See? What'd I tell ya? I TOLD ya I'd get the next chapter out soon! XD Okay, enough of the jokin' around, it's time to continue the story!

"It's so nice to see you again!" Luna said to Aversion.

"Yeah..." Aversion said. "...I would normal expect it to be just the other way around."

"Why is that?" Luna asked.

Aversion shuffled his hooves nervously. "...Well... 'cause, you see... I've never expected that a Princess... would care so much for a single, particular commoner..."

Luna giggled. "It's alright. Besides, isn't in the best interest of a monarch to lookout for the wellbeing of their subjects?"

"I guess you're right." Aversion responded.

In any case, Luna strode over to the balcony where Aversion had flown in from, and took in a lungful of the crisp, night air.

"Well, as always, after a long day of activity..." she spoke. "...everypony settles down for the evening... and Equestria falls much more silent... more peaceful..."

Aversion walked up next to the Princess, and looked out over the kingdom. He could make out Ponyville, and was taken aback by how small and insignificant it looked visually, compared to the grant scope of Equestria as a whole.

"...Usually by this time, I would either be working a late shift at the cafe, or just bumming around playing video games, or surfing the Ponynet, until I eventually go to bed." he said.

Luna gave him a warm smile. "And you should feel blessed on the nights when you can as you said, 'bum around,' just as I do on such nights. On a typical workday evening for me, I am often bustling to get my day's work done so as not to fall behind."

"Hm..." Aversion said, his face falling. "...sounds like I've got no reason to complain, then."

"That's not true!" Luna said.

Aversion looked at her curiously.

"I mean, yes, my life outside of work is very bland and uneventful, which has left me depressed... but just because I might be in a worse spot does not mean yours is, per se, ideal." Luna explained.

"Hm... I never thought of it that way. I always assumed that everypony who tells me 'There are LOTS of ponies who would give ANYTHING to have what you've got!' were right... that they knew more about Equus than I did." Aversion said.

"Yes, it is true that there are many societies, both inside and outside of Equestria, that are not faring well, but that does not in any way mean you have no right to be upset about your lifestyle." Luna said.

She stretched her wings out, tipping her head back, and closing her eyes.

"Take me, for instance..." Luna said. "...I often worry that I will be stuck in the same working loop all my life... and because of that, I try to... take a different approach, from time to time..."

Aversion walked forward a little bit, in front of her.

"...and I found that nighttime... the time I command and reign over... it is perfect, as everypony who would usually issue me tasks are all asleep... and I may do as I wish. It is merely the workload I am given that gives the illusion of me lacking free will... and I make the most of my time... with my abilities..."

"Oh?" Aversion asked.

Luna continued: "...My flights, though few and far between, are one of the most enjoyable aspects of my free time... and the fact that I take them rarely makes them all the more special..."

"Really?" Aversion said after she had trailed off.

Luna nodded. "Yes, and what I truly want... so that it is not so much the same thing... is to share such an experience with somepony..."

"...Where are you going with this, Luna?" Aversion asked.

"Well... would you like to, mayhaps..." she briefly trailed off. "...go for a flight with me?"

"A flight?" Aversion asked, tilting his head with narrow eyes.

Luna nodded. "You could ride on my back, and we could get out of the castle... see the world..."

"W-well... apart from your summoning me... I've... never flown before..." Aversion said, nervously. "...and... I'm afraid of heights..."

Luna pondered for a moment. She wanted her friend to know the joy that flight brings her, especially with him being an earth pony, who was bound to the ground no matter what. In fact, she herself could not get much time to fly around on her own, and was always trying to take time to recover from the strain of her royal duties in her limited free time.

"If that is the case, I promise to keep a safe flight pattern." Luna said. "And if you fall, I will catch you."

Aversion carefully examined Luna's anatomy. "Is it safe?"

"Of course! Do you trust me?" Luna asked.

Aversion's eyes went wide at what she just asked. He drew his eyes away from her wings to meet her own eyes.

"What?" he asked.

Luna extended a hoof toward him. "...Do you trust me?"

The earth pony looked at her hoof for a moment, before glancing back up at her eyes with a slight smile.

"...Yes..." he said, taking her hoof.

Once he took it, Luna used her magic to levitate him, and her hoof with his in it to guide him onto her back. With that, she spread her wings once more, and flapped, taking them several meters above the balcony, and launching forward.

"WOAH...!" Aversion cried out, hastily grabbing onto Luna's lower neck to hold on.

Luna could not help but laugh silently at how tense Aversion was. Soon enough, however, he loosened his hold around her neck, and became more awestruck as he watched the world pass by him... at such a high speed.

"I can show you the world..." Luna said.

Aversion found this experience to be quite nerve-racking... but it was beginning to grow on him. He was starting to really like what was happening. He was flying. Maybe it wasn't how he always fantasized it would happen. But still, he was flying!

Soon, Canterlot was far behind them. Luna took Aversion soaring over the breathtaking landscapes of Equestria, the mountains and canyons, the sweeping fields, and the major communities like Manehattan, Fillydelphia, Las Pegasus, Appleloosa, and so on.

Aversion could help but stare wide-eyed and jaw agape at how glorious the world looked from high above. He felt like a god, with everything seeming so small below them. Not only that, but at nighttime... it was even more amazing. The moonlight made everything look so beautiful, mystical, and mysterious.

Without warning... Luna smirked privately just before she let her wings go limb, and they both began to fall into a dive. Aversion gasped as they plunged toward the valley below them and he brought his hooves up to his face to cover his eyes. Luna took note of this, and used her own hoof to pull his own out of his face.

"...Don't you dare close your eyes." the Princess said to her subject.

Soon enough, before they even came close to hitting the ground, Luna spread her wings back out and regained her lift, leveling out and gliding again. She flapped to regain altitude, and as they ascended... an aurora split the sky, its bright colors filling the otherwise-dark sky. Aversion's eyes went wide at this spectacle, and his jaw fell. Luna herself was amazed by all of this; it had never happened. A great smile filled her face as her eyes gleamed with the aurora's glow.

While admiring the brilliant solar wind that lit the night, and the continually-appearing landmarks... Aversion hugged Luna's neck a little more passionately, and leaned his head against the side of hers. This made Luna inaudibly gasp and blush a bit, but it quickly left as an even bigger smile took over her face. She could not put her hoof on what it was... but something about his... intimacy... just felt so good, on a level that transcended mere touch.

Once they had glided for a long distance around the kingdom, soaring at a high speed... Luna eventually lowered her altitude over a certain patch of Everfree Forest. Aversion sat up from his dreamy embrace around her neck as he took notice of her descent.

"What are we doing, setting down here?" he asked.

"I need to rest for but a moment, and also..." Luna briefly trailed off. "...I want to show you something."

About one minute later, Luna set down in front of a fairly large castle. It had some parts that looked... cleaner than others. It seemed as if the place was in disrepair, but renovated with new stone that contrasted the old stone. Aversion glanced around the large fortress.

"What is this place?" Aversion asked.

"This..." Luna began. "...was our original castle."

Aversion examined the structure wide-eyed once again. "...This was your castle? But... I never even knew there was another castle!"

"Yes..." Luna said. "...this castle has been in disrepair for nearly a thousand years. Only recently with the help of Twilight Sparkle has it been restored as it had been back then."

Both the Princess and commoner walked inside to the entry hall. The long stretch of carpet... the elaborate support columns... the chandeliers... all of it was absolutely breathtaking, at least in Aversion's eyes. Luna sighed with reminiscence as she entered her old home.

"So... what happened to this place?" Aversion asked. "Why was it in disrepair? Why didn't Celestia continue living here?"

The Princess bit her lower lip nervously.

"Prior to my banishment to the moon for one-thousand years, my sister and I both lived in this castle, and Canterlot was merely a place of royal business. This was changed when... certain, unfortunate circumstances occurred..." Luna shuddered remorsefully. "...and so Canterlot Castle was refurbished to include living quarters, for the co-rulers, lesser monarchs, like my nephew Prince Blueblood, and emissaries."

"Oh..." Aversion said.

"Yes... and I, too, have been secretly doing my part to rebuild this place... my home... and rectify my mistakes." Luna said.

Aversion sighed as his eyes fell to the floor.

"Always wanting to make up for everything, even when your sister has forgiven you..." he said, before looking up at her again. "...you really are like me in many ways, Luna."

Luna managed to smile at what he said to her. "And it really makes me feel better to know that somepony is able to relate."

Aversion blushed as he bit the inside of his lips while smiling. Once he was able to brush it off, both he and Luna looked each other in the eye. For some reason unknown to either of them... they could not look away. Both of them were locked in on each other's gaze... almost hypnotized by each other. Aversion's face began to flush once again... and the same was happening to Luna as well... they were both leaning closer to each other... wanting more of the other's presence... proximity... and intimacy...

"...A-anyway..." Aversion stammered. "...it's a beautiful castle... I'm glad you stopped here, and shared something about yourself that I didn't know."

Luna nodded after breaking out of her trance. "Of course. Now, we should probably be heading back... I don't want anypony to notice my absence!"

"Right!" Aversion said. "So let's fly on back!"


A little while later, Blueblood was out getting some night air to "purify his 'magnificent coat,' 'majestic mane,' and 'wholesome lungs' of a day's pollutants."

"Hmph...!" The prince uttered. "The nerve of Auntie 'Tia! She wants me to use a napkin...! She wants me to say please...! And she wants me to acknowledge gratefulness toward the lowly guards! Is there no end to the slavery she puts me through!? I am a prince! Not a lowly serf!"

As Blueblood was walking along the bridge between turrets... he happened to spot Luna flying toward the castle... but there was something on her back. Curious, he used the nearby observation telescope to get a better look... and saw that it was a gray earth pony with a rust-red mane and tail. Needless to say... he was completely dumbstruck by what he was seeing.

"Do my glorious eyes deceive my intelligent mind?" Blueblood asked himself as he looked through the telescope. "A lowly, worthless commoner? Riding upon Auntie Luna's loin!?"

His jaw hung agape for a moment, just before he clenched his teeth, and his eyebrows came over his eyes.

"What... a... pathetic... rotten... PEASANT!" Blueblood raged. "How dare he have the audacity to so much as even lay his own eyes upon the ruler of the night!"

He put aside his night walk and hastily made his way back to his quarters. He was pacing in rage at the thought of Luna treating commoners with special treatment.

"I cannot comprehend Auntie Luna on the regular... but this...!? Was he threatening her, forcing her to take him into the castle to plan a terrorist invasion!? Or are they both, perhaps... changelings?" he asked nopony.

Blueblood shifted his eyes to the Royal Sisters' tower, and an evil grin appeared on his face.

"Well... I shall do some investigation of this matter... and if it turns out to be just a worthless, piece-of-trash commoner... heh heh heh... I shall give him the sheer misery he was made for!" he said.

He began to laugh maniacally... up until a yawn cut it off.

"Ahh... but first..." Blueblood said. "...I require a night's rest... I must maintain my image as the greatest stallion on Equus!"

Uh-oh... looks like Aversion's got quite the bad stallion after him, now doesn't he? Well, we'll just have to wait in order to see what is gonna go down, and what Blueblood has planned. Who knows what Aversion could face because of this? Anyway, thanks for continuing to follow me, and I'll catch you all real soon! Keep holding on...