What Princesses Need
Part 6: Help
Twas a rare thing indeed to see the solar Princess Celestia running. She was a dainty thing, and she never really rushed anywhere. Teleported, sure, but the fact that she felt the need to run down a hall and burst into a room spoke volumes to her guards. “Twilight Sparkle!” she cried, slamming open the double doors and then snapping them shut behind her. The scene before her was a sad one. Twilight Sparkle shook like a leaf on a grand four-poster bed, and Shining Armor stood very near, stroking her back. “I came as soon as the messenger reached me.” She told the Captain, sweeping across the room and up onto the bed. Twilight wordlessly whimpered, turning and clinging to her, hiding under her great wingspan. Celestia could feel the poor mare shaking. “Tell me what happened.” She bade the guard Captain.
Shining Armor saluted, outlining very briefly what he’d seen. After stopping in Ponyville to look for Twilight and learning from Spike that she’d gone camping in the mountain’s former dragon lair. He went up the mountain and ran into the Lunar Stallions. After getting past them (rather easily), he’d found Princess Luna about to molest his sister in a cave at the summit. After rescuing Twilight and besting the Lunar Stallions again he’d teleported back with her in tow, finding an empty royal apartment and sending a squire to fetch the Princess.
“I was afraid of this. I thought perhaps Luna still had some control…” Celestia sighed, leaning under her wing to nicker and press her muzzle comfortingly into Twilight’s mane. The mare shivered, pressing up against the Princess like a frightened foal to her mother. “Twilight, it’s alright. You’re safe now.” She coo’d softly. “I won’t let anything bad happen to you,” she looked up at Shining. “And neither will your brother.”
Slowly, Twilight’s face emerged from behind her hooves and she gave them the most soft-eyed and pathetic look of overt fear either of them had ever seen. “I-I know,” she said in a small voice. “I-I’m safe here with you two.” She gave a small, heart-wrenching smile. Shining Armor came to the side of the bed, leaning and nuzzling her mane comfortingly. She smiled a little wider.
“Twilight, my sister Luna is very sick.” Celestia said in the most gentle, motherly manner she could. “I won’t make excuses for her darker half, but I must tell you that that is what you saw: her darker half.” She was stroking her student’s mane and back with her long muzzle to help her cool down. Twilight shivered a little under her wing. The Princess’ body, she’d known since she was a filly, was always much warmer than a normal pony’s. Probably since she was the goddess of the sun or something, she retained heat much better than everypony else. But, it was comforting.
“She was Nightmare Moon, then… then she wasn’t.” Twilight Sparkle said in a troubled way. At Celestia’s gentle prompting, she told them everything that had happened. “—And then Shining Armor showed up to rescue me. I-I should’ve been able to get away on my own…” she trailed off, sagging and very disappointed in yourself.
“Twilight,” said Celestia with a small and patient smile. “Do you truly think you could hide from a goddess?” the purple mare looked up at her, soft-eyed. “It’s very hard, I assure you.” She nuzzled her again to soothe her. “I should have gone myself, I sent Shining to serve as your bodyguard, not to rescue you from my sister.” She sighed softly. “I’m so sorry for what happened, my most faithful student.” She whispered quietly. Twilight Sparkle smiled in a small way, pressing up against Celestia and hiding under her wing like a filly. She felt safe there, where it was dark and very warm. The solar alicorn smiled quietly. Her poor faithful student… she could be so strong, but so frail at the same time, sometimes.
“I’m sure you two need to rest a bit, I’ll return to my duties.” Shining Armor volunteered when he saw the goddess and mare sharing a tender moment.
“Thank you, Captain.” Celestia smiled as he saluted.
“W-Wait!” Twilight called softly, poking her head out. She searched with her eyes to find the right thing to say. “Thank you, big brother.” She said, mewling a little. “I’d probably still be back there if not for you.” Shining Armor smiled encouragingly, then turned and left them alone. “What should we do now, Princess?” Twilight stuck her head out of the warm, safe spot under Celestia’s wing.
“I’m going to give my sister a good talking to.” Celestia frowned. “She won’t come near you anymore, Twilight, I promise. And if she does,” there was a mild, sterile-white flicker in the solar goddess’ eyes. A terrible, protective glitter that only lasted a split second. “Well… she won’t. Let’s leave it at that.” She smiled oh-so-gently, leaning and kissing the top of Twilight’s head. She knew she was a grown mare, but even simple gestures like that could do a world of good. Sure enough, Twilight Sparkle smiled again, a bit more genuinely.
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The Next Day, After Luna Had Returned to the Palace…
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“You put that down right now or as Celestia as my witness I will give you such a thrashing!” The ninety year-old mare, Dusty Tome, was beating a Lunar Stallion over the head with a rolled up newspaper. He and his comrades had commandeered an entire bookshelf and were bearing it away to some unknown corner of the Royal Library. WHY they’d decided to just pick up the entire shelf and move away with it, well, that was classified and none of the librarian’s business. She hadn’t bought that for a second. “Put! That! Down!” she shrieked shrilly.
All fifteen Lunar Stallions turned as one, “SHHHHH!” they said, taking the old mare very much off guard. She stopped, slapping a hoof over her mouth. She was being loud in her own library, how unprofessional was she?! She stood there, stunned and mortified at herself. Meanwhile, the Lunar Stallions got away with the entire bookshelf and she never saw where they went. She stood there, helpless, mouth agape. How was she ever going to explain this to anypony? Yeah, sorry that entire section is gone. Where did it go? I have no idea, a bunch of Lunar Stallions came in and took the whole thing.
The Lunar Stallions, moving as a group holding the heavy bookshelf, took the thing down a hall to a series of study rooms. Looking around, they checked that nopony was around. Knocking three times, they had the door opened and they shuttled the thing inside. Nightmare Moon sat at a very large, book-covered table. They stood the bookshelf up, books still entact in their rows and threw out their chests for praise. “Well done, my stallions.” Nightmare Moon said, poring over a thick tome and working her abacus. She peered at the prize over her half-moon glasses, pulling them off and standing. Reaching out to a random stallion, she rubbed his forehead and muzzle with one huge hoof. He murred a little, ooooh head rubs… the rest of them jittered jealously, but they’d done their sacred duty. “Let us see now…” she walked to the shelves and ran her hoof across the books. Plucking one, she flipped it open. “Dating the Modern Mare: Everything You Need to Know About Courting But Were Afraid to Ask.” She read off the long title. “Oddly specific…” she frowned, flipping through it. Apparently, the ‘modern mare’ meant ‘a mare with a job, perhaps a child, and an independent lifestyle’. Why, that was everything she liked about Twilight Sparkle! Well, she didn’t have a foal… and really the attraction was rather physical at the moment. But clearly her early era approach had been off-target. “In my time a Princess need merely show interest, and we would receive any lover we desired.” She told her Lunar Stallions, who chuckled and nodded encouragingly. She turned, book levitating in front of her, going back to the large table. She scribbled a few notes. “Bring me that copy of Cosmarepolitan.” She gestured vaguely, and a stallion brought it forth in his mouth. “Hrm, Twenty-five subtle hints to get her thinking about the bedroom. Perfect!” Nightmare Moon grinned with all her fangs, flipping to the article and scanning it. She mumbled the words while she focused, very serious face. “Melancholy!” she snapped, looking over at a specific Lunar Stallion. “Did thou find the book of romantic poetry we asked for?” she demanded. The stallion came forth, nodding and giving her the bright pink book. Nightmare Moon flipped it open and read a haiku aloud. “Teats are very nice. Creamy mounds beneath her dress. Smile, it’s cold today.” She cocked an eyebrow when the Lunar Stallions broke into uncontrollable laughter. The dark goddess threw the book across the room with a red-faced, embarrassed snarl. “We said romantic poetry, not bawdy poetry! If we are to seduce Twilight Sparkle, we must do it properly!” Melancholy nodded quickly, returning to the bookshelf they’d commandeered to find something more romantic. Nightmare Moon sat down, stroking her chin. Courting had become much more complicated than it used to be. Dowries did not exist anymore. Arranged marriages were rare and far between. Sex was all but taboo to even talk about aloud. Some ponies even insisted on waiting until marriage before losing their virginity. Admirable, but not what Nightmare Moon had in mind. In her time, ponies made love because it felt good, because the population was unstable and needed more foals, or simply on the whim of instinct. Now it was so… so complicated! She adored the beautiful Twilight Sparkle, but this was just a great big mess. How had society become so stuck up its own flank about something so simple? The dark goddess frowned deeply, resolved to learning the new customs of courting and seduction. Her forward mannerisms of interest had scared the purple mare away. This would need more tact.
“Do we need more, your Majesty?” Captain Stalwart Hide wanted to know.
“Yes.” Nightmare Moon nodded firmly. “Go. Commandeer the Sociology section.” She pointed towards the door, and the twenty-four stallions stampeded out of the room, eager to do her bidding. She smiled, shaking her head and flipping a few pages in her books.
“Sister.” A voice floated over her head, and Nightmare Moon looked up. “We must talk.” The look on her face was more than a little annoyed. It was outright angry. Princess Celestia swept into the room, shutting the door firmly behind her. “You traumatized my most faithful student, Twilight Sparkle.” She said accusingly.
“We merely showed a royal interest in her.” Nightmare Moon said snootily. Celestia’s frown deepened. “We shall revise our approach and try again.” She gestured to the dozens of books, magazines, and pamphlets laid out in front of her.
“No, you won’t.” Celestia said, opening her wings rather aggressively. “I forbid you.”
“Thou? Forbid ME?” Nightmare Moon stood from her chair so hard it toppled over backward. Celestia tensed for a moment, but no magical assault followed so she relaxed a hair. “First thou seals me away in the moon for a millennia, and now thou shalt tell me what mare I may or may not persue?!” she demanded, leaning forward with an angry hoof lifted.
“She is my protégé, and not for you to stake a Royal Claim on.” Celestia said rather angrily. She really was getting bent out of shape, her queen’s mask cracking into pieces to expose true anger. Nightmare Moon balked at her. “I’ll only warn you once, sister. It’s not appropriate, and clearly not wanted.”
“Not appropriate?” Nightmare snorted. “Do you not remember Starswirl, Tia?” she leaned and prodded Celestia’s chest with a hoof. A very real splash of pink touched the solar alicorn’s cheeks. “HE was your protégé and you certainly didn’t seem to mind him making you shriek like a springtime mare!”
“That was centuries ago!” Celestia said quickly, flushed and embarrassed. “Times have changed, and it is not accepted anymore. I FORBID you to touch Twilight Sparkle, ever again!” she leaned forward, scowling angrily. Her wings bannered out to their full span of aggressive posturing. Flecks of solar magic and raw, fiery embers snowflake’d from them. Nightmare was reminded very much of an angry peacock.
Nightmare Moon leaned into her face, smiling sweetly with all her fangs. “Nnnnnn-o’h.” she said smartly, batting her eyelashes.
Celestia frowned even more deeply, unused to feeling such anger. She shuddered slightly. “The moon will seem too kind, sister.” She whispered dangerously.
“Threaten us not with thy lies, sister.” Nightmare Moon scowled at her. “Thou art not powerful enough to do such a thing anymore. Sitting on a cushy throne for a thousand years of peace has made thee soft and weaker, unable to simply overpower me as you once could with the Elements of Harmony.” She went and sat down hard at the table again, surrounded by her books. “Tell you what, Celestia.” She put her hooves together in a business-like way. “We shalt make thee a deal.”
“What?” Celestia said with a frown, already disliking that her sister was steering the argument. She couldn’t exactly burst into holy fire and strike her sister down. She was only half evil, and Luna would not understand.
“I shalt continue my efforts to seduce Twilight Sparkle,” she paused and held up her hoof before Celestia could protest. “But! I shalt not physically or magically touch her. At all. Nor my Lunar Stallions.” She said. “It is clear such speed to a physical relationship is frowned upon in this era.” She gestured to the wide array of literature.
Celestia’s eyes narrowed. It wasn’t fair to simply strike down Nightmare Moon. Luna was still in there, and she didn’t understand what was happening. The solar Princess’ thoughts snapped back to Dr. Psyche. Perhaps she could fight this battle another way… “And in return, you will do something for me.” There was a bargain to be struck here, and she would have to be very, very careful about all this. Perhaps something could be salvaged.
“What?” said Nightmare Moon acidly, narrowing her eyes back at her sister.
“Luna will go to see Dr. Psyche on a regular basis, and you will cooperate.” Celestia said.
There was a long silence and the alicorns stared at each other, weighing their options. Nightmare Moon stroked her chin in thought, slowly rising from the table and going to her sister. There was ground to be gained here. Luna could lay on a couch and play the woe-is-me damaged princess, meanwhile Nightmare could devise more cunning plans for the seduction of Twilight Sparkle. After all, if the purple mare came to embrace her, the no-touching deal would be off. A wry and confident smile crossed the dark goddess’ muzzle. “Very well. Deal.” She lifted a hoof. Sun and Moon shook hooves. Celestia was very, very unhappy with all of this, but it was the best she could do at the moment without leveling Canterlot in a flash of fire and alicorn fury. She hated-- hated so much to use Twilight Sparkle like such a chess piece.
Then the Lunar Stallions crashed into the room with an entire bookshelf full of sociology books, spilling them across the floor. “Get her off me! Halp!” Melancholy cried, straddled by the angry old librarian while she beat his face over and over with a rolled up newspaper. "Aaah!"
End of Part 6
Moar i say!
There is no better failure than failing to take yourself seriously. I commend you sir!
Well that was fast. I just finished the previous chapter.
Anyways I love this story and I'm really interested to see where this story is going.
Keep up the good work.
The lunar guard are my favourite part of this story so far.
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The Lunar Puppies strike again. And are defeated by an elderly librarian.
Awesome sauce. Keep it up!
Another chapter allrdy?! Damn I love you! :D
I love the lunar guard, they make me laugh so hard. Poor Luna i'd love it if she had an argument with herself (nightmare moon) and put the bitchy mare in her place, then she could go after twilight herself without NMM getting in the way.
Updated twice in one day... I think I love you.
reading right now
Updated twice in one day... I think I love you.
reading right now>>1067443
edit: BAHAHAHHAHHAHHAHHA Beating the batpony like a puppy, priceless
Oh god the Lunar Guard in this story. I don't even have the words.
ok somewhat but still twilight was quite mean in the previous chapter and also this Twilight definitely should be discarded by luna/nmm for what happened. just mah opinion.
Dat Puppy attitude, the lunar stallionss are adorable :D
This just keeps getting funnier and funnier. Why the hell can't I stop laughing!
Sometimes, one must sacrifice themself in order for the group to complete the mission.
Hey when one is out of it for over a thousand years then things really S**** really starts to hit the fan. lol. Great work i love this story!
puppy lunar guards are best guards
awesome story man, keep it GOING
This image has absolutely nothing to do with the story or my comment, but it's just epic
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So I was right about the horrible pick up lines. Now I'm just curious as to how NMM will get Twilight to agree to do anything with her.
Don't you fucking DARE take books from old librarians.
Hah awesome stuff, poor Lunar dudes, they try so hard
Hmmm, the question does arise.... Will Twilight be able to separate Luna and Nightmare Moon in her mind? Or will her friendship with Luna be forever destroyed by Nightmare Moon's overly amorous actions....?
Lunar Puppies!
HAHA. Royal Librarian is best Pony. :D
1067768 Doubtful. Knowing about the split would put a damper on both sides' relationships. Luna would wonder what's happening, and Nightmare would grow more frustrated, and then the "fun" would start when Luna started investigating, and Nightmare started ... pushing.
The worst thing about the Lunar Stallions are they're based in reality. I've seen a few recruits (more than a few) who were like that, even down to the enthusiastic over-doing ... everything. Comical, cute and sooooo embarassing to the veterans.
If that's what it is like to be a lunar stallion count me in. HEAD WUBS ≧﹏≦
1068059 My apologies, I meant from Twilight's 'own' perspective. Will she be able to separate Luna from Nightmare Moon in her own mind? Or will her perception of Luna be tainted by Nightmare Moon's actions?
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A few posts worth of discussion is hardly a flame war.
Woe on thee for having to make thyself read through actual opinionated discussion instead of the usual semi-spam commentary.
We can go on about what are my "unfounded assumptions" or how stories have structure and flow, but honestly, I don't care right now.
The Lunar Stallions are the funniest supporting cast I have seen in a long time!
Good job sir!
This is how I imagine the more mature Lunar Stallions hang out in your Lunar Stallion series
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This is how I imagine the Lunar Stallions in this story...
You'll laugh trust me.
This is so brilliant, I wrote a song about it!
..Well no, I didn't. But I would. It's brilliant!
I can't help but feel sorry for the poor old librarian
1067396 The Lunar Puppies. Ha! That's the perfect name for them! At least they aren't like spike.
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hitting the Lunar stallions over the head with a rolled up newspaper
i can just imagine it, I'll tip my hat to this story, well i would but i dont have a hat, so i'm going to buy a hat just so i can tip it to this story
MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRR
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I usually find the best way to deal with an irate rant is in private. Either write it down or spout it off to a close and trusted friend; in any case, just get it out of your system. Once out of your system, you can approach the issue with a more rational perspective. I'm not intending to be condescending with this comment, as I have my own set of hot button topics that get my emotional fires stoked up. I also understand, that rape and molestation are a hot button topic with most people as well.
Personally, I find when I am in such a situation, my perspective on the issue at hand is narrowed to my own personal interpretations, logic gets thrown out the window, and stereotypical/ideological assumptions/accusations are made about the topic at hand or at the person of interest. I also tend to normally regret the things I said, or the manner in which I said them, once my emotions subside and I start to see other's perspectives. This is simply meant to be some practical advice to everyone from a person who also struggles not to figuratively start biting people's heads off when my own hot button topics get brought up. One just has to look at most comment sections on the internet to see the emotionally charged hatred in the continual flame wars (I find it is helpful to avoid the comment sections on news sites, youtube, blogs, etc. in order to maintain my hope and trust in humanity). Such arguements can be destructive to one's friendships, relationships, and on how other's persceieve oneself.
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I also do not intend to belittle rape and molestation; these are some of the most traumatic, scary, and scaring situations that any individual can find themselves in. Simply judging by how Aegis Shield depicted Twilight's distress during and after the entire encounter with Nightmare Moon gives some insight that the author also understands this; I see no attempt by the author to try to belittle what happened or make fun of it. Even Luna is depicted as being deeply worried about Twilight when she sees her crying and shaking in her brother's arms. It is true that this story has a comedy and a romance tag, but it also got a dark tag for this chapter. Its not uncommon for authors to change the tags as a story progresses as writing is a very organic process that can take sudden turns along the way.
Twilight has clearly been traumatized by this event; not because she is a female (I'm pretty sure a male who is raped or molested would be just as traumatized by the event), but because she is an individual that has been violated in one of the most traumatic ways possible. I don't think I would be in any state of mind after such an event to be able to perform intricate and complex mathematical calculations (sorry, I'm coming at this from an engineering background) or any other task that required higher-level thinking skills. Therefore, I'm not surprised Twilight could not concetrate on performing magical spells that have been shown to require mental concentration and focus. Second, Nightmare Moon is obviously magically superior to Twilight, being able to rip her back while she was teleporting away, thus it is safe to assume that Nightmare Moon was suppressing her magical abilities during the molestation in a similar manner as the magic inhibitor introduced in the previous chapters.
Shining Armour's appearance is not an example of Deus ex Machina for his eventual appearance was forshadowed in the previous chapter when Celestia decides to send Shining Armour to protect Twilight because he is one of the most magically-gifted unicorns in her Royal Guard (let's not forget, that he was not allowed to visit Twilight and personally give her an invitation to his wedding because he was the only one capable of performing the barrier spell to protect Canterlot. The author, here, explains that Shining's gift is the ability to 'supersize' spells). Not only that, but he is also Twilight's older brother, ensuring that he will do everything he can, and then some, to protect her. This arguement, presented by Aegis Shield in the previous chapter, seems logical and well thoughtout.
The only problem is that Celestia did not know that Nightmare Moon was putting her plans into motion as soon as she left the psychologists office. The author mentions that the letter to Twilight was hastily written and so I am assuming that the camping trip happened that same day/evening. By the time Celestia informed Shining Armour of the situation and his new task, and by the time Shining Armour get prepared and teleported to Ponyville, Twilight would have already set off for the mountain cave. Add some time for Shining Armour to investigate where Twilight went (maybe she left the letter from Nightmare Moon somewhere in the Library) and getting past the Lunar Stallions once he arrived, the timing of his arrivial seems legitiate (the only Deus ex Machina I sense from this scene is his arrival at just the right time, though I chalk that up to artistic license to built up the suspense). So no, I do not believe that Shining Armor simply appears out of the blue. You could replace Shining Armour with Celestia and the story would still feel natural. Therefore, I think its wrong to accuse the writer of being sexist or misogynistic simply because a man shows up to save the day.
Though, I will agree with you on your observation of Nightmare Moon's inconsistancy. She previous had resisted the urge to actively violate Twlight even though Twilight was in an even more vulnerable position, being asleep (NM/Luna also used a spell a few times to keep her asleep). You're also right that NM had previously shown consideration for Twilight's consent before proceeding with more intimate activities. It is made obvious by the writer that there is no way that Twilight's actions can be considered consentual; this is made clear through Twilight's words and body-language. As it stands, this is a plot hole; but let's hold back on passing judgement on the author until the story is complete. I will give the author the benefit of the doubt and see what explainations they provide for this change in later chapters. There are many possible streams of logic for this anomoly that don't all lead to the conclusion that the author is chauvinistic. Your interpretation is just one of many possibilities given the limited evidence we have been presented so far, yet the story is still far from being concluded and later evidence can quash this conclusion.
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I also agree with your opinion regarding the average person's knowledge of Spartans (I would also add Greeks, Crusaders, and a whole lot more); many people do not know anything about them besides what they see in media. However, I also see a distinction between borrowing elements from these groups to give a story a certain feel (the Lunar Stallions do have that more anitquated feel to them, simillar to Luna's old english), versus intentionally trying to whitewash a group. I don't get a sense yet that the author is intending the Lunar Guard to be complete representations of Spartans, but he is borrowing elements from the ancient world to describe them, which is not a surprise, if you assume they have not changed over the thousand years that Luna was gone.
Ah yes, I remember THAT haiku.
1068110 Oh, I understood; I was giving the reactions Luna/Nightmare would have to Twilight's withdrawal.
Maybe I should have said so.
1068111 Fair enough.
As Caneighdian Jake said above, we've all got our hot-button subjects. Next time you feel the temptation, walk away from the keyboard and cool off. It will save everypony a lot of grief. And the mass-banning the Mods will probably inflict if it continues too far ... for them.
1069200 Ah, my apologies once again then.
Nice chap! But Luna better get happy real damn fast!
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(Opps, sorry about my long posts. This is the last one I promise. If you already responded or made a similar comment before I posted this, I apologize, I tend to read the story and comments while writing my own comment, so it tends to get long and written over a period of time.)
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I'm sure no one here wants to start, be in, or have to stroll through a flame war. Let's remember what is at the core of the fandom: "Love and tolerate;" which does not mean that we will all agree, but it does mean that we will respect the dignity of each other and give the other the benefit of the doubt. So lets stick to discussing the story and stay away from personally attacking individuals.
Lets not start personally attacking each other; our fandom is better than that. Though Zixinus did make an emotionally-charged arguement before, s/he did raise some valid rational questions and points regarding the story. The Dark tag was added for this chapter, and thus there was no previous indication the story would go this way, there does seem to be a plot hole (which is addressed in Chapter 6) regarding NM's molestation of Twilight vs. NM's original desire for Twilight's consent, society's in general whitewashing of certain groups in media (though, as Zixinus does admit that this was an ad hominem arguement wrt to this story), and the fact that rape/molestation is not an issue to be taken lightly. These are all fair observations to make; though there can be discussion regarding to what extend each actually applies to the storyline (as I made in my previous post).
At the same time, I invite Zixinus to have a read through Chapter 6 before deciding to discontinue reading the story, as it does provide some additional insight regarding NM's actions in the cave, it continues to demonstrate the seriousness of the molestation that occured and its trauma to Twilight, and it provides explainations as to why Twilight was unable to escape from NM, it also indicates that Celestia would have gone to get Twilight if she knew that Shining Armour would have to confront NM (eliminating the chavinist arguement), and explains why Shining Armour was able to escape with Twilight when Twilight was unable on her own.
Wrt to NM's behaviour in the cave, I guess it comes down to culture shock. I'm in no way trying to belittle what NM did, but it does provide some insight into how the molestation and NM's original desire for Twilight's consent can be reconciled with each other.
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To whomever coined the term "Lunar puppies" in the comments above, kudos. I definately think they are one of the most adorable and hilarious parts of this story.
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NOTE TO AEGIS SHIELD: I found one small mistake in the chapter:
I think 'yourself' should be 'herself.'
Also, kudos to Aegis Shield for not attempting to downplay the seriousness of what happened between Twilight and NM in the cave. I believe the subject matter was addressed in a realistic, serious, professional, and respectful manner. I believe it was an appropriate decision to add the Dark tag given what happened in Chapter 5. Keep up the great work, I can't wait to see what happens next.
I don't think I'd like to be NM when she next encounters Twilight, having promised not to physically or magically touch Twilight, things will definately be onesided and ugly.
Also, I feel sad for Luna and the horror/guilt/disgust/self-loathing she will experience when she finally discovers the existance of her alter-ego and what she has done to Twilight.
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I can't believe this is the first time I have seen a librarian being shushed in their own library. How is this not a more popular cliche?
Not exactly the most trustworthy source for romantic advice, NM. I think a seperate comedy can be made of Luna or Twilight seeking romantic advice from Cosmarepolitan.
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I appreciate the respect with which some of my readers are approaching this. Our community is often "oh lol Molestia, you so funneh!" and the like, but when you take the time to really, ACTUALLY look at it-- its very serious and upsetting. You see how fast and hard the discussion popped up from chapter five onward. While this story is very much a comedy, the dark subject matter is still there. I often tell people I do not use the dark tag unless I really mean it, which is why I've used it so FEW times.
The Lunar Stallion/Puppies really are there to balance the serious black curtain I pulled over this story in the past couple of chapters. Without them, I am willing to bet 90% of the people reading would leave. With Luna and Nightmare Moon being one and the same, seeing a psychologist, and one side SERIOUSLY overstepping her bounds-- it makes for a very dark and upsetting story. I'm trying my best to move the story forward without giving anypony serious heart pains or headaches.
I do know that it's very sensitive material, and I hope my readers will trust me to handle it gracefully. While this very much began as a TwilightxLuna shipping comedy, we've got some darker material to cover on the way there. What good is a shipping fic if it brings nothing new to the table, after all? Every possible combination of ponies has been done a hundred times... ah well.
Vivas Noctus,
~Aegis Shield
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Nothing particularly against Halo but I was simply trying to point out that the Spartans are called Spartans because of the perceived martial prowess of that city-state's culture, despite a whitewashing of their less salubrious social policies (which in all honesty are rather closer to those of the Covenant than the UNSC).
1067503
What do you mean? She was mean to the guards, or to NMM?
Because the way I see it, she didn't trust the Night Guards (for good reason, might I add, considering they'd tied her up twice, ponynapped her, and delivered her like a present to Luna.)
But if you meant NMM, you need help. All she did in that scene was attempt to get away as she was being molested.
1069822 ok the being mean to the lunar stallions i could understand but still luna explained their actions to poor twilight and nmm didn't even touch twilight s sensual areas not to mention wouldn't she be at least a little more curious about how luna came to turn into nmm and i seriously doubt luna would have let shining armor get away with hitting her especially since she didn't know what her other half was doing to twilight. and so i'm just saying that they were unnecessarily mean to luna, nmm of course was being foolish in her endeavors not to mention, I think after the little stunt luna should have at least had other thoughts about liking twilight maybe even despising the treacherous uncaring whelp. but i'm thinking from point of views your seeing only things from twilight angle but your thinking like rarity twilight looks at things from multiple angles and usually doesn't hurt others when she can escape it. theirs still probably stuff i missed coming in but if you respond i might remember more to tell you.
cheers
1068146*GASP*BAT PONIES! WHY DID YOU ABANDON WOONA ON THE MOON!