The Night's Proposal:

The moon had fallen low in the horizon, letting me know that I had nearly an hour left to finish my proposal. It wasn't long, and very vague, but I believed it got my point across. I finished the last line and placed the quill back in its well. Now was time for a final check for the night before I awoke Tia so that she may overtake the skies.

I went onto the patio and spread my wings and took off. As usual, there was no pony walking the grounds. There never was at this point in time. All nocturnal species would be turning in and it was still too early for any other creature, pony or otherwise, to be awake. There was only the empty skies and myself to soar them.

This was a normal night as any, but my thoughts were not on my flight. They were on my excitement of proposing my thoughts. It had been a fulfilling night, one of the nights that actually had something for me to do. If it went as well as I was hoping, I wouldn't have to roam the empty skies by myself by the end of the week.

My attention did come back when my flight took me above the Everfree Forest. As always, I noted any irregular changes in the forest, seeing as no normal pony was ever going to go into the Everfree Forest of their own accord. I personally didn't see what the big deal was with this forest and the ponies. The only thing that notated this forest as being different from other ones was that there was some sort of residual magic from Discord's time of chaos that didn't allow pony kind to shape it themselves.

Besides a new fallen tree here or there, there wasn't a significant change from my patrol yesterday. I did see one clearing that seemed to always be here; so today I decided to stop by. I descended into the forest and landed in front of the crumbling castle.

It had once been one of Discord's abodes, as well as our first place of ruling when the world was still chaotic. I walked through the half gone archway and into the front hall. I remembered when it was a spectacle to see. Ponies of all statuses comingled and talked to Tia and I in a normal fashion, no need for formalities, just a festive time for all. I sometimes wished that those simpler times were around. I did appreciate the status, but it isolated my sister and I from the rest of our kingdom.

I came upon the old Elements room where Twilight Sparkle and I had had our confrontation, and where I ceased to be Nightmare Moon. I smiled in the nostalgia and saw the empty pedestal that once been the holder of the Elements of Harmony. For no particular reason other than nostalgia, I picked up shards of rocks and fixed them together and put them upon the pedestal.

They were nothing more than stone orbs now, but seeing the orbs as a holder to the Element's spots made me feel at peace with the shape of our first castle. As long as this stayed as a monument and a reminder, nopony may need to go without them. All they had to do was remember that the power of the Elements was with everypony.

I smiled to myself as I thought of this. It would make an excellent first lesson to anypony that wanted to attend as my student. A lesson that nopony need be alone, or can be alone. I even chuckled at how much more direct I was thinking than my sister. And I was supposed to be the mysterious one.

I took one more look about the overgrown hall and headed back outside. As I looked to the moon, I calculated I had about ten minutes before I was late waking up my sister. I hadn't expected my trot down memory lane would take me so long. With a short run, I lifted myself back up into the skies and headed back to Canterlot.

I was cutting it close when I came to my sister's balcony. The moon was already nonexistent on the horizon and I could see some of the ponies already rousing from their slumber. I unlocked the balcony door and walked in.

Tia was still sound asleep, like she hadn't a care in the world. I smiled in remembrance when we actually didn't have a care in the world, and that was even further back, even before Discord. But this was the here and now, and Tia had a job to do.

"Tia, it's time to get up. I have to say you have about ten minutes or so to be ready to raise the sun." I said as I shook my sister awake.

"Geez Luna, cutting it close tonight, aren't you?" Tia mumbled as she got out of bed. "Not even time to grab a snack beforehand."

"It just makes breakfast that much sweeter Tia, now come on." I prompted as I opened her chamber doors. I saw the two guards posted snap to attention as I did, they were probably napping, but now wasn't the time for a reprimand.

"You're a bit pushy this morning Luna." Tia observed as she put her crown on and came trotting. "You're usually eager to keep the night."

"And we saw where that went." I jabbed.

"And even making jokes of Nightmare Moon, what happened last night?" Tia asked as we went to the Raising Grounds.

"Oh, the captain of our Unicorn Guard dropped by for a visit last night and it got me thinking." I brushed the question off. "By the way, you might want to talk to him about Cadence."

"I want a full report when we get to breakfast." Tia said in amazement. "You never talk this much in the morning."

"Usually because I have nothing to talk about." I smiled. "I have to stop at my room for something Tia. I'll see you at the dinning room for breakfast." I said as I trotted off to my room.

"I better see you there sister." Tia called after me.

I hadn't realized how nervous I was to propose my plan to Tia until I actually started talking to her. After thinking a bit more, I realized that this was the first proactive duty I was taking upon myself since my return. Then again, the night didn't have that many things to be reactive to. After the first few months of night, the darkness had become that of a close friend, nothing to be scared or be cautious of.

I got back to my chambers and found my papers as I had left them. I picked them up, straightened them out, and rolled them up. As I did, the suns rays started to break through the doorway. Tia had been considerate enough to make sure that my chambers did not have to have direct sunlight until late afternoon. I decided to hurry up and get to the dinning room; otherwise Tia may have begun without me.

I kept my papers close to my side as I trotted quickly down the halls to meet with my sister. Luckily enough, she hadn't arrived yet, so I gave a sigh of relief as I took my seat at our small and personal dinning table. I placed my papers down and relaxed, waiting for Tia to arrive.

She arrived soon after I did, looking tired but keeping her head high. Tia went straight to her seat across me and sighed. She then looked up at me.

"Have you waited long Luna?" She smiled. Even tired and exhausted, she could still put on such a pleasant aura.

"No, not really. I just got situated myself." I smiled back. "So shall we dine?"

"I think we should." Tia replied. And as if on cue, a trolley being pushed by a green earth pony came in. He had a yellow mane that complemented his coat very well, and yet I had never seen a cutie mark on him. He had been our server ever since I had returned, but his name escaped me.

"And for this mornings breakfast, we have a fruit assortment with banana nut muffins." The colt said as he removed the lid to the meal. The aroma of the fruit reached my nose and I had to fight the urge to salivate.

"Thank you very much Quick Fix, we can serve ourselves." Tia said, dismissing the pony. He bowed and made a quick exit.

"I just don't know how you do that Tia." I shook my head in amazement.

"Do what?" My sister asked innocently as she grabbed an apple and took a bite.

"How you remember every single ponies name. Quick Fix has served me my food since I've been back, but I couldn't recall his name until you said it." I sighed as I grabbed myself a vine of grapes.

"It's a habit I guess." Tia said in thought. "One thousand years of interacting with thousands of ponies has just had that kind of effect. You did leave when our rule was new. I'm sure you'll pick it up in time too."

"Well, it might also be helpful to pick that habit up faster with what I'm planning." I said, bringing around my proposal.

"And what are you planning?" Tia asked, taking my bait.

"You see sister, the nights are getting longer, and they are as lonely as always. Yesterday, when Shining Armor kept me company for a brief time, I thought of your student." I began.

"I wouldn't doubt it, he really does have a protective complex about her." Tia smiled.

"But that's the thing. I think he trusts you for her protection, being her teacher."

"Well, I'm not personally overlooking her work." Tia said modestly.

"But you do mentor her." I pressed. "So I began to think, why couldn't I teach some of the students from the school of magic?"

Tia stopped eating and looked at me. I knew that look well, it was the 'are-you-sure-you-know-what-you're-doing' look. "Luna, you must know that I decided to mentor Twilight Sparkle because of the amount of raw talent she possessed that made her capable of studying under me. I didn't do it on a whim."

"And neither am I saying that I want to teach anypony that decides they want to do it."

"Then what are you proposing?" Tia asked, her full attention on me.

"I'm proposing that I teach ponies how to deal with the darkness of night."

"Luna, no regular pony can handle that." Tia said, half scolding, half aghast.

"But Tia, I am no regular pony, I'm your sister. And I'm not saying that I would just throw the students to the Everfree Forest. I would let them handle the darkness one bit at a time. They, in turn, would learn how to concur their own fears."

"I don't know Luna."

"Celestia," I said, snapping Tia to full attention, for me to use her full name in private was a rare occurrence. "We can't always be here for our ponies. We have lived for a long time, but there will be a time to come where we will be indisposed or gone. In that time, I am unsettled that only our Guards and the Elements would be able or willing to act." I sighed. "Plus, it would give me something to actually do in the long nights."

"Luna, I hear what you're saying." Tia began. "But we can't train our entire nation to be warriors."

"I'm not proposing that they would be." I cut her off. "All I'm saying is that I want more of our people willing to act. When Queen Chrysalis attacked, I heard of only Twilight Sparkle and her friends making a stand against the changelings. Everypony else was only panicking. Now I'm not saying that they should have fought back." I said, cutting Tia's retort before she could make it. "But there could have been leaders, there could have been ponies gathering others into safety. There could have been ponies to hold off the changelings while others got to safety. That is what I'm proposing. I am proposing that there be a civilian movement for immediate leadership." I finished my speech.

Tia stared at me for what seemed like an eternity. Eventually, she sighed and smiled. "You sure put some thought into this."

"I had all night." I smiled.

"Oh hush you." Tia smiled in return. "All right. I'll post an announcement to the school for anypony that would like to attend."

I sighed and smiled. "Thank you Tia, you have no idea how much this means to me."

"I'm just wondering if you know what you're doing." Tia sighed as she finished her apple.