Chapter 30: Over
Getting between an angry mare and Star Swirl was proving to be a difficult proposition to uphold, not to mention a potentially lethal set of circumstances. Right now I was balanced on the precipice of a window sill, dangling some ten or so storeys above the ground.
“Give me him!” Clover hissed. We had steadily circled around the tower and now I was backed up against the door. The door itself faced outwards, but I only realised this when I leaned against the door and felt it give way. Did I ever mention that doors in Star Swirl’s tower don’t have locks? They just swing freely for some reason. Star Swirl mentioned something about craftsponies having difficulties making it up the tower.
I was saved from an untimely doom by an unlikely source.
“Thanks,” I said. “But could you let me up?”
Clover had grabbed me, but I was trapped in a tightly gripping aura that held me aloft, rather than pulling me back up. The only thing between me and the ground was air, and cleaning up the mess afterwards was not going to be pretty.
I tried to convey this to Clover.
“You know, threatening someone with certain death isn’t inspiring trust between us,” I squeaked, my hand scrabbling for the door frame. I kept missing it by the fingertips.
“Oh relax,” Clover growled. “You’re not in real danger.” She pointed a hoof behind my back. “Give him up!”
“I’d love to,” I replied, feigning a casualness I didn’t feel. At least I thought I was feigning it, in reality I could just be a blubbering mess. “But, uhh, he’s not in my hand.”
Clover blinked at me. Then her eyes went out of focus for a second before snapping back to me.
“He’s gone again! Sneaky little…”
Clover continued to say a few choice words that I really don’t think should be repeated. I told Discord in no uncertain terms not to say them. In response he just shrugged with a smile. I rolled my eyes at his nonchalant attitude.
“No seriously—”
I let out a surprised yelp as the force holding me from the ledge suddenly disappeared.
“Oh no, no, no!” I screamed as I tipped backwards. I windmilled, realising full well how ridiculous it would look doing so.
“Harmony!” Discord yelled and abruptly I felt a tug on my t-shirt, pulling me forward.
“Ah! Oof!”
I tumbled back inside, my heart pounding for what seemed like a thousand beats per minute. I collapsed on the floor with a wheeze, while Clover just stood there with a curious expression on her face. She didn’t look like a mare that had just done nothing while I almost fell to my death.
“Wha– What were you thinking?!” I yelled at her, furious.
Clover blinked at me.
“You could have just teleported back in,” she replied, with an arched eyebrow.
My mouth froze in the open position, the ready retort dying in my throat as her words sank in.
“I– Oh…”
I guess in an adrenaline rush, it’s hard to form coherent thoughts.
Discord looked surprised as well, as if the thought hadn’t occurred to him as well.
“That’s still… That’s still was nasty!”
Clover rolled her eyes at us. “You know,” she drawled, her eyes raking across the room. It looked like she was still looking for Star Swirl. “Unicorns have the same problem. Magic is about focus and sometimes the most basic things escape your mind when you’re in out of your depth. Think of it as a lesson.” A clatter of glass crashing to the ground made me wince as Clover knocked down Star Swirl’s lab equipment. She still looked intent on finding him. I wouldn’t envy Star Swirl when she got her metaphorical paws on him. Even if I knew where he was, I don’t think I would rat him out, har har. I still didn’t like how Clover was just casually destroying things willy nilly.
Clover must have noticed our stricken expressions because she huffed and simply… reconstructed the glassware. Holy moly, she just did a reconstruction. Just casually. Just about the only pony I knew who could do that was Tempora.
“H-How did you do that?!” I exclaimed.
Clover smiled. “You just have the reverse the vectors. Everything leaves a trail behind, it’s all one big system. It’s hard to explain, but I suppose it is like turning back the hand of time. Takes a lot of power and focus, but it can be done. It only works if it’s the last minute or so, then it gets too complicated.” She glared at the glassware, as if doing so would somehow make Star Swirl magically appear.
Discord waddled up to Clover. “You seem nice,” he said. “Why are you so mad at Star Swirl?”
Clover sighed, giving the place one more thorough sweep before collapsing on the couch.
“Oh it’s been an ongoing thing. I have a passion for travelling, you know? Learning about magic abroad and around the vastness of this world. For a while I entertained the notion of settling down. I even took an apprentice—” her expression darkened “—if you can guess who.”
“I don’t get it,” I said. “What happened?”
Clover rubbed her eyes. For the first time, I noticed that there were bags under them. “Nothing, really, until I felt the urge to travel again. I sort of… got up and went. I left a note, but I had already taught Star Swirl what he needed to know.”
I gestured for her to continue.
“Then…?”
“Then I found out what he did with my unfinished research!” Clover exclaimed, exploding from the couch. She started pacing, her eyes fixed to the ground as the clatter of her hooves beat a regular pattern. “I could take it if he just finished my work and then co-authored it, but he had the gall to publish it under his name and told everypony that I was his apprentice! The nerve of that impudent little…”
My eyes widened.
“Why the heck would he do that?”
Clover stomped a hoof. “That’s what I’m here to find out,” she ground out through her teeth. “And when I catch him…”
She left unsaid what she was going to do, but I think it was pretty obvious. Clover’s muzzle was scrunched in frustration and she returned to the couch, folding her forelimbs that reminded me of the way people cross their arms when they were mad. The posture was unexpectedly amusing, but I put a temper on the laughter. Her glare stymied any flippant comment I was about to make, anyway.
I glanced at Discord.
“Seems like we’ve heard her side of the story… and perhaps we might have found somepony to help us with that,” I said.
Discord cocked his head.
“That?” he said. Then his expression cleared when I gestured to my pockets. “Oh,” he exclaimed. “That!”
Clover glanced between us.
“What?” she said, her eyebrows knitted together in confusion. “What’s that?”
“That’s what we’re going to find out,” I replied. “It’s not important right now. How about, if we help you find Star Swirl, will you help us with something?”
Clover studied me suspiciously.
“Who says I need your help?”
I smirked. “I got him away. I can get him back.”
Clover grinned, rubbing her hooves together. I held a hand out gallantly to help her from the couch.
“Bargain struck,” she said, getting up from the couch. I lead her part ways to the door, gesturing for her to go first. I was chivalrous like that.
Discord leaned in towards me as we headed towards the door.
“You know the door leads nowhere, right?”
I heard a surprised yelp and an abrupt flash as Clover reappeared in a disordered heap in the middle of the tower’s room.
“Yep,” I replied and snapped my fingers.
Ah, revenge is sweet.