//------------------------------// // **Chapter 1 - [Insert 1 Bit to Start]** [Revised] // Story: Luna Plays... // by Chaotic Note //------------------------------// Pumpkin Fest was feeling good today. She’s on a roll. Nothing could stop her from cleaning out those cobwebs on the ceiling. She worked as a maid servant for the Royal Sisters in Canterlot Castle for only a couple of days, and she enjoyed her work. There were times when she had difficulty before, but now she knew where the ladders were being kept. Those clingy, dusty webs wouldn’t know what hit them! She grabbed the end of the ladder with her teeth, wishing she was born a unicorn. Earth ponies don’t exactly have more useful abilities the unicorns have, but they are sure darn stronger than most others. Still, it placed quite a toll on her neck. She halted underneath her objective and released her bite. Pumpkin felt an uncomfortable twinge in her neck and paused for a moment to relax her bones. She felt like an old mare, which is bad. At least she’s young enough to not be confused as one. She grunted a bit as she lifted the ladder to a stand-up position and started climbing up the steps. Halfway up the ladder, she suddenly had a feeling of dread. As if something horrible will come by her- “TIA! Get back here!” A white blur swiftly flew underneath the ladder. Pumpkin screamed a little as she tried to keep the thing steady. As it settled down, another pony ran past the ladder. This time, the figure bumped into the ladder. As it tipped to one side, Pumpkin silently said a prayer, closed her eyes, and let the steps carry her to her doom. Instead of the hard surface of the floor, she landed on a soft, warm, plush form. As the ladder crashed with a clank, she opened her hazel eyes to see who her savior was. Her eyes met with a navy blue coat, and a beautiful, starry mane that projected an image of the night sky. Her heroine turned around to face Pumpkin, and she met with a regal face of beauty fixated with concern. “Art thou alright maid?” Luna asked. The orange mare could feel her face getting redder and warmer. “Y-yes!” she squeaked. “I’m so sorry for being a burden, Princess Luna!” “’Tis’ alright citizen,” she assured. “Err, run by me again. What is thy name?” “Pumpkin Fest!” she squeaked. “Ah, well Pumpkin Fest. Please take care when my sister and I are on break. I assume somepony reminded you that was today, yes?” “Sorry, I’m new here!” she sounded terrified. What’s Princess Luna going to do to maids who can’t do their jobs right? Luna however was happy that Fest didn’t meet an unfortunate end. She gave the servant her most genuine smile and lowered her back to let her off. She gingerly got off the princess, careful to not move a single feather on her wings. Luna ruffled her wings a little and spread them apart. She edgily bent her front hooves, anxious to catch up with her Tia. “Well Fest, do be careful. We like to use the entirety of the castle grounds as our playing field,” Luna warned. Pumpkin slowly responded with a nod. Luna gave her own nod and quickly kicked off from the carpet floor. She thrust her wings forward and left behind a gale of wind behind. Her gust shook the halls, threatening the vases to fall to the ground. Fest looked upon in horror and rushed to each pedestal to stabilize them. As she adjusted the last one, she sighed with relief. At least that’s another disaster averted. As she rested for a moment, she remembered she needed to clean up the cobwebs. Pumpkin Fest groaned as she needed to put the heavy ladder up again. She looked up to see where the cobwebs were again, only to see the ceiling to be dusted clean of its grimy wardens. Huh? Where did they go? Luna was very glad to have saved that mare from a trip to the hospital. However, she didn't let that small victory cloud her focus as she wanted to catch up to her sister. She cannot afford to let her get away after what she did. As she sped down the halls, veering left and right to avoid the bystanders. She heard yelps and gasps as the ponies behind her darted away from her dash. As she felt the air around her move, she smiled as she could feel the end of her chase was nearing. Celestia leaned against the wall as her lungs needed some much needed air. That sister of hers was hard to evade, but she felt the fruits of her labors as she purposely gave the ladder a nudge. It was a bad habit of her to cheat, even to the extent of using that poor pony as a part in her plan to distract Luna from chasing her. She couldn’t imagine the horrors of what would happen if she were to catch up to her. She made sure though to get a visual on the victim of her distraction plan. It was Pumpkin Fest right? I’ll be sure to give her a bonus on her next pay. As she caught her breath, she looked behind her to see if Luna was up to her sneaking tricks. She hadn’t caught a single spot of royal blue in the hallway. As she turned back to continue her run, she saw Luna strafing from the left hallway. She had a look of victory on her face as she slowed her stop, leaving behind a large cloud of dust. “Halt dear sister! You’re going to pay for your actions!” Luna bellowed. Celestia cowered at the sudden surprise. This wasn’t looking good for the cheater’s future. She spun around and started to make a break for it, but she was pounded to ground by the force of the night. She could feel the sting of the carpet as her face was rubbed into its faux wool. She rolled over to see Luna with a scary look on her face. Her smile stretched from end to end, giving her a wild look. “Now sister,” she started. “You shall feel the wrath of Princess Luna!” She raised a hoof as if to throw a punch. Celestia closed her eyes and waited for the inevitable. After what felt like a couple of hours passed, she felt a poke to her snow-white chest. “Tag! You’re it!” Luna said happily. Celestia tossed her hooves in the air, as if she was hit by a fully charged magic blast. “Augh! You got me!” Luna gave her loving sister a slight, playful nudge. “Hey, it’s just a sporting game of tag.” She got off Celestia to give her room. “Surely you are jesting me that you gave it your all.” Celestia chuckled a little as for her response. “Well I am 1000 years out of shape. There wasn’t a pony that I could spar with. I fear I am not as agile as I was before.” She looked at Luna with a quizzical look. “How were you able to keep your strength?” “Well, you did send me to the moon. There wasn’t much to do there, so I flew around the moon each day.” An awkward moment passed between the two as the topic of the banishment was brought up. Luna let out a sheepish laugh, while her sister quickly thought of a change of subject. A golden armored pony however came around the corner and coughed loudly to get the two Alicorns’ attentions. “Your royal majesty,” he said to Celestia. “The council would like to have a word with you. It’s an emergency concerning about Fillydelphia’s banana plantation being threatened by a parasprite infestation.” Celestia wanted to groan and whine, but she had to keep with her calm, regal appearance. “Thank you, royal guard, I shall be right there soon,” she assured. The royal guard nodded and left the two sisters to their business. Luna looked at Celestia with a whimper in on her lips. “Tia! You promised I would have the entire day with you. I’m sure those snooty council ponies can handle an emergency meeting without you!” Luna said with a depressed look on her face. Celestia only looked back with a sad face of her own. “Luna, you know that I must go. Those old colts will just argue back and forth until I come up with a solution. You know how they can get if I’m absent from the room.” “But-“ “No buts, Lulu.” Luna grumbled a little and sat on her haunches. She turned away with a puffed face to make her look annoyed. Celestia sighed and gingerly sat next to her sister. Luna only scooted away and crossed her front hooves together, looking like a very grumpy princess. As Celestia tried to come up with a solution, she felt a presence of another pony behind her. She turned around to be met with a bright coated, fluffy mane-d, Ponyville’s local energetic party pony. “Hi Princess Celestia!” Pinkie Pie grinned. “Oh hello there my little pony!” Celestia happily greeted. “What brings you here?” “I just felt a frowny wowny in this part of Equestria,” Pinkie Pie said, with a serious look on her face. “My senses are telling me that they are off the charts! It must being coming from an extremely powerful, magical pony. So I came to Canterlot!” She looked around, as if she was locating the source of the sadness. “I've tracked the distressing trail right around here, but I don’t see a sad pony.” “Why don’t you try looking over there?” Celestia chided as she pointed a hoof in Luna’s general direction. A cloud of rain was pouring down on her celestial mane. It only lowered Celestia’s sympathetic levels as her sister had a bad habit of summoning rain clouds when she is a bad mood. The small thunder in the pod of fluff only made the situation worse. Pinkie Pie stood back as she observed to problem at hoof. Two sad sisters, a royal guardscolt messenger, that room of angry, old colts she passed back there. It could mean only one thing, and her wiggly ears and chest confirmed it for her. “You two were having a nice day off today from your royal duties, but Princess Celestia just received noticed of an emergency meeting with Canterlot’s council members and Luna doesn't want you to go because she will be bored,” Pinkie Pie deducted. “Am I right?” The rain cloud stopped pouring as the two sisters looked at the party pony with wide eyes. It was unheard of as they never heard anypony piece together such a conclusion with such accuracy before. Pinkie Pie only gave them a simple smile. “Yes. That is correct, Element of Laughter,” Luna confirmed. “Do you have a solution for us?” “Why yes I do!” Pinkie Pie cheered. “Princess Celestia, why don’t you show her the joys of what video games could bring?” Celestia’s pupil grew bigger at this solution. Why didn't she think of that? “Pinkie Pie, you are a genius. Thank you.” “No problem, Princess of the Sun!” Pinkie Pie opened a nearby window and brought out a small cannon from Mother knows where. Pinkie Pie aimed it towards the open window, got into the device, and held a hoof over its launch button. “Well, my work here is done! Let me know what her gamertag is. We should play together!” Pinkie Pie pressed down on the button, and was fired from the sky blue launcher. Luna looked out to see a pink blur going off to the rustic spot of Ponyville. Suddenly, a pink flash of a sonic boom went off in the distance. The citizens of Canterlot looked up in the skies above the town and wondered in awe of what it could possibly be. Luna saw odder things in her life and shrugged at the one-shot pink wonder. “Sister?” Luna asked. “What did she mean by these ‘video games’?” “Well Lulu,” Celestia said with a gleam in her eye. “How about I get you started with some Haylo?”