Blueblood stared long and hard at the letter on his desk. It lay open, its contents dangerously exposed to the light of the setting sun. Shadows played across the words scrawled neatly on its white paper, dangerous letters that formed a strange promise. There was no name on it, but Blueblood knew exactly who had just sent him this letter. Delivered anonymously by a poor filly from the outer streets of Canterlot with the wit, cunning, and vague nature of the greatest mystery in Equestria. Prince Blueblood had, without a doubt, been invited to a private meeting with the white unicorn stallion.
Now, of course, there was no indication who the individual requesting a midnight meeting with Prince Blueblood was on the surface. It was an anonymous request for a business venture that was heavily reliant on the Prince, politely requesting if he refrain from informing the Princesses of his private venture. Furthermore, it gave a rather inconspicuous location to meet, a table at a high-end bar not too far from Central-North Street, one of the richest business locations in Canterlot and only half a mile from the castle. It was a common meeting spot for parties interested in talking business, politics, or gossip. However, rooms were available for rent as well, with the guarantee of privacy.
The white unicorn struck him as the rich, well-educated type who knew who he was talking to. He had shown such to both Prince Blueblood and the Blue Knight. If he had to venture another guess, the stallion needed funding and inside information that only Prince Blueblood could provide, as well as a friend of high status for other purposes. In fact, if Prince Blueblood was more than just a character, it would have been one of the most intelligent moves the stallion could make. The Prince was clearly disloyal to the Princesses save for the fact that they held the keys to his money. If somepony could persuade him with promises of greater wealth and power, it wouldn’t be a longshot that the Prince would join their cause, no matter what it may be.
He’d have to play his cards right, though. This was an astounding opportunity, one Blueblood hadn’t realized possible. In just acting out Prince Blueblood, he could secure himself information not only about the white unicorn, but also about his organization, followers, and plans. Prince Blueblood needed to remain in the perfect pocket of dumb but capable in that case. If he was too ditzy, there was no doubt he would be discarded, but if he was any more intelligent than their first meeting had hinted at, the white unicorn would grow suspicious. If his cover was blown at any point, it would cause unpredictable damage. He may be beaten, killed, or otherwise subdued, or the white unicorn may just retreat underground once again, only reappearing as a greater threat than before.
That was one of the only two risks holding him back. Failure on his part would be catastrophic. The white unicorn could pick up on it without Blueblood even realizing and end up using the stallion as a tool against himself and the Princesses, or just outright kill him. It would deprive Canterlot of its one true protection, but worse leave the stallion unchecked. Without the Blue Knight’s prying and frightening presence over the entire city, the white unicorn probably wouldn’t even have to hide his movements. Almost nopony else alive had the ability to resist them in any way that mattered. Failure, then, would mean the end of Equestria as it stood and subjecting it to whatever the white stallion had in mind.
That’s where the second risk came in. The very same doubts that he was having at the current moment would be what would make Celestia and Luna force him to stop from pursuing this chance. Their fear of risk and choices had always hindered Blueblood’s movements as the Blue Knight, and now with restrictions growing tighter after the Canterlot Wedding Incident, as it had been labeled, there was no way they would ever approve of him in the presence of the enemy himself. Most likely, they would assume he was just using this opportunity as a chance to get close enough to the white unicorn to kill him and be done with it. While he had certainly considered the option, Ray doubted simply killing the stallion and everypony else in his gang would resolve the issues he was exploiting.
So, by taking on this venture, not only would he have to keep his Prince Blueblood guise immaculate around the white unicorn and his crew, but also hide his movements as the Blue Knight and Prince Blueblood from his aunts. It would be an impossible endeavor on his own, however, a new factor that he had been so dismissive of until now proved to be a possible way out. In spite of being three stallions at once, he couldn’t be in three places at once. His days and nights would be split between Prince Blueblood and the Blue Knight, during which there were ample opportunities for either of the Princesses to notice his antics, even if just by pure happenstance. He needed somepony to cover for him and keep his aunts’ attention as far from him as possible.
Lavender was an eager young mare who just so happened to be in a place to forge timetables, falsify meetings, and cover Prince Blueblood’s sudden disappearances. She also conveniently knew the unused route to his bedroom through the abandoned dungeons, giving her easy access to it unnoticed if the occasion ever arose. She was certainly a skilled investigator of her own accord, given she had discovered his identity when so many others had failed. She also had a knack for being kind enough to ignore, but smart enough to use others’ ignorance to her advantage. Besides, she was practically dying to get herself involved in this convoluted mess anyways. May as well keep her busy somewhere she wouldn’t end up in harm’s way.
There were, of course, other certain considerations he had about the whole idea. He would need to convincingly reallocate his funds to whatever the white unicorn wanted if indeed it was Prince Blueblood’s bits he was after. Following that, Blueblood needed to ensure that if he did fund or assist in any actions the group were taking against Canterlot, he could nullify the effects of those actions. Those, however, would be a case-by-case scenario he would have to deal with when they popped up, if indeed they did. Whatever the case, it would be a strenuous endeavor that could last months, depending on the white unicorn’s timeline for whatever it was he was attempting to do.
Honestly, there wasn’t much Blueblood could conclusively plan for, given how shrouded in mystery his enemy remained even as he was so close to penetrating their veil of secrecy. All it would take to learn what he needed to decide his next move was a smart, decisive step forward into the mystery. It was an awful feeling, not knowing if the choice he was making was smart or if it was dooming himself and the city he loved. There weren’t any other times he could remember when the choice was laid before him with so much time to choose. It was almost a curse, being able to think through the endless possibilities his many choices could end in.
With a deep sigh, he finally set the letter to the side, folding it up with his magic and returning it to its unmarked envelope, where it would remain as a silent reminder. Closing his eyes and rubbing his cheeks with his hooves, he cleared his head enough to focus on the next order of business. He hadn’t been able to read the night’s news, but given the city was practically buzzing, he knew something had to have happened. Canterlot was the gossip center of the world, and anything from the daily adventures of the Elements of Harmony to the near-destruction of the city could cause an equal amount of discourse.
“Chief Constable Takes Aggressive Steps Against the Blue Menace of Canterlot” the headline declared boldly.
“Oh, sweet Celestia,” Blueblood couldn’t help but grumble aloud, looking to the door near him.
On cue, Princess Celestia appeared in a flash of her golden magic, bringing with her a brightness to the rapidly darkening room. She wore an expression of mixed anger and exhaustion, their eyes instantly meeting on her entry.
“So, you’ve seen the news then,” Blueblood stated dryly, glancing back down at his paper. “I haven’t gotten past the headline. How is it, Auntie?”
“Not good,” Celestia replied punctually, her voice sharp. “Your little stint at Hard Break’s home certainly has left a lasting impression. She’s now directly requested the assistance of the Crown and Royal Guard in capturing the Blue Knight.”
“Ah, I see,” Blueblood nodded, leaning back in his seat and staring at the headline. There was a long, sullen moment of silence as his brain sifted through what that meant. More restriction, more eyes on the sky, less shadows to hide in. Celestia looming over his shoulder. Luna begging him to make it all end. Breaking the law itself. Celestia and Luna covering up for him, betraying the law they swore they would uphold. This was… problematic. In spite of his roaring, conflicting emotions, he calmly asked the Princess, “Are you here to apprehend me, Auntie?”
The silence he was faced with this time was less uncomfortable, almost reassuring. Celestia took a small step away from Blueblood, in shock or to give him some space, he couldn’t tell. Either way, she silently confirmed that he was safe from her, for the moment at least. She neither had the strength to tell him she would keep his identity a secret or to arrest him there and then. He could understand the conflict he was putting her through at the moment, so he gave her the time she needed to formulate an argument.
On the one hoof, she was choosing to continue a lie that had grown from him being a folk hero to him being a psychotic terror that’s omnipresent shadow loomed over the entirety of Canterlot. She was consciously deceiving her ponies into remaining in fear. On the other hoof, though, she could reveal that she had been covering up for Blueblood, much to the dismay of everypony, and possibly threaten her position on the throne. She’d also be betraying Blueblood, her charge and godson, the stallion she’d raised from infancy, before she had given him the chance to keep the promise he had made. Either way, she was stuck with a choice to hurt somepony she loved.
“Your secret remains safe with me, but the Blue Knight must become an inactive and dismissive part of the city,” Celestia proposed coldly. “You will remain a free stallion, only if you stop terrorizing Canterlot. Otherwise, I will have no choice but to give the order to have you investigated, found out, and detained. I know what you’re trying to do is good, but you’ve gone too far now as the Blue Knight. Let him go, forget about him, and you get to live the rest of your life free.”
“If the Blue Knight vanished after tonight, ponies would grow suspicious, Auntie,” Blueblood carefully pointed out. “His appearances must be frequent at first before slowly decreasing as he encounters more and more resistance and exposure from the ever-growing list of pursuers. It will seem like he’s been forced to stop his operations by the combined efforts of the Crown and Constabulary. Both agencies will receive public acclaim and credit for the permanent dispersion of the Blue Knight. All will return to normal, and the Blue Knight will become nothing more than a folktale and Nightmare Night story.”
“Are you really going to give up the Blue Knight,” Celestia questioned skeptically, taking a few steps forward to close the distance.
“The mask and fedora, yes,” he lied, staring her in the eyes. “I can’t give up my search for the white unicorn though, and you know the danger he presents still. I won’t physically chase after him, and all of my findings will end up on the front desk of the Constabulary somehow, but I won’t stop investigating of my own accord. It’s the one permission I wish to keep.”
Celestia stared at him long and hard, obviously trying to digest what he had said. Frankly, he didn’t feel remorse for lying to her face like this, especially with the information he had now. The white unicorn would be emboldened by increased effort in muzzling the Blue Knight. Now was the time to be risky, to throw himself into the mystery and wade through it until he came to a conclusion. Besides, in a way, he was still being honest. He would turn in whatever information he had gathered to the Constabulary, just as soon as it wouldn’t incriminate him, Celestia, or anypony else who didn’t need to be stopped.
“Alright, I’m trusting your word on this though, Blueblood,” she finally declared with a deep sigh. “You’re probably right about the white unicorn, and you might be one of the only ponies able to track him down to see what he’s truly up to. I must emphasize though: You are not to fight him, no matter what. I don’t want another tragedy like what happened eight months ago. Am I clear?”
“Yes, Auntie,” Blueblood agreed demurely, genuinely intimidated by the harshness of her voice. Sometimes it was easy to forget who exactly Celestia was. Then, she would pull out her Royal Canterlot Voice, and suddenly he was quivering slightly, barely able to keep his composure and continue lying to her. That’s what set him apart from nearly everypony else though, and knowing what he was able to do with good intentions only left him more certain to stop those like him with evil plans in mind.
“I’m going to bed now, and so are you,” Celestia stated, giving him a demanding stare. “Goodnight, Blueblood. I love you. I do.”
“I love you too, Auntie,” Blueblood replied, feeling the slightest twinge of guilt. Standing up from his seat at last, he gave Celestia a short hug before deliberately opening up his cabinet and slipping night garments out, beginning to remove the suit he wore. Satisfied enough with his actions, Celestia turned and left the room, closing the door softly behind her.
Even as he lay down on his bed, however, he prepared another set of clothes, much more fitting for business at night. Setting an alarm for two hours on his clock, he allowed himself to doze off. He would need some rest for what tonight might bring him.