//------------------------------//
// Sorrows of the Past 
// Story: Azure Flame 
// by Silver Page 
//------------------------------//

	“Come on, Cadence! Let’s go!” A young Blueblood stamped his hooves impatiently as he waited for his older cousin, a pink and pastel Alicorn. It was late in the evening, and he didn’t want to waste anymore time. She appeared out of her room a few minutes later, much to the young prince’s annoyance.
“I wanted to get my mane in order. I can’t sneak into a party and look bad, can I?” Blueblood rolled his eyes at his cousin. She looked fine, to him, and he grabbed her hoof and started to drag her down the halls. After a bit, he released her, and she trotted calmly next to him, while Blueblood started to talk about what he wanted to do.
“First, I’m gonna go see Mommy. I’ll see if Daddy wants to play a game with me, and then make them dance together. They don’t get to spend a lot of time together. Then, I’ll eat some cake with Aunty, and maybe make some funny faces at the guards. I wonder if Fleur will be there?” Cadence chuckled at her cousin’s excitement, and though she wouldn’t admit it, she was looking forward to sneaking into the biggest event in all the land as well.
“Sure you want her to see you? She might be mad you snuck into a party just for adults!” Cadence teased, and Blueblood blushed a bit.
“She, she won’t be mad! She’ll be glad to see me!” Blueblood protested, suddenly worried. Maybe he should back out now?
That thought vanished quickly as he heard a swell of music coming up from the staircase. It was a wonderful, peaceful sound, the orchestra playing a soft yet quick paced waltz. Blueblood squee’d with barely contained excitement, which was mirrored by a similar squeal by Cadence. He giggled at her, and she huffed a bit. 
Cadence was dressed in a dark purple and gold dress with small gems sewn into the hem. It was complemented by a small silver tiara that had a single ruby in its center, and her mane was brushed and curled. She wasn’t wearing any perfume, as she couldn’t decide on a single scent she’d wanted to use, but she was still stunning.
As for Blueblood, he wore a black tuxedo that contrasted well with his bright white coat, and in the lapel he had pinned a bluebell flower, preserved with magic. His mane was combed back just like his father’s, and held in place with some styling gel he’d found in his dad’s bathroom. He’d used a bit too much, though, and the result was his mane looked shiny. For the two youngsters, this was going to be a fun night. 
Sneaking in wouldn’t be easy if they came in from the garden or anywhere outside the audience hall. And everypony would be watching the main staircase, where their Aunt Celestia stood and greeted her guests, so no go that way. The only solution to this problem would be entering the Gala from one of the serving entrances, where the serving staff was setting out delicacies and taking away used dishes. 
The pair stepped into one of the service passage ways, and walked out towards the party. A young maid appeared in front of them, balancing a tray on her back. Her coat was an odd piebald color, but was nice none the less, and she had a grey tea kettle as her Cutie Mark. She was a new servant in the palace, and she saw the two sneaky foals freeze as she appeared.
Instead of calling out to somepony to take them away, or chastise them for sneaking in, she just gave the two a wink and walked on. Blueblood and Cadence let out a breath they’d been holding in, smiling at the maid and then at each other. The Gala was in front of them, just beyond those curtains…
“You don’t have to stand by my side all evening, you two. Go and have fun!”  Celestia said to a pair of Ponies who flanked her at the top of the staircase.
“Why would I? I get to stand at the top of a majestic room, staring down at all the little ponies as they scurry around, with two beautiful mares by my side.” This came from an aqua colored Pegasus stallion who wore a navy blue uniform with gold epaulets at the shoulders. A number of medals and awards decorated it, and he wore them all with pride. His mane, which was a pale green like seaweed, was smoothed back with styling gel in a very suave manner, though it made his mane look wet, as if it was actual seaweed on his head. His tail was cropped short like all members of the Navy, and he looked at the room with blue eyes. A lit lighthouse was his Cutie Mark, and soon Prince Blue Wave was reward for his comment by a sharp jolt in his flank which made him twitch.
The sharp poke from somepony’s magic was retaliation for the earlier comment, and Celestia stifled a laugh at the antics of both. The other Pony, a beautiful Unicorn mare with a lustrous snow white coat and mane like spun gold, gave her husband a withering look. Princess Golden Light proceeded to roll her eyes at her aunt’s controlled mirth. She wore a simple ice blue dress that was ruffled with white lace at the edges, and a number of glass beads had been woven into her mane. They caught the light and reflected it around her in dazzling splotches of rainbow colors. The couple was stunning, and many compliments had already been given to both.
“Seriously, though, you two don’t need to stand around with me forever. Enjoy the night!” Celestia urged, and Golden Light and Blue Wave looked at each other.
“I suppose I could go and mingle some. I think I see Fancy Pants over by the Punch Bowl. I’d like to hear how his company’s new inventions are coming,” Golden Light declared, and she stepped daintily down the marble staircase, the ponies in line to greet the Solar Princess parting respectfully for her. Celestia glanced at Blue Wave who shrugged. 
“Maybe later. I don’t think my crass sense of humor goes well with the majority of the guests,” Blue Wave said dryly. While many nobles were fine one on one, or even in small groups, get them all together in one place at once, and their collective snobbery and self-worth increased exponentially, resulting in more uptight ponies than should be allowed.
Blue Wave heard Celestia snicker, and the Prince realized he had said that out loud. Luckily, only Celestia had heard, so none of the nobles gave him a dirty look. Well, not for that reason at least. You set one ice sculpture on fire three years ago, and they never let you live it down…
While Prince Blue Wave continued the Meet ‘n’ Greet, Princess Golden Light made her way over to a table lined with punch bowls full of a variety of drinks. There were a few ponies standing around it, though the one she wanted to speak with was alone, the other nobles not really looking over at Count Fancy Pants. He was also a knight, and he preferred to be called by that rank, as his family had lost much of their money and land long before he was born, and had only the title to show for it.
“Sir Fancy Pants! How are you this evening?” Golden Light asked, hiding an unladylike smirk as she saw the other nobles grind their teeth at not being addressed by the lovely royal. 
Fancy Pants looked up and smiled warmly, before bowing slightly to her. 
“Princess Light. You honor me with your attention.” Golden Light grinned, and looked over at the humble stallion. The Unicorn was a year or two younger than herself, and his fine white coat was lovely and well groomed. He was starting to grow a moustache, though what was on his lips was very thin and lack luster. Fancy Pants was one of the few nobles who Golden Light and Blue Wave could stand to be around, and they gladly called him friend. His humility was refreshing, and he was never rude or mean to anypony, regardless of station. The Count was also a genius, far more gifted than others in the mechanical and engineering department. 
“Friends do not have to bow, Fancy.” The stallion nodded and got up, silently savoring the envious looks his counterparts gave him at the Princess’ words.
“How goes your work? Have you finished your new invention?”
“Why, yes, I have! The proto-types have been completed, and I am ready for market testing. I think you’ll be impressed.”
As the two adults talked, none of them noticed a filly and a colt sneaking around the room, gazing in awe at the decorations and the finely dressed ponies.
“This is so amazing! Look, that mare’s wearing one of Hoity Toity’s new summer dresses! How elegant! And is that the model, Photo Finish? She looks beautiful!” Cadence was gushing as she took in the sights, though Blueblood was far less interested in it. He had wandered over to a buffet table and was munching on some pie and hors devors under the furniture, hidden from sight by the long tablecloth. 
As he ate he listened to the various conversations and mutterings of the guests and party-goers. It was fun, hearing all sorts of stuff. Like how Baron von Plump had lost ten pounds after his wife put him on a diet, or how Sir Needy was porking his maids. That last one confused the young prince. What did pigs have to do with it? It sounded wrong and Blueblood was glad when the two gossips moved on. After a while, he heard a voice he knew quiet well.
“Will you please stop pestering me, Grove? You are getting annoying.” Blueblood’s face lit up as he heard Fleur de Lys’ warm and soft voice, though tinged a bit with anger.
“We are right for each other, though! You know it’s true, baby!” The slimy voice of Flame Grove, a sleazy noble from Manehatten, was heard, and Blueblood grimaced. He was a rude Earth Pony, with no respect for anypony but himself.
“I think you might be going deaf, so how about I repeat what I said earlier? Go bother somepony else, Grove. I do not want to speak with you tonight. Do I have to say it again?” Now, Blueblood could see Fleur’s hooves from under the tablecloth, and they were joined by hooves that most likely belonged to Flame Grove.
“You know I won’t, baby! You and I are made for each other!” Blueblood could feel Fleur getting angrier, and he himself was a bit peeved at the jerk bothering his foalsitter. So he planned an intricate and convoluted revenge plot!
Not really. He just snuck out to another table, grabbed a candle, snuck back under the table Fleur and Grove were standing by, and set the stallion’s tail on fire.
Above the table, neither pony noticed the fire spreading till one of the nearby nobles pointed it out.
“Somepony set you on fire again, Grove.” The Earth Pony looked over, and sighed. 
“I should go deal with this.” He walked away, his tail still burning, and the other nobles shook their heads.
“Third time this week.”
“His tail-stylist must be a rich pony.”
“Why do ponies always set him on fire?”
Fleur heard a small giggle from beneath the table, and she looked under to find the source, though she had a suspicion. 
“Hello, Little Blue,” she said with a smile.
“Eeep!” With a squeak of shock, the prince looked up at his foalsitter, and then shot away, not wanting to be caught. She smiled warmly at his antics, than saw his mother talking with Fancy Pants. She decided to greet them.
“…And that is how my Calculators work.” Fancy had just finished explaining how his invention would function, while Princess Golden Light simply nodded.
“But why not switch the catalyst unit to a silver wire, instead of copper? Silver conducts electricity better.” The Princess offered her suggestion, and Fancy Pants nodded in acknowledgement.
“Well, price is one factor; also, it is easier to mold copper…”
“Hello, nerds!” 
The two Unicorns look over in surprise, while the other nobles gasped in shock at the statement. Calling Princess Light a nerd! How uncouth!
“Oh, hello Fleur. I was just conversing with Fancy about his new invention.” The young mare rolled her eyes at Princess Golden Light while Fancy Pant’s smiled with good humor.
“I heard. Anyways, Fancy Pants, are you ready to lose to me again?” Fleur pointed over to a series of side tables with games set up on them. Mostly chess boards, but a couple card games were set up.
“Just because you’ve beaten me a dozen times in a row already does not mean you’ll do it again. I accept your challenge!” The two smiled slyly.
“That sounded like you think you can beat me. For that, I will defeat you in four moves, rather than just five,” Fleur declared, and the stallion walked off with a laugh to set up one of the boards.
“You two should get married already,” Golden Light stated with a wink, and Fleur face-hoofed along with several other nobles. 
“For a princess, you show very little tact.” Fleur grumbled. It was an old quest of Golden Light’s to hook up the young noble-mare from Prance with a gentlecolt. 
“Ah, but you see, it is because I am a princess! I have ponies to do that for me,” Golden Light said with a smirk, and the two laughed it off.
“By the way, I saw Blueblood earlier. I think he and Cadence snuck into the Gala,” Fleur mentioned as she headed over to Fancy Pants. Golden Light shook her head. Of course he had. Why would she possibly imagine that her son and niece would listen to her and stay in their rooms? She trotted off to find them.

The party was beginning to wind down, and as it neared midnight, the atmosphere took on a more calm and reflexive mood. The orchestra switched to something more subdued, and the line of greeters was almost gone. In fact, only twelve ponies were remaining. One of them, the fourth in line, was acting oddly. He twitched a few times, and muttered some things under his breath. The nobles paid him little attention, save for a few haughty looks at the pony who seemed out of it.
His suit seemed lumpy up close, though the stallion behind him in line put it down to the twitches. His iron grey mane, though well groomed, had some stray strands loose on his head. His coat, a nice burgundy color, seemed messy and unbrushed. His eyes were bloodshot, and he stared up at Celestia with a strange expression. 
Blue Wave had noticed the odd looking Unicorn and was a little worried, and a lot suspicious. He couldn’t place a hoof on it, but the Unicorn seemed dangerous for some reason. At length, the disheveled noble was second in line. Then, he was next, as the pony in front stepped aside after greeting the Solar Princess.
Meanwhile, near the door to the gardens, Blueblood was leaning against the wall, feeling bored. At first it had been fun, hanging around and eating, but he felt a stomach ache coming on, and he had gotten fed up with the whining of the nobles. Maybe when he was an adult, he’d care. But for now, he wanted to leave. Unfortunately, Cadence was having a blast. The teenage Alicorn had wiggled her way into a bunch of conversations, and was holding her own against the older nobles with a grace and ease even he could see.
Princess Golden Light had been looking for Blueblood for an hour or so, and finally saw him standing near the garden exit. The princess had seen Cadence earlier, but she seemed to be doing fine, so she chose to focus on her son first. She sighed, and headed over to fetch Blueblood.
“Greetings, my little pony. How nice of you to be able to attend the Gala this year,” Princess Celestia said warmly to the twitchy Unicorn in front of her. Blue Wave raised an eyebrow at his silence.
“Well? Do you have something to say?” He inquired, looking at the weird pony.
“No…” the Unicorn whispered. He looked up at Celestia with something in his eyes she had seen only once before, in her corrupted sister. Unfathomable rage and hate, directed at her.
“NO!” He cried, and he tore of his suit with a blast of magic. The shout brought everypony’s attention to them. Golden Light gasped while Blue Wave swore violently at what they saw. The Unicorn’s body was strapped with dozens of sticks of dynamite, the fuses tied together near his neck.
“No King! No Queen! No Lord! No Master! WE WILL NOT BE FOOLED AGAIN!!” The Unicorn screamed, and his horn lit up, and a spark burst to life on the fuses. The fire caught, and raced towards the explosives. Celestia, still stunned from seeing the boiling hate in his eyes, did not move, while the guards tried to run forwards but were hindered by panicking guests. Only one pony could act. 
Without a second thought, Blue Wave cast flared out his wings, and gathered strands of air around his body, and rushed at the terrorist, slamming into him with a grunt from the Prince and a scream of anger from the madpony. They were at the top of the stairs, and this combined with the flying Pegasus catapulted them far above the heads of the other ponies. Unfortunately, it led them straight towards the doors which opened out onto the gardens.
Blueblood stared in shock, first as the terrorist pony revealed his dynamite and shouted his words, then as his father bravely tackled the assailant into the air. He saw them shooting towards him, but he couldn’t move. He heard a scream from nearby, and felt somepony hit him from the side.
Across the room, Fleur and Fancy Pants screamed in horror as they saw all that transpired. Their cries grew louder and more urgent as they saw Princess Golden Light dive forwards to cover her son’s body with her own.
There was an explosion. It deafened the ears and blinded the eyes. Vile smoke choked them and a shock wave smacked them around. 
Fleur felt something nudge her and move her. She blinked, to find herself sprawled on the floor with Fancy Pants shaking her awake. His mouth was moving. She couldn’t hear what he was saying. Her ears were full of a painful buzzing sound. 
She looked with bleary eyes at where she had last seen the Princess and Blueblood. What had happened? At once, memories returned to her along with a dose of fear fueled adrenaline, and she jumped to her hooves, ignoring the dizziness that accompanied it. She ran through the dazed crowd, Fancy Pants hot on her trail.
She rushed to a crumpled pile of ice blue silk that twitched feebly, and as she approached she saw dark red stains seeping from it. They ran across the floor, parts of it scorched and decorated with splashes of smoking gore. 
She hurried to the side of the fallen princess, her hearing returning as she did so.
And the first things she heard made her tear up with uncontrollable grief, and would haunt her forever.
“Mommy?! Mommy?! Don’t leave me, Mommy!!”