Only Every Time

by Ice Star

Chapter 2

The gala had ended yesterday, and the dreadful thrum of its music had almost left Luna. None of the music had been bad per se, though the ensemble that was hired was dreadfully snobbish in demeanor and played their pieces as a clock turned gears instead of letting it live, as all song should. All the choices had been picked by Manehattan's Mayor-Mare to be deliberately soft and inoffensive to the point of dullness.

Could anypony blame Luna for preferring something lovely? Manehattan had drenched itself in the worst aspects of modernity, all clunky and tireless in the exact way that made it tiresome to spend even five minutes on a street corner. It tried to pretend that magic had no bearing over it and that concrete and metal crafted in the most inept ways could replace the eternal like Luna, her sister, and the other divine.

Celestia was due for bringing forth the dawn; she never took time to savor it as Luna did. There were ponies to speak to, that was always Celestia's excuse. Only what the ponies were to be told changed, and that left Luna to bask in the parody of peace Manehattan could never claim, not when the city itself had no lush quiet for its intriguing songs to unfold.

Luna drew a deep breath, wanting to taste the rich clearness of the air. She was greeted by the unique sensation of salt and crisp sea that filled the skies of Manehattan Island and its vast bay area. The distant continent was just emerging from the dense pre-morning fog. Luna pricked her ears forward; straining above the din of the mortal city was the melody of the docks far below her skyscraper perch. There was nothing that fit the term of 'symphony' that described the humdrum of working ponies, and that downgrade made Luna consider Canterlot. The vast, sweeping mountain citadel would be teeming with the songs of markets, rivers, and wind. She hoped that the familiar peal of temple bells and whoosh of magic in the air would not be too many days away.

Her horn flared to life, gleaming with a splash of vivid blue across the darkness of the pre-dawn sky. Life burst into the sky, infusing it with the same breathtaking vividness she always brought when revealing the heavens in their true form. It was a quality she never tired of, getting to chip away the plaster of the day to show off all the depth and dimension in the true sky. Bestowing the night, as only Luna could rightfully do, was like pulling down a dome and letting fresh air into a stale space.

All the stars twinkled into view, the moon was bright and pale as it boasted its own lovely light. Luna sighed happily, and now that she was alone at last, she could smile. A bubbly, gooey warmth spread its fuzziness in Luna's chest as her magic bathed the sky with the night. There was always something so wondrous about seeing her artistic process the whole way through, and to have the opportunity for it to be daily routine! Oh, how it never felt like routine! Luna usually flew as high as she could when she brought forth the night or made it recede, but there were no mountain peaks to dance above or cold winds to glide among in Manehattan.

All of this was a single instant moment of Luna's magic, held and dynamic and lovely. She caught the whole sky in pause the way no other creature could.

And she had to bury it all to make way for the sun.

When the daylight wall to the heavens was in place once more, Luna's smile slipped away with it. She was not frowning, far from it. She may be somepony who frowned often, but it was a frown of thoughtfulness and consideration, one as small as the stars appeared to the mortals teeming below her. Luna had so few sad frowns to offer. But now there were no wishes to be made, and only the daydreamers would still have majesty on their minds. Celestia was bringing the clockwork motions of her day from somewhere in the hotel edifice, and with it, the tunes of drudgery were being trotted out.

Luna sighed again, only this time there was no lightness to the gesture. The dawn came frustratingly quick, for Celestia could only ever bring it forth in a blink. There was never any show of it, no glory. Only a spotlight glaring down at everypony who could not claim the sky. Was Luna wrong to see such a literal, glaring display tasteless? Nopony took kindly to having a flashlight beam shone directly into their face, regardless of how short the duration was. So why was the same permitted for the techniques of the heavens themselves? Even though only select professions and creatures noted the greater amounts of splendor and art Luna put into the sky, at least she actually did so.

Celestia had not grown in the way she brought light to the world in nearly two thousand years. Every day was exactly the same.

Luna rolled her withers, letting her wings flare and stretch. She was perched atop the sculpture of an earth pony steed, one made into an angular, a drabber attempt at art deco. It served the same purpose as the gargoyles and other roof-figures. Only, these were made to fit the earth pony demands for their aesthetic, and as such were barren of all intricacies. Luna longed for the days when there was some boldness to art before the urban earth pony craze caught on. While it did not dominate Equestria per se, it was popular enough to be frustrating. Nowadays, to request a gargoyle or stone dragon perching up one's roof was deemed too distasteful and frightening to the fragility of mortals. Thus, none had been crafted since her banishment.

At last, Luna stood. She relished in the ease that came from giving them a good stretch and the early morning chill still livening her coat. That the statue was still slick with a nightly rain had no impact upon her divine reflexes, even when she was without her regalia as Luna was now. Even her crown was still at her bedside table. She trotted away with her wings folded pleasantly at her sides. The last ghosts of the stars were still visible in the morning sky when Luna turned away, and the wind was ruffling her mane, giving her the most invigorating, freeing feeling.

Most importantly, Luna was not burdened with that which she should not wear.

Author's Note:

There's gonna be a third chapter to finish this fucker. Until then, enjoy this one. It got very carried away but I like where it ended and heck y'all, I'll write wildly indulgent no-dialogue stuff if I want. And honestly, I like how Luna's no dialogue contrasts with Celestia's dialogue filled chapter, super me.

This is the first chapter of anything I've written that Grammarly has described as "anxious" by the way.

Comments

[BleuBlooms]

Im curious. Do you find it working for you grammarly?

[Ice Star]

10485382
Yes, grammarly works for me. Why wouldn’t it?

[BleuBlooms]

10485412
Never used really and see alot of commercials. So, before I try it. I figured i'll ask?

[Vaguely Demented]

I’ve always thought the blue of predawn was the only thing of value to observing the sun.

[Ice Star]

10485713
You have Chad taste, my friend.

[Vaguely Demented]

10488456
That is literally the first time anyone has even remotely implied I am a chad or even chadlike.

[Crack-Fic Casey]

So, Luna is just stuck waiting for the punk rock scene to hit equestria?

[Ice Star]

10488579
That’s a shame. Everyone can be a Chad if they try.

[Ice Star]

10488612
Meme answer: perhaps.
Serious answer: I’ve written her as liking a variety of style and art, she just prefers dramatic symphonies to hotel lobby tier classical music.

[Crack-Fic Casey]

10488617
So she's waiting for Batman movies to be a thing, gotcha.

[MayhemMoth]

Teach me your ways of no dialogue, I can never get characters to shut up

Seriously though, it's nice to read.