1000 Years

by Paraturtle

Chapter 2 (Day 5)

Testing the water is safe.

Jumping in is fun.

Day 5/365,250

Luna awoke in her royal bed. Looking about the room, she saw out the window that it was still dark outside. A glance across showed that her jacket was folded up on the table next to her. That mysterious Alicorn must have carried her here after last night. She remembered crying in his arms for a long time. Lifting the covers, she stepped out of bed and stretched, wings first.

‘Another Alicorn. Hmm.’ She didn’t very much know what to think. He just seemed to come out of nowhere. What kind of cutie mark did he have? Better yet, what was his name? Luna had many questions, and only one colt to ask. That didn't bother her, though, since he seemed like the kind of alicorn who knew more than he let on. ‘How did he know We wanted sugar on Our crumpets…’ Many questions.

“Don’t worry, I’ll answer them as soon as I want to!” That didn't bother her, though, since he seemed like the kind of alicorn who knew more than he let on. Luna's mouth dropped; he amazed her!

“And how dost thou know We had so many questions?” She had only known him for a little while, and he was already proving to be more than meets the eye. She stepped over to him and took one of the plates with a quiet thank you.

“Well you’re in my house, so I know everything that goes on inside it. Even your thoughts.” He gave her a quick wink and a crooked smile.

“Here, We’ll get a table for us.” Her horned glowed as a table from the other room came floating in and planted itself next to them, “And We believe this is Our house, not yours.” She placed her plate on the table.

“Before we start, may I ask you a question?” Luna nodded. “If you are going to be asking me questions, you must believe I have knowledge you do not hold. In other words, you believe I’m smarter than you.” He smiled, placing the plate down and took a few bites before continuing. Luna waited awkwardly to see what he was getting at.

“Sorry. So as I was saying, you think I’m smarter than you, and yet, you tell me this...” He rose his hooves up high above his head and did a spin, “...is not my house?" She did not quite understand what he meant, but it felt degrading, so she turned her head. “Well this will be easy.” he said sarcastically. “Alrighty then, my love! What is your first question! I’m all ears!”

“Thou makest no sense. Is this Our House or yours?” She said turning back to him, lifting her fork with magic, and ate a small piece of her hot cake.

The Alicorn took a quick bite as well. With his mouth full, he said, “It may look like your home, but hotels do the same to make you feel comfortable. They make them look a lot like home so you feel comfortable. I just happen to make my home just like your home.” He swallowed. “Ahh, or maybe your home just looks like mine.” He rose an eyebrow and leaned over the table a bit.

“Your home, okay then. If We are thine guest, what is Our host's name?” He had to have some sort of magical name. He had so many talents – flying, teleportation, cooking – that it had be something awesome. That also reminded her to check for his cutie mark.

“Well I guess names are important, but compared to a name like Princess Luna, mine is nothing but the dust underneath your bed.” She leaned to the side to look at his flank, but he moved his head in the way. “I guess you could know it, but it seems a bit early for that. We have a long time to get to know each other, did you know that?” She tried to see his cutie mark, but every time she glanced over at it, he seemed to move his head in her way. “Maybe you would like to ask your next question?”

She gave up and asked. “Yes! What is thine cutie mark! Thou seemst to have so many talents! We just...” She ran around him, but he spun quick enough to keep her from seeing. “...want to see it!”

“Alright, you may see it.” He turned to his side and flashed off his cutie mark. It was an eye with the Moon as its pupil. It seemed to glow off his coat. “It’s the hardest talent I could ever think of, and it ended up on me.”

“But what is the talent?” She looked at him, then back at the leering eye. His nose wrinkled a bit, almost as if he wasn’t sure how to answer. After a short time of him looking around, he answered.

“I watch the Moon. Everything that happens on it, I must see. There is nothing on it I do not notice, but it is much more than a skill of watching. I can’t afford to just wait for something to change on the Moon. It requires that I fix it when something is wrong. The only problem is the Moon needs to realize it has a problem before I’m allowed to change it.”

“But if your job is to fix it, why must thou wait?” Luna was puzzled. This colt seemed to be too mysterious to understand. He seemed to talk with an otherworldly sense.

“If I fixed it upon my own accord, I’d be meddling, honey. The Moon would only push me away if I tried that.” With one last bite, he finished his hot cakes.

“Well what an odd skill. So, your name?”

“You, my one and only...” He moved the table out of the way with magic and stepped closer. He moved in uncomfortably close to her, and she felt her bones shake. His presence so close held an awesome power. Luna wasn’t sure she liked or disliked it; it was just different. He nudged some of her mane out from over her ear with his snout and whispered, “...may not know that yet.”

He couldn’t resist smiling from ear to ear. He backed away from Luna, revealing a fearful-looking expression on her face. He still smiled back at her, but she was furious. All she wanted to know was his name, and he hadn’t the decency to share it.

Stomping her hoof, she said, “If thou wilt not tell Us your name, We shall have to make one up for thee.” She thought deeply for a name but settled for a basic one. “Moon Watcher.”

He cracked up laughing. “That is the lamest name I have ever heard! And it’s in no way original! You’re a hoot, you know that Luna!?” She still stood there angry. He was a tease, and it bothered her to no end. “That’s more of a job description then a name. Why not call me… Reginald, or Timothy?”

She just stood there, digging her hooves into the tile beneath her. “Or you could remain nameless.”

“If it was my choice, I wouldn’t have a name. I don’t need it anyway. The mystery of a no-named Alicorn seems so much more intriguing. But I guess you could call me something…” She watched him lower his head. He was probably thinking of a name. “Reginald sounded cool, so Reginald it is!” He smiled and turned around.

“Reginald?” She didn’t like the name. “We’ll call thee Reggie, then.” She followed him out of her room. Her mane was a mess, and she just noticed it. Her horn glowed and her mane was set right. “So, what now?”

“Well, the Moon beckons me, so I’ll be back soon.” She ran up beside him, keeping pace with his stride.

“So thou knowest where it is? The moon, We mean.” He stopped and turned to look at her. He gave her a closed half smile and winked, vanishing into thin air. “What! Thou must be kidding Us! Thou canst just vanish! Where is the Moon! Tell Us!” Luna stomped her hoof against the floor repeatedly. Why was this stallion, or Reggie as he said, so difficult?

‘What in all Equestria…’ She enjoyed his company, but now she was bored. Luna stood around, not entirely sure where to go or what to do. She thought of flying, but she would have to come back down to the messed-up world, so no point. Luna walked back into her room and decided to look out her window.

It had a small balcony extending from it. The dark blue mare opened up the gates and stepped out onto the balcony. It was chilly out. Her horn glowed, and the jacket from the night before came floating out. She let it rest across her back, but didn’t slide her legs into it. The sleeves blew in the cold wind. She stared up at the stars, yearning for the moon to just show up.

‘That’s odd’ Luna thought as she looked up. Some stars were not where they should be. ‘What happened to their formation?’ She stood there, gazing up at the stars. Then something hit her: maybe the stars didn’t move. Maybe she did. ‘Did We move somewhere? Or is it another season?’

Luna used her magic to tie the two sleeves of her jacket together and flew into the air at high speeds. She wanted to know just what was going on once and for all, so she planned to fly around Equestria - just to see if there was any clue to what may have happened. ‘No time for sightseeing.’ Equestria was dark all over. In fact, the princess wasn’t sure what was behind the mountains ahead of her. She knew of the Everfree Forest, but that was it.

She wasn’t sure there was going to be anything incriminating behind those mountains, but what else was there to do? Reggie wasn’t around, so she had nopony to talk to. There was nothing to do here, and it was killing her.

Luna was close to the mountains now. Light poured over the ridges and edges of the mountains, but why? There was no light anywhere with the sun gone, right? Her face went glum and she didn’t want to continue further, but she kept going anyways. So close to the mountain, she felt warm.

Her heart sank as she landed on the peak of the mountain. The sun was still shining, all across Equestria, but something was in its way. A giant sphere blocked out half of the sun. Luna was both sad and confused. What was that giant sphere?

“Oh! Well that’s where you used to live!” Reggie flew in from behind Luna and hovered in front of her. The sun shined behind him, giving him a silhouette look.

“Ist thou going to always read Our mind, or are We never to have privacy again?” Luna put a smug face on. She liked her thoughts to stay private.

“I’m not allowed to give you any privacy.”

“What dost thou mean? And why did thou say that ‘that’…” She pointed a hoof out towards whatever blocked the Sun, “...was where We ‘used’ to live?”

“I mean it's part of my job” He flew near Luna and nuzzled her snout with his. She stepped back a bit in surprise as he chuckled. “Awwe, don’t act like you didn’t miss me? I missed you. It felt like forever for me.”

“Thou art avoiding Our second question.” She didn’t show it, but she really didn’t mind him being so forthright, even if it was to avoid questions.

“And that’s why I keep doing it.” She rolled her eyes. “Ahh, yes! Your second question! Well, I say it’s where you lived because it’s true. You used to live there, and now you’re here.”

“How can that be where We ‘used’ to live, Reggie? We’re still in Equestria. We’re still home.” Luna said it, but didn’t know for sure if she was right or wrong. Earlier Reggie had said Luna’s home wasn't really hers, but was, in fact, his.

“You are home, but not in Equestria.”

“Couldst thou stop being ever so cryptic!?” Luna was fed up with Reggie not answering her questions with the answers she wanted to hear.

“What do you want me to say, my love?”

“Where are We!?” Luna sounded more hopeless than demanding now. This Alicorn pushed her every button.“Plain and simple! Where are We!?”

“What do you love the most, Luna?” That did it.

“Of ALL the ponies in all the universe, We get stuck with this one! We cannot believe this!” She started stomping her hooves and shaking her head violently. “Why canst thou just answer a simple question!? Reggie, just tell me!”

“What do you love the most out of everything?”

“Why dost that matter!”

“It matters because it answers more then one question.”

“What ist more important then wondering where thine home is!? Reggie, We’re already distraught, canst thou just tell me…?” He shook his head. Luna shut her eyes. Gnashing her teeth, she pressed her hooves hard into the ground. “Alright” She shook her whole body, starting with her tail to release tension. “We’ll answer thine question first.” Reggie liked that idea, and showed it with a smile.

“We love the moon. It hast never done Us wrong, and always covers Our land in silence and calmness. It's perfect for games, feasting, loving, but guess what? Everypony falls asleep! We give them the prime time to do anything and they all just sleep! Why even have night! Confound these ponies they push Us to madness! They hate the one thing We love!” She took a breath, and realized how close she had moved to Reginald’s face. Her eyes were perfectly leveled with his and her teeth were bared. With a stern look on her face, she said, “Now, where are we?”

Reggie, with a straight face, leaned to the side and pointed his hoof at her cutie mark. She did not turn, but merely glowered at him. He looked up at her and then back to the cutie mark. “Stop staring at Our flank, and answer the question.”

“Well what do you love, my dear!? You already answered it, so it shouldn’t be that hard.” Reggie stood upright again and stared at her. The face Luna made was priceless. Reginald had answered Luna with a question. Why? Because it was like Reggie said: both questions had the same answer!

“Oh my… Thou must be kidding… Thou art joking, right…?” She stepped back, and looked around. ‘There is no way!’ She thought.

“She’s beautiful isn’t she, The Moon I mean. She amazes me over and over. I love her, did you know that?” Luna’s mind was still in processing mode. “Luna, let’s go back to your room so you can get some rest.”

“We’re on the Moon? What! Why!?” Luna stepped back, just a half a step from falling over the edge of the peak. One more step back down she'd go. Reggie was aware of this and didn’t want her to do anything she might regret.

“Luna, I’m serious now, no more jokes.” He kept calm and stepped toward Luna as she backed up. “Nopony likes to be shocked like that, and nopony can just shrug it off, and I’m not expecting you too. I just need you to come with me so you can sleep on it.” He stepped a hoof closer with his head down and eyes wide.

“Sleep? Are We sleeping? Of course We are. The second We wake up, We’ll take over Canterlot and show them the greatness of night! We just need to wake up first, that’s all.” Luna turned, staring down the edge of the mountain. They had been on a plateau. It was a long drop, with nothing in the way to stop her...

“Luna, don’t. This isn’t a dream.” He stepped next to her and looked at her. She kept her gaze down. “Love, I’m not going to stop you, but I’m not going to let you do that, either.”

It didn’t matter what Reggie wanted. She just wanted to wake up. Nopony liked her when she was awake in Canterlot, but that was better then nopony existing.

With her mane hanging over her head on both sides, all she could see was the ground. Her spine tingled, and the blood seemed to pound through her body, like a hammer to the nail. It would only be a second, and she would be awake. Luna could go back to being normal, hated, ignored, and disregarded as princess. But it would be better then being lonely, right? There isn’t a chance to be loved, regarded, or noticed if nopony was around.

But then again, she had that here, in her dream. Somepony loved her, even if it was playful. Luna enjoyed Reggie, but she wanted to show Celestia that she was better than everypony. She wanted to be looked up to whether it was out of fear or respect. She wanted more.

Princess Luna didn’t remember stepping off, just like she didn’t remember leaving Canterlot the first time. She was falling backwards and staring up at Reggie, who stood there, watching her. He didn’t look away, and didn’t jump down to save her. The sunlight shone above his body, seeming to engulf him.

Luna was falling to the cold surface of the Moon. And as she fell, she remembered his question.

'What do I love?'

Comments

[PegasusKlondike]

Poor Luna, trapped in a projection of her heart for one thousand years. No wonder she came back all screwy as Nightmare Moon.

[Duffman18]

I am loving this story. I can't wait to see how you show Luna's transformation into Nightmare Moon.