//------------------------------// // Chapter 4: The Things We Can't See // Story: Deuces Wild // by Iron Hooves //------------------------------// Note from Iron Hooves: All the images that I will use in this story will be ones that I have personally drawn and I will add reference links and music links from YouTube (middle click the link or open into a new tab) to help create a more in depth mood and atmosphere for the piece as a whole. I hope you all enjoy it. Chapter 4: The Things We Can't See "What do you mean 'It's not working'??" Gilda's eyes widen and her voice cracked. "You have done this spell before...right?" "Of course, Trixie has done it before! She's done the spell many times before.....just...” Trixie's speech became incoherent and quiet as she realized that she never cast the cloaking spell on anything as complex as a full-grown griffin, or any living being for that matter. “Well??” Gilda's cry was one octave short of screaming at Trixie. "Trixie has cast it upon smaller objects, like rocks or coins." She began to have a small panic attack to herself and she felt as if something had sucked the wind from her lungs. Gilda quickly saw Trixie start to gasp and flail her arms in an attempt to get more air and she began to lose balance on the fountain’s ledge. Gilda reached out and caught her before she was about to fall into the water. “Okay....the first thing you need to do is calm down and breathe.” Gilda grabbed Trixie shoulders and grasped them tightly. Trixie closed her eyes and went from hyperventilating to longer, but still sporadic gasping of air until finally she was able to catch her breath. Gilda looked down into the fountain as the moonlight shined on a coin that was inside of it. “Try the spell with this bit.” Gilda reached to the bottom of the fountain and pulled out a single bit from it. She flipped it with her thumb and Trixie caught it mid-air with her magic. The unicorn stared at the bit and began to concentrate. The aura surrounding the bit illuminated with a searing incandescent blaze until it burst into a flash of light before disappearing from sight. Trixie opened her eyes and released the coin, only to hear a splash from the water. The two looked into the fountain and saw ripples left in its wake as the ghostly coin hit the bottom. Trixie forced the coin back up from the water with her magic and within an instant she was able to revert the concealed coin back to its original state. Gilda seized the coin away from Trixie and examined it thoroughly. “Not bad! Now try it with that statue...” Gilda took the bit and chucked it at the pegasi statue in the center of the fountain. The impact of the coin reverberated against the iron with a deep clank that echoed in the evening air. Trixie focused on the figure and closed her eyes again. The luminosity of her magic enveloped it and began to flicker with diminutive bolts of electricity coursing throughout the sculpture. With a blinding flash, the statue disappeared from sight, only leaving a lingering radiance from Trixie's magic. The colors intermingled with the ever growing dusk and the light from it seemed to brighten the immediate area, if only for a second. Trixie panted and smiled slightly at the feat she just accomplished, she knew that this was the largest object that she had ever cast the cloaking spell upon. Gilda cleared her throat, breaking Trixie from her moment of achievement. Trixie began to concentrate once more and with a little more applied effort, she surrounded the statue with the glow of her magic. Within seconds, the statue reappeared before them. The two let out a collective sigh at the sight of it. “Okay... are you ready?” Gilda broke the moment with a hesitant but reassuring tone. Trixie nodded and closed her eyes, feeling her muscles strain as she focused her magic and concentrated solely on Gilda. Her horn began to emit irregular sparks of light and the light started to fade. She began to pant and felt her temples throb. After a few moments, she allowed herself to regain her composure and tried again. Her spell was interrupted when the Canterlot Castle's bell tower began to resonate seven times to indicate that dusk had arrived. The initial ring of the first 'dong' struck a chord deep into the pair with ominous agitation, startling them both. Trixie and Gilda stared at the castle as the torches surrounding its perimeter began to mystically burn as if they had been fueled by eternal flames. "Maybe The Great and Powerful Trixie should ask for help from somepony greater and more powerful than she is." Gilda said with an earnest attempt to hide her sarcasm. As the last bell rung, Trixie looked up to the balcony atop the castle and saw Princess Luna standing from it, studying her night sky intently. “Trixie will correct this! She shall return!” In a flash, Trixie began to gallop towards the castle, leaving a trail of dust behind her. Gilda coughed as the dust filled her lungs and she watched Trixie vanish in the distance. “Okay...I guess I'll just wait here...” Gilda stared at the castle before she turned back to the night sky. 'It's not like I have a choice...' --------------------------------------------------- Luna was entranced in deep concentration as she began to individually embellish each star. Her magic cradled each as if they were her own children, delicately shifting their set constellations. As Luna's magic began to fade as she opened her eyes, she scanned the sky for any imperfections that she wished to fix and smiled when she couldn't find any. Celestia stood behind Luna and watched in humble admiration of her sister's work for the evening. Luna's moon gleamed with a immense transcendental luster that the Goddess of the Sun couldn't mimic in the slightest. “Sister, your craft of painting the night sky is unparalleled to any that I have created in your absence.” Celestia's eyes maintained on admiring her work. “We have yearned to feel the evening breeze through our mane once again. How we've missed it so....” Luna wiped her forehead free of sweat and sighed. “We do not remember the night being so untamed.” “You never made it look easy, Luna.” Celestia approached Luna carefully and gently nuzzled her neck with her own. Luna reflexively withdrew from her sister's touch, prompting Celestia to frown. “Sister, do not patronize us. We are not a little filly anymore.” Luna began to shift her shoulders away from her sister and moved to the other end of the balcony. “Luna, I was being sincere... We need to....we have to get past what happened..... please, my dear sister.” Celestia turned to her sister and tried to reach out to her, but Luna turned her back towards her sister. “We do not wish to speak of it.” Luna was stern and brief as she spoke. “Luna....please.” Celestia pleaded with Luna to no avail. The crepuscule sky began to blacken with an acherontic darkness that matched the turnoil within the Princess of the Night. “Or what, dear sister? You will banish us once more?” Luna's voice was dripping with spite for what Celestia had done and she knew that her words cut deep within her sister's regal veneer. “They were to have you killed! I didn't have any other options to save you!” Celestia pleaded to her sister in desperation. “Maybe you should have killed us yourself!” Luna shouted in the Royal Canterlot voice and it seemed as if the whole of Equestria fell silent at its sheer volume. Celestia tried to think of something to say to comfort her sister but felt as if her eternal spirit had been ripped from her core. She said nothing and without reserve tears ran down her cheek. Luna walked past her sister from the balcony without a second glance. “Perhaps a walk around the castle will help us clear our thoughts...we still need more time alone.” Luna avoided her sister's eyes as she slowly headed for the door. “One thousand years was not enough penance for our sins...” Luna used her magic to quietly close the door behind her and Celestia helplessly stared as she left. Celestia was alone again as she was before, still half excepting Luna to return as she did for the last one thousand years. With a heavy heart, Celestia sighed and turned to the night sky. It's tranquilly gave her little solace as she pondered how long it would take her sister to truly return to her; for them to return to as it was before the Nightmare. --------------------------------------------------- The entrance to the castle was heavily guarded as the consulates concluded business and retired for the evening. Trixie hid behind some brush near the doors and waited for an opportune moment to sneak in. She was only able to hear conversations of the departing bureaucolts. “How did your meeting with Celestia go?” “We accomplished nothing in the permit or zoning discussions. She spent the entire time staring out the window.” “Is it just me or has she not been herself lately?” “She's been acting odd since her sister's returned.” “Well, she better get herself together before the diplomatic talks with the chancellor of Gryphondor. Celestia knows that the peace talks are crucial at this point.” “Honestly, I question her ability to rule effectively now that we've returned to a diarchy...” “You shouldn't speak ill of her....she might banish you to the moon!” The bureaucolts' began to laugh, their voices faded as they continued to walked away from the grounds of the castle. Trixie saw it as the perfect opportunity to sneak into through the open door, however she found that it was being kept under surveillance by two members of the royal guard. She looked further down and found a window that was slightly ajar. Trixie thought quickly, and found a small pebble near her feet and launched it with her magic in the opposite direction. The guards' ears perked back at the intrusive sound and after nodding with each other, they went to investigate the noise. Trixie ran along the perimeter of the castle until she reached the window and struggled to climb in. She was able to use her magic to give herself an extra boost and fell into the castle. Trixie picked herself up and smiled slightly. 'Heh....piece of cake...' Trixie thought to herself while dusting off her back legs. She turned around and was immediately met with the piercing eyes of a large unicorn stallion dressed in royal armor. “Halt! This is a restricted area!” The royal guard promptly stomped his hoof on the tiled floor to assert his authority. “She didn't know....she's sorry...” Trixie's voice stammered as she was accosted by the unicorn guard. As he approached Trixie, she saw his Prussian blue coat and his midnight black mane beneath his golden-clad helmet. His cutie mark was covered by a chain-mail armor over his haunches that glistened from the moon light. “No excuses! By Equestrian law, I place you under arrest for trespassing within the royal halls without prior consent.” The guard spoke with unbridled authority. Trixie's legs locked up as she felt the wall make contact with her back as she tried to slowly cower into the corner to avoid the guard. She closed her eyes and heard the voice of a mare with a stern assertive tone. “Nightshade, that's enough!” The voice echoed through the halls and the two unicorns immediately turned to see where the sound originated from. The corridor that led to the end of the hall was cast in shadows, only small flickering candles lit the figure as it approached them. Luna emerged from her cover of darkness. “...Your Highness!” Nightshade bowed and looked up to the Princess. “This unicorn was trespassing within the royal halls. I was able to stop her and was just about to take her into the stockades.” Nightshade explained to Luna. The alicorn looked at Trixie and saw unrestrained fear across the mare's face. Luna looked down and saw her cutie mark adorned with the crescent moon across the night sky. 'A sign, perchance?' Deep within herself, Luna felt as if this unicorn may had been sent to her, as were the stars that assisted with her liberation from her prison. Maybe this mare was sent to help her with her problem. “We shall take her from here. We wish to speak with the young mare alone. If you wish to be of service to me, please check on my sister....” Luna stopped herself from explaining the intimate issues between her and her sister in the presence of Trixie. Nightshade's initial thought was to protest this course of action in regards to the Princesses' safety, but decided against it. He saluted Luna and walked towards Celestia's chambers. "Princess Luna..." Trixie froze as she comprehended what just happened. She began to bow, however the alicorn dismissed her actions by ruffling her wings and holding up her fore hoof. "What is thy name, child?" Luna asked in a comforting tone, trying to set the unicorn at ease. "Trixie Lulamoon. She has come requesting assistance from your royal highness..." Trixie began but was immediately interrupted. "Please, call us Luna." Luna replied as Trixie swallowed and tried to calm herself down before speaking again. "Trixie needs your help, Luna." Trixie paused as she internally debated with herself on how to admit defeat. 'Should I lie and just say I'm looking for new tricks for my shows? No...she's the princess...she'd see straight through it...I'd probably get banished for lying....' "What may we assist you with, daughter of Lulamoon?" Luna spoke with a firm tone that broke Trixie from her thoughts. "Trixie cast a cloaking spell on her friend and now....she can't fix it." As the words formed from her mind into speech, two things abruptly hit her. The first was that she could admit that she was helpless to correct this problem she created on her own. That really didn't bother her as much as the second one: She had called Gilda her friend. Trixie had selfishly risk her only real friend's well being to promote herself. The feeling itself was on the tart end of bittersweet. "Come, Trixie. We know of such a book that may hold answers to your problem." When Luna spoke, it had broken Trixie from her thoughts and she nodded in compliance. Luna led Trixie through the halls of the east wing of Canterlot Castle. The royal guards stood at attention nervously as the princess passed each one, though Luna paid no mind to their displays of obedience. Trixie did notice however, that once the two had walked past each guard, they immediately sighed and returned to a more relaxed posture. "Much has changed in these halls since we were here last... we suppose the more contemporary facade were not of our sister's designs. This material leaves a bit to be desired." Luna stopped in front of a large door and scratched her hoof against the red tapestry that extended the length of the hall. The fabric was thin and gave way to the alicorn's touch and the sound of it ripping echoed throughout the halls. Several members of the royal staff immediately came galloping up and gasped in horror at the sight. “Do away with this atrocity.” Luna pointed her hoof at the torn tapestry and the staff looked at each other hesitantly. “...But....your highness... it was a gift from Sir Gallant over seven hundred years ago to the Princess...” The help began to stammer as Luna stood over them. “Are we not your Princess as well? Does our opinion not matter?” Luna's eyes glazed over with a silky white sheen as she spoke in a thunderous voice that rung in the hallway. Each of the staff felt as if an apple had been lodged in their throats. “...Yes....your highness...” The words were barely audible over the lingering echo of Luna's voice. “Mend it, then you may return it to our sister.” Luna peered deep into their eyes and the nodded repeatedly. Trixie stood back and watched as the staff frantically ran with the tapestry in hoof down the hall and disappeared into a side room. Luna returned her sight back to the now bare stone wall and ran her hoof over it, sighing contently. It may have been a small change, but it reminded her of the way the castle use to be. “Come Trixie, let us proceed.” Luna did not look back at the unicorn before continuing to walk, but Trixie shook herself out of shock and back into reality and followed the alicorn once more. --------------------------------------------------- Gilda impatiently twitched her feathers and tapped her claw against the outer rim of the marble fountain as she waited for Trixie to return. As she watched the tower for any remote sign of movement, a small light caught her attention out of the corner of her eye. It was a firefly, sporadic and inconsistent in its flight pattern. Gilda followed it intently as it began to run into her side time and time again until she grabbed it in her talons. She held it carefully in an attempt not to hurt it, and she marveled as it began to illuminate through her translucent hand with a flickering luminosity. She felt a strange heat build inside of the outer edges of her palm and she let go of the insect when the heat got unbearable. The firefly flew out of her talons and began to fly directly into Gilda once more before drifting off into the distance. Gilda stared as it seemingly started to blend into the night sky when the realization hit her like a ton of bricks. She was invisible. She was now the ultimate predator. 'Well, at least prey can't see me now... or any of those snotty unicorns...' She chuckled at the thought and a smile began to slowly creep to her face until it extended to a wide grin. She darted into the sky with great velocity until she was high above Canterlot and began to watch for any 'prey' she could find. She was surprised at how alive the city was for the evening, there were numerous unicorns, pegasi and earth ponies about and enjoying the summer night in great merriment. Gazing over her vast territory, she scanned for her target. She peered over to the 'Barnyard Bargains', there she saw Bit putting away the last of boxes into his shop and wiping the sweat from his brow. She continued and found the bistro she had the 'luxury' of visiting prior to Trixie's performance and saw a line that extended pass the restaurant and well across to the other side of the street. Gilda grinned as she saw Fancypants preoccupied with the influx of customers, levitating multiple trays of food at once and simultaneously serving an entire section of patrons as Fleur de Lis switched between seating new guests and quickly scribbling down new orders. Gilda continued to scan the streets around Canterlot until her ears caught on to the incessant grumbling of a sterling unicorn. Her eyes focused and locked onto the stallion and a sizable smile swept across the griffin's face when she identified her target to be Silver Platter. “Bingo.” --------------------------------------------------- Nightshade walked past Celestia's room and overheard muffled sounds emulating from it. He cautiously approached and knocked with a tentative hoof. The sound echoed through the chamber and the sounds from inside ceased. As Celestia heard the knock, she quietly composed herself and closed her eyes. "Who is it?" Celestia had a hint of anticipation that Luna had returned. "It's Captain Lulamoon. I thought I had heard something." Nightshade called from behind the doors. Celestia sighed, annoyance saturating her every fiber. "Enter." The alicorn retained a somber tone as she called out. Nightshade opened her chamber doors slowly and peered inside. "Pardon my intrusion, but is everything alright?” Nightshade approached cautiously as the alicorn levitated her hair brush from her dresser and began to groom her flowing mane. "Yes, Nightshade. Thank you for your concern. I was just deep in thought. Anything to report?" Celestia forced herself to sustain eye contact with Nightshade. “We found some unicorn sneaking into the palace, however Princess Luna is now seeing to the situation. There was...something familiar about her... I can't put my hoof on it though...” As Nightshade spoke to her, he noticed Celestia begin to stopped brushing her mane at the mention of her sister's name. She lost focus of her simple task and sighed. “Princess.... are you alright?” Nightshade could easily tell when Celestia's mind was distracted, having had been under her service for a majority of his stallion hood. “Nightshade, please forgive me. My thoughts have been strained lately... I've just been worried about Luna.” Celestia returned her brush to her dresser and began to walk back to the balcony. She looked at the sky once more and savor the masterpiece that the alicorn's sister had created. “For a millennia, I waited for my sister to return to me and I still yearn for her arrival….She may be here in body, but her spirit was lost one thousand years ago.” Celestia surveyed Ponyville and could see a faint light of the tree house library which she had entrusted to her faithful student. Her thoughts drifted back to the night that Twilight and her friends had emancipated her sister from the imprisonment of the Nightmare. “Though I wish with all my heart for her to return to me, I will wait another eternity for us to be as we were before. The Elements may have freed her from the prison of her mind, but I must mend the wounds inflicted long ago...” Celestia felt herself begin to tear up, but fought the urge to do so and turned to looked at her captain with a new order. “Nightshade, I must speak with Luna. Please, could you send for her?” Celestia spoke in a reserved manner. “I shall retrieve her myself, your highness.” With a steady bow, he exited the room and Celestia nodded. She returned her gaze upon the moon and cursed the prison that held her sister captive for so long. --------------------------------------------------- The musky scent of the archives filled Trixie's nostrils and she inadvertently smiled at the comforting feeling she had associated with the stories and knowledge the library contained. "The spells you seek should be upon this shelf, unless these too have been reorganized in our absence." As Luna spoke, the spite within her voice bit down hard and the echo seemed to carry more than it was possible. Trixie's ears fell back and she hesitated to move forward at first. As Luna continued to scan the titles of the extensive catalogs, Trixie searched the shelves against the furthest wall, a majority of the texts were old hoof written manuscripts or tomes stacked on top of one another. "When Trixie was a young filly, her mother use to read bed time stories to her of the legend of your curse. Trixie never could imagine it was true." Trixie watched as Luna's expression became somber. Luna turned to an oil painting that adorned the wall of the wing's original proprietor: Starswirl the Bearded. “You know your history, my child. By chance, have you also heard of the dark time that led to the Nightmare?” Luna leaned close to Trixie as she spoke, which in turn made the unicorn involuntarily flinch. “...No.... Trixie always believed that it was merely an old mare's tale.” Trixie spoke slowly as she was unsure of what her answer might entail. She was surprised when her response was met with an aphotic chuckle. “Heh.... we suppose that we should be thankful to our sister for that only the eternal remember such darkness.” Luna continued to stare at the portrait and she traced her hoof along the frame of the canvas before swiftly turning to Trixie. “Before the dark time, there was a renaissance of knowledge throughout Equestria, with its epicenter stemming from Canterlot and all of the kingdoms that surrounded it were at peace with one another. It was not until we discovered the Elements of Harmony deep within the Canterlot mines that everything changed. They contain an ancient magic as old as time itself....Starswirl the Bearded suggested that we might be able to utilize them to lead all of Equestria into a new age of prosperity. Little did we know of the balance of the Elements; With order came chaos and with harmony came dissonance. We never truly knew the full power that we unearthed that day, however its consequences seem to have lingered to this day. The kingdoms were tore asunder by Discord's manipulation...” Luna paused as Trixie gasped at the mention of his name. “You mean Discord really existed?” Trixie was shocked to hear that the story she had associated as a lecture when she had done something wrong as a filly was not some fictitious fable. “That Draconequus more than existed...” Luna's eyes began to glow in a fury of blinding ivory inferno that blazed into Trixie's soul. She felt herself cower slightly as Luna continued. “Discord almost destroyed the foundation of Equestria. He worked with the shadows and in pure malice. When he spoke to us, he filled our thoughts with unconstrained jealousy and apprehension for our sister. He spoke of the division of night and day as disharmonious and unbalanced... and we foolishly allowed his poisonous words to infect our mind. Discord fed off our emotions and that is what led him to power. Though we were able to dispel his wrath from harming our subjects from his tyranny with our sister, his words still resided within us. It fed and manifested into the Nightmare. We remember....we were not in control when it fully consumed us...we saw what we did though...” Luna's eyes began to water as images of the devastation her actions caused across Equestria. "We tell ourselves that we differ in our minds from that of how others perceive us. They are the facades that we allow ourselves to hide behind. It protects us from presenting our true selves to others and justifies our own behaviors." Luna spoke of her regret of how she maintained herself at the time and it began to sink in. “If we had talked about our concerns with our sister instead of letting it build internally, the outcome may have been different....Trust is something that is easy to lose, but difficult to rebuild once broken...if you find one you can trust, do not let go of them.” Luna looked at Trixie and the unicorn could feel the heartache and sincerity from the Princess and Trixie could only nod. Without saying another word, the two began to look for the book once more, pulling book after book from the shelves with their magic. Finally, Luna levitated a large book and she held it with her magic in front of her face, blowing away the dust from its cover. The book was simple in design, it had no real identifying marks on it and the binding looked as if it had seen better days. Luna floated the book towards Trixie and held it in place until the unicorn grasped it. “This dissertation should have the information that you seek. You may borrow it, if you desire.” Luna looked at Trixie as she nodded and turned to glance at the portrait one last time before walking towards the window. Trixie stared at the book for a moment before carefully opening it. The dust that had settled within its pages mingled with the air and the dim streaks of crepuscular moonlight that filtered through the room emulated the specks as they floated above her. 'Let's see....Fundamentals of Magick by Starswirl the Bearded...Binding Spells...ah...Cloaking Spells.' 'During my tenure as the head of the counsel of Magick, Commander Hurricane approached me in hopes of finding a spell that would allow troops to sneak into enemy territory without been detected, and in such cases of espionage, being able to blend in as one of their own. Though both Clover the Clever and I never condoned its use for applications in warfare, its cost was much less of a toll than the loss of life. After years of researching the species known as the Changeling, we discovered...' 'Ahem.' Trixie's reading was the interrupted by the sound of Nightshade clearing his throat. Her eyes darted to him in sheer surprise. “Excuse me, Princess...your presence was requested by your sister.” Nightshade stood at the open library door and bowed to Luna. Both Trixie and Luna glanced at the stallion whom humbly kneeled before them. The princess nodded and returned her focus to Trixie. “We trust you can help yourself to the exit once you have finished? Are we correct on assuming such?” Luna asked. “Yes, she can. Thank you for your help, Princess.” Trixie nodded with a faint smile. Nightshade remained in his submissive position until Luna had passed him out in the hall, then he followed her, ignoring Trixie completely. She closed the book and smiled as she placed it inside of her saddlebag. She exited and returned to the hallway that Luna had just went down. “We sincerely thank thee, Captain.” Trixie heard Luna say as they continued to walk in the distance. Trixie began to walk down the ancient halls of the castle and she noticed that the air had a certain distingué pretension to it. She saw that the hallway led towards two large doors, one of which was slightly ajar. With her curiosity peaked, she looked around for any guards and entered the room. --------------------------------------------------- "Stupid grif! This is all her fault..." Silver Platter muttered angrily to himself as he fumbled to aline his key to the lock on the front door of his town house. Before he could successfully unlock the door, Gilda darted down with her wings tucked in tightly and with one quick swoop, she grabbed Silver Platter with her talons and wrapped them securely around his upper torso. With one quick beat of her wings, the two were high in the air before the pretentious unicorn could comprehend what was happening and that he was no longer earthbound. “AHHH!!! What's happening??” Silver Platter began to scream and Gilda laughed loud enough for the unicorn to hear her. “Who are you?? Are you the ghost of Heart Warming Eve's past?” Silver Platter began to flail his limbs erratically, causing Gilda to compensate her flight pattern to stabilize herself from the shift in weight. It wasn't hard to correct her flying, but it didn't help that she was trying not to bust up laughing at the pathetic display the unicorn was giving her. “Oh no....am I....dead...? Are you 'The Pale Horse'??” Silver Platter gasped at the horrifying revelation. An idea sparked in Gilda's head as she grinned maliciously. “Yes.....I am Death. I am here to guide you to the Great Beyond.” Gilda masked her voice by speaking with a deep raspy inflection, still trying to stifle her giggles. “Guide me to The Elysium Fields?” Silver Platter's tone had become one of unsettled distress as Gilda paused to allow his nerves to get the best of him. “....No.....Tartarus is where your judgment lies...” Gilda smile widened as she could feel the unicorn's heart rate increase and Silver Platter's coat went from a sterling sheen to a sickly pale white. “Oh no.....no no no!” Silver Platter stuttered in fear. Gilda remained silent as she flew less than a foot above the canopy line and allowed the tips of the trees to smack the unicorn in the face. She stifled her giggles as he began to spit out mouthfuls of pine needles to the ground below. "I can't die now! I'll never even get to meet my son!" Tears began to flow freely down Silver Platter's face and Gilda felt as if somepony had shoved a knife in her gut. 'Damn it....' Gilda thought to herself, immediately regretting her actions. 'I can't mess with him now...damn conscience.' She slowed her speed and began to hover over one of the pine trees. She carefully lowered him to the top of the tree, to which he promptly grabbed ahold of as she landed on the tree top next to him. Silver Platter continued to hyperventilate as he peered down what seemed like hundreds of feet to the soil below and immediately shot his head back up, shutting his eyes. "You have a kid?" Gilda let out an annoyed sigh while still trying to maintain her gruff voice. "....Yes...or will be.... My wife is expecting... We just found of the gender about two weeks ago..." Silver Platter forced himself to speak through the sobbing and Gilda felt another ping of pain fill her heart. She sat there silently and allowed Silver Platter to calm down a little bit. “I shall reconsider your life under one condition...” Gilda finally spoke again, recapturing Silver Platter's attention from the ground. “Don't let your personal views of bigotry to be passed to your kid.” Gilda spoke as she began to reminisce of her own childhood. It had been a while she truly thought about her roots, she had tried to put it behind her. “...Yes!...Please, I'll do anything you wish!” Silver Platter began to nod furiously and the tree he had latched himself upon began to sway, causing him to hold on even tighter. “I just want to go home!” “As you wish.” Without saying another word, Gilda slowly started to flap her wings and picked up the unicorn from the tree and she glided with Silver Platter until they were back at his front door. “Remember your promise.....remember....” Gilda called back to him, trying to withhold all the spite she felt for him in her voice. Once Silver Platter's hooves were back on solid ground, he began to profusely kiss it as if it were a long lost lover from his youth. Gilda rolled her eyes as she started to fly back to the fountain. In the back of her mind she could only think of one thing. “What a prick.” --------------------------------------------------- As Trixie slowly entered the room, she struggled to see through the darkness with the exception of the dull embers from a few candlelight's flame to assist her. She carefully made her way in the middle of the room when the light within the hall began to swirl and dance around her, illuminating the furthest corners of the chapel. She squinted her eyes as her pupils compensated for the new light and as they focused she noticed the walls covered in intricately placed stained-glass windows which extended across the length of the room. Towards the front of the room stood an altar, emblazoned with emeralds and pewter, along the center of the room lay candle holders twice her size, a dozen each flickering with a mystical hue. She examined the stain glass closely and she felt her heart stop when she was able to make out the unicorn that it was depicting. The mane had various shades of purple to it along with the lavender coat that covered her. 'SPARKLE.' She felt a deep flame began to ignite within her, and she let her anger overtake her mind. Blindly using her magic, she grabbed the nearest object, which just so happen to be a candlestick holder and flung it with reckless abandon into the window. The glass shattered into an explosion of multi-colored rain that cascaded down to the hall's floor in slow motion and the crash echoed throughout the castle. Trixie couldn't do anything but stare at the gaping hole where the pristine glass had been before her, when suddenly she heard shouting from outside the hall's doors and in her panic, Trixie wished for nothing more than to just simply disappear. She closed her eyes and anticipated the worst of the royal guard....imprisonment...maybe banishment.... The door swung open and Trixie felt as if there was a pine cone stuck in her throat and her heart raced. Nightshade and another unicorn guard entered the room, both were on edge and their horns were illuminated, armed and ready to fight. They peered around the room and saw that it was empty, the only thing they could see was the glass on the ground in front of them and the candlestick holder, which was about fifteen feet away outside on the ground. "Search the grounds. She can't be far." Nightshade commanded and the other guard saluted him before galloping towards the exit. Nightshade returned his gaze to the shattered glass. Trixie's heart and mind raced as she watched the events unfold before her and she could not understand in the slightest how she didn't get caught. She looked down at her hooves only to see the red carpet of the hall before her. She had cast the cloaking spell on herself without even realizing it. Trixie let out a small squeak of surprise and immediately covered her mouth with her hoof. Nightshade's attention shot up at the extrinsic sound, and unknowingly to him, he began to stare at Trixie. She could feel her heart within her throat and froze. Trixie held her breath and just told herself that this was all just a long nightmare induced by too many hay-shakes and she was actually safe in her trailer, between her warm and comfy bedsheets. She tried to force herself to wake up, but unfortunately for her, reality is a fickle mistress. She snapped back to the waking world as Nightshade turned swiftly and exited the room. To his surprise, a large crowd of royal staff had gathered outside of the entrance and when they saw him approaching, all of them averted their eyes to anywhere other than his face. His brow furrowed at this. "Will somepony get a broom in here and sweep up this mess?" Nightshade said sternly as he watched all of the staff begin to fumble over each other to accommodate their new order. Trixie continued to hold her breath for what seemed like minutes after Nightshade had left, until she couldn't bear to hold it any longer. She exhaled loudly and began to take deep, long breaths to regain her composure. Once she was able to calm herself down, she forced herself to sneak out of the chapel and started running back towards Gilda. As Trixie got closer to where she left Gilda, her pace began to slow her stride from a gallop to a methodical movement of her legs. She stopped several steps from the fountain’s edge and let herself catch her breath. When she was able to focus her thoughts again, she began to emit low pulses of magic in an attempt to locate the griffin. When she was unsuccessful, she assumed that Gilda had taken off in a fit of anger and abandoned her. “Gilda...Trixie is sorry she's a failure.” Trixie's voice was barely audible, but Gilda was able to catch the muffled tones of Trixie crying. She circled above the fountain in the sky and noticed the waves being discharge from a unseen source where the two had been. She flew down and landed besides the radiating pulses of lights, unsure where it was coming from. She reached out towards the light and felt the unicorn's supple coat. “Trixie? Is that you? What happened?” Gilda tilted her head in a failed effort to see the unicorn. “Trixie is a failure. She can't even perform basic spells correctly.” Trixie could not even acknowledge Gilda's presence near her. “What are you talking about? I thought magic was your talent.” Gilda was unsure what had happened to Trixie in her absence, but from what she could tell, it had taken it's toll on the mare. "Trixie's special ability is not magic....it is the ability to bend and manipulate light...she is an utter failure." Gilda searched her mind for something to say, but nothing came to her. These weren't exactly the types of situations that she was good at handling by herself, let alone helping someone else with. “Do you ever wish that you could just disappear?” Trixie stared into the water in a semi-comatose state. She wasn't able to see her own reflection, but instead gazed past herself to the night sky and watched as the stars became distorted. Her vision became blurred as she noticed a slow pattern of ripples forming beneath her. Trixie had become so mentally and physically exhausted that she didn't even care that she had begun to cry. "Like, if you were to vanish off the face of Equestria, do you think anypony would notice or even care?" Gilda remained silent as she thought about what to say until she heard Trixie sniffling and it broke her concentration. "No." Gilda's tone was stoic and precise. Trixie wiped her muzzle with her forehoof and looked at the griffin. "Only once you've lost everything, then you can find out who you truly are. I learned that the hard way a long time ago. All we really have in this life is who we tell ourselves we are. Others' opinions about who they think you are shouldn't matter to you. Just know that you are going to make it far, don't let anypony else tell you otherwise.” All that Gilda could see was the night sky flowing immaculately with each of the individual constellations emulating brightly. Gilda stared to the night sky as if she were searching for a better answer to give when she felt a warm embrace around her. Trixie had wrapped her arms around Gilda and buried her face into the griffin's shoulder. Gilda instinctively tried to brush Trixie off of her, but after a few seconds, she allowed herself to indulge into the enveloping mare's arms. Trixie closed her eyes and concentrated as a calming wave of self assurance washed over her. Her horn began to glow a deep mauve and her magic started to flow freely around the pair. This time, her aura had a eerie recalescence to its glow. Trixie imagined the subtle contours of Gilda's body and the complexity of each of her feathers as her magic caressed them. Trixie felt her face began to blush with a ferocious heat that she was unaccustomed to. She felt her magic surge throughout the entirety of her body and allowed herself to release it all with an unbridled wave of exhilaration. Gilda shielded her eyes as the effulgent light from Trixie's magic overtook them both and she felt the warmth of its glow overtake her. The spell enveloped her and the tingling sensation reminded her of floating in a hot spring on a crisp night. She felt to magic begin to slow and eventually the warmth dissipated from her body. She opened one of her eyes and was able to see Trixie in front of her with her eyes still shut. Gilda looked down and saw her talons grasping on to the edge of the fountain and exhaled in relief. “You did it, Trixie! You really did it!” Gilda began to chuckle and a wave of relaxation filled her. She looked at Trixie, whom still had her eyes closed and had a lugubrious expression on her face, as if she was trapped in a trance. Gilda felt her heart skip a beat as the unicorn began to lose her balance and started to collapse. The griffin quickly jumped to catch her before Trixie could hit the ground. “Trixie! Wake up!” Gilda held her head against Trixie's chest as close as she could and heard slow, shallow breathing coming from her. She held Trixie in her arms and close to her as Trixie slowly opened her eyes and her blurred sight began to focus, she was able to see the amber rays of Gilda's eyes reflecting the moon's light and it's warmth penetrated deep within her. “Did it work?” Trixie asked, the cognitive part of her brain was still reeling from the exorbitant amount of magic she had just used. Gilda cracked a slight smirk and nodded at the mare. “Dude, are you okay?” Gilda's concern inundated throughout her voice and Trixie began to lift herself off of the ground at her own accord. Gilda let go of the unicorn, but she stayed close as a support if Trixie ended up needing it. “Trixie is....fine. She is just tired.” Trixie smiled at Gilda and looked upon her with renewed admiration, then turned her attention toward the eternal fountain. "So Trixie assumes that Gilda wishes for her payment now?" Trixie began to go through the purple saddlebag, levitating then in the air and dividing them between the two of them. Gilda shook her head and held up her hand to dismiss the action. "Maybe we should hold off on that for the night, Trixie...I trust you. Besides, it's not like I'm going anywhere." Gilda yawned while she stretched her wings, followed systematically by her arms and legs. Trixie watched Gilda's face scrunch up as she yawned and an overwhelming feeling of glee filled her spirit as Gilda's words replayed in her head . 'Trixie...I trust you.' She basked in the warmth of the feeling for a moment when an idea swept through her mind. "Trixie has something she wants to show you." The mare rummaged through the second saddlebag and pulled out two large fireworks. Gilda looked over as Trixie flung both fireworks high into the air, leaving a lingering trail of green and purple behind as they begun to ignite. Once they were well above Canterlot, they burst into an explosion of emerald and violet hues that seemed to extend past the stratosphere. Trixie concentrated on the center of both explosions and began to slowly stretch the light particles outward. Gilda watched in awe as the colors from them began to melt and blend together, creating an illuminating glow that contrasted with the stars and moon across the crystalline night sky. "Trixie....it's beautiful..." Gilda leaned over and spoke softly into her ear as more smaller explosions emitted from the sky. Trixie continued to smear the light upon the Equestrian evening sky, as if it were her own personal canvas and she were an artist painting for her muse. The two sat in silence when suddenly they were interrupted by a low grumble coming from Gilda's stomach. She blushed and Trixie chuckled to herself. "Sorry...I never really got a chance to eat anything after breakfast..." Gilda rubbed her stomach in an attempt to quell it. Trixie grabbed the purple saddlebag as she remember the food that Bit had packed them for lunch and pulled out two soggy piles of mush that at one point in time had resembled food. "Trixie warned Shining Armor to mind the sandwiches..." The unicorn looked at the mangled clumps of cloth which held the once pristine meals. "Well, its not the perfect meal, but it is a great end to a long day with good company." Gilda smiled at Trixie as she popped the mashed ball of sandwich in her mouth and almost swallowed it whole. Trixie began to giggle at Gilda's etiquette, despite having despised it earlier this morning. Something felt...different this time, or at least Trixie felt that way as she watched Gilda lick her mouth. Gilda gazed into the unfathomable candour of Trixie's eyes and capture the reflected glow of the aurora borealis. She felt another pulse flow through her spine and her cheeks burn hotter as Trixie untied the blanket that she had been using as a cape and levitated it so that it covered the both of them from the crispy autumn night. “You should really change the name of your act if I'm going to be helping you out.” Gilda chuckled to herself. “To what, pray tell?” Trixie cocked her eyebrow upwards. “How about 'Gilda the Magnificent presents: The Great and Powerful Trixie!'” Gilda waved her arm in the air as if she was panning over the invisible text of the headline on the marquee. Trixie merely guffawed at the suggestion. “Trixie insists that if anything, your title should be 'sidekick'.” Trixie smirked at the griffin, whom just nudged the unicorn's shoulder playfully. The two continued stargazing and watch the colors glow brightly as it covered the moon's light. As they sat in silence, Trixie leaned her head upon Gilda's neck and gently closed her eyes. Gilda could feel her heartbeat begin to speed up as she felt Trixie's soft fur caressing her feathers and she watched the unicorn's chest as it rose and fell with every passing breath. Trixie sighed contently and began to nuzzle her cheek closer to Gilda's side, which inadvertently made the griffin rest her head against the unicorn. The quiescence of the moment lingered in the night breeze until Trixie leaned over and whispered to Gilda. “Charity and Bit offered to keep the both of us up for the night. We can catch the train out of Canterlot in the morning.” Trixie spoke quietly, in an attempt to not break the moment with Gilda, whom merely cooed dreamily in response. --------------------------------------------------- Nightshade quietly escorted Luna to her sister's bed chambers and knocked on Celestia's door once more. The door slowly opened with a golden magical aura surrounding it as Celestia continued to stand on her porch observing the night sky without moving. The two looked at the regal alicorn before glancing back to one another. “Would you require anything else of my services?” Nightshade asked and was met with Luna shaking her head in denial. “We are grateful for your assistance, thank you. All that we ask of you now is that you give us time. We have much we wish to discuss with our sister.” Luna bowed her head slightly and Nightshade closed the door tightly behind him. Luna approached her sister with the utmost discretion as she thought about what she wanted to say. 'We have had one thousand years to think of this. Why do we hesitate now?' Luna had entered the balcony and timidly sat next to her elder sister. She turned to look at the Goddess of the Sun's face only to find it was covered by her flowing mane. “Dear Luna, I have some things that I wish to say to you... I miss you. I really do. I know that it will take time for us to be as we were, but we have to at least try... Please.” “Sister....we can not express ourselves without thinking of the things we've said and the ones we've hurt, especially you...” Luna's tone began remorseful as the images of the events leading to the Nightmare incident came flashing back to her. Celestia saw her sister's abrupt change in disposition and brought her in for a tight embrace. “Luna....it is not your fault...I've told you this time and time again....” “Tia, it is! It was our doing that led to us being ostracized from Equestria, oh dear sister.... We shouldn't have allowed Discord's words to affect us. We never been jealous of your powers.” Luna broke down as she spoke, the tears flowing freely down her face. Celestia approached Luna and wrapped her wings around the alicorn and Luna reciprocated into it. The two sisters said nothing and the feelings of animosity between them melted. The tender moment was interrupted by the flash of a phosphorescent light followed by the sound of two echoing explosions. The sisters looked up from their embrace to see that the midnight sky had been illuminated in jade and amethyst. The colors bled together and gleamed with the reminiscence of the ante meridiem chromaticity while maintaining the exquisiteness of the nocturnal illusion of the night sky. Both Celestia and Luna looked to one another, as if the other had subconsciously cast the spell. Though the sisters had been separated for a millennium, they still maintained a bond that told the other that the blood that runs through them will remain the same despite any differences that may ever have. “Luna, Look at our sky, sister. It is neither yours nor mine. It is ours. It is the shared responsibility greater than one could handle alone. I need you, Luna. Not merely in a diarchial sense, but as my confidant. I need you as my best friend and so much more. I need you as my sister now more than ever.” Celestia tried to avert her tears, but she felt a breach in the facade that she had built for herself since Luna's departure. For the first time in one thousand years, the eternal alicorns felt peace within themselves. Celestia and Luna continued to watch the night sky together as they fell asleep in their embrace. --------------------------------------------------- As the two returned to the store, they observed a crowd gathering in the street and admiring the enticing beauty of the aurora borealis. Gilda noticed the expressions on each of their faces had a childlike joviality to them, pure in its utmost form. Trixie's expression on the other hoof, consisted of a mare who had mentally checked out for the day, her legs moved without their master's consent to their final destination. All she wanted was to be in a nice warm bed and nothing in Equestria would stop her from her objective. Bit and Charity stood on the porch of their store, lost in an embrace as they stargazed. The moment of halcyon between the married couple ended as they saw Trixie and Gilda approach. “Trixie! Gilda! Have you seen the night sky? Isn't it something?” Bit's enthusiasm was comparative to a young colt half his age and based off of Charity's expression, her demeanor had seemed to revert to that of her fillyhood state. The couple's affection of each other ran deep and was evident even to a blind mare. “I know! It's amazing, Trixie...” Gilda was about to speak praise of Trixie's creation, but was quickly interrupted by the unicorn. “Trixie and Gilda wish to take you up on your offer of shelter for the evening. It has been a long and trying day for both of us.” Trixie sounded half asleep and Gilda looked at her, shocked that she did not even attempt to acknowledge her effort in her creation of the aurora borealis. Charity looked at Bit and the two nodded, breaking their embrace. “Please, come in.” Charity led the two into the store as Bit locked up for the night. The four walked up the stairs, revealing that the owners lived in the second story of their store. “Luckily, we don't have to worry about commuting to work.” Bit said jokingly. Gilda chuckled a little, just to be polite to their host's attempt at humor. Trixie just kept staring forward, knowing her journey was almost complete. Her stride became heavy as she walked up the stairs, occasionally bumping into Gilda. The griffin's thoughts began to race with questions and uncertainties with each unintentional contact with the mare. “The guest bedroom is the door on the right and the bathroom is down the hall. I hope you both don't mind sharing a bed, we only have a single.” Charity vaguely waved her hoof in the general direction, but she was too lost in her husband's eyes. Trixie and Gilda looked at each other then at the door quickly. They both darted for the bedroom, pushing the other out of the way. “Thankyougoodnight!” Gilda quickly slammed the door behind them. Bit and Charity chuckled and smiled. “Ah, to be young and falling in love again...” Charity sighed contently. Bit flashed her a malicious grin. Charity blushed and pulled Bit in for a deep and passionate kiss. She led her husband into the next room and immediately locked the door. Gilda and Trixie examined the small guest bedroom. It was simple in design, a single bed, a painting of Whitetail Woods over it, a nightstand with a lamp and a window with a view of downtown Canterlot. Trixie looked out the window to see that even though a good hour had passed, the light show she had created still filled the sky and had blended with the light from the stars. She smiled and closed her eyes. 'Despite everything that has happened, you still know how to put on a good show.' Trixie thought to herself. She started to yawn and her vision began to blur. 'At least I can sleep in a bed tonight...' Trixie turned around to see that the bed in question was already occupied by a griffin who seemed quite comfortable within the sheets. “Oh no, this will not do. The Great and Powerful Trixie DEMANDS the bed for the night. She needs as much beauty rest as she can get.” Trixie stared at Gilda, whom proceeded not to give a flying pony feather about the situation. “First come, first serve. Sorry, dude.” Gilda said sarcastically with a smirk on her face while keeping her eyes shut and adjusting herself in a more comfortable position. Suddenly, she felt a familiar magnetic force push her directly off the bed and onto the hard wood floor with a loud thump. "Hey, what the hell?" Gilda protested as she rubbed the side that she fell on. Trixie crawled into the bed and using her magic, she adjusted the sheets to allow herself to get comfortable. Gilda got up and forced herself between the sheets. "Move your fat flank over!" Gilda pushed Trixie to the edge of the bed and the mare tried her best to maintain her balance. "How dare you! Trixie's flank is the finest in Equestria!" She shifted her body weight to her hips and tried to push Gilda back off the bed. "Sorry, there's only enough room in this bed for the ones that live in reality!" Gilda pushed back. The two started to wrestle for the sheets when suddenly, they both heard a loud thump. "Quit it, Gilda! You're going to break something!" "Me? If anyone is going to break something, it's going to be your fat ass breaking the bed!" Gilda began to head butt Trixie side when they heard the sound again. Thump... The two sat up side by side and stopped to listen. Thump... Thump... Trixie looked at the wall and the painting above the head board began to shake. THUMP. THUMP. The sound grew louder and the pace more rapid. Trixie's eyes widened as she realized what the sound was coming from....or rather from whom. THUMP. "Actually, you can have the bed. Trixie sees a much more appealing spot on the floor." Trixie telekinetically pulled the pillow from beneath Gilda and hopped off the bed. She put as much distance between herself and the bed by crawling to the opposite corner of the bedroom. Gilda remained sitting on the bed, confused until she listened closely and heard moaning coming from the other room. THUMP. THUMP. THUMP. 'Oh, Bit...' Gilda panicked and fell back onto the floor. She frantically began to flap her wings and hover over the bed. “I don't want the bed, I was being selfish....I'll trade you and sleep in the corner with the pillow....” Gilda said in disgust as she tried to remove the mental images of their hosts...current activities.... Trixie chuckled and Gilda shot a glare at her as Trixie swiftly hid the pillow from the griffin with an innocent grin plastered on her face. Gilda pounced straight at Trixie from the air, but Trixie countered by using her magic to smash the pillow straight into Gilda's face. She tackled Trixie back into the corner and pinned her down, grabbing the pillow from her. “Trixie demands that you....yawn....release her pillow.....” “It's not yours....I had it.....first....zzzZZzzzz.....” Exhausted from the day's events, the pair passed out still lightly jabbing each other in their sleep.