//------------------------------//
// Chapter 8 
// Story: Tempest in a Teapot 
// by SparlightTwarkle 
//------------------------------//

Twilight Sparkle felt an oncoming crash. The sun floated higher and higher, its rays spilling aplenty into the castle, yet her adrenaline was quickly draining, leaving a sleepy unicorn in its wake. The threat of imminent danger could only push her so far. Her room was still as cold as a Hearth's Warming Eve, so she snuggled under the sheets, piled on the blanket Luna left behind, and closed her eyes.

Deep breaths slowed her racing thoughts. Woodsy patchouli lingering on the blanket, the signature scent of the nighttime princess, roused soothing flutters in her stomach. Then, a presence raised the hairs of her forelegs.

Her eyes snapped open to the ghostly image of a young griffon staring down at her, their beak shaped into a smile.

"It's you-" Twilight grasped for the name of the apparition, but came up empty-hoofed. "Um, you. Griffon...spirit." Otherwise, she was frozen under her covers, both literally and figuratively. "Pleasedon'thurtme." She added in a rushed whisper.

"I'm not going to hurt you!" They waved a dismissive, five-talon claw, then grasped something off her nightstand, something dreadful and stomach churning: the teapot. "I came to offer-"

"No!" Twilight tucked her head under the covers like a child being asked to rise out of bed. "I want...I want Pinkie Pie to walk in here with a case of soda pop! Or instant hot cocoa, or fruit punch- anything but tea!"

"But there's someone who wants to talk to you!"

She grumbled and conceded, peeking above the edge of the fabric. "Another spirit?"

The griffon nodded. The swooping, long feathers atop their head bobbed up and down. With big eyes they stared and pleaded, holding the teapot with both claws. Another sooty round mark marred the porcelain whiteness, distinctly condensing into the shape of a horseshoe.

"Fine! Fine."

The griffon grinned bright and wide in fanfare, then vanished away, leaving the teapot hovering mid-air. Twilight caught it with her magic before it collided with the floor. Hot liquid swished within. Foregoing any ceremony, she sat herself up in bed and took a few sips directly from the top opening of the teapot. Spearmint tingled her tongue. It made her think of candy canes.

The teapot was dismissed back onto the nightstand. As moments passed, the soporific effects of the brew quickly set in, sending Twilight to spiral into dreamland.


She came to being in the embrace of another pony, densely encased in woodsy patchouli. Twilight snuggled in, mistaking the warmth as her own radiating back to her from the covers. But then she felt firmness under the luxuriously soft fluff of the blanket...a coat. A mare's indigo coat. Twilight glanced behind and realized; Luna's coat.

Both mares yelped, then tumbled off the mattress and onto hard tile, hooves flailing. Blankets tangled around their lower halves, as if trying to yank them back into their sleepy nest. Twilight wrestled herself out of the twist of fabric and stood on all four legs. Her eyes met with Luna's teal.

Rouge spread to the tip of their ears. Luna cleared her throat and spoke stiffly. "I am so sorry. This is terribly improper."

"S-so you're real."

"Y...yes."

"As in, real-real Luna, dream-walking Luna. From real life." The other mare only sighed in response, the sheer embarrassment impairing her ability for coherence. Twilight felt as though she was about to boil alive; hugs and touches were one thing, a perfectly friendly thing, but this... "I thought you'd stayed awake? Puzzling at the runes?"

"I must have collapsed. Clearly." Her head ducked. Self-deprecation weighed heavily on her.

"That's alright, I'm glad you got to rest!" Twilight approached, glowing with a gentle smile. "We all need it, really. All of this restless dreaming makes sleep a lot less restorative."

"That would be a downside, yes." Her eyes shifted towards the disheveled bed. "Though dreamwalking allows for certain desirable scenarios to play out. Usually with minimal consequences, but-"

Twilight laughed.

"I loathe to push your boundaries, or for a dream of all things to force you into these situations. I'd prefer if you took the lead, so you feel safe and-"

Then she placed a kiss upon Luna's cheek.

Heart-stopping silence rendered them breathless. Twilight felt smug, however, as colorful array of expressions- surprise, shock, bafflement and joy- rearranged Luna's features.

"P-perhaps we should focus!" Princess Luna declared, gathering authoritative resolve. "Spirits may or may not be watching us, after all." Twilight was inclined to agree.

They shifted their focus to the dreamscape. Once again they stared upon a restored Castle De Roue; this version of the guest room was polished to luster, worthy of royalty. Clean woolen sheets, shiny wooden furniture with gilded accents, and a bottle of luxury dessert wine waiting on the dresser, for their indulgence.

Twilight and Luna stood in front of the room's door. Easily they slipped into the cadence of mistery-solving. They shared a nod, and Twilight telepathically turned the knob to allow their exit. Immediately they were greeted by a presence standing in the hall.

"Greetings, ladies!" She was a unicorn, as well, slightly older than Twilight herself in appearance. Long coils of dark hair flowed down her neck, framing her pastel sea-green coat and amber eyes. A bejeweled cape draped over her back as if it were an extension of her luscious mane. Offering a smooth curtsy, the mare introduced herself. "My name is Lucky De Roue. And as you might guess, Silver De Roue is my father."

Twilight gasped. "He had a daughter." She stepped closer to the spirit, eager to learn more. "My name is Twilight Sparkle! We're trying to-"

"Oh, I know who you are." Lucky De Roue cut her short. Following their cue, a fourth presence joined them; the five-talon griffon, coming up to Lucky's side with comfort and familiarity. "They've told me everything! And I've seen quite a lot, as well."

"I never caught your name." Twilight said to the griffon.

But they shrugged. "I've long since forgotten. Not like it matters."

Lucky threw her foreleg over the griffon's shoulder. "You may call them Lucky Junior!"

The griffon smiled and blushed, but shoved the mare away. "Come on."

"You come on. We're afterlife friends!"

Princess Luna cleared her throat. She smiled fondly upon the exchange, but they were on borrowed time. "Lady Lucky, we're here to stop your father. Any insight on the enchantment of the castle is vital to our mission."

"Of course." A shadow befell Lucky's eyes. "But you won't like what you'll see, I warn you."

Twilight and Luna shared an uneasy look. The younger alicorn spoke up, "what do you mea-"

The castle accelerated around them, the tiled floor turning into a conveyor belt as they were pushed across the corridors. Their manes fluttered like flags in a storm. Just when Twilight caught on to the quickly shifting scenery around them, the castle abruptly stopped.

Lucky Jr. was gone. Lucky Sr. meanwhile, had shrunken in stature. A small filly stood at their feet, looking up at them with big amber eyes. 

"Papa, weren't we going to play in a few?" 

The older mares looked down at the young Lucky like she was an Everfree creature, mouths agape. Luna retreated a hoof cautiously.

A darkly dressed colt phased through them, walking past his daughter as though she wasn't there at all. Twilight and Luna realized their role as spectators and fully retreated to observe. It was heartbreaking, however, the way the little filly full of admiration was coldly dismissed by her father.

"I wasn't raised by my father. Didn't live with him long either. My mother packed her things and moved us out when I was very little. I never told her I knew exactly what was going on."

Lucky followed after her dad with her tiny hooves clattering loudly in the empty hallway. Sunlight drained away from the memory. Darkness encroached from every corner, creeping towards the filly, stalking her. Lucky was drawn towards a door outlined by warm light. She turned the knob and opened it the smallest crack her eye could look through. Twilight and Luna piled on top to catch a glimpse, purple and teal irises blinking curiously.

Inside were Silver De Roue...and Princess Luna herself. She wore a helmet, the Nightmare's helmet, as the pair peacefully shared a cup of tea across from one another, poured from an inconspicuous white teapot sitting in their company on the table. The moon glowed so brightly through the tall windows behind them, a sunroom cast with the otherworldly, silvery light of the stars. A set of pillar candles bathed the pair with intimate warmth.

The words spoken by their lips moving subtly escaped the ears of the observers. Past Luna stared harshly down at the duke, who stood from his velvet pillow to inch close. He took her hoof with utmost gentleness and placed a revering kiss upon the soft coat above her nail. Luna accepted the affection as her birthright.

However, this Luna, Twilight's Luna, jumped away from the door crack as if threatened with spitting fire. Her breaths were fast and labored, panic bubbling inside the stoicism-clad mare, tearing her walls down. Twilight backed away from the scene herself, then scanned the horror in Luna's expression. She didn't know what to feel herself, what to think of the mare in front of her, or what to say to comfort her. The two simply stared at one another, balancing on a fragile thread.

Meanwhile, the dreamscape was swallowed by darkness. Lucky De Roue's giggles struck cold fear in Twilight's heart. "I told you, you weren't going to like what I had to show."

Luna reacted with fury, stamping her hooves on the non-floor. "What are you playing at?! Show yourself to me!"

"I spent all of my life wondering what you were playing at, princess. Starting the Lunar Supremacy, seeding cults and inciting rebellions across Equestria...my father was but another pawn in your games against your sister. And my mother knew she would always be second in his heart...second to you."

Twilight felt sick to her stomach, her throat constricting the words into her chest, but she forced them out, gazing at Luna with shock and fear, "Luna, you...you said you didn't remember anything about the castle, or the duke, or-"

"I don't!" 

A forest bloomed around them. Castle de Roue towered over, shadowing the sun spilling its rays over its battlements. A stone arch stood over the entryway, bushes and statues tracing the way towards the main double doors into the castle. Wood studded with brushed iron flew open as a young, beautiful earth-pony mare raced out of the castle with a filly on her back. Duke De Roue chased them out, teeth bared like a rabid beast. Only tears streaking down his cheeks hinted at the existence of a feeling heart in him. With his magic he hurled luggage towards them. Suitcases split open on the stone and burst with frilly clothing.

Twilight stepped in between the escaping mother, growing smaller in the distance, and the duke. She glared at him. He scowled in kind.

"I never saw him again. Not in life, anyway."

The duke retreated into his castle and slammed the door closed. 

Lucky De Roue, now a grown woman standing tall and proud, appeared at the doorstep of the castle. She was dressed in flowing silk and silver slippers. Clearly, she had found success on her own away from her father's wealth. Nevertheless she came back.

"Why?" Twilight asked. Intentions reverberated through the dreamscape, so she didn't need to say more. 

The grown Lucky looked at Twilight and said, "my father passed and I wanted to claim the estate, of course." A playful smile spread through her lips. "Wouldn't you?"

Twilight's brows knit together. "Something happened to you, though."

Lucky rolled her eyes. "Well, I know now it was a mistake." She walked up to the doors. Her magic levitated a set of large, heavy keys to the keyhole. They slipped inside and twisted smoothly with a satisfying click. The heiress stepped inside, then poked her head out, "want to find out?"

"Do I?" Twilight sighed. Seeking support and reassurance, she sough Luna out, but she had left her side, vanished into thin air. "Okay." She had to face this on her own.

The vestibule was eerily silent. Candles half melted on the chandelier and covered in a thin film of dust. The carpet was worn from the constant passage of hoofsteps, drawing a line of grime leading further inside. Lucky cast a light spell, and followed her illuminating orb as she tread carefully.

Twilight saw it first, a hooded pony sneaking behind one of the lunar banners. "Watch out!" 

The unknown figure sprang towards Lucky, joined by a second, and a third. They boxed her in with their frames, until a fourth pony lassoed Lucky's neck. Then they converged around, joined by multiplying hooded cultists to tie her limbs with rope, gag her muzzle with cloth, then carried her away. Lucky struggled against her bindings on the ponies' backs to no avail. Twilight followed, adrenaline pumping through her, until they arrived at the main hall. The string of runes glowing upon it was incomplete compared to the present version, missing lines and suffixes.

Lucky De Roue was placed before the doors. One of the cultists brandished a ceremonial dagger. 

Crimson sprayed upon the wood. It was absorbed by the enchantment, slurped by the runes, which rowed stronger after consumption.


When Twilight awoke, she wept. She curled up like a small, helpless filly under the covers and shook with every sob. How horrible, to have had such a selfish father, to suffer such fate at the hooves of his own legacy. And Luna stood at the axis of it all. What was she going to do, now?

"There, there." Lucky cooed at her as warmth rubbed at her back, spreading through the sheets. "I cannot deny, I am actually quite alright, in spite the circumstances." She laughed, then continued with a level tone, "I want to help you banish my father."

"Princess Celestia always warned me about blood magic." Twilight said, voice hoarse. Once the life force of a pony, or any creature, was mixed with a spell, the effects were nigh irreversible. It was an unholy type of magic which drained from the Wheel of Life itself, insidious as its effects on enchantments were otherwise untraceable, but catastrophic.

It dawned on Twilight then just how cursed the castle was, impregnated with sorrow, suffering, magic and flesh. Only blood magic could break blood magic. Fire with fire. Life force against life force. And alicorns teemed with life.

"Dear heavens...we have to perform blood magic." Twilight covered her face with her hooves. 

Lucky groaned. "Are you even listening to me, Twilight Sparkle?"

Twilight peeked her eyes above the covers. Lucky's translucent, rippling figure shifted in the midday sun. "...Yes."

Lucky Jr. made their own appearance right next to Lucky the unicorn, seamlessly joining the discussion. "I heard your arguing with the dragon. He said something about the sun not letting them hear each other out. We thought...why not bring them together in their own dream?"

Twilight quirked a brow and slid out of bed. "I don't understand, how would that..." she smoothed her mane down, then her face lit up with realization, "...oh!"

"That's right." Lucky the unicorn nodded triumphantly. "We make them think they're little again. No sun, no moon, no crown to distract them."

The plan was simple on paper. Twilight only had to convince Princess Celestia to share a cup of haunted tea with her sister. Lucky's horseshoe decorated the teapot; she considered herself a powerful (hateful) enough spirit to wrestle two ancient alicorns into a tailored dreamscape. Twilight thought she was out of her mind. Only one puzzle piece eluded them; Lucky was the oldest spirit among them, yet not old enough to witness the dawn of the Royal Sisters. 

Twilight strolled the castle, pondering their plan, yet distracted by Lucky De Roue's truth. Images of Princess Luna, cold and cruel, worshiped by a mad duke. The midnight mare was a stranger wearing the face of a beloved, but...it was still her, still Luna. Twilight didn't want to fathom that; she might as well burden the reborn princess who strove for goodness with the blame for countless deaths and crimes. 

Twilight's face tingled numbly with quietly stewing despair. The hairs at the back of her neck bristled; she was being followed by friendly spirits.

"Why the long face, Princess Sparkle?" Lucky echoed into her ear, making it twitch with her ghostly breath.

"Nothing, just...I'm sorry all of those things happened to you." She received no response. Her head sank low with grief. "And I'm sorry that...Luna was the catalyst. Kind of."

"I don't wish her harm. My father did what he did because he wanted to."

"But why? Did she-" The words choked in her throat. Twilight ceased her walk and spoke to the ether. "Did she seduce him? Did he seek her out? Or did he want something else out of this? Like the ambassador said, power and control over other ponies."

"I don't know." Lucky shrugged through her tone. "Does it matter at this point?"

"Yes! Luna is my friend and I want it to stay that way!" Her voice trembled, eyes twinkling with tears coming unbidden. "But..." She tried to hide her quivering lip with a hoof. Spirits were all-seeing, however.

Warmth wrapped around her shoulders. Twilight felt the sharpness of five talons softly carding through her coat. "Junior?" She called out.

"If Princess Luna were evil," Lucky Jr. started, "she wouldn't have answered my prayer. She wanted the seal undone, too."

Twilight sighed, unsure.

"But the only one who really knows is Princess Luna herself."

"So I have to talk to her like a grown up with mature communication skills?" Twilight chuckled at her own ridiculousness. "Some Princess of Friendship I am."

"We believe in you!"

Junior's presence slowly faded away. Twilight wondered what made them decide to come and go, or if the castle itself forced them to manifest in certain ways.

In the end, she was alone. And alone she would confront Luna.