Sunrise sat in a bar stool sipping a brandy. She'd been back for a few days now and quite enjoyed watching the steady progress on her new place. She hadn't been much of a drinker in her former life, nor ever had brandy, but now she wasn't intending to stop.
The most expensive renovation was a series of three steps leading up to a throne. The steps were brick, to match the decor and show deference to the stone steps in Celestia's and Luna's throne rooms. The throne was wooden, more deference, to match the wooden columns and beams she'd added. For now it was unadorned except for cushioning. She was hoping to add some trophies once she got a few accomplishments under her belt.
Of course, all the changes were easily reversible and nothing original would be damaged.
She'd gotten authorization from Celestia to hold a sort of semi-official court of her own, who seemed oddly happy at the idea. Why? Sunrise couldn't fathom. It was possible she liked seeing the mare take on some real responsibility, but it was more likely, to Sunrise's paranoia, that she thought the unicorn would lose out on this arrangement somehow. How? Who knew. But Sunrise thought it vital that the public saw her taking on the role of royalty. The firmer she held the position in their minds the harder it would be for Celestia to deny her the real position. Eventually, it would just be easier to give her the title as a ceremonial formality. Even if she got her title she would only have as much power as she was gifted by Celestia and Luna. But it didn't matter to Sunrise if she held real, overt power, there was plenty she could do with just the image of power.
Most of the requests she got she'd be running up the chain for approval. The real reason she'd be holding court was to fish for opportunities and find ponies she could hold leverage over, gain favors. She was hoping to establish a sort of patron-client system like the old Romans. Roamans, she corrected herself. It was a bit mob-ish for her tastes but she wasn't looking to start a crime syndicate. She just needed ponies in desperate straits to do the occasional shady thing, spy mostly.
"Ah, Prince Blueblood, welcome, please take a seat," she said when she saw him come in.
"Princess Sunrise," he said curtly. He wore one of those suit collars the ponies were so fond of with a short business tie.
"Would you like some brandy?" She'd picked out a white silk sash that Rarity had convinced her was fashionable and enough to show respect in a casual business setting. She'd also become fond of the wavy mane style.
"Very well," Blueblood said, maintaining a distanced presence.
Sunrise poured him a glass herself in a gesture that she hoped displayed respect rather demeaned her status by not having a servant do it. "I'm sorry our first meeting is over business. I had hoped to meet you at one of the castle breakfasts." While her relationship with Celestia was a bit strained, she still liked attending the morning meetings, not only to keep track of her fellow royalty's opinions, but for the company.
"Yes I've... been too busy to attend breakfast with the aunties," he said, guarded.
Ah, there it is. The aunties. He's baiting me. "That's a shame. They can be enjoyable, if sometimes dramatic... Although I must admit," she turned her gaze elsewhere in an attempt to look thoughtful, "I am quite jealous that you get to call the princesses your aunties. I don't think I'll ever be that close with them."
Blueblood stiffened, then softened when he realized what she'd said wasn't a threat to his unique relationship but an acceptance of it. "It is... quite a privilege." He smiled slightly. "Perhaps in time you may develop a closer relationship with them."
"Perhaps. I'm sure The Crown would benefit from us all working together." She took a sip of her brandy. "I do hope you make an effort to meet with us in the morning. I know that if you accept my proposal we'll both have much more on our plates but it would be nice to get to know you outside a business setting."
"I suppose I should. I've been meaning to meet the mare I've heard so much about." He smiled slightly.
"Nothing good, I hope," she winked.
"Ha!" Blueblood pronounced, rather than actually laughing, "You'll be disappointed to know its been a bit of both."
"Well you can't win them all. At least a lady's reputation can be improved by a discredited scandal." My turn to fish now.
"Yes," he said after a moment, "I've had my own problems with scandal recently..."
"I heard about that," she said taking on a sympathetic countenance. She'd been doing thorough research on pony body language and apparently the way to look sympathetic was to turn your ears backwards and lower them about halfway down. It was similar to how fear and submission look, which has the ears flattened against the skull. "It all started with the incident at the Gala, yes?"
"That's right," he took a long drink. "One misunderstanding with the wrong mare and suddenly all my dirty laundry is free game for the press to drag out into the open." He looked glum.
Same ear position, Sunrise noted, but with the ears facing outward.
"I've tried everything. Charity dinners. Balls. Public events. I even paid for a public works project. That one was the only one that helped but I can't afford to spend the rest of my life building monuments to other ponies."
"Hmm... I think I can help. Most of your efforts have been targeting the nobles and the press directly, the one that worked was the one that gave jobs to the poor. If you were to continue targeting the public, why would they buy a paper smearing a stallion they like? I'm sure you've heard about my public relations tour. Twilight's expressed an interest in attending some of the events too. If everypony saw you in public with the mare in question's close personal friend and a more recent friend, what could they assume other than that the past is just water under the bridge? After all, you're a stallion. When it comes to romantic matters your reputation can be brought low by a single event but raised back just as easily. Thankfully, it's not a matter of honor or there'd be little we could do." For mares it seems just the opposite, Sunrise lamented.
"Really? And Princess Twilight wouldn't mind?" Blueblood said hopefully. "I'll admit our acquaintanceship has been a bit... icy."
"I'll talk her into it," Sunrise said, repressing a smug expression.
"Thank you, Princess Sunrise, you've done me a great favor. These scandals have not helped my business," he said with relief.
"Please, just Sunrise is fine." She smiled
"Then please call me Blueblood." He smiled back.
This is going better than I expected, they both said to themselves.
"Speaking of business, let's step into my office and talk about my proposal," Sunrise said in a smooth tone, "You'll have to forgive the mess, it's not quite finished yet."
"Let's. I'm eager to hear what you have in mind."
"So what you're basically saying is that by using my influence over the dockyards we could establish a teamsters guild and have a near monopoly over the transport of good throughout Canterlot? A hoof in every pie?" Blueblood was nearly drooling at the prospect.
"Exactly. Not only would we increase our profits and control of the city but by taking out the middle mare in delivery, drastically increasing the scale of operations, and centralizing transportation we could even reduce the price of goods and bump up wages," Sunrise said with a confident smirk.
"And then once our competitors are crushed we can drive up our prices and, with my influence over the legislature, put in laws damaging any new competition!" Blueblood said in excitement.
"Haha! I like the way you think," she said. While the thought appealed to her, it would be too greedy, and probably harm her chances at princesshood. "I knew picking you for my first venture was a good idea. I admire how you handled the situation with the rail station entering Canterlot. I heard they were going to put it on the other side of the city but you finagled them into adding it onto the sky dock." Being a mountain city, Canterlot had many of her goods brought in by blimp and pegasi caravans.
"That's high praise coming from a mare with a mind such as yours." He leaned forward. Sunrise unconsciously did the same. "It took a prodigious effort but I was able to rally the ponies who'd have their property value hurt by the new rail line and the dockyard ponies who'd lose out on the competition. Trans-Equestrian Railway fought tooth and nail, many a hoof was greased in the House of Lords, but in the end I won when the public won."
It's a real shame the ponies have yet to realize they need a House of Commons, but I suppose you can get by with an imbalanced system if you've got Celestia's hoof on the scales.
"Excellent tactic. Few ponies can stand up to continued public pressure." She leaned backwards in her chair, having noticed her position. "Unfortunately, we could fall victim to the same pressure if we abuse our monopoly position, not to mention, we could incur the princesses' wrath."
"Too true." Blueblood leaned back, mirroring her posture. "Some advantages are better left unpressed. What is it they say? Pigs get slaughtered?"
"Precisely. I suppose we'll just have to content ourselves with lowering prices and raising wages," Sunrise said wryly. "And, of course, the sound of our praises being sung."
"I can drink to that!" Blueblood said, raising his cup.
They clinked their glasses together and celebrated their partnership.
They talked for a little while more until Blueblood had to leave.
"So I'll see you at breakfast?" Sunrise asked as he was taking his leave.
"You will, and perhaps, I'll see you at dinner some time?" He smiled slyly.
"Oh!" She flushed. "Perhaps..."
"So... I got asked on a date," Sunrise said with a bit of genuine coyness.
Rarity gasped. "You must tell me every detail!" She'd had business in Canterlot, private fittings, design meetings, and so on, so she'd invited Sunrise out to lunch. They took a table on the front patio.
Sunrise squirmed. "I don't know..."
"Please, you know I love gossip," Rarity said, unleashing the incredible force of her puppy-dog eyes.
Sunrise couldn't stand up to the assault. Gonna have to learn that one. "Alright... but you're not going to like it..."
"Are you planning to get that phrase trademarked?" Rarity said dryly.
She scowled lightly. "Oh shush, you."
"Just get on with it," Rarity said impatiently, "The suspense is killing me!"
"Okay, well he didn't actually ask me out, more like he said he might in the future," Sunrise said as she refilled her chardonnay.
"Mmhmm. So who is it? Somepony I know?" Rarity said, leaning forward.
"Er... Yes?"
"Oh, just spit it out!"
"It was Blueblood..." Sunrise said from behind her glass.
"What!" Rarity's face bloomed red in outrage. "Is that cur trying to take advantage of you?!"
"Nonono!" Sunrise hurried to say, "And you're making a scene," she pointed to the other patrons, who were staring.
"Er. Sorry," Rarity said to them, sinking low into her chair. She quickly rebounded and leaned across the table to whisper loudly, "But you're not actually considering it, right?"
"Wweeelllll..." Sunrise drawled out.
"Oh no, darling! You know what he did to me at the Gala!"
"Yes, I looked into it..." Sunrise said cautiously, "Honestly, Rares, it seems over blown."
"Humph! Overblown?" Rarity huffed, "It was humiliating."
"Oh come on, Rarity, did you really expect the most eligible bachelor in Equestria to be pursuing you?" Sunrise said, lamenting having to defend somepony she hardly knew, "Isn't it more reasonable for him to expect you to pursue him?"
"Oh, I can't believe you're taking his side," she harrumphed.
"I'm not taking anypony's side," she said calmly, "I just think that you both went into that date expecting to be the pursuee and conflict escalated from there."
She crossed her hooves over her chest and looked away. "Well I'm the lady, I shouldn't have had to play the stallion."
"Sure... but he is the inheritor of a large fortune and a grand title," Sunrise said, trying to be the voice of reason, "Many mares have pursued him in the past who were... not of your character. And let's be honest, you were pursuing him, you just wanted it to be the other way around during the date." Because of your ridiculous romance novel fantasies.
"Maybe... but he was still terribly rude!" Rarity said, rebounding.
"Oh, who hasn't played hard to get?" Sunrise said in a teasing tone
Rarity growled, still looking away.
Sunrise let Rarity stew on it and went back to her meal. She'd gotten 'soy pork chops, marinated, broiled, then pan fried for crispness, extra garlic salt, low fat cottage cheese seasoned liberally with salad supreme spice, and a side of half ketchup, half steak sauce.' The poor waiter had struggled to get it all down and had brought it out wrong. After she made him take it back she heard yelling from the kitchen, which she got a kick out of. She wasn't sure if it was the waiter, the chef, or both doing the yelling but she'd worked in food service before and couldn't muster any sympathy. Having the occasional heated argument with the chefs, after hours of nerve-flaying rushes, had helped her develop a spine and the ability to be rude, even dickish, when necessary. It also taught her how to establish herself into any little group's dominance hierarchy using just words, rather than with the occasional use of fists required by high school.
"I... suppose I don't have the right to forbid you?" Rarity said carefully.
"You do not," Sunrise said after swallowing.
"Well I'm not happy about it," Rarity said, in a last, snooty effort.
"If anything you're convincing me it's a good idea. I came here on the fence, you know," Sunrise said, before taking another bite.
Rarity pouted. "He's a mare-izer."
"And I'll forever regret that I can't take his maidenhood," Sunrise said casually and with sinking implications.
"Are those..." Rarity leaned forward and glanced around, "rumors true?" she whispered.
"Well... you saw my shopping list," Sunrise smirked.
She gasped and smiled, "Oh you sl--!" she coughed into her hoof, "I suppose such matters shouldn't be discussed in public..."
Sunrise nodded as she chewed. She missed steak, the kind her father had made. "No they should not." Maybe I can get a griffon chef for the bar... I've heard rumors of ponies eating meat but I'll have to do some research. I know we can eat fish but maybe we can't do red meat. Or maybe it's a culture thing. I'm already up a creek for ignoring their norms. Not that I knew it at the time.
The mares were silent for a bit, simply eating, until Rarity piped up, "So... what is it you see in him?"
"Well, we only just met today, but we seemed to have chemistry. Plus, he's got a good head on his shoulders."
"Really? That lout? Hmph. That's a head I'd like to have seen."
"Rather than the head you went to the Gala to see?" Sunrise said before taking a nonchalant bite of her meal.
Rarity's cheeks reddened, "Oh shush, you."
"Anyway, you wouldn't be able to tell from his public persona but he's not an idiot, there was the issue with Trans-Equestrian Railroad and the Canterlot skydocks--"
"Honestly, darling, you know I zone out when you talk about your job," Rarity interrupted.
Sunrise smiled, "Because we all find fashion incredibly interesting."
"Oh, fair enough," Rarity paid as much attention as she could to her friend's explanation of the situation. "Yes, I can see how he might be a useful match," she smiled slyly. "So are you arranging your own marriage of convenience?"
Sunrise rolled her eyes, "Like I'd need a stallion to get things done."
Rarity giggled, "I'm only teasing, darling."
"Yeah, yeah... Anyway, I don't really know what to do."
"How so?" Rarity asked.
"Like," Sunrise looked out into the street and watched the ponies walking by, "would dating him increase my social status? Or would it be better to reject him? Or date him for a while and reject him publicly so everypony thinks I'm too good for him? Would it be bad to--"
"Uh, Sunrise?" Rarity asked. She'd been blinking excessively through the mare's rambling.
"Huh?" She asked, feeling forcefully pulled out of her train of thought.
"What does your heart say?" Rarity asked. I know the mare's a bit... analytical, but this is ridiculous! She felt the long suffering exasperation of the emotionally competent building up in her temples. I'll have to guide her along so she can figure out her own feelings.
"Umm..." Sunrise focused inward, toward the dusty little part of herself that felt romantic love. It didn't tell her anything. Is that because I don't like him or because it's not working...? Yet. Hopefully, it's an issue of yet. Anyway that's probably a sign. This is weird, isn't it? Yeah, it's weird. I'm doing my best to adjust to my new self but this is just too fast. Sex is just sex but romance is a whole deal. I'd probably end up suppressing the weirdness of it all until I broke down. Uncontrolled emotion? Absolutely unacceptable. Maybe I could try dating a mare first. Hopefully, I'm bi enough for that. I think I'm still attracted to the fairer sex but my hormones are so obviously different. I'll have to test it. Not many female guards I can... I guess the term is sexually harass in the workplace? Come to think of it, that doesn't really seem like much of an issue here. Is that just because they're stallions? Not that'll I'll be pushing for a castle HR department... Adapt and survive, the human motto, she concluded, but not too fast.
"You know what? I think I'll wait," Sunrise said after a time. I'll just have to think of a charming way to reject him.
"A perfectly acceptable thing to do," Rarity said with a smile. Yes! I'll get her to think about her own well-being yet!
"I'm too busy for all this, anyway," Sunrise said, pushing her food around with a fork.
"Ah, the classic recipe to a long and lonely life," Rarity said and took a drink to hide her smirk.
"Shush you."
Sunrise spent the next days diving into her research. Mostly. She made a couple public appearances. Smash hits, of course. Her press pool was just about perfect now. She held off on inviting Blueblood and she'd continue to do so until her share of the guild they were making was firmly in writing. She didn't think he'd backstab her but she also wasn't going to make an effort to show her rear flank. Naivety was tempting to certain sorts, after all.
She'd signed up for an acting class at the University of Canterlot, the second most prestigious school in the city after Celestia's, but with more opportunities for wide ranging connections. She'd attended a session and found it largely useless. Having joined up mid stream wouldn't be helpful in regards to learning what she needed but she had met a few of the students and staff. Maybe she could add a personal tutor to her studies.
The maids were getting annoyed with her persistent requests, mostly for books and consumables, but occasionally for the castle records which were always difficult to find. One had too politely informed her that she could hire an assistant at The Crown's expense. She sent her to get the bureaucrats to get that process started and send her some applicants. It would not be a fun task.
She'd held back on geopolitics so far but after seeing a few tidbits in the papers she rushed through her history basics so she could dive into the current situation in the world. Many of the specifics of history were lost during Discord's rule but it wasn't as bad as all the authors lamented in their diatribes. The general movements of history were well preserved. The trends and forces. They were the important part because they were predictable. You couldn't plan for a great man or a black swan, except to manage risk. After all, only an oracle could have foreseen the changeling invasion. But the great cycles of history? Those could be figured out. Predictions made. Profits gained. Disasters averted.
After days of building a miniature tower of babel out of finished books she finally knew enough to be properly concerned.
To start with the dragons were nearing their period where a new Dragon Lord would need to be picked. Given their history there was a 50/50 chance that they'd immediately invade a random nation. And a far higher chance that they'd do it not long after. Apparently, even though they were far stronger they lacked any sort of military discipline or organization, so pushing them back could be accomplished. However, the possible high casualty rate was not welcome. Further reading showed that on victory they usually destroyed the nation. Then, after a time, got bored, and hauled off all the riches they could carry back to their more comfortable Dragon Lands.
The Griffins were going through a period of reunification. This involved a series of bloody wars until a single dominant power was established and a crowning ritual was held in Griffinstone. For some reason this was seen as humiliating to the locals. They'd been the Griffin's first capital, but not once since then. Not after some goblet or other was lost and the dynasty fell into ruin. It wasn't important except that they usually invaded Equestria at least once during their political union, usually more.
The changelings were a constant threat, and probably the most pressing. Their spies and collectors were still being found, particularly in Canterlot.
The Zebras were an interesting case. Not much was known about them but some reports had come in about them experimenting with new military grade magic. What that meant, who knew? Regardless, it wasn't a good sign.
Then there were the consistent world threatening disasters that Twilight and the Elements handled.
There was even a bug bear attack, which is considered a bad omen.
All in all, Equestria was living through interesting times.
If anypony could see a war brewing, it'd be a human.