//------------------------------// // Staff // Story: Flurry Heart // by Buttery Biscuit //------------------------------// Ivy sat in front of the staff with her pot of flowers. She tapped the podium that was in the center of their borrowed meeting room. An empty one in Cadence's castle. "Attention, Attention, every creature stop talking please." She said as she addressed the guards and maids of the castle. Now she had to convince them that Discord and Sombra were safe as Cadence dropped a bomb on them all. They were staying, permanently, in positions of power. She knew that her friendship with them was enough to quell their fears for maybe a couple of weeks at best but she was going to need more than that now. She was going to have to convince them that everything was going to be ok. "I know that Cadence has ordered us to be nice to Sombra and Discord. I know that we all feel a little nervous about it. I know we feel nervous now more than ever as they are both in positions of power. Cadence has entrusted us to keep it on the down-low but I know we all think about it. Think about Sombra as royal adviser and Discord as Flurry's nanny. I do not blame you even though Sombra has been working very hard on his reformation. I was a little jumpy around him. How could I not be, he enslaved me, he enslaved you. I still remember the effect of the curse, sometimes it still haunts me and my dreams. Many of you can not forget how it felt to be forced to do something that you did not want to do. I still remembered when it was suggested that Sombra be reformed. I remember how hard we fought for him to remain in ice. I still remember when he came back here during his reformation for the first time. I remember being so afraid of him that I couldn't even look at him. Here we are now, where he casually lives among us. The same goes for Discord. I know we were not there for Discord's take over but we have heard the stories. We can assume those pony's positions, their feelings. We can assume it was close to ours and feel a similar fear. I was afraid too, he is very different. Very scary and very powerful. They both are. I know how easy it would be to remain angry at them forever. I know that we have every reason to be, or should I say we had every reason to be. I come with proof that they are no longer those same creatures." Ivy said ending her speech only to bring out flowers. Flowers that Discord and Sombra gave her, made out of their magic. She placed them onto her podium and she saw her friend's faces. They looked confused and concerned. "I want you all to listen to my story. I had just finished cleaning out a guest room a dignitary had used when I heard a voice. A voice that asked, "excuse me?" I jumped I hadn't expected any pony to be around let alone see Sombra so soon. Do you want to know what happened next? He said he was sorry. Sombra King of Shadows, enslaver of our empire, of our people. Apologized, to me, for scaring me. I was so surprised, then he asked where to find blankets and pillows. Sombra and Discord were building a fort for Flurry. I showed him to the closet, talked to him like how I would talk to my friends. I found myself relaxing around him, slowly. He was nice, more than nice he cared. I watched as he and Discord made sure our monarch would not get sick. Covering them with a blanket. I watched them read to Flurry Heart in that fort, it was the cutest thing I ever saw. They didn't know I was watching but I was. I can assure you that they are no longer the same. Of course, I am not sure I can forget what happened but I can find room in my heart to forgive them fully. To place my trust in them. I got these flowers from both of them as a thank you. I will leave them in our staff room, for now. I want you to see that they are good, more than that we can trust them. I want you to give them another chance." Ivy would miss those flowers, they gave her happiness but they represented something. They represented the change that Discord and Sombra went through. "Thank you all for coming and giving me a chance to speak to you, I hope you all end up seeing what I see." Unfortunately not every creature was convinced that they had changed. Though a few of them went to bed thinking Ivy was right. They had faith in her, enough so to put faith into Discord and Sombra. The Next Day Spear Roaster, Ivy's brother, woke up the next day completely unconvinced. He loved his sister, he really did, but sometimes she saw the good in creatures to easily. Spear held the belief that Discord and Sombra were reformed, but they should not be trusted. Especially in positions with any power whats so ever. He gathered his gear and dressed himself while going over what he had to do. Today he was going to help Shining do the books. Spear was one of the top guards among Shining's rank, therefore he was the most trusted. His captain briefed him on the situation, somewhat. He knew the staff had to be lessened. He did not know why but he knew it had to be important. He trusted his captain with his life, he knew that Shining would never harm his people. Spear made his way to the room he dreaded the most, the royal adviser's room. He was told two nights ago that Sombra was the new royal adviser but he wasn't expecting much. Spear had seen the way he ruled 'his' kingdom. Harshly, there was absolutely no way that Sombra was anything but corrupt. Tartarus, as soon as he opened the door he expected Shining to be under some kind of mind spell. So when he opened the door to a completely dark room, he was confused. He moved his hoof to the switch and jumped. There at the desk sat Sombra with reading glasses on. He looked to be going over a schedule of some sort. "OWCH!" Sombra said as he covered his eyes with some heavy-duty sunglasses. Something he used very often as he hated the light, it was much easier to live with them on. He turned around to notice some random guard staring at him with surprise. He assumed the staff had been briefed on their current jobs and living situation. He reminded himself to be nice, he did hurt these ponies at one point. "Sorry about that. Hello, how may I help you?" Sombra asked as he laid Cadence and Shining's schedules down on the table. He was about to meet with them for their briefing when he was interrupted. "Uh sorry about that I didn't know you were in here." Spear started before he realized he wasn't sure why he was apologizing. "I came to see if the Kingdom's orders are being fulfilled." Sombra thought about it, of course, the crystal ponies would still be cautious of him. He was in a position of power now, if he were them. He would be suspicious too. "Well, you can do that if you wish. I'm about to go speak to your captain if you'd like to talk to him first." Sombra got up hoping he didn't just piss off second in command to an entire army. He picked up the schedules trotting out the door and down the hall, he looked back only once. Spear was indeed following him and Sombra felt very uncomfortable. Sombra gave a knock to Cadence and Shining's bedroom. "Morning Sombra," Shining said as he looked at Sombra's face. It looked like his friend was uncomfortable, one glance to the side told him why. Spear was here, saluting him and he had no idea why. Until he remembered that Cadence told the staff about Sombra and Discord's new positions. "Spear?" "Hello sir, just checking on the Kingdom. I was hoping you could dismiss me from morning practice. To make sure the Kingdom's affairs are in order, sir." Spear said in his salute stance. "Am I supposed to salute you too?" Sombra asked, was that a normal pony thing? Or just a guard thing, he was not sure. "No, please don't," Shining said as he felt himself cringe. It just felt, weird, weird and gross. It was like asking Twilight to salute him. "Okay. Well here is your schedule. Take a look, ask questions if you need to." Sombra stated as he shifted back and forth. He really hoped Shining had no questions. He could feel the gaze of Spear digging a hole in the back of his head. Of course, Shining missed none of this he didn't even bother to read it, he was sure he would be fine. "Thank you Sombra, Spear you are dismissed from morning practice but I better see you for the afternoon drills," Shining stated as he grabbed his armor and headed to the kitchen to grab a bite, then out to morning practice. Shining felt bad he had to leave Spear with Sombra like that but he knew if he dragged Spear with him. The issue would never be solved, Spear would only follow him around at another time. It was best to get this over with. "Thank you, sir." Spear stated as he sat directly behind Sombra. Sombra handed Cadence her schedule, he wasn't sure why Shining had left him with Spear. Maybe he hadn't noticed how uncomfortable Sombra was. Though it was more likely that Shining wanted Sombra to face his problems. Sombra had notice that was his approach with his guards, friends, even family. Though he really rather not. "Thank you, Sombra." She took one look over it and gasped. "Pharynx and Thorax are coming today. I forgot. I don't have a translator!" The Changelings spoke what ponies were calling Changeish, their accents were still pretty thick. "Oh, I uh. I could do it." Sombra stated, he wasn't sure if he should go. It was an official royal meeting, with royals, and he had some apprehension about that. But he did not want Cadence to get in trouble or miss something important. "Sombra! You're a lifesaver, how do you know Changeish?" Cadence asked. She would love to know. "I used to run into Chrysalis a lot, not as much as Discord, but I did. I either learned the language or had no idea what she was saying. So I learned it, in fact, I was the one who taught her old Ponish." Sombra stated to a surprise Cadence "that was when she had just started the hive network. The one that changes around. She hadn't done anything too evil, yet. Or at least I didn't know about it." Sombra explained. He told her as much as he was willing to, and he rather say no more on the subject so he changed it. "When and where?" Cadence was about to answer when she heard a mumble, "of course you knew her." She looked over to see Spear, she had completely forgotten about him "Excuse me?" She asked him only to get a spooked stare "that's what I thought. Meeting room eight. Three o'clock. Thanks, Sombra I owe you." Cadence said as she went to the kitchen to grab a bite to eat then start her day thinking she had solved the issue. That left Sombra and Spear, alone. "Well, just follow me then," Sombra said as he led Spear back to the Royal Advisor's office. He opened the door and put his sunglasses back in his pocket, his eyes having adjusted to the light. "Alright I'll give you the tour then you can double-check my work." He coughed as he led Spear to the first file cabinet, "right so in here are all the files on the restaurants in the Crystal Empire. Alphabetical order. Everything having to do with them is here. If they own the building, if they are paying it off, a summary of their taxes, if they offered to help with festivals and menus." Sombra then moved down one filing cabinet "here we have the Kingdoms books according to year. What was spent, why, where, and if it applied on who. I have organized it pre and post my....leadership I guess you could say. Anything pre-King-Sombra I put downstairs for storage anything post-King-Sombra is in this cabinet. The same goes for taxes, of creatures that is." Sombra stated as he pointed to the third file cabinet. Sombra then moved on to the center of the room where a calendar hung on it, "here you will find yearly things. Festivals, birthdays, parties. In that cabinet over there I kept every invitation to every party, our RSVPs, and whether or not we said we were bringing anything." Sombra said as he pointed over to another cabinet. Sombra then led him to a shelf with only two books. "I made these overall planners but that didn't end up working short time. Especially with last-minute things. Plus Shining and Cadence seem to prefer if I brief them on what they are doing for the week. Though they don't always remember. I tried my best to make sure they stay on top of everything although something usually ends up forgotten." Sombra then moved on to a paper set next to the books "this is something very special. You just come to it with your wish. Let's say you need new armor." The paper rose up in purplish magic and started flipping until it landed. "We have a deal with both the Griffins and the Dragons. If we want royal guard armor the Dragons sell it 100 bits cheaper then the Griffins do. So we would buy it from them. That is about it, if you have any questions feel free to come and ask. I'll be in the kitchen." Sombra said as he started to walk out of the office. "oh and one more thing," his eyes glowed a familiar purple and green and the room shined with magic. He looked over to see Spear with a cautious look on his face. "I uh translated all the documents to my native language. It was easier for me that way. I changed it back to New Ponish." "You aren't going to stay?" Spear asked. "If you're going to wreck the place for revenge, then that's what you're going to do. Just get it over with. If you really did just want to check, well there is a baby I would rather see. I already went over this I don't need to again, you wanted to do it. So you do it." Sombra said as he left for the kitchen. If it was going to happen he couldn't stop it. Well, he could but he wasn't going to, he was a different colt now. On his way to the kitchen, he passed a maid. "Hello." He waved to her and she waved back. Happy with that interaction he went off to get some much-needed Flurry time. Spear sat there, alone in the organized room. Spear ran his hoof over the file cabinet and flashbacked to all the times he stayed here with Shining. To help him. It usually ended up with a lot of sobbing. Neither of them good at math, and it was a lot of work. He really didn't want to do it alone and it did look like Sombra was doing just fine. It gave him a lot to think about. ---Earlier That day-- Moon Petal woke up with doubt in her heart, she didn't know Ivy at all. Therefore she had no valid reason to trust her. So Moon went about her day as normal. She was on her way to help Cadence with Flurry. She wasn't required to but she insisted. Sometimes that mare was so exhausted she had a hard time getting through the beginning of her day. From then on the maid would stop on by and make sure Cadence did not need help with the baby. She didn't know why she insisted on taking care of her, she had staff to do it for her. So Moon went on her way to do her job, off to Flurry's crib. So when she opened the door to find Flurry's crib empty, she rightfully panicked. Usually, she would carry her to her sleep-deprived mother. Maybe Cadence had grabbed her and that's when she remembered. That Discord was supposed to be taking care of her but it wasn't like he was actually doing that. So Moon ran off to the kitchen where she found Discord with Flurry in his arms. He looked to be feeding her. "Hello." "Hello there." Discord said as he looked over the maid. He had been told that Cadence let the staff know of their positions and living arrangements. He hoped that this wouldn't interrupt his time with Flurry too much. "My name is Moon. I came to change and feed Flurry." She stated as she looked over Discord. He was off-putting but she needed to think about the baby first. "Alright. You can but I already did it. It's your time your wasting, not mine" Discord said flippantly as he rocked Flurry in his arms. She was so cute, as soon as she finished her bottle she burped. "Aww." Moon just scoffed, she was not going to let Flurry be in Discord's presence. She didn't need an excuse to take her away. She was going to take her. Moon activated her horn as she picked up Flurry from Discord's arms and to her own, but she didn't hold onto her for long. Flurry immediately cried, she wasn't looking at the face she was used to looking at. This wasn't mom, dad, dad, or dad. She was much too young to understand who was who. You were either mom, dad, or a stranger. Even though Moon helped, Moon wasn't a pony she saw 24/7. Flurry teleported back to dad number three, his red and yellow eyes calmed her enough to stop her from panicking but not from crying. "Waaaa, waaaa, waaaa." Flurry cried out to those eyes, hooves flailing until she was back in the warm fuzz that she knew and loved. "There there Flurry. It's ok please do not cry." Discord said as he rocked Flurry in his arms, scratching his eagle claw behind her ears until she stopped crying and started cooing. "It's ok." He said as his heart melted, she tapped his face lightly with her tiny hooves and spat raspberries into his face. Moon was stunned, Flurry hadn't reacted so poorly before, and so fondly to any creature like that. At least, besides her parents. She watched him coddle over her and she couldn't help but feel very conflicted. "Morning Discord. Hello Moon, shouldn't you be helping the other maids?" Cadence asked she knew Moon held some old fashion beliefs about royalty raising their children. Believing it was the staff's job but Flurry was Cadence's daughter and not hers. "I just came to check on you and Flurry," Moon said, just as she always did. Wait, was Cadence functional? Moon took a closer look and realise she wasn't sleep deprived or stressed. She looked good. "Well, I assure you she is in good limbs. Now hand me my baby Discord." Cadence demanded she had missed Flurry Heart so much. It had been an hour since she had seen her but an hour was a very long time. The best thing about having Discord watch her is that while he gave her trouble about letting go of Flurry Heart. It wasn't because of her title or her duties, it was because he loved her. Discord gave Cadence her daughter. He rather not but he knew he had to. He placed Flurry in Cadence's hooves as he stood up and grabbed a box of pancake mix. "Would you like to stay? Sombra and I made these ourselves. You can eat the shadows of the pancakes if you want to. They are the opposite flavor of the pancake you are currently eating. So if it is raspberry the shadow is banana." "I think I am good for now. I guess if you need anything I'll be around. Princess." She bowed to Cadence and then got up to leave She wasn't sure what to think as she passed a dark pony. "Hello." He said. Moon just waved to Sombra. She was too focused to really do much else. She turned back to watch him run into the kitchen. "Where is my favorite menace to society?" Moon heard Sombra coo. Her head was a mess, she wasn't sure what to think or feel about the situation. Soon enough Spear was sitting beside her. "I'm not sure what to think either. I do know that I want to figure it out, would you like to company me to the garden." Spear offered the maid. He had seen her confused face and he knew that she was confused for the same reason he was. Discord and Sombra. Moon just nodded as she followed Spear out to the garden. Together they would figure out how they felt. And what to do with those feelings.