//------------------------------// // Politics and Ponies // Story: Student of the Night // by Nadir //------------------------------// Twilight’s first session with the Queen lasted many hours into the morning. Luna made her repeat the rune hundreds, maybe even thousands of times before she was allowed to move on. At this rate, Twilight would likely dream about it that night, so ingrained in her thoughts that it was. Then again, Twilight couldn’t argue with the results. By the time she finished, she could likely cast the spell in her sleep as well, and conjuring it took an instant. Just repeating the practice over and over made it simple to her, her mind easily grasping the delicate curves and contours of the rune. Once Twilight demonstrated complete and total mastery of the simple form, Luna started to show her different variations. A missed stroke here, an added emphasis there and the entire structure changed. No more would it suck in, but push away instead. Or grow wider, or narrower but more powerful, or any number of a dozen other transformations. It may only be one rune, and one small facet of the larger whole, but Twilight couldn’t help but feel immense satisfaction at learning like this. It felt so... So right! How did she ever learn before practicing with the Queen? Now it made sense how each Student succeeded so consistently; they had the best teacher possible, and as the morning went on Twilight’s admiration for the Queen grew. She always harbored a healthy respect for the Queen, but over the morning it grew and developed into something more. She looked at her not just as a teacher, but as a sage, an all-knowing oracle into her world of magic, reverent and perfect. She couldn’t ask for more. Finally, as the sun crested high in the sky and the clock struck eleven, Luna held a hoof up. “I think that’s enough for now.” She called. Twilight dripped with sweat. Her dress, like her breeches from the night before, were thoroughly and utterly ruined. She could smell herself, something that didn’t happen, and she smelled absolutely atrocious. She needed more than just a bath, she needed a damn good scouring something fierce. In sharp contrast, Luna stood without a drop of it on her. She was as immaculate as when she first showed up that morning, her mane still perfectly waving in the wind. Her vest and breeches didn’t even show a speck of dust, despite their toiling around in a sandy field for the entire morning. Twilight couldn’t figure out how she did it, but that would have to be a question for another time. She still needed to catch her breath! “Very well.” Luna said, starting to approach with graceful steps. “You need to get cleaned up. Then, we need to get you a weapon before lunch. Is that amenable to you?” She asked. Twilight nodded her head, still panting and trying to catch her breath. She swallowed hard, trying to get some needed moisture down her throat. “Y-yes Luna.” Luna smiled at her, hoof gently patting Twilight’s head. “You did well today magelet. If I teleport you to your room, will you meet me at the bottom of the tower in fifteen minutes?” She asked. Twilight’s fuzzy mind quickly agreed. Walking all the way back did not entice her right now, she’d take absolutely any reduction in effort possible, even if that meant travelling through the aether again. “See you in a bit.” Twilight’s world disappeared in a bright blue flash. Near instantly, she landed hard, groaning loudly as her back pressed against rough stone. It seems her Queen had deigned it fitting to place her right in her bathtub. At least that would make things a little easier than walking. Every little bit helped, even if she didn’t particularly ask for this particular brand. Twilight hurried through her morning routine, cleaning herself thoroughly and brushing her mane out. For a brief second, she even considered styling it. One day, she would need to know how to do it after all - she couldn’t just stay in the court without knowing how to present herself. There would be balls and functions, court events she must attend as part of her role. Luna once promised that she would outfit Twilight for those, but nothing had yet to come. Twilight wasn’t exactly upset about that; dressing up often felt like more trouble than it was worth. Then again, she did like to feel pretty sometimes… Speaking of, Twilight dug through her drawers. With her magic, she re-tightened her mother’s pendant, siphoning off the smallest amount of energy to rejuvenate her tired bones. The magic surged through her, like the best shot of caffeine imaginable. Her fatigue melted away within seconds, her sores even starting to fade away. Magic directly to your wellspring was a powerful thing, capable of healing all woes related to fatigue, and her mother’s amulet held a treasure trove of it. Of course, she made sure to pay it back. Every night, she pushed what remained of her own energy into it. One day, she may need that much power. She hoped she wouldn’t but the best laid plans of mice and mares often went astray. And Twilight loved to plan, like planning her outfits for example. Today, she chose a dark blue dress, with full, lighter sleeves and a flared out skirt. She didn’t intend to sweat much more today, so why not wear something a little nicer than usual? She knew they would never say anything, but she could see the nobles looked at her. They didn’t think she belonged here, but she would simply have to prove them wrong. Twilight smoothed out her skirts and took one last look in a mirror. Her fifteen minutes neared their end and Luna would be downstairs. She would not keep her waiting. Her own magic sparked and the elevator lifted up to her floor and then back down again. She took her time with it this time, letting herself collect her thoughts from the morning before seeing Luna again. She would need to sleep on everything she learned today. So much knowledge to organize mentally, she could hardly wait! The lift clicked into place at the bottom, and Luna waited as expected. This time, Sunny accompanied her rather than the two dour guards from before, the two chatting amicably. Unfortunately, the two stopped before Twilight could really start to eavesdrop, but at least they turned to her with bright, happy smiles… at least in Sunny’s case. “Good morning, Twilight!” Sunny chirped, bounding forward and wrapping her forehooves around her in a hug. She’d grown rather affectionate after the two spent a while together. It seemed to just be her personality type, and quite honestly Twilight didn’t mind if that much. It just felt different than when Sunset did it, especially since Sunny would stop whenever Twilight asked. And she didn’t constantly hit on Shining. That helped too. Ugh, the thought of that alone made Twilight grimace, though Sunny’s soft rubbing broke her out of the rut before she could even truly get into it. “Good morning to you too, Sunny.” Twilight answered with her own, much more bemused smile. Sunny released her after a second or so, smile not wavering even a millimeter. “Oh, isn’t—” Luna cleared her throat. Quite loudly, actually. That sort of sounded painful. “We are sure both Twilight and myself are quite hungry. Perhaps we could carry on this conversation while we walked?” Luna asked, pointedly. Sunny stiffly nodded her assent, at least having the decency to blush scarlet as Luna took the lead. “So, as I was saying before Ms. Grumpy Pants interrupted, isn’t it a nice morning? Though, I heard your night wasn’t quite as nice.” Sunny added, bumping Twilight’s flank with her own. Twilight looked over, startled. How could Sunny know that? How could Sunny know enough to have that teasing grin, that sparkle in her eyes? It had just been Luna, herself and— Shining. Dammit. Twilight cautiously sneaked a glance towards Luna, almost wishing she couldn’t hear them. Then again, Luna could likely hear them all the way down this hallway if she really put any effort into it. Alicorn senses were kind of bullshit in that regard. “Well, it could have gone worse.” Twilight started, her steps growing a little uneasy. “How did you find out anything went on?” She demanded. If her brother spilled the beans consensually, Twilight would have to get a little bit of revenge on him. Her being yelled at by the goddess was not the sort of thing you just told ponies, especially if they were mischievous, pretty mares! “His commanding officer and I are sort of friends.” Sunny started to explain. She giggled and shook her head before going on. “Apparently, Shining snuck out to visit you. And when he appeared back in his bed with a flash of magic, ponies naturally noticed. Oh, goddesses -sorry Luna- you should’ve heard how much his CO yelled!” She added, giggling like a madmare. A spark of sympathy flared in Twilight. Okay, a fitting punishment. He probably didn’t have much of a choice, especially with how damn honest that stallion was. A vice, as Twilight considered it. A little lie or two would probably help him out on occasion. “Serves him right for yelling at me,” Twilight mumbled. “And why, pray tell, would you say that Student? Did you not deserve the proverbial tongue-lashing?” Luna’s voice shattered her thoughts. Twilight didn’t like that dangerous tone. It almost sounded conversational, but Twilight could feel the edge of steel underneath it, and apparently, Sunny could too with how wide her eyes had grown. Twilight winced, feeling like she’d said something very foolish indeed. “N-no!” Twilight quickly amended. Her head shot up, biting her lip and looking at Luna with an apologetic look. “I-I didn’t mean that or anything!” She added, blushing deep. “Just that, um, I didn’t really want him to talk about it? It was embarrassing.” Luna stopped, considering her words for a second. The air hung with tension as Luna thought, Twilight holding her breath the entire time. After what felt like eternity, Luna nodded. “Very well. Remember that we will not reprimand you unless you deserve it. Perhaps you could share where exactly you went with Miss Day here?” She added, a point to her punishment. Twilight groaned, stamping a hoof quite forcefully. Simple instinct that she couldn’t quite shake yet, despite her best efforts. “Fine, fine. Can we start walking again at least? Please?” she added, wincing at her own disrespect. Luna nodded shortly. “Of course, we do have a schedule to keep.” She said, matter-of-factly. The three did need to reach the mess hall before they stopped serving. With no real way to avoid it any longer, Twilight started talking. “Well, I snuck out. I, um, sent you away first, I wasn’t just going to study.” Twilight kept her head down, unable to look at Sunny. She didn’t want to see the betrayed look she was sure Sunny had. She had literally tricked her after all, lied and all, made her disobey her duty. “S-sorry.” Twilight quickly added. “It’s... fine. Really,” Sunny answered. Her voice sounded sincere enough for Twilight to at least peek. She couldn’t lie; Sunny didn’t smile quite like she had earlier, but she did her best. Ugh, that only made her feel worse about it, despite her practical side yelling at her to toughen up! Hurting Sunny was like… like hurting a puppy or something. She just smiled and helped others too much to deserve it. “Though, how did you get out?” Sunny asked. “There were still two guards at the bottom of the elevator, right?” “Oh, wait until you hear her foolishness!” Luna cut in. Did she… did she enjoy hearing Twilight suffer? That absolute bitch! Did she just call Luna a bitch? Twilight fought the need to grovel and apologize for a thought, instead swallowing hard and trying to form her next few sentences. “Well, I um, may have teleported. From the tower all the way to the lower city,” she finally answered. Every time she had to say it, it sounded worse and worse. That far for what, her second teleport? What insanity had taken over her that night? Goddesses, she could’ve easily died! “You didn’t!” Sunny answered, actually gasping. “But isn’t that dangerous? And how did you get back? Same way?” Twilight nodded, blushing beet red. “It wasn’t my first time doing it!” She mumbled, feeling a little under attack. Both Luna and Sunny were ganging up on her, forcing her into a corner mentally. “A— and clearly I made it all right, and I won’t do it again or anything like that! “Besides, that wasn’t even the worst part about it. My stupid brother was in my bed when I got back!” Sunny barked out a laugh, actually covering her muzzle with a hoof as she walked. “Not like that! Dammit, Sunny!” Twilight snapped, crossly. She froze; she’d never cursed in front of Luna before. She rarely cursed at all! But if Luna noticed, she didn’t comment on it. Sunny, on the other hoof did. And she thought it was hilarious, at least if her barking laugh gave any indication of it. Twilight turned her snout up with a little ‘hmph’. If she couldn’t be serious, then Twilight wouldn’t tell her the rest of the story, she’d show her! “Keep going, magelet.” Or maybe she would finish the story! “To make a long story short,” Twilight continued, “he yelled at me for a while before we realized the big issue.” She took a deep breath, the next part easily the worst. “Luna kinda… walked in on us fighting, and heard most of our argument.” She explained, stealing a quick glance to the goddess in question. “So then I had to explain myself to Luna and all that. Not fun,” Twilight finished, cheeks burning hot. She’d never live this one down… “She left out the best parts, I think.” Luna cut in. Of course, of course she needed to add more to the story. “Some foolish stallion also attacked our magelet while she exposed herself to plague waste by walking through the lower districts at night. She could’ve been killed then and there. I can only assume that stallion was insane, especially considering blood dotted her cloak when she returned. “She also teleported all the way from the Eclipse Library to my balcony. She shouldn’t have done that at the peak of her strength and after a night of walking through the plague in gaseous form? A foalish move at best.” Luna condemned, shaking her head lightly. “I felt it best to teach her of her wrongs, and now Twilight and I understand each other better, am I right, magelet?” Twilight, cheeks burning, nodded. She bit her lip and pressed her ears back but managed to keep her head up. Well, sort of up. “Yes Luna,” She groaned. “I won’t do it again, promise.” Honestly, at this point, Luna’s constant reminding of her failure started to ride on her nerves. But Twilight couldn’t protest that to the goddess, especially since she knew she’d chosen poorly the night before. She should have simply stayed in bed, she got that now, it didn’t need to be repeated over and over! Sunny bumped her rump again, bright smile returning in full force. “Well, I’m sure she’s learned her lesson, no need to go so hard on her!” the mare protested happily. At least somepony was on her side! Luna tutted and shook her head again. “Well, perhaps the one who shirked her duty should not give the Queen lessons?” She asked, voice gaining a sharp, dangerous edge. Sunny winced as if Luna had slapped her, her steps even faltering. Her mouth hung open weakly, eyes going wide. “Please keep up.” Luna went on, voice cold as ice. Rage, unfamiliar and ugly, boiled inside of Twilight. Sunny only tried to help. Sunny only ever tried to be a sweet, compassionate mare. And what did Luna do? Blow her off and snap at her, like a… like an idiot! Twilight stamped a hoof, causing the goddess to stop and turn to face her. Luna raised an eyebrow, looking at her display with an impassive look. Maybe Luna wasn’t the perfection Twilight thought… She swallowed, her angry gaze not wavering. “You need to apologize,” Twilight demanded. Her heart beat fast, so fast that Twilight could feel it in her throat. Luna froze at the words and turned around, looking at Twilight as if not believing her eyes. The two stared at each other. Twilight’s tail flicked back and forth, agitation clear from that alone. Finally, Luna leaned in close, eyes narrowing into near slits. “Excuse me?” She asked, almost in a hiss. Luna’s aura practically surrounded her, suffocating her, smothering her. Twilight’s heart pounded faster and faster, and every logical synapse in her brain screamed for her to run away or beg for forgiveness. Luna was the predator, and right now, Twilight was the prey. But she couldn’t… Twilight grit her teeth and kept her head up. “I said, you need to apologize,” she repeated, albeit in a small, terrified voice. Luna huffed, teeth visibly showing in a sneer. Huh. Twilight never noticed she had fangs before. “And just why, would I do that?” she spat. Twilight belatedly realized that her mentor’s eyes were glowing with an almost ethereal fire. She didn’t mean that metaphorically either - they were literally glowing. Twilight took a small step back, her legs quivering and shaking. She tried to deny it, but for the first time, she wasn’t just respectful of her mentor she was scared. No, not scared. Terrified. Scared didn’t do it justice. Her legs shook fiercely, ears pressed back, and she struggled to resist the urge to flee. Some primal instinct deep inside of her yelled to run, screamed at her to get away from the angry alicorn. Somehow, Twilight forced it all down as she swallowed hard. “Twilight, just apologize.” Twilight could barely make out Sunny’s kind voice, the tremor in it apparent even now. Twilight tried to look over but failed as Luna’s hoof forced her head up again, keeping her entire vision full of the enraged alicorn. “Answer my question.” She demanded. At least some of the first had died away, making her knees only quiver instead of quake. Baby steps. “Y-you were, um, r-rude to Sunny.” Twilight answered, voice stuttering and unsure of itself. “She was just trying to stick up for me, you didn’t need to um, jump down her throat or anything…” Twilight felt her cheeks burn as she spoke, her eyes looking anywhere but Luna. Surely Luna would smite her, surely she’d be thrown into the dungeons or… or something! Yet, nothing came for the longest time, the silence hanging in the air like a guillotine. Luna’s hoof left her head, letting her contemplate her punishment in silence and alone. Definitely the dungeons, she thought. Nothing worth killing her over, but why not a little time in solitary? Would fix that attitude right up, Twilight could hear her mentally. Finally, mercifully the lunar goddess started to speak. “I will think about it.” She finally answered. Her voice sounded measured, taut, but no longer furious. Where had all of it gone to? Her anger couldn’t just melt away like that! Twilight raised her head just in time to see Luna turn with a swish of her tail. “Come along.” She ordered, leading the way once more. The rest of the trip continued in absolute silence. Both Sunny and Twilight didn’t even dare to speak after the earlier experience, and Luna seemed content to let the silence rest in the air. Twilight had honestly expected some retribution for speaking that way. She’d never seen Luna that mad. Granted, she’d only known her for a small time, but anypony would probably expect punishment after talking back to a goddess. And asking her to apologize? What had she been thinking!? As they walked, Twilight examined Luna. Her eyes roamed across her body, watching the way she walked. Twilight didn’t consider herself an expert in body language, but she had at least studied it. She could see the basic thing. Things like the short, quick gait from Luna. She could easily see the frown tugging at her lips, though Twilight wished she could see her eyes. Unfortunately, trailing behind didn’t afford her that opportunity. And Luna’s alicornhood worked against her here: Twilight could see the storm brewing in her tail and mane, the two definitely more vicious than usual. That sort of made things easier. Twilight deduced in her absolute genius that Luna was still mad. It might have been obvious, both from her reaction and from Luna’s behavior, but Twilight couldn’t gauge exactly how upset Luna was. Certainly she’d cooled down from earlier, but did the thinking help or hurt? Did she smolder or simmer away? Twilight could only guess. Luna didn’t speak until they stood outside metal double doors that Twilight could only surmise was the armory. Then again… they could actually be the dunge— no, foolish thought. Don’t even think about that sort of thing, Luna wouldn’t do that to her, no matter how mad she got. Right? “We’ll choose you a weapon now.” Luna said. Her voice still sounded curt, but the anger had bled away, giving Twilight some hope flickering in her chest. Speaking of flickering: Luna’s magic flicked on, opening the double doors and showing off the room ahead. Inside, rack after rack decorated the floor, different types of weapons on each. Each rack held a certain type of weapon, with some types taking multiple racks. Swords seemed to dominate the space, hoofblades and unicorn blades of all types taking up the racks. She could see others, like bows and even maces as well, but swords definitely took the lion’s share. Well that certainly limited her options a bit. She could probably find a decent other weapon, but with the sheer volume of bladed weapons, why not choose one of them? “Take a look down the aisles. Look for feel first, see if there’s anything that stands out to you. Usability doesn’t matter for now, especially since you’ll mainly be using this as a focus weapon.” Luna explained. Talking about actual subjects seemed to keep Luna calm, something that Twilight could appreciate. Twilight started to roam down the rows, moving carefully to avoid touching any of the edges. She could hardly consider herself an expert in weaponry, but even she could tell that these swords were still razor sharp. If not for her skin, she wanted to protect her clothes as well, so Twilight kept her distance. She really didn’t know swords. Twilight honestly didn’t know what to look for. She scanned each of the swords she saw, but none of them stood out to her. They all just seemed so ordinary, so plain. Just.. instruments of death and nothing more. She didn’t approve of killing, even when attacked. There could always be a non-lethal way, right? What did Luna expected her to do? Just her eyes catch on one and go all starry-eyed? Like a blade of destiny or something ridiculous. That would never— That sword. Wow. She’d never seen anything like it. The sword’s blade was silver, Twilight noticed that first. Unlike the others, its length was long and thin, much thinner than nearly any of the others she saw. But, perhaps what drew her to it the most was the hilt. She would never need it, considering she could use magic, and it clearly looked decorative anyways. But whatever artist had crafted the hilt had spent the lion’s share of the work on the hilt. The hilt started with a simple, blue-steel wrapped length, a guard flaring out around the edge of a similar material. From the left side of the guard, a crescent moon shape flared out, the shape connected at the pommel and the edge of the guard, surrounding the hilt. Silver filigree covered it, decorating and enhancing the look, little stems of silver splitting off and rejoining later in a spiral pattern. The other half of the hilt had a different look. It also featured a crescent shaped sliver, but this one was a warm, light yellow and orange mixture, a solid length rather than splitting off like the moon. The hilt’s crossguard blurred the two colors together, the blade itself a brilliant, almost iridescent silver. It was perfect. Twilight’s magic finally reached out, her field carefully, almost gently surrounding the hilt. She lifted it before her, holding it blade up right in front of her muzzle. This close, it only looked more astounding. Her magic ghosted up the blade, surrounding its entirety, caressing it and getting intimately familiar with each bump, each ridge along it’s body. It felt… right. Almost as if some part of her had been missing for so long, and now filled her so perfectly. Her magic clicked around the blade, a shiver of anticipation rushing through her. Right before her eyes, the blade’s color shifted rapidly, darkening from the beautiful silver into something somehow even more perfect. A light lilac colored the blade instead of the silver now, nearly matching Twilight’s coat but in an ethereal, ghostly way. Something inside of her stirred at the sight, a smile unintentionally crawling across her face. This was her blade. She had no idea how she knew. She had never believed in things like destiny or fate, but this… this felt fated. This felt right. Twilight needed to be here for something, that she knew more than anything in the world. Or, she thought, she could just be being silly. A fated blade? Come on. Yet, she couldn’t shake the truth of the matter. “Find something, magelet?” Luna asked, Twilight able to hear her hooves approaching from behind. Twilight nodded her head, stupid grin still on her face. She couldn’t stop it if she wanted, not with her - she hesitated to call it such, but - discovery. Twilight carefully, she knew it was a sword and a deadly instrument of war after all, brought the sword up in front of Luna. She held it aloft, the blade still shimmering with the strange magic that had changed its color. Twilight made a mental note to find just why it shifted like it did. “Yes I—“ Luna breathed in sharply. “Interesting choice, magelet,” she interrupted, eyes glinting with something Twilight couldn’t quite tell. “Do you know what that blade is called, Twilight?” She asked. The night mare leaned in close, keeping a close, sharp eye on the blade as if it would bite her at any moment. Twilight shook her head, shrinking back. She couldn’t imagine what would cause such a reaction in the Queen, not when she had just followed orders! “No, Luna,” She stated, trying to keep the worry from her voice. Bitterly, she couldn’t help but feel as if all she’d done today was disappoint her mentor, over and over again. “Eclipse,” Luna stated, absently running a guarded hoof over the edge of the blade. That certainly cleared some things up. “I think,” Luna started, setting her hoof back down, “that we shall have to change it’s name now.” Twilight nodded again, looking at the blade in a new light. There had to be a story there, blades didn’t just get enshrined out of nowhere. “Luna… why exactly was Eclipse here?” she asked. It seemed strange to her, strange that such a valuable looking blade would simply be left to the wayside in a dark armory. Luna didn’t answer for a second, even glancing back towards the entrance as if somepony would be looking, watching. “It shouldn’t be, magelet,” she finally answered, expression darkening fast. “And... we very much should change it’s name. Let me see it.” Luna ordered. Before Twilight could respond, Luna’s magic already grasped at the blade, yanking and tearing at her own almost painfully. She quickly dropped it from her own, Luna taking it for herself instantly. That amazing, full feeling disappeared, leaving her with an almost emptiness. She almost felt like crying, though she could hold it back. Her eyes followed the blade as it left her side, a rare flash of irritation and anger erupting through her. With a sharp hiss, Luna winced, a flicker of pain crossing against her muzzle. “Oh, what are you doing here, poison?” She whispered out, voice almost too quiet for Twilight to hear. Louder, she added, “Magelet, are you sure you want to choose this one? Rapiers like her are an uncommon sort. Teaching may be a touch more difficult, though you will mostly be using it for magic.” Something in Twilight compelled her to nod, and she obeyed. She needed the blade, no other would do. “Yes Luna. It’s perfect, I’m sorry,” she apologized automatically. Some force just seemed intent on dragging her away from Luna. Luna shook her head, roughly thrusting the blade back away from her and towards Twilight. “Take it, it’s yours. But, please do not call it Eclipse. I shall leave the naming to you, magelet, so long as I approve.” She stood tall again, wings stretching out before resting them back by her side. Just as quickly, the emptiness disappeared, the anger going with it. “And magelet,” Luna started, face contorting into something fierce, something terrifying. “Keep it away from me.” Luna turned, gait clipped and terse as she retreated from the blade. “Sunny! Get her a scabbard!” she ordered, “And bring her to the dining room once done. I need to take care of a few things.” Somehow, Twilight could feel that she lied. Twilight stared at the blade in a new light; something that could make an alicorn behave so erratically had to be rare indeed. It would be cataloged. It would be written down somewhere. And Twilight would find out why. “Twilight?” Sunny interrupted her ponderings, suddenly right in front of her. “There’s some scabbards over here. They won’t fit perfectly but… we should be able to get one that’s ‘good enough’.” Sunny still smiled, the bright mare seemingly unshakable in that regard. “Follow me?” Twilight nodded, swallowing her nervousness and holding the rapier to her side for now. “Sunny?” “Hm?” “Have you ever seen this sword before?” Twilight asked, following the guard close. It seemed the armory had an array of discarded scabbards near the front. Most of them looked pretty rough, but the leather looked sturdy to Twilight’s untrained eye. “Well, not really,” Sunny admitted, starting to dig through the piles. Carefully, she inspected a scabbard, tossing it aside before going to the next and repeating the process. “But, the Queen certainly has.” She stopped on one, rolling it over in her own orange tinted magic before throwing it to the side. “For what it’s worth-” She stopped, turning to Twilight for a second, “- I think you chose very well. It’s a beautiful blade.” Twilight didn’t know whether to be encouraged by that or not, truth be told. She did respect Sunny, but after how Luna reacted, she couldn’t honestly care. “Thanks,” she answered, shifting from hoof to hoof. Honestly, she wanted to leave already, to follow after her mentor and try and make it up to her. This morning had simply been dreadful after their training session... Sunny nodded and turned back to the scabbards, throwing yet another to the side. Twilight waited uneasily behind her, the process feeling like it took forever. Sunny must have gone through several hundred of the scabbards by now, and not a single one met her critique, whatever it was. Actually, why did they even have a pile of scabbards? That didn’t make any damn sense. Like just a pile of them. Not organized. Not stored. Literally just thrown to th- “Ah! Here we go!” Sunny announced, holding one aloft. “Can I?” Twilight knew what she wanted and offered the sword out, Sunny taking it in her magic with a quick nod. She slotted the length down until the entirety of the blade rested inside. She gave the tip a little push with her hoof, finding it still empty. Sunny frowned for a split second before shaking it off and nodding her head. That weird emptiness returned, the separation from her blade sending the strangest shiver through her. “This will do for now. Mind if I put it on you? I’ll show you how to take it on and off, and how to draw it without hurting yourself,” Sunny explained. Twilight nodded, figuring the mare would be a fine instructor for that. Sunny stepped close, holding a strap out and tightening it across her barrel, ensuring that it would hold tight against her side. She jostled the scabbard, ensuring its tightness. “Feel good?” Twilight rubbed a probing hoof against the strap. It felt a bit odd against her dress, but not uncomfortable. Just a pressure that she couldn’t ignore. Clearly, the she wouldn’t be able to draw the sword with a hoof, but really it was never meant to be for her. Magic was too ingrained, really, that should be all she used for it. If Twilight got into a close range melee with it, she likely already lost. “Fine,” Twilight finally answered. “Kinda weird having it on like this, but not bad or anything.” “Good. So, when you draw it, really all you have to do is make sure you draw it straight out from yourself. Don’t pull at an angle or you’ll probably just cut into your shoulder. Give it a try?” Sunny instructed. “Slowly,” she warned. Twilight nodded, flicking her magic and grasping at the hilt. That wonderful feeling coursed through her again, an almost innate sort of knowledge taking root in her mind. She knew how to draw a sword, she knew how to handle it. Did Sunny think she was stupid? She oughta teach h- Twilight shook her head. Somehow, the blade already floated aloft in front of her. When had she drawn it out cleanly? She... couldn’t remember? “Good job, perfect. Now just put it back in and we’ll go get some food.” Sunny encouraged, bumping Twilight’s rump with her own. Twilight looked at the sword, the desire to keep it out overwhelming. But... It just wasn’t logical. With a sigh, she slid the sword back in, the link disappearing once again. But not without a parting shot. A strong one, aren’t you? A very masculine voice whispered in her head. Twilight quickly whipped her head down, staring at the hilt, looking at it in an entirely new light. Did the sword just talk!? Or did she finally start to succumb to madness?! Swords didn’t talk! She reached a hoof towards it, only to be stopped by Sunny clearing her throat. Twilight jerked her head back up, catching Sunny’s worried look with her own frantic one. “Are you okay?” Sunny’s voice was worried, eyes filled with concern. A kind pony, always. Twilight couldn’t let her know about the sword. Twilight couldn’t let her figure out what had bothered her so. No, she had to hide it, hide it from Luna too.This must have been what Luna expected. This must have been why Luna didn’t want her to choose it. But Twilight needed it, Twilight had to keep the sword for herself. Wait. Why? It’s just a sword, Twilight considered. And a creepy one at that. She didn’t particularly need another complication like this in her life, not with everything else that burdened her. Perhaps she could just research it first. Yes, she could keep it until then, that would be reasonable. She was probably just imagining things anyways. Fine. All fine. Twilight put her hoof back down and did her best to fake a smile. “Of course, sorry about that. Just didn’t expect it to go in so easily,” she lied, smooth as butter. She brushed her mane out of her face, and nodded her head, trying to complete the illusion of just a flustered newbie. “Alright. Well…” Sunny shrugged. “We should probably follow Her Royal Pain in the Flank,” Sunny groused, shaking her head. “Let’s go.” Twilight fell into step behind her, her stomach finally starting to rumble as they walked. They’d skipped breakfast that morning, and Twilight yearned for lunch with a passion. After all the magic spent, she needed a hearty meal to replenish and re-fuel. Speaking of Luna, however. “Does she get like that often, Sunny?” Twilight asked. “I mean, the whole moodiness thing. She teases a lot, but today she was kinda…” Twilight trailed off, not wanting to continue. Speaking more almost felt like sacrilege. Fortunately, Sunny was more than willing to pick it back up. “Mean? Sometimes.” Sunny admitted. “She gets in a royal snit on occasion. It’s not you, don’t worry. She won’t really talk about it with the guards, but I think the stress gets to her.” Sunny explained as they walked, keeping the pace slow to let the tired student keep up. “Really, she just gets moody. Think about how much stress she and Celestia are under though. Think about how much they have to deal with. Can you really blame her? The guards try to keep her sheltered as much as we can, but we struggle with it ourselves. It’s a constant battle to keep her happy and we do what we can for that. Often times, before you came, she would take all her meals in her office, just working away. “The alicorns are just so incredibly busy. They bear the weight of the entire nation really. I’m really not sure how Celestia keeps it all together though…” Sunny slowed for a second, frowning, “Maybe she doesn’t. Maybe she just hides it, or I’m just not close enough to-” Somewhere ahead of them, a loud cry and a scream echoed out through the halls. Sunny’s ears perked up, horn instantly glowing with energy. “Stay here, Twilight,” Sunny instructed. With a deep breath, she galloped off towards the noise. “Bu-” “Stay there!” Did Sunny really think Twilight would wait idly? No, she could help too! She had a sword and her magic! Twilight bunched up her legs, ready to leap after! A white pony suddenly stood in front of her. Twilight stopped, falling back on her haunches with a wince at the suddenness of her movement. No hallways connected near this one, where had the mare come from? Carefully, she studied the white mare. Truth be told, besides Luna, Twilight had never seen a more beautiful pony. Slim, alicorn physique, soft pink mane, coat the purest of whites. She exuded perfection in a way that Twilight had never seen before. While Luna had natural radiance, this pony had an almost artificial beauty, as if somepony had taken everypony’s ideas of the most beautiful pony and sculpted it into reality. A very good description, Twilight thought: a statue come to life. The mare’s make-up, of course, was perfect. Purple eye shadow, a hint of blush, just enough to accentuate rather than mask. Her tail and mane curled into a light swirl at the ends, drawing the attention back to herself rather than diverting it away, and her smile hinted at much more to come. Her gaze held a sense of captivating mystique, a look that Twilight couldn’t look away from no matter how much she wished to wrench her attention away from the mare and towards Sunny’s predicament. And then, she spoke. “You should listen to her, little one.” Twilight’s heart chilled, the mare’s beauty melting away before her eyes. The illusion disappeared, and while physically the mare looked the same, Twilight felt as if she could see her for real for the first time. The malevolence, the cold, calculating intellect behind the voice pierced Twilight to the core, and now she wanted nothing more than to be as far away as possible from this mare. Worse yet, Twilight knew her. She knew her from recently, very recently in fact. A night in the library, before she’d finally realized her destiny. The mare from the library on that final night. The one she originally thought to be her teacher. “And why’s that?” Twilight asked, mustering her courage as best she could. To her credit, she only heard her voice crack a little bit. “Well, you never know what sort of ruffians lurk around the castle. Why, a cute little thing like you? Everypony would want a piece!” The mare giggled, but it did little to reassure Twilight of her intentions, for obvious reasons. Slowly, Twilight got to her hooves, ensuring her scabbard still clung tight. She took a slow, deep breath, eyes narrowing at the mare. “I’m sure most ponies would do well enough to leave the Student of the Night alone.” She answered as evenly as she could. “Oh, of course! And how rude of me! I know you, Miss Twilight Sparkle, but not you, me.” The mare offered a delicate hoof to shake, smiling a genial smile. “Fleur de Lis, if you will. Duchess Fleur de Lis.” Gingerly, Twilight shook the hoof. Blowhard, she couldn’t help but think. “Pleased to meet you.” She answered, contradicting her internal thoughts. “And a very big pleasure to meet you as well!” Fleur’s voice practically squeaked at the words, her smile broadening. Just as quickly, it disappeared. “Well, how are you enjoying yourself in the castle, little one?” Twilight twitched. Little one. Stupid Fleur did not get to call her that. “Oh, it’s just wonderful, I’ve met so many amazing ponies!” She lied through her teeth. This noble, Twilight knew how to deal with. This noble, Shining had warned her about. Fleur was no Silverhorn. “And how about your time with Queen Luna?” Fleur inquired, leaning in close. Too close. Twilight took a small step back. “Oh, she’s just so busy, I hardly ever get to see her!” Twilight lamented, putting on the show that she guessed the noble wanted to see. Twilight could guess that this sort of noble were the ones that Luna warned her about. The power hungry, the needy, the ones who wanted to worm their way close to the Queen through her. Feigning indifference, feigning distance would be the best course of action, Twilight was sure. Fleur only wanted her for her connection. Except, Twilight was absolutely and incredibly wrong. Fleur’s smile morphed into something much more… predatory, and she leaned into close, laying a gentle hoof on Twilight’s back to keep her from backing away. “Is that so, little one? Perhaps you’d like to talk about it then? Such a shame our glorious ruler can’t even take the time for her dear student, isn’t it?” Fleur asked, eyes glittering with excitement. A wave of uneasiness rolled through Twilight’s stomach, suddenly feeling as if she’d fallen into a trap of some kind. “Well, she’s trying her best. She’s just busy because of the floods. It will pass,” Twilight tried to reason. “I understand how busy things can get for Luna.” Twilight smiled at the tail end of her words, trying to placate the mare with her gentle grin. Fleur tossed her mane dramatically, even going as far to scoff at her words. “And why should Luna have to do that? Why should Luna be the one to travel hundreds of miles? And for what? Just to make sure things go well for a crumbling city?” She shook her head. “No, Luna could have simply sent an emissary for the task. Do you really think she needed to be there herself?” Twilight’s uneasiness came back as she thought about it. Really, why did Luna need to be there? “Well, I suppose you’re right,” she admitted. “Though, Luna could always just go to make sure things are all right. Luna probably just wants to make an appearance for the civilians sake!” That made sense! Twilight stepped forward, smile actually genuine now. “The Queen probably thought her appearance would be good for morale. What pony doesn’t like to see their Queen?” Fleur chuckled darkly, shaking her head more sedately and calm this time. “No.. No, I’m afraid that’s not quite how it works. Those ponies-” Fleur looked out towards the window, “-don’t want Luna to be there. No pony likes the Queen. Her sister? Oh, they adore her, but not the Queen herself. Not after ten years ago, and certainly not after the temper she’s shown in the public. Nor do I blame them.” Twilight didn’t have an answer to that. She knew about the closure of the lower districts, knew that Luna had given the order. Fleur chuckled again and stepped beside Twilight, leaning in conspiratorially. “You and I know the truth though. You and I know what really lies behind Luna’s facade. Wouldn’t it be nice to have more time with her?” she asked, voice silky smooth. Twilight couldn’t help but agree. She’d felt the sting of betrayal, felt the pain of the loneliness for the past few days. This morning had been nearly everything she wanted out of the Queen, save the earlier arguments, but it had happened so rarely. Twilight would never give anything to become her full time student. But… Twilight couldn’t be that selfish, much as she’d love to. “Luna...” Twilight swallowed, gently pushing away from the mare. “Luna needs to do what’s best for Equestria, not for me. Why are you talking to me like this?” she asked, caring not for her bluntness. Fleur stepped back, harrumphing. “Why, I merely thought that you would want what was best for your mentor. You and I both know that she could use a break! It seems I won’t convince you today, nor did I expect too! Such a clever filly like yourself should of course be suspicious of a-” She lowered her eyes, pouting,”- mean, old mare like myself.” As if. “Just, promise me you shall think about it! You’ll know where to find me if the time comes.” “Sure,” Twilight answered, noncommittally. She doubted she would ever talk to this mare again, but... To get rid of her, Twilight was fine with that. “Twilight!?” Sunny’s voice called from down the hall. Fleur’s expression turned decidedly into a sneer. “Well, that’s my cue to leave. Good luck, dear student.” And with that, Fleur turned in the opposite direction of Sunny and set off. Twilight watched her go until Sunny ran right up beside her, still panting from exertion. “Y-you alright, Twilight?” Sunny asked, voice shaking from her quick breathing. Twilight turned back to the guard, noticing her disheveled mane, her dented armor. That couldn’t be good - anything that hit with enough force to dent her armor had to leave a bruise, it not a broken rib. “Fine.. But, what happened to you?” Twilight asked. She carefully reached out a hoof to trace of the dent in the barding, though Sunny jerked back. “It’s okay. Promise. Just a drunk stallion, but some of the castle guards are taking him away.” Sunny smiled reassuringly. That was better; seeing Sunny without a smile on her face almost felt like upsetting the natural order of things. “A drunk stallion did all that?” Twilight’s eyes widened again, surveying the damage. Sunny followed her gaze and turned her body, shielding her injured side from view. Twilight swore she saw bite marks, but in metal plating? How… “Look, it’s not a big deal. Big burly type,” Sunny tried to explain. She swished her mane and flicked her ears back, resetting her smile again. “Come on, we’re gonna be late to meet up with Luna if we don’t hurry!” Twilight would doubt her, but... for now, Twilight nodded. Something to bring up later. Yet, before Sunny set off, she looked down the hallway worriedly. “And Twilight?” she asked, voice suddenly very serious indeed. “Don’t talk to that mare again.”