> Moonlight Promenade
>  by Valorousspectre
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The world was always beautiful at this time. As the sun set over the Canterlot Horizon, the colours of the light as it reflected off the ozone always made him feel a little warmer in his chest. And that didn’t happen even nearly often enough. He sighed and kicked his feet, dangling off the fifth floor of the building top he sat upon. His brand new shoes, Converse in design, stared back at him as he looked at them. He’d been wearing them in all day, and now it was time to take them off.
With another sigh, Septimus stood up, stretching his back, grimacing as it popped a time or two and he bent down, unlacing them carefully. He loved Converse, and he’d splurged to buy those. He let his plain black backpack hit the floor, dropping from his shoulder. He unzipped it, leaving his socks on, and put the shoes in his pack, retrieving a beat up pair of sneakers from the same bag. He put those on instead. Then he took off his shirt. Nobody ever frequented the darkened streets of Canterlot, so he always took his shirt off. Less drag. He left the bag hidden between a vent and the small retaining wall at the edge of the ceiling and sighed, looking over the roof again.

Septimus was not an impressive looking stallion. Although tall, at six foot three, He was quite thin. As a musician, his life was stressful and full of bullshit, and he was not about to deny it. Earth Ponies are generally already at a disadvantage in the musical world, given the unicorn’s magical advantage, but he was even more so. Being manic depressive, Sep didn’t have the best motivation. In fact… the only thing that got his spirits back up…

He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, then sprinted towards the edge of the roof, jumped to the retaining wall, then launched himself off the edge, arms out, wind blowing through his shortish off-white hair, blowing it out of his face. For a moment, he felt weightless, suspended in the air, then he was catching himself on the fire escape two floors down with his hands and feet, dipping for a moment before launching himself backwards, spinning in mid air to catch onto a window a floor down, his feet catching the wall, dropping down to the next window, then backflipped off the wall, falling through the air till, when his feet hit the opposite wall, the pushed forward, rolling to his feet and starting to run.

The sun fell as he ran, the wind whipping his face. He reached a set of handrails and leaped, landing on his feet, arms outstretched, then leaped again, landing on the arch of his foot, sliding down the railing to land on the cement, rolling again to his feet, running again. Spur of the moment, split second decisions such as that made his heart beat fast, and he liked that. He jumped again, flipping in the air, holding his knees to his chest before shooting his legs out to catch himself again. 

He kept running, even once coming to a dead end and running up and flipping off the wall to run the other way in a spinning flip, but he stopped himself, leaning his weight back and taking a few extra short, swift steps to slow himself enough, once he hit the clearest view of the moon he’d seen in days. Breathing heavily, he walked slowly over to the railing, made of stone or marble or some such expensive material, and jumped up onto it, standing to face the moon. Wind hit his face as he sighed, closing his eyes gently.

The pale moonlight that now lit up the promenade always made him feel safe. For some reason, the gentle glow of the cooler celestial body always had a more warming effect on him than the sun. He liked it. Suddenly aware of his heart beating in his chest like a drum, he sat down atop the clean marble of the handrail and watched the moon, letting himself calm down.

"She’s beautiful, isn’t she?"

Septimus didn’t bother to turn around and face the sudden voice, he just grunted and nodded. The voice, distinctly feminine, giggled and he heard footsteps approaching him.

"I always have thought she was better than the burning sun. Not that I’d say it out loud of course."

Again, Septimus said nothing, but the pony now almost beside him, he could see her hands on the rail from the corner of his eyes, didn’t seem to mind at all.

"The sun is so hot all the time," she said sadly, "He always seems so angry, even if he’s not… But not like the moon. She’s cool, she’s calming, and she gives us her light in full. She’s beautiful."

Septimus was silent still, thinking on his visitor’s words. After a while, however, he sighed and nodded.

"Yeah, she’s beautiful alright," He said quietly. He heard his visitor shift to look at him, "She lets us hide things in her night. Things nobody else wants to see. She reminds us gently that not everything is going to be painful, and she cools our tempers when we’re angry. She’s… much better than the sun."

Another giggle, and this time he felt a hand on his leg. it was a gentle movement, but not alarming.

"I’m glad we agree," She said happily, "Pray tell, what is your name?"

"Septimus," He answered softly, "Don’t bother remembering it. Nobody else does."

There was silence for a moment, the only sound the gentle rasp of nails on Sep’s pants as his visitor gently scratched his leg. Then, the hand left and he heard her walking again. But this time, he felt arms around his midsection, the feeling of a face upon the middle of his back, and smallish breasts pressed against the small of his back and he started.

"H-hey! What are you doing?" He asked, slightly alarmed. The girl let out a rich laugh and only hugged him tighter.

"Oh Septimus," She said through her good humored laughter, "The night won’t let you go forgotten, so why should I?"

"I…" He began before falling silent. She giggled softly again, like what he said, or didn’t say, was funny.

"You’ve got a beautiful coat," She said gently, stroking one of her hands against his back. He gulped, remembering only now he had taken his shirt off and stashed it in his bag. In consequence, his peach coloured coat was showing on more than just his face, "Such a pretty colour… and so velvety. Do you wash it often?"

"Well," Septimus, "I have to. It’s a little sweaty right now, so…"

"That’s alright~" She replied, "It’s nice, to have somepony to talk to more like you."

"More… like me?" He asked, confused. His visitor nodded against his back and let him go, but didn’t come into sight range.

"Yeah. See, where I live, everything’s all stuffy and eugh. I mean, I love my sister and everything, but sometimes you’ve got to get out and enjoy the outside world and all the delightful ponies in it."

"That… that’s true for some ponies I guess," He answered carefully. Septimus wasn’t very social. In fact, he liked to think of himself as anti social, just so other ponies would leave him alone mostly, "A lot of ponies like crowds but… I’m not good in them. I’m not good with other ponies full stop."

The mare behind him giggled and he felt a hand on his leg again as she moved beside him. He didn’t bother to look at her. He’d expected such a move anyhow.

"You’re doing okay with me~" She teased and he smiled ruefully.

"Yeah, well, you’re one mare," He said with a negligent wave of his hand to the moon, "Any more than one though and I’m liable to fall apart."

"You don’t like crowds?"

"No. I hate crowds. Crowds make me nervous. Then they make my heart beat erratically and I hyperventilate. I have to find a space away from them."

There was a silence for a long time. Finally, his visitor made the first move. Her hand snaked over his leg to around his waist and he felt her snuggle her head under his arm. He didn’t complain, but he still didn’t look at her. He was starting to feel something familiar. A dull weight in his heart. Manic Depression coming back, telling him he wasn’t good enough and that she shouldn’t be wasting her time with him. But he managed to hold it at bay.

"I know what you mean," She said quietly, the hand at his waist just brushing the faint trace of his abdominal muscles, "Sister always tells me I need to get out of my room more, meet with ponies."

"But you don’t want to," He said, his voice taking on an edge that wasn’t there before, "Because together, in groups, ponies are stupid, foolish creatures, and it makes me wonder how they ever even survived."

His arm around his visitor’s shoulders tensed, and he felt her fingers trace over his hand.

"Racist views, and sexism," He continued, unabated, "Stupidity that precedes even modern day society. The inability to look after themselves, they need somepony else to do it for them, their complete lack of faith in others,"

He ranted on, and his visitor listened, drawing minute circles around his hand, and gently brushing her fingers across his abdomen as he continued to speak, talking about society, the flaws in their race, and eventually slowly turning into self destructive speech. Alarms went off in the mare’s head and she turned to look at him sharply.

"Can’t even keep a decent job for pity’s sake, how the hell am I even still alive?" He finally paused, breathing heavily. He felt his visitor move slightly, but she didn’t remove herself from where she was.

"Chemical imbalances in the brain," He said softly, "Talent that leaves me in a bind because the music industry hates me, and a family that tried to turn me into a zombie with meds… I don’t know why I’m even still here."

He heard the rustle of feathers and a feathery warmth draped over his shoulder. He did look at those. Deep blue, and beautiful.

"You’re here because the universe decided it was so," She said firmly, "You’re here because there are ponies out there that can learn so much from you. You are here," She continued much more gently, taking her hand from his and letting it drift across his chest muscles, making him blush, "Because you are here, and what you decide to make of it is up to you."

The hand around his waist drifted downwards and he shivered as it almost slipped under the threshold of his pants as it was leaving entirely.

"I have to go," She said softly. he felt and saw her wing leave his shoulder, "Meet me here tomorrow night, same time, okay? I want to hear all about your day."

"I don’t even know your name!" He said, alarmed, turning to face his visitor but there was nobody there. Just empty shadows drenched in pale moonlight. He sighed, looking up to the moon once more.

"I don’t even know your name…"
> Chapter 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The night waned, and Septimus was forced to return for his bag, and his shirt before the night was finished. He made it home with barely an hour to spare. But it was alright, he only worked the late afternoons anyway. Being a sound technician for a nightclub that employed five made work easy, but also pay little. So he got a little sleep that day. But he did have to ignore his room mates as they went about their loud days. 
But, as the time rolled around, he had to get up and work, as usual. His boss yelled at him between songs, his coworkers ignore him, as usual, the musicians didn’t care or thank him. 

Another day in the grinder, another day to die.

So he found himself seated upon a building once again. Not the same as the night before, but a building he had sat upon before. It was nightfall, or approaching it, and once more, he was contemplating what to do. His hair was almost over his eyes again, and his converse were already in his bag, stowed away from a long day. But he was considering if he wanted to meet his mysterious visitor from the previous night.

With a depressed sigh, he slowly took off his shirt, stowing it away in his bag and hiding the bag in the normal spot, and looked off the roof. The view was amazing, the moon just peaking over the horizon. He spied his way down and smiled, turning around , standing on the edge of the roof, crossing his arms over his chest, and letting himself fall backwards off the roof. For a moment, the only feeling he had was the adrenaline through his system and the wind through his hair, then he hit his mark, plunging into the tall mound of hay piled up in a cart. He sank down to the bottom and hit the cart with a faint thud, managing to slowly crawl out, free of pain. He set off, running through the darkened streets of Canterlot. He’d been to many cities, but out of all of them, Canterlot was his favorite to do this in. Manehatten was close, but there was always ponies out after dark. In Canterlot, there was nopony after dark.

He vaulted over a bench, landing on his feet and continuing to run. The night air whistled past him as he ran, then hit a retaining wall, hit it with one foot and flipped off of it, just barely making it. After a moment to catch his breath, he headed off again, making his way through the city.

Somehow, he ended up on the familiar promenade, moonlight spilling over the beautiful surrounds. It was just as beautiful as before. With a cursory look around, he confirmed his mysterious visitor wasn’t anywhere to be found and he sighed, seating himself once more upon the railings, to stare out at the moon.

"Should have known she wouldn’t be here," he said softly to himself, "I’m not…"

Familiar hands wrapped around his waist and a rich laugh filled his ears as he felt a face press into his chilly fur.

"You came~" She said warmly, "Thank you Septimus."

"I.." he started, blushing as he felt her modest breasts press against him as well, "Th-that’s fine…"

"The night’s caress is always nicer with someone else," She said quietly. He blushed a little harder. The way she said that made him… nevermind.

"I… I guess so," He said awkwardly, "Hey… last night, you left before telling me your name."

"Oh," She said gently, "You can just call me Lulu."

"Alright then," He replied with a relieved sigh. He shivered, however, when he felt her hands gently caressing his abdomen.

"I saw you running," She said softly, "Do you do that often?"

"W-well," He answered, swallowing his nerves, "Yeah. I do it a lot. It’s called parkour, and it’s… it’s freeing, you know? To have no restrictions and no road. Nowhere to tell me where I should go, you know?"

"A little," Lulu said, "I like a prank now and then, but I’ve never been able to do something like that. I have too many responsibilities."

"But you can sneak out here?" he asked, confused. Lulu giggled and her hands left him, and she leaned against the railing. No matter how much he wanted to though, he couldn’t move his head to face her, but he could see her hands again.

"Well, sometimes sis has a… lapse, in her guard," She said with a giggle, "So I can get out now and again, yes."

There was a moment of silence under the moonlight on the promenade. Lulu lifted one of her hands up and rested it upon his thigh.

"So…" he started lamely, "You live with your sister?"

He heard Lulu hum in affirmative.

"Mhmm. My sister and I are pretty much all we have, but we’re expected to act a certain way, so it gets tiring quickly."

"I know what you mean," He said softly, "Society is the same. I’m meant to have a well paid job, and be respected and happy, like everyone else."

"You’re… not happy?" Lulu asked. Septimus laughed.

"I’m manic depressive Lulu, being happy is hard when you can’t help but be depressed."

"Oh," she answered, "I… I understand. I know what it’s like… thinking you’re not worth anything, and how hard it is to please everyone, let alone anyone."

Septimus grunted in affirmative. It was difficult, and he knew that too. With a sigh, he relayed his day to Lulu, leaving out very little, mostly his roommates. She listened quietly, occasionally stroking his thigh with her hand.

"You can’t let it get to you," Lulu finally said gently, "It never works out well."

The gentle squeeze on his thigh, though most likely meant to reassure, irked him somehow.

"What do you know?" He spat bitterly. She flinched, but he paid no heed, "You live in the upper parts of Canterlot with the fashion and the fine dining and the money, away from the working class and their cruelty towards ponies like me, away from the nasty side of the music industry. You’ve got high society, and a sister who looks after you and, no doubt, everyone who meets you loves you. What do you know about pain?"

There was silence again, the pale moonlight somehow seeming sad and wispy, paler than usual. Her hand left his thigh and she sighed, moving away.

"I know the feeling. Being unwanted, unneeded… I know better than anyone, trapped in the shadow of my older sister," She finally said darkly, "And trust me," She continued, "It’s a long shadow. And for a long time, I thought my skills unappreciated, and there’s absolutely nobody out there that can do what I do."

"You make it sound like you paint the night sky," He shot back, not noticing her stiffen behind him, not even looking at her, "But nobody’s that special… nobody except the Princesses. And they’re loved by everyone."

"Not… Not always," came Lulu’s reply, "Remember? There was the time when Princess Luna had troubles."

"The tale of Nightmare moon?" He scoffed, "Please. Luna was justified in her anger in that. The only problem was the transition, and it’s been accepted that even that wasn’t entirely her fault."

He shook his head with a growling sigh.

"No, Princess Luna was never wrong. Me? I’m… I’m different. Everything I’ve done, it’s been my own fault. I’m not good enough to impress the music industry. Not a good enough tech to satisfy them."

"No, Septimus," Lulu said with a sigh, folding her arms around his waist again. He was starting to wonder about her strange fetish with hugging him from behind, "No, they’re just… It’s not you, I promise."

Septimus snorted.

"Then why the abuse?" He asked shortly. Lulu stammered, trying to come up with an answer she simply didn’t know.

"I’ll tell you why," He said darkly, "Why the abuse? Because all a bully needs is a goddamn excuse."

Lulu sighed and pressed cheek to his back.

"Look, Septimus," She said, "There’s always going to be ponies out there looking to put down the up and coming in favor for their own gains. There’s nothing anyone can do about those ponies, and for that, I’m sorry."

He grunted in reply and she smiled against his fur, 

"But I promise, it only gets better from here. Things always seem their worst before they get better."

"Yeah, I’ve heard that before," Sep sighed, "It’s looked so bad for so long though…" he paused as he felt a gentle peck of something soft against his spine, the up a little higher and he frowned.

"What are you doing..?" he asked nervously. He heard her wings open and felt the telltale gush of air as she lifted into flight and, as he realised with a light blush she was planting kisses up his back, and one on his neck.

"Giving you some incentive," She said slyly before running a hand through his hair, "And wash your hair before tomorrow night please? It’s a little oily."

"I… sure…" he responded distantly. She giggled and placed one final gentle and chaste kiss on his shoulder blade before whispering a goodbye and, just as quickly as before, vanishing into the night. Septimus gulped as his hand subconsciously made his way to the kissed area on the back of his neck.

"I guess…"
> Chapter 3
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sleep did not come easily to Septimus that night. Even going straight home from the promenade, he found it difficult. He kept remembering the gentle kisses up his back and neck.

It won't mean anything... he told himself firmly, She's just getting in your head.

Still, he couldn't help but feel a little warm glow everytime he thought about it. About the feeling of her dry lips on his skin and coat as she gave him more affection than he'd seen in some time. She was gentle, and she was kind. Two things he hadn't seen from anypony in some time. He barely even knew her, but he knew he liked her. Not like like, of course. No, that's absurd. He just liked her. Like a friend... sort of. He didn't trust very easily, but this mare somehow had squirmed his way in there without even so much as a gift. Two days. Not even, two nights. Two nights, an hour or two per night. Only that, and already he found himself liking the mystery mare.

That's dangerous Sep. You and I both know it. You just start trusting ponies like you are, and you're going to get yourself in some serious trouble.

He stayed awake most of the night, only falling asleep in the wee hours of the morning. It didn't last long though, only a few hours. But either way, he did sleep a little, and had pleasant dreams. He didn't remember them however, and was a little melancholy because of it when he got up. It was a day off for him that day, so he tried to sleep a little more, rather successfully. He didn't come out of his room most of the day, in fact, only getting up a little after noon. Left with nothing better to do with his day, and after grabbing some toast, Septimus decided to take his friend's advice, and had a shower, taking extra time to wash his hair thoroughly. It wasn't often he had to clean his hair. That was actually something he did like about his hair. It didn't really hold oil or dirt very well. So when he washed it, it usually only needed one wash.

After a brisk wash, he left the bathroom in a pair of three quarter length denim pants, his hair disheveled and a toothbrush in his mouth as he finished toweling off his torso. This was a regular occurrence in his home. Septimus didn't much like shirts. He wore them, of course, but when he didn't have to, he didn't. Unfortunately, he hadn't been informed that his roommate would have his girlfriend over at the time. The stallion's mare was a stunningly pretty thing, with golden hair down to her waist and a sunset orange coat and the body of a model at her best. She froze, having just come out of her mate's room in her bra and panties, looking at Septimus. Septimus looked back at her for a moment, then shrugged and continued walking. She was cute, but he also knew she'd cheated on her boyfriend three times now at the very least, and wouldn't hesitate to try and seduce him as well, add him to the list.

He wasn't that stupid. And her curves weren't that provocative.

When he got back to his room, and he'd finished brushing his teeth, he put on a loose fitting shirt, replaced his pants with full length cargo pants, and left the house, nothing but his wallet in a button up pocket and his horrible, cheap phone in the other. Last and not least, his Music player and absurdly priced headphones along with his backpack. With his sneakers on, he walked the streets of Canterlot, ignoring the looks from the snobbier residents, and the strange looks he usually garnered for his coat colour. 

To be honest, he never did like crowds. And the looks he got from them even less so. So he had a habit of putting in his headphones and drowning out the world. This was one such case. With his one hundred bit headphones over his ears, and his music blaring, he stalked through the streets, hands in his pockets, backpack on his back. 

Canterlot was busy. For some reason, the theater was full, and more ponies were trying to stream in. The castle had its normal stream of visitors it seemed, probably to go pester Celestia with their petty problems again. Happened all the time, or so Sep had heard.

Just a bunch of ponies who think their time is worth more to the Princess than anyone else's. Arrogant pricks.

With a depressed sigh, he shrugged as he walked past the most common path to the castle, full of ponies as usual.

Still... they've got more right to be there than me.

He didn't have a destination as such in mind, but he wasn't surprised when he found himself upon the Promenade once more, headphones on and staring out at the horizon, leaning on the railing with both hands. The sun was warm, but bright. Very bright. It was late afternoon now, approaching evening. It was a nice time, but a sullen one as well. The light was slowly being extinguished by the horizon as the mighty sun perished behind the cover of the night, as it did each day.

"It's a beautiful sight, isn't it?"

The voice was sudden and unmistakable, and Septimus, shocked, spun around, and instantly fell to one knee. Or tried to, ending up hitting his snout on the pavement instead with a pained yelp.

"P-P-Princess Celestia!"

The princess giggled softly, holding a hand over her mouth politely. Celestia was tall, head and shoulders taller than Septimus at least, very well endowed in the chest area, and had long, flowing hair in multi colours, a lot like a rainbow, but with softer colours. Her white coat almost shone in the faint daylight. She was wrapped in a purple robe tied around her midsection with a golden sash. She was stunning.

"It's alright," Celestia said with a giggle, "You don't need to bow. I won't tell anybody if you don't."

Septimus tentatively lifted his head, rubbing his nose.

"I... Um... okay?" he said cautiously, looking around a bit fearfully. Celestia giggled again softly.

"It's alright. What's your name?"

"S-septimus, your Majesty..." he stammered. He never thought he'd meet one of the princesses, but now that he had... She had such a powerful aura, it was stifling. Around her neck was a golden choker set with a gemstone he missed previously. Her crown, it seems, was nowhere to be seen.

"Septimus," She said, rolling the name around in her mouth before smiling. gently and walking past him, to stand at the railings, as he was before, to look out at the sunset.

"Septimus. Seventh born. Do you have siblings Septimus?"

Septimus hesitated before standing up slowly. She wasn't nearly as scary as he'd thought she'd be. In fact, she reminded him of what a mother should be like. He picked up his headphones from the ground as he stood up.

"I... no, No I don't," He answered hesitantly, "But if it helps, my dad's name is Sextus?"

"Sixth born," She said with a thoughtful frown. The way her nose scrunched up a little was almost adorable, but somehow made her look ever more regal, beautiful. He found himself blushing as he stood beside her cautiously, "Ah, I see. The next step up for each son," She continued with a smile, "Clever. If not recent. Only Seven generations?"

"So far, yeah, I guess," He said nervously. He could still feel the suffocating presence of the sun Princess, and now he understood why so many thought of her as a Goddess, even ignoring the idea of her apparent immortality, "I mean, Dad reckons our family goes back a fair ways, but I think the whole name thing is recent."

"Most likely," Celestia said, before looking down at him beside her, her purple eyes twinkling slightly, "What are you doing out here so late young one?"

"Looking," He said carefully, "Waiting."

"Waiting?" She asked, "What are you waiting for then?" She continued, "Waiting for somebody? Perhaps your other half?"

"O-other half?" he said with a flush before shaking his head, "No, I... I don't have... No, just waiting."

Celestia raised a brow in reply.

"Is that so?" She asked, sounding a little amused, "Then why wait here?"

"I just..." He stammered before sighing sadly, "Yeah, alright. I like this place, okay?"

The little smile Celestia had vanished and she started to look a little more concerned.

"It's got a great view," He continued, "The sunset is spectacular here, and when the moon comes out," He smiled a melancholy smile, hanging his headphones over his neck so they were out of the way, "The moonlight spills over this place like a cool, calm wave of beauty. I don't sleep much, so this place is nice to get away from home."

"You prefer to be out here than at home?" She asked, sounding a little surprised. Septimus felt a muscle under his eye twitch as she asked "why?"

"That's personal," He shot back, "And not something I'm prepared to share with someone I just met."

Celestia's brows both raised as she looked at him in quiet surprise. Normally, a pony wouldn't dream of talking to her like that. No, they'd be too terrified of potential repercussions to even begin to talk to her like that. Nobody except...

"You remind me of my sister when she's annoyed," She said, "She's very personal about her problems as well."

Septimus frowned, suddenly remembering who he was talking to and his face paled and he stayed silent, swallowing hard as nerves hit his spine and his heart as his heart rate increased.

"It's been a long time since a pony spoke to me that way that wasn't my sister, Septimus. It's rather refreshing, actually."

Septimus breathed out a sigh of relief, but froze again when he felt her breath on his ear.

"But don't speak like that in front of anyone. They just might arrest you."

Septimus gulped and nodded stiffly.

"Got it," He replied nervously. Celestia smiled.

"Good. Now, I really must depart, before Gild sends out a search party to find me. Do be careful yes? And I hope whatever you're waiting for comes soon."

"Thanks.. your Majesty," He said quietly, breathing another sigh of relief as she finally left. Not that he didn't respect her, but she was stifling to be around, and that he didn't like. She was too overbearing. A lot like the sun's heat, but minus the sweat. Not that he didn't think that, given enough time...

Ugh, nevermind.

He discarded the thought with another sigh, replacing his headphones over his ears. Pony headphones are interesting, going around the back of the head and onto the ears. A loud, blasting song hit his ears and he rolled his eyes, sneaking down to change the song, changing it to Monster, a new song brought out by some group of dragons.  A good song. He even considered once or twice actually finding out the name of the band, but always procrastinated and ended up not finding out. 

It was nightfall, and he was still listening to music, but now he was seated upon the railing, one foot on the railing with his knee up supporting an arm he let hang over the abyss that made up the gap between the railing and the ground far below. For once, his shirt was on, a black shirt with some sort of band logo on it, faded to the point of almost complete non recognition. But it was a comfortable shirt, and he wasn't worried about the lack of logo. He wasn't worried about not being able to hear anything but his music either.

Until they were taken away from him.

He yelped as the 'phones were pulled from his ears with a girly giggle.

"Hey! Whatcha listening to?"

He spun around, almost falling from the railing as he lunged after his headphones. The mare squealed as he hit her and they both fell back to hit the concrete, his arm coming around to protect her head even as his other hand grabbed for his headphones. He grunted as he hit the ground arm first, feeling something wrench in his wrist, and then as the mare's head hit his arm hard, his eyes snapped shut and he yelped in pain, but didn't retract his arm.

The mare breathing under him, Septimus groaned as his arm throbbed with pain, his hand having definitely grabbed his headphones, but resting on something soft. He opened his eyes after some of the pain passed, panting, and frowned. On the ground under him was his roommate's girlfriend.

"Sun?" he asked painfully, "The hell are you doing here?"

"Well, I was going for a walk," She pouted, looking down at his hand resting, after clutching the headphones tightly, on her chest, "But then you, like, totally freaked out when I was playing around."

He looked at her incredulously and groaned, helping her up and brushing himself off, grimacing as his arm reminded him very loudly that it still hurt.

"You shouldn't take a stallion's headphones away from him when he's not aware," He grumbled to her irritably, "These things cost me a lot of bits, I'd rather not think someone was trying to steal them."

He sat back up on the railing, scowling at her this time. She humphed.

"Well, sorr-ry!" She said, annoyed, "I totally thought you'd be cool with it! Like, we totally stay in the same house!"

"You visit three times a week," He pointed out bluntly. She shrugged.

"Whatever, that's like, half the week right?," She replied obnoxiously, "But, that doesn't matter. I was looking for you."

A wave of suspicion fell over him like a thick blanket and he narrowed his eyes, defenses going up.

"Why are you looking for me?" He asked guardedly. She giggled and ran a hand through her hair, fixing her clothes which, now that he noticed, were rather... provocative. Her top was low cut, and ended at her midriff, and she was wearing short short denim shorts. He was willing to bet everything he owned that, had she turned around, he'd have seen at least ninety percent of her rear, and thigh high socks and little dainty slip on shoes. He had no doubts what she'd set out to do, but wasn't sure if he was actually her target.

"Like, You're really cute," She said without shame, "Waaaay cuter than Glimpse," Glimpse was her boyfriend, and this was not looking like it was going anywhere good fast, "And I totally thought we should, you know~"

She walked forward whilst she spoke, ending up just in front of him, and she lifted one arm up to his chest and stroked his sternum with a seductive smile on her face.

"Hook up~"

Septimus looked down blankly at the hand on his chest. She was pretty cute, but seriously? She had a boyfriend, and she was trying to hook up with him? He lived with the guy she was meant to be dating, and she wanted to get in Sep's pants of all places? He sighed and rolled his eyes to himself, before gently removing her hand from his chest and looking at her.

"Go home, Sun," He said bluntly, "Put a pair of pants on, and go to bed. Maybe tomorrow you'll be in the right mind to actually remember to wear clothing outside of the house rather than trying to pass as a desperate mare looking for a quick lay."

He probably shouldn't have been so short with her, and he did feel a little bad for saying it, but he wasn't about to take it back. He refused to feel regret concerning his opinions or words. He'd always been told that to regret what you say is to regret who you are. So he didn't regret saying it, but he did feel a little bad. It took her a moment to process his words, and when she finally did, she scowled and snatched her hand away from him.

"You... You..." She spluttered before huffing and slapping him.

Hard.

He hadn't expected the slap and he lost his balance and, for a terrifying moment, he thought he was going to fall. Luckily he didn't, just managing to catch himself as he heard her walking away. But as he went to right himself, he turned to face her to see her back, and a flying shoe. One of his shoes?

It smacked him in the face before he had a chance to actually recognize it and this one unbalanced him as well. Unfortunately, this time, he didn't manage to right himself in time, and he fell, his arms grabbing for the railing. Things went in slow motion as he watched in horror as the railings fell away from his fingers. He could almost hear the universe laughing as air slipped past his fingers and he watched through the slices of white hair that flew over his eyes as he fell.

So this is how I die...

The thought floated idly through his mind as he felt the air flow past his hair and through his fingers. It was a surprising pleasant feeling. There was no way, without preparation, he was going to survive this fall, even with his experience in free running. He knew this, but for some reason, he didn't care. The only thing he could think of that made him sad, made his chest hurt, was the thought that he'd never hear the voice, nor feel the caress of his nightly visitor.

I'm sorry Lulu... I won't be meeting you tonight.

He couldn't feel the wind anymore. He could feel the adrenaline fading from his system. The world around him had darkened. He seemed to be reliving the fall in reverse.

They say that your life flashes before your eyes when you're going to die... came the thought, Perhaps this is what they're talking about...

He hit the railing, and floated over it, and then...

Hold up... what's going on?

He dropped to the floor, and a pair of deep blue wings consumed him, a pair of arms swept around his neck, and a sweet, sweet scent filled his muzzle.

I don't..?'

"Oh Goddess, Septimus, are you okay?"

"Lulu?" He said softly, letting his head fall, and his vision was filled with a light blue. It was soft and smelled nice.

"Yes, yes, it's me," She said quickly with a relieved sigh, "You had me scared there, I didn't know if I caught you on time."

"R'you an angel?" he mumbled into her hair groggily. He heard her giggle and he was clutched tighter.

"Well, thank you~" She replied.

"So..." He said quietly, "I'm not dead?"

"Shhh... no, you're not dead, but you might be in shock," Lulu said back softly, "So you might not be thinking straight right now."

"Oh..." He said quietly, "Just as well," he continued, bemused, "For a moment there, I thought you were using magic... I guess that's just my head huh?"

Lulu froze and her hands left his neck and she scratched her head nervously.

"Um..." She said with a nervous laugh, "Yeah... about that..."

"What?" Septimus asked, "What is it?"

"I'm... Kinda the Princess of the Night," She said nervously. Septimus froze, and looked at her slowly. With another nervous smile, she clicked her fingers and they lit up momentarily with a swirl of deep blue light.

"Um... so...?" She asked slowly.

Septimus looked at her, dumbfounded, his vision darkened and he lost consciousness.
> Chapter 4
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

He had a headache. That was obvious to him at least. It originated from the back of his head. And his nose. Or something. It hurts. Septimus groaned and put a hand to his head. His bed was soft, and it was nice to have his head against his pillows, the sheets over his shirtless torso and...

Wait, shirtless?

His eyes opened and he frowned, holding his head painfully. The room was dark, but he was fairly certain he didn't have a fourpost bed. Or silk sheets. And he certainly didn't sleep without a shirt on. Or his pants. He was wearing underwear, thankfully, but his shirt was gone, and his cargo pants were gone. So was his headphones. This sent up warning flags in his head. Well, aside from his missing shirt. Those headphones were costly, and he really didn't want to lose them.

He looked around the room slowly, his concern growing quite quickly. He didn't have a room with blue drapes, nor a bed with curtains, or a bed covered in pillows and a Celestia plushy. There was a vanity on the right hand side of the room, with several different brushes on it, several cast in silver. directly on his left, after the expanse of pure bed, was a small table with a lamp and a few other small things on it. There was a big chest of drawers next to the vanity, and a big cupboard, probably filled with various dresses and things, jackets and stuff. 

"What the hell..?" He said quietly, trying to figure out how the hell he got where he was, where the hell he was in the first place, and where the hell his clothing had gone. It was dark, but that may have been because of the heavy drapes over the windows, and that the chandelier above his the bed that he could only just see through the wispy curtains wasn't lit. It was only then that he noticed, on the far right on the room was a big flatscreen television on a cabinet. At least 32 inch, way more expensive than anything he could afford. Wrapping a sheet around himself slowly, the confused stallion left the bed, the massive sheet trailing along behind him. His hair was in complete disarray. Bed hair, as one would say. The off white hair was disheveled and in desperate need of a brush. He walked slowly over to the cabinet in question and examined the TV curiously.

"Damn..." He said softly to himself, "What I wouldn't give..."

He ran his hand gently along the top edge of the television. It was larger than he though. Much bigger than Thirty-two, as his original estimate. And it was nice. Well preserved. It looked fresh out of the box. Septimus hadn't owned a television before, and at a casual examination, he hadn't owned a console since he was a boy, unlike the pony of whom this room belonged to. A next gen console rested just under the television, probably from sony, given the design. Simple, two prongs, triggers on the back. Sort of. More like buttons to be entirely honest. He wasn't sure if he liked them. They looked flimsy, useless even. Or, they did from casual observation. He wasn't exactly taking especially good time to observe them.

"D'you like it?"

The familiar voice made him jerk and spin around, almost knocking the tv off the cabinet as he did so. Behind him, in the doorway, stood Princess Luna, the mare he'd known as Lulu until recently. She was wearing a simple blue dress, cut up the side so she could walk. She was slim, as he thought she would be, and had a modest smile on her face.

"Sister bought it for me, two Hearth's Warmings ago. 'till then, I only had a little one. It's hard to play the better games on a small screen though."

Septimus dropped to one knee in a bow, panicking. Luna groaned and rolled her eyes.

"Oh come on. You spoke to me normal and everything when I was talking on the promenade, why not now?"

"Th-that was before I knew..." He stammered, his face in the floor, "You're the princess! I have to..."

"Get up," She grumbled, "I was trying to befriend someone who wouldn't bow to me in the first place, and now you go and do it anyway."

He stood up quickly and jerkily. So this was Luna's room. That certainly explained a lot. Except for the plushy of Princess Celestia. That one he had a little trouble with.

"S-sorry Princess..." He mumbled. She groaned again and stumped over to her bed, sitting down on it, clearly annoyed.

"And don't call me that either!" She replied in exasperation, "Goddess, I need a vacation."

Septimus paused, assessing the situation and, deeming it necessary to ask first, he hesitantly began.

"Um... Princess?"

"Don't call me that!" She scolded and he flinched.

"Luna?"

She raised her head and looked at him irritably. He sighed softly.

"Lulu?"

"Yes Septimus?" She said crossly. He flinched again and fingered the sheet he was holding around himself.

"Um..." He began hesitantly again, "Where in Samhain are my clothes?"

She blushed brightly and sat up, turning away from him almost shyly.

"Oh... they got a little dirty when I accidentally dropped you."

"You did what!?" He asked in utter disbelief, looking at her with wide eyes. She coughed nervously.

"I... accidentally dropped you," She said again sheepishly, "You sort of black out and your head kinda hit my chest and... well.."

"You freaked out didn't you?" He asked bluntly, his lids dropping down over his eyes halfway. She flushed scarlet. It was kind of cute.

"W-well yes!" She replied hotly, "What lady wouldn't? When some random pony's head falls into one's bosom, of course a lady would panic a little!"

"I was unconscious, it's not like it was intentional or that I even knew!" he shouted back, bewildered. She stood up and stamped her foot angrily.

"Unconscious or no, it's not appropriate for one's head to land in the bosom of a lady!" She nearly shouted back. Septimus felt a rush of heated blood to his head.

"It's not like there's much there to begin with!" He shot back angrily. Her fists clenched and she seethed as she yelled back.

"At least I'm not some failed musician who can't get his own workmates to respect him!"

Septimus stepped towards the angered monarch, sheet forgotten in the heat of the moment as it fell to the floor.

"At least I haven't let my negativity get the better of me!" He snapped back, "And tried to turn the whole of Equestria into a black hole!"

She too took a step forward as the two argued.

"I live in a castle, whilst you live in a dump with your deadbeat roommates!" She screeched back, "Who can't even find girlfriends who are faithful!"

"At least I have roommates!"

"I run a damn country!"

"At least I have fr-"

And he stopped. He didn't actually have friends, now that he thought on it, and it wasn't a nice feeling. His anger drained out of him and he looked away, automatically slouching to seem less obvious. Luna raised an eyebrow, obviously still annoyed.

"Well!?" She demanded, "What was that? You were going to say I have no friends, weren't you!?"

Septimus didn't answer, just turned away and picked up the sheet from the floor, wrapping it around him again, not even neutral enough to speak or blush as his mood plummeted.

"Well!?" She continued, still obviously angry, "Say it! Go on! Say it!"

"It doesn't matter..." He said darkly, "You've got more friends than me..."

That stopped her dead. His tone seemed to belong more to a stallion on death's row than one in her room, in his underwear no less. She frowned, concerned.

"Well," She said confused, "I doubt that... What d'you mean? You were so angry before."

"It doesn't matter okay?" he replied in that same, defeated tone, "I'll just... I'll get my clothing and go."

Her eyes fell open and jaw almost dropped.

"What!?" She asked, shocked, "What are you saying, you're not going to stay?"

"Why bother?" he asked spitefully, "I'm clearly not welcome in your house, and I'm already certain you sister doesn't like me."

"Who, Tia?" She asked, now confused, "How could she not like you?"

"It doesn't matter!" he said, more forcefully now. The only thing Sep could think of was leaving. Fast, "I'll take my clothing and leave.

He went to walk out. He did really try. The sheet clutched around him, he stalked in the direction of the doorway. Luna's disbelieving face followed him the whole time, until finally she spurred herself into action, lunging after and grabbing her sheet.

"Wait!"

In this instant, way too many coincidences happened to be strictly possible. Or rather, it was incredibly improbable that so many would happen. Firstly, in her almost drunken lunge for him, Luna stepped upon the long, trailing tail of the sheet turned robe, stopping Septimus with a jerk, pulling him backwards. This of course led to him hitting her outstretched hand as his hands flailed out instinctively for something to grab onto. Luna's hand found his shoulder as he was pulled back and the impact spun him around as they fell. Luna landed hard on her back, her breath bursting out of her chest in a gasp. Septimus, on the other hand, fell atop her, his hands fell either side of her neck, holding himself up above her. The sheet fell over the pair of them, blanketing them both in a light shade.

Luna breathed heavily, trying to get her breath back, her chest heaving. Septimus above her, looking at her with wide eyes. One of the shoulder straps of her dress had slipped down her arm, leaving her shoulder and the curve of her neck exposed. It was a little distracting to say the least. 

"Well," Luna said finally, flushing at their predicament and awkwardly looking away from the now fiercely blushing Septimus, "This isn't exactly what I had planned..."

Septimus couldn't help but stare. Luna may not have been as well endowed as her sun blessed sister, but she was just as beautiful, if not more. Even from the little he could see. The curve as her shoulder formed into her neck alone captured his entire attention. It was divine on its own. Her hair, light blue, fanned under her head and neck, made her look even better. She was like an angel, and he had an insane urge to simply lean down and... 

He didn't know. What does one do in this situation?

"I... uh..." He said awkwardly, "Um..."

Luna looked at him, still blushing a little, then giggled at his awkwardness. It was kind of cute really. She laid both hands gently on his bare chest and pushed him a little.

"You um... You want to play a game of something?" She asked with another little giggle, "This position might give ponies the wrong idea. Especially if my sister decides to make an impromptu visit."

Septimus' blush reached titanic proportions and, after a brief pause, he scurried off of Luna in a flurry of movement, leaving her wide eyed in surprise.

"I um... I mean I would... I mean... yeah, sure," he said awkwardly, drawing the sheets back around his shirtless torso. Luna sat up slowly, the shoulder strap of her dress slipping down further before she finally noticed and quickly pulled it back up, but not before revealing some of her collar bone.

"Oh um... good. I uh... I have a bit of a selection if you'd care...?"

"C-certainly..." he replied with a gulp. This was going to be interesting.

Three hours and several long games later, Luna and Septimus rested upon the carpeted floor, Luna resting her head upon Septimus' chest, despite Septimus' gentle and polite objections.

"Mhmm~" She giggled softly, curling the fingers of one palm to run over his shoulder, "We'll have to do this again."

"I... perhaps?" Septimus said a little nervously, "It... might be a little difficult to get out of work..."

"Oh, don't you worry about that~" She giggled, "If I feel like playing a game with you, you'll know it~"
> Chapter 5
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Septimus took great pleasure at flipping off his roommate's teary girlfriend that night before going to bed. Apparently, her less than loyal habits had come to light. About time, was all Septimus could think, before going to bed. For some reason, he was in a light hearted mood. He slept well, and his dreams were pleasant. Again, however, he couldn't remember them as he woke up. He was a little bothered as he got up to have breakfast, shirt forgotten again. His roommates were already up and at the table, and one of them looked at him sourly.

"Dude, do you even own a shirt?"

Septimus chuckled and shrugged.

"Course I do."

"Are you capable of wearing it before nine in the morning?" He asked again, shoveling a mouthful of cereal into his mouth. Septimus smirked smugly.

"What, jealous?" He teased, "You should stick to regular colours Biz, green doesn't suit you."

With that, he left, ignoring the looks he got on the street as he stepped out half naked. Today, he was wearing a set of blue denim jeans and his converse shoes, ready to meet the day...

Mostly. His lack of torso coverings got him a lot of looks. Some of them appraising, others not so much. Some of the looks he got from the 'nobles' of the city were positively venomous. But that's okay, their daughters seemed a bit more interested. One gray mare with two tone black and green hair and bright green eyes winked at him and waved, magical sparkles around her fingertips betraying her magical nature. He smiled and waved back. Her mother didn't seem to be terribly impressed, and glared at Septimus, who shrugged and smirked at her. The unicorn mare giggled behind a hand and shrugged back to him. Septimus winked again before turning away and walking into a clothes store, where he bought himself a new shirt. Why? Because he could, and he was feeling good about today.

What other reason does one need?

With that out of the way, he waltzed down the streets of Canterlot, purchasing a sweet corn pie at a small bakery to consume for breakfast before wandering over to his workplace. He didn't usually bother to arrive early. Most times, his boss didn't even arrive till fifteen minutes after he did. But today, he was feeling pretty good, so he wandered over anyway. Taking the spare key out of his wallet, he let himself in. One perk of being a sound technician, a key to where he worked. As he made his way in, he waved to the harried looking bartender. She was always in early, mostly stocktaking, financing and deciding the specials. She made a quick, distracted wave back as she looked at her clipboard, her hair in a disarray. He heard the chef, or the cook really, swear loudly in the kitchen. He never did that when there were customers in the club.

Nah, he'd get fired if he did.

Normally, Septimus'd wait until the musician for that quarter had their equipment there to set up. But, considering that most of the musicians set up in a similar way, he decided to instead prep for pretty much instant connection. He took his time. He actually wasn't due in for another half hour anyway. And, by that mark, his boss would be in in about forty-five minutes. The set up didn't take long. It was ready in no time at all. Left with nothing else to do, he sat down in what was once a mess of wires (Since the previous tech obviously had no idea what in samhain he was doing) and leaned against the wall with a sigh. The downtime always made him a bit more depressed. His mind, for some reason, always rounded back to the poorer parts of his life.

"Music? You can't make money off of music Septimus! Why not law or science? You're a smart boy."

"What d'you mean you can't make money? Look at the symphonic wind ensemble, or the Canterlot Quartet, or DJPON-3. Sapphire Shores. You can make heaps of money in music mother!

"Them ponies just got lucky Sep. Trust your old man, music is a hella hard industry to get into."

"Dad, seriously? Stop trying to talk 'cool', it doesn't work. And so what, I'll work hard! You'll see, by the time I'm thirty, I'll be rolling in money, one way or another."

"Only if you plan on robbing a bank, if you're going to study music at university, let alone that contemporary electronic stuff."

"Ugh, it's Dubstep mother, and thanks for the vote of confidence. It's not just majoring in techno you know. Guitars and modern day instruments are in the syllabus too!"

"Oh good, you can busk on a street corner then boy. Use your damned head, you're better off studying literature."

"The author of Daring Do made a lot of money too."

"Confound it boy! If you're that desperate to throw your life away fine! But don't come crying back to me when you've got nowhere left to go and no possessions or friends left!"

What his father had said that day after school had been said in haste and frustrated anger, and Septimus had long since forgiven him for it. That said, he'd never forgotten it. It replayed in his head all the time. It went along with the times his parents hadn't supported his decisions in life. he knew they were trying to help him, but it didn't make things any easier. He felt his good mood dwindling as his rebellious mind replayed his worst memories over and over again in his mind before...

"Septimus!"

He jolted out of his reverie and looked up. His boss stood over him. A gangly stallion with a too small face and a ridiculous pension for wearing clothes two sizes too large and a belt two spots too tight around his waist.

"Yes sir?" Septimus asked innocently.

"Don't you 'yes sir' me!  What is this!? Why have you started setting up! The entertainment's not even here yet!"

Septimus shrugged and looked at his layout.

"Well, most of the musicians we hire work on a standard base setup," He explained, "Speakers on either side, equipment in the middle, or band in some cases. If I set the cables out like this before the show starts, they can plug their equipment up in a jiffy, which makes for faster setups and thus more time to play, which means more music to lure in customers."

His boss glared at him with smoldering eyes.

"And I suppose you arrived early to do this!?" He snapped. Septimus nodded.

"Well, yeah. Made it easier."

"I hope you're not expecting to be paid extra for this, because there's no way in Celestia, Luna, or Sparkle's name I'm paying you more for turning up early to do a five minute job! Hurry up and find my damn musicians!"

Septimus sighed as the angry stallion left. He was always looking for reason to yell, snap or snarl at him. With a grunt, he stood up and dusted himself, and his new shirt, off as he walked towards the doorway. It wasn't usually his job to find the late coming musicians. This time, apparently, it was. He opened the door, only to be bowled over by a gray mare. She yelped, and so did he, as he staggered back, catching her in his arms.

"Woah, careful there," He grunted. She took a moment before looking up and smiling. It was the gray mare from before, who had winked at him.

"Oh, heya there cutie~" She teased, "Nice to meet you again. I didn't get your name last I saw you."

"Nor I you," he replied, "But I guess you'll get it soon. You the musician?"

She smirked and nodded.

"Damn right, I'm here to rock the whole place down. Why?"

Septimus shrugged and offered her the stage with a sweep of his hand, "I'll be your tech. Till just after lunch anyhow. Till then-"

"SEPTIMUS!"

Septimus sighed and turned to face his red faced employer.

"Yes sir?"

"I need you to work late! Your replacement isn't coming in, she's sick!"

The angry looking stallion glared at Septimus challengingly.

"That's not going to be a problem, is it boy?"

Septimus sighed and shook his head, his previous good mood now rapidly depleting.

"No sir, it won't. No problem."

"Good! Now hurry up. Xion's got to be ready to play in fifteen minutes!"

Septimus nodded as his boss stalked away, angry as usual. He looked back to the mare that was now his charge.

"So..." He said with a rueful smile, "Xion?"

"Septimus?" She replied with a giggle. He nodded and she smiled.

"I'll bring my stuff in then. You wanna help?"

"Sure thing," came his reply, rolling his shoulders experimentally, "Going to have to, if we're going to get you up and running in fifteen minutes."

The next ten minutes were spent almost feverishly moving speakers and a full, if small, turntable into the place, then hooking them up properly, piecing all the cables and things together. They had to get ready, he had to keep moving. Fifteen wasn't a lot of time in and of itself, but having to piece an entire set together in that time? That was damn near suicide. If he hadn't set together all the wires before Xion had arrived, he never would have made it. If anything, it was the only thing that got him in on time. Even then, he'd only just made it before his boss came out and had a go at him for something or other that wasn't his fault.

As usual.

There wasn't much time to chat to Xion. No, he had to get everything ready, then he had to oversee everything to make sure it was working once the place opened. He still wasn't sure what to call this place. He wasn't sure if it was a bar, a club, or something else entirely. Hell, he couldn't even remember the owner's name. Not that that ever bothered him. He didn't like the stallion anyway. Never had.

The day passed relatively quickly. Xion's set ended, and she slipped Septimus her cell number, whispering for him to call her, and leaving a little kiss on his cheek. He helped her pack up her equipment and started setting up for the next one. This time, it was a band, who seemed insistent to bully Septimus, insisting he was messing up their setup, and cramping their style.

It was then that they arrived.

They walked into the establishment with all the authority and power that anyone would expect from two powerful looking stallions in blue metal armour with slim, eastern style swords at their hips.

They didn't wait to bother anyone else, striding through the place, heading straight for the distressed looking technician.

"Septimus?" one of them asked, a grizzled looking stallion with a scar down his left eye and cheek. Septimus looked up and gulped. The band members looked at him too.

"Yes?" Septimus asked nervously. The guard nodded.

"You have to come with us. Immediately."

"Hey now, hang on there!" The leader of the band, the vocalist, said irritably, "This kid's settin' up our bloody sound, so he can bloody well stay till he gets us up and running!"

The two guards turned their terrifying gaze upon the stallion. The older one spoke again.

"Boy," He said coldly, "Her Ladyship herself has called for this stallion by name. By her authority, I am authorised to capture and hold you for an indeterminate amount of time for failure to comply with the demands of her Majesty Princess Luna's guard."

He leaned down, one gauntleted hand resting on the hilt of his sheathed sword.

"Now if you don't shut your mouth right now, I'll arrest you, your band members, and your bloody representative, you got that?"

The stallion, who had turned pale by now, nodded quickly. The scarred guard nodded with a humph and gestured for Septimus to follow. Without much else left to do, Septimus left his prep area to follow the guard. They got maybe halfway through the place when, inevitably, Septimus' employer seemed to just appear out of nowhere.

"Septimus! What are you doing!? You've got work to do boy!"

The guards, whom he'd completely ignored, once more stepped in front of the stammering Septimus.

"He's with us, sir," The younger guard stated officially, "We would kindly request you remove yourself from our path."

By now, a small crowd had formed around the four stallions, and everything had gone silent. Sep's employer glared at the guard.

"On whose authority do you dare to remove my personnel before their shift is over?" He demanded, the pompous fool not even giving the guard the proper respect that went with his position. The young gaurd's jaw tensed and a hand fell to his sword's hilt.

"Sir," He said coldly, "Her Majesty Princess Luna has requested this stallion by name. That makes him perhaps the fourth or fifth most important pony in Equestria at this point in time. So were I you, sir," He leaned down, his pair of leathery wings slowly extending, the threatening looking spine on the top finger flexing with the muscles of the guard's arms and wings as he took a more aggressive stance, his hand now clutching the hilt of his weapon, "I would remove yourself from his path, before I am forced to remove you myself."

Septimus gulped and shrugged helplessly at his employer as the stallion paled and, very quickly, stammered out an apology and stumbled out of the way. Apparently, it was useful to keep a sword on your hip and a cold demeanor. The trio walked out, crowd watching. When they stepped into the light of the noonday sun (Roughly) The guards sighed and rolled their shoulders. The older one looked at the younger with a grin.

"Nicely done son. You're starting to get the hang of this."

"Thanks sir," the younger guard replied with a sheepish smile before the pair turned to the seriously confused Septimus.

"Woah, hold on," Sep said quickly, holding up his hands, then pointing with both back to the door of the building they'd just left, "What the heck was that then?"

The pair of guards looked at each other, shrugged, then back to Septimus.

"Good old fashioned hot air son," The elder said with a smile, "We got a chariot waiting for you in the alley over yonder. Can't leave it out in the open. Scares ponies it does. Come on, She wants you there ASAP."

"Luna?" He asked incredulously, "She really sent you?"

"Course," The scarred guard replied with a quizzical look, "Who'd you expect? Come on."

The pair of armored stallions set off, leaving Septimus to follow helplessly. But when they reached the alley...

"Woah guys... What the hell is that!?"

The chariot, as they'd called it, was more like a carriage, and hooked up to it?

"What's the matter kid? Never seen a giant spider before?"
> Chapter 6
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"No. No way. I am not going anywhere near that thing."

The dark carriage that Luna had sent after Septimus was quite nice, dark blue and edged in silver, with lovely curtains in the windows, no doubt a plush interior. But what really got him was the massive, eight legged spider that seemed to be sleeping, harnessed to the carriage. The two guards looked at the younger stallion in amusement.

"What? Don't like the carriage? It's the Princess' personal carriage."

"Be that as it may," Septimus said, watching the spider nervously, "There's no way I'm climbing in a carriage past a freaking spider bigger than my room!"

The pair of guards looked at the spider, then back to Septimus, and back to the Spider.

"What, you afraid of old bessy?" The younger one said with a fond smile back at the spider, "Don't be. She's a sweet girl. She doesn't even spin webs anymore. We have to fix her little lair manually these days."

"It's still a giant bloody spider!" Septimus replied, "And she's damn terrifying!"

"She's harmless," The older guard said with a shrug, "She doesn't have venom anymore, she doesn't make webs, she's harmless. Guard's honour. Come on kid, Luna's waiting."

Left without much of a choice, Septimus nervously inched his away around the spider. Her exoskeleton looked thick, like armour plating. As he walked around, the younger guard kept him company, and talked.

"They used to use giant spiders in times of war," He said, still looking at her, "See, they were meant to demoralise the enemy more than actually slay them. So I understand your fear, but she's harmless. She's actually quite cuddly to be honest."

"If it's all the same to you," Septimus said nervously, having finally reached the door, "I'd rather not test that theory right now."

"S'all good," He said, opening the door for the scared stallion, "Not many ponies understand anyway. Us Thestrals have used them as beasts of burden and valuable partners for years though. If domesticated, they're quite sweet."

"I'll take your word for it," Septimus said before closing the door, hypothetically locking the spider away and keeping him safe. As he thought, the carriage was plush and fit for a princess. Or a queen. Whichever. He sat almost reverently, savoring the plush feeling of cushioned seats on his back and rump.

"Oh wow..." He breathed quietly, "I could get used to this..."

The seat was comfier than his bed at home, though he supposed that wasn't terribly surprising. She was royalty after all, so Luna only got the best money could buy, and probably a lot that it couldn't. He felt the carriage begin to move, and quickly, feeling a bit self conscious, closed the curtains. It was darker now, but he felt a lot better. Anyone that looked at the carriage wouldn't see his face.

That said, the carriage itself wowed him on it's own. the seats had to be velvet. There was nothing else that could feel so amazing. He spent at least five minutes just feeling the velvety upholstery, even rubbing a cheek on it at one point with a guilty look around, even though he knew nobody could see him.

Then he found the little fridge.

"Oh my goddess..." He said quietly. The little fridge's doorway was under his seat, in the space between the seat and the floor, and was filled with stuff. Chocolate bars, gummy worms, snake shaped lollies, soft drinks. There was even a few energy drinks in there.

"What is this, her secret stash?" He murmured, trying to resist the urge to grab a can of cola to drink. He did manage to close the fridge though, and he did manage to resist taking anything, but it was hard. He almost fell asleep in the carriage, but when they did arrive at the castle, he was thankfully still awake, and able to walk on his own. The seats were just... so... comfy...

He was escorted through the castle to Luna's room, where he was ushered in. Luna was nowhere to be found, but he was told to wait and that she would join him soon. She did, and she seemed excited when she walked in. She was wearing another dress, this one sparkling black and much more reserved than her last, although she still looked absolutely stunning, and Septimus had to look away.

"Septimus! What took you so long?"

Septimus stammered for a moment before speaking nervously.

"W-well, we had a few interesting moments at work when your guys came to get me out so..."

"Oh," Luna replied, walking over to her vanity and taking off her tiara, "I trust nobody was hurt?"

"Only their pride."

"Good. it's always good to remind those in power they're not all powerful."

Septimus smirked.

"Does that mean you need that reminder sometimes Princess?"

Luna giggled and shook her head, turning to face him, her wings stretching out, making her look almost like a dark angel.

"Of course not, I'm the Princess~"

"One of," He corrected with a smug smile, "Not the."

"Fine, one of," She corrected herself with a roll of the eyes, "It's still me being more powerful than anyone else in Equestria, other than my sister and such."

"Except for the people," he snarked back playfully, "Your reign only lasts as long as they support you. You, your sister and the rest of your royal friends can't stand against the might of the entirety of equestria."

Luna glared at him, but he just smiled.

"Care to take that to the digital world there smartass?" She challenged. He grinned.

"Bring it on, Princess."

Two hours, sixteen minutes, fifteen colas and seven chocolate blocks later, and a momentary intervention by the guards when Luna started mauling Septimus after a map wide headshot using an LMG, Luna and Septimus threw their controllers down with a laugh.

"Alright, I give," Septimus said, holding his hands up in surrender, "You win! Name your prize princess, That's the deal."

Luna giggled and scratched her nose a little. Halfway through their first game, Luna had raised the stakes. Each win they got, they made each other do something small. Thus the reason Septimus had no shirt on, and Luna's hair was up in a ponytail. But the last game they played was the final challenge, and now Septimus was entirely at her mercy.

Oh right, and Luna was wearing his shirt. She'd changed after she made him take his shirt off, much to his chagrin.

"Hmmmm~" She teased with another giggle, "What to do with you..."

Septimus looked at her sideways with a familiar face.

Are you serious?

"Ooh, I know~" She said, running a hand through her hair, "Show me some parkour."

He frowned and looked at his shirtless predicament, and his converse.

"Well... I guess, but we'll have to leave the castle," He said slowly, "And I'll need my shirt back."

"No!" She said petulantly, "In the castle. That way, you don't have to wear a shirt, I don't have to give it back, and..."

She smirked, playing idly with his shirt.

"You can stay here afterwards for the night. How's that?"

Septimus' heart leaped to his throat and he stammered momentarily, then sighed and capitulated.

"Alright... I'll need to find a decent spot though. You can't do parkour on flat ground after all."

Ten minutes later, and now with a sheet wrapped around him so as not to disturb the servants too much, Septimus stopped Luna.

"Here, this'll do."

They were in the entrance hall. Luckily, there wasn't anybody visiting at that point in time, so it was clear except for a guard or two, neither of which would bother Septimus, so he surmised, since he was with Luna. He let the sheet drop to the floor, heedless as Luna picked it up with her magic and rested it over her shoulder, folded.

"Castle's kinda uniform, it's hard to find a decent place," He commented idly, looking around the great room, "Hard to find anywhere that would work."

"Oh no," Luna said sternly, "You're not getting out of this one Septimus, show me. Show me right now!"

He chuckled and held his hands up in surrender.

"Alright, alright. Just be warned it won't be the best I can do."

Luna shrugged and gestured for him to get going, to show her. He looked to the staircase. It was the only real place to start. He stretched his legs quickly, made sure his fingers were ready to grip, and stretched his arms, then ran at the stairs. Judging the distance quickly with his eyes, he leapt at the banister, landing on his feet on the banister, he twisted his torso and bent his knees, jumping from one banister to catch the other, swinging himself up and over onto the upper floor. He stopped and looked down at Luna, leaning on the banister with a smile.

"How's that Princess?" He asked teasingly. She rolled her eyes.

"I've seen my own guard do that," She said with a shrug, "Keep trying."

His smile dropped and he sighed. Of course, she wanted more than simplicity. In a castle. figures.

He looked around, taking stock of his surroundings. He had to find something to impress the princess, or she'd never let him live this down. With a wry smile, he planned his next trick. He turned to face the door at the top of the stairs and took a deep breath to steady himself, then ran full pelt. The guards on either side of the door tensed, but watched as he ran up the door, and on the third step, flipped off the door, spinning in mid air to face, as he landed, the opposite direction, and kept running. The guards relaxed, but watched as well as he leaped, grabbing the railing as he went and propelling himself over it, landing on the banister at the bottom of the steps. From there, without waiting, he fired out his legs again, taking to the air as he flipped onto the banister on the other side of steps, landing perfectly and jumping again, this time leading with his right foot as he flipped onto the floor, landing on his right foot and rolling into a one handed cartwheel and a handless backflip, and there he stopped, looking to Luna for confirmation. Luna looked delighted and clapped her hands.

"Again!" She said enthusiastically, "Show me more!"

He sighed and nodded.

"Aight... gimme a minute."

He looked around again. He was quickly running out of options. Being in a castle like this severely limited his possible actions. But, again, he had to impress her, or he'd be here all night, trying so...

With a stretch, he ran this time towards one of the side doors. He hit the door and went to run up it. He hit one step, two...

And the door opened.

With a cry of shock, Septimus lost all upwards momentum and his converse covered foot came down.

Right on the guard captain's face.

Septimus hit the floor as Luna gasped, eyes wide and covering her mouth with her hands. That was not something she'd expected to happen. There wasn't meant to be anyone walking the halls. Late afternoon? Wasn't anyone that had to go anywhere.

The guard captain had replaced the previous one after his marriage to Princess Mi Amore Cadenza. His name was Gild. Pegasus, mangled wing and a scar down one eye. He was known as cold, ruthless and wasn't known as very nice. Even his guards were afraid of him. And he wasn't alone. His two main lieutenants were with him, and they seemed as surprised as Luna or Septimus. Gild did not seem shaken at all. Instead, he put a hand to his now red face, then looked at his hand as though he was going to find something. Then he looked coldly at Septimus, lying on the floor on his back.

"Lestat," He said coldly, addressing the female guard beside him, "Why is there a shirtless civilian running through the halls?"

The lieutenant hesitated and, though she opened her mouth, she didn't get a word out before he spoke again.

"Better yet, why have you not yet arrested him for assault upon an officer of the law?"

Septimus' eyes went wide as Lestat started and looked at the stallion. Her hand went behind her back and he heard the jangle of cuffs and, on impulse, Septimus rolled back, over his head, stood up, turned and ran. He rushed right past Luna as Lestat and her fellow guard broke into a run, calling for him to stop, in the name of the law. He ran to the door he came in through, dodging the two guards there with a baseball slide. The hallway was deserted, which worked in his advantage. He heard one of the guards coming up on him and leapt up and onto the wall, using his forward momentum as well as his legs to leap from one wall to the other, then again, catching onto a candle sconce on the wall, leaping forward once more and rolling, reaching for the door as he burst through it. He heard a call from Lestat, something about arresting him again, and now he knew he had more guards after him. With a burst of breath wooshing out of his lungs, he pushed himself to go faster, his shoes slapping against the marble floor as he looked frantically for a way out of this predicament.

He was still in another hallway. These damn hallways would be the death of him. On a whim, he cut left into an adjoining room, dodging left and right through new hallways and rooms when he could, looking for a way out. Somehow, at some point, he managed to double back and was, once more, being chased through the hallways, until he came out back in the room he'd started and, ignoring Luna arguing with the grizzled looking guard captain to run past both of them, then skidding to a stop and running back to the stairwell as the two guards from the doors on the other side started running towards him as well. He bolted up the stairwell two at a time and, faced with nowhere else to go as the guards from the two side stairwells started running down the stairs as well, he burst through the big double doors that led directly into the throne room.

Where Celestia was still on her throne.

The throne room was massive. One the far wall was a set of stained glass windows at least ten feet tall. On either side of the big thrones, several feet from each. Big pillars held the stairs in regular intervals, made of marble, like the floor and steps. The guards on either side of the throne raised their weapons, two long halberds with nasty looking edges, from their rest positions. Another flash of fear leant the stallion adrenaline and he rushed forward, towards the throne. The three steps that lead up to it were crossed swiftly by the pair of halberd toting guards and Celestia stood, her eyes fiery. But before she could speak, Septimus had rolled under the pair of swipes the guards had swirled at him, sprung up the stairs and run around Celestia. The guard mob followed, bursting in and running after him, so he ran up one stained glass window. It was surprisingly sturdy, given it held his weight perfectly. He hit four steps and flipped backwards, much to the chagrin of the guards, and landed on the top of Celestia's throne, crouched,

"Septimus!" Celestia warned and exclaimed. But Sep didn't have the time to hear her. Instead, he leapt off the throne, the guards taking chase again, and landed on the banister for the left side stairwell, running up it. The mob followed and Luna burst into the room, Gild in tow, still arguing his case. Before Septimus could reach the top, the pair of guards from the top of those stairs had joined the chase and, instead of letting himself get caught, he jumped, flipping off the banister and once again in mid air to land in a roll.

Where he froze, surrounded in a golden aura.

"ENOUGH!"

The Royal Canterlot voice, seldom heard, spewed out of Celestia's mouth like a thunderclap, and Septimus swore he felt his eardrums burst. All the ponies in the room fell silent, even Luna, and looked to the sun monarch. Celestia looked angrily at Luna, who flinched under her elder sister's glare.

"What is the meaning of this!?" She demanded, "Luna? I want an explanation! Now!"

Luna shot a glare at Gild, who looked quite smug, and stepped forward, still wearing Septimus' shirt.

"It's my fault sister," She said weakly, "I had requested Septimus show me this... parkour... that he does outside of the castle. Just... inside."

"So why is he being chased by my guardsmen, who seem prepared to apprehend him then?" She snapped, eyes like fiery pits of rage, "Speak!"

Luna flinched, but her voice got a little stronger and she started yelling herself.

"Because your guard captain is so insecure that he ordered Septimus be arrested without question!"

"Your majesty, the boy assaulted me," Gild said coldly, "It's an offense punishable by a month in prison, or more."

"It was an accident!" Luna snapped at him defiantly, "There shouldn't have been anypony walking the halls! It's early evening!"

"Be that as it may, majesty," He replied, even colder than before, "He still assaulted an officer of the law, and thus, is a criminal."

He glared at Septimus now. Septimus, unable to move his facial muscles, could only look back.

"And criminals pay the price for their crimes."

Celestia seemed to ponder this for a while. All the guards that had been chasing Septimus were still frozen at the top of the stairs. Eventually, she looked at Luna and Gild with firm resolve.

"GIld," She said, "You are dismissed."

He started and swept a hand to Septimus' prone form, "But Majesty, he's-"

"Dismissed!" She snapped, fixing him with a glare so hot it could melt stone. Stiffly, he nodded.

"As you wish," He replied. He gestured to his guards, and left, those not previously in the throne room leaving with him. Celestia looked at the pair that were returning to their posts in this room.

"You too,  dismissed as well," She said coldly. The pair flinched and bowed, leaving the room quickly. Soon the only ponies left in the room were Septimus, Celestia and Luna. Celestia, still holding Septimus in place with one gold covered hand, sighed.

"Luna," She said tiredly, "If you cannot keep your guest out of trouble, I will have him banned from returning the the castle grounds, is that clear?"

"But sister!" Luna exclaimed, distressed, "That's not fair! Gild was-"

"Gild was right," She interrupted coldly, "The assault on one of our officers, yours or mine, results in minimum one month incarceration in a prison cell once proven guilty."

She looked down at the frozen Septimus with what was approaching disdain.

"You are good for my sister," She said coolly, "But do not mistake my allowances for something to take advantage of. My sister will be protected, from bad influences and bad ponies. Do not prove yourself to be either, or I will make your worst nightmares seem like a teddy-bear's picnic. Do you understand me?"

The magic dissipated and he fell in a heap, all forward momentum gone and he groaned an affirmative. Luna pouted and looked away. Celestia sighed and shook her head.

"And Luna... Why are you wearing his shirt?"

Luna simply blushed and turned away, leaving the throne room with Septimus rubbing his neck as he followed her. As the massive doors slammed shut, Celestia smiled.
> Chapter 7
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Months passed, and although the initial slight problem with parkour getting him on the bad side of the guard captain did seem to affect his visitation privileges initially, Septimus found himself spending more and more time in Luna's company. After his initial sleep over, where he slept on the floor in a remarkably comfortable sleeping bag right next to her bed (And woken up when she thwacked his head with a pillow), she seemed to want the more and more. Celestia seemed a bit miffed at him still, but she hadn't done anything other than the warning from before, so he assumed he wasn't really in her bad books so to speak. Although Gild seemed to hate him with a passion, which gave him all the more reason to avoid him.

Over time, more interesting games came out, some boardgames that normally Septimus wouldn't play came out. But with Luna, if it was multiplayer, he'd played them all. HALO 4, COC Night ops. She'd even bought him his own computer so she could play Team Fortress 2 with him, albeit mainly so she could pwn him and show off her rather impressive collection of hats. And boy did she have a collection. She must have shamed even the developer of the game for her hat collection. She even had a hat that made her look like she had an alien on her head. It was kinda cool. Alien Swarm, DOTA, XCOM, Warhammer 40K, he'd played most of them with her. Heck, even old games weren't 'too old' for Luna. But then, considering how old she was, he wasn't really surprised. Since her return almost a year ago, she'd been, according to her, 'neck deep in new stuff'. And she seemed delighted to try them out, and seemed to adore anything video game related. Septimus was only too glad to oblige her little competitions, but he was starting to get a little concerned that his newly discovered competitive streak would get him in serious trouble. He lost nine games out of ten, and nothing he'd ever made Luna do seemed to ruffle her. But then, he'd never asked her to remove her top, only strange and funny actions, whilst she had no qualms about making him take off his shirt and occasionally his pants, though she always gave him a sheet or something similar to drape over his shoulders if she went that far, which was rare.

The sleepovers were much more common as well. And though he did sleep separately to Luna, he often woke up with her wrapped around him, or snuggled up to him, somehow having wormed her way into the sleeping bag she kept for him whilst he slept. He had a feeling that she probably used magic to keep him asleep, but for once, he wasn't really worried about it. She was doing it so she didn't wake him up, and she'd told him before that she liked the company, and the feeling that someone was there to hold her, to watch out for her. Which was quite cute, all things considered.

Well, if not a tiny bit creepy.

And then, suddenly, all communications between Septimus and Luna ceased. Septimus couldn't get in to see her either. Not only would the guard not let her, but he couldn't even send a message to Celestia, because she wasn't there, and they wouldn't tell him where she'd gone.

For a week, at first, there was no proclamations and no messages. Then another week. Then a third. A month. Two months. Septimus felt his good mood from the past month or two waning dramatically over time. His flatmates noticed it too, but as usual, they weren't terribly concerned. His boss had noticed too, and hadn't passed up on the opportunity to really grind on Septimus whenever he was working, whether he was on shift, on his break or otherwise.  He didn't care, it seemed, for the mental health of his employee. On the contrary, he seemed hell bent on making the young stallion as miserable as possible, and he was pretty good at it.

"SEPTIMUS!"

Septimus sighed softly and looked over at his boss, glaring at him from behind him.

"Yes sir?" He said weakly. 

"You did a shithouse job on the sound setup! Get your lazy ass up there and FIX IT! YESTERDAY!"

Sep nodded and stood up from his chair. It had sounded fine to him, up until he'd fallen asleep. So now he had to go back to his little booth, hidden away from most of the ponies in the club, and fiddle with the technical aspects of his job. Unfortunately, he found the problem immediately. Several of the plugs leading to his equipment had been unplugged, leaving several critical systems left without their previous level of refinement.

In other words, he'd been sabotaged.

With a frustrated sigh, he pushed his frustration and anger away into the deep crevices of his mind, as he always did. He'd done it for years, but he'd never been pushed as far as he had been as of late. Whilst he was visiting Luna, he simply let everything roll off him, but now he couldn't seem to do that at all. After running his hand down his face, and another through his dishevelled hair, he fixed the sabotaged station quickly, but decided against leaving the booth, making sure everything would stay the same. Or, that was the theory. 

Unfortunately, the booth was sound proof. The one way glass that let the technician see the band playing, or the artist playing, was tinted to fit the dark colour of the walls. He still had six hours left on his shift, and he still hadn't had a break, and he didn't think he was going to get one. He only lasted about another fifteen minutes afterwards before he'd fallen asleep again. He hadn't been sleeping well recently, plagued by nightmares and old memories he thought he'd buried after his time with Luna. And without her influence to help him along, it was getting the better of him. But, as usual, he forced it all down. But he could feel it in the back of his mind, tickling his emotions and whispering into his brain.

He never acknowledged it.

His brief sleep was plagued with horrible nightmares, dark dreams he couldn't seem to wake up from. Every time he tried to wake himself up, he found himself dragged deeper into the darkness. He couldn't escape it.

Not on his own.

"SEPTIMUS!"

With a startled oath, Septimus fell out of his chair, hitting his head on the floor. Again, his less than stellar employer was glaring at him. Septimus looked up at the angry stallion, trying not to glare.

"Yes sir?"

"Sleeping on the job!?" He demanded loudly, "And messing up the sound AGAIN!? You're lucky I don't fire you Septimus!"

"Messing up...? What?"

The lanky stallion pointed at the control console, of which several of the switches were not as Septimus remembered them, and more of the cords were loose or disconnected. Septimus felt himself starting to get angry. It wasn't a feeling he was used to. Anger and rage were foreign to him for the most part. He'd been angry before, but this was different....

"You're useless Septimus! you can't even do your job right!"

With a grunt, Septimus stood up slowly, rubbing the back of his head, hoping his rapidly developing headache wouldn't be too horrible.

"It wasn't like that before," He grumbled half heartedly.

"What was that!?" The sadistic owner demanded, "You talking  back to me boy!?"

"What? No," Septimus replied, a little bit of snarl curling through his words. His boss didn't seem to hear it though, or if he did he didn't show it.

"Can't do your job right," His boss snarled, "Can't make it in the music industry, can't get decent flatmates, can't make any friends..."

Septimus felt his eye twitch and he shook his head, "Cut it out... please..."

"And now," The sadistic bastard continued, "Now your precious little Princess has abandoned you too. Can't you do anything r-"

The stallion, whose name Septimus no longer cared about, went silent as Septimus suddenly found himself in front of his aggressor, holding his shirt in his hands as he lifted him up off his feet.

"Shut up!" He growled menacingly, "You shut your fucking mouth you bastard!"

"Septimu-"

"SHUTUP!" He yelled, cutting the fool off, "You've pushed me around since I got here. Yelled at me, belittled me, used me, and generally treated me like I was worthless!"

The rage filled him. The dark places in his mind burst, all of the pent up aggression, frustration and overall darker emotions he'd felt since Luna had seemingly abandoned him flooded his system, manifesting itself as black, black rage. His eyes were dark, angry, and dangerously mad.

"Now let me return the favor!"

With a crash and the sound of breaking glass, Septimus threw the nameless stallion through the one way mirror. He heard him scream, even as he jumped up onto the console and flipped through the glassless window pane, landing with one leg on each side of the bastard's sides, a cry of pain bursting from his employer's lips. With a strangled cry, Septimus didn't wait, and started laying into him, his fists pounding down onto the bag of bones he was using as a punching bag. He didn't hear the screams around him as the customers freaked out, terrified of the normally quiet sound technician turned maniac.

He didn't remember much after that. In his rage, he blacked out. But when he woke up, he wasn't in the building anymore. It was dark, and his head hurt, and so did his neck. His hands felt like they'd been pummeled by a meat tenderizer. He couldn't see anything. Then it occurred to him that his eyes were closed and, slowly, he opened them. Nothing but gray stone bricks.

"That's a heck of a temper you have there Septimus. If I were you, I'd keep it in check."

Septimus looked sharply over towards the source of the voice to see a familiar, if unwelcome face looking at the far wall of his cell from the bars.

"Gild?" He asked with a pained groan as he sat up, "What happened..?"

Gild gave Septimus a moment to rub his head before huffing.

"You went feral, to be completely honest," He said, offhand, "You attacked your employer and left him in a blithering mess on the floor."

He leveled a stern gaze at Septimus.

"A bloody, blithering mess on the floor."

Septimus rubbed his palm against his head slowly, trying to ease his aching cranium.

"What? No..." He said, shaking his head slowly, "That's not funny man... Jeez, what happened to my head?"

Gild, for a moment, actually looked amused. But it didn't last long before it vanished, replaced with his customary flat glare.

"The officer who arrested you," He said, a trace of his amusement registering just barely in his voice, "Had to hit you on the head with his boot before you'd go down. You gave him quite the black eye."

"His boot?"

"His boot, yes."

The pair of stallions looked at each other, silent. Gild looked very serious, hands behind his back, his cold glare looking daggers at his prisoner. On the other side of the coin, Septimus was seated on the thin bed (For some reason, it had floral sheets) with his head partially covered with one hand, looked positively dreadful and utterly disheveled. His hair was a mess.

"... You're not joking are you?" Septimus sighed softly. Gild shook his head stiffly, and Septimus groaned and ran a hand through his hair, ".... How bad was it?"

"He needed quite a few stitches, and he appears to have lost a few teeth. However, my guards were able to intervene before you could do too much damage," Gild replied, "That being said, he wants to sue you for assault and attempted murder."

Septimus felt his heart stop for a second, and looked at the floor, a familiar depression he had felt before. Dark, despair and inferiority, now met with a sense of guilt, regret and acceptance for what he knew he would be a horrible punishment.

"... When's the trial?" Septimus asked softly. Gild was silent for a moment, then the strangest sound echoed through the dungeon. It took Septimus a moment to place it, since he hadn't heard it before. Gild was laughing.

"The event was caught on camera boy," Gild replied with a sadistic smile, "There is no trial. His establishment was watched by his own CCTV cameras for years, all equipped with microphones."

Septimus blinked and looked up sharply at the smiling Gild, but the guard captain wasn't finished yet.

"I told him that he could charge if he liked," Gild continued, "But all evidence to the case would be gathered and submitted, in which case your sentence would be drastically reduced, and he would be accused, charged and sentenced for abuse of his employees, intentional sabotage for the sake of being able to have an excuse to abuse employees, being cruel to the general populace, starting with his employees, and.... oh I'm not sure, I could probably get him for littering too."

Septimus' eyes narrowed as he looked closely at Gild who, for once, didn't look at him with contempt, hate or cold detest. Instead, he was relatively neutral, with a little admiration, if Septimus wasn't mistaken.

"Why are you looking out for me Gild?" He asked suspiciously, "You've never liked me, not since the incident when we first met."

Gild shrugged, rotating the shoulder where his tightly bandaged, mangled wing rested against his body, the same side as the scar on his face. With a glance at the guard on the left side of the cell, then to the right, he gestured and the pair nodded to him and left. Once they'd left earshot, Gild cleared his throat.

"Boy, I may not have liked you then," He began coldly, "And I may still not like you now. You come across as one of those good for nothing street kids who think they can get by on welfare until they get their rap career going, or they get a chance to skate professionally, or until their athletics is good enough to compete. Worse still, those who live off unemployment schemes until their stupid music career that'll never kick off gets started," Septimus felt that like a kick in the gut, but he said nothing.

"That said," Gild continued, "What you did to that bastard you once called employer..." Gild smiled, rolling his shoulder again, "That boy, reminded me of me in my younger days, when I was still in the military's Standing Army. You took what was wrong, and beat it into submission."

Septimus sighed and let his head hang, massaging the back of his neck with a hand, "That doesn't mean what I did was right."

"Of course not," Gild replied, "What you did is against the law, however due to extenuating circumstances, and a voice from much higher than myself, You're not going to be kept here."

Septimus looked up slowly, confused, "What do you mean I'll not be kept here? I assaulted someone, beat him badly. I should be kept here. It's the law."

"The law," Gild said slowly, "Is open to interpretation. In your case, due to extenuating circumstance, being his abuse, and the word of, as I mentioned before, someone above me."

Septimus watched as Gild took a key out from behind his back and slipped it into the lock and twisted it, letting the door swing open as the pair of guards from before walked over.

"Now are you going to sit there, or shall I allow my guards to escort you to your new destination?"

Only a few minutes later, Septimus was being walked through the halls of the Castle of Canterlot. Those that once were familiar, but he felt quite rusty with now, so he wasn't positive on where he was being led. The halls weren't as welcoming anymore. The stone seemed to glare at him as he passed, and he was sure he felt glares as he walked past other ponies. But when he looked back at them, they hadn't so much as looked at him.

"So uh... where are we going guys?" Septimus asked hesitantly. The guards didn't answer him, although to be honest he hadn't expected them to. They were trained specially not to show emotion, and not to answer questions. No, they only took orders from their superiors, and they didn't answer to anyone else. He was walking for some time behind these two, until they arrived at a very familiar set of doors, guarded by a pair of purple armored guards, one of which held his hand up, standing firm.

"We will take it from here soldiers," He said formally. The pair of golden covered guards nodded and left, leaving Septimus to stare helplessly at the big doors that he'd been through so many times. Decorated with the Crescent moon and stars, there was only one pony that lived there, and he hadn't seen her in months.

"Princess Luna has demanded your presence," The guard who had spoken before intoned sternly, "You will await her return in her room, and you will not leave. If you attempt to leave, we are authorised to cuff you to anything available to ensure you wait. Is this understood?"

Septimus nodded slowly and the guard, apparently satisfied with his answer, pushed the door open. The moment Septimus entered, the door slammed shut behind him, and he was left alone with his thoughts.

What have I gotten myself into?

Hours passed. Septimus had never been so afraid in his life. The Princess he thought he'd befriended all those months ago was, apparently, now ready to speak to him again, or back from wherever she'd gone, and he'd gone and beaten his boss, or his former boss now he supposed, to  bloody pulp. He looked down at his hands, noting idly the bruises on his knuckles, no doubt from hitting the harder parts of the now disabled stallion's face, or missing and hitting the floor. It wasn't like he'd always been treated horribly, but he wasn't exactly lucky, so...

Dammit Septimus, you've fucked up bad this time.

His thoughts turned to Luna, and he felt the ache he'd felt for ages now return, hard, fast and painful. He rubbed his chest idly, an automatic response to the pain in his chest. He hadn't really been able to get the Moon Princess out of his head since she'd left him high and dry, without a letter, rhyme nor reason. She hadn't sent him anything to explain her absence, so he'd taken it personally, as it was his fault she'd left. That still hadn't changed. He still blamed himself, but no matter now hard he tried, he also couldn't bear to consider her reaction to his transgressions against the laws she and her sister had laid down centuries ago. It's not a thought he relished. Gild may not have thought he deserved his place in the slammer, but he wondered about Luna. She had shown him that she did have a bit of a sadistic side to her, sometimes borderline cruelty. Nothing she hadn't curbed of course, but sometimes, mostly when she was frustrated or angry, she became a little sadistic and a tiny bit cruel. 

Another hour would pass before the door was finally opened, and Septimus fretted the whole time, worrying incessantly about what was going to happen when she arrived, but when she walked in, it was the last thing he expected. He looked up from the bed he had seated himself on when she entered, and his jaw dropped. Silvery shoes clad her feet, matching gloves going halfway up to her elbows. Her hips were clad in silver armor leading into a long skirt, slit all the way to the silver on the left side. Her midriff was bare, and her upper body was covered by what was a very flattering top, lined in silver and skin tight, it only covered part of her upper body, leaving her cleavage and everything above open, wrapping around her body. Her neck was covered in a silvery choker with a  perfectly round blue sphere of gemstone, leading on either side into slender pauldrons on each shoulder. Her hair shimmered like the night sky, lighter than the dark fabric of her clothing. 

"Ugh, I thought they'd NEVER stop!" She complained as she entered the room, until she caught Septimus staring at her and frowned at him, "And you!"

Septimus didn't even remember moving, but next thing he remembered, Luna had yelped and he had her hands, and her, pressed against the wall, her hands held by him above her head. Of all the things he'd expected himself to do, this was the last thing. But hey, in for a penny, in for a pound right?

"Where were you?" He growled darkly, his eyes dark pits of fire. Luna's eyes narrowed and she growled back.

"Back off Septimus," She snarled, "And unhand me."

"Talk to me, Your Highness," He growled in reply, "And I just might."

The cold calm that had made up Luna's facade till then was replaced by a fire Septimus had seen before, though not directed at him and she spoke angrily.

"I am a Princess of Equestria!" She snapped, her voice rising, "And a sovereign of the country! You will unhand your princess at once!"

"My princess?" He growled, but he did bring himself to pull away from her, letting her hands fall. She brought them up to look at them quickly, taking note of the tingling as bloodflow returned to the suffocated hands, "My Princess? Not even close!"

Ire raised and tempers hot, Luna flung out her hand at Septimus, sending him crashing backwards over the bed, flipping as his legs hit the mattress and landing in a jumble on the other side of the room. She felt a stab of guilt as she saw him groan and start to move, but she shoved it aside. Now was not the time to feel guilty.

"Yes, Commoner," She said darkly, "Your Princess. Remember your place."

"My place..." Septimus spat an oath as he staggered to his feet. Luna felt another stab of guilt at the wound on his forehead, and the bruises on the other side, "My place huh? I know my place."

He lurched forward towards her, and Luna lifted her hand again, the tell tale glow of magic glittering at her fingers menacingly. But Septimus didn't stop, stepping forward, even as Luna curled her fingers and rolled back her arm, prepared to strike him if need be. But he didn't attack her. No...

He did something far worse.

"My place is in the slums," He spat angrily, "My place is a house without a roof, floors or a fuckin' wall to keep away the wind."

He flung his arm out to point in the direction of the glass windows that made up the outer wall leading out onto a viewing platform, a place she often used to look at her sky, and over Canterlot.

"Out there, I'm nobody! A depressed freak with a girly coat and unfulfilled dreams, a failure!"

He turned away, stalking across the room and throwing the glass doors open, stepping into the open air. After a moment, Luna followed him. Her eyes widened as she found him, standing on the railing overlooking Canterlot city.

"Septimus..." She said cautiously, "What are you doing?"

He turned his head to look at her, and the fire, the black rage that was in his eyes... was gone. Instead, they looked like ice. Shards of cold, sharp ice that wouldn't accept compromise.

"Find yourself a new plaything, Princess," He said coldly, "To call whenever you feel like being a child."

And he jumped. With a strangled cry, Luna's hand lit up as she made a swipe to grab him, but the magic swished past him, missing him by inches as he fell. She ran to the handrails, leaning over to look after his descent, dread filling her heart. A rush of relief filled her as she watched him drag himself from a large fountain in the courtyard beneath them.

And run he did, with the calls of guards in his ears, and his broken arm held tightly and painfully to his chest.
> Chapter 8
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Sister..."

Luna looked up at her sister, mouth full with a variety of fruits and custard. Celestia, with a plate of waffles before her, raised a brow.

"MmmM?" Luna queried through her throat. Celestia frowned a little in disapproval, but didn't comment on her sister's horrible table manners.

"I have a question I feel only you could answer, and I'm afraid I'm going to need you to answer truthfully."

Luna felt her heart fall into her stomach. She swallowed her food slowly and wiped her mouth with her napkin.

"Yes sister?" she asked dubiously. 

"I have a report on my desk," The older Princess began calmly, "Written up this morning by Gild. According to one of his guards who was on patrol at the time, that there was a mysterious object that fell from your balcony."

Luna's heart stopped, and the blood rushed from her face as she realised where this was going.

"Gild's report says it's believed the object was a young stallion. He fell into the fountain."

Luna squirmed uncomfortably under her sister's stern gaze.

"Um... H-how bad is it?" She asked hesitantly, brushing some of her mane out of her face. Celestia huffed.

"He's nowhere to be found in the area. After landing, he took off at a run and, as of yet, hasn't been apprehended or found."

Luna couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Knowing he'd left at a run, though painful, gave her heart quite the rest. She was terrified he was dead, but knowing he was alive...

"Luna! Are you listening to me?"

Luna jumped and looked back at her sister, flushing bright red.

"Yes mother," She snarked back, only earning a darker frown from her sister.

"Luna!" Celestia scolded, "One of these days, you will mature enough for me to trust you with affairs of state, and when that day comes, there is nopony else who will be more proud of you than me. However, until then, I find myself forced to deal with you like a little girl rather than a grown mare."

Luna glared at her sister angrily, but it didn't deter the older alicorn from continuing.

"So, in this light, You will hold your tongue until such a time as I deem it fit for you to speak when I am chastising you, understand?"

Luna glared at Celestia, and Celestia glared right back. Eventually however, the tension vanished as Luna, cowed, lowered her gaze.

"Yes sister," She capitulated. Celestia's glare didn't lower.

"Now, you demanded Gild set you friend loose," She began again, "And, for a moment, I thought you were finally realizing what you have to be. But, as it turns out, I was wrong. You've abused your position as a Princess, and your actions, whatever they may have been after his release, have lead to the endangerment of a citizen of Equestria for you own selfishness."

"He jumped off the balcony sister, I tried t-"

"He did What?"

Luna cursed herself, biting her tongue almost literally.

"He jumped off the balcony, of his own accord. I tried to stop him!"

"No, I don't want to hear another word," Celestia interrupted, a look of stunned shock on her face, "Whatever you said or did to him, it was your fault he left the way he did, and you should be ashamed of yourself."

"We had a fight!" Luna argued, "All friends have-"

"Not ones that end in either of them jumping from the fifth floor of a tower into a fountain Luna!"

Again, Luna bit her tongue, and averted her eyes, cowed.

"Yes sister..." She capitulated quietly.

"I will find Septimus," Celestia told her sister firmly, "And bring him back here so you can apologise to him. After that, I'll put him back in the cells, where he can serve his sentence."

Luna jolted out of her self pity pool to look at her sister wildly.

"What? No! He doesn't belong in there! Septimu-"

"You pardoned him based on your own feelings for him Luna!" Celestia barked over her, "He will serve his sentence of two years for assault and he will be lucky he only received that! He brought this on himself, as have you!"

Celestia lifted a hand faster than Luna could open her mouth, which instantly shut the younger alicorn up.

"You are grounded until such a time as I decide you have learned a lesson from your actions. You will be allowed outside of your room to eat, and to raise the moon, though we both know you don't need to do that. Your balcony will be shielded to prevent you from leaving as well."

Luna's jaw was on the floor.

"What? That's not fair!" Luna shouted, "You're going to cut me off completely?"

"Essentially, yes," Celestia replied coldly, "You've showed me that you're not to be trusted with royal authority or making your own decisions. Now, once you've finished your breakfast, you will be escorted to your room, where you will sleep. My guard will search for Septimus, and you will stay out of it."

As Luna pouted and quietly hated her sister, Septimus winced, suppressing a yelp as his doctor touched his arm gingerly.

"Yeah... you've broken it pretty bad. I don't know how you managed to keep it in the condition it's in to be honest. It looks pretty bad."

Septimus' doctor was a younger stallion, late twenties, which in and of itself was an achievement. His rapid ascent came from his rather unique gift to bestow a form of X-ray vision to himself, allowing him to see problems firsthand. There was nopony else Septimus would trust with his life than this pony.

"How bad are we talking, and how much am I going to be in debt?" Septimus grimaced. 

"Hard to say. To be honest, all it's going to cost you is the cost of a bit of plaster at the cheapest, or up to several hundred bits for the magical solution. For that though, I'd have to recommend you to another doctor."

Septimus sighed and shook his head.

"I'll take the plaster, and a doc's certificate. Need something to explain to my idiot roommates why I'm not at work till I can figure out a way to tell them I'm unemployed."

"That, is not my business of course. The cast won't take long to put on, then I'll write up your certificate, and send you on your way."

"Alright doc. Gonna hurt?"

"Probably, I won't lie. I'll have to make sure the bone is set in place and correctly, which means moving it into position. This is going to hurt Septimus, and it will keep hurting for some time. Are you ready?"

Septimus sighed and nodded his head, steeling himself for what he knew was going to be a very painful morning.
> Chapter 9
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

There were few things in the world that had made Septimus more upset than he was now. In fact, he couldn't remember the last time he'd been this upset with a pony, at least not in this manner. He'd been angry of course, and recently. His boss was the perfect example for that truth. But how he felt now?

How do I feel right now?

Atop the rooftop he had been upon before. In fact, it was one of his favourite starting points to parkour. It was a tall building in the merchant's district, close to the markets. A day had passed since he'd broken his arm, and the night was cool. That said, the refreshing, calm air that normally kept him so sane didn't seem to be there. It just felt cold. Cold and uninviting. His arm was of no use to him at all, bound in a cast from upper to forearm, so parkour was out of the question.

Strange... that something so simple would dominate so much of my life.

And it was true. Almost every night, he'd run through the streets of the great city of Canterlot. He couldn't remember the last time he spent a night without his nightly run. Routine. It was Routine that had kept him sane at his job, in his life. And now, it'd been turned upside down. No job, broken arm, soon to have no place to stay. It's not like he had anywhere to go, and he'd be damned if he went back to his parents. No, he left to get away from that, and them. No way was he going back.

"The stars hold no comfort anymore," he muttered quietly, standing up laboriously. It'd been his right arm broken, which was his dominant arm. Already things had seemed more difficult. His ability to even write his own name had been affected, and that pissed him off enough. The looks he'd received from his flatmates made it even worse. The next thing he'd found that hadn't made him feel any better about himself was the difficulty he now had simply dressing himself. As a result, he'd ended up leaving without putting a shirt on. It simply hurt him too much.

That's not to say he went out without cover. As he stood, he picked up a blanket he'd brought with him and wrapped it around his shoulders gingerly. it was a simple plain black affair made of synthesised vole fur. A curious item he'd obtained from his parents years ago. The only thing he'd gotten from them that was useful, now that he thought about it.He hadn't brought his bag as he normally would, so he left without it, and now he missed the feeling of its weight on his back.

Seven months he'd been visiting Luna. At least twice a week she'd had him up at the castle with her. His sleep schedule wasn't really bothered though. He only slept for a few hours at a time anyway. And now? Now she just threw him away.

Commoner she'd called him. He supposed he deserved that remark. He hadn't exactly taken it easy on her either.

Know your place

Unhand your princess!

All of that hit hard. From Commoner to knowing his place. But as he remembered that night, he remembered the look in her eyes as she'd thrown him across the room and reminded him of what he was, of who he was, the look in her eye as he'd stood back up. The lack of empathy, sympathy. 

The lack of concern.

I know my place. My place is in the slums. My place is in a house without a roof, floors or a fuckin' walls to keep away the wind.

His face was like thunder as he passed the sleeping receptionist, reclined with his legs up on the desk, and it vaguely occurred to Septimus he should wake him up, but it vanished as fast as it appeared.

I'm nobody! A depressed freak with a girly coat and unfulfilled dreams, a failure!

He tasted blood as, when he clenched his jaw, he accidentally bit his tongue too hard.

Worse still, those who live off unemployment schemes until their stupid music career that'll never kick off gets started.

By this time, there was crescent shaped cuts on his palm from his nails slicing into his palm.

You took what was wrong and beat it into submission

Another reason to hate himself, he supposed. Now he was a criminal. No doubt Luna wouldn't simply let him go without having the last word. If there was one thing he'd learned about her, it was she loved winning, and if she can't win, to have the last anything. The last frag in HALO, last kill in Call of Duty, Last win in Guitar Hero, even the last shot off in virtually any driving game they'd ever played. The only pony he'd never seen her insist on the last word upon was her sister, and to that he largely couldn't blame her.

"There he is! Arc, get your ass over here!"

Septimus' ears perked up and he turned his head towards the new noise. Watching him from across the way was a pegasus mare, her hand on the haft on some sort of weapon holstered on her back. He froze, hand still holding the blanket around his torso. She was clad in golden armour. Unusual, but not impossible in the night watch. Stumbling out of the darkness a moment later was a thin guard, no wings on his back, and no weapon sheathed or holstered anywhere.

Probably a unicorn then Sep reasoned to himself.

"Hey, you!" The female called out, "Are you Septimus? Worked at a small time club for an asshole?"

The unicorn, Arc, stretched his back out and sighed. At least, Sep thought he sighed, it was difficult to tell.

"Septimus," Arc's voice called, "By the order of Princess Celestia, Princess of Equestria and Mistress of the Sun, you're under arrest for public disturbances."

Septimus didn't reply, but his eyes did narrow. Now he knew that Celestia was looking for him, and to arrest him no less. Was there no justice in life? No fairness?

"I suppose it doesn't matter now," he grumbled to himself. He considered his broken arm for a moment. Then his narrowed eyes morphed into a dark frown.

"He's gunna run," He heard the mare say quietly, a note of what was certainly eagerness prevalent. The other guard said something, but Septimus didn't bother listening.

I'm going to regret leaving this behind.

He dropped the blanket and was at a dead run before it hit the ground. He heard the sound of spreading wings behind him, but didn't look behind him. With a quick prayer to whatever gods were stupid enough to watch over him, he vaulted over a trash can that was a little too close to the middle of the sidewalk. He didn't hear the sound of anypony else jumping, which told him he was definitely being pursued by the mare.

And she was probably gaining.

Alright then... lets bring her down to my level.

With a sharp turn, Septimus fled down a narrow alley, much too narrow for the wide wings of a pegasus. He heard a muffled curse from behind him and almost smiled. He jumped a bag of trash, looking ahead, and his heart fell. There was a sheer wall at the end of the alley. He could hear her metal boots echoing off the pavement.

And something whistling.

On sudden impulse, he dropped into a roll just in time to avoid a rather large and lethal projectile. When he hit his feet again, his eyes widened and he almost faltered, but regained his footing quickly. Sticking out of the wall at the rapidly approaching end of the alley was a giant, broad bladed battle scythe. 

"I'm coming for you pinky!" He heard from behind him, "Nowhere you can go now!"

"We'll see about that," he grumbled as an idea occurred to him. He didn't have much time. He jumped left, kicking off the wall to jump to the next, then kicking off that again to gain a bit more height. He looked forward and, in the microseconds it takes for the brain to comprehend it's position, the world seemed to slow down. He felt the harsh bricks under his fingers, the wind that had hit his face as he'd jumped. He could hear the clapping steps of metal on cement, and he could see the broad blade of the scythe sticking out of the stone wall. Dimly, he heard her shouting something, but he made the jump. His knee lashed out, kicking him off the wall and forward, headed straight for the wall. His arms extended for balance, his legs forward too, bracing for the next impact.

And with an unholy screech, he landed on the blunt end of the blade of the only weapon sticking out of the wall, and used it to vault over the wall. He landed lightly upon his feet on the other side with an explosive exhale and, for a moment, he felt triumphant. Then the sweat on his body was hit by a smack of night air and he was reminded very rudely that he didn't have a shirt on, and he just vaulted over a wall using a scythe that was hurled at him.

He heard someone being scolded behind the wall, and the tip of the blade was pulled from the wall, but he was already walking away.

He needed to find somewhere to stay, and somehow to stay warm.

This is not going to be a good night.
> Chapter 10
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Celestia had a headache. It wasn't helping that Luna was seated firmly beside her, fuming. She could almost feel the steam coming out of her sister's ears, and she was fairly certain that there was a hole melting into the door she was glaring at. They were in Luna's room. It was dark, only lit by candles on the walls and a few on Luna's vanity, mostly for her sister's benefit.

As it turned out, Luna had decided that, in her inability to leave her room, she would get the reports from all the guards on patrol, be it solar or lunar, by force if necessary. The lunar guard's almost suicidal loyalty to their princess was very well known to Celestia, so she'd capitulated and let her sister get the daily reports. She was already regretting that decision.  Less than one day and already Luna wanted to murder somepony.

"They're late," Luna growled, glaring daggers at the door still, "If this is the sort of loyalty you inspire in your troops, I'm shocked you haven't had open rebellion yet."

For once, Celestia took the insult in stride and didn't respond. She was too tired, and much too disappointed to scold her sister. They were still awaiting the pair of guards who had supposedly intercepted Septimus. It was three in the morning. The sun wasn't meant to be up for another three and a half hours, she hadn't gotten enough sleep, and now she had to deal with two of her guards whilst her sister tried to speak over her. To finish off, she was still in her pyjamas with only her crown atop her head to show her rank. On the other hand, her sister was dressed in full regalia, only stopping at royalty at Celestia's arrival. Otherwise, Celestia wasn't sure if she wouldn't have donned her old armour.

And then a knock came at the door and a Thestral guard with deep shadows under his eyes poked his head into the room. The pair were in Luna's room, given Celestia's order to not allow her to leave.

"Princess," He said formally, "You have two solar guards out here telling us they have an appointment. Should I throw them out?"

Luna's jaw clenched and Celestia stiffened.

"No, let them in," Luna growled, "They're here on my demand."

"As you wish," He grunted, obviously a little disappointed, before vanishing behind the door. There was a muffled word or two and the door opened again, this time enough to admit two full ponies into the room. One of them looked significantly more tired than the other. Luna recognised the thin male as Arc, a guard her sister had been keeping a close eye on for some reason or other. The other one had a scythe strapped to her back, and that hit home for Luna.

She was the one who tried to kill Septimus.

"You two were on patrol earlier were you not?" Celestia began coolly, trying to defuse as much of  the angry tension in the air as possible. It wasn't working. Arc fell into a bow, taking his helmet off and putting it on the ground before him. Without his helmet, his hair fell out of place, a tangled mess of dark grey and lightning blue.

"Yes Princesses, that's true."

"I have your reports," Luna interjected darkly. Arc froze, but his partner didn't seem to care, "Both of them. There seems to be some discrepencies between your two reports."

Arc had caught on quite swiftly to the night princess' cold tone and kept his head downturned. Nightspring didn't seem to have any such respect, and didn't even bother standing straight. Celestia cleared her throat, but before she could speak Luna had plowed on.

"You are under orders to bring a young stallion back to this castle, am I incorrect?"

This time, she was clearly addressing the pegasus mare, who shrugged.

"Yeah, what about it?"

Celestia could feel her headache growing even now, and she put a hand to her forehead. Luna bristled.

"You will address me properly!" The younger alicorn intoned dangerously, "I am a Princess of Equestria, and you are just a guard. You WILL remember that!"

Nightspring bristled back and stood straighter as she shot back angrily.

"I take my orders from Celestia," Nightspring snapped back, "Not a deposed princess who set the dick we're searching for free in the first place!"

Arc, still on his knees, winced. Celestia put a hand on Luna's shoulder, but Luna just shrugged it off. Her wings opened, mighty appendages bringing the room into a darker light as the candles in the room went dark. Luna's eyes burned with a black fury of those scorned and rejected that which they deserve.

"If I tell you to shut up, you Will shut your pathetic mouth and you will not open it until such a time as I tell you that you can, do you understand me soldier?"

Nightspring growled, her own wings opening in a pathetic attempt to seem larger than her opponent. Her mouth opened to reply but, with a swipe of dark sparkling fingers, Luna stole away her voice. Nightspring's eyes went wide and Luna held up her hand, a bright golden light flickering like a golden flame. Celestia's eyes widened.

"I don't handle insubordination like my sister, bitch," Luna snarled, her other hand swirling a small jar into existence in which she deposited the voice into, "You will respect my authority, even if I must have it beaten into you."

"Luna!" Celestia gasped, only meeting an open palm as Luna silenced her sister without magic.

"No sister, you sit out of this!"

Celestia's eyes narrowed. She too stood tall, but when she opened her wings, everypony took notice. An ethereal glow brightened the room as she demonstrated her own power, pushing back Luna's darkness in favour of a comforting glow.

"They are my guards sister," She intoned, "And I will not have you treating them like dogs! Back off now, let me handle it, and I won't take away your precious games as well."

Luna rounded on her sister, But Celestia was quicker, holding up her hand in her famous 'I don't want to hear it' manner which, for some reason, always made Luna silent. Now was no exception.

"You can handle your precious Thestrals any way you wish," Celestia began, "But when my guards mess up, it is my responsibility to punish them. You will be silent until spoken to."

Luna's eyes narrowed as, finally, she didn't back down.

"No." She said slowly. Celestia's brow raised.

"Excuse me?" She said bluntly. Luna did not back down.

"You may have the final say in how they are punished," Luna said slowly, "But this concerns me as well, which means I get a say in this discussion, and if they disrespect me, I will handle it my way."

With that, she turned back to the two guards, Arc terrified, and Spring desperately trying to speak, with no results.

"You, Arc," Luna demanded. Arc flinched, keeping his eyes downturned, "In your report, you recorded you located Septimus because your partner spotted him in the dark, correct?"

"Y-yes your Highness," he stammered out. She continued, leaving the slightly bewildered Celestia in the dust.

"He ran, yes?"

"Y-yes your highness. Nightspring called that he was under arrest, and he ran."

"You gave chase."

It wasn't a question, and Arc was painfully aware of that. He gulped and nodded silently.

"And when is it that your partner threw a scythe at Septimus?"

Nightspring froze, and slowly turned to glare at Arc. Arc was visibly trembling now.

"I'm.... I'm not sure your Highness. I hadn't caught up in time to see her throw it, as I mentioned in my report."

He was babbling now, but Luna wasn't interrupting him.

"It was dark, he ran and Spring took to wing to catch him. I couldn't keep up with him, he was too fast, and so was Spring, but she could catch him and, to my understanding was, until he turned into an alley. It was too small for Spring's wingspan, so she ran instead. At some point I'm certain she threw Belladonna at him-"

"Belladonna?" Luna asked. Arc gulped and nodded.

"H-her scythe Highness. I found her trying to yank it out of the wall and... she told me what happened."

Luna did not seem pleased, and neither did her sister.

"However," Celestia said coldly, "In your report Nightspring, you left out the part where you threw your weapon at a civilian. I'm sure I don't need to ask why."

Nightspring squirmed under Celestia's glare. Arc still had yet to stop looking at the floor.

"Nightspring," Celestia said darkly, "This is not the first instance of unnecessary force you've been reported for. I believe Gild warned you at the last incident that there would be consequences. Now, it seems, you must taste the fruit of your error."

Luna's piercing voice cut through the darkness.

"Nightlilly!" 

There was a sound of something being startled behind the door and it opened a little, a female guard this time poking her head into the room, also looking very tired.

"Your Highness?" She asked.

"Fetch Gild," She said bluntly, "And get him here as fast as you can. If he decides he needs to refuse, tell him I'll have him demoted."

The mare's eyes bugged out and she nodded furiously, the door slamming shut as her face vanished behind it. Celestia looked at her sister, unamused.

"You realise you cannot decide whether or not my guard captain keeps his job. That's my responsibility," she whispered.

"Does he know that?" Luna shot back at full volume. Celestia glared at Luna sharply, which Luna ignored. She'd already turned to the two guards within the room.

"You two will wait with us until your captain joins us. Punishment will be metered out that is suitable"

Thirty minutes, two cups of coffee and a pissed off guard captain later, Nightspring was, quite literally, being lead off by her ear by the captain, leaving Arc standing on his own, with Luna glaring daggers at him.

"And what of him?" She asked harshly, "he too is partly to blame."

Celestia sighed, rubbing her temples.

"Arc could do nothing to stop his partner," Celestia explained quietly, "She had superior speed, and far too much momentum."

"He's a unicorn," Luna pointed out harshly, much to Celestia and Arc's chagrin, "He could have done almost anything to stop her, but he did not."

Celestia rolled her eyes. It was too early to deal with this.

"Then allow me to deal with Arc. You got your way with Nightspring, I will take care of Arc. Now can I go back to bed? I'm sick of my headache, and your attitude is not helping.

For a moment, Luna almost felt bad, but with a twitch of her cheek, she capitulated.

"Fine. You punish him. I won't be a part of it."

She glanced at the guard, then back to her sister.

"But I want to know his punishment, and I want your word that you'll be more careful who you send after Septimus."

Celestia waved a hand irritably, "Fine, fine. I'll let you know, and I'll be more considerate in my choices."

Luna looked long and hard at her sister, and Celestia held the gaze unfinchingly. Eventually, Luna sighed and waved a hand irritably, the blue glow signifying her magic opening the door.

"Fine! But get out. I need sleep, and I won't get it with you idiots around."

Celestia almost scolded Luna, almost. But her need for sleep was greater. So instead, she stood up and left, taking Arc with her. Luna, still angry, closed the door behind them.

Celestia walked swiftly, her wings twitching agitatedly at her back. Behind her, and looking a bit like a recently kicked puppy, walked Arc.

"You let me down, Arc," She finally said, her hand over her eyes, "You asked for this assignment to get out of the castle, and I gave it to you."

"I know Highness, please let me-"

"I let you take Nightspring because you two were friends, and you've worked with her before."

"I know, please-"

"I'm trying to throw you a bone Arc."

"Please, Majesty-"

"I'm not sure if I can let you off so easy this time Arc, or Luna will hate me more than she already does."

Arc didn't answer, merely followed her, lagging behind. 

"Keep up!"

He flinched, but did as she demanded, following her closely now.

"I've done everything I can, trying to help her. I don't know what more I can do."

"I'm... not sure I'm the pony you should be telling this Princess," Arc said nervously.

"Nonsense," Celestia swept aside his complaint, "I've tried to teach her the responsibility she needs to take her place on the throne, I've tried to tell her how immature she's being but..."

Arc was very uncomfortable, but he said nothing.

"I love my sister," Celestia mourned, spreading her arms in surrender, "More than anything else in Equestria, I just want her to be able to take her place, confidently, in Equestrian politics, and society."

Arc said nothing, but the pair had now reached Celestia's chambers, and she just dragged Arc right in with her.

"I've tried to be her teacher for so long..." She continued, seating herself upon her bed, Arc standing nervously by the door, "Her mother, everything I thought she'd need. I know I've been harsh recently, I know maybe I haven't been the... the nicest mother but... Mothers aren't always your friend... right?"

Arc didn't reply, still a little overwhelmed at her revelations. Celestia fell silent for a long while. Silence isn't the most comfortable thing at the best of times, and right now was probably the worst.

"You know," Celestia started sullenly, "When your application to join the guard came through, Shining Armour had it brought to my attention."

Arc blinked. This was news to him.

"Your record was already tarnished by the time you finished basic schooling," She explained tiredly, "Dark magic at such a young age? I had to take you in to my school, to keep an eye on you."

Arc's eyes darkened and he looked away, shame covering his face.

"And when you applied, Shining wasn't certain what to say. He brought the matter to me in the hopes I could help him decide."

She snorted sighed, "Had I not told him otherwise, he was going to reject your application. I considered it myself, but given how I knew it'd shatter you..."

Arc refused to look up at this point. Celestia didn't seem to care, her tired eyes shut, simply venting.

"I let you in, and for the most part, I haven't regretted my decision."

This did make Arc perk up, looking at her in surprise.

"So far, you've kept yourself in check. Even in a crisis, you haven't lost control, and your peers come to you for help..."

Arc could see where this was going, and he wasn't sure he liked it.

"What am I doing wrong?"

Arc sighed. This was not going to go well for him.
> Chapter 11
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The house Septimus found himself in was not his own. In fact, nopony lived there anymore. And for good reason. The house was dilapidated, and was verging on collapse. Burned into the door was a bright red 'X' mark. The mark of a family killed by a curse.

A warning for others not to enter, or face the curse in all its dark glory.

A warning that fell on deaf ears for Septimus. Figuring his life couldn't get any worse, he'd entered anyway. Nothing had happened to him yet, so he figured the curse had failed a long time ago. A pity, really. He almost wished it were there, to hold him in its dark arms and hasten his road to stressless oblivion. His arm hurt, his feet hurt, and his clothes were ruffled and torn. His food was running out, and getting fresh water without being seen was a pain. At this rate, he was almost afraid he'd die of starvation or infection, though it was only a mild concern. Nothing major right?

It's just death. Comes for everypony. That'll teach her.

He sighed to himself, wriggling his toes as he looked at them, back to the headboard of a long unused bed, until recently anyway. Even in bad a shape as it was, it was better than his at home, which wasn't a difficult feat to be honest. His mattress was pretty horrendous. The blanket covering his shoulders was not his own, which he missed terribly, but a ratty one from within the house he now sat within. The shirt he had on was also not his. He'd stolen it from a street vendor, and it was a size or two too big for him. He'd felt bad for taking the shirt, and had vowed to pay the vendor back, but didn't have the bits to do so yet. He figured he probably never would, but it made him feel better to say he would. To pretend like he had a future now.

Dimly, he heard the sounds of guard armour clinking on the street below his floor, and to his left. He shifted, disinterested. They wouldn't enter. They couldn't. Guard policy or something. He'd heard it the first day he'd found the house. It was one of the main reasons he chose this as his little hideout, rather than elsewhere. Even the sewers weren't as safe as this house. Nopony braved a curse. Nopony, it seems, except for Septimus.

It was night. Again. Every time he'd turned around it seemed to be night, he mused wryly. Typical really, that something he once found so beautiful now only served to remind him of the princess who turned her back on him. He'd felt, for the first time in a long time, like he'd meant something to somepony. Felt like he belonged. And then, like everypony else, she'd ripped his heart out of his chest and shoved it down his throat.

Well, almost everypony. Not all ponies were like that, and Septimus knew that, but honestly it felt like they all were. With a hollow laugh, he realised this was how those 'feminist' mares must feel, always preaching that all stallions wanted was sex, and how mares were nothing but objects. Celestia, upon hearing the demands of the 'official organisation', had scoffed at their faces and reminded them of several undeniable facts.

1) Mares outnumbered stallions almost 5 to 1
2) All of their suggestions were about superiority, not equality
and of course, that the things happening to mares also happened to stallions.

Septimus smirked to himself, fiddling with the hem of his new blanket. That was an amusing day. The new bartender at the time where he'd worked had told him that she sort of understood the mare's point, and Septimus had laughed at her, warning her not to tell the boss, lest he lose his temper. She'd laughed in reply, and told him she knew what he meant.

His smirk faded as he also remembered that he'd turned down a dinner she'd offered him, all because he got scared, and convinced himself he wasn't good enough. Another memory soured by his own psyche. Never a good sign.

Ugh... Like things could get much worse than this, right?

He laughed. A humourless, mirthless laugh. It left him feeling empty, bereft of emotion, or thought. With a sigh, he settled into the bed he was commandeering from the now long dead family.

He awoke hours later with the sun shining on his eyes, burning his retinas when he slid his eyelids up to glare at the boarded up window. Apparently, they didn't seem to care how badly they'd boarded the old home up, because there was light enough in just the right spot to fall on his eyes whilst his head was at the headboard.

Perfect. Thanks Celestia, you smarmy bitch.

With a groan, he sat up, rubbing the gunk out of his eyes. He had to find something to eat, and soon. Then a thought occurred to him.

Why would I bother? It's not like it's going to make a difference, right?

The grumble in his stomach, however, changed his mind. His instinct to survive was stronger than his depression at the moment. So, he dragged himself out of the bed.

Welp, first things first. Food.

Exiting the house, with a check first to make sure there weren't any guards around to see him, he made his way down to the market, the best place to find undefended food. Undefended because he didn't have any money to buy any of it with, and thus had to resort to thievery. 

again.

Finding a food stall that didn't have an eagle eyed owner, however, turned out to be harder than he thought. Almost every vendor was , understandably, wary of everypony, and everything that looked suspicious. He also wasn't sure how to go about it. He wasn't a thief, and hadn't stolen anything from anypony in his life, save for the few things he managed to take earlier. Despite this, he managed to spirit away something, though not much. A peach, and three bananas were all he managed to scrounge up, and even then, it'd taken him almost two hours to take that, and he'd headed back after, sick of it already.

But not before he was spotted. Golden eyes watched him leave the market, fruit in tow. Those eyes narrowed, and left quickly, to report to their superiors.


~*~


Luna wasn't terribly fond of the day, though not because her sister brought it around. Despite popular belief, Luna did love her sister. She did very often get annoyed at her sister, and very frequently angry at her as well. No, her dislike of the day came from the inability to sleep through it very well, without the sun seeming to find the perfect cracks in her curtains to bleed light directly onto her eyes.

But today, she wasn't asleep, and the Night Guard that dropped into her room was expected.

"Midnight Blossom," She said passively, "What'd you find out?"

Midnight Blossom, a younger thestral with light armour, stormcloud grey fur that tufted at the tips of her ears and a mane that matched her shoes' violet, was one of Luna's favourites, and often faced flak for it from the rest of the core. Luna often sent her out on stealthier missions. The playful mare was a bit more serious when working, and was quick, clean and efficient. She bowed before speaking.

"I saw your boyfriend," She replied with a smirk, "He was at the market. Stealing himself some food, in fact."

Luna's eyes, unseen by Midnight, narrowed.

"Did you follow him?"

"Tried to," She admitted, flushing hotly, "Turns out, he's more slippery than I gave him credit. I lost him before too long, somewhere in the older districts."

At this, Luna did smile.

"Well, he may not be terribly clever," Luna admitted, "But, he does have his moments I suppose. You're dismissed. Go have something to drink."

Midnight nodded, an eager smile and twinkle to her eye as she turned to leave.

"Oh, and Blossom?"

She paused and looked back. Luna's back was still to her.

"Don't ever call him that again."

She grinned and bowed, a bit mockingly.

"Whatever you say Princess."
> Chapter 12
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Three days. Three days Septimus lasted, scrounging food from bins, the streets and the marketplace stalls with less than vigilant owners. Three days he went undetected. Well, relatively so. The whole time, a pair of golden eyes had followed him around, save for whenever he returned to his hidey hole in the boarded up building. He made sure to make his entry as complex as possible before even going close to his current home. The old district wasn't visited much by the populace anyway. But for three days he survived like that.

Three days until the solar guard finally spotted him.

He was considering a small fruit basket, wrestling with his guilt. He wanted it. To be honest, he needed more than he'd been getting. He was malnourished, and it was starting to show. Heavy shadows hung under his eyes from a lack of sleep, his movements were shaky, and weaker than normal. But he was still himself, lucid and far from delusional. The solar guard recognised him, however, from the posters in the barracks, and pointed him out to his partner, and both of them broke out into a sprint. He'd been labelled as a 'runner', meaning he would run upon sight of guards, and now he lived up to it.

With a curse, he spun and bolted, shouts of 'You're under arrest!' and 'Stop immediately' dogging his every adrenaline fuelled step. Putting well to use his practiced skills, he leapt to a small overhang, but missed as he misjudged the leap, and came down heavily, rolling and returning to his run, shaken. He took a left, a right, another right. They were still behind him. All he could do was thank Celestia they were earth ponies, and not unicorns, who were pursuing him. Or pegasi, come to think of it.

His road led him to a sheer wall. He put on a burst of speed, and jumped. His fingers barely scraped the top of the wall, but he got a hold and pulled himself up. He heard a crash as he jumped over to the other side. Probably the sound of the guards smashing into the wall.  The old bricks didn't stand a chance against the more prepared second guard however, and his shoulder met the crumbling bricks and mortar, and he barged right through them. But then, Septimus hadn't stopped moving. His legs pumped, and started to hurt. He lost his shoe in his mad dash and leapt, managing to catch a fire escape with one hand, throwing another hand up and pulling himself up. He heard the guards yell out. He looked down quickly, seeing one point up at him. Without another thought, he started climbing. The ladder was rusty, but thankfully wasn't badly corroded. He hit the roof, and looked around. He had no doubt the guards were finding a way up. So, after getting his bearings, he ran to the edge of the old building's roof and, with a quick exhale, he jumped onto the retaining wall ringing the roof and cleared the gap between his building and the next, narrowing being missed by an arrow that almost took his eye, landing on that building's wall and jumping again, flipping onto his feet and running again, starting to feel a little more confident. He heard a shout and a metal clanging sound as he leapt to the next roof, but he didn't stop to see what it was. Instead, he continued his circuitous route, jumping from building to building in an effort to lose his pursuers. 

Little did he know, he'd lost them on the second jump. One mare, hidden in any shadow she could find had, quite effectively, stopped the pair of guards.

Almost an hour later, he was back in his little room. He was sore. Very sore. His leg muscles burned, his chest heaved and his heart beat against his chest with a will.

"Celestia damn it..." He cursed softly, his words coming in bursts. Within the shadows, Midnight Blossom had to try hard not to laugh at him. Luna had said he'd had the stamina to last days running, and here he was. Puffing like the friendship express after only an hour. It'd been easy for her to follow him on the roofs of the old district, watching from the skies, and now she knew for certain where he was.

Luna didn't have the same idea as Celestia concerning her guards and curses. Luna knew a bit more about them, considering they fell under the realm of 'dark' or 'shadow' magic, which was practically Luna's domain, much like the night. That, and Thestrals were naturally resistant to unicorn magic. With a fanged smile, Midnight Blossom slipped out of the house, her destination already in mind.

Time to pay Skippy a visit then.


~*~


"No."

"Come on Skippy, you know this is important."

"Stop calling me that! And I can't just hand over documents like that to you Midnight, it's not legal, for one."

Midnight rolled her eyes. Cloud Skipper, the pegasus she was talking to right now (seated at a desk, shuffling through new reports), had a uh... 'special' connection. The pair had kept it a secret for a long time, and with Cloud Skipper in charge of making certain the Night Guard was kept in order and under control, the pair could often wrangle something into the schedules to get together during work nights. Interestingly, it had been Luna who had chosen him for the job, not Celestia. It had been the first choice she'd made when the Thestrals had tentatively returned to Canterlot, seeking to make peace with their princess once more. Luna hadn't let Celestia even suggest a pony, and had taken to Cloud Skipper's records.

"Come on Skippy, this is for the Princess! I know the reports cross your desk before they hit Gild's, all I'm asking for is a copy."

"Technically," Cloud Skipper sighed, "Princess Luna has all the authority of Princess Celestia, but I can't give away potentially sensitive information without Celestia's or Gild's say so. I don't make the rules Midnight, but I do have to follow them."

Midnight pouted. It was a weapon she'd used against the white pegasus multiple times, and it had been extremely effective. Though generally it only worked when the pony in question was actually looking at her.

"Skippyyyyy..." She whined, "I need those reports! Come on..."

She pushed her muzzle against his cheek and she heard him swallow with no small amount of satisfaction.

"Midnight..."

After a quick check to make sure they were alone, she nipped at his neck.

"Mmmm?"

The flinch from her sharp teeth pinching his skin made her grin a sharp toothed grin.

"Come on... this isn't exactly the time-"

"The rules never meant much to you whenever we get together," She teased, "What would it do to you if Celestia found out..?"

He froze under her gentle kisses to his neck, his cyan eyes widening in horror.

"You wouldn't!" He exclaimed, panicking more than a little, "You'd be discharged!"

"Eh, not really," She purred, "I'm the victim here, see?"

"How so?" He asked suspiciously. She smirked on his shoulder.

"See, my superior officer made such demands of me," She explained, trying to sound serious, "And if I didn't do it, he was going to put marks on my ledger. Blackmail is such a nasty business..."

She let him stew on that, but when he started hyperventilating, she figured she'd had her fun and pulled back.

"So, the reports?"

He shoved the paperwork over to her quickly and she brightened up considerably.

"Thanks Skippy!" came her bright acknowledgement, "It means the world to me~"

She planted a sweet kiss on his cheek and swept up the paperwork before spinning around and continuing to the door.

"Midnight..." He called nervously. She turned to him. He looked like he'd seen a ghost, or was about to have a heart attack.

"Yes?"

"You... You wouldn't tell... would you?"

She laughed richly and shook her head.

"Of course not. What, and get us discharged? Never."

With that, and leaving behind a fuming Cloud Skipper, Midnight Blossom hopped out.

He'll forgive me... I'll just have to persuade him later.

Now onto the last meeting of the day before going to bed.

Princess Luna.
> Chapter 13
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Luna was furious.

Luna was angry quite often lately, she realized as she gave it a moment's thought. Lots of things were annoying her. Griffon ambassadors, editorial staff, foul mouthed twelve year olds playing Call of Cutie, and the pervs that played HALO online, somepony eating the last cookie...

Lots of things.

But of all those things, three held her most irritable.

Her sister, Celestia.
The Royal Guard, including Gild
And Septimus, the lost stallion.

She was going to rectify two of those right now.

She'd received the reports from Midnight Blossom a little over an hour ago, and after ranting her frustrations at a very patient Midnight, she'd copied the reports and told the young Knight to return the originals to where she found them, which seemed to put a spring in her step as she'd left. Luna had taken the time to dress herself, after calming herself enough to figure out what she was going to do with the new information. An arrow? First a scythe, and now an arrow?

Okay, granted, an arrow is much less potentially lethal than a battle scythe, but that doesn't make things better, or easier to take. This was her friend. He meant something to her. And this conduct was unacceptable. Two out of two attempting to harm, if not kill, Septimus?

Not on her watch. Not anymore.

She'd given an hour. One hour for the report to reach her sister, and was hoping that she'd have called the pair of guards in to speak with them. The idea was to deal with her sister, and the guards, all in one full swoop. It'd taken two hours before the guards in question had gotten back from their patrol, another fifteen minutes to get the reports written. And it had only taken Midnight about thirty seconds to get them off of Cloud Skipper. In that time, it was possible that Septimus had moved from where he was, but Luna was confident, as was Midnight Blossom, she could find him again, no problem.

And so, confidence running high, she pushed the doors to the throne room open. She cut a mean figure, in her sleek dress, sterling silver bangles, matching necklace and shoes.

And her crown.

Whilst not nearly as ostentatious as her sister's massive golden crown, and was only inset with one gemstone, as opposed to her sister's three. The single Lapis Lazuli, chosen because of its resemblance to the night sky, embedded within the crown rested on her brow.

"Sister!" She demanded, striding into the almost empty room, much to the shock of the four ponies present. Gild's face screwed up in an annoyed sort of grimace. The two guards froze, before falling to one knee, and Celestia sighed, head in her hand.

"Luna, what is it? I'm in the middle of something here-"

"That involves me," Luna interrupted sternly, "And this time, you won't be talking over me."

Celestia's eyes narrowed and Gild sighed. The two guards didn't look up, though they did seem to be shaking.

"Princess, with all due respect," Gild said tiredly, "This is a Royal Guard's meeting, and your Night Guard are not here, so I cannot perceive why this has anything to do with you."

Luna huffed at him, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Simple. Your guard shot an arrow at Septimus, despite being told that he is to be taken alive."

Gild stiffened, Celestia grimaced, and the two guards had frozen by now, beyond even shaking in fear now.

"Dare I ask how you know this, Luna?" Celestia asked frostily. Luna held her head high.

"I have just as much right to guard reports as you do, Celestia. And I'm taking over this Operation. Your Royal Guard will no longer pursue Septimus. Instead, my Night Guard will take up the slack."

Celestia's face was slowly turning red, and Gild was looking a bit bewildered, both of which much to Luna's satisfaction. Then Gild spoke up.

"With all due respect," He began carefully, "Princess, the Night Guard are, technically, under my command as well."

"Not anymore, Commander," She said primly, "By my authority as Princess of Equestria, I'm relieving you of your duty of Night Guard Commander temporarily in lieu of your incompetence in command, and obvious lack of respect from your subordinates.

This made Gild's face burn, both in humiliation and indignation.

"P-princess!" He finally burst out, outraged, "This is inconceivable! It's not fair-"

"On the contrary," she replied smugly, "I'm well within my rights. Two attempts, and both times guards attempted to slay their target with lethal force rather than bring them in alive, as commanded. Pending an investigation into your methods, and the reason for the lack of respect, I'm relieving you of command. However!"

She held a finger up imperiously, with a venomously glare at her sister this time.

"Given that I only have true control over my Night Guard's employees, I can only exempt you from command of my ponies, and not my sister's. However, that works for me, given I don't want anything to do with my sister's incompetent and overly violent guards anyway."

The red faced Gild spluttered, grasping desperately at something to say. Finding nothing, he looked to his superior.

"Princess-"

"You're dismissed, Gild."

Gild froze solid, and Luna's eyes widened. It was Celestia, head in hand, who said it. Gild spluttered again before speaking.

"Celestia it's not-"

"She's not lying Gild," Celestia said darkly, turning her burning gaze upon him, "She's well within her authority as a Princess of Equestria. Now-"

"But Princess-"

"ENOUGH!" Celestia commanded, standing from her throne and glaring at him, wings half spread threateningly, "I told you you were dismissed! Now leave me to my sister Captain, or I will relieve you of your position!"

Gild stared at her, then nodded stiffly.

"Your majesty," He answered, just as stiffly as he'd nodded, and he left the throne room, the doors slamming behind him. Celestia looked down at her sister, who simply glared right back defiantly.

"I was under the impression that those specific reports were unavailable to you, Luna. How did you get them?"

"I have my ways, Celestia," Luna answered coldly, "They may not be as obvious as yours, but they work just as well, if not better. And I shall prove it."

"Oh, do tell," Celestia's eyes narrowed at her sister, "How will you do that?"

Luna smirked, confidence radiating off of her like heat from the sun, or light from the moon as it were.

"By tomorrow night," She began smugly, "Not only will I have found Septimus, but I will have him here, and under my jurisdiction."

"Yours sister?" came Celestia's reply, "I have already stated upon his fate, you would seek to undermine me?"

"Undermine authority you don't have?" Luna shot back, "The Thestral, as a race, worship me and my moon as a goddess. You could go to Screech, Shriek, or any of the other settlements and ask them for respect, but I doubt you'd find they obeyed your commands. As for your premature judgement..."

Luna shrugged, lifting her arms as she did so to horizontal position.

"Your ponies had their chance, now it's mine. As a Princess of Equestria, and thus equal with you, I have the authority, and will use said authority, to change laws you have in place, and to render judgement as I see fit. In short, sister," Luna flourished theatrically, "Anything you can do, I can do too."

Silence. Through the throne room, there was absolutely no sound. Eventually however, Celestia sighed.

"Alright then, sister. You win," She said softly, "You have your day, and you have direct command over your guard. Don't disappoint."

Luna huffed, delighted it'd gone so smoothly, but suspicious of why it was so easy to begin with, "Don't be absurd. I will not fail and nor will my Thestrals."

With nose in the air, Luna spun around on her heel, and began walking out. As she was doing so, however, Celestia called to her.

"Luna. What're you wearing on your head?"

Luna paused, and called back, "My Crown, sister. I have every right to."

There was a pause.

"It's a bit small for a crown, Luna."

"Better than your ostentatious monstrosity, sister," Luna shot back icily, and left without another word. Celestia smiled as she left.


~*~


Luna was flanked as she walked down the hall, on one side by a male thestral guard, who didn't speak, and on the other by Midnight Blossom, who was walking much less disciplined.

"So, how'd it go?" She asked casually. Luna harrumphed irritably.

"It could have gone better," She admitted, "But I have my time. So you have your job."

"Fetch the errant boyfriend, got it."

"I told you," Luna replied irritably, "Never to call him that again."

Midnight merely smirked, but once she tried to reply, she found that she couldn't. Her eyes went wide and she looked at Luna. The princess was looking at her hand, which was cupped around a bright golden glow.

"You speak of him so crudely and disrespect me or him again, and I'll see to it you never get this back, understand?"

Midnight nodded emphatically. She had an unusually casual relationship with the moonlight princess of Equestria, but when Luna issued a threat, you damn well listened to it, because she didn't make idle threats. Luna sniffed, and flicked the golden light back at the guard, who stopped as the light tore back into her throat. Luna kept walking, but the other guard stopped with her and smirked at Midnight.

"Shutup," She grumbled painfully with her returned voice. He merely burst out laughing and walked onwards. Midnight was not looking forward to this. 
> Chapter 14
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was a cold night. And Midnight hated cold nights on duty. Normally she didn't really care about how cold the night was. But when she was on duty she was in armour. Armour conducts heat, and consequentially the lack thereof, very well. So, her armour was cold. By extension, that meant she was cold. And Midnight didn't like being cold. Being cold sucked. It meant her joints were stiff and her wings ached.

Being cold was definitely the suckiest thing ever.

But, she had a job to do. A job given to her by Princess Luna herself, rather than the pesky Gild. And she planned on completing it as quickly as possible, so she could get home and be warm again. Yeah. Warm is good.

But no, here she was, chasing down the damn earth pony that her Princess and boss was infatuated with. She knew he hadn't moved, so she had time. Jumping from rooftop to rooftop instead of flying, mostly because it's less tiring, and secondly because it's a bit more fun. That much she understood about Septimus. His love for free running was shared by her, though she doubted he was as good as her. In any case, she was getting close to him, so she started taking a more stealthy approach, so as not to startle her prey for the night.

She saw him almost instantly. He wasn't even making an effort to hide this time. Instead, he was standing on the balcony of the third floor of the building he was in, wrapped in a blanket and leaning on the balcony's guard rail.

She paused for a long moment, watching him. Had he been more alert, perhaps he'd have noticed the bright yellow, slitted irises watching him from another rooftop.

It should be said now that Midnight Blossom was not wearing her traditional armour of the Midnight Guard. No, that would have restricted her movement far too much. Instead, she'd donned a more stealthy outfit, and more formfitting. The dark fabric was wrapped tightly around her, but wasn't quite a catsuit. She also wore a long scarf, for two reasons. One, it was really cold. Two, she thought it looked kinda cool.

When it became clear he wasn't going to move from his place, she smirked and picked her way around the rooftop, to the opposite side of the building, and let herself in via a broken window. Easy really. She decided instead of just walking right up to him, she'd look around first.

The room was a mess, but not because of garbage from him. The room was just a mess of old furniture, several broken chairs and a partially destroyed bed. Clearly, he'd been sleeping on that, it was the only neat thing in the room. And the 'doorway' to the balcony was in shambles. That said, she opened it without a sound, and leaned on the inside of the opening, smirking as she watched him. He sighed, and she sized him up. He was thin, probably from malnutrition by the looks of him, and he wore tattered jeans, if the peeks she was getting from under the blanket thing he was wearing over his shoulders was any indication.

With a smirk, she decided she'd watched him long enough.

"You'll catch cold if you stand out here y'know," She said casually, taking a personal sort of delight at the way he stiffened at the sound of her voice, "You should really come inside. Come to bed Septimus, I'm sure it's healthier than standing out here and freezing."

He turned, slowly, turned to look at her, and she could see dread and just.... Fatigue? He looked so very,  very tired.

"Relax!" She said quickly, holding up both hands, "I'm not here to cuff you, or clap you in irons or any such thing. Not even here to kill you, believe it or not."

Septimus didn't bother to answer, but nor did he seem to relax either. Midnight sighed.

"Look, my name's Midnight Blossom. I'm a... A shadowguard, for Princess Luna. One of her Midnight Guard. She sent me to pick you up, I won't lie."

Septimus still didn't move, and Midnight almost groaned, but he then spoke. He sounded as tired as he looked, and just as weary.

"I have no wish to return to Her Majesty," He said stiffly, "You can run back to her, and tell her I remember my place, better than anypony else I'm willing to bet. And I'm living it."

"Oh, she's well aware of your living conditions," Blossom shrugged sarcastically, "So very, very healthy. Stealing your food, your blankets and clothes."

"I survived," He shot back icily, "I'm still alive, and that's what matters, though sometimes I wonder why I bother."

She paused, re-evaluating him. His hands gripped the handrail behind him very tightly, and looked ready to run again. Her eyes narrowed.

"The solar guard might not be able to follow you Septimus," She warned him slowly, "But I'm no slouch at running the streets myself, and I have wings. You run, and I chase you down. I can't guarantee your safety then."

It didn't seem to alleviate his tension, but his hands did tighten for a minute, before slowly (And probably painfully) letting go of the railing.

"I'm not going back."

"That's not what Luna thinks," She replied coldly, "And it's my order to bring you in. Alive and unharmed. Unharmed, not necessarily conscious."

Septimus shifted slightly, still considering flight. Midnight sighed again.

"Look," She said tiredly, "It's cold out here, and I'm missing the warm fireplace in the guardhouse, and the warmed halls of Canterlot Castle. if you don't mind, could we just go to the castle? You can talk to your errant royal girlfriend, and I can go relax in the guardhouse. You get warm, I get warm, and Luna gets what she wants as well. She'll probably yell at you a bit, then feed you, and we'll be fine and dandy."

Septimus wasn't sure on that. Last he'd seen her, she'd made it pretty clear how pissed she was with him. She'd thrown him bodily across the room with magic for Celestia's sake.

"Last time I saw her," He said slowly, "She threw me across the room without even trying, without a shred of pity. More likely, she'll sentence me to execution just to get rid of me. So unless you have a warrant for my arrest, I suggest you leave."

Right. That's it. Midnight tried to force her anger down, but it wasn't working very well.

That's it. Diplomacy dyke over. This bitch is not being held back.

"Alright look Jackass, Princess Luna sent me to pick you up. You gunna come with me peacefully, or do I kick your ass and then drag you back?"

"If The Princess wanted that, she'd not have sent you," Septimus shot back challengingly, "You're to bring me back unharmed, aren't you?"

"Non-lethal force only," Midnight growled back in reply, "Doesn't mean I can't knock your bitch ass out and drag you back. Pick your poison Septimus. I'm tired, I'm cold, and I want to go back to the barracks."

Septimus glared at her for a long time, then sighed. Midnight smirked as his grip on the railing loosened.

"Fine. I'll talk to her Highness," He grouched, "But if I'm killed, I'm haunting you for the rest of your natural life."

Midnight snorted in response.

"Fine."

Back at the castle, only a few minutes later, Luna received a knock upon her door. It cracked open a moment later.

"Princess. Midnight Blossom reported in. She's on her way with her target. ETA fifteen minutes."

The door closed. Luna smiled.


> Chapter 15
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Princess Celestia. A word?"

The stiff voice of Gild reminded Celestia he was still miffed at her, and she sighed. Nevertheless, she stopped where she was, and looked at him.

"What is it Gild? I'm late for breakfast as it is."

"Reports are in," He replied stiffly, "The fugitive's been found. Septimus is being brought in. He and his detainer are due in a matter of minutes."

Celestia felt a stab of irritation. Gild had stopped her before her breakfast... for this? This... paltry excuse for news?

"Gild," she began slowly, "I'm aware that my dismissal of your want to imprison Septimus, and then the further dismissal of you yesterday from the throne room, and from your authority, has grated upon your patience. I'm aware that you want nothing more than to imprison, try and then sentence him with impunity."

Gild said nothing, his bandaged wing stiff against his side, his face like stone. For some reason, this irked Celestia more than his wasting her time did, and it was her who'd suggested the guard remain impassive!

"Regardless of this, you are forgetting," She continued, trying to keep her voice in check, "It is not in the hands of you, nor me, to capture or try Septimus anymore. I gave my sister twenty-four hours to prove she could handle it. At the end of these twenty-four hours, I'm sure I'd have been notified of her failing or succeeding in her quest herself. What you have done here is not only unnecessary, but very annoying. You have interrupted my walk to breakfast, and thus delayed my breakfast and morning coffee for a petty reason and, to be frank, you're lucky I'm not dismissing you on the spot. Thank you for the news, but I'm afraid you've done nothing but prove yourself a shallow, stubborn stallion, and that you're willing to waste my time."

If it were possible, Celestia would have thought that he went even stonier at her accusation, and it brought her a surprising warmth. A burst of satisfaction, as it were.

"Your time would be spent better training your guards to follow orders and respect the authority who gives them to them. Go do that, and stop wasting my time."

Gild, stiff faced, thundercloud eyes and rigid back, nodded, mumbled his assent, and left her presence. Celestia, feeling a little better about her morning, continued on her way to breakfast. It was the best she could do with such a horrible start to her morning. As she entered the grand dining hall, she saw Luna, awake early for the first time in a long time, looking decidedly pleased with herself.  Celestia tried not to let that affect her as she walked briskly to the table, and hurriedly picked up the still-steaming mug of coffee waiting for her, and downed it in record time, putting the mug back on the table, and noticing that, for the first time, the staff had left the entire pot for her.

Her breakfast was extravagant, as usual. She didn't like the idea of having meals so much larger than her people, but she'd become used to them, and a little too fond of sweet treats. A stack of four pancakes the size of her hand with spread fingers, covered in whipped cream, a scoop of icecream and a carnation of strawberries. As well, was a several blueberries and blackberries.

Faced with the idea of Luna rubbing her face in the idea that her guard were better, Celestia sighed, and poured herself another cup of coffee before sitting down opposite her sister. The table was narrow, but long, widening out into a sun shape in the center to accomodate platters of food. Both sisters declined the heads of the table when in private.  The bathrobe she was wearing was not very princess like, but it was comfortable, and didn't hurt her neck or give her a headache.

"Gild has informed me of your success," She began, trying to beat Luna to the punch, "I must say, I'm surprised. I'd been told your guard were mostly misfits and renegades that had problems with authority."

Luna, mouthful of pancake, laughed in her throat before swallowing to answer primly, "They don't have a problem with authority, they have a problem with his authority, and that he's an arrogant snob, actually."

Celestia wanted to defend him, but given his recent behaviour, found herself agreeing with her sister, for once.

"I... must agree," She admitted, and for a moment the hall was silent even of chewing, as Luna stared at her, eyes wide. Celestia frowned, "Is there something on my face? Did I miss something when I showered?"

"No..." Luna said slowly, "But you're agreeing with me. You never agree with me."

"Not so," Celestia argued, "We've agreed to things in the past."

"Name one," Luna replied flatly. Celestia frowned, but pointed with her fork at her sister as she began.

"The legislation for nobles' taxes," She put forth as an example, "We agreed it best to change it to higher than it was. It boosted the economy six percent on its own."

"I wasn't part of that discussion actually, you're thinking of your secretary," Luna reminded her. Celestia faltered, then tried again.

"Our decision that Cadance should learn to take care of her new Empire without our influence," She put forth a new angle this time. Luna shook her head this time.

"Your decision, I never opened my mouth because I wasn't entirely sure I knew what was going on, and don't know anything about ruling as far you're concerned anyway," came Luna's sharp reply. Celestia's frown deepened, and she tried again.

"The movement to open up a grand orphanage and homeless shelters to prevent ponies begging for scraps on the streets!"

Luna winced at that one, "You mean the one that got shut down in congress because you were outvoted by the rich majority and were told that since you didn't recognize me as a co-ruler, my vote didn't count?"

Celestia's frown deepened and she nodded painfully. Luna sighed and nodded, "I suppose we agreed on that, but I didn't know what it was until after the meetings when you explained it to me and why you were trying to use my name with yours."

"I thought it'd be something you thought was a good idea," Her older sister explained, "Besides, that's one thing we agreed on."

"Once," Luna replied, "And only after it was shut down. If you'd brought me in before, the movement would have passed and there'd be less homeless on the streets."

Celestia winced and looked at her half eaten breakfast.

"I suppose I deserved that one," She lamented, "Alright, fine, we've made some mistakes..."

"No sister," Luna replied firmly, "You have. You're a great leader, don't misunderstand. You've had over a thousand year's practice and you've gotten very good at it," She locked eyes with Celestia, "But you've gotten good at it alone, and I don't think it's fear for me that you've kept me from a rightful throne beside you. I think it's because you're afraid of the change I'll bring. I understand your concern, but I don't think I deserve such unfair treatment either."

"I've kept you from the throne because you're still not ready!" Celestia protested weakly, "I mean no disrespect from it, and I know I've been hard on you..."

"Hard on me?" She demanded, "Is that what you call it? A strict curfew and guard detail twenty-four seven, not allowed out in my own beautiful night to enjoy the darkness, to meet all these ponies you insist adore my skies? Putting everything I say down, or calling me out on how childish you think I'm being? Is that what it's like to be 'hard' on somepony?"

Celestia winced again, and took a draft of her coffee.

"When you say it like that..." She said weakly. Luna sighed.

"Sister... I love you," She began earnestly, "And I know you want to protect me, and you want to protect your people, and they are your people, regardless how many times you insist otherwise, but I can't grow or mature without more challenges to push me. I need responsibilities back, to learn from mistakes, like you did, so when I'm as old as you, I can rule as well as you. But not on my own."

She reached across the table and took her sister's white hand in her own.

"I want to rule beside you sister," She explained, "As an equal. I know... in the past, my jealousy got the better of me, but I promise, I'm older now, I'm a little more mature, and I understand that my reasoning was... foalish, and above all, not worth the pain it caused us both. I don't want a throne to myself..."

She smiled, an honest and sincere smile that melted Celestia's heart.

"I want to rule beside you big sister, side by side. Guardians of the day, and of the night. Protectors of our little ponies, in spite of anything that strikes, we'll strike back twice as hard. I promise you, I won't let you down."

The pair stayed that way for a long moment, before Luna, finished with her meal now and in pajamas much like her sister, stood up.

"Think about it," She said softly, "And remember, I love you sister, no matter what."

And she left, leaving Celestia to ponder her words. Her food was forgotten, only the cup of coffee in her hands being consumed mil by mil.

Perhaps... I have become blinded and fearful of change... Maybe she is ready, and it's me who isn't.

Maybe it's time I stopped being afraid, and showed a little faith of my own.
> Chapter 16
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Gild's reports were wrong.

Very wrong.

In fact, they were so off in timescale, because Luna had planned it that way. She took Midnight's report, and altered a copy of it to submit to Blossom's superiors. Whilst technically she was circumventing important procedure and rules, Luna got away with it because of her name, and her ability to simply silence whomever tried to get the truth out. Besides, it wasn't like it was a huge issue. Septimus just arrived about eight hours before Gild had received word that he was due. Fun times, except he was being kept under guard at the barracks, not in a cell or Luna's room, like he'd been in before. So, in a bunk, surrounded by Thestral warriors who were more than wide awake, he sat, rather terrified.

There were two familiar faces, however, that brought him comfort. The old, scarred Thestral guard and his trainee, though he couldn't be called that now. He hadn't gotten their names during any of their 'fetchings' of him, and he learned them now. The elder Thestral, Rend, had been a soldier for most of his life, but served mostly in Screech, the Nox capitol. The younger, Echo, had been a rookie fresh from the academy when he'd been transferred here, and so was paired with Rend for training purposes. They spent the majority of the time telling him all about their people, and their world.

"It's perpetual darkness," Rend told him blithely, "We live mostly in caves and tunnel networks in the mountains and underground. Make the finest hidden doors you've ever not seen."

Echo had a laugh at the lame joke, which lightened Rend's face. He forgave Sep for not laughing, given his situation. Echo was more interested in talking about his people as a people, not where they lived.

"There's more to the Nox than just us thestrals," He told Septimus animatedly, "We're just the most common, so we're the first sent here, transferred once the Goddess returned. There's also Magians, who're like your unicorns, and Salters, who're like the earth ponies. We're just like you guys, came from the same ancestors, but our races are like brother and sister, or cousins."

A couple of times, he caught glimpses of the mare who'd brought him here, but mostly she sat in front of the fire, before finally going to bed. She was much more intimidating in her armour, with the thin, sharp looking crescent moon upon the top of her helmet. Rend explained that too.

"It's a ranking thing," He explained, "Midnight's the Princess' favorite, no doubt. She's honest, and gives her what she needs. That's the moon, symbol of Luna's favorite. Only reason we use it for that rather than it's normal use here? We don't have any real ranks here. Gild's a hardass, doesn't trust us. So, we're kept in reserve most times. We see better in the dark than anyone, but we're reserves. Stupid, stupid stallion, to not take advantage of that. Mark my words kid, by the time he realises how useful we are, he'll be out of office."

"What about that guy?"

The pair looked at where Sep was pointing, at a stranger in this barracks of Thestrals. A pegasus, dressed in their gear. Rend shrugged.

"That? S'name is Nomad. Reckon our Illustrious captain stuck him with us to keep an eye, but he hardly does anything. He's nocturnal though, and that means he can run with us if he wants."

Echo piped up then, "There's another pegasus who looks after us, but he's not really part of our core. His name's Cloud Skipper, but we just call him 'Skippy'. Blossom came up with it. I'm not sure he likes it though."

"Can't imagine why," Septimus muttered. It was scary, in a room full of predatory Thestrals, especially once Echo and Rend explained their dietary needs. Not the best way to build trust, being told that they drank the blood of others to sustain themselves. They began to go into the in depth explanation, when Septimus was finally dragged away, this time by a severe looking Thestral who didn't speak.

And where else was he dragged?

Surprisingly, not to Luna's room, as he'd expected. No, he was marched to the Throne Room, where Luna sat on her sister's throne, clad in a stunning dress that sparkled like her night sky, delicate silver crown upon her brow, silver choker on, and a silver ring with the same thin moon as on Spring's helmet on it. Septimus recognised the significance immediately.

She's the Princess' favorite.

"We bring forth the defendant, Septimus, to be judged as Our Lady of the Moon sees fit."

"The throne recognises Septimus, and this trial will commence henceforth. Septimus, you are charged with the following crimes."

Luna reached down, and was handed a piece of paper, which she looked at.

"Assault on an officer, Assault on a civilian, and petty theft. You get a defence for each offence. Do tell."

Septimus just stared, overwhelmed. Luna looked back at him, almost smugly.

"We'll start with Assault on an Officer. How do you defend yourself?"

"It... was an accident?" he said vaguely, "I was... showing you stuff and he opened the door I was running up?"

Luna nodded.

"Fair enough. Charge dropped. Second Charge, Assault on Civilian, has already been pardoned. Last, petty theft. How do you plead?"

"Uh... guilty? For survival!"

"You had other choices," She replied sternly, "Turning yourself in to the guard would have resulted in three square meals per day, a bed in which to sleep and a roof over your head, for example. Seeking shelter with other ponies is another possible course of action favourable to thievery. You had options, you simply didn't consider them."

"I was running away from you, remember?" He asked acidly, "You threw me across the room!"

"Not without reason, and you know it. That's a personal issue, that you and I will discuss in private away from the courtroom."

She looked down at the scribe, a thestral teen who was taking his job very seriously, but had paused, unsure.

"Write that down too, for the sake of correct archiving," She told him gently. He nodded seriously, and went back to writing rapidly, "For future reference dear, write down everything you hear."
He nodded seriously again, but didn't respond. She turned back to Septimus.

"Septimus. For the crimes of petty theft, and assault against an officer of the law," She began, "Whose name will be redacted to preserve his dignity, you are to serve two months community service. I will state for the sake of the court that this sentence has indeed been lessened in severity due to the circumstances of the second charge mentioned. These months of service start tomorrow, to be discussed and decided upon tomorrow morning with a single witness of my choosing. This session is now adjourned, guard take him to his bunk in the Barracks, I will collect him in my own time to discuss his form of community service."

And before he knew it, it was over, and he was being escorted out and back to his little bunk in the Barracks, surrounded by guards again.

Still reeling from what he'd just been told.

That was hours ago.  Septimus looked miserably at the clock next to the bunk he'd been supplied. Nope, almost a day. That meant they'd ignored his 'official' hearing time. He hadn't been called. It had to be soon that he'd be called to Luna's side to discuss his sentence, incredibly light though it was. Seriously, Public Service? For all those crimes? Well, in his defence...

"Septimus. Luna's calling for you."

Sep sighed.

Here we go again.
> Chapter 17
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Luna's room was chilly. Then again, it was a cold night. For this reason, both sisters had decided not to wear their regular accoutrements and fine dresses. Instead, they were both dressed in similar faux fur coats over deceptively warm, plainer dresses, so as to still look 'princessy' in Luna's terms. Gild had not been invited to this particular meeting, and there was a reason behind that. Or, so Celestia assumed.

"Sister," She began, pulling her coat a little tighter around herself, "Why is Gild not here? I would think that, since all of our other meetings have had him here, you would have told him to attend as well."

Luna nodded quietly. It was true, normally the Guard Captain would attend a meeting such as this. And she had considered inviting him, for once not out of spite or malice either. But in the end, she'd come to a rather simple conclusion.

"Guard Captain Gild requires sleep, like any other pony," She replied, not as bothered as her older sister by the cold breeze that blew into the room from her open window, "I thought, rather than keep him up another night, I would allow him rest, and did not tell him of this meeting entirely. If I had notified him, he would have demanded he attend, out of a sense of both duty and personal responsibility concerning Septimus, both a grudge and duty. It was simply too much conflicting interest and too great of a cruelty to keep him up just to override any argument he'd make against my decision."

Celestia gave that some thought, and frowned, "So, you're circumventing him, to save him the trouble of being overridden."

"Basically, yes," Luna replied with a smirk, "But to save him the irritation really. Well, to save me the disappointment, him the humiliation of being overridden over something he thinks he needs to deal with, but he doesn't need to."

Celestia's face was neutral, but she felt a small amount of both amused and concerned. It was an interesting move. Certainly a rather shady tactic, but a viable one for diplomacy to prevent issues... Perhaps Luna was growing up faster than she thought.

"Besides, Septimus is my problem," Luna continued stiffly, "My responsibility. I won't have him looking over my wings and judging me because he thinks he knows best."

Celestia remained silent. She was here to observe, so... I suppose I'll wait and see what happens.

It didn't take long before there was a knock upon Luna's door. Luna smirked, "Perfect timing. You may Enter."

The door was opened, and in came a pair of Luna's guard. Held between them was Septimus, who wasn't terribly impressed to be being restrained as he was. Plus, it was cold, and he was wearing a thin shirt. Not fun.

"Septimus," Luna smiled diplomatically at him, "Glad you could join us."

Septimus looked at the sisters. Celestia frowned. He did not look like he had the first, or last, time she'd seen him. He was thin. Dangerously so, and any light that had been in his eyes around her sister was dim or too dark to see anymore. He had deep shadows under his eyes, and his arm was in a plaster cast. He looked like death that had been heated in a microwave for a few minutes.

"I agreed to come here to talk," Septimus replied hollowly, "And you put me on trial instead. Why should I trust your word now?"

"It wasn't me who told you I just wanted to talk," Luna replied archly, "That was my subordinate. It's not my fault if something gets lost in translation along the way."

Sep's eyes turned to Celestia, and she felt a prickle at the back of her neck as they hardened.

"Princess," He said coldly, "Still trying to get your ponies to kill me, or can I actually step outside now?"

Celestia's cheeks reddened in combined outrage and shame, but she didn't speak. Nor did she look away. Instead, her visage only turned stern. This wasn't her meeting, she was here as a witness, not as a judge. Not this time. This was her sister's duty this time, as strangely as that sounded in her mind. Instead, she let the jab at her pass. He was right to be angry, after all. Twice he had nearly been seriously injured, if not killed, by her guards.

"Enough, Septimus," Luna said, and his attention returned once more to her, "I haven't brought you here to be petty. I've brought you here to hear the details of your punishment for crimes you have committed, as well you know. Antagonizing myself, or my sister, will do you no good, and will only serve to further the depth of your punishment's severity, do you understand me?"

Septimus scowled, and looked away. Had his arm not been in a cast, he'd likely have crossed his arms. But then, they were also being restrained at the moment by two guards, so even if he'd wanted to...

Caught. Like a rat in a trap, waiting for the lethal blow. Great. Typical really.

"Septimus, when last we met," Luna began, then gesturing slightly, "Before the trial, we had a slight misunderstanding. A falling out between us, and that was brought about by a combination of miscommunication, a lack of self control, and anger on both sides. I had just been given a modicum of authority back by my sister, and I was excited to use it. My trip lasted longer than it had, and I had you released from your imprisonment, because I felt partially responsible for your actions."

Celestia managed to keep a straight face, but felt a stab of guilt and surprise at her sister's admission. She'd thought that Luna had simply been flaunting her authority to get Septimus freed, not that she'd felt partially responsible. She'd never told Celestia that. Not once.

"I was too proud to admit it before, but I should have at least left you a message," She admitted, "We'd started spending so much time together, that I should have done just that. But I didn't. That led you to thinking that I had abandoned you, and left you to yourself. Well, that was never my plan. The ensuing argument and disagreeable actions on both sides left us further from each other than I'd like to admit, and I felt terrible. So, to begin this meeting, I'd be eternally grateful if you accepted my deepest apologies for my actions, and I hope that, perhaps in time, we can be to each other what we... what we were before."

Septimus was quiet. This wasn't what he'd expected. Like before, he'd expected her, once in close quarters, to be as she was before. Stern, angry even, and violent. But she wasn't. Now she was asking for his forgiveness? He wasn't sure how to react to this. It was a lot more like the Luna he'd come to know so well in his visits, as opposed to how she was when she'd come back. Almost refreshing. But at the same time...

"Can we get on with this please," Septimus asked, sounding more uncomfortable that he wanted to sound at that point, "I... I want to go home."

For a moment, Luna looked a little lost, but only for a moment. Truthfully, she had expected a worse answer from him. This was... promising? More so than what she'd predicted would happen.

"You won't be going back to your old home," She replied, "I've deemed it unsafe, and therefore I won't allow you to return. I still remember the reasons you found yourself here to begin with, and I won't allow that to happen again. Instead, you'll be making a temporary home within the confines of a small housing facility we have built for labourers from outside the city who are working for extended periods of time. You'll find all your belongings have already been relocated to your allocated room. Whilst you're there, you will be expected to carry out your sentence each day. Two months of community service, as found appropriate in court. Your handler will-"

"My handler?" Septimus interjected, sounding distinctly offended, "What're you talking about 'handler'?" Luna glared at him, and when he went quiet, she continued as though he'd never said anything.

"Your handler will receive orders in concerns to what task, and how long or the stipulations of finishing said task, at the start of each day, and will be sure to tell you exactly what, when and how long you need to do each chore for that day. Once completed, the day will be yours to do with as you wish, but your handler will remain with you for the duration of the day. Is this clear?"

"So, I'm to be walked about like an animal on a leash," Septimus growled, "Figures."

"No, you're to be watched like the potentially explosive boy you are," Luna corrected archly, "I hate to tell you this Septimus, but had you not slammed me against a wall upon seeing me again, I wouldn't have felt threatened enough to throw you across the room. You were angry. I understand. But until you learn to control your anger, you'll always be a danger to yourself, and those around you."

She paused, then looked at Celestia, "I think that just about covers it. Is this satisfactory sister?"

Celestia started, and looked at Luna, wide eyed. She'd... actually forgotten what she was doing here. She'd not needed to say anything the whole time, and now Luna was asking her whether or not her sentence was satisfactory?

"I," She began, then cleared her throat, "I think it's just fine Luna. Well done."

Luna smiled, and Celestia's heart melted. It had become a rare thing, to see her sister smile at her. And to see it now was... Celestia wasn't sure. She didn't have the words to describe what it was like, but she wanted to see it more. Celestia had heard of her smile described as the sun coming up. Whilst that was a beautiful sight, she found the full moon more so. One could gaze upon the full moon without harm, and admire it's beauty. Luna was just like that when she smiled. She could probably just smile, then steal the souls of all their allies if she'd wanted to.

Luna had turned back, and said something to Septimus, Celestia noted with minor concern. She wasn't listening anymore. She'd done her job. She'd keep her composure for now, let things play out as they would. 

She smiled. She watched as Septimus left, and Luna finally sighed, letting her shoulders fall. Without a word, Celestia embraced her sister warmly.

"I'm so proud of you Lulu," Luna's breath hitched in her throat, "You're acting like a Princess of Equestria, being fair, but just, and to somepony who means so much to you."

Luna swallowed a sob, and hugged her sister back, "Th-thank you Tia..."

Celestia suddenly had a thought. Back to the conversation she'd had some time back, with one of her guards

You're not helping her Anymore Princess, with all due respect. You're holding her back. Give her some responsibility, even if it's only an inch. She'll show you if she's ready or not.

"I'm also so sorry sister," Celestia continued, swallowing back a sob of her own, "I've... I've refused to see you as anypony but my baby sister, who needed to be protected, and was still so young... I've lived without you for a thousand years, and now that I have you back, all I've done is squash any chances you had to grow again. You were more than ready for your title, a long time before I gave it to you. I just... I didn't want to see it."

Within the embrace of her sister's arms, head hidden within her warm bosom, and hearing the mighty heartbeat of the Princess of the Sun, seen by some as a deity or goddess, Luna smiled, and gently patted her sister's back.

"It's okay... but I am totally going to make you make it up to me."

Celestia couldn't help but laugh a little, "I look forward to it little sister."
> Chapter 18
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It had been two months. Two long, painful months for Septimus. However, for the first time in a long time, he was never truly alone. No, now he lived with his 'handler', an excitable pegasus mare named Featherlight, and she was always with him, even when he went shopping. Plus, due to her status as his handler, she was technically on leave from her post as a Royal Guard (Solar division), and was not to wear her armour around him. Due to this, she had left the adopted seriousness of her position behind, and was instead how she would be on a regular day, which Septimus found was quite refreshingly bouncy.

He'd also bonded with her a lot. When she had to watch him at night whenever he ran the city, she decided instead to get him to teach her how to do it. So, now, he had a running buddy. She wasn't as good as he was, but she'd proven herself a more than apt student, and had done things that he found he physically couldn't, thanks to her wings. That said, his experience proved also useful, and he found having a partner to run with was more refreshing than he'd first believed it was, or would be. She could also cook up a few decent meals, so in exchange for the parkour lessons, she taught him how to cook.

It was fair, and Septimus found that, despite the sometimes absurd projects he was given from day to day, his life had, honestly, improved. 

But he still thought about Luna, and about what they used to have. Over the past few months, there had been several proclamations about Luna. The night court opening, so Luna could be petitioned. Luna now having a seat in both diplomatic and economic hearings and meetings. She was becoming more and more a Princess. It made Septimus both happy, and depressed. He knew already there was no way he could see her again, not after everything they'd gone through...

But sometimes he really wanted to. He missed her smile, the way her hair smelled, the feel of her hugs, and how excited she got whenever she beat him in a game. Even her competitive edge. And the feel of her fingers on his skin.

There was a lot about her he missed, and sometimes it made his heart ache. 

But no, He had to put her out of his mind. He'd spent his time with Luna. He'd messed up. Certainly, he still thought it was partially her fault. She overreacted, he told himself. He could barely pay attention to Featherlight as she babbled at him from the kitchen, his pencil twiddling. He'd taken up art a little after Feather had started handing him jobs from the Royal duo, and he liked to think he was improving. Unfortunately, he also found that the most prominent thing he drew was Luna herself, beautiful hair down her back, a small smile on her face, like she'd done something she shouldn't have, and she knew it, and you didn't. Like a cat, one could say. A smug Cat.

"And that's how monkeys will one day inherit the earth, and throw stones at anyone who disagrees."

Septimus looked up, blinking, "What?"

Featherlight smirked at him, "You've been staring at that picture for an hour, and your dinner's cold now. Something's up. I know you don't want to talk to me about it, and I know it's about the Princess, so I'll leave it be. But if you don't eat your food, I won't let you go out tonight."

Septimus blinked again, Idly putting a forkful of what was probably really delicious Pasta Primavera in his mouth, "I'm going out tonight?" He asked, mouth full of food. Featherlight giggled again.

"Yes, you're going running tonight," She replied, "You always do when you get into a funk, and you'll be running alone tonight. I have a date tomorrow, so I need to be fresh for it. Your orders will trot along, and I'll trot along. I trust you to take care of yourself."

Septimus frowned, and went back to eating. Sometimes, he felt she'd figured him out so completely it was somehow supernatural. But hey... Running didn't sound so bad.

"I know you won't listen, but keep a shirt on this time, okay?"

He smirked, "Whatever you say Feathers."

Almost an hour later, he stood upon the roof of a Canterlot building once again, breathing deep the air of the night. The crisp chill, the clean invigoration. It was familiar. Bittersweet, and revitalizing. Septimus smiled. He's already taken off his shirt, and was wearing his scuffed, beaten up sneakers. This was his domain. The city of a night.

He jumped.

Flipping of the edge of the building and landing on the fire escape, he vaulted the hand rail, using it as extra leverage to push him through the air into the opposite building's escape, clinging to it's handrail. Thankfully, these buildings weren't tall, and he could drop the rest of the way into a dumpster, rolling off of the lid and onto the cement, running before his feet even touched the ground.

It was always refreshing. Always opening new avenues of thought, even if only for a while. He cleared a gap with a somersault, kept running. The city was his playground, and the world full of potential. It made everything seem so trivial, so easily solved. The rush of the wind was all he needed, and the adrenaline pumping through his veins was his drug. He was free.

Another hour passed, an hour of running, leaping, rolling, twisting. Free running. And eventually, panting, Septimus stopped for a breather. It was a full moon that night, and his his chest heaved in breaths, he looked around, and felt a pang of recognition.

This was where he'd first met her.

In a rush of bittersweet memories, he approached the handrail, gliding his hand over it. Yes... this was the place. He sighed, and jumped up, sitting with his legs dangling over empty space, and looked out over the city. The moon was bright enough to show him everything, and he smiled sadly. He remembered all of his meetings with her, in painful clarity.

"I had hoped to find you out here."

Septimus started, almost falling, and spun around, landing on his feet. Towering above him, stood the....

"Princess?"

Celestia smiled, and self-consciously brushed back her faded pink hair, "What, a girl can't wind down now and again?"

He looked at his feet quickly, averting his eyes, "I wouldn't presume to tell you what you can and cannot do, Princess."

There was an edge to his voice he couldn't remove, and Celestia couldn't help but hear it. She sighed. Shoes clacking against the cobblestones, and then Celestia was leaning on the railing, looking out over her city.

"Septimus, it's true I've wronged you," She said softly. Septimus didn't reply, a little bewildered, and angry, "My lax attitude towards my guard's discipline nearly cost you your life not once, but twice, and my refusal to see my sister as the mare she was hurt you both. I was rude to you, cruel perhaps, and that is unbecoming of any mare, regardless of station, but completely inexcusable for a Princess of Equestria, built upon the ideals of Love, Tolerance and Harmony."

Now, Septimus looked at her. Her eyes were downcast, and she didn't hold herself high, as he'd always seen her do. She looked tired. Sad perhaps.

"My behaviour could have corrupted my sister yet again, only this time it would be anger, and resentment from the way I treated her, rather than the way she was seen as a leader. And I have nopony but myself to blame. In addition, my blindness lead to me hurting you, the first true friend she's had in thousands of years, save my student of course. My arrogance could have lead me to lose her, and her you. For that, you have my deepest, and most heartfelt apologies."

For a long moment, both were silent. Septimus wrestled with mixed emotions of resentment, anger, guilt and sympathy. He wanted to throw it all back in her face, let her know how much he hated her. Hated her guts, everything she did... but looking at her now, he couldn't. With a frustrated sigh, he held his arms out to the sun Princess.

"Come on then," He grumbled, "I'm not going to stand here all night."

Celestia looked at him, puzzled.

"I'm... sorry?"

"Look, you either hug me, or I hug you, either way it's going to be awkward and probably laughable, but I reckon you need one right now, and I'd rather not be you from before, alright?"

She flinched, at that, but smiled soon after, and embraced the peachy stallion. He did his best to reciprocate, but it's hard when the pony in question is two feet taller than you, if not more. The hug held for a moment, and Celestia drew back, a kind smile on her face.

"You do me a great service," she looked out over the city, "One most would not offer. Forgiveness.... is not easy. But thank you. Thank you for giving me another chance."

"Don't mention it," He grumbled, face going red, "Ever. Literally. Just don't."

Celestia smirked, "Alright. I won't. I'll see you again. Sooner, rather than later, I expect."

And like that, she was gone. Septimus blinked, and looked around. Nope, she definitely was no longer here. She'd just vanished! How does...? How did that..?

The hell?

After another moment of complete confusion, Septimus grumbled, and let the whole thing go, returning to his contemplation of the city, but only leaning on the railing this time.

Disappear into thin air like that...

"I remember..."

He froze. This voice was very familiar. And one he never thought he'd hear again. Not personally anyway, "I remember meeting a young stallion here with a lot on his mind. Seems that, a year, or close to, later, he's still here."

It had to be Luna. But he found that, like all the previous times he'd met her here, he couldn't move. He couldn't help but smile a little. 

"It brings back memories, I won't lie," He replied, "I... didn't think I'd hear your voice again."

A little giggle from Luna sent a little thrill through Septimus, and he forced it back down, only just now remembering he was meant to be angry at her.

"Well, you'd have heard me regardless, once you were done with your three months. You would have had to reappear before my court at the end of that time anyway, and since I know where you live..."

"You'd find me regardless."

"Something like that," A wing brushed hesitantly against Septimus' shoulder. The contact was brief, and it pulled away before it could be considered meaningful, "Septimus... I wanted to talk to you."

"Well, you have me here," He replied, "Go ahead."

There was a pause, and Luna coughed, clearing her throat.

"Septimus... it's been... I've been considering my... my behaviour, when we uh... reunited..."

"When you flung me across the room?"

"Yeah... when I did that. It's... it's occurred to me, quite a while ago to be honest, that I... I might have gone too far."

"Oh, it's occurred to you has it?" Septimus asked snarkily, "Shocking."

"Be nice," She replied quietly, ashamedly, "I'm here, aren't I? I'm apologising now."

Septimus sighed.

"I'm... I'm sorry. It's still... I've never been good at closing old wounds."

Another long pause. It stretched for what felt like an eternity. Then, once again, her wing brushed against him and she began again.

"Septimus, I'm sorry. I was... I was angry with you. Angry with myself. Afraid... I thought you were going to hit me. And that scared me. I lashed out, and you were there. I'm sorry... Okay?"

Septimus was quiet, looking out across the city. It was dark, illuminated only by the moonlight. The lights in the entertainment district were pulsing and flashing, the only lights in the city save the street lamps. He mulled over her words for a long time. At the end of it all, he sighed.

"I... was pushy," He replied quietly, "I was angry, furious. I was angry at you, angry at myself, at Gild, at the world. You left me, without word, for months. And then, you came back, liberated me, and then expected me to just understand?"

"I was excited, it was my first responsibility as a princess since I was sent to the moon," Luna complained, "I forgot a lot of important things, not just you."

"Oh, and that should make me feel better?" He snapped back angrily, firmly keeping his hands by his sides, "I'm just as forgettable as a toothbrush or a hairbrush?"

"No!" She replied, also getting angry, "That's not what I-"

"Not what!? Not what you meant? Not what you said? Listen to yourself Luna!" With a force of will he didn't know he possessed, he forced himself out of her compulsion charm (Though he didn't know what it was at the time) and began walking, gesticulating wildly with his arms, "I was forgotten! The only friend I've had, proper friend mind you, since I left my parent's home to live here, and you just up and _forget_ about me! For a _diplomatic task_ given to you by your sister!"

"It was an important-" Luna began, taken aback at the savagery in his voice, the pain, but he cut her off.

"Of course it was important!" He snapped, "It's the business of the nation! Keeping it running! Why the fuck would you remember me, right?"

"I didn't think-"

"No! You didn't!" He snapped again, turning to face her this time, and pointing at her, face flushed in anger and pain, tears in his eyes as his voice broke, "You didn't fucking think! You didn't think anything but the fact your sister finally gave you something to do! Celestia gives you one thing and you drop everything else like a sack of potatoes to go running to her beck and call, to make her _proud_ and to make yourself _feel good_ ! And then, when I needed you most, when I was at my absolute lowest _You weren't there!_ "

"Well, I'm sorry I had things to do!" She batted his hand away, glaring impudently at him in return, "I had to go pacify a _nation_ Septimus!"

"And we all have to fight our demons Princess," He snarled back, his voice low, "You and me? We lost to them. A long time back."

She flinched, and looked away. Tension that, previously, had been thick enough to choke on, vanished, and Septimus came down from his rage. What did he feel when he looked upon the shame faced and guilty Princess before him?

Shame. Shame of his words, his actions. Sorrow.

Love.

"Luna..." He said softly, taking a step closer, and reaching to take her hand. She jerked it away, "Luna, look at me. Please?"

He took her hand again, and this time she didn't let go. She looked at him, though it pained him to see her in such a state.

"I'm sorry..." He apologised once more, "I've... I've been holding on to that pain and anger for so long, it festered. I didn't even know I still had it until we started speaking.... but what I said wasn't... It was horrible. And it wasn't the point."

He took her other hand too, and held both gently, looking at his hands. Even with her growth spurt, his hands were bigger than hers. They looked so vulnerable in his bigger, calloused hands.

"I... I wanted to say we're better together," He tried again, swallowing heavily, "We... You're the shining star to my lightless nights. Without you, I'm lost, and I wander deeper and deeper into the darkness. And every day makes it harder to get out. Having... Having a friend helps, I won't lie. Featherlight is... she's excellent company."

He swallowed again, and tried a different tact. Luna's hands were now gripping his, although in disgust, shock or anger he didn't know, he dared not look at her face.

"My mother always told me it's who we're closest to that are able to hurt us the most," He began again, trying to work through the words he wanted to use to get his point across, "And... I've been hurt before. But never so much as being hurt by you ever did. But when we had everything working? When it was you and I against the world? I felt like I could take the world on, and win, so long as I had you by my side. And... I liked being with you. Hanging out, playing stuff, just talking... It was awesome, you know? When we had that fight..."

"You were in a dark place."

He nodded slowly.  Luna smiled sadly, "Septimus... We were a good team. No doubt about it. You made me feel whole again, like I wasn't missing anything anymore. I thought that, so long as I had you in my life, I'd be okay, you know? No more doubts, no more fears... you helped me fight them. We were a team. I've been so busy lately... That I'd forgotten what it felt like to belong. I felt that, whenever I was with you. I felt like I belonged." 

Septimus sighed, "Then what happened?  Why'd we..?"

Silence. Awkward, unhappy silence. When Luna spoke, Septimus was actually relieved.

"I took it too fast, I think," She said quietly, "I was so excited to finally have a friend, I went about it all wrong. I took you out from your life, and tried to bring you into mine. I didn't think about... well, much of anything."

"And I got too dependant on you I think," Septimus replied, "And when I didn't have you to drag me out of my mundane, irritating life, I lost it. When you got back, I guess I vented at you."

Luna raised a brow, a small smile lifting the corners of her mouth cutely, and Septimus flushed, "Okay, okay, I went off the deep end. I Hulked out, I lost my temper, I threw a temper tantrum, I tied a bag of jello to a tree and beat it with my-"

He was silenced with wide eyes as Luna put a finger over his lips. She was trying not to laugh, he could see the familiar twinkle in her eyes that made his heart ache, it had been so long since he'd seen it. Gently, she took his cheeks in her hands, and leaned up to kiss him.

Septimus froze, eyes wider than saucers. 

This is... She's actually..!?

Luna's closed eyes were marred by a frown, and she drew back, beautiful eyes opening in confusion and concern, "Septimus?"

There was a heartbeat of silence, and Septimus responded, pressing back into Luna. She squealed and laughed as his right hand ran through her hair, and his left found her waist. His touch was insistent, but not aggressive as he pulled her to him. She giggled as his first kiss missed her mouth, and pressed to her cheek instead. Her hands slipped through his fine hair before curling into fists, and pulling him back down to engage in another round of mouth mosh, eyes slipping back to their closed position as the pair of long overdue ponies finally let their feelings out. Septimus's senses felt like they were being assaulted. The smell of her hair, the feel of her skin on his, and the feel of the silk dress she was wearing under his hand, the taste of her lips as she kissed him.

He felt her begin to pull away, and followed her, unwilling to let it end. He felt more than heard Luna giggle into his mouth, and she pulled back again, but this time holding him back via his hair. The first thing Septimus saw as he opened his eyes was, as fair as he was concerned, an angel on Equestria. Her beautiful eyes and perfect lashes closed, her cheeks reddened, and her swollen lips curling at the edges into a perfect smile. And then her eyes opened, and she looked up at him through heavy lids, eyes twinkling like the stars she so adored, and painstakingly crafted into her night sky.

"Best first kiss I could have ever gotten," He teased her lightly with a smile, "With the most beautiful mare that's ever lived."

Her cheeks burned brighter, and she giggled again, "I'd like to say it was my first, but I think I've lived too long for that to fly."

"Maybe," Septimus admitted, "But I would love to hear you say it."

Luna smirked, "In that case... I couldn't think of a better pony to share a first kiss with."

Septimus laughed, "Close enough Princess, close enough."

And they joined once more, within the cool night air under the approving silver light of the full moon and glimmering stars in the greatest city in Equestria.

All captured here, within the magical bounds of the Moonlight Promenade.