The Night Is Ours - Chapter 2

~~~NOTE~~~

To all those of you who asked me today for a continuation of Officer Irish x RD: Yes, it's happening, but I haven't quite figured out what I'll write yet, so I thought I'd finish this... thing... first instead of panicking all night about my writer's block.

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>The next morning.

>You wake up at ten thirty.

>Surprisingly, not only do you feel well rested, but you're also in your bed.

>If you remember correctly, you dozed off on the balcony last night.

>Does that mean Luna carried you to...

>The thought makes your cheeks blush.

 

>You heave your ass out of bed and walk over to the washing room.

>Living in privileged circles is nice, there's running water and a bathtub.

>Running *warm* water, one must add.

>You use the soap and scrub yourself thoroughly.

>Nothing better than a refreshing shower to start the day!

>As you make your way out of the bathtub, you slip on the wet bathroom floor and, through sheer luck, can barely hold yourself on the counter.

>In the process, you knock over a bunch of perfumed candles and what appears to be a pony hairbrush.

>The noise seems to have made the maids aware that you're awake.

>As you casually walk out of the shower with a towel around your hip, a maid busts into the room.

>"Good morning Mr. Anonymous! Room service."

>She starts using her magic to tidy up your bed, completely oblivious to the fact that you're not even dressed yet.

>...

>Oh right, ponies.

 

>You stand in the entrance to the bathroom, not really knowing what to do with the whole situation.

>The maid walks over to you.

>"I guess you don't need that towel any more, so I can take it with me for the laundry." she says.

>She starts to magically pull on the towel that is covering your crown jewels.

>You desperately cling to it.

"Actually, I still kind of need this."

>The maid mare stops and looks at you with an odd expression.

>"Well if that's so, I guess I'll leave you with it."

>She magically lifts up a laundry basket and walks out of the room with it, closing the door behind her.

>You sigh in relief.

>You couldn't even breath in again when your door gets thrown open once again, this time by a royal guard.

>"Mr. Anonymous, a letter for you."

"CAN'T A MAN HAVE SOME PRIVACY AROUND HERE?!" you yell angrily.

>"I am sorry to interrupt your early morning routine, but the letter bears the seal of the Princess of the night, so I figured it must be urgent."

>Visibly annoyed, you take the letter from the guard's hoof and wait for him to leave.

>He doesn't budge.

"Uh...?"

>"Oh, I figured that since it's probably important you may want to have me around in case I need to run some errands."

"Thanks but no thanks... Could you just... give me some privacy?"

>"As you wish" he says as he turns around towards the door.

>As he finally leaves, you enjoy the moment of silence.

>You decide to drop the towel and get dressed before another crazy pony brings you into an awkward situation.

 

>Fully dressed, you focus your attention back to the letter you've received.

>It bears a seal of a crescent on it, and a unicorn's head.

>Your curiosity is sparked. You open the letter and unfold it.

>It reads the following:

>"Dear Anon, you have been staying at the castle for quite a while now, and I think it is time we get to know each other better. All questions you may have will be answered in due time. Meet me tonight at sundown on the same balcony as yesterday. Yours truly, Princess Luna."

>Questions?

>You don't have any questions, actually, what does she mean by that?

>Wait...

>Son of a bitch, that's meta.

 

>You put the letter away and decide to head outside for a stroll.

>As you pass the impeccably cut bushes of the Canterlot gardens, you ponder how you feel about meeting the royalty again tonight.

>It is nice having someone to talk to, social interactions have never been your strength and you haven't had a lot of it ever since you've arrived in Equestria.

>Not that ponies aren't sociable and friendly, but it's hard for someone who lives in a Castle to make friends with common folk.

>You don't exactly walk outside the castle walls a lot.

>And who else is there to talk to inside the castle? The servants? The guards? Prince Blueblood?

>You giggle internally when you imagine hanging out with Prince Blueblood.

>No, that won't work at all.

 

>You spend the rest of the day doing what you've done each day before that - reading books, walking around in the castle, playing cards against the guards.

>Then finally, it's dusk.

>You climb the castle stairs in a hurry.

>A good second impression can't hurt, better be timely.

>You walk through a big arched door, onto the balcony.

>Luna is nowhere to be seen.

>The scene in front of you catches your eye.

>An orange sun makes a slow descent behind the horizon.

>Clouds shine in an orange light.

>So does Canterlot, casting long shadows onto the streets, parks and plazas.

>A truly wonderful sight.

 

>Your attention gets turned back to the balcony when Luna arrives.

>She walks through the arched doorway, a serious look on her face.

>"A good evening to you, Anon."

>You greet her with a smile.

"A good evening to you too, Luna."

>Her face lightens up, and she positions herself next to you.

>Looking at the orange glowing Canterlot, she let out a content sigh.

>"My sister is doing her job quite well, I see."

>The sun disappears behind the horizon, and you see that Luna's horn starts to glow.

>Princesses raising their respective celestial bodies looks less impressive than you've thought it would.

>Luna's horn stops glowing, and the moon slowly rises.

>She turns her attention back to you.

>"But I have not requested for your presence to talk about my sister. Tonight, Anon, I want to make you an offer."

>Well, that sounds interesting.

 

>"In your world, danger lurks behind every corner, and doubt is an essential tool for survival, is that correct, Anon?"

>That sounds a bit melodramatic, but sure.

"I wouldn't express it that way, but in theory it is correct, yes."

>"Good. You see, us ponykind grow up in a world of peace and harmony, which influences the way we approach things drastically."

>You nod understandingly. Luna proceeds.

>"While our kind is good at defending ourselves from the dangers of Chaos, we are not good at pre-emptively spotting them. Especially, Changelings. Maybe you've heard of what happened at Princess Cadance's and Shining Armor's wedding?"

>You nod.

"I've read about it. Quite the infiltration."

>Luna sighs.

>"While we were prepared for a frontal attack, we weren't expecting them to walk amongst our own, undetected."

"But that's a bit naive. They were Changelings, why would you think they wouldn't use their most notorious skill to crash the wedding?" you interject.

>Luna lowers her head.

>"We did not know it would be Changelings. The threats were made anonymously. No one knew what was going to happen. And, doing what we always did, we protected us against the most likely attack instead of investigating further."

>"That's why we need you, Anon."

"So I would be a spy, basically?"

>Luna smiles.

>"Kind of. More like a secret police. But that term has some negative connotations. Let's just say you're our 'special agent'."

>You liked that.

 

"But how do you know you can trust me?"

>Luna's smile broadens.

>"I've had enough time to snoop around."

>You're confused at that statement. You did know she could enter dreams, but can she read arbitrary thoughts?

"Luna, how would you know from my dreams I'm really trustworthy?"

>Luna's eyes widen.

>"How long do you think you've been here, Anon?"

"About a week" you reply. "Why?"

>She shakes her head.

>"You've been here for longer than that. When you came through the mirror you hit your head on the floor. You've spent the next twenty-six days unconscious, as a result from both the physical shock to your head. You were in a coma, so to speak."

>What you just heard seems unbelievable to you, but it would explain why they had clothes for you ready when you left the hospital wing.

>Missing out on almost a month of your life seemed so unreal. You'd think you'd have a feeling for how long that time was, but it's not just that you don't remember anything from that period, it's that you don't remember that time span ever occurring at all.

>Luna waits a while for your brain to process what she just revealed to you, and then continues.

>"In a dream, I'm just shown a certain train of thought your brain is processing, and trying to modify that to my advantage would wake you up. In a comatose person, this is different, however. The communication in your brain is disrupted by swelling, and I have to go explore myself. This has the advantage though that you won't wake up while I'm doing so."

>The fact that someone spent their time figuratively rummaging through your cranium scares you, to say the least.

>As if Luna knew what went through your head, she tried to calm you down.

>"Don't worry. I've been restricting myself to areas of my own interest. This may be a very frightening experience for you, but I felt you deserved an explanation."

 

>She has a point. She didn't need to tell you the truth, she could've just made up some shit about magic.

>And Luna seemed to be a very patient being. As you spent the next ten minutes thinking about what she just revealed to you, she just stood beside you, waiting.

>Eventually, she decides to get back your attention, however.

>"Well, what do you say? Are you interested in the task?"

>You turn your head back to her.

"What if I say no?" you ask.

>"In that case, you'll be required to integrate yourself into the pony society and make your own living, and eventually move out."

>Trying to fit into a world of magical equines versus being a super secret agent for a horse princess?

"I accept your offer."

>"Good. Pack your things and meet me tomorrow afternoon in my tower, I'll be sending you onto your first mission then."