Once More, with Feeling

by Amaranthine Thought

Chapter 10: Responsibility

Twilight woke early the next morning, feeling renewed. Her sleep had been dreamless and sound, something she hadn’t been able to find as of yet. Something she felt she needed, given the varied problems she had faced and continued to face.

She got up, firmly intent on doing something about Night Light. More than anything else, the sanguinerian was urgent, and she had to come to a decision. She mustered her thoughts, and focused as she went through her morning stretches.

What little she knew of Night Light was bad. By all indications, Night no longer cared about others, and could and would easily kill somepony. She obviously had greater power than was at first apparent, considering she had escaped from an enraged Luna and was still able to manipulate Twilight’s emotions despite the binding.

Could there be something more to her? Some secret Night was keeping, waiting for the right time? And if so, what could it be, and how would it affect things?

By what she knew, there was a very strong chance that Night was a danger, to everypony. Whatever Night was hiding was very possibly something worse than was already known as well.

And yet…

When she first met Night, when she was intent on destroying her, Night had begged for her life. Something normal presumably, but said in a fairly specific way:

‘I can’t die now.’

It seemed too specific to be coincidence. Night had begged for her life, but not in the normal way. If she was desperate, why not something more like, ‘I don’t want to’ or ‘Please no’ or something? But no. ‘I can’t die now’. Implying she could later on, after something had happened.

Something was strange, and Twilight had a rather pressing need to learn more about Night Light. But who would…

Luna. Night had specified that Luna hated her, which seemed obvious now. Luna would surely know something about her, and Celestia would know something as well, surely.

So, she would go and ask the twin Princess about Night, and make a decision that way. Either sending her to her rest at last, or allowing her to continue, so long as her past gave some indication of a possibility of redemption. It would be simple, it would… would…

Twilight hesitated before she opened the door, her hoof a few inches from the knob.

Hadn’t Lux done the same thing to her? Looking over her life before deciding to help? Judging her to determine if she lived or died?

Wasn’t she about to do the same thing to Night? Was that right? Did it make a difference that Night had killed ponies before? That she was a sanguinerian?

Did that make her less a pony and more a monster? Was Twilight even allowed to make that distinction? Was it right for Twilight to want to know all her secrets before deciding her fate?

Was it even right for Twilight to hold her fate? If she had just sent Night to her rest at first, she wouldn’t find herself like this, but now she was.

Night was weak. Dying. Her one chance was to hurt somepony, and Twilight had bound her not to. A possible salvation lay in Twilight’s blood, and she was thinking that maybe she shouldn’t until she knew everything about Night.

Night’s life was in her hooves, for better or worse. She had spared her, and was now responsible. For better or worse, she had to decide Night’s fate.

She frowned at nothing, finding the weight of that uncomfortable. A few regrets surfaced, soon dispelled; there was no point wondering what if. Things were the way they were, and nothing would change that.

She made a choice, and left her room.

---

It didn’t take long for Twilight to make her way to the gardens. Avoiding being seen until she was in the deepest part, left alone for the most part.

Then she cast a simple spell to be certain that nopony would stumble nearby or overhear anything, and then gave a moment of thought before focusing on Night.

Allow nopony to see you, and come to me as carefully as you can. She ordered, and then waited.

It was a few minutes before the nearby bushes rustled. Twilight turned, and saw Night come into view, and winced.

Night’s eyes were shining bright, not even sort of mortal anymore. Her wings seemed ragged, and her fangs protruded from her mouth. She was covered in dirt, and seemed a little less pony than pony shaped monster.

“You called?” she muttered, her voice having more than a touch of aggression.

“I wanted to see you again.”

Night glared. “I’m here. Go ahead.”

Twilight blinked. Night seemed upset, actually upset. She was angry, but there a deeper note of… despair?

Twilight changed what she had intended to ask, “What’s wrong?”

Night blinked, and then glared and bared her teeth.

“You don’t know?” Night near hissed, practically growling. “Really?”

Twilight only shook her head, staring. Night seemed monstrous right then.

“Never in all my life… All that I have seen and felt, you are unique!” she yelled.

“I’ve seen the love that makes ponies die for another! I’ve seen hate to drive the happiest, kindest pony torture another! I’ve seen love turn to hate, and hate to love, both emotions coming to bloom in a heart, but you, Princess Rest, are new!”

“How?” Twilight asked, a touch intimidated. Night was upset, and her voice was angry, but it had a far stronger note of something more like…

Betrayal? Angry despair?

“You don’t care.” Night said. “Not even a bit. You don’t hate me. You don’t love me. You’re perfectly apathetic in ways that make zombies look emotional.”

Twilight frowned. “I am not.”

“Yes, you are!” Night yelled, her wings flaring, showing that they truly were ragged; little holes were present. If she was still able to fly, she would have a very hard time doing so.

“Look at me! Look at my wings! You did this to me you realize!”

“I did not,”

“Remember? When you pulled me through a window!? If I was weaker, I’d have been dead! And all you cared about was the stupid rabbit blood! I’m bleeding and hurt, and you’re thinking I hurt somepony!”

“And the instant you knew I hadn’t it was question time! Dragging me around is one thing, being able to override my will like I am no more than your toy, fine! I can live with that! But you… you…!”

“I’m nothing more than a book for you to read and abuse!” Night screamed, her eyes blazing. “Something to teach you and then to be thrown away like so. Much. Trash! Like the worst of my kind, just draining me dry to then toss the useless husk aside when you’re done!”

“My suffering and desires and nothing to you! Of no more importance than the air we breathe! My life is nothing in your eyes! Worth less than nothing!”

Night breathed, and calmed. She took a few deep breaths, panting faintly, glaring as Twilight stared in shock.

“End it.”

“What?” Twilight said weakly, not truly listening.

“Kill me. Better than this torment. Kill me, right now.”

Twilight stared, and saw Night’s determination. The despair that drove her to the certainty that passing on was preferable than life.

“Do it. Just tell me to die. That would be enough. Do it, or I swear, I’ll throw myself in front of Luna, and have her obliterate me!”

“Not that you would care.” Night spat, looking away. “I’d be so much dust on the wind, and you wouldn’t spend a single thought for me.”

“Now, I know it might be tough to muster enough care to actually order me to…”

Night hesitated.

Twilight was crying.

Night was right. Twilight hadn’t cared. All she had seen was the monster, and not the pony. The danger, and not the life, such that it was life.

Night wasn't some unfeeling undead monster. She bled. She felt pain, and fear. Other than one problem, which wasn't even her choice, she was very much a pony.

And Twilight had treated her like an inanimate object. Or even worse. Totally uncaring of her wants, and considered her nothing more than something to bind. Something to trap, and benefit from.

Celestia, she had treated Blueblood better. Night had every right to be upset, and the despair was obvious:

She was bound to Twilight, who cared nothing for her. Totally subservient to a power that had no intention of sparing a single moment for her. Trying to find a way to exist, and she hadn’t been able to. Mostly because of Twilight, convincing Night that she had no hope of anything.

“I’m sorry.” Twilight said, looking at Night through her tears.

“…What?”

“I’m sorry. You’re right. I did treat you horribly. I didn’t care.”

Night blinked, confused and off balance as Twilight shook her head.

“…But I can make it better.” Twilight said, raising her head again.

Night frowned faintly. “…Really? How?”

“I’m going to help you.” Twilight said, lowering herself to lie on the ground.

Night watched, uncertain and uncomfortable. “And how are you going to help?” she asked.

“The blood of an immortal will make your hunger stop. You won’t starve, ever again.”

Night blinked, and then grew thoughtful.

“In theory… their blood would last forever, and sustain me for, presumably, forever. But no immortal is about to let me…”

Night blinked, and glanced at Rest, noting her mild apprehension and determination. Particularly the way she had shifted her mane away from her neck.

“You… you can’t mean,”

“You said you can make it painless.” Twilight said, keeping calm.

“You’re telling me to…”

Twilight nodded, and Night blinked, unbelieving.

“…This has to be a dream. I’m dreaming. You can’t possibly be doing this.”

“Night…”

“You’re immortal! My biting you would have so many complications I don’t know them all!”

“Night, get over here before I can’t do it anymore.”

“I could seriously hurt,”

“Night, shut up and come here!”

Night did so, ordered. By the time she reached Twilight’s side, Twilight was tense.

Remaining still and calm at the idea of what was to come was more than a little difficult. And with Night going on about it only made it worse.

Night didn’t bite immediately. “…You’re sure? Really, really sure? We could find something else you know…”

“I’m sure. This solves your hunger permanently.”

“…You trust me this far…”

Twilight flinched, feeling something sharp gently touch her skin and a strong feeling that she should get rid of it right then. She repressed her feeling, and decided that she would follow trust Night Light, worries or not.

She felt like she owed her at least that.

“I do.” she said, not making any move to remove the sharp thing on her.

It went away for a moment, and she heard Night take a deep breath.

“…I wouldn’t.”

Night bit. One fang shattered on the skin, but the other pierced.

Twilight gasped and only because it was too much to scream. It was a horrible piercing pain in her, one that seemed to grow with each instant. One soon joined by a hideous chill, both pains mixing together and worsening.

She heard Night make some sound, but was unable to really understand what it was. She had one last coherent thought before the darkness fell:

I made the wrong choice.

Comments

[SmugKitsune]

Well... Shit

[Mahtan]

Something I just remembered now but if they find out she is Twilight she dies, right?
Have we forgotten that Luna can see the dreams of anypony? That means she can sre Twilight's dream so unless Death or Lux is making her dreamless she is foomed from the start.