Intermission - Plural Divinity
For once, Bon Bon didn't feel very much like Sweetie Drops, Special Agent of the EIA. She didn't feel embroiled in danger and intrigue, or righteously self-empowered to uphold public safety. Not ruthlessly capable or mysterious, nor did she feel as though she could kick very much butt for the sake of sanctity itself.
She just felt like plain old Bon Bon. A small-town hobbyist confectioner whose greatest achievement thus far had been mixing an alcoholic caramel that tasted more like apples than whiskey.
It'd been her and Lyra's recently-passed fifth anniversary, though she could barely even remember the day after all that 'special' candy.
Leaving Light behind in the wake of his many, varied methods of showing his hatred for her and everything she stood for was unsettling enough, moreso because of the many, many mistakes she'd made in the time leading up to her egress. She was only glad the treeline she was trotting under was so dark and overbearing, because she didn't feel very worthy of basking in Her radiance right now.
Where had she gone so wrong? She'd let her guard down around her charge- several times- and given him far more leniency than she was at all required to. Her only order had been to watch him, but she'd gone so far as to outright comfort him. What on Equus was wrong with her?
It was like she'd just up and forgotten everything she'd ever learned about covert operation. Don't show emotion; don't show weakness; don't share information; don't get comfortable- what wasn't basic protocol was just common sense! Light was her charge, not her friend!
No matter how much Lyra said otherwise. No, that pang in her chest was not lament- no matter how much it felt like it! She denied it!
With the sudden thought that she could use a break and without breaking her stride in the slightest, Bon Bon took a sharp turn right towards the direction of Marigold Lake. As she strode through the grassy field with her new destination well in mind, her jaw quirked into a self-indulgent frown.
She'd been away too long: that was it. She'd spent too much time in sleepy Ponyville with her sleepy ordinance of watching a sleepy, dopey kid. Her various slips and drops in composure would never have happened had she stayed in Canterlot. Eight years ago, she'd been a model agent. At just nineteen years old, she'd already carried out vital espionage in Abyssinia and been personally credited by the current King Leonidas as a major contributor in preventing an insurrection! She'd been legendary for her single-minded pursuit of an outcome!
Now, she couldn't even keep her cool on a single mission watching a teenager!
It wasn't long before the sun-sparkling shores of Ponyville's go-to aquatic getaway came up before her, and luckily for her, the small lake seemed to be abandoned. A strange thing for the warmer season, when ponies would normally rush to line up for a chance to soak in the cool waters.
Her instincts nearly gave her pause as she wondered for a moment whether it was somehow a trap, but rationale put that thought soundly to bed. It was likely the traditional festivities of the Summer Sun Celebration were taking everypony's time up, that was all.
She slowed her purpose-leaden canter beneath the shade of a lakeside tree: scrutinizing the area one last time to be absolutely sure she was alone, before she closed her eyes, and took a deep breath.
It had been a long week for her. A long... tiring week. The energy supplements she'd been taking were doing their job and keeping her body alert, but her mind was still lagging behind. She just wasn't in her prime anymore, and the... one-hundred and sixty or so hours she'd been awake were... beginning to get to her.
She knew how to combat vertigo and exhaustion, but even just during the short trip to the lake she'd nearly forgotten how to swerve when a tree came up before her. Trying to think back through the peculiarities of the last week... just made her vision spin.
She'd battle through any number of torments and indignities for Her Highness, of course, but to say she was relieved her assignment was over was a gross understatement. She could stop thinking about Light, and start thinking about literally anything else.
With a click and a shuffle, Bon Bon was relieved of her saddlebag. Though the weight of its assorted implements within were ultimately negligible to her, it was still a relief to lay it aside the tree, and flex her unburdened withers.
The satisfying feeling of her primed muscles rolling was as close to heavenly as a mortal could get, but the motion brought a painful reminder. Through all the littered cuts and scrapes she'd endured, as well as the tense soreness pervading her every bruised muscle, what bothered her most of all was the cloying grime matted into her fur. With every motion, it flaked and ground against her hot skin: bringing an unsettling feeling of persistent itching.
She could barely keep herself from scratching wherever she could manage, or the simple pleasure of a wince. She wasn't very fond of wincing. A grimace, though, was a fine expression: it showed a middling level of contempt that Bon Bon felt very comfortable with.
Standing at the water's edge and staring down at her reflection, the ragged-looking mare that might've been Bon Bon slowly swept a hoof across her dirt-marred cheek. It left a long, brown smear along her fur in its wake, and a stain on her frog that she sniffed at. A sniff that made something crumble in her nose, that she realized was probably dried blood.
She couldn't report in to the Princess looking like she'd crawled out of an early grave.
Even in the depths of summer when the air was dense with packed-in heat, the water was still shockingly cold. Of course, she completely kept her composure as she waded straight into the lake, but it wasn't easy. With the water around her actually staining brown as the muck she'd picked up gradually sloughed off, every little scrape she'd picked up began to sting from the cool contact. As much or more than when she'd first received them.
Still, it was the most pleasant thing she'd experienced in days.
The water lapped insistently at her neck as she traveled deeper: only having to kick her legs every so often to keep herself afloat. She didn't get to go swimming very often, and for a long time, she hadn't wanted to. She'd once had to escape into a river in the middle of winter to avoid detection from her then-target, and that experience had kept her irrationally weary of freezing for a while.
Oh, but the waters of Lake Marigold were anything but freezing... It wasn't that hot outside, but her body was. With everything that had happened... and for how afraid she'd been at so many times... relaxing on the shallow waves graciously keeping her afloat was all she'd needed...
...If only Lyra were there to enjoy it with her...
Her sweet, stupid love. It'd been less than a day since they'd last seen each other, but so much had happened... she hadn't realized just how much she'd miss her. Her oblivious grin... Her constant inappropriate mannerisms... That songlike voice of hers lowering and sliding into that wonderful, teasing tone that never failed to make her shiver...
Bon Bon sighed, and let her limbs go slack: allowing her head to slowly sink under the waves. She took a last, deep breath as her head fell back, sinking down into the pool as the dappled glass surface of the water above her crept away. Yet more dirt and dried blood dissolved away into the water as her mane loosened from its buns, and she thought to herself how idyllic the scene was.
Another sigh loosed from her lips, and with it, a small cascade of sun-caught bubbles rose to the surface of the water. The ephemeral dancing of her precious air drifting away amidst her loose hair was her last sight, as her eyes came to a drifting close.
Her mind slowly lulling as her every worry bubbled up inside... to release to the upside-down sky above her.
And with the tired recollection of her trial-laden week, she happened to think back to the letter she'd received from Twilight Sparkle not an hour ago. The one she'd briefly spoken of, that she'd received under no expectation that it would be delivered.
Emblazoned with the holy seal of the rising sun.
Agent Sweetie Drops, I hope this missive finds you well.
As you may already know, the situation has calmed, and you may be at ease. As expected, Nightmare Moon took the opportunity of her broken prison to levy against me, and cast me within her empty gaol while it remained open. Thanks to the efforts of the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony, however, the creature possessing my sister has been vanquished, and I have been set free.
I am truly certain that the Elements have provided a miracle, and that my beloved sister walks among us once again. She has regained the form of my fondest recollection, and to my inspection, not a single trace of The Nightmare Queen remains within her. She has proclaimed to have laid low her ambitions of taking the throne, and as long as my student bearing this letter finds you in a timely manner, we should have already entered into peaceful negotiations.
It is my hope that we will come to many new understandings now that we have been reunited.
As this letter has found you at all, I expect you must have succeeded in your mission to prevent Light Flow and Nightmare Moon from meeting. Know that your efforts have contributed to the dawn of this day as much as the Bearers, and that I am in your debt. Luna has yet to avail me of the night's complete events, but I am sure you performed your duties to exhaustive extents.
I can only imagine the wear you must feel now, and if you wish it, you have my blessing to return home. With the danger passed, there is little need to monitor Light Flow for the time being; in fact, Luna has scarcely assured me of his total innocence in last night's matters. As I assume she knows well how our trust must be rebuilt, I must believe her completely.
I will not begrudge you your well-earned rest if you feel as though you need it, and your junior agent may be ordered to accept your responsibilities for as long as you require. Although your standing orders may be put aside for this time of recuperation, I am making no amendment to your regular duties. Just as soon as you are well, you are to reinstate your watch.
If you are yet ready to provide me a report of the night's events, however, you shall find my sister and I partaking in the festivities in Ponyville, now a celebration for her return. I will only take my leave as the sun sets, and I expect you will have little trouble finding me before then. Please know that I only expect you as you are ready, and as peace has surely returned, you need not feel obligated to push yourself.
Be at ease, Sweetie Drops, and know that the dawn has arrived. Alongside it comes the forsaken night that may never again be silent. The coming age shall be one of great prosperity, and a unifying balance in all things.
Princess Sol Celestia
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Bon Bon, being a low-key mare of a non-strenuous disposition, may well have taken the given chance to rest. It was more or less a command from the highest authority of the land, given with frank assurances that her reticence was expected. Nopony would bat an eye if she kicked her hooves up at home for a few days.
In her position, anypony else would've.
Anypony else.
Call her crazy, but the prospect of hitting a full one-hundred and sixty eight just seemed too good to pass up. If Sweetie Drops was gonna stay awake for as long as she had, it'd be a waste not to hit a week, right?
It was a convincing enough excuse.
So, as deep and captivating as her desire to go home and see her lovely marefriend was, she hadn't quite carried out the fullest extent of her duties yet, and that bothered her. She missed Lyra, more than anything, but there was a certain part of her that... that needed to see the day through.
It was that never-say-die part of her that had scaled a cliff with nothing but numb hooves and a rope, and that, as soon as she was sure she was clean, promptly pulled her out of the calming depths of the lake. The chill she felt would be much worse on a colder day, but standing around dripping wet in the bare air didn't ever quite hit her fun mark.
The warm air helped her to dry faster than she would've otherwise, which actually worked quite against her desire to sit by the calm lakeside for awhile. To luxuriate in the feeling of mostly clean fur, and her scratches that had long since gone numb, and simply enjoy the fact that there was a warm sun on her drenched back.
It gave her a few, scant moments to think deeply on what bothered her.
Princess Luna had actually returned. If she were asked to be candid, Bon Bon would have to say that she hadn't really believed that it was even a remote possibility. Her Highness had made it very clear in the small-room debriefing She'd had on the situation that Nightmare Moon was unredeemable, and that nothing of Her Sister remained. They were now living in a realm of possibilities Bon Bon had never stopped to consider.
There were going to be two Princesses on the throne. Not a single, reigning Princess and Her mixed-race family of dubious descent, but two actual Goddesses. The day and the night: finally reunited in blessed Harmony with each other.
What would she call Princess Luna? Her Highness had a thousand years of culture to form Her theologically-given titles, while all that remained of Princess Luna's divinity were fairytales and extremely obscure mythos. Warrior Princess... Dream Mistress... Patron of the Arts...
The Betrayer.
That one probably wouldn't fly.
She supposed Her title would just be... Princess Luna until the church made enough sense of itself to write a new book of worship, or to make an attempt at digging an old one out. What she wouldn't give to be in the room when the Solar Disciples caught wind of the new Goddess...
Unfortunately, drying off only took about ten minutes, so she didn't have a chance to really deliberate. And her being so frustratingly decisive, just as soon as she was dry enough that the air began to feel warm again, she set off. She'd wrung the tangled flop of hair that was her mane out as best she could, whispered a silent prayer that nopony would care too much that she was noticeably damp, and made for Ponyville.
It was a tough call, but she'd decided to leave her saddlebag behind. It was as covered in blood and gunk as she'd just recently been, and there was really no cleaning that level of filth. She'd have to call on Rarity to have a new one made, but until then...
It'd be decently innocuous up in the tree she'd hidden it in.
It was less than a fifteen minute walk from Marigold Lake- ten if she was brisk- which gave her a little more time to think of the state of Equestria, while allowing a whole minute and change for thinking of Lyra.
Princess Celestia was safe, and well enough to write her a cogent letter. Forgery was safely off the table considering the distinctive magical seal placed on the letter, and there was no messenger more trustworthy than Lady Sparkle. Not that it'd been a concern of hers; it was just a routine worry for her profession.
What was concerning to her were the possible happenings outside of Ponyville. Despite what Ponyville thought, Her Majesty had been in Canterlot when Nightmare Moon had returned, so judging by Her letter, They'd had Their confrontation there. There'd been the orders for all active personnel to stand down, of course, but if anypony had gotten antsy...
Her canter nearly stalled as a flash of carnage mixed into her thoughts, but she made up for the break in stride with an overlong step: returning to her pace as though nothing had happened.
It would be alright; the affairs of Canterlot weren't her concern at the moment. Whatever may have happened across the rest of the world during the long night would surely be set right with Her Highness at the helm. For her and her tiny job in her beloved backwater, the ordeal was over.
Finally, Bon Bon could truly begin to relax.
...If only she'd be able to relax with Lyra... Snuggling up in bed with their satisfied breaths mixing together... Her warm, lithe body pressed against hers... Minty green and creamy fur sinfully blending together... The feeling of being beloved, and deserved...
But she had a job to do, Bon Bon reminded herself with a sharp breath as she nearly slowed to a dazed stop. She picked her pace back up- doubly so as the distant shadow of Ponyville began to reveal itself ahead of her. Even from her distance and still some ways away from the closest bridge across the town's stream, she could already hear the ever-present cheers.
Public security had obviously been maintained, though she'd had a good idea of that earlier in the day. That meant that, through whatever spectacles Nightmare Moon had made in 'vanishing' the Princess, the general mood was still calm enough to party outrageously. Given the propensity for Ponyville residents especially to panic in the face of crisis, that must have meant Nightmare Moon hadn't done anything too harmful.
Empty threats would translate well into false promises of change.
Bon Bon nearly tripped as the intrusive thought flitted by, and for how shocking it was, she had to slow to a halt a few hoof-lengths from a bridge she planned on crossing. The town square was well in view: close enough that she could make out the boxy brown shapes of the many tables covered in food and festivities, but...
That hadn't been the first thought she had like that.
And she didn't know what to do about it.
No, that wasn't true: she knew very well what to do. She just had to shake it off. She'd literally shake herself until she stopped thinking altogether if it came to that, because that kind of thinking was unacceptable. If Princess Celestia trusted Her Sister, then so did she. Who She was before didn't matter- it hadn't even been Her before: it had been Nightmare Moon. A completely separate entity.
And she believed that whole-heartedly. No matter what Light had said, it'd been the Princess who'd said otherwise. That was not an even scale.
She wouldn't give it any more thought. It was seditious, and treasonous, and completely and utterly blasphemous. As Lady Sparkle had said: Princess Luna was as high an authority as Princess Celestia, now. They were both Godly figures deserving of devotion, and Bon Bon could accept that.
She just... needed to adjust. Yes, it was only an adjustment.
With a sigh that didn't feel nearly heavy enough to let her troubles go, Bon Bon made her way over the short, stone bridge into Ponyville. The cheery atmosphere might help to ease her mind, at least.
The crowd in the done-up town square was much less a crowd as it was a loosely scattered congregation. As most of the area was dominated by squat tables in rows of two covered in various foods and favors, there really wasn't a proper space for an actual crowd. No matter how disgruntled the ponies forced into the tight, moving lines between the tables seemed, the fact of it was that there were a lot of ponies looking to get by.
Yesterday had been the beginning of the Summer Sun Celebration: a full day dedicated to giving pious prayer to Her Holy Majesty and baking bread for Her coming arrival. Nowadays, bread was really just synonymous with food, and it was usually just for friends and family.
As this year's receiving town of Her Grace, however, it was actually Ponyville's duty to provide Her Majesty with food and thanks. After the day of preparation and the sleepless night spent in reverence to the Heavens, Her Majesty would raise the sun to the spectacle of the masses, and the blessed day of merriment would subsequently commence.
Merriment being... a variable term, since most ponies would rather spend the day sleeping after having to stay up all night. The buildings may have been covered in bright, happy streamers and banners, but the ponies walking through the rows of treats and finery may as well have been shambling zombies. She could already recognize a few familiar faces standing at the edges of the milling crowd, and she couldn't say any of them had ever looked less pious.
She wondered how the Celebration might change in the future. It would have to change, of course; today was the day that Nightmare Moon had been defeated.
And the day Princess Luna came to power, she had to remind herself.
Okay, it would be a pretty rough adjustment- but she was working on it! Was she supposed to amend her entire faith in just one day?! Reading about the vague allowance of Sister Deities in The Sun's Reverency was different from having it actually happen! Prophesied events weren't an everyday occurance!
She needed a little while to come to terms with the expanded Heavens, was all. She was exactly sure that she was far from the only one having trouble adjusting. As soon as word reached Canterlot, there'd be rioting in the streets from the news!
Hm. She'd expected that to make her feel better. Strange. That she'd expected it to, not that it hadn't.
She needed to get a move on, before she gave herself a conniption.
From the far end of the square, opposite where Bon Bon was standing, there stood an extraordinarily long table covered in plates aplenty at the stoop of town hall. This lonely table, already extraordinary for its mere circumstances among many similar, smaller tables, happened to cater to a particularly extraordinary Pair.
To the left of the middle of the table sat a towering figure of pure, snowy white, whose effortless aura of matronly warmth Bon Bon could already feel. A serene smile on Her face, and a familiar teacup clutched in a sunny haze of magic; Her kind, gentle eyes always set lovingly towards Her subjects.
To see Her... just to see Her... Bon Bon felt relieved. Deep in her bones, a nameless sense of tension she'd not even realized was there just bled away. It was the greatest reassurance of peace she could ever have, and for that peace, she'd gladly give her life in thanks.
But then, Her Highness was not alone.
To Her right sat an unfamiliar figure smaller by a head, who was immediately as striking to Bon Bon as Her Sister typically was. Though She seemed overly delicate at a glance, especially when compared to the obvious magnificence sat shortly beside Her, there was a certain staggering quality about Her.
Perhaps it was Her eyes. Even from the short few yards that separated them, Bon Bon could swear that piercing cyan gaze was trained directly on her. A shining, ruthless sense of judgement that was only mollified by the assenting roundness of Her pupils. A sorely needed reminder that She was Holy.
Princess Celestia. Princess Luna.
Bon Bon swallowed.
She didn't know whether to feel awed, or frightened out of her mind. Both seemed the obvious middle ground in the company of Divinity.
She had a job to do, though, so despite some irrational misgivings, she set her suddenly trembling jaw and forced herself forward. She could already tell the best way to get there while checking off a few key tasks at the same time, which would help take her mind off veneration.
The largest crowd, engrossed in conversation or whatever they'd plucked from the tables, was spread generally around the central fountain of Chancellor Puddinghead. There, Bon Bon would make her entry, where hopefully few ponies would leer too hard at her limp, soggy mane or faintly stained fur.
At first, she moved like water: threading through the outer layer of ponies with nowhere to sit as though they weren't there at all. As the crowd grew heavier, she began to offer smiles and small pleasantries to ponies as she gently pushed them aside. A touch on the shoulder here, a greeting to a distant friend there, and very soon, it would be as though Bon Bon had been amidst them all along.
Her favorite tactic in espionage, assuming she could, was to naturally place herself into the scene as a sort of... background object. The deeper within the crowd she was, the more ponies would see her. The more ponies she wished well, the more would remember her as just being another friendly member of the crowd. Nothing more; nothing less.
And of course, she was. She was a regular resident of Ponyville with as much reason to be there as anypony else. That was the beauty of being so deep undercover: she'd actually spent more of her life in Ponyville than anywhere else.
And, being the average resident she was, she had her own offering to make to the Princesses.
Bon Bon squeezed out of the far end of the crowd with an assurance that she'd only fallen into the stream to a pegasus she barely remembered was named Flitter, and quickly turned to her next article of business. An easy trot across the short distance- all the while feeling the overwhelming presence of the Princesses a few yards away- had her arrive at a table as innocuous as any other.
It was home to a couple plates in various states, but far more important was the lovely glass platter she'd dug out of storage a week and a half ago. Though nice enough for a going-away present from an EIA colleague she'd absolutely despised, the focus was, of course, what was sat on it.
A beautiful baker's dozen of bonbons, along with a small, bent card that read For the Princess.
...Maybe she should've gone with something a little less predictable, but she couldn't deny that she just plain made good bonbons. Was she just supposed to deprive Her Highness of her best efforts because it was her name? Not likely. Not on her watch. Think again, evildoer.
She took a good look over her confections one last time, since it was her last chance to make sure they were perfect before she used them as an excuse to get close to the Princesses. They'd been sitting in a freezer for two weeks, but they'd been well sealed, and they looked just fine.
Bonbons were normally small treats made purely of chocolate, but she hadn't figured they'd survive the heat if she took too long to get to them. Or, at all. It hadn't been a sure thing today would even happen.
So, she'd made small balls of cake out of chocolate batter, and called them bonbons anyway. Filled with her most delectable buttercream and drizzled once again with chocolate syrup: something that was meant to melt. She was sure Princess Celestia would appreciate her offering regardless of the fact she'd only baked them to get close to Her.
Just as she'd finished her inspection and made to grab the platter, though, Bon Bon happened to notice something... something with her bonbons. A tiny, crucial little detail that she'd nearly just skipped over in her semi-delirium, that she knew she would've caught faster if she'd been just a little less deprived of her faculties.
There were only twelve. A regular dozen, not the baker's dozen she'd made.
A tiny tick of irritation made comfy home upon Bon Bon's brow, as she glanced up from her teeth-grinding leer at the bonbons. She swept it from left to right across the square, once more, and then she zeroed in on the exact pony she'd been looking for.
At the far end of the left side of the plaza: a mare with a fur color very similar to her own, whose perky red hair stuck out like a bloody hoof next to her blonde siblings sitting around her. If Bon Bon squinted hard enough, she was sure she would've seen little chocolate stains around her guilty, grinning mouth.
She knew she shouldn't have had Roseluck put the bonbons out for her.
She growled in the direction of her junior agent- who she knew couldn't hear her but sweet Celestia did she wish it'd traveled- before she bent her head down to take the platter between her teeth. The taste of washed glass and something foreign made her wish she'd been here to watch the plate herself, but it was only an annoyance that she brushed off as she hefted her precarious bounty up with her mouth.
A quick turn, a quick glance to make sure her path was suitably surreptitious, and she was off on her irrevocable path to the Princesses. An exciting prospect, and for the most part, she felt nothing but the typical exhilaration that filled Her every time She met with the Princess. The devout, yearning need to bask in Her presence: thankfully soothed on end by the simple act of witnessing Her.
Perhaps... it was that very need that beget the typical hesitance. Nothing as major as the first few times she'd had audiences with the Princess, but she couldn't deny she could be walking a little faster.
She could hardly help it. Her Highness- Alicorns in general, it seemed- simply exacerbated a feeling in creatures. Princess Celestia had always assured ponies over the years that it wasn't conscious, but whatever the case, a persistent source of intensity seemed to follow Her Highness at all times.
Even as She wore the most comforting of smiles, ponies in Her presence could hardly help from feeling intimidated. She naturally invoked a causeless sense of smallness rooted deeply within a pony's core being.
Maybe it really was just Bon Bon and her overactive admiration for Her, but to her eyes, Princess Celestia had always seemed massive in every respect. A true, towering titan of unfathomable depth, with an enduring sense of knowing glimmering behind those effortlessly kind eyes. The sort of eternal understanding of their difference that she couldn't help but feel.
And now, there were two of Them.
Though she could hardly focus on it through her various unraveling threads, Princess Luna's features did grow more evident as she drew closer, and she took ready notice of them. Bon Bon could tell for sure now that She was much shorter than Her Sister, and... truth be told... seemed altogether at odds with Her sororal Deity.
As had been clear from any sort of distance, Her fur wasn't at all black to contrast Her Sister; rather, She seemed to be entirely blue. A darker sort of blue, but still quite distinctly blue. The... six or so surviving historical depictions of Her were more royal purple, as she recalled, but that had probably just been editorialized. She was obviously blue.
It was a far cry from Her Highness' stark coloring, and even how Nightmare Moon appeared. Her mane, as well, lacked any internal breeze or ethereal light whatsoever. It simply sat on Her head in, admittedly quite luscious, blue curls: a color even lighter than her fur.
That was a true oddity next to Her Sister, but Bon Bon could honestly say the sheer simplicity of Her appearance only accented Her beauty all the more.
But then... as she grew closer, she was struck by the Princess' impression. Her mane was quite stunning, but for Her clearly lacking energy, it appeared to loiter about her face as though it were simply too tired to wisp about.
It was... unabashedly common.
Princess Celestia was otherworldy; She held an essence of perfection by emphasizing the extreme, mortal difference. Discounting Her airs and obvious race, Princess Luna almost seemed like a normal pony.
Was that blasphemous? Was it? Because she really had no idea.
It was Princess Celestia that caught sight of her first. Distracted magenta eyes over a levitating cup of tea that focused towards her, and immediately sharpened. She had to force herself to take the next step as a long white hoof- strangely without regalia- crept barely over to Her Sister as an inaudible whisper parted Her perfect lips.
Bon Bon had caught Princess Luna's attention at Her Sister's behest, as well as that very piercing cyan gaze that, now she was closer, could certainly say glowed at a contrast from Her fur. They almost appeared to literally- and she was really emphasizing the difference in meaning from figuratively- glow. She had no doubt Princess Luna would be recognizable in the dead of night.
Bon Bon stalled- unconsciously, of course, as the tall glass that Princess Luna held within Her shimmering blue magic set upon the table. No, it wasn't because the Princess was clearly drinking some kind of dark-golden alcohol in contrast to Her tea-sipping Sister- it was because of the freckles.
Tiny black freckles: dotted all over Princess Luna's cheeks and up the bridge of Her muzzle as though she'd been accidentally sprayed with black paint.
The immediate, heart-stopping urge to squee took a backseat as she was suddenly under the scrutiny of two sets of Heavenly eyes. A realization that, for her life of her, Bon Bon was sure would cause her to stop breathing altogether. It was more than the scrutiny, or the weight of those timeless gazes; it was the intimate knowledge that They were both staring at her.
The Sun and the Moon: their discerning attention focused entirely upon her weak, mortal frame. Ages passed and empires crumbled were reflected back at her in that glance. The most exalted examination in any history finally made possible after a staggering one-thousand years of separation. The exact and contrived culmination of destiny's efforts to restore balance at no one's expectance.
It was a surely humbling thing to consider, holding a measly tray of bonbons. It was hardly a meal befitting Goddesses lived through millennia unknown. What great feasts must They have been accompany to in Their vast lifespan? How could she strut so confidently up to Them with something so pathetic?
But it wasn't really about the bonbons, Bon Bon figured. It was about her.
Finally, her plate was set upon a starkly empty space in front of the Princesses: very oddly bare in the vast sea of barely-touched platters atop the table. She made sure to keep her eyes down as her offering was placed, and then she quickly dropped into her deepest bow upon the well-tread ground. There was no doubt that very patch of dirt must have seen many bows that day.
And for those Two, who had seen countless bows in Their time, she must have seemed so small.
"Princess Celestia," she murmured reverently, making sure to keep her head steady on her hooves, and her voice even. "I've come to pay my respects in the light of your day, with the hopes that I will be mercifully blessed in turn."
A... sort of correct beseechment from some holy text or another. Memorizing hymns or prayers had never really suited her; Bon Bon had always just spoken from the heart when praising Her. It'd suited her very well, and pissed off more than enough church-goers to keep her entertained.
She kept silent for a long, heavy moment. Only as Her Highness' beatific voice sounded did she relax, and make to stand. "Your offering is graciously accepted, my most loyal subject, and of course you are always within my blessing."
And for that, she would give her life.
Bon Bon held a small smile as she recovered from her kneel, and as though she weren't lucky enough already, it was an expression Her Highness shared, as well. Her smile... Kingdoms had warred and fortunes had been exhausted for the gracious pleasure of seeing Princess Celestia smile.
Standing in front of Her in that moment and feeling how her heart raced, she couldn't say she remembered in the slightest what she'd been apprehensive about. She supposed... it was always a frightening thing to willingly cast herself into the tide of pure reverence she felt in Her presence.
But when she did, when she finally worked up the courage to take that leap... there was no greater reward.
But Her Highness was not alone, and so, Bon Bon turned. There wasn't any proper procedure for entreating two Goddesses as far as she knew, so she'd just have to hope it wasn't disrespectful to turn her eyes from Her so soon. Was it not as disrespectful to only pay respects to one of the two of Them?
While she wasn't following a procedure, she knew it was outside of respect to let her gaze linger on Princess Luna for as long as she did before she dropped into a bow. The consummate fear of having stepped outside of her place had her biting her lip as her head met her hooves, but even then, she couldn't help thinking of why she'd stared.
It was no intent of her hubris, nor had she found herself greedily taken by Her. As she'd happened to catch a glance, her mind had simply gone... blank.
Because of the expression on Her face. As she'd made to lay herself prostrate to Her Godly figure sipping Her golden drink, Princess Luna had only looked ever so softly haunted.
"Princess Luna," Bon Bon began. "I've come to pay my respects in your awaited presence, with the hopes that I will be-"
"Do not bow to us."
And as she first heard the quiet, dulcet tones of Princess Celestia's long-lost Sister as so few mortals had, Bon Bon was suddenly sure she knew why.
It was her first, stupid instinct to quickly raise herself to see what was happening, especially as a quiet sigh of 'Lulu...' reached her straining ears. She steadfastly denied that presumptuous reflex, however, because for all she didn't know, she absolutely knew that raising oneself from a bow prematurely was a most foul disrespect.
Why didn't Princess Luna want her respects paid? Why had Princess Celestia called Her Lulu?
She could only answer one of those questions with any confidence, so in a bow Bon Bon stayed: rigid and tense and very confused as she heard the sound of a cup touching the table, and magic fading away. Then, the Goddess spoke once more.
"What we have done in our years deserves no reverence." There was something altogether intense about the way Princess Luna spoke in regret. An incredulous, impossible tone for one so high; for one whose voice carried a sense of perfected refinement, even as She lowered it so gravely. "For what we have already done to you, and for what we may have yet done, we deserve nothing so pitying as your devotion."
There was a pause, and then Her voice firmed. "Stand, Sweetie Drops. Pray not humble thyself before us."
It was far less grieving than any word before; this, was a softly spoken command.
And it was Sweetie Drops' duty to obey.
She was still as uncertain as she'd maybe ever been as she stood from her bow, and came to look again upon Princess Luna. Despite the panic-stricken conclusion she couldn't help but jump to, She wasn't even looking at her; rather, Princess Luna had taken to staring forlornly to Her side. A listless, empty gaze towards something in the impossible distance.
A gaze that did not waver, even as She took Her glass in Her shimmering blue hold once more, and raised it to Her lips.
In nearly twenty years of service, nothing had prepared her for a situation like this.
At least it wasn't because she'd offended Her somehow.
Bon Bon took an obvious glance towards Princess Celestia. It was her hope that Her Highness would give her a helpful pointer on how to proceed or just fix the situation altogether, but unfortunately for Bon Bon: Her Highness looked just as lost as she felt.
Her troubled gaze had traveled to Her Sister as if to assuage Her self-deprecation, but She only lingered silently for a few, silent seconds before glancing down into Her teacup. A clear apprehension on Her face that... seemed disconcertingly out of place for the elder Goddess.
An apprehension that Bon Bon immediately placed as self-doubt- and that hurt to recognize. She never liked admitting Her Highness' fallibilities, much as She happened to speak to them, but even a lifelong devout like herself could see that Her Highness clearly felt lost as to how to approach Her Sister. What a disturbingly earnest worry.
It was a very tense silence between Them, though it made sense, of course. For as extremely long as Princess Luna had harbored feelings of resentment towards Her Sister, it had been less than a day that They'd been reunited. They'd been separated for a millennium.
Even for eternal Goddesses, that sort of divide didn't just... vanish.
It made sense, but that didn't stop her from freaking out about it.
Bon Bon began to fidget restlessly, because an entire minute had gone by without anypony saying anything. Not so long for, say, a stakeout, but it felt like an eternity in the presence of Goddesses. She felt as though she should've... bowed again or began to wax poetic about reverence or something. Standing around just felt wrong!
She had to do something. Break the silence. Help Her Highness. Act.
Bon Bon cleared her throat gently, and that subtle, attention-catching sound gave her just enough courage for an impudent address. "Um... Princess Luna, may I-"
She'd not even made it through a single sentence before Her voice cut in, and Bon Bon bit her tongue.
"Prithee, refrain from referring to us as Princess."
It was far from sounding as harsh as it might have seemed; rather, it seemed markedly impassive. Spoken casually enough to suggest little weight, and without even turning in her direction. Even through the total shutdown, Princess Luna still continued to stare aimlessly into the distance: Her brow furrowing the tiniest amount as She took a sip from Her glass.
Bon Bon could barely believe her ears, and for a few seconds, she didn't. It was simply too impossible. Why would She ever ask that? Did... Princess Luna did actually want to be a Princess, didn't She?
The last of Her... Bon Bon was guessing it was cider, drained from Her cup, and finally, Princess Luna turned from Her gazing. Her distinctive stare glanced over her for a heart-stopping second, before promptly falling to a- yes that was a bottle of hard apple cider sitting in a small tin of ice in front of Her. The good stuff, too. What she wouldn't give...
As its cork unpopped and Princess Luna impassively filled Her cup to the brim, Princess Celestia took that moment to raise Herself up and clear Her throat. Thank Her.
"Please, forgive my sister for her grief, and do not take her expression to heart. She has always been... moody," Princess Celestia spoke- far more casually than Bon Bon could believe for what She was saying. It was with a weighty sigh, but it sounded almost mock to her trained ears. Less feeling and more teasing.
And it was as clear to Princess Luna, as well. Her expression clenched the slightest amount as She took a long moment to stare into Her drink, before tilting Her head back and taking far more than a dainty sip from the beverage. As Bon Bon stared in unabashed horror at the scene unfolding before her, Princess Luna let what remained of Her drink drift away with a bitter rasp.
"We find it difficult to believe that thy memory truly holds so firm." This time, it was a harsh undertone to Her voice- Her voice that had until then been remarkably monotone- and it even had Bon Bon folding her ears back in a wince. Princess Luna's critical cyan stare swerved from Her drink, to Her Sister. "It is a thousand years that separates us, sister mine. Did it trouble thee so little?"
Bon Bon sucked in a pained breath, and let her hoof come to her mouth. That must have stung. It was clear now that tensions between the Princesses were far worse than Her Highness' letter had let on. Whatever resentments of Her Highness that Princess Luna still kept must have been terrible. How would Her Highness react? A regretful wince? Indignant anger?
A... smile?
A slowly widening smile forming across Her Highness' pure white face, as She brazenly leaned over and slid a Divine hoof around Her frowning, Divine Sister. Holding Her closer as Her voice dipped slyly. "Oh, it may well have been two millennia, but I still remember a frightened little filly with tears in her eyes waking me up in the middle of the night for a hug because she'd had a bad dream."
Her voice was like she'd never heard it. Casual, and light, and edged with a singsong note of knowing humiliation.. Hardly even enlightened with unknowable wisdom beyond mortal years, and instead very much akin to a- a- a teasing older sibling!
She expected a rebuttal. She expected another scornful remark. Something along the lines of Princess Luna shoving Her inconsiderate Sister away, and storming off from the table in a massive affront to the clear mockery taking place.
What she did not expect was, as Her Sister forced Her into a lean with Her hoof around Her, a nearly-unnoticeable smile that was quickly hidden behind a swaying wine glass. Nor did she expect the humming... giggle from Her Highness, that was then reciprocated with a- a refined hum of a repressed chuckle!
It was irrevocable madness, and Bon Bon was completely lost. None of what was happening in front of her was sensible, or markedly possible. Her Highness never broke composure, and as much as she hated to say it, Light had been right- she did not understand Princess Luna. The Goddess struggling not to choke laughing on Her drink as Her Sister awkwardly held Her across Their short distance was a total mystery.
Her Highness and Princess Luna were average ponies. They were Goddesses. They had just as much right to normal emotions as anypony else. They were above pettiness. They were sisters, and they must have missed each other. Why did they have to do this here, in public?!
Bon Bon felt torn straight down the middle. Between the devout filly hiding under her bed praying for salvation from the lash of the whip, and the well-adjusted mare who had risen above the circumstances of her poisoned fillyhood. The devotion that had kept her sane, and the practicality that had kept her alive.
Was it better to raise Them to a pedestal, to keep the notion of perfection as pure as She was? Or was it better to allow herself to see past the serene smile, to the sadness She hid as ponies cowered in righteous fear from Her?
Her faith was not built on impossible ideals, but... maybe she'd begun to believe otherwise.
And maybe that was wrong.
Through her sudden recontextualization of her personal meaning of faith, Bon Bon knew, at least, that it was not her place to interject into Their... moment. So she stood- awkwardly- waiting for them to finish... laughing at each other. Eventually, Princess Luna extracted Herself from Her Sister with a hoof and set Her half empty drink onto the table: staring sideways at Princess Celestia with a weary smile.
"You know it won't help just to ignore the problem... Princess Perfect. There's still... very much you owe me." Princess Luna's... jab? Her soft, indeterminate jab was met with an equally soft, equally knowing smile from Her Sister: returned to proper posture in Her own seat.
"Oh? Have we forgotten to use the royal we? I seem to recall the very same filly who'd throw a fit at such a horrendous lapse." Princess Celestia hummed playfully as her eyebrow quirked, to which Princess Luna scoffed lightly. Turning away as She picked Her drink back up, and covering Her much clearer smile with the cleansing action of alcohol.
Bon Bon felt like she could use some alcohol. Or some pain reliever. Or an anesthetic drip, because she was sure her spinning vision was a symptom of a maiming she'd missed obtaining.
She'd been awake for a week, and now she was wondering whether her faith had been blind. If that just happened to be incidental, then she'd bake herself a hat-shaped cake and sleep in it!
Think less about it. She needed to stop trying to acclimate, and just nod along.
Bon Bon was brought to attention- and she snapped to it- as Princess Celestia turned humor-lit eyes to her. "My apologies for mine and my sister's distractions. I know you must be anxious to return home and rest." A nameless fear gripped Bon Bon's chest as Her Highness raised Her teacup for a sip. Her Highness was casting blame on Herself.
As quick as a whip and just as unthinking, Bon Bon jerked her hoof into her head at an instinctual salute. "Your Highness is never an imposition!" she barked on unspoken command, perhaps a little too loudly if Princess Celestia's small frown was anything to go by. She wanted to be treated the same.
Stop. Thinking. About. It.
Her ear perked and her gaze was drawn back to Princess Luna as She let out a small scoff over Her glass. "Sister, can thine adherents do so little as sing thy praises on end?" It was directed towards Princess Celestia, but Princess Luna's eyes were entirely on Bon Bon as She gently spun Her cup in a swirl. "She has been all but ignored, yet embraces the disrespect as though it were an honor."
Instead of supping from Her perturbed cup of cider, Princess Luna instead set it on the table as Her eyes fell to the recently-offered plate in front of Her. Finally taking Her critical gaze off Bon Bon as a blue glow shimmered to life around a defenseless bonbon, and She raised it for inspection.
"'Tis rather debasing, is it not?" She murmured, before unceremoniously popping the treat into Her mouth.
Bon Bon had to force her solemn salute not to waver at Princess Luna's effortlessly casual rebuke, even though it felt as though She could see directly into her mind. Her faith was not shaken, and she was not alone. Over dedication was an flaw that atheists throughout the ages had always ignobly preached, and this was the same. Only... coming from a Goddess.
Bon Bon didn't know how to feel about that. Hadn't Princess Luna been worshipped in the past, as well?
While Bon Bon remained as still as a slightly shaking statue, Princess Celestia softly shook Her head towards Her disapproving Sister. "Luna, you need not demean her for her beliefs," She chided, to which Luna swallowed, and cast Her gaze Sister-wise.
She remained silent for a moment, before speaking quietly as She raised Her cup once more. "Can such a thing truly be named 'belief,' that which has been forcibly impressed?"
Bon Bon sucked in a half-short breath as Princess Luna returned to indulgently sipping from Her drink, while Princess Celestia was left with Her mouth hanging gently open. There was a flash of... regret on Her face that gave Bon Bon enough pause to completely blank out the moment She turned to address her.
Was there something there? Had they spoken about this before?
A cleared throat brought Bon Bon back to reality and Her Highness' once-again serene smile. "Come, Bon Bon, and sit beside me. I am eager to hear what you have to say of last night." She seemed as even-tempered as always as She entreated Bon Bon, but... she couldn't help but think...
...No, it was best not to imagine anything. Whether it was true or not, it simply wasn't her place to make assumptions of Goddesses. Down that road lay nothing but sedition and a further wounding of her faith.
She needed to forget about it. Until she'd had some rest, she needed to calm down.
Bon Bon shook off the moment of disquieting reverie, and let her saluting hoof fall to the ground. "Yes, Highness," she murmured with a low nod. With a quick glance to Princess Luna, returned to Her stolid examination of the distance, and another over her shoulder to ensure nopony important was watching, she began a trot around the long side of the table.
She rounded its edges in quick succession, then began to approach the side profile of Her Highness. One magenta eye flicked towards her for a split second as she drew near, then returned to a peaceable study of Her subjects. Perfectly holding the façade that there was nothing to see.
As Bon Bon came up to Her side, breathing in awe to see Her perfectly-kept wings tucked against Her back like a cloak of feathers, she happened to realize something. Even through the ever-blowing aurora of Her mane, she could see Her Highness' back, and the lauded golden throne She was supposed to be sat on was... not there.
Her Highness was sat on a backless bench. Well, two benches, actually. Pressed next to each other to provide a larger sitting area: made of ordinary wood and nearly recognizable as having been taken from some nearby street.
Why would She..?
There wasn't time to dawdle, and even less time to try to think of why Her Highness would willingly degrade Herself like that. Bon Bon had to shake it off as Princess Celestia's hoof shifted slightly through the wreath of Her flowing tail, and softly pat the bench aside Her.
Seeing the unspoken command, Bon Bon swallowed, and lifted her hoof to pull herself up. Sitting beside The Pure Goddess wasn't something most ponies would ever have a chance to do in their entire lives. She considered herself very lucky.
"We should like it if you sat beside us, as well."
It was so quiet, Bon Bon almost didn't process it. It very nearly passed her by entirely as she raised her third hoof up onto the bench beside Princess Celestia, but just as soon as she realized... she froze. She could barely even begin to believe that she'd just heard what she thought she heard, but if it was actually true and she really had...
Slowly, Bon Bon let her unblinking gaze rise up to Princess Celestia. She had not reacted any more than Bon Bon had in halting her movement altogether, but to her eyes, Her warm smile seemed close to... strained. In the next few seconds, Her hoof retreated to its proper place, and the side-profile of her patron Goddess raised Her cup and took a long sip of tea.
A... long sip. Was... was there actually any tea in there?
Bon Bon forced a growing sense of dryness in her mouth down with a painful swallow, and woodenly backed off of her near-ascent onto the bench. She flashed the perch that could have been one last pleading glance before she nervously cantered around the large fog of Princess Celestia's tail, and towards...
Princess Luna, staring back at her out of the corner of Her eye. Unblinking, and unwavering. Not beckoning her in any way other than a single, softly spoken request. So little influence to exert in Her presence, yet everything to assert in Her gaze.
Such an oddity. Such a contrast.
There was only one way she could sit beside Them both.
It was actually a set of four benches They sat on, and Bon Bon was lucky enough to sit in the exact middle of the converging planes. Two for each Princess pressed together- probably so They could sit together, she realized.
Sweet as that was, the hard, unyielding wood- definitely park benches- reminded her very vividly of her last week spent in a tree. Some repetitive memories that she hadn't wished to relive, but then, there was really nowhere else she could sit.
Only the one place she'd never even dared to dream would- or could exist.
The Sun to one side, still staring peacefully into the celebrating crowd.
The Moon on the other- taller than She'd looked- staring at nothing and uncaring of anything but Her drink.
Bon Bon in the middle, feeling more and more like she could begin hyperventilating at any second.
All three of them sharing the same, extended seat of park benches.
This was either her greatest Neighvana, or her worst nightmare.
So, have any of you ever read my other story? About Celestia and Luna? What? No, no reason. Was just curious, 's all. 
It's the moment we've all been waiting for. The one and only; She for whom dreams have color; The Mistress of The Night; Equestria's bastion; Princess Celestia-Damned Luna.
...She's a bit of a sorry sort, isn't She? 
So, there's a lot to assert about Luna in the short time we see Her. It's Her first technical appearance, and though it's going to be so much more impactful if/when it happens with Light, this is still rather important. I had to deliberate pretty deeply on how to present Her, after all we've been through.
So, I decided to present a new question for every one that didn't get answered. Her usage of archaic language; Her unwillingness to be called Princess; why She's so oddly chummy with Her big Sister... now, you have twice as many things to think about until next chapter! Lucky you!
Anyway, She's sad for obvious reasons, and I'm tired as all get-out. I hit most of the notes I wanted to with this chapter, there's going to be a continuation of this scene eventually, I had to keep my worldbuilding straight through extreme adversity, and I want to go make myself some breakfast. Next time: Light and Applejack. Look forward to it.
Buh-bye. Uh-buh-bye now.
i want you guys to think before jumping to brainwashing, alright? be as incisive as i know you can be.
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You know, I wonder if Luna is aware Light killed himself. And if she is, if she's aware he revived.
Argh, filler chapter.
Thanks for the chapter
To me it seems as if the elements took all the fight out of Luna but not her resentment and extreme apathy.
To be honest I can see why she's drinking her sorrows away, what's the point in resisting now?
I know you've built Bon Bon to be a somewhat unlikable character, but I really do feel bad for her here. She's suffering a complete crisis of faith on all fronts. I do wonder if this is enough of a shake-up to begin some sort of religious reformation, especially since, based on Celestia's reaction specifically mentioning regret, she doesn't exactly want to be worshiped either (or at least didn't set up the church). 1000 years of uninterrupted rule will do that to a society no matter what, though.
A disturbing thing about Bon Bon specifically is the timescale, though. We already knew she'd been picked up off the street and molded into an agent, but if she was nineteen eight years ago and has twenty years of service, she started when she was seven. Which...doesn't exactly cast Celestia's administration regarding her intelligence agencies in a good light.
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Well, thinking about it from a point of pure logic, you've gotta imagine that She must've noticed he died. When She bid him to follow Her and then he didn't, She probably went back to check on him. She's a smart cookie, so She probably put two and two together and realized he didn't just up and vanish.
Whether Luna knows he got back up, on the other hoof... As of yet, we don't know exactly how familiar She is with a Necromancer's skillset, or even whether what happened to Light is at all normal. And if She does know, then I doubt She's going to share that with Her Sister or Her crony.
It's difficult to extract whether Luna in this chapter, evidently very depressed, is as such because of everything or just... one thing. Without a definite cause to Her melancholy, it's uncertain whether She's sad he's assumedly permanently dead.
tl;dr There's no way to tell for sure as of yet! To my design!
11560477
Um- ouch?
You know, I hadn't even thought of the chapter as filler, but you're right: it is. Now that I've realized that the chapter, being tangential to the central plot, is technically filler, I realize this must be super unsatisfying for you!
I'd say I'm sorry, but I'm not! You should be used to too-long B plots by now!
11560511
It's a stark contrast from the Nightmare Moon of last night, isn't it? Her lasting pride was clear even in the moments She lost composure; She never lost Her drive to fulfill Her ill-conceived plan. No matter whether She was screaming, or crying, or remembering, She always remained absolutely defiant of what She opposed. It was admirable in its own, twisted way.
But now... what could be so heavy as to break Her so? Is it even the weight of something, or the removal?
If it was only the lack of reason keeping Her on Her path, then how would She carry on with the curse of lucidity? Knowing all She does, but knowing just the same that it's irrevocable?
What does She have left?
funny enough light gonna be a thorn in celestia side regardless of whether he want to be or not he gonna have a massive effect on Luna, and may even be a wedge between her and celestia
11560515
This is a fantastic comment. I sincerely applaud you, and graciously thank you for leaving this for me. So generous you are.
I love it when people figure things based on the empirical traces I've left, and you've done a wonderful job of it. Sympathizing with Bon Bon and seeing how her faith began to waver from the slightest deviation, as such a deep faith is wont to do. Thinking ahead to how the world might change with Luna's reintroduction.
And... you picked up on the subtle thread of Bon Bon's age. Granted, she did say nearly twenty years of service, but even still- she is only twenty-eight at the most. That's a shady prospect, indeed. I think it's prudent to remember that, through all the intense reminders that NMM was not sane, She did have several, very real grievances with Her Sister.
One of which happened to be mentioned in Chapter 36, which I will now quote, and leave you to ponder further. Thanks much for commenting!
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You know, duckmagee, I have trouble figuring out what you're trying to say, sometimes.
But you're also one of my oldest readers. It's nearly been two years since the day I know for sure that you started reading, and even after all that time, you're still here. Your name is familiar enough that I recognize it at a glance.
It means the world to me, and even though I don't have much to say regarding what you actually said, I still felt reminiscent enough to extend a genuine thanks for sticking around. You are noticed, and appreciated.
11560527
She's looking at something off in the distance, and I don't think it's the trees.
11560576
that nice to know thank you,
just saying light being alive gonna make Luna feel guilty and want to make amends, that interfere with her own healing and anything sunbutt does will just backfire on her, with how light feels about both of them, especially if luna says she sorry and light bring up murdering Zecora while under nightmare moon influence
I was truly wondering how Bon Bon would deliver her entire report in the centre of attention. Until Celestia gave her a good reason for why she is sitting with them.
Unlucky for you, Wordsmith, I am stuck in this perpetual state of psychoanalyzing others for a long while now!
The elements is brainwashing. It's so simple!Well, this is your story, but I would use the simplest diagnosis for Luna's oddities. She is from a bygone era and... well, she is still a sibling. And siblings that once looked up to their elders will eventually want to be equals or outshine them. Luna probably feels empowered using 'We'.
My fanon believe of dark magic is that the users don't get replaced by some other sentient. Rather, it speaks to their baser emotions and empowers those thoughts. Luna truly believed and clearly remembers why she became Nightmare Moon, but like real life, chemical imbalances gets you to do stuff you feel you nornally would not. And Luna clearly takes immense grief with what she has done, hence her aprehension of the Princess title.
Lastly, I believe with a lack of more lore, Celestia knows Luna's buttons more. The dream that Luna had was probably very rediculous that a then-millennium older siblings find it funny another millennium later. Kind of like two elderly person who looks back in life and talks candidly to a buddy. Probably not.
Anyways, would the plumbing facility in Light's home still work? He definitely need a cleanup before all the girls caught his wiff outdoors. Just how much of the town's bits did Light have left? He is still unemployed for a long while now.
I am curious if you are going to torture both us and Light by making him a hopeless romantic. Or maybe you're gonna make him into a male tsundere.
Well, one thing for sure, we get to see more slice of life shinanigans! I can't believe Applejack still want to hang out with the rude colt years later.
I'm not really well versed on how the mind works and stuff but considering that this story obviously has a huge change that is Zecora being dead, by the actions of a villain, common and first villain in MLP FIM nonetheless. I can't help but wonder when the next death may come, and when the streak of deaths may strike close to the Main 6 and effectively disable the Elements of Harmony. A friendship lessons in not judging a book by its cover may never be learnt. Poison Joke may end up having a permanent effect through sheer ego, distrust and what else. And ultimately, if somehow the last resort in a crisis is dark magic, necromancy but our necromancer here grew a heart to not use it no matter the possible destruction or saving there could be. He have the necromancy cutiemark after all.
Roar!
11560535
It's only "filler" because I was halfway through it and I knew we wouldn't be having the most important talk Bonbon would be having at all, it'd be right before the moment but it'd still feel great leading up to it and we'd be left wanting.
Very sad that you state the next chapter will be Light and Applejack when the thing I desire most is to see the most important reactions we could possibly have. Hearing that Light himself is solely responsible for the lack of Eternal Night and that he actually lives would be incredible to see.
I understand why the """""filler""""" had to happen however if it just gets ignored and we see what happens way later of their decisions based on what they heard rather than seeing what they do as they hear it, I will be saddened.
11560618
Oh Screw, you shouldn't have. Such a wonderfully insightful comment for me? You're too kind~
I love what you said about Luna's usage of plural pronouns, since it's something I believe as well. When using we, there's an implication of something greater. Something powerful, and numerous. It's the referral of a force greater than the one; a force that overwhelms the singular. When one is many, one is great.
It is also a way of asserting that one is never alone, so long as one may be called we. It is the same reason one may refer to themselves in the third person; it is a way of providing meaning to solitude. If one is as much as one and themselves, then they may always have another to take comfort in. Perhaps even ascribe blame to.
...Sorry, I went off on a barely sensical tangent, and there was more I wanted to compliment you on. Um- I love that you're thinking on the particulars of Dark magic and how its effects may manifest. It's important to maintain a self-belief on something that, as of yet, has only been described negatively. Equestria has conjured many labels for the heretical dark arts, but we've yet to hear Light's take- or even better: Luna's. Whether Dark magic actually corrupts the mind is as yet unknown, and for the record, your interpretation is very good indeed.
There's definitely something to be said for how Celestia and Luna are interacting so far- something I believe to be dire. Several times this chapter, Luna tried to broach heavier topics with Her Sister, but every time, Celestia only brushed Her off. Though they may have both laughed at Celestia's recollection of the past, it could be said that the reminiscence was nothing more than a deflection. Luna even accused Her of it, and again, Celestia laughed it off.
There are several ways to interpret that, and all of them are sad.
Thanks for commenting, and for insulting Light a few times! Personally, it's just about my favorite past time to poke fun at the prickly unicorn, and I heavily encourage any and all shade to be thrown his way. He's unemployed, he's rude, he's got an unhealthy crush on his best friend, and he currently smells like a corpse. And I just think that's so funny.
Jinx, you tease! Where is the rest? /jk
11562353
Now, if I had uploaded an eighteen thousand word chapter containing the whole interaction, wouldn't you say 'Jinx, why do you hate us?' instead?
11562395
I used to only read complete stories so I can binge-read them, and I do have an unhealthy appetite for the long ones.
I also learned that toilet use is always more urgent than finishing a chapter.
So Bring it!
Considering that perception of reality becomes severely distorted after only 4 days (94 hours) without sleep (and behavioural changes after 36 hours), and the most that has happened to you is being a bit less professional and some invasive thoughts, I don’t think it’s anything to worry about.
Ah all caught up at last. And what a delightful catching up it has been :3
11565446
I... think you're expressing grief over possibly editing your existing comments, and in that case, you don't need to worry about it! I'm only asking that you be a little more conscientious going forward; you needn't worry about what's already been done.
Don't feel discouraged! While your original method wasn't so consummate, I do still want you to feel as though you have the freedom to share your thoughts! I enjoy receiving comments, and I will always encourage people who read my story to compose a few of their own.
Don't
Instead, you should 
!
I've been avoiding reading this chapter. You always make them so emotional, so long and hard to get through. So much content, so much thought, so much emotions... Every time, it's a stress.
Anyway, I don't want to do any analysis right now.
Luna was always herself, is what I believe.