Luna's eyes slowly pry themselves open to the view of her white ceiling. A slight cool breeze rolls in, reminding her that she accidentally left the window open last night which explains why she woke up so cold. After a quick sigh, the filly slowly mobilizes herself. She begrudgingly rolls out of bed and drags herself to the windowsill. Even if she sleeps in, she still can’t feel rested. Suddenly she can feel a presence behind her, and she turns around. With a hoof, she brushes her light blue mane out of her face. Her older sister greets her. Her long, turquoise mane flows straight and smooth, almost touching the floor. She’s already dressed in her royal jewelry. She has her head poking into the door, wearing a big cheeky grin in her face.
“Thou intrude upon us again, big sister?” Luna states, trying her best to fight her own drowsiness in order to remain formal.
"Hast thou made thy royal bed, Princess? We wish to see those royal Canterlot hospital corners!" Celestia giggles, teasing her younger sister by mocking her voice to the tee. "Oh, I'm just wonderin’ what you’re doin’. A big sister needs to keep a sharp eye on her younger sibling. There’s nothing wrong with me checking up on you every now and then.”
“We sincerely doubt that we will be able to find trouble within the confines of our own bedroom.” Luna’s voice remains stern. She rarely gets any privacy with her sister hovering around her like she does.
“Awh, but you look soooo cute when you’re asleep! My little baby sister still sucks on her hoof when she snoozes!” Celestia’s grin grows wider as she continues to tease her little sister. Luna’s rage quickly builds up, and runs over to her sister and harshly shoves her into the wooden door behind her. Celesta collapses into a heap. A shocked Celestia retorts as she picks herself up, “Ah! Luna! What’s wrong with you?”
“Why can’st thou learn to leave us be?” With that, Luna shoves her sister again, forcing her out the door. She then slams it in her sister’s face.
An angry Celestia pounds at the door. “LUNA! What’s gotten into you?” She knocks again, slightly harder this time. “Luna! Don’t make me tell the General on you!” She knocks a third time. “LUNA! You can’t stay cooped up in your room forever. We still need to go to the Fall Formal tonight! Luna!” Celestia keeps relentlessly rapping against Luna’s door before leaving in a huff.
“So, what’s this I hear about you getting into another fight with your sister?” A pegasus named General Lighthoof paces alongside Princess Luna as the two of them navigate the halls of Canterlot Castle again. General Lighthoof is the Royal Guard’s highest-ranking officer, but the old veteran spends most of his time tending to the two princess fillies. A whole life spent in the military left him no time to have kids of his own. So, he slowly become a father figure to the two fillies, and has no trouble devoting whatever time is needed to the two of them.
Luna hangs her head, know that she shouldn’t have attacked her sister the way she did. “She has made a nasty habit of barging into our room every morning. She’s always attentive and quite overbearing. We just wish to stop being treated like a child.”
“But you are a child,” the General states bluntly. Luna wrinkles her nose at the statement, while offering an angry glare at the older stallion. However, the General offers her a kind, grandfatherly smile. “You are just a filly, and your sister is too. Someday soon, when I’m long gone, the two of you will grow up to be fine young mares, and the two of you will rule this great country together. This desire for independence, to be away from your sister, is only a phase. You will grow to rely on your sister, and your sister will grow to rely on you; just as all sisters should. Likewise, your sister’s notion of wanting to constantly watch over you, is also a phase. She will learn to trust your judgement as you two lead his country together.”
Luna finds the General’s words soothing and comforting. “You really think so?”
“I know so.”
The two on them share a long embrace, and the filly begins to whisper onto her loved one’s ear. “Are you coming to the Fall Formal, General?”
The General slowly loosens his hug and sadness overcomes his face as he pulls away. “No, dumpling. I’m sorry. It’s in Manehatten, remember? And these old bones don’t travel like they used to.” Luna reciprocates the General’s sadness, almost to the point of crying. His presence there would mean a lot to Luna, especially now when her and her sister couldn’t feel any more apart. “But, promise me you’ll be a good little filly while you’re gone, okay?”
“Okay.”
Luna flew to Manehatten early, she’s never actually been outside of Canterlot by herself before, but there was something she had to try. There was something that was upsetting her mind, and she needed to put it to bed already. She had carried with her a black saddle bag. Inside, were a few bits from the royal treasury, and a gray hooded coat. She pulls it out and quickly puts it on. It was cold in Manehatten at this time of the year, but that’s not why she brought it with her. The coat completely covers her wings and cutie mark, and with the hood up, she can cover most of her blue mane too. No one could really tell whether or not she was an alicorn, much less a princess. She trots out into the Manehatten streets and catches a carriage ride downtown.
Luna eventually found herself trotting aimlessly into a shoddy-looking cider bar. The young filly kept her head down, but was soon turned away by one of the bartenders. “No fillies allowed in here, please,” he said as she shooed her out. She paces up a city block until bumping into a lone ice cream vendor who was closing up shop. Luna curiously trots over.
“Hello, little filly. Are you lost?” The stallion seemed nice, but Luna keeps silent. “I have a little daughter about your age. I’d hate to think that she’d be running around like this at night. I’d be absolutely frightened. Night’s no place for little fillies like you.” Luna hangs her head. “Please tell me your parents know you’re out here.”
“No,” Luna answers flatly.
A deep level of concern pours from the stallion’s voice. “Don’t tell me you’ve run away. Whatever it is you’re mad about, it isn’t worth making your family worried sick over you. Do you think you find your way home on your own?”
“We,… uh… I mean, I don’t know.” Luna finally looks back home at him. “Do you think you can help me?”
The stallion stops for a moment. Luna holds her breath, maybe he’ll give her the answer she’s looking for. “Um…” the stallion starts. “I’m not sure, you sure don’t look familiar.”
“Are you sure? I don’t even look a little familiar to you?”
The stallion hesitates. “I- I’m sorry, little filly. I don’t think I can help you. Listen, just take a carriage ride. Tell them where you want to go. I’ll even pay for it—”
“No thanks. I have my own money.” Luna trots away with a deep feeling of disappointment.
Luna’s carriage pulls up to the venue, arriving at the Fall Formal about fifteen minutes late. She’s still in her coat, and she trots into the ceremony room with no issue. She trots around with the large crowd of Manehatten elites as she wanders about aimlessly. Suddenly, she bumps into one of the waiters.
“Little filly?!” he exclaims. “Where are your parents?”
An angry Luna takes off her coat and slams it down onto the tiled floor. “We are not some little filly! We are your princess!” the crowd gasps, and Celestia flies down from a balcony to her sister.
“LUNA! Good heavens, where have you been?” Celestia moves in to hug her sister, but Luna ducks out of the way.
“How has your night been going… your highness? Are you not enjoying your royal ball?” Luna glares at her older sister as a feeling of malice grows inside of her towards her sibling.
“What are you talking about, Luna, you silly filly? I was worried sick about you!” Celestia’s concern quickly turns into confusion. She can’t believe what she’s hearing.
“We highly doubt that. We’ve been wandering about in Manehatten all by ourselves, and guess what? Nopony even recognized us as royalty. Not the ponies at the watering hole, not the ponies on the street, and not even the ponies at this very banquet! We have been proven irrelevant.”
“Sister, that’s crazy talk! Not even I can recognize you in that coat and I’m your blood!”
“So, we’re irrelevant to you as well, are we?” Luna gives her sister a cold look.
Celestia scoffs. “Luna, that’s ridiculous! Stop throwing your little hissy fit and come on! We’ve still got a couple more hours until this event is over, and we have a job to do—"
“What job, sister?” Luna interrupts. “We’re fillies! Our job at these events is nothing more than to wear something cute, and give these guests something adorable to ogle at. Just so old mares can come up an pinch our cheeks.” Luna folds her forehooves and sulks.
“Well…” Celestia breathes a deep sigh. “I’ve been invited to cut the ribbon at the new wing of the Grande Manehatten Library and, —”
“What?!” Luna’s mouth hangs open has her sister’s words sink in. “That’s NOT FAIR! Even at a mundane event such as this one, you find a way to upstage us! Why do you always do this?”
“Luna, please—” Celestia's taller figure looms over her sister, holding out her hooves in a sign of defense.
“WE DON’T WANT TO HEAR IT!” In a fit of rage, Luna pushes her sister into a table, turning it over. Several glasses shatter, an uneasy crowd gasps and slowly begins to file out of the ballroom. “All you ever do is take, take, take. You take all of the jobs, the duties, the responsibilities, and all of the glory that goes along with it. We are always left with nothing, and we are getting sick of it!”
“Luna, that’s not true,” Celestia desperately pleads with her sister. I just don’t know when you’ll be ready to—"
“SHUT UP!” Luna reflexively shouts at her older sibling, not realizing what she’s just said. “I HATE YOU!”
Celestia eyes begin to water, the pain of Luna’s words were cutting her deep. “Luna, you don’t mean that.”
“I do!” Luna stands over her sister with conviction. “I mean every word! Mark our words, sister, someday you’ll take Equestria all for yourself; and you’ll leave us all alone with nothing.”
Luna eyes slowly pry themselves open to the view of the night’s sky. A slight cool breeze rolls in, Luna always had an easier time breathing in the thin air. She lies motionless on the lunar surface, there wasn't much else to do here. She looks to her right and begins tracing a line in the dirt with her hoof. The thin, grey, powder-like lunar dust kicks up, floating for a short while before slowly falling back to the surface. She has no idea how long it’s been. She lost track of the days a long time ago. She then looks to her left and stares back at the Earth with a stoic, grim look on her face. Her animosity for her sister may have started as a filly, but it has only grown since. That hatred was just the beginning, since then something else had grown inside of her, something that her sister caught a glimpse of before she sent her here… something evil.
“I hate you, sister,” she whispers to herself as she looks back at the puny planet. A fire of hatred burns deep inside of her. “I hate you with every fiber of my being. You took everything from me, and one day, I’ll have my revenge.”
