Dark Side Of The Moon

Chapter 1: Luna

-3 years earlier-

He's staring at Celestia again.

Celestia, with her tall figure that bore feminine curves and long, multicolored locks that cascaded down her back ending in luscious curls.

Her older sister was a great beauty and charmer at twenty two, but also didn't lack intellect. She was the perfect princess, gracious and great at holding her tongue.

Unlike me. Luna sighed. All she was known for was being Celestia's little sister. The helpless shadow that faded into the background.

Even the rumors that they were serving apple crostatas-her favorite, couldn't lift her out of the doldrums. The jealousy was usually bearable at best, but this entire ball just served as a reminder of her inferiority to her sister.

One by one, the dishes were served: A crisp green salad, thick carrot soup, oxtail dumplings, duck in sweet sauce.....Luna indulged herself, happy to be provided with a distraction. The food was cooked to perfection, a variety of textures and flavors bursting in her mouth.

At least everyone's fed well, even in a time like this, she thought, taking a delicate bite out of a dumpling. Then she remembered how the guards ushered away the starving people on the outskirts of the empire, beating them if they didn't move.  The dumpling became a stone.

Princess Amore, the ruler of the Crystal Empire was seated across from her, and Amore's distant cousin Gerwyn was to her left. Being the guest of honor, Celestia took the head of the table.

"Rose petals....emeralds....wedding dresses for Luna...." Celestia and Amore's conversation snapped Luna out of her trance.

"Wedding dresses? What?" Luna gasped.

"Oh, we were just talking about how you should marry Gerwyn over there. You know, cause no one wants to marry you anyways. He's your only hope," Amore chirped happily.

"Here comes the bride, all dressed in white," Celestia and Amore chanted, bursting into a fit of giggles.

A scornful glare was shot at both of them, while Gerwyn turned away to join another conversation.

"We were just joking, Luna! Can't you take a joke?" Celestia's face showed a hint of worry for a second, but Amore just rolled her eyes.

Luna put her head down and continued eating. Celestia didn't understand the weight of her words: marry her off to someone like a piece of property and send her to the Crystal Empire as an expendable? She wasn't an object. She was a person who bled when cut with a sword of words.

"I'm going to dance," Luna snapped as she pushed away her (clean) dessert plate, yanking Gerwyn out of his conversation and storming over

The music began: a symphony of strings and airy flutes.

"Because we're supposed to be so in love, let's dance together. Consider this our date," Luna spat sarcastically.

Gerwyn laughed and replied in an equally sarcastic manner. "You're so funny, Luna!"

Luna grit her teeth. As she tried to step-step-twirl her way through a dance with a partner who didn't even want to dance with her, she closed her eyes and went through the movements. She danced with cold grace, beautiful in her own way, but no one was there to see it. No one was watching.

No one was watching.

***** 

Luna glided out of the ballroom in a flurry of blue silk and no one stopped her. That was one of the advantages of being a princess: she could do whatever she wanted. For now, at least.