Getting measured for the dress was not as bothersome as putting it on had been. A gift from Vivienne, the dress was drawn in tight along her barrel and withers but allowed her wings freedom, with a free flowing tail that went over her haunches and hovered just above her fetlocks so there was nothing dragging on the ground to make it dirty. The colors matched her coat, shades and tints of blues that drew attention to her wings. Her hair had been done up in a thick braid that draped over her shoulder. Once the annoyance of the process wore off and she finally beheld herself in the mirror, the bittersweet thought of just how jealous Rarity would have been to see such fine work that wasn’t her own crossed Luna's mind. A little trill of delight ran through her as she took the time to admire herself in her new gown.
Flurry was not as happy in her dress, complaining as she was that it was too tight and itchy. The teals and purples drew attention to her mane, left in its natural curls. Spike wanted to be in his usual little suit and top hat and was allowed as such, with Tiberius riding on the dragon's shoulders with his own little bowtie.
Vivienne helped make some last minute adjustments to Luna's dress, the queen's own royal outfit more airy, keeping her modest, with rich reds and purples befitting her station. Instead of a crown she wore a gold tiara inset with sapphires that matched her eyes. A pair of fine velvet gloves with gold stitching sheathed the queen’s hands and talons.
"There, you are all presentable for the nobility! Please, this way."
The queen led and they followed right behind her until she paused for a moment.
"Princess Luna, Princess Flurry, please, we are peers. You may walk beside me."
"Spike's my uncle, shouldn't he walk besides us too?"
Vivienne clicked her beak and nodded. "Yes, that would be acceptable. Together then!"
They walked out into the main hall, full to the brim with griffons and ponies, nobles and industrialists, artists and military officers. A hush descended as their queen and her guests arrived at the top of the stairs, commanding, demanding, all attention be upon them.
Vivienne looked down at the gathered guests and drew herself up. With a smile, she spoke to the crowd.
"Honored guests, welcome to my humble chateau!" She waited for the chuckling to die down before continuing. "As you know, our beautiful kingdom has been visited by very famous persons whom I shall introduce to you all today. Join me in welcoming Princess Luna of Equestria, Princess Flurry Heart of the Crystal Empire, and her uncle Spike!"
There was pleasant applause from the Aquileians and Luna could not help herself but smile at the reception. Flurry tried to shy away from the attention while Spike basked in it. Together the group descended down the stairs.
"Look, Flurry, there are others your age here. Perhaps go and make some friends," Luna suggested to her niece.
Once they reached the bottom of the stairs Tiberius hopped off of Spike to land onto Flurry's back and hugged onto her. With the assurance of her little friend her mood lightened up and she began to head into the direction of the other children.
"I'll go and make sure she keeps out of trouble!" Spike said and followed after.
"Fine suggestions I was going to make myself. Come, Princess Luna, and let us meet with the movers and shakers of Aquileia. There are many keen to meet with you!"
"Truly?"
Vivienne, despite being smaller, draped her wing around the larger alicorn to help guide her along. "But of course! To your ponies you are the younger sister of Celestia, no? Even with your charms she overshadows you. But here? You are foreign royalty, something few other Aquileians will ever get the chance to meet!"
She tried not to scowl and quickly shifted her focus to the party "Your ponies and griffons mingle so effortlessly," Luna commented as the queen brought her up to a mixed group in heated debate.
"Reopening the Flowenan banks and maintaining customer privacy was a necessary measure, the queen knows what she's doing!" A monocled griffon said, wine glass in hand.
"Only because your family are one of the owners!" Another griffon snapped.
"Gentlegriffs, please," Vivienne said as she interrupted the conversation, "Reopening the banks required much thought into it! Keeping the flow of wealth through Flowena is vital to the health of Aquileia's economy. That and helping the good folk of that beautiful city remember their roots."
The monocled griffon bowed. "Of course, your highness. Many Flowenans forgot our loyalties because of Imperial influence but I extend my gratitude to you for bringing us into the fold."
Vivienne smiled. "Of course I am not here to talk about banks and gold. Allow me to introduce Princess Luna, she and her kin will be living in Aquila for sometime and experiencing our wonderful kingdom."
Luna held her hoof out and the griffon took it to kiss. "A pleasure to meet you Princess Luna. I am Gregor Vogel."
"That's Herz. Put into place by the Empire way back, then?" Luna asked as she lowered her hoof.
Gregor nodded. "Quite so, my family may have roots in the Herzland but living in Flowena has made us appreciate proper Aquileian culture! If not for naming our children after close family we would have Aquileian names. Alas, our ancestors need to be as respected as our gracious hosts."
Luna turned her attention to the other griffon. "Do you believe that reopening the banks was wrong, or maintaining client confidentiality?"
"The confidentiality. Shouldn't we be aware if Wingbardians or Herzlanders are keeping assets inside the banks?"
"The banks and the government know what is inside those vaults, my good griffon," Vivienne told him, "It is just that no bank knows what is in another. We need to keep trust in the customers, so that they may continue to use Flowena's services! It all benefits Aquileia in the end."
He bowed. "Of course, your highness. I just worry about funding our enemies."
"Your love of our kingdom is heartening to see, it is good to challenge decisions to protect those we love. Now, excuse us gentlegriffs, there are many more for the princess and I to meet!"
For almost anyone else the evening would have been a blur of faces and names but Luna dutifully kept track of those she met. Flurry, Spike, and Tiberius had gotten their own little group, the sheer exoticness of an alicorn, dragon, and adorable foreign pet kept the other foals and cubs intrigued and entertained until some had to be brought home as the hour grew late.
After gently separating from a group of artists, Vivienne led Luna out onto a balcony and into the cool evening air. The lights of the city shone brightly in the distance, even at the late hour there was life. It wasn't the hustle and bustle of the Manehattan evening, but a more sedate pace for griffon and pony alike to simply enjoy the nightlife.
Vivienne pulled out her cigarette case and lit one up. She took in a deep inhale then blew smoke from her nares with a sigh of relief. Luna gently nudged the queen with a feather.
"May I?"
"Oh, tempted so soon?" the hen asked with a little grin as she passed one over.
As Luna placed the one end in her mouth Vivienne moved in a little closer, using the burning end of hers to help light the other. The princess took in a small puff to let the acrid smoke get pulled down into her lungs. The burning sensation was strangely appealing, and if she had not had long memories of ancient rites it would have been a surprise, but she handled it well and blew the smoke out of her own nose. The pair stood there side by side, letting their cigarettes fill their lungs as they watched the city in the distance.
"You handled those pretentious fools better than I would have alone," Vivienne said as she leaned on the railing. "The nerve, telling me to my face about working on a novel on my father's death!"
"Not as bad as those poets going on about possible ballads of my fall into Nightmare Moon. Their ignorance of what happened would be grating if they did not also ply me with compliments. Did you perhaps rehearse them with those?"
The queen scoffed. "And why would I do that?"
"Your coy act is very cute, your highness," Luna commented as she looked out to the city lights, "but I am not some fresh filly unaware of how things work. You have not taken your wing from me all evening. Perhaps there is a cultural difference between Aquileia and Equestria in some regards, but I have seen that all those in there who have their wings over another are also intimately linked."
Vivienne took a long drag on her cigarette. "Perhaps," she started, "I am merely testing the boundaries. After all, how much are you willing to give for my assistance?"
The princess scowled. "I will not whore myself out."
"Prostitution is not a shameful occupation to be shunned. The hens and mares of Aquileia that do such work are treated with respect and dignity."
"That is not the point and you know it," Luna growled.
"You can refuse at any time, princess. Just remember, I hold the cards."
A fire boiled inside of Luna as she looked at the smug grin gracing Vivienne's face, how the queen's carefully applied makeup drew attention to the subtle curves of her youthful face and how her eyes sparkled. Her horn lit and she pulled the Queen’s cigarette away to take a few puffs on it herself.
“I must say, this one tastes quite different. I rather like it,” Luna said as she gave her own smug grin only to briefly recoil back and snap a hoof to her cheek.
It stung and she could feel trickles of blood forming along the fresh cuts. Vivienne was fuming with indignation, her left talons having pierced through her glove with the slap, slight streaks of dark red on them. The cigarette that Luna had taken fell apart across the balcony, the lingering glow of the lit tobacco quickly fading away.
"Never, never, surprise me like that again," the queen hissed out.
She fumbled to get another cigarette out, smearing the blood haphazardly as she began to take long drags of her smoke. Luna looked on in a daze at the tremble along Vivienne's body while she forced herself to look back out to the city lights. Her first cigarette had remained in her magical grasp and she took it back into her mouth to finish it. The stinging in her cheek ebbed away as she could feel the flesh begin to knit back together.
"Do not expect me to apologize for cutting you."
Luna let smoke waft out of her mouth. "I would not ask such from you. I performed a faux pas. Though, it occurs to me that you do not like having control taken away."
She noticed Vivienne gave her a side eye but the queen remained quiet.
"Tutors and governesses. Your entire childhood, all planned out. No doubt you had to maintain a veneer of respectability until the murder of King Moriset. Then days later you are queen, plotting on centralizing power, centralizing control. Even your battle plans showed how much you value being in control. Artillery lets you dictate to your enemies when and where battles commence."
"You do not know me." Vivienne rapidly tapped her blood-smeared talons against the balcony’s railing.
"You think you know me then, is that it? The lonely princess of the night, abandoned by her sister and ripe to be manipulated? Seeking to swoop in like some huntress on isolated prey?"
Vivienne turned to face Luna and flicked the remnants of her cigarette off the balcony. "You want the truth of it then, Princess Luna? Yes, I am indeed seeking to drain every advantage necessary from New Mareland. With the Empire to our north we have gone in on experimental weapons to shift things into our favor. Magical weapons the likes of which the world has not known. If it means using you then so be it; nothing matters more to me than seeing Aquileia free from the Empire and those republican traitors would not have had the guts to do what was necessary like I have. And what of you, hmm? Why have you agreed to come here, to learn under me? You could have had anyone teach you modern warfare, but you seek to take advantage of what I have to offer too, don't you?"
Luna nodded as she held her head high. "Aquileia has a far greater industrial base than New Mareland. You can churn out weapons like there is no tomorrow, weapons designed for ponies and griffons in mind. What veterans we have cannot match up to the ones you have, you could train our soldiers more effectively. That, and you reached out to me."
Vivienne raised a brow.
"It is true. I could have had any number of generals or officers train me in these new ways of war, but none sought me out. I am their Princess, and thus irreproachable in their eyes."
"Even with your constant military failures?"
"Did anyone tell you what you did wrong at Avian-Les-Bains when the artillery munitions were destroyed and you had to engage in a prolonged siege? Did anyone tell you what you did wrong during the Battle of Skyfall when the Empire encircled your forces and it was only by the grace of your superior navy that they could evacuate every soldier to nearby Griffton?"
The queen took in a sharp breath. "No."
"You could say it is because you won those wars, but we both know that none of the loyalists would be so bold as to tell you what you did wrong, the most fanatical even if the palace was crumbling over their heads."
"Remnants from my father's rule. I try not to harbor sycophants but he had a terrible temper and breaking those habits are difficult."
They both leaned against the railing of the balcony, Vivienne smoothly pulled out another pair of cigarettes and offered one to Luna. The princess and queen both lit theirs up and took in deep drags of tobacco into their lungs. A soft breeze blew on by and Luna felt the queen nestle up against her.
"I am still not going to apologize."
"There is no need to. We both seek to use each other for our own ends after all. I find the arrangement agreeable, if we are honest with one another."
Vivienne let out a little noise as she blew smoke from her nares. "Tomorrow I shall show you what we are using the crystals for then."
Luna let out a little laugh and smiled to the queen. "I did not mean opening state secrets, but if you insist, Huntress."
"Huntress? Going for nicknames so soon, my Lune?" Vivienne gave the alicorn a slight grin as they stood side by side, wings over the other as they enjoyed the evening lights and the taste of tobacco on their tongues.