The Unwanted One

“Don’t worry, you’ll make it!” Luna smiled encouragingly, suppressing with a titanic effort the urge to touch the teeth-clenching black alicorn beside her, to somehow support her, to share her reassurance. No, she shouldn’t. Nightmare would either take offense at that, or get more angry than ever… “What am I doing wrong this time?!” Sighing through teeth, she turned her head towards the Princess of the Night with an unblinking look in her turquoise eyes, which seemed to glow a little brighter than usual because of the emotions, that were raging inside. “You can do it, Nightmare.” Luna once again kept herself from touching, limiting herself to another reassuring smile. “Let me remind you, that what you’ve achieved had been done by me in four months back in my day. Didn’t make it today — will tomorrow, you just need more practice. Don’t worry.” “I’m “not worrying” for almost a week already.” The Mare in the Moon cringed and, sniffing irritably, rolled over the edge of the bed, standing next to her. “Maybe you’ll say something about business, not this comforting nonsense?” “I’m afraid I won’t, Nightmare.” Luna shook her head sadly, sitting on the bed. “It’s like… Learning magic. You have to feel it. You can give some approximate recommendations, that will help some and not others, but…” “If it turns out that all this time you did not teach me the magic of dreams, but just laughing, forcing me to do all sorts of incomprehensible stuff for nothing — I’ll bite you to death.” The interlocutor promised gloomily, looking into space. “How?!.. I!..” The Princess of the Night gasped for air, not knowing how to respond to such a wild accusation… And such a terrible promise. “D-don’t, please, I…” The voice trembled treacherously. How she?.. She’s a pony!.. How she?.. “Don’t give me a reason to.” She moved her wing phlegmatically, not even noticing the Princess’ state. “Okay, I’ll go.” Shaking her head in a peculiar farewell, Nightmare Moon moved resolutely toward the exit. Quietly the door closed, and Luna sighed wearily and sank back onto the bed. How could Nightmare threaten something like that? Griffons band had done this horror a few times — ate… ponies! — and she, Luna, even executed some of them personally for this, but… Didn’t Nightmare learn from these soul-chilling memories? And even if she did — she’s not a griffon! How can she put on the face of a… predator? She’s a pony, and she!.. And she has fangs, that many predators would envy. Luna shivered chilly and tried to wrap her wings around herself. No, this is not an argument. Thestrals have fangs, too, and they even eat fish. In principle, technically, they could eat meat, too. But Princess, in transforming the curse, did everything she could to instill in the newborn race an aversion to it and even to the very idea of it. Honestly, Luna wasn’t savvy enough in the science of living things, biology as they now call it, to fully understand exactly what she did and how she did it then. Given Nightmare’s equally inexplicable origins in the aftermath, it’s not unreasonable to think that magic is simply capable of granting quite powerful wishes… Alicorn sighed sorrowfully and curled up, as if trying to hide from the world around her. But… Could Nightmare really have that kind of desire, to eat someone?.. She’s not a thestral, so she may not be disgusted by this… monstrous thought?.. No! First of all, she’s a pony, and a pony would never do that, even if she… had the opportunity. “It’s so hard with you sometimes.” The Princess of the Night mumbled under her breath, sighing and straightening on the bed. Nightmare Moon hardly meant it. Yes, it was a threat, but it must have been figurative, not literal. In her style… Where did she get all that from? Threats, all those creepy and macabre jokes, fleeting and… as if habitual, statements that someone would kill someone, and for the perfect little thing, as with their flight instructor then — and on several other occasions before, threats, including such — as this one sounded, chilling and monstrous, because how could a pony do… such a thing?! “Sorry, Nighty…” Luna whispered with her lips only, closing eyes. “Instead of teaching you what’s right, I…” Alicorn froze and clenched her teeth in an attempt to hold back her tears. She stared blankly at the ceiling for some time before deciding to curl up and burst into tears under the protective covering of her wing. The day was absolutely morally exhausting…

***

”… I tell you how much I love you and how worried I am about you, and you seem to be somewhere deep inside yourself.” Her sister’s sullen and slightly judgmental voice snapped Luna out of her thoughts, causing her to blink perplexedly and bring the bowl of tea, which was already visibly cold, to her mouth. “As if you’re not yourself, Lu. Is everything alright?” With a sigh, putting aside the piece of cake she had already picked up, the Princess of the Sun anxiously looked into her sister’s eyes. “Oh, I… Sorry, please!” She confessed. “Just… Just yesterday’s day was a tough one.” Celestia frowned faintly at the evasive response of her much-anticipated guest. “What happened, my moonbeam?” “It’s not worth the trouble, really!” Luna, in a nervous haste, fastened to assure her and, averting her gaze, she bit her lip. She knew, that such an answer would not calm her sister down at all, but would only make things worse. “Just not a very pleasant conversation.” “With Nightmare.” Celestia rather stated than asked, becoming somehow harsh with her face. “With Nightmare.” Digging the pillow under her how, Luna decided to not deny. “And what unpleasant has she said to you?” Tia sipped her tea casually, but the cozy tea room for two felt like it was a few degrees colder all at once. “Nothing especially unpleasant and unexpected.” The Princess of the Night shook her head, cringing reflexively at the chilling and piercing gaze of the sister. Throughout the conversation, she felt as if she were wandering down a dark corridor, filled with traps. “What I really care about is my own words…” “Would you tell it?” “I… Don’t know. No?” The younger alicorn hesitated, hiding gaze. “Not now. Sorry, Tia” Telling about all her fears and guesses, about what Nightmare has said about their… Their kinship? The Princess of the Night felt, that even if she had the desire, she wouldn’t have the courage to say even a word to her sister. “Fine, my little star. But if you want to — I’ll be always ready to hear you out and support with everything I can.” Luna forced a smile and hurried to her bowl of tea, which was now completely cold. The warm understanding smile of her sister… and the ice frozen in her not at all understanding gaze were imprinted in her memory.

…

“Good day, Your Highness. May I have a moment of your time?” Luna, completely lost in her own thoughts, shuddered, stopped and glanced at the snow-white, statuesque unicorn, who has approached. Blueblood looked perfect, as if he were preparing for a large official reception: shiny varnished hooves, fur styled hair to hair, mane in the latest fashion, perfectly fitted camisole, a subtle scent of perfume… Only the sullen look of reddened eyes, under which the blue-rimmed eyelids were not hidden from an alicorn’s sharp eyesight even by a layer of powder, was out of place. The protocol polite smile seemed only to reinforce this impression. The Princess of the Night could hardly suppress the desire to get rid of the Prince and leave as soon as possible: her head, even without him, was already occupied with thoughts one gloomier than another after the meeting with the sister… “Greetings, Your Grace. Of course, how can I help you?” Giving in under the pressure of conscience, she bowed before the stallion. After all, she let even Blueblood down, even though unwittingly… And she still hasn’t explained herself to the Prince, who has clearly fallen in spirit since her fateful visit to the museum and, as they say, has even been drunk several times since… By a fleeting stupor of her interlocutor, it seemed to Luna, that he has not really hoped for a positive answer, and now he seemed to be a bit confused. “I… Your Highness, wouldn’t it be tactless to ask you about… About a conversation?” He lowered his voice and finally spoke out, glancing discontentedly at the pair of maids, who were passing by and trying to sneak a peek at Princess Luna. “By no means, Your Grace.” She smiled ceremonially, sighing in thought. “I think I may be able to make time for your request this evening, after sunset. I will tell my warriors to let you into the night wing of the palace without delay.” “Good.” The unicorn nodded curtly. “Thank you very much for your time, Your Highness. With your permission?” “Of course, you can go, Your Grace. I was happy to meet you, Prince Blueblood.” After bowing ceremoniously, the stallion finally left, allowing Luna to frown and exhale. She felt, that she really had no idea what to talk about with the distraught unicorn in despair. And he didn’t seem to understand it very well either, asking, as it seems, to see her only to try to somehow end the once interrupted conversation in the garden. Perhaps it would have been wiser to refuse him altogether, but… It didn’t seem right. And maybe she could find some words of comfort for a disappointed pony, who lost faith in his ideal? Especially now, where no one would interrupt them… Luna lost her step as she realized, that she has been trying to reconcile with her sister for days, but has not yet lifted the ban on visiting the night wing of the palace, that she had spoken of in the heat of the moment. “Damn it…” A creepy curse, often heard lately, involuntarily erupted from her mouth, causing her to bite her tongue. She apologized hastily to several ponies, some of whom even froze in surprise and turned their ears, and continue on her way.

…

”…here — congratulations and greetings, to pay your respects, here — all sorts of questions and requests, and here — with various offers and invitations.” The thestral, who pointed in turn to stacks of envelopes of varying heights — not very impressive, though — threw an uncertain look at attentive Princess. “Thank you, Dark Whisper, you’ve done a great job. And I really do appreciate your help.” Luna smiled cheerfully at her helper, coming to the table. She may have lacked experience in many of her daily activities, but her tenacity, dedication, and sincere fervent devotion made the night pony learn new things rather quickly. And no matter how much Dark demonstrated in words, that she was ready to die, as required by — as the Princess of the Night thought — the monstrous and insane law, it was clearly visible how happy she really was to be alive and how grateful to her mistress for that. And how desperately afraid of letting her down… Luna sighed quietly, but Whisper, unfortunately, heard that clearly. “Something wrong, the Great one? I!..” Thestral stepped back reflexively, laying back her ears and, as it seems, getting ready to fall on her knees. “No-no, everything is great!” The alicorn hastened to assure her, lifting her gaze from the table and holding her helper softly with telekinesis. “And… Can you bring me some tea? High-mountain collection, with peppermint.” “Count it done, Great one!” The mouse-winged pegasus sighed with relief and hastened to vaporize behind the door, leaving the Princess of the Night alone with her study and two small dozens of letters on the table. Following the thestral with a gaze, Luna allowed herself to sigh again. Instead of getting closer, becoming her friend, Dark Whisper seemed, on the contrary, to have only distanced herself, finding the signs of friendly attention from her more as a reason to increase her responsibility — and trying hard now to match that level, almost completely giving herself to her service. Settling at the table, the alicorn pulled up the first letter from the pile of requests. It should have been done a long time ago… At least, the initial avalanche of congratulations and expressions of loyalty had fallen upon her sister’s secretariat. And when she had her own address to write to, the flood of messages has all but abated. And before that, Tia read out her most outstanding letters before dinner… Tia… For the umpteenth time today, her thoughts returned to her sister. She accepted the apology so easily, as if nothing has happened before. She was smiling the same way, hiding her tiredness and restlessness, the same way she was avoiding questions and assuring her that everything was all right… And there was an uneasy, creepy look in her eyes at times, a kind of hopelessness. She pleaded, almost begged Luna to get rid of Nightmare as soon as possible. In her traditional way, without explaining anything and, as it seemed, completely ignoring any arguments against it. When she realized, that she was about to surrender to her unhappy sister’s pleas, the Princess of the Night hurriedly left, citing business reasons. It wasn’t good, but… Celestia’s condition was the most eloquent argument for Nightmare to stay — and learn as soon as possible. The nightmare clung to her sister in a way, that was beginning to resemble some of the damnation the Mare in the Moon was so fond of mentioning… In light of this, Luna has not even decided yet to lift her fervent, idiotic ban on her sister — a decision that still stung from within, causing almost disgust for herself… Catching herself putting the letter aside as read, not even remembering what was in it but just mechanically glancing over the lines, Princess sighed and picked it up again to try to read it this time. The letter turned out… Unusual. It was written by some journalist, and a request for… a conversation for a newspaper is a quite typical phenomenon for them, but it also asked in extremely accurate terms what happened between her and Nightmare Moon, with a quote from her, unequivocally sending such questions to her, Luna. Alicorn drooped, taking another jab from… from the daughter she had betrayed. “You did this, you answer for it! Come out and tell what you are!” Fair enough. Well deserved. And unbearably painful… “That’s why I didn’t get away from Blueblood…” Princess closed her eyes a few seconds, put the letter aside and glanced at the clock. Soon it will be dinner, and not long after that the Prince would be here. But for now — work. After moving the letter she has already read again closer, Luna dipped her quill in the inkwell. She hesitated, and finally wrote a resolution in the blank space: “Denied”. Bit her lip, sighed and added below: “Perhaps later”. After another half a minute of looking somewhere through the sheet, wondering whether to write the answer herself, Princess, unable to find the moral strength, put the read message aside, this time — for good. First it was necessary to save her sister. And the truth about herself will be undoubtedly told later.

…

“Good evening to you, Your Highness Princess Luna.” “Greetings, Your Grace.” Nodding at the Prince’s bow, alicorn looked at her perverse guard with a heavy gaze. “It’s not for nothing that Nightmare sometimes pejoratively calls them blockheads.” She mentally sighed. It was an unfortunate reluctance on the part of many of the Night Guards to realize that they were not behind enemy lines and that they did not need to distrust everyone around them. Although they have finally been taught to not escort every day pony that entered the Night Princess' domain, not everyone has yet learned how to let even those who were explicitly ordered to be let through unhindered. The Great One, you see, is dangerously neglectful of her safety… Blockheads. Giving the furry-eared subordinates another disgruntled look and making a mental note to appoint only officers to the post, Luna smiled at slightly nervous Blueblood and made an inviting gesture. They walked in silence for a while. “My admiration for the architect and designer, Your Highness.” The unicorn put his hoof to his chest as he walked, not even straying from his steps. “The chambers are truly magnificent.” Princess cringed in thought. So many years have passed, but the aristocrats have not changed. She herself had tried to follow the etiquette of the dialog at first. But she has become somewhat accustomed to getting straight to the point so as not to irritate Nightmare Moon, who was irritated by all the beating about the bush. It seemed that she, too, was quietly beginning to like this approach… “I can give you a tour. And please, don’t be too formal — we’re not in public.” “As you wish. It would be a great pleasure to get to know the designs.” “Please, follow me.” There was a tense silence between the crowned companions again, interrupted only by the clatter of hooves on the shiny polished stone of the floor. Forcing words to appear in her mind, Luna turned to the Prince and was about to address him. But when she caught the unicorn’s gaze as she turned to say something, she was confused and turned away hastily, noticing with her peripheral vision, that he did the same. “Nightmare, in that case, is usually quick to turn everything over to me, beginning to 'praise' me for my constructive dialog and lively participation in it until I get angry and really start answering something…” Alicorn chuckled with the edges of her lips, but chased away the chuckle immediately and sighed quietly. You wanted to be responsible for what you’ve done — do it. No one is going to make life easier for you… “You were… Going… To continue our conversation, weren’t you? In the garden?” Princess gritted her teeth and exhaled determinedly for a second, but managed to squeeze it out. The stallion, who seemed to have just reassembled for some question, lost his step for a moment. Luna paused, letting him keep his distance. “Yes, Your Highness.” He nodded gloomily, getting over the second perplexity. “Though, frankly, I don’t quite know how to continue it, and I don’t know if I need to. You have already said your word, and I should stop looking for something in it that would allow me to continue clinging to my aunt’s beautiful tale. There was not a shred of truth in the whole story!” Prince gritted his teeth and whipped his tail on his side. “So maybe there’s none in our whole history!” Luna turned her gaze away, letting it at the floor. Tia… did allow herself to argue with history in some places, mostly by trying to round off and soften the hardest and bloodiest pages of it as much as possible. The raids by griffon gangs, for example, remained as a fact, but the fact that they not only robbed, but often massacred entire small villages, enslaved ponies, and some — Princess shuddered — even ate their prisoners… Perhaps her sister was right in this, not glossing over these or those facts, but only trying to shield the peaceful people of the ponies from the most disgusting details. “As far as I have become familiar with modern history, it is nowhere blatantly against the facts that I personally know, although it avoids unnecessarily bloody and brutal moments.” “Except for the story with your banishment.” The unicorn added gloomily, stopping and looking somewhere aside. Luna stopped too, and stared at the painting, that has caught her interlocutor’s attention. In the painting, an alicorn, who looked vaguely like herself, wearing old-fashioned armor and a glaive held by her leg, along with a pair of equally old-fashioned-looking guards, stood in front of a watchtower with a modern Equestrian flag flying on a flagpole. “Princess Protector” read the title at the bottom of the frame. “Sister loves me, even if I don’t deserve it.” Slowing, she replied finally. “And she wanted everyone to know you like this and no more, though that wasn’t true.” The stallion nodded frowningly at the picture. “She forgave me for what I did.” Princess dropped her gaze at the floor. “For the wounds I inflicted on her — mental and bodily. She wanted to start everything anew…” “And then, to everyone’s glee, it brought me, and everything fell apart, yeah.” Luna and Blueblood shivered and turned around simultaneously at the unexpected voice behind them. “Greetings, Nightmare…” The Princess of the Night said hi a bit shyly. So ill-timed… Or?.. And why did she, who tolerated the company of the younger diarch with a marked moral effort on her part, suddenly come up and speak first? “Honestly, I didn’t expect to see you today. Yes, allow me to introduce His Grace Prince Blueblood. Prince Blueblood — this is Her Grace Princess Nightmare Moon.” “Very… pleased… to… meet… Your… Your Grace.” The unicorn panted with an effort, stepping back involuntarily under the Mare in the Moon’s sharp gaze, which, though, she quickly averted. “I can’t sleep 'cause of our beloved trainings.” She mumbled. “Blueblood you said…” She glanced quickly towards the Prince again and looked away after a moment, though Luna caught a glimpse of an eyebrow arching in surprise, as if Nightmare knew the Prince — and was surprised at what he was doing here in the first place. “And why do you need him? Don’t you say me you’re looking for a lover?” “You!.. Yes!.. I!.. No!!!” Nightmare’s savage guess caught her by surprise in a moment. How she? Why would?!.. How can!.. “Yeah, truly, what am I talking about… Who needs you anyway?” The black alicorn chuckled unfriendly and, coming closer, looked at the painting as well. “Painter with a mouth, damn it. Even I know, that the flag was different back then…” “Y-Your Grace, I… I must insist, that you apologize to Her Highness!” The unicorn suddenly stepped forward on trembling legs, as if trying to at least partially cover Princess Luna with himself. “Prince Blueblood!..” Luna, who has not had time to stop the stallion, has come to her senses and now only bit her lip. Discord! Where’s he!.. Clearly out of sorts, or rather, in her frequent state of silent rage over what was probably a failure. Nightmare could strike anyone particularly annoying without remorse with a lightning. There have been three or four such incidents. And now, apparently, there would be another… “What the best person you’ve found to protect, ay.” But she seemed to calm down a bit instead, glancing at the unicorn again with an appraising glance. Then, for some reason uncharacteristically fast, back at the painting. With a silent exhale, Luna loosened her grip, allowing the hastily created shield spell to disintegrate. “You think she’s like this one here, don’t you?” The Mare in the Moon nodded at the painting. “No. Princess Luna told me about… Her mistakes in the past.” He answered grimly. “But even with this taken in count, I don’t think it’s right…” “How much did she?” Now Nightmare glanced at the alicorn with an appraising glance, interrupting Blueblood, who snorted indignantly at that. “That she almost killed her sister, stained the weapon with her blood and left you, her faithful comrade, to die alone!” The Princess of the Night looked defiantly. “So you only told me about the daughter?” Luna recoiled back reflexively from something chill in the Nightmare Moon’s gaze. “Daughter?..” “Yes, Prince, daughter.” The Mare in the Moon bared her teeth evilly, not turning her gaze away from Luna. “She didn’t leave just some comrade to die, right, Luna?” “You left?!.. Oh, Celestia… It… It can’t be!..” The unicorn looked at both alicorns with fear. It’s her revenge. It should be denied, no talk! She wouldn’t be trusted!.. Be silent, hide, disguise… Run away from the responsibility, as usual. And lost the chance for forgiveness for good. Enough. I won’t run anymore. “Alas to me, Blueblood.” Her own voice sounded foreign to Princess — muffled, dry, and lifeless… “Thanks to me, Nightmare Moon appeared. And for everything she did for me, I repaid her by betraying her and leaving her for certain death. Only thanks to the Elements of Harmony is she alive again.” The words flew off the tongue without effort, though tears welled up in the eyes. And there was also a sense of… freedom. Let everyone hate her, but lies and fear had no power over her anymore. Luna looked into Nightmare’s eyes, which were filled with astonishment and some unspeakable longing in the depths. “B-but… why?!” Blueblood, tilting, leaned against a wall. “But I did not understand whom I created. And then I began to fear instead of trying to understand. And one day that fear took over for good. Only in the last moment I had the time to have a doubt, but it couldn’t have been stopped…” The Princess of the Night sighed brokenly, feeling the recent calmness beginning to fade. “I remember.” Nightmare’s quiet voice came out of nowhere, shattering the oppressive and ominous silence in the corridor. “What?” Luna barely found the strength to ask. “Realization, that you felt in the last moment. And uncertainty, after which fear came… I just dove into the memory… To support the needed level of angriness, so to speak.” Nightmare chuckled quietly and creepy. “And just bumped into the right moment.” “Sorry.” “Go to devil. Or to your Prince, who is about to have a stroke.” It’s true… Luna sighed, turning to the completely stunned unicorn, trying to suppress her emotions and somehow calm her frantically pounding heart. “I’m very sorry for this family play, Your Grace. Are you alright?” “A? No… I fear I’m not.” The unicorn flinched, peeled away from the wall and, in violation of all the written and unwritten rules, sat down exhaustedly right on the floor. “Honestly, it’s hard to believe, that… Oh, h-hay…” “You, as I understand, came with questions? Now live with the answers.” Nightmare hummed sadly. “Welcome to depression. Consider yourself at home, you’re here for a long time.” “Honestly, Your Grace, I understand why Princess Luna could fear you so much, even though partially…” Prince mumbled. “It doesn’t excuse me, Blueblood. Nightmare is the way she is because of me.” “Well, you found the courage to tell all about this.” Prince chuckled nervously, looking at the floor and frantically fixing his hair. “But you must understand, that…” He hesitated. “That you’ll let the cat out of the bag for all Canterlot.” Nightmare hinted with an even voice, wandering across the corridor with her gaze. “I’m Prince and not going to drop my honor so low, Your Grace!” Blueblood sent a lightning by his gaze, standing up. “I swear, Your Highness, that these words will not leave from within these walls. And… The monstrosity of what you have done surpasses anything I have ever known, but also your courage to admit it to the eyes of an outsider pony… Truly, I have received answers with which I do not know what to do.” “And still… I allow you to talk about this if the desire appears. Especially because I’ll tell it myself sooner or later.” “By no means, Your Highness.” The unicorn looked at Luna. Sighed. “It’s not like I’m against your breathtaking story on the main square.” The Mare in the Moon said thoughtfully after a few dozens of long seconds, interrupting the hung silence. “But hold your horses, blue one. Because I’m a little afraid of the things that can happen to Tia if you do this…” “Oh… Thank you, Nightmare. I’m already… I do first, then I think, just as you mock…” Luna glanced at Prince, who has re-seated himself against the wall, and joined him. “It’s a bit of a surprise that you care about my aunt…” “Tia is my friend, Prince.” Nightmare, with a brief glance at the unicorn beside him and at the alicorn sitting a little further to his left, hesitated, and after walking a few steps so that Luna was in the middle, she too flopped down on the floor. “O-of… No truth in legs, ay?..” Silence. “I must say… I’m even surprised, that you defend me after what you’ve heard. Aren’t you the least bit confused by what I said?” Luna looked thoughtfully at the stallion. “They frightened me, Your Highness. But… You’re not a monster, like Sombra or Nightmare Moon, which was drawn in history, you… You regret. And I hope, that one day you’ll make peace. I’m sorry if I’m interfering…” “I… Thanks for believing in me, Blueblood.” “Nightmare Moon?” “What do you need?” “Please, give Princess Luna a chance, like you gave to my aunt.” “Tia didn’t betray me, glossy.” Silence felt again. “Maybe tea? I’ll order it to be…” Luna offered shyly. There was a kind of unbelievable emptiness in the head, just as it seemed to be in everyone else’s here. “Without me.” Nightmare Moon got on her feet, sniffing. “I’m going to bed. I’ve had enough of talks today.” “Your Grace?” “Perhaps a sedative.” Prince chuckled, glancing at some stricken Nightmare as she strode nervously down the corridor, awkwardly warming up her wings. “And Your Highness…” “Yes, Blueblood?” “It’s late now, of course, but… You promised me a tour.”