[Normal] This is a continuation of the fanon set forth by Out in the Cold and Shades of Midnight.
Author: EsperDerek
Description: Set after Shades of Midnight, Midnight is finishing her first year at the University of Canterlot with her friends, and Princess Luna has a surprise for her. But is it something the young mare is ready to deal with?
Moonlight Over Midnight
Additional tags: Growing up can be hard
85 comments:
Another sequel to Out in the Cold? And this one written by the original author?
ReplyDelete*drops everything*
Another sequel to Out in the Cold? And this one written by the original author??!
ReplyDelete*SHUT DOWN EVERYTHING!!!!*
I read this one beforehand, it is excellent.
ReplyDeletefrom the original author?? this sounds promising
ReplyDeleteLesbian-born children really are the best. Especially polyamorous-lesbian-born children.
ReplyDeleteI actually really like this fanon! :D
As one of the pre-prereading proofreaders, I happened to get a look at this story before almost anyone else (only Phoe and Inkwell beat me to it), so I'm happy to finally get a chance to publicly say what I thought.
ReplyDeleteIt's beautiful.
I especially love Midnight's interactions with Luna, they're just so adorable together. ^^
I liked the little shout-out to Mark of the Magician, with Dusty's hometown. Would've been nice to see a mention of Autumn Dancer as well, but at this rate I don't think EsperDerek can ever hope to tie in to all the fanfics of his fanfic. ;)
The Out in the Cold series is by far my favorite fanon, and continues to be so with this installment. I certainly hope EsperDerek and the other authors who have touched this world continue to expand on it!
But first, EsperDerek needs to go write Nightmare Wars Chapter 2! *whipcrack*
@SyrinKitty
ReplyDelete... I wish I could fave or +1 comments. :D
All my stars. Just take them.
ReplyDeleteI still haven't read shades of midnight.
ReplyDeleteFuck.
Pinkie Pie will visit eldritch horrors on anyone who dares to vote less than 5 stars on this magnificent piece of work. For real.
ReplyDeleteHow could you, nines!
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I too was another one that got to read it before it showed up here. I loved it, and already discussed my reactions with Derek himself.
Very well done once again, Derek. You always amaze me. ♥
How are Twilight, Trixie, and Spike still alive? If I remember correctly, Midnight made their pelts into a blanket at the end of Shades of Midnight.
ReplyDeleteHere is a direct quote:
"And as she felt the weight of the fabric against her, she realized that it was more than just a blanket. It was something so much more than that.
And she slept soundly, snuggled up with the ponies she cared for more than anything else in all the world..."
So are they somehow alive but without a pelt?
Ya'll should tag this with Story so it's tagged with Story. Because it is one.
ReplyDelete@Narwhals' Bend
ReplyDeleteThis link might explain things. :)
@Narwhals' Bend
ReplyDeleteYou know, I really loved that metaphor when I was writing it. I thought it was simple and sweet and played to the warm places of the heart. I thought it was adequately foreshadowed by the other blanket scene in that story. In light of this joke that just. Will. Not. Die? I'm beginning to wonder.
*le sigh*
N'awwwwww.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love your creation, Esper. I think you've got one of the premiere stories in the fandom.
I sincerely hope you can give us more of Midnight.
@Narwhals' Bend
ReplyDelete*facehoof SO HARD*
I love the Herd... ;.;
ReplyDeleteHere I am sitting in the middle of the school library blubbering my eyes out at the beauty of this story.
<3
@ZAquanimus
ReplyDelete*hugs and patpats* We love you too, ZAq. :) Just let it all out, it's okay to cry in public. ^^
@Phoe
ReplyDeleteI understand the metaphor and it works perfectly, but I can't think of anything else when I read that.
WHY DOES IT HAVE ONLY 4.9 STARS?
ReplyDeleteThank you, everyone, for your kind words so far.
ReplyDeleteI've been fretting about getting this story done for awhile now, so I'm really glad that so far I've done my job and made an enjoyable story for people!
I literally JUST finished reading reading shades of midnight when I went to refresh equestrian daily.
ReplyDeleteYou can imagine my expression when I saw this posted... a continuation of the two fics AND written by the original author of Out in the Cold which I had only finished reading yesterday (which was absolutely amazing I might add)
And to think I was going to go do something else hahaha, how naive of me ^^
@Grif
ReplyDeleteUh.
This.
*boss walks in*
ReplyDeleteNO TIME TO WORK MUST READ!!!!
@Grif
ReplyDeleteI think somepony's hoof must have slipped, they realized their mistake, and have corrected it now. ;)
Are you planning on another sequel, EsperDerek?
ReplyDelete@Narwhals' Bend
ReplyDeleteWell, first I really need to finish the second part of my other series, but yes, you're probably going to be looking at another fic for Midnight.
I can't help it, she's fun to write about!
I just read Out in the cold this afternoon and immediately gave it as many stars as I could :) I could hardly believe, when two hours later a new story gets posted in this universe. And it actually held up my expectations, once more a really awesome piece of fanfiction.
ReplyDeleteI wasn't quite sure about the jumping around in the timeline, the main story maybe lost a bit too much focus at times. A bit more content in the university would have helped in my opinion. Also, the ending was about as predictable as your other stories, but seeing as the stories in the cartoon itself are still way more foreseeable, I was ok with it. For such a sweet story nothing more is necessary. Well done!
*leaves it at 29 votes/5.0* ^.^
ReplyDelete*comes back to see 30 votes/4.8* o.o
*refreshes to 31 votes/4.8* >.<
Loved it... Just loved it!
ReplyDeleteand got a bit teary eyes reading it more than once
Oh, before I forget, I absolutely need to thank my pre-readers/editors, Silverspot, Inkwell Pony, and absolutely, absolutely Phoe. This story wouldn't nearly be as good without the work that they put in.
ReplyDelete@EsperDerek
ReplyDeleteYou're very welcome! Any time you need a proofreader, I'm here for you.
Wait shes not adopted wtf?!
ReplyDeleteWhere can I find answers for this?
My brain hurts after reading this.
@Anonymous
ReplyDelete*COUGHCOUGH* READTHEFICSTHATCAMEBFORETHIS*COUGHCOUGH*
@Anonymous
ReplyDeleteGo to the page for Out in the Cold, linked up at the top.
You should probably read the whole thing, because it's awesome, but the pertinent information is in the Bonus Chapter, "Reaching Midnight."
Excellent. I care far too much for Midnight, much as I once promised myself any fanfiction I read would stay true to the source material, I simply cannot resist this particular tangent. Good show.
ReplyDeleteEhhhhhh. Uhhhhhh.
ReplyDeleteYeah, ok. 5 stars.
EsperDerek has got this story arc down to a 5 star T.
ReplyDeleteBrilliant as always.
SHUT UP AND TAKE MY STARS.
ReplyDeleteThis must be the best fanfic series I've ever read.
ReplyDeleteI love it. Wonderful.
ReplyDeleteyou... you have a gift, man. Seriously, you have got an awesome talent. I look forward to the next, and the next, and the next.
ReplyDeleteThank you for this wonderful story mate, really.
HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG
ReplyDelete5/5 my heart is exploding kthxbai
3,000 words in two days. Thank you again, Esper.
ReplyDelete@Thanqol
ReplyDeleteYou're very, very welcome, Thanqol. I'm very happy that I inspired you to pick that project back up, that's pretty much the best compliment I could get.
I'll admit I was turned off by the shipping involved in Out in the Cold, but after seeing this showed up, I had to give it a chance.
ReplyDeleteSimply put: Wow. This entire fanon is amazing. I rather like the use of flashbacks to Establish Midnight's character. Esper and everyone else, keep up the good work.
This is amazing! But I have to know... is Shimmer Snowflake an Alternate-Universe Phoe?
ReplyDeleteOr am I reading too much into this? :P
What a wonderful end (or is it? tum tum tum!) to the continuity. Really tugs on the old heart strings, you sir have a talent! Use it, the Greater Good compels you!!
ReplyDeleteI still dont understand how participation in a threesome make you a parent. Especially if yer neither the one giving birth, nor the one that got her pregnant.
ReplyDeleteSeriously, how does that work?
This is damn amazing. Now the only thing we need is a Phoe-written continuation of THIS chapter.
ReplyDeleteOne small nitpick: At Old Midnight's grave, Celestia is called Young Midnight's grandmother/Midnight is called Celestia's granddaughter several times. Actually, she's Celestia's niece, unless I have terribly misread something and TRIXIE is Celestia's daughter somehow (I am sure she was born before the Midnight-Celestia affair though), which would make the whole thing just that much weirder.
@Drax
ReplyDeleteMAGIC. Literally, they are all wizards and used magic.
I hadn't even realized this was by EsperDerek. That explains so much though.
ReplyDeleteI don't have much to add to what has already been said. It was awesome to get another glimpse of Midnight's life. And I loved every sentence.
@Drax: Yes..... I don't care how many times people say magic that just.... kinda ruined everything for me.... sorry I had to say it, I loved Out in the cold, it was the thing that brought me here to begin with.
ReplyDeleteMy suspension of disbelief with this one, which was strained on Out in the Cold but was loving it anyway, kinda broke in 2 and said good-bye. It just..... baww, forget it, I take my leave now.
Here's the answer to a few questions:
ReplyDeletea) Shimmer is, indeed, Phoe's ponysona. It was sort of a tribute to her, because of how much she has contributed to my universe here, and how awesome she's been. (Don't worry, since she edited this thing, she was okay with it!)
b) Both Celestia and Midnight are well aware that technically, Celestia is her aunt. (Midnight earlier in the story mentions as such.) But when she was younger, she took to calling Celestia 'Gammy Cestya', which delighted the Princess so much it sort of stuck.
It's also sort of a continuation of the idea that Celestia acts as Twilight's 'mother figure', so, logically, she acts as Midnight's 'grandmother figure'.
c)About Luna's parentage of Midnight: She was the one who provided the book that had the relevant magical spell in it to Twilight and Trixie, and if she hadn't of been there on the night of conception, they never would have conceived Midnight in the first place, because they never would have used the "Book" and never made the silly mistake that ended up getting Trixie pregnant.
It's not a matter of 'she's uses magic', it's a matter of 'She provided the necessary tools, and the will to act'. Yes, she's not technically a biological parent, but Midnight would have never existed without her.
But, perhaps most importantly, she's Midnight's third Mother because she chose to be. She made the choice to want to be involved in the life of Midnight, and Twilight and Trixie accepted.
Also regarding the "Grandma Celestia" issue, Celestia is not only a mother figure to Twilight, but was literally just shy of becoming stepmother to Trixie when Midnight I died. That gives her a motherly relationship to both of Midnight II's biological parents.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, why is this still "Star-Needed"? SETH! Break out the Sixer already!
Damn, all of my money ect ect
ReplyDeletewhy is this so amazing?
ReplyDeleteOk, I can accept the adoptive mother role, but it still sounds a WTF bell in my head every time it's mentioned. I mean damn, last thing I would need is to pay child support because I bought the booze one night.
ReplyDeleteI thank you for this story and the ones that lead to it. I had not thought to read them till this one came up and pointed too them. I had grown kind of jaded to the mass of Trixie and Twilight shipping stories. BUT yours was very different in that it did not end with them getting together bot more started there. The characters remained what I thought was faithful to themselves but not just static. They grew in different ways. I like your Trixie who have become less a show off and more a show pony. Twilight has grown out of the shy worried little filly and is now the wise parent.
ReplyDeleteBut one of the thinks that really got me was the way you portrayed Celestia and Luna. Celestia was more then just the bright motherly figure, she has feelings as well and it showed a huge depths to her missing in most stories. I am particularly impressed with your Luna not being the sad introvert but showing a strength of character and a willfulness to do what is right simply because it is right. I happen to be Princess Luna on Equestrian Dawn mush and it has lead me to thinking long into the night(Since like Luna I am up all freeking night) that her stepping forward to be a mother as well and Celestia being part of it too...It is a HUGE investment for them.
They know it will end with pain for the both of them. Because unlike normal parents who bring up children and watch them grow and become adults and then spend the last years with their family. Luna and Celestia will have to watch the family they have taken all grow old and pass on while they remain immortal. That is the curse of immortality, everyone you know you will watch grow old and pass on. Perhaps in there way they might watch over this family through the generations. But still a huge emotional investment for them.
Wait wait wait, back the freakin' bus up.
ReplyDeleteHow did I miss this? I have been SCOURING the fanfics for the last week, and the freakin' SEQUEL TO OUT IN THE COLD SLIPS BY ME!?
Best night back from pub EVER!
I had to fight back dem manly tears. This is kinda sad really, yo're going to run out of stuff to continue this story with soon. And that will be a bad day for Twixie lovers everywhere.
ReplyDeleteI haven't read the earlier chapters, and so I haven't read this one yet, but...
ReplyDeleteCan someone please tell me who draw the picture? I couldn't find it in any of the earlier drawfriends, neither could I find it on ponibooru or deviantart or google images.
Thank you!
@qzole
ReplyDeleteJust did some looking myself, here's the deviant art page for this picture:
http://jakneurotic.deviantart.com/art/On-Fire-210810803
Ok, question here: Midnight is still only GENETICALLY related to Twilight and Trixie, right? Because all these extraneous family ties, especially "Mother Luna" are beginning to make my head spin. I fear I may be lost. Could somepony please enlighten me?
ReplyDelete@Brony Neumo
ReplyDeleteTrixie and Twilight are Midnight's biological parents.
Luna is her adoptive parent, by right of 'Midnight wouldn't exist without me.'
@EsperDerek ah, gracias. I do want to congratulate you on the great story you have written. It really has become one of my two favorites.
ReplyDeleteYou should use one of Inkwell's pics for the image on this one.
ReplyDeleteI really didn't like the original "Out in the Cold" series. It felt rushed, was lacking in the description department, and the whole relationship felt forced. Like the author wrote it down just for the heck of it.
ReplyDeleteThe fan sequels felt slightly better, mostly the comedy bits in it. They still didn't amount to anything I'd call "excellent".
As such I had rather low expectations comming into this one, and I was positively surprised.
Midnight came through as a wonderful character here, her worries and dialogue with all the different characters felt so much more real than in the other stories.
I gladly give this one five starts. This is clearly the best story in the series, even if I do think that the whole "three mothers" bit is among the most ridiculous concepts ever, even when magic is involved.
Confound these ponies, they make me read fanfiction that is good and thus 20% cooler.
ReplyDeleteI was enraptured throughout the entire story... this is a work of art, a treasure to behold, and I hope that all the readers to come will experience the same bliss I came to enjoy while hanging on to every word.
ReplyDeleteI just reread all these, no regrets. :D
ReplyDeleteI'm disappointed the plot point with Shimmer was never revisited, but there's always hope for a continuation. If not, I might be tempted to try it myself.
ReplyDelete'Whatever your dreams, aim for the moon, for even if you miss, you will land among the stars...'
ReplyDeleteThat's what crossed my mind when reading the last line... When they were dancing amongst the stars, I mean. Anyhoof, there's not much to say... One is almost afraid of saying something in praise, because it's hard to say just how amazing this fic series is... There's such a perfect balance of all elements of a good story... Humor, empathy, tension, feeling... Simply marvelous!
My stars. All of dem. And my internets too. Yus
/manlytears.jpeg
You just won the Game, internet, and everything.
ReplyDeleteAll forty-two of them.
I tip my hat and a little bit of the top of my skull to you, good sir.
In all honesty, this is one of the very few stories I know that is, at the same time, so pleasant and interesting and fascinating to read.
ReplyDeleteI mean, I have read an enormous amount of stories, so far (and it's still going up); a lot were great... many not so great... but, from the 300+ stories I read, only a small % of them were as pleasant to read, from start to finish, as this one was.
In a few words : This was a satisfying experience.
@The GREAT and POWERFUL Trevor
ReplyDeleteThe balance of 'everything' is indeed one of the, very, strong points of this stories (and also of the previous ones of this series).
This is something that one can only agrees on.
Not sure if it fits the timeline of publishing but I was disappointed at the lack of Autumn Dancer :(
ReplyDeleteOther than that it was amazing.
Pretty sure this is the only series (Out In The Cold, Shades of Midnight, Moonlight over Midnight) that has made me shed a tear. A manly tear, of course. *cough*
ReplyDeleteFreakin Twixie and Luna, wrapped in to a touching story of growing up. Why can't every story be this awesome?
Beautiful, just beautiful. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteTears man...tears.
ReplyDeleteI love this fanbase. I love this story. And I love this couple.
Absolutely beautiful.
I still find the whole "Trixie/Twilight/Luna" and the whole aspect of HOW Midnight got into existence...it's still beautiful.
Damn my ipod is on a roll tonight, first "I'll Fly higher" (strangley enough felt right for that story) by MandoPony and AcousticBrony plays while I am reading "Cries in the Autumn Wind", then "At the Gala" (best night ever) starts to play just as the Gala is starting, THEN "Smile, Smile, Smile" comes on as the the friends are starting to cheer for Midnight, working out to play the slightly more solemn part when Inkwell is voicing her concerns about Inkwell possibly leaving them behind, and then right back to the more boisterous attitude when Midnight is reassuring them all that she is the same pony as before
ReplyDeleteanyway, great story man
Oh wow this where amazing i really hope you continue the story Midnight.
ReplyDeleteIs really turning out to be quite the amazing char.
And your a wherry talented writer and the fact that she.
Is the daughter of Twilight and Trixie my to favo ponies is a nice bonus.
This was amazing, I am positively speechless... this is the only fan fic i have ever read and i think that if i read anything else it could put me off forever, nothing, not even a top selling book, has ever made me feel so... umm... EVERYTHING! i could just picture this as if i was watching it on youtube as i read the story, still need to read the autumn wind set but apart from that i cannot wait for more of this series, i do love trixie and midnight and now i must add midnight and luna, and perhaps celestia to that same list, i tip my entire freakin world to you, and all those who helped you, you are all legendary... oh gosh i could cry now.
ReplyDeleteCycotic C3 (I had set my steam name to twilight trixie to fit my 2 favs, now from this story i may need to go back to cycotic C3 just because i cant pick one name over all of them XD)
All hail Midnight, hail them all!
Oh and just random idea that wouldnt work, we should totally group together to see if hasbro could make a mini series of this story to go on ED, they probably wouldnt but it was just a nice idea i came up with XD
ReplyDelete