//------------------------------// // Twilight and Flash // Story: Beauty Lies Within // by MiraculousDragonMaster //------------------------------// Beauty Lies Within Chapter 1 Twilight and Flash In the Crystal Empire, in her chambers at the castle, Princess Twilight Sparkle was preparing for a trip with her best friends to Manehattan. But first, she had to back to Ponyville to pick most of them up. She was invited to the Empire for her niece, Flurry Heart's, third birthday party. Luckily, it was just for family, so Twilight was more than happy to attend, and Flurry Heart was overjoyed to see her Auntie Twily, as she calls her. It makes her violet eyes sparkle with love when she hears her niece call her that. Her brother, Shining Armor, and her sister-in-law, Princess Cadence, were delighted that she could come. She assured them that she wouldn't miss it. After wearing a casual gown all day, Twilight was free to change into her usual light blue blouse, purple skirt, and matching boots with hot pink trim. She released her indigo hair with pink highlights from its bun and to its long ponytail. She removed her crown, careful of her pony ears, and placed it in one of her book bags. Twilight then brushed her majestic wings that were on her back. Her draconic assistant, Spike, then came in, carrying his own backpack. He had wild green hair, matching draconic eyes, purple skin, and he wore a green shirt, purple pants, and black shoes. "Is that everything, Spike?" Twilight asked. "Yep." Spike confirmed, smiling with his small fangs. "Wonderful." "Oh, wait. I almost forgot. Princess Cadence wanted to see you real quick before we leave." Spike informed. "But, how are we going to bring these back to the train station?" She asked. "The train will be leaving soon." "In thirty minutes, Twilight." Spike assured her. "Besides, your brother will help me. Cadence wanted to have some "princess girl" stuff to talk about." He quoted. Twilight rolled her eyes playfully. "Okay, Spike." She opened the door for both of them, and Spike carried their bags. "I'll meet you there." "Right." And Spike walked out to the front doors. Twilight walked her way to Cadence's chambers. After a couple of minutes of silence, she suddenly bumped into someone. A voice chuckled. "We really got to stop bumping into each other like this." Twilight looked up and saw a young man her age extending his hand to her. He had blue hair, matching eyes, and pale yellow skin. He was dressed in golden armor, except his helmet was tucked under his arm. Even though they're now friends, he can still make Twilight's heart beat slightly faster than normal. She accepted his hand, and the guard helped her back on her feet. "Flash Sentry." She greeted cordially. "Your Highness." He bowed respectfully. "Hey, remember our agreement?" Twilight reminded him with a playful smirk. Flash returned the smirk. "Twilight." He corrected. When the princess had started to befriend him, she insisted that he calls her by her real name when they're alone. And pretty soon, he had been looking forward to her visits to the Crystal Empire. "So, where are you going? Shouldn't you be heading to the train station?" "My sister-in-law wanted to talk to me about something before I leave for Ponyville." Twilight explained. "May I escort you there?" Flash asked. "Yes, you may." She smiled, and he returned it. Soon, they had arrived at Cadence's chambers, talking and laughing. "So, how many times have you crashed trying to learn how to fly?" Flash asked, chuckling. "I lost count." Twilight replied, her giggles dying as she stepped in front of the doors. "Thank you for your escort." "It was my pleasure. May I wait for you outside?" "If you wish." With that, Twilight knocked on the doors. "Enter." A voice said, and Twilight opened the right door, then closed it behind her. A woman was sitting in an armchair, reading a book. She had long curly tri-colored hair, pink, yellow, and purple; blue eyes, and rosy pink skin. She was wearing a light blue skirt, a dark aqua skirt, and yellow heels. Her simple jeweled crown was on her head, carefully positioned to mind her ears. "Hi, Cadence." Twilight greeted. "Hey, Twilight." Cadence greeted back, closing her book. "What do you need to talk to me about?" asked Twilight. Cadence gave her a faint smile. "Well, I have two things I need to speak with you." She gestured to the seat across from her, and Twilight sat down. "First, I have noticed that you and one of the guards, Flash Sentry, have gotten quite close." Twilight playfully rolled her eyes with a slight blush. She hoped that it wasn't visible for her sister-in-law to notice. "And, it would seem that it has been a bit lonely in your castle with just you and Spike, now that your pupil, Starlight Glimmer, is now living here with Sunburst." She nodded. A few months before, Starlight had finished her studies of friendship with her and had decided to live in the Crystal Empire to be closer to Sunburst. "So, I thought, even though you have turned down an offer of having your own guards, perhaps maybe Flash can transfer to you." Twilight blinked, then smiled. "Well, since it's just one guard and not an entire army, I wouldn't mind him transferring." Cadence grinned. "Wonderful. I'll have him stationed to your castle by the end of the week." "And what's the other thing?" Twilight asked. Her smile faded. "Well, I have been getting requests from other nobles concerning you." She explained. Twilight suddenly got worried. "Requests for what?" Cadence took a deep breath. "Courtship." There was deafening silence as the news settled in. Twilight was shocked. Finally, she squeaked a word. "Courtship?" Cadence nodded. "But, I didn't respond to anything of them, because I wanted you to give an answer." Twilight took a deep breath. "For now, I'll refuse all of them. If I ever want to court, it will be with someone who wants to know me for me, not just because I'm a princess or a hero of Equestria." Her sister-in-law smiled proudly. "Truer words had never been said, Twilight. As the Princess of Love, I know that you want true love, the kind that never dies and is one of the most powerful things known." Twilight smiled back at Cadence. "Thanks." She stood up and hugged her. "I look forward to your next visit, Twilight." Cadence said. "Me, too." Twilight released the hug, then stepped out of the room. After Twilight closed the door, she didn't notice that Flash was coming around the corner of the hall. He hid when he saw that she was a little distressed. He decided to maybe see if she was okay, but stopped where he was when he heard her starting to sing. Twilight: I was prepared for everything, Thought I could handle anything. For I can do so many tricks, But I wasn't prepared for this. As she walked through the hall, Flash quietly followed. He never heard the princess sing before, and it was the most beautiful thing he ever heard. Levitation would have been a breeze. Facts and figures, I recite with ease. "The square root of 546 is 23.36664289109". A nearby mathematician in a study was checking her answer. "She is correct". Flash was impressed by her intelligence. I could ace a quiz on friendship's bliss, But I wasn't prepared for this. Will I choose or refuse? I can't be sure. He then found himself quietly singing along. Flash: She can't be sure. Twilight: My mind is sharp, my skills intact, My heart is pure. Flash: Her heart is pure. Twilight: Oh, I've taken my share of licks. I've made it through the thin and thick. But no, I wasn't, Flash: Oh no, she wasn't, Twilight: Oh no, I wasn't, Flash: Oh no, she wasn't, Twilight: Oh no, I wasn't Both: Prepared for this! Seeing that she still didn't notice him, Flash cleared his throat. "Uh, Twilight?" Twilight spun around and saw him behind her. "Flash. I'm sorry. I didn't know you were here." "It's okay. So, what were you and Princess Cadence talking about?" He asked. She frowned for a second, then put on a smile. "Just princess duties. Nothing drastic." Flash wasn't sure if that was the whole truth, but thought it was best to not push it. "If you say so." He replied. "I must go, now." Twilight replied. "Until then, Sir Sentry." He bowed to her. "Until then, Princess Twilight." She smiled as she gave a slight curtsy, then walked to the open front doors. She spread open her wings and flew to the train station. During the train ride back to Ponyville, Spike noticed that Twilight was being awfully quiet. "Hey, Twi. Is something wrong?" He asked. Twilight looked at him, then put on another smile. "It's okay, Spike. I'll tell you another time." Soon, they arrived at the Ponyville train station. As they got up to leave, Twilight raised her hand to their bags. Her hand became engulfed in sparkling magenta magic, and the bags levitated towards them. They then got off the train, carrying their things. "Okay, Spike. After you drop off your stuff, can you get Applejack? I'll find Rainbow Dash." "Sure thing." He grinned, then ran off towards the castle. Twilight then spread open her wings and took off into the sky.