Dear Princess Luna

[quasar]

From amidst all the hundreds of fan letters the Princess of the night surely must receive lays a scroll wrapped in a red ribbon with a small golden seal of wax to keep it from unraveling. Within the letter, the writing is childish but still careful enough to ensure that every letter can be read properly. It seems that the author has taken quite a great deal of care. This is after all.. a letter to the princess.

Dear Princess Luna,

My name is Quasar and I am a student in Ponyville. I recently transferred here with my Mother and Father.. Torch Light and Winding Ways. I know you must know a lot of very important ponies. My parents will be speaking at the Historian Banquet for you and Princess Celestia on their findings in regards to the evolution of pony technology within the last five hundred years. They will be bringing me as well. I also will be wearing a tie. Hopefully something with stars on it. I really, really like stars.

The reason why I am writing is because my classmate, Sweetie Belle, tells me that she personally knows you. I suspected as such because she is the most popular girl in class. She asked me to write you a letter because she says you are the only one that can tell me if the stories that I read of old pony astrology is real or fake.

My favorite story is that of nobel and heroic Perseus and how he rescued his future wife, Andromeda. Perseus is my hero and I want to be just like him one day. He is strong. He is heroic. He is handsome. He is a great alicorn who defeated the Gorgon and the Sea Hydra! Every night before I go to bed I look into the sky to wish upon his stars that one day I can be as heroic and brave as he is.

You see Princess Luna. No pony really likes me. I'm a nerd. I get picked on and get called names. I try to pretend that it's not a big deal but sometimes it does hurt my feelings. My parents tell me every day that they are just jealous because I am smart but in truth I am the one that is jealous because I can not defend myself or find the courage to speak up for myself. My mother makes me study every day and so I find friendships within the stories of old. I find friendships with Perseus and Icarus. I pretend sometimes that they are real and that they think I'm cool. Sometimes I try to pretend to be like them but soon as I step into class it all goes away. I get called a Blank Flank, or Queasy, or Nerd Bomber. That last one I still do not understand but it seems to be effective as the rest of the class joins in and laughs.

I apologize if I am rambling. Sometimes when I write I do that. I can not help myself. I like words..and math.. just as much as I like the stars. So, Princess Luna, I am humbly asking if I may speak with you at the Historian Banquet, if only for a few seconds... I just want to know what your favorite story is.

Thank you for your time if this is to ever reach you.

Your humble servent,

Quasar

--

At the end is a small picture drawn, that of the celestial pattern of Perseus's stars. A bit of flair to the end of his signature.

[Luna]

Dear Foal Quasar,

Both ourself and our sister enjoy the questions of foals, and would welcome thy visit. The duties of royalty make it hard to track us down, but if thou can, either one would make time to answer thy questions.

Thy parents are both close, and yet as thou can feel in thy heart not correct. The others are not jealous. They are simply mean, looking for excuses to hurt another pony. It is a sad thing, but kindness must be learned, and many foals are slow to do so.

We must tell thee with sadness that the tale of Perseus is not true. Ponies meet the constellations so rarely that they assume their stories must be about other ponies, or monsters of Equestria. Even the most bestial, like the Ursas or Scorpio, are thought of as animals until a pony meets them.

Perseus was cast from the sky because the other constellations took ill to his closeness to a great nebula. It is difficult to understand the constellations who still live in the heavens. To them this was a thing not of his fault yet they could not stand. He landed in seas that no longer exist, thanks to Discord's rule. Still, he coveted the heavens, and looking up upon them fell in love with Andromeda, begging her to join him in the seas. She would not, for she could not see the beauty in the earth.

In the way of stars, they agreed that he had to show her that to live as creatures of flesh and blood do was beautiful. Beautiful was not the same as nice, and to pursue this quest he did much that is in the stories. He sought the gorgons in Tartarus, and instead substituted his glittering self for the eye of the graeae, that he might see as they did and learn the location of both the gorgons and the nymphs who both loved them and would betray them - nymphs being creatures of passion also hard for ponies to understand. They begged a piece of the night itself from ourself and a blade of the sun from our sister. We gave those gifts, for the gorgons are hateful monsters, and we have always felt kinship with the constellations. He used them to slay Medusa and flee the other gorgons unharmed.

Fear and murder and clever thought and the beauty of the nymphs brought Perseus very close to mortality, and through him Andromeda saw the fire of life. It seduced her, and she joined him in the sea. The death of a gorgon even gave the ponies of Mycenae a chance to form a kingdom in safety for a time. That is its own story.

We hope the truth is greater than the fiction.

The Night Herself,
Princess Luna

[quasar]

Dear Princess Luna,

I apologize if my calligraphy is not up to par as my hoof is trembling. I did not believe that I would receive a reply from you as I am well aware that you are very important and very busy with your duties. I have spent the last two hours crying with tears of happiness. I feel both honored and overwhelmed.

To hear that the story of Perseus is not the same as my story books is heartbreaking but at the same time I feel like I finally have a bit of closure. For my entire tiny short lived life I have wondered for countless hours if they were history or fiction and to know that it is a mix of both is bitter sweet. Does this mean that I may one day have a chance to meet heroic Perseus and his beautiful wife in whatever form they currently hold? Would it be impossible? Would they.. be able to speak the same language as we do?

I can not help but find myself with a million questions that I wish to shower you with all at once, but I will not for it would be rude. My mother would also be upset with me if I was to rile you to anger. I know that I can be annoying when it comes to seeking knowledge but I only have this meager life to live and I wish to experience everything that I can. So, I will only ask you a couple.

Did Icarus really lose his wings in the sun and fall to his death? I could only imagine his fear. But in the stories he was portrayed as a pegasus. I suppose now that you have opened my eyes that he was never a pegasus at all. So, can constellations lose wings and fall? Or was he forced out due to his arrogance and was just written that way?

I will hope to see you at the banquet. I will wear my best tie. I promise to try my best not to walk into a wall or trip over my hooves or get sick in front of you. I know that I will be overwhelmed in your presence but I will practice as hard as I can to be brave. Please don't be annoyed if I start to cry. It is only because I love you so and you are a personal hero of mine. For it is you that brings a beautiful night and beautiful stars for me to stare at. Not that I have anything against Celestia's sun but I know of your story, the rise and fall of Nightmare Moon and I can understand why you would feel unappreciated. I feel that your rise to glory has allowed ponies to gain a greater sympathy towards you and a greater appreciation. I would be just as upset as you if I was to create something so beautiful and to feel it was ignored.

I created this really wonderful science fair project last week about the capability of space travel. It was done with diagrams and posters and math and I even had a working model that would simulate the event and all the other kids in class laughed at it. Even my teacher, Daybloom felt that it was a bit too much. I too was so upset that I went home and I cried for hours. I put all of my heart into it. I wanted the other ponies to know how much I loved the stars and how I wanted my chance to visit them up close and all they cared about was stupid volcanos.

Volcanos are dumb.

I'm sorry. They aren't that dumb. I'm just.. upset.

Your humble servent,

Quasar.

[Luna]

Dear Foal Quasar,

It is hard, is it not, to stop asking questions? Thou are far from the first to have this problem. We shall do our best to wean thee off gently.

Perseus speaks the language of ponies. The constellations are reclusive, and often weird by pony standards, but if he were dead the stars that still mimic him in the sky would fall. He is somewhere in Equestria now, and it is not impossible to meet him. As for Icarus, thou have written to the wrong princess. Do not ask the Moon about he who flew too close to the Sun!

There are others who wish to fly into the empty cold above the world. It is a difficult and dangerous ambition that will require much cleverness. We wish thee all luck, and beyond luck... the Diamond Mystery is too difficult to explain, especially as it applies to the moon and stars.

Do feel free to approach us at the banquet. Thou are free to love us above Celestia, but we admonish thee in one way - do not try to understand our feelings in becoming Nightmare Moon. Do not glorify a terrible, selfish crime. Spend thy kindness better, perhaps on thy classmates. They have not yet learned to return kindness with kindness, and it may be many years until they do, but they are ignorant rather than evil.

Live In Harmony By Spreading Harmony, Little Colt,
Princess Luna

[Luna]

PS - There is a colt in thy class with a coat as dark as night and a mane as blue as lightning. He is our great-great-grandson through Lullabye Moon, Prince Solar Eclipse. If thou are having trouble making friends, we recommend him, for he has an open heart to all ponies, seeing none as either great or small. His betrothed Dinky Doo is in thy school as well, and while she does not well extend the hoof of friendship, she scorns no pony for intelligence. Thou shall find she has even more questions than thee.

[quasar]

Dear Princess Luna,

It was such a huge honor to meet you last night. I am surprised to have seen you in Ponyville yesterday after class. I must apologize for my behavior. I was not emotionally prepared to be within your presence and I found myself completely starstruck. I went home and cried for four hours in my bed afterwards as I was so embarrassed. I had so many things I wanted to ask you about but words failed me.

I also am sorry that I allowed my low self esteem and fractured confidence get in the way of having a chance to make friends with Prince Solar Eclipse. I have never been in the presence of royalty before and I was not sure how to act. I know that I am nothing but a pathetic, small foal without a cutie mark and I am unsure what friendship I would be able to offer such a popular and cool colt such as him. If you see him, please send him my apologies. If he wishes to give me a second chance I would welcome it with open hooves.

I also want to tell you that you are by far more beautiful in person than you are in portraits or stories. The sight of you caused my heart to pound within my chest like a beating hammer upon the cold steel of an anvil. No words were able to form within my throat. Thank you for humoring me yesterday by allowing me to greet you proper with a kiss to your hoof. I will never wash my lips again, at least unless my mother forces me to, which I will assume will be by next night. At least until then I can relish the moment a bit longer.

I still hope to see you at the banquet. I promise to not cry or pass out this time. I will bring you a gift as well if you will allow me to present it to you.

Your humble servent,

Quasar