The silent expanse of the night stretches endlessly before me. Here, on the moon, I am a solitary being. No pony is here. Even I am not here- not really. I am buried far too deeply in a mind that has been taken over by somepony else, who took my body and made it her own, and destroyed everything I had. I am but a mere shadow of the piece of me that still held onto love, hope, and forgiveness.
My name is Luna. Formerly Princess Luna in Equestria- until Nightmare Moon turned me into her puppet. She wanted the night to last forever, and was willing to take down any pony who got in her way. Including my sister.
Princess Celestia. Ruler of Equestria. Nobles and common folk flocked to bow to her. They showered her with affection, with gifts, with praise, all while I was standing there- completely unnoticed and forgotten. I felt neglected, not being loved as my sister was. It put a small seed of darkness in my heart. The continual neglect, the lack of communication between my sister and I, all of it watered that seed until it grew too strong for me to fight anymore. It transformed my body into Nightmare Moon. It took my mind over, except for the scant bit of me left that has hope and love. Now, I am a prisoner behind a glass wall. I scream and scream to be let out, but no pony hears me. Least of all my own sister.
I was the unwilling witness to the battle between Nightmare Moon and Celestia. I wanted to turn away desperately, but I had no choice but to watch. I saw the tears stream down my sister’s face as she banished Nightmare Moon to the moon. And once I was on the moon, face permanently etched into it’s face, I thought of my Sister.
We had grown up together. All my life, I looked up to her. She was my example for everything. She was the one who taught me to fly a kite, how to make some figurines from corn husks, and even she helped me find my special talent.
When I was a child, I thought like a child. I thought that my sister would never be taken from me. I thought we would stay the way we had always been. But childhood ends eventually, and we must put away childish fantasy for adult reality. My sister and I were slowly separated, first by our studies under Starswirl The Bearded, and then by her increasing responsibilities, and finally by our coronations. The duties of a princess became more important than the duties of a sister, and I was left alone.
Time is such a fickle thing. There’s too much of it, or not enough of it, or an inability to stop it. When we were coronated, I suddenly never had time with my sister, and too much on my own hooves. When she could spare me a little time in the beginning, I wished fervently to be able to stop it from continuing. I wanted to freeze it, savor it, make it last, because when the moment of connection between us ended, that net of sisterly love and friendship would disintegrate, and we would become strangers to one another- ships passing in the night.
My heart ached for my sister. Even though we were princesses now, and we had responsibilities, it didn’t mean we didn’t need each other. It didn’t mean I didn’t need my sister- and miss her all the same. That still has not changed.
The expanse of space is empty, and unchanging. It is not warm, and it is not cold. It is a vast world of neutrality, of purgatory. No change happens here, no sun, no day. Nothing but the darkness and the moonlight.
A memory pulls at me, and I let it play. I was six years old. Mother and Father were away for the evening, and the storm of rain had frightened me, pulling me from sleep. Knowing that my parents weren’t there, I had gone to my sister. She had been sleeping at the time. I had climbed onto her bed, and felt so small in that ocean of mattress and blankets. My sister had been deeply asleep. I had gone to her and shook her awake, eyes wide with fear.
Celestia had awoken groggily. “Luna? What is it? Are you okay?”
“Celly, I’m scared of the storm.” I’d said to her, and felt a great deal of comfort just from her presence.
Celestia blinked, once, twice, and then, her eyes had shimmered with the sympathy and compassion her subjects adored from her. But that time, it was reserved solely for me. My sister had pulled me into her hooves, radiating tenderness and compassion. “It’s just a storm, Lulu. It can’t hurt you, I promise.” She’d said. She turned me so I faced out her window, still holding me. “Look at it now.”
And I had looked. The rain was beating against the pane, the lightning lit the sky, and thunder rumbled.
“The rain helps the trees and plants to grow, and the thunder rolls to let us know to stay inside. The lightning lights our world when the moon is too clouded to.” She’d told me.
Suddenly, I hadn’t been scared anymore. This frightening occurrence had been transformed into something beautiful. I had snuggled into her. “Thank you, Celly. Is it okay if I sleep in here tonight?”
“Of course.” She’d said, and smiled, covering me with her blanket. I’d let myself melt into her, and kept my eyes on the suddenly beautiful storm until they were too heavy to stay open, and fallen asleep in the presence of somepony I knew loved me and comforted me.
Tears streamed down my face now, remembering that. Not Nightmare Moon’s face- mine. I missed that warmth and comfort in this dark place. Remembering that- it filled me with sorrow, but a bit of hope too, that someday we would be back together again the way we used to be. I looked down at Equis, and smiled through my tears. Though I knew she couldn’t hear me, I whispered something to my sister.
“Celestia, remember when it rained?”