The Last Letter

by ManestreamStudios

Love

The Last Letter - Chapter 3: Love

Flash Sentry awoke bright and early the next morning, the moon hanging low in the sky in wait to be replaced by the sun. When the stallion became fully conscious, he forced his body to carry him off the bed and start the day. He was still somewhat tired. But his guard training had taught him to ignore his morning lethargy. And a good cup of coffee usually helped too.

Flash's body carried him into a showering area, where some of the other guard ponies had begun their morning rituals. Flash's was fairly unique compared to most. While many of the others took the time to relax under hot and steamy water - what little time they were allotted, anyway - Flash appreciated an ice cold shower. It helped him shake out the fog in his head, and even felt more refreshing than a hot shower.

Coming under an unoccupied shower head, Flash pushed on the left knob below its respective spout. Allowing an ocean-cold spray of water to quickly dampen his coat. having done this for so long, Flash was quite use to the sudden chill of the icy water, so it didn't affect him much. But he couldn't help how it tightened his skin and revealed some definition of his toned muscle. Nor the cooling rejuvenation that came with it.

"Cold shower again, Flash?" Came the voice of a red stallion, who went over to the shower next to Flash's and turned it over to hot.

Flash jumped slightly as he heard the voice, not expected him to be there among the others. "Black?" The red pony faced him and nodded with a cheeky grin. "Hey, Black Solleret!" Black Solleret was a unicorn he knew from the academy. They both were a part of the day guard, both in Canterlot and most of their service in the Crystal Empire. In recent years, however, Black opted to take a night shift after one of the night guard retired.

Flash offered his old friend a chuckle as he sat down and took some shampoo from a dispenser and began to massage it into his coat. "I'd give you a hug if we weren't in the showers right now."

Solleret gave a hearty laugh to that, working his own bit of soap over his fore-legs. "Save the PDA for your marefriend, Flash." he joked.

"So, what are you doing here anyway? Isn't it a little early for the night guard to be turning over?" Flash inquired, having worked to his mane and tail now.

"Word trickled through the ranks that Prince Armor has requested volunteers, for an important mission, to come in and present ourselves in the grand hall. Orders probably haven't filtered down to your level yet on the day guard."

"Important mission? Did anypony say what kind, or where to?"

Black just shook his head. "I'm sure they'll reveal the details there."

Flash looked down in thought, while he let the cold water rinse the soap from his fur. "Wonder if it has anything to do with Princess Twilight..."

Black's eyes flashed with a hint of evil intent, watching Flash Sentry ponder that thought. Black gave a foolhardy grin before completely turning towards him. "Why not? Then you two can get together and make out under the guise of night!"

Flash Sentry nearly gasped at Black's assumptions, mouth agape as he tried to counter. "W-What! It's not like that!, It's just that... I ran into her yesterday-"

"Oh, my!" Black continued in a sultry, yet sarcastic tone. Flash continued his gaze full of denial, but the coloring of his face betrayed his claim to innocence. Black Solleret just laughed, some of the other guards, who were listening in, releasing their own little snicker to keep from getting spotted. Finally, Black slapped a hoof around Flash, pulling him from under the cold water. "Lighten up, Flash! I'm just pulling your leg a little. Lots of guards fantasize about the princesses. It's become quite common after Prince Shining married Princess Cadance. Shit, you should hear who Princess Luna's secret admirer is!"

Flash couldn't help the redness in his face, nearly rivaling the natural color of his friend's coat. But the discoloration of his cheeks were dispelled when Black mentioned that Luna had an admirer. "She has a what!? Who?"

"Can't say..." he replied simply, letting go of Flash to rinse off under his own shower. Teasing his curiosity. "All I'll tell you is that he's a good friend of mine."

Flash grew his own smirk as he saw his opportunity for revenge, and seized it. "It's you, isn't it?" Flash shot Black a pair of bedroom-eyes when he looked back. Where he then proceeded to do his best imitation of Luna, slowly strutting over towards his friend. "Thou hast requested a secret meeting in thine wash room. Would thou love to speakest of thine affections for us here?" Flash then gave a very feminine flick of his mane, which did more of an ungraceful flop than anything else.

Black Solleret watched on with a bit of surprise, his red coat masterfully concealing his blush. While the rest of the guards watching now openly laughed, Black further hid his embarrassment by laughing as well. "Nice try, Flash. You know just as well as I do that Luna is not my type." he lied smoothly.

"The sergeant is coming!" one of the others called as quietly as the hissing showers would allow him to. Everypony was quick to silence themselves, getting back to what they were doing in a hurry.

Sergeant Iron Hoof soon appeared, trotting in slowly towards his usual shower head. "Listen up, Ladies! Prince Shining Armor has requested some of the day guard to show up in the grand hall to be chosen for a mission. I'm told it is to be volunteers only. If you've been looking for a chance to prove yourselves, I expect to see your armored flanks there, dressed and polished, at exactly O'-nine hundred. Have I made myself clear?"

"Crystal clear, sir!" everypony chanted in unison.

"Good! As you were."

After a bit of silence, Black Solleret bumped a hoof against Flash Sentry's side. "So, you gonna show up?"

Flash shrugged. "Sure, why not? I'm kinda curious to see what this mission is."

Black Solleret chuckled slightly. "Just try to keep it in your armor, Casanova."

---

Twilight slowly opened her eyes as she felt the warmth of the sun creep up her coat. Her blank stare distantly fell onto the covered window. Watching the silhouette of the sun rising to its morning position. She heaved sighed before lazily pushing the covers off of herself and scooting over to the edge of the large bed. One hoof touched ground after another, allowing her to move away from the bed and give a good, long stretch.

A hoof came up to rub the sleepies from her eyes, ushering the light of full consciousness to fill her previously dim gaze. Once that was done, her lavender coat sauntered over to a small vanity desk, where a pad of elegant stationery sat, waiting to serve the needs of its guest. Magenta aura gently took one sheet from its mild adhesive binding and hung it in the air, while a quill from a nearby inkwell came up to write on it.

Dear Princess Celestia,

I am writing to you from the Crystal Empire with some good news. Rainbow Dash was visiting today as well, and we were able to hang out and do a lot of catching up yesterday. After some much needed R&R, and a short discussion, she was happy to join me on my quest to the old kingdoms. She will accompany me while I gather the rest of my friends. I also wanted to let you know that I should be in Canterlot by noon. I have plans to visit my parents for lunch, catch up with Rarity and Spike afterward, and maybe see if there are any ponies willing to travel with me to the land of the old kingdoms. Assuming that all goes as planned, I should be able to spend dinner with you and Princess Luna, with plenty of time to receive four guards before bed, or early in the morning. I'll be sure to keep you and Princess Luna updated if anything causes a change in my schedule. I look forward to spending some more time with both of you.

Always your faithful student,

Twilight Sparkle

The length of paper then rolled itself up while the quill was put away. With the power of her magic, the parcel wrapped itself in a red ribbon and seal before disappearing into thin air. On it's way to its intended recipient. Once that was done, Twilight took the time to fix her mane in the mirror before going about the rest of her daily morning mantra.

---

Rainbow Dash was up and out of bed the moment the sun began to rise from behind the horizon. Spitfire was always pretty laid back in her personal life, but being a Wonderbolt meant business to her, and she expected much the same from all those who made the commitment. Waking with the sun, no matter how late you were out, was a big thing for her. And, so, it became a big thing for the prismatic pegasus as well. Though, that didn't necessarily mean that she would be aware and diligent until she got some food in her.

Cruising through her own waking habits on auto-pilot, Rainbow Dash went over to where she laid out her uniform and stuffed herself into the skin-tight outfit. Getting the tail through had been the most difficult part about it, but she'd become quite adept with dressing up fast. Once that was done, she looked over to a mirror, gazing lazily at her glorious, unkempt mane. Half of her bed-head swished upwards and stuck out in a lackadaisical way. A hoof came up to swipe across her moistened tongue, before she began to pet her hair back down to where it was suppose to be. Streaks of red, yellow, and orange fought against her tough love valiantly, but ultimately lost the battle and filed into place.

Content with her refurbished style, a knocking at her door drew her attention from the reflection. Legs still getting up to speed, cyan wings unfurled into a stretch before carrying the mare over to the door to open it. Upon doing so, Rainbow Dash was greeted with the image of her lavender friend with a suitcase under hoof. "Morning, Twi. What's up?" she greeted warmly.

"Just making sure you make it to breakfast. Want to walk with me?"

"Sure!"

Rainbow Dash was presentable enough for now. She'd worry about a more adequate cleaning later in the evening. Shutting the door behind herself, Rainbow fell in line beside Twilight as they walked towards the dining hall. Remembering all that happened yesterday, Dash opted to break the silence first. "So, I gotta ask. How'd you get Spits to hand me my promotion so early? Must have taken quite the effort..." Thinking about it, Rainbow Dash couldn't help feeling the slightest bit peeved that Twilight had gotten it for her. But these feelings were quelled by the fact that Rainbow was fully confident in her ability to have gotten it by herself. She also didn't want to offend her more than generous friend for having gone through the trouble.

"Well..." Twilight thought on it for a moment. She wondered if Rainbow would get mad, but she seemed like she was good enough friends with Spitfire that she wouldn't get bend over it. "You see, Soarin brought it to my attention that Spitfire had pushed your promotion back. Several times, in fact. She wanted to test your dedication... though, I couldn't fully agree with the reasoning."

"I already knew about that..." Rainbow stated casually. Though, it appeared to be news to Twilight, as she had stopped to look at Rainbow Dash with surprise. "What?"

Twilight couldn't understand how the knowledge of the situation just rolled right off of Rainbow. "You knew? But, Dash! She was unfairly denying you what you'd earned! Did you ever even press the matter?"

Rainbow Dash merely shook her head. "I'll admit, when I first realized it, I was kind of let down. I found out pretty quickly, too. I might be pretty laid back, but I don’t forget things like initial promotion dates. And it didn't take me long to figure out Spit's angle. She may be a little uptight about her operation, but she doesn't ever do anything without a solid reason. She wanted to see if I would have what it took to push through for myself, as well as the team. I just took it as a challenge. I would've worked for it all my life, if that's what it took to prove to Spitfire that I am ready! And you can believe that I will continue to work for my title. I was prepared to give it my all! Now, I'm going to give it an extra twenty percent. Because I'm cool like that." Rainbow Finished off her monologue with a savvy tone, emphasizing her air of limitless self-confidence.

Twilight was a bit surprised by her reply. The Rainbow Dash before her now seemed almost different from the one she grew up with. The level of patience she exercised in her situation was beyond what the Dash of her past would have cared to utilize. It almost felt surreal. Deciding to take it as it was, Twilight shook off her surprise and continued their trot down the hall. "Wow, Rainbow. That was... very commendable of you." was all she could say, for a lack of a better word at the time.

"Yeah, it was pretty awesome. You still haven't answered the question of how you did it, though."

Twilight blushed slightly for having gotten off subject so easily, then cleared her throat before continuing. "I explained to Spitfire that it would be very difficult for future ponies of my kingdom to enroll in her academy. If I were to have a Wonderbolt Captain to start a branch, especially one with prior weather experience, it would be much easier for my little ponies to attain more fulfilling lives. She wasn't quite ready to give you up, but Soarin gave me a hoof in getting her to say 'yes'."

“What did Soarin say?"

Twilight chuckled. "I believe he finally had her at, 'if you don't, I will'."

Rainbow gave a hearty chuckle. "That pie-munching defiant! Spits is gonna fry him one day." After that, another thing came to her mind, causing Rainbow to look over to Twilight with an expectant smile. "So, who else is going?"

Twilight Lost some of her smile at that question. "I... haven't asked anypony else yet. You were the first one."

Rainbow gave Twilight an off look. "Me? That doesn't make any sense. Pinkie, Fluttershy, and AJ are all still in Ponyville, right? Why haven't you asked any of them yet?" Twilight seemed to be looking away in thought for a moment. Twilight might be good enough with poker faces to get one over on Spitfire, but she didn't share the same realm of existence with Rainbow when it came to weeding out lies. Gently, her wings took the cyan mare up into the air and let her back down in front of Twilight, stopping them both. Her patience visibly growing thinner. "What are you not telling me, Twilight?"

"Nothing! I am not hiding anything!" Twilight shot back somewhat nervously.

"Horse apples!" Rainbow Dash retorted. "You may think that you were able to fly below my radar last night, Twilight, but I could tell you were holding something back. Every time I brought up our friends, you steered the conversation into a different direction." Twilight now looked down, taking a moment to plant her flank on the cold floor. "It wasn't just our friends in general, either." Rainbow continued. "It was when I would talk about Applejack. You'd talk about any of our other friends except for her."

Twilight heaved a sigh, and gestured for Rainbow Dash to sit down with her hoof. She did, and Twilight looked back to her with a hint of sadness in her eyes. "I... wanted to wait until we saw Rarity and Spike today to tell you. But, I guess I wasn't as inconspicuous as I had hoped." There was a bit of a pause as she pondered how to say it. "Applejack... is not doing well, Rainbow. She's hurting really bad right now."

Rainbow looked on with slight confusion. Out of worry, the first thing that came to mind was Applejack in a hospital bed tethered to life support. Which didn't help ease her mind in the slightest. "What? Buck the others, we need to go see her, then! Why didn't you tell me sooner!?"

Rainbow Dash went to fly off, but Twilight stopped her with a hoof. "No, no, you don't understand Dash. She's been through some emotional hardship, and she isn't coping well."

"Oh... okay?" Rainbow felt her heart rate slow down now, fearing less for her best friend. However, she could tell there was more.

"I did ask her first, the other night. I was just so excited at the prospect of getting back with everypony and having a good time again. Together. But... AJ just shut me down. It really hurt me to see her in such a bad way. It hurts even more to know that I could've made a difference. I guess it just never occurred to me how much time has really passed. How much has changed. I didn't think we ever would. Especially her. I can see now, though, that it was just a foal's dream."

Rainbow felt somewhat uneasy now. She cursed herself for having pressed the matter. She should've known better than to assume Twilight was hiding something without a good reason. "I-I'm sorry. I shouldn't have-"

"It's okay, Rainbow. I shouldn't have kept it from you. I know you care about Applejack a lot. So do I." Twilight took a moment to stand up now, a level of cool determination returning to her eyes. "That's why I am going to fight for our friendship. I'm going to prove to AJ that we all still love and care for her. No matter what it takes. We will have our Apple back! I'll make sure of it."

"That's the spirit!" Rainbow Dash said with renewed excitement. "C'mon! All this talk has made me hungry."

"Me too." Twilight agreed after a small chuckle, walking alongside her friend to meet with the others in the dining hall.

---

O' nine-hundred finally rolled in for the orange stallion, standing in line with the rest of the day guard, facing the night guard line-up on the other side of the throne. Waiting for something to happen. While the silence allowed him the clarity of thought, Flash Sentry began to wonder what exactly this mission could be. In all his years as a royal guard, Flash has never heard of the opportunity for a mission. The fact that it was volunteer-based instead of being assigned also made him question the nature of the task. 'What could it be?'

Before his thoughts could linger too deep, the doors opened wide, giving way to Princess Twilight, Princess Cadance, Prince Shining, and the freshly promoted Captain Rainbow Dash. Though, Flash was unaware of her promotion, so he only saw Legendary Wonderbolt Rainbow Dash. 'So, this mission does have something to do with Princess Twilight...'

Shining Armor and the others stopped just outside earshot of the guards before sitting down and looking to his not-so-little sister. "Alright, Twily. This is your show, now."

Twilight nodded with a small, somewhat uneasy smile, and trotted forward to address the guards. This kind of interaction felt foreign to the young alicorn, but she knew she could do it. Coming to stand right at the mouth of the royal guard gauntlet, Twilight took a moment to seat herself. "Thank you all, for coming today. I am sure you're all very curious as to what it is you may be selected for." Twilight half-expected to hear a response, but was only met with stoic eyes which secretly expected her to continue. A bit odd, but only because it was beyond Twilight's norm of Ponyville. "Ahem, well, I will be traveling to the lands of our forefathers far into the south, where Princess Celestia has asked that I settle a new kingdom. To help ensure that the journey is a safe one for myself, and my future subjects, Prince Armor and Princess Cadance have offered two guards to help lead my charge. Normally, a task like this might be assigned to you, but I have opted for volunteers to present themselves because of the nature of your duties, should you be chosen."

Twilight took a moment of pause before continuing. "I will be picking two guards to become a permanent part of my own. Which means you will not see your familiar territory here in Equestria for quite some time. So, please, if you have somepony special in your lives here, or simply don't wish to go, you may be dismissed from the hall. Nopony will think less of you."

It took a little bit of time, but soon enough, a small number of ponies from either side fell out of line, making their way out of the grand hall. Once they were gone, a decent amount of guards still remained. Twilight smiled, seeing that there were still plenty to pick from. Enough so that she could look each side over with a single glance. This would be good, too, because it would work in with her original plan. "Thank you. Now, when I ask, please present your name and rank." Twilight started with the day guard, slowly looking over each one as she passed. Eventually, her eyes fell upon an orange stallion with blue eyes, which caused her to stop. "Hey, Flash!"

Flash Sentry looked to Twilight with a hint of nervousness about him. "Aren't I suppose to say my name?"

Twilight blushed slightly, quickly taking another seat before him. "Right, right! Please, go ahead."

Flash gave a short smile before following through. "Flash Sentry! Private First Class of the Day Guard, your highness!"

Twilight could here Rainbow snicker across the hall after Flash presented his rank aloud. She merely rolled her eyes at the rainbow mare's dirty humor before continuing. "Do you feel that you can serve me dutifully and diligently under the weight of a foreign land?"

"It would be my honor, and my pleasure, Princess." Flash didn't have the slightest bit of hesitation in his voice.

"Very well." Twilight looked to the others on the day guard. "The rest of you may be dismissed." The entire row, save for Flash, fell out of line in unison and made their way out of the hall. It was at this point that Twilight looked over to the night guard, watching each pony with the utmost of scrutiny. Behind the veil of her expression, however, Twilight was at a bit of a loss. Aside from Flash Sentry, she didn't know any of these guards. Making it harder to choose which one to take. After some time, Twilight looked back to Flash, whose eyes seemed to wander slightly. "Can you give me a hoof, Flash?"

Twilight's voice snapped his eyes back to attention, and he raised his hoof into a quick salute before replying. "How can I help, Princess Twilight?"

"Tell me, do you know any of these ponies?"

Flash seemed to be a bit confused. But, mostly, surprised she even asked. "Uh. Yeah, sure. That one there is Jade Arrow. He's still a Private, but has shown an aptitude for archery. A fine ranger, I hear."

"I can clip the wings off of a Parasprite at two-hundred yards by Luna's light alone, your highness!" he said with a quick salute of his own, giving in to a small amount of boasting. Sounding eager to be picked.

"Impressive skill, Private Arrow." Twilight commented, then looked over to the one next to him. "Any of the others?"

"Well, that there is Staff Sergeant Ruby Facet. Among the few mares in our guard. I hear she's quick as a whip, and is adept with the use of many different weapons."

"A mare in the guard?" Twilight looked at her more closely now. In the face of a mostly uniform line based off of appearance alone, she did now notice that one seemed to be a little on the short side. Going over to stand before her, Twilight observed Ruby more closely. "I must say, I've never heard of a mare in the guard before..."

The unicorn, Ruby, threw up a hoof in salute, taking on a more stern expression now. "I may not be as strong, but I am quick and nimble, Princess. I'm proficient with the spear, axe, mace, and have mastered the eight sword technique."

Twilight looked genuinely surprised. "An admirable feat, Staff Sergeant! Not many ponies can consciously keep track of so many swords at once."

Twilight was even more unsure now, after having heard about a couple of the others. Though, she had noticed that Flash was pointing out ponies he'd only heard about. She looked back to him now. "Flash, have you ever worked with any of these ponies?"

Flash put a hoof to his chin, but not for too long. He quickly pointed out Black Solleret in the lineup, taking Twilight over to him. "Only one. Black Solleret, Private First Class. Me and him trained together in the Canterlot Royal Guard. I think I'll let Black speak of his achievements himself."

Black gave his own salute to the princess, though with a smile instead of a serious look. "Your majesty. I am experienced with the sword, like Ruby. Though, not on the same level. My specialty is battle magic. Primarily defensive and neutralizing magics, but I am no stranger to offensive spells. My most notable achievement would have to be my development of a nullification field."

"Nullification field?" Twilight inquired.

Black nodded. "The null field is a magic spell - if you will - that I developed myself, which scrambles the manifestation of magic in a given area. It was part of a tactic me and Flash developed for use against foes wielding powerful magic. We called it the sword and shield. Flash was the sword. I was the shield."

"Interesting!" Twilight was amazed that a pony could effectively turn off magic at will. Certainly, this would be very useful to her at some point. "How does it work?"

"It's a continuous 'spell' which floods the area with randomly alternating magic wavelengths. Invisible to the eye, but can be felt by the horn. These wavelengths disrupt magic by introducing themselves into the wave pattern of the other castor's magic aura, and disrupts it. Though the method is not perfect... one pony managed to unintentionally grow a tree beneath their hooves. But, for the most part, the random wavelengths render all magical intent useless. Thus far, I can hold a twenty yard radius for fifteen minutes, or a fifty yard radius for five. Double those times if I push myself from full charge to full exhaustion. It doesn't seem like much, but it can be more than enough to turn the tide of a magic battle.

Twilight seemed a bit confused now. Letting her inquisitive nature take hold of the mare's mind. "But, wait, if it nullifies spell-casting, how do you keep it from folding in on itself?"

Black chuckled slightly. "With all due respect, you majesty, the null field is not exactly a spell itself. I flood pure magical energy into the air in sort of a pulsing fashion. By adjusting the speed of the pulse at fast, random intervals, the released magical field then begins to interfere with the harmonized wavelength of all other spells."

"Fascinating! I can't believe I've never thought of that!" In the midst of her excitement for magical knowledge, Twilight almost lost herself. She pushed through to calm down some, and remember why she was there. With that, she cleared her throat some. "Mm-hmm, well. It sounds like you two were quite the team. I extend my offer to you, then. Do you feel that you can serve me dutifully and diligently under the weight of a foreign land?"

Black Solleret gave another salute to his princess. "It would be my honor, Princess Twilight."

Twilight gave him a nod, before looking to the others. "The rest of you may be dismissed." Again, one solid line of guards, save for Solleret, stepped back in unison to file out of the hall. Once they were gone, Twilight looked on to her two new guards. "I trust that you two can have your things packed and ready quickly?"

Flash and Black gave a firm nod at that. "We're guards, afterall. The sum of our possessions can fit in a saddle pack." Black replied.

Twilight gave them both a soft smile. "Great! Please be at the station within the hour. Dash and I will meet you there after I've said my goodbyes."

"With haste, Princess."

As they left, Twilight went back to join her small group of family and friends. "Well, that went much better than expected."

"You did great, Twily." Shining commented warmly, the group following her as they headed back to find Skyla. "Are you sure you don't want to stick around long enough to see if any of the crystal ponies would like to join you? I'm certain there would be a few who would be happy to help you pioneer the Far South."

Twilight simply shook her head. "I can't ask that of them. The crystal ponies only just recently got their home kingdom back. The kingdom they built themselves. There will be no castle to use in the old country. No homes, or even the simplest of luxuries. Not for a while. Things your ponies deserve for the hardship that King Sombra put them through."

"Things they all have now, thanks to you Twilight. Nopony has forgotten the role you've played in their freedom." Shining implored further.

"Spike was the one who saved them, Shiny. Spike." Twilight shot back calmly. Though, she could still taste the bitter hint of failure for not having been the one to do it like Celestia originally asked. "I know you mean well, Shining, but my mind is simply made up. Besides, I know this is just a ploy to get me to stay longer."

Shining Armor just offered a nervous chuckle. "Can't blame me for trying, though. Just promise me you'll be careful, Little Sis. If you need our help at all, just send a letter, and we'll be there for you, okay? Come Tartarus, or high water."

Cadance gave a small chuckle in amusement of Shining's brotherly love. "Just don't forget to invite us over to your new castle when it's finished. I'd very much love to see it."

"Of course! I'd love to have you over." Twilight then returned to her search for Skyla.

---

One hour passed by quickly for Twilight and her slowly forming company. All on the train headed for Canterlot. Flash and Black both took up seats behind the other two, watching the Crystal Empire fade away into the snowy land. Twilight seemed pretty preoccupied with Rainbow Dash right now, so Black bumped Flash gently to get his attention, then spoke in a low voice. "Hey! You told me you knew the princess, but you didn't say she knew you too."

Flash carried a low volume as well to reply. "So what? She knows my name. That's it!"

"That's it? Flash, buddy, you need to get your head out of your helm once in a while, it's cutting off circulation to you common sense!"

Flash gave him an odd look. "What is that suppose to mean?"

"I was there in the line-up, you know. I heard the way she said your name, I saw her expression. More importantly, the moment she saw you, she pretty much told the rest of the day guard to buck off. She didn't even ask you about your own combat skill, for Celestia's sake! Doesn't that say anything to you?"

“That I'm exceptional?" he said innocently, trying to avoid the inference he knew Black was making.

Black gave a low chuckle, shaking his head some. He knew Flash wasn't this dense. "You keep believing that, Flash. All I'm gonna ask is, how long do you think she'll wait for you, while you're waiting on yourself?"

"I'm not waiting on anything!" Flash said aloud indignantly. The whole train car fell silent, while Flash's face turned a shade of red for each pair of eyes now fixed on him. He only offered a nervous, half-hearted chuckle in explanation. He felt like the size of an ant right now.

"Is something wrong, Flash Sentry?" Came Twilight's voice with moderate concern.

"N-no... no. Everything is fine, your highness. I just... got a little excited." Flash Sentry then squeaked a bashful grin. Rainbow Dash stared at him with a level of disbelief, while Twilight seemed to contemplate the merit of his sincerity. Eventually, the two looked to each other, shrugged, and picked up their conversation where they left off. Much of the rest in the car did the same. Flash could feel a bead of sweat trickle down the side of his head after having narrowly dodged that incredibly odd situation.

---

The train arrived in Canterlot Station right on time, and the small group of four filed out in short order. Twilight with her dark blue case, Dash wearing her Wonderbolt outfit with the lightest of a rectangular impression below the collar. And the two guards, Black and Flash, both with a saddle pack over regulation armor. After all the excitement of his morning, Black Solleret was beginning to feel his body winding down rapidly. He'd already missed a couple hours of sleep just to volunteer. An additional hour and a half was lost to packing and the trip. Without much more energy to spare, Black was another half hour away from accepting the ground as his bed for the day. The sun that he normally loved watching rise into the sky just before sleep, to feel of its warmth and glory, now stung his eyes with divine anger. Secretly, he hoped Twilight would not convert him over to the day guard. It would be rough to accept the tough love of the sun after living under the cool, calming moon for so long.

"So, where are we headed first, Twi?" Rainbow inquired with moderate interest, lazily flying low in the air.

Twilight looked back out of the corner of her eyes to check on her guards. She had not forgotten that she picked one from the night guard, and for good reason. Solleret seemed to be having a hard time staying awake now, while keeping pace at the same time. Her eyes quickly shifted back to Rainbow without missing a beat. "I plan on visiting my parents first. I'm hoping a guest room will be in order for our nocturnal friend."

Black gave a fatigued smile. "I think I'd very much appreciate that, Princess."

"Are you okay, Black Solleret?" Twilight asked out of concern. Though he was managing to keep up, Solleret looked absolutely dreadful.

Black grunted while he gave a vain attempt to shake off his weary state. "I'm fine. Nothing rest won't fix..."

Twilight looked over to Rainbow Dash, both exchanging a knowing glance. Dash gave a nod and leaped up into the sky to retrieve a tuft of cloud large enough for one pony. Meanwhile, Twilight's horn glowed vibrantly, casting her magenta magic on the unsuspecting guard. Before he could ask or protest, the spell was cast, with Rainbow bringing the small cloud down before him shortly after. "Take a rest, Black. I can't have you working your night shift without proper sleep."

A more alert mind might have wondered how Twilight expected this unicorn to step on a cloud, much less rest on it. But as Black looked on to the white marshmallow puff, he couldn't help but test the water without question. A hoof came up to push on the top of the cloud, and found that it offered some resistance. It was then that he figured out what spell it was she used on him. Without thinking on it further, Black Solleret pushed himself up onto the cloud in a less-than-graceful way. Black hooves took a moment to put the cloud in an inviting form before plopping down to rest on his little slice of sky. It was every bit as comfortable as he imagined it would be, and then some. With a relieved sigh, Black smiled before closing his eyes. "Thank you, your highness. You're too kind."

Flash came up behind the cloud and gently pushed it along while the other two continued to lead the way. It wasn't much longer before they all arrived at their destination. For how casual Twilight sounded about this place, Flash Sentry half-expected it to be a quaint little upscale townhouse. But the gate they walked before now said it all. Twilight's parents lived on an estate. Beyond the fencing, on the top of a cozy hill, sat a mansion that reached three stories into the sky. It was charmingly rustic with a modern hint here and there, suggesting that the building has seen its fair share of tasteful remodeling. The only thing Flash could think at the moment, was that Twilight's parents were loaded. Somewhere, in the depths of his mind, he also wondered how Twilight turned out so well. Being a royal guard, Flash has met his fair share of rich folk. Not many of them were nearly as respectable as Twilight herself. Needless to say, this was a rather unexpected turn of events.

As they neared the entrance gate, a pony dressed in a royal blue private sector uniform came into view. Twilight hastened her step some to greet the guard. "Hello, sir!" She was sure she knew the guard's name at one point in her life. But it currently escaped the mare. It had been a while since she'd been home, after all.

When the voice called his attention, the guard looked over to see Twilight approaching with a few others behind her. He immediately recognized the alicorn heading the pack and began to open the gate for them. "Princess Twilight! Good to see you home again."

"It's good to be back. Is Mom and Dad home?"

"Of course! I last saw them in the lounge."

"Thank you." When the four finally passed through the gate, the guard closed it and continued to watch outward.

Trekking the small incline, Twilight came to stop at the door which held large knockers hung from the mouths of iron manticore heads. Twilight took one into the care of her magic and gave three good raps against the metal rest which the heavy ring laid against. After a short wait, a robustly aged pony opened the door to greet the estate's guests. "Ah, Lady Sparkle. How good of you to stop by for a visit." Came his formal tone. "Please, do come in." He opened the door wider to invite Twilight and her friends into the home.

"Thank you, Pennyworth." Twilight gave the earth pony a warm smile while she led the others into the open hall.

Pennyworth was a respectable stallion who had been the family valet and butler since she could remember. Light tan in coat color, with a white mane and tail. His mane had lost some of its former sheen, now resembling something akin to slicked-back snow, and the receding hair line was noticeably farther back. His tail, as always, was cut short in a uniform fashion. As a foal, Twilight always wondered if his tail hair ever grew, because that much never changed about him. His muzzle was accented by a thin mustache of the same shade as his mane and tail. Pale blue eyes being the only source of color on him that wasn't neutral in tone. A black and white tuxedo hugged his slender, lean build, stopping at the center of his barrel, allowing his black bow-tie cutie mark to show. To top off this personified formality, Pennyworth wore white cuffs just above his hooves which blended perfectly with his attire.

Twilight waited at the head of the line while Pennyworth closed the door behind the last guest. He then trotted along beside Twilight, where they all began to traverse the manor. Meanwhile, Rainbow Dash continued to look in awe at the marvelous estate. "Wow, Twilight! I knew your parents lived in Canterlot, but I didn't think they were loaded!"

Twilight simply rolled her eyes. "My parents are not loaded. They just manage their money well."

"There's enough real estate here to declare independence. They're. Loaded." Rainbow shot back.

"Don't be ridiculous. To declare independence, there would have to be enough land to grow an adequate amount of food to sustain everypony on the property. Considering the level of difficulty there is of growing anything on a mountain, they'd probably have to acquire at least another nine-hundred acres of land. Not to mention the cost of irrigation, and..."

Twilight carried on like this for about another minute and a half before Rainbow Dash had enough. "Guess I should've known better than to exaggerate in the presence of Princess Egghead." was all that Dash had to comment to grind her tangent to a halt.

"I am not an egghead! I am... well read!" Twilight shot back in mild protest. Though, a small blush powdered her cheeks for having gotten caught up in the subject.

"Totally never heard that one before."

In an effort to best the situation, Twilight immediately adopted a regal posture and cleared her throat. "Pennyworth, please explain to Rainbow Dash..."

"If you were any more well educated, Lady Sparkle, you'd have your own pedigree. However, I do believe we're all at an age now where we should not be taking offense to harmless banter."

"Yeah, Lighten up Twilight!" Rainbow chimed in.

"Especially when the name-calling comes from a school filly level of mentality." Pennyworth finished with a small smile curving his lips.

"Hey!"

Twilight and Flash gave a small chuckle while Pennyworth looked proud of himself. Choosing to draw the conversation in a different direction, Pennyworth took them down a different hall. “I presume you’ll be needing a guest room for your friend?”

“Oh, yes. Black Solleret is one of my night guards. I’m kinda surprised that he made it this far into the day.”

“Indeed.” Pennyworth soon picked up his pace to the head of the pack, before coming to a stop in front of a door. The others gave way for Flash, Pennyworth opening the door so he could settle Solleret into the room.

At first glance, one would not consider this room to have been made for guests. It was quite spacious, roughly just shy of what you’d expect the master bedroom of a typical house. A queen bed lay in wait for its guest, with a nightstand, a bureau, and a desk comfortably placed against the walls. Off to one side, there was a small closet, and a half-open door leading into a bathroom. This room alone held all the comforts of home for the average royal guard.

By the time Flash took in the glory of the guest room, he’d pushed the cloud holding the slumbering stallion up next to the bed. He knew Black to be a bit of a heavy sleeper. This late into the morning, he doubted a train wreck would wake him. So, instead of prodding him back to life, Flash made his best effort to remove the saddle pack and some of the armor Solleret still wore, setting it all into a neat pile at the foot of the bed. He then tilted the cloud to allow Black to roll off onto the bed, and then gave the cloud a swift buck to disperse it. Having been disturbed some, Black snorted obnoxiously before his body tossed over into a more comfortable position to continue his deep slumber. Flash gave a quiet snicker before leaving the room to join the others.

“He’s going to be out cold for the rest of today. Probably won’t wake up until the moon has already risen.” He commented to Twilight after the door was shut.

“That’s fine. I'm certain I can have somepony tell him where we'll be when he wakes up."

"Indubitably, Lady Sparkle."

Twilight turned her calm smile towards Pennyworth now, ready to move forward. "If you could take us to my parents, Pennyworth, I'd appreciate it. I'm on a tight schedule today, and I'm sure they'll want all the time I have to talk."

"Of course, right this way." Pennyworth began to backtrack through the halls to lead them all to the lounge. "A word of caution, though. Madam Velvet has been in a bit of a fuss about not having grandchildren from you yet. She's been awaiting the day for some time now."

Twilight's ears flicked to the faintest sounds of a giggle from Rainbow Dash. Though, she didn't let the topic faze her. "Her and Celestia both." She commented with no large level of joy in her tone. Still, she gave a small smile and continued. "Mother will just have to wait a little longer. Besides, I cannot afford to settle down anytime soon. I still have a few adventures left in me."

"I wouldn't doubt it, Lady Sparkle," Pennyworth began with a cheeky smile of his own. He turned down a new hall now, the rest following suit. "Just make sure you don't forsake your love life for the promise of a thrill. You may still be young, but youth is a fleeting thing anymore."

"I'll be sure to keep that in mind." she chuckled.

Rainbow Dash groaned slightly now. "I hope half of the conversation isn't wasted on talk about having foals. Seriously! I get that other ponies want that stuff, I just don't understand it when they act like its a hype."

Twilight rolled her eyes at the rainbow mare. She could've guessed that Rainbow Dash would feel that way about the subject. "Maybe you'll understand more when you have somepony of your own in your life, Rainbow. If you ever slow down enough to allow that to happen." she teased.

Rainbow opened her mouth to protest, but quickly bit her tongue. 'What am I gonna say, that I do have somepony in my life?' At that, Rainbow Dash heaved a sigh, "Whatever..."

Twilight chuckled a bit to herself and looked back towards Flash Sentry. “What about you, Flash? You seem like the kind of stallion that would understand.”

Flash thought on it for a moment, the lightest of blushes dusting his cheeks. “Yeah… kinda…”

“What do you mean, ‘kinda’?” Rainbow jumped in. “You either want foals or you don’t.”

Flash opted to look away now, finding a great deal of interest in the choice of wall paper. “I’m not sure. I mean, I would like to have a family of my own, I guess. I’ve just… had a bad experience once. Besides, successful relationships and the royal guard don’t always mix well.”

Rainbow Dash couldn’t understand how Flash could be unsure of such a decision, but considering the context of his last statement, she figured it’d be the best not to press further.

The concerned Twilight, however, didn’t share the same sentiments. “You say that like it’s a bad idea to try…”

The blush was long gone from Flash’s face now, replaced with a slightly down expression. “In a way, it is. You see, for a guard, the crown comes first. no matter what. It’s part of our sworn duty. Even if the princess observes a holiday, the guard cannot. The day guard works all day, and the night guards work all night. So finding the time to foster a relationship is hard enough. Finding the extra time to start a family… well. It’s tough. Most guards find out the hard way. It’s something you learn after a few years of service.”

Twilight thought about that for a moment. “But you’ve tried once before, right? Isn’t it worth trying again?”

Flash shrugged now. Unsure of that as well. “I have tried, once…”

“... and?” Rainbow Dash inquired.

Flash just shook his head, not wanting to open up old wounds. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep.” was all he said after a moment of silence. His tone carried the words like they were a valuable lesson, backed with experience.

Twilight’s mind lingered on the subject for a minute. It was plain to see that Flash didn’t want to talk about it any further, so she decided to put a different spin on it. With confidence and a smirk, she looked forward, like the knowledge of a bright future had shown itself to her. “Well, when we settle the new kingdom, that’s going to change!” The group stopped for a moment, allowing her to turn back to her future subjects and share the light of her cool demeanor. “No pony in my kingdom, guard or citizen alike, shall be without the promise of a relationship, in all its forms. From friendship, to love, and every color in between. Everypony deserves the chance to pursue their dreams.”

“Well said, Lady Sparkle.” Pennyworth chimed with notable enthusiasm.

“I could drink to that!” Rainbow chuckled.

Flash felt his heart skip a beat at that, his muzzle agape slightly. In his eyes, you could see the image of a stallion that was presented with the instructions for a second chance at life. Not dissimilar to a foal who was given the recipe for the ultimate cookie. Though, after a few moments, Flash Sentry recovered himself, slowly shaking his head. But he couldn’t help a hopeful grin. “Pretty big words, Princess, if I may say so. I can’t help but feel a bit skeptical, though. How would you go about doing that?”

“Oh, don’t you worry. I have a knack for figuring things out. But maybe it would make you feel better if I put you personally in charge of keeping me true to my word.” Again, this earned a small bit of surprise from Flash. Twilight gave a small giggle with a blush gracing her cheeks for a short moment. She then turned around to lead them with Pennyworth beside her, finalizing her statement. “A princess is nothing without her resolve, but it never hurts to have a reminder.”

Flash took a moment to gather himself once more, trotting along with a bit less weight in his step now. He held a feeling within himself now that he could only describe as gratitude, or maybe admiration. All he knew was that it seemed to put a frog in his throat that prevented him from speaking his gratefulness. ’Thank you.’ He wanted to express it so badly, but unwillingly decided to internalize it for now, and save it for the time when this idea became reality. ’... thank you...’

---

“Oh! Twilight! It’s so great to see my little princess again!” came the excited tone of Velvet after seeing Twilight come in through an open door. She instantly came down off a couch and went over to properly greet her daughter.

“It’s very nice to see you too, Mom.” Twilight said as she met her mother with open hooves. Allowing her blue case to set down off to the side for now.

Flash Light took a moment to himself to fold up his newspaper and set it to the side for a moment, a robust Calabash hanging from his muzzle. From the smell that subtly filled the air, you could tell it was a perique blend smoldering away in the golden-brown meerschaum bowl. A couple of puffs leapt from the corner of his mouth before the pipe was pulled away to allow him to speak. “It’s great to have you home, Honey.” He began with a fatherly smile.

“Thanks, Dad.”

“Who’s this with you!?” Velvet chimed in curiosity, moving passed Twilight towards the two new faces.

Before Twilight could react, Rainbow Dash took on a proud demeanor while putting a hoof to her chest, “Name’s Rainbow Dash. Captain of the-”

“Oh my, would you just look at this!”

Rainbow’s eyes shot open, quickly realizing that Velvet had little interest in the rainbow mare yet. Twilight giggled to herself at Dash’s expense, before all eyes fell upon Flash Sentry. Who was currently being circled by the observing mother.

"He's Flash Sentry, my first guard." Twilight elaborated for her mother, hoping that would get her to stop scoping him out the way she was.

"Uhh... pleased to meet you, Ma'am...?" He said nervously. Under his helm, a bead of sweat ran down the side of his neck, quickly taking notice that Velvet was spending more time outside of his field of vision than inside it. Suddenly, Flash stopped hearing hoof-steps, and his nerves wouldn’t allow him to turn around and see what she was doing.

“You are quite the charming stud.” Velvet continued, her tone just a little too dirty for comfort. Flash felt a hoof going through his crest, almost as if it was his mane, and his eyes visibly narrowed, locking on to Twilight now. ’Help me?’

Twilight couldn’t help a small laugh to herself, seeing her mother get her hopes up. She also couldn’t contain a small blush at the thought. “Mother, please stop molesting my guard. We’re just friends, not an item.”

It was Velvet’s turn to blush now, pared with a small and lady-like gasp. “Molesting? I was doing no such thing!” Her hoof quickly came down from the crest of his helm after that, not wanting Twilight to get her by technicality. “I’m just… uhm… you know, me and your father were just friends once, too…” she continued, changing the subject about as smoothly as she could at the moment. She then leaned in to Flash Sentry’s ear for a short moment to try and sneak a whisper. ”She likes Neightallian food the most.”

Twilight rolled her eyes while her mother trotted happily back to Twilight’s side, feeling like she’d just sparked the beginning of a relationship. Meanwhile, Flash looked like he’d been mercilessly violated, while Rainbow Dash was stifling her laughter. Pennyworth merely expressed a smug grin for his humor. “Well, now that you’ve met my guard,” Twilight then gestured to Rainbow Dash for her introduction. “This is one of my best friends, Rainbow Dash. The recently promoted Captain of the Wonderbolts.”

“Oh, wow, a Captain now? You sure didn’t waste any time since you appeared on the scene, did you?” she commented as she came over to shake the mare’s hoof.

Rainbow kind of shrugged it off. “The key is in not slowing down.” Was the playful quip she offered.

Twilight gave a small chuckle along with her mother, the two sounding very similar in the way they laughed. “Rainbow, this is my mom, Twilight Velvet."

"Huh, two Twilights? Shouldn't be hard for me to remember that."

"Took me a while to get use to it. It gets kind of weird when you call one name and have two mares answer you back." Flash Light commented lightly, having finally joined the little group. He came right up to Twilight Sparkle's other side and gave her a short nuzzle of their cheeks.

Both Twilight and Velvet offered their own nervous chuckle to that statement before introductions continued. "This is my father, Flash Light."

"Pleased to meet you, Rainbow Dash." He started as they took a turn shaking hooves.

"Likewise." She replied, before something occurred to her. Rainbow looked back to the guard curiously, who looked like he might have noticed it as well. Then, back to the others. Velvet shot a knowing glance, while the other two seemed just slightly confused.

"Something the matter, Rainbow?" The alicorn asked.

Rainbow stifled a snicker as best she could, before elaborating. "Oh, nothing. I just noticed how you and your guard buddy share the same name as your parents. What are the odds, right?"

Twilight would have instantly offered a statistic, but the revelation put her mind elsewhere currently. This caused a slight pause before her answer. “Without doing the math in great detail, about one in ten million would be my best guess…” She heaved a sigh after that, though quietly. After a moment, she put on a small smile and looked over to her father. “So, how have you been, Father?”

Flash Light offered a knowing smirk before he put a hoof around his daughter’s shoulders, walking her over towards a door. “Well, I’ve been great, Sweetie. Lots to talk about… what do you say we sit down to lunch?”

“That sounds great.”

---

The small group of ponies made their way to the dining room, Twilight enjoying herself now that they were all finished trying to throw her into the guard’s hooves. Velvet talked about her latest books and commented on the work of others, sharing many opinions about the same stories with her alicorn daughter. Flash Light, however, seemed content with talking about current events, which Twilight didn’t mind either. Sometimes she would get to talk about some of the things she has done in a seemingly past life, in which Rainbow loved to interject all of the flowery details to perfectly capture the intensity of certain moments. Flash Sentry was not without his own input. Velvet hadn’t forgotten the fetching stallion.

The group shared a laugh with plates of salad before them, while he regaled one on his memories of guard academy. This story was of an incident he had with his drill sergeant, when it was discovered that Flash had prevented the passage of a commander on his first day of sentry duty. A commander whom Flash Sentry had a rather sour run-in with previously.

“So, after Commander Storm raised a big commotion, Sergeant Withers came up to me and demanded I give one good reason why he shouldn’t smoke me until I couldn’t even feel my feathers. That’s when I told him, ‘Sir, with all due respect, my job was to spear anypony trying to gain access without a special entry pass. Commander Storm is lucky that I wasn’t told if I was suppose to spear him, or the escort pulling his chariot!’ “

Everypony shared a good, but short laugh after that. “Did you get smoked, Flash?” Rainbow Dash asked, knowing too well what the term meant.

“Best one-thousand wing-ups of my entire career.”

Feeling her inquisitive nature beg for an explanation, Princess Twilight was compelled to ask. “Smoked? What does that mean?”

Flash put a hoof to his chin while he thought of the best way to word it. “Well, it’s guard lingo for a form of punishment. When you’re out of line, and you get smoked, it means that you were pushed to do physical training until you were sore. Sometimes its wing-ups. Sometimes its galloping and exercise. Sometimes, for the unicorns, you’d be pushed to magical exhaustion. But usually it was some form of physical training regimen.”

Twilight’s brow furrowed slightly at the thought of being forced to train until her body was sore. It certainly wasn’t a pleasant one. “That sounds… archaic.” She commented, trying to put it lightly. She wanted to say barbaric, but the lack of displeasure in his tone suggested that he didn’t mind it as much as she did.

“You wouldn’t understand it, Twilight. Smoking builds strength and character. Helps you learn to work with your team. I mean, sure, it burns, but you get used to it. And that’s when you know you’re strong!” Rainbow finished her statement while flexing a foreleg. The definition in her muscle tone became momentarily prominent as it creased her suit, before letting her leg relax back into its normal smoothness.

“It still sounds archaic.” Twilight continued.

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes some. “It’s harmless. Smoking never killed anypony.”

“That doesn’t stop it from sounding archaic.” Twilight chuckled. Finding a small form of amusement in Rainbow Dash trying to justify the subject. She ate some more of her leafy greens before Velvet decided to turn the topic in a new direction.

“So, Twilight, what brings you to Canterlot?” Velvet asked. She knew her daughter well, and she knew that Twilight didn’t go anywhere without a reason.

Twilight thought on it for a moment, wondering how to say it without her parents reacting dramatically. She quickly began to doubt that was even possible. “Well, I’m here to gather some ponies together for this task Celestia gave to me. She needs me to settle the old kingdoms where a crystal relic is.”

Rainbow Dash nodded. “I’m going to be helping with weather control, and heading my own division of the Wonderbolts.”

“I think that’s wonderful, Twilight!” Flash Light said without hesitation. Velvet, however, didn’t seem quite as enthusiastic.

“Oh… wow! Old kingdoms? Castle and everything?” Velvet asked, a hint of apprehension in her tone.

“I’m going to have to build my castle, in all likelihood. I’ll probably start small first and work my way up to having a castle. But, yeah, I’ll have my own kingdom to tend soon enough.”

“That’s… nice, dear.”

Flash Light rolled his eyes. “Well, don’t break out into song and dance now, Honey.” he commented sarcastically.

“No, no no no! I mean, it’s great, Twilight, Sweetie. But, I was kind of hoping you’d end up… somewhere closer to home.”

Twilight offered a knowing nod. “I know it won’t be easy at first. But its not like I’ll be gone forever. You can come visit whenever you want to. You’re welcome to move with me just as well. I’m going to need a lot of ponies to start a settlement.”

Velvet looked over to Flash Light, who shook his head slightly, but still smiled comfortably. “I would love to, Twilight, but we’ve got too much here to just uproot and resettle. Besides, this is your big move, Honey. Your time to shine. Having me and your mother along would slow you down more than anything else.”

Twilight seemed a little bit down by the response, as well as Velvet. But, all the same, her father’s smile allowed her to keep her own. “Thanks, Dad. I’ll leave my offer standing in case you ever change your mind.”

He nodded in return. “Much appreciated, Twilight.”

Twilight looked over to her mother now, whose eyes were watering slightly. Twilight gave a small, playful sigh. “Don’t worry, Mom. I promise to let you know the moment I have foals so you can come spoil them.”

“Don’t get cheeky with me, little miss. You may be a princess, but I’m still your mother.” Velvet snickered her response. None of the three noticed that Rainbow Dash was using her fork to pretend to gag herself while Flash Sentry muffled a laugh.

“So, you say you need some ponies, huh?” Flash Light began, a thought coming to mind. Twilight hummed her response before he continued. “Well, have you thought about asking Pennyworth?”

Twilight’s eyes widened slightly at the thought. “I… don’t think I could ask of something like this from Pennyworth. This trip isn’t going to be easy, the railroad doesn’t even go halfway to the territory.” Her first and foremost concern was that the family friend might be too old for a long-distance travel.

Flash Light gave a hearty chuckle. “Pennyworth may be older, but he’s not helpless, Honey. Besides, you are kind of like family to him. Pennyworth probably looked after you just as much as Cadance did.” Twilight nodded slightly before Flash Light continued. “And I’m certain that building up an empire won’t make it easy to have your own family, much less raise a foal.”

Twilight cocked a brow. “Cadance and Shining seemed to have faired well.”

“They also took over a pre-existing kingdom, and had no short supply of help available to them.” came Light’s counter.

Twilight considered that for a moment. That made sense when she thought about it. “Well, I mean, if it would be that hard, I’d just wait until I could be more prepared anyway.”

Flash Light gave a small chuckle, “If you say so. Still, you cannot deny that it wouldn’t hurt to ask.”

“Well, no, but…” Twilight sighed. There wouldn’t be any arguing with her father. He was the inventor of reason. “Fine, I will ask him. But, tomorrow, in the-”

“Pennyworth, can you come here for a moment, please?” Flash Light called, to Twilight’s dismay. However, she fully well knew his policy about putting things off. Soon enough, Pennyworth strode in from the doorway to the kitchen, where he’d been doing some cleaning.

“How may I be of assistance, Master Light?” Pennyworth inquired.

“I believe Twilight has something to ask you.” Light now directed Pennyworth’s attention over to her, casting a hoof to point him towards the correct Twilight.

Holding everypony’s attention, Twilight could feel the tension of her nerves now, a bead of sweat rolling down the back of her neck. Her eyes first glanced to the patient stare of Pennyworth, then to her parents, before looking over to Rainbow and Flash. Rainbow just shrugged, as if to say, ‘Why not.’ Flash seemed relatively indifferent as well.

This took all of a moment before Twilight forced down her off feelings and cleared her throat. “Well, Pennyworth. You see, Princess Celestia needs me to settle the land of the old kingdoms, near an important relic. To do this, I’m going to need a lot of ponies. And the more I can get that I know and trust, the better. So, what I’m trying to say, I guess, is, uhm-”

“I’d gladly journey with you, Lady Sparkle.” Pennyworth began, wanting to swiftly end her discomfort that she obviously displayed in her tone. Twilight looked surprised by how suddenly he’d answered, and he gave a small smile back in return.

“But, Pennyworth, are you sure? The old kingdoms are far away, and you won’t be able to come back to Canterlot for some time. To see any family or friends.” She expressed moderate concern now.

This time, Pennyworth put up a hoof to more politely cease Twilight from speaking further. “Of course I’m sure. While I might miss my acquaintances here in Canterlot, it would be against my nature to turn down a mare in need. And you, Lady Sparkle, are in need of good help.” Pennyworth obviously had deeper reasons for wanting to go, but he always held a certain level of professionalism about himself. “I won’t have anymore protests, Lady Sparkle. Just lead the way.”

Twilight smiled warmly, though somewhat more reserved than normal. “If you insist.” she chuckled. “How long will it take to pack your things?”

Pennyworth didn’t even have to think about that one. “The majority of my items are formal attire. Some odds and ends. Nothing that I couldn’t reacquire later. I can depart as soon as you would like.” Pennyworth wasn’t the kind of pony to invest himself in material objects. He had a couple of neat things he found to be convenient, but he could just as easily do without them.

Twilight looked over to a clock on the wall, observing that it was a little passed one right now. “I still have plenty to get done today. But perhaps, in the morning, you might enjoy getting to meet a couple of my other friends. You may have heard of one before. Rarity?” She asked after looking back to him.

“Ah, yes. I’ve had my suit repaired by her a few times now. Impeccable work, if I do say so myself. I think I would enjoy a more proper introduction with such a talented seamstress.”

“Then it shall be so.” Twilight shared a smile with him, before he excused himself to finish what he was doing and let them all get back to conversing.

---

“Here you are, Professor. Your tie is as good as new!” Rarity chimed happily while a deep red tie floated over from her work table. The tie exchanged from Rarity’s light blue magic to the professor’s purple aura, allowing him to affix his favorite accessory to its matching suit. He seemed very pleased with how well it came out.

“I can’t thank you enough, Miss. How much will this be?”

“Oh, I can’t charge you for a simple little re-seam. Consider it my pleasure.”

The professor gave a happy little chuckle while purple aura floated six bits out of his pocket and onto her front counter. “Well, then, consider this my gift to you.”

Rarity watched the bits fly over to the counter for a moment, offering a smile before he turned to leave her shop. “Thank you, and good day!” Once the door closed, Rarity placed her attention back on the bits, using her magic to guide them to her register.

Trotting merrily through the store, Rarity was still very much the image of perfection. At least, a slightly redefined version of perfection. Some of her curves, while still healthy, were a little more pronounced than in previous years. However, Rarity had a good reason for taking on an otherwise... robust physique. One that grew with time, though she didn’t mind it in the slightest.

“Spike, dear!” she called, heading over to her work bench to continue work on an idea, letting a thin stick of charcoal breath life to her artwork.

“Just a moment.” Spike called back, his now deeper tone matured by age. After a bit, Spike came out from a side room of the store, which seemed to have been dedicated to files, documents, and a safe. The once baby dragon now stood somewhat larger than a typical stallion. His scales were curved to a point now, instead of being rounded. His arms and legs had grown more dragon-esque and stalky as well, which allowed him to easily switch between walking on two legs, or as a quadruped. His claws were prominent, his muscles defined, his muzzle long and menacing, and his figure more rigid. Anypony that ever once laid eyes on a fully grown dragon would think that Spike was a wingless, pony-sized version of them. Well, kind of pony-sized, anyway. “What’s up, Rarity?”

“Add six bits to the books, please.” she replied, still keeping a majority of her focus on her drawing.

Spike nodded, reaching back to grab a clipboard and quill before carefully jotting down the transaction. “And, for what service?”

“Another donation.” came her short answer.

Spike looked on to the section of the chart that held the details for each debt and credit. A majority of them were donations, written ‘tip’ for short. Jotting down ‘tip’ once more, Spike smirked at the thought that they probably got as much money in donations as they did for custom-tailored designs. Which is to say a lot. “That cracks it,” Spike began, which earned the undivided attention of Rarity. “there’s no longer a doubt in my mind. Your generosity is contagious.”

Rarity grew the lightest of blushes, brushing away the idea with a hoof while giving a bashful laugh. “Please, Darling, it’s hardly contagious. It just brings out the good in everypony. If that good compels them to give something in return, I simply can’t deny it.”

“Never said it was a bad thing.” Spike commented, setting his things down to stroll over beside Rarity. “It does make the the taxes a lot easier.”

“That’s not a selfish reason.” Rarity commented sarcastically. Though, with a playful smirk.

“Hardly.” Spike agreed, placing a claw to his chin. “I’d call it... generosity working on a deeper level.”

“Hah!” Rarity huffed, slightly piqued at his half-hearted justification. “That’s not what charity is about, and you know it, Spikey.”

“You’re right.” Spike replied, carefully pinching the charcoal between two claws to interrupt her work. “True charity would be allowing yourself a day of rest after working a whole week straight.”

Rarity sighed, letting go of the charcoal now in Spike’s possession. She quickly replaced it with a spare, however, and continued her work. “I am taking a break. The only thing more relaxing than getting out a fresh idea, is a hot cup of chamomile.” A comforted look came across her demeanor now as she got back to work on the drawing.

Spike rolled his eyes, setting the coal stick down where the spare use to sit. “If that were true, why is there a Prench Twist in your mane?”

Rarity gasped slightly, looking to him out of complete surprise now. But she thought quickly to cover up that oversight. “W-what ever do you mean, Darling? I always do my mane up in the back. It’s professional!”

Spike cocked a brow with an expression that said it all, which made Rarity wish she could’ve taken that last declaration back. “Exactly. You wear the twist in the back on business days, and a Prench Braid on the days you take off. You know, ‘cause AJ said it looked good on you.”

Rarity sighed. She always did think that the braid was a little too… country for the Canterlot elite. But it made her happy to know that it brought her friend some comfort on her visits. At least, it use to. “Yes… AJ liked it. But, she doesn’t visit anymore. So, there’s no reason for me to wear it.”

While Rarity continued her work, refusing to face Spike again, he could feel the downer that his words gave Rarity. Which caused him to frown some himself. He then got an idea to brighten her spirits, his eyes locking on to the ornate comb which held her twist in place. It held three jewels oriented to match her cutie mark, and they gave a tasty gleam in his eyes. “Well, if you need a reason to change your do on the weekends, I miss the days that you would let it flow naturally…”

The moment she felt a claw graze her comb, Rarity instantly dropped what she was doing to turn away, taking a few steps back to prevent him from messing her with style. “You wouldn’t dare! I spent hours making this look absolutely perfect!”

“All the more reason to spend a few hours giving it that natural look I love so much!” Spike carried on, taking a step closer to her every time she took one back.

Rarity gave a mellow-dramatic gasp, catching on to what Spike was trying to do now. Which also prompted a blush to pepper her ivory cheeks. “Ugh!? That natural look you love so much was the reason I had to spend hours taming it! Once a day is plenty enough, and you took your fill this morning.” In an effort to regain control, Rarity now adopted an authoritatively posh stance, closing her eyes and turning away.

Bad move. Spike leaped at the opportunity, choosing to attack his lover with a barrage of tickling claws. “You didn’t protest much this morning!” Spike chimed over Rarity, who giggled and laughed uncontrollably at his mercy.

“Bffffff-hahahahaha! Stop! Snngk-ha-hah-hahaha! Don’t!” she managed to plead through her giggle-fit, flailing her hooves all the while. She then noticed a claw reach over ever so slowly for her comb, as if she wouldn’t notice it.

Spike took a moment to laugh some now. “Stop, or don’t stop?” he teased coyly.

One hoof came up to push his arm back while tossing and turning to try and avoid the other one attacking her belly. Her hind legs finally gained enough sense to shuffle her back and away. A fruitless effort, however, as he followed her right up to a wall without missing a beat. Quickly, Rarity pushed herself up, forcing back both of his claws and the overbearing weight behind them. Though, she had yet to come down off of her laughing-induced high, still feeling ghost claws over the sensitive spots on her barrel. “Spike, please! I’m busy!” she pleaded further.

“Sure looks that way, Rares.” he shot back, refusing to let up.

Twisting and turning every which way, the battle was soon lost to her when she finally felt the comb swiftly leave her hair, letting her mane cascade down over the back of her neck. Rarity gasped once more, annoyed that he actually did it, but an evil smirk stretched across her muzzle after watching him back up a bit to give her space. “Oh, now you’ve gone and done it!”

Spike’s smile disappeared from his face in short order when he saw hers. Sky-blue magic whisked the comb from his claws, taking it to a safe haven on her work desk. “No…” He watched Rarity scratch a hoof across the floor in preparation of a charge. “No no no…” Immediately after that, Rarity raced up to the scrambling dragon. “No-ack!”

Too late, Rarity pounced on her prey, proceeding to dish out her own tickle attack on his light green scales. “Oh, what’s the matter, Spikey-Wikey? I thought you loved Momma’s massages?”

“Hello?”

Spike’s laughter bellowed from deep in his throat, drowning out all other sound, save for the mare closest to his ear. “No, please! Not there! Ah-hahahahahaha!” he pleaded.

“Excuse me?”

“Oh? How about here!” Rarity exclaimed joyfully, lowing her head to him.

Spike gasped a small moan when he felt her teeth playfully grasp a fold of his neck. “Now you’re just playing dirty!” he managed to get out between fits of laughter.

“Eewwww…”

“Dirty!? I’ll show you dirty!”

“I think I just chuked in my mouth a little…”

Flash Sentry silenced a chuckle at Rainbow Dash’s comment, before clearing his throat. “Presenting Princess Twilight Sparkle!!” He called aloud from behind the counter.

The announcement instantly caught the attention of the love-birds, who froze in their actions to look over and see that, indeed, their friends were there and watching them have at it in the middle of the store. Twilight hid a small giggle behind her hoof. Rainbow Dash looked like she was gagging on an invisible spoon she was holding, and Flash kind of seemed indifferent. All the while, both Spike and Rarity’s faces turned a shade of red that made Big Mac’s coat seem pale in comparison.

After a few moments of silence, light blue magic whisked her comb back over to her mane, while another aura of the same color grabbed her hair and quickly twisted it back into its previous fashion before the comb sealed it. Having only memory to go off of, she didn’t do a half bad job. That’s when she jumped off of Spike and cantered up to the counter. “Twilight, Darling! It has simply been too long!”

“I hope I didn’t interrupt anything?” she inquired coyly.

“Oh, no, not at all! Some-dragon thought it would be fun to impede my work today…” At her snide remark, Rarity shot Spike a very embarrassed, highly annoyed glare, and she could feel him shrink for a moment. “What brings you to my shop?”

“Well, if you aren’t too busy, me and Twilight wanted to hang out for a while…” Rainbow began. Though, when she looked around the shop some, she began to wonder if her being there was a great idea. She remembered how much Rarity loved to have an actual pony stand in instead of a poniquin. And there was no lack of frou frou presets about the walls.

“Hey, yeah!” Spike began, going over to join the group. If it weren’t for having been caught up in his embarrassment, he would’ve pounced Twilight into a big hug the moment he saw her. “Rarity was just about to close the shop anyway!” Before she could protest, Spike had flipped the sign in the window over. That’s when he turned to face his maternal figure, scooping her up into the tight embrace he planned on giving. “It’s so great to see you again, Twi!”

In the tight dragon-hug, Twilight gained instant proof of her assumption that Spike had gotten bigger since she last saw him. He was also toning up well, too. A sure sign of his physical maturity. She could feel her wings crushing under his arms. “It’s… great… to see you… too!” He finally let go of her, allowing Twilight a moment to pant for the air that she was missing in her breath.

Spike turned to offer Rainbow Dash a hug, who shrugged away from him some. “Uhh-heheh, no thanks! I’d like to keep my wings…”

Spike bellowed a chuckle from his lungs. “That’s right, I forgot.” Instead of offering an embrace, Spike held out a closed paw, to which Rainbow Dash eagerly bumped with her hoof.

“So, what’s with the necklace? I didn’t think you were into jewelry.” Rainbow Dash pointed out Spike’s shining platinum neck band. Ornate engravings riddled the face of it, all originating from a heart-shaped sapphire.

“What, this?” Spike asked, holding a claw over it for a moment. He then brought attention to Rarity’s necklace, the one she had set with a fire ruby he’d given her, with its own decorative engravings. “Mine and Rarity’s wedding bands. Mine was a gift for our anniversary five years ago, cut from a rare color-changing sapphire. Ever since I had to start walking on four legs, regular rings don’t last long in my care. They aren’t exactly made from durable metals…”

“That’s cool.” Rainbow commented, though with indifference.

“Color-changing sapphire?” Twilight inquired, looking over the gem set in the center of the band.

“Oh, yes, simply the most amazing gem I’ve come across yet!” Rarity chimed, going over to stand before Spike. “This gem changes color depending upon the brightness of ambient light. When it is bright out, it gives off a rich blue color. And, as it gets darker out…” At that, Rarity cast a shadow over it with her hoof, and the color of the gem under the shadow instantly looked to take on a mixture of blue and purple.

“Oh, wow!” Twilight voiced in awe.

“That’s awesome!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed. The properties of the gem instantly and dramatically increased its own value in her eyes.

Spike chuckled some, sharing sentiments with Rainbow. “Under Luna’s light, it turns completely purple. No matter what time of day, it matches Rarity’s mane color, too.”

“Aw, that’s so cute!” Twilight smiled.

“Slightly less awesome now.” Rainbow Dash joked, causing Twilight to roll her eyes. “That wouldn’t happen to come in other colors, would it? Those would make for some pretty sweet studs.”

Rarity thought for a moment. Going over the few types of gems she knew to display similar qualities. “Well, unfortunately, the only other color for sapphires is green to violet. Those hues wouldn’t work well for you… oh! But I have some garnet that would just match your mane perfectly!” She began to canter off to the back, naturally assuming that Rainbow Dash would follow her.

“Do those change color?” Dash asked, her wings allowing her to drift through the open air of the store after her.

“But of course, Darling, why ever would they not?”

“Sweet!”

Spike smirked a bit, before looking back to Twilight, Flash standing not far behind her. He’d noticed the guard there before, but only just now got curious about him. “So, Twilight, what’s with the guard?”

“Huh? Oh!” Twilight blushed for a second, having nearly forgotten about him. She wasn’t use to having a detail yet. “This is Flash Sentry. He’s my new day guard. Flash, this is Spike. He was my number one assistant before he married Rarity.”

“I didn’t know dragons lived among us in Equestria.”

“Mostly just me, that I know of anyway. Twilight hatched me from an egg.” Like he did for Rainbow Dash, Spike leveled a closed paw to Flash, who quickly caught on and met it with a hoof bump. “Flash Sentry… I feel like I’ve heard that name before…”

Flash just shrugged some. “Can’t say that I recognize you.”

“If you ever saw him at all, it would’ve been almost twenty years ago, when he was still a baby dragon. Even then, me and Spike were preoccupied with a very… interesting mirror.” Twilight elaborated.

“Oh! Heyyy!” Spike finally remembered where the name came from, shooting a smirk to the purple mare.

“Please, don’t.” Twilight sighed, trotting passed the counter to find herself a comfortable spot.

“I didn’t say anything.” Spike defended himself, following after her in equal pace. “So, why do you have a day guard? I didn’t know mayors got to have them.”

“Well, they don’t. But that’s why I’m here, actually.” Twilight smiled now.

Spike now looked confused. “I don’t think I followed that…”

Twilight chuckled to herself. “I’ll tell you and Rarity about it later. Right now, I just want to relax a bit.” Halfway through the shop, Twilight paused when she noticed that Flash wasn’t following. “Flash. Would you like to join us?”

Flash Sentry shook his head some. “If you don’t mind, I think I’ll stay here for a while and guard the door.”

Twilight nodded slightly. “Okay. Feel free to join us whenever you want.”

“Will do, Princess.” he smiled, watching them leave after the other two before turning to face the door. He watched ponies pass by every now and then before heaving a content sigh. “Feels kind of nice to be back in Canterlot again…” he voiced to himself quietly.

Author's Note:

First part of a two-chapter update!

Gods, this took me forever!! DX

So, to explain myself - because I didn't want to be another writer that takes months to update - this and the following chapter was very hard for me to get into. Lots of details needed to be hashed out, and there were a few characters that I had a hard time writing because I don't particularly resonate with them. Most notably being Discord. I apologize for those of you who are fans of Discord, but I did my best.

Another thing was that I kept getting writer's block, which is annoying as shit when you've got a large chunk of story begging for completion. Eventually I just powered through it and opted to fix things in my revision process. My editors had a field day with this one, lol.

On that note, big thanks to Skydrake and jardex22. You both do nothing but help, even with having to put up with me. ( I know I can be difficult, lol ) Hopefully, this story will eventually turn out to be better than we all expected.

With that, please enjoy these chapters, Love and War.

Comments

[DragonPony]

Got to admit I am happy to see my man Spike show up. Nice to see he is messing with Rar and pulling her out of her funk like he did with Twi (you know what they say, a guy marries his mother lol)

[Path_of_cloud]

Well, I'd say Spike has mastered the art of being an annoying and fun significant other

[DanvilleBengal]

“You are quite the charming stud.” Velvet continued, her tone just a little too dirty for comfort. Flash felt a hoof going through his crest, almost as if it was his mane, and his eyes visibly narrowed, locking on to Twilight now. ’Help me?’

Twilight couldn’t help a small laugh to herself, seeing her mother get her hopes up. She also couldn’t contain a small blush at the thought. “Mother, please stop molesting my guard. We’re just friends, not an item.”

It was Velvet’s turn to blush now, pared with a small and lady-like gasp. “Molesting? I was doing no such thing!” Her hoof quickly came down from the crest of his helm after that, not wanting Twilight to get her by technicality. “I’m just… uhm… you know, me and your father were just friends once, too…” she continued, changing the subject about as smoothly as she could at the moment. She then leaned in to Flash Sentry’s ear for a short moment to try and sneak a whisper. ”She likes Neightallian food the most.”

Subtle as a sledgehammer, that Twilight Velvet.

Though, considering that Shining has already married and given Velvet at least one grandchild, and it's roughly twenty years later with Twilight still not having at least a coltfriend/marefriend of her own (special somepony just feels awkward as hell when you write it half the time, there are times for it, othertimes just use colt/marefriend), Velvet could just as well shouted at the top of her lungs: "TWILIGHT, YOUR CLOCK IS TICKING, GIVE ME SOME GRANDBABIES, OR AT LEAST EXPERIENCE FOR ONCE WHAT SEXUAL SATISFACTION FEELS LIKE!!!" and what she said in this would have been less subtle.

Kinda makes me wonder if Velvet's also wondering if Spike and Rarity has some kids as well, if only to just pressure Twilight a bit. Even though I believe Celestia as Spike's mother, I could see Velvet as a bit of a grandmother-type in relation to Spike.

[Enduring Man-Child]

Twilight was RICH??? I mean, even before becoming a princess? Her family's LOADED???

Oh no...and I thought I felt inadequate before. Y'know, from her nobility, intelligence, beauty, adorkable nerdiness, and from the fact that she's voiced by the voluptuous Tara Strong. But on top of that she was always RICH???

Oh no...feeling so small and insignificant now....

[Fury of the Tempest]

Ah... I loved Spike and Rarity here... and the teasing between Flash and Twilight was cute as well. Curious about Penworthy and why he's REALLY willing to come along.

[Xarsor]

"Nice try, Flash. You know just as well as I do that Luna is not my type." he lied smoothly.

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