Starlight Glimmer made her way through the first floor east wing hallway, some of the luminescent crystals being the only interior light source at this late hour. She made a left at the double doors of the library and pushed them open, finding Twilight sitting at a table with a very familiar stack of file folders. She looked up from her work when she heard the doors open.
"Hey, Starlight. How's Tempest?" The Princess of Friendship asked.
"Well, normally I'd say 'settling in', but honestly there's not much of that to do. She didn't arrive with anything, no clothes to put away, no belongings whatsoever." Her first student answered.
"Mm. She's been gone a long time, and she doesn't have a whole lot to show for those years abroad." Twilight mused.
"Are those all of your friendship reports?" Starlight asked, recalling the time she saw Twilight making her way through the 'A' section before their trip to the Crystal Empire for Flurry Heart's crystaling ceremony, where she was reunited with Sunburst.
"Yeah, and it's making me wonder if... Well, if it's enough, you know? I guess my second student isn't going to be any easier than my first. I had to back off and let you approach my lessons your own way. I'm just wondering how to go about that with her. She's so adamant on 'earning' her place here." Twilight explained.
"I mean, yeah, I kind of get wanting to stand on your own four hooves, even under a new teacher. She's nothing if not fiercely independent." Starlight added.
"So with so much to learn, how do I let her do that?" Twilight asked. Starlight put a hoof to her chin in thought for a few moments.
"Maybe by letting her use what she's already good at." The unicorn suggested.
"What do you mean?"
"I'll be frank, on the day of your lecture at the School of Magic, I really just lounged in your throne room for a good twenty minutes before you showed up. You could really use some guards for this place. From what I saw in Canterlot, she's certainly a fierce combatant. She'd be perfect."
"You mean you think I should make her E.U.P.?" Twilight asked, setting her current file folder down.
"Well, if you want to get all official... Oh what am I saying? Of course you do. Yeah, why not? It would give her something to strive for, a goal to push towards, using the physical prowess she's honed over the years of being out there."
"Well, when you put it that way... It sounds like a pretty good idea. We should probably ask her what she thinks about it."
"What I think about what?" Asked a voice behind them. They turned to see the dark orchid unicorn at the library door that Starlight had not shut. "Sorry, I wasn't eavesdropping, I was just wondering where the kitchen was. I'm looking for a late snack. Cider from the Friendship Festival is starting to wear off." Tempest asked, her stomach rumbling in agreement.
"Yeah," Starlight couldn't help but chuckle. "Maybe I should have shown you around a bit before taking you straight to your room. You looked pretty tired, that's all. Real easy, head back the way you came, out into the foyer, into the west wing, and it's the second door on your right."
"Great, thanks." Tempest replied, turning to leave.
"And, while we've got you here. Might as well see what you think of it now. Twilight's told me how you'd like to earn your place here, and we think we've come up with something. Ponyville has been the home of a princess for nearly a year now, and an E.U.P. presence really hasn't been established. Would you like to be the beginning of that establishment?" Starlight asked.
"A... A royal guard? Me?" Tempest asked, her eyes widening at the realization of what was being suggested. Twilight stepped forward.
"Normally, the short term solution would be to request a detachment from Canterlot, but while you've got a lot to learn about friendship, you already know quite a bit about handling yourself in a fight. If you'd like to put that expertise to good use, I would willingly put you at the head of a new E.U.P. branch, in service to myself, to Ponyville and her citizens."
After everything that she had done, she would have never fathomed something like this being a possibility. But here it was, indeed; a chance to prove her worth, to a pony, to a Princess undoubtedly worthy of her every ounce of effort and energy.
"I... I would be honored, Princess." Tempest replied, bowing her head.
"Alright then. You can go get something to eat. First thing tomorrow morning, I'll get a hold of Rarity and see when we can schedule you to be fit for a new uniform. Until then, have a good night, Tempest." Twilight told her.
As Tempest turned and exited back to the hallway, Starlight slowly closed the door after she had left, turning back to Twilight.
"Twilight, I have to ask... Is there anything we can do for her horn? Anything at all?" Starlight asked, at a lower volume even though the subject in question had left the library.
"I have actually been giving that a little thought. I don't think it's possible to restore anything that she lost, but if we can craft an aetherial conduit, it might be feasible to stabilize what magic she has left. Can you get in touch with Sunburst? We'd need his expertise on such matters." Twilight asked.
"I'll get a hold of him first thing in the morning. You can actually get your hooves on aetherium?" Starlight asked. Even in all her travels, she had never seen the incredibly rare element.
"The Canterlot Mages Guild has a very securely guarded stockpile. But I think I can manage to get them to send me some. Royal prerogative and all. Sunburst would have to tell us how to go about crafting the conduit. But I think we can come up with something." Twilight said, glancing to the closed library doors.
"I know it would mean the absolute world to her."
Many Moons Later...
Luster Dawn followed her towering mentor and teacher Princess Twilight Sparkle through the main street of Ponyville. She had finished meeting with Headmare Starlight Glimmer earlier in the day, and had just had the heartiest dinner at Colt's Jr., the Princesses favorite hayburger joint in town, wrapping up with cupcakes at Sugarcube Corner with some of her classmates that had come from all over, even beyond Equestria. Now officially enlisted in the School of Friendship that Princess Twilight had founded over two decades ago, she would be spending the night in the Ponyville Castle of Friendship and Community Center while dorm assignments were squared away over the next few days.
They came up to the front steps to the castle, where a tall orchid unicorn mare stood watch, and she bowed when Twilight approached. She looked to be around the same age as Twilight's council of friends.
"Luster Dawn, allow me to introduce General Fizzlepop Berrytwist, one of my oldest and dearest friends. General, this is my student Luster Dawn."
"Pleased to meet you, Ms. Dawn. Twilight's told me that you're quite the star pupil." The E.U.P. guard replied, getting a light tint from her cheeks in return.
"Luster will be attending the school this year. I figured she'd like to stay in the castle until Welcome Week starts in a few days. Care to show her where she'll be staying?" The Princess asked.
"It would be my pleasure, Your Majesty. Ms. Dawn, please go have a look around the foyer, I'll join you in a moment."
All to happy to see a new castle, Luster trotted up the stairs and pushed the front doors open, leaving Princess Twilight with her first Captain of the Guard.
"How've you been, Fizzlepop?" Twilight asked.
"Can't complain, Twilight. How's Gallus doing up there?" Fizzlepop replied.
"A chip off of the old Ponyville block, that's for sure. Speartip couldn't have been happier with his replacement. Figured it was finally time. Too much longer and I was going to have to air drop him over Canterlot Retirement Gardens."
Fizzlepop smirked.
"I'll be sure to keep that in mind when you start to get that idea for me." The unicorn replied.
"You? Why I wouldn't dare. You'd chase me out of Ponyville with your walker before you'd let me do that to you."
As always, Fizzlepop found it quite difficult to stand on ceremony with her best friend, and broke into a fit of laughter with her.
"Take good care of her." Twilight said, still chuckling.
"You have my word, Princess." the General replied, before Equestria's ruler came in for a hug, which she returned earnestly.
With a final bow, Twilight's horn lit up, and she vanished in a flash of purple-white light. Fizzlepop headed up the stairs, and entered the main hall, where Luster Dawn was looking at all the pictures and tapestries that had been set up for the quickly-approaching Welcome Week. The second floor interior balcony had the official flags of six different nations draped over the edge.
"Alright, Ms. Dawn. Welcome to the Castle of Friendship. Please follow me and I'll show you to one of our finest guest rooms." Fizzlepop said, walking towards the main staircase.
"Awesome! So, how long have you been friends with Princess Twilight?" Luster Dawn asked, coming into step right next to the orchid unicorn.
"About half my life now. I owe her everything I've got here. She saved my life, spared me from a rather considerable prison term, and helped me turn myself around here."
"Prison? Really? And they let you become E.U.P.?" Luster asked as they made their way up the stairs.
"Yeah, I'm not afraid to talk about it anymore. I left Equestria at a pretty young age. I was in a pretty dark place as I saw lands far beyond our borders. With Princess Twilight's help, I was able to open up my eyes. Before I came along, Twilight didn't have anypony to keep watch over this place. I was her first guard, and I built the squad from the ground up while being one of her students at the same time."
"Sounds impressive. Your armor looks great. Personally, I think it's better looking than the Canterlot uniforms." Luster offered. Fizzlepop smiled.
"Thanks. So, School of Magic, huh? What's that like?" Fizzlepop asked as they made their way down the east hallway.
"Pretty easy, to be honest, well, you know, except for the friendship part. Up until today, I thought that was holding me back from my true potential." Luster replied.
"Well, on the first part, don't let my castle caretakers overhear that. School of Magic dropouts." Fizzlepop whispered mischievously. "Secondly, you'll be amazed where friendship will take you. It doesn't limit your potential, it magnifies it. If there's one thing I've learned in my time under Princess Twilight, it's that alone, we are limited. But together, we can achieve the impossible."
The two unicorns came up to the sixth door on the left.
"Alright, here we are. If you know anything about cooking, the kitchen is available whenever you like, all we ask is that you clean what you use. But Grubber makes some unbeatable meals, let him know and he'll be glad to whip you up a late night snack. He's the fourth door on the right, I'm the third, and our two caretakers Spring Rain and Glitter Drops are the second. Let us know if there's anything we can do for you during your stay. Breakfast is served in the dining room from six to nine in the morning, lunch from eleven to two, and dinner from five to eight. You've probably become a little familiar with Ponyville over your visit today, but please let me know if you need to know where anything is."
With that, General Fizzlepop opened the doors to the single bed guest bedroom, and beckoned Twilight's star student inside, where a five-drawer dresser, nightstand, full size bed, and private bathroom waited.
"Have a pleasant night, Ms. Dawn." Fizzlepop said as Luster jumped up and plopped down on the bed.
"Thanks. I'm sure I'll love it here. I've heard that there's no place in Equestria quite like Ponyville." Luster replied, looking back over at the guard in the doorway.
Fizzlepop smiled at her.
"There's no place I'd rather be."