The Fallen Star Returns

The moon have reached it's highest point, as it's gentle light covered the streets of Canterlot. Most ponies were already in bed, while others had still got business to attend to. Guards patrolled the alleys, and there were still ponies at some of the restaurants. This night was just as the others, calm and uneventful. Or it seemed that way for most.

Princess Luna was at the top of Canterlot Castle, guarding the night as always. Her sister told her to be more vigilant this night. Celestia didn't tell her why, but she had a very good guess. The prisoner might haves escaped, and is now heading here. She kept a watchful eye over every inch of the city to spot any disturbance.

One thing that was out of the ordinary, though. Princess Celestia was still awake. She was standing in the Chamber of the Elements, alone. She ordered the guards stationed there to leave. They wanted to be present at a party anyways, so they left without complaint. Now, she was looking through the window, which pictured the six friends defeating Nightmare Moon. On the sky there was a star that interested her. She hasn't seen it there for centuries, but now it was back, blazing in it's full light.

There is a legend, telling that each pony is represented by a star on the sky. It's light is depending on the ponies mental and physical state. Whenever something terrible happens to an individual, their star's light will fade. Celestia didn't know what to think of this until she witnessed it's existence. Today she was certain, that this legend is true.

As she was inspecting that particular star, she heard something from behind her. It reminded her of sobbing. Celestia quickly turned her head, but after she saw what is making the sobbing, her blood froze in her veins. There was a little colt at the other end of the chamber, crying. The same colt she caught jumping on her bed a couple of times, imagining he was the hero of Equestria, who just saved the land from an army of dragons. But that was centuries ago.

"Why did you leave me, mommy? Why did you leave me in darkness?" the little one raised his head, and looked in Celestia's eyes. Those teary eyes felt like daggers. She had to look away from them after a few seconds.

She wanted to rush to his side and comfort him, but she knew this was just an illusion. That colt was a grown-up now. When she looked back at him, she saw a giant, indescribable thing grabbing the little colt, and dragging him into the shadows. She reached out with a hoof, but she couldn't save him in time.

Half of the chamber was covered in shadows, making it hard to see what was going on. Celestia started hearing hoofbeats from where the colt was dragged to. She saw a head popping out of the dark corner, and then the rest of the stallion's body. They were staring at each other for a minute, but suddenly Moonlight rushed to Celestia, and hugged her.

"I missed you so much! Today I have finally broke out of the prison, which that traitor put me in. And now I'm finally back with you!" Moonlight's outburst confused Celestia. She wasn't expecting to find him in such a condition after what she had done to him. A little spark of hope glinted in her heart.

"I'm glad to see you again," she said gently. However, when she tried to return the hug Moonlight pushed her away from himself.

"Now wait a minute! Weren't you the one who locked us up there in the first place?" his sudden mood change crushed that spark of hope in the Princess "That's right! I remember now. You left us there to rot, without any sign of freedom or salvation."

Celestia didn't answer to him. She knew what was about to happen. The events she saw in her dreams are about to become reality.

"Speechless, aren't you? You don't even have the guts to admit what you have done?" Moonlight leaned closer to the Princess, making sure she can hear the despise in his voice.

"I only did what I had to. You can't expect me to look over a crime as heavy as that was."

"I guess not. But I couldn't let you harm my brother, just because you thought he was my darker side, a virus that must be purged," he gave a little pause then continued, "Do you still think that way? Do you still think I should get rid of him?"

Celestia didn't answer immediately. She had thought about this many times over the years. What if she didn't try to separate Crimson and Moonlight? What if she continued to be a mother figure for both of them? She may never know the answer. One thing for sure, they wouldn't be here today, arguing about the past.

"No, I do not. I was mistaken, I see that now. And there is no way I can fix it. All I can say is that I'm sorry." Celestia lowered her head to show her remorse.

"You know, we would have forgiven you, but you threw that away too. On the day Princess Luna returned we knew what you tried to do. You came to the prison in hopes of reuniting with me too," Moonlight looked closely on how Celestia will react. "We knew you were there, watching us from far away, so we decided to test you. To see if you really meant it. That is why we talked about those nasty things we would do to you once we get out. It was all a test, and you failed. We decided to give you a last chance, but you blew it."

The Princess of the Sun didn't know what to say. First he wanted to scold Moonlight for acting so childish, but on the other hoof she damned herself to her core. If she would have gone through with her idea, this wouldn't have happened. But deep down she knew it wouldn't have worked out well. Crimson was evil, without a doubt. She heard the things he told Moonlight, when they were with her in Canterlot. He was the one, who encouraged his own brother to study dark magic. Celestia knew that Moonlight will never have the life he deserves, while Crimson is still inside his consciousness.

There was an awkward silence for a while between the two of them. Neither of them said anything, they just stood there, and stared at each other. In the end it was Moonlight who broke the silence. "So, I see you have given out the Elements of Harmony. How did these mares turned out to be?" he said, while he was looking at the glasswork, which pictured them as they defeated Discord.

"They have overcame many obstacles together. The bonds they made are remarkable, and I'm very proud of them." Celestia made sure Moonlight notices the pride in her voice.

"And you are especially proud of this one, as I have heard." Moonlight pointed at Twilight Sparkle's image, "She is your best student, right?"

"Yes, she is. She is the most promising student I have ever had." she didn't realized what she just said is about to spark something up in Moonlight. His always competitive nature.

"Are you saying she is better then me?" he raised an eyebrow.

Celestia blamed herself now even more. She might just gotten Twilight into this mess. She didn't know how to respond in order to shield her student from Moonlight. "I do not know," she answered bluntly.

"Then we must find out. It's an important research, which will show us who you have raised better."

"Leave her out of this! I'm the one responsible for what has happened to you. Here I am, defenseless, exposed." she opened her wings and closed her eyes "Get your revenge on me, but please don't harm innocents.

She waited for the finishing blow to come, however there was nothing. All she heard was a quiet chuckle turning into a loud laughter. As she opened her eyes, Celestia saw Moonlight laughing hysterically. Then she saw that his eyes changed to crimson.

"Believe me, I'm the number one pony in Equestria who wants you dead the most. But since my brother doesn't want me to kill you, I won't. After all, he sacrificed everything to save me from you. So, causing you the most possible suffering will have to do." Crimson's deep voice echoed in the chamber. Celestia has never talked to him before. It was always Moonlight, who shared the thoughts of his brother with her. But now she was standing right in front of him.

"I'm warning you. Leave Twilight out of this!" Celestia wasn't the type who made threats, however when somepony who was close to her was in danger, she stopped being the gentle alicorn most known her to be.

This only increased Crimson's amusement. He loved getting under Celestia's skin even when the two brother's were little colts. He always took pleasure in seeing the Princess' disapproving face. But now he finally found a soft spot, where he can really do some damage.

"Or what? Are you going to spank us like you did, when we ate all the desserts before the Grand Galloping Gala?"  as these words left his mouth, Crimson turned into a puff of black smoke. It burst directly through Twilight's head on the glasswork, leaving a big hole in it's place.

Celestia was just standing in the middle of the chamber, unable to move. She could have gone after him, and maybe stop him. Instead she was remembering that night before the Gala. It was the first time she realized something was wrong with Moonlight Shadow. That was the night, which planted the seeds of fear in her mind.

Everypony in Canterlot Castle was busy. Tomorrow is going to be the biggest event of the year, the Grand Galloping Gala. The staff worked their flank off in order to make this gala the best there ever was. Everything went according to plan until point when one of the cooks tried to enter the pantry, where they stored all of the desserts. He had the key to it but when he planted it in the keyhole, the door was still locked. He asked for help, but nopony way able to oped it, not even the royal guards.

They have found out that the door was sealed with a spell. Unicorns tried to break it, without any success. The chef was getting impatient, and he demanded the guards to call for Princess Celestia. They refused at first, claiming that this matter is not worthy of the Princess' attention. However, as their every attempt failed they started to realize they need Celestia's help.

Princess Celestia was sitting in her room, reading over the latest reports from the borders. Apparently, the griffins had an affair with the nearby ponies about food shipments disappearing, and they don't know the reason for it. She took these matters seriously, because she wanted to remain in good relationship with the Griffin Kingdom, even if it was difficult at times. As she was writing a response letter she heard somepony knocking on the door.

"You may enter," she answered the door. A guard stepped in straighten up, with his head held high.

"I apologize for the interruption, your majesty. It appears that there is a small trouble down in the kitchen. The pantry's door is sealed with a powerful spell, which none of the guards were able to break," he said with a little shame in his voice.

Celestia raised an eyebrow, "The pantry? Somepony has locked himelf in the pantry?"

"We don't know yet, your highness, We need your help to open it."

"Very well then." Celestia stood up, and made her way down to the kitchen. On they way there she was greeted by several ponies, designers and workers alike. She had to admit she was pretty tired after arranging the Gala's guest list, and seeing through all the necessary preparations. She came across one of the servants from whom she asked a question. "Good evening. Did you see Moonlight Shadow anywhere? I haven't heard from him since lunchtime."

"I have seen him heading downstairs a while back. It was probably about an hour ago, but he haven't came back yet." she replied in a bit of a scared tone.

"Thank you," she bowed her head, and continued her way down the stairs,

When she arrived, a group of angry cooks stood in her way. They were complaining to each other, while telling what they will do to the one who caused this trouble. As they saw the Princess approach, silence fell upon the room. All of them bowed before her, making was to the pantry. She stood before the door and looked at the seal. It didn't take long enough to figure out whose hoofiwork was it.

"I need time to solve this mystery, alone." she lied, yet everypony left the room in seconds. The seal was simple, however there was something odd about it. She inspected it from closer, and what she found frightened her. There was a small portion of dark magic used in the spell. If this was made by the pony she thought it was, she is going to have a really serious talk with him after this.

She undone the seal, and slowly opened the door. She heard a quiet mumbling from inside, which she recognized. Celestia used a spell to turn on the lights, immediately spotting the thief, who sealed the door behind himself. A young stallion was sitting in the middle of the room with cakes, sweets and all kinds of desserts floating around him. When he heard somepony have opened the door all of the floating foods dropped on the floor. The unicorn jumped up, and turned around in fear to see who had discovered him. When he saw that it was Princess Celestia he calmed down a bit, although he was still on the edge.

"Hello there." Moonlight tried to put on a smile, but it faded as soon as his eyes met the Princess' disapproving face.

"Good evening my dear. May I ask what in the world are you doing?" Celestia tried to hide her anger about the use of dark magic. She wanted to talk about it later.

"I... um," he tried to came up with an excuse to ease the tension, "I'm inspecting the food supplies. You know, just to make sure nopony is getting poisoned tomorrow."

"I see," deep down she couldn't really blame him. Celestia also loved cake, and maybe in her younger days she would have done the same thing. "I hope you realize, you must help the cooks remake the desserts. which you "inspected". This way you can be certain that everypony will be safe."

"Yes ma'am." Moonlight hung his head. Now he head to spend hours down here to atone for his crime. But it was worth it. He have found a spell, which stopped weight gain for a few hours. He could eat as many cakes as he liked, and h wouldn't become fat.

"Also when you are done come and find me in my quarters. I want to have a very important conversation with you," this time she didn't sound so gentle, because the things they had to talk about were very serious. The fact that Moonlight was able to use dark magic made her uneasy.

As Celestia left the pantry, Moonlight Shadow was still standing in the middle of the room, looking around the damage he have done. He felt a little shame, but his pride was bigger. He was able to create a seal that only Celestia was able to break. "You were right. This kind of magic is really powerful," he said it to himself. The answer was given inside his head. I told you. With this power we can overcome any obstacle that gets in our way.

Later that night, Moonlight finished helping the cooks with the desserts. His magic was proven useful, he was able to do the work of five ponies at once. Also, he improved his talents at cooking. Maybe now he can cook simple cupcakes on his own. He made his way upstairs, to Celestia's room. Most of the staff knew him, after all he was the Princess' most well knows student, and her adopted son. He had a good connection with the servents, since his childhood, when he used to play with them. But as he grew up he didn't see them as often.

When Moonlight entered the room, Celestia was standing outside on the balcony. He quietly walked up behind her, in hopes for a little scare. However as he raised his front hooves to tackle her, the Princess used a teleportation spell, and appeared behind him. The unicorn, without any support fell on his face, while Celestia started chuckling. Moonlight turned around on the floor, lamenting his nose.

"Surprise!" he opened his legs, but he was quickly reminded the pain in his nose. Celestia helped him up, then she fired a small spark at his nose, making the pain disappear.

"You have fooled me once already. Did you really think I wouldn't learn from it?" the Princess was hinting at the time when Moonlight scared her the same way he tried now. That time Celestia welcomed it with an unexpected kick in the face.

"Well, I hoped that you have forgotten about that. Anyways what do you want to talk about?"

Celestia's expression changed from cheerful to serious. "I have seen what kind of magic you used to create that seal. It was dark magic. Haven't I told you before how dangerous that is?"

"Yes, you did. Twenty two times to be precise. Do not worry, it was just a little experiment." Moonlight tried to calm her down, with little effect.

"I hope it was successful, because you are not going to repeat this kind of my my watch." she stated her point, without accepting any resistance.

"But I- "

"No excuses. Believe me, I'm doing this for your safety."

"Okay, you're right. Again." Moonlight was disappointed, but Celestia made her point. He can't really resist her commands about important things like this.

"I have deleted every trace of these arts from the library, so how did you learn about it?" this was the most important question she could have asked.

"It was... well... a friend's suggestion," he answered hesitantly.

"And who is this friend of yours? Is he from the castle, or the city?" now Celestia was very curious.

"Well, I can't hide it anymore now, can I. Okay, here it goes. I have a brother!" he stated out loudly, scaring Princess Celestia for a bit.

"A brother? But you were the only one, who your mother left here." she was really suprised by this change of events.

"Technically, he is not around. He lives inside my consciousness, as if he is my other half," Moonlight got a little excited, "I have first discovered him on my sixteenth birthday. That day I heard thoughts in my head. Thoughts, which weren't mine. After a few days I was able to make contact with him. He said he has been watching me, that he has been with me since I was born. Isn't this amazing?"

Celestia was shocked. She couldn't believe what Moonlight just said. If his brother was truly inside his mind, then that means he had been exposed to a large amount of dark magic, before she took him in her care. Uniting two ponies in one body was only possible before birth, and only the most foul of spells are able to cause such chaos. But it might not be his brother. It can turn out to be a seed of corruption, planted inside him.  It was also a possibilty, and Celestia had to make sure, which one it is.

"Yes, it is truly remarkable. What is his name?" she finally asked.

"He calls himself Crimson Star. This might hurt, but he is not really fond of you."

"Is that so? Can I speak to him?"

"He doesn't want to. I tried to convince him before to reveal his existence to you. He is shy, I think." Moonlight was still excited. He wanted to share this with Celestia for a long time, and now the time have finally arrived.

"I really want to get to know him. If he has been here all the time, he probably knows me as well as you do. And I have never even talked to him. Do you think that's fair?" she tried to play around with him, so he will ease up, and let her in.

"I guess not. Alright you can have a chat with him, I promise I won't look." Moonlight gave in to Celestia's hurt play, and stepped closer to let her do the spell.

Celestia's glowing horn touched Moonlight's, and when she opened her eyes she was inside the unicorn's mind. She could saw memories from the past, and thoughts about the future. She didn't looked at them, because she didn't want to put her hoof in Moonlight's privacy. She was looking for that one link, which can connect her to Crimson. As she was venturing deeper into his psyche, she started to notice a growing darkness. Thoughts about dark magic, fear, and hatred showed up in front of her. She wanted to find the source of it, but she was stopped by an invisible barrier. After trying to get passed it, a loud yell hit her like a strong wind. "GET. OUT!" was the only thing she understood, before she was driven out of Moonlight's head.

It took a few seconds to Celestia to realize what has happened. She was sure that Crimson was more then just a prisoned relative. He was a virus, which will corrupt Moonlight one day. She vowed to herself to never let that happen.

"So, how did it go?" Moonlight asked with his never ending excitement.

"He is... a bit grumpy. I couldn't talk to him that much, because he casted me out." Celestia didn't know if she should tell him about what she had witnessed. Maybe he would react defensively, and ignore her warnings in favor of his so called "brother".

"I figured it would end this way. He is not really keen on talking to others, except me. Although, look on the bright side. Now you have two sons for the price of one!"  Moonlight jumped to Celestia, and nabbed her in a big hug, "Isn't this the greatest thing ever?"

"Yes, it certainly is." she couldn't help it, but to smile back at him, and return the hug. However, she knew things are going to change drastically from now on.