Nightmare Moon eyed the massive minotaur bowing before her, her cold gaze never faltering as he came out of the bow. “You are offering your services to assist in my war?” Her voice quivered with exhaustion, the past few days having taken a major toll on her body. “You may have saved my partner and I from the griffons with your actions, but what is to keep you from simply killing us when we are unprepared?”

“My Queen, I don’t think they’d do that.” Twilight carefully extracted herself from below the alicorn and nuzzled her neck. “If they wanted to kill us they could have done so after the griffons fled.” She turned back to the minotaur lord and bowed. “I am Twilight Sparkle, consort of Her Majesty. I’m sure I speak for both of us when I ask why you’ve helped us.”

Jahurl smiled, his large molars gleaming in the moonlight. “Ahhh, yes. It is a pleasure to meet you, Lady Sparkle. I can tell you how we found you, but I think we should postpone our talk of the war until you have rested in Valtaura.” His deep voice boomed through the night, echoing off the trees. “We were on our way to your country, you see, and noticed the griffons attacking your carriage from afar. We guessed that, from the pegasi pulling the carriage; it would belong to the ponies of Equestria. We arrived to assist you as quickly as we could. It was much to our surprise to find the Queen herself fighting.” His words, albeit loud, were calm and well-articulated, a sign that he had spent many years perfecting his speech.

“How did you know who I am? I understand that the only creatures to truly know of my presence were my subjects, the dragons, and the griffons.” Twilight felt the alicorn relax slightly, but could tell she was prepared for battle if it became a necessity.

“Pony Queen. We minotaur have many fables of your defeat and inevitable return. When the night fell and banished the sun we knew that it was you who had returned.” He nodded his head while looking to the other minotaur in magically cleared space. “While we do not hold any special reverence towards you we certainly respect your duty as Queen of the Moon.” He looked off into the distance before fixing his gaze on the two ponies. “It is getting late and I’m sure you wish to rest. Come with me to Valtaura where we shall provide to you a place to rest and eat. My soldiers will tend to your fallen.”

“Very well. I shall accept your invitation of hospitality seeing as how I am currently… incapable of returning to my castle. Twilight, stay close to me.” The unicorn nodded and moved to the alicorn’s side, keeping as close as she could without disturbing the wings hanging uselessly from her back.

Nightmare Moon watched the minotaur turn to leave as his fellows left to find the bodies of her pegasus team before lifting a fore leg to walk. She gasped in shock as her legs lost their strength and buckled under her weight. “Nightmare! Are you okay!?” Twilight was checking to see if she had sustained any new injuries as the queen grunted in annoyance.

“I am much weaker than I thought. I’ve used too much magic recently with little time to recuperate.” She sighed and shakily got to her hooves after much struggle. “I’ll be fine. Let us be-.”

She was cut short as her body was lifted from the ground. Below her, Twilight smiled as she carefully positioned the alicorn on her back. “I’ll carry you, My Queen. You’ve done so much for me recently that it would be the least I could do in return.” Nightmare Moon scowled slightly, but not at Twilight so much as her own current weakness. Twilight looked to the minotaur lord who had stopped to allow them to get prepared. “I’ll follow behind you, Lord Jahurl.”

Jahurl waited for them to close the distance he had created before continuing. “Will you be able to carry her for the entire trip, young unicorn? It shall be a few hours at this pace before we reach my city.”

Nightmare Moon opened her mouth to protest Twilight’s insistence to carry her, but Twilight spoke up and cut her words short. “I’m certain I will be exhausted by the time we get there, but it will be worth it. I’m sure I’ll be able to manage.” She smiled back at the alicorn as they followed behind the lumbering form of the minotaur.

“If you wish it, young unicorn. Should it be necessary, I will carry you both to our destination.” He chuckled lightly, a deep laugh that bounced through the forest around them. “I certainly have the strength to carry two small ponies such as you. If you are prepared then let us continue. It would be best to arrive earlier rather than later.” He returned to his previous pace, but still remained slow enough to accommodate for the unicorn’s weighted speed.

Twilight was pleasantly surprised by how little the Moon Queen weighed. Judging by her size, I’d have expected Nightmare to weigh considerably more than she does. I guess I’ve never really paid enough attention to her weight before. “Nightmare?”

“I may have reciprocated your feelings, but I am still your Queen. You must continue to use my title outside the privacy of our chambers.” Her voice was stern yet held not the cold, callous undertone Twilight was used to.

“I’m sorry, Your Majesty. I will be sure to watch what I say.” She smiled and moved slightly faster, energized by the Queen’s kindness. It’s nice not to be yelled at when I make a mistake. “I want to thank you for protecting me. I’m sure that the griffons would have done unspeakable things to me…. You know, Moon Beam will probably be quite excited when we get back. I can just see her calling me ‘Mommy Twilight’.”

“Yes. Until you, I was the only pony she had ever known.” Nightmare Moon shifted on Twilight’s back and brought her forelegs around the unicorn’s neck for added support.

Twilight sighed in contentment, but perked her ears as she realized what Nightmare had said. “The only other pony she’s known? Didn’t she used to live in the castle with you before you sealed her in the tomb?”

“She did, but for a very short time. She was never allowed free roam of the castle back then for fear of what Celestia might do when she found her.” The alicorn scowled at the mention of her sister.

“I…. I remember Moonie saying something about when she met you.” The unicorn turned her head to face Nightmare Moon. “She said she was hit by a powerful wave of magic and then saw you flying up towards her. I also remember you calling a doll in your room Moon Beam from the visions of your past. What…. What is she, exactly?”

“It’s a difficult story. Not one I am fond of telling.” She looked into Twilight’s pleading eyes, the purple irises glinting whenever moonlight snuck through the branches of the trees to reflect off them, and closed her own. “Very well, I will tell you.”

Luna stared down her sister; the white alicorn, with her pink mane billowing in the wind, looked back with a resigned sadness. “Luna, could you please stop all of this nonsense? You cannot keep delaying the sun like this. The ponies are becoming worried that something is going on.”

“Oh, but can you not tell, Sister? Something is going on. I am tired of you and your sun stealing the attention of our subjects!” Her voice dripped with malice, her eyes glowing turquoise in the night. “I have spent too much time being spurned and forgotten as your day captivates and enthralls the peons of our nation! I will no longer assist in lowering the moon for you, Sister. From now on, I will put my efforts into lengthening the night to show our subjects whose creation is most beautiful.”

“Luna….”

“NO!” Her horn flared and a wave of magic pulsed around her. “You will not dissuade me. My decision has been made and you will do nothing to stop me!” Luna turned, and began walking away to signify the end of the discussion, but Celestia followed after her.

“You know that I cannot allow you to do this, don’t you?” Luna ignored her and kept up her pace. “Please, Luna! I don’t want to have to fight you to change your mind!”

The moon goddess spun about and glared at her sister’s face. “You cannot fight me because you do not have the ability with magic that I possess!” Her horn flared to life and a powerful gale began to form in the area around them, the trees and dirt road being torn apart by its force. Celestia erected the strongest barrier she could against the onslaught and cast a pleading glance at the lunar alicorn.

“Luna…. Please stop….”

“I WILL NOT BEND TO YOU!” Her voice echoed in the next as the maelstrom gained more strength, the radius of her spell growing as she pumped more magic into it. Celestia cried out as her shield was shattered sending her flying through the air to land on the ground with a dull thud. A high pitched scream pierced the air and Luna’s spell dropped immediately. The scream hadn’t come from her sister, but from somewhere behind her.

Luna looked to the unconscious form of Celestia before taking off down the destroyed dirt road in the direction of the anguished cry. Shouts rose in the air as several ponies began to converge on an area just ahead of her. An area dominated by an uprooted tree smashed into the ground. Blood pooled on the ground where the wind-stripped tree had landed, its bare branches reveal a scene of horror beneath their cover.

A mare and a foal lay crushed under its mass, their bodies twisted unnaturally by the force of the collision. Luna stared in horror at the scene before tearing her eyes away and flying into the night air. I did this…. I let my anger free and killed a filly and her mother…. Tears fell from her eyes. I never meant for this to happen! I just wanted everyone to appreciate my night!

But isn’t this exactly what you wished for? Luna blinked in confusion at the second voice playing in her mind. You wanted them to pay for not loving you. What better way to make them pay than by killing them? They do not deserve your mercy.

Do I…? Do I really want that? She shook her head and fought her darker urges. No! She was just a filly! She didn’t deserve to die!

Oh, but she’s not beyond saving…. Not yet. The lunar alicorn froze in midair, her thoughts coming together. You could use that spell. Make her yours forever and spare her the fate you inflicted upon her. You would be doing her a favor and be making your claim to the monarchy that much more firm.

Luna smiled devilishly. That’s right. She would make a perfect addition to my army. I’ve always wanted a foal and now I’ll be able to have a foal and a servant without having to desecrate myself with the filth of a male. She lit her horn and disappeared into darkness only to reappear in her room moments later. She stepped over to her bed and levitated the navy doll from its resting place. “Well, Moon Beam, it seems that you’ll finally be able to be with me forever. I’ll finally be able to hear you talk back.”

She disappeared once more before reappearing in the middle of the crowd surrounding the tree. Several unicorns were attempting to lift the thing with their magic, but it was buried too deep into the ground. Luna strolled past them and ignited her horn. The massive tree tore itself from the ground along with some of the gore from the mangled unicorns beneath it. The ponies gathered about watched as she effortlessly tossed the trunk into the distance and lifted the body of the foal into the air.

“You will speak not of this to anypony that asks.” She voice was cold and sinister, the edges of her tone hinted at the changes beginning in her. “Should I catch word of this event travelling around, I will personally deal with each of you.” The crowd all nodded weakly and murmured their compliance as Luna winked out of existence before them. She soon arrived at a large clearing far from her castle, encircled by large marble pillars.

She carefully lay the dead child down on an altar in the center. The filly’s blood pooled around her until it found its way into several etched grooves in the altar’s surface. Luna’s horn began to glow a faint red as the levitation spell holding the doll in the air mixed with something much darker and more powerful. The blood quickly spread through the white marble etchings on the altar and began to trickle off where the carvings met the edge. The blood, moved by Luna’s magic, quickly filled the small circle around the altar and, in a burst of blood red light; the whole area began to hum with power.

Luna slowly lowered the unicorn doll towards the foal’s corpse. Her horn took on a darker hue as she poured more magic into the spell. The doll jerked in spasms as it came in contact with the body until it, too, began to hum with its own energy. The doll twisted and contorted as it started to take on a more pony shape, its body becoming fuller as the fabric became tissue. The corpse slowly began to be absorbed into the doll-now-pony, the blood seeping back up the altar’s sides to become one with its new host. A faint shimmer shone through the minute space between the two bodies and, as soon as that shimmer vanished, so too did the remainder of the corpse.

The doll hung lifelessly above the altar, its new shape a navy unicorn filly with a wispy, smoke-like mane and tail. With a final urge of her magic, Luna focused and, between her and the foal, a similar shimmering coalesced. The ethereal blue wisp quickly snapped itself from Luna’s body and disappeared into the unicorn. The filly gasped as her eyes shot open, life once unheard of now coursing through the ex-doll’s body. She was carefully set upon the altar to gaze up at the alicorn.

“Welcome to my side, Moon Beam. We will be together forever.”

“Wow.” Twilight was awestruck. She had never assumed that Nightmare Moon was capable of such powerful magic. “Is Moonie truly just a doll? I cannot seem to fathom that being so. I’d assume that a homunculus or golem would be much more… lifeless. She’s so full of energy and has a wonderful personality.”

Nightmare Moon looked to the sky. They had been walking for almost an hour as she recanted the tale. Twilight continued to carry her without complaint, but she could tell that the unicorn was struggling now due to the slight shaking whenever a hoof was lifted from the ground. “She is…, but then she isn’t. Moon Beam is essentially a doll, but she has parts of my and the filly’s soul inside of her. She is flesh and blood now, all of it taken from the dead filly to give her life.”

“Part of your soul? How is that possible? I never knew that you could separate your soul or even give it to something else!” She looked forward to make sure she wouldn’t run into any trees. “Why would you even need to give her your soul if you could take the filly’s? What about when you cast that spell on me!?”

“Normally you would not be capable of performing that spell even with the altar to guide you. I, however, am the Goddess of the Moon. My domain is darkness and that is where I gather much of my power. I am more than capable of commanding the arcane magic.” She shifted again. “As to the question about the soul…. The filly’s soul had already begun to move on when I started the ritual so the piece that I drew into Moon Beam was but a fragment. You cannot animate a doll without an entire soul so, having no other available sources, I gave a piece of my own. It was not much of a loss for me as I am immortal save for unnatural death. I can stand to lose a portion of my soul and still come out unscathed. The ritual with you was quite different, however. You had not tried to move on when I started so I merely had to augment your soul with my own. I never expected it to link them permanently, however. I was also not giving life to an inanimate object as the spell is supposed to do. With you, I guided your soul back into your body and reanimated the flesh with it. It is… much more tiring than the other form and requires a greater ability.”

Twilight was speechless. She hadn’t known just how difficult a spell like that was and that Nightmare Moon had used it to save her was heartwarming. She looked to the sky and smiled brightly at the moon above, her heart fluttering in excitement. The proximity to Nightmare Moon was exciting and to have it mixed with her own feelings made her as happy as she could be despite the aching in her legs and chest. “You are tired, Twilight. I can feel it. You are still recovering from the venom and have been carrying me for over an hour. I will be able to walk on my own.”

Twilight shook her head and kept her pace steady. “I’ll be fine. You have overexerted yourself and broken your wings. You are in much worse shape than I right now.”

“We are about to leave the edge of the forest, ponies. We will be travelling over desert for the rest of the trip, but the oasis where my people live is not far from here. We only have about an hour’s journey remaining.” Jahurl had paused mid-stride to speak with them. “If you wish for me to ferry you at any time, feel free to ask.”

“We’ll be fine, Lord Jahurl. We are nearing the Night Cycle of the moon, I believe, so it should be cooling down soon. I will be able to make it.” The minotaur nodded and moved ahead of them as Twilight once more followed behind. In the distance, the sound of heavy hoofsteps could be heard signifying the approach of Jahurl’s small platoon.

Twilight collapsed in the sand as they passed the first building marking the beginning of Valtaura. The hot sand burned her skin as she lay there, but she couldn’t will herself to move any further. She had quickly been losing her stamina from the moment they set foot in the desert due to the high difficulty of travelling over such unsteady ground. She had read about adventurers trudging through vast deserts in search of hidden treasures, but none of those stories or historical facts could have prepared her for the arduous task first hoof. She was sweating profusely, a fact that Nightmare Moon was begrudgingly aware of, and gasping for air.

The alicorn had asked her to stop and allow her to walk on her own, but she had refused every time. Now that the unicorn was incapable of movement, however, the black alicorn raised herself upon her hooves and sighed. “Did I not tell you to allow me to walk on my own?”

“I’m… sorry…, My Queen….” She tried to lift herself from the ground, but to no avail. Her legs just didn’t want to co-operate. To make matters worse, the sand was burning her scar with a fiery fervor. “Please…. The sand…. It is burning… my chest….”

Jahurl laughed and carefully hefted the unicorn onto his shoulder. “I admire your determination, young pony. Not many would do what you have for anything. Now come, I will lead you to where you’ll be staying until we can return you to Equestria.”

Nightmare Moon followed behind him, her movements only lightly hindered by the sand under her hooves, as Twilight rode upon his massive shoulder. The unicorn looked around her in awe. She hadn’t noticed how well built the city was due to her exhaustion, but, now that she no longer had to move herself, she could appreciate its design. All of the buildings were made of a cool gray stone and had large entrances for the stature of their inhabitants. The city spread out in all directions and seemed to go on forever. They passed through several streets, the ground now lined with stone as well in order to allow for easier movement, and saw several different stores all selling various metal wares. There were places dedicated to fine jewelry made of gold and silver, many places with finely crafted household utensils and decorations on display in their windows, and even a shop with elegant clothes for the fashion-minded minotaur, but the most common type of building that could be seen were the smithies. There were dozens of them all over the city that they saw on their short trip through and Twilight assumed that there were even more that they hadn’t passed. It seemed as if the entire civilization relied on metalworking for their income.

The buildings were not the only thing of interest in Valtaura, however. The citizens themselves were quite fascinating to the young unicorn. “Your people are quite interesting, Lord Jahurl. I wouldn’t have expected everyone to not wear clothing. It’s quite… free.”

He chuckled at her remark. “You ponies are not much different, young one. I have seen how liberal you are. You almost never wear clothes yourself if I am not mistaken.” The realization hit Twilight and she blushed in embarrassment only to invoke yet another hearty chuckle from the minotaur lord. “Clothes are, like your society, a self-indulging pleasure here. We only wear them when we wish to look nice.”

“I guess you are right. I never thought about it.” She looked about and then down at Nightmare Moon who simply watched her surroundings cautiously. “Your females are quite different from your males. I would have expected them to have similar heads. Why are their faces so flat and hairless? I can see small horns, but, other than their legs, I’d have never been able to tell they were minotaur.”

“Ahhh, that is something not even we are entirely sure of. It has been as such since before I was born and shall continue to be after I have long since passed on.” He rubbed his chin in thought, and grinned. “We have many folk tales about where the change originated from. The most popular, however, is that our ancestors were experimented on by extra-terrestrials and they thought it interesting to change our females. It is quite an elaborate tale, but just a story nonetheless.”

The crowds lining the streets all began to take notice of the pair of ponies and their lord. Some bowed slightly in reverence to Jahurl while others only gawked at the newcomers. “Your subjects must not see a lot of ponies. It is quite obvious that they are not used to our presence.”

“Yes. The only one that have ever seen the ponies of Equestria are those in my personal guard that have gone with me to pay our respect to the Sun Princess. We do not typically receive very many outsiders here considering the terrain of our land. Our brethren in the Grandimino Peaks are much more diverse than we Valtaurans.”

He turned left onto a wide length of street and they were assaulted by the bustle of the market. There were many stands and shops spread about this cross-like intersection and the outlying streets. They were filled with many types of objects ranging from food to ornate rugs made from cotton to glass stained in multitudes of colors. Twilight stared in wonder at the boisterous marketplace and all of the minotaur moving about as they shopped and chatted with each other. Jahurl moved swiftly through the crowd as they all parted to make way for him and his guests. They rounded another corner and continued down the street until they reached a wide clearing surrounding an enormous lake of water. All around the lake were large buildings, much larger than any they had passed before, of multiple stories and obvious importance.

“This is the center of my fair city, the spot where Valtaura was found and it is from here that we continue to prosper. This is the Valtauran Oasis.” He waved his hand in front of him, motioning to the lake and grassed ground surrounding it. “That building over there,” he pointed to the largest construct in the area directly across the lake from where they were currently standing, “is where you will be staying. It is our foreign dignitaries’ quarters and was made specifically for anyone that came on business for their country. I’m ever so certain that you will find it to your liking. I reside in the Lord’s Hall, my personal abode, just to the north of here. You’ll notice it by the large red insignia on the front of the doors. I will make sure you are situated at the dignitaries’ quarters, but then I must attend to my duties. Do not worry, though. You will be taken care of with services fitting your station, Queen Moon.”

“Thank you for your hospitality, Lord Jahurl.” Twilight smiled from her temporary perch and glanced down at Nightmare who simply nodded in agreement.

“It is my pleasure to assist you. We will be fighting together in this war so it is better to fight with friends rather than neutral countries with a mutual enemy.”

They moved quickly around the lake’s edge, Nightmare Moon, Jahurl, and his entourage taking large strides over the soft grass surrounding them. It took little time for the group to arrive at the dignitaries’ building and they soon found themselves inside in the cool air of the building’s lobby. Jahurl carefully set Twilight on the ground and only removed his hands when he was sure that she could hold herself up. The lobby was quite amazing by the standards that the rest of the city had set. It was circular and domed as compared to the boxy buildings they had passed on their way here and was decorated with many paintings of past foreign diplomats. There were portraits of ponies, griffons, zebras, and, most surprisingly, a young dragon hanging on the walls. The floor was covered in a soft, blue carpet with intricate designs and abstract shapes covering its expanse. There were several forms of furniture ranging from couches to simple stools and even a few pillows set around on the floor. The white roof was decorated with small murals depicting gatherings of the many species as they determined what would be the fate of their countries. This is rather nice. I wouldn’t have thought such artistic beauty and design could come from such large creatures. I have certainly underestimated the minotaur.

A pair of minotaurs, one male and one female, came into view as they exited a room towards the back of the lobby. They caught sight of their Lord and quickly bowed to his presence. “Welcome, Lord Jahurl. It is a pleasure to see you here.” The female was the first to come out of her bow. “Who are our guests, My Lord?”

“Tyra, this is Queen Nightmare Moon of Equestria and her consort, Lady Twilight Sparkle. They are going to be our guests for a short period of time until I lead our forces in their aid against the griffons.” The two gasped in near-perfect unison and bowed to the two ponies. “Tyra, Tyro, I would like for you to attend to their every need for their stay here and to guide them through the city if they wish it. I must attend to my duties for the night and will be incapable of doing so myself so I leave it in your hands.” The minotaur lord turned on the spot and left the ponies to the young minotaur in front of them.

“As you wish, My Lord.” The male, Tyro, stepped forward and dropped to one knee, his pale beige head lowered in respect. “I am Tyro and this is my sister Tyra. It is our pleasure to assist you in any way possible. Perhaps you would want to be lead to your room first?”

“That would be most desirable, Tyro. My companion and I require rest after the ordeals of this night.” Twilight nodded weakly and closed the small distance between herself and Nightmare Moon.

The minotaur siblings nodded and motioned behind them. “If you would follow us, Queen Moon, we will guide you to your rooms.”

“We require only a single bed. One room shall be enough for us.” Twilight couldn’t help but to giggle at the looks Tyra gave them.

“Of course, Your Majesty. We will make sure that you have our best room available to you which shouldn’t be too hard considering we don’t have any other guests.” Tyro rolled his eyes at his sister. “You act like you’ve never seen a foreign ruler and their partner before.”

“Well, I’m sorry if I can’t help but to be surprised by such things. Most of our guests still accept the separate rooms and go about their business privately.” She glanced back at the pair of ponies nervously. “I just hope they aren’t too loud.”

The group passed through an archway next to the door the minotaur siblings had arrived from. Beyond was a long hallway lined with doors on either side. The carpet extended to the end of the corridor and was occasionally dotted by small stands with glowing candles to light the path. Twilight noted that, while the hall was rather long, its ceiling was, by comparison, much larger. The current lighting failed to illuminate the very top, but all along the walls hung tapestries and flags of the various countries. Equestria’s flag of the dual alicorns sat between the Griffonian and Draken flags just opposite of the door their guides had stopped before.

“This is our finest room that we set aside for the royalty that occasionally visit. It is quite the masterpiece with its own lavatory and a large array of reading material. All of the furniture is crafted with the finest materials from the silk sheets to the mahogany seats all hand crafted by our own skilled artisans.” Tyra continued to list off the many wonderful items stuffed into the most spacious chamber, but Nightmare Moon ignored her ramblings.

The alicorn pushed open the door and strolled inside, cutting off the words of the minotaur. “While I appreciate the effort of explaining every minute detail of our room, I wish only to rest.” Twilight moved in behind her, and smiled apologetically at the pair. “Should I have need of your services I will call for you.” She closed the door behind her leaving the siblings to stand in shock at her abrupt dismissal.

Twilight smiled and pressed her body against Nightmare’s. “We can finally relax after that exhausting trip, can’t we?” She sighed in contentment until she felt a surge of something pulsing through her body. She couldn’t exactly describe it, but it felt familiar somehow. She looked up to see the alicorn grimacing as she brushed up against Nightmare’s wing. “They still hurt don’t they?”

“It is uncomfortable, but I believe I have rested enough from the journey on your back to be able to fix the bones.” As if on cue, her horn flared to life and enveloped the appendages in a black glow that was hardly visible around their already black coloring. Twilight saw the slightly misshapen wings right themselves, but continue to hang weakly at her side. “They will be sore for a while, but my natural healing will take care of the rest.”

Twilight took in a deep breath through her nose and cringed at the smell of sweat exuding from her body. “I think we should wash ourselves before we sleep. I’d hate to soak our bed in our sweat.”

Nightmare Moon gazed down towards the weary unicorn and nodded. “Yes, that would be desirable. It may also help us to relax as well.” She searched the room and found the entrance to the bathroom, a large arched opening in the stone wall that led to a white-tiled, expansive washroom. A series of tubs filled the area, all of them large enough for five minotaurs of Jahurl’s size, and were filled with water of various temperatures.

“I’ve read about these kinds of lavatories. Each tub is supposed to serve a different purpose. One for washing, rinsing, soaking, and cooling.” Twilight pointed to each tub in order and smiled proudly at her knowledge of such workings. “It’s a system made to prevent the user from simply bathing in their own dirt. We should start with the first tub so we can clean ourselves.”

Nightmare Moon stepped towards the wash pool and, after removing her various pieces of decorative armor, tested the waters with a hoof. It was pleasantly warm. Not too hot to prevent immediate entrance and not cold enough to require a quick cleansing, but just that perfect temperature to allow for a soothing bath. She lowered herself into the water and felt the sweat and dirt from her travel begin to slowly lift from her coat. Twilight soon joined her, wincing slightly as the heat agitated her scar, but quickly relaxing as she, too, grew accustomed to the temperature. They sat together in silence, soaking in the water, until Twilight noticed the various soaps lining one side of the basin.

She swiftly moved through the water, making sure to keep to the shallower parts of the tub, and cradled a rose-scented bar in her grasp. Twilight moved up next to Nightmare Moon and positioned herself behind her, sliding down to fit the alicorn almost perfectly between her legs. “Allow me to wash you, Nightmare.” Twilight spoke softly, her voice carrying a hint of eagerness to the Queen’s ears. Nightmare Moon looked back at the unicorn and nodded her approval. “Thank you.”

Twilight dipped the soap into the water and, using both of her hooves, worked up lather on the bar. She touched the soap to Nightmare Moon’s back and slowly drew it across the length of her back leaving a trail of white, soapy suds in its wake. Her hooves worked over the alicorn’s back as she gently covered the short black coat. The coverage complete, Twilight began to rub her hooves in circular motions across Nightmare’s body, the soft massaging movements eliciting a sigh of approval from her love’s lips. Twilight smiled. She could feel the calm that Nightmare Moon was experiencing albeit weakly as her shoulders relaxed and muscles lost their tension. She recognized a similar sensation only moments ago and realized that she could partially sense the mare’s feelings and emotions. It was very weak, but definitely noticeable from the previous absence of the ability before.

This means that I can know what makes her happiest. She resumed the workings of her hooves and slowly brought them back up to the base of the alicorn’s wings. They gingerly rubbed the muscles where back and wing connected invoking yet another content sigh to escape Nightmare Moon. Seeing that she didn’t move to protest, Twilight carefully extended her reach up to the scapular feathers just above her shoulder of her right wing. The alicorn tensed slightly, but, after some gentle massaging, relaxed once more under the euphoric ministrations of the byzantium unicorn. Twilight worked her way up the wing, softly caressing the feathered appendage with careful motions until both of the wings extended to full length. Twilight giggled slightly as she felt hints of Nightmare’s pleasure. Her wings must be very sensitive.

She soon moved on to the second wing, coating it in suds to match its twin, each stroke making the black mare twinge in delight. Twilight lingered for a few moments longer before continuing with her sensual ministrations, drawing her hooves down Nightmare’s back once more before urging the alicorn to raise her backside from the water. She carefully set to work on lathering her love’s flanks and cutie marks, remembering with great detail the last time her hooves had touched the crescent moons. This time, however, she received only a moan of delight from the Queen and once more lingered to caress one of the mare’s most sensitive areas. Nightmare’s soft breaths grew heavier as Twilight worked her hooves away from her flanks and around the front of the mare’s body to begin cleansing her chest and stomach. She pressed herself against the alicorn’s back and rested her head against Nightmare’s neck, breathing in the mare’s rosy scent.

Twilight grinned at another aroma beginning to mingle with the fragrance of the soap. She could smell the Queen’s arousal far before she would ever feel it from their link. The musky scent tickled her nostrils and only caused her to double her efforts. Her hooves kneaded Nightmare’s body as she slowly drew her own along the alicorn’s back. Her stomach was tickled by the soft hairs stroking it, but instead of giggling, she merely sighed in bliss.

Nightmare lowered herself further into the water, much to Twilight’s dismay, and allowed the suds from their bodies to float just on the surface of the bath around them. She turned around and pressed upon the unicorn’s chest, making sure to avoid the scar, until she was leaning back upon the curved surface of the basin. “I believe it is your turn to be washed, Twilight. We should not tarry too long else we will have to postpone our... strategic meeting.”

Twilight opened her mouth to express the confusion written across her features, but was cut short as Nightmare occupied the mare’s lips with her own. Twilight opened her eyes wide in shock, not expecting to have her beloved Queen initiate their first kiss as lovers, but quickly melted under the alicorn’s action, her eyes slowly drifting closed. Nightmare Moon levitated the soap over to them once more as she broke away from the kiss in order to breathe. They both drew in air, their eyes locking in euphoric bliss, before their lips came together once more. This time, their tongues came into play as they massaged the hot muscles together, their saliva mingling in each other’s mouths as they moaned in pleasure. Nightmare worked over Twilight’s body with the soap, making sure that she covered the unicorn in suds as they repeatedly broke their kisses in order to take in air before beginning anew.

After an eternity in each other’s embrace, Twilight had been thoroughly cleansed of dirt and they broke away from each other only so they could climb out of the soapy, murky water. Their eyes met. They both knew that neither wished to dry off for any time spent removing water from their fur and manes would mean less time in each other’s embrace. Their gazes were filled with lust, their eyes flickering in the dim candlelight as they slowly closed the distance between each other. Their mouths locked together once more in order to reinvigorate their craving for more. Both of them could hardly hold back as they pulled away. It was time to come together.