//------------------------------// // Ch 6: In Which Fluttershy is Comforted, Luna Pursues, and Discord Dispenses Justice // Story: Fulfilling // by PegasusMesa //------------------------------// Luna and Fluttershy sat inside the cottage, the alicorn trying her best to help the pegasus cheer up. "I must apologize," she said. "I have not had much experience comforting ponies in these situations." "That's alright. Um... just by being here, you're helping." Fluttershy gave the princess a tired smile. Think, Luna, think... "Can I get you something to drink?" Luna hopped to her feet and trotted into the kitchen. "A cup of tea would be very nice," the pegasus admitted. Immediately, the alicorn halted in her tracks. "Uh, heh heh, you probably do not want me to do that." She felt her face burning from embarrassment. "Why not?" "Well, you see, uh, earlier this evening, Twilight Sparkle tried to teach me how to make chocolate milk, and..." "What?!" Fluttershy exclaimed quietly. "Twilight was cooking?! Oh dear, oh my, are you alright? Is she alright? She didn't burn down the library again, did she?" "Nopony got hurt, and nothing burned," Luna said. "There were a lot of strangely-colored things flying through the air, though... But you see, if I cannot do something as simple as milk, then..." She realized that she had never, in all her long years of life, made her own beverage. She remembered pouring them, but never actually creating them. That... is pretty pathetic, she thought. "I understand," the pegasus said. She stood and joined her friend in the kitchen. "Here, I'll teach you how to do it." "Wait, you shouldn't have to do work!" Luna protested. "After what you went through—" "No, um, it's fine. I kinda want to do something to keep myself busy, um, if it's alright." The princess was surprised at how easily the yellow mare went about the task without magic. If Luna had tried to do it by hoof, then she would have likely blown up the kitchen. However, with a bit of simple instruction from a credible source (i.e. anypony who wasn't Twilight), she soon had a steaming mug filled with what appeared to be tea. "Um, so you were at Twilight's," the pegasus said while they cleaned up the area. "I was kind of wondering why you happened to be here... not that I'm ungrateful!" "Twilight told me that you were on a date, but I forgot and decided to fly by just to see if you were still awake. I am... I'm ashamed, but I eavesdropped on you for a few seconds. I did not actually grasp the situation until he threatened your bunny." "Y-you don't have to apologize," Fluttershy told her. "Things would have been worse otherwise—" A sudden pounding came from the door, and the yellow mare seized up. "Stay here," Luna said quietly. As silent as a shadow, she glided to the entrance and whipped it open. However, instead of an attacker, she found a nigh-hysterical Rarity. "Fluttershy! I— oh, Princess Luna!" the unicorn said. "Is Fluttershy— there you are!" She pushed past the princess and buried her yellow friend in a tight hug. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! It's all my fault!" "Um, Rarity? How did you know what happened?" Fluttershy asked, confusion clear on her face. "No offense to you, Princess," Rarity said, "but your voice carried clear down to Ponyville, and likely beyond! Why, the only reason the other girls aren't here as well is that they don't know the details that I do." With Rarity on the scene, the princess began to feel like she was out-of-place here. She needs to be alone with a good friend; I should not stay here any longer. "Well, Fluttershy, I shall take my leave now. I hope that you feel well soon, and know that I shall not let that cur off lightly." She turned to leave but was stopped by Fluttershy's voice. "Princess Luna?" she said, pushing herself free of the unicorn's embrace. "I mean, Luna. Th-thank you, for saving me and Angel." "Do not think on it. I would be a poor friend indeed if I had done nothing." "When—whenever you want, if you're, um, just flying by, I don't m-mind if you stop to say hi..." "Really?" Luna asked. Her face lit up with a bright smile. "I... I believe I shall do so. Th...thank you, and farewell." And with that, she spread her wings and departed into the cool night air. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ On a shelf behind Fluttershy sat a small statue of a turtle. It was fairly non-descript, save for one feature—it bore a single fang. The pegasus's gaze passed over it before she realized that she didn't know where she had gotten such an item. However, when she looked again, her puzzlement doubled. The statue was gone, as if it had teleported away. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Green eyes fixed on the alicorn who soared overhead. Normal ponies wouldn't have been able to detect her dark form against the night sky, but the monster possessed unnaturally keen vision. It could sense the power that she wielded, and it knew that it had to make that power its own. The creature now inhabited Magnum's skull, and the aged Plum had been left behind to perish. By accessing Magnum's memories, it learned everything its host already knew about this alicorn, this Princess Luna, and its desire doubled when it discovered that she was apparently immortal. "A body that will not age, that I can possessss forever..." it mused. Further digging taught the monster that its host was supposed to appear before the princess the very next day. A grotesque smile spread across Magnum's face as his feet were turned towards Canterlot, where the ultimate prize lay. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "That's terrible!" Twilight shouted. She grabbed hold of Fluttershy by the shoulders. "How are you feeling? Are you depressed? You aren't hurt, right? Right?!" By this point, she was shaking the poor mare. "Twi—light! I'm—fine! You—can—stop—sha—king—me—now!" "Oh, uh, whoops." The alicorn let go and stepped back quickly. "Heh heh, sorry..." Twilight arrived first thing in the morning, immediately after the rooster's call. She, too, had heard Luna's voice the night before, and after a number of hours had finally managed to get into contact with the dark princess to find out what the hay had actually happened. "You don't have to worry, I'm fine," Fluttershy said, still a little woozy. "Luna came by just in time." "What a terrible first date," Twilight muttered. "At least you don't have to deal with any more of those in the future, though." "Actually, I asked Rarity to help me get another one." "Wh-WHAT?" "I, um, I know that my date was a disaster, but it wasn't her fault. Luna told me last night that Magnum pays his servants to spread good rumors about him—that's why, when Rarity asked around, she was only told positive things." The pegasus took a slow sip of water. "I did ask her to keep it limited to ponies in Ponyville whose names I already know, though. I... think it's safer that way." "That's a decent idea,"" Twilight said. "But why don't you want to take a break? If it were me, I'd want to take it easy for at least a few days. You know, read a nice book, wrap up some side projects I have..." "I just... I think it's important to continue, is all." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The throne room of the alicorn princesses was empty, save for the princesses themselves and a few guards. Normally, ponies came in droves to seek favor from their rulers, but this was a unique occasion. "What do you plan to do, sister?" Luna asked quietly. "I haven't quite decided yet. First, I want to hear what Magnum has to say for himself." "I have no doubt that he shall lie to make it seem like he is the victim, and I the villain." Celestia stretched her wings out gracefully. "That may very well be the case, but he is still entitled to present his side of the story." "The noble Daffodil Magnum, your majesties!" shouted Hamfist. He pulled open a door and showed in the disgraced unicorn. Within seconds, Magnum stood before the princesses, his eyes cast on the ground. His mane had begun to go gray, and his body seemed on the verge of collapse. Why does he appear to have aged since last night? the dark princess wondered. "Daffodil Magnum," Celestia stated, "you have been called here on charges of sexual misconduct—" "Call a rose a rose," Luna hissed at her sister. "It was attempted rape. Do not sugar-coat the crime with sterile words!" "I understand your anger, but this is how it must be done. Don't worry, justice will certainly be served." In a louder voice, she continued. "You have been called here on charges of sexual misconduct. As per Equestrian law, you shall be given this chance to present your defense, and then a sentence will be passed. The floor is yours." Magnum said nothing. "Does this mean you have nothing to say?" the sun princess asked. The unicorn didn't even acknowledge that he was being spoken to; this final insult pushed Luna's anger over the boiling point. "Look at your princess when she speaks to you!" she snapped. He let out a hacking laugh. "Very well." The stallion's head lifted up, and Luna's sight was captured by an emerald gaze. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The monster felt the thrill of victory when Luna's vision fell on its face; it sent its insidious mental tendrils out to capture her in its web, thinking that its success was assured. However, as soon as the reaching tentacles encountered the princess's mind, it knew that something was wrong. Try as it might, the beast could not pierce the barriers surrounding her being. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Almost immediately, Luna felt the attempted intrusion, and her eyes narrowed dangerously. "That is no normal pony!" she rumbled deeply. "Guards, look not into its eyes, else it shall posses thee!" The alicorn's wings flared and she leaped towards the monster, horn-first. Magnum's feet barely managed to move him out of the way to save him from being impaled by a furious goddess. However, the creature was not without its own power. Or rather, Magnum's power. The noble stallion was a relatively powerful magician, and it showed from the fireball that shot from his horn. Luna captured it inside a spherical shield so that it detonated harmlessly, but unfortunately, by that time, Magnum had already escaped past the guards, who were following Luna's command to avoid making eye-contact. "Luna—" said Celestia, but the darker alicorn interrupted her. "Leave this to Us," she said, throwing her sister a confident grin. "The court is thy specialty, but in martial matters, We daresay We are thy better." "Pssh, quit bragging and go get him." She needn't have bothered even say it—Luna was already out the door. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In her royal bedroom's royal bed, Princess Cadence slept in with her husband. Suddenly, she felt a terrible sense of dread and sat straight up. "What..." Shining Armor paused to release a jaw-cracking yawn. "...what's wrong?" The princess shivered as a cold feeling ran down her spine. "I just had some kind of premonition. Something awful has happened." "What?!" the unicorn exclaimed. "Do you know what it is?! Where did it happen?! Is anypony in danger?!" "...I think somepony finally figured out what Luna's raunchy constellation really is." Shining rolled his eyes and dropped back, earning a disappointed pout from his wife. "Hey," she said, "this is serious! Next time I see her, I'll never hear the end of it!" "Honey, go back to sleep." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The chase led Luna through the halls of the palace at a speed that would have left any other pony bent over, panting from the exertion. However, Luna wasn't "any other" pony. Instead, she was right on Magnum's heels. The dark-purple glow of her magic reached out to grab the fleeing stallion's leg, and for a second it seemed like he would be apprehended, but at the last moment his own magic whipped out and slapped her's away. The force of the spell exceeded that which a normal unicorn should have been able to generate, a fact that gave Luna pause. Whatever monster has taken control of Daffodil's body must be augmenting his magic, she realized. In the end, it didn't matter, because the contest was decided by Magnum's lack of knowledge of the palace layout; he ran straight into a dead end. Luna realized her foe's dilemma and began to slowly move in on him. Once again the creature stared at her and tried to invade her thoughts, and like before, she easily repelled it. It looked around desperately for some route of escape. Finally, its gaze landed on a small grate in the floor. Something inky and black slithered out of Magnum's ear and sped towards the tiny opening. While the stallion collapsed in a heap, Luna lunged forward in an attempt to block the getaway route, but it was to no avail—the thing had gotten away. Instead of wasting time trying to hunt down the elusive creature, the alicorn instead decided to take measures to make future possessions as difficult for it as possible. "Guard!" she said to a nearby pony. "Take this message to your superior and see to it that it is also spread to all other ponies residing in the palace. 'Instruct your mares and stallions to not gaze into deep shadows if they can avoid it. If you see a shadow moving of its own volition, do not look at it. If you see a pony with green eyes, avert your own and inform one of the princesses.' That is all." "Yes, princess!" The guard saluted and galloped off to obey the order. "Luna, what happened?" Princess Celestia serenely walked up to stand beside her sister. "Sister... It appears that our foe is some type of phantom, or perhaps a shape-shifter. It escaped through an opening too small for even a foal." "So you're saying that it could be anywhere." Luna rubbed her forehead, where she could already feel a massive headache forming. "This...thing...Something about it seems terribly familiar." "That's because I created it." Both princesses flinched in surprise at the voice, which came from above. They looked up to find Discord, sitting on the ceiling, staring back down at them. "If you two weren't so forgetful, you'd remember my specters." "AHA!" Luna exclaimed. "I knew you could not be trusted!" "Easy, girl," the dragonequis said, patting the alicorn on the head. "I'm not the one who unleashed it this time. I didn't even know any of those things survived. I swear, you jump down my throat at the slightest provocation." "Are you going to help us capture this 'specter'?" Celestia asked gravely. "Well, I guess I could... It's not like either of you stand a chance on your own." He pointedly ignored the glare the dark princess threw his way. "First, I'm going to need to see what I can learn from this stallion." With a snap of his fingers, a wheelbarrow appeared out of nowhere. Discord picked up the unconscious Magnum and dropped him carelessly into the basket. "I shall go with you," Luna said immediately. "I think I can handle this without cute widdle Wuna's help," he taunted. Celestia put her hoof on the growling alicorn's shoulder. "Luna, don't lose your temper. And Discord, stop provoking her." "Such a stick in the mud..." he mumbled as he wheeled the cart away. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A spot of darkness navigated its way between the pipes in the castle's walls, searching for a place where it could be reasonably safe. It already knew why it hadn't been able to infiltrate the blue cow's mind—she had anticipated such an attack, and likely maintained mental defenses at all times for just such an occassion. It was a combination of a will as powerful as steel, and potent magic. The creature realized that possessing such a creature would require more work than could be accomplished in a mere day. And that only made it want her more. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Magnum's eyes shot open and he groaned in pain; the back of his head was throbbing for some reason. Looking around, the stallion took in his surroundings. He was in what looked to be a guest room at a fairly well-off establishment. How did I get here? he wondered. The last thing I remember... being assaulted by a princess... and those green eyes... "Well good morning, dear fellow!" The unicorn yelped and jumped, only to find himself nose-to-nose with some strange amalgamation of multiple different creatures. Discord sighed and shook his head. "Oh don't be like that, I'm not even trying to scare you right now!" "You-you're that...thing... that the princess keeps around," Magnum said disdainfully. "Discord." "You guessed it right on the first try! Congratulations! Want a cookie?" "Spare me your prattle. Why have you brought me here?" "Some fiendish abomination possessed you, and then attacked the princesses. I brought you here to find out what you could tell me about that." Discord examined his fingernails, as if bored with this whole process. "I remember nothing!" Magnum protested. "I only now just woke up!" "Of course you don't remember anything," the dragonequis said matter-of-factly. "That was just the lie that I concocted for the princesses, a pretense so that I could get you alone to have a friendly chat! Now, what I really want to talk about..." He turned to the stallion with a look in his reptilian eyes that suggested that his intentions were anything but 'friendly'. He flexed his claws menacingly as the temperature in the room plummeted. "...do tell, what's this I hear about you and my dear, sweet, little Fluttershy?"