Nightmares Alive

by Horsegirl123

Let's Go on an Adventure

“Oh Moon, it was amazing!” she said as she sat with the mare in her dreams, her stomach still fluttering with butterflies from the time she had spent with Notte.

“You really like him, huh?” said Nightmare Moon with a warm smile, sitting across from Luna on the dead grass.

“Oh, Moon. I really do. I haven’t felt like this in five thousand years! He likes me! And he likes my nights. And he’s not afraid of me. A pony that’s not afraid of me!”

Nightmare Moon smiled at the pony’s giddiness over a colt. “I know,” she said with an over the top eye roll. “I was there, remember?”

Luna giggled sheepishly. “Oh yeah. I forgot. But I’m just so excited.”

“Luna, I don’t want to be a Captain Foscor, but you must heed this warning about your feelings. You are immortal; he is not. If you choose to love him, it will only result in heartbreak when he passes on, and you will be left mourning your entire life without the pony you latched onto. It’s a dangerous path,” cautioned the wise black alicorn.

She didn’t show it, but Luna’s stomach dropped. She hadn’t given time or conscience to consider such possibilities, but as she sat in front of Nightmare moon, she chocked down her fear and put on a smile. “B-but, its better to have loved and lost, than to never have loved at all, right?” she offered.

“Is it, Luna?” Nightmare raised an accusing brow. Luna didn’t know what to think; she definitely didn’t love Notte, she had just met him. She couldn’t fall in love with everypony that complimented her, right?

“I suppose not,” she said, trying to humor Nightmare Moon.

“I just don’t want you getting hurt.” Luna crossed over to the black mare and hugged her. At first the mare tensed up, extremely resistant against the contact with another pony. But as Luna rubbed her back lovingly, Nightmare wrapped her forelegs around Luna as well, embracing her alter self. “I-I, just know how it feels to not be loved.” She tried to hold back tears, but failed, sending a steady stream down Luna’s neck.

“It is an awful sensation, but you are my friend, and I am here for you,” comforted Luna.

“Really?” asked Nightmare.

“Really,” replied Luna.

“I wish I could be with you out there Luna,” she cried. “To be a soul you could confide in, to be a pony whom you could rely on. I yearn for the others to see how glorious we truly are, and how wonderful our night is. I am desperately lonely when you awake Luna, trapping me behind the prison of your eyes. I do love you Luna, as my only friend, but I am crushed to only be a witness to your troubles.”

Now a few tears graced Luna’s eyes. “Thank you.” Her eyes suddenly brightened as she was struck with brilliance. “I have an idea!” she exclaimed joyously. “Why don’t I try and get you out of my mind? And you can be with me outside?”

Nightmare Moon’s dragon eyes widened with excitement. “You can do that?” she squealed.

“Well, I would need a lot of power. Possibly the only source of that power would be the Elements, but it is a definite possibility.” Luna’s smile never left her face, and neither did Nightmare’s.

However, Nightmare’s grin faded away and was replaced with a mopey frown. “But, everypony still thinks I’m a monster. They’ll never agree to release me,” she said solemnly.

Luna recalled this as well. The Bearers of the Elements of Harmony, the residents in Ponyville, had purged Luna of the evil power of Nightmare Moon. But they didn’t know the real pony Nightmare Moon was.

“I’ve got it!” exclaimed Luna loudly, spreading her dark wings in excitement. Nightmare’s ears perked up in interest as she removed her uncomfortable helmet.

“What is it, Luna?” she said sweetly.

“I’ll tell them that I have been constantly bewitched by you, even since the day of my release from the moon. I will supply the Bearers with a purging spell, but unbeknownst to them, it will be the same release spell they fired at you originally, and therefore you will be separated from me yet again. Then, I will state my plan and claim of your reformation, and convince them to show mercy and grace.”

Nightmare swept Luna up in a bear hug. “Luna! That is a fantastic idea!” Luna giggled in her alter ego’s embrace, glad to feel the warmth of another pony. Sure she would engage in idle chitchat with Celestia during shared meals, but otherwise she was alone most of the time. But soon that would all change. She would have her new friend Notte, and she would have her beautiful and wise friend Nightmare Moon. They would share together in the beauty of the night, pointing out constellations and meteors and when they got bored with that, run around the palace pulling pranks on uptight nobles and stressed cleaning ponies.

But now Luna broke away from the hug. “Moon, I had a vision today. When I fell off the throne, I was seeing something. I was in the palace, talking to a filly, and her mother came and yelled at me. She called me a-“

“Monster,” finished Nightmare.

“How did you-“

“Know? That was I. Somehow you triggered one of my memories. I’m not sure how you did it,” Nightmare pressed up close into Luna’s face. “Just don’t do it again,” she growled through her teeth.

Her once sweet face was now filled with malice and seething anger. And in a blink, it was gone. Her motherly expression had returned as quickly as it had left, leaving her eyes now soft and controlled, like nothing had ever happened.
Luna took a step back away from the mare in her face. “Luna…” echoed a voice throughout the dream world. Nightmare and Luna’s ears both pricked up, searching the world for the speaker. “Luna…” it echoed again, a sweet tone against her ears.

*************************************

“Celestia? What are thou doing?” Luna rubbed her eyes with her hooves, trying to wake up. Celestia parted the curtains with her magic, letting the light of a thousand suns beat down on the poor alicorn’s tender eyes.

“Ah!” she shrieked, pulling the covers over her eyes.

“Luna,” chuckled Celestia, “You cannot hide from my sun forever.”

Luna squirmed under her covers, trying to get back into sleeping position. “I can hide from it for five more minutes.”

Celestia crossed back over to the gigantic bed, taking the sheets in her mouth. With an unprincess-like jerk of her neck, she yanked the heavy blankets off her royal sister.

“Tia!” she whinnied.

“Really Luna, I thought you might want to spend some time together.” Luna looked up at her sister.

“Really?” she said dumbstruck.

“Really,” said Celestia, putting on a silly face, mocking Luna. Luna levitated a pillow and tossed it on her sister’s face.

“Shut up,” she laughed.

Celestia grabbed something off of Luna’s discarded snack cart that she hadn’t gotten around to ravaging yet. Plucking a glass, she spit into it. She dipped her horn into he glass and created a thick golden syrup. She swished it around, and then floated it over to Luna.

“Drink this.”

“Are you crazy!? That’s repulsive!” protested the disgusted blue alicorn. Celestia rolled her eyes with a smile.

“It will wake you up, I promise.” Luna eyes her sister skeptically.

“Uh, fine!” she said, ripping the cup out of the magic with a hoof. Holding it in front of her muzzle, the repugnant smells berated her nostrils, causing her to internally gag.

“Tia…” she whined.

“Come on,” prodded Celestia, ruler of the sun and thousand-year ruler of all of Equestria. She had to be trustworthy, right?

Luna raised the confounded concoction to her lips, and inhaling deeply, forced it down her throat. When she saw Celestia rolling on he back laughing hysterically, she threw it up over her balcony. “Bleh! Tia! How could you?” she said, racing over to tackle her awful sister.

Wiping a tear form her eye, Celestia hugged Luna on top of her. “T-that was so rich! I haven’t had this much fun in eons!”

"What? A silly little prank?” Luna was certainly awake now. With a long felt fury eating away inside her, Luna cast as spell on her sister that would destroy her forever. Not knowing where the spell had come from, or why she felt how she did, she had no regrets as her sister stared at her with terrified eyes. Luna rose above Celestia.

“Thou have embarrassed us for thy own amusement. Prepare to feel our wrath!” she spoke. Igniting her horn, she shot down on Celestia, and only when she heard crying did she look at her sister again.

Her once flowing mane had been replaced with a rainbow clown wig. Tears did not flow form her cries of pain, but her cries of laughter. Luna joined in, flopping on her back. The once regal Celestia had fallen, and now looked like a hobo pony shrieking about the end of the world.

“I must admit, Lulu. You have not grown a bit,” chuckled Celestia at her sister’s childish prank.

“We can say the same for thou, Celestia.” The two wiped the fit of tears from their eyes, and helped each other up from the floor.

“What have thou planned for this day of… fun?” said Luna, seeing if she was using the word correctly.

“A walk.” Luna’s ears drooped to her neck.

“A walk?” she repeated flatly.

“Indeed.”

“Like, what we do all around the castle, every night?”

“Precisely.”

“And where do thou plan to host this walk?” asked Luna in a dead tone.

“The Everfree Forest.” Now Luna’s ears perked up and the smile returned to her face.

“The Everfree Forest? The forbidden forest of Equestria that houses our Tree of Harmony? Full of monsters and dragons and hydras?”

“The same,” nodded Celestia. Luna started jumping with giddiness. Although her flight to Ponyville had been the biggest adventure she had set out on in over three thousand years, this just tickled her pink. A real adventure. With her sister! She squealed in excitement, which only led Celestia to smile warmly at her yet again.

“Shall we go?” asked Celestia.

“At this very moment?” questioned Luna, raising an eyebrow. “Have the palace staff been informed?”

“Yes. But they think we’re on a conference in Fillydelphia,” winked Celestia.

“Tia? Are you being… sneaky?”

“Maybe I am. Maybe I’m not. Do you want to go or not?” Luna jumped towards the window.

“You coming?” she yelled behind her as she leaped off the balcony.

**********************************

“Hurry up Tia! You don’t want to get eaten by a manticore, do you?” teased Luna. Celestia was still trying to wrangle her way through loose vines that Luna may or may not have magically enchanted to trip her up.

Still trotting thirty paces ahead, Luna could hear cutting and ripping, and soon enough Celestia reached her side, covered in little nicks throughout her prestigious white fur. “Ha ha, little sister. Very funny. Fix me up.” Luna rolled her eyes, but was extremely relieved that Celestia was able to take such a harsh joke.

“Fine fine.” Luna ignited her horn, and a colorless wave washed over Celestia, engulfing her body in a pale light. With the fading of the light came the revelation of healed cuts that may have never existed.

“I still hate you for creating those foul beasts. I should have never challenged you to do that,” gruffed Celestia, preening her now in tact feathers.

“Hey, my manticore was way better than your stupid Cockatrice!” argued Luna.

“Ok, I’ll give you that one. That was one of my… less fortunate creations.”

“It sucked,” corrected Luna.

“Okay, yeah, it sucked,” agreed Celestia. This sent Luna into triumphant round of hollering and laughing. “See, that’s why you’re so good at the constellations. Can you image what my constellations would look like?” shuddered Celestia.

“Probably a parasprite,” giggled Luna, “cause’ that’s the only thing you can draw.”

Celestia stuck a tongue out at Luna and Luna graciously returned the gesture.

“Shall we explore, Daring Do?” asked Celestia, poking Luna in the ribs.

Her blue face turned completely red. “Y-you know that I read that?” said a dry throated Luna.

Celestia threw back her head in laughter. “Of course I know. I nearly tripped over one of your copies floating into your chambers.”

Luna wiped the sweat from her brow, and forced a chuckle. “Yeah, well you know… It’s pretty good.”

“Come now Lulu, I am only teasing. Let us enjoy our scarce time together,” said Celestia, offering a wing of apology, which her sister graciously accepted. Together they walked through the forbidden forest, free of any guards and any royal responsibilities, free of ponies flanking either side of them, dusting the ground before them on which they were about to step.

“Its nice, being away from it all. A little vacation from the strict mannerisms expected of us daily, isn’t it?” said Luna with a large breath, inhaling the untamed scent of these mysterious woods.

Celestia snorted through her large nostrils, tossing her head to the side. But her wing still stayed draped over her sister. “It is wonderful. Though you know it much better than I.”

Luna chuckled uncomfortably, daring not to look at her sister’s disappointed gaze. “I have already apologized for my ignorance Celestia. You need not raise the guilt from where we left it,” growled the younger sister. She hated when Celestia resurfaced old wounds.

Celestia shook her head at the young one’s misinterpretation. “I am not trying to open wounds healed, my sister. Rather I am expressing that you have more freedom than I.” Celestia’s sweet, melodic voice did not mask what she had just said, and the look on her face of utter regret registered instantly. Luna stopped walking, allowing herself to dislodge from under the protective wing of her older sister.

“More freedom than thou? In what way?” growled Luna through clenched teeth.

“Luna, I’m sorry, that’s not what I meant-“ tried Celestia.

“In what way?” repeated Luna.

“Luna, please. Let’s keep going. There’s a wonderful little place I’d love to show you-“

“Damn it Celestia! You will explain yourself this instance!” roared Luna, her Royal Canterlot Voice peeking out threw her otherwise controlled vocal manner.

Celestia sighed. “I just meant you have less responsibility than I. You are young. You are free. You are able to cancel duties to pursue personal matters. I am not so fortunate,” reasoned Celestia.

Luna had not felt such a heat of anger in a thousand years. ‘How dare she insult your rule. Your power. You are as important as her. As powerful. Strike her down, Luna. Strike her down.’

Luna shook her head free of the whispers. She could not pinpoint where they were coming from in her memory, but she recognized them. Remembering them being in her head in the beginning. She could not revert to those awful ways again.
She wiped her mind clear, and tried to think a little more sensibly. She secretly wanted to not forgive Celestia, but to instead punish her. She wasn’t sure why, or where the urge was coming from, but it was present. But a greater urge compelled her, the urge to forgive and forget, and not let one argument ruin their relationship as it had one thousand years ago.

“I understand that thou art extremely busy with thy responsibilities as ruler over Equestria’s days. And I now understand that my nights are being enjoyed through the peacefulness of sleep. And I know I do not receive nearly as much work as thee. And dost thou know what I have taken away from this? Peace. For once, sister, I am happy to be free of those bonds. I can dismiss court on a whim, not disappointing nearly as many ponies as if I ruled the day court. I can go off for a fly in the middle of the night, when no pony comes to check on my slumber. Thou art not so fortunate, as your guards check periodically. And I am happy that I can finally understand,” said Luna, being able to look up at her motherly figure with a warm smile.

Proud tears ran down Celestia’s furry cheek. She wrapped Luna in a hug with her forelegs before enveloping them in her massive wingspan. “Oh Luna. I am so sorry. I did not mean what I said. But I am proud of you and I love you.”
Luna sniffed back a few tears herself, not wanting to lose Celestia’s respect. ”And I love thee, dear sister.”

The two royal sisters broke their embrace, and continued their adventure through the hot and buggy woods. After a thousand complaints from Luna in the span of five minutes, Celestia created a bug force field, and the two were able to walk in peace without being made a meal of.

Happily chewing on some grass she had found in a meadow they had frolicked through, Luna was stopped by a gleaming white hoof.

The hoof was attached to her loyal sister, stopping Luna from walking right into a ravaging river with ice-cold water. And to top it all off, a hysterical sea serpent thrashed around downstream, blocking the only shallow water safe to wade through. His shining purple scales were magnificent. His moustache was as unique as Luna’s mane, one side a golden blonde, while the other a royal purple curl. However, his wondrous mullet had been sliced off the top. “Luna stay back!” said Celestia, restricting Luna and trying to figure out a way to sneak by without being noticed.

But Luna pushed through her sister’s hoof, much to Celestia’s panic. Before she could grab the younger one back out her embrace of safety, Luna was gone in a flash of dark blue sparkles.

In the distance she could hear Celestia yelling for her, but now was not the time to turn away and give in to authority. She approached the wailing monster, offering up a gentle smile. The poor serpent held his clawed hands over his eyes, trying to contain the bountiful tears that streaked his smooth face.

“Good sir, what is the matter?” asked the Princess of Equestria’s night. The serpent uncovered one of his eyes and immediately took a double take at the princess that stood before him. He lifted his sulking head from the shore and bowed beneath her multiple times, shattering and shaking the ground with each bow of contact to the earth. Had Luna been a lesser pony, she would have been bounced to the moon.

“Oh! OH! Princess Luna!” he remarked in a rather marish voice for a creature his size.

“Dear sir, thou do not needest to kiss our hooves. We are here to see what it is that puts you into such disarray.” Luna said with sympathy. She didn’t know what could have troubled such a monster. She thought they were impenetrable.

“Fair princess. My mane. Its ruined!” he cried, reverting back to his helpless tears. Princess Luna had to repress an eye roll. She had heard many complaints in her day. Many unsolvable or even downright stupid requests. But this one was probably near the top of the list. Nonetheless, this creature was one of her subjects, and it was her duty as a princess to aid him.

“Oh my,” she said, stroking his tearful face. “How did this happen?”

“A herd of manticores flew by, and their tails cut it clean off!” He sniffed, and she prayed that he wouldn’t engulf her in fire with a sneeze. ‘That’s dragons. Not sea serpents,’ corrected a voice in her head. A familiar voice.

‘Moon?’ thought Luna for a second.

‘The one and only my friend,’ replied the soft, caring voice.

‘How are you talking to me?’ questioned Luna happily that her friend was not bound only to her dreams and her mirror.

‘I’ve been here all along. You’ve heard me. You just haven’t made the connection until now I suppose,’ she said, and Luna was positive that in her head, the mare was shaking her head in disbelief.

Her mind drawing a blank on handle this dire situation, Luna decided to cheat a bit. ‘How do you suggest I handle this Moon?’

‘I do not know. You know I did not have time to test out my compassion when I was able.’

‘I suppose,’ thought Luna. And then she had it. It was perfect. Simple, easy, and it should work.

“Good serpent, I have a solution to your troubles!” she proclaimed happily as Celestia stalked closer.

“Y-You do?” he sniffed.

“Indeed.” Using her magic, she stretched out her flowing mane.

“OH no! Princess no!” he yelled, trying to stop her.

With a quick cut of a magical dagger, a lock of soft, blue pony hair fell into her magical grasp. It was long and luscious, soft and silky, mainly because it was her baby hair, enchanted away as her powers increased. But when separated form the source by a dagger, its true form would show.

Floating it up to the wailing creature, she entwined it into his mullet, creating a blue poof where the original hair was sliced off. Looking up at his new do, her patted it with a clawed palm. “Oh woe is me! Its gorgeous!” giddily shrieked the purple serpent. “Thank you Princess! Oh thank you thank you!” he cried, kissing her hooves.

Patting his snout, she smiled warmly t her subject. “That is quite unnecessary. It is my job to see my subjects happy. That is my reward enough.”

Celestia slammed into Luna’s side, sending them both crashing to the ground. Opening her eyes in horror, Luna felt the warm hug tighten every second. “That was very impressive, Lulu,” wept Celestia. “Just don’t scare me like that again.”

Luna rolled her eyes for the thousandth time that day, hugging her sister back. Her mane whirled and hissed, and in a matter of seconds, had returned to its formal glory, breezing around at full length.

The two alicorns got to their hooves and easily soared over the now calm river, leaving the happily waving serpent behind them as they continued through the area. Touching ground in a floral clearing, they regained their breath.

“What’s wrong Tia? Can’t take a little flight?” teased Luna.

“Very *pant* funny *pant*,” stumbled Celestia, tugging a snicker out of Luna.

They looked around where they were. Flowers bloomed along the edge of the field, save for the opening where the path continued on through the darkness. They blossomed in every color, and zap apples covered a few trees to the west. Little rabbits unowned by anything but the wild scampered away from the foreign ponies in the deep woods, and in the light of day, the dew sparkled and glistened.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it Lulu?” spoke Celestia as they wandered aimlessly through the enchanted woods.

“That it is, dear sister,” said Luna, breathing in the air of freedom; the rare air of no responsibility; the rare air of nothing to worry about, no ponies to attend to, no fights to settle; the rare air of nostalgia.

But that wasn’t all that Luna felt. And she was absolutely sure that that wasn’t all her wise sister was feeling either in this enraptured forest. The mood was thick, a long forgotten topic that was willed not to resurface in either of their lifetimes. Although it tied into both of them as much as their manes waved freely, it was no longer something that they worried themselves with. It was air long forgotten, an air not breathed anymore. It was frayed, it was old, and it was abandoned. They wished not revisit such air, leaving it in their memories to rot and dust over.

But here they felt it, and they yearned for it. And they were pulled towards it, but they dare not admit it. They were drawn with baited breath, and both knew it.

And when they arrived by following that forgotten path, both breathed a sigh of relief and anger. They were there, though they wished they weren’t. It had to be faced sooner or later, so that they may forgive and forget.

They were home.

Across the rickety rope bridge stood, or fell, the ruins of an ancient castle. The ruins of a castle where two alicorns had been raised, where two alicorns had been deemed princesses, and where Princess Celestia had banished her dear sister to the far away moon. Although they had vowed never to revisit the cursed place, it beckoned through their souls, and with a nod of understanding to each other, they crossed the unstable bridge. Halfway through, an unnerving creak was let out form the wooden planks.

“Tia…”

“What Luna?” said Celestia, looking back at her sister.

“What if the bridge gives out?” asked a wary Luna.

“I’ll let you figure that out,” said Celestia with a mighty flap of her swan like wings.

“Oh, yeah.” Luna chuckled with embarrassment.

Safely reaching the other side as they had so many times when they were fillies, they stared at the looming structure. It was a place of love, anger, betrayal, and redemption of late.

“Are you sure, Tia?” Luna physically shook on her hooves, and not even a draped wing by Celestia could soothe her.

“It must be done,” answered her serene voice.

Luna gulped down all her fears. Her guilt of becoming Nightmare Moon, her embarrassment of being saved from something she never meant to be, and the anger at still not being accepted. But she pushed on. The doors were unhinged at the top, allowing Luna and Celestia to squeeze between them with some effort. There was barely a roof, the light burning into what used to be their mighty throne room.

Luna shielded her eyes to achieve a better look of her old home. Two regal thrones crumbled on the far side of the room. One could have been gold, though it was mostly a pile of ruble now. And the other, though also barely standing, smashed her heart with a wave of nostalgia. She crossed over to it.

‘Luna was here.’ She traced her hoof over the ancient inscription of her foal-hood at the base of the throne. A bit of silver luster shone threw the debris and dirt that now plagued her favorite part of the castle.

Refusing to punish her mind anymore with melancholy, she turned to face a large pedestal. Celestia, still eyeing her own collapsed throne, did not notice as Luna approached the old structure.

It was the resting place of the Elements of Harmony before they were rediscovered. It was naked right now, but Luna smiled. Although she no longer had the title of Element Bearer, they were safe in the care of the ponies who represented them.

“Do you feel that?” rang out Celestia’s voice.

Luna looked around, and now that she thought about it, she did feel something. It was a great power. Unlike one she had felt in a long, long time.

“Don’t cry Lulu,” soothed Celestia, nuzzling her younger sister as she sobbed into her chest. “They’re still here. Can’t you feel them?”

Luna nodded through her tears.

Author's Note:

I am incredibly sorry for the delay. I will try to get this edited soon, but I have been incredibly busy with school as many can relate to. I will try to get another chapter up during this break.

Comments

[JustAnotherTimeLord]

This story picture is too cute to fit with the tags this story has.

[joeyjumper94]

In some fanfics, the Castle of The Royal Pony Sisters has a library.
What if they found some books about Slendermane.
According to one of the books, Slendermane likes to eat foals, which could explain where that aspect of the legend of Nightmare Moon originated.

[SpaceCommie]

Hi all. Just figured I'd pop in and say that the last 5 or so chapters will be edited within the next couple of weeks.

[marley]

This is a very interesting story. I like that you're keeping the relationship between Luna and Nightmare Moon on the mysterious side. BTW I took a psychology course years ago and one of the things discussed was dreams/nightmares. Trying to make a friend of the thing that frightens you in the dream is a method of getting rid of the nightmare. The thing that frightens you becomes your ally. As the professor pointed out, what is in your dream is actually part of you. Fighting against it is fighting yourself. Your story reminded me of that.

[Horsegirl123]

3559480 that is almost right on the money if what I was trying to show through their relationship. Thank you!

[KingOfTheMuffins]

3564780

I was grading the takeoff, not the words. Be gone, peasant!

*counts to five three and throws a holy hand grenade of Antioch at Four*

[teneluxes_]

this hasnt been continued since 2013 holy shit

bruh come on its nearly been a decade-