Everlasting Night

by A Derpy King Boo

(A/U) When Nightmare Moon returns, she seeks out ways she could extract her revenge on the pony who put her in her prison originally. She comes across a couple ponies and, while going through with a carefully laid plan, learns some things on the way.

"Legend has it that on the longest day of the thousandth year, the stars will aid in her escape and she will bring about nighttime eternal."

Princess Celestia looked up at the moon and watched as three stars began closing in on it. She nodded to herself, then turned around and retreated further inside her room. Pacing around a bit, she started planning out what she should possibly do if in the event she met her foe: Nightmare Moon. She heard a knock on her door and, without turning towards it, granted the visitor permission to enter into her room. With the door being encased in a cyan colored aura, a smaller, petite alicorn was revealed and entered into it, shutting the door carefully behind her. The new alicorn saw Celestia pacing around slowly and tried talking to her.

"Everything okay, Princess?" She quietly asked, trying not to alert the guards currently positioned on the other side of the doorway.

Celestia glanced back towards the new alicorn and smiled softly, "Yes, Princess Cadence. I'm just doing some thinking, that's all."

"About what?" Cadence wondered, raising an eyebrow cautiously. She glanced out of the window and up towards the moon, unable to see the stars that were closing in on it. "It wouldn't happen to have anything to do with Princess Luna returning, would it?"

Celestia nodded, "That, on top of other items."

"What more is worrying you?"

"The Summer Sun Celebration is in its thousandth year of celebration," continued Celestia, "and while I usually prepare them myself, this year, I've sent Twilight Sparkle to Ponyville to supervise the preparations."

"Ah," Cadence smiled, recognizing the pony Celestia was talking about almost immediately, "I remember Twilight. Oh, it's been years since I've seen her last. Is she still as studious as I remember her?"

Celestia giggled softly and nodded once more, "She is, and that's why I've sent her to Ponyville. Look at this letter she sent me a couple hours ago." She lifted up the message and hovered it over towards Cadence.

Cadence took control of the letter and read it aloud, "My dearest teacher, my continuing studies on pony magic have led me to discover that something really bad is about to happen. For you see, the mythical mare in the moon is in fact Nightmare Moon, and she's about to return to Equestria and bring with her eternal night. Something must be done to make sure this terrible prophecy does not come true. I await your quick response. Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle." She returned the letter to Celestia, rolling her eyes playfully. "Sounds to me like she still prefers her studies over all other things."

Celestia took the letter and teleported it away, raising a hoof to her chin in the process, "Exactly, and this is why I sent her to Ponyville." She wiped a tear away from her eye, turning towards the window and noticing that the mare in the moon had vanished. "I sense great things in her and those other ponies that are helping prepare the ceremony in Ponyville, but I just hope that she finds the Elements of Harmony quickly."

"Did you let her know that she has to do that?" Cadence wondered, stepping up next to Celestia.

Celestia bit her lip softly and began turning her head away from Cadence, speaking in a higher tone, "Not exactly?"

"Really?" Cadence replied, noticing the unusual response. "Why not?"

"I did let her know that it was important that she established friends," Celestia retorted, "and that's vital if she were to be the wielder of the Elements of Harmony."

"Does she know about the sixth element then?" Cadence pressed on. "You told me in stories when I was a younger filly that you hid the sixth element better than the other five."

Celestia turned back to face her niece and nodded, "While that is true, I let her know in the book that I gave to her that there are indeed six elements in the world."

"Well that's good," smiled Cadence.

"But," continued Celestia, "I also let her know that only five are known - Kindness, Generosity, Loyalty, Laughter, and Honesty."

"So you left out Magic on purpose then, or…?"

"A little bit from column A," answered Celestia, "a little bit from column B. She's a smart pony, smarter and more outgoing than anypony I've ever met."

"That's Twilight's gimmick alright," responded Cadence, "and, if she's anything like the pony I remember foalsitting for, then I know she'll be capable of doing great things."

"I know she'll be able to perform well," Celestia insisted, "and, if I'm being honest, I think she has a really good chance at discovering what friendship could do for a pony if she is able to befriend the other five leading the ceremony preparations."

"Have you met them?" Cadence asked.

"While I was in Ponyville discussing the preparations with Mayor Mare," said Celestia, "I saw them together and immediately felt the strength their friendships were. I could tell that each of them were different and led various types of lifestyles, but I could also tell that those differences weaved together and strengthened their bonds. Ponies that are that unique, yet still friends? That's what I hope happens when I pick the Princess of Friendship, whenever that happens."

"You really thought it was going to be Sunset Shimmer for a long time," Cadence replied, "didn't you? I remember you talking endlessly about her accomplishments, much like you do with Twilight's own now."

Celestia nodded, "I did, and I was deeply saddened to see how she abandoned those studies in pursuit of her own clouded judgement and desires. I just hope she one day returns and we can put this all behind us."

"One day, perhaps," Cadence said hopefully. She hadn't known Sunset Shimmer extensively, but did recognize how happy she made Celestia before Twilight came along. She looked to the clock, "It's almost time. Shouldn't you be preparing to leave soon?"

Celestia looked up at the clock as well, "Goodness! I hadn't noticed how early it had gotten." She prepared herself to teleport to Ponyville. "Good luck with the festivities here in Canterlot, Cadence."

"Same with you in Ponyville, Princess," smiled Cadence, turning to leave the room.

Celestia watched as Cadence exited her room, then focused her magic in an attempt to teleport long-distance to Ponyville. Aura encasing her horn, Celestia felt the magic shift around her body, then casted the teleportation spell, appearing just outside of Ponyville. Before entering the town limits, she looked back to the silhouette of the capital city in the distance, continuing to debate whether or not sending Twilight away was a wise choice. She remembered the long nights pacing around in her throne room, playing hypothetical situations repeatedly in her mind, often ending in her delaying the departure of Twilight until only recently. Collecting herself, Celestia turned back and began entering into the town, looking for Mayor Mare.

---

~Meanwhile, on the moon…~

"Ugh, it's been one thousand years already. Why haven't I been released yet?"

Looking down at the planet below her, the sinister mare of darkness snarled at the sight. She longed to return to what was once rightfully hers and despised the current situation she was presently in. She understood the sentencing as a punishment for what she did, but vowed vengeance when she did return. To the one pony that mattered to her most, she was known as Princess Luna; to everyone else, she was known as Nightmare Moon.

"I can't understand why my power is forbidding me from escaping this place," Nightmare Moon squandered. "They've developed and evolved for over a thousand years, yet those putrid Elements of Harmony are the ones that keep me locked in here. The nerve…"

Walking slowly on the surface, Nightmare Moon began to grit her teeth angrily. She kicked a pebble away and watched as the low gravity slowly released its hold, sending the rock spiraling high into the space above. Nightmare Moon gave an annoyed sigh and looked towards the planet below her once more.

"Greetings," a voice called to her.

Nightmare Moon's ears shot up instinctively. It was the first voice she's heard in one thousand years that didn't belong to her. She looked up and glanced around, wondering where it was that the voice had originated from.

"Who goes there?" She demanded. "We demand that you show yourselves now."

"Do not be afraid," a second voice called, "for we are only here to assist you."

"Assist us?" Nightmare Moon repeated.

"In returning home," a third voice claimed. "We've been watching for the last couple hundred years or so…"

"And we've been approaching you just for this occasion," added the first voice.

"But we need to act quickly," the second voice warned, "for we do not know how long you will have."

"Pray tell," Nightmare Moon replied, "but what could you possibly do that could assist us in leaving this prison sentence? Art thou not simply stars?"

"We are," the first voice giggled.

"But we are also ones that will assist-"

"I understand that," interrupted Nightmare Moon, "you've explained that already. My question is how will that happen?"

"Follow our lead," the third voice said.

Lining up in coordination with the others, the stars that spoke out to Nightmare Moon began to shine brightly and encase Nightmare Moon's body completely. Shielding her eyes with her wings, Nightmare Moon tried to see what the stars were doing, but couldn't manage to do so; the light the stars were forming was simply too bright. When the light finally disappeared, Nightmare Moon lowered her wings and looked around, noticing that everything was dark around her. She looked up and saw the moon shining brightly in the sky, lacking a particular face against its side.

"You are free!" The first voice called.

"Return to your setting at once," the second voice added.

"And we will see to your kingdom at once," the third voice finished.

"And we wouldn't want it any other way," smirked Nightmare Moon. She transformed into her hazy form and lifted herself up into the air. Now which way is the old castle?

She flew around for quite some time, flying high above an endless army of trees and shrubbery. When she began approaching a town, she noticed a few of the ponies down below that were still active in the night. Flying closer to the ground, Nightmare Moon tried to eavesdrop on them, trying to figure out where she was. She did her best trying to hide, using the night sky as a way to cover herself up.

"I can't believe Princess Celestia is honoring us by coming here this year!" One pony beamed.

"Neither can I," responded the second pony, "living in Canterlot must be incredible, but choosing to come to a small town like Ponyville to celebrate? Who would've thunk it?!"

"Is the princess here yet?" The first pony asked.

"Not that I know of, Amethyst," the second pony answered. "She might still be in Canterlot, as far as we know."

Canterlot, eh? Nightmare Moon thought. She recognized the name, but couldn't come up with a reason why Celestia would want to move there. Prior to her banishment, Nightmare Moon remembered Canterlot being only a small village with not to offer.

Gaining altitude, Nightmare Moon looked around to find Canterlot, not recognizing much. A lot has changed to the landscape in the thousand years she was gone, so Nightmare Moon didn't see much in terms of similarity between when she was last here and now. Remembering the general area Canterlot was in, she decided to go there and check on Celestia.

While she was flying, Nightmare Moon noticed a silhouette of large spires and buildings that were attached to the side of a mountain. She saw that some spires looked similar to the ones of her old castle and figured that if there were any place she should try first, it would be one of the spires. Upon her approach, Nightmare Moon spotted the city below her and kept her distance, focusing on the spires and the castle nearby.

Oh,Nightmare Moon smirked, this is almost too perfect.

As if it were destiny, Nightmare Moon saw Princess Celestia backing away from one of the larger windows of the spire. Maintaining her hazy form, she flew in closer and prepared for an ambush, only stopping when she heard the conversation Celestia was having with an unknown pony.

"…sense great things in her and those other ponies that are helping prepare the ceremony in Ponyville, but I just hope that she finds the Elements of Harmony quickly."

Hmm? Nightmare Moon thought. The Elements of Harmony aren't found yet? She continued eavesdropping on the conversation between Celestia and the unknown pony.

"Did you let her know that she has to do that?" They asked Celestia.

Nightmare Moon watched as Celestia bashfully turned away. She recognized that the answer Celestia gave was one given with a bit more hesitancy than she remembered, so instead of ambushing Celestia like she originally planned, Nightmare Moon sat back and bided her time, listening in on the conversation some more.

"I did let her know that it was important that she established friends," Celestia retorted, "and that's vital if she were to be the wielder of the Elements of Harmony."

Wield those putrid elements? Nightmare Moon repeated. She began plotting something more than she originally intended. With Celestia disconnected from them, that means that I can defeat her easily! Now, how should I-

"Does she know about the sixth element then?" The other pony pressed on.

What? Nightmare Moon questioned, going back to eavesdropping once more.

"…I let her know in the book that I gave to her that there are indeed six elements in the world," Celestia said.

"Well that's good."

"But," continued Celestia, "I also let her know that only five are known."

Nightmare Moon chuckled quietly to herself, Silly, Celestia…are you trying to plan this new pony for immediate failure? Even if we were to meet, there's no way that I could be defeated now!

"…she's a smart pony," Celestia added, catching Nightmare Moon's attention again, "smarter and more outgoing than anypony I've ever met."

"That's Twilight's gimmick alright," the unknown pony responded, "and, if she's anything like the pony I remember foalsitting for, then I know she'll be capable of doing great things."

"I know she'll be able to perform well," Celestia insisted, "and, if I'm being honest, I think she has a really good chance at discovering what friendship could do for a pony if she is able to befriend the other five leading the ceremony preparations."

Nightmare Moon pulled away from the window and flew towards the peak of the mountain. When she felt that she was far enough away from any other pony, she transformed back into her pony self and glided down towards the ground, considering everything she heard Celestia and the unknown pony talk about. Pacing back and forth, she prepared to come up with a backup plan for now.

"This Twilight pony might seem to be a bit more of a challenge if Celestia speaks so highly of her," she said aloud, "smart, studious, and tasked with finding those Elements of Harmony? Seems worthy of an alicorn task instead of a regular old unicorn. I have to make sure that they aren't found, but how-"

Nightmare Moon's chain of thought was thrown off when she heard some noises coming from behind her. She stood tall, approaching the sound cautiously. She knew she was powerful, even with her magic still developing, but she still wanted to be sure that whatever was the cause of the sound wasn't as ferocious as an Ursa Minor or Timberwolf.

"That's another set," said a voice faintly.

Nightmare Moon picked up her pave slightly and followed the voice. Since it was decipherable, Nightmare Moon determined that the sounds did not come from ferocious creatures that could be lurking.

"Let's see what the northeast quadrant shows now," the voice continued. Something that squeaked loudly followed soon after, "Darn, I really have to fix that squeak soon."

Approaching a set of bushes, Nightmare Moon glanced over them, spotting another pony gazing up at the night sky. She did her best to not show herself, watching as the new pony studied the night sky. She had her back to Nightmare Moon, unaware that the wicked mare of darkness was even behind her.

"Seems like Ponearis is slowly shifting down at an angle of 18 degrees," she noted, using magic to write down some notes on a piece of paper nearby, "now how about Cepheus? How's that constellation doing?"

Is this pony really that enthusiastic about my night?Nightmare Moon pondered. She continued watching the small unicorn work hard.

"No noticeable changes to report tonight," they continued, pulling herself from the telescope and looking up towards the starry night sky. She smiled, then sighed contently, "It's so nice that nearly everypony stays up tonight. They really should bask in the glory of the night more often."

Nightmare Moon smiled slightly, Finally, somepony that agrees with me.

"There should be something that celebrates the longest night of the year too," they added, looking down to her notes, "I'd be able to gather so many notes during the winter solstice."

Exactly!Nightmare Moon thought. Give our night a chance for once!

"I wonder how much time I have left before the sun rises," she said, pulling out a pocket watch and opening it up. She glanced at the time and tilted her head slightly from left to right as if she were thinking about something.

What's going on? Nightmare Moon asked herself. What is this pony doing?

"If I keep working now," the unicorn mumbled, "then I should have about another hour before the sun starts to rise. It'd be easier if I could hear those horns blowing, but I don't think I will. I honestly didn't expect to come this far out by myself." She looked up, shook her head and giggled to herself. "You know, Astral, you talk to yourself quite a lot."

Something else I know the feeling of all too well, admitted Nightmare Moon.

"I just wish somepony would appreciate the work I do," sighed Astral, looking at the papers next to her. She held them up in front of her with her magic. "It's so hard to map out each constellation precisely and make maps show exactly where everything is at a given time on a given day."

This pony seems to remind us a lot about us, thought Nightmare Moon, trying to get a glimpse at the work that Astral had done.

"I just wish Mom was around to see this stuff," Astral said, "she'd love to see what I've managed to do so far."

Nightmare Moon nodded slowly to herself, understanding the struggles that this unicorn was going through. It may have been a thousand years since she last showed herself, but she felt a connection to this little unicorn, watching as she gazed up at the sky once more through her telescope. She watched for a little bit longer, then acted. Coming out of the bushes, Nightmare Moon made herself visible to the little unicorn in front of her.

"You there," she called, flaring her wings out to Astral.

Astral's ears shot up quickly and she felt a sense of nervousness settle in. Pulling her beanie down a bit, she forced herself to turn around slowly, wondering mainly who it was that would come all this way out here to this remote area. When she finally caught a glimpse at who was standing behind her, she felt even more nervous. Hooves shaking, she stared up at the tall alicorn and felt even smaller than she already was. To Astral, it was as if she were experiencing a lunar eclipse.

"W-W-Who a-are y-y-you?" Astral forced herself to say.

Nightmare Moon cocked an eyebrow and was baffled. While she may have been gone for over a thousand years, surely, she thought, ponies would have remembered her, least of all, her name. She approached the petite unicorn and gazed down at them, watching as Astral further retreated into her mane and beanie.

The pony does not remember us?Nightmare Moon thought. She eased up on her gaze as she saw Astral beginning to shake out of fear. Perhaps this could work in our favor…

"I-I-I don't w-want any t-t-trouble," Astral peeped, still looking away from the tall mare of darkness, "I-I'll be on m-my way s-soon."

"Don't worry yourself about that, little one," Nightmare Moon responded, crouching down closer to Astral, "we…I'm not here looking to hurt anypony."

"Y-You're n-not?" Astral repeated, opening her eyes a bit.

Nightmare Moon shook her head, "No. We've been…I've been watching you for quite some time. You seem to be fond of the nights that I provide, no?"

"Right," whispered Astral, still afraid of Nightmare Moon, "I-I feel a b-bit more lively in the n-night than I do during the d-day."

Nightmare Moon looked up, passed Astral's body and saw her equipment and setup. She approached the telescope with intrigue and saw its trajectory, smirking to herself impressively. Worried she might tamper with something, Astral followed Nightmare Moon, standing on the other side of the telescope.

"You know," Nightmare Moon oozed, "it's not often ponies can spot the fabled Ponarion Nebula from here."

Astral grew slightly confused, "The Ponarion Nebula?"

Nightmare Moon nodded, then pointed upwards towards the sky, "Through that device of yours, you can faintly see a glow of pink, red, and yellowish colors. That area is known as the Ponarion Nebula."

Cocking an eyebrow doubtfully, Astral looked through the eyepiece of the telescope and tried focusing her sights on the colorful hue Nightmare Moon had pointed out earlier. She looked left and right on the set location, wondering if what Nightmare Moon told her was even real. Recognizing that she might have trouble seeing it, Nightmare Moon used her magic to amplify the nebula's brightness, making it a bit more easier to see for Astral.

Now able to spot the nebula, Astral gasped in awe at how the colors were. It was as if she was physically seeing something inside one of the numerous astronomy books she possessed, just in real time instead of on a page with a rendered image. Nightmare Moon saw the excitement Astral had and smirked a bit more to herself, nodding slightly in the process.

If I could manage to gain this pony's trust,she thought, perhaps I could get her to steer that Twilight pony away from finding the Elements of Harmony.

Astral pulled herself from the telescope and started to jot down some more notes on one of the nearby papers. She beamed delightfully and used her magic on a set of quills to draw out the nebula on a map she kept as well. Nightmare Moon noticed this and pressed on.

"That's quite a lot of constellations and stars you've managed to gather and research, little one," she told Astral. "I'm quite impressed with the complexity that is on these papers."

"Well," giggled Astral, "it's years of practice and research that I have on these papers. The map itself is the ongoing project that I have - and one in which I probably won't complete until my retirement, and even that's a stretch - and is one that resulted in me obtaining this." She pointed to her cutie mark, a multicolored moon.

Nightmare Moon glanced at it briefly and smirked, "That's quite a mark for a pony such as yourself."

"Thank you," replied Astral, feeling a bit more calm now.

"You know," continued Nightmare Moon, "we can sense a lot of potential in you, going beyond just the simple spells that you use in order to complete your work."

"You can?" Astral wondered, looking up at Nightmare Moon. She was unsure of what the tall alicorn was up to now.

"Precisely," Nightmare Moon responded. She rested a wing over Astral's body gently, "How would you like to learn from us? With the knowledge that we…I mean, that I can provide for you, you'll be capable of doing many incredible things in this realm."

Astral thought about the offer for a moment, resting a hoof on her chin. She thought about what difference it could make in her work, but still hesitated a bit. Nightmare Moon noticed this and tried to manipulate Astral into saying yes.

"I sense that you have a lot of potential," Nightmare Moon said, placing a bit more emphasis on 'potential,' "and, with our help, you could become a pony with powerful magic that could allow you to see far beyond what any instrument like this will let you."

Astral turned to her telescope and pondered some more. SHe liked the idea of possibly expanding her work and area of expertise a lot. She stared at the telescope for quite some time, not giving an answer in response to Nightmare Moon, who took this opportunity to seal the deal for Astral by pretending to leave, prompting her to give an answer on the spot.

"If you choose not to accept our offer," Nightmare Moon smirked, turning away, "I guess we could always find another pony."

"W-Wait!" Astral called, holding a hoof out to Nightmare Moon in the process.

Nightmare Moon's smirk grew wider as a result of the call. Stopping in her tracks, she allowed for Astral to continue speaking, but did not turn to her yet.

"A-Are you serious about the potential?" Astral wondered, staring at the mare of darkness, hoping for an answer.

"I see much of myself within you, little one," Nightmare Moon responded, still not looking back to Astral, "I can see how much you love our nights and what good it brings to you. Imagine how things could be if your skills were made better."

That got Astral's attention and began tugging at her slightly, "Better?"

Wiping her smirk, Nightmare Moon turned around and faced Astral once more, nodding in the process, "Of course, little one." She flared her wings to Astral in the process, "I am an alicorn after all. What I could teach you could be revolutionary for the both of us."

Astral thought once more. She stared at Nightmare Moon with eyes full of hope, "Before I left my home, nopony ever believed in me the way you claim you do right now."

"Is it because they view you as an outcast, little one?" Nightmare Moon wondered.

"Perhaps," admitted Astral, "I mean, it's not like this kind of work always leads to confrontations like this one." She turned back to her telescope and sighed a bit, approaching it slowly. When she was close enough to it, Astral rested a hoof on the side of the telescope and looked at it, "You know, when I was a filly, my mother gifted this to me. She always told me that I could shine as bright as Ponearis does in the sky. She always told me that I could have potential with magic if I simply enrolled in one of those schools Canterlot has, but that wasn't my cup of tea." She turned to face Nightmare Moon again and approached her once more, "I mean, the focus on those schools is always friendship and, in my mind, who cares about that, right? Like, why do I need to go to a school to learn about that stuff? I go so I can learn things that I know I'll use for a lifetime, not some meaningless relationship stuff. I wanted to learn more about what kind of magic there was in Equestria, and my mother could sense it. She was the only pony who believed in me, until I met you, and if what you're saying is true, then I suppose accepting your offer wouldn't be too bad."

Nightmare Moon's smirk reappeared on her face. She approached Astral and rested a wing along her back softly, "We think you've made a wondrous decision, little one."

"Please," Astral replied, looking up at the tall alicorn, "you can call me Astral. 'Little One' sounds a bit on the weird side for me."

"If you insist, Astral," Nightmare Moon continued. She looked up and used her magic on the equipment nearby, "Come, let us go retreat to a place where we can train together."

Astral looked at her equipment, speaking back out in the process, "I'll catch up in a bit. I'd like to bring these home first before we go anywhere."

Nightmare Moon rolled her eyes, being careful so that Astral couldn't see it, "Fine, but return to this location once you are ready."

"Will do," Astral replied, placing a hoof on her chin in a peculiar manner, "umm, forgive me, but I haven't caught your name yet."

"Our name is Nightmare Moon."

Astral tilted her head slightly, "Nightmare Moon…hmm…that sounds vaguely familiar."

"A long linear history of other alicorns with my name possibly," Nightmare Moon responded, trying to silence Astral's thinking, "Return to us when you are ready to commence with some of our teachings."

"Of course, Nightmare Moon," Astral said, taking control of her equipment with her magic. She began to leave the area at once, leaving Nightmare Moon alone.

Waiting impatiently for Astral to return, Nightmare Moon began to plan a bit more of her plan on how she would defeat Celestia. She thought that by using Astral's caring nature against her, she could manipulate Astral into stalling Twilight in finding the Elements of Harmony and, as a result, lead to an ill-defended Celestia. She wanted very desperately to strike with her powerful magic, but felt that it would be too expected and in-character for Celestia. She assumed that Celestia was aware of her freeing and wondered primarily what she could do for revenge but also why Celestia hadn't come seeking her out just yet.

Surely this celebration isn't that important,Nightmare Moon told herself, not even we remember such a pitiful celebration.

What Nightmare Moon didn't know was that the Summer Sun Celebration was one in which ponies celebrated the defeat of her; the holiday didn't even exist when Nightmare Moon last roamed the land. She rolled her eyes, then turned back to the forest, moving through them at once, closer to the town below.

From the corner of her eye, Nightmare Moon could spot something rather unusual. To her, it seemed like a gleaming star was hiding behind one of the trees. Stopping in her tracks, she glanced towards it, flaring her wings out, and calling out to them.

"Who goes there?" She demanded. "Show yourselves!"

Whatever creature lay in hiding did not show themselves to Nightmare Moon. However, since the small gleam was oscillating in an upward and downward motion repeatedly, replicating and mirroring motions of someone breathing, Nightmare Moon was determined to force the creature to come out of hiding. After a few more moments of waiting, Nightmare Moon encased her horn with her dark aura and used magic on the creature, dragging them out from behind the tree and towards her. She looked the creature up and down carefully, noticing some rather unusual features about them.

The creature had a body similar to a pony and housed a friendly face and eclipsing mane, lined with stars and signs. Nightmare Moon compared the creature's mane to a portion of her own night sky and drew some similarities between the two, impressed with how closely aligned the two were. Some of the stars gleamed and glowed within the mane and on the tips of the creature's hooves as well. Cocking an eyebrow, Nightmare Moon noticed a couple more key features that this creature had: spiked ears and bat-shaped wings. She came to the conclusion that this creature was a bat pony and held them up closer to her, staring at her angrily.

"What are you doing following us?" Nightmare Moon growled. She prepared to fire off a beam of dark magic at the creature, were they to refuse answering her.

"H-Huh?" The bat pony yawned. "Wh-what happened? Where am I?"

"Thou art not the one who should attempt fooling us!" Nightmare Moon snapped. She brought the bat pony closer and threatened to release the magic unless they fully cooperated.

"P-Please don't hurt me!" The bat pony cried. "I-I-I don't mean any harm…"

"What were you doing following us?" Nightmare Moon repeated.

"I-I don't know," the bat pony claimed, "I think I was sleepwalking again."

"A bat pony like you," Nightmare Moon scoffed, "sleepwalking? Do we look like we were born yesterday?"

"N-No!" The bat pony pleaded, shutting her eyes as they filled with tears slowly. "I-I swear that I'm telling the truth!"

"Bat ponies like you are nocturnal," Nightmare Moon stated, "what makes you think we would believe such a lie?"

"Because I'm not like other bat ponies," they answered, "I usually sleep during the night and live my life during the day, I swear!"

Nightmare Moon grew intrigued. In her time roaming the land prior to her banishment, she'd never heard of a bat pony frolicking around during the daytime. She knew that bats were nocturnal creatures and only came out during the nights. Having traces of skepticism, Nightmare Moon held the bat pony a bit away from her face, but still controlled them with her magic.

"What are you doing around these parts?" Nightmare Moon questioned.

"This forest and mountainside is where I live," they replied, obliging to any question the wicked mare of darkness were to ask.

"You claim these mountains for your own?" Nightmare Moon repeated. "And why would that be?"

"Because of these," replied the bat pony, flapping the tips of their wings for Nightmare Moon. The bat pony sighed, then expanded upon her answer, "Because of how different I look, regular ponies toss me aside like I'm yesterday's lunch or something. I've been run out of homes before and get dealt heartache at least once a moon, usually when I go scavenging for supplies to keep me going. Nopony likes seeing a bat pony like myself in their shops, on their streets, or in their town, so when they do, usually I end up defending myself in some way…it's gotten pretty rough lately. Now I'm being held against my will by one of those ponies."

Nightmare Moon growled once more, pulling the bat pony in closer, "Don't ever compare us to those tiny and pitiful ponies down there. We are not and will never be like them."

"I'd doubt that," the bat pony retorted. "I doubt an alicorn like yourself has ever been run out of town."

"Try being banished to the moon for a thousand years!" Nightmare Moon boomed, holding the bat pony in front of the moon, showing her the lack of a mare in it now. "Ponies like them are the reason why we are here. They shun differences and put themselves above ponies like ourselves." She smirked, wondering if she could use this bat pony in addition to Astral for her plan. "What if we offered you a life that was filled with food, water, and shelter? How would that sound?"

The bat pony rolled her eyes, "And how would you plan for that?"

Nightmare Moon smirked, "We are an all-powerful alicorn. Do you really think that we wouldn't be able to hold our own side of a bargain?"

"Do I really have a choice?" The bat pony wondered.

"You do," assured Nightmare Moon, resting the bat pony on the ground firmly, glaring down at her, "you could accept our offer and be rewarded greatly, or decline it and have to fear us and worry about survival for the remainder of your life. The choice is yours."

The bat pony looked at Nightmare Moon once she felt her hooves touch the ground, her own body once again under her support and not someone else's. She cocked an eyebrow and thought about what Nightmare Moon told her, wondering if she was stepping into a variance of a verbal trap.

"What would you do for me if I agree?" She asked cautiously. She wanted to make sure that Nightmare Moon was true to her word in some degree.

"Common ponies like those pesky unicorns, earth ponies, and pegasi all like to cast out things that don't see eye-to-eye on everything with them," replied Nightmare Moon, "take us, for example. You keep getting run out of town, and I was banished from existence in Equestria by my own sister! Ponies like them have everything to be afraid of. They can't defeat us if we were to team up; if I were to teach you everything that I know."

The bat pony scoffed, "I don't know if you've noticed, but I don't have a horn like you do. I don't know what kind of magic or power you think I could have, but I guarantee you, spellcasting is not one of them."

"If you accept my help," insisted Nightmare Moon, "then nopony who can use simple unicorn spells will be able to bring you any harm, especially when you stand by my side."

"And you promise to keep me protected?" The bat pony questioned again.

Nightmare Moon nodded, "You have our word. Train with us, and survival will be the last thing on your mind."

The bat pony smirked, then nodded to Nightmare Moon. Approaching the tall, dark alicorn, she held out one of her hooves to Nightmare Moon, "As long as you keep me protected, you'll have my support."

NIghtmare Moon cracked a small smile, reaching out and shaking the bat pony's outreached hoof with her own, "Consider it a deal then."

The bat pony shook Nightmare Moon's armor-covered hoof and nodded, "Name's Eclipsa, by the way. Figured if we'll be working together now, it'd be best to know each other's names."

Nightmare Moon cocked an eyebrow, but understood what Eclipsa was referring to. Pulling her own hoof back, she told Eclipsa her name.

Eclipsa gasped a bit, immediately recognizing the name, "Nightmare Moon? As in the Nightmare Moon? Like, the same one from the stories?"

"Precisely, you foal," answered Nightmare Moon.

Eclipsa shuffled back a bit, then wondered what Nightmare Moon was doing back here in the first place. The stories she's heard as a bat pup with the other bats all depicted Nightmare Moon as some wicked being who was bent on controlling everything in her sights, including the elimination of the day. When she was growing up, Eclipsa often idolized the idea of an eternal night since that's when her kind was accustomed to moving around and going about their own lives. Now, since she spends half her day awake during the day and the other half asleep at night, she was unsure if an eternal night was beneficial, often questioning it and an eternal day.

I guess there's only one way to find out which option is worse, Eclipsa thought to herself, looking at Nightmare Moon once more.

Nightmare Moon noticed Eclipsa retreat slightly, calling her out on it, "You are not second guessing yourself now, are you?" She charged up some magic in her. "We wouldn't want anything bad to happen to you now, would we?"

Eclipsa gulped, then shook her head, "N-No, Nightmare Moon. I-It's just that…well, the stories I've heard all painted a very negative image of you."

"And?" Nightmare Moon wondered. "What do they have to do with this and what we want?"

"That's just it," Eclipsa pressed on, "those stories don't really depict you well, at least from what I've seen up until now. Those stories all said you were bent on power and destroying those in your way, but here I am now, standing in your way, and you're not doing anything like the stories said you would do to me."

Nightmare Moon smirked, "Perhaps some stories are simply just tall tales and old mare's tales. Not everything that gets muttered in this realm is true, you know."

"Right," agreed Eclipsa, "and I'm beginning to wonder what stories about you are true and false."

"The one you've heard as a pup might be false, Eclipsa," Nightmare Moon assured, knowing that this was what Eclipsa wanted to hear, "You're a full-grown bat pony. I think you'll be able to tell what's true and what's fiction."

Eclipsa thought some more about what Nightmare Moon said. She did have one thing right - Eclipsa was a full-grown pony and she could tell what was true from what was false. She was just about to continue with the conversation until she heard a twig snapping further in the forest behind them. Ears shooting straight up, Eclipsa jumped into one of the nearby trees to protect herself, waiting to see what was coming this way.

Nightmare Moon saw this and thought nothing of it. Instead, she turned in the direction of the sound and prepared to use magic if things got a bit dicey. Some leaves rustled about and more twigs were snapping, prompting Nightmare Moon to ready an attack. She nearly fired off a beam of her dark magic until she saw who it was.

"Ah," smirked Nightmare Moon, "you've returned. Are you ready to proceed then?"

From the bushes, Astral returned, ready to learn from Nightmare Moon. Eclipsa noticed Astral approaching Nightmare Moon and jumped between the two from her tree, staring at Astral intensely. Astral jumped back a bit, startled by the appearance of the new pony, then prepared herself to strike. Nightmare Moon noticed this then, using her magic, teleported the two ponies along with herself to the outskirts of the Everfree Forest. As for Astral and Eclipsa, they continued to glare at each other, waiting for the other to strike first.

Nightmare Moon rolled her eyes and stepped between the two ponies, extending her wings outward and brushing each pony back a bit, "Cease this inane staredown at once!"

Astral frowned, refusing to remove her glance from Eclipsa, unsure if she would perform anything irrational against either her or Nightmare Moon. However, she did cease the magic she was storing up in her horn.

Eclipsa, on the other hand, stayed in her stance and waited for Astral to do anything. She was ready to pounce on her and protect Nightmare Moon, if need be, and also to take out some built up rage from previous encounters with other unicorns. She growled a bit, then spoke out to Nightmare Moon.

"I thought this was a two-pony job, Nightmare Moon," Eclipsa stated, "what's a unicorn like her doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing," Astral replied, "I'm only here to learn from Nightmare Moon! What are you doing here?"

"Would you two just shut up already!" Nightmare Moon scowled, using her magic to cast a bubble shield around the three of them. She flapped her wings and hovered a bit in the air, glancing between Astral and Eclipsa. "Look, you're both here because you are both vital in this effort. With Astral's trained magic and your quick wits Eclipsa, we can obtain and achieve higher things in this realm."

"Easy for you to say," Astral sighed, looking at Eclipsa once more.

"Watch yourself, missy," Eclipsa retorted.

"And what will you do if I don't?" Astral said in rebuttal. "I have magic and you don't."

"I have fangs!" Eclipsa answered. "I won't hesitate to use them if I need to."

"Shut up!" Nightmare Moon echoed. "You two are going to have to learn how to work together if we are to gain any steam in our ultimate plan."

"Work together?" Astral scoffed.

"With her?" Eclipsa added.

"As if," the two said in unison.

"Ugh," sighed Nightmare Moon, "you will work together, and that is final!"

Nightmare Moon transformed back into her hazy form, teleporting the two squabbling ponies into the Everfree Forest, forcing them to work together. A bit bumpy, her plan for retribution on Celestia was starting to take place. She flew to where she teleported the two ponies and watched closely from afar.

---

~Meanwhile, back in town…~

"Ah, excellent timing, Your Highness."

Celestia had arrived at Mayor Mare's office in Ponyville to discuss how the Summer Sun Celebration would commence. The mayor felt pleased and honored to be in the presence of a pony as regal as Celestia and did her best to make sure the accommodations were perfect. Celestia saw how hard Mayor Mare was trying right now and raised one of her hooves playfully, giggling softly in the process.

"It's quite alright," Celestia assured the tan colored pony, "everything I've seen thus far is as I pictured. I'm quite impressed, honestly."

"Thank you so much for that compliment, Princess," replied Mayor Mare. She brought the princess over towards a nearby table and motioned for her to sit, "Would you care to discuss how we should go about with the ceremony?"

"Yes," agreed Celestia, "let's discuss the matters."

Mayor Mare smiled as she watched Celestia sit down at the table with her. She motioned to the balcony behind her, which overlooked nearly all of town hall. Celestia looked up to it and listened as the mayor spoke her thoughts and ideas to her.

"I figure that's where you should be when we introduce you to the town, Your Highness," Mayor Mare suggested, "that way whoever shows up here can get a good look at you. It's not often they see a pony as regal as you are."

"An introduction on the balcony does sound like a wondrous idea," agreed Celestia, "and if it pleases the townsponies, then I'll be all for it.. What else did you have in store for the ceremony?"

"Well," continued the mayor, looking back to her, "as you know, we have Fluttershy in charge of the music and Rarity in charge with the décor of the area. Rarity, once she's complete with her final touches, will be the one who will escort you to the balcony while Fluttershy's bird choir chirps and sings for your arrival."

"I think that sounds like a wonderful idea," smiled Celestia. She looked around and examined the décor that Rarity had provided, "I must say that Rarity really outdid herself. You definitely made the right decision in offering her the job."

Mayor Mare blushed slightly, giggling buoyantly as a result, "Oh, it was nothing, really. Rarity is quite possibly the pony in Ponyville who knows how to bring out the beauty in pretty much anything."

The two ponies continued exchanging conversation pieces for a little while longer until it was time for Celestia to get ready for the ceremony herself. She couldn't wait to see just how everything was planned out happened to be.

---

~Back in the Everfree Forest…~

With Nightmare Moon "gone," Astral and Eclipsa proceeded side-by-side into the dangerous Everfree Forest, as per Nightmare Moon's request. Astral felt a bit more calm about the situation, but Eclipsa still held her doubts close to heart. Sighing to herself, Astral pressed forward into the forest, making her way to a place Nightmare Moon referred to simply as "her castle."

Eclipsa kept a close eye on Astral nearly since the start of the trek. She showed her fangs rarely, reminding Astral what she could be capable of, but refrained from attacking first solely on principle; she may have had poor experiences with ponies before, but it wasn't in Eclipsa's nature to attack first.

Astral looked over and noticed the fangs, rolling her eyes slightly, "I'm not gonna hurt you, you know."

"And how would I know that?" Eclipsa replied, keeping her distance.

"Because," continued Astral, "like you, I'm an outcast as well."

"Oh really?" Eclipsa scoffed. "Why would a unicorn like you be an outcast? You could easily fit in with the other ponies…try hiding fangs and spiked ears from them, then you'll understand how I feel."

"Try being rejected by everypony you thought was your friend," retorted Astral, "then talk to me about feeling lonely. At least you have other bat ponies of your kind who would accept you for who you are. After what happened to me, I have nopony."

Eclipsa rolled her eyes slightly, "Come on, you could easily fit into a town and be accepted by other ponies of-"

"Not when you suffer with anxiety!" Astral blurted out, stopping in her tracks. She looked down and sighed again, "You've no idea how hard it was for me to get over my anxiety issues as a filly."

Eclipsa cocked an eyebrow, looking back at Astral, "Anxiety?"

"You know," explained Astral, "when you think of something, but aren;t sure of what the outcome will be, so you play a number of possibilities in your head, wondering what will happen, and each possibility progressively gets worse until you sit there and realize that everything bad that could happen might happen, and you aren't sure of when they'll happen, but you're quite certain that they can, and then you start planning on how to counter those bad things, but because you don't know when they'll happen, you start worrying about trying to counter them when they do and," Astral shut her eyes, "UGH! It's just the worst feeling in the world…"

Eclipsa tried to say something in response, but couldn't really match what Astral was feeling. They might not have known each other long, but Astral did get one thing right about Eclipsa - she could return and fit in with other bat ponies and be accepted by them. As for Astral, Eclipsa thought, something drastic must have happened if she felt this lonely and out-of-place in the world. Eventually, Eclipsa stepped forward and, for the first time all night, offered some kindness to Astral.

"It's weird," she said quietly, "all this time, I always thought that I was the only one out of place. I never once considered the thought that another pony could feel something similar."

"Before everything happened," Astral continued, still looking down, "I never fit in with anypony, but my mother always showed me the care and provided the support I needed to keep things in check. It's been rough going about my own life without that same support."

That grabbed Eclipsa's attention heavily, "Without it? What do you mean by that?"

Astral shuddered a bit and pulled her beanie down to cover her face slightly, "I'm…by myself, if you know what I mean…"

"By yourself," repeated Eclipsa, "meaning like, nopony is around you?"

Astral nodded slightly, "Nightmare Moon was the first pony since my own mother to see anything good about me. She told me that she sees potential in me."

Eclipsa but her lip slightly, "Y-You do know about Nightmare Moon's past, right?"

"Her name sounded vaguely familiar," admitted Astral, slowly walking forward with Eclipsa again, "but I couldn't place where the name came from."

"Ever heard of the 'Mare in the Moon' tale?" Eclipsa asked.

Astral raised a hoof to her chin, "Not that I can recall. I never really heard that one before."

"Really?" Eclipsa said.

"Look," Astral defended, "I had a bad childhood growing up. I never was told any stories like the average filly, so that's that. I was forced to grow up earlier than usual."

Eclipsa looked down, thinking about what Astral told her. They hadn't known each other long, but for Astral to admit something as significant as this to Eclipsa left her wondering if she was in the wrong herself. The two ponies hadn't muttered a word for a while, crossing a bridge and reentering another part of the forest in the process. Nightmare Moon hung around above and heard nearly every word exchanged between the two, but heard enough of Astral's confession to form an opinion of her own.

The pony knows what true loneliness feels like, Nightmare Moon thought, she understands how we feel completely.

Flying ahead, Nightmare Moon planned to test the two ponies to see if they were indeed loyal to her. As for Astral and Eclipsa, they continued down the path together, silently.

---

After walking for about thirty or so minutes, Astral and Eclipsa came across a cliff. Overlooking the side of it, Astral saw that the way down was very far. Eclipsa looked across the way and noticed the silhouette of what looked to be a spire in the distance. She started flapping her wings and proceeded flying off the ground, only to stop and turn to Astral.

"Right," Eclipsa said softly, "you can't fly across." She looked to the bit of land on the other side of the gap. "Could you, I dunno, teleport there…or something?"

Astral cocked an eyebrow and looked up at Eclipsa, "Teleportation is not as easy as it sounds. Despite its simple sounding nature, that type of spell is complex and more advanced for unicorns."

"What if you think about it really hard?" Eclipsa wondered. "Kinda like imagining yourself over there and making it happen."

"Even if I did that," continued Astral, "I don't think my magic is strong enough to transport my whole body over there."

"I think you could do it," Eclipsa encouraged, "if what you told me is true, then you're a tough pony. This should be easy for you, no problem!"

Astral doubted herself a bit more, "I don't know…I mean, it is a pretty far distance. Even if I could pull it off, what would happen if I teleported to the wrong area?"

"You got this," Eclipsa smiled, trying to cheer Astral on, "if anypony can do this, it's you!"

Astral looked up towards Eclipsa, still doubting herself, "Do you really think so?"

Eclipsa nodded, "You bet I do!"

Sighing, Astral responded back, "I guess I could always give it a shot." SHe planted her hooves on the ground and began focusing her magic into her horn.

Eclipsa smiled, flapping her wings again and beginning to fly across the gap slowly while still looking back at Astral, shouting encouragement to her, "You can do this!"

Astral's magic continued stockpiling on itself and storing in her horn. She felt her body lift up off the ground and begin casting the spell. She struggled to do so, having only read about teleportation spells in the past, but pushed herself to cast it completely.

When Eclipsa was halfway across the gap, she turned her body to face the destination now. She kept gliding across with ease and smirked, waiting to see Astral pop up on the other side.

Spell casted, Astral felt her body transport at near-light speed to her destination. Unfortunately for her, the destination was just a tad bit off and, when Astral assumed her new position, gravity took over her rear half of her body, leaving her dangling over the side of the cliff. Eclipsa noticed this and tucked in her wings, trying to build up speed.

Astral screamed in horror as she held on for dear life, calling for help. Nightmare Moon, still in her hazy form, watched on as Eclipsa closed the distance between her and Astral, reaching out to pull her up.

Astral's upper body gave out at the worst possible time, sending her body over the cliff. Eclipsa changed her trajectory and now flew downward to assure a chance at catching Astral, who was still screaming for help. About halfway down the side of the cliff, Eclipsa reached out and caught Astral with her two front hooves, flapping her wings hard to push the two back up and over the edge. Astral ceased her screams and looked down, noticing how far the ground was from her. The incredible height caused her to shudder once more and hide under the safety of her beanie.

"Almost there," Eclipsa grunted, trying her hardest not to lose grip on Astral.

"P-P-Please h-hurry!" Astral peeped, frightened to bits about the experience.

Eclipsa did her best and, once the two were over the side of the cliff again, rested down on the ground. Astral hugged the ground and continued to shudder while Eclipsa tended to her wings, making sure they weren't damaged in the slightest. She looked over to Astral and wondered if she was all right.

"You doing okay?" She asked, stretching out her right wing a bit.

"Mhmm," muttered Astral. She was still shaking from the sudden fall.

"Glad I caught you in time," Eclipsa smirked, trying to ease the situation and the fear that Astral experienced.

"M-Me t-t-too…" Astral whispered, still hiding underneath her beanie.

Eclipsa approached Astral and bent down, reaching out to her. Astral, still shaking, reached out and picked herself up, immediately hugging Eclipsa in the process. Eclipsa felt surprised, but returned Astral's hug with one of her own. Astral felt a couple tears leave her eye and didn't want to let herself go from Eclipsa.

"Y-You saved my life," Astral struggled to say, holding on to Eclipsa as if she were still being carried, "I-I don't know what to say."

Eclipsa giggled, then pat Astral on her head playfully, "It was nothing, really. All I did was act quickly."

"I-It saved me, though," protested Astral, playing out her fears of falling in her mind once more. She folded her ears as a result of her thinking, "I knew I couldn't perform that spell. It's too hard for somepony like me."

Eclipsa raised an eyebrow, watching as Astral finally pulled herself away and looked back to the other side of the gap, "I don't know about that, Astral. You did manage to cast it."

"But-"

"I mean," interrupted Eclipsa, "yeah it wasn't to the destination you were hoping for, but you still did cast it, so that has to mean something, right?"

Astral still doubted herself significantly. If she had casted it correctly, she thought then it would've been a different story, but she messed up the area she wanted to go to and it almost cost her her life. She sighed, looking back over the side of the cliff.

"I don't know," she admitted, "it's almost like I set myself up for failure because of this kind of thing."

"What do you mean?" Eclipsa wondered, approaching Astral and resting a hoof on her back supportively.

"My anxiety always gets the better of me," Astral replied, "and I feel like it'll catch up to me one of these days."

Eclipsa smirked, "You know, for a pony who struggles with that kind of thing, you don't give yourself enough credit. You said it yourself that teleportation is hard, but you pulled it off despite your internal struggles. I think that speaks volume about what you could potentially do, you know."

"Y-You think so?" Astral questioned, wiping a tear from her eye.

"I know so," Eclipsa assured, "I may not be able to cast spells like you can, but I can see how hard you try to make yourself better at it. You do have a lot of potential and, if a bat pony like me can see that, then imagine what Nightmare Moon sees in you."

Astral pondered for a little while more, shifting her views from the ground far below her to the cliff on the opposite end she teleported from. She doubted herself heavily, but she now began wondering if what Eclipsa said was truthful.

If Eclipsa could see it in me,Astral thought, what more could I possibly do?

---

When the two ponies finally moved on again, they approached the silhouette and arrived at the base of the establishment in no time at all. The silhouette was in the shape of a castle and, as the two ponies approached the entryway, it appeared as if it were crumbling. Astral eyed the castle, wondering why Nightmare Moon told both her and Eclipsa to meet her here. Eclipsa, opening the door a bit, wondered the same thing.

"All she told us was to go to the castle," Astral replied, "and, though I've never really studied the Everfree Forest, I kind of doubt that there would be another castle in this forest. Do you think this is the one she meant?"

"Probably," Eclipsa answered, moving the heavy door, filling the halls inside with an echoing creaking sound.

When the two ponies entered inside the castle, they saw that the inside of it resembled much like how it did on the outside. Things were old, dusty, worn out, and looked as if they could fall away and add to the rubble at any moment.

Astral cocked an eyebrow and gazed at everything in the main hallway. Lined up along the sides were torches for fires to be lit, most of which were still intact despite the conditions the castle was in. At the end of the hall, a small balcony that overlooked the hall was present. The middle of it had been chipped away, as if someone had tried destroying it themselves. Looking up, Astral could still see that the moon was raised high in the sky, providing the only light in the entire castle.

Eclipsa glided across the hall and noticed how poor things were kept. She felt that, while this would be a suitable home for some of the other bats back home, things felt weird in this castle, almost as if things were left this way on purpose. Landing next to Astral, she admitted her feelings.

"Funny," smirked Astral, trying to lighten the mood, "I didn't think bat ponies were afraid of anything."

"You'd be surprised," chuckled Eclipsa.

"So, you've finally arrived," a new voice spoke out.

Astral and Eclipsa looked around, spotting some hazy material enter in from one of the holes the castle had in its ceiling. The two stood on their guards and watched as the smoke began circling around in front of them. They stood this way until they saw the smoke transform and take shape; it was Nightmare Moon.

"At ease, you foals," Nightmare Moon ordered, flaring her wings.

Astral and Eclipsa eased up a bit, looking around the castle once more. They wondered what the significance of this place was and brought it up with Nightmare Moon.

"This place was once my home many moons away," Nightmare Moon said, "we ruled Equestria from this very place, long before either of you were even thought of."

"Why does it look like this then?" Eclipsa asked.

"That's a question best directed at my sister," answered Nightmare Moon, "the pony who betrayed us, abandoned us, and threatened us by trapping us in the moon for over a millennium."

"Princess Celestia?" Eclipsa said, wondering if that was who Nightmare Moon was referring to.

"The very same," growled Nightmare Moon. "Inside this castle are a series of objects called the Elements of Harmony, and I'll need you to search the castle for them."

Astral cocked an eyebrow, "What would we need them for? What could they do for us?"

Nightmare Moon smirked. She knew what she wanted to do with them, but kept that to herself. Instead, she told Astral and Eclipsa a little lie to encourage them to look for them.

"They can help increase your strengths," she told the two ponies, "and with that increased strength, we can show Equestria just what we were able to accomplish together."

"I read somewhere that they were hidden," Astral informed, "how will we know where to look?"

"This castle is on the huge side," added Eclipsa, "even if it is decrepit."

"Ah," smirked Nightmare Moon, going down a set of stairs that was attached to the small balcony, "if my sister is as foolish as I remember," she stepped up to the base of the staircase and looked at the ground, "then there should be a small, hidden area somewhere arou-aha!"

Stepping on a hidden control panel, Nightmare Moon felt the ground shift a bit. Astral and Eclipsa ran up towards the other side of the shifting ground and watched on, impressed with what was happening. Inside the compartment stood a contraption of some sort. Astral and Eclipsa watched as the contraption started rising from the ground, taking place of the doorway that hid this away.

Nightmare Moon felt giddy as she watched the mechanism push up what was being hidden away. She used her magic to transport the entire structure to an area deeper inside the castle, telling her two ponies to follow her. Astral and Eclipsa both began to focus their gaze on what the contraption was and what would come next.

---

~Meanwhile, back in Ponyville… ~

"Uh…We gotta stop Nightmare…!"

Placing a blanket over the tired ally, a small little unicorn smiled slightly to herself, trying to place the emergency behind her for a moment. She eyed her friend in a motherly manner, telling him not to worry.

"You've been up all night, Spike. You are a baby dragon after all." The unicorn then turned off the light to the room upstairs and closed the door, proceeding down the stairs carefully.

The pony, a unicorn by the name of Twilight Sparkle, then shifted her focus on finding out what had happened earlier in the night. Celestia had gone missing and no clue was given as to where she was kept. She shivered a bit, remembering how Nightmare Moon introduced herself to the ponies in town hall, letting them know that the day will never arrive again. After a small ambush and fight, Nightmare Moon fled in her hazy, smoky form and left the others wondering what to do next.

Using her magic on a number of books, Twilight tried searching for a possible answer, "Elements, elements, elements...Ugh! How can I stop Nightmare Moon without the Elements of Harmony?"

A rainbow-maned Pegasus burst through the door and nearly attacked Twilight, stopping just in front of her face, "And just what are the Elements of Harmony?" She pressed herself further, pushing Twilight back slightly, "And how did you know about Nightmare Moon, huh? Are you a spy?"

An orange earth pony reached out and bit into the tail of the rainbow-maned Pegasus, dragging her back into position, "Simmer down, Sally! She ain't no spy, but she sure knows what's goin' on. Don'tcha, Twilight?"

Twilight looked around to the other five ponies, deciding to come clean about how she knew of Nightmare Moon. Shutting her eyes, she began explaining herself.

"I read all about the prediction of Nightmare Moon," she told them. "Some mysterious objects called the Elements of Harmony are the only things that can stop her," she looked up out the window and up at the moon, continuing herself, "but I don't know what they are, where to find them; I don't even know what they do!"

A pink earth pony looked up one of the shelves and spotted a book that appeared to provide a couple answers, "'The Elements of Harmony: A Reference Guide.'"

Twilight ran over to the pink earth pony and grabbed the book with her magic, "How did you find that?!"

The pink earth pony bounced elsewhere in the room, answering Twilight, "It was under 'E'~!"

Twilight folded her ears a bit, "Oh." She opened up the book and began reading it aloud to the others, "There are six Elements of Harmony, but only five are known: Kindness, Laughter, Generosity, Honesty, and Loyalty. The sixth is a complete mystery. It is said, the last known location of the five elements was in the ancient castle of the royal pony sisters. It is located in what is now the Everfree Forest."

With a clue on how to go about Nightmare Moon's defeat, Twilight and the other ponies left the library, leaving Spike to catch up on his sleep. They made their way over towards the Everfree Forest and stopped just outside of them, scared of the uncertainty that lay ahead of them all.

---

~Meanwhile, back in the castle…~

"I'm not certain," Eclipsa wondered, "you want us to do what with these?"

"There's nothing here that says they'll work on us, you know," Astral added.

Astral and Eclipsa were overlooking five peculiar looking stones. They all had pretty similar designs in the form of an octagon indentation, minus one; one of the stones had a triangle indentation instead. Nightmare Moon smirked, looking between these stones and going on.

"There are six Elements of Harmony," she told Astral and Eclipsa, "and they are the key to untold strength for you and I."

"But," replied Astral, pointing to each stone in the process, "there's only five here."

"Yeah," said Eclipsa, "where's the sixth one?"

"My sister hid that from us," Nightmare Moon admitted, "and that was a foolish idea of hers to do!"

"What do you mean 'foolish'?" Astral asked.

"These stones cannot be used unless all of them are near each other," answered Nightmare Moon, "which means that we have nothing to fear when the others join us."

"Others?" Eclipsa repeated. "Who else is coming?"

"Never you mind that," Nightmare Moon objected, "we must use this time to train the two of you. There's no telling how much time we have."

"So what do you have in mind?" Astral wondered.

Nightmare Moon motioned for Astral to approach her. Obliging, Astral slowly neared Nightmare Moon and readied herself for whatever were to happen. The wicked mare of darkness removed her helmet and revealed herself to the others. When Astral was within Nightmare Moon's grasp, Nightmare Moon lowered her head, touching Astral's horn with her own.

"What are you doing, ma'am?" Astral asked instinctively.

Nightmare Moon cackled quietly to herself, answering the little unicorn's question, "I sense a lot of potential in you, child. I saw you cast that teleportation spell from one cliff to the next and I saw the bravery that the bat pony exhibited towards you earlier tonight. I have no doubt that there is a lot you could do, especially with a small trace of my alicorn magic." She transferred the smallest amount of alicorn magic possible to Astral, smirking in the process.

Astral felt her body tingle a bit as the new magic began coursing through it. It wasn't much, but Astral felt a bit stronger with the newfound magic. She felt the magic focus around her horn and used some of it to shoot a magic beam off towards the ceiling. The magic smashed a hole through the stone and caused some of it to fall down and crash down onto the ground, startling Astral a bit.

"Strong," Eclipsa noted, "wonder what else you could do now."

"Me too," Astral said, "thank you, Nightmare Moon. I wonder why the stories depict you so negatively. I can see a lot of good in your heart."

Nightmare Moon stood back up straight, "Good in our heart?"

Astral nodded, "Yeah, you willingly gave me a bit of your own magic. If what Eclipsa told me is true, the stories that get told are all bad ones."

Nightmare Moon was intrigued, touched by the fact that someone else thought good of her. She smiled a bit, using her magic to put her helmet back on over her head and looking at the other two.

"So what do you want us to do about these elements exactly?" Eclipsa wondered, trying to get things back on track.

"Ah, yes," Nightmare Moon replied, "so, as you can see, the Elements of Harmony are before us, but this is not their final form. I need your help in transforming these stones into the actual shards that used to be the Elements of Harmony."

"Our help?" Eclipsa repeated.

"Why can't your magic transform them?" Astral asked.

Nightmare Moon lowered her head once more and used her magic on the five stones. She levitated them up and began transferring some magic towards each of the stones equally. Astral and Eclipsa stared at each other briefly and watched as the magic Nightmare Moon provided was bouncing between each of the stones.

Nightmare Moon provided more of her own magic and felt a backlash of some of it, pushing her back to the wall rapidly. Eclipsa ran over towards Nightmare Moon, while Astral used some of her magic to catch the falling stones. The stones had rejected Nightmare Moon's magic and lost whatever she had originally provided.

Nightmare Moon grunted, picking herself up slightly with Eclipsa's help. She turned to the stones and sighed, proceeding to answer Astral's earlier question.

"My magic cannot transform those stones because we are not connected to them," she growled, "but if you two were to use the magic that is inside both of you, perhaps they could be transformed into what they once were."

"The magic we have?" Eclipsa repeated. "Astral, I understand since she has actual magic. I don't, so what could I do to help?"

"All ponies have magic inside them," Nightmare Moon assured, "your magic is the power of flight. Earth ponies have the power of strength to tend to the land and unicorns have the power of magic."

"Aaand that magic can help you transform these stones?" Eclipsa wondered.

"It sounds tough," added Astral, "but I think we can do this." She reached out to Eclipsa, "Come here, take my hoof and let me try something."

After helping Nightmare Moon up onto her hooves, Eclipsa approached Astral and reached out for her hoof. She grabbed a hold of it and looked up towards Astral's horn, watching as it became encased in her purple aura.

Astral concentrated hard and felt the magic wrapping around her horn, lifting both herself and Eclipsa in the air together. Nightmare Moon watched on as the two ponies were being lifted up by the magic. Astral began casting a spell that could transfigure objects on the stones, trying to form the Elements of Harmony for Nightmare Moon. She concentrated as much power as she possibly could, using mostly the new power that Nightmare Moon had provided for her.

Nightmare Moon, still overlooking the situation, felt giddy as there was a small spark that was travelling between each stone slowly. The spark soon became a link, which soon began linking each stone instead of just one. Astral had a spark charge up on her horn and shoot out from it, striking the center area of the stones and filling the room with a bright light briefly.

When the light dissipated, the spark emitted a small explosion and brushed each of the three ponies back. Astral felt dizzy and tried to stand back up, but couldn't feel her own hooves. She looked over towards Eclipsa and saw nothing but blurred lines and hazy vision.

The more she moved, the more Astral felt groggy. She groaned a bit, rested her head slightly, and started to lose consciousness.

---

Twilight Sparkle and the rest of her friends arrived at the castle that once belonged to the royal sisters. The other ponies behind her saw some stones being held up by a contraption and saw how Twilight grew excited.

"The Elements of Harmony," She exclaimed, "we've found them!"

The two Pegasus ponies flew in towards the stones and started to pick them up, carrying them down to Twilight.

"Careful," called Twilight, "careful…"

The pink earth pony counted each stone, remembering what Twilight told her earlier, "One, two, three, four…There's only five!"

"Where's the sixth?" The rainbow-maned Pegasus wondered.

Twilight crouched down and got closer to each stone, "The book said: when the five are present, a spark will cause the sixth Element to be revealed."

"What in the hay is that s'pposed to mean?" The orange earth pony asked.

"I'm not sure," answered Twilight, "but I have an idea." She started to charge some magic in her horn, focusing on the stones. "Stand back. I don't know what will happen."

The orange earth pony obliged to the request and approached the doorway that led back into the forest, calling out to the others, "Come on now, y'all. She needs to concentrate."

Twilight focused more of her magic on the stones while the other ponies left the area. She shot a spark of her magic out and casted it on the stones, hearing them move about and shuffle. Opening her eyes, she saw a hazy, smoky being grab each of them from her and, acting quickly, Twilight got up and jumped into harm's way.

"The Elements!" She shouted, jumping into the smoke, being teleported away.

---

Appearing further inside the castle, Nightmare Moon recognized the pony jumping in to stop her and separated them from the stones. She dropped each of the stones in front of her and turned around, eyeing the pony severely. From the side of the room, Eclipsa looked on, taking care of a collapsed Astral.

"Eclipsa," Nightmare Moon said, "front and center! Our guests have arrived."

Fearing what would happen if she didn't obey, Eclipsa ruefully left Astral on the ground and glided over towards Nightmare Moon, flaring her own wings at the new, unknown pony.

The pony got up and threatened to charge at Nightmare Moon, much to Nightmare Moon's own delight. She chuckled sarcastically and cocked an eyebrow.

"You're kidding," Nightmare Moon noted. "You're kidding, right?"

The new pony wasn't kidding, charging a bit of magic in her horn while rushing forwards towards Nightmare Moon and Eclipsa. Nightmare Moon followed suit and began rushing at the small unicorn herself, while Eclipsa tucked in her wings and flew towards them as well. When she was close enough, the unicorn teleported to the other side of the room, leaving Nightmare Moon and Eclipsa in the dust behind her.

Acting quickly, the unicorn crouched down and tried igniting a spark between the stones. Nightmare Moon rapidly adjusted her course and used her smoky form to quickly get back to the stones. Eclipsa watched on as she flew up and around, trying to knock the unicorn out of the way.

Spark provided, the unicorn smirked triumphantly, looking up as Nightmare Moon now stood in the middle of all five stones.

"No," Nightmare Moon gasped, "no!"

The spark travelled between each stone, stronger than the last time Astral had provided it. However, the spark itself gave out and left the five stones defenseless. The unicorn noticed nothing happening and, being held down by Eclipsa, began to wonder if she had failed in her task. Nightmare Moon, thinking she had won, began laughing in a cockily way. She lifted both of her front hooves and stomped them on the ground, shattering the stones in the process.

"But," the unicorn wondered, trying her best to break free from Eclipsa's grasp, "where's the sixth Element?!"

"You little foal," Nightmare Moon laughed, "thinking you could defeat me? Thinking you could defeat us?! Now you will never see your princess, or your sun! The night will last forever!"

"Wait," Eclipsa called, "the princess? What did you do to her?"

"That's not important," responded Nightmare Moon, "what is important is that we just shattered this pony's hope of defeating us!"

The unicorn looked down, ears folded and tears forming, ready to cry about her defeat. She shut her eyes, then began hearing something in the distance. She shot her ears upward and looked back. Eclipsa noticed this and turned back with the unicorn, wondering if Nightmare Moon wanted her to stop whoever was coming in now.

"Don't worry Twilight, we'll be there," the voices called.

The unicorn's eyes grew wide and, inside the pupils of the unicorn, a spark was emitted. The pony smiled, then turned to face Nightmare Moon.

"You think you can destroy the Elements of Harmony just like that?" She asked Nightmare Moon, feeling empowered and brushing Eclipsa back a bit, "Well, you're wrong, because the spirits of the Elements of Harmony are right here!"

The other ponies stood next to the unicorn and each had similar determined looks on their faces, with a light brightly shining from them all. Nightmare Moon shielded herself from the bright light using one of her wings, while Eclipsa flew back over towards Astral.

Noticing what was happening, Astral began to open her eyes and see a bit more clearly. She saw the other ponies glowing in front of her and tried to pick herself up, but still couldn't feel her hooves. It was as if the stones had negated her magical abilities, leaving her feeling very weak. She saw the unicorn step forward, closer to Nightmare Moon, telling her something in the process.

"Applejack," the unicorn said, "who reassured me when I was in doubt, represents the spirit of honesty!"

Shards and fragments of the destroyed stones wrapped themselves around Applejack. The unicorn continued, growing even more determined.

"Fluttershy, who tames the manticore with her compassion, represents the spirit of kindness!"

More shards and fragments surrounded around Fluttershy. Eclipsa cocked an eyebrow and looked at Astral, wondering what Nightmare Moon had put those ponies through.

"Did…did she say 'manticore'?" Eclipsa asked.

"I think she did," answered Astral.

"Pinkie Pie," said the unicorn, "who banished fear by giggling in the face of danger, represents the spirit of laughter!"

"Danger?" Astral repeated, watching as more shards and fragments surrounded Pinkie Pie.

"Rarity," the unicorn smirked, "who calmed a sorrowful serpent with a meaningful gift, represents the spirit of generosity!"

"You don't think Nightmare Moon could've put these ponies through all of that," Eclipsa wondered, "do you?"

"I'm not sure," Astral admitted.

"And Rainbow Dash," continued the unicorn, "who could not abandon her friends for her own heart's desire, represents the spirit of loyalty!"

Astral noticed something specific about what the unicorn was talking about. She looked to Eclipsa and told her what she was thinking about presently.

"What do you mean?" Eclipsa wondered.

"That unicorn said each of the five known elements in the Elements of Harmony," she explained, "and those shards and fragments that are revolving around each of them are the remains of the Elements of Harmony."

Eclipsa looked to the group of ponies and began thinking, "Y-You don't think that those ponies are-"

"You still don't have the sixth Element!" Nightmare Moon shouted, feeling just a bit more nervous now. "The spark didn't work!"

"But it did," claimed the unicorn, "a different kind of spark." She turned to the others and smiled happily at them, "I felt it the very moment I realized how happy I was to hear you, to see you, how much I care about you. The spark ignited inside me when I realized that you all," she turned back around defiantly and confidently, "are my friends! You see, Nightmare Moon, when those Elements are ignited by the…the spark that resides in the heart of us all, it creates the sixth element: the element of…magic!"

Astral and Eclipsa now watched as the six ponies rearranged themselves, the light shining brighter around them all. From the center of the six, a rainbow shot out and curved in the air, aiming for Nightmare Moon.

"Nooo!" Nightmare Moon cried. "Nooo!"

Eclipsa shielded both Astral and herself with her wing from the blinding white light that was caused by the rainbow. The two heard Nightmare Moon crying out in pain a bit more before things fell silent. Eclipsa peered over her wing to see what was going on, noticing that Nightmare Moon was gone and the six ponies from earlier were all collapsed on the ground. She retreated her wing to her side and helped Astral up onto her own hooves.

"Wh-What happened?" Eclipsa thought.

"I think the Elements of Harmony happened, Eclipsa," Astral responded.

"Ugh," Rainbow Dash groaned, "my head."

Astral and Eclipsa rushed over to the other ponies to help them up, wondering where Nightmare Moon had vanished to.

"Everypony okay?" Applejack asked, taking Eclipsa's hoof and pulling herself up.

"Oh," Rarity chimed, "thank goodness!"

"Why Rarity," Fluttershy smiled, "it's so lovely."

"I know!" Rarity cried happily, nuzzling her own tail, "I'll never part with it again!"

"No," continued Fluttershy, "your necklace." She pointed to the beautiful gold necklace that was around Rarity's neck. It had a royal purple, diamond-shaped gem in the middle of it. "It looks just like your cutie mark."

"What?" Rarity asked, looking down at her necklace, then moving her rear side a bit to see her cutie mark, noticing the matching shapes. "Ooh," she looked to Fluttershy's necklace and noticed the same. "So does yours."

Fluttershy gasped happily as she looked down to her gold necklace. The gem she had in the middle of the necklace was a pink, butterfly-shaped one.

Astral and Eclipsa looked around between the six ponies and noticed how each of them had a different gem encrusted in each of their necklaces. They both looked towards the unicorn and saw that, instead of a necklace, they had a crown encrusted with a magenta colored, star-shaped gem. Astral looked over towards Applejack and cocked an eyebrow at her. It appeared as if she was thinking about something else.

"Now," Rainbow Dash said, looking over to Astral and Eclipsa, "about you two."

Astral and Eclipsa noticed Rainbow Dash approaching them and began backing up against the wall. Rainbow Dash pressed forward, proceeding to ask the two ponies questions.

"Why were you both here?" Rainbow Dash demanded.

"Whoa there now," Applejack called, rushing up next to Rainbow Dash and resting a hoof on her back, "take it easy now."

"Why should I?" Rainbow Dash questioned, looking back at Astral and Eclipsa, "They were both working with Nightmare Moon when we showed up."

"Actually," the unicorn said, approaching Astral and Eclipsa as well, "that's not entirely true." She looked to Astral, "You were not conscious for most of what happened here, were you?"

"W-Well," Astral stammered, "yes and no."

"What do you mean?" The unicorn replied, cocking an eyebrow in the process.

Astral sighed, but prepared to explain herself. However, when she opened her mouth to begin, Eclipsa stepped in front of her and hid her behind one of her wings, answering the unicorn in the process.

"I was the only one working with Nightmare Moon," Eclipsa said, "not Astral." She turned back to Astral and smiled softly, "She tried her best in activating those Elements of Harmony that each of you have, but I guess the magic Nightmare Moon gave to her was being sensed by the stones and rejected it, sending all of us flying back, not just her." She turned back to face the six ponies, "If anypony was helping Nightmare Moon, it was me. Astral was simply aiding her towards a path involving friendship."

"Friendship?" Pinkie Pie repeated.

"Nightmare Moon?" Rainbow Dash added.

"Y'all serious?" Applejack questioned.

Astral shook her head and stepped out from behind Eclipsa, "No, we were both helping her. I was doing it because she convinced me that another pony believed in me and saw potential."

"And she was right," a new voice called.

The ponies looked to a nearby window and saw that the sun was being raised. When the sun reached its peak, the light shone down on the ground and began flickering. From the flickers, Celestia came forward. The ponies all bowed to her and smiled, while the unicorn recognized the princess and rushed towards her.

"Princess Celestia," she beamed delightfully, extending herself for a hug.

"Twilight Sparkle," Celestia responded, lowering her head and wrapping it around Twilight, "my faithful student. I knew you could do it."

"But," protested Twilight, "you told me it was all an old pony tale."

Celestia shook her head, "I told you that you needed to make some friends, nothing more." She looked between each pony and continued speaking, "I saw the signs of Nightmare Moon's return, even watching as she was released from the moon. I knew it was you, Twilight, who had the magic inside to defeat her, but you could not unleash it until you let true friendship into your heart." She looked over towards the other end of the room, approaching it slowly, "Now if only another will as well. Princess Luna!"

Collapsed on the ground where Nightmare Moon once stood, a phthalo blue colored alicorn with an azure colored mane was seen. Neither Astral nor Eclipsa recognized the pony, but they could see fragments of Nightmare Moon's armor laying around on the ground around the pony. Shifting views from the new alicorn to Celestia, Astral watched carefully.

"It's been a thousand years since I have seen you like this," Celestia commented, laying down on the ground in front of the new alicorn. "Time to put our differences behind us. We were meant to rule together, little sister."

Astral and Eclipsa both looked at each other while the other ponies repeated what Celestia just said. Celestia stood back up onto her hooves and reached out to the new alicorn.

"Will you accept my friendship?" Celestia asked.

The alicorn looked at Celestia's outstretched hoof and sprung up, crying in the process. She wrapped herself around Celestia and hugged her tightly.

"I'm so sorry!" She cried. "I missed you so much, big sister!"

Celestia, crying herself now, replied happily, "I've missed you too, Princess Luna."

---

Later that day, back in Ponyville, Astral and Eclipsa both ran into Luna and Celestia. Celestia was smiling and felt happier with Luna by her side once more. She spotted Astral and Eclipsa and approached them both. Noticing this, both Astral and Eclipsa bowed to Celestia as she stopped in front of them.

"You're Astral Flare," Celestia said, turning to Eclipsa now, "and, if memory serves me correctly, you're Eclipsa, right?"

"Right, Your Highness," both ponies answered.

"You were both present earlier in the castle," continued Celestia, "and I heard what you both did when confronted by Twilight Sparkle and her friends."

"W-We do apologize for that," Eclipsa stammered.

"Why apologize?" Celestia asked.

Astral and Eclipsa briefly looked at each other, baffled by the question that was asked to them.

"Umm," Astral spoke, "b-because we were both helping Nightmare Moon?"

"Had we realized what was happening," added Eclipsa, "we may have actually done something else."

"But then you wouldn't have spotted the lesson you both experienced," Celestia advised.

"The lesson?" Astral repeated.

Celestia nodded, "You both recognized the potential to find friendship in anypony, even if that pony may be performing dastardly tasks." She turned to Astral, "You spotted the goodness that was inside Nightmare Moon's heart and tried to bring that out without using the Elements of Harmony. Giving her your trust allowed her to question her own motifs and see what could be in friendship, even if the Elements of Harmony were used on her." She then turned to Eclipsa, "And you saw what it meant to sacrifice your own wellbeing for the sake of another pony. You put yourself in harm's way just to save a pony you previously quarreled with, and that is a level of loyalty that rivals that of Rainbow Dash."

"Thank you, princess," Eclipsa said, blushing in the process.

"You both are good ambassadors for friendship," Celestia continued, looking back to Astral, "and, I believe that my sister might have something she wishes to ask from you."

"From me?" Astral said, pointing to herself.

Celestia smiled, turning to face Luna now, "Luna, you may join us now."

The three ponies watched as Luna bashfully approached them. Astral wasn't sure what came over her, but between Luna and Nightmare Moon, she couldn't really see a lot of similarities. Sure, one came from the other, as she learned, but what caused Nightmare Moon to become so dominant in Luna's mind was what Astral really wondered about. When Luna finally arrived, she stood next to Celestia and hid slightly behind her mane. Celestia giggled, then motioned her head towards Astral.

"Y-You wanted to speak to me about something, princess?" Astral asked.

Luna nodded slowly, "I, uhh, I understand that while we spent our time as Nightmare Moon, we, umm…I offered to you a proposition before arriving at the castle."

"Y-Yeaaaahhh?" Astral wondered, unsure of what Luna was getting at.

"I promised you that if you were to learn from us," continued Luna, "we could show you and train you in the field of magic."

"Oh yeah," replied Astral, "I forgot about that, honestly."

"Well," said Luna, "if you were still interested in learning, I will be more than willing to show you everything I've learned over the years."

"R-Really?" Eclipsa beamed, bouncing up and down in place, excited for Astral.

Luna nodded again, "You showed us kindness and compassion that wasn't felt for over a millennium, even as we were Nightmare Moon. You put what we did in the past and focused on developing a brighter future for us." She approached Astral further and rested a hoof on her chest, "Nightmare Moon might have told you this, but I know for a fact that there is a lot of potential in you, Astral Flare, and I was hoping we could teach you in the way that my sister teaches Twilight Sparkle."

Astral blushed and felt her eyes get more watery. She looked at Luna and felt touched, "D-Do you really mean that?"

"You are too awesome, Astral!" Eclipsa chimed, hugging Astral tightly. "I told you that already!"

"We would be more than happy to teach everything to you," Luna repeated, "provided that you're willing to learn."

"Of course, Your Highness!" Astral beamed.

---

A couple of days later, Astral and Eclipsa were both with Luna inside the castle in Canterlot. Eclipsa was there for support while Luna and Astral focused on their training. Luna smiled, then turned to Astral as soon as the moon was risen.

"Are you ready, Astral?" Luna asked.

"More than ever," nodded Astral.

"Ooh!" Eclipsa whistled, bouncing up and down in place again, "This is sooooo exciting! I can't even wait, I just can't!"

"Then allow us to begin," smirked Luna, using her magic on the room around them.

Astral and Eclipsa prepared themselves for whatever Luna had in store for them, ready to tackle the lessons together. For Eclipsa, she finally felt warm and bubbly, like her mother used to describe her. As for Astral, she felt wanted and accepted, knowing that she had not just one, but two more ponies believing in her magical abilities.

Things will get better from here,smiled Astral, feeling Luna's magic encase around her body, I just know it.

Anxiety absent from the room, Astral prepared herself for lesson number one from Luna.