When you wish upon a star,
it doesn't matter who you are.
Anything your heart desires will come to you.
~~~***~~~
The sun made its way slowly past the horizon, the skies lighting up as if on fire in the glorious last moments of golden light. At long last the purples and oranges danced together above the clouds the one true time Luna felt her and her sister were truly equals, separate they painted the world in brilliant colors of blues with fluffy clouds of white and the stars of night but in her heart it was the most wondrous and magical when they shared the skies for the brief moments at Twilight and dawn.
Some days Luna would gently sneak in the image of her moon mid day, a sight to be had, she thought this was another way for them to share the sky as one but alas Celestia saw yet another issue in this.
In Celestia's defense, Luna knew why it was ultimately turned down as a common thing. Celestia did not want to worry the subjects or have the issue of most powerful and right to rule come up again. Each time they people asked for it Celestia was able to divert their cries for at the time Luna was a mere mare who had barley earned her mark and yet was an equal in power.
Now Luna was nearly all grown up and a fine mare at that, the same age Celestia was when she assumed the throne. Celestia could no longer divert the question so she wanted Luna to be seen but her talent bloom only under the moon.
She wanted Luna to be safe.
The tension in the kingdom had only grown more since Discords defeat, the population now divided utterly.
On one half there was the now so called enthusiasts driving for the 'Solar empire' and the other was the ever growing and cult like ways of the 'Lunar republic'. The two dear sisters were now divided in the eyes of all who looked upon them, each having a different take on who should be Queen.
To protect themselves from their very subjects admiration two factions of the guard had to be formed to ensure their siblings safety at all times.
~~~***~~~
Down the hall from Luna's night time perch, past the collection of mosaic murals from the past rested a set of gilded double doors, decorated with the swirls of the suns light.While the rest of the land slept soundly the regal Alicorn of silken white tossed and turned in the satin sheets draped over her elegant frame. Her mane hovered around her like a delicate cloud of iridescent colors as she groaned and whimpered in her sleep.
The nightmare has always been the same, the older and bigger Luna became, the more regal her sister grew to be the more fear she had for her little dream mare.
The skies are painted a deep darkness, glittering with many lights above them in the heavens as the moon shines down upon the land.
'Keep moving....'
The white mare says under her breath time and time again, a hushed prayer as she runs across the open field before her, the sheer speed enough to part the grass under hoof as she approaches.
A dull, throbbing pain radiates from her legs and wings as she presses onward, as fast as her legs will take her.
'Ignore it, I can do this...'
She moves faster and faster, the feint cries in the distance growing louder and louder.
'Hold on..please hold on.'
Tears make their way down her face and into the grass behind her, the sound of her heart drumming in her ears as the raspy breathing escapes her mouth.
The cries stop and all sounds from the crickets to her own breathing becomes silent, there is always the moment where she musters herself to speak, to call out but no sound leaves her body.
The liquid sorrow falls from her face as she is left shaking in place,the sight before her too much to handle.
Just like with mother and father she failed to come in time.
'Tia.....'
At the same point time and time again she is startled awake, the tears and pain not yet receding from the waking world,leaving her in the dark of her room with a feeling of untold dread in her heart.
Every so often she sees the other Luna from her dream even whilst awake, she cannot recall once the dream ends if she was safe or dying making her fears even worse.
Celestia looked out to her window and greedily inhaled the cool night air into her lungs, Oh how she knew just how badly Luna wanted to share the same skies beside her and in truth it was her own deepest wish as well.
Luna may be young but she is free from the day to day issues of the people and their problems, their contempt for having a Princess assume the throne at such a young age and for not having an elder take charge of the kingdom.
Slowly she opened her windows , the glow embracing them as they eased open to reveal that sea of stars she so longed to admire.
Luna had taken great care into crafting each star by hoof and arranging them gently in the heavens above, they each glimmered and shown in their own beautiful way no two stars were ever the same. She had created pictures above them for all to see, ones to guide the lost home and of course her shinning glory.
The wishing star.
Celestia knew better than anyone just how powerful Luna truly was, she not only created an artful night for all to enjoy she was the herald of dreams. The first pony to gaze upon her wishing star and speak ones purist hearts desire will get that granted by morning.
Many had done this and the story of wishing on starts had circulated well into Equestria. One of these wishes was a mare who wished her town could help the kingdom despite the fact they were so far above it. Lo and behold a glorious accident occurred, A humble messenger mare with blonde hair and a grey coat collided with a cloud discovering that with a good kick she could make it rain. This lead to a glorious string of discoveries leading up to the ability to gather the spectrum of light and create rainbows.
So many dreams had come true and alas each time Celestia was the one getting the credit, she would smile and say it was nothing but inside the fear of Luna's potential getting out overwhelmed her. They would be forced by all those cursed geezers to fight one another for a silly title they shared in secret.
She did her best to shield Luna from the truth, the dangers her growing up posed to the both of them. Celestia did not want Luna to stop dreaming for nopony, she was prepared to exile herself at any time if it meant Luna would be safe.
~~~***~~~
Star Light Star bright,
The first star I see tonight,
I wish I may, I wish I might,
Have the wish I wish tonight.
~~~***~~~
The sun began to lay down to sleep beyond the horizon, the fire like hue dancing upon the last clouds beside its resting place.
The final embers of the day dimmed and rested as the shroud of deep blues gently wrapped the skies above Equestria like a fine sheet made of only the finest silks and decadent velvet's , gently tucking in the world below.
The fillies and foals,the young and the old sat eagerly at their window each night, awaiting for those lights of magic to awaken and fill the night with their hope and wonder in these dark times.
The night princess danced in the clouds above, the stars trailing behind her like a string of ducklings following their mother.
One by one the glimmering lights appeared as she gracefully flew into the night, her mane flowing gently in the moonlight as a sea of stars.
By daylight she was quite plain and most reserved, her mane was a simple sky blue and her fur a darker color than she would have liked. It was only upon learning her talent, upon finding what made her special that she truly found herself.
Under the sun she was a mere child in the eyes of the world but here under her moon, she was a graceful princess of the night.
Every night she felt her legs become longer,no longer needing to rest as much as she once had. Her runs in the clouds were no more rung pants from her frail lungs, she now took to the night in strides the stars themselves following her in joy as she took the night air deep into her lungs.
Her dark fur no longer brought her shame and she was proud of what her once pale mane became.
She was now a radiant princess of the night in spirit and heart, with her body beginning to reflect the change as well.
"Come my friends we would like more joy, no room for sorrow. For tis we who pave the dreams of tomorrow ."
She called out to the stars as they shined brighter than before, for their princess of dreams they did adore.
Thanks to her they could play that is until the light of day. She bounced from cloud to cloud with such delight as he eyes did glow a tinted blue as did the moonlight.
Alas for all things pure like such dreams they fall prey to horrid schemes.
~~~***~~~
Oh sweet princess of our night,
your new form would cause such fright.
So keep yourself away from sight,
your true form awoken in moonlight.
A stallion of white strode into the castle, was that mare truly their Luna? The mare was near the height of the mighty Celestia but the mane was a sea of stars. He had to get to the bottom of this, it was the guards duty to know all who walked in this kingdom for the safety of the royal family this had to be addressed.
Now, one simply cannot approach either princess. Despite the growing factions which serve to divide them they defend and cover up for each other at all times, consistently becoming the others shield and sword.
No, One simply cannot imply the princess is suffering from what could only be possession of a spirit from long ago.
Luna never carried herself with such dominance, nor commanded such presence.For sure he knew until his dying day the image of those eyes peering into his own would never leave the back of his mind.
Every pony needed to know whether this was the princess or a new kind of monster awaiting to swallow up their lives. To be frank after Discord they really wouldn't be able to take this much longer. The kingdom was still trying to mend the scars dealt by the chaos lord so the news of another being of the devious type would send them into a pass panic for sure.
In desperation he told the tale to another guard and that guard retold it once more, the tale became that of common place as it circulated from the guards to the staff and finally to the kingdom.
The pure princess with fur of silken darkness and eyes that glowed like the moon twisted into a fiendish beast that gobbled up innocent ponies in the dark.
The legendary tale of the beast 'Nightmare' had been born.
And so began the writing of the most famous of all tales, 'The Mare in the moon.'
~~~***~~~
Celestia awoke from her slumber, the nightmare plaguing her dreams once again. She had been resting less and less, each time seeing images of her darling sister in distress just an instant before springing awake.Celestia slowly made her way down the hallowed halls of their seemingly endless castle, the resounding silence serving to suffocate her on the inside. Herself and Luna were no more than birds in a gilded cage that were forced to sing.
She had expected the smiles of her people once more as she sat upon her throne for the day but as it often goes once should expect the unexpected.
Before her was no more the line of joyous subjects but instead were frightened ponies speaking of a demon mare they claim to have seen. The tales ranged from seeing her fly by and the lights vanishing with her to more horrific tales of abducted children and found bodies.
Many of these were not first hand accounts just mere hear say but the idea of such a being roaming the night was more than enough to cause terror to take hold once more.
The letters soon came in an alarming abundance, each tale of this Nightmare hurdling Celestia deeper and deeper into her own. The atrocities depicted were above all things disturbing, many included pictures of rotting fields and slain innocents in groves many farmers now demanding compensation for ruined fields at the hooves of this demonic fright.
The kingdom knew of this demon and began to associate just about anything that went wrong to her. It mattered not if the weather was not sunny or if a real beast from the Everfree had taken away their child into the night, the cause was always this Nightmare and Celestia was accountable for all it did while she remained.
The Nightmares appeared to have been leaking into her waking world as well, little did she know the little mare in her bed had grown up as did Celestia long ago. Her body to become that of the night itself.
While the world under the sun was torn asunder, in Luna's bed the blue mare was no more. Replaced only by a resting mare of blackest night with a mane and tail that of starlight.
