The royal feast hadn’t even started yet, but already the whispering shouts and hidden arguments were giving Luna a headache. All around her, ponies she’d never seen before had all gathered in several groups, chatting and talking about whatever rich snobs talked about. She could care less about how much money that one stallion had, or who that one mare slept with behind her husband’s back.

That was all these stuck up ponies were good at; spreading gossip and rumours. Maybe they led such uninteresting lives that they had no choice but to make up these lies about others. Not too far away, she heard the distinct sound of the classic posh laughter, which always reminded her more of the sound of chickens rather than ponies.

She let out a sigh and looked to her sides. Silversoul and Goldgaze were there beside her, keeping an eye on the guests littering the grand hall. Of course, it was almost redundant to even gaze at them, nopony would even think about doing anything out of line and risk damaging their reputation within the society.

Luna smiled at the brothers, and they both answered her smile with their own. Silversoul tried his best to look sharp and well, but she could see in his eyes that he was still slightly ill after what might have been his first night of real drinking. Dust probably went a bit too hard on the poor guy.

She looked up at the massive black clock hanging on the wall above the entrance into the castle. Half past seven. Thirty minutes remained until the festivities kicked in, and Dust still hadn’t showed up yet, and a tingling worry had begun to crawl along her spine.

Once again she turned back to look at the brothers, and Goldgaze instantly met her eyes. He looked at her with a concerned face, before giving her a quick nod. It seemed he could feel Luna’s anxiety, and she hurried up from her seat and moved away from the crowded room, making her way out through a narrow corridor on her left.

She didn’t meet anypony as he took step after step through the empty hallways and winding stairways; most of the staff was busy with preparations and the royal court was already in place back where she left them. The emptiness of the castle made her feel even more uneasy, and she quickened her pace towards their chambers.

Everything was quiet once the doors to the master bedroom appeared in front of her, towering high above her, intimidating her, daring her to open it. For a brief moment, she envisioned how the thick wooden frame would tear itself from the wall and come crashing down upon her. The queen raised a hoof and knocked on the door.

No answer. Her heartbeat became slightly faster in her chest. She knocked again, and the longer she waited in the silence that greeted her, the faster her heartbeat became, eventually threatening to force itself up her throat. Even though she knew deep inside she had nothing to worry about, it was impossible to shake that lingering fear that slowly but surely crept into her.

It became too much, and she put her hoof up against the door yet again, pushing it open slightly. The door creaked on its hinges, and not a single breath came out of the mare as she opened the door all the way. Inside, pitch black shadows awaited her. Wanting to swallow her and make her become one with the fear in her mind, twisting everything into a black abyss of nothingness in which she would be trapped beyond the veil, never to return again…

“Luna, is that you?”

The fear disappeared, tossing itself back into the chasm from where it once came. Her heart relaxed and she dared to breath yet again. The voice of her husband soothed her immensely, and she almost laughed at her own stupidity and childish fears. Yet for some reason, she didn’t cross the doors threshold, and instead just gazed into the shadows to try and get a glimpse of Dust.

“Could you turn the lights on, please? I don’t want to…”

She didn’t want to what? Her own words confused her, and she didn’t finish the sentence, since she had no idea of how it would actually end. Luna stood perplexed in the doorway, her face a frown as she tried to understand what she just said.

Dust didn’t answer, and no light came to scare the darkness away. Perhaps he didn’t hear her. Shaking her head free of the slithers of doubt and fear, she took a few steps into the room and felt the shadows embrace her instantly.

“Honey?” She called out. “Where are you?”

Her voice didn’t sound right in her ears. There was usually and echo within the castle walls, but this time there wasn’t, and Luna once again felt chills running down her spine. It was as if she was trapped inside some sort of other dimension in which nothing existed, not even sound. And if sound didn’t exist, something as foreign as speech wouldn’t sound natural, or perhaps not even be heard at all.

“I’m out on the balcony!”

Again, the strange sensations went away, and the world seemed to had returned into its prior state. She was able to move through the darkness on instinct, knowing exactly where to go to reach Dust. Her hoof steps echoed loudly as she trotted across the room. As she came up to the doors of glass leading outside, she saw him.

Standing at the far end on the balcony, opposite of the door. He had his back turned against her, resting the palms of his hands against the railing surrounding the balcony. He seemed to be looking downwards, or perhaps off into the horizon. There was something odd about the way he looked, and it took Luna a few seconds to notice what it was. He was wearing his old robe, with the dusty old hood covering his head.

It had been years since last time he wore it, said it brought back too many memories, and not to mention the state it was in; filthy, torn apart down at the hemline and with two vertical cuts over the back where his wings once tore their way out. The slight summer breeze tugged on the robe, causing it to sway back and forth around his legs slowly.

“Be my queen.”

The memory of their first night together suddenly filled her mind. The emotions she’d felt, the warmth of another living being next to her. The hope that kindled within her as they kissed, the wish that she would never be alone again. Many years had passed, and she wasn’t alone and never would be. She had her husband, the man she loved more than anything, and their wonderful little boy.

Even though it was those three words that Dust once whispered into her ear that made her come to her decision, she could care less about titles and power. The only thing she wanted in her life was to be loved for whom she was, to be seen as the Luna on the inside, not the façade she put up to the world. All she ever wanted was to feel love, and thanks to the man out on the balcony in front of her, her life was filled with it for what seemed like an eternity.

At least, she hoped it would last for that long.

Dust didn’t hear her when she opened the doors, or he did hear and pretended not to. He remained where he was, staring out into the faintly lit skies. Slowly, Luna made her way towards him, taking care not to make any noise. She wasn’t breathing, but unlike what happened in the doorway, she chose not to breathe this time. Creeping closer to her husband, her legs began to tremble beneath her.

When she was right behind his back, she quietly reared up on her back legs. For a moment, a vision of glass snuck itself into the back of her head. Dust, cased in glass. One final kiss before it all shattered. The though disappeared once she put her fore hooves around Dust and placed her head close to his. His body warmed her in the cool wind tugging on both of them. She pressed herself against him, and out her mouth next to his ear.

“'Tis some visitor, I muttered. Gently tapping-tapping, upon my chamber door…”

“You still remember.” Dust said to her once she went quiet.

“How could I ever forget?” She whispered back to him, carefully giving him a kiss on the cheek as she did. His beard tickled against her lips “What are you doing out here all by yourself?”

“I just… needed some time alone. Some time to think.”

“Is something wrong, dear?” Luna asked worryingly.

Dust sighed, and slowly so as to not throw her off balance, he spun himself around in her arms so that they stood face to face with each other. He sat himself down on the railing, and Luna bent her legs to follow him downwards. It resulted in him sitting down, and her resting in a rather uncomfortable position on his lap, still with her legs around his shoulders. None of them could care about comfort though.

“I… Earlier today I visited Ponyville.” Dust said. “And I went to the orphanage.”

“Rarity’s old home?” Luna asked.

Dust nodded. “I just wanted to get you something special for today… But instead I ended up having a panic attack and froze up completely. If Fluttershy hadn’t been there…”

“Fluttershy runs the orphanage?” Luna replied, raising an eyebrow. “I haven’t seen her since… Since Nightmare Night.”

“Yeah, and she seems to be doing a good job.” Dust answered. “Anyway… I guess it brought back a lot of memories, both good and bad.” He reached forward and gave his wife a quick kiss. “I just needed to wallow in my own self-pity for a while.”

“Well, you can wallow as much as you want, as long as you’ll come back up in one piece.” Luna said with a smile. “I was just worried about you.”

“Don’t worry about me, I’m fine.” Dust said, pressing his nose against her snout. “So… want to see what I brought back for you?”

Luna didn’t have time to answer, because just a second later, Dust stood up again, still holding her in his arms. She laughed slightly as he carried her into their chambers, and she couldn’t help but think that she must look like a giant doll, legs flailing about and all.

After a few more moments, Dust sat her down on the floor before he himself reached out to light some candles nearby. Now that she wasn’t alone in the room, the darkness didn’t feel as oppressing and strong as it did before, and Luna could see the silhouette of Dust clearly. A flame flickered up from a match in his hands, which he then used to light several candles on different tables and shelves around them.

It was enough to illuminate their bed, and on it, Luna saw the crude shape of a square, wrapped in what looked to be some sort of cloth. She took a closer look, but couldn’t determine what it was.

“Sorry about the wrapping…” Dust said as he walked past her towards the bed. “I didn’t really have time to fix it… Wallowing and all that.” He sat down on the bed next to the package and looked at her with an uncertain smile.

Luna approached the bed, frowning as she tried to see what the strange package was holding, but all she could make out as the fabric enclosing it. She looked closer as Dust moved his hands and undid the small string holding the cloth in place, opening the package with his other free hand.

“It’s not much, really…” He whispered.

Inside the package, a blue shape met her eyes. It was a crude drawing of a blue pony, with strange shimmering mane, wings and a horn… Next to it was the image of a tall man in black, and between the two, a heart had been drawn.

“The kids at the orphanage drew them.” Dust said as Luna used her magic to flip through the papers.

Drawing after drawing depicting her and Dust, or just her, and it was clear that a lot of effort had been put in by the children to make them to the best of their abilities. Dust was right; it wasn’t much, but at the same time it was overwhelming.

“It’s not as pretty as jewellery.” Dust began. “But I just wanted to remind you that I’m not the only one that loves you. But if you don’t like them, then I…”

“I love them.” Luna replied quickly. “They’re all wonderful, honey.” She smiled at her husband before neatly putting the drawings back into a perfect square using her magic.

“Glad you like them.” He said back to her. “But there will be more later on tonight…” Dust moved his head to look at the small clock resting on his nightstand. “Only five minutes left until the feast starts downstairs. We should probably hurry.”

Luna nodded, quickly levitating the bundle of drawings over to a desk to their left before turning to give Dust another kiss. Once they parted, he stood up, and together they hurried off towards the main hall.

“Try to behave yourself tonight, dear.” Luna said with a playful smile over her lips as they walked back the same way she took earlier.

“I promise.” Dust answered, laughing slightly. “But if Blueblood pulls another one of his dirty jokes about the guards, I just might have to twist his neck.”

Luna giggled at his joke, but forced herself to remain quiet as they emerged into the main hall, and every pair of eyes in the room turned towards them.