Rainbow Dash couldn't believe she let herself get talked into flying all the way back to Ponyville. Well if the Guard was doing it, maybe she should do it too. She was going to have to go back to Canterlot to get her uniform back from the Castle staff anyway. As for the flight, it wasn’t so bad, just a little on the boring side. Then again a trip on the train is only bearable when there is good company.
It didn’t take too long to get back to Ponyville, and Dash cruised on down to the Carousel Boutique and landed. The open sign was displayed so she reached out and gave the door a push. The door swung in and Dash entered.
“Welcome to the Carousel Boutique where everything is sheik, unique, oh it’s just you.”
“Well good to see you too,” Dash replied.
“Something tells me you aren’t here to procure a new dress, darling.”
“We need to talk.”
“Oh? Sounds like something serious?” Rarity teased.
“Princess Celestia on the warpath serious.”
“Pardon?”
“What happened at the School for Gifted Unicorns?”
“I don’t see as that would be any concern of yours?”
“Ordinarily it wouldn't, except that I was in the company of Princess Luna up in Canterlot when Princess Celestia had a bunch of ponies hauled off in chains.”
“Wait, what?” Now Rarity was beginning to become concerned. “This better not be a prank, because if it is it’s in bad taste. What were you doing in Canterlot in the first place?”
“Spoiled Rich showed up at the Ponyville Guard station last night. Drunk as a lord. I was covering for the pony who normally does that shift.”
“Guard? Ha, that’s the funniest thing I’ve ever heard.”
“I’m the Captain of the weather team. That position requires a specialist rating or above in the Guard. I’m a specialist in the guard. I arrested Spoiled Rich last night for public drunkenness and making threats against Princess Sunset Shimmer among other threats she made. By Celestia that Mare doesn’t know when to shut up.”
“Now you can’t possibly take something like that seriously?”
“Maybe not, but she was still drunk and disorderly which deserves a night in the lock-up. That and Sunset had put Diamond Tiara in her place earlier in the day so the mare was ripe with hate. What made things worse is that someone put out a hit on Princess Sunset. She is Celestia’s daughter after all.”
“The plot thickens. So how does that get you in Canterlot? Surely she would have spent the night in the lock-up and paid a fine and it would have been over.”
“Mr Rich showed up when Commander Sparkle was there and tried to bribe him.”
“Sparkle?”
“Twilight’s big brother, Shining Armor. And he’s as big a stickler for doing things by the book as Twilight. I had to go to Canterlot to make a statement and ended up in the company of Princess Luna and others. Tell me, did you have one of those confirmation letters?”
“I… I did. One of my contacts in Canterlot heard about them, so I sent a strongly worded letter reminding whoever it was who came up with that that I’m a Bouffant and just because I choose to live in Ponyville is no reason to be excluding my Sweetie.”
“You got a letter of acceptance?”
“I did. I spent an entire week making Sweetie Belle practice her magic, I get up there, they do an interview and never even bothered to test Sweetie.”
“Rarity.”
“Yes?”
“Put all that in writing, and have Spike send it to Princess Celestia.”
“You’re serious?”
“When Sunset Shimmer was a little filly her foster parents dumped her in an orphanage, she was abused in the school she ended up in, and when she broke… I’m to understand that the only thing left of her classroom was a crater. Princess Celestia’s school exists to prevent that sort of thing from happening by providing specialized education to unicorns who could potentially be a hazard to themselves and others.”
“I see,” Rarity said softly. “And as much as I hate to admit it, that describes Sweetie on multiple levels.”
“You’re probably going to have to go back up to Canterlot with Sweetie so she can be properly evaluated,” Dash offered.
“I really need to make a statement?”
“Princess Luna seems to think it would be a good idea. Best get started now and don’t leave anything out and that includes my telling you that this was at Princess Luna’s request.”
“And what will you be doing?”
“Rarity, I’ve been up a good thirty-six hours more or less. I’m going to go try to get a nap before my next shift starts. Right now it’s Commander Armor’s ponies running the local guard. Statements were made by Mr Rich that’s gotten several of our locals suspended pending an investigation.” Dash took in a big breath which turned into a yawn. “Sorry, I’ve got to go get some sleep,” and with that, Dash turned and exited the dress shop.
Rarity arrived at the Ponyville Library late that afternoon. “Twilight darling? Might I borrow Spike for a moment? Twilight?”
“Oh, hi Rarity. We were just reorganizing the library,” Twilight offered with the air of someone who’d never had more fun in her life.
“Hi Rarity,” Spike said nearly drooling while he said it.
“I need Spike to send something to Princess Celestia right away.”
“This doesn’t have anything to do with Diamond Tiara does it. I hear they are having an issue regarding finding any suitable foster parents in Ponyville willing to take her. Those who’ve expressed an interest have had questionable motives.”
“No, I’m afraid not, and I’d never do that to Sweetie Belle. That filly is a horror. Here, you might as well have a look so you’ll have some idea what’s going on.”
“Um, alright…” Twilight said as Rarity passed over a small packet from her saddlebag. Twilight opened it up, went through about half, stopped, started over, read the whole thing, and then went back over it again several times.
“Princess Celestia is probably furious,” Twilight finally said.
“And Sweetie and I are right in the thick of it.”
“Oh dear,” Twilight said softly. “But I don’t understand why you are doing all this, putting yourself out like this, and not your parents?”
“Twilight, that’s not really something I wish to discuss,” Rarity scolded while making a quick glance down at Spike. “Listen, I spend a lot of time with her, far more than my parents. Twilight, she burns orange juice.”
“Orange juice?”
“She pours it in a glass and levitates it over to the table. By the time she gets it there, her telekinetic field has cooked the juice. It doesn't happen very often, but it happens. I’ve forbidden her to use her telekinesis on anything living or flammable.”
“Oh my?!” Twilight was astonished. “That sounds like a surge of some kind. Listen, I’m going to write a cover letter for you, and then I think Sweetie Belle should come to see me daily until school starts. I can have her do some of the drills I had to do.”
“I’ve given her drills to do,” Rarity offered. “If you can help her that would be great.”
“Well, I am a graduate of Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns,” Twilight said proudly but became concerned when Rarity became a little downcast in reaction to Twilight’s pronouncement.
“I was ahead of you in the same school,” Rarity offered quietly. “Life got complicated and I had to drop out when I was still a teenager.”
“How complicated could it be?” Spike asked sounding confused. “Did you tell Princess Celestia?”
“Spike,” Twilight cautioned as a nagging suspicion began to creep over her.
“I did, dear Spikey,” Rarity offered. “When you get older you will come to understand that sometimes life will send us in a direction we hadn’t planned. When that happens all we can do is ride it out as best we can, and perhaps, in the end, we will find ourselves living a much richer life than when we started.”
“Hu?” Spike was just confused.
“Just let me get that cover letter.” Twilight offered. A short time later Rarity’s packet was off to Princess Celestia.
“Tia?” Luna queried as she poked her head in Princess Celestia’s office.
“Did you enjoy your nap?” Celestia replied a bit harsher than she had intended. “Sorry, it’s been a long day.”
“I hope to in time pick up more slack, as it were,” Luna offered. “I’ve been spending time every evening with Commander Mouse to better acclimate myself to how things are done now. I’m also slowly catching up on all the new laws thanks to my classes. And, well, that is to say. If it is permissible…”
“What do you want? To start up Night Court again?”
“Oh no, I’m nowhere near ready to do that,” Luna offered. “I wish to make myself available as a teacher in the magical arts. At your school.”
“You’re not accredited. Oh, who am I fooling, I just arrested the pony who came up with the latest requirements. And to add to my frustration he’s somehow pushed through ‘reforms’ that made his little power play appear to be legal in the eyes of the law.”
“Surely you never signed off on them?”
“No, I did not. The way the system works is that in order to not be completely overwhelmed by every little thing, a lot of, shall we say, low-level decisions are never elevated to my office unless they get challenged and somehow make it past the courts.”
“So, are you still leveling a charge of treason against him?”
“I am, and I’ve expanded the charges to every pony who supported his actions. The school is not actually part, and parcel of the local school district. It is in fact my own personal project located on property that is part of the Canterlot Royal Administrative district. What happens within is subject to my whims and no pony can overrule my authority. What they did amounted to a power grab that benefited a certain faction within the nobility and violated the authority of the crown. They’ve been whittling away at my authority for some time now and it’s time I start pushing back.”
Just then Rarity’s packet popped in to drop on Celestia’s desk. Luna took that moment of her sister's distraction to enter the room and sit in an available seat.
“The last thing I want is to be a despot, but if I allow them to have their way on such matters,” Celestia explained as she took up the packet in her magic and opened it up. “I’d become redundant. A puppet while they themselves destroy everything we’ve built over the years just to enrich themselves.”
“Everything you’ve built.” Luna offered.
“Not by myself. I have always had my allies, dear sister. If not I would have turned my back on these foolish foals and let them have the end they deserve.” Celestia stopped as she looked over the contents of the packet.
“Twilight says Sweetie burns orange juice while holding it in her telekinesis,” Celestia announced as she looked over the statement.
“We had hoped to meet up with them at the school,” Luna offered. “Once you’d told us there was no seminar that left testing at the school, and she just didn’t want to say anything.”
“She says she made up the story about the seminar in case Sweetie was rejected.”
“She really cares for her sister to go to such lengths.”
“They’re not sisters,” Celestia informed Luna. “Well, if you are going to be a teacher you’ll need to know. And I’m sorry to say it was Rarity who was at fault. She is or at least has become the very epitome of grace and generosity. It’s just that she wasn’t always the pony she is now. While growing up she demonstrated time and time again that all she cared about was advancing herself in noble society and was willing to do anything to do it. Or to use the more vulgar vernacular, she was a dirty little gold digger. Due to the prevailing attitudes of the more uptight ponies in Canterlot, the colt involved, a Junior ROTC cadet, had received no sex education and didn’t have a clue where babies came from. Miss Rarity knew full well what she was doing and tried to force him to marry her and it would have worked save for one little issue – two actually. She’d filed for support before the dirty deed had been done and neither was of legal age and could not enter into a contract of marriage. The family was obligated to provide support, but no marriage, and no status.” She put the statement down. “She made a huge mistake and had to live with the consequences. Which was a horrible shame because she is nearly as talented as Twilight.”
“So what does she say?”
“She’d gotten wind of what was going on and decided that the risk was worth it to make sure Sweetie got into the school.”
“Something tells me she doesn’t regret Sweetie,” Luna offered. “Oh, I’m sure that there is plenty she regrets, but Sweetie isn’t one. Just like I could never regret Nova. She and the connections she has made have been a lifeline for me.”
“My greatest regrets are having allowed myself to be manipulated, losing you, and this corner in the guise of a pedestal I let myself get backed into.”
“Well then, perhaps we should run away. All of us,” Luna offered. “Start a new kingdom only this time we’ll know better and won’t fall to the same traps.”
“It is tempting, though I fear that those who dare to call themselves noble would soon find themselves skewered on the end of a dragon’s lance inside of six months. Make no mistake, we are on good terms with the dragons, but I can guarantee that they will not suffer fools for very long. That and I have an agreement with Lord Torch.” She gave Luna a wink.