The Moon Also Rises

[raisethemoon]

[Ever just had one of those days where everything is really irritating?]

[It isn't that Luna is unaccustomed to this kind of treatment. The last time she was drawn into another world to fight a war that wasn't hers, the culprit hadn't even had the decency to show their face. On the other hoof, her indignance had faded much faster when she couldn't aim it at anyone specific. Couldn't that Lux have allowed her to retain her magic - or at least her Dream Eaters - if she's meant to be fighting monsters here? What, would he prefer she kick them to death?]

[And these humans! Rude!]

[This pony can be found walking with head held deliberately high and wings tense at her side, meeting the eyes of passerby with unspoken challenge. She doesn't expect them to fling themselves at her feet, but a little common courtesy to a newcomer is not that great a thing to ask. All she wanted was to find a place of residence, honestly.]

[No matter. There must be others like her here, if patterns hold true - she'll find them.]

Comments

[unrecovered]

[There's something to be said for a nice, long walk.]

[There's also something to be said for getting the fuck out of the apartment when your friend brings his long-lost wife home - the wife you picked a fight with over the network almost immediately after she arrived.]

[Wash is not sticking around in that high-rise, is the bottom line. He's out walking the street, very pointedly ignoring the locals in much the same way they're ignoring him, and just trying to clear his head. He turns a corner and- oh. That's impossible to miss.]

[He opens his mouth and hesitates - Celestia didn't remember him, so what guarantee does he have that Luna will? And she's obviously (understandably) not very happy.]

[It would be helpful if he could think of anything to say, but with the week he's having, it's just not possible right now.]

[raisethemoon]

[Luna doesn't quite notice him right away, being too busy staring down some other hapless pedestrian who was looking at her in a way she didn't care for. She's obviously working herself into a bit of a snit. But upon turning, she stops up short (to the consternation of basically everyone else) and stares for a long moment.]

...Washington?

[unrecovered]

[There's a moment where her calling his name simply doesn't process. In the subsequent moment, his knees threaten to collapse under him.]

[She remembers him. She remembers him.]

[When he finally manages words, the relief in his voice is just about palpable.]

Oh, thank God.

[raisethemoon]

[Luna, meanwhile, laughs aloud and bounces a few times on her forehooves.]

Washington! 'Tis you! [She approaches, wings spread slightly because this sidewalk is hers now, to look him over.] It has been years!

[unrecovered]

[He has his helmet off by the time she gets near him, and he's visibly happy and relieved and overwhelmed and- well, he looks like he might cry. It's unusual, but so is literally everything else right now. At least this is unusual in a good way.]

For you, maybe.

[The words are half-laughed and have no sting - he's too damn happy to see her.]

Are you- how- how did-

[He cuts off abruptly, clamping a hand over his face and taking a deep breath. He thought he was more stable than this; he thought he had a better handle on himself. Add one more to the pile of things he'd been very, very wrong about lately.]

[He takes another breath, trying to calm down. The last thing he wants is a tearful reunion in the middle of the street.]

[raisethemoon]

[Luna shrugs carelessly at the reminder - time, who can keep track of it when multiple worlds are involved? If anything, she's glad if it was less for him. A few years aren't so great for her, but humans are no more long-lived than most ponies.

But Washington seems...very affected. More than she'd have anticipated, especially if it was less time on his end.

Well, she'd wanted to do it anyway, so now that his helmet is off she leans her neck over his shoulder and half-folds the other wing around him in a horsey hug. Behind him, people are staring. She glares at them briefly, wishing she could still make her eyes glow.]

I have missed you.

[unrecovered]

[Luna hugs him, and something inside him crumples. He doesn't have to do this alone - Luna knows him inside and out and cares about him anyway. He doesn't have to handle everything in his head on his own anymore. She's here.]

[He hasn't felt this relieved in a very long time. The rush of emotion ebbs slowly, leaving him weak and exhausted, and he doesn't care. He has support. He'll...be fine. Eventually. Maybe. He'll be okay.]

[He leans into the hug just slightly, resting his cheek against her neck.]

I missed you too.

[raisethemoon]

[This is nice. She's missed this; things are better in Equestria than they were, but it still isn't quite the same. Rank and all, she supposes.]

How long have you been here?

[unrecovered]

[He's missed having a friend, especially since he's pretty sure he's well on his way to wrecking his friendship with Greg.]

A few months. They pulled me right from the Realm of Dreams.

[jonesiseverywhere]

[Casey apparently can't catch a break. He'd figured out the mechanics of his fire, but he couldn't seem to make it hot enough and big enough to fight with. He couldn't convince Wash that he knew what he was doing. Things were super tense in the apartment because of Greg and Rose, who Wash didn't seem to like. So he'd hoped a little rollerblading would clear his head.

But that wasn't going to work when he turned the corner and saw another giant dark horse in the street. He was determined NOT to break another leg. Or worse. Because horses seemed to go back and forth between super nice and REALLY mean.

So the moment he locked eyes with Luna he made a noise like "GUH," reeled backward, and tried to switch directions, over-correcting, losing his balance and falling straight to the concrete.

That was going to leave a mark.]

[raisethemoon]

[....well that's different.

Luna pauses, looking around to see if someone is going to come and help the child, a parent or something. Evidently not. She carefully steps forward to peer down at him, shod hooves clicking on the pavement.]

Are you injured?

[jonesiseverywhere]

You're not gonna get me this ti-what?

[Oh. Uh. Wait. That wasn't what Casey expected at all.]

...Does that mean you're not going to stomp my face in?

[raisethemoon]

What do you take me for, child?

[At the very least, she sounds more tired and perhaps irritated than angry. Rudeness is one thing; frightening children is quite another.]

[jonesiseverywhere]

Yooooou're not a shadow monster, are you?

[Man, now he feels sort of embarrassed.]

Sorry...Just that I got attacked by a giant shadow horse monster a few months back. Broke my leg fighting that monstrosity. You kinda looked like it so I thought...

[He coughs, standing up.]

Uh...anyway, I'm fine.

[raisethemoon]

...I see.

[She actually thinks she probably does. It's still an awkward way to meet.]

I am Luna, Princess of Equestria. [For whatever little the title is worth in this place, she still IS.]

[jonesiseverywhere]

[Casey has miniscule experience with royalty, and it shows.]

Oh, like the other one! What's-her-name...Celestia! You know her?

Anyway, I'm Casey Jones, vigilante warrior. [He takes out and spins his hockey sticks in what he thinks is an impressive manner as he says that, and then drops it to casually lean on it.] Nice to meetcha!

[raisethemoon]

[...is that a hockey stick? That's not a weapon, that is a gaming tool.]

A pleasure...you know my sister?

[mechanacet]

[Daniel is wandering the streets again. Largely because he's picked up everything he can from the warehouses in the northern parts of the city and he needs some smaller parts that need to be higher quality than the almost useless bits and pieces that can be found in his normal scavenging grounds. Therefore, it has come to this, Daniel is currently trying to find a speciality shop where he can find some functioning hydraulics, or at least, the parts to make them.

He is also doing this much slower than usual because his foot is still broken. It's healed to the point where he can move about slowly with the assistance of a cane, but any faster than that might risk it breaking again.

As usual, Cam is riding around on Daniel's shoulder, pointing him in likely directions and generally not doing too much ease aside from keeping a weather eye on the surroundings so Daniel doesn't have to. It is also Cam who spots Luna first, looking about as puzzled as a tiny robot centaur with a camera for a head can be. Nudging Daniel in the side of the head, Cam points her out, and now he is looking puzzled as well, stopping in his tracks and leaning on his cane heavily. They appear to be having a conversation now, one that the surrounding people can't quite hear. Though this is probably due to them looking like a pair of weirdos than them whispering.]

[raisethemoon]

[Weird is a plus. Obviously whispering about her is significantly less so.

Luna can't quite decide if she thinks they're fellow foreigners or not, so she just turns to approach them.]

Can I assist you?

[mechanacet]

[Daniel almost startles at this, and just about keeps his somewhat pacarious footing, wincing a little when he treads puts his broken foot down a little too hard in the effort to do so. He does have the good grace to look embarrassed at least.]

Ah! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to stare, it's just that you look a bit like a friend of mine. Though if you know where I can find a mechanic, that'd be a great help.

[raisethemoon]

I have been in this city for approximately half an hour.

[That seems like answer enough. Most humans wouldn't say she looked familiar though.]

Are you also a stranger to this place?

[mechanacet]

Ah, I see... Then you don't know where I can find a mechanic. [Daniel hangs his head a little with a sigh] It's gonna take forever at this rate...

Yeah, I've been here for a few months. I'd offer to show you around, but I've never been to this part of town before. That and, well... You could probably cover more ground than Cam and I. [Daniel gestures to his foot, which is bound up in a fairly obvious cast.]

[raisethemoon]

Doubtless.

[She peers down at the foot.]

Were you fighting these "monsters" I hear tell of?

[mechanacet]

[Now Daniel looks a little awkward. It's kinda obvious that that isn't how He managed to injure himself] No... I, uhhh... I dropped something on it. I normally fight the Nox from a distance anyway, but I was building something and a big piece of sheet metal sort of got away from me.

[raisethemoon]

And the doctors here could not give you a walking aid?

[r u d e]

Do you require assistance?