First Night

[raisethemoon]

[Luna's lying on a rooftop, staring up at the moon with a rather forlorn expression. She's quiet for a while, so long that it looks rather like she doesn't even know the communicator is on. After a while, she speaks, without looking at it.]

This night...hath lasted a very long time. 'Tis most lovely, if unfamiliar to us. But, dost thou think - is it truly meant to be so?

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[raisethemoon]

[She sighs and looks up at the sky.] 'Twas a long time ago.

...once, when we were on a simple scouting mission, we found a most prodigiously large cloudbank. Wishing to rest out of sight, we simply hollowed out a small part and closed it up behind us.

[She grins wickedly.] Shortly thereafter, a troop of griffons came to tow the cloud back to their camp for building materials.

[unrecovered]

Yeah, I'll bet. [Their definitions of "long time" are probably very different, but it's a similar sentiment.]

[There's a moment of surprise - she can sleep in clouds? Seriously? - but it's not important to the story, and he waits. When the wait pays off, the smirk in his voice is audible.]

The Trojan Horse maneuver, huh.

[...wait, she's a pony. She probably doesn't get that one.]

How surprised were the griffons?

[raisethemoon]

Neigh, General Trojan was an earth pony...

[She trails off, looking slightly puzzled. That can't possibly have been what he was actually referring to...]

Very. A few of them practically molted!

[unrecovered]

Never mind.

[He's seen pictures of griffons in books he'd read as a kid, and he could imagine a group of them now, shedding their feathers in panic as princess thunder pony suddenly appeared from the middle of what they thought was a cloud. The image gets a short chuckle from him. Congratulations, Luna - that's the first time he's laughed in years.]

Did you do the whole thunder and lightning show too? Because that's scary.

[raisethemoon]

But of course! AND THIS! [Yup, there go the scary white glowing eyes.]

[unrecovered]

[Yeah okay that is still extremely creepy.]

No wonder they panicked. I'm surprised they didn't fall right out of the sky.

[raisethemoon]

[She shrugs, her eyes going back to normal as the magic fizzles away; it's not common at all among unicorns, but she's seen it from Celestia enough to know that it can be chilling.]

Enough training will eliminate such reflexes, for most pegasi at least. Griffons must be the same, though we admit we hath had little opportunity to speak with one.