With a Shine in His Eyes

by Kotushk Fier

Rating: teen
Tags: Princess Celestia, Alternate Universe, Princess Luna, Original Character, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Romance, Adventure
Length: 17453

Join Novalis as his world expands in the sequel to the somewhat loved story, Nocturnality.

Novalis has progressed far. Once a mere admirer of Princess Luna, he is now her ambassador on errands she cannot handle herself, and her personal student, studying the stars and sky when his dreaming is not interfering.

A sequel to Nocturnality, Novalis will now begin exploring the world, and his relationship with the Lunar Princess.

Published 2013-02-06 11:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2014-10-23 16:34:00 UTC

Timeslip

Explosions rattled around me as I solemnly regarded the shimmering vision of my beloved mentor in front of me.

"Novalis, status report, now!"

"Well, Princess, it seems that our scouts were right. I ended up teleporting right into the middle of a hotzone."

"What is the situation at the moment?"

"Well, to put it bluntly: Big, scaly, ugly lizards are flying around in the sky raining meteors of flame and destruction upon big, scaly, ugly lizards on the ground who keep regenerating and trying to snap at the fliers with their multitude of heads."

Luna stared at me in silence for a moment before speaking softly.

"I see stress and pain in those eyes of yours. What else happened?"

I nervously shuffled my hooves before I looked back into her luminous eyes. I mentally prepared myself for the memories I had been repressing for the past week, the horrors of what should have been a simple mission.

"A few of my guards have fallen to the enemies. When we first arrived, a dragon snapped one of my soldiers up and ate him like a damned cookie. One of the others guarded our retreat line, valiantly battling a hydra, but to no avail. The constant regrowth overwhelmed him, and when the beast closed in, he... *sob*. And last night, one of the dragons misfired at a rather ancient hydra, and the errant gout of flame engulfed the scout I had sent to survey the battlefield."

"I'm sorry Novalis. I know how close you are with your guards, and I understand your reluctance to speak their names. I am withdrawing your mission. Get out of there, and do it alive, Novalis. If you die, so help me..."

"No, milady. This cannot be allowed to continue as it is. This war will spill outside this small land, and many innocents will perish in the fires of war, unless I can find a way to halt this. I will find the source of this, and extinguish it. But I will not risk my soldiers' lives. I will be sending them back home in the morning. Novalis, over and out."

"Don't you dare end this communi-TSSSSS"

As the magic holding the illusion fizzled and faded, I sighed and sat down. This was a right mess I had managed to find myself in. I had been ordered to check out reports of a disturbance in the Dragon Wastelands. When I arrived, I found that the hydras from the south had left their homeland for reasons unknown and assaulted the dragons. Why they would want to leave the Forgotten Marsh was beyond me, but their brutality was being met with equal ferocity from the Dragonkin.

Tomorrow, I would be sending my fellow kinsmen home. They wouldn't like it, but I had to make them leave me. This was far too dangerous for them to be here. But first, sleep, and hopefully, I could avoid nightmares this night. Shutting the flap of my tent, I blew out the candle on the stump that made for a makeshift table and clambered into my sleeping bag. As I slipped off to sleep, I could hear the battle subsiding, even if only briefly...

That night, I dreamed a pretty dream. I was outside the castle with Luna, sharing an evening lunch with her under the starlit sky. Her soft mane billowed in the breeze, twinkling with the multitude of stars that shone from within. On the table was a simple meal, mostly gone, with only tea and a few biscuits left.

"Princess, I am glad you invited me here tonight."

"The pleasure is mine. You have been doing well in your studies of magic and astrology, so I thought you deserved a treat."

"I am only doing so well to impress the best teacher in all of Equestria. And the prettiest mare in the universe, I will be so bold as to add."

Luna giggled softly as she took a sip of tea, smiling over it at me. I could feel my cheeks grow warm from her eyes being fixated upon my face. I held her gaze for a few moments, drinking in the wondrous sight of the mare that held place in my most enduring infatuation. After a few minutes had passed, during which she had set her cup down and looked across the sky, she turned back to me with a sad look.

"You must think me awfully selfish to ask so much of you without giving you much in return..."

"You are mistaken there, milady. I am happy to be of use to you, to alleviate some of the weight and responsibility."

"Still, I don't give you proper dues or compensation for all your hard work. I'll make a deal with you. Soon, I will be sending you on a potentially dangerous mission, but one I have faith you can complete. If you return to me alive and well, you may make one request of me. If it is within my power to grant, it shall be yours."

I found it difficult to find my voice. Such a high honor was usually reserved for ponies with outstanding benefits to Equestrian society, like the Element Bearers. Each of them still held the option, although only Applejack had used the opportunity as far as I knew. But hey, the Apple family deserved a new farmstead. I gathered my wandering thoughts to speak.

"Such an honor is far above me, Princess Luna. I do not think myself worthy of that high reward."

"Nonsense. You have done far more for me than you think. You have been by my side faithfully all these years. You have acted as my voice in further lands and, even without my explicit guidance each time, you have managed to make me proud of your choices. You have given me company when I was lonely, cheered me when I felt low, and have been both my staunchest defender and my best friend in these years. If anything, I have been negligent, rude, and selfish to not have offered before."

To my surprise, Luna shed a tear as she completed her monologue. Rising from her seat, she walked around the table towards where I had stood in respect. Smiling softly at me, she leaned in, kissed my cheek, and whispered into my ear.

"Fly with me, Novalis. Trust me to keep you safe as I show you the joy that is flight."

I could only nod as I felt the impression from her lips fading. She walked behind me, and with her forehooves lifted and cradled me beneath her. With one mighty flap of her wings, she soared into the sky, leaving my stomach back on the ground and my breath caught in my lungs. I could feel her powerful wing muscles as she soared through the sky. Her heart beat against my back, sure and strong. The wind sang through my ears and played with my mane. I looked below and could see the glimmering lights of cities and towns flashing by as Luna rose into the deep blue night. Finally, we burst through a cloud, and I could behold the entirety of the earth beneath us. Illuminated by pale moonlight, the towns and cities for miles around were starting to quiet down. Lights within homes winked out one by one, and clouds passed by lazily underneath us.

"It's so... beautiful, Princess."

"The freedom of flight is one of the most glorious things in the world. To be unrestricted by ponies on the ground and their constant demands. To soar freely and swiftly, with naught but the wind to call your name. The scenery is peaceful without the bustling sounds of the inner city. It just feels like a different world when in the sky, and there is no greater joy than that freedom."

I could only nod as I gazed around in wonder.

"Know this Novalis. Just like now, you will always be safe with me. If you slip from my grasp at any time, anywhere, you need but call my name, and I will be by your side to catch you."

My dream faded slowly as a barrage of explosions shook the earth around my camp. I could hear my guardsponies yelling and moving about, preparing to defend me to the death should a threat arise. Some of them, most of them, really, were Pegasi. There was no way I was going to let them die and lose the freedoms the sky offered them.

Author's Note

This is a look into Novalis' future, as he is already experienced in his role as Luna's ambassador, and more importantly, the role as her friend. Next chapter will begin the Shining Eyes Arc, the basis for this sequel. As always, have a great day, and brohoof on y'all.

Power of Intelligence

It had been six months since I had run from Princess Luna and been brought to my senses from her dreamwalking. She has not broached the subject of her confession, and I have decided to not pursue it as well. She would tell me eventually, when I was ready.

"Novalis, focus. If you pass this test, you will advance in your studies."

"Yes, Princess."

I turned back to the task at hand. Before me stood the statue of Discord and Luna. Around it shimmered powerful enchantments and shields. My objective was to weave a spell that would either shatter the enchantments(which quite frankly only the princesses would be able to do) or bypass them without triggering them(which would be considered an expert level of proficiency).

I gathered my breath and closed my eyes. Slowly I relaxed my breathing, and felt a calm overtake me. Relaxing my limbs and mind, I began the journey into my own consciousness. There, in the back of my subconscious, I found myself.

No, I didn't just discover my identity. I didn't finally realize what I wanted to do with my life. In fact, the only epitome I had was that I did look very strange with my eyes. Standing stoicly before me, he regarded me with impassive eyes. His colors differed from mine only in that they were reversed from my own.

Looking at him, I bowed respectfully towards my mind-self. After a moment, he bowed as well. When I rose again, I looked him dead in the eyes.

"Silavon, I come to you to beseech you to undo the natural restrictions that is placed upon my power by nature."

"Novalis, for what reason do you ask me to release the restraints upon our powers?"

"To be able to further my own knowledge, and place my power at the service of the most esteemed Lunar Princess of the country of Equestria, Her Royal Majesty, Mistress of the Stars, to whom the stars and Moon bow and adore, to whom the Night has blessed with ancient and formidable power, and Darkness' Consort, Princess Luna."

"Again, for what reason do you ask me to release the restraints upon OUR powers?"

I paused and looked over my counterpart. His eyes did not give any of his thoughts away. His face was a mask, and not even his body betrayed any emotions.

"Very well. Our power shall be used in the service of the princess, and the benefit of all ponykind."

"You are not worthy."

I stood stunned at his proclamation. Princess Luna had warned me that the mental selves of all magic wielders were fickle. They had been created as a limiter on our power, in order to prevent us from going insane with greed. The ancient order of good unicorns, Altruismana, had dedicated themselves to ingrain the limit into our very DNA, rendering us as we were today. Only the Princesses kept their full power, even though it was still more than the strongest unicorn of old.

"Very well. In what way do you want to test my worthiness?"

"I have already deemed you inadequate. You think too much."

Think too much? What kind of answer was that? What was he getting at?

"Silavon, I-"

"No."

"But-"

"No. I know what you are thinking. The fact that I do means you are vulnerable to me. A skilled reader would be able to discern your attacks before you make them, leaving you open to counterattacks. Thus, I deem you unworthy. Begone."

Without further warning, he flashed his horn, and I found myself standing before Luna with sweat dripping off my brow.

Meeting her eyes, I steeled my resolve for another trip into my mind. This time I entered cautiously. It was not unheard of for a pony to be trapped by their own mind if they were rejected. In fact, most ponies never ventured back. Only Starswirl the Bearded had managed to defeat his own mind in two attempts without help. Twilight Sparkle, I had learned, was able to conquer her own mind on her first attempt when she, and by extension her mind-self, had been shocked by an outside interference as a filly. Luna had proofed my test against outside interference, as she wanted my test to be honest. The only reason Twilight kept the score on her test was because her magical power, which was only supposed to move the magic resistant dragon egg, far surpassed any other unicorn within the past seven hundred years by hatching the egg instead.

I journeyed slowly into my mind, sensing out slightly to avoid any surprises. Eventually I made it back to standing before my mind-self, impassive as ever.

"Silavon."

"Noval-"

As he began to say my name, my horn flashed and I launched a torrent of electricity into his body...

Unfortunately, he was no longer there. He had moved before my spell connected, lazily smirking at me.

"Nice try, barely any thought in that attack. But if you're going to commit to battle, to defending somepony, you need to be better. That time, you weren't thinking enough."

Now I was really confused. I had apparently missed the point of thinking too much, believing that I had to ride on instinct alone. Now I had to find a balance, and swiftly. A balance between the power hidden dormant within my primal DNA, and the power of my intellect. This would not be easy.

As I returned my focus to my inner self, his horn flashed, and I found myself outside my mind again. Buck, too much thought put into it.

"Novalis, this is the second time, do you wish to give-"

"No, milady. His power, my power... Our power will be under my control soon."

Without another word, I descended into my mind for the third, and hopefully final, time.

No such luck. I had to descend ten times into my mind, stubbornly refusing to allow my mind to triumph over me. Each time, I got closer to understanding Silavon, and by extension, myself. I learned how I thought and acted in every conceivable situation, and emerged the tenth time victorious, and enlightened.

When I said earlier that I did not have an epitome, I lied. I learned more about myself than I had ever wanted to know. I learned and faced my flaws, many of which I could not overcome. Eventually I mastered myself enough to remove my limitation, but was filled with a desire to better myself and learn all I could.

Finally, with my full power at my disposal, I had to go about controlling it. My horn was sparking and discharging randomly, zapping things occasionally and changing them into whatever crossed my mind.

Stilling my breath, mind, and muscles, I entered the serene calm that had helped me defeat Silavon. I began to trace the origin of the magical streaks through my horn and body, finding my own reservoir. Concentrating intensely, I managed to dam the flow and keep it in control.

OK, Silavon, direct our power. Help me form it as the ancients would.

I could feel a slip in my control, but let it pass. Soon, a strong torrent of magic gathered into my horn, where it awaited my direction. I toyed with the idea of smashing through the spells, but ultimately decided that I was far too inexperienced, and likely not strong enough as I was. Finally, I began to give form to my magic, thinning the trickle into a stream no larger than a speck of dust. After coiling it in the air, I let the magic loosely disperse into the air, until the entire room except for the area with the shields was permeated. With the precise control from Silavon, I slowly moved my magic towards the statue. As they got close, I began to attach the magic to the dust in the air, using it as a pathway through the shields. Since the shields weren't going crazy, I figured that dust was not on its list of blocks.

And I was correct. I felt the magic falling onto the statue slowly. As it did, I began to gather it over the surface, careful not to trip any alarms. Once I had all of the released magic on the statue, I paused for a moment to savor the moment, and my own ingenuity. With a quick flick of my mind, I nearly shattered the statue when I was interrupted.

Not yet, Novalis. I suspect one last obstacle in your way to completing the test set before you.

With a quick pull, I brought my magic to a halt, opting to trickle a bit through the stone instead. As I delved deeper into the marble, I found traces of a magical enchantment that was swiftly fading. Once I had determined it was gone, I quickly drew all my magic into the statue, destroying the visage of Discord.

I left the Luna portion of the statue still standing, and had even managed to make it a stand alone statue. After all, it was only the Discord section that raised my ire, the statue itself was of exceptional craftsponyship.

"Huzzah! You have passed! I must say, your quick thinking to check the statue first was most excellent, and I am touched you left part of it still standing."

I smiled weakly at her praise as the drain of my power caused me to collapse. I passed out staring at her smiling face as she walked over to me. The last thing I felt was her magic lifting me into the air.

Unwanted Vacation (An Unwelcome One)

My Ambassador, Student, and Friend,

You are hereby ordered to take a break from your studies. You will find three other letters next to this one when you awaken. I believe they are from your friends in Ponyville. Perhaps you can use this time off to visit them? At any rate, I will be indisposed to teaching you for the next two weeks, and it would be unwise for you to be anywhere near me during that time. So go to Ponyville, catch up with your friends, and enjoy your time off, Novalis Shiningeyes.

Royal Lunar Princess of the Stars and Moon,

Princess Luna

Did I do something wrong? Or worse, did I fail my test? Was she considering expelling me? No. Her letter was not worded in a way that denoted disappointment, anger, or any other malicious emotion. Perhaps she had some business far away? No, that couldn't be right either. As her ambassador, she told me she would take me on her trips in order to teach me more about my duties.

Sighing, I pushed the questions and fears from my mind. I vowed to myself, on that night not so long ago, to not worry or leave her side until she dismissed me. Looking over to my bedside table, I noticed that there were in fact three other envelopes. And they were from Berry Punch, Vinyl Scratch, and somepony I didn't know. Deciding to open the unknown one first, I set to reading.

Novalis,

This is 1 of the 3 ponys yu met outsyde Berry Punch's house. The name's Snowshoe. The grey 1, if yu need more informashun. After that little show with Princess Luna showing up in front of yu, Ice Razor and Orange Rhyme were plotting ways to get back at yu. I did not agree with them. When we first approached yu, before Razor sayed those mean things, I was inturestid in introdusing myself. I am sorry for their actions, and would like to meet yu sometiem to properly get to know each other.

Snowshoe

Good grief. This colt's spelling and writing was atrocious. It looked like he was trying to use a rock to write on a boulder. But it didn't look like he was malicious, but merely caught up in his friends' tow. Perhaps I would find him somehow when I went to Ponyville.

Looking over my last two letters, I debated on whose letter I would read first. Deciding with a flip of a coin, I opened Vinyl's letter and began to read.

Yo, Mr. I'm too good to write or call anypony,

Perhaps you forgot about me when you returned to Canterlot? C'mon, dude, you could at least give the decency of letting me know you didn't want to talk. It's not everyday a pony comes along who doesn't flip out about my eyes, but you haven't returned since. Is it politeness? Etiquette? Nah, don't need that with me. Be straight with me, and tell me if you don't want to talk to me.

Best DJ in Equestria, and very pissed off unicorn,

DJ Pon-3, Vinyl Scratch

Crap. I really did neglect them, didn't I? Looking back over the past six months, I realized that I didn't have an excuse. Luna's classes were hard, but not really long. I could have, no, should have, found time to write my two friends. I hope Berry Punch isn't too mad. One mad mare is enough for me...

Hello, Novalis,

Are you doing well? I wouldn't know off hoof. I mean, you never write me. And after I promised Pinch I would introduce you. It is a shame. I found some more drinks I thought you might like. Maybe I can make business in Canterlot, and you can buy some, since you don't want to visit and try them in person. I really tried hard on them. I was hoping you might at least write me, so I had your address to mail them, too. Mailponies are good with letters, but shipping? Addresses are important, you know. Plus, it is only fair, since you know my address. Unless you forgot that as well? If you ever stop by in town, you can find me easily. With all the inspiration you gave me, I have been making more frequent trips into town. Hard to miss me, you know. Little wobbly, but still able to walk straighter than anypony else. And definitely more capable of remembering somepony than you, it seems.

To Drink or not to Drink, screw it, I'm drinking...

Berry Punch

P.S. Berry Pinch was very excited to meet her potential new friend.

I closed my eyes and sighed. Reading that passive-aggressive letter hurt. At least Vinyl came out and told me she was pissed. Punch seemed more inclined to make my heart die a bit. Guilt trips suck, I'll have you know. Always making me give in...

**********

I woke up the next morning feeling slightly refreshed. I took a long, hot shower, and took extra care in making my mane and tail neat and well kept. After eating a large breakfast in preparation for my journey, I brushed my teeth and set about packing my bags.

TRIP CHECKLIST:

[\/] Make myself proper

[\/] Pack plenty of supplies for an extended stay

[\/] Obtain Makeup Presents (always keep some on hand, never hurts to be prepared)

[ ] Catch carriage to Ponyville, and makeup with friends

Strolling through Canterlot, I stopped at various shops along the way in order to check their wares. It never hurt to keep myself current on hot items, in case I saw something really good.

A Night Out

Ponyville was as small, quiet, and quaint as always. I arrived late in the night, so very few ponies were about, which made getting to my reserved hotel room uneventful. I threw my saddlebags onto my bed, and contemplated whether I should sleep, or take a night on the town. I decided to surprise at least one of my friends, if I still owned the right to call them that. I left my room, and took care to lock the door behind me.

Making my way out of the hotel after graciously thanking my hostess, I began walking towards the home of one pony I was sure was awake. I arrived at my destination about fifteen minutes later, and knocked loudly on her door. After waiting about three minutes, the door slowly opened to reveal a pair of sunglasses.

*THUNK*

I was met with a solid face full of ivory white hoof. I was knocked backwards a small distance and slid on the ground a bit. Dazed, I rose up and turned back to the furious mare standing in her doorway.

"Hello, Ms Scra-"

I was interrupted by a magical aura enveloping my body and throwing me in the air. I landed on my back and the air was knocked from my lungs. As I gasped, attempting to recover my breath, I saw a silhouette enter my vision.

"Six months, bud. Six months you didn't write anypony. And then, when you show up, you take a slug to the face, stand up, and proceed to address me with that snooty attitude. If I wasn't mad at ya before, I was after this."

"I am sorry, Vinyl. I really have no excuse. I did believe you would strike me, and I deserved it. I figured I'd let you have another one to make up for my stupidity."

Vinyl stood silent over me, regarding me with a curious look. After a few moments, she helped me to my hooves and walked into her home, leaving the door open. I took this as a sign to enter, and followed her inside as she made her way into her living room. She climbed onto her couch and lay there as I entered. Looking around, I noticed that the only place I could sit was either on the floor or next to her on the couch. I decided I didn't want to be hit again, and lowered myself onto the floor.

"Oh for buck's sake!"

Glancing up at the curse word, I saw her horn glow before I was back in the air. Levitating me easily, she brought me over and deposited me on the couch next to her. After letting me go with her magic, she crawled over and lay against my side. I tensed up at first, but relaxed when she spoke, I could hear the hurt in her voice.

"We're friends, right, Novalis? I know you didn't write, and perhaps I am presumptuous to think so, but I consider you a friend. You are the first and only pony outside of my family to see my eyes and not run away."

I sighed as I looked down at her. Her shocking blue mane was covering her face, and she was looking away from me. I gently put both of my hooves on her cheeks and directed her to look into my eyes. Her large scarlet eyes showed sadness, and a fear of rejection, and my heart just about broke to see what my long absence had done to my friend. I softly pulled her into a hug. She stiffened noticeably before relaxing into the embrace.

"I'd like to say that proximity to the mare of my desire left me without any other cares. But in all honesty, I really have no excuse, Vinyl. I am a terrible friend. I apologize, and fervently hope you can forgive me."

She drew back from me slightly and stared quizzically at me.

"You have a love interest? Who is she? Do I know her? Does she live around here? How important is she to you?"

"Whoa there, Vinyl. That's a lot of questions. Might I ask why you are so interested all of a sudden?"

"If you answer my questions, I will tell you."

I sighed. This mare was going to make me explain a ridiculous fantasy.

"Yes, I have a love interest. You know of her very well, but I do not know how well you may know her. She lives in Canterlot. And she is important enough to keep my interest singly focused on her. The big question to answer, who is she? You would laugh and call me a foal. But, I shall tell you anyways. My love burns for Princess Luna."

I could see her emotions and thoughts crossing her face. Incredulity, shock, thoughtfulness, and a touch of sadness and regret.

"Princess Luna, huh? I guess you don't aim small."

I could hear sadness tinging her voice and raised an eyebrow in question. She shook her head and looked away for a few minutes before looking back to me. She wore her confident grin again, but I could still see sorrow in her eyes.

"C'mon, bud, you actually came in the middle of a jam session. Let me soundproof the walls again, and then I want you to let me know what you think of this new piece."

After she set her precautions, I followed her into her studio and sat patiently as I waited for her to start. She had about twelve large speakers set up, and many smaller speakers around them. I could tell at a glance this was going to be loud, and dampened my hearing slightly with a spell before she started.

When the song was finished, I was left speechless. I had no earthly idea what marijuana was, but I felt the music moving through my body, and couldn't resist trying to dance a bit to it. When the song finished, I could hear Vinyl laughing behind her booth. Looking up, I noted she seemed to be pointing at my head. Looking around, I spotted a shiny metal surface that served as a mirror. Gazing upon my reflection, I noted with some amusement that my mane was straight behind me, as if I was running really fast through a field, although I was perfectly still.

"And here I thought only my mane went crazy from my music. Looks good on ya, bud!"

I winced as I felt her slap my back hard, and scowled at her as I tried to flatten my mane. I knew it was untidy and hard to tame, but this was ridiculous. Vinyl waited for me to finish fixing my mane the best I could before she pounced on me, pinning me to the ground.

"So, how was it? Did you like it? I worked a long time on it, and wanted it to be awesome!"

"Hah, it was great, Vinyl. You really know how to make music that makes a pony just want to let loose, unlike the slow cadences from classical music."

She squealed and lifted me in a strong hug before darting behind her booth again. As she levitated more discs, I realized she was going to go all out tonight. Smiling broadly, I sat down and listened to her show.

Song List:

Hold Me - Delta Heavy

The Island - Pendulum

Kill EVERYBODY - Skrillex

Skream Me Some More - DJ Pon-3

Discord - The Living Tombstone

Pinkamena's Return - Flutter Rex

Hyperactivity - Flutter Rex

Author's Note

As I said, I was going to write when I could. This chapter was, as you may of guessed, helped along by music. The music made me want to write. So, there you go. If I can get the time and ambition, I will start writing more frequently. Brohoof on y'all, and have a good day.

A Punch to the Heart, and a Pinch to the Soul

Vinyl's private concert left my head pleasantly buzzing. After playing a few hours, she ended the show with a spectacular display of pyrotechnics, and exited her podium with a flourish. As the music died away, I let out a slight yawn, and stood up as she came near me.

"Vinyl, that was magnificent. Of all the ponies who dabble in this new age of music, you are by far the most talented!"

A small blush came to her cheeks at my praise, and she shuffled her hooves for a moment before replying.

"Thank you, Novalis. I tried to make this show extra special. I am so glad you enjoyed it."

I stifled another yawn, and her eyes widened slightly.

"Oh! I'm sorry for keeping you up so late. Would you like some coffee, or do you wish to be off to sleep?"

"Coffee sounds great. I am used to staying up long nights, and I can catch up on sleep later. I still have business to attend to for the day."

With a nod, Vinyl walked past me towards her kitchen to brew some of the bitter drink. As she sashayed past me, her tail rose slightly and lightly whipped my face. An obvious sign of attraction for a mare, my eyes widened and I did my best to ignore it. I turned as she left and noticed she was swaying her hips far more than necessary, another sign she was attracted to and trying to entice me. I turned away to hide the blush I felt creeping on my cheeks. Once she left I hurried to her bathroom and splashed cold water on my face.

Ten minutes later found both of us with a mug of coffee in her living room. I was listening as she talked about her childhood, but was finding it difficult to focus properly. She was displaying the signs of her infatuation clearly, and I couldn't help but admire her physical charms. Her electric blue mane and tail stood out starkly against her snow white coat, and both colors served to accentuate her scarlet eyes beautifully. Her flanks were well rounded and voluptuous, and kept drawing my eye to her Cutie Marks. All in all, she was an incredibly beautiful mare, and any stallion would be lucky to catch her attention. My heart was set on Luna, though. I did not know if I could love another mare, or love another fairly, even. And besides, Luna may not like the idea of a herd, even if she did accept me as a lover, and there was no way I would jeopardize my relationship with her.

"Hey bud, see anything you like?"

I snapped to attention guiltily as I realized she had stopped talking while I was admiring her charms. I gulped the rest of my scalding coffee both in attempt to hide my shame and hoping the burn would clear my head.

"Aha, sorry Vinyl. I, umm, I think I should be going. I have a busy day today, after all."

"Oh? You could stay here a bit longer. I would make sure your day was still... busy."

Her voice dropped a bit, and a tinge of heat entered her voice on the last word. I gulped and peeked over my cup to see her eyes were half lidded. She had a small, sexy smile on her face as she glance demurely over my body.

"Ah... Um, I still have a friend to meet. Perhaps we can hang out later, or something."

Her eyes traveled to my face and her smile widened slightly.

"I will take you up on that at another time, Novalis."

Heavy weight on the words caused me to involuntarily shiver. I didn't quite know what she may have been planning, but the desire in her eyes gave me more than an inkling of an idea. I forced a smile and hopped off her couch, heading for the front door.

"Ah yes, well, thank you for being most hospitable. I should be, uh, going now. I will talk to you later. Bye bye for now!"

Without waiting for her response, and to avoid hearing the intoxicating honey of her voice, I quickly exited her house and trotted quickly away. I glanced behind me and saw her leaning against her door frame, and her eyes were following my every move. I could feel her desire burning into me, and had to fight to keep myself from dashing back to her home. This was... a very interesting way to start my second day in Ponyville.

As I walked aimlessly through town, I fought to clear my mind and control my hormones. Vinyl's forthright display not only caught me off guard, but it was obvious she was skilled with her seductive traits. It took me the better part of an hour to finally calm myself to the point that I wouldn't stammer and sputter when I tried to talk.

After I calmed down, I began to walk in a more orderly direction. There was another friend of mine I had to see, and I wasn't a pony to leave my friendships to be dealt with later. After a short walk through town, I arrived outside of the red brick home of one Miss Berry Punch. I knocked on the door and was startled when a small fuchsia blur ran around the side of the house. It stopped upon noticing me, and I found a cute filly staring cautiously at me. I smiled gently to her as I spoke.

"Ah, hello there. My name is Novalis. I would assume you are Berry Pinch? If so, is your mother at home right now?"

A large smile broke out on her face and the next thing I knew, I had a small filly hanging from my neck who was talking very quickly and excitedly.

"Oh, you're Novalis who my mother told me all about who is going to be my new best friend, yay!"

"Whoa there, haha, calm down now."

She dropped from my neck and with a large smile ran back around the house. With a grin of my own, I followed her around to the back yard, where I found Berry Punch on a large kitchen cloth, apparently having a small picnic. Upon seeing me, she quickly stood up and trotted over to me.

"Hello, Novalis, how are you? I do hope you've been doing well, as I haven't heard from you in awhile."

I winced inwardly at her apathetic tone. She seemed detached, watching Pinch playing in the field and chasing a butterfly.

"I am sorry about that, Miss Punch. I have no excuse for my lack of communication. I do hope you would forgive me. I will be keeping in better contact in the future, I promise."

Berry sized me up for a bit before cracking a large smile.

"Ah, it is wonderful to hear such good manners from a young colt such as yourself. Too often are apologies butchered and shortened. I accept your apology and forgive you. I do apologize, but we don't have a lot left of the picnic. I didn't count on anyone showing up."

"That's quite alright, Berry. I'm not hungry any-"

At this point my body decided to protest my claims with a very loud rumble. I coughed lightly and grinned abashedly.

"Ahem, well, forget that, apparently my stomach has its own opinions now."

Berry giggled lightly, and I found myself looking away and blushing. Her giggle was young and cute, and I could feel heat rising in me.

"If you'll wait here and keep Pinch occupied, I will go inside and whip something quick up."

"Are you sure you want to leave me alone with your young filly, Miss Punch? You only knew me for a couple days, before."

"Oh Novalis, I trust you, and I know you're a good colt. Besides, if you ever harmed her, you would find that there are many things hidden in my cellar besides wine bottles."

I gulped as I watched her trot back into her home. That was a very scary statement, indeed.

Turning around, I noticed that Pinch was standing a few yards away, watching our exchange. When her mother vanished into the house, she smiled widely, and pounced on me with an adorable squeak.

"Yay! Mommy is going to let us play! Follow me, follow me, I have a place I want you to see!"

Jumping off of me, she dashed towards a large tree near the end of the yard. Curious, I followed her to it, and was amazed at what I found. Pinch had shoved a sizable rock aside at the base of the tree, revealing a fairly large tunnel which had roots hanging from the ceiling. She dashed inside when I came close, and I decided to follow her in.

The tunnel went quite a distance, and without any interior light sources, it was pitch black. I had to rely on my hearing, following Pinch's series of cute giggles and calls, until I entered a large cavern. At the top of this room, a large hole let sunlight filter through, and I took a good look around me.

Pinch had obviously spruced the place up herself. There were rocks of various sizes strewn about the room, serving many different functions. Some were chairs, and had stuffed toys on them, while the larger rocks were used as tables. Pinch stood in the middle, looking at me expectantly.

"Wow, Pinch, this is quite the place you have here. How did you find it?"

"Mommy was letting me play outside one day and I lifted that rock to look for crawlies. I found the tunnel, but it was too dark for me, and I was too scared to go in at first. But when I did come through I made this place my new playground. Do you like it?"

"It is quite the place, indeed. I feel honored you would show me."

Pinch giggled and started bouncing around the room, pointing out various features. She also taught me the names of her stuffed toys, and pointed out that her favorite was a large stuffed bear she had named Tibbers. After awhile, I decided we should go back so her mother wasn't worried about her, or worse, think I had done something wrong. We made our way back through the tunnel, and I helped levitate the rock when Pinch strained against it. I also made the rock lighter by hollowing it out with magic, so she wouldn't strain herself with it in the future.

Trotting lightly after Pinch, we arrived at the picnic placement just in time for Punch to walk outside with new refreshments.

Dreamscapes

The picnic I shared with Punch and her daughter was delightful, but I had to cut it short. Yawning heavily, I bid her a good day and headed back to my hotel, ready to get some sleep. Nodding curtly at the attendant at the desk, I waited until he retrieved my key and gave it over. With a small bow of my head, I left him alone and returned to my room, unlocked my door, and fell straight into my bed without even a shower. And that is when the dreams came.

I woke with a start, a light sheen of sweat coating me, as if I had actually been running. The snow white dreamscape left me feeling cold and alone. I had to look out of my window in order to reaffirm my place in a populated world before I could return to sleep. Closing the drapes to close out the midafternoon sunlight, I returned to my bed, and my dreams.

<"Walk with me, Novalis."

Nodding my head, I followed Princess Luna as she turned and walked into the landscape from before. The billowing dust storms and starlit canopy no longer felt lonesome. I could feel an intimate air rising around me and the Princess. Our silent walk was short, however, as we soon came to a dome rising from the very land we tread upon. With but a flicker from her horn, the dome opened, and we walked inside.

"Novalis, welcome to my sanctuary."

Sanctuary? Did that mean...

"Princess, are we on the moon?"

"Yes, Novalis," she replied with a laugh. "And please, while we are here, call me Luna."

To recover from the shock of being given the privilege of speaking so intimately to her, I took a look around the inside of the dome. Large bookcases surrounded us, filled to capacity with an untold number of books and scrolls. With a mere glance at the titles, I could see that they were all very rare records, worth a vast amount per title. Returning my awestruck gaze to the Princess before me, I found her curled up on a padded reading dais. With a motion of her wing, she beckoned me to join her. Wrapping me with a wing as I stumbled clumsily up to join her, she brought me close and whispered into my ear.

"How would you like to read with me for a bit?"

A shiver ran through me as her voice tickled my ear. I could only nod dumbly as she began levitating a few scrolls over to where we lay. After picking a few out, she sent the rest back and unfurled some very ancient charts and diagrams of the stars.

"These very charts have been replicated many times, but these ones in particular were hoofwritten by Starswirl the Bearded himself. He was one of my favorite proteges back in the olden times."

I looked over the charts before me with reverence. Starswirl was the leading authority of magic and knowledge when he was alive. He had made many advancements in magical theory and scientific research, many of which we were only now beginning to grasp with our own minds. I never knew he was an astronomer, however. I saw that the maps we were currently viewing were only on the stars I had studied with Luna so far. But... something was amiss.

"Pri- I mean, Luna, these stars aren't in the same place anymore. They're... Hmm. They seem to be closer together than they are today."

"Very good, Novalis. Would you like to hazard a guess as to why?"

I thought about it for a few moments. Why would the stars seem to be moving? Wait. They all seemed to move slightly outwards from the points mapped out by Starswirl.

"Is... the universe expanding? Is the universe actually growing?"

I saw that I was correct by the way Luna's eyes lit up and she broke into a large smile.

"Very good, Novalis. You show great promise. Yes, the universe is indeed growing. Most of my students before you thought that the universe couldn't possibly grow. Too many thought I was jesting with them, trying to trick them, as it were."

"What does that mean for us, though?" I couldn't help but wonder aloud.

"It means that the stars I place in the sky, while I have no further control over them, are travelling beyond the previous borders of the universe. Some are collecting planets as they spin away, and are even supporting new life. New life is sprouting from the very stars I place in the sky for my little ponies to enjoy."

I look up at that time, and noticed that the dome had an opening at the very top. I could see stars travelling slowly across the scope of my vision, and had newfound wonder for what may be connected to them. Perhaps more of them had life now? Maybe life was growing at this very instant?

Luna studied my reactions, smiling slightly. After awhile, she leaned in close to whisper to me again.

"I think that's enough for today. Even though I cannot teach you right now in the flesh, I figured you would enjoy more learning. Time to sleep now, dear Novalis."

With those words, the Dome and Moon faded into blackness around us. The last thing I saw and felt before complete darkness overtook me was Luna leaning in and kissing my forehead.>

I woke slowly, swimming from the currents of sleep back into reality. After shaking the last bit of sleep from my eyes, I looked around my room in disappointment. A dream. I had no way of telling what that dream meant, but I felt lonely without my teacher nearby afterwards. I was used to my dreams with her being interrupted by her in the flesh, and I felt oddly alone without that embarrassment.

Sighing softly, I clambered out of bed a bit clumsily, and took a look out of my window. Dusk was starting to fall, and some of the stars were twinkling in the sky. I recalled my dream, and thought about the possibilities of life surrounding them. Hmm. Maybe Twilight would like to talk about it. She enjoyed learning as much as I did, and I was sure she wouldn't be asleep yet. Buck, she might even be at the library of this town if it was open this late.

After leaving the hotel, I trotted down the street towards the large tree in the center of town. With nothing else to do, and no one to talk to, I began to daydream. As usual, my thoughts were on Luna. And like normal, I fell into another romantic haze.

<"Good job on the lesson I gave you, Novalis."

"Thank you, Princess. But it is your personal tutoring that is to praise."

My eyes roamed across her when she wasn't looking. A simple, elegant black nightdress adorned her body, lightly falling over and accentuating her curves. Black crystal shoes adorned her lovely hooves, and her crown seemed to be freshly polished. Her mane and tail, as always, were expertly groomed, flowing freely without a tangle or mass in the stars.

"Enjoying your view?"

Well... I thought she wasn't looking, anyways... I looked away from her flank and noticed her eyes twinkling with mischief. She lightly trotted over to me and circled around me, eyeing me closely. Clicking her tongue every so often, I began to feel tense under her gaze.

"Now, what would a fine young stallion like yourself be thinking about when viewing me, hmm? What thoughts invade your mind?"

I swallowed nervously, too afraid to speak.

"Come now," she said, drawing very close to me and staring into my eyes, "tell me your secret thoughts."

With a sudden surge of bravery, I opened my mouth and began to tenderly speak my heart to her.

"Well, Princess,...>

"YOU NEED TO GET THE BUCK OUTTA THE WAY, BUDDY!"

I was snapped back to reality by a shouting voice from my left. Looking over, I quickly backpedaled as a large wagon careened past me, and a large stallion chased it down the street. I nearly got run down while daydreaming!

Sighing and shaking my head to clear the last vestiges of my daydream, I decided to start controlling that more. No need to be hurt while dreaming, right? With a chuckle, I turned and resumed my trip to Twilight's. Perhaps she had some tips on controlling one's mentality.

Author's Note

Whoa. A new chapter? What a shock. I am starting to feel more creative since the stress from my job is finally fading away. I am still looking for a job, but why squander the time I have free now? So with that, I am hoping to start putting chapters out at a much better pace than before. And hopefully my dear readers can forgive an author his poor amount of work.

The Royal Court

I was on my way to Twilight's library, and I was oblivious. Completely unaware of the eyes following my every move. About three houses down from the studious unicorn's abode, two other ponies blindsided me.

"Well well well, Orange Rhyme, look who has decided to grace us with his presence again," I could hear a sarcastic voice remark from somewhere in front of me.

"Why, I do believe it's that uppity snob from Canterlot, Razor. We never did get to welcome him before. And I'm pretty sure that vision of Princess Luna before was just a cheap trick. Let's give him a whole hearted welcoming."

The drawling voice of the mare was saturated with ill intentions. Looking up, I saw the two Earth ponies I had met long ago advancing on me, sinister smiles plastered onto their faces.

"And he even drove a rift between us and our dear friend Snowshoe. I think he should be willing to pay for that, at least."

I rose groggily to my feet. The nerve of these imbeciles was stunning. I wasn't interested in fighting, but I was sure as Tartarus not going to let them abuse me. I merely had to restrict my power a bit...

"Stay away from him already, guys. Why do you care if he's from Canterlot anyways, if he hasn't done anything to us?"

A small voice spoke from behind me, and I turned to find the grey pony, Snowshoe, standing there. He was staring at Ice Razor with a bit of fear, but I could see a steely resolve as well.

"Ah, Snow, ever the oblivious one. Every Unicorn in Canterlot is only interested in robbing us hardworking Earth ponies. They steal our bits and make us grow food for them and Pegasi, and we still have to bicker with them to get the rains we need on time. Unicorns and Pegasi only care about stepping on us poor Earth ponies, using their wings and magic to hold us back and keep us on the bottom. And the two 'benevolent Princesses' that swore to uphold 'fairness and honor amongst ponykind' are merely tyrants letting it hap-GUARK!"

The sheer racism of his statements was irritating enough, but to further insult the Princesses was a grave crime. Mustering my power, I silenced and tied the pony in a magical field, floating him over to me while the others looked on in a mixture of fear and awe. Manipulating an Earth pony with magic wasn't as easy as he was trying to claim, but I did so with ease.

Looking into his fearful eyes, I let my voice slip into the one that my inner power possessed, letting my words hang heavy with power and threat.

"Speaking of the Princesses with such disrespect is a crime. And as the Ambassador of Princess Luna, I am obligated to take you before the Royal Court, along with anyone who supports your vicious claims. Your racism and bigotry is unwelcome in the realm of Equestria. Who do you think helped you rebuild after the incident with the hydra six years ago? Who helped charter this land from the gryphons all those years ago so the Apples could settle and turn this town into the place you live today?" I was practically spitting venom, and the pony before me was absolutely terrified. "Those Princesses you claim to be malevolent made it so you could live in peace, you vile and ignorant son of a whorse. And those Unicorns who 'steal your bits' and 'hold you back', they're the ones who pay so you don't have to deal with the extravagant costs of things like the Summer Sun Celebration we had a few months ago."

Looking over at Orange Rhyme, I lowered my voice even more, letting it speak volumes as I asked her, "Do you support this pony's views?"

She immediately dropped to a deep bow, shaking her head fervently and squeezing her eyes shut against any possible retributions.

"Good."

Looking back at Snowshoe, I smiled apologetically to him.

"Sorry Snow, we'll have to get acquainted at another time, I need to take this guy to Canterlot immediately."

He opened and closed his mouth a few times, trying to make words come forth.

"Can I come with you? I mean, I always wanted to see the city..."

Contemplating a few moments, I figured it might be a good idea to take a witness with me, if my word as Luna's direct subordinate wasn't good enough. With a curt nod, I enveloped him with my magic as well, blindfolded and deafened Razor, and teleported us directly to Canterlot, leaving a very stunned and scared mare still bowing where we left her.

Trotting up the stone steps of the castle, I was stopped by two guards.

"Halt, Novalis. We must ask, what business do you have to bring two Earth ponies here under, ahem, varied states of suppression?"

"Well, he," I said, jerking my head towards the pony in my magic field, "is to be taken directly to the Royal Court on charges of racism and treasonous remarks. And the other one is my witness."

The two guards saluted and removed their weapons to allow me to pass. As we walked by, the left guard spat on the pony I was holding with a sneer.

"Filthy racists."

I gave the guard a dirty look, removing the spittle with my magic. He gave me a sarcastically apologetic look and rolled his eyes, before giving me a mock salute and standing back to attention.

I quickly made my way through the castle until I was standing in front of the throne room. After stating my business, I was forced to wait until all the nobles were stationed in the upper balcony before the Royal Judgment could begin. After receiving the all clear, I made my way down the center aisle before coming to a bow before both Princesses. Since time immemorial, these courts had to have a complete agreement between the two sisters before a verdict could be delivered.

"Your Royal Highnesses, my name is Novalis Shiningeyes. The pony currently in my magical hold is named Ice Razor. I have brought him before the two of you on the following accounts: racism, treason, and slander. The pony behind me is Snowshoe, brought in case you need a witness testimony."

I looked up after my claims, and Princess Celestia motioned me to unbind Razor. I set him on the ground and released my magic from him, after which he immediately turned and snarled at me.

"You filthy Unicorn! How dare you defile me with your disgusting magic?"

When a collective gasp and shout rose from the nobles in the balcony, he looked up and blanched. Turning slowly around, he quaked before the merciless gazes of the Alicorn rulers who had heard his outbursts.

Luna spoke first.

"I daresay, sister, that we may not need a witness after that. It seems this contemptible pony before is is quite possibly as vile as Novalis has stated."

"NO! He tricked me! He put a spell on me and controlled me!" Razor was sweating bullets as he shook in place.

"Lying will get you nowhere, Ice Razor," Celestia's clear and strong voice rang out so all could hear. "And, as a cursory precaution, I will be going through your mind and revisiting your memories from the past few hours. This may be a bit unpleasant for you."

With a yellow flare, Celestia drove her magic into the pony before her. His eyes rolled into the back of his head as he mouthed a wordless scream. After a few moments, Celestia's magic dissipated and she opened her eyes.

"Ice Razor, for the crimes of treason, slander, racism, and violence against an ambassador of the Royal Sisters, you are hereby banished to the Gryphon Kingdoms!"

"What?! NO! They EAT us when we cross into their lands without permission!"

"I will place a mark upon you. Unless you insult them, they are not to touch you. I suggest you very quickly learn how to control your more vile qualities."

Without another word, Celestia flared her magic again, branding the mark of the sun into Razor's forehead. When his cries died down to whimpers, Luna used her magic to teleport him from the Court. Afterwards, both Princesses looked down to me.

"Thank you, Novalis, for bringing him before us. We cannot abide such things in our peaceful kingdom, lest we allow the return of Wendigos or worse. You have helped keep the peace for awhile longer."

I bowed to them, and turned to leave when I heard Luna speak to me.

"Oh, Novalis. I request your presence in my study in two hours. Return Snowshoe to Ponyville, and pack your things for your return."

Nodding my head once more, I turned and left the Royal Court.

Author's Note

Hmm, hope this chapter is OK to you guys. You might think his punishment is a bit harsh, though. Anyways, let me know what you think of it.

PS: How the hell did I manage to make the past two chapters equal length?!

Duty to the Night

It took me less that ten minutes to get to Ponyville and back. In that time, I left one note for each of my friends, and also told Snowshoe that I would be meeting with him when I visited again. Now I am sitting in Luna's study, waiting to hear what she needed from me.

A flash of light from behind me made me jump and whirl around to find Luna staring directly at me.

"I thought I told you to take two weeks off and have a vacation, Novalis," she said in a quiet tone.

"Well, as your ambassador, I couldn't very well let him get away with his remarks towards you, your sister, or other ponies, Princess."

"And as my ambassador, you have the authority to place judgment upon those you deem punishable. You do not need to personally bring a pony here unless he or she murders another. Instead, you brought him here, which forced me to return prematurely, after I told you to stay away from me for two weeks."

My ears flattened against my head and I lowered myself to the ground, trying to avoid looking at her. Her tone conveyed disappointment with me, and I could feel my heart sinking.

"I am truly sorry, Princess. And I am loathe to mention it, but," I spoke, remembering the mare in Ponyville who was with Razor, "not all ponies recognize me as your ambassador outside of Canterlot."

I chanced a look at her as I finished speaking, and noticed she had a thoughtful look on her face.

"Perhaps you need a sign of your ties to me. Very well, I shall give you an old form of recognition, one that makes it very clear who you work for. And Novalis, I thought I told you to call me Luna when we are alone."

"I thought that was only for when we're on the moon," I said, a blush creeping onto my face before amazement set it. "Wait a minute, I thought that was a dream!"

A mischievous smile lit her face as she stared at me while I could feel heat growing ever hotter on my muzzle. After a few moments of embarrassed staring, which felt like an eternity to me, she leaned her head back to her wing. Before I could ask what she was doing, she gave a small yelp, and with a quick jerk of her head pulled a large and very stiff feather from her wing. A small drop of blood fell to the floor, and I watched in concern as she laid the feather on her desk. She moved to the back of the desk, where she often sat waiting for me during my lessons, and motioned me to come closer.

"Novalis Shiningeyes, I, Princess Luna, will now formally and completely appoint you as my ambassador and confidant, albeit after giving you a test of loyalties. This position holds much responsibility, but with much reward garnered for your services. You will also be given a small test within the test for my own agenda. I will be casting a truth spell upon you, to ascertain complete honesty to any and all questions I ask you tonight. Do you accept these conditions?"

I nodded and bowed low, resting on one foreknee while setting the other leg straightly in front of myself. It was an old custom bow, meant to convey absolute respect. I figured since she was giving me an old test, I would follow suit. When I rose from the bow, her face was radiant with an approving smile. I felt as if I just passed a test already.

"With all due respect, Princess, could you simply use your orb to tell what thoughts lie in my heart?"

"One can easily deceive him or herself if he or she so wished, Novalis. My spell will strip bare all deceptions."

"Understandable. I am ready when you are, milady."

With a nod, her horn began to glow and she levitated the feather from the desk and pinned it directly over my heart. With a burst of pale light, I could feel her magic seeping into my body and mind.

"Now, we shall begin the questioning. Novalis, do you consider yourself loyal to me, or my sister?"

"You, Princess. Even if a split came between you two, I would choose you."

My eyes widened at the borderline treasonous response my mouth issued. But her smile showed I had given her the answer she wanted.

"If there is a job I require of you, no matter what it is, would you perform it?"

"Only if it did not harm you in any way."

"Final question, and most important one, Novalis. Do you love me as a ruler, a friend, a teacher, or do you wish to be more? If I so chose a consort, a lover, would you in any way deny me?"

"I love you for everything you are to me. You have been a benevolent ruler, kind and just to all. You have been my best friend I have ever made, always joking and making me feel at ease. And I love your teaching, strict enough to ensure the lesson gets through, and yet always willing to simplify a concept to make it easier. And yet, as my daydreams have revealed before, I do love you deeper than any of those. I love your beautiful eyes, full of wisdom, kindness, and yet behind that is shown the steel required to be a strong and capable mare. You always manage to take my breath away, and when you decide to wear clothing, you tend to take my mind away as well. I love you, Princess Luna, just for being Luna, if nothing else."

My mouth gaped at the long winded and potentially destructive answer. Here I was, a commoner, speaking so plainly to her. But her eyes were pools of unfathomable emotions. I could see different feelings swirling in the depths, admiration, amusement, tenderness, and so on. But I even saw a flicker of more before she managed to recover.

"Very well, Novalis. One last question, now that I have thought of it. When I release you from the truth spell, Do you think you could continue to tell the truth so openly and plain to me? I value honesty like this, and am quite frankly tired of the noble's sly words. I would enjoy someone being absolutely honest with me."

"I can do that Princess, but will likely have reservations occasionally. I can promise to not lie, but I cannot promise to always answer."

"Fair enough. Very well then, Novalis. I will now imbue that feather with a few powers that you will need in this job. Welcome to my service, Novalis Nightshine."

With her horn glowing once more, the feather was removed from my chest. A pale blue sheen of magic also rolled off my body and surrounded the feather. Her horn glowed brighter for a few seconds, and a pale white sheen of magic, the color of moonlight, rolled off of her and mixed with mine. The two colors mixed and swirled, and seemed to soak into the feather before disappearing completely.

"Now, you must pick that feather up of your own free will. You cannot use magic to do so the first time, as it needs to bond with your body first."

"Bond?"

Only her knowing smile answered, and I looked at the plume with newfound apprehension. Shrugging my shoulders, I leaned in and picked the feather up with my teeth, and a surge ripped through me at the contact. I gasped as my eyes opened wide. The quill levitated itself in front of me and came to rest against my chest again. This time, though, the contact triggered a flood of memories to me, showing me through another pony's eyes. I could feel that pony's emotions as well, feeling a protective surge for myself. Another memory flashed by, watching an ethereal daydream I remembered, but it floated over my head, and amusement, and another, smaller emotion, washed over me from this other perspective.

When the memories died down, I found myself on the floor, with the feather laying next to me. I found to my surprise that it was glowing. A faint eddy of magic was around it, looking very much like Luna's mane. A deep blue aura with white pinpoints of light clung to the plume, seeming as if the feather was taken from her head. I picked it up and placed it over my heart, feeling a sense of peace and completion pass through my body.

"Very good, Novalis. You passed the true test with that."

"What do you mean, Princess, and why did you call me 'Nightshine'?"

"For the second, look in the mirror when we're done. For the first, that feather would have rejected you if it found you unworthy of anything I intended with you. That feather holds all possible feelings I have for you, and apparently seems fit to deem you worthy. As such, I will be honest with you about a few things that I am no longer afraid to divulge."

She breathed a sigh of relief at the end, causing me to look back from the feather to her face. She seemed to glow with ecstasy, almost giddy with happiness.

"Now, I've known of your love for me for awhile, but I honestly thought it may have been foal's love at first. The love everypony seems to hold for my sister or I at some point in their life, however fleeting. But the days kept on, and your emotions for me never lightened in the least. In fact, you seemed to only strive ever more to impress me. And it worked, trust me. You have shown a rare and deep seated affection for me ever since we first met at my parade. And instead of dulling into adoration as shown to rulers, your thoughts and feelings for me have always burned brightly. You have earned my admiration... and my love. Love for more than a subject. Love for more than a friend. I love you Novalis, as much as you love me. BUT! I will not take you as my mate, not right now. You have yet to taste relationships with other ponies first, and I will not take that from you. Go into the world, and try to make a small herd for yourself. Become intimate with the mares, or colts if that is also your wish, and experience love that isn't borne from immortals. I want you to be well versed in the world, both as my foreign ambassador, and as a pony who knows how other ponies feel. Only when you can show true empathy to all ponies, and can make decisions that are best for them, will you be able to fully accept your duties to me. And only then can you accept the things I may ask you to do. And with that, I must ask you to return to Ponyville. I sent you there because I am very busy with a foreign matter. I do not wish to have any distractions while having to also deal delicately with a dragon lord."

"Yes, Luna, I understand. I doubt I'd be able to help, and if I tried I would only get in the way. I will take my leave now. Thank you for this honor. I will return when you call for me."

I turned and was almost out of the room before she called to me.

"Oh Novalis, aren't you forgetting something?"

I looked at her quizzically, causing her to give a sigh before speaking sarcastically to the air, even voicing it as well.

"Perhaps I have to be the leader in this as well? Yes, he does seem to be somewhat denser than you gave him credit for. Oh whatever shall I do? Take the lead, but punish him if he forgets later? Yes that sounds lovely, thank you airpony."

Looking back to me, I felt embarrassment flush my face at her display, realizing I missed something important.

"Now, say after me, Novalis. 'I love you, Luna'."

That blush deepened considerably as I tried to make my mouth obey me.

"I-I l-l-love you, Lu-Luna."

"Hmm, that doesn't sound very convincing."

"I love you, Luna."

"Nope, still don't hear it."

I squeezed my eyes shut and mustered all my emotion into one loud proclamation.

"I LOVE YOU, LUNA!!!"

"No need to shout, Novalis. I love you too."

I looked up to see her smiling playfully and wickedly at me, causing me to turn away in embarrassment from her joke. Before I could turn completely around, she had taken a small leap and flutter over to me and kissed my cheek lightly. Before I could react, she teleported away from me and out of the room.

I fainted.

Author's Note

Hey, a longer chapter. Woohoo, confessions! I tried to work better on wording here, trying to convey emotions better, since I am apparently Major McWeaksauce with that earlier. So... Tell me what you think, ya? Have a good day, and brohoof on y'all.

Nightshine...

I woke up in the same place where I had fainted. Gathering my bearings, I wobbled to my hooves slowly and sighed. I still had a week and a half of free time before I could return to Princess Luna's tutoring and service. Thinking back on Luna's words to me before she left, I decided to check a mirror and see why she wanted me to do so. Looking around the room, I found a large armoire with glass doors which reflected fairly enough. Leaning in, I studied my reflection, and at first couldn't comprehend the difference. Then, it dawned on me.

My eyes weren't fluctuating anymore. They no longer changed color, but had instead become the color of pale moonlight, shimmering and shining in the weak light of the room. Glancing more critically at my appearance, I also noticed that my overall body had become darker, with my mane and tail becoming a more silver color instead of powdery blue.

Turning around in front of the mirror, I caught a flash of my hooves, and lifted my fetlocks to check. Yep, they had turned slightly golden, like the moon often looked in mid autumn. Speaking of which, the crescent moon shape on my chest had followed the same suit.

This was unnerving. I hadn't heard of many ponies changing appearance like this. Sure, the Royal Guard all looked the same due to an enchantment on their armor, but they were normal ponies off duty. I looked down and noticed that I was still wearing Luna's feather. With a shrug, I took the feather away from my body and set it gently on the armoire, before looking at my reflection again.

Except for my eyes, everything was back to normal. So the feather was the cause of it. I think Princess Luna was holding out on me, then. She had called me Nightshine before I had touched her feather and been accepted by it. Did she personally find me worthy? It was a nice thought to entertain...

Unable to answer the questions I had for Luna, I picked her feather back up and set about looking for a ribbon. It no longer automatically attached itself to my heart when I placed it there, so the sticking spell she used must have worn off. And such a spell was taxing to uphold for long periods of time. It was usually reserved for special occasions and showing off.

I found a ribbon in her dresser, deep midnight blue with silver trim. It was made of exceptional material, feather light and extremely soft. Not wanting to take this one, I continued searching, but to no avail. What was I to do? I looked at my feather, and wondered what Luna would say...

"She'd say you could take it, since she left it there for you in the first place."

I gave a small yelp and jump at the sound of her voice in my head. Looking around hastily, I noticed a glow underneath my vision. Looking down, I saw the feather was glowing with a silver sheen.

"Princess Luna?" I whispered to the feather. The glow intensified for a moment as her voice issued forth in my mind again.

"I told you that feather would bestow you with some abilities for your job. And one of those is a direct line to me for communication when you are abroad."

"I'd prefer to at least write a letter or something. Hearing voices in my head is a bit unnerving, milady."

"Oh, what a priss you can be sometimes, my dear student." No sooner had the words faded in my mind that the feather began to emit a lot more light. After a few blinding seconds, a shape stepped from the feather, coalescing into the shape of my beloved princess.

"Is this better, or will you think you're crazy for seeing things, too?" she smirked at me, the projection wavering slightly.

"Oh, umm... No. Magic and all that. But hearing voices is still bad, you know..." I muttered sheepishly.

"Well," she said, laughing at my nervousness, "I did in fact wish for you to use that ribbon to keep my feather near you."

"Thank you, Princess. While you're here, what other surprises does this feather have in store for me?"

"Nah-ah-ah. I'm very busy, I don't have time to be explaining this. Right now I excused myself from a rather detestable 'meat' dinner," her face wrinkled in revulsion, "so this is a welcome, but brief escape. Perhaps later."

I nodded and watched as the image before me shimmered away. Using a small burst of magic, I tied the feather into the ribbon and placed the ribbon around my neck to keep the feather close to my heart. I quickly left her chambers and scurried quickly from the castle to return home for a little bit.

When I arrived home, I found my mother finishing the dishes from dinner. She insisted on giving me some of the leftover ravioli she had made, and I waited to see how long it would take for her to notice my changed appearance. About midway through the meal it happened. I had been watching her closely, and her eyes widened slightly as she looked at me more critically. I was reminded of how she examined me and my brother before we went to school. She called my father in and began pointing out the changes, and I explained to them about the feather's properties. I also told them about my official placement as Luna's ambassador, and I swear I saw a tear in my father's eye. After they congratulated me, I excused myself. It was about time I had a talk with my brother...

... Red Haze

Red Haze was in his bed, reading one of his Japaneighse 'manga' books. I preferred the spells for moving pictures and stories, myself, when the books turned into almost living versions. I'd borrowed a few mangas from him, but for the most part I bided my time until the animation ponies came to town.

"Hey bro, mind if we talk a bit?"

Haze looked back at me, sighed, and marked his place as he closed his book.

"What do you want now? Wait... What happened to you?"

"Always quick to notice differences in appearance, eh Haze? It's due to this feather, which marks me as Luna's official ambassador. But that's not why I'm here."

"Always humble, Novalis. It's an honorable trait, and it saves me headaches from your accomplishments. Though I will offer congratulations on advancing your dreams a bit further. So why are you here?"

"It's about something I overheard awhile back, when I started my classes with Luna. It wasn't something I could easily broach, since you thought you were in complete secrecy. But I believe I can help you, so I will take a chance."

Haze lifted an eyebrow at my vague answer. He was often quite perceptive, even though he often struck those who didn't know him as a lazy pony.

"You see," I continued, "I found an orb in her office. The orb had some powers that they haven't really shared with us, due to a wish to have their subjects be able to live for themselves. The orbs allow a pony holding them to listen to prayers offered up from ponies. In this case, I heard your pleas to Celestia for guidance, and about your dream to be a Guard."

"I see." Haze said as his face shifted into an emotionless mask. "If these things do exist, I'm sure I have been rejected already in a roundabout way, since I haven't been magically chosen by Princess Celestia to have an audience with her about my future."

"No, Haze. That's the thing. She'd rather you come to her yourself, and show her it is more than a wish."

"And what if it isn't more, Novalis? Some people merely have unattainable dreams. I'm sure you know the reasoning of my wish to become a Guard, and also the reasons I don't dare try."

I detected a tone of pain emerging. He truly felt as if he did not belong in pony society.

"Haze, my brother, I can assure you that you are no monster. You have a high adeptness for illusion magic. Yes, such magic can be misused, but I know you wouldn't. And Celestia and Luna are normal ponies too, albeit longer lived and more powerful. But still, they have feelings, and they do listen to you as a pony, not just another subject."

He turned his face away and sighed, looking out his window, which was actually facing Canterlot Castle.

"I know you love her as I love Luna, brother. I'm sure I can arrange an audience with her, and maybe you can speak to her and lay all your fears to rest."

"It's not that easy, Novalis. Not everypony is like you, able to keep calm under pressure when near an object of affection. I'd crack. I'd sit there like an idiot, day dreaming. And if she can read my mind..."

"Pfft... Calm? Me? Hah! Do you know that the first night I stood outside Luna's room, I ended up caught day dreaming? Oh, and she read my mind. Or how about during a major test that I failed at the time, I also ended up in her embrace, which triggered another, much worse, imagining. She's been patient with me. She has even tested that love for her, which I could never keep secret. But that's the thing I am really trying to tell you. I couldn't keep it secret, and she still accepted me."

"I have one question for you. Think hard before you answer it, Novalis... Do you think I can live a normal life within Equestria with these Changeling-esque gifts?"

"Yes."

"I said think about it, Novalis!"

"I don't need to think on it. I don't need to have an internal debate about something I know as a true and solid fact."

"I see... Perhaps I will meet with Princess Celestia, if she deems me worthy of an audience."

"Haze, brother, you are the brother to the ambassador of her sister. I think she'd have time for you. Not to mention my hand in saving her Summer Sun Celebration awhile back."

"Now you're just pulling my hoof," Haze laughed as he lightly punched my shoulder.

"No, I'm serious, I am the genius who kept the party going while other ponies were risking their lives and getting magical weapons! Damn... I got screwed, didn't I?"

"Haha! You bet you did, little brother. But hey, I heard Luna was thankful you did that much at least, instead of turning into a blubbering foal. Like that time with that goo when we we-"

He was cut off as I tackled him. I made him swear not to bring that up!

After a good bit of fun wrestling and catching up, I eventually made my way out of the house. The sun was coming up, which meant I had a meeting to set up before catching some sleep today. I hoped, for both my brother's and my own sakes, that I was right, and not just deluding myself...

Author's Note

A random job from temporary agency messing my schedule up, a recent breakup, new games for a massively addicted gamer, and a goddamned computer that likes to erase half a chapter at a time have all culminated in one shoddily delayed update. My apologies, but now I should be getting this up more again. I'm managing time better, at least.

As always, a brohoof to y'all, and have a nice day.

Under the Sea

King Aquus was actually quite a polite host. After exchanging minor formalities and introductions, he had me shown to a room temporarily until he could gather seaponies who had more information on their problem. The room itself was grand, with silken marble walls studded with large, luminescent pearls. Unlike land ponies, seaponies didn't have to lay down to sleep, instead, they surrounded themselves with specially enchanted bubbles that wouldn't pop. I was having fun with the bubbles when I was interrupted to speak with King Aquus. The look on my escort's face made me feel rather embarrassed for playing with the bubbles, but I'll be damned if it wasn't worth it.

After an uncomfortable walk back to the throne room, King Aquus took me behind his throne and showed me into a large conference room. Floating inside where thirteen other ponies, including Shimmer Wave. After taking my proffered place at the long table, an iridescent teal seapony floated slightly higher and began speaking.

"Now that we have a surface dweller here in this hall, we can begin to level our grievances against the surface world and..."

"No, Eel Shine, he did not come here to hear about our problems with his kind. And in fact, if you stopped stealing the kelp they fish for, you'd find your family would have far less troubles with them," King Aquus' voice rumbled out, silencing the seapony immediately.

"About why I'm here, err, why am I here?" I questioned.

"Quite a way with words you have there. I jest with you, though. But the matter itself is most grave," Aquus replied. "Recently, a weyr of seadragons has taken up residence right outside of our fair nation, and have been eating all the fish nearby. Without the fish to eat the kelp, it has begun to outgrow our efforts, growing into our homes and tearing them apart. And as a side note, the influx of magical energies from the dragons has infused the kelp to grow in a most prodigious rate. Needless to say, we need a solution, and land ponies have far more experience with dragonkind than we do. Our last seadragon sighting was over three thousand years ago."

"Hmm, unfortunately, we don't really have that much more experience, and we have hardly any experience with weyrs in general. However, show me where they nest, and I will see what I can do for you. As for the kelp, I can teach your magicians a spell to..."

"We have no magicians."

"To... To... Uhh, you don't have magicians? No magic at all down here? But... How was this palace built then?"

"Dedication and hard work. We used tools to shape tunnels in the marble that was exposed from the sea, and used those to direct currents and further the effects of erosion."

"Wow... I'm impressed. I suppose I can give copies of the spell with delayed activation, but I might need some pearls."

"Pearls? For what?" a dark grey seapony suddenly spoke up.

"I need something pure that can hold magic easily."

"Can't you use something else?"

"Pearl Duster, your family won't be losing anything from this venture. As I recall, the kelp is nearly to your home, is it not?"

"Ahh... Quite right, sire."

"As I was saying, I can give copies of the spells using pearls, and just have some of your ponies spread them across the kelp. As for the dragons, I will handle them alone. I know dragons don't normally respect ponies, and I'd rather they not be alarmed by a large contingent of ponies showing up."

"That makes sense. Pearl Duster, Eel Shine, your homes are the ones most threatened at the moment by the kelp, so your families can help with the pearl distribution. Meanwhile, I'll bring some pearls from our treasury. That way Pearl Duster won't be bringing that issue up later."

"Hey! I'm not as contentious as to do that now!"

After the conference, I was escorted back to my room to wait until King Aquus delivered some pearls for me to enchant. What it meant to them was that I was going to help them reclaim their territory. What it meant to me? BUBBLES!

Ahh, but it was not to be. Not even five minutes later, a large box of pearls arrived in my room, and I set to enchanting.

In the Weyr of the Seadragons

The pearls given to me to work with were of considerable rarity and quality, allowing me to bind a more powerful version of the spell I had chosen, and for less magical effort than I expected, as well. I sent for a report of the kelp growth, trying to gauge the extent of invasion, and finally settled on enchanting twenty-seven of the pearls. If any more were needed before I returned from the weyr visit, I could easily make more, but I wanted to try to end the problem in one swift action. I distributed the pearls among a few couriers, and inquired as to the location of the weyr. Apparently they were situated northeast, and I set out immediately.

Two hours later and feeling like I swam in circles, despite Shimmer Wave's assurance we were swimming straight...

"The weyr is right around this mountain, Novalis. I dare not venture further, as I am uncomfortable being this close to anything that might consider me a snack," Shimmer said as she glanced nervously at the bubble streams rising to the surface from behind the large underwater mountain.

"If you say so. I'll go on ahead. Thank you for the escort. If you prefer, you may go home, and come check on me in about three hours. If I'm not here, you can assume I was the snack instead. Just kidding," I said as she looked at me in alarm. "I'm sure they won't be trying to eat me. Believe it or not, dragons are pretty grumpy, but not necessarily ready to chew on any pony that comes along."

"Just be careful, OK? I'd rather not tangle with the Princess of the Moon if something happened to her ambassador."

"Sure thing," I said noncommittally. I then turned and swam towards the bubble streams, slowing my racing heart and schooling my features into one of absolute fearlessness. Dragons might be powerful creatures, but they respect strength above all. I merely had to show them I was not going to be intimidated.

The first thing I noticed upon seeing the weyr was that it was far more communal than I expected. Mother dragonesses lay overlooking a large crater where small drayklings were playing. A few males were swimming lazily around the perimeter, guarding against anything that might foolishly attempt to attack the large gathering of dragonkind. Surveying the weyr, I eventually spotted a dragon easily twice as big as the males floating around, and a third larger than the females. The Queen Dragoness, the one I needed to speak to most. I began swimming determinedly towards her, and before long attracted the attention of three of the males, who swam closer to investigate the intruder. They roared at me, and blew scalding streams of water towards me, but I deflected the warnings and ignored them. They swam warily around me as I continued, not considering me a threat, but also not willing to leave me alone, either. Finally, as I was getting closer to the queen, a slightly larger than average male swam from the depths to float before me.

"Who are you, to come into the lair of dragonkind? A snack, perhaps, delivered to our queen?"

"My name is Novalis. I am an ambassador of the Princess of the Moon, Princess Luna, and I wish an audience with your queen. I am not here to cause problems, but I simply will not be turned aside, either."

"Very well, little Novalis. But be on your best behavior, lest you find yourself seeing the other use of our tongue and teeth."

With no more words, he swam to the queen, floating by her head to whisper in her ears. She glanced at me, critically observing me before motioning me to proceed.

"Ambassador Novalis, it is our... pleasure, to speak to one so close to the land rulers. You realize you have no jurisdiction here, yes? So what do you wish to speak about, and be hasty."

"I'll get straight to the point. You are currently living fairly close to a colony of seaponies. The presence of your powerful magic is causing disturbances in the kelp growth, and they wanted to know for what reason you chose to reside here."

"What if we merely wanted a change of scenery?" she asked, chuckling softly.

"I find that implausible, Your Majesty. I know that dragonkind do not care to live near other creatures. Most creatures are not as powerful, and thus don't deserve to share your space. So I would like to know what has chased you from your home, and if possible, I would be willing to attempt to help you reclaim it."

"As you just said, most creatures are not as powerful as we. So what hope would you have to drive something from our home that we cannot?"

"Dragons have long memories, and many oral stories passed down, yes? Such as the tale of the time unicorns were in full tune of all their magics, and could even fight dragons as equals in terms of magical power? I have learned that ancient art. I am in full command of all my power. And I've studied many different schools of magic, even some that are unknown to dragonkind. Not to boast, but I'm easily a match for almost anything on this planet."

The queen raised an eyeridge and cast a more critical eye over. Without warning, she unleashed a powerful stream of water, superheated to evaporate the surrounding seawater around the stream. Before the water could boil me alive, I summoned a cloud of magic particles, crystallizing the water in front of me into pure True Ice, instantly freezing the water around it, including the blast from the queen. Without missing a step, I directed the True Ice towards the queen, stopping it short of her massive chest, allowing it to freeze the water touching her scales as she reared back in surprise. After a long moment, she snaked her head around the shard of frozen water, and slowly blinked both eyes as she lowered her head in submission. With that done, I retracted my magic, allowing the True Ice to dissolve.

"Now, what has stolen your home from you?"

"Sirens. The filthy creatures are enchanting all living creatures within thirty miles, making it difficult to hunt without falling thrall to their singing. They've even enslaved a large land pony settlement, which I believe you call Baltimare."

Baltimare? This would explain why Canterlot lost contact with the city a while back. No couriers we sent ever returned, and no one had heard from their relatives in a few weeks. If they were all enthralled by a siren's bewitching song, this would be grave news...

Author's Note

I feel this isn't quite up to my normal quality, but I'm at least happy to have finally updated it.

My Brother's Wish; My New Assignment

"... and that's why I wanted to have this audience with you privately, Princess Celestia."

Celestia took a few moments to ponder everything I had told her. I knew my brother wouldn't come to her on his own, but I believed he should at least have the chance to try. Of course, it also depended mostly upon Celestia's own desires, whether she would even consider a suitor. I had just finished explaining my brother's feelings both for her and about himself, and I elucidated his fears as best as I could.

"Well, Novalis, I'm rather surprised that of all the ponies in Equestria, two brothers would end up loving both of us sisters. It's a bit romantic, too, when I think about it. I could give him a chance, but I cannot guarantee anything without getting to know him, of course."

"Yes, Princess, perfectly understandable," I said, bowing to her. "I just wanted to give you the details that I could and try to give him a head start."

"I'll arrange a meeting with him later. For now, though, Luna has left instructions for you to head to the Southern Isles. Some Seaponies down there have been sending messengers to us with an issue of their own for the past week, and Luna believed you were ready to begin your new job as soon as possible."

"Understood, Princess. I'll get ready and catch a train down there today."

With that, I made a final bow to her and walked out of the room. Before leaving, I chanced one last look at her, and noticed she was staring out of the window with a thoughtful look on her face.

An uneventful train ride saw me to the southern coast of Equestria, in a quaint town called Seahoof. The locals, after learning who I was, led me to a cove not far from the town limits, where I met a light blue seapony by the name of Shimmer Wave. Her appearance was much as described, with looking mostly like a land pony, but covered in scales, with a voluminous fin around her neck, and a powerful tail capable of allowing her to swim swiftly beneath the waves.

"Thank you for meeting with us, Ambassador of the Moon. My name is Shimmer Wave, and we have a rather large problem under the waves."

"It's my pleasure, Shimmer. My name is Novalis 'Nightshine' Shiningeyes. I hope I will be able to help you."

"It's a simple matter, really. Some seaponies have begun to disagree with the rulings under the sea, and wish to sequester themselves away from our main society. They want safe haven within Equestria, and refuge in some lakes."

"Why the sudden shift in thinking? Seaponies have always been free from our rule, free to live as they please."

"Under the waves, it is easy to get away with much. Even easier for a king to be a tyrant, or worse. King Aquus has been degenerating in his rule, and no longer listens to reason. Since the denizens of Equestria cannot reasonably stop him, due to land ponies being unable to survive under the waves, we have decided to merely adapt somewhere else."

"I see. Very well, but before I make any decisions on this, I need an estimate of how many seaponies will be relocating. I also need your opinion on how much water you will need for this endeavor."

"Well, right now, only five families have declared themselves free from Aquus' rule. Each family holds forty ponies in a communal home, so about 200 in total. Give or take a few. We normally prefer to live close to each other, so if you have a lake with about 3,750,000 cubic hooves of water, we could all live there with enough room to grow and branch out."

"So, approximately 250 hooves across, 150 hooves wide, and 100 hooves deep?"

"Deeper, but not so far across. We need deeper water to birth in, but we don't want to be too far from each other."

"Very well, I need a little while to go over my options."

With a nod from Shimmer, I left the cove and returned to the town. Talking amongst the townsponies, I learned that the seaponies had started coming for help with the problem about a week ago, as Celestia had said. The townsponies had been close to the seaponies for as long as the town had existed, and had been shocked with news that the king of the seaponies had started to become more tyrannical. They had tried getting an audience with the king, only to have a large wave sent towards the town.

After that, the townsponies sent letters to the princesses, and erected a large barrier to prevent seawater from becoming an issue. I needed to solve more than the seapony issue, I needed to get to the bottom of this entire issue. With that thought in my mind, I headed back to the cove.

"Welcome back, Novalis, do you have a place we can stay?"

"I do, but first, I have one request. Take me to your king. Let me speak to him."

Shimmer displayed shock, but quickly recovered.

"You do realize our king lives far lower than any land pony has ever been able to survive, correct?"

"Yes, I do. But I am not just a simple errand pony for Princess Luna. I have my own power as well. I can handle a simple swim."

"Very well, if you think you can, follow me."

Shimmer turned, and with a flip of her fishy tail, disappeared into the water. I charged my horn for a moment, calling upon Silavon. With his knowledge, I was able to swiftly alter my own body to follow. Sporting a pair of gills and a fish tail of my own, I bounded into the water and swam after the light blue blur that was Shimmer Wave.

Three hours later, and about six thousand hooves under the surface, which required more magical modification, I arrived before Aquus' large palace. Seven seapony guards with tri-pointed spears blocked my way until Shimmer explained who I was and what I wanted. They escorted me to the throne room, where the largest pony, sea or land, I had ever seen floated slightly over a massive oyster. The king of the seaponies was a sight to behold, indeed.

"So... The Princesses of Sun and Moon do extend their powers beneath the sea when it so suits them. Welcome, Novalis, to the land down under the sea. Now that you are here, let me reveal our true problem, the problem we would not reveal to any but one devoted to our cause. By arriving here... You have proven to want to help, or else you would have simply proven yourself only willing to get rid of the supposed issue and found a new place for the 'five families',"

I looked up and behind him and saw Shimmer Wave floating behind him. Apparently, I'd been duped for a larger purpose than relocation. This was starting to interest me now.