“Are we there yet?”
“It's been three minutes since you've asked Sunset, have some patience!”
“It's not my fault Grandpa lives so far away!”
Sunrise chuckled as her daughter frowned and folded her arms. The carriage that they were on had picked them up from their house nearly thirty minutes ago and several delays during their journey meant that their arrival to Sir Leonus’ house (Sunrise’s father) had been significantly delayed.
“Are you excited to see your grandfather and grandmother?”
“No, not really. I've heard all of Grandma’s stories and Grandpa is always angry with everypony.”
“Your grandfather isn't angry, he's tired. What about your cousins? Are you looking forward to seeing them?”
“Sort of. Can I have a nap now? I want to make sure that I'm not tired when I do my homework,” said Sunset, pulling her satchel against her.
Sunrise nodded and her daughter immediately closed her eyes and turned her head towards the window. Sunburst had been unusually quiet when he returned home from Cancer Corp and whilst he had told Sunrise the details of what had happened with Sir Cranco, Sunrise had detected a change in his demeanour. Whilst he wasn't the most exciting pony, Sunburst was always relaxed around his family. He was even cold towards Sunset yesterday afternoon when she had tried to ask him a question about her studies. When Sunrise asked him about what had brought on the change in his behaviour, he had dismissed her worries and Sunrise was sure that Sunburst’s irises had changed colour to purple and green again.
“Lady Sunrise, we will be arriving at Sir Leonus’ mansion in approximately ten minutes,” announced the elderly carriage driver.
Sunrise simply nodded and raised a hoof in order to wake her daughter, but when she saw the peaceful expression on her face, Sunrise smiled and she decided to let her daughter sleep for the rest of the journey.
“Hurry! They're probably parking as we speak!”
The ponies of House Leo hurried as they finished their last minute preparations for their guests. Nearly all the members of House Leo were inside Sir Leonus’ house to greet Sunrise and Sunset. Sir Leonus was wheeled into the living room by Sunrise’s brother and his wife Lady Leona limped into the room a few minutes later, and she quietly watched her family as she stood in the doorway.
“And then the drunk bastard had the nerve to put his glass of wine down and throw a punch at me in front of everypony! What was he thinking?”
A group of ponies sat around the blue stallion that was speaking and his animated movements meant that more and more ponies (including fillies) sat down to listen to his tale.
“Hey! Your sister is nearly here! You can continue your story later but finish tidying this room! All of you! And next time time please refrain from using such filthy language around the little ones.”
Lady Leona’s command had the intended effect as the ponies that were sitting around the blue stallion quickly stood up and continued to tidy up the room. The blue stallion grumbled and took his time standing up before he left the room to go to the kitchen.
“I don't know why there's so much fuss, it's just Sunrise, it's not like Celestia or Luna are coming. Not that they would ever come here,” muttered Sir Leonus.
Lady Leona heard her husband’s comments and hobbled towards him, dragging her walking stick behind her.
“Stop being so grumpy. If Sunrise sees you acting this way, then it could be months before she decides to visit us again with her daughter.”
Sir Leonis ignored his wife and turned his head to look out of the window, where he saw a carriage pulling onto the drive of his house.
“They're here!” he announced.
As Sunrise and Sunset exited the carriage, the front door was flung open and the mother and daughter were greeted by the sight of Sunrise’s mother.
“Sunrise, my dear, it has been far too long since I last saw you,” greeted Lady Leona, leaning forward to kiss her daughter on both cheeks. Lady Leona then smiled down at her granddaughter.
“Yes, Mother it has and I'm truly sorry.”
“At least you're here now.” Lady Leona then turned to Sunset. “And who is this beautiful filly in front of me?”
“Hello Grandma,” smiled Sunset politely, hugging the forelegs of her grandmother.
“Come inside, everypony’s so excited to see you.”
Lady Leona led Sunrise and Sunset through the front door and into the house. A huge silver chandelier hung from the ceiling near the stairs. As Sunrise and Sunset walked through the hallway to the living room, a purple filly (quickly followed by a green colt and a orange colt) ran out of one of the nearby rooms and they nearly collided with Sunset, their laughter echoing as they ran up the stairs.
“Honestly, their behaviour is getting worse and worse, their mother really needs to consider beating them.”
Sunrise nodded in agreement with her mother and Lady Leona opened the living room door with a smile, revealing at least twenty ponies sitting on the floor, and some sat on the chairs scattered around the room.
“Sunrise!”
Sir Leonus slowly got out of his chair and Sunrise quickly walked to him, giving her father a tight embrace.
“You need to visit more often,”said Sir Leonus with a stern expression on his face.
“I know and I'm sorry Father,” said Sunrise, a hint of remorse creeping onto her face.
“At least you're here now,” said Sir Leonus with a small smile, moving away from Sunrise and directing the waiting relatives to her.
As the ponies of House Leo surrounded Sunrise with greetings, Sunset saw an opening and managed to sneak out of the living room when nopony was looking. She gently closed the door behind her and entered another room through the door opposite the living room. She sat down on a chair that was next the window and opened her satchel, taking out a thick brown book with a yellow and red blazing sun on the cover. Sunset took out a quill and opened her book onto an empty page.
When is the essay on Starswirl’s achievements due?
A few seconds later, neat yellow writing appeared in the page underneath Sunset’s question.
It is due next week but if it isn't completed, then it doesn't matter.
Sunset closed the book and put it back into her satchel before taking an identical brown book. She opened the book onto the last page that she was writing on and finished off the last sentence on the page before continuing with her work.
“Let's play in here, nopony ever comes into this room and Mom won't care.”
Sunset looked up from her work to find two green colts and a purple filly standing near the door staring at her silently.
“Are you going to tell our mom that we're playing in here?” asked the purple filly.
“No I won't, as long as you agree to play quietly. I'm trying to get some work done in here.”
The three ponies immediately began chasing each other around the room, screaming and laughing every few seconds. At first, Sunset tried to ignore the noise by focusing on her work but after a few minutes the noise was too distracting for her.
“Did you idiots forget what I told you? Seeing as you didn't listen to what I told you, you can leave this room now and find somewhere else to play?”
“Please, I promise that we'll listen to you! We just want to play our game!” proclaimed one of the green colts, his eyes filling up with tears.
“You shouldn't be wasting your time playing, that's not going to get you anywhere in life,” sneered Sunet, closing her book and glaring at the colt that had spoken.
“But we wanna have fun! Doing homework is boring and it always takes so long to finish!” cried the other green colt.
“Ugh, just leave me alone now! I have some very important work to do and I don't want idiots like you distracting me from completing the work that Celestia set me,” said Sunset, using her magic to open the door in order to dismiss the three
“Princess Celestia is your teacher?! But that's impossible!”
“It is possible if you work hard and spend your time studying instead of playing,” replied Sunset, a hint of arrogance creeping into her voice.
“That's so cool! Do you like learn cool spells and awesome tricks?” asked the green colt.
“Yes, the princess has started to teach me some advanced spells. Now are you going to leave? I told you what you wanted.”
The purple filly opened her mouth to argue but closed it promptly when she saw Sunset Shimmer’s glare.
“Guys, let's go, we can find another room to play in,” stammered the purple filly, opening the door quickly and ushering her brothers out of the room.
Finally. Now I can get my work done in peace.
“There you are Sunset! I've been looking everywhere for you! Why haven't you said hello to your cousins?” asked Sunrise, opening the door with such force that it slammed against the wall behind it.
“I was coming right now, I just wanted to finish up my essay for Celestia,” seethed Sunset, slowly closing her book.
“Lighten up Sunset, you're with your family here, you don't have to focus on your work all the time.”
“Can't I have fifteen more minutes to finish this?”
“Sunset Shimmer, you will leave this room and say hello to your relatives now, and I will not take no for an answer.”
The mother and daughter stood in front of each other and glared for a few moments, but Sunset caved under the intensity of her mother’s glare.
“Fine, I'll go and say hello!”
By lunchtime, Sunset’s cheeks hurt from smiling for too long and her arms and chest were slightly sore from all of the hugs and hoofshakes she had both given out and received. Sunset had also given up hiding the boredom and frustration she felt from appearing on her face, and she sat quietly at her seat at the dining table, ignoring the ponies next to and around her and wishing she was at home.
Sunrise glanced at Sunset Shimmer for the third time in five minutes and was unsurprised by her daughter’s behaviour. Sighing, Sunrise turned her attention to the plate of food that had placed in front of her. The plate was carefully decorated with hay fries around the edges and in the middle lay a slightly overlooked egg omelette.
“I'm hungry, can't we have some proper food? I hate egg and it's obviously overcooked!”
Sunset’s outburst drew the attention of everypony and Sunrise felt her cheeks redden as some of the older members of House Leo stared at her disapprovingly, no doubt blaming her for Sunset’s outburst.
“The main course is coming after everypony has finished their meal so you can either wait until then or eat your food now Sunset,” said Lady Leona with a frown, pushing Sunset’s plate back towards her.
“That filly really needs to learn some manners.”
“No wonder her mother hasn't shown her face here for four months.”
“What do you expect, she's half-Capricorn. They've obviously rubbed off on her.”
Sunrise heard the harsh whispers from different corners of the dining table and she even caught sight of her father shaking his head at Sunset.
Why Sunset? Why today?
Sunrise used her magic to lift up her knife and fork to cut the omelette, trying her best to ignore the situation. At Lady Leona’s command, Sunset reluctantly lifted up her knife and fork with her magic, grimacing and closing her eyes when she slowly chewed and swallowed a piece of omelette.
After Sunset had finished her meal, Lady Leona and a few other relatives wheeled trolleys containing the main course into the dining room. All of the plates were lifted out of the trolleys at the same time and placed in front of each pony.
“Is this up to your standards dear?” asked Lady Leona, staring at Sunset.
“Ye-yes, thank you Grandmother,” replied Sunset reluctantly, struggling to meet her grandmother’s eyes.
Once everypony had finished their meal, the tables were cleared and many ponies left the dining room to talk in the living room. Sunset reached underneath the table to pull out her satchel and hurried out of the dining room and Sunrise left her seat to follow her daughter.
“Sunrise!” called out Sir Leonus, slowly rising from his seat at the head of the dining table. “Just a moment please, I'd like to talk to you.”
The father and daughter quietly sat in front of each other in Sir Leonus’ room. Whilst Sunrise stared absentmindedly out of the window, Sir Leonus spent some time adjusting his chair.
“I would ask how Sunset is doing but from her behaviour today, it's clear that she doesn't want to be here,” stated Sir Leonus.
Sunrise shifted awkwardly in her seat and took some time meeting her father’s gaze and responding
“Sunset.. isn't the most social filly and that's probably mine and Sunburst’s fault. We encouraged her to focus on studies and this was obviously the result. I didn't expect for her antisocial tendencies to go this far.”
“Still, you need to visit more often. Sunset needs to spend more time with her family. But I can't say that I'm too surprised with Sunset wanting to focus on her studies. I remember you used to behave the same way when you were her age.”
“All those years of hard work and studying were wasted because of Atlas,” said Sunrise, a hint of anger in her voice.
“But you're doing much better then him. You're the mother of the protégée of Princess Celestia and you are part of two great noble houses. Whilst Atlas has never risen from his position and has managed to embarrass himself and House Taurus on multiple occasions, the most recent at the Gemini gathering,” said Sir Leonus, finishing his sentence with a wry smile.
Sunrise smiled and fondly cast her mind back to when Sunburst had embarrassed Atlas in front of all of the nobles.
“..But now he's apparently entered a coma, and there's a possibility that he won't wake up.”
“What?!”
“You haven't heard? Atlas was rushed to Canterlot hospital only this morning. I heard the hospital carriage’s horn ringing this morning and your mother told me that ponies at the market were gossiping about how Atlas had most likely drank too much the previous night and simply didn't wake up.”
“Oh.”
Sunrise was surprised to find that her positive mood had been deflated. Whilst she strongly disliked Atlas, she did not wish any harm upon him and she found herself silently hoping that he made a speedy recovery.
“Look at them,” scoffed Sir Leonus. Sunrise snapped out of her thoughts and turned to look out of the window. Through the window, Sunrise had a clear view of the living room, where she could see her older brother Steel Stud (a navy stallion) wrestling with a colt whilst a group of fillies and colts sitting in front of them cheered them on.
“I'm not one to care too much about how other ponies perceive us, but this is exactly why House Leo isn't taken as seriously as we were centuries ago,” grumbled Sir Leonus.
“To be honest Father, your proposition to relocate all pegasi living in Canterlot to Cloudsdale in the council meeting didn't help our image at all,” said Sunrise truthfully.
“I know, and I will admit that in the heat of the moment, I acted in frustration. The princesses are unable to find a solution to the crisis we are facing, and it's only going to get worse,” said Sir Leonus with a sigh.
“Don't worry, myself and Sunburst have a solution to that,” muttered Sunrise, before quickly clapping her hooves over her mouth.
“What did you say?”
“Nothing, nothing at all Father,” said Sunrise quickly, scolding herself for nearly revealing her and Sunburst’s plans to her.
Sir Leonus stared at his daughter quietly for a few moments, silently giving her an opportunity to repeat what she said.
Perhaps she'll talk later.
“Here's your tea, dear, and I added lots of sugar just like you asked,” said Lady Leona, entering her husband’s room holding a cup of tea with her magic.
“Thank you,” said Sir Leonus, taking the cup from his wife and pulling out another chair using his arm for his wife to sit on.
“How come Ivory Thunder didn't show up today Mother?” asked Sunrise.
“Your brother wrote to us a few days ago saying that he wouldn't be able to make it today because he was scheduled to assess the new Royal Guard recruits today. He said that as Captain of the Royal Guard it would be inappropriate if he abandoned his duties.”
“At least he's done something with his life. Why couldn't Steel Stud find a proper job instead? He's an embarrassment to our family,” grumbled Sir Leonus, sipping his tea.
“Sunrise dear, why didn't you bring Sunburst with you today? It would've been lovely to see him aswell,” asked Lady Leona, changing the subject quickly.
“He..uh.. wasn't feeling very we'll so he couldn't come Mother,” lied Sunrise, staring at the ground.
“Sunrise dear, I gave birth to you, I know when you're lying. All couples have disagreements. You can tell me what happened.”
Sunrise seemed to give up and making sure that she didn't tell of her and Sunburst’s plans to take over Equestria, she told her mother that Sunburst was acting distant and was a lot quieter than usual. She also told her mother that Sunburst had been rude to her and Sunset on several occasions.
“I would say that Sunburst could be cheating on you but-”
“Sunburst would never cheat on me! How could say such a thing?!”
“Sunrise, calm down. What I was going to say- before you rudely interrupted me-” Lady Leona paused to give her daughter a reproaching look “is that it's unlikely that Sunburst is cheating on you because he isn't a very talkative stallion at all. I still don't know what you saw in him all those years ago. He'll probably be back to normal in a few days and when he is, tell him to come and see us.”
“He may have also.. attempted a spell that was too much for him to handle,” said Sunrise.
“What sort of spell? There are only a few powerful spells that I can think of and they were prohibited by Celestia years ago,” said Sir Leonus, rubbing the grey stubble on his chin with his hoof.
“It was a prohibited spell… and it probably backfired,” said Sunrise, choosing her words carefully.
“I'm surprised he managed to perform such a spell without anypony finding out about it,” said Sir Leonus.
“Father, Mother!” called out Steel Stud, opening the door loudly without knocking, “can you get the foals away from me? Me and a few of my friends want to go to the bar and to be honest, the foals are really starting to annoy me now.”
“That's what you waste your time doing isn't it? Sitting in the bar drinking for hours with your cronies? And then you wonder why you haven't found a job yet despite looking for three months now!”
“I'm not in the mood for another lecture of yours Father. If you or Mother will not help me, then I'll get rid of these foals myself!”
Sir Leonus picked up his cup and threw it at Steel Stud as he was leaving the room, but his aim was wildly off and the cup hit the mirror hanging on the wall, smashing it to smithereens.
“That insolent little-!”
Sir Leonus got up out of his seat and headed towards his bedroom door when he was stopped by his wife.
“Let him go dear, I'll send somepony after him to make sure he returns before nightfall,” said Lady Leona, leaving the room.
Sir Leonus grumbled but he obeyed his wife and sat back in his seat opposite Sunrise.
“Did I ever tell you about why House Leo as tasked with being of charge of Equestria’s defence Sunrise?” said Sir Leonus.
“No but I'm sure that it's a very interesting tale Father,” replied Sunrise, despite the fact that her father had told her the tale several times throughout her childhood and adolescence.
“When House Aries gave up power to Celestia and Luna, our house and House Capricorn threatened to annex Eastern Equestria and rename it Unicornia, but due to a lack of support from both the nobles and common ponies, our plan failed.”
“And Capricorn became in charge of Education and we became in charge of Defence,” finished Sunrise.
“But I never told you why we were in charge of Defence? The two princesses obviously saw us as a threat to the peace in Equestria when they put us in charge of Defence. Our ancestors accepted the decision at the time and saw it as a small consolation for the failed attempt to create a new unicorn-only nation. Over the next few decades, House Leo organised the Royal Guard to face the incoming invasion threats of the griffons and Saddle Arabians, and we were ultimately successful.”
“But there's been peace in Equestria for nearly a thousand years,” pointed out Sunrise.
“Exactly. So House Leo hasn't really had much to do in terms of combat. Celestia reduced the numbers of the Royal Guard and the funding for defence was also reduced by House Taurus a few months due to this peace, and I think that was Celestia and Luna’s plan all along.”
“To reduce the Royal Guard numbers and it's funding?”
“No Sunrise, to make sure that House Leo was not in a position to challenge for power again. How many ponies in our family have jobs that aren't affiliated with the Royal Guard in some way?”
“Umm..”
Sunrise struggled to think of anypony in her family that she could name. Many of her aunts, uncles and cousins held jobs in the Royal Guard barracks as secretaries or accountants and others worked as either cooks, maids or serving personnel.
“Exactly. That means that nopony owns a business or holds another influential position in Canterlot, meaning that we are unable to influence any major events that take place in the capital city.”
“So we are all trapped,” concluded Sunrise, finally understanding her father’s hate for Celestia and Luna. “I still have one question: why did you ask Celestia to relocate all pegasus in Canterlot in the council meeting?”
“You are already aware of my mistrust towards the pegasi, and they form the bulk of ponies that are applying for benefits when most of them are probably not at the stage where they need it. The reason that Celestia wasn't too bothered by my proposition was because she already knows that our house will never be strong enough to mount an actual challenge to pass the law.”
“Okay then.”
“Did I ever tell you why you were named Sunrise?”
“No,” replied Sunrise, surprised by the fact that her father had changed the subject so quickly.
“Because you represent a symbol of hope. Hope that you will be the pony that restores House Leo to it's former glory, hope that all unicorns in Equestria will live a fulfilling life.”
The last part of her father’s sentence sounded a lot like what Sunburst’s father had told her and Sunburst all those months ago when they had began their plans to take over Equestria.
He's going to find out soon. I might as we'll tell him before we actually get rid of Celestia and Luna.
“Father, there's something that I have to tell you.”
“Do it again.”
Sunburst grunted and placed the crown Element that had fallen onto the ground on his head again, before lighting up his horn and firing at the wooden pony cut-out targets that were a few hundred yards away, moving his head so that all of the targets were destroyed. His father had called for an impromptu training session as soon as Sunrise and Sunset had left the house and as usual, was being incredibly tough on his son.
“That was satisfactory, but for the next set of targets, I want you to generate a beam of magic that is wide enough to destroy all of the targets without having to move your head.”
“Of course Father, whatever you say,” replied Sunburst, a hint of irritation in his voice as he looked at his father. He turned away and focused on the next set of targets that were even further away than the previous ones. A large dark orange beam appeared at the tip of Sunburst’s horn and a few seconds later, he fired the beam at the targets, and they were all destroyed simultaneously.
“Much better Sunburst, you seemed to have gotten to grips with wielding the Element’s power. I'm starting to believe that no unicorn in Equestria will be able to challenge you once you take over.”
That filly. Twilight Sparkle. She has the same cutie mark as the star on that crown.
But I can't tell him. I'll deal with it in my own way.
Sunrise should at least know about this. I'll tell her when she comes home.
“Yes Father, soon all of Equestria will belong to House Capricorn.”
“Forward march!”
Ivory Thunder kept a straight face and adjusted his helmet as he watched the forty Royal Guard hopefuls obey his command and marched in time. The purpose of the drill was to ensure that in an emergency, the recruits that became full members of the Royal Guard were able to move orderly from one place to another.
“Squad, halt! Salute!”
The recruits stopped suddenly and turned simultaneously, raising their right arms and bending at the elbow to give Ivory Thunder a salute.
“At ease, squad.”
Ivory Thunder walked forward to directly face the recruits and stared at them silently before beginning the routine speech that he gave to Royal Guard hopefuls every year.
“You're here today because you've decided that you are good enough to be a member of the most elite armed force in Equestria; that you can be trusted with protecting the lives Princess Celestia and Luna and everypony in Equestria. To serve as a member of the Royal Guard is a great honour and if you are chosen to join our ranks today, you should wear your armour with pride. As a serving member, you have a duty of care to each and every citizen in Equestria and you should never forget that. Now, I'm going to split you up into groups of six for the final exercise. You are free for twenty minutes but make sure that you return to the courtyard when the time is up. Dismissed.”
Ivory Thunder waited for the recruits to enter the recreation building (facing the courtyard) before following them inside. A few guards that were stood next to the door saluted and Ivory Thunder did the same. He quickly headed up the two flights of stairs a few metres in front of him and stopped when he reached his door.
“Captain Thunder, you're scheduled to meet with the princesses in five minutes,” called out the secretary that was sitting at the desk opposite his.
“Thank you for the reminder Miss Blossom.”
“I'm your cousin Ivory, There's nothing wrong with relaxing around family members,” admonished Blossom, not looking up from her desk.
“I cannot stray from protocol, I must be professional at all times, it's what is expected from me after all and as Captain I must set a good example,” replied Ivory Thunder as he sat down at his desk. In front of him were a huge pile of papers, detailing the profiles of all of the current recruits. Ivory lit up his horn and began to sift through the papers, organising them into an orderly pile that he could take to his meeting with Celestia and Luna. As the rulers of Equestria, they were also involved in deciding which recruits were admitted into the Royal Guard but as Captain of the Royal Guard, Ivory Thunder made the final decision.
“I'm going to head down to the conference room now, it's better that I'm early to the meeting.”
Blossom grunted in response and Ivory quickly left his office and teleported to the conference room at Canterlot Palace. He sat on one of the designated seats outside the room and waited quietly. The door to the conference room was slightly open and Ivory could hear Celestia and Luna’s voices and it was clear that they were discussing something private due to their whispers.
I shouldn't be listening. They're obviously having a private conversation.
Ivory flicked through the pile of papers that he was holding to distract himself and he was about to read the sheet at the top when he heard Celestia say a familiar name, and he quietly walked over to the door and leaned against it in order to hear more.
“When we have finished our meeting with Captain Ivory, we'll pass on a message to Sunrise from him that her and Sunburst need to see us immediately,” whispered Celestia, placing a hoof on the map of Equestria on the table in front of her.
“Wouldn't it wise to meet with them after Equestria Day? If we summon them now, then it's likely that they will attack us and that would place the lives of ponies working in the palace at risk,” replied Luna with a frown as she used her magic to close the door.
“The longer we delay this sister, the more time those two have to prepare and that would increase their chances of success and whilst I'm sure that they won't beat us, with the Elements they should be taken seriously.”
“What if we place them under house arrest and confiscate the Elements? That way we can monitor them and make sure that they are in no position to challenge our rule,” suggested Luna.
“That's…. an excellent idea Luna, and we'll make sure that they are prevented from contacting anypony. I'll send a unit to the Capricorn mansion tonight.” agreed Celestia. “This time of year is becoming more and more stressful and we have so much to deal with, first we find out that Sunburst and Sunrise are plotting to take over Equestria, and then Sir Cranco suddenly decides to tell the council about his revolutionary new invention. What are we going to be surprised with next?”
“I don't know,” sighed Luna, before looking at the clock that hung up on the wall next the door. “We're supposed to be meeting with Captain Ivory Thunder now.”
“He probably hasn't arrived yet. Let's put the maps away and we'll call him in.”
Ivory Thunder quickly stood up when he heard his name and he walked back to his seat as quietly as he could. He tried to pick up a sheet of paper but he found that his hooves were shaking so much that the paper slipped and fell onto the floor and as he tried to pick it up with his magic, the door to the conference room swing open.
“Captain Ivory Thunder, it's a pleasure to see you, why don't you come in and I'll ask the cooks to make us lunch,” said Princess Celestia with a broad smile. Princess Luna nodded at Ivory and went off to the royal kitchen to relay Celestia’s message.
As Ivory Thunder got us from his seat, the pile of papers he held in his lap slipped and fell to the floor and he quickly picked them up with his magic, desperately trying to compose himself.
“After you, Princess Celestia."
"..And I will inform you of my decision next week before I make the announcement to the recruits, your Highness.”
“Thank you Captain Ivory. I am confident that the recruits you will choose tomorrow will contribute significantly to the Royal Guard.”
As the maids took the plates away, Ivory Thunder quickly left the conference room and quietly closed the door behind him. Only when he teleported back to his office did Ivory Thunder breathe a sigh of relief.
Why would Sunrise plan to take over with her husband?
Is she really willing to murder the princesses for power?
“Blossom, how many permissible absence days do I have?”
Blossom jumped out of her seat in shock and fell backwards off her chair as a result.
“At least say hello when you come in, you almost gave me a heart attack,” panted Blossom, before picking herself up and sitting in her seat. “Now, what were you asking?”
As Ivory Thunder repeated his question, Blossom leaned forward on her hooves and smiled at her younger cousin.
“Has little Ivory finally found himself a mare? I thought I'd never live to see the day that Ivory would take a day off for a mare,” giggled Blossom.
Ivory Thunder’s stoic expression didn't waver and it only took a few seconds for Blossom to realise what his answer would be.
“Of-of course Captain, I'll check right away sir. Let's see, you have..forty-five days.”
“Pass on a message to the princesses that I will be taking the rest of today and tomorrow off for personal reasons,” announced Ivory Thunder as he left his office.
“But why are you-” Blossom was interrupted by the sound of Ivory slamming his door shut as he left the building in a hurry to his father’s house.
“I always knew that you would achieve greatness some day, and I know that you and Sunburst will do a great job in charge.”
Sunrise smiled and lay back in her seat as her father praised her for being House Leo’s saving grace. She felt surprisingly relieved that she had told her father about her plans, and she was confident that Sunburst wouldn't become upset at all and would support her decision.
Let's go downstairs Father, everypony is asking where we are,” said Sunrise as she stood up from her seat and opened the door for her father. As the father and daughter reached the bottom of the stairs, Sunrise heard knocking.
“It's probably Blossom, so I'll open the door!” called out Sunrise as she quickly walked towards the door but seeing her younger brother standing at the door with a hint of anger on his face was the last thing Sunrise expected to see.
“Ivory! It's so good to see you! I thought you couldn't make it today!”
As Sunrise eagerly embraced her younger brother, Ivory Thunder made no attempt to lift his arms and return Sunrise’s embrace.
“What's wrong Ivory?” asked Sunrise as she slowly moved away from her younger brother.
“We need to talk Sunrise. In private. Now.”
Ivory Thunder quickly climbed the stairs to his father's study and after a few seconds, a stunned Sunrise quickly followed her brother up the stairs.
“I was scheduled to meet with the princesses today to discuss the recruits and I decided to sit outside the conference room so that I would be early to the meeting. Then I-”
“Is there a part that has something to do with me coming up? Because I don't see the point in you telling me about your day at work.”
As Sunrise looked down at her younger brother, Ivory Thunder was genuinely angry for the first time in a long time and the little composure he had left faded away.
“It turns out that Celestia and Luna know about your little plan sister!”
“What plan?”
“Oh I don't know, the one where you and your husband are planning to murder Celestia and Luna and rule Equestria!”
“What?”
Sunrise began to breathe rapidly and she felt her heart rate increase as her brother continued to rant, but his words failed to reach Sunrise’s ears.
“Do you honestly think that you can do a better job than Celestia and Luna?! Do you honestly think that you will be able to solve the economic crisis we are facing?! How selfish are you to risk so many innocent lives just to live in Canterlot Palace?!”
Sunrise managed to hear the last part of Ivory Thunder’s sentence and her initial panic gave way to anger.
“This is exactly why I never considered telling you about our plan! You are far too enamoured with Celestia and Luna to see that they aren't fit to rule anymore! And as for you calling me selfish-!”
Sunrise and Ivory Thunder’s yelling had drawn the attention of everypony downstairs.
“I'm going to go and check on Mother,” asked Sunset, getting up from her seat and heading towards the stairs before she was stopped by her grandfather.
“You stay right where you are, I'm going to check on those two.”
As Sir Leonus reached the top of the stairs and entered his study, Sunrise and Ivory Thunder were yelling in each other’s faces.
“WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?!”
Ivory Thunder and Sunrise stopped immediately to face their father and it was Ivory who spoke up first.
“Did you know about her little plan to get rid of Celestia and Luna?!” said Ivory Thunder, glaring at her sister.
“Yes I did know, and I hope that you are as proud of your older sister as I am, and as for Celestia and Luna apparently finding out, there's no way that they'll announce this to the country and I'm sure that Sunrise and Sunburst will be able to deal with them,” replied Sir Leonus confidently, smiling at his only daughter who nodded in return.
“But how can you support such a deluded idea that won't work?! How will you even defeat the princesses, did you think that through?!”
Sunrise was about to respond when Sir Leonus interrupted her.
“Ivory Thunder, what is our house’s motto?”
Ivory was confused that his father was asking him such a random question and it took him a few seconds to answer.
“Nemo..habeat ..fiduciam.”
“Trust no one. Trust no one outside of our family because you'll never know what their true intentions are. House Leo has been ridiculed for far too long and it is up to Sunrise and Sunburst to restore House Leo, House Capricorn and all unicorns in Equestria to their well-deserved glory.”
“Glory,” snorted Ivory. “Is that the reason you planned this Sunrise? To make sure that our reputation wasn't completely ruined? So that you and Sunburst can play at being King and Queen to prove yourself to Mother, Father and Sir Capricornus?”
“Ivory Thunder, it's time that you choose.”
“Choose what?” asked Ivory Thunder with a perplexed expression, the volume of his voice finally lowering.
“You choose who you are loyal to; either House Leo and support my plan, or Celestia and Luna and walk out of this house, never to return,” continued Sunrise, giving her younger brother a harsh glare.
“I am loyal to Equestria and your plan does not serve the best interests of our country. Countless lives will be lost and my conscience will not allow me to be a part of that. Farewell Sunrise, Father.”
Ivory Thunder walked out of his father’s study without looking at his father and older sister, before descending the stairs and walking out of the house quickly. As he stood in front of his father’s mansion, memories of his childhood, adolescence and his time as part of the Royal Guard rushed through Ivory’s mind, and as he turned around and began to walk back to the Royal Guard, he failed to remember that he had forgotten to tell his sister about the Royal Guard unit that was scheduled to visit in a few hours time.
Sunrise and Sunset slowly got out of their carriage and headed towards Sir Capricornus’ house. As Sunset excitedly told her mother about her upcoming lessons with Celestia, all Sunrise could think about was how she was going to tell her husband that Ivory Thunder, her father and the two princesses knew about their plan.
“Good evening Sunrise and Sunset, I hope you had a pleasant stay at Sir Leonus’ house today,” greeted Sir Capricornus, opening the door for his daughter-in-law and granddaughter.
“Good evening, we had a good time. Where is Sunburst?” asked Sunrise, stepping aside to let her daughter run into the house.
“He's in the courtyard practising with the other Elements. That's all he's been doing since you left this morning,” replied Sir Capricornus.
Sunrise nodded and headed straight for the courtyard, and in her mind she was trying to get her head around all that had happened today.
“ARGGHH!”
As Sunrise reached the courtyard behind her father’s house, she saw Sunburst wearing two of the Elements around his neck and Sunrise made sure she stayed back when she saw Sunburst charge up his horn and destroy targets that were nearly a thousand metres away.
He has improved a lot. Maybe he could give me some tips.
“Sunburst!”
Upon hearing his name, Sunburst stopped what he was doing and allowed his horn to cool down.
“Whatever it is you have to say, I'm not interested. I'm in the middle of practice.”
Sunburst’s irritated tone came as no surprise to Sunrise and as she came closer to him, Sunburst turned away from her and focused on the targets in front of him.
“Father knows about the plan. I felt it was right that he should be told about it,” called out Sunrise.
Sunburst was just about to fire at the targets when he heard what Sunrise had confessed.
“What did you say?”
“You heard me Sunburst and we can trust Father, he hates Celestia and Luna and would want nothing more than to see them fall.”
Sunburst walked over to his wife and stood in front of her silently. Suddenly he raised his hoof high above his head and brought it crashing down onto Sunrise’s face.
Sunrise crumpled to the floor holding her face with her hooves.
“I should've known that you wouldn't be able to keep your mouth shut,” snarled Sunburst, looking down at his wife with contempt.
Sunrise moved her hooves away from her face and placed them on the ground, slowly pulling herself up off the ground. When she had risen to her full height, she stared defiantly at her husband.
“Sunburst, what the fuck is wrong with you? What happened to always staying composed and never letting other ponies see your true emotions? And how dare you hit me! Who the hell do you think you are?!”
As Sunrise continued to lecture her husband, Sunburst’s horn began to light up and he stroked the Element that he was wearing around his neck and this didn't escape Sunrise.
“Take that off now!”
Sunrise reached out and quickly snatched away the Element away from her husband whilst he was distracted. Sunburst yelled and reached out to take the Element back off Sunrise when he suddenly stopped.
“Ughh...what's happening to me?” mumbled Sunburst before collapsing to the ground.
“Gather round, I'm going to go through the plan one more time.”
A group of thirteen ponies, all wearing the armour of the Royal Guard, stood around the round table in the middle of the room. On the other side of the table stood a tall, muscular grey pony. He adjusted the (fading) gold helmet on his head He stared at the other ponies silently before speaking.
“Our targets are advanced magic users and it's very likely that they will use this against us. So we can't give them the opportunity to do this. Alpha Team.” The stallion speaking paused to look at six unicorns standing side by side on the other side of the table. “You will be stationed inside the house in the study next to the dining room. Your job is to neutralise the targets when they try and use their magic against us. Understood?”
“Yes
“Beta Team. You will be stationed around the house. It is your job to make sure that our targets do not get away. Use whatever force is necessary to stop them.”
The other six stallions nodded tersely and the ponies dispersed, each individual making the last minute preparations that they needed.
“Let's move out troops!”
All thirteen Royal Guard members left the room in single file and headed out of the building to board their carriages. Entered the passenger seat and once all of the doors had been locked, the three carriages set off on their twenty minute journey to Sir Capricornus’ mansion.