She took a soft breath, looming over him easily, but her eyes were on the canvas, not him. "I... see."
That was not the response he expected... That was not the gasp of excitement or the gushing of emotions... Color swerved an ear towards the princess. "Do you... like it?"
"I hate it," she flatly admitted. "But... it is so very true." She reached out a hoof, gently brushing it along the edge of the painting. "I... may I vent? To hear the lamentations of a princess is more than some would care to bear, and I would not force it on you, dear painter."
Color shook his head quickly. Refuse her?! "No! Please..."
"You're being nice." She gestured at the painting. "Much like him... He put me first. He put everything first, except for himself. I smiled and did... not enough to dissuade it. He reaches his final days, and--"
"--and," cut in Color with a nervous smile. "--he has a loving wife, children, grandchildren... He has led a full and wonderful life. It was always busy, but he decided to be busy, and he... really is only sad that it has to end, and nothing else."
"Yes..." Celestia shook her head slowly. "I suppose that is true... In a fashion... Color Splash."
"Yes?"
"I want you to burn this painting."
He didn't know how to respond. His limbs stopped moving. He wasn't sure he was breathing.
"I will pay you. You did exactly as I asked..."
He could hear her, distantly. He tried to come to the surface, internally floundering.
Something soft touched him and he jumped, bumping against the wing that had fallen over him. Celestia had gently draped a wing across him. There was no one else there. This was a private thing with the princess. "I..." This was a masterpiece, he had felt. Worthy of hanging next to the first he had sent to the castle... "Must I?"
"I have asked an unreasonable thing." Her horn glowed, lifting the painting from where it rested. "I will take it. You did very well, my creative little pony. Please know that I have only admiration for your skill, even if the end result is too painful to look at."
She was going to take it, and just burn it where he couldn't see it. His horn flared to life, fighting with Celestia's magic. "Please, don't!"
Celestia set a hoof on his shoulder. "Allow me this one rudeness..."
His magic limply fell away. "Please..."
Celestia set the painting down gently beside the stand it was originally on. She turned to him. "This is too private. You have seen too clearly... painted a portal to a world I do not wish to see, and others simply should not. It must be removed."
Color's ears perked atop his head. "Why not give it to him?"
"Pardon?"
"This." He gestured to the painting. "Give it to him, let him have it. It's his life, it's not a secret to him."
She smiled gently. "To see such intimacy painted by a pony he scarcely knows?"
"We talked!" he squeaked out. "We had lunch, and talked, a lot..."
She raised a brow. "Then... I will leave it in your hooves. Present it to him. If he accepts it; very well. Otherwise... I must have your vow that it will be turned over directly to me. Will that suffice?"
Before he could reply, a gilded hoof settled over his snout. "You must swear this." She drew the hoof away, looking towards him.
He took a slow breath. "I will show this to him and offer it. If he does not take it... I'll wrap it up tight and bring it to you. I swear this."
She dipped her head. "I am a demanding princess at times... Forgive me." She rose to her hooves. "I will consider you for happier pictures, ones that would delight me. You are too keen to create dark things."
He stuttered softly as she left, walking out with the same poise she had entered. With dazed eyes, he looked back at the painting. It showed a younger pony in a guard's outfit. He had drawn him with his natural colors, not the ones imposed by the armor.
The soldier's eyes shined with determination and pride. They'd never lose that glow. Even in his advanced age, he was so very proud to be what he was...
Color sighed gently, willing the phone off the hook. He had calls to make, and a soldier to meet.
"Bottom, workload up." She patted the outgoing bin gently.
The papers in it lifted without Bottom coming into view. They casually floated out towards the secretary. "Very good, Miss Word. I'll have it in the right hooves within ten minutes." There was a pause, some papers shuffling. "How's the typewriter feeling? It sounds faster."
"It is," Libel crooned with pride. "Not as fast as I want to be, but faster. When it's eight times the effort to type with the binary keys, you only need to get so much faster to beat your old records." She grabbed a sheet of paper and fed it into the machine carefully in a display of hoof and wing coordination.
"I'm glad to hear that." The click-clack of binary keys drifted in. They sounded different than the multi-key model, Libel had learned. "There's a staff meeting soon, you asked me to remind you."
"Perfect." Libel stood up from her seat, leaving the loaded paper. "I finished just on schedule. I'll be off to that. Bottom, get that where it needs to be, then enjoy a nice lunch."
"Aye aye." She was saluting at Libel went past. "Try to stay awake."
Staff meetings were rarely very energetic. A lot of self-important ponies rambling about what was on their mind and how they should do better and work harder to sell more papers. If only they could know the true flame of team spirit, it would all work out...
Libel strode with purpose and was not alone. Other ponies were headed for the same place, past double doors into a conference room. The projector was set up, ready to display whatever image was placed on it up on a blank wall. Nothing but boredom usually resulted. She ignored it in favor of joining her co-workers. "Any idea what the key notes are today?"
"Libel!" The unicorn mare from public relations was there, smiling at Libel. "I don't... oh, it wouldn't be there." Her eyes fell from the horn that Libel didn't have to her forehooves. "No ring yet. The way you keep going on about that boyfriend of yours, I was expecting one."
Libel felt a smile coming on. "Don't tempt me... We're doing it right, and the courtship continues. So, any hints on what we're here for?" And why it needed their lead editor and their customer service mare in the same room would be nice to know.
"Something big, I bet. They dragged almost everyone in here." She shrugged softly, gesturing at the rapidly filling room with a waving hoof. "Oh, how's the typewriter working out? That's one of the new ones, isn't it? With the easy carriage return?"
Libel was reminded why she liked that mare. Every other word made her want to smile all the more. "It's smooth as silk and twice as expensive. I love it! My typing speed took a hit, but it's rebounded back harder than ever and I'm still getting better."
"Everyone--" All eyes turned to see the boss at the front of the room, striding in with a forced smile. "--glad you could all make it." Not that they had much choice if they wanted to continue being employed. "The paper has been growing faster than ever before, and it's thanks to the ponies in this room." He sat down and brought his forehooves together.
The action was enough to spur on others to applaud, clopping hooves or stomping the floor, soon just about everyone applauding the good fortunes of the paper.
"In fact," he continued, holding up a hoof for quiet. "We've grown so fast, Canterlot can't hold us." Confused murmurs began to rise in the crowd. "We're expanding." The whispers grew more intense. "I need some of you to help open a new branch in Baltimare."
Libel clenched her teeth lightly. She had no particular desire to move to Baltimare, and made no motion to volunteer.
A few ponies did step forward, willing to join the endeavor. The boss nodded towards each of them. "I knew I could trust in you." He patted each on the shoulder. "We'll miss having you here, but you'll have room to grow and expand. The rest of you, consider. You have until the end of the week before we start filling in with outside talent."
He glanced at Libel. "This could be your chance to be reborn..." He started going on about quarterly numbers and other inane things. There were no other huge announcements to surprise everyone with.
The meeting ended with a seeing off party for those who had volunteered, fresh lunch morsels brought in for folks to chew on while they chatted.
"I don't understand it," whispered one of Libel's male co-workers. "You can already get our paper in Baltimare. Do we need a branch there?"
Another shrugged lightly. "It would be easier to get Baltimare specific news in Baltimare, and Canterlot ponies don't care much about it. It makes sense to me to have two different branches for two different cities."
Libel slipped free of the crowd, hurrying to the bathroom to get out what she had been holding. It was with great pride that she had held it. She couldn't always, but she'd gone from about 10% to 60%, and that was a quite an improvement, even if she said so herself.
She emerged from the bathroom with a soft sigh of relief.
"Libel." It was her boss. "Consider that offer. It may be your best chance for advancement."
"Yes, Sir..." She could read between the lines. He was trying to get her out of there, to the new branch, away from him... "I'll consider..."
"There's more real estate over there anyway. I'm sure you could get glitzy manor better suited to a rich pony like yerself."
She felt blood rush to her face, not in a blush exactly but more of a moment of intense anger. "Thank you, Sir..."
"Consider it, let me know." He trotted away. "Before the end of the week. If there are too many ponies in the main office, we'll have to downshift around here."
She wanted to scream, but she just smiled. "Of course, Sir. I'll have a firm reply on your desk before the end of the week."
"Good, good." And he was gone, off to haunt some other employee.
She drove a hoof into the ground with a loud clop. "Damn..." If she stayed, she could... She shook her head firmly. "Damn." She stormed back to her office, tail lashing agitatedly behind her. "Damn..."
Bottom looked up from her plate of salad she was eating right where she worked. "How'd the..." she could see the signs. As Libel glared at her, tail thrashing, Bottom raised a hoof. "Want to talk about it, or should I keep all calls?"
Libel felt the urge to run away and hide in her office, but she fought it. She sat slowly in front of Bottom's desk. "If you had the choice, Miss Line, between moving to Baltimare or being fired, which would you select?"
Bottom's horn guttered out, her fork dropping to her plate with a clatter of metal against porcelain. "I..."
Libel felt a moment of bitter triumph. She didn't get to see Bottom struck truly wordless and lost.
The moment passed all too quickly. She hated seeing Bottom like that. "We'll make it," she whispered.
Bottom glanced away and back. "I..."
"We'll make it," Libel repeated more firmly. "Please have confidence in me."
"Yes, ma'am," Bottom whispered so faintly.