Luna could not sleep at all. Perhaps it was the brightness of the sun, or the fact that tonight would be her first public Moon Raising Ceremony since her banishment. Or perhaps....just perhaps...it could be the strange feelings she had about Orion. She hadn't felt this way in hundreds and hundreds of years, much less this strongly. Staring into her mirror, Luna spoke to herself. "What am I doing? I should be trying to impress all of Equestria tonight, not focusing on a solitary alicorn! Besides, it would never work...."
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Celestia walked out onto a high balcony and looked down at the cheering crowd beneath. Clearing her throat, she began to speak. "Dear Citizens of Equestria! This day has been the best in my life, not because of my own magic or the honors that have been bestowed upon me, but because of this time between the Day and the Night. Long ago, I ruled with my sister, the Princess Luna. She is back to resume her rightful place tonight! Equestria, I present to you....the Princess Luna, Guardian of the Night!" The great doors of the palace swept open to thunderous applause. Luna emerged dressed in different shades of purple, her eyes shimmering in the fading sunlight. The crowd of creatures gasped, no doubt wondering how this royal mare hadn't ruled for a thousand years. Luna looked and felt every inch the Princess of the Moon. But there was one thing she had to do. As Celestia dipped her head and moved to make room for Luna beside her, the two sisters lit their horns. For the first time in one thousand years, the sun sank below the horizon to allow the moon and its guardian the rule of Equestria. Luna had planned this sky for years. The perfect hue of deep blue, the faint black spots swirling with the glimmer of the stars and the crescent moon. It was perfect. For a moment, the sky was completely black. Then came an explosion of blue, making the night as beautiful as the day. The moon rose gracefully into place, and the stars began to shine as if they were happy. A second of utter silence and stillness followed. Then, one by one, each and every creature in the streets bent their knees to Princess Luna. Luna gazed upon them with tears in her eyes as fireworks (planned by Celestia) began to arc in the sky above. One thousand years of heartache and waiting had all come to this. The ponies of Equestria willingly bowing at Luna's hooves. But perhaps Luna wasn't as moved by the mass of the ponies gathered below. Perhaps she was simply touched that the first to bow would be Orion.
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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...
