GhostChris - Well, here you are, Chapter 13 is up!

Hybrid Battleship Infinity210 - Lol yeah, I do that sometimes. Well, your wait is over!

Guest - Oh, don't worry, he'll get his comeuppance soon enough.

Captain Sparklz - Why thank you, I do try my best. I will be including clop in this fic, but I'm not going to force or rush it, so I ask that you be patient. Also, chapters get posted early on Tuesday mornings.

A/N - Hey there my little ponies! Here's this week's update, sorry if it's a little later than usual, I hurt my back pretty badly last week and the pain meds I'm on for it have really been messing with my sleep schedule. Other than that and the fact that i still don't have a computer to do updates on, not much in the way of news. Enjoy the chapter and don't forget to follow/favorite and leave a review if you enjoy my humble little story!

Celestia rose from her resting place next to the fireplace, the book she had been reading forgotten and replaced with worry for me. "Blake? What's the matter? I thought you were going to have a meal with Luna then head back to Ponyville."

I nodded my head. "That's what I was going to do, but something happened."

Celestia approached me with a look of worry. "Blake, what happened? Is my sister alright?" She seemed to make no attempt to hide the concern in her voice.

I did my best to look the solar princess in the eye. "As far as I know, Luna's fine, at least physically… after what happened, I'm not so sure about emotionally."

Relief seemed to almost physically wash over Celestia. "I'm glad to hear that my sister is unharmed… why don't you get comfortable and tell me what happened? I feel I'd be better able to help if I knew the situation."

I nodded and sat on the floor with my back resting against the unlit fireplace, Celestia reclaimed her place atop the soft pillow. When we were both comfortable, I turned to her. "I'm honestly not sure what happened Celestia; I mean, things were going well, then I mentioned that I had read about Nightmare Moon, she got really nervous and tried to explain herself. I stopped her and told her honestly that I didn't care about what happened in the past, only the present, and that the Luna of the present was a wonderful pony that I enjoyed being around. She started tearing up and thanking me for being so kind to her. I was in the middle of telling her that I was her friend and that she never needed to thank me for being there for her when she… kissed me… and before I could even react, she got flustered and teleported off, and now I don't know where she is… I just want to find her and make sure she's ok."

Celestia had closed her eyes during the story, and opened them again after a moment. "I believe I understand Blake. You were right to seek me out for this matter; she could have gone anywhere in Equestria, but I know of a spell that can locate her." Her horn began to glow softly as she cast what I could only guess was the locator spell. "This may take awhile to work; while I'm looking, why don't you tell me what you think about what happened."

I sighed. "I honestly don't know what to make of it, it was so sudden, and I was so worried about making sure Luna was alright that I haven't really thought too much about it. I mean, all I did was be honest with her, it's not like I did anything special."

Celestia gave me that trademark warm smile of hers. "Oh, but you did do something special; you showed her that you cared about her, and not because she's royalty, but because of the pony she is underneath the regalia." Her demeanor changed to a somewhat sad one. "I'll be honest, due to our status, neither of us have had much experience with true friendship aside from one another… and even less when it comes to love. It seems obvious that Luna cares for you, but the question you must ask yourself is: do you share her feelings?"

I closed my eyes and contemplated that for a moment. "Like you said, it seems obvious that she cares for me, and I'd hate to hurt her feelings. I think she deserves to be happy…"

Celestia's smile returned. "That is all well and good Blake, but you are thinking about what Luna wants. As I've said, the true question is: what do you want."

I nodded. She's right, I'm thinking about what I want for Luna, not myself. I took another moment to think on that; what do I want? I took my time in thinking about that, being honest with myself before I gave a reply. "I suppose I should answer the question of 'do I care for her' first; with as many taboos and social stigmas as humans have against being in any kind of relationship with another species, my mind is telling me that having feelings for her would be indescribably wrong. However, I'm not among humans anymore, so those stigmas don't apply anymore, and I can't let them hold me back. So the answer to the question is; yes, I do care for Luna."

A small smile caressed my face. "As for what I want, I'd be lying if I said I didn't want Luna to feel as strongly for me as that kiss implied. I'd also be lying if I said I wasn't afraid… not of Luna, but for her; so soon after… well… what happened," I said with a heavy sigh, "I'm not sure I'm ready to begin a new relationship, and it's not fair for me to ask her to wait until I am. That all seems fairly superficial though, what I want, what I truly want, deep down in my core… is for Luna and I to have a chance at happiness… together..."

Celestia had just sat there, listening to me baring my heart to her about her sister. She nodded slowly when I had finished. "I see… and what is it that makes my sister so dear to you?" She asked as I pulled myself away from the fireplace to sit next to her.

I had expected such a question, and had thought of the answer while I was thinking about how I felt. "Her heart… she's a very kind, compassionate mare, even more-so than she realizes or gives herself credit for. I love her smile, and it's even more radiant when I know that I'm the one who made her smile. She also has a… a je ne sais quoi to her that I enjoy, like there's so much more to her that I haven't seen yet, and it's just waiting to be coaxed out to shine for all to see… like a treasure trove of beautiful, sparkling gems just waiting to be found." I had closed my eyes while I was speaking; visualizing all the things I was telling Celestia. "I also sense something of a kindred spirit with her; we both know what it's like to be torn from all that we know just to be brought to a place that's almost completely alien to us, and I think that helps us understand one another better than most can."

I felt a wing wrap around me as I heard a sniffle, not paying any mind to the thought that the wing felt wrong somehow. "Thank you Blake…" The voice was obviously not Celestia's.

My eyes snapped open as I instantly recognized the voice, I spun to the side as quickly as I could to wrap the lunar Alicorn in a tight embrace, which she quickly returned. "Why did you run off like that Luna!? I was worried about you…" The tightness of the embrace caused my injured chest to ache, but I didn't care, the only thing I cared about at that moment was the mare wrapped in my arms.

Luna sighed. "I am sorry Blake; I feared that I had angered you and destroyed our friendship, or that you might reject my feelings... I cannot tell you how glad I am to hear that you care for me as well." She whispered into my ear as we embraced.

Something about that caused me to think back to my conversation with Celestia. "How much did you hear by the way? I thought Celestia and I were the only two in the room." I asked as I pulled back from the embrace to look her in the eyes.

Luna smiled sheepishly as her eyes darted between me and her sister. I turned my attention to the white Alicorn next to me, who also had a sheepish smile. "Do you remember that 'locator spell' I cast to find Luna?" I nodded to indicate that I did. "Well… it might have actually been a communication spell that let Luna see and hear everything as I did." She admitted as a crimson blush covered her normally white face.

I knew I should be angry at the deception, but at the same time, I was glad for it; I wasn't sure if I would have had the courage to express myself like that to Luna face-to-face, and it seemed to be something we both had needed to hear out loud.

"It's alright Celly," Celestia's eyes widened and I heard a small giggle from Luna at the new nickname. "I'm not upset; in fact, I should thank you for doing that. Even with everything I just said, I'm not sure if I would have had the courage to confront either myself or Luna about the way I felt, and that would have likely put strain between us."

Celestia smiled. "I'm glad I could help, you both deserve to be happy, and I believe that the two of you are a good match for one another."

I returned her smile before turning my attention back to Luna. "Luna, as I said before, I'd like for us to have a chance together; but if that's going to happen there need to be a few simple ground rules: one, we'll need to take things slow; we both have reasons not to rush into things, not the least of which being that we're different species with different customs, and rushing could bring things crashing down around us, and I know you don't want that any more than I do." She simply gave a silent nod. "Two, if this is going to work, you can't use your royal rank against me; partners in a relationship are meant to be equals, and if you do that, we won't be equal and it won't work." She looked somewhat dejected, likely because I even suggested something like that, but seemed to accept it and nodded again.

"And, last but not least…" I said before allowing a smirk to cross my face and leaning in close to whisper into her ear. "You still owe me that dinner-date."

It was Celestia's turn to giggle as her sister's eyes widened and a faint blush kissed her cheeks. "You are right, I believe I do…"

I stood up and smiled as I offered the midnight mare my hand. Quickly realizing the intent of the gesture, Luna placed her hoof in my offered hand and I helped her stand. "Shall we then?"

With another blush and a nod, we were off; once again heading towards the restaurant Luna had taken us to earlier. "Blake, why do I simply not teleport us there?"

I smiled and placed a hand gently at the base of her neck. "Because, sweet Luna, this way we can enjoy each others company for more than an instant."

A simple, content smile was her only answer as we continued on. In what felt like only moments, we were again greeted the sight of by the strange restaurant. I managed to remember to look at the place's name this time, and was somewhat confused by it. Carved into the stone awning above the entrance were the words: Château de Excentricité. I was no language specialist, but I knew enough French to know that 'Palace of Eccentricities' seemed a bit much for a place like this; something like Chez Excentricité, 'House of Eccentricities' seemed to be a better fit.

I didn't bother thinking about it too much though, chalking it up to the owners wanting to make the place sound posh to attract the snooty Canterlot residents. Once again I opened and held the door for Luna and allowed her to enter first. "Greetings Princess Luna, sir!" The same pony that had waited on us before greeted. "You and your guest left in such a rush earlier, I didn't get the chance to inform you that you overpaid… by quite a bit actually."

Luna turned to me. "How much did you leave, exactly?" she asked me.

I chuckled, somewhat embarrassed. "I dunno, I was more concerned about finding you at the time." She blushed slightly at this. "I think I dropped one of my thirty bit bags for the meal."

"Actually sir," The waiter interjected. "The bag you left on the table contained fifty bits."

Both mine and Luna's eyes widened at this. "Blake, that is easily enough for several meals for the both of us."

I nodded as I thought. "Would it be possible to use the remainder to open a tab here? If this place is as good as it smells, I have a feeling we'll be visiting again from time to time."

The waiter smiled. "Of course, sir! Would you like me to show you to your seats?" I looked to Luna who nodded with a small smile.

The waiter seated us just as quickly as the last time and returned shortly with two sarsaparillas, which we hadn't even ordered yet. "Here you are, sir and Madame. I have taken the liberty of removing your beverages from your bill, even though you technically received them the last time, I feel you left before you could enjoy them; so this time, they're on the house. I'll be back around shortly to take your orders."

I looked over to Luna, "Well that was nice of him."

She giggled slightly, "I believe he was attempting to gain my favor; this establishment may be good about treating me like any other pony, but that does not mean that they do not try to be especially nice to me."

I nodded and looked back to my menu, seeking out the 'seafood' section. I began reading it quietly to myself. "Let's see… haddock, tilapia, catfish… ooh, lobster… no surf 'n turf though… hmm, I can't decide." I looked over my menu to Luna, who was still going through hers. "Hey Luna, this all looks so good, got any recommendations for a first-timer?"

She smiled at me. "I recommend the baked salmon, while not very extravagant, it is quite tasty. I believe I will be having the tilapia for this visit though."

I nodded and returned to my menu. Moments later, the waiter returned and took our orders and menus. Once we were alone, Luna struck up a conversation. "So Blake, what do you think of Canterlot?"

I chuckled. "Well honestly, except for you, your sister and perhaps a few ponies I haven't met yet, it seems to be a city for and full of high society snobs. Personally, it seems way too ostentatious for my tastes."

Luna giggled slightly and nodded. "Yes, it does seem to be quite over-the-top. Though some places are not as bad as others; here, for example, is a nice reprieve from the stuffiness of the rest of the city. Yet another reason I enjoy patronizing this restaurant."

We made pleasant conversation for several more minutes until the waiter returned with our meals. "Here you are. Princess, here is your lemon-pepper tilapia; and for you sir, the baked salmon. Enjoy your meals."

Luna watched as I flaked off a morsel of my salmon and placed it in my mouth. My eyes went wide at the explosion of flavor; the salmon was obviously very fresh and lacked much of the fishy flavor that less fresh salmon carries. It had also been expertly seasoned, with enough spice to enhance the flavor without overpowering it. Luna stifled a giggle at my reaction. "I take the look on your face to mean you enjoy your meal?"

I nodded dreamily. "Honestly, I never expected to taste meat again, fish or otherwise; I'm glad I can at least still have this. I mean, the various plants that taste like different meats are fine, but there's just something about the texture of it that can't be replaced; you know?"

Luna nodded, then looked around, seemingly to make sure no one was listening before leaning in closer to me. "You must promise me that what I am about to tell will stay between us, no pony else can know of this, and my sister cannot know that I told you of it."

I was somewhat taken aback by the sudden shift in the mood, but I quickly recovered from it. "Alright Luna, I trust you, so whatever it is you're about to trust me with will follow me to my grave."

She gave and appreciative nod. "I doubt that will be necessary, but I appreciate the sentiment none-the-less. Now, do you remember when we told you that your body was altered to survive on an Equestrian diet, in other words, an herbivorous one?" I nodded to indicate that I did. "That is true; however, while your body can now survive on an all-vegetable diet, that isn't necessarily all you can eat. While you no longer require it, your body is just as capable of digesting animal matter as it had been before you came here."

My eyes widened and my mouth almost instantly began to water at the prospect. I can still eat meat! I had to resist the urge to launch myself over the table and hug the dark mare as tightly as I could. I had to take a few moments to compose myself so that I didn't start shouting my elation to the mountaintops. "H-how did you find that out?" I finally managed to ask.

Luna shook her head. "We never 'found out', we always knew, it was part of the spell from the beginning; you were supposed to attempt to adapt to our lifestyle on your own, without knowing that you still possessed carnivorous tendencies. You seem to have adapted quite well, and I see no reason to keep you from this knowledge, I only ask that you make an attempt to voluntarily eliminate meat other than fish from your diet."

I sat there for a moment thinking about what Luna had said. "I assume that you told me this so that I could wean myself off of meat slowly, rather than having to give it up altogether overnight?"

"That is one reason, yes." She blushed slightly. "The other is that… I care about you, and wish you to be happy; if you decide not to give up eating meat, I would not think less of you for it, though I would appreciate if you gave it a chance."

I smiled at that. Just like I told Celestia, she has a bigger heart than she realizes. "I'll give it a try Luna, for you…"She smiled widely at this.

The rest of our meal was taken up by more pleasant conversation, mostly simple things, like how she liked being the Princess of the Night, and what I thought of Twilight and her friends. All too soon, the dinner came to an end, and the waiter brought out a slip of paper showing the remaining balance on my tab to be forty three bits. Luna and I made our way out of the restaurant to find that the sun had begun to set on the horizon.

Luna turned to me. "There is not much time left in the day. Would you like to spend another night in the castle?"

I shook my head. "Sorry Luna, as much as I'd like that, I have obligations to fulfill in the morning, and I need to be in Ponyville to do that." She looked somewhat disappointed at that. "Don't forget about the train ticket you gave me my third day here, I can use that to visit anytime I want; and you're always free to visit Ponyville if you've ever got the time." She perked up slightly at this.

"You are right Blake, it should not be too difficult to spend time with one another, besides, we would not want to move too quickly as you've said." She then turned towards the palace. "Come, I will arrange for a chariot to spirit you to Ponyville, it is much faster than a train."

Along the way, I decided to ask Luna about something that had been bothering me. "Hey Luna?" She hummed an acknowledgment. "There's something I've been wondering about; Lately whenever someb- somepony uses magic, I've felt this strange… pressure, do you have any idea why that might be?"

Luna stopped and looked at me. "How long has this been happening?" She asked in a serious tone.

"Since a few days ago, I'm not sure exactly when it started."

She nodded and we resumed walking. "I see… the 'pressure' you have been sensing is caused by a magic user casting a spell, which causes a slight disturbance in the Veil. The size of this disturbance and the strength of the pressure are related to the power of the spell and its caster. Only beings that can use magic can sense this disturbance, which means we could have known about and began planning around your abilities days ago…"

I nodded. Magic was still very new to me, but I understood what she had said. "I see… I would have said something sooner, but I figured everyone here could feel the same thing. One more question though, how could you not tell I had this power while I was on Earth?"

"While each world has its own Veil, not every Veil is the same. While the Veil of Mythis acts to nourish magical ability, the Veil of Earth does the opposite, suppressing it so completely that it may as well not exist to begin with. Had that not been the case, we would have been able to detect your magic before we brought you here, and it may have in fact made you even more desirable to do so."

At this point we reached the castle grounds and Luna led me towards where the chariots were housed. "Now remember Blake, not another living soul can know of what I told you at the restaurant."

"Don't worry Luna, it'll stay between us."

We were silent after that, just enjoying the time we had before I had to head back to my new home. It wasn't long before we reached the chariot hub, which consisted of what looked like a hangar for storing the chariots as well as a short runway for takeoff and landings. Luna walked over to one of her Lunar Guards, who seemed to be in the process of trading shifts with one of Celestia's Solar Guards. A moment later I felt something brush up against me. I looked down to see none other than Midnight Flash staring up at me.

I smirked at her. "Come to finish the job, Captain?" I asked playfully.

She pawed at the ground a bit before replying. "Shut up; I'm not good at this stuff ok? I wanted to apologize for nearly blasting you to bits at the match earlier. You got some pretty good moves on you; I could use a few like you in my ranks." She then looked over to her side and her horn lit up with a strange bluish-grey colored aura. "Here, you forgot these earlier."

She held my sword and its sheath in her magic, along with a rolled up mat of some kind. "I don't think this is anything of mine Cap; I dunno what's even in it."

"Just shut up and take it." She said, sounding more impatient than annoyed. "It's a maintenance kit for your sword, so you can keep it in top condition. I wasn't sure if you knew how to use it, so I left instructions in there too."

I took the blade and the kit. "Thanks Flash, I don't know what to say."

She grumbled. "Don't say anything, I messed up and this is my way of makin' up for it, simple as that." She promptly walked off towards the palace after that. Well that was… odd.

Luna came walking back over to me soon after. "How is it you have retrieved your blade? I had forgotten about it."

"You can thank Flash for that; she dropped by to apologize for 'nearly blasting me to bits' earlier, so she brought my sword and a maintenance kit for it while you were talking to that guard."

"I see. I also have a parting gift for you; it was meant to be sent with the bits you received after your first night at Twilight's home, but it was not ready in time for that. So instead, I shall give it to you as a gift in pony."

I sighed. "Luna, you don't need to do that, you've given me so much already, and I feel bad that I haven't given you anything in return."

She smiled. "But you have; you've given me two important gifts: your friendship, which I cherish, and a chance at love, which is something I never dreamed I could have… so please… accept my gift to you." Her horn glowed momentarily and a small bundle appeared out of nowhere. "The only thing I ask is that you wait until you are back at the library to open it."

I nodded as I accepted the gift. Luna reared up on her hind legs and we wrapped each other in a gentle embrace. "Until we meet again, fare thee well Blake." Luna whispered in my ear.

I smiled warmly at that. "It won't be soon enough Luna. Sweet dreams."

She planted a small peck on my cheek as we broke the hug, and I could see the bittersweet look in Luna's eyes even in the fading light. Her horn lit up as I turned and stepped on the chariot.

The night sky on the trip home was the most breathtaking I had ever seen.