Friend of the Night

by ShinobiPony

Depth of a Goddess

Night 165 in Equestria

You pull on your thick jacket and walk out of your suite like room in the castle, nodding to the bat winged lunar guards patrolling the halls.

Shivering, you pull the jacket as close to yourself as you can.

It’s getting colder out every day with winter moving in, and since ponies have fur coats they don’t see the need of heating the castle all that much.

You move in a brisk walk to Luna’s room, eager to be next to the warm pony princess.

Feet echoing loudly on the stone floor, you think to yourself as the noise drowns out everything else.

What was it that Luna wanted to do again tonight? You think hard, but nothing comes to mind. With a gulp, you think harder, not wanting to look like a forgetful moron infront of the princess.

Nothing…

Coming to Luna’s room, you take a deep breath and look at the lunar guards flanking the door, who nod you in.

The room is large, much more roomy than most others and decorated with many magical artifacts, showing off Luna’s love of the arcane. Luna herself, who is poring over a book on her massive indigo hued bed, looks up at you, her face lighting up like the very stars she held power over

”Anon!” she cries joyfully.

A sensation of weightlessness takes you, then you are covered by a blue glow and hoisted to Luna. You land on the bed with a “pomf” and lay motionless for a moment, dizzy from the unexpected flight.

Luna blinks “Anon? Art thou ok?”

“ ‘Are you ok’ are the words you’re looking for Luna” you say, gaining your bearings and sitting up. The Moon goddess sticks her tongue out at you, eyes shut with the expected ‘Mmm!’ sound.

You raise an eyebrow. “Real mature.”

She giggles and nuzzles you, her perpetually moving mane tickling your face some before she pulls back.

”Anon, I’m sorry for calling you here without reason…” She says, her tone sobering.

Well, at least you won’t look like an idiot infront of her.

“Luna, there’s no reason to be sorry, I’m happy to be here with you for whatever reason, even if there’s none at all.” you say with a wide smile.

She smiles back wanly, but it fails to reach her eyes, which shine with an enigmatic, yet somber light

Something’s up…

“Luna, whats wrong?” you ask.

She shuffles some, clinching the bed covers in her hooves as she bites her lip.

”Am I that transparent?” she asks so quietly that you almost miss it. You swallow a lump in your throat and remain silent. Whatever is bugging her must be big.

She exhales and looks into your eyes.

Your breath almost stops when her cobalt orbs meet yours, they say the eyes are the windows to the soul but this…

You see it all…the soul of a force of nature cloaked in flesh.

Try as you might, you’re frozen, forced to peer into the very being of a god

So much…Too much!

Next to Luna, you’re so…insignificant. A flat and bland being next to the robust and learned alicorn.

So many things about her that you can’t even begin to understand, the human mind not able to handle the complex reality of a god.

You’re…afraid. She could destroy you with an idle thought, condemning you to complete and total non-existence.

Before you can think further, it all hits you. All of it.

Enough cold rage and frustration to eradicate the world and leave nothing but a twisted husk.

Sorrow worthy of a literal river of tears, each drop filled with a bitter memory.

Power, so much power that you are nothing but a dying ember next to the bright, blazing star that is she.

Regret for events that out-date you by millennia.

But most of all, loneliness…

Soul crushing isolation, deprived of even the right to communicate with others. No one to help you. No one to tell you it will be ok. No one to even say that they HATE you. Being forced to sleep with only the white noise your own mind makes in your ears.

All of it…It’s so utterly complete that tears sting the edges of your eyes. You can’t even begin to comprehend what its like, your mind wholly unable to process what total isolation is.

Why…

Your blood goes cold as you realize what brought this on. By sheer force of will, you drag your eyes away from Luna’s shimmering orbs to the window.

Outside hovering in the sky, is Luna’s namesake, bathing the world in it’s white light. Has she…has she felt this the whole time? You lick your dry lips and idly note that you had started to shake at some point. You turn your eyes back to the indigo alicorn, who has shut her eyes and looked away.

“Luna…” You stop, trying to steady your hyperventilating breath. “You…you were awake up there...the whole time?”

She mutely nods, and it feels like someone rammed a railroad spike into your chest

“Who all knows about this?”

For almost a full minute silence prevails, pressing down on your shoulders like a weight

”You…”

She opens her eyes and looks at you, tracks of shimmering silver falling from her eyes

All at once, you get the big picture. You forget her status as a sovereign and a deity, just for a moment. In front of you is an innocent who was unjustly punished, no tortured. And right now, she needs someone, she’s been needing someone for the longest time.

With speed that surprised even you, you wrap your arms around her and hold her tight.

Luna gasps “A-anon?”

You say nothing for a moment, then.

“I’m sorry.”

She clinches her eyes shut “N-no, you have nothing to be sorry for, it was my mistake and mine alone.“ As much as she tried to hide it, you still hear the undertone of hurt in her voice. Luna was clearly not in good shape. she just needs to...

“Let it out.” you say quietly.

”Wha?”

“Let it out, I won’t tell anyone anything.”

She grits her teeth and takes deep breaths ”I-I won’t…” Luna buries her head in your chest, her shoulders shaking.

You just hold her tighter.

A muffled sob echos in the spacious room, then another. You gently rock the moon goddess in your arms as she lets out a thousand years of pain in the form of heart wrenching crying.

Your own eyes tear up again just from the sound, if misery had it’s own noise, then you just found it. Even after all she’s been through, Luna is just another pony, one whose been damaged.

It was then and there, you decided…You would never let her be lonely again.

Slowly, Luna calms down, reduced to the occasional sniffle.

“Feel better?”

You feel her nod against your chest. She pulls her head up and looks at you with puffy eyes ”Anon, can you promise me something…?”

“Anything.”

”Promise me that you’ll keep this to yourself, I felt terrible for hiding this from you, but at the same time I didn't want you to worry and I need to maintain my appearance as a princess..." she asks, looking at you with a drained visage.

That’s all? You smile. “You didn't even need to ask.”

Luna sets her head back on your chest, her small smile telling you what she thought of your answer.

You rest your head on hers, being mindful of her spiraled horn. You know that this won't be the end of it all, or the facade she's been wearing to hide the effects of her banishment.

But you don't mind, as they say...

A friend in need is a friend indeed.

Comments

[Bronybro 117]

Will there be romance later on in the story?

[ShinobiPony]

1716131
There might, I'm still debating on whether or not to turn this into a 'real' story and not just a bunch of oneshots, if it goes full, then there is a good chance of romance

[Invictus_rising]

I'm sorry... the name of this particular work definitely threw me. One of my favourite stories has a near identical name.

[Project Zulu]

do it, you don't have nothing to lose!

[Skywritersynkro]

Why no music in this one put it in the next one it really relaxed me

[Nobody Special]

MOAR!!!!!!

[Icy_Breeze]

1716437

Please, don't turn this into a romance story. There are far too many human/pony love stories on this site and them just staying friends is perfectly peachy. This story is wonderful the way it is now, you don't need to go into romance to make it better

[shadowflame2000]

1716437 go for it it alredy has some slight romcance why not go for gold

[MuzaWaza]

Jup you are making good progress for a full story.
It's not bad and has a nice pace :)

Keep the train going!

[shadowflame2000]

1738503 lol you are the one percent your the only that says not to turn it into a romance

[Icy_Breeze]

1780494 I know. To be blunt, for me, pony/pony and human/human is fine, but whenever I see Pony/human all I can see is bestiality. Besides, this story doesn't need love to be good. Just simple friendship is all that's needed.

[MuzaWaza]

1781327

The romance doesn't need to include clop you know ( even when i don't mind it :D) It makes it easier to put feelings into the story like giving a small kiss on the cheek and stuff. Or on the mouth depends where you are taking it.

[Icy_Breeze]

1781533 I know that and I understand it, but I just feel that some lines shouldn't be crossed. Probably just me stuck in my ways...

Why not include transformation? like a spell that turns him into a pony or Luna human? Lots of plot lines that can stem from that.

[shadowflame2000]

1781327 not all romance fics are clopfics(same can be said for M rated ficts) that and romance will add more emotion and detail to the fict

[Icy_Breeze]

1786143 Again, I know that and understand that, but is that added detail really nessesary? What's wrong with them remaining just friends in any case?

[shadowflame2000]

1787595 thers nothing wrong with that and if it can be better then i see no reson why he should not add romance

[Icy_Breeze]

1792411
But the question is would it make the story better? Or would it just be a change and little else?

[MuzaWaza]

1793072

Ok just plain and simple here. If you ended up in Equestria and you would be the only human that lived there what would you do.
I would say: ''Screw everything and lets start up a new life.'' You can't expect a sentient being to not develop feelings which he already showed towards Luna.

[shadowflame2000]

1793072 it would make it better

[Icy_Breeze]

1793184
And by "Screwing everything and starting new life" You create abominations. But to answer your questions I would just live in the Everfree and become a woodsman, helping out when I'm needed.

>>shadowflame2000
How would it make the story better? That is something I fail to see

[Icy_Breeze]

1793184

Sorry about that, just re-read you post a couple of times and I found out that I had misunderstood what you meant. But athough sentient beings they may be, they are both still different species. That alone is enough to remain friends.

[Silent Shadow]

Can't wait for furthered chapters since I am really interested where you are going to take this?
Possible romance or friendship or a completely unexpected thing

[MuzaWaza]

Now commence the romance. Gogo! The setup you made for it is prove enough that you were thinking about it :3

[shadowflame2000]

is this fic cancelled :(

[Fading Soul]

Is this fic dead?

[DashFire61]

5634653
2291592 Well yeah haha, The guy hasn't been online in 53 weeks and the story hasn't updated in 3 years, I try to stay away from stories that haven't been update in the last 4 months tops, there's not really a point in getting invested in a story that will never be finished, it's just upsetting.

[Fading Soul]

5804361 Funny how my comment is from 6 weeks ago. I think I know it's not going to be updated.