//------------------------------// // Unaccepted (edited) // Story: Mother Nightmare // by SnowCrystal802 //------------------------------// Bright, amber light flooded the throne room, illuminating the bright purple eyes that were scanning the room. A small, lavender filly sat perched on one of the dark, oaken beams, her wings twitching with energy. Her eyes scanned the room like a hawk's, searching for her prey. Soon, she spotted it, a tall, dark blue mare made obvious by the setting sun. Grinning, the young filly jumped and glided down, casting a spell to muffle her steps. Crouching low, she stalked towards the oblivious mare, preparing her attack. Her target would not survive. Spreading her wings wide, she pounced on her mother and landed on her back, startling her. Princess Luna turned and smiled deviously before shaking her body to rid herself of her pint-sized attacker. With a cute squeak, Twilight landed on her side as her mother faced her. Shaking the dust off, the tiny foal hopped to her hooves and charged a small stun spell, just enough to cause a little tingling. It popped out of her horn, only to bounce off a glittering, blue shield "What do I have here? How will I ever escape such a valiant opponent?" Twilight giggled and crouched, wiggling her haunches as her tail flicked about in excitement. With a downward flap, she lunged at her mother, who quickly dodged before turning and flying away, laughing playfully. Letting out a very adorable evil laugh, Twilight gave chase, firing off more stun spells. Luna turned and grinned at her 'mighty' attacker. The two chased each other around the throne room before heading into the halls, Luna making sure nothing was damaged. One of the transfers from the Solar guard caught her eye and, unbeknownst to herself, she slowed. He was standing at attention, as was expected, though his eyes were following her and her daughter. There was cold look of hatred in them that made Luna's blood run cold. For years, she'd dealt with ponies associating her with the more frightening aspects of the night, like bats and wolves. Things that harmed and could kill not only a pony but their livelihood. When Twilight had been born, Luna had thought that the tiny filly could be a bridge between the night and her subjects. But they hated her just as much as Luna herself, if not more. A small, innocent foal ostracized and mistreated for no reason other than her blood. Only a few truly respected her and cared about her. One of them having been her late husband, Toren. He had been one of the few thestrals in Equestria, almost all of whom were in her night guard. But Toren was no longer there for her. He'd been killed after a skirmish with the griffons, merely weeks after Twilight's birth. Her sister hadn't even let her say goodbye. Luna sighed, her ears going back at the thought of her husband. A feeling of bitterness and betrayal started to fill her chest. Celestia. She could put an end to Luna's suffering, as well as Twilight's. Her precious daughter was at the tender age of ten, still too young to understand why nopony liked her or her mother. To young to have to deal with everything she did. But did Celestia care about this? Of course not. Her dear sister was too drunk off everypony's praise that she never noticed Luna or her daughter. When she did notice Twilight, it was usually to berate her for something that was not the filly's fault. "Mom?" Luna jumped, her head whipping around to see Twilight walking along behind her, her ears lowered as she stared at her mother in upset confusion. The moon princess hadn't even noticed she'd touched down. Looking around, she found herself a short ways away from her door. Had they really flown this far? Sighing, she gave Twilight a small, weak smile before entering their room. Small, hesitant hoofsteps followed her. Suddenly, a lavender blur shot past her and landed on their bed, giggling madly and making Luna smile. Even if all life in the world had abandoned her, she would always have her little star. Twilight looked up at her and smiled, ears pricked in hope. Smiling, the dark mare walked over to her bed, her horn glowing brightly as her bright moon rose swiftly into the sky. Laying in bed, she sighed and laid her head on her forlegs. Frowning, Twilight nuzzled her mother and curled up, sighing as Luna draped a wing over her back. Looking up, she spotted a familiar look on her mother's face. It was that same sad yet angry look she wore whenever she was thinking about Twilight's auntie. Wanting to understand what she never could, she asked her usual question. "Mother, when will Auntie Celestia like you again?" Luna turned and smiled at her, though her heart broke a little at that confused, innocent tone she used. Pulling the small filly close, she nuzzled her and began to sing her special song. As Twilight drifted off, Luna stopped singing and sighed. "Don't worry, my little star. Things will be alright again, one day. I promise." With that, Luna curled into a tight ball around Twilight, falling soundly asleep. As the moon reached it's zenith, down in the Crystal Caves, a group of ponies stood waiting, a mix of Solar and transferred Lunar guards. Soon, their patience was rewarded as a snow-white unicorn trotted into the cavern. Her dark, blood red eyes and mane made her fur seem all the more pure and bright. Ironically, though, her currant goal and intentions were anything but. Snowberry carried behind her a boars and several scrolls, all of varying sizes. When she stopped, she turned to face the group, her icy blue magic setting everything up behind her. "Greetings, everypony and thank you for joining me. I have gone over our plans to end the Moon princess's tyranny, as well as her spawn. However, a thought occurred to me. If we fail, to eliminate the spawn first, as we planned, Luna will merely guard her even more fiercely and our plan will be over." One of the Solar guards raised a hoof and Snowberry turned to him. "Um, then how are we going to end her rule?" Grinning, the white mare turned to her papers and fetched a checklist, passing copies around to all of them. "We don't have to. If we eliminate any shreds of trust and good feelings the ponies of Equestria might hold for her, she'll leave of her own violation. Allowing her superior sister, Princess Celestia to take full control. All will be as it should and the night will be cleansed. I have a list of lies and half-truths that we shall spread among the citizens. Soon, Luna shall find no support anywhere. Not that she finds much now." With that, Snowberry gave them all lists of different rumors to spread about the moon tyrant and grinned as they left. Her work to end Luna's reign had begun. Slowly, Snowberry's poison spread, infecting the minds and hearts of all who heard. Though, her two favorite rumors were the ones most commonly heard. The first one was that the night princess practiced dark magic and that she did it on live, unwilling prisoners. The other said that Princess Twilight, her precious daughter, wasn't really the progeny of her late husband Toren. That one was common among the nobles. Slowly, the effect of the rumors began to show. However, the most affected wasn't Luna but Twilight herself. Clutching a small doll version of her mother, Twilight trotted into class, her head and ears down. Why everypony was suddenly so cruel was lost on her. All she knew was that suddenly, even the victims of bullying bullied her. Sitting at her desk, she clung tightly to her doll, a few tears rolling down her cheeks. As class started, she focused on the board, ignoring the glares of her classmates. Class was half over when Twilight felt something hit her head, landing on the floor beside her. Confused, she picked up the item, her confusion turning to icy fear as she found a paper ball. Steeling her nerves, she opened the ball and froze, the world fading away around her. You should just leave, spawn. This is Celestia's school, meaning you aren't welcome. ~C Shivering, Twilight's thoughts turned to the worst bully of all. A silver filly by the name of Crystalline. According to Twilight's mother, Crystalline was the foal of a nasty mare by the name of Snowberry. Another chill went down the lavender filly's spine as she reread the note. She still didn't know why ponies were calling her that. 'Spawn' was a very mean name and, even if she wasn't a princess, surly she deserved better. Shaking her head, Twilight put the note in her bag before clinging to her Luna doll as tears began to roll down her cheeks. All she wanted was a friend that wasn't a doll or her mother. Was that too much to ask? When the teacher released them for lunch, Twilight tried to avoid Crystalline. Granted, the treatment from everypony else wasn't pleasant but no need to make it worse. Luna-doll held close, she trotted into the lunchroom and got in line, her whole body tense. Crystalline could be anywhere. After receiving her food and some glares from the staff, Twilight sat at the furthest table from the door. If she was lucky, maybe she could avoid Crystalline all... "Hey, Spawn." CURSE YOU, GODS OF LUCK! Twilight slowly turned to face her tormenter, every muscle in her body tense and ready to flee. Crystalline was a silver filly with bright red eyes and a curly, red and pink striped mane. Behind her stood her two, mindless lackeys, Bluebell and Glitterfly. Ironic that the three fillies with the most precious names were the most cruel. Crystalline was grinning at her, eyes narrowed. Twilight shivered, her ears lowering as she shrank. "Y... yes?" A loud crack echoed out as Crystalline smacked Twilight hard across the cheek. Her tray clattered to the floor, food spilling everywhere. As usual, nopony batted an eye, all of them used to Twilight's near daily beatings by now. Whimpering, the lavender filly curled up, her eyes being drawn to a very familiar figure. Hope flared in her chest as her aunt's eyes locked on the quartet. Hope that soon burned out when she saw the pearly alicorn turn towards the foals giggling around her. Soon after Celestia looked away, the beating began, Twilight trying not to cry through the whole thing. After it was over, Glitterfly cast a spell to prevent bruising. While they were willing to beat up Twilight, none of them wanted to face Luna's wrath. "Come on, girls. there's nothing left for us he..." Twilight watched in horror as Crystalline's eyes locked on her precious doll. An evil grin appeared on her face as she retrieved Twilight's dear toy. Turning towards her prey, the silver filly walked over and knelt in front of Twilight. "Is this yours? You need a stuffed version of your mommy to get through the day? You really are a baby." Struggling to her hooves, Twilight stared at the doll in desperation. That doll was the closest thing to having her mother at school with her. Evil grin still plastered on her face, Crystalline began to pull on the doll's head and tail, listening as Twilight pleaded for the return of her doll. Grin turning savage, Crystalline gave the tail to Bluebell, who took it in her magic. Staring at Twilight, they began to pull harder, harder, until the toy tore in half. Stuffing fell to the ground, followed by the remains of the doll. Something in Twilight shattered as she stared at what was left of the dark blue Luna-doll. "There, it's much better now, baby. Bye!" Twilight watched as the three walked away and suddenly, her vision turned red. Growling, she launched at Crystalline, much like with her mother. This time, though, with intent to harm and maim. Twilight felt something crack as she tackled her bully with all the force she had. Crystalline let out a shriek as pain blossomed through her chest. Soon, Twilight began to rain blows on the silver filly, tears still flowing down hr cheeks. She could feel Bluebell and Glitterfly trying to pull her off, could hear students yelling. She could even hear Crystalline sobbing beneath her. But none of it registered. A white flash was all the warning she got before a golden shoe knocked her off, one of her wings crunching beneath her. The red haze dissipating, she looked up to see Celestia standing over a bruised and bloodied Crystalline. Celestia wore a look of cold fury and Twilight could see her aunt's wings half spread while her white fur was bristling. Her horn glowed gold and Crystalline vanished with a pop and a shower of sparkles. "Twilight, how dare you attack the filly in such a way with no cause." At that, her jaw dropped. Surely she hadn't imagined her aunt seeing what had happened to her. Celestia knew how much that doll meant to her, having been made by her father. Twilight's horn glowed as she collected the remains of her doll and placed them in her bag as tears once again started rolling down her cheeks. "Auntie, she was..." The tall Alicorn stamped a hoof on the marble floor, making everypony jump. "NO! Don't you DARE blame Crystalline. This was not her fault and you know it." At that, it was like the faucet broke. Twilight bolted, sobs following her as she ran out of the school and towards the castle. The truth was finally clear to her. Her mother had been sparing her from it for as long as she could but now Twilight knew. Things weren't going to be okay cause her Auntie was never going to like them. She didn't care about them, only her subjects. The young princess's sobs increased as she barreled into the palace and through the halls. How could Celestia care more about the adoration of Equestria more than her own family!? At this moment, Twilight didn't care. She only cared about one thing and that was how much she needed her mother. Luna groaned as she started to slam her head against her desk. Why had she agreed to take on her sister's extra paperwork? Granted she didn't have much of her own but her sister's was so COMPLICATED! A low growl made Luna jump, her hoof going to her belly. Maybe it was time for lunch. It was past noon, which was when she normally ate. Stacking the papers neatly, she set them aside and stood, stretching to work out some of her tension. Reaching for the dinner cord with her magic, Luna was about to ring it when her door slammed open. Anger bloomed in her chest. Wasn't she not to be disturbed during the day? Intending to give the offender a stern lecture, she turned and felt her words die on her tongue. Twilight stood in the doorway, shivering as tears streamed down her cheeks. Alarm flooded Luna's mind and all thoughts of food were obliterated. "Twilight, honey, what's wrong? Twilight looked up and, with a heart-chattering sob, she launched at her mother and wrapped her hooves around Luna's middle tightly. Her body shook violently as she sobbed into her mother's fur. Quickly removing her saddlebags, Luna shut the door before leaning back, wrapping her hooves and wings tightly around her daughter. Twilight's hooves moved up to rest on Luna's chest, shaking with each sob. Gently, the midnight blue mare began to stroke Twilight's mane and tried to calm her down. "Honey, what happened? When you left today you were so happy." Slowly, Twilight calmed and got off her mother, though she pressed close when Luna sat up. Pulling her bags close, she let out a whimper. "Mama, you remember Crystalline?" Luna's mom alarms began blaring. Twilight never called her 'mama'. Never. Swallowing her fear, she nodded and listened as Twilight described the beating. Though, she did make plans to talk to Snowberry about this. However, when her daughter's horn glowed again and she took something out of her bag, Luna's heart shattered then shattered again. The toy of her that Toren had made right before the skirmish that killed him. Twilight whimpered and nuzzled into her side, tears flowing freely. Gingerly, Luna took the remains of the stuffy in her magic and suddenly a spell popped into her head. Grinning, she cast it. After a few seconds, the plushie was restored. Smiling, Luna lowered it and booped her daughter's nose with the stuffie's leg. A loud squeal ripped out of her daughter and she tackled the plush Luna, giggling madly. Sighing, Luna cast a simple sleep spell on her before lowering her onto the bed before storming out of the room. Celestia was doing paperwork with her assistant, Inkspot, when the door to the throne room burst open, revealing a very irate Luna. Her sister was glaring daggers at her, a look of pure rage in her eyes. Inkspot made the wise decision to flee, papers flying after him. Sighing, the Solar princess leapt off her throne and approached her sister, guessing what this was about. "Sister, I'm not going to apologize for yelling at Twilight. She attacked another student without cause. I had to react." Luna growled and stalked into the room, her wings twitching. "Sister, that filly beat my daughter, YOUR niece. She was wrong in her reaction, I know, but she was not unprovoked. Also, according to her, you were there the whole time. YOU saw what those three were doing yet didn't do anything." Celestia snorted and turned away, her waving tail flicking and speeding up in irritation. "Sister, all I saw was some foals having harmless fun. They do rough-house on occasion, even the noble foals." Enraged, Luna slammed a hoof on the floor, cracking the stone beneath it. "Sister you have made your hatred for myself and my daughter perfectly clear. But know that I mean it when I say this. If you don't end our torment..." Luna whipped around and walked out, stopping just outside the door. Celestia sighed as her eyes rolled and she shook her head. Her sister would make mountains out of molehills. She faced her sister again right as Luna turned her head to look at her sister through one eye. "... I will." With that, the doors slammed shut.