//------------------------------// // Arc 1 - Chapter 3 // Story: The Lunar Millennium // by Sasha Nein //------------------------------// Chapter 3 Copperhoof awoke with the familiar sensation of the sun warming his skin. When he worked in the castle, he was used to rising with the sun. It came as little surprise to him that his body was still functioning on his work schedule, it had only been a day since he left, after all. However, for him to feel the sun in the cave that they’d found last night, meant that the sun had to be well past early morning for it to shine in. So that meant that he’d overslept. Again. So much for schedules. He’d have kept his eyes closed, but the light was penetrating them more than any Gryphon weapon. With a groan he rolled over, or at least, he tried to. There was something solid, and quite warm, blocking his progress. With a sigh, he opened his eyes and tried to find what was blocking him. First was a mass of light blue coat, which, after a few blinks he identified as Clover’s chest hair. All in a rush he realized the unicorn’s forelegs were around him, and holding him rather tightly, preventing him from moving. In almost the exact same move, Copperhoof both shoved the mare back as hard as he could and scrambled to his hooves. He cantered a few quick steps towards the cave entrance before he stopped to breathe, his adrenaline rush making him giddy. Luna scrambled feebly from where she had been thrown as her half awake mind tried to make sense of what had just happened. Having only gotten to sleep just a few hours prior, her brain, and body, weren’t at all thrilled to being put back to work so soon. It didn’t help either, that she had just undergone a radical physical change. The first thing she noticed was how sore her back was. She’d overworked herself before, but Celestia! She’d only just performed magic last night! “Wha...? What’s?” she asked aloud. The next thing she noticed was that her chest hurt. It wasn’t sore, it was more like somepony had just punched her. She glanced down to see her fears confirmed, two red rings were beginning to appear underneath her light blue coat. “Who’s been dancing on my chest!?” she demanded, glancing around and spotting Copper. The earth pony gasped. “What are you talking about?” he asked, his face going red. “I did nothing of the sort.” “Then explain these hoofmarks on my chest!” Luna exclaimed. “They will bruise, and unless I’m missing something really big here, you did it!” “I... Uh, well...” Copperhoof spluttered, clearly embarrassed about the whole situation. “You were hugging me! What did you expect?” Luna glared at Copperhoof, a slight frown developing on her features. “So you just kick mares that hug you, huh? I see how it is.” Standing up regally, Luna marched out of the cave past the red faced stallion keeping her nose in the air, not forgetting to whap him smartly with her tail as she passed. Regardless of her possibly snuggling him or not, kicking a princess was not okay. Besides, she liked to cuddle; it wasn’t like she always had the luxury of a nice cozy companion. Usually she relied on her trusty snuggle pillow, Celestia’s teasing be damned! It sure helped to keep her sister’s irritating sunbeams at bay while she slept no matter what she said. Luna yawned, feeling like her jaw was about to come unhinged. Why was she awake now of all times again? ‘And by Cassiopeia, since when was snuggling so hard on the bones?’ Luna groused to herself, stretching her forelimbs and back against the ground like a cat. If this was a side effect of being in a mortal body, they could keep it. Glancing around, the disguised alicorn observed Copperhoof staring at her as he meandered out of the cave entrance. He turned away as quickly as he could, but not before receiving a withering glance from the princess. ‘Stallions....’  Luna might have enjoyed the attention any other time, but she was still put out by being so rudely awakened from her slumber. “We’d better get moving,” Copperhoof said abruptly, already marching away. Luna scampered after him. “But... Wait! What about breakfast?” Copperhoof glanced at the forest floor, laden with pine needles and the molding leaves from the past year, then back at Luna. He then rolled his eyes and continued walking. Luna pouted, but it was lost on the stallion’s back as he marched away. Fine, she was an alicorn, she could survive much longer without food than he could. If he wanted to starve himself that was fine. Just because there wasn’t any grass on hoof didn’t mean they couldn’t eat something, ponies could eat leaves, right? Luna glanced studiously at the trees around her, wondering if their greens were fit to eat. She didn’t ponder the situation long, though. Her need for food did not encompass eating leaves that Copperhoof wouldn’t, not yet at least. Pursing her lips, the disguised princess quickly caught up with her escort who had already set a breakneck pace into the forest. What followed was two days of sheer agony and torture. Never before had Luna felt so much pain and achiness. Her new body seemed determined to inform her of its displeasure about being forced to work and walk. Considering what she had done that night, she was expecting a few aches. However, by mid-morning, her legs ached, her sides ached, her neck ached, her head ached, breathing was becoming troublesome. Not that she was hindered from making her displeasure well known to her travelling companion. Since Copperhoof was walking in front of her, she wasn’t sure what his expression was, but as the first day after her transformation wore on, his shoulders became more and more set. When they stopped for lunch, she flopped down onto her belly. “Oh, so much better.” Copperhoof stayed standing next to her, head bent low to nibble at some grass. “You sure are more vocal than yesterday, Clover.” “I felt a lot better yesterday,” she mumbled around a mouthful of grass. The rest of the day continued along those lines. They would walk, she’d complain, and Copperhoof would get annoyed. By night, they were both too tired to speak much. Luna fell asleep almost as soon as she hit the ground. The next morning was much a repeat of the first. Despite Copperhoof putting some extra distance between them, her need to snuggle had won out and he’d woken up in her hooves again. Fortunately, he hadn’t kicked her this time. Only some shouting, blushing, and a few inventive swear words. The rest of the day he actively avoided her, always keeping slightly ahead, always pushing just a little further. Luna grumbled as much as she could, unwilling to let Copperhoof get away with shoving her off so easily. Finally, long after the sun was hidden by the mountains, they crested the final hill between them and Hollow Shades. One moment, there was forest, then the next they were in a town. Luna barely had time to look out across the rooftops before they dropped into the dirt packed streets of the valley town. Immediately Copperhoof broke into a canter as they entered the town. “Oh it feels so good to be home!” he whinnied. His pace picked up, forcing Luna to trot to keep up with him. Even from behind the suddenly vibrant stallion, she could feel his muzzle splitting grin. Several ponies seemed to recognize Copperhoof, calling or giving him a wave as he passed. However, Copper was a stallion on a mission. He barely acknowledged them with his own greeting without breaking stride. None of the ponies seemed put off by this however, it seemed they knew who he wanted to see first. Her aches and pains momentarily forgotten, Luna was able to at least get a general look at the town. She knew of Hollow Shades, as it had been founded quite a few years before her banishment, yet she had never visited the place. It was a small town, though given that Copperhoof had said it was a mining town, she hadn’t expected much. The buildings were made of simple wooden planks. Occasionally a log building appeared. Ponies were walking the streets, most of them rather dirty. They must just be getting back from working in the mines. Copperhoof, still hurrying, rounded a corner and made a beeline for one of the smaller buildings. Based on the design, and the welcome mat just outside, it was a house. Most likely, Luna deduced, it was Copperhoof’s house, where his wife was waiting for him. Not even bothering to trot, Copperhoof ran towards the door. At a slightly slower pace, Luna followed. She reached the door just as Copperhoof opened it. “Ginger Snap! I’m home!” Not entirely sure what to do, Luna followed him inside. It was a modest house. The front door dumped into a small living room. A couch, table, as well as a single large-backed chair were situated around. One door led off the sitting room, though Luna couldn’t see where it went. A dining room was on the other side of the living room, and what she could only assume was the kitchen just passed that. There was a noise from the kitchen, a voice floating out. “Copper? Is that you?” a mare’s voice said. From the doorway beyond the dining room, a mare with an almond colored coat and a dark brown, almost mahogany mane, emerged. She gasped upon seeing Copperhoof. “Honey, you’re home!” The two ponies rushed together, throwing their hooves around each other. The mare had a large structure, being almost as large as Copperhoof himself. She had a plumpness that fit her to a tee. Yet, even with the extra size, she still carried herself with the sure grace all earth ponies had. With a laugh, Copperhoof picked his wife up and spun her around. Luna smiled as she watched the couple reunite, just because she was in disguise didn’t mean she couldn’t enjoy, as a princess, seeing her little ponies happy. A high, squealing voice cut across the room before the two earth ponies could do much more than peck each other on the lips. "Daddy, daddy!" Immediately the stallion disengaged his wife and crouched down as a small, grey juggernaut barreled out of a hallway into the dining room and leapt into his waiting hooves. This little pony too, he picked up and spun around before squeezing her tight. Luna swore his gigantic smile got even bigger. “Oh, I missed you both so much!” Copperhoof chuckled, reaching back to hug his wife. “And Granite, you’re so big!” “I didn’t know you were coming home, Copper,” the tan mare said with mock severity. “I would have made you dinner, and cleaned the house.” “It doesn’t matter, Ginger.” Copperhoof gave his wife another quick kiss on the cheek. “I’m back, and that’s all I care about.” Luna watched the family reunion. The smile on Copperhoof’s face as he embraced his wife and daughter was the most emotion she’d ever seen him display. He truly loved his family. In contrast, she stood off to the side, unsure of what to do. She was the third wing here, useless and unneeded. As quietly as she could, she shifted on her hooves, debating between staying there or going outside and giving them some privacy. Seeing such a happy family brought forth images of her own family. Her sister, Celestia, was her only family. She wished she could race back to Canterlot and hug Celestia, but she knew that she couldn’t. If she really had been sent back in time, then revealing herself would be folly. Messing with time, trying to change it, would be disastrous. As much as it pained her, she needed to stay hidden. But how she missed Celestia. It had only been less than a week since she appeared here, but she was too used to seeing the alicorn everyday. Now she wouldn’t ever be able to see her sister, until she fixed this time problem. A scandalized voice broke Luna out of her reverie. “Copperhoof, who is this young mare behind you?” Looking up, Luna’s eyes met those of Copperhoof’s wife. She imagined that if she really had been a young mare trailing a fine, married stallion back to his home unannounced she would be quite nervous. Yet, she could easily pick out the twinkle in the mare’s eye, even if she was a little cautious. “Ah, right,” Copperhoof said. “Ginger, this is Clover. Clover,” he paused for dramatic effect before continuing with evident pride in his voice. “Meet my wife, Ginger Snap, and my daughter, Granite.” He indicated each pony as he introduced them. “Charmed,” Ginger replied. “Mind telling me why you dragged her home? Should I be setting another place at the table?” “Easy, my little ginger snap,” Copperhoof eased, laying a hoof on his wife’s withers. “She was on the streets of Canterlot the night I came home, which just so happened to be in the middle of a thunderstorm. You know what I mean.” He stared pointedly into his wife’s eyes and she finally relaxed. Ginger Snap turned to Luna and put on a comforting smile. “Well, I suppose you’ll have to forgive a mare a little selfish jealousy. But nevermind that, you must be quite miserable after all that trekking, Copperhoof probably didn’t even think to give you a moment’s rest along the way.” The homely mare bustled to the disguised alicorn’s side and immediately hustled her into the kitchen. Luna was too overwhelmed to protest, simply letting herself be led around. “I’m afraid I don’t have water drawn up for any baths, but there is tea still warm on the stove and a wash basin for starters. Not as fancy as you’re used to I’d imagine, but a darn sight better than cold ground and plain water if I do say so myself.” Looking down at herself, Luna realized that she really wasn’t looking terribly presentable. Her mane was a mess and she had dirt matted into her coat from sleeping on the ground for several nights. She grumbled inwardly at the drawbacks of normal pony physiology, as an alicorn she never had to worry this much about personal hygiene. “Do you mind if I pour myself a cup of tea?” she asked Ginger. The mare had walked back over to the stove, where a pot of something was bubbling. “Not at all. The cups are in the cabinet above the sink.” “Thank you.” Luna ignited her horn, the cabinet door opened and a cup floated out. The teapot joined it, Ginger stopping and watching as it passed her. Within moments, Luna had a full cup and was sitting down at the small table. The earth pony chuckled as she watched Luna sip her tea with a contented sigh. “That sure is something else. We don’t have many unicorns around here, I imagine you—” “Oh, I do apologize for not asking first!” Luna cut in, instantly setting her cup down on the table and releasing her magic. “I didn’t even think ab—” “Hush,” Ginger chuckled again, placing a hoof over Luna’s lips. “I ain’t spooked, nor offended. If magic is what you have, then you should be allowed to use it. It doesn't bother me none just so long as you respect everypony else’s privacy.” Luna nodded. “You’re too kind.” Ginger turned back to the stove with a smile. “Well my Copperhoof certainly did bring back quite the polite little mare didn’t he? Where did you come from, or, I suppose more appropriately, what happened to put you here, if you don’t mind my asking?” Luna took another sip of her tea, looking down and trying to look upset. "I've been out of the Canterlot Academy for less than a week. They... asked me to leave. Your husband was kind enough to take me with him before I made a foal of myself." The earth pony tutted. “You poor thing. What about your family?” “I never really knew them. Your husband that rainy night is the first pony I’ve met outside teachers and fellow unicorn students. He was kind enough to offer me a place to stay out of the rain for the night. After hearing my story, he offered to bring me here.” She glanced up from her cup. “Leaving Canterlot just seemed right, so I took him up on that offer. I’m not intruding, am I?” “Not at all, dear. Though, what are you planning to do?” Ginger added something to the pot, giving it a stir. “I... hadn’t quite thought that far ahead,” Luna admitted. “I was just grateful for Copperhoof to be so kind. “Maybe I can find a way to make myself useful around here. It’s the least I can do.” Luna concluded. Quite honestly, she hadn’t considered too much what she was going to do. All she had decided so far was to not meet her sister, not yet. From what she had seen, something wasn’t right. Still, a little voice in her head told her it wouldn’t be wise to reveal herself now, she needed more data. Celestia needed help. Luna didn’t know what kind or how, but the sister she knew had never been a drunkard. Ginger’s voice drew her back to the conversation at hoof. “... Celestia knows we could use extra hooves around here, it’s just that not everypony would appreciate a unicorn helping out with many things. I just don’t know...” The mare continued musing and Luna tuned her out. Whatever happened here, happened. What really worried her was ‘Tia, just what was it that was wrong with her? Perhaps if it were soon after the banishment of The Nightmare, then Luna could see her sister indulging her sorrows with drinking, but seventeen years? No, the Celestia she knew would have had things under control by now. The Celestia sitting on the throne was different. Beyond the drunkenness, she was angry. Her facial expression at the mention of Nightmare Moon was fury. She should be over her anger and sadness by now, focusing on guiding Equestria, not wallowing, or whatever it was she was doing. Luna silently cursed herself for not learning more about the early days after she had been banished. If only her own knowledge was greater, she could easily pinpoint what was wrong. Instead, she was left guessing and she didn’t like it. A hoof on her shoulder broke her concentration. “Are you alright, dear?” Ginger asked, concern etched on her face. “Yes, I’m fine. Just thinking,” Luna replied. The worry drained away, to be replaced with a smile. “Don’t worry, I’m sure you’ll find something to do.” Luna smiled as well. “Thank you, Ginger. And thank you for allowing me into your home.” “It’s no problem.” The mare went back to the stove, tending to whatever was in the pot. It smelled delicious. Luna’s mouth watered slightly. Having had nothing to eat but grass for days now, she could go for a good meal. “Why don’t you go wash up,” Ginger said. “Dinner will be ready soon. The wash basin is just outside the back door.” She pointed with her spoon towards a door just beyond the kitchen. Luna got out of her chair. “That sounds like a good idea.” She headed out the door, spying a metal basin sitting on a table just outside. It was a good size for washing hooves and faces, but not much more than that. She remembered that before they had running water, ponies would leave basins like this outside, so that those coming in from work or play could clean themselves off. She washed her face before splashing a little water up her forelegs to remove some of the mud that had caked up around her hooves. When the ripples subsided, she gazed at her own reflection. The face that gazed back was not her own, just one that she was wearing. Luna stared for a long moment. It was strange, not seeing her dark blue alicorn features, yet she already felt as though this face belonged just as much as the other. Using her hooves, she straightened and smoothed her mane as best she could. It wasn’t the best, but it would certainly do until she could get a proper bath. Unfortunately, it would be a long time before she could ever take a shower. If the timeline held true, it would be several hundred years until pipes and a water system was invented, and even more time before an infrastructure sufficient enough to be useful was created. As she was finishing up, she felt something poking her hind leg. Looking down, she saw the small filly, Granite, staring at her. “Granite, I presume?” The filly nodded. “My name is Clover. It’s nice to meet you.” Luna held out her, now clean, hoof. “You’re not an earth pony,” Granite stated matter-of-factly. “I... That is correct.” “Mrs. Harsh Lesson says unicorns aren’t nice ponies, that you lie and cheat all the time.” Luna frowned. “Well, you shouldn’t believe everything ponies tell you.” “Well she knows a lot more than you!” Granite continued loftily. “She’s the school teacher!” The disguised alicorn pursed her lips. School teachers telling impressionable young foals that unicorns were liars? The school system in this time period must be heavily unregulated. Yet another sign that things weren’t quite right. Luna let her ignored hoof drop to the ground. “I can assure you that unicorns are not liars. We are ponies, just like you.” “I bet that’s a lie,” the filly countered. Luna spared the filly a disapproving glance as she walked back inside. “I don’t think your parents would appreciate you trotting around calling ponies liars, Granite.” If Granite had anything to say in response to that, Luna didn’t hear it. It seemed that the racial prejudices were deep seated, if even foals were being taught to hate the other races. It made her feel ashamed to have gotten lost in her jealousy. There was so much more she could have been doing, if only she hadn’t been blind to the world around her. If only she could have seen the troubles of the ponies and not just her own, then just maybe she wouldn’t have succumbed to her own petty problems. Luna wondered why Copperhoof had been so willing to take her in if the races were so divided. He had shown exceptional kindness back in Canterlot, but why? Would it have been better for all of them if she had actually tried going to one of the academies? At least there were unicorns there, and she wouldn’t have burdened these earth ponies so. But no, what better place to study and find a way to repair broken bonds than in the middle of other races? If it was data she wanted, this was as good a place as any. It was clear anything anypony would tell her was going to be heavily biased, so asking unicorns alone how to fix things would be just as bad as asking earth ponies. This way, she would be able to learn the nuances and tensions on her own. Once inside, Luna saw that the small table in the dining room had been set. Ginger Snap was still in the kitchen, but now she was tending the stove instead of cooking. The earth pony stoked the fire and laid a rack down over them within the iron box. Then she placed a pan filled with some sort of batter inside and closed the door. Luna then realized that the device doubled as both a stovetop and oven, quite ingenious; if it wasn’t for the wood fire in the bottom it would have passed as a modern day appliance, with a paint job of course. Actually, on closer inspection, the modern day kitchen hadn’t changed much. Most of the utensils were the same, just instead of them being made with iron and wooden handles they were all made of stainless steel and plastic. She sat down at the table. It was large, and made out of oak... At least she was pretty sure it was oak. Luna was no craftspony, but she did have a few thousand years under her metaphorical belt. It probably took a couple of large stallions to wrestle it into the house. Watching Ginger bustle around the kitchen made her wonder if this was how having dinner in a normal pony’s home felt like. It was nice. Having spent the last age living as a princess, with servants always fawning over her, large state dinners, every meal being some gallant affair, having a simple, home-cooked meal would be fun. The food wasn’t being cooked to impress her. The table setting wasn’t pre-planned. It was quaint. Or homey, would be another word to describe this setting. She liked it. When she made it back to her present time, disguising herself and mingling with the common pony was definitely something she was putting on her recreation time. Ginger pulled a stack of plates from a cupboard and placed them awkwardly on her back. Luna moved to go help the mare, almost reaching out with her magic before thinking. Instead, she got up from the table and went over to Ginger, taking the plates in her grasp. “Here, let me help,” she said. “Oh it’s alright, I’ve got it,” Ginger responded. “You just go sit down, dear.” “It’s alright.” Luna started walking off, carrying the plates with her. “I insist, you’re being nice enough to feed me. At least let me set the table.” Ginger tried to argue a bit more, but Luna was stubborn. Each time the mare would grab something for the table, Luna would swoop in and take it from her. Ginger tried to look indignant, but the upward quirk of her mouth showed Luna she was rather amused by Luna’s insistence. By the time the food was ready, the two of them were working together to get it to the dining room. “Dinner’s ready!” Ginger called. “Wash up and let’s eat.” Granite suddenly appeared out of nowhere, startling Luna as she bolted past an unphased Ginger Snap to the table. Copperhoof followed a moment later at a more sedate pace. Luna stood awkwardly as Copper and Ginger nuzzled before sitting at the table. It looked like he had spent a little extra time at the wash basin while they had been preparing dinner. Copperhoof gestured at Luna. “Join us, Clover,” he said with a smile. “I didn’t bring you all the way here to starve.” The disguised alicorn nodded graciously as she took a seat at the far end of the table, allowing Copperhoof to sit with his family on either side of him. Granite looked as though she had just swallowed a lemon as she watched Luna carefully align her napkin in front of her. However, whatever was on the little filly’s mind, she left unsaid. Dinner was far from a quiet affair though, As soon as the food was on everypony’s plate, Ginger Snap began grilling Luna with questions. How the mare was able to eat and still talk politely was beyond her. If she could learn how to do that, it would make state dinners far more bearable. “So, tell us about yourself, Clover.” Ginger asked. “How did you end up following my Copper home?” “I was once a student of the Academy. I studied magic, in most of its forms. At the Academy, things are rigid, structured. Those who ask questions, beyond the topic of magic, were discouraged from doing so. “I’ve always been a curious one, so heedless of the warnings of my teachers, I kept researching, kept asking questions. Eventually, they... grew tired of me, and I found myself kicked out.” She paused to take another bite of her food, the chewing time allowing her a moment to think. “I had nowhere to go. It was when I was sitting in an alley just outside the castle that I met Copper as he was... ejected from said building. I helped him, and in return, he offered me a dry place to sleep for the night. He asked me my story, and upon hearing it, once again offered to help me by bringing me along.” She looked around the table before settling on Copper. “The rest, you already know.” “So you were learning bad magic.” Granite said, in a matter-of-fact tone. “Granite!” Ginger snapped sharply. “What do you mean by ‘bad magic,’ Granite?” Luna responded coolly. Granite answered Luna with an obstinate flick of her mane. “Well, you said you were trying to find things out that they didn’t want you to at your school. So you must have been doing something bad!” “It’s not that I was studying bad magic, it’s that I kept asking forbidden questions like ‘why’ and ‘how come?’ I wanted to know why things were the way they were. I wouldn’t accept ‘because’ as an answer. When they wouldn’t answer my questions, I looked up the answers on my own.” Luna stopped abruptly, checking herself before she talked herself into a corner. “The ponies there encouraged the pursuit of knowledge, but only when it pertained to magic. Anything outside of that, and it was not for us to learn,” she finished simply, hoping her answer would placate the filly. Granite, however, did not look ready to let the issue drop. She opened her mouth to respond. “Eat your dinner, Granite,” Copperhoof cut in before the filly could speak. He gave his daughter a meaningful look. Granite moodily turned to her vegetables and poked at them, continuing to steal glances at the ‘unicorn’. Luna ignored the filly, deciding any more interaction with the filly would only end in tears. The rest of dinner was a quiet affair. Once the dishes were finished and Granite tucked into bed, Ginger showed Luna to their small guest room. Like the rest of the house, it was homey if a bit on the small side. After showing her the amenities, Ginger took her leave for the evening, softly closing the door behind her as she left the room. Luna laid on the bed. She hadn’t realized it before, but she was exhausted. Being in this new body was going to take some getting used to. While it was still relatively early, the disguised princess quickly nodded off into a peaceful slumber.