Light of the moon

Chapters

Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2: The deal
Chapter 3: Preparations
Chapter 4: The arrival
Chapter 5: New home
Chapter 6: The Forest's traps
Chapter 7: Timberwolves and the Abyss
Chapter 8: Moon's awakening
Chapter 9: Monday morning
Chapter 10: Monday afternoon
Chapter 11: Happiness
Chapter 12: The first dream-jump
Chapter 13: Tuesday Morning

Prologue

“And, furthermore, the moon should be delayed by four minutes for us to get sufficient….”

Luna stopped paying attention, and closed her eyes. Every night, these nobles came into her throne room, telling her how to best move the moon to benefit everypony. The princess raised a hoof. She was getting tired of this.

“Lord Seed, if you have not noticed, we control the moon. We have controlled the moon for much longer than you were born, and we know how to benefit everypony without fail. For you to stroll in here and demand that the moon should be moved by your whim alone is either amazingly brave, or impossibly stupid. So far, it seems like you are being impossibly stupid. If you really expected us to believe that you are doing this to benefit others, then it is clear that—“

The silence was too great. Even for the Princess verbally beating down a noble, it was too quiet. Her headache had been replaced by a serious sense of dread. She opened her eyes and looked around. This was decidedly not her throne room. She was alone in a forest, except this forest was unfamiliar to her. The Sun hung low over the western sky, and shrouded the area in grim shadows. Looking up, Luna saw a moon, but this was not her moon. This moon was rough, and jagged, and it seemed to be smiling down at her with homicidal delight. As she watched it for a few seconds, it suddenly got larger. No… It didn’t get larger, it got closer! This moon was headed straight for this land! But… where was this forest in the first place?

“There it is! Get it! Stop that monster!”

The Princess looked around at the sound of the rough, grating voice and saw a large group of ponies stampeding toward her. These ponies seemed to be cruel mockeries of themselves, cutie marks exaggerated beyond all proportion as their eyes dripped a yellow liquid. With each drop that fell, another, smaller clone would form to join the horde charging through the area.

Sudden, untraceable fear shot through the Princess. Was this a memory of Nightmare Moon? If it was… Oh, those poor ponies. They wouldn’t be able to run fast enough. At that moment, Luna realized she was the one running. Strange, she did not remember being a coward. Try as she might, she couldn’t stop running. Looking down, she saw white legs running underneath her. Suddenly, she knew what was happening.

She had been pulled into a pony’s nightmare. That never happened willingly, unless the nightmare was so terrifying that she had no choice. But, whose nightmare was this? With a great effort, she began to create a form to represent her in this dream. She had to find out what these madponies were screaming about, and who was so terrified as to actually attract the attention of the Princess of the Night.

She finished forming to see a red tail dart into a house that had inexplicably appeared in the woods. The architecture was unmistakably from Canterlot, but it was not a house she recognized. Attempting to catch the terrified pony, she stepped into a nightmare far worse than the one she had left.

Before her on the ground was a terrified Pegasus stallion, probably no more than 15 years old. He was the one who had been running, but something had grabbed his leg. Following the limb, Luna saw two dying ponies slowly clawing their way across the dirt floor toward the fallen stallion. The ponies had deep gashes across their flanks, and were missing a lot more flesh than they still had. Blood made the floor slick, and they began to slide faster toward Luna and the owner of these nightmares.

The stallion screamed in horror and attempted to fly away, only to be blocked by the roof. Luna raised an eyebrow. This pony needed help, quickly. Luna quickly willed away these nightmares.

Nothing happened. They didn't even pause. That was impossible. This was her realm, and she had absolute power. This boy must have amazing willpower if he could innately block her control in his dreams. Taking a deep breath, Luna prepared to use her Royal Canterlot Voice.

“BACK, MONSTERS OF THE SHADOW! THIS IS OUR DOMAIN, AND YOU SHALL NOT HARM OUR SUBJECT! If you proceed in this course, there will never be another place in both this realm and any other for you to hide, and you shall DIE!”

Everything froze. Blood droplets hung in midair, feathers halted their fall, and the two nightmarish bodies halted their movement.

Luna looked toward the stallion, but he was frozen too. The slight quivering showed him to be only frozen in fear, rather than by the power of her voice. Something drew her attention to the pegasus’s flank. She stared hard at the unbroken white across his side, wondering what it could be.

Suddenly, everything clicked in her mind. The exaggerated cutie marks earlier, the unmarred side of the pony before her. He did not have a cutie mark!

Following her eyes, the Pegasus realized what she was staring at, and immediately jumped away, running out the door to take off into the night.

“Wait! We wish to speak to you! We do not… I didn’t mean...”

Luna sighed as she lost track of the pony. While she could always teleport to wherever he went, she decided against it. She had intruded in on a nightmare, and fixed it, but ended up embarrassing the stallion anyways. If only this pony was more like Scootaloo or Twilight, with simple fears that actually made sense. Well, she had to make things right, and the firs—

Luna jolted awake to find herself completely wrapped in the golden glow of Celestia’s magic. Blinking in surprise, she noticed that the throne room was still missing. Instead, a steady beeping and clean, bleached smell filled the air. Where was she?

“LUNA!”

Her sister yelled, running forward to hold her. “We were so worried. When you collapsed in the middle of open court, one of the guards ran to me immediately. What happened?”

What did happen? Ordinary ponies do not have the power to drag a Princess into their dreams, especially when they aren’t even a unicorn. Who in the world of Equestria was that boy?

“Tia, I need your help. I need you to look for someone. I don’t know his name, but he has more strength than I expected. Find him, and bring him here. We need to have a chat with him.”

Chapter 1

Moon Light hated his name. It was a little filly’s name, not a name for an awesome stallion like him. According to everyone he had asked, his name came about when, in the middle of the night, the smallest amount of light caused him to appear to shine. Technically speaking, the light refracted through his hair and gave the appearance of coming from his flesh, but nobody ever cared about technicalities. These ponies could see a straw bend in water and would scream that Princess Celestia had personally come down to show them magic. But, that’s life in a village with no unicorns, or any strange occurrences at all.

As the sun was rising above the eastern horizon, Moon woke with a start. What a strange dream, to have Nightmare Mo— Princess Luna in it. It seemed so strange that what had once been a story to terrify him as a foal was now one of the rulers of the land. Now he had a story to tell his two friends once he saw them at school.

Oh. School. Moon sighed as he remembered that today was a school day.

“Well, time to get up I guess.”

As he tried to get up, his hoof caught in one of the holes in his blanket, and he fell flat on his face. Grand. Just grand. Could anything else go wrong today?

The second Moon thought that, he immediately regretted it. Life was bad enough without tempting fate. As it is, he still had to go to school, get mocked repeatedly, work at the nearby farm, find something edible that ISN’T grass, and still have enough energy to clear the skies later. Life as a poor Pegasus sucked.

Moon stood up and looked around. The orphanage was nothing like his old home in Canterlot, but it was well enough. The floor creaked, the roof leaked, and the windows were really just glorified holes in the wall, but it was home.

The soft knock came just as Luna was drifting off to sleep. The moon had set, and the sun was up.

“What now?” Luna moaned at the door. “Tell Lord Seed if he wants to come back to court then he can take his complaints and shove them right up his-“

“LUNA!” Celestia opened the door, her mouth open. “I know that he is not the greatest of ponies, but…” Celestia looked around, and seeing no guards, leaned in close. “I agree” she whispered to her sister. Luna and Celestia shared a quick little laugh. “Anyways, I came to tell you that we found that pegasus you described. He is out in Barn’s Ville.”

“Barn’s Ville? Why doesn’t that name mean anything to me?” Luna asked, confused.

“It’s a small town, out near the Foal Mountains. Nothing happens there of any real note. The only real reason it still exists is the farms nearby needed a train stop to sell their goods to Baltimare and Filly Delphia. In fact, the only reason we found him in the first place is by sheer chance. A royal guard just got back from visiting his family there and remembered seeing that kid. Tell me Luna, why do you want to know? Is he in some kind of trouble? Are you?”

Luna opened her mouth to respond, and then closed it. Maybe some things her sister should not know. If Celestia thought that she couldn’t fix dreams well enough anymore, then she may decide that Luna was unfit to do anything. “I saw him in a dream of mine, and he has some interesting features about him. I can’t say more until I do some research first. Also, I want a student too. Twilight is nice and sweet, but I want a letter too.”

Celestia laughed. “Very well, I will have him brought in immediately. With the travel time, that should get him here around… 9:00 P.M.”

Moon’s day did not improve. His old cloak, made from little more than scraps of cloth clumsily stitched together, had torn again. The giant tear in the side showed off his blank flank, as well as bringing up memories best left forgotten. The lesson in class, 187 Ways to Farm Oats, was probably the worst one yet. His friends, Thorn Bush and Needle Point, both laughed at his dreams. They told him that maybe his special talent could be daydreaming.

Thorn Bush was a Mare’s Stallion. The Earth pony always knew the right things to say, and flirted with every girl he came across. His cutie mark was a sideways rose, which represented romance in his home city of Filly Delphia. Despite being in the middle of nowhere, he was always cheerful and knew how to make Moon laugh.

Needle Point was a Pegasus who loved sewing. She was amazing, but in a place like Barn’s Ville, sewing was only ever used to repair cloths or to make trade goods. By taking a drawing of a pony, she could make a scale doll of them that was amazingly accurate and durable. The spool and needle of her cutie mark was shown prominently near the train station, and was a major source of income to the town.

Moon turned his thoughts to the things after class. He couldn’t wait until tonight. Tonight he would get outside to see the stars. Celestial Navigation and Lunar Craters and how to Identify Them, his two books, will be his companions tonight, not dreams of princesses and forests. The darkness and stars were kind. They shone on everyone equally, whether they were special or not.

Moon shook his head. Special. That was a joke. Everyone else knew what their talent was. Everyone else knew what made them special. Except him.

The door exploded inward. Royal Guards stormed in, swords ready.

“WHAT THE—“the old octogenarian teacher exclaimed, immediately censoring herself before she let another word out.

The Royal Guards swept the room, and then inspected every pony. The guards would check each cutie mark and then move on to the next one. They seemed to be searching for a certain pony. Moon’s eyes grew wide. What if… What if the Princess was actually in his dream? What if she was hurt in there, and now he was to be tried and executed for harming or killing Luna?

A guard came to him and lifted his cloak and stared at his blank flank. “I GOT HIM!” Moon was suddenly tackled by three guardsmen, and very quickly tied up. He was then unceremoniously dragged outside like a sack of potatoes.

At this point, Moon had regained some semblance of mind. “What is going on?!” He exclaimed. “What? What did I do? Why are you here? Why are yo- mmm! MMPH!” His questioning was quickly muffled by the guard captain putting a hoof over his mouth.

“Moon Light, you are under arrest for interfering with Princess Luna’s duties by rendering her unconscious. You will come with us, and if you resist, you will be put to the sword without remorse.”

The sergeant knew things were bad. Not only had Princess Luna gone silent, Princess Celestia was glaring at him.

“So. You decide to interpret orders to retrieve someone as orders to retrieve a prisoner? You just ASSUMED that he was related to Luna’s collapse? I pray to the stars that I never tell you to get my student, because you would probably bring her back DEAD!”

Celestia’s voice rose until it was almost a shout of pure anger and rage, and then immediately dropped down to her starting volume. “Maybe, before you traumatize a colt any further, you would like to bring him in here, as well as apologizing for his embarrassment!”

The sergeant’s voice was nearly a whisper, but in the dead silence of the throne room, it echoed. “Yes ma’am.”

Luna watched him turn and leave. “Sergeant, also report to the kitchen. You will be peeling potatoes for the next few days. We will tell you if there is any further punishment. Now, bring the boy to me.”

Chapter 2: The deal

Moon Light was dragged in, still tied up and handcuffed. Princess Luna sighed. This was going to be very difficult now.

“Guards. Release him, then… You know what, I don’t even care what you do, just get out of my sight.”

The guards’ eyes widened when Luna dropped the royal “we” and they bolted for the door the second Moon was free. Moon rolled over and tried to stand, but four hours tied up made his legs buckle. Luna smiled down at the stallion as he used his wings to hover slightly above the ground, with a decidedly undignified look on his face.

“Greetings, citizen. We are Princess Luna. Regardless of what certain… excitable… guardsmen may have said you are not under arrest nor are you under any compulsion to stay. We wish to speak to you about certain things that have happened recently, or more specifically, last night. We did not mean to frighten you inside your dream, we merely wished to help. However, we noticed something strange. You seem completely immune to our effects in the dream state. While others have dreams that are malleable to us, we could not control your nightmare’s apparitions. That perplexes us. So, we wish to offer you a deal.” Princess Luna took a deep breath. This was the most important part. “Will you be our student?”

Moon Light looked like his jaw was suddenly made of lead. Shaking his head slightly, he glared at the Princess.

“I’m kidnapped from my classroom. I’m told I caused you injury. I couldn't get my books. I couldn't say goodbye to my friends. They didn't tell me where I was going. All of that led to here. And what happens? You ask me to be your student. Why? What possible reason would you have to take on any student, let alone a Pegasus... Let alone me. What’s in this for you?”

Princess Luna was aghast. Nopony could speak to her this way, she was their leader! “You will hold your tongue, you impudent whelp! We brought you here so that we may improve your life! You should bow down and be grateful that we even—“

Princess Celestia reached over and kicked her sister in the side. Bending close to Luna, Celestia whispered something in her ear. Moon strained, but could not make out exactly what was spoken. Something about “terror” and “intimidating”

Luna breathed in slowly, and seemed to relax. “Our apologies. We understand how terrifying it can be to be taken from one’s family and friends by means of force. That was never our intention. We will pay for your books to be sent to you, and your friends may visit, if your studies permit. Truth be told, we do have an ulterior motive for you to become our student. We are curious. We have been gone for such a long time, and still have issues fitting in. We wish for you to tell us things that will help us fit in with a new group. Specifically, you would be fitting in with the ponies of Ponyville. Even a town as far away as Barn’s Ville should have heard of that place. The point is, the mentorship will be a two way relationship. You will teach us about fitting in, and we will teach you about how to control your dreams. Please accept our apology again for how the brutes treated you.”

Moon thought for a moment. It seemed too good to be true, a nobody like him being a protégée of the Princess of the Night! For a second, he wondered if this was just an elaborate joke that they had made to taunt him. Mentally shrugging, he figured that he didn’t really have anything to lose anyways.

“I’ll do it. But first,” he yawned, “I think I want to take a nap.”

Luna looked out at the setting sun. “Understandable. We wish you to stay at the castle tonight. We will show you to your room.”

The moon loomed close over the unnamed forest, still glaring down at the clearing Luna found herself in. The sun had set, but the area was still lit with the glow of the moon. The clouds in the sky created a dim atmosphere, but it did not seem to be a full nightmare.

“Moon Light, student, I wish to speak to you in private. Please come here.”

Moon popped his head out of one of the clouds and looked down at her. The cloud floated lower until he was at eye level with the Princess.

“Student, this is how I will speak to you while you are in your new home. This area is your own creation, and as you teach me more about fitting in, I will teach you more about editing your dreamscape to your own design. Each night, I will look in to see how you are doing. If you have any issues or need someone to talk to, I will be here. If the dream is one unsuitable for conversation or otherwise… occupied…” Moon blushed and started to pull his head back into the clouds. “I will wait until the next day. The dreams are the best place to speak, because they can not be read or intercepted. While I do not expect they will be, this means that anything you tell me will be in complete confidence. I will not tell anyone, my sister included, about the dreams, because there are things for you to learn that others can not find out about. If you are willing, we will begin with your first lesson about the control of the dreams. First, we shall discuss how to make an item appear out of thin air. We shall start small. Now, let’s begin with a ball…”

Dearest Twilight Sparkle,

A new pony will be arriving in Ponyville tomorrow afternoon. He is a personal student of my sister, and I expect you to show him every courtesy that you would extend to me. So that you may inform the relevant parties (Pun intended, in Pinkie Pie’s case), I have some light information for you. Moon Light was born in Canterlot, but was moved away after witnessing a crime and speaking to the authorities. He moved to a town even smaller than Ponyville, and worked hard forgetting the things he had seen. He does have an interest in astronomy, but will most likely not mention it first, as in his town it was considered to be evil magic. Also, he has not seen a unicorn (with the exception of the Royal Guards, more on that soon) in about ten years, so he may stare a bit. While I am writing this, negotiations are still underway to ended being finalized Things don’t seem to be going well at the moment going fine. Moon Light was taken from the friends he had by rather forceful means, due to the ignorance and stupidity of a sergeant, who has already been harshly disciplined. The major thing to remember is not to crowd him, as it seems he is shy in large groups.

Thank you,

Princess Celestia

P.S., See if anyone in Ponyville will be willing to rent out a room for about fifty bits a day. That is the going rate of a room in Ponyville, is it not? I honestly don’t know right now. It’s a bit hectic right now.

Twilight Sparkle looked over the letter again. She hadn’t heard of Luna’s apprentice before! Why hadn’t she heard? This was strange. However, this pony loved astronomy! Finally, she had someone to stargaze with without them getting bored, throwing a party, or interpreting it as a romantic date. At the thought of her last date, Twilight shuddered. To say it had been a disaster would be putting it lightly.

She had to tell her friends the news. Oh, but who to tell first? Pinkie pie would somehow warp time until the new boy was already here, and then nobody else would know what was going on! Fluttershy was probably busy feeding her animal friends, and probably wouldn’t really care that there was a new pony in town. Rarity would immediately pester him with questions about the princess, and from the letter’s description, that would immediately drive him crazy! Rainbow Dash would probably just sleep through the entire explanation anyways, so that seemed pointless. Applejack it is then.

Twilight ran outside, and headed down towards Sweet Apple Acres. Time to set up a welcome this new pony would never forget!

Chapter 3: Preparations

Twilight managed to get to Sweet Apple Acres just before sundown. Applejack was still outside, finishing taking care of the farm animals before heading into bed.

“Applejack! We need to talk really quickly!" Twilight shouted to her. “We have a new visitor arriving tomorrow, and I want you to make some food as a welcome gift!”

Applejack sighed. Of course, the one day she had off, Twilight decided to bring a guest over. Ah well. Maybe this guest was different than the others and would not cause mayhem, destruction, mischief, or a swarm of walking trees to descend on Ponyville. Then again, with Twilight’s choice in guests… “Sure. Mind tellin’ me more about this new guest, or am ah gonna make up everything on mah own?” Applejack laughed.

Twilight took a deep breath, and then unleashed a torrent of words faster than Applejack expected. “Ok, well, Princess Luna has a student, and he is coming here tomorrow and he is a Pegasus named Moon Light and he likes astronomy and he hasn’t seen a unicorn or magic in a long time and he is shy and he is getting paid fifty bits a day for housing and he—“

Applejack cut her off with a hoof straight to the mouth. “Alright, so, this pony is shy. And you want to immediately greet him with a welcomin’ feast? Are you out of your mind, sugarcube? That’s just gonna make him embarrassed! What’s with you, girl? You need to calm down. Now, are you gonna take a deep breath and slow down, or am ah just goin’ to have to keep mah hoof here?”

Twilight nodded and backed up until she could speak again. “Yeah, I didn’t exactly plan this out. I was only told about five minutes ago. I didn’t even know Princess Luna HAD a student! I just want everything to be perfect, because if they aren’t, he may report back to Luna, who will talk to Celestia, and then I—“

Again, a hoof stopped her talking. “Ok sugar cube, ah get it. Now, let’s plan this out properly! And, for the love of Celestia, let’s not let Pinkie Pie know. She will probably drive this stallion bonkers!”

“No! Don’t say her name! Whenever you say her name, she—“

“Did someone say my name?” Pinkie Pie popped out of a tree nearby. To any other pony, it would be strange and a little terrifying, but it was just Pinkie. Twilight sighed.

“Before I finish explaining here, anypony else want to cut me off? Anypony? Come on, perfect chance right here! No? Very well then. Here are the basics. New stallion coming to down, he is very shy, so I don’t want a party going off when he lands. Maybe after he warms up to us, but please don’t startle him. Deal?”

Applejack nodded, and Pinkie Pie just blinked as she attempted to comprehend what Twilight had just said. “Wait… No party? How will he know he is welcome here? What if it is just a teensy weensy party?”

Twilight sighed. “Fine, but if things go bad, you don’t get to have another party for an entire week!”

Pinkie Pie groaned, and looked at Twilight with pleading eyes. “Can I at least invite my friends?”

“Yes, fine, but I don’t want this party to get too big, so let them know to come in secret!”

“Okie Dokie Lokie!”

As Pinkie Pie walked away, Applejack looked at Twilight. “Why do ah get the feeling this isn’t gonna go well?”

Moon awoke bright and early. After his training session with Luna, he did not have any more dreams. The training went fairly well, and he managed to only create three eldritch horrors! The things were about the size, shape, and consistency of a bouncy ball, and ended up being used as such, regardless of their threats and screams of rage. Luna and Moon laughed quite a bit, and Moon genuinely enjoyed spending time with his new teacher. But today, everything changed.

He had to go into town to buy some nicer clothes, especially ones that would hide his lack of a cutie mark, and he had enough money to buy whatever he wanted! Who knew that being the personal student of one of the Princesses could be so… Actually, now that he thought about it, it was kind of stupid to think otherwise.

Looking at his ratty cloak, he decided to leave that behind. New life means new cloths, and the cloak would always remind him of the taunting he had received. Time to hit the streets! But first… He had to stop by the kitchens to see someone.

The sergeant looked up from his potatoes. Once he saw Moon enter, he quickly ducked down to try to hide, but was unsuccessful. Moon walked over to him, and then did something that shocked everyone in the kitchen. Picking up a potato peeler, he began helping the sergeant with his work.

“Look, I understand why you did what you did. I don’t fault you for that. While I was infuriated with you back in Barn’s Ville, I have calmed down considerably. I will not offer you my forgiveness, because you do not need it. This was a mistake anypony could have made, and I think the Princesses were wrong to give this duty to you for interpreting orders in a different way. If it had caused a more profound reaction, then things would be different, but as it is, you have done enough. Go take a break.”

As Moon finished speaking, he heard the sound of light laughter as he thought he saw a flash of multicoloured hair go by the door. He didn’t care. He was busy peeling potatoes.

After the potatoes had been fully peeled, Moon went out into the town to see what he could buy with his money. First, however, he needed some new clothes. This was going to be fun!

Three minutes later, Moon regretted going outside. As he left the castle, a little filly said in a soft, childlike voice, “How come that big pony don’t have a cutie mark, mommy?” Everyone stared. Moon immediately ran down an alley to try to dodge the prying eyes of the Canterlot elite. Turning corner after corner in a dead sprint, he quickly became lost in the city. While he could fly up and find out where to go, everyone would see his flank and mock him, which was exactly what he wanted to avoid. Turning a final corner, he slammed straight into what felt like a brick wall. Shaking his head, he looked up at an Earth Pony with a billy club cutie mark.

“Well, well, well, boys. Look at what we got here! Some nobody who decided to come into our turf without payin’ the toll! Hey kid. You know how this goes. Either you give us everything on you, or we beat you to a pulp and take it anyways. You don’t seem to got many friends here, and I do!”

As Moon looked around, he noticed several ponies coming out of the shadows with various blunt objects in their mouths and hooves. This was not going to end well. His only option was to run, but with everyone on edge like they were, he wouldn’t get four meters before getting beaten down. He had to think fast.

“Ah, my dear gentlemen, I can see your point! I do not wish any trouble, so I truly have no option but to pay up, do I?” Moon reached toward his bag of bits. Just before he untied them, he immediately took off, using his wings to accelerate faster than these ponies could dive after him. He didn’t know where he was, all he knew was that he had to run, or he would get hurt badly. Taking corners as quickly as possible, he hoped to lose the thugs in the labyrinth of Lower Canterlot. Left. Left. Left. Straight across the street. Right. Left. Left.

As Moon rounded the last turn, he slammed headfirst into what felt like a metal wall. This hurt MUCH more than running into the thug. Looking up, he saw a Royal Guardsman with sergeant bars on his armour. It was the potato peeler guy!

“Huh. Looks like you got yourself a bit lost. Time to go. Come on, you are late.” With little more than that, Moon was picked up and carried out into the street, where a carriage had just pulled up.

Coming across the road, the thugs saw him and began yelling out… Until the carriage’s passenger got out. Long, flowing, multicoloured hair blew around in the wind as Celestia glared at the thugs until they ran away. “Moon, within an hour of leaving the castle, you wind up getting lost and then almost mugged? Oh, my. Looks like Twilight may have her work cut out for you. Speaking of cut… I thought you were going out to get new clothes. You seem decidedly… undressed.” Celestia laughed. “No matter. I’m sure something we have will fit, until you get new clothes at your new home. Come on in. Its time to go to Ponyville.”

Chapter 4: The arrival

A new cloak covered Moon Light as he hurriedly packed his small bag. He needed to go quickly, they were waiting for him. Cloak, check. Books from the Canterlot Library, check. Money, check. Well, that was it. Not exactly traveling heavy, now was he? Grabbing his bag in his mouth, he stepped out of his room, ready to leave the castle for his new home.

Next to the gates to the carriage landing pad, the two Princesses stood, along with their entourage of guardsmen. Celestia opened her mouth as Moon came close. “We have decided to come with you. Not for any length of time, I just need to see how my student is doing. I have not received a letter from her in some time, and after the stories I was told of the Crystal Empire, I have some reason to feel she is a bit afraid of me. Luna will be coming to… Honestly, I don’t know. Why are you coming, Luna? Coming to watch your student go to his first day of classes?” Celestia joked.

“We are coming to ensure the protection of our student from anything that would harm him. That is all. We are not concerned about our student in a new environment. Especially with… Pinkie Pie…” Luna started off strong, but ended up blushing and slowing down to a mumble as Celestia laughed.

“Sure, sure. Let’s get going, shall we?”

Moon Light made to put his bag on the carriage, when a unicorn stallion snatched it from him with his magic. Moon was immediately angry. “Hey! Just because you have magic and I don’t doesn’t mean I can’t lift things by myself, you know!”

The unicorn blinked. “My apologies, sire. I did not wish to offend you. I am merely alleviating your burdens. I am also told to inform you that Sir Gawahir would like to speak to you. He is over on the left, near the pillar.”

Sir Gawahir? Who in the hay was that? Moon looked over and saw a familiar guard, twirling a potato peeler in his hoof as he leaned against a marble pillar. Smiling, Moon walked over and shook hooves with the guardsman.

“Sir, I have a gift for you. My daughter got it, but after I had informed her of what happened in the kitchen, she thought you should have it. She got it up north, in the Crystal Empire during one of her travels.” Reaching into his bag, Gawahir pulled out a dream catcher, studded with red and black stones that seemed to radiate heat. Moon laughed at the irony, and Princess Luna looked over.

“Moon, it’s time to go. And please, keep that away from us. It has… Strange effects on our mind. Nothing dangerous, but very uncomfortable to all those nearby.”

As Moon went to place the dream catcher in his bag, it glowed with a yellow light and floated silently towards Princess Celestia. Holding a hoof over her mouth to indicate silence, she winked at Moon. Oh no, what did she have in mind?

The street was packed. Twilight had difficulty squeezing through the crowd, but Applejack’s rage-filled face made ponies move away quickly as she stomped though.

“PINKIE PIE! Get yer flank here, RIGHT NOW!” Applejack yelled into the crowd.

The pony directly behind Applejack suddenly raised three feet in the air. Pinkie Pie stepped sideways, leaving the mare floating in midair for a few seconds.

“Yes?” Pinkie asked innocently.

“We said a SMALL party. And you promised you would only invite your friends! You… Oh, let me guess. Everypony in town is your friend. You… Ah don’t even know what to say anymore! This poor colt is gonna be scared out of his mind!”

Twilight finally caught up. Seeing the look on Applejack’s and Pinkie Pie’s face, she shook her head. “Let me guess, everypony is her friend? I should have known better… We need to find some way to fix this before—“

A royal fanfare filled the air as two carriages descended from the clouds. The Princesses and the student had arrived.

One of the carriages was significantly larger than the other. It had a gold trim, and was decorated with the symbol of the sun. The second was pulled by the Night Guard (looking quite uncomfortable in the afternoon sun), and had a silver crescent moon along both sides. Curiously, it also had a dream catcher, blowing in the wind beside one of the closed windows.

The doors of the first carriage opened, and out walked Princess Celestia. Twilight’s jaw hit the floor. This was something she didn’t plan for. The princess walked over and stared down at her student. “We need to have a chat later. Nothing bad, I assure you. I just have some questions. Well, one of them should be asked now. Do you not remember me mentioning that this boy was shy? Why is all of Ponyville here to greet him?”

Twilight looked to her left at the pink pony literally bouncing up and down. Celestia nodded in understanding. “Well, if he asks, the party was just for Luna and me, right?” she winked and knocked on the second carriage door. As the door opened, loud laughter came from inside, booming across Ponyville.

Princess Luna stumbled out, her face blushed and swaying slightly. She appeared to be in the middle of a story, but with every third word being slurred, it was difficult to tell. “So, I says to this pony, ‘You little FOAL!’ Get it? Foal! Instead of fool! And then –“ Luna hiccuped, “She came charging at me! Straight at me!”

The town was aghast. One of their beloved and majestic princesses, acting loud and boisterous like someone who drank too much cider! Princess Celestia laughed.

“Oh, so that’s where I put that dream catcher! Let me just get that down!” As the glow of yellow magic moved the dream catcher away, Luna stopped swaying and looked out across the crowd. Twilight thought her face could not go redder. She was wrong.

“Tia, we… You… UGH!” Luna stormed back into the carriage. She came out with a tiny bag and placed it on the ground. “Come on out, Moon. We need to find you a place to stay during your lessons.”

Moon stuck his head out of the carriage. Everypony was staring at the Princesses, so maybe he could sneak away before they everyone decided to mock him. He went out to get his bag, and as he reached to pick it up, a pink blur popped out of the bag in a way that flew in the face of physics, common sense, and reality itself. Moon stumbled backwards and tripped over his own cloak as the pink ball came towards him.

Extending a hoof, Pinkie Pie helped the stallion up, and then immediately started talking before Moon could stop her “Hi! I’m Pinkie Pie! You must be the new colt. Well, of course you are. Who else could you be? Anyways, I have to introduce you to all of my friends and then we need to go to Sugarcube Corner for cake! Or cupcakes. I haven’t decided yet, but that doesn’t matter. What does matter is that we are now friends! Oh! I need to show you the Ponyville Welcome Song later. I can’t do it now because after the last time, Celestia told me I couldn’t bring it anywhere near her. But that doesn’t matter anyways! So, let’s get started introductions!”

Names and faces flew by in a whirl, and Moon started to become dizzy. So many ponies, all crowded around him. He just wanted to find somewhere and take a nap. Everything was so new and confusing, and Pinkie Pie wasn’t helping at all. Moon saw some faces he recognized from the description Luna had given him. The purple one must be Rarity! Or was it Twilight? He couldn’t wait to meet them.

Turning around, Moon found himself face to face with the most beautiful pony in Equestria. He stopped, and his mind went blank. All he could think about was the pony in front of him, holding her blue hoof out expectantly. His mind couldn’t comprehend what was going on, until Pinkie Pie ended up kicking him in the side. Snapping back to reality, he realized he had been staring at the outstretched hoof for a full minute. Gingerly reaching out a hoof, he shook hands with Rainbow Dash, and then looked away and broke contact.

Luna noticed something was odd about her student, and came to the rescue. “Pinkie Pie, we understand that it is important to meet everypony, but our student has had a rough day already and needs to get settled in. Come along, Moon. It is time to go.”

Pinkie Pie held up a hoof. “Wait! Moon!” As Pinkie Pie ran after him, she tripped on something and rolled forward. Slamming into the Pegasus, she heard a metallic snap as the cloak came free. Princess Luna’s heart fell. Oh no. This was going to be bad. In the dead silence, a little filly’s voice echoed across the crowd.

“Mommy, how come he don’t got a cutie mark?”

Chapter 5: New home

Moon ran. He didn’t know where he was running, but he didn’t care. All he knew was that he could not be there anymore. The eyes of everypony had stared at him, had judged him, and found him unworthy, just like all the others. The alleyways did not contain his flight for long, and he kept running. The field he ran through was green, with flowers across the soft, rolling hills. Small animals looked up in shock at the sound of his flight. Spotting a treeline, Moon bolted toward it. It would provide some relief from his burning shame. Plunging headfirst into the foliage, Moon felt a single tear roll down his cheek.

The princesses glared at Pinkie Pie. “Pinkamena Diane Pie. We need to talk. Now!” Twilight was surprised to find the thundering voice come from Princess Celestia this time. Whatever was going to happen, it wasn’t going to be pretty. Pinkie held her head down as she walked with the princesses towards Sugar Cube Corner. As soon as they were out of sight, the crowd finally found its voice. Everypony was talking over each other.

Applejack was one of the first to react. “Elements o’ Harmony! Meet at Sugar Cube Corner! NOW!” she yelled across the crowd. Twilight and Applejack started running toward the confectionary shop. They needed to meet up before they could all confront the princesses. “Say, Twilight… What do you think is gonna happen? The Princess seemed in a right awful temper.”

“I don’t know, Applejack. I just hope we can stop it before somepony does something she will regret.”

Pinkie Pie was miserable. She had just wanted to meet the new colt! She didn’t mean to embarrass him… Although what was he embarrassed about? He seemed pretty normal. No extra wings, no multiple eyes… Nothing too weird there!

As they entered Sugar Cube Corner, the princesses looked down at Pinkie Pie. Luna sighed and said sadly, “That… That didn’t go as well as I had hoped. I hope he is ok. I will need to find him soon, if he does not return. As for you, Pinkie… What was that huge party all about? Did Twilight not tell you he was shy?” Pinkie Pie didn’t answer, instead keeping her head low.

Princess Celestia stepped in. There was no anger in her voice as she extended a wing around Pinkie Pie. “We understand you only wanted to make him feel welcome, but he wasn’t ready for that. He was going to tell everyone in his own time, but instead you showed his secret to the people he was going to befriend. I know you didn’t mean to, but it isn’t me you need to apologize to. From what I understand about him, he will forgive you, but only if you explain what really happened, and that you don’t crowd him when he needs his space. Is that ok?”

Pinkie’s lip trembled. She had just wanted to help. She made somepony else sad, and she didn’t even realize why. It didn’t make sense, it wasn’t fair! “I do- do- don’t under*sniff*stand what he ran away from! I didn’t mean to hurt him! I promise! Cross my heart, and hope—“ Pinkie Pie lost it, tears rolling down her cheeks as she realized she may never get Moon to be her friend ever again.

The door burst open, Rainbow Dash almost slamming into a low-hanging wooden beam. “Let her go! She didn’t mean to do it! Uh—Princess.” Rainbow Dash yelled loudly before remembering exactly who she was yelling at.

Princess Celestia was reminded of a time, not too long ago, when the ponies had come to the rescue of one of their own, but this time Twilight stood tall and defiant, as Pinkie cried her eyes out.

“Princess Celestia, I failed you. I didn’t inform Pinkie Pie of how shy he was. I thought he was only shy out of nervousness, and that he would feel welcome. Punish me instead of her!”

Luna looked at her sister. “May we speak in private, sister? I have an idea on how to resolve this.”

The two alicorns backed away from the group, and the ponies ran over to comfort Pinkie Pie. Applejack turned to Rarity. “Look, ah have an idea to cheer her up, but ah need you to trust me. Alright?” Rarity nodded her agreement. “Ok, stand right there. Hey, Pinkie! Rarity has somethin’ ta show ya!” Rarity looked around in confusion. For a split second, she saw a white bag flying at her.

Time stopped. She couldn’t have. She COULDN’T HAVE!

The flour exploded all over Rarity, covering her in the white powder. Rarity’s eyes narrowed. Applejack was going to suffer for this travesty! That little farm girl would NOT get away with—

Rarity broke off her thoughts of vengeance as she heard sniffling giggles come from behind her. Pinkie Pie was smiling, and the smile had travelled up to her eyes, drying off the tears that were still in there.

The steady clopping of hooves brought the girls to attention.

“We have decided your punishment, Pinkamena. Unless your friends would rather share your punishment?” Celestia raised an eyebrow at the rest of the group, and was met with many emphatic nods. “Very well, then you must see to it that Moon Light enjoys his time in Ponyville. If anything happens, each of you will be held responsible. Now, may I make a suggestion?” The girls nodded again.

Celestia looked out the window. “Go find him, please.”

As the six ponies ran out, Luna walked up to Celestia. “I know where he is. He went there immediately.”

Celestia looked back at her sister. “Why there? Does he know what memories that place holds? What will happen if he discovers its original purpose?”

“Worry not, sister. The wards holding her still hold strong. With any luck, Twilight and the others will find him well before… anyways, we need to return home, quickly. We have been away for much longer than anticipated, and we need to prepare in case...” Luna fell silent, and walked toward the doors.

The two princesses left the building and headed towards the carriages. Behind them, a small bipedal shape crawled out of its hiding space in a donut box. Producing a quill and parchment, Spike began to write.

Moon looked at the ruins in front of him. The door barely stayed on its hinges, and the cracked, overgrown wall showed many years of neglect. The absolute silence showed the isolation of this place, and the nearby fields were overgrown with weeds. This would be his new home, alone with the moonlight and stars.

Chapter 6: The Forest's traps

Moon looked around the outside of the ruined fortress in front of him. This place was strange. Nothing moved, or even came close to grounds. His new home was isolated far beyond what he expected. He loved it. First things first though, he needed to explore his new home and find all that it could offer him.

“So, why did he run away in the first place?” Pinkie Pie asked as they searched through the town.

Rarity, ever quick with a response, simply turned up her nose. “Did you SEE that cloak? If I was wearing it, I would run away too, especially when it went flying through the air like that.”

Rainbow Dash smacked her face with her hoof. “You can NOT be serious. Am I the only one who actually has eyes and saw the distinct LACK of a cute mark?"

The group fell silent for a bit. They had all seen it, but it didn’t bother most of them. With all the strange things Ponyville had seen, it wasn’t exactly the biggest thing to enter town. Applejack rolled her eyes. “We know about that. It was kind of hard to hide… Or not hide, as it turns out. Rainbow Dash, how about this; When we find that boy, don’t mention it to him. Ah think he may have panicked. Applebloom will most likely explode when ah tell her. Oh, that poor boy… If them Cutie Mark Crusaders get their hooves on him, I don’t know what will happen.”

Pinkie blinked “Oh. I didn’t notice. I was planning the party.”

The girls laughed as they continued their search. Their laughter soon died down when they realized the only place nearby left to search was right in front of them. The group stared at the Forest. None of them really wanted to go in first. Suddenly, Twilight came up with a brilliant idea.

“Should we see Zecora? I don’t think anyone knows the Forest quite like her, and maybe she found him already.”

From the outside, the castle looked huge. Inside, however, it seemed to be much smaller than Moon had anticipated. There were three major rooms. The first one he came to, just inside the main door, had a strange looking construction at the far end, looking to be some sort of planetarium, with five empty sockets hung around a starburst in the middle. He looked at it, confused. What possible use could this have? It was just another question to ask Luna when—

Suddenly, it occurred to him that he hadn’t even thanked Luna, let alone saw her off from Ponyville. She was going to be pissed. Sighing, he knew that he didn’t exactly have a choice of whether or not to see her. The Pegasus figured he had a good four or five hours left on his life before the Princess of the Night obliterated him for his rudeness. Might as well examine his new home and maybe go back to Ponyville to apologize for running out.

The second room he came across was strange. Odd letters covered the northern wall, in a script he did not recognize, that were glowing a pale red. Looking for anything that seemed familiar, shapes and figures seemed to form out of the letters, forming what looked to be a planetary system. The centre of the system was dominated by a large shape, containing only one letter, and within one orbital line, multiple planets revolved.

Moon spun away from the wall as his mind reeled. Shapes carved into the stone itself could not move, and certainly could not form the solar system. It didn’t make sense. His head felt like exploding while he tried to comprehend what simply could not be. Looking back at the wall, it had reverted back to its original form. Shaking his head, he quickly moved on to the last room.

Small bits of metal and broken glass covered the middle of the room. At the very end was a cracked platform, with barely any height at all. The strange, ambient light from the last room reflected off of something large and metallic in the far back, and Moon approached cautiously. He crept forward, making sure to avoid all pieces of glass and metal, and soon reached the glinting object. Picking it up, it appeared to be a helmet of a unicorn, made of black metal that radiated sadness and anger. As he looked at the helmet, one of the eye holes began glowing green.

For the second time today, Moon ran away. He didn't know what that amour was, he didn’t know what that creepy wall was, and right now, he did not want to put up with it. He had to get back to Ponyville, and soon. Maybe Pinkie Pie knew where he could stay, or maybe Rainbow Dash would let him stay with her…

His mind wandered, and before he knew it, he found himself standing under a strange tree. Something tugged at his mind, but he didn’t care. The tree was relaxing. Maybe Rainbow Dash could meet him here and they could spend some time together, just being happy. Such a tree was wonderful. Nice, warm, comfortable tree...

A jet of water blasted him right in the side, knocking him over. As he looked up, the tree changed form into a red-maned, green Pegasus, and took off, leaving a black trail so thick that the stars themselves seemed to disappear, after hissing at the figure that spat water at Moon.

“Are you alright, my young colt? That horrible beast gave you quite a jolt. Your friends have been looking for you, for they wish to apologize and give you your due."

Moon looked up at the strange, multi-coloured pony. Right now, he just wanted to go home, and this new pony was the last straw. After the rescue from that tree/Pegasus thing, he was done with this forest.

“Stay away from me. I don’t know who you are, and I don’t care, but if you are in this forest, then you want to hurt me, and I’m not putting up with that anymore. I’m out of here.”

Taking off, he flew up through the trees. Clouds seemed to be forming nearby, so there must be some pegasi over in that direction. Maybe one of them could tell him how to get home. Putting on as much speed as he could, he quickly came to the cloud. “HEY! You guys in there! I need help getting ho—back to Ponyville. Which way is it?”

The cloud remained silent, and Moon assumed that they couldn’t hear him. Storm clouds were loud, and it was difficult to hear yourself think when you work with one of those. Storm clouds are also completely under the control of pegasi, so the first lightning bolt caught him by surprise. “Hey! There is a forest down there! You are going to start a fire! Are you guys all idiots or something?”

Diving in, Moon went to confront the source of the danger, but could not find a single Pegasus. He bit one of the clouds, trying to dismantle the storm before the stupid controllers burnt down the whole forest.

The lightning bolt caught him in the right wing, lancing straight through to his hoof, and continuing down to the ground. The pain was horrible. It felt like someone had torn his entire wing off, and poured lemonade into the wound. He tried to move, to look at his wing, but the scenery changed too fast. He was falling, and his right wing seemed to be paralyzed. Looking down, then up, he noticed the ground coming towards him. It didn’t seem like the trees were going to stop his fall. Five seconds to impact. I’m so sorry, Princess. I wasn’t good enough.

Three seconds to impact. A small, white creature ran away from the clearing, seeing his descent. That lucky rabbit.

One second.

Impact.

Chapter 7: Timberwolves and the Abyss

Fluttershy was scared. The Everfree Forest was never anything but scary monsters and a nice zebra. Since Zecora was already out looking for Moon, that left only the scary monsters to come out, and she was not looking forward to that at all. While she knew the others would stop anything from hurting her, she was more concerned about them. What would she do if one of them got hurt? They would have to leave Moon here overnight, and maybe he is lost, or scared, or lost and scared!

The rustling in the bushes made Fluttershy jump and squeal. The others turned around as the yellow eyes of a timberwolf came out of the wood line. The timberwolf was very small, only about the size of one of the ponies.

“Ready, RD?” Applejack winked to her rainbow-maned friend. At an unspoken cue, they both charged the timberwolf, flanking him in an instant.

Rainbow Dash laughed as she grabbed the wolf and held it up by its legs and tail. “And here comes the kick…”, she said as Applejack reared back.

“And it’s out of the park!” Twilight squealed as the kick shattered the small timberwolf into its component branches. She jumped and clapped her hooves together, believing she had finally used the correct sports expression. Her joy faded as she looked around and saw Rainbow Dash and Applejack facehoofing.

“Now, Twilight, that was a mighty fine try, but… Ah think it’s best if ya just leave the catchphrases to me and Dash.”

Suddenly the branches rustled again, as a timberwolf’s eyes appeared behind them. Stepping out of the bushes, it appeared to be a much larger timberwolf, easily double the size of Princess Celestia. Pinkie Pie looked up in surprise as the foul breath washed over her.

“I don’t think my party cannon is big enough for this one!”

Moon awoke. There was nothing around him but mist as far as the eye could see. There was no floor, and yet he could not descend though the mist. There were no trees, no storm clouds, and no sound.

“Hello?” he called out, hoping to dispel the mist and return to where he had just been. The mist around him began to swirl. Unsure of what was going on, he attempted to put a hoof through the mist. Sharp, burning pain made him pull his hoof back, and he looked in horror after seeing his hoof impaled with ice shards. As he stared at his wounded hoof, the ice melted and flowed back into the mist surrounding him. The pain did not fade, but no blood came from the wound.

The icy mist suddenly froze in midair, and a shape walked out of the mist. The mist seemed to completely fill its form. It appeared to be a single ball on three legs, and as Moon watched, the ball rolled around until an iris stared directly at Moon

“This… not your home. Why… come… not time…” Its voice, whispering from all around, sent shivers down Moon’s spine. That would have been creepy enough, but the source of the whisper was unknown, as the eye had no visible mouth. Frozen in terror at what appeared to be something Discord would have cooked up, he had no response.

“I… see your… Problem. That is… Past. Past… but wrong. This… must be… Fixed. Petitions have been… Sent.”

“Wh-wh-where am I? What is this place?” Moon stuttered to the eye, barely getting over his terror. “Is this a dream, or is this the real world?”

“Reality is… but the… manifestation… of the dreams of a select… few. This is the… reality of some… The dream of some… The abyss to some… Elysium to others. Petitions... return. You… have come, before fate… wants you. It is time. Leave… Leave now, mortal… Live… And run…”

The girls panted as the huge timberwolf finally collapsed. That had been a lot of running. Rarity looked over at the only party member not exhausted from the battle, and panted at her. “Pinkie… Pie… where… did… you… find… that… grenade?”

Pinkie Pie giggled. “Oh, that was just a mistake. I meant to throw him a cupcake! I don’t know how the grenade got in there!” Everyone else started looking in their own packs, in case some high-explosive grenades managed to fit into their packs. No more were found.

The branches rustled a third time. Yellow eyes started glowing from beside a nearby tree.

“No. That’s it. I’m done. I’M DONE!” Rainbow Dash shouted. “There comes a time, in everypony’s life, when you just need to fold. When you need to look inside yourself and simply ask, ‘What am I willing to put up with today?’ Well, I’m done. I am going to break this timberwolf in half, and then I’m going home, and when I wake up, I’m burning the entire forest to the ground!”

The yellow eyes quickly faded.

The fourth time the branches rustled, the girls didn’t even stop their impromptu tea party. If a timberwolf was really so desperate for a bite to eat, then it was going to find itself in a world of hurt.

Luckily for Angel, the three flying saucers, levitated by a purple glow, sailed over his head, shattering against a nearby tree.

“ANGEL! WHAT ARE YOU DOING OUT HERE!?!” Fluttershy jumped to her hooves and yelled at the small, white bunny. Angel twitched his nose twice, pointed back the way he had come, and tossed a pine cone at Twilight, all at the same time. That bunny was amazing.

“What? Oh no! Twilight, we need to go. Rainbow Dash, go back to Ponyville and get Nurse Redheart. Rarity, go with her. Pinkie Pie, you too. Applejack, come on. You are with me and Twilight!”

The girls froze, not used to the passion coming from their normally docile friend. Fluttershy turned, and whispered back to Angel. He raised a paw to her, and then went bounding off to the west, towards Ponyville. Fluttershy turned around. “What are you all standing there for? I said, MOVE! We don’t have much time! Moon Light is badly hurt, and we need to get him out of the Everfree Forest, so for Celestia’s sake, GO!”

Chapter 8: Moon's awakening

Luna felt her heart sink as her carriage approached the city of Canterlot. Celestia had gone ahead to try to distract the ever-present newspapers and photographers, but it was not enough. It never was. The swarm of reporters were barely being contained by the Night Guards, and even some noble citizens had come to push back the paparazzi. Luna sighed.

This was the part she hated the most.

The escort knocked on the window, and Luna moved it down so that he could yell inside to his Princess. “The LZ is hot, we are going to create a perimeter around our secondary drop zone. Thirty seconds, be ready!” He gestured upward, and she rolled up the window to obscure the press’s view of her.

Luna smiled a bit at the soldier’s military jargon. It was obvious this Pegasus spent more time ferrying diplomats of the Gryphon Empire, or even some of the ambassadors to the Dragon Wastes. While Luna herself was no stranger to war, or even military jargon, she was confused for a second. Celestia had never told her about a secondary stop point. And, what could he possibly mean by “drop zone”?

Luna looked out of the tinted window. Something deep in her chest ached. She was not looking forward to her return to business. What new issues could Lord Seed possibly have that she needed to deal with this time?

Her thoughts were interrupted by a tap at the window. The escort gestured at his wings, and shouted something she couldn’t hear. Luna leaned forward to open the window. She expected him to tell her that they were about to arrive. She was NOT expecting the floor of the carriage to retract, leaving her falling through the air right over Canterlot Castle. Possibly, she could get inside the castle before any of the various inquisitive eyes caught sight of her.

She was not so lucky. Within a flash, several pegasi had surrounded her with pencils and cameras, and began shouting questions at her.

“What do you have to say about your recent collapse? Who was that figure that the Guard captured? Is it true Lord Seed tried to assassinate you? Are you pregnant? Do you know who the father is?”

Luna was shocked at the questions. Not only did they make no sense at all, they were so personal! Her eyes flashed, and then faded to a solid black. She was done with these ponies. She didn’t want to hear any more stupid questions. They would all pay for disrupting HER free time! Their children would suffer the wrath of Nightmare Mo—

Luna stopped, her eyes reverting to their old colour, and she looked around. Gone were the clouds and nosy reporters. Instead, a soft, warm light blocked her view. What just happened? Where was she?

Out of the darkness, a ball on three legs walked out. It rotated until a single iris stared at her.

“He came… Hurt. Deals were… Struck. We require one life to… balance… the scales. Ten days. You must… Control Her, or She will… return. Memories were awoken. We stopped Her, for now.”

Luna stared at the creature that would give demands to her. This creature was one of the Void-beasts, creatures who guard the realm of death from those who would unravel Fate’s Tapestry. It may have supreme power, but it would not get away with threatening her citizens.

“You will not take the life of a single pony! You shall not harm our subjects!”

“Misunderstanding… has occurred. Not a life… An… experience of life. Those… who make the deals want to know what… living is. Power, pain, pleasure, sadness, joy, weakness, hunger… love. Those are… requirements. Find them… Or we return for the boy.”

The light faded, and she was in Celestia’s room. Her sister stared at her in shock. Luna raised a hoof to find a wet streak on her cheek. The memories of the last thousand years came crashing down onto her. The memory of what she was going to do to those poor reporters up in the sky.

“Sister… Nightmare moon… I remember everything!”

She collapsed into her sister’s arms, and let the tears flow, leaving damp spots on her sister’s pristine, warm coat. Celestia held her sister as she cried, and could only stroke the hair as she too remembered the sister she had failed to protect, all those years ago.

Moon was drifting, floating upon the waves of nothingness, suspended only on the tides of the universe itself. The mist had faded, and so had the pain. Now, he was left in complete nothingness. Part of him kept tugging at his mind, reminding him to do… something. The other half of his mind was tired. It wanted to stay, sailing on the endless, invisible sea. He didn’t know how long he hovered there, as time had no meaning. The concept of time was ludicrous. Moon Light was finally happy.

Happy. That word resounded in his mind, bringing together both parts of his divided mind for a single instance, as he thought about it. Happy. Were others happy?

Others. What others? He was alone. “But,” something in his mind said, “not alone as well.”

He remembered. He was falling. He was up in a storm cloud, trying to find the idiots responsible for such a big storm. The strange, multi-coloured pony walked up to him. The tree called to him, relaxing him while soothing his worries. The armour glinted in the darkness, the light reflecting from the last room. The simple, impossible wall. The pedestal loomed before him, with its strange, empty platforms. The castle loomed up from the shadows, with its open fields nearby.

Ponyville. Twilight Sparkle. Pinkie Pie. Rarity. Applejack. Fluttershy. And her: The most beautiful of them all, Rainbow Dash.

Their voices tugged at him. They began pulling him from his spot, calling him to a warm, new location. A dim light appeared. As the voices grew louder, so too did the light. The voices were quickly turning panicked, and a steady whine filled the air. Moon felt something on his chest, but saw nothing when he looked down.

“EVERYPONY, GET CLEAR!”

Sudden, horrific pain filled him, originating from the strange feeling on his chest. The whine changed to a beeping and then back into a whine. As the beeping changed back, the pain immediately vanished.

“Celestia curse it, AGAIN!”

The pain returned, and the beeping resumed. This time, however, it did not end. The pain caused him to open his eyes in shock as he took a deep, gasping breath. Everything was very difficult to concentrate on, and he could barely make out a large splotch of various colours on the side of the room he was in. The room was a colour… Blue. The word came to him, as things began fitting into place.

Unfortunately, things did not have long to settle, as he was immediately assaulted by a violent combination of yellow and pink. It appeared the yellow splotch was trying to stop the pink. Sounds came from them, but they made no sense to him. He opened his mouth again to speak, but forgot how. Instead of a greeting, only a simple gurgle came out of his mouth.

A red shape with a white background moved across his view. He didn’t recognize it yet, but he knew it meant safety. The object in front of him began making loud noises, and the large, multi-coloured smear collected its yellow and pink bits and flowed toward an opening. A door. They flowed toward a door.

A face appeared in his view. The mare smiled at him, and he tried to wave weakly. Even though he didn’t know the face, he knew he was safe. He was alive.

The letter arrived just as Twilight got back to the library. Immediately taking it, she read the message it contained. It certainly was a strange one, but Princess Celestia always knew what she was doing. Dropping it on the floor, she ran back out, hoping to get her friends together again before they all went to sleep. She had some important news they needed to hear.

Back in the library, Spike picked up the letter. It wasn’t like Twilight to not even put away letters after she had finished reading them. He looked around, and, seeing nopony, began reading.

Dearest Twilight,

I have an important mission. You need to help Moon Light experience life as much as possible. We do not have much time to do this. I will not explain the reason why, but if he doesn’t experience all forms of life, he may die. I know this will hurt, and I hope to explain later, but he must take in the bad as well as the good. Leave no stone unturned. I believe in you, my student. You have never let me down yet.

Princess Celestia,

Lady of the Sun, Protector of Canterlot

Leader of all Equestria,

Guardian of the Citizens

Chapter 9: Monday morning

The sun rose over Ponyville. The glaring light refracted through the window, reflected off of a metal pole, and ended up hitting Moon Light right in the eyes. With a tiny groan, a stretch, and a hiss of sharp pain, he awoke, only to find himself still being targeted by the sun’s rays. It must be a Monday, he thought with a smile. No other day would the sun only hit him in the eye.

Today, according to a quick, strange chat he had with Luna while dreaming, he would be released to find something. Moon struggled to remember the dream, but the morphine and sleeping medicine made it come out muffled and foggy. However, he remembered something about Twilight coming to save him… or something along those lines. He quickly looked at the damage he had taken, and groaned in pain from the sight. His right wing was heavily bandaged, the bandages themselves a deep red, matching the identical stain on the sheets. It ached and itched horribly, but he knew that pulling off the bandages would only make his wing bleed more. Luckily, it seemed like the bleeding had stopped for now, so he went on to identify his other wounds.

His left hind leg also hurt, so that would be priority number two. As he bent forward to look at it, a searing agony filled his body as muscles that had been horribly injured began working again. Taking it slower this time, he sat up so that he could throw off the blankets. While he was covered in bandaged cuts and bruises, it didn’t seem as bad as it could have been. From what he expected, it wasn’t even as bad as it should have been!

Moon’s head hurt, as some memory attempted to surface, but failed miserably. Shaking his head, he looked around for something to wear. Quickly finding a gown nearby, he slowly and tenderly slipped out of bed. As his legs hit the floor, they quickly crumpled as a massive amount of pain lanced upward. He knew he shouldn’t be walking, but he had no choice. He had already failed Luna once, he would not do so again.

Through sheer force of will, he managed to stand, wrapping the gown clumsily around him. Grabbing a nearby metal pole for support, he noticed the IV in his arm. It must be to replace all the blood he kept losing. He followed the IV to the bag, hanging on another metal pole that rolled on wheels. Letting go of his current pole, he stumbled toward the other pole, grabbing it just in time. Steeling himself for the fight the doctor was most likely going to put up, he started walking towards the door, using the IV stand to support himself.

The door opened just before he got there, leaving him face to face with a white unicorn mare. He recognized her as Redheart. He wasn’t too sure, but that didn’t stop him. Opening his mouth, he attempted to speak.

“Go… leaving… Princess,” he managed, before he began coughing from the strain. This was going to be difficult.

“Oh, yes, I know. Princess Luna has personally seen to it that you will most likely get an infection and die. Have fun!” Nurse Redheart seemed to be having difficulty sounding polite. Moon guessed that it was simply the indignation of being overridden that must be making her mad.

Twilight awoke at the same time she always did, which was fifteen minutes early for the meeting. The girls would come and get Moon out of the hospital, and then throw him a true Pinkie Pie welcoming party! While the doctors would certainly be upset, it would be fine! With the Saviours of Equestria, he would be fine! Suddenly, she realized that Moon had no place to stay. He couldn’t stay with her, because between Spike and the new amalgam reaction she had devised, the only room was the basement, where the experiments were being done. Pinkie Pie would accept him, but the Cakes couldn’t hold any more ponies in their house. Rarity would probably drive him insane, and her penchant for tight clothing would do more harm than good. Maybe he could stay with Rainbow Dash?

Twilight’s face fell as she thought. He couldn’t stay with Rainbow after… Oh, dear Celestia, that poor boy’s wing. It was a sight she didn’t ever want to see again. She tried desperately to forget it. A sweet smell filled her nostrils, as she realized Spike must be up and making breakfast. Usually, he sleeps in! He must be feeling extra helpful today. Suddenly, the food and wing thought mixed, and she felt nauseous. Maybe today wasn’t a good day for breakfast.

Heading down the stairs, she realized she hadn’t solved her problem yet. With every issue so far, the only three choices were to stay with Fluttershy, Applejack, or to get a house alone. The purple unicorn winced as she remembered rumours she had heard in the marketplace, about the cost of housing. It would be tough, but he probably could make it.

Spike came out, holding a plate full of waffles. They smelled faintly of apples and cinnamon, and Twilight’s heart broke. Spike must have spent so much time and effort onto those waffles, and she wasn’t going to eat a single bite.

Well…. Maybe just one. Or two.

The girls met near the statue in the middle of the town square. Rarity looked absolutely dreadful, and appeared to have not slept a wink. With a spin of her hair, and a bit of magic, the weariness and exhaustion flowed away, leaving her mane springing back into its usual style. Fluttershy had arrived early, and was in the bushes playing with some small rodent. A single cloud, Rainbow Dash’s trademark, flew overhead. A loud explosion heralded the arrival of the Element of Laughter, followed by yelling from an approaching Applejack. As Pinkie Pie landed, Twilight distinctly saw an apple pie disappear, pan and all, into the pink mare’s mouth.

Twilight gathered the girls around her quickly. It was time for a speech! “Now, I know everypony has things to get done today, but I told you what the Princess said. I need volunteers for everything. First, we need a house for him. We have three options. He can either go with Applejack, stay with Fluttershy, or he can attempt to buy a house. Ideas?”

Fluttershy popped her head out of the bushes “Oh, I don’t know if he can stay with me. I mean, I don’t mean to sound rude, but I just met him, and the animals haven’t, and they may not like him and—“

Applejack began speaking, interrupting Fluttershy, “Fine, he can come stay with me, but ah still want him to try to help with the farmin’! Ah know he’s hurtin’ and all, but maybe we can give him some of the light jobs, if he wants ‘em.”

Twilight nodded “Ok, that’s part one. Pinkie Pie, you know what part two is. From there, we can spend the day showing him around Ponyville. Tomorrow, we need to start the lessons.”

Pinkie Pie’s eyes widened as her friend mentioned part two. “OH! I need to get ready for part two! Give me five minutes, a piñata, and a bagel!” At the looks from her friends, she shrugged. “What? Bagels are good in the morning!”

The friends, sans a pink pony, set off towards the hospital. Moon must be ready to get out of there by now.

As Moon stumbled out into the blinding sunlight, he saw three ponies approaching him. They appeared to be security personnel, even though there were very few valuables in the hospital. Waving his discharge form, two backed away while one still approached. The security guard offered a hoof, and Moon gladly took it, balancing himself as the world spun again. He knew he could do this. All he had to do was find Twilight and find out what that strange dream was about.

A yellow blur shot past him, and he felt himself take flight. The immediate shock sent a spike of agony through his wing, and he yelled in pain and surprise. Looking around, he found himself nose to nose with Fluttershy, who had picked him up and was flying towards a group of ponies. Blushing and turning away, he looked at the approaching group and was pleased to note that both Twilight and Rainbow Dash were among them.

He tapped Fluttershy, and asked to be let down. He wanted to show how strong he was, and maybe impress the legendary flyer. Setting his unsteady legs on the ground, he began to walk towards the group. Fluttershy followed him at every step, making sure he was not going to fall. Looking up, he noticed Pinkie Pie’s absence. Shaking his head slightly, he wondered what devious plans she was cooking up.

He came up to the group faster than he expected. Smiling at the group, Moon spoke his first clear sentence of the day.

“Hello Twilight. I apparently died and got better. The Princess needed something. Before we talk about that, I need food. It seems nutrient supplements do nothing for the body’s desire for taste. What’s for lunch?”

Chapter 10: Monday afternoon

Twilight laughed at the statement. He seemed so calm while saying it, that anypony else would think that he just got done reading or something. Suddenly, she heard a loud growl, as her stomach decided food would be fun. After a quick glare at her rebellious belly, she sighed.

Five minutes later they were sitting down outside a cosy diner Twilight frequented. Several daisy and sunflower sandwiches sat in front of the six ponies, as they caught up on what happened in the forest. The giddy delight Moon felt was fading, to be replaced with apprehension. He knew he had to apologize, but without Pinkie Pie, it seemed pointless. From what he understood, Pinkie was the most hurt by his actions. A tapping sound pulled him out of his thoughts, and he looked at the others, realizing they had asked a question.

“Ah said, where did ya go in the forest? Not even Zecora could find ya!” Applejack said, and immediately took a bite of her sandwich.

“Well, first off, I don’t know who Zecora is, but I found a ruined castle. It was… What’s wrong?” All of the others’ faces fell at the mention of the castle.

“That castle… That’s where we defeated Nightmare Moon. That was deep inside the Everfree Forest. How did you even get there?” Twilight asked, confusion evident on her face. “There were so many things that tried to stop us, and I don’t think all of them had to do with Nightmare Moon’s return!”

Moon shrugged, as he didn’t rightly know either. He quickly continued his tale, excluding the strange wall and armour. Those are my secrets for now. Once I find out what they are, they will definitely like me! He smiled at that thought. With a cool discovery like that, maybe he may even get his cutie mark in ancient relic hunting or something. It wasn’t a great idea, but it was better than nothing!

After recounting the tale of the strange, multi-coloured pony, Moon quickly found himself embarrassed. He had fled from an ally, and one that had personally risked a dangerous part of the forest to find him! Moon suspended his story and hung his head down in shame.

“Oh, no sweat. Zecora was fine, she probably knew what was going. Too bad we didn’t tell her you are such a scaredy cat!” Rainbow Dash teased, oblivious to the blush that lit Moon’s face. Fluttershy’s eyes widened, and she suddenly reached across and grabbed a sandwich and began eating it earnestly.

Everypony was shocked by the shy pegasus’s abrupt action, but none of them wanted to be the first to ask about it first. Shrugging, Moon concluded his tale. “I flew up into the clouds to ask the pegasi how to get to Ponyville, but I ended up getting hit by lightning. I started falling to the ground, and… “ Moon scratched his head. What came after that? Something seemed to be missing. “I dunno, I guess I woke up at the hospital getting electrocuted. Huh…”

Twilight noticed the strange pause, but did not wish to push it any further, due to the possible traumatic experience he may have had. Well, food was done. Time to go to stage two of her plan!

Rarity and Rainbow dash made themselves scarce soon after, having duties to perform, leaving Moon with Fluttershy, Applejack, and Twilight. Fluttershy approached Twilight and whispered in her ear. “um… is it ok if we talk in private for a bit? I mean, if that’s ok. I know you have to show him his new home, but maybe Applejack could do that… if you want.” The pegasus's whisper was barely audible compared to her normal voice, so only Twilight was able to understand it.

Twilight nodded her head. Turning to Moon and Applejack, she used one of the oldest excuses in history. “Sorry, I would love to show you around, but I have to go back and check my books. You know… So… uh… Have fun! Bye!” With that, the purple unicorn took off towards the library, with Fluttershy in tow.

Applejack shook her head. “That girl is crazier than an apple worm on Sunday! Anyways, let me walk you home. Where ya staying?”

Moon blinked, trying to understand the simile, and failing. “Oh, uh, I didn’t get a place, I was just going to stay at the castle. It’s fine, I can get back there on my own.” He was nearly knocked off his feet by a playful bonk to the head from the earth pony.

“Didn’t you already find out how that goes? And how well did that turn out for ya the first time? Nah, if you are going to talk with us, you got to live with us too! That means you can either buy a house or work on the farm. Trust me, compared to the others’ houses, workin’ on a farm is easy.”

Moon shrugged. “Well, I lost all my bits when I, um, fled. So, I guess I’m going to work on your farm. No guarantees that I can help too much though, seeing as I’m kind of disabled right now. Sweet Apple Acres, right? I remember running past it. It’s that way, I think. Right?”

Applejack was impressed. Remembering a sign while running is difficult as it is. Remembering how to get there after running through an entirely new city was something else entirely. They began walking toward the farm. “Yep! Now, first thing’s first, you have to watch out for mah sister. She is a blank-flank, and… Oh… Ah didn’t mean any offence or anything…” Moon dismissed it with a wave. “Anyways, she and her two friends are part of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. They keep trying a lot of stuff to get their cutie marks, despite the fact that it’s obvious. They just need to learn it themselves. Also, it would be fair to warn ya to cover your ears when you enter yer room. Just a friendly warning.”

Moon and Applejack arrived at the gates of the farm rather quickly. Looking around, Moon was impressed by the sheer number of apple trees. They stretched almost as far as the eye could see. Inside the main house, the lights were on. However, when the two ponies entered, nobody was to be found. Applejack muttered something under her breath. As Moon thought, something she had warned him about still didn’t make sense. Pushing open the door to his new room, he turned to her. “Why did you tell me to cover my ears? It doesn’t seem like there are any—“

“SURPRISE!!!!” thirty ponies shouted all at once.

Moon’s eyes grew wide. “Pinkie Pie wasn’t missing, she was waiting. She planned this, somehow knowing what I would choose! But where is she? I don’t see—“

Moon was cut off again, this time by three tiny fillies. “See! Ah told ya! He aint got no cutie mark either! He’s just like us, girls! Maybe he could join us!”

That must be Applejack’s sister, Applebloom. This was faster than he anticipated, and he knew that what he said would be his first words to the majority of Ponyville. He couldn’t mess this up.

“Um... hi.” He facehoofed. Smooth, Moon. Real smooth.

Chapter 11: Happiness

Dead silence filled the room. Everypony seemed to be waiting for something to happen, but Moon was not quite sure what. He looked back to Applejack, but she had disappeared in the crowd. He sighed. He could see the questions on their faces.

“Ok, yes. I’m a blank flank. I’m Princess Luna’s student. I was stupid and went into the Everfree forest. I got hurt. Any other questions?” Moon looked down at the floor, but caught sight of pink legs. Looking up, he found himself face to face with Pinkie Pie.

“Just one… ARE YOU READY TO PARTY?!?”

Pulling a DJ station, complete with a brown Earth pony DJ, from behind him, music immediately began playing. All the others seemed to relax, and began moving around to hang out with their friends.

Moon looked around the room, and quickly found the three little fillies that had interrupted him. They were off in a corner, attempting to discuss something in secret, and failing miserably.

“Oh! And then later we can try Cutie Mark Crusaders explosives creator!”

“That doesn’t seem too good… I think Rarity would kill me!”

“Eh, what she don’t know won’t hurt her! And it’s better than Cutie Mark Crusaders Hydra Fighters. Big Mac was sooooo angry, I thought he was gonna give me a talkin’ to!”

Moon shook his head and smiled. Children were all the same, from the Crystal Empire to the Badlands, always finding new ways of getting into trouble. He scanned the crowd for a pink pony, but only managed to get glimpses of her as she popped out behind others, talking to them, and then vanishing.

He walked into the crowd, and began greeting people. Many of the younger ones wanted to know why he still did not have a cutie mark, which was a question he didn’t truly know the answer to. The older ponies tended to ask about the Princess, and how he met her. After telling the story of the dream several times, word got around, and that particular question drifted off.

Fairly soon, the party died down, and ponies began leaving to go home. Looking at a clock, Moon realized it was already 8:30. As everypony left, he shook hooves and made mental notes for each one. The three little girls made him promise to come and visit the clubhouse they had made. Promising he did so, he looked at the ponies still inside. Only three remained: Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and a large red stallion. Walking over to them, he smiled.

“Thank you for the party, Pinkie Pie. It was the best one I’ve ever had.” Reaching over, he hugged the happy mare, and turned to Applejack. “I also can not thank you enough for this. Without anywhere else to stay, I would most likely be forced to ask Princess Luna for a bit of extra money, and I doubt she would be as forgiving. And… Is this your brother?” gesturing to the red stallion.

“Eeyup. Ah’ll be teaching to you work on the farm tomorrow,” the stallion said, and promptly walked out the door. Applejack sighed.

“Don’t mind Big Mac, he don’t talk much. Anyways, we got you a present. Turns out Lyra got her hooves on the bag, and was holdin’ it for ya, but couldn’t make it tonight. Here ya go!” Moon’s bag, still full of the things he had brought with him to Ponyville, was lying on the bed, its contents partially spilled out. “Oh, and Rarity wanted to talk to ya. After you get some work done tomorrow, she is gonna show you around Ponyville. Also… She hates your cloak, so be prepared for whatever may happen.” Laughing slightly, Applejack and Pinkie Pie walked out, leaving Moon alone.

Moon looked at the mess left by the party, and began to clean. It was unfortunate that he had to clean, but it was worth it. Smiling, and with a spring in his step, he began collecting the pieces of confetti strewn about.

The metal bars of the cage began to glow. In the complete darkness surrounding it, the light illuminated nothing. With a sharp crack, a pony appeared inside the bars. The gold stallion looked around at the utter darkness, but he smiled. The darkness didn’t bother him, because he was happy.

Moon collapsed in his bed. The room was spotless, and the trash was all thrown away. It was time to speak with Luna.

Again, the moon hung low over the forest. The sun had moved once again, casting early morning light over the treetops. As Moon formed in the dream, he looked at the moon. His constant companion in the realm of dreams, the strange moon always reminded him that he was asleep, and nothing could truly harm him.

“Moon Light, what in Tartarus is wrong with you?”

Well, nothing except a pissed off Princess.

Turning around, Moon saw Luna sitting on a low-flying cloud, her head resting on a hoof, and an annoyed look on her face. “I can understand running. I’ve done it too. But, the Everfree? I’m sure even you have heard the stories! I’m disappointed in you.”

Moon hung his head. “I’m sorry, my Princess. I just thought they were stories. It was foolish of me, and I paid the price. However, I have learned something from it.”

The Princess cocked an eyebrow. “First, no formality here, please. Second, what is it?”

“Well, running can sometimes seem like an easy solution to a problem. However, sometimes that just makes the situation worse. If you don’t know where you are going, whether in life or while running through a city, then you need to stop. It is possible you will get lost, and then all sorts of bad things may happen. The best solution is to remain calm and try to find somepony who can help, but you always need to explain everything beforehoof. And, when lost and alone, acting without thinking can be very dangerous. Always take time to look around and think before flying into a new problem.”

The Princess nodded sagely. “Very good, my student. Quite a valuable lesson. Now, I shall teach you how to move in a dream. This is much more difficult than one would expect. Imagine you are three feet to your left. Then, generally shift your awareness so that you are, in fact, three feet to your left. This will be hard to start off with, but I’m sure…”

Two green eyes watched from the forest, learning the new lesson with the Pegasus. Soon, the lessons would come in handy, and Luna would be powerless to stop it…

Chapter 12: The first dream-jump

“Good. Again!” Luna’s voice echoed in the clearing. With a grunt, her student shifted left without even moving a hoof. The strain was evident on his face, and sweat ran into his eyes, causing him to bite back a curse. Luna smiled. The practice was exhausting him, and tomorrow would be a rough day for the boy. “Good. Take a five minute break.”

Moon collapsed into a heap. He didn’t know someone could get so exhausted in a dream. It didn’t make any sense, but when a Princess was involved, sense was not important. While dream-porting was handy, it was extremely difficult. He looked up at his teacher, as she created a glass of water out of air. “It’s fun,” he gasped, “but what are you teaching me for?”

Luna paused for a moment and handed the boy the glass of water. “It is a job. I want you to teach others to control their dreams. It gets tiring having to dive into others’ dreams, and I don’t want to do it anymore. When in somepony’s dream, everything is different, and sometimes, the simplest action can cause their life to change. I do not want that on my hooves.”

Moon rolled his eyes, and stood up. “So, you want me to make it so that you don’t have to go into ponies’ dreams. Fair enough. But, why?”

Luna looked down. “It is not something I wish to speak about yet. Suffice it to say, I can not protect others from myself. That is all we shall say on the topic for now. Would you like to try some fixing right now?” As Moon nodded vigorously, Luna’s expression smoothed. “Stand by me. This is going to be rough.”

Once Moon was safely by her side, she began focusing on a dream. The dream was small, far away, and simple. She did not know who this particular dream belonged to, but it would serve as a suitable training ground. Any mistakes that were made could easily be smoothed out. She imagined herself there, with Moon beside her, and began to slide into the new dream.

The platform of clouds Moon found himself on was strange. It didn’t have the consistency of any other clouds, and bits of the cloud stuck to his feet. On his left was a photo-negative rainbow, reaching across the purple, sun-less sky. He looked to the right at his teacher.

“Where are we? Did you make this? What’s with the colours?” He questioned her earnestly.

“Calm yourself, and behave. We are in another’s dream. This is a minor one, just so that you may experience what it means to be a Dream Guardian. As for the colours… I do not know.”

The two heard flapping wings in the distance. Based on the speed and energy behind each flap, the wing-bearers appeared to be carrying something. Behind him, Moon heard a sharp intake of breath. Spinning around, he found himself face to face with a black unicorn.

The unicorn was being held aloft by strange creatures. Physically, they seemed to be a cross between a gryphon and a snake, and their colours were vibrant blue and orange. Following Luna’s lead, Moon knelt before their dreamer, and she smiled down upon them. Jumping down from the gryphon-things’ arms, she walked over to them.

“Now, I know the clouds hold many secrets, so why not explain this one? I’m Reader. I don’t think I’ve ever seen an alicorn, apart from Princess Celestia.”

Moon was in shock. The news of Nightmare Moon’s return and Princess Luna’s redemption was common knowledge, and almost everypony had heard of it. Remembering his manners, he looked up at the strange black pony. “I’m Moon Light. I come from Ponyville, and I—“

Moon broke off as Luna kicked him lightly. She stared daggers at him, and realized what he had done. As he buried his head in the clouds, Luna raised a hoof. “I am nopony. I am simply a figment. Pay no attention, ok?”

Reader shook her head slightly, her hair parting. Moon looked past her off-white hair into the green fields that were her eyes. They seemed to be unfocused, and some part of them made him feel sad.

Luna shook her head at him and sighed. “Now, seeing as we are here to serve you, I suppose the first order of business would be to fix the strange lighting here! Behold, and be amazed, as I raise the sun!”

Reader stopped in shock, staring at Luna, as the blue aura around her horn brightened. A blinding white light hit them, stunning them all. Moon winced, and opened his eyes again slightly. At the sight that he beheld, he nearly vomited. As he watched, the sunlight began to cause Luna and Reader to start to smoke. Reader’s eyes rolled around, and quickly began spinning too fast to clearly see. She opened her mouth, and out poured a scream that chilled Moon to his soul. As she screamed, her eyes began to melt, running down her cheeks like macabre tears. As Moon looked around, he noticed that he was beginning to burn too. He didn’t have much time. Most of Princess Luna’s flesh had caught fire, but remained eerily silent, while her face betrayed the agony she must be feeling.

Quickly building a ball, he hollowed it out, and then grabbed them all together. He focused on the dark interior of the sphere, shielded from the blinding sun. With a sickening pop, he was there, along with the other two. Light still filled the inside of the sphere, and it seemed to have stuck to Reader, burning her flesh and filling the air with a horrid stench. With no other options left to him, the Pegasus reared back and kicked Reader in the head to knock her unconscious. Reader dropped, and the world shook. Thinking back to his own private forest, away from this horrid nightmare, Moon began to shift back. The sphere around him shattered, leaving the three open to the scorching rays. Moon’s awareness was almost completely shifted back when a strange glint caught his eye. Looking up quickly, he noticed that the sun had eyes, green eyes. And then all was dark again.

Dream Reader awoke in a cold sweat. She listened for a moment to the soft, soothing sound of silence. She made a slight click with her mouth, and, satisfied that nothing was in the room, stood up. She quickly left the small, unfoldable tent, and clicked again. Listening to the sound, she went to wash her face in cold water. As the water dripped off her face, she realized she must look awful. Without anypony to assist her, she would most likely keep looking awful for quite some time. The hum of crickets filled the air, and she realized that it must be approaching dawn. It was time for her to pack up and continue traveling. This time, however, she knew exactly where she was going to. Ponyville.

Chapter 13: Tuesday Morning

Moon Light awoke with a start. Despite the cool breeze rolling in from his opened window, he still felt the burning rays of that cursed sun burning him. He sighed and looked out the window. The dark grey sky showed that it was early, and the sun was not even breaking the horizon. Knowing he would not be able to get to sleep again, Moon took stock of his possessions. Going through his small bag, he found exactly what he expected to find: His bits, his dream catcher, and a tattered, ruined cloak. There wasn’t anything special about it, so Moon decided to get outside and do some work on the farm. Clumsily flying out the window, Moon sighed at the cool, soothing breeze.

The dim lighting of the moon and stars cast strange shadows on the orchard. After all of his nights out in the darkness, reading his two books, Moon was mostly unaffected by the lack of lights. Looking across the orchard, he saw several trees, their apples grey in the twilight, ready to be harvested. Moon grabbed a large bucket near the gate, and flew towards the closes t tree, his injured wing barely keeping him aloft. Thinking back, he remembered what the farmers back home did to get fruits out of a tree. Landing, he reared up on his front legs, and kicked as hard as he could.

Ow. Moon almost collapsed, and was afraid that he had broken both of his legs. Setting them gently on the ground, he looked them over and did not see any signs of broken bones. He shook his head, and sighed. This would be hard.

He tenderly stood on his back legs, and reached up to put his hooves on the tree. He pushed hard, using his wings to get extra speed, but it was all for naught. Nothing fell. With grim determination in his eyes, Moon began to climb the tree, and tried to pull an apple off. No matter what he tried, the apples did not seem to want to come loose.

He was tired of this. “You stupid apple, come HERE!” He shouted at the apple, just before biting into it and jumping off the tree. He easily made it to the ground, the apple still in his mouth. Picking himself up off the ground, he went toward the basket to put the apple in. However, the farther he got from the tree, the more difficult it became to move. He quickly released the apple while turning around to see why he had problems walking.

A long, black line attached the apple to the tree, and did not seem to be broken. Moon stared in shock for a single second, before something hit his head hard. The force of the impact pushed him straight into the tree, and his injured wing cried out in protest. Falling off the tree, Moon noticed the apple he had grabbed had returned to its original position, seeming to taunt him. His eyes narrowed.

The metal bars of the cage began to glow. In the complete darkness surrounding it, the light illuminated nothing. With a sharp crack, a pony appeared inside the bars, beside the gold pony already present. The ruby stallion looked around at the utter darkness, and growled. The darkness didn’t bother him, because he was angry.

Moon released a shout of anger and leapt at the tree. He didn’t care that it didn’t work before. He dimly heard a door slam behind him, but that wasn’t the first thing on his mind. He bit onto the apple, and dragged it to the ground. Using his hooves, he held the apple while biting at the stem.

“Wait! Moon! Don’t do that, it’s dangerous!” A familiar voice called from behind him, and the Pegasus lifted his head from the stem to look. Running toward him, he saw Applejack.

Moon laughed. “They are just apples! How can they be dangero—“

With a sharp snap, the apple flew back to the tree, with Moon’s hooves still wrapped around it. Upon reaching the tree, however, his legs kept going, launching him high up into the air. Knowing his wings were too weak to stop his flight, Moon began preparing himself for the eventual crash.

The sounds of nature waking up let Dream Reader know the time. Her hooves clicked on the gravel road that she followed. The road had gotten smoother over the last hour, and she theorized she was coming to a place with many ponies. Perhaps a settlement. The smell of fertilizer and freshly cut herbs let her know exactly what type of village she was approaching. It must be some sort of agricultural meeting ground.

Suddenly, she stopped. The sounds of breathing filled her ears, and she knew she was not alone.

“What do you want?” she asked the other figures. They walked out and surrounded her. Only five of them. This would be easy, but hopefully avoidable.

“We don’t take kindly to you magicky types here. Y’all bring nothing but trouble. Well, trouble and money. Hows about you give us tha money, and we don’t have no trouble?” The voice was definitely one of an Earth pony, probably poorly educated. The chances of this devolving into physical confrontation were rapidly approaching one.

Dream smiled slightly, and addressed the leader of the gang. “I don’t want trouble. I want to keep going, and for that, I need my money. I am only stopping to buy food, if I can, and I will continue. Please do not feel threatened.”

That pushed the leader over the edge. “I ain’t scared of you! Come here!” He jumped at the unicorn, and she inhaled.

As the stallion jumped at her, she pivoted on her left foreleg. She raised a hoof, and caught him across the chest. Stepping to the side, she slipped her back legs under his, and tripped him. Rolling with his tumble, she quickly righted herself and found him underneath her. Planting a foot on his face, she exhaled. Three seconds. Not bad. Sloppy on the fall.

The crowd surrounding her quickly backed off, save for two. The soft flapping of restless wings betrayed one of them as a Pegasus. The other one must be an Earth pony, if the leader’s arcanophobia was any indication of the rarity of unicorns.

“Alright. Now that that is over, do you two mind letting me buy some things, and continue on to Ponyville? I have friends I need to meet.”

The response came from the Pegasus, with a soft, delicate voice, bubbling with excitement. “Well, ok, but on one condition. Take us with you! We want to go see our friend too!”

Moon looked at his target. With the lack of clouds, he had no easily obtainable landing platform, so the giant tree would have to do. It was definitely going to hurt.

He attempted to aim for one of the lower branches, but as he got closer, he realized where he was going. The tree had some holes, covered in glass… Oh dear. It was a house. He was about to crash into somepony’s house, on his first real day back.

The window he slammed into gave way easily, and he crashed into a warm floor. The air was steamy, and Moon felt the moisture collect on his wings. The sound of running water showed that this was definitely a bathroom, and somepony was currently in the shower. This was not going to go over well. At least it wasn’t one of his new--

“Spike, was that you?”

Oh no. Oh no. No, no, no, no, no…

Twilight Sparkle stuck her head out of the shower and stared at the Pegasus lying on the ground.

“What? What are you doing in here? Were you trying to...” Twilight’s eyes grew wide, and then narrow, and Moon felt himself get pulled up so quickly he slammed into the roof.

“Twilight, I can explain, please, just let me—“

Before he could finish, he went sailing out through the broken window, his behind smarting from the powerful hit her magic had done. Luckily, it seemed like he was going to land somewhere in Sweet Apple Acres.

The sun was just barely coming up, and he had already managed to fly from one end of Ponyville to the other. Oh, boy, Moon thought. Today’s going to be grand.