All royal duties for the day had been postponed and nearly everypony on the palace staff was under strict orders not to disturb the princesses. Celestia had not left Luna’s side since the Badlands, watching in quiet worry as her younger sister fought to maintain a mask of graceful dignity. Yet it was obvious to the Princess of the Day and the bearers of the Elements of Harmony that Princess Luna was still suffering anguish and heartbreak. There being little they could do to help, it was the unicorn Rarity who suggested they attempt a distraction to take the princess’s mind off her ordeal and the earth pony Pinkie Pie declared it her mission to do so. The plucky young mare insisted a party was needed, a celebration she dubbed the “Super Secret Private You-Got-Rescued-From-Evil-Changelings-And-Need-Some-TLC Princess Luna and Friends Supper Party”. Luna winced slightly at that and insisted no such celebrations were necessary.
She got one anyway. Pinkie Pie refused to take “no” for an answer on the matter.
Celestia was of the opinion shortly into supper that for a last-second spur-of-the-moment idea, Pinkie certainly pulled off a fairly impressive mini-bash. But even so she could tell her younger sister did not share her sentiments. Luna’s demeanor remained gloomily distraught and not once did she manage to muster up a smile. She watched attentively, tried a bit of everything put on the table, and even made half-hearted attempt to participate in the party games, yet it seemed Pinkie’s efforts were to be in vain. Luna hardly appeared distracted from her unhappy thoughts.
Finally another of Twilight’s friends, Applejack, came up with an alternate suggestion.
“Uh, beggin’ yer pardon, princess,” she said somewhat nervously. “Ah don’t mean ta be insensitive, but ah was wonderin’... wouldja maybe wanna talk about what happened?”
A hush fell over the table and awkward glances were exchanged. All the rest looked to the Princess of the Night, who blinked, her mouth falling open in surprise. She stared at Applejack, who twisted her hat anxiously in her hooves. Celestia waited, wondering. Would her sister even be receptive to this possibility? Luna had always been a secretive, solitary pony even when they were fillies. But surely talking about her ordeal was the best way for her to heal, and surely she knew that…
“I appreciate your intentions, Applejack,” Luna finally said, her voice soft and vulnerable. “But I’m not sure what there is for me to really say. I placed my trust in somepony I never should have trusted, and in the end it—” Her breath caught a moment, then after inhaling and exhaling a couple of times, she continued shakily. “In the end it cost me more than I thought it would. Now I… I feel stupid for ever doing so.”
“Luna…” Celestia murmured, but her concern was quickly drown out by Rarity’s worried protests.
“Oh no no no, darling! Er, I mean, Your Highness. You mustn’t think of yourself that way!”
“Yeah!” Rainbow Dash chimed in. “You’re not stupid, and especially not for taking a risk and being trusting!”
“They’re right, Your Highness,” Fluttershy added in her gentle voice. “Trusting and giving others a chance is what anypony would do. You shouldn’t blame yourself for the actions of someone else.”
Celestia watched Luna’s resolve waver. Her younger sister’s lip trembled. A second later Luna bit down, her teal eyes glassy with unshed tears. This went deeper than what it appeared on the surface Celestia knew, yet she could say nothing. If Luna herself wasn’t going to open up to these ponies, then it wasn’t Celestia’s place to speak in her sister’s stead.
“Thank you, my little ponies,” Luna murmured, getting to her hooves and turning away. “I appreciate your kindness but I’m… I’m afraid it may take me some time to recover. Please excuse me.”
And without another word she turned and strode away, her head hung low and her wings dragging at her sides forlornly. A pain dug into Celestia’s chest as she watched her sister go, wishing there were some way to undo the damage that had been done. And yet she knew it simply wasn’t so.
“Did we do something wrong, princess?” Twilight asked worriedly. Celestia turned to her favorite pupil and managed a small, sad smile.
“Not at all, Twilight,” she replied kindly. “You girls have done your best to offer support and positivity during my sister’s time of need. That alone is wonderful and selfless of you all. I simply think Luna may need some time to herself to work through what happened before she is ready to trust others again enough to discuss it.”
For the most part this answer proved satisfactory and after a little more encouragement, the girls relaxed. Celestia waited with them a short while before politely dismissing herself to head to Luna’s chambers. A quick teleportation spell brought her outside the door and she listened intently to the sound of Luna’s gentle sobbing in the room beyond. Steadying her heart, Celestia knocked on the door and called out her sister’s name.
“Luna?”
The sobbing subsided for a moment.
“Luna? Can I come in?”
There was a pause but then the door shimmered with the color of Luna’s magic and opened inward. Tentatively Celestia entered, and as the door closed behind her she approached the bed. Luna had curled in upon herself to cry, but her head was lifted to look at her sister. In the dim light, the black crystals shimmered maliciously in her horn and Celestia felt sorrow pulling at her heart.
“Don’t worry, Lulu,” she said. “We’re going to get you to the Crystal Empire and get rid of those things soon. Once you’re rested, we’ll head there.”
Luna gave a small sniffle before laying her head back down, eyes puffy as tears continued to roll down her cheeks.
“Sister?” she whispered so quietly Celestia had to strain her ears to hear. “Have you ever fallen in love before?”
There was a sinking sensation in the elder alicorn’s stomach. So it was true. She had hoped it wasn’t, that she had read too much into what she had observed, that such a thing wouldn’t befall her sister. Yet it had happened regardless; Luna had fallen in love with the unicorn witch-king.
Oh, my poor sister… you didn’t deserve this heartache.
“Difficult to say, I’m afraid,” she replied noncommittally, seating herself on the bed next to her younger sibling. “Oh, Lulu…”
“It’s true,” Luna murmured. “I didn’t want to think it was, especially not after Chrysalis had been so taunting about it, but it is true. I don’t think my heart would hurt this much if it did. I’m not sure when it started, but I love Sombra. At least… I did. Maybe I still do, but I’m not sure. I’m not sure of anything now.”
The words had barely left her mouth before she subsided into sobbing again. Instinctively Celestia draped a wing over her, waiting for Luna to speak again. It was several minutes later when her crying had finally eased up enough she could talk.
“You were right all along, Tia.” She sniffled again, making a small hiccup as she raised her head a few inches. “I should have listened to you from the beginning, and I should have trusted my dreams meant something. If I’d done so, none of this would have happened. I wouldn’t have made poor decisions like a foolhardy, lovestruck filly.”
“Lulu, don’t be hard on yourself for falling in love. That’s not something anypony has power over, and nothing to be ashamed of.”
“But…”
“You have done nothing wrong,” Celestia said firmly but gently, “just by falling in love.”
Luna furrowed her brow, uncertainty etched on her face. Clearly she wasn’t so sure about that. There was another long pause as she processed her sister’s words, and when she next spoke it was in a whisper again.
“I feel I have done wrong by my own heart. I just wish I could forget this ever happened.” She lowered her head against Celestia’s shoulder and began to weep again, and this time her sister knew there would be no further discussion. She allowed this, staying there to offer comfort and reassurance until at last Luna succumbed to her exhaustion and had cried herself to sleep. Carefully Celestia eased away and prepared to slip out of the room to leave her sister in relative peace. As she moved toward the door however, her eye fell upon an object in the corner. She slowed her stride, turning to look at the object fully.
Luna’s journal.
Celestia stared at the small tome for what felt like an eternity, conflicted. She still felt guilty for having plumbed any of its contents, even if she had done so in order to save Luna and protect her subjects. And she planned, after the radiance of the Crystal Heart had healed Luna, apologizing to her younger sister for the intrusion of her privacy. But the longer she stood staring, the more an idea formed in her mind and she could not shake it. With a quick glance back at Luna to ensure she was still asleep, Celestia took the journal and slipped from the room, her face set in grim determination.
He was not going to get away with doing this to her sister, not without some kind of consequence.
She was halfway to the lower levels when she heard Discord’s voice.
“My my, where are we off to in such a hurry?”
She dug in her hooves, looking around for the draconequus.
“And with Moody-Moon’s journal, too!” With a pop of displaced air he appeared in front of her. “I wasn’t expecting this from you, Celestia! Naughty, naughty! Perhaps you’re not quite as boring as I said before after all.”
“Discord,” she began, fixing him with a searching stare. “Are you able to copy things with your magic?”
The idea was spur-of-the-moment, but if Discord could accomplish it in literally a snap, then Celestia could return the original journal to Luna’s room without any issue and still do as she intended. The draconequus’s eyes opened wide as he went completely still. It wasn’t often he was openly surprised. To his credit though, he didn’t miss a beat.
“Well of course I can!” he answered in mock affront.
“Can you copy something exactly?” she pressed, her gaze sharp. “Every detail, down to the exact words on a page?”
Discord arched a snowy brow, his lower lip jutting like it was considering becoming a full-fledged pout. “Well, I could…” he replied in a bit of a sulky tone. Celestia had probably just ruined a potential prank in his mind, she knew, but she didn’t have the patience for his games in that instant. She raised the journal to eye level so he could see.
“Would you copy this for me, please?” she asked, keeping her voice low. “It is imperative that the contents are exactly the same as the original.”
Discord hummed uncertainly, stroking his beard as he fixed her with a suspicious look. She waited patiently, meeting his eyes with a level expression.
“I’m not sure, Celestia,” he said slowly, and she heard the note in his voice that indicated he was just drawing this out a little longer because he could. “I mean I could, but what would be the point?”
“Please?” she asked again, softening her voice. “Please help, Discord, just this once.”
He eyed her up and down, weighing the options. Seeing his resolve already crumbling, she added, “For me?”
That did the trick. His shoulders sagged as he let out a sigh of resignation. “Oh, all right. For you, then. No need to twist my arm, if you know what I mean.”
He extended his eagle-arm as he spoke, the limb curling around itself in a corkscrew before he gave a snap of his talons. A replica of Luna’s journal appeared, hovering above his claw, and Celestia brought it close with her magic for an inspection. Flipping through some of the pages, she was relieved to see Discord had stayed true to his word. The copy was a perfect replica of Luna’s journal, though on closer inspection, she did find the draconequus had made one tiny addition on the inside back cover.
“I doubt the validity of this copy wouldn’t be questioned upon finding a ‘Discord Press’ logo in it,” she remarked dryly. At this he finally did pout, but with another snap of his talons the logo vanished. He then muttered under his breath, clearly annoyed at being unable to have any fun with it, saying something that sounded a lot like “poo”.
“Thank you, Discord,” Celestia said, smiling at him brightly and meaning every word of it. Without wasting another moment she took off again, barely aware of Discord following behind. Her path took her to the lower level, to the room of enchanted mirrors, and through to the hall of the oubliette beyond. The guards posted there looked startled at her sudden appearance, but quickly stepped aside to let her pass. Returning Luna’s original journal to its place with a quick spell, Celestia carried the copy before her as she entered the antechamber where the imposing cell was housed.
Curling wisps of smoke seeped out from between the bars, originating from the hooves of the captive within. Sombra was sitting in a slump at the far end of the cell, looking wretched and dejected. His ears flicked back as she entered, but otherwise he was still as a statue.
“Come to gloat?” he asked gloomily. When she didn’t answer right away he gave a hollow chuckle and went on. “Of course not. The righteous sun monarch would never do something so beneath her, would she?”
Steeling herself with a breath, she ignored the half-hearted taunt. “I have something you need to see,” she intoned coolly. At first he didn’t respond or react, but when she made no further attempt to do anything he finally twisted around to look at her. His eyes flicked onto the journal and his brow furrowed.
“What? What is that?” he asked warily. Celestia levitated the journal copy through the bars of the cell and let it land near him.
“You hurt somepony who deserved better than this callous betrayal. I think at the very least, you should know what that pony thinks of you,” she said quietly. With that, she turned and began walking away again.
“Is this meant to be some kind of punishment? Do you think you’re going to torment me?” he called after her. She walked on, refusing to look back or respond. She had done what she came there to do. The rest was on him.
Sombra glared at the alicorn’s snowy back as she left, seething bitterly. He didn’t know what she could possibly have hoped to accomplish, but he doubted she would get it. Face still set in a glare, he turned his gaze back to the small tome and started to wonder. Was this possibly what he thought it was? Hesitantly he summoned up what weak spellpower he had access to and flipped the journal open.
Beautiful flowing script danced across each page and out of old old habit, the unicorn king found himself settling down to read. Page after page he read from the journal, slowly immersing himself in Luna’s thoughts. And with each entry an unpleasant sensation stole over him and grew stronger. He felt hollow, an empty shell, and yet he was weighed down as though tied to an anchor to slowly drown.
He read about her suspicions of him, her constant dreams. He read of her belief that they were slowly becoming friends as he told her his story, his story that she believed. He read of her missing him during the near-month they didn’t talk, of her desire to help him, and her mix of fright and excitement as she thought her feelings for him were deepening. As he read his head sank lower and lower, and the sensation of emptiness and weight became painful.
And as he pressed his cheek against the paper, tears started to trickle out of crimson eyes. They rolled down the stallion’s cheeks until they came to rest against the words the princess wrote, forming clear, tiny crystalline teardrops as he wept quietly into the silence.
TO BE CONTINUED IN MIDNIGHT RADIANCE, COMING MAY 2016...