//------------------------------// // 19 Consequences // Story: Homecoming of a Jumper // by tosety //------------------------------// Diamond Tiara sat in front of Mayor Mare and the Council, tears running down her face, but making a valiant effort to keep what little dignity she had left. Mayor Mare’s voice was cold and formal. “Diamond Tiara, witnesses saw you leaving Steelskin’s house minutes before it was destroyed by a star beast.” Steelskin’s ears pinned back as visions of his flattened house came to mind. He reminded himself that not only had he seen ponies endure far worse, but his neighbors were already making plans to help him rebuild. “Furthermore, witnesses agree that the star beast stopped its rampage when it found its eggs in a box you were seen carrying. Five additional buildings were damaged, including the houses of Alex and Rainbow Dash, as well as chairpony, Golden Coins,” At the Mayor’s mention of her only friend’s house, Diamond Tiara swallowed hard. She had been played for the biggest foal ever. “...The town hall, and the schoolhouse.” This broke her. Unwillingly, she looked at Silver Spoon, still sporting the bandage on her foreleg. She lowered her head to the ground, covered her face in shame, then silently wept. She lay there for a full minute before opening her eyes again and rising back to a seated position. Seeing this, Mayor Mare continued. “Do you have anything to say in your defense?” Diamond Tiara shook her head, not trusting herself to speak. #NX - 02# @Arrival + 1 Hour@ Ponyville seemed normal, but the residents had a certain despair about them that I had only seen in worlds with much more devastation. The only thing out of the ordinary was what a previous reality called ‘Night Stone Castle.’ I passed pony after pony just going about their business. There were no smiles or happy greetings between acquaintances, just business. When I got to the library, I knocked on the door. If anypony could tell me what was going on, it was Twilight. “Come in,” a flat, tired voice responded. I had never seen a Twilight in worse shape. Her eyes spoke of nothing but pain and anguish and her coat and mane showed halfhearted grooming at best. “Who are you?” Spike asked from the stairs. There wasn’t any animosity in his voice, but it didn’t hold any welcome either. “My name is Steelskin,” I replied. “I came here because I’m new in the area and was hoping to find out why everypony is...” I trailed off, recognizing that something I said had touched a nerve. “How are we supposed to be?” Twilight asked, tears springing to her eyes. “Yes, N- she has brought the sun back, but the princesses are still dead and my Nyx is still gone.” I rushed forward and embraced her as the tears started flowing freely. “You are lucky there were no serious injuries. Are you still unwilling to give us the names of your accomplices?” Mayor Mare asked. “I told you already that they were all wearing cloaks that hid their manes and cutie marks.” Tiara’s voice was full of bitterness and she let out a heavy sigh. “They also altered their voices to sound really strange.” “That being the case,” Mayor Mare replied. “We shall move on to the next most pressing order of business. As your father has disowned you, and since you have your cutie mark, do you wish to claim majority or be housed at the orphanage?” Alex stood and cleared his throat. “If it pleases the court, I would like to formally withdraw my damages from the list of offenses.” Dash flew up into Alex’s face, straining to not snarl at him. “What in Celestia’s name do you think you’re doing? She tried to hurt you. She tried to hurt me. Scootaloo could have been killed. It is okay to be angry at what she did.” He gave Dash a sad little smile. “I’m showing mercy, ”Look at her, Dash. She’s got nothing left.” Dash turned to glare at Diamond Tiara, only to find the filly staring in shock at Alex. Dash’s own expression softened as the truth of Tiara’s situation sunk in. Steelskin worked up his own courage and spoke up. “Me too.” “Why?” Scootaloo hissed at him quietly. “She’s been nothing but a nag to all of us, you especially.” Steelskin didn’t respond. #NX - 02# @Arrival + 1 Hour@ “Nyx was created by a spell by Nightmare Moon cultists seeking to bring their queen back to life in her own body,” Twilight rasped, interrupted by slowly lessening sniffles. “They had ponynapped me and Celestia interrupted the spell when she and her guards rescued me.” I stroked her mane and offered the likely continuation of the story. “Then you found her as a filly and raised her like your own daughter.” Twilight nodded. “She wasn’t anything like Nightmare Moon. She was quiet and kind. She made friends with the Crusaders. Stupidly, I didn’t tell the Princesses, and when Celestia found out, I let her take Nyx away...” “And the cultists tricked her into completing the spell,” I offered. “I found her and tried to convince her, but she was angry because I-” Twilight choked back a sob. “I abandoned her, so she put me in the dungeon...” By this time, Twilight was emotionally spent and her voice was monotone as she stared at the ground. “Then she went off and killed Celestia and Luna,” Twilight continued hoarsely. “The sun is out; does that mean she decided to bring back the day?” I asked, hoping to get onto a happier topic. Sadly, it only made her sigh. “Yes, and Nexus brainwashed me into stabbing her for it... Then my little Nyx blasted him just as he was about to execute me...” Twilight fell into an almost catatonic state for an uncomfortably long time. Meanwhile, Spike came quietly over. ”You stabbed Nightmare Moon?” Spike asked, flabbergasted. Twilight turned half lidded eyes and monotoned “Didn’t you go down into the dungeon? What did you think all that blood was from?” “I thought it was yours...” Spike whispered, almost too quiet to hear. “Well, then,” Mayor Mare continued. “The decision of this council is that you will assist the craftponies that rebuild Town Hall, the Schoolhouse, and Golden Coins’ house. As you are a minor, and are unwilling to claim majority at this time, you will be in the care of Miss Sweetheart. As Alex Roberts and Steelskin have withdrawn their claims and Golden Coins is not seeking additional damages, there will be no further penalty. There will, of course, be mandatory counselling with either Miss Introspective or Weyul, son of Wieland and you shall be on probation until you reach the age of adulthood. Given testimony by witnesses of your past conduct, even from Silver Spoon, I can only conclude that you have taken behaviors onto yourself that are adversarial and harmful to everypony around you. For the safety of this town, you will be assigned a probation officer who will check up on you once per week to ensure you are not breaking any more laws or disturbing our citizens.” Mayor mare slid her glasses down in order to glare with almost Fluttershy-like intensity. “Should you commit any more mischief," She cleared her throat, "which would include harassing other ponies," she pointed to the cutiemark crusaders, "you will be remanded to the Canterlot Court system to determine your new placement and rehabilitation." There was a general murmuring that spoke to the crowd’s desire to see just that as Mayor Mare stomped her hoof twice. Steelskin watched as Diamond Tiara dragged herself out of the room, being met at the door by a coldly professional Miss Sweetheart. Steelskin and Alex watched with sadness, Matt and Trace sat with an unreadable expression and her father was looking away, trying to pretend she didn’t exist. Her mother, meanwhile, was biting her own lip, trying to figure out a way to make it somepony else’s fault. Everypony else sat with smug looks as the cruel filly finally got what was coming to her. “Hey, Steel,” Apple Bloom asked. “Ahm not complainin’, but why’re ya bein’ so nice ta Tiara?” The other crusaders moved in to hear his answer. Off, just in the range of hearing, Dash and Alex listened in. After a moment of thought, Steelskin responded. “What do you think she’s gonna be doing to help the craftponies?” Sapphire projected herself into the conversation. The only help I can think of is carrying things... If she can manage that. There was a mixture of winces and cruel snickers as they thought about Tiara doing manual labor. “Plus,” Steelskin added. “She’s gonna be at the orphanage. Is there anypony there she hasn’t bullied?” At this, even Rainbow Dash quit grinning. “Yeah,” Steelskin said. “She was just one filly that they could avoid most of the time, but everypony is going to be hoping to give her the tartarus she gave them.” Nopony spoke as they imagined being surrounded by a town full of Diamond Tiaras. #NX - 02# @Arrival + 1 Hour@ “So the last time you saw her was when she rescued you from the hanging and purged you?” Twilight shook her head at my question. “No, after she killed Nexus, I saw her one last time. When monsters invaded Ponyville, she... took care of them.” “You say she killed Nexus?” I asked. “She didn’t purge him?” I hadn’t realized how haunted a pony’s eyes could get until I asked that question. An almost imperceptible shake of her head preceded Twilight’s answer. “Vaporized. Just as he pushed me off, a blast of concentrated magic vaporized him. She caught me, then screamed at all her soldiers, saying ‘I make the laws! I decide when somepony will be killed!’ Then she took me back to my room in the library and purged me. Shining Armor says she then gathered everypony else that had been brainwashed and purged them. The next night I spent in her throneroom, pleading for her to come home. I woke up in my own bed.” Her face had almost dried out, but this brought a fresh wave of tears flowed down her cheeks. “I don’t need your pity,” Diamond Tiara sniffled. Steelskin gave a half smile. “I wasn’t offering; I was informing.” He didn’t allow Tiara to push him away from her bag of belongings sitting outside her front door. He reached down and bit onto the strap, hoisting it into Scootaloo’s wagon. He tried to ignore the stare of Filthy Rich as Tiara’s father watched her. Tiara lifted up her snout and trotted towards the orphanage. Steelskin followed, hauling the wagon behind him. As they walked, both foals wilted at the glares directed towards Tiara. Steelskin knew they weren’t directed at him, but it still reminded him of the times he had been shunned by the town. He even noticed Fluttershy glaring death at the poor filly. Tiara merely trotted along, trying to pretend that there was nothing wrong while tears leaked from the corners of her eyes. “Oh, thank you, Steelskin, that was very nice of you to help Diamond Tiara with her belongings,” Miss Sweetheart said, unable to hide her confusion. “Hmph! Can I have my stuff back now, Steelskin?” Tiara asked, trying to cover her pain with anger. She didn’t wait for an answer before grabbing the strap in her own mouth and trying to haul it onto her back. After two attempts, she settled for dragging it behind her. She stopped at the doorway and turned to Miss Sweetheart. “Thank you for letting me stay here.” “You’re very welcome, Diamond Tiara,” Miss Sweetheart replied, pulling the filly into a hug. “I’d never let anypony be left out in the cold.” #NX - 02# @Arrival + 5 Hours@ I tried to reconcile what I had heard with the little alicorn filly I had met in a previous reality. Supposedly, that Nyx had also become an adult and had fought with the Sisters, but she had merely banished them and was able to bring them back. This one had killed them and now there was nopony else who had the power to raise and lower the sun. The Nyx I had met was shy and reserved, but loved being with her friends and her adopted mother. I wished there was something I could do to help. “Did she have any friends?” I asked, hopefully. Spike spoke up. “Yeah, she hung out with Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and Apple Bloom, and I think she’s friends with Twist as well.” Oh, please, Luna and Celestia, let them not hate her, I silently prayed. “Are they still...” My courage left me before I finished the question. Twilight nodded, a smile appearing on her tear stained face. “They came a few times to try and get her to come back. Twist even left some candy for her.” “And the rest of the town?” I ventured, hoping against hope. “The adults are grudgingly thankful for her protection, but most of the foals genuinely want her back,” Twilight replied. Steelskin watched Diamond Tiara struggle to drag her belongings off to the girls’ rooms. When she was out of sight, Steelskin spoke up. “Hey, Miss Sweetheart, I could probably find somepony to take me in if you’re not comfortable with it, but I’d kinda rather stay here while I get my house rebuilt. Would that be okay?” Miss Sweetheart frowned slightly. “You’re not doing this to get back at Diamond Tiara, are you?” “Actually...” Steelskin began. “She’s been really cruel, especially to the poor kids.” Miss Sweetheart quietly waited for Steelskin to gather his thoughts. “I’ve seen... No, I’ve done too much to be comfortable letting them pay her back for what she’s done to them...” Steelskin’s voice was quiet but intense. Miss Sweetheart looked down at Steelskin, wondering what would cause him to look so guilty when it was his home that Tiara had been directly responsible for levelling. “...Okay.” #NX - 02# @Arrival + 3 Days@ “So, you want me to send a book to Twilight?” Cadance was asking. “Yes,” I replied. “I just don’t know where Celestia and Luna would’ve kept it.” Cadance’s face grew grim. “Why do you want to help Nightmare Moon?” I flinched, unprepared for the anger in the Princess of Love’s voice. She quickly moderated her voice. “I do want to help, I’m just having trouble forgiving her for...” “Killing the Princesses,” I finished for her sadly. “Yeah. That’s hard to forgive.” “Besides, you’re not actually asking me to help her, you’re asking me to help Twilight,” Cadance murmured with a sigh. I nodded with a small smile on my face. A realization came to me. “Also, if she does go nightmare again, Twilight, if she can do it, will have a chance to stop her.” Cadance nodded somberly. “Well, I really want to forgive her, so let’s do this for both of them. Also, you say Luna was able to turn the other Nyx back into a filly? I think I should search her personal library for that. I’ll have an easier time seeing her as a filly that is less than half my age if she looks the part.” Steelskin watched as Diamond Tiara dragged herself into the dining room. She lifted her eyes just far enough from her hooves to find the furthest seat from everypony else. Her tiara was perched upon her head, but her mane and tail looked almost intentionally messed up and there was mascara trails running down her cheeks. Steelskin surreptitiously moved a few seats closer to her, anticipating trouble. Sure enough, when Miss Sweetheart went into the kitchen, one of the older fillies sauntered up to where Tiara was sitting. Steelskin could see the gleeful hate in the almost-mare’s eyes. “Not so high and mighty anymore, are you, Tiara?” Steelskin quietly stood up and moved next to Diamond Tiara, staring the would-be bully in the eyes. “Don’t tell me you’re defending this little brat,” the filly sneered at Steelskin. “Who I defend is my business.” Steelskin stared at her until she backed down and took a seat, grumbling. As they ate the meal, Steelskin was aware of almost constant whispers and stares. Diamond Tiara had trouble focusing on eating as she tried to make sense of Steelskin’s actions. Suspicion grew in Diamond’s mind. What is he playing at? Is he trying to make me drop my guard before getting me back, or just trying to keep the blame off him? #NX - 02# @Arrival + 2 Weeks@ Twilight and I watched as Cadance strode into the throne room of Night Stone Castle. There had been some crazy magic three days ago that was difficult to remember, then Twilight ascended. Twilight had tried and succeeded at raising the sun and had moved the moon enough to know she would be able to raise it too. “Nightmare Moon, since you have refused to come to Canterlot to face trial for your actions, I have decided to bring the trial to you.” Cadance’s voice boomed and echoed in the empty room. “As witnesses, I bring the newly ascended and soon to be crowned Princess Twilight Sparkle, traveller between worlds Steelskin, and wrongly imprisoned Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and Apple Bloom. Face me and give account for your actions, so that I may know whether there is any reason to show you mercy.” After several slow heartbeats, a black mist interspersed with tiny stars floated down from the ceiling and coalesced into a black alicorn. She was dreadfully thin and there was a resignation in her eyes along with a confused embarrassment at the notion of those who had shown the most care for her being witness to her undoing. “Good,” Cadance said with a smile. “I am glad you came willingly. Now please explain anything you wish me to understand before I make a final decision on your punishment.” “No,” Nyx whispered with a shake of her head. “There is no defense for my actions, just please kill me, because I can’t bear the thought of another thousand years on the moon.” An interminable silence stretched on as Cadance gathered her strength for what would normally be a taboo spell. Twilight and the Crusaders wanted to rush over and comfort Nyx, but had been told what the plan was and given special instructions to sit and wait. Cadance had let it be known that how much she could trust Nyx would be directly dependent on how Nyx responded to each part of this trial. “As a princess of Equestria and currently the sole ruler, I decree that you shall be stripped of your power and remanded into the custody of...” Nyx flinched as Cadance paused. “Twilight Sparkle.” Nyx’s eyes grew wide. It was obvious she was floored by this unexpected ‘punishment.’ Cadance’s horn lit up with purple magic, building brighter and brighter until it lanced out and engulfed Nyx. As we watched, Cadance grew. Her coat lightened to a pale pink while her mane began flowing and darkening to a rich magenta. Everything about her began to take on a crystalline appearance, the facets in her hair flowing in the same ethereal breeze that moved it. Her core pulsed with a hidden inner power that was echoed by the blue tinge at the ends of her wings and her faceted hooves took on the same color as the heart in her cutie mark. As her horn died, a black filly rested on the floor. Cadance nodded to Twilight and the Crusaders and they ran over to her, checking to make sure she was merely sleeping. “Hey, Steel.” Rocky’s head poked down from the upper bunk above Steelskin. Steelskin looked up at him. “So, I heard what you said to Bloom, but it still seems kinda crazy to be sticking your neck out for Tiara, especially when she’s made it obvious she still hates your guts.” “Kinda like how you apologized to me after I bucked your face in?” Steelskin asked with a giggle. Rocky’s ears flattened. “But... that was my fault...” “Your fault that I couldn’t see it as the compliment you intended it to be?” Steelskin replied, a smile still on his face. “...But, seriously, some of the loyalest friends started out as jerks that were treated better than they deserved.” This was met with skeptical silence. “...But, if you want to see it a different way, then think about how much it will irritate her and show her how much of a nag she’s been when I’m not treating her as badly as she thinks I should.” Steelskin topped this statement off with a fake evil grin. After a moment, he continued in a serious voice. “She’s an idiot that got tricked into doing something stupid. I feel sorry for her because it cost her everything... Nothing will come of piling on the hate, but, maybe, if we can show her how, she might learn to be a decent pony now that her mom can’t protect her from her choices... I can’t even imagine how tough it is to have all your mistakes catch up with you at once...” Steelskin lay back on his bed as Rocky pulled himself back out of sight. Not for the first time, Steelskin was grateful for having not only his mom and dad, but also Tallic to teach him. He smiled, remembering the times he even taught Tallic a thing or two; Tallic might be prideful, lazy, and greedy, but he was smart enough to know he didn’t know everything. Tallic would have written off Tiara too, but would’ve been intrigued by the mercy Steel’s father taught. Just do not think that this would ever work on a dragon, Steelskin imagined Tallic saying.