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// Remissio, Insidiae, et Deceptio 
// Story: In Tenebrae Invenit (In Darkness Found) 
// by Jet Howitzer 
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(Here is the third installment in In Tenebrae Invenit.  Please, enjoy.)

With a groan you wake up, and feel the warmth of Moonbeam snuggled against your side.  Just as you’re about to get up to begin your daily routine you remember that Luna gave you the day off.  You let out a content sigh, and you drift back off to sleep.
You wake again a few hours later, and the first thing you notice is an absence in the bed.  You realize that Moonbeam is no longer there, so you grudgingly push yourself up, and sit up in bed.  You slowly crawl out of bed, and you make your way to the bathroom.  You take a shower, and then you stare at yourself in the mirror.  Your strikingly blue eyes steal your attention for a moment, and then you look over the rest of your face, and body.  Your gray coat and red mane go well together, and you are just vain enough to pose in front of the mirror.  However, your eyes do roam to the one mark on your body.  A small patch of pink fur in your armpit.  It’s hardly noticeable, but you will always remember it, and the situation that came with its appearance.
A sudden giggle shatters your fantasy, and you look to see Moonbeam standing in the doorway.  “Really?  You come here just to disturb me while I get ready in the morning?”
“No, I came here to bother you.  And it looks like I did a real good job of that!”  Before you can respond she runs off, laughing.  You laugh as well, glad to have her around.
With your dream world shattered for the moment you are done in the bathroom, so you head to the kitchen, to whip up some breakfast.  You grab some eggs, cheese, and some peppers, and you begin making some omelets.  You hear Moonbeam enter the room, but you don’t pay any attention to her, as the omelets are taking up all of your focus.  Just a few minutes later, and you place an omelet in front of Moonbeam, and your own chair.
“So, Knight, what do you want to do today?”  You mull things over in your head while you eat, and you can’t really think of anything to do with her.
“I’m not going to lie, but I don’t have a clue.”  She bursts into laughter at this, and you join in, albeit halfheartedly.  As the laughter dies down she looks at you with a curious expression on her face.
“You really don’t know what today is?”  You put down your fork, and begin wracking your mind for any clues as to what today is.  When nothing is forthcoming, you give a shrug.
“I know its Saturday.  Is that close enough?”  She giggles at you once more, and then smiles.
“It’s the centennial of the founding of Canterlot.  Today marks one hundred years since Canterlot was first founded.  There’s a big celebration taking place all over the city, and in the evening there’s going to be a big party in the palace gardens!  I was thinking that you and I could just wander through the city and enjoy ourselves.”  You slap a hoof to your forehead.
How could I have forgotten the Centennial?  And Luna gave me the day off too!  If somepony was going to try to do something today would be the day!  No.  No, I told Luna that I’d take the day off.  I’ll spend the day with Moonbeam, and the other guards can take care of the princess.  It’s only one day, right?
“I totally forgot all about that.  And your idea is a good one.  We can just stroll through the city leisurely, and do what we like.  Today is all about fun.”  If you thought Moonbeam’s smile was big earlier, you were shocked when it widened even further.
The rest of breakfast passed in a joyful silence, as Moonbeam bounced in her chair, eager to have fun, and you calmly ate, subconsciously fretting over the potential dangers facing the Princess.  You both finished your omelets, and so you opted to clean the dishes before the two of you went out.  It only took a few minutes, but Moonbeam was asking you to hurry the whole time.
After the brief pause for cleanliness you and Moonbeam both exited the house.  There were tons of ponies in the streets, and everypony seemed to be quite excited.  You and Moonbeam walked the streets slowly, pausing every so often to look at the various wares on display.  Most of the shopkeepers had drastically cut prices, to sell more of their wares, and earn more customers.  After a short walk you made it to the nearby park.
The park had been decorated quite festively, and there were tons of ponies of all ages milling about, and having a good time.
“Why don’t you go and make some friends, Moonbeam?  I’ll be around, so if you need me just come find me.”  You lower your head to her level, and look her in the eye.  “If you need to use your magic to find me, but only if you really need to.  You remember what happened the last time you tried to find me with magic, right?”
Moonbeam blushes furiously, and she lets out a big grunt.  “I apologized already.  I didn’t mean to turn you pink.”  You could remember it quite clearly, and the jokes made by the other guards at the palace were one of the reasons why the event was so clear in your memory.
“It’s fine, sis.  Just go have some fun.  And make some friends!”  She scampers off, and you mingle with the crowd as well.  You find some childhood friends, and so you take the time to catch up with them.
“Hey, Knight, you remember the time when Moonbeam turned you pink?  Those were good times.  How long were you pink?”
You groan, unwilling to cover this for the umpteenth time.  “Well, Forest, since you want to know so bad, I was pink for three months.”  Forest had been your best friend since you started school, and even though you often fought with him, it was always inconsequential stuff.
“So, Knight, all joking aside, how are you?”  Forest gives you a small smile.  “It’s been weeks since we last talked, and I’m worried about you.  You’re spending all your time up in the palace with our local goddess of the night.”
“Well, it’s not an easy job, that’s for sure.  I spend most of my time doing small odd jobs for Luna, but there are occasional instances where I get to actually do my job.  Sometimes the assemblies get a bit out of hand.”
“Really?  I’d heard they were just a bunch of stuffy old ponies talking about big problems that don’t concern all of us.”
“Yeah, there are daily meetings with the common ponies.  You wouldn’t believe some of the problems these ponies bring before the Princess.”  You quickly dive into some of the more interesting meetings you’ve been present for.


Moonbeam’s Perspective


Moonbeam ran amongst the crowd, using her small size to her advantage.  She was heading for the small playground outside of the school.  That’s where she usually played when Knight was at work.  It always bothered her that he worked so much, but she knew that he had to work hard to keep her in school, and make sure they kept the house.  Still, she felt lonely when she’d only see him briefly when he got home, and even that was unlikely.
Moonbeam quickly found herself outside of the schoolyard, and there were tons of ponies all playing there.  She wasn’t sure what to do, since she only rarely associated with the others in her class, let alone the ones that didn’t go to the same school as her.  She decided to toss caution to the wind, and she walked onto the playground.
Before long she was involved with a bunch of other fillies in a game of tag.  Although none of their games lasted long, they were all fun.  She started talking with some of the other fillies, and she quickly found a couple that she got along with better than the others.  This trio broke off from the main group, and they gathered at the edge of the playground.
“My name’s Moonbeam, what are yours?”
“I’m Cloud Chaser,” said the turquoise pegasus.
“And my name’s Emerald Radiance.”  This came from the other unicorn, the color of her namesake gem.
“Where do you two go to school?  I’ve never seen either of you before?”  Moonbeam was genuinely curious.
“We go to the elementary school on Trottingham Way.  Why, don’t you go there too?”  Cloud looked confused, and gave Moonbeam a strange look.
“Well, I go to Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns.  My brother had me enrolled there after I accidentally teleported myself into the palace when I was just a few years old.”  Both of their mouths hang open, and Moonbeam laughs.  “It really was an accident.  He was at work, and I had just come home from school.  I wanted to see him really bad, so I just thought about seeing him, and poof!  There I was, in the middle of the assembly hall.  You should’ve seen all of their faces when I appeared!”
All three of them laugh at the imagined scene.  “Well, that’s pretty cool.  We should go exploring, the city’s nice and active, so there’s bound to be fun stuff to do.”  Emerald is quick to suggest that plan of action, and the other two quickly agree, and they set off to explore the city.
Just a short while later, and the trio is in the middle of the busiest town square.  There are hundreds of ponies walking around, partying, and dancing in the streets.  They make their way through the square, and they soon find themselves standing before a giant buffet table.  With eyes as big as saucers the three quickly grab plates, and dig in.  A short amount of time later, and the three have had their fills.
“I thought we were going to explore, not just hang around eating.”  Moonbeam points this out, and the other two nod in agreement.
“Yeah, let’s go do something exciting, not eating.”  Emerald stands, and the other two rise as well.  “We could go explore the royal garden, it’s always nice there.”  Moonbeam and Cloud both nod their heads, and the trio sets off once again.  After a brief walk the group enters the gardens.  Much like the town square it is filled with hundreds of ponies, all celebrating.
Moonbeam, and her new friends, decide to go through the maze.  They pass by the statue of Discord, and they all pause to look at it.  They only stop for a moment, and then they hurry into the maze.  Before long they are completely lost, but they are having too much fun to care.  Only ten minutes in, though, and they hear two ponies talking with each other.
“I’ve got the tome for Princess Luna.”  Voice one said.
“Excellent.  And the curse is in place?”  This came from the second voice.
“Yes.  It will magnify her negative emotions, while suppressing her more positive tendencies.  It will also make her read the tome more often, until eventually she stumbles across the spell to resurrect our mistress.”
“And you’re sure it will work?  Isn’t Luna’s power great enough to stop the curse before it reaches its apex of power?”
“Normally, yes.  However, we worked around that by making it a gradual process.  Of course, she may accelerate it by reading the tome, but short of Celestia herself taking the time to examine this tome, there is next to no chance of discovery.”
“Excellent.  And once our mistress is in control of the Princess’ magic we will be able to end the day, and usher in a new era.”
“Aye, brother.  But we should go now.  There is much still to do, and we need to actually give the tome to Luna.”
The voices continued, but slowly faded to a silence.  The three fillies looked at each other, each one more shocked than the others.


Your Perspective


It’s almost time for us to head to the gardens for the final ceremony of the day.  Where have you gone now, Moonbeam.  You are heading to the gardens, hoping to find her there, or somewhere along the way.  Forest was following you, interested in seeing the final ceremonies as well.
It only takes you a few minutes to get to the gardens, and just a few minutes after you get to the gardens you spot Moonbeam, and two other fillies running over to you.
“Ah, there you are Moonbeam.  I was wondering if I’d find you before the ceremonies began.”  She looks to be out of breath, and worried about something.  “Is something wrong, Moonbeam?”
“I need to talk to you, Knight.  My friends and I think we overheard someponies planning something bad.”  You look her in the eye, and you see the truth behind her words.  Years of screening the Princess’ guests has led to your ability to discern lies from truths.
“What did you hear?”
Moonbeam quickly explains the conversation she had overheard, and you listen with bated breath.  By the time she finishes explaining you are worried as well.  The list of ponies that had access to the kind of power those two were talking about was a short one.  It only consisted of a few names, and none of them were on good terms with the Princesses.
“This is serious, Moonbeam.  I’m going to have to talk with Luna about this as soon as I can.”  As fate would have it, you spotted Luna and Celestia making their way towards the large platform from which they would deliver their speech.  “Moonbeam, you and your friends stay here.  Don’t go anywhere, okay?”  Your tone brokers no argument, and Moonbeam, and both her friends, quickly nod their assent.
You turn, and make your way forwards, towards the stage.  The princesses begin their speech, but you are too focused to really hear anything they are saying.  Celestia is the first to speak, and you take advantage of that to get to Luna.  When you get to the small staircase there are two of Celestia’s guards barring your way.
“I need to speak with Princess Luna.  Now.”  Both of the guards ignore you, and neither moves from your path.  “Really, I need to speak with Princess Luna.”
“You will have to wait until after the ceremony is complete, and the Princesses hold open court.”  You groan in exasperation.
“Do either of you two know who I am?”  When neither of them respond, you groan again.  “My name is Knight Watch, captain of Luna’s personal guard.”  As you speak your name, both guards look at you.
“Wait, you’re THE Knight Watch?”  A small smile forms on their faces.  You know what’s coming, but that doesn’t make it easier to bare.  “The pink captain of the night guard?”
“Yes.  That’s me.  Now, please, I need to speak with Luna.”  They allow you to pass, and so you quickly head up the stairs, and you move up next to Luna.  The two guards next to her recognize you immediately, and allow you to pass unmolested.
“Princess, I have news that requires your attention.  It is quite urgent.”  Luna turns to look at you, and just as she is about to speak, she is called to the podium, to pontificate.  She offers you a small apologetic smile, and she heads to the podium.  Her speech is short and to the point, for which you are immensely grateful.
She returns to her seat, and she looks at you expectantly.  “Princess, my sister overheard a conversation between two ponies in the hedge maze, and I believe that there are ponies who mean you harm.”
Luna’s eyes narrow as you speak, but just as she’s about to respond she is called to the podium once more by Celestia.
“And now, my little ponies, my sister and I will be accepting a few tributes from some of the neighboring kingdoms.  Gifts brought to celebrate a long lasting relationship, and promote peace throughout the lands.”  There is a wave of cheers from the crowd, and you shift your weight uncomfortably from one hoof to the other.  “The first gift is from the Kingdom of Manehattan, and its surrounding villages.”
You eye every gift bearer suspiciously, until finally one approaches with a strange looking tome.  It’s a gift for Luna, and she accepts it gracefully.  The tome is nothing special, and you barely pay attention, instead looking for a more obvious threat.  The procession continues without incident, and after almost an hour Luna and Celestia receive the last of their gifts.  Luna returns to her seat, and looks to you once more.
“Now then, what is this about ponies meaning to do harm to me?”
“As I said earlier, Princess, there are at least two ponies who mean to do harm to you.  None of the ponies who presented gifts seemed suspicious, though, and that bothers me.  My sister swore that it was something about a book of some sort, but the only book you received is that one,” you gesture at the book Luna just got.  “Something doesn’t add up.”
“Perhaps in all of the excitement, your sister heard some other ponies speaking about some silly game they were playing.  I have heard of this silly game called Mazes and Manticores.  Apparently both my sister and I are frequently used characters in their games.  I suspect that this is nothing more than a case of miscommunication.”  She smiles sincerely, and continues.  “Please, don’t worry about me.  I am capable of taking care of myself.”
“I’d love to, Princess, but taking care of you is my job.”
“And you do a fine job.  Now, please, go and enjoy yourself.  Tomorrow you’re back to work, and I’d like it if you could enjoy your day off.”  She shoos you from the stage, and you reluctantly go.  Soon enough you get back to Moonbeam, and her new friends.
“Luna isn’t too worried, so I suggest you do the same.  I am glad that you told me that, but Luna said that you probably only heard a part of a conversation, and that it’s nothing.”
The fillies all lower their heads at your news, but you just smile.  “I’m very proud of all of you.  You did the right thing.  Now, then, lets go back home, and I’ll make us some nice dinner.”  The other two look at Moonbeam, and then at you.  “You two can both come along too.”
With a cheer the three of them go from glum to happy faster than you thought was possible.  They run circles around you the whole way home, and you marvel at their seemingly inexhaustible supply of energy.  While you were making your way home you saw the transition of day to night.  You paused, as did just a few other ponies around you.  Most of the crowd just continued walking, without even a passing glance at the beauty above.  It pains you to see ponies so blissfully unaware, but you know that not everypony can enjoy the beauty of the night sky.
Just under an hour later, and you were tucking in Moonbeam, and her two new friends, whose names you learned over dinner.  They were so cute lying in bed, and you just couldn’t deny Moonbeam her new friends.  Reluctantly you gave her permission to have a sleepover, but they’d have to go home the next day.
You finally crawled into your own bed just a short while later, and you let out a deep sigh as you looked at the ceiling.
The Princess is probably right.  Nopony would be foolish enough to risk the wrath of the goddess of night.  You drift to sleep, and once more you are bombarded with half remembered visions.  Although, a few of the dreams you witnessed were less than pleasant.

(Be sure to rate, and comment.  And check out my group.  I'm always looking for new members.  Also, I have a question that I have posed in my blog.  It relates to my, as of yet, unreleased story.  I need opinions, and you are the ones I turn to with my questions.)