Cloud Dancer skimmed the tops of the fluffy white clouds as he coasted silently through the air. He was a darker coloured pegasus; a deep blue with a hazy blonde mane. A cutie mark consisting of the moon mostly hidden behind dark rainclouds was stark on both of his flanks. It was near midnight, and the light of the moon gilded the wispy clouds in quicksilver, lighting the way for the pegasus and giving him direction.
He was on patrol. As part of the Nightwatch, it was his duty to ensure that storm clouds didn’t creep over the border and into Equestria during the night. It was a very lazy job, punctuated by long spells of having nothing to do. But it was an important job, and Cloud Dancer took it seriously, for the most part.
It had been near a week since Cloud Dancer had seen a proper storm cloud, and that was a small one creeping over the border of the Everfree, making a beeline for the Dark Palace where Princess Luna resided with her guards. He had headed it off long before it reached the palace.
Princess Luna’s palace was part of his patrol route, but he had no cause to approach the palace itself for any reason. Storm clouds did not venture towards the hillside where the palace was located, and if they did, it was always after they had already crested the mountain from the other side. When they came from that direction, Cloud Dancer would have enough of a warning to head them off and send them towards the Everfree.
Even now, Cloud Dancer could see the palace in his peripheral vision, its twisted spires rising into the sky like dark claws against the sanguine of the night. Rumour had it that the palace had once belonged to Discord himself, before the two sisters wrested control of the land from him. Some nights, Cloud Dancer fancied that he could see Princess Luna on the balcony of her palace tower, watching the night through her telescope.
Already, Cloud Dancer’s sweep was complete, and he was free for the rest of the night. It would take storm clouds at least another hour or two to creep over the border, and even then, they would be too close to the edge of the forest for them to greatly affect anything.
Cloud Dancer was no more than a shadow in the night as he swept down from on high and plucked a hoof-full of wheat, rising back up into the clouds. The young pegasus settled himself down on a cloud for a rest, laying on his back on the highest cloud he could find, wings slightly spread for balance, one hoof behind his head as he idly chewed on the stalk of a piece of wheat, looking up at the stars.
It was one of Cloud Dancer’s favorite things to do. Just watching the stars. The way they swirled across the night sky in uniform speed and direction. It was a hard movement to pick up for a regular pony. But when you had the benefit of hours of free time to just watch, you could see various stars slip below the horizon or hide themselves away from sight below the peak of a mountain.
Cloud Dancer felt very small against the backdrop of the sky like this, lying so high up on a cloud. There was nothing around him but open air, and the ebony firmament of the night, studded with twinkling stars like so many tiny fireflies.
By carefully angling his head, he could hide away the moon behind a hoof, and shade his eyes from its brightness. After long enough like this, he had discovered that it was possible to reveal a thousand more stars than normal, a veritable bounty of pinpoint lights in the darkness.
Cloud Dancer did not know how long he stared up at the stars for. Time seemed meaningless against the beauty of the night. But a nervous clearing of someponies throat jarred him from his reverie.
The young pegasus turned about to find who had interrupted his stargazing, and just about fell off his cloud.
None other than Princess Luna was hovering in place behind him with silent sweeps of dark wings, watching him.
Cloud Dancer’s hooves gripped the cloud so tight that droplets of water began to bead and drip down to the earth far below, and his eyes widened, his voice dying in his throat.
“P-Princess L-Luna?!” he squeaked.
“Aye. ‘Tis I.” Princess Luna nodded in acknowledgement, a quick tilt of her wings bringing her closer to his cloud. “May I beg of you that I share your cloud? My wings grow weary.”
Mouth suddenly dry, Cloud Dancer tried to shape a hasty response, pushing off from the cloud and hovering a few feet away. “Y-yeah! S-sure! I-I gotta get back to work anyhow! So... Uhm... I... bye!”
And with that, Cloud Dancer closed his wings and dropped several hundred feet in the passage of a few seconds, dropping below cloud cover and hiding himself away from sight, his heart pounding somewhere in his throat. He could hardly believe that Princess Luna herself had wanted his cloud!
To Cloud Dancer’s mind, she must have been there to reprimand him for shirking his duties. Perhaps a cloud had strayed above her palace while he was stargazing?
A quick route around the palace told him that no clouds had appeared there, and the young pegasus was left confused as to what the Dark Princess could have wanted with his cloud, so far above the earth.
Overcome with curiosity, Cloud Dancer cautiously made his way back up towards the cloud he had been lazing on, keeping his wingbeats slow and silent. He wasn’t even level with the cloud when he saw the edge of Princess Luna’s distinctive mane and tail trailing off the edge of the cloud, dark and hazy in the moonlight.
Cloud Dancer eased himself into a backwing, hovering in place for a moment, trying to divine what Princess Luna was doing. To his mind, she was doing what he had been; watching the sky. It made sense, seeing as she was the princess of the night.
The pegasus was about to turn away when he caught sight of the side of Princess Luna’s face, and saw the solitary line of a tear trailing down it, sparkling crystalline in the moonlight.
It was such an odd sight, to see the Princess of the Night crying like a normal pony. Cloud Dancer wasn’t sure what to do, if he should inquire if she needed help, or just shut his mouth and go about his duties like he hadn’t seen. Casting his gaze about, he could find no trace of Princess Luna’s almost omnipotent Dark Guard, and wondered for a moment where they might be.
Summoning up all of his courage, Cloud Dancer silently winged his way up closer to the cloud, and then tentatively asked, “P-princess Luna? Are you okay?”
Princess Luna sniffled faintly, turning away from the pegasus, and then trying her best to wipe her tears away with a hoof. When she turned back to face him, her eyes looked normal, but there was a deep sadness in their cyan depths.
“I am fine,” Luna assured, her expression blank, the gentle wind swirling her long mane in delicate ripples.
“I saw you crying,” Cloud Dancer said quietly, his ears pinning back, wings still sweeping at the air to keep him in place. “I hope I didn’t offend you or anything...”
“No, it is quite alright. Come, rest thy wings,” Luna said, motioning to the space of cloud beside her.
Cloud Dancer tilted forwards, and then alighted on the cloud next to the dark princess, feeling his ears redden with embarrassment. “W-why are you up here?”
Princess Luna didn’t answer for a long moment, and then turned to face him more fully, hanging her head. “I... I wished to converse with you.”
Cloud Dancer blinked at that, bewildered. “M-me? But I’m just a cloud chaser...”
“It is not who are you... But rather what you do. I was hoping that... But no. It is silly.” Luna shook her head slowly, turning away again, spreading her wings to take flight. “Do not trouble yourself.”
“No, wait!” Cloud Dancer said, quickly reaching out hooves as though to stop her.
Princess Luna paused mid-crouch, looking back at him, raising a brow slowly.
Cloud Dancer’s ears pinned back, and he relaxed down onto his haunches uncertainly. “I... I just wanted to thank you.”
“I have done nothing of note,” Luna stated, shaking her head once.
“No, I wanted to thank you for the night,” Cloud Dancer said awkwardly. “I know you control the night skies... And well, I just... I don’t think anypony ever takes the time to thank you for any of it...”
Cloud Dancer didn’t mention that he had thought a lot on it, and the legend of Nightmare Moon. He had even fantasized about telling her this, and her being grateful enough to kiss his cheek, or something stupid like that. But that was far from his mind. Especially now, as he had delivered his platitude in such a thoroughly awkward manner.
“I... You are correct,” Luna said with a sad shake of her head. “I thank you... I realise just now that I do not know your name.”
“I am Cloud Dancer,” he replied instantly, saluting the princess with a forehoof. “Cloud Dancer of the Nightwatch.”
“It is very nice to meet you, Cloud Dancer. You already know that I am Princess Luna,” Luna said, bowing her head in respect. “But please, do call me ‘Luna’.”
“I shall do that, prin-- I mean, Luna.” Cloud Dancer flushed faintly at the automatic slip of his tongue, catching it just in time.
“It was nice to meet you, Cloud Dancer,” Luna said gently, waving a hoof at him sadly. “I shall take my leave. Thank you for your words.”
Cloud Dancer winced, unable to shake the feeling that he had done something wrong.
“I’m here a lot, if you want to come talk sometime...” Cloud Dancer said, and instantly began berating himself in his mind for saying such a stupid thing to Princess Luna of all ponies.
Princess Luna paused, giving him a wistful look over her shoulder, before she dropped off the cloud and disappeared into the night.
For the rest of the night, Cloud Dancer found it hard to stay still. He was restless and fidgety, and couldn’t relax. But Princess Luna didn’t return, and he pushed the incident out of his mind.
A week later, and Cloud Dancer had decided that the incident was a one-off. A jarring note in his usual routine.
But when he scooted up to his favorite cloud, he found a dark form laid out there on her back, as though waiting for him. Princess Luna.
Cloud Dancer did a quick mid-air double-take, backwinging so hard that he actually did a backflip in the air before coming to rest in a hover.
“H-hi,” he said nervously, as Luna turned to regard him.
“Good evening, Cloud Dancer,” Luna said, gently inclining her head towards him. “Come, rest thy wings.”
Cloud Dancer alighted on the cloud beside her, and then sat there awkwardly, not quite sure what to say or do.
“Nice night,” he said nervously, feeling his ears burn again.
Luna looked stunning. Even without any kind of enhancement, she just looked regal and beautiful, especially with her flowing blue sparkling mane. Cloud Dancer had fantasized about running his hooves through those lustrous locks; imagined what they would feel like. Even under the meagre light of the full moon, she looked amazing.
“I am glad that you think so. I do work so hard on them,” Luna said, that sad note in her tone again.
Cloud Dancer winced faintly, and then delicately laid himself out on the cloud, crossing his forehooves and resting his chin on them, watching the princess out of the corner of his eye. “You said last time... That you were hoping for something?”
“It is a foolish, romanticized fantasy that has no place in reality,” Luna said with a shake of her head.
“Romanticized?” Cloud Dancer asked, bewildered. For the merest of moments, he fantasized that she felt an attraction for him, before pushing the thought from his mind.
“Indeed,” Luna stated, casting her gaze to the heavens and sighing faintly, electing not to elaborate.
“I won’t laugh, promise,” Cloud Dancer said, placing a hoof against his chest, trying to sound and appear honest.
Luna gave a faint sigh at that, and then rolled to face the pegasus, looking down at the silver metal that enclosed her right hoof, frowning slightly. “I had hoped... I had... Just...”
Luna trailed off with another sigh, shaking her head slowly. “I wished for somepony to share the night with. Somepony who would appreciate my night and praise me for them. Somepony whom I could stargaze with and enjoy the simple pleasure of their company without my duties or status getting in the way...”
Cloud Dancer splayed his ears backwards at that, and then shook his head slowly, before assuring, “No... No. That isn’t foolish at all.”
“You do not believe so?” Luna asked after a moment, looking up at him imploringly. “It seems impossible for me to find such a thing.”
“I love your nights,” Cloud Dancer attested. “It’s my favorite thing to do... Just laze on this cloud and watch the night sky.”
Luna nodded gently. “I have observed you here many a night... Trying to get up the courage to come speak to you.”
Cloud Dancer blinked at that, turning to give Luna his undivided attention, bewildered. “What? You’re a princess! Why would you need courage to talk to some random Nightwatch pegasus?”
Luna gave a soft laugh, hollow and unhappy. “Have you ever built something up in your mind, and then had immense doubts when you went to go through with it?”
“Once or twice,” Cloud Dancer admitted, giving a nervous chuckle. “But... why would you be nervous about meeting me?”
“I was afraid. Afraid that my expectations would be too high, or that you would be uncouth... Or that I would scare you away,” Luna said softly.
Cloud Dancer winced deeply as he realised he had done exactly that; he had been scared away.
“But... It’s just. You’re Princess Luna,” Cloud Dancer protested, his ears splaying flat against his skull. “I wasn’t sure what to think when you came up on me like that.”
“I am a princess, yes,” Luna stated, shaking her head. “But I am also a pony. I have normal needs and desires like a pony does... And perhaps some of my needs are greater than other’s due to my position. I find that I have little to no social contact with ‘normal’ ponies... They are intimidated by me and the vast, vast majority of them sleep when I am awake.”
Cloud Dancer winced sympathetically at both the facts that Luna was relaying, and her tone: lonely, hurt, and unappreciated.
“I’m... Sorry to hear that,” Cloud Dancer said with a slight shake of his head. “I wish there was something I could do.”
“And thou art intimidated too!” Luna accused, scowling. “We lay out our heart and thou dost not offer to share our company, thou dost not offer to share thy nights!”
Cloud Dancer winced backwards at the sudden anger in Luna’s tone, trying his best to placate her with soothing words. “I-I’m sorry Princess Luna. B-but you’re a princess! You wouldn’t wanna hang out with a pegasus!”
“That is exactly what we want!” Luna protested with a scowl, rolling over and stamping her hoof into the cloud so hard that a bolt of lightning rent the air beneath it.
Cloud Dancer wasn’t sure what to say to that. Vague protests of ‘but you’re a princess’ and similar chased themselves through his mind before he dismissed them, unsure what to say to the princess.
Luna gave a long sigh, and she turned away from him, shaking her head. Her tone was bitter as she stated flatly, “Leave us.”
Cloud Dancer lifted a hoof and opened his mouth to say something, before closing it again, looking down at his hooves sadly. “I’m sorry... Just...”
“Leave.” Princess Luna pointed with a hoof to her right, imploring the pegasus to follow its direction.
Cloud Dancer trailed off his attempt at trying to placate and soothe the princess, turning and spreading his wings, dropping from the cloud.
Princess Luna waited several long moment, before delicately laying herself out on the cloud and then staring up to the night sky, tears beginning to spill from her eyes and to the cloud beneath her. She just wanted a semblance of normalcy. Or even somepony to talk to on the long, lonely nights. Someone who appreciated her nights and let her know that they were beautiful. Someone who praised her earnest efforts. But it was impossible.
In a thousand years, nothing had changed...
But then, there was the rustle of wings returning, and the weight of somepony else on the cloud with her.
“We told you to leave,” Luna stated flatly.
There was no response, and Luna had time to look over her shoulder and catch sight of Cloud Dancer nervously chewing his bottom lip, before a pair of warm hooves were wrapping around her chest.
Luna blinked once, and then struggled slightly against the grip. “What is thy intention?”
“I’m treating you like a normal pony,” Cloud Dancer said with a wince, his face screwed up in expectation of a rebuke as he hugged her doggedly.
Luna opened her mouth as though to protest, to tell him to stop, before her demeanour softened, and she relaxed into the hug, leaning her weight slightly into it. She peered up at him for a moment, looking alone and vulnerable as she murmured softly, “P-please don’t stop.”
Cloud Dancer’s heart beat hard in his chest as he peered down at the sleeping form of Princess Luna. The dark princess had fallen asleep a few minutes previously, resting against him. His mind was having trouble coping with the fact that he had Princess Luna sleeping against him like that.
It was almost surreal to the pegasus. After he had so brazenly decided to hug her, she had just closed her eyes and rested her head against him, as though to enjoy the sensations. And then she had fallen asleep.
Cloud Dancer knew he should be out doing his rounds again, but to move would upset the princess’s position, and he wasn’t willing to awaken her for something so trivial.
One thing he did note though, was the sensation of her mane against his hooves. It was soft and smooth, and light. It was like weightless silk against his hooves. The slightest breeze caused it to lift and ripple. There was a slight sensation to it, like static, only very low-key. It was almost imperceptible, but at the same time, added a whole new element of splendour to the touch of her mane.
And laid out like that, asleep, Luna was stunning. Cloud Dancer had no words to express exactly how beautiful she was. From her dark blue hide, the black of her cutie mark, the contrasting silver covering on her hooves, and that absolutely gorgeous blue mane and tail, with their magical sparkles. And she was sleeping next to him!
Cloud Dancer shuddered faintly, all of a sudden nervous. He felt woefully inadequate next to the princess. But he couldn’t help but appreciate her beauty. With a delicate hoof, he gently moved a lock of her silky mane out of her face, twisting it lightly to lay it along the rest of her mane, out of her way.
A soft sound left the princess, and she stirred fitfully, her eyes blinking open to stare up at him for a long moment. She mumbled incoherently and then closed her eyes again, returning to sleep. Cloud Dancer felt his heart swell somewhere in the vicinity of the base of his throat.
Cloud Dancer shakily laid his head down on the cloud, and peeked at Princess Luna for a long moment, before closing his eyes, letting out a shaky exhale. He wasn’t going to move until Luna was gone, so he just tried his best to rest.
It was an hour or so later that Cloud Dancer awoke, eyes fluttering open to find that Princess Luna was gone. The spot she had occupied was cold and empty, as though she had never been there. There was, however, something else there; a rose with perfectly black petals.
Cloud Dancer scooped up the rose, blinking at it for a moment, before he smiled.
It was another week before Cloud Dancer saw Princess Luna again, and that was only at a distance, when she was flanked by her guards, in her chariot, flying off to visit Princess Celestia or Canterlot. He really wasn’t sure. It was a little bit of a let down that she hadn’t come to find him again, but he reminded himself that she was a princess, and he a mere Nighwatch pegasus, and it didn’t seem such a big deal.
The following evening though, his stargazing was interrupted by Princess Luna unceremoniously thudding down on her back beside him. Cloud Dancer barely had time to yelp and begin leaping off the cloud before a hoof stopped him, holding him in place.
“Relax, Cloud Dancer. It is merely I,” Luna stated.
“T-that’s not so much a reassurance,” Cloud Dancer admitted, ears pinning flat as he tried his best to relax back into position.
“Are you so intimidated by my presence?” Luna asked, frowning.
Cloud Dancer nodded, stating, “Yes. You’re a princess.”
“And if I were not a princess?” Luna countered, perking an ear.
The pegasus flushed faintly and then shook his head. “Then you’re the most beautiful mare I ever saw and I’d still be intimidated.”
“You have a silver tongue, you rogue,” Luna accused, a faint smile lifting the corners of her lips.
“I’m not going to lie to a princess,” Cloud Dancer said, pinning his ears back.
Luna pondered on that for a long moment, before rolling to face him properly. “If I were to accept that as true... Then tell me, what would you do with me were I not a princess?”
“Absolutely nothing,” Cloud Dancer said immediately. “You are so far out of my league.”
“If I were in your league?” Luna amended, a brow raising.
“Then I would... I don’t know. I’m kinda clumsy with the whole friendship thing,” Cloud Dancer admitted, giving a nervous laugh.
“You would gaze at the stars with me? You would fly through the clouds with me?” Luna asked, her ears perking. She seemed hopeful, like a young filly asking for a cookie.
“I would do those and more, if you wished... If you were anywhere near my league. And not a princess,” Cloud Dancer said, trying his best not to stammer, swallowing thickly a moment to try and curb his embarrassment.
Luna nodded at that, and then stared at him for several long moments, unblinking. “...And if I were to ask you to treat me as a normal mare for a night?”
Cloud Dancer stammered a moment, trying to phrase an answer, “W-well I-I... I-I d-dunno...”
A hoof came up, silencing him, gently laying on his lips as Luna shook her head slowly. “I wish to experience a night of normalcy... Show me what it is that you do. Teach me your job as a Nightwatch Pegasus. Show me your world.”
Cloud Dancer swallowed hard at the request, and then nodded shakily, rolling over onto his hooves. “W-well... I’m probably a bit overdue for my sweep...”
“Very well, I shall accompany you,” Luna said with a firm nod, climbing to her hooves.
Cloud Dancer shakily lifted himself to his own hooves, turning around and splaying his wings. With a shaky jump, he was off, spreading his wings and catching the air to stabilise himself as he dove down towards the wispy clouds. A quick glance behind him affirmed that Luna was following, keeping up with him effortlessly, dark blue wings spread wide to catch the air, her cyan eyes narrowed on him.
Moving to face the front again, Cloud Dancer levelled out, and began to coast towards the Everfree forest, skimming the cloud banks, letting his hooves brush against them in passing.
Behind him, Luna was carefully avoiding the clouds, dark wings sweeping far less than his own, their large surfaces giving her a stronger flying ability than Cloud Dancer could ever attain. He felt that he could strain himself and go as fast as he liked, and Luna would still be able to keep up without problem.
Up ahead, he could see a bank of storm clouds beginning to drift over the trees of the Everfree, heading for Equestria. Clouds were always a problem when they came from the Everfree. The weather there wasn’t controlled by the pegasi, and rogue storms were common. It was in his job description that he not let storms cross the borders and wreak havoc with the weather cycles.
Ahead of the two ponies was a building storm front that would have to be split and beaten until they disgorged their load of rain and could be sent safely across the skies towards the other end of Equestria and beyond.
It was a large cloudbank that had to be cleared, but Cloud Dancer had done much more by himself. He was more worried about Princess Luna behind him. Clearing storm clouds was often a very messy, imprecise act that required great deals of time and effort. He just wasn’t sure how Luna would handle the hard work required to clear the towering storm clouds.
Slowing into a hover, Cloud Dancer turned to peer back at the princess, waiting for her to get closer.
“Uhm... You might want to pick a cloud and just watch,” Cloud Dancer said when Luna was close enough to discern his words.
“Nonsense!” Luna protested, waving a hoof dismissively. “Teach me your techniques for cloud clearing. Do not tarry, the clouds move fast.”
Cloud Dancer bit his bottom lip, frowning deeply. Luna was right, of course. If he wasted too much time arguing with the princess, then he’d be cutting it close to get the clouds cleared before they hit the eastern crop fields.
“Ach... Fine! But don’t get lost in the thunderheads! It’s easy to get turned around when you can’t see the ground. If you think you’re getting lost, just fly up. Get above the clouds. And whatever you do, watch the ground. I don’t want to be sitting on the moon for a thousand years because you smashed yourself into a mountainside flying through fog!” Cloud Dancer said flatly to the princess. He was already slipping into his ‘training’ mode. He had recently been teaching younger pegasi how to chase storm clouds at night, which was tenfold more dangerous than daytime storm chasing.
Luna nodded, absorbing the information, watching him intently.
“Wait here!” Cloud Dancer commanded, before wheeling about and diving towards the nearest stormfront, cutting into it with a quick flick of his wings, diving into the roiling clouds fearlessly. In a few seconds, he had extricated a section of cloud, and began pushing it towards where Luna was still hovering, bringing it to a halt in front of her.
“Now watch! You need to carve off pieces of the storm clouds and then give them a good, hard smash with hooves to get them to drop most of their water!” Cloud Dancer said, shouting to be heard over the growing wind and the growling of thunder. “But be careful not to strike them too hard! You’ll cause a lightning strike!”
“I am familiar with how to produce lightning from clouds,” Luna said calmly, remembering when she had did that to deter a prankster on nightmare night. “It requires a more... Pinching blow than a true strike.”
Cloud Dancer nodded once, and then pushed higher into the air, twisting around and then diving towards the section of cloud he had extricated, wings spreading and angling tightly so that when he punched through the centre of the cloud, he carved a wide swathe through it, causing it to split and begin spreading apart. He then curled around and came back up from the underside, to cut through the cloud remaining. With a quick twist, he did a loop and then landed on one of the cloud halves with all four hooves, causing the entire stormy grey object to release what seemed to be several bucket-loads of water into the sky.
Luna watched this with interest, absorbing all the information she could.
Cloud Dancer turned towards her again, kicking the now-white cloud away with a push of his hindlegs. “Now you try!”
Luna nodded, and then angled up herself, sweeping her way into the clouds and then diving down, spreading her wings wide. She angled them too far back at first, and she lost speed going through the cloud. Instantly, she was soaking wet, and came out the underside of the cloud glistening wet, her lovely mane slicked down against her neck and shoulders. Somehow, it just made her even more alluring.
Instead of curling around to bounce on top of the cloud as Cloud Dancer did, Luna merely angled her head, her horn beginning to glow. A bolt of lightning-like magic shot from her horn, and hit the cloud, causing it to instantly quiver and disgorge its liquid contents to the sky below.
“This way is most efficient, yes?!” Luna called above the wind with a fierce smile.
Cloud Dancer grinned, and the two ponies dived into the stormfront
Swirling tendrils of cloud whipped past the two ponies as they dove through the clouds, scything through cloudbanks and dividing them up, with Cloud Dancer leaping atop them and hitting them with his hooves to get them to drop their load of water. Luna, for her part, hit them with her magical blasts, causing them to constrict and wring out like a twisted sponge.
Again and again, they divided up the clouds, sending rain showering to the ground and then kicking the clouds towards Equestria, where their fluffy white shapes would do no harm to the crops. The two ponies wheels around each other, at once working, and at the same time, enjoying themselves. Luna was quite happy to be doing something tactile. Cloud Dancer was experienced enough to be able to do storm work almost without thought, leaving him time to appreciate how Luna did the same thing he did. She was a very fast learner, and had already become faster and more efficient than him. With her magic, she could just wring out a length of cloud and send it scooting across the sky, before moving to the next one.
It was completely different to be doing this with a princess. And watching her work was a wonder. The water slicked down her fur, and dripped from her wings. She was an exceptionally good flier, fast and strong. She wasn’t as agile as Cloud Dancer, but she had a broader wingspan that was great for slicing large chunks from the cloudbank. And with her magic, she more than made up for the lack of agility, and was actually faster at clearing clouds than he was.
Soon, they were down to just one large bank of cloud to clear. The two ponies exchanged a glance, and a challenge was issued between them. Cloud Dancer’s eyes narrowed, and he angled himself in towards the cloud, scything through the centre of it and beginning to twist himself into a spiral, cutting long swathes from the cloudbank with his angled wings, condensation drenching him.
Luna was close behind, laughing as she swept through great amounts of clouds with her broader wingspan, crackling magic in her horn forcing the clouds to deliver their liquid cargo to the Everfree forest below.
Cloud Dancer finished his spiral, and then reversed it, curling right down to the base of the spiral, before he turned and grabbed the base of the spiralled cloud he had created, tugging it upwards to begin curling it over itself, so he could empty it all at once.
There was a rush of wings, and a flash of blue, and suddenly, his spiral was broken at the centre, splitting in half. Luna laughed maniacally, and then pounced on one end of the cloud, clapping her hooves down on it, pinching the cloud. A clap of thunder echoed loud in the darkness, and a brilliant flash of lightning flared.
“We are the queen of the storm!” Luna declared with all the power of her royal voice, pinching the cloud again, causing another brilliant starburst of lightning in the night.
“You cheated!” Cloud Dancer protested, huffing at her and kicking the large cloud he was left with, causing it to begin drenching the ground far below. A long series of puffy white clouds were coasting across the night sky harmlessly, placidly floating towards the western border.
Luna snorted once, and then gave him a saucy grin, poking her tongue out at him teasingly. “Tis not our fault thou hast no horn!”
Cloud Dancer rolled his eyes, and then leapt at her cloud, slamming himself atop it, causing it to ripple, and then bounce the princess off it completely, sending her several feet into the air.
Luna squeaked in surprise at finding herself airborne, quickly coming down onto the top of the cloud with an ‘oof’ of surprise, casting an angry gaze towards Cloud Dancer.
“Thou dare to attack us so?!” Luna snarled, her eyes narrowing and lightning seeming to crackle around her.
Cloud Dancer’s eyes widened, and he recoiled slightly at the tone of her voice. He didn’t even move to protect himself as Luna launched her larger form at him, crashing into him with her surprisingly light form and sending them both spilling off the cloud. With a deft twist of her wings, Luna guided them to a fluffy cloud below, where she pinned Cloud Dancer down with a grin, staring down into his eyes.
The Nightwatch pegasus stared up at her, his eyes wide, unsure how to react. Luna was smiling, as though it were a joke, but her tone had been so serious.
“This is our cloud!” Luna attested, quickly rearing back and then slamming her hooves into the cloud, causing it to roil and buck Cloud Dancer from its side.
Cloud Dancer reached for the cloud as he was thrown free, trying to arrest his fall. his flailing hooves swiped through a portion of the cloud frictionlessly, leaving the pegasus to fall downwards.
There was barely enough time for Cloud Dancer to turn around before he thudded into a cloud with a light whump!, splayed out on his stomach and just slightly winded from the impact, blinking slowly. He cast his gaze upwards, finding the smiling face of Princess Luna watching him from the edge of her cloud. She laughed merrily, and then waved a hoof down at him. “I win!”
“You still cheated!” Cloud Dancer called up towards her, shaking a hoof as though angry.
Luna laughed in response, waving a hoof down at him teasingly, “I can’t hear you all the way down there!”
Cloud Dancer scowled playfully as Princess Luna withdrew to the centre of the cloud, and he climbed to his hooves, launching himself up onto her cloud.
Luna gave him a coy smile, head tilting to the side as she watched him.
“You cheated!” Cloud Dancer accused again.
Luna grinned at him in response, and then waved a hoof towards the cleared skies, “It is most effective though, yes?”
Cloud Dancer nodded, smiling. “It is!”
“We had much fun,” Luna said with a happy nod, watching him.
“I had fun too,” Cloud Dancer replied, smiling in response, flicking his wings to clear some of the droplets of water from them.
“We must take our leave though,” Luna admitted, bowing her head sadly for a moment. “Our guards will be wondering where we are.”
Cloud Dancer splayed his ears backwards, having a sudden horror image of a phalanx of Dark Guards appearing and goring him for ‘kidnapping’ their princess. “They don’t know you’re gone?!”
A soft giggle left the princess, the first truly girlish sound Cloud Dancer had heard from her. “What fun is there without risk?”
Cloud Dancer nodded awkwardly a moment at that, and then danced in place. “But what if the Dark Guards find out?!”
“Do not fear for your safety. I’ll not allow you to come to harm,” Luna said with a warm smile. “Farewell, Cloud Dancer.”
“Goodbye, Princess Luna,” Cloud Dancer said, bowing his front legs.
Luna gave a wan smile at that, before she turned and leapt from the cloud, disappearing into the night.
Another week passed without incident, but on the eighth night, a storm brewed up from above the Everfree, and Cloud Dancer moved to meet it, to carve it up into neat little fluffy clouds and send the new harmless clouds floating across nighttime Equestria.
Cloud Dancer slowed into a backwing, hovering in place as he regarded the towering storm clouds in front of him, pondering on how best to attack them. As a single pegasus, attacking a storm wasn’t like when doing it with a full team. Consideration had to be taken to ensure that you got the entire leading edge of the storm and didn’t accidentally ‘sheer’ a cloud formation off and allow it to drift ahead of the rest and drench the fields before it could be divided and drained. It wasn’t uncommon for Cloud Dancer to enlist the help of various groups, such as the Wonderbolt trainee’s, in ensuring that a storm didn’t ruin a crop. On one memorable occasion, the entirety of the Nightwatch and the entire Wonderbolt squad, Spitfire and Soarin included, had all worked together to curb the violence of a storm whose ferocity was only seen once a decade.
This storm, thankfully, was small enough for Cloud Dancer to take care of himself.
The pegasus was about to tackle the task of taming the storm, when a dark shape flitted past him, a ripple of blue mane and tail gilding the blur. Teasing words were shot over Luna’s should as she dove towards the storm; “Thy wings must beat fast if thou art hoping to win this contest!”
Cloud Dancer blinked after Luna, subconsciously noting how her speech changed when she was excited or emotional. First to go was the ‘I’, and then next was the full ‘thou’ and ‘thee’ and ‘thusly’. Narrowing his eyes, he tilted forwards and dropped into a dive, shooting after Luna, propelling himself with neat flicks of his wings.
The two ponies disappeared into the depths of the storm clouds, and instantly were lost from view, weaving and scything through the cloudbanks in intricate patterns. Flashes of lightning shone brilliant in the dark, and the roar of thunder echoed around them as they wheeled around each other, laughing and exulting in the adrenaline of such exuberant activities.
In the midst of the storm, dividing cloudbanks with hard dives and twists of his wings, Cloud Dancer forgot that he was flying with a princess. She was just another pony to him, a teammate helping him to clear the storm. He felt almost giddy with happiness. He had no clue that storm chasing could be this fun!
Even with the rolling peals of thunder, Cloud Dancer was not afraid. Any time charge began to build in the clouds, he would feel it, deep in his pinions, and would know automatically to juke away from that cloud before it discharged lightning into the Everfree Forest.
But there was something else building in the storm.
As soon as he felt the wind tugging at his wingtips, Cloud Dancer knew it. He knew it deep down in the pit of his stomach. His heart began to pound harder, and his eyes cast left and right, seeking out the dark shape of Luna.
A brilliant flash of lightning illuminated the night, and he caught sight of the princess, gleefully dividing up part of the storm and hitting the pieces with bolts of lightning-shaped magic from her horn, causing them to dump their contents over the Everfree Forest. She was completely unaware of what was happening!
Cloud Dancer put on a burst of speed, rocketing towards the princess. A powerful katabatic wind assaulted him, and uncertain air currents forced him off-target, buffeting his wings. He wheeled around the princess, shouting to be heard over the building roar of the wind.
“We have to get out of the storm!” Cloud Dancer yelled.
Luna paused in her motions, head tilting at him, ears perking, obviously confused and not quite getting his meaning, before nodding and smiling as though she understood, turning back to continue her duties with a smirk.
Cloud Dancer frowned deeply, casting his gaze about, getting more and more concerned. How could she not know?!
The pegasus dove down towards the princess, brushing against her this time, his forehooves locking with her own to keep them from separating in the strengthening winds. Cloud Dancer and Luna spun about with the imparted force of his grabbing her hoof, and he leaned in close to yell at her to get out of the storm.
And then she kissed him.
Time seemed to stop as Cloud Dancer felt the princess’s lips against his own. His eyes widened, and his breath caught in his throat as his heart skipped a beat, his wingbeats faltering. Everything seemed to just slow down for him. He fancied that he could see each individual raindrop as it speared past them, could see every droplet of water on her hide, or slicking down her lovely mane. The wind didn’t matter, the lightning didn’t matter. All that mattered was the princess, and her lips pressed to his own, and her eyes gazing into his. It was a perfect moment, and he wanted to hold it forever.
And then a powerful wind smashed into the two ponies and they separated forcefully, each of them dropping heavily before regaining their wingbeats.
Reality came crashing back, and Cloud Dancer juked towards the princess, trying to get close. He had felt it in the wind, the subtle shifting of directions. It was eerie, a foreshadowing of what was forming in the depths of the storm. It was a sensation that all pegasi feared; the forming of a cyclone.
Even now, the shifting winds were intensifying, and growing more unpredictable. The clouds above them began to swirl and shift in angry excitement.
Even Princess Luna realised her predicament, and began to beat at the air harder, trying to counteract the force of the wind with pure power. A rookie mistake.
Cloud Dancer dove towards her, as hard and as fast as he could, his smaller wingspan allowing him to slip through gaps in the wind that would have fouled a large pegasus and definitely the princess. Vicious winds assaulted him, threatening to tear the muscles in his wings, straining them and attempting to twist him from his flight-path. He kept doggedly on, determined to reach the princess.
Their hooves came mere inches from eachother as Cloud Dancer swooped passed the princess, immediately trying to backwing to reach her, finding that a powerful wind was pushing against him, forcing him away from her. He growled in anger, trying to slip down and around the wind, discovering that it was part of a much larger current of air. He could feel it beginning to twist, and he quickly folded his wings, deliberately dropping dozens of feet, away from the curling winds. They were starting to form the funnel.
Cloud Dancer looked around, and saw that Luna was still fighting the wind with all her might. She was exceptionally powerful with her wingbeats. He knew the winds would have tossed him about like a ragdoll, but Luna was managing to fight them, and even making headway. But the intensifying winds were getting worse, growing stronger by the second. And Luna was in the midst of where the funnel would form.
Everything in Cloud Dancer’s being screamed at him to get out of the storm while he could. But he couldn’t leave the princess behind. He wouldn’t be able to live with himself if he did.
The funnel began to form, and Luna saw it, her eyes widening, struggling to get away from it. Cloud Dancer tried to shout at her to smash her way into the wind-funnel, but his voice was snatched away by the howling winds.
Scowling, Cloud Dancer strove towards the princess, stinging needles of rain splattering against his face and wings with their vehemence, making him want to cover his face with his hooves or protect himself with his wings. But still, he strove onwards.
A long funnel of swirling air descended from the clouds, reaching down to touch the ground and lay a tendril of destruction to the land. Cloud Dancer had never seen a cyclone from so close before, and he watched with horror-struck fascination as the funnel ripped a tree out of the ground and sent it spinning end-over-end into the darkness.
Princess Luna saw it too, and began to panic, her eyes widening as she strove harder against the wind.
Cloud Dancer strove towards her, expending energy in an attempt to get close enough to tell her how to breach the funnel wall and break through to the calmer air inside. From there, they would be able to work their way out.
But already, Luna was being buffeted by the storm, the wind catching in her larger wings and bending her to its will. Panicking, the princess fired off a burst of magic, attempting to do something to the storm, but only managing to deplete her strength even further.
The pegasus snarled in defiance as he punched through the winds around the funnel, and fell into place beside Luna, their wings almost overlapping. “Punch through the funnel wall!”
Even at his loudest, his voice barely carried over the wind, the words snatched away by the wind roaring between them.
“Punch through!” Cloud Dancer reiterated, taking a moment to smack Luna across the face with a wingtip, losing precious altitude as he did so, almost sending himself into an unrecoverable spiral that would have terminated in the ground far below.
Luna blinked as the wingtip smacked against her face, and then looked towards him with wide, scared eyes.
Cloud Dancer snarled in anger, and then committed what he would later decide was the stupidest risk he had ever taken as part of the Nightwatch.
With a quick flutter of his wings, he rolled himself over the Princess, barrel-rolling over her and folding his own wings, quickly gripping her shoulders and hips with all four of his hooves, and then rolling them both into the rushing wall of the funnel.
Impossibly strong winds smashed into them, tossing them about like a ragdoll, but then, they were through! The wind instantly died down, and Cloud Dancer let go of the princess, spreading his wings in an attempt to catch himself before he got too far from the funnel wall.
An immensely powerful katabatic wind smashed down on his shoulders and wings, forcing him towards the ground with frightening speed. Cloud Dancer ignored every instinct he had, and submitted to the powerful downward-rushing flow of air, letting it force him down towards the dangerous treetops. Luna could do nothing but watch, aghast, her own flight-path being determined by the winds at the inside of the funnel, forcing her in a looping spiral that was pushing her upwards.
Cloud Dancer managed to escape the rush of air at the last moment, feeling his hooves brush against a fallen tree before he was thrown into the spiral just as Luna was.
In a mere minute, he had caught up to the princess, riding the relatively calmer currents of air at the inside of the funnel, heading upwards.
“It’s going to get hard to breath!” Cloud Dancer yelled over the wind. “But when we get to the top, follow the winds! Fly out as far as you can and then dive through the clouds! Head away from the funnel!”
Luna nodded to him, looking scared for her life, but her expression set, determined.
“Just remember to use the wind to your advantage! Don’t fight it or you’ll run out of energy and die!” Cloud Dancer kept pace with the princess, imparting his grim wisdom to her as they both rode the funnel towards the top of the clouds. It began to get a little bit harder to breath, but the funnel was cycling oxygen into the space above the clouds, so they had a little leeway before they began to feel any strong effects.
“Turn out here and follow the wind!” Cloud Dancer said as they reached the top of the funnel, and Luna nodded, quickly peeling off, catching onto a current of air and curling away from him, skipping across the top of the deceptively calm clouds.
Cloud Dancer tried to follow, but his wingbeats were slow and clumsy. He barely had the energy left to fly, and it was beginning to show.
A powerful stream of air caught him, and he roared in pain as his wings were forced to an unnatural angle. He felt something snap in his right wing, and the wing just folded in the air, the muscles refusing to work. Blinding pain assaulted him, and he cried out in reflex as the wind snatched him and began to send him hurtling, end-over-end down the centre of the funnel, towards the ground, one wing vainly pinwheeling against the air while the other was forced against his back, unworking.
His eyesight blurred, growing red and black at the edges as random spikes of impossibly strong pain burst through him. After only a few seconds, he lost the will to fight, just letting the wind do to him what it would. He was vaguely aware of the sensation of falling, and the world tilting around him. The wind constantly assaulted him, gusting against him from first one direction, and then the other. And always, he was falling towards the ground, faster and faster.
Cloud Dancer didn’t open his eyes at any point. He didn’t want to know when he was going to die. He didn’t watch the watch the ground rush up to meet him and end his life. And he really hoped to just break his neck the moment he hit. He didn’t want to be limping for three days, lost in the Everfree Forest, before succumbing to exhaustion and dying on the cold ground.
And then, a pair of hooves found his shoulders, followed by another pair. Blue-suited hooves. The Wonderbolts.
As far as Cloud Dancer could tell, it was Spitfire and Soarin, the only two pegasi in all of Equestria who were brave, and crazy, enough to dive into a moon-lit cyclone to rescue another pegasus.
The two were immensely powerful, even better flyers than Luna, their wingbeats sure and unfaltering as they guided the damaged pegasus towards the funnel walls, guiding him upwards through the swirling winds. It was three minutes of pure agony that they were circling the cyclone, before the trio managed to exit at the top. Spitfire and Soarin dragged the Nightwatch pegasus out of the wind trying to snatch them back down, and they each carried him by a wing towards where Luna hovered, waiting, watching with deeply worried eyes, panting for breath.
The air so high up was thin, and it was showing on all four of them. Cloud Dancer whimpered faintly, feeling tears accumulating with the moisture on his face. His wing hurt more than anything he had ever felt. Each jolting wingbeat from Soarin felt like having a dagger shoved into the elbow joint of his wing and sawing back and forth.
Luna flitted over to them, taking note of his wing injury, and then pressing in close. She laid her horn upon his head, and then whispered breathlessly, “Sleep.”
Her horn glowed, and then, Cloud Dancer felt nothing.
Cloud Dancer groaned faintly, stirring slowly. Sunlight assaulted his face and he felt heavy blankets over his form, made of some wonderfully soft material that felt frictionless against his fur.
With a shudder, he opened his eyes, blinking up at the unfamiliar ceiling littered with what appeared to be accurate representations of the stars in the night sky.
“Thou hast awakened,” Luna said, sounding relieved, placing her hooves at the end of the bed and leaned over to peer at him.
Cloud Dancer blinked once, and then shifted a little bit to sit upright more, rubbing his head with a hoof. “Ugh... What happened?”
“Thou hurt thy wing,” Luna said, pointing with a hoof, and then biting her bottom lip. “Thou showed great bravery in fighting the cyclone for us.”
The pegasus rubbed at his forehead, and then twisted around to peer at his wing. It was bandaged tightly, and he couldn’t move it very far. “How bad was I hurt?”
“Thy wing was merely dislocated,” Luna reassured, giving him a gentle smile.
Cloud Dancer winced at that, feeling ashamed. He had been bawling like a foal over a mere dislocated joint.
Luna smiled gently and then pulled herself onto the bed with him.
“Are these your guest quarters?” Cloud Dancer asked nervously as he watched the princess growing closer.
“These are our personal quarters,” Luna purred, pressing closer to him and then laying herself out besides him. With a soft sound, she leaned forwards and locked their lips together, kissing him firmly.
Cloud Dancer didn’t protest, allowing her to kiss him, even kissing her a little in return, unable to help but smile.
When she pulled back, the pegasus perked an ear, grinning at her licking his lips once, nervously. “Is that my reward for braving a cyclone for you?”
Luna shook her head slowly, and then smiled at him coquettishly, tossing her beautiful mane out of her eyes. She pressed closer to him, rubbing herself against him sinuously, leaning up to husk heatedly into his ear, “We have a different reward in mind for thee.”
Cloud Dancer blinked and then stared at the princess for a long moment, mouth parted slightly at her words. Surely she couldn’t mean what he thought she meant? But her tone was undeniably seductive.
Blinking once, the pegasus lifted a hoof, and then whacked himself quite hard in the leg. Instantly, his lower leg went numb.
Luna raised a brow at him slowly.
“N-not dreaming?” Cloud Dancer asked, his mouth suddenly going dry.
“Not dreaming,” Luna attested, as she gently pulled herself atop him, straddling him. She paused a moment, showing concern, “This does not hurt thy wings, does it?”
Cloud Dancer shook his head vigorously, staring up at the princess, eyes widened. She could have been twisting his wing underneath his full weight and he wouldn’t have complained. He could feel her rump resting against his stomach, with the full weight of her body behind it. Her lovely silky tail was brushing against his own.
With a low, happy hum, Luna leaned in and kissed him again. This time, Cloud Dancer joined her, kissing her in response. The princess tilted her head slightly, parting her lips and pressing her tongue past his own lips, letting their tongues mingle in a heated, passionate kiss.
A gentle rocking motion started in Luna’s hips, and with an almost expert motion, the soft outer lips of her sex found the rim of his sheath, grinding against it. She had obviously done this before.
Cloud Dancer wasn’t sure how he felt about that, but he was glad he wouldn’t have to be wary of a virgin princess.
The firm stimulation of her soft outer lips soon had the thick length of his flesh beginning to swell free. Luna felt it, Rubbing herself back against his warmth, breaking the kiss and panting against his muzzle, murmuring in a breathlessly playful tone, “Thou seems eager.”
“Oh I am!” Cloud Dancer attested, sliding his hooves down to her rump and squeezing against her cutie mark, trying his best not to seem too eager, though he was unable to help but grind his hips up against her slowly. “This is just so sudden.”
“We could cease, if it bothers thee so,” Luna suggested, staring down at him with twinkling eyes.
Cloud Dancer growled up at her, and shook his head, a hoof twining in her mane and pulling her down to lay an eager kiss on her lips again. With a low, happy hum, Luna began to grind herself slowly against him once more, working the moistening, soft lips of her sex across his stiffening member, forcing it against his stomach.
“Art thou fine with this position?” Luna asked, worried, looking down at his wing.
“Just do it!” Cloud Dancer urged, grinding himself up against her eagerly.
Luna grinned down at him, giving an excited sound as she rose to her hooves properly, a hoof slipping down to align their bodies. Cloud Dancer felt her pushing his eager member upwards, to catch against her outer lips. And then Luna dropped her hips, and suddenly, he was enveloped in the impossible tight, warm depths of the princess’s body.
A soft gasp left the pegasus, and his wings beat fitfully against the bed. His right wing protested, but he ignored it, lifting his hooves to rest against Luna’s hips as he encouraged her to bounce.
With a soft shudder, Luna began to slowly roll and work her hips, sliding herself back and forth atop him, biting her bottom lip at the sensations of the thick length of pony cock spreading her open so well. With a low groan, she pushed down further, mouth slowly parting and back arching as more and more of the thick member sank into her moist depths, stretching her around the stiffened member.
Cloud Dancer caught her mouth in another kiss, their breaths mingling as they began to work in rhythm, with Luna firmly pressing her hips down as Cloud Dancer pushed his hips up, meeting with her somewhere in the middle and sinking deep inside her.
Luna muffled a squeal against his neck, burying her nose against his shoulder and whimpering, shuddering in delight, her insides cinching down on him wildly. It took Cloud Dancer a moment to realise that the panting princess had climaxed atop him.
The knowledge made the pegasus give a low whimper of delight, gripping Luna’s hips and imploring her to work against him harder, his hips pushing up into her own again and again, grinding himself against her slick insides over and over again. Repeated eager spasms clenched the thick member working inside her, and Luna cried out again, hooves gripping him tight.
Luna’s eyes opened, and she stared down at him with a fiery lust burning bright in her gaze. She swooped down to kiss him again, gripping him tightly and then shoving her hips into him over and over again, each pounding shove of her hips sending a rolling wave of delight and pleasure cascading through the pegasus’ form.
Cloud Dancer could feel his finish approaching, welling up inside him, and he clenched his eyes shut, burying his face in her wonderful, silky mane, gripping her hips with one hoof and her shoulder with another, twining his hoof in her mane and holding on tight as his entire form arched and spasmed. Deep convulsions started in his loins, and he cried out into her mane as his eager member stiffened and throbbed hard inside her, beginning to jerk and pulse, firing thick roads of his milky liquid deep inside her.
Luna cried out as she felt the entire member stiffen, and the flaring deep inside, her eyes widening. She bit her bottom lip again, her wings fluttering as she ground down against him repeatedly, stiffening and crying out, stuffing a hoof against her mouth to muffle the sounds as her eager insides milked him hard, trying to coax out more of the hot essence pooling deep inside her.
The two ponies moved against eachother for a few more moments, before slowly relaxing.
Luna shuddered, and then panted hard as she splayed herself atop him with a low groan, blinking slowly and giving him a wild, breathless grin.
“Thou hast no idea how long we have needed that for,” Luna admitted breathily, kissing his nose.
Cloud Dancer gave a soft whimper of delight, and then slipped his hooves from the princess’s body, kissing her cheek and then kissing her full on the mouth, rumbling deeply. He pulled back then, and said, “I don’t believe that just happened.”
Luna grinned down at him wildly for a moment, and deliberately rolled her hips, her expression turning mischievous. “Dost thou require a reminder?”
The pegasus stared up at the princess for a long moment, and then grinned in response, wrapping his hooves around her and pulling her down to kiss her heatedly.
It was a few weeks after the incident, and Cloud Dancer was finally allowed back to his duties as a Nightwatch pegasus. Spitfire and Soarin had both received a gift basket for saving his life. He was just thankful they had responded to the building storm so quickly. Spitfire was unnaturally good at predicting when a cyclone was forming.
Spitfire and Soarin had been apparently having a ‘night-time training flight’ when they saw the pegasus and princess in trouble, It was sheer luck they had arrived when they did.
In the days following the incident, Cloud Dancer had barely interacted with Princess Luna. She was busy with her duties as a princess, and he was unable to fly for a week or two after the strain on his wing. In conjunction with the dislocation, he had torn several of the load-bearing muscles in his shoulders.
But when Cloud Dancer returned to his cloud, he found a single black rose waiting for him. It had made him smile to know that Luna was thinking of him.
And in the following weeks, Luna showed up to his cloud more and more, to the point that Cloud Dancer was sure he saw the flash of armour far below, as a guard tagged along after her to make sure she didn’t go throwing herself into any more cyclones.
Even now, Cloud Dancer was laying with Luna, on their cloud high above the earth, watching the stars and the passage of the moon. Luna was curled up to his side, eyes closed, just enjoying his closeness. She had told him the previous night that she wished him to call her ‘Selena’, a name that she allowed only her closest consorts to use.
Cloud Dancer was under no illusions as to his position. He was a friend with benefits, or maybe even a romantic interest. Their bedroom tussles were not ‘common’ by any stretch of the imagination, but when they happened, they were filled with a fiery, eager passion.
Princess Luna was an immortal goddess, and he was just a simple Nightwatch pegasus. He had no intention of seeking her hoof in marriage or anything silly like that, though if she sought him out for that, then he would definitely not deny her. Another fantasy to add to his pile.
But looking at the princess curled up against his side, dozing happily, Cloud Dancer felt that enough of his fantasies had already been granted.
