//------------------------------// // Chapter 1. - Last Resort Princess // Story: Reflections // by Amethyst Flower //------------------------------// I was always weak. A problem I've had ever since I was young. Tia was always better and brighter than me. I couldn't help being jealous of her. I guess that's why I became... her. That monster known as Nightmare Moon. But that's all over now. Isn't it? No. It's not. I know that, and everyone else does too. I may have been forgiven by my sister, but that doesn't mean that I've been forgiven by everyone. Especially myself. And just how, exactly, does one go about forgiving one's self for their horrible (in my case, evil) past? One doesn't. It's not over. In fact, it's far from over. All I want is to be able to forget my past, and be like the other princesses. But I, princess of the night, am far too weak. Princess Luna looks up from her diary to see her sister, Celestia, studying her carefully. "Are you alright, Luna?" Celestia asks. "Yes," Luna lies. "I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?" Celestia shakes her head. "You just looked... concerned..." Luna forces her mouth into a smile. "Well, I'm not." Then she asks, "Say, why are you in my room, watching me write in my diary?" "Oh, I'm sorry, um... One of us needs to go visit Princess Cadance and Shining Armour in the Crystal Empire. Cadance is sick and needs one of us to take over for her for a little while," Celestia says. "Why can't Shining Armor take over?" Luna asks, greatly confused. "Because he needs to recover from shock." "What?" Celestia looks weary. "Luna, didn't you get the announcement?" "Um...no... What announcement?" "Cadance is going to have a baby," Celestia says. Luna's eyes go wide with shock. "WHAT?!" she exclaims. "Since when did Cadance get pregnant?!" "Since three months ago, Luna. Didn't Twilight tell you? If you didn't get the announcement then Twilight Sparkle was supposed to have told you," Celestia informs Luna. Go figure, Luna thinks to herself. Twilight never tells me anything when she's supposed to. She's too busy saving Equestria all the time, with her friends, and now she has her own kingdom. And announcement? I never receive those either. It's like I'm invisible. Unknown... "Now, will you please go to the Crystal Empire as soon as possible so that it won't remain ruler less?" Celestia requests. "Why must I be the princess to got to the Crystal Empire?" Luna asks. "Because I have business that needs tending to, here in Canterlot, and Twilight is busy in her own kingdom. You're the only princess left," Celestia says. The only princess? Luna thinks. So I'm a 'last resort' princess? Now Twilight is an option over me? Luna feels hurt, but says, "Alright. I'll go first thing in the morning." Celestia smiles. "Thank you, Lulu," she says, using her kid name for Luna. Luna is surprised. Lulu? Where did that come from? She hasn't called me Lulu since... since I became the Nightmare... Maybe things really were changing. But then Luna remembers how she is a last resort princess. No, Luna decides, things are not changing. No one will ever forget. I will never forget. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ In the morning, Luna packs her things and then has her guards fly her to the Crystal Empire. It is quite a long fly really. Luna wrinkles her muzzle in displeasure as she remembers that Celestia said that Cadance was sick. Did that mean that she was throwing up and stuff? Would Luna have to clean up and look after Cadance as well as take care of the Crystal Empire? Perhaps that was up to the maids... Hopefully. Or maybe that was Shining Armor's job? No, Celestia had said that he was recovering from something... shock. Yes, he was still in shock that Cadance was pregnant, most likely. Luna almost laughs at the thought of this. Poor little Shining Armor, in shock. This is not a first. Everyone thinks that Shining Armor is a strong, tough guard/prince and stuff, but Luna knows him better than that. He's just as scared, in times of danger, as a random citizen. Except for those rare times, like at his wedding. At one point in time, Cadance thought that Shining Armor and Luna liked each other. In reality, it was just Luna. But that was only for a small phase in time. But Cadance still can't really get over that. I wonder how she will take the news that I'm coming to rule her kingdom, Luna wonders. It would probably be better if Twilight would go, seeing as she and Cadance are really good friends and sisters-in-law. But Twilight is having her own problems in her kingdom. And she has to go rushing over to that human world every now and then because of the problems they are having there. Seriously, why can't Sunset Shimmer take care of the problems in the Equestria girl world? She used to be Celestia's number one student... Luna thinks. But then she remembers that Sunset Shimmer was once an evil being. Maybe she is too weak to defeat the forces of evil. Weak, like Luna. Perhaps she has reflections, just like Luna, and maybe she, too, can't get over her past... Luna wishes that she could talk to Sunset Shimmer, and see if her life is any different than hers. She never got to talk to Sunset Shimmer when the young pony was still in the land of Equestria, for at that time Luna was Nightmare Moon and was banished to the moon. The boring, boring moon. Luna's thoughts are interrupted when her one guard tells her that they are landing in the Crystal Empire. Momentarily, Luna feels panicked. She knows next to nothing about this kingdom. How will she rule it? She quickly composes herself and pushes away panicked feelings. It is essential that she does not freak out, she did too much of that in her past. Besides, being stressed will only make things harder for her, as hard as ruling this kingdom for a little while will be in it's self. "Do you want to take a look at the kingdom before heading for the castle, your Majesty?" her one guard asks. "No, thank you, that is not necessary. We will go straight to the palace," Luna says. She has her game on and is top pro. She is princess of the night. She can do this. ...Or can she...?