Memories Across a Moonlit Month

by Paw Paint

Chapter 2: A Midday Plea

“Princess!”

Princess Celestia stopped and sighed when she heard her name being called, the source of the voice bellowing down the hallway. Among the lit atmosphere of the noon hour, she could see one of her larger little ponies barreling down the red rug.

Just last week, Luna had celebrate the inauguration of her personal nightguard, and was now making good on her promise of progress. It was slow going, reintroducing the bat pony tribe into society-- mostly because other ponies made the process difficult. Canterlot was the leading protestant, with nobility dredging up suspicious old mare’s tales and complaining to their diurnal leader of the murders and treacheries to come. So it was no small relief that the pony racing towards her was one of the few to actually welcome the change.

“Princess Celestia!

With a smile, she greeted him. “Marscapone, how are you?”

He bowed. “In need of a favor, Princess.”

“Oh?” Her highness raised an eyebrow. Marscapone raised his head to look at her with emerald earnest.

“I need to be put on the team for the Gala.”

Her interest piqued, Celestia turned fully to face him. “You know that’s the hardest event to compete for.”

“I know, but with all due respect, I need that spot.”

“May I hear the reason why? I’m not in charge this year, but I can put in a good word for you to the committee.”

Marscapone gave her a sheepish grin. “It all started at the beginning of this week.”

It was Monday, the one of the happiest days of the week for Marscapone. The debut of his cream puffs last night had been a success, and listening to what  Moonlight played was a joy. Given that he was in the kitchen, trying to keep up with the amount of treats that the party’s guests consumed, he didn’t get a chance to check up on why she stopped until later this morning-- during the routine walk to her room. By now it wasn’t necessary, but Mars enjoyed talking to her-- she was bursting with melodic ideas, serene yet cutely flustered at the same time. However, in that particular conversation, Moonlight seemed a bit more flustered than usual. So he cracked a joke, loving the smile she gave while she laughed. Later in the day, he found himself distractedly thinking about her until he almost burned his hoof off.

Now the small afternoon soiree in the Canterlot Gardens was over, so Marscapone, Creme Brulee, and Orange Scone were cleaning up and putting things away. Bru-- a lanky pegasus with a yellowish cream color-- was complaining to Orange about how Princess Luna wanted to replace the night shift team with bat pony cooks from a colony near Los Pegasus.

“--I mean, how does she know that the won’t give her blood or something? Or-”

Mars interrupted. “I doubt it Bru-- a lot of the bat ponies actually here are pretty nice, if you’d just talk to them.”

“I think they’re creepy.” Shuddered Orange- a unicorn with a soft coat true to her name. “Thier wings are unnatural.”

The earth pony of the group scoffed. “And I think that you two are believing the lies that Prince Blueblood practically spews out of his nose.” Bru was gearing up to make a retort-- most likely how his friend was biased because he liked a bat pony-- when a familiar dark grey mare poked her head through the kitchen door.

“Marscapone!”

“Hey Moonlight.” Bru and Orange did their best to ignore the newcomer and continue cleaning.

“I have something to show you!” Pushing her way into the kitchen, Moonlight trotted over to him. “Come on, Forte.” Fortissimo, shielding his sensitive eyes with a dark wing, came in after his companion, holding some sheets in his mouth.

"Mars, this is Fortissimo. He’s my alternate for performances and my cousin.”

Mars extended a hoof. “Hi, it’s nice to meet you.”

Fortissimo transferred the sheets to a wing and took Marscapone’s hoof to shake with fervor. “Back at you. You can call me Forte- Moonlight’s gone on and on about you. Though. with those cream puffs of yours, I can’t say it’s undeserved!”

“Thank you!” In an attempt to bring his friends into the conversation, Mars pointed a hoof. “That’s Creme Brulee and this is  Orange Scone, over by the sink.”

Moonlight trotted up to Orange and stuck out one hoof. “It’s nice to make your acquaintance.”

Orange looked trapped. Grabbing a dish to scrub away at, she telekinetically shook the other mare’s leg up and down. “Erm...yeah-- nice to meet you, I guess.” Her red eyes were glued fearfully to her task, effectively ousting Moonlight from her personal space. Disappointed in his friend for not making a better effort, Mars shook his head. In a dark corner, Bru snorted.

“You said you had something to show me?” Marscapone said with interest. Moonlight seemed glad to stop standing awkwardly near Orange, and made her way back to Forte, taking a sheet  from him.

“I’m planning on singing this at the Gala, and I wanted to know if I should have a piano piece, or the harp accompany it. Forte thinks I should go with the piano piece, but I’m not sure.”

Forte rolled his eyes. “The piano would be perfect!” He exclaimed, flashing his crescendo cutie mark. “It’s a perfect mix between strings and percussion, and would match the mood.”

Moonlight shoulder-bumped him playfully. “You just want piano because playing it is your talent.”

“Why waste perfection?” he nudged back.

She rolled her bright eyes and turned her attention back to Mars. “It’s a duet.”

“Well let’s hear it!” Moonlight raised her sheet and began to sing:

The melody was slow and enchanting, causing the attention from not only Marscapone, but Bru and Orange as well. Forte only enhanced it when he added his voice:

The song continued until the second chorus, where both ponies abruptly dropped their sheets.

Blinking, as if released from a spell, Orange asked: “Why’d you stop?”

Moonlight gave a shy smile. “I can’t continue without knowing whether to play the piano or the harp.”

Suprisingly, Bru spoke up-- “Why not do both? There’s two of you, so it shouldn’t be a problem.”

The dark mare looked at him, a little bewildered at his interest. “I’ll have to move the schedule for the night around-- but maybe that would be best. Thank you!”

“Uh-huh.” The three cooks watched Moonlight and Forte flutter out the kitchen, in high spirits and chattering excitedly for the night’s performance. Marscapone looked expectantly to Bru.

“Okay, okay, so maybe they’re not all bad-” The pegasus was about to say more when a pony from the post office bust through the door.

“Telegram for Mascarpone!”

“It’s Marscapone.” he corrected, taking the piece of paper. With his two friends peering over his shoulder, the stallion read the message in disbelief. “My mother is coming for a visit…”

Bru patted his shoulder, while Orange gave him a hug. “I feel for you, bro.”

Celestia trotted onward, analyzing Marscapone’s story as he followed beside her. “and am I correct in assuming that your mother visiting was a bad thing?”

Mars looked a the ground. “She-- she’s a…..racist.” He affirmed with a groan. “She’d always thought that the earth ponies were the superior tribe-- because we’re usually the strongest, and we grow the food. Ever since Dad died, it’s only gotten worse, like she blames the rest of the world for his death. I love her, but-”

The day-bringer sighed. “She’s set in her ways? I’m afraid I don’t understand how this pertains to you being put on the Gala team.”

“Weeellll….”

Marscapone’s mother had arrived on Tuesday, and made her beloved son a feast to come home to after work. It was now Friday, and while Mars could never tire of her squooshing his cheeks and nuzzling his ears, Lemon Zest did have a detrimental effect on his hard-earned social status. Constantly berating ponies of other tribes milling about Canterlot, a lot of ponies began to distance themselves away from Mars and his mother. Even his very best friends, Bru and Orange, began to avoid him, afraid of the slashing tongue his mom possesed. Mars could understand their distance, and appreciated the occasional efforts to cheer him up, but to see all the hard work gone into his reputation-- it was mix of feelings he couldn’t quite understand.

 Moonlight, the brave little thing, still visited him in the mornings, though when Lemon’s head poked around a corner, she was quick to disappear. The one good thing that came out of all the trouble was the poem she presented him with, hoof-written by herself, Orange, Bru, and Forte, stating how they still appreciated his friendship. Nonetheless, Marscapone strove for the mornings in which he and Moonlight were able to talk alone, having missed her events to spend time with his mom.

“...It was during the reign of Discord. Our ancestors were part of the pegasi generation that tried to stand up against him. He captured them and--” She struggled to find the right phrase. “got creative. When he was defeated they returned to their true form, but their children  retained the curse the parents passed on. Eventually, because nopony wanted to be reminded of Discord’s rule, they were ousted from society. It only grew worse with Nightmare Moon-- most ponies believed that our tribe supported her.”

]She currently was flying alongside Marscapone in the garden, as the chef got some early morning prep work done for yet another garden party.

“Did they?”

“No. Though we found comfort in the dark, away from other ponies, our ancestors understood the importance of a balance between night and day.” Moonlight stared intensely at an egg beater, cranking the handle in wonder. “Nowadays, every pony is pretty excited to be moving back into society. Even if we do most things during the night."

“Marscapone!” Mars lifted his head to see and aging mare trotting happily towards him. Moonlight quickly took her leave, having experienced this particular mare’s crass denouncement a couple of days before. Marscapone felt more than a little crestfallen.

“Hey Mom.” He smiled at her, a chestnut red earth mare with greying golden hair and stern ice blue eyes. “How are you?”

“Just fine. Was that bat pony bothering you? It’s enough that my poor colt is forced to work for feather brains and stickheads all day!” Lemon squished his cheeks and kissed him on the nose. “It’s a good thing I told ‘em all off Tuesday, the rotten-”

Marscapone took her hooves off his cheeks and into his own. “Mom, stop. I know you’re looking out for me, but many of these ponies are my friends. And-- and you’re driving them away. I’m asking you, please, stop doing this to me.”
His mother rested in his arms, bewildered. “What do you mean?”

“I mean that you’re way of thinking is- is wrong.” Mars averted her gaze, voice laced with desperation. “While I was growing up, you taught me that earth ponies were superior-- when I reached Canterlot-- I- I looked like an idiot. It wasn’t until I was beaten down and without a job that I realized that all tribes are equal-- it’s why the princesses embod the jointness of the original three. Serving other ponies of all kinds and making them happy is my life, and I love to do it-- no matter what they look like, what they eat, or what they wear. Please-- I’m begging you, life is better when you don’t hate everypony based on appearances or a feud with a sister who just happened to have a horn on her head.” He inhaled to continue. “I know you don’t like her, but I already promised Moonlight Sonata that I’d be there for her Gala performance. She a good pony with lots of talent and-”

“And she’s obviously manipulating you, along with the rest of the magic users in this creator-forgotten city! We might have to do something to fix that.” Mars blanched as his mother ripped away from his grasp and began to pace. “I won’t have some melodramatic, high-maintenance, hussy control my son! Oh, no!”

Caught up in the thrall of emotions, he cried out “And maybe I have feelings for her!”
His mother stopped stiff. “What?!”

“And-- and maybe I want to explore that feeling more! Maybe-- maybe I want to be to her what Dad was to you; kind, caring, patient and-”

“And it sort of exploded from there. She banned me from going to the Gala. Or else she’d disown me.” He hung his head low, distraught. “I don’t want to break that promise to Moonlight, but I don’t want to cut ties with my mom.”

“So where ever did you get the idea to solve the problem this way?” Celestia watched her chef amble nervously beside her.
“...Discord?” Mars bit his lip in anticipation of a rebuke. “He said..

“You should be able to do whatever you want, whenever you want! You should be able to eat fermented apples till you see parasprites if you wanted to!” The draconequus circled around the pony he’d found in low spirits in the hallway. “She may be your mother, but you’re a grown pony!”

Marscapone didn’t bother to raise his head. “I can’t leave my mother alone like that. Even if she did cut the ties, I’d still feel terrible. She has nopony else."

Discord snorted in impatience. “Well-- weeellll…” He snapped his claws in his own brilliance. “Get a position of the Catering Team for the Gala! The way you can’t miss the performance and your dear mother wouldn’t be able to fuss-- simple because you’d have to be there.It’s foal proof!”

Celestia rolled her eye. “I’m going to have to talk with him later.” Her attention back on Mars,, the little pony she’d grow up so much, she asked, “Are you sure this is the way to go about things?

“I’m sure-- It’s the only way to please everypony.”

“It’s a dangerous place to walk, on top of a fence. I’ll put in a good word for you to the committee, but after the Gala, you simply must find a permanent solution to your problem. Even so, I can’t assure you a spot on the team."

Mars perked his ears. “Who’s on the committee?”

“Some of the best and worst individuals in Equestria.”