History Fanfic / PastSins

* DrivingQuestion: There are two of them. The first is whether or not Nyx Is Nightmare Moon, which gradually becomes [[spoiler: a solid yes]] halfway through the story. The second is, can even Nightmare Moon change for the better? [[spoiler: Yes, yes she can, though becoming Nyx and experiencing the love of friends and a surrogate mother certainly helped.]]

* AGlassOfChianti: Not actually with wine, but Spell Nexus manages to swirl '''orange juice''' of all things in the same manner as if it were red wine. This doubles as his TrademarkFavoriteDrink.

* ExpandedUniverse: ''[[http://dreatos.deviantart.com/art/Storytime-243971842 Storytime.]]'', a [[SureWhyNot promoted fancomic]] which is [[FandomNod referenced]] with a CallBack in Chapter 14.

** Chapter 14 has a CallBack to the fancomic ''[[http://dreatos.deviantart.com/art/Storytime-243971842 Storytime.]]'', [[SureWhyNot promoting it]] to ExpandedUniverse status.
** [[spoiler:Chapter 15's ending is a {{Novelization}} [[SureWhyNot of the fancomic]] ''[[http://dotrook.deviantart.com/art/Nightmare-Toot-244278862 Nightmare Toot]]''.]]

* {{Novelization}}: Chapter 15's ending is [[SureWhyNot based on]] [[FandomNod the fancomic]] [[spoiler:''[[http://dotrook.deviantart.com/art/Nightmare-Toot-244278862 Nightmare Toot]]''.]]

* CallBack: Chapter 14 has one [[FandomNod to the fancomic]] ''[[http://dreatos.deviantart.com/art/Storytime-243971842 Storytime.]]'', [[SureWhyNot promoting it]] to ExpandedUniverse status.

** In Chapter 13 an anxious Celestia is unable to sleep because she fears [[spoiler: that an attack from Nightmare Moon is Imminent]]. To try to calm her nerves she orders a bowl of Maroon Carrot soup and an " extra large" piece of butt cake from the Royal Kitchens. Unfortunately it doesn't work, though that is mostly[[spoiler: because the servant who brings it to her turns out to be [[VoluntaryShapeshifting Nightmare Moon in disguise]]]]

Now, a tiny black Alicorn filly named Nyx finds herself living under the care of Twilight Sparkle, only to be haunted by memories and emotions from her past. Is the filly Nightmare Moon reborn or is she simply a doppelganger with a soul and mind of her own? Can Twilight Sparkle protect Nyx from those who refuse to see past her dragon eyes and black coat?

** In Chapter 13 an anxious Celestia is unable to sleep because she fears [[spoiler: that an attack from Nightmare Moon is Imminent]]. To try to calm her nerves she orders a bowl of Maroon Carrot soup and an " extra large" piece of cloud cake from the Royal Kitchens. Unfortunately it doesn't work, though that is mostly[[spoiler: because the servant who brings it to her turns out to be [[VoluntaryShapeshifting Nightmare Moon in disguise]]]]

Past Sins is a ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' fanfic written by Pen Stroke, who was assisted by Batty Gloom. The final part was completed on Equestria Daily on the 30th of August and it has gone through 3 revisions to date. During a radio interview, Pen Stroke mentioned that the story will be revised/expanded to incorporate season 2 canon ([[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/41596/Past-Sins and can be found here]]), as well as the possibility of official side stories and short sequels (Such as [[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/53090/Nightmare-or-Nyx%3F Nightmare or Nyx]]). Also, a [[Fanfic/PastSinsMST MST]] of the previously unseen, pre-revision version can be found [[https://docs.google.com/document/d/1uJ8FqW1zBIzsYZoe4M1ILS9H8wgk2zjEEGQqmgNsfIg/edit?hl=en_US here.]] The [=MSTing=] has its own entry [[Fanfic/PastSinsMST here]].

There is also a series of {{recursive fanfiction}}s by the name of [[RealityChecksNyxverse RealityCheck's Nyxverse]].

* ForegoneConclusion: [[spoiler:The cover art blatantly shows Nyx in her capacity as Nightmare Moon, along with the defeated Elements of Harmony and her face-off with Celestia. It is quite obvious that Twilight's attempts to protect Nyx will fail and that Nyx will become Nightmare Moon.]] However, that makes the scene where it happens far more heartwrenching, because you know it cannot be averted.

* FromNobodyToNightmare: [[spoiler: Nyx starts out as a sweet, innocent, timid and cowardly filly ..but then she becomes Nightmare Moon again, banishing Celestia and Luna in the process and taking over Equestria.]] [[spoiler:{{Subverted|Trope}} when we see that Nightmare Moon is…actually a fairly decent ruler who genuinely cares about the well being of her subjects. The time she spent as a Nobody with a loving adoptive mother and good honest friends is actually what gives her the empathy she lacked in her original incarnation]]

** It's mentioned twice, both from a narrative viewpoint and from Twilight herself, that the original Nyx from the legends was a black-coated pony that defended her village against monsters. [[spoiler: Nyx does the same thing as Nightmare Moon.]]

---> '''Nyx''': But I'm going to show her. I'm going to do my best and I'm not going to forget a single line. I'm going to be the best Nightmare Moon I can be!

** That line is a double foreshadowing. Firstly, [[spoiler:as stated above, Nyx plays the role of Nightmare Moon once she forcibly receives her PlotRelevantAgeUp]], but secondly and more subtly, [[spoiler:as Nightmare Moon, the now transformed Nyx tries to be the "best" Nightmare Moon possible from a moral/ethical standpoint. That is, while fulfilling the "requirements" of Nightmare Moon (overthrowing the Princesses, bringing eternal night, etc.), she also attempts to be a benevolent and effective ruler who looks out for the best interests of her ponies. When these two roles conflict, she sides with "helping out the ponies" instead of "playing Nightmare Moon by the book" much to Spell Nexus's chagrin.]]

** On the "blood relatives" angle, [[spoiler: Twilight]] provided the blood that was used to create Nyx, though this is a minor detail that isn't elaborated on and clearly doesn't matter to Twilight. In the FanSequel ''Nightmare Night and Nyx'' Nyx asks Celestia if being made from Nightmare Moon's remaining magic makes ''Luna'' her father, which causes the princess to SpitTake.
* HellishPupils: Because Nyx [[spoiler: is Nightmare Moon reborn]], she has these. Still cute though.

* ImTakingHerHomeWithMe: What happens to Twilight Sparkle when she sees [[spoiler:that [[MadGod Nightmare Moon]],one of the greatest and most powerful villains in the history of Equestria, has been reincarnated as]] a [[RidiculouslyCuteCritter helpless and visibly shaking little filly]] that is hurt,confused, frightened, and alone in the Everfree Forest and desperately needs a hug.

* KickTheDog: Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara's giving Nyx a verbal beat-down for delaying their recess serves to establish their villainy for this fanfic. It doesn't help their case that they revel in her tearful breakdown and then [[KickThemWhileTheyAreDown continue said verbal beat-down]].

* LossOfIdentity: [[spoiler: Because of her time spent as Nyx, as well as missing the worst parts of her own soul, Nightmare Moon struggles with her own identity and thoughts. By the time she makes a HeroicSacrifice in order to protect the town from monsters, she blatantly says “I…I don’t know who I am anymore". Twilight tells Nightmare Moon that she doesn't have to be the same mare she used to be during the Summer Sun Celebration.]]
* MamaBear:
** Twilight becomes this for Nyx. [[spoiler: Upon discovering Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon had sent Nyx into the dangerous Everfree Forest as a particularly mean spirited prank and finding them to be most unhelpful, Twilight [[IncendiaryExponent bursts into flames]] and threatens to transform them into cacti if they don't start cooperating. Later in chapter 21, When she thinks Nyx has been banished to the moon, she [[IncendiaryExponent rage shifts]] and attempts to magically beat down Princess Celestia using bricks ripped from the surrounding castle walls]].

* MoodWhiplash: In Chapter 10 Nyx and Twilight are walking back to their home, talking about how much fun they had had together that day, only to find that [[spoiler: Celestia and her guards are waiting for them at their home, ready to take Nyx away.]]

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: [[spoiler:Princess Celestia, after [[TearJerker ripping Nyx from Twilight's arms]], inadvertently hands her over to the leader of the Children of Nightmare cult. He then completes the interrupted spell that gave Nyx life, transforming her into Nightmare Moon.]]

* PlotRelevantAgeUp: [[spoiler: Poor Nyx. [[ReluctantMonster And it was against her will, too]].]]

* [[spoiler: {{Reincarnation}}: While the term is not used specifically, it is one of the biggest themes since Nyx is the very essence of Nightmare Moon reborn. The other theme would be redemption via the reincarnation]]

** Hilariously, this actually makes more sense after the season two revision, given that Twilight had a brother that even her friends didn't know about.
* ReligionOfEvil: Children of Nightmare is a cult bent on bringing back Nightmare Moon and plunging Equestria into eternal night.
* ReluctantMonster: Guess who.[[spoiler: It's Nyx!]]

* ScheduleSlip: When the fic was first submitted, it was updated in parts every other two days or so. After the retcon, it has updated less often. WordOfGod states that the authors are much more concerned with the quality of the updates rather than the pure speed and quantity of them.

* [[SealedInsideAPersonShapedCan Sealed Inside A Pony Shaped Can]]: [[spoiler: The overwhelming bulk of Nightmare Moon's malice and hatred were sealed inside Spell Nexus the entire time, as he had willingly locked as much of the corruption inside himself as he could before succumbing]].

* ShoutOut: At the end of chapter 13, Pinkie Pie's saying "Who's going to make the cake when I'm gone?" is a shout out to one of [=GLaDOS=]'s lines near the end of the original VideoGame/{{Portal}}.
** In chapter 18, [[spoiler: Nyx/Nightmare Moon deals with a [[TheUsualAdversaries scorpio]] by [[SuperMario64 grabbing its tail, swinging it in circles, and throwing it]] towards the Everfree Forest]].

* [[spoiler: TheAtoner]]: As of the side story/sequel [[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/71883/winter-bells Winter Bells]] [[spoiler: Spell Nexus tries to atone for his role as the " leader" of the Children of Nightmare cult ]] His attempts fail and he falls into despondency and a deranged mental state until he realizes why he cant go trough penance by fixing the wrongs caused by his previous acts: [[spoiler: There are no wrongs for him to right because by this point there is nothing broken for him to fix]]

* AllOfTheOtherReindeer: [[spoiler: Granny Smith has publicly come out as saying that Nyx cannot be trusted. As explored in the side story " Winter Bells", Shining Armor-traumatized by his susceptibility to mind spells and fearful that Nyx might somehow cause him to lose Twilight Sparkle -nurses a deep grudge against Nyx. Thankfully he appears to be the only member of the family to carry such a grudge]]

* [[spoiler: TheAtoner]]: As of the side story/sequel [[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/71883/winter-bells Winter Bells]] [[spoiler: Spell Nexus]] His attempts fail and he falls into despondency and a deranged mental state until he realizes why he cant go trough penance by fixing the wrongs [[spoiler: There are no wrongs for him to right because by this point there is nothing broken for him to fix]]

* [[spoiler TheAtoner:]] As of the side story/sequel [[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/71883/winter-bells Winter Bells]] [[spoiler: Spell Nexus]] His attempts fail and he falls into despondency and a deranged mental state until he realizes why he cant go trough penance by fixing the wrongs [[spoiler: There are no wrongs for him to right because by this point there is nothing broken for him to fix]]

* TheAtoner: As of the side story/sequel [[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/71883/winter-bells Winter Bells]] [[spoiler: Spell Nexus]] His attempts fail and he falls into despondency and a deranged mental state until he realizes why he cant go trough penance by fixing the wrongs [[spoiler: There are no wrongs for him to right because by this point there is nothing broken for him to fix]]

* TheAtoner: As of the side story/sequel [[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/71883/winter-bells Winter Bells]] [[spoiler: Spell Nexus]] His attempts fail and he falls into despondency and a deranged mental state until he realizes why he cant go trough penance by fixing the wrongs [[spoiler: there is nothing broken for him to fix]]

* AllOfTheOtherReindeer: [[spoiler: Granny Smith has publicly come out as saying that Nyx cannot be trusted. As explored in the side story " Winter Bells", Shining Armor, traumatized by his susceptibility to mind spells and the events of " A Canterlot wedding" and fearful that Nyx might somehow cause him to lose Twilight Sparkle carries a deep grudge against Nyx. Thankfully he appears to be the only member of the family to carry such a grudge]]

* AllOfTheOtherReindeer: [[spoiler: Granny Smith has publicly come out as saying that Nyx cannot be trusted and Shining Armor is the only member of his family to carry a grudge about the events of the story proper.]]

** Remember ''Feeling Pinkie Keen''? Endangering Nyx is also a bad idea.
* BigBad: It's debatable, but [[spoiler: the evil parts of Nightmare Moon's soul that took root in Spell Nexus]] pretty much causes all the trouble in the story.

* BadAssAdorable: Pinkie Pie's defeat of [[spoiler: several of Nightmare Moons' guards]] by thinking they're playing tag, and being "it".

* [[spoiler:AmnesiacGod]][[spoiler:dess]]:

-->''"What else can you be when the world can only see a monster?"''

* ShoutOut: At the end of chapter 13, Pinkie Pie's saying "Who's going to make the cake when I'm gone?" is a shout out to one of GLaDOS's lines near the end of the original VideoGame/{{Portal}}.