//------------------------------//
// No more hiding. 
// Story: A shadow of what I once was. 
// by FaelaArts 
//------------------------------//

“Sombra.” Twilight spoke a single word from the door softly, and it slowly swung open. Sombra raised his head from the desk, levitating some papers into the drawer. Twilight kept a spell on her horn as she narrowed her eyes, breathed in, and stepped in the room, closing the door behind her.

“I talked to Celestia and Luna, I have written down their side of the story.” Twilight levitated the notes onto Sombra’s desk, who looked at them for a moment before taking them in his magic, quickly reading through the pages. Sombra’s face didn’t change, even after he placed them down once more and turned to Twilight.

“What is it you want from me?” Sombra held out the papers as Twilight took them, folding them and putting them in her saddlebags. Twilight breathed in again, and then focused entirely on Sombra with a determined gaze.

“I want your side of the story.” Twilight felt the tug of magic and her horn began to glow brighter as she negated it. Sombra narrowed his eyes, before closing them and breathing out. Turning around, he resumed writing. Twilight waited a few moments, and realised Sombra wasn’t going to answer. Her expression softened.

“Sombra please, I just want to understand. You’ve said you were aware, and you seem to not view yourself as corrupt during that time, but I could be wrong. Please, I want to help.” Twilight waited as Sombra didn’t respond, beyond having paused in his writing. After she had finished, he began again. This time, Twilight waited. 

“Leave me alone,” he spoke, putting his quill down and closing his eyes as his frown deepened. Twilight stayed where she was, even as purple mist began to seep out of Sombra’s eyes. Turning, their green glow sent a fresh chill down her spine.

“Leave. Me. Alone. Now.” Sombra swiped at his desk, sending the contents to the floor as he stood up and slammed one hoof on the table, facing Twilight. Twilight stayed where she was. After a moment, she closed her eyes and tilted her head, giving a warm smile. Sombra gritted his teeth, raising his voice.

“Leave, me, alone!” Sombra glared at Twilight, purple mist so thick it was almost impossible to see through it. Twilight opened her eyes, keeping the smile on her face as she looked warmly at Sombra. Sombra hissed, and looked around for a moment, before picking up a cup and throwing at Twilight. Catching it, she gently put it back down.

“ARRRGH!” Sombra cried out in immense frustration and a spell came to his horn, cast on pure emotion. The spell, while not aimed at Twilight, homed in and she widened her eyes, bringing up a purple shield. The spell hit it, and sliced through it like it was paper. Twilight tried to crouch, and managed to avoid the brunt of the attack as it sliced off a small part of her shoulder.

Crying out in pain, Twilight slumped, glancing to Sombra as the glow from his eyes and purple mist vanished instantly, and he blinked once. Twilight brought a hoof to her shoulder, wincing as she brought back blood. Closing her eyes, her horn sparked to life as she tried to use the small healing magic she knew to stop the bleeding.

Detecting magic nearby, she opened her eyes, widening them as she realised Sombra was crouching over her wound, horn glowing and eyes closed. Looking to her wound, Twilight watched as it slowly stitched back together. Sombra opened his eyes, and stood up, returning to his desk and leaning his head on a hoof, closing his eyes. Twilight stood up, testing the wound. It was still sore, but the pain was fading. Turning to look at Sombra, she bit her lip.

“That’s the second time you’ve attacked me out of rage, and you also attacked Applebloom. Are you ok?” Twilight took a hesitant step forward as Sombra turned and glowered at her, before he turned once more to the desk and leaned his head on a hoof.

“Yes.” Sombra turned to look toward the window, opening the curtains and looking toward the night sky. After a moment, Twilight joined him, standing nearby. Sombra pointed to a star very close to the moon, barely visible and blinking as if it would fade from view, never to be seen again at any moment.

“That was the very first star Luna created, she nearly lost consciousness while doing it. The others are constellations that she put in to match the old stars, and fill up empty space.” Sombra lowered his hoof, his expression softening. Twilight looked at the star and smiled warmly, wondering how much love had been poured into making that tiny little dot.

“It must hurt you every time you harm somepony on accident,” she remarked quietly as Sombra closed his eyes, and turned, sitting down at the table and slouching over the papers still clinging to the desk. He sighed, opening his eyes.

“I was attempting to create a device that would help regulate emotions. Any emotion that was too strong would be converted into magic, but not completely. I was also going to fine tune it to be only fear that was affected. Too much fear and you can’t act, too little and you act brashly. The right amount of fear would mean that while they would be aware of the danger, they would have a clear mind to act upon it.” Sombra folded his arms on the table, and leaned forward, resting his head on top.

“I tested everything on myself first, and the results are what you just witnessed. When I finally decided it was safe to test it on others, the device somehow worked in the exact opposite of what I had designed it for. And in doing so, I doomed my kingdom to a slow death.” Sombra closed his eyes, and sighed.

“Doing bad deeds for the sake of good. Doing good deeds for the sake of bad. Doing good deeds for the sake of good, but ultimately ending in bad. Which is the more corrupt? In the end, that is decided by those who hold the power.” Sombra opened his eyes and sat up, closing the curtains and moving everything back onto his table.

“Why do the citizens of the Crystal Empire only shudder when they remember you?” Twilight took a step toward Sombra, forgetting the pain in her shoulder.

“It was their best chance of survival,” he replied, pulling out the quill and beginning to write once more. Twilight bit her lip, remembering the time before she had ascended, and she had ruined her friends lives. It had been crushing, and she couldn’t think back on it without shedding a tear. It was one of the worst moments in her life.

“Why won’t you tell anypony about this, like Luna and Celestia?” Twilight stepped close, glancing to the page Sombra was writing. It was a diagram of the device she had just been told about. It looked needlessly complicated.

“Better they remember me as a villain, than feel the guilt for their actions a thousand years ago. My empire was doomed regardless.” Sombra finished the diagram and held it out to Twilight with a hoof, who was frozen in place, conflicted. Sombra sounded almost...equine. Twilight was certain if rescuing her friends from their switched cutie marks meant she would lose their friendship, she would have done it at a heartbeat.

“Sombra I-” Twilight cut herself off, getting the feeling words wouldn’t convey her feelings well in this case. Sombra placed the piece of paper down, before feeling two arms pull him out of the chair, and bring him into a hug, enveloped by lavender wings. Sombra looked down as Twilight’s closed eyes began to leak moisture, and his expression softened into a faint smile. After a moment, Sombra blinked, and pushed Twilight away, glaring at her as he sat back down, pushing her out of the room with his magic and closing the door.

“...you.” Sombra’s words almost entirely missed Twilight’s hearing due to the the whooshing sound as she was pushed back. Staring at the door for a moment, a slow smile crept onto her face and she chuckled silently, turning and heading back to her room where she could teleport back to Canterlot, and not take some of the hall with her.