//------------------------------// // Foalhood, Chapter One // Story: Inherit the Night // by rooks_fanfiction //------------------------------// “And with a burst of rainbow light, the three sisters brought an end to the Discordian Age.” While many view the few surviving scraps of Sparkling Sapphire’s works as historically accurate, this excerpt from her ballad Forging the Rainbow seems to cast doubt on the validity of such and assumption. The basis for her supposed authority is widely held belief that she was once one of the Diarch’s students. However, if that had been the case, surely, she would have realized that Nightmare Moon and Princess Luna were one and the same mare. Of course, some may argue that, as there is no intact copy of Forging the Rainbow outside the one locked in the Everfree castle’s restricted section, that Celestia, Luna and Nightmare moon are not the three sisters being referred to. This, however, would simply lend credence to my argument that Sparkling Sapphire’s works can not be trusted, as there is amply confirmation that it was the royal sisters who brought an end to the Discordian Age. A History of the Ages Tick the Younger (B.AoS 2352) “W is for Winnie, embedded in ice.” Luna singsonged as she hugged the foal against her with one foreleg and pointed to their progress on the Griffin made alphabet poster with the other. “X is for Xerxes, devoured by mice. Y is for Yorick, whose head was knocked in. And Z is for Zillah, who drank too much gin. As she finished, she simply held the foal and let her stare at the poster for a time. In the year and a half since they had first met, she had not left Twilight Sparkle alone for a single night. As soon as she felt the foal’s consciousness passed into the dreaming Luna would appear beside her and keep her company until she awoke in the morning. On the night after their first meeting, she had cast a resonance spell on the foal and used it to find the dream bubbles of her family. “Twilight Sparkle!” When Luna had heard the name the foal’s mother had called out as she galloped to the replica Luna had formed in the mother’s dream, she’d chuckled softly, once again vowing to find the time to research the naming trances mothers went into immediately after birth. Twilight, the meeting of day and night, it was certainly appropriate for what she had in mind for the foal. After that, her nights had been divided between those she spent playing with the foal and ones where she saw to the needs of the dreaming, and of her Thestrals. In the latter cases, she would levitate Twilight onto her back and keep wrapped her securely in her mane until they returned to the foal’s own dream. Half a year ago she had begun to spend nights on basic lessons as well. It had been a bit over a millennium since she’d last raised a foal of her own, and her memory of the proper age to start lessons was slightly hazy, but the joy twilight seemed to take in them had reassured her. Luna enjoyed the gentle pressure of twilights little hooves wrapped around her neck as they flew through the dreaming. While she’d wrapped her mane tightly around her little star, the last thing she was going to do was tell the foal to stop hugging her. Usually she'd let instinct guide her flight in her nocturnal nightmare hunts, but tonight was different. The last three nights had led her to the same pony's dream bubble. In fact, the night before she'd had to sooth the poor foal’s dreams twice. As she arrived in front of the sphere she was looking for, she winced, the surface already had the telltale ripples and eddies of a pony caught in a nightmare. Placing a hoof against the bubble, she let her consciousness drift inside. Like the previous nights, she found herself in a cave network, watching a foal desperately running through a cavern. The foal, who couldn't be more than a couple of years older than Twilight, had Sweat soaking her black coat and blood ran down from a cut across her face, but what always drew Luna’s eyes was her broken stub of a horn. Jeers and mocking laughter echoed off the cave’s walls, only occasionally drowned out by a deep roar. Even if she hadn’t seen what was chasing the foal the other times she’d come, the roar of an Ursa Minor would have been immediately identifiable. She knew what she should do, she should change the dream slowly, make the roaring and the laughter go away before slowly turning the caves into a sunny meadow, or something similar. That’s what she always did, though since this wasn’t the first time the foal had had the nightmare, she’d also act as the voice of its subconscious, speaking to her from thin air and trying to help. Until she’d returned to Equestria, it was dangerous to act more openly. After all, if word reached Celestia that she was free in the dreaming, it was quite possible her sister would try to somehow bind her here as well. As another roar sounded the foals head turned, looking for the source, stark terror written across her face. Luna looked away, closing her eyes and preparing to make the changes to the dream, but she couldn’t help imagining a different scene, a scene where the foal was one with a lavender coat. Before she could stop herself, she strode into the dream, standing between the foal and the Ursa as the great bear came around a corner. With a quick effort of will, she reshaped the dream, banishing the bear, the laughter and the cave, replacing it with a meadow underneath a starry sky. The foals mouth fell open as she looked from the black alicorn standing in front of her to the changed scenery around her and back to the alicorn. Luna gave the foal a closed-lipped smile. “Greetings little one. Tell me, what is your name?” Luna lay sprawled out, her head resting on a pile of books as she watched Twilight through half-lidded eyes, a feeling of pride filling her as she listened. “I do not like them hewe or thewe. I do not like them anywhere. I do not like gween beans and yams. I do not like them, Sam-I-am.” As Twilight stretched her neck forward and turned the page with the tip of her horn, Luna’s eyes suddenly shot fully open as a few sparks shot from the end of twilights horn. “Twilight, has that been happening while you’re awake?” Twilight grinned proudly. “Oh yes, for a few days now. Mom said that I shouldn’t let it scawe me, that it just meant my magic was starting to bloom, and Shining told me that I should be pwoud, that blooming this early almost certainly meant that once my magic is fully developed, I will truly fowmi, fowm, vewy stwong.” Luna grinned back. “He doesn’t know how right he is. I’ve lived a very long time and I’ve rarely seen anypony with half you’re potential. Now Twilight, I need to leave for a few minutes, but if you pick out a book or two and behave for the friend I’m going to bring back with me, I’ll read to you from one of the ones you picked before you have to wake up.” Twilight looked at her thoughtfully for a moment, an utterly adorable look on the small face. “Ok, but you have to read to me from two of the books I pick out.” “Sure.” Luna turned away, then turned back as she began to let her body fade away. “But you do realize that means I’ll only be able to read half as long from either.” Luna’s grin grew to Cheshire proportions as she watched twilights eyes go wide as she finished fading out of the dream bubble. As she flew through the dreaming, her grin faded, replaced by a pensive expression. Of course, she could simply combine her memories of a powerful mage with whatever echo of themselves they’d left in the dreaming. In fact, she intended to do just that at some point to create tutors for a number of the subjects Twilight would need know. But really, there was a better option for teaching her magic. One of her best friends had spent most of his nights, and some of his days, enchanting his dream bubble, preparing for the day he died. As a result, when the unicorn passed away, his spells had activated and enhanced his echo into a full-blown specter. As she reached the bubble she was looking for, she peeked inside, then began to laugh softly. Within, a unicorn was desperately beating at his smoldering beard as the contents of several shattered beakers and vials bubbled their way through a table. “So, you’ve finally decided to burn off that ridicules beard of yours?” Starswirl spun around as she entered his bubble and a wide grin spread across his face. “Of course not, it makes me look distinguished. You’re just jealous because yours didn’t look half as dashing as mine.” “Of course, that must be what it is. Oh, and I still haven’t forgiven you for casting that spell on me in front of the entire Everfree assembly.” “Of course you have. So,” He paused momentarily, looking her up and down, “By the way, should I be calling you Luna, or Nightmare Moon?” Luna paused for a moment, then smiled. “Luna.” “So, Luna, to what do I owe the honor of this royal visit? I thought we finally got those massive rune circles of yours figured out?” “We did, which is quite fortunate considering how busy I’ve been these last three and a half years.” Luna stared at him patiently, waiting for him to take the bait. It didn’t take long. “Why, what could have been keeping you busy?” “I’ve been raising a foal.” Starswirl’s eyes widened, and he seemed to forget about the last few embers in his beard. “A what?” “A foal, you know, those small cute things, often have trouble with their Ls and Rs. Happily, this one’s mastered the former. She’s actually why I’m here. Her magic’s just bloomed and I was hoping you’d be willing to teach her. Just the basics of how to control it for now, though if the two of you get along, I was hoping you might be willing to teach her more in the future.” The bearded Unicorn took a few steps, until he was standing beside her, then nodded. “Ok, lead the way. I’m curious to see what kind of foal managed to catch your interest.” As she drew them out of his dream bubble and began to lead them back to Twilights, Starswirl shook his head. “Honestly, I’m glad to hear that you’re taking care of a foal again, no matter what she’s like. After how you reacted to what Ebony did, I was scared you’d never be willing to raise another.” Luna blanched. “You Misunderstand!” Pausing a moment, she continued in a far softer voice. “As much as I love My Little Star, I’m just mentoring her, not raising her as a daughter.” “My Little Star?” Luna turned to look at her friend for a moment, then turned away, unable to refute the commentary of his quirked brow. “Ok, maybe I am slightly fonder of her then is wise, considering my track record with foals. Still, at least she has another set of parents to teach her the lessons I am clearly incapable of teaching.” Starswirl shook his head again, beard swishing from side to side. “And I still say you're being too harsh with both Ebony and yourself.” Luna’s head snapped to the side, and she stared straight in the eyes. “Being too harsh? My daughter led a coup attempt, one that killed several thousand ponies, before failing. How is my disappointment in my parenting abilities harsh?” “You raised a daughter who loved her mother, one who tried to save her from imprisonment in the moon. I hardly see that as a failure.” Luna shook her head again. “I told her not to, told her if she tried, I would order my thestrals not to help her. Without their help, she didn’t even have even odds of success. How could she gamble so many lives like that when it was only a matter of time before I was free again.” “Because she loved you. Because the ponies who followed her loved their lunar Diarch. And while time would have freed you in the end, Ebony was just a unicorn, if she simply waited, she’d never have seen you again.” “Ok, maybe she had the best of intentions, but the fact remains, she was reckless and cost thousands of ponies their lives. I don’t-” “If you want to talk about end results, look at Equestria. “Luna paused, “What?” “Look at Equestria. Compare it to how it was before your imprisonment began. It was the fear that the attempted coup created, and the refusal of everypony to look less than absolutely loyal to the crown that allowed your sister to gather the power she now wields. Without that power, she would never have been able to get most of the laws that changed Equestria so much past the old council of lords. Think of how many ponies used to starve in the streets every year, how many froze every winter. If you simply want to look at end results, not intentions, your daughter’s actions ended up saving all those ponies, those and so many others your sister’s laws keep safe, fed and educated. It’s not what she intended, but neither was her eventual failure.” Luna blinked, then started walking again. “I don’t know. I think you’re skewing things to make me feel better. But then again, perhaps it is I who cannot see things straight. Either way, we are here.” Luna turned to watch Starswirl as they walked towards the dream bubble, pausing in surprise when her old friend suddenly stopped, eye’s widening. “Luna, what the buck?” As her eyes widened at the harshness of the words, she turned to face the dream bubble. Once she’d confirmed that everything was how she’d left it, she turned back to face her companion and raised an eyebrow. “You’re telling me you don’t see anything wrong inside that dream bubble?” Luna looked at the dream again, scanning it quickly. Twilight lay in the middle of the room, a small pile of books sitting beside her, slowly turning the pages of a book, pausing to sound out a word every now and then. The walls of the oval room were made of bookshelves, while the sealing was a perfect reproduction of the night sky, down to the slow movement of the moon. Underneath the transparent floor, an army of ponies faced off against a force of minitours and griffons across a river, reenacting the battle of Buttercups Crossing. Looking back up, she paused for a moment to simply watch her little star work her way through the book in front of her, before looking back to the bearded unicorn beside her. “Everything looks the same as when I left. Well, Twilight’s taken a few more books off the shelves, but I did promise to read to her if she behaved.” “And what is going on under the floor?” Luna snorted. “I know we were having more problems with the zebras in your day, but I’d think you’d be able to recognize the battle that turned the tides in the last great war against the minitours and the griffons. It was there that I stopped their invasion and was able to begin pushing them back.” Looking back at the battle, she saw herself diving into the heart of the griffon formation, the heavily armored forms of her pretorians following her in. As the watched, three more companies dove, exploiting the chaos her attack was causing, the pegasi in the brightly colored uniforms of the Wonderbolts and the Stormdancers, a stark contrast to the solid gray uniformed thestrals of the Gray Wings. “I wasn’t asking about the particular battle. I was asking why you were having a foal watch battle at all?” When Luna eventually responded sorrow, tinged with an absolute determination had entered her voice. “Because I don’t want her to have to go through what Celestia and I went through. When the Age of Balance ended, and we were freed from our guided cages, we had no idea how to rule, of how to protect and guide those who followed us. Our inexperience cost lives, so very many lives. Not only is Twilight tied to the element of magic, but I can also feel the potential for ascension in her. In time, many will look to her to guide them, and when that time comes, she will be ready. I’ll do anything I need to so Twilight doesn’t end up carrying the same kind of guild Celestia and I do.” Starswirl shook his head. “Luna, the times have changed. The Age of Strife is over. Equestria hasn’t been in a single war since the Celestial Age began. While I certainly agree that Twilight should be prepared to lead ponies if she’s going to end up ascending, I don’t think-” “Yes Starswirl, the times have changed, but what both you and my sister are missing is that they are continuing to change. The minitours have appointed an Archon, and while he has been able to stop the invasion that came out of the storm lands, and has even started to push the yetis back, I’ve looked at his dreams, at his soul. There’s no way he intends to give up the absolute power that comes with the title of Archon and let the guild council get back to business as usual when the war ends. No, he will try to keep his power, and one of the easiest ways to do so would be to find a new enemy, preferably one that doesn’t actually pose too much of a threat and has a lot of very rich lands that would make a great addition to his Archonate.” “Then there are the griffons. As the memories of the age of strife faded into myth and legend, they’ve begun to view ponies as spineless herbivores, little than the prey they hunt on their mountains. The diamond dog confederacy has long held their full attention, but it seems they have finally ended up with a border where neither side can effectively raid the other. While many of their most aggressive wings are currently fighting the Yetis in support of their minitour allies, when that war ends, it won’t be long before they too begin looking for a new enemy.” “The diamond dog confederacy might not be unified enough to pose a threat to Equestria on its own, but if we end up in a war with the griffons or the minitours, they are quite likely to try and take some of the lands near their border. The only real blessing as far as threats go is that the zebras were never able to reform a nation after the night of the red moon.” “There will soon be two new Alicorns living in Equestria. The elements of harmony are finding barriers. Nightmare Moon’s time of exile is reaching an end just as Equestria’s neighbors are growing restless, And the traitor in the north will not remain frozen forever. No, whatever is coming I’m certain the Celestial age is almost over, and I fear the next one will be far less peaceful. “ Starswirl turned to look at Twilight for a few seconds, compassion clear on his face. “Well then, let’s go and start preparing your Little Star for her destiny. If you’re right about the future, she’s going to need it. Luna paused a moment more, looking at Twilight as her mind drifted back to the earlier conversation. Starswirl’s right, despite trying to just be your mentor, I have started to look at you as a daughter. I’m probably not the best mother you could have, and I’m unspeakably glad you have another mother and father who will raise you properly. But I promise, I will do better with you than I did with Ebony Lunamoon.