• Published 1st Feb 2012
  • 16,129 Views, 223 Comments

Moonbound - Warmblood



Princess Luna falls into a deep sleep, leaving Six companions to save her from her own mind.

  • ...
12
 223
 16,129

Chapter 3

Dreams are real. Proof exists in the simple fact of their lingering aftereffect, the barest echo of the height of emotion reached by the dreamer. Joy, sadness, nostalgia, fear, all amplified tenfold by the apathy of the logical part of the brain. In lieu of reason, the rest of the mind breaks loose, painting broad strokes across an empty canvas. Entire universes of thought are created out of nothing, fully realized to the eye of the sole beholder. In the span of a fleeting, unconscious moment, temples of stone rise up. Histories are created, their origins original, yet unavoidably intimate to the architect of fantasy. Drift away on a sea of stars and live in castles in the sky. Until, in a few moments, the vision disintegrates, the world collapses, fades to black, and all that remain is a taste of the emotion left on the metaphorical tongue.

These feelings linger on, for a short time, as the memory of the dream fades like a lamp burning without oil to sustain its light. Within a moment, they flicker and die. Most do not realize that their world is a fabrication until they open their eyes. Dreamers are caught in the unfolding story, unaware of any other reality but the vivid portrait painted by their mind. Of course, sometimes a hint slips through, perhaps an echo of reason, of the outer world. A vague sense that the created world is different, too fantastic to be real. Only rarely can the dreamer convert the fleeting realization into actualization; most are carried along by the current, a one way flow towards the inevitable fate of the dream world.

Unaware, Twilight Sparkle had fallen into a great river, the pull far too strong to fight, driven by the torrent of memory. Moreover, the world offered no seams to pull upon, no loose ends to grab. Its conception perfect, its detail impeccable, the world Twilight saw formed an impenetrable facsimile of reality; a dream of the real world.

Luna watched as the sun drooped behind the forest of evergreens. Dusk slowly descended over the coast. She reclined on a cushy lounge chair outside the summer house, a book propped open with a hoof. After a moment she pulled her eyes away from the darkening sky and tried to fix them on the book in her hoof. For the tenth time this evening she reread the same sentence. Sighing, she gave up and let the book fall to rest pages down. There was hardly enough light to read anyway. Besides that fact, the book was one of Celestia’s, too verbose and tedious for Luna.

Summer was nearly over. The nights were a little cooler, the days a little shorter. Soon the young Princesses would make the return trip to Canterlot. But before that time came, there was one more thing Luna needed to do. She had promised to see her friend Orion one more time, tonight.

Wide eyed, Luna gazed up at the stars from her bed on the verandah overlooking the sea. She had feigned sleepiness and gone to bed early. The truth was she simply couldn’t stand waiting any longer. So far as she could tell, FiFi and her sister suspected nothing. Hopefully they were well asleep by now.

The moon emerged from behind a cloud, imperceptibly brightening the night. All around, in uncountable numbers, dots of starlight danced like a candle’s flame. Her eyes, accustomed by now to the dark of the midnight sky, could just make out the blurry outline of a band of pastel blue. Luna had been stargazing a few times before with her sister, with her mother. Tonight, as she waited for Orion, left alone with her thoughts, she found the swirls of stars enchanting.

“Luna!” A whisper sounded, breaking Luna’s reverie. She jumped at the sound, letting out a quiet squeak. “Don’t worry, it’s just me!” She recognized Orion’s hushed voice. He stepped out from behind the low masonry wall at the edge of the overlook. She smiled, pushing back the covers very carefully, soundlessly. She pushed herself up to greet him.

“Hi!” She whispered warmly, wrapping her legs around his neck. “I’m sorry we had to meet like this.” Luna said, her eyes searching Orion’s. “I don’t know what’s gotten into FiFi.” It was the truth. She didn’t know why FiFI had told her she wasn’t to spend any more time with Orion. Luna had her suspicions. FiFi might be an earth pony, but maybe the habits of the nobility had worn off on her. Maybe she saw her friend as some beggar pony looking for attention. Fine. She could believe that. But she’s wrong.

Orion smiled, seeming to shrug off her concern. “It’s okay. We’re here now. That’s what’s important isn’t it?”

“I guess. It’s just…” Luna trailed off.

“What?”

Luna sighed, a little exasperated. She wondered if Orion was as clueless as he sometimes seemed, or if he just didn’t understand the difference between her life and his. He was at least as intelligent as most of the other colts and fillies she knew, that she was pretty sure of. But he rarely seemed to understand her motivations.

“Well, let’s see. First, I’m sneaking out after dark. Secondly, I’m sneaking out after dark with you. Third, I don’t even know why I’m doing it! Aren’t you the least bit concerned?” Luna ranted, in hushed but tense tones. She had been carrying that burden all day. Once a target appeared, the words leapt out.

“I’m not… I mean…” Orion stuttered. Luna could tell she had caught him off guard. That happened so rarely she might have smiled. But on the other hoof she hadn’t meant to be that terse with him. No words to soothe the situation came to mind. In the past, the conversation would surely have fallen into an awkward silence. Over the past few months though, she had learned from her friend that action could be the best substitute for words.

She set her hooves in motion and passed by his side, rounding the corner of the verandah wall. “Come on then” she said. “Let’s just go.” He nodded, and turned to follow, quietly padding beside her. She noted how quietly they could tread over the wild grasses on the top of the bluff. The rustle they made as the stalks swished aside was absorbed into the sound of the soft sea breeze. Had there been only hard rock, the sound of their hooves would have surely given them away. The ground moreover, was quite familiar to Luna, and the half-lit moon provided enough light for her to find her bearings.

Orion spoke up over her shoulder, once they were a good distance away from the little wood house perched on its stone foundation. “What did you mean by saying you don’t know why you’re out here?” He asked. Luna cringed; she had hoped he’d missed those last, tactless words. She should have known better than to let them slip out. As soon as you asked why, things get complicated, she reflected.

“Orion, it’s just that these past few months have been… uh… different. Or maybe, unique is a better word.” She paused a moment. “And, it’s mainly because of you.” She looked back sheepishly. It seemed like something too grown-up for her to say.

“Because of me? What does that mean?” Orion asked. Luna couldn’t read his tone or expression well enough to guess what answer he expected from her. Best to speak honestly then, she decided.

“You’ve been such a good…friend to me.” Yes. That’s the right word. Anything more just didn’t seem right. She was just a filly after all, not some story book princess. Moreover, she was well aware that Orion was not a prince. Moving on quickly she continued, “I think I’ve changed for the better since I met you. Do you remember when we first talked? I know it was only a few months ago, but it seems like a lot longer. Anyway, even Celestia has said she noticed something different about me.”

“I hope that means…” Orion started carefully.

“Yes, I mean that in a good way, silly!” Luna interrupted, smiling. “Some things are just new to me, that’s all.”

“Okay. So what do you want to do?”

“Eh… I hadn’t given it much thought.” She put a hoof to her chin. “How about stargazing?”

Orion looked unsure. Luna knew it wasn’t really the most exciting activity, it had just been the first to come to mind.

“I think I have an idea” Orion told her, a mischievous lilt in his voice. “Follow me.”

He set off in the direction of the beach. Luna followed, thinking he meant to take the path down to the sand. Instead, he strode to the edge of a promontory overlooking the rocky shore and the little beach. Had he taken a step more Luna would have yelled at him, but he stopped right at the edge of the steep slope. Craning his neck over the precipice he looked down towards the sea below.

Luna caught up to him. “What are you doing?” She asked, perplexed.

He turned, a glint of moonlight in his eyes. That look, by the light of the moon or the light of the sun had become quite familiar to Luna these past few months. It meant he wanted to try something daring, quite possibly dangerous.

“Get down from there! Don’t even think about it!” Luna had figured out what he was doing. He wanted to jump. It was a tall cliff. The youngest alicorn wanted nothing to do with it.

There wasn’t really a set age that pegasi flew at. Some bloomed early and soared like an eagle before their fifth year. By random chance it seemed that others had to wait many years just to get off the ground. Those that flew later often developed into the best flyers, or so went most of the stories Luna had heard.

She hadn’t seen Orion fly yet. His best attempts Luna would call gliding. Or maybe falling like a rock, wings flapping.

“Why do you have to do this? You’re a big dummy! You’ll get hurt, maybe really badly. I’ll have to get help and we’ll both end up in big trouble!” Her voice was well above a whisper.

“Well” Orion said, nonplussed “Sometimes you just gotta do something even if it’s kinda dumb.”

“Are you crazy? You’re going to hurt yourself! Is that what you want?”

“It would hurt me more not doing it. Where’s the fun in anything if you don’t even try? I’m going. Because I can!”

“Hey! Don’t…” Luna surged towards him as he began to move. She wasn’t going to let him get himself hurt if she had any say about it. Strangely, that was the moment that an abstract thought popped into her head. Usually she didn’t much care what other ponies did unless it affected herself. If one of the Canterlot colts did something stupid like this, would she risk herself to stop them? Probably not, if she was being honest, which at this moment of fear and adrenaline, she was. You can’t fix stupid. That’s what some of the more uncouth ponies said. Why was she trying so hard with him?

That was the moment she realized, consciously, how much she cared about Orion. In that same moment her legs closed on air. She had missed Orion’s hind leg by a few inches. He leaped off the rock, wings out, hind legs trailing out behind him in an optimistic imitation of his older cousins.

He didn’t exactly soar. He started losing altitude almost immediately. Then he disappeared below the ledge of the cliff.

There was one thing to do, Luna thought. And it wasn’t the smart thing. She jumped after him.

-----------------------Back to the future----------------------

“This is all kind of freaky isn’t it?” Rainbow Dash asks with a frown on her face.

“It has not been what I expected. Not at all.” Rarity says. Silence settles between them as nopony else is able to add any other constructive thought.

About two hours ago, Princess Celestia had sent Twilight into Luna’s mind. Sleep was not coming easily for the ponies. Everypony but Pinkie were in the room next door to where Luna slept. Twilight was still there, or at least, her body was. Since Celestia’s spell she hadn’t moved, spoke, or gave any indication of awareness. The Princess assured them that Twilight was alright, however.

Pinkie Pie volunteered to sit with Twilight first, just in case something happened. Every once in a while, the other ponies could hear her voice through the wall. It seemed she had taken up talking to Twilight, even if it Twilight couldn’t acknowledge a word she said. Or maybe she was just talking to herself. That seemed just about as likely.

“So, uh, Applejack, how’re the apples doing this year?” Rainbow Dash asks.

Applejack looks puzzled by Rainbow’s question. “You want to hear about mah trees? You? Okay, if you like.” She pauses, checks to see if anybody is actually listening. They are. “Well, you know last year was pretty good, well we’re fixin to do even better this time round. I’ve spent lots a time going round the orchard, looking where we gotta trim some branches and where we might need more water. It’s good to do that stuff in the morning, I reckon. Grab a bite to eat, go out and enjoy the day. Anyhow, apples, I think the only problem might be running out of space to hold em all once we get em picked!” She chuckles.

“I like going out early too. Well sometimes at least. That’s when a lot of the animals are out and about too.” Fluttershy says.

“Mornings? You mean that time between when it gets light out and when I get up?” Rainbow Dash jokes.

“I’m sure you would probably like them if you tried them, Rainbow.” Fluttershy says.

“Yeah right. What about you Rarity?”

“Oh, well I have a little routine I like to follow. Wake up, fix my hair, trim my hooves, make sure my coat is nice and shiny, decide if I want to wear anything fancy, accessorize…”

“Hold on. First question: How long does that all take?” Rainbow Dash questions.

“Five hours, give or take.”

“Ummm… is it still morning by the time you’re done?”

“Usually.” Rainbow Dash shakes her head.

“Okay, Second question…”

“Wait, hold on!” Applejack interjects, eyeing Rarity with an incredulous look. “Is that why we always have to meet around lunchtime? Because it takes that long for you to do your hair?”

“Yes, in essence. I wouldn’t be fit to go out without it. Besides, we all have a routine we follow. Applejack, how would you like it if somepony said you couldn’t check on your farm every morning? Fluttershy, you take care of your animals. You need that time too. Rainbow Dash, ummm…” Rarity pauses in thought. “Well Rainbow Dash, what if someone said you had to get up early?”

“You’ve got a point there Rare” Applejack says. “Ah guess everypony likes something different.”

“Anyway, as I was saying before I was interrupted, I want to know when you have breakfast. That’s first thing I go for when I get up.” Rainbow says.

“Oh, well I get to it eventually, when I have some time available.”

Rainbow Dash thinks to herself that she had managed, quite admirably in fact, to get a conversation going. It had been way too quiet.

That topic went on for a little while, until it petered out to be replaced by another. Talk always focused on mundane, everyday events around Ponyville. It served as an excellent distraction from their situation. Still, although nopony said it, they still missed Twilight’s typically dorky contributions. She formed the centerpiece of the disparate group.

Meanwhile, Pinkie Pie kept up a verbal barrage of partly intelligible exclamations. She updated Twilight on the status of a number of pastry confections and parties in the making.

“One time, I made this cake, and it had flowers and garlands and houses and all these little teeny tiny details, all crammed together like a city made out of FROSTING! And I was thinking ‘Concentrate Pinkie Pie!’ And I did, because this was a really super-important cake. Then I thought, I wonder if it takes a lot of muscle, well, you know, like brain muscle for the Princess to raise the sun? Probably.”

“Anyways, we all really miss you, and hope you come back soon. OH, and help Princess Luna too. That would be good. Cause you’re really great, and smart, and I just know you love parties.” Pinkie adds, in a whisper “Even if you don’t know it yet!”

“Maybe I can throw a party for everyone after you come back. A great big ‘Welcome Back’ party. And the Princesses will be there, and it’ll be just fantastic! And of course, there would be a cake. There has to be a cake. Although I guess I left all my stuff behind. Darn, I should have thought to bring cake making stuff! You never know when you’ll need cake! Oh well, I’ll just have to improvise. By the way, when we yell surprise, pretend I never told you anything about this, okay?”

“By the way, Princess Celestia says she’s doing everything she can to help you. She’s off working on a spell to help her reach the moon again. Or at least that’s what she said. I’m sure you’d know what she was talking about.” Pinkie sighs. “I miss you Twilight. Please come back soon!”

Eventually everypony drifts off to sleep. Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Rarity were warmed by their reminiscences of Ponyville. They sleep peacefully, thinking of home and comforted by the presence of their friends nearby. Pinkie Pie exhausted herself keeping Twilight company. Once her voice was so hoarse she could barely even talk she decided it was time to sleep. She plans a party for Twilight and the Princesses. Everypony eventually got to sleep. All but one.

Princess Celestia paces the cage she assigned for herself, the upper room of the observatory tower. She chews on her lip, a bad habit she had indulged in far too much lately. In her mind, the problem facing her was compound, with difficulties none of the other little ponies understood. Their innocence was cute, she thought, but their ignorance would not save them.

She tries to focus on the complicated process of crafting a complex spell. The spell must be able to break through the wards which block her influence on the moon. She pulls together the threads of shimmering yellow light, willing the spell into being with the power inherent in her horn. She fails. The threads collapse and wink out of existence like so many little fireflies. She grits her teeth. Once again she barely resists the urge to thrash about in rage. Deep breaths. Calm.

What irritates her most is the knowledge that it is her own lack of focus that harms her efforts. She can’t stop thinking about other concerns. At the worst time a thought keeps popping into her head: ‘What if she finds out?’ It’s irrelevant, the Princess tells herself, and begins the delicate process again.
************************
End Part 3