//------------------------------//
// Moon to Your Mother, Son 
// Story: Urohringr 
// by Imploding Colon 
//------------------------------//

	"And all I'm saying is would it kill you to try seasoning something for once?" Josho asked.

"Seasoning isn't the issue!" Ebon Mane grumbled from where he stirred a pot on the far side of the kitchen.  "I'm trying to ration all of our solid foods!  That's why I've cooked so much soup over the past few days!  We've got plenty of that to go around!"

"Right.  And sprinkling a little bit of hay garlic over it would kill... who, exactly?"

"You're not going to want seasoning unless you're able to eat a full plate of pasta or oats again, trust me!"  Ebon grumbled.  "You know, at least the other members of the crew understand the situation we're in, but you're the one who keeps going at my jugular."

"But seriously, do you ever taste your own stuff, buddy?"

"Yes!  As a matter of fact, all I do is taste!" Ebon rattled a ladle against the edge of the soup pot he was stirring in.  "I don't even get to nibble much these days!  I dunno—maybe it's a little thing called 'selflessness!'  I'd much rather you guys eat since I'm so darn worried about everypony starving!"

"Easy for you to say.  I don't think I've ever seen you have a bite of your own stuff—like—ever."

"Grrrghhh... You know what?  Since you're such an expert on the whole matter..."  Ebon turned, frowned, and shoved the ladle into Josho's chest.  "You make the soup, ya big talking sofa cushion!"

"Oh come on, don't get all rotten princess on me.  That's Eagle's job."

"And you pretend to be the expert on that too!  Well I've got news for you!"  Ebon stomped his hoof and shouted, "You're not!"

"There isn't exactly a line for job applicants there, pal."

"Nnnngh!"  Ebon tossed his hooves and stomped towards the stairwell.  "I'm going out!"

"Out where?  There isn't much 'out' to be had," Josho said.

"Yeah, cuz you keep filling up the darn airship with your fat!"

"Good one there, slick."

"Oh hush!"

Once Ebon was gone, Josho sighed, rolled his eyes, and hesitantly approached the steaming pot of soup.  "Congratulations, old stallion," he muttered aloud.  "Tomorrow's breakfast holocaust is in your hooves now..."





Ebon marched up the stairwell.  Near the entrance to the cold upper deck, he sat in place, shivering.  A burning frown ripped across his face, and with a snarl he bucked the doorframe several times.  "Nnngh!  Grghhh!  Hnnngh!"

Slumping against the frame, he panted and panted, then gripped his skull with quivering hooves.

"Help me, mother.  I'm going insane.  At this rate, I'm going to... going to..."

"...I stitched her this really snazzy coat, Your Highness.  She really likes it.  Well... I can only assume she likes it, because she's used it constantly and hardly takes it off..."

Ebon's ears twitched.  He turned, gazing down the open deck under moonlight.

Flakes of snow fluttered past Eagle Eye's figure as he stood along the port side railing, staring up at the pale night sky.  A calm smile graced his lavender face, and he had his hoodie pulled down around his silken mane.

"It's made out of leather and canvas seams.  Don't worry, your highness.  The leather didn't come from anything that... uh... speaks."  Eagle Eye gulped.  "I mean, I've kind of gathered from Rainbow Dash how Equestrians feel about that sort of thing.  I really didn't mean any offense, and as a matter of fact I was kind of frightened she wouldn't want the jacket, but it fits her wonderfully and she's used it to warm herself while scouting the Frozen Sea ahead of us.  So... seems to be win-win in the end.  I'm... kind of proud of the stitching job I did on it too, but I digress."

Eyebrow raised, Ebon slowly trotted out of the stairwell and towards the stallion.  He weathered the chill of the high winds, instead focusing on the words coming from Eagle's muzzle as his breath vapors twinkled in the moonlight.

"Rainbow Dash does so much to protect us and to see that we make it over this passage safely.  She's selfless that way.  But I think she's a little too selfless at times.  The poor mare has... so much weighing on her.  I mean, sure, she always has.  But a lot of really bad stuff has happened lately, and I think she feels super guilty for it.  This might be why she's distanced herself from her closest friends, including me... and n-now you.  Please, Your Highness, don't take it the wrong way.  She still loves you and everypony back in Equestria.  I'm certain of it."

"Uhm..."  Ebon shuffled to a stop and politely cleared his throat.  "I.. I-I apologize for interrupting, but..."

Eagle Eye turned and looked over his shoulder.  He smiled gently.  "Heya, Ebon.  Chilly night, isn't it?"

"Oh, sure.  Makes you wonder why a stallion's standing out here on his lonesome... talking to the snow."  He squinted.  "Just... who are you talking to, anyways?"

"Oh... uhm..."  Eagle Eye bit his lip and fidgeted where he stood.  "Princess Luna."

"Really?"

"Well... kind of, sort of."

"Cuz I thought... well..."  Ebon glanced towards the crawlspace at the open cockpit.  "Don't you need the pendant around Rainbow's neck to open communication?"

"I just figured that maybe there's enough enchantment in the moonlight itself for her to hear me, you know?"  Eagle Eye smiled softly.  "It's the first full moon in a month, after all."

"Rainbow didn't let you get a word in when it was her turn to talk?"

Eagle winced openly.

With a blink, Ebon grimaced.  "She... she did talk with Luna, didn't she?"

"I... I don't think so, Ebon."

"But... but th-that's crazy!"  Ebon stammered, pretending to glare daggers through the top deck of the Jury.  "Doesn't she have tons of ponies waiting at home to hear what happens to her?!  They'll think that she's dead or something!"

"Would that be any further from the truth?"

Ebon opened his mouth, lingered, then sighed.  "Eagle Eye..."

"I can't undo the decisions that Rainbow Dash makes—even the stupid ones."  Eagle Eye gazed back at the lunar glow in the sky.  "That's why I'm hoping there's a chance Luna can hear me enough as it is."

Ebon shuffled towards him.  "That's... uh... that's kind of a stretch, don't you think?"

"Mmmm... not really."  Eagle gazed at Ebon with a warm smile.  "Haven't you ever wanted to reach someone you care about so much that you'll say anything to them, even if you know they may never receive your words?"

Ebon instantly paled.  His ears folded back as he hung his head.

"Hey..."  Eagle placed a hoof on his shoulder.  "Don't look sad.  We've all been there."

Ebon gulped, murmuring with a wilted voice, "Really...?"

"Sure.  I'm willing to bet even Luna's been there too.  That's why I'm trying to get my words to her.  Who knows—maybe Rainbow's pendant being so close by will let her at least hear us, even if we can't hear her.  I'd rest better knowing she wasn't so worried about Rainbow's situation."

"If she found out, wouldn't she have a reason to be?"

"Not everything is horrible, Ebon," Eagle Eye said with a soft smile.  "You're here, aren't you?"

"Uhhhh..."

"Princess Luna, I want you to meet Ebon."  Eagle pulled Ebon closer with a side hug, smiling up at the moon.  "You've met him before, but not like this.  Ebon's my bestest best friend on the whole Jury—and in the whole world, for that matter!"

Ebon blinked, his muzzle hanging open.  "Best... fr-friend?"  His burgundy cheeks reddened slightly.  "But I thought Josho—"

"So now I have a stallion who's like a father to me, a mare who's like a mother to me, a mare who's like a sister..."  Eagle Eye winked aside.  "And a darn good cook who makes me smile and feel full."

"Heh... eheheh..."  Ebon Mane nodded with an awkward smile.  "Yeah, I guess I do do that, don't I?"

"Pssst..." Eagle leaned in, whispering.  "Don't tell me, tell her!"

"Oh?  OH!  Ahem..."  Ebon shivered a bit.  Blaming it on the cold, he nevertheless leaned in and tilted his muzzle towards the moon.  "Uhhh... hello, Princess Looney."

"Luna."

"Right.  Luna.  Uhm... it's nice to speak with you again.  I dunno if you can really hear us like EE's saying, but the truth is he's totally right about Rainbow.  She could use some help.  I mean, we're her friends n'all, but I don't think she's going to listen to us much.  What she needs to hear from is you.  You're a piece of her home, and the thing that gives her the courage to keep flying."

Eagle looked at Ebon.

Ebon was shuddering.  He murmured, "We all feel lost from time to time, and it's easy to hide within ourselves.  But it's so much better being in the light, so long as we have the ability to seize it.  And you seem to harbor so much light, Your Highness.  Please... shine on Rainbow Dash.  She really needs to believe again.  Believe in what?  Well, everything, I guess.  Goddess knows she's given us so much to believe in.  Now it's her turn... you think?"

Eagle Eye smiled and gazed up at the moon.  "My friend Ebon likes to write letters a lot, so forgive his wordiness."

Ebon hissed, "Don't tell her that!"

"Why not?" Eagle hissed back.  "It's not like letter-writing is illegal in Equestria!"

"Neither of us know that!"

"She's not going to behead you, Ebon.  You're safe," Eagle Eye winked, and the next part sort of trickled out.  "You're always safe."

Ebon looked his way, or at least his head did.  His eyes suddenly had to avoid Eagle's.

The unicorn shrugged it off, tilting his gaze back at the moon.

Silence.

"You gonna tell her anymore?" Ebon asked.

"I dunno..."  Eagle Eye shifted on three legs, his left forelimb still resting on Ebon's shoulder.  "You can only say so much before talking a princess' head off."

"Are you... an expert on princesses or something?"

"Hardy har.  Been talking to Josho?"

"Pfft.  Barely."

"I know, right?"

"I wonder what kind of desserts they serve in the palace where Luna lives."

"Or the seamstresses she hires."

"Seems too magical a home for a badflank pegasus like Rainbow."

"I dunno..." Eagle Eye smiled.  "I think it just fits."

Frost lingered between them, numbing their skin.  This might explain why Eagle didn't notice at first that Ebon was leaning his head against his shoulder.

"Hmmm?"  Eagle glanced aside.  "You cold?"

Ebon shivered and his teeth were chattering.  "No," he muttered.  "Not r-really..."

Eagle merely nodded.  With a graceful smile, he pulsed a wave of mana into his horn, performing a basic warming spell.  A lavender aura bathed the two, and Ebon's shivers settled somewhat.  He didn't stop leaning against the stallion, though.

Silence.

"Princess Luna?"  Ebon murmured.  "You've got a darn pretty moon, girl."

Eagle giggled vaporously into the night.