Author’s note:
A fair warning before reading: I’m dyslexic and English is my 2nd language. Now you have been warned!
In a matter of fact; this was the first MLP FIM fanfic I started to write, I just never got around to finish it, well not before now at least. I’ve finished the first two chapters (chapter 2 will be uploaded tomorrow), but I’m not really sure when I’ll continue on this one as I have some other stories I’m also working on, plus I have an upcoming exam that needs some looking into.
But for now; please enjoy my story and don’t forget to comment! <3
The story:
The moon was slowly making its way over the night sky, closing ever nearer to its decent. It had been quite a long and stressful night for the poor solar princess, as a heatedly council meeting was taking place inside the walls of the ponydom’s tall and mighty sky castle.
“She’s a threat to all of us!” a small dark grey earth pony huffed angrily at the ruler of all of Equestria, the solar princess, princess Celestia who was sitting pleasantly in her throne. A crowd of royal ponies was sitting around in the huge throne room, being the members of Celestia’s council.
“Luna is a threat to no pony.” Celestia mildly replied. This wasn’t the first time somepony from the council had approached the solar princess regarding their concern of the lunar princess might become Nightmare Moon once more and Celestia was not without understanding because she knew what it is like to be driven by fear rather than by heart. But they should really cut the poor thing some slack, hardly had she been freed from her 1000 years slumber on the moon, but also the imprisonment of Nightmare Moon. And now everypony just wanted to get rid of her again just as soon as she had returned to her sister who had so dreadfully missed her little shining star for an entire millennium, but this time Celestia would make everything right. She would fight for Luna’s rights even if it would cost her, her own.
“Maybe she isn’t in her current state of mind, but how can you guarantee us; the council that Nightmare Moon will never reappear?” The stallion asked, not only to Celestia as he turned around looking over all of the chairmen of the council, clearly wanted to be heard by everypony.
Celestia looked at the faces of the council, more than she would have liked to see; she saw them making gestures of agreeing, such as nodding mildly and looking at each other sharing a few words of agreement. She had to take a stand, making sure the council would never get to hurt Luna. She would allow no pony to hurt her precious sister. “As long as Luna never feels true sadness, then Nightmare Moon will never return.” It looked like he was about to say something as he turn around facing the solar princess once again, but just as he opened his mouth, Celesita continued “I’ll take the full responsibility as her older sister, and do all within my power to keep her happy and ensure that Nightmare Moon never awakens.”
The grey chairman was famous in his own right, he was the lowest nobility to ever have become a member of the council and that along was quite a feat, but something even stranger about this stallion was that he was the oldest in all of the ponydom to have not yet received his cuite mark. Everything that he owned, even his title as Baron he had fought viciously for to gain, making him quite an extraordinary pony in his own right. He was not a royalty born by blood; he had acquired his title as Baron from another Baron which he and his town rebelled against, before it became a part of Celestia’s ponydom. It was said that the now chairman Von Slemmer and his townsflock had lived a sad and depressing life under a tyrannical rule by the hands of the once Baron of the town. He was strong in mind and belief, but his body was little and weak. He had a pale dark grey fur, like he wasn’t getting much sunshine.
“I have come forth for this entire council as one of its chairmen today to represent one of our greatest concerns” The chairman Von Slemmer continued “and most of us do not believe in the way that her highness has chosen to deal with this situation at hand and we therefore demand a vote between its members to decide what should be done about the problem.”
Celestia rose from her throne “Von Slemmer, I’ll only say this once, I’m not going to impression my sister nor banish her from my ponydom.” She said in a harsh tune.
“But…” the chairman pleaded.
“Your voice has been heard, I assure you chairman, but family business will not become a part of this council” the solar answered as she could feel her temper beginning to slip. “and all of you will have to come to terms with that Luna in time, when she’s ready to share the throne with me; we’ll be equal in all ways.” Celestia finished.
“Humph… you’ll doom us all princess Celestia, a 1000 years ago she almost starved all of ponykind to death, destroying our entire race!” Celastia’s entire face changed at this. “I sincerely doubt your judgment of character and your true intents with the welfare of all ponies in this ponydom.” Von Slemmer spat back at her, his voice filled with rancour.
“ENOUGH!” Celestia yelled as she stomped her left hoof hard into the palace floor, making a booming sound alongside a small shockwave hard enough to make Von Slemmer’s legs shake a bit by the shear magical force that was unleashed form the impact. “I’ll not stand for these insults and accusations against my little sister, particularly when she’s not around to defend herself. My sister is no monster and the monster that had once possessed her has been sealed away!” she took in a small breath “Did I make myself clear; chairman?”
A bit stunned by her sudden outburst of rage and power, the chairman stammered out a low “Q-Quite…” as he lower his head a bit, so that he was no longer facing the solar princess, as he added “your highness.” in a low and insolent mannered voice that she could hardly hear. She narrowed her eyes at this just a bit, but not enough for anyone to notice unless they would stand right next to her.
“Know your place Baron.” Celestia said with enraged eyes. She has only addressed Von Slemmer as Baron in the council meetings when she wanted to remind the dear chairman that he was the lowest of nobility within the ranks of the chairmen. “And don’t forget that the council was founded by me only because I wanted insight of my growing ponydom and of cause to listen to your voices and concerns so that I may make better decisions upon them and your advices. But this is not a democracy.” She said as she lowered herself onto her throne once more. “Now, you may take your seat Von Slemmer, this case is closed and it’ll only be reopened again if I so desire.”
The chairman took one last look at her before he bowed to her “As you wish your highness, please forgive me for overstepping my authority.” He finished as his bow came to an end and as he returned to his seat amongst the other chairmen of the council.
Celestia took a look at the entire council she really wanted and really needed to ensure them somehow. “My dear council,” She started “As long as my sister; princess Luna is shown respect, trust, kindness and love; Nightmare Moon will never become an issues ever again, the words chairman Von Slemmer spoke would only ensure the return of Nightmare Moon as it would break her spirit and surely let Nightmare Moon return from her prison.” She still kept her eyes at them, it seemed to have some effect. Some of the tense stairs that she had gotten from the whole ordeal with the chairman Baron Herr Von Slemmer seemed to becoming softer once more. Von Slemmer surely know how to rally a crowd, Celesta thought for herself. That is probably how he came to acquire all the influence that he has.
“Now if anypony wants to add some other matter to this council meeting?” Not a word was said in the entire hall. “Good, then I’ll call this council meeting for today, over.”
The princess was the first one to leave the grand hall. That was how tradition was; the council members must remain seated until their ruler or rulers take their leave. As Celestia came closer to the big door leaving the room she felt a familiar entity, her little gem.
“You know it’s rude to listen by the doors, right my dear sister?” Celestia spoke with a huge smile pasted on her face, every time she saw Luna or felt her presence she couldn’t help to smile, Luna was after all the other part of her heart and soul. Celestia had missed her sister so much for the last 1000 years that her heart would skip a beat every time she laid her eyes upon her beautiful night blue sister.
“I know,” Luna responded “but it’s the only way I get to know what is going on since you’ll never really tell me what they say about me.” Looking a little to the side almost as if regretting something.
“I’m sorry…” Celestia spoke, looking hurtful. “Its just that I don’t want you to hear those words of unjust mistrust and fear towards you. You deserve better.”
Lune went over to her sister and put her hoofs on Celestia’s shoulders looking deep into her sisters eyes. “I’m sorry that I’m causing you so much trouble sister Tia.” Luna said lowly clearly expressing her discomfort in bringing so many problems to her elder sister.
Celestia smiled. “Don’t worry so much dear sister, I’ll take care of it, I promise. I’ll never let you feel true sorrow ever again.” She said, as she nuzzled the lunar princess’ mane. “But I’ll ask you again to consider coming to the next council meeting. The sooner we get to share the throne the sooner they will accept you as their lunar princess.”
Luna put her hoofs back to the floor again. “I don’t know Tia.” She started “I don’t think they would speak their true mind if I was by your side under the council meetings.”
“Hmm,” Celestia hummed. “I’ve already closed the topic towards you, so they’ll never speak ill of you again in count. But please, just think about it. Okay? That’s all I ask of.” Celestia said with a soft and caring voice, making Luna realize that she truly felt that this would be for better.
“Okay sis, I’ll think about it.” Luna said, as she smiled at Celestia’s cheerful face.
“They seem to think that they are the rulers around here, so you need to take them with a grain of salt.” Celestia said.
Luna’s smile began to fade as she looked down into the floor. “I really screwed up… before, 1000 years ago no pony ever noticed me, now they all just hate me.” She almost whispered.
“That wasn’t you my sweet.” Celestia said seeing Luna’s gloomy expression.
“Don’t say that! Nightmare moon is as much a part of me as I’m.” Luna told Celestia in a hard voice, almost at the brink of crying.
“Do you truly believe that Lulu?” Luna didn’t show a sign of a reply, so Celestia tried to press the issue a bit more, hoping to make Luna see it wasn’t her fault at all. “Lulu, do you remember that I was there when you transformed into Nightmare moon?” Luna looked up at her sister, looking like she wanted to know where her sister would go with this. “I came to you asking, no pleading for you to lower the moon once again, but already there I was too late. I saw how it consumed your weaken heart that were no longer yours to control. When I came to you, you had been possessed by an evil entity that I never heard of nor seen before in all of my existence. I was too weak to stop it, so I’m the one at fault here, I should have seen it all, somehow…” Celestia trailed off as tears started to form in her eyes. “You should never apologize to me sister, I was the one who did not see the signs. I’m the one to blame for Nightmare Moon’s rise. If I had just fixed your broken heart it would never had been able to consume you.” The tears started to drip from her sorrowful face “There didn’t go a day by where I haven’t thought of you for these last 1000 years.”
“I-I know,” Luna stammered for a bit. “I mean, it used my body and my powers against you and everypony else.”
Celestia signed at her little sister. “You need to see it in another perspective, dear sister.” She told Luna. “Yes, it is true that it used your body and your power to infuse its own evil desires, but even so, you cannot be blamed for that. That would makes as much sense as to blame a snake for being a predator, it cannot help it was born that way.” Celestia tried to counsel her sister.
“I know what you’re trying to get at Tia, but even so, and even though that your right, I still don’t feel it within me.” Luna said with a bitter voice.
Celestia just looked at her lunar sister while she bit her bottom lip. If Luna continues down this path of self-doubt then Nightmare Moon might return once more, she thought. She had to do something, she couldn’t let what happened a millennium ago occur once more! A thought suddenly stroke Celestia, as she thought back to ‘the summer sun celebration’ where Nightmare Moon had addressed her before she went onto the balcony announcing her return, that was the first time she saw Luna or at least some of her in a 1000 years. But she had to wonder; if Luna had been born evil, would her persona have been like Nightmare Moon’s? The creature that had possessed Luna is a parasite like entity that would normally had wander from host to host, as it would suck out its host’s very essence to keep itself alive, but when its host was immortal, then what would happen to it? Had it become as much a prisoner in Luna as Luna had in it? Never before in its existence would it have lived with its host, and especially not for a 1000 years, which must really have done a number on its psyche, Celestia wondered. It had probably found some ease in Luna, who was sleeping inside of it. Maybe it really had assimilation some of Luna’s persona to keep itself secure and sane, which might have been why it had addressed Celestia as its sister and still claimed that it wasn’t Luna anymore when they first meet after all those years.
“Tia?” A soft voice suddenly asked, breaking Celestia from her deep thoughts.
The solar princess looked a little dumbfounded at Luna as she snapped back to reality. “Sorry, I’m just really saddened that I’m unable to spend more time with you Lulu.” She lied innocently, not wanting to make it any harder on the poor mare. First thing tomorrow Celestia thought, she had to find a way to create a more happy life for her precious sister, perhaps she should sent her to her faithful student Twilight? She wondered, maybe some friends was all she needed to get her minds off things. But then again, that could so easily backfire, what if they didn’t embrace her? They would probably fear her, because to most ponies she and Nightmare Moon was the one and the same mare.
“That’s okay Tia.” Luna told her sister softly with a sugar sweet voice that melted Celestia’s ancient heart.
“Tell me Lulu,” Celestia asked her little sister. “do you still have those unpleasant dreams?” She asked Luna as she thought back to some of the times where she noticed Luna turning and touching around in the bed while she was sleeping, obviously having nightmares.
“Sometimes I still dream about her, the things she did and that things she might do if she returns, but not as much anymore.” Luna mildly replied. “Once a while; I do have pleasant dreams as well.”
“About her?” Celestia asked in an odd way.
“Uhm… no… about something else.” She said with a little blush forming on her cheeks as she thought about a silly filly dream she had about her and Celestia that was having a picnic in the royal garden a summer evening, but her faithful student had also been there which she was a bit puzzled about this as she thought about it. She had never really meet Twilight, and she seemed to appear in all of her dreams. And even more confusing; why did she always feel silly whenever she was near and why did she always have such a strong need to just sit or stay closer by her? True she did fight her when she was under the control of Nightmare Moon but Luna herself never really had any contact with the lavender mare.
Celestia too was in thought as her thoughts once more drifted off to Nightmare Moon and to some of the complications that had followed, such as Von Slemmer. She was quite sad that there are ponies like Von Slemmer that would probably never accept Luna no matter what she did, having too much hate in their little pony hearts. Even if the creature had been killed ponies like him would probably still distrust and hate Luna. Evidently some ponies just never can forgive and forget and sadly they are almost always the ones whose hate will be their own undoing and thus suffer the most.
“Come Lulu,” Celestia said. “Let’s go to my chambers so I can tuck you in.”
“But I haven’t lowered the moon yet.” Luna replied.
“Not to worry my dear, I’ll take care of that.” Luna raised an eye brow at this, almost as if Celestia didn’t think she could take care of her own duties anymore, but Celestia just smiled at this. “I just want to tuck you in before my daily duties begin. Beside I also want to tell you a little story before your night is over.” She finished as they made their way towards the solar princess’s bedchamber.