Lunar Trail stirs, the four bumps beneath the membrane of his enclosing wings shifting as he allows gravity to drag his eyelids partially open. Sighing resignedly, he spreads his wings, a weak shiver traveling through his body as the pocket of warmth held captive around him is freed, the cool air filling the rest of the room quickly taking its place. Releasing his tail's hold on one of the wooden crossbars spread across the ceiling, Lunar drops to the floor of the ancient batpony barracks, flapping his wings once to land lightly amid a wave of scattered dust aimed at the barracks' entrance. Covering his nose with a hoof, Lunar looks towards the other end of the room, time having long since removed any obstacles to his line of sight as for several seconds he watches the steady rising and falling of Princess Luna's barrel. Once satisfied that he had not woken her, Lunar carefully picks up one of his greaves in his mouth and tiptoes out of the barracks to gently deposit it on the hallway's stone floor, a pulse of urgency momentarily drowning out the rest of the world as he notices a deep orange shaft of evening sunlight slicing across an intersection further down the hall.

The rest of his armor soon follows, his heart in his throat as he carries the last piece outside – his barrel armor, along with its sheathed weapons and attached helmet. Placing it silently on the ground, he carefully rolls the armor onto its back and holds himself over it with his belly to the ceiling, slowly lowering himself into the metal's embrace. Fastening the belts across his barrel and under his chin once the maneuver is successful, he gets to his hooves, sucking in his gut just enough to allow room to shift his wings and push them through matching slits in the armor. After snugly fitting each of his greaves to a leg, Lunar peeks into the barracks, Luna's still sleeping form laying against the far wall in the center of a dustless half oval offering a brief respite of relief before he begins the final part of his journey, one meticulously placed, metal-shoed step following another until he stands only a few feet from her. Delicately, he turns around to watch the barracks' only entrance while he waits for his princess to wake.

He does not need to maintain his vigilance for long however, Luna's muzzle scrunching in prelude to a yawn only a few minutes later. Wincing as she attempts to stretch various parts of her body, she licks her dried lips and opens her eyes to find Lunar Trail fully armored and standing at attention in front of her.

Luna rises from the exquisitely clean patch of floor upon which she was sleeping and stretches again, small pops and cracks coming from her joints as she gingerly works the kinks out of her body, "Good evening, Lunar Trail. You slept well, I expect?"

"I slept well enough," Lunar replies, cringing at a particularly loud crack from Luna's neck. "And you, Princess?"

Luna smiles, exhaling sharply through her nose, "Let us simply say that there are times we wish we could sleep hanging from the ceiling as you do."

"Well, if you did start sleeping like us, I'm sure a lot of thestrals would be a lot more excited about it than makes sense," Lunar says, a smile spreading across his own lips at the idea.

"Most likely," Luna laughs, rolling her shoulders one last time and walking towards the exit to the hallway, raising a hoof when Lunar Trail tries to follow her.

"Princess?" Lunar Trail asks, looking up at her uncertainly.

"Please wait here for the time being," Luna answers. "From the looks of it, Midnight's parents are the closest thing to leaders the vamponies have, and I would like to discuss something in private with them."

Lunar salutes, "Of course, Princess."

He holds his salute until Princess Luna leaves the barracks, his hoof returning to the floor as he sits and looks around the mostly barren room, lonely boredom rapidly taking hold.

Lunar Trail's eyes travel along an extensive series of cracks in the barracks floor, the tiny fissures morphing into roads and rivers to his otherwise unengaged mind as he imagines them to be major routes of transportation between each of his imaginary city-states, their borders drawn in the layer of dust by the thumbs of his wings. Carefully controlling his breathing so as to not accidentally destroy the miniature world of his own creation, Lunar observes the fictional residents of his world grow, advance, and compete with one another through the early days of civilization. War breaks out between three of the city-states while he watches, his gaze tracking the movement of troops and supplies as two of the smaller states conspire to steal trade routes and territory from their larger and wealthier neighbor. His wings hover over the world map as the conflict rages, carefully using their tips to smooth and redraw the conflict's shifting borders in the dust.

"Hey Lu-"

Lunar Trail jerks at the unexpected voice near to him, the sharp motion of his wings sending a cascade of air over his fantasy land to instantly erase it and all its inhabitants from existence.

"Seriously?" Midnight asks exasperatedly, "I wasn't even trying to startle you this time. I was visible when I walked in and everything."

"Uhm… yeah, sorry," Lunar apologizes sheepishly. "I was a little distracted."

Midnight glances around the empty room, "If you say so. Anyway, Luna and my parents are done talking about her plan to get us blood and she asked me to come get you. So."

She turns and walks out the door, Lunar Trail speeding up to walk beside her as an inner struggle rages within him, Should I ask her what they were talking about?

His head tilts ever so slightly to the right, No, Princess Luna purposely excluded me from it, and I should respect her decision.

His head tilts to the left, On the other hoof, I really want to know.

No. If I needed to know, the Princess would have included me.

But I really really want to know.

That still doesn't-

Besides, she's going to have to tell everypony what her plan is eventually, right? It's not like this is some sort of secret that only she and a few other ponies are ever going to know. So there's really no harm in me knowing a little bit more just a little bit earlier than everypony else.

Lunar sighs as they round a corner, "So what is the plan?"

Midnight shrugs, yawning, "I don't know. I walked in on them talking about 'taxes' and ended up falling back asleep."

Lunar chuckles, "Yeah, taxes can have that effect on ponies."

"What are taxes anyways?" Midnight queries.

Lunar Trail gapes at Midnight, the question catching him off guard, "Uhh… "

Midnight gives him an irritated look, "What?"

Lunar clears his throat, buying himself a moment to recover, "Nothing. It was just kind of a weird question to me, though I guess it makes sense that you wouldn't have had to deal with taxes before. Taxes are when ponies earn bits through working or investing or – well, let's just leave it at working. So ponies do work for some other pony or group of ponies, and they're given bits in exchange for their work. The Equestrian government then takes some amount of the bits that every individual pony was given, and uses them to do things that benefit everypony but would be too expensive or impossible for most ponies to do on their own. One example is building and fixing all the roads in between cities and towns, so that traveling is safer and faster. Another is enforcing a common set of rules across all of Equestria."

"And now that she found out about us, she wants to tax us too?" Midnight asks, frowning.

Lunar Trail shrugs, "I don't know. I'm not sure if it would even be possible to tax you since, as far as I know, vamponies don't have any bits."

"Mmm… " Midnight murmurs.

The pair walk without speaking for the remainder of the trip, Midnight deep in thought and Lunar opting not to distract her. Midnight does not get long to ponder the possibility of taxation however, the vampony and guard reaching their destination after a few more minutes, both entering a room whose door had long since rotted away to leave only rusted iron hinges hanging tenuously to the stone frame. Lunar Trail immediately trots to Luna's side, Midnight pausing as she scans the room for her parents only to come up empty.

"Your parents left to retrieve the other vamponies who volunteered to return with us," Princess Luna says, answering Midnight's unspoken question from her place at an age-stained stone table fused to the floor at the room's center, light from a freshly risen moon entering through a glassless window on Luna's right to fall across the table.

"Oh. Alright then," Midnight replies, walking over to sit opposite Luna at the table.

Silence falls as the trio waits for the rest of the vamponies to arrive, Luna focusing on the empty doorway behind Midnight, Lunar Trail on the table, and Midnight on the moon.

Luna stands when the rest of the vamponies return several minutes later, Blue Moon freezing for an instant as he steps through the doorway – instincts reacting to Luna and Lunar's presence before his mind can recall last night's events.

"Thank you all for volunteering to come to Ponyville with me," Luna says, her eyes flitting between Moon Shadow, Blue Moon, and Aurora Moon before landing on Wisp and Eclipse. "And thank you for your assistance and cooperation."

"It's not like we have much of a choice," Wisp states bluntly.

"Still, you have my sincere gratitude for making the choices you have," Luna responds, giving Wisp and Eclipse a quick bow then returning her attention to the three volunteers. "Are you ready to head out?"

"Yup!" Moon Shadow says excitedly, Blue Moon and Aurora Moon nodding their assent.

"Wonderful," Luna replies, her horn glowing to surround the table in a light blue aura and push it down. The table's short descent ends with a heavy thunk and is followed by a loud click, a patch of ceiling sliding away to reveal the night sky.

Princess Luna spreads her wings, flying through the opening with Lunar Trail closely following her and the four vamponies one by one trailing after him.

Eclipse watches them exit the room, keeping her eyes on the sky for a few seconds after they leave her sight before turning to look at Wisp, "Did you know the ceiling could do that?"

Wisp shakes his head, "Nope."

Ending his ascent half way between the canopy and the cloud layer, Lunar Trail speeds up just enough to once more bring himself to Princess Luna's side. Catching her eye, Lunar glances behind them, then back at Luna questioningly. Luna nods shortly before returning to watching the world in front of her, smiling to herself as Lunar slows and leaves her peripheral vision.

"So… " Lunar says from Midnight's left as he matches her speed. "Uhm. Hello."

"Hi," Midnight replies.

"I was wondering, regarding what you said last night, about other ponies being prey… " Lunar trails off.

"…Go on," Midnight prods after several seconds.

"Do you think I'm prey?" Lunar Trail asks after another few seconds of uncertainty.

"Yes," Midnight answers without missing a beat.

"And… I guess… " Lunar Trail says hesitantly, "does that mean you think I'm weak?"

"I think you're weaker," Midnight replies. "I'd definitely win if we fought."

"I'm pretty sure I can put up more of a fight than you're giving me credit for," Lunar objects, pride stinging at her bluntness. "I'm not one of Princess Luna's personal guard for nothing, you know."

"When was the last time somepony or something tried to kill you?" Midnight queries casually.

Lunar pauses for a moment as he considers the question, "Equestria has been at peace my whole life except for the changelings, and even they only tried to capture, so I don't think there's ever been anything trying to kill me."

"I figured," Midnight says, scanning the forest below them. "And where do vamponies live?"

Lunar Trail follows Midnight's gaze, then looks back at her, "The… Everfree Forest?"

Midnight nods, "Mhm. And what is the apparently really important thing we do in the Everfree?"

"You… um… you protect Ponyville?" Lunar answers tentatively.

"We hunt," Midnight corrects, Lunar's mouth going dry as she looks at him with a predatory glint in her eyes. "Every week we attack other things, things which would love to eat the rest of you ponies, and we eat them instead. There's no way anypony who's lived their whole life in one of your towns would stand a chance of beating me or any other vampony on their own. Well, adult vampony anyway. You just don't have the same instincts, and the practicing or whatever you do with the rest of your Guard doesn't cut it."

"Oh," Lunar Trail says, swallowing nervously. "S-Still, I think you're underestimating me."

Midnight smirks, "Not to mention that the changelings, who're best at deception, attacked you head on and won. Twilight even said it was 'a small miracle they didn't just panic and run away'."

"Princess Celestia's Royal Guard were the ones that got defeated," Lunar replies testily. "The Night Guard successfully defended our princess – the changelings that invaded didn't even get close enough to wake her, much less harm her."

"All Guards, be they of the Royal Guard, Crystal Guard, or Night Guard – including those whom I have chosen for my Lunar Guard, answer to all princesses," Luna calls out sharply from in front of them. "Not to one princess or another."

"I – y-yes, of course, Princess Luna," Lunar Trail backtracks. "My apologies."

Midnight smiles triumphantly, "Plus, I can just use shadowmagic to turn invisible, bite you, then wait a bit for my venom to work. You'd be unconscious on the ground in under a minute."

"Maybe. I'm pretty good with lunar magic and my tail though," Lunar Trail counters.

Midnight raises an eyebrow, "And lunar magic is… ?"

Lunar Trail grins confidently, "Watch."

Midnight stares at Lunar, her eyes locked pointedly onto his neck. Soon however, her attention begins to drift until she finds herself staring contentedly at the ocean of trees stretching to the horizon behind him. Her eyebrows knit in confusion and she attempts to refocus on Lunar, blinking in surprise when she fails to find him.

"Looking for me?"

Midnight's ears stand straight up and her head whips around towards the sound of Lunar voice, this time successfully locating him on her right side. Her gaze flicks across several points on his body, "How… ?"

"Perception filter," Lunar answers smugly. "It makes me seem uninteresting and very difficult to pay attention to. Also… "

A faint white glow spreads through the bones of his wings and with a powerful flap he shoots forward, quickly passing Luna while leaving a weakly glowing blur in his wake. However, before he travels too far his hooves glow as well and he does a partial roll to point his hooves in their direction of travel, knees bending as he suddenly comes to a complete stop – his hooves releasing a small pulse of white energy as he pushes off of thin air. Shooting back past Luna, Midnight, and the other three vamponies, he repeats the maneuver, his speed returning to normal once he catches up to Midnight.

"Huh," Midnight says, looking at him in surprise as the glow trailing him catches up. "Your name is very literal, isn't it?"

Lunar Trail laughs, "Yeah, it is."

"And I'm just saying that your magic's strength depending on the moon is a significant disadvantage," Midnight points out. "It becomes weaker just by going inside. And as neat as your demonstration was, you did it under a nearly full moon and with the Princess of the Moon right here. What would you do if Luna wasn't here and it was cloudy?"

"Thestral magic isn't entirely dependent on the moon," Lunar counters. "We can use our magic just fine indoors or when it's cloudy. Besides, moonstones can be used to offset the lack of a moon, or even to make it stronger than if the moon was out."

"But on its own, your magic does become weaker without a moon," Midnight reiterates, neither she nor Lunar noticing the Everfree Forest's thinning trees – or the sudden lack of other vamponies behind them.

"No, it just takes a little more effort than if it was done in moonlight," Lunar Trail replies.

Midnight sighs, "Which means you will get tired more quickly, which means it becomes weaker faster and you'll be able to use it less."

"And moonstones are used to counter that problem," Lunar repeats.

Midnight gives him a flat look as she and Lunar Trail descend after Luna towards the ground just outside the Everfree's border, "Then why don't you have any on you right now?"

Lunar shrugs, "Because there weren't supposed to be any evil undead tyrants running around trying to kill everypony, and bringing that kind of item on what was essentially a diplomatic 'first contact' mission could easily have become counterproductive if you thought it was meant as a threat."

Midnight rolls her eyes as she lands, freezing as she finally looks in front of her, slitted pupils as thin as a knife's edge.

Princess Luna glances at Midnight, then at the few hundred strong crowd standing less than 100 feet away, her brow creasing in concern as she returns her attention to the frozen vampony, "Midnight?"

Midnight's ears rotate to face Luna, however she otherwise remains almost completely still, her only other motion the expansion and contraction of her barrel as she breathes.

Lunar looks at the crowd, hesitating before stepping closer to Midnight, turning around to face her, and extending one of his wings to block her view of the gathered townsponies. Midnight exhales loudly through her mouth, panting as she drops her gaze to the ground below Lunar's wing and takes a few small steps backwards.

"Are you alright?" Lunar asks, Midnight's sudden fear weighing on his mind far more than the hundreds of ponies attempting to pierce through his obstructing wing with their eyes.

Midnight nods.

Lunar glances at his wing, then again at a clearly shaken Midnight, "Are you sure?"

Midnight glares at him, a bead of sweat rolling down her temple to hang from her clenched jaw.

"So… should I lower my wing?" Lunar queries.

Midnight nods, planting her hooves firmly to brace herself against the coming onslaught of stares.

"Alright… " Lunar Trail says, folding his wing to his side – and revealing a grinning pink pony.

"Hi Midnight!"

Midnight screeches and leaps several steps away, chest heaving.

Pinkie Pie retreats a step, rubbing the back of her neck, "Whoops, sorry."

Midnight's eyes dart from the apologetic party planner to the five other ponies approaching more slowly behind her.

"Really Pinkie?" Applejack asks, sending an annoyed look Pinkie's way, "What did we literally just say 'bout tryin' not ta startle any vamponies we meet?"

Pinkie Pie ducks her head, "I got too excited, and it slipped my mind."

Luna gives Twilight a quick bow as she, Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and a disguised Fluttershy stand beside Pinkie, two Thestral Guards following on the ground and another two in the air, though they keep a respectful distance.

"Twilight Sparkle, you have truly outdone yourself if this is how many of the townsfolk wish to meet the vamponies," Luna says, scanning the assembled ponies.

"I didn't want to reveal too much before you got back, but I did try to make sure everypony knew what was going on and how they were helping Ponyville," Twilight replies. "Though I think most of them were actually worried about you, Luna; you never mentioned any of them would be returning with you, so I didn't think to bring it up as a possibility until a minute ago."

Luna looks at a slowly calming Midnight, noting the small, involuntary twitches of the vampony's muscles, "I see… I thought I had mentioned the idea when we last spoke two days ago, but if I did not then that was an oversight on my part. And while we are flattered that so many are concerned for our wellbeing, that does leave us with something of a problem." Luna taps her chin thoughtfully, "Pinkie Pie, I apologize for the short notice, but perhaps you could arrange a gathering at the town hall? Though let us keep it to only 30 to 40 additional guests, I don't think Midnight or the others would be remotely comfortable with any more than that."

Pinkie salutes, "Aye-aye Princess! One welcome-to-Ponyville-even-though-you've-technically-been-here-a-whole-bunch-of-times-already party coming right up!"

Twilight glances at their surroundings as Pinkie Pie dashes off in a pink blur, "Luna, by 'the others', do you mean that more vamponies have come back with you aside from Midnight?"

"Correct," Luna replies shortly, the approach of one of her airborne guards drawing her attention. "Shadow Strike, do you have anything to report?"

Shadow Strike lands a few steps in front of Luna and salutes, "There have been some overly heated arguments, and a couple ponies whom I don't think were showing Princess Twilight proper respect, but nothing has happened that is worth your attention, Princess Luna."

Luna sighs, "It is a relief to know that Ponyville has stayed mostly calm while I was away."

"Believe me, we are all relieved as well," Shadow Strike agrees, dropping his hoof to the ground. "We've heard stories about the kinds of things that happen in this town. May I ask how your negotiations went?"

Luna smiles, looking at the Everfree, "I would not call them negotiations per se, but I would say they went quite well."

Lunar Trail and Midnight follow her gaze, Shadow Strike, Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy searching the border of the forest as well. Silence reigns, a hush falling over even the waiting crowd for nearly a minute before Blue Moon and Aurora Moon cautiously step out from behind a pair of trees. Whispers break out as they approach, the murmuring growing louder as Aurora Moon nudges the air next to her, Moon Shadow fading into visibility a moment later.

"Have there always been this many ponies living here?" Moon Shadow asks quietly once the trio comes to a stop just behind Midnight.

Midnight jerks her shoulders in a quick shrug.

Luna meanwhile turns to face the crowd once more, her guards taking point to help cut a path through the mass of ponies as she confidently strides forward, Twilight and the rest of her friends to Luna's right. Lunar Trail and Midnight follow in their wake, the other three vamponies keeping close on Midnight's heels as they do their best to avoid looking at the ponies surrounding them on all sides.

Shadow Strike and another guard trot ahead of the group as they approach the town hall, each holding open one of the double doors until the last of the vamponies passes through. Lowering their hooves, they allow the doors to swing shut, turning to expressionlessly watch the still hundreds-strong crowd mill restlessly just short of the town hall's steps while the other two guards who at been at Luna's arrival – as well as several more who had joined during their walk across town – take up positions encircling the building's exterior.

"This place looks a lot different with the lights on," Moon Shadow comments as she comes to a halt a few steps inside the large room, her eyes darting nervously between the first and second floors.

Blue Moon nods, glancing among the mostly dessert laden furniture taking up much of the space on the first floor, "And with all those tables."

"And with other ponies around," Aurora Moon adds as she watches Pinkie Pie dart from table to table.

Princess Luna turns her head as the vamponies continue their observations, her gaze tracking Ponyville's resident party planner, "Pinkie Pie, have you decided who will be invited? If you could write down their names when you have a moment, I can give it to my guards, and they can begin retrieving the ponies you have chosen."

Pinkie zooms between Luna and Twilight, "I-already-made-a-list-and-gave-it-to-Mayor-Mare!"

Continuing on her current trajectory, Pinkie comes to a halt beside four lined up party cannons and triggers all of them simultaneously, giggling as she watches the chaotically shot material land in an impossibly orderly way.

However, as she examines her finishing touches, her smile morphs into a frown, "Hey, where'd Midnight and the other vamponies go?"

At her words the non-vamponies present glance around, Midnight reappearing clinging to one of the wooden columns supporting the second floor balconies after a few seconds, studiously avoiding the amused look being sent her way by Lunar Trail as he stands beside Luna. A creak draws everypony's attention to the balcony above her to see Moon Shadow peeking down at them from between the rounded balusters beneath the railing, the rustling of a nearby tablecloth quickly following as Blue Moon and Aurora Moon crawl out from underneath one of the many tables on the first floor.

Twilight gives Pinkie a cross look and opens her mouth, but before she can say anything the town hall doors once more open, Vinyl Scratch entering and waving to Pinkie as she pulls a cart stacked high with speakers as well as other various audio equipment, her head bobbing in time to the beat of the music coming from her headphones.

Pinkie waves back, "Hi Vinyl! You're up front!"

Vinyl stays where she is, her head tilting in confusion.

Pinkie cups her hooves, "VINYL, YOU'RE UP FRONT!"

Twilight sighs, silencing Pinkie with one hoof while using the other to point first at Vinyl, then to the area beneath the balcony at the front of the town hall. Vinyl smiles, a couple more rapid than usual dips of her head indicating her understanding before she begins pulling her cart around the tableless edge of the room.

Midnight climbs down from her column once Vinyl passes below, Moon Shadow landing next to Midnight to join her in watching Vinyl unpack her gear and levitate it into place.

"Pinkie Pie, how much longer will you need to prepare?" Luna queries.

"Oh, I'm-" Pinkie's eyes widen as realization cuts off her sentence. Trotting over to a small, round table at the room's center upon which sits a single plate of red-tinted cupcakes with red frosting, she pulls a marker and a small sign from her mane, quickly scribbling a few words on the sign before placing it next to the plate. Taking a step back, Pinkie sticks the marker in her mane and examines her work through narrowed eyes, reaching out after a couple seconds to shift the sign a fraction of an inch to the left, "There! Now I'm ready."

All the other ponies in the room except for Vinyl look at the completed sign, the letters large enough even for Midnight and Moon Shadow to make out from the room's edge.

FOR VAMPONIES ONLY

Luna smiles, "Wonderful. Now, if I could have everypony's attention, I believe some introductions are in order. You all know Mid-" she pauses, her eyes flicking to an oblivious Vinyl Scratch before thinking better of it and clearing her throat. "You all know Midnight, however as you hopefully noticed, a few more vamponies have returned to Ponyville with us as well. The vampony beside Midnight is Moon Shadow," Luna says, pointing first at her, then at the pair of vamponies still standing next to the table they had hidden under, "and this is Blue Moon and Aurora Moon."

"As for the non-vamponies," Luna continues, her hoof drifting over to point at Twilight. "This is Twilight Sparkle, who is an alicorn and a Princess of Equestria like myself, and her friends Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie."

While the named ponies exchange waves of greeting with varying levels of enthusiasm, the door to the town hall opens again, Derpy and Time Turner walking inside to stand uncertainly a few steps from the entrance.

Pinkie redirects her waves towards the newly arrived couple, "Hello Mr. and Mrs. Whooves! You're the first ones here, so make yourselves at home."

Time Turner Whooves and Derpy Whooves smile and nod, scanning both the food spread across the various tables throughout the room and the ponies standing between them. Midnight is the one who catches Time Turner's attention though, the stallion tapping Derpy on the shoulder and taking the lead as the pair weave their way through the tables towards the watchful vampony.

Derpy smiles at Moon Shadow as they approach, Time Turner giving her a glance of acknowledgement before meeting Midnight's eyes. The two examine each other for a second, Time Turner speaking first, "If I'm not mistaken, you're the vampony who was in our house the other night."

Midnight blinks, "I'm surprised you recognize me."

Time Turner shrugs, "I was able to get a glimpse of you during the fight, and then I saw you later at the hospital while I was waiting for Derpy to wake up from that venom-induced sleep you put her in."

"Ah, that makes sense," Midnight replies, keeping her voice neutral though her eyes narrow ever so slightly.

"So, based on that experience, and what Prin – and what Twilight explained earlier today, " Time Turner continues, "you fed on Derpy, correct?"

"Mmm… " Midnight says, considering the statement. "I bit her, so it was my venom, but it was my little sister who drank her blood since she's too young to feed on her own yet."

"You have a sister?" Derpy asks curiously.

Midnight nods, "Yeah, and an older brother too."

"Well, it's nice of you to help her out like that," Derpy replies, gesturing at the pony beside her. "This is Time Turner by the way. What's your name?"

Midnight looks at the floor, shuffling her hooves uncomfortably, "I'm Midnight. And, uh, I guess I'm supposed to ask you this now that we're all out in the open and everything, but is it ok if I come back every once in a while?"

Time Turner glances at Derpy, "I don't know. I understand that you need blood, and that you help a lot with keeping the Everfree by Ponyville under control, but it's still rather creepy to think that you or another vampony might very well be sneaking into our house as soon as Princess Celestia lowers the sun."

Midnight sighs heavily, "Alright then."

"Well, I'm ok with it," Derpy states cheerfully.

Time Turner and Midnight turn to stare at Derpy, their expressions mirroring each other along with their simultaneously spoken words, "You are?"

"Yeah, I mean, it is kind of weird to think about you creeping around our house while we're asleep," Derpy says, hugging Time Turner, "but it's even worse to think about what might've happened if you weren't there. And it's not like anything bad has happened before, so why not?"

Midnight returns her gaze to Time Turner, eyebrows raised.

"I… " Time Turner looks between the expectant vampony and his still snuggling wife, then sighs. "I'll think about it."

Midnight smiles, "Thank you."

"So what's it like, living in the Everfree Forest?" Derpy asks, detaching herself from her husband.

"It's… well… " Midnight pauses, a dozen differences flashing through her mind. "It's completely different. The Everfree has a lot more sounds and scents and shapes – everything in Ponyville is just a square or a triangle or something. You also have to always be on alert when you're moving around, whereas here there's houses and streets everywhere so you can see and hear pretty much everything, which is… it's just… it's weird, for ponies to be so relaxed outside of their homes."

Derpy frowns, "Does your vampony village not have streets or houses?"

Midnight snorts, shaking her head, "There is no 'vampony village', for the most part each family lives in their own cave."

"You live in a cave," Time Turner states.

"Hey, it's a really nice cave," Midnight replies defensively. "It has a lot more space than any of your houses, and an underground river flows through part of it."

Moon Shadow's eyes wander the room as the conversation turns towards the merits of cave-based living, the sign next to Pinkie's reddish cupcakes eventually capturing her interest. Slipping away from the talking trio unnoticed, she quietly makes her way over to stand in front of the vampony-only cupcakes. Picking one of them up, she sniffs it uncertainly, hesitating for a moment before biting off the tip of the cupcake's swirled frosting.

"What do you think?" Pinkie asks, popping into existence next to her.

Moon Shadow starts in surprise, the cupcake hopping out of her hoof at the sudden motion. Pinkie Pie's hoof shoots forward though, catching the falling cupcake and offering it back to Moon Shadow who accepts it while watching the pink pony warily.

"Well~?" Pinkie queries eagerly.

Moon Shadow looks at the cupcake once more resting on her hoof, slowly leaning down to take a bite of both the frosting and the dough, then pulling her head back to chew. The wrapping around the bottom of the cupcake is not so easily bitten off however, the waxy paper detaching from the carefully crafted treat as she lifts her head – the cupcake proceeding to fall to the floor frosting side down.

Moon Shadow looks at the fallen cupcake, the wrapping still held in her teeth, then at Pinkie Pie, her brow knitting in perplexion.

Pinkie giggles, "You're supposed to unwrap the cupcake, then eat it. I guess I should have mentioned that."

"Oh," Moon Shadow replies, the wrapping dropping to the floor as well the moment she opens her mouth. She glances at the wrapping laying on the floor next to the cupcake, then again at Pinkie.

"Well~~?" Pinkie asks again, hopping in barely contained excitement.

Moon Shadow slowly chews the soft piece of pastry a few times before swallowing, "It's kind of bland."

"WHAT?!" Pinkie shouts, Moon Shadow jumping half an inch into the air and an equal distance away from the source of the sound.

"Pinkie, you really must stop scaring the vamponies," Rarity admonishes as she walks over to join them; Twilight, Rainbow, Applejack, and Fluttershy likewise drawn by Pinkie's exclamation.

"I wasn't scared," Moon Shadow corrects her. "I was startled."

Rarity waves a hoof dismissively, "Regardless, what seems to be the problem?"

"She said my cupcakes were bland, but that doesn't make any sense," Pinkie Pie answers, examining Moon Shadow's cupcake with a magnifying glass. "All I did was add a little extra 'seasoning', so it should have more flavor, not less."

"Why did you say 'seasoning' like-" Rarity starts to ask, her eyebrows creasing in confusion, then rising in realization as she notices which table they are standing next to. "Ooooooh… "

Moon Shadow leans down and takes another bite from the bottom of the cupcake, "I mean, it's not bad, it's just kinda bland."

"Hmm… I wonder… " Twilight murmurs, curiosity piqued. "Pinkie, do you have any plain sugar?"

"Do I have any sugar," Pinkie laughs, pulling a bag of pure sugar out from under the closest table. "C'mon Twilight, what kind of question is that?"

"One that seems a little silly in hindsight," Twilight replies, tearing open the bag with her magic and levitating an approximately one-eighth mouthful of sugar in front of Moon Shadow. "Here, try this."

Moon Shadow eyes the floating sugar suspiciously, carefully sniffing the tiny, purple-glowing crystals before engulfing them with her mouth.

"What does that taste like to you?" Twilight asks once Moon Shadow swallows the sugar.

Moon Shadow's lips quirk distastefully, "It didn't taste like anything, it just dissolved."

Twilight sighs, "I was afraid of that."

"What do you mean, Twilight?" Pinkie asks fearfully, "What's wrong with her?"

"Hang on a minute Pinkie, more data is needed," Twilight says, raising her voice once she locates the two remaining unoccupied vamponies. "Blue Moon! Aurora Moon! Could you come here for a minute?"

The couple walks over to stand next to Moon Shadow, the former sending the latter a questioning look to which Moon Shadow merely shrugs.

Twilight levitates two tiny piles of sugar in front of Blue Moon and Aurora Moon, "Alright, what does this taste like to you?"

They consume the offered sugar, Aurora Moon answering first, "It doesn't taste like anything."

"The dissolving is neat though," Blue Moon adds.

"Twili~ight, what's going on?" Pinkie Pie asks, worry suffusing her voice.

"Well… Pinkie… they, uh… " Twilight takes a deep breath, offering a quick prayer to Celestia for her friend's sanity, "they can't taste sugar."

Pinkie looks at the vamponies, then back at Twilight, "What?"

"Unlike Griffons and Diamond Dogs, Vamponies are obligate carnivores," Twilight explains, "and studies-"

Rainbow Dash raises a hoof.

"It means they only eat meat," Fluttershy supplies.

Twilight nods, "Right, and studies have shown that many of the animals which fall into this category are not only unable to taste sugar, but in fact lack the ability to taste anything we would call sweet at all."

"Hey Pinkie, you alright?" Applejack asks, tracking her friend's slowly increasing lean.

Pinkie Pie turns to stare at Applejack with vacant eyes, her body gradually tilting further and further to the right until she topples to the floor, limp as a wet noodle.

Rainbow Dash snickers, "I'm gonna have to say that's a 'no', AJ."

Pinkie groans and gets up as Applejack rolls her eyes, her tremulous legs holding her weight just long enough for her to wrap her forelegs around Moon Shadow's neck and shoulders in a hug, "I am so. Sorry."

Moon Shadow stands stock still, eyes wide and ears pinned to her skull.

Twilight facehoofs, the purple glow of her magic surrounding Pinkie Pie to pull her off the frozen vampony and place her next to Fluttershy. Pinkie once more begins to lean as soon as the support of Twilight's magic disappears, Fluttershy embracing Pinkie Pie with a feathered wing to hold her upright and in place. Moon Shadow breathes in deeply once Pinkie is safely away and under Fluttershy's wing, though the opening of the town hall doors interrupts her slow exhalation, any regained calmness vanishing as she turns to see more ponies flowing into the room.

Mayor Mare steps forward as the last of the party invitees pass through the doorway, Luna and Lunar Trail meeting her midway between those who had just entered and those already in the room.

Mayor Mare bows, "Hello, Princess Luna."

"Greetings to you as well, Mayor," Luna replies, smiling as she quickly counts the number of ponies who had entered with Mayor Mare. "I trust everypony is aware of why they were asked to be here?"

Mayor nods amid murmurs of assent from the small crowd behind her, "We are, your highness."

"Good," Luna states. "In that case, I believe there is little more which needs to be said, other than introducing our guests of honor tonight."

"Next to the Element Bearers are Moon Shadow, Blue Moon, and Aurora Moon," she continues. "And over there is Midnight. Despite our differences, and past failings, they volunteered to openly come to Ponyville so that we may be able to better know and understand one another, and they are perhaps the first of their kind to do so in the entire history of our races. It is my hope that we will be able to extend to them the same friendship and respect which we already show each other."

"Now I believe Pinkie Pie has some games and activities planned, which I will allow her to explain to you," Luna states, giving a still somewhat dazed Pinkie Pie an expectant look before returning her attention to Mayor. "Also, Mayor Mare, before you join in the festivities, I would speak with you in private."

"I – yes, of course, Princess Luna," Mayor replies.

Luna turns to head towards one of the town hall's smaller back rooms, Lunar remaining at her side and Mayor Mare following in their wake, only to pause after a few steps as her eyes land on Ponyville's resident princess, "Twilight Sparkle, I believe you should hear what I have to say as well."

Twilight glances between Princess Luna and Mayor Mare, nodding as her face sets in a determined expression.

"By 'private', I also mean just the three of us," Luna says, looking down at Lunar Trail as Twilight walks over to stand on her other side. "Besides, this is a party, and you have performed admirably over these last few days. Stay and have some fun."

Lunar blinks in surprise, then bows, "Thank you, Princess."

Pinkie meanwhile suppresses any lingering existential horror stemming from the recent revelation regarding vampony taste buds and takes Luna's place between the two groups, her usual cheeriness and energy on full display as she surveys the fresh batch of partygoers, "So! As you can all see, there's a ton of food here, so help yourself. That said, caffeine is still banned as per royal decree, so all the coffee is decaf. However! There should be more than enough awesome sugary treats to make up for it and just in case it's somehow not enough, I've hidden a bag of 100% pure sugar under each of the tables. As for the entertainment, Vinyl Scratch is providing the music, so be sure to spend some time dancing to her sick beats! There's also pin the tail on the pony, darts, and bean bag toss set up right now plus a few more things later once I've had a little bit more time to get them ready. And don't forget, have fun!"

As soon as Pinkie's speech ends, Lunar Trail makes a beeline for Midnight as she, Derpy, and Time Turner trot over to the makeshift dance floor in front of Vinyl's unpacked wall of speakers, Midnight awkwardly attempting to mimic the moves of her three fellow dancers once the music starts to play.

Moon Shadow, Blue Moon, and Aurora Moon meanwhile walk over to several townsponies preparing to play pin the tail on the pony, the two groups watching each other and fidgeting nervously.

"So… " Moon Shadow says eventually, "how do we play?"

Luna closes the door after Twilight and Mayor Mare leave to join the party, smiling to herself as the wooden obstruction no longer completely blocks out the growing sounds of the festivities.

Are you ready, Selena?

Selena sighs, I'm as ready as I'll ever be.

Flicking the light switch with her magic, Luna closes her eyes, a single strand of white energy winding its way up her horn.