//------------------------------// // The Somber Umbra // Story: Softening the Stone // by TheMyth //------------------------------// Cadance groaned slightly as the last noble left the throne room. She now fully understood why her aunt dreaded the court meetings with nobles and other ponies; all they were, were just ponies wanting to satisfy their lust for gold and power. The throne room opened again, and the trumpets sounded with the arrival of another pony. “Presenting Prince Blueblood.” One pony shouted out loud to introduce the white stallion, who was smiling smugly with his blond hair swaying as though it were made out of golden threads. Oh please, not him! Cadance gulped and grimaced for a moment before giving her cousin a smile, a forced smile. “Blueblood, how may I be of assistance?” She asked kindly, as the stallion bowed before her and raised his head proudly. “I merely have a question for you, Princess Mi Amore Cadenza.” He began speaking, using his royal obnoxious voice to bring out the importance of his request, not realizing how much Cadance disliked the voice. “And that is…” Blueblood cleared his throat before removing his smile. “Where is Princess Celestia?” Cadance was silent for a moment, before her smile twitched slightly. “Princess Celestia is on vacation, haven’t you heard the—” “Please, do not patronize me Cadance.” He spoke in his regular voice again, staring deeply into Cadance’s eyes. “You of all ponies should know that a national official story is mostly hogwash created to hide something else.” “Princess Celestia is on vacation and she wished her location to not be disclosed to the other ponies,” Cadane responded with a little force. “Yet she didn’t mind telling you where she was going?” “Since I am acting steward, of course she would tell me.” “Yet why not tell the rest of her family about this sudden holiday?” Blueblood’s questions turned into an interrogation, as his gaze never left Cadance’s face. It was as though he was expecting her to show signs of deceit, but what he definitely could see was Cadance’s sweat starting to form on her forehead. A brief smirk was displayed on his muzzle, thinking he was near her spilling out the truth. “Do you know what I think?” He asked condescendingly. “I think that Celestia is—” “That is quite enough!” The booming voice filled the room, stopping Blueblood in his tracks. Whipping around quickly, he turned to see a royal guard approaching the throne. His dark blue mane poked out through the top of his purple armor, a symbol of his rank. Blueblood’s eyes narrowed at the intruder. “How dare you speak to me like that?” He asked angrily. “Do you have any idea who I am?” The guard trotted right up to him. “Yes. You’re a pony that is harassing the princess. A princess that I have sworn to protect as Captain of the Royal Guard.” He leaned in closely, staring him straight in the eye. “Any other questions?” This time, it was Blueblood’s turn to sweat. “None,” he muttered. Stepping back, he turned and walked around the angry guard, head held low. Turning back he glared at the now relieved looking princess. “This isn’t over yet,” he said. “Celestia’s plotting something and I am going to find out what it is.” He was about to continue, but one look at the captain silenced him, as he turn and quickly ran out of the room slamming the massive doors shut behind him. Snorting with disgust as Blueblood disappeared, the guard turned and looked up towards the princess. “Are you alright princess?” he asked respectfully. Cadance nodded with a soft smile. “I am now, thank you captain.” she told him and gave him a wink. She giggled softly as she turned back towards the attendant waiting by her side. “Is there anypony else currently waiting?” The elderly mare shook her head. “None at the moment your highness.” “Excellent,” Cadance said with a sigh of relief. “In that case, I think that that’s quite enough for today. Tell anypony else who arrives that the court is over and to come back tomorrow.” Turning back to the guard, she added, “Captain. If you would please follow me, I have some things I would like to discuss with you.” “Of course Princess,” he saluted and followed Cadance as she walked outside of the throne room. When both ponies were alone near the garden entrance, the captain removed his helmet from his head. His blue mane with darker tone of blue streaking through it reached down the base of his neck as he looked again to the princess. “This month hasn’t been the best, has it Cadance?” “You could say that,” Cadance laughed before sighing and looking down on the ground. “How my aunt deals with those snobs is completely beyond me…” she trailed off as she was thinking back to her aunt Celestia, who was most likely doing everything in her power to help her sister Luna. Cadance then looked at the captain, giving off a smirk. “I’m amazed you can be so casual with me, Shining.” she teased him. Shining shrugged and grinned. “Well we both know each since the days when Twilight was just a filly…” he trailed off, reminiscing the days he used to carry Twilight on his back. A small part of him was sad that Twilight grew up so fast, with her becoming Celestia’s personal student among other things. “I hope she’s doing well in Ponyville.” “Last time I was there, she seemed so happy to be there. Her and Spike…” “Haha, Spike certainly grew up too… even though he is only a kid.” Shining spoke as he remembered the day when Twilight brought Spike home from the academy, the memories of the little whelp still fresh in his mind. “He certainly did, Uncle Shiny.” Cadance winked and giggled as she teased the stallion, remembering how Spike called Shining an uncle in his toddler stage. Shining rolled his eyes, but smiled nonetheless. “And Twilight’s ‘Mommy’.” he laughed at the adorable memories that flashed in his mind. His laughter vanished though when he looked at Cadance. “Seriously though, Blueblood has a point. Celestia has been gone for a month now. And now, my troops and I have been summoned back to Canterlot. What is going on around her Cadance?” “It’s… complicated…” she said after pausing for a moment. Shining sighed. “I understand. Royal secrets and all that.” “No.” The force in her voice made Shining Armor stop in his tracks. Cadance sighed. “As captain of the royal guard, you should know what’s really going on.” She turned and looked him straight in the eye, the utmost seriousness on her face. “Do you remember when Nightmare Moon returned last month?” He nodded. “I was part of the patrol that was supposed to help calm down ponies in Canterlot during the time. But what about her? She was defeated wasn’t she?” “Kind of,” Cadance hesitantly answered. Leaning in close, she began to whisper quietly in his ear. As Shining Armor listened, he face contorted through a variety of expressions, surprise, determination, and confusion. Finally he pulled back in shock. “In Ponyville?!” he exclaimed. “Shhh!!!” Cadance quickly hissed. “Not so loud.” “Right… sorry…” he responded sheepishly. “It just… surprised me is all.” “I understand. It’s a lot to take in,” Cadance nodded. “Still, I trust Auntie knows what she’s doing. Just give her some time. She’ll be back before you know it.” Shining Armor nodded. “Alright.” Turning back to Cadance, he gave her a playful grin. “At least in the meantime, it means I get the chance to spend time with a different princess.” Cadance gave him a friendly shove. “Careful now captain. You’re still on duty remember.” He laughed. “As you wish, your highness. But afterwards, you’ll have to give me the chance to take you to dinner.” Cadance smiled and began trotting off. “We’ll see about that.” she said with a smirk. Shining Armor trotted off after her and soon enough the halls were filled the the pairs happy chattering. The two were enjoying the other’s company, they didn’t notice the pony step out of the shadows behind them as they left. In Ponyville huh? Just what are you playing at Auntie? Twilight groaned with frustration as she hurled yet another book across the room. It landed with a thud, bouncing against the ever growing pile behind her. Reluctantly she pulled the next book from the stack she had grabbed that day. Levitating it to her face, she read the title, Psychology: The Science of Mind and Behaviour. A month ago, the title would have seemed fascinating. At that moment however, it filled her with an overwhelming sense of dread. So much so, that when the window burst open and a rainbow streak came crashing into the large pile, it was almost a relief. …Almost. Rainbow lifted her head, her eyes rolling from the dizziness created from the impact. She shook her head and turned to see an irritated Twilight looking at her. She chuckled sheepishly and rubbed the back of her head, flying upwards from the mess she created. “Sorry Twilight,” she said as she looked to the books lying beneath her. “Why are you inside, reading, on such a sunny day?” Twilight rolled her eyes and started picking the books up from the ground. “I’m trying to figure out what’s wrong with Luna.” She looked up to Rainbow Dash hovering. “Can you help me out please? It is your mess.” “Alright.” Rainbow replied, and went straight to work. When all the books were back in stacks, Rainbow looked around the library. “Where’s the princess?” she asked curiously, not seeing a trace of her. “She’s with Luna.” Twilight looked upwards with a somber look on her face. “She rarely leaves Luna’s side for anything.” Rainbow scrunched her lips and sighed. “It’s that bad?” Twilight nodded her head. “No improvement for a whole month now.” “Woah, that’s so not cool.” Rainbow landed on the ground and looked a little upset herself, her brow furrowing with a frown forming. “So, I take it that you still don’t know what’s wrong with her?” Twilight shook her head. “No idea, and I’ve been through every book in this library,” she said pointing to the large pile Rainbow had just landed in. Rainbow Dash’s mouth dropped open as she looked over the mass of books lying on the ground. “You’ve read all of these this last month?” Twilight laughed. “That’s just this week’s.” Turning her head back and forth with the same deadpan expression, Rainbow looked between her friend and the mountain of literature. With a sigh, she put on a determined face. “That’s it,” she said grabbing Twilight and dragging her towards the door. “You officially need a break from all of this.” “What? No!” Twilight exclaimed, attempting to pull herself away from Rainbow’s grasp. “Princess Celestia needs my help! I can’t leave until I find an answer.” Despite her protests, Rainbow was unrelenting. “No can do,” she said continuing to pull her closer to the exit. “You need to get away from these books for a while.” Twilight’s horn glowed brightly for a moment, catching Rainbow Dash of guard. Without warning, Twilight disappeared from her grasp, simultaneously appearing on the opposite side of the room and causing Rainbow to roll out of control crashing into the door. “I’m sorry Rainbow Dash, but I really need to stay here and help out. What if something happens and the princess needs me?” With a sigh, Rainbow stood up, rubbing her head with her hooves. “Fine,” she grumbled. “You’re no fun either.” “What you mean ‘either’?” Twilight asked. Rainbow rolled eyes his and grumbled slightly. “Fluttershy’s been stuck in her home the whole month long!” Rainbow exclaimed. “She keeps saying she’s too busy feeding her animals and tending to her pet bunny.” “Really?” “Yeah!” Rainbow looked to her side in irritation. “But I’m pretty sure she’s up to something in there, even if she is kinda pushover.” “What do you think she’s hiding?” “If I knew, I wouldn’t be wondering that myself. Now would I?” Rainbow asked Twilight rhetorically. Twilight shook her head. “I think you're overreacting Rainbow.” “Yeah, whatever,” Rainbow said turning around and heading towards the doorway. “Have fun with your research.” Pushing the door open, she trotted out and into the sunlight outside. Twilight felt like she should say something, but before she knew it, the door was slammed shut behind her. A twinge of guilt went through her. When all this was done, she’d have to make a point of making it up to Rainbow in the near future, once this was all done with. With a sad sigh, she turned back to the book. Somehow, it looked even more boring than it had just a few minutes ago. Reluctantly, she set it aside. Perhaps Rainbow Dash was right after all. It had been an entire month and Luna still wasn’t showing any signs of improvement. Maybe there wasn’t anything that they could do for her after all. “Hey, Twilight. You need some help?” Twilight’s ears perked to find Spike rushing up to her, and she immediately noticed the bags under his eyes along with the red tint in his iris’. Twilight gave him a small smile before shaking her head. “No need Spike,” she told him and reached out a hoof to him. “Why don’t you take you go outside and have some fun?” Spike shook his head fast, furrowing his brow. “I can’t do that. You need my help! And also—” “Spike.” Both Spike and Twilight turned to look at Celestia descended the stairs. If anypony had seen her now, they would have thought Celestia was a poorly disguised imposter. Her mane was dull in colour, along with her missing crown. The bags under her eyes were more severe than Spike’s. Her lips were dry from a lack of a proper diet. Celestia’s feathers where lacked proper preening and and a few loose feathers were sticking out. Celestia looked as though old age was catching up to her. “Spike, I think it would be wise for you to be outside right now.” She told him as she reached the ground floor. “Twilight and I will be fine.” “But I—” “No ‘buts’ Spike,” Celestia cut him off. “Do this as a favour for us please.” He hesitated for a moment. Still, as much as he wanted to, he could never say no to Princess Celestia. He sighed as he nodded, before turning and heading towards the door. As he pulled it open, he paused for just a moment, looking back with a wistful look in his eyes. Twilight just smiled at him and waved him along with her hoof. Defeated, he turned and walked out the door. “He’s a rather good little dragon, isn’t he?” Celestia asked. Twilight smiled and nodded. “Yeah. He’s just so willing to help. He’d probably give up sleeping entirely if he could just to help us out.” Celestia nodded back. “Yes, though I must admit that worries me a little bit.” “Really? What do you mean?” Celestia sighed. “I’m afraid I may be asking too much of you and him. It’s not healthy for the two of you to be caught up in here with me all the time. I think that it would be wise if the two of you spent a little more time out with other ponies instead.” “But—” Twilight began. “No ‘buts’ Twilight,” her eyes turned towards the stack of books lying in the middle of the room. “I think you’ve done more than enough already.” “But there’s so much that I can do. Really, I don’t mind helping out.” Celestia turned and smiled at her student. “Twilight. I just overheard your conversation with Rainbow Dash.” Twilight’s ears drooped. “Oh… Really?” “Yes, really. I know that you want to help, but I also don’t want you to neglect your friends either. I sent you to Ponyville in order to learn the value of friendship. I’d hate for you to forget that lesson already because of me.” Twilight gave one last longing look up at her mentor. Celestia’s eyes, though worn and tired were still just as loving as she had remembered when she was filly. Her reservations melted away as she gazed into them. Sighing deeply, she nodded. “Alright Princess,” she said at last. “I’ll try and get out more often. If I hurry, I might even be able to catch up with Rainbow Dash.” Celestia nodded in approval. “And Spike?” “...What about Spike?” “I think it would also be wise if he had the chance to get out of the library as well. Maybe even make some of his own friends along the way.” Leaning in close, she whispered with a wink, “And just between the two of us, I think Luna makes him nervous.” “Hehe…” Twilight laughed nervously. Quickly trying to change the subject, Twilight said, “Alright. I’ll talk with him about it. Maybe it’s about time he attended school.” She hesitated. “Can dragons even attend a school for ponies?” Celestia smiled. “I think that we can arrange that.” Turning, she reached out pointing towards the door. “But we can deal with that later. I believe you had a friend to try and catch.” Twilight looked to the door and looked back at Celestia. “Alright, I’ll see you later.” She gave Celestia a nuzzle before rushing outside, closing the door behind her. Celestia sighed and looked to all the books Twilight had gone through, just for her and Luna. What would I do without you, Twilight? Her gaze looked upwards and she decided to walk up the stairs again. She reached Luna’s room and opened the door, revealing her sister on the bed. Still and silent. “Morning, Luna.” She greeted her sister and walked up to her, taking a seat next to her sister. She took hold of Luna’s hoof and looked at her sister’s eyes. “I just sent Twilight and Spike outside, giving us some alone time.” Nothing. Celestia smiled wryly and chuckled. “Remember how we always sneaked away from the royal court meetings just to have some alone time as family? You always loved to sneak out with a slice of cake too, just for the two of us.” Again, nothing. Celestia sighed. Slowly, her eyes began to moisten as the tears she held back forced their way out. “You were always looking out for me, and… I wasn’t able to do the same for you. I was so blinded by the praise that I got each day, I didn’t even bother to notice the signs until they were too late. And now?” She looked back at her sister, still unmoving and quiet. “Look what’s happened to you.” The tears began to pour more freely, Celestia not bothering to try and stop them now that Twilight was no longer in the library. “I just… I just wish that you could show me some sign that you’re alright. Just something to tell me that you’re going to make it through all of this.” Reaching up, she attempted to dry her eyes. “I don’t know Luna. Have I messed up too badly this time? Have I really lost you forever? Have I…” She stopped. The tears froze on her face as she looked at her younger sister. Luna was still laying in the same position, her head laying facing straight up towards the ceiling. However, her eyes were no longer focused there as well. They were pointed towards the side, right at Celestia. Celestia blinked. “...Luna?” she asked hesitantly. Quickly, she moved her head to the side… and Luna’s eyes followed her. She move her head back… and again, Luna’s eyes followed. A beaming smile appeared on Celestia’s face. She reached forward and grabbed her sister, pulling her into a tight hug. Luna still hung loosely in her grasp, but Celestia didn’t care anymore. Luna’s eyes were looking at her. *BANG, BANG, BANG* Rainbow Dash pounded on the cottage’s small door yet again. “Come on Fluttershy!” she yelled out. “I know that you’re in there!” Once again, there was no response from inside the small cottage. Frustrated, Rainbow Dash pounded yet again on the door. “Please Fluttershy. You’re starting to freak me out. It’s not like you to be quiet for this long. Please can you just come out and talk to me?” Silence was the only response. Rainbow Dash raised up her hoof once again, but paused before she could bring it down. Dejected, she dropped back down again with a sigh. “Fine…” she said turning around. “I’ll be back again tomorrow. Please come out and talk to me then will ya?” With a flap of her wings, Rainbow Dash took off, heading out across town. On the other side of the door, Fluttershy sat, curled up at the foot of the doorway, tears streaming down her face. She couldn’t let Rainbow Dash in. She couldn’t let anypony in. Fluttershy’s lips quivered before she placed her hooves to her face, sobbing endlessly. The other animals did their best to help her. Even her notorious rabbit pet Angel was troubled to see Fluttershy so depressed. Fluttershy lifted her head to reveal red eyes and streams of tears flowing freely. “I…” she paused as she sniffed, even though the tears never stopped. “ I’m a monster...”