//------------------------------// // Chapter Nine: Weighing Options // Story: The Truth: An alternate-world 'Truth or Dare' tale // by SFC Ponycron //------------------------------// The Truth Chapter Nine Luna couldn’t help but stare at the waning moon as she finished dotting the night sky with stars. She sighed, her mind and heart at odds with each other. I feel like I made a mistake, she mused, a mistake that cost six children their father, and six of my friends their lover. She shook her head. And with Celly telling me of her own relationship, I feel even more the fool... “A bit for your thoughts, Lu?” Luna whirled around to see Celestia, devoid of all of her regal adornments. “What are you doing not wearing your crown?” she asked incredulously. Celestia smiled her usual enigmatic smile. “I’ll seem biased,” she replied cryptically. “Tonight, I’m not a Princess. I’m merely a supporter of Red Zircon and the Elements of Harmony.” Luna frowned. “That’s not fair, Celestia,” she snapped. “Don’t join them. I already feel like a fool, like I made the biggest mistake of my life.” “You didn’t,” Celestia said, her voice firm yet gentle. “Did anypony that supported Red Zircon voice their objections when you passed judgment on him?” “No.” “You said to me two days ago that, had Twilight and the other Elements of Harmony been there, they wouldn’t have hesitated to voice their objections?” Luna nodded. “Yes, though I don’t see where you’re going with this.” “Luna, the Elements of Harmony, their children, and Red Zircon’s other friends and supporters are arriving as we speak, not to fault you for the decision you made, but to ask for you to bring him home. As I said before, you did what you felt to be right. Nopony questioned your decision and actions then, and I’m sure nopony will question your decision and actions now.” Celestia smiled. “Though, if anypony did question you tonight, I don’t think they’d be leaving the palace unscathed.” Luna nodded solemnly. “I hope you’re right, Celly.” Celestia strode up to her sister and nuzzled her reassuringly. “Lu, you’ll do fine.” She closed her eyes and summoned her magic. In a blinding flash, she had transformed into a more pony-proportioned alicorn mare with a pastel-pink mane and tail. She looked at her wings, and her horn glowed. Three yellow bands of magic gently wrapped themselves around her torso, and her wings disappeared from view. “Come. Your Court awaits.” *-----*-----*-----*-----* “You okay, Mom?” Twilight snapped out of her reverie and looked down at her daughter. “I’m fine, Dawn. It’s just...it’s been a long while since I’ve had to attend court.” “You’ve been here before, Aunt Twilight?” Crystal Prism asked. “This place is huge!” “I used to live in the castle, Crystal,” Twilight answered. “I was Princess Celestia’s private pupil, you know.” Silver Streamer looked up at Twilight with wide eyes. “No way!” “We’ve been to the castle before too, Streamer,” Pinkie said. “Of course, not everypony was happy about that afterward.” “You talking about the Gala?” Rainbow Dash asked. She shook her head. “Oh, Celestia, that was a disaster.” “Umm...” Applejack, who had been at the front of their little group, abruptly stopped. “Twi, there s’posed t’be Lunar Court tonight?” “No. Princess Luna specifically said in her letter that she wouldn’t be holding it tonight. Why?” Applejack pointed a hoof at the towering double doors leading to the throne room. “Look.” Twilight and the others looked to see the doors open and a moderately-sized crowd of ponies walking into the throne room. Without a word to the others, Twilight split off from the group and trotted over to the closest brown-coated unicorn guard. “Lady Sparkle,” the guard said stoically. Twilight quickly looked him over, noticing the red star on the center of his breastplate that denoted him as a Lieutenant. “What’s going on here, Lieutenant? I thought Princess Luna said she wasn’t holding Lunar Court this evening.” The guard looked down at her and smiled. “That’s correct. She’s not holding Lunar Court this evening.” “Then why are all these ponies here?” “Twilight Sparkle?” a familiar voice popped up behind her. She whirled around to see a familiar white unicorn with a powder-blue mane and tail. “Fancy Pants!” she exclaimed in surprise as the others caught up to her. “What are you doing here?” “Showing my support for a colleague of mine,” Fancy Pants replied. A slender and striking white unicorn mare with a cotton candy-pink mane and tail strode up to him. Another slender unicorn mare, her coat a light russet and her ponytailed mane and braided tail cinnamon red, took her place at his other side. “Fleur-de-Lis, you remember Lady Twilight Sparkle and her friends.” She nodded. “Indeed. It was at your garden party.” “You’ve not met my other partner, Cinnamon Hearts,” Fancy Pants said. He turned to her. “This is Lady Twilight Sparkle, Princess Celestia’s personal student. She’s the librarian in Ponyville and a dear friend of mine. These are her close friends, and their...” He shook his head in surprise. “...Children?” “Yes,” Twilight said. “We were asked to come to the castle this evening. Everypony in Ponyville that supported our relationship with Red Zircon...” Fancy Pants held up a hoof at the name. “Pardon a moment, but you know Red Zircon?” “Yes,” she answered again. “Ruby Dawn, my daughter, is Red Zircon’s foal. Red Zircon was in a relationship with all of us. Our children are his.” Fancy Pants stared in abject shock at Twilight and the others, his monocle falling from in front of his eye. “My word,” he muttered in shock. Replacing his monocle with his magic, he looked down at Dawn. “My word, indeed. You even wear his hair like he does.” Dawn smiled shyly. “So I’ve been told, sir.” “Umm, excuse me,” a quiet voice piped up. All eyes turned to look at Fluttershy. “Umm...how exactly do you know Red Zircon, if you don’t mind my asking?” Fancy Pants laughed lightly. “I don’t mind at all, my dear. I’m actually one of Red Zircon’s best customers, as well as his best source of referrals.” His expression darkened suddenly. “When I heard about the news during a function I attended, I must say that I was quite curious as to why he was sent off. Of course, I know better than to question a Princess over her decision.” He turned to Rarity and Jasper. “So, this is the colt that’s been taking up my favorite party guest’s time most days, has it?” Jasper looked up at Fancy Pants in shock for a moment. “I...” Fancy Pants laughed. “I was only joking, child.” He bowed. “My name is Fancy Pants, and I’m a good friend of both your parents.” Jasper bowed nervously. “It’s good to meet you too, sir.” “Excuse me,” a voice called out. All eyes turned to see another slender snow-white unicorn mare with pink hair. “I do apologize. You were blocking the doorway.” “Oh no, no,” Fancy Pants said politely, shifting over and allowing the unicorn mare passage, “I must apologize. After you.” The unicorn mare bowed respectfully and walked past the group, catching Twilight’s eye and grinning ever so slightly. As she joined the growing crowd of ponies, Twilight noticed the large sun for a cutie mark, and she gasped in realization. “Somethin’ the matter, Twilight?” “What’s wrong, Mom?” Twilight shook her head. “Oh! Umm...nothing,” Still at a loss for words, she began to move into the throne room. “Come on. We better get inside.” *-----*-----*-----*-----* Luna looked out at the crowd of ponies before her as the last of the Ponyville inhabitants arrived, noting that those from Ponyville had grouped to one side of the carpet leading up to the throne, and those from Canterlot (the larger group) also stuck to their own side. She looked over to the unicorn guards at the doors and nodded. Wordlessly, they bowed and used their magic to close the doors. “Twilight Sparkle, would you and your daughter please come forward?” she asked, her voice loud enough to be heard from the back of the room, but not as ear-shattering as her Royal Canterlot Voice. “Your friends and their children as well.” She addressed the other half of the room. “Mister Fancy Pants, if you would please move to the front of your group.” The crowd of ponies from Ponyville made way for Twilight and the others to reach the front. The same was said as Fancy Pants, Cinnamon Hearts and Fleur-de-Lis made their way to the front. “Six years ago, I was confronted by somepony, who is to remain anonymous, that asked that something be done about a unicorn named Red Zircon,” she said. “He was said to be pursuing a relationship with six different mares. Is this true?” Twilight stepped forward. “Yes, Princess Luna. It is true. I and the rest of the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony each had a relationship with Red Zircon.” “Were you aware of these other affairs?” Luna asked. Applejack stepped forward. “Beg pardon, Princess, but they weren’t affairs. We all knew ‘im, and we all cared for ‘im.” Luna nodded and turned to the group from Canterlot. “Mister Fancy Pants, how do you know Red Zircon?” “Red Zircon was...is...a fine jewelcrafter,” he replied. “He is most detailed, and my partner Fleur-de-Lis is a great fan of his work, as am I. Ever since I first bought some of Red Zircon’s pieces and showed them off proudly to my guests at parties I throw, everypony has demanded some of his work. He met with most, if not all, of them personally to get a better idea out of what they wanted of him. He was very devoted to his work. Our correspondence fell to mostly letters once he moved from Canterlot, though he continued to visit every so often to attend one of my functions and attend to his clientele.” “Do you consider him a friend?” Fancy Pants nodded resolutely. “Of course, Princess.” Luna nodded again. She turned to Twilight. “Due to circumstances made light to me by your daughter, I can understand why you were absent the night he was banished.” She kept her face an impassive mask. “Yet there are those present with you that were there six years ago that did not voice their objections that night.” Luna watched as Twilight looked down at her daughter and nodded. Ruby Dawn swallowed the lump in her throat and took a nervous step forward. “P-Pr-Princess?” “Yes, child.” “M-my name is Ruby Dawn,” she said, her voice unsure. “I was th-the one to ask Uncle S-S-Spike to send you our letters...” Luna nodded. “There is no need to be nervous, child. You are free to speak your mind.” Dawn nodded back and shut her eyes. She called up her magic and her music box floated free of her saddlebag. She opened one eye as she gingerly floated it onto the floor in front of her. She looked up at Twilight. “Mom...?” Twilight nodded and called forth her own magic. A floating image of Dawn’s music box appeared in the air in front of Luna. Dawn smiled at her mother and lifted the lid of her music box with a hoof. She tapped the block of milky quartz twice, and the block of stone lit up. Red Zircon’s image faded into view. Luna listened to the image of Red Zircon, all the while keeping her face an impassive mask. He knew the risks, and he faced the punishment alone. Hmm. I don’t know how one pony can be so selfish and so selfless at the same time. As the image faded away, Twilight ended the spell and levitated the music box back into Dawn’s saddlebag. Luna coolly looked down at Twilight and Ruby Dawn. “Twilight Sparkle, do you agree with Red Zircon’s assumption that had you objected to his sentencing then, it would have put the townsponies at odds with each other?” Twilight Sparkle nodded. “I do.” “Do you still feel that way now, after six years?” “It isn’t about just myself or my friends anymore, Princess,” she replied. She lifted a foreleg. “Red Zircon positively affected the lives of everypony here. I may not know some of these other ponies, but they knew him and respected him. They want him back just as much as we do.” She put a hoof on Dawn’s shoulder. “Mostly, I want my daughter to have a father that loves her, as I have a father that loves me.” She looked to her friends. “Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash and Applejack will all tell you the same thing. We all want him to see his children, to raise them with us, to know that we all loved him just as much as he loved us.” Luna blinked slowly, weighing Twilight’s words. Without a reply, she disappeared in a flash of light. Well, here's Chapter Nine. Been working on Chapter Ten as well because I'd hit a snag with this installment. I initally wanted Red to come back on Father's Day, but life and slight Writer's Block got in the way. As it stands, I have three votes for Twilight, one for Rainbow Dash, and one vote for not putting in a cloppy chapter. Let's keep the votes coming, everypony! I know I have more readers out there! Even if you don't want to vote, at least drop a comment or some concrit. Don't hesitate to be brutal.