Eclipse

Between the wrench being thrown into Luna’s plan to get home, and my continued unease over the possibility of government agents snooping around, the afternoon takes a solemn turn.

Luna seems to be lost in thought as I go about putting away the rest of the groceries. When I finally put the last items in the cabinet, I turn to see her pacing around the kitchen, inspecting the various appliances with a keen interest.

“So….” I say, breaking the silence. “Can I make you anything? All I’ve seen you eat today is that apple, and I’ll feel like a terrible host if I let you go hungry.”

“Hmm?” She turns away from a close examination of the electric kettle. “I will be fine for now. Though pray tell, what is the purpose of this device?”

“Oh, that heats water for tea and the like.” I answer, walking over to show her. “See? You just fill it with water and hit this switch here.”

“Ah, most ingenious!” Luna exclaims with an excited flap of her wings, levitating the metal pot up to peer inside. “I may not be as fond of tea as my sister, but if I may rescind my refusal, what manner of tea do you have to offer?”

That was a good question. It wasn’t something I enjoyed all that often these days. I head over to a cabinet and rifle through it for a moment before pulling out a pair of small boxes.

“Let’s see, I’ve got….green tea, and Earl Gray.” I say as I place the boxes on the counter.

“These are not anything I am familiar with, however….” She leans over and gives each box an inquisitive sniff. “Ah, this one smells quite pleasing.” She says, pointing a hoof at the green tea.

She continues to watch with interest, paying careful attention as I fill the pot and get it heated, before pulling out the packets and placing them in a pair of mugs for us. “Well, how do you make tea in Equestria?” I ask, watching her ears flick curiously at the sound of the brewing kettle.

“It is much the same, though we do not have such an extensive use of electricity as you. Rather, the water would be heated by a unicorn, or talisman, though many earth ponies prefer a simple flame for the task.”

(Huh. I had to wonder just how advanced the real Equestria was compared to the show, but it made perfect sense. Why go through the hassle of developing complex technologies when magic could be applied to just about any task?)

In short order, the water begins to boil, and I fill both our mugs. As I set the kettle back in its place, I feel a buzz from my phone. I smile as I pull it out and check my messages.

“Oh good, it looks like Lorrie was able to get some hay and alfalfa for you, and she’ll be on her way over in an hour or so.” I say as one of the mugs levitates past me.

“Most wonderful indeed, you shall have to offer her my thanks.” She replies.

It surprises me when she only gives my phone a mildly interested glance. I suppose when magical scrolls and dream walking are a thing, electronic communication wasn’t all that groundbreaking. I silently count my blessings for that, as I really didn’t want to make an attempt to explain how it worked.

Luna blows gently on the steaming mug before taking a dainty sip. She smiles and closes her eyes for a moment as she savors the taste. “Mmmm, this ‘green tea’ is rather good, of what herb is it derived?”

“Huh, I don’t really know…..a green one?” I answer dumbly, turning to take a closer look at the box. “Uhhhh….apparently, it’s made from ‘Camellia Sinensis leaves’….whatever that is.”

"Hmmm, I shall take your word for it." Luna answers with a shrug before taking another sip, apparently unsatisfied with my shaky description, yet content to enjoy it nevertheless.

I'm in the middle of my own sip of the hot beverage when Luna speaks up again. "If I may, I would ask that I cook tonight's meal. Not that I question your skill, but I fear your knowledge of Equestrian cuisine may be....lacking."

"Ooookay..." I answer hesitantly. "I mean, if you're up for it.....I suppose I wouldn't turn down the chance to try something new."

Somehow she seems to catch on to my trepidation, and gives me a determined look. "Worry not, for though it has not been a necessity for me, I have managed to learn a thing or two about the culinary arts over the millennia."

Well, this should be interesting. Of course, it also meant having to spend a great deal of time walking Luna around the kitchen and explaining how everything works and where to find everything she'd need. Fortunately she turns out to be a fast learner. The biggest challenge was going to be the distinct difference in how we measure portions and temperature. By some miraculous coincidence, ponies and humans wrote numbers in the same way. Of course, I had no idea how Fahrenheit compared to Centimare, but she she seemed more than willing to go by feel.

We were just wrapping up our impromptu lesson when I hear a knock at the door, and Lorrie lets herself in. It looks like it has been a long day for her, judging by the weary look on her face, but the smile that lights up her face when she sees us does a good job of hiding it.

"Hey guys!" She beams, staggering into the kitchen under the weight of several heavy bags that she almost immediately sets on the floor with a resounding *thud*.

"Hey Lorrie! Wow, you weren't kidding about stocking up, huh?"

"Hmmph, well the feed we had only comes in 30lb bags, and I figured I'd be sticking around for a while." Lorrie grunts as she pulls out a bag of alfalfa pellets. "I also got some of the fresh stuff, and there's some hay in the truck."

Luna walks over to eye the bag of pellets. "Feed? You know I am not some simple farm animal, do you not?"

"Oh, of course not!" Lorrie answers, opening up the bag to show her. "But I figured since these would meet all your nutritional needs, they could make a good snack or something."

Luna levitates out a single pellet and eyes it suspiciously before popping it into her mouth and chewing slowly. "Hmmm, a bit bland for my tastes, yet it is palatable." She says as she swallows.

"I'm glad you like it, that stuff's expensive!" Lorrie replies as she moves a few bags of alfalfa sprouts over to the counter. "Oh, and I just couldn't resist bringing this. I almost forgot that I had it..." She rifles around in another bag for a few seconds before pulling out a little vinyl figure of Luna and holding it up. From the level of detail, it was clearly meant as more of a collector's piece than a toy

Luna's eyes widen as they fall on the tiny likeness of herself. "You had told me that thou were familiar with us, but to be honored in such a way..." She sits on her haunches next to Lorrie and holds up a hoof, carefully levitating the figurine onto it and turning it one way and the other, taking in every little detail. "Truly remarkable.....I am not sure what to make of this."

Lorrie giggles, clearly trying to hold herself back from completely fangirling out as Luna returns the figurine to her with a flow of magic and a content smile. "Hehe, it's nothing that dramatic, remember....you're just a fictional character as far as anyone knows. Though to be honest, I always thought you were best princess..."

Luna seems taken aback by that. "Me!?....but how have thou comest to such a conclusion!?"

Ha! She did revert back to that weird biblical way of speaking when she was flustered. Wanting to give the two of them some time to themselves, I casually offer to bring in the rest of the things Lorrie had brought and head outside. It turns out to be easier said than done as I find myself unloading a heavy suitcase and pulling a few heavy bales of hay out of the bed of her truck. It was the same work truck she had driven over the other day, though this time the large horse trailer was noticeably absent.

Okay, this was going to take a few trips. Judging by the weight of the suitcase, she hadn't been kidding about sticking around for a while. Where was she even going to stay? The couch I supposed, though the polite thing to do would probably be to offer her the spare room, which meant I would have to move again. Resolving to solve that issue later, I decide to just drop her stuff in the living room for now. One more trip with a hay bale balanced on each shoulder brings me back to the kitchen, where I find the two of them talking excitedly as Luna works at the stove, a myriad of ingredients hovering in the air around her.

"Retire? What a ridiculous notion!" Luna snorts as she goes about chopping up a variety of vegetables while simultaneously placing a pot on the stove. "While sister may have prepared young Twilight for her role as the Princess of Friendship, the idea of her running a school at the same time, much less all of Equestria whilst we simply abandon our duties?" The princess laughs.

"Did I miss something?" I ask as I set the bales down in a corner. Lorrie meanwhile, seemed to have forgotten about the salad she was preparing, all her focus on Luna as she hung on every word.

"More like everything!" Lorrie replies excitedly as she finally pulls her focus away from Luna. "For one, I hope you don't mind us getting started on cooking. It's nothing too crazy, some vegetable soup and a salad..."

Luna doesn't even turn her head as I watch a clump of hay float past me and shred itself before plopping into a bowl of batter. "Oh, and haycakes!" Lorrie continues.

"It's fine, we'd already discu..." I start, but am almost immediately cut off as Lorrie continues to speak excitedly. "But also, we got into talking about the events of the show, and it turns out it's dead on for the most part, well, at least up to season 6 or so, but there's also so much it didn't cover, and..."

"Whoa, whoa! Slow down!" I cut in, holding up a hand as Lorrie finally trails off to catch a breath.

"S..sorry, it's all just so exciting!" She pants, steadying herself as she remembers to breathe.

“Yeah, I have to admit it’s pretty crazy…” I answer, glancing over at Luna who seems to have finished adding all the ingredients and was now contentedly stirring the soup while the cakes sizzled in a pan next to it. I wrinkle my nose as I pick up the somewhat sweet smell of cooking hay.

“Everything alright over there?” I ask, somewhat concerned by the not so appetizing odor.

“Hm? Yes, everything is coming right along perfectly.” Luna smiles, giving the pan a flip that reveals the underside of the cakes to be a perfect golden brown.

Before long everything is ready and we all sit at the kitchen table to eat. As expected, the hay cakes turn out to be completely inedible for myself and Lorrie, but the soup….my god. Royalty or not, apparently living for thousands of years gives you more than enough time to master a few skills

Fortunately for the humans in the room, the salad also turns out to be edible. Of course it was mostly composed of familiar vegetables, but I hadn’t known alfalfa was something people actually ate…..and it was fairly mediocre, not that I’d dare tell Luna that after all the effort she’d gone through.

The conversation over dinner remains light, if somewhat animated as it’s dominated by an onslaught of questions from Lorrie about the workings of Equestria. Not that I didn’t find the details fascinating, as Luna eagerly explained what she could, apparently relishing the opportunity to turn her mind toward home, but I found it hard to get so much as a word in as Lorrie’s curiosity seemed to have no end.

To be honest, I didn't really mind being somewhat left out due to my ignorance on the subject. I find myself content to mostly listening. And sure, this wasn't exactly a normal social occasion, but I can't help to smile at seeing the table full of people (and pony) for the first time in years. Why had I secluded myself all this time? Sure...I'd been messed up when I returned from overseas, but there had been people like Lorrie and the few old friends I still had in the area. I had been so quick to write them off as being incapable of understanding what I'd gone through that I'd driven them off with bitterness, and even contempt.

Now Luna was going through a challenging time of her own. Cut off not only from family and friends, but her entire world. Neither myself or Lorrie may be able to fully understand the gravity of what she was going through.

Sure, in a sense of been away from everything I knew when I’d been deployed. My own familiar little world left far behind. In this sense I could sympathize with the lost princess, but even then my fellow soldiers had been a constant reassuring presence, and I’d still been able to keep in touch with everyone back home for the most part. Yes, things had been dangerous and uncertain, but I hadn’t faced it alone with no one to help me but strangers, as Luna was now.

It was clear by the spark in Luna's eyes as she went on about the way the moon and sun orbited her planet, and how the weather was really controlled by pegasi, just how much simply having someone to talk to could make things easier. Something that I had blatantly pushed aside in favor of the warm embrace of alcohol and solitude.

As much as I try to put on a brave face for their benefit as the night progresses, the weather seems to reflect my mood as the soft patter of a cold October rain sounds from the roof. Regret and solemness for a past I couldn't change.