I look up at the mare I had unintentionally bumped into. I recognize her instantly. I had bumped into none other than Princess Luna, bringer of the night. Knowing my place, I bow, apologizing profoundly for my stupidity. She stops me, beckoning me to rise.
“There is no need for that. It was an accident, you should not worry about it too much. To be honest, though, I was not exactly watching where I was going,” she says, offering a small, sheepish smile as her own apology.
“Well, I wasn’t either. Besides, you’re a Princess of Equestria. You don’t need to apologize to me. I’m a nobody,” I reply, bowing my head.
She lifts my head with her hoof. “Do not be silly. If you were a nobody, I do not think we would have ran into each other.”
“You’re too kind, Highness.”
Princess Luna laughs, a sound that is pleasing to my ears. “Well if you think I am kind, you obviously have not met my sister.”
“But I really should be going , or said sister will begin to wonder what’s taking so long. Farewell… I’m sorry, I don’t believe I caught your name, good sir.”
“My name is Sombra. Now, get along, your highness, else your sister may just burn the city to the ground,” I say, a playful smile on my features. The princess laughs again. I feel I could live off her laugh.
I watch her wave as she goes, a still visible smile on my lips.
Uh oh.
I think I may have just fallen in love with a princess.
I shake my head, banishing the unbidden thought. She probably would never love me in return anyway, seeing as I am of the lower class.
I walk away, knowing I will most likely never run into her on the streets like this again.
~
Of course, I ran into her about a week later. This time, however, she was with her sister.
Before I could stumble through an apology, Princess Luna smiled at me. I almost melted on the spot. She didn’t seem upset to have bumped into me again, rather, she seemed pleased.
“Celestia, this is the stallion I was telling you about,” she says, turning to me. “Hello again, Sombra. How have you been this past week?”
Before I can reply, however, her sister’s gaze falls upon me.
“Luna, I don’t get what you see in him. He seems a bit… uncouth. Are you sure he’s the same stallion who had such humor?” Princess Celestia asks, looking back at her sister, ignoring me completely.
“Of course! Do you know of anypony else who has ruby red eyes that seem to sparkle like that? Or red eyes altogether?”
I am startled by the comparison. Sparkle? I’m not sure if I like the comparison.
“Your highness, I assure you I did indeed run into your sister a week ago, though I’m not sure she told you the circumstances, it was indeed accidental. I meant your sister no harm at-”
“Sombra, she knows it was an accident. I have told her everything that had happened,” Princess Luna said, giving me a reassuring smile.
“Well, did my joke make her laugh like you did? Or is that why she’s glowering at me?” I ask, getting a small giggle from Princess Luna, and a soft, but noticeable growl from Princess Celestia, which gets me to smirk.
“Celly, do not growl at him! He is only trying to make a joke! He meant you no offense.”
“Of course I meant no offense, your highness!” I say, though I do not mean it. I think she could tell, her ruffled feathers and arched eyebrow were kind of a dead giveaway.
“So you say, Luna, but I really don’t think you should be fraternizing with his kind,” Princess Celestia says, in a firm, but gentle way. Princess Luna scowls.
“Who are you to tell me who I do or do not hang out with? You are the one who took a common unicorn for your pu-”
“You will not speak ill of her! She brought you back before you delved too far into dark magic!” The princess of the sun was enraged. Her mane was starting to turn to fire. Damn, she’s kinda scary.
“She is of common birth and you know it!”
Before this could get any worse, I started to back away, as everypony else in the vicinity had done a while ago.
~
A month after that particular incident, I found myself sitting alone in a diner eating some hayfries. I was enjoying the delicious food, when I hear a familiar voice. A familiar voice that made my day.
“Hello, sir. Is this seat taken?” the princess of the night asked. Yes. She asked me the most cliched question in the world. I would’ve cringed if it weren’t so adorable.
I shake my head, beckoning her to go ahead and take a seat. She sits down, and immediately steals some of my fries.
“Hey! I was eating those! You’re buying me more if you keep that up,” I say, smirking, even though I probably look stupid for it. At least I got the laugh I was hoping for.
“Oh, am I now? Who would have thought that somepony would tell me such a thing!” she says playfully between fits of laughter. I playfully whacked her upside the head, to which she started laughing harder, doubling over to where her head was touching the table. I eventually gave in, letting a small chuckle escape.
When the princess stopped laughing, I got up and went to get more fries. As I waited in line, I looked back in her direction, though she didn’t notice. She was busy eating what was left of my fries. I rolled my eyes, turning my attention back to the line.
I was only behind a couple other ponies now, and before I knew it I was up at front of the line, ordering more fries. When the mare at the register told me the price, I reached for my wallet and paid. I know I said I’d have the princess pay, but I wasn’t being too serious. I digress. I waited until they called my name to go back up and get the fries I had ordered.
Returning to my seat, I find that the princess had finished off the fries.”Hungry, weren’t you?” I say as I sit down, setting the fries between us. “Good thing I got a bigger size this time then.”
She smiles, but says nothing, instead choosing to eat more fries. I join in, munching the delectable food, contemplating my feelings for the mare sitting across from me, enjoying her own fries. Is this love? Or do I just want her as a friend? Damn these complicated feelings!
I’m startled out of my thoughts when the princess cleared her throat loudly. Apparently, she had been trying to catch my attention for a while. I smile coyly, obviously embarrassed for not noticing her.
“As I was saying before you zoned out, it is rare I get to enjoy such food as hayfries. They have quite the appetizing smell, and taste heavenly,” she says in a tone that signifies an obsession with the unhealthy snack.
“They’re cheaper than a full meal, too.”
The princess whaps me for that. I honestly don’t regret saying it.
“Well, if you are not going to pay extra just to feed me, then I do not think this friendship will work out, my dear Sombra,” she says, teasing me. And I know she’s only teasing, and not trying to hurt me, but when she said friendship, and then called me dear…
I winced.
Shit… I guess I am in love with a princess… Well fuck.
Of course, my wince didn’t go unnoticed by the mistress of the night.
She leaned in close. A bit too close for comfort. “Sombra, are you alright? Did I hit you too hard? If I did, I am so sorry, I did not intend t-”
“I’m fine, Your Highness… I was just… It’s nothing you should concern yourself with,” I say, waving it off as though it were nothing, despite how heavy my heart feels now.
“If you say so…” she says, leaning back.
We finish the hayfries in silence.
She stands up, saying something about returning to her duties, and bids me farewell before heading out, leaving me to my thoughts.
~
Hayfries and sometimes a shake became a thing Luna and I did often.
During one such meeting, she had asked me to just call her Luna, rather than ‘Your Highness’ or ‘Your Majesty,’ or even ‘Princess.’ This delighted me, however, I reacted calmly in front of her.
“I’m honored that you would allow me to call you by your name, Your- Luna.” I slipped up, but she only laughed.
“Your Luna? I kinda like that actually. Call me that instead,” she said between fits of laughter. I laughed with her.
“Now I know you have a joking side, instead of all Miss Serious Princess.” Quite frankly, she laughed harder. It was a fun night.
~
Another night, we tried something fancy. The mare that waited on us said we made a cute couple after we had finished eating, and I would’ve blushed if Luna, bless her, hadn’t explained to the mare that we are not a couple.
“Oh… Sorry for assuming. Here’s your check.”
I payed without another word. Not really the best night. Needless to say, we didn’t try it again.
Author's Note
This is marked AU for many reasons.
- Sombra comes waaayy after the point he would’ve in the show
- Luna never became Nightmare Moon
- Twilight stopped her from doing so before she could
- The crystal empire never disappeared
- Cadence is already the established ruler of it
- Shining Armor was sent up to the
actually, some of that could be it’s own story >_>
but I ain't writing it any time soon LMAO
Our nights out together were usually fun, and I enjoyed them. However, I enjoyed them for a different reason than Luna. She enjoyed having a friend to hang out with, while I enjoyed hanging out with the one I love.
I… Never told her that I loved her. She seemed happy enough to just call me friend.
Soon, however, she stopped coming. At first, I thought she had gone somewhere last minute. Then I thought that I had scared her off, but quickly dismissed that fear-If I had scared her, she would’ve stopped coming long ago.
Then, I couldn’t help but wonder… Was her sister trying to keep her away? I mean, Luna most likely told her sister of our nights out, and might have found a way to intervene. Of course, later I found I was wrong, but the thought stuck, and I decided to try to make my way into the castle undetected and rescue Luna from her sister.
I realize how much like a fairytale that sounds, but that’s what I thought. I would be the knight in shining armor, Luna my princess, and her sister my foe. I now realize how fucking stupid I was to think that now. What a lovestruck idiot I was. Actually, I still am a lovestruck idiot...
~
How did I get into the castle? Probably exactly as you expect. Wore a ninja outfit… For effect of course. Climbed over the walls with my magic. Etcetera, etcetera…
Sneaking around the castle, however, proved to be quite the problem. Celestial and Lunar guards patrolled the hallways, and it didn’t help that I had no idea where I was going. I’ve never been to the castle before, and didn’t know my way around, much less where Luna’s quarters were located. And that was assuming she was even in her quarters. For all knew, she could’ve been anywhere in the castle. Maybe not even in the castle. I later learned that she was actually on the grounds and I passed her sneaking in. Oops.
Anyway, back to sneaking around the castle, I actually almost ran into Celestia twice. Whenever I heard her, I turned tail and ran the opposite direction. Maybe I was a bit scared of the Princess who gives the world light. I probably shouldn’t have been, for reasons I shall discuss later.
~
One of my would-be encounters with Celestia lead me into a room that I soon realized was Luna’s. I looked around her room in awe.
Her bed was the shape of a crescent moon, with a blanket embroidered with stars lying on it. A lamp hung from the top, the brightest source of light in the room. The walls were painted a beautiful shade of blue. Next to her bed was a single stand, upon which was a book and a rather unique alarm clock.
She wasn’t in her quarters when I first entered, but she managed to sneak right behind me when I was admiring her unique decorations. She cleared her throat. Loudly. I’m ashamed to say I swore aloud.
“Sombra?” she asked in a strong but gentle tone. “What are you doing here?”
“I came to see why you stopped coming to our nights out?” I wish it didn’t sound so much like a question. I sounded like a child who had just gotten caught stealing cookies from the cookie jar on top of the fridge.
“I don’t see that as an excuse for sneaking into my quarters like this. However, I stopped coming because I thought you were growing tired of me. I am sorry if I misjudged the situation. I was also asking my sister for advice on what to do if you think a friend has lost interest in you.”
“Oh.” I said, shocked that she thought this. “No, Luna, I didn’t lose interest in you. In fact, if I seemed distant, it was because I was trying to figure out how to tell you tha-” I held my tongue. If I told her I loved her, she would probably reject me.
Luna looked down on me with curious eyes. “Tell me what, pray tell?”
I swallowed. “That I love you, Luna. I fell for you after our first meeting. I was afraid if I told you, you’d turn me down. If I seemed distant at all, that’s why.” We stood together, silent, for a long time. I couldn’t bare to look into her eyes, as I feared that rejection awaited me. Before long, she spoke once more.
“Oh, Sombra… That’s another reason I stopped coming. I developed feelings as well, though much later than you.” I looked up at her, my jaw dropping. How could royalty, like her, fall for a pony like me? It made no sense in my mind, no matter how I thought about it. “I thought that you would not return my feelings. That I seemed out of your reach, so you settled for friend.” Her words were like music to my ears. She actually, genuinely, liked me back!
I smiled, and she continued.
“I asked my sister what to do if you loved somepony, and you were not sure if they loved you back. She… Caught on to what I was saying, and asked who the lucky pony was. When I told her it was you, she laughed and told me that I was lying. I told I was not. She stopped laughing, looked me dead in the eye, and told me to follow my heart. If we were meant to be, either you would come for me, or I would find a way to come to you, even if it meant death. But until then, I had to sit and wait. So I stopped our nights out, and resumed my duties, only stopping to ask my sister for more romance advice.”
I wasn’t crying. I wasn’t. Don’t listen to Luna, she’ll lie about it. She’ll say tears were streaming down my face. Rubbish!
I went in for a hug. Luna, startled by my sudden movements, froze up at first. After she had realized what I was doing, she softened and returned the hug.
Then Celestia entered the room, and joined in the hug. Laughing, she mentioned something about meeting her nieces and nephews, which made Luna and me blush. Honestly, Celestia wasn’t as terrible as I had thought. She has quite the jokester side.
~
Needless to say, Luna and I are in a happy, healthy relationship, and I plan to propose to her later today, after I finish this memoir. I have the ring and everything. It has a beautiful sapphire in it, and will compliment her coat nicely.
I already asked Celestia if it would be alright, in the event that she didn’t really like me… But she was cool with it. She even made another remark and nieces and nephews, which made me blush furiously and hightail it out of the room, her laughter ringing through the castle.
I don’t think I’d mind living with that laugh, but it was nowhere near as precious to me as Luna’s.
Oh I hope she says yes. I mean, she probably will, but still. Anyway, I plan to propose to her at the fast food joint where she stole all of my fries. I just hope she thinks it’s as special as I do. Maybe she will, maybe she won’t. Either way, I will propose to her tonight. Even if it kills me.
Oh, look at the time! I should go get her. We’re supposed to leave soon. Wish me luck!
~
Good news! It didn’t kill me. And she said yes! She’s sitting next to me, watching me write this, smiling like a lovestruck idiot.
Don’t give me that face! I know a lovestruck idiot when I see one! Luna, I love you! Don’t hurt me, please! I’ll give you, uuuuhh… Smooches! Kisses and smooches and cuddles and hugs and all that romancey stuff.
DON’T YOU DARE THROW THAT PILLOW AT ME! LUNA! I SWEAR TO FAUST IF YOU THROW THAT PILLOW AT ME I’LL-
…
Oh you’re getting it now.
~
Short story. She threw the pillow at me, we had a pillow fight that ended in cuddling and shameless kissing.
I mean, we are engaged after all.
She is my moon. And I am her world. And I love her so goddamn much.
Thus ends this memoir. It was quite the ride, for both of us.
~Sombra
Author's Note
Originally, this was gonna be a one-shot, but I'm used to only writing ~1000 words in a chapter, and it was starting to feel long.
