>You are Anonymous
>Currently, you are laying down in bed, next to Nightmare Moon, who is already asleep.
>You’ve elected to stay up late in order to finish reading a new intelligence report on rebel activities.
>While normally these briefings were… well - /brief,/ this one was exceptionally long.
>Over the last week, a focused campaign was launched in the badlands and arid regions of Equestria.
>A large number of rebel logistical locations were located, and seized.
>An equally large number of ponies were captured, and interrogated about their activities.
>While this is clearly good news, it’s generated an exceptionally lengthly paperwork trail.
>Turning the page, you are greeted by yet another page of painfully small font.
>No doubt your exhaustion is making this more difficult than it should be.
>A yawn forces itself from your mouth, as your body reminds you that it needs sleep.
>What time is it anyways?
>Turning toward the clock, you realize that it’s almost 4am.
>You have a 7:30 meeting in the morning.
>Yeah - you should probably go to bed.
>Folding the booklet closed, you place it onto your bed stand before covering the lamp beside you, extinguishing the fire it contains.
>Pulling the blankets further over your body, you crawl underneath the covers.
>Even after this long, you can’t believe just how comfortable these beds are.
>Whatever their made out of- you’ve never experienced anything like back on earth.
>Noticing that Nightmare Moon is facing away from you, you nudge yourself slightly closer, before placing your arm over her wing; effectively becoming the "big spoon.”
>While this isn’t uncommon, it also isn’t a regular occurrence.
>Nightmare Moon’s body has… unusual characteristics.
---------------
>While sometimes she would be perfectly warm, just as you might /expect/ from a fur covered alicorn, this isn’t always the case.
>Occasionally, Nightmare Moon’s body becoming strangely cold, chilling the air directly around her body.
>Although you’re aware Nightmare Moon’s magic will practically suffocate and freeze a room whenever she becomes aggravated, you’re unsure exactly what causes this to happen when she sleeps.
>Normally this would make /cuddles/ an unwelcome experience,  but tonight it feels surprisingly refreshing.
>Pulling her slightly closer, her mane begins to brush against your face.
>Nodding your head, you manage to guide it down onto your neck, freeing your face from it’s star-filled vail.
>Almost instantly, you begin to feel sleep pulling at your mind.
>Your body feels heavy, and practically sinks into the bedding below.
>Only a few minutes pass before you fall into a deep, welcome sleep.
>…
>…
>...
>Twitch.
>...
>You feel something push against your arm, but your mind is far too cloudy to register what it is.
>…
>Twitch.
>It happens again, and senses begin to pull you from your sleep.
>Like a morning alarm, you try to ignore it.
>…
>Twitch.
>For a third time it happens.
>By now, you’ve managed to wake yourself up, and slowly, your mind begins to catch up with your body’s inputs.
>Those are… feathers.
>Just as you begin to move, her neck twitches back slightly, brushing slightly against your nose.
>It’s Nightmare Moon.
---------------
>With some struggle, you manage to sit up, and look down at the mare beside you.
>For a few moments, you just watch, and stare the the sight.
>Her body is shifting slightly, her legs occasionally kicking weakly against her blankets.
>Her wing attempt to fan themselves open, only to be meet resistance from the fabric that covers her body.
>Unfortunately, you know what’s happening to her.
>Nightmare Moon… is having a nightmare.
>You rub the bridge of your nose, brushing crust from eyes.
>This has become an all too regular occurrence over the last few months.
>Cautiously you slide your ring off of your finger, and hold it before your eyes, examining the intricate carvings on the inside of the band.
>It’s a magic-nullifying ring, personally crafted by Nightmare Moon.
>One of the strongest, if not /the/ strongest ring of it’s kind in existence.
>From what she’s told you, it could easily deny Celestia her magic, even if she did somehow recover it.
>While it wouldn’t entirely deny Nightmare Moon, it would significantly dampen it, reducing her power to nothing much more than a filly.
>Twirling the ring in your hand for a few moments, you look over to Nightmare Moon.
>She made it for exactly this situation, instructing you to place it on her horn the instant her nightmares began.
>On numerous occasions she expressed a sincere fear that she might unknowingly cause you harm while she slept.
>...
>It was useless.
>Not once has she never used her magic during her sleep.
>At most, her horn would glow for a moment, before fizzling out.
>While you’re unsure of the exact reason for this, you suspect you know the cause.
>For months she denied she even /had/ nightmares, brushing them off as cold-shivers, or your hallucinations.
>Even after she admitted that she was having them, she refused to tell you what they were about.
>Every time the topic was brought up in conversation, she should attempt to dismiss it.
---------------
>While you’re no mind-reader, it was readily apparent that she was ashamed of this behavior, and thought you might find it unappealing.
>After the first few disturbances, she suggested that you sleep in different beds, like the nobility and royalty of old.
>It was clear that she wasn’t sincere in her words.
>It was only an effort to hide this flaw from you.
>Against your better judgement you accepted to her request, and slept in the neighboring apartments, ocassionally using a few other ponies as company.
>After a only two weeks, Nightmare suggested that perhaps you should share a bed once again.
>You remember her voice being unusually shaky, fearful that you’d decline, followed by equally apparent relief once you accepted.
>…
>You snap back to the present.
>Her wings puff out some distance, before quickly folding in.
>You place your hand on her feathers, and slowly guide them back to her side.
>...
>Once her wings are still, you slide the ring onto your finger once again, and stare at it for a moment.
>Even if you’ve never used it, the significance it carries it not lost on you.
>To the the common pony, this ring serves as a symbol of your position as Lord of the Empire.
>But to Nightmare Moon, this was something much more personal.
>You are the only person that she trust enough to give this power; ironically, to defend yourself from her.
>…
>The sight before you is saddening.
>Knowing Nightmare Moon, you can only guess how much this must trouble her.
>It’s clear that she makes every effort to be the perfect Empress for her “Champion.”
>She prides herself on upholding the strict, severe Royal standards.
>If her reactions were anything to go by, this is humiliating to her.
---------------
>That’s what bothers you the most.
>These aren’t /random/ dreams, or nightmares.
>It’s the same dream.
>Every. Single. Time.
>You recall one particularly restless night of hers.
>...
>Beyond simply staking, or shifting her wings, or making small kicks with her hooves, she actually spoke.
>You remember hearing her mumbling some words, although you couldn’t make out exactly what she was saying.
>Curiosity got the better of you, and you decided to lean over, and listen to her.
>Her breathing was shallow and quick, surprisingly so for someone who was supposed to be asleep.
>”please…”
>You remember being confused by the small plea,  but before you could consider the meaning, she continued.
>”Please Tia… please let us come home… Tia- please…”
>The meaning was obvious.
>She dreams about being on the moon.
>About being banished…
>”Please Tia…listen to us… just this once... we can’t stay here…”
>”It’s… it’s been so long… I’m scared…”
>You remember her eyes twitching rapidly under her eyelids, and a few tear drops tracing down her fur.
>You didn’t sleep that night.
>….
>Coming back to the present, you look back toward the ring resting on your finger.
>That’s why you never needed to use it.
>Nightmare Moon never /had/ magic on the moon.
>She couldn’t fly.
>She couldn't use her horn.
>That’s why she never cast any spells during these nightmares.
>At worst she would attempt to charge her horn, only for it to fail.
>She would attempt to spread her wings, only to realize they were useless.
---------------
>Continuing you gentle efforts to comfort the mare, you run your hand through her mane, and down her neck.
>It’s almost impossible to wake her during these dreams, and from what you’ve discovered, it’s best to let her sleep.
>Waking her up only makes her feel more guilty and ashamed that she managed to steal sleep from her “Brute,” or whatever name she might choice to call you.
>So while she does occasionally wake herself, you try your best to let her lay undisturbed.
>The morning-after one of her nightmares was always sad to see.
>Even if she did manage to sleep through the night, she would be fully aware that she had a nightmare.
>Every time, the very first thing she would do is turn toward you, and ask if you had a slept well.
>While she’d try her best to be casual, you could tell she was frantic; her eyes giving away her concern.
>She wanted to make sure you didn’t see her moment of weakness, or something you might see as undesirable.
>Every time, you would lie, and claim you had a wonderful night’s rest.
>Her mood would lighten almost instantly, like some great burden was lifted from her shoulders.
>This was usually followed by some cliche line about how she ensured her dreamscape would provide her champion with proper rest.
>You could always tell she as tired during those mornings, although an extra cup of coffee, or an extra minute in the baths usually offset her lack of sleep.
---------------
>It’s saddening.
>This immensely powerful creature failing to control her own dreamscape; fearful over her own namesake.
>Continuing to brush her coat with your fingers as she continues to struggle against her imagination, you look down toward the foot of the bed.
>While you can’t see her laying beyond the bedpost, you know she is there.
>Celestia.
>The reason why this is happening.
>You can’t help but feel like an outsider in these situations.
>While you and Nightmare Moon have become close, you know that the relationship between these two is much more complex than you could possibly imagine.
>Even through your conversations with Nightmare, you realize that you only have a cursory level knowledge of the dynamic between the two mares.
>Nightmare is hesitant to talk about the /actual/ cause behind the rift between them, saying only that Celestia wronged her in many ways.
>Celestia either refuses to speak about it, or denies any wrong doing.
>As much as their refusal to speak on the subject annoys you, you must admit you understand their reasoning.
>Nightmare Moon is very hesitant to hold deeper, more personal conversations.
>And Celesita… well… you wouldn’t exactly qualify as a friend.
>All you know is that clearly /something/ went wrong so many centuries ago.
>Now, even a millennia later, the fallout of their actions is visible for all to see.
---------------
>But looking at the mare beside you, you can’t help but feel that Celestia is in the wrong.
>To banish a person into isolation for a thousand years…
>You can’t begin to imagine what that must be like.
>From earth you remember that solitary confinement was seen as torture by some people, if even for only a few weeks or months.
>But 1000 years… you can’t register something on that timescale.
>Did Celestia /know/ that was the punishment the Elements would deal?
>Did she regret the decision?
>Could she have reversed the banishment sooner?
>You remember ponies trying to free Celestia, and that was only after a few days.
>Surely after 1000 years /something/ could have been done.
>But, in the back of your mind, a troubling thought slips into your mind.
>Perhaps Celestia didn’t care.
>Perhaps she didn’t /want/ Nightmare Moon to return.
>...
>It seems like such a strange concept.
>When you first arrived here, you remember almost feeling /bad/ for Celestia.
>You even considered helping her defeat Nightmare Moon, until she made it clear you would still be punished.
>The public image she had constructed over the millennia was pristine.
>The protector of the poor, and defender of the helpless.
>An intelligence, loving Princess, who wanted only the best for all of her  little ponies.
>To her credit, those were, for the most part, entirely true.
>Only when discussing Luna and Nightmare Moon does that come into question.
>She practically removed her sister from history.
>The only evidence that Celestia even /had/ a sister was from a fantasy story for children.
>No scholars or historians took that idea seriously.
>The only evidence that Nightmare Moon existed was as a holiday, solely decided to making her appear evil.
>As a pony who /literally/ ate foals.
>Surely this wasn’t an accident.
>The retroactive editing of history is clear for anyone to see.
>She removed any positive imagery of Luna from history.
---------------
>You look over toward Nightmare Moon, who is still shivering slightly.
>A thousand years of lies and deception, and this is all that’s left.
>..
>Almost ten more minutes pass before her nightmare apparently ends.
>You sigh take a small sigh of relief, before looking at the clock.
>5:43 am.
>With much more force, you sigh.
>Perhaps you’ll take a nap after the meeting.
>Looking over to the bed stand, you use the flint to light the match in absence of Nightmare Moon’s magic, before lifting the report documents once again.
>If you can’t sleep, at the very least you could attempt to do something productive.
>Opening the briefing once again to your bookmark, you begin to read again.
>/Rebel Elixir Production Facility #00342/…
>Today’s going to be a long morning.
>…
>…
>…
>Seven 6:45am strikes, and Nightmare Moon begins to stir.
>For a moment, you fear that she might be experiencing another nightmare, but soon enough, her ear movements make it clear that she is beginning to awaken.
>Looking back down at your briefing, you turn past the final page, and upon completing your pre-meeting reading, fold the booklet shut, before placing it on your bedside.
>As you do, Nightmare Moon quickly realizes where she is, and looks toward you.
>”Brute…”
>You turn to face her, trying your best to act surprised.
”Yes Nightmare?”
>For how long she’s been awake, she’s surprisingly aware of her surroundings.
>She begins to adjust herself, and lays down belly first on the bed; her neck now fully erect.
>”We… trust you slept well last night?”
>The question you expected.
>The fear in her eyes is clear.
>The shakiness in her voice even more so.
>She is act in an "unbecoming way"- perhaps swaying your interest from her?
>Did she show a moment of imperfection?
>Did she upset her “Brute?”
>…
>…
>You smile.
”Yes Nightmare, I slept well.”
>True, genuine relief appears on her face.
>”Good…”