Luna awoke the next morning to find herself wrapped in the warm embrace of a few blankets. She had no idea where they had come from, as she figured nopony would come close enough to her to allow for them to do this. Gazing around her room she found herself laying on the dust covered room, devoid of any furniture and with a black stain of ornate fireplace.

Truly sitting up she found a platter of food sitting on the floor next to her. Opening the lid she found some small foodstuffs, just a sandwhich and some now stagnant water, she truly had not expected to be brought food...much less a feast, but this only served to sadden her more. Luna doubted this was a try to welcome her back, but rather a tray brought to her by Celestia to try to make her feel better. The only other option was it was from 'Tia's subjects, and probably not from their own will, but rather to placate their god figure.

It took her all of five seconds to throw the food into the fireplace, and used it to lit it to fuel another fire, not noticing as her sister slowly opened the door.

"...Luna?"

Luna was suddenly startled, her older sister was here...why? She thought they had established Celestia's stance on her return last night. But her tone clearly translated to "I wasn't planning on this at all...surprise?"

"What do you want Tia- Celestia" she asked, catching herself before she used the affectionate name she had as a filly.

Celestia's eyes dropped at this sentence, she clearly wanted to go back to some semblance of love and sisterhood that the two had had a thousand years ago, before Nightmare Moon. But at this rate that was never going to happen.

"I just wanted to know if you ate the food I brought for you" she calmly stated. Before noticing the fire in the hearth smelling vaguely of over cooked greenery. She was aware her sister had burned the food, and all her possessions, and thought wyrly to herself if Luna could burn herself to death she probably would.

"Well... I guess not..."

"You didn't expect me back did you?" asked Luna

This sent Celestia reeling, of course she had! But gazing around the dust and cobwebbed room she could certainly see where that impression would come from.

"Luna I- I was busy! I had a kingdom to run and had to worry about your PR upon your return! And not to mention all the costly repairs your return might make need fo-"

Those were the last words she spoke to her sister before she was surrounded by an indigo aura and shoved out the door. Sighing defeatedly, Celestia started to walk off.

As she did she was quite certain she heard small heart-wrenching sobs leaking from under the door.

Celestia's Heart ached

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Returned~~~~

That night a solitary figure walked among the statue of the garden. She was all alone among solid statues of marble, it reminded her vaguely of her time of the moon.

Day one on the moon~

Nightmare moon could not believe she was here!

On the moon!? I mean as far as ironic punishments go it went way too far! She knew for the next millennium she would find no joy.

No wind, no company, and nothing to do except torture her prisoner, for Locked up in a tiny cell in the back of her mind was Luna. She was struggling with ropes and chains made of material strong enough to subdue the goddess and Nightmare liked it like that, it gave her an edge in their fight for dominance of their shared body.

She sighed before kicking one of the billions of rocks littering the lunar surface, she'd need to find some way to pass the time... Only once Luna started to cry out for help again did the idea come, and their body fell limp as she retreated into their mind.

If you were inside Nightmare's mind during the thousand years you would've heard unimaginable scream of agony as the dark hellspawn slowly tortured her alter ego.

After shrugging off this painful memory she came upon the statue of her old "foe", discord. She had once hated the creature, now? She truly felt empathy for it, she now knew what it felt like on the receiving end of one of her sister's punishments, ironic and laced with sadism as they tended to be...And while she wasn't sure they were punished on quite the same level, nor for even the same thing. She still felt empathy for this strange twisted creature.

Celestia was Forced to do the one thing she despised, she had said she had no choice but to in this situation, forever sealing him to a stony prison. She felt as if she knew how this felt. It was her job to move the moon, and when she did she got no love, for the misconceptions that her awakening brought forth terrors and beasts better left unnamed by anypony claiming sanity. When she didn't move it however, she got even less. There just wasn't happy medium was there? She sincerely doubted it.

And gazing upon this poor soul did little to help these fears. She knew her sister would disapprove but really, who was the villain here?

She and discord for doing their jobs and being hated for it? Or her sister and the subjects that feared her for only doing what rightfully is her job? And probably believing Celestia is the only one who should and would hold that power?

The two who followed what their basic jobs in life were? Or the ponies who hated them for doing only what is their job?

No...no! Sh was starting to think like she had a thousand year ago.. but just standing around the statue of Discord brought back unbidden memories of the way he had manipulated her...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ around 1000 years ago~~

Luna and discord sat in a small room in the castle. Discord being inside a magical ring with oaths of binding and containment on them, with a few added sigils and runes as backups.

He couldn't turn around, he couldn't walk around, but he could talk and that was enough.

"Luna-" he started, the quick growl she let out stopped him, before he started again.

"Luna! Listen to me" he repeatedly whispered urgently in increasing volume until Luna finally decided to humor him, he was soon going to be trapped friendless and alone, and she knew things would be easiest if she stalled him for time.

"We art listening thou uncouth demon"

Discord knew he had her sunk.

"Luna, poor sweet Luna, you do realize why I'm here don't you?"

Luna quickly listed the reasons Celestia had given her. to which the draconeques shook his head, not believing that it was this easy.

"She told you that but let me explain. She and I used to be friends, you know this. Celestia has no use for me in her new world however. She claims to have loved me. I admit I was arrogant enough to believe it. I thought I had charms, looks and everything needed to woo her. But I was wrong"

"She needs me not in the new world she plans to create. She plans on using the elements of harmony on me to delete me. Make me no more to further make the world conform to her desires. And let me tell you Luna, she only needs to be irrated by you to do the same thing to you. 'the world only needs one ruler' or 'you lowered the moon too slowly' will be her reason. And she'll banish you too. I can see the future Luna, me imprisoned in the one thing that never changes, the exact opposite of chaos, stone... you? More or less the same. And i know this is true Luna. So do you."

Luna started to object to this tirade before being silenced by Discord.

"Luna...you know the moon perfectly. You know it's made up of icy rock that people think gives light... THEY'RE WRONG!" You me and 'Tia all know it.
The moon is a fitting analogy for you Luna, which is why you got the power over it. A small dark icy-exteriored mirror, reflecting the light off it's beautiful twin who is much bigger then it and attempting to pass it off as it's own. You're the same, small, feeble, and created from the dirt and mud of the world. I can also see how the future will treat the moon Luna..."

The draconeques said before summoning a small pool of water that would act as a scrying mirror.

Luna gazed in, and saw what would become of her moon. Walking on it was a pony identified as "Niel Hoofstrong" by a plaque on his clothes. Then skipping ahead to a colony on the moon. No longer did it look to be revered, nor loved. It was simply a place for ponies to mock and abuse as they do to the earth ealready. Meanwhile her sister's perfect sun was untouched, still revered by the ponies.

Discord started his tirade again as she looked away.

"Poor stupid Luna... I'm the spirit of chaos, I know thing change and i'm the embodiment of it. But what I can tell you is this Luna. you're regarded as the bitch of the castle. No pony loves you. You'll be locked away for years Luna, deep in some unreachable dark cell. And it'll be you're sister that sent you there. We'll both escape eventually, but she can use the elements as many times as she wants on us Luna. and if not, find somepony. I dont know about you, but I can exist forever. Just remember Luna, it's either respect...or forever being 2nd hat"

Discord finished right as Celestia walked in, seemingly not hearing any of his speech. She and Luna then fired up the elements, while the draconeque cried crocodile tears Luna knew were for her, but not that they were fake. As he was turned to stone He mouthed once.

"2nd hat..."

Before he was frozen for a millenium in cold, unchanging stone.

Luna had never forgotten that day...

However there were also two other people who never forgot it as well. One being Luna's sister, Celestia. As she walked through the cold marble halls of canterlot on her way to her next meeting for the day she couldn't help but ponder what had happened to her sister since her return. She remembered a time when she was happy, vibrant, and full of life. But now she was a mess, she burned all her belongings, save her royal necklace and tiara, and moped around when she wasn't sleeping. She was genuinely worried, she and her sister were so close until discord came into the picture and messed it all up. He had managed to convince Luna she was more or less worthless...

Unbidden her thought turned to the old days with her and her sibling...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Returned

Luna and Celestia, ages 10 and 8, were running through their old palace in the Everfree forest. They were chasing each other in a silly game of their own invention, not yet introduced to the monstrosity known as politics and ruling a kingdom. They didn't know who or whattheir parents were sadly, but that never stopped them. They learned how to behave both from the expansive library in the castle and the disasters they caused.

Occasionally, Celestia would give her little sister a formal lesson on things she learned from the books too advanced for Luna. Celestia always had and would act like a mother to Luna, she didn't mean to of course but it was a habit formed from when they were alone in an isolated forest castle with only the company of each other. The looked out for each other, and Celestia was always willing to spread praise to her little sister for all the thing she did well.

After they finished running around they settled down to eat. No body to disturb them or try to interrupt their bonding or spout demands to them like some whiny brat of a child. Neither admittedly were good cooks, which is why they often used their magic to create food. It had turned into a game to one up the other, back then all they really seemed to do was play games...

However Celestia remembered these good times didn't last...

Luna walked into the study her sister used with a book in her mouth. Her sister, per usual was reading a heavy tome no doubt written by some ancient author. Celestia barely noticed her sister walk in, and this only seemed to darken the already dark mood the flickering flames behind the elder sibling gave off.

"Si-sister?"

Celestia didn't seem to notice her...

"Can-can we read a story together?" Celestia looked up at this. And with the tone of a parent patronizing their child, not harshly but still, said, "Sorry Luna you know some day we're destined for great things. And we need to take this seriously.

Luna deflated as her sister said this, that made three weeks straight her sister refused...And in a fit of childish, albeit somewhat justified rage, Luna threw the book into the fires, running away with a trailing stream of tears. The book burned to a cinder as Celestia shook her head, just muttering,"Silly filly... you need to grow up"

~~Skip forward, 5 years~~

Luna waked into her sister's study again. Not even bothering to bring a book with her as she used to, too used to the way these meeting tended to go when she gathered the nerve to ask to even have hope.

"Sister, can we maybe read tonight?"

Her sister for once stopped reading... And Luna dared to hope. But that hoped was dashed as her sister eyes held fire in them and she started shouting at the younger."STOP ASKING ME! I'M GOING TO RULE THIS KINGDOM SO I HAVE TO LEARN HOW TO!" She took a moment to compose herself. "Look, you need to grow up Luna, you're going to be my number two and you need to learn that this isn't fun. Now please, I, unlike you, take my duties serously..." Celestia then swiveled to face the fire, Leading her sister to walk out of the room dejectedly...

~~ The next Day~~

Celestia was abhorred at what stood before her, her poor deluded sister had become nearly as tall as her, as well as becoming pure black and sporting an astral mane that under different circumstance might've looked pretty nice.

"I'm not lowering the moon"

Celestia was dumbfounded by what her sister just said. No... Not her sister anymore. She had no sister anymore, This was a demon. "You wanted me to take my night seriously... and now I have. People didn't respect it enough so i'm forcing them to love it. Isn't this what you wanted!" The demon posessing Luna shouted.

It was only now the elder sibling learned her mistake, her sister was in there, buried deeply yes, but she was there. So she did the only plausible and right thing, or so she thought, she imprisoned her sister in the moon.

Celestia realized she had to make it up to her sister, for althought Luna betrayed her, She had betrayed Luna much before her sister returned the favor. They both had made mistakes yes, but hopefully not irreparable ones...