//------------------------------// // Chapter 9 // Story: Cry for Eternity // by asylum1388 //------------------------------// A/N: Nothing from me for now. Editor: Pissfer Pre-readers: PiquoPie and f0xhole. Fourteen days since the coronation of Princess Twilight Sparkle “No... No... What the... Definitely no!” Twilight grumbled, magically hurling the offending sheet of paper across her sunlit office. She shook her head, trying to comprehend the utter ridiculousness of what she had just read before glancing back to the next sheet in the pile. “Can’t do that one, don’t have the bits for this one. That’s physically impossible... This one wants me to do what?” she squeaked, reading the latest proposal over again to make sure her eyes hadn’t played a trick on her. Unfortunately they hadn’t, so she took what she felt was the most appropriate path of action when dealing with such an inappropriate request: she incinerated it. “Remind me not to give you bad news anymore,” a gravelly voice chuckled from the doorway, startling Twilight. “Rainbow?” she gasped, jumping out of her chair. She trotted around her desk, gesturing for Rainbow to actually come into the office and gently closed the door behind the mare. “But you’re not supposed to be here for another couple of hours!” “Yeah, well I decided to fly instead of taking the train. Got a workout and got here earlier and stuff,” the pegasus replied dismissively. “At your normal speed, you would’ve had to get up with the sun to get here this early! Are you okay?” Twilight gasped incredulously. “Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?” Casting an eye at the seemingly bottomless pile of crumpled papers littering the floor, she continued. “So, what’s all this? It looks like the Running of the Leaves in here.” “These are all different proposals for this year’s Grand Galloping Gala,” Twilight sighed. “Every year, they let any pony who wants to submit ideas for ‘new and exciting’ things to be included. Apparently, as much as she hated the Gala itself, Princess Celestia used to really like reading all of these, so she made a law saying that she was the one who had to go through them all.” “And now you’re stuck doing it,” Rainbow snickered. “That’s awful.” “Yeah, it’s just how I want to spend a Sunday afternoon,” Twilight muttered back sarcastically. “It wouldn’t be so bad if it weren’t for the fact that just about every one of them is either too expensive to do, or just an awful idea in the first place. Anyway, what’s up with you?” “Oh... Nothing much.” “Nothing on your mind? Nothing at all that you want to talk to me about?” Twilight prodded. “What’s that supposed to mean?” Rainbow retorted defensively. “I know something’s bothering you, Dash. You never get up that early unless there’s something you really need to do,” Twilight replied softly. “Besides, it’s written all over your face.” Rainbow wheeled around on her angrily; her mouth moved, but no sound came out. Finally, after a few seconds of stuttering, she hung her head, defeated. “Fine, you got me.” “Okay. Did you want to talk about it?” Twilight murmured tenderly, taking a careful step towards her friend. “Yeah, I came here early because I was kinda hoping to,” Rainbow grumbled. “But you know how it is: it’s easier to want to talk about it when there’s nopony around to talk to.” “It’s okay, I understand,” Twilight replied. Using her magic, she levitated her chair around the desk and set it down gently next to the guest chair. She climbed in and gestured for Rainbow to take the other seat. “I’m here for you though, so take your time.” Dash hopped into the second chair and gave a content sigh. “Wow, this is great! I knew the palace had nice furniture, but not like this!” “Okay, now you’re stalling. I know I said to take your time, but talking about the furniture isn’t helping anypony,” Twilight sighed. “Okay, okay... Ahhh, this was so much easier in my head!” she growled, tapping her forehead with a hoof. “Okay, I’ll just come out and say it: I’m seeing Big Mac.” “You’re... Rainbow, that’s wonderful!” Twilight squealed. “How’d it happen?” “Remember when those two jerks came to Ponyville with their weird cider machine?” Rainbow said through a furious blush. “Well when you had me work the press with him, we sorta bonded, I guess. The way he looked at me while we were running just did something to me that I never felt before. Then he came up to me after it was all over and told me how awesome I was, and I guess we just hit it off. We’ve kinda been keeping it a secret though...” “Oh, that’s so adorable!” Twilight giggled before a thought struck her. “But what about Ms. Cheerilee?” “What about her?” Rainbow muttered, raising an eyebrow. “Oh! You mean what happened on Hearts and Hooves day? He said that Applebloom slipped him a love poison!” “Well, she did, but I thought Big Mac and Cheerilee kept dating afterwards?” Twilight murmured. “Nah, they just acted like they were to prank Applebloom and her friends,” Rainbow chuckled. “Kinda funny actually.” “Yeah, but didn’t that bother you at all?” Twilight asked. “I’m surprised you didn’t jump in!” “I was in the hospital, remember? Broke my wing, got stuck in that room?” “Oh yeah,” Twilight groaned, smacking herself on the forehead. “Still, you weren’t upset about it?” “Twilight, with all the other weird and crazy stuff I’ve seen since you came to Ponyville, why would I be mad at Mac for being poisoned?” Rainbow snickered. “I mean, come on! I’ve had my wings turned upside-down.” “Okay, good point... What about Soarin’ though? I saw you dancing with him at my brother’s wedding.” “Oh, yeah, he’s great!” Rainbow grinned. “But that’s different. He’s one my idols and everything, but I don’t really think I could be in a relationship with him, y’know? Even if he’s the one who asks me out, I don’t think I’d ever be able to just relax, I’d always be trying to impress him; it just wouldn’t work.” “You’re settling for Big Mac because you can’t be with Soarin’?” Twilight muttered. “What? No! Is that how that came out?” Rainbow gasped. “No, I'm teasing you. Lighten up a bit,” Twilight cackled. She affixed Rainbow with a softer smile. "So, you really care about him?" “Well, yeah!” Rainbow replied both confidently and guiltily. “Okay, so if everything’s so great, what’s the problem? I know you wouldn’t cheat on him and he wouldn’t cheat on you, so the problem has to be something with —” Twilight cut herself off as a terrible thought wormed its way into her head. “You two haven’t told Applejack, have you?” Twilight didn’t want that to be the case. In fact, she desperately hoped it wasn’t. Unfortunately, the pained look of Rainbow’s face was all the confirmation she needed. “Rainbow Dash, cider season was six months ago. You’ve been keeping this a secret from her for that long? How could you possibly do that to her?” “Well, we didn’t actually start dating until a couple weeks after that—” “Don’t argue semantics with me, Dash!” Twilight snarled. “You’ve been keeping a very important secret from our friend, who deserves to know. That’s a terrible thing to do, no matter how long!” “I can explain!” Rainbow murmured timidly, tears forming in her eyes. “You had better be able to!” Twilight scolded. “I’d really like to hear it!” “You don’t have to yell at me!” Rainbow sobbed. “I know that I did something awful and I really feel bad about it. I’m trying to ask for help!” “Okay, okay, I’m sorry,” Twilight sighed, taking a few deep breaths to calm her temper. “You’re right, I shouldn’t have yelled. Now please, tell me how this happened.” “...Okay it’s like this: at first we weren’t sure if it was going to work out. We knew AJ was going to be upset and we didn’t think we could actually stay together if she was mad at us all the time. That and if it didn’t actually work out, we didn’t want to have her stuck between us. It would’ve been way too awkward!” she explained rapidly “That’s understandable, but doesn’t explain why you still haven’t told her!” Twilight growled. “It’s because we’re afraid,” Rainbow sighed, hanging her head. “Both of us are. We know that she’s going to be furious when she finds out and we don’t want that...” “But the longer the two of you wait, the angrier she’s going to be with you,” Twilight warned. “I know... I’m just really nervous about it,” Rainbow groaned. “It’s strange, I’m more afraid of my friends being upset with me than I was of facing a dragon.” “Take it from me, admitting you’re wrong is one of the hardest things anypony can do,” Twilight sighed. “I’m proud of you for admitting that, but don’t go thinking that that’s the end of it! Applejack’s going to be really hurt when you tell her and you’ll have to make it up to her.” “I know.” “And like I said, the longer you wait, the angrier she’s going to be,” Twilight added. “I know...” “So, what’s the first thing you’re going to do when you get back to Ponyville?” Twilight asked, eyeing Rainbow intently. “Tell her... Well, after I talk to Big Mac about it,” Rainbow sighed with a grimace. “Of course,” Twilight said with a nod. “Feel better?” “A little.... Thanks, Twilight,” Rainbow murmured, the shadow of a smile crossing her face. “Well, this was more for Applejack than it was for you,” Twilight replied. “I’m always happy to help, but you really messed up this time.” “I know, but even though my problems are all my fault, you’re still worried about my feelings,” Rainbow giggled. “You’re just an awesome pony like that! I knew that no matter how mad or disappointed you were, you’d still help me! That’s why you’re my best friend!” “I thought Applejack was your best friend?” Twilight quipped. “Well, yeah, she is my best friend, but you’re my best friend! Get it?” “Not one bit.” “Oh fine,” Rainbow moped. Twilight let her gaze linger on Rainbow’s face. She was still more than a little disappointed with the pegasus, but she had gotten her point across, and she could tell that Rainbow regretted this mistake probably more than anything else she had ever done. Alright, Applejack may be the victim here, but she’s not here and Rainbow is, she sighed to herself. Rainbow’s sorry and nopony deserves to sit wallowing in self-pity while something like this eats them up inside. Time to take one for the team... “Hey, Rainbow, now that we’ve got that all sorted out, I know a way to lift your spirits,” Twilight cooed. “Yeah, right,” Rainbow spouted skeptically. “Think about it, why were you coming to Canterlot in the first place?” Twilight offered, hoping Rainbow would catch on. “Something about learning..?” “Oh, yeah! We’ve gotta get you flying,” Rainbow squealed, perking up immediately. “But what about your paperwork here?” “That can wait. To the courtyard!” Twilight proclaimed, layering on extra bravado. “Sweet. Race ya there!” Rainbow shouted over her shoulder as she burst through the door, Twilight hot on her heels. The pair galloped through the castle’s winding corridors, eventually bursting into the cool April air of the courtyard with Rainbow Dash firmly in the lead. Grinning broadly, Rainbow spun around and immediately began speaking. “Alright, listen up! We’re going to start with something nice and simple: the standard barrel roll!” “Uhhh, Rainbow?” “Now the thing to remember here is to keep your legs tucked in.” “Rainbow Dash...” “If you don’t, you could—” “DASH!” “What?” Rainbow groaned irritably. “You’re not supposed you interrupt your teacher! Aren’t you, like, Equestria’s best student? You should know that already!” “I was trying to say that I’m not going to be able to do that,” Twilight retorted. “I haven’t flown at all yet!” “WHAT?” Rainbow screamed, falling to the ground at the shock. “You’ve had wings for two whole weeks and you haven’t flown yet?” “Well, yeah! You said that you wanted to teach me how to fly, so I didn’t take any lessons,” Twilight explained softly. “I meant that I wanted to teach you the cool stuff, not how to hover!” Rainbow groaned, her face contorted with disappointment. “Then you should’ve been more specific,” Twilight muttered audibly. “Alright, fine. Hovering 101 it is,” Rainbow sighed. “Now, it’s not as simple as it looks. You can’t just flap your wings and expect to get off the ground. Same thing with moving, you’ve actually gotta move your wings a certain way to do it. Now I’m not gonna bother going over that with you because I know you already know all that.” “And what if I don’t?” Twilight asked, letting her annoyance slip into her voice. “Oh, come on, Egghead! You can’t tell me that you haven’t already read ten books on the subject!” “Three actually, but fine, I read about it,” Twilight groaned. “What does that have to do with anything?” “It’ll make this faster,” Rainbow replied. “Now since you already know how it works, just do it.” “...Right now?” “No, next week,” Rainbow sighed. “Yes, right now!” Twilight swallowed nervously. “Okay, I can do that...” “What’s the matter? Scared?” Rainbow teased. “No... Yes... A little bit,” Twilight whimpered. She spread her wings and gave a single flap, lifting herself off the ground for less than a second. “See? I can do it.” “Right,” the unamused Rainbow muttered. “Now do it again, but this time stay up. And no magic!” “No magic? But what if I fall?” “Falling and getting all bruised up is how you learn,” Rainbow explained. “So no using magic to help you fly until you can fly on your own. Promise me!” “O-okay, I won’t use magic to help me fly,” Twilight stuttered. Spreading her wings again, she flapped; harder this time. She managed to stay up for three seconds this time before falling back to her hooves. “Alright, new plan,” Rainbow sighed. “New plan? Whaaaaaaaaaa—” Twilight screeched as Rainbow leapt over to her, hooked her around her front legs and lifted her into the air. “What in pony’s name are you doing?” “Teaching,” Rainbow snickered, dragging Twilight up almost ten meters before letting go. “Think fast! And remember: no magic! You promised!” Twilight screamed all the way down, desperately flapping her wings against the wind. She was going to die; there was no way around it. Her life began to flash before her eyes. Starting with her earliest memory, playing with her brother on their parent’s bed, progressing to more recent ones, like earning her cutie mark and— “Twilight? TWILIGHT!” Rainbow bellowed into her ear, snapping her out of her flashback. “You’re flying.” Twilight’s eyes fluttered open and she dared a downward glance to see that she was indeed hovering half a meter off the ground. “Am I a great teacher or what?” Rainbow cheered. “We keep going like this and— uh-oh!” “GET BACK HERE YOU LITTLE BRAT!” Twilight screamed as she lunged in Rainbow’s direction. “Or what? You’ll lecture me— woah!” Rainbow twisted out of the way as Twilight dove past. “Okay, I’ll admit it, that was a really mean thing for me to do!” she called out nervously, flying backwards away from the angry princess. “YOU JUST WAIT UNTIL I GET MY HOOVES ON YOU!” “Let’s be reasonable about this, Twilight! I’m apologizing! Think about it this way: you’ll never be able to catch me... Oh crud!” Rainbow turned around and sped off as Twilight started to gain on her. She felt a pinch on the tip of her tail and turned around to see a familiar violet glow surrounding it. Suddenly, she felt a strong force pulling her backwards towards her pursuer. “Oh, great...” She let her body go limp as she was flung towards Twilight, who immediately tackled her to the ground. Twilight, however, wasn’t content with just knocking her friend out of the air. With a second spell, she willed the grass the pair had crashed into to grow longer. It bounded Rainbow’s hooves together, and tightly wound its way around her midsection, pinning her to the ground. “Hey! You promised you wouldn’t use magic,” Rainbow whined. “I promised I wouldn’t use magic to help me fly, I never said anything about not using it to catch a certain blue pain-in-the-flank,” Twilight growled menacingly. “Well ya got me,” Rainbow sighed. “So now what? Gonna make me do lines on a chalkboard?” she grumbled sarcastically. “No, no... I have something much worse planned for you,” Twilight murmured, plucking out one of her own feathers and pointing it threateningly at Rainbow’s throat. “W-what are you going to do with that?” Rainbow stuttered, attempting, and failing, to sound brave. Rather than replying, Twilight just grinned as the feather rotated downwards. Rainbow’s eyes followed it’s tip, gasping when she realized what it was being aimed at. “N-no! You wouldn’t! That’s just—” Twilight never found out how Rainbow was going to finish her sentence. Instead of listening, she forcefully jabbed the feather into the pegasus’ hoof and began dragging it along the bottom, immediately eliciting a loud, rambunctious laugh from her victim. “Nooooo! No, pleeeease!” Rainbow gasped through her loud, lung-emptying guffaws. “Say it!” “No, no stop! I’ll do anything!” “SAY IT!” “Alright, alright! You’re cooler than I am!” “And don’t you forget it!” Twilight giggled. Tossing the feather aside and returning the grass back to its natural length, she held out a hoof to Rainbow, who gratefully accepted it and pulled herself back to a standing position. “But seriously, Dash, don’t you ever do that again.” “I won’t!” “So what’s the next lesson?” Over the next three days, Twilight practiced with Rainbow every chance she got, while Rainbow, having learned her feathery lesson, avoided taking any more shortcuts. If Twilight could have had things her way, she would have spent all day, every day in her lessons until she had completely mastered the art of flying; unfortunately she was still a princess, and thus still had obligations to fulfill. The current of which involved sitting in court, arguing with a deranged earth pony that opened his presentation by stating, rather loudly, that he ‘in no way recognized the authority of the central government of Equestria’. “I said no,” Twilight groaned for the fifth time. “You can’t just refuse me!” the angry petitioner screeched as he once again attempted to get around the guard separating him from Twilight. “I’m pretty sure I just did,” she growled sarcastically. “I’m not letting you plant poison joke in your flower garden; the law stands as written.” “This is a breach of my rights and my freedom! I demand that you-” “You’re free to be as stupid as you want, but only if you’re the only pony that’ll be hurt by it. I’m not going to let you do anything to endanger anypony else just because you think you have a right to do whatever you want!” Twilight shouted over his ranting as he was dragged towards the door. “If I hear that you went ahead and planted some anyway, I’ll personally make sure that you don’t get off with just a warning!” She glared at the group of ponies standing in on the session as observers, silencing their snickering, before nodding to Quill-Pen. “Bring in the next petitioner!” the older mare shouted to the guards near the door. They opened it to allow a pair of mares through, an earth pony and a unicorn. Twilight put on a welcoming smile for the pair, but it quickly died when she realized that the two were in the midst of a heated argument. “How did I ever let you talk me into this? This is an awful idea!” the earth pony snarled to her companion. “I didn’t even think we’d get this far! You were the one who kept bugging the clerk to get us an audience! It’s your fault that we’re here!” “Hello?” Twilight called out, hoping to draw their attention to herself and away from each other. “My fault? I was trying to be helpful!” “If we get arrested for insulting-” “That’s quite enough!” Quill-Pen barked, causing the pair to jump. “Do you two have something you wish to ask of the Princess, or would you prefer to waste such an opportunity squabbling with each other?” Having been so engrossed in their shouting that they hadn’t realized they were standing in front of the throne, the pair turned to give each other terrified expressions. “Umm, yes we do,” the earth pony stuttered. “Or rather she does, I’m just here for moral support.” The unicorn shot her friend a scathing look before turning back to Twilight. “Y-your Highness, w-we were t-talking the other day...” she began before stopping to gulp nervously. “And we got around to talking about the Summer Sun Celebration.” Twilight’s ears perked up at the mention of the subject. Somehow, she had completely forgotten about the holiday. “Yes, go on...” “So we were thinking,” the unicorn continued, visibly trembling now, her voice notably higher, “could the Summer Sun Celebration be canceled this year? We just thought-” Twilight strained her ears to hear whatever it was the unicorn was trying to say next, but was unable to make it out over the deafening uproar that filled the throne room. “I’m sorry, what was that last bit?” Twilight asked, nearly unable to hear her own voice, not that it would’ve mattered. Both petitioners were cowering on the floor with their hooves over their heads, being screamed at from every different angle. “Hey, that’s enough! Stop yelling! Would everypony please...” she called out, hoping that somepony would listen. Finally, she gave in and, for the first time since she had become Princess, magically amplified her voice. “EVERYPONY, SHUT UP!” All other noise died as her first use of the Royal Canterlot Voice blasted through the vast chamber, leaving a deathly silence. “Thank you,” Twilight sighed before looking back down at the petitioners. “Now, I didn’t hear that last part. Would you mind repeating it for me?” “I-I’d like to have this year’s celebration set aside as a day of mourning,” she squeaked, her voice barely audible. “Never!” Quill-Pen bellowed from Twilight’s side. “Actually, I think I like that idea,” Twilight replied softly. “What? But Twi— Your Highness, the Summer Sun Celebration is one of our most sacred traditions! How can you possibly consider this?” “The first Summer Sun Celebration was put together by Princess Celestia to raise the spirit of the ponies whose lives had been turned upside-down by Nightmare Moon’s appearance,” Twilight retorted, quoting one of her favorite books. “This’ll be Equestria’s first Summer Sun Celebration without Princess Celestia; I personally think it’s very appropriate that we spend the day in mourning.” “But-” “But nothing, Quill-Pen! Authority over the celebration rests solely with the Princess of the Sun, so it’s my decision alone!” Twilight snapped. She turned back to the petitioners and made her proclamation to the court. “The festivities for this year’s Summer Sun Celebration are to be canceled, and the date is to be set aside as a day of remembrance! If anypony would like to set up some form of event, they may do so, but it must be dedicated to our late Princess.” The unicorn simply gaped up at her, frozen stiff, as a buzz of frantic conversation filled the throne room once again. Her companion prodded her in the side several times, to no avail, before turning back to Twilight. She opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out. After struggling over her words to a few seconds, she simply smiled, bowed, then lifted her friend onto her back and made her way to the door. Twilight waited for the door to close behind the mares before turning to Quill-Pen. “Hey, I’m sorry. It was wrong of my to belittle you like that.” “To be honest, I shouldn’t have questioned you so blatantly in front of your subjects. It sends the wrong message,” Quill-Pen sighed. “It’s just... the Summer Sun Celebration has always been my favorite holiday, so I guess I took what they were trying to do personally.” “It’s okay, you were just standing up for what you believe in,” Twilight murmured. “Regardless, you were right. The decision is yours alone.” “That doesn’t mean I should just ignore what you have to say,” Twilight said apologetically. “But if you’re willing to put it behind you, then I will too. What’s next?” “Those were the last petitioners for the day,” Quill-Pen remarked with a mischievous smile. “Oh no...” “Which means that it’s time for you to give that speech I had you prepare!” Quill-Pen chuckled. She turned towards the door and nodded to the guards. “Let them in!” “Remind me again, how did you convince me to do this?” Twilight whined through a forced grin, quiet enough for only Quill-Pen to hear. “By showing you the number of petitions this group has submitted. It’ll be a lot quicker and easier to just speak to them all at once,” Quill-Pen murmured, levitating a stack of documents over to Twilight. “Quicker, sure. Easier? I doubt it,” she sighed, grudgingly accepting the papers. “It’s easier to convince nobles to be reasonable one-on-one, if only because they’re afraid of me, but they’re much braver in groups. They’re like seagulls...” “Well put your best smile on and your best hoof forward. If you do well enough here, I promise not to schedule anything like this for at least another month,“ Quill-Pen smirked. “Unless it’s something really important, of course.” “You think everything’s important, Quill-Pen.” “Good, you’re learning,” she snickered. “Well, I’d give an introduction, but you’re a big pony now, I think you can handle yourself.” “I’m going to get you back for this,” Twilight muttered. “I’ll check my breakfast for hot sauce tomorrow. Start whenever you’re ready.” “Right,” she sighed, flicking her eyes across the assembled crowd. Unfortunately, she recognized most of them, they were the loudest complainers among the aristocracy. “Thank you for coming, everypony,” she began, magically holding the stack of stationery at the bottom of her field of vision. Not that she needed it, of course; she had her speech completely memorized from beginning to end. “I understand that many of you have concerns about where a number of proposed budget cuts will be falling, and so I have invited you all here to address the ten most common complaints, hopefully in a manner you will all find satisfying. “Now, from what I’ve been told, the proposal that the most ponies have an issue with is the one that would completely cut funding to the Canterlot Botanical Gardens. I personally like the Gardens and visited them with Princess Celestia numerous times during my apprenticeship. That being said, the Gardens are owned entirely by a small group of Noble Houses and access is restricted to very few ponies, every one of them a member of the nobility. “I cannot in good conscience allow tax bits to go towards maintaining a private facility that exists only for the entertainment of a few very wealthy ponies. However, if the rules were changed to allow the public entry to the Gardens, then not only would I be willing to restore funding, but I might even consider expand-” She was cut off by a loud scream from her audience. Confused, she glared down at the crowd, only to notice that they all seemed to be staring at something near the ceiling. She followed their line of vision up to the top of one of the room’s many pillars, but was tackled to the ground. She struggled briefly with the tangled limbs of her assailant, but was forced onto her back as the larger pony gained the upper hand. She looked up into the face of her attacker and gasped as she realized that it was one of her own guards. She charged her magic, thoroughly intending to blast the triumphant grin off of his face, but her instincts were screaming at her. Something was wrong. She let the spell fizzle out as a crimson droplet leaked out between his teeth. The feathered shaft of a bolt protruded from his neck. Her stomach churned as she felt her fur grow wet with a warm, thick liquid. Angry shouts and fearful screams pressed against her ears, but she couldn’t hear them. She was pulled out from under the body. A kind voice whispered into her ear, assuring her that the shooter had been caught. None of it mattered. Everything had gone wrong. How could everything be so wrong? “Oh, I should’ve been there! How is she, Quill-Pen?” Rainbow asked, unsure if she wanted an honest answer or not. “Asleep, finally,” the seneschal sighed. “Really? The nurse told me that they couldn’t get her to sleep. They said she was having non-stop panic attacks!” “Well, I may have drugged her juice,” Quill-Pen murmured guiltily. “You what?” Rainbow snarled, taking a couple threatening steps toward Quill-Pen. “Why would you do that? She trusts you!” “I know, and I feel awful about it, but she’s better off this way,” Quill-Pen whispered. “I would’ve used a sleep spell if I could, but she’s as powerful now as Princess Celestia ever was. The only pony who could hope to cast a sleep spell strong enough to affect her is Princess Luna, and, at the moment, she’s in a terrible state herself!” “She is?” Rainbow replied, completely bewildered. “Why? She was asleep when all this happened.” “Some genius decided to inform her of the situation by barging into her room and waking her up by shouting ‘Princess Twilight’s been shot!’” Quill-Pen sighed. “Her Highness didn’t take it well. She had a panic attack herself.” “Oh... Yeah, that’s not cool,” Rainbow grimaced. She opened her mouth to say something else, but was interrupted by the clamor of hooves hitting the floor. “Where is she?” Shining Armor’s voice echoed down the corridor as he rounded a nearby corner. “Sleeping, Guard-Captain. Please keep it down,” Quill-Pen scolded. “I want to see her!” “I know you do. Trust me, I know; but there’s more important things at hoof,” Quill-Pen stated tactfully. “The would-be assassin was caught immediately, but we don’t know if he was acting alone. A team was sent to his residence to search for anything to clue us into any backup plans he may have had and we need to get the investigation underway immediately. Normally I’d prefer not to have family members involved in an investigation, but this one is entirely too important to place under anypony but the best we have, and you’re it.” “You have the shooter? Who was it?” Shining screamed. “A disgraced noble looking for revenge,” Quill-Pen explained, hoping that offering more information might placate the enraged sibling. “Five years ago he invested his entire fortune in a company that was manufacturing some strange new product. Not long after it hit the shelves, Twilight began to perform experiments on it as a science project and ended up proving that it didn’t work. He lost everything. “However, that doesn’t change the fact that he may not be the only pony involved. There are dozens of ponies who would like to see Twilight hurt or dead, and any one of them could have aided him.” “I-I’ll get right to it, Seneschal!” Shining Armor stuttered, unable to keep himself from glancing at the door to the room his sister lay in. “And Guard-Captain? You are never to be in the same room as the shooter,” Quill-Pen growled threateningly. “The same goes for anyone arrested or questioned. You are to organize the investigation only. Understood?” “But-” “I will get Minister Ironside to give you these orders himself, if I must! You will keep your revenge in check and allow our legal system to do its job. Are we clear?” “...Crystal.” “Good. I appreciate your cooperation,” Quill-Pen replied professionally. “I’ll send for you as soon as she wakes up.” The two mares watched Shining Armor stomp away before turning back to each other. “And now, I must ask something of you, Rainbow Dash.” “Umm, okay... What do you need?” Rainbow muttered, lacking her usual confidence. “I’d like you to stay here. I’d prefer there was a friendly face waiting for her when she wakes up.” “Oh, is that it?” Rainbow asked. “I was planning on doing that anyway!” “Thank you,” Quill-Pen replied with a relieved sigh. “I know that you’re doing it for her and not for me, but I appreciate it anyway. You’re a good pony and a good friend to her.” “Well duh! Don’t you know who you’re talking to?” Rainbow grinned over her shoulder as she pushed open the door to Twilight’s room.