//------------------------------// // Chapter 17: The Grief of The Night Princess // Story: The Colt of Fire and Lightning // by ShagPony //------------------------------// Man, I never knew how tiring it would be as a senior in high school who is also coming into his last year while also making a schedule that keeps a good balance between YouTube videos and story writing. Really takes a toll on ya. It's like a job, except you don't get paid to do any of it. Not that I want to get paid for this because this shit is fun to do. ___________________________________ (Dreamscape) (Luna’s Pov) Luna gave a tiny yawn as the number on the screen in front of her changed from forty to forty-one. Not wasting any time, Luna began to refill her ammo and even gave her weapon another Pack-A-Punch. That's right ladies and gentlemen, Luna, Princess of The Night… Was playing COD Zombies. Along with her friend Mason who was having a hard time keeping up. Granted, the little colt was good at the game, but by the time the fifteenth round passed, he was having trouble keeping himself from getting knocked down. Luna on the other hand, due to doing this type of thing with Mason, had become so skilled in the game that she could easily head shot the zombies and keep herself from getting hit. She could even take out or distract an entire horde to give herself enough time to revive Mason’s character. So our dear Luna with a neutral and somewhat bored expression began to shoot the first zombies that came through the windows that Mason had rebuilt to somewhat slow them down. firing her Pack-A-Punched Ray Gun, she took out the horde that was coming to end her character with precision and skill. Mason however was having trouble with his own horde as he could only get body shots other than headshots with his Pack-A-Punched Galil which gave the horde of AI a chance to surround him. Mason quickly tapped the buttons with his fingers -since he could be in his human from in the Dreamscape- trying to get out of the horde with bunny hops but found it to be for naught. “Son of a buck…” Although he tried to whisper it over the sound of the dead zombies, Luna's ears were much more trained in picking up light sounds. She gave a sideways glance at the human boy as he sat crossed legged with his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands that was sporting a pouting look. Using her magic she gave a slight tug to the boys hair making him yelp as he rubbed the back of his head and looked at her with narrowed eyes. “Language.” Was all Luna said causing the boy to widen his eyes and avert his gaze from the princess. “Sorry.” Luna hummed as she continued to use her magic with the PS4 controller to finish off the horde that surrounded Mason. Her concentration was broken as she felt a small weight on her chest and between her front legs causing her to glance down. What she saw was Mason, sitting between her two front legs and resting his back against her chest that was vacant of her regalia. The sound of a zombie hitting her character brought Luna back to the game as she downed the zombie with precision and ran away from Mason’s character before the horde could down her. “You can leave my character, I'll just watch for now.” She heard from Mason as he shifted to get more comfortable. She hummed as she let his character die and continued her assault. This went on for a few minutes before a bored sigh came from the young boy. “Luna can we do something else.” Pausing her game, Luna looked down at the boy who looked back up at her with pleading eyes. The princess nodded as she sat down the controller with her magic. “Very well, what would you like to play? Perhaps that PAC-Man game, Uncharted, Spider-Man, maybe even that one game with all that fighting and-” “Actually, can we play pretend like we used to? I still want to finish where we left off when we were pirates and fighting each other's ships.” Luna froze as she looked back at the boy who was looking at her with puppy dog eyes. For four days this is what he and Luna had been doing, playing life-sized board games or the advanced technology ones that he knew from his world. She could tell that he was entertained by this, but doing the same thing for four nights without playing their pretend had made the young lad become bored. Yet Luna just couldn't bring herself to do something dangerous with him. Of course it was a dream and he wouldn't actually get hurt but Luna couldn't help herself but to avoid those type of things, especially what had happened four days ago. What could have happened four days ago. Luna shook her head and gave a small smile to the boy. “Of course Mason, we can play pirates. Just let me...um….finish this round real quick and we will do our little pretend of pirates.” A beaming smile adorned the boy’s face which made Luna’s heart warm up but also ache. “Ok, but just this round. Captain Bubbles needs to claim his booty from Captain Black Night. The princess gave a small chuckle as she grabbed the controller with her magic and unpaused the game, continuing her fight against the undead. However, unknown to Mason, Luna went at a much slower pace to make the game last longer. She loved playing pretend with Mason, she truly did, but she couldn't get over the fact of something happening to his character even though he couldn't get hurt. ‘But that wasn't the case from four days ago. That was all real and he could have not only been hurt but he could have been killed. Faust, if the Elements hadn't been there, Mason probably would have been a shriveled corpse with pain and horror etched on his face, and it would have been all my fault. Just like when they bucking took-.’ “LUNA!” Luna’s eyes shot wide open as she unfurled her wings and shot up to her hooves. While she did this she used one hoof to bring Mason to her in a protective manner and activated her magic on her horn as she looked to and fro for the danger that was present. “What! What is it! Where is thine danger!” “Luna!” The sound of her name being called at a lower volume cause her to look at Mason who was pressed against her chest rather tightly by her hooves. “I was just trying to get your attention to tell you that your character died.” Luna blinked as she looked at the screen to see the white letters that adorned it. GAME OVER You Survived 41 Rounds Luna stared blankly at the screen for a good long while. As she continued to stare she could feel Mason squirming in her grip, trying to escape it. Eventually she sighed with her ears falling flat and her wings tucking back to her sides. Finally she cut off her magic and let the boy go from her death grip which caused him to fall on his bottom and look confusingly at the princess. “I'm sorry for that Mason, I guess I got distracted by something.” Silence only greeted her. She waited to hear a response from him but didn't get no such luck. Turning her glaze she saw Mason had a look of concern and sadness on his face. “Luna,” he said in a quiet voice, “why are you crying?” The night princess blinked again as she brought a hoof to her cheek and felt a damp wetness on it. Feeling a little embarrassed she began to quickly dry her teary eyes. “I'm not crying Mason, I just caught something in my eye is all. Things tend to float around the Dreamscape and can sometimes get in your eyes.” She would hope that he would buy that lie so the little boy wouldn't worry. However it seemed to not be the case as he came closer to her chest and looked sympathetically into her eyes. “Luna, what's wrong?” She didn't know why but she couldn't help but avert her gaze from the young boy in front of her and look towards the ground. “Nothing is wrong dear Mason, I just got something in my eye is all.” Silence fell in the Dreamscape as the princess found the ground quite interesting with her hoof. A few times she casted a few glances at Mason to see he was still staring at her. Luna was about to say something to change the subject but was cut off when Mason spoke. “You're lying.” That accusation made her visibly flinch. “I-I-I have n-no idea w-what you're talking a-about.” Luna mentally cringed at the failure to change the subject. Maybe it would be better if she just made an excuse to leave early. Maybe tell him that she has work to do so she can avoid this conversation. Yeah, that sounds like a good plan. Just tell him that she has duties to attend to and that she will have to end their fun there. Then when she gets back to the throne room she'll tell all her guards to leave her be and then continue to cry her eyes- A gentle hand on her chest stopped her planning thoughts as she looked down at Mason who had concern and worry behind his innocent eyes. This time Luna could feel her tears slowly falling from her eyes as she continued to stare down at her young friend. “Luna I know your lying. I know because you always avert your eyes and look down when something's bothering you.” Luna averted her eyes again as she gave a little sniffle. “And it's also because your crying again.” Stifling another sob, Luna quickly got down on her belly and brought Mason in for a hug which he quickly returned. Her body shook as her quiet sobs reached her ears and more tears fell from her eyes. Mason only hugged her tighter and gave a small pat on her back to let her know that he was there for her. “I-I-I….I am sorry Mason, I j-just….can't get w-what happened four days ago out of m-my head. I can't h-h-help but think o-of what would h-happen if Twilight a-and her friend weren't there. I-.....I can't help….but blame myself for it.” Mason continued to hug her shaking body as he did his best to comfort the grieving princess. “I told you, your sister, and the girls that I don't blame any of you for anything.” The princess nodded at that. “I know you don't, but I can't help but still take blame for thou. If we had just taken better precaution, sent thou some guards, may be visited once in a while, or send thou with some highly trained guards. We...we should have done better for what happened last time.” The Diarch of The Night continued to wallow as she held the smaller human boy. Through her sobs she could still hear Mason speaking to her. “Your speaking that fancy stuff again Luna.” She paused for a moment and opened her teary eyes in realization. She lightly shook her head with a dry chuckled as she brought Mason in closer. “We- I am now aren't I?” She smiled lightly as all she felt was a nod of his head. Not wanting to end the embrace yet, the princess stayed on the floor still hugging the young boy as he felt more content to hug her. Eventually her tears came to an end and her breathing was steady again. She was about to give her thanks until Mason spoke up. “Luna?” Using her hooves, she softly pushed Mason away from her chest to look down at him. He was keeping his gaze at her chest as his fingers twiddled with the tuft of fur as if he was nervous to ask something. “Yes Mason?” Seeming to freeze a moment, Mason kept his hand on her tuft of fur before looking up at her with unsure eyes. His mouth opened and closed a few times before he swallowed and spoke. “What….what do you mean by ‘last time’?” Her whole body froze. Although her facial expression didn't change, her body did as it seemed to become more tense. ‘Buck! I must have said that without thinking! Oh, now I got him curious. I'll have to tell him that it's a little touchy with me and I don't normally speak about that past. The only pony who has ever known is Tia and no pony-.’ “I-I’m sorry Luna, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to. I was just curious.” Her musings stopped as she saw the boy looking down at his twiddling thumbs with a guilty look. She responded by giving him a light nuzzle on his head which seemed to soften his expression. ‘Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to tell the little colt. It's the least I can do for what's happened to him and it's not like he would tell anyone if I asked him not to. Sure he’s young but I’m sure that he can keep a little secret for my sake. Plus the only pony that knows the story and is able to comfort her is her sister. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to have another.’ “No, it is quite alright my dear Mason. I was just thinking was all and I think I'll tell you a little story about it.” Mason seemed to beam a little at the idea of getting a story from Luna. He's always liked to hear her little adventurous stories along with Celestia’s. “Really?!” Luna nodded with a small smile. Said smile soon fell along with her ears as she gave the boy a pleading look. “Yes, but I want you to promise me that you will only keep this between me and my sister and only me and her. Can you promise me that?” The little boy nodded quickly as he started to do gestures. “Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.” A grateful smile adorned her lips as she nuzzled the boy who only giggled at the affection. “Thank you Mason, thank you so much. Now, let me just get ourselves comfortable.” With that said, Luna used her magic to rid of the technology and brought herself and Mason onto a nice, cozy bed along with some soft blankets covering them. “Are you ready.” Receiving a nod in reply, Luna used her magic to fix her mane and dry her tears. Collecting herself and her emotions, the princess cleared her throat to begin. “Now Mason, do you remember when you first came to the castle and we showed you those stone slabs?” As he nodded again in reply, Luna continued. “Do you remember the one about the dragon who had come from your world?” With a confused look, Mason nodded. “Well, this story is about him. As you were told, he came into this world as the second to last creature, just before you who will be the last. I'll start from when we first met him. “It was a very long time ago, about a few thousand years to be exact. Me and my sister had heard word from some ponies that were acting as if they were suddenly in a play for Hoofspeare, he was a very good poem writer by the way.” She finished at Mason’s confused look who then nodded in understanding. “Continuing the story, we were told that a dragon was ‘terrorizing’ their town and that we must strike it down with great prejudice before it burns their buildings and steals there gold. That pony also put a bigger emphasis on gold then houses. “Well, I proposed that we go meet this dragon and find out what it's really doing. So we decided to head out towards a settlement where the dragon was said to be, which happened to be the old Ponyville. When we arrived there we saw a small, yet large dragon that was only two hooves taller than my sister and-” “I'm sorry to interrupt Luna but when you say two hooves taller do you mean like two feet taller?” Luna blinked with a head tilt. “What do you mean by feet? Is that how your kind measure height?” Mason nodded. “Yeah pretty much, since I'm ten years old and I haven't exactly hit a big growth spurt yet, I'm about 4 foot and 9 inches tall. At least as a human that is.” Luna nodded in understanding. “That's very interesting. By pony standards, we measure our height by hooves.” The young boy nodded as he snuggled in his blanket a little more. “Ok, you can continue now.” Nodding herself, Luna continued from where she left off. “Now where was I? Oh yes, so the dragon was about two hooves, or feet taller than Celestia. He wasn't very bulky, actually quite lean but had obvious signs of strength if his muscles were any indication. He was the type of dragon who walked on four legs. He had small spikes going from his neck all the way to his tail where it ended with four spikes on the end of it like a….a um...whatever it was he said? A stegasos or-” “Stegosaurus.” Mason quickly said. Luna smiled in thanks. “Ah yes, a stegosaurus, thank you Mason. Back to it, he had two large horns on top of his skull that faced backwards along with three spikes on both sides of his jaw line. His head was also that of a narrow shape and somewhat of a short muzzle but not too short. His scales from his legs to his under belly, neck, and tail were a black kind of color. From the rest of his body, his scales were a dark purple and his horns were that of yellow or gold as he described it. He was also a leathered winged dragon and those wings had the same shade of purple. “So we approached him and we became confused when he spoke nonsense and the language that is used today. You must know that this was a thousand years ago Mason and back then we ponies used to use, as you put it, the ‘fancy talk’. “After some confusion, learning what his intentions were, and much shouting,” Luna paused for a moment as a light blush adorned her cheeks, “mostly from my part, we decided to bring him to our castle.” Luna paused when a confused look was given to her by the young boy. “Just like that? Twilight told me that during those times it was a bit different if not difficult when it came to things such as dragons coming very close to pony settlements. Wasn't there any conflict or a small fight?” The pony princess shook her head. “While it is true that those times were different, there was not any conflict between us or the dragon. As a matter of fact, he didn't want any trouble with us nor any fights. If anything, he seemed to get more scared when we began to describe where he was and who we were. “So my sister took pity on him and decided to let him come into the Castle of The Two Sisters which was an old castle of ours back then. Although it took quite a while to get there as for some reason he couldn't fly, we did learn a bit about him like this weird job he had, what he did in his spare time, and his name which was Lucas. “When we had gotten to our castle we settled him down and took our leave to the library where we tried to find this, home, of his that he explained to us on the way to the castle. We were confused at first on what home he belonged to, yet at the same time, we were no stranger to the theory of other dimensions thanks to Starswirl. “A few months had passed and he had become somewhat accustomed to our world, although he would mainly talk to myself or my sister and nopony else really.” “As the days past he became more of a strange fellow, always being confused by our customs and doing things that any regular pony would do instead of a dragon and always saying, ‘Why did I get the world full of Shakespeare ponies’,” Luna gave a slight pause just in time to hear Mason giggle, “and not to mention that he would tell everypony that he was a human and not a dragon.” “Going forward at least a few more months, me and my sister couldn't help but feel as if he had some importance to him or something. You see Mason, me and my sister were waiting for the next creature to appear with the next element but had no such luck with our guards or neighboring allies in finding anything. We found it strange that he appeared out of nowhere, couldn't fly or walk as if he was a newborn foal, and spoke nonsense, or at least we thought as such. Who would have known that it was him that was chosen to be the next bearer of an element and from a different world.” As she was about to continue, she was stopped by Mason raising a hand in the air. Blinking a bit she gestured a hoof to him. “Yes?” Having been called on he put his hand down. “Didn't you say at the castle that Elder...something gave you guys some slabs to tell you where the creatures came from?” Luna nodded. “Yes we did say that and even though Starswirl created the theory of other dimensions and spells that could allow those to visit them, we never had hope for them to actually work and none of them really did. But of course, Starswirl did create a portal to a world that was mirrored to our own but that was all there was. Because of that we had strong doubts about him being from a different world but that all changed when he used his elements. “It all started when certain ponies started hating Lucas for living with us so they would sometimes send ponies or griffons to scare him off or to get rid of him. So fearing for his life, he asked me and my sister to train him in self defense which we agreed to. Eventually he was more than able to defend himself. The training we gave him also allowed us to get to know each other a little more and thus we became very good friends. “Now there were a few of our subjects who weren't so, keen, on us seeing this dragon as a friend and some of them went so far as to think they could send a message on how, barbaric or un-pony like it was for us to do such things.” She heard a snort from Mason. “That must have been the stupidest thing for them to do.” The princess looked to Mason with a smirk and a bit of mirth in her eyes. “Indeed it was, I never thought that some of our little ponies could think of such things. Anyway, I and Lucas had become quite the duo in pranks, shenanigans, and enjoying the night. Sometimes we would even go on walks together under my moon. “It was at this time that we were ambushed by a pony who really did not like the idea of there being a dragon amongst our kind. So skipping the fight and all, something happened and the group was able to get a few lucky hits on me. Although I wasn't badly hurt by it Lucas saw otherwise as he had used his element to, his words not mine by the way, ‘beat the everliving snot out of them.’ It was kind of funny actually. But at the time it wasn't all fun and games when I saw him use an element.” “What was his element?” Mason asked with strong curiosity. “His element was that of earth,” Luna answered which caused Mason to real back with shock. She only nodded in confirmation, “yes Mason, the elements you saw that one pony use was the element that the dragon used…..are you alright? Should I continue?” Her expression became one of worry as Mason still had a shocked look on his face and seemed to be shaking a little. He shook his head as he took a deep breath and gestured a hand to Luna. “I'm fine, you can continue.” Still having concern for the boy, Luna nodded anyway and decided to quickly steer away from that realization. “Well, I was shocked and worried to see that he was the next creature. Shocked because he was from a different world entirely and worried because I knew that the one group of ponies would come after him. “So I and my sister told him this news and for the most part he seemed to take it calmly but we could tell that he was nervous and scared for his life. So we both continued his training but with his element as well. Soon after he became more advanced in his element and got a symbol that looked like this.” The princess then used her magic to search in her memories and used them to create an image of a symbol in thin air. Her eyebrow rose as she saw Mason cock his head at the strange image as if he had seen it before. She would ask but felt that the sun would be nearing its time so making the image disappear, she continued the story. “So at least a week passes and Lucas began to ask us if we could perhaps send him back home. At that time we did not know it would work like we do today so we agreed to it, thinking it would be better to send him back where he would be safe. “We did not know what would happen but he was confident that we could do it, so after some time of studying and conversing, we came up with a spell that should have sent him home. I was a bit saddened that he would be leaving but happy that he would be safe from the ponies that would want his element. So we had gathered in the library, said our goodbyes, and committed the spell that wiscked him away to his home world. “However, after only but a minute, he reappeared in a shaken state with heavy breathing, almost as if he ran a marathon. There was much confusion in anger after that incident so we tried again. When it still didn't work we tried other things, spell combinations, runes, anything we could use but it was for naught. “He became distraught and depressed when we told him that we couldn't send him home. He...he never really showed himself to us, never left his room. He didn't even come out of it to eat. “I began to worry greatly for him. I tried bringing food to his room but it would only pile up. I tried talking to him through the door but he wouldn't answer back.” Luna paused a moment to take a breath of air and collect herself before she continued with Mason hanging on every word. “I became...saddened, like the day just didn't matter without him being there. I never knew how much I liked his weird jokes, his somewhat fanged smile, and just his company in general. “It was also apparent that he didn't even sleep because I couldn't not find his dreams. He had been doing that all to himself for four days. I became distraught and was worried sick for his health. I didn't want to intrude but I had no other choice. So every day and night I would visit his room. The first time I did it I saw he was a mess and his bed was untouched, his body seemed to be malnourished and he was incredibly tired. “So every time I visited I knew he wouldn't talk so I just sat in silence with him for hours, sometimes until it was time to raise the moon. One day he asked me why I was doing it, why I would care when he should just be left to die when he had no other home for him. “I told him that I cared for him very deeply. That my day never really felt the same without him. I told him that I understood, that I saw that he wasn't home, but if I had to do anything in my power, even give up my magic, I would help him feel at home no matter how long it took me. I said a little more on that but I'll skip the details. He didn't say anything after I was finished but he did seem to think on it. When nothing else was said I put a small plate of food in front of him and asked him, no begged him, to eat. “The next day was the happiest day I could ask for, I saw the same plate outside of his room with the food gone. I became ecstatic to know that he was giving it a try and I didn't let the opportunity go to waste. “So I would always visit him when I could and on occasion I would bring some ponies with me to converse with him and eventually he started taking care of himself. I don't know if it was him becoming himself again or if it was the complaints from the ponies.” Luna heard Mason giggle at that as she did herself. Clearing her throat she continued the tale. “After a week of doing this, he finally came out of his room which I decided to give a small celebration for him. During that little party I told him that I would always be by his side to make sure that he was happy in our little world which he was very grateful for. It was also on that day that I felt something that I hadn't felt in a long time. Every time he came out of that room I felt the day get brighter, every time he was with me my heart would pound, and every time he would smile, laugh, or make a joke I couldn't help but do it with him.” “Oh no.” Luna rolled her eyes at Mason as she gave a chuckle. “Yes Mason, I had the, goo-goo eyes for Lucas.” Mason cringed playfully with a small groan as any other ten year old boy would when it came to love or something frilly. Luna couldn't help but chuckle again. “Just bare with me child. So I had fallen in love with him, that was apparent. As a matter of fact, my sister knew it before I found out. So being the big sister that she is, she helped me with winning his heart. Sometimes it wasn't all that bad and other times, well to put it bluntly they would fail embarrassingly. “But it seemed to be working as he started paying more attention to me and even went so far as to tease me a little bit. With all this happening I knew he had a thing for me so I asked him out and he happily agreed to it. “So skipping all that mushy stuff for you child, we dated more and became more personal with each other. I began to love him more than I ever could and he the same to me. Sometimes we would do...um...other things in private areas.” Luna couldn't help but blush a little at that with her wings twitching a little bit. Shaking herself she continued. “I was the happiest mare alive, nothing could have taken it all away from me…..and then…..that one day happened.” She could feel her eyes becoming watery as the memories of that day came to her mind. She could feel herself slowly falling apart but she steeled herself and continued on. “Lucas had decided to go out and about now that he could fly and wanted some time to himself. I agreed with him and asked if I should come along with him. He declined and said he would be back later on.” A shaky breath came from the princess as her ears fell and her lip quivered. She could feel herself shaking. The scream of pain, the sight of his soul being torn, his once radiant body being reduced to a shriveled- Luna froze as she felt something on her hoof. Looking down she saw Mason had scooched closer to her and was comfortingly stroking her leg. Taking a deep breath she proceeded. “I should have gone with him, I should have sent somepony with him, I should have at least told him to stay at the castle a little longer but I didn't and I can't change the past.” Taking one more breath, Luna closed her eyes as she proceeded to tell the hardest part of her story. “A scout, one of my sister’s, came to us saying that there were attackers near a flower field and that Lucas was the one fighting them. “I became...horrified...terrified that my lover was all alone fighting the one group that has been causing chaos with the creature who were given a gift with no information about it whatsoever. I told my sister to gather as many guards as possible while I quickly left without waiting for a reply. I didn't even hear her calling for me when I left. “I flew so fast. I didn't wait for anything as I prayed to the gods, as I prayed to Faust that they wouldn't take him away from me. When I saw the field I flew faster than I ever did, hoping that I wasn't too late. “But sadly, I was. I saw them draining his elements. I tried to stop them but there were more than I had bargained for and all of them kept me from getting to him, no matter how many I took down with my magic. I could only watch as they took his life and left with the earth element and left his body in the field.” Tears began to fall from Luna’s face as she stifled a sob. But she wouldn't stop now, she was this far and she wouldn't quit yet. “I cried over his body, begging him, begging anything to bring him back. I cried when my sister arrived and pried me away from him. I cried when we took his body and buried it. I cried far longer when the next day arrived and he wasn't there to greet me.” A sniffle came for below her. Looking through her watery eyes, she saw Mason had a few tears as well and was about ready to mourn his heart out. She gave him a light-hearted smile and brought him in close for a hug which he returned. Giving herself a minute to keep her emotions in tact, she continued. “I did exactly what he did when he found out he couldn't go back home. I didn't see anypony, not even my own sister. Some ponies who did not like him, mainly nobles, said mean things about him and said they were happy that the beast was gone.” She paused as she thought about what to say next. However she thought the boy would become confused so she had to ask him if he knew the story. “Mason do you know the story of Nightmare Moon?” Seeming to not want to leave her embrace, he lightly nodded his head. “I think Twilight might have told me about it.” Nodding in acknowledgement, Luna continued. “Well, the story goes that I became Nightmare Moon and tried to turn the day into eternal night because I...because it became jealous of all the intention that my sister was getting from our ponies. That is far from the truth. “In reality, Nightmare Moon didn't exist until I heard the things ponies were saying about my dear Lucas. I became enraged and something inside my awakened. It wanted to punish those ponies for what they said and how they were treating my lover. Thus, Nightmare Moon was created. “Day by day, it became worse. I would sometimes lash out or bring fear to some of our citizens who dared to talk badly about him. Because of it, most of my subjects turned away from me and looked to my sister instead which had officially brought out the Nightmare. “Nightmare would tell me from inside my head on what I should do with the ponies who spoke of Lucas badly. That I should punish them and let them know that I wouldn’t take such words lightly. It was no different about my sister. “She would say bad things about her that weren't true. That she had forgotten about Lucas and would soon forget me in favor of the glory of her ponies. She said other things but I won't go into those details. “Eventually Nightmare was brought out and tried to turn the day into night but failed and was banished to the moon taking me along with it. A thousand years pass and I returned to be purged of that entity by Twilight and her friends. “Then it all started over. I didn't really show myself to anypony and rarely to my sister. I thought it was going to happen all over again. I would sometimes think about hiding far away where I wouldn't hurt anypony. “But then a dream came to me one night. I saw him. He was standing there not as a dragon but as what must have been a human. The way he presented himself with his chest puffed out and his head high hadn't change, the way he smiled that made the sun shine, the way he looked to me with such love. “I cried in his arms. All I could do was apologize but he said that it didn't matter, that all would be forgiven. I told him that I couldn't do it without him, that it wouldn't be the same but he only shook his head and said, in different words but with the same meaning, what I said to him. “I shouldn't look into the past so much. What happened, happened. He understood and saw that I was greatly depressed on what had been done. But even though he wasn't there, couldn't be seen or touched, he would always be by my side. My sister, Twilight, and her friends would be by my side and would do anything, even give up their magic, to make me feel happy again. “I don't exactly remembered what happened next but I remember those words and I took them to heart. I even promised to do what he said and that, when the next element came, No matter who they were I would do anything in my power to protect them. But first I had to take care of myself. So, I got out a little more and talked with others and did activities with my sister and the friends I made. Years passed and I am as you see today. I dare say that I might have forgotten about the last element coming to our world. That is until the letter came.” Mason’s eyes widened a little as he leaned in waiting for the next words. Luna gave a light smile at this and continued. “I didn't know what to think. Memories of what happened came flooding back along with the promise. It almost caused me to panic when I read the word, ‘colt’. So I told my sister to immediately send a letter to Twilight to bring you to the castle so that we could meet. “You looked...so innocent when I watched you walked through those doors and looked around the castle. I don't know what sick, twisted thing thought it was a good idea to bring a child here with the strange magic. I didn't know what to feel about it. I felt saddened, confused, and above all furious. “But I kept my cool and did my part on my promise. I visited your dreams to not only get to know you but to also check up on you. I even secretly sent some of my night guards to check on you in Ponyville every once in a while.” A long pause seemed to follow as the princess stared blankly at the covers of the bed she made with her magic. Not a single part of her moved as she stared intensely at the sheets. Mason appeared to want to say something but stopped himself when she opened her mouth. “I knew I should have sent some guards with you, visited you, did something but I don't know why. I don't know if it was because I put all my trust in the elements or what. But the moment we got a letter from Spike…..I almost fainted on the spot. Memories of how it all played out when I left Lucas came back and I just...took off. “I'm glad the elements were there because if they weren't, I would never forgive myself if anything happened to you. Of course I knew they couldn't do anything with you not having a Cutie Mark, but I still wouldn't forgive myself if they took you, or worse. I should have taken more precaution and for that I am sorry Mason.” Luna ended her tale with a small sob. She had just told him one of her biggest, darkest secrets. She didn't know if she should feel good or bad about it. The Princess of The Night continued to wail her heart out in the abyss of the Dreamscape. She felt as if she should hide herself from looking so fragile or to wake him up so she could have some peace for herself. But she couldn't bring herself to use magic to do so. She could only sit and cry her eyes out. A gentle hug around her neck brought her out of mourning as a little form pressed into her chest. Not even having to look she brought her legs around Mason and hugged him back as her loud cries became stifled sobs. A small but gentle rub was felt above her wings as Mason did his best to comfort her. “I already forgave you,” she heard him say through her sniffles, “I even forgive your sister and Twilight. Sure you didn't tell me but you were just doing it to protect me and you all did protect me. Twilight could have died by just keeping me away from Blossom so I forgive all of you. And I don't know if it will be any comfort but, if it means anything, I'll do my best to keep myself from going anywhere. I promise Luna.” Feeling touched by his words, Luna hugged the boy a little tighter but not enough to hurt him. She couldn't help but give a bright smile as she nuzzled the top of his head. “And I thank you for that Mason, truly I do.” The pair stayed like that for a long while in silence, just enjoying the company of one another without anyone or anypony to interrupt them. The silence was broken when Mason pulled away and looked into Luna’s eyes as she did the same. She raised an eyebrow as he fiddled with his fingers. “I know it might not be the same, but if you want, you can be apart of my little family. You could be my aunt or even my bigger sister.” Luna wiped a few tears from her eyes with a feathered wing as she raised an eyebrow at Mason. “Bigger sister?” Mason shrunk a little bit out of embarrassment. “Well if you want to, I've never really had a sibling before, of course you could be my aunt if you'd like.” Luna stared at the boy who continued to fiddle with his thumbs. A bright and big smile slowly graced her lips as she brought Mason into a big, bone crushing hug which made him yelp. “I would love that my little, nephew.” Luna finished with a giggle and a big nuzzle to his head. Mason gave a shout of surprise as he tried to escape the affection. “AH! Family cuddles!” Luna giggled at his antics as she let him go. He laughed a bit as he fixed his messed up hair from the onslaught of affection. When it was fixed he smiled up at Luna who smiled back down at him with a new found light in her heart. Such a nice moment was broken when she sensed the sun reaching the sky, so with a sigh the princess got off the bed and stretched her muscles and wings. “I wish I could stay with you Mason but appears our time is up.” Mason gave a dejected ‘aw’ as he sadly got off the bed and stretched. “Will I see you tomorrow?” Giggling a bit, Luna nodded. “We will see, if I'm not that busy with other dreams.” “And maybe play pirates.” A sigh escaped her lips as she stared at the boy who only stared at her with puppy dog eyes. Another sigh escaped her. “Yes, and maybe play pirates.” Giving a small yay, Mason gave Luna another hug as the Dreamscape began to brighten, telling her that he was waking up. “Now you have a great day Mason, oh and one more thing.” Lighting her horn, Luna prepared herself to come back into the throne room. “Tell Twilight I said hello and give my condolences to Pinkie Pie.” ___________________________________ (Canterlot Castle) Luna’s eyes opened up only to close tiredly to the bright sun that assaulted her. She gave a big yawn as her wings extended in a stretch for being still for so long. Smacking her lips, she stretched her limbs as she got off the throne and walked down the steps toward the large doors. As she walked past the guards that were at the foot of the steps she stopped and looked out of the window that showed a view of Equestria in the morning sunlight. As she continued to stare, thoughts began to cloud her mind on what had happened a few hours ago. She, had just told her biggest secret to Mason. The only story that only her sister knows and nopony else. She had just put all that was bottled up inside her for a thousand years and more into a little colt. She didn't know what to feel. Should she feel sad, embarrassed, angry with herself. Should she feel ashamed. How should she feel… A big deep breath came through her nose as she looked out into the land with a relaxed posture. “Content.” “Princess?” Said one of her bat ponies who looked about ready to crash into a bed. Shaking her head she proceed to walk to the doors. “Nothing, just speaking to myself. You are all dismissed.” Giving a bow, the guard, including the rest present, gave their thanks and took their leave out of the doors with the princess following. As they went down one hallway, the princess went down the other towards her tower, ready to embrace her bed. She didn't walk with a tired stride, mostly. She didn't even walk with haste to skip all the chipper morning ponies that probably would be walking around. Her strides were slow and relaxed as she took her sweet time to her destination. As she continued down her path, she caught sign of her sister turning a corner, probably going to eat in the dining room. Celestia gave a yawn as she continued to walk but stopped when she caught sign of Luna. She smiled as she gave a quick nuzzle to her who gave it back in return. “Good morning Lulu, I guess that you are going to bed after Night Court yes?” Giving a slow nod, Luna ruffled her wings. “Indeed, I had just woken from a moment with Mason and will now be taking my leave to my bed.” Celestia gave a nod as she studied her sister's relaxed posture. With a raised eyebrow she playfully gestured to Luna. “Has something happened today Luna? You're not usually this relaxed in the morning.” Nodding her head, Luna began to pass Celestia who watched her with a raised eyebrow. “Yes something did happen. I had a very, emotional conversation with the young colt during one of his dreams.” Celestia's expression changed from playful teasing to one of great worry as she watched her sister begin to slowly walk away. “Do you...want to talk about it Lulu?” All she got was a head shake as Luna still walked towards her tower. “No, I am perfectly fine Tia. Mason may be a colt but he was quite comforting in the conversation.” She couldn't see her sister’s expression but she could just feel Tia staring at the back of her head with great amount of shock. “You told him the story?!” Stopping in her tracks, Luna turned back to her sister with a calm and relaxed expression. “Yes.” She was right when Tia had a shocked expression with eyes wide and wings twitching. Taking an audible gulp, the day princess took a deep breath and relaxed her posture. “And, how do you feel about it?” Luna was quick to reply to that as she already knew how she felt. “I trust him to keep it a secret for me and honestly, I feel content about it.” Celestia nodded as her posture and expression became one of relief and happiness. “Well I am glad that you are talking to more ponies about it Luna. I know it's a touchy subject and that it brings many painful memories back but it's good to have more friends who can help you with it.” Luna nodded as she turned back around and continued her trek. “I know sister, you and Twilight have always told me that. I'd say it was very much worth it since I am now part of Mason’s family as his aunt. Anyway, I am tired sister so I shall see myself to bed. Goodnight.” Celestia nodded as she seemed to have a new sense of joy in herself. “Very well. Goodnight Lulu.” ___________________________________ (Celestia’s Pov) Luna gave a hum in return as she walked away from her sister. Celestia couldn't help but smile brightly as she continued her trek to the dinning room for her morning tea with a hop in her step. It was true that the story was painful to tell, more so for her dear sister Luna. It brought back too many painful memories and was quite too touchy to talk about, even to the point where only ponies who could be trusted could learn of what happened. But she only left that for her sister to decide. As she continued to walk down the halls of the castle, she couldn't help but remember what her sister had said at the end of the conversation. Her hop began to die down as she started to remember the exact words that were said. ‘Now part of Mason’s family as his aunt.’ She stopped in her tracks as she now took those words into full consideration. Said realization made her eyes become wide as she looked back at the empty space where her sister once was. “Wait, what?!”