THE PRINCESS PRIDE
Celestia’s sun began to rise above the horizon. In a nearby small town, a small dragon in a small bed—inside of an awkwardly large tree—began to stir. The green and purple dragon sat up, yawned, and gave a big stretch. He clambered out of his basket and made his way to the stairs, where he noticed a blur of lavender motion from below.
"Twilight?" Spike asked, groggily.
"Hi, Spike!" Twilight Sparkle shouted as she worked.
"Twi, did you sleep last night?"
Twilight was exasperated. "Huh? Oh, Wow! Morning already? I guess there's no time for sleeping, then!"
"What have you been doing this whole time?"
As they spoke, Twilight had rushed back and forth between her desk and her bookshelves so many times that Spike had grown weary of counting. All the while, she had been levitating various pens and papers, making plans and meetings between her and her friends or different ponies with whom she now worked in her royal position.
In fact, ever since her crowning, Twilight, already a notorious busybody, had become even more busily embodied. She rarely stopped her work, which mostly entailed some minor accordances and appearances at Ponyville's many events and speeches. Such work was reserved for the town’s political officials, but Twilight chose to shoulder their load, anyway. Spike often asked why, and he usually heard that it was her "duty as a princess of Equestria.” He also received lectures on relationships of power and responsibility, but he typically blocked those out.
"Well, Pax wants me to make a speech at the re-opening of the Cloudsdale Library next week, and Mayor Mare would like me to help judge the annual Ponyville cider contest on Tuesday. Luna and I are also supposed to go to Canterlot for a fundraiser on the 23rd, so I've been making the necessary arrangements all night! But that's behind me, now. What's on today's agenda, Spike?"
As Twilight was finishing her sentence, she sent a small, leather-bound book surrounded by a pink aura at Spike; it flew a bit faster than Spike would have liked. He caught the book, causing his palms a minor stinging sensation, and he flipped to the day’s date. "Let's see...Today, at two, you're supposed to give a lesson to Cheerilee’s class about the monarchy...at four, you have a meeting with the Mayor to discuss upcoming event...and at six, you're supposed to have coffee with Cadance.”
"Oh, good! Those gaps give me just enough time to finish Diplomacy For Dummies!”
"Twilight, you know we have diplomats for that.” Spike had noticed Twilight meticulously study many things that she would probably never do. She was reading Diplomacy For Dummies, Impeachment For Idiots, Federalism for Fools, and other guides with similarly derogatory titles. Spike was upset; Twilight was a heavy reader, but now that she was a princess, she rarely stopped her "work."
"I know, but what if I ever need to? I'm a princess now, Spike! I have more responsibility! I need to be prepared for anything.”
"I guess..."
"Anyway, I need to get going. I have some errands to run beforehoof," Twilight added.
"O.k., then. See you when you get back.”
"Oh! And while I'm gone, would you mind cleaning up?"
"WAIT WHA—" Was all that Spike could get out before a loud SLAM! Twilight was now out the door and on to town.
Birds crossed an azure sky dotted with puffy clouds, as it was a beautifully bright and sunny day above Ponyville. The day was breezy, but not windy; it was cool, but not cold. It was the kind of day that made a pony want to go outside, maybe have a picnic with family or friends, and either play some games or simply take in the loveliness.
And so they did. Blankets took up the ground throughout the park, atop which ponies sat, eating, chatting, or just enjoying the day. Groups of ponies also played hoofball, their jeers and running heard by all throughout. All the while, small ensembles played music to match the mood.
It was a stress-free day in Ponyville...except, of course, for a newly appointed princess.
Twilight Sparkle walked through the park, her face kept down at her planner. She scribbled some notes for the lecture that she was to give in about an hour, thoroughly looking them over and ensuring their accurate portrayal of the monarchy. She wrote and revised them over a week ago, when Cheerilee originally asked her to present, but she could never be too careful, she supposed.
A friendly voice suddenly interrupted her thoughts. "Hey, Twilight!"
Twilight turned to see her rainbow-maned friend waving. Behind her a few yards, the rest of the Elements of Harmony had a blanket.
"Hi, Rainbow Dash!" Twilight responded.
"Why don't you come join us? We brought food!"
"Oh...Sorry, Rainbow. I'd love to, but I have a lesson to teach in a little, and I can't be late.”
"It's cool. We’re going out for dinner, later—around seven, if you'd like to join us, then."
"Sorry, I'm kind of booked all day, but definitely some other time!"
"Oh. O.k., then. Maybe next week."
It broke Twilight’s heart to decline her friends’ invitations, but she wanted to represent herself as a hard working, dedicated princess. She still loved her friends, but she had a duty to the people. This duty, to her, meant sometimes sacrificing pleasure for business, and she would not be so pompous as to "pencil in" her friends. She knew that there would be time to spend with them later.
It's a busy time of year, Twilight reminded herself. Things will slow down, soon.
Twilight was an engaging speaker; the school ponies sat up straight and listened attentively to her lecture. She went on at length about the founding of the kingdom and the building of Canterlot castle. She told tales of adventurous princes and princesses who saved the magical land from its countless impending dooms. She went on for the better part of an hour and answered a few questions before the students were dismissed. They filed out of the room, some stopping to shake hooves, until only she and Cheerliee remained.
Twilight stared out of the window facing the park, where her friends and the other ponies were playing and having fun. She felt a bit jealous of them...all of them.
"Thank you very much for being here, Twilight.”
"Hu—Oh, yeah! It was my pleasure," Twilight responded.
"Is something wrong, Twilight? You seem distracted."
"Oh, it's nothing. I've just been really busy since my crowning, and I haven't had a whole lot of time to spend with my friends.”
"Twilight, you should have said something! I could have taught the lesson.”
"Oh, no! I was happy to do it. I'm a princess, after all; it's my duty to help when I can."
"You have a duty to your friends, too, Twilight," stated Cheerilee.
Those words hit Twilight hard.
"Why don't you go have fun with them, now?"
“I'd love to, but I have to be at Town Hall in forty minutes.”
"Well...Ok., but don't exhaust yourself, Twilight. It's not healthy," Cheerilee warned.
Twilight stepped back into the gorgeous weather and trotted back through the park,
waving to ponies who noticed her. She headed for the very tall Town Hall building to talk to Mayor Mare about upcoming events. This worried Twilight, but she dreaded saying "no" to ponies; it made her feel independable.
Twilight approached the front entrance and pulled the door, feeling a cold blast from the fans in the lobby. The building had a very nice interior: the floors were of a shiny, white marble, and local artists had decorated the whitewashed walls with murals. Twilight approached the reception desk, behind which sat a brown stallion with a black mane. He was Mayor Mare's secretary.
"Good evening, Princess.”
"Hi! I have an appointment with the Mayor set for four o'clock."
"Ah, yes! The Mayor said she had something important to discuss with you."
"She did? Did she say what it was?"
"I have no idea, but she can see you, now.”
A bit panicked, Twilight quickly ascended the stairs to the mayor’s office. Was it a good "important," or was it a bad "important?" Had she done something wrong? Did she upset somepony? These were the questions that ran through Twilight's head as she approached the Mayor’s polished, wooden double doors. As she slowly opened one, Twilight saw Mayor Mare glance up from her desk and smile.
Phew...
"Good, you’re here! Please take a seat, Twilight."
Twilight returned the smile and walked to the chair in front of Mayor Mare's desk. "It's good to see you, Mayor. Your secretary said you had something important to discuss with me.”
"Yes, I do. You are aware that the Ponyville Mayoral election is next month, correct?"
"Of course,” Twilight replied. “You'll be running again won't you?”
"I was planning on it, but I've been thinking, recently…”
"About what?" Twilight asked, confused.
"Well...Recently, you've been doing so much work around here that you've also been performing a lot of the tasks that I would normally do. People really like you, and you really seem to enjoy helping out, and to top it all off, you're a princess. So, I have a small question to ask you.”
Twilight swallowed hard. "What is it?"
"Would you like to be the next Mayor of Ponyville?"