The trip back to Canterlot was relatively silent as the two princesses returned to the castle, with Platinum taking the occasional glance at her niece. The Lunar princess was deep in thought at the moment with a thousand mile stare. Others would never have guessed it, from her expertly maintained poker face, but to the mare that raised her? It was wholly transparent. Something was eating her up, and Platinum knew precisely what it was, yet she couldn't discuss the issue with her, not now with so many potential prying eyes and ears nearby.
Their inevitable conversation would have to wait until they had safely returned to Luna's chambers, and they had ensured that no one could listen. It was a routine that Luna knew well and put into action as she closed her windows and cast as many silencing spells as possible while maintaining her posture and etiquette.
Just as I taught you, good girl.
Platinum took the opportunity to give herself a small mental pat on the back in pride, seeing that her teachings had not been lost with time, as the room was finally secure.
"You did well remaining calm and collected until it was safe to speak again, my little filly." Platinum informed as she looked around the room, regarding the intricate runes plastered all over like glowing bubbles that hugged the walls, roof, and floor of Luna's room, "I think that is enough, Luna. We can speak freely, now tell aunt Platinum what's on your mind."
"Oh, easier say than done, auntie. Right now, my mind is awash with so many questions swirling around I don't even know where to begin." Luna let out a sigh and exhaled deeply before turning around to look at Platinum. "The existence of a third sister? The notion of her being trapped in an even worse prison than even I was? How long will it take to free her? Because by the stars we need to rescue her! The repercussions her return will have on our nation. Oh, pony feathers, our nation! This revelation will completely upend our governance. Equestria will no longer be a diarchy; it will become a triumvirate! This is beyond a minor incident anymore. Equestria as we know it will change forever." Luna starts to babble, rubbing her forehead while pacing back and forth.
"Luna! Luna, look at me! Look at me!" Platinum rushed to her and ordered to look her in the eyes. "Take a deep breath and let everything sink in slowly, dear. I know it's a lot of information to take in right now, so don't try to wreck your brain too much with it." Platinum instructed, stopping her pacing and putting her right hoof over her chest. "Like a taught you, close your eyes, and take things one step at a time."
Finally relaxing, Luna turned to look at her aunt with concern. "Auntie, this is too much. By the stars, how I'm even going to explain this to Tia?"
"Easy, you won't," Platinum responded with a smile. Taking Luna by surprise as she stepped back. "Just like you, her memories will eventually return in time, and just like what happened to you, I will guide her every step in the process, just like I'm doing and will continue to do until it's all over. That is why we are here, why I'm here right now." Platnum assured her with a caring smile.
"So this is why you came back from the afterlife then?" Luna remarked, relaxing a little more. "Is aunt Hurricane and Pudding…"
Before Luna could finish, Platinum nodded, "We all had a mission of sorts. For the moment, I was placed in charge of looking after you two. I have been granted a sort of sense to know when the hold of the curse would start to wane. I was always one who could act quickly and with precision. Pudding is preparing an expedition to track down historical records and prevent confusion as to why suddenly, all of the history books are going to look like they have been vandalized and changed." Platinum chuckled and closed her eyes. "Your sister was a pretty proactive mare back in her days, so of course, her absence greatly changed a lot of historical events, events that need to be preserved and remembered again and not chalked up as fake or wrong, or worse, tossed into the fire." She said determinedly. "As for Hurricane, she…has another mission to attend to."
"What is her mission, auntie?"
Platinum smiled and shook her head. "I believe you've had enough surprises for the day, Lulu. For now, try to relax and move on." she pointed to Luna's desk. "I promise I will help with every question you have once the initial shock fades away. But for now, it might be best if you return to your duties."
"So that's it then? Am I to keep quiet and pretend none of this is happening? To sit around knowing how my sister is trapped in the stars, know what type of prison? Trapped outside of reality itself and waiting until the curse lifts on its own accord?" She questioned in disbelief as her aunt marched to the door. There she stopped and sighed in sadness and looked down to the stone floor. "Now you know how Celly felt."
The room went eerily quiet as Luna slowly realized what her aunt was saying, and a mix of empathy and guilt washed over her body.
Tia…all those years…this is what you silently endured all alone?
Her self-reflection came to a swift halt when both mares heard a knock on the door. Catching them both by surprise as Platinum turns to Luna, "Were you expecting company, dear?"
Luna shook her head before going to answer only to discover the ex-member of the wonderbolts, Crossfire Tempo, on the other side. "Oh, there you were, dear. I'm terribly sorry for the intrusion" Taking a side glance, Tempo noticed the other princess in the room. "Oh, is this not a good time?" She asked, shuffling her hooves on the floor with some heating forming in her cheeks from the embarrassment.
"There is nothing to worry about, miss Tempo," Luna calmed her down with a smile "My aunt and I were only having a conversation regarding some old subjects leftover from her time ruling and how they had changed since then. An excuse for us to catch up since her return."
"Oh, wonderful! It's always lovely to spend some quality time with your family. That was exactly why I'm here."
"It is?" Luna asked with a raised eyebrow
"By any chance, have you seen my sweet nephew, princess? I have been looking all over for him this morning, yet he seems to have vanished. Did he go out by chance?" She asked the Lunar Princess innocently, who continued to regard the mare with skepticism.
Didn't my nephew already clear things with her? I clearly remember watching him and Tempo ending this exact conversation before one of our sessions. I'm sure she didn't like the idea, by the restrained anger in her face.
"Indeed, he is out. Today is a special day that he and my sister were planning on spending some time together, Ms. Tempo." Luna answered, making the mare's eye widen in honest surprise, not from the event in question but the realization, confusing her in the process. "Oh right! That is today. Derp" She jokingly chastised herself by lightly patting her head and sticking out her tongue. "Oh, me and my forgetfulness."
That was almost…tame, compared to the first time she heard the news.
"It completely slipped my mind. Sorry to bother you." She waved a quick goodbye before turning around and leaving without saying another word. Luna quickly performed a discreet and silent scan on her without the mare noticing, growing confused when the spell confirmed that she was indeed the mare in question and not a changeling pretending to be her.
Once out of earshot, Platinum spoke again, standing next to Luna. "There is something strange about that pegasus, Lulu. How long did you say she will be staying here?" She wondered out loud with a raised eyebrow.
"I'm…not so sure, to be honest. I thought it would only last until Nightmare Night, but I'm starting to fear that she may want to move in and use her position as god-mother and play the "wishing for atonement" card to achieve it. At first, I liked the idea and could relate to her wanting to be better and put her bitterness behind, but there is something…odd about her. She doesn't seem dangerous or plotting anything, just…odd."
"Would you like me to keep an eye on her, dear?"
"Oh goodness no, I couldn't impose you to do…" Platinum stopped her by raising a hoof.
"Please allow me. I might have a mission, but I was also your caretaker once, and that is a job that never ends. Just relax and let mommy take care of the odd mare." She scolded her with a smile making Luna roll her eyes, but she ultimately accepted, knowing full well how stubborn Platinum can be at times. "Take a couple of my bat ponies with you, just as a small precaution, okay?"
"But of course! I'm not an idiot either. No proper princess should ever go anywhere without a proper escort. For security and as a show of glamour." She reminded her before walking away, making Luna chuckle lightly at the old lesson.
You sure drilled that lesson in our heads, auntie.
"Now, back to work, young lady! Those papers will not sign themselves." Platinum ordered from the end of the hallway before turning the corner and taking her leave, making Luna groan and slouch in laziness.
"And no slouching!" That surprised her, and she stood straight once more, looking at the empty hallway.
Wait, how did she do that?
Back at Cloudsdale
After spending the better part of 2 hours, both Scootaloo and Blue Yonder started to grasp how to fly. Soon both kids were starting to soar through the air half-decently with their parents. Allmane, in particular, couldn't have felt more proud watching her daughter finally take her first steps into learning to fly and having the opportunity to be a part of it.
As they kept practicing, Sunshine gave her son a short nod as a signal to put her plan in action. Once he was finished with yet another practiced lift-off, Blue focused his attention on Spitfire as she gave Scootaloo some pointers for the future.
"Ah, miss Spitfire?" As the mare in question turned to look at him, she was slightly startled and confused about how Blue Yonder asked for her attention in an almost whispered tone keeping his head down like he was afraid she might get angry at any minute. "Are you okay? Do you feel bad, or are you feeling sick?"
Caught off guard, she cast a sideways glance at Soarin and then Rainbow Dash, fear and anger bubbling to the surface at the prospect that they had planned something. Her rancor soon vanished; however, once she saw how they looked equally surprised. Even her mother didn't seem to know what was happening. Regaining her composure, she smiles and looks at him, trying to act as calm as possible so as not to scare the already frightened child. "I'm okay, champ. There is nothing to worry about." She played it off and messed with his mane a little bit. "Why do you ask?"
"Well, you seemed a bit tired when I saw you in the other park and when your friends and your mom came to see you, I thought something bad happened to you." He then lifted his head to look her in the eyes, showing genuine concern. "And if it isn't that, then why did they look so sad, miss Spitfire? Did you do something bad?" His question caught Spitfire entirely off guard, really not expecting a kid to be this perceptive and not knowing how even to begin to answer.
She didn't have to answer, luckily for her, because soon after, his mom came along and rescued her from what would have been a very awkward conversation.
"Yonder!" Sunshine rushed to his side and grabbed his shoulders. "I told you not to do that again," She gently reprimanded him before looking at Spitfire in embarrassment. "I'm sorry, miss Spitfire. I swear he didn't mean to put you in an uncomfortable position. He got carried away again."
Confused, Rainbow Dash approached the two with a raised eyebrow.
"Again?"
Blue Yonder, now completely ashamed and realizing his mistake, bowed to Spitfire. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, Miss Spitfire, I can't help it. When I see a pony sad, I start seeing things, and next thing I know…I'm sorry it was a slip of the tongue, I swear."
Sunshine then started to console her frightened child, pulling him closer to her with her wing before wrapping him up in a hug so he could recover before looking at the growing concerned group around the two. "Please don't hold it against him, miss Spitfire. He didn't have any ill intentions. As he says, it's something that happens from time to time."
"Ah, what exactly happens?" Spitfire fire asked, confused. Now growing concerned about what she had witnessed, as Sunshine explained.
"You see, ever since he was able to talk, my little knight here had shown to have an eye for details, in more ways than you could imagine. I wouldn't say that he has a photographic memory, though. If you give him 10 minutes and an ice-cream cone and he will forget much about the details of the place he was just in like any colt." She half-joked, trying to lighten the mood, before continuing, "But whatever he lacks in retention, he makes up for with how acute his attention to detail is, with both his surrounding and the ponies in it."
This revelation surprised Spitfire, and she turned to observe the kid who was looking down pitifully as he continued to hug his mother. "I didn't mean to stare, miss, but for me, it's hard not to notice. You looked so sad and indecisive. Like you did something wrong or wanted to ask for something but didn't know how or when, and that was eating you alive. I only wanted to help. Mom always tells me that talking always makes things better. Still, every time I try, everypony gets afraid of me, thinking I can read minds or they get angry and pretend they are okay. Please don't yell at me!" He confessed, cringing in anticipation until his mom calmed him down once more.
"Nobody is going to yell at you, sweetie. I'm sure Miss Spitfire is probably just tense from some long days at work or maybe just tired, right miss?" Sunshine looked at her, searching for approval as the wonderbolt nodded and smiled. "Y-Yeah, that is right, you caught me, champ. I haven't gotten much sleep recently" She gave a toothy grin, much to the displeasure of her teammates.
"Oh, so that's what happened?" Blue Yonder nodded, convinced, before looking at her in worry. "You should try to sleep more then miss Spitfire. You were starting to look very sad and conflicted."
Once more, Spitfire flinched at the remark before Sunshine pulled her colt away. "Now, now dear, we talked about not getting too involved. Come, what do you say if we go get you an ice-cream?"
"Oh! With toppings and syrup?" He asked excitedly, making her giggle. "Of course." She replied as they prepared to leave, followed closely by Allmane and Scootaloo, sharing a concealed wink when no pony was watching. After hearing about the treat, the filly looked at her mom with pleading eyes making Allmane chuckle and roll hers before nodding and agreeing on getting her an ice-cream as well. Leaving the wonderbolts alone. Who kept quiet, looking at their captain as she let out a sigh and looked down in shame.
"Spits" Soarin finally broke the silence and approached her. "We are not going to pressure you anymore, but if not for us, please, by the love of Celestia, at least do it for your fans. Those are the ones you are letting down the most, sharp or not. If a colt can see it, what's the point of hiding it anymore?"
For her part, Spitfire only kept her eyes closed and mentally weighed her options in frustration until she finally cracked up and looked back at him in defeat. "Okay, Soarin, you win" She then looked at Dash and her mom. "You all win, and you are right. Those idiots shocked me to the core and forced me to review many things during and after the lockdown. It was hard at first, but luckily I wasn't alone. Two ex-wonderbolts were trapped in there with me, and while we were waiting for all this mess to end, we talked a lot. About our team, how it was back in their day and an idea that could potentially restore the glory that we have lost guys." she confides to the group with a little smile. "I kept quiet because I didn't know how to tell you. And well, I needed to do a lot of soul searching… perhaps I need some more." She admitted with some level of embarrassment as she smiled again, only this time it was a real smile.
"So that was why you were acting so strange then?" Dash said in realization. "Okay, now we are making progress. That's good. It's good to know it wasn't all that bad."
"Let not get ahead of ourselves, Dash." Soaring voiced his opinion before looking at Spitfire. "Who were these supposed ex-wonderbolts that made you question so much about our team?" He asked, questioning her story
"Relax, Soarin, they are legit. You can check the records if you like, and they are cool. There's nothing to worry about with them." Spitfire dismissed his concerns before looking eagerly at her mom. "You can vouch for them, mom. One of them was even my childhood idol growing up."
At this statement, her mother's eyes widened in realization, "You mean that that mare was there? But I thought she was banished. Ever since the accident, nobody has ever seen heads or tails of her"
"I know, right! It turns out she used part of her name and went off the grid to recover, but she's back now! The mare I looked up to when I was training to become a Wonderbolt. None other than the legendary Crossfire Tempo," She proclaimed in excitement, "She and none other than her right-wing, Sharp Shooter."
Unknown to anyone in the group, a concerned Celestia was observing their conversation. She was reading their lips expertly, concealing her actions by happily eating her treat alongside her nephew. However, the mention of those two names forced her to pause as it shattered her carefully maintained facade for a brief moment as her expression turned into one of concern and surprise.
Tempo and Sharp Shooter, what did you do?