A Diplomatic Visit

by Evilhumour


Chpater Thirteen

Chapter Thirteen

After they had spent more time talking with each other, there was a knock on the door. 

“Oh, it must be time for me to get back,” Twilight said, glancing around for a clock, just noticing now there actually was no means to keep track of time in this room. Using her magic to open the door, she saw a face she’d rather not have seen.

“You are correct, Twilight,” Blueblood said dryly, flinching away as he saw Rarity peering over Twilight’s shoulder, a disapproving look on her face as she eyed him. “Let us go and deal with this little show, shall we?”

“Er, yes,” Twilight said, feeling a bit off balanced by this but doing her best to carry on and try to smooth things with him and Swift-Pad. “I understand your reluctance to deal with the wolves but-”

“You know nothing,” he said snidely, looking down at her. “You might have some knowledge,” he raised a hoof to stall her friends from saying anything before he continued. “But let me guess, he told you of what my great-grandfather did and nothing else?”

“What do you mean, nothing else?” Twilight asked, concerned. 

“Since then, my family has had to deal with the wolves constantly trying to have us brought to their lands to fight to the death over some backhoofed idiotic comment,” Blueblood snorted angrily. “We can’t apologize because they will not accept it and anytime we travel outside of Equestria, we have to be extremely careful as any misstep that would land us into prison would lead to them attempting to extradite us from that land. Aunt Celestia may not be willing to let them take us from Equestria, but other nations do not feel the same way about extraditions of foreign nationals.” He looked rather disgusted. “Which is most displeasing for me, given my own desires to see other parts of the world. Yet my enjoyment of such is greatly reduced by the fact that I have to look over my shoulder for possible threats the entire time!” 

“I’m sure that it wouldn’t happen, I mean-” Twilight began before she was cut off.

“Of course it wouldn’t happen; it would bring the wrath of Equestria down on anyone foolish enough to do it,” Blueblood rolled his eyes. “But do you honestly think that Swift-Pad has Equestria’s best interest or the Packland’s interest at heart? He knew of that section that would be found and removed, yet he still tried to get it passed nonetheless. No matter what you think of him, he is acting for his people first.”

The words stung Twilight and she was forced to admit that he was right. It was uncomfortable to acknowledge that Swift-Pad had such ulterior motives and he might have been willing to use her if it wouldn’t be so dangerous for him to do so. It also made her realize that in the future, others would be willing to do so and they wouldn’t be handicapped by being her mentor.

“And miss Belle,” Blueblood looked past her and at the frowning unicorn. “As a member of the royal family, distant as I am, I have inherited a sizeable fortune and a number of lands and I have had far too many mares attempting to attract my attention in order to get their hooves into them. How was I to know you weren’t just another of them, when I had not been told of the identities of the six who brought my… other aunt back to us, until after that night when we first met?” Blueblood didn’t even let her respond before he continued. “And even if you were and are, does that excuse you for trying to seduce me without even trying to get to know me properly? As it was, I was simply enjoying myself in trying to lose another mare that got her eyes on me. I must admit, you lasted longer than most which is admirable in a sense.” He gave her a smirk at that.

Rarity did not look happy. “May I remind you that we barely said hello before you began acting like… yourself, and I hardly had a chance to attempt to get to know you?” 

“I saw that look in your eyes the moment you got here for the Grand Galloping Gala so I knew what I was in for,” he shrugged his shoulders, his face becoming softer. 

“Fair enough,” Rarity said, shifting on her hooves. “But I was hoping to see the true gentlestallion within, and not just the princely exterior… except you kept that side well hidden behind the airs of disdain, didn’t you?” 

Blueblood looked rather uncomfortable at that. “Yes, well…” He looked around. “I believe I have said my part. Princess, shall we?” 

Twilight nodded coolly, and turned to her friends. “I’ll be back later, girls. I’ll see you then.” 

Once the door had closed and she and Blueblood were a little ways down the hall, she looked at him, her eyes narrowed. “First of all, I’m still rather irritated at you on my friend’s behalf.” 

“And you are well within your rights to be so, but I stand by my decision,” Blueblood said stiffly. “She was interested in me mainly as a prince, at least at first, and I abhor those who see me as some prize to be won.” 

Twilight’s eyes narrowed even more briefly, but she restrained herself. “Second, Swift-Pad said nothing about your family’s poor relationship with the wolves, prior to our arrival here,” she said. “Princess Celestia herself explained the origins of this disagreement to me and what it meant for your family, and only after the ambassador expressed his… displeasure at seeing you. Of how Nobleblood purposely insulted their way of life in such a manner that they were determined to make he or his family pay.” 

“I see.” Blueblood fell silent, as he and Twilight continued walking. Finally, they arrived at the main throne room, where the other Princesses, Swift-Pad and a number of reporters were waiting. “Princess Celestia, Princess Luna.” He nodded his head towards them before looking at Swift-Pad. “Ambassador,” he said politely with the wolf nodding back. “I do hope we are not late.”

“Not all, your highness,” Swift-Pad said just as politely with Luna waving them over to the table where the documents were laid. “Shall we sign these, your Graces?”

“Yes,” Celestia said. Taking up a quill and her Royal Seal, she signed the papers, one after another, before pressing the seal into the paper beside her signature. Stepping aside, she let Luna take her place and repeat the process. Then, she signalled to Twilight, who stepped up beside her. 

“Your own Royal Seal,” Celestia whispered as she hoofed it over. “I meant to tell you earlier, but with everything else that was happening…” 

Accepting it, Twilight took a moment to look at the mark on its underside. She relaxed at the sight of her own Cutie Mark, then did as the others had, signing each document and sealing them. 

Finally, Swift-Pad stepped up to sign and seal it. 

“The ratification is complete,” Celestia said. “I thank all of you for witnessing this furthering step of progress between our two nations.”

“In addition,” Swift-Pad said, standing next to Princess Celestia and giving Twilight a look. “Her young Grace Twilight has extended her hoof and will be visiting the Packlands when I return home.”

There were more mutterings at this with pictures of Twilight being taken almost to the point where she was blinded before Luna raised a wing which attracted their attention. “That will be all for now,” she said. 

Still muttering, the reporters all shuffled out, and the doors were closed behind them. Once they were gone, Celestia smiled brightly. “That went well,” she said. 

“Quite.” Blueblood raised an eyebrow at her. “Well, now that my duties as witness are concluded, I must be off. Enjoy the rest of your day, Aunt Celestia. Aunt Luna. Twilight.” With that, he headed out the back door of the room. 

“From what I heard, that went better than the other times,” Luna said, looking at Swift-Pad.

“No acknowledgment is far better than the other times,” Swift-Pad replied. “We hope that one day he can do better than his ancestors and proper amends can be made.”

Twilight was about to agree with him when she recalled what Blueblood had told her and rethought Swift-Pad’s words through his point of view. Unsure if agreeing with him would condone sending Blueblood away to his death, she said nothing and after both Celestia and Luna had not added anything to it, she felt that she’d made the right decision.

“Come along,” Luna said to the wolf. “We have a room for you to spend the night in while we prepare Twilight’s trip to the Packlands.”

“Very well,” Swift-Pad said, following her out of the room and leaving Twilight and Celestia alone.

“Shall we continue onwards with our discussion, Twilight,” Celestia asked with a smile on her face.

“Actually, I have to decline; I promised the girls I would show them my old tower after we were done here.” Twilight saw Celestia blink in surprise before she hid it with a smile.

“Of course,” she said. “I remember. And once you finish there, you might want to show them your old room in the castle, before we decided you and Spike needed more space and you moved out there. In fact, I think there are still some of your things in it that you forgot to take with you when you moved out...” 

“Oh!” Twilight brightened. “Right. Wow, I almost forgot…” 

Celestia nodded. “To be honest, I may have been putting off telling you.” She looked down. “I make a point of stopping in there every year or so, just to remind myself of what it was like back when I had a young student who looked up to me so. I am more proud of you than I can say, Twilight. But I can’t help but miss those days, when I felt truly needed by a young one.” 

“Princess…” Twilight blushed. Then she quirked her head. “Do you… do that with any of your other old students?” 

“Twilight, I must be honest.” Celestia looked somewhat saddened. “Before Sunset Shimmer, I hadn’t taken a personal student in at least two or three centuries, and the last ones before that cleaned out their rooms before they set out. Sunset though… after she left, I sealed her room off, and nopony has been inside since. And then, I didn’t think I could stand to take another pony under my wing, and risk the same heartbreak I felt from losing her. Until I found you. So eager to learn for the sake of learning.” She smiled. “You brightened my days in ways I cannot even begin to describe. And… and I’m keeping you from your friends, aren’t I?” 

Twilight looked up and her and smiled. “It’s okay, Princess. For this, I don’t mind holding off for a few minutes.” 

Celestia smiled back. “Thank you, Twilight. But I think it’s time you kept your promise to the others.” She straightened out. “I do want to talk with you some more though, before you leave for the Packlands. Would you mind joining me this evening?” 

“I’d be delighted.” Twilight smiled up at her before trotting out of the room. 


Nearly half an hour later, the six mares and Spike were standing outside the tower. 

“Well, this is it,” Twilight said. “My second home away from home.” 

“Second?” Rainbow Dash asked. “What was your first?” 

“My old room in Canterlot Castle, which Princess Celestia reminded me about earlier.” Twilight looked at them. “I really need to keep better track of these things…” 

“I’ll say,” Spike muttered. 

Twilight gave him a look, before leading them up the stairs. “The door’s up here,” she said with a chuckle. “I hope they didn’t change the lock.” 

“They wouldn’t have,” Spike pointed out. “Princess Celestia owns the building, remember? That’s why we got to stay here.” 

“Right.” Twilight took a deep breath. “Just… it’s been so long, and I’m being a little silly about this, aren’t I?” 

“What’s wrong with being silly?” Pinkie asked. “I’m silly all the time!” 

Twilight smiled at her. “Yeah…” Unlocking the door, she opened it to reveal a large, multi-leveled room. 

“Whoo-ee,” Applejack whistled as she saw the interior. “You weren’t kiddin’ about this place being messy.” Next to her, Rarity winced at the sight of all the dust and cobwebs. 

“Well,” Twilight said firmly. “I’m going to do something about it now.” Trotting in, she looked around, and groaned. “Eeesh…” 

Feeling a hoof on her shoulder, she looked back to see a smiling Fluttershy. “We’ll all help,” she said. “You and Spike don’t have to do this alone.” 

“Thanks, Fluttershy.” Twilight smiled gratefully at her friend. 

“Hey!” Spike suddenly exclaimed as he picked up something from the floor. “Here’s the present I was going to give to Moondancer! You know, back before we got distracted by Nightmare Moon and all.” 

“Moondancer?” Rarity asked. 

“An old classmate of Twilights,” Spike said. “She actually invited us to a party that last day, but Twilight was too preoccupied. That was the day she read about Nightmare Moon coming back, and then Princess Celestia sent us down to Ponyville.” He looked disappointed. “I was really looking forward to that party…” 

Pinkie was suddenly in Twilight’s face. “You got invited to a party and you didn’t go” she practically shrieked. 

“Pinkie, you know what I was like back then!” Twilight protested. “This was before I realized how important friendship was, and what I was missing out on!” 

“Calm down there, sugarcube,” Applejack spoke as she laid a hoof on Pinkie’s shoulder. “We’ll get this all sorted out.” 

“Right. Right!” Pinkie had a firm look on her face. “Come on, girls! Let’s get cleaning!” 

Then she dashed into the kitchen, dragging Rarity behind her. A moment later, there was the sound of a door opening, followed by a high-pitched shriek. 

“Rarity!” Spike hurried in the direction of the sound, before Rarity materialized in front of him so fast she might well have teleported. 

Twilight,” she hissed. “There is something big and slimy and moving in your refrigerator!” 

Twilight cringed. “I…” 

“I’m on it,” Spike interrupted and headed back the direction Rarity had come from. Halfway there, he turned back and looked at Twilight. “I told you leaving those old mixtures in the back was a mistake.” 

Twilight cringed again. “Okay, okay, you were right…” 

“Mixtures?” Rainbow Dash asked. 

“I was working on a few experimental potions that needed to be kept cold until they were ready, so I stuck them in the back bottom of the fridge, behind the mayonnaise, next to the ketchup and to the left of the coleslaw,” Twilight sheepishly admitted. “With everything going on back then, I forgot all about them when we left Canterlot.” 

A tentacle briefly reached into the room before there was another cry, this one unidentifiable, and then it dissolved. 

“Thanks for finding the baking soda so quickly, Pinkie!” Spike’s voice said before he came back out. “Okay, creature’s gone. It’s safe to go back in there now.” 

“Creature?” Twilight blinked. “Did you say… gah.” She shook her head. “I must have really messed that one up.” 

“No kidding,” Spike said as he walked up beside her. “Either that or Discord’s been here. It looked like the sort of thing he might have done.” 

A scroll popped out of thin air next to him, and he unfurled it. “Dear Spike… I resemble that remark. Yours truly, Discord.” He rolled it back up. “Well, he didn’t deny it.” 

“Let’s save that for later,” Twilight said quickly, seeing as Fluttershy looked about ready to speak up. “Regardless of who caused it, be it Discord or me, it’s dealt with. Right?” 

“Yep. The creature that lived in the refrigerator, behind the mayonnaise, next to the ketchup and to the left of the coleslaw, is gone.” He held out a claw to Rarity. “May I escort you back in?” 

She nodded somewhat hesitantly, before the two headed into the kitchen again. 

Rainbow Dash shook her head. “Only you could remember where you left that thing, Twilight.” 

“What?” Twilight looked indignant. “Am I the only one here who memorizes the contents of their fridge and where it’s all kept?” 

“Yes,” a chorus of voices said. 

Twilight gave them all a dirty look, then sighed. “At any rate, let’s get this place cleaned up.” 

With that, the group set to work. 

A few hours later, Twilight looked around. “Well, everything’s all set and livable again,” she said. “And if I weren’t getting ready to go on a long trip, I’d probably take a lot of this back down to Ponyville.” 

“Mm-hm.” Spike nodded. “Actually, before we go…” He scooped up one item. “I think I ought to take this out to Moondancer.” 

“That’s a good idea Spike,” Twilight said. “Um… if we can find her. I just realized, I have no idea where she lives.” 

“Not to worry!” Pinkie’s face was suddenly in hers. “I can find anypony you like! Especially somepony who throws a party!” 

“Great!” Twilight backed up a bit. “So, let’s get going!” 

Once all seven were out and Twilight had locked up the tower again, she saw Pinkie sniffing the ground. Exchanging glances with the others, she trotted after her most eccentric friend. 

Pinkie’s instincts led them to an old, dilapidated-looking house, and there were several cringes at the sight. Finally, Twilight knocked on the door, which half-crumbled under her hoof. Withdrawing it, she called out. “Hello? Anypony home?” 

For a moment, there was no reply. Then, the door creaked open and another unicorn, wearing a pair of taped-up glasses and with her frazzled-looking mane tied up above her head, stuck her face out. “Yes?” 

“Moondancer, it’s me! Twilight! Your old classmate? How are you…” A piece of the roof fell off right then, making her flinch. “Doing?” 

“I’m trying to study.” The door slammed shut. 

Twilight blinked. “Is it just me, or is she…” 

“That’s not the Moondancer I remember. Not with that mood.” Spike looked up at Twilight. “I think we’d better go for now, but we’re not done here. Not by a long shot.” 

Twilight nodded, then turned around to see Pinkie’s mane had flattened. “That’s one unhappy pony,” the pink mare whispered. “We’ve got to do something, and I mean something!” 

“No kiddin’,” Applejack agreed. 

“I…” Twilight began, a frown on her face. “I agree that we need to do something but right now out of the blue might seem a bit forceful or insincere...” 

Pinkie’s cheeks puffed out. “But… she’s so unhappy!” 

“I know, Pinkie. But we need to step back and think about how to handle this,” Twilight told her. “Remember how things got when you wouldn’t back down that one time, and Cranky got real mad at you?” 

Pinkie’s mane flattened a bit. “Yeah… okay.” 

“We’ll figure it out,” Applejack reassured her as she stepped up to the other mare. “Like Twilight said. But not right now.” She glanced up at the sky. “It’s gettin’ pretty late…” 

“And I need to be back at the castle to meet with Princess Celestia, and then prepare for tomorrow’s trip,” Twilight said. “Let’s go.” 

“That sounds wonde-” Rarity began only to cut off as a pair of wolves walked up to them. “Can we help you?”

“Lady Belle, Dash and Pie, miss Fluttershy and Applejack and sir Spike?” the wolf on the left asked while the one on the right reached through his pack. 

The six of them shared a look before nodding their heads. 

“On behalf of our nation, we humbly offer you an invitation to our land alongside her Grace Twilight,” the wolf said, while the other handed out a set of invitations. “We hope to see all of you very soon.”

There was a quick round of “Thank you”s, with the wolves nodding their heads in response before walking off. 

“Well that makes things easy, don’t they?” Applejack said with a grin. “Ah think we need to talk to some folks ’bout squaring things back home for tomorrow.”

“Maybe Raven Inkwell?” Spike offered.

“Uh, who’s that and what do they do?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“Well, she is Celestia’s assistant and she handles this type of thing or knows who to talk to for it,” Twilight said with a shrug then looked at her friends. She was about to tell them that they really didn’t need to do this before she stopped herself. She knew that they would come with her regardless and if they were willing to put their own lives on hold for this sudden trip, then she could at least not disregard their decision so flippantly. “Thank you girls for coming with me; I know this isn’t something any of you have planned for and you do have lives of your own, so again, thank you for coming along.”

“It’s our pleasure,” Fluttershy said with a smile. “Besides, ever since Well-Hidden told me about his homeland, I’ve wanted to visit.” 

“Yeah; this should be cool,” Rainbow Dash said. “I already put Cloud Kicker in charge of the weather bureau for while I was gonna be up here, I’ll just let her know I’ll be away longer than I thought.” 

“Ah can get Mac to cover and if he ain’t up ta the whole work, he can always get som’ help,” Applejack said.

Rarity looked concerned. “I’m afraid I might have to simply close my shop for while I’m away,” she said. “Fortunately, I am quite caught up on my orders for now.” 

“And the Cakes gave me a week off before we left this morning, so I’m good there,” Pinkie chimed in. 

Twilight looked at Fluttershy. “What about you?” 

“Oh, Harry can watch over things,” Fluttershy said. “Even Angel doesn’t like to misbehave when I leave a bear in charge, after all. And they both know to send for Dr. Fauna if there’s an emergency while I’m away.” 

“Right.” Twilight shook her head. “I think we’d better get moving again. Spike, would you please help them find Raven so they can get everything home figured out; I still need to see Princess Celestia.” 

There were several nods of assent before Spike led them off in one direction and Twilight left in another.