What Moonlight Made Her

by Storybelle

Chapter 5. Paper Moon

“Are you sure you’re alright?” asks Celestia, as she raises an eyebrow at Moon Shadow. The mare in question groans reaching for a cup of tea.

“I’m fine,” insists Moon Shadow, through gritted teeth. “I’ve almost got it.” The cup is just irritatingly inches out of reach and the muscles in Shadow’s leg ache every time she extends the limb. Celestia waits, on the verge of using magic to just nudge it closer to Shadow’s trembling hoof. But with a final grunt and a desperate push forward, Shadow manages to grab hold of the cup.

She immediately wishes she hadn’t.

“Ow, ow, ow!” Shadow yelps, as every muscle in her shoulder protests at being pushed beyond their limits. This time Celestia does intervene, taking the cup from Moon Shadow and settling a golden glow around Shadow’s sore limbs.

“Here, let me help.” Celestia says kindly, as warmth washes over Shadow’s tense muscles. The magic pushes at Shadow’s sore spots, making her wince and then hiss as the gentle warmth eases some of the pain. Most of Moon Shadow’s muscles have seized up, causing her to limp all the way back to the castle. If she’d known she’d have to battle demented clowns, she’d have stretched first.

“What have you done to yourself?” Celestia asks, concerned as Moon Shadow finally relaxes. They’re sitting at Celestia’s breakfast table, facing each other and all Celestia has done since Shadow arrived is stare at her with worry.

“It’s not what I’ve done,” Moon Shadow grumbles. “It’s what was done to me.” Celestia seems puzzled, so Moon Shadow explains further. “I was attacked.”

Celestia freezes and the heating spell suddenly becomes more intense rather than comfortable.

“Ow! Princess, that’s hot!” Shadow exclaims, trying to wriggle away from her strong magical grip. Celestia finally eases up and the spell returns to a gentler warmth.

“What was that about?” Moon Shadow asks, grumpily. 'I’ve had enough abuse, thank you very much. I was nearly eaten last night.'

“Nothing, nothing,” Celestia responds, but her eyes seem unfocused. “What attacked you? Are you well?”

“Just about. I’m sore but alright,” Shadow explains, pointedly looking at her shoulder still wrapped up in a golden glow. “I was called to a little filly’s dream. She was having a nightmare about all of these clowns…but suddenly the dream changed and all the clowns wanted to eat us instead.”

“The dream changed?” Celestia asks, shifting the magical field down onto Shadow’s back. She almost groans as it digs into her sore muscles. “You couldn’t change it back?”

“There, there is good,” Shadow tells her, as the healing spell moves over a particularly sore spot. She goes back to her explanation. “No. I tried; she tried…it was no good. It was like the dream became corrupted. For some reason, neither of us could change it back.”

“How did you escape?”

“Well, I was going to find a door and make a portal,” Shadow says, arching her back. “But they got to us before I could. After running and fighting them, I couldn’t really do much more. Besides, I had a filly with me.” Celestia nods approvingly.

“You couldn’t risk her safety,” she agrees gently. “I completely understand.”

“So I used the only option left,” Shadow hesitantly tells her. “I woke her up.” But Celestia only nods again.

“I know it’s a last resort. Still I believe, in this situation, you had no other choice. It would have been fruitless for you to try and keep fighting. You would have only hurt yourself and possibly the child.” Shadow relaxes, hearing this. Waking somepony up from a deep sleep is sometimes more harmful than helpful. Luckily, it hadn’t seemed to affect Daffy. Besides, a sharp awakening must certainly be better than dreaming of being devoured. Right?

“And that’s the reason you’re so sore?” probes Celestia. Shadow rolls her eyes.

“Ok, no,” Shadow admits, begrudgingly. “I also fell off the drainpipe climbing out of a window.”

“Well, that explains that, then.” concludes Celestia crisply. She finally releases the spell, much to Moon Shadow’s disappointment. But now Shadow can at least reach for her mug without yelping in pain.

“So, do you know what could have caused it?” asks Shadow, finally returning to her breakfast. Her oatmeal is lukewarm, but the yogurt is still good. “I’ve never had a dream where even the dreamer can’t change it.”

“As much as we like to think that you have control over the dreamworld, it’s not always true.” Celestia admits, reminding Moon Shadow of a few lessons they’d had back when Shadow was still in training. “That world is still magic at its core and mostly wild.”

“Like the Everfree forest.” Shadow observes, scraping round the bottom of the bowl. Celestia considers that.

“Of a sort,” she agrees. “You can affect ponies’ dreams – change a nightmare and use magic in a dream - because they are structured. But there are other parts of the dream world that are more like the Everfree forest. It has its own magic, so there is very little we can do to affect certain parts of it.”

“I’m guessing that ‘its inherent magic’ isn’t exactly lightness and bunnies,” murmurs Moon Shadow, sardonically.

“Correct, but that doesn’t mean it’s bad. Just wild.” Celestia pauses to look Moon Shadow straight in the eye. “We can’t control all of the magic in this world, Moon Shadow.”

“Just monitor it.” adds Moon Shadow thoughtfully, as she refreshes her cup of tea. “Thus, my whole purpose in life.” Celestia chuckles.

“Yes, if you want to put it like that,” she agrees. “Although, sometimes there are places – like the Everfree forest and Tambelon – where magic is too dangerous and we can’t even oversee the magic that exists there. And sometimes that’s best. Despite the fauna and flora that live in the Everfree forest, it functions perfectly well without our help.”

“What’s Tambelon?” Shadow asks, barely even hearing the rest of Celestia’s sentence. “I don’t think I’ve heard of it before.” Celestia pauses before raising her pink teacup to her lips.

“Just a very old city,” Celestia finally answers. “Abandoned now, of course.”

“But it’s not even on any maps that I’ve seen…” Shadow starts.

“What would be the point? It’s abandoned,” Celestia reminds her, lifting the teapot. She seems eager to change the subject. “Care for another cup?”

“Oh,” Shadow replies. “No, thank you, princess. I think I should go to bed.” Celestia raises the pot over her own cup to fill it with a fragrant stream of tea.

“Very wise,” Celestia agrees. “You’ve had an eventful night. I will see you next week but please immediately report to me if any more of these worrying events should occur.”

“Of course,” Shadow says, slowly getting to her feet. The spell Celestia used seems to have eased her pain considerably. “Hopefully, I’ll see you next week and not any sooner.”

Raspberry Conserve and Celestia’s maid are both waiting outside the door to Celestia’s chambers. Raspberry catches the door as it swings closed behind Moon Shadow’s back and slips inside to attend to the princess. No pony is allowed inside during Shadow’s meetings with the princess – although they, of course, presume it’s to do with matters of the state.

It’s not until Shadow reaches the main gates that she realises Celestia hadn’t asked what she wanted for breakfast next week.

---

A few nights later, Moon Shadow sneaks into a foal’s bedroom yet again.

She needs a sleeping pony in order to get into their dreams. Of course, she has her mother and her friends so she could easily cross into the dreamworld without breaking and entering…but she attempts to offer as much courtesy as possible to the ponies she loves. Unless she knows they’re having a nightmare, she doesn’t interfere. It makes her uncomfortable having that much information on ponies she went to magic kindergarten with. Knowing the dreams and secrets of her best friends would be a thousand times worse than...

“Please, please stay asleep,” Moon Shadow whispers, trying to get her rump over the window sill.

Maybe she should lose some weight. ‘This is what happens when you eat cake all hours of the day, Moon Shadow,’ she thinks disagreeably to herself.

Shadow finally manages to tip herself in, landing a little clumsily on the floor. Thankfully, the little filly does not stir at the sound of Shadow’s hooves hitting the hardwood floor.

Moon Shadow creeps closer to the bed, until she’s standing over the filly. She’s been busted like this before. A colt she thought was asleep, had opened his eyes and screamed bucking murder.

That, sadly, was arrest number two.

Moon Shadow closes her eyes and takes a few breaths, readying herself. This bit she can do. This is something she’s good at.

With barely a thought, white tendrils of magic extend from her horn and wind down to the little filly. The magic attaches itself to her forehead, connecting her to Moon Shadow by bright, intangible energy. The child doesn’t stir, no matter how strong the magic grows or how dazzling the light gets. Even when it reaches its peak and Moon Shadow vanishes, she sleeps on, unaware that an orange unicorn is now wandering her dreams.

---

It’s been several nights since Daffy’s dream and so far, Moon Shadow hasn’t encountered anything unusual. There have been more nightmares than normal but all of them change when forced – either by the dreamer’s whim or by Shadow’s magic.

It’s nearing dawn when Moon Shadow is busy watching a young mare’s dream about her latest coltfriend. She’s been summoned to this dream for some reason but the only reason she can see is to fix the atrocious dialogue. Where is the mare getting this stuff from, the latest Vampony romance novel? It’s awkward and flowery enough to make Moon Shadow cringe.

“I’ve seen soap operas with better acting,” Moon Shadow grumbles to herself. She half considers moving on when something catches her eye.

‘What was that?’ Shadow thinks, slipping past the stallion proclaiming his love loudly at the swooning mare on the balcony. Something moves in the corner of the garden and Shadow doesn’t think it’s a challenger for the young mare’s heart.

She moves quietly, sticking to the shadows. Something twists in her gut, letting her know that this is not just another part of the dream. And after the events of the last few days, she’s certain that they’re related. She really, really hopes that the mare didn’t plan on having her suitor fight a dragon in the name of true love. If Daffy’s clowns turned ravenous and bloodthirsty, she’d hate to see what might happen to a fire-breathing dragon.

Moon Shadow stops cautiously a few feet away from the thick lines of hedges. As she recalls, the hero had to climb over the large walls surrounding the mansion to get to the young lady waiting in her tower.

Walls. Not hedges.

Shadow immediately adopts a defensive stance. Much like Daffy’s nightmare, something has changed the dream. Very, very subtly but even so it shows that something else is here. And this time she can stop it before the dreamer is in danger again.

She steps closer, dark eyes never wavering from the pool of dark leaves.

“Come out!” she commands, even though her heart is pounding in her chest. “Right now!”

There’s a beat. Two beats. And then a black cloud streaks past Moon Shadow so fast that she barely has time to aim for it. It forcefully pushes her over onto her rump. The beam of magic she had ready shears the head off a nearby ornamental fountain statue.

“What? Hey, wait!” Shadow calls, trying to get up, but the cloud is already gone, vanishing from the dream. Shadow lies on the ground for a moment, trying to stifle both her frustration and pain from her sore flank. She still hasn’t quite recovered from the Clown incident a few nights ago and her body does not appreciate taking another hit. The severed stone head stares down at her in judgement, as behind her the hedges fade back to the tall marble walls the dreamer had originally imagined.

“Ow!” she quietly hisses and then tries to stand on her shaking hooves. Her rear protests as she pulls herself up but she’s finally standing on all four hooves again.

She looks up to find the young stallion in a collar and the mare in full Princess Luminaire era dress staring at her.

“Um. Hi. Sorry. Please continue. It was a lovely speech. Very dramatic and…purple.” Moon Shadow enters awkwardly, before bolting towards the nearest available portal as fast as her sore hooves and bruised back can take her.

---

Her whole body is aching with every step. Again. And landing painfully on her flank has given her at least three new sore spots.

First, the beast and the dreams she’s been having. Then, that strange book from Oceansoul. Third, a nightmare that wouldn’t respond to magic. Now, the shadow? What the Tartarus is going on? Moon Shadow wonders, as she comes within sight of the castle. She is going to have a nice soak before she goes to bed. Maybe that’ll take some of the soreness out of her.

She stumbles in the front door, expecting to hear her mother puttering in the kitchen. What she actually finds is a note stuck to the fridge.

Hello, pumpkin!

I’m going away for a few days to Ponyville. I’m picking up some more zap apples for Celestia’s tea. Cranberry Joy put in a good word for me, so her relatives in Ponyville will sell me some that they kept some aside from their last harvest. I’ll be home soon. Keep the house tidy, look after Icarus and most importantly, EAT SOMETHING OTHER THAN CAKE.

Your loving mother,

Tea Leaf

Shadow sighs to herself and turns towards the bathroom. Sore rump, dirty mane and no mother. Who wouldn’t want to eat cake at a time like this?

But she nonetheless feels better the minute she sinks into the hot, rose-scented tub. Her muscles start to relax and she dunks her head under the water so she can start to shampoo her mane.

When she’s done washing, she lies back and enjoys the warm water for a brief minute before her mind starts to wander.

She’ll have to tell Celestia. She has no other choice. The princess wanted to know the minute that something else happened. Something like this can’t wait. She’ll have to go today.

Moon Shadow turns on the tap to top the hot water and considers her options. She could go right now. She could get up out of her bath, dry off and head to the castle quickly.

Unpleasant. Horrid. Cold. Next.

Second option: she could go in an hour or so, when she’s done with her bath and has eaten an apple for breakfast.

This is better, but by that time Celestia would have already begun her paperwork and headed for Day Court. She’d be impossible to reach unless Shadow wants to stand in a queue for nearly two hours to speak to her. Next.

Final solution: Go this evening. Celestia has a free period just after she’s raised the moon and Moon Shadow can certainly barter her way in. She will tell Celestia her worries, the princess will fix it and all will be well by the time Tea Leaf returns home from Ponyville.

Moon Shadow swivels the tap off now that the bath is deliciously warm. Happy that everything will soon be resolved, she lays back in the bath and rests her head on the edge of the tub. And she quite unintentionally falls asleep.

---

When she wakes up, it’s dark.

“What?” Moon Shadow asks, startled. The sky is nearly black. There are no stars anywhere. Even the moon is a pale sliver and the mare in the moon is not even visible.

Moon Shadow turns and behind her she can see the outline of Canterlot and the mountain it’s built into. But the city is nearly dark, too. Only the castle gleams in the faintest of moonlight. But even without the usual bright lights of a busy capital city, Canterlot looks…different somehow. Moon Shadow stares as best she can in this dim light, but she can’t put her hoof on it.

“What is this?” she asks, but her voice sounds very quiet in the darkness.

“We’re on the outskirts of Canterlot,” says a distant voice. Moon Shadow jumps, startled by the presence of another pony. She looks around, wildly, but once again, there’s nopony there.

“It’s you, again,” she says. “You saved me from the beast!”

“I did,” admits the voice, hesitantly. “I fear he will come for you again, if he gets the chance.”

“Who is he?” Moon Shadow asks, urgently. She isn’t quite sure where to look. It feels strange to be addressing somepony who’s not really there. “Is he a threat to Equestria?”

“Very much so,” says the voice sadly. “You have no idea.” A pause. “But that’s not why we’re here.”

“Why are we here?” Shadow finally demands. “I was taking a bath and…oh.” She trails off as she remembers that she was in her own home and isn’t really standing outside the city walls. “I’m asleep.”

“You are,” agrees the voice. She can hear it clearer this time and it sounds young. Female. Maybe Shadow’s own age. It’s soft but with a very obvious Canterlot accent, much more refined than Moon Shadow’s own accent.

Shadow sighs heavily. She had been hoping that the shadow would be the last of it and she could return to her peaceful, if irritating, destiny. To be honest, the bath had made her more relaxed than she had been in days. “Did you bring me here?”

“I did. This is important.” Moon Shadow looks back at the city, so strangely shrouded in blackness. Her Sandmare eyes have adjusted quickly to the dark and now she can see the familiar landmarks. The round dome of the observatory. The tall spires of the library. The elegant sun-shaped weather vane of Celestia’s school. But the statue of the three tribes standing together that sits on the rooftop of town hall isn’t there. Shadow squints, but only sees empty space. That can’t be right. Shadow may only have been six years old the day the statue was lifted onto the roof of town hall, but she still remembers it clearly. Even in this dim light, she should be able to see the white marble of the unicorn, the glittering stones that cover the pegasus’ wings…

“This is the past, isn’t it?” Shadow asks. She feels slightly stupid for not figuring it out sooner. Now that she knows, she can see why the skyline of Canterlot is so subtly different. There are buildings that don’t exist yet, trees that have yet to grow. This is how the city looked before her time.

“It is,” the voice replies. “So many years ago, now. How old are you?”

“Twenty one,” Shadow tells her. Her birthday was last October and the Jolly Orange was closed for the night so that her friends could throw her a surprise party. Even some friends from the castle had come to celebrate. Cranberry Joy had even made a special fruit cocktail and named it in honour of Shadow.

“You’re only a few years younger than I am,” the voice tells her, mournfully. Shadow has a heavy feeling in the pit of her stomach. She’d bet anything that this night is the mare’s memory. There’s only one way that they’d be the same age now.

“Why are we outside of Canterlot?” Shadow asks instead. The only light available is the thin strip of the moon and that’s barely enough to light the ground in front of Shadow’s own hooves.

“You don’t want to be inside the city right now.” the voice insists. “This was a horrible night. All of the lights went out. Everything was filled with fear and chaos.”

“What happened?” Moon Shadow asks, even though she can already picture it. Her Equestria is usually filled with light and comfort. Its inhabitants would not cope well with sudden darkness. The fear would be palpable, the confusion heightening everypony’s panic.

“It was a planned attack. One evening, all the lights went out. Every single light in the city was just gone. And when everypony was running around scared and confused, a lone intruder slipped into Canterlot.”

“Just one pony?” Shadow asks. They’re too far away but she would swear she can almost hear the screams.

“I never said he was a pony,” the mare replies and the weight in Shadow’s stomach got a little bit heavier.

“You mean the beast,” she concludes, feeling sick. That terrifying creature from her nightmare, creeping along the back streets of her beloved city, the same one Shadow works so hard to keep safe… “Why did he come?”

“He had a very specific purpose. During all of the darkness and panic, he could get in while Celestia was distracted and take the Sandmare.”

“What?” Moon Shadow says, in shock. No wonder the beast had turned his eyes onto her: she was the kind of prey he had hunted before. “He took her? Why would he take the Sandmare?”

“In the past, when he was at the height of his power, it was a Sandmare that brought him down. I suspect he never forgot that.” The voice sounds fainter telling this part of the story. Almost pained.

Moon Shadow wishes the voice had a face she could turn away from. She knows who the mare is now…what the mare is.

“What does he want?” Moon Shadow finally asks. “Why was he in my dream?”

“I am sorry about that,” the voice says with regret. “I gave you that dream to show you the events of the past. But he can enter dreams too and he invaded yours. I woke you just in time.” Shadow suppresses a shudder. Everypony knows you can’t be killed in a dream…not unless you’re a Sandmare. To them, the dreamworld is real and corporeal. If they are wounded in a dream, they will return to the waking world wounded.

If a Sandmare dies in a dream, then she’s dead. Trapped in the Dreamworld forever. Only two mares had ever suffered that fate and Shadow grimly remembers Celestia’s warnings. Lapis Lazuli was attacked by a dreamer, caught up in a nightmare. And Wind Wisher was killed by a minor demon, who had escaped from Tartarus.

Neither of their families had bodies to bury.

“You said you were showing me events of the past. Why is that house important?” Shadow asks. The voice is silent, perhaps out of shock.

“You mean…you don’t know?” the faceless mare asks.

“No. Should I?” Shadow returns, with a hint of irritation. She has the nasty feeling she’s missing out on crucial information.

“You mean you don’t remember your past at all?”

“No.” Shadow continues. “I don’t remember much before I came to Canterlot.” Sometimes she wonders why that is. Everypony seems to have at least some memories of when they’ve very young but she doesn’t. She doesn’t recall anything from before she came to Canterlot to live with Tea Leaf. But usually she doesn’t care enough to find out.

Now she thinks that maybe she should have pushed just a little bit more.

“Perhaps you had to push it down so far that you forgot,” the mare says. “Maybe it was far too much for you to handle.”

“What did I push down?” Shadow demands, voice rising, just a bit. “Why would I want to forget my own past?”

“I’ll show you, one day,” the mare promises her. “One day, you’ll be ready. But that’s not today. Today, you needed to see the Demon Ram.”

“Is that who...what he is?” Moon Shadow asks, hesitantly. The name explains his curved horns, the red eyes, and the oppressive black magic. Shadow thinks of those long horns and the dead mare now talking to her. She shudders to think that was how she met her end.

“That’s a name for him, yes. He has many. But his real name is Grogar.”

Moon Shadow should be feeling better now that there’s a name to the monster of her nightmares but it doesn’t help any. The fear she felt staring into those blood-red eyes is worse than ever.

“Can he be stopped?” she asks instead.

“He can. He’s not invincible, much as he likes to think he is,” the mare says disdainfully. “After all, one of us defeated him before. We can again.”

“But how?” Shadow persists. “Tell me! I can get Celestia and...”

“No,” says the mare. “No. I’m sorry. There’s nothing Celestia can do. He’s hiding in the darkest realms of the dreamworld, where she cannot go. He’ll avoid facing her in this world, if he can. Last time, she came as soon as she knew and fought him with all the fury of the Daystar. He was seriously wounded and fled back to Tambelon. Since then, he’s only ever dared enter Equestria once more.”

“Tambelon?” It can’t be a coincidence; Celestia only just mentioned Tambelon this morning and now this mare says it’s the home of a demonic entity threatening Equestria. “But Celestia said Tambelon is abandoned!”

There’s a very inelegant snort. “Well, she would. But no, it’s not. Not exactly anyway.”

“You mean it wasn’t abandoned?” Shadow asks, confused.

“Not voluntarily,” says the mare. “Take care, Moon Shadow. Grogar will do the same thing to Equestria as he did to Tambelon if he gets the chance.

“Can Celestia fight him if he comes here?” Shadow asks, desperately. She’s grasping at straws now, she knows that. But those bright red eyes make her want to hide behind the strong, powerful goddess. She can’t help it. If she can’t fix it, then her mother can. And if Tea Leaf can’t, then Celestia can. There is no higher power and nothing Celestia can’t solve.

“Do you want that? That monster here in Equestria?” the voice asks, gently. She doesn’t sound accusing or angry; just gently reminding Moon Shadow that other ponies will suffer if she lets fear rule her. Like the Sandmare in front of her, other ponies will die before Celestia can even get to the battlefield.

“No. No, I don’t want that at all.” The city in the distance is still dark. Moon Shadow imagines that it will stay that way until Celestia brings the dawn. “Do we have any time?”

“Some. Not enough.” The mare’s voice sounds faint again. “There’s a lot to do. You have to wake up now.”

“No, I have too much to ask you!” Moon Shadow pleads. But it’s already happening. The other Sandmare is stronger than she is and Moon Shadow can feel the edges of the dream crumbling as the ghost of the Sandmare pushes her back towards consciousness.

“No, don’t leave me!” Shadow begs. For a moment the dream holds, blurring around the edges, the distant city already gone. The mare is quiet and Moon Shadow waits, desperate.

“I’ve never met another before. No pony else understands!” Her voice cracks, as she tries to get the mare to stay with her.

“I know. I know what it’s like,” the mare speaks suddenly, her own voice mirroring Moon Shadow’s tone. Moon Shadow wants to sob with relief. Finally. She was so sure she’d be alone and stay that way. “But I only exist in this world. You belong out there, no matter what Celestia tells you.”

Moon Shadow blinks away tears but before she can respond, the Sandmare begins to speak again.

“I won’t leave you. I’ll be here when you sleep,” the mare promises, fiercely. “I won’t let Grogar into your dreams again. You won’t be alone.”

And with that, the cracks reappear again and nothing Moon Shadow could do would slow it down.

“Wait!” she screams. “Wait! What’s your name?”

She wakes up in a bathtub of cold, dirty bathwater, still desperately screaming. But all that matters is that the mare’s final words are still ringing in her head.

Kimono.

Author's Note:

I would like to give a big thank you and lots of love to Ancientdragonduelist from Fimfiction and Ponyfan, Lore-lei and ScarletJul from the MLP Arena for pre-reading, editing and giving their input! The first four chapters have been edited accordingly.