//------------------------------//
// The Dragonslayer and the Queen 
// Story: SAPR 
// by Scipio Smith 
//------------------------------//


The Dragonslayer and the Queen


“The rooms are smaller than they were at Beacon,” Penny explained as she led Sunset, Cinder, and Cardin down one of the many corridors that ran up, down, and through Atlas Academy. “It might take a little getting used to.”
“Trust us, Penny,” Sunset said. “After some of the places we have been sleeping lately, we aren’t in a position to complain that the dorm room isn’t big enough.”
“The last place we slept was a palace,” Cardin pointed out.
“And the place before that was a cocoon for me!” Sunset reminded him. “And before that, we were camping.”
“I guess,” Cardin agreed. “But now we’re back in an Academy, back in dorm rooms. Just like Beacon.”
Penny stopped, looking at them over her shoulder. “No,” she said softly, “it isn’t.”
A sigh escaped from Sunset’s lips. “No, you’re right; it isn’t,” she agreed. “It can’t be. We can’t … we can’t ever get those days back, as much as we might want to. We just have to—”
“Please don’t reach for cliché,” Cinder muttered. 
Sunset fell silent for a moment, turning her head a little to glance at Cinder. That was the first thing that Cinder had said since they had left General Ironwood’s office, escorted by Penny — Rainbow, Ciel, Applejack, Blake, even Twilight had all accompanied General Ironwood — to their accommodation for the near future, until their business was concluded or they were ready to set out on the next leg of their journey or both. It had been something of a trek, especially since Penny had shown them around key points like the cafeteria rather than heading straight on to the dorm room, but Cinder had kept silent all through it. Perhaps it was simply weariness that stilled her tongue, but Sunset worried that it was more than that. 
She had been very … ashamed? Embarrassed? What she had had to say in the General’s office to get Rainbow off her back had not been pleasant for her. Some of it had needed saying, perhaps, but that hadn’t made it any easier for Cinder to get the words out. 
Sunset was concerned in part because of just what Cinder had chosen to say to break her silence. It reminded Sunset of their first conversation after Cinder’s allegiance to Salem had come out. 
“I’d hoped to avoid reaching for cliché.”
And then they had gone on to discuss those three words, or rather, Cinder had raged at those three words while Sunset listened with a sort of horrified admiration. 
“We can’t get the past back,” Sunset said, avoiding the cliché. “Everything ends, sooner or later. Everything ends, and it’s always sad. You’re right; it won’t be just like Beacon: Pyrrha, Jaune, and Ruby aren’t here—”
“Neither is Russel,” Cardin added. “And Weiss and Flash… well, they’re not really here, are they?”
“But since we can’t get the past back, we just have to focus on making new things,” Sunset went on. “Even when we get to Mistral with Pyrrha and Jaune, things still won’t be like they were back then. They’ll be different, they’ll be something else … but that something else can still be pretty cool.”
Penny smiled, but it was a sad smile, touched by melancholy. “I wish I was going with you,” she said.
“Can you not?” Sunset asked. “Why don’t you talk to Rainbow?”
“I’ll try,” Penny murmured. “But I don’t think they’ll let me. I don’t think they’ll let the Dragonslayer disappear to Mistral like that. I’m too important. I have to stay here to be shown off for people.”
“You may not like it,” Cardin said, “but people need hope at a time like this, and hope needs symbols. Everyone can scoff, or wring their hands in horror at what’s going on in Vale, but we need symbols to inspire the people, and the old ones weren’t cutting it. The fact that you’re one of those symbols… it’s good work, even if it isn’t the work that you want.”
“I know,” Penny murmured. She clasped her hands together in front of her and looked down at them. “But I would have liked to have seen them again.”
“Well, I can’t do that,” Sunset said, a smile spreading across her face. “But do you want to talk to Ruby for a bit?”
Penny gasped, her green eyes widening. “Really? I would love to! But … how? The CCT is down, and even if it wasn’t, I don’t think they have coverage out in the wilds.”
Sunset patted the satchel she wore across her shoulders, containing the magic journals that she had brought back from Equestria. “I,” she said, “have got a magic book, that when I write in it, the words appear in another magic book that Ruby has.”
If Penny’s eyes got much wider, they were going to pop right out of her head. “Really?”
“How do you think I arranged for you to go to Equestria?” Sunset asked.
“I … didn’t really think about it,” Penny admitted. “So you’d let me borrow that book?”
“I’ll be there too,” Sunset said. “I need to tell Ruby and her father about Yang—”
“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Cardin asked.
Sunset turned her back on Penny so that she could turn on Cardin in every sense. She glared at him, her ears drooping. “Are you serious?”
“If Ruby finds out that her sister is alive, won’t she be distracted?” Cardin said. “She’s engaged in very delicate work, trying to build a kingdom out of sticks and mud and good intentions. She needs to be focussed on the job—”
“So what, I should just keep the fact that her sister is alive from her?” Sunset demanded.
“What if she drops everything and ditches Freeport to run to Anima to look for Yang?” Cardin asked.
“Ruby is not that kind of person!” Sunset snapped, her voice rising. “Ruby is the most duty-bound person I have ever met, and the most selfless besides. She’ll do what she has to, no matter how much it hurts.” 
Those were not entirely good things, in Sunset’s opinion, but they would be good things for Freeport in the current circumstances; they would continue to be able to count on their Rose Queen, no matter what she learned about what was going on in the rest of Remnant. 
“And I’m going to pretend that you didn’t just say that,” she said, her voice descending to a sort of growl. 
Cardin flinched. “I was only thinking—”
“I’m not going to lie to her,” Sunset declared. “Not again.” She didn’t give him the chance to reply, turning her back on him and facing Penny once again. “So, what do you say? I’m sure she’d love to hear from you.”
“And I’d love to talk to her again too,” Penny cried excitedly. “When can we start? Can we start now?”
“Why don’t you show us to our room first?” Sunset suggested gently. “Then you and I can go somewhere private and leave Cinder and Cardin in peace.”
“I need to call Weiss once we’ve dropped our bags off,” Cardin said. “Or Flash. Or both of them.”
Cinder didn’t say what she might be doing.
“Oh, right,” Penny said. “Yes, of course. Sorry, I just … sorry. It’s this way. It’s not much farther now.”
She quickened her step, eagerness and impatience making her walk faster than before, so fast that, despite her diminutive height, Sunset had to almost jog in order to keep up with her. After not much longer, she brought them to a corridor that was dark until they entered it, the lights turning on only as they set foot upon the carpet.
“This part of the Academy is only occupied when Atlas is hosting the Vytal Festival,” Penny explained. “It’s where the students from Beacon stay when they visit. So you won’t get a lot of people coming and going, and you won’t be disturbed.”
“Appropriate, too,” Sunset remarked.
Penny nodded. “I thought so,” she said. She stopped outside the second door down the corridor. “And this one’s your room!” she said, gesturing at the door with both hands. 
The door slid open. The room within was smaller than the dorms at Beacon; it was very narrow, and about a third of it was taken up by the beds, for all that they were bunks — or pods — stacked up two by two against the wall. 
Nevertheless, as Sunset had said, considering some of the places where she had been forced to sleep, she wasn’t in much of a mood to complain. 
“Thanks, Penny,” she said. “So, do you guys want top bu—?”
Cinder brushed past her, walking immediately to the nearest bottom bunk and crawling on top of it; it was a little too small for her, so she had to hunch up her legs. 
Or, given how it seemed as though she were curling up into a near foetal position, maybe she just felt like doing it. 
Her back was to them, and she said nothing. 
“Cinder?” Sunset asked.
Cinder still said nothing. 
Cardin cleared his throat. He sidled around Sunset and crept into the room, staying only long enough to drop off his backpack before leaving again. “I, uh, I’m going to see if I can get hold of Weiss,” he said, walking away with undue haste and not another word. 
Sunset stared at Cinder, on the other side of the door, curled up in bed, her back to the world. She glanced at Penny. “I’ll just be a minute,” she whispered, before entering the room. 
The door slid shut behind her, leaving Penny outside. 
Sunset stepped lightly across the carpeted floor of the dorm room, depositing her bags down on the floor as quietly as she could. 
“Cinder?” she asked again. 
Still no response. 
Sunset’s brow creased. She walked — 'crept' might have been a more apt description — over to Cinder’s bed, and sat down upon the edge of it. “Hey, what’s wrong?”
“Go,” Cinder said. “I’m sure that Penny is barely containing herself.”
Sunset put one hand on Cinder’s shoulder. “What—?”
“Go,” Cinder repeated, her voice sharpening this time. “Please just go.”
Sunset looked away, the creasing of her brow becoming a full-on frown. She pursed her lips. Her ears, which had only just recovered after the dressing down she had given Cardin, now drooped once again. She didn’t want to leave Cinder, not when she was obviously upset about something, but at the same time … Penny was waiting, and there were things that Ruby needed to know. 
And Cinder didn’t seem to want her around right now. 
She bent down and kissed Cinder on the shoulder. “I’ll be back,” she promised, before getting up and making her way back to the door. 
It slid open, revealing Penny bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet on the other side. 
Sunset raised one hand, and the green glow of magic consumed her palm and the Freeport journal as it flew out of her satchel and into her hand. “Okay,” she said as she stepped through the door and heard it close behind her with a hiss. “I’m ready now.”
Penny grinned, although the grin faltered a little as she asked, “Is Cinder going to be okay on her own?”
“I hope so,” Sunset said. “She’s … probably the most resilient person I know. She always bounces back from practically anything.”
“That wasn’t what I meant,” Penny said. “I meant, is she going to be okay left on her own?”
“You don’t trust her either?” Sunset asked.
“She was our enemy,” Penny pointed out.
“And now she isn’t,” Sunset replied.
Penny blinked. “Do you really think it’s that simple?”
“Yes,” Sunset said. “People change sides in war. Look at Blake.”
“That’s different,” Penny said. “Blake is … Blake is kind.”
“And Cinder is proud,” Sunset said. “Yet if it were not for her, then Ruby would be dead by now.”
Penny gasped. “Really?”
“Really,” Sunset confirmed. “I couldn’t get to her, no one could, there was only Cinder; it nearly cost her her own life, but she kept Ruby safe. She may not be as humble as some would like, she may not express sufficient remorse for the liking of some, she may not feel that she has as much to be remorseful for as others do, but by her deeds in the darkness, she has proven herself, and more than once.”
Penny hesitated for a moment. “Do you trust her?”
“I do,” Sunset said without hesitation. And besides, she hardly seems in the mood to burn down Atlas, or whatever else you think she might do. “Now, where shall we go?”
Penny’s eyes lit up once more with enthusiasm. “I know just the place!” she said. “Come on, follow me; it’s this way!”
She rushed past Sunset, heading back the way that she had come. Sunset followed, a smile on her face, glad to have gotten over the hump of that particular issue and back onto more pleasant topics, even if she did have to run to catch up with Penny. 
Penny led her up corridors, and up flights of stairs as well, too impatient to wait for any elevators; when they came to a lift, she would push the button, stand there for a couple of seconds, waiting — bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet all the while — before declaring that it would be quicker to take the stairs, come on, this way. 
And so they climbed and moved and ascended upwards, ever upwards, higher and higher up the highest tower in Atlas, until at last, they emerged onto the roof. 
It was still night time — of course it was; for all that it felt as though that conversation in General Ironwood’s office had taken hours, it hadn’t actually taken very much time at all — and the sky was dark all around them. Dark, and yet illuminated in all directions by lights: the neon lights of the city; the illuminated signs of the big businesses whose own towers rose out of the earth in futile competition for the academy in height; the pilot lights of the cruisers hovering in place; the moving lights of the smaller, more nimble airships flying here and there, filling the air with the whine of their engines. The stars were invisible, drowned out by all the light that man was making, but at the same time, it hardly seemed to matter, because standing here, on top of Atlas  Academy, it was like floating in a field of stars. 
All the city lights burned bright below, and all the lights burned bright above and all around on General Ironwood’s airships. All the lights in Atlas shone, and though it was night, the darkness had no dominion, for the light of Atlas chased it all away. 
“It’s wonderful, isn’t it?” Penny asked as she walked to the very edge of the roof, where the shining metallic guard rail was supplemented by sheets of glass to prevent anyone from slipping out beneath. 
“It’s magnificent,” Sunset said, coming to join her. Atlas would never be her favourite place in all of Remnant — it was too modern, and too vulgar in its modernity — but at the same time, she could not deny that it was an impressive sight, this work of man. A city in the clouds, and them without even the ability to walk on clouds. 
Yes, what they had done merited some respect, even if Sunset didn’t particularly like the result. 
“Are you sure we won’t be disturbed out here?” she asked.
Penny shook her head. “Not that many people come up here,” she said. “And not at night.”
“Why not?” Sunset asked. “This view is incredible.”
“I don’t know,” Penny said. “Perhaps people just don’t appreciate what they take for granted?”
“Probably,” Sunset muttered. She knew that feeling well enough. She sat down upon the cold but clean-looking grey ceiling tiles, resting the journal upon her lap. “I’ll just say hello, and then I’ll hand it over to you,” she said, as Penny sat down beside her.
“Aren’t you going to tell her about Yang?” Penny asked.
“Not yet,” Sunset said. “I mean, not right away. Cardin wasn’t entirely wrong; if I tell her about Yang, then it will be the only thing that we talk about, for understandable reasons, but … I’ll let you spend some time catching up, let you talk about something … something else, for a little bit first.”
Penny frowned. “Are you sure? You said to Cardin that—”
“It’s not like I’m not going to tell her,” Sunset said. “It’s not even as if I’m proposing to keep this a secret for even so much as a day. There’s a difference between choosing to hold off for a little bit and choosing to keep silent. Trust me, Penny, I’m not doing anything wrong, and neither are you.”
Penny was silent for a moment. “I would like to talk to her.”
“And you will,” Sunset promised. “Just give me a second, okay?” She opened up the journal. With all the lights of Atlas shining below, she didn’t need to cast any spells upon her eyes to be able to see the paper in front of her. Sunset fished a pen out of her pocket and started to write. 
 Hey, Ruby, are you there? 
There was a pause. Sunset glanced at Penny. There was a touch of sheepish laughter in her voice as she said, “Of course, something that we didn’t consider is that she might have gone to bed by now.”
“I guess it is kind of late,” Penny murmured. “Do you think we should try again in the morning?”
“No need to give up just yet,” Sunset replied. “Just … if she doesn’t reply, that’s probably why not. Either that, or she’s in a late night conference with her lords and chieftains and can’t be disturbed.”
 Hey, Sunset. 
“Ah,” Sunset said. “Here we go.”
 Did I wake you? 
 No, although I was going to turn in.
 Is that a hint? 
 No, it’s fine. I probably won’t sleep anyway, the way I am now. 
Sunset felt a twinge of guilt at the thought that Ruby almost certainly wouldn’t sleep once Sunset was through, but not enough to make her reconsider. Apart from anything else, Ruby wouldn’t forgive her for keeping this secret from her. And she had a right to know, by all natural justice. 
No, she had to tell, regardless of what state Ruby was in to hear the news. 
 How are things? 
 Being queen was a lot easier in the books. I wish I could just pull a sword from a stone, hold it up and shout ‘behold!’ and everyone would bow before me. 
 Rough day? 
 Everyone wants something. Everyone wants more than I can give them. 
 I’d ask if you want any advice, but you have better people to counsel you than me. 
 Ember and Rutherford do their best, but I’d welcome anything that you have to say. 
Sunset glanced at Penny.
“It’s fine,” she said. “You’ll do better helping her out than I can.”
“I’m not so sure about that,” Sunset muttered. 
 So what’s the problem? 
 There are two villages, not far from Freeport. They’ve both acknowledged me as the new queen, which is good, except now I have to solve their problems because I’m their queen. 
 Are they under attack? 
 I wish. No, I don’t really, except that if they were under attack, I’d know what to do about it: I could lead the Rangers out and defend them from the grimm or whoever was attacking them. No, the problem is that they’re fighting amongst themselves. They both claim ownership over some land that lies between the two settlements. Apparently, they’ve been feuding over it for as long as the two villages have existed.
 And it hasn’t been settled yet?
 It’s been settled plenty of times, apparently; they just never accept the settlement. Laurel tells me that the Sun Queen fixed the boundary as the river that runs between the two villages, only now, the Sun Queen is, you know, so they’ve both come to me to argue the case in the hope that I’ll give them a better deal.
 Loath as I am to credit the Sun Queen, fixing the boundary on the river doesn’t seem like a bad idea. Tell them that her settlement of the dispute stands and get rid of them. 
 I would, except the Sun Queen made her settlement stand by threatening to send her Rangers in if either side broke the peace. I don’t want to sic troops on my own people just because they won’t do what I say, but at the same time, if I can’t persuade them to settle this somehow, then they might start fighting each other, and if they do that, it will bring the grimm down on them. What am I supposed to do, Sunset?
Sunset hesitated for a moment.  I take it there is nothing to suggest who is actually in the right, one way or the other?
 No, it’s all too far back. Nothing was written down, and it’s all just memories — self-serving memories. 
 What do your advisors suggest?
 Ember says that I should award the land to the village that didn’t divert the river when it served as their boundary.
 One of them diverted the river?
 They moved it so they could get more of the land. 
 I can see Ember’s point, that’s just cheeky; even if I do admire the audacity of it. 
 Torchwick says that they should be rewarded for their cleverness. I’ve just spent hours listening to them argue until I wanted to yell at them; there must be a way that I can resolve this.
 Have you spoken to Princess Celestia?
 Not yet. 
 You should definitely do that. I’m sure she’s encountered a problem like this at some point in her long reign.
 Don’t you have any ideas? 
 From what you describe, I’m afraid I don’t think there is any way that you can please everyone. They both want too much, and are too entrenched in their positions, for there to be any solution in which one of them, at least, doesn’t feel as though they’ve lost out. But, since there is no proof one way or the other, then as I see it, you have three options: you can award all the land to the village that you like better, either because they’re more loyal, or because they can give you things the other cannot, or simply because that’s what your gut tells you; you can renew the Sun Queen’s judgement and set the river as the boundary — and maybe set it back in its original course or warn them not to divert it again; or you can split the land fifty-fifty between the two villages. But whatever you decide with regard to the land, I advise that you send a force of Rangers to occupy the disputed area between the two villages. Tell the villagers that they are there to protect them from the grimm — which they will do — and that said villages are required to help maintain them as the price of your protection: they have to feed and water your men, at least in part. They should get the message: play nice if you don’t want to be eaten out of house and home. Then, when things quiet down, you can move them out but threaten to send them back if grimm activity flares up again. 
 That might work, but it still sounds kind of harsh. 
 It’s a lot less harsh than attacking people, and to be honest, considering what you’ve told me about these people, it might be no less than they deserve. It’s your choice, and I would certainly consult Princess Celestia and take her advice over mine, but that’s what I think. 
 I’ll think about it. Like I said, I can see that it might work. It’s not really what I want to do, but I’m not sure how much choice they’re leaving me. Is Princess Celestia there now? 
 No, I’m afraid not. I’m actually in Atlas right now, and I’ve got someone here who wants to talk to you. She slid the book over to Penny. “Sorry for taking so long.”
“It’s fine,” Penny assured her, as she plucked the pen from Sunset’s unprotesting fingers. She began to write in a furious scrawl. 
 Salutations, Queen Ruby! It’s me, Penny!
 Penny! Oh, you don’t have to call me queen or anything, Penny; Ruby is just fine. In fact, I’d really prefer it; I’ve had enough people calling me queen for a day. 
 Okay, then, Ruby it is. But I still can’t believe you’re a queen! 
 You heard, then. Sunset told you?
 It was one of the first things she told me when she arrived in Atlas! I’d say that I was so happy for you, but it doesn’t sound as though that’s what you want to hear. 
 Have you seen what I had to say to Sunset? 
 Yes. 
 Then yeah, it’s not exactly leading armies all the time. Which is good, because it means that there isn’t anyone around right now who I should be leading an army against, but all the same, this is why I always wanted to be Olivia, not King Edward. 
 You mean from that book Dove gave you?
 That’s right. I always wanted to be the knight errant, riding out to take care of trouble wherever it reared its ugly head; instead, I’m going to be the one sending out other people to take care of trouble, unless the trouble gets so big that I have to take care of it myself. Dad says that I can’t just go off whenever there’s a report of grimm, and I get why: I’m the queen, and I’m the one who has to make all of the decisions, but at the same time, that means that I have to make other people run the risks, face the dangers, while all I can do is 
 Trust them? That sounds a lot like General Ironwood. 
There was a pause from Ruby before she announced.  Huh, I suppose it does, doesn’t it? That’s ironic. 
 Because of what you and Rainbow talked about during your essay together? 
 How do you know about that? 
 It came up not too long ago, during Sunset’s meeting with General Ironwood. 
 That’s a weird coincidence. Yeah, I hadn’t thought about that, but yeah, you’re right. It’s funny; I said to Rainbow Dash at the time that I preferred to be able to make my own choices, decide where I wanted to go, what battles I wanted to fight, and that I didn’t get how she could just give that up and place her will in the hands of a man like General Ironwood. Now, I suppose I’m on the other side of that; I probably wouldn’t be too happy if Ember or Rutherford or one of my rangers decided to go off on their own because they didn’t think I’d made the right decision. 
 I don’t always like the decisions that General Ironwood makes for me, but I don’t envy the decisions that he has to make. 
 Are you okay, Penny? What does General Ironwood have you doing? 
 Performing. 
 What do you mean? 
 I’m touring Atlesian settlements selling war bonds. Apparently, Penny Dragonslayer is more use keeping morale up than slaying any more dragons. 
 'Penny Dragonslayer'? Is that what they’re calling you now? 
The slight smile on Penny’s face told Sunset that she had meant for Ruby to pick up on that. 
 Yes. 
 That is so cool! That is the coolest thing; that is so much cooler than the Rose Queen, or the Queen of Roses, or the Silver Queen, or any of the things that I get called. 
 But isn’t the Silver Queen about your silver eyes? 
 Yeah, but it still just sounds as if I have lots of money. Which I don’t, and I kind of wish I did, because then I could buy stuff for Freeport, but I don’t, and anyway, it’s just not as cool as being called 'Dragonslayer.'
 Well, you’ll just have to find a dragon of your own to kill. 
 The one thing about being here in Freeport is that they probably would start to call me that if I could find a dragon. But I probably won’t. Like I said, I wouldn’t be allowed to go and fight it even if one did show up. I have to leave that to other people now. 
The smile fell from Penny’s face.  It seems like neither of us got what we wanted. Or else, we got exactly what we wanted, just in the worst possible way. 
 No, I’m pretty sure I never wanted anything like this. 
 Then why did you take it? 
 Because no one else could. Or no one else would. Or probably the best way to say it is that nobody who could have, would, and nobody who would have, ought to. Does that make sense? 
 I think so. Anybody else who might have wanted to be queen shouldn’t be? 
 Pretty much. How much has Sunset told you about the Sun Queen? 
 I know that she was another Sunset Shimmer. 
 Yes, she was, and that’s very weird, but it’s not really the most important thing about her. The important thing is that she wanted to be queen. She wanted to rule. She wanted to be the boss, and so, to stay on top ,she was willing to use her troops to enforce her will, to arrest people, to hand me over to Salem, just for the sake of her own power. That’s the kind of person who wants to be queen, and while there aren’t that many people who want to rule Estmorland, there are plenty, I think, who would like to be kings of their own little castles, and not all of them can be trusted with it. I don’t know if I can be the queen that Freeport and Estmorland need — the kind who puts her subjects before herself, the kind who builds a kingdom, the kind who protects her people and leaves them a land that was safer and more secure than when she found it — but I’m determined to try my best. 
 And I know you’ll succeed. 
 That’s nice to hear, but how can you be so sure?
 Because you’re Ruby Rose, and you can do anything, and you’ll let nothing stop you! 
 Thanks, Penny. It’s good to know that I’ve still got you on my side, no matter how far away you are. 
 I wish that you were here, or I was there. 
 I wish that too, Penny. More I wish that I was there with all of you. How are things in Atlas? Is everyone okay?
 I don’t know absolutely everyone, but the people I know are all okay. Things are alright here in Atlas, mostly, but I’m afraid it’s not all good. Jacques Schnee is running for a seat on the Council, and people seem to think he’ll win. 
“What?” Sunset exclaimed. “I’m sorry, but what? Nobody mentioned that to me!”
“You didn’t ask,” Penny replied.
Sunset rolled her eyes. “How was I supposed to know that I had to ask?”
“But isn’t this good for you?” Penny asked. “You want to sell him Ruby’s dust, right?”
 That might actually not be such a bad thing. I mean, I do want to sell him the dust mining rights, and with him on the Council too, he’ll be willing to support us. 
“No,” Sunset said. “No, that’s wrong; you’re both wrong. Just because I am willing to deal with the man with regards to business for Ruby’s sake and that of her people does not mean that it is a good idea for a shopkeeper to be voted onto the ruling council.” A man in trade, making the laws, can you conceive of it? 
This would never have happened in Equestria.
 Sunset’s not very happy about it.
 I love Sunset, but she can be a terrible snob sometimes. Did she say something really stuck up? 
“I … that is so…” Sunset’s mouth worked in silent indignation. “I am not a snob; I have standards.”
 She called Mister Schnee a shopkeeper.
 That’s about what I thought. 
“A lesser person would take umbrage at these grave assaults on my good character,” Sunset muttered.
 Sunset, if you’re there, there’s nothing wrong with a businessman being on the Council. At least they know how to run stuff and don’t have to pick it all up as they go like me. 
“Tell Ruby that—” Sunset paused. “You know what, can I have the book and pen back for a second?”
Penny obediently passed them over, so that Sunset could write once again. 
 There is more worth in your good intentions and sincere desire to do good by the people than there is in all of Jacques Schnee’s experience or his business acumen. It does no good for a land if its ruler is experienced if he is also as venal as a dragon. Kind hearts are worth more than the SDC’s billions. 
 You’re not going to tell him that when you see him, are you? 
 Ruby, just because I think he’s a jumped up little man who should have known his place in the gutter he crawled out from doesn’t mean that I’m going to say so to his face; credit me with some tact and restraint. I will be as deferential as if he were a man of good breeding and superlative reputation. That is, if I get to see him, General Ironwood has not yet made up his mind as to whether to help us. 
 That doesn’t sound good. 
 It’s not bad. He wasn’t going to help us at all, but I managed to talk him into considering the idea, so I’m hopeful that he’ll come to the right decision after a good night’s sleep. And now I’ll pass you back to Penny in case there’s anything more she wants to say.
Penny smiled as she took the book back from Sunset. 
 I think that General Ironwood will help you too. Sunset made a great speech, about trust and how Salem won’t win because we’re awesome.
 Really? I’m sorry I missed that.
“I’m glad it was appreciated, but it was just…” Sunset trailed off. “It was the truth, lightly seasoned with rhetorical flourishes.”
“That’s good, isn’t it?” Penny asked. “Otherwise, you would have been lying.”
Sunset considered that for a moment. “I … huh. Yes, I suppose you might have a point there, Penny.”
Penny returned her attention to the book.  But there isn’t that much else to tell. It kind of feels as though we’ve all been waiting here. Waiting for Salem to make her move, waiting for Sunset, waiting for news. But now, not only is Sunset here, but Rainbow Dash is going to lead a squad to Mistral to help Pyrrha and Jaune! I just wish I could go with them. 
 'Help Pyrrha and Jaune,' are they okay?
Penny hesitated. She looked at Sunset, her green eyes seeming uncertain. “Are you going to tell her now?”
Sunset ran one hand through her hair. “I suppose I probably should, shouldn’t I?” She didn’t really want to do this, but … it was good news, wasn’t it? Yes, yes of course it was. Yang was alive. Previously, she had been thought dead. That was good news. Life was almost always good news. Yang was alive, and all that mourning had been in vain. 
Which was, of course, the part that made it seem like bad news. Because Yang was alive, and yet, someone — Raven — had been happy for Ruby and her father to think that she was dead. To weep, to mourn, to grieve, to fall apart from the strain of losing her. She had been content with that. She had allowed that. 
The fact that someone could be so cruel, the fact that Yang was in the clutches of someone who could be so cruel, was what made it seem like bad news, even if it wasn’t.
But good or bad, it was news that Ruby had to know, and she had to hear it from Sunset.
With some reluctance, she levitated the book off Penny’s lap and back onto her own. She stared down at the pages for a moment or two, or three … or four. She stared down at the page but wrote nothing. The facts blocked off her will to set them down. 
Her hand trembled with the pen in it. 
 Hello? Penny? Sunset? Is anyone there?
“Sunset?” Penny murmured.
Sunset closed her eyes for a moment. She let the pen drop, then, instead of trembling fingers, she used magic to move it across the page, writing as she would have in Equestria. 
 Ruby, it’s me again, it’s Sunset. Yes, Pyrrha and Jaune are okay, at least as far as the last word we have of them goes. Lady Nikos came to Atlas before us, to seek General Ironwood’s help in her own right, and she brought news with her. Jaune and Pyrrha are in Mistral, and it turns out, you aren’t the only one stepping up to take on responsibility for the world. 
 What do you mean? 
 Pyrrha has raised a company of warriors, the Myrmidons, to defend Mistral from the grimm and from bandits. Salem’s agents are making their move there, so Rainbow and Blake are going to help with a team, and once I find Professor Ozpin, I’ll join everyone there too. We will, I mean: me and Professor Ozpin both. 
 I wish I could be there. 
 I wish that too, and so will Pyrrha and Jaune.  Once more, she paused.  Ruby, there is something that I have to tell you. I’m not sure how to say it; that’s why I’ve kind of put it off, letting you talk to Penny first, getting that out of the way, because this is likely to be the only thing that you can think of. I’m sorry, it’s a terrible thing to spring on you before bed, but I think once you hear it, you’ll understand why I thought you needed to know and not have it kept from you. 
 You’re being really ominous Sunset; what’s wrong? 
Sunset closed her eyes, screwing them up tight. She forced herself to open them again and write.  Yang is alive.
There was a moment of no response in the journal. 
 I know that you would never joke about something like that, but it feels like a really bad joke all the same. How? And how do you know? And where is she? And why did she let me think that she was dead, and if she really is alive, then is she there? Can I speak to her? How is she? 
 Slow down, Ruby. 
 You just told me my sister is alive; you catch up!  There was a pause.  I’m sorry, that was
 Merited. Don’t worry about it; I should have known better. I know that Yang is alive because Lady Nikos told me so: she saw her, in Mistral, and Pyrrha and Jaune saw her too. 
 What’s Yang doing in Mistral? How did she even get to Mistral? 
 Yang isn’t in Mistral; they saw her there when she came to visit. She is with Raven Branwen and her tribe.
 Raven? Raven Branwen? A bandit tribe? How did she  The writing stopped, and Sunset could feel Ruby working it out for herself.  Raven took her, didn’t she? 
 In the midst of the battle, yes.
There was no response from Ruby. No response for a moment. No response for moments stretching on. Moments that became minutes. Minutes that multiplied. No response from Ruby, no response from Freeport, no response for this most wonderful and terrible of news. 
No response at all. 
“She’s not okay, is she?” Penny whispered.
Sunset put one arm around her shoulders, drawing her in. “No, Penny,” she murmured. “No, I don’t suppose she is.”
Still no response. 
“What do you think she’s doing right now?” Penny asked.
“I don’t know,” Sunset said, though she tried to imagine. Was Ruby crying? Was she weeping out her frustrations and her sorrows? Was she pacing up and down? Was she screaming out her rage at Raven and her actions? Was she throwing things? Had she just thrown the journal across the room or out the window? Had she left the room to stride about the palace, muttering darkly about the deeds that had been done to her and her father? Had she gone to tell her father? Had she gone to bed, to fling herself down atop the covers and press her head against the pillow but gain no rest, for Raven had murdered sleep?
“I just don’t know,” Sunset repeated.
Almost as soon as she said it, words sprang up on the page.  How? How could she do this? How dare she? 
 I do not know Raven’s mind or heart.
 I’m not sure she even has a heart. Is Yang okay? 
 Aside from the fact that she is with the bandits, I have not heard otherwise. 
 You said that she was in Mistral, right? You said that Pyrrha and Jaune saw her there, right? 
Sunset thought she saw where this might be going.  They couldn’t rescue her, Ruby. They tried. Lady Nikos tells me that they offered Yang sanctuary, but she refused it. I think she might be afraid that, with her semblance, Raven could just get in and take her. 
 Then something will have to be done about Raven, then. Sunset, do you love me? 
Sunset felt a chill run down her spine. Her equine ears pricked up. The words looked stark and spiky on the page. Her breathing slowed as a weight like foreboding settled on her chest.  You know I do. 
 Then rescue my sister. If you’ve ever cared about me, if you’ve ever done anything for me, if you’ve ever helped me, then help me in this. That’s what you do, isn’t it? You help people?
 That is my destiny. 
 Then help me. Help Yang. Save her. Make Raven let her go. 
Make her how?  You want me to go to war for you? 
 If you love me, you will not deny me this. 
No, no I will not, but if you knew the truth, you might deny yourself. Sunset closed her eyes. She had not expected this, but perhaps she should have done. After all, she was Sunset Shimmer. Sunset Shimmer who helped others to shine, Sunset Shimmer who saved lives, Sunset Shimmer who made the impossible possible. Surely, one bandit, or even a whole tribe of them, would be no match for her. 
“Sunset?” Penny murmured. “What are you going to do?”
“If this is what she wants, then I will do it,” Sunset replied softly. Ruby was right; she could not deny her this. She had disappointed Ruby too often, let her down too often, failed her too often. She would not refuse her, not now.
“But Raven has the Spring Maiden,” Penny reminded her.
“And I am an alicorn,” Sunset declared. “Perhaps … perhaps there need be no violence. Perhaps I can persuade Raven to let Yang go, as I persuaded General Ironwood. But if not … if not, then I will leave her no choice in the matter.”
Penny frowned. “But Pyrrha’s mother said—”
“I know,” Sunset said. “And Ruby will know too.”
 There is a reason why Pyrrha didn’t simply fight Raven to save Yang from her clutches. Raven and the Branwen tribe have made a deal with the Mistrali government; they are under the protection of Mistrali law. An attack upon them would break the peace and could make trouble for Pyrrha and Jaune. The Council fears Pyrrha’s popularity, and I fear that they will take an excuse, however slight, to come down hard upon her.
 Are you saying you won’t help me?
 I will set fire to Anima if you ask it of me, but I want you — no, I need you to know exactly what you are asking before you ask it. Is this still what you wish? 
 What I wish is my sister back! Nothing else, just that; isn’t that enough? Don’t I deserve that at least? Why is this so hard? 
These choices always are, Sunset thought, but all she wrote to Ruby was  I’m sorry. 
“You could have just said no,” Penny pointed out, somewhat accusingly.
“She would not have understood why,” Sunset replied. “I am willing to try and help Yang, but she has to know in advance, or it will weigh upon her later when she finds out.” I will not take her choice away again; I cannot.
 I don’t know. I need to think about this. 
 I’ll be here. Take all the time you need. 
“What do you think she’ll decide?” Penny asked.
“I would normally say that Ruby will always do the right thing,” Sunset said. “But in this case … I’m not sure what the right thing is. So the truthful answer is … I don’t know.” She gave Penny’s shoulder a squeeze, almost to reassure herself as much as to reassure Penny. “I just don’t know.”