Wet thick strands of yarn sloshed the marble floors of the wide halls. The dimming light of the dust setting sun gleamed through the stained glasses of pony history. Beams reflected off the water and quality soap that was evenly applied with the rhythm and hooves of a dutiful pegasus. She sailed the floors on her personal sized cloud, using the mop as an oar across a sea of grime left behind careless ground dwelling mares and stallions.
Salsa was possessed by pattern, and the sound that fueled her through the headphones. Every ten seconds she dunked the mop into the bucket, that floated just below her, on another smaller cloud pairing up her strokes with the chorus of the song, humming along with the notes. As she scuttled across the stone floors she caught an interesting sight from the corner of her eyes as she was about to pass the throne room.
The great white mare, Princess Celestia, had retired her smiling optimistic persona, and wore a worried expression. Her eyes didn’t stop attaching themselves to the ground. Her hooves clicked across the floor never stopping their urge to walk a circular path. Her sister, Princess Luna, was next to her, watching her with a similar expression but one with the focus of Celestia’s angst. Next to Luna, the unicorn, Moonlight Dazzle, stood by the sister of night harboring the same feelings they had control over the room.
“Sister do you think you may be worrying too much?” Luna asked.
“Perhaps, but it isn’t like Twilight, she would’ve sent me a letter, it’s been too long, it isn’t like her.” Celestia replied. Her hooves committed to the circular motion.
“Maybe she’s on vacation.” Luna cracked an awkward smile. Celestia didn’t take in the comment not even as a joke.
“Sorry, it wasn’t funny.” Luna sighed.
“Oh no, Luna, it was a nice try.” Celestia said, showing an appreciative smile to her younger sibling.
The alicorn of the sun stopped as her eyes fixated on the doors to the throne room. A spying eye was peaking through the cracks. Salsa saw her horn glow, the doors swung upon and she tumbled through them, falling off her cloud. She saved herself from falling on the floor and quickly fluttered upward as if she nearly fell into a pit of vipers. Adjusting the speed of her wings as to stay within head distance of the two princesses, she took off her headphones and gave the princess an awkward curtsey.
“Oh no worries, it’s just Salsa.” Luna said.
“Should we have guards at the door.” Moonlight Dazzle asks, looking up at the solar princess for an answer.
“I don’t want anyone eavesdropping or any words spoken here to be told to any other pony we can’t have them know until we are sure.” Celestia said looking at Salsa.
“I got it princess.” Salsa said. She looked up the ceiling of the throne room. It was getting to be dull, perhaps maybe it was the light or maybe it needed shining.
“Salsa can keep a secret, princess, I promise you.” Moonlight said as the custodian flew up with a sponge.
“I keep all of Moonlight’s secrets if you want to hear them.” Salsa said up above the sun princess's head, already applying the sponge filled with water and soap, already creating some suds on the tall ceiling.
Princess Celestia cracked a smile. “What a funny friend you have.” She giggled. It wasn’t quite funny, but Luna and Moonlight laughed along. It was a reprieve from the growing anxiety and a welcoming change of tone to finally hear something other then the clatter of hooves to the master and the apprentice.
“Maybe I should check up on princess Twilight.” Moonlight suggested.
“We could never ask you to take on such a task. Reinfort is far from Canterlot, we could send in the royal guard or check on Twilight's citizens.” Luna said.
Thinking for a moment she beckoned Luna closer to her. “Luna, maybe it’s time you send Moonlight out of the library and into the world.” Celestia whispered.
“She isn’t ready, she’s naive, she needs more training before she can take on any duties.” Luna replied in the same whispering tone.
“Luna, I know how you feel, I had to make the same decision but in the end you have to ask yourself, ‘are you really trying to keep her from taking this quest because she needs you, or is it because you need her?’” Celestia said.
Luna looked to her student who was curiously oblivious to her gaze. In all her time she spent as the princess of night she never thought she would be given such an opportunity to have a student such as Moonlight. ‘Is this how sister feels for her student?’ She thought. They can’t leave canterlot, their duties to the rulers of Equestria come first, who knows how long they’d be gone. Who can they trust on this mission? Luna was snapped out of her thoughts once she noticed her apprentice was approaching her.
“I know you may have doubts about me, I’m not a perfect student but this feels like something I should do. We have to know what has happened to Princess Twilight.” Moonlight said, the determined look in her eye being enough for the Princess of the Night to make her decision. Luna wrapped her hooves around her beloved student.
“No, I have faith in you Moonlight,” Luna said. “but I don’t think you should go alone.” She looks towards Salsa who was now scrubbing down the windows.
“I would love to have Salsa be with me but wouldn't it be best if I was on my own?” Moonlight asked, feeling that this journey should be her own, not wanting to drag her friend along.
“A task is much easier with those you trust around.” Luna said. Celestia nodded to the young unicorn. Given the purpose, Moonlight called her pegasus friend to follow her out of the throne room.
“I’m not sure if I’ve done the right thing sister.” Luna said, ears folding down as she was already thinking on what could go wrong with Moonlight out on her own.
“I trust that you’ve made a fine pupil, all we can do is believe in Moonlight’s
judgement.” Celestia placed a reassuring hoof on her sister's shoulder, an encouraging smile on her muzzle, which was good enough for Luna to show a small one of her own.
~-~-~
Salsa kept up the pace with Moonlight as she makes haste out of the castle, saddle bags in tow for the long trip.
“So Dazzy how are we going to get to Reinfort?” Salsa asked, trailing right behind the unicorn as she hope their mode of transportation was sanitary.
“I have a hot air balloon just outside the castle.” It was only a few turns until they reached an outlook. Canterlot and the lands spanning over the horizon were in full sight to the west. Jumping into the basket she clenches the rope around the sand bags to make sure they are tied in. Igniting the flame the hot air balloon wafts over the overlook soon after.
Salsa flies up past Moonlights balloon and brings down a piece of cloud. Taking the extra rope tying down the sandbags, she wraps in around her abdomen sits back and watches the air balloon tow her and the cloud, her hooves clung onto the cloud so it would stay by her side and not drift away.
“So how long will this task take? I forgot to scrub down the ballroom.” She asked, already a little stressed as she began to list all the other possible rooms and areas she hasn’t cleaned yet, her grip on the cloud getting tighter.
“I honestly have no idea.” Moonlight didn’t contemplate how long she would be away from her studies, though it was now a thought that Salsa had to remind her of. Falling behind was never on her mind until now, when she was finally out of her study. She gazed over the Everfree Forest, thinking whether she was actually equipped to take on this quest. She had never failed before, but it seems like more of a possibility as they drifted along.
A flock of birds based through, and the wicker basket violently jolted. Air quickly escaped the balloon, and the sound of a puncture could be heard from Moonlights position. “Salsa what just happened!?” She was quick to ask, eyes widened as she stood near the edge of the basket to try and see for herself.
Salsa flies up to scan the balloon but she was yanked back by the rope that she bound herself to, a small yelp coming out of her mouth at the unexpected weight she was feeling against the rope. The basket plummets into the vast sea of green, below them. Tree branches crack beneath the damaged aircraft. Moonlight stumbles out of the basket as Salsa crashed right into it, leaves dust, and debris from the basket flying everywhere. The pegasis mare was quick to burst out from the wreckage, dusting her hooves off from the grit she possibly touched.
“Why!? Why the Everfree Forest!? Nothing can be cleansed here, it’s all dirt, don’t you understand!? We’ll all die here!” She was also quick to start freaking out and regret even coming along while knowing of the filthy outside world.
Moonlight raised her hoof to gain Salsa’s attention. “Salsa calm down, dirt can’t hurt you, it's beneath you. Why don’t you fly up and look for a way out.” She suggested, thinking that if they were close to a town of some sort, they could find out where exactly in the Everfree they were.
Salsa looked at the thick foliage, wet with muggy water and all she could see was a net of filth. She closed her eyes and flew up as fast as she could, wanting to get it over with before she regretted it. But with her eyes closed, she didn’t see an oncoming branch that one of her wings made contact with making her spiral down onto the ground, another gust of dirt coming with her impact. Her body shivers as the dirt surrounding her was crawling up her fur. She tried to fly up but the sudden pain from one of her wings stopped her from flapping, and made her fall back to the ground, it only hurting a little than the last.
“Salsa are you ok?” Moonlight was quick to come where the pegasus landed, soon spotting the wing with bent feathers that wasn’t folded close to her side.
“Please get me off the ground!” Salsa begged, small tears in her eyes that Moonlight couldn’t tell was from pain, fear, or both.
The unicorn scatters to find something that could keep her friend at ease. Ripping pieces of what was left of the balloon with magic, she tethers them around her friend’s hooves and has her stand up. It still felt awkward around her limbs though the gesture took her mind off the dirt. “Thanks you.” Salsa whispered, a small smile on her muzzle for a moment as she still had her eyes on her wrapped up hooves. She winced, her fear of grime kept her mind off the pain in her wing but now it couldn’t be ignored any longer.
“We need to find a doctor.” Moonlight stated looking around the woods. Everywhere she looked she could only see past three trees, until the darkness over shrouded the area to obscurity. Where do they go? Where can they go? For once in her life she felt completely lost, uncertainty grew in the back of her mind. Was she really fit for this task? She only took a few steps out of Canterlot, and already she put her and her best friend in harm's way.
Howling echoed through the trees. The clanking of wood eerily grew closer, the two mares were quick to huddle close to each other before they looked around rapidly, turning their heads. Where’re the sounds coming from? Where do they run? As Moonlight Dazzle turns her head toward a snapping twig she saw two green glowing eyes beam within the shadows.
“Run!” She yells with all her might. The two ponies pound their hooves in a random direction. They ran, but they don’t reach far before they both got exhausted.
“I kept telling you to spend more time out of the library.” Salsa says with some attitude.
“Well should I have told you to stop flying in case we got into a situation where form some reason you couldn't fly!?” Moonlight retorted in the same manner. They stop at a moss covered rock to catch their breath. From the shadows, timber wolves begin to surround them, enclosing them in a circle. Moonlight steps in front of her friend, her horn glows as she readies herself to cast a spell. A crackling noise of sparks instantly flooded their ears as a magical spell exploded right in front of them, the two flinching at the bright light that came with it. The timber wolves ran off as a small blaze formed, and loud crackling fire roared through the air.
Salsa looked at Moonlight with amusement and hugged her tightly. “You did it Moonlight!” She yipped, her cheek rubbing against Moonlight’s own.
“But that wasn’t me.” Moonlight said, confused as she didn’t know where it came from. But it was quick to assume that it came from behind them… or more like above them.
They look up the moss rock to see a dreary eyed unicorn climbing off the rock. She kept her eyes to the ground, and muzzle pointed downwards as she slowly walked into their gaze, and with a meek tone she spoke as if she was about to cry. “...H-hello.”