//------------------------------// // Keepin' On // Story: As The Sun Sets // by Noobblue //------------------------------// Cadance trotted with a high step and a hum in her throat as she made her way through the Spire's halls She was feeling good today, yesterday was spent making meetings and getting documents and legalese signed off on and cross referenced; today? Today was for doing. Cadance loved doing things, who doesn't right? Morning court hours just ended, and she was on her way to get lunch. She turned and gave a smile just a little too big to a passerby. This was the servants alleyway, and even though it wasn't nearly as opulent, this particular route to the dining hall was faster. Not like we enjoy opulence all that much anyways Maybe I will one day She mentally dismissed the random thought and kept bouncing to the tune in her head. After another minute of shmoovin Cadance passed through the false wall that led into the hallway just across from the dining hall. Inside there was the usual menagerie of folks wandering, chatting, eating, you name it. As she entered, she wandered over towards the buffet line despite the waves she got from ponies sitting throughout the hall. The general vibe Cadance got from feeling out the emotions of the room was roughly equivalent to her own, and slightly rising towards elation; seemingly everyone was having a good day today. She approached the counter and greeted the staff pony, "Happy midday!" She said with a smile "Someone's chipper today" The crystal mare half teased, "What can I get for you?" "It's hard not to be, and I'll just take the garden, biggest bowl you've got." "I'm all over it!" She said enthusiastically. The mare used a hoof to hit the side of an upside down bowl and flipped it onto her head. She spun and went about tossing the ingredients like a pro. Cadance looked down the line to see a similar shift in energy enter the moving and shaking. Oh Cadance felt around the room again, and felt the rising magic and emotion. Ohhhh! She was definitely going to take advantage of this, the bowl was hefted over the counter, and Cadance wasted no time grabbing it in her magic. She lit her horn with a second spell to shift the magic in the room. Using her horn like a drain to channel the latent growing energy in the air, she began to sing. Oh I just can't help myself the music flowin' 'round us all So I'll just keep on Livin' as I do She waved her wings and began trotting towards the center of the room, she missed a line, but that was okay Never thought I'd see my eyes Reflecting through this Love of life Now I'll just keep on wondering what I'll do No I'll~ never know just, what I'll do!~ She reached one of the long tables, just as the ponies started catching on, and the music started filling the room. She hopped up onto the table and kept at it, half prancing, half dancing. The moments pass, the changes come! I'll never stop no matter what! Now I'll just keep on movin' till I do! Challen~ges will pass me by My heart will always carry through So I'll just keep on Loving till I do! I'll al~wa~ys be me! When I do! The musical instrumental that followed was too well choreographed for the descriptive budget. Cadance moved her whole body from muzzle to hips into dancing away her emotions as the ponies around her followed suit. It was far less extravagant than it could have been, which isn't to say Cadance didn't enjoy the light activity As the instrumental slowed Cadance's voice softened as a wing folded over her stomach The Future's hope is coming fast The stress and work can't stop my Love It's never been so easy to let it through So I'll just keep on Loving~ Till I do!~ The now fully committed Heart Song swept up the crowd as the music came back at full blast and the ponies joined in for the edge of the last chorus. Cadance kept dancing as she made her way towards the edge of her 'runway' and gave a little spin and an artistic flash of sparkles from her horn as the music hit its crescendo. Cadance stepped off the table and basked in the excitement.  The cheers too. As much as she tried to be a humble Princess, Cadance did love the cheering. She checked behind her, near the edge of the bench side of the table Ah crud, I spilled my salad After spending lunch making idle, yet still pleasant, conversation with the working ponies of The Spire, Cadance got to enjoy a flight out. Not for any particular reason, she was just in a high enough mood, and had the hour, that she felt the need to run and jump off a tall structure. Pegasus thing. Regardless, Cadance cleared her head and enjoyed the horizon as she circled The Spire. At least as much of the horizon she could see through the shield, the singular clouds that were bunched up around the tip of the spire that silhouetted the sky gave her a little tingle along her feather tips that told her it was a great time to soar. It's been too long since I've done this... Just me and the sky... and I guess you, little one. She mentally giggled as she banked to loop around The Spire again. What. a. day. She had a couple things left to do during the work day, but she had that spark of motivation that made everything seem possible. She glanced out towards the warehouse out in the fields and pulled that determination forwards. It's not so menacing from up here. As if triggered by her thoughts a voice sounded off, "Mind if I join you?" A pair of wings caught air near her, pulling her from her thoughts. Silver was gliding nearby. She gathered herself, "Not at all" Cadance called out over the wind, mildly confused Silver nodded and flapped once and gained the distance up to where Cadance was gliding. They flew nearly tip to tip, though Silver didn't say anything else or even look to Cadance. She's just messing with you. Don't let her under your fur. Cadance shook her head in amusement and looked out again towards the horizon. Despite what Cadance thought, Silver stayed in the air with her with no comment until she had to fly back into The Spire. Silver simply left back towards the ground without a word as Cadance turned to the balcony. Cadance had pulled Shining Armor into her office for another dinner date, which really meant just talking shop while they stuffed their faces. Cadance had just given him the entire spiel for her idea of a college/research institute. Shining enjoyed his gazpacho while she talked, nodding at key points, but otherwise taking it all in stoically. "So what do you think" She said, taking a breath after her blurb. Shining immediately responded, "I think it's a great idea... I just don't know where we'd get the funds for it." "We have plenty for the rollover once taxbits go out to get it started." He raised an eyebrow, "You ask Amber already?" Cadance nodded, "And I asked Cord, and checked the math myself, it's doable but I wanna think long term cost to benefit analysis" "You sound like Twilight when you say that" Cadance waggled her eyebrows, "Or maybe she sounds like me when she says it" He chuckled. "Do you think it's a good idea to set up a board?" "No, I want it to be an internally run institute." "The nobles aren't going to like that." Cadance let out an exhale, "I've been thinking of ways around that, but I don't have any concrete ideas." "You could make it a military research institute" He said Cadance gave him a look "Hey, it's what I do. Plus, with a military institute there's plenty to fund, and we can have it run by royal guard logistics." He postured "I'll add it to my mental list. I think short term, we will just need to let the nobles take a swing in order to have the popularity and funding to get it off the ground." Shining's face turned from inquisitive to shifty, "You're thinking about asking Quick Silver aren't you?" She smiled sheepishly, "It crossed my mind" "Do it." Cadance shook her head, taken aback, "Wait really?" "She's going to have the bits soon, if she doesn't already; plus, I bet she knows something about running a school." "Well... yeah but, I thought you..." "Hated her?" She cringed, "I wasn't going to put it like that." "Well I do. For good reason too." And he did, Cadance could feel as much. Shining raised a hoof, even though Cadance wasn't intending to say anything, "Silver's not the focus of my attention, you are. I'll put her in a hole if need be, but I trust you to wrangle her until then." Cadance mulled over the statement for a moment, "What did she tell you? Right after I got back from the Gala?" Shining didn't seem like answering for a moment, "She told me not to buck this up for you. To hate her all I wanted; so long as it was for you, told me to be constructive." "Oh" Cadance said intelligently "And she was right, I made a fool of myself enough to know where I made my mistakes." He looked off to the side Cadance tried, "Well, let's not worry about it then. I'll ask Silver tomorrow while we're out." She only slightly got Shining to think of something else, "Oh! and I also have a meeting with Cane Sugar tomorrow morning, do you have time to double up with me?" She asked hopefully He shook his head, "Ever since you started not showing up for the morning staff meetings, I've been taking over the management issues" "Aww... Thank you for doing that by the way" Cadance took another hefty chomp of her salad. It was a wedge salad... Salads are good. "It's not nearly as bad as nobles." He joked "Tell me about it." They enjoyed the rest of their meal sans business, and spent the rest of the night losing track of time as they talked.