“Yknow I didn’t expect to be coming back here so soon,” I sigh, staring up at the towers of the Royal Palace. Long shadows cover the square as the sun starts to set behind the castle.
“Oh I knew we should have prepared more!” Twilight panics, fidgeting on her hooves. “Quick, let's run to the library and get all the books about stars we can find!” She goes to take off in the direction of the school, but I stop her by putting my hoof in front of her.
“Easy there, Sparkle. We already established this isn’t a test. The Princess just wants to talk to us. Come on, I know you can do this,” I encourage her, giving her a smile. She nods, taking a deep breath as she follows me to the castle gate. The guards stationed nod to us as we pass, recognizing us well by this point.
We head into the castle proper, to find the courier from earlier waiting for us. The red stallion nods to us. “You’re earlier than expected. The Princess is at the top of the spire,” he says, walking further into the castle. We nod, following behind him.
It’s a silent trip as the stoic stallion leads us through the halls of the castle, until we start ascending the steps of the spire. Twilight and I exchange a look, and she clears her throat. “So uh, you got a name, sir?” She asks tentatively.
The pegasus sighs. “Lieutenant Red Letter. Formerly of the 1st Recon Squadron of the Royal Aerial Guard,” he answers, listing off his name and rank. Seems like we aren’t the first to ask.
“Formerly? What happened?” Twilight inquires further.
“I got promoted. Princess Luna asked Captain Lightning to help her selecting a new personal guard. I was one of the names he put forward, and she picked me,” he replies. His voice is rather flat as he answers.
“You must be a hell of a scout if my Dad put your name forward for that,” I say with a tilt of my head.
Red Letter nods. “Your father is a good leader. Taught me a good bit of what I know. But I only ever did my best.” Our journey ends as we get to the top of the spire. On one side, a large black door with a silver moon etched into it. On the other side, the doors to the balcony are open. Standing at the edge, is Princess Luna.
She’s taller than the last time we say her. Her coat is now a deep blue, and she has a flowing ethereal mane, dotted with stars and constellations of the night sky. The sun sets beneath the horizon, and her horn alights with an aqua energy. Her wings flare, bringing her up into the air as the moon rises in front of us, brighter than I ever recall seeing. The moon rises into the sky, and the Princess gracefully lands back on the balcony.
She turns to us, and Twilight and I bow our heads. “Princess Luna, we are honored to meet you again,” I greet her.
She steps toward us. “You needn’t bow to us, North Star and Twilight Sparkle. You are the new bearers of the Elements of Harmony. As far as we are concerned, you are our equals.”
We raise our heads, and I can’t help but notice stifle and excited squeal. She clears her throat. “We appreciate you saying that, Princess.”
“And we were more than happy to save you. I’ve never seen the night sky look so vibrant before,” I compliment her, looking up at the night sky. The Milky Way expanding out before us, each star seeming even brighter than they were the night before. As if they themselves were celebrating their Princess’s return.
Princess Luna gets a small smile as she looks up as well. “Yes. We were hoping you would be here tonight. It is the first night since our return that we have felt enough of our power return for us to be able to raise the moon once again. Which we have you to thank for.”
“Your thanks really aren’t needed, Princess,” Twilight smiles. “But speaking of which, you said you wanted to speak to us about our battle with Nightmare Moon?”
The Princess of the Night nods. “Yes. But first, come with us to our chambers. We’d like to offer you some tea first.” She says, walking past us. “Lieutenant, you are relieved for the night, thank you.”
Red Letter bows his head. “Send for me if you need anything, Princess,” he says, walking to the balcony and hopping off, gliding into the night. Twilight and I follow the Princess inside. Her horn alights, and the balcony doors close behind us, and the doors to her chamber open in front of us. An open room, with a small library. Floor to ceiling windows, with burgundy curtains. A large bed shaped like a crescent moon to one side, and a tea table with purple sitting cushions around it. A table with a fresh pot of tea waiting for us.
“Please make yourselves comfortable,” she insists, heading towards the table. Twilight and I exchange a look before taking off our saddle bags and setting them by the table. We each take a seat on the cushions. Princess Luna pours the tea into three cups set in front of us, the smell of Earl Grey filling the room. She hovers the tea in front of us, offering a bowl of sugar cubes, as well as a small pitcher of cream.
Twilight and I help ourselves, sipping the tea in front of us. The unicorn lets out a satisfied sigh. “This tea is lovely Princess!”
The alicorn smiles again. “Thank you. It was a favorite pass time of ours. We are pleased to know our skills are still sharp.” She sips her own tea, before adopting a more serious look. “Now, as our letter said, we wished to discuss with you the events of the night you defeated Nightmare Moon.”
I nod. “Where would you like us to start? Do you remember what happened?”
Princess Luna gets a troubled look. “Partially. Most of my time as the Nightmare is,.. Foggy,” She answers, noticeably dropping the royal ‘we’ from her speech. “As if looking at my memories through frosted glass. Start from the beginning, please. And leave nothing out. I need to know everything.”
We nod, and Twilight starts recounting our tale. “Well Princess sent us to organize preparations for the Celebration. That’s how I met the other Element bearers. We gathered for the sunrise, and that’s where Nightmare Moon arrived.”
Luna nods. “This I remember. You were the two who recognized me. Who stood up to me.”
I nod. “Yeah. We grew up hearing stories about Nightmare Moon. Everyone in that room recognized her, they were probably just too shocked to speak up.”
The Princess gets a solum look, but seems to shake it off as she takes another sip of her tea. “Continue. What happened after you entered the Everfree Forest with your friends?”
Twilight nods in understanding. “Well, we made our way through the forest, and eventually got to a cliff…” The two of us continue recounting our story. Of the fall from the cliff, the manticore and the trees, and the serpent Stephen Magnet.
“...and after Rainbow turned down the Shadow Bolts, she repaired the bridge and we headed across to the old castle,” I say, finishing off the last leg of the journey itself.
“Once we got inside, we found the orbs of the first five Elements. North and I tried to activate them, but Nightmare Moon took them, and we got teleported with them,” Twilight continues.
“And that is when you confronted Nightmare Moon?” Luna asks, pouring another round of tea.
I nod. “Yeah. I kept her occupied while Twilight tried to activate the Elements.”
“But I wasn’t able to, and we thought Nightmare destroyed the Elements. Then North tried to convince me to leave him behind, so me and the others could escape,” she says, deadpanning at me.
“Hey it seemed like the only option at the time,” I argue, taking a bite out of a cookie.
Princess Luna nods. “That is very brave of you, North Star. If a bit dramatic,” she smiles.
“Well fortunately for us, it didn’t come to that. Our friends came to help us, sparking the magic of friendship inside me,” Twilight finishes. “And you know the rest from there.””
The blue alicorn nods. “Indeed. That is a truly harrowing tale. I can see why now my sister chose you both as her pupils.”
Twilight shakes her head. “We’ve only ever done our best, Princess Luna. We may have our talents, but we worked hard to get where we are.”
“I can certainly see that,” Luna says with a small smile. “The Elements of Magic and Bravery. They truly could not have picked better wielders.”
“You should visit Ponyville sometime,” I encourage her. “Our friends would love to meet you.”
Twilight nods in approval. “Yeah, we’d show you a great time! And Ponyville is so peaceful at night.”
The Princess lets out a soft laugh. “That is a generous offer. Perhaps some day my little ponies.” Luna sips her tea, a puzzled look on her face, as if debating something.
“Princess Luna? Is something wrong?” I inquire, tilting my head.
Luna seems to break from her thoughts, shaking her head. ‘Oh, no North Star, I am alright.” She stands up from her cushion. “I fear I have kept you both long enough. The hour grows late.”
Twilight and I exchange a look, and then she nods, standing up. “Yes, of course Princess. Thank you, for hosting us.” I stand as well, gathering our saddlebags.
Luna shakes her head. “It is I who should be thanking you. You saved me from the Nightmare, and reunited me with my sister. And I must thank you for entertaining my curiosity.”
“It was our pleasure, Princess,” I smile at her. A thought crosses my mind, the memory of my dream all those weeks ago. I look up at the Alicorn. “Princess Luna, may I speak with you about something?”
The Princess looks down at me, and nods. “Would you mind waiting outside, Twilight Sparkle?”
The purple unicorn nods. “Of course, I’ll see you soon North. And thank you again Princess.” She bows her head, heading out and closing the large black door behind her.
I take a breath. “The night we moved to Ponyville, I had a dream. I was in the throne room of the old royal castle. Nightmare Moon was there…”
Luna hums. “I’d feared as much. I have been monitoring the dreams of you and the other Element bearers. I thought I felt her presence in your mind, but it was faint.”
“She said it was a ‘last act of defiance’ when I asked,” I shrug. “Tried taunting me on some past failures. Said she would be back when I failed my friends…” I trail off, feeling my ear twitch.
She hums. “Yes, that sounds like her. But do not take her words to heart. You are one of the strongest stallions I have ever met. You will not fail your friendships. This I am certain of,” Luna reassures me, placing a hoof on my shoulder. “Take heart, North Star. Your journey has just begun, and I shall watch your growth with great interest. You will do great things.”
I smile up at her thankfully, determination filling my chest. “Thank you Princess Luna. I won’t let you down.”
Princess Celestia looks over the city of Canterlot, watching as the night life of the city begins to awake. Ponies beginning to mill about in the sleepy streets, a far cry of centuries past, when all but the watchers woto sleep with the sun. Her eyes settle on the train station, watching as the last train of the day pulls out of the station, bound for Ponyville. Watching as her precious students leave yet again for their new adventure.
“Your students have much talent, sister. You taught them well,” Luna speaks behind her. Celestia turns, nodding to her sister as she walks up next to her.
“I’ve taught them almost all they know, but their talents are their own. I couldn’t be more proud of them,” Celestia says with a small smile. She looks to her younger sister, seeing a troubled look on her face. “Is something wrong Luna?”
Luna lets out a sigh, looking out over the horizon. “…I’m considering giving your students specialized training.”
Celestia blinks, her eyes going wide. “That’s… surprising. You’ve never been interested in teaching before, Luna.”
“Times have changed it seems,” she responds, a melancholic smile on her face. “Besides, I see potential in them. In our fight-“
“Their fight with Nightmare Moon,” Celestia is quick to correct her, wanting to prevent her sister from associating herself with that dark form.
“Right,” the younger sister nods. “In their fight with Nightmare Moon, North Star used an Anti-Gravity spell against her. A spell I developed myself.”
Celestia nods. “I remember. From what he told me, that spell is how he got his cutie mark.”
“Then I suppose you should inform me on all he has learned,” Luna says. “I need to know the limit of his abilities.”
Celestia nods, following her sister inside. She takes one last look at the sleepy town of Ponyville, so far below. She takes a breath, having faith her precious students are ready for the challenges that lie ahead.