Nightshadow: The Twins

Chapters

Shade and Shadow, Shadow and Shade
My sister's keeper
In the dead of Night
The way has been opened
Waking Nightmares
A Hearth Warmed (the hearths-warming special I said wasn't going to happen)
To add to your troubles...
Lost in the crowd
To Truly be alone
A place to call Home
Prologue: Nightmare Moon has fallen
Story time with Nightshade

Shade and Shadow, Shadow and Shade

The night after the first Nightmare Night:

Celestia stood on the balcony, watching the little town on the distance. Even though it had been the day of the Summer Sun Celebration, the night air fluttered coldly against her coat and feathers. But she didn’t shiver. The night’s newest feature consisted of the dark forms that resembled an unicorn face, imprinted on the lunar soil. The turmoil inside her mind began once again. ‘I have to be sure’ She thought as her horn began to glow, faintly at first. It’s golden glimmer illuminating the dark and troubling lonely balcony.

She cast the spell again. And again. Celestia methodically did it every few minutes, even though she knew the outcome. Once again, she felt her sister's presence in the long distance.

Celestia breathed a sigh of relief. Nightmare Moon was indeed sealed away.

'But that raises the question...' The Sun Princess thought to herself as her mind shifted upon a different subject. She looked back towards the interior of her room 'Who or what are those two?' She slowly walked towards the sleeping foals and stood besides both, curiously eyeing both. She pondered for a few moments; her sister had tried to cast spells to counter the Elements, but ultimately could not muster any defense after the blow had already connected. Celestia knew of no spells that could create something as complex as a pony in mere seconds, and she doubted that Luna did either.

Her mind went over the various possibilities as she trotted back inside the castle and navigated the halls; heading nowhere in particular. Just trying to shed some light into her restless thoughts.

They awoke in unison. Both yawned and, after looking at their surroundings, their eyes met for the first time. Both stood still for a long time before the filly raised her hoof and clumsily shook it in a welcoming wave. The colt raised his own and mimicked his sister. Both smiled a genuine, content smile. They found happiness inside the simple fact that the other existed.

Both foals quivered in fear and ducked in their respective blankets as the door suddenly opened with a loud thud. Celestia slowly walked in; her little stroll through the palace’s gardens proved itself uneventful. The foals looked up at the majestic Alicorn. The sudden fear that washed over them was now completely gone; replaced with sheer amazement at the enormous sight before them. They quickly tried to get to their hooves, but faltered and ended up falling over in unison, eliciting a chuckle from the royal pony.

"It is alright little ones. You need not fear me." She gently took a step forward. Fear washed them over one more time, as both foals took a step back in response to Celestia’s advance. She frowned and said: "Is something wrong, little ones?"

They both looked to each other. Neither of them said a word but they both knew what the other was thinking. Something about this pony made them both... afraid.

"Is something the matter?" Celestia's concern and regal voice caused them both to step back farther. The little colt unfurled his winds and assumed an instinctual defensive stance.

'This isn't going anywhere...' She thought. ‘I don’t think they understand me…’ She knew it was to no avail, but something compelled Celestia to try one more time.

"Can either of you speak? Can you tell me your names?" Both of them looked at each other.

Their faces scrunched up, their lips moved as though trying to force the words out.

"S- Sp-... Speak?" Said the colt.

"Na-... Names?" Said the filly.

Celestia contained her excitement in order not to startle the little foals. "Yes, my little ponies. Your names. What do you call yourselves?" The colt put a hoof under his chin. He looked as though he was trying to say something, but couldn't remember the words. The filly however began to wave her hoof around frantically. The colt looked at her for a second before his eyes shot wide open. He then began to do the same. Celestia looked at the two of them confused and amazed at the same time ‘They do understand me!’

"What is it?" Both of them waved their hooves in the air for a few minutes before they realized they weren't getting their message across. The colt put his hoof back under his chin while the filly simply tried again, growing increasingly frustrated.

Suddenly the colt's horn began to glow.

A flash of light.

A dark glimmer.

A small piece of parchment materialized itself in front of the little colt. His mouth slowly opened in shock. Celestia and the filly both gasped. Such advanced magic needed years to be fully mastered. Yet, this little ‘newborn’ colt was able to perform it flawlessly.

The colt's expression changed slowly from amazement to an excited smile.

He squeezed his eyes shut.

His horn glowed once more. He grunted as he tried once more to conjure another item into existence. Celestia could see the feint outline of what he was trying to make 'appear' but he couldn't conjure it into existence like he had the paper.

He sighed in frustration.

The filly grabbed the parchment that now stood next to her hoof and looked down from the paper to Celestia and then down to the paper once more. She put her other hoof over the paper and began waving it again; a slight frustrated appearance on her face. It then dawned on Celestia exactly what she was being asked. She darted out the room and down the hall to her own room. Both foals cowered at the Sun Princess’ sudden movement, but when she left the room they looked at each other in confusion. Seconds passed before Celestia returned with an ink well and a fancy quill.

Both foal’s eyes widened as they started to excitedly hop around the room. Their happy ecstasy elicited an amused giggle from Celestia.

Suddenly the filly's horn began to glow. A dark aura lifted the quill and clumsily dipped it into the ink-well. She looked on in amazement at the floating quill, not caring that little ink drops splattered across the floor. She put a hoof to her head, and seemed surprised that she was the one controlling it. The filly levitated the quill from the ink-well and brought it near the piece of parchment.

Celestia was amazed. Few foals displayed magical abilities at such an age. Especially without any kind of training.

The filly began to write, slowly but carefully. She obviously struggled keeping the quill in the air, panting with each drawn line. After a few minutes of writing, she levitated it to the side and dropped it to the floor, ink leaking out. She rubbed her head and breathed a sigh of relief.

The colt seemed confused as to what the filly had just done. He looked to her, and she waved her hooves around. The colt nodded and waved his own hoof around.

'It's as if they have their own little language... how cute.' Celestia thought. She allowed herself to take part in the foalish joy both were having.

The colt looked towards the pen and closed his eyes. He furrowed his brows as he tried to concentrate. A grey aura surrounded the quill as it, shakily, rose from the ground. Celestia was once again, mesmerized. The quill began to falter as the colt struggled to control his newfound magic. The filly franticly waved her hooves in the air, as if trying to convey another message.

Suddenly, the quill stopped shaking and the colt calmed himself. The quil fell to the paper and the colt began to write. Like the filly, the colt wrote meticulously. When he was done, the colt lifted the quill to the side and it dropped inelegantly to the floor. By now, the floor that stood around the paper was covered with small black dots. Something about the sight brought a smile to Celestia's face. A golden aura enveloped the parchment as she levitated the it with her own magic, lifting it up to her face to read.

It was an inky mess. Something that could be expected from foals who had never, ever written before. Celestia could barely make out the words on the parchment.

Nightshade

Nightshadow

"Are these your names, little ones?" Both of them wearily shook their heads in unison... and smiled. 'What odd names for young foals like you.' She thought to herself.

"Well it's nice to meet you both. My name is Celestia, but you can call me Tia." Her face suddenly drooped. She hadn't realized what she said until she had said it.

'Luna always called me Tia...' Celestia’s eyes filled with tears, but the Sun Princess mustered her all in order to stop the incoming downpour.

The two foals looked confused at the sudden change in her expression. She suddenly remembered where she was and shook her head, putting her smile back on.

"Are you two hungry? I haven't seen you eat yet." Both of their stomachs growled, answering her question.

"Yes!" They both answered in unison, eliciting another chuckle from Celestia.

"Alright then, come along. I'm sure the chefs could put something together for you." Celestia smiled as she walked down the hall, the two foals trotting slowly behind her. They looked around themselves, mesmerizing with every aspect of the large castle corridors. Everything seemed new to these foals.

'I'm not sure what you are, little ones, but Nightmare you are not.'

Two weeks later:

The two foals were kept in the castle in secrecy, the only ponies even knowing they exist being Celestia and her personal staff. She wasn't as worried about them being Nightmare Moon, but she was very worried about the citizen's reaction to the two. The Nightmare fiasco still had everypony in Equestria scared. Celestia recalled an incident a few days ago where a black coated pony was thought to have been a disguised Nightmare Moon simply due to her coat and light blue eyes. Celestia herself had to come to stop them from burning the poor mare alive.

In the relatively short time they had been together, Celestia had learned much about the two. They could understand Equestrian, and while they couldn't speak it very well at first, they had improved over time. The two of them seemed to know some basic things, like that the world they lived in was Equestria, but didn't have any other memories besides their names. At least, none they wished to share. They were nocturnal in their sleeping habits, something Celestia had wanted to change at first, but, after a few failed attempts, decided it was probably for the best. If anything it made it easier for her to spend time with them.

Nightshadow was quiet, but courageous and understanding. He was also very strong for his age. Once, an uninformed guard had attempted to apprehend his sister. Celestia had heard the guard screaming as he was sent down the hall, flying through the door leading to the guest room before landing with a loud thud.

Nightshade was vocal, intelligent, and seemed very eager to learn about any kind of magic. Celestia had refused to teach her anything beyond a proper telekinesis spell, but she seemed to get bored with just that quite easily. That was another thing about Nightshade, she got bored very easily. One of her pastimes involved pranking the guards and staff, often having Nightshadow lead them into various traps rigged with pastries or water buckets, or a simple tripwire. They were harmless, but Celestia resigned herself to finding something else for Shade to focus on before the staff became too annoyed with her pranks.

Celestia found herself immersed deeply in her thoughts. The little foals were quiet for the time being, always admiring the castle’s extravagant décor. The only sound heard was one of the Alicorn’s hoofsteps, which echoed through the marble floor.

'Perhaps I *could** teach her magic... I haven't had a pupil in ages...*'

"Where are we going today, Tia?" Shade asked as they trotted through the hall; shattering Celestia’s trance. The little foals trotted quickly, maintaining their pace with the Sun Princess. She smiled a motherly smile at the little filly bouncing beside her.

"Well, today we are going to go run a few tests..." Nightshade gave her a confused look.

"What's a test?"

Celestia thought for a moment before answering. "A test is something you take to learn about something else." She said plainly.

Nightshadow tilted his head sideways. "What are we going to learn today?"

"It's... a surprise." The truth was that Celestia had been putting this off for a while. She had to be sure that they weren't a danger to other ponies first. That and she had to get used to being the Princess of both Night and Day. Ruling Equestria twenty-four seven left little time for personal matters, but Celestia was a smart pony. She could manage it.

It had kept her distracted from thinking about her sister.

They found their way to Celestia's quarters, where the first VIP she would be meeting today was waiting. He smiled as the three entered the room.

"Hello your majesty! It is great to see you in good health! And I see you have brought friends!" Celestia chuckled at the royal doctor's over-enthusiasm. She had known his name once, but he had insisted that she call him Doc for the sake of formality.

"Hello again Doctor. And yes I do have some friends with me this time. I was wondering if you could take a look at them for me?" Doc looked over the two. If he was surprised they were Alicorns, or shocked by their appearance, he did a pretty good job of hiding it from Celestia.

"Why, hello there little ones!” He said and waved a friendly hoof towards the two. “Why don't you come over here so we can get started?" They both looked towards Celestia who gave a curt, reassuring nod. They trotted over to the doctor pony, Shade doing her best to conceal her fear. She was actually quite introverted, despite her outspoken nature.

"Is it alright if I leave them with you, Doctor? I have some business in another part of the castle that requires my attention."

The doctor only nodded in response; all his mind was now analyzing both foals. Both Shade and Shadow shot worried looks at Celestia, to which she simply grinned.

"Don't be scared, little ones, if you need me I won’t be far." She trotted out of the room and down the hall. Her legs automatically took her to her needed destination as her mind wandered in memories. She reached a large wooden door. Gold hinges secured it firmly in its place. Celestia took a deep breath and magically opened the door.

"Princess Celestia! It has been so long dear!" She smiled at the old unicorn stallion before her. The large wooden door behind her slowly came to a close by itself.

"Hello Prince Greymane. I wish this was just a social call, but I need your help with something." The prince cordially bowed.

"Of course, my Princess. Though I must ask, what could you possibly need this old pony for?" He said, raising one brow.

"Despite what others may think, age has done you some good, I think. You are an expert in divination and... spells of the mind, correct?"

Greymane feigned a gasp. "Could the Sun Princess, the most magically adept pony in all of Equestria, be asking me for magical help?" She gave him a stern look, which soon collapsed into laughter, shared between the two. "Alright then Celly, what do you need?"

She donned a serious look again. "Tell me Greymane... have you heard the rumors?

"Which ones? The one where Luna turned into a ghost and is haunting the castle? Or the one where Nightmare Moon ate the real Celestia and took her place?" He laughed again. Celestia was about to speak again when a light rapping was heard at the door. Greymane stretched his neck to look past Celestia, as she turned around to see the source of the sound.

"Um... Tia? The Doctor pony said that we should come get you?" Shade yelled through the door.

"Alright Nightshade, tell him I'll be right there!" They heard the sound of the echoing hoofsteps fading away. Celestia turned around once more to face Greymane.

"She called you Tia." He said, his usual bubbly demeanor now gone. "Alright, Celly, spill it. The only one who you ever let call you Tia before was... what's going on Celestia?"

Celestia wearily sighed. Greymane had poked her still oozing wound at the mention of her sister. She hung her head as she told him her story. About what she found after Luna's banishment. About what she learned. Greymane folded his arms and stood still, paying attention as the Sun Princess relayed to him everything that had happened.

"I'm confident that neither of them truly are Nightmare Moon... but I'm not so sure I can trust my judgment on this... that is why I called for you today." She said, as her hung head shook from side to side.

"You want me to... explore their minds?" Celestia lifted her head and looked deeply into Greymane’s eyes.

"Yes."

Greymane bit his lower lip. "You do realize that mind-magic is still experimental, right?" Celestia nodded. "And you still want me to do this?" She nodded again, making Greymane shift uneasily. "Well then... bring them in here and I'll see what I can tell you."

Celestia trotted back to the Doctor’s room. She opened the door and smiled when she saw the foals playing with some of his tools while the Doc calmly read a book. He looked up at Celestia. While he did smile, for a moment he flashed her an all too familiar glare, the one she usually got when she had been neglecting something about her own personal health, which happened quite often considering her job.

"Little ones, Mister Greymane down the hall wants to have a chat with you. He's going to run a few more tests and then we'll be done for the night, OK?" Celestia said, nuzzling one of the foals. They both sighed in unison and nodded as they ran off towards Greymane's room. Before she could react, Doc was in her face. If anypony else had ever done what he did next they would have been banished from Equestria on the spot.

"What were you thinking not telling me about them? I almost had a heart attack when they walked in!"

"I'm sorry! I just didn't want word to get out about them! I can trust you to keep a secret, right?"

"Well, yes of course, but the least you could have done is prepared me for them! You wouldn't need to put it in your letter, just say something like, oh, I don't know, 'I have two miniature Nightmare Moon's for you to look at!' Instead of just leaving me here with them like that!" Celestia frowned and looked towards the floor. The doctor pony relented.

"I'm sorry Celestia. I was just... surprised. They weren't any trouble. If it helps any, they are remarkably healthy! I can't say the same for every foal that I meet..."

Celestia then remembered something. "Did you bring what I asked you to?"

Doc rubbed the back of his head, trying to remember what she was talking about before smiling. "Oh yes, I forgot about that." He pulled a dusty, worn-out book out of his saddlebag.

"The compendium of Royal Health Records. Goes back to the time when medicine was still considered childish!" He paused for a moment and lifted his gaze from the book to meet Celesia’s eyes. "What did you need this for, anyway?"

"Oh nothing" She expertly lied. "I just decided that I want to add it to the library, instead of hiding it away for no reason."

Doc considered her words for a moment before shrugging and handing the book to her with his magic. She gripped it in her own and felt it before teleported it into her room, where she would read it later.

"Doctor, I appreciate the help and your... discretion in this matter." She smiled kindly to him.

Doc bowed. "The pleasure was all mine. Would you like me to leave a copy of their checkup list by your door, as always?"

Celestia smiled warmly. "Yes, doctor that would be wonderful. Thank you, but for now I must bid you a good night."

"Have a good night's sleep Princess!"

Greymane approached Celestia in the hall after she left.

"Where are they?" She asked him.

"Asleep. The spell tires the mind and the body." He replied calmly. Greymane himself looked tired. He rubbed a hoof on his eyes before adding in a whisper: "We need to talk... I found something."

The present day:

Nightshadow watched the familiar rainbow streak as it flew below.

'Her again…' He had just barely managed to avoid her crashing into him when he first walked into Ponyville with his sister. If they hadn't been invisible at the time, they would have been easily spotted.

Every day she would do tricks in the air, simply fly about, play pranks on other ponies, and usually crash into something before the end of the day. He usually watched her, sometimes her antics were quite fun, and sometimes other ponies would come to watch. Sometimes the unicorn mare would come to watch as well.

She flew around the town at breakneck speed. It didn’t impress Shadow by any means. He was faster than her; even when the situation didn’t call for speed. But this mare had him puzzled. How a regular Pegasus could fly so fast, he would never know.

"Came to watch the show today, brother?" Nightshade whispered into his ear.

Shadow wasn’t startled by his sister’s sudden appearance, but was confused by her question. "Show?"

She giggled. "You'll see." As quick as she came, Shadow could no longer sense his sister’s presence near him. He simply shrugged and continued to watch the cyan Pegasus’ antics.

The mare did flips, nose-dives, barrel rolls and various other tricks, never slowing down once... which lead her to crash through a window into an abandoned cottage on the outskirts of the small town. Nightshadow barely contained his laughter. He knew she wouldn't be hurt, she never was.

He then noticed something no pony else could.

A faint blue outline following the mare through the window.

Rainbow Dash rubbed her leg where she impacted the wall. She had a few cuts and bruises, but nothing serious. She flapped her wings a few times, lifting a small cloud of dust from herself and from the floor. 'A little sore, but I can't let that get in the way!' She was about to take off again when an ominous laughter suddenly filled the air. The laugher kept on, reverberating into the wooden boards that surrounded Rainbow Dash. Her heart began to race at this unusual happening.

A bright light suddenly shone from the other end of the room.

"He- Hello?" Rainbow asked, trembling; the adrenaline jolt set her on Fight or Flight mode. The laughter returned, more sardonic than before. Rainbow Dash fought her instincts and asked: "What's so funny?!"

"You." The light shot itself towards Rainbow, faster than anypony could react. “Let’s play a little game...”

The rainbow streak shot out of the house, flying faster than before, faster than Nightshadow had ever seen. He had witnessed the Pegasus breaking the sound barrier, and thought at first that perhaps she was trying to do it again. ‘Something is... wrong’

He cast a light telepathy spell, allowing him to 'feel' the thoughts and emotions of the ponies below. He narrowed the range of the spell to the Pegasus. Her thoughts were frantic, her mind a mess, but one thought stood out amongst the others.

'**WHY CAN’T I STOP?'

Nightshadow sighed. He recognized the spell now, and knew there was nothing he could do. He would have to wait until his sister had her fun. He felt sorry for the cyan Pegasus.

She flew through the library window and exited through the wall, leaving a trail of books and pages and small Pegasus-shaped hole behind. Shadow was able to see the lavender mare walking out of the library to berate her friend. When the Pegasus shouted something back at her, her face turned from anger to worry. She ran back inside the library and came back levitating a book. She frantically read through its pages while she galloped, looking for something to slow the rainbow mare down as she crashed through market stalls and buildings.

The lavender unicorn shrieked when the book suddenly jolted into the air. It turned from brown, to purple before melting and falling to the ground in a pool of sludge.

Nightshadow heard his sister's laughter behind him.

"Sister, I believe you've done enough for one day." He said in an annoyed tone. Watching the cyan Pegasus day after day wasn’t what he would consider fun. But it was better than standing still in the clouds all day.

"Whaaaat? It was just a little prank!" She said, faking an innocent smile. Her eyes followed closely the rainbow streak as the dark glimmer on her horn stood strong.

"Shade..."

"Hmmpf. You’re no fun." She giggled. The rainbow streak suddenly stopped and launched itself towards another direction. Towards the Everfree Forest.

"What are you doing?" Nightshadow stared at Shade as she directed the mare with her magic.

"You know full well I can't just end the show like that! There needs to be a... finale." She said; a twisted, devious smile erupted on her face at the mention of the last word. The rainbow streak reached the center of the forest and subtly changed its direction, shooting straight upwards. The entire town of Ponyville could see her fast ascent.

Her wings burst into flames. Nightshadow winced as Nightshade erupted into a hearty guffaw. The aura around Shade’s horn ceased and the cyan Pegasus started to slow down. The mare screamed as she plummeted to the ground, a plume of smoke following her down.

Nightshade kept laughing. "So, what do you think, brother?" She turned to face her brother, but he was gone, a small black streak taking his place for a split second before disappearing as well.

My sister's keeper

Nightshadow furiously flapped his wings, speeding after the falling Pegasus. The air seemed to offer no resistance whatsoever to his movements.

She was falling fast.

He was faster.

He always had some measure of pride for that. His speed was one of the few things he felt he could be proud of. It was... unnatural, even for an Alicorn. He could fly faster than any being alive, and had proven such before.

As he neared his target his horn began glowing. The dark aura enveloped the Pegasus, adjusting the Pegasus' descent. She landed squarely on his back, right before she hit the treeline. Nightshadow quickly ducked under the trees, hoping to Luna that nopony saw him...

Twilight ran inside her tree library and scrambled about, searching desperately for her first aid kit. Spike questioned her several times but got no answer. When he tried to stop Twilight in order to calm her down, he was immediately tossed to the side. She searched desperately for a few seconds until an idea came to her mind. ‘The locator spell!’ Twilight furrowed her brows and concentrated.

A purple aura enveloped her horn and Twilight began to be pulled towards a small cupboard on the kitchen. She tore the doors out of the cupboard with her magic, throwing them like she had thrown Spike. Twilight grabbed her first-aid kit and returned to the library floor and quickly went to her room. She found what she was looking for on her night table: A book that Rainbow had gotten her for her birthday one year. It was full of short horror novels. Twilight didn’t really care much for it, but it would work for what she had in mind. She placed both the book and the first-aid kit on her saddlebags and lifted both over her body. Twilight quickly skimmed through the contents of her saddlebag one final time and teleported herself out of the library

Twilight galloped. Her muscles burned and her heart pounded fiercely against her chest. She galloped past the crowds of ponies that had gathered to watch the horror, but she paid no attention to them. As she moved down the street, a slight movement overhead caused her to stop. She could have sworn that she saw a black line racing towards her falling friend. Twilight shook her head and dismissed it as her eyes playing tricks on her. ‘I can’t be distracted. I have a friend to save!’ She thought and resumed her sprint.

The Everfree Forest is a large, dangerous place, filled with horrible beasts. But nothing to an Alicorn. Especially an invisible one.

Nightshadow reached the edge of the forest that faced Ponyville at a time that would have made Rainbow proud had she been awake. He carefully levitated her off his back and onto the dirt ground. He tried to observe the damage inflicted by his sister but the tree canopy blocked every ounce of light reflected by the moon.

The dark aura enveloped his horn once again and soon, a small orb of white light began to glimmer on the tip of his horn. Nightshadow kept the light dim enough, as to not attract unnecessary attention towards himself. He surveyed the damage closely, casting old spells that were once used to see the outline of bones, cartilage, tendons and muscles. He directed the spell towards her body. He hadn't managed to slow the descent of the mare by much, so a few minor fractures were present. He also noticed that the muscles supporting her wing were strained.

He cast the arcane spell once again, focusing now on her wings. They were completely featherless, most of her skin was missing and bone fragments pierced the muscles and connective tissue around them. They had been bent at an unnatural angle, probably due to the puppeteer spell clashing with the Pegasus’ own will; pushing them past their limits. Nightshadow recognized the flame curse his sister had used, it was meant to keep anything it burned from healing naturally.

It was probable that she would never fly again.

"That... isn’t good." He thought aloud.

Nightshadow knew the possible ramifications of healing magic on such a large scale, but he had seen what had happened to Pegasi who became permanently grounded. At worst they lived hollow, emotionally broken lives. At best they killed themselves. He knew that this mare was especially attached to her wings. He counted himself lucky that Alicorn wings grew back, if damaged beyond repair.

Shadow began to think about what he had done; why exactly had he saved her. She meant nothing to him. A small, pained groan escaped the mare’s lips, breaking Nightshadow’s dilemma. What mattered now is that he had saved her. He was responsible for her life, now. All in all, he didn't have much of a choice. Shade was his responsibility. When she hurt somepony it was his job to set it right.

That was his talent, setting things right. ‘Ironic…’ He thought. ‘Considering what I am.’

He took in a deep breath and said: "I'm sorry, little one."

His horn began to glow.

He remembered what the wings were like before they became the charred, amorphous mass they were now....

Twilight was just outside of the Everfree. Her muscles ached and her lungs burned with each air intake. She stopped her galloping and picked her breath. Twilight had no idea where in the forest Rainbow fell; but she came prepared. As calmly as she could, she levitated the book out of her saddlebags. She focused her magic around the book, and slowly directed it into a locator spell. The spell shot out a pulse like sonar, drawing a small map in her head with a pair of dots representing herself and Rainbow Dash.

'The center of the forest?' Twilight gasped. She had hoped that Rainbow wasn't too far away, but those hopes were now dashed. In order to get to the center of the forest Twilight knew that she would have to move slowly, in order to avoid becoming the victim of a local predator. “Oh… this isn’t good! By the time I find her, it might be too late!” She sent out another pulse, just to be absolutely sure of Rainbow’s position.

Rainbow was now closer to her position."This can't be right." Twilight said, slightly frustrated. She pulsed the spell again. And again. She continued to do so until the dot suddenly stopped moving. According to the spell, her friend was now right inside the forest, just a few meters from where Twilight stood. Her thoughts shifted to the black streak she saw earlier. “Rainbow... I hope you’re OK!” Twilight wished to herself and galloped inside the forest.

Minutes passed and Twilight thankfully didn’t encounter any of Everfree’s many monsters. She pulsed the spell one more time; its mental map showed that she was very near Rainbow’s position. She slowly walked forward, thinking only about how bad Rainbow could be hurt when she saw the black creature land. Twilight immediately dived into a nearby bush. She could feel its crimson eyes linger on the vegetation for only a second before turning its attention back to her friend.

Twilight winced a bit when she dived into the thorny bush, but she dared not vocalize her pain. She had no idea who or what was out there with her friend. Twilight calmed herself and began to force a slower breathing. When she felt calm enough, Twilight risked a peek outside the brush; wanting to know what was beside Rainbow Dash, and how she could deal with it.

Twilight forced a hoof into her mouth to suppress a gasp. The creature beside Rainbow Dash was a pony. ‘No... an Alicorn!’ She thought, eyeing the pony’s black coat and blue mane. She kept on staring at the Alicorn until his face turned enough, allowing Twilight the sight of his eyes. Her heart instantly raced in her chest. Some kind of primal fear took hold of her, making her shake a bit. His eyes were blood-red with a slit pupil.

'Nightmare!' She immediately thought to herself. Her mind went a million miles a minute. 'How? Why? What does he want with Rainbow?' Twilight slowly ducked inside the thorny bush once more. ‘I have to get the other Elements! I have to get the Princesses! I have to get help...’ Her racing thoughts trailed off when she heard a masculine voice.

"That... isn’t good." The voice had a mix of concern and pity to it.

The stallion’s voice sent another stream of adrenaline in Twilight’s blood. Her muscled clenched. Her mind began to race once more. ‘I didn’t know there were other Alicorns besides the Princesses? Did he see me? What will he do to her?’ She fought against her muscles and dared another peek outside the bush.

The sight confused her. The dark Alicorn shook his head from side to side. ‘He seems almost... guilty?’

"I'm sorry, little one." He said after a deep breath. Guilt laced its voice along with sadness and anger.

His horn glowed. Twilight saw the dark aura surrounding his horn and retreated back under the vegetation once more.

Nightshadow didn’t know that somepony was spying on him. He also wouldn't have cared. Shadow closed his eyes, and with effort, he forced the image of the charred wings out of his mind. He took his time perfecting the wing in his mind. It needed to be perfect. He concentrated on the image of what they once were.

Two blue wings.

Fast and powerful wings.

The unconscious Rainbow Dash slowly levitated in the air. Twilight heard the black Alicorn whispering something inaudibly. Her curiosity got the best of her and she peeked her head out of the bush once more. Twilight watched the whole process. She saw the state her broken friend was in. She suddenly became unsure of what to do. She felt that whatever he was doing couldn't be good, but she didn't know what would happen if she tried to stop it.

She might end up hurting her friend worse.

'It's my fault in the first place. If only I were faster… this wouldn't have happened.'

Twilight couldn't look away. The stump that once had been Rainbow’s wing moved, as if the wing itself began to unfurl. Twilight’s eyes widened when she saw a dark aura outlining Rainbow’s wings. The aura grew thicker; shaping the wings and giving them volume.

Nightshadow subtly unfurled his wings and stamped his hoof on the ground, cracking any nearby stones and pebbles into dust.

A blinding flash of light.

Her dark wings twitched violently.

The dark veil of magic shaped the bones, making them grow to their fullest size. Loud snaps were heard as the bony wings bent, straightening themselves before falling to her side. Thick, strong muscles grew from the bone, shaping Rainbow’s wings once more. The charred burn ceased and gave way for the rapidly-growing skin. Feathers began to grow where the skin was still bare. Rainbow dropped to the ground inelegantly.

Twilight suppressed a gasp.

Rainbow’s wings…

They were whole again.

Nightshadow was afraid to see what he had done. It took a moment but he slowly opened his eyes.

There the cyan Pegasus lay, minor cuts and bruises remained open, but the bleeding had ceased. Her wings were no longer blackened pieces of bone and charcoal that hanged from her sides. They were now back to their spectacular form; strong muscles packed tightly under the skin.

He blinked a few times, just to make sure he wasn't seeing things. The spell he used was extremely dangerous, sometimes causing insanity or outright killing the subject. Nightshadow couldn't believe his luck, or rather her luck.

He breathed a long sigh of relief. Trotting next to the unconscious mare, he cautiously moved the mare's wings with his magic, flexing them, furling and unfurling them, flapping them a few times, making absolutely certain that nothing had gone wrong. The movement felt smooth enough for Nightshadow; any small bone fragment could be taken care of in a hospital, but he didn’t feel any. He noticed that the wings were actually a bit larger in span than they had been before. Nothing else was different.

Except for one thing.

The feathers at the tips of her wings had blackened.

Rainbow’s eyes slowly opened and looked over the creature standing beside her. She noticed the presence of a pair of wings and a horn on its head.

'Wha.... What?' Rainbow Dash got up and backed a few steps from the creature. She rubbed her eyes with both forehooves, trying to force away a wave of disorientation from getting up so quickly. When she opened them the creature was gone.

'Huh?!' She thought before acknowledging something.

She felt tired.

Very tired.

She heard Twilight yelling, and the sound of hooves moving quickly before slipping out of consciousness.

When Nightshadow made his way back to the cloud, he found his sister waiting for him. She glared daggers into him. "What was that!? Why did you have to go and ruin my fun!? It's not like I bother you when you’re doing your whole 'reflection' thing!" She yelled at him. Her voice had raised to an unnatural volume. Had both not been on such high altitude, they certainly would have been heard.

"Did she really have to die for you to have fun?" Nightshadow yelled back, but in a much lower volume than his sister.

"Yes!" She said, instantly getting within hoof distance from him. They glared at each other for a while. Nightshadow couldn't believe those words coming from his sister. Shade had never directly attempted to kill somepony before, at least not just for the sake of it. Sometimes it happened on accident, but she never played a prank with the intention of ending her subject's life.

Then Nightshade broke into a smile.

"Oh I see... she's a friend of that unicorn, isn't she?" She laughed loudly. The fact that Shade mentioned Twilight mixed with that laugher made Shadow angrier. "Alright brother! I forgive you... this time. I guess I should try to be a bit more careful with who I play my little jokes on, hmm?" She cackled madly and disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Nightshadow wearily sighed. His sister's cruel pranks on 'normal' ponies were something he could never understand. He didn't see that as 'fun'. Maybe if she wasn't the way she was.

He knew she was getting worse.

One day she would go too far.

One day, she would have to answer for what she had done.

One day, he would have to destroy his only friend.

Eight months after Luna's banishment:

The two foals moved silently throughout the halls of the castle. It was much later than they were supposed to stay up, but they just had to know.

Earlier this day, they had both overheard a few of the guards talking about something to do with the night sky. The only thing that the two really remembered about the conversation, the one important thing, was that their aunt Tia could control the moon. Both foals had seen the moon before, and unlike most foals, who readily believed it, they were extremely skeptical.

"How can somepony, even a pony like Tia, move the moon?" Nightshade asked her brother.

"I don't know… maybe some kind of powerful magic?" Nightshadow replied. Shade shook her head.

"No magic is that powerful! At least… I don't think it is..." She said, a bit unsure of it herself. Nightshadow gave his sister an amused look.

"Oh just shut it! We're almost there..." Both foals kept their quiet trot through the castle halls. They slowly peeked around a particular corner. Down the hallway was Celestia's personal guard pony, standing outside her door. To both foals he seemed angry.

"Oh man, I forgot about him!" Said Nightshade, frowning a little bit in displeasure.

"Well, what do we do now Shade?" He turned to her sister, who placed a hoof on her chin and took her time to think.

"Oh! I know!" She said and placed her hoof on the floor. Her horn began to glow. Nightshade waited until the spell was nearly cast before she angled her head around the corner and pointed her horn towards the unsuspecting guard.

"What are you-" Shadow was cut by the silent energy bolt that flew towards the guard. The guard pony’s eyes widened when he saw it coming, but he didn't have time to react. The bolt connected to his chest and, for a moment Shadow thought that he was feeling pain. The guard then simply tumbled to the side and fell to the ground, snoring loudly.

"Whoa!" Nightshadow exclaimed, totally awestruck. "Where'd you learn to do that?"

Nightshade thought for a moment before phrasing her answer. "I'm... not really sure." They both shrugged and trotted towards the ivory-adorned wooden door. They were careful not to wake the guard pony, or to alert Celestia to their presence. They slowly inched the door open, breathing silent sighs of relief as the door opened without any creak. Both foals peeked through the door, trying to find Celestia. As they saw nopony, both foals entered her room before Shadow turned to Shade:

"Huh... She's not here, Shade!" He said a little more emotionally than he meant to.

"That's weird… Aunt Tia is alw-" Shade was cut short by a familiar voice.

"Hello little ones." The voice made both foals jump, eliciting small yelps from the pair. They quickly looked behind them to meet two pairs of white hooves adorned with golden bangles. They raised their gaze to meet Celestia, who eyed them sternly.

"H-Hi aunt Tia!" They said in unison.

She looked to the unconscious guard pony, then looked back to the foals, and to their surprise, she smiled. "What is troubling the two of you?"

They both looked at each other guiltily.

"Well..." Nightshade began, looking at the floor and pawing it awkwardly with her hoof.

"We were wondering..." Nightshadow took where his sister faltered, but his voice too trailed off.

"If you could show us how you move the moon!" Nightshade said in a burst of courage. Celestia's smile instantly turned into a frown.

'Keep them away from *anything** that could be associated with Luna or Nightmare Moon! We don't know for sure what could trigger these memories… We don't even know if we could trigger the memories, but it is absolutely imperative that you do not expose them to anything related to Luna!*' The words of Greymane echoed in her head. 'Suppressed memories' he called it. Something they could deal with in time, but would certainly spell disaster if something were to cause them to relive them all at once.

'Still... perhaps it would be best? They have witnessed the moon plenty of times, and nothing bad has happened then.' She decided and smiled warmly at the twin foals.

"Alright, little ones. I'm sure that no harm would come of it. But afterwards you’re going straight to bed!" Celestia said in a motherly voice, to which they instantly nodded, happy that Celestia wasn't mad at them. She looked to the unconscious guard. Her horn glowed, embracing the guard in a golden veil of magic. Suddenly the guard was awake.

"Sleeping on the job, Wind?" He suddenly realized where he was, and became very nervous.

"Um... Yes! I mean no! I mean... I'm sorry your highness, I don't know what caused me to-" Celestia smiled and held her hoof up to silence him.

"It's alright Wind Strider. You can take the rest of the night off." The Pegasus' face immediately lit up.

"Thank you, your highness!" He cordially bowed and turned around. Celestia waited for him to fly off before continuing on, through her room and out onto the balcony. The foals followed closely behind, eager to see what she would do.

It wasn't nearly the spectacle everypony made it out to be, but Celestia understood why they overplayed the event so much, it was the movement of two celestial bodies after all. But to her it was all so... simple.

They all looked out into the night sky.

Celestia raised her head as her horn glowed brightly. The air cooled around them. Moonlight seemed to gather around her horn. Celestia began to feel the moon with her magic. She acknowledged its size, its weight and the powerful presence that now resided on it. The moon began to fall down, ever so slowly. Her horn stopped glowing, she had set her charge on its course.

She held back small tears. Even though it had been several months, she still felt saddened, knowing that Luna was up there. "There we go! I'll have to come back in a little while to finish the job, but for now you two... need... to..." Her words trailed off as she looked to Nightshade.

Nightshadow was frowning and scratching the back of his head. 'Why does it feel like I've seen this before?' He looked at his sister, but found himself unable to ask his question at the sight of her.

Nightshade was shaking violently. Cold sweat forming and flowing from her forehead. Her heart fought against her chest, pounding heavily. She was terrified. Her mind was on full automatic mode, showing her a plethora of different images at great speeds. She saw Celestia as a little filly, Queen Gaia, the night sky, the strange artifact she had found...

Nightshade squeezed her eyes shut, trying to block out the images. When she opened them she found herself in a pitch black room, with no illumination whatsoever. She couldn't even tell where the ground was as if the world had suddenly become solid darkness.

"Sh- Shadow?" She called out into the darkness. Not a sound was heard after the words left her lips. "Where am I?" She tried again, still getting no answer. She began instinctively stepping backwards. Her eyes were tearing up. "O- OK Shadow, you got me! I'm s-sorry for dumping that water bucket on your head yesterday."

Shade began sobbing. "T- This isn't funny anymore... Please, Shadow!"

Her brother had almost never been very far away, and when he was, she always had Tia, or a guard, or a servant to talk to. To make her feel protected. This was the first time she was ever truly alone. “P- Please… somepony…” She took a large amount of air in her lungs and yelled with everything she had: “ANYPONY!”

She cried for what felt like hours. The darkness felt unusually cold against her coat. Her first experience with loneliness was being a harsh one.

It was then that a light shone in the darkness.

“S- Shadow…?” Shade trotted slowly towards the blue light. Something about it felt... nice. The darkness felt less and less cold as she neared the source of light. Shade could tell it was from a spell, she could see the point of the horn, but it was shining too brightly to see who was casting it.

As she neared the light, it became dimmer. She could now make out two wings on the back of the stranger. She did not care for whom exactly that pony was. It felt familiar to her. She simply moved faster, the loneliness quickly dispelled from her mind. As long as there was somepony else around her, it did not matter who or what they were.

The hairs on the back of her neck stood up. She knew that something was wrong. She didn’t know what to do. The presence by itself comforted her… but it also scared her. She slowed her trot but kept going towards the light. As she got closer the light dimmed even more. She could see the stranger's eyes. They were like hers, but blue.

She suddenly stopped. The light on the tip of the stranger's horn dimmed again, barely illuminating the space around the two. Shade could now see the stranger clearly. She had a black coat, with a beautiful mane that looked as if the night sky itself were alive. Nightshade looked at the pony with amazement and fear.

The pony looked down at Shade, as if noticing her for the first time. Its eyes pierced Shade's, looking for something in behind them. A smile slowly formed on the its face.

"Hello, little one." Shade recoiled at the sound of her voice. The voice itself was surprisingly warm, welcoming even. What left Shade startled was that she recognized the voice as being her own.

"Who... Who are you?" The little filly asked, to which the adult Alicorn frowned.

"You already know, don't you?" Shade was about to reply when the images violently flashed her mind again. She tried to block them away, but in desperation she found out that she could not.

"Wh- Why? Why are y- you... make it stop please!" Her head began to hurt. Shade grasped her head with both her forehooves, collapsing on the ‘floor’. A small smile formed on the adult Alicorn’s mouth. Shade began to feel the ‘air’ weight itself onto her. Small tears began to well up on her firmly closed eyes.

"Oh it will. But first you must do something for me."

"W- What?" Shade was barely able to phrase her question. The headache began to pound on her forehead as if her heart had switched places with her brain. The adult Alicorn leaned down to the filly and whispered a single word.

"Remember.../i]"

It's true what they say: In the dark, nopony can hear you scream.

"SHADE?!" Her brother violently shook her with her forehooves, successfully bringing her away from her nightmare. Her eyes shot open and she gasped for air. Nightshadow hugged his sister tightly. He quickly broke the hug and let her stand by herself. "Shade are you alright?!" She slowly looked up. Her eyes gazed past Nightshadow, past Celestia, past Canterlot. She looked at the falling moon.

She began to weep.

Celestia moved to the filly's side in an attempt to comfort her. Nightshade saw Celestia’s closing in on her and screamed. The scream resembled a howl of pure agony. The highest amount of physical pain on the weakest pony in Equestria couldn’t elicit such emotion. Nightshade was terrified of something.

Celestia and Nightshadow, taken by suprise at the filly's sudden outburst, did nothing to stop her from running back into the castle’s corridors. Shade galloped as fast as her little legs allowed her. She galloped down the hallway and back into the sibling's room, slamming the door shut.

Nightshadow blinked in confusion and looked to Celestia. "Tia.... what just happened?" His voice showed concern for his sister, but Celestia couldn’t see if he was on the verge of tears himself. She frowned as she remembered the look that Nightshade gave her. The fear in her eyes. The piercing scream.

Celestia remembered.

It was the last image she had of her sister… before she banished her to the moon.

In the dead of Night

After the incident, the days passed by ‘normally’ for Nightshadow and his sister. Whatever it is that Shade did for fun was usually out of his field of view, which he didn’t know if he should feel grateful for.

Nightshadow continued to silently observe the Elements from afar. He had once thought about approaching Twilight disguised; he knew of many illusion spells that he could cast to hide his true appearance, even change his eyes to 'normal'. He had never done so though, he had gone without social contact with anypony except for his sister for over a hundred years. And even before, Shadow wasn’t the social type of pony. He sighed in frustration as he spied the lavender mare from above. ‘So close… yet so distant.’ His mind shifted towards the cyan mare that he had saved some days prior.

Rainbow Dash was admitted into the local hospital for a very short period of time, being released as her minor wounds healed flawlessly. The doctors were baffled as to how her wings had somehow increased in wingspan after her injury, but decided to pass it off as a miracle of Celestia.

There was a change in the mare, however. Her schedule, however erratic it was before, seemed to become even more so. She often appeared to be suffering insomnia, dark circles hung from her eyes and her mane and tail both became matted and disheveled. Nightshadow held out hope that this wasn't his doing, but he couldn't escape the feeling that this was, somehow his fault.

Nightshadow also noticed that the cyan Pegasus every so often shot curious glances at his direction. He knew the spells he cast on himself were not failing, he had perfected them over the years to the point where normal ponies could not see him. But every day she seemed to stare a little bit longer.

Nightshadow was sitting atop his cloud, watching the ponies go by on the streets, completely oblivious to his presence, when a familiar rainbow blur came into view. Nightshadow sighed and leaned over to see what she had planned for today. It wasn’t by far Shadow’s most favorite thing to do, but it at least lessened his never-ending boredom.

She stopped underneath his cloud and looked around for a bit. Shadow’s curiosity picked up ‘What is she up to?’ She suddenly jolted her head upwards, almost as if she could feel his presence. Their eyes met. They were so far away but Nightshadow knew she was looking straight at him.

Suddenly, she flew upwards, startling Shadow. He prepared a teleportation spell, but the mare flew faster than he was able to cast it. She flew directly into the cloud, piercing through the cloud 'floor'. Rainbow’s body connected to something that felt very solid in contrast to the fluffy clouds. Although she couldn’t see what she collided with, she felt it.

“Who’s there?” Rainbow said, struggling to maintain her grip onto the invisible Nightshadow. He knew that she was no match for him, should he want to tackle her. But Shadow didn’t want to harm anypony. He reluctantly removed his invisibility spell from around him, eliciting a surprised gasp from Rainbow, as she jumped backwards and unfurled her wings in a defensive stance.

She took a long look at Nightshadow before speaking, her expression a mixture of fear and surprise. ‘An… An Alicorn…’ She thought. Rainbow kept staring at the dark Alicorn in disbelief before she vocalized her thoughts: "Y- You... you’re real?" Nightshadow bit his lip. He wasn't sure if he should speak. He knew what he looked like. "Uh... thanks." The mare’s apology broke his trance completely. He blinked twice in confusion, unsure if he should trust his ears as to what he just heard.

"W- What?" He stammered; that apology caught him completely off-guard. He really thought that the mare would go nuts about his appearance.

"Thanks... for saving me... and fixing my wings." The mare looked down and pawed at the cloud with her hoof.

"How do you know it was me?! How did you even know that I was up here?" Shadow asked incredulously. She just gave him a weak smile while rubbing the back of her head with her hoof.

"When I saw you at first I thought maybe you were just a thing from out of my head.” She lowered her head and shook it side to side. “Everypony’s told me that I’ve been through a great trauma… But I've been having these... dreams. They feel so real to me! I dreamed…” Her knees faltered a bit before she continued. “I dreamed of me… falling. Of my wings... b- burning." She shuddered at the last thought. “I… I felt that pain…” Shadow noticed small tears forming on her eyes, but Rainbow fought them back.

He winced a little bit, remembering a footnote on one of the book he and Shade read long ago. 'Healing spells have many side effects... sometimes the strangest ones can manifest, such as dream walking.'

"At first I thought maybe they were just some kind of vivid nightmares… but then I started to have other dreams... of you...” She looked up, meeting Shadow’s eyes. “… watching us. I dreamt last night that you would be on a cloud when I flew by today, looking down at us. So when I flew by today I just... looked up." She felt dumb explaining why she had the sudden urge to just crash into a random cloud.

Nightshadow considered what to do next. He couldn't let the mare go back to town, she would tell other ponies. But what exactly was he going to do? He could never bring himself to kill an innocent pony. Rainbow seemed to sense what was passing through his mind. "Hey, I won't tell anyone you’re here. I don't know why you want to hide, but it's the least I could do." He remembered her name now. Rainbow Dash, the Element of Loyalty. She would not betray his trust.

"Very well." Nightshadow's horn glowed and Rainbow found herself still above Ponyville, just slightly lower than they had been so the Pegasus would not grow cold from the drop in temperature. "Tell me, Loyalty, why should I not make you forget everything?” He said, slowly walking towards her. “I know you mean what you say, but there is always the chance that your tongue may slip." He wasn't actually proficient enough in memory spells to do as he claimed, but he needed a reason to trust her besides her status.

Rainbow seemed to ponder his question for a moment. An idea rushed into her mind, making her eyes shot open. "I could help you with that little... problem."

"Excuse me?!"

"Twilight Sparkle. Don't try to hide it." She patted cleverly her forehead with her hoof, her mouth contorting in a mischievous grin. "She and I are best friends! I could tell you about her, maybe even introduce you to her..."

“Why do you think I’m interested in her?”Nightshadow spat, pouring more emotion that he wished on the phrase. Rainbow Dash simply laughed at him.

“You just proved it to me.” Nightshadow froze and kept quiet, making Rainbow shrug. "Suit yourself, but if you change your mind..." She flew off in the direction of the apple farm.

Shadow was lost in his thoughts. 'Her loyalty is to her friends... even if she knows I saved her, what is to stop her from thinking I am a danger to her friends?' He glanced once more to the rainbow streak in the distance, sighing when he saw the mare land safely on the apple farm’s grounds.

A wicked giggle broke his concentration. "Aww… How cute! Little Shadow made a friend today." In a flash of light, Nightshade was instantly in front of him. "Just how well do you think she can keep our secret, brother?" She said, frowning a little.

"She is the Element of Loyalty…" He said in a mocking tone, making his sister frown a bit.

"That isn't the same as the Element of Honesty. Don't you think it's kind of odd she didn't see the resemblance between yourself and mother?" She angrily spat at him.

"Loyalty does not mean the same as intelligence." Shadow pointed out. The joke was harsh, but it did its job. Shade quizzically eyed him for a moment before she burst out laughing, quickly forgetting about the whole conversation.

An alarm clock phased into existence and began ringing. She jolted up. "Woops! Gotta go! See you later, Shadow!" She disappeared once more, leaving a thick cloud of black smoke behind.

Nightshadow sighed. 'Some days she seems so... odd.' His thoughts shifted to her words.

"How cute! Little Shadow made a friend today."

‘… had I… ?’

Nightshade flew over Ponyville, looking for something to relieve her of her boredom. She spent several minutes hovering above the small town, but nothing came to mind. It was then that a familiar rainbow streak flew across the sky, from the apple farm towards the small town. The sight made Nightshade feel odd. A strange twisting feeling in her chest that seemed to compress her heart.

'Guilt?' She frowned, surprised at herself. 'I haven't felt guilty about anything in... well...' She thought about some of the pranks she had pulled recently; some of the more extreme ones, like what she did to the cyan Pegasus. Nightshade put a hoof under her chin quizzically.

'How do you get rid of guilt again?' She watched the rainbow streak do loops, dives, and eventually simply fly about. She noticed that the cyan Pegasus often screamed and yelped in delight; happy to just be. The sight made her smile. “Of course! YOU HAVE FUN!” She screamed to herself and took off, faster than lightning itself.

Rainbow Dash paused from practicing her tricks for a moment. She sat on her haunches next to a tree on a more isolated part of Ponyville’s park. Whilst she flew, her mind seemed to blank completely; but now that she had stopped, thoughts about her new 'friend' surfaced into her mind.

'He seemed kind of... off. But he did save me. A bad guy wouldn't do that, would he?’ She thought for a moment. ‘Plus he’s an Alicorn… and all Alicorns are good ponies!’ Rainbow only had two Alicorns to base her opinions off; but that did seem to make sense to her.

‘That and his little crush.' A smile spread across her face at the thought Ponyville's resident bookworm having a secret admirer. She kept wondering how she could make Twilight and the black Alicorn together. Her thoughts rushed as she began to image both ponies in a much more… explicit situation. Rainbow couldn’t see herself, but she was blushing heavily with a stupid grin stamped on her face. She was so deep in thought that she didn't see the black shape speeding towards her until it flew right into her.

"Ooof!... Hey! What's the big... idea..." Her eyes shot open in fear.

'Nightmare moon!' Her thoughts raced and she assumed a ‘take-off’ stance, but her muscles felt heavy, locking her in place. The dark Alicorn walked slowly next to to her as Rainbow fought against her paralyzed muscles. She was able to break free and take off, but was stopped by a dark aura.

Nightshade giggled as Rainbow tried to yell, instead letting out a terrified squeak one might have mistaken for Fluttershy’s. Rainbow squeezed her eyes shut. She winced, waiting for Nightmare Moon to extract her revenge. But the final blow never came.

"Silly little pony, I'm not going to hurt you!" Rainbow slowly opened her eyes, risking one first before opening the other. She noticed something different about Nightmare, her eyes were green when they used to be turquoise, and while her mane was flowing, it was not nearly as long as Luna's was.

‘Wait… this isn’t Nightmare Moon! But she looks very similar to her’. Rainbow thought as she closely looked at the pony. Like the other Alicorn she met earlier, this one was about as tall as Princess Luna. "Who... Who are you?" Rainbow risked a question to the dark Alicorn before her. She simply laughed.

"Well, I am Nightshade, but you can just call me Shade. You've already met my brother." Rainbow gave her a confused look. "What? Don't see the resemblance?" Rainbow herself felt a little silly for not noting the resemblance before.

Shade’s horn began to glimmer and soon a cloud formed underneath her. She laid down on it, mock-pouting. Rainbow's eyes widened, she didn’t know why, but she feared that pony. "Wh- What do you want from me?"

"I want what you want. To help little Shadow with this crush of his. You are the Element of Loyalty, right?" Rainbow simply nodded. "Excellent!" Shade leaned in closer to her. "He said he doesn't need help right?" Rainbow gulped and nodded again. "That's just like him. He always tries to take on problems that are too big for him by himself, instead of asking friends for help."

Sensing an air of familiarity, Rainbow began to let her guard down. "Yeah I have a friend just like that. She nearly put herself in the hospital trying to prove to us that she could finish Applebuck Season all on her own."

They both shared a brief chuckle. "Then you'll understand where I'm getting at." Shade dramatically cleared her throat before continuing. "Sometimes you need to help friends; even when they don't want your help." Her eyes flashed red, if only for just a second; a feat which Rainbow didn’t notice. She winked and backed away a little. Rainbow pondered her words and smiled genuinely.

"OK! So what do we do?" Shade returned Dash’s smile.

Nine months after Luna's banishment:

"Tia? Where are we going?" Celestia looked down at Nightshadow who still tugged at her hoof.

"Nowhere." She said nonchalantly. Nightshadow's face contorted with a confused frown.

"But if we weren't going anywhere, wouldn't we just stay here?" Celestia chuckled at the little foal’s logic.

"You're a smart little pony." She looked to the other foal, sleeping in a basket being levitated by her brother. Celestia frowned for a moment: "How is she?"

Nightshadow looked back at his sister and frowned in response to Celestia’s answer. For the past week he and his sister had been sick. Nightshadow had been experiencing debilitating headaches. As a result he had become extremely sensitive to light, making even the dim lights of the torches mounted on the walls a strain to his eyes.

Nightshade, however, had been worse. She found herself to be extremely tired every day, making her sleep through it, wasting the entire day away before waking up. But even as she slept, the nightmares came every night. Every night she would wake up fighting for every intake of breath. She would then proceed to weep until the physical strain dragged her to more nightmare-ridden dreams.

The things she confided to Nightshadow had horrified the little colt. “Last night was bad for her, Tia.” He remembered how his attempts to wake his sister up proved fruitless. “She had a nightmare where-" He quickly cupped his mouth in his hooves. Celestia looked at him with a raised eyelid.

"Where... ?"

"Uhm..." Nightshadow looked to the floor, guilt ridden. He didn’t want to lie to his aunt… but he didn’t want to break his promise to his sister. "She made me promise not to tell you... but..." He took a deep breath, realizing he was about to betray his sister's trust. He knew that Celestia was powerful. She could help them. "... she said that she kept having a nightmare where you were a big monster who burned us with a... a rainbow..." He said still looking at the floor. The moment those words made sense in Celestia’s brain she froze.

"I know... it sounds crazy. That's why she told me not to tell you..." He looked to his sister and whispered a sincere apology under his breath. Celestia looked to the distraught filly and whispered words of her own.

"... Is that you, sister?" Celestia shook her head. She had to be sure. She continued down the corridors, Nightshadow following closely behind. But in her mind, she knew that she had changed the direction of their stroll. They went out into the statue garden. Celestia shifted uneasily when she walked past a peculiar statue of a bizarre creature made of all sorts of animal parts.

The statue seemed to pull Celestia towards it. She looked towards the little foal following her, and breathed a sigh of relief when she acknowledged that Nightshadow didn’t feel anything different towards the statue. They proceeded on and found a small clearing with an even smaller flower bed.

A golden veil wrapped Celestia’s horn as the ground beneath the flower bed suddenly shook. In a single, swift motion, the ground split open, revealing set of stony stairs. Once the secret path opened, a cold breeze oozed from within it, making the little foal shudder. "Wh- What's down there, Tia?"

"It's... a surprise." Celestia bit her lower lip and proceeded down the stairs.

They walked down the stairs, which exited into a large, dark hallway. Celestia lit the wall torches with her horn, making Shadow shield his eyes from the sudden light sources. When his eyes adapted enough, Shadow noticed the huge amount of cobwebs that dangled lazily from the stone ceiling. They walked along the hallway until they reached a large set of wooden double doors with a plaque over the doorway that said 'Access Prohibited'.

"Follow me little one, and leave your sister outside for now." Celestia urged him, to which he quickly complied, levitating the basket and gently lowering it to the ground. When he trotted through the double doors, he was greeted with the sight of five floating orbs of different colors surrounding a raised pedestal.

His eyes widened in amazement. "What are those, Tia?"

"Oh, nothing." She said almost too quickly. "Just stand there, little one." She pointed towards a spot up in front of the floating orbs. Nightshadow eyed the pedestal warily, something nabbed at the back of his mind, urging him to leave, but he shrugged those thoughts. He had no reason to distrust Celestia. He stood on the place she told him to, and looked up at the orbs.

"What's going on, Aunt Tia?" Shadow couldn’t see, but Celestia immediately dropped her smile. Celestia’s eyes began to glow in a bright white light as her horn glowed. She began to levitate in the air and a golden Tiara appeared on her head.

"Just hold still, Little Shadow." Celestia sounded stern, just a pinch of sadness in her voice. Nightshadow turned around and saw the image of the hovering Celestia.

“Tia… I’m sca-“ Celestia's horn suddenly shot a ray of light, aimed towards Nightshadow. The five orbs brightened up and shot out their own rays, joining the first and becoming a rainbow of colors in mid-air. Shadow couldn’t react in time. He felt the rainbow piercing through his body. The pain left him almost completely paralyzed. Every inch of his body now screamed in an independent voice, joined together; creating a loud howl of agony and pain. Somehow, Nightshadow vaguely remembered his sister's nightmare through the pain.

'She said that she kept having a nightmare where you were a big monster who burned us with a rainbow.'

Celestia saw the young colt's pain and a tear escaped her eye. "I'm sorry, little one... there is no other way..." She focused her energy into the elements, thickening the stream that soared through Nightshadow’s body.

"T- Tia?" Was all he could comprehensibly mutter through the searing pain.

The Elements of Harmony tore at his mind, searching, hunting. They found the memories they searched for, memories of the Nightmare. It snarled, it hissed, it fought. It was quickly destroyed by the Elements.

Satisfied with their work, Celestia drew her magic away from the stream, stopping their assault on the young Alicorn. Celestia felt something different. She opened her eyes and saw the Elements, still active and tearing through Nightshadow’s body. Celestia felt herself and her magic being pulled alongside with the Elements. She tried to move, but found herself frozen in place.

A voice laughed in the darkness.

"I did not expect you to make this so easy, Sun Princess." The voice spat the last word with disgust. Celestia panicked. She knew she had little time. She had to find a way to stop herself. If she did not, the raw energy would tear the foal apart, in mind and body.

“Wake up, little one.” Nightshade heard the familiar voice echo in the darkness around her. She felt extremely tired, prompting the voice to speak louder this time. "Wake up! Your time has come..." Nightshade felt her body growing more and more powerful. The mental strain that once made her disabled was now completely gone. She slowly stood up and opened her eyes.

Nightshade woke up.

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!!" An angered voice cried from the other side of the room. Celestia turned to see Nightshade standing in the doorway.

'Use what I taught you, little one...' The voice played on her mind.

A dark veil surrounded Nightshade’s horn and soon enveloped her whole body. Her eyes, glowing with power, peered directly into Celestia's. Nightshade moved inequinely fast as she charged at Celestia. The dark orb's impact was met with a small yelp from her, as well as the loud crunching noise of shattering bones. Celestia fell to the ground a few feet from where she was standing as the black aura evaporated from Nightshade. The Elements, without their forced power source, ceased glowing.

Nightshadow slumped to the ground in a heavy thud, un-moving. His sister dashed to his side, unfurling her wings and assuming an offensive stance towards Celestia.

A unicorn stepped out of the darkness. He had a brown coat with a grey mane, and was wearing a band around his leg that had a glowing amethyst-like gem embedded in it. He stared at the two with blood red eyes, smiling.

"You have surprised me, little filly." Celestia carefully picked herself up off the ground. Her broken ribs painted every movement with a sharp pain. The sight of the unicorn moving closer to the foals jolted Celestia fully awake. She quickly gripped the two with her magic and tossed them out of the room, slamming the door shut. The unicorn stopped in his tracks and glared at her. "Your highness." He said while mockingly bowing. Two dark blades launched themselves towards the Sun Princess.

Nightshade galloped with her brother in tow. "Shade? What happened? Why are we running?" He asked, still clearly disoriented by the Elements’ assault. Shade winced but kept running. She didn't have any answers for him. She couldn't understand it all herself.

All she knew was that Celestia had just tried to kill him.

"I'm sorry your highness." Wind Strider said as he cleaned up the rest of the mess left behind from Celestia's fight with the mysterious unicorn. "I have no idea how he managed to get past us. I'll have everypony double check for-"

"No. It doesn't matter now, anyway." She cut him inelegantly. Celestia lifted the band they had recovered from the now deceased assassin and analyzed. Up close, the artifact showed itself to be more familiar to Celestia than she thought. It was something that she and her sister failed to destroy long ago. "Have somepony take this to the vault, and lock it away as far from the door as possible… And double security for the vault and its surrounding areas for the next few months." She quickly added, dismissing the guards with a bow of her head.

With a quick, "Yes, your highness" He passed his orders down to her subordinates.

"And another thing... the foals..." She felt her head droop down in shame.

"They are gone, your Highness. Again, I apologize for the lapse in security. I don't know how we let two little foals slip past us, but we won’t let it happen again! We will find them. And besides, I'm sure they'll come home eventually."

Celestia sighed, she could feel every cut and bruise, all of them caused by the single impact provided by Nightshade. "No, they're gone… They will never return."

"If I may ask, What makes you think that, your Highness?"

"Nightshade has the memories of Luna..." Celestia's sorrow for her sister began to surface. "... and Luna would not trust me after what she had just seen."

"What could she have possibly seen to make her not trust you?"

Celestia felt fresh tears welling up in her eyes, blurring her vision. She quickly blinked them away. She could not appear weak to her subjects.

"I came down here with them to perform a memory spell… Something to remove my sister’s influence from them. That unicorn created some sort of... siphon out of it. I... almost killed Shadow..." She took a deep breath, trying to push away her guilt.

"When she saw me, she saw a monster trying to destroy her only brother." She couldn't stop a single tear from rolling down her face. "It may have been the assassin’s fault, but they do not know this. They will think of me as the creature from their nightmares. Those two are able to tame the most powerful spells. Their magical abilities are greater than any unicorn. One way or another, we will never see them again for as long as they wish to hide."

"Your highness, if I may interject?" The guard captain walked into the room.

"How long have you been listening?" Wind Strider, clearly annoyed, asked the intruding pony, but the captain simply ignored him.

"You said that they have the memories of Luna?"

"Nightshade does... I was able to free them from Nightshadow before I lost control of the spell." She said, her head still hanging a bit low.

"Is it not possible that she may decide to act on your sister's feelings?"

Celestia pondered his statement. "I... hadn't considered that..."

"Then perhaps we should at least attempt to seek them out. We could find them, and then you can attempt your memory spell uninterrupted."

Celestia looked to Wind Strider, who shrugged. "I would... tend to agree with the Captain." She nodded to him, and then turned to the guard captain.

"Alright then. Have search parties organized for tomorrow."

They moved quickly along the dimly-lit streets of Canterlot. They had never been there before, but Nightshade somehow knew the way. Few ponies were wandering the streets this night. Those that were often couldn't see them; the night was unnaturally dark, making both foals coats blend perfectly to their surroundings. Those that did catch a glimpse of them later wrote the encounter off as their minds playing tricks on them.

Shade was worried that they would be stopped at the main gate, but tonight proved itself to be their lucky night. The guard ponies that usually worked the night-shift were on leave, meaning that the day guards had to fill in. They were fast asleep by the time the two reached the gate. Even, then they didn't stop galloping.

Both foals fought against their complaining muscles and burning lungs. Nightshadow was in a slightly worse condition than Nightshade, still feeling the searing pain from the Elements’ bolt.

"Sis... please..." His voice faltered as one small slip made him fall over. Nightshade turned and grabbed her brother in her hooves.

"Come on... we gotta... we gotta..." She collapsed on the ground next to him, exhausted. "OK... maybe we can stop here..." She took a quick survey of their surroundings. They were on the edge of a forest. She wasn't sure which, but she was certain they were far enough from Canterlot by now.

"Shade... what happened? Why did we have to run?" Nightshade looked to her brother with a solemn face.

"You don’t remember?” Nightshadow only shook his head for an answer. “Shadow... I saw Tia doing something. It was... like in my dream." She paused -- not believing what she had seen earlier -- before adding."I don't think we can stay in the castle anymore..."

Nightshadow stared at his sister in disbelief. "No… M- Maybe it was an accident?" He tried, to which Shade slowly shook her head. Tears began to form on Nightshade’s eyes.

"Shadow. I know what you want to believe... but I saw it with my own two eyes... I'm sorry." He hung his head. Both foals stood like that for a moment, fighting their oncoming tears. It was Nightshadow that broke the silence.

"But where will we go? What will we do!? Tia said that if we ever left the castle, bad things would happen!" He couldn’t keep them contained and broke down, sobbing. "What are we gonna do Shade?"

She resisted the urge to sit down and cry next to him. She knew he was right. They had nowhere to go. Nowhere to sleep. Nothing to eat.

What would they do?

What could they do?

"Shadow... do you remember that day Tia showed us how she could move the moon?" Her brother didn't look at her, just nodded. "Well after that I started to... remember things. I know what we are now. I know why we don't have a family like those other foals that Tia told us about. And... I know I can do this..."

She stepped away from her brother and closed her eyes in a concentrated frown. Nightshade grunted as her horn glowed, summoning a black glimmer around it.

In a flash of light, a pair of apples appeared in front of her. She levitated one of the fruits over to her brother, who inspected it for a moment. He didn’t trust the taste of a summoned food, but those thoughts were quickly dismisses as his hunger and exhaustion took over his actions. He took a hearty chunk out of the apple. The corners of his mouth curved slightly upwards. It was indeed a real fruit.

Nightshade grinned.

Her voice resonated with the words of another.

"We don't need any of them. We can take care of ourselves."

The way has been opened

Nightshadow sighed as he thought back to that day. It took him years, but he finally learned the truth of the situation. It really wasn't Celestia's fault. But it didn't matter at the time. Neither of them could have known.

A month after the twin’s escape:

Celestia sighed as she looked over the majestic city. Things had gone well for the nation since Luna's imprisonment, but the same could not be said for Celestia's demeanor. Every time she gazed upon her majestic sun or her sister’s ominous moon, her feelings would resurface. She now felt twice as guilty, and had no way to avoid these feelings outside of her work.

"Your Majesty? I bring news from the search teams!" Wind Strider sounded excited, but Celestia remained solemn. They had been chasing the two foals for so long now, and her earlier predictions had turned out to be true. They would not be found as long as-

"A guard detachment sent word that they are in the process of detaining them." Celestia's eyes shot open. Pupils the size of pinpricks.

‘No… they can’t!’ Celestia trotted near Wind Strider and grabbed his head with her forehooves. "What do you mean, 'in the process of’?" Her panicked voice elicited a bit of fear from her bodyguard.

"W- Well, t- they've run into... c- complications...” He didn’t even have to finish his sentence...

Celestia knew.

"Go away!" Shade shouted as the guards broke through another of her magic barriers. She promptly cast another one surrounding herself and her brother.

One of the guards broke away from the formation currently attacking the magical barrier. He screamed to the foals as he ran: "Nightshade, please listen to us! We're only trying to-" A large stone, surrounded in a black aura, smacked the guard in the back of the head, knocking him unconscious over the dirt ground.

"Shadow, do something!" The panicked filly turned to her brother, who struggled with his magic.

"I'm… trying!" Nightshadow said as he tried to cast the spell his sister showed him prior. The guards pounded outside the barrier, the last one Shade had managed to maintain. A small black spark came to life at the tip of his horn, summoning forth a thin, black wall appeared between the guards and the two foals. Nightshadow grunted as the wall blinked in and out of existence before finally disappearing.

"I… can't... Shade, I can't!" Shadow panted, exhausted from the strain his magic put on him. Shade might have said something if it wasn't taking all of her concentration to keep the guard's from breaking through the last barrier. She staggered for a moment and it was all it took. A unicorn clad in golden armor stepped towards the weakened barrier and smiled. With a wave of his hoof, the barrier shattered like a frail glass window.

"No!" Shade was tapped out. She couldn't fight them all. She grasped her head in her forehooves. ‘If only I had more time…’

The night sky seemed to darken itself. The small breeze that ruffled through the meadow slowed down until it came to a sudden stop. Every sound seemed thicker and lower in pitch. Shade saw the guard ponies advancing in slower steps until they came to a full halt. ‘But they don’t seem… still.’ Shade moved around though the frozen guards. Some of them bore weary expression on their faces, but every single one of them stood paralyzed in mid-step.

Her eyes widened when she realized what had happened. “Shadow, come on! We’ve got to…” The words rot and fell away. There in the meadow, surrounded by frozen attacking guards stood Nightshadow… and herself. She looked down, towards her own hooves and gasped when nothing stood before her eyes. A thick, dark cloud moved unnaturally through the live statues, coming to a halt before her.

'Have you forgotten the spell already, little one?' A familiar voice rang directly inside her head, but Nightshade knew that the voice somehow came from the eerie cloud.

'But... I don't want to hurt anypony!' Shade tried to argue with it.

'You have no choice.'

'No! I can't...' She knew that it was right.

'You will. You must.'

'But...' She knew what she must do.

'Do it!' The voice snapped as the little filly felt herself being pulled back into her body.

Celestia and Wind Strider were both startled as a Pegasus burst into the room. Wind Strider unfurled his wings and tensed his muscles, but he relaxed when he saw the royal emblem that the Pegasus bore.

"Your Highness! Please come with me! There is something you need to see..." Puzzled, the Princess motioned for Wind Strider to follow her as she trotted down the hall into one of the many empty rooms of the castle.

On the floor of the room lay one of the guards. His wings were missing many feathers, but his torso is what sustained the most damage. Deep wounds oozed, staining his white coat a ruby tone. Celestia saw bone fragments sticking out of one of his hind legs. His armor was a charred mess, save for her symbol, the shining sun, which still remained somehow.

"We found him among the search party after they failed to report in... your majesty, everpony else that was part of that group was found dead." Celestia's eyes widened.

"How?" She simply asked

"We... are not sure your majesty. Some appeared to have had their flesh rended, as if they were torn apart from the inside. Others appear to have been burned, and one seemed to have been... beaten to death." Celestia visibly cringed from the guard pony’s description of the scene.

"What of him? Will he live?" She asked, still hopeful that at least one pony could be saved from the carnage.

The Pegasus slowly shook his head. "No, your Majesty. His injuries are too severe. He will pass soon. He was speaking nonsensically when they found him, but he requested to see you specifically." Celestia nodded and slowly trotted over to the dying unicorn, kneeling by his side. She recognized him from his uniform. He was an Eclipse, one of her honor guard.

The pony was shaking. Celestia didn’t know if it was fear or pain that compelled him to do so. "Darkness... horrid darkness... she is watching now... never blinking... eyes of a dragon... staring from the shadows...”

Wind Strider voiced himself, trying to grasp the dying pony’s attention: "Guardsman?" The Eclipse centurion froze. He slowly turned around and looked towards Celestia. She gasped as she stared into his eyes, they had become empty, red, pools.

"You!" His voice was laced rage. "This is your fault! Your actions have irrevocably exposed a pure heart to darkness!" The pony quickly forced himself off the floor, grabbing her and pulling her closer, the other guards drew their weapons and began to trot towards them when Celestia raised a hoof, signaling them to stay back and sway their weapons.

"Listen closely to my words, sun princess, for they shall be my last. Do not try to save her. She cannot be redeemed. You must cease your search or you will doom yourself and all those around you!"

He let go, repeating those words over and over again. Each repetition on a slightly lower volume until the rambling became unintelligible and ceased forever. Celestia stared off into space, her mind lost in a mist of confusion. She remembered this pony; she had been at his induction, just like she was at all of the Eclipse inductions.

He was loyal, strong, brave.

‘What could drive a pony like that to madness?’

Nightshadow grunted as he opened his eyes. He looked around himself, only to find a rocky crater over what once was a peaceful and isolated meadow. "Sh- Shade?" The black Alicorn filly stood alone among the fallen guardsmen. She seemed fine to him, but the guards unusually still. "Shade? Are you OK?" Her mane was... different. It had become as pitch black as their coats.

She slowly turned to her brother and smiled. Shadow couldn’t put his hoof on it, but something about that smile made the fur in his coat stand on its end. "Of course I am, Shadow. Why wouldn't I be?" Something was wrong with her eyes. It was like she was staring right through him.

"Shade? What happened to the guards?" He looked around, visibly concerned.

"Oh… Them. I killed them." Nightshadow cringed.

"Wh- What?" Nightshade simply giggled in response.

"I killed them. Every single one of them." A pained groan was heard behind her. Nightshade frowned and turned around. "Excuse me, almost every single one of them." She walked over towards the source of the noise. The groan came from a gold-clad unicorn that Shade recognized belonging to one particular group of Celestia’s centurions. The Eclipses. He looked up at the filly standing above him, who stared at him coldly. Their eyes locked and the guard shifted uneasily under the filly. Nightshadow could hear her whisper something, never taking her gaze out of him.

The guard pony used to seem terrifying to Nightshadow. Now that very pony was curled in a ball, crying heavily. "W- What did you do, Shade?" He asked, trotting next to her. She simply looked at him and smiled.

"Oh, nothing. He's just passing a message along to the princess for me." Raindrops began to lazily fall from the skies. A distant lightning bolt illuminated Nightshade’s face, making her both eyes glimmer in a sudden frightening flash.

"Why are you so... happy about this, Shade? You killed five ponies! You don't even look-"

"Sad? Guilty? Nope!" She cut him short. Nightshadow stared at his sister in complete disbelief. Nightshade frowned a bit and spat at her brother: "What!? You know what they were going to do! I had no choice! No sense in feeling guilty over something you couldn't avoid."

Nightshadow opened his mouth to say something, but instead turned from his sister and ran into the forest. Nightshade stood still as her brother galloped away from her. She felt something strange. Her head felt light, as if waking up from a long nights sleep. She saw Shadow running and felt her heart sink, she couldn't even remember why he was running.

The rain picked up; Nightshade could feel the cold drops splattering against her body as the strong wind mercilessly flung them at her. "Shadow! Wait!" She chased after her brother. She was able to keep him in her line of sight for a few good minutes, but unfortunately for her, Nightshadow was always the better athlete. The cold rain mixed with the burning muscles made Nightshade’s bones ache.

She didn't stop though. She didn’t stop until she couldn't run anymore.

And when she couldn’t, she fell to the ground and began to cry.

Shade couldn’t tell tears from rain.

Nightshadow ran. When he couldn't run anymore he simply collapsed onto the ground, in the middle of a long stretch of road. He was convinced that the creature he saw killing the guards wasn’t Nightshade. It couldn’t be her!

But no matter what he wanted to believe, some part of him knew the truth. It was his sister. She had killed five ponies and didn't even feel bad about it. Nightshadow whimpered, lonely and miserable. Bravery is not above sadness.

Guilt began to sour his thoughts: ‘What have I done?! I left Nightshade there… I abandoned her!’ He remembered how she had called out to him, scared for them both.

She was just trying to protect them.

And he paid her back by running away.

"He-… Hello?" A shaky voice asked behind him. Nightshadow turned to look at its owner. She was an orange earth mare with a deep red mane. He raised his gaze to look at her face; small freckles adorned her round cheeks. She gasped at the sight of his crimson eyes. Nightshadow simply turned his back to her and continued to sob.

"H- Hey now... wha's wrong?" Nightshadow looked back to see the mare hadn't backed away, but gotten closer. She still had a bit fear in her eyes, but something else was there as well... almost as if she was worried.

"I... I..." Shadow just broke down again. He wouldn't speak to anypony ever again. That was his punishment for leaving his sister behind.

"Do ya’... Do ya’ need ah place ta’ stay?" A part of Nightshadow wanted to say yes, but every other part of him wanted to stay put and hope his sister would somehow find him. But the fear of loneliness got the best of him. He got up and nodded to the mare without speaking a word.

The mare motioned for him to follow her down a dirt road and so he did. They walked for a long time before they saw anypony else. They gave him the strange look that the castle staff gave him the first day they saw him, but the mare shot them a look of her own that seemed to prevent them from saying anything.

In the distance he could make out a sign that read: 'Welcome to Emberglen'.

'Why did I listen to her...' Nightshade thought while slowly walking through the forest. No direction in particular.

'You listened to me because you knew I was right.' The voice made its way inside her mind once again.

'If I hadn't listened to you, Shadow would still be here!' She mentally berated at it.

'If you hadn't listened to me, you would both be dead.' Nightshade physically froze for a moment.

'You… you don't know that!'

'Yes I do. Because you know that too.' Shade didn’t want to believe it.

“ SHUT UP!" She screamed out into the open forest. Nothing answered her. She picked up her pace, starting to trot; eager to leave the forest. 'I have to find Shadow and explain it was all a mistake...'

'He won't trust you. He can't. Celestia made sure of that. '

'Celestia doesn't have anything to do with this!'

'Celestia has everything to do with this. She sent the guardsponies. She forced you to kill them. What makes you think that she'll stop now?' The voice rose in volume.

'I-' Shadow mentally began, but the shadow cut her short.

'She won’t! She won’t stop until you are dead. And then after she's done with you, your brother will be next. '

"No!" The shadow made sense to her. Shade knew that she could take it if something was brought down upon her… but she wouldn’t allow anything or anypony to harm her brother.

‘She fears us. Fears you. But I know how we can best her. ’ Nightshade was silent. The shadow took this as a cue to continue. 'I can show you how . You just have to get to me first. '

"But... I thought you were here?"

'No little one. I am not. I can teach you certain things from a distance, but you must be patient, do as I say, and above all trust me. When the time comes, you will meet me. And then you will be reunited with your brother over the corpse of the Sun Princess! '

She could no longer find the words to argue. Nothing sounded so bad anymore. Nothing was there to keep her in line. The only thing that was clear, the only thing that stood in between her and her brother, was Celestia.

Nightshade frowned a bit, acknowledging its wisdom: "Just tell me what I need to do."

The present day:

Nightshadow recalled his time spent at Emberglen fondly. He remembered the small town like the back of his hoof. In many ways it was like Ponyville; a self-sufficient town. The mare he met was one Red Apple, who was named due to her hair and the fact that she was part of the Apple family. They had gone back centuries before Nightshadow ever met them, they had always been named after Apples and had always been involved in the farm business in some way or the other. Nightshadow also recalled the enormous guilt he felt. He often wondered what would have happened had he stayed with Nightshade instead of leaving her by herself.

In any case, he enjoyed the time he spent with them. While wary of him at first, they had eventually come to accept him. Even after he told them about his situation, they let him hide there as long as he pleased.

"’Ah respect tha’ princess, but she musta’ been wrong about ya’. Ye've been nuthin’ but good to us here, so it'd be wrong o’ us to not do tha’ same."

Nightshadow found himself chuckling a bit. He could remember the thick, strong accent with clarity. The way they talked always sounded funny to him, and it always would. He would stay with them for thirty years, watching as the generation that took him in 'passed the reigns' to the generation he grew up with.

He frowned and began to push his memories away, he did not want to think about his last day with them, not right now anyway. As he watched the ponies scurry about below, he asked himself what his sister could be up to right now…

Waking Nightmares

Nightshadow flew over Ponyville, nearly invisible under the night sky. He needed a place to stop; recent events had caused certain memories to resurface. Memories that were better left buried.

He hadn't told his sister. He wondered if she would even understand. Dark thoughts... emotions he hadn't felt in hundreds of years... "Damn it!" The building rage was unconsciously directed towards a mailbox. It lifted in the air and began to tremble, as if it could feel fear. Suddenly the mailbox crushed down upon itself.

'Why? Why now?' Nightshadow tried to reverse the minor damage he had caused and ended up disintegrating the innocent mailbox. It collected on the ground in a pile of ashes before inexplicably disappearing. He flew back to his cloud and fell asleep, hoping to find the answer hidden away in his dreams. Hoping that this time, luck was on his side.

Nineteen years after Nightshade's imprisonment:

"Sir, the place is a deathtrap." One of the group of ponies said. It was an earth pony. "We sent one of the new blood in there and he got cut down before he even took a step." He paused, waiting for his superior's response.

The unicorn grinned. "Well then, there must be something good in there for them to hide it so... vividly."

The earth pony nodded. "I'll send in more of the young ones. With any luck..." The earth pony respectfully nodded before trotting away. Neither of them saw the cloaked pony who watched the group from a distance.

‘Bandits... Treasure hunters for sure.’ It was not the first time he had seen them. The cloaked pony calmly trotted on, ignoring the thieves and continuing on towards the ruins.

"Halt!" One of them yelled. The hooded pony stopped. "Just what do you think you're doing here?" The pony remained silent, and resumed his trot towards the entrance to the ruined castle.

Another pony, a Pegasus, flew in front of him. A dagger slung around his side. "Now hold on a moment there, sir. My friends and I just want to know what you're doing out here." His facial expression betrayed another intent entirely.

The hooded pony spoke. "Move." His voice boomed throughout the small valley. It had no tone of aggression, but it clearly showed that he would be willing to resort to that if need came.

The Pegasus smirked. "And just what are you going to do if I don't?" He pulled his dagger and held it tightly in his teeth.

'Just like a pegasus, to feel superior for no reason.' A dark aura reached out and enveloped the dagger. The Pegasus tried to lunge forward and immediately found himself lying on the ground in blinding pain, clutching his mouth in his hooves. The cloaked pony had yanked the dagger from his assailant’s mouth with his magic, taking most of the Pegasus' teeth and some large chunks of his cheeks with him. "Fool..."

He turned to meet the rest of the thieves. Most looked angry over their comrade's pain. The hooded pony decided that now was the best time to reveal himself. In a single move he threw the cloak off of him, revealing the black wings. The enchantment keeping his eyes normal was gone with the cloak, returning his eyes to their usual draconic form. The bandits took several steps back. Some were in awe, but most were afraid.

Nightshadow stepped forward, to which they all backed up. Nopony would willingly go against an Alicorn. Especially one with such features. Nightshadow purposely flashed his crimson eyes and leaped forward, making the entire band of thieves run for their dear lives. Nightshadow gave chase for some brief moments, just to be sure that they wouldn’t be back to bother him. He smiled proudly.

'You should have just killed them all...' the Nightmare said.

"Yes, but that was much easier, and oh-so much more... satisfying." The presence that had contacted him had later revealed itself as Nightmare. It told him of four artifacts which could be used to defeat an immortal being. To unbind the soul from the body; flesh from the bone. It lead him to each of their resting places, or at least in their general direction. He had nearly spent the last two decades either looking for them, or looking for clues leading to them. It was maddening. But today his task would be so very close to completion. He had two of them, and was now after the third.

He did not care that the Nightmare was evil. It gave him the means to his ends. The cave that stood by the mountain step felt unnatural. Odd scribblings and marks adorned its entrance. Writings older than the Sun Princess herself. He stepped into the cave and stuck a hoof out.

A pendulum came down on the spot his hoof once was. 'Magic trip-wire....' He thought to himself. Nightshadow furrowed his brows and concentrated his magic into his form. His body seemed to melt away, becoming a plume of thick smog. He maneuvered through the ruins effortlessly. Traps went off and hit nothing but air. Things that would have killed normal ponies were simply rendered inert to him.

After several minutes of maneuvering through cleverly laid, ancient traps, he reached the chamber he was after. It wasn't even clearly marked as was the cave entrance, but he knew. He could feel it.

He saw his prize. A single, floating black gem.

Instinct told him to levitate it over to him for the sake of convenience, but experience made him move towards the gem and pick it up off its pedestal by hoof. Sure enough, a large slab came down near the entrance, intending to crush unwary unicorns that would have used magic to move the gem. As his hoof touched the cold black surface of the gem, he heard the same faint voice he heard with all the others.

"Agony..."

He teleported the gem away to a safe location he had dug out, a trick the Nightmare had taught him, and made his way out of the ruins as effortlessly as he had made his way in.

'Finally... after all these years, but one artifact remains...' The voice spoke.

"I assume you know where it is, then?" He could swear he heard it laugh.

'You are quite eager, aren't you? Very well. The last one is in the very place where your goal lies... the royal vault.'

Nightshadow's eyes widened. "So this means..."

'The time has come...'

Later that night:

Celestia stood in her throne room, alone. Ever since Wind Strider passed away, she hadn't appointed another bodyguard. He told her what he did before he died, and she forgave him. She knew that he only did what he thought was right.

She also knew that he would come tonight.

It was the day Celestia had sent his sister away. Her guilt ate at her. She could have done more, but Shade seemed too far gone. ‘But I didn't even try...’ Celestia thought, warm tears forming on her eyes, tempted to ruin the coat over her cheeks. ‘I just... sent her away...’

A guard burst into the room, panting heavily. "Your highness!" He shouted out. "Someone has... attacked the castle... I found guardsponies... unconscious..."

Celestia sighed; how she wanted for this not to happen. "You may leave, guardsman. I will address the situation soon."

He bowed before shakily adding. "Y- Yes y- your highness." He galloped out the door.

Celestia could feel his presence now. There was no need in delaying the inevitable. "I know you're here Shadow. You can come out now." Nightshadow materialized in the center of the room. He glared at Celestia. Eyes filled with two decades of hatred and pain met eyes filled with two decades of regret and self-loathing.

Celestia let out another weary sigh. "I can't convince you to take another course of action, can I?" Nightshadow's response was a blade made out of his aura, hurled towards Celestia. She managed to grab it with her own magic just before it connected with her neck.

She dispelled the blade and was ready to return the favor, but Nightshadow had already closed the distance between himself and Celestia. The flying tackle broke the throne itself and carried the two of them through multiple walls until they were outside the castle.

Under the night sky.

Where his sister could watch.

It took a moment for Celestia to realize she was falling, but she quickly rebounded. To the few ponies that were out that night, their battle was mistaken for oddly colored fireworks above the castle.

For the guardsponies, it was a spectacular battle between two god-like creatures. The battle between Luna and Celestia had not been witnessed so nopony knew what to expect.

Bolts of energy were flung in every direction. Nightshadow slipped around them with ease and fired pin-point strikes with a lightning-spell he had learned. Celestia would retract the energy into a shield, than redirect it into a more concentrated blast.

Both suffered glancing blows, but neither managed to directly hit the other. 'Glancing blows...' Nightshadow acknowledged. ‘Celestia is older than me... more powerful... more experienced... yet she hasn’t managed to hit me…’ The realization hit him like a brick wall. She wasn't using all of her power. She was holding back.

Whilst Nightshadow used powerful spells, -- ancient magics forgotten to time and originally only known to the princess -- Celestia used less powerful attacks, hoping to wound him into submission instead of destroying him. She wouldn’t be able to forgive herself should something happen to him.

'Well... we can't have that, can we?' Nightshadow sped at the Sun Princess faster than anything she’d ever seen. She panicked and directed a powerful streak of energy towards him. It seared his wings and sides, but he did not care. He was getting close...

Too close.

Celestia retracted the tendrils of energy and shaped them into a frontal barrier. Nightshadow jerked his wings hard, but the momentum flung him towards the barrier, which he hit harder. He plummeted to the ground, seemingly unconscious.

Celestia sped after him. They landed in the garden, where the statue of Discord looked upon their fight with some measure of amusement. ‘The colt has grown... I wonder what trick he has up his sleeve?’

The princess, being a fully grown Alicorn, was beyond most magical and physical harm. Neither hair, nor feather was out of place as she landed, while the fight had been somewhat exhausting. Nightshadow was still young. He was immortal, but still felt the white-hot mortal pain. He could still feel wounds, and still felt as though the life was draining out of him as he bled from the impact of the fall.

"Rise, Nightshadow." Celestia commanded, fighting her sadness with her most regal voice.

Nightshadow spat blood at Celestia's hooves. "I know what you're going to do. What are you waiting for? Come on then!" He roared. Five orbs floated out from behind Celestia. They began to circle around her. The element of magic, still sealed within the tiara, was on her head. She had no words left to say.

The elements reacted. As if with a mind of its own the rainbow shot out towards Nightshadow. Celestia squeezed her eyes shut. The hum accompanied with the use of the elements died down. Celestia opened her eyes to see what had gone wrong.

Nightshadow glared at her. "It would be like you to use the Elements." He said before laughing maniacally.

Celestia's mouth was agape with surprise. She slowly shook her head in disbelief. "That... isn't possible..."

Nightshadow allowed himself to grin. "Oh yes. It is very possible." Four, black, gems winked into existence around him. Three of them circled around him while the fourth was hovering above him. A dark veil, much darker than the glimmer of his magic began to surround him.

The whispers echoed inside both his and Celestia's head. "No! Stop! You have no idea what-" She was cut off as the aura around Nightshadow thickened.

'Agony.'

'Malice.'

'Deceit.'

'Shadow.'

The voices echoed in his head.

'Darkness.'

The color drained from the world around him. Grass and flowers wilted as the life was crushed from them by the presence of the darkness. Discord trembled inside of his stone prison. ‘Not... good...’

Celestia, for the first time in thousands of years, was very much afraid. Nightshadow's eyes slowly became hollow, dark, sockets. He stared directly at Celestia and she felt her life slowly leaking from her. The aura intensified as he lurched towards the Sun Princess.

She put her energy into the Elements of Harmony. They formed a barrier in a desperate attempt to protect their wielder from the darkness' influence.

Nightshadow gave his energy to the Darkness.

She was stronger, but that didn't matter now.

Harmony was stronger, but that didn't matter now.

Harmony was without those six meant to wield it.

And Darkness had found its home; in the heart of a lonely soul.

The barrier slowly began to crack. Celestia began to pour all of her remaining energy into maintaining the barrier. The Darkness did the same. Celestia let out a terrified scream as the barrier failed completely. Her mind went blank.

Nightshadow was alone.

In the darkness.

Alone.

"Excellent work!" The Nightmare said. A dark-blue mist seeped down from above and took the form of a black Alicorn.

"Sister?" Nightshadow said, somewhat surprised. The Alicorn was entirely featureless except for its color, but there was an ominous air of familiarity around her form.

The Nightmare laughed. "No, but I can see why you would think that. Soon we will meet in person, and I can explain things... but for now there is work to be done." She paused before adding. "The Sun Princess must die."

Nightshadow nodded.

"No..." Another voice cried, echoing from all directions. Like with the first, a mist seeped down from above, this one purple. It took the shape of another featureless Alicorn, a deep blue one. "You cannot kill her! If you do as this creature asks, you will doom the world with Eternal Night!"

"Why should I care?" Nightshadow asked angirly.

The blue Alicorn frowned. "Because then you will be dooming millions of ponies to slow death under a tyrant. Would you really want that?"

Nightshadow scoffed. " How many of those millions of ponies are worth saving? How much of this world deserves to stay warm while the rest freezes to death? If there was a way to burn this whole world I would, but since I cannot, Eternal Night will have to do."

The black Alicorn smiled reluctantly. Nightshadow sighed. He was getting tired of the multiple personalities telling him the difference between right and wrong. He had already fought with his conscience enough as it is.

"There is another choice..." Another voice rang out making all present jump up in surprise. The voice was low like a whisper, but still carried a strong tone with it.

"No! You're not supposed to be here!" The Nightmare said.

"Leave this place, spirit!" The blue one said.

"Silence." The new voice commanded, still no louder than a whisper. Suddenly the other two let out a pained yelp and disappeared.

Nightshadow did not show his fear. "What are you?"

"I have gone by many names... Legion... Destroyer... Prince of Darkness... by using my symbol you have released me. In return, I grant you my wisdom."

Nightshadow shook his head. "You mentioned another option?"

"This world has been unfair, as have its ponies. It always will be. Does it deserve your mercy?"

Nightshadow thought about the good ponies in the world. Ponies like Wind Strider, and Red Apple. Then he remembered the other ponies that he had seen... They looked upon him with fear and hatred, and that was just when they saw his eyes. God herself had separated him from his sister. Celestia, ruler of all ponykind, was a monster wielding the power of order.

"You have the power of Darkness. The wielder of Harmony is bent to your will. You have a way to end it all. Do so." Nightshadow did not notice the mist creeping up behind him.

Something about the creature's words just seemed right.

As it had done to countless others before him, Darkness consumed his heart.

Nightshadow awoke. He was standing over the once-powerful Sun Princess. Her mane, what was once a beautiful myriad of vivid colors, was now a solid pink. She looked up at him, her eyes had become hollow grey orbs.

"Rise." He commanded, and as his subject, she did as he commanded.

Than, very calmly, Nightshadow said "Bring the moon to us." Celestia struggled inside her mind. Tears would be streaming down her cheeks had she not been inhabiting the now empty shell that once was her body. She nodded and lowered her head, pointing her powerful horn out towards the moon. She found that she could not will the moon down towards Equestria, the autonomous magical seals known collectively as 'gravity', placed by ancients far older than her, held it in place. Still, she tried.

She suddenly became aware of another's magic at work on the moon, and turned to see Nightshadow's horn glowing. Very slowly the seals broke. Very slowly the moon started its descent towards Equestria.

"No... No. No! NO! THIS WASN'T SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN!" Nightmare Moon cried out. "THERE WAS SUPPOSED TO BE ETERNAL NIGHT! I WAS TO BE QUEEN. I... I..." She sighed, which on the moon was like a gust of icy wind.

For a brief few moments, Luna came to the surface "We just wanted ponies to appreciate our night... We never wanted it all to be destroyed... now... now there will be no ponies left to see my nights..." Nightmare Moon was herself once more, but she felt a huge sorrow as the deep blue mist inside her mind wept in despair.

Nightshade looked down at the events below, as Equestria suddenly began to come closer. Twenty years of regret flooded back to her. She did not have the same luxury of being insane as Nightmare was, at least not as insane. Talking to oneself to pass the time might be qualified as such. Shade had let the being 'next' to her twist her mind so that she could get to her brother, and now her brother was going to end it all, out of misery.

Then suddenly, Nightshade could feel something. It was like the weight of an entire planet was out of her shoulders. A previously unknown sense of... freedom...

"Luna..." She said, containing her elation. Nightmare Moon was about to verbally reprimand her, but squelched the thought, deciding that it didn't really matter now. "I think we can escape..."

"It does not matter. With both darkness and harmony working against us, we would both need to be there in order to stop this now...” She looked at the stars around the small planet and sighed. “The stars will only allow one to pass... all this time... wasted" Nightshade huffed and began focusing her magic. "What... What are you doing?"

"I can't just stay up here and do nothing! My brother... needs me." Nightmare Moon was about to speak in protest, but found herself alone before she could say a word. Nightmare Moon glanced at a particular group of stars, slowly swaying away from each other and sighed.

‘It will take a long time for them to be ready again...’

Nightshade arrived in the very spot she was banished from; the royal throne room. She flew quietly through the holes in the wall where Nightshadow and Princess Celestia both flung through. She hovered above the Sculpture Garden and saw him. The sight of her brother caused her heart to drop. He was standing next to a now drained Celestia.

‘He’s guiding the moon's descent alone!’ Nightshade gasped at the realization. She landed next to him. "Nightshadow?" She called. “Brother, it’s me!” He could not hear her. He could not see her. All of his focus, all of his consciousness was centered on the moon.

She sighed and charged a weak spell. A bolt of energy arced towards her brother. His shadow leapt off the ground and swatted it away. 'I've... I've gotta do something!'

Nightshade looked up at the silver orb in the sky. She smirked, remembering an odd song she heard one night. 'If you can do anything...' She began to hum the song as she reached up into the sky with her magic.

Nightshade was amazed at how light the moon actually was. She was also amazed at the fact that she could feel Nightshadow's magic at work, pulling the moon towards them all. Putting every ounce of her concentration into the single direction, she managed to halt the moon.

Nightshadow let out a grunt. Suddenly, Nightshade felt the moon begin to lurch forward once more, more hastily than before. "No! Shadow, stop!" He still could not hear her.

The moon began to near Equestria. Ponies, which at one point thought it was a spectacle being performed by Celestia, now became fearful and panicked, fleeing Canterlot. All the while, brother and sister were playing a deadly game of tug of war that Nightshade was losing.

Discord frowned inside of his stone prison. He was all for chaos, but destruction was not his style. Death only worked out if enough chaos was caused from the ponies. Killing off all of ponykind meant that there would be nopony to experience his wonderful chaos.

He watched as the Alicorn sister tried in vain to stop her brother. The arc of energy she shot was quickly deflected and headed straight for his stony prison.

Discord's somber mood turned to glee. ‘Free at last!’ The bolt of energy grazed the statue. An almost microscopic piece of stone chipped off and hit the floor silently.

Discord focused his essence through the small opening. 'Dang!' The statue sure was weakened, but the stone bit that chipped off of it was too small for Discord to break free on his own. However, the opening was large enough to let a bit of his influence leak out...

Discord smiled. He had a plan. What's more, he had an opportunity he might not see again for a thousand lifetimes, and despite the moon coming down on their heads, he would use it.

Nightshade felt a small trickle of blood run down the side of her head. She did her best to ignore the sharp pain and the ringing in her ears that accompanied it. Something else was driving her brother towards his destructive ends, she had seen this. But she couldn't wake him up, and all of her magic was being pushed towards keeping the moon from falling down on them all.

'Oh my poor little pony.' A voice snickered in her head before erupting in a heartily guffaw.

'Wha... What?' Nightshade’s surprise made her magic falter for a moment. She pushed back her efforts and concentrated also on her mind. ‘Great... now I’m hearing things...’

'Oh. You’re not hearing things. I'm perfectly real, see?' Something made her look over to one of the statues in the garden, specifically one of an elegantly posed draconequus.

'I'm a little busy at the moment!' She thought, glaring at the statue.

She heard what must have been a snort. 'Fine then. I was going to help out but...'

'Wait!’ The voice snickered once more, it worked. ‘H- How can you help?' From within Discord's prison, he smiled.

'Why don't we step into my office?' Before Nightshade could pose the spirit a question, she suddenly found herself sitting in a chair in front of a desk inside of a large, dark room with the Draconequus she saw earlier. Only he was much more colorful in person.

"Hello, my dear!" It boomed. "I'm sure you’re eager to get started, but first, tea?" A saucer and cup were levitated over to her. She couldn't help but notice that, aside from their shape, they seemed to be ordinary balloons.

"You said you could help." She said sternly, glaring at the balloons. "We don't have time for any games." Discord let out a hearty laugh.

"Alright then, Miss Black Snooty, I'll get down to business. Chaos... is a wonderful thing." His voice boomed with glee at the end of the sentence. As he began, the silverware exploded into ribbons, which than began to move on their own, hissing like snakes. Nightshade instinctively jumped up and floated above the creatures. Not that she was endangered, she just didn’t like snakes.

Discord laughed again, before his expression turned to a slightly more serious one. "But you see, Chaos isn't any fun without ponies to see it. To experience it. To be a part of it." The snakes grew larger. They sprouted wings and legs. Discord moved his claws around the snakes, prompting one to fight the other until both mutually ended their existence in quick pops.

"The destruction of the whole world would be a bit of a downer, so I'd be glad to help you..." Discord said, transforming the popped balloons into wine.

"But... ?" Shade said, she knew that with these older entities there was always a catch.

Discord smiled. "Well, aren't you a clever one? I would love to help preserve ponykind and yadda yadda yadda...” He mimicked a mouth blabbering with one of his claws ”But, you see, I'm also a bit of an... opportunist." He said, pressing his claws together and tapping the fingers together.

"I'm not setting you free. If that's what you’re asking." Shade didn’t know how bad or evil Discord was. But she wasn’t willing to find out.

Discord laughed in her face. "Oh my dear, while that is *a tempting offer, I wouldn't get another chance like this in a millennium." Nightshade's face contorted into one of confusion. "Let me put it simply for you." Discord said, frowning. "I can *remove the... Darkness from your brother. **BUT... in return... I require your sanity..."****

*Nightshade didn't seem surprised at his offer, just even more confused. "Why just my sanity? Why *wouldn't you want to be free?"****

*"Ah my dear, causing chaos personally is fun, but watching other ponies cause chaos is even more so! But of course, all you ponies pass away with age... except for you. Oh no, *you are immortal! You would last forever! Not even little Celly could stomp you out! Besides..." He stared off into the void with a slight grin. "... there will be another opportunity for freedom."**

*'I guess I should just consider myself lucky.' She thought. 'He doesn't seem to realize how desperate the situation is.' Nightshade sighed. "Fine." She said, making Discord’s grin widen deviously.*

*"Excellent! Let's shake on it!" He extended a claw. Nightshade reached out with a hoof and shook it. She felt a strange sensation in her hoof, which quickly turned into an electric shock. Discord laughed as Nightshade began to feel less and less *herself.**

Nightshadow could feel the Sun Princess collapse next to him.

He didn't care.

He felt the ponies around the world quake in fear.

He didn't care.

He felt the work of another, pushing the moon back up.

He didn't care.

He saw from the moon the monster he had become.

He didn’t care.

He saw the sister he wanted back so dearly fighting him for the rest of the world.

He woke up from his nightmare.

Nightshadow felt as though he had just woken from a dream; light-headed and feverish. He looked down at the defeated Sun Princess at his hooves. His eyes followed the floor, stopping on his collapsed sister. Suddenly, memories of their predicament came back to him. "Oh... oh no..." He felt what he had done. What he was still doing.

Nightshadow immediately began putting all his effort into pushing the moon back into the sky.

'NO! YOU WILL NOT DEFY ME!' The presence shouted in his mind. But the sound of it was quickly cut by another voice’s snicker.

He ignored all of it. What he should have done all along.

Nightshade awoke feeling strange. She slowly got to her hooves. She looked over at the collapsed Sun Princess. 'Huh. I wonder why Tia's mane got all pink.' She was going to trot up to her aunt to see what was wrong, but as her first hoof connected to the floor below her, she winced. 'Ow. Head feels like I got a horse kicking me. Ha! Horse. Funny...' Her mind derailed itself.

She looked over to her brother and suddenly the urgency of the situation immediately rushed back to her, removing the stupid smile off her face. She galloped next to her brother and resisted the urge to embrace him and never let go. Her horn glimmered as both brother and sister began to push the moon back into the sky.

'I SHALL NOT BE DEFEATED SO EASILY!'

Nightshadow could feel the presence leave the gems and float upwards. It was accompanies by that same voice from before, hissing and cursing the Darkness. Both brother and Sister could now feel the Darkness pushing the moon down, trying desperately to keep it on its course.

Both Brother and Sister pushed back against the Darkness. It howled as it met a wall it could not shatter. A bond it could not break.

The ponies everywhere cheered as the moon ceased its decent. The citizens still thought it was Celestia putting on a show. Maybe it would be better that way. They felt the moon firmly gripped in the hold of 'gravity'. The dark presence raged, but could not fight against the ancient magic. Both sighed, releasing their own grip, allowing the moon to go back on its natural course.

Nightshade turned to her brother and smiled. Nightshadow turned to his sister and frowned, she was bleeding around the base of her horn, a sign of intense magical exertion. "It's nice to see you again, too." She chuckled.

They might have broken down into tears had they not had one more matter to deal with.

Nightshadow stood over Celestia once again. The effects of being exposed to the Darkness were wearing off. Her mane was slowly returning to its usual assortment of colors, but she remained still. Her eyes looked up at him. Her mind was her own once more.

"I could kill you. But I won't. I'm not like you, not like your sister, even though I was so very close to being you." He willed the black gems to his side once more. "There is one matter, though." He fed energy into the Darkness one final time.

He used it as a surgeon would use a scalpel, found the thread he was looking for, than severed it. Celestia winced in pain at the sudden loss of power. "What... What did you do?"

Nightshadow smiled. "I took something from you. Something that wasn’t yours. Something, I fear, you have grown far too reliant on."

Celestia blinked and they were gone.

Free from the influence of Nightmare.

Free from the influence of Sun and Moon.

Free from the influence of Darkness and Harmony.

At last, truly free...

Or so he thought...

The present...

Nightshadow awoke from his vivid dreams. Except they weren't his dreams.

They rarely slept at the same time, but when they did, there were times where he would accidentally walk into his sister's dreams. Most were memories. Usually more recent memories...

He had never known about her 'deal' with Discord. Nightshadow had always just assumed Shade's madness was due to her time on the moon, or the years taking their toll on her...

They would arrive in a small town or a village, Shadow always avoided heavily populated areas in case Celestia was looking for them. Shade would go with her usual pranks, have her fun, and be totally harmless at first. Than after a while she learned how the locals acted, how they worked, what they did every day, their routines. Then she would get bored, always getting the same reactions out of the same ponies. Eventually she would increase the span and size of her 'pranks', which at that point had become more like sick delusions. Then Shadow would have to take her someplace else before she destroyed the town out of boredom, which she had almost done on more than one occasion.

"I should have killed him!" He yelled aloud. They had been present when Discord had returned. He had convinced himself not to intervene, instead leaving Ponyville for a short while. Discord's return was one of many pre-determined events, and they had bad experiences with trying to interrupt pre-determined events.

Nightshadow thought about confronting Shade with this revelation. He flew through the night sky, looking for his sister. While he flew, he began to think about their time in Ponyville. They had spent a large amount of time here, several years. He then realized something.

She had just now started to show signs of her boredom, her nearly lethal prank on Rainbow Dash.

She still caused misery.

She still enjoyed the chaos she caused.

But she regretted what she did to Dash. She didn't just feel sorry, she wished it didn't happen...

Was something here... helping her?

Nightshade smiled from her cloud perch as she saw Shadow approaching. "Hey! I haven't seen you tonight! Where'd you go?"

"I was busy." He said nonchalantly.

"It wouldn't have anything to do with this, would it?" She pointed to a pile of ashes on the cloud. Nightshadow grimaced, causing his sister to giggle.

"Oh yeah! I almost forgot." Shade levitated a saddlebag out from behind her. "Open it!" Nightshadow did, and levitated the contents out of the bag. There were two pairs of glasses.

Nightshadow looked confused, he inspected the glasses but found nothing abnormal about them. "Shade, what is this?"

"Put them on!" Nightshadow hesitated before he did, expecting it to shock him or distort his vision or make him hear voices. Not even he was above his sister's tricks. He looked through the lenses and was confused; they seemed to be two ordinary panes of glass.

Nightshade's horn glowed and a mirror appeared beside her. Nightshadow eyed his reflection warily. His eyes looked... normal. Still scarlet, but the pupils were round, not slits.

"Nightshade... what is this?"

She laughed as she levitated a similar pair of glasses onto her own face, changing her green eyes in the same way as Nightshadow's.

"We're going to a party tomorrow night!"

Rainbow Dash awoke with a yawn. "Morning already?" She grunted, still sleepy. She glanced over to her alarm clock. It read 2:04 AM.

'What the hay?' She never woke up early... especially this early. She shrugged and tried to go back to sleep. A whole full hour passed but sleep never came. Rainbow Dash just lay in her bed, tossing and turning. Dash sighed and floated towards the stairs.

As Rainbow was floating past the bathroom she froze. She saw her image out of the corner of her eye, reflected in the mirror. She slowly turned to get a good look in the mirror. Her eyes went wide as she gazed upon her reflection. She kicked herself many times, making sure that she wasn't dreaming. After making absolutely sure she wasn't asleep, Rainbow Dash did the only thing she could think to do at the time.

She screamed and bolted out the door.

Authors note:Dont know why the text above all bolded... And I can't figure out how to fix it. Soz

A Hearth Warmed (the hearths-warming special I said wasn't going to happen)

Authors Disclaimer: This doesn't actually affect the plot in any way. You could place this at any point in the story, really. This is just something festive I did for the sake of it. I hope you enjoy!

Ponies trotted through the streets of Canterlot, the majority of them last minute shopping. Ponies who had forgotten or had lacked the time to buy gifts for friends and family were doing so now.

They were a source of amusement for Nightshadow.

'You'd think if they just got their gifts on time like the other eighty percent than they wouldn't have to stress so much.' He chuckled as he extended his wings and took off.

Nightshadow had never celebrated hearths warming before, but this year was a special occasion. This year he had more than one pony to care about. His horn glowed, while nopony else could see it. He pictured the spot in his mind. The same spot he always chose when visiting them.

He appeared along the edge of a forest and waited.

A dog like creature emerged. It stumbled around for a bit, obviously not used to being above ground, and than bowed before Nightshadow.

"Master." It said, eyes never leaving the ground.

"Rise." It did as he commanded. "How has your tribe fared in my absence, courier?"

"Well, sir. The other tribes have given us no trouble since you were last here."

Nightshadow smiled.

A long time ago Nightshadow and his sister had stumbled upon a group of Diamond dogs acting slightly more intelligently than normal ones. They were, ironically, living in a group of warring tribes among a series of tunnels. When they saw him, they at first feared him. He took pity on the creatures, using his magic to increase their intelligence further, as well as scaring the other tribes into neutrality. They quickly gained dominance, and now led peaceful lives in the tunnels. In return for what he has done, the creatures all gave themselves to Nightshadow in servitude. Once a year he would come to this spot. If there were any fires that they couldn't put out, he did. He had made a special request this time however.

"We found an amethyst matching his master's specifications, and fashioned it into a gem worthy of being a part of the royal crown. We also found the sapphire you requested as well, and as ordered have left it untouched." The courier presented a small box. Nightshadow levitated the box out of the creatures paws and into a bag, which he than teleported to a safe location, giving the courier a warm smile.

"Tell your people that I am most pleased. Thank you, young one." The courier bowed than scampered off into the forest.

Shadow already had his sister's present. It was a book, "Pranks involving ancient magics". He had... appropriated it from the forbidden library in Canterlot Castle. If anything that alone would bring a smile to her face.

He was still closer to Canterlot than he was to Ponyville, so he decided that this would be his second stop. He pictured exactly where he wanted to go, and in a flash of magic he was gone.

Shadow reappeared right where he wanted to be, in the middle of Canterlot castle. He quickly cast his invisibility, than slowly made his way through the halls.They were decorated with wreaths and magical lights and all of those other festive decorations. Nightshadow paid them no mind as he trotted leisurely towards his destination.

And there he was. Nightshadow looked at the two bat-winged guards flanking the door. He chuckled as he undid the invisibility spell. Both guards gasped and raised their weapons, only to realize who it was and stand down. He gave them both a curt nod, which they returned in kind.

He entered Luna's chambers. She was away at the moment, likely spending time with her sister. He summoned the box from his hiding place. He carefully opened it and levitated the first gem out. It was a large, uncut sapphire. He specifically requested that the one they find be as naturally flat as possible. The gem had small depressions, which made it appear to have craters. Like the moon. He willed another object into existence, a red box with a blue festive tie. He carefully placed the gem inside the box and wrapped the box up with the tie, leaving the present on the moon Princess' dresser. He found a small paper and parchment and wrote a short message.

Begin Note:

I figured this was something you would appreciate.

Be safe Moon Princess.

From- Another Friend of the Night

End Note

"Okay. Two more to go." Ponyville was his next destination. He concentrated on his usual spot, the single white cloud in the sky at this time of year, where as most of the overcast clouds had become a dull grey.

Nightshadow entered existence once again, this time with a loud poof. He had to expend slightly more energy, but he was more than capable of teleporting farther. He was high above the sky, on his sister's cloud. He smiled, his sister was slumped over on the cloud, snoring loudly. Alicorns don't need to sleep, when they do it is more for the experience of dreaming than physiological requirement. Still, it would give Shadow the opportunity he needed.

He willed his sister's present next to him, as well as wrapping paper and another blue tie. He carefully wrapped it, just like the sapphire, and left it on the cloud. That was where Nightshade would probably find it anyway.

'One last stop...'

Morning.

Luna came back to her chambers later that night, having already lowered the moon for her sister, she was ready for a good 'days' sleep.

She was greeted with the sight of a colorfully wrapped gift.

"Guards?" The two ponies near the door stiffened. "Did anypony stop by earlier today?" She had been working towards getting rid of her 'accent', and had done a good job of it tonight.

"No, your Highness." She could tell just by the way he spoke that they were lying.

She levitated the box over to her, and unwrapped the gift carefully from a distance. Satisfied it wasn't some sort of assassination device, she observed the sapphire before reading the attached note.

Smiling, Luna moved to her desk and began to write a letter...

Nightshade awoke on the cloud with a loud yawn. She took in a deep breath and shouted:

"GOOOOOD MORNING EQUESTRIA!" She unfurled her wings and was about to take off to find Shadow when she bumped into something.

It was a strange square wrapped in colorful paper. She remembered one Hearth's warming where she saw a group of young colts and filly ripping the paper open, discovering presents inside.

Nightshade squeed and levitated the square towards her face to get a better look at it. There was a short note attached that said. "Courtesy of Nightshadow and the Royal Library." Nightshade unwrapped the present and smiled.

"You stole this, didn't you Nightshadow?" She giggled and left the book on the cloud, taking off to find her brother.

Twilight Sparkle awoke on Hearth’s Warming day to a surprise, Spike shaking her.

She slept in for a very good reason, even last night on hearths warming eve she had been studying feverously. And now her assistant was waking her up after what was probably three hours of sleep.

“Spike…” She said, still groggy “…you better have a good reason for waking me up so early...”

Spike sighed at his “sister’s” demeanor. “Someone dropped something off a while ago.” He picked up a small brown box with a roll of parchment tied to it. “They said not to read the note, that it was for you.”

Twilight blinked a few times, now completely awake. “Who dropped it off, Spike?”

Spike shrugged. “I dunno. They didn’t say.” He made his way down the stairs and prepared breakfast for the two of them. Twilight unstrung the paper from the box and unrolled it.

Begin Note:

“From somepony who wishes they could give it to you in person.”

End Note.

Twilight eyed the box curiously, slowly opening it with her magic. She dumped the contents out onto her bed and gasped.

It was a beautiful gem, an amethyst cut in the shape of a star. It had five pony figures etched into the ends of the ‘star’. Twilight picked it up in her magic to get a closer look at it and immediately dropped it.

When she had levitated it, the shapes engraved on it had … moved.

She tried levitating it again, and sure enough the shapes moved once more. Each one did something different. One seemed to be bouncing up and down. Another was hovering in the air, flapping “wings” as if to keep it adrift. Another was floating too, but also doing flips and other tricks. One seemed to be… aware of its prison. It almost seemed to inspect the amethyst it was carved upon. The last one was playing with what appeared to be a string.

She levitated the gem closer. As she did she could see words, barely legible, scribed in the middle of the creation.

“To always remind you of your friends and to give you the gift of a challenge.”

She smiled, knowing exactly what the message meant. It was a magical marvel. So many different objects doing so many different things at once, animated from her own magic. She would be studying this for a while…

Nightshadow sat atop his cloud, watching the residents scurry below. It was a beautiful day, and if anything the snow just made it better.

He heard a small poof and looked above him to see a small piece of paper floating down towards him. He seized it telekineticly and brought it closer to read it.

Begin note:

"Thou doesn't haft to be so discreet, Nightshadow."

Merry Hearths warming.

End note:

Nightshadow smiled, setting the note aside. Another poof was heard, this time from behind him. He looked over to see his sister slowly phasing into existence.

"Good morning Shadow!" She smiled warmly.

"Good morning Shade. Did you sleep well?"

She nodded and levitated a small, rolled up parchment to him. "For you!" She said excitedly.

Nightshadow chuckled. He grabbed the paper and began to unroll it.

It was a picture, something Nightshadow had not expected. It showed a depiction of Luna raising the moon. When he squinted at it, the picture suddenly changed to Celestia raising the sun.

"It's quite beautiful Shade."

She giggled again. "Watch this!" Her horn glowed and she zapped the paper with energy. The picture changed again, but this time it was a different depiction entirely. It showed two black alicorns on either side, flanking the moon, playing their own little tug of war with it. Symbolic with their cutie marks, one had the left half of the moon, the other the right.

Nightshadow smiled. "Thank you sister, it really is quite nice."

"Oh it's the least I could do." She gave him a knowing smile."So what are we doing today, Shadow?"

"I was going to do the same thing I do every day."

She frowned for a moment, than looked around her.

"Yknow.... It is a nice day for sightseeing." She formed a cloud next to her brother and mimicked his position on it. Too bad, she had an awesome plan for the mayor earlier, which enough oddly she couldn't remember now. It had something to do with piranhas. Maybe if they saw her she'd just chuck a piranha at her for the sake of it?

From Canterlot, Celestia watched Ponyville. Specifically, she watched two certain ponies.

"Everypony deserves some respite this year..." she thought aloud. "Even you..."

They thought she wanted revenge.

They were wrong.

Celestia looked to a small glowing orb, unsure of what she would see.

She used to do this every year, she would look into the future to see what grand events would occur that year. These visions used to be filled with wonder, with peace, with harmony.

She cast the spell, all too certain of what she would see.

And that is what she saw.

"Darkness... neither sun nor moon... darkness...

This... probably isn't the best thing I've made, but I decided to do something festive, so here it is!

To add to your troubles...

Nightshadow's eye twitched as he put a hoof to his head and sighed. He was about to ask his sister what she was talking about when a loud scream caused them both to cringe.

They recognized the voice's owner.

A rainbow streak shot through the night sky, heading towards Nightshadow's cloud.

Shadow and Shade were there in an instant, along with a furious Rainbow Dash.

Or at least, who they thought was Rainbow Dash.

"What did you do?!" The mare asked. Her voice sounded like Rainbow's... but different. Deeper? Her coat was a dark blue and her mane had developed a grey stripe running along with the usual assortment of colors. She was several inches taller than a normal pony, though not nearly as tall as one of the siblings.

Her eyes had narrowed onto Nightshade, who looked back smiling. "Hey Dash! You look.... taller!"

Rainbow Dash was not amused. "I know you did something, Shade! This isn't funny!"

Nightshade frowned. "Rainbow, I didn't do anything!" Suddenly Shade's eyes widened. "Oh! I know! Stay here you two, I'll be right back!" In a flash of light, she was gone. Rainbow Dash turned her gaze to Nightshadow.

"What did she do?!"

Nightshadow shrugged. "She usually doesn't lie, despite her... eccentricities. Shade would rather you know so she could laugh freely than keep it to herself."

Rainbow Dash went from looking very angry to very worried. "What's wrong with me then?"

Nightshadow opened his mouth to answer when a flash of light interrupted him.

"OW! Those guardsponies are mean!" Nightshade had returned, holding a book with her magic, and a gash on her side with her hoof.

"Are you alright?" Shadow asked, his usually neutral demeanor faultering somewhat.

Shade smiled and nodded. "Just had to take a trip to the library!" She held the book out in front of her. It was titled: Healing Magic- Known Side Effects and Possible Treatments.

Nightshade turned the book back towards her and sat down on the cloud, humming while lazily flipping through pages with her hoof.

"Uh... are you sure you're alright?" Rainbow asked tentatively, gazing at Nightshade's wound. Shade didn't seem to hear her, she just kept humming to herself as she stopped on one page.

"Ah! Here we are! I remember because I wrote it down here in case I forgot!" She began franticly flipping through the pages. "There we are!"

She cleared her throat before she began reading from the book. "'As a pony is dying or having an out of body experience due to a catastrophic injury, and is than pulled back due to their wounds being healed, a fragment of their soul may be shut out on accident as it returns to the body, usually due to the trip it takes. Normally the soul can regenerate on it's own, however in some small cases the body pulls in radiant energy to make up for the fragment lost, integrating it with the rest of that pony's soul.' Wow, that's complicated!"

Rainbow Dash's tilted her head sideways in a scowl, making it clear that she didn't understand a word.

Nightshade giggled, prompting Shadow to give her an annoyed look. "OK then! 'This is a fairly rare occurrence, but symptoms include the pony subjected to the healing magic adopting physical traits similar to those of their healer. Over time they will also develop similar mental faculties as well. Unfortunately, all known occurrences of this phenomena have resulted in the subject in question dying. Their original soul attempts to regenerate. The body attempts to reject the magical energy. The resulting conflict causes the magical energy to take on the form of a cancer, slowly eating away at the subject physically and mentally until that pony dies.' That sounds... bad." She said, her face scrunching back up into a frown when she finished reading.

"And the cure?" Nightshadow asked.

Nightshade flipped a page and chuckled. "Actually, that's the end of the book. Pretty silly of them not to put in how to fix it, huh?"

Rainbow Dash hadn't understood the majority of what Shade had just read, but understood the word 'dies' very clearly. She looked down towards the town below, horrible thoughts passing through her mind.

Nightshadow's brain began to wrack around possible cures, non-magical wards, spells that might reverse the effects, even time-travel. Anything that might be a solution.

He sighed, defeated. "I can think of one pony that might help..."

Nightshade's eyes widened, knowing what her brother was implying. "Oh! Are we finally gonna get to visit-" a pained yelp cut her off as she suddenly tensed.

Nightshadow frowned. "You got that from the royal library, didn't you?" Shade nodded before collapsing on the cloud.

Dash was momentarily shocked out of her stupor. "Is she OK?"

Nightshadow nodded. "The royal library is guarded by Eclipse at night. They use rune-poison on their blades, it stops magic from flowing." He looked down at his sister, who was now lazily snoring. "It's not very strong when used as a coating. She might wake up with a headache in the morning, but otherwise she'll be OK." He looked towards the moon, which was now beginning to dip below the horizon.

"Too late for tonight, it seems." Nightshadow said as he levitated the book in front of him."OK. It says here that the process is slow, so we just need something to hide the condition until we can cure it."

"HIDE it? We need to FIX it!" Rainbow Dash said, giving him a worried look.

Shadow did not falter."I know a... friend. I wont be able to set it up tonight, though. The day after tomorrow, I promise we will fix this." His thoughts shifted to Red for a fraction of a second. 'You won't die because of me. Nopony else will.'

Rainbow Dash hung her head dejectedly. Nightshadow began to focus his magic in front of him. A loud crack was heard and a wooden mask appeared where his aura was focused.

"Put this on." He said as he levitated the mask to Dash. She grabbed it in her hooves and struggled with it a bit before she managed to get it to fit over her face.

"Good." Nightshadow began. "Hold still."

He touched the mask with his horn. Suddenly Rainbow felt a tingling feeling on her forehead, which rapidly spread throughout her whole body as the magic began to take effect. The sensation stopped and Nightshadow looked at her with a slight grin. A mirror blinked into existence in front of him.

Rainbow looked at her reflection with awe. "Wow. I look..."

"Normal? It's only an illusion, but it will work as long as you wear the mask." She put a hoof up to her face and felt the skin and hairs. "Yes, it's supposed to feel real too. Just in case."

Rainbow had momentarily forgotten about the danger she was in. A smile grew on her face, giving Nightshadow a momentary feeling of relief. "OK. Now that that is taken care of... what exactly have you gotten my sister into?"

Rainbow Dash gave him a confused look before realization hit her. She gave him a sheepish grin before answering. "Well, you see..."

Earlier that day.

"Wow! These are awesome!" Rainbow Exclaimed while looking at the local scenery through the glasses.

"Pretty cool, huh?" They had found a small river, where the water was clear enough that they could see their reflection. Shade had wanted to show Rainbow her little 'collection'(at least, a part of it): An assortment of enchanted glasses that changed the way the eyes of the wearer either saw things or looked. Right now Rainbow was looking through a pair that made everything look like it was underwater.

"Awesome! Oh! What about these?" She put them on and looked at her reflection, frowning when nothing happened.

Nightshade chuckled. "Give it here!" She said, yanking the glasses off Rainbow's face with her magic. She put them on her head, and in a flash of light her eyes were now ordinary pupils, pink in color.

"Hey! Your eyes look like..."

"Your's? Exactly! That's what these ones do!"

"Rainbow? Where are you?" Rainbow Dash and Nightshade froze.

"Pinkie? I'll be right there!" Without warning, Nightshade found herself on the recieving end of a powerful kick as Rainbow Dash pushed her into a bush. She made a motion with her hooves, indicating that Nightshade should be quiet before flying off.

'I've heard about that pink one before... she's funny.' Shade thought to herself.

'Maybe you should introduce yourself?'

Nightshade jumped and turned to meet the pony that scared her. She was a bit surprised when that pony looked alot like her. And was inside a mirror.

"Wow! Who leaves a mirror out in the middle of a forest?"

"Focus now! We're talking about the pink mare... what's her name?"

"I'm sorry?"

'I'm just saying, she sounds nice enough, why don't you meet her and try to make more friends!?'

"Oh! Great idea! But I can't do that! I'd just scare her away!"

'You know spells-'

"Oh right! Thanks Miss...?"

Oh, me? I'm no pony. Now, go have fun!

"OK!" As she finished speaking with the strange pony in the mirror she began casting the spell she wanted...

Rainbow Dash flew out towards the sound of her friend's voice before finding her waiting on the road back to town.

"Oh Dash! It's good to see you! I need your help finding somepony!" Pinkie exclaimed. Suddenly she began to vibrate faster than Dash had ever seen . "There's that weird feeling again! It's like the feeling I get when a new pony comes to town, but a lot... more! Like I forgot somepony! But that's never..."

"Hi!" A voice exclaimed. Both Dash and Pinkie turned to meet the voice and saw a black coated unicorn with dark green eyes, wearing odd, blue tinted glasses.

Pinkie grinned widely and began her introduction.

"Hi! I'm Pinkie Pie! I don't think I've seen you before! What's your name? Oh! Let me guess... Night Eyes? Shadow Star? Lulu?"

The unicorn chuckled. "Nope! My name is..." She hesitated, wondering if she should use her real name."Nightshade!" Rainbow Dash visibly recoiled upon hearing the unicorn's name, but said nothing. "Nice to meet ya Pinkie Pie!"

Pinkie chuckled, than gasped. Her eyes widened to the size of saucers. "WE HAVE TO THROW YOU A PARTY!"

Nightshade gasped. "A party!? When!? Where!? OH! Can my brother come too? Oh this will be so fun I've never been to a party before and I've always wanted to-"

Pinkie was somewhat surprised by the unicorn's response. Most ponies asked what the party was for, and the subsequent rambling was usually something expected of her. She shook off her surprise and smiled at the unicorn. "Of course your brother can come along! The more the merrier." She took off in the direction of Sugercube corner before gasping and spinning back around. "I almost forgot! What's your brother's name?"

"Nightshadow. But I always call him Shadow. We look REALLY alike, so don't worry! You'll know him when you see him!"

Pinkie chuckled. "That's not why I asked! I have to know for the party!" For the third time today, she gasped loudly. "I gotta go start planning, I'll see you later, Nightshade!"

"Wait!" She just barely managed to stop Pinkie from running off.

She shot Nightshade an annoyed look."What?"

"Can it wait till tomorrow night? Shadow and I will need to get ready and stuff, so we can have fun!" Pinkie gave her a smile, which Shade returned weakly.

"Of course, if you have to! I wouldn't want you to show up and not have any fun! OK, gotta go!" In the blink of an eye she was gone, leaving behind an excited Nightshade and a flabbergasted Rainbow Dash.

Present time

Rainbow Dash finished telling Shadow of Nightshade's encounter with the element of Laughter. "I don't think I've ever seen anypony talk like that other than Pinkie. I didn't really want to try to talk her out of it, since she seemed so... happy."

Nightshadow sighed. "Well that's just great..." He thought about whether now was the time to leave. "It would look suspicious if we didn't show up, wouldn't it?"

Rainbow nodded in response. "Why wouldn't you go anyway? You two have those glasses and that magic thing. I don't see what the big deal is."

Nightshadow had almost forgotten about the glasses entirely. He carefully levitated them off of his face and sighed once more as his eye returned to their natural design. " It wouldn't take much for us to be discovered. We've tried very hard to hide from Celestia, and being found out amongst her personal student and the elemental bearers might set off alarms I'd rather we avoid."

Rainbow shot him a confused look. "Why would you want to hide from Celestia? I mean, I've heard from Shade what happened to you guys, but the Celestia I know doesn't seem like the type to hold a grudge."

Nightshadow squirmed uncomfortably. "Despite that... I'm worried about what she might do."

"What would she do?"

Nightshadow remained silent and looked up towards the sky. "Do you have any siblings, Loyalty?" He said, adopting his more regal stance; a defense mechanism he had used before to detach himself from uncomfortable conversation.

"No." She said sullenly. She didn't know for sure actually, but that wasn't something that she would talk about now.

"Then you wouldn't understand. My sister and I are all we really have. I know Celestia has always been portrayed as kind, and has shown such in the past millennium, but I can't take that risk."

Shadow looked back towards Rainbow. "We used to try to make friends in places we went to. It was before we started... borrowing books from local libraries, books on magic. We didn't really know how to disguise ourselves. I used to have a cloak I found that would hide my wings and eyes, but I lost that a long time ago. Over the years we both agreed that it was best not to try to make friends. Better to just not socialize with other ponies, they all die in the end anyway." Shadow took in a deep breath."I guess I'm just nervous about trying. To socialize with... others."

He looked back up at the night sky. The moon had gone far out of view by now. Soon the sun would rise. Soon his time would be over. "Go home. Get some sleep. If my sister doesn't seek you out later, you know when to expect us."

He didn't see her nod as she flew off towards her cloud home.

Simply talking with her reminded him of Red. Nightshadow never got the same feeling when he saw Applejack, they were different enough from each other that he simply couldn't make any connections between them. With Rainbow, the connection was drawn through her situation.

A very familiar situation.

'It took four days for her to die.' He thought to himself. 'According to the book, it takes months for a pony to die from this... affliction. There is still time.' He would not admit he doubted himself.

He would not admit that he doubted her.

Earlier that night at the local library

The identity of the creature ate at Twilight's mind. She had spent the better part of the last few nights searching through history books, catalogs of vairous creature's living in Equestria, even a few ancient prophesy compendiums. Nothing gave her the identity of the strange Alicorn or Alicorn-like being that she saw in the forest that day.

'It appeared right after Rainbow's wings got hurt, so it can't be good! Magic caused the wounds, so it must have had something to do with it... but why would it help her if it caused her injuries in the first place? And major healing spells are banned in Equestria! How could it possibly know any magic that would be powerful enough to regenerate tissue that fast and on that scale, and not cause any side-effects aside from that black streak on her wings?'

Twilight decided, despite everything in her nature telling her otherwise, that she would need help. She would not let this turn into another one of her 'episodes'. She began to write a letter...

The next night...

"Shh... be quiet everypony... they're coming!" One of the guests whispered as he peeked his head out the window. Two black coated unicorns with oddly identical cutie marks were walking side by side towards Sugercube Corner.

"OK! Places everypony!"

It was just after the sun began to dip below the world's view that the two guests of honor would arrive.

Nightshadow walked with his sister towards the baker's shop. It was oddly quiet, but he could feel the presense of multiple ponies on the other side of the door.

He didn't like being visible. It was something he had figured out for himself as they walked into town. Being visible made him feel... exposed. Unsafe. Still, maybe things wouldn't be so bad?

Shadow heard giggling, whispers, and arguments from the othe side of the door. He didn't like it.

"Shade, please stand back." Nightshade frowned and shook her head as she stepped backwards a few paces.

Shadow slowly turned the doorknob with his magic. Suddenly the door burst open and they were greated with a loud chorus of voices.

"SUPRISE!".

Nightshade jumped up in the air and laughed while Nightshadow barely contained a sudden urge to incinerate everypony in the room.

There was a huge banner above the crowd that read "Welcome to Ponyville!"

The pink one emerged from the crowd at a speed Shadow had never seen from an earth pony before.

"Hi! I'm Pinkie Pie and I threw this party just for you two! Were you surprised? Huh? Were ya?" Nightshadow placed his hoof to his head. The pink mare began to assault his ears with questions, while his sister disappeared into the crowd, which had quickly dispersed from their originaly planned position after Pinkie had left the middle.

'This is going to be a long night...'

Authors Note: I don't consider this chapter done, not by a longshot. More work must be put forth, but I felt bad about not meeting my earlier deadline. I know there are problems, they WILL be addressed as I become aware of them. So, make me aware of them! Comments and criticisms are appreciated.

Lost in the crowd

Everypony was invited, and while not everypony showed up one might have guessed that at least half of Ponyville had arrived.

Big Macintosh was usually part of the other half. He almost never went to Pinkie's parties unless his sister forced him to, and even then she had to practically beg or blackmail him into doing so. Why he had to come to this particular party was beyond him, but alas, there he was. The guests weren't friends of the Apple family, at least as far as he knew, and this time she hadn't tried to set him up with any of her friends, so his presence here was an absolute mystery for him.

Mac eyed the snack table. There stood many of Pinkie’s formidable sweets and many other tasty little snacks. His stomach instantly growled. 'Might as well enjoy it while Ah’m here.' With an inner grin, Big Mac eyed the party-goers wall that stood between him and the food table.

Macintosh made his way through the crowd of guests in his path with relative ease. They either made room or were pushed aside. He smiled kindly at all of them, but couldn't shake a certain feeling that somepony was watching him. He was almost to the table when he suddenly tripped forward, slamming into it, which promptly launched its contents at the rest of the party.

The majority of the guests all closed their eyes and collectively yelped in anticipation of the impact with the various foods and beverages.

When the impact never came, they opened their eyes and gasped.

All of the silverware and food were shrouded in a black aura, and looked as if frozen in time. An orange earth mare was staring into a wayward bottle of cider that was dangerously close to her face. A bowl of punch was suspended mid air, with its contents still inside despite being overturned.

A unicorn stepped out from the crowd, horn still alight as he focused his magic, struggling to keep a small pair of glasses on his face.

Nightshadow sighed. "Nightshade!" He called out.

A similar black coated unicorn, who up until now had contained herself, burst out laughing.

"I'msorryShadowIjustcouldn'thelpit!" She managed to say in between laughs. Her brother sighed as he arranged everything back to the way it was on the table, filling a glass of what was probably apple juice for himself. Ponies watched for a moment before turning back to the party, as if nothing ever happened.

Macintosh tried to stand up, to discover that his front legs were wrapped in iron chain. He fell again, sending Shade into another fit of laughter. Shadow turned to where the crowd made way for a laughing Shade, straining to remain calm. "Fix it. Now."

She sighed and trotted up to Big Mac, casting the counter-spell and removing the chains on Big Mac's legs. "Sorry about that! I just wanted to... liven things up a bit!" She said, a wide smile on her face.

The earth pony grunted before getting to his hooves. He looked at the mare standing in front of him. "It's... fine... Was gittin’ a mite dull ‘round here. Any-how, Nopony was hurt so ‘Ah guess we don’ got nuthin’ to worry about."

She giggled. "You talk weird!" And just like that, she walked back into the crowd, being met with a scowling Applejack and a laughing Pinkie. Big Mac thought about what just happened, but more importantly he thought about why he wasn't mad. He just let that crazy unicorn walk off smiling. She barely even apologized, and somepony could have gotten hurt!

So why wasn't he angry?

He thought about the mare; her voice, her smile.

'She... has a really nice laugh...'

Nightshadow hadn't attended a party before, but he had a feeling that it wasn't something he would enjoy... which, of course, he was right about. Too many ponies being too closely packed together being too loud trying to talk over the already too loud music. He found an empty corner of the room near one of the refreshment tables and happily drank what he poured himself earlier.

He gagged a bit. He wasn’t expecting Cider. Shadow heard a soft giggle. He looked up to meet the owner of the voice and froze. "Hi." Shadow felt himself at a sudden loss for words. His mind raced about anything he could say before automatically discarding it without a second thought. "I'm Twilight. Twilight Sparkle. A pleasure to meet you." She said, a big dumb smile plastered on her face.

Nightshadow forced his stubborn muscles to smile. "Nightshadow. A pleasure to meet you ma'am." He said, trying to retain his composure and regain his thoughts.

"So... What brings you two to Ponyville?" She said, tilting the head towards a still-laughing Shade.

Thinking on his hooves, Shadow quickly fabricated a story. "My sister and I are traveling through Equestria. We thought we'd stop here for a while and get our bearings." Nightshadow thought of something else to say, hoping to change the subject; diverting it from himself and his sister. "Twilight Sparkle? You wouldn't happen to be the Princess' personal protégé, would you?"

Twilight blushed heavily. Nightshadow noticed her rubbing one of her forehooves on the other. "Yeah, he he he. That's me... so...." Twilight stared off into space, deep in thought. 'Why does he seem so... familiar?' "When did you guys get into town?"

"Not too long ago. Why do you ask?" He said, hoping that she would actually buy it.

"No reason... Just curious."

Nightshadow's smile grew wider. 'Liar.' She was good at it too. But that raised the question ‘What is she trying to hide?’

She gave him a warm smile. "Well, if you ever need anything, my friends and I will be glad to help!" Twilight was going to say something else, but she saw Rarity, frantically waving at her, signaling to come over. "I have to go. Maybe I'll see you later?"

"Yeah... sure." With a light nod she trotted off.

'Well that was an... awkward first meeting. Still, she has a really nice smile...' Twilight’s stupid grin was now plastered onto his face. Shadow noticed another pony coming his way, a red earth stallion. His eyes lingered towards the crowd as he approached Nightshadow. Big Mac came up close and sat next to Nightshadow.

Both were silent for a few moments.

"Uh... Hi?" Shadow said tentatively, already tired of all the awkward moments the party brought and was still sure to bring.

"Howdy." Silence, again. Nightshadow shifted uneasily.

"Uh... do you need something?" He said in his most polite ‘go away’ tone.

"Eeenope. Just figure' Ah'd meet tha’ guests o’ honor." He stuck out his hoof. "Macintosh is mah name. But everpony aroun’ here calls me Big Mac."

Nightshadow shook his hoof. "Nightshadow. You can call me Shadow if you want." He grimaced from the realization of whom he was talking to. "Oh, you’re that stallion my sister tripped..."

"It's alright. Like Ah’ said, was gittin’ dull around here." He said, shrugging.

Nightshadow was confused to say the least, but decided it would be best not to say anything. He didn't want to provoke anypony. More moments of awkward silence passed, each pony just eyeing the dancing ponies.

"So, what are you an...” Big Mac said, poking his head with his forehoof. “What's ‘er name again?" He pointed towards a wildly-dancing Nightshade.

"Nightshade." He said between gritted teeth. Macintosh smiled, if only for a fraction of a second, but Nightshadow saw it perfectly.

"Right. So what are y’all doin’ here in Ponyville?"

"At the moment just passing through." He paused before adding. "But this is a really nice town you have here. We might stay for a while..." Nightshadow watched the stallion, trying to gauge his reaction. He was doing a good job of maintaining a neutral expression, but his eyes betrayed something for a moment. He couldn't tell for sure, but it almost seemed as though he was relieved.

"Y'all just get inta’ town?" Shadow nodded. "An’ y'all got a place ta’ stay for the night?" Shadow considered the question and the stallion’s intentions for a moment. 'How odd...'

"Thanks for the offer, but we're fine." Macintosh nodded. Shadow detected a slight hesitation, but resigned in just watching his reactions without prying into his mind.

"If y’all need anythin’, just head over to our farm out by Sweet Apple Acres." Nightshadow winced. Of course, he was an Apple. Nightshadow silently berated himself for not noticing the thick accent and the apple related cutie mark.

"I'll be sure to remember that." They both shook hooves again and Macintosh headed off into the crowd again.

Nightshade sighed. Shadow had made her promise not to do anything too ‘funny’ while they were here. She hadn't done anything fun since Rainbow's prank, which she later decided wasn't really fun and that it was something she was never going to do ever again.

At least, not to Rainbow.

'Why don't you turn the punch bowl into acid? That's sure to liven the place!' Nightshade giggled, “Now that is a sugg-“

'No! You promised your brother not to hurt anypony while we're here! You almost hurt them with that last one, and drinking acid can't be safe! '

Shade frowned and looked towards the floor, ashamed for even thinking about something like that.

'Oh don't be like that! I say, nuts to Shadow! Let's set the decor on fire! Let's turn that alligator into a hydra! Make somepony scream! Afraid! Terrified! Do something that's not so... dull... '

'And then Shadow will hate you and leave you alone again. You don't wanna be alone, do you Shade?'

'What good is a brother if he won’t let you have any fun?'

'What good is having fun if your brother isn't here to have fun with you?'

"Just shut up!" She screamed aloud. A few ponies that stood within hearing range gave her some odd looks, silently questioning her sanity. The voices were rather loud tonight. And talkative.

'They always will Shade. None of them know what you are... show them!'

"No! I can't, Shadow will get mad!"

'What exactly are you to h-'

'Why don't you go outside and look at the stars? That always calms you down. ' A new voice interjected. It was different than the usual voices she heard, new actually. It sounded calm. Collected. It seemed to echo too, as if it was speaking from a long distance.

For some reason, it sounded reasonable.

"I think... that sounds like a good idea." She made her way past the guests and out the door, completely forgetting the mental dilemma she had with ‘herself’ earlier.

Shade felt tired. Really tired. She ceased putting energy into the illusion spell, growing taller as her wings burst forth from her sides in a flurry of feathers. She felt the glasses hiding her eyes slip off her face, but didn't bother to put keep them on or pick them up. She stood basked in the bright moonlight, wings outstretched, looking towards the sky with a genuine smile on her face.

Big Mac was getting tired of this. Tired of all the noise and fuss that came with a large party.

"Ey sis?" He began. Applejack turned from her friends to address him. "Ah’m goin’ out for a bit."

She smiled at her brother. "Jus don’ go anywhere! Pinkie'll have your hide if y'all try ta’ skip out on ‘er party." Mac nodded and trotted out the door.

As he was leaving he saw the unicorn mare with her back turned, head tilted towards the sky. She seemed to be deep in thought. Macintosh carefully closed the door behind him and began to move towards the unicorn when her horn began to glow in a black aura that seemed to drain what little light there was from her surroundings.

'Magic... right, stand back Mac. Don’ wanna get caught up in whateve-' His thoughts came to a screeching halt as wings seemingly came into existence and exploded from the mare's back. This caused his brain to send the signal to the rest of his body to jump. Macintosh just barely managed to suppress a yelp. The wings seemed to stiffen for a bit before straightening out. They flapped a few times, then stood motionless at her sides, still unfurled. Her mane grew out, although not by much. Mac could have sworn that it moved by itself. It was also sparkling, as though there were little stars trapped in her mane.

He looked upon the unicorn now turned Alicorn. The glasses she was wearing at the party had slipped off, revealing Shade's true eyes to him. The slits were still deeply focused up at the sky. His heart pounded inside his chest. His brain told him to run and to stay put at the same time. The sight of the mare looking at the night, smiling, was one of the most beautiful and terrifying things Macintosh had ever seen.

'That... that don’ make a lick a sense...' Mac thought, his brain desperately trying to process something that up until now he thought wasn't possible. He tried to form a sentence within the confines of his shock ridden mind.

"H- how... w- wha’..." Nightshade jolted up and turned to face the source of the voice. It was the stallion from earlier.

"Can't a mare have some privacy!? Sheesh..." She said, frowning. Then, in a rare moment of clarity, Shade realized the situation she was in. Nightshadow told her what would happen if anypony saw what they really looked like. They would have to leave Ponyville. She was having so much fun here. She had made friends here. And now they were going to have to leave.

All because of him.

"M- Miss Shade?" Macintosh said, stuttering from a mixture of awe and fright. Nightshade began to slowly step backwards. A part of her wanted to run as far away as she could. Another part wanted her to get Shadow and ask him if maybe he could fix this.

'I know how you could fix this... ' One of the voices said. Shade sighed, they wouldn't be leaving her alone tonight. They never did. 'Just kill him.' Nightshade froze. She began to shake her head rapidly. "No! No no no, I told you a long time ago I wasn't going to do that ever again!"

"Miss Shade? Ya’lright?" Macintosh asked, his fear being replaced with concern. Shade didn't seem to hear him.

'You don't have a choice now. If you don't, he'll tell everypony. And then you'll have to go forever.'

"I don't wanna leave..." Big Mac stood quiet, not knowing if he should say something.

'Then do it!'

"No!" Her voice rose, startling Macintosh. Nevertheless, the large red stallion remained silent, unsure what to do.

'Why Not?'

"Because I don't want to, okay?" Big Mac thought that enough was enough. He mustered all in himself to ask her the following question:

"Miss Shade? Who are y'all talkin’ to?"

'You mean Shadow doesn't want-'

"NO! I don't want to! You! You want to! You're the one who thinks killing is funny! Well I've got news for you! I don't wanna hear from you anymore! Get.Out.Of.My.Head." Nightshade emphasized each word.

She could feel the voice was still there, but it was silenced, for now.

Shade knew it would be back. She heard its feint sounds, scratching the back of her mind.

She had to go.

Macintosh stood still, unsure of whether he should move or what he should do with his movement. Something was seriously wrong with this mare, aside from the fact that she had wings and those eyes.

Then she did something Mac didn't expect. She began to cry. Macintosh didn't know what to do. He was utterly horrified that the creature would lash out at him at any moment, but at the same time, deeply concerned.

Nightshade looked up at him and grimaced, as though she had just noticed he was there. Then her face seemed to droop. She gave him a serious look and winced each time she spoke."I'm sorry... please... I don't wanna...my brother... don't tell anypony else... please." She seemed to struggle with each word. Before he could reply, Nightshade asserted her 'take off' stance and flew off into the sky, hoping to get as far away from the object of her hatred before the voice came back.

Macintosh stood there, looking in the direction she flew off in. 'Tha’ look 'n her eyes...' He could place where he had seen it, but the thought made him sick to his stomach.

Shadow was beginning to worry. He had looked for Shade in the crowd of ponies, but the only pony that he found that could remember her said that she looked like she was talking to herself before she left out the front door. 'The last time she did that...’ Nightshadow cringed. ‘I need to find her.'

He spotted Twilight talking to a rather tall pony wrapped in a thick black cloak. 'Maybe... oh no.' Was this Shade trying to scare Twilight? He calmly trotted towards the pair. He couldn't tell what they were talking about, but Twilight wasn't screaming and didn't look distressed. In fact she seemed... happy to see the pony.

"Hey Twilight, I was wondering if-" His words cut off as the cloaked pony turned to face him. Both of their eyes narrowed on eachother, pupils shrinking in surprise and fear. Shadow felt an instinctual clench on his entire body.

"Oh! Hey Shadow! I was hoping to run into you again. I'd like you to meet my teacher; Princess Celestia!"

The princess' eyes narrowed onto him, and he did the same for her. A long, awkward silence hung in the air. Twilight gave the pair a very confused look. "Uh..." She tried to think of something to break the silence, ending the uncomfortable non-vocalized tension.

"Hello, Nightshadow." Celestia said, keeping her tone as neutral as possible.

"Tia. Wonderful to see you again." Nightshadow said, doing the same, although with a hint of aggression in his voice.

Twilight was confused even more. "Uh... have you two met before?"

"Yes." They both answered in unison and kept staring deeply at each other. Silence again flooded through the trio. It wasn't an angry glare though. No, instead it was more akin to the frightened glare that the prey gives the predator before the predator pounces. Both watched each other, trying to figure out who would make the first move. Who would lash out first.

Nightshadow broke the silence. "Twilight, you haven't seen Shade around, have you?" He asked, eyes never leaving the princess’. He saw that her left eye twitched a bit at the mention of his sister’s name.

Twilight was still confused, but decided maybe it would be best if she didn't press the subject now. She made a mental note to ask both Shadow and Celestia about it later. "I think I saw her leaving a while ago. I'll tell Pinkie that something came up, though I should warn you that she probably won't forget about this. She'll probably throw another party, and this time it really will be a surprise one."

He broke the piercing gaze and turned to face Twilight. He gave her a warm smile. "I can't wait. I'll see you all later, say goodbye to everypony else for me, will you?"

"No problem, Shadow. See you around!" Twilight was a bit saddened at his leave, but glad that the awkwardness between him and Celestia would cease. Nightshadow began to move away from the two. 'I do hope I see her again.' He felt Celestia's eyes linger on him as he trotted out the door.

Celestia had arrived full of hope. There were things she never got to say to the two, things that she needed to say. She was surprised how well her sister's cloak managed to hide her identity, and even more surprised to see one of the twins. He even seemed to know Twilight.

After Nightshadow left, the two remaining ponies talked for a while. Celestia shifted the conversation’s topic swiftly whenever Twilight asked her about Shadow. Twilight resented this, acknowledging that she wouldn’t be able to outsmart the princess. She began to talk about some of the recent events in Ponyville. When Celestia heard about the creature Twilight saw, the black Alicorn in the woods, she had to suppress a smile.

But in the back of her mind, she knew something was wrong.

She could feel it in the air. As though a great pressure or weight was pushing on her mind and body. Figuring it had something to do with her recently reappearing nephew; she turned to her student to wish her goodbye. "I'm afraid some urgent business just came up, and I will have to leave you for the night. I'll write to you on the subject of the creature you saw later. Take care, Twilight Sparkle." Twilight was saddened for a moment, but that quickly wore away into a trusting smile. Much to Twilight's confusion, Celestia did not just teleport back to the castle, but instead began to walk out the door.

Nightshadow left the party, fully expecting Celestia to follow him out. What he did not expect was Big Mac, who was staring off in a seemingly random direction in the night sky.

"Yer kin needs ya’." He said, without looking at Shadow.

"Shade?"

"Gone. Ah’ don't know what's happened, an’ frankly Ah'm not sure Ah’ want ta’... but she seem'd hurt. Like..." He hesitated. Big Mac shook his head slowly from side to side. "She got tha' look my ma gave me when she knew she was dyin'. Like she was holdin’ on as long as she could, but couldn' keep hangin' on fer much longer..." Nightshadow didn't respond, but he knew what Macintosh was talking about. He nodded to Shadow. "Ah’ think tha’ she needs her kin right now." Shadow nodded back.

Big Macintosh got up and slowly walked home, wondering what might happen to these two ponies he barely knew. Wondering if that mare would still be here tomorrow, laughing for one reason or another. He wasn’t that shocked when he finally accepted that she was an Alicorn. ‘It just add more to ‘er... beauty...’ Halfway to Sweet Apple acres, he sighed and turned around.

'Why's it always tha’ crazy ones with you?!'

Nightshadow stood outside the pastry shop alone, deep in thought. Had Shade really been that far gone? Shadow remembered times where he heard her... talking to herself. "Maybe... maybe this is my fault." He thought aloud. "I told her not to do anything rash at the party. She must have been going crazy! And then I let her come out here alone I... I should never have left her alone." He looked up to the night sky and sighed. “I failed you again, Shade...”

He didn't notice the cloaked pony trotting up beside him. "Hello little one." Celestia said.

Shadow felt the kindness in her voice. He sighed once more. "This is not what I expected to happen if we were to meet again." He said as he lifted his disguise. He grew slightly as his wings revealed themselves, much like his sister's had. He focused his magic on the glasses for a moment before spiriting them away. "Nice to see you again, 'aunt' Tia." He said, trying his hardest not to lash out.

"And Shade? Where is she?" Nightshadow looked up at her. Even though he had grown since they last met, she was still much taller than him. Celestia looked into his crimson eyes and understood immediately. "It finally happened, didn't it?"

"I'm... hopeful that's not the case." Shadow said, voice bordering doubt.

"We both knew that those memories could resurface in her at any time. Discord's meddling did not help her state of mind."

"I suppose we should gather the Elements..."

"We can't separate her from Shade like we could from Luna. When she was young, maybe, but now those memories are far too intertwined with her being. They are a part of who she is. I'm afraid the Elements would be useless to us..." Celestia stopped before she mentioned what Nightshadow dreaded.

Sensing her sudden shift, he raised an eye. "So what do you suggest we do?" Celestia did not reply. She simply looked solemnly up at the night sky her sister had decorated. Realization dawned on Shadow, and with it he shot a look of disgust at Celestia. "You can't seriously be suggesting..." Celestia's silence answered his question. "No."

"Shadow, we may not have a choice..." She started but Shadow would have none of it.

"Over. My. Dead. Body." He spat at her, tensing his muscles should Celestia try anything.

She simply sighed, recognizing that she was not going to get anywhere with him on that particular course of action."What do you suggest then?"

Nightshadow’s rage dissipated as looked up at the sky, trying to see the answer. He was now addressing the stars themselves. ‘What should I do? What can I do?’ Shadow thought about all the possibilities at hand. None seemed fruitful. "I... I don't know. Maybe get the Elements and try anyway, maybe I can talk her out of it. You almost did with Luna. Maybe... I don't know.” Silence returned between the two. "Perhaps..." His horn glowed and a saddlebag materialized out of thin air. He looked inside and checked; all four of them were still there. All four of them glowed with a dark power, an evil not from this world.

"Those... are not what I think they are, are they?" Shadow nodded. "That wouldn't help us here. You know that."

"They worked on you, didn't they?" Shadow said in a mocking tone.

"That was different! That was mind control!" Celestia scowled.

"I used it to separate the elements from you... maybe... maybe I could use it to separate her from Nightshade..."

Just then, Macintosh came into view, slowly trotting up to the other two. He noticed Celestia, and of course the fact that Nightshadow was an Alicorn now too, but didn't really care. At this point, nothing really surprised him anymore. "It wasn' right o’ me to jus’ walk off... Ah’m willin’ ta’ help anyway Ah’ can."

Nightshadow was surprised at the stallion's sudden offer, but that surprise quickly faded. The gears in his mind began to turn, working out possible solutions. He placed his hoof under his chin, deep in thought.

Celestia looked at him, at first with confusion, then smiled knowingly. Nightshadow looked at her with the same smile.

"I have a plan..."

To Truly be alone

A small pop was heard as the three teleported from outside Sugarcube Corner, leaving the grass below them slightly burned. Another pop was heard as they arrived at the palace’s throne room. Nightshadow took his time in noticing that the throne room remained the same as it always has been.

"You're keeping them in that 'new' vault now, right?" He asked as the group navigated the halls of the castle. Celestia nodded, but wore a confused look upon her face.

"How did you know about that? Not even the bearers know where I hide them now."

Nightshadow grinned. "I have my ways..." Celestia wanted to press further, but before she could do so, they were already there. Shadow's horn glowed as he touched the hidden door with his hoof. It swung open at his command, revealing the Elements on top of a decorative pedestal in a small room.

"What are we going to do with those? You said we wouldn't need the bearers for this." Celestia asked, unsure of Nightshadow’s plan.

"If I'm right, we don't." He wrapped his aura around the Elements which all began glowing brighter and brighter, each with their own respective color. The auras began to leave the jewelry they were bound to, floating up into the air. They took the form of five floating orbs. Shadow grinned as he commanded the Elements into a saddlebag and closed it. He could hear the hum of the Elements, writhing with power. Macintosh said nothing, but was very confused by the whole display.

"I assume you keep the element of magic elsewhere?" Nightshadow turned to face Celestia.

Celestia didn't respond at first, her mouth still hung open from having watched the scene. "That... shouldn't be possible."

Nightshadow smiled. "Oh it is very possible, Tia." He used his magic to float the saddlebag over to Celestia. "You're gonna need this. Now, the sixth Element?" He pressed her.

She shook away the surprise and grabbed the bag with her own magic. She could see various runes etched into the side of it. 'Containment spells...' She looked up to the pedestal warily, specifically the empty spot at the top of it. "They should have all been there." She pointed out.

Shadow frowned. "Who else could hav- never mind... I think I know." Nightshadow walked past the two ponies, who gave eachother a worried look before following closely. It was a great surprise to Celestia when they stopped in front of her sister's room. The guards outside the door tensed for a moment when they saw Shadow coming, but made no further attempt to stop him. Nightshadow casually opened the door to Luna's room with his magic.

The Moon Princess sat up, expecting their arrival. Floating next to her was the elemental tiara the group sought, gripped in her magic. "Hello Luna." Shadow said, smiling.

Luna smiled weakly. "Hello, Shadow."

Celestia was surprised to say the least. "You two know each other?!"

Shadow nodded without taking his eyes away from the Moon Princess. "For a while now."

"I know why your here..." Luna broke in, floating the tiara over to Celestia. Shadow nodded and cast the same spell from before, the elemental orb floating outwards and into the saddlebag now draped over Celestia.

"Why did you have it, sister?" Celestia asked.

Luna allowed her gaze to droop towards the floor. "I needed to talk to Shadow." She paused before adding. "Preferably alone."

Celestia's eyes narrowed on her. "Alright. We'll talk about this later." Celestia trotted slowly out the room, waiting for an ever more confused Macintosh to follow her out before closing the door behind her.

"I'm sorry." The Moon Princess said. Her voice had a slight tinge of shame.

Nightshadow blinked in surprise. "What?"

"I'm sorry. I've... failed you both." Shadow hadn't seen it before, but Luna's eyes were bloodshot with dark circles underneath. Faint moist streaks running down her face could be seen, if one looked closely. ‘She had been...crying? For us?’ Luna inhaled deeply, fighting the emotional turmoil inside of her, barely stopping the tears from flowing. "I tried to help her... I wasn't strong enough..."

Moments earlier:

Nightshade flew off into the forest. She wasn't thinking about Shadow, or Rainbow, or anypony else specifically. All she cared about was getting as far away from them as possible. Tears threatened to flow from her eyes, but she maintained a focused mind. It was then that a voice inside her mind broke her concentration.

'I'm sorry I wasn't there, Shade.' The calm voice said. 'I had to take care of something.'

"You're just a voice! You can't have anything you have to take care of because you’re not real! So please just stop-" A burst of magical energy caused her to crash to the ground. She got up quickly, trying to find who just dared to attack her.

'Shade. Go back to Shadow. He can help you. Just stay calm and-'

Another surge of magic, this time enveloping Shade completely. Blue sparks erupted from her mane. Her eyes widened in horror as she realized that her silent assailant was her own magic, turning against her.

'Shade you need to get your brother now! He can help you!’ The calm voice, not so calmly urged her.

'I... I can't... he hates me. They all know by now and he hates me for it. I ruined what we had here. I failed him because... I listened to voices. Voices in my head like you!'

'Shade! Please listen to me...' The voice pleaded, but Shade couldn't focus on it anymore. She couldn't see anything. She couldn't hear anything. She could no longer think straight, the pain being caused by the rogue magic was too intense. As her vision faded to red, a searing pain seemed to engulf Nightshade whole. The voice said something else, but it was muffled by Shade's own cries of pain. It was then that another familiar voice manifested itself.

'I'M BACK! Didja miss me, dear Nightshade?'

The present time:

"I was a foal. I thought I could help her, and instead I added to her miseries." Luna looked towards the ceiling with wishful eyes, almost looking past them. "I tried to lower the moon earlier... I could not. That alone symbolizes my failure." She let out a tired sigh. "You've been a dear friend to me ever since my return, and despite what you two... represent... in your appearance I've come to recognize that you two are probably the closest thing I will ever have to foals of my own. And now I'm about to lose the closest thing I might ever have to a daughter..." Luna lowered her head, faltering once more to contain her tears.

Nightshadow felt saddened, but that was quickly replaced by urgency. "Luna." The Alicorn shifted her gaze from the ground. "Did you... did you see where my sister landed?"

Luna stared for a moment, deep in thought. "I believe she was flying over a forest- Where are you going?" She asked as Nightshadow opened the door with his magic, almost tearing it off its hinges, making the guards on the outside shift uneasily. Without a word he galloped out of the room. Luna sighed and galloped after him. She found him talking to her sister and the earth stallion from before.

"We need to go, now!" Shadow said, taking a more assertive tone. "She's gone into the Everfree."

"I'm coming too." Luna broke in.

"Sister..." Celestia started, fearing for her sister. But she was cut short by Luna.

"Don't try to lecture me Tia. You can't stop me.” Celestia looked as though she wanted to say more, but instead fell silent.

Nightshadow suppressed a grin. "The more the merrier."

Fluttershy hadn't gone to the party, being too busy with a few of the animals that had gotten sick. She was about to retire for the night, already having cleaned all of the bird’s cages and having Angel properly fed. She was just making her way upstairs when she heard something that made her stop. It was a faint sound. Fluttershy’s motherly drive activated when she acknowledged that it sounded almost like a whimper. She couldn't tell what it was, but it was coming from the forest.

'What if it's an animal that got hurt?' Fluttershy thought to herself. She gulped, going into the forest after dark was even more dangerous than going into it during the daytime, but she wouldn't be able to live with herself if she left some injured animal or pony out there unattended just because she was afraid. She grabbed a first-aid kit and a few other things before setting out into the forest. Moving as quietly as she could, which wasnt extremely difficult for Fluttershy, stopping every now and then to listen and make sure she was still heading in the right direction, she soon recognized that the sound was definitely a pony, and that it was sobbing. The realization of what it was only made her quicken her pace. Somepony could be seriously hurt.

The sounds were getting louder. At some moments it stopped and gave way to another voices' angry shouting, but then quickly reverted back to crying. Fluttershy shuddered to think of what could be happening, but all those thoughts were pushed aside when she reached a clearing in the forest. In the clearing was a black mass, barely visible in the dark. She couldn't make out its shape. Fluttershy stood still for a moment before walking slowly and quietly towards it. When she was close enough, it abruptly turned its head towards her. She gasped at the sight of the green, snake-like eyes. It looked at her for a second, then turned back around and resumed crying.

Her heart pounded in her chest and her mind was torn; she couldn’t shade the feeling that something was wrong. She wanted to turn around and gallop back to her safe cottage so much, but she also wanted to find out what was wrong and help the poor creature. Fluttershy inhaled deeply but kept on, driven by the urge to help a pony in need. "H- H- Hello?" She managed to stutter out in her quiet, passive voice. The creature jolted up in surprise and turned to face her once more. It stopped crying and smiled in a way that made Fluttershy almost afraid.

"Oh, hi! Sorry I didn't see you there!" The voice was obviously feminine. The figure stepped forward. Fluttershy gasped and hid behind her mane. Now basked in moonlight, she could see the creature was indeed a pony. Fluttershy couldn’t control herself; her eyed moved frantically from her wings to her horn and back to her wings. ‘An Alicorn?!’

"Again, sorry! I was just talking with a friend of mine! Do you need something?"

It was now that Fluttershy could see that the mare had extensive burns and cuts along her body. "A- A- A- Are you o- o- okay?" She muttered in her innocent voice. "T- T- That l- l- looks quite p- p- painful."

The mare gave her a quizzical look, and then smiled. "Oh don't worry about me! I'll be fine I-" She was cut off as sparks began to surround her body, causing her to screech in pain. Fluttershy yelped with surprise, unsure of what to do. When the sparks ceased, the mare was covered in fresh burns that oozed. Thick streams of gray smoke left her flesh. The smell of burned meat nauseated Fluttershy to an extent. The mare looked up, wide eyed at Fluttershy. "You need to go!"

Fluttershy didn't respond, completely paralyzed with fear. She just lay down on the meadow grass and trembled. "Please!" The mare's horn began glowing. "Run! Please I-" The aura spread to her whole body. She grit her teeth, an immense pain flooding through her. "I... I'm going to kill you!" She screamed through her pain.

At that moment, instincts took over. The shy pony ducked down and turned, galloping through the forest as fast as she could in the direction of her cottage. Tears were flowing from Fluttershy’s eyes, leaving behind a trail of wet, terrified drops. She saw two magic bolts soar past her, one missing her head by inches. The bolts hit the trees in front of her, making them fall and block her path. She quickly turned to find another way out, only to find the mare face to face against her. The mare’s mouth was spread in a toothy grin. She had a look in her eyes that made Fluttershy’s soul quiver in fear. She, in a quick motion, turned to the side and galloped outside of the forest’s dirt trail. Daring a look behind herself, Fluttershy was slightly less concerned when she realized that the mare didn’t give chase to her.

She was surprised to find herself outside of an old castle. It looked like the castle they found the Elements in, but she knew that was impossible. She hadn't been anywhere near that part of the Everfree, and there weren't any other ancient castles in the forest as far as she knew. Fluttershy looked back and gasped in horror to see two green orbs staring at her from the canopy. Fluttershy galloped through a set of double doors and into the castle, down random halls and corridors before finally running out of breath and collapsing in a large room which once were a dining hall.

She took the moment to survey her surroundings. The castle was old, but not in quite a bad a shape as the royal sister's old castle. It was also curious in the lack of any sort of decorations or furniture of any sort. It was literally a big, empty, castle. The room she was in was large, and had 3 doors which she assumed lead to various parts of the castle.

Fluttershy heard the mare's laughter, echoing throughout the castle and trembled with fear, feeling her leg muscles tighten themselves under instinct. She couldn't tell whether the mad-mare was close or far. Suddenly the doors burst open with great, startling the yellow pegasus. She yelped and pressed her hooves hard against her eyes, trying to null this horrible nightmare. When she finally allowed herself to see again, she was relieved to see nothing standing in any of the doorways.

'Maybe it was just the wind?' She thought. 'Oh Celestia I hope it was just the wind...' She decided it would be better if she kept moving. She chose one of the doors, and slowly trotted out into the hall. The door slammed shut behind her, startling her once more. She felt that her heart couldn’t take it, it was still pounding in her chest from the prior escape. She heard the mad-mare's terrifying laugh echo through the halls once again, and nearly broke down crying. She was far beyond scared out of her mind at this point. All she wanted to do was to go back to her warm cottage, curl up in her bed and pretend it was all a nightmare. Maybe it was.

"I'll wrap you in a sheet..." Fluttershy jumped up in surprise. She looked down both ends of the corridor, trying find the source of the voice. It sounded so close that Fluttershy felt as if the mare was next to her. Her eyes darted around as she saw movement out of the corner of her eyes. The shadows themselves seemed to be moving. Her coat stood on its end when she felt a warm pony’s breath on her nape.

"Boo." Fluttershy screamed and galloped. She could hear the thing’s laughter behind her, as well as rapid and heavy hoof-falls on stone. She turned a corner and bumped into something black. She looked up and found herself staring into two crimson orbs with black slits in their centers. She screamed once again.

"You never did tell me your 'plan' here Shadow." Asked the Moon Princess.

Nightshadow shrugged. "It's not that complicated. We just need somepony to distract her while we use the Elements. If that doesn't work, we fall back to... well these." He said while pointing to the saddlebag around his own neck. Luna scowled, making Nightshadow slightly annoyed. "Do you have a better idea?" She shook her head as she flew to the back of the group, eliciting a chuckle from Celestia.

“So how long have you known my sister?" Celestia said as they trotted through the forest.

Nightshadow sighed. Now was not the time, but she wouldn't be letting that go so easily. "A while now, actually. I went to see her a few days after Nightmare Night out of curiosity." He looked up to the sky as he recounted the memory. "She wasn't exactly thrilled to see me at first of course, but then I explained our... situation to her. She was sympathetic. Sometimes..." He stopped himself. "She's a good friend, helped make me feel less alone. Nightshade couldn't always hold a conversation." He felt a small twinge of guilt. 'Maybe I should have tried more often anyway...'

The two continued to talk about 'recent events'. Nightshadow told stories Celestia had heard from Twilight, but from a different perspective. Sometimes, he would reveal something she did not know, either amusing or disturbing Celestia. They were so wrapped up in their conversation that they didn't realize at first that they had walked into a clearing in the forest with a large stone building sitting in the middle.

"That... wasn't there before. At least, I don't think it was." Shadow remarked.

"Castles don’ jus build themselves, do they?" The farm pony asked.

Nightshadow looked over the castle for a second, and then frowned. "Does this place look familiar to anypony?"

"It looks a bit like... the old castle?" Luna said, looking at her sister in confusion.

"That can't be! We aren't in that part of the forest." Celestia rebutted.

"There aren't any other castles round here, are there?" The two Princesses looked at him and shook their heads. A loud scream was heard, echoing throughout the castle’s walls. Without thinking they ran across the small clearing and into the castle, looking for the source of the noise.

"This place..." Nightshadow touched the wall with his hoof. "It feels so familiar..." He picked a hall and motioned for the others to follow. Half-way toward the end, he looked back to make sure they were still behind him, only to see nopony there. 'Figures.'

Nightshadow was surprised when he heard the mare's scream once again, but even more than surprised to bump into the Element of Kindness inside the old castle. Realizing the danger they were in, Nightshadow's magic formed a sound-suppressant barrier around them both. After a while, she stopped screaming and collapsed in a heap in front of him.

"Are you quite done?" He asked, ears still ringing a bit from the contained scream. "I'd rather she not hear me coming, though I wonder if it will matter at this point." Fluttershy said nothing, but risked a glance out of one of her hoof-covered eyes up at him. He didn't seem angry, and he didn't have that crazed look the other black Alicorn had. Nightshadow sighed, causing the small pegasus to let out a quiet 'eep' and hide in her own mane. Things were not going according to plan. "Would it make you feel any better if I told you I brought Celestia here to help you?"

At the mention of the sun princess the pegasus seemed to perk up a bit. "T- T- The P- Princess is here?"

Nightshadow nodded. "My name is Nightshadow. I guess from the way you were screaming before you already met my sister." The pegasus' eyes narrowed when he mentioned they were family. She hid behind her mane again.

Nightshadow shook his head. He knew this one was shy to begin with, but there was no telling what she had already been through. "Are you hurt at all?" It took a moment for her to respond, but Fluttershy slowly shook her head, never making eye contact. "Good." Nightshadow examined the hall they were in. Again, he was filled with an intense feeling of familiarity. "I believe we want to go this way." He began to trot in the direction Fluttershy came from. She, reluctantly, got up off the floor and followed him, hoping that he was telling the truth.

Something was wrong. Shadow could feel it. The air in this part of the castle seemed colder and physically heavier. They had been wandering the halls for a while now, and had arrived behind two double doors that vaguely reminded him of the entrance to the Canterlot throne room. The shy Pegasus still behind him, he slowly began to push open the door with his magic. Slumped in the corner of the room were three unconscious ponies, two Alicorns and one earth pony. Fluttershy gasped when she saw them and rushed over to their aid. Nightshadow was fixated on the creature in the middle of the room.

"I tried to tell them... but they wouldn't listen." The creature said. "Please, just take them and go..." The voice seemed unnatural, as if muttered through a barrier of flesh.

"I can't do that, Shade. I won’t leave, not without you." Shadow said, pacing a few steps forward.

"Do not call me that!" Shade snapped. Shadow could see Shade's magic writhing around her. She tilted her head to the floor. "Please, just leave..."

"No." He stood there, defiant. Shade remained silent as a dark blue aura lit up the room.

Using his magic, Shadow gently levitated Fluttershy to his side, who quietly yelped. "You are one of the Elements, right?" He whispered. Fluttershy nodded. "When I say to, open the bag around Celestia's neck." Shadow levitated her back to Celestia's side.

"Shade... please fight this! You wouldn't want to hurt any of us. Not even Tia." He said, gesturing towards the Sun Princess.

Nightshade didn't respond, instead she looked at the small group of ponies. Fluttershy had deemed them all alive and, for the most part, unharmed. His original plan was simple. He had hoped to distract Nightshade with ponies that would incite her anger, but he didn't think they would get separated and taken out so easily. ‘If that didn't go as planned, it can only go downhill from here.' Nightshadow sighed. 'But I have to try.'

"Now!" He yelled, startling both Nightshade and Fluttershy. The yellow pegasus in a sudden burst of courage, unbuttoned the saddlebag. The elemental orbs, having already been charged by Shadow, circled around the shy pony as she eeped with surprise. Her eyes began to glow, as monumental energy flowed through her. The elemental energy, using Fluttershy as a focus, hurled itself at Nightshade.

As it impacted her, she howled in pain and surprise.

'Gotta do it now!' The fraction of elemental energy he had stored in the bag wouldn't keep his sister down for long. He levitated his own bag in-front of him and levitated one of the black gems out of it, focusing his energy into them. He opened his eyes only to find out that they didn't respond. He tried again. Nothing.

"No!" He shouted. "Why isn't it working!" He heard a faint laughter. The voice itself was oddly familiar and yet...

'No... It cannot be'

Nightshade was recovering from the attack, and a single glance at her could tell one that she was not amused. "You'll regret that, whelp!" The voice even more distorted than before.

Nightshadow cringed. 'That didn't sound like her...' The aura that had flooded the room began to gather around her horn. She swiped her hoof on the ground, lowering herself, ready to impale the first thing she charged into.

'Shadow, we may not have a choice...' His original plan had fallen apart. His backup plan had fallen apart. He had to act.

'I... I can’t....' With tears beginning to form in his eyes, his magic began to surge around him.

"Please Shade! You have to wake up!" She didn't listen; she was too focused on the group of ponies, eyes full of malice. Nightshade charged forward, becoming a blur of black as the magic caused the world around her to singe. Shadow moved faster than her, he always had. Before she could get halfway to the group, both siblings collided.

Both were surrounded in a corona of magical energies. "Shade! Please stop!" She grinned at him, her magic pushing at his, threatening to overwhelm him. "I'm.... I'm sorry." Shadow put everything he had into piercing his sister's magic. Nightshade did the same.

The world around him exploded and Nightshadow saw nothing but darkness.

Little did Shadow know that his plans were not the only to go awry this night. The figure sat in a tree, watching the castle expectantly. When the castle shook, he sighed wearily. "What have I done?" He thought aloud. "I tried to give them something... and it caused this. I never wanted them to die." Gears began to turn in his head as he thought of any way he could influence the outcome...

He facehoofed. 'I still owe Luna...' He smiled devilishly at the thought. '...the perfect excuse.'

"Shiv!" At his call, his guardian materialized in front of him, bowing. "Take a letter to Princess Luna."

A red mist seeped out from behind him and formed into a paper and pen, which levitated themselves over to the pegasus. He took the pen in her mouth and began to write...

"My Dear Friend, Luna..."

When Nightshadow woke up, all he could see was black.

'Am... am I dead?' He had never contemplated what death would be like. The thought that this was all there was... terrified him. Feeling began to come back to him. He sat up with a groan and opened his eyes. White quickly invaded his eyes, making him shield them with his hoof. The white light slowly gave way to colors and shapes. Nightshadow got up and looked around himself, still a little dizzy. But what he saw jolted him awake the same instant. The image was formed and sent to his brain, which uttered a single answer. ‘No...’

Nightshade was lying in the center of the destroyed room, unmoving. Shadow slowly walked next to her. He saw her disheveled mane. Her tear-stained eyes. The blood that slowly dripped from her mouth. Her gentle, peaceful smile. Nightshadow knelt down and held his sister close to his chest. Celestia was the first to awaken. What she saw nearly tore her heart in two. Celestia began to trot towards him when she heard him addressing her, not bothering to turn around.

"I... I can't believe... I killed her..." Nightshadow spoke, unable to mentally register anything at this point. He stood there with cloudy, emotionless eyes. Looking at his sister’s lifeless body.

Celestia gave him a sympathetic look. "You did not have a choice... For what it is worth I am-"

"Don't!" Shadow snapped, gaze never turning from his broken sister. "Just...” He inhaled, calming himself. “Don't..."

Shadow stayed by his sister's side for the rest of the night. The Princess, believing in proper code of conduct, had sent a small group of guards to collect her body and deliver it to the castle for burial. "I will make sure she is not left to rot." She had said to him. "Even if we cannot mark the tombstone..." Celestia still had wanted to keep them a secret. Public reactions. Shadow would have scoffed, but he remained silent. Even after they had taken his sister, he didn't leave. He remained as motionless as a gargoyle until late the next evening.

A hot, livid green flame startled Nightshadow. Out from it materialized a scroll bearing the royal emblem. Shadow lazily ripped the royal emblem and unfolded the scroll, holding it before him with his magic.

Shadow

I thought you might wish to see your sister one final time before we perform the service sometime in the next month. The guards will allow you into the castle.

Luna.

It was a brief, rather informal letter, but he got the message. He decided to teleport to the castle instead of walk, feeling emotionally and physically exhausted. A loud pop was heard as he arrived outside the throne room doors. The guards tensed, but relaxed once they saw him. They were the bat-winged night guards that he had seen protecting Luna.

"We were told to expect you." One of them opened the door slowly. Nightshadow said nothing as he trotted past. When he entered the room, he was not greeted by the sight of the Moon Princess as he expected, but instead by a grey earth pony with a top hat. He seemed to be playing around with one of the princess' crowns.

Nightshadow cleared his throat, attracting the pony's attention. "Ah good! You're here Shadow! I've been... expecting you."

Nightshadow raised an eye. "Where is Luna?"

"She's out taking care of something. Don't be afraid, I'm here in her place to talk to you about something." Something about this stallion made Nightshadow wary. It might have been his tone of voice, it seemed so... strange. Somewhere between caring and uncaring. It might have been his blood red eyes, which held no pupil and no whites. Or it might have been his smile. It seemed unnatural. At any rate, Nightshadow was reluctant to trust him.

The stallion picked up on that feeling and smiled even wider. "I can see we're both in a hurry, so I'll cut this short. Tell me, Mr. Shadow, have you ever experienced loss?" It sounded almost rhetorical; like that pony knew the answer already.

Shadow thought for a moment, thought of what he had been through in his time on Equestria. "Yes." He replied as nonchalantly as possible.

"Does it still hurt?" The pony asked incredulously, smiling a bit. "You never shed a tear, even when the guardsponies came to take her away."

Nightshadow was confused at how he knew that, but something about the strange pony seemed to make every question demand an answer. "Yes... I lost my sister, who has been with me for the majority of my long life. Despite the things she has done, I would... I would give anything to see her again."

The stallion turned his gaze to a tapestry depicting the six elemental ponies fighting Discord. "Well..." He began, his expression betraying determination. "That's good enough for me." He slammed his right fore-hoof on the ground. A red glow began to surround him.

The stallion turned to face the center of the room. He grunted as he concentrated the energy. A cocoon of light emerged from the middle of the room, gathering and kicking up dust in a small whirlwind. His smile returned as he retracted the energy. He was still glowing when the last of the dust had subsided.

Nightshadow could barely make out a figure moving in the middle of the debris. He dropped down, getting ready for whatever was about to lash out at him. When the dust finally cleared, he found himself unable to move or speak. He just stared into its eyes.

Its bright, green eyes.

"Shadow!" Nightshade galloped towards her brother, who was still too shocked to speak. She embraced him, nearly knocking him off his hooves. "IsawyourunningandIthoughtyouwouldn'tfindmeand-"

"Ahem. I'm sorry Shade, but your brother and I have a few things to discuss." The Alicorn looked at the earth pony. "Sorry dear, I won’t be here long." She solemnly nodded and tore herself away from her brother.

"How?" Shadow asked, now finally summoning the energy to bypass his amazement and speak.

The earth pony chuckled. "You wouldn't believe me if I said ‘magic’, would you?" The pony looked up at the ceiling. "I can't stay for much longer now, kid, so I'll tell you what you need to know now, and maybe tell you the good stuff later." He snickered. "First off; that's not the same Shade you knew from yesterday."

Nightshadow's eyes furrowed in anger. "Not to worry!" The stallion quickly added. "That's where the second part comes in, all she remembers are the first, hmm... nine months of her life?" The stallion chuckled again. "I could have recovered more, but why would I?"

Nightshade was absentmindedly playing with the crown, oblivious to their conversation. "She doesn't remember anything from the past thousand years?"

The stallion shook his head, grinning even wider than before. "Nope!"

Shadow sighed. "Anything else I should know?"

The stallion frowned. "I thought you would be a bit happy about that." He leaned in closer. "She doesn't remember any of the bad. All she has are good memories. As for the age difference... biological memory should kick in soon and she'll stop acting like such a little filly."

Nightshadow shook his head. "There has to be a catch, or some payment or..."

"I'm not Discord. In fact, I even made sure her mind wouldn't be fractured like the 'old' Shade's was. As for payment... well... Luna covered you, this time." The red mists returned, this time swirling around in a tight circle next to the stallion. The mists suddenly became semi-solid in appearance, with lashes of energy reaching out.

"And, ladies and gentle-colts, that is my queue to leave. Celestia and Luna already know, you'll have to explain it to the rest." He turned from Nightshadow and began to trot towards the portal.

"Wait!" Nightshadow yelled. "You didn't even tell us your name!"

The stallion smiled, bone-white teeth showing. "Seven. Just Seven. I think I will see you two again someday soon." He frowned. "A pity it won't be under better circumstances." With that, he walked through the red portal, which disappeared behind him.

Shadow turned to his sister and smiled.

Shade turned to her brother and laughed. "He was weird!"

Nightshadow felt himself chuckling as well. "Yeah..."

"So what do we do now, Shadow?" Nightshadow looked up at the ceiling, not staring at the stone itself, but past it.

"I think... we should go home."

A place to call Home

"Shadow... where are we?" Shade looked around the room they were in. It was like someone had stolen everything from the Canterlot throne room when they weren't looking, including the lights.

"Well... we haven't really had a home in a long time. We've just stayed up in the clouds." He looked around the room. It was far too dark. His horn lit up, and small orbs of light appeared along the walls, mimicking torches. "This place was just... here. So I figure, we might as well have it."

Nightshade gave him a puzzled look before shaking her head. "That's right... we've been living on our own for a while now, haven't we?" She sighed, rubbing her forehead with her hoof. "This sucks."

Nightshadow chuckled. He had yet to fill Shade in on what happened during the large gap in her memory, but caution told him not to tell exactly everything that happened. Especially her pranks. What mattered to him now was that his sister was alive, well, and by his side.

Shadow found himself pulled from his thoughts. "It's... a little dusty, don't you think?" She said, kicking at the floor which prompted a small dust cloud to erupt before slowly dispersing itself.

Shadow nodded. "Yes, but... well I have never really taken the time to learn any spells meant to clean. We can always stop by the library later..."

Nightshade gave him another look of confusion. "Library? You mean the royal library?"

Nightshadow shook his head. "No, sis. Ponyville’s library. There's a town not far from here by the name of Ponyville. They've got a very extensive library down there." Shade nodded, but Shadow could tell she was still confused. "You'll love it." He said, remembering a certain lavender unicorn that lived in the library. "The ponies down there are all friendly."

"I used to love it. Why would I love it now?" Nightshadow gave his sister a knowing look. Shade sighed. "I know brother, we can't stay in Canterlot. I just... I don't know." She started but trailed off, looking at the ground apologetically.

Shadow began to light up the rest of the room, conjuring various orbs of light on the walls, and putting enough energy into them that they would be permanent. If it was to be their home, it should at least be well lit.

"It's alright sis. I'll help you get adjusted. Just think of it like growing up again. It'll be fu-" He stopped himself when his eyes caught up with one of the walls. Something was hanging off of it. Shade didn’t pay attention to her brother, being as entertained as she was, still lifting small clouds of dust from the floor. Curious, Shadow pointed his horn towards the center of the mass, brightening the whole wall up with an orange light.

It was a tapestry, similar to the one he had seen years before in the royal sister's throne room. This depicted something else though; two black Alicorns standing in the middle, wings flared as a rainbow, a yellow bird-like claw, and a red mist converged upon them from separate directions. One of the Alicorns had squinted-red eyes, while the other one had a hoof to its chin.

‘It looks as if it were... laughing.’

A small plaque was underneath, as well as a scroll taped onto the wall. Shadow trotted closer to investigate it. The plaque had a thin layer of dust covering it, but the note was written in a brand-new parchment.

The plaque read:

"Paragons of Survival- To have lived as long as they have, with the enemies they made and thought they had made, is a testament to one's will."

Nightshadow turned his head up and gave another inquisitive look towards the tapestry, before looking down and levitating the note towards him.

The note underneath read:

"Dear Shadow

I knew you would come here. Well... sort of knew anyway. I figured you might want a few things to liven up your new home. By the time you have finished reading the plaque and this note, a small bag will have appeared next to you. There will be a book straight from the royal library as well as a few history books for your sister, which will help you make this place more livable.

I bet you wonder why you feel the need to stay here of all places, in this dank old castle. You know now that Celestia would spare you a room, if not have one built for you (don't be too hard on her, she and her sister never wanted to hurt you and you know it) if you would just ask. But you feel like you need to be here.

Maybe one day, I'll tell you why you feel that way. Until then.

See you someday soon-

Number Seven."

Nightshadow shook his head. The mysterious earth pony had done much for them, but he found himself questioning why. And how? Such magic was beyond even the Royal Princesses themselves... how had an earth pony done the impossible? His eyes turned down to the note one more time.

'Maybe one day, I'll tell you. '

Nightshadow snorted and pushed the note away from him with his magic. The note shivered for a moment as if it could feel cold, before burning up into nothing in the blink of an eye. He looked down to the ground, and just as the note said, a large saddlebag had appeared. Nightshadow found this to be peculiar, as all teleportation spells involved the sudden light burst from the amount of compressed energy. He examined it a bit, before setting it aside for later.

"Woooooow..." He heard his sister's voice behind him. "Is that... us?"

Nightshadow turned to meet his sister's amazed gaze. "I think so. You want to keep it?" She nodded vigorously. Nightshadow smiled warmly and turned back to gaze at the tapestry once more. He frowned when he noticed the note had somehow found its way back underneath the tapestry. He grunted and picked the note up in his magic once more.

"P.S.

Lighten up a bit, kid! Learn to smile every now and then, hmm? I bet Twilight would prefer to see you smiling."

Shadow let out an annoyed sigh and frowned. The letter was once again enveloped by his horn’s aura before burning to a crisp. He eyed the wall, making sure nothing else would appear afterwards, and then turned to address his sister. "We're going to take a trip to town for a few things..."

She smiled at him, seemingly delighted at the thought of leaving the dank, old castle. "Sounds like fun!"

"Right, I'll have to maintain the disguise for the two of us though..."

Nightshade frowned. "Why do we have to 'disguise' ourselves? I like the way I look just fine!"

"It's not for us. Other ponies will get... scared if they see what we really look like." Nightshadow replied, a stern look on his face.

"Why?" Nightshade frowned a bit at him.

Nightshadow paused and thought for a moment, unsure of how to answer. "I know about a few books we can look at later. For now, just trust me, okay?" It would feel wrong explaining to her how much she looked like the demon-mare... especially with her on that condition.

"Fine." She huffed.

Nightshadow suppressed a laugh."Alright, then. Let me go ahead first, I need to check on something." Not giving his sister a chance to ask questions, he teleported just outside Ponyville with a loud pop. He chuckled to himself. She would be irate when he returned, but it would be good fun to him. Besides, he had to come up for a reason why his sister didn't remember anypony.

The sun was just now rising over the horizon. Shadow stared off towards the small village, smiling.

'As nice a place to call home as any...'

Authors note: We began with a short one, so we end with a short one. I figured it was as good a place as any to stop it, though I know some will not agree. Also, I made a bet with a friend that I wouldn't end up killing off any of the main or side characters before the end of this fiction. Looks like I won that bet.

Epilogue:

Several months later:

Seven appeared on the dirt road. He didn't make noise whenever he moved throughout the world as those unicorns did. But then again, he was different. He quickly scanned the terrain around him. It was a horrible scene.

Dead ponies. A lot of dead ponies, mixed in with a few gryphons here and there. Some were bent at unnatural angles. Others were torn in the middle. But gryphon and pony alike were bloodied. The smell was one of death mixed with rust, but being as bad as it was, Seven did not grimace. He saw an overturned carriage with several guardsponies lying in a circle around it. Judging by the scene, Seven would be able to tell exactly what had transpired here, at least if he didn't already know.

He searched around for a little bit before he found his target. One pony still standing. The dark shape stood motionless, staring blankly at the ground. Seven approached his friend.

"You know, Shadow, the natural response when you lose a loved one is to cry." Nightshadow did not respond, not even moving his eyes, prompting Seven to continue. "But you’re not the type to do that, are you? I guess you just shut down when something like this happens. Some ponies are like that. Like me."

Nightshadow did not answer at first, but Seven caught movement coming from Nightshadow. He stared at what Seven could now see was an almost unrecognizable lavender mass on the ground.

Almost unrecognizable.

She was covered in cuts and bruises. Death had come for her, and Seven knew it had not come quickly.

"Can you... help her?" Shadow said, finally breaking the silence.

Seven frowned and turned his head to face Shadow before shaking his head side to side. "I can't. I'm sorry."

Shadow turned to face Seven, glaring at him in anger. "Why? Why can't you?"

Seven closed his eyes and shook his head again. "I wish I could, but there has to be a price for such things. It's the rules..."

"What about Shade?"

"Luna covered for you, remember?"

"Then I offer myself, in exchange." Nightshadow said quickly.

Seven sighed. "One pony's life is not equal to another."

"Then how many lives would it take?"

Seven scowled. "I'm not offering that kind of deal. As I told you when we first met, I am not Discord."

"THEN WHY ARE YOU HERE IF YOU CAN’T HELP!?" Nightshadow’s voice boomed through the air as he shouted accusingly. Seven did the opposite of what Shadow expected. He smiled, widely.

"I didn't say I couldn't help. I said there would be a price." Seven focused, and in a brief red flash a paper was floating beside him. He willed the object to float to Nightshadow, where he could read Seven's terms.

I _______________ am allowed the chance to repeat the events that occurred on the date of _________ and allowed to change said events in hoping that the outcome will be more desirable. In exchange, I agree to be bound in service as guard to the provider of this contract for the sum total of one-hundred and fifty years, regardless the outcome of my reliving of past events. This contract is unbreakable by any court in or outside of the realm of Equestria, and may only be rendered null under the decisions of this contracts' holder.

Nightshadow gripped the paper in his magic as he read through the short contract. "It's really that simple?" He said, glaring at Seven as if the earth pony was playing some kind of joke on him.

Seven chuckled. "I didn't think you would give it much thought. They never really do." A red quill warped into existence next to Nightshadow. "A few things to keep in mind here buddy: You don't have to do this. I would understand completely if you flat out refuse me."

"Not happening." Shadow said as he took hold of the quill in his magic as well.

Seven chuckled once more. "Sign the Date first, then your name. You'll wake up on that day. Good 'luck'." And then he was gone.

Shadow was once again alone.

He looked at the heap on the ground one final time, almost feeling a tear form, before shrugging it off and hastily scribbling his name in on the paper.

Shadow suddenly felt tired. Drained. As though a great weight had been placed upon him. He let go of both contract and quill, but the sound of those hitting the ground never came. He thought, for a moment that the world was tilting on its side, but then realized it was in fact him falling over.

When he hit the ground, everything around him seemed to fade to black.

And then he woke up.

To be continued...

Authors note: Or have I?

Prologue: Nightmare Moon has fallen

Nightshadow silently watched the lavender mare from afar. He waited for her. His heart ached in the hopes that somehow she'd notice him.

'No.' He thought to himself. The visual displacement spell that he cast on himself was powerful enough that the only beings on Equestria that could possibly see through it were either dead or very far away.

He was safe.

He was free.

He was alone.

All he had was a pretty little picture, and he couldn't even get close enough to admire it to its fullest.

This is how he had lived for the past six years. As the lavender unicorn mare lived in Ponyville, accomplished incredible feats, defeated obstacles that would have toppled himself, made and kept friends, he had been a ghost.

A shadow.

A guardian.

'Friends.'

How he longed for that which he could not have. All because, not what he had done, but who he was. What he was.

He looked up.

She was gone.

Nightshadow sighed and unfurled his muscular wings. With a quick movement from them, he flew up into the clouds. His wings were large and powerful, any pony close enough would feel the sudden gust of wind, but he did not care. He flew much higher than most Pegasi would dare. The cold air would slowly freeze to death any normal Pony. But Nightshadow was not normal. His horn and wings attested to this fact. His draconic eyes made it all more evident.

To them, he was a monster. A horrible being by default. Nature didn't even get a chance to twist him for better or worst. He was, for all intents and purposes, a normal pony in the shell of a demon.

Nightshadow landed on a lone dark blue cloud. He watched the whole town below him. Several different kinds of ponies carried on with their daily lives, oblivious to the black Alicorn’s presence. His eyes moved around when he felt a familiar presence. A familiar shape quickly flew up next to him.

"Nightshade." They stood alone on the cloud. Brother and sister. She was the spitting image of her mother. All that was different were her eyes, which were a sickly shade of green.

She glared a thousand daggers at him. He returned the stare with his blood red eyes. She looked away, smiling deviously.

"Staring at that mare again? Honestly, if you don't stop being all sad and pouty because of her I might just decide to have a little 'fun' with her." Nightshadow winced. His sister's meaning of 'fun' was a fate he didn't wish on anypony, especially on this mare.

"I swear to you if you go anywhere near her i'll-"

"You'll do what exactly? You wouldn't kill your own flesh and blood, would you?" Nightshade cut her brother short. Nightshadow sighed heavily. His sister giggled at the brother’s defeat.

"Oh, don't worry! I'll leave her alone... for now at least. I’ve got plenty of other ponies to… play with!" Her usually bubbly expression then deadpanned. "But seriously, Nightshadow, either do something about this crush of yours, or I will." Nightshadow’s eyes narrowed when the full extent of the message was grasped within his mind. His eyes brightened up, shining in a more intense crimson tone.

"Shade, I swear if you lay a hoof on her..." Her devious smile quickly returned to her face. She giggled more intensely than before. A sudden flash of light that came from Nightshade made Nightshadow turn his head the slightest bit. The flash intensified for a moment before ceasing completely. Nightshade disappeared, leaving a cloud of thick, black smoke behind. The smoke cloud began to flow vividly towards the small town below, despite the strong will of the high-altitude wind.

Nightshadow sighed once more. His sister had been relatively tame here compared to their last place of residency, but he knew that wouldn't last. He knew one day soon that he would have to leave and take his sister with him.

Nightshadow did not hate his sister. He knew that his sister had gone through many hardships. They had faced many dangers together in their thousand year stay on Equestria. But they had not walked away unscathed. She was hopelessly manic. One moment she was playful, joyful, the next willing to incinerate you just for the sheer sake of it. Despite this, Nightshadow would probably be willing to die for Nightshade, if the situation called for it.

He and her were all that both could ever have. They would live forever. But is immortality worth the price of one’s happiness?

Nightshadow answered his own question. The one that had driven his sister insane a long time ago. And possibly done the same to him. His thoughts shifted to his first moment of consciousness as he looked towards Ponyville. He had been cursed with a photographic memory of those events, and sometimes he wondered if his sister had been as well.

He remembered all their faces.

He remembered the 'good' Sun princess and the 'evil' Moon princess.

He remembered… mother.

One thousand and six years ago:

The elements of harmony had worked. Nightmare Moon was gone. 'Until the time is right, when the true bearers are among us, she will remain forever imprisoned.' Said the true legend.

Celestia, at first feeling powerful and triumphant, now hung her head low in grief. She had doomed her sister, her only living blood relative, to a frozen hell. Even though Celestia knew that she had no other options; the amount of grief was immense, even for her.

No pony else was around.

Celestia wept for her sister.

No pony else was around.

No pony noticed what the darkness left behind.

Celestia looked up.

Thick, black ashes formed a rose drawing in the charred cobblestone path. In its center, two foals slept in the spot her sister once stood. Their breathing even and calm.

Celestia looked upon them confused, and blinked rapidly. 'Am I seeing things?' She studied both foals with mixed feelings.

One of them yawned and opened their eyes.

Nighshadow looked into Celestia's eyes.

Celestia froze.

His eyes were blood red, slits instead of the normal round pupils.

'Slits instead of pupils.' Celestia’s heart began to pound against her chest. A sudden jolt of adrenaline numbed her senses. Her muscles instinctively clenched when the realization of what lay before her became clear; for she knew such vivid eyes. ‘Nightmare Moon's eyes!’

They both stared at each other for a long time. Whilst Celestia kept her frozen, wide-eyed stare out of some kind of primal fear; little Nightshadow kept his out of sheer curiosity. Celestia broke out of her trance when foal opened his mouth and yawned. He wearily curled into a ball, quickly falling back into its peaceful sleep.

Celestia couldn’t believe what just happened. She simply stared on. 'I must be seeing things...'

"Princess? Are you alright?" Her trance was once again broken, but she had no possible answer for the concerned guards who now crowded around her. They looked towards the pair of black masses, at first with bewilderment, than with anger.

"It's a trick! An illusion from Luna!" Two guards split off from the rest and, using their magic, yanked the foals up holding them by their necks, and eliciting a yelp between them. Another two stepped forward and used their magic to levitate a pair of lances towards the two small ponies.

They began to cry.

"What would you have us do with them, your highness?" The guard directed his question towards the Sun princess, which still stood mesmerized at the sight of the twin foals.

Celestia looked attentively to both foals. 'So I'm not seeing things.' She slowly walked forward the pair and calmly examined them. They had black coats, one was a colt with a short, dark blue mane. The other was a filly with a longer, purple mane. Both had horns and small knobs of flesh, indicating that one day they would have wings.

She looked to her guards and then back at the crying foals. Celestia, for the first time in her life, was unsure of what to do. The seconds took their toll on the Sun princess. Eons seemed to pass and an answer was still nowhere to be grasped by her mind. Her whole life boiled down to one insane move.

"Have them brought back to the new castle. Give them a room and leave them for the night." The guard’s captain frowned. He couldn’t believe what the princess was saying.

"But your highness! This is certainly just an illusion created by the Nightmare!" He magicked the crying foals away from her. “These must be dealt with!”

"That may be, but we cannot be completely sure. We may be harsh, but we do not kill foals, especially without good reason. Do I make myself clear, Captain?" To make her point clear, Celestia grasped the foals within her magic and held both close to her.

"Of course your highness...." He trotted towards the other guards, mumbling something under his breath, and firmly relayed her orders to them. Some of them looked shocked and angry, but most managed to keep their composure. Celestia ordered for the foals to be properly taken care of. Soon they were wrapped in blankets and brought to Canterlot. The steady steps of the chambermaids calmed both foals, which now slept peacefully within the royal castle, blissfully unaware of the danger they were now in.

Present day:

Nightshade allowed herself a slight yawn. The day had been rather dull so far, ponies simply buzzed around town like worker bees. Content into wasting their lives for what they believed was something greater than themselves.

Nightshade flew above the unsuspecting crowds. The thick, black cloud had long dissipated, leaving her completely invisible to the naked eye. Nightshadow had always been told to keep her distance from ponies and to use that spell to keep from being seen. What did he call it? Light recuperation? Light reflection? It did not matter to her.

Shade found herself outside the local pastry shop, Sugarcube corner, as she recalled. She couldn't open the front door without earning a loud ring of the doorbell. Nightshade peeked in through the window and made sure nopony was around. She imagined herself inside, and in a poof of magic, she was.

Once there she waited patiently.

Watching.

Waiting.

Mrs. Cake walked into her store and began laying out various treats and confections she had made the day prior and had stored for today. She placed the baked goods on the display stand and was about to leave to get another box of stored, foodstuffs when she suddenly stopped.

She saw something.

Something out of the corner of her eye.

She slowly turned and gasped.

One of the cakes she had laid out was glowing.

And floating.

And eating itself.

She ran out of the store screaming.

Nightshade waited until she had floated up to her own cloud above the town before she burst out laughing; a feat which took her entire focus. She had only pulled that one once before, in Appleloosa, but the farmers were angrier about their missing apples then scared about the fact that they were floating and eating themselves.

She then noticed something odd. It was getting darker faster than what she had expected. She looked up at the sky. The sun was already setting, reflecting glimmering rays of gold and orange in the horizon. Nightshade could have sworn that it had just risen.

'Wow... I really must have lost track of time!' The thought was more an uncaring remark to herself than actual surprise. Nightshade threw herself onto a dark cloud and yawned out of boredom. She stood there for a few minutes, lazily swinging her hind legs above the small town that stood far below her. Her attention was picked when she caught sight of something out of the corner of her eye. A rainbow streak was moving swiftly in the distance.

Nightshade huffed; a sly, devious smile formed on her face. 'That one... Perfect!' She recognized this one as Rainbow Dash, a particularly annoying Pegasus who valued her wings above all else.

Dark thoughts entered her mind.

She knew what she was going to do tomorrow.

Her next little joke.

Story time with Nightshade

Rainbow Dash watched the restaurant doors with anticipation. Her mischievous grin widened she caught glimpse of a stallion trotting out the door. "Alright!" She whispered. "Here comes another one."

"Excellent!" A voice next to her replied. "One moment..." The voice giggled as its owner moved into position behind the unsuspecting stallion. She took in a deep, silent breath. The stallion stopped for a moment upon hearing the sound and looked behind him.

"BOO!" She screamed with a voice that almost toppled off the Royal Canterlot Voice. The stallion jumped into the air, unknowingly hitting a magic tripwire.

A thin bolt of lightning came out of nowhere and struck him on the flank. He yelped in pain and jumped into the nearest body of water in hopes of curing the burning sensation. As he jumped in, he yelped in pain once again, clutching his hoof and violently shaking it as a small shark-like fish made out of a black aura refused to let go. He ran through town like a maniac, trying to get the fish that only he could see off of him.

Nightshade quickly teleported herself along with Rainbow Dash to a nearby cloud, on which both kept laughing heartily at the stallion's misfortune. "H-How... How did you even do that? Twilight's magic is never that fun!"Rainbow asked as she wiped a tear out of the corner of her eye, causing Nightshade to giggle.

"Well, when you live as long as I have you learn some things..." She said, almost getting lost into old memories.

Rainbow Dash gave her new friend a confused look, before face-hoofing. "Oh, right! You're an Alicorn! Duh!" Both had become friends in a very small time span, namely through their mutual love for pranks.

Which is exactly why Nightshade didn't say anything about her earlier trick with Rainbow. She was probably the only friend she had ever had except for Nightshadow, and Shade held her share of regret for what she did to her. Nightshade's broken mind hadn't encountered regret for so long that this new ‘friendship’ deal scared a bit...

She knew that she could tell Rainbow about the little trick, but Shade knew that Rainbow would never speak to her again. Shade’s mind was comfortable accepting her as a friend. Rainbow Dash was silent for a moment, pondering how exactly she would ask her next question. "You know, the only ponies I've known who lived for as long as you are the Princesses." Nightshade tensed at the mention of the Royal Sisters, but said nothing. "I was wondering; do you have any cool stories?"

Nightshade lit up. Nopony had ever wanted to hear about any of the things she’s done before. Of course, most ponies that saw her ran away. "Oh I have lots of stories!"

Rainbow Dash looked at her, expectantly. "Liiiike…?" She said wiggling her brows, inviting Shade to continue.

Nightshade's smile disappeared. "Well, that's the thing, see. Most of the really good ones are things Nightshadow told me not to talk about. Buuut..." She put a hoof under her chin, and adopted a mischievous grin. "Since you already know about us and already promised not to tell anypony... sure! Why not?"

Dash couldn’t contain her bottled anxiety and did a quick back flip before setting back over the cloud. "Awesome! So tell me a story then!"

Shade began to name some of her experiences on Equestia, mainly the ones she thought Rainbow would find interesting. "Oh well there's that time I met a basilisk and she thought I was her mommy, or that time a bunch of diamond dogs wanted that gem I found and Nightshadow ended up becoming their leader, or the time I got sent to the moon. I also-"

"What? Wait, wait, wait." Rainbow interrupted her, gesticulating with both her forehooves. "You... went to the moon once?" She asked Nightshade, voice nearing doubt.

She nodded. "Yep! I was sent there for..." She tapped her head, trying to recall the length of her stay."... twenty years once!” She said, almost sounding proud of it.

Rainbow's jaw hung open. "B-But why?"

Nightshade laughed. "Well, that's part of the story, silly!" She paused and trotted to a comfortable spot on the cloud. "You see I wasn't always who I am today! I used to be a lot... angrier..."

Thirty years after the twins' escape:

The black Alicorn mare awoke with a deep yawn. The stars in her mane glistened slightly as she rose from her slumber. 'Ah. What does the world have in store for me today?' She thought while stretching her leg muscles. She moaned a little as her joints snapped. "Ah... that feels nice." She said to nopony in particular.

Nightshade suddenly remembered where she was, her vision was slightly obscured by golden bars running horizontally in front of her. A magic nullifying cage. 'Oh. Right…' She saw two unicorn ponies in the room with her; Eclipse guards flanking either side of the relatively large cage.

"Soooo..." She started. "How are you guys doing on this beautiful day?"

"Quiet you." One of them snapped.

Nightshade smiled and approached that guard. "Come now, is that any way to treat a friend?"

"No friend of mine would butcher an entire town." The same guard replied, hinting that his patience was nearing an end.

Nightshade laughed. "Really? That's too bad. It seems like we're gonna be spending a lot of time together. I just figured I'd-" The guard tapped the cage, a bolt of electricity shot out from the ceiling, shocking the Alicorn.

She just smiled, not even wincing from the slight pain the bolt provided. "Now that wasn't very nice." The loud sound of the large hallway door slamming shut made Nightshade’s ears perk up. Both of the guards immediately stiffened. Celestia walked up to the cage and glared sternly at its occupant.

"Leave us." She said. Her tone wasn’t that of an angry pony, but her voice carried such strength and volume, that the walls seems to shake and reverberate to her every word. The guards bowed and did as she commanded.

"Tia! It's so good to see you again! I was beginning to wonder if I would ever-"

"Why?" Celestia looked deep into Nightshade’s eyes. She saw that the Sun Princess’ eyes were bloodshot and were swollen, as if the Princess spent many hours crying.

Nightshade blinked. "What?"

"Why did you do it?! I know you're angry! I know you're hurt! But why did so many innocents deserve your anger!?" Nightshade noticed that Celestia’s voice was cracking… she was nearing her breaking point.

Shade then did something the Princess didn’t expect. She laughed. "You want to know why I did it? It's a very simple and boring answer."

"Tell me." Celestia’s voice lost all her sadness as it strongly reverberated through the walls once more.

Nightshade stifled her laughter down to a soft giggle. "OK, why not?" She leaned her head in closer to the edge of the cage, and motioned Celestia to do the same. But Celestia never moved.

"Because. I. Could." She whispered and smiled another wicked grin. Celestia stared in shock and disgust. She had never met anypony with such low regard for a fellow pony’s life. Seeing Celestia's reaction just caused her to laugh more. "So, what exactly are you going to do about it, huh?"

Celestia’s demeanor darkened. Nightshade could feel her anger, but wasn’t fazed by it at all. "Nightshade, your crimes are unforgivable, and the fact that you have no remorse for them is unacceptable! By this time tomorrow I will enact your punishment. I suggest you pray that I be lenient."

"Oh please. When have you ever been lenient?" The sudden venomous tone her voice took caused Celestia to recoil in surprise again. She turned from Nightshade and began to walk hastily towards the exit. "Good bye, Aunt Tia! I'll be seeing you again tomorrow."

Celestia motioned for her waiting guards to retake their positions, and began the brief journey through the castle hallways towards her room. She waited until she was alone in her chambers before bursting into tears. Wind Strider stood outside the door, silently listening to the Sun Princess’ sorrow.

He knew what Celestia was about to do. The emotional toll over Celestia for sending her sister away was huge. She wouldn’t forgive herself for resigning another pony to the same fate. Especially a pony she cared for. Wind Strider sighed, he knew that what he was about to do was reckless, dangerous... but his mind was already set. ‘I won’t just stand by and watch Celestia doom herself!'

Nightshadow watched as the younger colts and fillies played below from his perch on top of the farmhouse. He smiled as they chased each other through barns and the small forest of apple trees. ‘So carefree…’ He thought with a slight tinge of warm envy.

The Apple family had done so much for him; he couldn't believe how lucky he was for stumbling upon that mare in the road. He had pleaded with them, asking for a chance to repay all the good that they had bestowed upon him. They would have no such thing; Nightshadow was their guest and as such, the only thing they wanted from him was his well-being.

He sighed... They had done so much for him and never asked for anything in return. Red somehow knew that he would need to learn magic and flight, and had visited a local library without Nightshadow asking. One of the first things he learned how to do was bend light, essentially making himself invisible. That spell is what allowed him to move about Emberglen freely.

It wasn't by all means perfect; if anypony stared at him long enough they would see a small Alicorn-shaped distortion, caused when the brain tries to process what the eye doesn't understand. But it would work for this occasion.

He saw a pony flying in the distance, heading for the orchard. The pegasus landed. He looked familiar, but Nightshadow couldn't put an exact name to him.

"Excuse me miss?" The Pegasus said as he trotted up to Red. "Can I talk to you for a second?" His tone was regal, imposing. Like a guardspony. Nightshadow unfurled his dark wings and glided to the pair, gently landed beside them. None of the ponies acknowledged his presence. That was something he was good at, being silent.

"I was wondering if you could take a look at this sketch..." The Pegasus reached for his saddlebags and removed a parchment from within. Shadow saw the royal emblem securing the folded parchment but kept still. The Pegasus opened and unfolded the parchment before holding it with its magic to Red. Nightshadow's eyes widened when he saw that the picture was a startling resemblance to himself as a foal.

"Uh... well… ya’ see..." Nightshadow cringed, he knew that Red wouldn’t willingly report him to the authorities. But there was that Apple family honesty... Nightshadow didn’t want to compromise neither the Apple family’s reputation nor Red’s honesty… He knew that there was always a possibility that he would be found. He stopped putting his energy into the spell and it faded, the light passing through normally. The other two ponies jumped in surprise when they saw him subtly blink into existence.

"You've caught me guardsman. These ponies had nothing to do with my hiding, they were just kind enough to take in a stranger at a bad time in his life. Please, if you have to-" The pony lifted a hoof to silence him.

"Shadow, it's OK. I just need to talk to you about something." Shadow’s ears perked up at the familiar sound of that voice.

"Strider... ? Is that really you?!" A warm smile began to form on his face.

The bodyguard chuckled. "Yeah, it's me." He inspected Nightshadow and whistled. "Wow. You've... grown." Nightshadow was as tall as Wind Strider now, his wings had become easily eight times the size they were when he was just a young colt. It was in the nature of Alicorns to be larger than normal ponies, but he was still very young by Alicorn standards.

Nightshadow chuckled, rubbing the back of his head with his forehoof. "Yeah… Thirty years will do that to you..."

"Has it really been that long?" Wind Strider said thoughtfully.

"I honestly thought it was longer." Nightshadow said. Both became silent for a long time. Red sensed a little tension in the air and looked to Shadow, who nodded. Red smiled at him, walking away so they could talk in private. "Why are you here, Strider?" Wind Strider sighed. He wished that it could be avoided, but this was the part that he was dreading.

"It's about Shade... your sister" Nightshadow tensed a bit. He hadn't heard that name in years, since he first confided in Red about the truth of his situation.

Nightshadow knew that whatever demanded the presence of Celestia’s bodyguards wasn’t something good. Especially when Nightshade was involved. "What happened?" Strider lowered his head and stared at the ground.

"They found her, Shadow. She... killed a lot of ponies a few days ago. They caught her last night. She didn't even try to get away..." Nightshadow cringed. His sister was a monster when he left her.

‘Could she... have gotten worse without me?’ Nightshadow thought before vocalizing his next question. "What is Tia going to do?"

"At best... she'll have her executed... but I don't think she can do that. You know how her guilt can eat at her." You see, the bodyguard got it in his head that he needed to stop Celestia from doing something she would regret, not in the sense of ‘I'm gonna hurt you if you do that’ but in the literal sense of things. That made him look for the only pony that he knew could help.

"No!" Nightshadow said, the acid practically dripping from his words. "I don't! Remember? *I was the one she was trying to kill before Shade-*"

"She wasn't trying to kill you." Wind Strider cut him mid-sentence.

"I'm sorry?!"

Strider sighed and proceeded to explain what exactly went wrong that night. He explained how Celestia had only called off the search after the bodies of the first team that were discovered. She had only stopped looking because she couldn't handle any more ponies being hurt because of her. In turn, Nightshadow told Strider about how soon after that event he had separated from Nightshade, how he hadn't seen her in years.

"I came here to tell you this because I thought you deserved to know. I don't know what you'll do with what I told you, and frankly, I don't want to know. But Celestia can't handle much more heartache. I'm worried that what she's about to do finally push herself over the edge."

"You... never told me what she was going to do, Wind." Nightshadow said, partially scared of the answer.

"I didn't, did I? Must have been trying to avoid the question. She hasn't actually announced what Shade's punishment will be, but..." He tailed off.

"But?" Nightshadow urged him.

"... but I think she's gonna banish her to the moon." Shadow could have sworn he heard the sound of a string snapping.

"WHAT!?" Every aspect of Shadow’s demeanor changed. His strong voice seemed to physically shake the Unicorn before him.

"Hold on, we don't know for su-"

"SHE'S GOING TO SEND HER TO THE MOON?! THE THING FLOATING UP IN THE NIGHT SKY!? IMPRISONED UP THERE WITH THAT NIGHTMARE MONSTER!?"

"Shadow calm down-" Wind Strider backed up a bit at Nightshadow’s furious display.

"No! How could I be expected to be calm when-"

"Because you still have time!” Wind Strider found the courage to cut him off. “Celestia said that her punishment wouldn't be decided until after nightfall. Canterlot is not far from here, you should be able to get there in time as long as Celestia doesn't change her mind."

For a moment, the only audible thing was the wind’s harsh treatment to the apple tree’s leaves. Wind Strider gave one step forward and looked Nightshadow deep in the eyes. "Maybe you can convince Celestia to think of another way. Maybe you can help Shade escape. I just... wanted to give you the opportunity to keep anypony from being hurt... Celestia included."

Nightshadow took a deep, calming, breath. He considered briefly that it wasn't really his problem. He could simply ignore what Strider told him and do nothing. He had a good life after all, why throw away what he had? But he found out that he he couldn't.

He couldn't leave his sister behind.

Not again.

"Thank you, Wind Strider." Wind Strider nodded.

"I'm going to be staying in town for a while, Canterlot-" He pointed to his right. "-Is in that direction. You can fly with those wings, right?" Shadow nodded. "Okay." Nightshadow turned around towards the farmhouse and galloped inside. Wind Strider simply stood there for a few moments, before adding under his breath "Good luck, Nightshadow..."

Explaining things to the Apples was a bit harder than he wanted it to be, but eventually they had accepted that this was something he had to do. They had wished him the best and soon he was on his way.

He made sure to fly high in order to keep ponies from identifying him as anything more than a black-coated Pegasus while heading in the direction of Canterlot. He thought with his new understanding of what happened he could convince Celestia that it was all a misunderstanding, Shade would go free, everypony would be happy.

The best laid plans of mice and stallions.

Nightshade was taken from the chamber, the cage being levitated by a small group of guard Unicorns. She was brought to the Princess' throne room, in which Celestia awaited. Celestia looked stern but Nightshade could see the glimmer of sorrow in her eyes.

"You are accused with the deaths of over eighty-five ponies, not including guardsponies sent to capture you, which would bring the total to over a hundred. You have destroy-"

"Ahem. Princess, if you could just please move this along? If I’m here to make my case, then I plead guilty to all charges. If not, then let us please continue." Celestia was somewhat shocked by Shade's interruption, but she did not allow herself to show this feeling.

"Very well. If you know the court so well, then you know the punishment." Five orbs floated out from behind her. A familiar tiara appeared on her head.

Nightshadow moved through the castle hallways quickly. He managed to sneak in with his invisibility spell, but the lack of practice made it impossible for him to maintain it for too long. He suddenly blinked into existence in front of two, very surprised, guard ponies flanking the door leading into the throne room.

"Halt!" They both said in unison, advancing towards him. Nightshadow risked a glance to a nearby window. It was nearly nighttime.

"I don't have time for this!" Nightshadow shouted. "Out of the way!" He tackled the guardspony; a swift kick sent the first guard flying. The second attempted to jump at him, only to be levitated into the air, crashing into the ceiling with enough force that would have cracked his skull had he not been wearing a helmet.

He got up and galloped, bursting through the double doors just in time to see the rainbow shoot towards his sister.

"No!" Was all he could manage. His sister turned back towards him, a look of confusion in her face. As the Elements hit her, she did not scream in pain as Nightmare Moon did. She simply smiled kindly at her brother.

The bright flash, as quick as it came, subdued.

Then she was gone.

Nightshadow was once again, alone.

Anger, guilt, sadness, all came bubbling to the surface. Having nothing else, he took these emotions out on the only thing available at the time. Nightshadow couldn’t control himself. His emotions took the form of an arc of lightning.

Celestia was so shocked by his sudden entrance that she did not attempt to dodge the incoming assault. Instead, one of her more loyal guardsmen leapt in front of the attack meant for Celestia. His body twitched violently until Nightshadow ceased casting the spell. The guardspony lay dead on the floor, his coat seemed fine, but thin streaks of smoke were slowly raised from his body.

Nightshadow had just killed another pony, something he had never done before. Something never considered doing before.

"CELESTIA!" He screamed, his voice booming loudly, echoing throughout the castle. He charged another spell, firing raw magic in bolts. This time, several of the unicorns had recovered their wits. They quickly deployed a barrier around the Sun Princess, who was still too shocked to react.

Nightshadow hit the barrier with everything he had. He kicked it. He dived into it. He fired off more energy. But the unicorns’ barrier was too strong. He knew it was useless, but everything inside of him burned and urged him to maintain his attacks.

'Stop.' A voice in the back of his head caused him to pause. 'You cannot overcome her guards. How can you defeat Celestia if you cannot even best her guards?' In truth, the unicorns were almost tapped out, but they were doing a good job of not showing it.

Nightshadow was unsure whether he should reply to voices in his head, but at this point he didn't have much left to lose.

'Run.' The voice said. Nightshadow broke out of his surprise just in time to evade a magic bolt shot by one of the unicorn guards 'Run away. Live to fight another day.' The voice had calmed him, and with the calm came his rational side, which wholeheartedly agreed with the voice. He couldn't do anything now.

'You’re still no match for them... but one day, you will. Take my advice and you will have your revenge soon.' Nightshadow slowly began backing out of the room, never taking his eyes off of Celestia.

"This isn’t over!" He said before slamming the double doors shut with his magic. The guards immediately hurried after the would-be assassin. Celestia simply collapsed to the ground and gently took her head in between her forehooves.

‘What have I done?’

Nightshadow stopped above the canopy in the very forest Nightshade and himself had ran to when they first escaped Celestia’s wrath.

'Shade...' He felt like crying. But something else in his mind replaced his sadness. He now had a purpose.

He knew what he should do.

He knew what he was going to do.

'I can show the way...' He paused and thought for a moment.

"How could you possibly help me?" He asked the voice.

'She is older than you... stronger than you... she has the Elements of Harmony... as of the moment if you were to fight her you would lose. But there is a way.' He said nothing, allowing the voice to continue. 'There is ancient power locked away in Equestria... hidden by Celestia from the eyes of normal ponies. But not from your eyes. Not my eyes.'

A wicked smile crept onto Nightshadow’s face. “Go on...”

'Harmony does not hold all of the Elements...'

The present day:

Rainbow Dash stared mouth agape at Nightshade as she recounted her story with enthusiasm unmatched by anypony, save for Pinkie Pie. ‘It is as if she enjoyed being sent to that dreadful prison!’

"To be honest, the moon wasn't all that bad a place!" Nightshade said, almost reading Rainbow’s thoughts.

She shook her head to fight off the dumbfounding effects of Nightshade's story. Rainbow Dash briefly considered whether or not there was any truth to it. Nightshade was like a mad-mare the way she told such disturbing story without batting an eye.

"So... what's it like... on the moon?"

Nightshade frowned. "It was... weird. I could see everything going on in Equestria at night. I could see what the Princess, Nightshadow, and all the other little ponies were doing, even though most of them were asleep. It was also... cold. Very cold. You don't have a body when you're trapped in the moon, but it still felt... cold for some reason." She involuntarily shivered at the memory. "Any-who, I think I've talked enough for now. I couldn't really tell you the rest of the story anyway since I wasn't paying much attention to it at the time!"

"What?" Rainbow was clearly more confused than before.

Nightshade laughed.

"Yeah, I wasn't really paying attention to the second bit! That all happened on Equestria. Nope, I was too busy..." Her voice trailed off.

"Too busy doing what?" Rainbow frowned. ‘What is there to be busy with on the moon?’

Nightshade frowned once more. "I'd rather not talk about that. Let's just say I... learned some things Miss Nightmare didn't want me to."