//------------------------------//
// The Moons Last Hour 
// Story: Equestrian Darkness 
// by Arreis Of Avalon 
//------------------------------//

	It was after midnight, Luna knew, but she was determined not to be fooled again. In fact, she was determined to put a stop to Discord’s trickery once and for all. She and Tia had faced him once before, and they could do it once again. Yet, even as she told herself this, inside she was broken. She felt like a twig about to snap under pressure, and though she may try to delude herself, she knew tonight was her last night of defiance. She had lied awake for hours, waiting and watching for him. She waited.
And he came.
“Well, what do we have here?” The voice asked, startling Luna. “It seems our sweet little mare was so excited to see me again she stayed up all night just to see me! Why, Luna, You shouldn’t have!”
“Enough, Discord!” she said in her most powerful voice, which was rather weak to be honest. Discord chuckled darkly. “You are imprisoned in stone, and can do no harm to me here!” There was a pause… Then a dark chuckling, laughter sounded that chilled Luna to the bone.
“Can’t I?” There was a flash, and Discord appeared before her. Every other time, he had been just a voice in the young ones mind, but now he showed himself, exactly as he was, though a bit faded. Lunas eyes widened, staring at him.
Her resistance was shattered. Seeing him again, the being that had caused her pain, her suffering… Her Princess Hood. He caused it all……
“Did I really, Luna? Did I MAKE you imprison me?” His voice was so calm, with a smooth edge behind it. He was right. Discord’s chaos hadn’t been intolerable. Luna gasped as memories surfaced that had been long forgotten. Had they ever really happened? Celestia and herself running through popcorn, eating chocolate milk filled cotton candy clouds… Celestia, discovering the elements of harmony, forcing Luna to go with her to defeat Discord. She had been so scared, but Celestia had made her go right up to his throne and face him. 
“N-No.” She struggled to say as darkness yet again began to tug at the edges of her eye sight. Discord only laughed as Lunas coat began to fade to a dull grey, nearly black.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Celestia was still walking to her room. As she walked by her sister’s room, she thought she heard voices. “You are imprisoned in stone, and can do no harm to me here!” Who was her sister talking to? Then laughter rang out, startling Celestia. She knew that laugh from somewhere….
“Can’t I?” Celestia gasped, to surprised to speak. How could Discord have returned? She felt paralyzed; she couldn’t move a muscle.  “Did I really, Luna? Did I MAKE you imprison me?” Did he really… What? Then she saw memories, memories and thoughts that had never been hers. Roaming through popcorn fields, eating clouds… that was not how things used to be. Celestia and her sister had to work hard, trying to survive without being able to grow crops and take care of their family. Then one day Celestia found a hidden chamber beneath the house. Inside where 6 stones, bearing the marks of the elements of harmony. Celestia knew these were the only things that could save Equestria from Discord. She also knew she could not use them alone, and she asked her sister to help her. Together, they defeated Discord. Celestia shook her head, and finally made her way inside her sister’s room.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“N-No.” Luna repeated, her vision failing her as shadows tore at her mind.
“Discord!” Luna jumped, startled at the sudden sound. She looked up to see her sister standing in the doorway, a stern look on her face. 
“T-Tia…” Celestia looked at her sister, and Discord grinned. Suddenly, Luna dropped to the ground , screaming, being assaulted by memories again. Tia gasped too, seeing everything she did. She even remembered what they had said.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
	“But, Tia, he is the God of Chaos. We’re just kids. How can we go against him?”
“No, Luna! We’re not. We have the Elements of Harmony! They have so much power, we could defeat him so easily! He won’t even see us coming!” 
“But…”
“Come on, Luna! I need you to help me! I can’t do this alone!”
Luna’s eyes narrowed as more memories surfaced. 
“Discord, God of Disharmony and Chaos!” her sister had screamed. Luna had been terrified.
“T-TIA! Why are you calling to him?” She had said, huddling behind Celestia. 
“I know what I’m doing, Luna.”
Luna remembered Discord looking at them from his castle throne, the same castle she lived in today. And what had he done? He had laughed at them. He had sat there and laughed at them. “Who are you?” he finally managed to ask.
Celestia stepped up to his throne. “Our names are unimportant. What is important is that we will defeat you!” 
Discord glared at them. “Nevermind, Celestia.” Celestia took a step back, surprised. “Oh, don’t be so surprised. I plucked your names out of little Luna’s mind. My, aren’t you the determined one,” he said to Celestia as she stepped up once again. “Well, if you’re going to defeat me, you might as well get on with it. I’m missing an awful lot of Chaos here.” 
Celestia looked back at Luna and grinned. Luna timidly walked up to the throne. From under her wings she pulled out the stones that were the Elements of Harmony. Discord recoiled. “Where did you find those?!” Celestia didn’t answer, but lifted her head as the stones began to roll on the floor.
Celestia had investigated the strange stones at their home. Loyalty, Honesty, Laughter, Generosity, Kindness, and an unknown element. Celestia was Loyalty, Generosity and Honesty. Luna was Kindness and Laughter. Celestia had heard the Old mare’s tail. Once the 5 Elements were united, the 6th Element would be revealed by a spark. The Elements started to spin rapidly around the person they had belonged to.
Suddenly, Celestia heard her sister speak. “Tia.” Celestia was surprised to see her sister in tears, her eyes closed. She began to open them, and her eyes shined with a white brilliance. Her wings unfurled and the 6th element appeared in a flash. Celestia gasped as she was overtaken with memories, her eyesight gone, and then everything went white.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Celestia gasped as her sister dropped to the floor, shivering. She glared at Discord. “What did you do to her!?” she shouted. He chuckled. 
“Now really Celestia, isn’t it what you did to her?” 
Celestia was confused. What had she ever done to her sister? Maybe as a mare, playing a gam- 
Discord laughed again as there was a brilliant flash of light. In that instant, he vanished.
Something new had happened, she realized. There was a new presence in the room. Three was movement behind her. Celestia realized she had turned away from her sister. Now that he had gone her sister would have escaped his clutches. She turned and gasped as she saw a full size alicorn standing in front of her, right in the spot her sister had been huddled. “What have you done with my sister?” she yelled at this imposing pony. Where had she come from?
The pony glared at her. “Do you not recognize me, dear sister?” she said, cruelness in her eyes. Those eyes… Tia gasped as she looked deep into them, and there she saw the broken remains of her sister, trapped forever by Celestias folly.
Tia felt tears roll down her face as the mare laughed. “The night is me, dear sister, and I will last forever.”