//------------------------------// // Ch. 10: Making Things Right // Story: The Road Not Taken // by levarien //------------------------------// "After the festival, we spent the night at the inn, helped clean up the next day, and caught an afternoon train home," said Twilight. She levitated a teacup to her lips and sipped the steaming beverage. The Elements of Harmony sat atop a red and white checkered blanket situated on the slope of one of the large hills just outside Ponyville. Each mare was lying on her back, watching the fluffy white clouds meander across the bright blue sky. "What a terrifyingly exciting tale," said Rarity from her nest of elegant tasseled silk pillows. "I can scarcely believe such a horrible creatures stalked Equestria," she said through a mortified frown. "I would have been so scared," said Fluttershy. The butter colored pegasus had squeaked several times during Twilight's recounting of their travels to Appleoosa and the ruined laboratory. "I'm so glad nopony was hurt." Applejack stretched her hooves to the sky, her overworked joints popping in response. "Cousin Braeburn wouldn't let anypony down," said the farm-mare proudly, "he's as dependable as any of us Apples." "And he's just as hugable!" said Pinkie Pie as she rolled over and smothered the freckled orange mare in a rib cracking hug. Applejack struggled for breath and grabbed a nearby branch to pry the pink mare off of her. "I can't believe you tweaked Captain Brightblade like that," said Rainbow Dash. "That guy is like a total Pegasus legend." She pulled her sunglasses down her nose and turned to look at Twilight. "I've heard that even the Wonderbolts step lightly around him." "Well I couldn't just let him talk about Argent like that," replied the alicorn, "not after all he did that day." "Of course not darling," said Rarity, "Bullies like that must be handled with deftness and tact, and I do believe you played him perfectly." She delicately refilled her teacup, stirred in a teaspoon of honey, and brought it to her lips, sipping the brew gracefully. "And now Ponyville has it's own handsome resident Guard Captain." Rarity's eyes lit up as she turned and sat up on her impromptu bedding. "He needs a uniform!" she said excitedly, "Something chic; something that screams, 'I may be a soldier, but I'm still fabulous!'" "Yeah!" said Rainbow Dash, "As long as you keep it radical!" She jumped to her hooves and threw off her sunglasses. "It should have bad flanked spikes here, here, and here," she said pointing to her shoulders and knees. "And a totally awesome helmet with wings on the side and a bladed crest running along the top." She brought her hooves to her face and squeezed. "And you can attach lances to the sides: Soooo cool." Rarity recoiled in horror as her beautiful plans were corrupted into a mockery of their former selves. "It will most certainly not look like that!" she shouted indignantly. "Argent is the Captain of Twilight's Royal Guard, he must look fashionable and dignified." "So...lame then?" replied Rainbow Dash, "He'll be the laughing stock of the other guards!" The two friends began arguing back in forth on the hypothetical outfit for a stallion that didn't even wear armor in his normal duties. "Anyways," said Twilight to the three other mares beside her while clearly ignoring Rarity and Dash, "how have things been here?" "Well, I've been busy as a bumblebee," said Applejack as she fanned her hat in front of her face, "But I reckon that since Fluttershy stepped in to watch Mac and AB, everything's been running as smooth as silk on the farm." She wrapped a foreleg around the pegasus' neck and rubbed the side of Fluttershy's head against hers. "She's been a gift from Celestia these last few days." "It's been so much fun," said Fluttershy happily. "Big Mac showed me how to bake his favorite apple crisp, and he helped feed all of the critters when we went out for a walk." "And he steps lightly around her too," said Applejack, "Ain't nopony but Granny Smith able to keep that knucklehead from wandering out of his bed when he's hurt." "He's just like a big cuddly bear," said Fluttershy sweetly, "Harry's always hurting his back, and I tell him the same thing: Stay in bed or you'll hurt yourself, and that would make me cry." Rarity used her magic to stuff a pillow into Rainbow Dash's mouth so she could better hear the conversation. "Fluttershy dear," she said over her shoulder while immobilizing the multichromatic pegasus, "did you ever ask him?" "Rarity!" said Fluttershy, an embarrassed blush warming her cheeks. "You said you wouldn't tell anypony!" Rarity rolled her eyes and released her magical hold on the fuming pegasus. Rainbow Dash grabbed the pillow from her mouth and flung the now slobber covered cushion at the prissy unicorn's head. Rarity took the soft blow to the side of the face with as much grace as she could, deciding that allowing the overly proud pegasus to win this small victory was worth ending the playful scuffle. She quivered her lips and squinted her eyes while raising her hoof to her head and let loose a piteous wail of anguish. "Not so rough," she whimpered, "That hurt!" "Rainbow Dash, wouldja stop pickin' on Rarity," said Applejack, who had been ignoring the bickering until the high pitched whining caused her to wince. "Thank you Applejack," said Rarity, who turned and stuck her tongue out at the now nearly apoplectic Rainbow Dash. "Now Fluttershy," she said while lying down next to the still blushing pegasus and gesturing towards the alicorn, "If Twilight can go on a date, why can't you?" "Date!?" sputtered Twilight as she spit out a mouthful of warm tea. "When did I go on a date?" "Twilight, when two ponies spend an evening dancing together and cavorting around a carnival, it's generally considered a date." "No," said Twilight with a confused shake of her head, "We were just having fun together." "Yeah," said Pinkie Pie smugly, "Everypony knows you get a kiss after a date. Braeby knows how to end a date." "Ugh," said Applejack, "Ah reckon I've heard enough about how well cousin Braeby kisses, Pinkie." Rarity held her hoof against her face and sighed in exasperation. "Hopeless," she thought to herself, "Must I do everything myself." She knew she would though: Her generous nature demanded nothing less. "We'll talk later," she whispered into Fluttershy's ear. The pegasus blushed and nodded. She turned to Twilight and idly inspected a raised hoof. "If you say it wasn't a date, then it wasn't a date," she said to the still confused looking Twilight. "Well... yeah," said Twilight, her voice trailing off. She busied herself with taking a bite of one of the crisp golden apples Applejack had brought fresh from the orchard. "I really would like to make Argent a dapper new uniform though," said Rarity. "Could you send him over this afternoon so I can get his measurements." Twilight nodded her assent absently. Before long, the six mares were busy enjoying each other's company. As usual, the jibes and teasing were all done in a friendly and loving manner, leaving no hard feelings. An empty picnic basket, and several demonstrations of Rainbow Dash's newest trick later, they waved to each other and went about their days. "Careful," warned Fluttershy, her worry evident by the small bits of hoof she had chewed off. "Not too hard now." Applejack rolled her eyes and rubbed the nervous pegasus' back. "Let 'er rip bro!" she shouted exuberantly. Big Macintosh stood facing the two mares and nodded determinedly. He firmly planted his lightly bandaged foreleg to the ground, digging a small furrow into the fertile soil with his massive hoof. Slamming his other forehoof to the ground with authority, he adopted a wide stance and looked over his shoulder at the large gnarled apple tree they had nicknamed "Old Ironsides." Mac brought a rear leg up slowly, testing the distance to the trunk, and brought it back to the ground when satisfied with his positioning. He reared his aft legs up and brought them to his stomach. With a grunt he pushed into the ground with his forehooves and sent his rear hooves hurtling at the tree. A solid *Thunk* echoed through the rows of trees, followed the rhythmic sounds of apples falling into the buckets they had placed around the massive old fruit tree. Big Macintosh pulled his back hooves from the trunk and sat them back on the ground as loose leaves and branches rained down on him. "Atta boy!" whooped Applejack, who whipped her hat around her head in celebration. She trotted to her brother and threw her hooves around his neck. "That's how we do it on the farm!" Fluttershy followed close behind and quickly lifted the stallion's injured foreleg in her hooves. "You didn't hurt yourself again, did you?" she asked in a panic. She rubbed the foreleg with her hoof, probing for any damage he may have caused. Mac drew back his leg gently but sternly. "I'm right as rain Miss Fluttershy," he said while placing the hoof back on the ground. "I'll say," said Applejack. "Any pony who can give Ol' Ironsides a buckin' like that is a bit more than fine." She pointed at the matched pair of horseshoe imprints on the ancient apple tree's trunk. "Quiet Thunder and The Ponyville Kid are back!" she shouted while tapping his rear legs with a hoof. "Just in time too," she said with a sigh of relief, "The east fields are nearly ready for harvest, and I wasn't looking forward to doing that alone." "I'm so happy for you Macintosh," said Fluttershy with weak smile, "Congratulations." "I couldn't have done it without your help," said Macintosh, "I probably would've run my fool leg lame if you hadn't helped out around here." He hesitantly stepped forward and gave the pegasus a light hug around the shoulder. "I reckon I really owe you for all your help," he said to the mare. "If ya'll need anything from me just ask and I'll see it done." "This is my chance," thought Fluttershy, "Just like Rarity said: Confidence, grace, and passion." As she looked into the stallion's grateful eyes, her determination quickly withered in the face of her overwhelming shyness, but not before she was able to coax out one question. "Would you go on a picnic with me?" murmured Fluttershy inaudibly. "I'm sorry, I didn't hear ya," said Mac. He leaned in closer to the mare, who shied away reflexively. "Would you like go on a picnic with me?" she asked again, her words coming out as faint squeaks, understandable perhaps only by small woodland rodents. Big Mac took a concerned step towards the pink maned pegasus. She began breathing heavily, her chest heaving as she hyperventilated. "SORRY, I HAVE TO GO!" she shouted loudly. She fell over herself as she turned to gallop away, her tumble kicking up a storm of dust. She jumped to her hooves and started running away from the two siblings. For a few seconds, the large stallion stared at the fleeing mare in confusion, his hoof still outstretched in an offer of help. Applejack rubbed her forehead with her hoof and sighed in exasperation. "Go after her you big dummy," she said, smacking her hat against his flank to get him moving. The stallion galloped heedlessly along the uneven ground, testing the limits of his newly healed leg. While he was known throughout Ponyville for his strength, Big Macintosh was hardly the quickest pony in town. The same layers of muscle that allowed him to effortlessly tow enormous wagonloads of apples and the occasional house also weighed him down and limited his speed. Fluttershy on the other hoof was quite swift when given the right motivation. Her fight or flight instinct definitely favored the flight aspect, but not literally; her wings stayed glued to her sides as she galloped away from the grove of older apple trees and towards the northern fields. She quickly passed out of sight of the pursuing stallion and stopped by a familiar large tree at the edge of the Apple family farm. She trotted around the trunk and sat facing the Everfree forest. "You're such a coward Fluttershy," she said aloud, her voice cracking as she chastised herself yet again. "You can stare down a dragon; you can stand firm against an angry minotaur; you can fly into a tornado; but you can't ask a kind stallion a simple question." She sniffled and laid her head on the ground and covered her eyes with her hooves. She cried softly into her pink mane. Big Macintosh wandered the northern fields, looking for a sign of the pegasus that had eluded him. "Was it something I said?" he thought to himself, "or something I didn't say?" Big Mac was confused. He had been the lone stallion in the family for several years now, and he still didn't understand the fairer sex. "You're as dense as apple wood," he muttered to himself in recrimination. He turned to head back to the farm house when the wind shifted from the north and brought the faint sounds of whimpering to his twitching ears. Macintosh had worked these fields his entire life, so even the slightest sounds tended to grab his attention. He cautiously walked north, his head held high to catch the muted sound. Fluttershy continued listing her faults to herself as she sniffled beneath her hooves. "You're weak; your friends always have to save you; you're always bothering Rarity with your silly problems; Rainbow Dash always has to stick up for you when everypony bullies you; and now you can't even ask Macintosh a simple question." She curled into a ball and tried to shut out the world. "Who would want to deal with such a hopeless mare." "I reckon I would," said a voice from beside the tree. Fluttershy removed a hoof from her face and looked again into the eyes of Big Macintosh. He sat next to her and pulled her other hoof from her face. "And don't call yourself hopeless," he said sternly, "You've done things that would send most ponies galloping for the hills, myself included." He smiled at the mare as she uncoiled herself and demurely looked at the ground. "Now ah promised ah'd do whatever you needed," he said as he reached over and pulled a few loose twigs and leaves that had tangled themselves in her long flowing pink mane, "So please, tell me what's wrong so ah can help." She looked up into his eyes and saw the kindness of somepony who only wanted her to be happy. Something in her snapped. It had happened before: When her limitations had made her angry enough to confront the parts of her psyche that had always held her back. A dragon hurting her dearest friends had made her face her greatest fears. An overly aggressive minotaur had pushed her into finding an assertiveness that didn't come from a litany of mean spirited mantras. The futile struggles of all the pegasi in Ponyville spurred her past her fears of humiliation and public performance. Now though, the warm smile of the red coated stallion in front of her banished her meekness, not through anger, but through a warmness in her heart that she could only describe as love. She closed her eyes and stretched her body forwards, placing her muzzle against his. With all the conviction in her being, she placed her lips against his and gently kissed the stallion. Macintosh's eyes shot open from their usual half lidded state. The shock wore off as he felt the quivering of the mare's delicate lips upon his own. He returned the kiss with aplomb and let his eyes close as he savored the feeling of his first kiss with the mare who had so thoroughly dominated his thoughts of late. They maintained the connection for several seconds before she slowly pulled her head away and looked at the stallion with sleepy eyes. It finally dawned on her that she had just kissed Big Macintosh. The look of contented happiness slid into one of frightful shock as she began sputtering. "I...I...I..." she stammered as she unconsciously backed into the large tree, flattening her back against the trunk with her forehooves crossed under her chin. Macintosh saw the same look of panic that precipitated her previous episode and carefully reached for one of her hooves with his. "It's okay," he said while calmly stroking her shaking hoof. "That's better, isn't it?" he asked as her breathing normalized and she sat back down next to him. "I'm so sorry," she said with a hanging head, "I ruined everything again." Macintosh leaned forward and kissed her on the forehead. "Well I enjoyed it," he said with a smile, "so you put those thoughts right out of your head. Now I just wish I knew what I could do to make you smile again." "Will you go on a picnic with me?" she asked, surprising herself with how easily the words came out. Mac stood and turned away from the tree. Fluttershy looked at the ground and felt the sting of rejection welling up in her chest. A solid *Thunk* drew her gaze back to the tree where Mac's massive rear hooves had left a dent in the trunk. Apples rained down from the branches, surrounding the tree with the sweet fruit. He gathered several of them in a pile by the mare and sat back down. "I only had apples," he said, "but I reckon this still counts as a picnic." Fluttershy felt the familiar warmness in her chest and beamed at the stallion before grabbing an apple with both forehooves and taking a dainty little bite. "It counts," she said with a blush, "But next time I get to bring the food." Twilight adjusted the corset around her wings as she walked through the door of the Golden Oaks Library. The main floor of the tree house was a mess, piles of books sitting at the base of several bookshelves. "Hello," said Twilight, "anypony home?" "Help!" said a muffled voice, "I'm over here!" A mass of tomes under the General Magic section shifted. Twilight trotted over and used her magic to lift the books off of the young dragon. Spike stood and dusted his scales off. "Thanks Mrs. Oracle," he said, "I'd have been stuck under there all night if you hadn't stopped by." Twilight smiled at the baby dragon and without thinking sent the familiar tomes back into their assigned places on the shelf. Spike looked on in wonder as the task he had been struggling with for the better part of an hour was completed in a matter of seconds. "Happy to help Spike," she said warmly. "It looks like a tornado blew through here. Where is the princess?" "She was the tornado," he said sourly. "She and Trixie grabbed like every other book and went down into the lab." He waddled over to the next pile and began sorting the scattered books. "I couldn't talk you into helping me clean up this mess, could I?" Twilight looked into the hopeful, chubby little face she hadn't seen in decades and realized she could never say no. "Sure Spike," she said with a smile, "I'd love to." She levitated the collection of books below the unicorn history section and began reshelving them. Spike grabbed the occasional tome she had missed and held it up for her to inspect the title before she grabbed it and sent it to its proper place. "So Spike," she asked, "What's it like living here with the Princess?" "I can't complain," he said while bending over to grab a particularly thick treatise on the code of law from the ancient unicorn kingdoms. "It beats fighting with other dragons over the tiniest bit of plunder, so I'm told." "I would think so," replied Twilight, "but you're not bored here? The princess must be ever so busy." "Nah," he said waving his claw at the question dismissively. "Don't get me wrong, it can get pretty dull when she's just spending a day reading twelve books for Princess Celestia, but I still get to go on fun adventures." He playfully rapped his clenched claw against the older mare's shoulder, "You saw how much fun we had at the festival. Not many dragons get to say they did that." Twilight giggled and ruffled the baby dragon's headspines with her hoof. "You certainly are a unique little dragon," she said playfully. "So where's your husband?" he asked out of curiosity, "I don't think I've seen either of you two without the other." "Oh we're not married," she said, "and he's taking care of some chores around the house. I figured I'd see if Trixie and Twilight needed any help with the things we found outside of Appleoosa." She leaned into the dragon and looked around conspiratorially. "To be honest, years ago I convinced Horizon that I have a dust allergy. He's been a neat freak ever since." Spike brought his hands to his belly and laughed heartily. "Well send him over here," he said jovially, "Twilight's always complaining about how dusty it gets in here, even though she never helps me clean." The two spend the next hour tidying the library: Placing each book in its spot in the stacks and thoroughly eradicating every speck of dust that dared to stand before them. Spike told "Oracle" about all of his adventures, embellishing them to a great extent, unaware, of course, that the older mare had known the truth of every tale. Twilight didn't correct him though. Seeing her little baby dragon smiling and laughing was a treasure she had thought lost to time. "Wow, you jumped from the very tip of the Crystal Palace?" said Twilight with faux astonishment. "I've seen it in up close: It's huge!" "Yeah!" he said proudly, "I fell forever before Princess Cadance saved me, but I wasn't scared!" "How brave of you!" said Twilight in fawning admiration. "Well I bet your wings come in soon, and you won't even need a princess to save you." She turned away so he wouldn't see the sad look on her face. "Then even Princess Twilight won't be able to keep up with you." "Hah!" scoffed Spike, "Twilight has wings too you know." "That she does," said Twilight ruefully, "I'm sure you two will be soaring through the skies together in no time." As they walked to the laundry room to deposit the filthy dusting rags, the door to the downstairs laboratory opened. "Spike!" yelled Twilight. The dragon dropped the dirty washcloths in a hamper and scurried out of the room. The elder Twilight chuckled and followed him at a more deliberate pace. "Can do!" said Spike to some unheard question. "Oh, Ms. Oracle has been helping me with some of the cleaning, I'll make her some too." He ran past the older mare and into the kitchen. Twilight looked at the older alicorn and flashed an apologetic smile. "Sorry if he pressed you into service," she said, "He can be a bit lazy when he hasn't had a nap." "Oh, it's no trouble," said the older Twilight, "He's a charming young drake." Twilight nodded and pointed her hoof down the basement stairway. "We're studying Shoebert's notes regarding the alicorn amulet if you'd like to join us. Celestia knows you went through enough helping us recover them. Spike is making us some sandwiches too if you're feeling hungry." The older mare thanked her younger self for the offer and walked down the steps to the well equipped magical lab. "We think we've identified a potential fault with the amulet," said Twilight. "Well Trixie found it, but I confirmed it with one of his catalogs." She led the older mare to one of the long wooden tables she used to mix potions. The alicorn amulet laid on the workbench, surrounded by 8 crystals of differing colors and shapes. Trixie had her head in a well worn notebook and occasionally looked at the black board and marked down a few arcane symbols with a piece of chalk. The older mare examined the complex formula that had taken form over the last few hours. "Entangled ley line theory," said the older Twilight with a whistle, "That's some heavy stuff." "You can understand this!?" said Trixie incredulously. "I've had to delve into every advanced magical theory in Sparkle's library just to get a passing mention of this." Trixie grabbed Oracle by the collar of her cloak and dragged her in front of the blackboard. "What in the hay are 'Coangulated vectors of thaumatological injection?'" She leaned into the older mare and whispered into her ear. "And don't you dare hold anything back." The older Twilight gulped and pointed at a row of arcane sigils near the top of the board. "Okay, so I see that you both have identified that the amulet functions by drawing power from the Moon and Sun lines simultaneously." The pair of younger mares nodded as they flanked the older. "So basically, these vectors you read about are how artificers twist ley lines into physical objects. Shoebert is laying out the exact method by which the sun and moon lines were twisted around the other enchantments in the amulet." "That doesn't really help in finding a way to undo whatever it did to my horn," said Trixie impatiently. "Who cares how the stupid thing was made." "Wait," said the younger alicorn, a flash of inspiration lighting up her eyes. "So these diagrams and measurements are exactly how Shoebert crafted the amulet?" The older mare nodded and let the younger draw her conclusions on her own. "I think I understand what's happening," she said, "The amulet is supposed to use the moon and sun lines in tandem, but the vectors Shoebert used were crossed, they feed into the user's horn at the wrong lines." The older Twilight nodded and used the piece of chalk to draw a crude unicorn wearing the amulet. "You're right," she said while drawing two lines extending from the amulet to the chalk unicorn's horn. "The sun line feeds into the order line, and the moon line feeds into the chaos line." Trixie nodded and grabbed the chalk and rubbed it lengthwise across the chalkboard, making a thick line emanating from the unicorn's horn and jotted a seven next to it. "So if a pony has chaotic intentions when using the amulet, it draws the power the sun line would have used and amplifies the chaos line instead." "While leaving the moon line unchanged," said the older mare while nodding her head. "Hence, you have a two discordant lines acting together." "And since it's the pony's own chaos line that's magnified, it changes her personality," said Twilight excitedly, "It makes a certain amount of sense." "Bingo," said the older mare, "And that, young mares, is one of the ways you make a cursed artifact." "Puff out that chest Captain," said Rarity with a giggle. Argent complied and adopted the pose of a classical Marecedonian warrior, his head held high and his chest extended as far as it would go. The mare walked out of his field of view, a ribbon of measuring tape in her magical grip. "I don't see why this is necessary, Ms. Rarity," said the guardspony in confusion. "The armorer in Canterlot just looks at you and one of his assistants brings you some battered old armor and tells you to shine it up yourself." He sweated with the strain of holding in his breath. "I told you, it's just Rarity darling," she said, rapping a hoof against his flank, "And I don't care how those oafs in Canterlot do things. You are my best friend's personal escort, and I will not having you look like some ill-mannered ruffian." She threw the ribbon around the narrowest point of his midsection and brought it together under his stomach. "No fidgeting Argent," she said in annoyance. "That tickles Ms... I mean... that tickles Rarity," he said while squeezing his eyes together to avoid laughing out loud. "I thought Royal Guards were supposed to be able to avoid all distraction," said the mare, "Hold that pose while I measure your inseam." "Measure my whaaaaaaaaaaaaat" squeaked the stallion as he felt Rarity's hoof drift higher along his rear leg than he had expected. "Hey! You did that on purpose." Argent turned to see the mare rolling up her measuring tape with a self satisfied grin plastered on her face. He leveled his squinting glare at the mare and stepped down from the podium she had posed him on. "Of course I did darling," she said casually, "If you know a better way to measure an inseam I'd like to see it." Rarity walked over to an adjustable ponequin and worked the dials until they displayed the measurements she had recorded on a small pad levitating at her side. "Now I just need to figure out what you would look best in," she said while sashaying back towards the stallion. "I'll need your input on that decision." She looked at the clock over the top of the door to her showroom. "I'm feeling a bit peckish," she said while stowing her tools on a table behind the display mirror, "What's say we grab a snack at the cafe?" Argent picked up his shield nervously and strapped it to his back. "Well, I guess the princess did tell me to take the day off," he said while walking to the door. "Okay, let's go, but it's on me. I've gotta get used to this new pay grade somehow." "Handsome and generous," said the mare as she levitated a large sun hat to her head, "we'll need to keep our eyes on a charmer like you Captain Defender." She placed an "out to lunch" sign on the door before escorting the stallion from the boutique and across the quad to the busy open air cafe. "So tell me Captain," said Rarity as they took a seat at one of the over-sized toadstools. "How are you enjoying our little town so far? I understand you and your sister are from Canterlot originally?" "It's very nice here," he replied, "but it's taking some getting used to." "Oh," she asked, arching her eyebrow, "How so?" They were briefly interrupted the waiter who took their orders and returned to the cafe to fetch their drinks. Argent shifted on the soft pile of hay while unbuckling his shield. "Everypony seems to know each other in Ponyville," he said happily. He waved at the orange haired earth mare walking down the opposite side of the street. "I met Carrot Top the first time Twilight asked me to fetch some groceries," he said, "I must have bought carrots from twenty different ponies in Canterlot, and I'd be hard pressed to tell you any of their names." He picked up an imagined bunch of produce and held out his hoof. "It was always, 'Here you are sir. Next!'" He gestured back towards the distant carrot farmer. "We talked for awhile, and Ms. Top told me all about her plans to open a diner someday." "Surely you must miss something about Canterlot: The culture, the sophistication, the fashion!" said Rarity dreamily. "I find it harder to leave every time I visit to purchase my fabrics." She removed her elbows from the table as the waiter returned with their bright red pomegranate juice cocktails and salads. "Why the shopping alone would keep me occupied for days if it weren't for all the work I have here," she said while dismissing the waiter with a thankful nod. "Well sure, it has all that," said Argent while digging into the greens, "but I wasn't able to enjoy the culture as a colt, and by the time I was old enough, I was in the Guard Academy and was too tired at the end of the day to anything but sleep." He took a sip from the glass and savored the sweet juice blend. "Aside from a few days off, and my brief stay in the Crystal Empire, studying under Captain Armor, this is probably the first time I've had the energy and time to just enjoy myself." He thought back to the festivities in Appleoosa. "The Western Days Festival was probably the most most fun I've had since joining the guard." "Twilight told us," said Rarity with a sly smile, "I don't think she's had as much fun in a long time either." She delicately nibbled at a piece of cucumber and used her magic to dab at her muzzle with a napkin. "I don't think I need to tell you, but our Twilight can be a bit obsessive when it comes to her studies. Now with all of these princess duties she's taken on, I wouldn't be surprised if she hasn't taken any time for herself over the last month." "You're not the first pony to say that," said the stallion, as thought about Oracle's sage advice. "I was hoping you and the other elements could help me get her out of the study a bit more. She really needs to get a flying regimen started as well." "I'll talk to Rainbow Dash about that," said Rarity, "but back to the matter at hoof." She stood and walked around the table to the stallion's side and examined him from several angles. "Your coat is such a perfect color for a designer," she said excitedly, "You'll look good in almost any hue; what I need from you is some input into the shape and style." She returned to her seat and pulled a pad of paper and several charcoal pencils from her stylish panniers. "So tell me about what you do; what do you like to do; what makes Argent, Argent." She slipped her red framed glasses onto the bridge of her nose and looked at him expectantly. "I'm a guard," he said with a shrug. "I like keeping Twilight safe." Rarity fixed a flat stare on the stallion, freezing him in mid bite. "We're going for something a little deeper here," she said in annoyance, "I'm not some crude armorer throwing cookie cutter hunks of gold plated metal at a bunch of anonymous stallions. I am The Rarity, and my creations have to reflect a pony's true nature." She reached over the flat topped mushroom and poked the stallion repeatedly in the chest. "You. Better. Dig. Deeper." Argent swallowed the chewed mouthful of greens and nodded fearfully. "I would still say that, first and foremost, I'm a guard," he reiterated. "I got my cutie mark protecting my sister; I was noticed by Captain Armor because I defended the door of the orphanage from the changelings; and I guess I was made a Captain for protecting all the ponies of Appleoosa." Rarity nodded and jotted down notes on her pad. "So Defender isn't just a surname," she said with a smile. "I suppose not," he said abashedly, "I remember my father telling me stories about all the stallions and mares in our family who dedicated themselves to protecting Equestria. Maybe he thought I'd follow in their hoofsteps." Rarity nodded and continued moving the pencil around with her magic. "Twilight tells me you dance," she said with a smile. "She says you dance quite well. I'm fairly certain they don't teach guards how to dance. Shining's moves at the wedding were passable, but nothing like what Twilight described." Argent blushed and looked at the ground. "I learned it as a kid," he said as he raised his head to once again meet Rarity's gaze. "I'm decent, but Trixie is the real expert. She was always better at picking up new skills." "I also see you have a bit of a shield fetish," she said with a wry grin. "I've tried spears and swords," he said with a frown. "The trainers at the academy told me I'd be more likely to injure myself with them." He patted the plank of wood wrapped in dented iron. "It turns out I'm much better at keeping weapons away from me with a stout shield. A good defense is the best offense in my case, and I never lost a sparring match at the Academy." He saw Rarity's impressed nods and laughed. "I never actually won a match either: Fifty matches, fifty draws. I probably would have won some if they had let us use hooves and headbutts." "Lets talk about Twilight," said Rarity abruptly. Argent drew his head back in confusion. "Okay," he said quizzically, "I'm sure you know more about her than me." "Ah, but I'm not the first captain of her 'Harmony Guard,'" said Rarity with a flourish of her hooves. "Why did you agree to become her bodyguard in the first place?" "Aside from the obvious answer: That I was ordered to?" he asked the mare. Rarity narrowed her eyes and used her magic to sharpen the charcoal pencil to a point. "What do you think?" she asked rhetorically. "I spent the better part of a year studying under Shining Armor," he said, "Very few days went by where he or Cadance didn't talk about his little sister. You'd have thought that she was the Princess." Argent barked a laugh and continued. "I think he was grooming me for the job from the start," said Argent, "He was getting worried about all the trouble you six seemed to get in, and thought that somepony with my skills would be useful. The alicorn thing probably made it easier for him to sell her on the idea of me." Realizing he still hadn't answered her question, he held his hooves out to forestall any accusations. "To answer your question: I agreed with him, and I suppose seeing her at the wedding convinced me that she needed somepony to watch her back." At the mention of the wedding, Rarity searched through her memories of that day, trying to place the silver unicorn. The image of a bulky stallion stuffed into a too small suit flashed into her mind's eye. "You!" she said accusingly, "You're the slovenly oaf who ruined the wedding ceremony!" "Now wait a minute-" said Argent before a white hoof silenced him. "No excuses," said Rarity, "I don't care if Discord himself shrunk your suit; a gentlecolt would never let himself be seen in such a state." Argent kept his muzzle shut as the diatribe against his manners continued for several minutes. Their waiter returned and swiftly cleared their plates, flashing the stallion a sympathetic smile as he placed the check in front of Argent. He reached into his bags and pulled out a small bag of coins while still making sure to keep eye contact with the still ranting Rarity. "And if you are going to be wearing an authentic Rarity, you mustn't act in such a disgraceful manner," said Rarity as she slapped her hoof against the toadstool. The shaking of the table roused the stallion from his trip inside his mind. "Why's she looking at me like that," he thought to himself, "Oh buck, she's waiting for an answer." He drew upon every experience under hard-flanked officers like Captain Brightblade, and to a much lesser extent, Shining Armor, and gave the timeless answer all soldiers give in the this situation. "Sorry ma'am; it won't happen again ma'am." "I should hope not," replied the mollified mare. She reached over and patted his hoof as she stood and returned her notes to her saddlebags. "My job now is to make a uniform so fantastic that you would never dream of acting so uncouth." From the corner of her eye she saw a familiar purple coated mare galloping towards the cafe. With a satisfied smile she stepped around the table to the stallion who was still strapping his shield to his back. She brought a hoof to his chin and pulled it to face her. She leaned in and kissed him square on the lips. "Thank you for lunch Argent," she said with a wry grin. With that, she spun around and began a slow deliberate saunter back to her boutique to begin work on her newest masterpiece. She passed the alicorn who was pulling herself off the ground from an abrupt face plant. "Hello Twilight," said Rarity, "He's all yours." Twilight stood and watched dumbstruck as Rarity walked away. A tap on her shoulder caused her to wheel around in surprise. "Did you need something Twilight?" asked a nervous Argent, unaware of the prominent smudge of red lipstick on his muzzle. Twilight realized she was still frowning and returned her face to a neutral expression. "We're ready to try and repair your sister's magic," she said with far less exuberance that she had planned. "I... she wants you to be there." She quickly turned her back to the stallion and began trotting back towards the library. Argent hurried after her, trying to understand what had just transpired. "Rarity seems very eager to start on the uniform she promised," he said as they passed the Carousel Boutique. "She was so excited she kissed me," he said with an awkward laugh. "I could tell," she muttered, "She left her calling card on your lips." Argent lost his balance as he crossed his eyes in a futile effort to see the the front of his muzzle. He wiped his mouth with his hoof and was mortified to see the offending rosy red makeup on his silver fetlocks. He quickly levitated a hoofkerchief from his panniers and quickly removed any evidence of the kiss. "That mare has boundary issues," he said with a nervous chuckle. "Clearly," growled Twilight. He followed in silence and they soon found themselves entering the large oak tree home. The sounds of metal banging against metal rang through the air from the open basement door. Bright flashes of brilliant white light filled him with trepidation as Twilight led the way down to the lab. The first thing he noticed was that the large machines had been disassembled. The various vacuum tubes, conduits and gears of the mechanisms had been spilled out onto the floor. A single large metal chair sat in the middle of the room, surrounded by the discarded remnants of the re-purposed scientific instruments. Oracle stood behind the chair's heavy back aiming a precisely focused jet of white hot magical fire at a strange, hemispherical object held in place by Trixie. Argent and Twilight held their hooves in front of their eyes as the intense light once more filled the room. Oracle pulled the heavy shaded goggles from her eyes and let them join her glasses around her neck. She stood back and nodded to Trixie. "That should do it," she said confidently, "See how it fits." Trixie turned around and sat down into the seat. The older mare flipped the dome down on the hinges she had just finished welding to the chair back. Trixie grabbed it with her hooves and slipped her horn through a small hole on the front side of the helmet. She sat perfectly straight, with her back flat against the chair and her forelegs resting on the two raised arm rests. "It works for Trixie," said the cyan mare, "A little uncomfortable, but sitting like this always is." She flipped the helmet from her head and stood back up. Argent walked closer and examined the odd headpiece. Around the hole through which Trixie's horn had fit were four metallic probes that rose parallel with the intended horn before angling to join together at its tip. Twisted strands of wire ran out of the base of each probe and wound around the helmet to a port at the rear. Oracle gently nudged Argent out of the way and picked up a heavily shielded piece of conduit with her magenta aura. She plugged it into the helmet's rear port and twisted it until she felt it click into place. Argent followed the heavy cable back to another heavily modified box of machinery. Twilight followed him as he toured the result of their morning of frantic tinkering. "That's the monitoring station," she said, pointing at the green glassed oscilloscope and a row of eight knobs and gauges. She pulled another coil of conduit from a peg on the side of the machine and unrolled it, revealing a funnel wrapped tightly with copper wire. She slipped it over her horn and flared her magic while pointing at the screen. Unintelligible squiggly lines danced across the green screen, while all the needles of the gauges flicked to a vertical position. "Eight gauges for eight Ley Lines," she explained, "Once Trixie is in place, Oracle and I will both use these to draw the excess chaos magic the amulet left in her horn." She opened a panel on the bottom of the machine and revealed several glowing crystals set in a precise arcane circle. "The circle will direct any excess magic into the crystals, and all that will be left is Trixie's natural magic." Argent took a step back and looked at the three smug mares. "This looks dangerous," he said with a shake of his head. He walked to Twilight's side and lowered his head. "I know you want to help, and as much as I want Trixie to have this over with, we can't ask you to put yourself in more danger for our sake." Trixie's eyebrows lowered in anger as she opened her mouth to let her brother know that it was all Twilight's idea, but was stopped by the hoof of the older mare on her shoulder. She looked at Trixie and smiled as she gently and wordlessly shook her head from side to side. "I know it's your job to worry over my safety," said Twilight curtly, "but I promised Trixie I would make this right, and that's what I intend to do." She closed the open panel on the monitoring unit and began examining the second copper wound funnel. "You can stay and help in the unlikely event that something goes wrong, but we will finish this, with or without your assistance." "I didn't mean... I wasn't... Of course I'll...," stammered Argent as he followed her around to the backside of the machine, out of eyesight of the other two mares. "Twilight, forget about my job, I don't want you to hurt yourself." Argent had lowered his head next to hers as she manipulated several breakers on the backside of the device. "I want to help," he said, "Let me take your place, you just have to show me what to do." Twilight shut the small door on the back of the machine and regained her hoofing. "No offense, but you don't have the magical skill," she said, "and it's not that dangerous." She saw the genuine look of concern and fear in his eyes and let go of the anger she had been holding onto for reasons she couldn't quite remember. "Look," she said, "For Oracle and myself, the danger is limited to maybe a headache if there's some feedback that we can't control." She grabbed his hoof and held it between hers. "I won't lie to you," she said seriously, "It will be painful for Trixie; it might leave her in a severely weakened state, but she wants this Argent: She wants it more than anything." She looked him into the eyes and warmly smiled. "I know this all looks a bit slap-dash and a little intimidating, but Oracle and I both agreed on its construction, and she's quite well read on these sorts of matters." Argent pulled his hoof back and nodded in resignation before walking around the machine and back across the room to his sister. "If you're sure you want to do this, then I'm here to help," he said as he reached a foreleg around her neck. He looked towards Oracle and gave her a serious stare down. "These are the two most important ponies in the world to me," he said, "I'm counting on you to keep them safe." The older mare returned his gaze and nodded. She couldn't tell any of the ponies in the room, but she was certain this would work. The machine they had built was still sitting in her basement in twenty years. She had built the device to deal with the aftereffects of a particularly nasty unknown strain of the Unicorn Flu. The machine had restored magical balance to every unicorn in Ponyville, so she was certain that it could correct this one simple case of ley line corruption. The older Twilight drew upon her horn's magic deeply enough to cause her eyes to shine in pure white luminescence. "The machine will work, and Trixie will be cured. There will be slight pain, but everypony will be fine." She released her magic and blinked her eyes as they returned to normal. "See," she said, full of self assurance, "I promised you a vision, and there it is." Argent narrowed his eyes and turned back to Twilight. "Well now I'm perfectly at ease," he said sarcastically, "Tell me what you need me to do." Twilight positioned him in front of the device and, with Oracle's help, gave him a primer on how to interpret the various dials and displays. "What we really need, is for you to tell us when this gauge is level will the others," said Oracle as she pointed at the seventh dial from the left. "At that point, her magic will back in balance, and you can cut the connection by flipping this switch." The stallion nodded and asked a few questions of the older alicorn while Twilight walked over to Trixie, who was examining the chair. "Argent is right," she said to Trixie, "You don't have to do this. We can always find another way." Trixie looked up from the heavy straps she was adjusting. "Trixie will be fine," replied the showmare, "There are things Trixie must do very soon, things that she needs her magic for." She stood up and awkwardly shuffled her hooves before reaching over and wrapping her rival in a hug. "Trixie... I...thank you for all you've done for me." She released Twilight and put on her most winning smile. "Now If Sparkle would be so kind as to help strap Trixie into this thing, we can begin." Twilight chuckled as she helped Trixie into the seat. She wrapped the large restraint attached to the back of the chair around Trixie's waist. "Remember," said Twilight, "You need to hold on to your magic as long as you can." She moved to the cyan mare's hooves and began tying them down to the armrests. "Don't worry about a surge," she said while tightening a strap, "We should be able to interrupt them as we draw out the chaos line." Trixie tested the strength of the bonds and nodded at the helmet. Twilight guided the helmet over the seated mare's horn and onto her head. "It's going to hurt," said Twilight as she adjusted the metal probes of the headpiece. "You have to tell us if you can't take it; we'll shut it down at the first sign of danger." Trixie took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "Trixie is ready, and she can take the pain." Twilight walked over to Oracle and Argent and levitated the copper wrapped cone to her horn. Oracle followed her lead and the two alicorns took their places beside Trixie. "Flare your magic when you're ready to start Trixie," said the older mare. Trixie's horn came to life and enveloped the entire helmet in her vibrant pink aura. The pair of alicorns flared their own horns and sent their auras coursing along the conduits and into the back of the headpiece. Argent watched as monitoring station hummed to life, its gauges and oscilloscope twitching wildly in an attempt to get a base reading. "Okay," said the stallion, "The seventh dial is maxed out, everything else is steady." "Let's begin Princess," said the elder Twilight as she began to pull as much chaos magic as she had ever tried in her many years of magical experience. The younger alicorn grunted as the swirling tempest of concentrated disorder struggled in her grasp. A minute went by in silence, as the three mares all concentrated on their magic. "How are we doing?" asked the young alicorn through gritted teeth. She turned towards the stallion at the monitor when she didn't receive a response. "Argent!" she shouted. Argent tore his gaze away from his sister's twitching form and quickly returned to the gauges and monitor. "It's starting to come down!" he shouted. "Trixie, you okay over there!?" Trixie couldn't answer. The cyan mare struggled in her bonds, her unrestrained rear legs thrashing in every direction, yet nothing more than brief high pitched squeak made it past her clenched teeth. Streaks of red energy arced from the mare's horn to the helmet's four probes and were quickly diverted through the long cable and into the machine. "C'mon sis!" shouted Argent, "Talk to me!" "Shut up!" cried Trixie with a sob. Tears streamed from her eyes as she struggled to keep from screaming out in pain. Minutes passed as Argent kept a watchful vigil over the monitor and all three mares. The needle made a slow traverse across the seventh gauge, its excruciatingly slow pace unchanged despite the stallion's sometimes vulgar urging. The Twilights were both showing extreme exhaustion from drawing such extreme amounts of magic through their horns for such an extended period of time. Trixie shuddered as spasms wracked her body. A low keening moan escaped her still clenched jaw. Drops of blood began trickling from her nostrils and down her muzzle. "That's it," said Argent upon seeing the nosebleed, "We have to stop this." "No," said Trixie weakly, "I... I can do this." Argent grabbed a towel from the workbench and wiped the blood from his sister's face. He turned to the two slumped over alicorns. "You two have to speed this up somehow," he said worriedly, "she can't handle much more of this." The elder Twilight pointed to her saddlebags. "There's a chestplate in my bags," she said between deep breaths, "Put it on the princess; it will help her draw more magic." Argent ran to the bags, lifted out the bejeweled breastplate, and ran back to the young princess's side. The clasps of the decorative chest armor were identical to the hauberks he was used to wearing as a royal guard. "Hold still," he whispered as he reached his arms around the twitching alicorn. He held her close as he snapped the buckles into position. Standing back, he looked to Oracle for further guidance. "Twilight," she said as she rose to her hooves, "You've got to pull more. There's a reservoir of energy in the chestplate; use it." The intensity of the aura around the younger mare's covered horn nearly doubled. "Good girl," said Oracle wearily. She stood wearily and stretched her legs before increasing the pull from her own magic. Trixie felt the increased draw immediately. Her joints locked up and she went as stiff as the restraints would allow. Argent ran back to the monitor and held his hoof to the gauge, tapping it lightly. The needle's pace across the hatch marks had increased significantly, and soon he was counting down for the three mares. "It's only a few more seconds," he shouted to the room as he grasped the large shutdown switch with his hoof. The younger alicorn had fallen to her side, struggling for breath as she tapped every last bit of energy in her body. The older mare slowly paced back and forth, trying to keep her mind on anything but the crushing weariness caused by magical exhaustion. Argent threw the switch as the reading on the gauge matched its seven siblings. He ran to his sister and carefully removed the helmet from around her horn. Her head hung freely from her neck as Argent used his magic to quickly unbuckle the straps that held her to the chair. He leaned in and exhaled in relief when she wrapped her forelegs around him. "Check on Twilight," whispered Trixie, "I'll be fine." She placed a hoof against the stallion's face and pushed him away. Argent turned and knelt down beside the motionless younger alicorn. "Twilight," he said softly. Panicking when she didn't respond, Argent placed his head to her side and sighed in relief as the soft sound of snoring reached his ears. "Magical Exhaustion," said the older mare as she rose wobbly to her hooves. "She'll need a nap. Why don't you take her upstairs and get her into bed?" She wrapped Trixie in her aura and lifted her gently from the ground. "I'll take Trixie to her room." "Okay," said Argent, "Thank you Oracle; I don't know if they would have been able to do this themselves." Twilight smiled as she maneuvered Trixie through the air towards the stairs. "I told you everything would work out," she said with a wink, "the Great and Wise Oracle Dreams sees and knows all." "Trixie heard that," mumbled the floating unicorn. The older alicorn snickered as she ascended the stairs. Argent unhooked the lavender alicorn from the machine and delicately removed Oracle's jewel studded breastplate. He struggled as he tried to lift the mare to his back with his magic. After a few aborted efforts, he managed to hold her in place with his magic while he slowly climbed the stairs. She reflexively squeeze his sides as they walked across the library. Argent held a hoof to his lips as he passed Spike, who was busy sweeping the main floor. "She's fine," he whispered. "She's just exhausted." Argent slowly climbed up the second flight of stairs and was soon leaning across Twilight's bed in an attempt to roll her off of his back without waking her. She tightened her grip on the stallion when she hit the soft mattress, pulling him onto the bed beside her in the process. He saw Oracle standing just outside the doorway, her hoof against her mouth, stifling a giggle that would have woken up the still snoring Twilight. He shot a pleading gaze at the older alicorn. She took a mockingly stern pose and held her hoof to her lips as if demanding him to remain silent. She switched off the light and stepped back into the hallway, closing the door behind her. Spike placed the two plates in front of Twilight and Argent. "This came for you earlier," said the dragon as he placed a scroll on the table next to the alicorn. He patted the stallion on the back as he returned to the kitchen to fetch his own plate. "I said I was sorry," said Twilight as she rubbed her eyes and bit into the cucumber sandwich she had levitated before her. "I was sleepy; it was dark; and a strange stallion was in my bed." She set the sandwich down and sipped from a glass of water. "Honestly, you're lucky I didn't throw you out the window." "Thanks for that," said Argent as he frowned at the alicorn. He lifted the ice pack from under the table and carried it into the kitchen. "Next time I won't bother trying to wake you." Twilight covered her blush by wiping her muzzle with a napkin. "Probably a good idea," she muttered. She regretted her overreaction and the involuntary kick that had left Argent limping for last few hours. She had quickly gone back to sleep, and had it not been for the stallion's grumpy mood, she probably have thought the incident some fevered dream brought about by her magical exhaustion. "How's Trixie?" she asked to change the subject. "Still asleep," replied Argent as he sat back down and began eating, "Oracle said that she'd need a good night's sleep before even trying to test her magic." "Sound advice," said Twilight as she grabbed the scroll and unrolled it next to her plate. Argent resumed eating his late afternoon snack. After an eventful few days and a late night train ride home, he was looking forward to a relaxing evening of reengaging his favorite hobbies. "YES!" shouted Twilight out of the blue. Argent dropped his sandwich in surprise as Twilight began hopping around the table, repeatedly shouting, "YES!" He stood and watched as she made another bouncing circuit around the dining table. Her wings extended unconsciously and flapped as she hopped around. She quickly found herself higher off the ground than she expected and was soon careening out of control towards the amused stallion. "Oh buck me," muttered Argent as he closed his eyes and braced for the imminent collision. He opened them again and winced as his already abused body protested its mistreatment. The stallion reached across the dazed alicorn for the parchment that had prompted the outburst: My Faithful Princess, I'm relieved to learn that you are safe after your adventure in the west. Your letter brought back memories of a dark time I had thought long forgotten. Captain Brightblade was quite irate at the whole situation, but then again, it's hard to tell with that stallion. We'll speak more on what you found later, but know that I'm extremely proud of how you and your friends managed to save the day yet again. On to happier news. I know you would never have asked out of some misguided fear that you were abusing your position, so I went ahead and made the arrangements on my own. I convinced Commander Spitfire to allow a limited number of younger Pegasi into this year's Wonderbolts Tryouts. Your friend Rainbow Dash might be ready to join their ranks despite her youth, and the commander is ready to grant her an audition at the upcoming display. Spitfire has already sent out notices to other hopefuls, but I thought you could let Rainbow Dash know in person. I hope to see you both at the Canterlot Aerodrome. Princess Celestia of Equestria Spike casually walked into the room and stepped over the pile of tangled ponies. "Are you gonna finish your sandwich Argent?" asked the dragon.