An Unusual Request (Part I)

"Why didn't my sister tell me it would be so... so... BORING," the jet black alicorn remarked to herself. She turned over to the quivering pegasus standing a few feet behind her. He lowered his head, clearly trying to think of something to say in response.

"Why... your highness..." the golden stallion squeaked out.

"Oh, for goodness sakes, it's a rhetorical question," she replied, "Now, bring in the next supplicant!"

The massive doors of the ballroom swung open. Nightmare Moon stared at the tiny green pegasus walking through. She seemed defiant. Yet the new ruler of Equestria could almost smell the fear that the pegasus barely kept down. Moon motioned for her subject to come closer.

The doors swung back shut. The guards lined up back in front. It went by like clockwork, and it felt as sufficatingly boring as watching a clock tick. Moon took a breath. Perhaps I should demand some refreshments or something... What am I paying my lackeys for, anyways?

"Uhhhhh..." the green pegasus began. She glanced around the numerous open windows across the enormous ballroom-- showing off the eternal night that had begun mere hours before. "Please, ma'am..."

"You, subject," Moon said, the condensation just dripping off of her voice, "May use the term 'Your Highness' in this court. Further infractions against the royal office will be punished, we assure you."

The pegasus attempted to break eye contact. She shuffled a bit as well. Moon took some satisfaction at that fear. It seemed to fill the alicorn's senses so strongly that she almost licked her lips.

"I would, your highness," the pegasus said, "Wish to make a request on behalf of the Florist Association of Ponyville."

"Your name?" Moon asked. She shot a quick glance at her attendant and waved with her right hoof. The golden stallion nodded, and he went off for another dining tray for her majesty.

"I know y-y-you've heard this b-b-before..." the pegasus murmured.

"Your name!" Moon called out. She felt her mane flutter with the power of her voice through the air.

"S-s-s-s-summer Wind," the subject responded. She seemed to shrink by at least a foot. She took a breath, and then she went on. "I would like to beseech you, please, your highness. Please, just give us a single day back. The flowers will never grow again if this goes on..." The pegasus trailed off.

The alicorn began to laugh, but she immediately stopped. Oh, come on now... Come on... Must we repeat this same blasted script every other minute. I laugh, I say no, they cry... Rinse and repeat. I can't stand it. I just can't stand it. She turned over and picked up a glass of lemon-orange soda from her attendant.

"Please?" Summer Wind whispered.

"Just... go..." Moon replied. She spent a second thinking up unique punishments that she could give Wind. Her word was law. Yet, somehow, it didn't seem to matter. It didn't mean anything. She looked at the pegasus the same way she would a cloud in her perpetual night sky.

"What?" Wind asked.

"Just... go... Get out of this place, now," the alicorn answered in a soft voice. She didn't put an ounce of that burning intensity that she felt before into those words. She seemed to have passed the stage of boredom. She felt-- basically-- empty.

Wind bowed, and then she scurried away. The gigantic doors opened and shut another time. The alicorn reached for another glass. How many blasted times has it been now that I've had to answer a subject about my night? A hundred? Is someone counting? Was I even counting? Blast it, I thought I was counting. Moon turned over to her attendant, and then she asked, "How many times? Have you been counting?"

"I, uh... don't know... I don't understand your question, your highness," he replied.

"Oh, right, whatever," she said. She wondered why she had expected him to be reading her mind. Who cares how many ponies ask! The answer will always be 'no'! How dare they reject my glorious night! She got off of her small throne, and then she stepped towards the closest window. She gazed at the river flowing down below. A group of owls had just swooped into the nearby trees-- still rustling the branches.

"Your highness," the attendant asked. He slowly moved up behind her.

"What was your name, again?" Moon asked. She didn't really know why, but she had a sudden wave of curiosity.

"Marks," he replied.

"Marks what?" she asked.

"Dazzling Marks," he said. Moon saw that he seemed a bit embarrassed at his other name. She smiled a little, since he clearly didn't look much like a show pony.

"Just one more subject, please," she said. Marks fidgeted a bit. She didn't know why, but then she realized that this had been the first time she had used the p-word in centuries.

"Yes, of course," he responded. He trotted over to the other side of the ballroom. The alicorn walked back beside her throne. She decided not to sit back down, but instead she rested herself at the foot of the stairs.

Even here... it's so comfy... She let out a very quiet giggle at how good it seemed to finally get off of the throne. Well, I don't know... I guess that never was the point. She watched as the doors opened and closed again for the umpteenth time. Well, obviously! Capturing the throne was never the point! The point was revenge. No, a better word would be 'justice'. You enacted true justice against your sister's tyranny and made up for her crimes. The throne was just a means to that end.

A young looking unicorn stepped out into the ballroom. He had on a small set of black glasses as well as a tiny cream colored jacket. A satchel bounced off of him as he walked. His big, poofy tail and long mane shifted around as well with each step. Colored a light frizzy pink, it all seemed to go well with his bright white body. His horn had a pinkish tinge to the end as if he had dipped it in some frosting. The stallion halted about twenty feet from Moon.

"Welcome, subject," she said. She stressed the word-- loving how she could lord her position over her guests. She cocked her head a bit to spot his cutie mark. She saw a set of three cupcakes with red frosting and strawberries on top.

"It's a honor to be here, your grace," he said, and he bowed. Unlike the rest of the mares, colts, foals, and everypony else that had filtered through the ballroom, he leaned himself right to the floor. "I'm honored to hear your voice and to be able to see you face to face."

"Yes," Moon said. Oooh, looks like somepony wants to try charm and grace rather than pleas or cajoling or begging or fake definance to get me to end my night. At least, that's a nice change... maybe... I suppose breaking his spirit would cheer me up.

"I would like... to... m-make... a request, your highness," he said.

"What's your name?" asked the alicorn. Most of the previous subjects had avoided eye contact. Those that didn't either focused their eyes with anger or widened them with fear. Although he stammered with clear nervousness, the pink and white stallion looked straight at her with every last word. Well... something is interesting about you...

"Strawberry Dawn," he replied. He kept on eyeing her.

"We are interested in hearing your request," she said. The royal 'we' seemed to flow more naturally and less sarcastically than usual. She eyed him back in return. What is it... about you...

"I would like... I would love it if... you... I would be honored... if... you..." Strawberry stammered. He had what he wanted to say on the tip of his tongue. He had rehearsed it numerous times-- not just outside the ballroom but off in the waiting room and everywhere else. He just couldn't spit it out at that moment.

"Tell us," Moon said. She felt genuine curiosity rather than her usual casual scorn, for once. "What is it?"

"Here it goes..." Strawberry said. He gazed at her eye to eye. He trembled with every word. "Would... you... like to... go... on a... date... with... me?"

"Date," the alicorn repeated. She didn't seem to register what he had been saying.

"I brought th-these... for you," he said, and he pulled out his satchel in front of him with his magic. He produced a a small silvery vase. A set of tall, midnight blue flowers jutted out. The petals folded back on themselves, and they looked a bit like small bluish potatoes. "It's... s-s-ssaussurea o-obvallata, technically..." He blushed a little. "In Ponyville, we call them 'Evening Stars'."

"Yes," she muttered. She still didn't seem to know what to think. What... are you doing here, Strawberry? What's your game? What's really going on?

"The evening stars b-b-b-bloom only at night," Strawberry went on, "But these are u-unique still. They're darker than most of them u-usually a-are. And these need a lot m-m-more night than usual. They seem to only live for th-the n-night."

Thanks for the science lesson, shorty... Moon stepped down, and Strawberry walked a little bit closer as well. She picked up the vase with her magic, and then she took a closer look. The flowers seemed to have half-bloomed already. She gazed into the folds upon folds. This is... beautiful... actually... She inhaled the wonderful scent as well, and she let herself show the smile that she had been hiding.

"So," he said, and he took a gulp, "May I?"

"You..." Moon said, but she stopped. She didn't let herself say 'may go now, loser' even though she had planned to. She didn't call him any of the names that she instantly thought up-- making fun of his glasses, his hair, his cutie mark, and everything else. He seemed to cry out for scorn. Yet she didn't really feel like mocking him. She looked back at his face.

Strawberry silently gazed back at her. She glanced behind her, and then she placed the flowers besides her throne with her magic. What is it about you... the sheer gall... The nerve! For a commoner like you to approach the princess! She opened her mouth to say something, but she halted yet again. Something about you... Then, she noticed it. It had to be the eyes-- the gaze. Nopony had ever looked at her like that for hundreds upon hundreds of years.

He looked afraid and yet still content. He seemed more than willing to accept everything she would say to him, regardless of the consequences. The only word she could think of was 'unconditional'. He might even jump out of the window if she asked him. She didn't see a drop of anger, hate, worry, concern, or anything like that.

"May," the alicorn told him. She felt a sudden clenching inside of her when she realized what she had said.

"I... I... can..." he said. He seemed to shiver, surprised at her answer.

"Yes," she said. She felt rather surprised at herself as well. She sized him up. Well, well... It's not like I've having any fun in this stupid room with these other stupid ponies. Why not? I suppose leading him on and then crushing his dreams like a hoof on an anthill would feel pretty nice. She giggled on the inside. Or maybe... it would just be fun on its own. I could see how it goes, naturally. Leave my feelings open. She suddenly made a blank face. All of these feelings kept warring inside of her.

"You... will... you mean it?" Strawberry asked. He seemed to catch on pretty slowly, but in just a moment he found himself hopping in joy. "Oh, wow! You really mean it! You meant it! Oh! My goodness!" He paused, and then he bowed before Moon again. He regained his composure. "I am very honored by your graciousness, your majesty."

I wanted justice against my sister. And that's it. That was it. Wasn't it? Why am I thinking that hurting him would be any fun? The alicorn walked over, and she touched him on his shoulder. She said, "Our attendant, Dazzling Marks, will make arrangements. We look forward to seeing you again, Strawberry."

Strawberry looked like he was about to die from the sheer happiness. Trembles of joy shot through his body. He nodded at Moon, and then he almost seemed to float out of the door. In just a moment, the new ruler of Equestria found herself alone except for her ever silent guards. She leaned down on the steps and then rubbed her head against the flowers. They felt so smooth and so soft.

"It's been a long while since I've had... well... male companionship," she whispered to the bouquet. She saw the flowers move a bit at every word. Although she knew it was just the force of her breath, she still imagined that she was holding a real conversation with them. "It's been years... decades... centuries... And I just don't know. This is all I wanted. Isn't it? Wasn't it? It's my throne now. My revenge. My destiny. It doesn't feel like anything. It's all empty."

She shifted a bit to look at the guards. "I suppose I could always try my hoof with one of them," she told the flowers. They seemed to shake their little heads 'no'.

She concurred. "It just... I don't know... that's not really the kind of companionship I had in mind," she whispered, "I'd order them to my royal bed. But what after that? What happens? It wouldn't feel right. I need more than that."

"Your highness," said Marks, breaking into her little world. She felt rather sheepish as she stood back up. "Strawberry has a rather empty schedule. I'm afraid that I'm a bit confused about what you wanted me to do for the rest of today. What is our own schedule?"

"It's not your QUEEN'S job to pay attention to those things," she retorted, "It's your job, you imbecile!"

Marks muttered something indeterminable as a response. The alicorn motioned for him to stop talking. She didn't care to hear anything more. She sighed, and then she resigned herself.

"How many more subjects wanted to see me after Strawberry?" Moon asked.

"Seven thousand," Marks calmly replied.

"BUCK IT!" Moon yelled, startling her assistant and almost causing him to fall over. She jumped off of the throne, holding the flowers behind her. "Tell him the date. Happens. NOW."

The Nightly Stroll (Part II)

"Your highness shall be with you shortly," Marks told Strawberry. He lead the white unicorn into the hallway and then towards another room. The attendant pony paused, straining to find the right words. "I... uh... suggest you use this time wisely to freshen up. And to... to... prepare yourself, uh... mentally."

"Thanks," Strawberry squeaked. He couldn't seem to put his thoughts together into coherent speech. "So, then, what, uh, would you say since you know... your highness well... if it's not too, uh, imposing for me to ask?"

"Don't," Marks began. He then stopped and stood silently for a painful twenty seconds. "Don't... blow it."

"Right," Strawberry muttered. He watched as the attendant nodded and then scurried away. Strawberry moved himself back and forth, still feeling in a daze.

It had gotten far beyond the point that Strawberry had to smack himself to make sure that he wasn't dreaming. He stepped into the royal bathroom, and he gently nudged the door shut behind him. He hurled his head down onto the fluffy rug.

Nope... maybe just one more time to be sure... He didn't want to spoil his 'date'-- the soft, seductive way Nightmare Moon said the very word kept bouncing about in his brain-- by getting a bad headache. Still, just to be sure. Blasted sure. He knocked himself done one more time. His glasses bounced off and fumbled over somewhere by the sink.

Strawberry wiggled himself along the ground like a snake, and then he rubbed up against his glasses. He floated them to his head with his magic. He then popped himself back on his hooves and leaned over the sink.

"Just call me Smoothberry," he told his reflection. He smiled even wider than before, and it went so wide that he could almost see all of his teeth. "Because, I'm the berry with the... the... uh..." That pun sucked. He went back to a flat expression. And the way that you look sort of... sucks... Especially for somepony so bold to try catch a princess... He leaned forward and inspected himself.

"Looking rather... frizzy," the reflection said to him. He picked up a brush with his magic and held it up for a moment. I guess... Well, it's the guest bathroom. I suppose it's fine for me to use everything here. He held it up and attempted to wrestle with his poofy mane-- looking ruffled even worse than usual.

Strawberry waved the brush around to no avail. He pressed it deeper into his hair, and then he concentrated. The brush had gotten pretty stuck. He strained, and his horn glowed brightly. *Snap* The brush then cracked in two.

"Well, that's an... excellent omen," he mouthed off to himself. He looked back into the mirror. His mind fluttered through everything that he had picked up from talking with Rarity. He recalled how she applied everything from little dabbles of cream to little clips from the eyebrows to bathing his glasses with industrial strength cleaning chemicals.

That had been, of course, hours upon hours ago-- before she went off like an underworld spy or something. He didn't pay much attention to Ponyville gossip in the best of times. With Celestia out of the picture and everything in chaos, he couldn't tell what pony was doing what.

As he ripped out the remains of the brush, he tried to keep from crying. I can't even... pretend to think that I know what I'm doing. What was I thinking? What AM I thinking? He straightened his hair best he could, and then he rubbed off his glasses once more. He found some kind of spray with a very generic smelling scent-- indefinable yet still easy on the nose-- and he showered himself with it. He explored some more of the bathroom drawers. After a moment of trying various more items on himself, he figured that he looked as good as he ever would.

He shot one last glance at the mirror. He smiled and tried to make an aggressively masculine pose with his front hooves. "Oh... oh, my," he said, and then he squished the sides of his face. He turned that smile totally upside down. "I... I can't believe it. What's wrong with me? How did I think she'd ever be, what, in my league? She's not even in my-- my-- my blasted sport!"

He stepped away from the mirror, recoiling at the awkward young unicorn he saw. "Strawberry, Strawberry you dork," he said. He looked down, and then he noticed his satchel that he had left over at the side of the bathroom. He lifted it over with his magic. It'll be... okay. He thought about what he had planned, and then he got back up. He tried his best to build up some confidence.

"It will be okay," he declared to his reflection. His reflection showed him a determined face-- exactly that he had hoped to see. "It was love at first sight. That's what it was. That's what it was. It was meant... I know it. I feel it. Mythologically in love."

He spun around at a knock at the door. Marks' familiar voice stated, "It's time to go, sir."

"'Sir' nothing! Please, just call me Strawberry," the unicorn said as the two of them headed back into the ballroom. Marks shrugged and mouthed an incoherent response. Strawberry had the thought creep into the back of his mind that Marks wanted to stay emotionally detached just... in case... things didn't go so well.

The unicorn shoved those thoughts-- banishment, torture, or worse-- into the furthest corner of his mind. It's her: Nightmare Moon. The most beautiful creature in all of Equestria. Nothing compares to her grace, her poise, her wonderful charms.... not Rarity, not Twilight, not even Celestia... Nopony! Strawberry took a gulp, and then he found himself walking back into the ballroom.

His jaw dropped as the door opened back. Moon had kept on her armor. Yet the alicorn had dressed herself up even further in way that blew Strawberry's mind. The military-style boots had elegant tassels and diamond studded cloths decorating them. A beautiful grey and black tiara with sparkling sapphires sat atop her helmet. Something like a bridal veil flowed back from her helmet onto her body.

Strawberry's heart fluttered the most at her dress. Waves of soft blue, stark black, reflective sliver, and other colors of the night stretched across her beautiful body. He had never seen so many diamonds in his entire life. The stallion's eyes drank on every inch of the new ruler of Equestria. He then paused, and his mind put everything together. He felt so tense. It looks... so much like a bridal outfit. Like she's looking for her... her... PRINCE.

Moon stepped down from the throne over to where Strawberry stood. Their eyes met. She remained locked in that same dull, flat scowl that she had from the moment Strawberry first saw her. She said nothing.

Strawberry moved forward. I'm going to break that scowl. I'm going to see the beauty inside that matches the beauty outside. I can. I will. I know it. "I'm... so honored to see you again, your highness," the unicorn said, "I... am truly speechless. I can't believe that I'm here to see this. Every part of you is simply radiant. You look so beautiful that mere words can't describe it." Moon lifted up her right front hoof, and Strawberry hesitated.

"Will I... get to... kiss it..." he said out loud, completely by accident. The alicorn softly nodded. Strawberry leaned over and pressed his lips against her boot. He immediately felt his face and body being flooded with this mysterious sensation. In one sense, it seemed painful. This overlay of weeping, gnashing of teeth, fear, abandonment, and other horrible thoughts shot into him. It felt so much worse than a static shock; he sensed it in his very heart.

Yet, at the same time, he had a much more powerful sensation flowing into him under all of that. He couldn't really put it into words. That blueness, that calmness, and that softness rubbed all over his body. The soothing comfort of night in pony form... Strawberry realized that he had locked lips with her boot for a rather long time, and he nerviously shot back upwards. He smiled at her again.

"Strawberry," the alicorn said in a neutral tone, "We look forward to our upcoming..." She paused, and she clearly seemed to wonder what exact word to use. "Date." She looked like she didn't care about beating around the bush anymore.

"Yes, of course," Strawberry said. He decided to step closer. He felt like he should be walking hoof in hoof with her. Although, they barely knew each other. He also was a little too... short for that. "So, I... I thought that we could begin by taking a... walk back into Ponyville out of Everfree Forest and into the main park, where the pets and the foals play. We could have a nice, long talk. It would offer numerous ways to admire your glorious night."

The alicorn nodded at him, and then they walked out the ballroom. They sauntered down towards the main entrance of Moon's new castle. She had more or less willed it into being in an impressive display of magic. Strawberry recalled how he had first seen her-- heading through Everfree to pick up those enchanted seeds Roseluck had begged him for. He had heard  some horrible commotion. Ponies had screamed their lungs out. He had felt so afraid, yet he also couldn't keep down his curiosity.

Moon had looked possessed with pure rage. She had then beamed with joy upon having defeated some kind of great enemy or coalition of enemies... or something. He didn't pay much attention to that part. He had zoned out completely as he had gazed at her.

She had danced this victory jig-- shifting her flowing, pretty mane around her body and leaping about as if gravity meant nothing. She had flashed a smile. Strawberry knew that had to be the moment. The smile. The joy. Seeing the smile of real, geunine happiness once again-- even if it was only once-- would mean such unimaginable pleasure.

The alicorn and the unicorn soon found themselves in a little patch amidst a torrent of trees. Layer after layer of jagged branches stretched out over them. Strawberry felt afraid for a moment. He imagined a cursed oak just leaning over, grabing him, and them hurling him back into nothingness. He then mentally kicked himself for being so silly. He had Moon by his side. He had nothing to fear.

The two of them walked down the familiar path towards Ponyville. They locked themselves in an awkward silence for a few minutes. Strawberry stayed a few feet away at first. He took a deep breath, and then he moved closer inch by inch. Soon, their paths had converged. He felt so honored to just be side by side with her.

Moon seemed to have had enough of the silence, and she halted. They had came to a sort of clearing with various trunks set around a grassy knoll. A tiny lake protruded off nearby. Strawberry rubbed his mane nervously. Come on, now. Let's really get started.

"You know," Strawberry began, "I can't tell you how different it's felt to live in this eternal night. I can't tell you what it's meant to me." He nervously moved over beside a large stump. "Of course, your highness, I'd love to try."

Moon walked over besides him. She sat down on an opposing stump. "Please, go on. We would love to hear it."

"I've had this problem," he said, and he pulled off his glasses with magic. He squinted. "It's been a huge problem since childhood. Migraines. All of the time. They seemed to be triggered by nothing, totally random at first. Pretty soon, my parents and I realized that I just happened to be abnormally... What's the term Nurse Redheart used? Ah, yes, 'light sensitive'."

"An unusual affliction," Moon muttered. She looked pretty bored.

Come on then, there has to be a point to this... Get to the point with her! "So, I never had anything happen to me at night. Daytime... Daytime was a horrible gamble that I made every sunrise. I couldn't wait to have the..." Strawberry gazed at Moon, and then he flung his head up at the stars. "The night. The sunrise meant another possibility of that horrible attack, that pain like stabbing knives into my eyes, that sensation of losing control... loss of vision... I lived in such fear. Other ponies suffered every other week or so, but I had problems every other DAY. But then night came. And I couldn't wait. Night was always my friend."

"Oh," the alicorn replied. She had morphed to more of a blank expression.

"That wonderful embrace. So cold, so soft, so tender. I knew that I was safe. Every moon rise, my heart would lift right up with it," the unicorn said. He rubbed his hooves against his chest, and he swooned his head around. He saw that Moon picked up his sincerity-- that he didn't exaggerate a single word. "My whole life has been in the shadow of the night."

"An odd fit, with that cutie mark and that name of yours..." Moon said. She seemed to have her interest a bit piqued. "For goodness sakes, Strawberry Dawn? Dawn?"

"That's not the worst part," he replied. He picked up his satchel and pulled out a huge set of wrap around sunglasses. They looked more like the goggles that a professional chemist would wear. "I had to deal with these babies, all through my foalhood. Not exactly the sort of thing that drew friends."

"It reminds me of..." Moon said, and then she tapped her face. She clearly seemed to be trying to remember something long past-- something from a while before her thousand year banishment. "A-ha, one of these comical 'hard rock' showponies. The Canterlot set used to love him."

Strawberry put the ridiculous glasses back on, and then he jumped off of the trunk. He bucked himself up and then waved his front hooves in the air. He gyrated his hips. "Are you ready to rock and roll!"

He didn't get a real smile out of her. He did get some kind of... light chuckle. Something like that flashed over her face. Although it passed as easy as a breeze through his bakery window, Strawberry's heart fluttered.

He sat back down on his trunk, and then he put his normal-looking glasses back on. "So, your highness, I..." He found his eyes moving back and forth across her wonderful, long mane. "I... feel in my heart as if you did it for me. The eternal night, for me. I know you didn't, really... but, still... And even if it doesn't work out, or if other ponies talk differently... I want to say... I know it sounds weird, but... " He met with her eye to eye. "Thank you."

Midnight Snack (Part III)

"We... are glad that you enjoy our eternal night," Moon replied. She felt totally lost. You.. She eyed him as he shifted on the trunk, throwing his poofy pink hair all about. You little worm... Stop hiding. Stop putting it all off. I can see right through you, twerp, and I know you have this secret little game you're playing. But what is it? What do you REALLY want?

"It's sort of funny," Strawberry said, and he reached over at the satchel once more. He pulled out two metal cases. "When you think about it. You... uh, your highness, mentioned my cutie mark. And, yeah, my parents were always hoping for it. Always hoping that I would join with Mr. and Mrs. Cake and cook..."

Moon shifted a bit closer, curious at what he had brought out. Why are we wasting our time with whatever inspid little gift he would have? Obviously, it would never compare to the finest of the royal kitchens. This whole thing is a total waste of time. She had to stop herself and shake her head a little. She couldn't describe the odd sensation.

These thoughts that had once formed a hard, protective shell-- all this defiance, this confidence, this vengeance-- had seemed to have detached themselves from the rest of her brain. She still thought them, and they were still... there... Yet it had gotten so weird. It's not a waste of time... How could I tell myself that? Goodness, would going through thousands more subject's complains be any more fun? She felt, somehow, that part of herself was being boiled up and out-- like steam escaping a pot. The alicorn shook her head again to regain composure.

"I had the blue light over me, and they were so proud," Strawberry went on. Moon thought for a second that he was oblivious to her own inner war, but as soon as their eyes met again-- she knew he saw through her like an open window. "The thing is: I've never, ever been much of cook. I'm barely tolerable. I have a hard enough time boiling water. I'm an eater, that's all. An eater with nice enough taste, thankfully." He smiled at her.

Moon suddenly flashed back to a moment as a little filly when she had snuck into the royal kitchen. She replayed going through an ancient recipe book, getting frustrated at the fancy terms, and then hurling it to the ground-- she would make her own dish, forget everypony else and their rules! She felt happy recalling her defiance, even then in her foalhood. She threw together whatever smelled the nicest into the big pot, and then she lit it up with her own magic-- not even bothering with the stove. Pieces had then flown everywhere. She couldn't help but chuckle.

Strawberry giggled a bit back, and then the alicorn abruptly snapped back into her scowl. What's... What's wrong with me? Those days are LONG past! I've now accepted my true destiny-- that poor little foal was weak, helpless, stupid... She's dead now! Moon tried to think up a smart, sarcastic remark to say to Strawberry's mini-story. Yet her negative feelings faded again, and she just seemed... blank again.

"So... as an eater... I had hoped that your highness would join me in a moonlight snack," the unicorn said. He pulled out two small plates from the two metal boxes with his magic. Moon surveyed the items in front of her.

"Interesting," she muttered, "We would certainly enjoy... we would love... to dine with..." She got pretty sick of keeping up royal decorum when they were alone in the middle of the forest.

"So, I know that I couldn't complete in the classy and elegant department," Strawberry said, "So, I went with things that I thought you'd might miss, being all cooped up and isolated over in the castle." The unicorn pointed at the flaky, dark brown wafers layered on top of each other. "There's your garden-variety hay fries... but deep fried and salted and spiced up to an extent that would make a royal chef have a conniption... Other ponies would worry about their figures if they had too many of these, but of course an object of absolute beauty and perfection like your highness would have no problem."

He's smiling again... that sickly sweet, wanting smile... No, it almost makes me want to lose my lunch already... Moon thought that, yet her attitude swung back like a weather vane. "Oh, we think that it smells delicious," she said.

"There's also some wonderful apple fritters from Applejack, made the special way only she could," Strawberry said. The alicorn gazed at the golden brown treat, and she loved how the liberal dose of sugary sprinkles on the top shone in the bright moonlight. She felt like gulping it down right that moment, yet something bugged her deep in her subconsious.

Applejack... Applejack... She flashed black to a moment of intense pain just a few hours ago. She heard intense shouting. She saw an orange earth pony with an odd tiara-like thing, and that mare smarted off at Moon with this obnoxious backwoods accent. Moon recalled the horrible wave of electricity that shot through her. She almost fell over behind the trunk with the powerful memory. Like... cracking... like what an egg must feel just before breakfast... Oh, please... no... leave me alone... PLEASE, NO! Something had scrambled inside of her, yet it also felt-- somehow-- just halfway finished.

Applejack and those other smarmy little dipsticks tried to wipe her out, but they had failed. She made it. And that orange twerp screamed really, really loud after I got my hooves into her afterward... She didn't smile thinking of her victory, though. She didn't feel happy at it anymore. She just felt empty. She had the same blank sensation as watching the royal clock tick.

"Your highness, your highness," Strawberry called out to her. She suddenly realized that she had slumped halfway over in her spot. The unicorn had jumped over and held himself just inches away from Moon. Strawberry clearly wanted to cradle her exactly like a husband with an ill wife, yet he felt too afraid and he kept a short distance.

"I... We, are, alright," Moon murmured, and she got back up straight. She looked over to him, now sitting so close. Any memories of pain washed right out of her. What is it about you, and your huge-- always open eyes-- that makes me... feel so... better? It's like I see the night itself deep in your eyes. "Pro-- proceed, please, Strawberry."

Strawberry bounced with happiness. He pointed at the last item. "That's my own specialty. It's sort of like a midnight-themed treat. It's strawberries mixed in with a semi-creamy dark chocolate. Yet it doesn't have that strong taste you normally have with dark chocolate. It's got a sparkly, seductive kind of feel from all of the minty flakes thrown in," he went on, and he seemed to beam with every word. Moon couldn't help showing her interest and her hunger.

"We call that 'Twilight Kiss'," Strawberry added, "I can thank Pinkie Pie for coming up with that name." He smiled yet again.

Pinkie... That was another name that made Moon's mind stop. Yet, this time, she didn't recall anything. She felt nothing. The events of the past few hours, the past several centuries banished, and the years upon years beforehand all blurred across her mind. It has to be... She locked eyes with Strawberry for the umpteenth time. His frizzy mane had shifted down; the pink curls covered part of his eyes both under and over his glasses.

Dork... The itchy, scratchy part of her mind flashed a fantasy of shoving the plate right into Strawberry's face and laughing. No... The rest of her felt stronger, louder. It's... so adorable! She felt a little flutter in her heart. It has to be... Well, it's blindingly obvious? Isn't it? I'm happy. It makes ponies happy to be with other ponies that care for them. That's as natural as breathing.

"To go with that, I brought these as well," Strawberry said, and he pulled out these two bottles with an almost glowing bluish liquid. Moon picked it up with her magic and brought it by her lips. "I don't have a name for it. It's sort of like a minty tea, but I tried to go for a more... say... round taste. An even, smooth taste. I don't know. Would your highness have a name? Something like 'Midnight Grace'? 'Midnight Oil'?"

Moon had a few sips, and she genuinely felt impressed. She'd be sure to have him talk to Dazzling Marks about this drink sometime. "Why not, just," she said, and the wheels turned in her head, "Call it simply 'Midnight'? We believe that keeping things simple is always nice."

"Sure," Strawberry said, and he nodded. He pulled his own plate closer. "I suppose we can start right now. It's so wonderful to eat when you're taking in the whole night, every last star shining on your body... every last bit of it soothing you inside. Nothing in the world could be more relaxing."

Moon nibbled at the apple fritter, and then she tried the hay fries. She couldn't place the tastes, but she knew she enjoyed the dishes before. Yet it had to have been so long. I suppose I might have well been born yesterday, coming back from... the... moon... She then realized something. Of course, it... it... it's been so long that I... I don't even know what it feels like. I don't know the normal pony emotions. To have a brother. A sister. A friend. A... coltfriend.

Moon gazed at Strawberry as he ate. He seemed to want to suck everything up in a matter of seconds, yet he struggled heroically to measure every bite. He strained to keep the food far enough from his mane and mouth to avoid crumbs. Still, he failed, picking up a bevy of tiny apple bits in his poofy pink curls.

"Drat," he mouthed. He tried to nudge his hair with his hooves as inconspicuously as possible. When that failed, he shifted himself slowly off of the tree trunk. Moon felt his airy feeling all about her, and she let out a small giggle.

Strawberry halted. He realized that he had sat up on the ground and bent himself exactly like a puppy scraching its ear. His face turned a matching pink to his mane.

"Were you a dog in a past life?" Moon asked. She smiled back at him. She didn't try to hide it anymore, she just went ahead and let herself show every last bit of the emotion.

"Perhaps," he replied. He sat back on the trunk. He looked terrified-- clearly wondering whether Moon found his lapse of manners carelessly disgusting or humorously charming.

"Thank you for this, Strawberry," Moon said. She used her magic to place the empty plate and bottle back into her box herself. "We very much appreciated it."

"I feel..." Strawberry said, and he seemed totally lost for words. He paused for several awkward seconds. "I'm so very honored to make you happy, your highness. I just want to make you happy." He blanched when he finished-- sounding a bit desperate.

"What would you like to do now, Strawberry," Moon said. She put on a sing-song tone to her voice that surprised her. She hadn't talked like that for a thousand years, yet now it came out naturally without a thought.

"I would," Strawberry said, and he brought the satchel back to himself. He paused, rummaging through it. "I would, well... This isn't the right area, sorry. The acoustics would be a little off."

"Acoustics?" repeated the alicorn. Strawberry got up, having put everything back away, and he headed over to the end of the clearing besides the rest of the path. He gave her a friendly wave, and she followed him.

Tracks Of My Tears (Part IV)

The alicorn and the unicorn stepped down the path. Everfree Forest began to blend into the garden variety forest that covered much of Ponyville. The gnarly, worn oaks became tall, proud maples. The twisted layers of bushes became tiny spreads of moss. The midnight sky, once mostly obscured, now shone in all of its brilliance.

The bout of silence between them felt warm and inviting, rather than awkward. Strawberry continued to wave the new ruler of Equestria over behind him, and she obliged. They came upon a set of branches over the path. Strawberry bounced about like a little foal playing hopscotch. Moon giggled as she did the same. With her wings, she added some flourishes of jumping into the air and balancing from one hoof to the other.

Strawberry's heart pounded like crazy. I'm really doing it... I'm really winning her over!  That she couldn't repress smile after smile gave Strawberry a big victory. As well, she seemed to skip with every other step. Something had really started to shine from inside that cold, black exterior.

The two of them finally came upon the spot that Strawberry knew so well. He took his satchel off, and then he took a seat on a worn out old stump. Moon walked over closely beside him. She laid down alongside a comfy patch of grassy moss to his side. Strawberry gazed at her once again, and he got drunk on the sensation.

She rested below him for the first time, and he couldn't believe the sight. Such beauty, such wonder... so pretty... so perfect... Something about her eyes just almost seemed to speak at him. With this position, he could look straight down at them. Somehow, he saw pure emotion. Safety. Comfort. Softness. Love.

"Where are we now, Strawberry?" Moon asked. She shifted in a way that swung her bridal-like veil around.

Strawberry gulped as his mind connected everything once again. She's a bride... Princess... needing her... Prince... He paused, and then he pointed all around. He said, "This is called 'primrose lane'. You can see the wild roses growing off there, on the other side of the lake." The shimmering water looked so beautiful. The moon and the stars seemed to dance on the surface. "It's a cozy little spot, somewhere where I'd always go to admire the night..."

"My night," she muttered. She looked so relaxed, almost as if she would fall asleep at any second. Nonetheless, she hang on Strawberry's every word. Strawberry took in her beauty, and then he surveyed the clearing they sat in. Everything couldn't be more perfect if he had dreamed it.

"There's a song," Strawberry said. He pulled out his satchel and he pulled out a small guitar. He plinked a few strings. To his delight, the alicorn's eyes widened at the instrument.

"Oh, you play?" she asked. She seemed to express the giddy wonder of a little filly.

"A little," he said, "I have a pretty hard time memorizing things... Goodness, I'm surprised I can even remember my own name and address." He rubbed his mane sheepishly. "So, I can only really learn a tune if it really- really- speaks to me."

Moon eyed his guitar. The small, golden-brown thing showed its age. Yet Strawberry's hooves, coated with his magic aura, moved about the instrument with the tender touch of a father to a son. "What... what was the first song you ever learned?" asked the alicorn.

Strawberry hesitated. "It's... it's a very important song to me. It's not really 'date-y' material, far from it. I really love the song, though. It's just... a sad one," the unicorn said. Moon's face had an intent, determined look.

"Sad songs, they say so much," she declared. She hesitated-- clearly wondering where she had heard that expression before. "Please, just play it for us. We would be so... so happy."

"Anything for you," Strawberry said. He held the guitar a little closer, and then he focused his gaze straight at Moon. At that moment, he felt like they were the only two ponies in all of Equestria. "I would do... anything for you..."

"I... know," she replied. She made the biggest smile Strawberry had ever seen. She just radiated happiness.

"Dooo-dooo-dooo, dooo-dooo-dooo, dooo-dooo-dooo, oh," he began. He threw his hoof down on the strings. "Ponies say I'm the life of the party... Because I tell a joke or two. Although I might be laughing loud and hearty... Deep inside, I'm blue."

He pressed the guitar deep against his chest and sang louder, "So take a good look at my face." He raised his voice further. "You'll see my smile looks out of place. If you look CLOSER, it's easy to trace..." He dropped back down "The tracks of my... tears..."

The alicorn breathed heavily. Strawberry had quickly moved into the zone with his song, scrunching his face and shutting his eyes tight. Moon felt every word of his flowing into her ears and down into her very soul.

"I need you..." Strawberry sang softly, "I neeeeeed you... Since you left me, well... If you see me with another mare..." He swept his head back. "Oh, seeming like I'm having fun... Although, she may be cute..." He leaned back down. "She's just a sub-stit-ute..." He brought venom to that word. His face rippled in emotion. "You're.... the permanent one..."

The unicorn met eyes for another countless time with the alicorn. Something was different. His words became hers. His thoughts were hers. They didn't feel any distance, not anymore. "So take a gooooooooood look at my face," he sang, "You'll see my smile... looks out of place... If you look closer, it's easy to trace..." He broke up a bit. "The... the... tracks of my... tears..."

Moon felt totally stunned. Strawberry choked up, and he rubbed his face with his hooves. "I'm... I'm very sorry, your highness. It's just that it's a very, very personal thing for me... that song... It just always makes me think of my foalhood." The unicorn twisted his mane around. "Oh, I just... I'm sorry, I don't want to talk your ear off about it. It's just that I felt so alone. I was so alone. Bad enough with the glasses, with being so small, so tiny... with my thick mane and colors that made me look just like a mare... not to mention..."

Moon trembled. Her face conveyed that she had some kind of terrible battle going on inside of her mind. Strawberry tried not to cry. He went on, "It was... so horrible. I was alone, all of the time. Lonely. Isolated. Abandoned. Of cour'th if'th didn'th halp da'th eh th'alked lak disssssf." He brought back his foal-aged lisp for a moment.

"It's okay now, it's okay now," he said, and he moved over on the stump besides Moon. He smiled at her, and she nodded. She seemed to have reverted to a blank expression. "All that matters is that the two of us are here tonight, together."

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah," Moon burst out. Strawberry almost tumbled off of his stump in surprise. The alicorn raised her whine louder, and then the tears welled up in her eyes. They then flowed off of her face onto her wonderful dress like two little waterfalls. She brought her front hooves to her head. When she knew that she couldn't keep it together, she broke down completely.

Only You (Part V)

A thousand years. Banishment. Fear. Anger. Worry. Concern. Despair. Loneliness. Oh, my goodness, the loneliness... And all of those TEARS! How they just poured off of my face time after time until I could have filled the lunar oceans. She rubbed her head against her boots as she sobbed even harder.

That same familiar feeling told her to toughen up. It told her to be strong. It told her to be defiant. It reminded her that she had defeated the elements of harmony as well as banished her sister to the sun. Yet that same voice had grown fainter and fainter. She kept the waterworks going, and the voice just faded. No! What are you doing letting this pathetic pink dipstick get to you! Don't be so pathetic!

"That's enough," she muttered to herself. The steely voice that had kept her sane on the moon went on to lead her to victory. Now, however, it sounded like a cracked, screechy record bumping around over and over again the same stupid refrain. She heard Strawberry getting very close to her-- trying his best to comfort her although he still didn't know about touching her directly.

"Enough," she declared. She opened her eyes and withdrew from her little husk. Those hateful, angry thoughts now barely stuck to her. She had already shed most of them at Strawberry's side. He almost worked like a towel, drying off the bits of ugly dirt from her beautiful figure. She felt so, so... sheltered by him.

"Enough, what?" Strawberry asked. The alicorn waved her head around sheepishly. She realized that she had made a major scene.

"Uh... it will be fine. Really, we are fine. Please, please," Moon said, returning to her content voice from before, "I stopped..." She hesitated. "We mean: we stopped... your beautiful music. Please, continue. You said that you wanted to perform this other particular tune."

"Yes, yes of course," the unicorn said. He moved a bit away from Moon back towards the stump. He pulled out the guitar again.

The alicorn, like a moth to a flame, instinctively nudged her body forward as well. They became so closer-- closer than they had ever been. Strawberry could seriously feel this kind of electricity from her very body. Then, in a single second that felt like a lifetime... She leaned her head on his side.

"Ah, ah," the unicorn stammered. His skin seemed to glow. Smooth, soft sensations flowed into his body. The alicorn said nothing; she simply nodded at him to begin. Moon smiled, and she knew that she could pick up his every thought.

"Looking..." he began. He took a gulp and clutched the guitar tighter. "F-f-from a window above... It's like a story of l-l-love..." His deep, almost painful nervousness battled it out with the tender, kind feeling that Moon gave him. "C-c-an you heeeeeeeeear me..."

"Oooooooooh," the alicorn cooed in tune with the music. Love...

"Came back only y-y-yesterday... I'm moving further away-y," he went on, "Want you neeeeeear me..." He held the guitar so tightly that he thought it could break, and his magic erupted across every inch of it with a bright arua. "All I needed was the love you gave..."

"Oooh," she cooed again.

"All I needed for another day," he sang.

"And all... I ever knew..." he sang.

The alicorn took a deep breath.

"Only you," he finished.

Moon had nudged herself so that their faces were only inches apart. The words may have been as quiet a mouse, but they felt to the alicorn just as powerful as the burning sun. She made a huge grin, and then she brought her front hooves together to applaud. She shifted a bit, and she realized that her wings had sprung far out.

"I love you, Nightmare Moon," Strawberry said. He clearly couldn't think of anything else.

"I... we... we kn--" she began. Were you about to say 'I know'? How... un-romantic and klutzy... That's what a little foal would say, although, of course... He'd appricate that... She just couldn't bring herself to say 'I love you too'.

"I always have. Even before I saw you," he continued, "Sure, I knew that I loved you the moment I set eyes on you today. But it was... before... It was all of my life..." He leaned back, and both the unicorn and the alicorn gazed at the beautiful sky. "Every single night. Every last embrace. Every moon. Every star. It all felt like it was for me. And it sort of was, even if you didn't really mean it that way..." He tried to keep from tearing up again.

"Those elegant, those pretty nights," she said. She flashed back to how much she loved setting everything up. Applying herself as an artist upon the greatest canvas possible-- the sky. Those days... Celestia and I, plus everypony else... such wonderful days...

"And, so every single moment the day ended," said Strawberry, "I fell head over hooves in love with you again. Day after day. Night after night. This beauty kept me going. And, now, all of that beauty has been applied... into you..."

"Did you ever have, pardon the question, somepony else? Another..." the alicorn felt too embarassed to even form the coherent question.

"Nopony else," he replied, "Nothing worked out. Nothing happened. Life just passed me by. And then I walked through this forest, and I saw you."

"And that's..." she muttered.

"It's never been anyone but you," he said, "Only you."

Their faces were so close. She could smell that wonderful strawberry aroma that he carried everywhere he went. That happy, caring feeling ebbed and flowed into her. Whatever remanent of her time banished left within her spirt had been almost totally washed away. The pain. The hurt. It's gone. Just... gone.

"I love you, Nightmare Moon," Strawberry said again.

The alicorn turned her head a bit, and she answered, "Yes. I love you too."

Pang of Darkness (Part VI)

She… does… too… She loves me. She LOVES me. SHE LOVES ME! ME! Strawberry tried not to hyperventilate himself into unconsciousness. His heart had dropped to the bottom of his hoof. It also beat so fast— his whole body jiggled so fast— that he seemed to be digging a pony-shaped hole into the stump. He sat so close to her.

The alicorn and the unicorn were face to face for what felt like centuries. Her smile... Her mane… Her mouth… Her teeth... Her nose… Her eyes... Oh, goodness, those eyes. She kept on smiling, motionless. Strawberry knew that he had to do something.

That was the moment. That would be the moment. Of course, the odds were that he would completely blow it. Why would he spoil his perfect record? Just like always, like the dance… like the time Fluttershy had the ice cream, and you didn’t… OH FOR PETE’S SAKE!

Kiss her you blockhead! His mind screamed at his body to obey, even though it refused. ‘Kiss me you blockhead’ Moon’s soft, sheltering eyes seemed to scream as well. He felt a sudden jitter from head to hoof. “Only… you…” he whispered, speaking so delicately that be barely moved.

Already so close, the alicorn somehow moved even closer. I just… LOVE… YOU… He somehow moved even closer. He couldn’t breathe; he couldn’t think.

Their lips locked. Strawberry pressed himself in, and she gently nestled her head over. This gigantic wave swept over every last inch of his body. It almost felt like she had enveloped him this bright black magical fire— so dark, so calm, and so comforting. For all the love songs he had ever heard, ever rehearsed, ever played… none of them prepared him for just how wonderful he felt at that moment.

He didn’t really know what to do next. He moved in, and she warmly obliged him. The alicorn shifted her mane over and it draped him all over the side, pulling him forwards. Their front hooves found each other, and they locked close. He felt little tastes of her tongue going into her mouth, and he tried not to purr like a kitten at the wonderful new sensations.

He tried to taste around her mouth as well. She clearly loved it, and she tilted her head back and forth. His lips went on enveloping hers. Every additional second felt like a decade. The alicorn— somehow, someway— kept twisting about in a way that seemed to pull him closer and closer.

He could have thought something like ‘There’s not even an us, not anymore… she’s bonding me like we’re one in the same’. He didn’t think that, since he didn’t think anything at all. Nightmare Moon took him into the point that he almost had to stop himself— to keep breathing.

As their hooves knocked closer, their heads moved faster, and their eyes suddenly filled up with tears… something changed. A split-second shock went through them. He felt it like the whack of a baseball bat upside his head. Pain. Guilt. Shame. Hate.

The alicorn ripped herself off of him, and she stood back upright. Strawberry, eyes still closed, gasped at the now empty air. He took some frantic breaths as he opened his eyes.

“What? What?” he mouthed, “What’s wrong, your highness?” He didn’t sound angry or tense. He sincerely felt afraid for her. She saw little pains shooting through her body. Her face had this low red glow. It didn’t look like a blush. It looked… alien and mysterious.

“How can you think… How can you be so… so… impudent… so callous… So ignorant!” Moon called out. She tried to convey some kind of anger, but Strawberry only saw fear.

“Your highness,” he began, and he stepped up beside her. He cradled her right hoof for a moment. He didn’t feel any separation from her, not anymore. He touched her the same way as a mare and her colfriend or a husband and wife. “Whatever it is… Whatever you… Whatever it takes.” She glanced away from him demurely as he rubbed her hoof.

“It’s too late,” the alicorn shrieked. She waggled her head uncontrollably. As the moonlight shimmered across her bride-like dress, Strawberry thought that she shrank several inches shorter.

“Late…” he muttered.

“OF COURSE IT’S TOO LATE, YOU IMBICILE!” Moon let into him with her full voice— the full power and full horror of the nightmare. She spread out her wings and burned her eyes with that cold blue intensity. She calmed down a second afterward, and she saw that Strawberry felt genuine fear for the first time.

He still looked right at her. He still had those loyal, puppy dog eyes. Yet he had shifted several feel back, leaning down in the grass. Those eyes filled with tears once again— but for sadness, not joy.

“You, you, you, you, you,” the alicorn stammered, “You fool! To think that you could just forget everything that’s happened! Everypony that’s made me suffer! Everypony that’s suffered at my hoof!”

“I d-d-don’t… c-care…” he said. He gulped. I… I have to be careful. Love is blind, not stupid. “Of c-course, I care about my friends. My family. Everypony in Ponyville. I love them. They’ve loved me. They love me.”

“Love…” Moon repeated. She spat out the word like a timber wolf spitting out a carrot. She had also gone back to her familiar scowl.

“I love them as much as I… l-love y-you…” Strawberry muttered. He couldn’t keep down his fear. Her eyes had gone back to normal, but her wings remained pointed out like battering rams. The alicorn’s horn pointed straight at him as if she would skewer him at any moment.

“You… are very young. And… very naïve,” Moon said.

“And it’s… the eternal night. The overthrow of Celestia. Whatever fight, fights… you’ve had…” Strawberry tried to say something profound, but he ended up just babbling pointlessly.

“Fights… huh,” Moon replied. She then smiled, but not like the same smile he had seen moments before. She looked more like the cat that had just ate the canary. “More like a slaughter.” She laughed.

Strawberry knew that her laugh pretended to be maniacal. She had the power, but the edge had gone. He heard fear and anger evenly mixed up inside of her. The unicorn said, “L-look… your highness… I just think that we could w-work it all out… y-you and I…” His voice lowered to a whisper. “T-together?”

“Kindness, such kindness, how wonderful, how predictable,” the alicorn said— sarcasm dripping like syrup. She stepped a few feet away from him— towards the path back into Everfree and her new castle. She tilted her head coyly. “That reminds me of someone… Kindness… a certain yellow pegasus?”

“F-fluttershy?” Strawberry asked.

The alicorn leapt through the air thirty feet and landed right on his lap. “WOULD YOU LIKE TO KNOW WHAT I DID TO FLUTTERSHY?” Moon yelled to him. She didn’t flare up in true Nightmare Moon style, though. Strawberry trembled in fear, but he saw a very sad, very wounded looking horse rather than a vengeful one.

“I…” Strawberry said. How could… anypony respond to that? Fluttershy, oh… Fluttershy… her… Fluttershy… His eyes really teared up. “I d-don’t… y-your highness…”

“So!” Moon declared to nopony in particular. She jumped upwards, and then she beat her wings to keep her in the air. “It’s all set in stone, now.”

“Please…” Strawberry said.

“The eternal night shall go on. The ponies shall tremble in fear, and they shall suffer for the rest of time for the indignity that they put me through. I have chosen… We have chosen our path,” Moon called out.

The tears poured out. Strawberry’s mind felt completely blank. He simply sat back on the stump, guitar at his side, and he stared upwards.

“Farwell, Strawberry,” she said. She turned around and faced towards the castle. She drifted a few feet forward, and then she halted. She curled her head a bit back over her side in Strawberry’s direction. “We… we… uh… Thank you. It has been a most wonderful evening.”

“I...” Strawberry muttered. He got up on his hind hooves. Come on! Something! Do something! Say something! “I… I LOVE YOU!”

On the one hoof, the alicorn sped off into the horizon— leaving a mysterious grey trail behind her that Strawberry didn’t recognize. One on the other hoof, she had clearly and distinctly replied something back.

“I… love you too.”

Midnight Run (Part VII)

The alicorn hurled herself through the air above Everfree Forest. She headed up beside her new castle… and then she sailed right past it. She kept gathering speed. She aimed somewhere in the general area of Canterlot, though she didn’t really plan it.

Moon didn’t know where she was going. She didn’t know why she was doing what she was doing. She didn’t think anymore. She just flew. The wind in her hair and then the misty spray of a gigantic river as she flipped down over it both gave her the distraction that she craved. As long as she didn’t stop, she didn’t have to think. Then, she wouldn’t have to decide who she was going to be.

After some moment, with time flipping by her like treetops, she came within sight of the massive Canterlot castle. Although pretty far off on the horizon, she could spot it instantly. Home… She slowed down to a gentle pace, almost like a sightseeing train. She breathed in the expansive lakes and valleys around her. She then slowed down to a trotting pony's pace. Home… Home? Really? She slowed down to the point that she found herself flopping in place.

Home? Really? Of course not! What could possibly be wrong with me? That was… was… THEN. This is now! She took a breath, and then she flipped herself in the opposite direction. Home is… is… Oh, for goodness sake’s, what am I even thinking…

She surveyed the hills below her. She also looked down at herself. She suddenly noticed that she still had the flowing dress on. She turned around to spot her fancy accoutrements added to her boots. She lifted her eyes up, and she spotted her bridal-like veil. She sensed her diamond and sapphire studded tiara sitting on her head. All complete, yes, and all I need is a… Prince.

She hovered back towards her new castle. Well, I guess I blew it. Didn’t it? I just threw it all away. I messed it all up. Of course I did. She lifted the tiara off of her head with her magic, and then she placed it onto her front right hoof. She eyed her reflection in a particularly huge, smoothly cut diamond.

“I suppose it doesn’t matter. Banishment. One thousand… blasted years… An epic battle defeating the very holders of the elements of harmony…” Moon narrated to her reflection, which gave an annoying scowl back at her. She let out a huge sigh. “All that… And in my heart, I’m still that little black filly cooped up in a castle— looking out and swooning over the stallions from my window. Hoping. Dreaming for that perfect prince, that perfect date…”

Oh, get over yourself! You know what you are! What you’ve become… Don’t be so blasted stupid. So ignorant. It’s far, far beyond that point where you could second-guess yourself. You made your choice. You won. And now you have everything you always wanted. Vengeance. Victory. Moon didn’t picture the reflection saying those words back at her, but might as well had.

Deep inside, those horrible itchy sensations kept on pushing her. Those hateful feelings had kept on keeping her going— had kept her alive. Yet she had almost kicked them out of herself completely just a moment ago— cradling her head on Strawberry’s lap and having not a care in world.

Something inside her shifted for good. Yet somehow, someway those scratchy, angry sensations held on. Come on, now! Back to the castle! It’s time to savor bringing death and destruction to those pathetic little worms that dare call themselves ‘royal subjects’.

Moon sailed through the air back over the torrent of trees, parks, lakes, and rivers. She held onto the tiara, and she went on at her reflection, “It doesn’t matter. All of it. All I know, all I really feel… Is that I’m nothing different than any other mare after a bad date. I want to go home and cry. I’ll nag at my friends.” She chuckled. “And then comes the blasted ice cream. I wonder what Marks will whip up.”

Why are you wasting your time with such… such… Trivialities! Moon paid little attention to her path as she flew— eyes glaring further at her reflection. That’s… that’s what I see… The scowl she saw in that diamond almost seemed to burn back into her eyes. She felt ashamed. She blasted a warm breath into the shiny jewel, and then she couldn’t see anything anymore.

“I’m a,” she said to herself. She quit her flying and then just flapped in place. She seemed to descend by instinct yard after yard. “I’m a… I should face it… I have faced it… No, I haven’t faced that I’m just…” She landed atop a humongous elm tree, nestling onto a branch beside a set of owls. She glanced over at them silently. If anypony is watching this, then I’m sure that I look ridiculous.

The short, fat owl twisted its head over at Moon. The eyes seemed to look straight through her as if she was just a window. The bird then fixed its stare back at the batch of maple trees right in front of them.

“I’m just a…” the alicorn muttered again to herself, unable to even complete the thought.

“Who,” said the owl closest to her.

“The… I’m…” Moon whispered, her voice failing her, “I’m just a…”

“Who,” the owl farthest from her said.

“I am… I am… am…” the alicorn went on.

“WHO!” another owl called out.

“I’m a monster!” Moon hollered at the owls. She flailed her front hooves in the air and waved about her mane. The owls remained as still as if they had been carved from stone. The tears began to flow again, and she turned to bury her face in her hooves. “I. Am. A. Monster.” Her voice had deteriorated into a low moan.

And… You’re JUST NOW figuring this out? One would probably think that torturing the very element of kindness until you stole her essence would give you a hint? Maybe, idiot? You left her and the rest of them as broken magical shells... That was your true self, standing over them and blasting them without mercy. She panted hard as the tears flowed stronger than usual. She bobbed herself up on the branch, shifting over left a few feet. She stared off at the distance towards where he she would find her new castle.

“Who!” yet another owl yelled.

“Oh, for goodness sakes!” Moon shouted, turning to the group of owls. Really now! It’s… enough! “I’m a monster. It’s my path. My life. My destiny. My future. Monster.” The largest owl twisted its head towards Moon. It paused, and then it twisted it over until it looked totally backwards.

“BOOO!” Moon called out. The owls remained totally still. She squished her face with her hooves— knowing that a foal’s carnival ride would have better scares. She paused, and then she stood up upon the branch. She stretched out her wings. She fluttered back up in the air. The occasional tear dropped down her cheek and landed on the trees below.

Elements of Disharmony (Part IIX)

Strawberry stayed sitting at the stump, shocked at his very core, for what felt like an eternity. He finally got back on his hooves, and he picked up his satchel with his magic. He leaned down, and he let out a sigh. He wondered for a second if he would burst out sobbing. He wondered if he might scream out in anger. He wondered if he would beat against the wood in pure frustration.

Yet none of those things happened, and the unicorn simply felt… empty. He couldn’t feel a thing. The wind on his face, the wet grass at his hooves, and everything else just bounced off of his senses. He headed down towards the path going to Ponyville. I suppose there’s… I don’t know. Would all of this confusion— new ruler, new laws, new policies— change any of the baking orders?

He paused. He then turned around and shifted his head up to gaze at the moon. As he expected, it brought back memories of night after night in which he had took in the scenery at that very spot. Practicing the guitar, eating, writing stories… Everything else… Alone. All alone. Right? Just like old times?

Yet he didn’t really get the notion that he was alone. It didn’t matter if Nightmare Moon wasn’t there. As long as he was a part of her glorious night, he could feel her. He could almost breathe it in— the beautiful shining stars, the radiant moon, the clouds smeared across the sky, and everything else. He raised his hoof, and he prepared to take that first step out of the clearing towards home. He halted his hoof the air a few inches above the ground.

“No,” he muttered. The unicorn found himself flipped around in no time. He put on a determined face, and then he trotted back towards Moon’s new castle.

As he moved down the path, though, little tingles of fear began to creep up his stomach. What if… If… If… He glanced around and couldn’t shake the feeling that the trees wiggled their branches at him— prepared to snatch him up at every moment. Every other bush seemed to have beady red eyes inside them. If she something terrible to Fluttershy, then what would she do… to… me… Mysterious noises erupted in the distance— bringing him to an immediate halt.

Strawberry took a very deep breath, and then he continued on. He quit walking. He ran. No! She’d never do anything to hurt me. When we love each other so much. It wouldn’t be. Never. He found himself straying off of the path. He went to move back on, but he tripped on something and tumbled down a little crevasse. He landed in a huge patch of gravel— the little jagged pieces ripping into his body.

Ow… He shifted himself around. “It’ll all be okay,” he said to himself. He brushed himself off best he could. I should stay fresh if our date is still on. He saw a bit of blood and a bunch of scratches on his hooves. He rubbed himself around a second time, and then he stepped out of the little bunker.

He saw a scene out of a war zone. He had never witnessed something like that before. He had read about in Twilight’s books, sure, but the real thing felt so much different. Gigantic stone boulders littered across a torn up field. Broken items— from bottles to cans to torn up bits of clothing— scattered across everything. Something that had once been a castle or something like it stood there.

Strawberry stepped a bit closer, and he immediately had a powerful sensation. Magic. Moon’s magic. Other unicorns would probably tremble in fear at the lingering elements. Yet to Strawberry it felt… comforting. It was as familiar as the back of his hoof.

“I’m not going to like what I’ll find here,” Strawberry said to himself. He wandered forward just the same. The smashed bricks, cracked windows, and other pieces of things blended into the background after a short while. He didn’t quite know what he was looking for. He knew, though, that he’d figure it out when he found it.

The unicorn hopped onto a group of rocks. He leaned over through what had once been a massive stone window. He spotted a little empty patch of ground far below him to his right. He saw the strangest thing standing there as well. A yellow… pony sized… blob? What could that possibly… be… Oh. Oh, no. The air looked wavy and distorted.  Strawberry had the same sensation of hazy vision as one of his worst migraines.

He tiptoed from rock to rock— moving little by little into the clearing. He finally found himself flat on the ground. Despite standing right alongside the mysterious blob, he couldn’t make it out any better. The glowing batch of light, stuck in one place, looked almost like a large yellow lamp left abandoned. Moon’s magic felt so strong, although he didn’t feel any danger to himself… not at all.

Strawberry took a deep breath, and then he concentrated. He blew in the air, and he saw his magical aura blowing through as well. The yellow patch of light turned a little pink, and then he saw it.

“Fluttershy…” he moaned. She lied down on the ground, magically locked into place. The bright yellow pegasus had her wings folded over her back, and her front hooves prostrated over her head. Her eyes had shut tight. Her face contorted in a look of absolute fear.

Fetal position… For goodness sake, clearly she was begging for her life. She looks so scared. So helpless. So vulnerable. And she’s… frozen? Strawberry walked closer. He suddenly found himself placing a hoof into Fluttershy, and it moved right through her body like a ghost. That’s… some powerful magic…

The unicorn panted for a moment. He had no idea what to do. He had no idea what to think. Finally, he concentrated once again. He couldn’t hope to overturn Moon’s magic— especially not without a spell. Yet he had to try… something. He at least needed to understand.

Strawberry had the contours of the spell fill up his mind. He suddenly just sensed it— as if he had read a book, forgot it, and then remembered it again in an instant. Something about Fluttershy’s own essence had been stolen. Yet she wasn’t in pain. She didn’t have anything to worry about either. She just sort of had been saved— saved in place like a particularly good passage of a book with a long bookmark.

He could look for the other five friends. He could think about cracking the spell. He didn’t want to do any of that. He just wanted to head over to the large puddle a few feet away, take a seat, and then cry to the moon itself.

He saw his reflection. He knew he felt sad, but he surprised himself by how sad he looked. The tracks of his tears had gotten so thick that it burned up on his face. He closed his eyes, and he lied flat down on the ground. He tried to look up at the stars. Their beauty filled his heart, but— with what he had just seen— they also had a horrible subtext that he couldn’t ignore. Tainted. Wronged.

From about out of nowhere, a pang of anger appeared from deep inside of him. He kept it down, but it wouldn’t be refused. He found himself hopping back to his feet. His face clenched.

“WHY!” Strawberry screamed. He bucked up on his hind hooves. “WHHHHHHYYYYYYY!” The moon, the stars, the clouds, and everything else gave no answer.

“What was wrong with me?” the unicorn asked himself. His teeth gritted. “What was I thinking… going out with that… that… that… MONSTER?”

Moonlight Decisions (Part IX)

Moon moved over towards the castle. Of course. A monster… That’s what Celestia made me. What she… She… The alicorn slowed down for a moment. Her heart felt so much different than just an hour ago-- than back before when she didn't have Strawberry in her life.

Once upon a time, she thought she felt complete. She had suffered. She had endured that horrible loneliness. Yet she had still had a complete heart, although a broken one. She had filled herself with vengeance. Everything had felt totally right-- or so she had convinced herself. Then, that unicorn trotted into her ballroom.

She came to a stop with the castle just about two-hundred feet way. She fluttered over some kind of lake. She saw the moon, glowing bright, shining in the water below. As if on cue, her mind replayed Strawberry’s music.

It’s… It’s not the same now. It doesn’t matter what I felt before. I’m feeling something different now. It’s just a matter of fact. It’s as indisputable as water being wet, as fire being cold… She lowered herself to the lake, and she let the water brush up against her hooves. It seemed to tickle.

There’s a gigantic difference between a broken heart and this… this… She felt more like her heart was an apple fritter wrapped in thick tinfoil. Everything inside— warm, smooth, calm, and safe— had been kept safe by that hard, metallic outer layer. Now, that horrible itchy sensation only made things worse. It felt so… The only word she could think of was ‘alien’.

Oh, come on, now… So you have feminine urges. It happens to every Princess, every Queen, every imperial ruler… Only natural! It’s not as if any of your guards or staff or anypony else would be able to give you ‘no’ for an answer, not with your power! She blinked. She couldn’t take it anymore. She had completely had enough. Those alien sensations just had to go.

“No,” she declared to herself, “I could never be with anypony else. A Princess deserves a Prince.”

As if it would really matter… Really feel any different if it was one of those muscular goons? You need to scratch an itch, that’s all. Moon suddenly found herself pulled out of balance. Her right wing almost wouldn’t flap for her anymore, and she shook her hooves in sudden distress.

“Of… of course it matters…” the alicorn stammered, tumbling like a bumblebee through the air onto the roof of the castle, “It… it’s… clear…”

Oh, please! Her wing seemed to totally go out. It makes no difference!

“IT MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD IF YOU’RE IN LOVE!” Moon shrieked. She then crashed onto a spare balcony. She popped herself on her hooves in an instant. She then seized her tiara and held it right up in front of her.

She panted hard. She saw that horrible, despicable scowl looking back at her. All of that rage, fear, hatred, anger, and everything else that used to keep her running stared Moon in the face.

“I don’t CARE if I’m a monster!” Moon yelled. She never felt more confident in her words in her entire life. “I don’t CARE about my past! I don’t CARE about my future! He’s MY date! And I don’t need you ANYMORE!” She clutched the tiara tightly in her hoof, and then she hurled it with all of her strength straight upwards. The item burst through the air like a shooting star.

Moon shook her head and made a huge grin. She felt totally relieved. She knew something had changed, and changed forever. She paused. She then let out a frantic gasp.

“Oh my gosh,” the alicorn called out, and she flew herself back up in the air after the tiara, “I need that for… for… Strawberry. For the rest of my date!” She chased after it. She headed through cloud layer after cloud layer.

Oh, wow… I think I gave that thing enough force to take it to Mars… Moon took a breath, and then she rocketed herself up. She positioned herself in front of the tiara and then it smacked her on the side like a line drive into a center fielder.

“Looking…” the alicorn began, and she set her eyes on her reflection for the umpteenth time. She liked everything that she saw. The smirk looked playful. The poise looked charming. The fluttery eyebrows looked seductive. “Good!” She expanded her smile a bit wider. Okay, time to get back to my date. She made a little giggle.

Moon sailed down to that same balcony. She landed onto the roof with a soft flutter. She then hurled open the doors— accidentally knocking them off of their hinges. The alicorn saw herself in some kind of stallion’s dressing room. Marks stopped spraying himself with a musky brown something and hiked up the towel at his waist. Two other, very young looking colts leaned down behind a huge white hamper.

“Your… highness?” the stallion asked.

“Hel— hello,” Moon stammered, “Oh, ah— pardon our intrusion, please. We were just trying to find Strawberry.”

“He came by just a few minutes ago,” Marks replied, still a bit stunned, “I believe that he could still be on the castle premises, your highness. I last saw him besides the west entrance. Oh, and he did look extremely downhearted. I take it things did not…” He stopped— realizing how incredibly rude he sounded to ask that. He flinched, expecting to receive a venomous rant or worse.

“Oh, that’s just, that’s so incredibly wonderful,” Moon said, bouncing about in place, “Thank you!” She jumped up and then bounced down to the other side of the castle. Her heart rattled like a drum.

=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=

Several minutes before then, Strawberry had fixed his angry stare at the dirty pool in front of him. His mind stayed blank. He stepped a bit to the side, and his hoof grazed his satchel. He picked it with his magic to put it back on. His guitar tumbled out. The instrument landed at the side of the water with a tiny splash.

The unicorn leaned over, and then he held it with his hooves. He took a gulp. What does it matter anymore? It’s over. It’s all over. It never was anything to begin with, stupid. He tried to summon some kind of righteous anger, but he failed. He couldn’t really feel anything except total emptiness… and total loneliness.

“I suppose it’s a bit like a thousand years up there,” Strawberry said to the moon. He chuckled. He then picked up his guitar, and he aimed straight at the heavenly body. He leaned back to give himself some momentum, and then he chucked the guitar with all of his might.

He took a step to the side, satisfied that he had wiped his hooves of Nightmare Moon. Yet he halted immediately. A soft, soothing blue feeling had burst inside of him.

He had felt it for a while— all the while as he walked through the blow out castle remains. Moon’s magic… Even in anger, even in despair… It doesn’t really make me afraid— no, not really. Her very essence felt like a kiss, and now he suddenly felt it all over.

“NO!” Strawberry screamed. He turned around and then splashed into the water. He glanced all around. Whatever little spark of Moon he had felt just a few seconds ago had turned into a flame in his heart. He spotted his guitar— stuck in some kind of gnarly tree yards and yards away. He concentrated, and then it flew right back to him with his magic.

“It doesn’t matter it’s just… it’s…” he muttered to himself. He cried a little. He thought he still felt sad for a second. Yet no, that wasn’t quite right. It was tears of… happiness. “I know it. It’s you. It has to be you.” He clutched the guitar tightly to his chest, and he sang a little bit more.

“Only… you…”

Princess at the Castle Window (Part X)

Moon hopped from balcony to balcony, entrance to entrance, door to door, and window to window. Nopony had seen that pink and white unicorn anywhere. Although she floated on cloud nine emotionally, she started to feel a bit anxious.

The alicorn found herself atop the window to some kind of storage closet. She panted. I just… I just can’t believe… I built this blasted place! MYSELF! How— my goodness— is it that I don’t even know my way around anymore? She lied flat down on the roof for a moment. She knew that she might want to give herself have some time to think— some time to sort out the torrent of various emotions.

Something had seriously changed. This horrible dark cloud had vaporized from her brain. If any little remnants of what happened on the moon over so many centuries still clung to her… she couldn’t feel it anymore at all. The last little hateful, negative feelings that clung onto her spirit barely hung on— like tiny flecks of dirt on otherwise elegant slippers.

“I just…” Moon said to herself, and she rubbed her head against the stone tiles, “It’s okay. I just need to find him. Finish my date. It’s okay. It’ll all work out. I know it. I promise.” She surveyed the castle grounds below her. Various ponies milled about at the commands of her darkly dressed goons.

The alicorn felt a bit ashamed as she saw a gigantic stallion shoving around a nervous little colt with an orange mane. She braced herself to jump down and interfere, but she halted just a second afterward. That’s… That’s… On my orders… Or was it? Who’s in charge when I’m gone anyway? Where would they… How could they even rule if I didn’t say anything to them? Oh, my goodness, what a mess this is…

“It’s okay,” she repeated to herself. She glanced around again. She suddenly spotted a pinkish white something forty feet to her right and below her. She let out a loud squeal, and she hurled herself down.

“Ooof!” the pony let out. Moon had knocked the horse right over.

“Oh, we’re so happy to see you, so happy to find you… here… a-again?” Moon began, and then she very quickly became very confused.

“Na’thmare Moon,” the young filly said, and her eyes grew wide behind her thick purple glasses, “Mam sa’th it’th jus’th mi ima’jun’a’thun… Bu’th eh’ kneew da’th wah’hen we ge’th ta Pony’vale…”

“I’m, I’m sorry,” the alicorn said, and she got off of the filly’s body. Moon blushed.

“Eh’ th’ll Th’waberri, mi cou’thin, and awll hes frien’th da’th he… he…” the filly went on.

“Strawberry?” Moon asked, looking intensely at the filly. She seemed to melt into the muddy ground at the alicorn’s sharp attention.

“Th’waberri?” the filly squeaked.

“Where, where is he?” Moon asked. She realized how threatening she looked, and then she stood back upright. She lowered her voice. “Please… I’m looking for him.”

“Eh’ th’aw hem, and Th’waberri lalked pra’thy th’ad,” the pink and white foal went on, “Eh’ da dis’thappered.” She strained to eke out that last word.

“We are, uh, very sorry, but we must be going,” Moon said, and then she flew back up towards the top of the castle. She spotted her bedroom, and then she stepped into it. Given how quickly the castle had been put together, everything laid scattered about in a gigantic mess. Paints, wallpapers, chairs, couches, desks, and many other things piled up upon each other.

Got to find something… Got to think… Of something… Something… She sped around the room— hoping that she might see or even accidentally step on some item that would give her an idea. “A-ha!” Moon exclaimed. She came across a box filled with magical scrolls. “Easy, easy, easy… I’ll… We’ll just direct one of these right to you. Now, I just need to— We just need to figure out what to write.”

“Dear Strawberry,” she narrated, “We enjoyed the past evening, yet we feel that the events are far from over… Our little outburst…” She then tore it up. No, no, NO! Too formal!

“Dear Strawberry, we had such a fantastic time this past evening, now, when it comes to what we said about Fluttershy… Please, let us explain…” Moon said aloud. She ripped up that scroll as well. She took a deep breath.

“Dear Strawberry, we are very sorry for everything that we said and did, and we would understand if you never wanted… to…” she read aloud, and her voice fluttered, “See… us ever… a-again…” Wait! Just wait one moment! She tore that paper in two, and she hurled the remains against the wall.

“Dear Strawberry, we know that things have… We know that it has… We think… We…” she stammered, and she fought back another bought of tears. It’ll be okay… I think. Won’t it… I hope.

“Dear Strawberry, I… I… I… I…” she whispered, “I… I…” She realized that she hadn’t written a thing on the scroll yet. “I… I…” Need you… Only you...

“Dear Strawberry!” Moon called out. “STRAWBERRY!” Please!

She picked up the box of scrolls and smashed it upon the ceiling. She blew a hole through the tiles, and she didn’t care one bit. She jumped onto the couch in front of her, and she tipped it over. She rammed her horn into a bookcase, toppling it over.

She stamped around a pile of wallpaper— kicking it in all directions. She backed up into a big something tucked under a bed sheet. She bucked into it with all of her strength. It flew into the wall besides the massive window with a loud crash.

The alicorn turned around, and she realized that it had been a mirror. She stepped up slowly— still seething. She stared at the thousand little Nightmare Moons reflected back at her on every piece. It felt so appropriate. I’m so broken… She rested herself on the window, closed her eyes tightly, and sobbed.

“STRAWWWWWWBERY!” Moon moaned.

“Whaaaaaaaaat!” a familiar voice shouted back from outside the window.

The alicorn popped upwards. She leaned out until she had almost fallen right out. She gazed straight down, and she saw the unicorn yards and yards below her. He looked up at her as well.

“I… I thought you had just left. Given up. Marks said that you came by, looking so sad,” Moon called out to him. She couldn’t quite see his face, but he clearly seemed to be pretty happy.

“I walked by, and Marks told me you flew away from our date but then sailed right past the castle towards Canterlot. We had thought that… That meant it was all over,” Strawberry replied.

“It’s…” Moon began, searching for words. She gave up. “Just… don’t worry about it! Stay right there! I’ll come down!” She pushed herself out of the window, and she stepped down the roof ever closer.

“I went by the battlefield!” Strawberry yelled.

Moon immediately froze. Oh, oh no. Oh, no. No. NO. She found herself halfway to him— lying atop of the window to some random storage room. “S-s-so…” Moon said back. What… what can I do? What could I possibly say? It… Oh, please Strawberry!

“Eeeeyup,” the unicorn said. He also searched for words. “So… Will you ever… Ever… Will it… Change?”

“I’ve…” Moon began, “I’ve changed. It will change. I promise.”

“The eternal night. Summer Wind. Twist. Everypony else… It’s just…” Strawberry said. He felt like trailing off into nothing, but he then gathered an inner strength. “Your highness, please… It just… has to change.”

“I promise,” the alicorn replied. It will be alright. It will be okay. It will work out. It has to.

“Your highness,” Strawberry began.

“Strawberry, we promise,” Moon said. She tried to put every last bit of her sincerity into her voice. She seemed to regain that sing-song quality that she had over in the forest park. The alicorn noticed that Strawberry nodded silently. He had to have no idea what to do next.

“So, ah…” the unicorn said, “I uh… wanted… I thought… maybe… One more thing. One last part of the date that I wanted to do.”

“What?” she asked.

He pulled out the guitar once again. The alicorn clapped a little. She made a huge grin. Strawberry grinned in response.

“So… a-ha…” He held the instrument tightly, and he began. He shifted his hooves as he cooed. “Aaaaaah… ahhhaah… Aaaaaah...” He strummed. “The moon at night… It shines so bright. Seems to shine twice as bright… When you're young and in love.”

“Oooooooooh,” Moon sang with him.

“Dreams can come true… If you believe they do,” Strawberry continued, “ When you're young and in love.” He threw his hooved down a lot stronger.

“Strawberry,” Moon whispered.

“So many teardrops… about to fall… True love, can conquer all,” he sang, “When you're…” He raised his voice. “When you're young…” He looked right up at her. “And… in love.”

She clapped. She stood up on the roof tiles, and she stamped her hooves together in joy. Oh… It’s… so beautiful. She saw Strawberry take a gulp. He clearly had run out of ideas past then. Moon smiled. She had something in store for him now. She wouldn’t hold back anymore.

The alicorn suddenly leapt out of the window. She beat her wings— twisting around the air like little tornadoes. Strawberry let out an ‘eep’ as she grabbed him. She swooped towards the ground and then right back into the air like an eagle nabbing its prey.

Strawberry seemed to want to scream, but he didn’t. He clutched her body tightly. He jittered as well. His eyes couldn’t be more shut if Moon had glued them together.

“What’s the matter, silly?” Moon asked. They had gotten a lot of air— moving straight up. The new castle had just become a dot under them.

“I-I’m rather a-afraid of h-heights,” the unicorn squeaked out. The alicorn paused in the air for a moment. She rubbed his frizzy hair and rubbed his head closer to her chest.

“Oh, could there be any safer place in Equestria for you? Here… in our arms?” she asked.

Strawberry opened his eyes at a snail’s pace. He found himself looking straight up at the night sky. He heard a soft chuckle behind him, and then the scenery began to speed past him. The clouds and stars and everything else blended into the soft, comforting blackness. He felt an odd combination of warm, happy, nervous, and terrified.

“Great view, right?” the alicorn asked. Her voice sounded so chipper that she might as well had sung those words.

“W-where are we g-going?” Strawberry asked.

“Surprise!” Moon called out. She swung back and forth in the air, wings flapping strong. “You’ll love it!”

The Return (Chapter XI)

“Hey, close your eyes for just a moment,” the alicorn asked. She then dropped about thirty feet in a split second— wisps of cold wind shooting all around her.

Don’t have to ask me twice! Strawberry somehow held onto her even tighter than before. She zigzagged over and rustled the very tips of some trees, and he thought that his heart would shatter at the strain. She popped herself upwards. Oh, wait, you’re not going to… She angled back. OH NO!

“Here we go!” Moon called out, and she let out a huge laugh. She pounded her wings and made a loop-de-loop. They sped through some building columns, bumped through gigantic cloth banners, and brushed through a huge batch of flowers. Strawberry opened his mouth to scream yet nothing came out. He peeked out of his almost shut eyes and saw nothing but a blur of colors.

They sliced through some kind of long pool like a knife through butter. Trails of water shot out in the air behind them— giving their bodies nothing but a light spray. Moon then hopped up with a huge flap of her wings. They flipped onto something cold, yet extremely soft.

“Ah… ah… ah… ahhhhh…” the unicorn murmured. He wiggled his bottom hooves and he felt nothing under them, although they had stopped moving. Ah, Moon…

“Here…” Moon began. She shifted a little bit, and she found that Strawberry clung to her even tighter. “Everything okay, Strawberry?”

“Okay,” he squeaked.

“You’re only about two feet from the ground, you know,” she said, putting back on that sing-song tone. The unicorn raised his eyes, nudged himself around a little, and then popped out of her hooves. He suddenly found himself lying flat down on a pile of gigantic pillows atop some kind of balcony. Moon settled down beside him.

Moon stepped to the side a bit, and the she leaned himself over the ledge of the delicate white marble edge of the balcony. Strawberry followed silently. Although the immense heights made him dizzy, he admired the wonderful sets of aqueducts stretching around every which way— pouring out little waterfalls that fed these beautiful hanging gardens. Elegant maple trees jutted out of fancy terraces with golden and silver feeding through the shiny marble.

The alicorn softly caressed his side for a moment, and then she turned him over a little to the left. He looked out at the stunning mountains, valleys, and rivers all across the horizon. He then looked up and around at the massive castle walls besides him. The gigantic windows glowed with an unearthly light at the reflection of the moon. It occurred to him that, over the past hour, the heavenly body had glowed brighter and brighter— now so strong that it could give the sun a run for its money.

When he gazed back at the alicorn herself, Strawberry paused. Of course, it doesn’t matter… All of this would never be as beautiful as her. Little rays of light bounced off of her tiara— causing an aura of sparkles to bathe her angelic face.

“This is Canterlot, isn’t it— your highness?” Strawberry asked. Moon nodded. She had something more than a smile. She seemed so peaceful— so content.

“Let’s go inside, shall we?” Moon asked. She walked over to the crystalline double-doors at the edge of the balcony, and she nudged them open. The two of them stepped inside.

The unicorn and the alicorn walked into almost total darkness for a moment, but then Moon concentrated with her magic. Some little orbs nestled in the ceiling lip up brightly. Strawberry saw that they stood in some kind of library. Although complete with the ornate finishing of royalty— from comfy couches to elegant dark brown tables— it didn’t seem that different than any other study room he had used.

“This,” Moon began, “Is a big part of my own foalhood, right here… Like you told us before about yourself and how you grew up… We just thought that we would share something of where we came from.” She stepped about the room and gestured around with her front hooves.

“Wonderful,” he replied.

“I… we…” Moon began again, and she trotted over to an ancient looking bookcase, “Are going to do something for you in just a moment…” She pulled out a tattered brown book with her magic. She fluttered through it. “So! Wait… no…” She put it back and picked up a clean, new yellow book. “And… no!” She put that back and then pulled out three other new-ish looking books. “No, no… No! No!”

“What, what is it?” Strawberry asked.

She noticed a heavy looking textbook resting on the top shelf, and she flew it into the air right beside her air. “A-ha!” She glanced over at Strawberry, smirking. “Now, it’s our turn…” she said.

“Oh,” he muttered.

“The mare… do well…” she sang, “The mare… do well…” She wiggled herself a bit. “Quick, with her chore… Quick, as she files.” She twirled around a little, and she raised her superbly sweet voice. “Hurt, called a bore… Hurt, and she criiiiiiieeeeeeeeeeeees.” She built up that last word— throwing up her right hoof to the air.

She stopped, and she put the textbook down on the floor. Strawberry clapped and clapped. She blushed a little, and she went on, “So, Strawberry. That was all the sort of thing that the royal court taught us. Little filly stuff. Of course, that made sense— a little bit at least— when we were little fillies. But still, they never let us sing to… to… SING!”

Strawberry smiled. It’s like… like a thousand sweetly chill midnight breezes going through my ears… He nodded again and again.

“We begged too, to get a song that the regular ponies actually sing— especially as we got older,” Moon went on. She paused, and she shrugged. Her bridal-like veil fluttered around her face. “And it never mattered. ‘Not fit for a princess’, they said… Oh well…”

“That was… beautiful…” he said. He traced around for the words that he had thought to say to her just a second ago. “Like…”

Moon jumped forward a few feet— a sudden idea popping into her head. “Wait, wait, wait!” Moon called out. She grabbed him by the side and led him right out of the room through a plain side door. She kept on pulling him as she ran— his hooves straining to keep up.

“We almost forgot!” She led him through a cavernous hallway with golden stripes stretching all through and what seemed like hundreds of doors and. “Down here!” Moon hollered.

“W-wow,” he muttered, glancing in all directions as he bounced like a rag doll.

“It’s just another stupid passageway!” Moon remarked, and she halted at a huge, darkly crimson door. “You have to—” Strawberry bumped right into her. “Save your ‘wows’—” She flung the door open. “For the right moment.” They bounced in.

“L-like now,” he asked. They found themselves inside a massive bedroom. Ornate furnishings decorated every inch of it— from a set of silver framed paintings to a tall grandmare clock to closet-sized dresser after closet-sized dresser overflowing with dresses. An immense bed with fluffy black sheets the size of several dozen ponies caught Strawberry’s eye.

“No!” Moon called out. She shifted her wings around. “Where… IS that blasted doorway?” She turned around. “Ugh!” She bumped Strawberry onto the floor.

“That bed gives nice ideas,” he accidentally said out loud. He froze. Oh, you— you— DORK! WHY did you have to say that!

“Sure,” the alicorn cryptically replied. She stepped out a few feet towards the window. “And where’s—” She twisted her head in thought. “Hey! NEXT FLOOR!”

“Flo—” he began.

The alicon wordlessly grabbed his side again and sped out into the window. She hurled the two of them into the air outside. Strawberry didn’t even have time to think before he saw himself flying and then falling without wings. Moon swooped into him again in a split-second and wisped herself back around in a somersault. They flung themselves into another window.

“Here!” Moon triumphantly announced— bobbing up her front hooves. Strawberry laid prostrate on the ground tiles and did a bit of coughing. His mind felt blank.

The alicorn nudged over and rubbed his side with her body. He stood right back upright— tingles shooting all over at her embrace. She returned his gaze, and she motioned for him to look around.

The kitchen put anything at Sugarcube Corner to shame. Stove after stove lined up under a bevy of golden brown cabinets and shiny steel utensils. Every other spot had an immense walk-in pantry. Everything had this pretty arua— perfectly immaculate.

“And… nowwwwwww—” Moon said, grinning at the final word, “It’s time for us to return the favor and make something for you.” She hopped a few feet from side to say in a way that would make Pinkie look calm. Her wings fluttered.

“Wonderful,” Strawberry said, smiling brightly.

“Now, then, for a quick— fast— magical powered recipe,” she said as she leaned down and inspected the kitchen island’s cabinets. She threw various pots and pans onto the tile. “Not there… or there… maybe… nope… how about there…” She moved in her body a bit deeper, and Strawberry leaned over closer. His heart fluttered a bit at her wiggling plot sticking out past the cabinet door.

“Now!” Moon shouted— bouncing out and thrusting a thick binder onto the counterpart. She giggled as she leaned forward. “Fast treats! Fast treats!” She magically spread through dozens and dozens of pages. “Fast. Treats.” She came to the end of it. “Come on!” She flipped the binder to the side and then flowed through the other side in the other direction.

“What do—” the unicorn began.

She snapped at a certain page. “Midnight Dark Pudding,” the alicorn read aloud. She let out a soft little squeal. “Perfect!”

“All I need— is a cup of sugar! I’ll add it— to the mix!” Moon sang as she bounced from drawer to drawer. In a matter of seconds, she had thrown down two spoons, a whisk, a bowl, and four cups in front of the unicorn. “Dash of salt, pinch of powder— get ready for your fix!” She tossed around item after item in the air around of her. Chocolate shavings, milk, eggs, and a bunch of things Strawberry didn’t quite recognize flooded into the bowl.

The alicorn— grinning from cheek to cheek— slammed the whisk into the middle of the bowl and then sped the bowl around like a spinning top. Her aura bathed the bowl as it wobbled right off of the table into the air. She suddenly leaned over and grabbed it with her hooves. She took a deep breath, and then she ducked her head into the bowl.

She blew over the top of the mix and immediately formed an icy, thick chocolate coating atop it. She concentrated— her hoof glowing— and the whole bowl became lit up with a bright blue. She focused her eyes, and then the blue light became whiter and whiter. The two ponies heard thousands of soft cracking sounds, and then a large crunch that reminded Strawberry of Big Mac jumping into the snow.

“All done,” she squeaked. She titled her head over, and she pushed the bowl over to Strawberry’s side of the counter with her horn. Two spoons floated magically in the air above them.

Strawberry felt so warm inside just seeing her smile. She looked so full of joy at that moment— facing eye to eye to him with such poise and grace— that he thought he’d have a heart attack. He opened his mouth and let a spoon go in. Oh, please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Let this actually taste good so I don’t have to fake it!

He swallowed. It tasted, of course, absolutely nothing like pudding. It seemed more like an early morning frost sprinkled with sugary chocolate. He felt… perfectly okay with that.

“Yes?” Moon asked, anticipation flowing through her.

Strawberry nodded back sincerely. The alicorn jumped up, clapped her front hooves fanatically, and then she scooped some for herself. She looked just so adorably cute as she took a few bites. In what seemed like just a few seconds, she had almost emptied out the bowl. She stopped, and then she looked over at Strawberry.

“Oh, sure, now just let us—” she began. She leaned over to look inside the bowl. It bounced with an accidental bump of her hoof across the slippery counter. The bowl tumbled straight onto Strawberry’s face and dripped chocolate goop down his side.

Moon hopped over the counter in a split second and stood beside Strawberry. She looked around for some kind of napkin, towel, or anything else to use— bouncing open drawer after drawer. The unicorn nudged at the film coating his right front hoof. He gestured over at Moon.

“Please, please, your highness,” he said, and she halted. There’s a lot worse to have poured on you. “Don’t worry… about… it…” He trailed off as she suddenly turned around, facing straight at him. Her adorable pose had morphed into something very determined. “I…”

The alicorn moved towards him— every step as measured as a timber wolf stalking her prey. Strawberry wiggled a bit and nudged himself against the kitchen island. “Now…” she said, lowering her voice, “Just let us take care of it.” Every word had a huge, subdued power to it. Moon took a final step until she faced just inches from Strawberry side.

She brought her head down to his right hoof. “Ahhh… ahh…” Strawberry muttered— his mind wiped blank as he jittered. She stuck out her tongue upon his chocolate-coated hoof. “AHHHHH… AHHHH…” Moon moved side to side with determined slurps.

She braced her body a little closer, and then she licked upwards along his hoof towards his side. “AAAAAAAHHHHHHH…” Strawberry couldn’t help cooing uncontrollably. He trembled over and over again— his throat gasped for continuous deep breaths.

Moon finished wiping him off in just a handful of seconds, although it could have just as easily been a hundred years to Strawberry. She got back on her hooves and stood proudly upright next to him. The unicorn looked up at her wordlessly. His mouth was locked open. His eye had opened wide as ballroom doors. He tried to say something— anything— but only tiny little murmur could make it through.

“What is it with you?” Moon asked with a playful kind of semi-sarcasm. She slanted against the cabinets, and her elegant dress fluttered around her hooves. “Do you survive on just strawberry cakes alone or something— sucking them up every waking moment day and night? That… sensation…”

“I… I…” Strawberry said. He tried to keep from crying— the feelings seemed so intense.

“Strawberry,” she began, and she grabbed his side again just like before. She dragged him over to a door out of the kitchen. “You know… before our date ends… we think there’s just one… on… last thing we need to show you.”

“Un… la’th th’iiink th’… th’eew…” he muttered, reverting to his foal-hood lisp as his insides crumbled. He seemed to zone out of his surroundings— gazing right at her still determined face. She led him through door after door. They then came upon a gigantic set of double doors with interlaced black and silver edges.

“Just wait here,” she said. She nestled open one of the doors a little bit, and she slid herself into the darkness. Strawberry nodded silently. I just… I can’t… I can’t… I feel so, so much…

He heard some kind of loud crackling noises, almost like lightening striking just a few feet in front of him. He didn’t bounce up in surprise, though, he could barely move. She sensed a wave of deep coldness seeping through the bottom under the doors. He lost track of time for a moment, yet mysterious crackling and pounding noises went on.

“H-h-h-heeey,” he squeaked out. He jiggled across every inch of his body.

“Okay, now’s the moment,” he heard from behind the doors, “Now then, Strawberry…”

He held his breath.

“Welcome.”

“To your Nightmare.”

Dear Reader:

Thank you very much for reading. You now have a choice of endings. To have the romantic ending with frank sensuality, please click on the next chapter (twelve) and then read to the following chapter (thirteen). For the troll-ish comedic ending, please click on chapter fourteen. For the romantic ending with a PG-rated and FiM specific tone, please click on chapter fifteen. For the sad and depressing ending, please click on chapter sixteen and then read to the following chapter-- number seventeen.

Thank you again.

Sweet Dreams (Ending I, Part A)

“Nightmare…” Strawberry repeated. He shut his mouth and took a gulp. He forced himself to quit jiggling in place for a second, and he managed to find some inner strength to steel himself. “My Nightmare…” He held his right hoof up in the air, and he made contact with the door. His hoof still wouldn’t stop wobbling. My love… My Princess. He pushed forwards, and then the doors opened.

Puffy white clouds of frosty air burst out in front of him. He stepped forward. Everything seemed very weird. The floor felt so strange— so crumbly and hard all of a sudden. His sight cleared a bit. He saw that the walls looked sort of like the fancy bedroom that he walked in several minutes ago. Yet everything had a cold, metallic black and grey tinge to it. The bookshelves were empty. The gigantic clock— now looking like some futuristic thing with robotic knobs and dials—froze at midnight.

“Y-your h-h-highness,” he muttered. He stepped onto some kind of gravelly dip. He looked down, and he suddenly realized that he stood on a cratered, battered surface of dark grey. The smoke and clouds cleared even more. He looked through the windows beside him, and he saw nothing but a flat grey horizon with a pure black sky. This… can’t be…

The walls seemed to be held up just a few inches from the ground— letting smoke pour in and out of the room. He stepped a little bit forward, and he walked into some kind of solid black monolith-like thing. It looked almost like a cartoon lightening symbol smashing into the ground with a big arrow leading into a small crater. It’s… It’s… Strawberry paused, and then he threw his head straight up.

“Earth…”

Strawberry stretched out with his hooves, and he reached out at the gigantic blue, white, and green orb in the sky in front of him. He then sat down. He paused. OH NO!

He then jerked around violently and took deep breaths. He stuck his hooves up and thrust them over his neck. He hopped up and down for a while— seeing his white body turn as pink as his mane. He tripped over a rock and then bumped himself back onto the lightning bolt monument. He opened his mouth as wide as he possibly could.

“Ooooooh,” a voice cooed some distance in front of him. Strawberry’s ears fluttered around, and he bounced back onto his hooves. He stepped forward a bit more into another white cloud. Ah… Okay. I suppose breathing is part of the… experience… His hooves touched something else— something very soft and very fluffy that almost tickled him. He made it out of the cloud. Then, his heart stopped.

“Strawwwwwwwwwwwberry…”

Nightmare Moon poised herself atop the gigantic bed. Her body curled up across the top. She had rolled all around in the inky black sheets— messing up her veil and dress with the fabrics fluttering in the air. Her mane jutted out underneath her body and intermingled with her wings— extended out as far as they could reach with the ends of the feathers wiggling. Her hooves playfully kicked the air above her. She held her tiara in her teeth.

“Ah… ahh… ahhhhhh… ahhhhhhhhhhhh…” Strawberry murmured.

Moon looked to be at least one and a half times bigger. Her eyes flared up with the full, alien blue glow. She opened up her mouth a bit to show her full smile, and those teeth could have been kitchen knives for all Strawberry thought.

“Oh… m-my…” he whispered.

Moon licked the tiara’s big diamond.

“G-gosh…”

The alicorn swished atop the bed for a little bit— slowly kicking her thick black boots upon the sheets. Strawberry stepped closer and closer— moving just by instinct. She turned over to the edge of the bed as she let out another soft coo. She nudged herself upwards, and then she put two of her hooves off of the bed. Her smile seemed to envelop her whole face. Those bright eyes shot straight at Strawberry.

Strawberry felt such an extreme burning inside that it almost seemed painful. He was also so nervous that he feared in the back of his mind he would faint any second. Yet the thing between his legs pulsed so much— causing him to almost grit his teeth— that he twitched a little at each step.

“For a thousand years,” Moon announced, and Strawberry halted as he took in her words. The voice sounded so powerful, so loud, and so alien— it seemed to come from the entire lunar sky all around him. “We have been here.”

“H-h-here,” the unicorn repeated. His throbbing heart seemed to want to leap out his throat.

“For a thousand years, we have been living this Nightmare,” she went on, stepping ever closer, “All alone… All isolated… We are simply so, so ready to finally have… What we need…” She stopped just about thirty feet away from him. She bent down— her wings still shot out at full wingspan.

“N-need…”

“A taste…” Those bright eyes almost blinded him. “A… snack.”

“Ahhhhh… th’nakk…”

“Fresh strawberries…”

Moon leapt out in the air and pounced upon Strawberry with a loud ‘thud’. The unicorn collapsed onto the soft rug under him, and he had his hooves pinned down with her boots. She thrust down her wings into the ground besides his sides— holding him even closer in place. She brought herself face to face to him as her mane rose in the air behind her— pulsing with little black trails of electricity all through it.

She thrust her face down upon his neck with those oh-so sharp teeth sticking straight out. Strawberry gasped and writhed as she licked all around. Her slippery tongue wandered all across the top of his neck and her teeth poked against his skin. She built up a snarl and bit a little deeper right along the side of his face. The unicorn cried out in a mix of one part pain and five parts pure pleasure.

Moon moved a little up to her mouth, and then she bit again. This time, she didn’t hold back. She locked her lips down and nestled in her teeth to take in every last bit of his sweet strawberry taste. The unicorn writhed against the ground. I can’t… I can’t… I CAN’T TAKE IT… He pattered against her boots with his hooves. His breathed so fast he thought he would collapse.

“No!” Moon called out as she lifted up her mouth. She immediately moved over to the other side of his neck. “Mine.” She brought her face down upon his skin and poked behind his ear with her teeth while still licking all over. “Mine.” Strawberry kept on moving about his hooves— instinctively trying to take some kind of control. “Mine.”

“Ahhhhhhhhh… ahh… ah… ahhh…” the unicorn groaned as she pressed in deeper with her boots. She almost seemed to want to break his legs. Her wings moved in closer— rubbing against his sides in a tighter embrace. “Ahhh…” The bites went on, and the pain itself almost seemed to have flipped into something he craved.

Her feral touch kept moving about his chest and neck, but now going faster and faster. She leaned her whole body closer— finally rubbing up against what he had between his legs. Strawberry screamed. He wiggled his hooves without control.

Moon lifted her head up for a second. She gazed right into Strawberry’s face. The unicorn’s face had widened even more so that his mouth drooled a little with his tongue sticking out— feral instincts also taking over. Moon leaned down face to face— just inches apart. Her freezing cold breath sprayed all over his face, and her eyes burned almost like the sun.

“MINE!” Moon called out. She then smashed her face against Strawberry’s. Their lips locked closely— her tongue lapping up all around the sides of his mouth. He tasted his own blood upon her teeth. The unicorn trembled from head to hoof at the inky black magical feelings that poured into him.

Their heads turned back and forth as they went at each other. Jolt after jolt seemed to pulse into Strawberry until he thought he would be electrocuted. Not a moment had passed until she had poured her tongue right down and almost gone into his throat. She nudged her boots around and, then, their hooves grasped each other tightly.

They shifted their mouths up and down, left and right, and all around— again and again. As they bumped up against each other once again, Moon felt to him like a shimmering, depthless pool that he waded into further and further as well as deeper and deeper. Time seemed meaningless.

Moon nudged her body upwards and closer— going from pinning him down to a full and total embrace. They kept on kissing. Her wings flapped as their hooves migrated around each other’s bodies. She felt so muscular, so fit, so taught, and yet also so inviting to his every touch. He felt so soft, so fluffy, so frizzy, and yet so incredibly warm to her every touch. She kicked against the rug with her right hoof, and then she accidentally pushed her body down— pressing her stomach upon the throbbing between his legs.

Strawberry banged his hooves in pleasure. They then suddenly stopped making out. He hesitated a moment. He then leaned over and kissed her neck. She let out a delicate squeal, closing her eyes. He nestled his hooves into her dress and nudged it over.

He kissed all over her neck and then— moving slowly down— all around her chest. She felt his slurping, his licking, and all of his wetness soaking into her quivering skin. She couldn’t believe how badly she missed it— how badly she now wanted that stallion’s touch.

The alicorn opened her eyes, and she saw him shifting his hooves over to her breasts.  She cooed again at his motions. She leaned over to bury her face in his wonderful, soft mane. He panted a little as he nudged around his hooves— pushing her breasts together. She’s so… so… perky here, so hard… He slinked his body a bit lower. He slurped loudly along her thighs— her pretty dress brushing all over his face once again.

She wiggled around in clear pleasure. She then let out an animal growl. Moon sounded so loud that she startled Strawberry, and he shifted himself off of her— looking at her face. Her teeth had come back out, and her eyes shone as fierce as ever. The alicorn leaned back a few feet off of Strawberry.

“Care to take something off?” Moon asked in that booming voice of the full midnight. She rubbed at her dress with her front right hoof.

Strawberry laid back, stunned. He mouthed, “I-i-f… y-you… c-could k-k-keep it on… J-just… s-s-slide it…” He had to force out the last word. “O-o-over?”

The alicorn threw her head back, and she laughed. Black energy shot out of her horn and her mane bounced in the air. Strawberry felt petrified. He suddenly found himself enveloped in her aura. In a split-second, Moon magically bucked him backwards and to his side. He landed on the end of the bed with a soft poof.

Before he could even think, something huge, black, and wet shoved right into his face. He gasped for air for a second and then Moon nudged a few inches forward. He realized that she had turned him over and knocked him flat on his back face up… with her plot shoved into him.

“Over,” she commanded in that vengeful goddess voice. The unicorn flinched. The end of her dress dripped something onto his chest. Oh… oh… OH!

Strawberry nestled his face forward into her dress and slid it a few inches to the side. He gazed at her beautiful slit— by now, completely drenched. He focused with the intensity of a starving pony coming upon a buffet. Black… grey… pink inside… His heart had just lost it— beating so crazy. Come on, then. Now or never!

He gave her a huge lick, and she rewarded him with the deep moan that he wanted. The unicorn pressed himself a little deeper. He kept licking upwards over and over. He then switched to licking downwards. Moon let out little noises of joy at every touch.

He paused, and then he buried his face in completely. He slurped up and down, left and right, and then in a zigzag that made her drips flow into his mouth. The unicorn went on— swapping around moves— as the hunger between his legs grew and grew. He moved up his front hooves to hold her plot even closer.

Moon suddenly let out another laugh. He paused, and then he felt the edges of her boots rubbing around his cock. He moaned a little and twitched from his waist down. The alicorn shoved her body backwards— demanding for him to keep going on her backside. He continued slurping, and the touches continued as well.

A sudden shock went into him. It felt a tiny bit painful, but also pleasurable in a very weird sort of way. He licked just as before. He strained to think, but his mind stayed blank. He felt something very cold and very fluttery going around his cock. Little tingles erupted from the base around to the head.

This is… isn’t… what I… think it… is… Strawberry screamed out in a mixture of joy and terror as a dozen sparks of concentrated magic shot between his legs. He moved out of Moon’s plot and gasped over and over again. So wet, so cold, so sharp, so weird, so wet, so tingly, so coarse, so wet— the sparks, the magic, the coarse— SO WEEEEET! The alicorn fed him a few more magical shocks. He yelled out at every one involuntarily— his nerves made him as helpless as a pet. Her pet…

Some kind of thick foggy cloud had formed around his cock, and it pulsed with dozens upon dozens of tingly magical sparks. The mysterious thing tightened around. The stimulation seemed… unbelievable. On top of that, the alicorn’s little, satisfied moans as she focused her magic onto Strawberry’s cock made him just want to go crazy. He gave up licking her, and he strained simply to breathe.

“M-m-m-m-m-moooooon…” Strawberry croaked. She stopped holding black, and the magical intensity kept building. “I-I-I-I’m g-g-g-going…” His face contorted. His mane— soaked in her juices— rubbed all over his eyes and his face. “T-to… I’m… CLOSE… to… C-c-uuum…”

“YOU’RE KIDDING?” Moon yelled out. She stepped back part of herself above him onto the bed. “YOU’RE KIDDING, RIGHT?” Her voice boomed so much the stars had to hear her.

“I… I… I…” the unicorn stammered. He felt a sloppy magical kind of kiss at the end of his cock, and then the sensations stopped. He watched— no idea what to think— as Moon stepped completely over him back onto the bed. She slumped over onto the sheets, and she put her hooves back into the air.

“Strawwwwwwberry…” Moon moaned. The unicorn slowly turned himself around— perched on the end of the bed. Strawberry’s eyes stared right between the alicorn’s legs. She poured so wet that the sheets below her began to soak.

“W-w -we’re r-really g-going…” Strawberry muttered, feeling overcome with the emotions, “To… d-do…” The alicorn slinked herself a few feet down— positioning herself just inches in front of him. He stood up and extended over the bed. He couldn’t describe the hunger and the throbbing. Moon put her hooves on his chest, motioning wordlessly to him to get started.

Strawberry lined their bodies up, and then he held her tightly. He gazed lovingly at her gorgeous face and every inch of her perfect body. He closed his eyes.

Thrust.

The unicorn felt shudders all over his body. His heart raced even faster than before, which seemed totally unbelievable to him. It all just felt like so much— like just too much. He was so warm and so tense. She was so cold, so wet, and so slippery. He nestled himself deeper— little push by little push— and every slight movement pulsed the ecstasy through him.

“I… I l-l-love y-you…” Strawberry screamed.

That was it. Pressed in as deep as he could go, he paused. Strawberry then couldn’t keep the tears from flowing out. He buckled down slightly— pushing his body onto hers and rubbing her all over with his hooves. The unicorn whined. So many deep, powerful feelings flashed inside his head that he felt as if he had entered a whole other world.

Strawberry made an animal moan, and his tears dripped down onto Moon’s neck. He dug his hooves deep into the sheets besides them. “It’s… s-s-so g-g-good…” He bit his teeth into his lip.

The alicorn reached around with her hooves, and she pulled him in body to body. His soft, light pink mane fluttered against her hard, cold inky black skin. Moon met eye to eye with Strawberry, who had his mouth totally open.

“MINE,” she mouthed. She kept her gigantic smile. Her horn rubbed against the side of Strawberry’s head.

Overcome with raw animal instinct, Strawberry braced himself and pulled out slowly. He halted about halfway— feeling so much concentrated pleasure that he moaned uncontrollably. He pumped back inside in a matter of seconds. He grinded up and down, and then he pumped again. He kept pumping faster and faster.

Strawberry’s teeth ground against his lips, and his tears kept flowing. “Moon! Moon, Moon, Moon, Moon, Moon, Moon, Moon, Moon, Moon, Moon, Moon,” the unicorn cried out repeatedly. He sounded ever more like a metronome. The surges of pleasure kept building up and up like a shooting star through the midnight sky.

He suddenly opened his eyes, jumped a bit forward, and grabbed the alicorn by her shoulders. Her smile grew wider— wider than Strawberry had ever seen before. “M-M-MAY… I… I…” He squeaked.

Moon suddenly stuck out her bottom hooves and wrapped them around Strawberry’s back. She pressed him in— held tight as a lock. Y-Y-YES!

Suddenly, Strawberry felt a searing pulse shoot through him. He let out a huge whinny. The rush moved straight through his body and set off a torrent of explosions across every last inch of his body. It all tore his insides to shreds from the pure, prefect pleasure. He had a thick blue magical light explode in front of him— almost like standing at the surface of the sun. Strawberry’s back hooves dug into the sheets— ripping them.

For a moment, the whole universe seemed to have come to an end. Then, he bumped himself upwards and nudged himself over. He promptly fell down into her tender embrace. His eyes tightly closed again.

After lying in place for a while, Strawberry moved slowly off of her. Moon panted softly— her eyes focused directly on his face. He stepped a little bit over. He watched as a thick white trail dripped off of him and stretched back into her inky black plot— with her tail wrapped finely around her leg.

Moon noticed the huge, deep bite mark that she had gave him on the side of his neck. She cocked her head over, and she cooed, “Looks like you got your cutie mark.”

Strawberry felt as if he had been totally paralyzed except for one small but very important part of him. He rolled over on the bed besides her facing up. The alicorn leaned up a bit, and then she intently eyed the throbbing that still went on between his legs. Somehow he seemed… even more willing than before.

“So,” she murmured, and she moved herself up until she sat right on the bed. Oh, oh… my goodness… Strawberry felt the oddest combination of fear, exhaustion, and feral instinct. Oh… what am I… The latter feeling took over, and he braced himself a bit forward.

Moon shifted her head over seductively. She continued, “Another… round…”

Strawberry could barely move. Yet he pulled himself together. He felt so full from his love for the wondrous being besides him— so cared for and so happy. He girded himself, and then he slowly nodded.

“HA, HA! THE FUN HAS JUST BEEN DOUBLED!”

Sweet Dreams (Ending I, Part B)

The alicorn got up and stood atop of the bed. Strawberry gawked at her from a few feet underneath. He panted hard, and his frizzy hair spread all across his face and under as well as over his glasses. He strained to keep himself in the mood, and he— somehow— pulled it off. My, my, my… Still ready? Moon licked her lips in anticipation. This kid is… perfect! She gazed across his body for a moment. And he’s, he’s… adorable…

Her heart had changed. It changed for good; she knew it. The old Nightmare Moon that had tortured the mane six into submission was nothing more than history. At the same time, she still had the full nature of the Nightmare— those powers, those abilities, and those needs. She moved herself a little closer to him as he laid there prostrate. Oh, Strawberry… The couple of bite marks, the black and blue on those hooves, and you can barely breathe…

“M-moon,” Strawberry said, and he shifted around. Not only did he seem still just as needy, but what stood between his legs seemed even harder, even more throbbing, and even longer than before. He seemed to quiver in anticipation.

“Yes?” the alicon asked back in a soft tone.

“Moooon,” he muttered, moving her head until their eyes were right at each other looking face to face, “C-can you… I’m s-sorry… ‘Retake the l-lead’ this t-time…”

Moon calmly, with every move measured and delicate, pushed him down on his back. His cock stuck upwards, pulsing in the air. She nestled herself right on his lap— his cock right in front.

“Strawberry!” Moon called out in a suddenly authoritative voice— bringing back the booming voice with the snobby regal tone. She loved Strawberry’s shocked and surprised expression. “What is this! How can you possibly need to go again! AGAIN!”

“Ahhh…” the unicorn stammered. His face had a torrent of emotions.

“Oh darling, it seems that you can be simply impossible sometimes. Why is it that fate has given such a dignified pony such a pervert for a date?” Moon asked, and she nudged herself closer, “Well, my dear, for you to be so brash and so self-assured to force yourself upon your date is disgraceful!”

Her mischievous grin went back to stretching from cheek to cheek as she shifted herself on top of him. Strawberry wiggled a bit in the sheets wordlessly. He then kicked out with his bottom hooves.

“For you to then challenge your most exalted princess with such improper positions…” she said as she pressed down, letting just his head enter.

Strawberry moaned. Moon leaned a bit down. She then rubbed his chest with her hooves.

“For you to deposit your filthy seed inside of her despite her protests…” she said.

Another press followed. Then, a louder moan sounded. Oh, wow…

“And, then, finally, for you to have the nerve to ask her to pleasure you for a SECOND TIME… You. Are. UNBELIEVABLE!” Moon screamed— pointing out her wings and glowing her horn with the full magic of the Nightmare. She thrust herself totally downward, smacking their bodies together. Strawberry howled.

“So, my dear, it’s time for punishment!” Moon remarked. She grinded herself left and right, feeling the pulses of pleasure shooing through him, and she tightly clutched his hooves. “It’s time for you to learn your proper place, and how to treat a proper, respectable princess!” She ground up and down. Then, she totally rose ever so slightly only to plunge back down. Strawberry made such huge gasps and twisted himself into such an energetic, hungry face.

Their eyes locked. Moon’s softer, more tender impulses started flooding into her again, and she tenderly rubbed his mane out of his face. Strawberry tried to speak but could only moan in approval.

“Oh sweetie, you look so needy,” she cried out, digging her hooves deep into his belly, “I suppose it’s just natural for a gracious pony such as ourselves to relieve you…” Of course, she knew her own needs had to exceed his— several hundreds of years of built up pressure made her heart pop like a champagne cork.

Oh my goodness! Just incredible! Just amazing! Moon let out a soft whine, and then she flipped her head back and forth. The constant driving, pounding, and thrusting drove part of her out of her mind. The sheer love in his face— his eyes, his expression, his pants, and everything else— made it feel a thousand times better. Deep inside those huge, pretty eyes was a shelter that she’d never known— that she’d also probably never find again.

Every little bit of his throbbing cock nestled all inside of her. The pounding rhythm shot waves of electricity through her womb out into every inch of her. She could even feel it in the top of her horn, which she knew shone like it would just erupt. His poofy pink mane and tail curled around in her hooves like cotton candy— drawing them even closer— and she couldn’t imagine ever leaving his side.

All of the touching inside me… All the touching— touching— touching— touching— touching— with his cock and all of the rubbing… That pure stimulation… The tingly feelings… It’s all blowing up… It’s just… She felt like her brains would melt right out of her skull. “Oh, Strawberry, oh please, don’t you dare stop. Don’t you dare stop for one second,” Moon moaned.

The unicorn braced himself— unprepared for the surge of emotions. Moon felt everything building and building once again inside of Strawberry. She felt him somehow growing inside of her. She nestled him inside her so snugly and so tightly. It seemed like she was sucking him in. So… fantastic…

Everything felt perfect to Moon. Their rhythms locked totally in sync. She knew that she was just so snug and so wet as well as yet so soft and tender for him. For him… She gave him something like millions upon millions of little kisses all up and down and around his cock— making him hard as a diamond.

“So, my dear, how does it feel?” Moon screeched between gasps, pumping down harder now, “How does it feel to be with the fairest pony in all of Equestria? How does it feel to be given the greatest honor you could ever have? How does it feel to be the best, prettiest, softest, and most elegant creature you could lay your eyes on?” Oh, I’m such a spoiled royal brat!

Strawberry could only give a guttural scream of approval. Oh, that was it. She started clenching up. She wanted to milk him… hard. She wanted every last single drop that could come out of him. He twisted around and clenched his hooves on her chest. Her mind felt like it was detached, about to be sent to paradise.

The unicorn enjoyed it every little bit as much. “Yes! I love it! The cutest, prettiest, softest, nicest, best- better than Celestia! Better than anypony ever. Ever! I love you! I LOVE YOU! ONLY YOU!” Strawberry cried out. Moon somehow was able to milk him even harder, even tighter. The tightness is unbelievable… One last final squeeze… She pressed down as deeply as possible— knowing that she had gotten him lined up straight into her womb.

Pulse.

Strawberry just melted inside of her— pouring all of his hot, sticky, white cream inside of her love tunnel. Time stood still. They both felt as if their lives had then become complete. Their hearts told them that some great unbalance had been corrected.

Their screams filled the entire room.Their hooves smacked tightly in each other’s chest— with their manes, their tails, and their everything else completely intertwined. Strawberry frantically gasped for breath as he just could not stop going inside her.

Moon seemed to purr, a look of pure satisfaction on her delicate, beautiful face. Strawberry seemed empty— or at least somewhere close to being empty— as if body had deflated. The alicorn tried to calm her breath, and she saw that he had erupted in some kind of magical torrent that even scarred the walls.

The unicorn slowly pulled out once again. He gazed lovingly all over her body and panted hard— looking as if he was about to collapse. Moon felt as if her mind had just been wiped clean, and she had the sense that it would be a while until she recovered. She picked herself up off of him— only to find him grabbing her back downward and holding her to his side again.

Strawberry pressed hard on her chest with his hooves. He looked so cute to her in his own delicate way with his strained face. She noticed once again her bite marks across his neck, his bruised hooves, and— now— a black magical smudge of some kind burned onto his chin. Those are… She giggled. Trophies...

She looked into his eyes, perfectly glazed over with continued pleasure, and the she glanced down to see his cock still throbbing and pulsing. As he took his huge breaths in and out, with his face starting back towards her chest, he tilted up his cock— the semen trail oozing off the end.

“What… AGAIN!” Moon cried in a defeated voice. A wave of small thoughts scribbled through her mind that she couldn’t quite put into words. “Wow! Just… what is it going to take to get you satisfied?” And get me… satisfied as well… Good boy! Nice stamina!

“Moon,” he muttered. He moving his hooves up and gently pulled her down. “Moon…” They were then about face to face. “C-can I, please… c-can I…”

“Oh my dear, you can just tell me whatever on earth it is,” the alicorn said, feeling exasperated but with some curiousity still shining through. “We’re too far into this for us to say ‘no’!” She gave a gentle little laugh while shifting her body up. Her hooves kept on holding his.

“Can I use your mouth please?” Strawberry said, moving her body down as he spoke until she was standing flat on the floor— his still hungry cock pointed right at her beautiful face.

“Well, it’s not exactly,” she said picking up the shaft with her right hoof, “My dear, the most ladylike of positions but…” She softly licked up the shaft like an ice cream, and then she kissed the head tenderly. By now, I suppose I shouldn’t expect it to taste like strawberries… Oh, well… “I suppose that it will do for now. If that’s what you really want, Strawberry.”

She began kissing the end over and over again as she rubbed the shaft delicately with her hoof. Her tongue slurped around— little bit by little bit. The very un-ladylike slurping and wet smacking noises irritated her. Like I’m gorging myself on cake while nopony is watching, I suppose… Such vulgar sounds!

To her sudden surprise, Strawberry grabbed her head with his hooves. She was terrified for a moment, fearing that undignified plunging motion sure to come with his cock shoved down her throat. But no… He held her body tightly, and he moved his cock out of her mouth. He also had his face buried totally inside her unkempt hair. Blue and pink…

She noticed him almost… cooing. He then moaned faintly. “Moon,” he said, this time with a lot of courage in his voice as if he was finally turning from a youngster to a full-fledged stallion, “I want to use your mane.”

“You… you… what? What!” Moon called out, trying to bring out her feelings of indignity in her voice. Yet she sounded more… neutral. My wonderful, delicate, soft black and blue hair… How could he, no wait— WHY would he ask for such a thing? As Strawberry stared blankly at her face, she stopped herself.

Moon then let out a faint chuckle. It’s a bit late to back out now, isn’t it? Not when I’m given him everything else I could give, not when it’s him… Sure, it’s something I’d never let any pony do. Yet what does it matter since he’s far from just ‘any pony?  I can’t believe it but, I just feel like… I can’t say no, not to him. She took a breath. We might as well be the only horses in the whole world. Why not? It could be fun.

“Yes,” the alicorn announced suddenly, and she obligingly lowered her head. She had such strange sensations with such strange emotions layered on top.

“Moon, oh Moon, yes, yes, please, oh my goodness, oh my, Moon…” Strawberry eked out as he rubbed his stiff cock along her hairline. He then moved softly into place. Moon could see her delicate mane wrapped so oddly around his lower body— with his cock poking out of a thick tuft.

Strawberry rubbed up, he rubbed down, and then he rubbed around any direction he could think of. It was like nothing Moon could describe. Such a pure pleasure, such an odd pleasure… Such tingly feelings, such little explosions of pleasure going off at once… She felt surprised at herself.

The unicorn clearly loved it. He looked at the end of his tether and about to collapse from joy at any minute. Moon gave him all of these simultaneous touches— all these little massages taking place over every last bit of his cock. Then, the slow, steely emotional rise building up inside Strawberry’s body suddenly flared up.

“That’s it! I’m g-going to g-go again!” Strawberry cried out. It was a little less loud than the two times before, but he had with a finality and passion Moon hadn’t heard before. She quickly looked up, and she watched as the sticky white streaks shot through her mane. She felt so dirty, so used, and so abused by him. Oh, oh my goodness, how disgusting! Yet the tingly magical sensation felt so… satisfying.

Moon looked back at Strawberry only to see him keel over and collapse onto the soft rug under them. He seemed to strain to even hold his eyes open. He squeaked out, “I love… you…”

The alicorn nestled her head and front hooves next to him. “Of course, I love you too, Strawberry,” she whispered to him. He gazed back at her. He looked so happy and yet still so vulnerable almost like a foal again. Moon leaned over a little closer. She brushed the hair out of his eyes with her magic.

“You’ll always…” Moon told him, “Be my… Prince.”

He stirred a little bit. He forced his eyes open, and then he gazed back into Moon's own eyes in a way that he had never before. Their minds seemed to link as if they would never really be separated every again. Strawberry said back, "Prince..." He opened his smile even wider. "Doesn't that mean you'd be... marrying me..."

Although she didn't respond in words, she leaned over and rubbed her head against the unicorn's in a way that conveyed... so much more than words. She also magically picked off his glasses delicately, folded them up, and rested them against his chest like some kind of token. The silent embrace happened as... something happened to her. She didn't quite realize what it was, but she almost felt the same sensation as back when the six ponies had whacked her with the elements of harmony.

Yet that moment back then felt extremely painful. The magical wash that went over her from her head to her hooves after accepting Strawberry as her Prince felt... happy. Complete. That's... that's... Well, just forget it, at least for now. The unicorn had reacted to her charms perfectly. She could see this feeling of warmth going through his soul as he nodded off completely.

Moon took a deep breath, and then she activated her magic once again. For a second, nothing at all happened. Moon, a little annoyed, jiggled her head and tried to concentrate with all of her strength. Her horn then glowed.

The illusion spell immediately faded. The unicorn and the alicorn found themselves back in the middle of her old Canterlot bedroom. Moon took two steps towards the window, but she stopped. She had a peculiar kind of feeling— something almost like a premonition. She leaned over and rested her head upon the bed for a moment.

The alicorn glanced at her front hooves. Some kind of greyish light, almost like smoke, emanated from the tips of her hooves. The illusion spell… It worked! Didn’t it? What’s wrong? Although she felt ready to fall asleep at any moment, she hopped up and then paced around the room. No… It had nothing to do with the room. It was her.

“It’s… it’s…” she stammered. She realized that something had been lost. Some kind of magical… Ability? Power? She didn’t know what to think since she didn’t feel weaker. In fact, she felt stronger than ever. “It’s just the… the…” She searched her mind, but it only wanted to sleep. Like I just lost… Like I just overturned every last spell I’ve cast in my entire life… I can’t believe it. She headed back towards the door.

“Maybe we should do—” Moon began. She then collapsed upon the bedroom floor beside Strawberry. “Something…” Her eyes snuggled down, and she immediately drifted off into sleep.

=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=

The rays of sunlight aimed right down through the trees and aqueducts straight into the open window and then straight into Strawberry’s closed eyes. He somehow managed to fight it off, subconsciously, for a while. Yet his old enemy persisted, and finally he jerked out of sleep. He made a sweeping scowl.

For a little while, he managed to rest his hooves in front of him and hold the light off. It almost burned straight through his skin. He nudged himself a little bit over— holding onto the smooth body of the alicorn besides him. He held out for a few seconds, but then he just couldn’t take it.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!” Strawberry shouted out, thrusting his hooves into the air. He bounced up and stood on the bed. “WHY does it have to be EVERY blasted day!” I’d better not have another stupid migraine happening… He fumbled around for his glasses.

The unicorn picked them up and blinked repeatedly. I wonder how many baking orders we have today. He stretched himself. Ah, just another stupid day in the stupid… sun… He froze.

“SUN!” Strawberry yelled. He sped over to the window and leaned out. He saw bluebirds in the trees, dogs and cats wandering about on the sidewalks, and— far off into the distance— unicorns trotting inside the massive buildings. He made the mistake of staring straight up into the sun for a split-second.

After letting out a little squeal of pain and rubbing the floating red blobs out of his vision, Strawberry stepped back to where he had been sleeping. The black blanket had been tossed off the bed and then laid all across his date. The unicorn reached over and pulled it off. He gasped.

Nightmare Moon was no more. In her place, he saw a shorter, lighter, bluer, and much happier looking alicorn. The battle gear and the bridal like wear had both disappeared. She looked so different. Yet Strawberry still saw what his heart had seen before. The night… the beauty of every last night… All of that wonder, that elegance, and that love boiled down into one pony.

She remained fast asleep. Strawberry leaned over close. But is it really… her? He brushed a little bit of her mane out of her face. She stirred… but just a little. Yes. He knew deep inside that it had to be. “L-luna…” he whispered.

Strawberry got back up. But… But… But… The night? The elements of harmony? The throne? The castle? What’s going on! He twirled around in place— having no idea where to even begin. He glanced over at the window, and then he took a few steps over.

Surly, you’re not going to jump out the window, are you— moron?  He stopped. He turned around and jumped over towards the bedroom door. He bumped into something tall, taught, and white. The unicorn found himself back on the floor, and he rubbed his face. He then looked back up.

“C-c-celestia…” he muttered.

“Nice to meet you, Strawberry,” the alicorn said. She stepped over besides her sister. She leaned down and eyed the sleeping pony silently. Strawberry had only ever seen one other pony that looked more beautiful. Celestia’s mane reflected in the sunlight and seemed to turn the light into something else— something that felt warm and motherly.

“H-how did y-you…” Strawberry tried to squeak out. Terror coursed through his veins, although Celestia’s expression looked… amused if anything.

Celestia turned her head back towards Strawberry. She tried to suppress a giggle. “Perhaps… You have forgotten that we live here…” she said.

“Y-you… here… to… will…” he babbled. He pictured her skewering him with her horn, slicing him in half with her hooves, or picking him up and magically blasting him into the nearest aqueduct.

“It is time to restore justice for my sister,” Celestia replied. She had a flat expression. Her sheer magical power made Strawberry ache at her very presence, but she held herself back.

Strawberry shivered with intense fear— so strong that he could barely stand up. He still picked himself up and shifted his body over. He stood right in between the two sisters— sheltering Luna’s body with his. He managed, despite how he almost wanted to collapse, to flatten his face with silent determination.

Celestia made a slight smile. “A gentlecolt…” she said, “Well, it is clear what she saw in you…” She paused, and then she stepped a little bit away. “Oh, Strawberry, you have completely misunderstood what we meant.”

Strawberry’s mouth moved, but no words came out.

“It is time to restore justice,” Celestia began, “By having the two of us take our rightful place as we rule together.”

Strawberry said nothing. Emotions scrambled up all inside him. He felt like a bag of popcorn with little things bursting left and right. He opened his mouth, and then he silently started to cry.

“Strawberry…” Celestia began.

“The elements of harmony… the sun… the everything…” the unicorn muttered, “Why didn’t it… work… what happened.” He tried and failed to force the tears back.

“The elements worked,” Celestia said, and she put on a motherly tone, “They just happened to be… shall we say… incomplete.” She hesitated, searching for the right words. "There has never been a specific element of... love."

“And…” Strawberry murmured— still barely able to speak.

“All of six ponies are fine, Strawberry. You should not keep worrying. More than fine, actually, one must say that they look… ‘Overjoyed’ is the right word,” Celestia went on, “Strawberry, you need to know right now that we only came here to tell you one thing.”

“What?”

“Thank you.”

Strawberry would have grinned. He would have stood up tall and proud. He would have even tried to give Celestia a happy hug. He would have done all of those things if she didn't say something devastating next.

"There is also... something else about my you and sister," the white alicorn said. She tried to maintain composure, yet her mane drooped a bit and her legs seemed to almost shrink a little as well.

"Else..." the unicorn muttered. His heart seemed to crumble up like a raisin.

"It... will not happen," Celestia said. She didn't have to explain much further. On the one hoof, Strawberry remained still as a statue and had the same empty, blank expression. On the other hoof, he screamed his lungs out in the inside. "The rules about... about..." She tried to remain as cordial as possible. "Cross-contamination of the central royal bloodline are quite clear. That is not to mention the horrible scandal that would ensue. It is bad enough with what has already happened..."

The unicorn barely listened. His heart seemed to have dropped out of his body and fell straight into the center of the earth. Celestia finished her little speech, and then he finally exploded in tears.

=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=

All in all, it had felt like a pretty crummy day. “Sure,” Strawberry whispered under his breath to himself, “Everypony likes a good celebration. But it’s not really a ‘celebration’ if it doesn’t end… If it drags on and on and… ooonnn…” He had finished the last of the cupcake orders, at least.

The unicorn had a fleeting moment to lean out the window and relax— until Mrs. Cake screeched at him again. He glanced about at the other ponies going about on the main street. None of them paid any attention to him. Story of my life… He crinkled up his empty cup and hurled it into the trash can below.

He went to head back to the kitchen, but then a soft voice came out from outside the window. The unicorn popped out. He saw a familiar looking bright yellow pegasus.

She shifted back a little at Strawberry’s stare, which he hadn’t intended to look so intense. “Oh… ah… I didn’t want to be a bother of course, and I didn’t want to pry…” Fluttershy said. The unicorn put on a smile, although it looked pretty fake. “Goodness knows, we’ve all talk… talked… about everything… I just… wanted to ask you something.”

“Sure,” he said, trying to force himself to be cheerful.

“What happened to… give you what’s… on your neck…” she squeaked out. Her tender, caring eyes looked all about him. “Oh… I would just hope that Nurse Redheart could do something… If you needed any help, just let me know… Please.”

“Thanks,” he replied. He rubbed himself a little bit. “It was just a nasty incident over in Everfree Forest. It happened as I headed over to that new castle. Some nasty creatures took some bites out of me. No worries. I’m feeling pretty fine now.”

“Oh, that’s great… It’s wonderful to see you’re alright…” Fluttershy said back. She started to step away. “I know. It’s always important to be careful of those awful black creatures of the night.”

Strawberry made a huge grin to which the pegasus titled her head at in surprise. She opened her mouth to say something else, but then she walked back away towards the town square. The unicorn chased after her with his eyes, and then he leaned back out of the window.

He made the same familiar path down the corridor towards the stairwell. He heard some commotion behind the side door behind him. Strawberry paused, and then he popped the door open. He didn’t see a thing except the empty street. He then took a look straight down, and he noticed a large package.

“Hey, Mrs. Ca—” he shouted, and then he suddenly stopped. Hey, it’s for me! “Oh, nevermind!” He picked the package back up and walked over to the sitting room. Hmm… there’s no return address…

Strawberry stepped in, took a seat on the gigantic couch, and he opened it up. He saw a flowerpot filled with Evening Stars. He stuck his nose in and inhaled the beautiful aroma. They also had gone into full bloom, and he gazed at the layers of petals upon petals.

He got up— glancing around for a perpetually dark spot to place the delicate flowers. On his second step, he heard something flutter off of his lap onto the floor. He picked it up with his magic.

“You are cordially invited,” the unicorn read aloud. He flipped it around, and he didn’t see anything else— no stamp, no nothing. He carefully slid the envelope open with his horn. He then saw a small piece of pinkish colored paper drawn on with some combination of crayon and colored pencil.

On one side, somepony had created a beautiful scene. A tall, proud set of trees stood around a shimmering lake with dozens of bright stars reflected on it. Below that, various mossy trunks decorated a pretty, peaceful-looking grassy clearing. The unicorn squinted, and then he saw a little spot of the lake with a bit of writing. It read ‘Tonight’.

He turned the paper around, and then he gazed at the other page. He took a breath. He then plopped back on the couch— overcome with emotion from what he saw.

A little bit of fancy looking writing decorated the bottom of the page. It had been underlined time and time again for emphasis. It read: 'Let's just keep it between the two of us'. The beautiful image above couldn't make it any more clear.

A massive gray moon glowed with stark, bluish white light and had been coated from top to bottom, side to side with hundreds of bright red… strawberries.

The End

Derpy Saves The Day (Ending II)

“Nightmare…” Strawberry repeated. He shut his mouth and took a gulp. He forced himself to quit jiggling in place for a second, and he managed to find some inner strength to steel himself. “My Nightmare…” He held his right hoof up in the air, and he made contact with the door. His hoof still wouldn’t stop wobbling. My love… My Princess. He pushed forwards, and then the doors opened.

He saw a massive room with cold, lonely looking metallic walls. Some kind of gigantic mechanical device with knob after knob, dial after dial, slider after silder, and goodness knows what else pasted onto it. Strawberry— totally confused— wandered into the room.

“H-h-hello,” he called out.

“Pleased to meet you,” a voice called out behind him.

Strawberry made a nervous squeak, and then he spun around. He saw that the doors that had been behind him had vanished. A confident looking greyish unicorn with a scruffy brown mane stood in that place. Strawberry’s eyes focused on the unicorn’s big red bow-tie for a bit, and then he moved other to see the cutie mark— an hourglass symbol.

“Doctor Whooves,” the greyish brown unicorn said. He extended a hoof.

“Strawberry Dawn,” Strawberry replied. They shook hooves, and then the Doctor sped over to fiddle with the enormous device. “Uh… sir…”

“Oh, goodness… It would be nice enough if for once— just once— the TARDIS would pick a world with magic and then decide to convert everything around to magic. Alas, I’m just going to have to interface everything,” Whooves said as he stuck his head into a massive box of cables, “And— of course— I shouldn’t complain.” He waved his arms around in mock annoyance. “I should never complain, anyways. But I especially shouldn’t complain if I wake up to find my whole mechanical and electronic set-up working the same way in a new world.”

“That’s…” Strawberry searched for words, “Nice… But I need to find… Nightmare Moon.”

“Oh, I’m dreadfully sorry,” Whooves said, and he popped his head out of the box to give Strawberry a friendly look, “I should have explained. It’s the Heisenberg compensators. They’ve popped about here, there, and every which where. I suppose you’d have quite a shock.”

Strawberry started back wordlessly.

“I’m glad that you’re holding up so well,” Whooves went on, and he tapped Strawberry’s side with his front right hoof.
“Heisenberg compensators… Wonderful things, in their proper use, of course… But then again, I suppose it’s no different than the electricity that powers your life’s conveniences on the inside being the same electricity that would sent you right to the hospital on the outside. Life is so, so… reflective that way…”

“But… where’s… Moon?”

“Due time, my new friend, due time…”

“That time is now.” Strawberry put a hoof on Whooves’ side, and he made a very determined look.

The greyish brown unicorn frowned. “I know that this won’t mean much to you but, well, here goes: The Master has decided to bathe your planet in Heisenberg compensators in an artificial meteor shower. For the life of me, I don’t know why he decided to pick on… here… the ponies here, of all the places in the universe… Anyways, the shower had had its desired effect. If you were to look out a window, you’d little portal-like things, little bumps in gravity, little radient bulbs of sheer magnetism, and goodness knows what else flying about the air.”

“Nice… lecture…”

Whooves paced around the center of the TARDIS for a moment. “I don’t expect you— pardon my frankness— to understand me. I just expect you to…” They locked eyes. “To, well, belieeeeeeeeee—”

Strawberry suddenly found himself looking at thin air. He blinked. He then sped over and came across some kind of mysterious pony-sized bottomless hole in the middle of the floor.

“HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!”

The unicorn stood back up. He glanced all around for the source of the laughter. He didn’t see a thing. He heard a chuckle, and then Strawberry thrust his head up. Another unicorn— with a sold bright blue body, Whooves’ same cutie mark, and a ridiculous looking gigantic beard, mustache, and poofy mane— swung from a broken metal beam on the ceiling.

“Are you scared, mere mortal?” the blue unicorn asked. He let out a huge laugh once again. He let go, and he landed right beside Strawberry with a big ‘thud’. He bounced upwards, totally unharmed by the drop. “Scared? At how I, the Master, trapped the Doctor so— so— easily?”

“To be honest, no,” Strawberry replied.

The Master halted. He then put on a pained expression. “You’re… you’re telling the truth? I… I…”

“If it makes you feel any better, I only first heard of the Doctor about, eh, one exact minute ago,” Strawberry said.

“Ahhhh…” The Master replied. He then scrawled. “You… you… sodding Americans.” He lowered his voice. “I wonder if you’ve ever even heard of BBC America… or ever even covered the classics like Fawlty Towers or Yes, Minster…” His grousing stopped as the lights went out. The two unicorns stood motionlessly in the solid black darkness. They then heard a loud pounding sound.

“Blast!” The Master exclaimed. He fumbled about in the dark. “That couldn’t be… be… the energy shield… MY energy shield…” Freezing cold wind then burst through the TARDIS. The unicorns strained to keep themselves from being knocked over.

“No, no, no, no,” Strawberry moaned to himself, feeling the wind build and clinging onto some metal bar in front of him. He felt his back hooves dangle in the air. “Nooooo… Mooooooooooon!” He slipped and fell into nothingness.

Some indeterminate amount of time passed. Strawberry had a soft, fluffy sensation. He then woke up atop that familiar rug that he had saw in Moon’s bedroom. He popped upwards, but his heart sank. He was totally alone. He wandered over towards the window. He looked out, and all he saw was some kind of thick pink wetness— almost like solid pudding. He stuck out his hooves and took a glob.

“Heisenberg compensators taste like… like…” he muttered, “Cotton candy?”

*SMASH*

Strawberry wobbled in place and then keeled over. Some gigantic grey something— almost like a gigantic hoof— had punched through the solid goop and then right through the window. The mysterious pink substance sprayed all over the room. Strawberry laid back for a moment in a total daze.

“You… you…” said an angry voice.

Strawberry stood back up, and he walked over to the window. He saw… Derpy. The grey pegasus stood, for whatever reason, about the size of a few buildings stacked on top of each other. Although she looked a bit like a gigantic monster, she had a rather happy expression. Strawberry looked over, and he saw a very whitish-purple unicorn sitting on Derpy’s shoulder. The unicorn had a flamboyant poofy dark purple mane with a cream colored suit and a sparkly lapel… as well as seething expression.

“I have a bone to pick with you… Strawberry…” the unicorn called out, and he put a lot of venom into that name.
“How do you know my name?” Strawberry asked.

“It’s me, Raspberry, Raspberry Star,” the unicorn said. He seemed rather proud of himself just for existing.

“I’m Strawberry Dawn… So, uh… pleased to… meet… you?” Strawberry asked, “And what exactly happened to… Derpy…”

“That’s… immaterial!” Raspberry yelled, “The point is you. It’s all your fault. YOUR FAULT!” Strawberry slinked back towards the bed away from the window. “YOU sucked up all of the author’s time. He spent hours upon hours working on me… on this… the real story… and now you… you… YOU RUINED It! You and your little… Your pathetic ‘male Twilight’ fantasy of a nerd boy and a goddess! Geez, paging Stephanie Meyer!”

“I don’t know… anything… that you’re going on about,” Strawberry squeaked.

“It’s just…” Raspberry said, and then his mood flipped. He started to cry a little. “Just… I want some attention. I’m so lonely. I’m so missed. It used to be day after day that Swiper would be developing something about me, something for me… I... Now, you’re Swiper’s baby.”

“Swiper?”

“You know him… the fox… He has the gloves and like the mask and… stuff…”

“The fox?”

“You’re hopeless…”

“AND YOU’RE TOO LATE!” The unicorns snapped out of their little argument, and they saw the Master step in through the bedroom door. He held up a sonic disruptor. He opened his mouth to say something else, but then he stopped to pant. Drool poured out of his mouth. “So… many… blasted… stairs…” He laid himself prostate in the doorway for a moment. “So… many… steps…”

Raspberry nudged around on Derpy’s shoulder, and then he pulled out his own small metal device. “And… you are…”
“You’re executioner!” The Master yelled— pulling together his dastardly nature and standing back up. He reached around the floor beside him. “You’re… you’re…” He lowered his voice. “Where did it…”

“You’re too late,” a smarmy voice sounded behind the Master. A fluffy orange fox with bright blue gloves and a matching mask hopped up above the unicorn’s body and then hung on top of the grandfather clock. He waved around the sonic disruptor.

“Swiper no swiping,” the Master called out— terror going through his face.

“Really now… it’s already in my hand…” Swiper groused.

“Alright, I’ve had enough,” Raspberry said. He aimed his own device and fired— his horn glowing brightly. The Master screamed out in pain. He fought back with his own magical power. Yet, in just a matter of seconds, a gigantic pulsing portal of some kind had formed in the doorway.

The Master jumped backwards to make his escape. Raspberry went to cheer at his victory, but then he screamed in shock when he realized that his sonic device had been magically pulled from his hoof in the process. He then sobbed.

“That’s… interesting…” Swiper remarked. He looked in his hand, and he realized that he didn’t have the sonic device anymore. Raspberry took a little bit of satisfaction from that— stopping his crying.

The now-familiar greyish brown unicorn suddenly stuck his head out from inside the still pulsing portal. “I’ll put these to good use,” Whooves said, and he stuck out his right hoof to show the two disruptors. He immediately was pulled back through.

The fox rubbed across his head. “Well, what now…”

“What do you mean, ‘what now’!” Raspberry yelled. He pointed at Swiper and wagged his hoof. “You have… a lot of stuff to write now…”

“Oh, man!” Swiper exclaimed, and he shucked his footpaws.

“Writing? How boring! I’d rather read! Or… live,” a perky, happy voice sounded through the portal. It snapped shut an instant later. Yet that was enough time for Pinkie Pie to jump through and then tumble onto Swiper.

“What are… you doing here…” Strawberry tried to ask, although he felt so lost at what had been happening that he wanted to melt into the floor rug.

“I’m always there when the forth wall is broken,” Pinkie said. She made a gigantic smile. “It’s kind of my thing, silly!” She then bucked up upon her hind hooves. “How are you doing?”

“Pinkie, you’re standing into nothing… Who are you talking to?” Raspberry asked.

“The reader, of course,” Pinkie replied with a giggle. She tapped against the computer screen. “Hey, remember to not be too close and stuff because like Nurse Redheart told me this one time of this pony that kept leaning so close to the screen and he liked it a lot but then he got sick and his eyes like pulsed and there was like blood and—”

“Pinkie!” Strawberry shouted.

“Yes?” the sweet pink pony asked.

“Where’s…” the unicorn tensed with emotion as he tried to talk, “Moon… Where’s… the pony I love.”

“She’s not there… I think…” Pinkie said. She then smudged her face against the screen— coming up upon the bright red button with the X. She took a breath and then fogged things up all the way to the minimize and maximize buttons. “I can’t see very much, but I think she… oh wait, I think it’s a he… Sorry there! Anyway, I think he’s totally alone. I don’t see any alicorns.”

Strawberry let out a sad moan.

“Of course, if he had an alicorn— if Moon was rubbing the side of his hand right now and he moves down the mouse— he probably wouldn’t share her.”

“SHARE HER!” Strawberry hollered. The very idea made him nauseous.

“But don’t be so sad!” Pinkie bounced down off the screen and then rubbed Strawberry’s side. “You should be happy. We’re here right now, and we have such a great crossover going on! Equestria Daily would probably love this if we could develop it into an independent story.”

“Daily…” Strawberry muttered. He didn’t care for any more of Pinkie’s ramblings.

“MISTER FOX!” Pinkie sped over to Swiper’s side, and she bounced up again and again. “I love how you’ve been doing me. I haven’t said a bad thing or done a bad thing or gotten anyone in trouble or anything! And you haven’t had ONE sexual or romantic thing implied about me ever! I’m totally PG!”

“Thanks?” Swiper replied— a very confused look on his face. This is getting a little, well… more than confusing.

“Oooh, slanty text, can I have some slantly text too?” Pinkie asked. Oh hey, slanty text… Looking pretty cool… Just being like this looks so… fancy… Oh, there’s a lot of those ellipses in these slantly text… Is that supposed to be some way of conveying how thoughts are more disjointed and less well formed than speech… Pinkie shook her head yes. That’s fascinating… But this is way too much ping-pong dialogue. It’s just been me and the berries. Let’s have some action. Action!

*Bang* A loud noise appeared from behind the bedroom door.

“Oh, that’s great, keep building the suspense. Maybe have the characters react in different ways,” Pinkie said. She nudged Swiper on the side. The fox stared back at her blankly.

Raspberry tapped his hoof on his shoulder— wondering if maybe he made a mistake even coming into this story. He knew the similar names had to be confusing to the reader. Strawberry just buried himself in the rug— dreaming of Moon and wondering if he would ever see her again.

“Oh, I know it’s 2:54 am, but please just go on a little bit longer,” Pinkie said, fluttering her eyes and applying the full charm to her words.

A set of little taps appeared from behind the bedroom door. The taps built up into a loud torrent of knocks. The unicorns looked at each other. Suddenly, an odd clicking sound appeared. Strawberry had no idea what it was, but Raspberry had gone to enough rifle ranges to recognize a gun cocking.

I probably should get it… “I probably should get it,” Pinkie said, and she stepped over, “Oh, sorry, I should have known that I was just being redundant just now…” She put her hooves against the door, and she then thrust it open. Well, what is it? Huh? Oh, it’s a bit of a cliffhanger… So you’re building up to the next paragraph to let the reader know what Pinkie sees. I mean what I see. Whatever. Oh, wait… I should probably stop thinking so that the reader can go to the next paragraph.

The unicorn’s mouthed dropped. They saw Moon, barely conscious, held at gunpoint by a mysterious assailant. Raspberry recognized it as a Tec-9, and he recognized the girl as… Dora. The little tyke otherwise known from the Nickelodeon television series looked rather pissed.

Strawberry  had never had eyes on either a human being— cartoon or otherwise— and had no idea know what to think. He saw that Moon was in danger. He wanted to leap over and act. Yet, by instinct, he seemed to know that that weapon was bad news.

Is it necessarily to label the model of the gun? Pinkie looked back at the girl and the alicorn without any emotion. I guess it was… Hey, don’t droop your eyes like that. You can finish wiring this part! I believe in you. Everyone else in the room stared at Pinkie as she seemed to smile, touch, and then mumble at the empty air in the middle of the room.

“Anyways… where is that pinche fresa?” Dora asked. She nudged the gun closer to Moon’s neck. The half-consious alicorn shivered.

Oh, swears! But it’s okay if it’s not in English, right? I wonder if Equestia Daily would care… Pinkie keeled over, and she pawed at the air in front of her. Everyone else in the room decided to just ignore her.

“Uh… uh…” Swiper stammered.

“REVENGE,” Dora began, and she moved herself over to the petrified fox, “Is a dish… best served… steaming hot.”

What a cliché… and are you really going to have an underage girl as your antagonist? Pinkie suddenly bounced up and let out a gasp. She turned around and faced Dora. “You… you have a gun. On… Moon?”

“You’re just now figuring this out?” Dora asked back sarcastically.

“Just… please… let her go…” Strawberry moaned. He felt so helpless.

“WAIT!” Pinkie screamed. Everyone else looked right at her. Huh… why did I do that again… So… Uh… Uh… So… Hey, I’m asking YOU! You can’t ask me! Whatever! “I think that I feel something… Oh…” She jumped up. “Twitching tail!”

“Is that a STD?” Raspberry muttered sarcastically.

“It’s foreboding!” Pinkie said, and she ran over to Swiper. She picked up the fox and then placed him besides Strawberry. “There’s going to be more.”

“More… what?” Dora asked, and she pressed the gun deeper into Moon’s neck.

“More crossovers!” Pinkie screamed. I don’t scream… usually… Everyone in the room— as well as Derpy and Raspberry standing outside the window— stood completely still.

Nothing happened. There might has well have been tumbleweeds going by. Oh… okay… Hey, listen… Can you stop with the slanty text? It’s a little excessive, and plus this is NOT the ‘Pinkie Pie’ story. Strawberry is the protagonist! It’s HIS thoughts that need illuminating. Pinkie knew that something weird was going to happen any moment. She just knew it.

*Bang*

Dora made a pained face— wondering if he gun had gone off without her even pressing the trigger. The other ponies glanced about and searched for the source of the loud noise. Pinkie abruptly keeled over, and her face seemed glazed over. Strawberry and Swiper locked eyes. They knew more of whatever Pinkie had said— more ‘crossing over’— was about to come. Dora let out an angry growl, and she pointed all about the room with her gun.

Everyone’s eyes flew over to the right side of the room. The rustling built up and built up. Suddenly, a gigantic blue shark stuck the end of its shiny white nose out from behind the massive sofa. “Whaaaaaat… it-s-s-s-s getting a little cr-a-a-a-zy out here,” Jabberjaw muttered.

“R’uh roh! Rooks rike rom Run-play,” said a voice from under one of the sofa cushions. Scooby-Doo slowly poked his head out and then glanced around in all directions.

“Like, Scoob, why did you have blow… our c-cover,” Shaggy said, sticking out his eyes from the nearby cushion, “Oh, man…” A ‘Jinkies’ shot out from somewhere under another cushion.

A group of tails shot up from behind the set of potted plants. Josie waved her hand out sheepishly in surrender, and the rest of the Pussycats ducked themselves down further. “This is… really not groovy,” Josie squeaked out.

One of the bookshelves rumbled. It suddenly tipped over, and a big greyish gorilla with big purple pants and a matching purple bowler hat as well as terrified expression found himself standing defenessles. “Don’t shoot!” Magilla Gorilla called out. He wiggled his huge arms in terror.

His eyes then turned as more commotion appeared behind the other bookcases. They fell down like dominoes to revel a variety of brightly colored other men, women, and animals— all of them scared for their lives. Top Cat nudged himself slightly behind Casper, who then dematerialized backwards into the wall. Papa Smurf and Smurfette jumped into Yogi Bear’s arms.

The cartoon characters all slowly nudged themselves out of their hiding places. Dora motioned at them with her gun, and then they then bunched into a big group on the bedroom’s bed. She stepped a little bit closer, and they all shook in intense fear.

“Oh, please,” Raspberry groused, “What is this going to be… like the cover of Sargent Pepper? Is like friggin’ everyone going to show up?” Derpy shrugged as he finished.

“OOOOOOOOOH!” Pinkie squealed. She jumped out from her previous daze, and then she bounced around so quickly that she almost broke the floor. “MORE FRIENDS! More fun! A better party! More friends more fun!” She hurled herself around the room, and she experienced ‘pinkie sense’ after ‘pinkie sense’ while babbling on. She suddenly stopped, and she smacked her face against her hooves.

“I’ve got a very bad feeling about this…” Strawberry said, and he focused his eyes back on Moon. The gun almost seemed to burn against her face.

A torrent of slamming knocks burst out from inside the grandfather clock. Before Strawberry could say ‘Manchester’, the wood front burst off the hinges. A disheveled and inebriated looking rock star with frizzy brown hair, a tattered looking light brown 'foreign adventure'-style jacket, and wraparound black sunglasses took a few steps out— slamming down each step like Frankenstein’s monster out of its surgical table.

“What in the BLOODY HELL is all of this GODDAMN noise!” Liam Gallagher shrieked. He gestured at the ponies with a three-fourths empty bottle of Crown Royal. “Cantcha just… stop… think… Let me THINK for one BLOODY SECOND!” He took another swig.

“This is… just…” Dora stammered. She tried to keep her tough face on, and the gun right on Moon.

“Just what— infidel,” groused Osama bin Laden as he poked his head out of the flowerpot. He nudged a little bit and then poked his robed arms out— covered in dirt and roots.

Part of the wallpaper ripped open from behind Osama, and then a smartly dressed balding man with thick jowls and an impermeable scowl stepped forward. “Aw, quit your whining already,” Richard Nixon muttered.

“Nice… TUX,” Liam sarcastically remarked to Tricky Dick, “Who’s bloody funeral d-did you just… come from? HA!” He lost it at his own joke, slapping his knee. “Harrod’s sale… with that bloody trash…” He fumbled around for his pack of cigarettes.

“Is it safe now, man?” called out a voice form underneath the bedroom rug. It slid over, and Tommy Chong stuck out his arms. He shimmed out, and then he eyed the gun. “Oh… Hey, man… Just one minute, man.” Dora pointed it over for a second, but then she aimed it right back at Moon.

“Don’t hurt her, please. Not the princess,” called out another voice from under a desk. He poked his scruffy head out a little bit. “Just think of poor Strawberry over there. Moon’s been living in her uptown world… and I’ll bet she’s never had a backstreet guy… Bet her momma never even told her why…”

Dora gestured at Billy Joel with the gun as well. He squealed and then thrust his arms in the air in surrender. “JESUS! No need to have a heart att-ack-ack-ack-ack-ack-ack-ack!”

“This whole situation is just… so horrible… Strawberry had this wonderful date, and to end like this. Cuz’ it’s a bittersweet,” said a man stepping out from under a window blind, “This life… Try to make ends meet… You're a slave to money… Then you die!”

“Okay, again,” Dora groused, clearly losing her patience, “So, who are you?”

“I’m a million different people from one day to the next,” he said. Dora scowled back at him, and then Richard Ashcroft silently took his place with the rest of the crowd.

“Look!” Dora shouted. She held Moon— who seemed to have basically fainted—a bit tighter, and she stepped in a little circle. “EVERYONE who is still hiding had better come out NOW and I mean NOW or else I’m plugging her!”

Nothing happened for a moment. Then, all of the furniture either blew up or got thrown into the air or fell to pieces as dozens upon dozens of people came out. Strawberry’s mouth dropped, and Dora’s did as well. Raspberry just smacked his face with his hooves. Pinkie hopped again and again in pure excitement.

“I haven’t seen so many new friends since our Canterlot play!” Pinkie called out. She clapped.

The crowd around the bed began clinging closer to each other at Dora’s orders. Billy Joel groused at Steven Tyler to get off his legs, and Justin Bieber couldn’t look any more weirded out by having Richard Nixon’s hands on his back. Buddy Holly bumped into Elvis Costello, and the two of them gawked at each other— then they moved about their hands in the air in perfect symmetry like living mirrors. Liam Gallagher remained beside the ruined clock away from the group— bobbing from side to side like he could barely stand.

“Swwwwiiiiiipppppeeeerrrrrr,” Dora muttered, and her face contorted with anger. She looked up, and she saw the fox holding onto the remains of the ceiling fan. He made a sheepish smile, and then he let go. He landed right atop Saddam Hussein’s shoulders.

Dora tapped the gun against the alicorn’s side, and then the crowd all raised their hands up in surrender. Strawberry tried to slink herself every closer to Dora’s defenseless back. She suddenly spun around, and she stopped Strawberry in his tracks.

“Nice… try…” the girl remarked, and she made a devious smile. She moved the gun around from Moon’s side to right on her temple.

“Please, Dora!” Swiper called out. “This has nothing to do with him! Or her! Or…” He glanced down at the former Iraqi dictator below him— who also looked up at the fox with equal bewilderment. “Them…”

“Sure…” she said, and she paused. She got lost in thought for a moment, but then she smiled back again. “So, everyone, would you like to know about Swiper’s…”

“No!” Swiper screamed.

“Yes!” Dora screamed back. Her hair fluttered around her face, sweat dripping down. “His secret, about these ponies, about all of this…”

“No, no, no,” the fox whined, “Please, no, please…”

“That he…” she went on.

“Nooooooooo…” he moaned.

“Had already started clopping back in the LAST GENERATION!” Dora yelled out. She then paused. The fox looked despondent, but the crowd of people and animals seemed to have huge question marks on their heads.

“Exhibit A! And that’s check and match,” she said, and she reached into her backpack to pull out a huge paper printout. The crowd gawked at the image of Minty with some drippy wet goodness poured all over her face and mane. A set of fox prints had been almost burned into the side of the printout.

“That’s ‘check and mate’, you idiot,” Raspberry remarked. He hopped off of Derpy’s side onto the window, but he stopped when Dora pointed the gun.

“That’s… that’s just…” Swiper said, and she shifted about nervously, “That’s… not what it looks like!”

“What’s all that white material Minty is licking up?” Dora asked. All eyes of the crowd went to Swiper.

“Uh… ice cream?” Swiper muttered with a shrug.

“What is that— that— PRETENTIOUS SOD DOING HERE!” Liam Gallagher suddenly shrieked, shocking all of the people and animals in that room. The musician pointed with the end of his wine bottle right at the edge of the crowd.

The group shifted about— people and animals glancing about at each other. Noel Gallagher then silently held up his hands, stuck them out, and wagged his body about in place in a way that screamed— ‘Come at me, arsehole’. Billy Idol chuckled loudly besides Noel.

“If I told them ONCE…” Liam said, “I BLOODY WELL told them… a ZILLION BLOODY times. I wouldn’t be PRESENT in the same goddamn… vicinity…” He seemed to fall over as he strained out that last word. “As him… I would have to be PRETTY goddamn skint until… then.” He bonked up against an upturned trash can as he wandered towards his brother, and he half fell over. “And…” He paused. “I AIN’T THAT GODDAMN SKINT!”

Noel wagged his eyes around silently in an ‘I can’t believe this crap’ expression. He stepped a little away from the crowd. Dora— caught up all the talking— almost found herself being jumped upon by Strawberry. She flipped around at just the right moment and then shoved the unicorn down— gun still drawn on Moon.

“I ain’t…” Liam repeated, but he then stopped. He lost himself in thought. “Well, I ain’t… except for the… the Rolls I got yesterday. And… the Olympic tickets. And the… the… wait, what the hell was that? A case of… Did I even pay any bloody attention?” Liam tapped his face in confusion. “Well, ALRIGHT!” He waved his bottle as if to throw it at Noel, but he took another swig instead. “MAYBE I AM SKINT!” A bunch of voices in the crowd muttered, and Noel made a devious smirk.

“Will all of you PLEASE just… SHUT UPPPPPPPPPPP!” Dora hollered at the top of her voice. The crowd froze and went totally silent.

After a few tense moments, Raspberry stepped a little closer— now, sitting right besides Strawberry— and he opened his mouth to say something. Dora gestured at him once again with her gun. Raspberry shut it. Strawberry, unable to take it anymore, cried out, “Please, Dora, just… just… leave her alone.”

“Swiper…” Dora said, turning around and facing the crowd again. The fox had seemed to vanish once again. “You’re not going to hide for long…” She moved a little closer to the bed. The crowd milled about.

The two unicorns locked eyes in a way that made it clear that they would make a jump for Dora. Her back had turned upon them at the perfect moment. Their horns glowed, and they leaned down.

“RECHARGED!” Pinkie screamed, and she bounced up behind them. Strawberry and Raspberry fell flat on their faces. Dora and the crowd focused their attention on the pony.

“You… you… where were you just now?” Dora asked.

“Oh, summoning from beyond the forth wall was harder that I thought, so I went into a little inter-dimentional stasis, silly,” Pinkie replied. She waved her poofy mane around.

“For the love of GOD,” Raspberry remarked, giving Pinkie the look of death, “You’re not going to bloat up the story with even MORE pointless side characters?”

“Did you just hear what he said?” Pinkie said to herself. She paused, and then she spun in place. She bucked up on her hind legs and then tapped her hooves upon the computer screen. “Did YOU just hear what he said? Er… Did you just read what he… wrote… had written about him, mister internet man?”

Everyone watched Pinkie in stunned silence as she spoke to thin air. The pink pony stepped back down onto the rug, paused, and then wiggled herself around. Strawberry’s heart sank as she went ‘pinkie sense’ like crazy. The crowd standing around the bed also milled about in disapproval.

“Well,” Raspberry said, “At least, there’s going to be… I don’t know.” He scratched his mane with his hooves. “Damn, this has to be the weirdest thing I’ve ever seen. And you’re talking to a human-and-pony mutant with monster summoning powers.” He saw that Strawberry almost wanted to burst out in tears, and Raspberry comforted him. “At least there hasn’t been any… shipping…”

“Oh, we’re so far away from any source of water, silly. There’s no way anything could be shipped around,” remarked Sarah Palin, and she flashed a Charlie Sheen-like ‘winning’ smile.

“Hello,” Buddy Holly said to her. Palin turned around, and their eyes met. Chemistry immediately blossomed. The Alaskan right-winger moved closer and closer to the rock n roll star… almost by instinct. Holly smiled. She smiled back. The magic in the air became so intense that they could barely breathe.

*Smooch*

Justin Beiber made a repulsed face. Holly and Palin kissed again and again— knocking each other to the floor beneath them. Half of the crowd gawked and several of the guests murmured.

“Well… ‘ship ship hooray’, then…” Margaret Thatcher remarked, “But, I’m afraid, that doesn’t affect our present predicament. All of this…. Mindless gunplay…”

Damon Albarn nodded, and then he glanced over at Saddam Hussein. The rock frontman whisteled, and then he whispered, “This is… the last time… LAST TIME… I eat two whole pizzas before sleeping…”

Raspberry held Strawberry close. The unicorns looked back at the crowd. Raspberry remarked, “Seriously, this is such a random gathering of characters that I almost want to take a picture or something.”

“Picture time?” a voice bounced up from behind them. The unicorns looked back to see a wiry man with a tattered jacket and big black-rimmed spectacles. He carried an old-fashioned Kodak camera. “So… let’s all get lined up behind the Latina homicidal maniac, please.”

Dora, Moon, Strawberry, Raspberry, and almost all of the rest of the creatures in the room duly obeyed. Liam Gallagher remained motionless in his drunken stupor, and Pinkie had collapsed onto the floor. Her color seemed to have gone from pink to grey—and her body glowed from some inter-dimensional energy. Despite everything, the crowd of characters all managed a smile as Andy Warhol clicked the shutter. Even Dora decided to hold the gun down in a way that attracted less attention.

“Would be like Sargent Pepper, if we just had the…” Raspberry began, and he then stammered as John Lennon smiled behind him.  “The… The…” He couldn’t help trailing off and making googly eyes— feeling totally starstruck.

“Pleasure to be here,” Paul McCartney said, sticking his head out in between Billy Idol and Billy Joel, “Even if it is, well, difficult circumstances... to say the least. We have such illustrious company.”

“P-P-P-P-P-P-Paul…” Raspberry stammered. His eyes became like dinner plates. He squeezed Strawberry so hard that the unicorn thought he might not even be able to breathe.

“Hello,” Dora mouthed off, and she waved about the gun in the air above her, “Illegal with a Tec-9 on a rampage here…” Some of the crowd looked back at her— as did Strawberry— but the rest glanced around amidst all of the people and animals.

“Why doesn’t anyone ever go ‘G-G-G-G-G-G-George’,” another voice groused from over behind McCartney, “It’s like I’m just invisible… sitting here as my guitar gently weeps.”

“Oh, why don’t you just get over yourself,” said yet another voice from deep behind the crowd, “At least you’ve got room to stand upright. Meanwhile, I’m all scrunched down with a fox crouching around my neck like I’m Daniel Boone…”

“FOX!” Dora yelled.

“CBS!” Raspberry sarcastically yelled back.

The young girl ignored him, and she moved herself over to the edge of the bed. She thought about releasing Moon, but she decided to drag her along. She pointed the gun at Swiper, and the fox slinked down off of Ringo Starr’s body onto the ground. The drummer looked more bored than terrified— probably thinking he was lying in the middle of a tour bus drooling with some bad acid in his hands.

Swiper and Dora eyed each other. They now stood in the middle of the rug alone— with the crowd of guests sticking to the bed and the two unicorns stepped off several feet besides the bedroom door. The fox opened his mouth to say something, but it immediately closed again.

“Dora,” Strawberry said. The girl looked over, and the tears pouring from Strawberry’s eyes clearly made an impression on her— though she tried not to show it. “Just let her go. Please. She’s the love of my life.”

“I had a love… I had dreams…” she muttered. She paused, and then she let her inner anger build. “I had hopes. I had faith. I had a destiny. I had THINGS. THINGS I WOULD DO. THINGS I WOULD SAY. THINGS I WOULD TRY.” Her voice had built to an operatic holler. “AND THINGS THAT ALL FELL APART… Because…” She turned over to the fox. “You… swiped… them…” Her sudden whisper sounded absolutely terrifying.

“I… I… I…” Swiper said, seeing the blood pulse inside Dora’s head. She moved her finger from outside the trigger to inside.

“Someone should do something,” Paul McCartney said.

“Yeah, seriously,” Billy Idol muttered.

“Hell yes,” Noel Gallagher said.

“Ditto,” Saddam Hussein said.

“Like, what they said, man!” Shaggy called out.

“Something… big…” Richard Ashcroft remarked, putting a supportive arm around Noel Gallagher.

“OH, FOR GOODNESS SAKE!” Raspberry and Strawberry both yelled. Some odd idea formed in their subconscious from out of nowhere. Although it made no sense, they both instinctly obeyed it. They bounced up as Dora aimed her gun to paste Moon and then Swiper. The unicorns then landed upon the window. “DERPY!”

The T-rex sized pegasus looked right at them.

“SAVE THE DAY!”

Time seemed to freeze. Then, a horrible sucking sound appeared. All of the characters in the room found themselves thrust right from where they stood up in the air… and then towards the window. People and animals grabbed the walls, the rug, the bed’s sheets, the remnants of the ceiling fan, and everything else in the room. The immense sucking went on, and person after person lost their grip— hurled through the open window into nothingness.

Saddam Hussein went out first— tumbling like a fat pumpkin out the castle window and getting a nice smack from Derpy’s beating wings. Her mouth was also pursed in endless suction. She looked like a machine. Justin Bieber let out a girly whine as he flew out the window and landed in a pond outside the bedroom.

Dora could hold onto Moon, hold on to her gun, or hold on to dear life. She decided the two latter choices. Moon— having fainted completely— went sailing through the window. Strawberry and Raspberry watched in horror, but they barely held to the light fixture in the wall as it is.

“D-d-d-derpy!” Raspberry yelled, his eyes shut, “T-t-t-that’s enough.”

The pegasus ceased the suction as abruptly as it began. The characters all tumbled down onto the floor. Strawberry popped right up and looked around in every direction. His heart beat like crazy. “MOOOOOOOOOON!” Strawberry cried out.

“Mmmmmmffffmfmfmfmf,” Moon replied, and Derpy nudged the alicorn around in her mouth. Moon’s bottom half stuck out and looked just like a lollipop— except for the talking and the desperately kicking hooves, of course.

“Oh, thank goodness,” the two unicorns said. They seemed to beam. “Wow, a happy…”

Dora exploded from beneath Billy Idol’s unconscious body like a brony’s erection at Fleur De Lis Rule 34. She kicked her legs free, shot up one hand in a fist, and then raised the TEC-9 with her other hand. “VENGANCE SHALL ME MINE! ME CAGO EN VOSOTROS!”

In probably the worst luck in the history of fanficiton, Swiper found himself pinned between a hook on the wall and the side of Osama bin Laden’s foot. He struggled mightly… in vain. Dora— making Twilight’s performance in Lesson Zero look sane by comparison— locked eyes with the fox.

“Eeep,” he muttered.

*BLAM*

A burst of the Tec-9 fired, taking out a huge chunk of the shoulder. Red furry chunks flew into the air, and Swiper screamed his lungs out. The other characters looked on in sheer terror.

*BLAM*

Another burst almost seemed to sever his left leg off. Pink mist fluttered through the air. Every member of the Beatles all called out in raw emotion. Billy Joel just clung at the two unicorns in fear.

“ME CAGO EN VOSOTROS!” Dora shouted, and her head contorted to the point that her mouth seemed to crack open and her tongue quiver outside it like a snake— just like in one of those sucky anime shows. She fired again and again. “ME CAGO EN VOSOTROS! ME CAGO EN VOSOTROS!”

Swiper’s flesh popped like popcorn. He bounced back foot after foot form the force of bullet after bullet. Dora’s screams grew alien— like the screeches of a machine. The fox bounced back to the edge of the window. Raspberry couldn’t help thinking of Dick Jones’ death from Robocop.

Dora paused. She contorted her face, and she nestled herself besides the hunk of bleeding furry flesh that partially stood in front of her.

“Swiper.”

“No.”

“Swiping.”

*BLAM*

The fox tumbled down out of the window. The lifeless body made a gigantic splash in the pool dozens of floors below. Dora felt so satisfied that she gave herself an ‘evilgasm’— she made Khan’s happy murmur upon burying Kirk alive with the Genesis Project look pathetic in comparison.

“I’ll never have to deal with you again… mamaverga,” Dora mouthed off, “You and your ugly face… your damn gloves… your mask… revealing that… that… Beady Eye!”

Liam Gallagher suddenly stirred from his stupor. “Whaaaa…” he muttered, and then he had a look about, “WHAT THE BLOODY HELL DID… YOU… DO TO MY SET!” He hopped up and down in anger. “I can’t even play a… a… GODDAMN TAMBORINE in… here…” He glanced around for a second and then started straight at Dora— who stood in the middle of the room besides the window and already had all other eyes staring at her. “Oh, that is… IT!”

Dora knocked her gun against her side, and the empty clip bumped down upon the ground. Liam wandered around towards her. A deep, sinking feeling went through her as she pressed the trigger. A fruitless ‘click click’ sounded that the rock start didn’t even notice.

“You little… pinche fresa…” Dora mouthed. The other characters looked on as Liam moved over to her.

“FRESCA? You think I’d spend one bloody second drinking that… swill, you tosser,” Liam yelled back at her. Dora suddenly paused, and her mind remembered her backpack that she had… filled to the brim with extra ammo. "Oh, big girl's got a gun! Whoop!" Liam groused sarcastically.

“Ijo de la grandísima!” Dora shouted. Things seemed to go into slow motion as she smacked her backpack onto the floor and held up her gun at Liam.

The rock star reached up with his bottle, and then he hurled it with full force at the homicidal Latina.

*Smash*

Dora took the broken glass at full force upside her head, and she tumbled about. She tripped over Steven Tyler’s unconscious body, and she bonked up against the window. Dora flailed her arms around helplessly. She then knocked herself back and flopped right out of the window.

The characters all stood or sat in place. Everyone felt totally stunned. Then, after what seemed like an eternity, Strawberry stood up. He walked over towards the window. He pointed up at Derpy.

“My date, please,” he said. The gigantic pegasus opened her mouth, and then she spat out the alicorn in the middle of the room. Strawberry gave her a loving embrace, which she returned.

The rest of the characters milled about. They figured that Pinkie would probably bring them home at some point, but she remained out cold. They also enjoyed talking amongst themselves. Raspberry noticed Liam and Noel Gallagher gazing at John Lennon just like two little puppies with a bag of treats. The unicorn heard the inventible High Flying Birds versus Beady Eye question… and he decided to step away over to Strawberry.

“There’s just… just… well, one thing that really bothers me,” Strawberry told Raspberry.

“What?” Strawberry asked. He clung tightly to the unconscious Moon, covered in Derpy’s spit.

“Well, Swiper…” Strawberry said, and he searched for words, “He… he…”

“Oh, we’ll miss him, surely,” Strawberry replied.

“No, it’s not that… Well, it’s kind of that,” Raspberry said, “The thing is: Swiper was the… author of our stories.”

“So…” Strawberry muttered back— clearly not seeing where that was going.

“He’s dead now,” Raspberry said.

The frizzy pink unicorn just stared back silently.

“It makes no sense,” Raspberry said, “He’s totally dead, and yet there you are— and here I am now. How can I even be talki

The End

Saccharin Dreams (Ending III)

“Nightmare…” Strawberry repeated. He shut his mouth and took a gulp. He forced himself to quit jiggling in place for a second, and he managed to find some inner strength to steel himself. “My Nightmare…” He held his right hoof up in the air, and he made contact with the door. His hoof still wouldn’t stop wobbling. My love… My Princess. He pushed forwards, and then the doors opened.

Moon stood in the middle of the room with her back legs down and her body faced towards the open window. She beat her wings forcefully— yet she still stood in place. A variety of heavy objects from couches to chairs to dressers were stacked right behind her back legs. Her horn glowed brightly.

“Ready to go, Strawberry?” Moon asked.

Strawberry— confused as well as a little bit nervous— stepped forwards to her side. “R-r-ready?”

“For… launch…” she replied with a small chuckle, and then she beat her wings even harder.

“LAUNCH?” Strawberry squeaked. He found himself magically picked up by Moon and then plopped onto her backside.

“In THREE… TWO…” Moon began to count down.

“Aahhh…. Ahhhhhh…. Ahh…” Strawberry muttered, and he held on tightly to her sides. His eyes instinctively closed shut.

“ONE…” Moon went on. “GO!”

*BANG*

Strawberry screamed and screamed as they two of them exploded out the window. They gained more and more speed. He felt the air rushing by him so fast that he could barely breathe. The alicorn— somehow— moved even faster than before. Strawberry felt that the whole world had melted into a blue going alongside them.

His eyes fluttered up a little bit, and he saw that he seemed to be in some kind of bright blue pulsing tunnel. Strawberry’s mind pictured the two of beaming through the night sky like a shooting star. B-b-b-but… Where are we going… Suddenly, he had the sensation of the wind going out around him. He also had the oddest feeling of… losing something inside. Gravity?

They decelerated. Strawberry opened his eyes a bit more. He saw a massive wall of solid grey. He pressed his head and face back on Moon’s body. He slanted a bit to the side, and he opened his eyes totally. He then saw the gigantic blue, white, and green orb in the inky black sky in behind him.

“We’re… we’re…” Strawberry whispered.

“Hang on just a moment,” Moon suddenly announced, “I want to land over… over…”

The unicorn clutched even tighter to Moon, and he blinked uncontrollably. He felt some kind of horrible shaking. Then, he suffered through bump after bump. He gasped. He then found himself knocked right up off of Moon’s body.

Strawberry screamed and screamed. He then landed on his back onto a gigantic bed with part after part of inky black sheets. He looked out, and he saw Moon’s beautiful face— although upside down. The alicorn then stepped closer.

“Welcome to… the moon,” she replied. She made a caring, tender smile.

Strawberry felt such a surge of thoughts upon thoughts and emotions upon emotions that he barely kept from collapsing. He glanced around at the huge, blank space of greyish rocks and flat greyish nothingness surrounding him. He stared into the sky above— littered with bright constellations.

He managed to wiggle his hooves around, and he then stood flat up on the bed. How is there even a nice bed in the middle of the… the… moon? The moon! “W-why…” he muttered.

“Well,” she began, and then she moved herself even closer to Strawberry until they were almost cheek to cheek, “I need to make up for something.”

“Something,” he repeated. He jittered as Moon nudged over her front hooves to rub Strawberry’s side.

“We spent a thousand years here… a thousand years of fear, of torment, of anger, of… everything bad that you could think of…” she went on. Strawberry feared that her mood would change as she recalled that past, but she kept up with her tender gaze— right into his eyes. “All those memories…”

Strawberry hesitated. Knowing what move to make when was far from being his strong suit. He placed his hooves onto her chest. She smiled a bit wider, and then she leaned in a bit closer.

“So, we figured that we’d have to make up for that… by making a new, happy memory,” Moon went on. She moved her hooves over down his side until they held hooves with each other tightly.

Now! Now is the moment! It has to be! He leaned a bit forward— almost paralyzed by his nervousness. He found himself up against a little bit of air between them. Come on!

Moon paused, and she cocked her head in confusion— wondering why he hadn’t started yet. Her eyes made a playful kind of ‘oh, you’ look. She then moved her face up against Strawberry. A little jitter went through the unicorn, and he finally kissed her.

Their lips locked closely. She didn’t hold back anymore. Her tongue lapped up all around the sides of his mouth. He tried to do the same— still not quite knowing what he was doing. The unicorn trembled from head to hoof at the inky black magical feelings that poured into him.

Their heads turned back and forth as they went at each other. Their tongues danced. Jolt after jolt seemed to pulse into Strawberry until he thought he would be electrocuted. Not a moment had passed until she had poured her tongue right down and almost gone into his throat. She nudged herself around and, then, their hooves grasped each other’s chests tightly.

They shifted their mouths up and down, left and right, and all around— again and again. As they bumped up against each other once again, Moon felt to him like a shimmering, depthless pool that Strawberry waded into further and further as well as deeper and deeper. Time seemed meaningless.

Moon nudged her body upwards and closer— going from pinning him down to a full and total embrace. They kept on kissing. Her wings flapped in pure joy. Strawberry banged his hooves in pleasure. They then suddenly stopped making out.

Strawberry hesitated a moment. He wanted to think up something— some clever turn of phrase, some little bit of poetry, or anything that conveyed the shelter that he saw in her beautiful eyes. He came out empty. “I… I l-l-love y-you…”

“I can’t believe I left you in that forest clearing…” Moon said, a flash of regret flowing through her face. Her inky skin went a tiny bit red.

Strawberry instinctively reached his head forward in another embrace. They buried themselves in each other’s shoulders and hugged tightly. “You never left me…” said the unicorn. Tears of happiness went down his face. “As long as I have the night sky, you’re there. Now. And forever. You’ll always be a part of me. ”

Moon somehow squeezed him even tighter. He felt a little bit of her own tears dripping down his back. Ever little drop burst on his skin with her magic.

“Ahhhhhhhh…” the alicorn suddenly called out. Strawberry snapped out of his joyful trance. “It’s… it’s… another one…”

“What,” Strawberry muttered, and he had Moon pop out of his embrace. She walked over a few feet over away from the bed. The unicorn looked over where Moon looked, and his mouth dropped.

“Asteroid shower!” Moon called out. Incredibly, she seemed to be hopping in joy rather than fright. She swung over and then grabbed Strawberry’s side.

“Isn’t t-that a l-little— dan-ger-ous?” the unicorn asked, straining to get the words out.

“Don’t be silly, filly!” Moon semi-sang back to him, and then she pulled him a little closer. She moved over towards a gigantic rocky plateau besides them— dragging him along. “It’s like— like— like hopscotch. You just dance around. One goes down towards you, and then…” She pointed at a rock in the air coming straight down at them.

“AAAHHH!” Strawberry yelled out in terror. He threw his hooves over his head. The alicorn— cradling him a bit like a foal— then bounced in the air over to the right. She made a little kick like a ballet dancer. The unicorn found himself standing under her legs.

“See! Fun!” Moon yelled at him. She then thrust him up and stood him up on his hind hooves behind her. Strawberry looked up at the torrent flowing down from above in a matter of seconds.

“Oh, oh, OH!” Moon shouted, and she looked over at him for a second. “Know any dance tunes?”

“You have got to me kidding me!” Strawberry called out. He sidestepped a massive rock that crashed into the ground besides him.

“DO IT!” Moon ordered, and she bounced around right alongside a pony-sized boulder.

“UHHH…” Strawberry muttered, and he found Moon grabbing his hooves. She hopped into the air with him— twirling him like an even mix of dance partner and rag doll. What was that one stupid song I just heard from Vinyl Scratch! THINK! “Uh… Take me downtown! It's where the ponies rock!” What IS WRONG WITH ME! Rocks pasted the ground around them.

“I KNOW THAT ONE!” Moon screamed. She grinned from ear to ear as she pushed him down and bumped him through his legs as a boulder nearly crushed his head. “Three hundred sixty-five! 'Cause we never stop!”

“Take me downtown!” Strawberry was twirled on the side just behind a patch of dusty meteroites.

“’CAUSE PONIES RUNNING WILD!” Moon yelled into his face, and she grabbed him from both sides with booth hooves. Her expression scared him.

“See how we kick it…” he muttered, and Moon tossed him into a spin. Rocks shot right behind him.

“IN A BRAND!” A rock smacked besides Moon as she bounced around. “NEW!” Another rock… “STYLE!” Yet another rock…

“Take me…” Moon twirled him past another near miss. “Downtown, it’s where I wanna go…” Moon’s next dance move had her thrust him up onto her shoulders, kicked her leg out, and swivel with her wings. Strawberry jiggled in terror.

“EVERYPONY I KNOW—“ He nearly had his head blow off. “IS GOING TO MY SHOW!”

Moon did a cartwheel of joy— throwing Strawberry through her legs again and then popping him up right beside her. “I! SEE! YOU!” She jumped back and did a power-stance with Strawberry almost thrown over. Meteorites pummeled the ground in front of them. “WATCHING ME!”

“WATCHING YOU!” He bounced back until he held the front of her body.

“And now you see!” Moon suddenly hopped up onto his back. “Just where—” He crumbled down flat. “Just where—” They rolled around on the ground like toys to avoid another torrent of meteorites. “You gotta be!”

Strawberry jumped up. “I! SEE! YOU!” He touched hooves with Moon and she spun the two of them around in a fast twirl. “WATCHING ME!” Please, please, when will this end!

“WATCHING YOU!” Moon let out a happy yell, and then she hurled Strawberry into the air above her. The unicorn waved all of his hooves around in pure panic— Moon’s face turned red as she realized she had put a little bit too much force into that throw.

*Smack!* A huge boulder blasted into Strawberry’s side. He found himself speeding through the air to the right. The alicorn looked in horror for a spit-second, and then she chased along the ground.

The unicorn landed back— thank goodness— on the bed. However, he made a pony plus boulder sized crater in the mattress and sheets. Moon bounced up and then embraced him.

The unicorn breathed in and out, but his face contorted in pain. She hurled the boulder off of his side with a massive shove. Although he only had a few nicks and scratches on him, he still remained totally unconscious.

“I’m sorry!” Moon called out. “Sorry! Sorry! Sorry! Sorry!” She then leaned over and held him close.

=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=

What seemed like an eternity to both ponies passed. “I’m… I’m…” she finally eked out, and she started to cry, “I can’t… I can’t bear to be with without you.”

Strawberry moaned a bit. He nudged around his hooves a little. Moon brushed off dust and gravely bits around him. She held him even tighter.

“I love you,” Moon called out, and she lit up her horn to see what she could do with her magic, “I just love you so much…” She moved closer— touching his slightly bloody head with her horn.

The unicorn stirred. Moon’s heart almost seemed to leap out her mouth with joy as her magic had its proper effect. Strawberry tried to say something back.

The alicorn nestled her head and front hooves next to him. His eyes opened, and he gazed right at her. He looked so happy and yet still so vulnerable almost like a foal again. Moon leaned over a little closer. She brushed the hair out of his eyes with her magic. “You’ll always…” she told him, “Be my… Prince.”

Their minds seemed to link as if they would never really be separated every again. Strawberry said back, "Prince..." He began to smile. "Doesn't that mean you'd be... marrying me..."

Although she didn't respond in words, she leaned over and rubbed her head against the unicorn's in a way that conveyed... so much more than words. She also magically picked off his glasses delicately, folded them up, and placed them into her pocket like some kind of token. The silent embrace happened as... something happened to her. She didn't quite realize what it was, but she almost felt the same sensation as back when the six ponies had whacked her with the elements of harmony.

Yet that moment back then felt extremely painful. The magical wash that went over her from her head to her hooves after accepting Strawberry as her Prince felt... happy. Complete. That's... that's... Well, just forget it, at least for now. The unicorn had reacted to her charms perfectly. She could see this feeling of warmth going through his soul.

“I’m taking you home, Strawberry,” she said to him, and she placed him over on her back. She leaned back to begin the journey back to the Canterlot castle. She flew through space as fast as she could— determined to take him to the royal hospital wing.

He would have the finest care Equestria could offer. Although he was conscious, he seemed to be locked a real daze— and Moon could sense the pain that he felt across every inch of his body. The alicorn hurled herself through an open window and then landed with a massive thud. She, thank goodness, had picked a room that stored mattresses and pillows.

She sped over to another room— leaving Strawberry resting on a gigantic pile of frilly blue pillows. She quickly returned with a cabinet full of potions, scrubs, ointments, and all kinds of supplies. Strawberry moaned as she dumped a smelly orange-yellow salve all around his head. She then dripped a huge amount of frizzy white powder upon his body.

Moon went on— concentrating with her own magic to make sure everything worked perfectly. Finally, she sped out of the room once again. She returned to pick Strawberry back up and carry him over to the massive examination room nearby. The alicorn froze— not even taking a breath— as Strawberry went into a long white batch of machines. Finally satisfied that he was right as rain, Moon kissed him again, and they also happily held hooves once more.

Strawberry still strained not to fall asleep at any moment. Moon hesitated, and then she decided to bring him right back to the bedroom for a proper rest. Moon put him back on her back and trotted up to the other room. She moved fast, but she kept Strawberry cradled softly and tenderly the whole time. She nestled him into the bed— where Celestia had once done the same thing to her time after time a thousand years ago— and she gave him a passionate kiss.

“Prince…” he muttered, still trying to keep himself away.

Moon leaned over until her lips were right alongside his ear. She hesitated, but then she finally whispered, “I do.” The unicorn made a content smile, and then he finally drifted off to deep sleep.

Moon let out a huge sigh. Well, genius... I guess you just HAD to ruin your date… A SECOND TIME. Goodness, nearly killing him? She stepped over to the old grandfather clock that she had relied on for centuries— deep in thought. Well… So what? What matters is how the date ends. She glanced behind her. He’s sleeping in my bed. I’d call that a success.

She smiled at her reflection in the edge of the clock’s glass. Well… what do I do no? I just feel so… so… Hmm… something changed… She took two steps towards the window, but she stopped. She had a peculiar kind of feeling— something almost like a premonition. She leaned over and rested her head upon the bed for a moment.

The alicorn glanced at her front hooves. Some kind of greyish light, almost like smoke, emanated from the tips of her hooves. Is that… a side effect or something from what I gave him? Although she felt ready to fall asleep at any moment, she hopped up and then paced around the room. No… It had nothing to do with the magical items she had used on Strawberry. It was her.

“It’s… it’s…” she stammered. She realized that something had been lost. Some kind of magical… Ability? Power? She didn’t know what to think since she didn’t feel weaker. In fact, she felt stronger than ever. “It’s just the… the…” She searched her mind, but it only wanted to sleep. Like I just lost… Like I just overturned every last spell I’ve cast in my entire life… I can’t believe it. She headed back towards the door.

“Maybe we should do—” Moon began. She then collapsed upon the bed beside Strawberry. “Something…” Her eyes snuggled down, and she immediately drifted off into sleep.

=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=

The rays of sunlight aimed right down through the trees and aqueducts straight into the open window and then straight into Strawberry’s closed eyes. He somehow managed to fight it off, subconsciously, for a while. Yet his old enemy persisted, and finally he jerked out of sleep. He made a sweeping scowl.

For a little while, he managed to rest his hooves in front of him and hold the light off. It almost burned straight through his skin. He nudged himself a little bit over— holding onto the smooth body of the alicorn besides him. He held out for a few seconds, but then he just couldn’t take it.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!” Strawberry shouted out, thrusting his hooves into the air. He bounced up and stood on the bed. “WHY does it have to be EVERY blasted day!” I’d better not have another stupid migraine happening… He fumbled around for his glasses.

The unicorn picked them up and blinked repeatedly. I wonder how many baking orders we have today. He stretched himself. Ah, just another stupid day in the stupid… sun… He froze.

“SUN!” Strawberry yelled. He sped over to the window and leaned out. He saw bluebirds in the trees, dogs and cats wandering about on the sidewalks, and— far off into the distance— unicorns trotting inside the massive buildings. He made the mistake of staring straight up into the sun for a split-second.

After letting out a little squeal of pain and rubbing the floating red blobs out of his vision, Strawberry stepped back to where he had been sleeping. The black blanket had been tossed off the bed and then laid all across his date. The unicorn reached over and pulled it off. He gasped.

Nightmare Moon was no more. In her place, he saw a shorter, lighter, bluer, and much happier looking alicorn. The battle gear and the bridal like wear had both disappeared. She looked so different. Yet Strawberry still saw what his heart had seen before. The night… the beauty of every last night… All of that wonder, that elegance, and that love boiled down into one pony.

She remained fast asleep. Strawberry leaned over close. But is it really… her? He brushed a little bit of her mane out of her face. She stirred… but just a little. Yes. He knew deep inside that it had to be. “L-luna…” he whispered.

Strawberry got back up. But… But… But… The night? The elements of harmony? The throne? The castle? What’s going on! He twirled around in place— having no idea where to even begin. He glanced over at the window, and then he took a few steps over.

Surly, you’re not going to jump out the window, are you— moron? He stopped. He turned around and jumped over towards the bedroom door. He bumped into something tall, taught, and white. The unicorn found himself back on the floor, and he rubbed his face. He then looked back up.

“C-c-celestia…” he muttered.

“Nice to meet you, Strawberry,” the alicorn said. She stepped over besides her sister. She leaned down and eyed the sleeping pony silently. Strawberry had only ever seen one other pony that looked more beautiful. Celestia’s mane reflected in the sunlight and seemed to turn the light into something else— something that felt warm and motherly.

“H-how did y-you…” Strawberry tried to squeak out. Terror coursed through his veins, although Celestia’s expression looked… amused if anything.

Celestia turned her head back towards Strawberry. She tried to suppress a giggle. “Perhaps… You have forgotten that we live here…” she said.

“Y-you… here… to… will…” he babbled. He pictured her skewering him with her horn, slicing him in half with her hooves, or picking him up and magically blasting him into the nearest aqueduct.

“It is time to restore justice for my sister,” Celestia replied. She had a flat expression. Her sheer magical power made Strawberry ache at her very presence, but she held herself back.

Strawberry shivered with intense fear— so strong that he could barely stand up. He still picked himself up and shifted his body over. He stood right in between the two sisters— sheltering Luna’s body with his. He managed, despite how he almost wanted to collapse, to flatten his face with silent determination.

Celestia made a slight smile. “A gentlecolt…” she said, “Well, it is clear what she saw in you…” She paused, and then she stepped a little bit away. “Oh, Strawberry, you have completely misunderstood what we meant.”

Strawberry’s mouth moved, but no words came out.

“It is time to restore justice,” Celestia began, “By having the two of us take our rightful place as we rule together.”

Strawberry said nothing. Emotions scrambled up all inside him. He felt like a bag of popcorn with little things bursting left and right. He opened his mouth, and then he silently started to cry.

“Strawberry…” Celestia began.

“The elements of harmony… the sun… the everything…” the unicorn muttered, “Why didn’t it… work… what happened.” He tried and failed to force the tears back.

“The elements worked,” Celestia said, and she put on a motherly tone, “They just happened to be… shall we say… incomplete.” She hesitated, searching for the right words. "There has never been a specific element of... love."

“And…” Strawberry murmured— still barely able to speak.

“All of the six ponies, the elements of harmony, are perfectly fine, Strawberry. You should not keep worrying. More than fine, actually, one must say that they look… ‘Overjoyed’ is the right word,” Celestia went on, “Strawberry, you need to know right now that we only came here to tell you one thing.”

“What?”

“Thank you.”

Strawberry would have grinned. He would have stood up tall and proud. He would have even tried to give Celestia a happy hug. He would have done all of those things if she didn't say something devastating next.

"There is also... something else about my you and sister," the white alicorn said. She tried to maintain composure, yet her mane drooped a bit and her legs seemed to almost shrink a little as well.

"Else..." the unicorn muttered. His heart seemed to crumble up like a raisin.

"It... will not happen," Celestia said. She didn't have to explain much further. On the one hoof, Strawberry remained still as a statue and had the same empty, blank expression. On the other hoof, he screamed his lungs out in the inside. "The rules about... about..." She tried to remain as cordial as possible. "Cross-contamination of the central royal bloodline are quite clear. That is not to mention the horrible scandal that would ensue. It is bad enough with what has already happened..."

The unicorn barely listened. His heart seemed to have dropped out of his body and fell straight into the center of the earth. Celestia finished her little speech, and then he finally exploded in tears.

=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=

All in all, it had felt like a pretty crummy day. “Sure,” Strawberry whispered under his breath to himself, “Everypony likes a good celebration. But it’s not really a ‘celebration’ if it doesn’t end… If it drags on and on and… ooonnn…” He had finished the last of the cupcake orders, at least.

The unicorn had a fleeting moment to lean out the window and relax— until Mrs. Cake screeched at him again. He glanced about at the other ponies going about on the main street. None of them paid any attention to him. Story of my life… He crinkled up his empty cup and hurled it into the trash can below.

He went to head back to the kitchen, but then a soft voice came out from outside the window. The unicorn popped out. He saw a familiar looking bright yellow pegasus.

She shifted back a little at Strawberry’s stare, which he hadn’t intended to look so intense. “Oh… ah… I didn’t want to be a bother of course, and I didn’t want to pry…” Fluttershy said. The unicorn put on a smile, although it looked pretty fake. “Goodness knows, we’ve all talk… talked… about everything… I just… wanted to ask you something.”

“Bite me,” he groused at the pegasus. She titled her head in surprise.

“Oh, I… I… We’re arguing? I’m sorry,” she squeaked.  She opened her mouth to say something else, but then she sped back away towards the town square. The unicorn chased after her with his eyes, and then he leaned back out of the window.

Ugh… I can’t believe I snapped at her like that. But… Well… What’s the point in hiding it? He looked up at the afternoon sky. It shot back at him with the same painful light and scarring intensity. He could almost feel Celestia up there. Mocking me… "CROSS-CONTAMINATION"! That… That… He felt like spewing a bunch of curses for the umpteenth time, but he didn’t feel angry. He felt… defeated. He sighed.

He made the same familiar path down the corridor towards the stairwell. He heard some commotion behind the side door behind him. Strawberry paused, and then he popped the door open. He didn’t see a thing except the empty street. He then took a look straight down, and he noticed a large package.

“Hey, Mrs. Ca—” he shouted, and then he suddenly stopped. Hey, it’s for me! “Oh, nevermind!” He picked the package back up and walked over to the sitting room. Hmm… there’s no return address…

Strawberry stepped in, took a seat on the gigantic couch, and he opened it up. He saw a flowerpot filled with Evening Stars. He stuck his nose in and inhaled the beautiful aroma. They also had gone into full bloom, and he gazed at the layers of petals upon petals.

He got up— glancing around for a perpetually dark spot to place the delicate flowers. On his second step, he heard something flutter off of his lap onto the floor. He picked it up with his magic.

“You are cordially invited,” the unicorn read aloud. He flipped it around, and he didn’t see anything else— no stamp, no nothing. He carefully slid the envelope open with his horn. He then saw a small piece of pinkish colored paper drawn on with some combination of crayon and colored pencil.

On one side, somepony had created a beautiful scene. A tall, proud set of trees stood around a shimmering lake with dozens of bright stars reflected on it. Below that, various mossy trunks decorated a pretty, peaceful-looking grassy clearing. The unicorn squinted, and then he saw a little spot of the lake with a bit of writing. It read ‘Tonight’.

He turned the paper around, and then he gazed at the other page. He took a breath. He then plopped back on the couch— overcome with emotion from what he saw.

A little bit of fancy looking writing decorated the bottom of the page. It had been underlined time and time again for emphasis. It read: 'Let's just keep it between the two of us'. The beautiful image above couldn't make it any more clear.

A massive gray moon glowed with stark, bluish white light and had been coated from top to bottom, side to side with hundreds of bright red… strawberries.

The End

Dawn's Last Light (Ending IV, Part A)

“Nightmare…” Strawberry repeated. He shut his mouth and took a gulp. He forced himself to quit jiggling in place for a second, and he managed to find some inner strength to steel himself. “My Nightmare…” He held his right hoof up in the air, and he made contact with the door. His hoof still wouldn’t stop wobbling. My love… My Princess. He pushed forwards, and then the doors opened.

He saw... nothing. What is she doing... playing with me? The unicorn rustled forward into the pure, inky blackness. He barely even breathed as he took each step. This had... better not be... Strawberry's hooves lost the sensation of touching anything. The unicorn flipped over-- his heart beating faster and faster-- and thumbed down into the nothingness. He could barely even begin to describe the sensation. Every last inch of everything around him had disappeared.

He felt absolutely nothing below his hooves. Yet he didn't fall. He didn't feel any air whooshing past him. His insides scrunched into a big knot as he realized that didn't even seem to feel gravity anymore. He just floated about in empty space. He concentrated with his magic and lit up his hoof with a sharp pink light.

He saw his chest, and then he glanced out to spot his legs dangling about. The perpetual darkness around him lapped up against his skin like the tide up a beach. His horn dimmed and dimmed. What's... What's... NO! What kind of... magic is... Black spot after black spot erupted up his body, leading right up his bottom hooves.

It creeped up his stomach, this chest, and then going up his neck towards his face. Strawberry's mind screamed out to struggle-- to jerk around and fight as he concentrated his magic. His body refused. I... can't... what... Every last inch of his body seemed to tell him to just accept it all peacefully-- to fade away like the last stub of wick on a candle.

"I... I..." a voice sounded from somewhere. Was that... me? The voice seemed to come out of his own head.

"What!" Strawberry screamed. He snapped inside. I just... I screamed. Something actually came out. Senses clicked right back to him. He thrust himself forward, and then he bounced backwards. He kicked around in all directions.

"Oh... oh... I just... I need to tell you something..." the voice went on. It seemed so soothing, so soft, and so feminine. A yellow blur flashed in Strawberry's mind.

"F-f-f-f-f-f-futtershy?" Strawberry eked out. He kicked again and again. He somehow twirled about on his back. He threw out his front hooves. Suddenly, something tender and feathery rubbed up against them.

The unicorn bumped into the yellow pegasus, and he flipped over for the umpteenth time. His hooves clutched a tight bundle of feathers. He felt another hoof touching his side. He had no idea what happened, but he suddenly seemed to land on something hard and flat. He knocked together his bottom hooves and gasped.

"Ahhhh... ahhh.... ahhhhhhhhhh...." Fluttershy loudly moaned. Her face contorted in emotion. Strawberry held onto her wings  with a firm grip-- rubbing and massasing them every which way in the process. "P-p-p-p-please... S-S-Strawberry..."

The unicorn slowly let bunch after bunch of feathers out of his grip. He breathed in and out uncontrollably, but he felt... stationary at last. He couldn't see himself at all. Yet he clearly sensed himself lying flat on his stomach.

Fluttershy did exactly the same thing, facing him and lying down on some kind of surface. Although the inky blackness bathed everything, the pegasus glowed with a sunny light from deep inside. He could see her perfectly. It's like... Her kindness is shining through. Her love is showing.

"I... I don't have much time..." Fluttershy went on.

I have-- have-- so many questions! Strawberry began, "How did--"

The pegasus thrust her hoof into Strawberry's face. He froze. He felt so surprised at how... un-shy she acted.

"I'm, I'm s-sorry, but I have to t-tell you a l-lot right now," she said. He took a good, long look at her face. Her tears had flowed again and again to the point that it almost burned along her cheeks. "Just listen."

He nodded. I will never listen to somepony as intently in my entire life.

"Don't, d-don't let Moon..." she stammered, and she clearly had a hard time forcing the words out even though she had rehearsed them multiple times, "S-set us... f-free."

WHAT! DON'T set you free! Strawberry wanted to scream. Her hoof stayed right on his face. He glanced over, and his heart almost stopped. His eyes traced up the ugly looking black and red marks pitter-pattering all up her leg. He stared at the thick gash along the edge of her chest-- bright yellow skin mixed with yellowish-brown scar tissue.

"DON'T," Fluttershy declared-- her face deadly serious in a way that Strawberry had never seen, "LET. HER. SET. US. FREE."

Strawberry didn't know whether to cry or vomit. The pegasus leaned forward. The even deeper slash across the back of Fluttershy's head that he saw burned into his eyes for the rest of his life.

"Moon s-stole part of me, part of a-all of u-us," she stammered, trying not to cry, "And she m-made t-that part of our a-ability, our e-e-essence, into her o-own m-magic." Strawberry's eyes locked onto hers. "That's how s-s-she finally defeated Celestia, at least for n-now..."

The unicorn couldn't keep a few tears from dripping through.

"I know what you... you want to do," she said, tearing a little with him, "And... t-thank you. But not yet... Not. Yet."

Strawberry nodded despite his total confusion.

"I'm... I'm..." the pegasus said, "I'm a p-part of her n-now, and that means m-my essence is being filled with h-her... hatred. I'm c-cursed like p-poor Moon is." Her eyes dipped down to her broken hoof on Strawberry's mouth. "You have to... do it."

She leaned in even closer. He gazed at her. So beautiful... Gosh, another life, another time, and another place... We could have been...

"I don't have m-much more t-time," she went on, and her voice grew a little frantic, "She s-stole my element, my e-e-essence, my s-soul-- to add to her p-power. And she's t-tainted it, t-tained m-me with herself. Hurt it. Broke it. So, And if she returns it, returns m-me then..." She trailed off. The black nothingness nipped at the edges of her body. Little black splotches popped around on the edges of her hooves.

"Then..." Strawberry stammered. Her hoof flew off of her face, and she clutched her body. The unicorn eyed her face-- scared to death yet also incredibly determined.

"You have to give it to her. You have to SAVE. HER. FIRST. THEN, save me. Give it to her," she finished, the fears flowed and flowed although she sounded stronger than ever, "LOVE. Just... LOVE her. Bring back Luna. Cure her. Cure me. Then, she can save me. Then, she can sent me back. ONLY then. Or its the end of--"

"Back..." Strawberry moaned, and he worked himself into a scream, "BACK WHERE? WHEN? WHAT'S GOING ON!" She did nothing but try to smile at him. Dark splotches ran up her body towards her face.

Strawberry shut his eyes tightly. This can't be. This can't be. I'm not here. I'm at Moon's room. I'm not here. I'm at Moon's room. Little fluffy sensations curled around his hooves. "Moon's room." He built up his voice to a shout. "Moon's room!"

"Yay," the alicorn replied.

Strawberry popped his eyes open. Moon's... Moon's... The alicorn gave him her familiar smile. She tossed about on the black sheets of her bed seductively. She opened up her mouth to reveal her tiara in her mouth. She licked the gigantic diamond. In another time and another place, Strawberry would be wiggling in place from the hunger in between his legs.

"WHAT WAS THAT!" Strawberry screamed at Moon. He almost keeled over on the bedroom's rug.

"Oh, that," the alicorn said, and she turned a little red along the sides of her face, "Hehe, we were thinking that we'd surprise you with an illusion spell when you walked in. We guess it didn't work. It did look funny, though. You walked in and then threw yourself on the ground." She tried to keep from laughing. "Wiggled like a fish out of water..." She let out some chuckles. "And oh, you were moaning..."

"Illusion," he repeated. There's no blasted way that was an illusion. I could taste Fluttershy's blood from her hoof. I could smell her burned skin. He glared at the alicorn-- overcome with emotion. Some lines had gotten re-crossed in his heart.

The alicorn sat down on the bed, totally confused. She spat the tiara out. She shifted a little over to the side-- the black sheets rubbing up against her long dress. "Aren't... we..." she muttered. Her eyes met the floor beneath them, and then they traced over to the grandfather clock. "Going... you... we... to..." She took a bit of a deep breath. "Take... one... on... with... me?" She met eyes with him again-- showing those deep, pretty blue orbs with all of the wonder of the night sky.

"Just... just..." Strawberry muttered. He tried to sit down to think. He tried to come to his sense. He just felt so overwhelmed. The little voices in his head wouldn't calm down into complete thoughts.

"Strawberry?" Moon asked, stepping off of the bed and nudging over to him.

"Just-- SHUT UP!" Strawberry screamed at her. She flinched. A horrible twenty seconds of silence passed between them. "It's... it's..." His mind wouldn't let him forget. The burns. The gash. The slash. The stinging blue spots. I'll bet Moon decked Fluttershy like... NO! NO! NO! He scrunched his hooves upon his face. NO! NOT NOW!

Moon had had enough. She curled down over him, and then she nestled herself down upon the rug. Her wings fluttered down just atop his head. He felt like a little teddy bear held by a sleeping puppy. "Strawwwwwwwwwwwwberry..."

The unicorn, somehow, forced the tears to stop. He smashed deep down into his subconscious every last thing about that certain yellow pegasus... except for that once sentence. Save her first. Then, save me. Save her first. Then, save me. Save her first. Save her. Save... Strawberry looked straight up at Moon's beautiful face. Her bridal-like veil rubbed up against his skin-- feeling already like dozens of tender kisses.

"Save her... to love her..." he whispered so quietly that he could barely hear it himself. He turned a little bit around, and he met with Moon eye to eye. It didn't seem to matter what she said, what she did, or what he heard about it. It would never matter. He would never want anything else-- or need anything else-- besides that shelter in her eyes.

Moon could see through him like a window. He knew it. She knew it. The alicorn moved her hooves over down his side until they held hooves with each other tightly.

Now! Now is the moment! It has to be! He leaned a bit forward— almost paralyzed by his nervousness. He found himself up against a little bit of air between them. Come on!

Moon paused, and she cocked her head in confusion— wondering why he hadn’t started yet. Her eyes made a playful kind of ‘oh, you’ look. She then moved her face up against Strawberry. A little jitter went through the unicorn, and he finally kissed her.

Their lips locked closely. She didn’t hold back anymore. Her tongue lapped up all around the sides of his mouth. He tried to do the same— still not quite knowing what he was doing. The unicorn trembled from head to hoof at the inky black magical feelings that poured into him.

Their heads turned back and forth as they went at each other. Their tongues danced. Jolt after jolt seemed to pulse into Strawberry until he thought he would be electrocuted. Not a moment had passed until she had poured her tongue right down and almost gone into his throat. She nudged herself around and, then, their hooves grasped each other’s chests tightly.

They shifted their mouths up and down, left and right, and all around— again and again. As they bumped up against each other once again, Moon felt to him like a shimmering, depthless pool that Strawberry waded into further and further as well as deeper and deeper. Time seemed meaningless.

Moon nudged her body upwards and closer— going from pinning him down to a full and total embrace. They kept on kissing. Her wings flapped in pure joy. Strawberry banged his hooves in pleasure. They then suddenly stopped making out.

Strawberry hesitated a moment. He wanted to think up something— some clever turn of phrase, some little bit of poetry, or anything that conveyed the pang in his heart for her. He came up empty. “I… I l-l-love y-you…”

“I can’t believe I left you in that forest clearing…” Moon said, a flash of regret flowing through her face. Her inky skin went a tiny bit red once again.

Strawberry instinctively reached his head forward in another embrace. They buried themselves in each other’s shoulders and hugged tightly. “You never left me…” said the unicorn. Tears of happiness went down his face. “As long as I have the night sky, you’re there. Now. And forever. You’ll always be a part of me. ”

Moon somehow squeezed him even tighter. He felt a little bit of her own tears dripping down his back. Every little drop burst on his skin with her magic. He then opened his eyes again.

"We'll never be as happy as we are right now," the alicorn said, "Oh, Strawberry..." Misty wet spots ran down Moon's back in return as Strawberry hugged her. "You’ll always... Be my… Prince."

"Prince," he repeated, and then he chuckled. The night sky in the window behind him fit the mood perfectly. "Doesn't that..." He paused. Some odd white something trailed down in front of the gigantic Moon. "Mean you'd... be..." The white spot grew bigger and bigger. "Be..." That's... not a shooting star. It's coming right for us.

Strawberry slipped out of Moon's grasp. She dangled for a second-- lips out to kiss the empty air. The unicorn's jaw dropped. Right. For. Us. Light poured across the room. It built up, and room lit up to the point that the endless night might as well have ended.

"What!" Moon exclaimed, her hooves waving in exasperation. She finally flipped her wing over and glanced where Strawberry's eyes had locked. "Oh..."

"OH!" an unfamilar voice erupted in through the window. A gigantic white pulse blasted into the room. Strawberry bounced back. He clutch the rug for a second-- afraid he would be sucked outside or blasted out through the doors.

"You," Moon growled. Strawberry-- flat on his back-- gazed up at her musuclar body now tensing up in a way that he had never seen before. The unicorn clutched the alicorn's leg like a little lost foal, and he eyed back at the window.

"Hello... sister," replied the visitor. Her mane fluttered through the air-- the purple, blue, and green trails sparkling from her own inner light. Her shark white body shone brighter than any lamp that Strawberry had ever seen. "You've been... busy I see..."

Her eyes then flashed at Strawberry. Although he had only ever seen one more beautiful pony in his entire life, he felt terrified. Her deep, pretty purple eyes pulsed with rage. Her horn aimed straight at Strawberry as if she was about to skewer him.

"Nice... toy..." she mouthed, spitting out that last word in pure contempt. She stepped closer.

Moon braced herself with all of her strength. Strawberry could sense in the deepest part of his soul her magic. She clearly prepared for battle-- what would be the toughest fight of her life.

The white alicorn kept stepping closer, and her eyes almost seemed to shoot laser beams right into Moon. "The fun is over, sister," Celestia declared. She paused, and then she looked over at Strawberry again. Celestia's face-- once an object of sheer, perfect beauty-- contorted in disgust. "You can put away your toy, now. It's time."

Moon might have forced the unicorn off of her-- had she tried. She bent down her hooves. She pounded her wings over and over again. Strawberry clutched her so tightly, so snugly, and so deeply that his flesh seemed to embed into hers. He shivered in fear. Yet he felt Moon's magic flowing through inside him. She felt so strong, so ready, and... so powerful. He shut his eyes, but he couldn't keep out the tears.

Nothing separated them. Her thoughts were his. Her fears were his. Her sheer hate for Celestia-- something that survived and stuck deep inside her like tea leaves at the bottom of a giant pitcher in spite of all of the love that filled the rest of her heart and-- wanted to be his sheer hate. He wouldn't let it, but that didn't matter.

*BANG*

"TIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Moon screamed. Strawberry felt as if his brains and his heart both melted. The world whooshed by him. He cracked open his eyes, and he saw himself hurling through the air underneath Moon. The inky blackness in the sky around them almost seemed to burn. The Canterlot castle shrunk into a speck. Room after room, garden after garden, and banner after banner sped right past him in split-second as looked down.

It's... Celestia pulled down below them-- flying every little bit as hard and fast. My... Celestia curled her right wing over, tossing herself into a somersault. My worst... She burst through the air straight up like a rocket.

MY WORST NIGHTMARE!

Dawn's Last Light (Ending IV, Part B)

Moon tossed herself over— spinning Strawberry over with his face and body pointed up at the night sky. Celestia rocketed up closer and closer. Moon made a sudden shift. The white alicorn shot past them with a massive ‘whoosh’— almost taking Strawberry’s mane right off.

Moon beat her wings over. She curled around to the left. Celestia ran through the air in a gigantic loop, aiming straight for them again. Moon shot her wings out fully— her black wingspan lined up right in front of the shimmering moon behind her.

“TIA! IT’S— IT’S— CHANGED!” Moon shouted, to no avail. She couldn’t sum up whole evenings emotional turmoil and change of heart in one speech. Celestia blasted towards her faster and faster.  That alicorn’s body blended into a glowing white trail across the inky black sky. BUT I’VE CHANGED!

Celestia charged right into them. She fluttered into a huge black cloud. Her hooves came up empty. She sailed towards the moon— then she flew through a tremendous somersault.

“You can’t hide from me. Not anymore. Not when your tyranny is at its end,” Celestia declared. She twirled around the air currents like a celestial ballerina. She eyed some commotion in the batch of maple trees below her. In a split-second, she flew down at full speed.

She’s holding back. She sees something is different. Moon zigzagged through trees— heading almost by instinct back to the Canterlot castle. She’s… Got to Know. The forest lit up behind her. Got to! The heat from Celestia’s light behind her almost burned the edge of her tail— the leaves cinged all around her.

Moon careened down a huge drop towards a shimmering lake. She blasted down the edge, and then she rocketed at full speed straight across the water. The splashes shot up across her hooves and along her back like an endless fountain. No! PLEASE! NO!

Half the lake erupted right in front of her. Walls of solid water flowed up as if a meteor had hit. Moon sped up in a ninety degree angle. “TIA!” Moon screamed once again. The bright white blur followed just inches behind her.

Moon thrust her wings to the side. She paralleled through the wall of water. Strawberry let out a deep moan as the scalding hot water poured over him. Celestia followed right behind them. Yet she immediately stopped in thin air— the inky black teleportation cloud fluttering around her.

“DO YOU WANT ME TO TORCH THE WHOLE FOREST?” Celestia hollered, her mane pulsing with rage. Her eyes darted about every which way. She suddenly detected rustling in the little field far off to her right. She bucked back into the thin air. He horn glowed so bright that it lit up part of the whole forest— just like the night had ended.

Moon sped over the ground— branch after branch whacking Strawberry her and on the side. Another solid wall of something bluish-white and pulsing appeared right in front of her. She kicked over to the side— beating her wings at full strength— and ran right alongside.

Strawberry screamed. Moon forced down her tears. Hot. Hot. HOT. She found herself slowing down by instinct. HOT. HOT! Her vision narrowed.

“Your tyranny is over!” Celestia screamed again. She moved through the air yards and yards above the forest— aiming her hooves straight down. Her face twisted in an insane looking smile. Block of block of trees burst into full flame. Fires rocketed through the trails of bushes straight to Moon.

It can’t… It can’t… The fires flew down from the horizon across the field— torching it entirely in a matter of seconds. It can’t end like this! The pulsing blue wall of solid energy closed in on her. Moon’s eyes jittered about in all directions— searching for a way out from the endless flames.

The black alicorn screamed. She concentrated with her own magic, but the inky darkness about her evaporated. The edges of her mane looked like they were melting strand by strand.

“You’re not going, anywhere, sister,” Celestia’s voice boomed. Strawberry and Moon felt the intense yet sickly sweet sound going through their minds— as if Celestia stood right there on Moon’s back. The pain was unbelievable. The blinding hot fury of the sun scarred Strawberry’s eyes— like the concentrated fury of a thousand migraines at one.

“NO!” Moon shouted. Strawberry felt a hot knife slicking through his eyeballs. He felt his white flesh spitting as Celestia’s light severed every last nerve— blood pouring through like tears. Moon clutched herself with her wings. The two of them disappeared with a gigantic black poof.

“Siiiiiiiiiiiiiisterrrrrrr…” Celestia moaned, flying down to the burnt crater in the middle of the field. Her eyes focused like little beady doll’s eyes. She curled her head, sensing the magic going through the whole area. “Or, should I say, what once was my sister…”

Strawberry felt himself going through a total vacuum. He wondered for a second if that was it— if his life has ended. He felt a lingering tinge of pain, and then he rubbed all over his face and eyes frantically.

“Strawberry,” Moon whispered. He looked around and saw the familiar spires and windows of the alicorn’s new castle. Moon’s loving, caring embrace immediately wiped out all of the lingering sensations of Celestia’s magic. “You have to…”

The alicorn dropped him down atop a small balcony. He landed down on a patch of hay, but his front hooves still clutched Moon’s legs tightly. The alicorn cried a little as she half-pretended to fly away. Strawberry held onto her closer— the little patches of blood below his eyes washing away with his own tears.

“Strawberry…” Moon moaned, and her teary eyes looked back up at the night sky above them, “Celestia will be back any second now. I have to let you go.”

“I’m not leaving you. I’m never leaving you,” Strawberry declared through gritted teeth, his eyes flowing waterfall tears, “Never. Ever. You go, I go.” The alicorn lifted up inch by inch, and the unicorn felt his grip slipping. Oh, please, Strawberry!

“I don’t know if… if I can… I don’t even want to… fight her, not anymore,” Moon muttered, forcing down her own tears.

Strawberry rubbed his face and mane into her hoof. She beat her wings harder to escape him, but her heart wasn’t in it. His frizzy hair danced around on her skin— feeling so soft and fluffy like cotton candy. His warm skin just seemed to soothe every inch of her body.

“I don’t care what happens,” he murmured, “I’ll still be with you.”

“She’ll banish me to the moon again.”

“Take me with you.”

“It would be… longer than a thousand years.”

“I’ll stay for eternity with you.”

“Strawberry… she might… You felt it. I’m afraid that she might even… kill me.”

“Then she’ll…” His voice clogged up. He clearly wanted to say ‘kill me too’.

Moon let out a low whine. No. I… I love you too much to see you hurt. She gave a little kick. The unicorn tumbled off of her onto the pile of hay. Strawberry’s eyes shot upwards, and he saw the alicorn soar into the sky above.

“Well, that was… touching…” a venomous voice muttered from off above Strawberry’s right. He spun around. Celestia jumped up atop a castle spire. Her mane waved across her body like a battle cap— the colors glowing bright as ever. The tip of her horn shone so intensely that it hurt his eyes.

Moon sped down from the open air onto another spire. She narrowed her eyes and rippled her wings up— the feathers pointed like daggers. She burst out an angry moan. Her own horn glowed with an intense darkness as she faced directly across from her sister.

“Tia, you don’t understand,” she called out. She curled herself down, ready to strike, but her face betrayed the war going on in her heart. It’s over! It’s different!

“Oh, my dear… former sister,” Celestia groused, and her eyes narrowed into tiny spots— burning with intense magic, “I understand too well. I hoped it wasn’t the end. I hoped that you could be saved. I hoped that there would something I could do… even after the elements of harmony failed…”

“They didn’t fail!” Moon screamed. One of her eyes looked back at Strawberry. The unicorn looked as if he was about to have a heart attack. Her other focused on Celestia. The sun goddess’ rage seemed to grow by the second. “Please, sister!”

“My… sister… is…” Celestia said, conviction building with every word, “Dead.”

Moon’s face shrunk. Her skin faded into a paler grey. NO! NO! NO! HOW CAN YOU SAY THESE THINGS! “Please, Tia, I still… love…”

“I hoped you could be saved,” Celestia said, and her magic blazed across her body. The spire glowed with white hot heat below her. “And then… I saw what you did to them after you thought that you defeated me.” Moon’s heart sank, and he couldn’t keep from tearing. “The shock as I finally made it out of the sun…”

“Please, please, please… I’ve… Ive…” Moon stammered. I’m not that same mare, not anymore! Tia!

“I STILL HEAR THEIR SCREAMS!” Celestia hollered— her voice shooting through every inch of the castle. She stamped her hooves down upon the spire, cracking it into pieces. “I STILL TASTE THEIR BLOOD! I STILL FEEL THEIR PAIN— TORTURED DEEP INSIDE YOUR VERY BODY RIGHT NOW!”

Moon recoiled from Celestia’s venom. Strawberry poured sob upon sob onto the hay below him. The black alicon steeled herself. She’s… not going to hold back anymore. She did before, but… But… But… If she defeats me now, she’ll… kill…

“It’s time,” Celestia declared. She thrust her wings out into the air— stretching farther and wider than ever before. Her every breath burst out with flowing white magical sparks. “It’s time for me to preserve my sister’s memory. Time for me to destroy this… this… husk that used to…” Celestia’s fury couldn’t keep out the sadness that had built up inside. Her own tears began to flow. The drops burst instantly at the boiling magical heat going from her hooves.

“NO!” Strawberry shouted as loud as he could. Celestia glanced down at him. The unicorn recoiled— hoping that he wouldn’t be fried from existence on the spot. Although he shivered from his head to the very tips of his hooves, he went on. Tears flowed uncontrollably. “It’s… It’s…”

“Strawberry…” Moon moaned. Her battle stance faded. She wanted nothing more than to jump down and cradle the unicorn like a wife to her crying husband.

“It’s Moon that’s dead,” he declared. He saw that Celestia hung on his every word, and he went on. “The hate. The rage. The anger. The fear. It’s gone, or almost all gone… She’s changed.” The white alicorn shook her head, but Strawberry could see the confusion flowing through her wind. “She’s… different. It’s all different now.”

“YOU!” Celestia screamed at Strawberry. She then paused, and her rage subsided as she searched for what to say. The sun goddess clearly wasn’t used what it was like to be at a loss for words. “P-p-prove i-it…” She thrust out her front hooves— white smoke pouring from the tips.

“I’ll… prove it… I’LL PROVE IT ONCE AND FOR ALL!” Moon hollered, and she flung herself down across the castle wall.

“NO! TAKE ME WITH YOU!” Strawberry called out at her. His mind a blur, he threw himself forward. He kicked with his hooves. He saw the trees and castle windows flying beside him. In a split-second— as the ground grew yard by yard towards his face— he shut his eyes tightly.

Strawberry! Moon cartwheeled across the air— wings flapping like mad. She ripped through a castle banner and smacked right into the unicorn’s side. Celestia sailed right alongside. The unicorn and alicorn flew through the air towards Everfree Forest.

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The tree tops blurred. Strawberry felt Celestia’s magic coursing up his skin once again. She clearly didn’t feel that pure, intense anger— not anymore. It was a different kind of rage. Fear. Worry. Despair. Everything else… She doesn’t know what to do. The thoughts almost seemed to tickle him. The magical pulses rippled up his skin like a thousand little ants.

“Righting the wrongs,” Celestia called out.  Her mind couldn’t even put her emotions into words anymore. She flew closer. Strawberry and her went face to face. She… She hates me. It’s a special kind of hatred. I’ve gotten between her and… Moon. Between her and Luna… Celestia’s horn aimed right at him the whole time— ready to saw Strawberry’s head off at the soonest moment of foul play.

“Tia,” Moon moaned. She slowed down, and she fluttered straight up in the air. She twirled about through a sudden current. She beat with her right wing, and she flew down at an angle towards a familiar looking stone window. Oh, oh… It’s… She’s… She can’t think that… NO!

Celestia finally had enough. She thrust a hoof forwards. Some kind of flurry of bright white sparks burst across Strawberry’s body. He coiled around in vain— the tingly torture playing with his senses.

The unicorn tumbled down through the air once again. The stars in the night sky flew past him. He waved all of his hooves at branch after branch and leaf after leaf.

*Smack*

A gigantic branch rammed straight into Strawberry’s chest. Spit and blood flew from his mouth. The wind totally knocked out of him, he struggled to nudge himself over. He managed to pull himself a few feet up, but then he slinked back down again. He his bottom hooves dangled— kicking like mad in the empty air. He heard a huge commotion somewhere far below him, but he could barely think anymore.

“And now you’ll see, Tia.”

“I can hardly wait.”

“It’s— It’s not an easy spell to undo.”

“GET TO IT.”

Strawberry’s mind wandered. His own blood poured down his throat. The noxious taste seemed to burn. He struggled with his hooves to get himself up on the branch. It pressed down against his side, and he moaned in pain.

“It’s— It’ll work, I promise!”

“Lies! You will pay for this, you monster!”

“WAIT!”

The unicorn tried to shut his ears. He forced down all of the thoughts coursing through his mind. He stared straight up at the branch. I’m not… dying here. Not like this… He curled over his right hoof.

“I promise! It will work! I just need to concentrate!”

“I have had enough of this!”

“Wait, please! It’s working! See!”

“IT’S ALL OVER!”

Strawberry felt his breathing going out. A fire built up from inside his chest where he had been hit. He managed to get his right side over on the branch. Yet the fire went on and on. He could just feel his insides being destroyed.

“Just… Look at this! The light! The power!”

“What! What are you doing to them! Restore the elements of harmony NOW!”

“Please, Tia!”

“NO! NOW!”

Strawberry reached up with his left hoof. He grasped at the empty air above him. Please… Please… The fire coursed through his veins. The pain built up. He suddenly felt as if a knife went straight through his chest. He screamed… and he let go.

“TIA!”

A solid wall of white light surged through the air besides Strawberry. He seemed to fall for ages. His body made a stark silhouette upon the pure energy.  Finally, another far softer set of tiny branched dinged him one after the other. His eyes burned as he looked into the shimmering wall of magical energy, and it incredibly seemed to move step by step closer to him.

Screams filled his ears. Twilight, Fluttershy, Applejack, Moon, Celestia, and all these other ponies all blended together into a horrible, solid noise. He almost through his eyes and ears would bleed. He didn’t even seem to be falling anymore. The gigantic white explosion sailed right into him… and then through him. He tumbled through the air aimlessly— white wave after white wave flowing all around.

He finally landed. He forced himself up. Every inch of his hooves cried out to him in pain. He felt some horrible mixture of gravel and blood going all up his skin. He closed his eyes, and his horn shone brightly in determination. He stood up. Moon’s magic pulsed all around him.

A sea of blobs and splotches flew across the air. His vision caved in on him— worse than his worst migrance. He stumbled about— knowing that his glasses had to be long gone. He knew with every fiber of his being that he stood in the same forest clearing as before.

The elements of… harmony… He heard loud, angry voices around him as well, but they didn’t connect in his mind. He might as well have been the only pony in all of Equestria. Strawberry wandered forward. He knew that he was retracing his steps from before. Someone in front of him, he had once seen Fluttershy.

He tripped against a hunk of rock. Strawberry landed on his side. He called out in pain. He then forced himself back up. He suddenly spotted something soft and yellow in the distance.

He sped over. “Fluttershy…” Strawberry eked out. She… she gave you back your essence… but  Moon hadn’t… I didn’t save her yet. Moon was still Moon, and so you were still cursed… Oh, please, oh please… Fluttershy… I failed. I failed you. I ruined everything.

He came upon the blob. He took a deep breath, and then he closed his eyes. He focused his magic. I’m… I’m going to see… I’m going to see everything. He tried to recall some kind of enhancement spell that he used when he lost his glasses around the house. Strawberry flared himself up with his magic. He then opened his eyes and looked down at the yellow pegasus.

Black and blue blotches ran all along every single hoof. Strawberry could barely even see her own skin through all of the bruises. Strawberry traced his own hoof across her body. Her legs twisted in a way that had to have broken bone after bone. He rubbed down across gash after bloody gash down her back. He nestled his hoof into her right wing, and the feathers fell out at his every move. He rubbed down a few inches, and something hard and bloody bumped against him. The whole wing would snap off if I just touched it again…

Strawberry delicately turned her body over. You're complete now. You’ve got your… your… soul back…. your essence. Can’t I just… talk to Nurse Tenderheart… And… please… PLEASE! TALK TO ME FLUTTERSHY! The slash along her neck went down even deeper than before. He moved his hoof down, and blackish-red scabs quickly rubbed along it. He froze to the point that he could barely even breathe. Then, he leaned down to see her face to face.

“F-f-fluttershy?” he whispered.

Those huge, open eyes stared back at him blankly.

“Please…” he cried out. He went to cry, and then he realized that he seemed… empty. He couldn’t even feel anymore. He couldn’t think. “Please, Fluttershy…” He reached out with his hooves along the sides of her face.

She nudged forward a little at her touch. He stopped, and then she stopped. She’s… never going to move again…

“Fluttershy…” Strawberry moaned— so quiet that he could barely even hear himself. He reached over, and then he softly pulled her eyelids down. He curled his body down, and then he cradled her head against his chest.

More screaming went on around him. He didn’t care in the slightest. He leaned down, and he buried himself in the yellow pegasus’ soft mane.

“I… I love you,” he muttered. He finfally managed to cry. The tears flowed out until her mane was soaking. “Not the way I love Moon. But… I love you. I always loved you. You… You we’re the only one that got it. That was… so kind to me. That… saw me for who I am. It doesn't matter if you were only a friend. You were the greatest friend anypony could ever have.” He wanted to go on, but he couldn’t.

Strawberry stepped up, and he stood over the corpse. He looked out into the clearing around him. And… Rarity? Twilight? I… No. NO. I don’t want to know what I’ll find. He glanced around in all directions, but he also had no sight or sound of Moon.

“YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!” Celestia screamed above him. Strawberry threw himself back. He saw the alicorn bursting out with solid white beam after beam from her horn. She spun around in the air, and then she bounced up. She rocketed straight up.

Trails of inky black sparks trailed the air behind Celestia. She suddenly crashed into a solid black cloud. Moon appeared and gave her a buck straight into the side. Celestia hollered in pain.

As the battle went on, Strawberry stepped away from the clearing. He didn’t know what to think, what to do, or what to say. He had somewhere, somehow… An impulse went through him to return to the Castle. He marched on— moving like a toy solider. The sky lit up above him with black magical blast after white magical blast over and over again.

He suddenly found himself deep within the forest path. He snapped back into consciousness. He hesitated, and he glanced up to see the celestial bodies at war. They had thrown themselves far above him. The two specks in the distant sky hurled themselves against each other time and time again— like fireflies swinging about a light.

Strawberry gulped, and then he finally found the strength to run. He came up to the castle. Horses darted about him side to side. He paid absolutely no attention. He had to get into the ballroom. Somehow… he knew the alicorns would lead themselves there.

Dazzling Marks barreled into Strawberry, and then the golden stallion pestered him with question after question. Strawberry shoved a hoof into Marks’ face and hurled him upon the ground. The unicorn then burst open the ballroom doors.

“YOU WILL… PAY…” Celestia shouted.

“Please, please, please…” Moon murmured back.

The white alicorn poised down on top of her sister— or what she considered her ‘former sister’. Celestia’s wings rammed down onto the floor at either side to keep her trapped in place. He mane blazed in the air behind her— every last strand seemed hard as metal.  Her mouth curled with her teeth sticking out almost like fangs.

“Now!” Celestia yelled. Her face contorted in rage. Her eyes focused until Strawberry couldn’t even see them. The burning bright light from her body lit up the room. “GOODBYE!”

Moon turned her head over to Strawberry for a second. The unicorn wanted to jump over. He wanted to use every last bit of his magical energy. He couldn’t. Moon's magic— for whatever reason— left him totally paralyzed. His heart raced as he realized that he couldn’t even breathe. Every little second felt like an eternity.

His eyes traced across Moon’s body. Huge red bruises littered all across her hooves and down her body. Searing gashes crisscrossed her back. He locked eyes with her face. Her horn had… been halfway broken off— ugly black globs dripping off from the torn end.

“Moon,” he mouthed. He didn’t hear sound come off, but he saw from her face that she understood. “I…” The millions upon millions of thoughts flashing through his mind stopped at just one. “I love you.”

“Prince,” she mouthed back. Celestia’s white light started to blind his sight.

“I… I do…” he mouthed. Moon titled her head a little, and she gazed at him with her deep eyes in a way that meant she understood. Every Princess deserves a Prince… It doesn’t matter the circumstances…

The light flashed through so strongly that he could barely see a thing. He focused his eyes, and then he tried to scream. Celestia’s horn moved down inch by inch, and then…

It stabbed straight into Moon’s neck.

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All in all, it had felt like a pretty crummy day. “Sure,” Strawberry whispered under his breath to himself, “Everypony likes a good celebration. But it’s not really a ‘celebration’ if it doesn’t end… If it drags on and on and… ooonnn…” He had finished the last of the cupcake orders, at least.

The unicorn had a fleeting moment to lean out the window and relax— until Mrs. Cake screeched at him again. He glanced about at the other ponies going about on the main street. None of them paid any attention to him. Story of my life… He crinkled up his empty cup and hurled it into the trash can below.

He leaned up at the fading daylight. Of course, the celebrations were worse than bittersweet for anypony with a personal connection a certain six group of friends. Sure, most ponies bought the story of a heroic battle to exterminate the worst evil Equestria had ever known. A battle that ended up suicidal… Most horses would jump out head first off of a cliff if Celestia told them there were cupcakes at the bottom.

He went to head back to the kitchen, but then a soft voice came out from outside the window. The unicorn popped out. He saw a familiar looking white mare with a pink and red striped mane.

She shifted back a little at Strawberry’s stare, which he hadn’t intended to look so intense. “Oh… ah… I didn’t want to bother you at work and all, and I know you’re busy,” Roseluck said. Strawberry put on a small smile, although it looked pretty fake. “I just… I wanted to ask you something about those Evening Stars that Diamond Tiara just ordered.”

“Bite me,” he groused at Roseluck. She titled her head in surprise.

“Oh, I… I…” she squeaked. She opened her mouth to say something else, but then she sped back away towards the town square. The unicorn chased after her with his eyes, and then he leaned back out of the window.

Ugh… I can’t believe I snapped at her like that. But… Well… What’s the point in hiding it? He looked up at the midnight sky coming into view. Somewhere up there… Celestia is pushing the Moon along, alone… He felt like spewing a bunch of curses for the umpteenth time, but he didn’t feel angry. He felt… defeated. He sighed.

He made the same familiar path down the corridor towards the stairwell. He heard some commotion behind the side door behind him. Strawberry paused, and then he popped the door open. He didn’t see a thing except the empty street. He then took a look straight down, and he noticed a large package.

“Hey, Mrs. Ca—” he shouted, and then he suddenly stopped. Hey, it’s for me! “Oh, nevermind!” He picked the package back up and walked over to the sitting room. Hmm… there’s no return address…

Strawberry stepped in, took a seat on the gigantic couch, and he opened it up. He saw a familiar looking little satchel. Oh… Wow, when and where did I ever leave this? He pulled out the flowerpot filled with Evening Stars from the satchel. He stuck his nose in and inhaled the beautiful aroma. They also had gone into full bloom, and he gazed at the layers of petals upon petals.

He got up— glancing around for a perpetually dark spot to place the delicate flowers. On his second step, he heard something flutter off of his lap onto the floor. He picked it up with his magic.

“From her majesty Celestia’s official royal office,” the unicorn read aloud. He flipped it around, and he didn’t see anything else— no stamp, no nothing. He carefully slid the envelope open with his horn. For a moment, his heart raced, but then he realized that he looked at a routine, mechanical-style form letter. “We must offer our sincere apologies for misplacing your items during your last visit. Enclosed is A: One guitar, B: One flowerpot with flowers, and C: Two metal cases with unknown internal contents. If these are not the items you requested, please let us now. We shall get back to you in a few months or so.”

He bucked up on his hind hooves. He threw the letter with every last ounce of his strength straight out the nearby window.  He watched as it sailed through the air and crashed into a window on somepony’s roof.

Strawberry grabbed the satchel with his front hooves. He wanted to cry so badly. He kept it down… or he at least tried to. She’d… she’d want me to… to… Go on. He looked out through the window again. The gigantic moon flowed across the sky— the night darkening moment by moment.

Strawberry nudged himself closer and closer. He leaned himself over the window ledge, and then he pulled up his guitar. The moon filled his eyes. He felt the smooth, cold sensation trickling down every inch of his body. He took off his glasses, and he clutched the guitar tighter. He then took a gulp.

"Looking..." he began. He went ahead and cried— holding the guitar right up wood to skin. "F-f-from a window above... It's like a story of l-l-love..."

A shooting star scattered across the sky above the moon.

"C-c-an you heeeeeeeeear me..."

His eyes traced the shooting star alongside the constellations.

"Came back only y-y-yesterday... I'm moving further away-y… Want you neeeeeear me..."

His eyes danced up along the lunar seas.

"All I needed was the love you gave..."

He gazed up even further at the blanket of stars along the Milky Way.

"All I needed for another day…”

He couldn’t see any further. The tears clogged every bit of his eyes and rained down his cheeks.

"And all... I ever knew..."

He shut his eyes.

"Only you…”

The End

P.S. If you've read all of the endings up to this one, then... THANK YOU! It means so much to me that you like my writing. If you have any comments, thoughts, concerns, or anything like that, please leave a post here or message me at swiper@derpymail.org Thanks once again, and happy reading! - SwiperTheFox

Song credits:
Part IV -> "The Tracks of My Tears" by Smokey Robinson, Warren Moore, and Marvin Tarplin (First performed by the Miracles)
Part V & Ending IV, Part B -> "Only You" by Vince Clarke (First performed by Yazoo)
Part X -> "When You're Young and in Love" by Van McCoy (First performed by Ruby & the Romantics)
Ending III -> "Watching You" by Doug Fieger, Berton Averre, James Ash, and Melinda Appleby (First performed by the Rogue Traders)

Thanks again to Liquid_Rainbows and SilentAuthor for inspiration!