Luna leaned against the shelves of the Magic section in the Canterlot library, all filled with ancient scrolls only she and her sister were permitted to read.
Her mind flashed back to Sombra, the boy she had met a month ago. He would love this place. It practically calls his name.
Her forehead was beaded with sweat, her chest hurt with every breath and hammer were bashing her skull.
"Lulu!" Celestia burst into the library.
"Tia?" Luna gasped and scrambled to a standing position, but her legs gave way and she collapsed to the ground.
"What happened?" Celestia asked her, squeezing her hand.
"Magic...practice..." Luna barely managed to wheeze out.
"You've got to stop pushing yourself like this! You're lucky I was only a few rooms away. You could've ended up getting hurt, or-"
Killed. Celestia paused. No one wanted to mention that.
For there was a secret no one knew. No one but them and their deceased parents Aurora and Nox.
They used to have an older brother named Astral. He had deep, ebony skin studded with shimmering white. His voice was rich and flowed like a river. He always loved the art of magic. He'd stay up till dawn practicing relentlessly, pushing himself to the limits...until there were no more limits to push.
"You think I've forgotten about Astral?" Luna narrowed her eyes.
"No! Then why do you keep doing this to yourself?" Celestia demanded.
"Why? WHY?! After the Great War, our parents were dead and our kingdom was torn to shreds. We're young, vulnerable princesses who don't know what we're doing. The vampires still hold a grudge against us, and if any kingdom would be attacked, it would be ours. And you know we'd be dead if anyone tried that. Look at our kingdom! We've barely gotten off the ground, there's huge inequality and.." Luna trailed off, bursting into tears.
"Lulu..."
"And now I'm crying! Princesses don't cry!" Luna wiped away her tears frantically.
"Luna. Listen to me." Celestia grasped Luna's hand tightly. "It is always ok to cry."
"Maybe for you!" Luna fired. "Poor, sweet little Tia, she's trying so hard to be a good ruler. What a nice girl! We need to help our princess!" Luna mocked, her eyes dripping with envy. "It's fine when you cry. When I cry, I'm just your weakling shadow."
"Look. I'm sorry about what's been happening lately. I'm really doing my best," Celestia apologized.
"What if I told you your best wasn't good enough?" Luna spat.
Celestia paused for a second. What had happened to her sister?
"That's how I feel everyday. You don't understand how lucky you are. Why? Because everyone is so damn in love with you!"
"It's not my fault!" Celestia raised her voice. "It's not my fault I'm overshadowing you! I'm not trying to do this on purpose!"
"Princesses!" Their assistant, Andrian, knocked hysterically on the door.
"Yes?" Celestia asked, recomposing herself.
With matted hair, bloodshot eyes and the face of someone double his age, he looked nothing like his usual self.
"Urgent news! Refugees have been coming into Canterlot!" Andrian announced.
"Why? What happened?" Luna demanded.
"Vampires. Specter and Napoleon Dusk of the Tenebrisian empire have attacked and seized the Crystal Empire," Andrian explained.
"And Amore?" Celestia worried.
Luna rolled her eyes, forgetting she was a princess. "Amore's a bitch."
They all gaped at her. Andrian's jaw dropped. One of his lackey's did stifle a snicker though. "She really is."
"Amore....was last seen being held hostage by them," Andrian admitted, ignoring Luna's comment.
"The citizens? Are they ok?" Luna changed the subject.
"We...we don't know! We only just found out through the refugees. Maybe it would help if you go talk to them," Andrian suggested.
They both nodded and exited the library, running down the stairs, nearly spraining both their ankles as they did so.
Luna gave up running. She gracefully hopped onto the banister and slid down the everlasting spiral, her unpinned blue curls flowing behind her like a shimmering waterfall. She reached the ground floor in record time, stepping down and waiting for the others.
She burst through the palace doors, stunned at what she saw. Tiny clusters of refugees stood outside the palace. Some had faces smudged with grime and what looked like blood, while others' cheeks were hollow like they'd been on a long journey and food deprived. She scanned the crowd, a few images sticking in her mind: a woman with blue-purple bruising around her eyes, holding three skinny kids. An old man clutching a little girl about 10. Two twins, both long and lanky, with cuts scarring their copper skin.
"Princess?" A familiar voice called her name. It was that husky, mesmerizing sound that seemed to whisper to her in her dreams, and follow her in the halls.
Luna turned around, startled by the noise. "Sombra?" She gasped. It was definitely him. Those distinctive red eyes still shone bright through a mask of dirt, grease and worry. The boy next to him, who looked 20, blushed when Celestia looked his way.
"Luna! It's you!" Sombra's eyes lit up for a second, before retreating to a home of misery.
"What happened?" She asked him. "Guards! Take all the refugees into the palace. Treat their wounds and provide them with food and shelter." Her voice rang out sharply, a stark contrast to Celestia's warm, soothing tone.
"Well, the vampires threw what felt like a smoke bomb at us to get our attention. They then got our attention, talked about how they wouldn't hurt us if we cooperated. They were holding Amore and the children of rich officials hostage, a very smart tactic," Sombra filled her in.
"Very smart indeed. Do you know what happened to them?" Luna asked as she led him back into the palace.
"Well, some idiot guard decided to question Napoleon's authority, so then they shot a young girl," Sombra admitted.
"Oh." Luna winced at the thought. "How did you escape?"
"After that, me and Jet decided we really needed to leave. We went back into our house quickly, gathered our cash and most important objects. Of course, some other idiot had to screw things up, so they threw another bomb and killed a few more kids, which was a perfect distraction. We managed to escape and go South to a few villages, rode the train through a few stops and came here," Sombra finished.
"Wow. So, Amore's not dead?" Luna verified.
"I don't know. All that happened a week and a half ago. The Dusk family has managed to keep it very secret. Not many people have gotten out."
"Well, I guess you'll just have to stay here then while we decide what to do," Luna said, secretly excited by the idea. Sombra and Jet were currently the closest things she had to friends right now.
"I guess so. It's a good thing material objects don't matter much to us," Jet added. "Not that we've really had any that would!"
Sombra laughed at that, and Luna joined in as well. Was this what it was like to have friends?
"At least you guys must've had organized houses. Here? It's ten whole rooms full of chairs!"
"What, did your parents own a museum or something?" Jet nudged her lightly.
"Jet, she's a princess. Her house, I mean castle basically was a museum!" Sombra exclaimed.
"Actually, half the rooms were off limits and used for hide and seek, while the other half was full of lustful servants who wanted to sneak into my dresses when I wasn't there," Luna admitted.
This made them all laugh even harder, a chorus of joy and ease, so contrary to the emotions they usually felt.
"Luna!" Celestia called. "Hi," she greeted Sombra and Jet briefly, then turned back to her sister.
"You're needed immediately," Celestia demanded, her face sickly and pale.
Luna's little pocket of happiness immediately disappeared again: her bubble of friendship and acceptance now popped, setting her down in the world of politics.
"Why?" Luna asked, mouthing apologies to Sombra and Jet, who were being escorted to their rooms.
"Would death threats from the Dusk Family be the easiest way of putting it?"
Hey guys!
I'd like to give a quick shout out to the author @Rainbowloversix. She writes really well and has given me inspiration, so be sure to check out her books.
Tell me what you think of this chapter in the comments and don't forget to vote!
Also, do you guys want me to do a chapter from Specter/Napoleon/the Dusk Families' POV?