//------------------------------// // Chapter Ten; Fears- Luna // Story: Building a New Family // by Kix //------------------------------// "What do you have on those two, Chrys?” What was supposed to be a night of fun ended up being a night of real terrors and worries, not just for myself, but for the girls me and Chrysalis were supposed to be keeping safe. Fuck that bastard who distracted us. It was too neat and well timed to have been an accident. Sitting in the waiting room, both myself and Chrysalis await news about my daughter, along with Lily, Sunset, the Crusaders and their sisters. The others having already left after hearing about what happened. As we wait my mind drifts to what happened what seems like ages ago. ~~~~~A couple hours earlier~~~~~ “So, do you still think having Moonshade spend time with those three was a bad idea?” As I nudge Chrys’ side I softly giggle at her mock, exasperated sigh while keeping an eye out on the quartet from a distance. The both of us decided it would be less intrusive and humiliating than if we had them walk directly next to us. Though the distance does make me nervous. A few strangers sets me on edge, especially when they get close to the girls. As I watch my onyx skinned lover think over her question I greet a bunch of the younger students who were able to recognize me, and the sight of the half or three- quarter full bags give me a shiver. So not looking forward to Monday. “I guess you were right, she does seem to be opening up to them a little.” Her words snap me out of the horrible dreams I have always had at this time of year, the students running around like monsters so hyped up on all the sugar they have collected tonight. “Miss Luna Eclipse?” The sounds of a male voice calling out my name stops me immediately and causes me to look around in partial alarm, my focus diverted from the girls. Approaching us is a man dressed in what I guess is an expensive, dark blue suit and… I have no idea how to describe his salmon colored hair except for bumpy. His skin is a light greenish grey. His orangish brown eyes seem predatory behind his brown, full circle glasses. Even with the fast pace he is setting, I can tell he has a serious and purposeful gait. “Miss Luna? I am Svengallop, and I am here on behalf of children services in Baltimare. I understand you have had custody of a Moonshade Hearts and a Lily Bloom, is that correct?” Once he has caught up to us he extends a hand out to me and his smile seems… fake. “Why are you asking that? Is there something wrong?” Posey said that nothing bad would come of us taking them in, was she wrong? Hesitantly I take his hand, though I barely shake it. Something about touching him feels… wrong. When he offers his hand to Chrysalis she twisted around to look about before pulling out her phone. “Actually, yes there is. I can’t go into the details now, I am here to pick up both girls now and take them back to our-” “WHAT? Why… why would I turn my daughter back over to the people who allowed her to be… to be-” Interrupting him angrily my hands ball into fists as I step closer to him threateningly. I guess Chrys caught my move and positioned herself to intercept me. “Calm down, Luna. It won’t help your case if you slug him, even if this guy deserves it. You were the one in charge of Moonshade when she was brought to your adoption center, weren’t you?” Her eyes harden as she stares at him while at the same time her arms are wrapped around my chest, which normally I would have enjoyed, but now… I want her to let me go. “I know how hard this must be for you, ma’am, especially since you have just reconnected with your daughter. I promise we will keep her safe until you can-” “Like you kept her safe for the past what, ten, eleven years! How can you be so bat blind you can’t tell she was suffering all those years, huh? ANSWER ME!” I can feel my muscles tense for a fight and am barely aware of the crowd that has stopped and stares at us, a couple phones are also pulled out. At the same time my attempts to throw a punch are halted by my girlfriend’s arms pinning mine to my sides. “I’m sorry, ma’am, I truly am. I don-” As he offers an apology, a completely fake one, I lose it almost completely and actively struggle against the stronger onyx hued woman. “Chrys, let me go, now! I don’t give a damn how much trouble I will get in! I don’t accept your apology and I won’t hand my daughter or her friend over to a group that has allowed them to be hurt like they have been!” “I know how upset you must be, having learned what conditions your daughter was living in, but this whole mess is completely your fault. Had you not lost custody of her, she would not have been in the danger she was in. It will do you no good getting mad at me, or the Baltimare child protective services.” My jaw just drops at his words. Did he… did he just…? I… he is right, though. Had I… had I not been in the situation I was in, then Moonshade wouldn’t have suffered. Oh God, I am the cause of her suffering. “Actually, we don’t have to turn her over to you, since your office is undergoing an investigation. You can ask their social worker if you want. Now, if you are done, we need to get going,” My earlier rage has rushed out of every pore it can as I continue to blame myself for her suffering. I barely feel her try to turn me away from the bastard. “Hey, you alright, Luna?” “Actually, Miss, I have a court or-” “CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS!” The sounds of two extremely loud voices cuts across the air, and carries an extreme amount of fear. What the… that’s Apple Bloom and Scootaloo. I didn’t- Oh God, let them be alright! As I rush towards the general direction of the voices I realize that Sweetie Belle’s voice isn’t mixed in, only spurring me to run faster. Next to me I can make out Chrysalis on her phone, though I don’t know who she is texting or talking to, as her fingers fly over the lit screen and she is also talking, judging by how fast her lips are moving. ~~~~~Present~~~~~ “Luna? Luna Eclipse?” Looking up from my seat I notice two officers standing in front of me, and thankfully one of them is Shining Armor. While I never really talked to him a lot, the fact he is here does comfort me a little. “I need you to make a statement about what happened tonight. I’m also going to need to talk to the girls who were involved.” Once he has a pad of paper ready I recount the events of what happened, and the contact made by that lawyer, Svengallop. Looking over I notice the other officer is questioning Chrysalis and writing down her statement as well. At certain points Shining has asked questions, either to clarify a particular part or to try and catch me in a lie, I’m not sure. How long the questioning takes, I am not completely sure as I replay the part where Moonshade fell to the ground. I don’t know if it was my imagination or not, but as her head makes contact with the cement I swear I can hear a horrible, sickening crunch. Thankfully the doctor’s voice as he enters the room breaks me out of my thoughts, which I guess is a good thing, or else I could be swirling a very dangerous mental drain. “Your daughter is waking up. She’ll be alright, just some bruises and a mild concussion. You should be able to take her home in a few more hours.” “Luna? I heard about… what happened. Is she... alright?” Joining us is a winded and distressed Posey, holding a folder in her left hand as she barges through the door. “Physically, she is, a few bruises and a minor concussion. As for mentally, I don’t know. I… did that lawyer have any actual merit? Could they… can they actually take her and Lily away?” Please don’t let it be true, please don’t let them take the girls. A tender arm wraps around my shoulders and draws me in for an undeserved, comforting hug. “No, with them being under investigation all of the children under their care have been removed and given to other agencies.” “W- what abo-” “Hush love. I looked into it, and no such court orders have been issued from the Baltimare courts. And I don’t want to hear any more of your self blame. Did you make a mistake, yes. You allowed yourself to get hooked on drugs back then, but it wasn’t your fault, it was that bastard you were dating back then. You can’t change the past, only give her a better future.” As she holds me close I can’t hold the dam together any longer and tears begin to flow endlessly onto Chrys’ shoulder. Vaguely I am aware of others joining in with the hug as well, only then remembering that we are not alone. Taking my free arm I try to wrap it around as many of the girls as I can while I unleash all the pent up fear and and anger of the past who knows how many hours. The exhaustion and other emotions start taking a toll on me, and within moments I’m blacking out. “So Luna, do you like what we’ve done with your daughter?” A familiar voice wakes me up, and standing there, next to Moonshade is a man hidden in the shadows, but somehow, I can recognize the voice, but not place it. My gaze turns to Moonshade and what I see horrifies me. Her eyes are empty and her facial expression is completely neutral. Most of her body is hidden in the shadows as well, so I can’t see what she is wearing, if anything at all. Overall she has a look of someone who has been broken and shattered beyond repair. Disgusted by the sight I try to get up, only to realize I’m chained down tightly on a bed. My arms are held together and above my head while my legs are parted till they are bound to the bed posts at the foot of the bed. The second realization I have is that I am completely naked, and what is worse is that Moonshade has no reactions what so ever to my nakedness. Turning my head away I take in the rest of the room. Fortunately most of it is also covered in deep shadows, except for a point where Lily is hanging from I guess the ceiling. Again, the only thing I can see is her head, which is currently hanging and tears streaking down to the unseen floor. Her body shakes with silent sniffles and sobs, breaking my heart as I witness her despair. “Like what you see? You know, I have clients who enjoy a mother and daughter sharing their love.” With a chuckle he looks at Moonshade and kisses her before turning to face me. “Now, show your mom how much you truly love her.” “Moon! Don’t listen to him! STOP!” Unable to do anything I watch in horror as my daughter approaches me with that same blank stare and a wobbly gait. As she crawls onto the bed I close my eyes as my muscles tense. “NOO!” “LUNA! What happened?” Sitting upright on the couch I was lying on I look around frantically, perspiration beading out of every pore in my skin, some of the drops mingling with the tears sliding down my face. My heart feels like it’s imitating a jackhammer with how fast it is beating. Disoriented, I try to scoot away from the hazy figure looming above me. “Luna, it’s okay, you’re safe. What happened?” I… Celestia? W- where am I? As my vision clears slowly I realize I’m in the waiting room, surrounded by Celestia, Sunset and a team of nurses. W- where is Chrysalis and the Crusaders? Was that- it felt too real to be a dream. As I calm down a little I spot Moonshade, who is in a wheelchair and pushed to a corner, her expression one of horror as she stares at me. “I… I had a nightmare, a bad one. I… I don’t want to talk about it, at least, not here.” My gaze falls immediately to the floor, not wanting to look at my daughter just yet, afraid I’d see that horrible shell she was turned into. After giving me some time to calm down, the process to get Moonshade released goes by pretty quickly and the trip from the building to Celestia’s vehicle is a blur, drowned out by that horrible image I just had. “Sister, I know you don’t want to talk about it, but please, what happened that freaked you out in there?” The question I have been expecting, and dreading, comes the second all the doors are closed and the vehicle started, but we have yet to move. Unfortunately for me, I’m stuck in the back seat with the child proof doors. “Not… not in front of Moonshade, please. I promise I’ll talk to the counselor about it when we see him.” “That is when, next week? End of next week?” With a worried sigh my older sister pulls out and takes us home. It takes me a moment but I realize she is taking the long way. This ain’t good, hate when she does this. “We’ll talk when we get home, but I’m not going to let this fester for that long. You remember what happened last time you let something bother you for a period of time.” “O- okay, Tia. And yes, I do remember what happened-” It happened just after I hit you, killing your unborn baby and led to so, so many more mistakes. How you were able to pull me out of that downward spiral, I have no idea. Just like I have no idea how, or if, I’ll ever be able to repay you. The rest of the drive is uneventful and silent as both myself and Moonshade are lost in our own thoughts, and it takes the jerk of the vehicle coming to a stop and the engine being shut down to snap me out of my swirling cloud of negativity. Moonshade heads immediately to her room, Lily and Sunset following her to offer comfort. Celestia takes my shoulder and leads me to her inner sanctum, the only room in the house I’ve rarely intruded. An onyx arm wraps around my shoulders, but before it has a chance to settle it is brushed off, and I manage to look up long enough to see Celestia shake her head sadly. Once we are inside her room and the door is closed I finally manage to look up and examine my older sister’s room. Not surprising it is decorated in white, yellow and gold, I guess it’s supposed to be a solar theme judging by the stylized sun on the comforter. The furniture is expensive looking, but simple in design and painted white with gold trim and highlights. A large flat screen tv hangs on the wall opposite the memory foam bed. “So, Luna. What was it that freaked you out so badly in the hospital?” The question halts my exploration and I focus on Celestia while sitting heavily on the mattress. “I… I… please don’t think I’m sick or a pervert, sis,” Here it goes. With a deep breath I begin to tell her. “I… the dream I had was horrible. I was… I woke up bound and… naked to a bed, a shadowy figure standing at the foot of the bed with… Moonshade.” I really, really don’t want to see that again. I don’t even want to think of it. “What was going on, Lulu?” How she manages to sound like mom, I have no idea, but her tone of voice and posture soothe me enough and is so full of…. I have no idea how to describe it, but I can’t not tell her. “S- she was… I guess she was… naked, but shadows hid all but her head and shoulders. She had this… look, like she was… not really alive. Her eyes were dead, like a doll.” I didn’t notice it, but Tia has inched close enough to me as I talked that it takes me by surprise as she hugs me, the emotional dam weakening to the point of threatening to break. “Lily, she was… she was chained to a wall. Again I… I couldn’t see much besides her head and shoulders, but just by how she hung there, I could guess she was broken as well.” Something about the voice, I have no idea why but it sounds vaguely familiar as I recall what he said. Shivering in fear I curl up by bringing my knees up, in response my older sister wraps me up in a comforting hug. “I… I don’t know who he was, but… his voice sounded familiar. He… he told… he was going to have Moon… he wanted her to-” Unable to say the rest I twist in her arms and hug Tia tightly while she rocks me in her arms. “It’s alright, Lulu, you’re safe, Moonshade is safe and so is Lily. Nobody is going to harm them or take them away. Posey, Discord and Chrysalis will see that they don’t.” “Mom! Door!” Sunset’s voice interrupts the two of us, and with a sigh Celestia gets up first and head down the stairs, which I followed a couple minutes later. Standing there in the doorway are four officers, one of them is Shining Armor, accompanied by an older man who is his partner. The other two officers are probably out of town, based on the difference of the badges and the color of the uniforms. Shining Armor and his partner have a blue shirt with black epaulettes, dark grey pants, a silver shield shaped as a star and shiny dress shoes. The other two officers are in a pure black uniform, tactical style pants and combat boots with a gold shield that is more oval shaped. One of them, a woman speaks first. “Are you Luna Eclipse? I’m Sergeant Star Fire, this is Crimson storm and we are from Baltimare P.D. We would have been here sooner, but we had some things come up. Is it a good time to talk to Moonshade? It is pertinent to a case regarding her latest foster parents.”