//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 // Story: Midnight's Arrow // by Hydreigon_Omega //------------------------------// When the sun rose, Arrow woke up on his bird stand. It was a simple one that was mounted onto Luna’s dresser. The stand was made of durable wood designed to look like tree trunks, and it even had lower branches that could be used as steps to reach the main perch. Walking down from the perch, Arrow grabbed Luna’s hairbrush, in his beak as he waited for her to wake up. Because Arrow was now a rowlet, and no longer human, his bones heal quicker than when he was a human. He remembered that when Luna went to the vet to remove his cast, the veterinarian had told her to keep a watch on him because he had nothing to accurately compare him to. While Arrow already had his cast removed, he wasn’t going to leave his friend just because he had freedom now.  After being stuck in Equestria, and having no actual reason to return to the human world, Arrow quickly became more comfortable with his situation. Even though only three weeks have passed, he quickly learned about the ponies around him. Luna, his “owner,” and her older sister Celestia were both princesses that ruled over this kingdom.  “Good morning Arrow.” Luna said in a half awake voice “Hoo.” (Morning, here’s your hairbrush.) Arrow said happy to help his friend. Luna blinked out of confusion, did she just understand Arrow? “Thank you..?” Luna said cautiously as she took the hairbrush in her magic. “Hoo” (You’re welcome.) Arrow replied Luna eyed the owl curiously as she took the brush in her magic, Arrow just turned his head wondering why Luna was looking at him like that. When Luna had cleaned up her mane, putting it back to the way it was when they first met, she couldn’t believe that it had already been three weeks since she took him in. But still, according to her knowledge, Arrow was still a wild bird and it would be wrong to keep him out of his home. Luna extended a wing towards her dresser, allowing Arrow to use it like a bridge to get onto her back. Arrow sat down on Luna’s back as she went to go eat a late brunch. After learning that Luna was the princess of the night, Arrow had become a little more lax with letting her sleep in during the mornings. Eventually, it became a common sight to see Luna bring Arrow wherever she went. “Hey Arrow,” Luna said, “my dearest sister asked me to assist her in some royal duties, she said it would prepare me for returning to the throne. Would you like to come with me?” “Hoo.” (Of course.) Arrow responded, as he gave Luna a nod. Happy to know that her friend would be accompanying her, Luna felt a little safer knowing that she wouldn’t be facing the task alone. When they arrived at the throne room, a long line of ponies waited for Luna to arrive so that they could get on with their day.  Even after her thousand year intermission, Luna was still somewhat familiar with this. But she quickly learned how much ruling had changed in her absence, making her feel a little bit isolated. Seeing her discomfort, Arrow rubbed his head against her, trying to make her feel better. Luna just looked at him then smiled, even though his gesture was small, it had helped her enough to continue with her day. As the day continued, the line of ponies that wished to speak with the princess started to diminish. Luna began to figure out what some of the modern terms ment, and how some older terms had changed completely. Luna started to gain a feeling of pride as she was becoming more and more comfortable with the thought of returning to the throne. “You did a wonderful job for your first time in a thousand years,” Celestia praised her sister, “Thank you...” Luna trailed off, it had been a long time since she was praised for her actions. “I was a little nervous at first, but Arrow helped me through it.” “You really love that little owl, don’t you.” “Hoo.” (Of course she loves me.) Arrow said confidently “At first I was a little worried about you getting a pet so soon after your return, they can be quite the hoof-full.” Celestia said, “But I am starting to reconsider after seeing how attached you are to him.” “Sister, are you saying what we think you’re saying?” Luna inquired, she was still used to the stern and unyielding Celestia from a thousand years ago. “Yes I am,” Celestia said, “I will let you keep Arrow, under the condition that you will take care of him.” Filled with glee, Luna lunged towards her sister for a hug.“Thank you thank you thank you.” Little did Luna know that when she lunged, she did it so fast that she accidentally launched Arrow off her back. Arrow let out a scream before he stopped moving in mid air, when he opened his eyes, he saw that he was flying by himself. His initial thought was that he was being held up by magic, but that assumption wasn’t true. “Hoo?” (Am I flying?) Arrow asked himself, “Brr.” (But I thought I didn’t know how to fly.) After discovering that he could in fact fly, he fluttered down and rested on top of Luna’s head. Flying wasn’t all bad, but he preferred to stay closer to the ground. Luna’s mane was very soft, almost like a bed made specifically for Arrow. He relaxed his body as he let out a contented sigh, he probably could fall asleep right there. “Well Luna,” Celestia said, holding back a smile, “I like your new hat, I wonder where I can get one.” Luna looked at her sister with a deadpan face, she wasn’t amused at her sister's joking. “Hoo, Hroo.” (I’m not just any old hat, I am the best hat.) Arrow corrected, pointing a feather at Celestia. Luna rolled her eyes, she took Arrow in her magic and placed him on her back before leaving the room. As they headed down the hall, Luna noticed that her sister had already finished lowering the sun and had put the moon in the night sky. Luna kinda missed doing that, but she knew that her magic was still recovering from her return here. Placing Arrow on his bird stand, Luna went to bed for the night. “Where am I?” Arrow said to himself as he woke in an unknown location. Arrow looked at the stone that surrounded him, it was smooth but not slick. This was some sort of cave, and he was in the middle of it. Arrow took note of how the cave seemed artificial and man-made. Or would it be considered pony-made?  Arrow turned around and headed further into the cave. There was something calling him, Arrow didn’t know what it was but he knew that it wanted his attention. At the very core of the cave was a Crystal tree with 6 different colored gems. Arrow had never seen anything like this before, or at least he thinks he hasn’t. “The tree of harmony.” Arrow stood in awe at the sight, before he realized something was off. “Wait, why do I know this? I’ve never heard about it before, so why do I know this?” Restating the question didn’t help at all. Arrow felt agitated as he tried to wrack his brain for any memories, but he drew a blank. Suddenly, Arrow heard hoof steps racing towards him. He ran behind the tree to hide, where he began to eavesdrop on what was going on. “I can’t believe he was right!” Was that Luna? “I thought that the Elements of harmony was just an old pony legend.” Arrow peered around the edge of the tree and saw a slightly younger version of Celestia and Luna. He was surprised to see that Celestia’s mane was solid pink instead of a rainbow. “Indeed sister. With the elements in our possession, Discord will be defeated.” Celestia said in a stoic tone of voice, “Maybe we should consider letting the human join our forces, his skill would be very useful.” “Do you judge everypony just by their usefulness?” Luna asked, being agitated by her sister's cold demeanor, “I don’t understand why you are always so cold all the time.” “As I have said several times in the past sister,” Celestia said, “It is for the betterment of the kingdom, I cannot let my emotions or wants get in the way of ruling.” As the two sisters continued to bicker, Arrow couldn’t shake the feeling of familiarity. Going off of what Luna had rambled off to him, then this must have happened over a thousand years ago. This couldn’t be a memory, but then why does this feel so familiar? Arrow looked at the crystal tree and the face of a human stared back as his reflection.