The fire was crackling and slithering in the cold air of the “night”. The day was over, another march through steppes and silent fields. It had been almost a month since they first left Ponyville, and started a walk that never seemed to end. The alicorn had heard a mare saying that each day felt like a year, when you march in never ending dusk.
“A year whose days are long…” murmured Luna into the fire. Her eyes watched the flames dancing, and they felt so bright, in the darkness. Shadows were her domain, and the night was her kingdom. And she made sure to never forget that shade was only the consequence of light and that her pride, her power and throne were always out of sight. The responsibility that was given to her felt overwhelming, something that was beyond her reach, something more suited for her sister.
She felt a gentle tap on the shoulder, and turned around to see the motionless face of Spike. His gaze was full of tiredness and worry; his arms were tensed, like he was ready to swing a punch.
“What is it, Spike?” She asked, not caring anymore to show some kind of eagerness, since everyone else was already fast asleep, huddled together under a big boulder that came out of the grass like an overgrown nail. The resting place was covered by one of Luna’s most prized spell: it used the moisture in the air to create a deafening mirror, effectively shielding them from the eyes, the ears and the nose.
Field was the only one who wasn’t sleeping, and was busy staring the fire.
The dragon sat down beside her and looked for while at the stallion in front of him. Their eyes met for a moment, but neither said anything. Both gazes wandered again at the fire that was dancing freely.
“I just wanted to make sure you were alright. We haven’t got a chance to talk much this whole apocalypse began.” He said nonchalantly.
“Spike, you don’t have to worry about me.” Luna smiled and shook her head lightly. “I’m immortal, I’m used to loss.”
He picked up a chunk of dry grass and threw it into the fire. There was a silence that seemed to last far more than it should have.
“You’re used to see ponies dying. You’re not used to losing somepony…” He finally said, with his eyes still fixated on the blazes.
Luna looked at him with disbelief, and realized she was clenching her jaw firmly. Her wings were tensed at her sides and when she talked her voice came out with a tremble.
“What are you implying, Spike? That since my sister is dead, I’m not apt to guide you? That you’d do a better job? That-“
“You’re doing that again” Spike cut her off, and threw another chunk of grass into the fire. “I thought you were over with blame issues.”
She got up, wings fully open and anger blazing in her eyes. She looked down at him, her horn swirling with magic and ready to vaporize him. Her ears were throbbing, but she could still hear the low whistle of the dragon in front of her and what came from his mouth:
“Look at you, big scary alicorn of the night. You know what’s going to happen if everypony wakes up and find you like this?” He said with a chuckle.
Luna glared at him, rage still seeping through her. Spike didn’t move and kept staring at the fire. Abruptly she sighed, and threw herself on the dusty ground.
“I hate it when you do it! How do you always manage to bring out the worst side of me…” She smiled weakly at the dragon, who now sported an amused grin on his face.
“What I can say, I know you well enough to know what buttons I can, or can’t, push. Who’s the guy?” He used his tail to point discreetly at Field, who was now fast asleep, clearly uninterested in the blazing show of rage his Princess had put on right in front of his eyes.
“Him? I have a few theories. He said his name is Field.”
Spike looked at her, puzzled.
“What’s wrong with that?”
“Spike, Field is the most common name among earth ponies, or at least was in my time. It’s the kind of name you give when you wish to keep the true one for yourself.” She said, her head resting on her front legs.
“I guess you could call that suspicious. Why the sudden interest, then? Feel like cracking a mystery?” He said with a small smile, and poked her side with his finger.
“Well, I guess you could say that. I’m fond of challenges, like learning to speak in a modern fashion. But… I think he’s much like me. Just somepony who’s really, really lost.” She looked at the stallion resting in front of her with fond eyes. Spike knew that gaze well, and he knew who was trying to rip off.
“You know who they think if they ask for a mother. And that’s not you, Luna. They want the Princess.” He said, and threw another block of wood into the fire.
“I am a Princess! I always was. As long as I remember, I ruled the Night. But it was always all about the day, all about… Sorry, I’m slipping into it again. It’s just… No matter how hard I tried, I always felt like I existed just as a contrast. For my sister to really shine, I was needed. Always in the shadows. Always unnoticed… You know Spike, sometimes I find myself forgetting my sister's name, her face, her favorite cake." She told him, at first angry, but gradually softening her voice.
"Mh? Really?" Spike answered her, not really sure on what to say. That last sentence was so strange and random, he didn't know how to actually respond to that.
They stood silent for a moment, before the alicorn started speaking again:
“Did I ever tell you about my student? I had one too, before… being exiled to the Moon. Her name was Twinkle Dawn. She was very talented, much like Twilight Sparkle. However, she was kind of a socialite. She had lots of friends, lovers and was known in all of the Capitol as the mare to have to spice up a get together. Her best friend was a stallion named Finishing Touch. She excelled pretty much at anything, but Finishing Touch was better than her at writing poetry. Mind you, Twinkle Dawn was a genius in every field of knowledge: an accomplished scientist, master wizard, and could even play five instruments perfectly. But Finishing Touch was just the better poet, and everypony at the time knew. Their friendship had started from her asking advice to him, some kind of help to write better. They were always together, laughing and having fun. Unfortunately, one day, Finishing Touch passed away for a sudden sickness. Twinkle Dawn was devastated and cried for weeks. I tried to console her until the day of the funeral, hoping my words would help her bring closure to her pain. However, after the ceremony, she came back to me, with empty eyes. She told me she had been to the wrong funeral without even realizing. She was incredibly meticulous, Spike, she wrote checklists on checklists. And that’s when I realized it.”
“Realized what?”Spike asked, curious.
Luna looked at him.
“You should go back to sleep."
“What’s wrong with you two?” Bright Light asked as he tossed another wood block into the fire. “You have been silent for the entire day.”
Twilight and Kalos looked at each other for a moment. The wyvern spoke first, in his calm and collected voice.
“Dr. Light, we have to talk. Or, actually, I believe you owe Twilight here an explanation.” He pointed at her with one of his tentacles. The unicorn got up and stepped forward, hoping it would show her assertiveness to the stallion. However, he didn’t look fazed at all, but continued to stare calmly at her, his usual slight smirk gone.
“Bright, you’ve done so much for me. You were the only one who decided to be honest with me, regardless of the circumstances. You showed me a world I could’ve never imagined even in my wildest dreams. You saved my life twice and even threw away your career for me. No one had ever done so much just for my sake. But…” She stopped, her eyes darting between the fire and Bright Light, unsure.
“But?” He asked calmly.
“But…It feels like I can’t trust you anymore! You disappear for months, and when you come back you tell me you’ve encountered humans! Humans! Might as well tell me you and Princess Celestia had tea and scones… You presented yourself as a simple researcher, and everyone in the Foundation seems to confirm this, but you know things that you’re not supposed to know. And even though you’re not an agent, you seem awfully calm and collected-“Her voice was starting to rise, but an appendix that now rested on her shoulder told her it was time to let the wyvern talk.
“What we are trying to say, Dr. Light, is that we’re really grateful for everything you’ve done for us, me and Twilight both. But it seems like you know a lot more about this grotesque end of the world that you let on, and you aren’t telling us!”
Bright Light looked at them still, unwavering and not even blinking. Eventually he got up, tossed another block into the fire and stared at it intently. Twilight was going to tell him less nicely to open up to them, but he spoke first.
“I knew I was right to pick you two. You were always the smart ones. Let’s make a deal: Kalos will be completely honest with Twilight, and I will be completely honest with both of you. I mean, it’s not like I’m not hiding something. It’s just that I thought you two weren’t ready. I was partly wrong. For someone who studied friendship, dear Twilight here is surely living up to expectations. She told you everything about her past. How I got her into the Foundation. Her friends. But you’ve not been as sincere, have you?”
Twilight looked at the wyvern, confused, and asked softly:
“Kalos, what does he means by that?”
He started to float backwards, and his tentacles started to wobble. Her eyes started to water.
“Twilight, I…” He stammered.
“Not you too…” She told him, with tears already forming in her eyes. “You lied to me!” She pointed an accusatory hoof at the wyvern.
“I can explain!” He floated forward a bit, one of his appendixes trying to reach Twilight. She stopped just beyond his reach and told him coldly, her eyes still watery and a bit red.
“Go ahead, then. Explain it to me.”
Kalos stopped in his tracks and sighed.
“Look, Twilight. What I told you, how I got into the Foundation… I did it because I really cherished my friendship with you and I thought that if you had known about my real past… “His body was looking somewhat saggy, and she knew it was a sign of mental stress. “I know you think that what you did to your friends was ugly but necessary. That what you did, you did it for the greater good. It’s not the same with me. I was a different wyvern before all of this, Twilight. I wasn’t a police trainee who got drafted by the Foundation’s recruiting officers. I wasn’t even a law abiding citizen of the Wyvern Protectorate. It wasn’t just your common Foundation goon who got me in. It was Dr. Light.”