> The Real Nightmare
>  by LolianTriforce
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Regret
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Twilight had heard it all. Every pony told her she was lucky to become an Alicorn and a princess, but if she had to choose whether she could be an Alicorn or not, she would have turned Princess Celestia down. It had been a thousand years since that decision, and every day she lived was full of regret and death.
Since then, she had grown to be almost as big as Celestia herself. She still resided in her Ponyville castle, presiding over friendship. She sat at her chair, looking around. The room was empty. All around her sat the empty chairs where her friends once sat. 
She lowered her head and sobbed. She wished to live back in the days where she still believed friendship was magic. All she could think of were all the problems she and her friends had solved. The memories would not leave her mind.
Tired of her remorse, she quickly jumped up and ran into the library. It was full of dusty books. She rarely touched them since… No. 	She wasn’t going to think about that day.
She walked over to a table piled high with books. At the bottom of the tallest pile was the journal they had started shortly after the Tree of Harmony incident. She carefully pulled it out without disturbing the rest of the books and opened its fragile pages. 
Each page contained a story each pony faced where they had to live up to their element. Twilight’s eyes began to water as the memories came flooding back. Each tear, a memory that had almost been forgotten. They landed on the pages, dotting the paper.
Twilight dropped the book and laid down, covering her head with her hooves. It was almost too much.
***
“Don’t worry, Sugar,” Apple Jack reassured Twilight. “Even though some of us got married, doesn’t mean we will leave you.”
Twilight nodded. It was a couple years after the Tirek incident, and already Rarity had married Fancy Pants, Rainbow Dash had married Soarin, and Fluttershy had married Discord. Fluttershy had moved from her cottage to Discord’s Castle in the Everfree forest. Rainbow had moved back to Cloudsdale. And Rarity had moved to Canterlot. Now, only Apple Jack, Pinkie Pie, and Twilight had remained in Ponyville.
“Yeah!” Pinkie Pie cried enthusiastically, “We still can have fun! Just the three of us!”
She hugged to two other ponies, holding them close to her. Twilight sighed, not having the happiness in her to hug Pinkie back. She pushed away from them, looking up to the sky.
“But Pinkie,” she started, “You get married to Cheese Sandwich in three days. Who knows if you’ll stay in Ponyville? And Apple Jack, you and Spike have kind of been getting serious... And then there’s me…”
“Honey,” Apple Jack interrupted, “Even if we move, you can still visit us. There’s no stopping you there.”
“… I guess you’re right.”
“Now, let’s go to Sweet Apple Acres and have some hot apple cider.”
***
Twilight quickly sat up. The tear streaks on her face had dried up. She looked around to find that an hour had past. She steadied herself while she stood up. But then there was a knock at the door.
Wiping the dry tears away, she quickly trotted to the door and opened it. Sticking her head out past the door, she found Princess Luna standing outside. She was a bit taller than Twilight herself, but she still was more beautiful than ever.
“I hope I’m not disturbing anything,” Luna started. Her voice was a bit deeper than it had been a thousand years ago.
“No,” Twilight interrupted. “Not at all.”
Twilight opened the door for her. Luna walked in and looked around. The castle was a bit dusty, but it was still in good shape. Luna glanced at Twilight.
“Celestia wanted to come, but—“ Luna began to explain.
“It’s fine,” Twilight stopped her. “I understand.”
Luna looked at her with a worried look. She walked into the dusty library. She glanced at the journal on the ground and saw the dry spots where tears had splashed onto the floor.
“Twilight,” Luna sighed. “I’m sorry for your loss, I really am, but it’s been a thousand years. You need to let them go.”
“You don’t understand!” Twilight burst into tears. “I thought Friendship was magic! I thought they would be there for me!”
“They are, Twi—“
“Stop!! I never wanted to be a princess!! What’s so great?! Watching ponies die everyday?!”
Luna shot her a cold look. Her wings unfolded, making her look taller than she really was.
“ENOUGH!!” she shouted in her royal Equestrian voice.
Twilight stopped, biting her lip to hold back her rude comments. Luna folded her wings back into place and walked over to Twilight, wrapping her hoof around her neck. She pulled her close. Twilight rested her head on Luna’s chest and sobbed, long and loud.
Her desperate cries rang throughout the empty castle. Each echo made the cries quieter and more desperate. Luna carefully removed Twilight’s crown and gently set it on the ground. Twilight sniffled and looked up at her. 
“How do you stand this?” she asked quietly.
Luna looked down at her. Twilight’s eyes gleamed with tears. They were filled with sorrow and woe. Luna looked away.
“I think of the future, not the past.”
Twilight took in the knowledge and contemplated. She knew that Luna was right. She sat up and wiped her eyes. As she looked to the ground, Luna put her crown back on her head. She then used her magic to fix her hair and face, making Twilight more presentable.
“Now,” Luna began, “How are you feeling?”
“I feel a little better,” Twilight responded. “But how do I look to the future when I don’t know what’s coming?”
Luna smiled.
“That’s for you to figure out. We each have to earn that knowledge on our own, you know.”
With that, Luna began to walk towards the door. Before she walked out, she stopped.
“Twilight,” she said softly. “What happened to your friends was tragic…. But they are not completely gone… They all had children… You just need to make new friends.”
Then, she was gone.