Bonus Chapter: Reunion
You may wish to first read Shadow of The Castle in order to fully appreciate what happens here. It is not absolutely necessary, but do bear in mind that this chapter will contain spoilers for said story.
The doors to the mess hall burst open, revealing a rather morbid Princess Luna. Every guard immediately hushed as she stalked in, casting a long, foreboding shadow from the last rays of the evening sun. A moment later, everypony recovered their senses and rose from their seats to salute her – a gesture which she did not acknowledge beyond the slightest nod. Instead, she simply swept her gaze across the hall, searching.
“Ten bits says she’s looking for you,” Tufty whispered.
“Hasty assumption,” Anvil replied.
Luna’s eyes settled on him. “Anvil, Hammer, you shall escort me to Everfree. A matter of urgency has arisen.” With that, she turned around and trotted off briskly without another word.
Ignoring the murmurs from his fellow guards, Anvil cast a wistful glance at his half-eaten bowl of oats and put on his helm. He then left his seat to follow Luna. By his side, Hammer did the same, though with a great deal more stoicism.
“Told ya,” said a smirking Tufty as she smoothly slid his bowl over to join hers. “I’ll just be taking this, if you don’t mind.”
“I spit in my food, you know,” he shot back as she swallowed a spoonful of oats.
She made a choking noise and spluttered, “What? Tell me you’re joking.”
He gave her a parting grin but didn’t say a word.
“Charming,” said Hammer as they trotted in Luna’s wake through the darkening corridors. “It’s a wonder you don’t have smitten mares following your every step.”
Anvil snorted. “You know she’s still going to eat it right up the moment nopony’s looking. She’s got a stomach of cast iron. Bottomless as well, I’d wager. Don’t know how it fits into a mare her size.”
“Not the point.”
“No harm done.”
Hammer gave him a look before wisely dropping the subject.
Luna glanced back at them and asked, “Are you finished?”
The edge in her voice alerted him to the stiffness of her gait, and Anvil silently berated himself for not noticing her discomfort sooner. Especially since she had reason to visit Everfree – from what he’d heard of their former home, it seldom involved any pleasant business.
“Does this have anything to do with the castle?” he asked, vaguely recalling something about a restoration project for the castle’s library that began a few days ago. Apparently, Princess Celestia had seen fit to set up a garrison in the middle of the accursed forest to keep the labourers safe.
“More than that.” Luna suddenly gave him an oddly penetrating look. “You remember Summer Cloud, do you not?”
“Yes.”
“And you two were a bit of an item, were you not?”
Anvil stopped midway through opening his mouth to answer and simply stared blankly.
He remembered spending days with Hammer searching through mountains of records for any information on Summer Cloud’s fate. They’d found quite a few on the passing of their brothers in arms and distant relatives in ages past, but nothing on her. He remembered mourning everypony they’d never see again.
It wasn’t until he’d tried asking Princess Celestia herself that they’d gotten an inkling of what had befallen her. Apparently, they’d left many valuables behind in their haste to flee the rising perils of Everfree, including many priceless artefacts and literary works in the library. Summer had disappeared retrieving said works, and though her escorts never found a body, everypony had presumed the worst.
Had the new labourers found her remains, perchance?
More importantly, he didn’t quite know how to react if such news proved true. Sorrow? He’d already mourned all his friends who had fallen to time whilst he slept, petrified in stone. Did she deserve more for making his heart flutter on occasion? They’d never shared much intimacy, and certainly not enough to call it a tryst.
Anvil frowned as a dozen or so feelings welled up in his chest, mixing together into a slurry of agitation and uncertainty.
Luna chuckled. “I shall take that as a yes, though I remember it being a little one-sided.”
“As a catapult,” Hammer added.
Anvil didn’t answer. He still needed time to sort through these dredged-up emotions, and so remained silent until they reached the launch platform at the base of Luna’s tower. When they began harnessing themselves to her chariot, he found his voice again.
“What does she have to do with your foray into Everfree?”
Luna’s eyes turned to the floor. After a long moment of silence, she murmured, “Summer Cloud is alive.”
Anvil froze and stared at her, as did Hammer.
“I reacted much the same,” Luna said with a wry smile.
“She’s alive,” Anvil repeated.
“After a fashion. She’s also incorporeal.”
Hammer tilted his head. “A ghost, then?”
“Close. Her consciousness is trapped in an astral projection – a pocket of reality – that was apparently spawned by aberrant magic in Everfree from my… parting curse. At least, that’s what Tia suspects. Whatever the case, she has no physical body to return to and has spent the last thousand years in isolation.”
“That is… an unexpected turn of events.” Anvil finished tightening the last strap and shook his head. “How?”
“My sister certainly knows how to pick out the prodigies. Combine her talents with the unpredictable magic of Everfree…”
“Ah, say no more. I assume we are headed there to pay her a long overdue visit? You might have to carry the conversations for a while, because I don’t think I have the words for it.”
“You had me fooled,” Hammer quipped. Then, turning to Luna, he asked, “How is she?”
“She is of sound mind, thanks to Twilight Sparkle. Sister tells me that she found her less so on Saturday’s morn.” Luna’s brow creased, and she looked as if she’d just eaten something exceptionally sour. “I am not happy with her decision to visit Miss Cloud without me as soon as she found out, but I can see why she did it, given what transpired between all of us. Admittedly, I am guilty of the same for not telling you sooner whilst I decided how I was to approach her and make amends…”
“Ah, I suppose we can all blunder our way through the reunion soon enough,” Anvil said. He flexed his wings and wriggled to test the fit of the harness against his armour, then continued, “Just say the word, and we’ll—”
“Wait for meee!”
Anvil stiffened as he felt the beginnings of an itch to trample something to pieces. Though distant, he easily recognised the elderly voice as belonging to someone whom he didn’t particularly care for very much at all, even if that creature did have the blessings of Princess Celestia herself. Personally, he considered freeing him one of the less agreeable royal decisions that she’d made, a sentiment which Luna seemed to share, judging by her steely scowl.
The draconequus came jogging over from the far end of the corridor leading to the platform, leaving a trail of odds and ends that constantly tumbled out of the enormous knapsack on a stick he had slung over his shoulder. Anvil spotted clocks, mallets, dumplings, pillows and a particularly upset water fowl spilling out with each step he took, until he finally came within kicking distance, huffing and puffing as if he’d run a circle around the entire mountain.
“Discord. To what do we owe the… inconvenience?” said Luna with a wary glance at his bulging knapsack as if it might explode at any second.
“Really, now, is that how you greet an old hitchhiker asking for a little lift?” he asked, instantly conjuring some ragged clothing on his serpentine form. “I would’ve expected several centuries to have mellowed you out a bit.”
Her frown deepened. “Irrelevant. We have no time for your games tonight; go pester somepony else. Better yet, amuse yourself without courting the chagrin of others at all.”
Discord sagged and pouted like a disappointed foal. “But—but what about kindness and patience and all that goody-goody stuff that friends are supposed to do? Don’t tell me Celestia’s the only one in the family who practices what she preaches!”
“Friends don’t scheme and plot each other’s misery for personal gain,” Anvil muttered under his breath.
“Oh, water under the bridge; what’s done is done, and I am now a reformed, upstanding citizen of Equestria. Lighten up, won’t you?” Discord cajoled.
He snapped his talons at that last bit, and Anvil grunted in surprise when he and Hammer suddenly rose up into the air without the aid of their wings. He flailed and spun out of control, very nearly meeting his face with the back of his friend’s hoof. Eventually, a sharp tug on the harness chains righted him once more, except that he remained bobbing in the air, tethered to the chariot and somehow as buoyant as a cork in water.
“Pinnacle of humour, that,” he grumbled as a stray wind caught his wings and threatened to turn him upside down again. “I am terribly awed by such stellar wordplay.”
Hammer didn’t say anything, but he did level a steady, neutral gaze at Discord, like a precariously perched boulder just waiting for somepony to get close enough for it to fall on.
Discord’s grin wilted, and then he folded his arms and snorted. “The years of petrification really haven’t been kind to your sense of humour, have they? Fine, I’ll cut out the party favours.” He snapped his fingers, allowing gravity to take hold of them once more, then added in an undertone, “Should be glad I didn’t fill you with helium to do the job, though that would’ve been far more amusing…”
“If you are quite done with wasting our time, we shall be off now,” Luna declared as she stepped onto the chariot. Discord took a step to follow her, but stopped when she flared her wings threateningly and an arc of lightning danced from the base to the tip of her horn. “And, no, we are not bringing you with us. I highly doubt Summer Cloud would appreciate your presence anyhow, sincere or not.”
Discord raised an eyebrow. “You mean the same way Celestia doubted she would appreciate the presence of one particular mare formerly known as Nightmare Moon? I hear that’s why she wasn’t invited to their little reunion straight away.”
A vein bulged on Luna’s neck.
For the merest moment, Anvil thought bolts of lightning would fall from the darkening sky overhead to smite him to ash, but only an ominous rumble of thunder reached the ground. Then, he blinked when she closed her eyes, exhaled steadily, and stepped to one side to make room on the chariot for Discord.
“Tia saw something in you worth redeeming. For her sake, I will tolerate your antics until dawn; don’t waste this chance.”
“Oh ho, splendid!” Discord hopped in beside her, making a tremendous clatter when he dropped his knapsack by his feet. He then pulled a massive whip out of thin air and raised it high, yelling, “Adventure awaits; off we go!”
Anvil flinched when the whip lashed down towards him.
“Discord!” Luna bellowed.
Instead of pain, Anvil felt the explosive crack of the whip just a little off to his side, striking the chariot’s shaft between him and Hammer. A tremor passed from the shaft, through the chains and into his harness that made his coat tingle. After a few seconds of nothing untoward happening, he shot a glare at Discord, who seemed unrepentant despite getting a similarly murderous scowl from Luna.
“What?”
“Wasting your chance,” Luna growled pointedly at him as she poked his chest with one of her primaries.
Discord rolled his eyes. “Oh, all right. I’m sorry for startling the little horsebats. Sheesh, some ponies these days…”
Then, Anvil heard him murmur, “Warp speed in three.”
“Discord…” Luna warned.
She got an innocent grin in return. “Two.”
The chariot shuddered and hummed as tiny forks of lightning danced on its dark, metallic surface. The very air itself seemed to crackle with static, and Anvil noticed an odd distortion in the air before them, much like the shimmer of heat on a hot road.
Luna sighed and rubbed her temples. “You cheeky wretch. Hammer, Anvil, brace yourselves!”
“One!”
The very air itself clawed at Anvil, dragging him into the twisting maelstrom. Colours and shapes stretched into misshapen streaks and swirls as he hurtled through, unable to even scream as it snatched his breath away. He could only stare at the incomprehensible vastness and hope that he didn’t end up a gibbering mess when he arrived at the other side. If there even was an end.
A thunderclap broke through his trance, and he saw a grey wall of stone rapidly approaching.
Anvil instinctively angled his wings to veer away, but only found confusion when the wind battered him, completely at odds with his momentum. Only then did he realise that the wall was actually the ground. A panicked cry escaped his throat as he spread his wings wide to catch as much air as they could, but his momentum seemed unaffected by any wind resistance he could gather. Hammer’s uncharacteristically frantic efforts had similarly disappointing results.
He gritted his teeth at the last second as he resigned himself to grievous injury.
Their hooves struck the ground and produced another deafening thunderclap, sending a wave of dirt and fog from their point of impact. For a moment, Anvil dared not move for fear of grinding his shattered bones to dust, but then he noticed the complete absence of pain and decided to risk an inspection. His eyes widened when he found everything intact; he could move freely without pain, and even the chariot wheels had nary a scratch or dent.
In the next moment, he noted that Discord had somehow brought them straight into the courtyard of Castle Everfree. All around them stood the walls and towers of old, familiar in form yet strange in their ruined state, eaten away by time and nature. Save for the garrison that bore signs of restoration efforts, almost all of the stonework bore thin layers of moss or creepers.
And just outside the garrison stood a few royal guards, gaping at the sudden appearance of company.
“Next time, you would do us the courtesy of giving fair warning before travelling through the nether realms,” Luna growled at Discord as she sauntered off her chariot. Her bemused glare looked fit to spawn thunderclouds over her head.
Discord shrugged as he stepped down after her. “Just thought you’d appreciate saving an hour or two of flying. But yes, I’ll take note of your request.”
“How reassuring,” Anvil muttered as he unharnessed himself.
Hammer made no comment.
A few ponies, probably masons restoring the castle, had poked their heads out of windows and holes in the walls to see what had disrupted their concentration and quickly returned to their work after calling out a few greetings to Luna. Once the guards stationed at the garrison had overcome their surprise, they too were quick to observe protocol.
“Your Highness, we weren’t expecting you,” huffed a unicorn mare as she came running out of the great hall. “I would’ve arranged for—” Her words suddenly died when she saw Discord with them. “Oh. I—umm…”
“Fear not, professor. We know where to go and what to do. You may return to your work,” said Luna with a gracious wave of her wing. Once the mare had beaten a hasty retreat, Luna dispensed with all decorum and cantered towards the royal library, looking very much like a filly late for her lessons.
Anvil had to wrest his attention away from their surroundings as he ran after her. Memories swam to the surface of his mind as he passed door after door through the halls and passages, almost expecting the familiar face of a long-gone pony to appear around every corner. He could understand Luna’s desire to go past all of it in a hurry.
The library had not fared well in the intervening thousand years. Very few shelves actually had anything left on it that remotely resembled a book, and fewer still had a book that looked like it could be opened without crumbling to pieces. Even the flooring had sunken in places, filled with dark pools of water leaking in from the roof. However, the library did have some semblance of order deeper within, where several craftsmares were busy shoring up structural supports and repairing stonework. And in the spots with a lower risk of falling debris lay several sleeping ponies on rough cushions and thin mattreses, with packs of books, quills and scrolls by their sides.
“Find a comfortable place and I shall take us straight into her realm. It is not unlike entering a dream, though it will be less fanciful,” said Luna, gesturing towards the mattresses with a wing. “Now, Discord, I don’t want—oh curse him, where did he go?”
Anvil glanced around but found no sign of the draconequus; he hadn’t even noticed his absence until Luna had pointed it out.
“Doubt we can find him unless he wills it,” Hammer said.
“If he’s wise, he’ll not work any mischief,” Luna growled as she seated herself on a cushion. “We shan’t wait for him. Be seated and I shall begin.”
Anvil lay down on the nearest vacant mattress and set his helm aside, noting that amongst the sleepers sat a unicorn in a trance-like state, with his horn glowing faintly. Luna assumed a similar posture, and a dim, blue glow enshrouded all three of them. His vision blurred, and his breaths felt ponderously slow as he struggled to keep his eyes open. But once he’d overcome the urge to panic, the experience proved much more soothing than unsettling, and he gave in to the lethargy.
Not long after, a distant voice pierced the silence, and he opened his eyes to find the library restored to match his memories. Every torch, every bookshelf, every stone arch looked no older than his last day in the past. An orange sunset cast a waning beam of light from a nearby window, stretching their shadows long and thin over smooth carpets weaved in the designs of old. Outside, the treetops rustled in the steady wind, which brought in the earthy scent of the woods of Everfree.
We are home.
Luna and Hammer also seemed taken aback by the sudden return to familiarity, though they did not dwell long on it.
“Come. This way,” said Luna as she set off deeper into the library’s eastern wing.
They passed an elderly stallion at a lectern speaking to a rapt audience of six other unicorns, some of whom Anvil recognised from amongst the sleeping ponies in the real world. Others sat on their own at strategically placed tables, scratching away with their quills as they pored over musty tomes. Everypony seemed too absorbed in their business to pay them heed as they briskly trotted past, though one stallion did stare in stunned silence when he looked up from his work and locked eyes with him. Anvil just gave him a quick wave and moved on.
Luna marched through to a more secluded section, where even the ensconced torches seemed to burn less brightly. There, they reached a study with a wide entrance, through which Anvil could see all manner of shelves and cabinets lining the walls, topped with stacks of scroll casings, books and other literary odds and ends. A grey-coated unicorn sat behind the massive table in the middle. She had her teal mane braided at the back, with a forelock just reaching her eyebrows at the front.
Anvil swallowed. She looked exactly as he remembered, save for some quality that he couldn’t quite put his hoof on. Something about the way she carried herself reminded him of Princess Celestia.
“The lecture isn’t for another hour, yet,” said Summer patiently as Luna stepped into the doorway. Like the others, she too was absorbed in her work; her amber eyes never left the parchment on the table where her quill danced, glowing green with her magic. “And in the meantime, I must finish this for the professors before tomorrow, so I do not have the time for students right now.”
“And what about very old friends?” asked Luna.
Summer’s quill skidded and dug a groove into the parchment, then fluttered down lifelessly as her magic went out. Her ears flattened as she slowly looked up from her work, and her pupils shrank as she set her eyes on Luna. Nopony said a word. Even the draft which had followed them from the central part of the library had dwindled to complete stillness in that moment.
Anvil tried to say something, but the words would not come out. He remembered the last time he saw her, through rusty bars in a dank cell. He remembered Summer pleading with them not to tell of her association with Discord and his concealed involvement in freeing the windigos to wreak havoc on Everfree, so that she might confess to Princess Celestia on her own terms. That never happened. Either that, or Princess Celestia had not seen fit to have Discord’s role in the Eternal Night written in history, and neither he nor Hammer had the heart to sully the memory of her apprentice with a transgression from ages past. Luna knew from their recount of events, but she too did not think it a necessary burden to put onto her sister.
The memory of it heated his distaste for the draconequus to a simmer, for the one who had self-admittedly assisted Luna’s downfall for his own freedom. He felt his jaw tighten. But soon after, so did his chest; his breaths shortened to quick, shallow gasps as fleeting memories resurfaced, of utter stillness, trapped in stone and unable to breathe or cry, alone and beyond any help. As he grit his teeth and focused on calming his nerves, a treacherous part of him wondered if Discord truly deserved a fate like that, and by all accounts, he had suffered worse for all his lucidity during his incarceration.
Maybe it’s a wonder he’s not even madder than that…
“I—Your Highness!”
Summer Cloud’s voice cut straight through his thoughts. He blinked and found her in the middle of schooling her surprise into a more measured gaze, with a somewhat artificial smile as she continued, “Apologies. I wasn’t expecting visitors. I—what brings you to the library?”
Luna took a tentative step forward and paused, as if waiting for an invitation. But when none came, she sighed and said, “It’s been an age, Miss Cloud. We have come to… to make amends for what transpired when I surrendered to my basest desires. Perhaps then we can finally put the past behind us.”
Summer’s eyes had flicked over to Anvil and distinctly lingered on him whilst she listened, certainly long enough for her to suddenly realise with a start that Luna had finished speaking. She blinked and whipped her gaze back to Luna. “Oh! Umm, yes, I see.”
She turned her head to one side, as if searching for something or somepony to come to her rescue, but when nothing presented itself, she gave them another decidedly false smile and got up from her seat to gingerly sidle between Hammer and Luna, out the doorway and out of sight. A second later, her head popped back around, followed by a waving foreleg. “This way, if you please. My study is hardly suitable for such… esteemed guests.”
Anvil noticed she didn’t say friends. He trotted after Luna and Hammer, past several more rows of bookshelves until the aisle opened up into a cosy lounge brightly lit by lamps hanging all around, complete with a short coffee table surrounded by puffy cushions. Summer Cloud plopped down onto one and gestured for them to follow suit. Once they had all taken their places around the circular table, her horn lit up with magic, bringing a tray laden with mugs and pastries from behind a counter that Anvil only just noticed. He was sure that the space had been empty before he looked.
He frowned. “Where did that—”
“I can bring forth things I desire within this place, with limitations, of course,” Summer briskly answered. “So can you, once you acclimate.”
Luna took one of the mugs and sampled a pastry. “Impressive. Your magic has grown, and Celestia tells me that you have done immensely well in maintaining astral copies of volumes that have long since rotten away.”
This time, Summer’s smile looked a little less feigned. “Yes, well… I had a lot of time to practice and get things right.”
Silence settled between them once more, save for their surreptitious sips and munching. The biscuit crunching between his teeth sounded almost unbearably loud. He shot a glance at Hammer and Luna, but they both seemed to have tacitly made an agreement that he was supposed to break the ice, judging by the simultaneous, pointed looks they gave him.
Oh, joy.
He swallowed and washed down the biscuit with some rather strong tea, wishing that he’d gotten some cider or ale instead; despite never needing it before, he could’ve used some liquid courage. For some reason, his heart had decided to start thumping around in his ribcage like a landed fish. He also noticed that, despite tasting reasonably fine, the biscuit and tea did not truly fill his belly. They were little more than memories already, and his stomach had missed a proper meal that evening.
“Heh. Still hungry,” he thought out loud.
Hammer and Luna both introduced their hooves to their faces.
Summer didn’t seem to notice. “You neither get nor need sustenance whilst in here. Your consciousness, I mean. Your real body can still starve.” She paused for a while, staring at the mug in her hooves and not meeting his gaze. Then, she whispered, “It’s usually how ponies die when they get trapped in here with me.”
The silence thickened.
“Oh for crying out loud!”
Everypony flinched when Discord exploded into the air directly above the table in a shower of sparks.
“Seriously, if things get any more awkward between you four, I’m literally going to implode,” he cried, throwing up his arms in dismay. “I was hoping for some good, old-fashioned drama, but this is just awful. It’s almost worse than a teenager’s romance flick, even the ones involving fillies and vampire bats!”
“Oh, it’s you,” said Summer Cloud with an air of one commenting on the weather.
“The one and only!” Discord bowed to her, almost mockingly.
“Could you come a little closer? I have something for your ears alone.”
Anvil stole a glance at Hammer and Luna, but like him, they both looked unwilling to intervene, consumed with the curiosity of what Summer could possibly want to whisper to the draconequus. She waved him closer, and though frowning suspiciously, Discord did as requested.
“So, what do—”
Summer cut him off by smashing a club into his left temple, hard enough for the wood to crunch and splinter. Discord flew right into a bookshelf, which proceeded to topple onto its side with a booming crash, sending a cascade of books and scroll casings all over the floor.
Anvil felt his jaw drop as Summer Cloud eyed the splintered remains of her club, before she casually tossed it aside and closed her eyes, inhaling deeply as if savouring the very air she breathed. She then sighed with an almost obscene shudder of pleasure before a smile lit up her face.
“Oh my stars, it is so wonderful to find that I can still find joy in simple things,” she murmured.
Anvil wasn’t quite sure whether that tingle he felt in his wings was terror or attraction.
Discord’s head popped out from under a pile of books and splinters, with four or five miniature Celestias flying in a circle over his head. He blinked several times, unable to get his spinning eyes to focus, before finally levelling a scowl at Summer Cloud as he delicately rubbed his face. “What in the—what was that for?”
“Delicious, glorious retribution,” Hammer deadpanned when Summer just looked at Discord with half-lidded eyes, as if he’d just asked the stupidest question in the world.
Luna simply smirked and began clapping slowly.
Anvil raised a hoof. “If nopony has objections, might I have a turn as well?”
Discord wriggled out of the mess and shot each of them a scowl in turn before shooing away the tiny Celestias and hovering back in the direction of the main library. “Well, I can see that I’m not welcome here, so I’ll just—”
“Apologies for the lapse in hospitality; it was something I needed to get off my chest.” Summer Cloud pulled up an empty cushion and smiled. “Take a seat.”
Discord frowned at her. “Oh, oh no. I’m not falling for that one agai—”
“Take. A. Seat.” Summer’s cool gaze didn’t falter, and each word was accompanied by a very emphatic pat on the cushion.
“Sheesh, all right.” Discord summoned the cushion to his side of the table, curled up on it and began nursing his swelling cheek. “I’m impressed, though. There aren’t many ponies who would actually dare to hit me.”
“Why not? Hitting you is very gratifying.”
Luna failed to suppress a coarse snigger, and Anvil had to fight to keep his grin from splitting his face.
Discord harrumphed and folded his arms. “Well, there’s always the threat of vengeance from the master of chaos, for a start.”
Summer rolled her eyes. “What will you do, annoy me to death? And even if you could, that’s just unfortunate because I’m already dead.”
For a moment, Discord simply stared at her in stunned silence before chuckling and shaking his head. “My, my, you’ve certainly come a long way from that frightened mare I remember. When did you grow such a magnificent spine?”
“Some time after falling debris crushed my physical one.”
“I…” – he blinked a couple of times, as if searching for the right words – “am very sorry to hear that.”
Summer shrugged. “Well, at least that one’s not directly your fault. Rescuing irreplaceable manuscripts from a collapsing library was not one of my best decisions. Tea?”
“Wouldn’t mind if I do.”
The awkward silence returned as soon as Summer finished serving him his portion, except that this time they had extra draconequus with them at the table. Apparently, the reality of Summer’s death had just sunken in enough to temporarily strip away his usual insolence.
Luna snorted and looked pointedly at Discord. “And you’re one to chastise us for making things awkward.” She then turned to Summer Cloud and sighed. “Words can never make up for how I had led us down this path, but… I am sorry, Miss Cloud. I am sorry for the grief I caused as Nightmare Moon. I am sorry for destroying Everfree. I am sorry for creating the circumstances that ultimately led to your… isolation. I never wished—”
The coffee table and all its condiments vanished in a flash of green light, teleported away by Summer Cloud’s magic. She then crossed the vacated space and wrapped one foreleg around Anvil’s neck, dragged him past a nonplussed Luna, did the same to Hammer with her other foreleg, and then came back to the middle to embrace all three of them at once with surprising strength.
When Summer released them, her eyes were glistening.
“I know,” she said to Luna. “I too am sorry for fighting and helping to escalate the conflict when diplomacy might have led to less strife.” She turned to Hammer, then to Anvil and continued, “And I know you were doing what you thought best. We did not part on favourable terms, but I missed every one of you all the same.”
Luna sniffed and wiped her eyes with a wing. “Thank you.” She paused as she groped for more words, but then settled on embracing Summer again before whispering, “You are a more gracious pony than I ever was.”
Summer Cloud chuckled. “You would have found me a very different mare a few days ago.”
“And I’ll be sure to thank Twilight Sparkle for aiding in your return to san—your normal self.”
Anvil was certain that she’d caught the word Luna nearly finished, but her smile didn’t falter.
“You find the new company agreeable?” asked Hammer as he gestured with a wing towards the rest of the library, presumably referring to the influx of academicians into her realm.
“Oh yes, very much so.” Summer released Luna and clapped her hooves together gleefully. “You cannot even begin to fathom how much I have missed teaching. Stone and imaginary students can only go so far in staving off madness.” Her pupils then shifted to the corners of her eyes. “Speaking of madness…”
Anvil suddenly realised that Discord had been sitting quietly on his cushion the whole time. Or at least, not done anything to draw attention to himself. The swelling on his face had already disappeared, though. When Summer turned to him, he twiddled his thumbs and even flattened his ears, looking for all the world like a colt waiting to be reprimanded for misbehaviour.
“There’s a reason you came here.” Summer Cloud’s expression bore no hint of anger or resentment – just patience.
Discord scratched the back of his neck. “Yes.”
Luna took that as a cue to return to her seat, and she motioned for Hammer and Anvil to do the same. They obeyed in silence and settled back around the table, which had somehow reappeared in its original place when nopony was looking. Anvil began nibbling on another biscuit as he watched the draconequus squirm underneath Summer’s penetrating gaze.
“All right, look,” Discord began, gesturing vaguely with his paws as he fumbled for words. “Humility doesn’t come easily to me, so I’ll try to finish before I completely make scrambled peanuts of it. I… I just wanted to apologise for taking advantage of your… naiveté back then. And for betraying your trust, even though you really should have seen that one comi—”
He stopped when Luna cleared her throat.
“—right. Sorry. What I mean is… I’m sorry for being a terrible draconequus.”
Summer Cloud nodded. “I forgive you.”
He blinked. “Really? Just like that?”
She averted her eyes for a moment, and as they glazed over with memories, her voice took on a somewhat haunted hollowness, “I believe I understand a fraction of what you must have endured whilst imprisoned. If it is anything like what I experienced, I can see why you might be so inclined to take advantage of naïve and self-righteous ponies like me.” She chuckled mirthlessly and looked around at them. “I suppose we’ve all tasted a little of that nightmare, haven’t we?”
“A sobering observation…” Luna murmured, eyes downcast and gazing at nothing in particular.
“Some more than others,” Hammer added.
Discord most of all, probably.
“Also, I’m sorry for taking out my passion on you,” Summer continued. “It was unbecoming of an apprentice to Princess Celestia.”
“Well, it didn’t hurt too much. And it will take a lot more than that to really injure me.”
She smiled. “It was nice of you to let me have the satisfaction, though.”
Discord shrugged and gave her a grin. “Well, what can I say? I’m apparently a subcontracted agent of friendship, now.”
Anvil felt tempted to point out that Discord had them fooled earlier, but that would have spoiled the moment, which soon lapsed into companionable silence as they went back to finishing up their tea and biscuits. During which, Anvil’s heart decided to begin fluttering in his chest like a trapped bird, stringing up his nerves and weakening his legs to the point where he knew he couldn’t possibly stand up without looking like a squire on his first day of martial training.
“Anvil?”
His head filled with all sorts of strategies to begin broaching the topic of whether… something existed between him and Summer, each more abashing than the last. And the answers, the answers that he knew not whether to dread.
“Anvil.”
He yelped when Hammer poked him with a hoof, hard enough that he’d felt it through his armour. Then, he noticed everyone looking at him, especially Summer who had a mixture of amusement and exasperation on her face. His ears heated up instantly.
“Ah, my apologies. Lost in thought.”
Behind Summer’s back, Discord put both paws together and went all doe-eyed in mockery of a smitten pony, which Anvil promptly ignored.
If Summer had noticed his antics, she gave no sign of it. She simply rolled her eyes and chuckled. “I remember that face well. Anyway, the students are expecting my lecture soon, and I was hoping to have a word with you before I see to it – if Luna pleases, of course.”
“By all means,” said Luna.
Summer stood up and bowed to her. “Thank you. If you wish to stay, I’m sure the students would not mind a few more attendees. Feel free to explore whilst I speak to Anvil; I can find you anywhere in here and will lead you back if necessary.”
So saying, she beckoned him over to an aisle and trotted out of sight. The section of wall that she led him to looked plain enough, until she shone a beam of green light on it to reveal a dark passage that, as far as he could tell, had simply appeared out of thin air. Or stone. A cold draft blew in from the passage, and he soon found the cause as Summer brought him to a ledge on the roof, high above the treetops. Anvil blinked and looked back. He could still see part of the library at the far end of the passage, which could not possibly have fit into the tower before him.
“Magic?”
“One of the many oddities in this place,” she affirmed as she trotted to edge and sat on her haunches.
Anvil took his place by her side and followed her gaze into the distance where the sun had already set, leaving a purple glow on the horizon. Stars dotted the blackening sky above, and the wind whispered and moaned as it flowed through the spires and solars all around them.
“Anvil, do you still harbour feelings for me?” she murmured.
It took him a moment to find his voice. “That is… very direct.”
“I’d rather not dance around the issue.”
Anvil turned away. “To be honest, I cannot say for sure. I definitely feel something around you, but I don’t know if I would go so far as to call it passion.”
“Anvil.”
He turned back to her and found her looking sideways at him, as if afraid to fully meet his eyes. Despite his ability to see in the dark, her grey coat and teal mane blended very well with the colours of the night, and her amber eyes almost glowed unnaturally in contrast.
“Anvil, if by some chance you still happen to fancy me, I am sorry to say that I cannot give what you seek.” She sighed wearily. “Once, I might have accepted your advances, but I’m over a thousand years old, now. I no longer yearn for intimacy of that nature, and I don’t know if I ever will again.”
He chuckled. “You know, I am also over a thousand, if you think about it.”
A frown creased her brow. “Celestia told me of the petrification spell she used. You haven’t aged like I have. And that’s not even considering the fact that I don’t even have a physical body.”
“I know, I know. I was jesting.” He sighed and scraped idly on the ledge with his hoof. A dull weariness had settled in his heart, and he hoped that it was just because of the weight of years between them and not something that would grow more painful with time.
“I hope you will find somepony to be happy with,” Summer continued. “I’m sorry that I can’t be that mare. Will—I mean—I hope you will be all right.”
“I’ll live. Just focus on making the most of what you have here and don’t worry about me.” After a momentary lapse of silence, he worked up a tired grin. “All things considered, we’re lucky to even have the chance to speak again.”
“And I’m most thankful for that. Princess Celestia had informed me beforehoof that all of you would visit, but I hadn’t quite prepared myself for the eventuality, hence my… somewhat stiff welcome.” Before he could say another word, she swiftly leaned forward and embraced him. “It is good to see you again.”
He returned the gesture, careful not to overstep the bounds of affection between friends.
When Summer released him, she tilted her head towards the passage and said, “My students await. Will you stay and listen?”
“If Luna is amenable, yes.”
“Well then, let’s not waste any time.”
They found Luna and Hammer still waiting in the lounge for them. Discord on the other hoof had made himself scarce.
“Where’d he go?” Anvil wondered aloud.
“Eavesdropping on us two minutes ago, and now taken to wandering the main wing, startling everypony he comes across,” Summer stated matter-of-factly.
“How—”
“My magic is closely tied to this place. Like I said; I can find anyone in here if I put my mind to it,” she explained. She hummed thoughtfully before continuing, “A lot more restraint than I expected. He really has changed, hasn’t he?”
“Best not to let him hear that,” Hammer cautioned.
Luna nodded emphatically. “Indeed. His ‘restrained’ antics are vexing enough already, thank you very much. Would that I could bring you to Canterlot or Ponyville. You might not be so quick to say that, when you see his machinations.”
Summer smiled. “I would love to hear more about Canterlot and Ponyville.”
“Did my sister not tell you about them?”
“She did, but I would nevertheless like to see them the way you do. It’s not like she would be the best to ask about the night life or the martial ones.” Summer’s gaze drifted over to Anvil’s armour. “For instance, how do you find your new brothers in arms?”
The corners of Hammer’s mouth curved upwards just a tiny bit. “You should see Luna sparring with them. It takes five at once to challenge her when three from our time would have sufficed.”
“Now, Hammer, there’s no cause to make light of them,” Luna chided, though she did have a grin plastered to her face. “Tis a testament to their predecessors’ efforts that there are much fewer monster attacks on settlements these days.”
“They even have hot water for washing themselves every day. It’s scandalous!” Anvil cried, feigning an indignant stomp. In their time, only nopony would even think of supplying hot water to mere soldiers, let alone for bathing.
“Sounds like a much nicer Equestria than I remember.” Summer beckoned them with a hoof and began trotting towards the main section of the library. “Come, I’ll have plenty of time once my students are attended to, and then we may have this place mostly to ourselves.”
“You are certain we are not imposing?” asked Luna. “We can certainly return to visit on other days.”
“Hah. I’m not one to let an opportunity like this slip by. We have far too much to catch up on to leave it at this, and goodness knows we’ve waited for long enough already.”
“Very well. Lead on, my little pony.”
They did lose some time whilst waiting for the gathered students and scribes to get over their awe or discomfort of Luna’s presence as a fellow listener, but Summer Cloud soon had their full attention once more as she took her place at the lectern.
Anvil smiled as she launched into her lecture about the original nature of Everfree, remembering how that same scholarly voice used to echo out into the hallways where he stood guard, except that it was Summer’s voice that now carried that knowledgeable authority instead of Princess Celestia’s. Closing his eyes, he could just picture that corridor outside the Royal Residences, bathed in the sun’s golden rays a thousand years ago. He sighed.
After their long exiles, they could finally see each other as friends again.
They were home.
Tying up this loose end has been due for a long, long time. For those of you who voiced your concern when this story was 'finished' more than three years(!) ago, thanks for sticking around, and I hope that you enjoyed it. 
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Hot damn, man. It's a real testament to your writing ability that I can still remember this story, well enough to follow along without having to go read it again. I'm very glad that you decided to do this. More of Hammer and Anvil is always nice.
Any plans of any more of this? Summer's little realm merits some investigation.
6704638
Agreed. Reading this chapter was like hitting 'play' on a paused movie for me.
Only a couple sentences in and everything clicked into place.
Has it been three years already? Where'd the time go?
A lovely continuation of events. It's good to see that this story will never truly end.
This truly is a wonderful story.
Thank you for this chapter. It's amazing how it fits perfectly with "Shadow of a Castle".
Now waiting for another bonus in 2016 or 17.
I wish Anvil and Summer could have had a happy ending. Glad to see more of this story.
To say that I was a bit surprised when I saw that one of my favorite fics of all time had an update would be an understatement. The fate of Summer Cloud was the single thing I most yearned for learning of once I finished the story on my initial read, but I long ago resigned myself to the idea that we would never find out what happened to her. To finally have resolution to this has made my day, and has definitely raised how high I rank this on my favorite fanfics by several spots.
nice
heh its been so long since I read this story that now I have to re-read the whole thing just to read the update bonus chapter XD
Ty for finishing the story but now I want to know who hammer and anvil marefrends are going to be and plz make a story focused on them again plz
A beautiful, wonderful wrapping up of the tale. It was amazing to see this updated, and it brought a smile to my face all over again.
Oh how I have missed this story. It remains my favorite on the site, I'm glad that Anvil and Summer got some closure. 10/10 would recommend/have reread 3 times
"have long since rotten away"
"rotted"
"only nopony"
Was that "only" meant to be there?
And suddenly a story update pops into my feed list
Testament to your skill, took me only the name Anvil to go, "Oh, that story."
This was a sweet, a little sad and well executed knot tier.
This was one of the first stories that made it unto my coichy favorite list.
Shame about what happened to Summer. I honestly felt she got the worst outcome in the original chapters. She would've lived out the rest of her life knowing her scheming had resulted in her former friends being petrified, and Discord's future release. During all that time, she would know she could warn Celestia about him, but would always be too weak to do it. Couldn't imagine what that did to her self-esteem.
And here we find out she got pancaked by a library.
Then she gets driven insane from centuries of isolation as a trapped spirit. I think Karma went a bit overboard on this one.
6704638
Not at the moment, unfortunately. The exploration in Shadow of the Castle is as far as I'm willing to go unless I can think of something really interesting.
6706608
You're welcome.
However, I'd best say that I'm not very keen on exploring that avenue for stories right now. There are lots of newer concepts the Season 5 finale has opened up that are clamouring for attention.
6707290 Good catches. Fixed!
6707615
Sad but true. Sometimes, things don't work out for some characters.
6707877 Fair enough. Quit while you're ahead etc etc.
This was one of the first stories I read on this site and ultimately one of my favorites. Thank you for coming up with this masterpiece, and thank you for coming back to it so long after its completion. Truly well done sir.
6705613
I don't know if Anvil would know what to do with a happy ending. He doesn't seem the type.
This is still definitely one of my favorite fics.
Favorite Luna/Night Guards one, by far. Pretty sure it's one of the first ones I ever read, too.
I should read it again.
Okay.totally awesome chapter. Now i want to see one where parchment mint gets a little story, and the batpony dou get found out by the public that their armor isn't an enchantment....immediately thinking the reaction will be negative, they are then surprised when it isnt!
A fitting end for such a great story!
Sad to see it end so soon though,
(I will try make this completely spoiler-free)
I can't believe it has been exactly a year since I read on of my favorite, and one of my first, fanfics "Integration". Now, after encountering few recommendations here and there, I've decided to give "Night Guards" a read, and oh boy, how missed that wonderful writing.
Just like "Integration" so does "Night Guards" manages to do something I very much enjoy in MLP fanfics, and that is to stay constantly positive; even tho there are conflicts in the story, the problem never resides in "you" or "me" but in the issue between us. This opens the possibility for every character to be likeable, thus multiplying the reasons for us to see this conflict resolved - you're basically rooting for everyone here.
Simply put, "Night Guards" masterfully embodies the MLP spirit, making this a perfect replacement for disappointing Nightmare Moon backstory treatment the show itself gave us.
But wait, there is more! So I mentioned all around likable character and wonderful writing, but one more thing worth mentioning is the pacing. Not once did I feel the need to skip anything - the story constantly stays engaging, moving forward not only from paragraph to paragraph, but also from line to line. Perfect example of a fanfic that makes your time disappear in a blink of the eye.
Now, as for the bad stuff, I think it all can be summed up under... lack of boldness (or maybe experience considering this came out before "Integration"). For example "Night Guards" is almost entirely built out of well known elements from the show, resulting in a story that has almost no world building, except for same really basic stuff like origin of the bat ponies, you will almost certainly see nothing new here, including locations, creatures or problems. In same regard it is also disappointing to see the story progress toward its resolution in almost a straight line - neither does Lune sway one way or the other in her goal, nor does the plot surprise us with twists; I think everyone could predict the involvement of a certain third party from miles away.
All in all, however, "Night Guards" is definitely a recommended read, maybe even a "must" for people interested in Nightmare Moon's backstory.
8/10
6855782 Hi there, thanks for the feedback!
I can see what you mean about the story's predictability, and yeah, it's mostly because I was playing it safe with my first ever published fanfiction. I did learn a thing or two from it.
6857788
Your welcome, although honestly I think it is pretty much useless feedback at this point ;p You probably don't recall, but I left a comment under "Integration" describing my absolute enjoyment of your world-building there. So to go from one fanfic without world-building to next one with tons of wonderful world-bulding, I think it is pretty much safe to say you got that part figured out rather nicely already :)
You know, I think I am ready to call you one of my favorite writers here on fimfiction, but just to be sure I will read one more story from you - I guess be ready for feedback next year too ;p
Seems just a little boring as a chapter, although the prequel-y story was more exciting. Although, it was nice to see them get some closure/greetings in, even if one could wish the circumstances were different (in the not quite as positive as one might hope sort of way). As an aside I'm guessing that wishing not to die and that you'd only had more time to preserve some ancient manuscripts really tickles the fancy of the Everfree chaos and with perhaps some poison joke influence... Not sure I quite understand what being stuck, trapped in an astral projection does to you though.
Is she really the same pony or not? If she had any interest in Anvil before, then I assume that hasn't changed beyond the lack of bodily organs to lend some chemical effects to the matter. Could make for some interesting sequel-ization though. I find it peculiar that she seems to be going out of her way to avoid any serious/deep interactions with any of them. A little early for any sort of hangout plans I suppose.
In any case, it seems unlikely that any of them (Hammer, Anvil, maybe even Luna) will be able to seriously move on from the past for some years yet. A thousand years of petrification may not burden you with a thousand years of life experiences, but it can't be beneficial to be ripped away from everything you ever knew. None of them have had 1000 years to reflect on things and move on. One can't help but think that they partly ran away from one uncertain future to another. I mean, being accomplices of NMM and her being out of the picture would have probably made them vulnerable to reprisals or something if they had remained so to speak. They'd definitely not have ever have seen Summer Cloud again though from the sounds of it.
I just wanted to say "thanks" for this wounderfull story
and the best explanation for Batponies I have seen so far.
Typo "only nopony".
Thx for finishing this. Fimfic is too full of loose ends as it is.
Reminded me of this
I most thoroughly enjoyed this story. And I especially appreciate how you worked the story to fit the canon of only two thestrals, and how they came to be so.
Outstanding work!
I Enjoyed reading this story Immensely (in fact I made this account just to write this comment) Or more specifically I created this account to ask for more Chapters If not a sequel.
If Of course It does not hinder your daily requirments :)
7914428 Hi there, welcome to Fimfiction!
I can't promise more content related to Night Guards at the moment, as I'm working on a different project, but it's always a possibility further down the line.
7812207
HI BIKER DASH!!!!!
8634751
lol
Long time, no chat! How you been?
8634790
good! you guys should really port over to discord btw.
8635549 I'm in like 2 dozen groups in Discord. I know TNAB, Buck, Otter and Shawn use Discord as well
8635913
V's chat moe over? Iwpould probably hang more if ya did. Send me a pm with your tag and ill add ya
It was worth coming back and reading this final chapter. Thank you.
Rereading this again, I really do hope we get to see another Hammer and Anvil story, they have a great chemistry with Luna, and it is interesting to wonder about how well they have personally taken to connecting with the guard of today, seeing the Crystal Empire or other such notable events, of even just plain ol slice of life.
Good writing, I really do enjoy them!
9134605
Yeah. I'd say this was written way better than the script for that movie. :)
9313468
Huh, cool.
9461252
Huh... I wasn't expecting a response.
Anyways it's great to know that you've been improving. Good luck on your journey through the world of writing!
(god knows I'm gonna need it for breaking the milestone of first story published)
2012
One hell of a way to end it... To sad this never get a sequel.
10763190
Fair enough, fair enough. And in all honesty I'm kinda glad that the most damage these ponies seem to be receiving in this story are indeed owies. I've read plenty enough fics with premise similar to this which take a turn towards the grimderpsville (usually with a side order of splatter), so this has so far been VERY refreshing!
...And I only now just realized you're the guy who wrote Auto-Modesty Deficiency Syndrome. Loved the concept of it so much I simply had to
stealshamelessly borrow it for my own works. I'll definitely credit you for the inspiration.Have a Follow.
10819646
Good point... Hard to tell...