//------------------------------// // Chapter 15: Higher Living // Story: Sun & Moon Act II: A Crown Divided // by cursedchords //------------------------------// “The thing I like best about the new Equestria? The fact that my sword is now a museum piece.” - Journal of Princess Luna Several hours had passed by the time that Gala came around again. By this time, Celestia had managed to create fresh, clean copies of nearly all of the old account books. Naturally, the old pony had brought a whole new stack of invoices and receipts along with him this time, depositing them on a corner of the writing desk. “Good sales today,” he commented, still just as happy as before. “But don’t worry about them now. They can be tomorrow morning’s effort.” Though Celestia nodded and got down off of her chair, inwardly she was surprised. Perhaps it was due to the windowless room, but for her the time seemed to have flown by. She would have guessed that it was mid-afternoon, if that, but through the open door she could see that the shadows of the estate were growing longer. There was plenty of daylight left, but it was nearing time for dinner. “Well, all that I can say is thank you for allowing me the opportunity. Really, I should thank Lord Fastidious just as well.” Gala laughed. “Well, my son is currently busy dealing with your predecessor, I understand. You might want to avoid the cellar for the next week or so, you know how it is.” Celestia most certainly did not know how it was, but before she could get a chance to ask, Gala ushered her out. “Normally of course, we’d expect you to work a little longer, but I couldn’t help but notice that you’re in need of a proper uniform if you’re going to be an agent of the household. We have a good seamstress in the east wing. I’ll show you that way before you go today, and hopefully we can have something presentable for you soon enough.” “Oh, of course,” she answered, walking beside the old pony as he began making his way back through the hall again. He was a quick pony in spite of his age, and Celestia found that she had to put a little pace into her stride to keep up, even in spite of the height difference between them. “So you are the elder Lord then, Mister Gala?” “Apologies for not introducing myself properly earlier,” he said, coughing into his hoof. “Lord Gala Appleton III. My son Fastidious has the seat right now, but I am still the stallion in charge of this household.” “Ah, I see.” They re-emerged into the main hall of the house, the staircase to the right leading up to the second floor, and this time Celestia noticed a whole troupe of other ponies sprinkled throughout the space, one mare washing the floor far to the rear of the house, another dusting one of the wall hangings nearby, and a third shepherding a bucket of ice on wheels towards one of the other halls that departed the space. Had the place been this busy the first time she had come in? Celestia realized that she probably wouldn’t even have noticed if it was. “The orchard has been long in the family then?” “Why, the longest!” Gala proclaimed, puffing out his chest as he said the words. “The Rose et Blanc has been the seat of House Appleton for nearly eight hundred years, right back to the founding of Equestria. We never missed a harvest, not once in all of that time. My grandfather’s grandfather, Red Appleton, was the one who negotiated our current arrangement.” He indicated a bust in a wall niche as they passed, showing a stern-looking earth pony with a heavy chain around his neck. “He wasn’t about to let Discord’s rise get in the way of our tradition, and it was his manoeuvrings that guaranteed us our little patch of sunlight. It does of course require our unremitting fealty to the crown, but it meant that we got to hold on to the orchard, and we’ve been happy with that ever since.” “Fealty? What exactly does that entail?” Gala offered her a scrutinizing look at the question, the white hair of his moustache drooping down over his mouth. “For you? Probably nothing, so long as you keep on working down here all of the time. The King wouldn’t ever visit a little operation like ours. It just means that you’ll want to keep your eyes out for anything suspicious. There are spies and saboteurs who occasionally try to come in with our seasonal workers. In fact, I’ve been talking to Screw and he’s got half a mind that we’ve got a few of them around the grounds right now.” “Spies?” Celestia asked, imagining that an upper class pony would probably find the idea scandalous, and doing her best to get that idea across. “Spies from whom?” “Hmm, you’re not from the upper reaches of Eridian then are you? A couple of fools who call themselves the ‘Resistance’, mainly.” Gala snorted as he said the word. “They probably imagine themselves to be on some noble quest to free the country, but all that they’ve ever done is make life harder for the rest of us. It would be just like them to sabotage our presses, that’s for sure. Occasionally, you also get an agent from a rival House, but that’s to be expected. We do that ourselves after all. You should see their salaries coming out of the accounts every so often.” Celestia made a mental note of that. She already had a colour of ink that she had assumed corresponded to wages, but the expenditures for it didn’t quite match up with all of the pay that the labourers received. “Well, certainly I’ll be mindful of who I talk to,” she said. “If you see anything amiss, you’ll want to alert either Fastidious or myself right away.” Gala stopped by another door, opening it to reveal what appeared almost like a shop from a market square up in Eridian. Bolts of cloth were arranged on shelves all throughout the space, and in the center a lanky beige pegasus fluttered around a drafting table, sketching up some new creation of hers. “I’ll leave you to your things,” Gala declared, stepping back into the hall once more. “Once your measurements have been taken, you can report to the larder for your first day’s pay. It’s in the back of the house; any servant will be glad to direct you. Otherwise, I suppose that I shall see you tomorrow.” Celestia watched the elder pony disappear down the hall before the seamstress noticed her standing in the doorway and bustled her inside for a marathon session of measuring and sizing of fabric. Naturally the whole process was completely foreign to the alicorn; Celestia had passed the occasional seamstress in the market squares in Eridian, but they had been limited to patching hats or mending cloaks with what bare thread they had on hoof. Getting an outfit tailored from fabric was a luxury that nopony in Eridian could ever have dreamed of. The same was likewise true for her pay when she collected it from the back of the house. The rough apples of the labourers outside were gone, replaced instead by olive oil, freshly ground flour, a few baked buns from the kitchens, and even a little cup full of sugar. They would be eating well at Rosy’s house tonight, and for a long time to come if this standard of pay kept up. Outside, Celestia saw the usual file of workers trickling out of the estate’s front gates. The Sun had drifted far enough to the west that it was below the artificial horizon created by the clouds overhead, meaning darkness had set in. The opening in the clouds just didn’t let enough light through for a proper evening. Celestia found Trinity, Wickerlock and Capstan waiting by the gates. The white earth pony saw her coming first, and at the sight of Celestia’s bulging bag of food, Trinity’s jaw dropped. She recovered herself in time to talk before Celestia could get all of the way over. “Well, I’ll be. It looks to me like she actually got the Lord’s ear.” “Tia?” Wickerlock turned around to see her coming in, and his eyes opened as wide as saucers. “You actually got yourself into the house?” “It wasn’t even that hard,” Celestia replied, skipping in the last couple of steps to land right in their group. “It was your help, Trinity, that I actually should thank most. As of today, the Lord Fastidious has a new scrivener. And we get all of the benefits associated with that.” She opened up her bag to show them all her haul. “That’s a sight if I’ve ever seen one,” Capstan said, giving her a congratulatory slap on the back of the neck. “Not bad for a day’s work, not bad at all.” “I guess you've proved me wrong,” Trinity agreed. “What exactly does that entail, doing all of his... scrivening, or whatever you call it?” “Accounting work for the most part. How much goes in and how much comes out. Whose dues and salaries are ahead of schedule and whose are behind. And of course keeping track of the inventories for the harvest going on right now. In fact, I didn’t even need to tell Fastidious how to improve his operation. All I needed to do was fix up his books for him, and that was all he needed to see.” Seeing the smiles that lit up on all of her friend’s faces as she detailed all that her day had entailed put a nice warmth into her heart too. They would all share in the riches that she’d brought back, after all. “Wait until Rosy sees some of this!” Capstan said, excitedly holding up the sugar. “Why, we could have some proper baking for once. I’m sure that little Luna will enjoy that most.” “Certainly she will,” Wickerlock replied, equally as jubilant. “Though let’s face it, none of us know what a proper dessert tastes like either. It may not be much, but it will be Moon’s Eve at the house tonight for sure.” “Not just tonight.” Celestia offered the bag to him so that everything could be returned to its safe place. “It’s not like this is a signing bonus or anything. I’ll be bringing home food like this for the future as far as I can see.” Wickerlock looked about ready to faint at that news, and admittedly even Celestia could barely believe it as she said the words. So suddenly, everything had changed for them. There was hope in Discord’s Equestria, it seemed. “Well, hopefully you all enjoy that,” Trinity said, sounding a little forlorn. They had walked out of the orchard, and had reached the fork in the road where she usually departed, heading off for wherever she made her home. “I suppose that I’ll see you tomorrow then.” She split from the group with a little wave, and started walking off, but Celestia knew that she couldn’t let that stand. She had Trinity to thank for her new position as much as any other, and certainly it couldn’t be right to let her friend have only another night of apples in the cold. “Wait, Trinity!” Celestia called, causing the earth pony to stop and turn around, still looking listless. “Would you like to come stay with us for the night?” Celestia asked, looking around at the others to make sure that they approved. Neither Wickerlock or Capstan voiced any objections. Trinity shook her head right away. “Nah, you go on, I’ll be fine. I wouldn’t want to impose on what’s certainly going to be a special night.” “Well, that’s just it, though,” Celestia said, trotting over to where Trinity was standing on the path. To be fair, Trinity had never told her precisely what her accommodations were like, but Celestia would bet her horn that it wasn’t anything close to what they were going to be having tonight. “You’re a friend, and I do appreciate what you’ve done to allow this to happen. It would put a damper on our celebration knowing that you were out there wishing to be a part of it.” “Aw, that’s so sweet of you,” Trinity replied, offering Celestia a warm hug. “Of course I have to accept it if you won’t take no for an answer. I guess that I’ll finally get a chance to meet this Rosy pony that you’re always going on about. And little Luna too.” Celestia offered her a conspiratorial look. “I think that Luna will get along just fine with you. She spends all day cooped up in the house after all. Just the chance to see an unfamiliar face will probably make her night all on its own.” “Sounds fun. Let's be off then, I guess.” Trinity gave her a wink. “Unless you want to stand around trying to convince me until it’s time for work tomorrow?” For an instant, Celestia could only give her a blank, confused look. Then Trinity started laughing, and all of them joined in. Finding work at the orchard had been great, and having some relative security in their survival was nice too. But even in spite of the treasure that she was carrying home with her tonight, somehow Celestia felt that knowing Trinity was the real reward of these past few days. Rosy greeted them at the door as usual, a pot of water ready to go in the fire pit, with some more potatoes waiting beside it. While their pay was all in apples, Rosy and Luna went about to the market squares while they worked, trading around until they found some other food. A little variety went a long way. Even for that reason alone, tonight’s feast was going to taste even better. “Aunt Rosy,” Celestia said as soon as the door was opened. “This is Trinity. Do you remember that I was talking about her a few days ago?” “Why, of course, dear,” Rosy exclaimed, coming down the steps to pump Trinity’s hoof a couple of times. “I can’t say that we’ll have much to offer you, but the door is always open to a friend.” “Well,” Trinity said, directing Rosy’s gaze over to the bulging sack that Celestia was still carrying. “Tonight you might have a little more than you thought.” Rosy’s eyes lit up when she saw inside the bag. “Flour? Oil? And is this sugar? My, I feel like I’m about to faint!” From the sudden paleness in her face, Celestia felt like she really meant that. “Tell me that you didn’t knock over a merchant on the way back home?” “Of course not, Rosy!” Capstan said. “What sort of villains do you think that we are? Celestia here earned herself a promotion, and the increase in pay that comes along with it. That said, we are starving just like normal. Let’s get this stuff on the fire, why don’t we?” From the questioning way that Rosy was looking at her, Celestia knew that she would have to be telling the whole story after dinner was done. But at least Rosy was quick to take the sack and trot back inside, unloading everything right away in the kitchen area, and getting started on sorting things out. Celestia gestured Trinity inside. “It’s an expansive place, at least,” her friend said once she was over the threshold. “It probably gets pretty cold in here at night.” “That’s why we sleep over there.” Celestia indicated the cozy little arrangement of beds and covers that was sitting in the corner. Just as usual, as soon as she was inside the house and not seeing Luna, that little ball of anxiety formed in the pit of her stomach. Usually, if she wasn’t anywhere to be seen, Luna was hiding in the covers. She started walking that way. “You’re pretty lucky to have found someplace safe,” Trinity said, following along behind her by about half a step. Celestia tried to peer over the covers of the nearest bed, but Luna wasn’t in that one. Her anxiety crept up a bit. “Safe? I suppose. We still have to blockade the door every night, just in case brigands come by looking for something to steal.” She stepped in behind the first frame, to find her and Wickerlock’s empty sheets there. Still no sign of her sister. “Well, you should count yourself lucky anyway.” Trinity ran a hoof over the blankets as she walked by, lingering for a moment on them. Rosy had made all of the quilts herself in her younger years, when sewing had been her trade. “I know a lot of ponies who would be jealous of living quarters like these.” Celestia rounded the pair of bed frames to get into the back of the sleeping area, nestled into the deep recesses of the chamber’s corner. There were three final beds here: Capstan’s, Rosy’s, and Luna’s, smaller than all of the others but slowly getting larger as the years went on. Celestia could still remember the years of Luna’s crib, dark as they were. Tonight though, the ball of anxiety rose up into her throat as she came around the corner, and then dissipated all at once. Luna was safe in her bed, the cover tucked up under her chin, fast asleep. Rosy must have given her something to eat earlier, or else she surely would have been eager for their supper now. Trinity saw her relax her shoulders. “This would be Luna then. My, she is quite the adorable little filly, isn’t she?” Celestia sat down gently on the edge of her own resting spot, careful so as to not creak the wood and cause her sister to wake up. Luna looked so content as she lay there, the lids of her big eyes drawn down, the tufts of her dark blue mane curling around her horn. She looked peaceful, just as any filly her age should know every day. “She’s perfect,” Celestia whispered, reaching out a hoof almost to stroke her sister’s hair, but then thinking better of it and only letting her leg rest on the frame. “Some day she will have to understand the way that the world works, just like all of us already do. However, the later that I can make that day, the better for her it will be.” Trinity set herself down on the edge of Capstan’s bed, again very gently. There was a silence for a second, save for the very light sound of Luna’s breaths, before she spoke up again. “I never knew what it would be like to have a sibling. Mother and Father… well, I can barely remember them now. I was really young when we had to separate. For so long, all that I had to care about was myself.” She offered Celestia a look, her eyes open and curious, with just a hint of a smile. “It’s different when you have somepony else to care for, isn’t it?” “Surely you have friends that you’ve made over the years?” Trinity nodded. “A few, but never for long. We always have to go our separate ways, never staying around for more than a year at most. With this job, maybe things will be different, but I don’t know. You’ve got a whole group you can depend on though.” Celestia turned her eyes back to her sister, though she didn’t really study Luna’s face. More so she was looking in that general direction, at nothing in particular. “Finding Rosy and the others was luck. But you’re right, Luna is different. She’s family, all that I have left. I couldn’t bear to lose her, not ever.” Celestia felt a hoof on her shoulder, and looked up to see Trinity now standing there. “You won’t, Celestia. While you’re here to protect her, your sister has nothing to fear. Not a thing.” She had on a warm smile, and all at once the two of them came together in a soft hug. “Thanks a lot,” Celestia said, feeling like she was on the verge of tears, for some reason. “Thanks for being a friend, Trinity.” “Don’t mention it,” the white earth pony returned, letting go. “I don’t know if I’ll ever fully understand the bond that you and Luna have, but I know enough to see that it’s something Equestria needs more of.” As she came back onto her four hooves, Celestia offered Trinity a gentle laugh. Those tears seemed to have retreated, for the moment at least. “It’s stressful, but it’s absolutely worth it. And now, thanks to Fastidious, I can make sure that she will have the foalhood that every pony deserves.” The two of them began their walk back out into the open space of the main hall. A delectable aroma was now wafting over from the kitchen, and one whiff set Celestia’s mouth watering. It was almost a shame that she was going to have to save some for Luna to enjoy afterward. “About that,” Trinity said once they were safely away from Luna’s range of hearing. “You said before that the job was mostly a matter of organizing Fastidious’s accounts?” “Yes, that’s about it. I imagine that I may have to copy out a memo or two for him now and then, but for the most part it’s all figures.” “Did you happen to get an impression of how the orchard was faring?” Trinity continued, casual. Celestia didn’t really want to be thinking about work right now, but even so the question wasn’t a difficult one. “Well, I think that you were right about the tension at the top, if the ease with which I was able to secure the position meant anything. Fastidious’s previous scrivener was skimming off the accounts, and the mechanical failures about the place have been cutting into the production deliveries.” She tried to focus on what she remembered from the ledgers, but the smell of the warm buns toasting on the kitchen fire was blurring everything out. “Sorry, Trinity, but honestly I’m too hungry to think about any of that right now.” “Of course,” Trinity said, a grin back on her face, though Celestia noticed a subtle wobble in her hooves, a sign that Trinity’s hunger was getting the best of her too. “I shouldn’t be so concerned about the security of that place, especially now with you in charge of the books. Now let’s celebrate!” In the kitchen, Wickerlock pulled two of the buns off the fire, and Celestia took them both with her magic, along with a couple of boiled potatoes from their usual supply. The texture of the dough was crisp and fluffy, and oh-so deliciously warm. If this was to be every meal for the rest of her life, then Celestia would take them with pleasure. Afterward, as she had known she would, Rosy made her recount every detail of the story, right down to the gritty details about the insides of the Lord’s Manor. Full and contented, now Celestia had no issue in remembering, and indeed she had to answer questions from all four of them until long after the meal was done. Interestingly enough, Trinity’s questions were mostly in the same vein as before, focusing on details of what she’d seen in the account books, but clearly Trinity wanted to be sure that her pay was going to keep coming regularly. Well, if Celestia had any say about it, she would make sure that it did.