Love Is Kind
The wedding hall was silent save for the heavy panting of a somewhat larger than average mare in the middle of the room. Her head was lowered so that her long, dark horn nearly touched the ground, and her light blue mane covered her somber face. Her translucent black bat wings were flared and tense with ebbing anger, revealing her triple “Z” cutie mark.
Beneath the wedding arch, a turquoise unicorn with a neatly combed orange mane wearing a white collar lay unconscious. Beside him on the left a pretty pink unicorn mare with a flowing chartreuse mane was nearly engulfed by her white wedding gown while on the right a large, verdant dragon-stallion in a tuxedo and lavender bowtie was snoring softly. The rest of the wedding party was in a similar state, the guests and staff all sprawled in various awkward locations.
“After all I did,” Nidra hissed through clenched teeth. “All the times I used my authority as a princess of Equestria to do you favors and improve your life… in the end, you choose a simple, blind commoner over me? Turquoise… why?”
Her eyes squeezed shut, forcing back the tears shimmering in her catlike golden eyes.
“Don’t be a foal,” a familiar, matronly voice interjected.
Nidra jerked up and looked behind her, brows furrowed and lips tight as she curled slightly into herself. “Mother…”
Luna regarded Nidra studiously. “Daughter. You knew well this was coming. Anthea and Turquoise have long had a close relationship. She has been his best friend. What have you been?”
Turning herself completely around, Nidra stomped her hoof on the floor, her face set in a petulant scowl. “I’ve been a princess!” She began to pace back and forth, stepping gingerly over the comatose ponies beneath her as she raged. “I’m the obvious choice. Class, power, beauty…” Her horn glowed a tarnished gold and she lifted T up by his membranous wing and put her own up beside it. “And look! We even have the same kind of wing! We’re meant to be!”
“Well, I can’t argue with that irrefutable logic,” Luna said dryly as she continued to track her daughter’s movements impassively. “But in spite of your obvious worth, Turquoise has chosen her. What are you planning on doing about it?”
Nidra looked around the wedding hall, taking in the sight of the sleeping ponies; of T and Annie seconds away from exchanging their vows. A small smile played at her lips. “I can do it. I can keep them from ever being married. Then he'll be mine!”
A grimace pulled at Luna’s cheeks. “I’m afraid I cannot allow that.”
Anger flashed in Nidra’s eyes as she turned on her mother, fangs bared and back hunched like a feral cat. “Oh? You think you can order me around because you’re the princess of the night and nighttime accessories? Well, you may be able to enter ponies’ dreams, but I’m the one who decides who sleeps and who shuffles around their house all night opening and closing cupboards.”
“Indeed you are,” Luna said, unperturbed by her daughter’s vehemence. “Though you’ve never forced an entire town to sleep like this before. I must say that I am impressed, if disappointed with your behavior.”
In spite of herself, Nidra couldn't help but puff out her chest at her mother's mild praise. "I may not be as powerful as you or aunt Celestia or even my royal cousins, but I'm still an alicorn princess." She looked back at the sleeping bride and groom with a tight smirk. "I can ensure that their sleep... will last... forever."
A sigh escaped Luna's lips even as her gaze turned to steel. "Daughter. I'm afraid if you won't listen to reason... I shall have to subdue you, myself." Her horn flickered to life and she approached her daughter with purposeful steps.
Nidra backed away, her own alicorn magic burbling to life in black and gold as the whites of her eyes turned green. "You can't stop me. You think you're so great?"
"Young lady!" Luna barked, fury seeping through her stoic visage. "I have obviously been too light-hooved in your upbringing. To brandish such magic against me..."
A harsh laugh burned from Nidra's throat as her mane whipped above her and mottled light shone from her eyes and horn. "You haven't seen anything, yet, Mother. My fury gave me the power to put all of Ponyville to rest. Now I'll use it to try something else I've never done: shroud you and all of Equestria in slumber eternal!" Her mane exploded into a starry nebula, much like her mother's, as she fired her spell.
Nidra stood atop Ponyville's city hall, overlooking the town. All was still, and even the starry skies above Canterlot in the distance were empty. She chuckled to herself, enjoying the way her mane wafted in the nonexistent breeze.
Her mirth shortly became muted, however, and a look of concern crossed her face. "I hope nopony was in the middle of anything dangerous when I did that. Was... was that okay?"
An icy blue beam struck Nidra, sending her flying from the roof and into the side of a nearby house. Lightning flashed revealing Luna's form in stark relief hovering in the night sky. "No," she affirmed. "It was most decidedly not."
Nidra snarled and brushed the splinters of the house's siding out of her coat. Her bat wings spread and she took to the air like a missile, target locked on her mother. She screeched as she swung a hoof at Luna, but it passed right through as her mother turned to mist.
Luna reconstituted a short distance behind Nidra, and she cast a gravity spell which pulled Nidra sharply downward. She dove for her daughter like a falcon for prey and winged her, sending her spiraling into the ground.
"You can't stop me!" Nidra said, and she jerked her head to the side. Her telekinesis pulled a building from its foundations and catapulted it into Luna.
Luna huffed as the house struck her, but she teleported into the clear and shot a glare at Nidra. "I would prefer not to. Rather, you should stop yourself."
"And why should I?" Nidra demanded. She summoned a colony of vampire fruit bats, which swarmed at Luna. "This is what I want."
"Is it?" Luna asked, dodging the irate creatures. She gave the creatures a hard glare, and they dispersed from her, fleeing in the direction of Sweet Apple Acres. "I thought you wanted young Turquoise Blitz."
Nidra choked. "It's too late for that. He loves Annie!" She blasted lightning from her horn at her mother, who tried to deflect the attack, but was jolted back by the surprising force.
Luna shook her head, trying to clear it of the electric shock. "Th-thou dost believe this means he has no love for thee?"
"He rejected me," Nidra spat, blasting her mother with another bolt. "He denies me my right."
"We are cognizant of yon sentiment," Luna said as she stood shakily. “Yet you fail to understand…”
“What do you know of love?” Nidra shouted, her face filling Luna’s vision at the speed of thought.
Luna held her ground before her daughter’s anger, staring her down. “Nidra,” she said, her voice wavering. “Even before my thousand year exile, I lived for much longer than any normal pony. Do you think your father was the only one who I have loved?”
The mask of Nidra’s rage cracked, but she pressed on. “But I’ve lost him…” she said hoarsely.
“I lost them all, eventually,” Luna said in a whisper. “Some were quick with rejection. That was easy. The hardest were those I lost to old age, even as I remained young.”
“So, what?” Nidra said, backing away. Her face was still aflame, but her pique seemed to be cooling. “Are you saying that I should be thankful he rejected me?”
“No,” Luna said. “But remember that you are my daughter, and thus your lifespan shall be… rather long. I can tell you from experience that driving away or isolating yourself from those friends who do not love you as you want them to will lead to far more regret than allowing them to love you the way they want to with what little time they have left.”
Nidra simmered in silence, the rims of her eyes red. Finally, she spoke. “I don’t care. I’d rather they sleep for a thousand years than see her take his ring.”
“Think about what you’re saying,” Luna said. “Anthea is a mortal pony. She will not last beyond a century, at most. Turquoise’s dragon blood will certainly carry him longer, but no more than a few more centuries, and I’ve heard of no dragon hybrid who lasted an entire millennium. Your lifespan will carry you well beyond…”
“Wait,” Nidra interjected. Her eyes were wide and her tone wondering. “Dragon hybrids… they live for centuries?”
Luna grimaced. “Unfortunately, yes. They do not inherit the full immortality of their draconic parent. Granted, there have been few examples in history, and most do not make it past foalhood, but of those that do, most give up their ghost by their fourth century.”
“I see,” Nidra said. She sighed and her body relaxed. She looked her mother in the eye and gave her a weak smile. “I’m sorry, Mom. I kinda blew my stack back there.”
Luna blinked. “You… are no longer vexed?”
“Nope,” Nidra said, a titter escaping her throat. “That was a good talk. Thanks.” She looked around at the somewhat battle damaged buildings around town and her smile dropped. “Ooh… but it’s going to take some time to fix this up, isn’t it?”
Luna smacked Nidra across the face with her hoof, eliciting a shocked cry. “Oh, I’m sorry, did that hurt?” she asked.
“Did it hurt?” Nidra shouted, touching her hoof to her cheek as she hunched over. “What are you talking about? Of course it…” she screwed her eyes up in confusion as she poked at the spot Luna had struck. “Didn’t? Wait, what…” She turned back to her mother, but she was gone.
“You used a powerful spell back there. One that only a fully developed alicorn could use,” Luna’s voice boomed from above. A shadow oozed across the moon, taking the shape of her head. “It was successful, but as you are not quite fully developed, it backfired and caused you to lose consciousness as well.”
“So… this whole thing…” Nidra said, inclining her head up to look at her mother’s shadow. “It’s been a dream?”
“Yes,” Luna said, her silhouette showing a glowing white grin. “It is fortunate that as the protector of dreams I was still able to reach you, for this spell would have indeed caused everypony affected to sleep forever without you to lift it.”
Nidra nodded. “I understand. I guess I’ll have to face the music for interrupting T and Annie’s wedding, too…”
“Oh, don’t you worry about that,” another voice, loud and boisterous, echoed from the heavens. The stars in the sky began to rearrange themselves into a familiar constellation of a horse-headed serpentine creature with mismatched body parts.
“Uncle Discord!” Nidra said happily.
“Discord…” Luna acknowledged, somewhat more grumpily. “Why must you defile my night sky so?”
“Hey, it’s not even the real night sky, this time,” Discord’s constellation said. He leaned in to regard Nidra. “Well, my cute little niece, you really messed things up, didn’t you? Brava. Still, I can’t have dear Annie’s special day being completely ruined by your little temper tantrum. Honestly, I’d be tempted to make her immortal just to spite you for that.” He crossed his stellar arms and snorted. “Not that that ever works. Chaos magic isn’t so great at keeping anything the way it is, I’m afraid.” He snapped his claws, and the star of his fingertip went supernova. “So, instead, I’ll merely settle for putting everything back relatively where it was when you wake up.”
“That… doesn’t seem very chaotic,” Nidra said.
Discord belly laughed. “Not from your perspective, no, but imagine the rest of the world’s reaction when they see the sun reset itself in the sky. Celestia is sure to be getting some letters soon from the Griffon Empire… oh, I relish the look on her face.”
“Thanks, Uncle,” Nidra said with a disgusted scrunch of her muzzle. “I don’t need to hear about you and Aunt Celestia’s flirting.”
“Indeed,” Luna concurred, her silhouette managing to look nauseated. “Now, if you don’t mind, vacate my dreamscape so that my daughter may fix the rest of her mess, herself.”
Discord’s constellation beamed. “Sure thing, Sis.” The stars which made up his body dispersed like a swarm of fireflies back to their original positions.
Nidra sighed and closed her eyes in concentration. Now that she knew she was in a dream, she knew that she could act in the waking world as well, and she forced her physical body to build up the magic for the counterspell. She felt the world of illusions around her drop away and her awareness of the waking world grow until…
“You may now… kiss the bride!” Snips concluded to a deafening barrage of cheers as the newly married stallion did just that.
Nidra watched with tears in her eyes, but a small smile on her lips. She saw Annie hoist the bouquet in her magical aura and toss it blindly into the crowd. It arched over the outstretched hooves of the other single mares, seeming to float briefly as if held aloft by magic, though no aura was visible. The bouquet landed with a thunk, impaled upon Nidra’s long, gray horn.
Anthea was looking directly at Nidra through her glazed eyes, unable to see her form clearly, but probably able to recognize her as the largest gray and blue blob in the room. She smiled with all the gentleness of her adoptive mother, disarming any residual resentments Nidra had from across the room. That had always been one of her more irritating qualities.
With a hasty application of her magical telekinesis, Nidra pulled the bouquet from her horn and levitated it gently in front of her. It wasn’t too long into the reception before she was greeted by the bride, herself.
“Princess Nidra, I’m glad you came,” Anthea said softly. “You seemed a bit distant when you first arrived. I thought you might be… angry with me.”
“What? No!” Nidra said hastily, an embarrassed smile on her face. Her ears drooped a moment later as she averted her gaze. “Well… maybe a little.” With some effort, she made herself look back at her one-time rival and this time gave her a genuine grin. “I realized, though, that all this time I’ve been treating you like… like a competitor, I guess.”
Anthea blushed deeply, a sympathetic look on her face. “Oh, Princess, I never meant to compete against you… I just…”
“I know,” Nidra replied with a rare kindness to her voice. “All this time I’ve treated you like that, and really there was no contest to begin with. I’ve learned that it’s far more satisfying to just let you be happy and… and enjoy that. And I do because… you’re my friend, Annie. I mean… I want to be your friend…”
Anthea looked absolutely giddy. “Nidra, of course I’m your friend! Thank you so much.” She nodded her head in the general direction of the flowers Nidra was holding. “And it looks like it will be your turn before you know it.”
“Oh,” Nidra said slowly as she looked at the lovely bouquet. She gave it a thoughtful look. “You know… I think I can wait for a good, long while until that day.” With a shrug, she chucked the bouquet over her shoulders, where it promptly landed in the unsuspecting claws of Turquoise’s older sister, who gave Discord’s son, who was standing beside her, a sheepish grin as she blushed furiously.
Anthea merely put her arms around Nidra’s neck fondly. “Well, no matter how long it takes for that day to come, I’ll be happy for you, too.”
Also LikedSimilarAuthor
- Bico · 12k words · 255 7 · 11k views
- BlackSkulls · 3.9k words · 157 3 · 5.5k views
- Bico · 18k words · 150 5 · 6.3k views
- FictionFreek · 3.7k words · 247 5 · 4.5k views
- RevenantGhost · 482 words · 206 16 · 5.5k views
- FictionFreek · 38k words · 286 16 · 9.6k views
- The Princess Rarity · 3.4k words · 307 5 · 7k views
- kilala · 2.5k words · 358 13 · 8.5k views
Stats
Page generated in 0.14 seconds
Total duration
1,016 users online
26,644 hits today, 2,054,621 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Ehhh.... the story is written well, no doubt about that, but the moral really bothers me. Nidra backs off because she can still get what she wants, not because she respects T's decision. I know love makes you do crazy things, but as far as she was willing to go?
It really does not sit well with me that Nidra never has the epiphany of love not being forced, and accepting love as it is. Maybe she did learn it, but her change in demeanor happened when Luna reminded her that Anthea would die well before T would. If you intended to portray Nidra learning to accept their love, then it was overshadowed by her initial remark.
It isn't a bad story, but it does kind of leave a bad taste in my mouth with how you played Nidra.
Nevertheless, I'm giving in a thumbs up and placing it in the appropriate groups. It's nice to see someone else writing stories for this fandom.
-Lumino
Good job, bro. I welcome you to the kilala writer's club with open arms. Oh, and a like too.
3843005
It was kind of my intention to write her backing off as being selfishly motivated and the answer to the question posed in the description actually being "no." I see her from reading the description in her bio and her frankly opportunistic hitting on T in the story after Annie's death as being a bit spoiled, and her acceptance does come from that somewhat morbid viewpoint. She does come off as distasteful, yes, but I kind of like that about her. Anyway, I feel like if she does learn what love really is, it's going to be closer to Annie's death than after one conversation with her mom (I might even write that story, too). However, I did hope to show that now she can at least let herself be more open and friendly with Annie now that she doesn't view her as a rival, which may set her on the right path to learning that lesson.
3843006
Thanks. You saved me the trouble of making that group myself, which I was actually planning to do the very same day you did it.
Nice king of the hill reference.
3843314
Ha, I couldn't help myself. It doesn't even make sense, but then again Discord is her uncle in this universe.
Good Story. Shows a jelous girl and Luna in a fight. Great job. I hope you next story is as good.
3843364
Hopefully. I do try. I kind of liked to portray Nidra and Luna like this because it really shows how Luna has grown from her own days of jealousy which led to Nightmare Moon. In this case she helps her daughter avoid it, even if it's not exactly the way she intended.
Amazeballs.
3843590
Hahahaha-hiss-change the rules.
I'll read this in a bit. The use of the qoutation from Corinthians 13 is either going to please me greatly or make me go eh at you aggressively or something
3844501
Y'know, I actually never liked that verse. Kinda unrealistic description of the disease, if you ask me, but it kind of fit the basic idea. Feel free to eh as much as you like, though, I can meh right back with the best of 'em.
3844956
That's when you know it's true love.
Wow, this is slowly making its way up the popular stories list. Two more slots will put it in the Featured Box. You fools! You're only playing into my hands, can't you see that?
3846000
Sorry to burst your bubble, but the popular box is in no particular order. It cycles with every refresh.
-Lumino
3846715
That would explain why it makes no sense.
soooo apart from nidra not really learning anything at all, i only have one question:
why does luna's speaking revert to "old style" after being hit by nidra's laser blasts? like, the entire time she speaks normal everyday english, but suddenly she switches to "thou","yon", etc. any particular reason?
3850515
In-universe explanation: getting electrocuted shocked her enough that she reverted to old speaking habits. Out-of-universe explanation: I wanted an excuse to make a Joseph Ducreax type joke.
Luna just owned Nid.
Surprised we didn't see Rarity or Spike crying during the wedding scene at the end.
If I read the story you based Nid off of correctly, it had actually been some time since Anthea had passed, at least a few years.
3877404
The Sparity fan in me wanted to give Spike and Rarity some "screentime," as t'were, but I was trying to keep it as focused as possible, aside from the reference to Clairllusion which I almost didn't include.
Yeah, Annie's death was some time ago in Kilala's story, though I would say recent enough that the wound is still fresh. I assumed no more than five years. Given that Spike would still seal himself off inside a cave on the anniversary of Rarity's death which was probably decades before Annie's, that would probably still feel pretty fresh to T.
I'm glad that Nidra made the right choice in the end she did love T.
3883684
Well, she only has to wait another sixty or seventy years, no big.
who is nidra's father?
3975708
It's one of the unnamed bat-ponies in Luna's guard. So far Kilala hasn't really fleshed him out.
3976020 I figured as much
Onto the read later list it goes.
Oh my goodness, I swear! Even though I run on a different head cannon universe than this next generation story, we must function at the same level (shipping wise).
You had:
-Celesticord
-Sparity
-amazingly accurate (to my head cannon for this story) heir shippings
And also, I love the fact that Snips is the one marrying T to Annie. I understand this!
By the way... That line "give up their ghost" I understand it, but I have only heard it from a particular group of people. Are you LDS? If that means nothing to you, ignore that statement.
Any way awesome story!!!
It reminds me of how MLP is just...awesome!
4141445
Glad you liked it. I'm not LDS though I've been friends with several who are. "Give up the ghost" is actually a phrase I've heard quite often, so I wasn't aware of it being particular to any group.
And from that day forward, every day she visits the two of them and goes: "Heya, is Anthea STILL alive? Alright, just wanted to check."
This is quite sweet!! I love how well you had Luna and Nidra resolve their dispute, it worked very well.
And now I'm picturing Celestia and Discord having a slap-slap-kiss style relationship...
4376150
I definitely view any kind of relationship between them as consisting of much ball-busting on both sides.
26.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lmoznxIonq1qf7ohqo1_500.gif
4718416
Haha, because she's literally blind.
I give this story a good 7/10
5175086
I can accept that.
I started crying half-way through it.
5216908
i0.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/141/197/ba8.jpg
I can really relate to Nidra here.of course, it wasn´t my friend who "steal" him.heck,I don´t even know the girl who "steal" him! but I still enjoy seeing that I´m not the only one who constantly says to herself "HE´S NOT THE ONLY FISH IN THE WATER! STOP CRYING AND BE HIS FRIEND!" I love this story, I love this characters
The message is awful and Nidra is even more awful. I love it. You captured Kilala's characterization of Nidra so well.
5391284
5393429
I like the respective cuts of your gibs.
5395757 thanks....I think.
I may not be as powerful as you or aunt Celestia or even my royal cousins, but I'm still an alicorn princess." She looked back at the sleeping bride and groom with a tight smirk. "I can ensure that their sleep... will last... forever."
A sigh escaped Luna's lips even as her gaze turned to steel. "Daughter. I'm afraid if you won't listen to reason... I shall have to subdue you, myself." Her horn flickered to life and she approached her daughter with purposeful steps.
Nidra backed away, her own alicorn magic burbling to life in black and gold as the whites of her eyes turned green. "You can't stop me. You think you're so great?"
"Young lady!" Luna barked, fury seeping through her stoic visage. "I have obviously been too light-hooved in your upbringing. To brandish such magic against me..."
A harsh laugh burned from Nidra's throat as her mane whipped above her and mottled light shone from her eyes and horn. "You haven't seen anything, yet, Mother. My fury gave me the power to put all of Ponyville to rest. Now I'll use it to try something else I've never done: shroud you and all of Equestria in slumber eternal!" Her mane exploded into a starry nebula, much like her mother's, as she fired her spell.
Like mother like daughter How does NIghtmare Nidra sound?
5882654
Could go that route, but since Nightmare Moon was basically English for Luna, I feel it would be interesting to do something similar for Nidra. My favorites are Nightmare Slumber and Nightmare Lullaby.
Hmm... Nightmare Somnia? As in insomnia, lack of sleep. Nightmare Nidra works too. My unicorn OC, Cortina, used too much dark magic and got her own nightmare form. Even though NM isn't her mom, she would be so proud! I called her Nightmare Shade, as Cortina is Spanish for shade.
FML BRUH Y U DO DIS TO ME THE FEELS.
This story was recommended to me as an introduction to Nidra. I hope I was not meant to like her, though, because she comes off like a spoiled brat. :V
7309528 As the author, and the OC's creator, points out, that's exactly what she is.
7334740
Now I want to see her become the Nightmare-fueled villain Equestria needs...
You can has review!
3845016
For romantic love (the "disease")? Yes, it is inaccurate.
For Agape? It is the definition, by the creator of the concept.