Luna rose the moon not too long ago, but most of the streets of Canterlot were empty. The throne room was closed down due the damage what the changelings caused inside it and most of the castle as well. The night sky was clear like always above the city so the moon's reflection could lit up the dark streets. When she arrived to the gate of the city the night guards opened it for her.
She was alone because she wanted to be this way and now that only the Lunar wing of the castle stayed harmless not much place remained for her especially now that Twilight and her friends stayed for the night in the castle as well. Twilight saved her two times, but she didn't know much about her, even less about her friends.
The night was calm like any usual night in the summer. She was walking without any specific direction, when she got near the Everfree forest, a few animal roars got her attention and stopped. As princess of the night she could see through any dark place without any trouble, what comes in handy if someone want to enter the Everfree forest especially at night, but It doesn't matter if the sun or the moon was on the sky the forest was covered in darkness.
Luna was looking for any movement in the forest for a few minutes, but besides some animal noises, she didn't see any creature moving in her close range. She turned away to get somewhere more peaceful with her thoughts, but she stopped after a light cold wind hit her from the back and small shiver ran through her body. She took a look back to search the forest once again, but didn't move any closer to it. When she turned her head back to continue her way after a few steps she stopped again, her eyes recorded some movement almost a hundred meter away where she was standing at the edge of the forest. Luna slowly turned her head back to the point and saw something small and black crawling out the forest.
She opened the wings on her back and with a few strong beats she got closer to the unknown crawling creature. It was changeling, a really young one. Numbers of scars adorned the changeling's body and blood was trickling out of the wounds slowly. The young changeling stopped moving and Luna rushed to it.
The lost changeling's left wing was missing and blood was coming out from the wound. Luna laid down next to the almost dead changeling filly and placed her in her care. The changeling was freezing, Luna didn't know much about the changelings, but tried to stop the bleed with her magic and luckily she succeeded.
Luna picked up and cuddle the little changeling. The changeling's blood got all over on Luna's fur wherever the changeling contacted with her body, but this was the least of her problems right now. She felt how the changelings's heart was beating slower by every passing second so Luna teleported themselves back to the castle where she saw her sister last before she left.
She looked around in the room, door was closed and the bed was empty, tears escaped from her eyes and the panic was taking over her mind. She levitated the dying changeling on her back and held it there as she broke the door open.
"TIA, TIA where are you?!"
The royal canterlot voice filled numbers of corridors and the rooms as well. When no answer came, she began to run, turning to one corridor to another screaming Celestia's name , but she was no where to be found or anyone else, it was like some terrible nightmare. When she could barely feel the heartbeat against her back she stopped and floated the changeling between her front hooves to hold her in front of her face.
"I'm so sorry."
The door near her opened and Celestia stepped out from it.
"Luna, what are you...."
Luna turned her wet face to her sister and between sobing her tears, asked Celestia with a weak voice.
"Please save her."
The princess of the night once again didn't return to the moon to sleep over the day, she was laying next to the changeling filly all night long and didn't even bother to lower the moon so Celestia had to take care of it. The sun rose and Celestia entered the room what made Luna to wake up.
"Would you like to go back to the moon? I'll look after her."
Luna ignore the question and looked down at the changeling.
"Is she going to survive it?"
A small smile appeared on Celestia's face and stepped closer to the bed where they laid.
"She survived the night, that's a good sign, but she suffered some serious injuries so if you didn't stop the bleeding she would probably be dead now, we will know more a couple of days later, Luna, you saved her life. I don't know much about changelings so if her wings grow back or not i can't tell you for sure, but she is young so there is a good chance it will."
Luna opened her wing to cover the resting changeling and placed her head down on the pillow.
"Luna don't you think you should take a shower?"
"No, i want to stay with her."
"Please Luna, I'll stay here until you return."
Luna lifted her head and shot a surprised look at her sister.
"But you have duties to take care of and Twilight is still here, I know how much you would like to spend some time with her and."
"Luna, She can wait few minutes till you get back, I promise I won't go anywhere."
She slowly stood up and walked away from the bed, but before she left the room placed her head on her sister's neck for a few seconds.
"Thank you Tia."
Before she closed the door with her magic behind her, look back at the changeling.
When the hot water touched her body from the shower it was burning a little so she lowered the water's temperature a bit with her magic. She looked down at the water under her, it was filled with the changeling's blood colour which was washed off from her fur, while Luna was looking at the water and blood's mix, a question appeared inside her head what became lauder every time she asked it from herself, but she couldn't answer for it.
"Why?"
Why did she care so much about that little changeling, she has always been a lonely soul and it was a long time ago since she cared for anypony or somepony who would care about her, except Celestia. Her sister always looked after her, even when that happened she tried to help, but when her mind reached the level which was beyond the help she could offer, she chose the best way to give herself time so she can try to find the solution.
"Why, I had no reason to do anything what I've done, she is a changeling and why did Celestia act so calm about it?"
While she was magicly levitating towels trying to dry her body, no matter how hard she tried to convince herself that she didn't need anyone except her sister for some reason her mind always slipped back at the hurt changeling as she laying in her own blood in the bloody grass.
Through her life she let only a few ponies close to herself, but in time they left her, it wasn't their fault. They aged like anypony else, but not like her and the pain what they left behind still hurt when she remembered them.
She was standing at the door ready to enter and there was a warm feeling building up inside her, a minute later it was burning like a fire to get to know that changeling, but something held her hoof back to push the door in and lay back next to the changeling. She knew, it doesn't matter how much she wishes for, the changeling will grow old and die like everypony else around her.
On the other side of the door Celestia saw the shadow of a pony standing in front of the door and she could feel it's her sister standing over there, but the shadow slowly moved away. The smile disappeared from Celestia's face and whispered her name with sadness in her voice.
"Luna."
She walked outside and wanted to open her wings so she could fly back on the moon, but her wings didn't obey her. Luna was trying for a few minutes then finally gave up and went back to her chamber in the castle. The princess was about to close the door behind her when a voice called out for her, a familiar one.
"She sent you."
Twilight had a weird, nervous smile on her face, stroked her mane with her front hoof then looked away.
"Yes, but I'm not sure... why."
A few awkward seconds passed as they were looking at each other.
"So, why did you come?"
"Well she said you can use a friend now so I..I thought if you want to talk or something."
Luna's horn activated and closed the door while she was looking into Twilight's eyes.
"I don't need anyone."
She woke up just in time to raise the moon on the sky, but when she looked outside the sun was still shining above Equestria like it would be still in the afternoon. She stepped outside and saw the night guards already took their places instead Celestia's. Luna turned to the guard on her left, she tried to remember his name, but she was never good at remembering names.
"Guard, do you know where my sister ?"
"The Princess of the Sun didn't leave the room since this morning."
"Which room?
"The one where the changeling filly is recovering."
"What?"
"Thank you."
Luna was staring at the guard for a long minute, not intentionally, but the guard didn't know it. He thought something is odd about his armor, but he checked it before placing it on his body properly so it should be fine and he had shower too.
"Princess?"
She turned away and headed to the room. It took her a three minutes journey to get to the room, the warm feeling returned before she could open the door which made her stop and to give herself a little more time to think about things, but Celestia didn't want that and opened the door instead her sister which surprised her.
They were holding eye contact for a while, Luna tried to read her sister's face, but she looked calm as ever.
"Why?, the sun is still on the sky and she was here all day what about her duties, all the trouble caused by the changelings and Twilight is here too, I ruined their day yet she looks like nothing happend."
"Tia, why didn't you lower the sun already?"
"I was waiting for you to return, I promised it, didn't I?"
The changeling filly was still laying unconsciously when Celestia got out from the bed and walked to Luna's side who couldn't take her eyes off from the sleeping filly.
"Would you like me to raise the moon for you?"
She shook her head then looked at her sister.
"I, No, I'm coming with you."
"Don't you want to stay with her? She can wake up anytime now."
"I don't care."
Luna turned away with a cold look in her eyes and walked away, her sister followed, but Celestia looked back at the changeling who was watching them with her left eye open, she tried to close it so Celestia wouldn't notice it, but she did.
They were walking for a minute when Luna opened the door on her left and stepped outside on the balcony. Celestia lowered the sun and Luna pulled the giant silver orb on its course.
"I'm sorry for ruining your day."
"Oh come on Luna."
Celestia placed her head on Luna's neck.
"Is she going to be fine?"
"Yes."
"So we can let her go in a couple of days."
Celestia raised her head and she shot a surprised look on her sister who began walking back to the castle, she slammed the door in front of her sister with her magic who turned her head around.
"Luna don't do this, I know you care about her, you are better than this."
"Do what Tia get over attached once again to someone who will die someday?"
A few drop of tears escaped her eyes, but after clearing her eyes, she tried to stay strong holding the rest of them back. Celestia take a few steps closer to Luna so she can hug her, but Luna turned her head back and overpowered Celestia's magic on the door then opened it.
"Luna stop, you are acting the same way again, sealing all your feelings inside, pushing away ponies who care about you, please give yourself a chance. She can help you, you don't have to be alone none of us deserve that."
The dark alicorn looked down on the ground.
"Who?"
"What do you mean?
"You can't say anyone who would care about me."
"Twilight does, well she is kind of scared from you, but she tries to be part of your life. I know about the letter what she wrote you after you came back from the Nightmare Night celebration, but after a day or two you returned to your old miserable life."
"I'm so sorry Tia, but I'll never be able to understand how can you handle so easily the pain of losing those you love the most and then keep going like nothing happend."
Luna left the balcony and she was about to turn left, away from the room where the changeling is resting when Celestia called out for her.
"She is awake so go ahead, send her away if you can."
She turned her body around towards the room where the little changeling's eyes were focusing on her across the hall. When Luna got close to the room she noticed something weird about the eyes which were looking at her. They were silver like it would belong to somepony and not to a changeling. When Luna arrived next to the bed, only the face of the strange changeling could be seen under the blanket.
"Hello"
"My name is Luna, what's yours?"
"How are you feeling?"
"So, you won't say a word, will you?"
The changeling shook her head.
"Does it mean yes you will or no you won't?
"I won't!"
When the changeling realized what she has done, tried to cover her mouth with her small holey hooves what made Luna smile at her.
"Can i lay down in the bed next to you?"
After a few blinks the changeling nodded. Luna was watching the changeling, but her eyes noticed someone else in the background, her sister stood there with a smile across her face. Celestia closed her eyes and the yellow aura covered her horn. In the door a message appeared in the air written by fire.
"I'll take care of the night."
It only lasted for a few seconds, but before Luna could turn back to the changeling she felt a small body pressing against her own. She raised the blanket with her magic and saw the dark body with a little horn sticking out from her dark blue fur.
"Are you alright?"
"Yes."
"What's your name?"
Luna felt her fur is getting wet where the changeling is and a shiver ran through her little body.
"It, It doesn't matter anymore."
She felt how the changeling grabbed Luna's fur stronger and she unintentionally stick Luna's body with her little horn.
"They.."
"Sh," She placed her hoof in front of the little changelings's mouth and covered her body with a wing after removing the blanket completely from the bed. "you don't have to talk about it if you don't want to."
They were laying in the bed like that for a couple of minutes speechless when Luna saw the changeling open her mouth, but turned she turned back to the alicorn's warm side.
"Yes?"
She jumped out from beneath Luna's wing and looked into her eyes.
"I don't want to go back, please don't make me, don't throw me away like they did because I'm different," Tears started to escape from her eyes. "please."
While Luna was looking at the crying foal plenty of things crossed her mind, like. What kind of future a changeling would have among ponies, would they accept her or simply hurt her because she is a changeling and if she stays around who will foster her after all Luna is a princess she has duties to take care of then mostly she asleep during the day when could she spare some time for her. She needs a real mother and what if she can't do it and even worse she is bad at it.
"Luna?"
Yet the most important thing what came across her mind is, if she leaves Canterlot and the changelings find her, they will probably kill her or even worse, but if she can avoid this fate by some miracle there is no one out there who would take care of her.
Luna smiled at the sad changeling who started to give up the hope that she will ever convince the Princess of the moon and turned away.
"I won't"
The changeling turned back to face with the smiling princess.
"I won't let anyone to hurt you ever again, I promise, Moonlight."