A night wanting to forget.
Disclaimer: Well, I’m really glad with the response I got from the first chapter. I only hope to continue to live up to doing well for this fic.Anyway, here’s the next chap.
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Luna smiled awkwardly at the passersby, convinced that this had been a very good idea.
After a few hours into night court where no pony showed up once again, she decided to skip out and go have some fun!! For tonight, she figured to try something a little different: having fun on the same level as her subjects.
“Besides, it’s not like any ponies even going to show up for the evening…just as no ponies showed up at all for the last five days” she grumbled to herself in bitterness. Honestly, when you had no pony around save for your guards who would not even talk with you casually, things tended to become boring really fast.
Which is why for tonight, she needed some excitement.
In order to do this, she cast a spell that made her look like a regular unicorn to any pony that looked at her, that way she would be treated like a normal part of pony society.
While most of the establishments after dark were pretentious as Tartarus, a few places were more down to earth. So she figured the Frosty Quoi, would be a good place to go for the evening. She knew that this was abit irresponsible on her part, but she honestly needed a night where something different happened!!
Approaching the Frosty Quoi, a wide grin split Luna’s face at the sight of the long line of ponies. She bopped her head up and down from the pounding music coming from within. Getting into the VIP line, Luna couldn’t help but feel a sliver of excitement race through her. “I can’t believe I’m doing this! The last time I snuck out of work in order to have fun was...was...oh I can’t remember, it was so long ago.”
“Name” requested the large and imposing bouncer stallion, allowing other big named ponies into the club.
“Prin...” Luna started to state easily, before clamping a hoof over her mouth in alarm. She couldn’t announce who she really was!! If she did, she’d end up outing herself and every pony would change how they acted. They would get nervous, and perhaps even scared. Some ponies nowadays still associated her as Nightmare Moon, despite how much she had changed.
“Worse of all, Tia would find out,” Luna thought, almost panicking on the spot at the image of a foreboding Celestia, looming down at her with a gaze of severe disappointment. No doubt she would never hear the end of it for a very long time from her big sister, and Tia would use it as ammunition against her whenever they got into an argument about responsibility.
Coughing several times, Princess Luna responded, “Errr…Sha..Shady umm..Deiv!!! Yes umm, Shady Deiv is my name”, as she had pulled that name outta her flank.
Raising a brow at the name, the bouncer looked over the list he held, shaking his head. “I don’t see you on the list, regular line please,” he instructed.
Indignation filled up Luna, as she opened her mouth to demand in the royal canterlot voice that she be given entrance, she remembered. Reaching into her satchel, she removed a pendant that displayed her cutiemark, proving she had connections to the princesses.
The bouncer changed his tune on the spot, nervously stating “O..Oh!! Y..you’re connected to…p..please go inside,” he smiled weakly, stepping aside to let Luna pass. However, as she started to pass, a lecherous smile came to the bouncer’s face as he patted his hoof against Luna’s departing flank, not about to resist patting the flank of a royal connected pony.
“HOW DARE THOU TOUCH THY…” bellowed Luna, her booming voice knocking the bouncer off of his hooves before realizing that others were now looking at her. Letting out a weak laughter, she coughed, ”A… ahem, I mean, that was very rude, d..don’t..goodbye” before she hastily made her way inside, leaving the stunned bouncer by himself.
Luna was immediately greeted by blinding multi-colored lights!!
The air was thick from most of the ponies dancing to the beat provided by Vinyl Scratch, who was performing for tonight. The mirror ball above was showering every pony in a mixture of colors, a positive source of energy bursting through the air.
Away from the dance floor sat a bar, where some ponies were having fun getting themselves wasted and chatting it up.
Beaming, Luna announced happily “Huzzah! This is a place I can truly appreciate…and that appreciates the night life given by me,” whispering that last part to herself.
Making her way onto the dance floor, Luna’s eye’s swept it as she observed at how some ponies were dancing. Some seemed to be professionals at it, and others were just doing whatever the hay they felt like. She was unsure herself on how good she was at dancing since it had been a while.
Closing her eyes, she moved her body to the beat, at first feeling a bit stiff. As time went on though, it started to feel more and more natural. “This feels great!! No wonder everypony comes here at night.” she smiled to herself, realizing she needed to come to the dance club more often.
“What are you doing?”
Opening her eyes to the sound of the speaker, Luna suddenly realized that despite the music still playing, ponies had stopped dancing and were now staring at her strangely. “That’s strange, why are they looking at me like that?” thought Luna, as she slowly stopped her dancing.
No pony said a word as the small crowd continued to stare at her, a few of the dancers coughing from the awkwardness. “Where did you learn to dance like that” asked some pony from the crowd.
“Why, I merely mimicked how my friend Twilight Sparkle danced. Why do you ask” responded Luna to the crowd. Instantly, a few snickers of amusement rose from the crowd, prompting Luna to rub the back of her mane. “Odd, why are they laughing?” she thought to herself, as the dancing slowly resumed. Though strangely enough, they seemed to be keeping away from her now.
“Perhaps I’m such a good dancer that they’re jealous.” thought Luna, praising her “amazing” dancing skills. She had always been a fast learner after all, since she had been able to readjust into society after 1000 years.
“Or perhaps they’re laughing at how foolish you look.” hissed the darkness.
“Silence” hissed back Luna, but she kept an eye open as she danced, seeing how some ponies were still looking at her funny and indeed still laughing. Feeling a light blush come to her cheeks, she muttered “P...perhaps it would be best if I stepped off the dance floor for the moment,” she convinced herself. “I’m getting a bit thirsty anyway” she told herself.
Retreating over towards the bar, she rubbed her flushing cheeks and tried to calm herself down. She tried to ignore the nervous sensation in her stomach, but she couldn’t deny it. Those ponies had been laughing at her. Laughing at her!!
“T’was all in good humor, they..they didn’t mean anything by it,” she told herself weakly, shakily ordering a moonlight swirl from the bar. With drink in hoof, she tried to ignore her embarrassment, but some pony wouldn’t let it go…
“How dare they?! How dare they laugh at us like we’re some kind of joke?! You’re far too lenient Luna. You need to show these ponies that you will not take anything from them. Do you want your subjects to believe that you are ruled by them, instead of vice-versa” demanded her other half.
“What would you suggest? Remove the tongues of every pony in this place that dared use it to laugh at me” snorted Luna in response towards Nightmare’s dribble. Raising a hoof, she quickly cut off “Don’t answer that. I came here tonight as a regular pony, not a princess.”
“I’m telling you, it’s not fun. It’s just sooo boring”!
Perking her ears up at the raised chatter of some of the other customers, Luna turned her head and smiled in surprise. A few of the royal night guards that were off duty seemed to be enjoying themselves here, as three of them were all gathered away from her.
“I mean every single night, you know what exciting stuff happens? Nothing!! Absolutely nothing,” complained one guard, downing his drink.
His buddies slapped him lightly on the back, the unicorn one stating “Well what do you expect? Hardly anything exciting happens around this time of night. If I could get a job coming here, and having fun all the time; I’d probably never wanna leave” he joked playfully.
“Yeah, maybe..seriously Star Shower, I feel like I’m going bonkers working night shifts. I’ve tried too many times to count now to change shifts, but Captain Shining Armor just doesn’t listen. He claims that “Canterlot can sleep soundly at night due to my sacrifice” he mockingly stated.
“Tch, well at least Shining Armor and Canterlot are both getting some decent sleep. My shift’s seem to be getting longer and longer Swift Shot” complained Star, chugging down his own glass. Raising a brow at the third one, he asked “Say why haven’t you said anything yet, Meteor?”
Meteor Crash just glowered bitterly at his drink in silence, the pegasus raising his head up before commenting “I tell you, it just isn’t fair. All of our friend’s get the easy and more active day time shift whilst we’re stuck guarding that...that monster.”
Luna’s eye’s widened, turning her face away to try and hide her hurt from the world.
“Yeah, I know what you mean. I know that she’s supposed to be all reformed and stuff; but how are we to know that it’s not just an act, huh” Star suggested, beckoning for his friends to lean in closer.
“Maybe it’s all just a ploy, pretending to be good, get into the good graces of her sister and then try to take control of Equestria” offered Swift thoughtfully.
Meteor slammed his mug down against the bar, shutting up his friends for a second. “All I know is that all this constant kissing up, and being forced to show respect to some pony who had once been, and probably still is a devious, cruel sneak, is really getting under my fur. At least Celestia is somepony you can actually trust, and those fools who actually get bought by Luna’s sob story on being possessed by her own bitterness can shove it.”
“Yeah, guarding the night princess is a pain.”
“I bet that during the day time when she’s supposedly asleep, she sits in her chambers and continues to plan on how to overthrow her sister.”
To find out that this was how some of her own guard ponies even viewed her was devastating. They whispered lies, and slander behind her back. Despite all the good she had been doing, and how she had been working hard to change the views of others; they saw her as a villain.
“No, no, no..I..I would never do such a thing. I can be trusted” insisted Luna, whispering to herself. She clamped her hooves over her ears in an attempt to drown out the hurtful things they said, but she could still hear them.
The cruel laughter of the group echoed throughout Luna’s ears. At the moment, she should have felt pain, and sadness that came from not knowing who on her staff saw her as a kind ruler. She should have felt guilt stricken from not doing a better job.
All she felt was a dark ball of anger building within her.
“Ungrateful louts…I do the best I can. I make each night more beautiful than the last. I do everything I can so they won’t see me as some sort of fiend…this is the thanks I get” Luna angrily whispered, her horn starting to glow an ominous blackish-purple color.
“Fools!! They will suffer tenfold for spewing such pain. If these whelps will not love us, they will fear us instead” hissed the darkness, taking advantage of the moment and of Luna’s anger.
“W..wait” Luna cried out in protest, realizing her mistake too late as her horn was about to fire at the jeering guards. Turning her head away, her horn fired a beam that struck a nearby table. A fruit punch bowl which had been lying on the table was sent flying into the air and…
Silence filled the entire club, the music stopping as every pony turned to stare at the strange spectacle. Lying on the floor, completely soaked was the distraught looking Luna, all eyes on her.
For a moment, no pony said a word. Than a snicker came from the crowd, followed by another. The snickering was contagious as every pony started to do it, before it turned into full blown jeering laughter.
The whole world was spinning, and it didn’t seem to be stopping. Everywhere she turned her head, all she could see were more ponies laughing at her. They thought she was a joke, and something to serve as their amusement.
Lowering her head to hide her crying, Luna’s horned glowed its normal color, and with a flash of light; she was gone, leaving every pony confused on who this mare was.
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Reappearing in her private gardens, Luna allowed her tears to fall as she dropped her disguise. That had to have been one of the most humiliating moments of her life! Those things her guards been saying about her, calling all those hurtful things about her, laughing at her misery.
“I thought..I thought I was a good princess. I thought that I was making most ponies happy” she wept bitterly.
“You see, this is why you need me. Why we need each other..” whispered the voice in an almost comforting tone.
Luna tried to ignore the voice, but as time went on, she found herself wanting to hear more.
“You’re alone Luna. Apart from Twilight Sparkle and her friends, your sister, Cadence, and Shining; who else cares about you” continued the voice, going for the low blow “You claim that you hate me, but I think you need me now more than ever, and do you know why? It’s because apart from those I listed; you don’t have any other friends.”
Luna flinched; Nightmare’s word’s cutting deeper than a knife. Some ponies stargazed, and partied at night. They went out for walks, celebrated Nightmare Night. They enjoyed the nights she made..but didn’t enjoy Luna herself.
“I..it’s not tr-” she tried to argue.
“Don’t fool yourself Luna, they don’t care about you because they don’t love you the same way they love your sister” Nightmare cut her off. Nightmare’s taunting haunted her night princess up to the point where it felt like she was in front of her.
Luna couldn’t think of any retort, slumping her head down in defeat. “It’s true, they don’t love me…” she whispered sadly. Around her, a fog of darkness started to come together, her sadness bringing something forth. Slowly, the fog started to take shape, feeding off Luna’s depression. It appeared that she would be lost in her own misery.
Fate had other plans, it seemed.
A bright flash of light blinded Luna, snapping her out of her depressed state as the fog vanished just as fast as it had appeared. Raising her hooves to block out the light, she asked in an alarmed tone “W..what is this?!”
As the light slowly vanished, Luna’s vision cleared up. Narrowing her eyes, they widened in a mixture of awe and wonder at the..thing standing twenty yards away from her.
It was tall, whatever it was. It stood on two instead of four. Its body was covered head to toe in some sort of armor that consisted of red, gold, and black coloring. Instead of hooves, it had five digits on each of its..whatever they were. Finally, resting in one of its things, was a strange looking weapon that looked like a mix between a large key, and a sword.
Having forgotten her own sorrow for the moment, Luna gazed at the creature in wonder. Questions filled her head.
What was it? Where did it come from? Why was it here?
She watched as the creature slowly looked left and right, not knowing what to make of where it was. She couldn’t see it’s face due to its helmet, but the way it was looking made it look..lost, confused even.
For a few moments, she kept her distance, as she wanted to see what it would do. But when she saw it slump in an almost..sad state, she felt herself wanting to get closer to it. Her sudden want to go talk to it overtaking her caution.
Perhaps this mysterious creature was lost, and lonely.
Perhaps, it needed a friend.
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“W..where…am…I” a voice echoed from the helmet. It sounded male, young…the owner being in his late teens, early twenties. What had happened to it?
Slowly, it raised its hand to its helmeted head as it tried to remember something, anything at all. After a few moments, a few things came to its fractured mind. “Terra…keyblade…light and darkness…” it thought, unable to piece together anything else.
A wave of gloominess washed over it, feeling angst as it lowered its head. Why couldn’t it remember anything else apart from those things? Terra..was..was that its name?
His name?
Slowly, he raised his keyblade in a curious manner. He could remember about light and darkness and..how they existed in all. He could remember that a keyblade was a weapon that was used to do battle against darkness..but nothing more. Why?
GREETINGS!!! WOULD THOU WANT TO BE THY…
A booming voice through him off, as he whirled around and stared at a strange looking creature. Narrowing his vision, the first thought that came to his mind was “A winged…and horned…horse? Yes, a horse with wings and horns”. Its pelt was a dark blue, its mane a lighter shade, transparent and almost wavy. It had a strange symbol on its rear of the moon.
It looked sheepish, perhaps embarrassed for its loud entrance. “I mean greetings. Who are you” she asked gently.
Terra just stared at the pony creature silently.
“…Ummm, are you lost and…do you need a friend” she offered in a friendly manner.
Cocking his head in a manner similar to a confused puppy, It..Terra stared in a curious manner at the talking horse. A..a friend? For a moment, his hazy and fractured mind brought forth an image…an image of a young boy in his mid-teens…a woman in her late teens…and then the images vanished just as fast.
Reaching out towards the creature, he could sense light and darkness within it. Yet..something was there. He could feel a lingering presence within the horse, a darkness that felt..familiar somehow. It felt similar to…
Xehanort…
Suddenly, an overwhelming wave of anger washed over him at the mentioning of the name. He didn’t know why this was, but the name brought forth great anger within him. This creature’s darkness felt similar almost exactly like Xehanorts darkness, whoever it was.
“Xehanort” he repeated louder, grinding his imagery teeth in fury. His armored hands clenched rage. He remembered the name Xehanort, and it was because of feeling this creature’s darkness.
Was this creature Xehanort?!
Luna reached out towards it outstretched hand, her smile having washed away her angst. It must have felt the same way as her, and wanted a friend. Her smile vanished when it raised, and pointed its weapon at her.
“W..what are you doing” she inquired, nervousness sweeping into her as she took a step back.
“Xehanort…Xehanort” growled Terra angrily, an urge to rip this horse…Xehanort into pieces. Leaning back, he charged towards the creature with his keyblade held high.
“XEHANOOOOORT” roared Terra furiously, filled with a desire to tear Xehanort to pieces!!