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Organised by
RogerDodger
Word limit
400–750
The Moon Shone Darkly
The moon shone darkly, its face fresh with the nightmare trapped there. A calm had come upon the night, but I still cried. Celestia looked between me and the faintly-breathing figure sprawled on the ground. She bowed her head before nudging me.
We walked together toward the pony lying on the ground. Her hair was matted with blood at the belly, and her breaths were ragged when drawn.
I met her eyes with mine, but I could not tell if she could see me.
“Nngg...” She coughed and gurgled and stirred the smoke by the ground with her legs.
I dropped by her side and could think of nothing impressive to say.
“You’re going to be okay, Lunar Shadow. Everything’s going to be okay.” I nudged her muzzle with mine.
Her clouded eyes swiveled to my touch.
“I’ve failed you, Nightmare Moon.”
You didn’t fail, I wanted to scream. I wanted to say that we were friends and will still be when this all is over. We were the Princesses’ private students, set for heroics both great and small. But this? This wasn’t hope. It was hardly tragedy. It was a waste of life and a waste of words.
“If you can hear me, if you’ll believe me—” I stopped when a particularly jagged cough came to her. “I still love you. We’ll remember, and she’ll remember.”
The thoughts were a haze. There was little I could do to keep them from leaking from my mouth like so much spittle.
“I thought that when we met I’d hate you. And I thought that when we studied together I’d find you difficult and dark. And I did, because you were.
“But there’s more.” My ear flicked and I brought it close to her body to hear the rhythm of her blood and breath. “But slowly that began to change.” She wasn’t crying, but neither was I now. “You showed me a world that I hadn’t imagined before: one dark and cool and calm. We discovered the night together, and I will never, ever forget that.”
I thought of Celestia behind me, but I pressed on.
“Maybe you’ve made me realize how pale the daylight seems after dawn. It’ll be an emptiness without you, without Luna.”
I prayed they’d find one another in the night sky.
Please don’t say goodbye...
Celestia did not pull me from her until the body had cooled and the Sun had come.
We walked together toward the pony lying on the ground. Her hair was matted with blood at the belly, and her breaths were ragged when drawn.
I met her eyes with mine, but I could not tell if she could see me.
“Nngg...” She coughed and gurgled and stirred the smoke by the ground with her legs.
I dropped by her side and could think of nothing impressive to say.
“You’re going to be okay, Lunar Shadow. Everything’s going to be okay.” I nudged her muzzle with mine.
Her clouded eyes swiveled to my touch.
“I’ve failed you, Nightmare Moon.”
You didn’t fail, I wanted to scream. I wanted to say that we were friends and will still be when this all is over. We were the Princesses’ private students, set for heroics both great and small. But this? This wasn’t hope. It was hardly tragedy. It was a waste of life and a waste of words.
“If you can hear me, if you’ll believe me—” I stopped when a particularly jagged cough came to her. “I still love you. We’ll remember, and she’ll remember.”
The thoughts were a haze. There was little I could do to keep them from leaking from my mouth like so much spittle.
“I thought that when we met I’d hate you. And I thought that when we studied together I’d find you difficult and dark. And I did, because you were.
“But there’s more.” My ear flicked and I brought it close to her body to hear the rhythm of her blood and breath. “But slowly that began to change.” She wasn’t crying, but neither was I now. “You showed me a world that I hadn’t imagined before: one dark and cool and calm. We discovered the night together, and I will never, ever forget that.”
I thought of Celestia behind me, but I pressed on.
“Maybe you’ve made me realize how pale the daylight seems after dawn. It’ll be an emptiness without you, without Luna.”
I prayed they’d find one another in the night sky.
Please don’t say goodbye...
Celestia did not pull me from her until the body had cooled and the Sun had come.