Eclipse

It’s all over far too soon, yet I feel much calmer and sure of myself as I reluctantly give Luna’s wing a gentle nudge.

“Well, I suppose it’s time we head inside and get this over with.”

That wonderful, comforting warmth fades away as Luna nods and retracts her wing. “Indeed. Worry not, for I shall not let my temper get the better of me.” She replies, pulling herself to her hooves and stretching her legs carefully one at a time before giving her wings a quick flap and resettling them with a soft rustle of feathers.

“He really is a good guy.” I start as I pull myself up as well and take the lead in walking back to the cabin. “Hell, you remember that nightmare you pulled me out of?”

She nods silently.

“Well, he was there too….kinda. He was a medic with our QRF, err…..with a backup team back at our base. Didn’t get there in time to see any of the fighting, but he saw a lot more of the aftermath of it all…..helped some of the guys I failed.”

I stop at the door as Luna turns to me. “And what became of you after the battle?”

“Fuck.” I sigh. “I tried like hell to get back to my guys, to help however I could, but that shot I took layed me out. Never saw Mason there. The medic in our convoy got me evac’d out of there on one of the first trucks. Turns out it wasn’t all that bad. Just some bruising on my back where the plate was, but they kept me at the aid station for a few days. That’s where I really got to know him.”

I open the door and nearly run into the man in question as I step inside to see him standing by the doorway expectantly, holding the radiation meter.

“Hold on.” He says gruffly as Luna steps in beside me. Her head is held high, but the way her ears are splayed betray the guilt and shame she still holds over their last meeting. Still, she doesn’t protest as he fiddles with the meter before pointing it at her and moving it around slowly. A rapid series of clicks and a static-like sound emanate from it as he passes it over her body, earning a puzzled frown from him.

“Well, I’ve gotta say that is some of the weirdest shit I’ve ever seen.” Mason grumbles, finally turning off the meter and setting it aside. “She’s definitely reading hot, but if that really was radiation, you would’ve been sick after being around her for just a few minutes, never mind days.”

“Ahem!” I cough, nodding my head at Luna.

“Huh?” Mason pulls himself out of his musings and finally focuses on the princess herself. “Oh, my bad. It’s nice to meet you, Luna. The name’s Tony, Tony Mason. Sorry about that.” He says a bit reluctantly as he holds out his hand.

She eyes it for a moment before lifting a foreleg and giving it a gentle tap. “Truly, it is I who should be apologizing, and I thank thee for thy aid.”

She may be doing an amazing job of hiding it, but I’ve spent enough time around her to tell just how flustered she is. The weird biblical speech she adopted was always a sure sign. Fortunately I manage to hold back a chuckle at the awkward greeting.

“No, no…forget about it.” Mason smiles. “Not every day you meet an alie…err, pony.”

“Quite. I suppose I must remind myself to not be surprised by such reactions, I am the outsider here after all.”

With a flash of her horn, the door shuts behind Luna and she takes a few steps forward, looking around curiously. Then her eyes settle on the deer head and she freezes.

Fuck! I’d forgotten all about that!

“What is the meaning of this…display?” She asks slowly, a dangerous tone to her voice as she rounds on Mason, her eyes narrowing as her wings seem to flare out on their own. “You kill deerfolk and take their corpses as trophies?”

Getting the sense that we’re no more than a small misunderstanding away from disaster, I move between the two of them and throw my hands up. “Whoa! Relax….” I take a deep breath. “Remember when I told you humans are the only intelligent species on our planet?”

“Yes…” Luna turns her attention to me, not calming, but looking slightly less sure of herself.

“Well….” This had to be the absolute worst time for this. “I didn’t exactly explain everything. You see, humans are omnivores. We raise animals for their meat, and some prefer to hunt wild animals…” I wave a hand toward the display. “Like that….”

I fully expected this revelation to anger or disgust Luna, but to my surprise it actually seems to calm her….barely.

“I had my suspicions. This is not such an unusual thing in Equestria. Gryphons and minotaurs possess similar habits, and we do what we can to accommodate them without judgement. I wish you had revealed this earlier, I am not some delicate foal in need of coddling.” Luna says with a bit of irritation, striding forward to get a closer look at the buck.

“But this….there are differences, yes. But it is strikingly similar to a race of forest dwelling people in Equestria, and seeing it displayed in such a manner….it is nothing short of vile.”

“Wait….you knew this whole time!?” I ask, aghast.

“Indeed. If those pointed teeth of yours were not a dead giveaway, the smell that lingered in your kitchen was unmistakable.” Luna answers with a grimace, turning away from the buck.

She lets out a long sigh, folding her wings and hanging her head. “I fear I have jumped to conclusions and once again let my emotions get the better of me, and for that I am sorry. I do not wish to be an ungrateful guest, but I would rather not look upon such a thing.” She punctuates the statement with a wave of a wing toward the display.

“No, that’s fair.” Mason chimes in. “I could imagine how I’d feel if I ended up in some other world and saw what looked like a human head on someone’s wall.”

He looks up at the mount and rubs his chin thoughtfully. “Look, I can take it down and move it to my bedroom if it will make you feel better.” He pauses. “….and I’ll pull the bearskin rug out of the guest room too.”

She smiles graciously at that.

He begins to walk off to do just that before turning back. “Oh! And feel free to make yourself at home while I take care of it. Got some beer in the fridge, and even some of the good stuff. Hell, I’ll join you when I’m done…god knows we could both use it…” His voice trails off, followed shortly by the thud of footsteps as he makes his way upstairs.

The mere mention of alcohol nearly has me trembling with excitement. Fuck, how long has it been since I’ve had a good drink? A full day? Two? Yeah….that would be just the thing to help me settle in and calm my nerves.

I’m about to take him up on his offer, already moving toward the fridge when I hear a rustle of blankets and a soft groan from the couch.

“Ughhh…..what happened?” Lorrie groans, pushing the blankets aside and sitting up unsteadily. She winces at the warm light of the cabin, and massages her temples painfully.

“Lorrie!” I cry out happily as I rush over to her side.

“Arghhh….my head. Not so loud, please.” She moans uncomfortably, slumping back to rest against the cushion. Several loud clunks and bangs as Mason works at removing the mounted buck cause her to squeeze her eyes shut and grimace.

He takes notice, peeking over the railing and smiling sympathetically as he pulls the mount off with one last ‘clunk’ of metal against wood. “Heh…sorry. Be right down.” He calls out in a muffled tone before ducking out of sight.

Fortunately, Mason had been thoughtful enough to leave out a glass of water and a small assortment of medications after we let her rest. I waste no time shaking a couple pills of aspirin out of their bottle and pressing them into her hand.

“Here, this should help. We were all worried about you, you were out cold for a couple hours after we arrived.”

She opens her eyes again, blocking out the light with her free hand as she pops the pills into her mouth. I quickly hand over the glass before she can fumble for it. She all but snatches it out of my hand before guzzling it down.

“Gah….it feels like the worst hangover of my life.” She complains, smacking her lips and setting the glass back on the table.

“My apologies. If only I had known how severely you would be effected, I would not have considered using the spell at all.” Luna pitches in regretfully from over my shoulder, nearly making me jump in surprise.

“And if it wasn’t for you, Luna, we’d probably be still be stuck back at Dave’s place. You don’t need to apologize for anything.”

“Heyyy, welcome to the party!” Mason’s voice cuts in, putting a stop to Luna’s self inflicted pity party as he joins us by the couch.

Lorrie’s wince makes him immediately realize his mistake, and he softens his voice. “Heh, sorry. You holding up alright?”

“Yeah….well enough, anyway. Did all our stuff make it here?”

I nod. “Yep, dumped all our bags by the door. Why, did you need something?”

“No, just wanted to make sure we still had something for Luna to eat. Unless Tony’s made some radical life changes, I doubt so much as a single vegetable around here.”

“Hey! Give me some credit, I’m sure I have…..uh, ketchup counts as a vegetable, right?” Mason retorts, throwing up his hands defensively.

Snarkiness aside, that did bring up a good point. As much as a self proclaimed “prepper” as Mason was, and despite having a medical background, the guy really wasn’t big on fruit and vegetables. Two things that we’d need an abundance of if Luna was going to spend any amount of time hiding out here with us.

Of course by this point myself and Lorrie were probably on some kind of watchlist. Even if we wanted to, going out shopping would be simply out of the question. As would so much as looking at our bank accounts for that matter. As a consequence, we were really going to have to ask a lot from Mason. At least if Luna didn’t want to be stuck eating freeze dried beans and rice for the foreseeable future.

“Ugh. Anyway, I could go for a drink right about now. You guys want anything?” Mason asks, already making his way toward a well stocked liquor cabinet on the far side of the room.

Oh, that brought back some memories.

I remember a time that now felt so long ago when he had first moved in, and he had been so proud of what he called his “home bar.” In reality it wasn’t much more than a small cabinet, mini fridge, and a couple of chairs, and that night we had made short work of drinking it dry.

I nod in response to his offer, and head over as he pulls out a pair of glasses. Surprisingly, Luna trots over to eye the small assortment of bottles on the shelves as Mason drops a handful of ice into each glass.

“Whiskey? Got some of that blended Irish stuff you like.” Mason asks, not waiting for my reply as he uncorks the bottle and tops up the glasses.

“I am curious. What manner of spirit is this?” Luna cuts in, pointing a hoof at a black labeled bottle and tilting her head curiously.

“Huh, that?” Mason pulls out the bottle to get a better look. “Apple Brandy.”

A blue glow envelopes the cap and pops it off before Luna leans in to give it a sniff. “Hmm, I find the scent to be appealing. May I?”

Mason shrugs and pulls out a third glass. “Sure, I rarely touch the stuff anyhow. So, they have alcohol in your world or realm or whatever, then?” He asks, clearly suppressing an urge to jump as the bottle levitates itself out of his hand and pours a modest amount into her glass.

“Indeed. Though I rarely partake, I do have a certain fondness for a brew made by my beloved Lunar Ponies.

“Lunar Ponies?” I ask curiously as I take a sip of my whiskey and sigh contentedly.

“Imagine a pegasus with features like those of a bat. Loyal, and nocturnal servants of the night.” Luna smiles, taking a slow sip from her own drink. “It is from them that I select my most trusted servants and guards.”

Huh…batponies. I can’t decide if I find the idea oddly adorable, or terrifying.

Not wanting Lorrie to be left out, we settle back in by the couch. I settle in on one of the arms of the couch itself, while Mason plops himself down on an armchair. Luna simply borrows one of the cushions from the couch to settle onto.

Some time passes spent on idle conversation and vague plans for how we’re going to move forward. Drinks are emptied and topped up again, and while still feeling somewhat weak and tired as the night grows late, Lorrie’s headache finally fades. But despite all the worries about what the future might hold, as we get ready to call it a night a much more pressing matter makes itself known. There is only one couch, one bed, and three of us to split them between…