After Tirek's attack in Equestria and the subsequent draining of all magic in the area, Luna found herself wondering when something like that may happen again. Her nightly duties were disturbed by her own nightmares of such a tragedy happening once again. Equestria was left defenseless save for one little pony. Twilight Sparkle. Celestia's most faithful student. But, Luna thought, what would the outcome have been, had Twilight lost? Equestria would be without magic… forever. She couldn't let that happen. And as such, she set a plan in motion. One she needed her sister's help for. She went to Celestia's chambers and knocked on her door. A determined look in her eyes.

“Enter…” Came Celestia’s tired response. She was just starting to wake up from a similar nightmare, hoping that such a thing would never come to be.

Luna opened the door and walked inside, a serious expression on her face. "Forgive me for disturbing you, sister, but I have something important to discuss with you. It's about...back then. During the attack..."

She nodded, trying to get up out of bed. "What of it…?"

"I would rather not see something like that happen again sister. And therefore, I have a request to make of you. I want a student of my own, and I would like your help to find them."

Celestia looked at her through one cracked eye, a faint smile on her face as she said, “That so…? Then I’ll start looking…”

"Thank you, sister. I want to pass down my teachings as well, so that equestria may have a better chance at survival next time."

Celestia yawned and stretched, a few satisfying pops coming from her back and wings as she fully woke up. “Well, I would certainly love to help, Luna! Now, what would you like for your student to be?”

"I would like them to be a Thestral. I feel… connected to them after my time as Nightmare Moon." Luna looks away, not daring to meet her sister's eyes, her actions from back then still fresh in her mind.

Celestia smiled warmly before coming over to give the mare a hug, wrapping her wings around her as she did. "I keep telling you to stop worrying about back then, sister… But try as I might, I never was able to find out where your Thestrals vanished off to. The only clue that I have is a cryptic message that roughly translated to, 'Ye know of us'..."

"They chose to reside in the Everfree Forest until the time came where they were needed again. You can find them there."

Celestia blinked in shock, then palmed her face with a sigh. "That is honestly the one place I never thought of checking, as it's too dangerous and wild to most creatures…"

"Yes. I understand why you would think they couldn't possibly go there, but my Thestrals are stronger than most ponies. At least that's something I can take pride in. Shall I go with you, sister?"

Celestia chuckled, and hugged her once more. "Try the other way around, dear Luna… If you were to suddenly disappear into the forest and return with a new race of pony, or dragged me off with you without announcing it first, things might get dangerous quickly as nobles would call you out as having brainwashed me."

"Truly? These foul ingrates do not deserve to call themselves nobles. But I understand, dear sister. Be careful, won't you?"

She nodded and kissed Luna on the cheek before going off to get dressed for the days events, motioning for Luna to take a nap in her bed while Tia set things up for them to go to the Everfree Forest.

Luna nodded, happy to take her up on the offer to sleep, she quickly got under the covers and settled into bed, drifting off easier thanks to her sister's warmth.

When Luna was woken up by a servant, it was late afternoon, meaning Tia had let her get some decent rest before setting things up for their travels to the Forest to find her little ponies.

"Apologies for disturbing you, Princess Luna, but Princess Celestia has requested your attendance for a trip into the Everfree Forest to find your lost ponies, the Thestrals…" the servant said nervously, fully aware of how agitated Luna could be when disturbed from her sleep.

"Very well. Leave me in peace. I shall go see my sister right away." Luna shooed off the guard as she wiped her eyes.

The guard bowed and hurried away, sighing in relief as she closed the door behind her.

Luna stood up and stretched, yawning away her sleep as she mentally got ready for the day. She made sure to get herself properly prepared before heading out to meet her sister in the Everfree. Once there, she spoke up as she stood beside her. "Are you ready, sister?"

Celestia nodded once, and gripped the shaft of her halberd a little tighter, nervous about the horrors that hid within the heart of the cursed forest… "As ready as I can be, sister…"

Luna held her own spear closer to her chest, keeping her eyes peeled for danger as they walked in. Luna tried to see if she could still sense her ponies in the forest.

She was able to get a faint pull from deeper into the forest, but it seemed to be coming from the very heart of the dark woods.

Luna locked onto that feeling and made her way towards it, hoping to find her ponies quickly. "Come, sister. They're deeper inside than I thought. We'll have to be ready for anything."

Celestia took a steadying breath, then nodded once more, following after her with a small fire behind her to help light their path without putting themselves at risk of being attacked by any of the more… light sensitive beasts in the forest.

Luna kept her eyes peeled for any threats as she gripped her spear. For a brief moment she considered the possibility that they might be safe, but knowing where she was, that was impossible. She tried to focus once again on their presence. Which was the only thing that let her notice that they were surrounded by her Thestrals, guarding them as they were silently escorted into the heart of the forest, where they had spirited themselves away…

"It's quiet, Luna… I don't particularly enjoy how quiet it is…" Celestia said as she was also looking around, trying to keep an eye out for any possible threats the same as her sister.

"Sister, put away your weapons. We are safe now." She said, not looking back despite her own words.

Celestia blinked in confusion, but willed her halberd back to the armory, teleporting it back in a golden flash of light. "What do you mean, Luna? We're very clearly alone here…"

"It's them. My ponies are here. They're watching us. Keeping us safe." She wills her own weapon to the armory in the same way, relaxing her body and walking with more of a pep in her step.

Celestia lets out a sigh of relief, extinguishing her light to avoid disrupting their night vision too much before resting a hand on Luna's shoulder so that her own eyes could adjust to the darkness of the forest's shadow. "Well that's a relief…"

Luna placed her hand over Celestia's own to reassure her and continued walking, letting her ponies guide her to their newest home, causing Celestia to blush faintly at the contact. Several thoughts of what she could've done back then zipping through her mind, along with thoughts of how lucky her student would be to be able to spend one on one time with her sister…

When they finally arrived, it was nearly midnight, and Luna was surprised to see that her children have been thriving to such a degree in such a dangerous place. She knew they had it in them, but to see this was astonishing. The entire place seemed to have been made using the forest itself as a natural building, keeping any pegasus flying overhead from noticing it. The area at the edge of the town was ringed by Poison Joke to deter some of the more dangerous creatures, since NOTHING in this forest was as dangerous as getting afflicted by the flower… And then she noticed the tunnels leading underground! There was more that wasn't visible just by stumbling across the village!

"Sister…? Why'd we stop…?" Celestia asked, starting to get antsy as she was effectively blind this deep in the forest, doubly so when it was so late at night.

"Look around, sister. The forest has changed. Everything looks… structured. And there are tunnels leading underground. Perhaps they have begun to move through them..." Luna decided it was time to call for her children, and used a special sound spell that only they could hear. It was a covert signal she used to send orders to her troops long ago, but she still remembered it with ease.

"Luna… I can't see anything. I'm effectively blind and can't tell if my eyes are open or closed right now," Celestia reminded her, a faint bit of agitation in her voice as she did.

"Ah, yes. Forgive me sister. Here, let me," she said as she cast another special spell. It seemed to be a simple light spell, but rather than the brilliant shine of her sister's light, there was the cool blue radiance of her own moon's light. "How about now?"

Celestia let out a breath and relaxed as she looked around, able to see properly now. "Much better… Thank you, sister." She then looked down and leapt up to the treetops upon recognizing the flower that was just a few places away from them. "LUNA GET AWAY FROM THOSE FLOWERS!"

Luna stopped immediately and scattered to the trees as well, knowing just what her sister was talking about and wanting nothing to do with it. "Thank you, sister. You saved me."

A few of the Thestrals stepped out of the shadows as they flew over the dangerous flowers, more coming out of the houses and tunnels at having heard Luna's special call spell. They gathered close to the edge of the flower border, eyeing the flowers carefully before leaping up to meet the diarchs of Equestria. Three ponies in particular stepped forward, all old and clearly veterans of some sort.

"Hail, Night Mother Luna…" said one of the elder Thestrals, a stallion with silvery white hair and a scar across his muzzle.

"Hello to you as well, elder. I am glad to see that my children still remember the call. I assume you were aware that we would arrive?"

He nodded, pulling out a scroll with a pink butterfly as the binding. "We were, Night Mother. The Kind One has served us well, acting as a messenger between us and the village outside the forest. Thank you for guiding her to us." He then bowed once more.

"She has, has she? I see. I suppose I should thank her for her service later. But for now, I have an announcement to make. Two in fact, and they are of the utmost importance. The first, is that I am ready to reintegrate the thestrals back into pony society."

The first elder looked to the other two, both of whom nodded their consent. "Very well, Night Mother… And what, pray tell, would your second announcement be…? We had expected you to wish for us to return some day, be it through treaty or through blade…"

"It will be through treaty. I have put my poor sister through enough pain as it is. As for my second announcement, I will be taking on a student from among you. I will teach them everything I know, so that they may become an asset to Equestria. I will be holding interviews to gauge your worth, so any who wish to study under me, please speak up now," Luna said as she turned to address the village as a whole for the second announcement.

After a few dozen interviews, and Celestia gushing about how amazing the village was, both above ground and under, Luna was about to close up for the night when one more filly came scampering into her tent. She'd looked like another Thestral… if it weren't for her golden curls for a mane and tail and ocean blue eyes. And when the little filly bowed, Luna saw a faint shimmer of an illusion spell on the edges of her wings, hiding something…

"And what is your name, little one? Why do you wish to become my student?" Luna asked with a kind smile as she reached down and pet the filly's head.

She shivered in joy at Luna simply touching her… "B-because I want to help my brother protect the v-village…"

"You want to protect the village? How admirable of you, dear~. Do you promise to listen closely to my teachings?"

She nodded, wanting to learn from Luna. She knew nopony in the village would let her learn how to fight… More because any mare that wanted to learn to fight were full blooded Thestrals, unlike her…

"Very well, little one, but you must make me this promise. You must swear that you will use what you learn to protect Equestria, myself and my sister with all that you have. And you must be prepared for any hardships that may befall you during your studies."

She smiled widely as she went to do just that, right before a hand reached in and grabbed her by the scruff of her neck, a gruff and clearly aggravated voice coming from outside the tent. “So THIS is where you ran off to… Jade Heart, get back to the kitchen, half breed!”

"Let her go." Luna called out to the stallion, stopping him in his tracks. She calls on her magic to grab him and bring him face to face with her. "Explain yourself. Quickly."

He gulped, now thoroughly scared. “I… I was telling her to get back to where she was supposed to be, Night Mother…”

"Not that, you foal. What do you mean, half-breed?" Her gaze darkened as she glared at him, mentally deciding whether to let him go or throw him aside for his insolence.

“Sh-she is not a full blooded Thestral, Night Mother…” He said in fear.

She thought for a moment, then sighed, putting him down. "You are not to refer to her like that from now on. It is of no matter to me what she is, and using it to degrade her is wrong and very much against the code I taught you. Do you understand?"

He gulped and nodded, letting her go instantly as she said that.

"So Jade Heart is your name?" Luna asked the filly as she set her eyes on her.

Jade nodded, nervously. “Y-yes… Sorry, Night Mother…”

"It is fine, although, why did you feel the need to lie, dear? Dishonesty is not very becoming of a student of mine."

“W-well… Everypony around here treats me differently because of it…” Jade said as she looked down.

"I understand your desire to hide your true self in order to avoid judgement, but you cannot hide from who you are. It is better to embrace it with all you have and enjoy it, because that difference is what makes you special. Reveal your wings to me, dear."

Jade hesitantly reaches up to a metal collar that blended in with her fur and unclasped it, revealing how her wings had small golden yellow feathers at the end. “P-please don’t hate me…”

"I could never hate you, dear. You look beautiful." Luna crosses her arms and thinks for a moment. "Very well. I have chosen. You will be my student."

Jade blushes a deep red and her wings flare out as she asks, “R-really…?”

"Yes, really. I want to take you under my wing and teach you everything I know. Be proud, Jade Heart. This is your achievement."