> Moonlit Shadows > by rooberry > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Like Old Times > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- As the princess of the night sat in her darkened bedroom, she stared at the stack of in opened, unmailed letters. She sat at her writing desk. Crumppled balls of paper cluttering the space. Luna thought for a moment. And after a long moment of thought, picked up a quill, dipped it into the small amount of ink left in the jar and started to write. "My dearest. I've heard of your return to your empire. Please, I beg you. Don't harm my friends. And please try and remember... remember us." ~~~~~~ Two young alicorns were playing in the castle garden. One, a filly with colors of royal blue. The other was a grey colt with emerald green eyes. They pushed each other on an old swing. "Push me higher. Push me higher." The filly said flapping her tiny wings pretending to fly. "I'm pushing as hard as I can." The colt said. "Use your magic." She said playfully. "I know you learned the force spell I showed you." "I know, I know. But your sister uses that spell to raise the sun. And she has to help you with the moon. I just don't think I should." He said as he stopped pushing the swing and sat on the ground. "You're scared. Is it your dad?" She asked. "Yeah he said I can't practice magic because I'm too clumsy." He answered sadly. Suddenly the young filly was struck by an idea. "Well then I promise that whenever you want we will practice together in secret. Ok?" "Ok." He said cheerfully. ~~~~~~~~~ "I miss when we were young and we flew to the highest cloud we could find to practice magic. Those were the good days. When all magic was innocent and was all fun and games. Before I got my cutie mark and..... the accident." ~~~~~~~~ Time had passed for the two alicorns now teens they were adventurous rebellions. Luna waited patiently on the top of the highest cloud. Luna's and Sombra's, or "Shadow" as he liked to be called, usual meeting spot. But now was different shadow was late, he was always the first. Come to think of it Luna was usually the late one. Luna looked at the clouds below she saw shadow far below her flying weakly. Luna rushed to his side to aid him. She helped him fly up to the cloud. After a moment to catch her breath she had realized, in the moment she had not yet asked him why he was weak. She looked at his back and her question was already answered. His skin was covered in bruises. "What happened to you?" Luna shrieked as she ran to his side examining his injuries. "Oh it's nothing," he said fakely, "it's just *sigh* today it's been exactly 10 years since my mom gave me to Coal and died in the war and he…" "Your dad did this to you!" Luna said in shock and anger. "He is not my dad, you know as well as I do Luna, I have no dad ever since he decided, not to keep me and give me to his ‘best friend’ and then vanished." He had not realized he was yelling until Luna's eyes were filled with tears from seeing her friend like that. He ran up to her and squeezed her close. "Luna you are my best friend and you have always been here for me. No magic practice today, let's just sit." So they stayed there at the top of the cloud looking at the sky. Time was still, they had forgotten their worries, and for a moment all was right with the world. Luna suddenly sat up and looked around, the sun was already setting. "Your sister's sun is beautiful tonight." Shadow said sitting up to the edge of the cloud. Luna scooted close to him. They sat there for a brief moment and looked into each other's eyes. "Luna I.." "I already know." They both leaned in and there lips met. Even though they did not expect the other to do the same, they were in no surprise when they stayed there. Once again the moment was frozen and lingered without the pass of time. When they finally parted the sun had completely set but it's colors still stayed. Luna fluttered off the cloud. "Goodnight." She said softly. She had only flew a few feet out when she heard Shadow screaming her name. She turned and looked around swiftly. She found him falling, faster and faster toward the ground. She frantically tried to catch up to him. But it was too late, he hit the ground, unconscious, just as she got close enough to stop his fall. ~~~~~~ Luna snapped out of a moment of thought to write, "If only I were faster. Maybe… Maybe things would be different." ~~~~~~~ Luna was not thinking of her surroundings, or the people screaming at her to move, only the fact that her best friend and new love was lying in her arms unconscious. She did not hear a thing not even her own crying only a high pitched noise, that sounded as if she had just gone deaf. In the blink of an eye she was no longer sitting on the bloody grass with her love in her arms, but in the hospital emergency waiting room, alone and puffy eyed. She looked up to see she actually was alone no Coal or Celestia. But she just figured Coal was to drunk with sorrow over a long lost love to care about his injured "son" and her sister was too "busy" to deal with her only family and friend. Seconds passed, minutes, hours. Luna was tired but not sleepy. How could she sleep even though it's late and her sister had probably raised the moon. So she sat, not moving or thinking, just sitting. She was finally approached by a nurse. "Excuse me but, who are you here for?" She said softly "Um, Shadow Bright." Luna responded tears forming in her eyes. "No, sorry, Sombra…...Bright." She broke into a weeping cry. "There there. Sombra Bright checked into a recovery suite two or three hours ago, he's fine. Would you like to see him." Luna nodded her head weakly. And followed the nurse down the halls past room after identical room. Then they finally stopped and the nurse opened the door. Looking at the floor, Luna walked in, when she finally looked up to see him she was shocked. He was covered in bandages and wires and tubes connected almost every inch of his body to some machine. Luna dropped to her knees at his bed side. "I'll give you some time your majesty." The nurse said as she exited the room. Luna did not see her turn the corner, but she did hear her speak to someone outside the door. "She's right in there." The nurse said. "Thank you." A familiar voice said in response. Celestia ran up to her sobbing sister. "Don't you ever scare me like that again, I thought you were dead." Luna's blood began to boil. "If you thought it was me why didn't you come last night!" "I could not leave my post, unlike you!" Both were now engulfed by rage. "Oh yeah I forgot, you don't care about family now that your the all high and mighty princess in training, and it's not like you teacher could fill in for you this one time, oh wait he could!!" "Are you forgetting what happened to mom and dad when they left their posts in the war, for us!" Both girls were now in tears. Celestia quickly regained her composure and made a decision. "Luna, say your goodbyes to Sombra." She said painfully. "WHAT!!!" "As of today *sigh* as of today you are no longer aloud to see him. You have five minutes." Celestia slammed the door behind her. > Painful Memories > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Luna sat at her desk tears in her eyes as painful memories played through her mind. ~~~~~~~ Luna leaped up from Shadow's side to chase after her sister. She slammed the door behind her. "You can’t do that!" Luna screamed across the room. "Just watch me!" Celestia turned to face two guards, "Please have Sombra Bright's and Coal Dust's things removed from the castle premises, and make haste." "NO!" In rage, Luna aimed her horn at her sister. Swiftly, Celestia cast a spell, pinning Luna to the wall, "Don’t even think about it." Celestia released her magical grasp. Luna fell to the floor weak, and blacked out. ~~~~~~~~~~~ Luna gathered the last of the ink and continued to write. "Maybe if you had not gotten hurt then I would never........you would never." Luna sat in her dark room crying, alone. ~~~~~~~~~~~ Luna woke up to find she was no longer laying in the hospital floor but in her bed in the castle. She looked around and was startled to find her sister at the window looking into the world and drinking some sort of coffee. Luna rubbed her head, "How long have I been out?” “Two weeks.” Celestia took a sip of her drink. “WHY DIDN’T YOU WAKE ME!” Luna yelled at her sister. Celestia turned to look at her sister. Luna could see that her sister had dark circles and bags near her eyes. Luna gasped and tried to sit up but was returned with pain. Celestia approached her sister's bed. “You need to rest." "How long has it been since you've slept?" Celestia rubbed her head. “15 or 16 days.” “Sister you need to get some sleep.” Luna fought the pain from standing up to help her sister to her room where she fell asleep immediately. Luna trotted through the long halls to the kitchen where every pony just stared at her. One chef approached Luna. "Your majesty," he said bowing, "Your sister said you would not be back from Saddle Arabia for another week." Luna thought for a moment. "My uh meeting was um… cut short." Every pony shrugged off the questionability of her statement and continued to cook some brunch. Luna gasped as she came to a sudden realization and whispered one word, one single word, "Shadow". She leapt up and flew through the castle as fast as she could only to find that the once dirty, filthy, cluttered room belonging to her best friend was empty except for a single bed in the middle of the room to the back wall. She slowly made her way to the bedside and collapsed on the soft mattress. She cried there for hours and hours the time ticking by slowly, until she heard a knock on the bedroom door. "Princess Luna?" A kindhearted old mare's voice called out softly. Without looking Luna answered bluntly. "Yes Fiona? What do you want?” The elderly mare was indeed Fiona the castle nurse that took care of not only the staff but the princesses themselves. As Fiona made her way toward the bed, luna quickly tried to compose herself but it was no use. Fiona sat next to Luna and stroked her long mane in comfort as she had done for luna so, so long ago. “I know you loved him but he… well… He’s gone my dear” she embraced Luna in a warm hug. “I’m so sorry there was nothing we could do.” Luna broke free from her embrace. "You mean…" Luna’s lip quivered as her tears swelled in her eyes. "Yes." Fiona said solemnly. Luna stood emotionless. “no” She whispered to herself, “no, no, no, No, No, NO, NO” She went from whispering to yelling. She collapsed on the floor with a full mental brakedown. ~~~~~~~~~~~ “Thinking back on it, I was such a child. My mistake not asking more questions. But to be honest children make the best mistakes. It took me the longest time to get over you. I cried for a week. HA HA HA. Children will be children.” ~~~~~~~~~~~ A knock came from Luna’s bedroom door. Luna sniffled before answering, “Go away.” The door opened softly as Celestia walked into the dark room. “Sister, you've been in here for a week and a half I know Fiona brings you food but she tells me that you are barely eating. Maybe you should go back to the hospital just for, you know a check to make sure that..” “That you didn't accidentally almost kill me with your magic!!” Luna snapped back cutting off her sister. “Fine be that way. I just want to know your ok. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ “Although I hate to admit it she was right, there was something wrong.” ~~~~~~~~~ As Luna sat in the waiting room she imagined what could have been with Shadow. “I should have told him sooner, told him that loved him. I mean I've loved him and wanted to be more for a long, long time. It’s my fault if I…. he wouldn't. Shut up Luna don't think like that. But it's true.” Luna whispered to herself furiously. She swiftly looked around to see if anypony had heard her ranting, thankfully no one had. The sound of multiple sets of hoof steps filled the hall. Luna could faintly hear what the nurse was saying but became more distinct as they got closer. “Right this way Mr. Bright.” Luna jumped to her feet and rushed down the hall only to find a stallion with a rainbow mane. She stood disappointed. “I guess he’s really gone.” She whispered to herself. She turned around and walked down the hall. As she turned the corner to the waiting room and came to a sudden halt, dead in her tracks. She didn’t move, she didn’t blink, she didn’t breath for in that moment she was staring at a ghost. face to face with the ghost of her former love. Both statue still. “Luna?!” Sombra ran up to the frozen princess and pulled her close in a tight embrace. “Shadow?”