Moon Town

by Starwing

Episode 1: When Rocks Fly

Luna has been following him for about half an hour. Still no sign of a 'Moon Town'. She begins to question his angle. The moon isn't that big, so it wouldn't take this long in one direction to get somewhere. Still, who is she to question a moon resident?

After another five minutes of walking, Luna starts getting impatient.

"Hey, Mr. No-Name, where exactly is Moon Town? We've been walking for quite a long time."

He stops abruptly, which causes Luna to run headfirst into his back and face-plant the ground. Out of all the times to fall face first on the ground, it has to be in front of somepony else. She looks up at his face, the smile replaced by a worried expression.

"Ooooo, sorry about that. I thought you had some kind of psychic sense that reads minds or something; after all you are the princess!" Unlike before, instead of helping her up, he just kept standing there. How rude. She stood up and feels her head with a hoof. It hurts pretty bad, and that's not even by princess standards.

"Eh, anyways, I hope the village you keep smiling on about is worth it. My hooves are starting to itch from the endless trotting."

He frowns at that, as if he looks down on her for being fragile. Luna and the stranger keep staring at each other, both waiting for a response from the other. Luna decides to go first.

"If you think I'm weak and fragile, then you are mistaken. I'm a princess and an alicorn at that; I'm pretty sure I could handle myself in most any situation. My hooves just aren't used to all this walking. Not to be a drama queen, but when are we getting there?"

Now he just looks confused. He opens his mouth to say something, pauses, then let's out a barrage of words.

"Well, if you're a princess and a previous ruler of a kingdom, then shouldn't you have A. a longer attention span, B. More patience, and C. Complain a bit less for an almighty being."

Luna's jaw falls to the ground from his criticism. Never before has she been insulted so much at a given time before. She is about to go 'banishment mode' on him before she realizes that it would be wrong, pointless, and honestly stupid. He holds his head high, showing that he regrets nothing. She sighs and gives in to his opinion.

"You're right, hopefully spending years on the moon will teach me to stop acting royal and uptight."

He opens his eyes and waits a moment before he starts smiling again. The. Same. Smile. Luna can tell she's already growing on it. There was just something about him, like he stood out even from his own kind, even though Luna hasn't met any other Moon Ponies. They continued walking. When Luna looked back, the dark side of the moon was approaching. They better hurry up.

After a while of trotting, Luna got bored and decided to strike up an obvious and long waited question.

"So Moon Pony, I never caught your name, what's the deal?" True that the stranger never told her his name. crazy or not, a name to be called by is a necessity. Even though Luna is behind him and can only see the top of his head and his back, she can tell he has a smug grin on right now.

"You'll find out in time Luna, perhaps once you get to know us humble moon ponies?"

Luna just let out a soft groan, making sure he can't hear it. He's hiding too much information. The duo continue trotting off in silence towards Moon Town.

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Structures. It felt like eternity, but now there's finally proof of civilization! Luna is ecstatic! Never before has she been so excited, while on the moon of course. Now she has a grin as big as the stranger's. The moment is nearing. If she can somehow fit in with these ponies, she will be able to pass the time until she manages to escape banishment.

"BOO!"

"Gah!"

Luna jumped a few feet from the sudden voice interrupting her thoughts. Oh that guy is in for a prank now, nopony teases Luna without getting hit back. He turned around, his grin, as big as it was already, now took up most of his face.

"Aw, did I startle you? The tranquility was starting to kill me. Well, enough of the silliness. Moon Town awaits your arrival!"

He stood up on his hindlegs somehow, and gestured yonder with his hoof to the nearly visible village that Luna has been awaiting. Even though she has seen much nicer cities, from months on the moon, this village looks like a castle to her. He stood back down, and began galloping towards the town. She followed close behind.

When the outermost buildings surrounded the two, ponies that looked similar to the stranger started peeking out of windows, some coming out of their homes to view the spectacle. Oh, and by similar, not very similar at all. They have manes, tails, and they also have normal hooves. When they galopped a few more feet, Luna and her escort were surrounded by semi-gray moon ponies. Half of them had their mouths open and staring wide eyed, the other half shook their heads as if what they were seeing isn't real.

What Luna didn't expect, is that they didn't even bow down. Sure, they were all shocked in the presence of royalty, but they didn't even acknowledge her power. Oddly enough, she wasn't just fine with it, but she liked it. Sometimes being over treated can be tiring.

Then a moon pony who stood out from the rest in the front of the crowd took a few steeps forward. She has a purple and silver mane shaped like a nebulae, a tail that resembles a group of shooting stars, and a cutie mark of the sun behind the moon, making a solar eclipse. She looked from Luna to the stranger then opens her mouth.

"Comet Runner, looks like your not useless after all. You have found and brought us the great Princess Luna. You are now welcome back to Moon Town," she turns her head from Comet Runner to Luna, "As for you Princess, thank you for visiting us, or is this involuntary? Something tells me your stuck here."

Is she a mind reader or something? How does she know I'm banished here?

"Well, yes I am here, I'm here because I'm banished. Oh, also because Comet Runner found me and brought me here. So I'm assuming your the leader, or mayor, or whatever?"

She smiled, and hay, Luna is getting used to the endless grins wherever she turns. She took another step forward and put a hoof to her chest, and boasted,

"Why yes, I am Mayor Milky Way. I guess you COULD call me leader, however I'm more of a representative, but I'm glad you were banished here! You can stay with us during your stay! Oh the joy of having the princess in Moon Town! So much fun!"

Luna gave Milky Way a flat look with her ears drooped.

"You're glad, that I got banished, for a thousand years? Way to show empathy!" To reinforce her point, Luna rolled her eyes.

"Oh pssh. You'll have the time of your life here, I promise you that! If you get their respect..." She whispered the last part, though because Luna dwells during the night, she has adapted to have enhanced hearing.

"If I get their respect? What does that mean?"

Milky Way's eyes widens for a second, but then she regains her composure and continues to answer her questions.

"Well, we Moon Ponies don't generally think kind of outsiders, sure, we love outsiders visiting us, however we don't have respect for them, princess or not."

Luna contemplated how she would earn respect for a moment, before she decided to ask yet another question.

"Well, just HOW would I earn their-"

"WELP! No time for that, go see the innkeeper pronto! It's the tall building to your right, the dark side is coming. Everypony else get in your homes!"

Milky Way rushed off before Luna could say anything else. The inn and the innkeeper huh? Might as well comply. Luna galloped to the building with the big sign marked "Tavern". When she got close to the doors, she noticed she could easily see inside since they were two folding half-doors. As she stepped inside, she took in all of the details. The tavern is dimly lit by candles, there are a few tables and chairs throughout the main floor. Behind the bar, there stands a moon pony with a strange dent in the top of his head. Assuming that he's the innkeeper, Luna approached him. She needs to know how to earn respect.

"Hey, um, Innkeeper? I was wondering, how do I earn my place in Moon Town?"

He slowly turns his head over as if he's balancing a pile of books. He looks her over with a neutral-aggressive look before responding.

"Well... There is the weekly hurtle championships, and that's tomorrow. However It's not likely your going to win it, let alone get third place. Meteor Hooves always wins."

"Time? Place? Do I have to sign up or anything? I must do whatever I can to fit in!" Luna slams her hoof on the counter to emphasize her point. What's the point of living here if I would just get rejected?

The Innkeeper gives her a startled look, then rolls his eyes. He clearly doesn't like talking to Luna.

"All you have to do is show up, pick a number, wait until your up, and chuck a fifty pound moon rock as high as you can."

Hah! A puny rock is no match for my alicorn magic. Ace in the hole. Now, about that room.

"That business aside, I need a room to stay in. I heard you have open suites?" Luna tried to imitate Comet Runner's pleading look, but it failed.

"Bahahah, a suite? Hardly. How about a floor two den?" He stated, giving her a key, "You'll be nice and comfortable there. Now the bar is closing. Get in your room or get out!"

Aww, he's such a gentlecolt. Not. Luna levitated the key and read the the inscription in the keychain. "Room 3", the lucky number. Luna headed up on the creaky staircase and guided herself to her room by counting down the other doors. Luna finally reached her room and inserted the key in the doorknob. With at twist, the door dramatically opened, revealing... A small bed made of hay with no pillow, and a torch high up in the room. she groaned in disgust at her sleeping environment. Truth be told, It's better than a rock bed. In resignation, she stepped in, closed the door behind her, and settled in the bed. She covered herself with hay and formed a pillow out of it.

Tomorrow will be a piece of cake. She will surely be the belle of the ball. Thinking positive thoughts, Luna falls asleep with determination spread across her face.

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Luna groggily wakes up, then starts coughing. Pieces of hay flies out of her mouth, only to settle back down on her eyes. She proceeded to wipe a hoof across her face to not only get the hay off, but to slap herself awake. *CCHh*.

"Ouch! I'm awake Tia! sheesh..." But then Luna realized she was banished. No need to fear her dear sister Tia. Though dear is stretching her definition of love. Luna kind of has a grudge on Celestia for the most obvious of reasons. Luna sat up and massaged her eyes with her magic. That's when someone started knocking on the door.

"Hold on! I just woke up, give some time." Luna stood up and approached the door, yawning and opening it, revealing Comet Runner.

"Heeyy, Luna," He drawled, "I heard from the Innkeeper that you were going to participate in the rock hurtle. Just some advice, don't look at Meteor Hooves's hooves, and you should be fine." He glanced at his hooves, looked back up at Luna, and made a throat-slitting gesture.

"Okaaay. I get it. No need to make a scene. So It's today right? When will it start?"

He looked shocked then spoke out in a rushed tone,

"Oh you silly alicorn, It starts in ten minutes. Hope your ready! I'm going to go get first row in the crowd." With that, he rushed off leaving Luna both confused and shocked. She had to get there, and fast. There's no window in her 'den', so Luna decided to sprint out the tavern and find out where this event is being hosted.

Luna dashed out the door, making sure to close it behind her, and jumped down from floor two to floor one in a single hop. Proceeding her marathon, she started flapping her wings to give her extra speed as she literally flew out the door. When outside, she looks from side to side, no sign of anypony on this street. She galloped the next, and that street is deserted as well. This would take a while.

It's been seven minutes of searching, and Luna is about to give up. Approaching a wide intersection, she looks forward, nope. To the left, nope, and finally, to the right. A crowd of ponies that would upstage the crowd of her arrival stood in the middle of the street. Banners with rock decals filled the road.

Luna quickly pushed herself past the crowd and spotted a table with numbers on it. She trotted over to it.

"Hey, I'm going to participate, can you give me a number?"

The two moon ponies behind the table looked as if they were going to burst out laughing, but they stopped, took deep breathes, and answered,

"Yeah, heh, just pick a number of your choosing. Your number will signify when your up to throw."

She scanned the numbers, finding one that sticks out. Number 3. Might as well match my room number, right? She grabbed it and scanned it. It has a strap so Luna assumes that she's supposed to put it around her neck, like her necklace. Once she finished putting it on, she looks over at the row of rocks and stretching athletes. Huge rocks, and even bigger competitors. One that stands out the most however, is a small pony, with a mane and tail resembling flames, and gigantic hooves. Luna is scared now. Those hooves of his will surely be tough to compete with, even if she does have magic. Looking back at the row of rocks, one of them had a sign labeled '3' in front of it. She trotted over to wait.

"Fillies and gentlecolts! Welcome to the hurtling championships. This week, we have a very special guest, our very own Princess Luna!"

Both cheers and and boos can be heard from the crowd. It doesn't let Luna down. Nothing is going to stop her from winning over the moon ponies.

"Since Princess Luna is an alicorn, I must inform her that, no magic or flying is allowed."

No magic or flying is allowed... Since all of these ponies have no horns or wings, I should have suspected this. Young ignorance strikes again. It's not like Luna will lose, she's an alicorn! Surely she's stronger than any of these moon ponies. Except maybe Meteor Hooves.

"Like always, number fifteen will go first."

Oh surprise surprise, another surprise. Of course I'm nearly the last for maximum suspense. After two minutes of everypony stretching, the announcer finally called off the first thrower,

"Thrower fifteen, you may begin." A moon pony with strange cup-like hooves far from Luna nodded and crouched down on her hindlegs, from there she picked up the rock with those strange hooves of hers, and strangely enough, started spinning.

The rock, as big and misshaped as it was, stuck to her hooves as she spun faster and faster. In a flash, she did a wicked flip and chucked the rock far up in the air. Some ponies were moving a barrel where the rock is about to fall, and they backed away as the rock landed in it with a dull thud.

"Fifteen feet! Oh the irony!" The announcer can be heard laughing even through the cheering.

Each thrower went by, the competition coming closer to luna. Numbers fifteen through five never got higher than eighteen feet. Luna realizes she hasn't looked to see who numbers one or two yet. She spares a glance to her left, revealing the small pony with huge hooves and a very jagged pony with her tongue sticking out. She looks WAY too spiky to be considered an equine entity.

With thrower four now done, It's Luna's turn. She gulps in anticipation and nervousness.

"Princess Luna, A.K.A thrower three, your up. Try to beat eighteen feet."

This was the moment of redemption. Win this and live happily ever after, at least that's how every other story goes. Luna bit her lip in utter concentration. She wraps herself around the rock, balances on her hindlegs, slumps the rock over her shoulders, and prepares for the throw. Come on stars. Don't fail me now. With a grunt, Luna crouched, and jumped in the air while launching her hooves up to propel the rock as far as possible. The rock flies high, higher than Luna has seen from any of the other ponies. The same barrel ponies get the rock. Wow... I never realized how strong I am. Woohoo! All of the ponies in the crowd don't even look surprised. Come to think of it, most of them are looking smugly at the small pony with big hooves... Wait, could he be... Meteor Hooves? Wow.

"Twenty-three feet! Let's all watch nonchalantly as Meteor Hooves blows her score away!"

The announcer sure didn't care about her good score. Meteor Hooves just pulled off the smile Luna is used to, and proceeds to pick up his rock. He looks over to her, his smug smile growing bigger. He lifted the rock up and threw it.

It barely went high at all. The rock, according to Luna's estimations, went about ten feet. I won! but he reared his right front hoof to punch it. But before he could, a smooth, round, pebble somehow got under right hindleg and caused him to slip and fall, the rock landing on his legs. A bone-chilling snap can be heard throughout the hushed crowd. He screamed in agony,

"My precious legs! They're broken! Somepony help me!" At his screams of help, the barrel ponies rush to him and picked him up. They rushed off into the distance while his screams can still be heard. The announcer decided to interrupt the moment of silence.

"Well, Meteor Hooves has never lost before. That's... certainly troubling! Well, might as well see what score Shockwave gets."

The spiky pony, Shockwave, actually got fourteen feet of height. This means that Luna just won the respect of her new town. Comet Runner came up to her and winked. The crowd started cheering her name.

"Luunaa! Luunaa! Luunaa! The greatest moon pony that ever lived!"

Tears of joy started to escape her eyes. She's usually not this emotional, but this is a special occasion.

"There's your winner for this week! You better treat the new champion to a drink, cause she's got hooves of steel." The announcer stepped down from the podium and left the maintenance ponies to clean up as the crowd dispersed.

"Well, Princess, how does it feel to be to respected?" Of course she knows the answer to this question.

"It feels fine, though at the same time good. I'm so used to it, might as well stick to it right?"

He nodded, then kept wearing that smile while talking.

"Well, I still have a job to do, so I might see you sometime, maybe in a few days?" He ran off towards the edge of town before Luna could even reply. But that didn't matter right now. She's proud of her success, even if by default.

Time to celebrate.

Author's Note:

Chapter 2 is finally here, though I don't know how long 'finally' is for you, but there was a lot of character building in this chapter. With the introduction of lots of names, you probably noticed that they have names resembling space in some way.

Critique please?

Comments

[Madman Blue]

the tense is fluxtuating (Luna groggily woke up,he tavern is dimly) etc. Still a good fic.