The day was bright, sunny, warm... not a cloud in the sky.

Shining sat on a balcony far above the streets of Canterlot, staring up at that beautiful, cloudless blue sky. He watched a few faceless pegasi lazily fly by, his eyes squinted against the blinding brightness of Celestia's sun.

Having had enough of the sun's rays in his vision, he turned his gaze downward, watching as faceless ponies of every tribe wandered about the streets, going about their business. There was nothing of note there, nothing amiss, or terribly interesting to see.

As far as Shining was concerned, today was the same as any other day he'd spent in the castle, yet he couldn't help but frown. How many days had it been since he'd come to live in the castle as Celestia's adopted son?

Shining Armor found he couldn't remember. It felt like years, and yet... he didn't know why. Why had he come to live with the Princess as her son in the first place?

He had his family, he had a home to go back to. In fact, he could just make out his own house sitting just shy of the noble's district in town. He could even see his parents and his little sister coming out to greet him far below, the three of them craning their necks up to wave at him.

They just continued to wave, and Shining found himself waving back. He should've been happy to see them, but something was wrong. He tried to smile as he waved to his family far, far below the balcony, but the smile wouldn't come.

Still, he continued to wave despite his growing unease. He continued to wave even as the distance between him and his slowly waving family began to decrease. He continued to wave as his unease turned to a cold dread that sat like a stone in his gut.

Then his family was right there in front of him. The house had vanished and they stood side by side before him, right on the balcony. His father, his mother, his little sister, all lined up and waving to their son and older brother.

They said nothing as they slowly waved their hooves back and forth like soulless automatons. The father, like the mother, wore no expression on his face—indeed, they had no face with which to emote.

Not like the little sister.

The little sister stared up at her older brother with those large, amethyst eyes and wide, adoring smile... a smile too wide by far. Shining stared back, losing himself in those eyes... eyes that seemed to grow the more he stared.

Shining stopped waving.

The sky had blackened, but the colt took no notice. Far too focused was the colt on his frozen limbs, his rapidly beating heart, and the horribly bottomless gaze of his little sister.

His parents melted into the cement of the balcony, but his little sister continued to wave as though nothing had happened. Shining wanted to scream, but he couldn't. He could only stare at his sister as she stared back, grinning her horrid grin.

Then she opened her mouth, her tone as cheerful and sunny as the afternoon had been only moments ago.

"̸̴̧͠B̷̧́͡y̨̛̕͝͝e̛͢͞,̴̸̸̛͝ ҉̶͟͜Ş̧͘̕h̢̡͢͡͡í̛n͏̡y̸͜͢!̛͠͞"̢̡

She cracked and shattered like glass, and Shining Armor screamed. He screamed for all he was worth. He screamed long, and he screamed loud.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, he felt a familiar pull, and all had nearly returned to black, that is, until a cold pair of hooves seized him by the shoulders and twisted him around, grounding him to this twisted nightmare with no chance of escape.

His scream finally caught in his throat as Celestia looked down at him, her face the very picture of serenity and understanding. Her calm features did nothing to ease Shining's pulsating heart in the slightest.

Not with her icy blue draconic gaze locking him in place.

As they stared at each other, neither spoke for what felt to Shining like an eternity. Then her eyelids lowered slightly and her smile widened just a touch, becoming an amused grin. The petrified colt swore he could see the bright glint of fangs hanging just below her upper lip.

"And just what do we have here, I wonder? A new pet for my sister to mold as she sees fit perhaps?"

The creature that was not Celestia chuckled deeply and placed a hoof below the colt's chin, forcing his head up. Her amused grin widened into a wicked smile, fangs full on display for Shining to see.

"We'll meet again, whelp, and when we do, I want to know more about you. I want to know more about your strengths. I want to know more about your weaknesses, your fears, your triumphs, your failures..."

She turned away from Shining and raised her head towards the blackened sky—drinking in the sight of the cold, pale full moon that had replaced Celestia's warm and inviting sun.

...and above all else, I want to know more about your nightmares.

Shining said nothing in response, having long since been robbed of his voice by fear. Without turning around, the creature that was not Celestia cast the colt a side glance and smirked.

"Until next time... Shiny."

---

Shining Armor's eyes snapped open as he jerked awake—the echo of a loud, shrill laugh quickly fading from his mind. He pressed his hooves against his eyes with a small groan before sitting up in his bed.

My bed...

He sighed and swept an idle gaze around the room. It was still fairly dark, but a quick glance outside the large curtained window showed the beginnings of dawn—the sun most likely sitting just below the horizon, waiting for its guide.

Celestia's gonna be raising the sun soon...

He stared out at the window, or more specifically, the balcony beyond, and shivered as he recalled what he could of his latest nightmare. He'd had similar dreams on and off since coming to the castle, but that was the first time it had felt so solid, so potent.

It wasn't the first time Celestia had appeared, but something had been... different. Shining's gaze drifted away from the window and lowered towards his own hooves, his brow furrowing in thought.

He tried to remember what had been off about the Princess, but the harder he thought, the more distant the memory became. Eventually he groaned in frustration and fell back against his too soft pillow—his thoughts turning around in his head as he stared at the off-white ceiling of his bedroom.

His bedroom in Canterlot Castle.

He snorted and closed his eyes, shifting uncomfortably as his smallish frame sunk deeper into the sheets. The bed was far too large, soft, and opulent for his liking, but other than that, Celestia had arranged the room with his somewhat meager and mundane upbringing in mind.

Everything in the room was, of course, of the finest quality—that it seemed, couldn't be avoided when living with royalty—but there wasn't much of it, and for that Shining was secretly grateful.

An ivory armoire sat against one wall next to a small dresser, with the bedroom door on the opposite side. A desk had been placed near the private restroom and a closet Shining had yet to use for anything other than storage for the things he'd neglected to unpack.

Two long bookshelves full of rows of literature both from his, his sister's, and some of Celestia's own collection had been set up on either side of the large window taking up nearly an entire portion of that wall.

Just outside the window was a rather large balcony overlooking the entire city of Canterlot and the lands beyond. Shining had thought it was a bit much at first, but had since changed his opinion after experiencing the admittedly breathtaking view a few times.

Over the last week or so, he'd gotten the most use out of both the bookshelves and the desk, which was littered with parchment, quills, and inkwells. A miniature desk lamp sat on one side next to a small framed picture of Shining and his family at a small park near their home.

A few books he'd yet to finish reading were stacked atop one another and a worn and faded brown journal he'd held onto since he was Twilight's age sat at the very top of the pile.

It had been roughly a week and a half since he'd moved into the castle with Celestia, and though he still wouldn't admit it aloud, he was beginning to get used to the change. Most days he spent either reading or watching the hustle and bustle of the city below from his balcony.

Most days he spent trying not to think about what had already come to pass. Most days he tried not to dwell on the fact that he had been completely powerless to do anything about it.

Most days he failed.

A quiet knock on the bedroom door made Shining sigh again before opening his eyes. There was only one pony who would visit him this early in the day. It was the one pony that still sent his emotions into a downward spiral despite knowing deep down that she was blameless.

Just like he knew deep down that he himself was not at fault for what happened to his sister and his parents.

Still, the survivor's guilt weighed heavily on the colt, and he could no more shake it than he could the bitter resentment of the pony on the other side of that door. Whether deserved or not, the feelings would not abate, and Shining idly wondered if they ever would.

"It's open, Celestia," Shining called out wearily, "you're the Princess, you don't have to knock."

At his words, there was a small click and the door opened quietly, revealing the Solar Princess devoid of her normal regal attire. Shining turned to watch with impassive eyes as Celestia stepped into the room, a small smile playing across her muzzle.

The colt flinched as an image suddenly flashed across his mind. Cold predatory eyes the color of frost, and ivory fangs sharp as daggers superimposed themselves over Celestia's features for the briefest of moments and Shining blinked.

Nothing.

The only thing that stood there in the doorway was the same kindhearted ruler that had taken the colt in as her own. Celestia spoke then, not having noticed Shining's stunned confusion just yet.

"I'm fully aware of my position, Shining," the mare replied with an air of good humor, "all the same, I make it a point to respect the privacy of a growing young... Shining? Are you okay?"

Her playful smile turned to a frown of concern as she finally saw the troubled look on Shining's face. She trotted the rest of the way inside the room, enveloping the door in her magic and gently pushing it closed.

"It's alright, I'm fine," Shining Armor replied quickly as he rubbed his head and blinked a few more times, "woke up not that long ago. Just tired is all," he frowned at the approaching alicorn, "anyway, what are you here for this time, Celestia?"

"The same reason as last time, and the time before that," Celestia replied, stopping just short of the bed and sitting down. Her concerned frown didn't leave her face, "I'm here to see how you're adjusting."

"And I told you, I'm getting there," the colt replied, sounding a bit more petulant than he would've liked. He rolled over onto his back and let out another tired sigh, "I get why you're doing this, but do you always have to come in right when I wake up? What if I'd been sleeping?"

Celestia chuckled and Shining winced at the sound.

"This is really the only time I get to spend with you, Shining," she explained, her smile turning a bit sad, "it's either now, during my break from day court, or just before I turn in for the night."

"So why not just visit me during break or before you go to bed?" Shining asked, sitting up, "why now?"

Celestia sighed and turned to look out the window with a small frown.

"Now is when I feel the most at peace," she began, not looking in Shining's direction, "there's no castle staff wandering about like they're forever in a hurry, none of my little ponies' worries to deliberate over for hours on end, no legislation to look over, no self-serving nobles to deal with... just peace and quiet."

She stood up and moved closer to the window, staring out at the dark sky for a moment before finally turning back to Shining with a tired smile.

"You'd think I'd get used to it after so many years, and to an extent, I have, but even as old as I am and with as much experience as I have, I still need some time to myself every once in awhile," her mouth opened again to say something else, but she suddenly closed it and looked away, "...even when I'm on break, I'm still catching up on my duties, and by the day's end, I'm too exhausted to do anything other than head straight to my chambers for the night."

Shining couldn't see the Princess's face from where he sat, her ever flowing prismatic mane blocking her expression, but he certainly heard the weary tone in her voice. He listened, not really knowing what to make of what Celestia was telling him.

Why tell him at all?

Right, because I was the one that asked in the first place...

Celestia was quiet for another long moment before shaking her head and turning back to Shining Armor with her smile back in place, the expression both warm and apologetic.

"I'm sorry, Shining Armor, I didn't mean to saddle you with my own issues. Those aren't your burdens to bear," her smile fell away, replaced by that same concerned frown from earlier, "I came in here to see how you were doing.

"And to answer one of your earlier questions, if I had come knocking only to find you asleep even once since I started visiting, I wouldn't visit so early. As it stands however, not once have you ever been asleep when I've come knocking."

Shining couldn't argue with that.

He'd hardly gotten any decent sleep since he started having nightmares, not that he ever told Celestia about them. Sure the resentment had played a part in his continued silence on the matter, but it was much more that he simply didn't want to remember them.

Unfortunately, it seemed the Solar Princess was beginning to catch on to the issue.

"So tell me, Shining Armor," Celestia continued, taking a step toward the bed, "how badly have these nightmares really been affecting you?"

And there it was.

Shining could only grimace in response to Celestia's question. Of course she'd known something was off, she wasn't a stupid mare. A mere foal is forced to witness the tragic and violent loss of his family and ends up having nightmares soon after.

It wasn't a far-fetched conclusion to come to in the slightest, and the dark bags he no doubt had beneath his eyes would only further condemn the colt. With all this in mind, Shining could only give a resigned grimace as he once again stared down at his hooves.

"...They don't happen every night, but it's enough that I don't get a lot of sleep because of it," he shrugged, "not really much to say about it. They're nightmares, they keep me awake, they'll probably go away eventually. I just have to... wait it out or something. It's really not a big deal."

Celestia eyed Shining Armor for a long minute, but the colt said nothing more, and didn't look in her direction. She exhaled a quiet breath through her nose and moved closer to the bed before sitting down.

"Have you ever read the tale of the Mare in the Moon, Shining Armor?"

The question caught Shining Armor off guard and he turned to the Princess with a wary raise of his brow.

"Um... no, not personally," he replied uncertainly, "my sister read the story in a book of pony tales once, and she was the one that told me about it," a familiar pang of sadness at the mention of his sister hit the colt again, but he pushed past it as he spoke, "I don't think she really liked it all that much."

Celestia hummed thoughtfully before lighting up her horn. Shining's brow furrowed in both bemusement and curiosity as a single book was encased in a golden glow and pulled from one of the bookshelves behind Celestia.

"I would have to agree with your sister," Celestia said as she rested the book on the bed between herself and Shining, "I don't much care for the story myself if I'm being completely honest."

Shining frowned at the book, then looked up at Celestia questioningly, wondering where she was going with showing him the same book of pony tales Twilight had. He wondered how the Princess had even known where the book was before remembering that she herself had been the one to stock the bookshelf.

Celestia, seemingly oblivious to Shining's confusion, continued to speak in an oddly low tone as she flipped opened the book. The colt's frown deepened and he turned back to the book of pony tales, watching as Celestia turned more pages.

"What I find rather strange," she said, slowly flipping through page after page, "is how nopony seems to make any direct connection between myself and the alicorn sister that raised the sun."

"Well, they probably do... maybe," Shining mumbled absently, unable to take his eyes away from the book as Celestia continued to turn pages at a snail's pace, "you're the Princess of the Sun, it only makes sense for somepony to... make some kind of... homage..."

As Celestia turned one final page, Shining's sentence slowed to a stop. Celestia herself watched the colt carefully as his brow furrowed. She watched as his jaw tightened and he visibly began to tremble.

She doubted he was even aware he was doing it, but Celestia was fully aware of Shining's reaction to what was displayed on the page. She observed every little detail with a grim look of understanding—a look unseen by Shining as he stared down at the artistic depiction of the black, armored alicorn rearing up on its hind legs.

"Celestia?" Shining nearly whispered in a shaky voice, "you don't think Nightmare Moon... is real... do you?"

He didn't look back up at Celestia as he asked, his gaze still focused on the alicorn, more specifically that single piercing blue eye. He didn't see the new look that came over the Princess's face. He didn't see her sorrowful eyes narrow with sudden anger.

Then, just like that, the moment passed.

"Don't worry, Shining Armor," Celestia replied, looking down at Shining with a warm smile, "even if Nightmare Moon were to show up at the castle gates, I wouldn't—"

Celestia quickly retracted the reassuring hoof she'd been about to place on Shining's shoulder as the colt slammed the book shut. Shining glared at the shocked Princess, his mouth set in a thin line.

"I didn't ask if you would protect me," he growled, "I asked if you thought she was real," he fully turned to face the mare, looking her dead in the eye, "does. Nightmare Moon. Really exist?"

Celestia froze, caught on the backhoof and unsure of what to do next. Realizing she'd never tell him otherwise, she'd tried to coax the truth of what she had suspected might be the case out of Shining, and it had worked as she planned, but now she was trapped.

She didn't want to lie to Shining Armor.

She felt bad enough as it was for having resorted to such an underhoofed tactic to get the truth out of her newly adopted son. She had restrained herself from resorting to actual magic to get the reaction she'd wanted—instead using the naturally deep and calming tone of her own voice and deliberate movements to affect Shining's already tired mind.

It was simple textbook hypnosis, but Celestia felt terrible for having utilized it all the same. Now it had backfired and she was being forced into a corner, though she couldn't say it wasn't appropriate.

There was nothing for it.

If she really was trying to get to Shining through his nightmares, then hiding the fact that Nightmare Moon existed would only cause problems further down the road. It would almost be like...

No, Celestia would not make that mistake again... not this time.

Not with the foal she would call her son.

With a long sigh, Celestia regained her composure, shifted back to a comfortable sitting position, and squared her shoulders before matching Shining's expectant glare with a serious look of her own.

It was clear that beneath all the anger, there was still a heavy dose of fear. Celestia could see the uncertainty in Shining's eyes and the tremble in his hooves, but he'd made his decision to ask, and she'd made her decision to answer.

"Yes, Shining Armor. Nightmare Moon is very real, and she is a very real threat," Celestia winced inwardly as a look of horror broke through Shining's mask of anger, but she didn't relent, "I had planned on telling you about my sister eventually but I had hoped we'd have more time."

She placed both her hooves on Shining's shoulders and the colt flinched again as she searched his eyes.

"If something happened," Celestia continued, "if she made any sort of contact with you through these nightmares, I need you to tell me, Shining Armor."

Shining Armor's eyes widened as the images of his most recent dream flashed through his mind, the memories awoken by the picture of the black alicorn in the book. He realized it hadn't just been his imagination when he'd seen those eyes and fangs appear.

Nightmare Moon was real, and she was after him.

He wanted to cry, he wanted to scream, he wanted to run and hide and never come out again... but then something strange happened. As he stared into Celestia's eyes, he saw something change. They started to moisten, and the urgent, serious look began to give way to something approaching fear.

It was a different fear than the one Shining himself was experiencing, and it was powerful. So strong was the fear that it nearly snuffed out his own, leaving a sensation he hadn't felt in what seemed like forever.

"Please, Shining," Celestia practically begged, "I can't help you if you don't tell me what's happening. You don't have to acknowledge me as your mother if you don't want to, but I still consider you my son, and I'll be damned to Tartarus before I let my own sister take that away from me. Not now, not when I finally..."

Celestia's grip weakened and that feeling inside grew stronger still. The bitter resentment Shining Armor felt toward Celestia began to ebb ever so slightly as something else replaced it. He wasn't sure what it was just yet, but seeing the Princess so vulnerable made something inside ache.

He couldn't stand this feeling.

He wouldn't stand for it.

He needed to do something.

The shaking in his limbs stopped, the fear in his eyes all but vanished, his jaw set, and he pulled away from Celestia. Celestia blinked in surprise as the colt shuffled over to the opposite edge of the bed and hopped off.

"Shining?" Celestia asked, watching the colt trot over to the bookshelves in confusion, "what are you—"

"I don't remember everything from that dream," Shining interrupted, searching the shelves, "but I'll tell you what I do remember. To be honest though, I don't really know what you're gonna do with the knowledge. There isn't much to tell."

Celestia's mouth hung open slightly, but the colt ignored her as he pulled a few of the books he was looking for from the shelves. The Solar Princess snapped out of her stunned state soon enough and chuckled slightly before wiping her eyes and smiling gratefully.

"Don't worry about that," the mare replied mysteriously, "I'll take care of things once you've told me what you can, but..." her smile turned to a quizzical frown as Shining moved his unfinished books aside before dropping the new books onto his desk, flipping on the desk lamp, and hopping into the chair, "...what are you doing?"

"Research," Shining replied simply, "I'm taking a proverbial page out of my sister's book."

"Oh?" Celestia replied, suddenly curious, "and just what are you researching exactly?"

"Don't worry about it," Shining replied, pulling open one of the books. He paused and turned towards the window before looking back over to Celestia with a raised eyebrow, "I get that this conversation is suppose to be really important and all, but don't you have a sun to raise?"

Celestia couldn't help it, she barked out a loud laugh, surprising Shining and causing him to give her a wary look. A moment later what he'd said sunk in and he growled in annoyance before flicking an ear and turning back to his book.

"Just go already so we can get this over with," he grumbled, "I have other things I wanna do."

"Alright, alright, I'm going," Celestia replied with a small smile, "you don't mind if I use your balcony, do you?"

"Sure, fine, go for it," Shining replied without turning around, "it's your castle."

With that, Celestia pulled the window open and stepped out into the cool morning. Once she was out of Shining's sight she let the smile drop from her face. Her expression turned grave as she stared at the slowly lowering moon above, and the pockmarked image of her sister that adorned its surface.

"I want to save you, sister," she muttered as her horn flared to life, "I want to see you returned to me safe, sound, and whole... but I also want the chance to be more than a Princess to my subjects. I want to be a mother to my son."

With that solemn wish, Celestia lowered the moon and brought forth the dawn, the early morning rays of the sun shining over the city of Canterlot and casting a warm light over Celestia's pained grimace.

Please don't take this away from me, Luna... don't make me choose.

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