Luna felt herself relieved once the feast had finally ended and found comfort in the almost pressing silence that had now made its way into the castle walls. The endless chattering of the guests all around her made her ears hurt, and she’d lost count of how many lords and ladies she’d been introduced to, as well as how many of their businesses and establishments she’d been subtly offered to support. If Dust hadn’t been sitting next to her during the formal dinner, she suspected she would have just left th festivities altogether.

If he hadn’t place his hand over her hoof and kept it there almost the entire night, she wasn’t sure what she’d done.

The princess of the night took in a deep breath of cool air as she stepped out into the castle gardens. The fresh air was a welcome change from the thick air generated by thousands of gossiping ladies and lords pompously bragging about themselves to anypony nearby, accompanied by the chewing and thick breathing of the more glutinous visitors. During the hours at the table, Luna could have sworn that the warmth building up in the hall had plastered itself over her coat like some sticky second skin.

Thankfully, that disgusting shell blew right off of her as she stepped outside; feeling the dew on the grass against her hooves, and the cold dampness sent pleasant shivers through her legs. She always thought that moments like these where the best ones during the night. That initial sense of coolness against ones skin, the smell of a slowly approaching dawn in the air. The sound of crickets chirping in the tall grass, and the almost invisible murmuring of nature.

It was, as some ponies would put it, a moment to day for. Or a moment to live your life to achieve.

Up above, the stars shimmered down upon her, and the moon offered its light to guide its very ruler through the darkness of the shadows it cast over the world. Her hoof didn’t make a single sound in her stride across the dampened ground, not even the dusty gravel of the path beneath her crackled as she set hoof upon it.

Luna often wondered if the night itself could feel her presence. If the very essence of the night knew that its owner and creator was now nearby, and altered the world around her to better suit the hoofs of its queen. The night always seemed to offer her respect, in a way.

It moved along with her as one, as a long lost mother holding the hoof of her child, guiding it through life’s perils. It would sooth her when she felt alone and sad, and it would offer her comfort as the shadows wrapped around her. Yet she couldn’t shake a specific thought out of her mind; what had happened earlier in the royal chamber. Her inability to cross into the darkness.

She was the princess of the night after all, and her feeling fear before the very thing that filled her being was just ludicrous to even imagine. But somehow, she’d been afraid to step over the threshold. The more she tried to understand what had happened, the longer away and answer seemed to slip, and she lost track of time.

Sooner than she expected, Luna came upon the goal of her late night stroll.

In front of her stood a massive fountain, carved out of purest marble, with pillars chiselled out of ivory adoring it on both sides. Streams of water ran from the top of the columns and into the fountain itself, without making a single sound or ever creating even the tiniest splash or ripple in the water. The magic that had been used to prevent to water to be disturbed had also offered the surface an otherworldly aura, gleaming in all the colours of the rainbow.

It was quite a beautiful display, and Luna always felt herself taken back by the sheer awe of what lay before her. Placed exactly in the middle of the fountain, elevated slightly above the surface, a large sheet of mirror polished marble had been erected, and even despite it being late at night, the glimmering surface of the water still reflected its colours upon it, casting its rays upon the image of a large sun engraved in the stone.

It was a beautiful grave for a beautiful ruler. A perfect final resting place for the sun herself.

Without a sound, Luna sat herself down on the ground before the fountain. She paid the dampness pressing against her skin no heed.

“I wish you could have been here to see me now, Tia. So much has changed these fourteen years since you left me. Thirteen years since I married Dust, ten years since we had our son. How I wished you could’ve seen it all. I… I hope I’ve made you proud.”

As she talked, Luna hoped her sister could hear her, and she felt a few tears fall down her cheeks. Despite having a wonderful husband, a beautiful little colt and a perfect life far beyond anything even in her wildest dreams, she missed Celestia every day of her life.

“I’m sure you have.”

For a moment, Luna’s heart skipped a beat and she could almost feel it fly up into her throat. A voice had just answered her, and deep down she hoped it belonged to her sister, or at least some remnant of her, still lingering close to her loved ones.

Then she came to her senses, realizing it was no use to dream of such things. Celestia was long gone, and the voice did not belong to her. She looked around for a few seconds before catching a glimpse of the silhouette of a pony not far away behind her, coming closer on the gravel path.

After a few seconds, she could clearly make out a white Pegasus with black mane and shimmering, silver eyes.

“What are you doing out here so late, Goldgaze?”

The Pegasus stallion came up next to her and sank down on his haunches in the grass in a rather clumsy fashion, letting out a muffled groan as he stretched his back slightly.

“Well, I saw you leave the castle and figured you were heading here.” He said slowly, watching the colours float around on the surface of the fountain.

“So you followed me?” Luna asked with a smirk on her lips.

“I guess the term ‘stalked’ you might be more correct, m’lady.” The stallion chuckled slightly.

“You sneaky devil.”

Both ponies laughed together, being able to let down the façade they kept up every day in court. Just as Silversoul had become the closest friend of Dust, Luna had gained a friend in Goldgaze, and she always enjoyed his company.

“To be more precise, I stalked you here because your husband asked me to fetch you for him. Apparently he’s put on quite the spectacle in the ball room and requests your presence urgently.”

Again, Luna couldn’t stop herself from laughing at what Goldgaze said, and the over the top tone he coated his words in. Even though he wasn’t perfect, he could mimic his brother’s speech almost perfectly, even adding a quick nod of his head that was supposed to signal pride. Once he was done, he pouted his lips and raised his hoof for a slight wave, perfecting the image of a posh pony from the snobbish upper class.

Technically, they both where of that upper class, but they still both refused to act that way and constantly poked fun at them when nopony was watching. Not even Dust knew about their secret little ways of making fun of the elite.

“So… I guess I should head back then?” Luna said slowly as her laughter had died down. “If it really is that urgent.”

Goldgaze looked at her with a quick twist of his neck. “No rush, m’lady. I’m sure he can wait for a little while if you want to… be alone.”

“Thanks.” Luna said, giving him a small smile before turning her head back to the gravestone in the fountain. She then sighed quietly to herself.

“I know you miss her, Princess.” Goldgaze said. “We all do.”

Luna nodded slowly in answer. “Do you really think she’s proud of me?”

“Of course she is.”

“I still hurt her.” Luna whispered. “Her only sin was to love me, and I hurt her so much.”

“You did what you thought was best.” Goldgaze replied. “Nopony can blame you for that.”

Luna didn’t answer. Her vision had become blurred due to the tears in her eyes. She quickly turned her head away from her friend, wiping her tears before he could notice them. They remained in silence for a while, until Luna stood up once again. Goldgaze did the same, and without another word they headed back through the gardens.

“Goldgaze?” Luna whispered as they walked through a small gathering of trees, their faces lit up by the light of the torch bugs playing between the branches. “It was Dust that cut off her horn.”

“I know, Silversoul told me.” Goldgaze replied quickly. “But I still don’t blame any of you for it. Like I said, you did what you thought was best and I admire you for that. Not many ponies have the courage to stand up for their opinions.”

“I just wished things could have turned out different.” Luna said with a sigh. “If Tia hadn’t been so hell bent on keeping me and Dust apart, she could still be here…”

“It was the sickness that claimed her, not you or Dust. All she wanted was for you to be happy, you know that.”

As the two ponies approached the big gates leading back into the castle, Luna came to a stop. Still with a few tears in her eyes, she looked up into the stars above them. A few seconds later, she felt a hoof against her shoulder.

“I’m sure she’s up there, watching you.” Goldgaze said to her. “And I’m sure she’s damn proud of her little sister.” A few seconds of silence passed before he removed his hoof from her shoulder, hoping that it at least comforted her a little it.

“Thanks, Goldgaze.” Luna said before wiping her eyes free of tears yet again. “I hope you’re right.”

The ball room was empty and silent, save for the quite sound of shoes against the floor as Dust walked back and forth across the room, anxiously awaiting his wife. He’d planned this evening for so long, and had worked as much as he could to make it all perfect, nothing could go wrong on such a special day.

After minutes of worried pacing that felt more like hours, he finally found himself standing still, looking out through one of the many windows that lined one side of the room. From there, he could see the entire garden of the castle, ranging from the statue of Discord all the way to Celestia’s fountain. But not a single sing of anypony there, and he turned his head away from the gardens.

He let out a sigh, and the sound of it seemed to echo a bit too much within the room.

“Where are you, Luna…?” He whispered to himself as he once again paced through the room.

The robe he wore flapped around his legs as he walked without making a sound, the soft satin simply brushing against his legs like smoke. It was the same robe he’d worn a long time ago, on their wedding. Now he felt almost as nervous as he’d done on that day.

And then finally, he heard the distinct sound of hooves against stone, a clear sign that somepony was about to enter the room. He tried his best to remain calm, brushing a few strands of his blonde hair out of his eyes as he watched the doorway.

He smiled at Luna once she emerged through the open doorway, but he didn’t say anything. He walked up to her in silence, never breaking eye contact with her as he did. Once he was right in front of her, he reached out a hand and brushed his fingers down her neck.

“Goldgaze told me you were waiting…”

Before she finished her sentence, Dust pressed his lips against hers softly. She felt his breath upon her snout, and its warmth sent her heart aflutter, making her feel like some young foal, madly in love. She closed her eyes slightly, wanting the moment to last forever.

“Don’t say a word.” Dust whispered as he broke away from her. “Just follow me.”

He reached down and grabbed one of her hooves, walking backwards away from her without letting go of it. She smiled and followed on three legs, her heart skipping fast with anticipation of what was to come.

Dust led her to the middle of the ball room, where he stopped and looked at her with an almost playful smile over his lips. Luna wasn’t sure what to expect but she smiled back nonetheless. She’d forgotten just how cute he could be sometimes, when he wasn’t knee deep in paperwork or his own troubles.

He looked off to his right, before raising his free hand into the air. Luna could hear movement close by in the room, but they were so quiet it was almost impossible to make them out. Dust snapped his fingers, and instantly Luna felt her eyes burn as a bright light filled the room.

On her left on the opposite side of the wall with the windows, somepony released the giant curtain that covered the mirror, spreading out across the entire wall. The moment the mirror became visible; the moonlight hit it straight on and illuminated the room in a silver glow. In the light, she could now see a group of ponies standing in one of the corners of the other side of the room, seemingly holding different kinds of instruments.

“Oh, honey…” She began, almost feeling new tears well up in her eyes. The ponies moved slightly, setting up themselves to play.

Dust took a step forward and placed his other arm around her. “May I have this dance?” He whispered into her ears as he held her close. She didn’t need to answer him.

Slowly, they begun moving, holding each other close in the moonlight.

“Happy anniversary, sweetheart.”

The sounds of music filled the ball room, and Luna felt herself melt away. She followed Dust in his steps, moving slowly across the floor, the music flowing through her like ripples upon water.

Their shadows lay long over the floor, and Luna’s mane shimmered as the moonlight hit it, creating strange patterns on the floor as they moved. She wrapped her wings tight around Dust’s shoulders before resting her head against one of them.

“This is just perfect.” She whispered as they slowly spun around.

He still held one of her hooves in his hand, but she didn’t have any trouble moving on three legs as long as he supported her.

“And it’s all for you.” Dust whispered back.

Every worry she’d felt washed away with the soothing music, and the sorrow she’d felt in the gardens crept away from her, leaving room for an almost alien, warm sensation that spread all throughout her. She realised she hadn’t felt that way since the wedding, and it almost made her knees weak.

There was nowhere else she wanted to be, than right here in the arms of the man she loved more than anything. Feeling the warmth of his body against her, and the smooth satin of his robe against her skin made her feel like she was no longer on their planet, but rather far away in a place some ponies would call Heaven.

As the music kept playing silently, the couple came to a stop in their dance. Luna moved her head away from Dust’s shoulders, instead looking straight into his eyes. The music became louder as the couple yet again locked themselves in a deep kiss, closely entangled.

Neither of them heard or saw the rain that had started falling outside the window; the sound of it hitting the windows drowned by the music. The human and the pony remained silent as they kissed, both of them feeling their minds slipping away into another place in which only they existed. And for just one night, the royal duties didn’t exist. The troubles in court, all the work and speeches, everything faded away as nothing but they remained in this perfect world.

A world that would last for only one night.

One night of nothing but the warmth and comfort of each other, still strong after so many years. One night of moonlight dancing across the Alicorn’s eyes, creating sparkles in the brilliant cyan colour that Dust always felt like he could lose himself in. One night when Dust no longer had to worry about the Jormundgand around his neck, or what it could do to him.

Just one night. A perfect night for a pale dance.

And the music played on.