Twilight Velvet sighed and ran a hoof down her face, gazing lazily into the mirror that adorned the wall of her private residence. The room, though small, had grown on her over the ensuing days and weeks that she had spent in the hidden laboratories of Blackguard’s base. Over that time Velvet had become intimately familiar with the layout of the dormitories, as well as learned the names of her neighbors, or at least the ones who would speak to her anyway. Not like she could really blame them for being so tight-lipped as most were wary of her due to her noble status, nevermind the way in which she was recruited sounded a little too convenient for some. Though with that being said, there were others who simply smiled knowingly after being told the story that ended with her induction, convinced that Blackguard himself probably set up the entire thing just to get to Velvet.
She wasn't sure how true that was, but she doubted she would get an answer to such a question, or even if such a question was really relevant anymore. She was a part of this strange group now, for better or worse, and her new tattoo was a fresh reminder of just such a commitment.
Something that she still found strange, and glancing down at the tattoo, the mare smiled despite the fact that it still felt a little odd to even have any ink at all. Never mind the fact that it was a strange design in a strange place, the red candle with the blue flame being quite intimidating now that Velvet thought of it. Her skin had healed well, and even after only a few short weeks she no longer even had to apply lotion to the area.
Shrugging off the weirdness of the situation, Velvet turned and glanced up at the clock, only to curse at the sight of the strangely normal timepiece. “Dammit all,” she muttered under her breath, turning and trotting over to the door at a hurried pace.
The mare quickly opened the door and closed it behind her before making a break towards the stairs down and after that one of the closest laboratories. A few random ponies and even a griffon were meandering through the halls, all of which Velvet ignored completely.
The floor below her was almost the same as the one above, with numerous rooms at even intervals. The only difference here was the fact that each room was deeper than the dormitories above and held small personal labs for those who did not need a considerable amount of space for their tests. It was in one of these smaller, more intimate rooms that Velvet’s target stood tapping her hoof impatiently, staring at the other mare.
She was a little older than Velvet herself, as evidenced by the crow’s feet at the edges of her eyes, the grey tips at the edge of her short-cut brown mane, and her brown wings. Her grey eyes were tired and though they showed a hint of irritation, that emotion was stifled somewhat by an undercurrent of concern evident in the pegasus’ aged orbs.
“Velvet, I know you are still new here, but I must insist you be on time. Testing requires a unicorn, and I can only do so much background work before I run out of things to do,” the pegasus remarked with a sigh, shaking her head.
“I’m sorry, Gentle Breeze,” Velvet began, ducking into a slight bow. “I don't have an excuse, but I hope you can accept my apology regardless.”
The older mare stared at the other pony for several long seconds before sighing and turning away, revealing the grey gust of wind cutie mark on her hips. “It's fine, I’m just concerned that you are not taking this seriously.”
“Oh, I am,” Velvet began, stepping closer. “It's just… My life has changed so much recently that I find myself staring in the mirror and wondering how I got here. I know it sounds kind of stupid when I say it like that, but-”
The other mare nodded slowly, knowingly. “I understand perfectly, my dear. Sorry for doubting you.”
The unicorn sighed, smiling gently. “Thank you, Gentle.”
The older pony snorted dismissively and waved a hoof at the large summoning circle all laid out before them. Candles burned with a gentle blue at the tip of each point of the star within, the fresh blood used to paint the circle filling the room with the scent of copper. A sight and smell that were becoming increasingly normal to the former noble pony who smiled at the sight of a well-constructed circle.
“What did you have in mind today?” Velvet asked, gesturing to the ritual circle before them. “It looks like you are ready to summon an arch demon with such an impressive setup.”
Gentle Breeze chuckled and slowly circled the ritual area, eying it closely for faults. “I’m not that ambitious. I was actually hoping to test an idea I had that I am tentatively referring to as demonic resonance theory.”
Velvet lifted an eyebrow. “You are still working on that? I thought the higher-ups told you it was disproven.”
The older mare laughed mirthlessly. “Those shits don't know the first thing about summoning or even demons for that matter. Their opinions matter about as much to me as my husband’s.”
The unicorn walked over to a small stand that held only a simple scroll. “I’m assuming this is part of the test we are running today?”
“Yes. We are going to be summoning a minor imp for the purpose of scanning it and sending it back,” Gentle Breeze murmured, leaning close to the circle and inspecting a particular rune. “After summoning a hoofful of imps of various types and dispositions we will start to build up a data set that should help my theory. Or at least, theoretically anyway.”
“Alright, just tell me when to begin,” Velvet remarked, taking her position near the scroll.
The next several hours were spent summoning, scanning, and subsequently dismissing imps, most of which took one look at the well-prepared ponies, and merely sat there, waiting to be dismissed. Others raged and fought, while fewer still tried to deal their way out of dismissal, both to no avail.
A screaming, clawing, and thin red rage imp slowly went up in smoke, the demonic creature fighting for every second spent on the material plane and desperately resisting the dismissal spell that was dissolving its body. Velvet frowned and covered her ears, watching on in irritation as the creature finally dissipated to the point that its voice box no longer worked, and only its head and hands were left in the room. A few more seconds, and even that was gone, allowing both mares to breathe a sigh of relief when that occurred, with Gentle Breeze gently shaking her head and rubbing the inside of her right ear.
“What a loud little bugger,” Gentle muttered.
“Quite,” Velvet agreed, before turning to her companion. “What's the next one?”
Gentle paused, lifted a pair of glasses closer to her face, and squinted down at a list on a table nearby. “It looks like an entropy imp is next. Be wary though, these are some of the most slippery imps in Tartarus.”
“I wasn't aware of that,” Velvet remarked.
“Oh yes, they can be quite convincing, and their very aura eats away at the summoning circle no matter how many defenses you put up,” Gentle began, applying a few extra runes in the circle with a liberal application of blood from a nearby bucket. “They are craftier than they let on too.”
“Interesting.” Velvet shook her head and readied her next spell. “Ready?”
The pegasus plopped the bucket back down on an empty table and walked over to the edge of the circle. “Ready when you are.”
The unicorn lit her horn and began to cast the familiar spell used to summon forth an imp of her choosing. Though not the most difficult spell by a long shot, Velvet had been casting it over and over for the better part of the day, and as such she took a little longer to complete it, her internal mana beginning to wane. The last part of the spell took the longest, with Velvet having to alter the parameters of the spell to seek out a particular imp type of her choosing.
Without hesitation, she cast the spell, with a bright flash of her magenta magic. The light of her horn shot out in all directions, only to be captured inexorably by the ritual circle, which in turn activated, performing the second and most important part of the spell. Runes flickered with magic, and in the center of the circle, a deep magenta light began to build and build until suddenly flickering out at the last minute.
“What the hell,” Velvet muttered.
Gentle Breeze lifted an eyebrow and glanced down at the circle. “I felt you do the spell correctly. What does a scan say?”
Velvet lit her horn and cast a quick, cursory scan over the area, detecting any residual energy that lingered within the area. “It looks like the spell was countered,” Velvet began, her horn still glowing. “But it did so in a strange way.”
“Why do you say that?” Gentle inquiered, eying the circle with newfound curiosity.
“It was like the counter simply demanded more power than the circle was capable of putting out.” Velvet shrugged. “I’ve never heard of such a counterspell before.”
Gentle Breeze frowned deeply and sighed. “Well, it looks like that's it for today then.”
Velvet blinked. “Surely we can just keep trying right?”
The pegasus shook her head and trotted over to the corner of the room wherein a mop and bucket were waiting for her. “That kind of counterspell to a summons is only possible by a powerful entity, one with a base of operations and a significant amount of resources. Who may very well be irritated that we just tried to summon a minion of theirs.” She shrugged and grabbed the mop before tossing it at Velvet. “Besides, our circle is fried.”
The former noble looked down, only now noticing that there were several trickles of black smoke wafting from the now burnt and blackened blood that stained the ground. “Oh, for the love of…” She sighed. “Let me guess, I have to clean this up?”
“And while you do, you are going to tell me what's really bothering you,” Gentle remarked, plopping down on an office chair and watching the younger mare as she began to clean up the circle.
“It's that obvious, isn't it?” Velvet muttered while she used her magic to mop the floor.
“You actually hide it quite well. But I’m a mother of three girls, and if there is anything that young mares do well, it's keeping secrets,” Gentle Breeze replied with a wink.
“True,” Velvet muttered, focusing on her task for nearly a minute while she thought of the correct words to say. “To be honest, I’m worried about the first mission that Blackguard is sending me on.”
Gentle shrugged. “I wouldn't be. He wouldn't send you on something that he genuinely believes you would fail to accomplish.”
“I guess,” Velvet muttered, glaring angrily at an exceptionally burnt spot that refused to be removed no matter how hard she scrubbed. “Celestia knows Maul, and knows I got a book from him in the past, she could very well be watching his shop.”
Gentle Breeze raised an eyebrow and scooted a little closer, the wheels of her chair screeching across the floor. “That does sound a bit difficult, but if he's sending you out there he probably has a plan.”
“He does,” Velvet murmured, staring at the floor as she continued to scrub away at the stubborn circle. “I also have to stop by the house, as I left some important research materials in the attic.”
“I thought you said you used teleport runes on them?”
“I thought I did as well, but it turns out something went wrong somewhere along the lines, and the spell fizzles every time I cast it.” Velvet sighed, scrubbing the last of the blood. “I didn't exactly leave home during pleasant circumstances and I doubt they would give me a warm welcome if I just showed up asking for some of my old stuff.”
“Do you need to bring along a weapon?” the older mare asked, her tone suddenly very serious. “I know Quick Drop knows a few offensive spells.”
Velvet shook her head. “No, I don't think that would be necessary. They may not understand, but I doubt they would be violent.”
Gentle Breeze eyed her friend closely for several seconds before snorting and rolling back a few feet. “Well, if you ever change your mind, I sharpened my short sword.”
“That thing you cut up your abusive husband with?” Velvet asked, draining the blood and water mixture into a bucket.
“The very same!” Gentle announced proudly. “I call it my pig sticker, and it's light enough I bet even a unicorn could use it.”
Velvet blanched, hiding her look of disgust as she put away the mop. “My husband may not be the bravest of ponies, but I don't think he deserves to have his testicles removed with a short sword.”
Gentle snorted. “Bah, all stallions are pigs. Mares are better anyway.”
Velvet rolled up several notes and bapped the pegasus on the head. “Down girl.”
Gentle Breeze stuck out her tongue. ”You are no fun.”
Velvet rolled her eyes and made her way over to the door, only to be stopped by the gentle hoof of the older mare touching her shoulder. “Are you sure you are ready for this?”
Brushing off the hoof, Velvet smiled reluctantly. “I think so.”
“Well alright, ‘cause if you really want I’m sure Blacky could give you some extra help. Maybe even get one of those real sneaky types from a few floors down to get in there and knock your family out so you don't even have to deal with them.”
“Really, Gentle Breeze, it's fine. I probably won't even see either of them as all my stuff was left in the attic away from the rest of my family,” Velvet replied dismissively, pushing open the door and walking away.
“Well, if you ever change your mind, I got all evening off tomorrow!” Gentle Breeze yelled after the now blushing mare.
“I'll let you know, Gentle, now goodnight,” Twilight Velvet shot back a little more forcefully than she first wanted to.
The brown and grey pegasus watched as the younger mare’s pert behind bounced down the hall and disappeared into the stairwell, prompting the older pegasus to sigh. “You are far too fun to tease,” Gentle mused.
Twilight Velvet growled in irritation, looking out from the alley she was hiding within. The books resting in her saddlebags had grown heavier over the past hour and a half she had spent running through the side streets of Canterlot. The guards following her did so at a safe distance, and Velvet wasn't sure if they were even actively following and if they were trying to catch her or simply tail her. All she knew was this was something she was going to have to deal with one way or another and that she had a mere minute or two before they managed to catch up with her.
Twilight Velvet’s eyes suddenly went wide when she noticed a group of middle-aged mares trotting down the road, their bodies pressed close to one another as they looked out at the surrounding dark streets with worried expressions. The rest of the street was nearly dead, with only a few homeless ponies, and a duo of drunks being out at such an hour. Noticing that this very well might be the only chance she got, Twilight Velvet steeled herself and donned the mask of a concerned citizen before running out of the alley and towards the group of mares.
For a second one of them seemed ready to panic, only for recognition to flash before her eyes. “Twilight, is that you?” a younger, lanky unicorn mare with a bright orange coat and a yellow mane asked.
“Yes, it's me, Fire Sun, but I can't talk right now. A stallion has been following me for several blocks. You have to hide me,” Twilight Velvet whispered, glancing over her shoulder and down the road to where the guards would be emerging at any moment.
“Don't worry, Twilight. You can count on us,” Fire Sun replied back, turning to her group of mares and nodding to a dark green coated mare with a long black braided mane.
Who parted from the group just enough to allow Twilight a spot to hide in the center of them. The green-coated mare lit her horn and leaned in. “I’m going to cast a simple camouflage spell. It won't work on anyone close though.”
“Please, hurry, I think he's coming,” Twilight pleaded.
The green mare nodded and cast the spell, causing Twilight Velvet’s form to shimmer a moment before disappearing completely, only visible to those within a few feet of her. Sure enough, the guards turned the corner several seconds later, only to see a group of well-to-do unicorn mares shuffling away, nervously trotting in the direction of the noble district.
Twilight Velvet breathed a sigh of relief when she noticed that one of the guards was loitering near the alley she had been in a few minutes earlier while the other was questioning a homeless pony that she was ninety percent certain had not been paying attention when she had emerged from the alleyway. Now outside the realm of danger, Twilight Velvet eyed up her companions, only now realizing that she recognized almost all of them.
Fire Sun and the dark green coated mare whose name eluded her were part of an art society that Velvet had considered joining while the other three mares were ponies she knew through the various noble social circles. Like the green mare, their names eluded her, but she knew their faces and also knew that they were either younger heiresses yet to be married or in the case of the singular older mare, a spinster who seemed to have given up on the dating scene.
“What are you girls doing here so late?” Twilight whispered.
Fire Sun frowned, shooting one of the younger, pink-furred mares a glare. “Somepony said there was going to be a rare exhibit in lower Canterlot, but forgot to mention it was by invite only.”
The pink-furred unicorn growled in annoyance. “I told you I didn't know that! The stallion said it was open for the nobility which I thought was us.”
“Like whatever, Candy Heart,” the other younger mare commented flippantly, tossing the bangs from her eyes. “You are such a ditz.”
“A better question is what are you doing here?” Fire Sun asked, their quicker pace beginning to slow as they turned a corner and approached one of the gates that led to the noble district.
As usual, it was guarded by a pair of slack-jawed, and bored-looking guards who gazed out over the crowd with complete disinterest. Twilight did a quick mental calculation and figured that they were probably far enough away to not notice the camouflage spell, allowing her a moment to think of a convincing lie.
“I’ve been trying to avoid my husband’s coworker and went to a friend’s house. Unfortunately, she had to leave unexpectedly,” Twilight lied, silently cursing her weird delivery and weak excuse.
Thankfully, three of the five mares didn't seem to give it much thought, and merely nodded along, eying the pony they were hiding with newfound respect and pity. Fire Sun and the green-furred mare, however, didn't seem to buy into the lie completely, sharing a questioning glance.
“How does that explain why you were trying to sneak away from the guards?” Fire Sun asked pointedly.
“Yeah, and what's with the bags?” Green coat added.
“Look, girls,” Twilight pleaded. “I can explain everything but I really must get home and tell my husband. If Night Light doesn't hear back from me soon he's going to worry.”
“Wait, I thought you were like, avoiding him?” Candy Heart asked, scratching her head.
The other, somehow even pinker mare elbowed her friend. “It was his coworker, you ditz!”
“Wait, that doesn't make sense either,” the older mare interjected.
Velvet sighed, running a hoof down her face. “Look, my house is just a few blocks that way and I really have to get going. How about we meet back up for tea tomorrow and I can tell you the whole, unvarnished truth. Okay?”
The entire group seemed to look at Fire Sun who ground her teeth a moment before sighing and shaking her head. “Fine. But I better not find out I was just made an accessory to some crime!”
“Yes! Thank you, Fire Sun,” Twilight cheered before turning and trotting briskly away.
The now slightly smaller group paused and watched the other mare leave, with Fire Sun’s face scrunching up the longer she stared. “Like, are we splitting up here? ‘Cause I totally do not want to walk home by myself.”
Fire Sun frowned and shook her head. “Don't worry, Candy Heart, me and Calliope will walk you back.”
The green-coated mare nodded. “Don't worry dear, we’ll take care of you.”
Candy Heart breathed a sigh of relief, before raising her nose into the air and trotting away. “Come on, we better get going.”
“Yeah…” Fire Sun muttered, following behind her friend while glancing over her shoulder at the street Twilight Velvet had disappeared down. “I didn't think Twilight Velvet lived on Woodrow or had a tattoo. Did you?”
Twilight Velvet breathed another sigh of relief, leaning heavily against a lampost nearly a block away from home. The brisk trot here hadn't been so bad, but the pony had been ill-prepared for her sudden jaunt across the entire town, never mind the sprint that was made necessary after being spotted by an overly curious guard. Add to that the large book in her left saddlebag and the slightly smaller one in the right and it was obvious why the older mare was struggling to catch her breath.
Can't rest yet, Velvet. We must get the rest of our materials, she reminded herself, giving her head a shake.
Looking down the street, Twilight noticed that there were thankfully few ponies out at such an hour and the two she could see had their heads down and were heading away from her. Meaning she had the perfect opportunity to get into her home without causing a commotion with any of her possibly concerned neighbors.
The mare frowned as she began to slowly creep towards home, her mind imagining how her sudden disappearance may have disrupted the local neighborhood. Thankfully either the news of her disappearance hadn't reached the ponies she rarely interacted with, or more likely, the rumours were so varied no one knew the truth. Given just how robust the Canterlot rumor mill was, Twilight Velvet had absolutely no doubt it was the second one, and for once the unicorn found herself thankful that everyone in her neighborhood was unrepentant snoops, as it gave her just enough distance from the truth.
The mare felt a small smile slowly spread across her face and she couldn't help but chuckle at the irony of it all. She had just gotten her butt pulled out of the fire by a bunch of ponies she could only vaguely remember, all because the rumor mill was probably going into overdrive, giving her just barely enough grey area that most ponies didn't know or believe the fact that she had basically joined what looked on the outside like a terrorist organization.
That jovial expression quickly fell away when she passed a row of lawn gnomes which were all staring intently at the passing mare, making Twilight shiver and trot a little faster. Having passed the creepy lawn gnome house, Twilight Velvet knew it wasn't much further, and she stopped and peered over her old neighbor’s fence, scanning the windows of her house.
The main story windows were dark, with the only light being a faint flickering coming from the second story window furthest to the left. This meant Shining Armor or Night Light had been left on the bathroom candle, and judging from how low it had gotten already, he had done so a while ago. For a moment Twilight Velvet almost began to walk towards the door, the mare mentally preparing herself for the eventual confrontation she would have with her son over his improper use of their emergency candles.
Only to stop when she realized her old life was over, never to return.
She couldn't just walk into that house anymore, she couldn't be the Twilight Velvet she had been for the last decade. She was a new, different Twilight, one who couldn't simply walk into her old house.
The thought filled her with a sudden, deep sadness that seemed to come from deep in her chest. She didn't allow herself to feel that way for long though, and she quickly pushed past it, mentally distancing herself from the difficult-to-answer questions and the sadness they brought on.
Lighting her horn, the mare quickly re-asserted the lingering camouflage spell, adding her own bit of magic to the spell in order to ensure it stayed active for another few minutes. With that done, she ran up to the edge of her property, only to light her horn again and deactivate the first series of wards that warned anyone in the house of an intruder.
Over the next several minutes Velvet carefully maneuvered her way through the series of traps, wards, and various spells that she had erected to defend her house. The irony of having to now work back through them from the other side was not lost on her, and her only saving grace was the fact that Night Light had evidently not bothered to change them.
That stallion can be such a sloth sometimes, Velvet thought to herself, her mind conjuring images of all the times her husband had tried and failed to complete a spell as complicated as the one used to ward their house from intruders. It was obvious to the mare that Twilight took more after her mother than after her father, which was evident not only in her magical output but also in the filly’s mane style and general coloration.
The spells and defenses meant to keep out intruders and alert the occupants to anyone wishing to sneak inside quickly fell to the intelligent mare, leaving only the physical aspect of actually climbing up to the attic. Which was all the way up on the third floor, wherein she would have to climb through a window only an inch or two bigger than her head.
Twilight Velvet sighed, cursing under her breath. “Dammit all,” she muttered.
She had never been the most physical of ponies, and her advanced age hadn't helped her in that regard. Worse yet she didn't know enough magic to truly help her in this situation as her teleportation skills were lacking at best and self-levitation was right out the window. The most she would be able to do to help her ascent would be to make the rope sticky and activate the teleportation wards as soon as she reached the attic itself. She just thanked whatever deity was listening that she was able to bring along one of the single-use teleportation pads that she had bribed a fellow ‘researcher’ for.
With the thin slab of stone firmly placed between the book and the exterior of her bag, Twilight Velvet sighed, and pulled out the rope and grapple from her bag. At least I can levitate it up there. Twilight thought to herself, hoisting the grapple and rope in her magic and gently levitating it up to the third-story window.
The mare stopped and glanced over to the street, only to breathe a sigh of relief when she noticed that the sound she had heard was only a cat. “Calm down, Twilight,” she muttered to herself, turning her attention back to the window.
With her wards and spells all down, it didn't take much for the window to be jiggled open, the simple latch slipping from the hook and allowing Twilight Velvet to pull the entire thing open. Gripping the grapple tightly, the mare tried to remember how strong the ledge had been, only to frown when she realized she had no idea.
“Well, only one way to find out,” Twilight Velvet muttered to herself, setting the claws of the grapple on the lip of the window sill and giving the rope a firm tug.
The entire thing seemed to clip perfectly into place, the rope holding firm even after the unicorn gave it a few more test tugs of varied strength. After one last nervous glance up at the window, the mare sighed and resigned herself to a difficult, and exhausting climb.
Note to self: Learn teleportation magic.
With the clear challenge of climbing a rope without the use of any real magical assistance, or really even limbs capable of the task rearing its ugly head, Twilight considered backing out. Only to stop when she realized that was not something she could logically do. The spells on the house were now thoroughly dismantled, and this change would get noticed eventually, she would be the top suspect in such a crime, meaning it was now or never.
With one last aggravated growl, Twilight gripped the rope in her forehooves, lit her horn, and began the difficult task of climbing into her attic.
Several embarrassing minutes later Twilight Velvet heaved herself through the window, her body not quite crashing to the floor, but that was only because she had left her side hit the ground, meaning it was little more than a dull thump. This would have been a smart move if it was one made via conscious decision, but Twilight Velvet hadn't really thought that through, and simply allowed herself to land on the floor after nearly falling off the window sill.
Slowly, the mare rose into a standing position, her ears swiveling this way and that, intent on seeking out any sound that may indicate that her husband and son were awake and coming to investigate the disturbance. When no sound came, Twilight Velvet looked at her surroundings a little closer, noticing that other than the ladder to the attic being down, everything was where it should be.
The hesitant pony slowly peered over the edge of the steps down, finding that it was as dark and empty as everywhere else. With a sigh on her lips, Twilight Velvet turned back to the task at hoof, quickly setting out the return teleport plate, and running through a mental list of items she would need to bring back with her.
Making sure all the teleport runes were in place took little to no time, as did ensuring that they were functional. What took a little longer was going through each box, and making sure everything was still there.
Sure she could have probably skipped this part, but she really did not want to have to make a second trip, and it was definitely that and not the lingering feeling of regret and nostalgia that was holding her back. However as time passed, Twilight Velvet couldn't help but admit that those feelings still coursed strongly through her.
There was a sense of sadness and regret that filled her bones, a feeling that her anger and resentment couldn't quite beat out. Leaving the unicorn feeling oddly nostalgic, and thus in little hurry to finish her task in a timely fashion.
So caught up was the mare in her impromptu stock-checking session that she didn't notice the click-clack of a small pair of hooves climbing the stairs up to the third story.
For a moment nothing happened, and it was only when Twilight Velvet turned in order to check the last of her boxes did she realize that she was no longer the only one in the cramped attic. The two ponies’ gaze locked on one another, with Shining Armor eying his mother with concern and irritation while Velvet was simply too shocked to muster any real emotion.
“Shiny?” Velvet muttered weakly, nearly dropping the glass tube she held in her magic.
“Hello, Mother,” Shining replied coldly, a wisp of magic growing around his horn. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m just getting a few things and…” Twilight Velvet blinked, noticing that the spell building around her son’s horn was an offensive one. “What are you doing?”
“Making sure I can protect this house.” His eyes narrowed. “If it comes to that.”
“Oh, Shining Armor. I would never do-” she began, only to be cut off by the colt stomping angrily.
“Bullshit!” he spat. “You left us! Now you sneak back just to steal from us!”
Twilight gritted her teeth, containing the anger she felt building inside of her. “Shining Armor, I am not stealing anything. These are my experiments, my books. I am simply coming to get them.” Noticing that his spell was beginning to waver, Twilight Velvet lit her horn and gripped the colt’s own in a telekinetic aura, stopping his spell. “Furthermore, I will not tolerate being threatened in my own house.”
The colt continued to glare at his mother for a few seconds before shaking his head and forcing her aura to release his horn. “Fine,” he muttered, sitting on the floor and crossing his hooves over his chest. “But you will answer my questions.”
“You have five minutes mister, then you better get back to bed. It's a school day tomorrow,” Twilight Velvet admonished, subtly positioning the teleport pad under her hooves.
“Where did you get that tattoo?” Shining Armor asked, pointing at the new ink his mother had gotten.
“It's part of a new job I got,” Twilight replied, gesturing to the tattoo. “It's necessary to get around my new work.”
“Right. Work,” Shining Armor muttered, his glare intensifying. “Why did you abandon us?”
The mare frowned. “I had to make a tough call, one that might get your sister back.”
“Celestia said you joined a cult,” Shining Armor shot back.
“It's not… like that,” Twilight sighed. “We simply don't follow some of her more stupid rules, that's it.”
“She said you would say that,” Shining replied.
Twilight ground her teeth together silently, staring down at the adamant colt. “You are a smart colt, and I raised you to be better than this. No matter what she says, or what she does, you must admit that something about this entire thing doesn't add up.”
“That doesn't mean Celestia is the bad guy!” Shining Armor replied, pointing an accusatory hoof at the mare.
“It may not,” Twilight muttered. “But what I do know is that she is hiding something. I don't know what it is, or why she's hiding it, but she's keeping something from us. You must have seen it by now. The way she doesn't quite seem to trust any of us, the way she keeps certain information away from not only the public but from the family that has lost so much.”
The colt’s features darkened. “Maybe.”
“Don't you think we have a right to know what's going on? Our Twilight is gone, abducted by literal demons and we still don't have the right to know?” Twilight growled. “Who gave her the authority to say what we can and cannot know?”
Shining Armor shook his head slowly. “You just don't get it, mother. Celestia is a good pony and she must have a reason for keeping this information from us. She wouldn't do something like that without a reason. Without a purpose.”
Twilight’s jaw clenched, and she only barely managed to contain the rage burning hot in her breast. “That's bullshit, Shining Armor! Who else but us deserves to know? Who else but the ones who have lost the most?”
“I don't know,” Shining Armor whispered, suddenly looking up at the mare with renewed intensity. “But what I do know is that she has been trying, really really hard to find Twilight and help this family. Unlike some ponies.”
“How could you say-” Twilight began.
“You should go,” Shining Armor interrupted.
The older mare’s mouth opened and closed several times, but her anger stopped her from being able to formulate an organized thought or sentence structure. With her voice suddenly gone, and rage burning hot in her breast, Twilight Velvet turned, lit her horn, and with tears in her eyes, activated the teleport runes in the various boxes that littered the room.
Without turning back around, Twilight Velvet held her head high. “I know you don't believe me, but this is necessary. These ponies have resources Celestia doesn't and if nothing else, we will have that much more help in finding her.”
“What would Twilight say if she knew what you were doing?” Shining Armor asked.
“She would say this was necessary,” Twilight Velvet whispered before she herself vanished in a flash of light.
An instant later the mare was standing alone in her private room, surrounded by the various boxes containing her supplies and experiments. “This is necessary,” she whispered to the empty room.