Nite Will Fear

It is said that when Erin Righ became the first modern Night Monarch, it was the love of his wife, future Queen Sable Aradia, that saved his life and soul in The First Word War. It is said she did it again when he fell back into corruption in The Second Word War and she claimed The Iron Tome. This time, some say, it was the power of her love, and not the magic of the Iron Tome, that Resurrected him.   But Erin Righ remained possessed by the dark influence of The Nite Qing, and so he refused to return home. He didn't want to subject her, and their family, to that dark power's terrible influence.   While carrying the Tome for the first time, Queen Sable insisted on keeping it on her person, afraid it would be stolen again, as it was before, or that someone would use it for personal and terrible gain. This took a toll on her mental health, and after an assassination attempt, she gradually grew more isolated and lonely.   There was a second assassination attempt. Queen Sable was poisoned. There was nothing the doctors could do. They sent her home to die.   It was Senna Nightshade who realized that isolation was the problem. Queen Sable had resurrected the Nite Qing with healing magic powered by her love. Maybe they could save her the same way.   Senna, the Bunny Queen's daughter, organized a candlelight vigil to direct as much love at Queen Sable at once as she could. And Erin Righ heard the call.   So he came home to The Warren. And when he took his wife's hand, and said that he loved her, she was healed.   The two then vowed to guard the Iron Tome together, come what may.   In The Third Word War, during the defining conflict, the Battle of Mount Mitchell, Erin Righ engaged in Literomantic combat with the Nite Qing to trap him in a manuscript. And the following April, Queen Sable led a mission to conduct a "literomantic edit" — a magical ritual — to defeat the Nite Qing once and for all. They battled him together and with their family and friends. At great risk to the participants, and great personal injury to the Mother of Bunnies, the ritual succeeded, and the Nite Qing was finally banished.

Okay, yeah, that's pretty much what happened, but I mean, it wasn't as pretty and romantic as all that.

— Queen Sable

  The essential events of the story are recent historical fact. Some details tend to be missed, or glossed over, in the fictionalized tellings, however:

While Erin Righ claims that it was Queen Sable's magic that resurrected him in the First Word War, the Mother of Bunnies is convinced it was, in fact, the Iron Tome.

Queen Sable had assistance from a secret order of Tome Knights who helped her to guard the Iron Tome during the first year she carried it. It is the opinion of most of the Tome Knights familiar with the matter, including Queen Sable herself, that the toll on her mental health caused by guarding the Tome may in part have been due to the Tome viewing her possession of it as contested as a result.

Neither Senna Nightshade, nor her parents, were aware that she was their daughter at the time of the candlelight vigil. She was also going by the name "Aydan Nightshade" at the time.

The relationship between Queen Sable and Erin Righ is idealized in the fictional portrayals, but of course, in real life, it has been punctuated by the difficulties that face a marriage over a long term and has not always been "perfect." They have quarreled in the past, suffered setbacks and miscommunications, and have even spent periods of separation before the events of the story. Nor have they lived "happily ever after," since they must continue to lead a nation and fight wars against The Undead Horde in November. It is, however, a healthy marriage that has lasted through many difficulties over decades, and those who know them often see them as a good example to emulate in their own relationships.

The injury delivered to the Bunny Queen during the "literomantic edit" was, in her words, "not exactly dignified." She parodied the event herself in a filk that went viral called "Attacked in a Lavatory"

If it truly was "the power of love" that saved "Sable Bright-Eyes" following the poisoning, it was more than just Erin Righ's love that was responsible. Significant contributions to the magic of the ritual were also made by her family, friends, children, and peers.

The essential events that turned out to be relevant to the "love story" in the long term were complicated by varying circumstances that played a role in the outcome as things were unfolding, and naturally, were not as easy to differentiate at the time by the people experiencing them.

This story is extremely popular in the Lapin Protectorate and the Meles Protectorate, since Erin Righ was originally of House Meles, and is widespread among all the Protectorates of The Great Houses.

Lapinites have a lot of stories of strength in adversity in their short history. There are many real-life tales of heroism, bravery, and tragedy that bring them together. Love stories are not as easy to come by. Therefore, the story of how love truly has wrested hope out of tragedy, featuring their Queen and Prince, is much loved by the Lapin people, and is sometimes held up as an example of Lapin at their best.

The title by which the story is known comes from an extremely popular and successful Broadway musical by that name. It originates from the climax song of the production, which contains the lyrics:   Nite will fear,
For love draws near.   This song has been covered and remixed by several artists, and a novelization spent 10 weeks in the top ten of the New York Times bestseller list. An anime based on the musical is also in production.

Bronze sculptor Barbara B. Peterson, also the creator of the Kin Beach Memorial bronzes, created an exhibit based on the events of the story that featured a series of bronze statues showing the Queen and Royal Consort in the key moments of the tale. This exhibit remains on display at the Lapin War Museum in Ottawa.   Fan art of "Nite Will Fear" is also a popular subject for online artists.