A/N: Sorry that the other rewritten parts seemed rushed, although it didn't feel like it at the time. I guess that's what happens when I write something when I'm sleep-deprived, but life goes on, and so must I. I think this might be the final installment for the rewrite, but you never know what will happen sometimes.
(Luna Eclipsed: The What You'd Normally Expect In A Timon and Pumbaa/MLP Crossover From Dede42 and RolePlayer48 Edition)
Chapter 6: A Happy Solution…Hopefully?
Leaving Twilight Sparkle to help supervise the clean up of the ruined festival, Sunrise Blossom, Timon, and Pumbaa hurried after Princess Luna, hoping to get her to change her mind and restore the festival.
The trio soon found Luna, princess of the night, fun and singing songs, making her way towards the Everfree Forest for some reason with her head hanging low in depression.
"Lulu, wait! Stop!" Timon called out, running after her.
Pumbaa hurried past her and stopped her progress across the bridge. "Don't go! Please?" he requested hopefully.
Luna easily stepped over him and resumed walking. "Leave me be, Timon and Pumbaa," she requested. "Can't you see I want to be left alone here?"
Pumbaa hurried after her with Timon and Sunrise Blossom. "Wait Luna!" he called out. "We're ever so sorry that things haven't worked out so well for you."
"But that's no reason to cancel Nightmare Night/Halloween forever!" Timon added, once again blocking her way to keep her from leaving. "Especially considering this our first time doing this sort of thing in Equestria. Besides, we still love you! Hakuna Matata! No worries, remember? We sang the Fun song together."
"Yeah," Pumbaa agreed. "And from what we've heard about this traditional event from Sunrise, Nightmare Night is one of the most popular celebrations these ponies have every October 31st."
"Oh yes, my stout and gaseous friend," the Princess of the Night said sarcastically. "I can tell by all the adoring shrieks of the children as they run away calling for they're momma like that cowardly Disney villain ''Prince John'' that Timon is dressed up as! Now please, leave me alone while I feel depressed."
Timon kept blocking Luna's way. "Oh no ya don't, Lulu!" he said firly. "I ain't giving up just yet! In fact, I suggest Pumbaa, Sunrise, ''Tigger'' and I go convince that pony in the chicken suite that you've changed! Come on Pumbaa! I've got a plan on how to lure that Pinkie over to us."
"What kind of plan?" Sunrise Blossom asked, hoping that it wouldn't involved torture weapons.
Timon winked and grinned. "Just way and see, Sunny Bunny, just wait and see."
Back in the town, the ponies were still comforting the whimpering and crying fillies while cleaning up the remains of the ruined festival...pfft, well it's they're own fault for making Luna feel unloved and unappreciated up to the point where she'd cancel Nightmare Night so why should I, the Narrator, feel sorry for these crybabies? I mean, come on! Anyway, Pinkie Pie was still acting like the cowardly chicken she's dressed up as, pecking around when suddenly she spotted a piece of candy on the ground followed by a whole trail of candy leading into an alleyway. Now, a lot of ponies know this sort of trick from seeing various movies on they're TVs because a trail of things for whoever comes across it often turns out to be a trap. Pinkie Pie may not be as smart as the star billing egghead (Twilight) herself, but even she knows better than to fall for such an obvious tri...oh wait, never mind. She's following the candy trail. She fell for the trap. Well, we needed to move the story forward anyway so it doesn't really matter.
Pinkie Pie followed the trail, pecking and eating the candy. Then all of a sudden, without any warning...'Tigger' pounced!
"GAAAAAAAAH!" the pink pony screamed and then stared up at the tiger dressed like a skeleton. "What the?"
"Hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo!" said 'Tigger' with a cheerful grin. "Hello there you weird pink chicken thing! I'm Tigger! T I Double G R! And that's me! Hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo!"
Pinkie Pie blinked, surprised to see him. "Tigger?!" she exclaimed. "What are YOU doing so far from the Hundred Arce Woods and...?"
Just then, Timon walked into the alleyway with Pumbaa and Sunrise Blossom. "Ah, so you've fallen into our cleverly planned out trap I see."
"Trap?" the pink pony repeated and nodded to the candy trail she'd been following a few seconds ago. "You mean this candy trail? Is this some sort of Nightmare Night prank or something? Did Dashie put you four up to this?"
Pumbaa shook his head. "Well I wouldn't call this a prank but we had to think of way to get to talk to you somehow."
"Why?" Pinkie Pie asked, which wasn't easy since 'Tigger' was still sitting on her chest. "What did you want to talk to me about?"
"Pinkie Pie, there's something we all want you to see and we 100 percent promise that it's safe," Sunrise Blossom informed her friend. "But all intents and purposes, you really, really, really CAN'T shriek."
"That goes double for screaming and squealing because you can't do that neither!" Timon added with a stern look.
"Do you promise not to shriek, Pinkie?" Pumbaa asked hopefully.
Pinkie Pie nodded and did her signiture trademark Pinkie Promise after 'Tigger' got off of her so that she could get up. "Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye."
Timon and Pumbaa were confused by Pinkie's little rhyme. "Huh?"
Sunrise Blossom chuckled. "She means yes."
"Oh," said the meerkat and the warthog.
"Well why didn't she just say yes instead?" Timon wondered while both ponies snickered.
"So, what is it you four wanna…?" Pinkie Pe began and did a chicken squawk, but she covered her mouth quickly as Luna walked out of the shadows.
"Pinkie Pie, you remember Princess Luna, right?" Sunrise Blossom asked, hoping that Timon's plan would work.
Luna nodded her regal head. "Ah, the ringleader of the frightened children," she said coolly. "Hast thou come to make peace?" she inquired, extending a hoof.
Pinkie Pie nervously extended her own hoof, but both were completley unaware of a black cloud...NO IT ISN'T WINNIE THE POOH DOING HIS LITTLE BLACK RAINCLOUD NUMBER YOU SILLY READERS! They were unware of a black cloud moving up and behind them, and before anyone had the chance to notice or give Pinkie a warning, there was a clap of thunder and lightning!
"NIGHTMARE MOON!" the pink pony shrieked, jumping into the air. "I'M OUTTA HERE!" And she ran off squawking like the cowardly chicken she was dressed as.
Sunrise Blossom, eardrums ringing painful from the noise, noticed Rainbow Dash laughing manically while lying on that cloud. "Oh Rainbow Dash! Not again!"
'Tigger' frowned, paws on hips. "Yeah. I thought I was doing the pranking around here."
Timon screamed with rage. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! THAT'S IT! I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE! THIS CHARADE HAS GONE ON LONG ENOUGH!" he raged. "First things first though," he somehow climbed up to the cloud and gave Rainbow Dash a good beating up she so rightfully deserved until Timon kicked the badly bruised pegasus off the cloud.
The next thing that Rainbow Dash knew, she was landing directly at the hospital entrance, crying in pain.
Nurse Redheart walked out the front door and noticed Rainbow just lying there all beat up and bruised. "My goodness, Rainbow Dash!" she exclaimed. "What happened to you? Have you been hurtful pranking again?"
Back in the alleyway, Timon hopped off the cloud and dusted off his paws. "Okay, now that Dashie's taken care of, DISC-" he let out an annoyed groan "TIGGER! Bring that pink idiot back here!"
'Tigger' saluted. "Yes sir!" And he snapped his paws as Pinkie Pie was teleported back to where they were.
"Whoa! Ooff!" the pink pony grunted and looked around, confused. "How did I get back over here?"
"Now you listen to me, Pinkamena Diane Pie!" Timon snapped.
Pinkie Pie stared at the meerkat, surprised to hear him say her full name. "H-how'd you know my full nam..."
"Since this is the second time Pumbaa and I have met you, your antics are really beginning to annoy us to no end!" Timon interrupted, having had enough. "But what you keep doing right now has gone on FAR enough so STOP IT! Luna has CHANGED now, stupid! She's not evil or scary anymore. And she definitely doesn't wanna gobble you up! Am I making myself clear here? Is this information getting through to this thick pink skull of yours that you call a brain? Do I need to repeat myself? Huh? DO I?!"
The pink pony blinked and then she started laughing, confusing them all. "Oh you silly talking meerkat thing you!" she giggled. "I know that. Sheesh. I'm almost as big as her, how's she gonna gobble me up?"
Sunrise Blossom was confused. "Huh?"
Pumbaa was dumbfounded. "Eh?"
'Tigger' was perplexed. "Wat?"
Timon was completely exasperated at this point. "Then WHY in the name of Lauren Faust retiring DO YOU KEEP RUNNING AWAY AND SCREAMING?!"
"…who's Lauren Faust?" Pumbaa asked, now really confused.
"Ooh, have you been taking fourth wall breaking lessons too, Timon?" Pinkie Pie asked eagerly.
The meerkat started screaming and jumping up and down. "ANSWER THE QUESTION OR I'LL COOK YOU AND EAT YOU ALL UP LIKE A TURKEY!"
"Okay, okay," said the pink pony. "No need to get so violent with me. I'm just a loveable kid's cartoon character here."
Timon sighed and nodded. "Aren't we all?"
"You see, sometimes, it's just really fun to be scared!" Pinkie Pie explained. "I learnt that from you, Tigger, since watching that Halloween special. See for yourself through this conviently timed flashback."
(Cue a flashback of the scene from the Winnie the Pooh: Boo to You Halloween Special if Dede42's seen that at all where Tigger sings a song called ''I Wanna Scare Myself'')
[Tigger]
Oh, I love surprises and wearing disguises,
A horribly hideous costume'll do.
Better be wary, be spooky and scary,
I'll bounce from they're shadows and boo!
I wanna scare myself and everyone else,
Those thrilly and chilly old willys will rise,
Cover your eyes little buddy, beware,
I'm twitchin' and itchin' to scare myself!
Unspeakable spookables, awful unlookables,
Gallopin' ghosties and goblins galore!
What if they find you? Oh, look out behind you!
A terrible Tigger-Type roar!
That would be me. Hoo-hoo!
I wanna scare myself and everyone else,
Those thrilly and chilly old willys will rise,
Cover your eyes little buddy, beware,
I'm twitchin' and itchin' to scare myself!
Now, Tiggers, I figure, make scares even bigger,
They dress up and scream ''Who am I? Can you guess?''
And tricks always happen when ghosts are a-flappin',
And tricks are what Tiggers like best!
I wanna scare myself and everyone else,
Those thrilly and chilly old willys will rise,
Cover your eyes little buddy, beware,
I'm twitchin' and itchin' to scare myself!
Hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo!
And who better?
Oh by the way...
BOO!
(End of flashback. Cut back to the alleyway. Also, thank you, Roleplayer48, that song is now stuck in my head again!)
"See?" Pinkie Pie asked and there was a long silence.
Timon finally found his voice after that long silence. "You mean to tell the four of us...that you've just been PRETENDING to be scared of Lulu over there?! That this whole thing was nothing but a BIG. FAT. JOKE?!"
The pink pony nodded. "Mmm-hmm. And it looks like Luna's having a lot of fun scaring every pony," she added. "She's really getting into it! Not bad for her first Nightmare Night, huh, huh?"
Timon groaned and looked ready to tear out his fur in frustration. "...I cannot BELIEVE what I am hearing!"
"Uh...Pinkie Pie, not to rain on your parade or anything, but Luna's not pretending," Pumbaa pointed out. "She genuinely thinks you're scared of her."
Pinkie Pie rolled her eyes playfully. "Pfft. What are you talking about, Pumbaa?" she asked, not believing him. "Didn't you see her whole ''RAH I'M PRINCESS LUNA I'M GONNA GET YOU RAAAAHHHH!'' And that trick with the spiders? That was priceless!"
Timon growled. "PINKIE PIE, I SWEAR YOU ARE SO GONNA GET IT IN A MINUTE!" he raged. "I mean, look at her!" He pointed at Luna lying down defeated again while poking a piece of candy on the floor down the alley. "Does she LOOK like she's having any so called FUN?!"
Pinkie Pie looked over at the Princess of the Night and she saw that he was right. "No...she doesn't..." Feeling concerned, she trotted on over to Luna. "Princess, whatever's the matter?" she inquired.
"Oh. It's you again," Luna said bitterly. "Well, what do you want then? Come to scream again, little pony? Do not worry. I shall take leave of this place, where you and the others may never have to see my frightening visage again." She got up and began to walk away.
Pinkie Pie was really confused now. "Wha...leave? I don't understand...Weren't you having fun?"
"Fun?" the Princess of the Night repeated and turned back round, facing Pinkie with tears in her eyes. "FUN?! Surely thou does jest! Dost thou truly believe I enjoy frightening my subjects?! That I revel in the fact that they see me as nothing more than a monster?!"
"But...you're not a monster," the pink pony stammered, taken aback "Everypony knows that. We're just...pretending."
Luna's expression turned dark. "Oh...I see how it is now," she said coldly. "They see me not as a demon, but as an object of ridicule." Her tone then turned sarcastic. "Truly, I feel honored. Can't you tell by me invisible smile?"
"No! Wait!" Pinkie Pie protested. "That's not! I don't..."
"There!" Timon exclaimed. "You see Pinkie? Do you understand NOW what I've been telling ya?"
Sunrise Blossom sighed and ran a hoof over her face. "Timon, relax. I'll handle this," she requested. "You take this potion. It'll help you calm down." She gave Timon the potion that she often used on Twilight, and turned to the upset pink pony. "Now Pinkie, put yourself in Luna's place here. How would YOU feel if everyone was constantly running way from you, constantly reminding you of a single mistake you made?"
Pinkie Pie thought long and hard for 30 seconds as Jeopardy think music played in the background. After that, in realisation, her face contorted into an agonised frown. "Well, I think I...I would feel really bad. As if...everypony hated me for no real reason whatsoever."
"Actually Pinkie," said 'Tigger', "everypony WILL eventually start hating you and your crazy chaotic hyperactive antics for no reason whatsoever in a few years from now." (Oh my goodness! He's foreshadowing Season 7 and 8, isn't he?!)
"WHAT?!" Timon and Pumbaa exclaimed, surprised to hear this.
Sunrise Blossom was looking unsure. "Really? How do you know that for sure Disc...I mean...''Tigger''?" she asked, almost slipping up.
"Because," 'Tigger' whispered so only Timon, Pumbaa and Sunrise can hear so as not to give anything away to Pinkie, "being the magical Lord of Chaos I am, I can actually see into the future."
Timon: (pauses the scene as we cut back to the cinema) Wow Pumbaa! Looks like we were right after all!
Pumbaa: Yeah! Discord CAN see the future before it happens!
Sunrise Blossom: Funny how none of us remembered that until watching this episode.
Discord: Well it HAS been many years since I first told you I had that ability. (Presses button on remote to continue the scene)
'Tigger' produced a crystal ball from somewhere and presented it to Pinkie Pie. "Look into my crystal ball that I've brought with me, Pinkie Pie and I'll show you what may or may not happen in a few years from now."
Pinkie looked into the crystal ball as it showed her various scenes of Pinkie treatment from recent seasons such as, how her sister, Maud Pie, moves away to Ghastly Gorge after Pinkie kept checking in on her and Starlight Glimmer, who won't be appearing in this series for quite a while, to see if they were becoming best friends in the Season 7 episode ''Rock Solid Friendship'', Rainbow Dash throwing away Pinkie's pies whenever she wasn't looking in the episode ''Secrets and Pies'', Maud Pie choosing to stay on the grassy hills and fly kites with Starlight and a genderbent version Maud Pie named Mudbriar for her birthday rather than have Pinkie throw her a special party thus making her cry and move back to the rock farm, and of course, who can forget RolePlayer48's most HATED Season 8 episode ''Yakity-Sax'' where the Mane Seven hated Pinkie and cause her to move away to Yakyakistan just because she was playing an instrument the yaks called a youvidaphone really badly...REALLY, MANE SEVEN?!)
Pinkie Pie gasped as the crystal ball went dark. "Oh no!" she moaned. "Oh Tigger, I don't know how you have the ability to predict the future, but whether that does happen or not, that WOULD make me feel awful as I just described to you before you brought this up."
"Sort of like how Luna feels that everypony is afraid of and hates her because they're PRETENDING to be scared, hmm?" Timon suggested.
"Nightmare Moon was one of the worst mistakes I had ever made, Pinkie Pie," Luna informed the pink pony. "It cost me a thousand years. With my sister and with my subjects. And it very nearly cost the lives of innocents, nearly destroyed the very country that I swore to protect. I had hoped, that with my cleansing by the Elements of Harmony, that I would be able to start over, to finally form a connection with the ponies of Equestria, as I had longed for all those years ago. I had hoped that I would be able to earn a second chance. But it seems that, once again, I was mistaken."
Pinkie Pie began to cry herself as 'Tigger' snapped his paws and played the world's smallest violin from that Spongebob episode ''Squilliam Returns''. "I am so sorry, Princess. I wasn't trying to be mean, I swear. Nightmare Night is supposed to be fun. It's fun to be scared. I thought you knew that. I was trying to help you be as scary as you could be, so everypony could have fun!" She lowered head in shame. "But you weren't having fun, were you? We made you think we didn't like you, and that's not true at all! We're glad you're here, Luna! We really are...but we didn't do a good job showing it."
The Princess of the Night blinked. "Truly...thou art glad I'm here?"
"Of course!" the pink pony exclaimed, becoming happy so fast that it was surprising that no pony got whiplash. "You're our friend!"
"F-friend?" Luna repeated.
Pipsqueak, who had heard this whole conversation, ran up to Luna, and gave her a great big hug. "Excuse me, Princess Luna?"
Sunrise Blossom was surprised to see the foal. "Pipsqueak? How much did you hear?" she asked, having assumed that no pony was around to hear any of what was going on.
"The whole thing actually," Pipsqueak confessed, but he was still smiling and looking up at the Princess of the Night. "But anyway Luna, if it means anything. . .I want you to know. . .that you're my most favorite Princess ever."
Luna was touched by this compliment. "I am?"
Pipsqueak nodded. "You bet," he confirmed. "By the way, do you suppose maybe you can come back next year and scare us just for harmless fun again?"
Luna was confused by the request. "You'd really want that?"
"Well, that's what Nightmare Night is all about!" Pipsqueak pointed out.
Luna smiled and spread her wings. "Well then, in that case, we shall have to bring" she switched to the Royal Canterlot Voice "NIGHTMARE NIGHT BACK!"
And every pony in Ponyville, who'd been alerted to what was going on in the alleyway, all cheered. "YAY!"
Later that night, the festival was fully restored and the party was in full swing with the ponies and Princess Luna all having fun. Watching this, Twilight Sparkle had Spike write a letter to Princess Celestia, having learned an important lesson while Sunrise Blossom, Timon, 'Tigger', and Pumbaa helped the Princess win some prizes at some of the games.
"Dear Princess Celestia," she said and the baby dragon wrote. "When you first sent me to Ponyville, I didn't know anything about friendship. I met somepony tonight who was having the same problem – your sister, Princess Luna! She taught me that one of the best things you can do with friendship is to give it to others, and help them find it themselves! And I'm happy to report that all of Ponyville has learned that even if somepony seems a little intimidating, even scary, when you offer them your friendship, you'll discover a whole new pony underneath. And even if my Star Swirl the Bearded costume didn't go over, this still turned out to be the best Nightmare Night ever!" She then ate a piece of candy happily.
Rainbow Dash, who'd recovered from being beaten up by Timon earlier, snuck up on the purple unicorn with the storm cloud and she raised her hoofs – when lightning zapped her from behind and she screamed, zooming off.
Startled by this, Twilight Sparkle and Spike saw Princess Luna was now on the cloud, having snuck up on the blue pegasus, and she was laughing. Exchanging a smile, Spike and Twilight Sparkle also laughed, enjoying the sight of the blue pegasus getting a taste of her own medicine.
When the festival began whining down and the sleepy fillies and foals were taken home to go to bed, Princess Luna assisted with the cleanup before heading back to Canterlot, and Sunrise Blossom, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, who was still fuming at being out-pranked by the Princess, Twilight Sparkle with a sleeping Spike on her back, and Applejack gathered around to say goodbye to Timon, 'Tigger', and Pumbaa.
"That was some party," the meerkat complimented. "And it was great how things turned out with Princess Luna."
"Yup," said the warthog, wearing saddlebags that had their costumes, candy, and prizes stored in them. "Hope to see you all again sometime," he added as Timon looped the chain around their necks.
The ponies agreed and shielded their eyes as the three animals disappeared in a flash of light. When they were gone, the ponies parted ways to go home and get some much-needed sleep afters such an intense night.
Unknown to any of the ponies of Ponyville and not even Princess Luna had been aware that the whole time that the festival had been taking place, they had been spied on by a shadowy figure hiding in the nearby Everfree Forest.
The figure stepped out from among the trees, turning out to be Shadow Star, and she quietly chuckled, having seen and heard everything that had gone on that night.
'Quite a turn of events,' she thought. 'I had intended to use this night to cause trouble for the ponies, but with Princess Luna here, and at her strongest due to it being night, I knew it would be unwise. But one day, I will have the means to take out both Princesses, the Mane Seven, and then all of Equestria will be mine!'
Pulling her hood over her head, Shadow Star disappeared back into the forest. She had many plans to make.
A/N: And that is how the episode should've ended if the lawyers of Hasbro hadn't threaten me. I hoped you enjoy this, Roleplayer48. See you tomorrow! R&R everyone!