//------------------------------// // Who We Are // Story: From the Eternal Love of a Sister // by Scootareader //------------------------------// Nothing. Just as we are. Just as we have been for many centuries. Who is Luna? What is Luna? She is a good dream for young fillies. She is a means of comfort in the swiftly changing and harsh world of Equestria. Fillies deserve pleasant dreams, and Luna is there to give it to them. Who is Nightmare Moon? What is Nightmare Moon? She is the darkness which resides within the heart of us all. All it takes is a spark to make her disappear. Does that same spark extinguish Luna? The first spark of daylight to creep over the horizon that vaporizes all memories one has made in the night. Just as surely as that spark can make Nightmare Moon disappear, it can make Luna disappear. I have my own body again. We are a young filly, at the age I was when Mother disappeared and I took upon myself the mantle of the night. My body is young. My mind is young. Am I innocent? Knowing what I know, would I go back and do it all again? Is the night mine to rule over, or will I always let the spark of sunlight chase away any memory of me? My eyes look upward to stare myself in the eyes. This is not me. This is Nightmare Moon. “Is there any difference?” Her bored drawl comes out of her. I wince as if struck. “Oh, please. Some silly spark of friendship can’t make me go away.” “But the sunlight shall. The Sun has always banished the shadows created by night.” “Not this shadow.” She seems certain of herself. “Tell me, Luna: Do you remember the eclipse?” “Eclipse? We are not sure what that is. Blocking the view of another?” “Oh, no, no.” She shakes her head for emphasis. “When you gave in to the darkness in your heart, to give yourself over to me, completing who you are.” We reflect on that fateful night. We had risen into the air. The wall behind us crumbled, the Moon rising in front of the Sun. Eclipsing it. Nightmare Moon must have seen my look of realization. “The Moon is just as mighty and glorious as the Sun. We are the shadows She does not touch. We are the things which hide under the bed of the fillies, to creep out at night and terrify them, just as she is the thing which banishes the fears and gives them light. “You must know your place in the world, Luna. You are not your sister, nor will you ever be. You are meant to scare, to harm, just as she is to inspire and heal. It will serve you best to accept me for who I am, not wish for a life you will never have.” I stamp my hoof indignantly on the bleached-white floor beneath us. Everything around us is a bright white, except for Nightmare Moon. “We were not born to wallow in darkness. Is it not our lot in life to bring happy dreams to our subjects? Is that not the task we took upon ourselves when we agreed upon the duties of the Night Princess?” Nightmare Moon lets out a callous laugh. “Is that what you tell yourself to get to sleep at night? That you give ponies good dreams? Oh, please. Their lives manage just as well without you. “I have another question for you. Have you ever heard of Yin and Yang?” Mother used to tell us stories of lost worlds and time-forgotten mysteries. One of these is a story of two ponies, one who went by the name of Yin, and the other by the name of Yang. Yin was a pure white pony, with no markings to flaw her perfectly solid-colored coat or mane. The only thing on her which was not perfectly white was her deep, piercing, black eyes. Yang was the polar opposite: She was jet black with shockingly white eyes. Everything that Yin did, it seemed that Yang did the exact opposite. What Yin created, Yang invariably destroyed; what Yin helped, Yang hindered; what Yin healed, Yang corrupted. So it was the life of these two sisters, to have a symbiosis of duties. Mother asked Celestia and myself which pony was good and which was bad. We both invariably told her that of course Yin was the power of good, and Yang was the evil pony. Mother shook her head, telling us that we had it all wrong. She asked us what the eyes of the ponies told us. At our confused look, she explained what the meaning of their eyes was. “Yin’s body may have been white, but she did what she wanted without thought for what may happen as a consequence. Just think: If she ruled alone, there would be overpopulation, unbearable heat, and very little jobs for ponies whose special talent it is for fixing things that have gone wrong. Her eyes are black because she did what she wanted for selfish purposes, to make herself seem great in the eyes of her people. She cared not for the well-being of her ponies; she only wanted to be loved. “Yang’s body may have been black, but her eyes belied her true intentions: A boundless love for her people that forced her to become the subject of their hate for their own sakes. Without her, Equestria would die of famine, ponies would become lost and confused, and all would cease to exist. She cared not what her people thought of her, only that her people would survive after all was said and done. “It is not enough to have only self-serving good in the world; there must be some evil to save us from ourselves. To know the truth about a pony, you need only look into their eyes. Yin may have looked perfect on the outside, but evident within her eyes was the most selfish pony imaginable; likewise, Yang may have been painted the villain—the destroyer—on the outside, but she had only the love she felt for her subjects in her eyes.” This story leaps quickly to the front of my mind. “Yes, we recall the pony tale.” “I am the white in your eyes, Luna. You are darkness which must exist to be cruel to her subjects so her sister does not doom the world. This is how things are. How they have always been. And you would do well to remember why I exist.” “Why must I choose the ire of my people in order to love them?” This is a familiar lament, though we had not imagined ourselves as Yang. “It is not required that we be hated in order to do what is best for Equestria. My sister has managed for 1000 years, and she is still beloved of her ponies. Is it not so wrong a concept that we might be loved too?” “It is, and it will never be.” She seems certain of herself, filled with righteous anger. “You—we—can manage better than she ever will. We have the love for our people that she will always lack. We are the sister who embraces her subjects at night, bringing them together in the world of dreams. We do not care for distance, or real issues; we will love them in a way which transcends boundaries. “However, we must make the harsh, even cruel decisions in the daylight. If Equestria is to prosper, to become the great nation it has been destined to be, it must be sculpted perfectly. Our sister does not care for her people; she is unable to make the true decisions a leader must make. It is for the best that she be deposed.” “You are wrong, Nightmare Moon.” Now it is our turn to refute this. “My sister has brought many years of growth and prosperity to Equestria. For 1000 years, she has managed without us, and Equestria still stands, stronger now than it was when last we set eyes on it. If there is a pony Equestria needs, it is her.” “Then why are you here? Why have you not given up on this world? Why did you want to escape the Moon?” “We love our subjects. We hope that we may be able to help them, and that someday, they will love us in return.” “Don’t be ridiculous.” She scoffs at us. “You know they will never love you. You are not your sister. You are willing to make the difficult decisions for the greater good. That is something she will never have.” This talking in circles makes little sense. “What are thou even speaking with us concerning?” Nightmare Moon is quiet for several moments, something hanging up her mind. Then she says, “To help you.” We shake our head. “Nay, there is something thou desire from us. We shan’t provide it.” Nightmare Moon looks beseechingly into our eyes. “Luna, I’m a part of you. You aren’t strong enough without me. Don’t do this.” We are confused. “Don’t do what?” Another pause. “Never mind.” She looks to the side, guilt written on her face. Guilt? Over what? Another question comes to our mind. “Nightmare Moon, how didst thou know the full name of Rainbow Dash before it was stated? That there were signs of our return? That Celestia would not be at the Summer Sun Celebration?” She rolls her eyes. “I see what is hidden. I was not trapped within the Moon as you were, so to speak.” “You knew?” My mind is uncomprehending. “You knew what the six Elements represent, do you not? “This makes no sense, Nightmare Moon. You must have foreseen this group of friends rising up to stop your return. You murder ponies; why not just make one of them disappear?” “I am not a murderer!” She stomps her front hooves on the ground indignantly, then she masters herself. “I knew they were coming. I did not want to stop them.” We say nothing, waiting for her to continue. She volunteers nothing more. Eventually, I ask. “Why?” “Perhaps my conscience got the better of me. Ever since I had my own body, there has been this voice of reason encouraging me to do the right thing, making me feel awful when I do the wrong thing. Maybe I let that voice of reason get the best of me, and I let my would-be usurpers defeat me.” She sighs unhappily. “I don’t want to say my other half is wrong, but she is definitely wrong this time.” “We do not understand. We are the voice of reason?” “Were. Now I am yours.” She looks down sadly. “As I’ve always been.” “Reason? You are rotten. Despicable. We have nothing to learn from you.” “And you will soon learn that you are mistaken. “Look into my eyes, Luna.” Nightmare Moon comes very close to us, gazing deeply into my own eyes. “Look at them closely. Remember them forever.” She turns to the side. “And, when you get back, look into a mirror. Perhaps you’ll see those same eyes once more, gazing back at you. Perhaps you won’t try to forget. Perhaps you will be content with who you are. "Nopony knows you better than I. Please don't leave me alone."