The Forever Burning Embers of Love

The Forever Burning Embers of Love

After she ate an exotic supper with her sister, Luna went to perform her nightly duty of raising the moon. However, before she even began the spectacular feat, something started to cloud her mind. She tried to ignore it, but she could only do so for a few seconds.

Tears had started welling up at the corners of her azure eyes as she focused all of her magic on bringing the moon to the center of the sky, which was darkening gradually as she did so. By now the thought had caused her to feel so horrible that she could barely see through her teary eyes at all, the slowly rising moon itself looking like a mere reflection on the glassy surface of a lake. Luna could barely take it anymore, once the moon was in it's place, she collapsed onto her royal bed, crying terribly at the thing that had just made her sad moments before; the thought that no one truly loved her.

She could only see the blackness of her closed eyelids, and could only feel the degrading emptiness inside her, along with the soreness in her throat from all of her anguish. She shuddered almost constantly against the tear-stained silk cover of her bed, feeling hated, feared, forlorn, and most of all, lonely. Every second felt like an hour.

A few moments later, there was a knock at her bedroom door.

"Luna, I could hear you crying from the hall! What's wrong?"

Luna instantly recognized the distressed voice as her sister, but she didn't care, she didn't want to see anyone, even if it may be her sister, ever again. She just wanted to lay here forever, feeling the small amount of comfort her now sodden bed sheets provided. She ignored her and continued sobbing relentlessly.

"That's enough! I'm coming in!" said Celestia worryingly from behind the door.

After using her magic to open the locked door, Celestia flew over to Luna, who looked smaller than ever, curled up on the large bed. She couldn't stand seeing her beloved sister this way, and had started to tear up herself.

"Please Luna, tell me what is causing you to be this way! I love you more than anything, and I can't bare seeing you like this!" quivered Celestia, who was normally firm in the way she spoke.

After about thirty seconds, Luna finally looked up, breathing heavily, her normally beautifully combed blue mane a matted mess upon her face. The normally light blue bed sheets her teary face had been resting upon were soaked, causing them to be a very dark color.

After gaining a slight bit of composure, Luna said in a choking voice, "Don't pretend you don't know! Absolutely nopony loves me! I will always be feared by some for what I did in the past! They will never accept me. I can hardly live this way!"

What little composure Luna had just gained had just disappeared as she began bawling again, this time louder than before.

This was getting to be too much for her. Celestia took an unsteady, but deep breath.

"Luna, don't be silly. I cherish you more than anything in Equestria! It doesn't matter if everypony else may not feel exactly the same, I will always be here for you! And that's not true, what about Twilight and her friends?" she said fondly, trying her best to sound convincing. Instead, this just made Luna feel worse.

"Yes, you! But you aren't everypony else! How could I possibly be happy, being liked by only seven ponies, out of the thousands in our land? And what happens when they die, then I'll only have you! Tell me exactly how!" Luna screamed.

What Luna had just said hurt Celestia deeply, but she still tried to cheer her up.

"Please Luna, stop this! I can-" she was suddenly interrupted.

"You can what? Force everyone else to love me? I don't think so! Please, just go!" Luna yelled with her terribly sore throat hurting her even more.

Celestia was about to say more, something to try to stop Luna from behaving like this, but she decided it would be a fruitless attempt. She got up, and after looking at the crying mess that had just been her sister, left the room, not believing how she was just leaving Luna there, but she knew she could try to comfort her later. The door closed softly as Celestia, not believing what Luna had just said, trotted to her room, tears sliding down her snowy white fur.