I Can Be a Queen

“Luna?” Princess Celestia knocked on a large, dark oak door, the deep knocks reverberating through the empty halls. The lunar guards that usually stood by Luna’s door were strangely absent, only strengthening the worry that Celestia had for her younger sister, who had not been seen at all for the past two days. “Sister, are you in here?”

A draft blew in from a window nearby, letting a soft whistling noise travel through the halls and allowing a sharp chill to seep into the halls from the wintery night outside. Princess Celestia felt her mouth turn into a shallow frown as the silence stretched on with no response from her sister within the bedroom. She slowly raised her hoof again and knocked a second time, the deep thuds reverberating through the long, uninhabited corridors. After a few more seconds of tense silence, she grabbed the door handle with her magic and unlatched it.

“Luna, I’m coming in,” Celestia announced before pushing the door open. The hinges squeaked quietly as the door slid open, revealing the pitch-black bedroom beyond. She squinted her eyes in an attempt to see anything in the darkness, but it resulted in failure. Even the dim light from the hall seemed to melt into the darkness, making her slightly afraid of what could lie within.

“W-What am I getting scared for?” Celestia muttered under her breath. “There’s nothing in here other than Luna… right?” Celestia took a hesitant step into the room, looking to the left and right, seeing nothing but the same formless shadows. When she fully entered, the door behind her slowly shut itself, sealing her in the void. “Luna? Are you in here?”

Celestia shivered at the lack of an echo in this dark room. It made her feel cramped like the room was much smaller than it actually was. Her own breathing was the only thing she could hear other than the fast beats of her heart in her ears. She took a deep breath. “Luna!? Answer me!”

Celestia felt the worry for her sister increase at the continued lack of an answer. She further stepped into the room, her hoofbeats unheard as she further ventured into the bedroom. But suddenly, she froze as a haunting voice spoke out to her.

“Sister…” The low, wispy voice tickled Celestia’s ears and she swore she could feel an ice-cold breath land on her.

“Luna!?” Celestia spun around, seeing nothing but the same darkness. “Where are you? D-Don’t be afraid to talk to me, Lulu…”

“And yet… I sense fear from you, dear sister…” This voice, it spoke as if it were Luna… but it didn’t sound like her. It sounded distant. Dead.

“That’s because you’re acting strange! I’m not scared of you, I’m scared for you.” Celestia kept her head turned in the direction where she last heard the voice. “If there’s anything that you want to say to me, I’ll listen. I’ll be here for you-”

“LIES.” The sudden malice in the voice made Celestia visibly flinch back in shock.

“W-What do you mean? I… I’m telling the truth as your older sister!” Celestia desperately said back. “I love you, Lulu. I really, really do-”

“MORE LIES.” Luna snarled back, her voice twisting. Celestia narrowed her eyes into the darkness, finally coming across a shape in the endless nothing.

“Luna… what’s wrong?” Celestia asked, her voice dripping with confusion and worry.

“I’ll tell you what’s wrong, sister.” Cutting through the darkness, a pair of blue-green irises appeared, glowing slightly, but even the subtle glow was enough to immediately catch Celestia’s attention. They were… slitted. No… no, not again… “Or, I can barely even call you a sister, can I, Celestia?”

“N-Nightmare Moon…” Celestia whispered, taking another step back as the shock of this situation started to dawn on her.

“You’re quite bold to be calling your own sister by the name of such a monster.” The pair of eyes narrowed. Slowly, a deep blue mist started to form around the outline in the darkness, further revealing the slender and lithe, but majestic and powerful form of a dark alicorn, currently sitting on the floor. The mist slowly gathered around where her mane and tail usually would, forming a weak imitation of hair that flowed through the air as Celestia’s did. “After all, we are one in the same. Luna and I share many traits with each other. One of the traits that stand out… is our hatred for you.”

Celestia felt her heart drop. “Luna doesn’t hate me, don’t lie!”

“Oh, but I can feel the doubt in your voice.” The mare brought a hoof up to her muzzle, her lips parting in a condescending smile, revealing her razor-sharp teeth that gleamed in the weak light that came from her mane. “It’s so thick in the air that I could cut it with a sword. This doubt of your sister’s love is just one of many reasons why we hate you.”

“I… I don’t… I know she doesn’t hate me…” Celestia looked down and away from the dark mare.

“Do you?” The mare narrowed her eyes, her smile playing with Celesita’s feelings.

“...” Celestia stayed quiet. Luna… she had been rather distant before she vanished. But, that didn’t necessarily dictate hatred. Hate is a strong feeling, one that many ponies can’t say for sure that they feel for another. Oftentimes, a pony may dislike another, but that was as far as it would go. But… the way Luna spoke, her body language, her actions, it didn’t convey the same love that she showed 1000 years ago. The way Luna would avoid Celestia, how she would change her schedule just to not see Celestia’s face, how she would take her food into her room instead of eating with Celestia… how had she not seen it before? Luna had been avoiding her the entire time, but she was trapped so far in the loop of life that she had completely overlooked this fact. Celestia slowly brought a hoof to her head as her eyes widened and she came to a horrifying thought.

Luna hates Celestia and she had been too oblivious to see this fact.

“I can see the cogs turning in your ancient, dusty brain. Has it really taken you this long to see this obvious detail?” The mare finally stood and unlike Celestia, her hooves made sound against the ground, sounding like metal against marble, echoing like they were in a vast, circular chamber. Celestia wanted to back away, but she found herself frozen with fear. Nightmare Moon… she had faced her before 1000 years ago, but she was… different now. All around them, Luna’s bedroom finally faded into view, but it seemed larger and much more spacious. The once-carpeted floor was now an expansive plane of polished, reflective marble. The arched windows now towered above both of them, reaching all the way up to the vaulted ceiling that rests 100 feet above them. A thin, frigid mist covered the entire area, making Celestia shiver. Each breath produced a thin cloud that dispersed into the mist.

“Nightmare Moon…” Celestia whispered out, looking up at the dark alicorn. She was taller, thinner, yet stronger than before. Her wings were larger and had more dark, sharp feathers. She was lacking her signature armor, but Celestia knew that it would come eventually. “I… I won’t let you do as you wish.”

“Oh, but Celestia, how are you going to escape? Unlike last time, there’s no castle to run off to. After all…” Nightmare Moon smiled wide, her teeth glinting in the moonlight that streamed in from the tall, arched windows. Outside, the moon sat in a dark, starless sky, much larger than normal, allowing her to see every nook and cranny, every dimple and crater. “There’s no door to leave. This is my realm. My…”

“Pocket dimension.” Celestia shakily finished. Pocket dimensions. They’re specially formed magic pockets outside of reality that take form based on a pony’s magic, personality, and taste. Judging by how large, empty, and frankly terrifying this pocket dimension was, the hatred that Luna was feeling wasn’t a new emotion for her. “You… you really plan on killing me this time… don’t you?”

“Of course. After all, why bother being a princess? When instead…” Celestia flinched when Nightmare Moon suddenly started softly chuckling. Her laugh echoed through the large, circular chamber, slowly ramping up into a full-blown cackle. Celestia felt her blood run cold at the pure malevolence radiating from her laughter, but when it reached its peak, Nightmare Moon suddenly stopped laughter, instead taking a deep breath before she suddenly looked Celestia dead in the eyes, wearing a look of utter hatred.

“I can be a Queen.”