The Centurion Project

by TheEighthDayofNight


Chapter 45: Traitors in the Ranks

Elias stared at the pair of ponies before him, tapping his fingers along his knuckles. Their disguises were impeccable, and because Elias didn’t know either of the ponies they were pretending to be beforehand, he had no idea what little twitches to look for to tell if they were truly changelings or not. No, the only things he had were suspicion, days’ worth of research on the buggy bastards, and his bad eye, which saw small waves climb from the foreheads of both of them. Neither were unicorns however, and they had nothing magical on their bodies, he had made sure of that. They sat before him in their plain red tunics, with all of their armor removed before they had entered his office. It was the only way he could think to ensure that he wasn’t simply misinterpreting the waves his bad eye saw as magic. If he was wrong, a host of things were going to turn sour, but Elias trusted his instincts. While a bit violent in nature, they had never led him astray before.

The ponies exchanged a nervous glance, then shifted in their seats as Elias continued to stare them down. Book Binder stood near the door, staring at their backs. Scarlet and Night Flash waited outside, along with a Royal Guard who was keeping a silence spell around the room. No matter what happened, it would stay quiet, if nothing else.

The pony on Elias’ left, a pegasus, cleared her throat loudly, drawing the full focus of his gaze.

“Ah, General?” she asked meekly. “Shouldn’t we be getting back to training?”

Elias’ eyes narrowed at the pony and she gulped nervously in reply. Elias scanned her up and down, looking for a flicker of an illusion spell, a flash of green in her eyes, anything that would tell him that she was a changeling. He had spent three days watching each and every legionnaire, looking for the source of the waves. He was the only one who could see them, and it was clear that the illusion removal spells that had been put over the castle after the invasion were no longer working. Something was wrong, he just knew it. When the legion went to sleep, he stayed up, spending endless hours in the library researching changelings with Neat Shelf, looking for something that would allow them to bypass the illusion rune. While the mare kept him relaxed with her constant deliveries of coffee and hot chocolate, as well as her subtle requests for belly rubs, Elias had forgone sleep in the hope of finding something useful, but he had found little more than a footnote theory that changeling illusions weren’t magically based, but rather a hybrid of magic and biology. The pony who had added it to the creature guide he was reading went on to talk about the possibility of mixing changeling parts with other creatures so that they could use changeling magic, but while interesting, it told him nothing on how to weed the bugs out.

So, Elias went about it the old-fashioned way, applying psychological pressure, exhausting the legionaries until things slipped up. He had watched up close, from a distance, and everywhere in between, and the two ponies before him were the only sources of the waves. The one on his left seemed to be involved in a host of minor disputes, while the one on his right, an earth pony, seemed to always act as a mediator. The drastic difference of their behavior was strange, but he had to know for certain if they were truly spies.

Elias continued to stare down the pegasus for a moment more, then looked to Book Binder. He gave the mare the smallest of nods, and she locked his office door. Her sword slid from its sheathe, and she stood ready in front of the door with a scowl on her face. Elias stood slowly and drew his gladius. The blade seemed to glisten in the light of his lamp, and both of the ponies before him gulped again as they stared at the blade.

“I have spent the past few days looking over and meeting with every pony in my legion,” Elias said, keeping his voice low. “You two have been the only ones with distortions around you.” He tapped his scar. “The eye may be new, but I assure you, I trust it far more than I trust you two.”

Elias glared at the earth pony, who withered under his stare.

“I expect you to tell me why I’m seeing waves around your heads, or I’m going to execute you right here and now as spies. Give me answers before I collect your heads.”

The earth pony shrank further in his seat, while the pegasus chuckled.

“General, if you think that we’re changeling’s, I can assure you that we aren’t.”

The word smacked around Elias’ head with such force that he momentarily forgot about his daily migraines. He grit his teeth and glared hate at the pegasus as she smiled sweetly back.

“I mean, come on! You’re so smart, I think even you would be able to notice that we don’t have horns. How could we be-“

Elias silenced her with a cut across her throat. Or at least he thought he just cut her throat. The waves around her head had spiked until they had touched the ceiling, and a wave of nausea had threatened to consume him completely. As a result, he put a bit too much power into his swing, and Feather had managed to decapitate the pegasus. Her body slumped from its seat as the changeling’s head plopped to the floor. Elias resisted the urge to vomit on his desk as his eyes flicked to the earth pony.

The tip of his gladius touched the ponies throat just as he threw his hooves into the air.

“I’m not a changeling!” the pony cried. “Please General, I’m not a changeling!”

Elias saw a minor spike in the waves above the pony’s head, and he pressed Feather forward.

“Then I suggest you stop whatever magic bullshit you’re trying to pull before I remove your head like I did to your friend here.”

The earth pony frowned slightly.

“She’s not my friend. I’m not a changeling.”

Book Binder pressed her gladius to the back of the pony’s neck.

“I suggest you tell us what you are then, because I don’t appreciate dealing with the same bugs that almost took my son and my fiancé away from me.”

Her eyes flicked to Elias, but he had eyes only for the earth pony in front of him. The pony sighed.

“I… Look, I need to remove the inhibitor ring I have and ask what I can tell you. Please believe me, the “waves” you are seeing around me is just chatter. Promise, I won’t try to influence you like she did.”

He looked toward the corpse of the changeling with mild distaste, then looked back to Elias.

“Please General, just give me one chance to make this right.”

Elias snarled.

“If you make a single move I don’t like, I’ll end you. Now do what you have to before I stop being so patient.”

The earth pony sighed, and his hoof raised to his forehead. Elias caught a flash of a white horn, but it quickly vanished as the earth pony placed an inhibitor ring on Elias’ desk. The waves around the earth pony’s head spiked lightly, but Elias felt nothing as the earth pony raised his hooves again.

“I’m going to contact my queen now to ask her what I can tell you. It’s been an honor working with you General,” the pony said, sounding vaguely genuine, “and I’ve already spent too long breaking your trust. I understand your anger toward me, but all I can offer you is my apologies.”

“Words mean nothing,” Elias snapped. “Actions are what matter to me.”

The earth pony sighed again, and he straightened. Closing his eyes, the pony became completely still for a few moments, then he began to lightly chitter. Elias tensed his arm, ready to strike in a heartbeat. His eyes flicked to Book Binder, who looked much the same. She had inched closer, and while her sword was still pressed against the earth pony’s neck, her horn was also pointed directly at the back of his head, sparkling with magic.

The chittering intensified for a moment, then stopped completely as the earth pony sighed and opened his eyes. He slumped in his chair and stared at Elias.

“My queen has given me permission to reveal myself on one condition.”

Elias pressed Feather a bit deeper into the earth pony’s neck.

“You, nor she, is in any position to give terms. You are a spy in my legion, and in case you forgot, that is punishable by immediate execution. I am well within my rights to kill you without so much as an excuse.”

The earth pony nodded.

“I know General, and if you decide to kill me, I can promise that my queen will not seek retribution. This is all just… a misunderstanding. It shouldn’t happen, but it has, and I really want things to go back to normal. I want to stay here, in your legion, and if I can tell you anything, then there is a chance, however small, that I can stay.”

Elias’ eyes narrowed.

“And what makes you think that I want you here? I don’t need somebody reporting my movements to anyone, especially someone I haven’t met. Centurion Blossom is just about the only spy I’ll tolerate, and she’s doing it for Celestia and Chaser, ponies I’ve met. Frankly, I don’t know a damn thing about you or your queen. Is Snowball even really your name?”

The earth pony nodded vigorously.

“It is! My hivemates always call me Snowball because I’ve got the whitest fur! Here, look!”

Snowball vanished in a flash of blue light, and true to his word, he was replaced by a snow-white changeling. The creature blinked, then smiled at Elias, and he immediately began noticing differences between the living changeling before him and the one that was soaking the floor with its goo.

For starters, the eyes were different. They were colored a bright purple, rather than a blue. The creature before him also appeared to retain his pony fuzz, and in truth, besides the presence of his bug-like wings and eyes, as well as the curved horn on his head, he might have been able to pass for a normal pony. Snowball lacked the distinctive holes the changelings had, and his smile seemed honest and genuine, not like the sadistic fanged grimaces of his black shelled counterparts.

Elias scowled at the white changeling as he lowered Feather.

“Talk fast and well, because I will kill you if I hear anything I don’t like.”

Snowball nodded.

“Of course General. My queen has given me permission to reveal many things, as long as I can stay in your service after I’m done.”

“Fine,” Elias said. “Get on with it. Start with telling me how you’re not a changeling.”

Snowball smiled.

“That’s simple; I am a loveling. We’re similar to the changelings, such as our need to feed on love, our innate ability to transform and disguise ourselves, and our hive mind and queen, but unlike the changelings, we are a… kinder people.”

The loveling scratched at one of his ears, and Elias couldn’t help but draw the comparison between it and Nightshade’s ears. They were both long, a bit floppy, and extremely fuzzy. The ear flicked as Snowball continued.

“It’s kind of hard to explain everything without going into centuries of history and mythos, but suffice to say we are ruled by benevolent queens, while the changelings have a storied history of malicious and evil queens. They have the same potential to be independent and produce their own love like we do, but their queens choose to enslave and steal rather than to earn.”

Snowball sighed.

“We try our best, but our bad land cousins really don’t like change, as ironic as that is. Either way, lovelings and changelings are not the same, and I have no relation with this fellow here.”

Elias didn’t look toward the dead changeling.

“That doesn’t explain why you’re here, spying on my legion.”

Snowball sighed again and looked down in shame.

“I know, and just… I was sent here to gather information on you, and by extension, your legion. News about the “Hero of Canterlot” extends outside of Equestria, and by putting you in command of a small army, the princesses have made everyone nervous. Nobody knows anything about you, and with your successes in the field of combat, it’s a bit intimidating.”

The loveling waved a hoof in the air.

“I mean, just think about it! In less than a year, you drop into Equestria, become a guard, help the underdog team win the RAT exercise, singlehandedly protect a princess from a changeling assassination attempt, and then become a general of your own guard force! That’s a threat if you’re looking from the outside!”

Elias crossed his arms, tapping Feather’s hilt with his fingers. When the bug put it like that, he supposed there was some merit to fear. It didn’t excuse sending in spies, however.

“There was nothing “singlehanded” about protecting Princess Luna, but that’s beside the point. Gather intel, that’s it? Then why were using mind magic on my ponies?”

Snowball glanced to his right.

“Her. I noticed her faster than you, but I didn’t know how to get rid of her without alerting you of my presence, so I resolved the issues she caused. Word began to spread that I was good at keeping ponies calm, so everyone asked me to mediate.”

He shrugged and looked back to Elias.

“I was just trying to help General. I used my magic to make ponies calm faster whenever they were being a bit too stubborn. Just little nudges in the right direction, I swear.”

Elias scowled at the loveling for a moment longer, then sighed and sheathed his gladius.

“I suppose that isn’t an executable offense. This queen of yours, what have you told her?”

“Just what we’ve been doing,” Snowball replied. “I let her see through my eyes occasionally, especially when it comes to how you punish ponies for slacking, but mostly it’s just the stuff you let everypony see. Formations, training exercises, simple stuff.”

He shrugged again.

“There hasn’t really been much to report. Queen Flos sent me to make sure you weren’t influencing the princesses with your otherworldly powers, but the only thing otherworldly about you is the fact that you won’t bow just because someone has power.”

Snowball smiled.

“It’s actually been quite refreshing. You said that you were equally as worthless as everyone else, and you act like it. Yeah, you have power and you wield it, but you never order something you wouldn’t do. Even my queen can’t say that.”

He tilted his head to the side.

“Though to be honest, she’s a lot more important than you are. She has to produce eggs for the hive, and make sure the hivemind doesn’t become too muddled, and make sure we’re all safe and getting fed, and…”

“Enough,” Elias cut in. “Clearly I’m important enough that she had to send a spy to keep tabs on me. Adiutor, grab Flash and Scarlet, escort the spy to Princess Celestia. She’ll decide what to do with him, but he isn’t staying here.”

Snowball blinked in shock, while Book Binder sheathed her gladius and pulled out a pair of hoof-cuffs.

“B-but you said I could stay if I told you! My queen only gave me permission to talk if I could stay!”

“That’s not my problem,” Elias snapped. “If she won’t put trust in me, then I won’t do her the same courtesy. Tell her that the next spy she sends will be returned in pieces. Adiutor, get him out of my office.”

Snowball continued to voice his protests as Book Binder fitted him with the cuffs and an inhibitor ring. She opened the door to Elias’ office, and Night Flash and Scarlet quickly seized the loveling, dragging him toward the throne room. Elias remained standing for a few moments as he listened to the loveling’s fading protests. With a long sigh, he sat back in his chair as Book Binder trotted back into his office.

He glanced up as she made her way to her desk.

“So, think I handled that like I should have?”

Book Binder shrugged.

“That depends General. You’ve been attacked by changelings, had one of your few pony friends replaced by a spy, and even before Equestria you dealt with betrayal. Ponies take a pretty hard stance on spies, and if he honestly wanted to be in the legion, he should have revealed himself before he was found out.”

She frowned as she shuffled a few papers into her desk drawer.

“I can’t say I would have lied to get the information out of him, but then again, I can’t offer a better solution. It’s in the princess’s hooves now though, so I wouldn’t worry too much on it.”

Elias sighed.

“A fair assessment, but I think I’ll worry anyway. It’s my way. Before you and Flash go on leave, send a letter to Celestia. I’d like to know what she does with our little loveling spy.”

Book Binder nodded and penned a quick note before sending it off in a flash of magic. She then took off her helmet and smiled at him.

“If that is all General, I have a wedding to finish preparing for. I shall see you Friday.”

Elias nodded silently, then looked toward the clock.

“Damn, is it already three? Luna’s going to kill me if I’m late.”

Book Binder chuckled.

“Oh? Big date with the princess? Looks like General Bright is moving up in the world.”

Elias glanced at her and cocked his head.

“He sure is. Almost too far up to go to a certain wedding if his assistant keeps mouthing off.”

Book Binder smiled at him, but when Elias didn’t match the smile, she chuckled nervously.

“Sorry General, habit. I’m… going to get Night Flash. I’ll see you on Friday.”

Elias nodded, and continued to stare at her unblinkingly.

“I will see you Friday Adiutor.”

Book Binder had a worried look in her eyes as she trotted from his office, but Elias did his best not to dwell on it. His search for the spies had helped him to get a reality check, as minute as it might have been. He was being far too easy to push around. Not a single friend of his was any farther away, not really. He kept letting things slide, kept letting weakness in. He needed to tighten his fist again, needed to be far stricter. He could play games later, now was time for work.

Or rather, now was time for his suit fitting with Luna. She had seen him naked no less than twice, yet Elias felt nervous to go anywhere with the mare now. Every time he so much as saw the color blue, he felt butterflies and became distracted. It was yet another reason that he had to become emotionless again. She was far too close for the amount of danger she was going to be in. He had already noticed dramatic changes in her physical state. A month ago she was energetic still, and at her full height, but with each day her energy diminished. Her mane was starting to blow slower, and her tail was beginning to change into a plain blue, rather than a flowing starscape. Elias still thought her beautiful, but the changes were obvious to anyone who was looking, and he had no doubts that the changeling that was seeping into his floor wasn’t the only spy. They could see the rulers of Equestria growing weaker, and he had no doubts that they were planning another invasion to take advantage of the weakness of the alicorns.

Elias scowled and quickly grabbed a scrap of parchment to scribble out a note on. He needed to inform the other generals of his spy issue, they were no doubt dealing with the same issue and they didn’t even know it. Hopefully having Snowball brought to Celestia’s attention would make them increase security, but Elias couldn’t rely on his fellows to think for themselves. He had enough time to briefly outline his strategy to weed out further infiltrators before Luna appeared like a wraith in his doorway. Elias held up his left hand as he continued to scribble.

“Just a minute Princess, I had to deal with spies, and I have a good plan for purging the castle of them. It could be a good plan to use routinely, maybe once a month, to clear out enemy agents. I just need a few more minutes…”

Luna scowled and four Royal Guards dipped past her and into his office.

“You have until the count of five General. I had your word that you would be available, and my sister has already put the castle on high alert. Illusion removal spells are being cast on each and every pony as we speak. You can finish your permanent plan later. The situation is well in hoof. You and I have an appointment to keep.”

Elias frowned as he scribbled faster.

“Just… a minute… more…”

Luna sighed.

“Seize him. Don’t spill that ink, or he’ll have your heads.”

Elias managed to ward off the pair of guards that came at his left with his foot, and with the free hand, he managed to slap away the one that came at his right. The one that abandoned subtly and went over his desk however, managed to wrap her hooves around his chest, and she dragged him to the floor, where her fellows managed to pin his limbs. Elias huffed as they flipped him over and began binding his hands and feet.

“I hardly think tying me up is necessary.”

Luna smiled as the guards carried him around his desk.

“Perhaps not, but this is the first true break you’ve had in months. Think of it like this, this allows for us to move faster, which allows you to get back to work faster. The more you cooperate, the sooner you can get back to executing changelings and running your ponies half to death.”

Elias glanced back at the corpse in his office.

“Speaking of, I do need a free hand to send a note to Centurion Blossom. I want that corpse gone.”

Luna snorted and with a flick of her wing, one of the guards peeled away, sprinting down the corridor in the direction of the training field.

“Taken care of Elias. I have also arranged a runner to keep us informed of the spy situation as it develops. Rest assured, that despite how it may seem, we are still keeping Equestria safe, even while taking a small break.”

Elias sighed as he shifted to try and find a comfortable position as the guards carried him toward his appointment with Luna’s tailor.

*****

Elias couldn’t help but smile as Luna tried to sneak off of the podium that she had been standing on for two hours. His tuxedo had taken him just over fifteen minutes, and while the tailor had made comments about how odd his body was, pants were pants, a shirt was a shirt, and a jacket and tie were fairly easy to make. Luna had seemed disappointed that he had gotten done so quickly, but Elias didn’t particularly like seeing the mare pout, so he agreed to wait out the full appointment. What he didn’t know at the time was the show he was going to get for his patience.

As soon as Luna had stepped up to the podium, extra ponies seemed to crawl out of the dress racks, and fairly soon, a small horde of tailors and assistants were combing over her, asking hundreds of questions to ensure that her dress was perfect. She did her best to answer them all and keep a smile on throughout, but Elias could tell that she was flustered from the amount of rabid attention.

It also meant Luna was stuck in place as they measured every inch of the alicorn, questioning her thoroughly about how much she would shrink by the time of the wedding. She had tried to escape by claiming she would need to retrieve something from the castle so that they could get the proper measurements, but the army of tailors had quickly seized one of the Royal Guards and dis-armored her. They set her beside Luna, and then set upon the pair. The Royal Guard kept her normal frown on as the tailors shifted through a number of dresses, all while comparing them to Luna’s fur and mane color. The alicorn looked desperate to be away from the situation, but she was more than stuck, so she simply did her best to play along as the tailors played their game.

Elias watched it all with crossed arms and a smile. Luna pouted when she caught him grinning at her.

“This is not meant to be amusing for your General,” she said as one of the tailors tied up her tail in a pink bow.

Elias snorted and glanced toward the shop entrance as the bell rang.

“I imagine not. I do believe I was supposed to be the one being poked and prodded while you sat and laughed. I just got the better of the situation because I’m easy. Black tie is black tie. There’s nothing to really shake up with a tuxedo.”

Luna huffed and looked away. A black-feathered head popped into the dressing room, and Anyon tried to motion stealthily to Elias.

“Pst, youngblood, ah brought that stuff ya ordered. Come on out and see.”

Elias waved him in.

“Don’t worry Anyon, Princess Luna is far too pre-occupied to get mad at us. Bring it in here so that I can make sure the belt matches.”

Luna scowled at Anyon as the gryphon crept into the room with a bundle under his arm and a sheepish grin on his beak. Her eyes shot to Elias, who smiled back.

“And just what is Anyon doing here? I thought his interests ended at blacksmithing.”

Elias nodded.

“They do, but in trying to adhere to Book Binder’s rules for the wedding, I needed something special to slip in unnoticed. I commissioned Anyon here to build me a little something from the old days that would fit perfectly under a suit jacket.”

Elias motioned for one of the tailors who had fitted his tux as Anyon unrolled the bundle. Luna’s scowl deepened.

“Elias Bright, you are not bringing knives and a hand axe to your mother’s wedding.”

Elias scoffed and waved her away.

“Maybe, maybe not, we’ll see. No weapons is a stupid rule anyway.”

He picked up the hand axe and twirled it in his hand. The shaft was a bit shorter than his forearm, and the head wasn’t overly large, but it was perfect if things got close and personal. Elias ran a thumb along the sharp blade and looked to Anyon.

“And this’ll shrink down?”

Anyon nodded and pulled out a black leather belt. The tailor set upon it immediately, clicking his tongue and muttering as Anyon tried to demonstrate its properties.

“It’ll keep everything nice and-,” Anyon yanked the belt away from the pony and swatted at him. “Hey, that ain’t fer you!”

The unicorn hissed in return and seized the belt in his magic. With a cruel yank, he pulled it away from Anyon and bolted deeper into the store. The gryphon scowled after the pony.

“Well, when that little bugger brings it back, it’ll hold everything ya see here. Got shrinkin’ spells on each holster, just pull it out, give it a second, and its full size. Acts the same in reverse.”

Elias nodded as he set the axe down and began inspecting the knives. There were seven in total. Six of the knives were simple throwing knives, while the seventh was meant to be paired with the axe. All in all, it was a suitable hidden arsenal that he could put to great effect in an emergency. As Anyon began talking to him about the finer points of the knives, a different tailor came back with his nose in the air. He levitated the belt near Anyon, who snatched it away and sat down to begin looking it over, while the tailor looked to Elias.

“Sir, I believe I can modify the… garish creation of this gryphon-,”

“It ain’t meant to be pretty, it’s meant to be useful!” Anyon squawked.

The unicorn fixed him with a look.

“Quite.”

The pony looked back to Elias.

“Regardless, a simply illusion spell stored in a crystal in the buckle should make it appropriate to wear with your suit. Should it be your wish, I could outfit it immediately. It should be ready by the time Princess Luna had finished her fitting.”

Elias nodded and smiled.

“Excellent. Anyon, give him the belt. Let’s get this done now so I don’t have to worry about getting it back here.”

The gryphon scoffed and his grip on the belt tightened slightly.

“Gimme another minute youngblood, gotta make sure this fancy pants pony ain’t gonna ruin ma work.”

The tailor scoffed.

“Your enchantments shall remain intact. Our enchantress is clean and careful.”

Anyon hopped to his feet and bumped heads with the pony.

“And yer sayin’ ah ain’t? Ah make the best weapons in this kingdom and the next. Ain’t nobody better’n me.”

The pony snorted and snatched the belt away again.

“Being the best is not an excuse for poor hygiene. You have red head feathers, yet they are stained black with soot. It is unbecoming from a gryphon who should be legendary amongst the outfitters of Equestria.”

Elias cocked an eyebrow as the unicorn smiled and looked past him to Luna.

“Princess, if I may be so bold, we do offer a cleaning service. While normally for dresses, I’m sure we can make accommodations for the castle blacksmith, free of charge of course.”

Luna grinned at Anyon sadistically.

“Then we shall take the opportunity. It has been a good month or two since I have seen Anyon bathe.”

The gryphon squawked indignantly in protest, but his words were lost as he vanished in a pop of magic. The tailor bowed and smiled.

“He shall also be returned by the end of your fitting, no worse for wear, you have my word.”

“I would never doubt you Fancy Pants,” Luna replied. “You are a most trusted friend.” She giggled. “Make sure to clean his tail especially, he hates it when his tail is clean.”

She then looked to Elias.

“And pull another little stunt like that, and you’ll join him. This was meant to be a private fitting.”

Elias grinned at her as he carefully re-set his new weapons and began re-rolling the bundle.

“This is the only break I’m taking today. If I didn’t do it now, then when was I supposed to do it?”

Luna rolled her eyes and stood still again as one of the ponies around her tied a bright red bow in her mane. Elias tucked the bundle under his arm and took his seat once more. Elias watched Luna get spun around and around by the troupe of tailors as they tutted and fretted over what colors her dress should be. Though he could faintly hear squawks of indignation from another room, Elias quickly found himself bored. He had made the mistake of not bringing any work with him, and so he was left with nothing to do but watch. Elias wasn’t a watching sort of person.

When Luna turned her back, Elias slipped from his seat, leaving the bundle of weapons behind as he snuck into the dress room. Technically he wasn’t supposed to be in the dress shop’s back room, but with all of the ponies struggling to make Luna’s “perfect” dress, nobody was watching for human intruders. Elias silently perused the dresses, occasionally pulling them out to get a better look at it. Most of them were nothing special, he had seen many gowns while scavenging that looked miles better, but as he made his way to the back of the rack, he found a dress that he thought looked quite pretty. He could actually see Luna wearing it. It was a softer blue color that would go perfectly with her mane, and it even had holes so that her wings could poke out, something the host of tailors seemed to be ignoring as they measured her. Coupled with the thin, nigh invisible streaks of silver flowing down the skirt, Elias imagined Luna would like it.

With nobody around to ask to pull the dress down for Luna to try, Elias decided to do it himself. He made sure not to disturb the rack, and he made a mental note of where it belonged before he walked back to the dressing room. His entrance to the room was immediately met with a scowl.

“And just where have you been?” Luna snapped. “I wanted to ask your opinion on this gown, and yet you vanished without a word.”

Elias looked her up and down calmly, then snickered. The dress was utterly ridiculous. He could tell what the tailors were trying to do, but thick streamers across the gown did nothing but make Luna look silly. The pink bow still tied in her tail certainly didn’t help.

“Well,” Elias said. “I have two opinions, I can be half-truthful and nice, or fully truthful, which will be blunt. Which do you prefer Princess?”

Luna huffed.

“Blunt. You’re always blunt, this occasion shouldn’t be any different.”

Elias smiled at her as she continued to scowl back.

“Honestly, as beautiful as you are, that dress makes you look like you’re attending a circus as the main act. If I shined a flashlight on you right now, I would blind myself and everyone else in a three-mile radius permanently.”

Elias glanced pointedly toward her tail.

“And pink is not your color. I’m no designer, but even I can tell that pink and blue don’t mix.”

Luna, surprisingly, dropped her angry demeanor in exchange for a blush. She stared at the ground and smiled.

“You think I’m beautiful?” she whispered.

Elias felt his own cheeks redden, but he did his best to suppress it as he brought his choice from behind his back.

“Not in that dress you’re not. Here, try this. I think it’ll go quite nicely with your mane.”

The tailors immediately began to protest, but Luna silenced them with a flick of her tail. Elias offered the hanger to the alicorn, and she gently took it in her teeth. She passed it quickly to one of the tailors, who, with a glare toward Elias, turned about and set it on one of the dressing room racks. The rest of the tailors also shot Elias glares as he sat back down and watched as they began undressing Luna. The pink bow vanished, and the silver and black dress quickly followed. As one of the tailor’s opened Elias’ pick, Luna raised a hoof to stop them from pulling it out.

“Gentleponies, I think I shall put this one on myself. I shall call you all back in once I am finished so that you may make it a proper fitting.”

The tailors looked amongst themselves and began muttering. One of them, a blue pegasus, piped up.

“Are you sure Princess? I promise, despite the General’s input,” she shot a glare at Elias, “pink does look quite lovely on you.”

Luna smiled at the mare.

“I am sure. I just need a moment to breathe and reflect on what I am truly looking for in a dress. Please, wait outside. I shall call you all in shortly.”

The tailors droop and dragged their feet as they all slowly walked from the room. Elias got to his feet to leave as well, but Luna fixed him with a look.

“Not you Elias. You shall be helping me into the gown you picked out. As punishment for attempting to sneak weapons into a wedding.”

Elias snorted.

“Two things, first;” he lifted a finger, “There will be no trying, I’m bringing my weapons. Second,” he grinned broadly. “who says helping a princess is a punishment?”

Luna blushed as the door closed behind the Royal Guards. She motioned for Elias to step closer, and when he did so, she slapped him in the head with a wing.

“Quiet you. You’ll start rumors.”

Elias rolled his eyes.

“Who cares what other ponies say? The only one I care about is you.”

Elias immediately flushed crimson and looked away as the sides of his mind began a shrieking match of pure panic. Why the fuck had he said something so absolutely stupid? Was he trying to let her know his feelings? Could he have been even more obvious?

Luna cleared her throat, drawing Elias’ eyes back. She smiled sweetly at him.

“I’m glad to hear that Elias. I know you have been stressed these past few months, as have we all, but to hear you say something like that… it just reminds me how good a friend you truly are.”

Elias swallowed roughly. Was that her way of trying to let him save face, or was that her way of subtly rejecting him? Elias couldn’t tell, and he did his best to recover his normal stoic mask.

Behind Luna’s calm outward demeanor, the little lovestruck filly in her mind was doing backflips. The little pony cheered and shouted at Elias’ words. He loved her! He really did! He was just hiding his affection! Luna noticed his face fall slightly at her diplomatic words, words she hoped he would take the right way. Friends couldn’t begin to describe what they were becoming, and she couldn’t have been happier. She just hoped they could dance around the word love until after the march. She really didn’t want to add strain to their relationship.

She motioned to the dress. It was a good distraction.

“Well come on Elias, pull your choice out for me. I expect a full presentation of the colors and how they go with my mane.”

Elias snorted, but he did as she asked. He unzipped the garment bag and withdrew the dress on its hanger. Luna gave a small gasp as she looked the dress up and down.

“Oh my, that is quite beautiful Elias, you have impeccable taste. Where did you find this?”

Elias shrugged and motioned to the back room.

“It was on one of the racks. I just thought it would look nice on you.”

The man blushed again, and Luna smiled.

“Well thank you Elias. We shall see, now won’t we?”

She directed him on how to properly unzip the gown, and then motioned for him to help her put it on. Elias struggled to keep a blush from his face as he did so.

“Shouldn’t one of the tailors be doing this?” he grumbled.

Luna looked back and winked.

“Maybe, but I much prefer your gentle touch.”

She chuckled.

“And it’s a rare opportunity these days to feel those fingers of yours.”

Elias rolled his eyes, and let one hand drift toward her ears. Luna closed her eyes and hummed lightly as he scratched at the base of her scalp.

“Mhm, simply wonderful. Remind me to pay you extra. You deserve it.”

Elias rolled his eyes.

“You’re just lucky your fur is so soft. I wish I had a pillow as soft as you are.”

Luna smiled again as he finished zipping up her dress.

“Perhaps in the future you can have a fuzzy pony pillow of your own. I have no doubts that you will be very good at wooing whatever mare you choose.”

Elias sighed and dropped his hand from her ears.

“Well, I just hope whoever she is, she likes ear scratches.”

‘Oh you have no idea,’ Luna thought.

She opened her eyes and looked to the full-length mirrors around her. What she saw was absolutely perfect. The dress fit her body perfectly. It appeared to cling to her form, but in truth, Luna had plenty of moving room, perfect for walking and dancing. She imagined that if she tied her mane and tail with silver ribbon, she would look quite fetching. The dress shined with streaks of silver that scattered the blue, making the dress look almost like a star shower. She looked to Elias with a sly grin and struck a pose.

“So General, tell me, does this dress make my flank look fat?”

Elias successfully held a blush from his face as he crossed his arms.

“Do you want an honest answer? Because you are beginning to look like your sister after cake night”

Luna clicked her tongue and flicked his nose with her tail.

“Hush, that kind of slander isn’t allowed in public. Only in private where I can laugh aloud.”

Elias chuckled.

“No, you’re right, we just need to publish it in a newspaper. With pictures.”

Luna turned and grinned sadistically at him.

“Take thine words back savage, or I shall be required to defend my sister’s honor!”

She crouched lower and wiggled her hips.

“I am more than eager to see just what this dress can handle.”

Elias uncrossed his arms and crouched as well.

“Yeah? You couldn’t catch a butterfly if it flew to your hoof. All you’re going to do is make a fool of yourself.”

Luna giggled and pounced.

“En garde fiend! I shall not have such words said against my name!”

Elias dipped to the side and hopped off the fitting stage, remaining out of reach of her hooves. The human winked at her and smiled. Keepers she loved that smile.

“You’re going to have to be faster than that Moony. Maybe the dress does make your flanks look fat.”

Luna let out a fake gasp.

“Rascal! You impugn my honor!”

She held a hoof to her breast and turned her nose up.

“I declare that I, Princess Luna of Equestria, shall not rest until yon beast has recanted his statement!”

Elias grinned.

“Only one way that’s going to happen Princess Fat Flanks.”

Luna giggled again and let out a false war cry. She charged down the fitting stage and tried to use her wings to increase her speed. Elias dodged away again, teasing her the whole while. Luna was ecstatic. It was the playfulness she had so missed. She saw genuine happiness in his eyes, so unmarred by the day to day workload he sustained. To prolong the game, she let him slip by a few times, but Luna began to hear whispers from outside, and one voice began raising a fuss above the others. Time to end their little conflict. Luna wiggled her hips as she cornered Elias.

“Come now General, your run has finished. Tell me how my flanks look, or I shall punish you.”

Elias held up his hands in mock defense.

“Sorry Princess, but I’ve only spoken the truth. You’ve gotten smaller, but your flanks have not.”

Luna grinned.

“So be it scoundrel.”

She let out another gleeful cry and leapt at Elias. He had nowhere to run, she had him…

Elias dipped to the side, and Luna quickly remembered that she had indeed gotten smaller. With her body fully committed to the leap and no human shield to catch her, Luna slammed face first into the wall. She fell to the ground, hearing a sharp gasp from Elias as she rolled over. She winced as she felt his hands on her muzzle.

“Princess, I am so sorry, just give me a second.”

Luna cracked open her eyes to find him cupping her muzzle. A small puddle of blood formed in his palm as his other hand searched his belt for something to staunch the bleeding. Luna smiled as best she could.

“Very nice General,” she mumbled through his hand. “Assaulting a princess is an executable offense you know.”

Elias grinned at her.

“Technically, you assaulted the wall and the wall won. I just didn’t stop it from happening.”

He pulled a small white cloth free of a pouch and gingerly held it to her nostrils. Elias’ smile lessened as Luna flinched at the sharp stings of pain.

“Sorry, it’s going to hurt a little. You hit yourself pretty hard.”

Luna snorted, sending a small spray of blood onto his face.

“Tis your fault. I shall have you arrested for this.”

Elias snorted and shook his head in exasperation, continuing to dab at her muzzle as he did so. Luna heard a shout from outside the dressing room, then the door slammed open, revealing Lionheart. The unicorn glared hate at Elias.

“You see!” he shouted. “The human is assaulting the princess on your watch! He has injured her you dolts!”

Elias shot a glare at the unicorn as Luna’s guards slipped back into the room. She sent them a look that told them she was fine, and though they still looked tense, no doubt at the sight of their princess bleeding, they didn’t immediately jump Elias.

“Relax Lionheart,” the human spat. “We were just messing around and Luna hit the wall. She got a nosebleed is all.”

“A likely story,” the unicorn snarled in reply. “I think we shall hear it from Princess Luna herself once you get your filthy hands off of her muzzle.”

Luna saw anger flash in Elias’ eyes, but she rested a hoof on his back, and pulled him a bit closer. The action forced him to focus entirely on her, and as she stared into his mis-matched eyes, she saw calm filter through. She looked past the human to Lionheart with as calm an expression as she could create.

“It is alright General Lionheart; General Bright speaks the truth. We were simply enjoying a simple stress relieving exercise my physician recommended and it got out of hoof.”

Lionheart snorted dismissively.

“Fear not Princess, I can hear the dishonesty in your words. This beast holds your tongue, forcing you to cower in fear, but I shall end your plight!”

Luna felt a flash of anger at the unicorn’s declaration. How dare he? She was the Princess of the Night, magic or no, she was more than capable of fending off who she wished! She opened her mouth to protest in earnest, when the unicorn did something incredibly stupid.

“Bright, I challenge you to an honor duel. You have committed assault against a princess of this great nation, and you are even now holding her hostage. Your transgressions are abhorrent, and I will see them stopped.”

Elias snorted and began dabbing at Luna’s nose again.

“Kindly, Lionheart, fuck off. You have no idea what you’re talking about, or what you’re getting yourself into. The last thing you want to do is fight me.”

Luna looked to Elias nervously.

“Elias… you can’t refuse,” she whispered. “an honor duel is more than just a simple fight. Lionheart can order your arrest if you refuse. It is the law.”

Elias met her eyes.

“Luna, that’s dumb, and he’s asking for a duel on a misunderstanding. I won’t kill him over his own stupidity, and none of your guards are stupid enough to think they can arrest me without your say so.”

Louder, he said;

“I’ll say this one time Lionheart; this is a private fitting, in which you don’t belong. Get out before I throw you out. I won’t warn you twice.”

Lionheart stomped his hoof.

“Will you accept the duel or not? Guards, prepare to arrest this beast.”

Elias sighed and grabbed one of Luna’s hooves. He pressed her hoof against the cloth, and he smiled at her.

“Hold it for at least a minute. I’ll try to get you some ice when I come back.”

He got to his feet, emptying his blood-filled hand on the floor, then walked across the fitting room in two steps. He grabbed Lionheart by the collar of his armor, and despite the stallion’s protests, he carried him out of the fitting room. One of the tailors followed Elias as he left the room, while the rest swarmed Luna again. Her guards didn’t help, and in fact they also began asking her a myriad of questions. Luna felt far more concerned about Elias than she was about herself, and her patience quickly ran thin.

“ENOUGH!” she bellowed.

The ponies around her fell into silence as Luna got to her feet. She took a long deep breath through her mouth, then looked to the tailors.

“I desire this dress. I like the fit, and am told it looks quite lovely. Is that the case?”

The tailors all nodded and offered quick compliments. Luna stopped them with a raised hoof.

“Good. I shall return for a second fitting in two days. I would like the appropriate accessories to review at that time as well. A tie as well for General Bright. Make sure it matches my dress.”

The tailors mumbled their thanks, and they quickly helped Luna disrobe. The alicorn let one of her guards look at her nose, then after confirming that the nosebleed had ceased, they gathered Elias’ belongings and left the fitting room. They met Elias halfway through the shop. Luna looked past him, looking for Lionheart.

“Have you and General Lionheart peaceably resolved your differences?” she asked hopefully.

Elias snorted.

“If by peaceably, you mean I threw him into the dirt, then yes. Otherwise, no. He ran back to the castle spouting his intent for revenge.”

Luna bit her lip. That wasn’t good. Honor duels were not a little thing. Maybe she could catch Lionheart before he reached her sister. Maybe. Luna sighed and met Elias’ eyes as he collected his things from her guards. He smiled at her.

“Are you alright? I know it is kind of my fault you slammed into that wall.”

Luna sighed and smiled in return.

“Indeed it is, but you can make it up to me with a favor, perhaps dinner tonight?”

Elias shook his head.

“Sorry, Princess, I can’t do tonight-…”

Luna drooped slightly, and the human quickly amended his statement.

“But, if you could talk to Chaser, maybe we can start our wedding preparations early, maybe with breakfast? We could spend the whole day together, rather than a few hours.”

Luna’s smile returned in full force.

“That, General Bright, sounds like an excellent idea. Consider it a date.”

The word date brought another blush to Elias’ face, but his teeth shined with a smile as they moved back toward the castle. Anyon met them outside the shop, glaring hard at Fancy Pants. The unicorn levitated a small bag to Elias.

“Here is your belt good sir, outfitted and tested. It should look quite dashing with your suit.”

Elias gave him a small nod.

“Thank you.”

Elias then looked to Anyon, who refused to meet anyone’s eyes. The human chuckled as he looked the immaculate looking gryphon up and down.

“I gotta say though Anyon, you should do clean more often. Red’s a good color for you, and is your fur fuzzier?”

“If ya got any sense yer gonna stay away!” the gryphon squawked. “Don’t need nopony cuddlin’ me!”

Luna clicked her tongue and smiled as they walked toward the castle.

“Not even your marefriend? I believe Split Tip will quite enjoy a clean and cuddly Anyon. I mean just look at how those wings shine!”

Anyon blushed, but he stopped grumbling as they teased him all the way back to the castle.