each other and laughed at the gesture lightly enough so as not to wake her.

Spike took the time to place her gently back in bed while Luna put away the empty mugs. It was during that time, however that Luna sensed something amiss within her sky. She returned to the window in a rush and surveyed as much as she could due to the moving train. Spike came up beside her and regarded her curiously until he looked outside and caught something both of them had trouble believing. The moon was growing dim, and the form of a rabbit was taking shape.

Luna at once tried to take control of the celestial body only to shriek in pain as her magic backfired and forced her to ground. Spike grabbed her before she collapsed and took another look at the moon to see the shadow holding what looked like a small orb and disappeared. Luna regained her senses and with Spike's help sat back down.

"Luna, what happened? What was that thing on the moon?"

"That, I fear, was the Lunar Rabbit we are investigating. I did not think that such a thing could exist. It overpowered me tremendously with little effort and rejected my control of the moon."

"Luna, it was holding something like a small orb before disappearing. I'm not sure what it was, but it seemed to pluck it out of nothing. What do you think it was?"

"Pluck it from nothing… Oh no…" Luna suddenly got up and almost fell if not for Spike catching her again. She motioned towards the window, and they walked over, Luna scanned the sky once again, and her fear was confirmed.

"Another star is gone… It took a star from my night sky like it was a mere pebble from the ground. Spike… I'm not sure what we're up against, but it seems like this task will surely be more than I ever anticipated."

Spike looked at Luna's slightly concerned face before regarding the night sky. The North Star was gone and in place of it was nothing but a patch of darkness that seemed to consume light around it. Their journey had barely begun, and it already felt as if an insurmountable wall had appeared before them. One that, if climbed, would reveal more than they would ever expect.

Author's Note

Ch.2 is out and I'm certainly happy as to where the story is headed. I still maintain the slightly random schedule for releases, but I suppose if I don't do short stories I can focus on this a bit more. I really do hope that the random scheduling doesn't deter anyone from reading the story.

As always, thank you for taking the time to read my story and leave a comment or critique. Have a great day.