Queen Luna paced her bed chamber, her hands folded neatly behind her back. Her family had arrived earlier that day, but she had yet to meet with them. She loved them, yes, but their reason for being here is what caused Luna's anxiousness. Even her niece had come, and that meant only one outcome was possible by the end of their visit.
Her floor-length, light blue nightgown whipped around from the wind coming in the open windows. A chill came in, causing Luna to shiver.
Tying her robe around herself, she marched over to the window and closed it. As soon as they were latched and locked, a knock rang through her room.
"Enter," the queen called, knowing it to either be a maid or her servant.
A maid named Jennica came in and closed the door behind her. Bowing deeply, the maid said, "Your family is settled and all here, Your Highness."
"Thank you, Jennica," the queen said, sitting gracefully on her small bench at the foot of her large bed. "You are irreplaceable."
"Thank you, my queen," Jennica answered, standing. "But, if I may ask, why did you not greet them earlier this evening?"
Luna sighed heavily and gestured for Jennica to sit on the other side of the bench. "I trust you to keep this information to yourself." Jennica nodded as she joined her queen. Luna let out another sigh before continuing.
"My family is wanting an heir to our legacy," she explained, pinching the bridge of her nose and squeezing her eyes shut.
"Do they forget their princess?" Jennica asked, scandalized. She covered her heart with both hands, her face turning pink in anger.
Luna smiled bitterly and shook her head. "Not that type of heir, dear. They are perfectly happy with letting my Stella take over the Kingdom of Solaria. She is the Fairy of the Shinning Sun."
"Then what is the problem, my queen?" Jennica asked slowly, folding both hands in her lap.
Luna stood, and resumed her pacing. Jennica stood as well, chewing her lip.
"I am the Fairy of the Shimmering Stars. This lineage carries through my family all the way back to the Ancient Times. My father betrothed me to Radius, our king, when the two of us were teenagers. With our combined ancestries, we were sure to produce strong and magnificent children. Just look at our Stella!"
She was beginning to ramble, and quickly snapped back to the point. Jennica listened raptly, her eyes following Queen Luna as the blonde woman paced.
"But, in my family's eyes, I have not produced an heir to be the next Fairy of the Shimmering Stars. They have come here to judge me on my ability to produce one. If they deem me unworthy, the title goes to my niece, who is twenty and has no powers yet." Luna felt anger welling in her stomach, and let out a huff.
"What happens if you don't produce an heir?" Jennica asked, curious.
Luna sighed heavily. From an outsider's perspective, she could see why it seemed pointless to worry about an heir. "If I don't pass on my powers to an heir with the capability to handle them, then on my deathbed, I will go supernova. If someone quite incapable gets a hold of them, they will go supernova." She stopped walking and looked over to Jennica, wanting to see if she could gauge the heaviness of that.
But the maid only looked confused. Luna took a deep breath and resumed pacing.
"That means that if I die with my powers, its energy will expand outside of me, causing everything in its path to go to ashes, myself included."
Jennica's face went white as she finally realized what that meant.
"So, if someone can't handle your powers, or if you die with your powers intact . . ."
Luna nodded. "Everyone else dies, as well," she confirmed. "That's why an heir is so important. If they decide to pass the title to my niece, then they will strip me of my powers and give them to her since she did not inherit them. And her mother, my sister, will rub it in my face until her deathbed."
Jennica was silent, and the queen stopped walking to turn to face her.
"Perhaps I said too much," Luna mumbled, wrapping her arms around herself shyly and averting her eyes. She tended to ramble when she was angry. Controlling her mouth when she was upset wasn't her strong suit.
"My queen," Jennica said softly, causing Luna to look at her again, "what will you do?"
Luna sighed sadly, her shoulders deflating, and walked to the window to look at the full moon. "I'm not sure, quite honestly. I can produce an heir, that I know. The only part I don't know is . . . who with."
Jennica paused, and Luna imagined the girl probably hadn't expected this much. "What about King Radius?" the maid suggested, a smile forming on her face. "You could always annul the divorce!"
But Luna shook her head sadly. "I'm afraid not. He has moved on from me, and I from him." She glanced back at the maid. "Thank you for listening, Jennica, but I am tired. You are dismissed. If I hear word of this getting out, I will not hesitate to punish you how I see fit."
Jennica bowed. "Of course, my Queen. You can count on me to keep your secrets." She stood and left, shutting the door softly behind her.
Luna turned back to the window, gazing outside. The way the moonlight shone over the top of the dark forest made the trees look mysterious and magical. The sky was cloudless, letting all the stars shine and shimmer to their hearts' content.
She took in a deep breath and let her mind wander.
If her family was tired of waiting, then she would lose her powers by the end of the week. If she announced a relationship, maybe that would hold them off a bit longer. The only problem was who?
There was Allan, her bodyguard. He was strong, passionate, and caring, and Luna could sense that he had feelings for her, but she felt it cruel to become involved with him just to keep her powers or produce a child. She didn't want to take advantage of the way he felt. He deserved all the happiness he could find.
There was John, her doctor. She quickly shook her head. He was head over heels in love with Jennica, and the poor girl was oblivious.
She went through all the single men that she could think of. A border guard, an advisor, the man who tended to the horses, maybe even Radius . . .
Her mind kept wandering back to her ex-husband. But when she thought of him, she thought differently about him than the others.
With the others, she was focused on how willing they would be to possibly fake a relationship at first, or maybe even just go straight to an actual engagement. When she thought of Radius, however, she was more focused on their happier times when they were still together.
Raising Stella with him had been so fun. The messy mornings of the baby throwing food onto their own plates. The fussy evenings when they would take turns rocking Stella back to sleep in the middle of the night. Their crafty afternoons where Stella would draw them all together, and Luna and Radius would write little love letters.
Luna hummed wistfully, a soft smile playing on her lips. She missed those days.
Her eyes opened softly as she thought about something. The reason she had never gotten a different significant other. Perhaps the reason she kept striking out the other men.
Did she still love Radius? Was she not over him like she thought?
But at the same time, was this truly love she felt towards him, or simply a longing for what used to be? A longing for easier times? Or was she only going back to him because he was the only man she knew of that would produce an heir on the first try, technically second?
"Gods, give me the strength to make it through this," she said quietly, looking back up to the moon. It seemed to glow a little brighter, as though reassuring her it would be okay.
The next evening during dinner, the atmosphere was tense. Anxiety had her stomach rolling and was making her sweat, but Luna had to ignore her sweaty palms and carry on like normal. She sat at the head of the table, with her father on her left, and her sister on her right. At the other end of the table sat her grandfather, who looked very displeased, to say the least.
"So, Lu," her sister said, interrupting the conversation between their father and Luna and scooping vegetables up with her fork. As she chewed her food, she asked, "Is there a man in your life yet?"
Luna's eye twitched in annoyance when her sister called her Lu. Their mother jumped in before Luna could respond, and chided her second eldest. "Don't interrupt your father, honey! And don't talk with your mouth full!"
That gave Luna enough time to take a breath to calm down. "Well, with the divorce still unfinalized, I haven't had the time," the queen answered calmly, cutting her salmon and taking a dainty bite. "Trying to divvy up our possessions and fix my own accounts with everything going on around the dimensions hasn't been very easy."
"Unfinalized?" her grandfather questioned, his voice skeptical. "Then what about that woman Radius almost married a few years back?"
Luna sat a little straighter and turned her eyes to the old man. "She bewitched him with Valtor's magic, remember, Grandfather? Their engagement was meant to last much longer than it did. But after the truth came out, we both mutually decided to focus more on security clearances and personnel than our personal problems with each other. And rightly so. That protection has led to a much safer Solaria."
Her mother and father nodded understandingly, and her grandfather muttered something under his breath before looking back at his plate.
"So, that's a no, then?" her sister asked, leaning an elbow on the table. Luna's niece did the same, pushing her plate away so that she could lean forward.
The hopeful tone in her sister's voice angered Luna. She cut a sharp glare at her sister and niece, who sat up straight and took their elbows off the table.
"No, sister," Luna snapped politely. "I do not have a significant other in my life. I am more focused on running Solaria than finding a suitor right now. I understand the importance of providing an heir to be the Fairy of the Shimmering Stars and continue the legacy, but you must understand that my hands are tied at the moment."
Once Luna finished speaking, her sister and niece were grinning like cats that just caught mice. Realizing what she had said and what that had implied, Luna's heart began to race. That's exactly what they had wanted. Luna had just confessed that she couldn't produce an heir as quickly as her family wanted her to.
Her hands began shaking, causing the cutlery to clink against the porcelain plate. Setting down her fork and knife, Luna sipped her wine, anxiously waiting for the reaction of her confession.
But nothing was said. Silence remained as the sisters looked from family member to family member. Luna felt her heart racing. Was the silence good for her or was it good for her sister? Were they understanding, or were they mentally deciding that she was unfit?
Her niece looked smug, and focused on her own plate, a smirk on her lips.
"Well?" her sister asked, her nasally voice loud. "Did any of you just hear what she said?"
"Of course, we did, dear," their father answered, glancing up. "Your sister is also our queen. Mind your tongue."
"But she just said she doesn't have the time to produce an heir!" Her sister's tone was aggravated and whiny.
"She's unfit to be the Fairy of the Shimmering Stars!" her niece chimed in.
Luna cut a glare to the young woman. That little-
"Enough!"
Luna's grandmother stood from her seat on the left of her grandfather. Her white hair was frizzy and tied away from her red and angry face. She threw her napkin down on her plate and looked angrily at her younger granddaughter.
"Luna is our queen, and also your mother's successor! She will produce an heir on her own time! Your daughter does not possess magic! She is twenty years old and has had no magical training! We cannot force this ancient and unstable magic onto someone who is not meant to have it!"
Luna's younger sister had the decency to look ashamed, but Luna felt that she wouldn't let the subject go any time soon. Her niece shrank down into her seat, also embarrassed.
Their grandmother turned to her husband.
"And you! How dare you shame Luna for putting her political duties first! She is a queen! We cannot apply old traditions to something we haven't encountered before!"
Luna had to stop herself from letting her pride show on her face. She let a soft smile play on her lips as she gazed at the old woman. She let her gaze drift to her mother, who was nodding along as her grandmother continued.
"As someone who once possessed that power, I know the importance of continuing the tradition. But I was a seamstress in my down time! Our daughter was a teacher married to a politician! Now our granddaughter is the queen and you still try to stick to tradition?"
Silence followed her grandmother's passionate speech until Luna's mother spoke up.
"I agree, mother. I think Luna is doing a fine job." Her mother also stood and set her napkin on her plate. "I propose we drop the matter completely. Until Luna comes to one of us about a problem, we leave her be. If Luna decides not to have another child, we can always wait for Stella to have children."
Relief flooded Luna's chest. If her family agreed to this, this burden of her family breathing down her neck would finally go away. It would be done with.
Everyone was quiet until Luna's father stood. "I think you two are on to something. You know the stresses of the job, so I trust your judgments." He turned to Luna and bowed. "My queen and daughter, please accept our apologies for causing you unnecessary stress."
Smiling gratefully, Luna stood and hugged her father.
"Of course," she said, letting go. "I appreciate your concern, Father."
Kissing the back of her hand as a thank you, her father turned to the rest of the family who were now standing. "Then I think we're done here. Let's enjoy the rest of our visit, yes?"
The rest of dinner passed enjoyably, with more talking and stories and laughing than Luna could remember having. Her heart was light and happy, the stress finally off of her shoulders. Her sister was fuming quietly the whole time, but by the end of dinner, it seemed as though she got over it.
That night, Luna went for a nighttime walk in her garden. She had specifically planted only flowers that bloomed at night for these situations. The way the blues, purples, and whites reflected in the moon light caused a light small to dance on the queen's lips.
The garden was large, and had many pathways, but Luna knew them by heart. She knew that, when viewed from above, the white stone walkways formed a crescent moon merged with a sun. The garden had been a wedding gift from Radius's father. Radius had kindly let Luna keep her garden, but had it rebuilt in her private estate on a much smaller scale.
The longer she thought about Radius, the more conflicted she felt. They had argued so much, even while raising Stella. The love notes got passive aggressive. Taking turns to rock Stella to sleep caused a fight at least twice a week. And the messy mornings made their annoyances with each other rise for the rest of the day. It was best they had a divorce, that much she knew. But could she get over all of the things he did, or the selfish ways he acted most days?
Shaking her head, Luna stopped walking.
No. She couldn't let it go, even if she wanted to.
She knew her worth. And she was above going back to a relationship that had been doomed almost from the start.
Taking in a deep breath, Luna turned to face a Moonflower bush. These flowers were white, and their aroma made Luna smile.
One day, she would walk this garden with Stella, and most likely the heir to the other half of the sun, whether that be her child or her grandchild. Just the thought of strolling through, holding their hands, made Luna sigh happily.
"Oh, forgive me, my queen," a voice interrupted, causing Luna's eyes to snap open. "I didn't mean to intrude on something personal. I was only doing my rounds."
Luna stood up straight and looked at the guard in front of her. It was her bodyguard, Allan. His eyes were wide, and he looked frantic and embarrassed. He was blushing and wouldn't meet her eyes, and Luna surprisingly found it endearing. She felt her heart race a little, and her stomach fluttered.
"I don't mind, Allan," she said, smiling softly. Extending her hand, she asked, "Would you mind escorting me to my reading den? I haven't yet finished that latest book you recommended."
His eyes lit up as he looked at his queen. "You're reading what I suggested, Your Highness?" he questioned, his voice amazed.
Allan walked over to her, and let the queen take his arm. Luna took in a breath, smelling his faint cologne.
"I quite like the book, Allan," she said as they made their way inside. "As a matter of fact, once I finish it, why don't we talk about it over tea?"
A/N:
Hi, everyone! It's been a while, but I hope you guys liked this! After I read StarryNights513 's one shot about a Fairy of the Shimmering Stars (it's in the Reader's Choice compilation! Check it out!), I had the inspiration to write something from Luna's perspective. I really wish something like this was cannon, because it would be an amazing subplot to explore, in my opinion.
*Allan isn't an original character of mine (he is Luna's boyfriend in the comics).*