Forgiveness · 12:15pm Mar 14th, 2014
Think about that word for a moment. To truly forgive is to let go of the bitterness and hatred you hold for someone's actions or words. Not to forget, but to no longer use it as a reason to dislike someone. To just let go.
We use that word a lot, especially in writing. We ourselves often use the word without really meaning it. A way to try and defuse a situation and deflect continued conversation about an event that brings us irritation and hurt feelings.
Why am I talking about Forgiveness? Think about it in context regarding Princess Luna and Celestia. It's one thing to forgive for an argument, but how strong do you have to be to let go of something much worse? To forgive an action that threatened everything you hold dear? Celestia forgave Luna for turning into Nightmare Moon and threatening the world. And let's assume that Luna forgave Celestia for the things that caused her to become so bitter in the first place. That being said, how strong would you have to be to forgive a second time for the same event repeating? Would you honestly, and truly forgive if you were betrayed twice the same way?
How much forgiveness are you willing to give out for your friends, lovers, family? Is there a point of no return?
I'd like you to keep this in mind during this Exodus story-arc and remember just how hard it is to forgive and mean it.
(Note: Chapter 55 is almost finished)
I think that only once the anger subsides, and the hurtful words that each party throws at one another are convoluted in time, does it become possible to forgive. A lot of people have that one incident, be it a falling out with a family member, friend, relationship/marital dispute, etc... that went south in a hurry, and all they want is to be able to tell that person that they're sorry. I know that's kinda broad and assuming, and might be confused with love, but a lot of people seem to just want that closure. Eventually, the weight of that resentment gets too heavy to bear. I know I wish I could tell people that I forgive them for what they did to me sometimes.
As for a second time, the adage "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me." comes into mind. Especially if it's for something like stealing, debauchery, or general shitbaggery.
I think those instances are harder to forgive than the fighting/attitude situations I talked about earlier. To steal from someone, or to personally gain from another person that you call a friend requires a conscious, calculated choice, and to repeat that choice after already being in that situation once is a pretty open window into one's character. I would be less likely to forgive in this situation.
I think of Princess Luna and her eventual descent into darkness similar to someone that is struggling with an addiction to alcoholic beverages or drugs. When she felt slighted by the ponies of Equestria for sleeping through her glorious night, she let her rage build and build to the point where she was allowing her angry rationalizations to give her an out. The devil on her right shoulder was starting to make a little bit more sense than the angel on her left. This continued until she gave into the nightmare, and we all know what happened from there on out.
Princess Celestia, no doubt, spent those thousand years running the past back through her head, seeing the warning signs of what was to come. No doubt, many tears were shed as she saw her little sister's life falling apart right in front of her eyes, and her callous disregard for those signs. Thus, she feels at least partially responsible for Princess Luna's transformation, and no doubt still blames herself despite having forgiven her sister. Whereas she forgave her sister for her past actions, it's very doubtful in my head that she has or will ever forgive herself.
If it happened again, could Princess Celestia forgive her for once again threatening everything that is? I think so, yes.
That being said though, it would take a lot more than just a simple "I forgive you!" + break out in spontaneous song to correct it the second time. Celestia and Luna's relationship not only as rulers, but as sisters would be put through the harshest of tests, and while true forgiveness may come in time, one or both parties would definitely have to check themselves before that came into play. Again, the addiction comes to mind, as does the constant battle that is being fought to not succumb to the temptation, to the drugs, and to the nightmare. Do we abandon each other in our time of need, or do we fight through the pain, the hate, and the hurt to be there for them on the other side, when they need our forgiveness the most?
Forgiveness exists in all of us. I don't think there is a set amount for anyone. However, sometimes forgiveness is nothing more than getting closure. People sometimes forgive their family member's killers, and I sometimes wonder if I'd be strong enough to do something like that if it were me in those shoes.
Even the strongest, smartest, most beautiful people can have trouble forgiving someone for such a thing; whereas, the weakest, frailest, ugliest person could find the strength to do it without a second thought. In the end, do the bonds of friendship and family help or hurt?
Sorry for the ramble. Didn't intend it to be that long when I started out.
The flippant use of forgiveness is the thing that bugs me about so many fics - especially those that pit Luna against Celestia. That those two went through so much effort to repair their relationship speaks volumes about the strength of their characters. To say "Nightmare Moon wasn't that bad, she just wanted to be loved" is to downplay Luna's actions and Celestia's response in a horrible way. Especially because it's so often used to make Celestia look worse.
Would even they be able to forgive again? Very good question. I'd like to think so.
Someone's finding out about Nightmare-in-Starstep, aren't they?
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I don't mind the rambling at all. I wanted my readers to take a hard look at the idea of forgiveness. The ending of this Exodus arc is going to show you the moment Luna began down the path to becoming Nightmare Moon. The idea of Forgiveness and how hard it is will play a central role to the climax of the arc.
It's true, Luna did just want to be loved, but it wasn't so much the dismissal ponies had for her night-skies, rather just one more wound to nurse. Luna's decent into becoming Nightmare Moon wasn't a fast change, but one event started it all. Celestia isn't the 'bad-guy' but she did make a mistake out of fear. Neither are without blame, but they've forgiven each other completely.
The question at the end of the arc is, if the event happened again, would they repeat their mistakes? If necessary, could they forgive each other a second time?
Even beings as old and powerful as the sisters can have troubles facing their worst fears. And fear is a powerful force that sometimes drives us to do foolish and hurtful things to those we love.
Forgive but never, ever forget
You got me deep in the feels Indigo, deep deep in the feels.
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I suppose that depends on the mistake and why they would make it again, especially if it was so traumatic the first time around. Especially if it was the mistake that ultimately led to Luna's fall because then both princesses (and ghost alicorns) should be able to recognize the signs.
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Nightmare already sees the signs.
Note her prior comments about, "History repeats."
That said, I'm hoping I present the issue in such a way that you'll feel sorry for both Celestia and Luna at the same time. Both were at fault, and yet both were right at some point. Here's hoping I manage to get the emotional complexity across when the time comes.
Big thanks to my readers for staying on board this crazy train of a story. Still so much I want to explore emotionally for these characters till we reach the end.
I think it all comes down to the strength of the heart and how strong they will have to be to keep the past from repeating itself and if they learned from their past mistakes in the end. And I have a gut feeling that one of the reasons she fell was due to one of her lovers in the ancient past. Though there is some hope for the two since startstep has done some things that didn't happen in the past as well he might be the difference alongside with the help of nightmare moon to change what didn't happen last time Luna fell. As we have seen before, it was due to Nightmare moon's help that scoot and starstep was able to reconcile with each other
I've always been intrigued by the concept of forgiveness. It's one of those things that is rooted in emotion, but manifested by choice. See, while dislike is emotional and largely beyond our control, forgiveness is a conscious action, a conscious decision to simply say "What you did is wrong, but that's okay." Many people I talk to on a day-to-day basis tend to use the word "forgive" synonymously with "forget". On the contrary, in most circumstances, it is foolish to forget, but wise to forgive.
As for the conundrum you've presented... I can honestly say that yes, I would forgive a second time. A third, even. I wouldn't forget, obviously, and I would always keep my eye out for signs of betrayal, but life is so much easier to live when you're not constantly hating people.
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Good guess. I've been sprinkling hints to that for a while now. A past-love was a catalyst but isn't the spark that set everything down the dark path.
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Yup, very true. It takes effort to really forgive. Probibly one of the hardest things to do in life. It's easy to hate, easy to love, easy to just listen to emotion, but being able to force those emotions to change into forgiveness, that can be incredibly hard.
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The best thing, though, is that through practice, forgiveness becomes easier. Just like playing an instrument, playing a sport, or developing good handwriting, "practice makes perfect." Obviously, having the need to forgive someone in the first place kinda sucks, but it's bound to happen, and if you just force yourself to forgive, it always feels better.
Thanks! And ya, I just thought her losing her lover, no one paying attention to luna or giving her any love after losing her loved one as well no one taking the time to really get to know her totally didn't help at all. And maybe that Celestia didn't see her as a equal but instead as something to watch over and protect but to blind to realize that by going over her or trying to do everything kept putting luna in her shadow. Also hooray new Arc! and thanks for writting such awesome story <3 Though i do want to hope sometime later startstep/Luna have a foal near the end *o* ~ loves kids~ ( disregard my imagination xD )
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Head-cannon time!
Sadly, the immortal alicorns, ie. Luna and Celestia, cannot have foals. They never go into heat (though can magically induce it for a bit of randy fun). It's like their bodies are locked into time, and therefore cannot grow new life within them, as their bodies would attempt to revert over and over back to its natural time-locked state. They grow hungry, but would never starve. They can be hurt, but no matter the injury, it would heal in time as the body restores itself to the restore point. This is the cost of their immortality and why the pony citizens are so very important to Luna and Celestia. In a sense, all of pony-kind are their children, for better or worse.
Luna will have this talk with Star later, and is also one of the reasons why she's so easy-going with him seeing other mares. She'll certainly act as a mother to any of his foals, loving the child as much as if it was her own.
1925406 That is so sweet to hear indigo <33 Also to hear one of the reasons why she was going easy on his other partners. And it is good that Luna would want to be motherly even if she can't have any foals of her own. And sorry for the out of the blue statement xD, I am just a sucker for kids. Probably cause I want to be a mother myself one day *-*
Forgiveness is a powerful thing, but it's also something that can only be described on a personal level.
It takes a very, very long time for someone to get to the point where I wont forgive them, which is saying a lot considering the shit I go through daily with my career.
But other people aren't so forgiving. I know someone who won't forgive someone else just because they didn't shine their boots the night prior...
Anyway, I have faith you'll do well.
There was someone extremely special in my life a few years ago who passed away in an accident, but said accident was their own doing. The cause of it was something I always begged and warned them to be careful with, but they still went along and did it despite my worries, despite KNOWING I was terrified of losing them. They ended up swerving off of the highway. Four years have passed, and I still can't find it in myself to forgive them for it.
I know it sounds harsh, but it's hard to just say, "It's okay," when they KNEW I loved them and worried for them, yet they still took this risk, knowing very well how it could end.
(Sorry for making this sound like a sob-story. Not my intent.)
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It's quite alright, Minimoog. It's an example of the difficulty of forgiving someone. If it was easy, we'd all do it more regularly.
Sorry for your loss.
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It's nice to know I have female readers. Thank you for your insight and comments. I'm hope you've been enjoying the story thus far.
1925997 I am! I really liked how you portrayed Luna's personality. She is more complex than i see in other fics. Not to say others hadn't done a good job, just rare to see as much effort you yourself put into it. So I was happy to find this little treasure of a fic ^^
1925993 Thank you. It's one of those things you have trouble explaining; you still miss and love them, yet you resent them for doing what they did.
Not related, but I'm one of them
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Awesome. The more the merrier. Having female readers means I haven't scared them all off with the clop sections. Though I do try hard to make the mature scenes have meaning and character insight/development/interaction.
Unless a reader comes out and says they are female, I can't assume anything. It is the internet and plenty of guys use cute female avatars.
I like having readers of both genders because of the different perspectives it can provide. Which is why I'm happy when a reader takes a moment to comment about the chapter. The themes in the story effect everyone.