//------------------------------// // The War Room & What Lay Beneath—Part I // Story: The Silver Standard // by PatchworkPoltergeist //------------------------------// “Seriously?” Diamond Tiara hooked her hooves over the picket fence and stared in disbelief. “You’ve been here by yourself all week?” Silver glanced up from watering her roses. “Almost. Mother and Father were here for my birthday on Sunday, and Father’s coming back this afternoon, but it’s just been me most of the week, yeah. Me and Tacks.” “Yeah, but he’s your butler, that’s different. Butlers do what you say, not the other way around.” Somehow, Silver got the feeling Diamond dealt with a different variety of butlers. “Besides, yours is so low profile you might as well be alone, except somepony still makes you dinner and waxes the floor.” She propped her chin on the edge of the fence with a wistful sigh. “Some fillies get all the luck. You could do whatever you wanted for days.” “Oh?” Silver paused to pluck a withered rose petal. She popped it into her mouth and tilted her ears curiously. “Like what?” “Wha—I—you—seriously?!” Diamond thrust her hooves into the air, sputtering and stuttering over her words like a faulty record player. “Like wh—like anything, Silver Spoon! Come on, use that nerd brain of yours. You’ve got a blank check to do anything you wanna do whenever you wanna do it! How are you not getting this?!” “No, I get it,” said Silver, who still kind of didn’t. “But it’s still the same house with the same stuff.” She glanced back at her cozy white walls and crawling ivy. “There’s not that much to do alone I can’t do otherwise. Right?” “For pony’s sake, Silver Spoon, think outside the box. There’s TONS you could do, like… um… eat jelly beans for breakfast! Or you could go to bed after midnight, or go out whenever you wanted to buy candy and then you could eat lemon drops until the sun came up. Maybe you could even decide not to go to school one day and sleep until noon or… or… Oh, I dunno, it’s your house, you know more than me about it.” Diamond’s hooves came down with an exasperated clack. “Sheesh, Silvie, don’t tell me you didn’t do anything all week!” “For your information, I did plenty.” Silver tossed her braid over her shoulder and jutted her chin. “On Tuesday, I ate three croissants instead of one with my tea and I ate them in the drawing room.” “Wow.” Diamond Tiara blinked slowly. “Three whole croissants. You’re out of control, wild mare. Somepony call the guards.” “Well, I…” Darn it, what else did she do this week? “I also decided to practice the harpsichord on Wednesday!” “…so you’re saying you did exactly what you’re supposed to do, but four days early.” Silver frowned. “Well, when you put it that way…” She wrinkled her nose at Diamond’s pitying head shake. “Di, the only thing that’ll happen if I do something crazy is nopony will trust me on my own anymore. Plus, Brass Tacks is still here, and it’s not like he’s blind.” As if on cue, the attic window swung open, and a thin, brown unicorn stretched his neck into the fresh air. “Hello, Tacks!” called Silver Spoon. Diamond offered a limp wave. The Silvers’ butler gave them both the briefest of nods, but kept his blue gaze upon the Ponyville skyline. His tall ears stood erect and still. Even from a distance, Silver noticed the odd expression on his face: so stern and grim. It didn’t suit such a pretty day at all. He had been this way since he tucked Silver into bed last night. “He keeps watching the sky. I bet he’s looking for the mail.” Silver Spoon glanced at the mailbox by the gate. “It didn’t show up yesterday.” Whatever Tacks waited on must have been very important. Silver hadn’t seen him this grave since that minor crime wave swept Lower Manehattan a few years ago. It couldn’t be anything as serious as that, though. He would have said something by now, or else shadowed her from breakfast to bedtime. During the money crisis, Silver couldn’t brush her teeth without him fussing. “Yeah, we didn’t get ours either.” Diamond shrugged. “Mother thinks that The Dink’s mom lost it in a cross breeze.” “I don’t think so,” said Silver Spoon. “The Dink told me her mom’s visiting relatives in Cloudsdale this weekend.” She cradled a droopy rose in her hooves, debating the effort of saving it or not. “Something got tied up somewhere, I guess.” Diamond’s tail swished impatiently. “Whatever, it doesn’t matter. You said your dad’s not home until late this afternoon, right?” A mischievous smile quirked at Silver’s nod. “Let’s do something fun.” That sounded an awful lot like “let’s get into trouble” from Silver’s side of the fence. “What kind of fun did you have in mind, Di?” “Something way better than doing chores all Saturday, that’s for sure.” Silver Spoon laughed despite herself. You’re making it up as you go along, aren’t you? Even if she didn’t entirely trust the roguish gleam in her friend’s eye, it’d be nice to stretch her legs for a while. “Okay, but nothing too crazy.” “Silvie, please. When have I ever suggested something crazy?” asked Diamond Tiara, who’d literally suggested eating jelly beans for breakfast two minutes ago. “I can’t imagine.” Silver let the droopy rose fall back into place. Nothing had wilted or turned brown yet; she could give it a few days to come back. She flicked water off her hooves and headed for the gate. “I’ll be back a little later, Tacks.” Brass Tacks spun on his heel. “Where are you going, Silver Spoon?” He asked—no, demanded—in such a sharp tone, Silver paused in mid-step. “I’m only going into town. You know, the square and shops and stuff?” She glanced between the garden gate and Diamond’s impatient hoof tap. “Brass Tacks, it’s Saturday, remember? I finished all my homework already.” “Yes, I remember.” All the muscles in the unicorn’s neck tensed. He pressed against the window ledge as if he intended to jump down all three stories and follow them. “When do you intend to return?” “I don’t know…” Midway through the sentence, Silver realized that was an unacceptable answer. “Around four or five, when Father’s train arrives, I guess.” Silver’s eyes lingered on Brass Tacks’ hooves digging into the wood. “Is there some reason I shouldn’t go, Tacks?” “Why would there be?” Diamond Tiara rocked against the fence, half-leaning over the edge. “You’ve done everything you had to do and been freakishly well behaved all week—seriously, who decides to practice harpsichord early—you oughta go wherever you want.” She fluttered her innocent baby blues at Tacks. “Your parents trust you on your own, so if he stopped you, it’d be kind of like stepping on their hooves.” Brass Tacks lashed his white tail and ignored her. “Not a particular reason, no. None that I know of.” His eyes flicked up to the clear, tranquil sky. Not so much as a stray pegasus feather, yet he frowned all the same. “However, I strongly advise you to remain watchful today, Young Miss Silver Spoon.” Silver Spoon frowned back. “Why?” After a brief moment to gather a proper response, Brass Tacks met her gaze. “The sun rose an hour late,” he gently said. “Have a good time in Ponyville, but return before five. Do we understand each other, Miss Silver?” “Home before five.” Best to make it home before four-thirty, to be safe. Silver waved to her butler as she left the gate. “I promise. Bye, Tacks.” “There, you see? Even Princess Celestia takes a break sometimes.” Diamond’s tail beckoned Silver to her side and they set on down the path. She smiled and nodded to herself. “I bet she slept in. Dad says she does that sometimes, especially when the leaves get ready to fall.” Across the street, Sweetie Belle stepped out of Davenport’s. She waved her hooves, trying to direct her parents as they backed out of the store, balancing a new loveseat between them. “Okay, a little to the left, Mom… careful, caaaareful. Good. Okay, now it’s—oh hi, Silver Spoon—it’s a little farther to the cart, Dad. You got it!” “Hello, Sweetie Belle.” Silver smiled and breezed back into the conversation, as if they’d only met Cotton, Dinky, or Twist. “Diamond, the Running of the Leaves isn’t for another three weeks.” “It’s not an exact date. I said it’s around the time the leaves fall.” Her gaze skipped from Sweetie to Silver to Sweetie again. A mild sneer crossed Diamond’s face. “What’s with the buddy-buddy act?” Silver tilted her head and cast her best I’m-ever-so-sure-I-don’t-know-what-you-mean face. “Don’t get cute; I’ve seen it happening all week between you and the Goofsaders. Something’s going on.” Diamond Tiara narrowed her eyes. “Are you planning something and not telling me? If it’s a prank, you’ve got to let me in on it.” “It’s not a prank, Di. It’s nothing. Really.” Darn it, she should have walked on and ignored Sweetie Belle. She should have said hello to all three unicorns and masked it under standard etiquette. Silver Spoon knew this conversation had to happen eventually, but did it have to be now? “Oh, it’s definitely something. Something happened at that dinner of yours didn’t it?” For once, the two fillies cut across Saturday’s market square with ease. The usual stands were up and running, but the minimal crowd offered plenty of space. No crowds to fight through, but none to shelter behind, either. Nothing to do but come out and say it. “Sweetie Belle and I have agreed to a truce.”  “Wait, what? Why didn’t you say anything? What kind of truce?” Diamond’s suspicious frown deepened, but she didn’t flatten her ears or raise her voice. Not yet, anyway. “What happened?” “I wanted to wait and see how it worked out before I told you.” Encouraged by a lack of shocked disbelief or screams of betrayal, Silver pressed on. “Sweetie Belle and I talked after dinner, and we came to an understanding. Cleared some bad air between us, that’s all.” Silver jumped to the point before Di could ask for details. “Diamond Tiara, we can’t keep up this feud with the Crusaders anymore. I know I’ve said it before, but I really mean it this time. We have to drop it and make peace.” She stepped closer and frowned to show she meant business. “We have to.” Diamond snorted. “Oh, so we let them walk all over us and straight over the finish line?” Her volume slowly climbed past the safe point. “You’re telling me we’re just supposed to—” “They can’t win if it’s not a competition, and they won’t win if we don’t goad them into competing.” Did that second part imply fault on Diamond’s part? Silver hoped not; she had enough to handle as it was. “Listen, I’m not saying we all need to be friends. I’m not even saying we need to fake nice with them. All I’m saying is that we stay out of each other’s manes from now on.” Silver shrugged with a placating smile. “We don’t like each other anyway. Why waste our valuable time on them?” Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon rounded the Golden Oak Library. In the window, a fluffy little owl perched atop a globe. It had its head tucked under its wing, but when Silver went for a closer look, it opened an eye at her. All the lights were off; Princess Twilight Sparkle must have taken a lunch break. But no, she would have left her dragon friend behind to look after the library, right? No sign saying when the library would open up, either, just an open book return beside the door. Weird. Diamond’s reflection appeared beside Silver’s in the window. “You’re not answering me, Silver Spoon. What happened?” She sucked her teeth and rephrased the question. “No, what changed? I know you, Silver. You don’t backpedal this hard unless you’ve got a solid reason. What aren’t you telling me?” Diamond must have noticed the nervous twitch in her ears, because after a moment, she added, “I won’t get mad.” A phrase that, in Silver’s experience, always meant the exact opposite. Treading lightly wouldn’t work with Diamond on edge. She could only hope to offer a logical appeal. “I realized something last week. Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, and Scootaloo have connections. Like, really good connections. Their sisters are best friends with the newest princess, but even on their own, they’ve got tons of influence. Either one of us has more money than all their sisters put together, but they… they’re stronger than us.” Diamond Tiara gave a disdainful sniff. “That’s something cowards say, Silver Spoon. Cowards back out as soon as things get tough—and that’s what it really is, isn’t it?” She glowered at the library and trotted on at double speed, leaving it to Silver to catch up. “You’re just scared of them ‘cause of their families. Well, I’m not. I’m—” Silver closed the distance in a sprint. “What you’re doing is throwing rocks at a hornet’s nest, Diamond!” She dashed ahead, hopped a flower bed, and swung about to land in the middle of Diamond’s path. Diamond pinned her ears back and stomped. The earth dug deep into the caulkins of Silver’s shoes. She didn’t budge. “We’ve been lucky so far. Nopony’s noticed or said anything—yet—but what happens when Apple Bloom tells Applejack that you’ve been on her case? I’m sure she’s already watching us, Di, I’ve seen her.” “Yeah, so?” “So, what do you think is going to happen if Applejack or Granny Smith goes to your dad about it? Because that’ll be the first place they’ll go.” Something like alarm shadowed Diamond Tiara’s face, there and gone in an exhale. Her tongue ran across the edge of her teeth, ready to counterattack, but it didn’t come. Diamond stepped around Silver and moved on at a slow walk. “Do the other two blank flanks know about your little truce?” Okay, she’d broken ground. Good. “I’m not sure,” Silver admitted. “I haven’t actually talked to Sweetie Belle since the dinner, but I’ve noticed Scootaloo’s stopped shooting us nasty looks all the time.” That probably had less to do with a truce, and more to do with the Crusaders having a new project, but… details. “I don’t like it, Silver. It sounds like we’re giving up without a fight.” She didn’t look at Silver when she met her at the shoulder, but kept her eyes fixed on the crowd of ponies milling around the train station ahead. “I’m not letting Apple Bloom stomp all over me again just ‘cause Applejack’s some big important hero or whatever. If she comes at me again—” “IF she comes at us again, we’ll fight back. If we have to.” Silver laid a hoof upon Diamond’s withers. “It’s a truce, not a surrender.” Diamond closed her eyes and sighed. “Then why does it feel that way?” Silver Spoon couldn’t answer that. “All I’m saying is we don’t need to start anything. We leave them alone, they leave us alone. Simple as that.” She smiled. “We’re fillies moving up in the world, right? We don’t have time to worry about whatever nonsense Bloom’s wrecking crew is up to. Besides, this truce was technically your idea in the first place.” “Mm. I guess…” Diamond didn’t smile back, but she didn’t scowl either. “I guess if they mind their own stupid blank flank stupid business that’d be okay. I guess.” Silver Spoon held her hoof out. “So, truce?” Slowly, Diamond took it. She thought on it a moment, nodded to herself, and shook. “Truce. Like, it’s a deadweight loss, right?” “Right.” The crowd at the station had grown larger. Silver couldn’t ever recall it being this crowded. Or this calm. Nopony pushed against the tide of bodies to get where they needed to go, because nopony was going anywhere. They didn’t meet anypony at the station or hail cabs or walk to other destinations. Travelers parked themselves on benches and idled by the post, preparing for a long wait. No smoke trailed from the engine’s smokestacks. Curious, they trotted closer for a better look. Silver craned her neck back to stare at the growing mass of travelers. She and Diamond climbed onto the platform, pressing close to the wall to avoid getting stepped on. “I’ve been thinking about something else Sweetie Belle said to me that night.” A few feet away, a stallion in a paisley jacket and striped fedora read a newspaper. Without any effort at all, Silver Spoon found nineteen ways to insult that outfit. “Di, are we mean?” “Mean?” Diamond Tiara tilted her head and blinked. “Nah, we’re only—hey!” She ducked to avoid a swinging briefcase. “Watch it!” The offending pony hadn’t even stopped to apologize! Rude. Silver Spoon glared, hoping the sheer force of her indignation might inspire some modicum of manners. “Ugh, what is with this place today?” Diamond checked her tiara for damage. “I heard somepony mention some sort of conference happening in Manehattan. Maybe it’s a pit stop on the way to that?” “Lot of ponies for one conference.” They also looked too put out for a routine pit stop. Silver stretched on her back legs to keep glaring at the rude pony. He weaved around the stallion with the paisley suit and shoved past a mare with a golden coat. The mare stopped glaring at her watch to glare at the offending stallion and grumbled something. Silver couldn’t see her face, but she couldn’t mistake those shots of lavender streaking through the pink power hair. “Hey, Di?” Without looking away, Silver patted her friend’s hoof. “This is going to sound crazy, but I think I see Golden Glitter. By the conductor, see?” “What?!” Diamond took a running leap onto a bench, ignoring the glares of the ponies already sitting there. Ears flicking faster than a telegraph, she followed Silver’s line of sight. “Oh my gosh. I think you’re right, Silvie.” The mare shifted on her hooves at the edge of the platform, holding her purse close to her chest. Green rectangular sunglasses hid her eyes as she stared holes into the train window. “You sure?” This mare certainly looked the part, but the tense posture and flighty flick of her ears didn’t resemble the loose confidence Silver had seen at Wisteria. “Positive. Mom!” Diamond stretched as tall as she could and waved her forelegs in the air. “Hey, Mom! Over here, it’s me!” Golden Glitter pivoted so hard, her hooves scraped the wood finish. “Diamond Tiara?” As she zeroed in on them, her polished smile lit the train station. The anxious, impatient mare vanished entirely. Golden’s laughter sparked wild and bright and joyous. “Ha, Diamond Tiara!” She raised a hoof as Diamond started to climb from the bench. “No, no, stay there. I’ll come to you.” Silver followed Golden’s haircut slicing through the crowd. “What’s she doing here? She didn’t say anything about visiting, right?” If so, Silver never would have heard the end of it. “Um, it’s called a surprise? Duh.” Diamond’s tail waved in a showmare’s flourish. “You don’t know my mom, Silvie. She’s got more flash and style than all of Bridleway and Applewood put together. I bet she wanted to make an even bigger entrance, but we ran into her before she got the chance.” “But why?” asked Silver Spoon. “It’s awfully sudden.” Diamond waved again, just in case Golden had forgotten where she was. “She probably came for my birthday.” “Um. Your birthday was last month, though.” Diamond’s tail flicked Silver on the nose. “Details. Ever since Hinny of the Hills took off, I bet she’s been super busy with her big star clients.” “Oh, but none of them bigger than you!” Golden’s hooves wrapped around Diamond Tiara’s barrel and lifted her into the air. She rose only a few inches before Golden set her down again and opted for a nuzzle instead. “Oof—literally. Diamond, I swear you’re ten inches taller every time I see you!” She laughed and kissed the soft curls around her daughter’s ears. “What, did you start eating the Apples’ plant food?” Diamond Tiara wrinkled her nose and blew a raspberry. “Ew, no!” “No?” Golden Glitter drew back and rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “Hmm. Well, then I suppose natural fabulousness must make pretty fillies grow faster. It’s the only explanation. C’mere.” She tilted her daughter’s chin upwards and planted another kiss on the tip of her nose. “I missed you, princess.” “Yeah.” Diamond buried her smile against her mother’s silk ascot. “Me too, Mom.” Silver stepped into their circle quietly, not wanting to intrude on the moment. “Hello again, Miss Golden Glitter.” “Hey, great to see you, Silver Spoon!” Despite the long train ride, she still smelled of new carriages. She gave Silver one of her firm, professional hoofshakes. “Still fighting the good fight?” “As always. How’s Pot Luck doing?” Not that Silver cared, but an adult hoofshake demanded adult small talk. Diamond tugged her mother’s sleeve, trying to steer her towards the road. “The town’s changed a lot since the last time you were here, Mom.” Beyond the train station, a few passersby had stopped to observe the happy reunion. Silver noticed Berry Punch, Minuette, and White Lightning among them and whispering to each other. None of them smiled, though Minuette tried to. Miss Punch almost looked nervous. Golden Glitter took one last glance at the train and stepped into the Ponyville street. “I bet it has.” Was that enthusiasm or sarcasm? Silver couldn’t tell. Diamond scoped their surroundings and led the way west, opposite of the Rich household and the looky-loos. “Anyway, Silver—it’s Goldie, by the way—Pot Luck’s doing good, but she’s got her hooves full. Anypony would, what with the interviews, photoshoots, rehearsals and shows, and that’s on top of school. You know Wisteria won’t let up on homework just because Hills is sold out until December. She’s a trooper, though; handles it all like a dream.” The filly likely rose to the scholarship students’ top ranks, too. If the show kept its momentum, the kid could qualify for the new money cliques soon. Not bad for a charity case, though Silver didn’t envy her new workload. “That’s good to hear.” Golden glanced over her shoulder and lowered her sunglasses to shoot Silver Spoon a conspiratorial wink. “But between you and me,” she whispered, “she doesn’t have half of Diamond’s star power. Diamond here scored blue ribbons before most foals learned to walk.” Silver side-glanced Diamond Tiara, who grinned but didn’t leap in to champion her accomplishments. “I’ve seen them, um… Goldie.” Addressing an adult—much less somepony’s mom—so casually still felt weird, like she spoke to Di’s big sister or something. She supposed it made sense for a mare who worked with foals. Plenty of tutors, sitters, and new teachers went for the easygoing buddy thing, too. Still weird, though. Several blocks away, Barnyard Bargains’ wide roof slowly rose behind Twist’s house. Signs staked into the grass trailblazed a semi-annual sale. Diamond twitched her ears and gently pulled Golden Glitter in another direction, though she didn’t seem to have a destination in mind yet. “Mom, did you know a princess lives in Ponyville, now? Twilight Sparkle did a thing with some stuff and became an alicorn last spring, wings and tiara and everything! We got to meet her, right Silvie?” “Yes, a few weeks ago!” Silver nodded, the message all too clear. Keep it light, keep it fun. Keep Mr. Rich and all associated with him far, far away. “Her dragon assistant served us tea and nachos.” “So I heard. Strange place for a princess to settle down, but who can tell how royalty thinks?” Goldie looked among the trees and rooftops, frowning. “No towers or spires… where does she live, anyway? Does she have an estate?” Her searching eyes found a stray Barnyard Bargains sign. She mouthed the advertised slogan to herself and shook her head. “Ew, and what a terrible font. Who’d he put in charge of marketing?” Unsure if that question was rhetorical—and no idea what the answer would be anyway—Silver pointed south. “Princess Twilight's right across from Town Hall, at the library.” “A princess of Equestria lives in a library?” Goldie tilted her head at the oak’s faraway branches. “Doesn’t seem—” BANG A bolt of pink and white and purple tore the sky in half. Birds careened off course. The trees smacked sideways and clouds of debris swirled into the sky. Blown off her hooves, Silver Spoon yelped and pulled herself into a ball. For a split second, the hairs along her spine burned supernova hot and the world crackled. Miles away, something crashed. Debris settled. The birdsongs resumed. Silver shook the dust out of her coat and slowly got up. She still felt the earth’s aftershocks trembling in the soft frog of her hoof. “What was that?” Golden Glitter huddled over her daughter, and didn’t rise from her protective crouch. Crooked sunglasses dangled off her muzzle. She stared at the path of minor destruction that cut through Ponyville, then at the sky. “I’m not sure.” Flurries of lavender feathers dusted down the path. A couple tangled in Diamond Tiara’s mane as she climbed out from under Goldie. “It kinda looked like Twilight Sparkle.” She pulled a quill out of her hair. “She has feathers like these, see?” Above, a figure burst from a cloud and beelined for the crash site. Silver Spoon pointed at the fading rainbow streaks in the sky. “Oh, there goes Rainbow Dash! I think you’re right, Di; that was Princess Twilight.” “Testing out some new flying move, I bet.” Diamond shook the feathers out of her mane.  “She crashed into, like, a million billboards when she learned to fly.” “Princess ought to know better; she could hurt somepony that way.” Goldie smoothed Diamond’s mane into place while she checked for damage. “You two alright?” “Yep.” Diamond swished her tail and did a little prance to prove it. “That’s my tough girl.” Goldie laughed it off and jostled Di’s withers. “It takes more than that to shake you guys, right?” “Much more.” Wish it didn’t shake up all that dust, though. Silver wrinkled her nose. She’d need another bath before she met Father this afternoon. “That’s the spirit.” Goldie sighed, shaking her head. “Sheesh. Ponyville.” She slid the sunglasses back on and let Diamond lead her down the road. “It’s never boring; I’ll give the place that much.” Indeed, the town seemed to have familiarized itself with random crashes and near-disasters. A pony or two looked out their windows to see what caused all the commotion. Some stopped on the street to mutter to each other, and one rubbed her ears to see if they’d popped. No screams or stampedes, though. No sign of panic at all. Slowly, Silver felt the last of the tension ease out of her shoulders. “All this going on, I’ll bet it’s impossible to get any beauty sleep around—oh!” Goldie’s ears perked and the million-bit smile flashed across her face. “Oh, Diamond, I almost forgot to ask! How’d Nationals go this year?” Diamond Tiara tripped over a rock. Goldie caught her before she fell. “Careful!” She tilted her head and frowned at Diamond’s less than enthusiastic expression. “Oh, princess. I’m so sorry I couldn’t make it this year. I would have—I promise I would have—but I never got a letter from Coach Razz to tell me where it was. By the time I even found out it’d be in Whinnyapolis, the prelims were half over.” “That’s…” Diamond glanced to Silver for help. The best Silver could do was maintain airs and offer a sympathetic wince. “That’s okay, Mom. I know you tried.” Diamond smiled, soft and understanding and a little sad. Too soft not to be real. “It’s okay.” “That’s mature of you, Diamond, but it’s not okay. I should have been there.” Goldie folded her ears and snorted. “I’ll bet my bottom bit that bubblehead at the post office lost it in the mail. Nothing we can do about it now, I guess.” Not one to dwell on past mistakes, Goldie sighed and patted Diamond’s back. “So, how bad did you slaughter them this year? Am I looking at a nine-time National Ultimate Grand Supreme?” Silver Spoon blinked, not sure if Goldie just named a pageant title or one of Pinkie’s sundaes. “Um.” The smile thinned. Diamond’s eyes trailed sideways, searching for another princess crash. “Well, um… eight-time National Ultimate Grand Supreme’s still pretty good, right?” “Eight ti—? Oh, Diamond Tiara.” Goldie pursed her lips in a huff. “Well, I’m…” She sighed. “I’m sure you still did your best. Even if it’s only Grand Supreme, there’s always next year.” “Absolutely.” Silver Spoon had no idea what Grand Supreme meant, but it sounded like second place. She pointed towards a sign leading to White Tail Woods. “It’s nice out for autumn, isn’t it? We should go for a hike.” Far away from Ponyville and Mr. Rich. “Great idea, Silver. We can go down the Running of the Leaves route.” The spring returned to Diamond’s step. “Mom can tell you how she beat Berry Punch and Applejack in the race. Twice!” But Golden Glitter knew a distraction when she saw one. Sharp violet eyes narrowed behind the sunglasses. “Diamond. You did get Grand Supreme, didn’t you?” “Not exactly…” Diamond looked at her hooves. “No.” “Then, did you get Mini-Supreme? High Queen?” The hard, thin line of Goldie’s mouth dipped into a frown. Worry knitted her eyebrows. “Pretty Princess? At least tell me you got a Little Miss?” Diamond shuffled her hooves and didn’t answer. “Diamond Dazzle Tiara, don’t tell me you didn’t crown at all?” Golden Glitter slowed to a stop and knelt to face her daughter. “Pony’s sake, what happened? Didn’t you practice at all? Princess, I told you to practice.” “I did!” Diamond squeaked. “Three hours a day, every day! Like always.” “It’s true, Mis—um… It’s true, Goldie.” Silver stepped up, anxious to pull the threads of their nice walk back together. “I was with her all spring: three hours every day, and some days she did four or five.” “Don’t lie to me, Diamond.” Goldie shot Silver Spoon a withering glance. She didn’t approve of supposed lying to buff cover stories either. “Mom, I’m not lying!” Diamond stomped hard with both hooves. “I’m not!” “Then there’s something you’re not telling me, and that’s just as bad as lying.” Goldie met her daughter nose to nose. “Nopony with your talent could work as hard as you say you have without at least crowning Queen. What happened?” Movement in the street caught Silver’s attention. A trail of ponies filed out of Bon Bon’s candy shop and down the street. They stuck close together, though Silver couldn’t recall that particular assortment of ponies being friends. Pinkie Pie stood on the roof, watching them go. “I didn’t crown because…” Despite the tremor in her voice, Diamond Tiara brought her head up and didn’t break eye contact. “Because I didn’t qualify for Nationals. I didn’t go to the Regionals in spring at all.” The sunlight glinted off Goldie’s lenses, obscuring her eyes. “Why not?” At first, Silver assumed Bon Bon decided to close shop early. Then she noticed the bowling alley turning its lights off. Vinyl switched the music shop’s sign closed. Ponies shooed out of the theater, Applejack and Rarity on their tails. Silver Spoon pulled her attention back to the matter at hoof. “We—that is, Diamond Tiara and I—entered to carry Ponyville’s flag at the Equestria Games. It’s a huge honor.” Her ears twitched at voices whispering in a hushed argument. Out of the corner of Silver’s eye, Applejack pointed at them while Rarity shook her head and Pinkie frowned. “Yeah,” said Diamond. “The contest happened the day right before the Baltimare regionals, we couldn’t travel to both. There’s only one chance in our whole lives to carry a flag in the Games.” Golden Glitter flicked her tail with a sigh. “That is true. Why didn’t you say anything about it, Diamond? You know I would have come straight to the Crystal Empire to… see…” The sentence trailed off. Slowly, Golden folded her sunglasses and slipped them into her front pocket. Her tongue ran across her perfect teeth, mulling over her words before she said them. “You lost the flag, too, didn’t you?” “I’m sorry,” whispered Diamond Tiara. “I tried.” “And what do we say about trying, Diamond?” “Everypony tries.” The dirt ground against the filly’s hooves. She swallowed down the trembling in her voice and kept her head high. “Winners succeed.” “That’s right.” The sunglasses had vanished, but that didn’t matter. Nopony short of Celestia herself could crack Golden Glitter’s poker face. “So, you know what you need to do before you try again next time?” Diamond Tiara narrowed her eyes and gave a quick, firm nod. “Figure out what I did wrong, and remember not to do it again.” “That’s my girl.” Goldie smiled. “So, do you know why you lost?” The whispered mutterings became regular mutterings. Silver Spoon turned to find Applejack and Rarity slowly pushing Pinkie Pie toward them. All four of Pinkie’s hooves dug so deep in the ground, they plowed trenches. Silver Spoon and Pinkie Pie’s eyes met. That seemed to seal the deal, and the other two mares ran for it. Pinkie humphed, shook it off, and approached them. Meanwhile, Diamond Tiara squinted in concentration as she considered her answer. Eventually, she rubbed the back of her neck and admitted, “I don’t think I actually do.” Goldie spared Pinkie an annoyed glance, but otherwise ignored her approach. “I don’t know, Diamond, I think you do.” She curved a foreleg around Diamond’s shoulders and both of them turned their backs on the pink mare. “Don’t you think it may have had something to do with splitting your attention between two projects?” “Maybe.” Diamond’s shoulders sagged a little. “…Yeah.” A bouncy shadow with a fluffy mane fell over their withers. Pinkie Pie cleared her throat. “Yeah, see? I knew you knew.” Golden gave Diamond a mild noogie and chuckled. “See, but here’s the part I don’t get. You never had a problem with priorities before, or even seemed that interested in the Equestria Games.” She raised an eyebrow. “Did somepony suggest it to you?” Pinkie cleared her throat louder. “Pinkie,” whispered Silver Spoon, “it’s not really the best time?” She turned back to Golden Glitter. “Yes, ma’am. Gamemaster Miss Harshwhinny visited our class and told us all about it.” Goldie flicked out her sunglasses and slid them back on. A sneer wriggled across her muzzle. “Hm. Harshwhinny and somepony else, I’ll bet.” The color washed out of Diamond Tiara’s face. She smelled the outcome of this conversation miles away. “The flag was my choice, Mom.” Diamond kept her firm stance, but her ears pressed flat against her head. “Mine. Not Dad’s or Spoiled’s or anypony else’s. They wanted me to choose one, but that’s all! I’M the one that chose it.” Both hooves clutched Goldie’s sleeve. “It’s my fault, okay?” “…Alright.” Goldie’s face softened. “It’s alright, princess, we don’t need to talk about it anymore if you don’t want to. I didn’t mean to upset you.” She rubbed Diamond’s shoulders and rose back to full height, searching for a change of subject. “Why don’t we all get something to eat and—” “A-HEM.” Pinkie Pie practically rode the sound into the conversation. “Oh, for the love of—what is it?!” “Seriously, Professor Pie,” Silver Spoon whispered, “this really, really isn’t a good time.” She wondered if she should try a bribe.   “Can’t be helped, faithful student.” Pinkie didn’t bother whispering at all. She smiled at them with all of her teeth. “Hi there, Golden Glitter! Haven’t seen you around here in a while, not since you got in that cab and said it’d be a cold day in Tartarus before you’d ever set hoof in—” Goldie’s stare began to smolder. “Okay. Touchy subject. Forget it, toootally my fault.” Pinkie laughed too merrily for a genuine laugh. “Heeey, I know you guys are probably really busy and I don’t wanna get in the way of your fun, but if it’s not too much trouble could you maybe, possibly, perhaps go inside, lock all the doors, board up the windows, and stay there for a while?” Silver Spoon, Golden Glitter, and Diamond Tiara exchanged a three-way frown. Goldie flicked her tail skeptically. “And how long is ‘a while’, Pinkie Pie?” “In-definitely!” She chirped it like a charades answer. “Or at least until Mayor Mare or Twilight gives the all clear.” Silver studied her old mentor’s smile, but couldn’t quite get a bead on it. “Should we be worried? What’s happening?” If she didn’t know better, it looked suspiciously like a smile trying too hard. “Miss Pinkie Pie, is this like an Everfree monster emergency, or a Nightmare Moon emergency?” Diamond must have sensed it too. She looked between the two mares and hummed to herself. “Don’t worry, we’ve got our best draconequus on the job.” Which didn’t actually answer any of Silver’s questions at all. Pinkie Pie winked. “This is just to make sure you guys stay extra-super safe. Think of all the fun stuff you can do inside, like board games and teatime and blowing balloons and playing dominos. It’ll be like a slumber party that doesn’t end! Ever.” Not an apparent fan of everlasting slumber parties, Golden Glitter snorted and rolled her eyes. Pinkie Pie began to say something else, but stopped at the sight of Sunny Daze and Shady Daze coming back from Sweetshine Lake. “Ooh! I gotta go. Remember: hunker in your bunker and everything’ll be hunky-dory-lemon… um… chorey.” She spun and dashed down the street. “Sunny! Shady! Wait up, I gotta talk to you!” A moment later, Silver’s ears twitched at the sound of Sunny Daze’s tearful whimpers. Were it anypony but Pinkie, the filly would be sobbing buckets by now. “Should we go to town hall or something?” Silver wondered how fast they could even get there. “Or maybe the school?” Golden Glitter laughed dry and short. “Yeah, the town’s center of government. Nothing would think to hit there, I’m sure. We’d do better in the Apples’ cider cellar.” She shrugged. “Assuming there’s even anything to worry about.” “I don’t know. Pinkie seemed worried.” “Silver. Honey. Pinkie Pie worries about everything from sprinkle overflow to sasquatch attacks.” Despite the nonchalance of Goldie’s tone, the hair at the base of her neck fuzzed. She lifted her head to take in the scope of the town. “Besides, those places are probably packed by now.” Diamond pressed close to her mom’s barrel. She hadn’t said a word since she took the blame for choosing the flag. “Didn’t your butler say the sun rose late today?” “…yes,” said Silver Spoon. “Yes, he did.” Even on the chance Silver had nothing to fear, if Pinkie and her friends had combed all of Ponyville to warn everypony inside, poor Brass Tacks must have been worried sick. “Di, I think maybe I should go ho—” A flash of blue light blinded them for a split second, and the air smelled of ozone, smoke, and lemon cleaner. When Silver Spoon opened her eyes, Brass Tacks stood over her, his horn brightly lit, and the edges of his white mane singed black. “There you are. Miss Silver Spoon, you need to find shelter.” Tension lines mapped his face. “All of you. Now.” He turned towards Golden Glitter, turning something over in his mind. “You arrived by train, yes?” “Noon train to Canterlot.” Goldie placed a hoof on Diamond’s shoulder. “Why?” Diamond’s ears drooped. “The train to Canterlot?” Brass Tacks stepped closer, lowering his voice so that Silver barely heard him. She caught the phrases “reroute”, “emergency stop”, and something about the arriving trains. Goldie considered whatever question Tacks had asked her and shook her head. “I don’t know.” An emergency stop. That explained the anxious, impatient crowd at the station. If Goldie had been on that train, she must have known the train would remain in Ponyville for several hours. Otherwise she’d have stayed put. A chill coiled in Silver Spoon’s stomach. No mail for two days. The sun rose late. And now, the trains—or at least the Canterlot trains—had stopped running. Including the train Father was supposed to arrive on today. “B-Brass Tacks?” Silver stared at the harrowed lines under Tacks’ blue eyes. “Please, what’s going on?” The unicorn looked at her closely. “Young Miss Silver, you must be brave. I need you to remain calm. Will you do that for me?” He waited until she nodded. “Equestria is under attack. Canterlot has… been compromised.” Somepony—Diamond or Goldie or Tacks or maybe even Silver Spoon herself—said a number of things. Silver couldn’t hear any of it above the blood rushing in her ears. “What? But Tacks, Mother and Father are still in—” “I know, Miss Silver Spoon.” The grass trembled under the unicorn’s pale hooves. In the far distance, a white trail of smoke curled into the clouds. “We can worry about that part later. Right now, you need to find shelter.” You. Not we. “Aren’t you escorting me home, Tacks?” “It’s too far. I can’t be certain you—or I—can run that fast.” He glanced up at the wisps of smoke around his horn. “And I don’t think I can send you all the way across town.” Suddenly Silver wished they hadn’t walked so far. They didn’t have to go to White Tail Woods; there was no reason they couldn’t have gone to the lake or a restaurant. Tacks kept his eyes on the skyline, mentally mapping something out. “Now, there’s a place under the schoolhouse, and if we—” “I know a place.” Diamond Tiara’s head poked out from behind Golden Glitter. “We’ve got… uh…” She twitched her ears and cleared the frog in her throat. “There’s a panic room under my house. It’s closer than the school and way bigger, with an iron spell-buffed door, and…” Diamond frowned and looked away from Goldie, who appeared as if she’d swallowed a bug. “…a-and Daddy says it’s the safest place in all of Ponyville.” “I do hope he’s right, Miss Diamond Tiara.” Brass Tacks braced his hooves, took a deep breath, and lit his horn. “Stand close together, if you please.” “Wait. Tacks, you’re coming too, right?” Silver Spoon frowned as her butler’s magic pulled her away from his legs and nudged her beside Diamond. “Right?” He smiled and nodded towards the train station. “I only need an extra moment to confirm your father hasn’t somehow arrived early.” “But—” “I’ll be right behind you, Miss Silver.” The grass trembled again. “You promised to be brave, remember?” Far away, ponies screamed. Before the blue light blinded her eyes, the last thing Silver saw was a crooked pair of horns rising over Town Hall.