The next day was bright and clear. Luna wished she could hit the snooze button. After staying up all night guarding Canterlot, the last thing she wanted to do was get up. But she did anyway. After all, today was the second painting class with Orion. It was supposed to be on how to create a painting that had both a subject and a background, and Luna had just the place. She met a sleepy Orion in her study and they promptly embarked, Luna excitedly leading the way. She had even debated on insisting he wear a blindfold until they arrived at the chosen spot: the waterfall glade Luna had found the day before. But somehow, putting a blindfold on an alicorn stallion didn't seem quite right. So it was that Luna and Orion landed in a clump of trees a short way from the glade. Luna lit her horn and pulled back a curtain of moss to reveal the glade. Orion walked carefully into the clearing, a smile slowly spreading across his face. At last, a single word escaped his mouth: "Magnificent!" He touched the shimmering water of the pool, creating ripples on the surface. Again, he spoke: "Magnificent! Princess Luna, this shall be a marvelous place to paint! Wherever shall I begin?!?" Luna hadn't thought of that. "Oh. Ah...the most beautiful thing, I suppose. Perhaps a plant?" Orion looked like that had only confused him more. "But...where is that? It is all so beautiful..." Luna tried to stop a yawn, but failed. "YYYAAAAWWWWN! Oh, I am so sorry Orion. No relation to you, I promise. It is just that I am so very-"
"YAAAAAAAAAAWWWN! I ask a thousand pardons, Princess Luna. You were saying?" Luna grinned. "I was saying how tired I was. However, or seems that I do not have to explain myself. We both need sleep. I suggest a nap before the painting class." Without another word, Luna lay down on a patch of moss and went quickly to sleep. Orion was quick to follow, lying down behind a cluster of trees near the waterfalls and letting them lull him to sleep.
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Orion awoke to the silvery sound of magic. Opening his eyes slightly, he let out a soft gasp. It was evening. Luna was in the pool beneath the waterfalls, her soaking wet mane flowing down beside her. She levitated water from the pool, making it swirl. Her magic cast a glow on the water and on herself, making her appear angelic. Silently, Orion levitated canvas and a pencil over to his side. He sketched quickly, the few lines on the canvas becoming the scene before him. He knew he could never paint the sound of the waterfall, or the calming swirls of the water. But he could try to capture this moment. He had to.
Orion had found the most beautiful thing in the glade, and it wasn't a plant.
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After Midnight
FanfictionLuna is home after one thousand years of exile on the moon. She has Celestia, and her old friend, Midnight Winter, by her side. She'll need them, for though she has repented from her deeds as Nightmare Moon, the ponies of Equestria still think of he...
