Though Twilight had come across many problems since she took the throne, none had left her more exhausted and unhappy-looking than the one she had just gone through. Her eyes went over the same passages on the report in front of her over and over and over again, and nopony, not even Spike, was willing to speak until she herself had done so. As ruler, Twilight did her best to try and hide her feelings, much like Celestia would have done, but there was no hiding this, as her eyes slowly closed and she exhaled deeply. "...How?"
One of the assembled guards stepped forward, his helm in his hoof, looking to her with equal concern. "We're still conducting the investigation, but it seems to have been a gas leak. Their cooker most likely. And when one of them tried to ignite a nearby candle to read..." He didn't finish, for all there knew exactly what that combination meant. Instead, he looked left and right, to his colleagues, all of whom looked just as upset about the situation as he was, before speaking again to his monarch. "The house went up almost immediately, your Highness. There was nothing anypony could have done."
Twilight did her best to hold back the anger she felt that a tragedy such as this had occurred in her time as Princess, and she glanced out of the window, seeing the wisps of smoke rising from the far end of Canterlot where this had all taken place. "And you're sure the fires on the surrounding homes were put out?"
The guards nodded to that. "Yes, Ma'am. The fire teams worked all night, but they got it out."
Spike, who had been looking just as saddened as Twilight, stepped forward. "And...casualties?"
The guard looked down to the ground, solemnity taking hold of him. "For the most part, everypony was okay. Some light burns here and there, but otherwise fine. Except..."
Again, Twilight closed her eyes, only opening them again to look the guard right in his. "...Except the two who died."
Her court, albeit a small one in these wee hours, avoided her gaze. And yet again, it fell to this lone guard to answer her. "Yes, Ma'am. But, if nothing else, the report from the doctors said it was quick for them." Seeing the scowl Twilight now looked to him with, he stepped backwards slightly. "Not...not that such knowledge makes this any less of a terrible thing."
Twilight could feel he meant that, and so softened in her expression. "This might have been beyond my control, but they were still my people." She stepped forward, looking firm in her expression, addressing the crowd with all the authority she'd learned in her relatively brief time as Equestria's ruler. "Send out everypony we can to clear what remains of the house. Send every available doctor, even my own physicians if you have to, to tend to the needs of the injured."
The guards all saluted, but as the rest began to leave, the one who'd been speaking remained, if only for a moment. "And...the little one?"
Here, Twilight thought long and hard, then spoke quietly and softly. "I will go to her." She watched as the guard saluted, going off to join the rest, before getting down from her throne and walking off to one of the palace's many long hallways. Spike waked alongside her, as always, and for a long time the two just journeyed in silence. Then after a while, Twilight began to let herself look disheartened. "To be without her parents so young...she'll never know them."
Spike too seemed worried about that. "Yeah...I know the feeling." Then, a small smile came to him. "At least I had somepony to be close to during all that time."
Twilight smiled to that, thinking back on all their long years together. But the smile faded as her mind once more turned to the child they were going to. "But this foal...she has nopony. I asked. Her parents were the only family she had." A sigh escaped her. "Arrangements need to be made. She came to us, so we need to decide what will be done." Her mind went over plan after plan, even though the prospect of ensuring the well-being of a child without family never really fell to her before. Still, she didn't get too much time to dwell on it, as it was right here when she and Spike finally arrived at the private rooms they'd been heading to. The guards there gave a salute, to which Twilight nodded back, after which she opened the doors with her magic. "How is she?"
Along with the many physicians that the palace sported, there was also a contingent of nurses, and one of them stood watch over a cradle on the far side of the room. As soon as she saw the Princess enter, she bowed, but standing tall again revealed the concerned look she bore. "She's asleep, finally." She glanced down to the aforementioned crib. "Thank Celestia, there was no injury to her. Not even a burn. She was terrified of course. No telling what kind of effect this might have on her."
Twilight winced. "We already know the effect...she is alone now."
The nurse too looked saddened by that. "I know." Then, she looked to Twilight fully. "Shall we contact any of the city's orphanages?"
Twilight shook her head. "Not yet. I need to see her first." The nurse nodded, stepping back from the crib to allow Twilight to approach. Getting closer, Twilight looked within, seeing the sleeping child there. If one were to look at her now, with her pink fur and light-orange mane, they wouldn't have ever suspected what she'd just gone through. But Twilight knew, and it was all she could think about. "Hello, little one. I am..." She hesitated, her voice starting to wobble when she finally spoke again. "I am...so very sorry."
Spike walked up to her, patting her on the side. "There was nothing anypony could do, Twilight."
"That doesn't make this any less of a bad situation, Spike," Twilight replied sharply. Then, realising how she'd come across, she sighed, trying to calm herself. "I'm...I'm sorry. I'm just upset over what happened."
Spike gave her another pat. "Hey, it's no problem. Anypony would be stressed out after something like this."
Slowly, Twilight shook her head. "This...this isn't meant to happen. Not here, not now, not when I'm leading the nation. Ponies shouldn't be dying on my watch."
Spike, staring at her for a time, spoke with understandable softness. "You might be the Princess of Equestria...but that doesn't mean you're going to be able to control everything, Twilight."
Twilight hung her head. "I...I know. Princess Celestia certainly couldn't stop bad things happening during her reign...so I suppose I should just accept that some things are going to happen against my wishes too." After a long pause, she frowned. "But still...all the things I and my friends do, or have done in the past, to make sure Equestria is safe and happy...and a small accident can lead to a massive tragedy while we weren't even looking. How can I ever feel like I truly lead the nation if some random act of chance can just swoop in and destroy lives like this? With me being unable to do anything about it?"
Spike, in stark contrast to how Twilight might have expected him to act under the circumstances, actually cracked a smile. "But you can do something about it! You can learn how it happened, find out ways to stop it happening in the future. You can look after those who are left behind by it..." That last remark was accompanied by a gesture towards the still-sleeping foal of course. "You can take precautions, just like everypony else."
Though Twilight had been letting herself wallow in a sense of failure, hearing Spike's words actually helped a great deal in getting her out of it, and she afforded her lifelong friend a genuine smile. "Thank you, Spike. You're right. We can learn from this. It might not be any help to those who've already been lost...but we can still do what we can to prevent this sort of thing happening again."
Spike chuckled. "Hey, no worries. I've come to expect you getting worried whenever things don't go to plan." Then, his shoulders slumped slightly. "Though...this is admittedly a pretty big deviation from your plans."
Another solemn nod from Twilight, but before she could speak once more, she was distracted by the sound of the nurse clearing her throat from the side. "Apologies for speaking up, your Highness...but there's still the matter of the child. Shall...shall I contact the orphanages?"
Twilight paused, then looked down to the crib, to the child who looked like she had not a care in the world. Then, with determination upon here face, Twilight spoke. "...No. This child will not simply be set aside for us to not think about again. Let it be known that the Palace will be her home." She rested her hoof upon the edge of the crib. "Here she will stay, and here she will be raised. I might not have been able to help her parents...but I can help her." Naturally, Twilight turned to see stunned faces on the others, though they said nothing to her, leaving the way open for her to ask the next obvious question. "Tell me...what's her name?"
The nurse, after recovering from that previous statement, again cleared her throat. "Oh! It's Luster, your Highness. Luster Dawn."
Twilight gave a short nod, then looked down yet again to the crib, just in time to see that innocent filly open her eyes and see the Princess for the first time. "...Welcome to the Palace, Luster Dawn."