Valley Dale (part 6)
A flash of Luna’s horn signalled the moon's ascension from beyond the edge of the horizon. The stars slowly started to fade into existence as the blinding rays of the sun retreated behind the peaks of the distant mountain ranges. Yet, its influence had not yet completely abated as the sky was still awash in a hue of deep indigo, though that too would fade in the coming hours giving way to true night as the sun drifted to the opposite end of the planet.
Midnight would always be Luna’s favourite time of day, but beautiful twilight came as a close second. Though this night, the changing of the celestial bodies had a more special significance than most other nights. It marked the near beginning of her grand performance in front of the town of Valley Dale.
Luna noticed how empty the town had looked as Windy escorted her through the desolate streets. The contrast to the bustling traffic that she had observed hours earlier was stark. Yet, she soon found out exactly where the hordes of ponies had gone.
The market centre was crowded beyond what the alicorn would have thought possible. Had they not arrived via a side street that took them directly to the rear of the stage, Luna wasn't sure if they could have waded through the crowd. Even having seen the extensive preparations, she was still taken back at the size of the crowd.
Having attended many, many royal processions and celebrations, the former princess was not a stranger to large gatherings, but the level of fanfare baffled her. Having a supposed powerful Mage demonstrate their abilities was always a sight to behold, so it was no surprise that it would attract at least a little bit of attention, but she severely underestimated how much of a spectacle her performance was hyped up to be.
It was not often that Luna was nervous or doubtful about the skill of her magic, but she now wondered if she had truly done enough preparation in the hours before. Perhaps she should have…
"I'm sorry."
Luna was so deep in her thoughts that it took her a moment to realise that Windy had spoken to her. She looked down to her side and saw that the filly remorsefully stared down at the floor with her head lowered.
"What are you sorry for?" Luna asked in confusion, not sure what the young pegasus was referring to.
"For my attitude earlier. I acted entitled and demanding." She clarified in a self-admonishing tone. Still not making eye contact. "I didn't even make any good arguments as to why a great wizard like yourself should take on a filly that you had only just met as your apprentice."
"And yet, you gave me a chance anyway." She finally gathered the courage to look up at Luna, her eyes full of gratitude. "I promise that I won't disappoint you."
Luna had the strong urge to wrap a comforting wing around the filly, but caught herself at the last moment, remembering her disguise. She settled for placing a hoof on Windy's shoulder.
It was evident to see that the young pegasus was passionate and enthusiastic. Combined with the boldness of youth, it made for a decisively uncharismatic blend of traits. At least in the moment.
Luna, too, had once been a passionate youth who had trouble articulating her desires to others, despite her skill as a writer and poet. She would not judge Windy too harshly for presenting her apprenticeship pitch in a less than convincing manner.
"I won't hold your enthusiasm against you," Luna reassured in what she hoped was a comforting voice. "I was also once rather impulsive as a filly. Though, I am glad that you are passionate about this. It's a good quality to have as an apprentice."
Windy's morose expression became slightly more relieved at the reassurance. She even smiled a little at the mention of her promised apprenticeship.
"However, here is one thing that I want you to do for me before I can take you as my protégé." Luna continued.
An expression of concern marred Windy's face at the possibility of even more obstacles being placed between her and her potential apprenticeship.
"I want you to try to repair your relationship with your mother."
Windy's face soured at the request, but Luna continued before she could voice her protest.
"I know that's probably not what you want to hear, and I won't make your apprenticeship conditional on the re-establishment of your and your mother's relationship. Yet, I know better than anypony else what it's like to be estranged from the only family that you have left. It's a loneliness that I would not wish on anypony. I only ask that you try." Luna explained in a melancholy tone.
Windy's indignation turned into a thoughtful, contemplative expression as she heard the sincerity and underlying grief in Luna’s voice.
Eventually, the filly shook her head. "My mother hasn't given a damn about me in years. I won't grovel for her affection. Even if it means that I have to work harder to prove myself to you for my apprenticeship. I won't beg for something that she has no interest in giving." She stated resolutely.
So stubborn. So prideful. Yet, if their situations were reversed and somepony tried to force Luna to repair her relationship with Celestia, would she concede? Especially if she believed herself to be the slighted party? Probably not.
Perhaps she could approach this from another angle.
"I won't make you beg. However, if your mother were to approach you to try to make amends, would you at least consider it?" Luna said, trying to bargain with the filly.
"She won't, though. She's always too busy schmoozing with her fancy friends." Scoffed the young pegasus.
"But if she does, will you consider it?" The former princess pressed onwards.
At seeing how completely serious Luna was being, Windy looked conflicted at the offer. Before raising her head and braving eye contact with the disguised alicorn. "I will, but I want you to answer a question of mine first."
Luna felt slightly apprehensive about what the filly planned to ask her, hoping that she would be able to provide a satisfactory answer without revealing too much. Yet, she was also pleased that she managed to find a compromise with the stubborn youth.
"What will you ask of me?" Luna gave as her form of an answer.
"Why do you care so much?" Windy asked in a voice that seemed to crack with emotion. "Why do you care about my relationship with my mother or whether I'll become lonely in the future? It doesn't affect you, so why do you care?"
It was a good question. From Windy's perspective, this random unicorn that she barely knew had thrust herself into her life and interfered with things that she had no right to interfere with.
Luna gave the most honest answer that she could. "You remind me of myself when I was much younger. I don't want you to make the same mistakes that I did. The shattering of the relationship I had with my sister was the most heartbreaking moment of my life," the alicorn shared in a sombre tone. "It might seem preferable to cut out the family that you would rather have nothing to do with, but that loneliness is a terrible burden."
Windy had no immediate response to that and took a moment to digest Luna’s words. Eventually, she responded in a quiet voice.
"You keep saying that. How terrible it is to be alone. Is it really such a dire fate to take control of your life and seize your own destiny?"
It felt hypocritical to espouse the merits of keeping close relations with your family while warning against the dangers of isolation, but the rift between Windy and her mother was surely not yet beyond salvation. Luna had to try.
"Being alone in this world means far more than just having freedom. It means that when you suffer, you will suffer alone."
Luna could have expounded further on that point. Explained in detail the feeling of utter hopelessness that came with the knowledge that there was no pony in this world that you could rely on. However, it looked like Windy had treated Luna's reply with the amount of gravity that it deserved.
Though, now she seemed miserable. Her head was cast down and her ears folded back in anxiety. Stuck between the two distressing choices of a neglectful family or crushing isolation. It was not Luna’s intention to inflict such a sorrowful mood on the filly and she began to feel a rising sensation of guilt.
The former princess contemplated her next actions for a moment before turning fully to face the young pegasus and sitting down on her haunches in front of her. She slowly leaned forward before using one hoof to draw Windy into an awkward hug. It had been so many years since Luna had shown or had been shown such an overt display of affection that it was almost uncomfortable in how foreign and unnatural it felt.
Luna also wasn't sure if she had overstepped her boundaries. She was still virtually a complete stranger to the filly. Was it really appropriate to envelop her with a hug without warning or permission?
The disguised alicorn began to move back, preparing to disengage from the hug. She was already beginning to think of the exact wording that she would use to apologise for initiating the unwanted contact. However, as she slowly leaned back, Windy leaned with her, keeping her face buried in Luna’s chest. The alicorn stopped moving and began to reevaluate the situation, but Windy only used this as an opportunity to raise her forelegs and grip onto Luna and hold her tightly.
The former princess wasn't sure how to react. She hadn't been in the embrace of any other pony besides her sister since she was a foal, and even then, it had been decades since she and Celestia had engaged in a display of physical affection.
When Luna began to feel the heaves of Windy's silent sobbing against her chest, she held her tighter. The instinct to wrap the young filly in her wings and nuzzle her was nearly overwhelming, but Luna restrained herself. Not only would that have shattered her facade, but those are actions that would have been traditional for a pegasus mother to comfort her foal.
Luna wasn't Windy's mother, nor yet her mentor and she barely qualified as an acquaintance. She hadn't earned the right to insert herself into the filly's life as some sort of surrogate mother. The alicorn settled for running her hoof up and down the young pegasus's back in what she hoped was a comforting gesture. How long had it been since the filly was shown such affection, that she would latch herself onto the first pony that had shown her understanding and empathy?
The tactic seemed to be effective and soon Windy's breathing stilled. They spent a minute together in silence, just embracing each other. However, the growing chatter of the increasingly impatient crowd on the other side of the stage made both of them aware that their moment of shared physical affection needed to come to an end. They were expected elsewhere.
As they broke from their embrace, Luna saw Windy try to discretely use her wing to wipe the dampness from her eyes. "Come, you are expected on stage soon. I can't wait to see your show," the filly exclaimed with a faux cheerful voice.
It was clear to see that she did not wish to immediately address the emotional exchange that had just occurred between the two of them, and Luna would respect that boundary. Windy probably wanted time to properly digest and think over everything that had been said over the past five minutes.
She would talk to the young pegasus again tomorrow, but for now, the show had to go on. Luna ascended the wooden steps up to the rear of the stage. She found the mayor waiting for her in the backstage area with a large curtain separating them from the main performance stage and the crowd beyond.
A magical timepiece on the far wall of the backstage showed that she had four minutes until she would walk through the curtains and give a performance for the ages.
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good chapter
Hah
Hard to blame Windy for having trouble explaining herself or for wanting to give up on her mom. If it's already gotten that bad, it's been a long time since her mother's been worthy of that title.
Luna's gonna wind up full-on adopting Windy at this point. I can't not see her urge to cocoon the filly in her wings as a sign of things to come. Windy has already expressed a desire to leave this place. When Windy finally confronts her mother, Luna's probably gonna be a fly on the wall (actually she'd be invisible, but the analogy fits), and Wind Chill will probably shut her down with something eerily familiar to what Luna found in Celestia's journal, because unlike Celestia Chill hasn't had decades of diplomacy training that would allow her to keep these feeling bottled up in front of those they might effect. She might be mayor of a small township, but there's no comparison and she's already shown herself to be less than ideal at compartmentalizing her emotions for the sake of professionalism. The recent raid and everything Chill is feeling in the wake of that would be the perfect spark to bring out words she'd wish with all her heart she could take back immediately afterward.
Ok this might be a shot in the dark but the more I hear about Wind Chill the lest I trust her, I think she might have had something to do with the attack maybe she's an early version of a bad business tycoon and she had her own citizens killed to make way for new ones so her real state could grow.
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Definitely not that extreme. I probably should have taken some time in the previous chapters to flesh out Wind Chill a bit more. I was more focused then with using her as a vehicle for exposition. Most of what we know about her is from the perspective of Windy, who is a less than objective about the situation.
(That's not to say that she had nothing to do with the raid. Just not in the way that you think.)
"..and so she left, her soul still remaining on the planet."
Maybe when she gets on stage, do a “Great and Powerful” bit. It would fit quite well and maybe have her intentionally make a (minor)mistake with some spell that gets a laugh from the crowd.
Just some ideas of mine, you dont have to do that if you dont want to, but i quite like the gag of “Great and Powerful Trixie” from the show and its why Trixie is my second favorite side-character.
Oof, strong words right there. Those words hit me in the guts. Hard.
Okay listen. Having in outline is good but taking the opportunity you get going along the story is great. As an author you are doing well. You have an outline, it’s not important that you stick to it so precisely. The point of an outline is to provide guidance and direction to the story so that it can flow well bc without it is incredibly easy to get stuck or have the story become jagged, or become lost and contradict itself, or lose its meaning. As long as the outline exists and is successfully in preventing these things how precisely it is followed is unnecessary so long as these things remain avoided. Taking opportunities as you write dosent effect these things and brings more life to the story
I haven't read this since chapter 6, but have you written a Celestia Interlude or anything indicating what her response to Luna running away yet?
I'm honestly waiting for that part before I invest time catching up, or until the story is complete, whichever comes first. It's the aspect of the story I'm most curious to see.
I have a question about the story: Are we going to see more of magician luna? Im sure it will be fun when she puts on her show, but i wouldnt really like for the story to be overly focused on this one aspect of her new persona. (If its not obvious, i wanna see luna fuck up on some timberwolves and manticores or the like)
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Interludes 3 shows Celestia’s direct reaction to finding out about Luna leaving from the eyes of a pony that was in the room when it happened.
That direct Celestia Interlude isn't happening for a while though. We will get lots of POV's from those surrounding Celestia so that we can see her actions in response to Luna leaving, but we won't get to see inside her head until later.
11684096
Trust me, lots of action is coming. After the Valley Dale arc, her persona as a magician will be more of a cover story than anything else. Much fighting and adventuring is yet to come.
Wouldn't the hug compromise some, if not all, of Luna's illusion spells? Now that there is actual physical contact, Windy should feel some weird things about Starry, like her fur should feel different, the length of her front legs, etc.
Mind you, this could be Windy's emotional state clouding her senses, but still, Luna put her secret identity at risk right there.
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The illusion only changes the colour of her fur, so it wouldn't feel any different to touch. The mental compulsion spell that Luna uses makes ponies think that Luna’s height is normal. They know that she is tall, they can see that she is tall, but they are forced to think that her height isn't especially unusual.
They see her the same as someone would see Big Mac. A very large pony, but not outside the realm of what is possible with genetics, diet and exercise.
Windy probably knows that Luna’s forelegs are long, but the mental compulsion prevents her from thinking this to be unusual.
Winds will be bitter tomorrow... and not just because fall is here. As much as Luna wants them to tolerate each other again, I don't really think that's going to happen. Some people just don't learn until it's too late and Chill, being the dumb adult she is, is likely to be stuck so far inside her own head that she won't even realize what she's done before Windy's gone for a month.
11684082
So far I saw she had just found out and didn't seem to be responding to it . I'm not sure exactly what she thinks even if she isn't telling anyone. I do wonder how long it takes for her to realize that she ignored her sister to the point where her sister had no choice but leave or do something she would regret later.
11683897
I'm guessing the whole "dividens of peace" then? Aka no immediate threat, hey lets slash the budget for every single bit of the military to the bone in favor of austerity, eliminating onerous demands on peoples time, and public works. In this case reducing mandatory training periods for the militia, halting replacement of equipment, and letting expire the contract for the small contigent of mercenaries who provided training and a core of veterans. Like that never comes back to bite a city state or nation in the rear *cough* *cough*.
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That is usually how it goes with self-absorbed people yes. Takes them months or years, if ever, for them to admit that just maybe they have some tiny amount of fault in the situation. Usually when they suddenly find themselves wishing they had someone who cared about them and not what could be gained by playing at sympathy.
And I can empathize with Luna not wanting to interfer in another beings personaal affairs. And I applaud her for doing it anyway. Speaks quite a bit about the difference between the two sisters. Luna does the right thing because its the right thing to do. Celestia does the right thing when it makes her more popular than doing nothing.
Great chapter but aaaaagh so short!!! XD need more!
Finally, epic magic time is soon.
Can I ask something, will Luna get a pet of some kind on her journey it might make things a little lest stiff and a good conversation starter if she has an animal to talk to while she's alone.
11687904
Not the worst idea, but that won't happen until at least until after the Great Malevolence arc.
I don't know if you remember me but I'm back
It was a difficult season but again I have stability and time to read fanfics, I'm glad to see how the story has progressed I hope to catch up on what I missed
I honestly expected to find more chapters but all progress is good
Next chapter ?
Please ?
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https://www.fimfiction.net/blog/1022375/delay-in-writing-the-next-chapter
Unfortunately, due to a scraping and rewrite of my entire next chapter. It will be a little while before the next chapter is released.
If its any consolation, the chapter after that is mostly written already, so the next two chapter will be uploaded in rapid succession.
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Thankyou
Good luck
Ok
It's funny that the image of Luna as a wandering sorceress reminds me of the image of Trixie. What's even funnier is that on Wikipedia, Trixie's full name is "Beatrix Lulamoon" and her last name is a portmanteau of "Luna" and "moon".
It would be very funny if in this universe it turns out that Luna is Trixie's great-great-....-grandmother.
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You don't think that the comparison was accidental, do you?
And that's quite a high bar, considering who is saying this.
Good points.
I look forwards to it!
Good chapter!
I enjoyed reading it.