Falling In Love With Darkness

by stephamazin

Born Tainted

"Your majesty? I have already fed and cleaned the child but he won't stop crying. He wakes up from his sleep every few minutes. I fear he may once again be suffering from night terrors; I'm unable to calm him. I hope your highness will pacify him." The wet nurse stood,head lowered, before Luna's door waiting for a response .

"Alright, Warm Milk, please bring him in he may stay with me until he is calm. My presence should be able to lessen his nightmares." The mare thanked Luna before heading back towards the colt's chambers. Meanwhile, Luna called for one of her thestral guards; the stallion stood tall in dark metal armor his hoof posed in front of his forehead in a military salute and his expression stoic. "Guard, please have the kitchen staff prepare two cups of daffodil milk tea for Sombra and I, make sure extra honey and sugar is mixed in his mug; also, bring me three fresh linen blankets from a nearby linen closet.

The guard was the first to arrive back; a stack of carefully folded blankets resting atop his back while a butler followed behind with a silver tray being carried with his magic. Luna grabbed both requested items and said thank you to both ponies before returning to her chambers. She made a mess of the blankets roughly shaping them to resemble a nest of sorts and then sat and began blowing on her steaming tea. Minutes later another knock on the door. Sombra walked in a hoof stuck in his mouth and carrying a stuffed animal. The wet nurse said her pleasantries before leaving to return to her own station.

The mug floated in front of the colts face until the boy stopped sucking on his hoof to reach out for it. "Outch, hot." he said after drinking the liquid quicker than he should have the tip of his touch burned. "Dam, will you tell me a story?"

"Sure what story would you like to hear? The one about magnificent beasts and brave heros or perhaps a simple on about bonds formed through hardships?"

"The one about giving pieces of yourself to others only to end up whole, please"

"Alright... there once was a beautiful pony who wore a headdress created with the feathers of a jeweled peafowl. It shone with marvelous seafoam blues, captivating yellows and vibrant turquoise. Everypony who saw her wished to be like her. However one day a filly went up to the mare pleading her for one of her feathers; of course, the proud and vain pony refused. Because she kept her beauty only for herself the ponies began to ignore her. Her beauty meant nothing if the others would not look; so the mare with the rainbow headdress went to a wise zebra who lived in the Everfree Forest. When she met the zebra she proclaimed 'Zebra! Although I am beautiful nopony will look at me, what can be done to return their glances to me?' she asked.
The zebra answered 'Your vanity has been rewarded with apathy to change this you must act valiantly. Being snooty is a waste of beauty. To fix this animosity use generosity.'"

"Do all zebra's speak in a rhyme?" asked Sombra his eyes, the size of dinner plates, shimmering with curiosity.

"Yes, it is a display of wisdom for them. A tradition that forces them to think before they speak and choose their words carefully." Luna cleared her throat before continuing. "When the mare returned to town she gave one feather to every pony she encountered. Her final feather was given to the filly. The mare was no longer beautiful but when she saw the expression the villagers made she felt more happiness than when she had greedily kept it for herself. While she no longer had any feathers she felt whole. The end."

Both mugs sat empty, forgotten as the story was told. Sombra's mouth stretched open as a yawn overtook him. Luna had to stifle her own "Don't you know that yawns are contagious? Come It's time for you to retire to your room for the night." Luna grabbed a candle as she walked with the colt down the corridor her wing stretched protectively over him. The shadows seemed to creep around the edges of the candlelight; lying in wait to see if either pair would venture into it grasp. Sombra pressed into her side keeping himself as far as he could from the abysmal darkness that surrounded them.

Finally they reached the door She held the light over him as she waited for him to lay in the bed. She felt the darkness flow over her skin making her coat turn a few shades darker as she waited. Finally he was in the bed he stared at her his eyes worried. "Don't worry I'm strong enough that it doesn't scare me."

"Does being scared mean you're weak?" Luna shook her head at the foal.

"No, being scared but facing it anyway does make you brave though. Rest now and stay in the light. When you are older you will be brave with me but until then stay in the safety given by the light." Luna left the candle on his nightstand, with the amount of wax left it would last till the sun rose. "I will see you next sunset, Sombra."

Luna walked quickly down the hall as her coat darkened till it was indistinguishable from the black around her. Finally she reached her own room light covering her blackened fur. She walked over to her mirror in time to see her pupils revert back to circles and her eyelashes fade from purple to black. "You are strong" she whispered to her reflection "You won't be beaten" she assured herself even if her reflection seemed uncertain.

Back in his own room Sombra stared at the life-giving flame. "I am weak but I must be strong." He proclaimed thrusting a hoof into the air. "I will be there to fight the darkness with her" he said in a serious tone. At least until he heard the shadows hiss and he ducked underneath the covers, shivering with his tail between his legs

Comments

[SilverArc]

Ok this is a interesting concept, but I say i feel a little lost when reading through it. From what I got Sombra is studying under Luna but I feel like you should expand this more and delve deeper, especially the important parts of the story like the restricted part of the library for example.

My suggestion add a bit more meat to your story expand on the characters and a bit more back story, and lessen the jumps so it's easier to follow.

I'll keep this story on watch and see how it plays out tho.

[stephamazin]

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I have decided to rewrite the beginning. so when the new first chapter comes out please read and give me your opinion on it.

[stephamazin]

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Thank you very much for your feedback!