//------------------------------// // Chapter 2 // Story: A Distorted Reality // by URMajin //------------------------------// The hexapod creature sat quietly on the side as Twilight's companion, Spike, paced back and forth, wearing a purple dragon costume with derpy yellow eyes.  "Ugh," Spike groaned as he buried his face in his hands.  Giratina peered up from the book he was reading, looking at Spike with a confused look. "What's the matter?" He questioned. "Twilight's taking so long and we're going to be late for the Nightmare Night festival!" "I'm all doonneee!" Twilight called out as she galloped down the stairs proudly. She wore a dark blue cape paired with a wizard hat with stars and moons littered around the design. With that, she also wore a grey beard that hung low from her muzzle. "Uhm... Who are you again?" Spike questioned, earning an annoyed huff from the Pony. She stood tall and proud before she spoke, "I'm Star Swirl the Bearded! Duuuhhh!" She soon turned to Giratina. "Hold on, aren't you coming?" "You never explicitly invited me to whatever festival you are going to." "Oh..." She mumbled, "Well, here's your invitation! I don't think you even need to dress up considering you have all these spikes and accessories!" Giratina couldn't help but tilt his head. "Could you tell me more about this... Nightmare Moon Festival?" "Sure! We just gotta-!" A few knocks were heard from the door, attracting Spike's attention. Spike made his way to the door and opened it, only to be frightened by three young fillies, each wearing different costumes, with an elderly pony. "Nightmare night! What a fright! Give us something sweet to bite!" They chanted before giving him a cheery grin. He wiped off the sweat beads on his forehead and returned an awkward grin before he walked over to the candy bowl to give them some candies. As he did so, Twilight approached the three of them and smiled as well. "Wonderful costumes!" She complimented before she looked up at the elderly pony. "Happy Nightmare moon, Granny Smith!" Granny Smith gave the pony a tiresome smile before Spike approached the group with a bowl of candy. With the aid of Twilight's magic, they handed the fillies a piece of candy, dropping it in their pouch before a smaller pony pushed his way through the three, swaying around as he lost his balance.  Unable to keep himself steady, he falls onto the ground and drops the wooden sword from his muzzle before he swiftly got back up and saluted. "Pip-Squeak the pirate, at your service! It's my very first Nightmare night!" He spoke, earning a little grin from Twilight. Before either one could say anything, Pinkie burst out of nowhere wearing a chicken outfit, frightening them all. "Enough chit-chat! Time is candy!" "Pinkie Pie... Aren't you too old for candy?" Twilight asked as her friend pretended to act like a chicken. "Whaaa!?" Pinkie gasped in shock. "Too old for candy!? Never!"  Twilight couldn't help but roll her eyes before she dropped a piece of candy in her pouch.  The four fillies as well as Granny Smith waved goodbye to the two ponies before leaving. Twilight turned back to Pinkie and swayed her head back and forth, letting the bell of her wizard hat ring.  "You like it?" Asked Twilight. "Yeah!" Pinkie responded. "You make a great weird clown!" Twilight couldn't help but glare before she felt the presence of Giratina. He observed Pinkie pie with a confused look. "What... Are you?" He questioned before Pinkie replied with a series of clucks, answering his question. "So... Nightmare Moon is simply a night to wear costumes and give candy?" "Baaasssiccallyyy..." Twilight mumbled before nodding her head. "Yeah-" "And it's the best night ever! And you get to dress up as a clown just like Twilight!" Pinkie pie added before she dug her head into the bow Spike was holding, taking the majority of the candy before she bolted off. Twilight groaned before she was pushed by Spike. "Come on you two! We're gonna be late!" He reminded them. As the three walks, Twilight turned to Giratina and Spike with an annoyed expression. "Come on! You both can tell that this is a wizard and NOT a clown! These were all hoof-stitched!"  "Yeah, right," Spike said before chuckling. "Grandpa." Twilight growled before Giratina awkwardly patted her back. "Don't let it get to you, I can see the resemblance myself." "See! Finally!"  The three of them continued walking into a street filled with decoration and other ponies dressed up in many different costumes. Twilight began to ramble on about Star Swirl the Bearded and his backstory, only interesting  Giratina and boring Spike. "He's only the most important conjurer in the Preclassical era!" She complained before a group of fillies cheered in the background. "He created 200 spells! You know, maybe I should set up a pony group to teach ponies about history! I bet many ponies would love that! Don't you think so?" Spike mindlessly nodded his head as he shoved a few bits of candies into his mouth. Meanwhile, Giratina nodded his head, genuinely interested. "Yes, I would find it interesting to learn more about the history." "See! I knew others would be interested!" Twilight suddenly came to a halt, causing Spike to bump into her and drop all of his candies. "Ah! We're here already! Why don't we get some food?" She suggested. "I feel that your companion is already... Filled up from the sweets," Said Giratina, followed by a loud burp from Spike. "Twilight, Twilight!" Twilight turned to see Pinkie pie and Pip-Squeak running towards the three of them. "Look at our haul!" She said as she showed her pouch before shoving her face inside the pouch, eating whatever candy was in there. As the two continued to speak, Giratina observed the surroundings before spotting a figure from atop the roof, who instantly vanished once his sight was on them. He turned to Twilight and Pinkie, the two of them still busy discussing Pinkie's haul before he noticed a dark thundercloud move towards their location. Before he was even able to warn the two, suddenly a thunderbolt came down and zapped Pinkie pie, shocking the pony. This caused the pony to bolt away from the location with the smaller filly following behind. From atop the thundercloud was a burst of laughter. The three glanced up and saw Rainbow Dash in her costume, laughing at the frightened ponies who had run away. "Rainbow! That wasn't very nice!" Twilight told her in a lecturing tone. "Lighten up, Twilight!" She looked down at the three with an evil grin. "This is the best night for pranks! Hey big guy, you should try it!" Giratina shook his head in response. "I'm not very interested in that type of stuff." He replied. "Come on!" She groaned before turning to see another group. "Oh! Oh! Another one!" She said with excitement before she swiftly brought the crowd over to the group. Twilight rolled her eyes before motioning the two to follow her. As they began to walk once again, a loud thunderclap was heard followed by a fit of laughter, causing Twilight to grumble even more. "You don't seem very please like the other two," Giratina pointed out. "Is there something else you are looking forward to?" Twilight groaned before she nodded her head. "Uh-huh, I guess you can say that."  She soon noticed Applejack close by and began to approach her. "Happy Nightmare Night, Applejack!" She greeted. "Oh hey you three," She said with a grin before the pony who was participating in the apple bob game looked up and noticed Giratina, shouting out of fear of the creature's appearance. "Oh, would ya look at that? Seems like you fit in tonight pretty well, big fella.” She soon turned to Twilight and played with her beard. “And wouldja look at you, Twilight! I reckon you’re some sort of country singer with that beard.” Twilight replied with an annoyed groan whilst Spike with a giggle. “While y’all are here, wanna try bobbing some apples?” She offered before a pony with derpy eyes came up from the basin with the drain plug, causing all the water to fall down the drain. “Oh shucks…” Soon, a round of applause could be heard from the background, the four turning their heads to notice the mayor of Ponyville wearing a clown outfit speaking up in the stand. “Come on!” Twilight told Giratina as she dragged him over to the crowd. Due to his size, he stayed far behind to not disrupt anyone’s view and as well as not to draw any attention to his appearance. Meanwhile, Twilight and Spike were deep inside the crowd to get a better view of the mayor. “Now, all of our little fillies who’ve been gathering candies, please follow our friend, Zecora, to hear about the legend of…. Nightmare Moon..!” She said, mentioning the name in a spooky voice. She pointed her hoof at the side of the stage before a green cloud began to form. Slowly, a Zebra emerged from the smoke, wearing her own costume, and smiled at the crowd. “Follow me,” She spoke in a spooky voice. “And you’ll soon hear the tale of Nightmare Moon!” Zecora walked off stage and motioned the fillies to follow her. Twilight walked out of the crowd and towards Giratina. “Follow us! You’ve never heard of Nightmare Moon so I bet you’d love to hear this!” She said. “Hmm…” Giratina thought for a moment before she nodded his head. “If you believe so.” The three of them began to follow Zecora as well. The group began to go deep into the forest until they came to a halt once they arrived at a statue of the pony named Nightmare Moon. “Listen closely,” Zecora began. “And I’ll tell you where you got your fears.” She approached a few of the fillies as she spoke. “Of Nightmare night, so dark and scary!” She took a bundle of green dust and blew it into the air. “Of Nightmare moon who makes you wary.” All of a sudden, the dust formed a pony-like figure with a cunning smile, it began to run around the fillies before diving into them, erupting into a large dust cloud. “On these nights, we wear our costumes to save ourselves from her searching eyes…” A sudden pair of eyes appeared behind a pair of fillies, frightening them and causing them to fear. All of a sudden, those pair of eyes were simply revealed to be Zecora, messing with the children. “But Nightmare moon wants just one thing. To gobble up ponies in one quick swing!” Once again, she blew green dust into the air before speaking. “Hungrily, she soars the sky. If she sees no pony, she passes by…” The cloud of dust came shooting down to a group of fillies, turning into Nightmare moon before going to another group. “So if she comes and all is clear…” “Equestria is safe for another year!” She declared as the green dust rose to the air, turning into the shape of Nightmare moon before dissolving into green sparkles.  “But.. Miss Zecora…” Pip-Squeaked muttered in a frightening tune, hiding close to the Zebra. “If we wear our costumes to hide from Nightmare moon, why do we still have to offer our candy?” “A wonderful question, my little friend,” Zecora said. “For Nightmare moon, you must not offend.” She once again blew green dust which turned into Nightmare moon once again. “Fill up her belly with a treat or two. So she won't return to come and eat you!” The green pony pounced onto the group as if it was trying to eat them all, causing them all to scream. “Everypony!” Pinkie screamed as she approached the statue. “Drop some candies here and get out of here!” She dropped a lot of her candies before the wind began howling, causing her to grow more fearful.  The clouds began to swirl around the moon before everything flashed white. All of a sudden, a royal carriage came flying down, being carried by two pegasi. Everyone began to whimper as they backed away. It stopped in front of the group before the rest of the group ran, leaving Twilight, Giratina, and Spike at the location.  The pony on the carriage looked around before the pegasi began to bring the carriage to Ponyville. “Oh no! They’re going to Ponyville!” Spike pointed out, causing Twilight to worry, and began bolting towards the town with Spike and Giratina following behind. Twilight came to a halt once she arrived and watched as the pony descended from the carriage.  “So that is Nightmare moon…” Giratina silently mumbled as he observed from the back. The pony landed on the group and brought down her hood, revealing herself to be Princess Luna. “Previously, my friends and I fought against Nightmare moon, and then she was revealed to be Princess Luna, the sibling of Princess Celestia,” Twilight quietly explained. While Twilight seemed calm about the Princess’s arrival, the rest of the ponies weren’t and immediately bowed out of cowardice. She attempted to approach Princess Luna before Spike grabbed her and brought her down so she bowed down as well.  Meanwhile, Giratina stayed hidden behind a building, observing the situation from afar rather than being part of the crowd. The Princess cleared her throat before she began to speak in a loud voice, enough to cause a wind to push the ponies back. “Citizens of Ponyville! We have graced your tiny village with our presence so that you may behold the real Princess of the night!” She began to pace herself back and forth. “Creature of nightmares no longer, but instead a pony who desires your love and admiration! Together, we shall change this dreadful celebration into a bright and glorious feast!” As she continued on with her speech, the ponies began to crawl backward.  “Did you hear that, everypony!?” Pinkie pie said with a shocked voice. “She said she’s going to feast on us all!”  Everyone screamed out of fear and all ran away, leaving Princess Luna confused. “What!?” She said, shocked by what she said. “No, no! That wasn't my intention! You no longer have any reason to hear us! Screams of delight are what your Princess desires, not screams of terrors!” She said. Out of frustration, she stomped her hoof down to the ground.  She soon turned to the mayor, becoming more frustrated. “Mayor! Your Princess of the Night has arrived!” She attempted to approach her but noticed that the mayor was shaking, causing her to become more confused. “What is the matter!?” She questioned, turning to another pony to only the others react the same way. “Very well then, be that way!” She became very frustrated and began to walk away. “I'll go and talk to her-” Twilight began. “No! You can’t!” Spike said, grabbing her cloak to stop her from approaching the Princess. “She was Nightmare Moon!” “Was,” Giratina corrected from the back. “According to Twilight, she has changed, hasn't she?” “Ah- well-” “If you do not want Twilight to speak to her, then I shall.” He began to walk towards the direction the Princess walked to.  “Besides Spike,” Said Twilight. “I saw the Elements of Harmony change her to good, I’m sure she’s just struggling to adjust.” She followed behind Giratina, making Spike groan. The two of them entered the forest only to see Princess Luna resting in front of the statue of Nightmare moon.  “Here, let me try to speak first…” Twilight said, approaching the Princess first. “Excuse me? Princess Luna.” Twilight watched as the Princess immediately stood up. “Hello! I'm-” “Star Swirl, the bearded!” Replied Luna. “A commendable costume. You even got the bells right.” “Thank you! Finally, someone else recognizes it!” Twilight said with a bright smile on her face. She turned to Luna only to notice the Princess was frowning. “Uhm, anyway, I just wanted to welcome you to Ponyville! Same with my friend.” Giratina appeared behind Twilight and bowed down in front of the Princess. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Princess Luna. I am Lord Giratina, however, Giratina is alright.” “Ah, my sister spoke of you. One of the creators of the world, it is a pleasure as well,” Luna replied, bowing down as well before returning to a sorrowful frown. Twilight nervously cleared her throat before she began to speaks “Anyways, my name is-” “Twilight Sparkle,” Luna began, her voice returning to the same loud tone as she did back in Ponyville. “It was you who unleashed the powers of harmony upon us which took away our dark powers!” The clouds began to swirl up in the sky as she spoke. “And… That was a good thing, right?” Twilight replied, backing away from the strong gust of winds. “But of course! We could not be happier! Is that not clear!?” “It was not,” Giratina responded, standing his ground rather than being blown away. “You are shouting rather than speaking at a conversation level. It was why so many ponies fear you back in. Ponyville. “But this is how we speak! The royal Canterlot speech! We use ‘we’ and speak with this much volume!” “That would make your subjects fear you even more,” Giratina replied. “Princess Luna… You’ve been gone for too long…” Twilight added. “Indeed, and that sudden change in culture has led with mixed results.” “Yeah, but surely if you changed your approach, the results would be much better!” Twilight added to Giratina’s comment. “Well… It has been 1,000 years, we are not sure if we can change our approach…”  “Well, we can go ask my friend, Fluttershy! Come along, Princess!” Twilight smiled and began walking ahead, having Giratina and Luna follow behind her. Luna seemed to still be sorrowful over the reaction given to her.  “Princess, no need to worry, though you have been gone for a thousand years, you will adapt and learn from your subjects the same as I have,” Said Giratina. “As you have?” Luna questioned. “Yes, I came to this world recently and I am just beginning to get used to the history of this world.”  “And don’t worry Princess! Fluttershy is delicate and demure! She’ll surely be lots of help!” They finally arrived at Fluttershy’s house and Twilight immediately knocked on her door. Her knocks were met with a seemingly annoyed Fluttershy. “Go away! There’s no candy here! Visitors are not welcomed here!”  Luna looked over at Twilight with a suspicious look. “I thought you said she was… Delicate?” “Ahaha…” Twilight laughed awkwardly before she approached the door. “Hey, Fluttershy? It’s me, Twilight!” Fluttershy slowly opened the door and seemed relieved to see Twilight. “Ah, it is you…” She said with a soft sigh before she opened the door fully. “Oh, and Nightmare moon-” She soon took a step back and fear. “Nightmare moon!?” She let out a scream before she slammed her door shut. The Princess looked annoyed after the reaction. “Aha, please wait right here,” Twilight said before she approached the door once again and entered. Luna rolled her eyes before taking a step back, staying with Giratina. “May I suggest that you speak in a ‘normal’ voice.” Said Giratina, looking at the Princess who was annoyed at the request. “Once again, we royals must speak in such a way,” Luna said, once again returning to her blaring voice. “Okaaaay!” Twilight said, dragging Fluttershy out of her house. “Come on Fluttershy! Give Princess Luna a lesson!” “Now, we desire a lesson from you!” Luna spoke, ignoring Giratina’s suggestion of speaking in a lower tone.  “Okay-” Fluttershy whimpered. “Shall we replicate your tone?” “Okay-” “Is this good!?” Luna asked, continuing to speak in her blaring tone. “P...Perfect- Lesson over,” Fluttershy whimpered before attempting to bolt back into her house, only for Twilight to slam the door close which caused her to collide with it. “Princess,” Giratina spoke, “Once again, try to lower your voice.” Princess Luna sighed before she cleared her throat. “Is this better?” She asked, finally her tone wasn't booming. “See! That's better!” Twilight said happily. “So… Is this better?” Luna said, lowering her voice once again. “Yes, that’s enough,” Said Giratina. Fluttershy was suddenly picked up by the Princess, who suddenly hugged her out of delight. “Wonderful! Thank you for your lesson!” She said, her voice booming once again. Suddenly, Pinkie and a group of fillies came running towards Fluttershy’s home. “Fluttershy! You have to come to hide with us! Nightmare moon—” She soon gasped, seeing that Fluttershy was in the grasp of ‘Nightmare moon’. “Oh No! Nightmare moon has Fluttershy! She’s going to gobble her up!” Both her and the children scream before bolting off to the opposite directions. Luna gasped before dropping Fluttershy. “Nay, children, wait!” She said in her booming voice before gasping. “No… Wait!” She muttered. Both Giratina and Twilight notice how saddened the Princess was. Without hesitation, Twilight approached Luna with a smile. “Come on, let’s try plan B.” “And what is that plan B?” Giratina asked.  “We’ll go to Applejack and ask her for some advice! She’s a very likable pony and-” “Yes, although she is in the middle of the festival, is she not?” He pointed out. “The presence of the Princess may end the same way it did in the first. Why don’t you try to bring Applejack to us?” He suggested. “You think that'd be better?” Twilight questioned. “But wouldn't it be better if we brought Luna to the festival to practice those tips Applejack gives her?” “I believe that it would be best to see what advice she would give and how Princess Luna would follow them before we send her off to interact with the rest.” He replied. “Well…” Twilight mumbled before she nodded her head. “If you say so.” With that, Twilight turned around and walked back into the town in search of Applejack, leaving Luna and Giratina to wait by the forest. “Princess, I would like to discuss something with you,” Giratina began. “From what I have seen tonight, it seems as if this ‘Nightmare Night’ has something to do with how others react to your appearance.” “What makes you say that?” Luna questions, perking up with interest as to what he was discussing. “Tonight, I have observed that it is a night filled with fright and sweets. Many ponies pull pranks on each other and share sweets,” Giratina explained, sitting down as he observed the moon shining in the dark sky. “I believe that perhaps they do not truly fear you, they just feel like it due to the festival being celebrated.” “They… They simply feel like it!?” She said out of shock. “How do you know that?” “Well, from what I’ve noticed, they simply enjoy that type of fright, especially from the stories. Why do you think Nightmare Night seems to be the most celebrated? Not only for fillies but for everyone as well. They take time to wear costumes and go door-to-door to ask for candies. From the story I had heard, they did that in order to hide from Nightmare Moon and to remain safe for another year, it is not something they do out of fear but out of joy.” “Hmm…” Luna hummed to herself, now deep in thought as Twilight came running back with Applejack close behind her.  “We have an idea!” Twilight said. “Ah, Twilight Sparkle, thank you for returning with your friend.” Luna smiled as she turned to look at Giratina. “However, I would like to try something new.” “Oh?” Both Giratina and Twilight said, surprised by the sudden idea. As time passed, Twilight came back to the statue of Nightmare with the group of fillies. “Come on! We have to give Nightmare Moon some of our candies.” The fillies nodded their head enthusiastically as they dropped pieces of candies from their pouch before a strong gust of wind began to blow the fillies back. “Children!” A loud booming voice was heard from the statue. “We are pleased with your offerings! It pleases us so much that we shall feast on your candies rather than you!” The children began to scream out of fear before they ran away. Once the children ran away, Luna returned to her regular form and looked around, a little bit worried. Twilight approached her and gave her a pat on the back. “No worries Princess, I’m sure your idea worked.” “We do hope so…” Luna mumbled. “I was very proud of it.” “Princess Luna? A voice suddenly called out, revealing to be Pip-Squeak. “Can we do this again?” He asked, smiling with excitement. “It’s very fun to get scared by you!” Luna smiled before laughing a little bit, nodding her head. “Of course,” She cleared her voice before her voice began to boom. “I shall return every Nightmare night!” Her voice was enough to push Pip-Squeak back, however, he was laughing happily. “Yaayy! You're my favorite Princess ever!” He ran up to her to give her a quick hug before scattering away towards the group, calling out that she agreed. Luna smiled softly as Twilight and Giratina approached her. “That ended off nicely!” Twilight said proudly as Giratina nodded his head. “This has been an eventful night,” Luna said before turning towards Giratina, bowing her head. “Thank you for your help as well, Giratina.” “It is nothing, I was simply sharing an observation with you,” He explained. “With that being said, I shall take my leave and continue reading more about this world.” “Awh, you’re not going to stick around and play some games?” Twilight asked. Giratina shook his head. “I’m not very interested in games, I would rather take the rest of the night reading more.” “Aha, understandable. Well, I’ll see you in the morning!” After sharing their goodbyes, Giratina returned to the Golden Oak Library, gathering many books with topics focused on the ponies and their history. The events that occurred intrigued him further to how ponies came to form the land they now reside in as well as how Princess Luna was formerly known as ‘Nightmare Moon’. He hoped what he would come across would help him further understand the realm he now had to watch over and aid him with understanding trivial topics as well.