“Okay, so, with plan Delta-Z-62, and with the intelligence that Spike has collected-“ Twilight said as she glanced over to her number one assistant, coming through the door of the kitchen as he grabbed refreshments for everypony. A large map of Ponyville scrawled across the table in the living room of the home portion of the library. “We know that he’ll be going to the pegasus’s house at 1100 hours to hang out with her and the other ponies he’s been in contact with. While on his way, we’ll intercept the stallion and-“ But she stopped as she saw her unicorn friend raise a hoof into the air. “Yes Rarity?”

“Forgive me for interrupting darling, but…“ She said with a face of worry. “Don’t you think you’re taking this a little bit too far?”

“Ah agree wit’ Rare here, Twi’.” The cowpony spoke up, equally worried. “Ah know you want ta satisfy the Princess and carry out her mission, but ah just ain’t seeing this ever happenin’. Ah mean, it’s been over a month since we’ve met the fella, and we haven’t made any progress. Not to mention, have ya even looked at yerself lately?”

Indeed Twilight did look like a mess. Bloodshot eyes with bags under them, a tussled mane, an unbrushed coat.

Applejack continued. “We wouldn’t blame ya if ya gave up, sugarcube.” The rest of the group nodded.

“I agree.” Rainbow jumped in, more than happy about ditching this quest. “That jerk can continue being a jerk for all I care! I don’t want one of my friends driving herself crazy because of it!”

“I also think it would be good if we stopped this Twilight, I mean, if that’s okay with you.” Fluttershy said quietly. Pinkie, surprisingly, said nothing. Perhaps because she already knew the outcome and knew her voice didn’t matter? Perhaps, or perhaps it was because Twilight had placed a zipper spell on her mouth earlier when she tried to speak out during the meeting.

“No! There is no way I’m giving this up! The Princess gave me a direct order to make friends with this pony and that’s exactly what I’m going to do!”

The rest of the group groaned. “But Twilight, don’tcha remember when Pinkie tried ta make friends wit’ that Cranky Doodle feller? How well do ya think it would’ve gone had Pinkie not found out ‘bout him and Matilda?” Applejack asked. Pinkie could only smile at the question.

“That and this are two completely different things! Unless the Princess tells me to stop, then I’ll continue to try to complete this quest given to me!” Twilight yelled.

“Then perhaps I shall stop this nonsense.”

The entire group turned to where the voice of Princess Luna had come from and immediately bowed. “P-Princess, I-I thought you were sleeping during the day!” Twilight said in a nervous tone as she raised her head from the ground.

“Not necessary dear Twilight. What is important is that I have a country to run with my sister, and this nonsense has gone on for far too long.”

“B-But Prin-“

Luna raised a hoof to silence her. “I came here as request from my sister only to humor her and thought this would be over with already. It is evident though, that this quest is perhaps too much for you. I am telling you right now dear Twilight, as your Princess of the Night, to cease this foolish behavior and continue to live your life.”

“But-“

“No buts.” She said, then looked at the rest of the Elements, even getting rid of Twilight’s silence spell on Pinkie with her own magic. “I request that all of you go home this instant, as I wish to continue to speak with Twilight in private.”

Applejack smiled and nodded, leading the group. “Gladly yer Highness.”

On their way out, the girls said goodbye to Twilight, who remained silent. As the final Element went out of the door, Luna turned back to the purple mare. “Twilight Sparkle.”

“Y-Yes Princess?”

Luna stayed silent for a few seconds, before taking in a deep breath and letting it out as a sigh. “I truly understand your desire to perform tasks given by my sister, but as I said, this has clearly been too much for you. That is why I am giving another task that I wish for you to carry out.”

“I-I understand Princess. What about-“

“I was just getting to that, dear Sparkle. While you are out performing these tasks, I will be accompanying you, as we will be traveling into the Everfree Forest.”

“The Everfree?! But-“

Once again, Luna raised her hoof to silence the shocked Twilight. “We will be heading to the old ruins of the place I used to call home. I understand if you do not trust me and do not wish to go, considering the history of that place, but I wish to find the answers to my questions there.”

Twilight kept silent for a while, contemplating whether it truly was a good idea or not. On the one hoof, it could be a trap set up by Princess Luna to take revenge for the whole Nightmare Moon event. On the other hoof, she could be making a huge mistake by not trusting the princess who only wishes to have help finding answers. “… Princess?”

“Yes Twilight?”

“What… What exactly will we be looking for there?”

“Memories.” She replied, showing no emotion.

“Memories?”

“Yes, memories. Lately in my sleep, I have been reliving my memories, Twilight. Memories that I wish to keep private, mind you, but if you wish to know something, the most I can tell you that these memories are events leading up to… Nightmare Moon.” She said, a hint of regret in her voice and looked away from Twilight as she talked about the form she once took. “I understand if this is more of a reason for you to doubt coming with me, perhaps thinking that I wish to take that form once more.”

“W-What? I would never think of that!” Twilight lied, putting a big grin to try to be convincing. Luna looked at Twilight and smirked a bit.

“You are a horrible liar, Twilight Sparkle.”

Twilight lost her grin and looked down in shame. “I’m sorry Princess, I didn’t mean to offend.”

“It is alright Twilight, I am… used to it. Besides, I have yet to repay you for your kindness from two years ago, when I came here for Nightmare Night. If you had not done what you did back then, it would still be possible that I would be feared in this small town, along with the rest of Equestria.” She said, then paused for a moment, letting Twilight think about the situation some more. When she thought that enough time had passed, she spoke once more.

“What say you, Twilight Sparkle? Will you come and accompany me on this journey? Or am to trek through the forest, alone? Nopony that could understand me on an intellectual level and help me find my answers?”

Twilight looked up and smiled at the princess, nodding. “Count me in Princess. There should be no reason for me to say no to your request.”

Luna smiled and nodded back. “Very well… But Twilight?”

“Yes, Princess?”

“Perhaps you should take care of yourself first and clean up, before we go do any adventuring.”

It was the wee hours of the morning as the two ponies woke up from their slumber and began to get ready for their adventure. The two walked out into a cool breeze in the mild summer morning, the morning dew that clung to the grass making their hooves wet as they began to head towards the dreaded forest. When they finally reached the edge of the forest, Twilight looked back at Ponyville one last time before turning to the Princess, a worried look on her face. “Are you sure this is safe Princess?”

“… You do not trust me?”

“No! I-I mean, no, it’s not that at all. What I meant is, why just us two? Why can’t we take the rest of the girls along? Or even some of your guards? I mean, isn’t that what guards suppose to do? Protect their-“

“There will be no need, Twilight.” Luna cut the young unicorn off. “The creatures of this forest would not dare attack us, lest they wish to face my wrath. Besides… with what I want to find, you’re the only pony that I can trust at this moment to be able to help me understand.”

“Princess?” Twilight tilted her head in confusion, but she got no answer. Instead, Luna only began to start her walk into the forest.

“Come, let us start our journey. I do not wish for anypony to see us, otherwise chaos may erupt from somepony seeing us going inside.”

“Y-Yes, of course Princess.”

With a heavy sigh, the Princess of the Sun backed away from her telescope that she used occasionally to scan the land for any danger and took another sip of her tea. At that moment, a pink unicorn with a purple mane and tail, a transmutation circle for a Cutie Mark, had walked into the observation tower, and smiled upon seeing Celestia at the seat of the telescope. “You’re awake awfully early.” She commented as she pulled up a chair next to the princess.

Princess raised her brow, giving the unicorn a questioning look. “You say that as though it’s a genuine surprise.”

“But isn’t it? Usually the Lunar Guards must wake you up to bring the sun up ever since Luna had returned three years ago.” The unicorn said back, pouring herself her own cup of tea. She began to smell the sweet aroma of the tea, making her more relaxed. “Earl Greycoat?”

Celestia nodded at the question. “A gift from the Diamond Dog Prime Minister, in exchange for the supplies we had given his people last month.”

“Nasty drought that was.” The unicorn took a sip from her cup, smacking her lips a bit as she tried to get a feel for the taste. “Needs more sugar.” She said as she plopped in two cubes of sugar and began to stir it with a spoon she had picked up with her magic. Celestia could only smile.

“And yet the chefs constantly tease me about my eating habits.”

“Oh hush, those chefs love you and your eating habits. On to other business though. What had you been looking at before I came in?”

“My sister.” Celestia answered, her voice hinted at her being bored of watching.

“Still with Twilight, yes? Anything you can figure out about the target?”

“The ‘target’ is just fine. It’s my sister I’m worried about.”

“What for?”

“She’s entered the forest with my student.”

“… I see.” The unicorn could only say, raising the cup and taking another sip or two. She spoke once more shortly after. “Perhaps we should go and stop her?”

Celestia, contemplating the outcome of the situation for a second, shook her head as she replied to the unicorn. “No. She would have found out one way or another. Besides, don’t you think she’ll be happy and relieved to hear that we were able to save him after all these years?”

“I suppose I can understand that... I can only hope she understands that our motives for the bigger picture is for the best as well.”

Celestia brought one of her hooves up to her eyes and began to rub them in frustration, sighing at what the unicorn had said. “Why did Cadance have to be born only a few years before they disappeared?”

“Don’t ask me, I was only an apprentice of alchemy under your mother’s gaze at that time.”

“You’re not exactly helping you know... Do you have no sympathy at all?”

The unicorn frowned a bit, taking the tea kettle and filling her cup once more. “We’ve both had a long time to get over this Celly. You know how important both of your parents are to this world, nay, this universe! Both Mother Nature and Father Time must exist, otherwise you know what’ll happen to us without them. Face it Celly, we’re running out of options, we’ve tried everything and anything to find a way to bring them back without having to go down that dark path. Both you and I have seen it, as the universe is slowly but surely crumbling apart. Rather than ever expanding like its suppose to, it’s slowly making its way back to us. Our time is up, this is the last thing we can do.”

“Yes, I know, but-”

“No buts Celly. We all know what we must do, we all know why we’ve been keeping watch on him for the past thousand years. Although his soul was contained in that enchanted jar for so long, and although his original body may have rotted away in the ground, using a replacement body made by magic and alchemy, he’s the only one who was able to get close enough to Luna, close enough to actually getting her to bear his child. If the Nightmare Moon situation hadn’t happened-”

“We wouldn’t be having this discussion, I know...”

“I know hard it is for you Celly, but its hard for me as well, don’t forget that. You may have acted like an aunt to him, but I’m his true mother, and with the route we’ve set up for both of them... I may end up getting a grandchild out of the deal, but I will also lose one that I could have loved just as much, and if he were to ever find out, possibly a son as well.”

Twilight and Luna had trekked through the dense forest for some hours, no disturbances ever coming their way. The sounds of hooves walking through the soft grass stopped for a brief moment as the two ponies had finally made it into a clearing large enough for the sun’s rays to pierce through the dense forest. Twilight plopped down on her flank, trying to massage her already tired hooves. Thoughts of how she had gotten a bit out of shape since the last time she had to trek through the forest ran through her mind.

“It seems that we are close.” Luna stated as she looked deeper into the forest.

Twilight turned her head side to side as her eyes scanned the area. Without taking long, she had recognized that they were indeed close, although the first hint should have been they were close when they had crossed the river where the river serpent Steven Magnet lived. She looked at the princess, wondering what was going through the mind of the Goddess of the Night. Luna had narrowed her eyes as she looked forward, her smile long since turned into a frown. “Um, Princess Luna?”

“Yes?” Luna called back, not taking her eyes off from the front of them. “What is it you need, Twilight?”

“Could I possibly ask, what will we be looking for once we reach the castle?”

“... I am not sure.”

Twilight opened her mouth, wanting to ask more, but she felt her jaw close as she decided it would be a bad judgement call to continue asking the princess anymore. Her scientific side however, seemed to betray her sane side, opening up her mouth once more. “Why is the reason we are going then if we have no idea what we’re looking for? How do we even know the answers you’re looking for will be there?”

As the words finished escaping, Twilight slapped both her hooves over her mouth, regretting the questions. “I-I’m sorry Princess, I didn’t mean-”

“It’s alright Twilight.” Luna replied. No anger was shown in her voice, the sound of it still calm and collected. “My sister would constantly talk about you, about how you thirst for knowledge. That is a good trait, wanting to know the secrets that the world hold.”

“O-Oh, u-um, thank you Princess.”

“Do not get confused though, young Twilight. Some things are meant to be keep secret, away from the ears of the public.” Twilight shrank back, flinching as Luna turned her head ever so slightly to look at the purple unicorn. “Luckily for you, you are an exception this time.”

“... P-Princess?”

“Trust in my judgement when I say that we will find the answers to my questions at the old castle. Does that answer your question?” Twilight could nod her head, not wanting to find out if Luna was truly upset or not about what she had asked. “Good. We shall begin moving again very soon.” She said as she looked back to the front. The rest of the way, both ponies had been silent.

As Twilight and Luna passed the large crevice that separated them from the castle and finally made their way into the old, musty ruins, Twilight could only wonder what Luna had up her non-existent sleeve. Passing massive statues of heroes of olden times in hallways as large her library, she could only stare on with awe, wanting to ask so much about the statues, but knew she would get no answers.

‘Why haven’t I seen these statues before? Why aren’t new ones of these at Canterlot?’ The voice in her mind asked. The voice was cut off though as she suddenly felt her face meet the back end of the royal flank. She stumbled backwards and shook her head, trying to get a grip on what had just happened. As she glanced towards Luna, she could see the princess looking at one of the statues that had been erected possibly thousands of years ago. To Luna, it was the splitting image of an old friend, one she regretted seeing the statue of.

It was the statue of a large unicorn stallion. Not knowing the color of his coat or mane, Twilight could only tell that the statue represented a member of the Royal Guard, fitted with more metal than the average stallion back at Canterlot. His beard almost falling to his knees, while his horn that she had guessed was polished to be like a blade, broken in half. She looked over to the princess, and could tell that she was in pain looking at the old hero. “Princess?”

Looking down at the pedestal that the statue was erected on, Luna answered in a low voice, full of sadness. “Forgive me Twilight, I was only simply remembering.”

Looking to comfort the princess, the only thing she could think of, Twilight placed a hoof on Luna’s shoulder, showing she was there for her. “Do you want to talk about it? Get it off your chest?”

With a sigh, Luna removed the hoof and turned her head away, preparing to go in another direction. “Come, I think the questions I seek will be answered soon enough.”

It went on for well into the night, long after the two were forced to stop as they both gazed into the sky when Luna brought the moon up for the first time in well over a month. Despite surprising her sister back in Canterlot with raising the moon as if it was a prank, it still did not put even a smirk on the Night Princess’s face, still wanting to wander the halls of the place she once called home.

Many places around the ruins could she tell what those places used to be. The kitchen, the banquet hall, the guest bedrooms of the palace, the enchanter’s tower, the great library. All of these places were nostalgic for the Ruler of the Twilight Skies, but it did not put her mind at ease. Speaking of Twilight, she had gone to bed, tired of the day’s events as Luna continued to wander the ruins.

Finally, after wandering for so long, she had stumbled across what seemed to be the burial grounds of the castle. She did not know why she was drawn to that spot, but something inside of her told her she would find the answers to her questions. Those thoughts and feelings did not last long though, as she could easily hear the sound of wings flapping, with something large landing hard onto the ground behind her. Without even turning around, she could easily tell who it was.

“Come here to stop me, Tia? To stop me from seeking the answers I require?” She asked, put got no answer. The white alicorn simply stood and stared at her sister. “I see, if you are not here for that then, what are you here for? What purpose brings you to this cursed place?”

Again, the alicorn did not speak. Turning away from the Night Princess, the Day Princess began to walk through the rows of graves, nearly all of them destroyed from a thousand years against the elements. Seeing her sister move through the graves, and with her curiosity now piqued, Luna followed Celestia, wondering where she could possibly be heading. That did not take long though, as both princesses stopped short of one tombstone in the back of the grounds, almost impossible to see apart from the grass due to being covered in moss.

It had been obvious to both princesses that the tombstone laying in front of them had suffered much over the years, much like the ones around it. Wiping the moss off with her hoof, Celestia nor Luna could make the words engraved on the stone very well. For some reason though, Luna could tell that Celestia knew who’s stone it was, and who’s remains laid beneath them. Still, neither of them said a word.

With a heavy sigh, Celestia turned to her sister, sadness in her eyes. “How much do you remember?”

“So you knew that my memories were lost then.”

“... Yes, I did.”

“And yet you said nothing of it? Or were you the one who took them away in the first place?”

“... I will not lie Luna. I took parts of your memories, moments that would only bring you grief.”

“Grief you say. More grief then being banished to the moon for a thousand years by my own sister? Or the grief that not only I, but both of us endured when our mother and father were taken from us? More grief than that, Tia?” Luna snapped, obviously furious at what her sister had just admitted.

Looking down at the grave, Celestia whispered the name of the soul beneath them. “Calidus.”

“...Calidus?”

Celestia nodded. “That was his name. Of course, he goes by something both similar and different today.” She said with a small smile.

“What do you mean? You are obviously referencing the grave. How can somepony who has passed on still be alive Tia?”

With a small giggle, Celestia decided to tease her sister and not tell her. However, the smile and laughter didn’t last for long, as it soon died out remembering the young stallion. “He died trying to save the one he loved. All his life he had looked up to her, and would always spend as much time as possible to be with her, as did she with him. It was almost as if the pair was made for each other.”

“That’s... terrible.” Luna replied.

“Yes, it was.”

“You say he died trying to save the one he loved. What happened to him? What happened to the mare?”

“... The mare was the one who killed him.” Celestia answered. Tears were beginning to form at the edge of her eyes, remembering that night.

“Killed him? Why would she kill him? Were they not in love? Why would she betray him and-”

“I was just getting to that Luna.” Celestia interrupted, wiping the tears away with her hoof, even sniffling a bit. “She did not want to be betrayed in the end. Both of them loved each other so much, and were even wanting to marry each other. The sister of the mare, the mother of the stallion, both were overjoyed. However, something horrible had happened in the end, something that even I could not foresee. Not until it was too late.”

“She did not really love him?”

Celestia shook her head. “She loved him, Luna, do not get me wrong. What happened... The mare had been poisoned by an enemy of her family a long time ago. This poison, instead of slowly killing her physically, it killed her mentally. She became a new pony, a pony not even I could recognize. It did not happen quickly though.”

“The poison had taken its time, changing the mare every so slowly. Over the years she was becoming more and more convinced that her friends and family did not love her, or the nightly talent she would perform for them. No matter how much we struggled, the mare would not listen to reason. Finally, in the end, the mare was convinced that the stallion had been planted inside the palace to kill her, not remembering the years they had spent together and loved one another.”

“What happened? How did she kill the stallion?”

Celestia looked up at the sky, the nightly glow of the stars shining bright along with the moon that shone even brighter. “After performing her nightly duties, the mare went back to the room where she slept, the same room she had shared with the stallion.”

Luna’s cheeks were becoming bright red at the new information. “O-Oh. Oh my.” She said quietly as she put her hooves on her cheeks, trying to hide her blushing.

Celestia chuckled a bit at her sister’s reaction, but could understand it well. “Yes, they had indeed gotten that close Luna. But it was also where tragedy struck.” She said, a frown overtaking her joy. “Seducing him and calling him to bed, the two had shared one last night of passion. The stallion of course I could only assume was to not only agreed because it meant more time to spend with the one he loved, but also, ironically, bring love back into her life.”

“How do you know this?” Luna asked, raising a brow and ready to accuse.

“I remember the account of the guards standing outside. They could hear the screams of lust and passion for quite some time. At least, that’s what they had assumed. After a while, those screams sounded less of love, and more of horror as time went by. Worried, the guards burst through the doors of the chamber, only to see the mare, now fully engulfed by the darkness of the poison, completely changed. Her once lush, beautiful blue coat turned into a sickening black, her star like mane turned even darker, her mind horribly twisted by the heinous magic. Her partner...”

She paused and looked at Luna, the same sadness still in her eyes. “Do you understand now why I had locked your memories away? Why I did not want you suffer? Not until I knew you were ready to hear this?”

Luna, having now realize who the mare in the story was, looked away from her sister and to the grave. Even with all of this new information, she felt no feelings, no remorse towards the stallion that laid beneath the two alicorns. Was it because the nightmare was still lingering in her body, making her not care? Or was it because she did not have the memories, therefore she could not feel?

“Tia?”

“Yes Luna?”

“I-I see, so I was... Those memories, would I remember him? Would I love him once more? Here I sit, not even knowing what he looked like, but to know that I was in love with him...”

Celestia looked down at her sister, and could see the struggle that Luna was going through. Trying to remember the one you love, but cannot. She smiled and nodded, believing that with now knowing the truth, giving back her memories was the best course of action. “I understand Luna, I do believe you have spent long enough away from him.”

Leaning down to her sister, Celestia touched horns with the smaller alicorn, a smile appearing on her face. Condensing and sending magic to her horn, Celestia began to use it to undo the spell she had placed on her sister from before. On the giving end, it was no trouble whatsoever to cast the spell, on the receiving end however...

With magic pumping into her head, she could feel the energy tearing her mind apart. With each ticking second, one by one, each thread holding her sanity intact had begun to break. The sights, the smells, the sounds of the memories, all rushing back to her. The pony that was once invisible to her in her dreams, the one that was cut out and missing, finally beginning to emerge from the darkest depths of her mind.

Hot and heavy breathing, Luna collapsed to the cold, wet, grassy ground. her body continued to feel as though it was burning up with each ticking second, but that only lasted for a few moments before the cool air began to embrace her once again. Her breathing under control, she slowly lifted her eyes open and looked to her sister, a smile creeping on her face.

“Sister.”

“Yes Luna?”

“If you don’t mind, I’d like to go see an old friend.” She said, shaking the dirt off her coat and spreading her wings wide, ready to take off.

Celestia continued to smile and nod once more at her sister. “Of course Luna, I understand. I will go inside and go retrieve Twilight to send her home before she wakes up. Before you go though...”

“Sister?” Luna cocked her head, seeing her sister’s smile fade.

“I wish to say, please, do not blame yourself. It was not your fault.”

“... Of course Tia, I know.”

It had taken a few hours for Luna to fly back to Canterlot from the old castle ruins, but she had been able to make it back in time for her to lower the moon in place of her sister’s sun. Landing on the balcony of her room at the highest point of the Lunar Tower, the princess trotted inside, exhausted. For once, she wished she could just collapse onto her bed and sleep for eternity, but knew it could not be.

The events of trekking through the Everfree Forest, to exploring her old home, to gaining her memories back, all to end with her choosing to fly instead of teleport home, it was not hard to figure out why she had been so tired. Covering herself with the blankets and sheets that had not been changed for other a month due to her absence, she sighed and placed her head on the soft pillow, waiting to go into supposed dreamland.

“Surprised to see you so tired Luna. Usually I thought alicorns did not need to rest.”

Slowly, Luna opened one of her eyes, and looked in the direction of the voice that disturbed her sleep. Sitting on a chair in the corner, sat the same pink and purple unicorn from before, a smile on her face. “Rosa...” Luna said softly. It was followed up shortly with another sigh.

The unicorn’s smile turned into a large grin, and bounced off the chair. “So glad you could remember your friend’s name after all these years.”

Luna sat up, wanting to glare daggers at the unicorn, but too tired to do so. “I could say the same for you little one. For three years I have been back at the castle, and I knew for a fact for those three years that you had lived in the castle with us. So why is it now that you decide to finally show your face once again?”

The unicorn, or Rosa as she was now known, shrugged her shoulders. “I’ve been busy. Besides, I wasn’t too sure if you had forgotten about me.”

Luna frowned a bit. “After all the time we’ve spent together, why would you ever think that I would have forgotten you?”

Again, Rosa shrugged. “You never know... I assume Celly returned your memories?” Staying silent, Luna looked away from her friend and down towards her bed spread. She nodded once, letting Rosa know everything she needed to know. “I see... and I-”

“Please Rosa, I’m glad that you have finally shown yourself after all these years, and I really would love to catch up very soon. However, right now I would simply like to be alone.” Luna told her friend as she covered herself in her blankets and sheets, turning away from the unicorn.

“... Very well Luna, I understand. I will be in my room if you need me. It’s right below Celly’s in the Solar Tower if you’re wondering.”

With that said, Rosa let herself out of Luna’s room, and headed back to her own. Luna on the other hoof, instead of falling asleep like she had planned, began to remember the times she had when she shared her bed with that special somepony, only to let tears run down her face as she realized that those days would never return.