//------------------------------// // Mid Evening: Part 2 - A Night to Reflect. // Story: The Gala's Night // by Bronie312 //------------------------------// Admiring the panorama, there was the Princess of Night in silence, contemplating the landscape in front of her, being illuminated by the bright emanating from the moon - her old home and prison -; mixed feelings, there were, but also beautiful memories appeared in her mind. Smiling was difficult, but not impossible; however, visions made an appearance, causing a severe - almost irresistible - headache. These prevented the alicorn from continuing to enjoy that view in front of her; she focused on suppressing them all, she wanted to enjoy a quiet night, without nightmares or memories of the evil past that haunted her every time. "These visions..." She thought. "They never leave me alone." Incessant pain worsened, making her clench her teeth, thus avoiding screaming. The situation was serious and the only thing she could do was face the reality that, slowly, was consuming her inside; but... why was she like this? 24/7, Luna was certain that she was selfish, a bad sister, and a terrible ruler as she allowed jealousy to corrupt her and turn her into a nightmare... Nightmare Moon. She opened her eyes, a tear escaped from her left eye, showing her true side; just like Alfred, she was devastated, in pain, and repressed herself as time passed. Not only that, but also grudges towards herself didn't stop tormenting her soul... The wedding, King Sombra, Discord, and many more events in which she could have tried harder - and although this wasn't at all - they made her torture herself; worst of all, it was just on the gala's night, in which she allowed herself to release all her anger and regret within herself, the good thing was that it wasn't in public, she had left the party just in time... "P-Princess Luna?" A voice asked shyly; Luna reacted immediately, wiping her tears and regaining her usual posture, although it didn't work at all... "A-Are you okay, Princess Luna?" The voice asked again, Luna recognized it and answered... "Y-Yes, Fluttershy." She said, trying to remain calm. "I'm fine." "Oh," Said the pegasus, who was already behind the Princess. "Excuse me, your majesty... it's just that I- ...I heard you cry." Luna didn't reply to the comment, she just lowered her head; she felt as if she had ruined everything, but she didn't allow herself to let her emotions escape and raised her head again, still without turning to look at the Element of Kindness... "I-" The alicorn tried to say, but she cut herself off, clearing her voice a bit. "...I'm fine, Fluttershy." She assured, although her tone of voice found out to be a little... broken; this was perceived by the pony, who replied... "...Your voice doesn't sound like you're okay, Princess." She said, leaving Luna without an answer to that; then, she remained silent and - although her head was looking up - her eyes fell on the balcony floor. Being so, Fluttershy took a few steps forward, to later sit next to Luna; it was then she noticed the trace of a tear and knew that she, truly, suffered... "C-Could you please tell me what's going on, Princess Luna?" The pegasus asked, receiving a denial from the alicorn in response... "Oh," she expressed, then looked down at the ground and commented. "Sometimes, when I feel sad, I tend not to pay attention to the bad things and... I always think about the good moments I have gone through with my friends." "That doesn't stop your mind from making you feel bad, does it?" Luna said, to which Fluttershy looked at her with a bit of sadness, feeling somewhat bad for her reaction; although the alicorn seemed to realize this... Luna sighed. "I'm sorry, Fluttershy." She apologized. "It's just- ...today has not been the best of days and- *Ahem* ...I feel a little ...fed up with this situation." Fluttershy looked at her again, concerned about the alicorn and interested in helping her as much as possible - however, she was aware that she couldn't do much -; consequently, and giving everything to make things right, she placed a hoof on Luna's shoulder... "It's okay Princess." Assured the pegasus. "Trust me, I know perfectly how you feel; if - at any time - you feel like that it's correct to express yourself, here I am by your side." The Princess of Night couldn't help but smile at her comment; it made her feel happy to have somepony to talk to and know that she can trust her... "I appreciate your determination, Fluttershy." Luna thanked. "I'll keep it in mind." Fluttershy nodded in response and turned to look straight ahead, placing her eyes on the landscape that awaited to be admired... "It's, uh... a precious night." The pegasus commented in an attempt to start a conversation... "Thank you," Luna replied. "I try to make every night memorable." "In that case," said the pony. "You do an extraordinary job." She complimented, to which the alicorn blushed a little and commented... "You know, before... many ponies did not look at the night as you do; nevertheless, although I've been a villain, I see that - at least - there are a few more who appreciate my effort and dedication... it's a sad reality, being honest." Her tone of voice dropped enough that now she sounded sad... "Do you regret turning into-?" Fluttershy questioned, though her question was interrupted... "I do, every day." "I... have also made serious mistakes," Fluttershy commented, which surprised Luna since she had always the perception of Fluttershy being practically an exemplary pony; it seemed that she was wrong... "Such as?" Asked curious Luna, to which Fluttershy replied... "I discriminated against Zecora for years." Luna was left surprised of hearing such a thing. "The zebra sorceress?" The alicorn asked again ... "Yes," Fluttershy replied, now in a slightly more unhappy tone of voice. "At first, I wasn't aware of it until Twilight and Spike showed me and all of Ponyville the mistake we had made... I- ...when that happened, I felt bad about myself and my morale decayed." The pegasus admitted, although she added... "But... after a while, I realized that mistake is one of the many a living being can make; even animals can be somewhat... i-ignorant. I have realized that a mistake in life doesn't define me, but it can help me be a better pony... and that's what I've done." Luna nodded as her gaze returned to the panorama, though Fluttershy's voice spoke again... "Same thing happened with Discord." The last word of that phrase caused a strange feeling in Luna, who tensed at the name of the Draconequus - Lord of Chaos -; however, she didn't tense up out of fear, but out of annoyance towards that individual who caused so much trauma in the past... "I'd really appreciate if you didn't mention Discord." The Princess murmured as a fleeting memory passed through her mind, causing her to close her eyes and try to suppress a headache that came out of nowhere just after that... "Oh," Fluttershy said. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bother you, Princess." Luna nodded slightly and remained silent, avoiding eye contact with the pegasus, who - upon seeing this - realized that she'd made another mistake; fortunately, she didn't allow herself to feel bad about it... Nonetheless, curiosity gnawed her and she couldn't do anything else but asking... "Why do you hate Discord?" Luna feared this and - yet - it happened. She turned to see Fluttershy right in the eyes, letting her know that this was a too-delicate subject, a message which the Pegasus caught instantly; but, unexpectedly, the Princess sighed and began to speak... "Discord..." she said. "He's responsible for Nightmare Moon's existence." At such an answer, Fluttershy remained puzzled. She was aware of Discord being a villain in the past, but never - in the least - did she imagine that he could be the "creator" of one of the most dangerous monsters and tyrants in Equestrian history... Shyly, she asked. "He was... c-creator of... N-Nightmare Moon?" Luna nodded in response. "Yes," she said. "Although not directly... he caused various traumas in me and... Sombra only made it worse; Discord's chaotic magic and Sombra's dark power did nothing but ruin me... worst of all, my jealousy towards Celestia is what put the cherry on top of the cake... all this led to the birth of Nightmare Moon." Fluttershy didn't know how to react, she was stunned by such revelation and she was unsure whether to say something to reassure her or not; her bewilderment didn't decrease in the following minutes, during which Luna finally gave up and shed several tears. The Pegasus, seeing this, could not resist and hugged the Princess, comforting her as best she could; the alicorn reciprocated the hug while tears continued to flow from her eyes, leaving marks on her cheeks and showing the immense pain and sorrow she possessed. However, the Element of Kindness was not the only one wishing to comfort the Princess of the Night; behind them, looking at them both with pain and deep pity, was another one of the "creators" of Nightmare Moon... an acquaintance of the sisters and the elements of harmony; the Prince of Equestria, exemplary living being, Alfred, contemplated the scene as his mind punished him severely... "It's all my fault." Alfred thought to himself. “I’m nothing... but a monster.” Then - without anything else he could do -, the human left, shedding a tear - which he dropped to the floor -. TO BE CONTINUED...