//------------------------------// // The Thing in the Moon, Part 1 // Story: My Little Planeswalker: Sideboard Stories // by Zennistrad //------------------------------// Each night, after a session of dreamwalking, Princess Luna spent her time sitting in the throne room, attending to her Night Court. At least, if you could even call it a court. On some level she couldn’t blame the lack of attendance, given that most ponies were diurnal, though she still didn’t like how empty it felt. She had her Night Guards, and they provided her with plenty of companionship, but even they couldn’t stave off the loneliness forever. That had all changed, one fateful night. A night guard with a grey coat and a dark blue mane pushed the door to the throne room open, her bat-like wings practically buzzing with excitement. Luna regarded her curiously as she approached. “Is something the matter, Lieutenant Echo?” Echo suddenly snapped out of her excitement and assumed what she probably figured was serious military pose, but only ended up looking comically adorable. She cleared her throat before speaking. “Your Highness, someone wishes to have an audience with you.” Luna blinked. “With me? I-I mean, yes, of course they would want an audience with me. Obviously. Please, bring them in.” “Sure thing, Luna!” said Echo. “Um... I mean yes, Princess. Your Highness. Yes Princess Luna, Your Highness.” A slight blush appeared on her face. “I’ll, uh... just go and get her now.” Echo quickly darted out of the throne room. Before long, she had returned, with the mysterious guest following closely behind her. With a hoof, she motioned for the guest to approach. Luna leaned back in her throne at the sight of the guest, something very far from what she was expecting. She wasn’t a pony, for one. She was a beastfolk—a rabbitfolk, to be precise—yet her attire was very far from the rough and grimy clothes worn by the beastfolk who lived south of Equestria’s border. Her fur was a brilliant white, and a pair of long ears flopped down over her shoulders, across the silken green robes and brown backpack that covered her bipedal form. Mysterious bronze markings crossed her face, and the fur above her head grew into a very strangely-shaped body of hair, tied into a pair of v-shaped buns. The rabbitfolk approached the throne, giving a bow. “It is an honor to meet you, Your Highness. My name is Tamiyo, and I am a scholar from a land far away. I have long been fascinated by your moon, and I have come to you in the hopes of understanding its magic.” “You came to see... me? Specifically?” “That I have,” said Tamiyo. Her head tilted slightly, and she stared at Luna quizzically. “Is something wrong, Your Highness?” Luna sniffled, suddenly aware that a tear was in her eye. “No, not at all. I just... I’m surprised you actually came to me. Very few ponies ever come to attend my Night Court.” Luna gave Tamiyo a smile. “But then again, I suppose you’re not a pony after all.” Tamiyo’s features shifted slightly. A frown crossed her face, but it was difficult to read the emotion exactly. “I see. In any case, I was hoping for a chance to watch you lower the moon before the night ends. There are so many things I could learn from seeing your magic up close.” “I...” Luna’s words caught in her throat, and her vision was blurred by a dampness in her eyes. In an instant, Echo was hovering by her side, holding a box of tissues. Luna grabbed one in her magic and loudly blew into it, before tossing it aside. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to cause a scene. I just... I’m so happy that someone actually wants to watch me attend to my duties. I never thought there’d be such a night. Echo, could you remind me what time it is right now?” Echo stared at her front leg, at a simple bronze watch on her ankle. “Um... Looks like you won’t have to lower the moon for another... thirty-five minutes? Yeah, thirty-five. Thirty-four now, actually.” Luna nodded. “Thank you, Echo. Tamiyo, since I won’t be lowering the moon for a while, you’re free to stay in the palace. Echo will escort you to you to your guest room.” A slight smile appeared on Tamiyo’s face. “I appreciate your hospitality, Your Highness. I look forward to seeing you soon.” ———————— The next half-hour was one of the longest half-hours that Luna had waited in her entire life. The very thought of having someone there to watch her lower the moon? It was almost too much. Sure, she had her chance to make a spectacle of it in front of a crowd once a year, but it was an impersonal affair, something that ponies watched with distant reverence. But tonight was something else entirely. Here, she had an entirely personal audience. Even though lowering the moon was a routine activity, something about the presence of another felt like all the difference in the world. Luna stood at the edge of her balcony, her wings twitching by her sides as she periodically looked back into her room for any sign of Tamiyo’s approach. Though plenty of castle staff had seen the inside of her bedroom, none had ever stood with her on the platform. It was a special place, one where she could see the sky unrestricted, the stars shining down from above in all of their glittering majesty. Luna’s ears swiveled around. The gentle creaking of a door alerted her to the arrival of another. She looked, and saw Tamiyo approaching through the bedroom entrance as her guards held the double-doors open. As she trained her eyes on her visitor, she couldn’t help but notice that Tamiyo was walking unusually sluggishly, a gait far removed from the quick and graceful hops Luna would expect of a rabbitfolk. In her right hand was a simple quill with a tip dipped in ink, and in her left she carried an open journal. As she stepped beyond the outer doors and onto the balcony, a smile crossed Luna’s face. “I’m glad you could make it tonight,” said Luna. “It is almost time for me to lower the moon. Shall we begin?” Tamiyo nodded gently, lightly pressing the tip of her quill against a blank page of her journal. “I am ready whenever you are.” Luna closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, feeling the brisk night air pass into her lungs. What she was about to do was something she had done countless times, yet now her breath felt heavy and thick with anticipation. Her eyes clamped shut, and she reached out with her senses, closing out everything else but herself and the gentle aura of the moonlight. She felt the familiar magic channel itself through her horn, and the subsequent touch of silver running down through the length of her body. The moment where the moon passed the horizon lingered in her perceptions, the moment where it slipped beyond her reach and into the domain of the west. The cool breeze passed through her, swirling and nipping at her wings, and the earth’s vitality tickled the bottoms of her hooves, dancing and flickering up from deep beneath the castle’s foundation. It was now, during the short span of time before her sister woke to raise the sun, that Luna felt most attuned to the world. For the briefest moment, she had no burdens to bear, no dreams to nurture, no worldly matters to weigh down her heart. Just her, and the stillness that came just before the dawn. But it isn’t just me this time, Luna thought. In more than a thousand years of living, and more than one-hundred and fifty of them conscious, she couldn’t even recall the last time another had stood by her side like this. Her sister perhaps, or maybe her old mentor, but once her duties became routine they had not roused from their slumber soon enough to watch. Her eyes opened, and she saw Tamiyo gazing at the starlit sky. The scratches of her quill against her parchment tickled Luna’s eardrums. Something warm welled up within her chest, tugging gently upwards at the corners of her mouth. “Did you like it?” Tamiyo gracefully rolled her scroll up, placing both it and her quill in the grasp of a single palm. “Very much so. Once again, I’d like thank you for providing me this opportunity, Your Highness.” She gave another quick bow, in a manner that Luna found strangely familiar. She hadn’t noticed it before, in the throne room, but here... “You know,” said Luna, “now that I get a closer look at it, I believe I’ve seen your manner of dress before.” Tamiyo stood up straight, just slowly enough to maintain a graceful motion, yet quickly enough that Luna could tell she was startled. “Oh?” she said, her voice remaining measured despite herself. Luna nodded. “Yes. In the land of Neighpon, to the east. I once visited there in my youth, during my very first diplomatic excursion.” Memories danced at the edge of her mind’s eye, distant yet vivid. A wistful breath escaped her nostrils. “I was but a mere filly, but I recall earning quite a few admirers among the other young ones.” As the recollections of centuries past sprung forth, Luna gave a soft giggle. “The other children even had their own nickname for me, if you can believe it! ‘Kaguya-hime,’ they called me.” Tamiyo returned the smile. “You sound like you’ve had a lot of experience in other lands.” “Oh, yes, absolutely! Granted, I don’t have as much opportunity to do so as I used to, but I do have quite a few tales to tell of my travels in my youth. ” Luna paused briefly. There were already the beginnings of a thought forming in her mind, and the closer it came to realization, the wider her grin became! “Oh! That gives me an idea! Why don’t you meet me back here tomorrow night to exchange stories?” Tamiyo frowned. “Stories?” “Yes, of course!” said Luna. Her legs felt light on their hooves, and soon they were dancing in place without any input of her own. Laughter bubbled up from her chest, echoing across the balcony in giddy bursts. “Whenever my sister and I went our separate ways in our youths, we’d always share stories of our travels when we returned! And we could do the same thing, only we wouldn’t have to leave each other! I could tell you about the places I’ve been to, and you could tell me about some of the places you’ve been! Won’t that be... what was the word again? Fun! Yes, won’t that be fun?” Tamiyo paused. Her nose twitched slightly, as though unsure of what her face wanted to do. Several seconds passed, until she finally spoke. “Alright,” she said. “Yes!” Luna cried out. She reared up onto her hind legs, wrapping her front legs tightly around Tamiyo’s waist. “Thank you! Thank you so much!” “Um, Your Highness?” Luna pulled away, releasing Tamiyo from her iron grip. As she did, she felt a sudden heat rising through her cheeks. “Ah. Right. Breathing. My apologies.” Tamiyo smiled gently. “It’s quite alright, Princess. I should be getting some sleep, regardless. I look forward to seeing you again tomorrow night.” “Yes, yes, of course!” said Luna. “Good night! Or good morning, whichever it is! Or both! Bye! See you again! Come back soon!” As Tamiyo headed out past the balcony and through the doors, Luna’s farewells gradually descended into uncontrolled giggling. Her legs once again flew wildly out of her control, and the her hoofsteps clattered across the floor as she found herself prancing about the balcony. “Luna? What’s going on? Are you alright?” The voice cut clear across the air. Luna’s head rapidly swiveled to the side, around the length of the tower, towards a second balcony that was positioned on another tower just to the east of hers. There stood Celestia, free of her public regalia, standing with a posture that was still slightly droopy. “Sister! You’ll never guess what happened!” said Luna. “I made a friend!” ———————— Luna of the Night 3UUB Legendary Creature — Horse Wizard Alicorn (This card is a Horse, Pegasus, and Unicorn in addition to its other creature types.) Flying, hexproof When Luna of the Night deals combat damage to a player, draw a card for each tapped creature that player controls. That player puts that many cards from the top of their library into their graveyard. 3/4