//------------------------------// // Chapter One: The Dead of Night // Story: Protector // by JDPoni //------------------------------// Twilight Sparkle paced around her table, worry etched onto her features. The sky had a few clouds in it, but it was nearly impossible to tell, as it was also the middle of the night, and Princess Luna had apparently decided to take the night off, as the moon was nowhere to be seen. Twilight knew it was simply a new moon tonight, that wasn’t the reason she was pacing. Spike stepped down a couple steps, rubbing some sleep out of his eyes. “Come on, Twilight, it’s the middle of the night. Are we gonna have to call the floor repair ponies again? What’re you worried about now?” “The Princess is sending the royal guard to Ponyville, that’s what I’m worried about. Does she not think I can handle any situation? Doesn’t she trust me?” A look of horror came over her features. “Am I not going to be her student anymore?” Spike let out a long sigh. “You know none of that is true. With everything that’s happened, I’m sure that only a couple of guards are coming down, you know, ‘just in case’.” “Just a couple of guards? But what if something really big does happen? What if we need more? Does the Princess not care about me anymore?” Spike simply looked to his boss/roommate/sister. “Whatever, I’m going back to bed.” With that, he walked back up the stairs, stuffed his head underneath his pillow, and covered himself with his blanket. Twilight continued to pace. She looked outside, as though the sun would have spontaneously risen so she could talk with her friends about this. They wouldn’t even know yet, as she had only received the letter tonight. She trotted over to her desk and opened the scroll again. Dear Twilight Sparkle: At the request of the Captain of the Royal Canterlot Guard, I have assigned a protector for you and your friends in Ponyville. By the time you receive this letter, the guards assigned for this force will be there by the next morning. Please know how much I care about you and the friendships you’ve made during your time in Ponyville, and that I want to make sure you can continue to live your life in peace and happiness. I look forward to the next time we will get to spend some real time together, as I have missed you a great deal. Your teacher and friend, Princess Celestia Twilight Sparkle released the scroll, letting it curl back up into itself. She sighed. “Spike’s probably right. With everything else that’s been happening, a little extra security might not be a bad thing. I just hope it’s over nothing.” Twilight turned around and started toward her stairs when a knock sounded from her door. She walked over and opened it, to stare right at a unicorn in a Canterlot Guard’s uniform, a light grey coat, and a fiery red mane. A blush rapidly appeared on his cheeks. He simply stared at Twilight for a moment. “Uh, hi. Can I help you?” Silver Arrow blinked. “Oh, oh yeah. Are you, uh, are you Twilight Sparkle?” Twilight nodded. “Yes. I assume you’re the guard sent by Canterlot?” She looked over the guard. He stood only a little taller than her, only by an inch or so, and looked very young, about her age. “Yeah. My name’s Silver Arrow. I volunteered to keep a watch over Ponyville and the Everfree Forest. I was assigned here by Shining Armor. You know, your brother…” he paused. “Of course you know your own brother…” he let out a nervous laugh. “Anyway, he, uh, he asked me to give you this.” His horn glowed a bit more than it already seemed to, and a scroll came out of his saddlebags. “Normally I wouldn’t come knocking at this time of night, but I saw your lights on, and figured you would still be up, so I decided to give it a try…” Silver arrow’s blush got darker, and he closed his mouth. Twilight thought it was kind of cute how he rambled on. She took the scroll and moved it over to her desk, but didn’t move away immediately. Something was different, something wasn’t quite right… it hit her. The unicorn standing in front of her door was perfectly visible. Outside. During a new moon. He should have been impossible to see. She looked up, and saw a glowing ball of light, almost painfully bright, hovering a few feet above him. “Is that a Globe of Daylight spell?” Silver Arrow looked up, and smiled. “Yeah. I figured it would be a good idea if I was going to see anything. I just arrived, and I wanted to check out where everything was before morning broke, you know, so I could get a feel for the town.” “I assume you’d be doing that before you got any sleep tomorrow?” Twilight sounded a little sarcastic, but a tad playful. “Yeah, probably wasn’t the best of ideas. I guess I should head to the guard station on the southern edge of town. There’s a room set up there. But, uh, I guess you didn’t really need to know that…” His blush began to return full force. Twilight smiled warmly. “Well, I’ll tell you what. Why don’t you get some sleep, and tomorrow, a bunch of friends and I are going around town. We’re meeting right here, why don’t you stop by. I’ll introduce you to them, and then we’ll show you around town. That way, you aren’t all alone here in Ponyville.” Silver Arrow’s green eyes came up and met Twilight’s deep purple ones. “Really? I don’t want to be a bother.” She had to giggle a little at how much like Fluttershy he sounded like right then. “I’m sure. I can’t have a friend of my brother’s all alone here. Besides, you’ll love my friends. They’re amazing.” He nodded, his mane bouncing a little in front of his eyes. “Alright, sounds like a plan. I can’t wait. What time should I show up?” “Oh, probably around noonish. That’ll give me time to let everypony else know what’s going on, and to rouse Spike out of bed.” “Spike?” “My assistant. He’s a baby dragon.” “Ah. Well, I’m sure I’ll have a bunch more questions for you tomorrow. Thanks for inviting me, and it’s really nice to finally meet you, Miss Sparkle.” Silver held out his hoof to shake Twilight's, the blush still on his cheeks. Twilight took his hoof and shook softly. “It’s nice to meet you to, Mister Arrow. My brother talks about me a lot then?” “You have no idea. And please, you can just call me Silver, if you like.” “And please, just call me Twilight. I’ll see you tomorrow.” “Looking forward to it.” Silver Arrow took a couple steps backward and began to turn around, waving his hoof back and forth. “Bye.” Twilight giggled again with how silly he looked as she waved back. “Bye.” She closed the door as he turned to walk toward the guard post. Walking over to the desk, she unrolled the scroll on her desk that Silver had given her. Dear Twilight, I just wanted to explain what was going on and why. Ever since all these recent attacks on Equestria, with the return of Nightmare Moon, the return of Discord, the destruction of Phillydelphia, the fighting in Apploosa, and the Changeling invasion, I decided that it was a good idea to post additional protection in areas where it’s possible for more strife to happen. To tell you the truth, I was torn as to whether I should get anyone in Ponyville. I know you and your friends are capable of handling most anything, but I’m your brother. I love you more than anything, and I can’t stand the idea of you having to fight alone. I can’t stand the idea of you having to be on the front lines of any battle, of any war. I don’t know what I’d do if anything happened to you, especially if there’s something I could have done to prevent it. I just wanted to let you know why there’s a guard in Ponyville now. It’s not that either the Princess or I don’t think you have what it takes, it’s that I love you too much to not protect you to the best of my ability. If I could be there myself, I would be. Unfortunately, this is the best I can do for the moment. I truly hope you don’t think I think any less of you. After all, you saved my life, and my marriage. The only thing I can try to do now is to return the favor. I love you with all my heart. Your Brother, Shining Armor As Twilight finished reading the scroll, she felt tears falling down her cheeks. She could tell how much her brother’s feelings were poured into the letter, and now she felt like she really knew why anyone was here. The scroll curled back up as her magic released it, and she looked through the window, toward Canterlot. “I love you too, Big Brother.”