"Esteemed citisens of Manehattan, I would like to welcome the younger sister of our dear ruler Princess Celestia to give a speech in her absence. Please welcome… Princess Luna!” Spike announced standing on a tall bar stool, his deep voice echoing around the backstage area of the magical facility. The painted Mustache on his face added a whimsy touch to his otherwise attempt to a serious demeanour.
Opposite him, Luna stood with a script levitating in her magical aura, visibly unsure of herself she run through her speech once more. The muscles around her eyes were slightly tensed and her posture off, but presentable enough. Standing on a chair beside her, Rarity, fluttered around her, adjusting a stray lock of her mane with a gentle touch.
"T..thank you, Mayor" Luna responded with a slight pause to search her lines "It is with great honor that we gather here today to begin a new journey…"
Twilight Sparkle, clipboard levitating Infront of her, raised her hoof. "Princess, your composure is perfect, but…… let's try to improve your confidence, it’s important for the delivery of the speech just as the speech itself. Imagine you're only speaking to a friend? Try to relax and make sure you don’t switch to old equestrian”
Rarity now satisfied with her work, magically levitated a navy blue dress near Luna "Twilight, darling, the Princess is doing splendidly. We mustn't fuss too much. Everything is as perfect as it can be. Now, Your Highness, may I please ask you to stand still while Twilight teleports this dress onto you? And Twilight," Rarity added, casting a somewhat menacing look at her friend, "please be careful …don’t mess up her hair, fur and Celestia be my witness … the dress. I may have forgave you , but I didn’t forget" she finished with a playful smile.
Twilight blushed and stammered, "Of course, Rarity," She focused her magic on the dress, and in a flash of light, it was teleported onto Luna, fitting her perfect. Looking at the mirror positioned beside her Luna found herself in a navy blue dress shimmering beautifully, made of fine satin that caught even the small amount of light with every movement she took. It depicted a silver celestial patterns that mirrored the night sky and beautiful silvery transparent fabric that wrapped around the base of her wings. “It looks wonderful with with your cyan fur princess, what do you think?”
Luna examined herself, her eyes tracing the intricate details of the dress, ‘I may need to ask rarity to make more of them’, she thought as a hesitant smile tugged at her lips. "It is... quite beautiful miss Rarity… I thank thee”
Rarity waved off the compliment with a warm smile. "Oh, it's quite alright, dear. It was a bit rushed … I was only given a day to perfect it. I cant ask you of this request, but do tell anyone who asks that it's a fine work of Carousel Boutique. Public statement from a princess would mean the world for me."
Twilight, magically teleported the mirror to the back of the room and turned back to Luna. "Princess, let's just try this one more time, and that's all. I really think we're getting to it, this is your first official public appearance and Princess Celestia wants it to be spotless"
Just then, Rainbow Dash zipped into the room, her entrance bringing pieces of parchment around the room to fly up. "It's... what's the word , ironic!, that the egghead who can't give a public speech to the town without being nervous is giving advice to a Princess of Equestria."
Twilight's face flushed with frustration, her ears twitching as she shot Rainbow Dash a dirty look. "Really helpful, Rainbow".
Rainbow Dash grinned, unfazed ,"Anyways, I was told to pick you three up. We're going in the V.I.P area , Princess Cadence will be here in a moment.”
Twilight gave Luna a reassuring smile. "You'll be wonderful, Princess!"
Rarity lingered a moment longer, adjusting a final detail on Luna's dress. "You're absolutely radiant, Princess. This speech will be marvelous, I just know it".
Luna nodded “I thank thee, you all, for once again lifting me from the shadows into the light. You saved me before, and still, you keep me afloat”
With a warm smile, the group left. Now alone, Luna approached the mirror in the far side of the room, her reflection gazing back at her under the soft light. She studied herself and focused deep in her eyes, ‘it will get better, just keep with the flow’. She drew a deep breath, steadying her nerves ‘Smile and wave, it will…’ “…Get better”.
Just then Luna felt the presence of another, a sudden chill swept through the room. It was difficult to tell , but it almost felt like time slowed and the room got darker. She paused, her breath visible in the air, a misty cloud that hung momentarily before dissipating.
‘not now… please…not now’
Turning slowly from the mirror, Luna's eyes scanned the dimly lit corners of the room, a faint ringing began in her ears. At first, it was barely noticeable, like the distant fast chime of a small bells of a winter festival. However, as seconds passed, the sound grew louder, resonating within the confines of the room and her head. The light in the room dimmed further, the lights that an arrangements of gas lamps above her was providing was being consumed by the dark. The sound filled the space, seeming to vibrate through the very walls. Luna clutched at her head, trying to block out the noise, but it only intensified, echoing inside her mind like a siren call getting louder and louder.
With each pulse of the sound, her surroundings seemed to sway and distort. The walls bending unnaturally, the little light that remain, flickering as if in tune with the ringing. Luna’s heart raced, panic rising in her throat as the room spun around her. She felt her balance waver, the world tilting as she struggled to remain upright, falling to her knees.
“Not now … please… please… anything… not again”
Tears welled up in her eyes, spilling over and tracing lines of cold wetness down her cheeks. Each breath she took was shallow and forceful, as if the air itself was thickening, becoming harder to draw in. The tears blurred her vision, rendering the already shifting surroundings into a watercolour wash of darkness and flickering light of the gas lamps.
Her hooves now pressed against the sides of her head, trying futilely to silence the relentless noise and the ever-growing pain from within.
Just as the noise seemed unbearable, reaching a pitch that felt like it would break her very neck, it abruptly stopped. The silence that followed was so complete, so sudden, that it left a ringing void in its wake. Luna gasped, her body shaking as she slowly lifted her head, the tears still clinging on her fur. The dim light from the oil lamps flickered back to a steady glow, illuminating now solid looking walls.
In that moment of quiet, the door creaked open, and a figure stepped in… Cadence. Cadence's eyes widened , as she took the sight of Luna on her knees, visibly shaken. Slumming the door behind her with her magic, she rushed to her side.
“Luna! What happened? Are you alright?” She knelt beside Luna. Luna hastily wiped the tears from her cheeks, attempting to compose herself. She managed a weak smile, her voice unsteady. “We... I tripped, that's all. It was nothing,” she lied covering her muzzle with her wing.
Cadence, however, wasn't easily convinced, especially the visible evidence before her. “Luna, if you're not feeling up to it, we can cancel the speech. It's no trouble at all. We can say there was an emergency meeting that required your immediate attention. We'll arrange a quick departure to make it seem urgent and legitimate."
Cadences mind raced through the logistics, planning out the steps, her gaze now from Luna , as she started walking back and forth. "I can have a carriage ready in minutes, and we’ll inform the organisers that you had to return for an urgent matter concerning Equestrian security. They’ll understand it's not unheard of for royalty to have sudden, pressing duties. I will tell the Mayor that Aunty Celly requires your presences… yes that will be easy..."
(Knock)
(Knock)
A firm knock resonated through the room, pausing her mid-sentence of her plan. " Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, Princess Luna, everything is set. I am about to start my speech!" the mayor's voice filtered through the door "Is everything alright in there, you have us all worried?"
As Cadence was about address the knock at the door, but just as she reached for the handle, Luna leaped up with surprising quickness that the pink alicorn hasn’t expected.
“No, Cadence, please” Luna whispered with despair. "We are fine …Ignore all of this. I…I’m fine. Really, I need to do this. It's important."
Cadence hesitated, her magic aura still covering the door handle. "Are you sure, Luna? You don’t look fine, We should easily postpone this—"
“Please …I need this” Luna said as she closed her distance with Cadence close enough that Cadence could feel the sharp, urgent breaths escaping from her on her muzzle.
"I need to do this, Cadence. It’s more than just a speech. It’s a step I need to take for myself. I need it…please”
Cadence looked torn as she glanced between the door and Luna. After a moment of hesitation, she exhaled deeply and murmured under her breath, "I will be by your side, but please, if there's any problem, tell me immediately and don’t lie to me"
“I promise”