What Follows Hugs

by David Silver

12 - Moon-lit Night

"I will not accept that answer." Luna leveled an even glare at Sombra.

"Do you doubt me?!" Dark energy poured from him as he trembled with a building fury.

"Neigh," spoke Luna gently. "But you are our friend. As friends, we will face this together."

Sombra's fury guttered out in surprise. "But... it is darkness. You are unprepared."

"What is the darkness but an aspect of the night I govern?" she challenged. "I was surprised at its intensity, but not at its nature. I am ready to fight it."

Sombra took half a step back, mind whirling with ways to escape the situation at hoof. "It is... dangerous."

"I am not a stranger to such things. I would be a poor princess if that were enough to dissuade me." Luna reached up a hoof for Sombra's shoulder. "I know you are used to working alone or with subordinates, but, this once, let us fight side by side."

"I have Toby," grunted out Sombra.

"Did you call?" Toby landed beside the two powerful ponies. "Little ponies playing at the park with a watcher, is good."

Sombra nodded faintly. "See? He will assist."

Luna wrinkled her nose. "No offense is intended to Toby, but he is not held as your peer. You have made this clear. He is also a creature of light, not of darkness."

Toby grabbed both ponies and pulled them close. "Toby is happy with both. Night is quiet dark time, moon so large and pretty above. Day has bright sun and noise, good noise."

Sombra squirmed in his assistant's firm grip. "Toby will suffice for this matter."

Luna studied Sombra's face from the other side of the hug they were trapped in. She watched him squirm and the way his eyes roamed. "You are hiding something. What is it?"

"Are you accusing me?!"

"I'm telling you." She pointed at him. "You are hiding something. What is it? We are allies, treat me like one."

Sombra's teeth clenched visibly before smoke escaped his nostrils in a loud snort.

Toby watched this play out, unsure exactly what was going on. He could tell they were tense though. "Luna is friend," he pointed out, hoping that would help. "She will do good things."

"Yes, good..." Sombra clucked his tongue against his sharp teeth. "Very well, let us see." He flowed from Toby's grip, becoming little more than shadow for a moment. "I know the identity of your assailant and would request their pardon."

Luna blinked with widened eyes. "So you d--"

Toby's paw came down between them. "Who is bad shadow person?"

Luna blinked at being interrupted, starting back before recovering. "Y-yes, that is the question."

Sombra glanced up and Toby and across at Luna. "He once served me, before the Crystal Empire was sealed away. I had thought him lost, but clearly he has persisted."

Luna shook her head slowly. "He still has your old viewpoints, I see... Why do you want him pardoned? Is it just out of some sense of loyalty?"

"I should think not!" exclaimed Sombra in almost a grunt. "He was, and still is, my servant. I will give him better tasks to do than terrorizing ponies pointlessly. I have this situation under control."

Toby tilted left, then right. "No more hurting ponies?"

"No more," agreed Sombra. "There remains one task that I must complete." His eyes focused on Luna's. "Where is the accused unicorn? I need see her to resolve this."

"I have heard little of this case, but all that I have is disconcerting." She turned and began to walk. "Let us see her. I have my own questions to ask."

Sombra fell in to her right and slightly back. "Your sister was swift to offer forgiveness, should the matter be resolved without harm."

Luna's eyes rolled. "That sounds like her. A grave crime has been committed. Punishment should follow, or we are giving the wrong lesson to others who are watching."

Toby hopped on Luna's left side, keeping pace. "She is very sorry and sad. Why punish more?"

Sombra lifted a hoof as he walked on the other three. "When a law is breached, a lesson should be given to all others who consider such a path themselves. Firm and decisive punishment dissuades future lawbreakers from action."

"In this, we agree," grunted out Luna.

"Do we?" Sombra suddenly smiled. "I recall you defending against your sister's wish to see me brought to justice."

Luna tensed as her hypocrisy was reflected. "Your crime was quite some time ago, and I have little fear of most ponies considering taking your path, Sombra."

"Perhaps not..." He looked around as they exited the castle proper and began crossing a courtyard. "Where are we going?"

"To sister's school of magic."

Toby suddenly looked excited. "Can Toby learn magic?"

Luna blinked softly. "You do not have a horn, Toby."

Toby reached up for his forehead, as if he possibly had a horn and just hadn't noticed it before. As it turned out, he did. Two of them in fact. "Toby has two horns, so twice the magic."

Luna gave a half-laugh. "Horns you have, dear friend, but they are not unicorn horns."

"So?"

Sombra lifted his shoulders. "He has done more with less. Until it has been attempted, I am not ready to say he cannot do it."

Luna stopped in her tracks. "Are you seriously suggesting the Tsuki may be capable of magic?!"

Sombra turned to face Luna, his expression passive. "I am saying it cannot be ruled out. Toby has performed several tasks I would have been confident in ruling impossible for him since we have met."

Toby clasped his forepaws together. "Toby will practice extra hard!"

"To what end?" Luna gave her fuzzy friend a gentle smile. "Dear friend Toby, why would you want to learn magic?"

Sombra's face was a half snarl, half smirk. "Because he can."

"Well, um... Because Toby can help more, and if Toby can learn magic, Toby teach other Tsuki, then they do magic. Better for all Tsuki!" He became more confident in his answer as he spoke it, bouncing in place by the end of his words. "Toby is ready!"

Luna reached up to brush along one of the long red horns that adorned her former-pet. "Dear Toby, let us not be distracted from our task. First, we set wrong to right, then perhaps we can speak of further lessons."

Sombra's eyes turned to the building they were approaching. "Yes, we should focus. The accused dwells here?"

"Sister informed me she was placed in house arrest in the dormitories." Luna strode to the front of the group. "It should not be hard to locate her."

They were not stopped from entering, though the students gaped at them. Some peered at the awful majesty of Sombra, others ogled at the bouncing form of Toby, and many dipped their heads or threw themselves prostrate for the passing of Luna. There was nowhere they went that was without signs of their passage.

One of the teachers stepped from his class just to squeak as he almost ran into the group of three. "L-Lu-Princess Luna! A pleasure." He dipped his head low. "Um... how can I... help you?" He stammered and his eyes darted nervously between them all

Luna reached for his chin and lifted it up. "You know I do not demand groveling. We are here to speak to the accused. Can you direct us to her?"

"Does he not know who I am?" questioned Sombra, one brow raised in question.

"O-oh, yes, um, Lord Sombra."

Lord was not his usual name, but he found no displeasure in it. He smiled quietly.

"She's right this way." He scurried ahead and began to lead the way, taking them up a flight of stairs and down a few halls. The door he pointed two had a guard standing beside it stiffly. "Here. Um, any luck recovering her friend?"

Luna scrunched her snout. "Were they truly friends?"

"Oh, yes." The teacher bobbed his head. "I'd have to tell them to be quiet in class more often than not. They loved chatting and exchanging notes."

Sombra brushed past the teacher marching towards the door even as he began to fade. He said nothing as he ceased to be.

Luna frowned softly. "It is not as easy for me to go where he has."

The teacher took this as a hint that his presence was no longer required. "Um... good luck..."

Toby's attention was on Luna. "How do we help Sombra?"

Luna considered a quiet moment, tapping her chin before she thrust it upwards. "Ah ha! May I put you to sleep?"

Toby tilted his entire body with confusion. "Toby trusts Luna, even if Toby not understand why."

"You'll see, I promise." Her horn glowed gently as Toby's vision dimmed and he slumped to the floor, passing right out to a peaceful slumber. "And now..." Magic reached from her horn, binding her to Toby's mind and allowing her access to the other side of reality, where thoughts resided, and hopefully Sombra.

Toby was in a vast field of snow, bright and pristine. He was far from alone. All around him were other Tsuki and he was teaching them a lesson. "See, this how you do it." He waved a paw and his horns glowed brightly before the snow before him was shoved aside, making a huge path that was clean of the stuff for some distance before him. "See? You can do it too!"

The other Tsuki made noises of wonderment and a few others began trying it just as Luna popped into being far above. "Toby!" She called out, descending on her powerful wings. "We have work to do."

Toby blinked softly. "It is very nice that Best Princess is visiting the Tsuki. Everyone clap for Best Princess!"

The other Tsuki began to slap their forepaws together in eager applause. They threw flowers that they weren't holding moments ago, raining them down on Luna as she landed.

She smiled at them a moment before looking back to Toby. "This is a dream. If we are to assist Sombra, we must move, now."

Being informed, his eyes sharpened. "Oh! Sorry, dream Tsuki. It will be even better when Toby shows how to do it for real. Keep practicing!"

His dreams, obedient and loyal, got back to practicing magic, not at all caring if Tsuki could actually use any magic to begin with. Luna extended a wing and nudged Toby up into the air in defiance of gravity. "Where we are going, there may be no ground. Better to come in flying."

Toby reached out with his paws, waving all four through the air before he managed an awkward swimming motion forward. "Toby is ready."

Luna did not look entirely convinced, but there was no time. It would have to do.

Author's Note:

Sombra does not accept help easily, especially from would-be peers.

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Comments

[StormDancer]

Sombra, apparently, has five legs... Since he raised none and walked on the other four.

Silly Sombra.

[Daremo]

than shadow a moment - than shadow for a moment

clean of the stuff some distance - clean of the stuff for some distance

lowering on her powerful wings - descending(?) on her powerful wings

---

I begin to wonder if the accused is as innocent as she appears to be, and who knows how long it will be before we find out. Cliffhangers are nearly as bad as typos...

[David Silver]

8125792 Typos detained for questioning.

[Booster Spice]

Toby goes air swimming by?

Well, at least it isnt a flying Australian elephant.

[Belated1truth]

Technically Toby already has performed magic when he negated Sombra's magic, dispersed the Vizeier's shadow creatures, and went Dream walking/hopping.

8124995 Well unless he is descended from Sleipnir himself, I doubt it. Then again he is an Umbra/Shadow Pony, so could just reform into shadow at anytime. So whose to say he can not make extra false shadow limbs too?

[tsaukpaetra]

Team Night away!
It's good to see Sombra is adapting all the time.
Keep going! ;)

[FridayPie]

8126206
Using ears? :P That's actually what I imagined at start of Angel's story