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Upon our arrival there, her body shaking from the effect of adrenaline, the Mare of the Cold and Silent Night tucked me into her bed and then hopped in beside me, wrapping her forelegs, hind legs, and a wing about my body, pulling me into her warmth. Stunned and dazed by all that had happened, for a moment I just stared at her - my only movement the occasional blinking of my eyes - before I softly rasped, "Moon... Are you and Luna okay?" My words mightn't have been the right thing to say... but then again, perhaps they were, for as the adrenaline left her system, a state of shock set in and Nightmare Moon began to weep silent tears. "'Am I okay?' Are _you okay? Oh, you silly, silly human... Luna and I could have taken our sister's strike against us! Why... Why did you do that?' _

Even as she began healing the visible and invisible damage Princess Celestia had done to my trachea - even as she lowered her head to rest within the crook of my arm - Nightmare Moon continued to weep, her tears staining my skin. Weakly throwing a hand over her neck, I combed my fingers through her mane. Said mane was no longer filled with stars, or even billowed gently as though caressed by a nightly breeze; an illusion which had failed due to her exhaustion. Beneath was revealed her real mane - the same as any other pony's though coloured deep purple - and as I allowed my fingers to freely roam through it, Nightmare Moon allowed herself to let go and cry until there were no more tears to fall.

"I did it," I softly replied as she wept, "because I wanted to protect my friend. Because I..." As I made to continue, however, Moon raised her head to nuzzle me and then 'shushed' me with the softest of kisses; the words didn't need to be said, because she knew and felt the same. When the echo of her anguished cries faded away - as I gently wiped away her tears with my hands - softly, the Dark Mare murmured, "Oh, mine beloved Consort... We can barely begin to think of Our sister's current mental state. She will have regained control of her faculties by now, surely! She shalt be devastated, verily, by her actions toward Us and You, of this We have no doubt.

Though We would normally be pleased greatly by anything that should cause Our sister grief - because of what she did to Us so long ago - this feels... It isn't... it isn't..." She lapsed into a pensive silence as I concluded, "It isn't right." When she nodded - a choked sob escaping her as I kept combing my hands through her mane - I continued, "It isn't right, because a Line has been crossed. When you originally relaxed and kind of mellowed out - though you no longer wanted to bring eternal night to Equestria - you still took great pleasure in 'sticking it' to Celestia any way you could, as payback for her banishing you to the moon..."

With this said, it couldn't be helped - Moon and I giggled like a pair of misbehaved school foals - for said methods Moon employed to get back at Celestia mostly consisted of utterly hilarious pranks and practical jokes which had caused the poor Solar Princess no end of mane-pulling annoyance and grief! "However," I continued, once we were able to get ourselves under control, "though what's just happened has caused Celestia terrible grief, it's the wrong kind of grief. What that Zebrican bastard did wasn't a prank or a joke; Celestia is genuinely, deeply hurt, and - even worse - other ponies were involved! That's always been the unwritten rule between you two: no matter what you did to each other it wasn't to involve other ponies.

That aside, you relish the state she's in now, but... because other ponies were involved, you feel guilt for feeling this way; it seems wrong - hollow, and petty - doesn't it?" When Nightmare Moon nodded, her eyes misty with tears, and then lowered her head to rest within the crook of my arm again, I continued, "I suspect there's kind of a... territorial thing going on here, too - you are the only one who is allowed to cause Celestia grief; nopony else - but the Zebrican... took that from you." In response to my words, the Dark Mare just blinked. "In short" I concluded, "what you're feeling is perfectly normal." At this, Nightmare Moon lifted her head to stare at me for a moment, before she tremulously responded, "It... It is?"

"Yes," I answered. "Now, listen to me very carefully: when the Zebrican cast that spell - when he summoned that dreadful beast and killed all those Nobleponies - at that point the Game ended. The Game is over now, Moon. Do you understand? Whatever resentment you feel towards Celestia, you have to put it all aside, end the feud and step up; you, Luna, me, and everypony else... we all have to help Celestia, now, okay? We've got to help her get through this, not only for her sake, but for Equestria as well." For a moment, Nightmare Moon affixed me with a steady gaze. Then she nodded and shortly thereafter slowly and reluctantly released me from her embrace.

"Yes..." she hissed softly, "and then We shall see to the Zebricans... We... will make them PAY for what they've done... But first, Our Sister. I take it thou has a plan of sorts?" At the question - as I got out of her and Luna's bed, dressed in my usual clothing, and then grabbed Luna's grooming kit from her dressers - I nodded, immediately answering, "I do. I'm going to spoil her - treat her the same way as I treat you - with a hot bath, a mane brushing, a hooficure; the works. Meanwhile, you and Luna are going to do your level best to get the damn castle in order. Of course, if Luna chooses not to surface, then it'll be all you in the driver's seat. You wanted to rule Equestria; now's your chance. Don't screw it up."

No sooner had the last word left my lips, then Moon's eyes visibly widened for a moment before glazing over as she conversed with Luna in the realm of thought; a stream of twinned consciousness faster than any mere verbal communication could ever hope to be. Seconds later - as she recalled her royal regalia to her side and bade me help her don it - the Dread Mare looked to me and said, "It is decided, mine Consort; for the time that Our Sister is in recovery, Luna and I will rule jointly. Now come, let us tend to Celestia..." With those words, Nightmare Moon released control to Luna and then together, with a softly nickered spell, she transported the both of us back to her sister's bedchamber.

Upon our return to the bedchamber of the Solar Princess we beheld the sight of carefully organized chaos - swathes of ponies were setting the room in order, repairing the damage to the bath chamber, and carefully treating Celestia's Guards for shock. To my dismay, however, Luna and I saw that all were giving the Solar Princess herself a very wide berth; she appeared a sullen, tattered island amidst the sea of ponies. The organized chaos herein was being overseen by the careful eyes of Shining Armour and his beloved, Princess Cadance, whom was gazing at Celestia with eyes deeply saddened. Of course, the abrupt arrival of the Moon Princess and myself caused one hell of a disruption!

No sooner had Luna and I appeared then there came a cry of "CONTEGO REGIS FILIA!" as several fresh Guardsponies swiftly surrounded us, brandishing foreleg-mounted spears, lances, and deadly serrated-edged swords - but no sooner had this happened than Shining Armour espied us and bellowed, "Stand down, Stallions! Don't you recognize your Princess of the Night and her Consort?!" At the words of their Captain, the all-too-eager Guardsponies actually looked at whom it was they were surrounding, and then - with nervous chuckles and more than a few sheepish grins - they immediately sheathed their weapons, stepped back, and stood at ease.

It was then that Luna took charge. Shoving her way almost rudely past them, she swiftly approached Shining Armor and his Wife and I followed after her - only to stop beside her a moment later as she stood regally before the Captain of the Guard and snapped, "Why hast mine Sister not been attended to? Why hast thou assigned nopony to see to what ails her?" Despite the fact that he was the Captain of the Guard - and the fact that he was an incredibly brave pony - when faced with the very, very angry Princess of the Night, poor Shining Armour was thoroughly intimidated! He shook and stammered and hemmed and hawed, serving only to make Luna impatient.

"Speak quickly Guard Captain!" she demanded, tapping a forehoof upon the floor. "We have not the time, nor the patience to tarry!" To our surprise, it was Princess Cadance who finally gave the Lunar Princess an answer. "We... We tried to help her, Lulu - we really did," the Princess of Love said, once again looking sadly at Celestia's still form, "but she won't let anypony near her! She... She says it's too dangerous..." At these words - in a rare display of public vulnerability - Princess Luna dropped to sit upon her haunches and closed her eyes, her body trembling with barely supressed emotion as she pressed a hoof against her forehead. Moving to sit beside her, I wrapped an arm about her body and she leaned against me for emotional support, drawing upon my silent comfort.

A moment later, with a weary sigh, she and I got to our feet and then - addressing Shining Armour - she stated, "Guard Captain, see to it that repairs to this room are completed swiftly, then please escort everypony out of here. Ensure that those Guardsponies whom are currently being treated here are moved to the Royal Clinic; then gather those Nobleponies remaining from the safe bunker beneath the Castle and see that they are escorted safely home. Now, Guard Captain!" Her words spurred Shining Armor, and his beloved, into action and - in practically no time at all - the repairs to Celestia's suite of rooms were completed.

Then, as Princess Cadance oversaw the escort of the Sun Princesses suffering Guardsponies to the Royal Clinic, Shining Armor ordered everypony from the room before he himself headed down to the Crystal Caves beneath the palace to see to the Nobleponies within the Safe Bunker. When at last everypony was gone from her sister's bedchamber, Princess Luna hung her head, a sigh of relief escaping her. Then, a moment later she raised her head to look at me and stated, "Come, my Consort; let us tend to my Sister." The Solar Princess made no move to acknowledge us when we approached her; she simply continued to lay there upon her bed, insensate, her eyes glazed over.

For all intents and purposes... it was as if we weren't there at all. "Sister? Celly? Please, awaken yourself! Wake up!" Luna cried. Naturally, this didn't work - her words not only fell upon deaf ears, but Celestia actually whimpered and buried her head between her forelegs, closing her eyes. Upon seeing this, Luna tentatively raised and extended a forehoof - perhaps to touch or attempt to shake Celestia out of whatever state she was in - but at this, the Princess of the Sun actually flinched away. Gently placing a hand upon Luna's back, I softly said, "This isn't working; let me try..." For a moment, the Equestrian Moon Princess glanced at me - the expression on her face one of hopelessness and despair - but then, finally, she moved away, allowing me to step fully into Celestia's field of view.

Crouching down such that I was at her level, I smiled at her, covered my eyes with my hands and then uncovered them with a softly spoken "Peek-a-Boo!" After repeating this a few times I found - to my delight - that Celestia was looking at me with sweet, innocent eyes, a smile upon her muzzle. Having gotten her attention, as Luna looked on in wonderment, I pulled a series of funny faces, which caused the Sun Princess to giggle like a little foal. Shortly thereafter, I leaned forward such that I could whisper to her, "Can I ask you a silly question?" When she giggled again and nodded in assent, I asked, "Do you know what you are?" In answer, the Sun Princess gestured to herself and cried "I'm a Pony!"

At her answer, I let out a gasp of mock-astonishment - which caused the Solar Princess to giggle again - before I responded, "Really?" Princess Celestia nodded sagely as she promptly stated, "Yup... and you're a Hooman!" Grinning at her, I nodded as I replied, "That's right! I'm a Human... but I'm a silly human because" - and here, I gasped again, before I continued - "I've forgotten your name! Oh, woe is me!" With that, I dramatically allowed my upper-body to fall forward onto the bed such that Celestia and I were nose to muzzle. At my theatrics, Celestia giggled again before she said, "I'm Celly, silly Hooman. What's your name?"

"My name is David," I answered. At this, Celestia blinked and smiled, leaning her head forward to softly touch noses with me. "Hi, David," she chirped happily. "I'm a Princess! Are you a Princess, too?" Slowly, tentatively, I reached out a hand and gently ruffled her pink mane, answering, "No... but I'm the friend of a Princess, and--can I tell you a big secret?" When Celestia nodded, I leaned forward and - gesturing for Luna to come forward - I whispered theatrically, " I'm her special somepony, too!" Upon seeing Luna, the Solar Princess gasped, "Lulu!" and then blushed, the skin beneath her white fur becoming pink as she desperately tried to stifle innocent, childlike laughter!

~David... what is the matter with her?~ Luna asked me via telepathy as she knelt to nuzzle her sister. 'She's regressed into a kind of childlike state, Luna, in order to cope with all that's happened today.' I answered. 'Hopefully she'll come out of it, soon, but until then this might be a good opportunity for you to... well... reconnect with her; re-establish the bond you have with her as your Sister.' Luna nodded thoughtfully as Celestia opened her muzzle wide in a jaw-cracking yawn. "I think..." the Night Princess replied, "that it is time for young fillies to be having baths and then going to bed..." No sooner had she spoken, however, then Celestia pouted and grumbled, "Aww, do I have to? I'mma Princess; I dun' need to lissen to you!"

Fighting the urge to grin, I affixed the old-but-young Solar Princess with a stern gaze as I replied gently but firmly, "Yes, you do! A good Princes should always listen to her Subjects, even if sometimes they say things she doesn't want to hear. A Princess who doesn't listen to what her subjects say is a bad Princess! Are you a bad Princess, Celly?" Her eyes misty with unshed tears and her lower lip trembling, Celestia rapidly shook her head before she whimpered, "N-No... M'Sorry!" Giving her a smile, I gently enclosed one of her forehooves in my hands as I soothingly replied, "Of course you're not a bad Princess... And I accept your apology! Now come on, up you hop..."

With that, the Solar Princess blink-blinked and then eased herself down off her bed to stand on wobbly legs. Once she was standing, together, Princess Luna and I led her to the bath chamber, wherein we discovered that said chamber had, indeed, been expertly repaired; there was no sign of the previous damage from Celestia's breaking of the vanity mirror. Even better, the bath chamber was ready for use; steaming hot water filled the large bathing pool that dominated the room, freshly laundered towels hung upon their racks and the vanity had been stocked anew with plenty of soaps and scented bathing oils. Carefully, Luna and I helped Celestia into the bathing pool.

Once she stood within said pool - as the water which constantly kept the pool full escaped from its hidden source to flow over her body, run down her sides and drip off her undercarriage - Luna and I gave Celestia the gentlest bath she'd ever had. As Celestia giggled with delight, deliberately splashing us both on occasion, we soaped, lathered and washed every inch of her body until she became the cleanest alicorn in all of Equestria. A good hour later, it was a very contented and sleepy Princess that we escorted from the bath and then towelled dry... but her treatment wasn't over yet. Once Celestia was back in her bed chamber Luna and I bade her lay back down upon the bed and then I retrieved the Night Princesses grooming kit. From said kit I pulled a hairbrush and then - gently pulling Celestia's head into my lap - I began to slowly and soothingly brush her mane, working from the top of her head to the base of her neck.

"Brushie, brushie..." I murmured soothingly to her as I worked. "Brushie, brushie..." As I brushed her slowly and gently, Celestia hummed contentedly, occasionally tapping my thigh with a hoof in appreciation. "Mmmm..." the Solar Princess murmured, "you were right, Lulu... this is wonderful..." At her words, my eyes narrowing ever so slightly in concern, I asked, "Is that you, Celestia? You've returned to us?" Seconds later, Luna hopped up onto the bed and lay there with us as she, too asked, "Art thou well, Sister?" With a soft, choked sob, the Princess of the Sun whispered, "No, dear-heart, I am not. I don't think I will ever be 'well' again... not from this!" Looking up at me, she continued, "I... I almost kill..."

"... But you didn't!" I exclaimed softly, cutting her off. "Moon stopped you, remember?" Celestia pondered my words for a moment, before she nodded and winced. "Yes," she whispered, "I do. She... wrestled me to the ground and... and then kicked me in the head..." "That we did" spoke Nightmare Moon, briefly startling Celestia for a moment. "But thou attacked mine Consort with intent to murder him! Thou thinkest that we wouldst not keep him safe from thee? Humph! Think again..." The Dread Mare of the Chill Night struck Celestia cold with a baleful glare... but no sooner had she done this than I was tucking her head under my arm and ruffling up her mane... which completely ruined the effect!

"Argh!" the Dark Mare cried, trying to squirm away even as she struggled to contain her laughter. "Never!" I cried and then - ceasing my brushing of Celestia's mane, much to the white alicorn's disappointment - I proceeded to poke, prod, and tickle Nightmare Moon until she was giggling uncontrollably. "St-st-st-hop it!" she cried. For a moment, I did so, looking at Celestia with a sly grin which the Solar Princess eagerly returned... Until, a moment later, she and I proceeded to tickle Nightmare Moon until the Dread Mare was whinnying with laughter! Though we were valiant in our attempt to tickle the Moon Princess into submission, Nightmare Moon gave as good as she got and so it was that eventually we three all ended up tangled together in a snarl of arms, legs, hooves, and feathered wings.

Once we were able to regain control of ourselves, Princess Celestia and Nightmare Moon snuggled me gently between them both and - as I gently stroked the ears and manes of these two beautiful mares on either side of me - I murmured, "Don't worry, you two; between the three of us I'm sure we can put things right and get things back in order around here..." At my words, the expression on Princess Celestia's face wilted into one of despair before she whispered, "I hope so, David... I hope so. Faust preserve us... what am I going to tell the Press, let alone the families of those poor Nobleponies whom were murdered by the Ambassador and his wicked spell? Funerals will need to be held, and yet... and yet there are no bodies to bury..."

Celestia began to weep softly again as all the while Nightmare Moon seethed with anger at the elder alicorn's plight. The Dread Mare got her vengeance soon enough, however; over the next several months - as funerals were held, security was increased, and young nobles with fresh ideas were inducted into the Court - reports filtered in from Zebrica. Said reports spoke of a 'mysterious shadow' that would enter Zebrican homes at night and then leave swiftly come morning, though not before stealing the life from the eldest Zebras within. Curiously the number of Zebras whose lives were taken matched that of the thirty ponies dead due to the Zebrican Ambassador's spell. An eye for an eye...

One night after Canterlot had returned to normalcy, however, things took yet another downward turn - this time for me, rather than the Princesses, for I found myself within a powerful lucid dream, before a being whom I reviled above all others: Discord. Sitting within a far-too-high-backed leather chair behind a great oak desk, the foul Draconequis steepled his clawed hands and spoke. "I know your kind," he said contemptuously. "Let me guess; back home you were a loser with no real job, no girl, no career, no skills or abilities worth speaking of, dangling an inch from going on the dole - if you weren't there already.... nothing at all to distinguish you from the other umpty million no-accounts wasting their lives on Facebook.

And suddenly this great miracle occurs--" he spread his hands over his head, producing a monochrome rainbow-- "and you're in the Magical Land of Equestria!...." he snorted. "And now you think you're the hero of the story." Dressed in the ragged clothes of a hardened criminal, with my hands and feet bound in thick iron chains - and unable to speak due to my mouth having been crudely sewn shut with enormous stitches - I could say nothing as he sneered. "That's right. You think you're the Chosen One, don't you. You fall butt-first into the magical wardrobe, or slip and fall through the mirror, or get sucked through some glowing portal...

And so naturally you think that the Great Aslan - or Gandalf, or the Elf Princess, or Zordon, or whatever fairy tale you subscribe to - has chosen you to be the great world-changing hero. You humans glut your bookshelves with such stories.... pandering to your pathetic fantasy." He spit in disdain. "That somehow just bumbling your way into another world overcomes all the shortcomings and failures of character that made you such a useless lump back home." His scowl turned to a smirk. "I bet you even imagined that you'd come here in the dreamscape and teach me a thing or two....the hubris of humanity never ceases to amuse me. You know why there are so many stories like that? About worthless failures tumbling into other realms?

Because most people ARE worthless failures - though looking at you, you're apparently pushing the envelope.... And guess what? It really happens all the time. Thousands, millions every day, all over the multiverse. Some portal opens up in some unwashed cretin's filthy apartment and he falls through it. You know what happens ninety nine percent of the time?" I glared at him defiantly as he continued. "Dead. Usually within hours, most within days. A statistic of interdimensional travel. Oh, not from falling into an unsurvivable atmosphere or anything droll like that. They just go out and win a Darwin Award at the speed of light. Running up, trying to pet the local wildlife - or the locals.

Eating poison berries. Getting an infection. Suffering a minor injury and not knowing how to treat it. Crossing the royalty. Burned as witches. Dissected as alien monsters. Caged and put in a zoo. "But the best ones, the most hilarious ones, are the ones who cross over into another dimension, manage to survive, get their feet under them, and proceed to fall into the same old useless lump of a life they had in their old world." He grinned in my face. "Like you. You think you have standing? Stature? Position? You honestly think Princess Luna - a ruler thousands of years old - desires you as her love interest? She is patronizing you. Playing along just to see what the funny monkey does next.

You're just what you were back on your homeworld: a charity case!" At these, his final words, I just... lost it. This was my dream _ and thus, I took back control! The chains and ragged clothes I wore fell away and dissolved to dust as I took the form of my idol: the twisted, withered Kaled Scientist _Davros from the new series of Doctor Who, though a better version far more intelligent and less maniacal. Supremely confident - supremely evil - as I sat within my chariot with a legion of loyal and downright friendly Daleks arrayed around me, I hissed, "You think that you can enter my dream and poison the love that Princess Luna and I share by filling me with self-doubt? Such arrogance..."

"Humph," Discord replied. "What are you going to do about it, huh? Kill me? As if you could..." My thoughts enhanced and buoyed by the legion of Daleks around me, I shook my head before flippantly replying, "No; that would be a waste of time. You are a God; thus you are beyond physical death. But torture..." I chuckled evilly, "... you are not beyond that. Firstly, let us debunk some of what you have said. Let's see 'a loser with no real job, and no girl'--this is false. I am not a loser, and I have no job because I don't want one. I refused to work for humanity and had no desire to subject myself to the stresses and rigours that said work would place upon my body and mind; I saw what it does to my Mother and had no want to subject myself to that!

I had no human girl because I despised humankind - women and children in particular. While it is true that I possess 'no skills or abilities worth speaking of' I know enough maths to use money, and can handle the software side of a computer like you wouldn't believe! As for 'dangling an inch from going on the dole', well, before I came here to Equestria I was on a Disability Pension and was quite well-off thanks to that, with roughly two thousand dollars in the bank that I was putting towards financing a unit of my own. And 'wasting my life on Facebook'? Please... If I wanted to talk to somebody, I wouldn't do so there; I would speak with them face to face; I hate Social Networking sites.

Now... what else did you blather on about...?" I thought for a moment - recalling his words - and then continued, "Ah, yes, the 'great miracle' wherein I supposedly 'fell butt-first into the magical wardrobe, slipped and fell through the mirror, or was sucked through some glowing portal... to the Magical Land of Equestria!' Newsflash, dear boy: whilst I may have ended up here, it didn't happen like that--at all!" As a frown creased Discord's muzzle, I continued, "Let me tell you a little something about Princess Luna: outside of her duties as the Diarch of the Moon, she is very shy and socially awkward... and the stigma of Nightmare Moon hanging over her certainly doesn't help with that.

Unable to befriend her beloved ponies due to their fear of her - filled with lonliness and desperation - she sought friendship elsewhere, in an outsider. That outsider just happened to be me, and Luna took me through the veil herself on October 31st 2009 . As for thinking I'm the 'Chosen One' who will save all of Equestria... Where did you get that idea? Have you been reading too many badly written 'Human-In-Equestria' fan fictions? The greater problems of Equestria are no concern of mine! If Equestria is to be 'saved' from some terrible occurrence than it will be the Guard, the Elements of Harmony, or the Princesses themselves who do the 'saving'; not me. My only concern is Princess Luna; her happiness and wellbeing. Nothing more, nothing less, for I am no great hero.

As for her patronizing me... I will tell her you said this and she will deny it... vhemently! What she and I have is real; we were friends first and now I am her Consort. I desire no other 'position' than that. And finally... as for me being a charity case..." My voice becoming deeper and even more sinister, I laughed darkly and heartily. "I intend to earn my place here, Discord. And when I do - when all your thoughts and dreams of my failure are nought but dust and ashes - then, and only then, will I allow you to die! But, for now..." Wordlessly I raised my cybernetic hand to point a metal finger at the seething Draconequis... As I did so, a thousand Daleks acquired their target...

A thousand hate-filled Dalek voices cried a single deathly word... and then, the final thing I saw before I awoke... was the look of horror upon Discord's face as a thousand Dalek weapons fired... Seconds later, Princess Luna nudged me roughly with her muzzle, waking me, pulling me from the Dalek Empire of my dreams into reality where I was once more an average, ordinary human. "David" she asked, "are you alright? You... You were laughing wickedly in your sleep?" I blinked blearily at her for a moment, before shaking my head and cuddling closer to her as I answered, "No... I'm not." Then, I told her of what had happened within my dream and as I spoke the expression upon the Night Princesses face grew grimmer and grimmer until finally, she and Nightmare Moon snarled as one, "That miserable son of a dam-bucking BITCH!"

Then, touching her nose to mine and nuzzling my cheeks, breathing her sweet breath across my face and through my hair, softly Luna stated, "David, whatever he said to you, you mustn't believe a word of it, for spreading self-doubt is one of Discord's many specialities; wiser beings than you have been fooled by his trickery. You're not a loser, and I am not 'patronizing' you or pretending to love you for I would never share of myself so freely with one I did not love. I adore you for many reasons; one of which is that - when I am with you - I can just... drop the royal protocol and just be myself. I can be Luna and not 'the Princess' and you treat me as you would any other pony, for which I am eternally grateful!"

"I'm glad" I replied after a moment, "but... what are some of the other reasons?" At this, Luna responded, "You know how to make me smile and laugh - even when I've had the worst of days - and, as you said to Discord before you had your Daleks exterminate him, you want for nothing more than to see me healthy and happy. I do have one question, however..." Raising a hand to scratch behind her ears and caress her mane, I murmured, "What's that?" "Why do you venerate Davros - a man filled with so much hate - as an idol?" Chuckling softly, I replied, "Because - despite how evil Davros is - there's just something about him that's really, really cool!"

With that said, I schooled my voice and then belted out an impersonation for her, "I will teach you, _ the folly of your words, Doc-tor _ ! I will destroy you... AND DEMONSTRATE THE POWER OF THE DALEKS!" As I finished, Princess Luna blew out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding, whilst deep inside her, Nightmare Moon whimpered and shivered with delight. "That aside..." I continued a moment later, "he was right about one thing; so far I have been a... charity case" At this, Luna and Nightmare Moon opened their shared mouth to voice a protest; however I cut them off as I cotinued, "but no more. I will earn my place here, Princess, and I'll become the Consort you deserve!" Upon seeing the fiery determination in my eyes, slowly, hesitantly, Princess Luna nodded.

* * *

The next day, Canterlot Castle flew into an uproar for Princess Celestia discovered, to her horror and sadness, that her beloved sister and her human Consort had disappeared; both having slipped away during the night. Search parties were called to scour the land but no trace of the pair were found... Luna and I had covered our tracks well. Sewage Plants, Pit and Quarry Mines, and even brutal Pit Fights in underground Pony Fight Clubs... wherever we could earn enough Bits to save for a proper education for me as well as a 'refresher' for her, we worked without complaint no matter the conditions. For my beloved Princess I burned, sweated, and shed my blood and tears... And she did the same for me and her little ponies.

It was all worth it in the end when we graduated from the best university Canterlot had to offer... but our education didn't stop there, oh no! Luna and I together studied sociology, psychology and medicine, eventually becoming skilled doctors and surgeons whereupon we became a Travelling Doctors Service. Poor, sickened, downtrodden ponies began to whisper rumours of Luna and I - the Thin Man, they whispered with hope and awe; the Thin Man, always accompanied by his patchwork, Raggedy Mare - for we made just enough to put away as well as scrape by with barely enough food as we travelled to the very worst places of Equestria. Foal Hospitals, Burn Wards, places where ponies starved still and disease ran rampant... the location didn't matter; if ponies needed aid we gave it freely.