Ever since she had struck her sister in the face, Razzle Fizzle couldn't help but feel a sense of regret over her actions. A few days after the uneasy reunion, she was in Canterlot trying to find Tempest and apologize for her actions.
"You won't find her anywhere in Canterlot." Said a voice, and Razzle turned to see Moondancer standing behind her.
"Why? What do you mean, Moon Dancer?" Razzle asked.
"They said she was being sent to the Crystal Empire. Apparently, Twilight wants her to be Captain of the Royal Guard. At least that’s what I’ve heard.” Moondancer explained.
This made Razzle Fizzle let out a sharp gasp and her mind filled with confusion over what she had just heard. "Captain…of the Royal Guard?!" She cried, doing several double takes. "After all she's done?! What does Princess Twilight see in her?! I mean, you're friends with her, Moondancer. What do you think is going on in that head of hers?"
"Twilight and I haven't seen each other much since she made me come out of my shell, so it’s hard for me to say,” Moondancer answered. “If she wanted Fizzlepop to be her royal guard captain, then it must have been for a reason."
"Look, Moondancer, can't we talk about this somewhere private?" Razzle offered.
"Well, I was going to Donut Joe's shop. We can talk there if you like." Moondancer suggested.
Accepting Moon Dancer's invite, Razzle followed her to Donut Joe's shop in the heart of Canterlot. As they walked, Razzle continued to become more and more confused, hearing about her sister being offered such a coveted position after all that had transpired in years past. "I'm sorry for giving you blank stares, Moon Dancer," Razzle Fizzle apologized, as they walked into the shop and sat down at one of the tables. "It's just that…why? Why would Fizzlepop, a pony who betrayed her family and terrorized her own nation, be given the chance to serve under a princess? Let alone be given such a high ranking position? I want to be happy for her, and I know I should be, but I can't. After what she’s done, I can’t just forgive her."
"Perhaps," Moondancer suggested. "But, maybe this is all part of her plan to redeem Fizzlepop. Twilight probably sees the pain in your sister's eyes, and wants to help her in any way possible. You know your sister wasn't born of pure evil."
"I know that!" Razzle Fizzle cried, lightly slamming her hoof on the table. "But, I just don't believe it. Fizzlepop never wanted to be a royal guard captain, she wanted to be a princess. She idolized Celestia as a filly and…" Razzle wanted to mention that her sister targeted Celestia as well for turning her away, but she couldn't.
"And rather than plead for acceptance, she turned her and the other princesses to stone out of nothing more than following orders for the Storm King,” Moondancer replied. “Which reminds me, do you think that Celestia ever talked things over with Fizzlepop before everything that happened?"
"I don't know, Moondancer,” Razzle sighed. “Celestia never even had any talks with Fizzlepop. As a matter of fact, Fizzlepop was scheduled to have her entrance exam just before the incident. She often said that it was her ultimate dream to be Celestia's personal student.
“Well, have you ever heard of a unicorn called Sunset Shimmer?" Moondancer asked.
"I can't say that I have." Razzle replied.
"Twilight told me about her once,” Moondancer explained, trying to recall what information she’d been told. “About how she escaped to another world to follow her own destiny. But she came back not too long ago and made amends with Celestia. I'm not saying that Fizzlepop should be just like Sunset in terms of making amends, but I think that Twilight is helping her redeem herself in the eyes of Equestria by being her royal guard captain."
"And being royal guard captain will show Equestria that she can be redeemed?" Razzle Fizzle remarked quite skeptically, who then looked out among the other ponies in the donut shop. "Part of me wants to accept the fact that she can be redeemed, but I look out among these ponies and I can see some ponies who share the same view as myself."
"Let things take their time," Moondancer advised, reaching out to touch Razzle Fizzle's hooves. "Trust me, it took me a while to come out of my shell."
Razzle tried to remain optimistic, but that was easier said than done. To just forgive her sister after all that had transpired, seemed like too much.
Meanwhile, Celestia and Luna were trying to reach out to the families of those who had owned the gold objects that the Storm King had stolen. "It's imperative that we get as many notices out as possible," Celestia urged quite somberly. "These families need closure."
"Sister, I can't help but wonder if we are simply wasting our time," Luna sighed, dropping the quill she was using. "Most of these families are probably dead or unreachable."
This made Celestia give Luna a hard stare. "Luna, don't say that!" She cried out loud! "We must have hope that we can reach out to some of these families at least! They need closure!"
"But, what if it is true?" Luna asked. “Then what?”
"Just keep getting the notices out, sister!" Celestia demanded!
Not wanting to argue with her sister, Luna did as she was told. However, she had her reasons for not being so optimistic. "We may have to face the possibility of not receiving responses right away, Celestia," She cautioned. "I know you don't want to believe it, but we might have to. You saw what happened in the Storm King's homeland."
But, Celestia said nothing, as if to say she didn't want to talk about what they saw, and continued to try and write up the notices.
"Either way, we are going to have to face the truth eventually." Luna sighed.
"We are rulers of a nation, sister!" Celestia cried, as she began to lose patience. "It's our responsibility to be there for those who were affected by the Storm King! You make it sound like everypony is dead!"
"I'm not!" Luna cried back. "I'm just trying to not be in denial about what we saw! I'm your sister, for pony's sake, and somepony who knows that we have to face the cold hard truth sometimes!"
By the end of the afternoon, over a thousand notices had been made and sent out. However, Luna still stood by her beliefs that they were possibly going to hit some dead ends. Nevertheless, optimism was still going to be out there for Tempest and for the Storm King's victims. It was just about all the princesses had left.