Prologue: The Lonesome Dream

“I will save you my princess!”

A helpless mare was surrounded by a pack of diamond dogs in their underground cavern. She looked to the entrance of the cavern, and beheld a sight that left her in awe and relief.

A kirin stood proudly there, clad in golden armor and holding a spear with his magic as he pounded his four hooves to the ground, ready to charge the enemies that stood before him.

“For Equestria!”

He galloped at full speed, with his spear’s tip aimed directly at the surprised diamond dogs. In a flash he threw the spear to the one, which unfortunately missed as the dog estimated it’s trajectory. Luckily for the kirin, he teleported to the center of the group and gave a round of bucks to every dog’s head. The dogs soared through the room as the strength of each kick was felt by them, knocking them out almost instantly.

When all the enemies were defeated, the kirin trotted to the helpless mare and cut off the rope that held her tight. When she was free, he looked the mare in the eyes and smiled.

“Are you alright my princess?”

The mare in question blushed and looked away from the dashing kirin’s eyes. “I-I’m no princess, I’m just an ordinary pony...” she felt a gentle hoof to her chin and looked up to see him smiling and shaking his head slightly.

“To me, you will always be a princess.”

The mare’s cheeks burned brightly at his words and she blinked rapidly as her eyes became moist. “What is the name of my hero?”

“I am Elusive, Captain of the Royal Solar Guard.”

“Oh my!” The pony placed a hoof the her mouth in shock and smiled slightly. “I am Twilight Melody, daughter of Princess Twilight-”

“Sparkle, I know,” Elusive grinned slightly and came a little closer Melody. “Well your voice is as soft as a gentle melody to my ears...”

Melody giggled slightly and blushed more. “You’re the bravest pony I have ever met Elusive.” she said as he leaned her head forward to his and kissed him softly on the lips as her eyes fluttered to a close.

“I think I’ve seen enough of this dream,” a voice whispered. “Elusive certainly takes after Spike and I think Rarity would find it cute to see her son dreaming this.”

The cave and the two ponies faded away until there was nothing but a dense fog. A tall, dark blue alicorn with a wavy blue mane stepped through the fog to reveal none other than Princess Luna. As she walked through what she called the Dream Realm, she could see other images popping up in the fog as well to show other dreams from ponies across Equestria.

She looked around to see various dreams such as Pinkie throwing a big party and dancing with her husband, Braeburn. All the while, a yellow Earth pony was running around and drinking chocolate milk from a fountain. Pinkie and Braeburn both laughed and went over to hug the foal. As she watched this, Luna felt something itching inside her, but she put it off as just something minor and returned to her duties. While she surveyed the dreams, the alicorn came across an image of a light orange pegasus with a long blue mane filly running from what looked to be a group of Timberwolves. Wasting no time, she stepped into the dream to help the filly.

“HELP! Mama! Papa!” Screamed the filly, who was running and trying to flap her wings to fly.

The Timberwolves were chasing the filly through an apple orchard and were surrounding her on all sides. She tried to once again fly, but her wings felt cramped and couldn’t get an inch of the ground. She continued to run in the hopes of finding shelter or at least somepony to help her. All of a sudden, a Timberwolf leaped over her and landed right in the direction she was running to. The filly tried to run somewhere else, but she was cut off in all directions as the wolves closed in on her. Out of desperation, she let out a loud scream that made Luna, who was watching everything from behind a tree, wince in pain from the sound.

“Fear not child,” she said as her horn glowed a blue aura. “This nightmare is officially over with.”

As one of the wolves were about to eat her, it was pulled back by something tugging its leg. He looked back to see an orange mare with a stetson hat pulling the rope and glaring daggers at the wolves.

“Y’all best get away from mah daughter right now,” she warned in an icy tone.

Before the wolves could react, a streak suddenly whizzed by and hit the tied up wolf, causing it to fall over and collapse into pieces of wood. The streak turned out to be a light blue pegasus with a dark blue mane wearing a blue and yellow costume.

“Papa!”

The wolves readied for another attack on the pegasus, but their heads turned to the yelling of Applejack coming through the woods towards them. The mare charged and bucked each wolf, sending them flying the the other direction. She stood next to the pegasus, both of them glancing at each other with soft eyes.

“Mama!”

The wolves ran off to the woods they came from, and the filly stood behind her mother and father as she looked up to them.

Applejack turned around and came towards her daughter, holding her close as she nuzzled her softly to ensure her filly’s bow didn’t fall off. “Y’all alright there lil’ Sunny Apple?”

Sunny Apple lips trembled and her eyes watered as she leaned into her mother’s embrace. “I was so scared Mama!”

Soarin floated to his wife and daughter, joining in the hug as he folded his wings over them in a soft feather cocoon. “You never need to be scared Sunny, we’ll always be here for you,” he said softly as he kissed his daughter’s forehead and the same for his wife Applejack, only on the lips.

Sunny looked up to her father’s eyes and beamed as she nodded her head viciously. “Okay, Papa!” she said as she nuzzled into the hug.

Luna looked on with half opened eyelids and closed them softly as she nodded her head. She felt the feeling inside her return, but it felt a little stronger, but once again she ignored it. She gave a small smile and disappeared towards another dream.

Once she was back in the Dream Realm, Luna observed more dreams. From Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash having a romantic outing on the beach as they overlooked their son flying through the waves. She even saw Rarity and Spike viewing a fireworks display alongside their children.

Her eyes slowly started to become moist as she viewed more and more of such dreams, and she stopped when she saw a tear stain on the floor.

She reached her hoof to her left eye and felt liquid there. She breathed slowly and blinked once, releasing more this time. “What is happening to me?”

Before she could verify a proper answer a shining light appeared to the distance and she closed her eyes, disappearing from the realm.

“Princess Luna?” Asked a muffled voice. “Are you up yet?”

The alicorn’s eyes shot wide open as she quickly sat up. She looked around to see she was back in her own room and resting in her own bed. She looked at a set of blue drapes covering a window and used her magic to open them, allowing her sister’s sunlight to pour in. Princess Luna slowly got up and heard somepony knocking at the door.

“Your highness, it’s well past sunrise,” a deep voice said. “I know you love to sleep in, but you have to get up.”

She walked up to the door and opened it to reveal a stallion standing in front of her. His coat was gray and his mane was silver and was combed back. He was wearing a dark blue uniform with several ribbons on his right side of the shirt and a single gold medal. On his flank was a dark storm cloud with a silver lightning bolt pointing out.

“Good morning your highness,” he said as he bowed. “I was starting to wonder when you would ever wake up.”

“Ah yes, good morning to you as well Silver Storm,” said the alicorn. “We must apologize for not being up earlier. We’ve just been . . . occupied.”

“Say no more your highness,” he said with a wave of a hoof. “Going through dreams takes up a lot of time. Besides, if you had any royal duties to perform for today, then I would’ve gotten you up sooner.”

“No royal duties?” Asked Luna with a raised eyebrow. “You mean there’s nothing on the schedule?”

“That is correct your highness,” said Silver. “Princess Celestia is dealing with a few things, but nothing that concerns you.”

He looked up to see the night princess had a bit of a blank look on her face. “Princess Luna, are you okay?” He asked her as he saw Luna’s eyes drift outside.

She heard laughing nearby and looked out a window to see a family laughing amongst themselves while touring the Royal Gardens. The feeling inside her rose again and quickly looked away from the sight.

“We... we wish to take a stroll. . .”

Silver arched an eyebrow and blinked. “Where to your highness?”

Luna shook her head as her eyes stayed focused outside. “Anywhere that is not here,” she whispered softly and turned her eyes towards Silver.

“Of course Princess,” he replied as he gave a bow to her and trotted to the door, opening them and going outside. He returned within a moment with two of Luna’s guards, one a unicorn mare and the other an earth pony stallion. “Guards, please accompany our Princess.”

The guards saluted Silver and walked to Luna’s side, staying stationary and stoic in place next to their night princess.

Luna sighed and smiled slightly to her advisor. “Must we really be in the company of others even in a stroll?”

Silver shrugged and grinned. “Afraid so, royalty needs protection even in today’s Equestria.”

Luna nodded, ready to walk out of the room. She stopped immediately and turned her attention to her guards. “We need to speak to our sister first. Wait here.”

“Yes your highness,” the guards replied and stood ever still in place as their princess walked away to the throne room. The earth pony sighed softly and let loose a soft smile when Luna was out of sight.

I wonder if she remembers me? He thought to himself.

“...And so you see Princess, that is why we request tax raises from all over Equestria.”

Celestia looked down on a stallion, a noble of Canterlot, who had just requested tax raises to pay for an unnecessary building to honor the ‘greatness of Canterlot nobility’. She sighed as she saw the smug look on his face.

“Glory Wealth, I know that history needs to be preserved for all ages. . . but what you are requesting is simply out of the question.”

“I-I beg your pardon?!”

“We already have plenty of museums honoring some of the greatest nobles in Equestria, and not just from Canterlot. I refuse to allow a museum to be built and have to raise taxes as a result. It’s a selfish act to do this to all ponies across the land, especially to those in poverty. You even told me you wanted to put yourself in it as one of the ‘greatest of Canterlot nobility’. I will not allow such an act of boosting your own ego happen Glory Wealth.”

“But your highness, this is a monument to nobles such mys- um . . . other grand nobles,” he said. “Besides, I’m sure there’s some money in the budget to help support this idea.”

“I’m sorry Glory Wealth, but the budget has no room for such a . . . building,” said the white alicorn. “The budget is already strained enough as it is and I’m struggling to make sure it doesn’t go over the limit. If you want to have such a monument for these ‘greatest of Canterlot nobility’, then I believe you should be able to pay with it since you’ve got more than enough funds.”

“But your highness . . .”

“That is my final decision Glory Wealth,” said Celestia in a rather stern tone. “Guards, escort him out of the palace immediately.”

“You can’t do this!” Shouted the stallion as he struggled with the guards. “Your highness, please reconsider thi-”

The doors slammed, cutting off the stallion’s cries of protests. Celestia let out a sigh and shook her head. The things some nobles will do to boost their ego, she thought to herself.

“Sister?”

The white alicorn startled a little as she heard the voice break the silence. She turned her head to see her sister with a concerned look on her.

“Is everything alright Tia?”

Celestia smiled softly as she waved her hoof to Luna. “Nothing major, just the usual request...”

“Nobles?”

“Yes...”

Luna shook her head and chuckled. “We are surprised they haven’t learned yet by now not to request outrageous things for their own benefit.”

Celestia scrunched her lips and nodded slightly. “I wish they would though...” she whispered to herself, before turning to her sister. “What may I help you with Luna?”

“Well, dear sister... you see I-”

A guard came running to the throne room and bowed to both princesses. “Princess Celestia, another appointment awaits you.”

Celestia nodded and looked back to her sister. “Can this wait until later Luna? I have another few meetings to go to,” she said to Luna.

Luna sighed and nodded once. “Very well dear sister...” she replied softly as her ears drooped to their sides and she walked out of the throne room with her head low.

When she was gone, Celestia bit her lower lip and placed a hoof to her mouth. Oh dear. . . I hope she is alright...

Luna walked to her room and found her two guards still standing in place there, though when she looked to her earth pony guard she noticed he was letting loose a small smile when she entered his view.

Luna blinked and shrugged this off, walking to them. “Please accompany me now outside.”

“Yes Princess,” both guards answered her as they dared not look her in the eye.

She walked off with both guards in tow, meeting Silver at the exit of the castle. “Silver, what can we help you with?”

Silver grinned as he opened the doors for her. “Just seeing you out, my Princess.”

Luna chuckled softly as she and the guards walked to the outside, with Canterlot before them.

While she walked around, Luna noticed several citizens of Canterlot bowed down to her in respect and smiled at each citizen she passed. Although the spring air felt refreshing and the cool breeze brought a sense of calm, Luna still couldn’t help but think back to what happened in the Dream Realm. She shook her head in determination and glared a little.

It was nothing at all, she thought. It was probably something I ate last night that’s still bothering me. I knew hiring that chef was a bad idea.

Luna put those thoughts behind her as she picked up the pace, with her guards doing so as well. She looked around Canterlot and noticed among those who were bowing to her were also other ponies being together. There were couples sitting at a cafe and looking at each other with smiles on their faces. She turned around and saw a filly sitting on her dad’s back while she giggled. The sound of bells ringing caught Luna’s attention as she turned to see a married couple running out of a building, each one with a smile on their face.

The blue alicorn felt the feeling rise up again and paralyzed her completely. Her heart started to race as she looked around and saw other families and loved ones go on with their daily lives. Her eyes suddenly felt moist and she slowly wiped them with her hoof. Luna looked at it and saw her hoof was covered in tear stains. She looked down and nearly wanted to let out a scream of frustration, but she barely managed to maintain her composure and kneeled to the ground.

“Princess Luna!” Shouted the Earth pony guard in a panic. “Are you alright!?”

The alicorn looked up and saw not only her guard looked very worried, but the other citizens each had concerned looks on them as well. She could hear some ponies muttering about their concern and her well being, but ignored those as she got up. She took a deep breath recomposed herself.

“We . . . we wish to return to the castle now,” she said in a hollow voice. “We need some time alone.”

Before the guards could react, Luna turned around and flew off into the sky and back to the castle. The guards looked at each other in concern and quickly followed behind the princess.

“And this happened after she saw a married couple walking out of the chapel?”

“Yes, we’re not certain as to what the main cause is though.”

“Speak no more, I’ll have a word with her.”

“Should we notify Princess Celestia about this? She may help Princess Luna deal with what’s troubling her.”

“No, not until I give the order to do so. I will talk to her about this.”

With that, Silver Storm made his way to Princess Luna’s room and stood by the entrance that was shut. He let out a sigh and knocked on it once. No response was heard and he knocked again, but nothing again. He pushed the door slightly ajar and poked his head inside, only to reveal Luna lying on her bed, staring at the ceiling.

“Princess?”

Luna did not bother responding and only continued looking upwards.

Silver walked into the room and shut the door behind him and he cleared his throat. “Princess, can you please tell me what is the matter? Since this morning you have been displaying signs of depression. I only wish to help-”

“We wonder what it feels like. . .”

Silver turned his head sideways and arched his eyebrow slightly. “I beg your pardon?” he asked her, as he came a little closer to her.

Luna rose from her bed and sighed, wiping the remaining tears from her eyes that stayed there. “We wish to feel love Silver. . .”

“Love? But Princess you do know what love feels like... your sister loves you, your friends love you and your subjects love you... what else is there-”

Luna’s head lowered, “We wish to know what love feels from a lover. We wish to find that special somepony for us and maybe even start a family of our own...”

Silver was gobsmacked. Of all the things that he was prepared for when dealing with the princesses, this was not one of them. “I see. . .” he decided to sit down next to her and looked sideways to face her. “I take it this has been going on for a while now?”

Luna nodded and looked Silver into the eyes with her bloodshot ones. “Yes. . . we have been feeling something empty inside us for quite some time. At first, we thought it was nothing, but with each dream we saw, the feeling got stronger. These dreams we go into have been showing us the blessing of what love brings and what it helps one to overcome. We have seen so many happy dreams with families and lovers in them that it made me wonder. . . am I worthy to have such a blessing?”

Silver’s head jerked back slightly. “Well certainly Princess. Everypony deserves to find their special somepony. Even a princess such as you or Princess Celestia.”

“Really?”

“Of course you do your highness,” he said with a smile. “You’re the Princess of the Night and the Guardian of Dreams, to bless all ponies sweet dreams. There’s no reason in the world you shouldn’t be allowed to fall in love.”

Luna smiled as she sat up. “You’re too kind Silver. You’re like the father we never had when we were young.”

“Think nothing of it your highness,” he chuckled. “Now then, if you are truly planning on pursuing love for yourself, we need to think of something about a possible suitor. Under normal circumstances, I would advise talking to Princess Celestia about this. However, considering she hasn’t dated for over a millennia, I believe she has no interest in finding love and may not react well to the fact that you’re looking for a lover of your own.”

“Ti- Celestia always did overreact when it came to dating,” said Luna. “We once did date somepony before we were banished, but Celestia got too protective over me and scared that pony off. We still haven’t forgiven her about that whole incident. This time though, we won’t let Celestia dictate our love life.”

“What do you suggest we do then your highness?”

Luna closed her eyes as she thought about her options for a couple of minutes. She opened them and said, “Since we need to keep this thing under secret, I have a proposal.”

“Go on.”

Luna glanced around the room and shuffled her hooves slightly. “Well... you have always been with us and we find your company most pleasing, you being more than an advisor to us, you’re also our friend... but we were wondering if-”

Silver shook his head unfortunately and sighed as he reached Luna’s hoof. “I’m sorry, Luna. But my heart belongs to somepony else...”

Luna was still for a moment before she gave away a nervous laugh, looking away. “Excuse us, we look like idiots now... she must be a lucky mare to have you-”

“He.”

“Pardon?”

“My husband, Teal Illuminate.”

“Oh . . . um . . . we apologize about that Silver,” said Luna as she his her embarrassed blush. “We had no idea you were a . . . a . . .”

“Coltcuddler, I know,” he said. “There’s no need to act so ashamed of the word your highness. I’ve long since come to terms with who I prefer.”

“We still apologize for our rude act. We should’ve been more considerate about you being with another pony, whether they be a mare or stallion. We just hope nopony else finds out and you be shunned by others for your preference in gender.”

“Thank you Princess Luna. Don’t worry about me though. If you recall, a few years before you returned, your sister passed the Coltcuddler and Fillyfooler Equal Rights Act. Albeit some are still refusing to fully accept ponies such as me, I am in no danger of being persecuted.”

“So do you have any other ideas Silver Storm?”

“Well, I do have something in mind. If you were willing to date me, what about the other guards then?”

“You mean, we ask the other guards around the castle if they were willing to date us?”

“Not all the guards around here, only the ones under your command. If you tried to ask one of the guards under Princess Celestia’s command, they could inform her about what’s going on and she could easily shut down what we’re doing.”

Luna closed her eyes again as she weighed her options. She did remember seeing some guards that serve her looking rather cute and figured she had nothing to lose now.

“Very well then SIlver Storm,” she said. “We shall take it upon ourselves to find a suitable lover.”

“Good to hear that Princess Luna,” he said with a smile. “Now, no offense to you or to get on your bad side, what do you prefer more? Mares or stallions?”

Luna laughed at this and rolled her eyes. “Stallions by far. . . having a mare can be too tedious and stallions, they attract us more. . .”

“I know that feeling,” Silver chuckled as he stood up from the bed. “Well, I’ll see what I can do. By tomorrow I think we’ll be able to find you that right stallion.”

“You think so?”

“Of course Princess,” he replied as he walked off to the door. “I do believe we can find you your knight of the night.”

Luna giggled as she placed a hoof to her mouth. “How corny...”

Outside the room, Silver closed the door and turned to his right. He saw the same earth pony guard he sent out to guard Luna while she was walking through town. He was standing by the door as though he were cemented there.

“Eavesdropping now are we?”

The guard swallowed and looked away from Silver’s eyes. “Never! Its not in the nature of the guard to eavesdrop on anypony.”

Silver sighed as he placed a hoof to his forehead. “Come clean with me, you’ve had that look for Princess Luna since you started working here.”

“What look?”

Silver groaned and simply tapped the guard’s shoulder. “Look, tomorrow night come to the northeast tower along with the other guards. This is mandatory for you. . . Philip.”

The guard turned to him sharply with his mouth agape. “How do you know my name?!”

Silver laughed as he waved his hoof. “As Princess Luna’s advisor, ‘tis my job to know who is serving under her and review their history too.”

“I see...”

“May I just say you have quite a history, one that involves her...” Silver remarked with a grin.

Philip sighed and looked downwards. “One that she doesn’t remember.”

“Oh I wouldn’t say that...”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Phillip, or should I say-”

“Don’t say that name!” He seethed through his teeth. “Not with her so nearby.”

Silver Storm let out a sigh and said, “First of all, stop trying to hide that accent of yours. It sounds like you’re going through puberty again. Secondly, I have heard about your interaction with her all those years ago when she told me about what Princess Twilight Sparkle did to help her fit in. You have nothing to be afraid of and I’m sure she’ll be happy to know you’re one of her guards. I’m just surprised she hasn’t realized it’s you sooner.”

“But I-”

“But nothing,” said Silver Storm. “Now then, I expect you to be there tomorrow night at seven on the dot. Do I make myself clear, guard?”

Phillip gave a salute and said, “Yes sir!”

Silver Storm smiled at this. “Good . . . now excuse me while I go inform the other guards.”

Phillip waited until Silver Storm rounded a corner and heard his hoofsteps fade away. He let out a breath of relief as he lowered his head. Inside his mind though, Phillip couldn’t help but feel a little excited about what he was told. After so many years, he was finally going to talk to her again, and not just about royal duties or anything related to work. For the first time in many years, his heart fluttered like it did all those years ago.

“Just you wait Princess Luna,” he said to himself. “I’m going to finally be able to-”

“To what?”

Philip felt his insides freeze up as he slowly turned to see Princess Luna arching an eyebrow at him. “Um . . . P-princess Luna,” he stuttered. “W-what a su-surprise.”

“A pleasure to meet a fellow royal guard such as you,” she said. “Now, what did you say you were able to do?”

“I . . . I . . . I . . .” Philip felt like his tongue was being twisted as he tried to say something.

“Eyes? Do you need to see the royal optometrist?”

Philip shook his head.

“Do you need eye drops?”

He shook his head again.

“Did you stare at the sun and hurt your eyes? I told those guards to stop duping recruits into thinking it was part of the initiation.”

“What he’s trying to say is that he’s wondering if he needs to do anything before being relieved of duty,” a voice said.

Both Princess Luna and Philip turned to see Silver Storm nearby. “Forgive me for intruding on this conversation, but I was checking for Philip here and it seems his relief has come by to let him off duty for the day.”

The blue alicorn looked at Philip, who was doing his best to maintain his composure, and gave a nod. “Very well then, we shall be on our way for dinner and to raise the moon.”

“Very well then your highness, I shall escort the young colt back to his quarters. He seems to be a little out of it.”

“I do hope you feel better soon Philip,” said Luna in a gentle voice. “We’d like to get to know you more soon.”

Philip blushed a little and bowed. “T-thank you your highness,” he muttered.

“Come along now,” said Silver Storm as he nudged Philip to move. “You need to have your rest before tomorrow’s duties.”

Philip could only wave goodbye to Luna as he trotted away from her with Silver Storm leading him to the barracks. As soon as they rounded the corner, Philip was pinned to the wall by Silver. He looked around a little to see nopony coming before turning back to the guard.

“Quite sloppy of you to act that way around the Princess,” said Silver. “If you ever plan on making a move, then you better do shape up fast.”

“Why are you so determined to get me with Luna?” Asked Philip. “I want to see her happy, but I don’t want to make her unhappy by depriving her of a stallion of her own, even if it isn’t me.”

“I want what’s best for the Princess and her well being. For so long, she’s been trying to fit into society again and I refuse to see her suffer being alone and shunned like how she felt over a thousand years ago. I won’t let her become . . . that wicked being again.”

“You mean Ni-”

“Don’t say that name!” Barked Silver. “It’s a name she wants to forget and something she never wants to become ever again.”

“My apologies sir.”

“I know you didn’t mean any harm, but that name is still very sensitive to her, even to this day. I want to help ensure her happiness by helping her find love. She wants not just love from her subjects, but to be with somepony she cares for deeply. And knowing you, I think you don’t want her to end up all alone.”

Philip gave a nod and said, “You’re right . . . she needs somepony for her. And even if she doesn’t choose me, I’ll do my best to make her the happiest mare in Equestria.”

“That’s the spirit,” said Silver. “Now get going, you have a big night tomorrow.”

Philip gave a nod and took off as Silver released his grip on him. As he ran back to the barracks only one thing was on his mind: Princess Luna.

Don’t you worry Princess Luna, I’ll make sure you never feel alone again, he thought to himself. After all, you are my favorite princess.

Initiation

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The next evening, after Princess Luna raised the moon, she and Princess Celestia walked along the corridor.

“...And that’s everything we need to do at the meeting on Wednesday. Understand, Luna?” Celestia heard no response from her sister. “Luna, are you listening?”

“Oh! Um . . . of course we did sister,” she responded. “We were just thinking about how to convince the regional governors to limit their spending in their cities.”

“I understand fully Luna, but considering the numerous problems such as the border wars between us and the Griffon Kingdom. If we’re going to avoid going in debt, then we need to take every precaution.”

“Very well Tia, but we-”

“Princess Luna, a word with you please,” said a voice.

The two alicorns turned around to see Silver Storm standing nearby and looked a little impatient.

“Some of the guards have been caught hazing another recruit. I would normally bring him before both you and Princess Celestia, but since these guards are under your command, I’ll let you handle them. They are currently being held in the northeast tower.” He gave a wink.

Luna winked back and said, “Very well then, we shall teach those guards what happens when you cross with a Princess.” She turned back to Celestia. “Forgive us dear sister, but we must hurry along now.

“Goodbye Luna and let those guards know if I catch them doing something like that to one of mine, then they’ll be spending the remainder of their service patrolling the castle’s sewers.”

Luna waved goodbye and went down the opposite direction she came from. Silver Storm hurried along with her and didn’t say anything until he turned and saw Celestia rounded the corner.

“Is everything in place?” Asked Luna.

“Yes, all the guards have been summoned to the northeast tower meeting chamber. You’re running a bit late though. I told the guards about this plan, but I told them to not say anything about it to anyone else than the other Lunar Royal Guards.”

“My apologies Silver, but my sister was talking about a meeting coming up and I lost track of time. Now before we go on with this, I need to know one thing. What if one of Celestia’s guards comes by and sees no other guards nearby? This could raise a lot of suspicion.”

“Already taken care of your highness,” said Silver. “I’ll just tell the guards that Luna is lecturing them all about that ‘hazing incident’ and the consequences about what happens if a guard does that to a recruit.”

Luna chuckled softly as she walked alongside Silver. “You certainly have thought this out well Silver.

“Well, being the advisor of a princess one must be well prepared and constantly vigilant for any situation, especially when it comes to the situation of the heart.” he replied to her softly, grinning as he winked to her.

“W-well. . .” Luna flustered as she looked away from him. “This is all new to us Silver. Though honestly, you act more a mare than a stallion would.”

Silver withheld a laugh as he scrunched his lips. “Hardly, you should meet my husband. He is the feminine one of in the relationship.”

Luna’s eyes widened as she stared at her adviser in surprise. “Even after a decade, things still surprise me of the new Equestria...” she said softly as she looked forward, nearing their destination.

“Um . . . I forget. What we are waiting for?” One unicorn guard asked another as they were sitting on stools in the northeast tower.

The other guard shrugged as he rolled his eyes. “I don’t know, something about Princess Luna being lonely apparently.”

“Lonely you say?” Another one asked as he leaned into the conversation. “Well if she is lonely, she can just ask somepony into her room. Stand in for one night I’d say.”

Philip furrowed his eyebrows in anger as he his ears perked to the conversation. He turned his head to hear things clearer and decided to walk into the circle of the conversation.

The guards laughed at their friends’ reply. “Well unfortunately I’m not the one for mares here. My special stallion is waiting right at home,” one greyish pink guard answered, but was met with silence. “What? You all have a problem with my opinion?”

“With the way you look, how can we not tell you’re gayer than Swayback Mountain?” Teased one guard. The others burst into laughter while the pink guard shrunk back and said nothing.

“In all seriousness, why would Princess Luna want to date now?” Asked another guard. “I haven’t seen Princess Celestia ever show any interest in wanting her own special somepony, so why Luna?”

“Hey, maybe she wants to try to fit more into society. Even after all these years since her return, she’s still feeling a little out of place. Maybe her dating somepony will help her feel more comfortable and maybe something even more.”

“So then why us guards then? What’s wrong with dating a noble?”

“Don’t even bother. I dated one once and she never stop talking about herself. Every time I look at a noble now, I want nothing more than to punch their teeth out to shut them up.”

“Well I don’t see anything wrong with dating somepony like Princess Luna. In fact, I’d say I’d love to be around her for the rest of my life.”

Philip raised an eyebrow as he heard that statement. “What dae yeh mean by that?” He asked the guard.

“Ah, come on Philip, surely you don’t see the benefit as well, do you?”

“Haven’t the foggiest Polished Shield.”

The guard let out a laugh and shook his head. “Think about it for a minute there. You get to be around a Goddess for the rest of your life and not only that, but if you follow behind her, you’ll get a nice view of her moon, if you know what I mean.” Polished let out another laugh, but it sounded rather cold.

Something inside Philip suddenly snapped as he realized what he truly meant by his statement. In a flash, he raised his hoof and punched Polished Shield’s mouth so hard, some of his teeth were knocked out of him and went flying across the room. The circle of guards stepped back as they saw an infuriated Philip standing nearby and was seething through his teeth.

The guard groaned as he rubbed his jaw and looked up at his attacker. “What the hay was that for!?” He demanded.

“Yeh now full well wha’ it fer!” Philip retorted as he landed his hoof back to Polished’s jaw. “Nopony dare talk about the princesses that way, especially Princess Luna.”

Polished rubbed his jaw and spat out to the ground, blood and saliva hitting the floor. He narrowed his eyes to Philips and clenched his teeth. “Why you little plotlicker!” He shouted as he charged to Philip and tried to land a blow to his face. All he met was air as Philip sidestepped and took hold of Polished’s neck. Polished slammed his head back to Philip’s, causing Philip to groan and Polished to be free as he tackled him to the ground.

All the guards were rooting for a fight as they stomped with Polished and Philip rolling on the ground, trying to punch the other but not succeeding. The area became dark as all the candles went out and the air became as cold as ice. The guards felt a cold breeze coming from behind them and turned cautiously around facing another pony.

“What is the meaning of this!?”

Princess Luna stood at the entrance with her eyes white as her magic turned into darkness that bathed the room and gave off a chill that made the guards shiver. She stepped forward and looked down on Philip and Polished.

Philip let go of Polished and kneeled down to Princess Luna, not daring to look her in the eye. “Your majesty, I-”

“Quiet!” she ordered Philip and saw him kneel down further to the ground and looked back to her advisor, who nodded to her. She turned back to the two guards kneeling and waved a hoof to them. “Rise.”

Philip raised himself from his kneel and for the briefest moment, he looked Luna in the eye. He saw her eyes widen slightly and swore he could hear her gasp. He blinked a few times, but his one eye was slightly swollen now thanks to the brawl earlier.

“Tell us what happened here now, or we shall not be lenient to your punishment.” Luna said as she looked both ponies in the eye, and her gaze finally fell on Polished. “You. Speak.”

Polished gulp as sweat beads fell from his forehead. His eyes darted to Philip, and they widened slightly as an idea popped into his head. He smiled slightly and cleared his throat. “Well Princess, our young Philip here thought it would be appropriate to make remarks of your beauty by using vulgar phrases and actions. I only saw fit to punish him, yet I did not expect him to retort to the punishment he deserved.”

Philip’s eyes narrowed and his eyebrows furrowed as he turned sharply to Polished’s, grinding his teeth. “Ye lying snake! Don’t go telling the princess porky pies now ye-” he stopped when Luna looked at him, her eyes in a glare. He straightened himself up and looked away. “My apologies Princess Luna.”

“Is this true though Corporal Philip?” She asked in an icy tone. “Is this truly why you were feeling ‘worn out’ yesterday? Because you were trying to not say anything vulgar about us?”

“N-no! Never your highness! I would never say that!”

“He lies! That guy’s such a pervert! He tried to look at the female guards’ barracks once to see them shower!”

“Be still Corporal!” Ordered Silver Storm.

Philip looked at Silver, only to be met by a shrug and looked a little concerned. “Y-your highness . . . I would never say anything about you like that.”

“You are such a liar!” Shouted Polished Shield. “You only want to see her ‘moon’ up close and personal!”

“Don’t ye dare talk to me fancy that!” Barked Philip. “At least my mind isn’t constantly stuck in the gutter!”

“You’re right, it’s always stuck in it!”

“I would never say anything like that to her! She’s a very nice Princess who’s fair, kind, and beautiful. I would never say anything like you said to her about my favorite princess!”

Suddenly, something clicked inside Princess Luna’s mind as she heard that last statement. My favorite princess! A saying she hasn’t heard for so long, that it was like a giant shock wave to her. She staggered back a little as the emotional wave overcame her.

Could . . . could it be? She thought to herself.

“Princess Luna! Are you alright?” Asked Silver in a concerned voice.

The alicorn shook her head and saw all the guards were looking at her with either raised eyebrows or concerned looks on them. She turned to Philip, who seemed a little afraid of her, but something told her it wasn’t because of fear, but because of concern.

“We . . . We’re fine,” she said. “It’s . . . none of your concern.”

“Enough of this already!” Barked Polished Shield. “As you can see Princess Luna, Philip has nothing else to say in his defense. I say it’s time he gets the ol’ heave ho and be tossed out!”

Luna looked for a moment to Polished and then to Philip. She walked in closer to him, and saw he never flinched nor looked away from her eyes. She leaned in closer to Pip, with her horn nearly touching his forehead.

Polished smirk as he sneered in Philip’s direction. “That’s it princess. Get rid of that bum so that I can see your moon for myself!” He suddenly blurted out and gasped as he shut his mouth and looked down on it with eyes that widened to the size of saucers. He felt a strange tingling on his mouth that soon disappeared, though he swore he saw a silver aura for a moment.

Luna’s head jerked back at her she looked at Polished with both rage and disgusted, as her mouth turned into a scowl and her eyes narrowed to the guard. “You dare?!”

Polished’s mouth was clattering as he looked around him and his eyes darted to every corner. “Princess- I- I- I would never say such things I-”

Luna stomped her hoof, causing a slight quake to silence Polished. “You dare lie to us?! You dare lie to the Princess of the Night?!” Luna barked at him as she towered over him and saw him trembling to the ground.

Polished closed his eyes as he trembled in a kneel to Luna. “Please Princess, I would never do-”

“Silence!” She hissed to him and she could hear him sob as he kneeled. She looked to her advisor Silver and her eyes soften a little. “What say you shall we do with this wastrel Silver? Option A or B?”

Silver tapped his chin as his eyes fell to Polished’s body, as his eyes showed disdain for the vulgar pony. “Option A sounds about right to me Princess.”

Princess Luna nodded to her advisor and again her eyes fell onto Polished as they turned into ones of absolute fury. “Polished Shield. Stand up.”

“Princess-”

“Stand up!”

Polished did as he was told as he slowly got up and was visibly shaking. “Y-y-yes your h-highness?” He asked.

“For your crimes of speaking ill about your Princess and for attempting to put the blame on another pony, you are hereby expelled as one of my Royal Guards immediately. Your punishment doesn’t end there though.”

“W-what do you mean?”

“Since you have a heart of ice and your attitude is foul, I shall sentence you to the Glacius Base.”

“No! Anywhere but there!” Pleaded Polished. “If I go there, I may die of-”

“Oh, don’t you worry about that,” said Silver Storm. “I’ll be placing you in a section of the base that is indoors. I just hope that where you’re going, you don’t pass out quickly.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“You’ll see.” Silver used his magic to summon a parchment and quill and write something on it before handing it to Luna. Her horn glowed for a second as the paper flashed and was then rolled up. “And before you leave, whenever you finish a shift at your new base, take plenty of showers.”

Before Polished could say anything else, Luna’s horn glowed and in an instant, he and the scroll disappeared from the room.

A second later, he reappeared outside, but was met by a blinding blizzard and started shivering. He distinctly heard hoofsteps and turned to see a pony dressed in a white eskimo suit approaching him.

“W-who a-a-are y-y-you?” Asked Polished.

“Captain Ice Blade,” he said in a muffled voice. “Welcome to the Glacius Base, or as I like to call it, the dungeon, your final resting place if you aren’t careful.” He noticed the scroll near him Polished and opened it up. As he read it, the Captain shook his head. “Well I have good news and bad news for you. The good news is that you aren’t going to be stationed outside to patrol the base.”

“The bad news?”

“You’re being assigned to the sewage patrol and you’re just in time. It seems one of the septic tanks has busted and we need some guards to make sure it doesn’t overflow.”

“What!?”

“Best get going there Corporal, or else the whole base is going to reek of feces.” With that, he uncovered a hidden horn on his head and used his magic to levitate Polished Shield and lead him to the sewers.

“Nooo!!!!” He screamed as he was led away to his fate.

Luna sighed and twisted her neck slightly, emitting a few clicks from it. “That’s one rotten rat sent back to the sewer,” she muttered and looked around the room. The room was deserted save for two ponies. Silver and Philip. “Where are the other guards?” She asked Silver as she turned her head in all directions.

Silver shrugged as he smiled. “They all fled,” he said plainly as he looked back to the entrance. “Something about ‘fearing banishment’ or something similar,” he said as his gazed fell to Luna and his smile disappeared when he saw her moist eyes. He bit his lower lip, though his mouth turn into an O as his gaze landed on Philip. He grinned slightly before clearing his throat. “Princess... believe it or not, I think we have found you a pony.”

“Sorry?” Was all that Luna could say as she raised arched an eyebrow. She saw Silver pointing with his eyes to his side and she looked to see Philip standing next to him, though she could tell that he was just as confused as was for that moment. “Philip, I believe?”

Philip cleared his voice and stood at attention. “Philip Brave, princess,” he said in a different accent from what he used earlier with Polished.

Luna tapped her chin as her lips scrunched, with her eyes squinted when she looked at Philip. “You seem awfully familiar somehow. . .”

Philip looked down and bit his lower lip. “How your majesty?”

Luna walked forward and looked at him thoroughly from top to bottom. She walked around him and saw his cutie mark that resembled a compass without the bearings. She noticed his cheeks were become red as her gaze would not leave him. She finally stopped when she was back before him, looking into his eyes.

“Are you sure we haven’t seen each other before?” Asked Luna.

“Um . . . only when I’m patrolling alongside you to protect you.” Try as Philip could, he couldn’t help but shake a little in intimidation.

“Do not worry Corporal, I just want to know one thing. Did you initiate that fight?”

Philip, unable to avoid the stare of the Princess, nodded feebly. “Yes . . . I just didn’t like how Polished Shield was talking about you.”

“I understand his actions were disrespectful, but you need to remember that you’re a Royal Guard. You won’t be dishonorably discharged or expelled, but you will be tasked to do one thing as ‘punishment’.

“What do you wish for me to do your highness?” Asked Philip in a disappointing tone.

“We . . . heard there is a carnival in town tomorrow,” she said, trying not to sound nervous. “We see you think highly of us and considering you’re the only guard left, you shall be accompanying us to the Canterlot Carnival tomorrow night.”

“But why your highness?” Philip nearly smacked himself for what he asked. “I mean, why would you want to date somepony like me? I’m just a mere navigator on the E.C.S. Lunar Eclipse airship.”

“Ah yes, I remember that grand ship,” said Luna. “It’s a shame they had to decommission it. But anyway, tomorrow we shall go out and partake in the fun that this carnival has to offer.”

“But you’d stick out like a sore hoof your highness,” said Philip. “How are you supposed to go to the carnival without everypony noticing you?”

Before Luna could respond, Silver said, “Rest assure, she’ll think of something Corporal. Now then, will you accept the Princess’ request?”

Philip couldn’t believe what he was hearing. A chance at long last with Luna seemed like a dream come true. “Yes I would!” He exclaimed before clamping his mouth and looking down in embarrassment. “I mean, I would love to, if that’s fine with you your highness.”

“We shall gladly accept you as our da- um . . . acquaintance,” said the alicorn. “Be ready to leave the castle by tomorrow night at eight, understand?”

“Yes, your highness!” Philip gave a salute.

“Dismissed,” said Silver.

Philip walked out of the room and shut the doors to the conference chamber, leaving Luna and Silver all to themselves.

“Well your highness, it seems everything is going according to plan so far.” Silver heard no response from the Princess. He turned to her and saw she looked out of it. “Your highness? Is something the matter?”

Luna’s lips mouthed inaudible words as she looked out to where Philip left. Her eyes blinked as she recalled a number of memories, including ones of dreams she viewed in the past.

She blinked her eyes before turning to Silver. “Silver. . . who was that?”

“Hmmm?” Silver hummed as he arched an eyebrow. “Philip Brave my princess, just as he said. You do not take his word for it? I can verify his claim if you-”

“That’s not what we meant,” Luna chimed in as her eyebrows furrowed. “Why is it that he reminds me so much of the past?”

Silver rolled his eyes away and shrugged. “Not sure princess, maybe you should ask him tomorrow.”

Luna nodded as her eyes fell downwards. “Yes, you’re right.”

“Now onto a more important matter. . . your disguise.”

Luna gasped and looked down on her own body, “Yes! We must find a proper disguise for ourselves.” she said as she focused her magic to envelop herself in her own navy aura. The aura intensified brightly, before dimming. When it was done, she looked over herself.

Silver nodded his head in approval. “That looks good on you...” he said as he viewed the princess before him. Where once she stood a feet taller than him, she was now shorter to be lower than Silver. Her wings disappeared and her cutie mark changed to that of shooting star. The ethereal mane was now solid and formed into a ponytail, with her eyes changed to a sky blue.

“Do we look fair Silver?”

Silver chuckled as he moved forward to Luna. “Like a marvelous moon lily in season your highness.”

Luna giggled before clapping her hooves together and beaming in glee. “That’s it, for tomorrow only we shall be dubbed ‘Moon Lily’.”

“Smashing princess, just one more issue.”

“What may that be?”

“Your speech.”

“What about our speech?”

“You need to stop using bits of the Royal We. It’ll make you suspicious. You have to stop saying we or our and start saying I or you?”

“We . . . remember Princess Twilight talking to us about that when we visited Ponyville during Nightmare Night.”

“Try to remember about what she said then.”

“W-we . . . I . . . I will do ou-. . . my best, Silver,” stuttered Luna. “This shall take some getting used to.”

“Everything will be okay your highness,” assured Silver. “Now I think it’s best that you turn in for the night. Princess Celestia mentioned something about you being with her in a meeting with a noble about some new statue.”

The blue alicorn let out a sigh. “They never learn to stop being so egotistical.”

“That they don’t. Good night your highness.” With that, Silver bowed and walked out of the room.

Luna stuck around though as her mind went back to Philip. I know I’ve seen that stallion before. But where? She pondered.

After a few minutes of thinking, Luna sighed in defeat. We- I guess it was nothing. I better get to bed and see what’s going on in the dreams of- A thought suddenly crossed her mind. That’s it! We- um . . . I mean, I shall go into Philip’s dream and see who he really is!

She walked out of the room and trotted back to her chambers, with a confident smile on her face. Philip, whoever you are, I’m going to see who you truly are.

As soon as Luna was asleep, she was immediately brought to the dream realm. Even though she wanted to find out who Philip really was, Luna knew she still had a job to do and surveyed each dream. After finding and resolving a few nightmares, Luna continued to look around the various images. It wasn’t until she came across an image of a familiar brown spotted stallion that she found him. Wasting no time, Luna stepped into the dream to see Philip.

She looked around the dream and saw she was in none other than the Everfree Forest and noticed something that made her shiver: a statue of Nightmare Moon. Hearing hoofsteps, she quickly ran behind a tree and peeked to see who it was. To her surprise, it was Philip, dressed up with a red bandana on his head and an eyepatch over his eye. Luna couldn’t help but think that something about this costume was familiar, but her eyes caught something he was holding in his mouth. He was carrying a bag overflowing with candy. He set it near the Nightmare Moon statue and kneeled.

“After all these years, I’ve never stopped thinking about you,” he said. “I know about your past and what happened to you and it’s a shame to see somepony as beautiful as you was forced to suffer that fate.”

“Does . . . does Philip actually like Nightmare Moon?” Asked Luna with a bit of disgust in her voice. She turned away sharply only to be greeted by another pony. “Me?!”

The other princess Luna passed right through her and walked out towards Philip and stood alongside him. She leaned her head to rest on his shoulder and looked into his eyes.

“So good to see you again,” the other Luna whispered to him and folded a wing over his back.

Philip nuzzled her chin softly with his as his eyes were closed. “For my favorite Princess, always,” he told her in the most soothing voice Luna had ever heard from him.

The other Luna raised her head from the comforts of his shoulder and looked down to the sweets. She giggled as she picked them up with her magic and raised one candy to her mouth, plopping it inside. “You still do this foalish thing?”

“If it means seeing you, of course.”

The other Luna released a tear as she smiled wide to Philip, wiping it away. “Thank you so much,” she whispered as she nuzzled him again and leaned in closer to hold him.

Philip held her close with one hoof as he nuzzled her back. He opened his eyes and did something others would never do; kissed Luna her on her cheek. “For you, my favorite princess. . . for you. . .”

Princess Luna stood there flummoxed at what she was seeing. She saw how happy her other self was with Philip and how blessed she was. He gaze fell upon the bag that he brought, having a name on it. Luna’s eyes widened as she gasped and she retracted back as her shocked eyes looked back at Philip, who was ignorant of her presence there.

“It’s you!”

Date with Destiny

View Online

“Let’s go over it again, shall we”

Luna inhaled as she stood before Silver, having already performed her disguise spell. “Hi, my name is Moon Lily. I’m here for Philip Brave. He’s my date for tonight,” she said to him in the softest voice Silver had ever heard from her.

Silver beamed as he chuckled. “Brilliant!” He exclaimed as he walked to the window and looked out of it. He squinted his eyes to see four of the guards at the entrance. “Right, now we get to the difficult part...”

Luna approached the window and grinned slightly. “You forget, alicorns teleport too Silver,” she said to him as she looked at his surprised face.

“I must be getting old,” he muttered to himself before turning to his princess. “I will hold the fort here, to make sure none of the personnel here get suspicious.”

“What about Princess Celestia?”

Silver laughed softly as he lowered his head. “You forget, I was her adviser before you Princess. I know how to evade her long enough.”

Luna sighed with a smile. “That’s a relief at least.”

Silver smiled softly and placed a hoof to Luna’s shoulder, who was now shorter than he was. “Forgive me for the momentary disrespect, but, you must enjoy yourself Luna,” he said.

Luna giggled and looked back at Silver. “Its not disrespect. Since you are my friend, Silver,” she said softly and decided to hug him.

Silver looked to Luna with shocked eyes before smiling and returning the hug. “Now I suggest you go forth, you have a stallion waiting for you.”

“Has he left the castle yet?” She asked as she released him.

“I saw him leave the castle nearly ten minutes ago. Before he left though, I informed Philip to meet you at the entrance of the carnival instead of outside the castle. It was to help draw away suspicion.”

Luna chuckled and said, “Always thinking ahead, aren’t we?”

“Part of my job is to think ahead,” said Silver with a wink. “Now you better hurry before the poor colt gets cold hooves.”

Luna concentrated her magic and gave one last wink to Silver. Her horn shined brightly before there was a flash, and she was gone.

Silver sighed as he looked out of the window again, and saw the carnival in the distance. He chuckled to himself as he remembered how he and his husband had a date there so long ago.

“I just hope that colt doesn’t mess this up...”

Near one of the large red ticket booth stands, Philip was looking around for Luna. As he waited, he took a few deep breaths and looked at himself in a reflection of a puddle of water. Although his brown mane was cut short, he still did his best to comb it back and make it look more presentable. He was wearing a dark blue bandana around his neck, which looked similar to Luna’s fur color.

“Okay . . . you can do this Philip,” he muttered. “This is your once in a lifetime chance to finally impress her. Just act smooth, calm, and charming around her and show her how much she means to you.”

“Philip?”

The brown spotted stallion turned to see Luna in her disguise and felt heat rising up in his face as he marveled her beauty. “Um . . . hello Princess Luna,” he said as he bowed.

“Shh!” She whispered and looked around to see nopony was paying attention to them. “Do you wish to alert all of Canterlot to my presence here?”

“M-my apologies Princess,” said Philip. “I . . . I was just entranced by how beautiful you look.”

She blushed a little and smiled. “We . . . I mean, I’m glad you think I look that way.”

“Shall we go in your highness?”

“Stop calling me that Philip, otherwise these ponies will get suspicious about me. Don’t refer to me as ‘your highness’ or ‘Princess’. Please refer to me as Moon Lily, a pony who’s recently moved to Canterlot and studies the stars at night.”

“Yes Prin-um. . . Moon Lily,” said Philip.

Luna smiled softly and grabbed his hoof. “Come along then Philip, we’re missing out on the fun here.”

The spotted stallion smiled and followed Luna, or in this case Moon Lily, to the ticket stand. He tried to buy the tickets, but Moon Lily already paid for the admission and led him through the entrance gates. When they both got past the gates, Philip and Moon both looked around in awe at the carnival. The usually orderly and pristine city had colorful ribbons, banners, and balloons hanging along the lightposts and roofs of the stands that filled the streets.

The small stands along the streets were bunched together tightly and each one had a different purpose. Some stands had various games such as knocking over milk bottles with a ball, a Whack-a-Diamond Dog game area, and some squirt guns lined up to shoot into the mouth of a clown and pop a balloon. Each game stand had some teddy bears, some small pony dolls, and a lineup of Wonderbolt plushes that included Soarin, Spitfire, and Rainbow Dash among them.

There were other stands such as ones that allowed you to have a cartoony portrait painted, a couple of food and drink sellers that was selling various treats and some of the Apple Family’s own apple cider. Amidst the stands, there were several tall buildings in the city including a giant ferris wheel, a drop tower, and a roller coaster.

“My goodness, where should we begin?” Asked Luna.

“Um . . . how about a game first?” Inquired Philip. “We could try one of those Whack-a-Diamond Dog game.”

“Do they have any games involving launching pumpkins from a catapult?”

“No, they don’t.”

Moon frowned a little. “Very well then, we shall take part in this whacking game.”

“I’ll give it a shot as well. It’ll make me feel like I’m back in the Badlands and fending off Diamond Dog Nomads,” he said as they were walking off to the stand.

Luna grimaced as she drew her head back, circling her lips slightly. “Ooh! I heard they were dirty opponents. Suffocating the guards by pulling them underground.”

“Yes, t’was so.” Philip nodded but then smiled slightly. “Luckily those muppets had no idea of strategy. Their attention span is that of a teaspoon’s.”

Moon Lily giggled as she placed a hoof to her mouth. “Indeed.”

They made it there and saw the platform before them. It was a board with 9 holes in it and a hammer to the side. The vendor at the stand looked up to the two ponies. “Excuse us, but we would like to partake in this... challenge,” Luna said, with her voice as soft as possible.

“Well then step right up and whack the dogs as fast as you can within one minute. Who of you will try first hey?” The vendor asked Philip and Moon.

Philip cleared his throat and scooted away from Luna. “Ladies first in this case,” he said as he gave Luna the hammer with she gladly accepted. “Knock them out Moon Lily.”

“With pleasure.”

Luna positioned herself and when the timer started the first dog’s head popped out. She hit it with the hammer but was too slow to attack the other one that popped out he moment she made contact with the first one. By the end of the game, she only reached a measly twelve hits.

“Awww, better luck next time little miss,” the vendor told Luna as he took the hammer from her.

Luna pouted as she pushed her lower lip out and huffed slightly when she turned back to Philip. “Tis harder than w-I thought,” she quickly corrected herself.

Pip smiled softly and walked past her, taking hold of the hammer and cracking his neck slightly. “Watch me,” he said to her with a wink and gave a nod to the vendor who activated the machine.

By the end of Philip’s turn, he reached a record of fifty one points. “Well well well, looks like you get a prize for the lady,” the vendor said as he reached over the prizes and gave Philip a pony sized Ursa Major plushie. “Nice to cuddle up when you are cold in winter,” he said with a wink.

Philip took hold of the plushie and presented it to Luna. “A gift for you,” he said as he presented it to her and smiled.

Luna blushed slightly as she took hold of it and felt a tingling in her stomach. “T-thank you.”

“Y-you’re quite welcome,” said Philip with a similar blush. “So . . . what do you want to do now? Play another game? Grab some candy apples?”

“Actually, we-erm . . . I was thinking that maybe we try something else.”

“What did you have in mind?”

“I would love to try that tower, at least I think it’s a ride. I’m seeing something rise and then drop. Unless that’s some elaborate elevator design that I’m not aware of.”

“That’s called a Drop Tower, Lu-um . . . Moon Lily. You’re basically strapped into a chair on a platform, which rises up to the top of the tower. When it reaches the top, it drops to the bottom very fast, but not so fast that the platform crashes into the ground. If you’re not feeling comfortable with this, then maybe we should-”

“Challenge accepted.”

“Wait, what?”

“We shall both be on this ride and take part in the amusement of this attraction. Now come along now Philip.”

Before the spotted stallion could respond, Moon took his hoof and dragged him to the tower. Blimey . . . I knew she wanted to have fun, but I didn’t think she’d be acting like this, he thought to himself. He looked at her face and saw the excited look in her eyes. I can’t blame her though. She’s been stuck in that castle for so long doing royal duties that she forgot about how to have a good time.

It wasn’t long before both Philip and Moon were both in line for the tower, which was called Sky High. As the line moved along, Philip could see Luna looked eager to get on it as she saw the platform dropping and the ponies screaming. Much to Moon’s delight, some ponies got cold hooves and decided to get out of line before it was their turn, making her and Philip get closer. After waiting for nearly half an hour, Philip and Moon were finally at the entrance of the ride.

“Step right up everypony!” Shouted the ride operator. “Experience the feeling of being up in the clouds like other pegasi! Feel the wind as you’re dropped down quickly! Experience the thrill that is Sky High!”

Philip and Moon Lily waited in line until they were told where to sit in the ride. Moon Lily looked up as a large brace from above secured her to her seat with the same happening to Philip.

“This is so exciting!” Moon Lily said as she looked around the ride and felt the ride starting up.

“Now sit back and scream!” The conductor yelled out as he lowered the lever and the ride went into the air.

As the ride went up slowly, Philip looked back the disguised alicorn and started laughing a bit. “You’re about to feel a rush soon.”

“What do you mean by that?” Moon Lily asked him as they went even higher and finally stopped. She dared look down and saw how tiny the ponies were from where she was now. “W-I never expected it to be this high...” she whispered as she suddenly held Philip’s hoof. “Now that I’m here, I’m beginning to have second thoughts on-”

The ride dropped down at top speeds with everypony screaming in ecstasy. Moon Lily was screaming at the top of her lungs as the ride went down and as it reached bottom it ricochet back and forth with the crowd of ponies still screaming. Though Moon Lily’s scream had become the loudest that ponies around her started covering their ears and the windows started shaking. The said windows shattered in unison, alerting Moon Lily that the ride was over and the ponies were all staring at her.

Only one word escaped her mouth. “... Oops.”

Philip looked around and started laughing. “What do you know, looks like you win the bet! See if you could break the window with just a scream!” he said hastily and got out of his seat and dragged Moon Lily with him.

“What? But w-I never-”

“Drat! Looks like I lose fifty bits! Though its going to you, sir,” he said to an angry ride conductor who accepted the bits and pointed to the exit. “Bye!” Philip shouted out as he and his unicorn date ran off to where ponies didn’t notice them.

Once they caught their breath, Moon Lily looked up with drooped ears to Philip. “I’m sorry about that, I didn’t know what came over me...”

“That was actually quite impressive of you.”

Moon looked up at Philip with a dumbfounded expression. “But . . . but I nearly gave myself away and angered some of these citizens.”

“That’s okay Moon, you were just caught up in all the excitement. It happens to all of us, even a Princess.”

Moon smiled a little and said, “Thank you for those kind words Philip. Maybe we should-”

The sound of trumpets playing suddenly echoed and a loudspeaker crackled to life. “Fillies and gentlecolts, may I have your attention please?” Asked a voice. “Our sponsor for this carnival has arrived as a guest here at the Canterlot Carnival. If you are interested in seeing this guest, please come to the courtyard near Sky High to see this pony!”

Moon looked at Philip. “Ooo this sounds like fun. Can we see who this guest is?”

“Well . . . if it means no screaming, then that’s fine,” he joked.

The two ponies slowly made their way to the courtyard, along with a large crowd of ponies wanting to see the sponsor. While they made their way through, Moon made sure to hide out of sight of the Sky High’s ride operator, who was still looking rather angry about what happened. Philip kept an eye out for Moon until they passed the ride and the operator before letting her know the coast was clear.

They pushed their way through a crowd of ponies until they managed to get a good glimpse of the courtyard, which had a large brown stage on it, a podium used for speaking, and a large red curtain. After a couple of minutes, a blue pegasus stallion wearing a white suit and top hat on him, approached the stage. The crowd went silent as the pegasus cleared his throat.

“Fillies and gentlecolts, thank you for coming to greet our sponsor,” he said in a thick Manehatten accent. “I am Dazzle Nights, the owner and host of the Canterlot Carnival.” He waited for the crowd to stop applauding before speaking again. “This carnival wouldn’t have happened if it wasn’t for the help of our sponsor, who generously donated enough funds for this carnival to last nearly a decade. Without further ado, please welcome our guest, Prince Blueblood!”

At the mention of his name, the ponies in the crowd began to whisper amongst each other. Some of the comments were not in favor of the suppose sponsor. One pony in particular laughed at the name.

“Tis rich, Blueblood!” Moon Lily laughed as she whispered to Philip’s ear. “My nephew is not prone to any sort of charity work. He loves to spend the bits on himself as it were,” she said as she looked to everypony in the crowd. “There’s no way that-”

Her words were cut off when when a white stallion with golden blonde mane walked out onto the stage. He wore the largest grin that anypony could ever muster, as though he had struck gold from a deserted mine shaft. The ponies were all silent when he took to the podium.

“I am so pleased to see so many subjects here today. As you have already heard, I myself have placed a worthy sum of bits towards this carnival that will last for more than a decade to come. A decade I am sure will be with fortune to you and others,” Blueblood spoke to a crowd that was dumbstruck and silent, all the while he had that grin on his muzzle.

Moon Lily’s brow furrowed as she tapped her chin in thought. “This is most odd, unless...” she walked to the front, with Philip following her lead. When she finally made it past the number of ponies blocking her way, she was a stone throw away from Blueblood. “Excuse me Prince?”

Blueblood’s turned sharply to the mare that called to him with a sight of disgust before it turned into yet another pleasing smile. “What can I help you with miss?”

“I am Moon Lily of the Society of Orphaned Foals, or SOF for short. About a month ago, we have requested donations from the Canterlot fund under your name specifically. Do you remember?”

Blueblood’s smile turned when he bit his lower lip, as he began sweating a few beads from his forehead. “Yes I do Miss Moon Lily, I’m sure that the funds I send-”

“The only thing we received from you Prince was a letter telling us you can’t waste bit on, and I quote, ‘filthy unwanted brats’ who were, I quote again, ‘a blight on the society of Equestria’.”

The crowd gasped and turned their heads to Blueblood, with their eyes narrowed with furious outrage. They started booing him and one pony even dared throw a toffee apple his way.

Blueblood glared at the mare and pointed a hoof to her. “How dare a ungrateful mare such as you mock royalty publicly!?”

“How dare you lie about being a sponsor?” Retorted Moon. “I guess those tabloids were right after all. You will never change your selfish ways, even after your true colors were shown at the Grand Galloping Gala a decade ago.”

“Now you listen here you-” Blueblood then noticed a pony trying to pull back Moon. “You there!” He pointed to Philip. “I recognize you, you’re one of Princess Luna’s royal guards. What’s a guard doing slacking his duties while they could be protecting royalty such as moi?”

“For your information, I’m on a date with Moon Lily here,” said the spotted stallion. “And I don’t like how you’ve been talking to her like that.”

“Do you know who I am you fool?” Sneered Blueblood. “I am Prince of Equestria and a-”

“Royal pain in the flank,” finished Philip.

The crowd chuckled as Blueblood gritted his teeth. “I’ll have you arrested for this!”

“For what? Last time I checked, insulting somepony wasn’t against the law.”

“You insulted royalty though! A pony such as myself demands respect by the rest of these commoners!”

“After all these years and your attempt to salvage your image, I’m surprised you are considered royalty. Tell me, what kind of Prince hides in a closet while holding a stuffed bear during a Changeling Invasion and calling for his mom instead of helping out?”

Blueblood staggered back a little. “H-how the hay did you get that information!?” He quickly put a hoof over his mouth and looked around. Everypony immediately started bursting with laughter and rolled on the floor. The Prince shot a cold glare at Philip as he felt his world fall apart around him.

“Well at least I’m not dating some irritating, uncouth, commoner mare who’s most likely a whore!”

At that moment, Philip stopped laughing and felt his anger suddenly rise up in him until he was seeing red. Before Moon could say anything, he charged at the white stallion and slammed into him and sent him to the ground. Philip started delivering one punch after another as he wailed on Blueblood, who was desperately trying to get away. The crowd watched in both shock and horror as Blueblood’s pristine white body become stained in blood and bruises. Moon though had enough of this and quickly galloped over to pull Phillip off of him.

Philip’s eyes dilated slightly when he saw the sight of Blueblood and he turned to Moon with a sheepish smile. “I think I might have gone too far...”

“You think?”

Moon and Philip’s ears perked when they heard the whistle of the guards and they made their way past the crowd, who did not bother blocking their path for their escape. Though once on the other side, they noticed guards posted at the exits of the carnival and Moon was prancing on the spot trying to find a way out.

“Psst!” Philip and Moon turned to the voice and they saw a teal stallion with a yellow mane calling over to them. “This way! Hurry!” He called over and they followed him. They were lead to the back of a stand, where an opening was found. The three ponies made their way out of the carnival and ran to a field a safe distance away from the scene.

Philip looked back and smiled as he huffed. “Thanks sir, you really helped us out,” he said to the stallion who was straightening himself once they were in the clear.

“Oh please! That was quite a performance back there. What with that teddy cuddler stealing my spot on the stage tonight, you, my colt, had the right to give him a thorough beating. Whereas he would most likely get a spanking from his mare,” he chuckled as he check his hooves for dirt.

“So you are the true sponsor for the carnival?”

“Correct my little Moon Lily! My name is Teal Illuminate! I run the Stage Illuminate Studios! Fabulous to meet you!” He pointed out his hoof to Moon who shook it slowly.

Moon’s eyes widened slightly. “Wait! Isn’t Silver Storm your-?”

“My hubby yes! Oh, he such a dazzling gentlecolt!” He leaned into Moon’s ear. “And a real pleasure-giver for me~” He laughed when he saw Moon’s cheeks burn. “Oh, he told me to look out for you two tonight. May I say that is a fetching costume you have on my Princess Luna.”

Luna’s eyes widened and she dropped her costume right there, returning to her size and the appearance of her wings. “W-I suppose Silver planned for this?” She asked Teal who nodded.

“Indeed!” He then gave a thorough look at Philip and nodded as he hummed. “May I also say, you got yourself a real stallion here with you princess. If i wasn’t married, he would be mine~”

“Um . . . thanks, but I’m not into stallions,” replied Philip. “No offense to you sir.”

“Oh, you’ve done nothing wrong at all!” Laughed Teal. “I know you have your heart set on another pony, somepony very close.”

Philip put a hoof over his mouth and chuckled. “Um . . . I think we better get out of here. It seems more guards are looking around for us.”

The trio turned to see that there were indeed a few guards patrolling nearby. In the distance, Philip could barely see Blueblood getting patched up by medics and looking vivid.

“FIND THAT GUARD AT ONCE!” He boomed. “I WANT HIS HEAD ON A PIKE FOR THIS!”

While medics tried to restrain Blueblood, Luna turned to Philip. “I think this is our cue to head home.” She then turned to Teal. “Can you make your way home on your own? Or do you wish for me to teleport you home?”

“I think I can handle it from here,” said Teal. “Tell Stormy I’ll be waiting at home with his favorite dessert, apple pie.”

“I shall tell him,” said Luna. “Farewell Teal Illuminate and good luck.” With that, her horn glowed and both Philip and Luna were gone in a flash.

A bright flash illuminated for a second in a room, but Philip and Luna couldn’t tell where they were. The alicorn used her horn to create a glow and saw that the room they were just outside the tower where the night princess resided.

“What do we do now your highness?” Asked Philip. “I’m sure the other guards will soon hear about what I’ve done to Blueblood and will arrest me for treason. I can’t just go walk in the castle all nilly willy.”

Luna poundered to herself about her guard’s predicament for a few minutes. “Hmm . . . I think I may know what to do, just trust me on this Philip.”

Philip nodded, his ears perked when he heard shouting at the bottom of the castle. “Seems like that spoiled brat is back.”

Luna rolled her eyes and made her way to the door. “Wait here, okay? I think I may have come up with something,” she said with a smile as she walked out, leaving Philip alone in the room.

“And then he assaulted me in front of how many eyewitnesses!” Blueblood pointed to his blackened eyes and to his swollen lips.

Celestia sighed as she rubbed a hoof to her temple with her eyes close. “Blueblood, you know perfectly well that I cannot enforce punishment to the Lunar Guard. That is strictly my sister’s domain and-”

“You condone having your own family being beaten to near death!?” Blueblood yelled out to Celestia as he slammed a hoof to the ground. “Luna doesn’t care about family and you know it first-”

“Ahem!”

The color of Blueblood’s face lost its potency when he heard the voice of Luna. He turned his head slowly to the back and saw Luna’s unamused face looking at him.

“Not care about family do I?”

Blueblood gulped and dared to glare at her. “W-well if you don’t decide to punish that vermin-”

“Philip Brave has been given a week’s worth of solitary confinement for assaulting a royal family member,” Luna said deadpanned as she walked past Blueblood and faced him.

Blueblood smiled slightly. “Well, to be frank it should be a lifetime but-”

“Though we have heard some disturbing news from some eyewitnesses of your poor behaviour nephew,” she chimed in as her gaze never left his eyes.

“W-what do you mean by ‘my poor behaviour’?!”

Luna closed her eyes and held her head high. “Impersonating a sponsor for an event, insulting a member of a welfare foundation, calling the said member foul names... need I say more? We thought you were better than this.”

Princess Celestia furrowed her brow and looked at her nephew. “Blueblood, as a fellow member of the royal family, I expected far better behavior than this. You have been causing nothing but trouble ever since the Gala a decade ago and I’m at the end of my rope with you.”

“But . . . but Aunt Celestia!” Protested the white stallion. “That guard was the one who-”

“He is of no concern to you Blueblood,” scolded Celestia. “Since you provoked a fight, lied about being a sponsor, and insult a charity foundation’s representative, I will be sending you somewhere where your rotten attitude will be welcome.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“I shall be sending you to do septic tank cleanup work across Canterlot,” she said. “You’ll be forced to clean every one of them with a toothbrush only, including the ones in the castle. Maybe some time doing some hard and smelly work will make you rethink your life.”

“You can’t be serious!”

“Guards!”

“Aunt Celestia, I-I-”

“Take him away this instant!” Ordered the white alicorn. “And place him in a holding cell instead of his room!”

Blueblood protested all the way as the guards dragged him down the hallway and then rounded a corner. His yelling could be heard all the way, but it soon faded out when the sound of a door slamming echoed across the castle.

Princess Celestia let out a sigh and rubbed her head. “Sometimes, I wonder when he’ll ever learn.”

“How about we give him his own castle on the moon?” Asked Luna. “He could literally have the world to himself.”

Celestia chuckled a little and shook her head. “And you won’t feel disgusted that he’s on your moon and desecrating it?”

“Good point.”

Celestia let out a sigh and looked into her sister’s eyes. “Still, this ‘Philip’ must still be punished for harming a royal,” she said softly. “Else it would send a bad message to the populace of Equestria and-”

“I’ll make sure he will be punished sister, mark my words. But I personally think he should be commended for being a true knight and weeding out a bad seed as it were...” Luna chimed in as she began to walk of the throne room.

“What do you plan to do Luna?”

Luna stopped and turned slowly to her sister, wearing a rather large grin. “Something you may find... radical.”

Philip waited patiently in the room, starting to count the tiles on the floor out of boredom.

I hope things turned out alright...

Suddenly, the door of the room opened wide and two Lunar Guards came walking in and stopped before Philip.

“Princess Luna requests we accompany you to her quarters right now,” one of the guards said in a gruff voice, stoic as ever.

Philip sighed and stood up, standing at the guards’ side. “Right, let’s go,” he said to the guards and they began to walk. Philip started hearing murmurs from each side, some from other guards and some from the castle’s staff. When they finally reached Luna’s doors, the guards knocked on the doors hard.

“Enter.”

The doors opened to reveal Luna sitting at her desk, filling out what appeared to be forms and filing them in her collection. She looked up to the guards and stood up from her seat.

“Leave us. We will suffice.”

The guards bowed and turned to leave their princess alone. As soon as the door was slammed shut, Luna locked the door with her magic before turning back to Philip. The spotted stallion knew that the princess had a plan, but it didn’t stop him from shaking from the intimidating stare of the alicorn.

Luna softened her glare and smiled at Philip. “Why are you looking so nervous? I thought I told you that I had a plan set up,” she said.

Philip let out a breath of relief. “Forgive me your highness, it’s kind of hard to stay calm after what I did. So what’s going to happen to me now? Am I going to be discharged? Am I being reassigned?”

“No, Princess Celestia decided not to pursue any other criminal charges against you since I exposed Prince Blueblood’s treachery. She still says though that you need to be punished for what you did.”

“Do whatever you need to Princess Luna,” he said in a defeated tone. “I deserve the proper punishment after how I acted in front of you tonight.”

“Philip Brave, you assaulted a member of the royal family and fled the scene to avoid being arrested.” The stallion lowered his head in shame. “However, since you valiantly defended me from his rude actions and helped expose his devious plot, I have something else in mind for you.”

Here it comes...

“We- . . . I mean, I am now making you my personal bodyguard.”

Philip’s jaw nearly dropped as he couldn’t believe what he heard. “Wha . . . what did you say?”

“I said you would be our personal bodyguard,” repeated Luna. “You may not look it, but you’re quite stronger than you think. I believe somepony like you is perfect for being my bodyguard. You think fast on your hooves, like you did at the Sky High ride, and you’re more than capable of putting up a fight.”

“Princess Luna, I mean no offense, but I’m not not sure about this. I don’t want to come off as some brute thug to you.”

“Come now, I’m sure you want to accept this job. Besides, wouldn’t you want to spend more time with your favorite princess Philip? Or should I say . . . Pipsqueak?”

The stallion’s eyes widened as he did a step back. “I-I! How-?”

Luna smirked as she stepped forward to the retreating guard. “I am the Dream Guardian, Pipsqueak. I merely have to go inside a dream to find out who that pony is exactly.”

Pip looked down on the ground, not daring to look at Luna’s eyes.

“Now I wish to know one thing, why lie about your name?”

He looked up and furrowed his brow slightly. “Philip Brave is my real name. Pipsqueak was just a nickname for me because I was the smallest pony in the class at that time.”

Luna nodded as she gazed at his body. “Well you certainly have grown quite a bit in height,” she said plainly.

“I suppose...”

“And looks too...” Luna whispered as she stepped back.

“Beg yer pardon?”

“Never mind!” Luna chimed in and again looked Pipsqueak in the eye. “Just do u-me a favor from his day onwards.”

Pipsqueak turned his head slightly. “What may that be your highness?” he asked Luna and saw a glint in her eyes.

“Be honest with me from this day forward, Pip.”

Pip smiled and nodded his head. “On my word, Princess Luna.”

Luna’s cheeks burned slightly and she cleared her voice a little. “Also, in private, call me Luna.”

It was Pip’s turn to have his face turn red when Luna told him so. He gulped slightly and his lips quivered a little. “Alright, L-Luna...”

Luna smiled softly when he said that and motioned him closer. He etched a little closer to her, to see that he was on par at height as she was.

“Thank you for the wonderful night Pipsqueak,” she said in a gentle voice. “I haven’t had this much fun in a long time. I’m looking forward to spending a little more time with you, Pipsqueak.”

Luna leaned in and gave a small kiss on his right cheek, causing the stallion’s face to blush and his eyes widen. The alicorn giggled a little at his expression and nuzzled his cheek for a couple of seconds.

“How was that for a way to end our night together?” She asked in a bemused voice.

“Duh . . . ugh . . . blargh . . .” Philip tried to say something, but his tongue felt like it was twisted and could only blabber like an idiot. He shut his mouth and tried to hide his blush from Luna.

“We, erm . . . I mean, I think you liked it.” Luna’s horn glowed and the door was unlocked. “Now then, I think it’s time you make your way back to your quarters. Be ready by tomorrow morning as soon as the sun rises, understand?”

Pipsqueak gave a nod and saluted the alicorn.

“Dismissed then, and remember, this whole thing must be kept a secret.”

The stallion gave another nod as he opened the door and walked out of the room. As quickly as Pipsqueak left, the door opened up again a few seconds later. Luna looked up to see Silver Storm, who had a smile on his face.

“I take it things went better than expected?” He asked.

“Oh, you can say that. And I can tell that you once again planned everything thoroughly,” said Luna.

“You can never be too sure your highness. Teal was meant to act as insurance in case anything went wrong. Like, for example, your scream being so loud, it nearly shattered some of our windows here.”

Luna blushed a little and rubbed her head. “I was merely expressing how much I was having fun.”

Silver cocked his brow slightly. “I can see that,” he said as he chuckled. “Also, nicely done with catching Blueblood in his scheme.”

Luna smiled as she walked back to her desk and sat at her seat. “You know how I can’t condone liars, and to think that scum is related-”

“Yes,” Silver chimed in. “Honestly though, I need to give my thanks to Pip for what he did. If I was in his shoes, that prince wouldn’t be considered a stallion anymore.”

Luna grimaced at the images that flashed before her, had Silver been there. “I can imagine so.”

Silver began to walk out of the room. “Well this is where I bid thee good night princess. May you have pleasant dreams and see pleasant dreams of others too... who knows?” He added in and gave Luna a sly look. “Maybe that colt is having a dream of you right now.”

“To you as well Silver,” she said as she went to her bed but stopped midway. “Oh yes!” She said as she walked to Silver. “Teal says he has your pie ready for you.”

Silver rolled his eyes as he laughed. “My hubby knows my favorite..”

Luna grinned. “Well good night, Stormy,” she said as she closed the door.

Silver stood there with a blank look before snorting a little. “Oh Teally, I’m coming for that pie now...”

Luna lay on her bed and with a rather large smile on her muzzle as she looked to the ceiling, recalling every moment of the night.

She began to roll endlessly in a fit of giggles and and she closed her eyes when she stopped rolling. Goodness! What is happening to me?

She focused her mind and magic as she felt a pull and she was back inside the Realm of Dreams. She stood in the hallway of the realm and began looking through each window to find the one she was looking for.

“Here we are...”

Luna stepped in the window and found herself in a clear, grassy hill, with the moon shining down brightly upon the land. She heard some laughter and turned to see both Pipsqueak and another version of herself lying in the field. She ducked below the high grass and crawled over to hear the conversation.

“What a beautiful night sky you made tonight,” said Pipsqueak. “Though it’s not as beautiful as you are.”

Luna blushed and said, “I . . . I’m glad you think so. Although all of Equestria has come to love my nights, hearing you say that sounds wonderful.”

“It’s very true though. Lying next to you and staring at the endless night sky is something I’ve dreamt of doing with you. In fact, it’s something I could do with you for the rest of my life.”

Luna chuckled a little and pecked Pipsqueak on the cheek before they both turned back towards the night sky.

The other Luna, who was blushing from what Pipsqueak said about her, suddenly came up with an idea. She slowly crawled away and left his dream to himself and the imaginary Luna.

I think I have a good idea on what to do now, thought Luna. The old saying goes ‘dreams do come true’. I intend to make that dream come true for you, Pipsqueak.

Blooming Nightmare

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“You made him a what!?”

Princess Celestia shot her sister a glare as they were both eating breakfast the next day. Princess Luna, despite her sometimes coming off as intimidating, even felt a chill shiver down her spine from her sister’s expression. It was rare to see Celestia look really angry, but when she was angry, her glare could make anypony shake in their hooves.

“Sister, you’re not understanding why I did this to him,” she protested. “I know it sounds like I’m rewarding Philip for making him a bodyguard, but I’m not at all.”

“Oh really? So the next time a Royal Guard attacks me or one of the other members of the royal family, then I should make that guard the next Prince of Equestria?”

“Tia! You aren’t listening!”

“I am listening Luna, but you have to understand that this is setting a bad example,” said the white alicorn. “If word of this gets out, Blueblood will never let let you hear the end of it. Not to mention that the other guards will think that there’s something going on between you two.” She narrowed her eyes again. “There is nothing going on between you two, right?”

“N-no, of course not,” said Luna. “But Tia, this truly isn’t what you think it is.”

Celestia let out a deep breath and softened her expression. “Please explain yourself then Luna.”

“I’m sure you remember what happened last night at the Canterlot Carnival.”

“You don’t need to remind me about that. The media has been having a field day over Blueblood’s arrogant act last night. The paparazzi are still outside the castle wanting me to let them see what’s become of Blueblood, but I won’t let them. All I can do is wait for them to leave the castle grounds, which usually takes a week before they move on.”

“Right, well as it turns out, Philip was actually an accomplice in exposing our nephew’s nefarious deed. Although he did attack Blueblood, I’ve been told by several witnesses that he was about to hurt the representative from the Society of Orphaned Foals and Philip intervened.”

“But then why make him a personal bodyguard?”

“Well . . . I was thinking that if I kept him close by and monitored his behavior, I could make him think twice before acting out, especially in front of a princess. Not to mention that he has been placed on probation and will not be allowed to leave the castle for two weeks.”

Celestia simply looked in her sister’s eyes, before closing hers and sighing. “Very well, I’ll let that slide...”

Luna lifted her head slightly and smiled. “Glad that you see reason, dear sister. Now if you excuse me,” Luna said as she finished her breakfast and wiped her muzzle clean. “I need to take my rest, for a princess cannot be exhausted when performing her duties.”

Celestia shook her head slightly before giggling as she rolled her eyes. “That is true... but I can only imagine what a princess must do in the morning...” she muttered to herself as Luna went outside the dining hall towards her chambers. Celestia tapped her chin in thought and scrunched her lips slightly as her mind was going in thought.

She’s hiding something, but what?

Ninety nine!

Pip was in the barracks’ training hall, weightlifting the heaviest weights available. Most Earth ponies were naturally strong, but with added training they gain herculean strength. Pip huffed as he readied himself for the final push, bearing about six hundred pounds of weight.

One hundred!

Pip threw the weights to the ground and got up from the platform, sweating up a storm. He looked back to see the floor dented thanks to the weights and he chuckled to himself as he shook his head and blew the hair away from his eyes.

“Bugger! That’s coming out of my pay!” he cursed to himself as he reached for his towel and began walking to the entrance, stopping only for two more guards, a gray stallion and white stallion, walking in. They saw Pip and whistled.

“You really worked up a storm there, hey soldier?” The one guard asked him.

“More or less...”

The other shrugged and smiled. “From what I hear, he’s gonna need it. Seeing as he is Princess Luna’s new personal bodyguard.”

“Whoa, really?” Asked the guard. “From what I’ve heard, there hasn’t been a personal bodyguard for the princesses since before Princess Luna became Nightmare Moon. Why would she bring back such an old tradition though?”

“It’s hard to say really,” shrugged the other guard. “She’s been acting a little out of it for a while now. And with what Blueblood pulled last night, it’s only getting crazier it seems.”

“So do you know what you have to do Philip?”

“Probably just traditional bodyguard stuff. Protect the princess from danger such as assassins, escort her to safety, and maybe taste her meals to make sure they aren’t poisonous.”

“Do you get to get up to her up and personal?” Asked the gray guard. “Maybe get to be around her in the royal baths?”

“H-hey!” Pip looked down to hide his blush.

“Ooo, it seems somepony likes that idea,” teased the gray stallion. “Didn’t know you had such a dirty mind there Philip!”

“Cut it out already Crossbow,” said the white stallion. “I knew Philip from my days in training camp and he’s nothing like that.”

“Yeah, what Spearhead said is true!” Protested Pipsqueak. “It’s just that . . . that . . .” His mouth clamped shut and immediately went into attention stance.

“What’s with you? Can’t stop thinking of Princess Luna? Man Philip, I really have to . . .”

“Um . . . Crossbow?” Asked Spearhead in a cautious tone. “I really think you better stop now.”

“You too? Geez, what’s with you two all of a sudden? Cat got your tongues?”

“More like alicorn instead,” said a voice.

Crossbow turned around to see, to his horror, a rather angry Princess Luna. “Um . . . hi there your highness,” he said in a shaky voice. “We were just uh . . .”

“I couldn’t help but hear you mention something about Philip peeking at me in the Royal Baths. Do you wish to explain yourself Corporal Crossbow?”

Crossbow was started to sweat profoundly as his eyes dared not look at Luna’s. “Well- Princess... you see, I-”

Princess Luna raised her hoof and grinned slightly, scaring Crossbow for the moment. “Crossbow, maybe you need to get yourself clean. . . so take a bath right now.”

“I beg your pardon Princess?”

Luna levitated a brush with a spray bottle and gave it to Crossbow. “While you're cleaning yourself, go ahead and clean the entire bathroom. All two miles of it,” she ordered him and smirked at his shocked face.

Crossbow held both items he was holding and saw the glare Luna was giving him, he sighed and bowed to Luna. “Yes, your majesty,” he said as she walked out and headed towards his punishment.

She turned to Spearhead. "Guard, leave us now." The white stallion didn't waste a second as he bowed and quickly bolted out the room.

Luna sighed and walked up to Pip, looking intently at his toned legs. She couldn’t help but smile slightly, before shaking her head and removing the grin from her muzzle. “Philip, please escort me. . . once you are done,” she said, seeing the sweat from his body.

Pip quickly wiped himself clean from all the secreted liquid and tossed the towel to the used-towel bin on the other side of the room. “All done, Princess,” he said as he grinned and walked alongside Luna.

Once they were outside the barracks, Pip looked at Luna for a moment and saw her smiling. He arched a brow slightly confused at Luna’s mirth.

“Something happen?”

Luna’s ears perked and she turned to Pip. “I beg your pardon?”

“Why you so happy, Luna?” He asked her softly, looking over his shoulder to see that no other guards, nobles or worse. . . royals were around to hear him use the Princess’ first name.

Luna giggled softly at Pip’s lookout. “Oh Pip, its just good to have my personal bodyguard with me and besides,” she continued as she too looked behind. “Can’t really be careful, what with some guard giving a royal a thorough beating.”

Pip’s head jerked slightly. “Oi! If I was given the chance to relive that moment again, I’d have knocked him out till next Summer.”

“Well let’s not make this a habit, understand?”

“Yes Princess Luna,” said Pip. “So, how did your sister take my ‘punishment’?”

“She managed to take it, but only barely. I would honestly try to watch yourself around me Pip. I have a feeling that this isn’t the last I’ve heard from Princess Celestia about this.”

“So I guess that means no seeing each other for a while, huh?” He asked in a disappointed voice.

Princess Luna stopped and rubbed her chin. “Actually Pip, I think there’s something we can do.”

“Really?” He asked, with his face beaming.

“It depends. Do you want to accompany me somewhere tonight?”

His expression then drooped as a thought hit him. “Gee, I don’t know Luna. The last time we were out, I ended up beating up a royal family member and causing trouble. Maybe we shouldn’t do anything.”

“Who said we were going anywhere that’s crowded?”

“I’m not following you Luna.”

“It’s easy, just meet me near the castle gates after I raise the moon and I’ll take you there.”

“Take me where? Can you tell me please?”

Luna giggled and said, “It’s a surprise. Now come along Pi- um, Philip, it’s time to get to the barracks to help me inspect the Lunar Guards’ barracks.”

Pip was about to say something, but he saw a group of Royal Guards marching nearby and gave a salute. “Yes, your highness.” He quickly followed the blue alicorn into the castle before anypony saw anything strange.

The following night, Pip was standing near a fountain of Luna spraying water out of her mouth, waiting for the alicorn. He didn’t dare make a move since there were many guards patrolling the entryway. He was about to consider moving to another location, but then out of the shadows of a tree, Luna stepped out. Pip couldn’t help but jump in surprise and look a little shaken.

Luna giggled at his antics. “My my Pip, did I scare you that much?”

Pip straightened himself and cleared his throat. “I will admit, just a little,” he said as he walked forward towards her. “By the way, you look beautiful tonight Luna,” he whispered to her.

Luna’s cheeks burned brightly and she looked away from his eyes, smiling coyly. “Stop it will you!” She said she looked up to face his eyes, batting her eyelashes to him.

Pip rolled his eyes as he grinned. “Whatever you say Luna,” he answered her and both began walking to their destination. “So, where exactly have you thought of taking me?” He asked her innocently, noticing her smiling growing.

“Follow me.”

Both of them began to gallop away from the garden and towards the open fields before them.

Celestia was not a happy mare tonight. She waited at the door of the conference room, tapping her hoof impatiently and looking up to the time on a clock before her.

“Where is that sister of mine?!” She muttered to herself and saw her guards looking away from her gaze. She was about to walk towards Luna’s quarters, when she was met with a silver unicorn.

“Princess Celestia, I do apologize for Princess Luna’s absence. . . but a matter of the night court has arisen and she had to take flight immediately,” Silver said profienally, looking straight in Celestia’s eyes and not breaking eye contact with her.

Celestia groaned as she unfurled her feathers in frustration. Oh Luna why now?! She groaned to herself. “Doesn’t she realize how important this meeting is?!”

“I am certain she is aware of the importance of this gathering, your majesty. As her advisor, I have specifically reminded her of tonight’s events,” Silver answer her. “Yet I cannot control, as much as I wish to, certain elements which must be addressed to. . . immediately.”

“She knew about this meeting though. We both need to plan out the financial situation with the regional mayors of Equestria. I know some of them want to try to spend over the budget Luna and I set earlier this year, but we can’t let them do this.”

“Maybe try rescheduling for tomorrow night?”

“This has to be done tonight Silver,” said Celestia as she rubbed her temples. “Some of the mayors have sent me letters saying they need emergency funding for roads, education, and piping projects. Luna and I both need to find a way to resolve these issues without going-”

“Excuse me, Princess Celestia?”

The white alicorn turned to see a white mare with a brown mane and tail in a tight bun and wearing thick frame black glasses.

“What is it, Raven?”

“The mayors are getting restless in the conference room. Mayor Jewel of Trottingham is wondering what’s taking so long and is considering leaving.”

“Can you tell them to hold on a little bit longer?”

“I did that five times your highness, but they are just about at the end of their ropes with waiting for you and Princess Luna. I’m sorry your highness, but we really need to get started now.”

Princess Celestia looked down both sides of the hallway again, hoping to see her sister was just coming up the corridor but to no avail. Letting out a heavy sigh, she gave a nod.

“I understand fully Raven,” she said. “I’ll just have to go at this alone and hope for the best.” She turned to Silver, who was looking a little worried. “As for you Silver, if you do see Princess Luna, tell her that I will want a word with her immediately after this meeting, understand?”

“As you wish, your highness,” he said as he bowed.

Princess Celestia, along with her secretary, Raven, went into the room and the door shut. Silver stood up and could feel a few beads of sweat forming on his head and rubbed them off.

Princess Luna, wherever you are, please hurry back, he thought to himself. I can only hope you are doing something other than hanging around with Pipsqueak.

Princess Luna was in complete halcyon. She sat on the soft grass of a hill looking up high to the stars that painted the night’s sky. She could feel the gentle breeze of the evening flowing through her mane and could smell the fresh grass that lay before her. The sounds of the nocturnal life could be heard as they were giving off their melodious nocturne.

What made this special from any night of stargazing was the stallion that lay next to her, looking up at the stars too with awe and wonder.

“Wow, you really outdone yourself Luna!” He said as he was looking around the sky as though it were a masterpiece come to life.

Luna giggled slightly. “Oh ‘tis was nothing really...”

Pip looked at her as though she had sprouted a second head. “Are you kidding me?!” He asked her rhetorically. “This is far from nothing Luna. Only one mare in the world can do this kind of work, and I’m sitting right next to her.”

Luna smiled demurely and her cheeks turned red. “You are most kind today Pip.”

Pip chuckled as he looked at Luna with a smirk. “Shouldn’t you say, ‘everyday’?” He teased her lightly.

Luna blew a raspberry as she laughed. “Oh my, what a fatal error on my part! What shall I do to redeem myself!?” She shouted out dramatically as she swooned her head.

“Maybe another date will do good?”

Luna pushed Pip softly on his shoulder, realizing too late that he was about to tumble down the hill. She tried to grab him, but then she was caught in his hooves as the tumbled down the hill together. Luna and Pip laughed as they were tumbling further down, until finally they stop. With Pip lying on top of Luna.

Pip breathing became slow as he looked into the teal eyes of Luna. He saw her looking back at him and he laughed softly as he turned his head away. His eyes widened as he felt her soft lips to his cheeks and he turned back to her in surprise. Where once he saw the giddily face of a princess, he now saw the sultry look of Luna.

He smiled softly as he leaned his head towards her, with Luna doing the same. Once his lips connected with hers, he could swear he felt her soul and could see her mind. As the kiss intensified, he felt her hooves circling him in bringing him closer to her. Once they stopped to breath, he looked back into her eyes that were now slightly moist and saw Luna giving off the most beautiful smile he had ever seen. Pip felt her hoof caressing his cheek and he held onto it with his.

“Luna, I love you...” he finally told her, and saw her gasp. “Ever since I saw you as a colt in Ponyville, I never stopped thinking of you. I've dreamed about seeing you again and being around you again. Some ponies may think that you're rather strict, but I know deep down that you're a gentle mare who loves everypony and care for your subjects. You’re graceful, cute, funny, beautiful, and the most wonderful mare I ever saw. Everypony may now love your nights, but I love more than the beauty of the night sky, I love you.”

Luna lips quivered as they smiled towards the stallion that held her heart. She closed her eyes softly as the build up of tears began to leak. She looked back at Pip and brought her muzzle closer to his.

“I love you too...” She gave him another small peck on his lips. “I . . . I have to admit that you weren’t like most stallions I’ve seen. I know other stallions such as nobles had interest in me, but they weren’t anything like you. I still remember how you called me your favorite princess and I was deeply touched by that. No other pony, aside from my sister, has showed me this much love and dedication. You, who willingly defended me when Blueblood and Polished Shield spoke ill about me. You were the first pony to call me a favorite princess, when many consider Tia to be the favorite. You never stopped caring about me, nor stop thinking of me. I only wish I could’ve seen you more before you became a Lunar Guard.”

“Don’t worry Luna, we have all the time now to make up for lost time.” He nuzzled her nose and smiled. “Come on, let’s go for a nice walk and catch up on old times, shall we?” He extended his hoof to her.

The alicorn giggled and took his hoof to stand up. “I would be delighted, Pipsqueak.” Together, the two of them walked off into the meadow and nuzzled against each other.

Nearby though, a small group of tattered black tents were circled around a blazing campfire. Near the fire, a group of ponies were laughing and chattering with each other. A few of them were wearing some various rings and necklaces around each other and passing other jewelry to other ponies.

“So then I said, that’s no bull, that’s my wife!”

The entire group burst into laughter and let the cider they were holding spill a little.

“Cut it out already Funny Pants!” Shouted a mare. “My sides are splitting!”

“I’ll take you to a doctor then for surgery,” he chuckled.

“Hey! What’s with all the laughter here!?” Barked a deep stallion voice.

The entire group went silent as they turned their eyes to a brown Earth pony stallion with a messy yellow mane and was wearing an eyepatch over his left eye. He was also wearing a slick, black pimp hat with a golden feather on it, a black cape, and a necklace around him saying, THE END, in gold.

“Why are you all laughing your flanks off and drinking yourselves silly?”

“Forgive us Brass Hoof, but we were-”

“That’s Boss Brass to you!” Barked the brown stallion.

“Um . . . right Boss Brass, but we were just celebrating the success of gaining more jewelry and bits. We’ll soon be the richest group of thieves in all of Equestria.”

“Well it’s hard to be the richest thieves when I have slackers like you lot laying around! One of our lookouts said they saw two ponies walking nearby and they could be trying to get our loot!”

“I thought we drove off the Badland Devils a month ago. Unless we got other thieves moving in on us.”

“Well you know our saying here,” said Boss Brass. “When somepony comes across the Dead End Gang, they meet the end of their road.” He pulled out a small dagger from under his cape. “Sharpen those blades guys, those ponies are about to reach the end of the road.”

The gang readied their tools for work, and galloped towards their destination, following their leader who was before the band of thieves. They slowed their pace slightly, as they heard the laughter of two ponies.

Brass Hoof lowered himself to the ground and waved his hoof behind his head, seeing the others doing the same. He saw a spotted stallion walking with a mare that looked awfully familiar to him. He squinted his eyes to get a closer look, and his jaw became agape at who the mare was.

Princess Luna?!

He turned to his fellow thieves and pointed his hoof to different locations, with them rushing off to their posts. He looked back at the two and licked his lips

“Let’s have some fun~”

Luna walked alongside Pip in a slow canter as they were both looking at the other with shining eyes. Luna rested her head to his shoulder and felt him nuzzle her head affectionately. She closed her eyes slowly, as she was in peace.

Crack

Luna’s ears perked as she rose her head sharply. She noticed Pip was looking around him to see for anything that was out of the ordinary. Luna sharpened her eyes as she looked to the distance, and saw what made the noise.

“You there! Come before me!” She shouted out the distance, and saw a silhouette of a pony walking towards them.

Brass shook his head as he chuckled. “My my my, the lovely princess is quite sharp to find me sneaking up to her and having a peek at her fine moon~”

Luna’s face flustered as she stomped her hoof to the ground. “The insolence! You dare address your princess in such a manner! Leave now or no mercy shall be displayed!”

“How about you listen to us?”

“Why would I ever want to listen such a group of crude ponies?”

“Now boys!”

Before Luna could react, Pip was tackled by two ponies and dragged away. He struggled to break free, but they only increased their grip and forced him to stand up. One of the ponies pulled out a dagger and held it against his throat, forcing him to stop fighting back.

Luna looked at Boss Brass with a cold glare. “Release him at once! He has done nothing to you!”

“Not yet your highness,” said the leader. “He’s going to be our bargaining chip while we negotiate how much it’ll cost you to have him back.”

“Don’t do it Luna!” Shouted Pip. “I’ll find a way to give these blokes what for and we can both leave!” He was then punched in the stomach by one of the two ponies holding him.

“Best keep that mouth of yours shut, otherwise those will be the last words you ever say,” said the pony with a gruff voice.

Luna looked at the pony holding the dagger to Pip and then to a smug Boss Brass. With a heavy heart, she said, “What . . . what do you want?”

The brown stallion laughed callously. “I knew you would see things my way Princess. Here’s the deal, you go to your castle, pull out one billion bits from the treasury, bring us some new weapons from the armory since our current ones are rusting out, and then we’ll give you back this stallion. And you must do it without alerting the Royal Guard and Princess Celestia. Do we have a deal?”

Princess Luna looked down as she thought about her options. Even though she was an all powerful alicorn, she knew one slip up could cost Pip his life, and she would never forgive herself if that happened. Reluctantly, she knew what had to be done.

“I . . . I . . .”

“Refuse to!”

Luna and Boss Brass turned to see Pip breaking free of the two ponies holding him. He punched the one holding the dagger and grabbed it as it was falling out of his hoof. He pointed the dagger at Boss Brass and quickly threw it at him. Before he could react, the dagger hit him in his left front leg and let out an anguished yell.

“My leg!”

Pip tackled Brass and decided slammed his hoof to Brass’ jaw, feeling his hoof becoming sore from the impact. Pip’s jaw was the next thing to feel pain as Brass fought back and both ponies were soon in a bloody brawl.

Luna readied her magic as she walked towards the two, but suddenly felt pain in her abdomen. She skidded a bit and saw one of the two thieves that Pip had subdued, standing next to her and hitting her hard.

Pip looked up to see Luna was in trouble. He got away from Brass’s hold and tried to make his way to Luna.

“Luna!” Pip shouted out but suddenly his world turned black as he lost consciousness and fell hard to the ground below him.

Brass stood behind him, looking down victoriously to the fallen pony. “That’s what you get for trying to fight me boy!” He shouted out and grabbed hold of Pip’s mane, putting his knife to Pip’s neck and looking up to see Luna staring at the two before her. “Princess, why don’t I just kill your lover colt right here and now?!”

Luna looked up to what Brass was doing and she got the other two thieves’ away from her as she rushed to Pip. “Stop this right now!” She shouted out but Brass just laughed and placed his knife closer to Pip’s neck, that was beginning to seep a few droplets of blood.

Luna froze as she saw Pip’s unconscious form. The other two thieves that slowed her down rushed to their boss and pointed their weapons to Pip, for added insurance. They were snickering at her, seeing how useless she was at that moment.

Luna’s mind became blank, and she clenched her teeth as she glared to the thieves who were oblivious to what was to come. Dark smoke began to emit from Luna’s hooves and slowly crept over her body as though it were forming a shell around her.

“What the hay is happening to her?” Asked one of the thieves to another one that was watching the spectacle. “I’ve never seen her or Celestia do this before.”

“Boss! I think we’ve got a problem here,” warned a mare.

“What could it possibly be?” He demanded. “Princess Luna here surely . . . can’t . . .” He noticed the dark smoke growing around Luna and heard some rumbling thunder. “What in the name of Tartarus?”

“YOU SHAN'T GET AWAY WITH THIS FOUL DEED!” Boomed a voice.

The entire group of thieves jumped and were shivering with fear from the commanding voice. Boss Brass though, played it cool and shrug it off.

“Come on now! What are you all, ponies or mice!?” He barked. “She’s just trying to scare us all with some cheap tricks!”

“Oh really now?” Asked a contorted voice. “Would a cheap trick look like this?”

From out of the smoke, Luna stepped out but she looked radically different. Her entire body was nearly covered in complete blackness, with a couple of spots of her midnight blue coat still showing. Her mane turned a deep dark blue and her eyes changed from blue to cyan and had catlike irises in them. She smiled sinisterly, showing a long row of sharp demonic teeth, at Boss Brass, who was now realizing the severity of the situation.

“You’re acting more like a mouse at the moment,” she said in a mixed voice. “Let me show you what happens when you mess with a nightmare.”

“Boss! What do we do now!?” Asked a thief. “She’s going to kill us all!”

The brown stallion looked around to see the other thieves were petrified with terror and couldn’t move a muscle. “T-try to take her anyway! She can’t take us all down!” He released Pip and charged at her with the dagger.

The gang tried followed their leader’s example and charged at the corrupted Luna with various swords, spears, and daggers. Luna glared and waited for them to come closer until they were within inches of her. Just as Boss Brass was about to stab the alicorn, her horn glowed and a barrier formed around and expanded. The force of the shield pushed the group back and sent them to the ground. As they all got up, they tried to attack again, but noticed they were missing something.

“Hey! Where’s my weapon!?” Shouted Boss Brass.

“Looking for these?”

The gang looked to see Luna levitating not only Brass’ dagger, but she had various swords, spears, and axes in her magical grasp as well. They all saw, to their horror, that she was holding all their weapons and that they were all pointed towards them.

“Let’s get out of here!” Shouted one of the thieves.

Brass nodded furiously and all of them ran to the opposite side. They were nearly out of the area, when all of a sudden smoke appeared before them and Luna was in front of them again.

“You shall not pass...”

Luna’s eyes turned white and lightning struck the the ground near the band of thieves, and she began to laugh maliciously as she lit her horn to emit magic. The magic began to envelop the group, though nothing seemed to happen.

Brass looked down on himself and saw something that made him scream. His hooves began to turn to stone, and the petrification was slowly invading his body. He turned to his comrades, who were also in the process of petrification and they were screaming out to him for help. Brass turned to Luna once more, crying to her and calling her out.

“Please Princess! Don’t do this! We will change our ways! Please!!!!!!!” Brass shouted out at the top of his lungs, and the magic slowly began to fade as he saw Luna closing her eyes. He sighed in relief and smiled softly.

Luna opened her eyes sharply and glared at the helpless thief before her. “I think not!” She told him and the magic intensified, until a bright flash covered the whole area.

When the light dimmed from the flash, there stood statues of screaming thieves with their eyes showing nothing but terror. Luna slowly began to chuckle and laughed hysterically as more lightning shot from the sky. Her horn lit up again and the statues began to levitate in her grasp.

“What say I crack you to ensure that you will never-”

Luna felt the leave her body violently as a pony charged her and held onto her tightly. She looked bewildered with wide eyes at who would dare tackle her. It was Pip that brought her to the ground and held onto her with all his might.

“Luna! Stop this! I’m fine now! Please stop Luna!”

Luna’s dragon like eyes began to round as she started to breath slowly. The armor around her body disappeared as the smoke slowly faded into oblivion. She began to shrink to some degree and her sharp teeth retracted almost instantly.

She let out a breath as though she were holding it in for a few minutes. She looked around her as her head shot to all directions until her eyes fell onto Pip’s. Luna’s eyes watered and she wrapped her hooves around the earth pony and began to cry into his shoulder.

“I’m so glad you’re alright!”

“Shh . . . it’s okay Luna, I’m right here,” said Pip as he nuzzled her. “You don’t have anything to worry about now that I’m here.”

“But I do!” The alicorn sobbed. “I . . . I thought you were dead! I thought I saw you die in front of my eyes!”

“It’s alright Luna, what matters is I’m alive now.”

“But . . . I wasn’t even myself when I attacked those thugs. Everything was such a blur to me, all I heard was the screaming of other ponies and somepony cackling. It wasn’t until I heard you pleading me to stop that everything became clear to me.” She quivered her lips as she looked up to Pip’s eyes, hot tears running rampant from her. “I . . . I nearly killed a bunch of ponies without a second thought!”

“Luna!” Scolded Pip. The alicorn looked at him with tears streaming down her eyes. “Dry those tears Luna. I know you were only trying to save me from those brutes and you shouldn’t blame yourself for acting the way you did.”

“But I-”

“No buts. What happened to you was something you had no idea would happen. But I promise you that from here on out, I will make sure that never happens to you ever again. You have to trust me Luna. After all these years and waiting to meet you again, I would never abandon you, especially when you need somepony like me the most.”

Luna blinked as her eyes became more moist. Her tears were wiped away by Pip’s gentle hooves and she held onto him tighter. She brought her muzzle closer to his until they were only a breath away from each other.

“Thank you so very much...” she said softly as she kissed him.

Pip’s held onto Luna as the kiss went deeper, and for that moment they were in bliss again. The passionate embrace of the two ponies continued for how many moments until they had to disconnect for a breath of fresh air. When he looked back at Luna’s face, he saw her tears drying almost instantly and the sadness was replaced with a soft smile of joy.

Pip stood up from the ground and helped Luna to her hooves and helped dust her off, careful of avoiding her cutie mark and the rest of her flank. She had done the same with her wings, and she laughed slightly at the ticklish feeling she got from it.

Luna looked up to the moon and sighed. “I think it’s time we head on back to the castle...”

Pip nodded as he also looked to the stars. “Yes,” he looked back to the statues. “What should we do with them you think?” He asked curiously as he pointed the the band of thieves in their new prison.

Luna tapped her chin as her lips scrunched in thought. “Well I suppose we could leave them out here till further notice, a reminder to other thieves in this area,” she said as she readied her horn. “For now, let us return,” she said and with a flash, both she and her knight were gone.

A bright flash illuminated the castle corridor for a brief second before fading away. Luna and Pipsqueak both looked around to see there were no guards nearby and let out a sigh of relief.

“Where in the castle are we?” Asked Pip.

Luna looked around and noticed a portrait of her, shortly after being freed from Nightmare Moon, and Celestia hugging each other and smiling. “We’re near the castle’s throne room,” she said. “My sister hangs all her portraits near this room to help new guards figure out they are near where me and my sister are often at.”

“Should we teleport to your room then? Since we’re so close by to where Princess Celestia is, I think it would be best to.”

“It’s not that-”

“PRINCESS LUNA!” Boomed a voice.

The blue alicorn immediately froze and turned to see none other than Celestia glaring at her. It wasn’t the glare though that scared her, it was hearing her own sister use the Royal Canterlot Voice, something she abolished because she found it too intimidating for her subjects. Hearing that commanding voice made her feel petrified and couldn’t find the courage to speak up. She looked over to Pip to see he too was intimidated by the white alicorn’s presence and was visibly shaking in terror.

“WHERE HAVE THOU BEEN!?” She barked. “WE HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU ALL NIGHT FOR THE GATHERING OF THE MAYORS!”

Gathering? Luna pondered what her sister meant for a few seconds before the realization hit her. Her heart sunk and her insides froze up. “Oh my! The meeting!”

“NOW THOU REMEMBERS!?”

“Tia! I . . . I can explain! Just please calm down!”

“EXPLAIN THYSELF THEN!”

Luna sighed as she closed her eyes, opening them up slowing to face her sister. “We received words of a band of thieves who called themselves the Dead End Gang terrorizing ponies in the night, on one of the lesser known roads leading to Manehatten. I wished to see to it personally that they would forfeit such foul acts and come to justice, hence why I brought my personal body guard, Philip Brave along, with me,” she said stoically as she pointed to Pip who nodded in agreement. “Unfortunately, as I tried to negotiate with my guards and Philip here, they refused to see reason and tried to assault me, leading to their...” Luna could not continue as she lowered her gaze and her eyes turned moist as her lips quivered.

Celestia gasped slightly in seeing her sister near tears. She was still bitter about the meeting, but the lives of ponies were of more importance than the financial plannings and over budgeting. Celestia approached her sister and draped a wing over her, drawing her in closer.

“I apologize for shouting out to you like that Luna... I don’t know what came over me,” she said softly as she nuzzled her sister’s head. She let go of her sister and looked sternly into her eyes. “However, the meeting has been postponed for tomorrow night and I must request that you attend this meeting... for this could lead to a financial crises if not dealt with,” she said as she never left her sister’s eyes and saw Luna give a nod. Celestia closed her eyes and nodded too. “I also request that you give me a report on the gang’s wrong doings and of the guards present at their encounter.”

“Yes Sister,” Luna said as she furled her wings and gave a soft yawn. “Forgive us, but tonight has tired us,” she said with her ears drooped and her eyes hooded.

Celestia smiled softly. “Go and rest Luna, I think you need it...” she said as she saw both her sister and Pip walking away. Celestia’s eyes narrowed as her gaze fell upon Pip. Something was etching in her mind and she didn’t like it.

What are you playing at?

Pip looked behind him to see Celestia was no longer in sight and blew out a breath of relief. “Blimey, that was a close one,” he said.

“It was indeed too close for comfort,” said Luna. “I guess I should be thanking those thieves for attacking us, otherwise, I wouldn’t be able to think of that story. Maybe I’ll go back to that field and free them sooner than expected.”

“Luna, what are we going to do about tomorrow though?”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Princess Celestia said that she wanted a report and all the guards who were there when the ‘confrontation’ happened. We can’t forge a report and just ask some guards to testify for us like that.”

The blue alicorn opened her mouth, but immediately shut it. She knew what he was saying was the truth and her story held no water since she had no witnesses and no report. The thought of what Celestia would do to her when she found out she lied to her sent shivers down her spine.

“Princess Luna?” Asked Pip. “Do you have an idea?”

“I . . . I . . . I don’t, I’m sorry,” she said. “I don’t know what we’re going to do Pipsqueak. My sister’s not that easy to fool ever since the Changeling Invasion a decade ago. She’s going to see right through this lie and there’s nothing I can do about it.”

“Throwing in the towel already?” Asked a voice. “Your highness, you know one of the things a royal family member should do is never give up, no matter how hopeless it seems.”

Pip and Luna turned to see Silver Storm standing near a staircase. As he approached them, Luna could tell her advisor looked rather angry and his tidy, combed back mane was now a mess.

“Silver Storm, am I glad to see you,” said Luna. “I could really use your counsel at the moment.”

“Like Princess Celestia needed you tonight?” He asked, sounding a little cold.

Luna’s ears drooped as well as her head. “Silver, we apologize for what me and Pip did, but I forgot about the meeting tonight with the regional mayors.”

“You knew very well about the meeting your highness. I told you about it this morning, then at lunch, and then shortly after dinner. I don’t know what you were thinking tonight, but this is highly unacceptable. You nearly exposed what you were doing and put both you and Pip here in the line of fire.”

Luna’s lowered her head in shame slightly, biting her lower lip as she cursed herself for being foolish. “Forgive us Silver, we were-”

Silver waved his head as he rolled his eyes. “What’s done is done. Now,” he continued as he reached out for a thick report. “This here is the report on you’re encounter with the gang,” he said as he passed it on to Luna. “And signatures of several guards who have sworn to speak as witnesses to your ‘encounter’. It’s amazing how quick you can think when you eavesdrop on a conversation.”

Luna sighed as a smile spread her muzzle. “You are a star Silver, thank you!” She exclaimed in a hush tone, in fear that her sister may be eavesdropping on her and the other two ponies.

Silver nodded, but then grinned maliciously at Luna. “So, tell me...” he leaned his head forward to Luna’s ear. “How was your first time with him?”

The Princess of the Night’s coat would turn red completely if she didn’t shake her head and wings slightly at Silver’s question. “W-I have no idea what you are insinuating Silver!”

“Come now...” he chuckled softly, glancing at Pip who was just standing there oblivious of their topic of talk. “You can’t fool a stallion like me princess . . . I have seen the faces of many who has had their first kiss.”

Luna’s head jerked away from Silver’s and her mouth was agape as she wordlessly spoke and looked to every corner. Pip saw this and walked up to Luna, tapping her once on the shoulder.

“Everything alright Princess?”

The alicorn gave a nod and said, “It is now Pip, we don’t have anything to worry about now.” She levitated the report and showed it to the spotted stallion. “Now all we need to do is play it out and everything will work out.”

“That’s great!” He exclaimed.

“Shhhh!” Hushed both Luna and Silver.

“Um . . . right, sorry.”

“Princess Luna, I’ll go and prepare the guards about what they should say tomorrow morning. But I want you to promise me something in exchange.”

“And what would that be?”

“Don’t ever do something like you pulled tonight, understand?” He demanded. “You had me in a panic after you and Pip here sneaked off without telling me. You have to also be aware that Princess Celestia is getting suspicious and one wrong move could expose you and Pip here. You can’t just sneak off with him whenever you feel like it, you’re a princess after all and you’ve got your duties to attend to. Now then, promise me you and Pip will never pull something like this ever again.”

Luna lowered her head and said, “I understand Silver, I won’t do it again.”

“Good.” He then turned to Pip. “And you?”

“You have my word sir,” he said with a bit of remorse in his voice.

“Glad to hear that. Now then, I think you two better get back to your own quarters. We don’t need Princess Celestia getting more suspicious than she already is.”

“I understand Silver, but first...” She looked around and saw no other guards were nearby. She leaned in and gave Pip a kiss on the lips, making him blush a little as he returned it as well. Just as quickly as the kiss came though, Luna broke the embrace and gave a wink.

“See you tomorrow . . . Pippy.”

The spotted stallion blushed and giggled a little. “Goodnight, Lulu.” With that, he turned around and walked down the corridor until he was out of sight.

Silver let out a bit of a laugh. “Pippy? Lulu? And I thought the nickname Teal gave me was corny and cheesy.”

“Oh hush you,” said Luna. “I actually find it kind of cute.”

“Whatever you say, Lulu,” he said as he chuckled again.

“Nice to see that you’re so amused by this. But in all seriousness Silver, there’s something I need to talk to you about, now.”

Silver immediately stopped chuckling and looked at Luna with a stoic face. “What is it your highness? Is there something else that needs to be arranged for to throw off Celestia?”

“No . . . it’s something far more grave,” she said as she walked passed him. “Not here though, let’s get to my room to discuss this matter more.” Silver gave a nod and followed the blue alicorn to her room.

Celestia sat on her throne and was busy reading through a report that Silver gave her a few hours ago. She sighed as she looked up to the roof and her eyes half hooded from being tired.

The guards all say they were there... but something is off...

A knock on the door brought Celestia’s attention back to other matters, and she cleared her throat. “Come in...”

A white unicorn with a brown mane in a tight bun entered the throne room, walking slowly to Celestia and bowing to her. Celestia smiled softly and lifted her hoof to allow the pony to rise. “Raven, thank you for coming in at this hour of late.”

Raven shook her head and smiled. “Not a problem at all Princess . . . what can I help you with.”

Celestia stood up from her throne and walked towards Raven. “I need you to head on to the head office of the Equestrian Tactical Special Forces...” she said but stopped for a moment as she lowered her head slightly. “and find me Stealth Sneak...”

Raven cocked her eyebrow slightly and looked confused. “Why Princess? What requires his use for-”

“It doesn’t matter,” Celestia cut Raven off and headed back to her throne. “Find him and bring him here at once.”

Raven bowed to the princess and made her way outside, leaving Celestia alone. Celestia got up again and walked towards the window overlooking Canterlot and her eyes looked up to the moon. Her eyes closed slightly before opening them up again, revealing them to be moist.

What are you hiding from me again, Luna?

Revelations

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“You became who!?”

“Not so loud Silver,” whispered Luna. “It’s true though, I . . . I nearly became ‘her’ tonight.”

“My word . . . Princess, what happened out in that field?”

“Well, a group of thieves attacked Pip and myself. We tried to fend them off, but there were too many of them. Pip tried to fight back, but their leader held him and tried to slit his throat. The next thing I knew everything went in a blur for me. Everything became so dark and I could hear a demonic laugh, but I didn’t know what was going on. I was . . . I was . . .”

Luna felt tears form in her eyes and was visibly shaking in paranoid.

Silver went over and hugged Luna. “There, there your highness. It’s all over now.”

“No it’s not,” she whimpered. “Not by a longshot now that she’s stirring inside me again. I . . . I don’t know what to do now. I don’t dare tell my sister about this, otherwise she may banish me again or think of something worse.”

“Calm down your highness,” said Silver. “Your sister would never do that to you again. Not after a thousand years of regret made her think twice before doing that. However, I do think it may be time to tell her the-”

“NO!” She boomed. She took a deep breath and said, “I can’t tell her at all. It would reveal everything going on between me and Pip. She could dishonorably discharge him for this or banish him from Equestria.”

“You can’t ignore something like this though. Who knows what will happen the next time this happens to you. You need to see Princess Celestia about this.”

“That’s not your decision to make!” Luna fumed.

Silver let out a sigh and said, “You’re right . . . but that doesn’t mean I can’t look out for you.”

“Forgive me SIlver, but I must ask you to leave. I must collect my thoughts. I believe a little bit of meditation and bedrest will do wonders for me.”

Seeing no way to continue the conversation, Silver shook his head. “Very well your highness, but please consider my words of wisdom. There’s an old saying to this, ‘Those who fail to learn history are doomed to repeat it’. Please don’t make the same mistakes like last time, otherwise you will end up paying for it.” He didn’t hear a response from the alicorn and saw she was levitating off the ground. He shook his head and walked out the room.

Silver was now sitting in front of fire, drinking a glass of cognac in the dead of night. He stared at the fire for how long, sipping slowly from the glass he was holding with his silver aura. So many thoughts were racing through his mind; of Luna, Pip and most recently Nightmare Moon. He sighed as he was about to take another sip.

“Darling...”

Silver turned his head to see another stallion in the doorway, wearing a purple nightgown. Teal, his husband walked towards him and decided to sit on his lap. Teal held onto Silver and looked into his eyes.

“Sweetie, you’ve been here for how many hours now... aren’t you tired?” Teal asked innocently.

Silver smiled softly at Teal and caressed his chin softly. “It’s just been a long day Teally, what with all the princess’ new-”

Teal lifted his hoof in the air. “Don’t tell, that guard and her had a little fling tonight hey?” Teal asked curiously, leaning his head forward.

Silver shook his head. “They just their first kiss is all,” he said plainly, chuckling slightly hearing his husband give an ‘awww’. “What does bother me though is what happened afterwards...”

Teal cocked his eyebrow and puckered his lips slightly. “What happened? Did somepony see them make out?” He jokingly asked, but stopped laughing when he didn’t hear Silver laugh.

“Something worse...” Silver said, finishing his cognac. “They had an encounter with a thief guild, the Dead End Gang.”

Teal gasped, nearly falling off Silver’s lap but regaining balance just as quickly. “Oh my! That must have been stressful to those two lovers... to have so much stress when in love is just wrong...”

Silver shook his head and chuckled. “True, it’s not healthy,” he said before stopping with his chuckle. “On a more important note... when they encountered them, the gang did something very idiotic... and took the guard as a hostage for the princess.”

“Oh my!”

Silver nodded his head. “And Luna, seeing Pip hurt... she went berserk and...”

“And? What happened?” Teal asked sounding excited.

“ . . . Let’s just say, those thieves had one hay of a nightmare.”

“What do you mean by-” A thought crossed the teal unicorn’s mind and he gasped. “You . . . you don’t mean . . .?”

Silver gave a small nod. “Yes, I’m afraid those idiots somehow caused none other than Nightmare Moon to stir. Now I’m facing a huge dilemma about what to do with her highness.”

“Why not tell Princess Celestia? She could consult Luna about this.”

“Tried that. Luna fears her sister will banish her again, even though I told her that it wouldn’t happen.”

Teal sighed and moved off Silver. “What are you going to do Stormy? If Luna won’t listen to reason, then what can you do?”

“I don’t know, I really wish I could answer that question. But I think there may be a key to stopping this from happening.”

“What is it?”

“Pipsqueak.”

“Pipsqueak? You mean Princess Luna’s new coltfriend? What can he do to help this?”

“He loves Luna more than any other pony in Equestria. And I think he was instrumental in stopping Nightmare from fully taking control of Luna and killing all those petrified thieves. It’s only a theory so far, but it’s the only lead I’ve got to go along with.”

“If that’s the case, then how can you prove it? You can’t just make Princess Luna turn into Nightmare Moon like that. Unless you’re willing to put everypony’s life at risk.”

“I would never do something as ludicrous as that Teal...” Silver said as he looked into his lover’s eyes. “No... I think its best that we leave those two to their new found relationship,” Silver said as he got up from his sofa with Teal doing the same before him. “Right now, I’m tired... I think its best we sleep on this and see what comes tomorrow...”

“Alright Stormy,” Teal said as he gave a kiss to his husband and both went to their bedroom, resting for the night.

A knock on the throne room’s door was heard by the princess of the day.

“Come in...”

The large doors opened and a forest green stallion with lighter green mane walked in casually before he reached Celestia. He stopped for a moment, but he didn’t bow at all. Instead he simply waved at her with a slight smile on his face.

“Hiya Celestia!” He said cheerfully as he grinned at her arched eyebrow. He took a quick look at the guards and chuckled at their mouths being agape. “Guys, if you keep that open long enough... your teeth are going to be missing in the morning...”

The guards clenched their teeth at this stallion’s words, until Celestia cleared her throat. “Guards, please leave us be...”

“But Princess-”

“Now.”

The guards didn’t dare argue against their ruler and promptly left the room to leave Celestia and the mysterious pony alone.

“So how it’s going there Celestia?” Asked the stallion. “Still dealing with those nobles whose noses are so far up in the air, they could be higher than a mountain?”

The white alicorn let out a sigh. “Stealth Sneak . . . I see you still haven’t changed, even after the last discipline hearing last week. If it wasn’t for your skills, you would’ve been fired long ago.”

“Aww come on Cele-”

“Princess Celestia, to you.”

“Oh alright then. Princess Celestia, what’s wrong with living things up at the Equestrian Tactical Special Forces. Do you know how many ponies act so stoic and lifeless in there? It might as well be the Undead Special Forces. I’m just trying to make those ponies stop acting so serious all the time.”

“Stealth, I don’t really have time for this,” said Celestia as she rubbed her head.

“Oooo . . . you look pretty stressed out.” He pulled out a bouquet of colorful tulips from behind his back and handed them to her. “Flowers for the beautiful princess here.” He gave a wink.

Celestia took the flowers and put them aside. “I appreciate this and all Stealth, but you know I didn’t just call you here to see you.”

“Aww . . . I thought you were asking me out on a date or something. That’s too bad.”

“Stealth Sneak!” Scolded the white alicorn. “You’re here because of something I need for you to do! Something involving my sister, Princess Luna!”

Stealth blinked twice before pursing his lips. “If you’re trying to set me up with your sister, I’m not-”

“Don’t!” Celestia’s eyes twitched as she clenched her teeth. “Don’t test my patience! Not now Stealth...”

Stealth sighed and flexed his neck, the sound of bones cracking echoed across the room. “Alright Princess, what’s the deal with Princess Luna?” He asked with his tone deep and his brows furrowed.

Celestia got up from her throne and approached Stealth slowly. “I want you to keep your eyes on her from the moment she wakes up tomorrow... and tell me anything suspicious you see happening with her...”

The green stallion’s eyebrow cocked as he looked to Celestia. “Seriously?”

“I beg your pardon?”

“You want me, to spy and eavesdrop on your little sister...”

“In a manner, yes.”

Stealth rolled his eyes as he groaned. “Celestia, to spy on an enemy and collect information that can save the country is one thing... but to spy on your family just because you never take time to understand them is just looking for trouble...”

Celestia glared at Stealth, but he did not flinch. “Don’t you dare question me! The safety of Equestria may depend on this Stealth!”

“Cryptic as always aren’t you?”

“What do you mean always?”

“You have a tendency to leave out important information about something. Sometimes you even mislead others into thinking something else is going on. There’s no reason you wouldn’t have me spying on your sister unless you suspect something and I want to know your personal reasons.”

“...”

“If the situation is so serious, why don’t you tell me what’s going on then? Why do you think Princess Luna is doing something wrong?”

“I don’t feel I need to explain my reasoning for this,” she responded. “What I will say is that I think my sister may be involved with another pony over something.”

“I’m still not sure about this. I serve both you and your sister and this country faithfully. You’re sounding like your sister is involved with a treasonous act or something.”

“Please Stealth, all I ask is for you to trust me and to carry out these orders. If you don’t see my sister doing something illegal, then I’ll drop the investigation immediately.”

Stealth didn’t say anything for a minute as he gazed out in the distance. He let out a deep breath and said, “Very well . . . but I’m still not comfortable with this whole thing. I’ll only need one day to investigate and I mean only one day. Whether she’s doing something wrong or not, I’ll report to you about it at the end of the day. Do we have a deal?”

“I’ll accept these terms. Just get to work starting tomorrow when she gets up. And one other thing I request.”

“What is it?”

“Keep an eye on her ‘personal’ bodyguard, Philip Brave. Something tells me he’s involved in this in some way.”

The green stallion furrowed his brow. “Hmm . . . a personal bodyguard? I thought that tradition died out centuries ago. Maybe you are onto something your highness. However, this still doesn’t change how I feel about this. Farewell for now Princess Celestia.” His horn lit up and in an instant, his body blended right in with the shadows of the night.

Celestia leaned her head back against her throne and looked out the window to see the moon. Luna, I hope that I’m wrong about you doing something wrong. I don’t want a repeat of what happened a thousand years ago, she thought to herself. She got up a few seconds later and made her way to her own chambers to rest.

Celestia looked across at Luna over breakfast the following morning. The blue alicorn seemed to be showing no signs of any suspicious activity to her as she ate some pancakes, buttered toast, and bananas.

“Tia!” She jumped a little and saw her sister glaring at her. “This is the third time you’ve been staring at us this morning. You haven’t even touched your breakfast yet. What is wrong with you?”

Celesita shuffled her hooves slightly, eyes looking away from Luna’s glare. “Nothing! Nothing at all Luna, why do you ask?!”

Luna simply rolled her eyes and continued with her breakfast. “Never mind!” She muttered as she looked down on her food and finished it within moments. Luna got up from the table and walked to the door. “We bid thee good day Tia,” she said as she looked back to her sister still sitting, not having touched her breakfast at all. “Come, Philip,” she ordered Pip to walk beside her, failing to hide a smile that was visible for a second from Celestia’s eyes.

Once they left, Stealth came out of hiding and walked to where Celestia was sitting. “Well now, that is pretty obvious if you ask me...”

Celestia looked at Stealth annoyed, “Not to me it isn’t, you still have a job to do remember?”

“You got it Tia,” he said as he teleported away.

Celestia clenched her teeth as she glared to the empty space where Stealth was. She sighed as he closed her eyes, breathing slowly for a few moments before resuming to her breakfast. When she took a bite of it, she paused for second before swallowing it hard. She looked down and sighed again.

“Why is it so cold now?”

“So what are we going to do Lulu?” Asked Pip. “I don’t think it’s a good idea to sneak out of the castle again, especially after last night. And we can’t really find a room in the castle to be alone in. Maybe we should stop this for a while until things cool down.”

“That’s true Pippy, we need our own place within this castle. A place where nopony, not even my sister, can find us. Something like a sanctuary...” An idea clicked inside Luna’s head and she let out a gasp. “I’ve got the solution!”

“What is it?”

“No time to explain,” Luna whispered as she looked around the castle. “Quickly, follow me to the northern section of the castle’s first floor. I’ll explain more when we get there.”

Luna took off with Pip following behind her as they both headed for their destination. As soon as they were out of sight, Stealth Sneak’s horn stopped glowing and his cloaking field went down.

“Hmm . . . where could this all be going?” He wondered. “Guess there’s only one way to find out.” His horn lit up again and he disappeared.

“Luna, slow down please!” Shouted Pip. “I may be a strong Earth pony, but I’m not as fast as an alicorn!”

“Don’t worry Pip, we’re here now,” she said as she slowed to a stop. She pointed a hoof upward. “What do you think of this?”

The spotted stallion looked up to see a white marble statue of an aged unicorn with a long white beard and wearing a magician’s cape and hat with stars and moons on it. He was holding up a staff with his hoof and pointing it. Pip recognized him as Starswirl the Bearded.

“Luna, no offense or anything, but why show me a statue of Starswirl?” He asked. “How’s this going to help us?”

“Ah, maybe I should show you what’s behind this picture,” said Luna with a wink. She looked around to make sure the coast was clear before her horn glowed and the statue slowly moved out of the way. As the monument moved, Pip looked down to see a big hole in the ground, enough to fit him and Luna.

The blue alicorn stepped near the hole and giggled at Pip’s awestruck expression. “Shall we, Pippy?” She asked.

“Um . . . where is this path going?”

“You’ll have to wait and see. I promise though, this will all be worth it in the end.” She hopped down into the hole and her horn lit up. “Come along Pip, before somepony finds us.”

Pip heard some hoofsteps coming down the hall. He gave a nod and quickly jumped into the hole with Luna. The alicorn used her magic to move the statue back, but before it was fully closed, Stealth quickly jumped in, but accidentally caused some pebbles to fall down the slope.

“What was that?” Asked Pip.

Stealth held his breath as he prayed he wouldn’t be found out.

Luna turned around and uses her magic to sense any breathing. She stopped and shrugged it off. “Must have been this passage, hasn’t been used in a while. Come along...” she told Pip and both he and Luna walked onwards.

Stealth breathed out slowly and used his magic again to blend in with the surroundings. The princesses never told any pony of this place... He followed the duo further down the passage, staying close to the walls.

Pip was behind Luna the whole way. The only thing he could see was the view of her flank waving with each step. His eyes fell onto them on more than one occasion. Pip smiled slightly before shaking his head and slapping sense into himself.

Don’t be a daft prick now Pip! He thought to himself as his eyes went to Luna’s head.

“Lulu, how far do you we still have to go?” He asked her, seeing her turn her head to have her eyes face his.

“We should be there now Pippy,” she answered with a smile and turned back to face forward.

“Alright.”

Luna was smiling broadly when she finally saw light and decided to trot faster to their destination. The light grew brighter, and sound of leaves brushing could be heard from the exit.

“Close your eyes Pippy.”

Pip did just that, and could feel the light beaming on his face as they came closer to the exit. He could tell he was outside when he felt a breeze blowing against his face.

“Open your eyes now, please.”

He opened them and was instantly mesmerized by what he saw. He was standing, along with Luna, in the middle of a grassy field, with a couple of shady trees nearby to provide some relief to the summer air. Pip heard water rushing and turned to see a small river was running down nearby and felt a cool breeze against his face as it blew by.

“Blimey . . . it’s beautiful Luna,” he said with a smile. “When did you have time to find something like this?”

“Quite simple actually. Shortly after I returned from banishment, I did some flying around to stretch my wings out and survey the land. I grew tired one night and landed in this field to relax. The sound of the animals, the river running, and the wind blowing made me feel at peace here. Because there were so many guards around the castle and watching the skies, I couldn’t just fly there overnight.”

“So did you dig this tunnel then?”

“You’re somewhat correct Pip. It turns out that cave over there was partially collapsed, but what it was originally for is something I have no idea. I saw the castle in the distance and figured I could build a tunnel to this place in case I wanted to get away. It took some careful planning and trial and error, but I finally managed to rebuild the cave and use the Starswirl the Bearded statue as a means of covering the hole.”

“What if somepony moves it and finds it though?”

“Don’t worry, that section of the castle is always quiet and nopony really uses it at all.”

“So what did you bring me here for Luna? It’s not like there’s much to do around here at all.”

“Well, I was thinking that we could talk to each other,” she said. “In all this time of meeting up with you, I don’t really know much about you, aside from serving on the C.S.E. Lunar Eclipse as a navigator.” She walked a little bit to a patch of grass and sat down. “Go ahead and sit down Pippy, I’d love to hear why you joined the Lunar Guard.”

Pip gave a nod and sat down next to Luna, who put a wing around his body and nuzzled him. “So . . . where do you want me to begin? Like what happened to me in my time in Ponyville?”

“I would prefer to hear about how you joined the Lunar Guard, what prompted you to join please.”

“Well I guess it started when I was still a little colt, a month before moving to Ponyville,” he said. “My mum was a brilliant chef and I had a little brother named Featherweight, who later went into being a big time journalist. The one pony I looked up to the most though was my dad, who was continuing the tradition of the Brave family being in the military.”

“My word, I had no idea your family had such a strong tradition. Which branch of the Guard was your father in? Solar or Lunar?”

“He was a member of the Solar Guard and worked as a Master Sergeant at a boot camp. He may have been tough on all the recruits, but he was a caring father to all of us. I looked up to him and saw how brave he was and I wanted to be like him... Until that night.”

Luna gulped as some sweat was on her forehead. “That night?”

Pip’s eyes gazed downwards as he sighed. “My family was out at our local restaurant, The Lucky Clover... was owned by Lucky Mccloud, but it closed down a year ago... anyways,” Pip cleared his throat and looked up the sky

. “As we walked home, some petty thief thought he’d try his luck and rob us and maybe get into my mum’s knickers. Dad was not up for that, fought back... but,” Pip paused as some tears were building up in his eyes.

“Pip?”

Pip closed his eyes, and the tears ran down his cheeks. “That bastard got a lucky strike at my dad’s heart. He ran off with our goods, but that didn’t matter to us,” Pip whispered softly as he looked down. “That night was the night when I lost my father.”

Luna gasped as she placed a hoof to her mouth, her own eyes becoming watery. “Pip... I’m so sorry...”

The stallion shook his head and looked to Luna with a gentle smile. “It’s not your fault,” he said to her as he gave her quick peck on the lips. “After that, I decided to become a Lunar Guard. Because there weren’t that many guards in the night protecting the streets when innocents were with their families or rotten ponies were out grabbing some poor sod’s well earn money,” he said to Luna and looked her in the eyes. “When I heard of your return, I was amazed that there was actually a princess to the night.”

“Really?”

Pip nodded his head answering Luna. “To be honest, I wanted to know why your sister wiped you out of the history books? I mean, what kind of sister does that?”

“Well . . . we all know what happened over a thousand years ago. I found out my sister removed me from history for a reason.”

“What reason is that?”

“Tia told me that shortly after I was banished to the moon, some historians weren’t too kind to my plight. Many historians called me a monster who was selfish and cruel to my sister and others called me the ‘Greatest traitor in Equestrian history’. My sister was so shocked by this, she gathered those historians responsible and banished them out of Equestria. After that, she ordered that I be written out of history to prevent further slang against me like that.”

“. . . Whoa, that’s sad to hear that so many ponies acted like that to you. I understand why Princess Celestia acted this way, but to remove you from history is something worse than death in my opinion.”

“Well to me, I find it much better to be written out of history than be seen as a monster by everypony. So you can say this is a mixed blessing...”

“At least The Winter Moon Celebration hasn’t been cut out of the books, though to be honest,” Pip said as he nuzzled Luna. “Having you raise the moon during that time, really brings out the beauty in you...”

Luna giggled and kissed Pip softly. “You are such a charmer. But enough talking about my past Pip, tell me more about your adventures on the Lunar Eclipse. I’ve heard quite a few tales of it in the last war.”

“Ah yes, I remember my days on that ship before it was decommissioned,” said the spotted stallion. “As you know, I was a navigator on the ship and was in charge of plotting the ship’s route. It was a bit boring at first, but I soon found myself, along with the rest of Equestria, in a war against the Diamond Dog Consortium.”

“Who knew a group of gem greedy dogs could be so ambitious as to try to conquer Equestria?” Pondered Luna. “It’s amazing that they declared war on us, much less fight for nine months before it ended.”

“Ay, they may not have been the smartest lot in the world, but they were still tough enough to put up a fight. I remember the battles the Lunar Eclipse was in such as the battle for Manehatten, the siege against Dodge City, and, of course, the Conquering of Diamond City, the capital of the Consortium. Although the Lunar Eclipse suffered major damage at the last battle, it served me and the rest of the crew well. It’s a shame that after it was repaired, it only stayed in service for six months.”

“‘Tis true Pippy,” said Luna. “But one thing I still have to ask is this. Why did you decide to join a part of my guard? I thought they would’ve put you on another ship after the Lunar Eclipse was decommissioned.”

“Well since the war was over, most guards were reassigned to new duties instead,” he said. “I requested that I be placed on the Lunar Royal Guard and I was accepted. And the rest is history.”

“I have to say Pip, you certainly are quite the brave pony and I think-”

Snap

“What was that?!” Luna stood up and looked to where the sound was. “Is somepony there?! Show yourself!” She commanded but was met with silence. Her horn burnt brightly as she focused her magic. “I’m warning you, who-”

The sound of a roar was heard and Luna looked to her side to see a giant manticore there, ready to attack the two ponies before it. “You fiend! You dare attack us?!”

The manticore charged to Luna, who was ready to strike back. Before the manticore could maul at the princess, two hooves met the manticore’s face and the beast staggered backwards.

Pip was standing before Luna, sword in his mouth and glaring daggers at the manticore before him. “You messed with the wrong princess tonight puss!”

The manticore shook its head and roared at Pip. When the manticore’s claw was near, Pip sliced the paw of and a scream of pain and anguish came from the beast.

“Had enough yet?!”

The beast roared again in anger and he glared at Pip. He leaped forward and tackled the spotted stallion to the ground. He struggled to fight off the manticore, who was slashing his claws frantically. He could barely see Luna out of the corner of his eye and saw she was horrified and unable to move in fear. Remembering what happened the last time that he was nearly killed and how his marefriend acted, Pip scrunched his hind legs and delivered a powerful buck to the manticore’s stomach.

He was sent flying back for a few seconds before landing back on the ground. The beast slowly got up and let out another deafening roar as he charged towards Pip once more. The spotted stallion was ready this time for the attack as he leaned down a little. The closer the manticore came, the more Pip waited to act.

“Watch out Pip!” Warned Luna. “Get out of the way!”

“Now!” He shouted as the manticore was within inches of him.

He jumped to the side and missed the wild beast. The manticore suddenly saw a huge, thick tree that he was charging to and panicked. He tried to stop, but before he could skid to a stop, he crashed his head into the tree, with a sickening CRACK along with it. The manticore’s body went completely limp and was motionless.

Pip waited a minute before going to inspect the aftermath of the battle. He saw that the manticore’s head smashed through the tree and was bloodied and covered in splinters. He went to go see if the beast was breathing, but he heard a moan emitting from him.

The spotted stallion backed off and turned to Luna. “I think we better clear out before he wakes up,” he warned. “Manticores are notoriously known for being quite strong and have very short tempers. Needless to say, I don’t think we want to be here when it wakes up from its beauty sleep.”

“But it’s stuck in a tree,” said Luna. “Surely we can’t just leave it here like this.”

“Like I said, manticores are notoriously known for being quite strong. He may struggle a little bit, but he’ll turn that tree to toothpicks in a matter of minutes after he wakes up. Now come on.”

“Hold on, before you go, I need to say something.”

“What is it?”

Pip’s question was immediately answered with Luna leaning in and kissing him on the lips. His shock quickly died out as he returned the kiss as well and caressed her face. Luna broke the kiss a couple of seconds later as she gave Pip a sultry look.

“Thank you, for saving me again,” she said. “You’re the best knight a princess could ask for.”

Pip blushed and said, “Anything for a princess as beautiful as you.” He gave a small peck on the cheek. “Now come on, I think we’ve done enough relaxing today.” Luna gave another nod and they both went into the cave.

From behind one of the trees, Stealth Sneaks’ cloaking field went down and had a glare on his face. “Hmph, I was hoping for some more action and for things to get a little heated,” he said. He heard a low growl and saw the manticore was starting to stir. “Then again, methinks it’s time to report to Princess Celestia about this. I better pull out my earplugs though just in case she screams in anger over this.” He hurried to the cave and quickly followed Pip and Luna back to the castle.

Pip and Luna now walked the hallways of the castle towards Luna’s chambers. Both of them looked at each other with loving eyes. Luna leaned in on Pip’s shoulder and Pip nuzzled Luna. They looked into each others eyes and both of their lips connected.

When Pip let go of Luna’s lips, he saw a small trail of tear escaping her eye along with a fragile smile. “I love you, Lulu...”

Luna blinked her tear away and brought her hoof to Pip’s chin. “I love you too, Pippy...” she replied and gave him another fond kiss. The kiss ended when both ponies heard the sound of hooves clopping approach them. Both were now acting professionally as they walked on, but sighed when they saw who it was that greeted them.

“Ah! Silver... what news do you bring?” Luna asked him as she smiled broadly at her advisor.

Silver chuckled as he shook his head, walking closer to the pair. “Nothing at the moment, but it seems that you two have some news for moi?” He said as he looked to the blushing ponies.

Luna nuzzled Pip and giggled at Silver’s sly smile. “Just having a moment with my special somepony, something you are accustomed with I am sure?”

“Indeed...” Silver remarked before clearing his throat. “But now, we must return to your chambers...”

“We were just planning that... care to join?”

“Delighted.”

The three ponies trotted to Luna’s chambers and opened the door, revealing nothing but pitch blackness.

“Hmm . . . that’s quite strange,” said Luna as they all walked in the room. “Silver, did you close my curtains while Pippy and I were out?”

“No, in fact I’ve been busy all day with paperwork and other duties,” he responded. “Maybe the royal maids did this to keep the heat out of your room.”

SLAM! The door closed behind them, causing the group to jump a little.

“What . . . what just happened?” Pondered Pip. “Did you do that Luna?”

“No . . . I did,” said a voice.

The curtains opened up to reveal an infuriated Princess Celestia, with a rather shy Stealth Sneak next to her.

“Um . . . sis-sister!” Said Luna in a nervous tone. “W-what a surprise! What brings you to my chambers unannounced?”

“I’m here to check on you and . . . Pippy, as you call him,” she said coldly.

Luna’s insides froze and she could feel some sweat starting to form on her head. “Um . . . I decided to give my guards new nicknames?” She said, trying to sound innocent.

“More like a nickname for somepony that you kissed.”

“Princess Celestia, I think that-”

“Silence, Silver Storm,” she scolded. “It seems you're just as guilty of this as well and you’ll be dealt with later.”

“But . . . but how?” Asked Pip. “I mean um . . . how did you come to that conclusion?”

“Let’s just say that I had a careful eye on you.” She pointed her hoof to Stealth Sneak.

“I’m sorry Princess Luna,” he said. “Your sister grew worried about you and wanted me to spy on you. I didn’t want to do it, but I didn’t want her to get paranoid over your safety.” He turned to the white alicorn. “Please Princess Celestia, don’t be too hard on all of them. They didn’t do anything wrong illegal or break the law. They were just-”

“That’s enough out of you Stealth Sneak,” she said. “You did your job and I thank you for it.”

“Princess-”

“Enough!” Celestia shouted at Stealth and turned to Pip, who was standing still in place there. The funny thing was he was not shivering in fear, he was simply standing there with his brow furrowed at Celestia. “Do you have anything to say guard?”

Pip walked forward, but did not bow. “I don’t have to say anything, since I haven’t done any wrong nor has Luna,” he said plainly to Celestia.

Celestia eyes widened at the guard before her, standing up to her. “What did you just-”

“Are yer deaf or daft? You heard what I said.. this is utter bollocks what yer doing now.” Luna, Silver and Stealth gasped as Pip said those words. “First of all, Luna can do things on her own without yer permission... Last time I checked your not the Supreme Empress of Equestria, you’re the Co-Ruler of Equestria alongside Luna who,”

“Why of all the-”

“I. am. not. finished.” Pip spelt out those words to Celestia, who could only stare in awe at Pip. “Plus I don’t find it very kind of you to have one of the best spies to sneak up on Luna and I, when you could simply ask her what is going on... or haven’t you learned in last millennium?”

Celestia stood there, closed her eyes and opened them up slowly. She glared at the guard before her and with her lips quivering slightly as they became contorted she stepped slowly to him. “Just who do you think you are?”

“My name is Philip Brave, but ponies close to me call me Pip and I am-”

“He’s my special somepony Tia.”

Celestia turned to Luna who walked up next to Pip and draped a wing over the stallion, drawing in closer to him. “Luna, not now. I am-”

“Tia just shut up for once!”

The white alicorn looked at her sister with a mixture of shock and anger on her. “What did you just say?”

“I said for you to shut up!” She shouted. “Pip here has done nothing wrong at all and neither have I. He actually loves and cares for me and protects me from those who harm me. All I wanted was to have a special somepony and I never told you about it because of the last stallion I dated, you drove him off!”

“Luna, you’re not-”

“Listening? I don’t think it’s you who’s listening Tia! Pip and I have had so many good times together and we love one another. He makes me feel happier than I’ve ever been my whole life. And here you are once again trying to ruin my chances with a special somepony! Tell me sister, if I’m supposed to be your sister and friend, then why can’t you be happy for me? Pip here is a fine gentlecolt who’s done everything in his power to protect me!”

“If you would calm down and stop acting irrational, then maybe I can talk some sense into you.”

“I think it’s you who’s acting irrational Tia!” Scolded Luna. “Pippy here was right! You truly haven’t learned anything in the last millennium! You’re acting just like what happened to me before I became . . . her. You have no right to act this way towards me, Silver, or Pip here. I love him with all my heart and I’d rather be killed by you before I give him up to you!”

“Luna...”

The blue alicorn turned around and said, “I think this conversation is finished sister. I want you to leave this instant and leave me and Pippy alone. And be warned, if I hear something happened to Pip by your hoof, then I can assure you that you’ll be dealing with somepony far, far worse than Nightmare Moon, Discord, and Queen Chrysalis combined together. Do I make myself clear?”

Celestia tried to say something, but felt somepony tug her hoof. She looked down to see Stealth Sneak shaking his head.

“I think it’s best we let her cool off,” he said. “We better not provoke her any further your highness.”

Celestia hesitated for a moment before giving a small nod. “Very well . . . but he will come with us.” She pointed a hoof at Silver Storm.

Silver simply bowed and walked up to Luna and Pip. “Pip, take care of Luna... she needs you more than ever now,” he whispered to the two of them and walked out with Celestia and Stealth. Before the door closed, he was seen smiling at the pair of lovers.

Once the door was closed, Luna and Pip sighed. Luna leaned into Pip and nuzzled him. “You are a crazy stallion, for standing up to my sister like that,” she said softly and folded her wings over him, bringing him in closer to her.

“Well... it was high time somepony put her in her place. Honestly, she can’t just act like everything has to be her way,”

Luna nodded and looked down. “You know, I thought I was going to lose you there. I was really scared Pippy. I still am..”

Pip lifted Luna’s chin to face his eyes. “You don’t have to be scared anymore, I won’t let anypony hurt you. Not even Celestia...”

Luna blinked and a few drops of tears escaped her eyes. “But what if-”

“Even if a pony hurts you, they will answer to me. Even if I somehow get separated from you, I will find you again... and you know why?” He asked her rhetorically, bringing his head closer to hers. “Because I love you and I have given you my heart, just as you have given yours to me,” he said to her with a soft smile.

Luna smiled broadly as she began to cry more tears of happiness. “Pip...” she couldn’t finish the rest as her lips were met with his. She melted into the kiss, intensifying it as she wrapped her hooves around his neck. Luna released Pip from her hold and dragged him off to her bed. Pip lay next to Luna and closed his foreleg around her, bringing her in closer. He was the first to succumb to sleep. Luna lay there thinking of Silver and of Pip, though a feeling inside her made her feel safe with the stallion holding her close like this.

Celestia looked down on Silver with narrowed eyes. “Silver Storm...” she spoke to the Silver stallion, her voice carrying none of its caring side.

“Yes Princess Celestia?”

“For conspiracy against the crown and for treason, I am sending you down to the brig for two weeks with visiting hours included.”

Stealth, who had been at Celestia’s side, looked shocked and slightly angry at Celestia. “Now just wait a minute here, your highness. He is not guilty of conspiring with the enemy nor any act of treason towards you or Princess Luna! Just because your sister is out dating-”

“Enough!”

“You know your highness, in all my years of serving you and your sister, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you act this way before,” said Silver.

“What are you getting at?”

“Your sister only wanted love from somepony and to be loved back. Is that so bad?”

“Silver, you’re not being-”

“I think you need to open your eyes Princess Celestia. Your sister is more than capable of making her own decisions and she’s very happy for once. Yet you’re here acting like judge, jury, and executioner about her and Pip’s relationship. Your sister deserves to be happy, not be treated coldly like how you treated her a millenium ago.”

Celestia’s eyes narrowed and her teeth gritted. “You will be silent at once!” She scolded. “Since you seem to not be grateful for my ‘generous’ sentence, I will extend the sentence to two months behind bars. Any further outbursts and I will extend the sentence even higher.”

Silver lowered his head and shook it. “Very well your highness.” He turned to the guards who were standing besides him. “I guess I’ll go start my sentence. Please let Teally know that I will see him soon and to please don’t overreact to this.”

“Very well then,” she said. “Any last words before you leave?”

Silver pondered for a moment before saying, “Yes . . . ‘Those who fail to learn history are doomed to repeat it’.

“What do you mean by that?”

“You haven’t learned anything at all your highness,” responded Silver. “You’re turning a blind eye to your sister’s plight again and not listening to her. You’re dooming yourself to repeat what happened a thousand years ago. You can extend my sentence all you want, but the way you’re acting is causing the same events to unfurl again. I only hope you realize your blunder before it’s too late.” He lowered his head and turned around.

“Shall we take him away your highness?” Asked a guard.

Celestia gave a small nod. “You may do so,” she responded. The guards bowed to her and led Silver out of the room, until the doors closed with a loud BANG.

The white alicorn leaned back and rubbed her head in exhaustion. “It’s all for the best . . . “ she told herself. “My sister needs to realize we aren’t normal ponies. If she continues to date Pip, then there will be dire consequences in the future.”

“You haven’t learned anything at all your highness,” Silver’s voice echoed in her head.

Celestia shook her head and said, “You’re wrong Silver, I have learned from the past. I’m not going to let her relationship with Pip cause her to turn into her again. She may not know it now, but if Luna dates Pip, then she’s only delaying the inevitable about what happens to normal ponies. I must stop this before it gets even more out of control.” She got up to walk out of the throne room.

She turned to Stealth and said, “Are you coming Stealth? I think the E.T.S.F. will be expecting a report from you soon about your actions. I’ll be sure to let them know you did a brilliant job in this mission.”

Stealth did not look at Celestia, only to where to door where he walked to.

“Stealth?”

Stealth stopped in his tracks. “Princess,” he said and slowly turned to Celestia, giving her a menacing glare accompanied by a deep scowl. “Don’t talk to me right now,” he said plainly to her and opened the door, banging it close when he left.

Celestia stood there shocked and baffled by Stealth’s actions. She blinked and looked out to the moon, not tearing her gaze from it. “I am doing the right thing, aren’t I?”

Stealth stomped towards his room and entered it, closing it with another bang. “Holy Equestria! I know she is a princess, but buck she’s so blind!” He said to himself and made his way to the table, taking out a quill and scroll. He began writing on it furiously, finishing it within a minute. Stealth went to his window and channeled his magic, making himself disappear. He appeared before the postal station, ‘The Royal Mail’ and dropped his letter into one of the postal boxes. He walked away from it before teleporting back to his room again. “I just hope that letter gets in time to you, Princess Twilight.”

Breakdown

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The following morning in Canterlot Castle, there was a feeling of tension throughout the large dwelling. Despite no other pony being there last night, word of what happened between Celestia and Luna was leaked out and spread like wildfire throughout the castle. Guards suddenly found themselves keeping their distance from both princesses in fear they may snap. It wasn’t helped with the fact that Luna ordered her own guards to not allow Princess Celestia or any of her guards or advisors into her section of the castle. To everyone not involved in this dispute, it felt like a civil war was on the horizon.

Princess Celestia was sitting on her throne and looking out a window to see her sister’s tower in the distance. She let out a sigh and shook her head as last night’s events played through her head again. The sound of the doors opening caught the white alicorn’s attention amd looked to see a white stallion in traditional golden armor.

“Any luck yet on the negotiations sergeant?” She asked

The guard shook his head. “No your highness, we’ve tried to talk to Princess Luna into a peace talk, but she claims that you only want to take away her coltfriend. She’s placed guards now at every entrance leading to her side of the castle and refuses to allow you or any pony under your command through.”

Princess Celestia lowered her head in shame. “Thank you for trying sergeant. Return to your post until I come up with another idea to calm my sister down. And make sure none of this is leaked to the media. The last thing I need is for another large group of the paparazzi swarming the castle.” The guard gave a salute before turning around and walking out the doors. As soon as she heard them close, Celestia groaned and rubbed her temples. “Luna, I know you think I’m being the villain here, but you haven’t given me a chance to explain myself.”

“I think she has every reason to believe you’re the villain.”

The white alicorn jumped a little and looked around. “Who’s there?”

Suddenly, Stealth Sneak appeared right in front of her as her materialized and let his field down. “You’re looking quite grim this morning Celestia. Where’s that beautiful smile of yours today?”

“Do you enjoy trying to scare ponies like that Stealth Sneak?” Asked Celestia as she furrowed her brows. “And more importantly, what are you still doing here? Your task has already been completed and you’re free to go.”

“First of all, I only like to do that trick on Nightmare Night,” he said with a coy smile. “Secondly, I figured since this is all going on, I’d stick around and try to help patch things up since I’m part of the reason this happened.”

“You only did what I ordered you to do, and it was the right thing-”

“It wasn’t the right thing!” Stealth shouted out to Celestia, seeing her jump in her throne slightly as he teleported to her side. “You had no right to invade on Luna’s privacy like that, using me of all ponies because you’re too cowardly to ask her about her personal life.”

“Wha-”

“I’m not done,” Stealth chimed in and teleported again to her other side. “Celestia, you fail to see the obvious and you fail to act responsibly. You’re repeating past events that should not be repeated at all... haven’t you learned anything?”

Celestia got up from her throne and turned to Stealth. “I have learned that I shouldn’t act too late and that my sister needs to be safe at all costs,”

Stealth furrowed his brow and shook his head. “Even if it means ridding her of her happiness?”

Celestia stomped her hoof and grinded her teeth at the stallion, who did not flinch. “My sister happiness means everything to me, Stealth!”

Stealth huffed and rolled his eyes as he walked away. “With what you are doing now, I seriously doubt that...” he said as he slowly turned his head around. “I just hope that when you realize this is a big mistake, it won’t be too late.” he said and vanished from Celestia’s sight.

Celestia stood there and looked down to the ground and saw the dent that was made from her burst of anger. She sighed and made her way back to her throne, flopping down on it as she sighed.

“What would he know about me?” She asked herself, not receiving an answer. She looked up again to the tower where Luna was and shook her head.

“This can’t go on for much longer Luna.”

Celestia closed her eyes as she rubbed her forehead and started seeing images of her sister happy with the stallion, slowly turning into the abomination that would be known as Nightmare Moon. The same abomination that was exiled for a thousand years, along with Luna. How those thousand years were the loneliest for both of them and how it took her former student to rectify Celestia’s mistake.

Celestia’s eyes shot open as she furrowed her brow and narrowed her eyes. She sharply got up from her throne and made her way outside.

The white alicorn walked around the castle garden and looked around desperately for any sign of her sister or Pipsqueak. The only thing she saw though were the occasional guard passing, and bowing before their co-ruler before moving on, some trimmed hedges, a couple of statues of famous ponies, and flower beds that went on for what seemed to be forever. With no sign of her sister or Pip in sight, Celestia sighed in defeat as she prepared to go search elsewhere on the castle’s grounds.

“Shh! Be quiet Pippy,” a voice said.

Celestia’s ears perked up as she recognized her sister’s voice. She turned to where the sound was coming from and saw something that made her shiver a little, the Royal Maze. She remembered how Discord tricked her faithful student Twilight and her friends and nearly destroyed their friendship with one another. Although she knows he’s reformed and has been living in his own castle on an island, Celestia still feels a little pain from that experience.

She heard hoofsteps nearby and figured it had to be her sister and Pip. Here goes nothing, she thought to herself. She took off into the air and flew over the tall hedge.

“Blimey, I didn’t think the Royal Maze was this complex,” said Pip with awe. “Are you sure this is the right way to the fountain?”

“I’m positive Pip,” responded Luna. “I’d say we are-” She suddenly noticed a shadow was cast over her and looked up to see a pony. “Going to be a little late,” she spat at the sight of the pony.

Celestia landed in front of her sister and Pip. The spotted stallion got in front of Luna to block anything her sister may have in store for her. For a few minutes, the three ponies said nothing to each other as they waited to see who would speak first. Celestia looked at Luna, who was scowling and gritting her teeth.

Time for a little bit of diplomacy, thought Celestia. “Luna . . . I know this is hard for you to see me, but if you would-”

“Don’t even bother Tia,” she said coldly.

“Please sister, you haven’t given me a chance to explain myself,” she said. “All I want from you is to please listen to reason about why I’m acting this way.”

Luna opened her mouth but felt a hoof on her back and she turned to see Pip looking at her before giving a nod. She sighed and looked back at Celestia skeptically.

“Pray tell, what errors do you see with my relationship?”

Celestia let out a breath as she smiled, but the smile vanished when she saw her sister’s eyes. “Luna, we’re not like other ponies...”

Luna arched her brow slightly at this statement. “Tell me something I don’t know...”

Celestia scrunched her lips as she tapped her hoof to the ground. “You do know that we are immortal Luna?”

“Yes?”

Celestia rubbed her forehead as she sighed. Luna, please... “Do you know that the pony you have fallen in love with is not an alicorn and is not immortal and therefore will die of old age!” Celestia shouted out and huffed slightly.

Luna simply shook her head and walked up to her sister. “Pip and I will cross that bridge when we get there... together,” she said and walked back to Pip, nuzzling him before whispering in his ear and both of them vanished from Celestia in a blink of magic.

The sun princess mouth hung open agape and she tapped her hooves to the ground in frustration. “Ooooh! That sister of mine is so... so!” She stopped and breathed slowly. She flew up to the sky and landed close to the garden statues, seeing numerous pony statues. One statue she looked at made her widen her eyes in fear.

It was Nightmare Moon, standing there with her forward legs up in the air and had a snarking scowl on her face. The thought of seeing her again when Pip dies, whether by natural causes or by some other cause sent shivers down her spine. She was completely lost on what to do now and felt a little panicked by what could happen either in a couple of years, or very soon.

“Don’t leave me Pippy!”

Celestia heard her sister’s voice and turned to see something near the Nightmare Moon statue. Luna was on the ground, holding an aged Pipsqueak, who’s mane and tail were snow white and his body was sagging a little.

“It’s okay Luna . . .” he wheezed. “I’ve lived a lovely life with you and I’ve got no regrets. I’ll still be around in spirit.”

“It won’t be the same though!” She wailed. “We . . . we can find something to make you younger again! I promise, just hang on!”

Pip coughed a little and slowly raised his head a little to give her a kiss. Farewell . . . my princess. His body went limp and he let out a death moan.

Luna shook his body and tears ran down her face. NO! PIPPY! DON’T GO! She cried into his chest over the loss of her love. The crying died down after a few minutes as Luna’s body started to shake.

IT’S . . . NOT . . . FAIR! She screamed in a contorted voice.

Celestia gasped as Luna’s body was suddenly glowing a black aura and was covered in a black smoke. A few seconds later, Celestia heard a deafening scream and saw something emerge from the smoke. To her horror, it was a vivid Nightmare Moon, who was screaming hysterically.

IT’S NOT FAIR!! She howled. IF I CAN’T HAVE A SPECIAL SOMEPONY, NOPONY WILL EVER HAVE ONE!

“Luna, no!” Screamed Celestia as she closed her eyes.

She opened them to see that Nightmare Moon wasn’t there and neither was Pipsqueak. She panted and felt sweat rolling down her like as if she finished running around the castle five times. She took several deep breaths and shook her head.

Calm down Celestia, you’re just acting paranoid, she told herself. I’m thinking this too seriously and being irrational. Just collect your thoughts and calm yourself. She took another deep breath before flying into the sky again and back to the castle.

“Princess Luna!”

A lunar guard saluted the princess before bowing to her. “I come with grave news in this hour,”

Luna got up from her throne and walked slowly towards the guard. “At ease lieutenant,” she said softly to him. “What news is this you have for me?”

The guard removed his helmet and looked up to the Luna’s level. “I don’t know how to tell you this princess...”

“Please speak up.”

“Prince Philip Brave has fallen in battle.”

Luna’s face turned grim as she landed on her haunches and started breathing heavily. “No, it can’t be...”

The guard closed his eyes as it became moist. “I’m so sorry your highness...”

Luna raised her head as more tears started streaming from them. “Please... leave.”

The guard did as he was told and left the throne room with haste. Luna walked up to her throne and stared at it for a few seconds before she used her magic and flung it across the room with all her might. She fell down on the floor and started crying in her hooves as memories of her and Pip flow through her mind.

“Pippy . . . I should’ve been there to protect you,” she sniffled. “Why didn’t I stay with you instead of listening to your advice of staying here?”

Her sniffling soon turned to panting as she felt anger rise up in her. “I . . . I should have been there!” She yelled. “I WILL FIND WHO DID THIS TO YOU!”

Much like the last vision, Celestia saw Luna’s body glow and black smoke form around her for a few seconds. The smoke cleared and Nightmare Moon appeared again, this time with her eyes were narrowed and were glowing white.

“I DON”T CARE HOW MANY PONIES I NEED TO KILL,” she boomed. “I WILL FIND WHOEVER DID THIS TO PIP AND GIVE HIM A NIGHTMARE THEY’LL NEVER FORGET!”

“Princess Celestia!”

The white alicorn jumped again and looked down to see a guard looking at her curiously.

“Is everything alright your highness?” He asked. “You were staring at that corridor with a blank expression on your face.”

Celestia maintained her composure and gave a nod. “Yes private . . . I was just thinking to myself. I’ll be in the throne room if you need me.” She trotted passed him briskly and could feel sweat rolling down her head as the vision played out in her head.

As Celestia went to the throne room, she noticed that it seemed to be taking longer than it should be for her to get there. She looked around the castle to pass time and noticed a gargoyle statue on one of the castle’s edges. All of a sudden, an image of one of those gargoyles falling and killing Pip flashed before her eyes. The white alicorn shook her head and took a few deep breaths as she trotted faster.

She looked at one of the suits of armor in the hallway, which was carrying a large battle axe in its hoof. Another image flashed in her head of Pip accidentally being chopped to death by the ax falling on him and Luna screaming in horror. Celestia shook her head again and trotted faster.

The further the white alicorn went into the castle, the more things she started to see of possible death scenarios for Pip. A chandelier falling on him and killing him instantly. The image of him falling down a staircase and dying, and even a loose piece of stone from the ceiling coming down and killing him. All of the images ended the same way, with Luna screaming in horror and her turning into Nightmare Moon.

Celestia started panting in panic and her eyes started twitching as she was practically galloping towards the throne room at this point. She didn’t dare look anywhere else but what was in front of her in fear of seeing something that could make her think of Pip dying and Luna being mortified. She passed by several guards, who were mystified by how she was acting, but didn’t give a second thought to them. At long last, she reached the throne room and quickly went in there and slammed the doors shut, leaving her to think of what to do.

As she made her way to the throne and sat roughly down on in, Celestia began fidgeting with her hooves and looking at them with narrowed eyes. What to do?! What to do?! What should I do?!

Celestia noticed that her guards were looking with concern at her and she immediately regain her composure, waving to a guard to come forward. “Please find Stealth Sneak for me, at once.”

“Yes your majesty!”

With the guard running out of the throne room, Celestia sighed as her eyes went to Luna’s tower again. She didn’t know how long she was staring at the building, as her ears perked to the sound of the throne room opening again. She turned her attention to two ponies entering the room, one of them was Stealth.

“Guards, please leave us,” she ordered her guard ponies, though they looked suspiciously at Stealth. “I will be fine with him here...”

The guards saluted to their monarch and walked out of the room, passing by Stealth as each of them gave a glare. With the throne room’s door closing, Stealth and Celestia stared at each other until Celestia got up and walked towards the stallion.

“Stealth,” Celestia began to speak with a soft smile, a forced smile. “I need you to do me a-”

“I refuse.”

Celestia was taken aback by Stealth’s sudden answer and she looked on with wide eyes at the stallion. “I beg your pardon?”

Stealth looked at Celestia with a furrowed eyebrows as he frowned. “I refuse to do anything that requires me to invade on the privacy of your family members,” he said plainly to her. “Which I find a little sick.”

The princess regained her composure and cleared her throat. “It’s not sick to protect my sister Stealth,”

“It is when you are trying to govern her life like you are doing now!”

“You’re sounding just as bad as my sister,” said Celestia. “Stealth, I know you’re under the assumption that I’m being unreasonable here, but I just ask that you please listen to me for two minutes. I promise you that my reasons are good and not just for any selfish gains.”

The green unicorn pondered for a few minutes before giving a small nod. “Alright . . . but you better not be pulling any tricks here.”

Celestia sighed in relief and gave a quick explanation about her encounter with Luna earlier. She said that she tried to warn her about Pip’s eventual death, but shrug it off and ignoring it completely. She wanted to talk to her more, but she and Pip disappeared before she could and is now unsure on what to do.

After her explanation, Stealth gave a deadpanned expression. “So let me get this straight,” he said. “You’re worried that once Pip dies, Luna will fall into a deep depression that she may never recover from?”

“That is correct Stealth,” said the white alicorn. “Now do you see why-”

“So then why didn’t you bring up that issue to Princess Cadence when she married Shining Armor?”

Celestia’s eyes widened. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me. You didn’t bring that up when Princess Cadence married Shining Armor.”

“Well I just-”

“You didn’t even bring this up when Princess Twilight Sparkle married Big Macintosh. So why are you bringing this up now?”

“. . .”

“Princess Celestia, are you still hiding something from me?” Demanded Stealth. “Whatever you’re keeping a secret, you need to tell me. I want nothing but the truth about this. It could very well decide on whether I want to help you or not.”

Celestia was about to say something, but suddenly saw something behind Stealth’s back. It was Nightmare Moon, snarling her teeth and her eyes narrowed. Her heart started racing and she knew what she had to do.

She lowered her head and muttered, “Nightmare Moon.”

Stealth was about to open his mouth, but something suddenly clicked inside his mind. His eyes softened and he looked down. “That’s right . . . I didn’t think of her at all,” he said. “I think I understand what you’re thinking of now.”

Celestia nodded and her lips were quivering, with her eyes becoming wet. “Yes...” she croaked out as she lowered her head. “I can’t lose my sister again, I just can’t...” she sniffed as more droplet of tears landed on the floor.

The green stallion stood there until her finally acted, by holding Celestia close to him. She returned the gesture and he patted her back as she sobbed more into his mane. “Celestia,” he started and sighed slightly. “I’ll do you this one last favour.”

Celestia’s eyes opened as she let go of him, showing red from crying. “You will do so for me?” she said softly.

“You could say so, but I will say this...”

Celestia blinked for a moment, regaining her posture. “What?”

“You must have more faith in your sister.”

Celestia furrowed her brow and narrowed her eyes. “What do you mean? I have much faith in my sister!”

Stealth merely looked at her and shook his head. “I don’t think so,” he said and raised his hoof, stopping Celestia from speaking. “If you had faith in her, you would find a way to speak to her rather than use underhanded methods in getting your point across...” he told her as he looked her in the eye. “With family, it is always important to speak to them no matter how difficult it may be.”

Celestia groaned and she rubbed her forehead. “If I talk to her, will you do my favour?”

“Very well...”

“Now then, I want you to bring . . .”

Stealth pressed against the wall and used his magic to emit a cloaking field around him as two Lunar Guards passed. Once the guards passed him, the green unicorn peaked around the corner and smiled at what he saw. The doors to the Lunar Guard Gym opened and Pipsqueak stepped out of them. He wiped his forehead along a sweat towel before opening a chute and dropping it in there.

The green unicorn ducked back and thought to himself. Alright, I have the target in sight, but I can’t just take him like that. He’s pretty much built to tackle anypony that gets in his way. How can I capture him?

“Oh bugger, my muscles are going to be sore in the morning,” said Pip. “I’m going to need to tell Lulu to watch how hard she hugs me.”

Wait . . . I think I may just have the solution. Stealth cleared his throat and took a deep breath. I just hope those voice acting lessons actually paid off in training.

“Oh Pipsqueak,” he said in a ladylike voice. “Could you come here for a minute?”

Stealth slapped himself and shook his head. Faust, that wasn’t even close to sounding like Luna. I may as well make a hasty retreat before he find me.

“Lulu? Is that you?” Asked the spotted stallion. “You don’t sound too well. Did something make you ill?”

Sometimes I even amaze myself. Stealth cleared his throat again. “Uh . . . yes Pippy, I remember you saying you could make some really good soup. Do you think you can make me a bowl please?”

“Be right there,” he said and began trotting towards Stealth’s direction.

The green unicorn saw a small golden candlestick and used his magic to pick it up. Alright . . . 3 . . . 2 . . . 1 . . .

“Luna?” Asked Pip as he rounded the corner. “Where are you?”

THUNK

The spotted stallion groaned as he was hit square over the head and fell over to the ground. Stealth went over to check on Pip and noticed that aside from the swelling red spot on him, he was fine and he was out cold from the hit.

Mission accomplished, he thought to himself. “I’m real sorry about this... and by Equestria, if something happens... forgive me.” Using his magic, he levitated Pip’s body and they both teleported away.

With heavy eyelids, Pip opened his eyes as he let out a groan. He rubbed the back of his head and looked up to where Celestia was sitting, on her throne. Pip stood up groggily and continued to rub the sore head of his. He heard the sound of hooves walking up to where he was and turned to see Stealth walking in between him and Celestia.

“If this is yer way of bringing ponies in to have word with ye, I made the right decision to join the Lunar Guard...”

Celestia sighed and closed her eyes slowly. “I am sorry it had to come to this, bringing you in like this...”

“Well if Luna finds out, yer gonna have to make a whole essay and broadcast it just to be on her bright side,” Pip said as he shook his head and turned to Stealth. “And don’t get me started on yer shady flank.”

“Noted...”

Pip gave him a withering glare and turned his attention to Celestia. “Alright, I’ll bite... what’s your issue with me and Luna?”

Celestia looked at Pip before standing up again. “Philip, do you know that Luna and I are immortal?”

“I happen to note the obvious, the same with Princess Cadance and Princess Twilight... and both are happily married to mortals,”

Celestia flinched slightly but sighed. “Yes, but this is different...”

Pip scrunched his lips as his brow furrowed. “How so?”

“My sister is special and she requires special needs...”

Pip narrowed his eyes at Celestia. “She’s not mental or deformed in anyway, if you are so blind!”

“Not like that Pipsqueak,” sighed the white alicorn. “I mean . . . like she’s very well . . . sensitive.”

“Sensitive? I know that. Anything else you’d like to point out Princess Obvious?”

“I mean, once you’re gone, how do you think she’ll react?”

“We’ll talk about that when we get to that point in life. She’ll most likely remember me forever, even after I’m gone though.”

“And what if it goes further than that?” Pondered Celestia. “What if she feels bitter or hateful towards other ponies about having a special somepony, yet she knows if she dates a mortal, they’ll die. Think about it Pip. What do you think would happen to her then?”

The spotted stallion thought for a couple of seconds before his eyes widened. “You’re not bringing that sick beast into this, are you?”

Celestia slowly gave a nod. “I’m afraid so Pip,” she said. “I know you don’t want to hear it, but since my sister won’t listen to reason, I think you need to talk to her about this. This is something you can’t just put off in the future, you need to talk about this now.”

“I can understand your concern Princess Celestia,” said Pip. “But I think you’re still missing the point of why your sister is angry at you about this.”

“And what would that be?”

“She feels that you don’t trust her at all. And the reason she won’t listen to you is because you don’t listen to her. You’re not giving her the trust that she feels she deserves from you.”

“If she would please-”

“And one more thing, why are you talking to me about this? You should have Lulu here to talk to about this.”

“Well you saw how well that went earlier,” she muttered. “Listen, all I ask is that you talk to Luna about this please and to start planning about what to do after your death.”

“That’s not my job your highness,” said Pip. “If you want to talk to Luna about this, then you need to mare up and speak to her yourself. Because as far as this goes, you can never get me and Lulu to separate.”

Celestia opened her mouth to say something, but she suddenly heard a cold laughter echo in the room. No . . . not now . . .

“Oh yes Celestia,” said a smug mare’s voice. “You know now about what will happen to your poor sister in the future. Too bad you couldn’t do anything to help her.”

Celestia started breathing frantically as she turned to Stealth, who just stood there as though he were stuck in time.

“Your own trusted spy can’t help you with this Celestia...” Nightmare Moon appeared where Pip was standing and began to walk towards the frightened sun deity.

“Stay back!”

Stealth looked at Celestia with concerned eyes and back to Pip who was confused, he walked towards Celestia. “Princess?”

“They cannot help you, it is inevitable!” Nightmare shouted out as smoke began to rise from her hooves and travelled towards Celestia. “That colt’s love for Luna is so strong, that once its gone... an even stronger sorrow will be all that’s left,” she said as she disappeared from sight. “And with that sorrow, will come the darkness... me!” She appeared right before Celestia in a flash and showed her fangs to Celestia and laughed maliciously.

“No!!!!” Celestia shouted and got up from her throne fast, channeling her magic to shine as bright as the sun itself. “You will be gone from Luna’s life!” She shouted and before Pip could react, the magic made contact to him. The magic covered his body and in another moment, he was gone.

Celestia breathed slowly and a small smile crept on her face, as Nightmare Moon was now gone. “It’s over... it’s finally over, it-”

“Celestia! What have you done?!”

The sun princess’ eyes widened as reality came back to her, who she saw before her was only Stealth.

“Where’s Philip?”

Stealth grinded his teeth and he stomped his hoof. “To where ever you just teleported him!”

Celestia breathing was going frantic again as she looked around her to see if Stealth was only pulling her leg. But he wasn’t.

“Oh no!”

The doors to the throne room suddenly opened up. “Princess Celestia!” Shouted a voice.

The white alicorn looked down to see Princess Twilight Sparkle, wearing her Element of Harmony as a crown and golden hoof bracelets much like hers. Right along her side was the tall red stallion, Big Macintosh, whose mane had been tidied and cut shorter and was wearing a white Stetson hat, but still looked the same all around.

“Um . . . Twilight, my student. What brings you here?” She asked in an innocent voice.

“Princess, what are you-” Stealth’s voice was cut off by Celestia using her magic to clamp his mouth shut.

“What I’m here for is in concern to this letter I got from Stealth Sneak there,” she said as she pointed a hoof at him.

Celestia released the hold on the green unicorn’s mouth and took the letter as she read it. The contents of the letter warned Twilight about what was going on and how she needed to talk some sense into her teacher, before she did something irrational. The white alicorn felt her stomach churn and sweat build up on her forehead.

“Princess, I mean no offense at all, but what’s wrong with Luna’s relationship with Pip?” Asked the lavender alicorn. “You didn’t object to it when Big Macintosh and I got married.”

“Eeyup,” said the red stallion.

“Oh don’t worry about it Princess Twilight,” spat Stealth Sneak. “Your teacher here already took care of that problem herself.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Well you see-”

“CELESTIA!!!” Boomed a voice so loud, it caused the room to shake and a little rubble to fall down.

Faust have mercy on me, thought Celestia to herself as she gulped.

As she waited for her sister to arrive, the white alicorn tried to think of something to throw Luna off until she could fix this. Her mind though was racing so much, she could barely put together a plan at all, much less a simple thought.

Before she could think things more clearly, the doors to the throne room opened with a thunderous boom as the doors hit the wall. Celestia looked up to see a livid Luna, with eyes so narrow, they could possibly shoot out daggers at her. She couldn’t help but feel intimidated and shook in fear of her safety.

“WHERE IS HE!?” She barked. “WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MY PIPSQUEAK!?”

Celestia’s eyes flew from one corner to the other, as she was biting on her lower lip. “I-I... you see Philip is-”

“TELL ME NOW!”

Twilight rushed forward and she immediately held Luna’s shoulders with her magic. “Luna please! Whatever happened here, I’m certain Pip is alright,” she said softly, which seemed to calm the lunar princess down a little. “As a matter of fact, I’m on your side with this Luna. Whatever happens, everything will be ok and-”

“Like Tarturus it will be!”

Everypony’s attention turned to Stealth, who had broken free from Celestia’s hold and glared daggers at the princess sitting numb on her throne. “You want to tell them what you did?! Or shall I?!”

Celestia looked at Stealth, then to Twilight who was looking at Celestia with concerned eyes and back to Luna who only showed scorn in the eyes. She sighed and got up from her throne, with her head hung low in defeat.

“Philip is...”

“Yes!?”

“He... it was on accident and-”

“What!?”

“I SENT HIM AWAY, OK!” Celestia shouted out, crying as she clenched her teeth. “I COULDN’T BEAR TO SEE YOU BECOME NIGHTMARE MOON AGAIN! I HAD TO SEND HIM AWAY! I DON’T KNOW WHERE I SENT HIM, BUT I HAD TO!”

The silence in the room was universal after Celestia’s outburst. Twilight could only look at her teacher in shame, as she sighed and shook her head. She looked up to Celestia with narrowed eyes, ones that Celestia had never seen before.

Stealth turned away from Celestia, and his eyes fell on Luna. Luna stood still there, with the build up of tears in her eyes.

“How...”

Celestia bit her lower lip and approached her sister. “Luna, please...”

“How could you...”

“It was for the best, I swear you will be better now...”

“BETTER!?” She screamed. “HOW CAN LOSING THE PONY I LOVE BE ‘BETTER NOW’!? OR IS IT BETTER FOR YOU!?”

“Luna . . . I swear, I didn’t mean to do that to him,” pleaded Celestia. “Calm yourself and I swear I’ll help you find Pipsqueak.”

“HOW CAN YOU FIND HIM IF YOU DON’T KNOW WHERE HE IS!?” Boomed Luna.

“Princess Luna, I know you’re upset over this, but try to listen to your sister,” said Twilight.

“SO . . . YOU SIDE WITH HER AS WELL!? TWILIGHT, I THOUGHT YOU WERE MY FRIEND!”

“Princess, it’s not like that at all.”

“YOU LIAR!” She shouted in a contorted voice.

Celestia’s heart nearly stopped as she heard that voice. “Oh no . . .” she muttered.

Luna looked around at the terrified group of ponies. “YOU’RE ALL AGAINST ME! EVERY LAST ONE OF YOU! YOU ALL TOOK MY SPECIAL SOMEPONY FROM ME!”

“Luna, calm yourself!” Shouted Celestia. “You need to stop before-”

“IT’S YOU WHO SHOULD HAVE STOPPED CELESTIA!” Barked the blue alicorn. “YOU’RE THE REASON BEHIND ALL THIS! YOU ALWAYS GET IN THE WAY OF MY HAPPINESS!” She panted heavily and lowered her head. “YOU . . . YOU WON’T GET AWAY WITH THIS!”

Luna began to growl and her eyes glowed white. The four ponies stepped back as Luna hovered into the air and her body started glowing a black aura. Celestia wanted to do something to stop her sister, but she was paralyzed with fear. The next thing anypony knew, Luna’s body was engulfed in a black smoke and a large gust of wind blew around the room, catching everypony off guard. Twilight used her magic to encase protection bubbles on herself, Big Macintosh, Stealth, and Celestia.

The wind intensified for a few more minutes before it stopped for a moment. Celestia looked up to see the smoke still around Luna, but nothing else. All of a sudden, a booming scream echoed in the room and across the castle, making everypony in it cover their ears and cry out in pain.

The smoke started to clear out and Celestia opened her eyes. She tried to keep some hope that Luna was still there, but one clear look instantly sunk any hope she had. A black figure descended to the ground and looked around. Her mane and tail were dark blue and flowing wildly and was wearing a blue helmet on her head. Everypony in the room gasped as they recognized the figure right in front of them was Nightmare Moon.

Nightmare Moon opened her eyes to reveal them to be dragon-like and she smiled deviously, revealing razor sharp fangs. She started to laugh wickedly, looking to a mortified Celestia. “I must say, thank you. If it weren’t for you, I would still be trapped!”

“No...”

“Oh yes!” Nightmare Moon cackled as her magic created lightning bolts that traveled to every guard, hitting them in the chest. “Thanks to your fears, and to banishing that meddling colt to who knows where, you have guaranteed my rule over these ponies!” She yelled out and began to form thunder again, this time sending it to Celestia and Twilight.

“Twilight get down!” Big Mac yelled as he grabbed his wife and ducked to the ground, narrowly missing the magic that was directed towards her.

Stealth jumped before Celestia, taking in the full impact of the spell and falling onto the steps unconscious. “Stealth!” Celestia shouted out as she reached for the unicorn and looked to Twilight, who nodded. Both alicorns channeled their magic again, this time making everypony in the room disappear.

Nightmare Moon was left alone, as she chuckled at the throne which she sat down upon. “Feels a lot warmer than that useless mare’s throne. No wonder most, if not all ponies, frolic to the sun’s side.”

The dark mare laughed hysterically, though unnoticed by her, a single tear travelled down her cheek as she closed her eyes and opened them again. She looked to the city of Canterlot, using her magic to lower the sun and bring about night eternal.

A large flash of light appeared for a second before vanishing. Celestia, Twilight, and Big Macintosh, who was carrying the unconscious Stealth Sneak, appeared in another area of the castle.

“Princess Celestia!” The group turned to see a frantic royal guard running towards them. “Thank Faust I’ve found you so quickly,” he said. “The entire castle is wondering why the sun is already down. It’s not even three in the afternoon.”

“Well . . .” Celestia heard somepony cleared their throat and saw Twilight glaring at her. The white alicorn swallowed her pride and said, “I’m afraid that this is my fault. I . . . I . . .” She tried to finish her sentence, but felt her voice fail.

“Nightmare Moon has returned,” said Twilight Sparkle.

“WHAT!? How can this be!?” Inquired the guard. “Your sister showed no signs of turning back into her!”

“It’s . . . it’s a long story and we have little time to prepare,” said Celestia. “For now, we need to make sure Nightmare Moon doesn’t try to leave the castle. Lieutenant, I want you to alert all the guards, including the Lunar Guards about this and tell them to prepare to defend the castle at all costs. Get a large group of guards armed and get another group to evacuate civilian personnel to the escape tunnels. Now hurry, we’re running short on time.”

“Yes your highness!” Shouted the guard. He turned around and galloped down the hallway.

“Alright, now then, Princess Twilight, I need you to-”

“Not so fast Princess Celestia,” she said coldly. “You have a lot of explaining to do.”

The white alicorn turned to her student. “Please Twilight, we don’t have much time to spare. You need to-”

“Forgive me Princess, but I must ask you one thing. How could you think of doing this to your own sister?”

“I . . . well . . .”

“Didn’t you even try to talk to her about this before you banished Pipsqueak?” She demanded. “And for that matter, why couldn’t you let your own sister be happy with a relationship?”

“You don’t understand!” She screamed in a broken voice. “I . . . I couldn’t stop seeing Nightmare come back. I . . . I kept seeing Pip die and my own sister turn into her again. I was so afraid! I didn’t want Luna to suffer the same fate she suffered over a thousand years ago! I didn’t mean to banish Pip! I just wanted to stop Nightmare from coming back!”

Twilight shook her head in disbelief. “Then why were you so against her and Pip having this relationship!?”

Celestia looked to her former student, eyebrows furrowing and her teeth clenched. “Because once Pip is gone from this world, Luna would fall into great depression because of her losing the one she loves!”

“So you thought by breaking them up, it wouldn’t break her heart too?!” Twilight shouted out as she stomped her hoof. “Of all the idiotic things you can do! This is just purely moronic!”

Big Mac placed his hoof on Twilight’s shoulder. “Twi, please,” he said softly to her and she seemed to calm down for a moment. “Princess, with all do respect... why ain’t your sister allowed to love a stallion?”

Celestia sighed as she looked to Big Mac. “Because I know that one day that pony will grow old and perish and will leave Luna all alone in the world to-”

“Then why’d you bliss ma wedding with your student?”

“Excuse me?”

“Y’all blessed ma wedding along with Twilight here,” said the red stallion. “I don’t remember ya bringing up anything like what ya did to yer sister there.”

“This is different! My sister may have been freed from Nightmare Moon’s spirit, but she still lingered around my sister’s soul, most likely biding her time to strike.”

“So then what if it happened to me?” Asked Twilight. “What if I ended up being so depressed, some malevolent spirit took possession of me? Did you think about that Princess?”

“I . . .” Celestia tried to find some counterargument, but words failed her.

“I guess he was right after all . . .” said a weak voice.

The group looked to see Stealth Sneak crawling off Big Mac’s back and steadying himself.

“Stealth, are you alright?” Asked Celestia. “That bolt must’ve done a lot of damage to you.”

“I’m fine Celestia . . . but as I was saying, he was right.”

“Who was right?” Asked Twilight.

“Silver Storm,” he said. “He said that ‘Those who fail to learn history are doomed to repeat it’. And right now . . . Celestia has doomed herself, along with Equestria, to the same fate a thousand years ago.” Something suddenly clicked inside his mind. “Princess Celestia . . . I have an idea, but it’s a long shot.”

“What is it?” She wondered.

“You need to go talk to Silver this instant and see if he can think of anything. Wherever you’re keeping him, you need to get to him and talk to him about a possible solution.”

“I don’t get it,” said Big Mac. “Why would some adviser be able to help us out?”

“It’s because he’s been helping Princess Luna all this time,” responded the green unicorn. “He may have something in mind to stop this.”

“You may be right,” said Celestia. She looked around the castle and recognized the area she was in. “We aren’t too far from the dungeons Silver is being held in.” She turned to Twilight, who still looked a little angry. “Twilight, I know you’re upset about my actions, but there’s no time to waste. I want you to use your magic to put up a force field around the castle, making it impossible for Nightmare Moon to get out.”

Twilight groaned and looked back to her husband, giving him a fond kiss. She then walked away from the others and channeled her magic. Her eyes turned white as the magic shot through to the roof, with it intensifying as she furrowed her eyebrows. The others looked outside to see a lavender aura dome surround the city of Canterlot.

Once the spell was done, Twilight wobbled a bit her eyes grew tired and she nearly fell to the ground were it not for Big Mac catching her. She smiled demurely at her stallion as he helped her up and she turned back to Celestia, wearing a bitter look at the sun deity.

“So where’s the dungeon, Celestia?”

Celestia flinched as her proud former student said her name in venom. Never once in her life had she called Celestia’s name without using the title princess, but with what has happened now she deserved to be named whatever the ponies may call her.

“This way.”

A lone gray unicorn sat alone in his dungeon cell as he was whistling a tune to pass the time. Silver was counting the bricks on the walls around him for the fourth time today, until he heard the sound of hooves approaching. His head turned slowly to the cell door, expecting a few guards to enter. Instead, four other ponies came in.

“Silver?”

Celestia stood before Silver, with her eyes moist and her hair disheveled. Silver also noticed Twilight Sparkle and her husband Big Macintosh. The other pony, who Silver identified as Stealth, stood next to Celestia, looking irritable at best.

“To what do I owe the pleasure of your company in my current residence, Princess?” Silver asked Celestia plainly as he scratched the beard that was on his muzzle.

The sun deity sighed as she lowered her head. “I need your help, Luna has-”

“So Nightmare Moon has returned?” Silver asked as Celestia nodded. “I warned you, that if you continued down this path only disaster will be met.”

“I know, but-”

“And did you listen to me? You’re former adviser before you assigned me to Luna? Nooooo~” Silver chimed in with sarcasm heavy in his voice. “So what did you do with Pip if I may ask?”

“She banished him to Faust knows where,” Stealth answered for Celestia, seeing as the princess was too shaken to answer properly.

Silver rubbed his forehead and sighed. “Fantastic...”

“I’m tempted to send out a platoon of guards to find Pip, but it would be impossible to find him,” said Celestia. “The land is too big and I don’t know how long this force field can stay up before Nightmare Moon finds a way to break out of it.”

“Hmm . . . I think I may know how to find him,” said Silver. He turned to Twilight. “Your highness, I have a rather odd request of you.”

“What’s that?” She asked.

“I want you to concentrate some of your magic to the tip of your horn and then place it on the tip of Princess Celestia’s horn.”

“Why?”

“You’ll find out in a minute. And you’ll see whether or not this can help you find Pipsqueak.”

The lilac alicorn slowly nodded closed her eyes in concentration. A small purple aura shimmered around the tip of her horn and started to move in on her mentor. Twilight slowly leaned inward and carefully placed her horn on Celestia’s horn.

All of a sudden, Twilight saw a huge wormhole flash before her very eyes. She was whizzing through what looked liked a forest and some meadows for a few seconds before the scenery changed to desert tall mountains and then to a snowy landscape. The speed slowed down until she could see a vision of a spotted stallion lying unconscious in the snow.

Twilight gasped and staggered back, only to be caught by Big Macintosh. She took a few deep breaths as she tried to regain her composure.

“What happened Twilight?” Asked Big Mac. “Ya look like ya seen a ghost.”

“I . . . I don’t know,” she said. “One moment I’m here, the next moment I was seeing somepony lying in the snow.”

“Was that pony Pipsqueak?” Asked Silver.

The lilac alicorn gave a nod. “It looked like him, but it’s hard to determine where he is.”

“How so?” Wondered Celestia.

“Judging from what I was seeing, it looks like he’s in the Frozen North, past the Crystal Mountains. The problem is that I don’t know where in the north he is. He could either close to the Crystal Empire, or very far away.”

“So why don’t ya teleport over there then?” Asked Big Mac. “Grab Pipsqueak and then come back with him.”

“It’s not that simple sweetie,” said Twilight. “This dome prevents unicorns from teleporting out of here, even alicorns. We need to send a message to somepony about this. We need to-” An idea suddenly clicked inside her mind and she beamed. “I’ve got it!”

Twilight used her magic to make a scroll, inkwell, and quill show up. “There’s only one dragon who can save Pipsqueak before it’s too late!” She proclaimed.

“You mean Spike?” Asked Celestia. “But where is he now?”

“He, Rarity, and Elusive are in the Crystal Empire,” she said. “It’s the tenth anniversary of the Empire’s freedom and Spike was invited, along with his family, to a parade honoring his heroic actions. They’re even going to crown him an honorary prince to the kingdom.”

“Well you better hurry and write that letter,” said Stealth. “It’s only a matter of time before Nightmare tries to break the dome.”

The lilac alicorn gave a nod and began writing her letter.

Under Siege

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“Mares and Gentle Stallions, may I introduce your new Prince of the Crystal Empire... Spike Sparkle!”

The crowd of crystals ponies cheered as they stomped their hooves to the ground, with Princess Cadance and General Shining Armor standing at the top of the castle balcony. When they turned around, a five foot dragon walked out to greet the masses.

Spike smiled as he waved to the ponies, feeling the crown on his head as he turned his head in all directions. Now I know how Twilight felt that day... He looked to his side to see his beautiful wife, Rarity, crying tears of joy as she was holding a handkerchief and blowing on it as more tears were flowing from her eyes. His son Elusive stood next to his mother, looking at his father in awe with a large smile on his face.

Elusive's, being a kirin, scales were white just like his mother’s and his mane was green just like his fathers. He also had a cutie mark that was a large diamond, something his mother was very proud of.

Spike simply smiled and nodded as he looked at them and back to the crowd, before going back inside where some of the nobility stood by to greet their new regent.

“Marvellous Prince Spike, I can see you being a true leader to crystal ponies everywhere,” one of the nobles spoke as he approached Spike and bowed in respect.

Rarity walked up to him and nuzzled his neck as she stood on her hind legs to do so. “My husband is the hero of this city after all,” she said as she kisses his cheek, causing him to blush slightly.

Spike stroked his wife’s mane, causing her to giggle. “Now now Rarity, we all played our parts on that day remember?”

“Still if it wasn’t for you, we’d be doomed.”

“That’s right!” Elusive came running in and stood next to Spike. “This place would be toast if it wasn’t for you dad!” He said as he looked up to his father.

Spike ruffled his hair and grinned. “I suppose so, just wish Twilight was he-”

His words were cut off when the sky went dark, and Spike rushed outside to see that the sun was nowhere to be found. Nor was the moon.

“What’s going on dad!?”

Spike shook his head, “No idea my boy, but this doesn’t loo-” Spike felt sick for a moment before letting out a streak of flame and a scroll appeared before him. He saw Twilight’s seal on it and he groaned as he rolled his eyes. “Buck it Twilight, you know I hate that method of mail!” He muttered as he tore the seal and read what was inside the scroll.

Spike,

I have little time to write this, but I’m sure you’ve noticed the sun has gone down earlier than expected. The reason for that is Nightmare Moon has returned once more and I’ve used a spell to encase the castle in a protection spell to keep her from causing chaos across Equestria. I want you to get the others and tell them to bring their Elements of Harmony. Also, I want you to look for somepony named Philip Brave, who is somewhere in the Frozen North. Enclosed in this letter is a picture of him. It’s a long story about how he got to there, but he needs to be found before it’s too late. Once you gather the others, meet up near the entrance to Canterlot, there will be somepony waiting to meet you all there.

Sincerely,

Twilight Sparkle

P.S. I’m so sorry about this method of delivery, I know you hate it, but it’s the only way to communicate to you.

“What’s going on Spike?” Asked Rarity. Spike showed the letter to her and she let out a gasp of horror. “My goodness, I had no idea Princess Luna was showing signs of becoming Nightmare Moon again. And this Philip pony . . .” She looked curiously at the picture of the stallion. “I swear I’ve seen him before.”

“Well whoever he is, he must have some idea about what happened to the Princess,” said Spike. He turned to two Crystal Royal Guards. “I need a chariot prepared immediately for Lady Rarity here and have it be taken to Ponyville right away. And I want Elusive here be taken to my quarters and be kept out of harm’s way.”

“Come on dad, I can handle Nightmare Moon,” he said. “Let me-”

“This isn’t up for debate son,” said Spike in a stern voice. “I’m not risking my son’s life in case something goes wrong. I know you’re eager to be a knight and save the day, but this is far too dangerous for you. Who knows what Nightmare Moon has up her sleeve?”

Elusive lowered his head and nodded. “You’re right dad . . . I’m sorry. I just want to do something heroic like what you did a decade ago.”

The dragon leaned down and hugged his son. “I know son, but I promise when I come back, I’ll have an exciting tale to tell you about this battle.”

“Thanks dad.” Elusive returned the hug and then turned around and ran down the corridor.

“Like father, like son I guess?” Wondered Rarity.

“Yeah . . . you can say that,” said Spike as he kissed her. “But we have no time for sentimental stuff. Since I can fly and dragon’s can handle tougher climates than pegasi, I’ll go search for Philip around a ten mile radius of the Frozen North. I want you to go get in your chariot and head for Ponyville to warn the others.”

“I’ll actually talk to Princess Cadence and General Armor first,” she said. “I’ll see if they can spare some reinforcements in case something goes wrong.”

“Alright, but hurry. I don’t know how much longer Twilight’s spell can hold off. She may be a powerful alicorn, but even Nightmare Moon will find a way to break out.”

Rarity gave a nod and took off to the balcony while Spike took off towards the sky.

Pip opened his eyes as he looked around his surroundings. He felt a deep chill coursing through his body as the snow pelted against his fur and with his teeth chattering as he tried to stay warm.

Bloody Tartarus! When I get out of this, Celestia’s gonna get some sense knocked into her! He looked around him and squinted his eyes, trying to find a path that may lead to a village. Lucky for him, he was trained in field exploration and he found what he was looking for. Trekking through the snow, he ventured off to the distance. With each step he took, deep snow prints were left in his track.

With the sound of his hoof going in deep into the snow, he began to tumble down what he thought was slope and landed face first on the icy surface. Pip quickly got up as his muzzle was in pain, liking needles stabbing it continually. He looked around and saw a small cave, which he immediately ran to.

When he was inside, he turned around to face the snow again. This time though, the sky went dark. Pip tried to see what was going on, but there were no stars in the sky. Only a darkness that seemed to swallow all light that once painted the sky in the night’s sky. Luna! Pip worried as he started breathing fast, worrying about his lover.

His ears perked when he heard the flapping of wings, and he saw outside what looked like a purple dragon. The dragon looked around itself until it looked to the cave, where it grinned at made its way towards Pip.

Pip panicked and he went deeper into the cave until he reached a dead end. He turned sharply when he heard footsteps approach him. The stallion stood his ground and narrowed his eyes at the dragon.

“You want to go a couple o’ rounds!?” Pip shouted out, and he saw the dragon stop its approach. “Come on mate! Ah always wanted to try a dragon-leather jacket!”

“Philip Brave, is it?” Asked the dragon.

The spotted stallion raised an eyebrow. “Yeah . . . that’s me. How do you know my name though?”

The dragon stepped forward and blew out a small green flame from his mouth. Pip looked to see the dragon was holding a torch and managed to get a good view of the beast. He gasped in surprise from what he saw and was entranced by who it was.

“I . . . I don’t believe it,” he stammered. “You’re . . . you’re . . .”

“Spike Sparkle,” he said. “Number one assistant and brother to Princess Twilight Sparkle and Prince of the Crystal Empire.”

“Am I glad to see somepo- um . . . somedragon like you,” said Pip.

“Well I was told by Princess Twilight to find you. She said something about Nightmare Moon return-”

“Oh bullocks!” Yelled Pip in frustration. “I knew it! I tried to reason with Celestia, but she wouldn't listen at all!”

“Princess Celestia? What does she have to do with this?”

Pipsqueak told Spike about everything that happened. About how he and Luna become a couple and how Celestia wasn’t onboard with the idea because she feared that once he was dead, Luna would fall into a deep depression about losing him and becoming Nightmare Moon once more. He then explained how Celestia was acting weird before she used her magic to teleport him here.

Spike groaned a little as he rubbed his head. “Real smooth Princess Celestia . . . Real smooth,” he muttered.

“You can say that again,” said Pip. “But now that I know what’s happened to Luna, we need to go now.”

“Not so fast. I’m taking you back to the Crystal Empire to treat your wounds. Your hooves are shaking and your body is turning a little blue.” He got on all fours and looked at Pip. “Hop on, the quicker we get your treated, the sooner you can go save Luna.”

“Alright then,” he said as he crawled onto Spike’s back and wrapped his hooves around his chest.

Spike quickly made his way out of the cave and took off into the sky once more, with Pip in tow.

Princess Celestia trotted down the hallway of the castle, with a grim look on her face. She looked around to see several patrols were shouting orders and arming themselves with spears, shields, swords, and even crossbows. She gave a heavy sigh as she felt the guilt of her actions weigh down upon her.

“Princess Celestia!”

The white alicorn looked up to see a white stallion in Lunar Guard armor galloping towards her.

“What’s the status right now Captain Longbow?” She asked.

“We are just about finished setting up a perimeter around the castle,” he said. “We’ve got several patrols surrounding the throne room and other patrols are setting up around the castle itself.”

“What about civilians?”

“All civilian personnel have been evacuated through the escape tunnels and being kept in underground bunkers. We have also activated the emergency warning system that’s advising all citizens to stay indoors.”

“Very good. Captain, as you were...”

“Yes princess!”

With that, Captain Longbow went off to his duties leaving Celestia alone. She walked towards her throne room, where Twilight, Big Mac and Stealth were sitting. Twilight ears lifted as she heard the door open and close and walked towards Celestia, carrying a scroll with her.

“Pip’s been found, he sustained some frostbite and a few bruises but he will make a good recovery,”

Celestia sighed and a small smile crept on her face. “Thank goodness! I hope he can make it here in time,” she said softly, opening her eyes to see her former student was not smiling.

Twilight furrowed her eyebrows as she glared at her former teacher. “When he gets back you will have to answer to him for what you did,”

Big Macintosh approached Twilight and placed a hoof to her shoulder. “Twily, calm down. Ah’m sure the princess is mighty sore of what she did to that poor colt,”

“Funny way of showing it!”

Celestia winced at the way Twilight was yelling at her. “Twilight, I promise you that I truly didn’t mean to do this to Pip. I can only hope that Pip can do something to save my sister before-”

“Your blunder costs us all of Equestria?” Asked Twilight.

“Twily, ya don’t need to speak that way to yer teacher,” said Big Mac.

“I do and it’s for a good reason!” She yelled. “When Shining Armor married Princess Cadence, she gave no objections to it. When we both got married, she said nothing. Tartarus, when Spike and Rarity got married, did Celestia say anything? Of course not! Now, when her sister wants to find a special somepony, she acts irrational and wants to control Luna’s life! For a princess who claims to care about all her subjects, she makes herself to be a complete hypocrite when it comes to her sister!”

Celestia lowered her head in shame and felt the harsh words hurt her. “Twilight . . . I truly wish that I never did this,” she said with remorse in her voice. “I was just . . . just so worried for my sister’s sake.”

Before Twilight could say something, Big Mac stepped in and said, “I understand where yer coming from yer highness. I was overprotective of my sisters when our parents died and did everything to make sure no harm came to them. However, I soon learned something about how I was acting and controlling my sisters. And it’s something I want you to learn.”

“What . . . what is it?” She asked.

“To let them go.”

“I . . . don’t understand.”

“What I mean is that it’s good to look out for yer siblings, but you can’t control everything in their lives. They want to be happy and you can’t hold them back from doing something they want to do, like be with somepony they love. Your sister deserves to find happiness, not be held back by you and have her life dictated by you.”

“I . . .” Words failed Celestia as she tried to find a way to find a loophole in the logic, but couldn’t. Have I truly been holding her back all these years then? Have I deprived her of happiness?

“Princess Celestia,” said Big Mac. “I know you feel like you failed your sister again, but there is still time to save her. You can still help in saving your sister and bringing an end to this nightmare.”

Celestia lips quivered as she closed her eyes, that were becoming moist. She opened them and released a tear before nodding. “You’re right Big Macintosh. I’ve been a foal for doing what I did... but now I will rectify it.”

“That’s the spirit. Ah just hope that colt can make it back in time.”

Twilight looked out of the window as she frowned. “I hope so too, because we’re gonna need at the help we can get.”

“Any word from Canterlot?”

Pip laid on a bed as a few unicorns were healing his wounds. Interestingly enough, there were no unicorns among the crystal ponies, hence why Canterlot sent a few of their head unicorn nurses and doctors to the empire.

The doctor, Stitch Heart, shook his head as he focused his magic on the wounds. “We’re sorry Sir Brave, but since that letter from Princess Twilight we haven’t heard anything,”

Pip sighed as he looked outside the window, only to be greeted with darkness. Luna... please be alright...

The door of the hospital room opened, with Princess Cadence and General Shining Armor walking in with Prince Spike.

The doctor turned his attention to the three and bowed to them, with Spike raising his claw to have the doctor be at ease. “He should be healed in the next hour your majesties.”

“Very good Dr Heart, do you mind if we have a word with the patient?” Spike asked him as he looked to Pip.

“Yes my Prince.”

As soon as the doctor left the room, Pip immediately asked, “Can you please take me to Canterlot? I can’t just stay here while Luna is in danger.”

“Whoa, take it easy there Philip,” said Shining Armor. “I know how it feels to fight for somepony you love, but you can’t rush in there and expect to take out Nightmare Moon like that. Besides, you’re still kind of shivering from the cold.”

“I don’t care!” He shouted. “No offense General Armor, but would you wait to save your wife while you were being treated from hypothermia?”

Shining Armor opened his mouth to reply, but looked over to Princess Cadence, who was staring at him intently. “Um . . . well . . .” he muttered.

“You see! Even General Armor is unsure on what to do! I’m per . . . per . . .” Pip’s face scrunched for a second before he let out a loud sneeze. He sniffled a little and said, “Sorry.”

“Listen Phi-”

“Please, call me Pipsqueak,” he said.

“Right, listen to me Pipsqueak,” said Princess Cadence. “The power of love can make us do some crazy things. I too went to great lengths to save Shining Armor from Queen Chrysalis’ control. However, the medication the doctor gave you is going through your body right now and you must wait. I don’t think Luna would be too happy if she knew you died of hypothermia.”

“But I-”

“But nothing Pip,” said the pink alicorn. “Besides, you don’t have much of a choice in the matter here with leaving.”

“Why do you say that?” The spotted stallion suddenly felt a little dizzy and everything became blurry. “What . . . what did you do?” He asked in a slurred voice.

“The medication causes drowsiness,” said Shining Armor. “It’ll knock you out for a full hour while it does its work. Just relax and-”

Pip’s head fell onto his pillow and he was instantly asleep. The sound of soft snoring could be heard by the two ponies and the dragon. They all went out into the hallway and closed the door slowly.

“Okay, I guess it’s time for me to get going,” said Spike. “I’m going to try to catch up to Rarity and meet up with the others.”

“We’ll be joining you shortly Spike,” said Shining Armor. “I’m going to gather some forces from here and request more help from other cities across Equestria.”

“Got it, see you there then.” Spike took off down the hallway and disappeared around the corner.

Nightmare Moon say idly on her throne as she looked out the window. She could see several pegasi flying around, carrying various weapons, and scoffed at this.

“Oh Celestia, you’re an even bigger fool than I thought,” she said. “Do you honestly think these pathetic ponies will stop me like that?”

The said guards came crashing through the window, spears in hoof, as they landed before Nightmare Moon. “Nightmare Moon, release your hold on Princess Luna or else!” The front guard yelled out as he readied his spear, pointing to the princess.

Nightmare Moon simply yawned and looked to her hoof. “I shall take your position into consideration,” she said to him as she yawned again. She opened her eyes and her eyes went white as magic shot from her horn. The magic impacted the guards and they began to kneel, turning into darker versions of themselves. Nightmare chuckled softly. “Well, it seems your terms... are not acceptable,” she cackled as thunder erupted from the sky thanks to her magic and she waved her hoof to the guards. “Now go and seek out Celestia and her trashlings!”

The guards bowed and flew off into the distance, leaving Nightmare Moon to herself laughing. Her laughing stopped when she felt a surge of pain in her heart and her form gave off an aura for just a moment.

“Stop fighting back you weakling!”

Nightmare’s eyes widened as her breathing became hoarse, and she used her magic to cover herself in darkness. Once it was done, she sighed in relief before smiling. “That will keep you in place.”

The dark alicorn looked out of the window again, and saw nopony was outside and the streets were crawling with Celestia’s guards. She smirked as she shook her head and used her magic to form mist over Canterlot. “That will bring about some fun!”

The guards looked around in both wonder and fear as they saw everything around them was swallowed by a large white fog. Several guards had their weapons at the ready as they looked around, waiting for some kind of attack.

“Bring me all who oppose me before me!” Boomed Nightmare Moon’s voice. “I must have more guards for my army!”

“What the hay is-ACK!” A guard was cut off by a few ponies tackling him. He looked up to see some Lunar Guards were holding him down and their eyes were glowing dark blue. “Hey! What do you think you’re-” The guard was hit again by one of the corrupted soldiers and was knocked out. They wasted no time in dragging his body back to the castle.

“I need more back up here!” Barked a guard as he struggled to hold back another one. “Give me some support here!”

“Where are you!? I can’t see anything!”

“Fall back! I repeat, fall back!”

“Get back to the castle! We need to regroup there!”

The city was soon filled with yelling and screaming as the Royal Guards were struggling to hold their own in Canterlot. Some citizens that dared to look out their windows faintly saw several ponies take one guard down before hiding in fear again.

“We’re overrun here!” Barked another guard as he knocked out one of the corrupted ones. A couple more suddenly charged out at him and tackled him to the ground. “HELP! Help me!”

“They’re coming from all over! I can’t tell where they’re striking from!”

“Fortify your positions and follow my lead!” Shouted another guard to a patrol as he desperately slashed his sword at the zombie-like soldiers circled around him.

“There’s too many of them! We can’t hold out for much longer!” A dark guard suddenly grabbed one of the resisting soldiers and pinned him to the ground. “We need to warn Princess Celestia!”

Nightmare Moon looked out the window and smiled in content as her soldiers were doing their job. She could see several guards trying to run for it, but they didn’t get too far and were soon captured. Amidst the mist, there was flashing from different areas of the city, indicating to the dark alicorn that the unicorn guards were fighting against each other. It wasn’t long before the sight of Celestia’s guards running back to the castle caught her eye, only to meet the same fate as the others. The sound of screaming made Nightmare sigh in pleasure and laugh sinisterly.

“Ah, nothing like the sound of ponies begging for their lives,” she said. “It almost brings a tear to my eye.”

Nightmare Moon suddenly felt tears run down her eyes and a large pain in her heart again, like she was stabbed with a dagger. “Stop that right now you weakling!” She barked. “I’m not going to let somepony like you get in the way of finishing what I started!” She used her magic to once again encase herself in a black aura for a minute before she felt the pain ebb away. “Ah . . . much better,” she said.

The sound of screaming caught Princess Celestia’s attention. “What’s going on out there?” She wondered.

Twilight looked outside the window to the city below and gasped. “Oh my goodness! Several ponies are fighting against each other! They look like they are possessed...”

Big Mac trotted next to his wife and squinted his eyes to the pandemonium and shook his head. “If we don’t do something soon, we ain’t gonna win this one!”

Celestia observed from the window too and bit her lower lip as she shed a tear. “This is all my fault...”

“Princess, pleas-”

“No Stealth, this is all my fault... you were right I-”

The doors of the room started banging, and everypony inside became alerted as the two alicorns and one unicorn charged their magic to face whatever danger was behind those doors. With a final bang, the doors went flying towards the group. Big Mac was first to act as he bucked the doors into splinters before colliding with the group. Four guards, coats darkened and eyes glowing turquoise, stood at the door with their weapons at the ready.

“Celestia! Surrender in the name of the rightful Queen of Equestria!”

Princess Celestia eyes softened as she saw what had happened to her guards and sighed as she shook her head. “That I cannot do, for their is no rightful queen to Equestria... not me, nor Luna...”

“Then you choose blood.”

The guards charged towards Celestia with their weapons drawn. The white alicorn powered her horn up and released a powerful shock wave that sent the soldiers flying and hitting the wall. They slowly got up and shook off the stunning blast, but as they tried to move, they found their hooves were stuck to the ground. Each guard looked down to see their hooves covered in a purple aura and then looked up to see Twilight’s horn glowing.

“That should hold them for a while,” said the lilac alicorn. “This spell will make sure these ponies won’t be able to move for a few hours, or until I release them.”

“But wait Twilight, if they are being possessed, how can we free them?” Asked Stealth.

“Hmm . . .” She thought to herself as she rubbed her head. Twilight then stomped her hoof as an idea clicked in her. “I got it! If Nightmare Moon used a spell to control these ponies, then there may be a counterspell in the Canterlot Royal Archives.”

“Well let’s not just stand here then, let’s get going,” said Big Mac. “I think I can hear somepony coming.”

Right on cue, the sound of hooves marching down the hallway was heard by everypony.

“Let’s clear out before it’s too late!” Ordered Celestia. “Stay together and if we have to fight any guards, then knock them out instead of killing them.”

The group charged out of the room, while avoiding the grasp of the trapped guards, and ran down the hallway. Before they made it in five feet though, they all saw a blockade of unicorn guards using their crossbows to aim at them. Twilight instinctively put up a protection bubble as the arrows were fired and deflected off the shield.

“This way!” Shouted Celestia, pointing her hoof to the right.

They all went down a staircase, but not before Celestia used her magic to put a barrier around the entrance and prevent the Nightmare guards from catching up. As they group turned the corner at the staircase, Celestia took the lead and looked around to make sure nopony was around. She gave a signal for the group to standby as she creeped towards a nearby intersection to look around the corner. While the white alicorn looked around, Stealth noticed something that resembled a pony’s shadow and what looked like a crossbow being aimed.

“Oh no you don’t!” He barked as the green unicorn charged forward.

Stealth tacked the pony holding the crossbow and flung the weapon aside, as he gave a thorough beating to the would be assassin. “You don’t dare do that to Princess Celestia!” He shouted each word with every punch he threw at the pony’s face, which was becoming swollen and bloody thanks to Stealth.

“Please Stealth, please stop!” Celestia shouted to him as she rushed to him and held him his hoof from punching again.

Stealth stopped and he lifted him up from the ground, giving one last look at the unconscious stallion. “We better hurry, there will be more coming for us...”

“They’re here! Get them!”

The group ran ahead, trying their best to avoid the guards from behind. Twilight squinted her eyes and gasped as shadows appeared in front of her and they all turned the other way. Soon more guards were in front of them. From front, behind and all sides; they were surrounded.

“Surrender or die!”

Stealth growled as she observed all possible exit routes, not finding any. He turned to Celestia and nudged her rib softly. “Any ideas Princess?”

Before Celestia spoke, Twilight stepped forward. “I have one!” She yelled out as she channeled her magic and a sphere enveloped the group, closing in on them. With a pop, they were gone.

A bright flash went out around a dark corridor for a few seconds before disappearing. Twilight looked around to see a few windows letting in the moonlight and the corridor was completely deserted.

“Now where are we?” Asked Stealth. “I don’t really recall being in this part of the castle.”

“Actually, we’re right where we need to be,” said Twilight with a smile. She pointed her hoof down the hall. “Take a look and see for yourself.”

The gang looked towards where Twilight was pointing and saw what looked like a prison type gate that was blocking an entryway. They all went to investigate the path and were shocked to see what they saw. There was row upon row of bookcases with scrolls, books, and various amulets crammed into them, and the middle of the room had a large hourglass in it.

“This is it!” Squealed Twilight. “Now let’s get in there and . . .” She tried to open it with her magic but the gate was locked up. “Hmm . . . I suppose you don’t have a master key, do you Celestia?” Spat Twilight at the last word.

The white alicorn shook off the cold feeling and nodded. “As a matter of fact, I always carry one with me.” She lowered her head and stuck her horn inside the circular part of the lock. Her horn glowed for a few seconds before it faded away and the sound of a click could be heard. The lock fell to the ground and Celestia pushed the door open.

“Very impressive your highness,” said Big Mac as the group went in the archives. “But what happens if somepony comes in and tries to take us?”

“Already ahead of you Mr. Macintosh.” Celestia’s horn glowed again and created a magical barrier around the entrance and as extra protection, shut the gate and relocked it using her magic. “Now then, we need to find something to help those controlled guards. We’ve got a lot of ground to cover and very little time though, so we’ll split up.”

“Not a bad idea,” scoffed Twilight. “I’ll take the northern section. Big Mac, you go take the eastern side. Celestia . . . you take the western side.”

“What about me?” Inquired Stealth.

“Stealth, since you can use your magic to create a cloaking field, you need to go meet up with my friends. Thanks to my studying of this castle, there’s a secret passageway not too far from this room. You need to get to it while avoiding detection by the others guards.”

“Understood your highness,” he said. “Where is this entrance?”

“Well first of all, I’ll teleport you to outside this room. Secondly, you need to go down the hallway until you come across a statue of a one-eye unicorn pony wearing traditional Royal Guard armor. Next to the statue is a torch that you’ll need to push down until it clicks and opens a door. Go in there and follow and underground path that leads to the outskirts of Canterlot.”

“What if somepony waits for me to ambush me or your friends when I return though?”

“The door will close after a couple of seconds, so don’t worry about it. Now then.” Twilight’s horn glowed and Stealth disappeared with a pop. He reappeared a second later outside the entryway. “Hurry now Stealth, we’re running out of time for Princess Luna and all of Equestria.”

The green unicorn gave a salute before running down the hallway. Unbeknownst to him though, a shadowy figure was pressed against the wall, listening to every word. The figure, a small blue mist, went through the cracks of a window and took off towards the main part of the castle.

“What the hay is up with this fog!?”

Spike, who was flying high up in the air next to a carriage, focused his eyes as he tried to see where the castle lay. She shook his head and flew a big forward, blowing some of the fog away. This had little success though.

“My liege! We can’t land unless we see the ground below us!” One of the two guards in front of the carriage shouted out as they stopped behind Spike.

Spike groaned and placed a claw to his forehead. “I can see that!” He yelled back the to guard. “Time for the alternative!” He dived down fast leaving the carriage in the air alone.

Pip’s head poked out of the carriage and he looked down to the ground, squinting his eyes to see the bottom. “Bloody Mary! How we suppose to get down there?”

Cadence and Shining looked out, seeing the problem at hoof. Cadance focused her magic before Spike came flying towards them. “Spike! What’s going on down there!?”

“Ponies are fighting everywhere, it’s like a whole riot... we’re gonna need to jump here!” he said as he opened the door and took Pip by his torso.

“Wait! What exactly are you gonna-”

Spike flew down again, with Pip in his grasps. Cadence and Shining did something similar, though Cadence used her magic to levitate her husband to fly next to her. The bottom was becoming clearer and they could see the numerous ponies fighting each other and the scars of anarchy on the proud city.

Cadence gasped and her eyes became slightly moist, turning to her husband and looking at him. “Shining, this is terrible!”

Shining looked at the spectacle and couldn’t believe what he was seeing. “Are those . . . actual Royal Guards attacking one another!?” He shouted. “What the hay is going on here!?”

A thought suddenly hit Spike and he gasped. “Wait a minute! I just remembered about the-”

Before the dragon could finish, the entire group slammed into the magical force field and skidded down it slowly. They all hit the ground hard and were a little dazed from the impact.

“Everypony okay?” Asked Spike as he got up.

“Bloody . . . I’ve been better,” said Pip. “But what stopped us?”

“It must be Twily’s protection spell,” said Shining Armor. “It looks intact and all, but considering this is Nightmare Moon we’re dealing with here, I doubt it can hold her for long.”

“I can’t believe I forgot that,” said Spike. “I guess with all the mist and the chaos going around, I didn’t really see it until it was too late.”

“Well whatever the case, it seems we still have some time,” said Princess Cadence. “The Crystal Army, as well as the volunteered platoons from around Equestria, are all deploying now.”

“And that ain’t the end of it,” said a southern voice.

The group turned around to see Applejack and the rest of Twilight’s friends standing by each other. Along each pony’s neck was their own Element of Harmony.

“Sorry we’re late partner,” said the orange mare. “We were busy getting ready help bring in some more help here. Soarin went off to Cloudsdale and get the other Wonderbolts, including Rainbow Dash.”

“And you don’t need to wait anymore!”

The gang looked up in the sky to see three pegasi wearing skin tight blue and yellow flight suits landing. The pony in the middle stepped forward and took off their flight goggles to reveal Rainbow Dash. Before anypony could say something, Fluttershy ran forward and tackled the blue pegasus to the ground and embraced her in a deep kiss.

“Oh Dashie, I’m so glad you’re here,” said Fluttershy. “I was worried that Nightmare Moon somehow got to you.”

“Heh heh heh, don’t worry Flutters,” she said as she kissed her briefly. “I’m not ready for a tombstone at all.”

“I hate to break up this nice reunion, but we’ve got bigger problems,” said a voice.

Shining Armor’s ears perked up. “No way . . . that voice . . . it can’t be him, can it?”

Stealth appeared before the group, frightening Fluttershy a bit as she hid behind her wife. The green stallion looked around him and walked up towards Shining. “Good to see you made it Shiny Plot.”

Shining’s face turned red as he narrowed his eyes. “I told you not to call me that!”

“Shiny Plot?” Cadence asked as she leaned her head forward to the two stallions, arching her eyebrow at her husband.

Shining waved his hooves at her, smiling broadly as his eyes darted from one corner to the other. “It’s nothing sweetie! Let’s just-”

“In our training years, I sprayed lots of gloss on the floor once and had him fall haunch first into it... his plot was shining for a whole month thanks to that.”

Rainbow looked at Stealth and then to Shining Armor, then to his backside and back to his face. She pursed her lips and laughed out loud as she pointed a hoof to him. “That’s classic! I should tell Twilight that!”

The general looked down as he frowned, hearing more of the company giggling at him. “That was just a stupid prank is all...”

Cadence lifted his head up. “It’s alright, we have humiliating moments... remember the time I-”

“Okay, enough with memory lane!” Spike shouted out to the others. “Twilight and Celestia need our help now!”

Pip looked up to the dome and grinded his teeth. “Luna needs my help too!”

“Let’s not waste any time then,” said Stealth as he motioned a hoof. “Come, I’ll show you all the way into the castle.”

“We’ll stay here and form a perimeter around Canterlot,” said Shining Armor. “We need to make a line here and try to make sure Nightmare Moon doesn’t get far.”

“Before you do that, there is one last thing you need to know,” said Stealth. “Those guards that are fighting, they aren’t themselves. They’re being controlled by Nightmare Moon herself. Order your men to incapacitate them, not kill them, and keep them restrained until Princess Twilight finds a cure for them..”

“I understand fully and will inform the others,” said the white unicorn. He turned to Soarin and Spitfire, who saluted him. “Captain Spitfire and Lieutenant Soarin, I want you to take the other Wonderbolts and form a defensive perimeter in the sky and keep an eye on the city. If you do see anything, then report it to me immediately.”

“Yes General Armor,” said the Wonderbolts. The two pegasi took off into the air to meet the other members.

Stealth waved a hoof at Spike and the others. “Come along now! I don’t know how the others are doing.”

Spike, Pip, and all of Twilight’s friends gave a nod and followed the green unicorn. He led them to a nearby river bank, with a small waterfall next to it.

Stealth turned to the group and said, “Hope you don’t mind getting a little wet.” He turned back and his horn glowed. The water around the falls glowed a little and parted slowly until it revealed a small passageway.

“My goodness, it’s certainly quite an unexpected place to put a secret tunnel,” said Rarity. “So will this take us to Twilight and Princess Celestia?”

“It will in a way, but we’ll have to make sure to avoid any potential guards. Remember, they aren’t themselves and will most likely want to take us to Nightmare Moon to have us suffer the same fate as the other guards. Now come on, there will be time to chat later.”

The group walked into the cave, with water dripping on them, and saw Stealth’s horn glow to light up the cave. As they walked through the passageway, the sound of the entrance slamming shut echoed, causing Fluttershy to jump a little and cling to Rainbow. While he was leading them, Stealth looked to see Pip had a bit of a disgruntled expression on his face.

“I take it you’re eager to take on Nightmare Moon?” He asked.

“Ye got that right, but I’m also ready to teach that fat flat of the sun a thing or two about what she did to me. She had no right to act this way to me or Luna and I’m ready to lay it all on her sorry excuse for a monarch.”

Stealth turned sharply to Pip, narrowing his eyes at the earth pony stallion. “Watch your tongue! Otherwise I’ll cut it off!”

“Tsk! Why should I? It’s thanks to her that Luna’s now like this... though its not like she’s gonna apologize for it, like she never does,”

The green unicorn pressed his muzzle close to Pip’s, eyes nearing his. “Celestia bucked up hard, we all know that... and she takes full responsibility for what happened here,” Stealth whispered before backing away from Pip. “But having you smear salt over her wound isn’t helping one bit, nor me...” he said with his head lowered. “You know, I hate seeing her so depressed and lonesome and knowing it was all her fault... but that’s why I will help her, to not be depressed again like she was for over a thousand years...”

Pip blinked and sighed as he closed his eyes. “Fine then! Let’s just go out there and help Luna! She needs our help now!” he said as he galloped on ahead, leaving the others behind.

Stealth sighed as he shook his head. What some ponies will do for love... His eyes widened and he galloped to where Pip was. “Wait! You don’t know where you’re going!”

“Anything yet Big Mac?” Asked Twilight as she finished going through another bookshelf.

“Eenope,” he replied. “I’m nearly out of shelves here. What about you Princess Celestia?”

“I’m afraid I’m not running into much luck either,” she said with a sigh. “I’ve searched every area around here and still haven’t found anything.”

“Ugh! I’m almost out of shelves here as well! When all of this is over, I’m going to order a massive reorganization here to make things easier to find! The Starswirl the Bearded Section doesn’t deserve to be in this deplorable shape!”

Celestia gasped as she heard that last statement. “That’s it! That’s the solution!” She ran over towards the southern section of the archives. “I don’t know why we didn’t look here first, but this will solve everything.”

“What will yer highness?” Asked Big Mac.

“This!” Celestia’s magic was levitating a black book.

Twilight gasped and beamed at this. “Starswirl the Bearded’s book! I can’t believe I didn’t think of that! Nice job Cel . . . um . . . Princess.”

The white alicorn felt a little comfort for the first time since the takeover occurred. “Thank you my faithful student. Now let’s see if we can find something to break the control on the guards.”

Page after page was flipped in the book, with both princesses and farmer pony looking for some kind of solution. There were several spells on using mind tricks on other ponies, but nothing about breaking mind control or anything about control in general. With each page that was flipped, the morale of the group dwindled down.

“There’s . . . there’s nothing in here about it,” croaked Twilight. “There’s nothing here about freeing those guards! There has to be something, anything to give us a hoof in fighting Nightmare Moon!”

“Take it easy Twilight darling,” said Big Mac as he hugged her. “I’m sure there’s something we can use in that book.”

Twilight went to another page and her eyes widened when she read what was on it. “Spirit Split. When cast on a pony, this spell will remove an alien spirit from the pony that that spirit is possessing... This is it!” She cheered as she had signalled the others to her side. “This spell can save Luna!”

Celestia smiled as she looked at the spell. “Excellent Twilight, but how do we cast it?”

“It says here the caster needs to be on high level to actually perform this spell... but the target must first be in a weakened state for success,” Twilight read out loud as she gave the book Celestia for her to study.

“Ah don’t think Pip is gonna be mighty happy about hurting Luna,” Big Mac said as he too looked over the spell.

Twilight nodded, rubbing her forehoof to her forehead in thought. “Maybe if we use the Elements on Nightmare Moon, we can weaken her for you to do the spell Celestia?”

Celestia furrowed her brow as she read through the spell and memorized every specific. Her mind trailed off to the past for a sudden, seeing Luna being turned into Nightmare Moon and her using the Elements to free her. Instead, they banished her for a millenium leaving her and her little sister to suffer. Was this the answer all along? Did you anticipate something like this would happen, Starswirl?

“Princess?”

Celestia’s eyes widened as she came back to reality and she shook her head, calming herself down to a degree. She turned to the couple who looked at her with worry. “I’m alright, I’m alright,” she repeated to them and gave the book back to Twilight. “I believe this will be the key in winning this one, but we need the other Elements by our side,”

Big Mac nodded, blinking. “Eeyup!”

A part of the wall near a statue opened and Stealth peeked around the corner. He waved a hoof and whispered, “All cleared . . . now let’s get to the archives.”

Spike, along with the bearers of the Elements of Harmony and Pip, followed behind the green unicorn. The eerie silence of the corridor, with the exception of hoofsteps, made the group feel a little on edge. Around each corner they came across, Stealth took the lead and used his camouflage magic to hide himself and look around before giving an all clear signal. After what seemed to be an excruciating hour, Stealth saw the magical barrier glow and smiled a little.

“This is it,” he whispered. “I’ll go tell Princess Celestia that you’re all here.” He walked down the hall but, all of a sudden, the corridor was engulfed in a black void and Stealth stopped dead in his tracks. He raised a hoof and touched the darkness and was shocked a little. “Oh! That wasn’t exactly the smartest thing of me to do.”

“I wouldn’t exactly say that,” a smug mare’s voice said. “Coming back here with the Elements of Harmony wasn’t smart of you to do.”

The group backed up a little and readied themselves for any attacks. From out of the void, Nightmare Moon stepped out and looked at the group of ponies and dragon, each of whom had a determined look on them.

“Ah . . . the bearers of the Elements, it’s so nice to see you all again.”

“Well we’ll be sure to give you a going away party right now!” Shouted Pinkie.

“I couldn’t agree more with you Pinkie,” said Rainbow. “We’re going to wipe that ugly smile off your face right now!”

“And how do you plan to do that?” She asked raising an eyebrow. “Your friend, Twilight Sparkle, is currently looking for some way to free those weak minded guards.”

“But . . . but how did you know we’d be here?” Asked Stealth. “You weren’t anywhere near this part of the castle.”

“Easy.” Nightmare turned herself into a blue mist and split herself into three parts before forming back together and turning back to normal. “Isn’t the power of shadows and darkness wonderful?”

“Oh buck . . . she must’ve used that mist to spy on me then!”

“You certainly figure things out quickly. And since you all are one Element of Harmony short, I’ll make sure that-”

“LUNA!!!”

Nightmare Moon froze and turned slowly to her behind. She was faced with a earth pony stallion, standing with his brow furrowed at her.

“You! I thought Celestia got rid of you!” Nightmare Moon spat at him as she spread her wings in anger.

Pip slowly walked forward. “I made a promise to Luna, that I would always be there for her...” he said slowly. “Now return her to us, or pay the price!”

Nightmare smirked and her horn glowed. “Then consider that promise broken!” She boomed as she charged towards Pip.

The Moon Sets Forever (Part 1)

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Nightmare Moon’s horn shot out a blinding white light, causing Pip and the others to scream and cover their eyes from the light. Pip staggered back a little and had no time to react as Nightmare used her magic to shoot out an energy blast and send him to the ground. The spotted stallion writhed in pain as he felt the shot hit him in his left foreleg. He got up, albeit he didn’t put a lot of pressure on his left leg, but ducked back down to avoid another magical shot that looked like a lightning bolt. The dark alicorn cackled as she saw Pip already struggling to avoid her attacks.

“Come now Pippy,” she said in a coy tone as she trotted towards him. “Surely this isn’t the best the bodyguard and coltfriend of that weakling Princess Luna has to offer, does he?”

Pip lied on the ground motionless as Nightmare got closer to him. The spotted stallion’s eyes shot open and narrowed and quickly got back up. Before the dark alicorn could respond, Pip socked her in the face with an uppercut and turned to use his hind legs to buck her right in the chest, sending her back a little and making her grunt in pain. He got up close to Nightmare and pulled her in by the neck, his expression furious and eyes that could shoot out daggers.

“Only Luna can call me Pippy!” He barked. “You are by no means Luna at all you wanker!”

He raised his head and butted Nightmare right in the snout harshly before delivering another sucker punch and sending her staggering back. Nightmare yelled in pain as she stepped back and turned away from him. Pip rubbed his head a little as pain was throbbing from the hard headbutt he did before advancing towards Nightmare again.

“Then you can join your dear Lulu and be lost in the darkness forever!”

Nightmare’s horn shot out a large lightning blast that went all over the area and hit the walls and shattered the windows in its path. Pip and the others ducked and tried to flatten themselves to the ground as much as possible. Spike used his wings to cover his friends as much as he could and kept them close by. Nightmare continued her barrage of lightning and keep the others at bay from her and laughed.

As he shielded himself from the magical energy, Pip noticed one of the glass shards from a broken window. He reached a hoof out cautiously and quickly grabbed the shard, careful not to cut himself. He looked at the glass and saw it looked similar to an arrowhead, except a little bigger and enough to bring anypony down. The spotted stallion looked back at Nightmare and felt guilt was over him as he thought about what he had to do. But as he looked back at the others and saw them unable to move without getting hit, he knew what had to be done.

Luna . . . I’m so sorry. A single tear ran down his face as he aimed the glass shard at Nightmare and threw it.

The shard penetrated into Nightmare’s right side, causing blood to slowly pour out of the wound. The dark alicorn yelled in agony as she crumpled to the ground and held her side. As she looked down and away from Pip, she wanted nothing more than to thoroughly kill Pip slowly and painful.

She felt the familiar pain in her heart again and realized what it was again. Just as she was about to use another spell though to silence the other spirit inside her, an idea suddenly popped into her head.

“Pippy . . .” said a cracked voice. “That . . . that hurt so much . . .”

The spotted stallion stopped dead in his tracks as he heard the voice. “Luna? Is that really you?”

“Pip, you can’t seriously believe this!” Shouted Spike. “If that was really Luna, then she wouldn’t look like Nightmare Moon right now!”

“Please Pip, you have to believe me,” she pleaded. “I’m . . . I’m trying to fight back against Nightmare. You didn’t need to be so harsh against me though.” She started to sniffle a little and shook.

“Sugarcube, I’m the Element of Honesty,” said Applejack. “I can tell ya right now that this liar ain’t telling ya the truth.”

“Please Pippy . . . I need you to help me,” said Luna. “I . . . I don’t want to go back again. I don’t want to be in that horrible dark place.”

“Pip, that meany is lying to you!” Pinkie shouted out to Pip.

“I beg you Pippy! Don’t let me suffer anymore!”

“Are you going to listen to that ruffian who pretends to be your love?!”

“Please Pippy-”

“Don’t listen to her-”

“Pippy!”

“Pip!”

“Pippy!”

“ENOUGH!!!” Pip yelled out as he rushed to Nightmare Moon. “Don’t worry Luna! I will save you!” He told her as he lifted her from the ground, holding her in a hug.

“Oh Pippy...” she said softly, returning the hug. “You are truly gullible!”

“Wha-”

Pip had no time to finish as he was sent flying across the room, hitting the wall on the other side hard. Nightmare Moon’s horn flickered before disappearing and she started cackling at the fallen stallion before her.

“You are truly idiotic, for thinking Luna would ever escape my grasp you colt!”

The spotted stallion groaned as he squirmed a little in agony. His back was throbbing in pain and felt like his back was run over by the world’s largest carriage’s wheels.

“Yer gonna pay for that, ya varmint!” Shouted Applejack. “Come on y’all, we’ve got a nightmare to end.”

Nightmare Moon watched as the group of ponies galloped, or in this case for Spike and Rainbow Dash flew, towards her. She smirked to herself and shook her head in amusement. With a glow of her horn, she fired a lightning bolt at the group, which unfortunately hit Fluttershy in the chest. The yellow pegasus screamed in horror as she fell back and hit the floor with a loud THUD.

Rainbow turned around and quickly flew over to her spouse, with worry on her face. “Flutters! Hang on, I’ll get you help!” She yelled as she held Fluttershy. She then looked towards Nightmare with a furious look on her face. “Luna or not, I’m going to buck you so hard you’ll be sent flying straight back to the moon!”

“Oh relax, she’ll be fine,” she said nonchalantly. “All she needs is some rest, much like the rest of your friends.”

“What the hay do you mean by that?” Asked the blue pegasus.

Nightmare responded with her horn glowing and covering Rainbow and the rest of her friends in a black aura.

“H-hey . . . anypony g-getting c-cold hooves?” Asked Rarity.

The group looked down and saw to their horror that their bodies were being covered up in ice.

“I . . . I can’t move!” Shouted Applejack. “It feels like I’m stuck in quicksand!”

The ice slowly inched its way around their bodies. Rarity tried to use her magic to remove the ice from her legs, but her use of fire magic didn’t even melt the ice a little, in fact it was forming around her faster.

“It’s useless to resist my power,” said Nightmare. “The more you struggle, the faster the ice grows. You’ll all make fine decorations for my throne room once I’m done with all of you, along with your precious Princess Celestia, Twilight, and Pip here.”

“I’d put those interior decorations on hold!”

Nightmare felt hot and saw something bright and turned to see it. She gasped and quickly ducked as a column of fire passed over her. The dark alicorn looked to see Spike, whose body was very slowly being covered in ice. She gritted her teeth and snarled, “Insolent dragon! You think you can fight me like that?”

“As long as I can move and can breathe out fire, I’m gonna kick your flank you hag,” he said.

“Then savor those last few movements!”

Nightmare’s horn glowed brightly and the ice around each pony and the dragon engulfed them quickly. With each one of his friends screaming for help, Spike lashed out and tried to blow out more fire at Nightmare, but she used her magic to bring up a piece of the marble floor to shield herself. The dragon refused to give in and tried to fight back, but as he looked around, he saw his friends all but engulfed in ice and their screams died down. Feeling the ice form around his head, Spike let out one last breath of fire that managed to hit a ceiling support beam that burned and fell down at Nightmare Moon.

The alicorn didn’t have time to react as the beam hit her square in the back, causing her to collapse to the ground briefly. She quickly shook off the attack and stood up to look at her new trophies. The entire group of ponies and the lone dragon were covered in ice and had agonizing looks on each of them. But as she looked, she saw Pinkie’s statue and saw she was sticking her tongue out and had a goofy smile on her face.

“I guess she took the expression laughing to death too literally.” Nightmare then turned to Pip, who was still trying to get back up. “Say goodnight Pippy . . . forever.”

“General Armor!”

Shining saluted the guard addressing him as they were overlooking the battlefield before them. “What do you have to report Sergeant?”

“Sir! We have dug trenches and placed our soldiers there to hold off the corrupted guards and set up medic points just at our base, Sir!”

“Remember Sergeant! We only aim to incapacitate the enemy, not kill them... they’re innocent in this case!”

“Sir! We have enchanted our crossbows to release a sleeping gas that will knock the target out for the next eight hours, Sir!”

“Very good Sergeant!” Shining told him and used his magic to lift a scroll and gave it to the guard. “I want you to take this to the Commander at once!”

“Sir, yes sir!”

“Dismissed!”

With that, the sergeant went off towards another point of the base leaving Shining alone to look at the battlefield before him. He looked to where Canterlot was and he sighed as he looked to the tower of the princesses.

Hasn’t she suffered enough, Nightmare Moon?

Nightmare Moon advanced on Pipsqueak, as he still struggled to get up. Her horn glowed again as she prepared to finish him off before he got his second wind. The pain inside her rose again sharply and heard the cries of protest.

“Stop it already!” She barked. “Your love for him may be strong, but I’m far stronger than you shall ever be!”

Nightmare felt a little dizzy as she could feel the spirit of Luna struggling within to prevent her from finishing her coltfried. She staggered over to a nearby window and rest her head upon the windowpane. Her horn glowed as she, once more, used her magic to cover herself in a dark cloud, only it lasted a minute instead of a few seconds this time. Once she stepped out, Nightmare took a deep breath as she felt the spirit of Luna was silenced again.

“Now then, where . . . were . . . what?”

Nightmare looked out the window and saw something in the distance, on the edge of the protection dome. She channeled her magic to her eyes, allowing her to get a better view and zoomed in on what she was trying to see. The dark alicorn saw that beyond the dome was a large army, with soldiers going into trenches and some ponies shouting orders. She then looked back down and saw her army was getting restless, some even trying to use their magic to break down the barrier but to no avail.

The alicorn zoomed out and smiled wickedly to herself. “Well, it seems the cavalry has arrived. Those ponies will make excellent new members of my growing army. And who am I to deny my own soldiers the thrill of war?” Nightmare Moon’s horn glowed a dark black light and hummed loudly as it powered up slowly. “Go my fellow ponies! Bring me all who oppose me and ‘persuade’ them to fight for me!”

The dark alicorn’s horn shot out a powerful blast of energy that shattered the window and went directly at the top of the dome. The beam hit the dome with tremendous force and wasted no time in breaking down the barrier. Slowly, the sound of glass shattering echoed across Canterlot as the shield started to strain and break down piece by piece.

Shining Armor lowered the binoculars he was using and turned to the soldier. “Get ready men! Remember, we’ve drawn the line and we will not let Nightmare Moon or her army escape beyond us! Now let’s liberate Canterlot and end this nightmare!”

“SIR, YES SIR!” The army boomed.

“Shining!”

The white unicorn turned to see Princess Cadence wearing pristine white armor with a helmet resembling Nightmare Moon’s. “What is it honey? We’ve got little time before Nightmare strikes.”

“I know, but just in case we both need to go into battle, wear this.” She brought in a set of armor much like hers, except it was royal purple and had a another unicorn helmet, except it was kind of shaped like a crown.

“Thank you Cadence,” he said as he kissed her. “Now we need to fulfill our end of the plan by making sure Nightmare Moon doesn’t live for even one night.” He put the armor on his body and readied himself for the worse.

The shield’s cracks soon took its toll as it rumbled violently for a minute before the shield shattered completely. The army put their shields up as the magical shards rained down upon them and could hear the charging of hooves and the yelling of ponies.

“FOR THE QUEEN!” The dark army chanted.

Shining Armor raised up a sword and boomed, “CHARGE!”

The forces under General Armor yelled as they charged forward, with the Nightmare Army closing in on them.

“Where in blazes are Stealth and the others!? They should have been-”

Twilight’s words were interrupted when a cracking sound emitting from above. She looked up in fear, her eyes widening as she realized what the cracking symbolized.

“Twi? Was that what Ah think it was?” Big Mac asked her as he looked back to his wife, who wore a grim expression.

The lavender mare’s lips scrunched as she gave a brief nod. “Yes,” she said softly. “We need to get out of here now!”

“But Twilight, what about the others?!” Celestia asked her former student as they made their way across the passages.

Twilight grinded her teeth as she closed her eyes. “We’ll take this spell and meet up with them,” she said to the princess as they rushed off.

“Are ya suggesting teleportation?”

“Exactly!”

With that, Twilight focused her magic but her horn ceased glowing. She gasped and tried again, but it failed again. She stopped in her tracks and started to sweat, as worry and fatigue governed her face.

“Twi?”

“Something’s blocking my magic!”

In that moment, something caught Celestia’s eye and she went to the window. She gasped as she saw a beam of black magic travel skywards, before enveloping the castle in a black aura. She narrowed her eyes and sighed as she turned to the others. “Nightmare Moon has placed an Anti-Teleportation Spell on Canterlot, all within the field can’t use magic to teleport,”

“Then wha’ do we do y’all?”

Twilight looked to the passages. “We go the long way around!”

“But it may be-”

“Hold it right there!”

The group turned to see a group of guards charging towards them, all with their weapons drawn.

“No time to argue Princess!” Shouted Twilight. “If we don’t move now, we won’t reach the others in time!”

The white alicorn and Big Macintosh gave a nod before following Twilight’s lead against Nightmare’s army.

Nightmare Moon chuckled as she finished her spell over the castle before turning back towards her victim. Pip staggered around on his hooves a little as he tried to steady himself. He looked up at the dark alicorn with his eyes narrowed and his teeth gritted. She merely laughed coldly at the look of the spotted stallion’s expression.

“Oh please, like you of all ponies pose any kind of threat to me,” she said. “You can barely stand as it is and your friends here are all frozen in place. You’ve got nopony, or in the case of the dragon, no dragon to turn to.”

“He’s got me!”

Nightmare turned to her left, only to be met by a blast of magic that hit her in the chest. She grunted in pain as she staggered back a little. She gritted her teeth and boomed, “Who dares attack me!?”

“Just somepony who you can’t fight what you can’t see.” Right near Pipsqueak, Stealth Sneak apparated and had his horn glowing a green aura. “And you most certainly can’t fight somepony who is a master of stealth tactics.”

“You!” Steamed Nightmare with a furious expression on her. “But how did you escape my spell!? You should be frozen along with those other ponies and dragon!”

“Didn’t you hear what I said? I’m a master of stealth tactics. I hid myself from you when I saw you cast that spell. If I had more time to charge up my magic, I would’ve hidden all of us to make it harder for you to see us.”

“I don’t care if you’re a master of stealth or not! I’m going to make sure you’re put in your place. Maybe killing your precious Princess Celestia will make you learn your place.”

Stealth’s eyes narrowed and felt rage bubbling up inside him, but something suddenly whizzed past him and went towards the dark alicorn.

WHACK!

Nightmare Moon fell to the ground as she felt a swift and deadly hoof sock her right in her face. Towering above her was Pipsqueak, who had a determined look on his face.

“Yer gonna have to deal with me first!” He shouted. He turned to Stealth and said, “Thanks for holding her off, I needed some time to catch my breath.”

“Think nothing of it, I said I wanted to make things right and I intend to keep that promise.”

Pip looked at the hallway that had the shield still up. “Listen to me Stealth, I need you to go get Princess Celestia now. I don’t know how long I’ll be able to hold her off, but you need to get her here to help.”

“But you’ll be outnumbered and she’s already beaten you up quite a bit. Let me stay here and you go get the Princess, I’ve got a better chance than you.”

“I’m not abandoning Luna, not here, not ever,” he spat. “I know she’s in there and that I will save her. Please . . . I need to do this for her. I’ll do everything I can to save her. Besides, Princess Celestia needs you considering she may be under attack.”

Stealth looked down and gave a small nod. “You have a point there, the princesses may be in danger and I need to tell them about what’s going on. Alright, you do what you can to save Princess Luna. Just don’t be a hero and get yourself killed, understand?”

Pip nodded.

“Good . . . I’ll be back as soon as possible.” Stealth’s cloaking field went up and the sound of galloping echoed down the hallway.

Pip turned back towards Nightmare Moon, but she wasn’t there. All of a sudden, he felt a magical aura surround him and was picked up. He was then slammed against the wall a few times by the magic, all the while creating a large cracked impression of himself in the wall. He skidded down the wall and collapsed back to the ground.

Nightmare stepped forward and said, “Your foolish actions will be the death of you . . . and I’ll make sure of that.”

Shining looked out on the battlefield before him with grim as he saw many of his troops fall to the enemy.

“Sir, this isn’t making any sense,” said one of Shining’s personal guards. “We outnumber Nightmare’s forces five to one. How can they be gaining the upper hoof and capturing many of our own?”

Shining looked out at the battlefield again and saw some guards were pulling very skilled moves and maneuvers against his army. He shook his head and said, “Judging from some of the soldiers I’m seeing their battle skills, it looks like there are members of the Equestrian Tactical Special Forces on Nightmare’s side. They’re trained for the worst and are capable of taking on overwhelming odds.”

“General!” One of Shining’s guards shouted as he came to his superior. “General, the enemy is advancing to our front! We must retreat!”

“Not in my vocabulary Private!” Shining yelled out as he took out his spear and put his helmet on with the rest of his armor. “Twily and her friends need more time and I know they’ll pull through! We’ll buy her more time! So it seems that we need to go all out on them!”

Cadance used her magic to bring out her own shield and armor, with a magical sword at her side. “We fight together!” Cadence said as she kissed her husband.

Shining blushed for a moment before smiling at his wife and heading off into battle, helping the weakened guards gain support and morale.

“Is that the general fighting!?”

“And Princess Cadence?!”

The guards turned to each other, blinking in confusion and looking back to their superior. One guard scrunched his lips and finally yelled out as he charged towards the battlefield. The others soon followed suit, assisting their general with the war.

“Remember! We are only to knock them out! No blood shall be spilled her further today! Do you get me!?”

“Yes sir!”

With that, Shining started charging his horn and shot beams of magic to the enemy. The beams went flying everywhere, hitting enemies and nearly hitting allies alike. This did not stop Shining though, as he continued on firing.

Cadance saw through this and turned to the guards. “Everypony! Do as he does!”

“Yes Princess!”

With that, the guards shot everywhere and beams of magic littered the battlefield. The beams started colliding with each other, creating small impacts that stunned nearby ponies.

“AAHH!!” Yelled Pip as he felt a bolt of lightning hit him. He squirmed in pain from the blast and tried to desperately move.

Nightmare snickered coldly as her horn let out a little smoke from the lightning spell she performed. “You certainly are quite the resilient one I’ll give you that,” she said. “But you know you’ve got no chance to fight me. Are you starting to regret your decision now?”

The spotted stallion panted and spat out, “No . . . I need to save you . . . I need to save you Luna.”

“Enough already!” Boomed Nightmare. “Your precious Luna is forever lost, she can’t even hear you now. When will you learn that it’s hopeless?”

“I’m not giving up on my princess. I know she’s in there and she needs me more than ever. I’m not going to lose hope in saving her, not now, not ever. That’s something you should learn.”

Nightmare opened her mouth again, but she suddenly noticed Pip picking up a brick that fell from the ceiling. He threw it at her, but the dark alicorn used her magic to stop the brick. Before she could do anything else, the spotted stallion charged up and connected a strong right hook to her face, which made her grunt in pain.

The dark alicorn retaliated by using her horn to create a bright flash of light, causing Pip to be blinded. He stumbled a little as everything went into a blur for him. He felt Nightmare’s magic grip him again and was levitated into the air. Pip cringed as he prepared for the worst, but instead of being thrown against the wall, nothing happened to him. He opened his eyes to see Nightmare trot towards him, with a smirk on her face.

She brought a hoof to his chin and rubbed it. “You know, I think I understand why Luna loves you so much now,” she said. “Your dedication and ferocity are something to behold. You are quite a pony for a mere guard.”

“What do you want from me?” Pip spat. “I’m not interested in anything else except Luna.”

“How about something better? As you know, Luna is forever gone and will never come back. But . . . I’m not the one who took your precious Luna from you. It was that arrogant Princess Celestia.”

Pip stopped struggling as he suddenly remembered who it was that started it all: Princess Celestia. “What do you mean? She said to me she didn’t want for Luna to become Nightmare Moon again.”

“And look where we ended up,” she said. “Celestia drove her own sister to become me. I know you aren’t happy with her and hold a lot of resentment towards her. You’re taking your anger out on the wrong pony. You should be going after the pony who took Luna from you in the first place. She only became me because she knew her own sister was plotting against her to stop you two from ever being a couple.”

“But . . . but . . .”

“And Celestia coming to your rescue may not be a good idea. You know what happened to Luna the last time this happened and I’m sure you don’t want to see this happen again. Once she banishes her sister to the moon again, she’ll most likely create a cover story and lie to everypony about how Luna went mad and make herself to be some hero again.” She extended a hoof out to him. “How about you help me instead? Celestia has done enough damage as it is and hasn’t learned anything at all. I promise you one thing . . . help me and you will see Luna again.”

Pip stood there dumbfounded and didn’t know what to make of this. He looked at Nightmare Moon, who stood there with a small smile on her face. He then looked towards the wielders of the Elements of Harmony and Spike. With everything rushing in his mind, he could only weigh his options and his judgement cloud up.

“Damn the dark hallway,” cursed Stealth Sneak. “Why didn’t Princess Celestia ever put torches here instead of the Guard using only magic to light up these corridors?” His horn glowed a faint white aura that barely helped him see where he was going. “I can’t use my magic up too much either, I know I need to conserve it.”

He passed by one of the few windows and faintly saw the battle going on outside Canterlot. He gave a sigh and said, “I hope Shiny Plot can hold off for just a little longer.”

His mind drifted back to a few days ago and all the events that transpired, in particular his actions that led to all this. The memories made him sigh again and furrowed his brows. “I swear to it Shiny, I will fix this disaster I helped created. If I have to die doing so, then so be it.”

He turned his attention back to the dark hallway and saw something glowing in the distance at the intersection. A shadow was against the wall and in the shape of an alicorn! Stealth prepared to raise his cloaking field just in case Nightmare Moon was coming by. He waited for a few tense moments before, from out of a corridor, Princess Celestia trotted by.

Stealth felt relief wash over him as he lowered his field and trotted over towards the white alicorn.

“Am I ever glad to see you Princess,” he said.

There was no response from her. She kept trotting along with her horn glowing a white light.

“Princess Celestia? Didn’t you hear me?”

Again, no response.

“Your highness, I need to tell you something urgent.” When Stealth heard no response and the Princess passed him, he lost his patience. “Princess Celestia, listen to me!”

He raised his hoof to poke her, but when he did his hoof went through her. The green unicorn jumped as he saw it.

“P-Princess?” He asked with apprehension in his voice. He raised his hoof to tap her again, but it went through her again. “What kind of trick is this?”

A thought suddenly hit him in the head and his eyes widened. “Wait a minute, it’s a tra-!”

“GET HIM!” A voice barked.

Princess Celestia suddenly disappeared and a platoon of Nightmare’s guards charged at Stealth. Reacting quickly, he lept to the side to avoid a few guards that tried to tackle him. Stealth charged his horn and shot out a few bolts of magic at another charging group of guards. Each soldier was hit squarely in the chest and they fell to the ground unconscious.

The green unicorn stepped back as more guards came running out of nowhere, like they came from the very shadows of the hallway. He kept firing bolt after bolt of magic to stun each guard, but as he took one down, another quickly took his place.

As more soldiers came at him, Stealth gritted his teeth and crouched a little. “I didn’t want to do this to you all, but you leave me no choice!” He shouted.

His horn glowed brightly for a few moments and the hum of electricity crackling echoed across the hallway. Stealth let out a roar as his horn released a large wave of electricity that traveled down the hallway.

Nightmare’s soldiers saw this and tried to get away, but the shockwave came at them too fast to get away. Waves of electricity jolted each guard, causing them to scream and writhe in agony as they crumpled to the ground. The glow on Stealth’s horn faded as he took several deep breaths and looked across the room. The screaming died down as each guard twitched wildly, but they weren’t moving.

“My apologies to all of you,” he panted. “I had to do what I did to get to the Princess. I assure you though that-”

The green unicorn’s vision suddenly became blurred and his head felt like somepony trampled on him hard. He fell to the floor and let out a small scream from the pain.

“My . . . my magic,” he groaned as he held his head. “That spell really pushed me over the limit.” He looked around and saw the guards were lying and not moving a muscle. “That Shockwave spell will keep them knocked out for a while, but I’ve got to hurry and-”

THWACK!

“AAAHHH!” Screamed Stealth.

The green unicorn collapsed to the ground and felt a searing pain course through his front left leg. He looked to see, to his horror, an arrow hit him in his left side and blood was slowly pouring out of it. Stealth saw out of the corner of his eyes a group of Nightmare’s guards approaching him. One guard though hit somepony over the head and looked furious.

“Idiot, you weren’t supposed to do that!” The guard berated. “Queen Nightmare ordered us to bring all survivors back alive, not kill them!”

“Sir, you saw what he did to that platoon,” said the soldier in a small voice. “I’d rather incapacitate him with an arrow then be electrocuted.”

“I don’t care at all! Once he’s brought to our Queen, I’ll inform you of your folly and let her deal with you!”

“Fine! Then let’s get this--”

A shot of white magic disabled the corrupted guard as he fell to the ground, with the other turning around to see who did it. Standing with her wings outstretched, Celestia glared at the corrupted guards with her magic glowing brightly.

“Death to the false ruler of Equestria!” One of the guards yelled out and charged with his fellow soldiers towards Celestia.

Celestia only shook her head with her eyes closed, before using her magic to disable all the guards. Once they all fell to the ground defeated, Celestia slowly made her way to Stealth. “I’m so sorry Stealth,” she whispered.

She lowered herself down to his body, with her horn glowing bright white. The moment the horn touched his side, the wounds around Stealth slowly disappeared and the blood flowing out of where the arrow hit him slowed down. She then used her magic to remove the arrow carefully and patched up the wound.

Stealth stood up and only smiled softly at the sadden princess. “Not your fault princess. I should’ve realized those guards were using an Illusion Spell to fool me.”

“It is!” Celestia retorted, her eyes nearly flooding with tears as she bit her lower lip. “It’s my fault this happened. If only I wasn’t so stupid then-”

“Celestia!” Stealth chimed in. “Excuse the insubordination, but this is not the time to pass blame to whoever. We need to save Luna and the others now!”

“He’s right Princess!” Twilight stated as she and Big Mac ran up to her. “Remember what Big Mac told you. You can still save Luna and moaning about it won’t help! Now come on, we’ve got to hurry!”

“Hold on, there’s something I need to tell you all first!” Warned Stealth. “It’s about Nightmare Moon!”

“Explain on the way,” ordered Twilight. “Time is running out and we don’t have a moment to spare!”

“You’re right!” Celestia looked up from Twilight's level. “Let’s go.”

Pip was in a tight situation right now. Even though he was trained well in the academy, and well versed for an Earth pony guard, never had he any experience in fighting an alicorn that could kill him on a whim.

The only time he ever stood up against an alicorn was with Celestia, and that got him sent half way across Equestria. Celestia. The name itself brought frustration to the stallion’s mind.

“So what do you say Pip?”

Pip’s attention was brought back when Nightmare Moon spoke again. He looked up to the mare’s dragon like eyes and squinted his own to see any trace of Luna. He could not however, and his hope was draining.

“Pip!”

The stallion’s eyes widened when he saw Nightmare Moon struggling with herself, holding onto her head and screaming. When she looked at Pip again, he saw Luna’s eyes looking at him pleadingly.

“Luna?!”

“Pippy . . . you must listen to me very carefully,” the alicorn said in a strained voice. “Nightmare lies . . . she’s using you like a puppet for her own dirty deeds!”

“But Luna, she did make a good point about what happened to you!”

“I . . . I can’t deny that, but my sister had a lapse in judgement. Besides, you of all ponies should know that I know Nightmare Moon better than anypony else. I can tell you right now that even now, she’s using the anger you hold towards Celestia to turn you into her own weapon. Once she uses you to kill my sister and those who oppose her, she’ll either kill you or brainwash you so deeply, you’ll be nothing but a zombie.”

“What can I do though? There’s no other way to defeat Nightmare Moon and the wielders of the Elements of Harmony are frozen.”

“You have to trust me Pip!” Luna boomed. “It doesn’t need to end like this at all. You know the truth, she doesn’t care about me or you! My sister may have caused this, but I know she’s doing all she can to save me and stop all this!”

“But I . . .”

“But nothing! Whatever anger you hold towards my sister needs to be put aside! I know she’s fighting to save me and you have to help her! Nightmare Moon though will use you only for her own desires until you are considered disposable! She . . . she . . .” Her voice trailed off as she held her head in agony.

“AAAHHH!!!” She screamed in agony. Her eyes slowly turned back into the catlike irises and greenish again. Nightmare looked angry with herself and snorted in frustration.

“I’ll deal with that insolent mare later!” She barked. “I’ll teach her a lesson in-” Her eyes then suddenly say Pip and remembered what she was saying. “Ahem . . . My apologies Pippy, but that was just a moment of weakness by me. Now, as I was saying before. If you help me defeat Celestia, then you shall have your precious Luna back. What do you say?”

Pip looked down for a moment and recalled what Luna said to him earlier. An idea suddenly clicked in his head and he smiled to himself. “You know . . . you’re right after all Nightmare. I think it’s time I did take out the tyrant that did all of this. I’ll help take her out and end this for good.”

The dark alicorn smiled sinisterly as she lowered Pip to the ground and released her grip on him. “I knew you’d see things the right way Pippy,” she said smugly. “Now then, let’s get you ready to-”

WHAM!

Nightmare screamed a little as she felt a hoof kick her in the face. She rubbed the sore area and looked at Pip with a livid expression on her.

“I didn’t say which tyrant I would go after and I know who the real one is.”

“How dare you have the nerve to attack me!?” She demanded. “I will personally make you-”

“There she is!”

Nightmare Moon’s eyes turned to two new alicorns and unicorn approaching her. She sneered at the presence of Celestia, Stealth, Big Mac, and Twilight.

“Well well well, what do we have here?” Nightmare Moon snarked at the new company, smirking at them.

“It’s over Nightmare Moon!”

“For you, yes!” Nightmare retorted and cackled. “For you everything is over Celestia! My soldiers have all but decimated yours in a matter of moments! Even your faithful dogs here,” she pointed to the Elements of Harmony. “Face it, Celestia! You’re blunder has doomed Equestria from the start!” She cackled again, but stopped when she felt a pair of hooves connecting her to her side. She jumped away and saw not only Pip attacking, but Applejack too.

“Not if we stop ye!”

Nightmare Moon was shocked to see the Elements and Spike free from their prison. She saw another figure standing next to them, with their horn glowing a hot red light, Twilight. “You!” She barked out at the lavender alicorn. “Why do you get in my way!?”

“Cause you have to be stopped!”

The Elements of Harmony started to glow bright, and Spike was beginning to charge his magic too. Nightmare Moon tried to escape, but was stopped when she saw white shackles on her hooves. Celestia was holding onto her with everything she had, and she was beginning to draw magic for another spell. Nightmare Moon’s eyes widened when they released their magic upon her.

The ray from the Elements; combined with Spike’s fire and Celestia’s magic, enveloped Nightmare Moon in a fiery pyre that lasted for a few moments. Pip could only watch as she heard the anguished screams of Nightmare, hoping that Luna herself wasn’t feeling the pain. When it ended, she was badly burned and wounded, but was still standing and grinding her teeth to the company before her.

She heard the galloping of hooves and saw Pip charging her, giving her one last punch across the face that sent her flying. The dark alicorn let out a scream as she fell to the ground with a sickening thud against the floor. Pip panted heavily as he focused on Nightmare’s unmoving body. The only sound that could be heard, aside from the spotted stallion’s breathing, was the moaning of Nightmare from the pain she received.

“We did it! We did it!” Pinkie jubilated. “This calls for a-”

“It’s not over yet Pinkie,” said Twilight as she opened Starswirl’s book. “We need to perform the Spirit Split spell and remove Nightmare Moon’s influence from Luna forever!”

The lavender alicon’s horn glowed brightly as she started chanting some words. A white circle formed around Nightmare Moon that glowed brighter with each word Twilight spoke. The entire group shielded their eyes, save for Twilight, as a column of bright light formed around the circle and lit up the entire castle.

The light intensified for a minute before Twilight shouted out the last words that were rather incomprehensible. The column exploded and little flashes of light rained down the castle corridor. When the last of the light went away, the group turned to Twilight, who was exhausted from performing such a spell.

“Twilight! Are ya alright!?” Big Mac wondered with a worried expression on him. He rushed over and held her in his hooves.

The lavender alicorn let out a weak laugh and kissed her husband on the lips briefly. “I’m fine . . .but what happened to Luna?” She asked in a dazed voice. “Did . . . did the spell work?”

The group then turned their attention to Nightmare Moon, but her body was covered in a thick cloud of smoke.

“I’ll take care of this!” Stated Rainbow.

She took off into the air and flew away from her friends for a few seconds. The sky blue pegasus then turned around and rocketed down the hallway, causing a huge gust of wind to blow down the hall. Everypony, as well as Spike, shielded themselves from the gust and held onto each other as they held their ground. The plan did work though as the smoke quickly dispersed and everypony could see an alicorn on the ground.

“Lu . . .Luna?” Pip asked anxiously.

The group looked on in both wonder and fear about the fate of the alicorn. Finally, after what seemed to be many hours, they all got a good look and to everypony’s delight, Princess Luna was back and she showed no signs of looking like Nightmare Moon. The blue alicorn then opened her eyes slowly and saw Pip’s delighted face.

“Hello Pippy,” she said in a weak voice.

“Luna! You’re okay!” He shouted cheerfully. “I knew I’d find a way to save you!”

“What are we, chopped liver?” Asked Rainbow.

“Oh . . . my apologies,” said Pip. “I’m just so happy to see Lulu here is okay now. What I meant Luna is that we all did it, including your sister!” He turned to Princess Celestia, who looked a little worried. “Princess . . . come on over and talk to her.”

The white alicorn looked down in shame and tapped her hoof.

“What’s wrong your highness?” Asked Stealth. “Aren’t you glad to see your sister?”

“I am but I don’t know what to say,” she responded. “I caused a revolution and nearly lost Luna again. I can’t just go talk to her.”

“Nonsense, you’ve got to say something to her. You need to let her know how sorry you are and patch things up. I know you will have a tough road ahead after this disaster, but you need to let Princess Luna know you’re very sorry and to admit to your errors. Besides, after all this, you learned a very valuable lesson about trusting your sister and you went to a great length to save her. She’ll understand . . . I promise you that.”

Celestia gave a nod and said, “You’re right Stealth, it’s time for me to live up to my mis-”

“NNNOOO!!!” Shouted a screechy voice. “YOU . . . HAVEN’T . . . WON!”

“What was that!?” Spike inquired as he held onto Rarity.

“I . . . I don’t know,” said Twilight. “But that voice . . . it sounds so familiar.”

“Sweet Celestia! What in tarnation is that!?” Applejack demanded as she pointed her hoof near Luna.

The group gasped as they saw a dark blue mist float around. The cloud suddenly took off into the air and dive bombed towards them. They all ducked in fear of the mist and didn’t dare move a muscle. They could only watch as the mystical energy flew around and come dangerously close to them.

“YOU . . . YOU . . . WILL DO!” Shouted the voice. “YOU’LL PAY FOR WHAT YOU DID!”

Celestia watched the mist speed passed her and the bearers of the Elements, but instead went directly towards a certain spotted stallion. “PIPSQUEAK! Watch out!” Warned Celestia.

The warning came too late though as the mist passed into his body, making him scream in pain and thrash around.

“Pippy!” Luna cried out in horror. “What’s happening to him!?”

“Luna!” He shouted in a contorted voice. “Get away now! That mist . . . it’s doing something to me and I’m losing control of myself!”

“I can’t Pip, not after-” She was cut off as Celestia used her magic to teleport her to her side. The blue alicorn looked at her angrily. “Why did you do that!? I need to help him!”

“Because I think he’s right!” She shouted. “Look at his body, it’s changing!”

Everypony watched in horror as Pip’s body underwent a radical transformation. His legs grew out slowly as well as his body until they were nearly double his length. His sides pushed out what looked like a pair of wings. The spotted stallion’s head even grew a large horn. As the transformation went on, Pip screamed in agony from the sudden growth spurts and the new body parts coming out of his body.

“AAAHHH!!!” Cried out Pip as everything went black for him.

The screaming from the stallion slowly died away and he just twitched and spazzed a little. Luna broke Celestia’s hold on her and slowly trotted towards her coltfriend.

“P-Pippy?” She asked apprehensively.

No response.

“Speak to me please! Say something!” She cried out. “Let me know you’re alright.

“Oh . . . I’m more than alright Luna,” he said in a contorted voice.

“What . . . what’s happened to your-”

BANG!

Luna was instantly hit with a lightning bolt that fired out of Pip’s new horn. The blue alicorn flew back and landed on the ground.

“Princess Luna!” The group shouted in unison.

Celestia looked at Pip with a livid expression on her. “HOW DARE YOU ATTACK MY SISTER!?” She boomed in her Royal Canterlot Voice. “YOU WILL . . . will . . . “ The white alicon’s voice trailed off as she looked into the eyes of Pipsqueak and gasped at what she saw.

The spotted stallion’s eyes were catlike irises and were greenish. He let out a low chuckle and smiled deviously.

“You were right at what you said earlier Twilight,” said Pip in a voice mixed with Nightmare Moon’s. “It isn’t over yet.” He stepped out of the shadows to reveal his body was starting to turn completely black, but had the build of a stallion’s. “In fact . . . this Nightmare is just getting started.”

The Moon Sets Forever (Part 2)

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Luna got up from the floor, after she was laid there by the pony she loved. No… by the Nightmare that had taken over the pony she loved. “No…” She trailed off and her eyes turned moist as she stood next to a horrified Celestia. “Pip.”

“I am not Pip,” the stallion spoke in a voice that was a mixture of the original’s and of Nightmare’s. “I’m taking over this one here, since you’re too stupid and useless for me now.”

Twilight glowered at the stallion. “Let go of him Nightmare!” She demanded from the dark stallion, as her friends joined her.

“Like I’m going to listen to you?”

“Nightmare,” Celestia spoke, narrowing her eyes at the possesed Pip. “Release Pip from your hold, or you shall pay the price!”

Nightmare actually laughed at Celestia’s threat. “What you going to do? Banish this stallion or kill him?” Nightmare asked rhetorically as he sneered. “I should really thank you, if it weren’t for you none of this would have ever happened.” Nightmare continued to speak, seeing Celestia flinch at the realization of her actions. “I mean, you say you want to do good for your sister and your ponies. But in the end, all you do is wreck their lives… you’re ever worse than I am you--”

“I’ve had enough of this!”

Rainbow suddenly soared towards Nightmare, reading to tackle him to the ground. She was just an inch away when she froze, and Nightmare lifted his hoof and smirked at the cyan mare.

“Careful, little pony.”

A hoof connected to Rainbow’s head, sending her flying backwards towards the wall. She crashed into it, with her landing on the ground as she groaned.

“Rainbow!” Fluttershy shouted out to her lover and rushed off towards her, holding Rainbow in her hooves as she started crying and tending to her.

Twilight gasped and clenched her teeth to the Nightmare, glaring at him with as much distaste as she could. “You monster!” She then used her magic to craft a spear out of thin air and charged towards the Nightmare.

“So you’re looking for a fight too? You never learn.”

“Well you’re going to learn to never hurt my friends, the hard way!”

Twilight sprinted towards the new Nightmare Moon with her spear at the ready. As she got within inches of her though, the stallion sighed and his horn glowed. Before Twilight could react, a blue shield formed around Nightmare and she slammed into it.

“Really now Twilight,” he sneered. “I expected much better intelligence from Princess Celestia’s prized student.”

The lavender alicorn groaned a little, but shook off the sudden impact. “Then I’ll give you everything and much more!” She shouted.

Twilight’s horn glowed once more and shot out a fireball from it. The spell hit Nightmare's shield and broke it instantly, but he quickly teleported away before any of the flames touched him. Twilight looked around apprehensively for any sign of the black stallion, along with her friends as well.

Big Macintosh suddenly saw something in the corner of his eyes. Creeping towards his wife was a cloud of blue mist that looked familiar. “Twilight, behind ya!” He shouted.

She turned around and gasped to see the blue mist surrounding her. She jumped out of the way before it could engulf her completely. The mist formed back together to reveal an irritated Nightmare Moon.

“Give up already Sparkle!” He spat. “You couldn’t defeat me when I came back from exile and you can’t defeat me-”

“HOW ABOUT ME THEN!?”

Nightmare turned to the sound of the pony speaking, but was met with two swift orange hind legs to her face that made him stumble back a little and grunt in pain. Applejack grinned to herself as she blew her two hind legs.

“How about you give up before I really show ya what I’m made of?” She inquired.

Nightmare looked back at the orange pony with a death stare at her and sprinted at her. She attempted to run off, but the black stallion caught up to her before she could turn around. He grabbed Applejack by the neck and threw her towards the wall. The farmer pony crashed into it and moaned as she laid on the ground.

Celestia was awestruck. “I don’t get it,” she said. “Alicorns are generally strong in flying, magic, and strength, but nothing like what I’m seeing. How can Nightmare be this physically strong?”

Stealth suddenly felt something click in his mind. “Oh no . . .” he muttered.

“That’s right,” Nightmare replied, grinning as he flexed his muscles. “This strapping young stallion’s muscles are quite at their peak. He must’ve been working out quite a lot. Even if he wasn’t blessed with me, he could have seriously injured your sorry flank for all the things you put him through,” Nightmare sneered at Celestia, who was staring in shock at Nightmare.

Celesta looked down on her sister Luna, whose eyes were moist from seeing Pip like this. “Is this true Luna?” She asked Luna, and only received a nod from her.

With Nightmare looking at the horrified faces of the Royal Sisters, Twilight took her chance and sneaked behind Nightmare. She was preparing a spell she had never thought of using on a pony, much less the love of Luna.

“Forgive me Pip.”

Before Nightmare could respond to Twilight’s words, a surge of lightning escaped from her horn and was sent directly to Nightmare. Electricity started dancing around Nightmare’s body, sending him into a frenzy of agony and pain.

Luna gasped and looked to Twilight, new set of tears running down from her cheeks as she glared. “Twilight! What are you doing?!”

Twilight could not answer, but she knew whatever answer she gave would not suffice Luna. Twilight felt extremely guilty as she was hurting this stallion more, when in fact he never deserved any of this pain.

“Luna… help me…”

What came from Nightmare’s mouth was not his voice, but rather Pip’s. Pip’s eyes also returned but the attack on him would not stop.

“Pip!”

“Luna! Don’t be fooled!” Celestia pleaded, knowing that this was most likely a trap to lure Luna.

Luna did not listen to her sister, no sound came into her ears as she stared directly at her Pippy’s eyes. She furrowed her brow and immediately channeled her magic and her eyes started glowing brightly.

“Luna!”

It was too late though as Luna put up a shield in front of Nightmare Moon. The electricity from Twilight’s horn danced around the dome and started to go off in other directions. Spike instinctively put his wings around Rarity as she held onto him tightly. Fluttershy pulled Rainbow behind a fallen piece of ceiling slab. Big Macintosh grabbed his sister and Pinkie and shielded them. Celestia put up a small dome around her and Stealth as the bolts of lightning danced aimlessly.

Twilight saw what was happening and broke off her concentration on the spell immediately. “Princess Luna! Forgive me, but what are you thinking!?” Shouted the lavender alicorn.

“You can’t do this to my Pippy!” She shot back. “Somewhere inside this stallion is Pipsqueak and I won’t let you hurt him!”

“Luna, you have to understand that Twilight doesn’t like doing this as well,” said Celestia as she lowered her shield. “Nightmare Moon is tricking you with the same tactics that was used against Pip earlier.”

“But he’s not truly Nightmare Moon! I know he’s in there and he needs me more than ever!”

“Princess Luna, I know you feel hurt about this,” said Twilight. “I promise you that once I incapacitate Nightmare with that spell I was using, we can use the Spirit Split spell to get rid of her for good. I know this is painful for you, but give me some time and after this is over, you don’t have to worry about him being in pain any more.”

“Oh, I assure you Twilight, there will be more pain for all of you.”

The group looked up in horror to see Nightmare standing up and holding Starswirl the Bearded’s book. A loud ripping noise rang out as the black stallion levitated a page of the book.

Twilight gasped as she saw what the page was. “That’s the Spirit Split spell!”

“Correction. . .” Nightmare’s horn glowed again and the page was engulfed in flames. In a matter of seconds, the page turned to ashes in front of the group’s eyes. “It was the Spirit Split spell.”

“You . . . you . . .” Twilight seethed.

“You and your friends are done interfering in this,” said Nightmare. “I think it’s time all of you should see the fall of your rulers by my hoof.”

“Not if I have anything to-”

Before Twilight could finish her sentence, a field started to envelop around the bodies of all the ponies except Celestia and Luna. Unable to move, they were powerless as Nightmare started advancing to the princesses.

“Now then, where were we?”

Celestia seethed in rage as Nightmare approach. “Let them go at once!”

Nightmare merely tilted his head and started cackling in laughter. “You think I’m gonna listen to a mare like you?”

“What you seek isn’t Pip! It’s me!” Luna shouted out as she stood before her sister. “Take me and release Pip.”

“Hmmm…” Nightmare tapped his chin with his hoof in thought, scrunching his lips. “Nah! Sorry, but this body is a lot fresher and has more potential!”

Luna and Celestia looked to each, nodding before charging towards Nightmare.

“Now that’s more like it!”

Celestia used her magic to summon a mace and used all her power to slam in where Nightmare was standing. He dodged the attack, and the mace collided with the floor emitting a powerful tremor that soon broke the floor as earth starting rising from the spot.

Luna screamed and used her magic to send Nightmare crashing into the opposite wall, sending him flying through to another room. When Nightmare finally got out of the debris, he was just smiling and laughing.

“That’s it! Let’s play some more!”

With that said, Nightmare channeled his magic to create a shadow that spread around himself. and soon the shadow was shooting out spears of darkness to the princesses who were bracing themselves.

“Kiss yourselves goodbye!”

Celestia casted a shield around herself and the others just in time, as spears started to collide with the shield. It was working, but only for a little while until cracks started forming.

“Sister!”

“Luna be quiet! I can only hold the barrier for so long!”

“Come on Celestia! For somepony who’s supposed to be one of the bravest leaders in Equestria, you sure are acting like a coward!” Nightmare’s barrage increased more as bolts of lightning pounded against the dome.

“Tia, he’s right, we can’t stay here forever!” Shouted Luna. “What can we do now!?”

Celestia could hear the shield starting to crack and looked around desperately. “There’s only thing to do sister!” Before Luna could ask, Celestia broke her concentration on the shield and her horn glowed for a brief moment as the dome finally shattered.

Nightmare Moon smiled victoriously as his magic blasted around the area both princesses were at. His horn dimmed out as he felt the continuous bolts of lightning most likely left them dead. But as the dust settled, Nightmare saw no sign of Luna nor Celestia.

“Where’d they go!?” He demanded. “There’s no way they could’ve survived that!”

“We beg to differ.”

Nightmare turned around and was met by a lightning bolt that hit him in the chest. He let out a grunt of pain as he staggered back a little. Before he could regain his bearings, Celestia charged at him and tackled him to the ground, which caused a thunderous crack to sound out. Nightmare punched Celestia in the face and pushed her off, but he once again found himself overwhelmed with Luna using her magic to shoot out an ice bolt. He ducked out of the way, but the spell managed to freeze part of his leg and was slowed down. As both princesses closed in on Nightmare, the black stallion’s eyes narrowed and he snorted in anger.

“ENOUGH OF THIS!” He boomed.

He used his magic to create a shockwave that sent Luna and Celestia flying back against the wall. They both hit the ground and groaned a little as they raised their heads up to see Nightmare’s horn glowing. Black smoke started to form next to the stallion that got bigger and bigger with each passing second.

“Luna, look!” Cried out Celestia.

The blue alicorn gasped as she saw a black hoof start to form out of the smoke. Then there was a head, wings, a horn, and a tail. Both princesses’ jaws nearly dropped as the smoke vanished and saw none other than another Nightmare Moon that looked exactly the same as the one they were fighting. Both Nightmares’ looked at each other and then at Celestia and Luna.

“How did you say it Luna?” Asked one Nightmare. “The fun has been doubled? Well now . . .”

“The nightmare’s been doubled!” They both shouted in unison.

Before Celestia or Luna could respond, both versions of Nightmare attacked the sisters before them. Celestia had to face the Nightmare Moon replica and Luna was fighting against Nightmare possessing Pip. Both Nightmares were merciless in their attacks, not giving any chance for their opponents to fight back.

With the battle going on, the Elements of Harmony could only watch as the fight continued between the godlike beings.

Celestia lowered her shield just for the moment, hoping to eliminate the replica before her with her magic. Once her shield was gone she charged her horn to ready an attack, but she was too slow. The replica immediately shot a burst of darkness towards the princess, sending her flying with a yelp as she landed on her back.

“Sister!” Luna shouted out, trying to reach Celestia.

“Pay attention to your opponent!”

Luna’s ears perked and Nightmare appeared before her, using his magic to injure her with dark lightning as Luna shouted out in pain.

“Princess!” Twilight called out to Luna, wishing she could do more for them. She hated feeling this helpless in times such as these.

Luna tried to stand up but immediately a hoof landed on hers, sending her in agony as she started to cry. She looked up to see Nightmare looking down her with malice, snickering at the helpless alicorn beneath him.

“Time to say goodnight.”

“Please. . . Pip, you must fight it. . .”

“I’m sorry Luna, but he will never hear you.”

With that, Nightmare charged his horn with magic. Dark magic started to gather and condense, becoming darker with each moment. Luna could hear Celestia calling out to her and could hear the other ponies shouting out her name. The princess merely closed her eyes, awaiting the inevitable.

But it never came.

“N . . . NO! I . . . I won’t let you do this to her!”

Luna’s ears perked up as she recognized the voice. She opened her eyes to see Nightmare Moon thrashing around like he was being lassoed and was holding his head. Everypony in the room, with the exception of Celestia since the phantom Nightmare was still fighting her, watched in awe as the real dark alicorn groaned in agony.

He raised his head slowly and opened his eyes to reveal not the catlike irises, but the reddish brown eyes that were Pipsqueak’s true eyes.

“Pippy?” Asked Luna in awe.

“Luna . . . I’ve got little time to talk to you,” he said in a strained voice. “There’s one thing I need to tell you, something that should help you figure out how to save me.”

“What is it, my love?”

“Just like how I followed my dream to become a Night Guard, you must follow your dream of being with me forever.”

Luna raised an eyebrow. “Pippy, what does that have to do with anything?”

“Think about it Luna,” he said. “You’ve seen many ponies have dreams for stuff they wish to achieve. Now you must follow your own dream and find a way to really make it come true.”

“How can dreams save you though?”

“Tell me Luna, when do you see somepony’s dreams about wanting something?”

The dark blue alicorn pondered for a moment before the gears in her head turned and she gasped.

“Pip, if we weren’t in mortal peril right now, I’d kiss you for being so clever,” she said. Luna then turned to her sister. “Tia, I know how to save Pippy!”

“And I finally got this spirit!” She called back.

Her horn shot out a large white beam of light at the vulnerable phantom Nightmare Moon. The beam hit him directly in the chest and he let out a painful roar as his body started to crack. A few seconds later, a mirror shattering sound echoed across the hallway as the fake Nightmare was destroyed and little white lights rained down.

Celestia turned back to her sister, with a satisfied smile on her face. “Now what’s the plan Luna?”

Luna sighed and slumped her shoulders. “I need to take a nap.”

Applejack’s jaw dropped upon hearing this and immediately shut as she scowled. “Now’s not the time to go sleeping Princess!”

“I have to agree with Applejack here Luna!” Celestia chimed in, yet upon seeing Luna’s face she remained silent.

“If I sleep now and enter Pip’s dream, I might be able to save him,” Luna stated as she looked to the Nightmare. “This is the only thing I can do right now.”

“But Princess!” Rainbow objected, her eyes widened from hearing the crazy idea. “What about us here?! Surely you’re not planning on leaving us alone to fight Nightmare.”

“Rainbow,” Luna began, gulping as she furrowed her brow. “I will be fighting with you, just not physically. In dreams, I am the strongest.”

“But-”

“Luna’s right,” Celestia interrupted Rainbow, looking down on her sister. “We’ll buy you all the time you need Luna,” Celestia then nuzzled her sister softly with her eyes becoming moist. “Just come back to me safely.”

“Sister…”

Celestia raised her head and looked to Nightmare, with Pip regaining some control. “Celestia, whatever you do, it better be--” Pip screamed as he covered his head with his hooves and fell to the ground. He rose up again, his eyes and voice returning to Nightmare’s. “That was annoying!” He then looked to Celestia and grinned. “Shall we continue? I’m eager to end you right now.”

“The only thing that is ending is you!” Celestia retorted and used her magic to attack Nightmare, covering her sister. “Luna, do it!”

“Yes!”

Luna immediately closed her eyes and channeled her magic. Her horn started to glow and a small dome surrounded her, protecting her from Nightmare’s grasp. It then dimly faded until it finally stopped. When it did however, she fell to the ground with her mouth opened slightly. Luna was now asleep.

“Captain Armor, sir!”

The white unicorn gasped as he was recovering from using more of his magic up. “Report sergeant,” he said.

“Sir, despite our best efforts and using your tactics, we’ve lost over half our men now,” he said. “In fact, we just learned that the pegasus guards under Nightmare’s control managed to take out Captain Spitfire, along with a couple more Wonderbolts with her. Lieutenant Soarin and only a small number of Wonderbolts are left now. Sir, I know you don’t want to do it, but we need to-”

“You say that word,” scolded Shining Armor, “and I’ll make sure you’re discharged from the military after this.”

“But sir-”

“But nothing!” Shining heard a yelling noise and turned to use his magic to fire out a spell that sent the corrupted guard flying back. The white unicorn got up and snorted. “We need to give Twily more time and if we’ve got to fight until our last soldier falls, then we’ll do so.”

He picked up one of the enchanted crossbows and his eyes narrowed. “Now let’s go men! Twily and all of Equestria need us more than ever!” With that, he galloped towards a group of ponies fighting, along with several guards around him.

Luna’s first sight upon entering the dream realm was nothing but darkness. “Great . . . nopony’s asleep yet because of Nightmare Moon. That and I’m sure ponies everywhere want to know why the sun set so early.”

Wasting no time, Luna’s horn lit up and a light shined against the darkness surrounding her. Billowing black clouds could be seen coming from a single direction. Luna followed the path of the clouds with caution.

It wasn’t until she came upon the sight of lightning flashing that there was a swirling cloud in front of her that it made Luna gasp. She hesitantly raised a hoof and pressed it against the cloud. She felt a painful electrical shock that coursed through her body and yelped in pain. She backed up and distinctly heard the sound of somepony snickering sinisterly.

Luna groaned as she got up and looked at the menacing swirl, with flashes of lightning being seen around it. “Nightmare,” she said with anger in her voice. “You’ve made your last bad dream.” Her eyes narrowed as she focused on the dark cloud.

Diving into the dark cloud, Luna was greeted with a barrage of lightning bolts and the cackling laughter of Nightmare Moon. She did not care though, she only cared about saving Pip and getting out of here with him safe in her hooves.

As the thunder continued to rain down on Luna’s body, her vision started going as she was sustaining more and more injuries. Her wings started to sizzle and burn marks were beginning to appear on her coat.

Luna squinted her eyes to better her sight, seeing a small ray of light in the distance. She smiled triumphantly and flapped her wings harder, gaining speed at an alarming rate. The light started to grow in the distance, until it blinded her eyes. Luna had to close them, though the warmth reacted well to her touch as a secondary guide for her.

Once the light had subsided, Luna was out of the storm. She opened her eyes to see that she was inside a dark room, with one pony in the centre. She narrowed her eyes and gasped. It was Pip. Her Pip. She rushed towards him, falling down on her knees as she scooped him up in her embrace. When she did though, she was horrified by what she saw.

Pip was covered in scratches and bruises were present on him too. His eyes were blackened and his lips were dried up. All his legs appeared to be broken along with his mane and coat being burned.

“He looks good doesn’t he?”

Luna’s head rocketed upwards, seeing Nightmare Moon canter towards the pair maliciously.

“You!” Luna snarked out with clenched teeth. “What did you do to him?!”

“Nothing, it was all you… no wait, it was Celestia and her friends hurting him so bad on the outside.”

“You lie!”

Nightmare Moon sneered at Luna. “You saw it yourself, how much Celestia was hurting Pip when you were awake. If only you could see him now.” Nightmare smiled as she laughed. “Oh wait! You are seeing him now for what he really is!”

Luna started tearing up as she glared at Nightmare Moon, who was still making her way to Luna.

“You know it wasn’t very smart of you to come into his mind, much less his dream,” she said. “You leaving your body to come to Pip’s rescue has left you extremely vulnerable.”

“I’m strong enough to fight you and save him from your grasp!”

“You forgot one thing though Luna,” chimed Nightmare. “If you’re killed in the Dream Realm, your mind will shatter and you will be all but brain dead. Don’t worry though, I’ll make good use of your body. I’ll turn you into an obedient servant to me once I have full control of Pip.”

“Like Tartarus that’s going to happen!” Luna shouted.

Her horn charged up and shot out a flurry of magical arrows down upon the dark spirit. Nightmare yawned in a mocking matter and teleported away before the arrows hit her. Luna looked around, waiting to see where the black stallion would appear.

“Luna . . . look out!” Pip’s voice croaked.

She turned around and narrowly avoided a hoof aimed for her head. She attempted to tackle Nightmare Moon to the ground, but he grabbed her by the neck and raised her off the ground. He then slammed her to the ground and kicked her in the head.

Nightmare, seeing Luna twitch and groan in pain, smiled in satisfaction before turning to Pip. “So you’re still alive, huh?”

The spotted stallion struggled to get up, but his legs were in too much pain to stand up. He looked at Nightmare with a cold glare. “As long as I can breathe and have the will . . . I’ll still fight and I won’t stop until you’re finally destroyed.”

“Now isn’t that cute? A desperate stallion fighting to delay the inevitable of what’s to come. You’re just as delusional as Luna here.”

“Luna has a heart and everypony loves her,” spat Pip. “If anything, you’re the one delaying what’s going to happen to you. You will be defeated again and you will never hurt anypony ever again.”

Nightmare’s smirk faded into a scowl and his horn glowed. “Let me end your babbling nonsense then you little-”

Before his spell shot out, Nightmare a deep searing pain all over him. He looked at his side to see he was on fire and panicked. The black alicorn screamed as he fell to the floor and rolled around to desperately put out the fire.

Pip looked up to see Luna was standing up, albeit she was staggering a little, and was coming towards him. She lowered her head upon his and her horn shined brightly. Pip felt the pain around his body fading away slowly. The cuts and scratches on him were patching up and the bruises on him became smaller and smaller. The feeling in his legs also returned as he slowly moved them and felt their strength return.

Luna’s horn stopped glowing and looked at her lover, who was slowly getting up and trying to regain his bearings. “Are you alright Pippy?”

“Better now that you’re here Lulu,” he said as he stood on his shaking legs, but straightened himself up. He gave Luna a soft kiss on the lips. “Now, we need to take care of that.” Pip pointed to Nightmare who was getting up from the ground after ridding of the flames.

“Both of you will perish here today, and night eternal shall reign!” Nightmare shouted out, focusing his magic again. A pool of shadow started forming and a replica was starting to form of the Nightmare.

“Oh no you don’t, you wench!”

Luna charged towards Nightmare and interrupted the spell Nightmare was casting, the shadow dissipating immediately.

Nightmare groaned as he backed away from Luna’s charge. “You will be the first to die, then that little runt of yours!”

“Guess again!”

Turning around to face the source of the words spoken, Nightmare was greeted by a mighty buck to his face. He flinched as was sent flying backwards. Before he could react, Luna used her magic to slam Nightmare to the floor beneath him. When his body slammed into the floor, a tremor followed as he landed hard on the ground below.

Getting up from the rubble, Nightmare glared at Luna who was now flying above him. “Why you ungrateful, little bitch!” Nightmare growled at her, using his magic to send beams of magic towards the princess. They all missed as Nightmare sent barrages at her. When he started unfurling his wings, Pip appeared before him again.

Nightmare backed away. “How do you move so fast?!”

“My dream, my rules!”

With that, Pip tackled Nightmare to the ground and started punching him with a fury of hooves. What was shocking was the speed Pip was executing his punches at. It was comparable to the speed of sound he was punching Nightmare at.
Nightmare Moon’s eyes narrowed as he felt the anger and frustration building up inside him. He let out a deafening roar that caused Pip and Luna to cover their ears in protection.

“THAT’S ENOUGH!” He screeched.

A black shockwave formed around Nightmare and exploded, causing Luna and Pip to be sent flying to the ground. The black alicorn panted and gritted his teeth as he slowly trotted over to them, with each hoofstep booming in his wake.

“You forgot one thing in your recklessness Luna!” Barked Nightmare. “You aren’t the only one who’s powerful in dreams. You may be strong, but the power of darkness and shadows is where I am strongest.” He positioned himself into a fighting stance and his horn glowed. “Just to show you a demonstration, allow me to end your feeble resistance.

“ARGH!” Pip cried out.

Luna turned around to see a large, black tentacle wrap itself around her love’s waistline. The spotted stallion tried punching it, but it had no effect on it.

“Better keep your eyes on me Luna.”

The night princess turned to see, what appeared to be, a thousand spears raining down upon her. She instinctively used her magic to create a barrier and could hear the spears cracking and shattering around her shield. At the same time, she could see her own dome cracking slowly under the pressure.

“Come on Luna, what’s the matter? Can’t handle the stress? No wonder you’re so weak and pathetic!”

Pip heard the insult and felt rage course through his body. He bit the tentacle, which caused it to wince in pain and release his hold on him. The spotted stallion galloped over towards Nightmare Moon, who was laughing coldly.

“Let’s see you handle this!” He seethed.

Nightmare turned and was greeted with a hoof to his face. His horn stopped glowing, making the black spears cease their assault. He tried to use his magic to teleport, but Pip grabbed his head and butted it against his own. The black alicorn groaned as his head was pounding. Pip once again charged at him and tackled Nightmare to the ground.

In a panic, Nightmare’s horn glowed and shot out a bolt of lightning, which hit Pip in the chest. The spotted stallion’s eyes went wide as he fell to the ground and moaned in agony. Nightmare’s panic waned as he felt Pip’s weight lift off him. He smirked and his his horn glowed again.

“Pippy!” Luna cried out and galloped over.

Suddenly, she felt something wrap around her. Luna looked to see another tentacle wrap itself around her. It then raised her to the air and slammed her down hard. The blue alicorn groaned as she felt pain coursing through her body. She could barely see in the corner of her eye Pip was too being held by a tentacle.

“It’s all over now.” Nightmare snickered, holding the pair in the tentacles and squeezing the life out of them. Hearing Luna screaming out in pain, Nightmare cackled as he slammed the princess to the ground. Nightmare lifted the princess up again and brought her closer to look him in the eye. “Now you see how useless you are without me Luna!”

Luna glared at the abomination before her and spat in Nightmare face. “You sicken me, you monster!”

Nightmare merely wiped his face and landed a blow to her face with his hoof. “Mind your manners you fool.”

“Leave her alone you gelding!”

Hearing those words, Nightmare turned to Pip who was struggling to break free of tentacle’s hold over him.

“Ah, almost forgot about you.” Nightmare casually trotted towards Pip, bringing the earth pony closer to him. He then gave Pip the same punch he gave Luna in the jaw, repeating the action as he spoke. “You. Don’t. Intervere. When. I’m. Talking. To. Somepony!” When Nightmare was finished, Pip was banged up badly as his face was swollen and bloody.

“Why don’t I show you what’s going on outside?” Nightmare asked rhetorically and used his magic to form a screen in the space above. When the screen widened, moving images of the outside world was shown. Luna gasped when she saw her sister Celestia.

Celestia looked even worse than when Luna first entered Pip’s dream; her coat was bloodied and burned, her mane lost its ethereal quality and she was breathing heavily as she was sweating bullets. The others were on the ground defeated as the Nightmare was busy fighting Celestia.

“My my, what a useless princess she is… without anypony to carry her around, she can’t properly live at all. Let alone defend herself.”

“When I get free of your grasp, I’ll-”

“You’ll what?” Mocked Nightmare. “You can’t break free of my grasp and I wouldn’t even try to use magic if I were you. The shadows are everywhere around here and they’d catch you the moment you teleport somewhere.”

Luna looked down in defeat as any remaining hope in her ebbed.

“Now, let’s show you your so called army of Equestria,” said Nightmare. “Maybe they’re doing better than you and your pathetic excuse of a sister.”

The image swirled around and became blurry for a moment. The screen stopped moving as it showed the outskirts of Canterlot, but the sight before Luna only made her feel worse. Shining Armor and Princess Cadence were fighting with all their might, but saw the soldiers fighting besides them being overrun and were desperately trying to fight back.

Nightmare let out another sinister chuckle. “Well it seems as if not only did you fail Luna, but your sister and those who tried to fight against me. Don’t worry though, your life and that of your friends will be safe. After all, you all will make excellent obedient, mindless slaves once I use my powers on all of you to bend each of you to my will.”

“Never . . .” slurred a voice.

Luna turned to see Pip was waking up and had a glare on his face. “Pippy, don’t try and provoke her any more,” she warned.

“That’s the smartest thing you’ve said Luna,” said Nightmare. He then turned to Pip. “You’ve got nowhere to go anymore you fool. It’s useless to resist the inevitable and there’s no hope for you all anymore. I control everything around you now and can do anything I want to without you meddling. Your body, your strength, agility, mind, and wildest dreams are all mind now to use.”

Luna suddenly felt something click on her mind from that last statement. Dreams . . . I think I’ve got how to turn this all around now. She turned to her coltfriend. “Pip, I need you to listen me very carefully.”

The spotted stallion wheezed heavily as he turned slowly towards the blue alicorn. “What is it my love?” He whispered.

“There’s one chance to stop this before it’s too late,” she said. “You are still in control of one thing we’re in right now, your dreams.”

“What do you mean?”

“Pippy, you and I are in the Dream Realm, your Dream Realm to be more specific. You have all the power you want right here. You can make yourself stronger and faster than Nightmare Moon.”

“But how?”

“Concentrate on what you want to be,” she responded. “Imagine yourself more powerful than Nightmare Moon and use your power to finally end this.”

Pip gave a weary nod and said, “I’ll . . . I’ll try.”

He closed his eyes in concentration and focused what little strength he had to think. Slowly, images started popping up inside his head, more specifically the area he, Luna, and Nightmare Moon were in, but they were all so blurry and unrecognizable, that it looked like somepony spilled or smeared something on the floor.

The black alicorn let out a cold laugh. “I don’t know what you’re trying to do you two, but it seems your plan has failed,” he said in a mocking tone. “Guess I might as well end your suffering now.”

Luna felt the tentacle around her tighten and her body was crying out in protest. “Pipsqueak, hurry!” She yelled in agony. “I can’t hold out much longer!”

The spotted stallion tried to clear the images around him, but they were still unclear blobs. The gears inside his head felt like they were working overtime as he tried to desperately clear his head.

“AHHH!”

Pip opened his eyes to see Luna’s hoof flailing around as she was completely wrapped around the tentacle. He could see her eyes looking into his own with a look of panic in them, along with tears building up in them.

As he saw her tears build up, Pip felt a surge of anger burning up inside him. His weariness almost instantly went away as his rage grew. The pain from his wounds were ignored as his muscles tensed up. He closed his eyes again to concentrate and this time, the images inside his mind cleared up. The blobs surrounding him, Luna, and Nightmare Moon took form and glowed brightly.

One blob became a large suit of pearly white armor, while another became a giant sword, and a third one took the form of a pristine pearly white helmet. The objects glowed so brightly, Pip had to shield his eyes before going blind.

“WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS!?” Boomed Nightmare Moon.

Almost as quickly as he asked, he was given an answer as the objects around Pip shot out a beam of light and went directly to the spotted stallion. Pip couldn’t tell what was happening, but he felt his whole body tingle and the pain he suffered slowly went away. All of a sudden, he felt something weigh him down and his vision was a little obscured. The brightness slowly died down around Pip and everything soon became nearly completely dark again.

Nightmare Moon could only look with bewilderment. “What was the point of that?” He asked.

All of a sudden, the light shined again and the tentacle around Pip collapsed to the ground. A pony fell to the ground, carrying a sword in his mouth and was covered in the same looking armor as seen before. The pony raised his head to reveal none other than Pipsqueak, whose eyes were looked like they had flames in them.

“How did you-!?”

Pip ignored Nightmare’s question as he saw the tentacle holding Luna and charged toward it.

“Oh, not you don’t!” Nightmare’s horn glowed, causing more tentacles to pop out of the shadows and go after the spotted stallion.

Pip dodged some of the shadowy tentacles, but as he came up towards Luna, he jumped on a few of them. He kept going up until finally, he came on level with where the princess of the night was held. He made a large leap and raised his sword against the tentacle and brought it down upon it. The sword hit the mark directly and was sliced into two, causing it to writhe in pain and disappear. Pip saw the cocoon like tentacle that was holding Luna fall to the ground and hit it with a loud THUD.

He quickly galloped down again, hoping across the tentacles, but he was suddenly hit by a bolt of lightning and was sent falling to the ground. He hit the floor hard and could feel his right side hurt from the pain. The spotted stallion then heard the sound of somepony laughing coldly and instantly recognized the voice.

“You really think you’re invincible Pipsqueak?” Mocked Nightmare Moon. “It seems you have remembered that in your dreams, you can pretty much do everything, but I am just as powerful in dreams as well.”

“You forget though Nightmare,” said Pip. “It’s my mind, my dreams, my rules. I’m going to show you who rules here and make you learn your lesson the hard way.”

“I’d like to see you tr-AHH!” Nightmare staggered a bit as he felt something like fire hit him. He looked to his side to see Luna uncovered herself from the tentacles and her horn was sizzling a little. “You ignorant child! When I’m done with you, I’ll-”

Nightmare had no time to finish that statement as a hoof suddenly slammed right into his right cheek, causing him to cry out in pain and his head hurt. The dark alicorn slowly regained his bearings and looked to see Pipsqueak with his hoof raised.

“What did you say earlier Nightmare?” He asked. “Oh yeah, better keep your eyes on me.”

Pip galloped towards Nightmare again and drew out his sword from his back. The black alicorn quickly shot out a few energy beams at his opponent, but the spotted stallion narrowly dodged the attacks. When he saw Pip raising his sword, Nightmare quickly put up a small shield barrier to protect him before teleporting away. The knight looked around frantically for any sign of the demonic spirit, but there was no sign of him.

Just above him, Nightmare stared down at the spotted stallion. “Now it’s time to put you out of your misery,” he spat. He positioned himself and flew towards his target like a rocket.

Princess Luna, who was still reeling from what happened to her, regained her bearings and saw Pip not too far from her. However, she caught sight of Nightmare approaching him at a fast pace and panicked. “PIP! ABOVE YOU!” She boomed in her Royal Canterlot Voice.

The spotted stallion looked up and saw Nightmare smiling demonically at him. He galloped out of the way, but raised his sword up in the process. He turned back to see Nightmare had changed direction, but was still dive bombing towards him.

“Perfect,” he muttered to himself.

Pip raised his sword and waited until Nightmare was mere inches away from him before bringing down his sword, hoping he’d get a strike on the black alicorn.

“AAAHHH!!!” Screamed Nightmare.

Pip felt a little blood hit him and saw some feathers fall to the ground as well. He could see a small trail of blood and saw that it was coming from Nightmare Moon. The alicorn was flying erratically and could feel a sharp pain in his left wing. He tried to land carefully, but he was going so fast, that he crashed into the ground and skidded across it for a couple of seconds before coming to a stop.

Nightmare groaned as he got up and could still feel the pain in his wing. He then looked at it and saw, to his horror, the wing was all but severed completely and blood was pouring out of it. He looked over to Pip and his eyes turned red.

“HOW DARE YOU DO THIS TO ME!?” He barked.

“I wanted us to be on even ground. Since I can’t fly, you can’t as well.”

Nightmare’s furious expression changed to that of a smug one. “Ah, but you forget that I have magic as well. So I still have the edge over you.”

“We’ll see about that.”

“No, we will settle this NOW!” Nightmare’s horn glowed and the sound of electricity humming and crackling echoed throughout the room. A large black orb formed on his horn and he looked at Pip with a menacing smile. “Don’t worry Pip, you and Luna there will be together in Tartarus forever! I’ll send you both on a one way ticket there!” Nightmare could feel the orb was almost ready and prepared to fire it.

“IT SHALL BE YOU IN TARTARUS, YOU FOUL DEMON!” A voice boomed.

Nightmare Moon turned quickly to see Luna was back on all fours and her horn was glowing brightly. Before he could react, the princess shot out what looked like a large white disc and was headed for the black alicorn.

Out of instinct, Nightmare ducked to avoid the disc and chuckled to himself. “Is that really the best you got Luna? A disc of light will kill me?”

“No . . . but it will kill one part of you.”

“What do you mean by-”

BZZZT!!!

Nightmare stopped speaking and his facial expression changed to one of complete shock. He could feel a deep, searing pain pound in his head. “AAAHHH!!!” He screamed as he held his head. He frantically grasped his hooves around the source of the pain, but as he did, he quickly realized something wasn’t there.

“Looking for this?”

The dark alicorn saw Luna holding none other than his severed horn, rendering him unable to use his magic.

“Now, you and Pippy are both even.”

Nightmare started panting heavily as the rage and ferocity inside him built up. He looked at Luna with eyes that look like they can shoot out daggers. The blue alicorn felt the fur on her back stick up and stepped back a little to give herself room. As she did though, Nightmare pounced at her with catlike reflexes and put both hooves around her neck. Luna tried to gasp for air and flailed around, but Nightmare put more pressure on her and stared at the princess with a scowl.

“I. WILL. NOT. BE. BEATEN. BY. YOU!” He boomed. “YOU AND YOUR PRECIOUS COLTFRIEND WILL KNOW TRUE SUFFERING ONCE I’M DONE WITH BOTH OF YOU!”

“You won’t be causing anymore suffering!”

Nightmare jerked his head and was met by a hoof connecting harshly to his face. He staggered back a little and his grip on Luna was ceased. The black alicorn looked up to see Pipsqueak standing near Luna and holding him.

“You . . . you insolent foal! I’ve had enough of your meddling!” He charged towards the spotted stallion, but unlike before where Pip barely dodged the attacks, this one caught him off guard and he sent him to ground.

Pip tried to fight off Nightmare Moon, but the black alicorn removed the helmet he had on him and started going after his face. His hooves connected punch after punch to Pip’s face and grinned sinisterly. Desperately, the spotted stallion saw his sword nearby and tried to grab it. Nightmare, however, saw this and quickly picked it up and threw it off to the side.

Luna coughed and hacked as she got up, but she heard a clanking sound and saw the sword was right in front of her. She looked up to see Nightmare was overpowering Pip and then back at the sword. Something inside her head suddenly clicked and she smiled to herself.

She lowered her head and said to herself, “Don’t worry Pippy, you’ve still got me.” Her horn glowed and the sword started to glow a white light.

Nightmare laughed coldly as he stopped beating up Pipsqueak. “You never had a chance against me. It doesn’t matter if I don’t have magic or can fly, I still have enough strength to beat you.”

“It doesn’t matter though,” said Pip. “You can have all those things and as long as I can fight, I will beat you.”

“Delusional even towards the very end. You’re a pathetic pony who never had a chance against me, much less a chance with Luna.”

Pip tried to fight back again, but Nightmare put a hoof around his neck and started choking him. He was starting to lose sight and everything became blurry to him. The sound of Nightmare’s laughs became quieter as everything became pitch black.

CLANG!

The spotted stallion heard something loud land near him and rolled his eyes to see his sword was there, but was glowing a bright white light on its blade.

“Pippy! Grab the sword and finish him! That spell I put on there should help finish the job.” Luna shouted.

“NO!” Nightmare put more force on Pip’s neck and tried to stop him.

The spotted stallion, with a sense of urgency, used his free hoof to slowly inch his way towards the sword. With each attempt though, he could feel Nightmare’s hold on him get tighter and was losing strength.

“You can’t do this!” Screamed Nightmare. “I’ve come too far now to fail!” He slammed his head into Pip, causing him to grunt in pain and his breathing movement slowly died down. “Any last words before I put you out of your misery?” He asked Pip.

The spotted stallion mustered up his remaining strength and nodded.

“What is it then?” Nightmare asked with a smug expression on him.

Pip gritted his teeth and said, “You . . . have failed.”

He used his remaining strength to stretch his hoof and grabbed the sword’s handle. Pip raised the hoof holding the sword and plunged it right into Nightmare Moon’s chest. The black alicorn’s eyes shot wide open and his jaw dropped. He stepped back and placed one of his hooves around where the sword was.

“No . . . no . . .” He lowered his head shook for a few seconds before raising his head and bellowing, “NNNOOO!!!”

Cracks started forming on Nightmare’s body, each one having a small beam of light showing in each of them. As the black alicorn screamed in panic and staggered back, more cracks appeared. Eventually, Nightmare fell to the ground and held his head as his whole body failed him and couldn’t move.

“THIS CAN’T BE! AAAHHH!!!”

Nightmare let out one last scream as his whole body exploded. Pipsqueak and Luna covered their eyes as the brightness blinded them for a few seconds. As soon as it died out, they both lowered their hooves to see little purple flames rain down upon them. As each one approached the floor however, they all went out one by one, all except one. One lonely flame landed on the ground near Pipsqueak, who could’ve sworn he heard somepony laughing faintly. Not wanting to take the chance, he raised his hoof and firmly stomped on the flame, causing what sounded like somepony to scream faintly as well.

“It’s . . . it’s all over,” he said. Pip was about to fall to the ground, but he was caught by somepony. He looked up to see Princess Luna looking at him. “Thank you, Lulu.”

“Save your strength Pippy,” she said. “You’re a little hurt, but it’s over now.”

“What’s going to happen now.”

“We wake up is what happens. With Nightmare Moon gone, you now have control of your body again. In fact, I’d say you’d wake up right-”

Before Luna could finish, Pipsqueak was blinded by a bright light and everything became a blur to him.

“It’s all over now Celestia!”

The white alicorn panted heavily and was barely holding her own against Nightmare Pip. “You won’t get away with this,” she spat.

“Oh, I think I already have you-”

He stopped speaking and his whole body froze. Suddenly, Nightmare collapsed to the ground and let out a scream. His whole body was covered in a white smoke. Nightmare’s screams slowly died down and became whimpers of pain. Celestia, Spike, Stealth, and the Elements of Harmony watched in awe and caution as they saw what was happening.

Eventually, the whimpering stopped, there was no movement, and the room fell into complete silence. Celestia cautiously approached the white smoke and reached out with a hoof to see what became of Pip. As she reached out, the fog cleared out and the white alicorn saw to her delight a familiar brown spot and white fur on the pony. She cleared out the rest of the white fog and smiled to see Pipsqueak was lying on the ground unconscious.

She turned to the others and said, “It’s Philip! Luna did it!”

The stasis field around the Elements of Harmony, Spike, and Stealth shattered and the group cheered happily. Big Mac and Twilight hugged each other and shared a small kiss with one another. Spike and Rarity cuddled up next to themselves and held each other closely. Fluttershy, in a bit of shockness to the others, tackled Rainbow to the ground and pulled her into a deep kiss, which made the blue pegasus’ eyes widen and her face blushed. Princess Celestia let out a sigh of relief when she suddenly felt somepony embrace her and looked down to see Stealth Sneak on her leg.

“Well done Princess Celestia,” he said. “I knew you could buy your sister the time she needed.”

“I don’t think it’s me you should be thanking,” she said. “This brave stallion here should be the one we should all be thanking.”

“I just hope he made it out okay.”

“Me too Stealth, me too. After everything he’s done, I want to finally let him be happy.”

Princess Cadence and Shining Armor were pressed against each other back to back. They watched the last of their guards fall to Nightmare’s guards and were closing in on them.

“Cadence, I’m sorry it had to end like this,” said Shining Armor. “We bought Twily and her friends as much time as we could, but we failed.”

“Don’t be sad, Mi Amor,” said the pink alicorn. “We did our best and we’ll find a way to escape Nightmare Moon before she turns us into mindless slaves.”

“I hope so, for our sake.”

Both Shining Armor and Princess Cadence were tackled to the ground and pinned by Nightmare’s soldiers. Their captors looked at their prisoners with angry expressions on them.

“Take them away at . . . at . . .” The guard giving the orders suddenly felt dizzy and held his head in pain.

The sounds of groaning echoed across the battlefield as all of Nightmare’s troops fell to the ground and held their heads in pain. Shining Armor noticed a purple mist coming out of each guard’s head, which went into the night sky and disappeared.

“Shining . . . they did it!” Cadence said joyfully. “Nightmare Moon’s spell is broken now!”

The white unicorn hugged his wife briefly and laughed to himself. “I knew they’d pull it in the end. I think that maybe that Pipsqueak guard did it as well for Princess Luna’s sake.”

“General Armor!”

Both he and Cadence turned to see Soarin carrying Spitfire on his back and had two Wonderbolts by his side.

“Lieutenant, good to see you made it out,” said Shining. “Are you and those two Wonderbolts all that’s left?”

“Yes sir. I managed to save Captain Spitfire here before she and the other Wonderbolts could be taken away to the castle. Unfortunately, she’s got several cuts and what looks like a sprained wing. We need medical attention for her and all the guards here.”

“Ugh . . . what happened to me?” A voice moaned.

Everywhere across the battlefield, Shining Armor, Cadence, Soarin, and the Wonderbolts looked around to see everypony was regaining conscious slowly. Some guards couldn’t get up while others slowly got to their legs and looked around in wonder. The group could hear the soldiers muttering questions to themselves such as “How did I get here?” to “What’s going on?”.

“General Armor,” one guard said. “Have . . . have we finally done it?”

The white unicorn smiled to himself and said, “Yes Sergeant, yes we did.” He then gave a stern look and said in a commanding tone. “Now then, we’ll begin rounding up the injured and look for some of our healers. Hopefully they aren’t injured themselves.”

“YES GENERAL!” The group called out and saluted.

Inside one of the castle’s corridors, Princess Celestia and everypony around her gathered to check on Princess Luna, who was still asleep and the dome around her was still active.

“You don’t think she didn’t make it, do you Princess?” Asked Twilight in a worried tone. “I mean . . . I don’t mean to scare you or anything.”

“It’s okay Twilight,” said the white alicorn. “I don’t know what happened in Pip’s mind, but if my sister didn’t make it, I could never forgive myself for what I put her through. I’d . . . I’d call myself the worst sister anypony ever had.” The whole group gasped as Celestia let out a few tears and lowered her head.

“Don’t worry Princess,” said Stealth. “If it does come to that, we won’t blame you. Your sister wouldn’t want you to blame yourself for her sacrifice to save Equestria.”

“I know that Stealth, but-”

“Uggh . . .”

The whole room fell silent and all eyes were on the blue alicorn. She began moving her legs slowly and her eyes slowly opened. At first, everything was a mishmash blob and couldn’t distinguish between what she was looking at. The little dome shield around her shattered, allowing Luna to stretch a little and look around. With each passing second, Luna regained more consciousness and her vision became less blurry until she could make out one of the blobs a white alicorn.

“Sis . . . sister?” She asked in a small voice.

Princess Celestia smile quivered and a few tears fell out of her eyes. “Luna!” She shouted and embraced her. “Oh Luna, I’m so happy you're okay. You have no idea how scared I was . . . how scared everypony here was for you.”

“I’m . . . I’m happy to see you to Tia,” she said as she returned the hug. “But where’s Pippy? Is he alright?”

“He’s over there Luna,” said Twilight. “He’s unconscious, but he’s been turned back to normal.”

Luna slowly and steadily got back on all fours, albeit her legs were still shaking violently. She walked over to the spotted stallion, with help from Celestia and Twilight, and looked at him with a worried look.

“Pippy . . . please . . . wake up for my sake.”

The spotted stallion slowly opened his eyes and the first thing he saw was Princess Luna looking at him. Her worried expression changed to one of delight and pulled him in for a hug.

“ACK! Luna, not so tight please,” he pleaded.

The blue alicorn quickly loosened up and smiled bashfully. “Sorry Pip, I was just so relieved to see you’re okay.”

“Luna . . . I want to say something to you,” said Pip.

“What is it?”

He pulled her into a deep kiss which at first caught her off guard, but she quickly returned it. The other ponies looked at the two of them with happy expressions on their faces. Even Princess Celestia couldn’t help but shed a tear of joy for her sister and her coltfriend. Pinkie, on the other hoof, burst into tears over it.

Pip finally broke the kiss after a couple of seconds and smiled at his lover. “Thank you, for all your help.”

“Anything for you Pippy,” she said. “Are you truly alright though?”

“I . . . I don’t think I can,” the spotted stallion said. “I think when your sister fought me, it must’ve really worn me out.”

Luna turned towards Celestia. “Sister, where are the Royal Medics?” She inquired.

“They’re being held in the underground bunker along with all other civilian staff members.” She looked at Twilight and said, “My faithful student, since you know the way around this castle, I’m sure you know where the bunkers are, correct?” The lilac alicorn nodded. “Good, head there and inform everypony the danger is over and get two of the medics here to help Pipsqueak here.” Twilight bowed in respect and took off.

“We better go see if anypony else here needs help,” said Spike. “I think I remember seeing a few unconscious guards around here.”

The whole group nodded and muttered agreements amongst each other.

“Go then,” said Luna, “Pippy and I will be safe here.”

“Let me at least do something before I go help the guards,” said Celestia.

She looked out a window, specifically towards the moon, and her horn glowed. Slowly, it went down and disappeared behind a mountain. Then, she turned her attention to another window and another mountain. Her horn glowed again and this time, the sky became orange at first, then it turned completely blue. A bright light filled the room and shined upon both Pipsqueak and Luna.

“That’s the most beautiful sunrise I’ve seen in a long time,” said Pip.

Luna nodded in agreement and said, “I couldn’t have said it better myself.”

As much as they both loved nighttime, the stars in the sky, and the moon, the sight of the sun not only brought promise of a new day, but also a new beginning to their love lives with each other.

Parting Ways

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For the next few days, Princess Celestia was overseeing the recovery efforts of the attack in the castle. Surprisingly, despite the numerous guards in the castle under Nightmare Moon’s control, they barely damaged it. The white alicorn was walking down the corridor and passed by an open room below her. She looked down and saw Princess Twilight, along with all her friends were busy cleaning up some rubble in the castle. Spike used his colossal strength to pick up two boulders and carry them away. Fluttershy and Rainbow swept the floor of the dust and pebbles. Rarity, Applejack, and Pinkie were pulling some carts full of tools for Big Mac and ther other repair ponies to use.

Princess Celestia smiled a little as she saw Twilight look up to her and wink. She proceeded down the corridor again, heading for the library since it was partially damaged by Nightmare’s forces. She hoped that none of them destroyed some of the old tomes kept in-

CRASH!

The sound of a window breaking and something landing on the floor pulled Celestia out of her thoughts. She looked to the ground and saw a brick lying there amongst the shattered glass. She picked it up and on the brick, she saw a crude drawing was etched onto it with a crescent moon and a big red X through it. The white alicorn heard chanting and yelling from outside and carefully looked out the window, making sure not to be seen.

“DOWN WITH LUNA! DOWN WITH LUNA! DOWN WITH LUNA!” A large group of ponies chanted.

Celestia got a better look outside the castle and saw several things that filled her heart with despair. A large group of Canterlot citizens had gathered around the castle and had been chanting for Luna to be brought to justice. Many of them were carrying signs such as a moon with a red X across it, while others had words on it such as, “BANISHMENT, NOW!”, “THIS NIGHT WON’T LAST FOREVER”, “LUNA MUST GO!”. To make matters worse, Celestia saw several ponies hoist what looked like a scarecrow that looked like Luna onto a pole and set it on fire, causing several protesters to cheer.

The white alicorn stepped back and a tear rolled down her cheek. “If only I could’ve found a better way to keep this all a secret,” she said sorrowfully.

“It’s not your fault Princess,” a voice said.

Celestia looked up to see Silver Storm standing nearby. “Oh, forgive me Silver, I forgot you were released from the dungeon,” she said. “These past few days have been hectic for me and this only makes things worse. I can’t send anypony outside the castle, or else they’ll be attacked by the protesters.” She looked back out the window and saw something that made her gasp.

“What is it Princess?” Asked Silver.

She looked back at the grey unicorn and said, “I just saw some guards out there that are loyal to both me and Luna.”

“What about them? Are they hurt?”

The white alicorn shook her head. “They too are protesting and calling for my sister to be exiled.”

“I was afraid of this…” Silver trailed off as he furrowed his brow. “There must have been a guard of two who let loose about Luna’s transformation into that dreaded Nightmare Moon.”

If words could petrify a pony, Celestia was a victim to the words spoken by Silver. “This is terrible…” Celestia’s eyes were becoming moist as she bit her lower lip. “This is not how it should end! She does not deserve any of this.”

“I understand your plight Princess, but the ponies will want somepony to take the fall for what has happened recently…” He sighed as he closed his eyes, lowering his head. “And my guess is that they want Luna to be punished. Either by banishment,” Silver gulped as he looked to the Princess’ eyes. “Or death.”

With her ears flattening as she tried to expel the roaring of the mob, Celestia felt a tear run down her eye. “I cannot allow such a thing…” She trailed off, closing her eyes slowly as she scrunched her lips. “There is something I can do though.”

“Princess?”

“Silver,” Celestia walked away slowly from her guard, turning her head over her shoulder to look at him with a soft smile and teary eyes. “If anything happens to me… make sure my sister is safe.”

“I love you.”

Hearing simple words from her stallion was all it took for Luna to remain calm in this hour. She too heard the outrage of the ponies outside, only to be muffled by Pip’s embrace as he stroked her mane softly and held her close in his forelegs.

“I love you too.” Luna whispered, her eyes close to flooding as she sniffed and buried her muzzle deep into his shoulder. She felt Pip bring her face away from him, where she was now looking into his eyes. On instinct, she closed the gap between their muzzles and connected her lips with his. It felt like a blessing given to Luna, even though she deemed herself unworthy of this.

But almost as quickly as the kiss came, Luna broke it off and hung her head down. Pip saw her expression and asked, “What’s wrong Lulu? You should be happy that this is all over and that I’ve been here for you since I recovered.”

“It’s not you Pippy,” she said in a sad tone. “It’s just that . . .” Her voice trailed off as she looked away.

“It’s just what? Luna, you know you can trust me. Are you afraid Nightmare Moon will come back again?”

“No Pip, it’s not possible for her to return after you destroyed her spirit forever. It’s just well . . . ‘them’.”

Pip’s heart sank as he realized who Luna was referring to. He pulled her in for a hug and said, “Luna, I know you’ve been hearing those ponies out there since the protest began, but you got to remember that this wasn’t your fault.”

“It was Pip,” she said. “I should’ve kept my emotions and anger under better control, not let it get the best of me. It’s my fault that I gave in and let Nightmare Moon’s spirit control me for so long and hurt so many ponies.”

“There’s still time though to fix this Luna. I think maybe we should go talk to Princess Celestia about this and get this all straightened out before more ponies call for your banishment. I know your sister did start this really, but maybe she can help you out. We both can’t just keep hiding away because this certainly won’t blow over until something is done.”

Luna pondered for a moment about what Pip said before nodding slowly. “You’re right, Tia has got to have some idea about what to do. After all, she was the one who removed my time as Nightmare from history, so maybe we can think of something else.” She pecked Pip on the cheek and said, “Thank you for those words of encouragement.”

The spotted stallion smiled and said, “You can thank me after we come up with a plan and hope it works.” He got up with Luna and the two of them headed out the room.

“Princess Celestia, are you sure you want to go face them?” Asked a blue unicorn Royal Guard. “They haven’t exactly been cooperating with us and there’s no telling what will happen.”

The white alicorn stopped trotting down the hall and said, “I understand your concern Sergeant, but this has gone on long enough. If somepony doesn’t do something soon, this protest will get grow and it may eventually come to them storming the castle in an attempt to kill my sister.”

The Sergeant bowed and said, “General Armor has ordered us to be on standby in case of any attacks. We’ll be ready to defend you and your sister to the last guard.”

“Very well, now move out and wait for the General’s signal.” The guard saluted and galloped away. Celestia let out a sigh as she turned back to the doorway leading to the balcony and prepared herself.

When she opened the the doors, the muffled sounds became clearer and sharper as they were fueled by outrage and animosity. Animosity aimed towards an innocent. Celestia approached the edge of the balcony, furrowing her brow and spreading her wings. This seemed to work, as they crowd became silent when they saw the monarch of the day looking down upon them.

“Citizens of Canterlot!” Celestia called out to the ponies using her Canterlot Voice, which was not as loud as Luna’s but still had an impact on the ponies around. “Today we have yet again stopped Eternal Night from happening to our beloved Equestria,” she told the crowd, who cheered triumphantly at her words. “And I know all of you want to see justice done,” Celestia was against met by a thunderous roar. “But my dear subjects, the one who is to blame… is me!”

The silence from the crowd was so intense, a pin could be heard from the background from where the ponies were standing.

“Yes…” Celestia trailed off as she spoke, lowering her head a little in shame. “It was all my fault that my dearest sister succumed to the darkness again,” Celestia said as she looked down upon the ponies whose jaws were agape. “For my sister, my dearest Luna… finally found that which had search for since she returned to us over a decade ago. Love.”

Whispers could be heard from the ponies down below, as they were looking at each other before turning back to their princess with dubious eyes.

“I know this may sounds ludicrous, but believe me when I say that my sister found a blessing in her life… that I treated like a curse.” A tear escaped Celestia’s eye as she bit her lip. “I was consumed by fear, fear that my sister’s heart may be broken because of ‘foreseen’ circumstances… I refused to listen to reason from the ponies that mean the world to me… I was the one to ultimately break my sister’s fragile heart and nearly ruined the life of her lover.” Celestia began to choke at her words as she felt her chest hurting. “I was the one that nearly had doomed Equestria…” Celestia closed her eyes, not daring to open them to see the look of her subjects faces. “And I say to you now, do not blame my sister who is innocent…” She opened her eyes again to reveal them to be red rimmed. “Rather blame me for what has transpired.”

Silence fell upon the entire city of Canterlot. The only movement from some of the ponies were jaws dropping as their eyes widen in shock and disbelief. Celestia hung her head in shame, but at the same time, felt like a great weight has been lifted off her shoulders. She waited for the protesters to start throwing things and calling her various names. However, only a voice rang out in the crowd.

“Your highness!” One of the protesters called out. “You . . . you can’t be serious, right? Princess Luna’s obviously making you cover for her-”

“SHE IS NOT RESPONSIBLE!” She boomed in her Royal Canterlot Voice. The crowd of ponies screamed a little and were shaking in intimidation. Celestia’s glare quickly turned to an expression of remorse.

“I apologize my little pony, but what I am saying is the truth. My sister didn’t become Nightmare Moon to overthrow me because of jealousy towards me, but because I broke her heart and took somepony very special away from her. I . . . I broke her spirit and I nearly lost her, this time almost forever.”

“Where could Tia be?” Pondered Luna. “She should be around one of the restoration areas of the castle.”

“I don’t know Luna,” said Pip. “Maybe we should ask one of the guards here about her. There was one around-” Pip abruptly stopped talking as he and Luna passed by a window, he saw something unusual. He looked out the window and saw the protesters around the castle all had shocked expressions on their faces. “Hey, what’s going on out there?”

Luna stopped walking and looked out the window to see the strange sight. Suddenly, her ears picked up something. “I . . . I think I hear somepony talking outside.”

“Who is it?”

The blue alicorn pressed her ear against the window and heard the voice, but it was still muffled. Her eyes widened as she recognized the tone and gasped. “It’s . . . Tia.”

“Your sister?” Asked Pip. “What’s her game now? If she’s trying to cover herself for this foley, I’ll-”

“Hold on Pippy,” said Luna. “I think we may be jumping to conclusions. I better get to the balcony and see what’s going on. I need to talk to her anyway and finally resolve this.”

“What about me? I have some choice words for her as well.”

“I’ll let you talk to her later. Besides, I know Tia’s going to want to have a talk with me alone and she’ll probably do the same with you too. Go wait in my room and I’ll be there in a little bit.”

Pip grimaced a little and nodded hesitantly. “Alright Lulu, but only because you think you know what’s right.”

“Trust me Pip, I hope I’m right in this.”

The crowd would not calm down, no matter what Celestia said. “My subjects please!” Celestia called out to the ponies. “Luna is innocent! I am the pony who is guilty here, not her.”

“That’s a lie!” One mare shouted out frantically with her eyes wide and her teeth chattering. “There’s no way that our beloved Princess Celestia would say any of this! Nightmare Moon must have corrupted her!”

More ponies stomped their hooves as they nodded their heads, agreeing to what the mare was saying instead of listening to Celestia’s words.

“Listen to me!” Celestia raised her wings and her volume, but it was of no help at all. “My sister is innocent!” No matter what she said, Celestia’s words fell silent to the roars of the crowd below her. She started to sweat profoundly, looking to every corner for any kind of support.

“Sister!”

Hearing another voice from behind, Celestia turned around to see Luna coming from behind her. A small smile edged on Celestia’s face, but it soon vanished when the voices of the ponies redirected to Luna.

“There she is! The traitor!”

“Monster!”

“You will never be our ruler!”

“Banish her Princess!”

“Exile!”

“Hang her!”

“ENOUGH!” Celestia roared in her loudest Royal Canterlot Voice. The sound was so great, it not only silenced the entire crowd at once, but the echo caused several windows to crack and shatter, and the city shook like it was in an earthquake.

The crowd looked up towards Celestia and saw she had a livid expression on her face. Nopony in the crowd had the slightest courage to speak to their primary ruler as she glared upon them. Some ponies even turned tail and ran off screaming for their lives.

“YOU ALL HAVE NOT LISTENED TO ME!” She boomed. “LUNA HAS DONE NOTHING WRONG HERE! NOW QUIT BLAMING HER AND LISTEN TO ME!”

The whole crowd quickly nodded in agreement and fell eerily silent.

Celestia took a deep breath and let it out before opening her eyes. “Ever since my sister returned, I looked out for her and kept her under my watchful eye. I wanted to make sure she was safe, happy, adjust to her new life, and keep her out of harm’s way. I wanted to ensure she was satisfied and that I would do everything to make sure nopony hurt her again.”

“. . . Tia . . .” Luna said.

“However, when I learned Luna had started dating a guard, I became so overprotective of Luna, that I didn’t want anypony to be with her. I not only knew that one day, they’d pass away and die, but I was afraid that whoever dated Luna would try to hurt her. I just couldn’t deal with the fact that my sister was dating somepony else and I grew so worried for her.”

The whole crowd couldn’t believe what they were hearing, with some of them pinching themselves like this was a dream.

“What I was so afraid though was that when that pony passed away, my sister would not only be heartbroken that she lost him, but she would also turn into . . . her.”

“Celestia, I wasn’t keeping con-”

“Luna, please . . .” pleaded Celestia. “It’s time I owed up to what I did to you and put Equestria in jeopardy.”

She turned back to the crowd and continued on. “I let my own fears get the better of me, which caused my mind to spiral out of control and I saw images of none other than Nightmare Moon mocking me. It got so bad, that I accidentally sent my sister’s lover to the Frozen North, where he nearly died of hypothermia because of me.”

The protesters gasped in shock and murmured amongst themselves.

“Tia! This has gone on long enough!” Cried out Luna. “I told you, I gave into my anger and I let Nightmare Moon control me.”

“You know full well that I was the one who drove you into darkness though Luna.” Celestia turned back to the crowd and said, “While I did help take out Nightmare Moon, the real heroes are my sister and her coltfriend. Luna was only an innocent mare who wanted to feel true love, but instead I pushed her too far and I nearly lost her again. Almost forever, this time though.”

Having finished her sentence, Celestia saw the ponies in the crowd looking at her in disbelief and shock. There were no violent outbursts, only silence met the Princess as she stood on the balcony. With a sigh, Celestia walked back into the castle. A stream of tears started to leak from her eye as she sniffed.

“Tia! Wait!”

The words of her beloved sister made her ears perk and so Celestia turned to see Luna running towards her. Celestia only lowered her head, turning away and walked onwards.

“Don’t you ignore me Celestia!” Luna yelled out, using her wings to jump into the air and landing before Celestia. “Sister…” Luna trailed off as she replaced her glare with moist eyes. “I’m to blame too for what has transpired,” Luna spoke as she stared into Celestia’s eyes. “You were not at fault here Tia, I--”

Before Luna could finish, Celestia raised her hoof to cover Luna’s mouth. “No Luna, this is my fault.” Celestia said as she raised Luna’s chin with her hoof, caressing Luna’s cheek and held onto Luna with her wing draped over her. “All of this would not have happened if only I had faith in you and your judgement.” Celestia nuzzled Luna’s cheek, her tears staining Luna’s coat.

“Tia--”

“No Luna, it is true. If only I had given you the benefit of the doubt, you would not have succumed to the sorrow again. Instead, I only followed my belief that I knew better,” Celestia said as she let go of Luna and walked on past her.

“Please Tia, can’t you just--”

“No Luna, I never should have gotten in the way of you and Pip’s love. You were only following your heart and instead of me giving you the blessing you deserved, I cursed your love and nearly doomed Equestria for that.” Celestia replied as she sniffed, more tears landing on the ground. “Hence why I am not worthy of wearing this crown,” Celestia used her magic and took off her tiara, levitating it in front of her. “My place as Princess has hurt many ponies, too many I cannot look them in the eye anymore.”

“What!?” Luna stepped back. “Sister, don’t you think you’re going too far with this?”

“I’m not Luna,” she said. “For far too long, I’ve been only seeing things in my own way. I always thought I knew what I was doing, and everything that I did I thought was for the good of Equestria. Instead, I tried to push my own views about dating being forbidden on you. Now with everything that’s happened, I think I need to go into exile.”

“But Tia, you can’t just leave me like this! What if other ponies still think I’m a traitor or something? What about all the huge workload as well? I can’t do it all on my own. Please sister, we’ll work things out and everything can go back to normal.”

Celestia looked at Luna with a solemn expression. “Back to normal you say? What would happen if things did go ‘back to normal?’ I could easily revert back to my ways of imposing my will onto you and start this whole mess all over again. No Luna, I will not put you, Philip, or all of Equestria in danger again because of me. The best thing for me is to go into exile and see the world from the perspective of other ponies. From the richest of pegasi here to the poorest of griffons in their kingdom, I want to see the view of the world from other ponies so I can understand what they’re feeling, what they’re going through, and how they handle everyday life.”

“ . . . Tia . . .” Luna said with a few tears rolling down her face.

“There’s no convincing me otherwise Luna,” said the white alicorn. “I need to do this before my ways ruin somepony else’s life, possibly forever. After everything that happened and the near fall of all of Equestria by my actions, I can’t just go back to my routine and act like it was nothing at all.”

“And you won’t go alone,” said a voice.

Celestia felt a shiver run down her body. She let out a sigh and said, “How long have you been there, Stealth?”

From right behind Luna, Stealth Sneak’s cloaking field went down to show he was leaning against the wall. “I’ve been here long enough to hear everything.”

“Pray tell Stealth,” said Luna. “Why were you listening in on us?”

“I was just passing by to help with rebuilding the castle when I heard Princess Celestia talk about going into exile. If she wants to go around the Earth and see other livelihoods of other ponies, I think it’s only fair that I accompany her.”

“Stealth, I appreciate the gesture of friendship, but I can’t let you come,” said Celestia. “You’re needed here to help protect my sister from danger.”

“And who will be there to protect a pretty princess such as you?” He inquired with a wink.

“Stealth…” Celestia’s cheeks brightened a little before she blinked rapidly. “Please Stealth, you are needed here by my sister’s side and--”

“Your sister already has a bodyguard of her own, one who will never leave her side.” He cut her off as he closed in on Celestia. “You though have no pony to keep you company if you plan on doing this.”

With her breathing becoming faster, Celestia looked into Stealth’s eyes. “Stealth, I--” Her words were cut off when he pressed his lips to hers, catching her off guard. Her pupils shrank as she was petrified in place by the kiss she was being given. Instead of pushing Stealth away from her, Celestia’s eyes slowly closed as they were becoming more moist and she pulled herself into the embrace of the stallion as they kissed.

When they finally separated, Celestia looked at Stealth again who was smiling softly at her. She returned the smile as she leaned to press her forehead against his. “How long have you felt this way about me?”

“Since I met you,” he answered her plainly, hearing a giggle from Celestia. “You always were beautiful in your own way and you were a funny mare from some of the stuff you pulled like that tea incident in Ponyville. You’re just too serious though and I think you need to feel somepony love you as well. A princess as smart, funny, and beautiful as you shouldn’t be alone forever. So what do you say? Will you let me come with you and learn to feel what it’s like to have a special somepony?”

Celestia nuzzled his cheek before letting go of Stealth and looking at her again, with a wider smile. “Alright, you may accompany me…” she trailed off as she saw his grin appear. “But with this, I want to take things slow…”

“Say no more,” Stealth told her as they were both walking off. “Wonder what your beloved student will say?”

“YOU, WHAT!?” Screamed a worried Twilight. “Princess Celestia, pardon my language, but what in the name of Faust were you thinking!?” She felt several ponies, along with a certain dragon, put their hooves around her. She turned her head and yelled, “Let go of me! I need to talk some sense into Princess Celestia!”

“Twilight, I know you’re upset about this,” said Celestia as she backed up a little. “But I’ve already confessed to what happened to all of Canterlot. I wouldn’t be surprised if right now, the news has spread across the rest of Equestria. What you need to understand though is that for so long, I’ve seen the world through only my perspective and that my ignorant ways nearly cost me everything.”

“Princess, there has to be another way around this,” said Twilight. “I wasn’t happy with what you did, but there has to be something else we can do. You don’t need to go into exile and leave us all behind.”

“My mind is made up, Twilight. I already discussed this with Luna, and while she may not be happy with this at first, I do believe it’s time I got to see the lives of other ponies and learn about them. Besides, I have chosen you to help my sister with royal duties while I’m away.”

“WHAT!?” Twilight and all her friends shouted.

Big Mac stepped forward and looked unhappy. “Pardon me yer highness, but what about my wife?” He asked. “I don’t want her to be cooped up in this castle for the rest of her life. I understand she’s needed to help with royal duties, but she’s got a family as well.”

“Mr. Macintosh, you don’t need to worry about that at all,” said Princess Celestia. “Twilight won’t be held here in the castle and kept away from you and your foal. She’ll be mostly working at the farm with paperwork and only be summoned to the castle in case of meetings or emergencies.”

Big Mac’s frown softened a little and turned to his wife. “Well Twilight? Are you sure you can do this?”

The lilac alicorn looked deep in thought for a minute before taking a deep breath. “Princess Celestia . . . if you really want to do this for yourself, then I’ll support you.”

The white alicorn gave a small smile and nuzzled her student. “Thank you Twilight. I promise you that when I come back, I’ll be a better and wiser ruler then I already am.”

“How long are you going to be gone Princess?” Asked Spike. “If you’re going around the world, that means you could be gone for years, if not over a decade.”

“I can assure you Spike that I won’t be gone forever,” she said. “The journey will be long and tough, but I will return one day when I feel that I’ve learned all I need to. I know you’ll all miss me, but for the good of Equestria, I must go on this path to better myself.”

The group looked at each other with uncertain looks, but each pony, and dragon, gave a nod.

“What about your appearance Princess?” Asked Rarity. “Surely somepony like you can’t go around as a tall alicorn princess. You’d be sticking out like a sore hoof. Um . . . no offense, your highness.”

“That’s quite alright Rarity,” said Princess Celestia. “I do believe though that I have a spell to help me with that. Let me just try to do it to show you all.”

Taking a step back from the others, Celestia lifted her head and raised her wings. Her horn started to glow brightly, with the light slowly covering her entire body. When she was completely surrounded, her wings started to diminish into nothingness and her height was becoming shorter by the second. The light dimmed until it was gone, and Celestia stood there not as her alicorn self anymore.

Before the other ponies in the room, Celestia was now a regular unicorn. She had a similar colour coat, yet it was darker toned. Her mane was now a flaming red, with her cutie mark changed to a rising sun and mountains before it. Celestia opened her eyes and smiled as the transformation was now complete.

“What do you all think?”

The ponies in front of Celestia were stunned, all of their jaws were agape as Celestia waited for a response.

“Oh oh oh! We totally have to throw you a ‘Farewell Party!’ Princess!” Pinkie bounced to Celestia, beaming as she came close to the princess.

Smiling softly at Pinkie, Celestia rested a hoof to her shoulder and shook her head slowly. “I’m afraid I can’t let you do that Pinkie…” she trailed off as she let go of Pinkie, seeing the Element of Laughter becoming silent as her smile was fading. “When I return though, you can throw a ‘Welcome Back Party for me.”

Almost immediately, Pinkie wrapped her hooves around Celestia’s neck. Celestia could feel her shoulder becoming wet, knowing that Pinkie was crying into them.

“Just don’t take too long to come back to us, please…” Pinkie whimpered, feeling a tender hoof stroke her mane.

“I won’t…”

Slowly, all the mares in the room were brought into the hug, with each mare crying and having something to say to Celestia.

When the group dispersed, Celestia wiped her own eyes that were becoming watery and sighed before she looked up again.

“There is something else I must do.”

“What is it?” Inquired Twilight.

“. . . Something I need to do right this time.” Celestia trotted off before anypony else got a word out.

“189, 190, 191, 192,” Pip said as he stared at the ceiling.

He let out a sigh and shook his head. “How long is Luna going to be gone? I can’t just lie here and count all the stars painted on her ceiling forever.” He got up and made his way to the door. “That’s it, I need to see what’s keeping her. If Princess Celestia is trying anything funny with her, she’ll have me to answer to.”

He opened the door and jumped a little to see a white unicorn standing in his path. He stumbled back a little, but quickly regained focus. “Who are you and what are you doing here?”

“Philip, relax. It’s me, Princess Celestia,” she said.

The spotted stallion raised an eyebrow and smirked. “Very funny of you. Now tell me who you are before I throw you out of the castle.”

Princess Celestia let out an exasperated sigh. “I am one of the co-rulers of Equestria. I know my sister likes to call you Pippy. I sent Stealth Sneak to spy on Luna to see what she was up to. I accidentally caused Nightmare Moon to return.”

Pip said nothing as his jaw went limp.

“Convinced now?” She asked with a small smile.

“How . . . what . . . who?” Pip said in a small voice.

Celestia chuckled to herself. “Have you ever heard of transformation spells?”

Pip almost wanted to hit himself in the face as he remembered Luna used a similar spell on their first date.

“So, why do you look like this?” He asked.

Celestia explained about everything that happened. She told him about the speech she made to all of Canterlot and how she confesse about how she was the one who caused Nightmare Moon’s return. Then, she explained about how she was going into exile to get a better grasp on the different kinds of lifestyles other ponies have. By the time she was done explaining, Pip couldn’t find a single word to say. His expression was that of both shock and confusion.

“Are you okay?” Asked Celestia.

Pip closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “Yeah . . . it’s just a lot to take in right now.” He looked at her in the eye. “So, going into exile, huh? Part of me wants to say that after what you did to me and Luna, you should be banished, but another part says I shouldn’t be so harsh on you.”

“I’m not asking you for forgiveness,” said Celestia. “I know I hurt you and Luna so much after what I put you both through. I only ask of you two things. One, will you please take care of my sister?”

The spotted stallion gave a firm nod. “You know I will Princess. I’ll look after her and always be by her side. Now what’s this other thing you want?”

Walking towards Pip, who was now taller than her, Celestia inhaled before she exhaled again. She looked into Pip’s eyes before speaking.

“I wish to grant you a proposal…”

“Yes?”

“Do you wish to become an alicorn?”

Pip blinked before tilting his head. “Excuse me?”

“Pip,” Celestia began to speak, smiling a little at his confusion. “I have the power to transform you into an alicorn like Twilight and Cadance, who are in a sense ‘demi-alicorns’... seeing as they do not share the longevity that Luna and I do.”

As the words sunk into his head, Pip lowered his gaze from Celestia before looking at her again.

“That is a generous offer, Princess…” He paused for a moment and cleared his throat. “But I cannot accept it.”

“I’m sorry?”

“I can’t take your offer.”

Celestia looked baffled. “Pipsqueak, surely you’re joking, right?” She wondered. “You showed extraordinary bravery, saved my sister and all of Equestria from an eternity of darkness, and showed me the error of my ways the hard way. You’re being given a great honor to join my former student, Twilight and Cadence. Don’t you want to rule alongside my sister as a prince?”

“It’s not that I don’t want to always be by Lulu, but it’s because of something you told both of us. Something that I think you were right about.”

Raising an eyebrow, Celestia asked, “What was it?”

“Luna and I should’ve talked about what would’ve happened if I died.”

Celestia remembered the same conversation she had with Luna. When she tried to talk to her sister, Luna shrugged her off.

“Although it’s your fault that Luna turn into Nightmare Moon, you showed me, and possibly her, about what could’ve happened should I have been killed. We should’ve thought about this sooner instead of waiting until we ‘came across that bridge’ as she put it. Even if I did take up your offer, it’d be only delaying the inevitable that eventually, I would die and she would never see me again. I don’t think it would make her happier, I think in the long run, it’d make her sad to know that although I live a little longer, I would eventually be dead.”

Celestia looked down and took the words in.

“But it goes beyond that as well.”

The white alicorn raised her head again. “How so?”

“I wouldn’t want to change myself at all for Luna’s sake. She loves me for who I am and I know she wouldn’t want me to look or act any different for her. She loves me not just because I called her my favorite princess, but because I showed her how it felt to be truly loved by somepony. What I was doing for Luna wasn’t for glory, but it’s because I was protecting her, like any lover would do for their mate.”

Princess Celestia couldn’t help but smile softly and let a few tears out. “That . . . that was truly inspiring Pipsqueak. My sister truly was right in choosing you as her coltfriend.”

“And I’m very proud as well.”

Pip and Celestia turned their heads to see a smiling Luna. The spotted stallion galloped over to her and embraced her.

“Lulu, how long have you been there?” He wondered.

“Long enough to hear your speech,” Luna said, walking up to Pip and wrapping her hooves around him. She smiled softly, nuzzling her lover’s mane before letting go of him.

Celestia looked to the pair and decided to give them a little privacy. She walked out of the room, closing the door from behind. She sighed, closing her eyes and bowing her head a little before looking up again. Celestia yelped when she was greeted by Stealth’s face.

“That was quite a speech by that colt,” he smirked as he saw Celestia regaining her composure.

“Well yes, it was.” Celestia dusted herself off as she stood up from the ground. “Now I must go pack for the journey ahead.”

Stealth’s grin lowered as he heard her speak. “Want some help with that?”

“It’s quite alright, thank you,” Celestia answered him as she walked forward. As she was walking past Stealth in her new body, Celestia felt herself being turned around and she was greeted by his lips pressing against hers. She stood there for a moment, melting into the kiss before she let go of him. “I thought I said to take things slow…”

Stealth shrugged, grinning again as he dusted his hoof and inspected it. “You look like you needed it. And you enjoy it too.”

Celestia only groaned.

When Luna let go Pip, she blinked her eyes as she was looking deep into his. She caressed his cheek and planted a kiss to his forehead before speaking again. “That was beautiful Pippy…”

“Well it’s the truth.” Pip assured her, pecking her cheek. “I don’t want to change myself and I don’t want you to change yourself either.”

“I won’t, I’ll never change.”

“Good.”

Almost immediately, their lips fused together as their hooves wrapped around the other’s neck. Luna’s wings came to life as she stroked against Pip’s torso and she let out a moan when she felt Pip’s hooves brush off against her flank.

Nightfall soon came for all of Equestria. The protesters were long gone now, but were instead replaced with signs dropped onto the street, bricks, and the burnt Luna scarecrow. Two white unicorns dressed in gray janitor uniforms were sweeping the streets and had frowns on their faces. Behind them, a blue Royal Guard pony was standing behind them and had a scowl on his face.

“After you two finish sweeping this area, there’s one more street to clean up,” he said. “Maybe this’ll teach you and those other traitorous guards for leaking about what happened to Princess Luna and putting her in danger.”

“Yes captain,” they said in monotone voices.

While that was going on, Luna looked out the window and smiled to herself. She was about to proceed down the hallway, but was greeted by Silver Storm instead.

“Silver, so good to see you,” she said. “I thought I gave you some time off to spend with Teal.”

“You did your highness,” he said. “Princess Celestia, or I should say, Sun Rise, wants to see you before she takes off.”

Luna gave a small smile and nodded. “Then I guess it’s time, isn’t it?” Silver gave a nod. “Then let’s not waste any more time.” Together, the two of them galloped down the hallway.

As they entered the main entrance to the castle, Luna saw Spike, Twilight, her friends, and all their respective mates were together. Fluttershy was being held by a somber looking Rainbow Dash. Pinkie’s mane was flat and was frowning, but was being comforted by Braeburn. Applejack and Soarin were cuddling next to each other, but each had a frown on their faces. Spike wrapped a wing around Rarity and pulled her in closely to embrace her. Twilight, however, looked really devastated. Big Mac tried to hold her, but she was letting some tears fall to the ground.

Luna looked in the middle and saw her sister still in her disguise mode and Stealth Sneak together. Stealth was carrying a large backpack on him that seemed ready to explode with how much stuff was in it. She then felt somepony tap her and turned to see Pipsqueak next to her.

“Everypony else has already said their goodbyes,” he said. “I think you better too before she goes.”

Luna gave a nod and trotted over. Celestia noticed her sister and turned towards her with a sad smile on her face. The room feel completely silent as the two regal sisters looked at each other. Everypony, or in the case of Spike, dragon, looked at each other with apprehensive looks on their faces. Luna looked down and tapped her hoof while Celestia took a deep breath.

At last, the white unicorn broke the silence. “So, this is it,” she said.

Luna gave a weary nod. “So it is,” she said. “Do you have everything you need?”

“As much I need for the journey ahead. We got a map of Equestria, some books about each place we plan to go to, food and water, and a tent for me and Stealth to share. That’s only naming a few things though.”

“Hmmm, whatever happened to taking things slowly?” Asked Luna with a smug grin on her face.

Celestia blushed deeply. “Luna!” She yelped. “It’s not like that!”

The blue alicorn let out a small laugh. “Forgive me sister, but I thought a good laugh was all we needed.” She sighed and looked at her again. “Tia, I know things have been rough on us for the past few days.”

The white unicorn nodded slowly. “It’s not helped that I made things worse for you.”

“Yet you helped save me to the bitter end. I know things have been hard on both of us, but we’re sisters after all. You told me when I returned it was time to put our differences aside and rule together. Although you really messed up, it still doesn’t change that you’re my sister and that I love you.”

Celestia gave a tearful smile and embraced Luna. “I’m so, so sorry for what I did,” she said in a broken voice. “I know I’ve said it multiple times, but I really should’ve put more trust in you instead of getting in the way.”

“Please, Tia…” Luna raised her hoof to silence Celestia once more. “That’s in the past, we can only move on and learn from our mistakes for the future.” Being taller than her sister now, Luna reached out a hoof to her chin to raise her head. “This was just a rough patch in our lives, but please know and understand that no matter what, I will always love you my dearest sister.”

“Luna…”

Silence greeted them before Celestia started to sniff and flung her hoof around Luna. Even though she was shorter, Celestia could still nuzzle her sister as tears were escaping her eyes.

Celestia stepped back from Luna and wiped the tears from her eyes. “I promise you sister, when I come back from this, I’ll be become a better mare. No matter how long it takes, I will learn from this.”

“I know you will sister.” Luna suddenly felt something click inside her head. “Wait right here sister, there’s something I must get you.” Her horn glowed and in a flash, she teleported away.

“Princess Celestia,” said Stealth in a rather weak voice. “I mean no offense, but I don’t think this backpack can hold much more. If try opening it, I think it’ll go off like an explosion.”

“Don’t worry Stealth,” she said. “Whatever my sister is carrying, I’ll be sure to carry it for you.”

Before the green unicorn could say anything else, another bright flash appeared before him and the others. Luna was back now and she was carrying what looked like a dark blue book.

“Another book?” Inquired Stealth. “No offense Princess Luna, but we got enough books as it is.”

“This isn’t any book,” she said. The blue alicorn opened in to reveal nothing was written on the pages at all. “This is journal I kept. I had no idea what to use it for, so I think you should have it Tia. You can use it to record everything on your journey and what you learned. You can use it as a means to remind yourself of the lessons you’ll learn along the way.” She levitated the book towards her sister.

Celestia took control of the book and gave a warm smile. She embraced her sister again and said, “Thank you sister. I know that by the time I come back, this book will be filled with my lessons.”

The sound of a clock tower rang out, catching everypony’s attention. The clock tower rang nine times before it fell silent again.

“Celestia, it’s time,” said Stealth. “We need to get out of here and get going while the night sky covers us.”

The white unicorn nodded and looked towards all the ponies. “You all mean the world to me and taught me so many things from the Friendship Reports. I’ll miss you all dearly and think of every one of you along my journey to keep myself motivated. Know this though, I will return one day and things will be different. You ponies, yes Spike, including you, are some of my best friends and I’ll never forget you all. I hope when I come back, I see you all again so we can catch up like all friends do.”

“We’ll keep you in mind Princess Celestia,” said Braeburn.

“You and Stealth have a wonderful trip,” said Fluttershy.

“Be careful out there mom,” said Spike.

Celestia looked at Twilight and pulled her in for a hug. “Don’t cry Twilight, I’ll be back and better than ever. You need to stay strong for me, my sister, and all of Equestria.”

The lilac alicorn smiled and wiped her tears. “I’ll do it for you princess,” she said.

Celestia then looked at Luna. “Sister, there’s one last thing I need you to do.”

“What’s that?”

“There’s too many guards walking around town and cleaning up the streets. I need you to teleport me and Stealth on the outskirts of Canterlot.”

“Why not the train station? Surely you can begin your journey by using the train to get to your first town.”

“Stealth and I only have so many bits on us and we want to remain as inconspicuous as possible. One thing in my journey I will try to avoid is luxuries since I’ve been living my whole life as luxury. Now then, teleport us outside the city limits.”

Luna gave a nod and closed her eyes in concentration. As her horn glowed, an aura surrounded both Celestia and Stealth. The group of ponies, and dragon, each had sad smiles on their faces as they waved goodbye. Celestia smiled back and closed her eyes as the glowing intensified.

Suddenly, in a flash, they were gone. The only thing remaining of their presence now was a small burnt area where they were standing. Everypony held onto their respective loved ones and let a few tears out.

Holding onto Luna, Pip leaned his head to Luna’s. “Are you okay?”

Luna sniffed, her eyes red from crying as she shook her head with a somber smile. “No… I’m not.” She raised her head and looked back at her lover. “But as long as I have you, Pippy… I will be.”

Having been teleported outside the border, Celestia and Stealth walked onwards to the east. Stealth insisted on carrying the luggage as a true gentecolt would, which brought relief to Celestia as she was now no longer an alicorn until further notice.

When they came upon of a hill, Stealth finally spoke.

“Well, now that we are out, where should we go? I was thinking Appleloosa first or we could go eastwards to Manehatten and do some sightseeing there--” His words were cut off when he saw Celestia looking back to the grand castle and Canterlot. Stealth blinked before reaching out to the mare, standing by her side. “Are you okay?”

“I am…” Celestia smiled, a stream of tears falling from her eyes. “I know everything will be okay for my sister, and for Canterlot. I trust her fully…”

Stealth nodded as he nuzzled Celestia, who returned the gesture. “Good, now let’s go.”

“Right…” Celestia trailed off as she turned around, not looking back at Canterlot but rather in front of the world before her and to the stallion who would accompany her. “Stealth!” She called out to him, seeing him turn sharply to her. She trotted towards him and planted her lips to his. After a few moments, she let go of him and wrapped her hooves around him. “Thank you.”

Epilogue: Reunion

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“Happy Birthday!”

Nearly all the inhabitants of the castle of Canterlot shouted out these words to one colt who had just entered the ballroom at the request of his mother. What greeted him was decorations of party streamers and a giant cake in the center with many ponies in the room shouting out the two words to him.

“Happy Birthday, Star,” Luna said as she entered the room with her husband and Captain of the Guard, Pipsqueak.

Star Light beamed as he looked around and back to his parents, who he immediately tackled as he fluttered his wings to fly towards them. Star’s coat was a match to Luna’s, with his mane being the same as his father’s and he sported teal eyes. The thing that made him special though was his horn and wings, for he was born an alicorn just as his mother and Celestia were.

“Thank you, Mom and Dad!” Star said as he was held by both his mother and father, who were nuzzling him affectionately.

“Our pleasure, son,” Pip replied as he let go of Star. “Now why don’t you go say ‘Hello’ to your aunts and cousins?” When Pip let go of his son, Star immediately rushed towards the other ponies in the room. The ones Star was coercing with first were the Elements of Harmony and their families.

Seeing her son so happy, Luna giggled at the colt’s enthusiasm. Her eyes drifted away from Star for a moment, landing on a stained glass window depicting her and Celestia.

Pip sighed as he looked to his son, looking to his side to see Luna’s eyes becoming moist for a moment before turning around and leaving the room. Confused, Pip decided to follow her.

“Hey Lulu…” He called out to her, causing Luna to stop in her tracks. “What’s wrong love?” Pip reached to Luna and he was brought into her embrace as she reared her hooves around his neck.

“It’s been ten years…”

Realizing what she was talking about, Pip stroked Luna’s mane and nuzzled her head as he closed his eyes. “I know, I know…”

“I miss her so much…” Luna sniffed, tightening her hold onto him.

“I know…”

“Every day, I hope she’ll come back safe and sound.”

“And I’m sure she will one day . . .”

The snow was coming down hard in Canterlot. Even with the streetlamps on at night, the visibility made it next to impossible for other ponies to go out. Regardless of the blizzard though, two ponies wearing brown cloaks and hoods trotted down the street and didn’t seem fazed by the weather. Although the visibility was done, the two ponies could see the tall castle gates coming up before them. They looked at each other and gave a nod before going forward.

Inside the guard shack, two Lunar Guards, one brown and one blue, were sitting down, each of whom were holding mugs of a steamy brown liquid and marshmallows in it.

“Thank Faust for hot chocolate,” said the brown guard. “I know we need to be vigilant and protect the castle, but there’s a difference between bravery and being suicidal.”

“You got that right,” said the blue guard. “You’d have to be insane to break into this castle in this kind of weather. The streets are deader than Blueblood’s last birthday party.” He laughed at his own joke, but the other guard didn’t respond. “Hey, come on, Blueblood is a real bore at social gatherings.”

The one guard raised his hoof and pointed out the window. “I think we’ve got some insane ponies then.”

The blue guard turned around and saw the hooded ponies approaching the gates. He got up and grabbed his spear. “Come on, the sooner we can get this over with, the better.”

The guards marched out of their shack and galloped over to the ponies. The surrounded them and pointed their spears at them.

“Hold it right there!” Ordered the brown guard. “This area is restricted to Royal Family and by those invited to the castle only.”

One of the hooded ponies reached into their hood. The guards readied themselves for the worst. Instead of a weapon though, a small badge was shown before them. The guards looked at it and their eyes widened in shock.

“That . . . that can’t be . . .” said the blue guard. “The Royal Seal of Equestria. How did you get this?”

“What should we do sir?”

The guard closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “Escort these two into the castle, but have them kept on guard. We don’t want any unwanted surprises. Have a group of guards take them to Princess Luna.”

“Yes sir!”

“Let’s go back to the party, we don’t want our son to see you like this on his birthday now, do we?” Pip encouraged Luna as he held onto her.

Sniffing and wiping her eyes, Luna nodded with a forced smile. “You’re right Pip, I’m sorry for feeling like this on Star’s birthday.”

“No need to apologize Luna,” Pip kissed her forehead, eliciting a giggle from her. “Now let’s go back.”

The doors leading outside opened with four ponies coming in to greet Luna and Pip. Two guards and two cloaked ponies.

Luna looked to her guards and to the other ponies before speaking to the guards. “Are these trespassers, guards?”

“No Princess…” One guard replied as he stepped forward, revealing the royal seal one of them had given to him. “They did have this though.” He passed it to Luna, who grabbed it with her magic to inspect it before looking sharply at the cloaked ponies.

“Where did you get this?!” She demanded from them, using a fraction of the Canterlot voice on them. “Who are you?”

One of the two ponies stepped forward past the guards. “Somepony who loves you very much.” The pony spoke, revealing to be a mare before she removed her hood to reveal a hued rainbow ethereal mane and white coat.

Everypony gasped at the mare, silence following soon after. Luna gulped before breathing erratically, her eyes releasing a new batch of tears before she carefully stepped forward. “Tia?” She spoke softly, receiving a nod from the mare. “Tia…” She trailed off again, biting her lower lip as tears were streaming from Luna’s eyes. “Tia!” Luna called out and immediately galloped towards her sister, holding onto her for dear life as she was sobbing away into Celestia’s coat.

“Sorry we’re late,” said Stealth as he removed his hood. The pony’s face had changed a little as he grew a beard, but still had that wide smile on him.

“I missed you so much sister!” Shouted Luna.

Celestia nuzzled against Luna. “I missed you too.” A small smile formed on her face. “Isn’t this scene familiar though?”

The blue alicorn gave a nod. “Yes . . . it’s just like when I first came back to Equestria after my banishment. I never thought this would happen again.”

“Mom! Are you okay!?” Star cried out.

The group heard hooves galloping and approaching the door. As soon as Star, Spike, the Element Bearers, their spouses, and their children came into the room, everypony let out a gasp for who they saw.

“Princess Celestia!” They all shouted in unison. Everypony, in the case of Spike, dragon, ran over and had smiles on their faces.

“Welcome back your highness,” said Big Mac.

“It’s great to see you again princess,” said Elusive.

“How was your trip, mom?” Inquired Spike.

“What did you see?” Wondered Rainbow.

Twilight, in complete joy and disbelief, ran out and hugged her former mentor. “Oh Princess Celestia, it’s so good to see you again!” She enthusiastically shouted. “I’ve been working so hard for you and your sister! What’d you see out there? What did you . . .?” Twilight saw everypony was looking at her funny, causing her face to turn red and chuckle awkwardly. “Um . . . sorry princess.”

“It’s quite alright Twilight,” said the white alicorn. “You, as well as your friends, have every right to be very happy to see me again.”

“Hey! Who are you?”

All the ponies stopped chatting and turned their attention to a curious looking Star Light. The young alicorn was staring at Princess Celestia and vise versa.

“Who am I, you ask?” She wondered.

“Yeah! Everypony is calling you a princess, but only my mom, Princess Luna, Auntie Cadence, and Auntie Twilight are real princesses. Who are you to say you’re one?”

“Star!” Scolded Luna. “That’s no way to talk to-”

“It’s okay Luna,” said Celestia. “This little pony is curious and it’s time she learned of her other aunt.”

Looking back at Celestia, Star only blinked and looked back at his mother who nodded. He saw the stained glass windows depicting Luna and Celestia. Connecting the dots in his head, Star gasped and beamed at Celestia.

“Wow! That’s so cool!” Star shouted out used his wings to be leveled with Celestia’s eyes. “You’re so big though.”

“Star!”

Giggling, Celestia reached for the colt with her hooves to hug her nephew. “It’s alright Luna…”

“But if you’re another aunt of mine…. where were you?”

Celestia sighed as she let go of Star, standing next to Stealth. “It’s a very long story…”

When Celestia explained her absence to Star, the ponies decided to return to the ballroom and restart the party with full swing. Twilight and Celestia spoke about her adventures and Twilight was happy to introduce her foals to her mentor, something Celestia was very proud off. When Celestia finally spoke to Pinkie Pie though, the pink mare couldn’t contain herself longer.

“I’m so happy you’re back! Now we can finally throw you a party! But what kind?! I was thinking ‘Welcome Back Princess Celestia’. No wait! How about we do a ‘She is back!’ party! Oh, oh! Or perhaps--”

“Pinkie Pie,” Celestia cut her off, silencing Pinkie. “That won’t be needed, thank you. No ‘Welcome Back Party’.”

“Aww…” Pinkie’s mane deflated with her eyes becoming moist as her lips started to quiver.

Celestia leaned into Pinkie’s ear. “Rather, can you plan a wedding? For me and Stealth.”

Pinkie’s smile returned as she shot up into the sky. “Even better!” She shouted. “Oh, I’m so happy for you and Stealth! This’ll be the best wedding since . . . well, all of my friends’ weddings!” She quickly ran over to the others to inform them of the news.

Luna turned to Celestia. “A wedding, huh?” The white alicorn gave a nod. “At least you two didn’t elope while you were away. So any chances Star will have a cousin?”

“Actually Luna, you’re going to be an aunt sooner than you thought.”

The blue alicon did a double take. “Excuse me?”

“Let’s just say sister, that during one the last cold nights we were out together, we found a way to ‘stay warm’.”

“That . . . was something I could live without,” said Luna with a deadpanned expression. “How long have you been that way?”

“Three months and counting. But now’s not the time to be discussing this, we got a party to go to.”

Luna grabbed her sister’s hoof. “Before you go Tia, there’s something I must ask. Where’s that book I gave you?”

The white alicorn used her magic to remove Stealth’s cloak and reveal the backpack wasn’t as overstuffed, but looked worn out. “It’s in there, but I can tell you that it’s filled up.”

“What did you write in it? Anything enlightening?”

Celestia gave her sister a smile. “I’ve got enough in that book to not only create sweeping reforms across Equestria for some programs, but that book will always remind me of the journey I had and the lessons I learned. Now then, I think it’s time I fulfilled a promise.”

“What’s that?” Asked Luna.

“To catch up on old times with my friends,” said Celestia. She took Stealth’s hoof and trotted over to the door. “Come on Luna,” she called back. “We got a party for your son to go to.”

The blue alicorn felt Pip grip her hoof and looked to see him smiling. With a smile of her own, she said, “You’re right sister, and with you now, this party is even better.”

Together, the two sisters and their loved ones went out the door and joined the party.

The Night's Knight

by The Dragon Warlock

Prologue: The Lonesome Dream

Initiation

Date with Destiny

Blooming Nightmare

Revelations

Breakdown

Under Siege

The Moon Sets Forever (Part 1)

The Moon Sets Forever (Part 2)

Parting Ways

Epilogue: Reunion