An American Werewolf’s Dark Heart

Turning back the pages of time
All faded and brittle-
I chanced upon some quaint fancy of mine
A rhyme- written when I was quite little;
A wondrous portrait of the world was drawn,
Laden heavy with the songs of spring,
And a million ruby sunsets and hopes of dawn.

I sighed, turned over the last fragments
Of those precious years,
Of an age so quickly faded;
Only to spot a smudged page, still stained with tears.
It spoke of untold anguish, a burdened heart
And an unfulfilled wish;
Of a prayer for a content tomorrow
And a secret desire;

But- In this lonely walk of life
I now face only sorrow,
And watch my hopes to cinder burn -
Set ablaze by very own heart's fire.

——Pragya Deb Burman

Steps of his feet echoed through the hall. It took a moment for him to realize that it seemed like a long walk to reach the edge of this hall. The castle had been deathly quiet much to David’s discomfort. There were moments where he had frozen, thinking he had heard a noise from behind him or the pillars, but it faded as quickly as it came. This alone highlighted what Jack had established earlier before entering. There was nobody here.

The only inhabitant seemed to be him as he entered his way out of the entrance, in the hallway following the carpet path, past the pillars, approaching two high double doors. David’s eyes studied over the double doors. Clouded with dust from top to bottom his hands rested on his hips shaking his head in an unamused manner.

David ran his finger over the hill of the nob staring into both his index finger spattered with dust. He rubbed it off on his thigh almost without thinking.

Raising both hands David pushed through the high double doors whilst entering the room. With the benefit of the sun illuminating the room, he was left in awe of what he was seeing. The room looked ancient, battered due to the small lot of rocks and rubble that filled the floor, few tables were thrown over minus one still in its place at the far left of the room. What really amazed David the most were the giant horizontal shelves fixed against each wall in the room stacked with hundreds—possibly thousands of books that hadn’t been touched for who knows how long. Another thing David noted was the architecture of the pillars next to the bookshelves; he’d seen many pillars in museums, mansions, and temples but not like these.

David trots further in the room carefully watching his feet to avoid stepping on pebbles or shards of glass. He felt a little jumpy when he heard loud creaking from behind him causing David to turn to his shoulder watching the double doors closing slowly with a slight click to its completion. He turned back, moving deeper in the room as he began to look around at various shelves in the library.

It was then that his eyes fell on one section of a shelf. Underneath a layer of dust attached by a small sun magnet was a book, marked with what looked like a crayon. David blinked, not having noticed it. He slowly walked up to it, getting a better look at it. As if under its own control David’s hand reached for it carefully taking it out from its holding place. Once he had it in his grasp he found the front of the book looked like a child’s drawing, drawn with several colors of crayon. At the top of the middle there were words written in pale pink and blue crayon:

Celestia and Luna’s Diary

David’s brow quirked up at this. Celestia and Luna. Those names sound almost holy and something out of a fairy tail. Hesitation pulled him back as he stopped his hand mid inches from the top vertex. No, he thought, shaking his head disapprovingly, this was wrong, he can't just read someone’s place of privacy.

“Go ahead, open it.”

Alarmed, David whipped his body around finding his friend Jack standing behind him. Recomposing himself he looked at his dead companion with a stern look not liking the idea at all.

“What—no. No, I’m not reading it.”

“Oh come on David. Don’t tell me you’re not THAT curious.”

David brought the dairy close to his heart, staying firm to his declaration. “I’m not reading it Jack - no one is reading it. It’s wrong to read about other people’s privacy.”

“Oh really? You didn’t say that during that time you read Mrs Henson’s diary inside the farm, hm~.” Jack reminded him, failing miserably to grin at him. David raised a hand as his brain tried to come up with any excuse for his major sins.

“Well that was—” David tried to say only to be cut off by his dead friend’s bony finger raised at him giving a playful ‘ORRR’.

“That time you and I skipped class to read Becky’s diary in the bathroom. When we were both still in our teens.” Jack crossed his arms. “You remember that right?”

“Two times. I only did that two times, Jack. That's It!” David strongly disclosed, not wanting more than to think back to his shameful youth of memories. Jack chuckled to his friend’s rebuttal.

“You say that but the third and fourth time you’ve done it, says otherwise…” Jack said under his breath. David turns away from Jack, returning his attention to the diary still in his hands.

Jack walked up to him resting his arm on his shoulder. “Think of it this way, you're only doing this one last time. And of course as your buddy, and as your friend, your secret’s safe with me.”

David’s finger twitched on the vertex. Biting his lips with temptation coursing through his whole being. Jack was right about one thing. He is curious but even so it’s still wrong. True as this maybe there’s one other thing David should take into fact. Whoever owns this surely isn’t here anymore. There’s no one around besides the both of them so maybe a little peak wouldn’t hurt.

After what felt like an eternity David made his decision. With one swift of his hand he turned the first page. His eyes setting on the firsts words written in black:

Dear diary,

Hello diary, I do apologize for not returning to you sooner but a lot has happened during my absence. Where do I begin? Ah yes. Three days ago I got to move the sun by my own hoof! The feeling was inconceivable. I’ve always wondered what it felt like watching my father do it - but now I know. I see it now. Oh, and I’m not alone in this. Luna too was given the inheritance of moving the moon. It was all such a great experience.

What came after however was a tragedy. One day me and Luna woke up to find our parents… gone. No note, no farewells, they just vanished like they’ve never even existed. Not only deeming me and Luna as the new rulers of the kingdom but leaving us alone in the care of our grandmother, and our mentor Starswill; and as if our mother and father vanishing wasn’t disheartening enough, the next day was even more sorrowful. Not long after the disappearance of our parents… our grandmother passed away during the rise of the moon. We buried her not too long ago.

David blinked, unsure of what to take what he just read. His mind bowled in bewilderment while flowing with so many questions. Who’re these authors by the name of Celestia and Luna? What does she mean by ‘hoof?’ Their grandmother dying, and the ability to move both the solar and lunar orbs. Furthermore, the word ‘hoof,’ is throwing him off. Does this indicate that whoever wrote this isn’t… human? No, he thought, relaxing his muscles, that can’t be it. Maybe he’s just thinking too quickly about this. Or maybe he’s not. I mean look at him. He didn’t know werewolves existed until now and now he is one.

A bit Intrigued by this appetizer of knowledge he turns to the next page reading another few words written down.

Dear diary,

Holla to thee diary, it’s me Luna. It’s been a while since i lasteth wroteth to thee has't not? it’s been ten-thousand years; almost feeleth liketh yest'rday i wast just a bawbling dram filly. But now h're i standeth as princess of the night. I don’t has't much to sayeth so we shall beest off now. Nay, actually th're is something i wanteth to receiveth off mine own chest. Something that’s been increasingly bugging me ev'r since i reigneth as second rul'r:

Tia.

during the past ten-thousand years i’ve witness'd an ocean of our subjects developing an unwav'ring kindle towards h'r. Mare, stallions, and fillies w're in awe of h'r stature and beauty. The ocean crowd goeth wild all of the w'rk by rising high in the h'rizon becoming one with the travelling lamp liketh ying and yang.

but t is not h'r p'rf'rmance 'r h'r status yond irks me rath'r t is the opposite. As i gaze h'r from a distance a bethought did strike me deep from the backeth of mine own mind. Why..? Why h'r of all ponies? Why is she getting all the attention? i can doth what she doest but bett'r—nay, far bett'r! if 't be true she wasn’t 'round i would’ve f'rge a kingdom far magnificent yond not coequal a single pony couldst imagineth!

i can doth bett'r then h'r. I AM bett'r then h'r. I wilt leaveth now, i needeth timeth to bethink. I shalt writeth thee again in due timeth. Farewell f'r now.

“Heh, heh, sounds like someone’s a bit jealous here.” Jack joked or at least he tried to but even he knew. Something about the way it was written looked. . . concerning. David felt the same unsure of how to take this.

Without a word he turned to the next page.

Dear diary,

Something is wrong. These past few weeks have been an odd one, this is true; I notice that Luna had been quiet lately or perhaps too quiet to my discomfort and worry. Alone I am not to this issue Starswill is on the same boat along with my advisers, the royal guards, and my niece. For seven days, seven nights my sister would spend the majority of her time in her room and not once have I ever seen her come out for breakfast, lunch, dinner or to eat her favorite snack together with me. But that’s not what piques my heart with worry - no, what worried me the most was her change of behavior.

Two days ago I was told by my niece that she once saw Luna walking down the carpeted hallway. She wanted to go and greet her but when she took her seventh step she froze. She described the scene as heavy and feeling an overwhelming dark aura shrouding her. Slowly and mechanically Luna turned to her. Her eyes icily narrowed and for a split second her pupils were almost snake like. My niece didn’t know how long they both stared at each other but after what felt like an eternity Luna turned away from her and continued walking down the hall. When I was told of this I knew right there and then - this can not go on any longer.

I’m going to go confront my sister - tonight. She hasn’t lowered the moon yet and if I have to guess she’s probably in the throne room. I can only hope that whatever is wrong with her hasn’t worsened.

Just as David read the last few sentences a sickening feeling progressively made its way to his heart. He’s not liking where this is going. He sighed and turned to the next page.

Dear diary,

Tonight has been… a rather hefty one: like I established from my declaration in my last entry, I did indeed confront Luna, but our confrontation was not what I anticipated. I pleaded with her to hear my voice - to understand that she had to lower the moon—that it was her duty. But my words fell on deaf ears. My heart sank to my stomach as I watched my dear sister rise from the carpet floor to the ceiling shrouded whole by her own darkness, the black mist that had swallowed her shaped up to a perfectly round burning red ball. Out came the silhouette of an alicorn to which I thought was my sister. That is until I notice the shaping of the wings.

The mysterious mare’s eyes shot open. Bright icy snake-like eyes staring deep into my own. I was thrown off when they let out a chuckle. It was faint but the chuckle increased in volume, then it turned to laughter while their lips curled back to a wide sinister smile, revealing their serrated sharp fangs. My eyes widened as my heart couldn’t believe what I was seeing. Standing afar from me was a jet black alicorn mare in light. Elegant armor that covered her head, chest and hooves, her mane and tail lazily twisted and twirled about much like mine in particular though her mane and tail looked to be made of the very stars themselves.

I tried to call her name but only this time she did respond. Not as my friend, nor my sister but correcting me in declaring her new identity. Hearing this was all the more tragedy that… she was gone. My dear sister was gone and only this new born entity remained. The entity who proudly called herself:

Nightmare Moon.

We fought and I came to learn through our battle that her magic was equal to mine or even beyond that. I dodged a few of her shots but the last one beamed at the center of my heart, stopping me mid flight and falling back to the castle's floor. When I recovered I glanced up to where I had fallen. At that moment I had to make a decision. Three choices laid before me.

One; I turn her to stone, locking her away in a far away tomb beneath this very castle where no pony knows but me. There was an issue with this though. My sister and I along with Starswill did this to Tirek’s mother once and yet somehow one of her subjects found her releasing her from her millennia prison; the chances that somepony may do the same with this one is indubitably high. Which brings me to my second choice. Two; I’ll use the Elements of Harmony to seal her in the moon. Possibly for another thousand years and take advantage of that time to figure out a way to get my sister back. If the Elements won’t do good that’ll leave me to my third option. Three; I’ll seal her away in the deepest looping floors of tartarus. With layers of rock stronger and tougher than that of a base rock that no matter how many times she blasts her way through she’ll find herself face to face with another wall.

If I have to be honest, I dislike the third option. I had to be careful with my choice and without hesitation I brought up the the seven elements in my magic and—

Suddenly pain exploded inside his head causing David to groan, dropping the book near his feet.

“Ah! Oh God—agh,” David grasped his head tightly, digging his fingers under his hair. He whipped around glancing up and was assaulted by a bright, warm light. He squinted his eyes harshly, letting them adjust slowly. Once they did his pupils immediately shrunken at what he saw.

The Moon.

The moon has taken its rightful place in the painted horizon of the stars. Showering David with its illuminating light much to the shock and horror in his expression. He barely even noticed his body already protruding many numbers of hair, his eye color changing from chocolate to amber, small hook claws digging out of his dirty nails, and his ears stretching in pointed chilling fashion. Filled by horror and despair he cried out two words before the transformation overtook him.

“No… not now. Not now!”

As the transformation began, the room dimmed, dark shadows crept around his form before the room vanished entirely. His screams grew louder and louder until finally they all stopped. Only silence remained. Nothing but darkness surrounded him. A pure, unsettling silence that made everything completely still. A silence that was broken by a long low growl. The growl grew louder and soon it morphed into a deep powerful howl. A howl that echoed throughout the castle, and outside of it wave after wave. The roar grew louder and louder before abruptly fading. And just like that, silence took over once again.