//------------------------------// // The Escape // Story: The Moon and the Star // by Ashura //------------------------------// Chapter 4 : The Escape Double Star walked to school, as she had done everyday for the past few years, hoping that Thunder Wing wouldn't notice her, especially today, because Golden wasn't here. But she got noticed... “Hey! Double Star! When do you think you're going to get a cutie mark? I'm betting it's once you've finished school... or how about when they come back?” At this, Double Star stopped in her tracks. She had been teasing her about her lack of a cutie mark every single day since she got hers, and she could live with it... But now, she had crossed a line. How DARE she bring them up! It doesn't matter why he brought it up, she's going to regret it. she thought. She turned around and looked at Thunder Wing. Thunder Wing was too busy laughing with her friends to notice that Star was staring at her. When she did notice, she stopped laughing, Double Star pawed at the ground and charged. Thunder Wing started flapping her wings to try and take off. But they weren't powerful enough to get her of the ground yet. And so... “You stuffed your quill... up her nose?” asked Fancy Blue “Yes Sir.” she replied “May I ask why?” asked the director of the orphanage “She made fun of me... again.” Star continued “I see... Well, I'm afraid that I shall have to arrange a suitable punishment for you and Thunder Wing. Seeing as what you have done is slightly more serious then Thunder Wing, your punishment will be more severe.” explained Fancy Blue “But she provoked me!” protested Star “I don't care, you just cannot stick quills up other ponies noses! Even if they deserve it! Thunder Wing will be given lines to write, seeing as you have already punished her slightly. And you will...” “Lines! That's it! That's not fair, the quill didn't really hurt anyway, Thunder Wing was just being a big baby.” “Do not interrupt! Now, you will help the cooks make tonight’s dinner... and go to bed without eating any of it.” “What!” “You heard me young filly! Get to it!” “But...” “Star!” “...Yes sir.” Double Star ran back to her room and kicked the door shut behind her. How could he send her to bed without diner! She had to peel so many potatoes that her hoof still hurt even know. Double Star collapsed on her bed and just lay there thinking. To think that none of this would have happened if Thunder Wing weren't here... or if I weren't here. Double Star suddenly realized that she didn't have to be here. Everypony was busy eating their dinner, nopony would realize if she left... and let's face it, nopony would miss her once they did. But where should she go? Where would she go? The castle is surrounded by the Everfree Forest. But maybe on the other side, if she could find a safe path through the forest, she could find a new home where her lack of cutie mark would not be a problem. What if there isn't anypony out there? asked a voice in her head. She had no answer, but she felt like she had to leave the castle, Thunder Wing and everything else behind all the same. Star packed everything she owned in her saddle bags and crept out the door into the night. Luna was in her room, trying to figure out how she was going to enter Star's dreams and keep the nightmares at bay when there was a knock at the door. It was Celestia coming to tell Luna that it was time to raise the moon. “Good evening Luna. Have you slept well?” inquired Celestia “Well enough to make it through the night.” she answered “Are you OK? You seem worried about something... Anything I should know?” “Actually yes, a certain Fancy Blue came by the throne room today to tell me that one of his students are missing. He had punished her earlier that day for sticking her quill up another filly's nose.” “Up the nose? Really?” Luna chuckled. “Yes. Anyway, he doesn't think she would have left the castle grounds so he would like us to keep an eye out. The filly in question is called Double Star.” Luna was in the process of putting her armor on. But at the mention of Star's name she stopped. “Does Fancy know how long ago she disappeared?” “Can't have been more then a few hours ago according to the pony. Anyway, I'm going to hit the hay now. Goodnight Luna.” “Goodnight...” Celestia left Luna's chambers but Luna didn't even notice, she had continued putting her armor on and thinking quickly at the same time. Why would she run away? Did she have a bad dream again? No, it's still to early for her to have gone to sleep. And she always use to wait until later to sneak out. What if she did go into the Everfree Forest, if she was desperate enough. The night has never frightened her before... Oh I hope I'm wrong. With that thought, Luna leaped out the window and sped towards the castle gate that with all the haste she could muster and headed into the Everfree Forest. Double Star had stopped at the gate, wondering if she should go on. She looked back at the sun, Celestia wouldn't lower it for another three hours. She would be long gone before anypony even noticed she was missing. She looked at the forest, took a deep breath, and moved forward cautiously. There was a path of sorts that seemed to cut through the forest, it seemed like as good a place as any to start. Double Star trotted forward, looking every in every direction, hoping that she wasn't going to run into anything that could eat her faster then she could say... well... anything. She had just passed a cave that seemed to be the residence of a bear, there was a sign in front that said: 'Went to the beach to collect seashells.' Star pondered this. A bear that collects seashells? I've never heard of something like that before. She pushed the sign out of her head and started moving again, and that was when she heard it, the howl of a Timberwolf. She stopped in her tracks and breathed in deeply through her nose, trying to detect from which direction the smell of their bad breath came from... so that she knew which way to run. Luna was flying over the forest, looking for any sign of the little filly, anything that might indicate if she had come through here. She had found a pair of hoof prints a mile back, she had followed them here. As Luna followed the tracks, she noticed that the tracks had changed. The filly who had made them was no longer trotting peacefully through the forest, she was running. And there was something else, Luna dropped to the ground to inspect the tracks more closely. There was a second pair of prints, but they didn't belong to a pony, they belonged to... “HELP!!” Luna leaped into the sky and started beating her wings. She flew towards the source of the sound, searching for the young pony all the while. She flew over a clearing and that was where she saw her. Double Star was being attacked by a pack of Timberwolves. “Help!” Double Star cried out again, she was lying down on her stomach and had her hooves over her head. She couldn't see the Timberwolves but she could hear their growls and she could smell the stench of their breath. She closed her eyes, expecting to feel it's teeth sink into her. But all of a sudden, there was a loud 'thump' that she couldn't identify right away. She heard one of the Timberwolves's paws slice into something she couldn't see and heard a grunt of pain. She heard the sound of lightning flying through the air, which seemed impossible seeing as the sky was clear just a few moments ago. She heard the Timberwolves whimper and the sound of the beasts running away. Their paws striking the ground in a steady beat. What happened? she wondered. When Double Star opened her eyes, she saw Luna standing over her, back lit by the Moon, which made her look fierce and there was a look in her eyes that made Double Star hide beneath her hooves and cry. Luna dropped to the ground between Double Star and the Timberwolves, her horn starting to crackle from the spell that she was about to cast. She noticed that one of the Timberwolves was crouching, getting ready to attack her. She started to turn her head but it was too late, the beast pounced towards her, it's paw already traveling through the air. Luna felt a sharp pain on her left shoulder as she fell to the ground. The other Timberwolves start running towards her. Luna got up and released the spell she had been building up. The spell was released with a sound like lightning and hit the Timberwolf that had just attacked her, it flew through the air, hit an old oak tree and slid to the ground unconscious. Luna turned to face the two others, she noticed a big boulder on the ground and had an idea. She aimed her horn at the rock and unleashed a blast of alicorn magic at it. Luna then teleported just as the lead Timberwolf was about to get her. She reappeared behind the creature and blasted it into the sky and further into the Everfree Forest. But meanwhile, the remaining Timberwolf was already flying through the air, planing on eating Luna. But before it could get to her, a giant creature snatched it out of the air and threw it after the other Timberwolf. The spell that Luna had cast on the boulder had turned it into a Golem, a giant creature made of stone. Luna turned towards Double Star and looked down at her. The young filly looked up and Luna saw fear in those eyes and she realized that the young pony was afraid of her. The young Earth Pony ducked beneath her hooves. Luna was going to ask her what in Equestria she was thinking but then she noticed that the young pony was crying. The words died in her mouth. She watched her for a minute, unsure of what to do. Then, Luna knelt right next to Double Star. The filly jumped at the contact of the princess but then relaxed slightly when she realized she was no longer in any danger. “I'm sorry Luna.” said Star “Why did you run away?” asked the alicorn Double Star looked Luna and noticed that the look in Luna's eyes that had frightened her so had gone, she started to relax a little bit more. After a few minutes of both of them laying on the ground together, Luna holding herself upright, her wing wrapped around Double Star and looking down at her. The young Earth Pony with her head on the ground right by Luna's hooves. Finally she answered. “I ran away because I didn't think that anypony would miss me if I did.” “Why would you think that? Don't you think your parents would care?” asked Luna “... I don't have any.” Star replied Luna stared at the filly in silence, and finally recognized the building that Star had been sneaking out of every night. It was the castle's orphanage. “I'm sorry...” she started “Oh they're not dead, they just gave me to Fancy Blue and left. He says it's because they didn't have the means to take care of a filly, but I have doubts sometimes whether they were actually my parents, from the description that Fancy gave me, they don't even look remotely like me.” explained the Earth pony “So what was it that made you want to run?” “It all started this morning, I was walking through the school gate when a pegasus called Thunder Wing started teasing me about my lack of cutie mark again, I was used to her doing that but then she said that maybe I would only get it when my parents came back. So I stuffed my quill up her nose and then got punished by Fancy Blue, and sent to bed without dinner. So, while everypony was eating, I ran for it.” “I see.” Luna and Star just lay there in silence for a while, Luna pondering what she had heard. It still wasn't quite clear to Luna what these Timberwolves were doing in this part of the forest, they usually stayed clear of this area. Something lurked here that nopony had ever been able to see, it scared beast and pony alike. It was nearing midnight and dangers that didn't fear alicorn magic lived in this part of the Everfree Forest. “Are you ready to go back now? We can stay here a bit longer if you want. Nothing would dare bother us now.” “I'm OK now. We can leave... Thanks for coming to get me, Luna.” Luna just smiled at the young pony and eventually she smiled too. Luna lifted thee filly onto her back and carried her back, using a spell to keep her from falling off her back. Meanwhile, back in the forest a shadow lurked, watching the Princess and filly fly away. “You may have escaped me this time, but you shall not get a second chance to do so. You shall be mine whether I must wait another 10 years or another 100.” The shadow turned it's back to the castle and disappeared into the forest. Luna brought the young filly to her chambers. “Where are we? Aren't you taking me back to the orphanage?” “No, I thought it would be better if you slept here for what's left of the night. Only if you want of course.” “Can I really?” “I don't see why not.” Luna went to kneel by her window to watch over the night, she heard a sound behind her and assumed that the young filly had just climbed into her bed. She smiled. Luna was surprised, however, when Double Star came over to her, dropped a pillow and blanket on the ground right next to her and lay down and closed her eyes. Looking down at the filly, Luna draped her wing over Double Star and whispered in her ear: “Sweet dreams, my little pony.” Unknown to Luna, the young pony was still awake and a small smile appeared on Double Stars face. Luna stayed there the rest of the night, waiting for the moment when she had to lower the Moon.