It had been almost two hours since Twilight had left Rarity’s boutique. She had wasted no time in starting her research, and now had a rather comprehensive list of things to work off of. First and foremost was a list of symptoms that she had seen or been told that Luna experienced with her mysterious illness: headaches, fever, drowsiness, vomiting, and loss of hair (her mane did look a bit thin, Twilight recalled).
Spike had initially brought her their largest book on medical problems and illnesses. The book had given her several possible answers, but then she recalled Celestia telling her that even the best doctors in all of Equestria were unable to pinpoint the problem. Twilight was smart, but she was an expert on magic. Not medicine.
Twilight frowned as she wracked her brain over the possible causes. Disease was still a possibility. Germs and viruses mutated all the time, after all. Still, she suspected Luna to be a rather hardy pony. Celestia had said it herself: Luna was a strong individual. So, there was a chance that this wasn’t a disease.
“Spike, can you make us some dinner?” Twilight asked, peeking up from her notes. She took a look at the clock on the wall. Seven in the evening.
Spike nodded. “Sure thing, Twi. Anything in particular?”
Twilight shook her head. “I’ll trust your judgement.”
Spike gave a mock salute and headed into the kitchen. As soon as she was sure he was out of earshot, she turned to Discord. “Discord… can you find me the book on A Pony’s Guide to Poisons and Effective Remedies?”
The draconequus looked up from his card game and raised an eyebrow. His tail saw his bet and raised a second. “So that’s why you wanted Spike out of here, huh?” Discord folded and sighed as his tail collected his one eyebrow, giving him a permanently quirked expression.
Twilight sighed. “Spike’s always been smart for his age. I... maybe I’m just being silly, but I’d rather not expose him to the idea of attempted murder through poisoning.”
Discord was quiet after that, but gave her a nod of understanding. He snapped his fingers, and the book Twilight had asked for plopped down in front of her. She opened it up with a bit of reluctance, and jumped back as the book shot spring-loaded snakes in her face. “Sorry,” Discord said somewhat-believably, “Old habits, and that.” Twilight sighed, and began to scan through the pages.
After about a half hour of reading through toad poisons, she had, much to her surprise, come to the conclusion that Luna was not poisoned by toads. As far as she understood, Equestrian Bogskin toads were highly toxic, but their toxin was especially known for causing hallucinations,vomiting, spasms, salivation, shallow breathing, and cardiac arrest. Luna’s heart, as far as she knew, was fine. She never had any spasm attacks, and she hadn’t been drooling. While she had been breathing rather weakly, lots of poisons and illnesses resulted in weak breathing, so she couldn’t count on that being the defining symptom. Luna had also been experiencing headaches and mild confusion, but a toxin-induced hallucinations and mild disorientation were two very different things.
So, that was a tentative no on Fluttershy’s toads. Twilight continued to take notes though, and started to compile a list of symptoms to compare to Princess Luna’s. Spike returned with dinner about an hour later, but she barely tasted it, she was so absorbed in her research. Discord, to his credit, kept Spike far too occupied with pranks around the library for the little dragon to look too closely at what Twilight was researching.
She was dimly aware that Spike was at times shouting at Discord, but when she reached the section on forms of food poisoning, Twilight became so absorbed it faded to mere background noise. The tome it was particularly old and difficult to read, but one passage in particular caught Twilight’s attention:
Thus it woulde bee unwise to partake too much of the apple, for its seeds doth contain a deadly compound. This compound forms in the stomache a deadly toxin, known as the Acide Pegsic. Yet it is not only the apple which beareth this unwholesome burden, but also the almonde, the peach and some more exotic fruits.
Cross-referencing with more modern texts connected the dots to a poison that made Twilight’s heart skip a beat.
“Cyanide,” she whispered in disbelief as she pored over the medical textbook she was researching. One of the faster acting poisons, at least when taken in appropriate amounts. Long story short, it cut off your body’s ability to transport oxygen. If enough was taken by an individual death would be almost instantaneous, if extremely painful.
“Um, Twilight?”
The alicorn let out a yelp as a gentle claw tapped her on the shoulder. She spun around to see Spike staring at her with concern in his eyes.
He also had a fairly large mustache beneath his snout, which lessened the effect of the look he was giving her.
“Oh, Spike... sorry, I was just really into this reading here.” She put on her best smile. “What’s with the mustache?”
“Discord,” Spike said, nodding towards the draconequus who was currently stacking up a pile of books into a scaled-down model of the Canterlot Palace towers.
“He had it coming,” Discord commented as he placed a book on the entomology on the stack. “He said my beard made me look old.”
“Not even going to comment,” Twilight said with a sigh. “What’s the matter, Spike?”
“Um,” Spike stared at the medical books strewn out before Twilight. “So... you think it’s poisoning?”
She almost said ‘no’, but stopped herself. Spike was smart, even for a dragon his age. He wasn’t as naive as he led others to believe, and could usually look past her clutter when she was heavy in her research and point out a detail that she had overlooked when gathering facts.
“Yes, Spike, there is a strong possibility that Princess Luna was... poisoned. I... I don’t like to think somepony would do such a thing, but—”
Spike turned to his side and handed her a book. “I... might have been doing a little research while you weren’t looking.” He smiled sheepishly behind his mustache. “Sorry.”
He opened the book up to a page on poisons. Twilight frowned, though it was mostly due to the fact that he was studying such a grim topic without her knowledge.
“In all due fairness, Twilight, you’ve been studying for almost five hours now,” Discord added as he placed a bust of Celestia at the top of a particular stack of books. “The little guy didn’t want to say anything since you were so engrossed in that dribble.” He waved a hand at the books before turning the bust of Celestia upside-down and nodding in satisfaction.
“Spike... ” Twilight began, her tone a mixture of warning and curiosity. “What did you find out?”
“W-well,” Spike fidgeted under her gaze. “I saw the list of symptoms Princess Luna had, and... well, I sort’ve looked for similar stuff in this book.” He paused before adding quietly, “We got a lot of books on poisons, by the way. Kind of creepy.”
Twilight read over the page, her eyes stopping on the words at the top of the page.
Arsenic.
“Thank you, Spike,” Twilight said while taking the book from him. “I think I’ll take over from here, though.”
“I can help, Twilight! Honest, it’s not any—”
“No,” Twilight said with finality. “I... if there’s really somepony behind something like... like poisoning or threatening my friends... I don’t want you getting caught up in it any more than this.” She turned to meet his gaze after setting down the book. “Understood?”
“But... ”
“Understood?” She said, her words cutting through any argument he was about to give.
“I... ” the dragon frowned, but nodded slowly.
“Good,” She pulled him with a wing and held him close. “Equestria knows what I’d do if something were to happen to you.”
“Aw, I’m not helpless, Twi. I mean, come on, remember that time we saved Rarity from those diamond dogs? Or that time we had to deal with those dragons?”
“Yes, but I also distinctly remember that the girls and I were there with you both times,” she countered. “Now, judging from the clock it is way past your bedtime, mister.”
Spike let out a huff and folded his arms. “Is not.”
“Is so, Spike.” She giggled as she picked him up with her magic. “Discord, would you be so kind as to help my little assistant to bed for me?”
“Hm?” Discord turned away from his now eleven foot high stack of books. “Oh, sure. Come, Spike, slumber-land awaits.” He clapped his hands twice, and Spike was suddenly dressed in a nightcap and a nightgown. Discord gave him a discerning look. “Ah, almost forgot.”
A glass of warm milk and a candlestick appeared in either of Spike’s claws. Spike gave the draconequus a peeved look. “What gives, Discord?”
“Ah ah, beddy-bye times for Spikey-wikey.” He snapped a finger, and Spike was lifted from Twilight’s magical grip. He was pulled into Discord’s arms briefly, but managed to escape before the draconequus could tickle his chin and complete the indignity of the situation. Still, he followed Discord as the spirit of disharmony made his way up the stairs, but argued the whole way.
As they left, Twilight mused over the page on arsenic. It was a horrible poison to knowingly use on another pony, as the symptoms, while they did lead to death, did so in an exceptionally messy and prolonged fashion. Usually it was encountered in groundwater, in unfiltered wells and the like. It was also sometimes found in metal work, but since Luna almost certainly didn’t work at a foundry, it could most likely be ruled out.
The most likely factor was food or water, then, and there were those empty gems in the dress to consider. Besides, even if the symptoms were currently leaning more towards arsenic, that didn’t mean it was something that horrible. Twilight organized her notes again, and continued to research long into the night.
“... light... ! Twi... ”
Twilight grumbled to herself. Somepony was yelling, and it was rather annoying.
“Twilight Sparkle, somepony rearranged the nonfiction section and replaced all the old history books with volumes of Daring Do novels!”
“What?!”
Twilight bolted up from her chair and looking around frantically. When her eyes rested on Spike, only to see him giving her an apologetic smile, she frowned deeply. “That’s not funny, Spike!”
“I know, but... you were sleeping really heavily. I mean... you were even drooling on the table.”
“I was not!” Twilight countered automatically. She glanced at the table and ignored the small puddle near the edge of the wooden surface. “What time is it?”
“Seven o’clock in the morning,” Spike answered.
“Where’s Discord?”
“Making ‘breakfast’,” the dragon answered, thumbing towards the kitchen. “I left him alone after he started cackling to himself. He was pouring an entire can of coffee beans and that old jar of molasses we always kept in the back of the pantry into a bowl. It kind of creeped me out a little.”
Twilight yawned as she looked to the various stacks of notes she had taken the night before. “I’ll have to look over my notes again, but... I think I got it narrowed down to two possibilities.” She lifted up a large roll of parchment she had labeled ‘Arsenic’ and another labeled ‘Cyanide’. “Princess Luna’s symptoms are similar to the ones related to these two.”
Spike shifted in place a bit. “So... we’re going to be able to help Princess Luna get better, right?”
“I hope so, Spike. We just need a little more evidence first.”
“Like what? We know the two possible poisons, what else is there to know before giving her an antidote?”
“For starters,” Twilight began, “I need to know the source of the poisoning. Food and water are two likely factors, but there’s always the possibility of something weird that could have made her sick.”
“So... what do we do, then?”
“We go back to Canterlot. We investigate all the different places that Princess Luna goes throughout the day. If we find anything odd, we make observations.”
It was at that point that Discord came floating out of the kitchen with a large cooking pot full of something black, syrupy, and smelling foul yet sweet.
“Ugh, what is that?” Twilight asked in disgust, holding a hoof over her snout.
Discord gave her an offended look. “This, my uncouth princess, is my famous Coffee Jambalaya.”
Twilight noticed bits of vegetables and rice floating within the black muck. Her stomach rebelled a bit at the sight. “I... guh, is that edible?”
“Yes,” Discord replied, only to take another look at the dish. “Probably... ” A frown formed at the corners of his lips. “... actually, you two might want to make yourself some cereal or something.”
After a large bowl of frosted oats and a glass of orange juice, Twilight organized her notes into separate stacks and tucked them into her saddle bags. “Right, that should be everything. Let’s see... extra quills... ink... extra ink for more notes... a quill in case I forget my extra quills... a copy of Common Remedies for Obscure Poisons... parchment... some apples... the dress... field notes on the Bogskin Toad, documented by the late Professor Cypress... ”
“Wow, you weren’t kidding about her tediousness... ” Discord commented to the dragon beside him. “She usually has a checklist, too?”
“Yes,” was all Spike would say, shaking his head slowly.
About two minutes later, Twilight had gone through her saddlebags, satisfied with having everything she needed. “Alright, I think that should do it.” She glanced at the clock on her wall.
Seven thirty-five in the morning. Plenty of time to get some investigation work done today.
“Ready?” Twilight asked.
“I was ready five minutes ago,” Spike grumbled.
“Oh stop it, Spike. We have to be sure we have everything we need for this. It’s important, after all,” she chided lightly, making her way towards the front door of the library.
“That won’t be necessary, Twilight.”
The alicorn turned to look towards Discord, who was once more wearing his engineer’s cap with the words ‘Chaos Express’ on the front.
“N-no, that’s quite alright, Discord. I can manage to get us a chariot to fly us to Canterlo-aaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhh!”
“Reach the stars, fly a fantasy~y! Dream a dream, and what you see will be~e~e~” Discord began singing.
Twilight and Spike had, once again, found themselves on the back of Discord as he sailed through the early morning skies of Ponyville. Both were simply thankful that nopony was awake to see them.
Discord looked over his shoulder, giving the two an expectant look.
“R-rhyme that keep their secrets... will unfold behind the clouds... and there upon the rainbow, is the answer to a neverending story... ” the two sang out, both equally shocked and mortified by the fact they somehow knew the lyrics to the song Discord was singing.
“Aah~aaah~aaahahhhh!” Discord continued.
“Story~” Spike and Twilight replied.
“Aaaaah~aaah~aaaah!” Discord belted out happily as they flew through a puffy cumulus.
Twilight had never been more eager to get to Canterlot in her entire life.
“... and that is how Bastian saved the world of Fantasia!” Discord stated proudly as he settled down at the entrance to Canterlot palace. Spike and Twilight hopped off, a mixture of confusion and wonderment in their eyes.
Spike was the first to snap out of his daze, and looked to a clock tower nearby.
Eight o’clock in the morning.
“Twilight, how did only that much time pass between Ponyville and—?”
“Just... don’t ask, Spike. Please,” Twilight groaned.
“Sounds like somepony needs to work on their imagination a little more,” Discord snickered as he floated alongside Twilight.
“Not. Another. Word,” Twilight ground out. “Come on, let’s go speak to Princess Celestia and let her know what we found out so far.”
Ten minutes later and some explanations to the few guards present in the halls of the castle, the trio made their way through the double doors of the Canterlot throne room. Celestia could be seen on the far end of the hall, and even from a distance Twilight could see telltale signs of exhaustion and worry in the Princess of the Sun’s posture.
Upon looking up from a roll of parchment, Celestia’s eyes brightened, if only a little. She smiled as she got up from her throne, meeting Twilight halfway and giving her a nuzzle. “Twilight, I’m so happy to see you. The guards informed me of your visit just moments ago, and said you had some important news to share.” Her smile faded. “I can only imagine this news is a mixed blessing, isn’t it?”
Twilight nodded. “I did some research and followed a few leads from the dress. It... I’m not sure how else to say this, Princess, but I fear Princess Luna has been poisoned.”
Celestia’s eyes closed and she let out a soft sigh, her shoulders slumping as she did so. “I thought as much. It would explain a few things. Luna’s always been a rather healthy mare. Even when she was ill, she never was this bad... ” Celestia’s gaze fell to the stuffed saddlebags on Twilight’s back. “You’ve been quite busy, I see.”
“You don’t even know the half of it,” Spike added. “I helped a bit, too!”
Celestia’s smile returned as she lowered her head to give Spike a loving nuzzle. “I thank you for ever bit of help you could give, Spike. This means more than you can possibly imagine to me.”
Spike’s cheeks reddened, but he also stood a bit straighter, proud to have received praise from the princess.
“Ahem?” The three looked to see Discord, arms folded and an annoyed expression on his features.
“Discord helped as well,” Twilight added. “At least, he did in his own way.”
“I’m sure,” Celestia said, her voice a mixture of amusement and sympathy. “So, what have you found out, then, aside from it being poison?” she asked.
Twilight pulled out her notes from her saddlebags and presented them to Celestia. The princess began scanning through them, her expression becoming more serious with every passing moment.
It had been almost five minutes before she had returned the notes to Twilight. Her eyes were laden with worry now. “While I’m glad you’ve found the likely poisons, Twilight... I’m also terrified by them. Arsenic? Cyanide?” She let out a shaky breath as she whispered the last two words. “I never thought it would be anything this serious.”
“I agree.” Twilight floated two papers before her. “Both have relatively similar symptoms, but they can change depending on how much is taken into the body and for how long a period of time.” She shook her head. “I’m almost positive that these two are the likely sources, as bad as it sounds.”
Celestia could only nod. “Arsenic, Cyanide... I thought we were past all this,” Celestia muttered softly, before she brought her attention back to Twilight, “What do you propose we do, then?”
Twilight stuffed her notes back into her saddlebags. “I’ll be running chemical tests on anything and everything that might be a likely source for poison in Luna’s room... if that’s alright.”
“Of course,” Celestia replied. “Anything that can help save Luna.”
“Good,” Twilight gave her former teacher a smile. “I... also need to borrow the castle’s laboratory, if you don’t mind... and three lab coats and sets of goggles.”
Discord and Spike shared looks with each other.
“Is she going into science mode?” the draconequus asked with a mildly interested look.
Spike sighed deeply. “Hope you’re ready. It’s going to be a long day.”
“Alright, one more time, Spike. From the beginning.” Twilight said patiently. She was clad in a long laboratory coat, complete with a name tag, and a set of industrial-strength goggles. Its voluminous pockets contained enough note pads, pens and pencils for her to conduct her research in the depths of the Royal Laboratory.
The room was of ancient design, having been made when alchemy was still very much in fashion. Now of course the ancient alembics and arcane glass monstrosities that had dominated the room centuries before gave way to advanced scientific equipment. Still, something about the room simply oozed ‘mad science’, and Twilight frequently found herself restraining the urge to cackle, despite the serious circumstances.
The baby dragon sighed. “Twilight, we’ve read over the list—”
“Spike! Please,” Twilight said with restrained frustration, while Discord continued to prod some of the older equipment out of boredom. He entertained himself while Twilight was working by making the unnecessary equipment perform bizarre tricks. His rendition of popular music on the oscilloscope was particularly irritating, but Twilight soldiered on regardless.
Spike suppressed a groan, instead looking over the list before him. “Fine, fine. Here’s a list of the things we tested from Princess Luna’s quarters: the water pipes, the food in her personal pantry, her makeup kits, her shampoos and soaps, her perfumes, her bedsheets—both used and cleaned,” Spike squinted as he scanned further down the list. “We’ve tested fabric from her gowns and formal wear, fabric from her casual wear, medicine from her bathroom, heck, we even tested the polish for her shoes!”
“It’s all a part of the scientific process, Spike,” Twilight defended as she studied her notes from all the testing she had conducted over the past couple of hours.
“I really don’t think we needed to test her clothes,” Spike said with a long-suffering look as he lugged yet another bag of testing material away, “I mean, didn’t you say this stuff is usually ingested?”
“Usually, Spike” Twilight said primly, “But we have to be sure! Why don’t we run the test again, with sample 22-A?” Spike groaned, but grabbed the sample bag, which looked to be some sort of waxy substance. “Thank you Spike,” Twilight said consolingly as her number one assistant deposited the bag before her. Twilight scraped some of the substance out of the bag artfully with a little burst of telekinesis and deposited it in the test tube. She applied the first test, for cyanide, which came up negative, then continued to apply its various derivatives.
Twilight didn’t really think Luna was eating her candles, but she felt it was important to test every possible vector for the poison. As she started the arsenic tests, Twilight reflected on the bizarre nature of the crime. Nopony was poisoned anymore, that was the sort of thing for mystery novels or amateur writing.
She was so caught up in wondering about the whole premise of the poisoning, that she was taken by surprise when Spike tugged on her sleeve. “Hey,” he said curiously, “It’s never done that before, what does it mean?” Twilight turned her attention back to the test tube, in which metallic arsenic grinned at her through the glass. She blinked at it, and looked back to her book. Sure enough, the one test she had thought would never have come up positive had done so in sample 22-A.
Twilight checked her clipboard thoroughly, tearing pages off in her haste to locate the identity of the sample. When she found it, she ran up the stairs, out of the Royal Laboratory, until she found the nearest Guard. She shook the poor stallion and shouted at him, “Get me a candle snuffer!”
“I... y-yes, at once, your Highness!” the guard replied, making his way down the corridor, likely to fetch the tool Twilight had requested.
“Oh! Oh!” Discord said as he appeared by her side in a burst of light. “I call candle snuffing first!” He clapped his hands together giddily. “Can I, Twilight? Please?”
“Fine! Go ahead!” Twilight said with a dismissive wave as she continued down the hallway, making her way towards Princess Luna’s chambers.The Night Guards standing at the door didn’t budge as she made her way towards them. If anything, they stood taller and grimaced harder.
“I need to get in to Princess Luna’s chambers this instant! It’s important!”
Their gazes hardened.
Twilight grit her teeth. While she admired their dedication to Luna, their stubbornness was also making Twilight’s job of helping Luna harder to accomplish.
She hated using her status, but desperate times called for desperate measures. “I, Princess Twilight Sparkle of Equestria, demand that you let me through this instant!” She met their grimaces with one of her own. “Do not make this more difficult than it is! Princess Luna’s health and safety is at stake!”
For a moment they did nothing. However, much to her surprise, they stepped aside, giving her a large enough gap to walk through. She gave them a curt thanks and walked through the chambers, counting the candles that were lit throughout the Princess of the Night’s quarters.
At least two dozen or so tallow candles were spread out through the entirety of Luna’s chambers. Spread out enough to avoid casting too much light in one area, but enough so that anypony could see where they were walking without tripping over anything.
Then it sunk in. The poisoning. Every breath she took of the candle-smoke laden air sent a chill down her spine.
To think she’s been breathing it in this whole time... no wonder she’s in such horrible shape.
As soon as the guard she had spoken to arrived, she took the candle snuffer and handed it to Discord, who had been uncharacteristically quiet after her little stare-down with the Night Guards. “Try to make as little smoke as possible, if you can.”
Discord gave a salute, and began to snuff out each of Luna’s tallow candles with grace and relatively little smoke.
“Twilight?”
Turning around towards the entrance, Twilight was met with a winded Spike, a distraught Celestia, and about a dozen guards standing outside in the hall.
“Princess, I found the source of the poisoning!” Twilight said as she hefted up one of the unlit candles with her magic. “The tallow wax of the candles is laced with heavy amounts of arsenic!”
There was a general murmur from the guards as Celestia’s expression slid from confusion to shock. “I... Twilight, are you certain of this?” Celestia asked urgently, her look of shock fading into concern.
“One hundred percent.” Twilight replied, shifting her goggles up absently when they threatened to descend across her eyes, “Spike and I have been running tests on almost everything in Princess Luna’s quarters.”
“Even the contents of her sock drawer,” Discord added offhandedly as he snuffed out the last of the candles. He took great joy in the act, and occasionally paused to give a small eulogy for the flames. Twilight would have liked it if he had simply proceeded with as much alacrity as he could muster, but she restrained herself and let him go about it in his own time.
“Candles... I suppose that would explain why this poisoning took so long,” Celestia said slowly. “Arsenic poisoning does take some time if the amounts are small.”
Twilight sighed. “Still, to think it would be done through candles... poisoning her through the very air she breathes.”
“Impressive that you would think to check the candles,” spoke one of the Night Guards. His tone was neutral, though Twilight could hear the unspoken suspicion in his words. Twilight could feel the nocturnal guardian’s disbelief, “Perhaps it was not mere research that led you to the discovery, but-”
“I can assure you that I’m just as surprised by this,” Twilight replied hotly, incensed at the implications of the guard, “I never put in half-effort when it comes to my research, and I would have absolutely no reason to wish something this horrible on anypony, let alone-”
“Well,” Celestia put in firmly, cutting in between the two with a firm glare at the guard, who looked away. “We know how the poison was introduced to my sister. Now we just need to find out who is responsible for this.” She gave Twilight a hopeful look, while the Night Guards nearby listened and watched intently. “Do you have any leads on that, Twilight?”
Twilight frowned. “Sadly, no. But, I can probably find some answers to that easily enough.” She straightened up a little as she continued. “I need any paperwork regarding orders to goods mailed to Princess Luna, specifically these candles. I can only imagine whoever was responsible for getting the candles to her had a part in this."
Celestia gave one of the guards to her left an expectant look. The stallion straightened up slightly and gave a quick salute. “At once, your Highnesses.”
As the stallion made his way down the corridor, Celestia walked into the darkened chambers of her sister. “Candles, laced with arsenic. Horrible, but rather ingenious.”
Discord put out the last candle, made some odd gestures with a hand, and placed down the snuffer. “Once upon a time she used to hate having any light in her sleeping quarters, if I remember correctly.” He smirked. “Ironic how somepony’s suggestion about creating ambience would lead to this, no?”
Celestia shot Discord a glare that would have burned lesser creatures instantaneously. “Do not start with me, Discord.”
“I’m simply saying, it’s rather ironic.” He waved a hand at her. “Well, I think I’ll go get some sleep in the meantime.” He cast his gaze to Twilight for a moment. “I’ll catch up with you later, Twilight. Ta ta for now.”
With a flash of light, Discord vanished. Celestia let out a long breath, her body visibly relaxing. She shook her head and looked to the room where Luna was sleeping.
“Princess?” Twilight approached her former mentor, worry laced in her words.
“Ah... sorry, Twilight," Celestia said with a sigh, "Discord always had a way of getting under my skin with his words. I... I suppose it’s my own fault for letting it get to me.”
“That still doesn’t excuse him for being so insensitive,” Twilight countered. “I will admit, he was a bit of a help at times, but honestly, he was a distraction most of the time. It’s like... like he just came along to annoy me.”
“I dunno, Twi. He seemed alright to me... most of the time,” Spike argued. “I mean, he’s better than he used to be, at least. He’s not trying to turn Ponyville into the new Chaos Capital or anything like that this time... ”
“Even so, he still has no right to... to... ” Twilight failed to suppress a yawn. “Excuse me. I guess I’m still kind of tired.”
Celestia smiled a little, “Perhaps you should get some sleep, then.”
“Oh, no," Twilight protested, "I couldn’t possibly sleep when we still—”
“Twilight,” Celestia interrupted gently. “You may have very well saved Luna’s life. I’m sure you have earned a bit of rest. Please, if not for me and Luna, then for your own sake.”
Twilight looked taken aback, “B-but, the candle orders! I need to find out where they were from and—”
Celestia placed a wing over Twilight’s shoulder. “I think I can take over the detective work, at least for a little while. I’ll compile a list of the information and let you look it over afterwards, alright?”
“I... well, I guess if you insist... ” Twilight yawned once more, this time without even bothering to hide it. “Spike, you tired at all?”
The dragon shrugged. “I could always go for a nap. Sure.”
“Your old bedroom should still be furnished for you to sleep in. If you have any problems, just ask one of the guards,” Celestia spoke. “Also, Twilight?”
The younger alicorn found herself pulled in tight with a wing, a slender foreleg wrapping around her. “P-Princess?”
“Thank you,” Celestia whispered, her voice hitching only slightly. “Th-thank you, a thousand times over... for helping me... for helping Luna. I... I didn’t know who else I could turn to,” She chuckled weakly. “It seems whenever there’s a crisis, you are the one who ends up protecting Equestria in the end. You’re already proving to be worthy of your title, Twilight.” She squeezed a little tighter around Twilight. “Thank you,Twilight Sparkle.”
A warmth spread throughout Twilight as she felt a smile tugging at her lips. “I know you would have done the same for me if I was in your situation.” She looked up to see Celestia holding back tears. “I’m just glad I was able to help.”
Celestia gave Twilight a proud smile. “You truly are a wonderful pony, Twilight.”
Twilight’s cheeks reddened. “Oh, I’m just doing my job... ”
“Twilight?”
“Mmm... .” Twilight mumbled incoherently as her mind edged back from the abyss of unconsciousness.
“Twilight... ?” Spike tried again, poking Twilight with a tentative claw. Twilight could be unpredictable in the mornings, but he knew he had to keep trying.
Twilight rolled over sleepily, grumbling, “Nngh, ten more minutes. I promise, mom, just ten more minutes... ”
Spike sighed, “Come on, Twilight, it’s ten o’clock in the morning. You need to get up!”
Twilight’s eyes snapped open fully. “Ten o’clock? What?” Her body shot up from the bed. “Oh no! I slept too long!” She turned to Spike, her snout centimeters from his a moment later. “The paperwork on the candle orders! Did we get them?”
“Y-yeah,” Spike said, backing away a bit in alarm, “Princess Celestia told me to put them on your old dresser over... there... ” Spike’s voice faded as Twilight teleported to the far end of the bedroom, her magic picking up a small stack of papers.
The paperwork was fairly straightforward, in that it consisted mainly of receipts for the past several years, all the way back to when Luna had returned after the Nightmare Moon Incident. It wasn’t until a little while after that, after all, that there had been much of a demand for tallow candles, which seemed to be incredibly expensive from even a cursory look. Such was Twilight’s haste that papers went flying as she attempted to read them as quickly as possible. Spike stepped back as a hurricane of paperwork exploded around the alicorn, “I’ll just… make breakfast then,” Spike said by way of an excuse before he headed downstairs, presumably to the kitchen.
“Good, thank you,” Twilight said vaguely as Spike left, absorbed in her work. As she flipped through the receipts, she took a notebook out from the bedside table (where it resided in case of night-time ideas), and began to mutter to herself as she wrote. “Three hundred bits a candle? Really,” Twilight muttered as she scribbled, “that sounds like daylight robbery, what are they made of?” Twilight compared the receipts a dozen different ways, and a distinct pattern jabbed at her puzzling mind, “All from Candle Glow, a chandler here in Canterlot… Wait no,” Twilight amended, scratching something out with her quill with such vigor that it sprayed across the room, spattering her vanity with a spray of black dots.
“The Crystal Empire?” Twilight said quietly, while Spike carefully deposited a tray of sandwiches by her, “He moved… but when? Oh… oh! Spike!” Twilight shouted, causing Spike, who hadn’t left the room yet, to jump. She blinked as she noticed he was there and lowered her volume somewhat, “Spike, we have to pack.”
“Pack?” Spike asked, nonplussed. He eyed the floating receipts for a moment, “Those candles came all the way from…” he sighed as the penny dropped, “I’ll grab the cold weather stuff then. I can’t believe we’re going all the way up north again,” Spike grumbled, “I almost froze my spines off last time.”
“I know Spike,” Twilight said placatingly, “But the trail leads there, so we’ve got to go. Besides,” Twilight smiled, “I’m sure Cadence will like to see you again, and I’m sure there’ll be plenty of rock candy to go around. There certainly was last time, wasn’t there?” Spike smiled and nodded, “And with my brother there,” Twilight added confidently, “I’m sure we can get to the bottom of this. We’ll be back home in no time, you’ll see.”
The trip to the Crystal Empire was uneventful, if long. As a Princess, Twilight was given her own car and, to her general confusion, a detachment of Night Guards that were waiting for her at the station. They simply told her that they were accompanying her for her own protection, and proceeded to take up sentry positions in the corners of the car despite her protests, like unsettling gargoyles.
After Twilight failed to engage them in conversation for the third hour in a row, she gave up, and settled for going through her notes for the remaining six hours of the trip. It was unnerving to have the Night Guards looming in the corners of the car, especially given their standoffish behavior with her thus far. They didn’t interfere with her, but Twilight could feel the pressure of their gazes like a furnace in each corner of the car.
Yet for all her review of the evidence, Twilight felt no closer to a conclusion as the train pulled up into the Crystal Empire station. The Night Guards escorted her out with a level of efficiency that edged on pushy, and thoroughly terrified anypony unwise enough to get too close. A glare from the Night Guards was usually sufficient, given their unsettling appearance, but they were attracting entirely too much attention to Twilight’s presence.
It was so obtrusive after a while that Twilight finally asked Spike to go on ahead and send a message to her brother. Once he’d gone, she stepped into an alley and pulled one of the Guards aside. “Right,” Twilight said to the Guard, who floated in her telekinetic grip calmly before her face, “why exactly are you escorting me? Princess Celestia didn’t assign you, she would have told me,” Twilight said confidently, “And Princess Luna is still comatose, which means you elected to follow me yourselves. Why?”
The Night Guard remained stony-faced for several long moments before a voice behind Twilight said quietly, “We dishonored our station.” Twilight, who hadn’t heard the other Guard approach, whirled. She faced a stallion about her own height, his bat wings folded tight against his body, while his slit-pupiled eyes reflected the shame in his voice, “We suspected you. We impeded your investigation against Princess Celestia’s orders and came perilously close to preventing you from ending the threat to our princess’ life.”
Twilight blinked. That wasn’t the response she had been expecting, and it left her exceptionally wronghoofed. The guard she had been levitating continued where the other had left off, which prompted her to turn. “We needed to follow you, for our guilt, and to protect Princess Luna.” To her surprise, the other guards were crowded into the end of the alley soundlessly, like crows attending a crow funeral. While the phrase ‘murder of crows’ floated uneasily in her subconscious, Twilight relaxed a little as the Guards all looked to her with varying shades of guilt and shame.
“It’s…” She shook her head. “We’re all under a lot of stress. I can understand your actions.” She gave the stallions a sad smile. “You are all just are looking out for Princess Luna, after all.”
The stallions nodded solemnly.
“Then it’s water under the bridge,” Twilight stated as she lowered the guard from her magic. “I forgive you all.”
The Night Guard looked up at her with varying expressions of surprise. One of them spoke up. “Y-your Highness... but... we doubted you. We dishonored our stations, and—”
“And nopony is perfect, myself included,” Twilight interrupted, her voice neither harsh nor annoyed. “If you truly believe that you have to make it up to me, then you can help me with finding out about those tallow candles.”
Her words seemed to renew the fire in their eyes. The Guard straightened up, their grim expressions returning once more. They gave her a salute and spoke in unison. “As you wish, Princess Twilight Sparkle!”
“Um,” Twilight said, a bit shocked by the sudden change in their attitude. “Yes. Good.” She turned back towards the direction of the Crystal Palace. “Let’s be on our way, then.”
The rest of the walk towards the castle was without incident. The guards still remained silent, but they no longer held looks of suspicion when she met their gaze. The change in their demeanor was rather sudden, but it was a welcome one.
When Twilight finally reached the main entrance into the Crystal Palace, an entourage of Crystal Guards stood before her, forming a path. Four of the guards lifted their heralding trumpets and blew a royal fanfare, signaling the Twilight’s arrival. The palace doors opened as she made her way down the path, and she was greeted by the sight of none other than Cadence, her brother Shining Armor, and Spike.
“Twilight,” Cadence greeted, meeting her sister-in-law halfway and wrapping her forelegs around her in an embrace. “It’s wonderful to see you.”
Twilight smiled. “I see Spike’s message reached you quickly.”
“Heh,” Shining Armor laughed. “We had to scramble together a small group of guards to greet you at the last minute, but yeah, we had enough time.” He gave Twilight a quick hug as well, which she happily returned.
“So, what brings you to our kingdom?” Cadence asked, her smile still on her face. “While I enjoy surprise visits from my family, I know it’s not like you to do such a thing.”
Twilight’s smile vanished. “I…” She looked to the Crystal Guards, then to her escort of Night Guards. “We should probably go inside and discuss things.”
Her Cadence and Shining Armor noticed the immediate shift in her tone, and gave her understanding nods. “Spike didn’t really inform us on the purpose of your visit.”
Twilight nodded, giving Spike a small smile. “I’m glad he didn’t, either. It’s a rather... important matter, and it’s best if I explain it.”
“Your Highness,” one of the guards spoke. “Forgive me for interrupting, but we wish to remain with you inside the palace. Would you be against this?”
Twilight blinked, but didn’t miss the unspoken words in his inquiry: The perpetrator could have noticed my arrival. They may want to tie up any loose ends… Twilight nodded slowly. “Thank you, sirs. I would greatly appreciate that.” The stallions nodded, then returned their gazes forward, ever attentive, but unobtrusive.
Shining frowned at the Night Guards, then turned to Twilight. “Twiley... is everything alright?”
“I’ll tell you when we get inside,” was all that Twilight gave for a reply.
A half hour later found the three ponies and dragon seated in comfortable chairs as Twilight explained the situation with Luna, the poisoning, and her purpose for being in the Crystal Empire.
Cadence and Shining Armor were silent by this point, staring at Twilight and Spike with looks of mild shock on their face.
“Arsenic laced into the candles…” Cadence shook her head. “Why would somepony want to do such a thing?”
Shining frowned. “Probably some radical or somepony who thinks Princess Luna is still Nightmare Moon.” He sighed. “I remember when she first returned to Canterlot. She looked so lost and confused. Though, I suppose being banished to the moon for one thousand years can do that to a pony…” A smile crept onto his face as he continued. “Even so, she was quick to praise the Royal Guard for their dedication.” Shining looked up and gazed over to the Night Guard, who were standing vigilantly at the doors. “She also was pleased to see that the Night Guards was still around.”
“I’m just glad she’s alright... well…” Cadence sagged a bit. “As fine as one can be, given her circumstances.”
“She’ll need lots of time, but she will recover,” Twilight said reassuringly. “I just want to get to the bottom of this, and my investigation has led me here.”
Shining Armor nodded. “There aren’t many tallow candle makers left in Equestria or any of the neighboring regions, but the Crystal Empire is one of the few with at least one. He actually was in Canterlot until not too long ago. He moved up here some time after the Empire reappeared and King Sombra was defeated.”
“Wait…” Twilight blinked, her eyes widening. “Y-you know about the candles?”
“What?” Shining Armor paused, then shook his head rapidly. “Oh, no! Not... I meant that I knew the pony who made Princess Luna’s candles. I was in charge of ordering them for her, after all.”
Twilight was quiet for a long time after that. When she finally spoke, there was a sense of hesitancy in her words. “So... you’ve been making those orders even after he moved here, I imagine?”
“Well, yeah, Princess Luna really likes those candles, and I already knew the stallion who made them, so I just figured I’d ship the candles south to Equestria every so often.” Shining Armor shrugged at Twilight’s expression, “It’s a little more expensive, but Princess Luna was willing to pay the extra money for them.”
Twilight frowned. “I see.” She stood up, as did Spike. “Do you have any information on the candles that I can look at?” Twilight’s tone had sharpened a little, and she sounded almost wary as she asked the question.
“Um... yeah, we keep records of the orders, just in case,” Shining Armor replied. He seemed a little put off by Twilight’s change of attitude, she sounded almost like she expected him to send her away, but he shook himself and smiled warmly, “You’re probably tired, sis. Why don’t you go get some rest, and I’ll get somepony to send the paperwork along in the morning.”
His offer was genuinely generous, and for a moment it looked like Twilight was going give her assent, but she shook her head, “I’m sorry Shining,” Twilight said honestly, “But this can’t wait, I need to see the records as soon as possible, before this would-be poisoner gets away or covers their tracks.”
Shining Armor blinked, but nodded to a guard nearby, “Alright Twiley, but if you don’t take a break sometime you’re going to crash.”
The paperwork wouldn’t arrive for several hours, as it had apparently been filed away in a locked section of the archives due to a clerical error. Cadence and Shining Armor attempted to ask Twilight for more details about who she might suspect, but Twilight diverted any conversation about the state of the investigation, to Shining Armor’s frustration. “Come on Twilight,” Shining Armor finally said in exasperated tones, “Princess Luna’s wasting away from poisoning and you’re here talking about everything but the situation.”
Twilight bit her lip, but remained silent until Shining Armor’s eyes widened, “No…” he said softly, “You don’t really think…” It took a moment for Cadence to cotton on, but she looked similarly shocked once the realization hit her.
Twilight looked wretched, her eyes downcast, “I’m really sorry Shining,” Twilight said miserably, “But until I can see that paperwork…”
She trailed off, but Cadence stepped forward, looking quietly furious. “Twilight,” Cadence said sharply, “Do you really think that Shining Armor, your brother, my husband and former Captain of the Royal Guard could even think of something like that?” Twilight winced, but before she could form a rebuttal, a Night Guard interposed himself between the two alicorns.
“Step back, your Highness,” the Night Guard said neutrally, while the Crystal Guards started forward. The other Night Guards were suddenly in a ring around Twilight and Spike, facing outward. Twilight froze in astonishment, while the Night Guard continued cooly, “As Princess Twilight Sparkle is engaged in an investigation into the attempt on the life of Princess Luna, she has the authority to pursue any and all lines of inquiry.” His voice was quiet, but clearly audible in the crystalline halls.
For a long moment there was silence as Twilight found herself looking into the slowly filling eyes of her former babysitter. Twilight started to speak, but Cadence left suddenly, and was followed by a clearly aggravated Shining Armor, who refused to even make eye-contact with Twilight as he left, taking the Crystal Guards with him. Twilight sat back heavily on the chair that she had so recently thought was so comfortable, and Spike did the same, looking a little frightened. The Night Guards spread out again without a word, like shadows returning to the embrace of the darkness, aside from the one who had confronted Cadence.
The bat-winged pony turned to Twilight and saluted a little stiffly, “I apologize for interrupting like that, Princess,” the Guard said seriously, “But-” he broke off as a sniffle from Twilight cut into the silence of the room. She was crying softly, the tears running down her nose to land forlornly upon the crystalline floor. The Guard stepped back automatically as Spike moved to Twilight, pausing only to give the Guard a dirty look. The Night Guard grimaced a little and launched himself up to the ceiling, while Twilight held Spike for a long while.
Once she had composed herself, a knock at the door announced the arrival of the paperwork. Twilight sniffed back a fresh wave of sorrow, and bent her mind to the task of extracting useful information from the chaff of documents before her.
“Ugh,” Twilight groaned several more hours later, “I don’t get it, all the receipts are in order, everything checks out…” Twilight stretched, yawning. She was still in the room where she had confronted Cadence, surrounded now by mounds of paperwork. She had been informed by one of the Night Guards that lodgings had been arranged for her, but guilt prevented Twilight from taking advantage of them. That hadn’t prevented her from sending Spike to them however when he had fallen asleep on a pile of paperwork. The Night Guards had taken him there without complaint, while Twilight continued to work into the early morning, going over years of receipts.
“You could speak with the chandler,” a Night Guard said from behind the chair, making Twilight jump. She was about to reprimand him, when the words sank in and she put her face in her hooves, sighing. “Sorry Princess,” the Night Guard said, poking his head out from behind the chair, his face a mask of concern, “I didn’t mean to startle you.”
Twilight waved him off, “It’s not that, Penumbra,” Twilight said wearily, “I should have thought of that. I need sleep.” As the other Night Guards dropped down or stepped out from their various hiding places to escort her, she sighed, “I can find my way to the bedroom, you know. You should get some sleep too, all of you.” At the continued presence of the guards she sighed, “Alright, Penumbra can come with me once I’ve tidied up here, but the rest of you, get some sleep, that’s an order.”
As the Guards slipped out with their usual silence, Twilight and Penumbra tidied up the piles of paperwork back into their boxes. Twilight levitated the boxes and their exceedingly boring cargo through the crystal halls of the castle, while Penumbra discreetly steered her towards the room that had been arranged for her.
A pang of guilt shot through Twilight as she arrived at the wide doors of what looked to be a full royal suite. Penumbra pushed the doors open for Twilight politely, while Twilight maintained her telekinetic grip on the boxes of paperwork and passed through. The room was warmed magically, and it was indeed a suite fit for a royal visit. It hammered home the anger in Shining Armor’s face, and the heartbreak in Cadence’s eyes. As she stood there in the doorway, Twilight made a decision, and turned around, dropping the boxes in the room.
“Princess?” Penumbra asked, blinking before he shut the doors and trotted to catch up. Twilight was moving quickly through the halls, and the Night Guard took a couple of moments to match her pace, “Princess is something wrong?”
“No, Penumbra, I just have to speak with Shining Armor and Cadence.” It was plain that Penumbra didn’t approve, as it was against investigation procedures, but the Night Guard kept his mouth shut. Twilight, as if sensing his displeasure, continued, “He’s my brother, Penumbra. I can’t just let him think I don’t care about him, I owe him an explanation. And Cadence too, she must think… well I don’t know what she’s thinking,” Twilight said distractedly as she rounded a corner, “But she’s a good friend of mine, and I can’t just leave her wondering and hurting.”
Twilight approached Cadence and Shining Armor’s bedchamber, which was situated on the other end of the castle from her own quarters. The crystal doors however, were slightly open, and the lights were on. It seemed as if Cadence and Shining still hadn’t gone to bed, despite the exceptionally late hour. They seemed to be having a debate of some sort, and Twilight found herself drawn in at the first snippet she overheard: “... what if she suspects?”
Twilight bit back a soft gasp at the agitation in her brother’s voice, and Penumbra who had leaned in as she had, wiped his face of expression as he overheard Cadence’s response, which was similarly heated, “Well then tell her, tell her about-”
“I can’t say that now!” Shining Armor interrupted, his voice closer and then further away as he paced through the room, “Can you imagine how she’d react? I mean, it’s one thing to suggest that she take over for Luna…” Shining Armor became inaudible again as he moved away, while shock ran through Twilight’s mind, “... but Celestia? No, she wouldn’t go for that.”
Twilight was almost touching the door with her ear as Cadence continued with a sigh, “But think how much smoother things would go, with Twilight in the Palace. I know she’s so caught up in the investigation right now, but you could take that over. She’s just being thorough, but if you could-” Twilight fell back as the door was pushed shut abruptly, and she was caught by Penumbra, who had tumbled back as well.
Twilight looked to Penumbra, who for once looked as shocked as she felt. She stood as quietly as she could, and the two of them crept back to the room. Twilight’s mind was a whirl of shock, betrayal and panic as she checked on Spike, who was sleeping peacefully, and pulled herself into bed. “I’ll just deal with this in the morning,” Twilight told herself shakily as she pulled the covers up over herself, “Everything will be clearer in the morning.” She was about to turn out the lights when she noticed something uncomfortable. “Penumbra,” Twilight said slowly as she turned around, “Why are you in the bed?”
The Night Guard, who was still in his armor, was sitting in the bed beside Twilight. He looked surprised at the question, “Guard duty, your Highness,” he said honestly, “We sleep in shifts,” he nodded to the ceiling, where the other Night Guards were actually clinging to the ceiling, asleep. “One of us in the bed, while the others-”
Penumbra broke off as he was abruptly tumbled out of the bed telekinetically. “No,” Twilight said quietly but firmly, “Go to the next room, and sleep. I’ll be fine.” As Penumbra started to protest, Twilight gave him a hard look. He shrugged, looking a little puzzled, and gathered the other Night Guards, who piled into the next room of the suite and presumably went to sleep. Once she was sure they had left, Twilight let out a long sigh, “What am I going to do?”
Twilight found herself alone with Spike at breakfast the following morning. Well, as alone as a pony could be with a detachment of Night Guards standing at all corners of the room, vigilantly watching for possible threats. She had slept surprisingly well, all things considered, but she was still torn on what to do. She had yet to bring it up with Spike, and was unsure if it would be wise to get him involved in the dilemma.
“Twilight, you alright?”
“H-huh?” Twilight glanced up from her plate of hash browns and pancakes. “Oh... sorry, Spike. I’m just thinking.”
“About Cadence and Shining Armor?” the dragon asked knowingly.
Twilight slumped, poking with a fork at a particular piece of hash brown with disinterest. “Yes. I... I’m just not sure what to do, anymore. I mean, on one hoof, it would be very easy for Shining Armor or Princess Cadence to tamper with those candles... but…” She shook her head. “I find it hard to believe that they would do such a thing.”
Spike’s eyes widened, and he lowered his voice. “You think they both might be involved?”
“I don’t like to think about it, but it’s a possibility,” Twilight replied, her thoughts trailing back to the conversation she overheard last night. “There could be any number of reasons for somepony to go and do something like that to Princess Luna.”
“None of them are probably good, either,” Spike added as he chewed on a piece of toast, dusted lightly with some ruby shards and cinnamon.
Twilight jabbed at a lump of scrambled eggs and forked it into her mouth. Her mind was buzzing with the thoughts of what she was going to have to do that day, and it was bound into a tight, vibrating clump of unease in her chest by her guilt and inner disquiet.
“Spike…?” Twilight began after several long moments, “Do you think I was wrong to act that way yesterday with Shining Armor and Cadence?”
Spike looked up from his meal, a small frown marring his features. “Well, I…” He closed his mouth, scratching his cheek with a claw. “I don’t know. I mean, I know you’re only doing it to be safe and make sure you got all the facts…” Spike trailed off uncertainly, his tone dancing around the edge of what he wanted to say like a cliff diver on the brink.
“But…?” Twilight added encouragingly, a part of her dreading Spike’s answer, yet desperately needing some sort of feedback.
“But…” Spike continued carefully, “they’re family. You’ve known Cadence since you were just a filly, and Shining Armor, well, he’s your brother. I…” He shook his head. “I don’t know, you’re supposed to be the smart one,” Twilight snorted a little at that, and Spike relaxed a shade, “I’m just helping in anyway I can.” He tried to smile, but it looked strained.
Twilight smiled back and changed the subject a little, “I hope this doesn’t end up being all just a big waste of time. We may have lost the poisoner already and not even known it. Upsetting my brother and Cadence upset will only make things worse.” She set down her fork, finding herself no longer hungry. The knot of guilt in her chest tightened more. “Come on, Spike, we’re going to speak to the chandler who makes those candles. Hopefully he’ll have some answers.”
Spike shoveled the last of his food into his mouth, licked his face clean with his tongue, and followed Twilight as she made her way out of the dining hall. Within a few minutes they were out in the streets of the Crystal Empire’s capital, the crisp air of the morning hitting the two and causing them to shiver.
“Right, now, if I remember correctly, the address of the chandler’s place shouldn’t be too far from here. Some street nearby... Garnet... something, I believe…” Twilight scanned the street signs, her eyes stopping as she spotted a sign in bold, red lettering.
Garnet Avenue.
“Ah, looks like I was right. Come on, Spike.” Twilight felt her spirits lift up, if only a little. At least now she felt like she was making some real progress.
The walk down the street was rather awkward for Twilight, namely because she could feel the curious stares from the denizens who were already awake and going about their day upon her. She couldn’t really blame them. It wasn’t everyday that an Equestrian princess could be seen walking down a street with no guards escorting her, let alone without her regalia on.
After about ten minutes of walking, she stopped in front of her destination. She made her way towards the walkway leading to the entrance, only to be stopped as three shadows dropped down from the sky. She backpedaled in shock, only to bump into something solid. She spun around, her eyes resting on one of the Night Guard.
“Good morning, Princess,” the Night Guard—Nightshade, if she remembered correctly—greeted. “We took the liberty of scouting ahead to ensure the area was safe for you.”
Twilight’s face screwed into a grimace. The Night Guard looked perfectly calm, as did the other two beside him, while two more Night Guards stood sternly outside of the chandler’s shop. Twilight closed her eyes and took a deep breath for patience, then let it out and nodded. “I... thank you, Nightshade. Next time, though, please make your presence known beforehand, alright?”
“Acknowledged,” Nightshade replied stoically.
With that taken care of, Twilight returned her attention to the small building before her.
“Candle Glow’s Candles?” Spike read the sign above the door. “Huh, not the most of original names for a business.”
“Not now, Spike,” Twilight said as she made her way to the door. “I just hope that Candle Glow’s awake.”
After knocking on the door three times, Twilight heard the sound of hooves approaching the door. It swung open to reveal a middle-aged unicorn stallion with a dark grey coat, a dull yellow mane, and a cutie mark of a lit candle stick.
The stallion gave Twilight a quick look, then blinked as he took in the entourage beside and behind her. He took a step back, his mind finally catching up with the scene before him. He took a final look at Twilight before bowing low. “P-Princess Twilight! It’s an honor to have you visit me... at seven in the morning…” He looked up and smiled weakly. “I’m afraid I won’t be open for another two hours, but I’d be happy to put some tea on the kettle for—”
That won’t be necessary, Mr. Candle Glow,” Twilight said, her voice neutral in tone, though she was heartily embarrassed at having arrived too early. “I’ve come to inquire about the candles ordered by Prince Shining Armor, if it’s not any trouble.”
“My candles?” Candle Glow stood up and gave her a perplexed look. “I... well, what about them would you like to know?”
“Well,” Twilight began. “They’re actually sent to Equestria for Princess Luna, correct?”
“Ah, yes,” Candle Glow nodded, a smile forming on his lips. “Her Highness was quite fond of my work. I’m one of the few traditional chandlers left in Equestria and the Crystal Empire. Tallow candle-making is a rather old art, and… well… is seen by many modern ponies as a rather taboo art… to put it lightly.” He cleared his throat. “Years and years ago, though, when resources weren’t as plentiful, you had to make do with what you could. So, when a pony... passed on... their fat was used to make the candle, and then—”
“W-wait, what?” Twilight’s eyes had slowly become the size of saucers as she looked at the stallion before her. “Y-you use the bodies of dead ponies to make your candles? I thought you made them with soy or… or candleberries!”
“Well,” Candle Glow cleared his throat. “Yes, I do. Typically.” He looked to the Night Guards behind her, and frowned a little. “However—”
“The Night Guard donate their fat to be used for her Highness’ candles upon the moment of our demise. It’s a practice that dates back to the days before our Lady’s fall and her transformation into Nightmare Moon,” Penumbra put in solemnly. “It allows us to continue serving her, even in death.” At Twilight’s silence, he added, “In life, darkness, in death, light.”
Twilight felt the horror filling her expression, and for a long moment there was silence. Spike looked like he was going to be ill, Twilight was frozen in horrified disbelief, and the Night Guards were generally silent anyway, but it stretched out uncomfortably until the chandler cleared his throat again, “Why don’t we all go inside,” he suggested a little nervously, which made Twilight jump, “I’ve got the kettle on.”
Twilight shivered at that, her mind filling in all sorts of horrible implications, but she nodded and trotted nervously inside, a stunned Spike in tow.
“So it’s… It’s like a last request?” Twilight said disbelievingly as she sipped her rather strong, black tea and attempted not to inhale. The chandler’s shop was relatively modest inside, and filled with so many different scented candles it was like being punched in the nose with a meadow of wildflowers. The shop proper was airy and well-lit with magical lighting and some enchanted candles, as well as well-polished crystal floors and a few chairs that looked well-worn yet cozy at the same time. A small fire was crackling in a fireplace on the far side of the room, completing the ambient feel of the shop.
Candle Glow looked to the Night Guards, hoping they would be able to provide the appropriate answer. Penumbra, who was standing beside Twilight, gave a quiet nod, “In essence, yes. We swear our lives to the service of Princess Luna, and most of us are happy to donate our bodies if our service is ended prematurely.” He seemed somber and honest, with the air of one imparting a sacred ritual, “Besides, we are still buried with the other Guards, but we give a last gift of comfort with this offering.” His tone darkened as he continued, “It makes this attempt on the Princess’ life… rather close to home.”
“Attempt on… what?” Candle Glow asked in surprise as he narrowly avoided choking on his tea, “What’s this?” After a moment of hesitation, Twilight brought the chandler up to speed on the bare bones of the problem, carefully not mentioning the candles. As Twilight finished, she watched as the older pony sank back in his chair, his face white with horror, “That’s terrible! Who would do such a thing?”
“That’s what we need your help for,” Twilight said firmly, including the Night Guards in her statement, “Your candles are the one thing Luna will pay top bit for, and they seem to be connected to her poisoning.”
“My candles?!” Candle Glow exclaimed, fumbling his teacup, which shattered on the floor, “I’m sorry, Princess,” Candle Glow said shakily as his telekinesis scooped up the fragments of the cup. He was so out of sorts however that the pieces kept falling to the floor, “I’m sorry,” he said again, flustered, “It’s just that Princess Luna is the very reason I’m not starving right now… without her orders, well, there’s not much call for chandlers these days.”
Twilight felt another surge of guilt at not telling the older stallion about the true reason for their visit, but she was sure now that the old chandler definitely had no motive. Before he could do more than sputter a protest, Twilight magically reassembled the cup for Candle Glow and cut him off before he could apologize again, “Could we get a tour of the place, Candle Glow?” Twilight asked kindly, “I’d like to see how things work around here; it could really help with the investigation.”
As if she had flicked a switch, Candle Glow brightened, and started to pull Twilight through the whole process of candlemaking. It wasn’t terribly interesting, but Twilight listened carefully as Candle Glow described the different vegetable-based candles he made. He waxed for hours about the difficulty in imbuing the waxes with the proper amount of coloring and scent.
“Of course,” Candle Glow went on, “At least the scents for the vegetable-based candles mingle readily. Princess Luna’s candles though,” Candle Glow led the way from the workshop proper back to what seemed to be a dedicated workspace. A subtle, sticky aroma filled the air as Twilight entered, and the unfamiliar scent wrinkled her nose with its slightly greasy quality. She realized with mild queasiness that she was smelling the fat in the room.
The workshop itself, despite the scent, was exceptionally clean. Everything was in crystal boxes or jars, set in neat cabinets made of sturdy crystal. The countertop was sparkling metal, strangely. To Twilight’s disquiet, it was notched and set up like a surgical table to prevent… spillage. She had casually asked Spike to find a place to eat for dinner, to get him out of the shop, and he had taken the hint with as much ill-concealed relief as the little dragon could show, taking two guards with him.
In the corner, a large cast-iron pot with a double-boiler was set over a stove, but Twilight’s attention was wrenched away from its grim purpose by Candle Glow’s description of the process, which she had been ignoring, she noticed guiltily, “Once the fat is rendered,” Twilight suppressed a shudder, “I have to pour it into the mold around the wick,” he pulled the mold off the shelf, which was a perfect negative of the candles Twilight had seen around Princess Luna’s chambers.
Candle Glow started rummaging around the immaculate workspace, muttering, “Oh come on, don’t tell me…” He started pulling boxes off of the shelves and opening containers, looking around.
“What’s wrong?” Twilight asked politely, while Candle Glow continued to rummage.
He sighed after he had opened and closed the last box, “Oh, well, I was going to show you how I set up the mold, your Highness,” he opened the casing for the mold and showed Twilight the interior as demonstration, “but it looks like I’m out of wicks. I’ll have to order some more, I suppose.” He shook his head, “But I would put the wick-”
“Wait,” Twilight said suddenly, as the penny dropped and operated her brain, “Do you buy the wicks locally?”
Candle Glow blinked, his train of thought derailed, before he mentioned, “Well no, I import them, it’s why they’re so expensive.” At Twilight’s continued interest, he added, “The shipments usually come in every few days or so, but it’s a long haul all the way from Ponyville.”
Twilight gaped at the chandler, “Ponyville?!”
Candle Glow stared at the baffled alicorn, then to the Night Guards, who wore expressions of mild shock. When they failed to give any further reply, he cleared his throat nervously. “Um... was it something I said?”
Twilight stood dejectedly at the platform of the train leaving bound for Equestria. She glanced towards the distant Crystal Palace, then turned back to the railroad tracks. She sniffled a bit, but made no further sounds. Spike sat on top of their luggage, chin resting in his hands as he moped.
“I can’t believe they turned us away like that,” the dragon mumbled. “I mean... you said you wanted to apologize, too!”
“Hmph,” replied Nightshade. “It seems the Crystal Empire forgets one of its core beliefs: Friendship.”
“Nightshade, that’s enough,” Twilight sighed heavily. “I can’t blame them for turning us away.” She looked to the Night Guard. They had been especially silent since they left the capital. She could see their anger in their eyes dancing behind the thin veil of their stoic expressions, and while she appreciated their concern, she was more keen on avoiding further conflict.
“Even so,” Nightshade continued. “With all due respect, your Highness, they were out of line. You’re investigating an attempted murder on Princess Luna. I think you have the right to be a bit suspicious of everyone.”
Twilight glanced at Nightshade, who was looking directly at her. He and Penumbra had been, much to her surprise, rather vocal when the Crystal Guard had denied her entrance. They had given her and Spike their luggage, and forbade them entrance into the Crystal Palace. She had barely gotten two words in with the guards before her entourage of Night Guard had stepped forward and had given a thinly-veiled threat to the guards if they refused to let her through.
Not wishing to cause any more trouble, Twilight had commanded the Night Guard to stand down, which they had done, but not before shooting the Crystal Guard rather nasty glares. Not the best note to leave her brother and sister-in-law’s home, but it could have been worse. Besides, she still had a poisoner to catch.
That had been over an hour ago, and she was now waiting for the train heading back to Equestria to arrive.
“I hope we get this mystery solved soon,” Spike mumbled.
“I do, too, Spike,” Twilight agreed. “I do, too. I just don’t look forward to what’s going to happen before it’s finally solved…”