Tick, tock, tick, tock…
You tossed and turned for what seemed like the millionth time that night, unable to catch any sleep. Apart from the soft intrusion of moonlight through the velvet curtains to your left, your ornamented room remained blanketed in the dark of night. The occasional breeze from the balcony crept in, the cool late-winter winds doing their best to lull you to slumber. All was quiet. Serene, even.
Yet, you were awake; more so than you had been during the day.
It had been occurring for the preceding few nights, that cycle of sleeplessness that you so dreaded. A date that hadn’t really crossed your mind before had been creeping up on you - honestly, if it wasn’t for your friends, you might not have even remembered at all. The moment it finally dawned on you, however, your sleep schedule was reduced to naught but smithereens, your day-to-day merriment gone with the wind.
Twilight had been the first to remind you, ecstatic in doing so. Spike had even joined her in the festivities.
The anniversary of your arrival in Equestria was coming up fast.
As a surprise, Twilight organized a small party with those you had grown close to. It was all supposed to take place in Canterlot, where you had miraculously appeared in the river outside the scenic town, washed up on its banks. Initially, you were beyond thrilled at the gesture, picking her and Spike up and spinning them around in a bear hug. After some time thinking about it, though, you had come to a realization that you had been rather blissfully ignorant about.
That fateful day marked a full year since you’d seen your family and friends.
You kept a tight circle, and you were only really close with your mom and dad, but nevertheless, your joy was soon replaced with a deep longing. Life back on Earth was something you were grateful to have parted with, but everyone back home made it worth trudging through all of the bullshit. With how busy life in Equestria had gotten recently, thoughts of them had been pushed to the back of your mind. The night of Twilight’s announcement, though, was one of the longest of your life.
Questions you’d never have the answer to flew through your mind, wreaking utter havoc on your mental state.
Would you ever see them again?
Did they think you had been kidnapped, or straight up murdered?
How long did your parents grieve you?
…
With a grunt, you sat up in your bed, eager to staunch the flow of errant thoughts before you got carried away again. Hoisting your legs over the side of the bed frame, you pushed yourself onto your feet and made your way over to the dresser.
You rather timidly opened the middle drawer and grabbed the first pair of pajamas you could find, with a plain black shirt to match. Throwing the shirt over your head, you tugged it downward until it felt snug around your torso, arms wrapped up in the long sleeves of your cotton aegis.
The PJs slipped on afterward, and you savored how fluffy they were. Rarity had insisted on making “the most comfortable pajamas she’d ever conceived” when you came to her with the problem of no winter apparel for either day or night. Unsurprisingly, she’d hit the ball straight out of the park - they were unbelievably cozy, and quickly became your favorite article of clothing. The purple fur looked odd, but you didn’t mind.
You strode into the bathroom and gave yourself a visual inspection. Apart from the strikingly apparent dark circles under your eyes, you looked presentable enough that no one from a distance would say anything.
With a sigh, you opened the door to your quarters and stepped out into the moonlit hallway, looking back into the room before you left. Finally illuminated, you could make out a messy bed and dirty clothes strewn about in multiple places. Even worse, you could see few-day-old takeout boxes taking up space on the fireplace mantle.
Your psychological unrest was getting to you, and it was leaving shameful visual evidence of it.
With another deep sigh, you let the door shut on its own and began aimlessly walking. Your socks kept your feet warm for the most part, but the cold marble still sent chills up your back every now and then. A couple of night guards stood about here and there, but none seemed bothered by your unexpected presence, so you carried on.
Eventually, after a myriad of hallways, you came upon a secluded courtyard that was nestled inside the royal gardens and offered a stunning view of the Equestrian horizon. It was your favorite place to sit and relax when you had first arrived here and were required to stay within the castle until they sussed out that you weren’t some supervillain in disguise.
Every time you had visited the gardens, it had been with either of the royal sisters, sometimes both. Being alone while standing amidst the intricate botanical art and stone statues, however, brought a new level of appreciation for the hallowed grounds. Whoever they hired as landscapers for the courtyard should’ve been made royalty themselves, in all honesty.
You made your way over to a nearby bench and sat down, grunting as you slouched over to better situate yourself on your rigid seat. You cupped your face in your hands, running them up and down your features a couple times before straightening up and leaning onto the back of the bench.
For all of the effort you put into finding something else to think about, it really wasn’t working. All you could think about was them.
The last time you saw them, it was a couple days before your birthday. You insisted on helping decorate, but they wouldn’t let you lift a finger. It was unusual - they never were big on fanfare, yet for some reason, they went above and beyond to make it a spectacle like you’d never seen before. Mom had even cooked homemade burgers, smoked to perfection on the ceramic grill you loved so much. You thought of them, their faces beaming… They’d never looked so happy. They even-
No.
You grit your teeth with your mouth clamped shut, and closed your eyes tightly. Your lips contorted in an odd way as your eyes welled up slightly with tears.
But you wouldn’t let it happen. It had been a year, and your life since then had become so much better. Stubbornly, you wiped away the liquid remorse and straightened out your expression. With one last strained sniffle, you returned to normal, looking out to the horizon once more.
You didn’t have much time to take it all in, though, before you felt something cold and metallic tap the back of your neck. Whipping around, you frantically looked for whatever had made unwelcomed contact with you, but were met only with an empty courtyard - you were completely alone.
You had heard rumors of certain areas of the palace grounds being haunted, but you’d never taken any of them seriously, chalking it all up to some ghost stories made to scare greenhorns and newer castle staff. Your alarmed gaze refused to leave the area behind you as you carefully analyzed the sprawling expanse of flowers and greenery, looking for any signs of movement.
Once again, you felt a cold pressure, this time on your left cheek. You sprang out of your seat, head thrown this way and that in a vain attempt to locate the source of the ghostly contact. The thought of a spirit toying with you brought on a strong sense of disease.
It subsided, though, when you could hear the “ghost” openly giggle somewhere in front of you.
“The hell…?” you muttered to no one in particular, frowning at the direction that the cackle was coming from.
Suddenly, the sound of magic being casted rang out as shadows curled within themselves in front of you. Before long, it took the shape of a pony, and inky black magic residue faded away into nothing, revealing your howling tormentor. It took you a second to register who it was, but once you spotted that black crown, your confusion quickly subsided into a smile and your own muted chuckle. She stood before you, holding a hoof adorned in her usual regalia to her chest as she laughed right along with you.
“Oh, Anonymous,” she managed to get out in between her fits of laughter. “I apologize, but that gag never gets old!”
“You scared the shit out of me, Luna,” you exclaimed in a joking manner as you clutched your chest for fear that your heart would leap out of it.
“My mission was successful, then,” she said as she raised an eyebrow at you, confident in her victory.
You chuckled a bit.
“I suppose it was,” you replied, humoring her. “What’re you doing all the way out here? I thought night court was in session”
Her expression shifted from her previously dopey smile to a slightly more matter-of-fact look.
“You would be correct in your supposition,” she began, sounding a little bent out of shape. “However, only a handful of ponies were present, and every trivial problem brought forth was solved in a matter of minutes. Oftentimes, I wonder why night court is even necessary.”
She giggled to herself again, breaking her serious tone.
“Ah, well. It gave me a fantastic opportunity to scare you, so I don't mind,” she jested as she moved to the bench to sit down.
You followed her lead and took your own seat next to her, leaning back onto the hard, wooden surface and letting your shoulders sag. Even though she was just barely below your sternum when you were both standing, she nearly rivaled your own height when you both sat down.
“So,” she spoke, interrupting your thoughts. “What brings you out here on this fine night? Usually, you tend to be asleep by now, but the past few nights, I haven’t seen your dreams within the dreamscape.”
You really didn’t feel like talking about your reasons for being out there, so you went with as vague an answer as possible.
“I just can’t sleep,” you replied flatly, staring out into space. “Bad case of insomnia, I guess.”
She raised an eyebrow as she cast a glance your way out of the corner of her eye.
“Is that why the dark circles under your eyes are so pronounced?” she inquired as she shifted a bit in her seat, subtly moving a tad closer to you.
“Are they that noticeable?” you asked as you feigned surprise.
“I would be lying if I said that I wasn’t concerned,” she admitted as she turned to face you fully. Her smile had faded, replaced with a worried scrutiny.
“To be curt, Anonymous, you look like a walking husk of your usual self.”
You hadn’t looked in a mirror in a while, but you got the feeling that she was telling the truth, even if it had been a bit embellished. At least, you hope it was embellished.
“You wound me, Luna,” you said with overplayed dramatism, stifling a giggle as you averted your gaze.
A cold, metal hoof ornament tapped your arm, grabbing your attention. Turning to face her, you felt her genuine solicitude almost radiate off of her, which caught you a bit off guard.
“Facetiousness can only mask a real problem for so long, Anon,” she began. “I’ve spoken with my sister and a few of your friends, and we all share the same concern.”
You shifted in your seat a bit, straightening up as she continued.
“Twilight told me how exhausted you seem during the day, and that she’s occasionally caught you reading in her library in the middle of the night,” she explained as she continued pointing her gaze straight at you. “She went into great detail about your developing habits, but I’ll spare you the potential headache.”
“Were there graphs?” you inquired, unable to suppress a smirk.
“There were not,” she said as she smiled to herself, “but she did have a well thought out thesis on why your insomnia appeared so suddenly.”
Your heart warmed a little to know that Twilight cared so much about you that she’d actually go so far as to study you. You weren’t making it easy, either - when it all came crashing down onto you, as it so often did, you weren’t exactly the talkative sort. Was her watch-from-a-distance approach a little odd? Sure, but her intentions were noble.
You let out a heavy sigh as you sunk farther into the bench. It hadn’t been your intention to have everyone worry like they did. You felt selfish for keeping the problem from them, but letting your guard down was never something that came easy.
“What was her hypothesis?”
Once again, she scooted closer to you under the guise of shifting in her seat.
“She had worked out two possible root causes,” she replied, her line of sight now pointed at the various stone works throughout the garden. “The first among them was the possibility of you experiencing difficulties while attempting to court a mare, since Hearts and Hooves day is almost here.”
You chuckled, which brought Luna’s attention back to you.
“She gives me too much credit,” you jested, propping one leg up on the bench. “I haven’t talked to anyone like that in a long time, so that’s one supposition ruled out.”
As you finished your sentence, you shifted your focus to her. For the briefest of moments, her expression was one of both slight surprise and… contentment?
Milliseconds later, though, the confusing blurb of emotions was gone, replaced by her usual calming stare. As curious as it was, you tried not to overthink it.
“Duly noted,” she replied in turn, not missing a beat.
You nodded your head, facing the garden and its horizon once more.
“What was her other hypothesis?” you asked, dancing around actually saying the cause out loud.
She shifted once more, which brought herself as close as she could without actually touching you. Inwardly, you raised an eyebrow, but had no time to ponder it further as she began speaking.
“Her final guess was that you miss your old home, seeing as the anniversary of your arrival is a day away.”
‘Damn,’ you thought. ‘Well, I suppose it was kind of obvious.’
What surprised you far more was that the day was so close at hand. You could’ve sworn it was at least a little while out. Had you really lost track of time so badly in your weary haze?
The dull thrum of empty air after her statement seemed to stretch on, unbeknownst to you.
“Am I correct in assuming that your silence is confirmation that she was right?” she inquired gently, cutting through the tension.
You turned halfway to look at her, and in doing so, you met her eyes.
She bore a look born of empathy, the heads of her eyebrows raised slightly as her eyes bored into you, almost desperate for you to finally let it out. Your apprehension towards the matter must have been written all over your face as you idly fidgeted with your thumbs.
You held her gaze for what seemed like forever before you finally looked away and nodded your head, refraining from speaking for fear of a lump finding its way into your throat. A part of you felt like you wanted to shrink away and hide for finally being vulnerable enough to share your issues, but for the most part, a wave of relief that you hadn’t felt in days washed over you like you had never felt before.
Beside you, you felt Luna finally press against you, albeit in a way with the least contact possible. The uncertainty behind the action was almost tangible, as if she thought she was defusing a bomb rather than comforting a distraught friend.
What seemed like minutes passed without a word from either of you, nothing but crickets and the surrounding flora rustling in the breeze. Though you wanted to say something, anything, you couldn’t find the right words to rupture the delicate moment.
“I won’t claim to know how you feel,” she began prudently, taking great care to weave her words together so as not to put you off. “But in a way, I empathize with you.”
You turned to her, eager to listen to her explanation. Her worry was replaced with melancholic nostalgia as her face became a blank slate.
“During my incarceration on the moon, for a brief period of time, I was able to let go of my contempt for my sister. Lo and behold, I began to miss her.”
Confused, but intrigued, you moved your gaze completely her way to listen more intently.
“It was a relatively short stint, maybe around a century, but for the entirety of it, I could do nothing but long for her to return, even if only to make sure I was still there.”
She brought a hoof to her chest, resting it on her neck garment as she smiled contentedly.
“In my head, I unendingly relived the days where she and I frolicked in the gardens of the old castle. The days where we would play innocent pranks on the snobbiest of nobles.”
Just as quickly as her grin appeared, it left as she placed her hoof back on the bench once more.
“After a while, though, my folly was replaced with longing, and I would weep for untold amounts of time at the mere microcosm of remembrance. I wouldn’t wish such a fate on my worst enemy.”
You couldn’t quite describe the way her recollection made you feel. A tugging of heartstrings might’ve sufficed, but it wasn’t a strong enough description to do it justice.
“Eventually, my longing regressed back into contempt that was made even stronger by the memories of days gone,” she recounted grimly.
She turned to you as she smiled tenderly, disarming any tension or solemnity that her story might have made you feel.
“I apologize for going off on a tangent, Anonymous,” she spoke warmly. “Hopefully my story brought you some comfort. Though your situation is wholly unique, I want you to know that you aren’t alone.”
Something stirred within you that you couldn’t explain as you held her stare.
She understood.
While it didn’t immediately relieve you of your grief, you felt a sense of communion that dampened the sensation substantially.
Absent-mindedly, you reached out and encased her in an embrace. Initially, she froze, but after a tender moment, she threw her hooves around you and rested her head on your shoulder, a contented sigh leaving her lungs. You felt her wings unfurl and wrap around you, shielding you from the chill of the night air.
“I…” you croaked, trying to find something to say but failing completely. “Thank you.”
In response, she tightened her grip around you, strengthening her cozy embrace.
“Think nothing of it,” she replied softly as she broke the embrace and turned her entire body to face you completely. “It would be remiss of me to neglect somepony I care deeply about.”
Her eyes widened as she came to realize what she might have unintentionally conveyed. Her wings fluffed up as her snout scrunched, a noticeable blush on her face as she held a hoof out towards you to try to somehow physically vindicate herself of her own implications.
“N-Not that I- I mean, in a platonic sense, o-of course,” she managed to utter, quivering as she set her hoof back down. “Forgive me, I… tripped over my own words.”
To cap off her excuse, she gave you a nervous, toothy grin that unintentionally accentuated her own awkwardness in the situation. The corners of your mouth twisted upward into your own smirk as you throatily chuckled, amused by the minor slip up.
“No worries, Luna,” you reassure her. “I understand what you meant.”
Without thinking, you reached up and booped her snoot, causing it to scrunch even further as a visible blush overtook her cheeks. As you reveled in the satisfaction of having flustered the regal mare that sat before you, you realized that just from being in her presence, your mood had improved drastically. Your smile remained plastered on your face as a result, and she gingerly giggled to herself as she beheld the welcome change in your countenance.
As jovial as you had become, however, one problem remained at the forefront of your mind.
“I don’t know how I’m going to get any sleep after all this,” you mused, leaning your head down to scratch the back of your neck. “My sleep schedule is almost completely gone.”
A confident smile tugged at the corners of her mouth as she puffed her chest out slightly, bringing a hoof up to her garment once again.
“Fear not, Anonymous,” she goaded heartily. “As Princess of the Night, I happen to know a thing or two about achieving a peaceful sleep.”
She gracefully rose from her seat and stepped down as she began to quickly head back in the direction of the hall that led to the hidden garden.
“Follow me!” she called back to you as you were still rising from the bench.
Starting off at a jog, you caught up to her as she crossed the threshold back into the castle, trotting quickly to some location still unknown to you.
“Luna, this isn’t really making me all that tired,” you jested as you both sped off toward wherever she was headed.
“Perhaps not now,” she replied, still running alongside you. “But when we reach the solarium, you’ll be out of breath, and it’ll be easier to lull you into slumber!”
You couldn’t help but crack a wide smile at her antics as you both continued your speedy advance toward her destination. Eventually, you arrived at one of the castle’s spires. At its peak sat a viewing room, the walls entirely replaced by thick glass, kept so clean that it was as if there were nothing separating you from the outside world.
You both hoofed it to the top as fast as you could muster, both of you out of breath from the non stop running. Before long, the door to the solarium laid before you, almost asking to be opened as you paused to catch your breath.
You put your hands on top of your head to increase your airflow, huffing deep breaths to refill your needy lungs. Luna, on the other hand, hung her head lower to the ground as she panted away, her horn almost touching the nearly reflective marble floor. As you looked down at her, your smirk returned.
“You think I could join your workout regimen sometime?” you quipped, catching the princess’s attention in between puffs of breath.
“If you lived in the castle, I certainly wouldn’t mind,” she teased as she panted breathlessly.
Eventually, the two of you steadily caught your breath and meandered over to the solarium door. You held the door open for her and she flashed her pearly whites up at you as she slipped by.
As you let go of the door and traipsed into the spacious room yourself, you were a tad surprised to know that the only part of the room’s architecture that wasn’t glass was the floor.
It framed the night sky in a way that you had never experienced before. Looking up, the heavenly expanse almost seemed reachable, as if it was calling out to you with its myriad of stars and planets beyond the known scope of travel. The night sky met Equestria’s landscape so perfectly that you couldn’t quite discern the difference between land and sky, largely due to the darkness that encompassed nearly everything, save for a few lights still on in the distant town of Ponyville.
You simply stood in place for a while, appreciating the divine marriage between the earth and the stars, before Luna’s voice broke through your enraptured state.
“Do you intend to stand there all night, or are you going to join me?” she called back to you as your eyes slowly switched focus from star to star.
Your trance interrupted, you cast your gaze in the direction you heard Luna’s voice, only to find her lighting two candelabras that adorned the desk on the far side of the room. Diagonal to the desk, a leisure rug was strewn out on the floor, a pillow at the window-most end. Once she finished, she sauntered over to the rug, patting it with an adorned hoof while still standing.
“Come, relax,” she nearly cooed as she began heading toward the door. “I have to fetch something, but I’ll be right back.”
You obliged her and began meandering toward the carpet. As you kneeled down to sprawl out on the rug, you heard the door to the solarium click behind you, signifying the princess’s absence. Laid on your side and facing the glass wall, you stared out into the void-like expanse dotted with stars. Though you felt relaxed, your mind raced endlessly, denying you the comfort of sleep.
Before long, though, you heard the door open once more, accompanied by the gentle hum of magic being casted. Flipping over in order to get a better view of Luna, you saw that she was carrying a blanket and what looked to be a cup of something piping hot.
You goofily smiled at her, and she returned it gingerly. She gracefully closed the gap between the two of you and sat beside you, taking great care in unfolding the blanket.
“I apologize for the delay, Anonymous,” she began as she draped it over you. “To be honest with you, the kettle wasn’t being very cooperative with me.”
Ah, so tea was the mystery drink of the night.
“I thought warm milk was more suited to the task of getting drowsy,” you jested in kind as you pulled the blanket up to your neck, holding it close to your body for added warmth.
You may have felt like a child for the time being, but damn if it didn’t feel nice.
“Usually, you’d be correct,” she replied, voice still as soft as earlier. “However, this is chamomile that I’ve enchanted specifically to treat your insomnia, so I’d say warm milk pales in comparison to this.”
You sat up as she floated the cup over to you, which you gratefully accepted with a smile and a nod.
“Thanks,” you muttered breathily as you took a sip of the somnolent nectar.
When the tea hit your taste buds, you picked up on a flavor not unlike a dried apple. Light and airy, you could feel the drink slowly chipping away at your restlessness the longer your swig went on. Eventually, your lips parted from the teacup, and you felt a tad lightheaded.
You set it down next to you as Luna came to lay beside you on the rug, just outside of the range of your blanket.
“Am I supposed to feel… dizzy?” you slightly slurred as you layed back down and propped your head on the pillow and looked up at Luna.
She chuckled to herself in an unbelievably cute way as she levitated the teacup out of your reach.
Wait… Cute?
Brushing it aside, you chalked it up to your inebriated state as she offered a reply.
“Dizzy in an exhausted way, yes,” she spoke softly, refocusing on you once she had set the cup down on the desk. “It means your sleeplessness is finally withering. I imagine it won’t be very long now until you’re asleep.”
Her sullen eyes betrayed the smile she held, a hint of longing seeping through the cracks. Whether her dismay was over your inevitable unconsciousness or something else, you simply weren’t having it.
“Mmmmm, I don’t know if the tea alone is gonna completely put me under,” you rused, a rough plan formulating in your weary brain.
A plan that you wouldn’t have dared to put into action if you hadn’t been out of it.
“I assure you,” she began, nearly whispering as she looked out of the window behind you. “That enchantment will no doubt run its course on you. You have a princess’s word!”
You threw caution to the wind as you hastily went with a backup plan.
“Luna.”
The honeyed enunciation of her name caught her attention as she moved her gaze to you, a hint of worry in her now smile-less expression.
“Yes?” she inquired as her eyes quickly scanned you for anything that might have been wrong.
“Are you cold?” you asked her, your words dripping with an ulterior motive. Luckily, she didn’t seem to pick up on it.
She pondered for a brief moment as she looked in some nondescript direction before settling her eyes on you once more.
“I suppose it is quite chilly here,” she mused, shivering subtly as if to drive the point home.
Having been given the green light, you made a gamble that your fully conscious self would have slapped you for making.
“I can share the blanket… if you’d like,” you drowsily offered, giving it your all to sound like a coherent being.
An intense redness in her cheeks dominated her facial features as she looked almost shocked by your offer.
“O-Oh,” she stuttered, trying to find the right words for a reply. “I would, but I must remain awake just in case I’m needed. Thank you for the offer, though. T-Truly.”
You weren’t about to let her cop out like that.
“You don’t have to… sleep,” you managed to mutter out groggily. “You could just… get warm for a bit.”
She sheepishly looked away, then back to you.
“Are you sure it’s alright…?” she uneasily asked you, raising a hoof up to the height of her chest.
You simply nodded and lifted the blanket to allow her entry into your sacred realm of warmth and coziness. As she scooted over to join you in your cocoon, you could have sworn that under the monstrous blush she sported on her face were the traces of a sly smile.
She cozied up to you, her back pressed firmly into your chest and abdomen, and rested her head on the pillow as well. You lowered your arm over her, bringing the blanket down with you. The warmth of both of your bodies served to accentuate the growing sense of exhaustion within you, so much so that you barely noticed that Luna had turned to face you. In your last few moments of consciousness, you felt something warm and soft press against your forehead.
You didn’t have time to wonder what it was before you were out cold.
After an absolutely exemplary night of sleep, you had gone through the motions of your morning routine without much of a second thought.
Day court had grown increasingly busy throughout the past few weeks, and your little ponies were starting to become a bit unruly when discussing their discrepancies, particularly when they involved other ponies. Each day, you had done your best to ease the tension, and for the most part, you were successful.
That didn’t mean it was any less stressful, though. It was for that reason alone that you were making your way to the solarium an hour before day court started, so as to enjoy your morning cup of coffee in peace.
It didn’t take you much time at all to reach the spire, since your quarters weren’t that far away. Once you reached the top, you sauntered over to the door and gingerly opened it with your golden aura, ready to partake in one of the greatest beverages known to ponykind. Your ambitions were interrupted, however, by the sight that greeted you within the solarium.
On the desk sat your sister’s regalia, next to a teacup and its saucer. On the leisure rug, however, was a more interesting situation.
There, smothered in a blanket, laid Luna and Anonymous, the interdimensional foreigner whom you had come to greatly enjoy the company of. Your sister held Anonymous closely, the latter having his head nearly buried in her chest fluff. They both gently snored, an unconscious smile plastered on their faces.
The smile turned out to be contagious, as it spread to you upon viewing their sleeping forms. You chuckled to yourself, knowing now the full scope of how highly your sister regarded him.
As you strolled back out of the solarium to give them their privacy, your mind began exploring the myriad of ways to tease them later on.
