Shadow of the Moon

by SilverMuse

Chapter 2: The Gift of Snowflakes

Luna, Celestia, Agate Shield, and Safyre departed for Cloudsdale shortly after breakfast. As was expected, Celestia called upon an entourage of Solar Guards to accompany them and also bear the weight of their chariots. Luna would have liked to have had her bat ponies come with her, but she knew they needed rest after the long night guarding her, and so, she appeased herself by asking if Aurora might be one of her personal guards.

Celestia agreed without question.

Luna sat in her chariot with Safyre perching once more upon her head. The little pegasus stretched his small wings and held out his hooves, laughing as the wind whipped past him. Poor Agate Shield bore an expression akin to a pony suffering a heart attack, even though he knew Luna had protective magic wrapped around his son to prevent him from flying out of the chariot.

“Fwy! Fwy!” Safyre squeaked and waved his hooves again.

Luna laughed and reached up to touch his side. “One day you’ll be a fantastic flyer, Safyre.”

Safyre nuzzled her hoof. “Wanna fy nowwwww,” he complained. “I brave!”

Luna glanced sideways at Agate Shield again as the pegasus held his heart. Stifling her laughter, she pulled Safyre from her brow and held him gently in her forehooves. “Oh, I know you’re brave, young Prince, but I think your father is afraid you’ll get hurt…and we don’t want to worry him, do we?” She turned the colt towards his father.

Safyre wore a pout, but he still nodded. “Okay,” he said then turned to snuggle up against her warm chest. “I stay with Wuna, den. You teach me to fwy one day?”

“Of course,” Luna replied in earnest, touched by his request. It meant more to her than he could possibly imagine. She kissed his brow and looked up towards the clouds as they ascended towards the unicorn capital.

Aurora glanced back at Luna, her golden and purple mane flying in the air. “If I may be so bold to say…you do well with him, Princess, as well as with his petrified father,” she added with a little laugh.

Luna blushed and glanced down at Safyre. The little pony was still watching the sky, but he now rested contentedly against her with his hoof in his mouth. “Thank you for your compliment. It must be difficult raising twin foals.”

“I would be lying if I said it wasn’t,” Aurora smiled, her eyes twinkling. “But Shadowlance is a good father, and when neither of us are there, my brother Thundertrot can take care of the twins. It’s good to have family close by with little ones around. It helps them feel safe and protected.”

“Yes,” Luna said in a faraway tone. “Yes, it does.”

Aurora’s smile faded and she cleared her throat. “Forgive me if I have offended you, Majesty.”

Luna shook herself from her thoughts. “No, of course not. I commend you and Shadowlance for your services. Had it not been for you two and the rest of the Solar and Lunar Guards, I fear what would have happened a year ago.”

Aurora nodded her agreement. “It was a terrible time for Equestria, but the evil has passed. We cannot dwell upon the past or we shall never see the bright future that awaits us.” She tipped her head. “And with your leadership, as well as that of Princess Celestia’s, I anticipate an era of peace before us.”

“I do hope so, Aurora,” Luna replied. Peace…what a wonderful word. If only she could find it within her own heart.

Luna settled down in the chariot and held Safyre a little more securely against her, once more reminded of the babe that had started to grow in her belly. Would it have been a filly or colt? Would it have felt secure with Luna as a mother, or would it have wandered the castle alone while its mother and aunt were busy with their daily affairs?

Perhaps it’s wise that I never had a foal. Safyre alone brings me much happiness.

She smiled at the colt then gasped as the chariot broke through the clouds and sunlight stung her eyes. She winced and looked away for a moment, letting her eyes adjust to the light. Safyre’s squeal of delight pulled her from her discomfort. She cracked her eyes open and smiled slowly as her guards landed and brought the chariot to a halt.

Cloudsdale; capital of the pegasi. It was a brilliant place, a clouded city in the skies. The clouds twisted and turned like an azure and pearl maze in the blue heavens. Water and rainbows poured over the edges while great coliseums housed the many ponies that brought weather to Equestria. Luna could see flying grounds where the pegasi raced each other in competitions. Flags bearing the cutie marks of the fastest flyers waved proudly from poles stuck into the ground. Tallest of the poles was a flag of the two sisters, Celestia and Luna.

“Wook!” Safyre exclaimed.

Luna followed his hoof and saw pegasi rushing towards them, cheering, and waving banners and flags. Some bore the crescent moon of Princess Luna, but most were covered in images of Celestia’s sun cutie mark. Luna could taste the bitterness, but she pushed aside her frustration and settled Safyre on her back. “Come, little one. Let’s greet our subjects,” she said.

She stepped out of the chariot and walked towards the crowd. Agate Shield quickly moved towards her, but he took up his place behind her out of respect. The ponies murmured and gasped in wonder, at least until Celestia approached. Suddenly, they all bowed down before the Princesses as well as the Princes of the Crystal Empire.

A brown pegasus with chestnut mane and tale rose quickly and tipped her yellow spectacles up her nose. “Greetings your Majesties. I am Mayor Stratus. We welcome you to our fair city for the Spring Sunrise Celebration. The foals here are eager to present their gifts to you.”

Celestia’s smile simply glowed as she approached the ponies, leaving Luna a step behind her. “We couldn’t be happier to be here, Mayor. Please, lead the way.”

“Of course,” Stratus replied and bowed deeply once more. The mare rose and trotted through a path that the crowd had formed to welcome the royal Princesses and Princes.

Luna let Safyre go to his father before she trotted to catch up to Celestia who was already well in front of her. Ponies watched them with awe, their eyes wide with wonder. Some still bowed as they passed, but once more, Luna realized they bowed more for Celestia, not for Luna.

“Why would they bow to you?” the voice whispered. “This is the Spring Sunrise Celebration, not the Moonrise Celebration. Hah, but then again, who would be awake to witness that?”

“Quiet,” Luna muttered.

Celestia glanced back at her. “Did you say something, sister?”

“No…no, carry on.” She flushed in embarrassment and glanced at a stallion near her. He gave her a strange look, as if he’d heard her. Luna shook herself and walked at Celestia’s side but always in her sister’s shadow.

The Mayor brought them towards a platform that had been built specifically for this occasion. Clouds shaped like flowers lined the wooden platform, and posts held up the flags of the royal sisters. Luna followed Celestia up onto it and stood at her sister’s right. Agate Shield moved to the side but did not mount the platform.

Luna turned to him. “You can join us.”

Agate Shield shook his head. “No, my Ladies. This is an honor and celebration for you. I will wait with your other subjects.” He bowed his head and moved back to stand near the Mayor. Stratus nodded to him and took a step forward.

“Now that you are here, we can—”

“LUNA!!!”

The scream came from above, and Luna, as well as every other pony, looked up in alarm. A blue figure descended rapidly from the sky and headed straight for Luna. Luna started to cast a spell to protect herself, reminded too painfully of the attack that had nearly killed her, Celestia, and Agate Shield. As the magic sparked on her horn, she suddenly noticed the golden bell cutie mark on the blue pegasus’ flank.

“Blue Belle?” Luna asked.

“LUNA!” Blue Belle shrieked again and reached out her hooves.

WHOMPH!

Blue Belle crashed into Luna and sent them both careening backwards into the clouds and snow. Luna fell onto her back and laughed uproariously as the pegasus hugged her tightly. “Luna! It’s so good to see you!” Blue Belle cried.

Stratus stuttered and stomped forward. “W-wh-what is the meaning of this?! Get off of the Princess this instant!”

Luna held up a hoof to ward off the guards. The only one who hadn’t moved was Aurora who smiled with amusement. “It’s quite all right, Mayor. Blue Belle is a dear friend of mine that I’m afraid I’ve neglected to visit up until now.”

“Yes. You. Have,” Blue Belle said and punctuated each word with a jab at Luna’s chest.

Luna rolled carefully to her hooves and gave the pony a more fitting hug. “It is good to see you again, my friend, and under better circumstances as well.” The last time they had been together was after the fall of the Crystal Empire, when Blue Belle had not only lost her best friends Sombra and Ambersong, but her home as well.

Blue Belle pressed her head to Luna’s neck. “It’s good to see you too.”

“Haven’t gotten any better at flying I see?” Luna teased.

“Nope.”

They laughed together and Luna kissed her brow before facing the astonished crowd. She cleared her throat and nudged Blue Belle towards Agate Shield. “Why don’t you stand with him and we can talk after the celebration?” she whispered.

Blue Belle nodded and trotted over to the stallion’s side.

Once Luna joined Celestia back on the stage, Stratus cleared her throat a second time.

“As I was saying…Now that you’ve arrived, the children can present your gifts to you. Please welcome Mrs. Windith’s class.”

Ponies clapped as a pale tan mare with a silver mane lead a classroom of tiny ponies. She looked around with her green eyes and blinked shyly behind her spectacles as she saw the Princesses. Fillies and colts crowded around her legs, some giggling, and others hiding their faces nervously. Their parents gathered behind them, calling encouragement. Mrs. Windith looked back and motioned to the right.

“Now, line up with your gifts and wait your turn. Each one of you will have the opportunity to show your gift.”

The ponies quickly did as she asked, and Luna couldn’t help but be reminded of Mystic Topaz and his ability to make his students do exactly as he wanted. Mrs. Windith stood beside the first pair of students, a brown-maned and white-coated colt and a golden-maned and blue-coated filly.

They both bowed deeply. “He-hello,” the colt began in a choked up voice. “We…we’ve brought….we’ve brought…”

“We’ve brought a light jar,” the filly quickly interrupted. She pushed a blue jar forward that had lights shimmering on the inside. A cork kept the essence trapped deep within.

Luna watched it in fascination and smiled widely as the foals looked hopefully up at her and Celestia. “Beautiful,” Luna said.

The blue filly blushed while the colt puffed out his chest proudly. “It was my idea,” he said.

“No it wasn’t, it was mine,” the filly argued.

The colt turned towards her. “Mine!”

“No, mine!”

The fight went on for a moment before Mrs. Windith cleared her throat sharply and gave both foals the stink eye. As one, the foals froze and bowed their heads.

“Sorry, Mrs. Windith,” they said together.

Luna hid a snicker.

As the two ponies moved to the side to join their parents, another pair stepped forward. They bore a bowl between them with a rainbow-like liquid that changed colors every few moments. Luna was mesmerized by it, feeling trapped by its multi-hued glow. Celestia likewise gasped and bent down to pick the bowl up.

“How lovely. What a wonderful way to welcome in Spring.”

“Thank you, Princess,” the foals said together. When Celestia handed it back, they took their gift gently and moved to join the forming line of foals.

Luna smiled and stood patiently as pair after pair presented the gifts. There was a little cloud with a flower growing in it. Another bore what looked like a water hour glass. A rather demure colt showed them a glass of water and cloud that emitted a chill that even made Luna shiver. Other gifts were a little less impressive like a sun made out of chunks of fluffy clouds, or a rainbow in a jar that kept spitting water into everyone’s face and leaving their manes momentarily dyed. Luna had to duck to avoid a particularly hideous shade of green.

“Sorry, Princess,” the colt whimpered and scurried away with his little gift.

Luna watched him go and used a spark of magic to put the liquid back into the glass. “It’s a pretty idea,” she told him. “That spell will help keep the liquid contained. Well done, little one.”

The tears dried in the colt’s eyes and he smiled lightly at Luna.

Celestia leaned to the side. “That was kind of you,” she whispered to her sister.

Luna shrugged. “No reason to have the other ponies laugh at him for doing his best,” she commented. She turned back to the ponies but realized that there were no other students standing before them. The gifts were wonderful, and she wished there were more, not because she was greedy, but because she adored the creativity.

Celestia lifted her regal head, her pink mane flowing beautifully down her back as she approached the crowd. “Thank you all for your hard work,” she said and looked to the foals especially. “After a long Winter, it is wonderful to see so many fillies and colts bring us beautiful ideas to make the seasons shine.” The ponies looked at each other and grinned widely before Celestia went on. “Now, we can only choose one as the centennial symbol, but—”

“WAIT!” a voice cried out.

Mrs. Windith looked into the crowd as a filly made her way towards the front of the class. “Snowdrop?” she asked in surprise.

The foals started to murmur amongst themselves, and Luna couldn’t help but notice some of their rather derogatory words as if they were displeased with the new filly’s arrival. The pony in question slipped through the crowd and stood beside a mare with a pink and pale yellow mane. The filly herself was a lovely little creature with a soft blue coat, and a mane and tail that were a mix of white and blue. She blinked pale eyes up at the Princesses until the mare, her mother most likely, swooped a wing in front of her.

“Forgive us the interruption your highnesses, it’s just—” the mare began.

The tiny filly moved forward, interrupting her mother. “I’ve been working so hard. Please, I have a gift for the season too and—”

“Doubt that,” a blonde filly sniffed.

Luna gave the offensive pony a look then turned back to the one named Snowdrop. The poor filly’s eyes had dropped and she looked as if she wanted to cry upon the tiny item in her hoof.

Celestia leaned forward and smiled warmly at her. “May we see it?”

Snowdrop lifted her blind eyes but remained still until her mother gently nudged her forward. Luna softened her expression so as not to frighten the filly. Tenderly and gracefully the filly stepped forth and held out her gift which appeared to Luna to be—

“You brought snow?” a colt snorted loudly.

The heckling began all over again, intermingled with chuckles from even the elder ponies.

Snowdrop’s eyes grew determined as she sucked down a breath and held the gift out again. “It’s not snow. I made a star.”

Again the laughter arose, and Luna felt herself grow enraged for this filly. How dare they laugh at her gift? The fact that she alone had worked to create something spoke volumes of her dedication. She must have spent a very long time on her beloved gift, and yet no pony could see its beauty. What was so wrong with bringing something different to the celebration?

“Hahaha!” a gray colt laughed. “A star? You can’t make stars. It doesn’t even look like one!”

Snowdrop flicked her ear towards him and frowned. “Maybe it doesn’t look like one, but it’s still a star.” She held the gift out closer to Celestia and Luna. “It’s a star for Winter.” The filly sighed and lowered her eyelids. “I can’t see what the stars look like up there. Just like I can’t see what Spring looks like. But…I can hear it all. And I heard the snow twinkling, just like the stars do every night.”

Luna drew back in surprise and glanced at the sky. Snowdrop could hear her stars twinkle? Luna had spent so many years carefully crafting each and every star, giving each one its own song. To learn that at least some other pony had heard it…oh, it made her heart sing in reply.

“So,” Snowdrop went on. “They should be able to grant wishes too, shouldn’t they? Winter’s been giving us a gift all this time and we’ve just been ignoring it!”

Luna swallowed hard. She felt as if the filly was looking at her, nay, into her very soul, and saw her for who she really was. Somehow, it was as if Snowdrop spoke of her, not just of Winter.

Snowdrop brought the star closer. “Celebrating Spring is good, but Winter can’t be all bad if it gives us these. It may be cold and dark, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t any good to it. Maybe…Maybe Winter is sad that every pony doesn’t like it.”

A tear worked its way into Luna’s eye. She looked away for a moment, her mouth hanging open a bit as she tried to regain control of her emotions.

For the first time in many months, the Nightmist arose gently and touched her thoughts. “How often have we felt the same? The night is beautiful, and while it is cold, it gives the ponies light. They cannot see what you do. They do not respect it.”

“And that,” Luna replied mentally, “is why I mourn and why I grow resentful sometimes. I am not warm and glorious like Celestia’s sun. My night is quiet and still…too quiet for some.”

Snowdrop flicked her ears forward. “So maybe we need to make wishes on the Winter snow just like how we wish on the night stars. Maybe then we can have a happy Winter instead. We already have a happy Spring, and Summer, and Fall. Can’t Winter be happy too? Because Winter…it’s important, even if it seems useless. It can give us wonderful things, so…”

The crowd had fallen silent, and Luna felt many eyes on both her and Snowdrop. Celestia stood with a smile, but Luna felt as if she needed to take this personally. She stepped forward and offered Snowdrop a smile. “May we see your wishing snow?”

Snowdrop gasped and lifted her hoof. Luna picked it up delicately with her magic and brought it towards her face and Celestia’s. Instead of the cold, icy shards of snow that usually struck Equestria, this one had a lovely pattern and looked so…gently and serene. No, it wasn’t the perfect shape, but it was still special and precious in its own way. Luna could see the care, and somehow, she felt she could hear it twinkle.

Celestia met her eyes and her gaze grew soft and warm. She broke away from Luna and looked down at Snowdrop. “Could you make us some more?”

“Hm mmm!” Snowdrop said eagerly.

Stunned ponies slowly started to smile and clap. Even Snowdrop’s classmates, save for the blonde filly, began to clap and cheer. Snowdrop blushed furiously and ran to her mother’s side, shy from the attention. Her mother swept her up and wrapped her warmly within her wings. Through the crowds, Luna heard her say, “I’m so proud of you, my little Snowdrop.”

Mayor Stratus clapped her hooves and caught the attention of the rest of the ponies. “Now that the gift has been chosen, let the celebration begin!”

In a flurry, ponies flew to instruments that had been hidden behind the clouds. Blue Belle grabbed her famous bells and started the song with a cheery run. Drum, lute, and lyre joined in within moments, and Luna sat back with a smile as a band struck up, and ponies started to dance. Other clouds were cleared away to reveal tables of food and drink, as well as a beautiful ice sculpture of Celestia and Luna.

“Oh my,” Celestia laughed. “They have really outdone themselves this year!”

Luna couldn’t agree more. She hopped down from the platform and went to fetch food and drink with her sister. Agate Shield and Safyre joined them quickly. The ponies parted, giving them first choice at the food.

Agate Shield smiled. “That was wonderful. Those foals are quite talented, especially the little blue one.”

“Snowdrop?” Luna asked. “Yes…she certainly put her heart and soul into her gift.” She looked across the way and saw that Snowdrop was still standing beside her mother. She did not bask in the revelry of her fellow ponies. If anything, she looked shy and humble if anyone approached her about her gift. Her mother draped a wing over her side to keep her comfortable, and Luna wished that her own mother was still alive to do the same to her on her dark nights.

Celestia joined her side after a moment, and Luna looked up at her eagerly. “How long will we stay?”

“The rest of the day and into evening. The Mayor has rooms set up for us so that I can raise the sun for the ponies in the morning.”

Luna nodded. “And I can show them my moon and stars tonight.”

“Yes,” Celestia smiled. “I’m sure they’ll like that, little sister.”

Luna brightened a bit and glanced over at Snowdrop again.

At least one little filly would probably enjoy it.

Author's Note:

Note: Snowdrop as well as Mrs. Windith and the foals are copyrighted to Silly Filly Studios, used with permission through site guidelines.

Comments

[Obsidian Husk]

Update?

[SilverMuse]

5612942

Hey there!

I'll try to get the new chapter up this weekend.

[Obsidian Husk]

5613162 Cool.