"Shhh. In here."
Senescey shadow snuck in an area of the corridor that was dim enough to allow it... which was honestly most of the colosseum. A slatted drainage grate for water spills yielded before her and she slipped through, Valey following along behind.
"Whew..." Looking shaken, Senescey landed on her hooves in a smaller sewer tunnel, beckoning Valey to follow her away from the gray light misting down from the ceiling. "Alright. It should be quiet enough to talk here. First off: I'm so, so sorry about that..."
Valey nodded, waiting to see what part of everything this was an explanation for.
Senescey nervously brushed her mane. "That was sooo awkward... You really didn't have to stay and sit with a room full of complete strangers for a whole hour. A-Anyway. Where do I begin?"
Valey shrugged. "Seems easy enough. What are you doing here? Sure didn't expect to see you in this tournament. And what was so secretive about it that you had to shush me for?"
"I..." Senescey swallowed. "Maybe we could save that one for last? The short answer is because I can and because I have something to fight for. All of my sisters and I want to improve the fortunes of sarosians across the Empire. I'm probably not good enough to make it all the way, but it's trying that counts. Anyway. About that party..."
She folded her ears, still looking horribly awkward. "Mundungus is an... acquaintance from Gyre. The twins and Todd and everyone else are all connected through him, sort of, except that Kannonball guy who showed up with you. He spells his name with a K, by the way. He's a drinking buddy of Todd's, and might have been invited while Todd was... you know. So he didn't get that that was a closed-invite get-together between friends, even if the twins are outgoing enough to try to make it friendly anyway. I'm really sorry about that."
"Bananas. That stinks." Valey bit her lip. "Wow, yeah, sorry for being a party-crasher. Maybe you should have just thrown the yellow guy out? Or, uhh..." She blinked. "Hold on, I thought you said you already moved to Izvaldi like twenty-something years ago. You're old enough to have friends from back then?"
Senescey nodded. "Not friends, though I do have some hazy memories. Felicity knew him. They ran together as foals. But do you really want to know about this?"
Valey blinked. "Do I? What do you mean?"
"That gets back to things," Senescey sighed. "You wonder why an orphaned sarosian, a street thug from Gyre, a pair of mercenaries from Wilderwind, and a big, innocuous boozehound are hanging out at a private party rich enough to afford a screen to watch the fights on? And why I asked you not to talk about how I fight? The last bit was because I know that guy would gossip, but still?"
"You know, now that you mention it... Yeah." Valey rubbed her forehead. "I thought mana energy was crazy expensive in this place, yet they've got that big hologram and the loudspeakers and now you've got that screen..." She frowned. "I figured the first two were, like, gifts from the capitol, or something, since they're running this show. You have connections to the tournament organizers, or something?"
Senescey bit her lip. "I... look. I can trust you, right?"
Valey sized her up. Her cutie mark held only the faintest tingle; combined with reading her face, it was plain that Senescey was scared and trying not to feel cornered. Their eyes met, and Valey suddenly felt like she was looking in a mirror at herself from a month ago: getting drawn in deeper to something she wanted no part of yet felt like she had to do. This was someone who was trying to stay safe and was having everything unravel due to pure bad luck.
"Bananas, yeah." She nodded, quickly making up her mind. "Just so you know, I'm actively not looking for trouble, but I really don't wanna throw you under the cart. You were cool when I needed it."
Senescey breathed a nervous sigh of relief. "A-Alright. My sisters and I... are up to something. Something a lot bigger than just us, and the people in that room sans Kannonball are allies. When I invited you over the other week, we were sizing you up, Valey. We'd heard about you and thought you might want to help us. And after talking to you, it was close. We really, truly thought you'd agree with and appreciate what we're trying to do... something that involves me fighting in this tournament. But we also thought you've been through a lot, and really didn't want to get deeply involved, in over your head, or in any place that could come down on your friends. It was so close we even slipped up a little. You remember things getting awkward, how we talked about what we were up to at night. Felicity was lying about what she did with the prince, by the way. That was just testing the waters. But... do you understand?"
Valey blinked. "Uhhh... Well. What are you going to do now?"
Senescey wilted. "Ask you plainly if you'd like to know more. Do you? If you do, I'll tell you everything... but there will be no going back. Even if I think you'd help us."
Valey paused for all of a second and then shook her head. "Thanks, but nah. Honestly, I might regret this later, since me and my friends apparently do have a knack for world-saving. You know. If you have any idea what my idea of a big conspiracy is... but we're staying out."
Senescey trembled. "Then we made the right call. So now that you know that I know things that are dangerous..."
"Nah. You're cool." Valey put a wing around her back. "I mean it. First friendly face I saw in the Empire, you know? And I've kinda been there too, with the whole 'secret plans blowing up in your face' kinda deal. Don't really wanna wish that on you. And you're pretty high-strung right now. You look like you need it."
"Ohh, thank you..." Senescey hugged her fully back, melting into her and starting to tear up. "You have no idea how much that means to me. So... we can still be friends?"
Valey patted her on the back. "Like I said. You look like you need it."
For a moment, Senescey stayed there. "That makes you the best friend I have who isn't also a business partner. Thank you so much... Come on, Senescey. Pull yourself together." She sat up, wiping a hoof across her yellow eyes. "I really appreciate it, though. Thank you. You... have no idea how many different ways this conversation could have gone that would have ruined me."
"Actually, I kinda do." Valey nodded, sitting back and trying to look at ease. "Ironridge, remember? Still no clue how much the dudes here know about that, but I'm not a stranger to the ways gigantic conspiracies can go wrong and what it feels like when they're falling apart around you. Seriously. I have a friend from back then who kinda trusted me even though I told them point-blank it was a bad idea and I knew a ton of creepy stuff. So if you're telling me this is for a good cause..."
"I already told you what the cause is." Senescey wiped her eyes. "We're trying to make things better for sarosians in the Empire. Without a lot of collateral damage or making things worse for anyone else. We don't want to turn the tables, just even them. And... it's complicated, and there's a lot of pressure." She sniffed. "Could we hang out sometime? Just as a break? Sorry I'm a mess right now, but I'm still reeling from how many ways this could have gone badly."
"Yeah. I'd be down with that." Valey gave her a confident grin. "Anyway. I'm gonna go chill with my friends from Ironridge. We've got a private box with an outdoor view. If you wanna come hang out up there any time, I'll make sure it's less awkward than the thing we just left. See ya?"
Senescey smiled back. "Thanks again, Valey. This is a huge weight off my mind."
"Cool. See ya."
Valey disappeared, slipping back down the tunnel to the grate and then up the wall, trotting quickly back toward Starlight's smell.
A full minute after Valey disappeared from sight, Senescey was still standing there, daring herself to smile.
"Congratulations," a voice softly echoed behind her.
She turned slowly, regarding a pair of slitted eyes that opened in the darkness. "Prince," she murmured, bowing.
"Me!" Gazelle stepped forward until his outline was visible, giving a catlike stretch. "How are things, my little pony? I couldn't help but eavesdrop, and you look like you needed that."
Senescey nodded, her ears folding. "She'd make a good ally, but... I can do this. You can count on me, Prince." She stood straight again. "Can I say I'm glad that this happened, though? That she's not involved, but is willing to be my friend anyway?"
Gazelle purred, slinking up alongside her. "Leave all the logistics to me. You be glad. You've done a wonderful job of things so far. And if you'd like her as a proper ally at a later date, I can certainly arrange that. Remember, I'm deferring to your expertise in this field..." His eyes glinted with the promise of a job he wanted done well and knew better than to get in the way of.
Senescey stiffened slightly. "I can do this! I wouldn't have said yes if I couldn't. I swear it on the Night Mother."
"Wonderful. Holding up your end of everything, I see." Gazelle gave a full-toothed smile. "Well, I'll be on my way. Nothing like enjoying the present, after all. And take a load off, sometime! You've got nothing to worry about for a long time yet!"
"I-I'll do that." Senescey nodded as he left, strolling away down the sewer corridor. A long moment passed, and she was left once again in darkness.
"Mother..." She looked down, tensing her wings and holding up a hard hoof. "We'll avenge you. I promise."