Before her descent into madness and her rebellion as Nightmare Moon, Luna lived entire lifetimes as a mortal and traveller amongst the ponies of Equestria.
Restored to her true self, Luna knows she must return to her cyclic life to remain whole. As preparation she chooses to reacquaint herself with the lives of her subjects in this modern age, and in the guise of Sable Moonshine, unicorn scholar and distant friend of Twilight Sparkle, she travels to Ponyville to spend time with Twilight's companions. Despite the 'exciting' month of astronomical observation and scientific research planned by Twilight, Luna nevertheless finds time to work a day at Sweet Apple Acres. And then another.
And another.
Applejack, meanwhile, is pleasantly surprised by Sable's dedication and enthusiasm for hard work. She's less pleasantly surprised by Sable's enthusiasm for Applejack.
2084971 Newp. That was something different.
Tracked, lets see where this goes
-Mis
Pillow to the face!
-Mis
New archonix story? Reading with the fury of a thousand Pinkie Pie's that have been denied sugar.
HA! I'm that person who gets the pillows thrown at them for obnoxiously loud snoring.
I love the way you write Luna. Incredibly naive and easily excitable at times, unfathomable and wise at others. I've always imagined her to be a more complected, not to mention interesting character than Celestia.
I will be archiving this one... :)
This is great! And they are all in character too.
I
Luna in this one. So connected and well-traveled.
I wonder if she'll stay longer than two weeks.
I seem to remember a scene during "Applebuck Season" when Twilight used her magic to pick several trees' worth of apples, all at the same time. It's sort of chilling to discover in hindsight that in doing so, she had inadvertently made them flesh-flavored...
Also, I like Apple Spritzer. Just sayin'.
I think I need a dictionary for some of Spritzer's lines, but It's generally clear enough for me to read. It's like "Why the Little Frenchman Wears His Hand in a Sling" but southern and less annoying to read. I love it so far, keep it up and you've made a random guy from the internet who you don't know at all very happy.
Interesting I"ll start reading it tomorrow
Wait, Lunajack? Appluna?
Excellent story so far. I find I prefer this Luna to the mismash we've gotten from the canon storyline so far. You've expanded and developed her character in both a realistic and entertaining way. I'll certainly be keeping an eye on this story.
So, I'm three chapters in and this fic hasn't really hooked me at all. I've yet to see any standout character moments. Everypony is playing their part but it doesn't seem especially well executed.
The old adage "Show, don't tell" seems apt here - in particular there's a section of chapter one where the narrator spends four paragraphs spitting exposition on Luna's nature and why she's going out to Ponyville in the first place. The picnic is likewise interrupted with a very dry outline of, "this is what Applejack is thinking right now".
Hmmm, somehow I believe Twilight is going to get a little bit of heartache from all this...maybe a broken heart of a mental breakdown? I can only hope for some Twiabuse in here!
Lovin it by the way!
Prepare for sloppy kisses!
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At the risk of sounding like a cretin, yikes that's a lot of words! Although I'm adding this to my read later pile, I have a feeling I'll get to it sooner rather than later. Applehat poni is one of my favorites, as is Princess Moonbutt. Also, I simply cannot ignore the glory of your avatar. Go team Venture!
I'm floored. It's beautiful. As in 'full of stars' beautiful.
I think this is probably one of the best explanations of Luna that I've ever seen, too.
Love dis. Yes.
Great Narnia reference. That's one of my favorite quotes.
Always good to be mindful of.
I absolutely love the idea behind Luna's connection with the moon. It makes profound sense.
"Twilight expertly tossed the pillow" For me it kinda implies she often sleeps with another pony
just my 5 cents
2088836
I love that quote as well!
2088844 Hm, I wonder who that could be. *checks fimfic* Ahh. Apparently it's every pony in town. Oh well!
2088229 Thankye, it's been rattling around my head for a while now.
2088053
2086253
Silly Twilight...
I'd forgotten that scene when I wrote the story. When I remembered I thought about cutting the idea, but then I figured Twilight probably just didn't realise and Applejack didn't have the heart to tell her.
2085541 Thank you, yes, that's exactly the sort of thing I was going for.
2088190 Hah, princess Moonbutt. I love it.
2087708 Chapter 1 is the least satisfactory for me as well. If you think that was too much tell and not enough show, you should have seen the first draft.
When I do get around to working on this again (and I will, even if you don't like it, I will) I'm going to try and pull more of that exposition into the rest of the story. There's bound to be room for it somewhere.
2087708 I haven't noticed. The story seems fine so far.
Just use your imagination to void the feel dude, it ain't that hard.
2087559 Same, especially since the fanon Luna of the old went the way of Old Yeller.
Still to this day I miss that representation of her personality.
This character seems more lively, less dull and one dimensional.
I might incorporate this character development into a similar vein into my own stories.
I suggest the rest of us do the same and follow this as a standard.
Now THAT is a hilarious line. I am totally gonna end up calling someone a tit now accidentally.
I'm rather liking this, especially the worldbuilding for Tia and Luna.
2086971
LoooonyJack!
God, I loved that line. Seriously golden.
I like this, But one thing niggles me, have you by any chance read "Sunny Skies all day Long" because this has a similar feel to that. Still gonna give this a fav.
Wait, what? Celestia? The pony who (in your story) very carefully picks who and when she shares any friendship - much less anything more intimate. The pony who apparently would rather spend time alone. The pony who doesn't seem to deviate from her set schedule. Ever. The pony more focused on what she is than who she is. The pony who, judging by the interactions so far, has serious trouble being as remotely as expressive as Luna.
She's the drunkard?
Excellently executed. I am usually not a fan of slow burns, but I'll make an exception here.
2090356 It's never the ones you expect.
2090286 I have read it and it was a very enjoyable fic. I may well have been influenced by it a little, but I'm going in very different directions.
At least I hope I am.
2088925 That sounds like something to look forward to.
2090193
2090516 I've always liked them. It makes the conclusion all the more satisfying if you've had to wait for it.
But that's just me.
That cover art.......
So... Just curious here, but doesn't magic contaminate apples, and make them taste like meat? And didn't Luna eat an apple she had lifted with her magic at least once this chapter? Just saying...
2090994
It was the act of picking apples that made them taste different.
Luna is to be loved as she wishes to love, except when she wakes that part of the planet with her snores
I read this line and cringed up and down the anatamy considering that knowing hay balers she's lucky to STILL have a leg
2088844 I BET IT WAS THE OTHER ELEMENTS!
THERE IS NO WAY IN HELL THAT TWILIGHT SLEEPS ALONE WITH SPIKE EVERY NIGHT! IF SHE DID WOULDN'T SOME PONY BE SUSPICIOUS OF THE TWO! A DRAGON AND PONY.......nope can't imagine it.
being male I have a little less fear of that setup but in general? you and me both sister!
OBJECTION!
Season 1, Episode 4 has Twilight pick several great big barrels full of apples and Applejack did not complain at all!
well all that history lesson DOES explain the hows and whys Luna cracked
and it's VERY plausible which is nice as well. Twilight might naught have unstood it but I understand it well enough. to deny something THAT primordial would eventually act like a cancer to the phyche and rot it out
I absolutely love your take on Luna's power. It just makes so much sense!
Applejack's a bitch.
2092138 Kind of, but when you're blue collar and a bit of a redneck you get used to being looked down on.
Tends to make you a bit aggressive when it comes to dealing with those of the upper crust. I'd be lying if I didn't say that people who never leave the city frustrate me. I live in a town with boot scrapers at every door into a place, most people in the city complian when they have to get off the pavement.
Again though, she is being a bit bitchy.
Also a hay bailer? Holy hell that girl got off lucky. Those things can kill you in a blink.
this is a great premise. let the reading commence..
2090994>>2091090 Zactly. Some mumbo jumbo about magic severing the natural flow of energy in the tree or what have you. (I do have a little bit of a theory outlined and might make use of in something else, but this story just uses it as an aside).
2090803
2091235>>2092437 Yeah, tis a bit of an ouchy machine from what I remember, all flailing spiky things and giant snapping jaws and teeth. Nightmare-inducing. I'm a dull-eyed suburbanite these days but I used to live out in the green lumpy paradise of central Derbyshire and spent a lot of time at least near farms, so I have a little idea of the nasty things that can go wrong. Even back then I remember getting annoyed at the rich twits who'd come out to t"the countryside" looking for some paradise and then complain about the smell and the dirt.
2091566 Could be how she found out, could be she didn't want to complain about sincere help. Maybe she just had Twilight carrying them from one place to another. Or maybe she needed a lot of compost that year. Who knows?
2091679 Aye, you see what I was aiming for.
I felt like a change from the usual "immortals curse" sort of story. And Luna is bestpone.
Didn't she seal that away or something, though? Or was it just the wings she got rid of, and she still has pegasus magic?
I bet once this is all over, there's going to be a crow constellation mysteriously added to Andromeda, isn't there?
2092437 My mom has a cousin who has two wooden legs, because she was messing around near a hay bailer and got both her legs stuck in that shit.
"
This story gets even better if you start readin Luna's lines with Cristoph Waltz's voice.