> Nihtmer Niht > by Apple Bottoms > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Chapter 1 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- “I’ll just tell her Spike lost it. Oh! I’ll tell her Spike ate it, that’s even better - there were some emeralds on the cover, right? The spine? Pictures of gems inside? ...It smelled like gems? I am so doomed.” “You know I can hear you, right?” Spike huffed, folding his arms. Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes as Twilight Sparkle did her best to avoid falling into an abject state of panic - and failed. “Look, Twi, not to be harsh or anything, but you have a meltdown like every time Celestia summons you. Maybe her ‘super important meeting’ is about saving the world - again?” “You don’t understand, she has to know about the missing library book! I’ve had it since I moved to Ponyville - it was tucked into the box of kitchen stuff, and since it was a biography of a renowned historical chef I figured it belonged in the kitchen, but then I didn’t unpack the kitchen because Nightmare Moon attacked, and then we had to face Discord, and when I finally started setting up the kitchen IrealizedthatthebookwasinsideandIremembered-” “Twilight, darling! Deep breath!” Rarity interrupted, lifting one perfectly-manicured hoof to touch Twilight’s shoulder, steadying her as she hyperventilated. “Now, all you have to do is tell her you’re sorry you kept the book for so very long. You’re her favorite pupil! How could she possibly stay angry at you? You’ll hug and make up, and we’ll be out of here in time for lunch at the ultra-exclusive Chez Sunblossom!” Rarity squealed, almost dancing with excitement. “Ooh, I can’t wait to tell everyone back in Ponyville!” “Um, or Celestia might banish Twilight and the rest of us from the kingdom.” Six heads swiveled in unison to look at Fluttershy, and Twilight Sparkle was pretty sure even the guards standing in front of the weighty gilded doors of Celestia’s throne room looked at her a little harder. “I, uh, I mean - why else would she ask all of us to come?” Fluttershy added, her voice little more than a squeak as she hid behind her mane. That was a question none of the friends knew how to answer, and so when Celestia appeared from behind the tall doors, she found a group of ponies in varying states of panic. “Twilight Sparkle, it is so good to see -” Celestia began, before she was swarmed. “Princess Celestia, I’m so sorry -” “The book was in the kitchen, because it was about a chef -” “I didn’t eat it, don’t listen to them!” “ - but the book somehow made it through a fire? I’m not clear about that -” “Oh Princess Celestia, you can’t send us all away!” “PLEASE DON’T SEND ME AWAY HOW WILL I JOIN THE WONDERBOLTS IF I’M BANISHED?” “Rainbow Dash, no one is going to be banished! Who spoke of banishing?” Celestia asked in surprise, reaching down to gently help the kneeling, tearful Rainbow Dash to her feet once more. “Well … didn’t you bring us here because of Twilight’s missing library book?” Rainbow Dash sniffed, rubbing her nose fiercely, hiding her face until she was certain it was dry. “A library book? No, of course not!” Celestia replied, and underneath the royal veneer of calm, Twilight Sparkle sensed confusion. “I invited you here to ask a favor of you - all of you. Because you are all such good friends, I hoped you might be able to help me with a friendship problem.” As she spoke, Celestia turned, and used one massive, snowy wing to gesture to the group, leading them inside her throne room. “What sort of friendship problem - Your Majesty?” Twilight Sparkle asked, adding the honorific belatedly. “It’s a very difficult one, but it is a challenge I cannot face myself.” Princess Celestia sighed, and lead her student down a side corridor - to a hall that Twilight Sparkle realized she had never seen open before. “Princess, what is -?” Twilight Sparkle began, eyes widening as she took in the images on the walls around her. The sun was bright in its midday position, casting bright shafts of rainbow light through the hallway, filled from floor to ceiling with grand, sweeping stained-glass windows. There were many scenes here, all of them depicting various great, heroic deeds - but none of them were stories Twilight Sparkle had ever heard of before. She found herself peering into the closest one, and after a moment’s careful study - “Princess Luna!” Twilight gasped. “It is her.” Princess Celestia agreed, and came to a halt, letting the others crowd around Twilight, peering up at the elegant, ancient glasswork. “Princess Luna once had a life beyond Nightmare Moon - it is hard to imagine, knowing how long she and I have moved the celestial bodies, but we were once young and gay, like you.” Celestia spoke, her warm voice uncharacteristically somber. “That word doesn’t mean what you think it means,” Rainbow Dash began, until Twilight Sparkle nudged her, hard. “Princess Luna once had a close circle of friends, just like you.” Celestia continued sadly, as if she hadn’t heard Dash’s quiet interruption, and arched her elegant neck to touch the tip of her horn to the stained glass image. The colorful scene shimmered with her magic, and the pictures began to move - sharp-edged pictographs of ponies began to prance around the scene, a moonlit festival of some kind, with a massive bonfire and colorful costumes. Princess Luna pranced with the other ponies, dancing within a circle of tall, irregularly-shaped boulders. Mushrooms and night-blooming jasmine swayed around them, and the full moon hung brightly above the proceedings, giving light to their dancing. “Oooh…” Rarity whispered, eyes glued to the glittering, shimmering masterpiece. “Dancing in the dark with rocks, I love it.” Rainbow Dash rumbled under her breath, and dodged the sharp elbow that Twilight Sparkle sent her way. “What kind of celebration was this?” Twilight Sparkle asked, looking up at the princess as she straightened her neck, bringing the dancing image to a stop. “It doesn’t look like anything I’ve seen in my books.” “It was an autumn-tide festival of the harvest, many centuries before Ponyville was founded, when the whole valley was merely farmland. After the year’s crops had been stored for the winter, there was often a supernaturally large moon. On the day of the heaviest cycle of the moon, the villagers would gather within a sacred circle of stones and thank the spirits of nature for a good harvest with offerings, in hopes they would be blessed again next year. The festival has changed throughout the decades, but some of the trappings of the old ceremony blended into the new. Because Luna was the guardian of the night, this was considered to be one of her holidays. Today, it has hardly anything to do with the harvest at all. Which is why I was hoping you might -” “You’re talking about Nightmare Night!” Twilight Sparkle gasped, then clapped a hoof over her mouth. “Sorry,” she added in a whisper, but Celestia only laughed. “It’s quite alright, Twilight. Yes, I am speaking of Nightmare Night. Some of the trappings remain - the costumes and the dancing, merriment and offerings of food - but most of the meaning has changed, or been lost.” Celestia explained, gazing up at the stained glass window for a long moment. “This will be Princess Luna’s first Nightmare Night celebration in a very, very long time. All of the ponies she once knew, who would have celebrated with her, are gone. She does not say it to me, but - I sense a great disquiet in her. Her heart is filled with melancholy.” Celestia turned to face Twilight again, and this time, Twilight was astonished at how … un-princessly she seemed. Distraught, and so very mortal, and for a moment Twilight Sparkle could see beyond the ageless facade, and saw how heavily those centuries weighed upon her. “She is my beloved little sister, Twilight, and I cannot help her experience the joy that has been missing from her life for far too long. So I come to you, someone who has such knowledge of friendship, and so many friends, and ask for your help.” “I’ll do anything, Princess Celestia.” Twilight agreed readily, head bobbing in earnest agreement. “You can count on us.” Twilight Sparkle was getting pretty good at this ‘saving the world through friendship’ thing, she decided. Princess Celestia had given them more than enough time, a full month before Nightmare Night, and Twilight Sparkle was confident that they would be finished well ahead of schedule. The whole point was that Celestia needed Twilight Sparkle’s skill with friendship to help Princess Luna, and so Twilight Sparkle had made certain that all of her friends’ special talents were showcased at the pre-Nightmare Night celebration they had planned for her. Friendship was all about appreciating each other’s special talents, right? She was gonna ace this friendship test. Pinkie Pie’s specialty was parties, so Twilight Sparkle had left the planning of the event to her while she’d focused on her powers of research, seeking out what kinds of foods and games were considered the most representative of a classic Nightmare Night. She also took several polls of the townsfolk, to judge popular opinion … at least, until they started fleeing from her every time she strolled into town. (You’d think they had never taken a hundred-question survey before!) Applejack lent them her barn and prepared all of the traditional Nightmare Night treats, with Rainbow Dash’s help on the games. Twilight Sparkle zoned out after Rainbow Dash went into an extended monologue about her own triumphant, record-breaking victory at the potato sack race as a filly, but she assumed by Dash’s usual bragging that she had everything well in hoof. Fluttershy arranged for a nightingale and owl choir to serenade them through the night, and Rarity kept busy at her sewing machine, promising to whip up the most ‘glorious costumes the princess has ever seen, darling!” This was going to be the most regal, magnificent Nightmare Night festival a princess could ever dream of! Yes, everything was coming together splendidly, and by the time Princess Luna’s royal carriage touched down beside Applejack’s barn only a week later, Twilight Sparkle was already accepting her Royal Medal of Friendship from Princess Celestia in her head. “Yes, of course Princess Celestia, I’d gladly try on your crown, but only if you insist -” “Twilight Sparkle, it is an honor for us to see you again. Are you - saying something?” Princess Luna frowned, her elegant brows furrowing as she descended from her chariot. “Uh, no! I mean, greetings, Your Majesty!” Twilight Sparkle squawked, yanked from her fantasy rather abruptly, and dropped into a sudden bow. “Happy Pre-Nightmare Night!” “Pre-Nightmare Night?” Luna asked, tilting her head as she blinked down at Twilight Sparkle in confusion. “We are not familiar with this celebration.” “It’s, uh - we planned you a special celebration! You know, to help you get ready for the real Nightmare Night, which is a couple of weeks from now.” Twilight Sparkle continued, straightening up with a smile. Royal Medal of Friendship, here I come! “We thought since you missed so many of them, you could come to the pre-party and get up to speed on what’s changed since you’ve - been away!” Twilight hastily substituted, realizing that Luna might not want to be reminded about the whole ‘banished to the moon for a thousand years’ thing. Something in Luna’s gaze flickered, but she lowered her head in an elegant bow, all the same. “Thank you, Twilight Sparkle. We are honored to be invited to your celebration.” “You are most graciously welcome, Your - Nightly Magnificence!” Twilight Sparkle bowed in return, rising a little clumsily. How many times would they have to bow to each other? “Come right this way, we’ve got the choir all warmed up and ready to begin!” Twilight Sparkle smiled, skipping ahead of her, visions of medals dancing through her head. As they rounded the corner of Applejack’s barn, Princess Luna was serenaded by the gentle, crooning sounds of Fluttershy’s avian chorus as she slowly took in the grand Nightmare Night celebration that Twilight Sparkle and her friends had planned. “Gourmet Pumpkin Puff, Princess?” Twilight Sparkle chirped, appearing suddenly at Luna’s side with a platter of delicate-looking pastries. “I read in Ptolemane’s sixth book of poems that you enjoyed them!” “Ptolemane… oh, we did attend a festival with him, once. He made the worst Pumpkin Puffs we have ever eaten.” Princess Luna grimaced at the memory, but obligingly lifted a puff to her mouth. She chewed, as if with great effort, and gave Twilight Sparkle her best smile before swallowing - with difficulty. “Mm. Delicious.” “Delicious? It looks like you’re eating a mud pie, made with real mud!” Pinkie Pie squawked, flapping her chicken wings. Her costume had come together quite nicely, and desperately, Twilight Sparkle sprung to a new topic. “What Pinkie means to say is - we have a costume for you! I took inspiration from one of the wood-cut illustrations I found of you in Mysteries and Myths of the Centuries!” “I whipped it up especially for you, Princess! It’s inlaid with real silver and sapphires, just like the ones in the book!” Rarity announced dramatically, sashaying over to the group with the dragon costume held aloft, her own gown whispering behind her as she bowed, elaborately, before Luna. “It will look magnificent on you, your Highness - and painstakingly accurate, too.” Rarity added in a grumble, with a sharp look over to Twilight Sparkle. But instead of relieved, Luna’s face instead contorted in distress, and her ears flicked back against her flowing, galaxy-patterned mane. “Those were not costumes.” Luna rasped, swallowing around a suddenly-tight throat. “We were celebrating the life of our friend - our very dear friend, SIiverglow the storm drake. We wore his scales to honor his memory.” “A funeral? That doesn’t sound like Nightmare Night at all!” Pinkie Pie protested, before Twilight Sparkle shoved her bodily away. “What Pinkie means - Pin - P - PUNCH! We’ll be right back with some punch for you, Princess!” Twilight Sparkle yelped, shoving Pinkie ahead of her amidst her protests, leaving Rarity to deal with the armful of offending dragon scales and the distraught guest. “This is a nightmare!” Twilight Sparkle hissed, ducking down to hide behind the punch bowl, dragging Pinkie Pie with her. “This couldn’t be going worse if we tried!” she moaned, dragging her hooves down her face. She could feel the Royal Medal of Friendship slipping further away with each passing moment. “I wouldn’t say that, Twilight!” Pinkie Pie smiled at her cheerfully, pointing to Rainbow Dash as she bravely sauntered up to Princess Luna. “See, Dashie will clear this all up! No one hates party games!” Tentatively, Twilight Sparkle peeked out from behind the dessert table, ears straining to hear what Rainbow Dash was saying to the princess. “... corn hole?” “Yeah! Cornhole, you know, you throw a beanbag through a hole?” Rainbow Dash illustrated, showing the perfect beanbag-tossing form that had won her the All-Juniors Cornhole Championships back in school. “Toss it into the right hole, get points, win a prize!” “Corn … hole.” “She’s dying out there!” Twilight moaned, sliding back down behind the table. “Well, not quite as badly as poor Silverglow!” Pinkie Pie sighed, startling when she caught sight of the venomous glare Twilight Sparkle shot at her. “Too soon?” “Everything is perfect, I don’t understand it! I got the food, the costumes, the games, the decorations, everything is the best of what Nightmare Night has to offer! I asked everyone - twice! Why doesn’t she like it!?” Twilight groaned, covering her eyes with her hooves. “I hope y’all are ready for the potato sack race!” Applejack called, sacks slung over her back as she led the way outside. “I’ve got a real tricky obstacle course set up, y’all are gonna have a doozy of a race!” “The race!” Twilight Sparkle gasped, all but leaping to her feet. “Yes! The race - there’s one last hope! We can put everything right!” “If you’re sure, Twilight. I might have to sit this one out, I’m still pretty torn up about Silverglow,” Pinkie Pie sniffled, gurgling as Twilight grabbed her by her feathery collar and hauled her outside. When Twilight Sparkle opened her eyes next, she was lying on her back, staring up at six worried faces. “Wh… What happened?” Twilight Sparkle asked, her voice thick. “Oh, Twilight! You zigged when you should have zagged. Or was it zagged when you should have -” “Pinkie, quit yer yappin’! I told you not to build that ramp so high, Dash.” Applejack interrupted sharply as she placed a bag of ice on Twilight’s head, which she suddenly noticed was throbbing. “Lie still, sugarcube.” “Oh, my head.” Twilight Sparkle moaned, lying still for only a moment before she tried to push herself to her hooves. “Wait - the princess! Where is she?” The guilty glances the other six exchanged was answer enough for Twilight Sparkle, who moaned and slid back to the ground. “We blew it.” Twilight Sparkle groaned, and hid her face behind the ice pack. “We ruined Nightmare Night.” Twilight Sparkle spent the next weeks in bed, far longer than the doctor had recommended. It seemed to her like there wasn’t much point to getting up, anyway, since she’d failed Princess Celestia’s mission. She’d never felt so foolish, or so confused. She’d done everything right! She’d enlisted her friends for the mission, she’d regarded their opinions with kindness and respect, she’d made sure that everything was exactly the way a Nightmare Night festival should be - what had she forgotten? Was there some other element of friendship that she had never understood? Were her friends not really her friends?! Was she going to be alone in this library for the rest of her life?!? “Hey, Twi?” came a soft voice, and Twilight Sparkle rolled over with a groan, burying her face in her pillow. “Yeah, she’s awake.” Spike called down the stairs, and even though Twilight tried to cover her ears in her blanket, she could clearly hear multiple sets of hooves tromping up the narrow staircase to her room. “Go away.” Twilight moaned, burying herself in her blankets. “I guess she’s still alive,” Rainbow Dash joked, prompting a small ripple of laughter from the group. “Are - are you all here?” Twilight sniffed, lifting her head to look around her suddenly-crowded room. “A’course, sugarcube.” Applejack comforted her, sitting on the edge of Twilight’s bed and patting her shoulder. “We’re your friends. Why, if I was stuck at home feelin’ sorry for myself, y’all’d’ve come to bring me back to my senses lickety split.” “But we gave you some extra time, darling, because we know you have a bit of the artistic temperament in you.” Rarity smiled, giving Twilight a knowing wink. “Sometimes we all need to just have a good cry on the divan, now and again.” “Uh, not all of us.” Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, but it was with less annoyance than usual. “But tomorrow night is Nightmare Night, and we didn’t want you to miss it.” Fluttershy added, gently smoothing down Twilight’s blankets. “Yeah! You gotta start prepping for all of that candy hunting tomorrow!” Pinkie Pie gasped, pulling a map from her mane and unfurling it over Twilight Sparkle’s bed dramatically. “I’ve spent all week on my map of all of the houses giving out candy tomorrow - I’ll let you copy off mine! You have to time it just right or else you won’t hit all of them!” “Oh no, but - Princess Luna!” Twilight Sparkle moaned, pulling Pinkie’s map over her head in anguish. “The princesses must be so angry with me!” “I don’t think they’re angry, exactly…” Rarity trailed off, glancing to Applejack. “Princess Luna mostly looked sad when she got into her carriage.” Spike piped up from where he stood at the foot of the bed. “Sad?” Twilight asked, as she emerged from underneath the map. “Yeah, real sad.” Spike nodded, resting his chin on the edge of the mattress. “She said something about how you can never go back. Maybe she was thinkin’ about that Silverglow guy?” “Maybe she was thinking about those watermelon dogs.” Rainbow Dash offered. Applejack frowned at her, squinting in confusion. “Watermelon dogs? What in tarnation is a watermelon dog?” “You know, when Princess Celestia was talkin’ about how Luna was all sad! She said she was thinkin’ about ‘em, in her heart. The watermelon dogs.” “... MELANCHOLY. Not - melon-collie!!” Applejack barked, swatting at Rainbow Dash with her hat. “That’s what I said!” But while the pair bickered, Twilight Sparkle stared at Pinkie’s map; or rather, saw beyond it. Saw through the buildings illustrated on the scroll, and behind them, to the topography of the valley floor that Ponyville was founded in. How the valley might have looked, centuries ago, when Princess Luna last came here. As if by magic, her eyes landed on a secluded part of the Everfree Forest, where a small, crude gathering of stones had been inscribed on the map. Stones that, by all accounts, could have been there for thousands of years. Awareness shot through Twilight Sparkle like a bolt. “We did it all wrong,” Twilight Sparkle said suddenly, interrupting the bickering pair. “Nightmare Night - it wasn’t about candy or games or apple-bobbing back then. The Nightmare Night Luna remembers - it was here. It all happened here, in the Everfree Forest.” She planted a hoof on the map sharply. “If we are to have any chance of making it up to her, it has to be tonight.” Princess Luna sat in her carriage for several minutes after landing, frowning down at the floorboards beneath her elegantly shorn hooves. “You need not attend, My Lady,” one of her guards offered, after what seemed like an appropriate amount of time. He twisted around from where he was harnessed to the front of the carriage, his large, bat-like ears swiveling towards her. “We will make your excuses. A Princess need only attend events she wants to.” The guard beside him nodded intently, leathery bat wings shifting against polished armor. “Thank you, Thundercloud, Tornado; we appreciate your concern.” Princess Luna sighed, offering them a wan smile before she lifted herself from her seat. “We have so few duties, anymore; we are only just strong enough to lift the moon, and there is little else that needs our attention in the castle anymore. It is … pleasant, to be outside. If nothing else.” “Princess Luna!” The trio lifted their gaze to Twilight Sparkle as she came cantering across the darkened barnyard of Applejack’s family farm. She wore no glittering costume this time, but pale, flowing robes that felt almost familiar. As she came closer, Princess Luna caught a familiar smell - red cabbage, which must have dyed the red-purple cloak slung across Twilight’s shoulders. “I’m so glad you could make it on such short notice - Your Majesty.” Twilight bowed, a little suddenly, as she came to a quick halt. “I hope you don’t mind walking - we aren’t celebrating in Applejack’s barn tonight.” “Oh?” Luna asked, and cast one brief glance to her chauffeurs before returning her gaze to Twilight - and this time, Twilight thought she looked a little hopeful. “Very well. We would enjoy a moonlit walk on the night of the waxing moon.” “I hoped you would say that!” Twilight Sparkle beamed. The path through the Everfree Forest was lit with lanterns, and when Luna looked closer, she could see candles flickering inside - and not the magic ones that had come into vogue in Canterlot, either. The forest around her seemed familiar, but so much taller and denser than she remembered. This was the Evergreen Glade as it would be a thousand years later, known by a new name. It smelled just the same, though, and Princess Luna found herself taking deep, steadying breaths of the crisp night air as they walked deeper and deeper into the looming forest. “... do you recognize this area?” Twilight Sparkle asked tentatively, noticing the way Luna’s eyes moved through the dark forest, drinking it in. “We do. It has grown much taller than we remember it.” Princess Luna smiled, very softly, casting the expression on Twilight for a moment. “It is strange to see the valley filled with so many ponies, and an entire town where there was once only farmland. But - it is not bad.” she added gently, gazing up at the moon. “It is only different.” “Some places haven’t changed as much as you’d think,” Twilight replied with a small, eager grin, as she pulled back some brush to reveal a clearing. Before them stood the familiar circle of stones, tall and looming, a sight that sent lightning shooting through Luna’s veins. They were older now, cracked in places, with lichen growing on their sides. Oh, but they were all the more beautiful for it, and her heart felt like it might burst to see them again in the light of the almost-full moon. The friends stood nearby - Twilight Sparkle’s friends, even if she had almost mistaken them for her own for a split-second. They all wore the same pale robes and newly-dyed cloaks over their shoulders, and would have fit in well with her own companions. They had twisted the last flowers of summer into crowns and garlands, hung on the rocks and around horns and wings, encircling ears. There was food on several of the flat rocks, but it was not the overly-sweet, modern food that was so unfamiliar to Luna’s palate; there were salted greens, reeds, all of the foods that would have been freshly pickled and preserved from the harvest. One last feast, before they hunkered down for the bitter winter. And, yes, Pumpkin Puffs - but those had been there before, too, even if she had hated them. A smaller circle of stones had been placed within the larger ring, and a bright, blazing fire burned there, sending sparks high into the air. Torches burned on the edge of the clearing beside the offerings, to keep any angry spirits placated and away from the revelry, and the air was scented with the night-blooming jasmine that grew beneath. Mushrooms circled the stones, more numerously now, spreading out like branches on a tree; she could almost imagine them swaying in time with the movement of the moon, dancing along with them. “I - we - tried to throw you a Nightmare Night festival that would be worthy of a princess, so we could show you how excited we were to have you back with us.” Twilight Sparkle began carefully. “But - we didn’t get it quite right. We wanted to try again, if you’ll let us.” Princess Luna turned from where she had been slowly taking in the full scene, only to realize that all of the others had gathered close together, staring up at her hopefully. The pale unicorn - Rarity, she remembered - held out a set of robes to her, a dyed cloak folded neatly on top, and a crown of flowers. “Only if you’ll let us show you the harvest dance.” Princess Luna smiled, wide and shining. It was only moments before Luna was back where she belonged, spinning and twirling around the bonfire, galloping around the boulders. Her crown and greaves were gone, replaced with the sweet-smelling crown of jasmine and the feel of grass beneath her hooves. Her mane flowed behind her and down her shoulders, freer than it had been in decades. She felt eons younger, and as her mane spilled out behind her, she drenched herself in moonlight, and she was home. She spun, faster and faster, and the others laughed and ran with her, catching each other when they stumbled, hooves pounding the earth in excitement, and then, on the edge of breath - Twilight Sparkle suddenly felt the world get - wider. Like her laughter, Princess Luna’s magic suddenly seemed to fill the clearing, and she felt it wash over and around her, filling her up; she felt a great pair of wings encircle her, far larger than Luna herself, and pressed her close to its downy warmth. She remembered things she had never seen, flavors she had never tasted, scents that had no name, colors never seen in this world - and for a moment, she really was in the past, laughing with other ponies who she didn’t recognize - a silvery dragon with sapphires in his scales laughed along with her, and the name, Silverglow, caught in her mouth - other names sprang up too, Glory, Sunbeam, Seashell - she had no clue who they were, but she could match each pony to the name, why was that? She looked at Luna to see what was happening, and then she was in the present again, but the colors were too bright, the air was too sweet, and she suddenly felt too heavy for her body. She sank to the ground, faster than she realized, and fought to get her breath. She was underwater, the force of the magic was crushing her, it was so wonderful, but too much, too deep! She wanted to disappear into the wonderful, powerful strength and lose herself, vanish into it entirely, become a memory, lyrics of a song only the mountains remembered - And just as suddenly, it was gone. Twilight Sparkle gasped for breath, and for a long moment, laid where she was in the grass. Slowly, as her vision returned, she sought out the others; they seemed equally perturbed, but none the worse for wear. Rarity looked a bit queasy, and Rainbow Dash had started chewing on her flower crown. Applejack and Fluttershy were simply staring at each other, pupils wide as they blinked, and Spike laid on his back and stared up at the moon. Princess Luna came closer to Twilight Sparkle, bending over her prone form as her mane spilled over her neck. “You have our sincerest apologies, Twilight Sparkle. We have not felt so - unhindered in a long time.” she apologized gently, resettling Twilight’s flower crown around her ears. “Are you alright?” “We have been doing Nightmare Night all wrong.” Twilight Sparkle whispered, unable to focus on Luna fully just yet. She still felt too bright, too much. “Is that - was that what it used to be like?” “Something like that,” and Princess Luna smiled. “Wow,” Twilight Sparkle whispered, and sank back into the grass, unable to say much else just yet. “Wow.” There was a moment where a quiet, contemplative silence settled over the camp, and Twilight Sparkle considered just how little they actually knew of Princess Luna, and the wild, mystical festivals and ceremonies that had been lost to the ages until now. How much they might yet still discover of her, now that she had returned. Of the old magic that still burned within her, as brightly as a firebrand, beneath all of the pageantry and polished grace of a princess. And then - “Do it again!” cried Pinkie Pie.