Azure sat in her room in front of her desk. The last set of magical equations Luna asked her to solve was pushing her mind to its limit. She dropped the pen she was holding in her mouth and looked out the window. She needed a small pause, but she knew with time she would come up with the answers. The Moon was high in the sky. It was well past midnight, but she was now used to staying awake whole nights long. It was little to pay to be the personal student of the princess of the night.
In the last six months she had really come to enjoy the company of the princess. She was kind and funny but hid a tremendous amount of knowledge. She learned that while Luna was less powerful than Celestia when it came to magic, she knew a lot more about it. Luna enjoyed reading as much as she did. Was it because she was so often alone? She couldn't say. She didn't understand why the princess didn't have more friends, she was so kind.
She loved sitting with her in the garden as Luna would show her the stars and constellations. She was surprised how the princess would often simply play around, just for fun. She didn't think a princess could be like that. However, she never saw Celestia playing or having fun, so it wasn't all princesses. She really felt lucky to be Luna's student.
She knew the stories about Nightmare Moon, but she simply couldn't believe that such a kind pony could become that dark monster. She noticed how Luna wasn't at ease with that part of her past and Azure didn't want to push her questions forward. Maybe one day she would come to talk about it on her own.
The last months were like a dream. Before meeting Twilight, she had lost all hope to ever manage to follow her passion, her talent. She didn't even know that this particular library was held by the Element of Magic, personal student of princess Celestia. Fate or luck, she didn't care as she now felt she was where she belong and it was all that mattered. She only wanted to study magic and learn everything there was about it. Not even in her wildest dream she would have thought of living in the castle and learning from the princess.
She received a letter from her parents a few days ago, they were so proud of her. They said they would come visit her the next time they came to Canterlot for business. She was looking forward to seeing them and showing them the castle. Maybe even her brothers would come to visit? Azure's mind drifted toward her family. She loved them very much and was happy that they understood the path she had taken.
She yawned, surprised to feel sleepy. She was convinced to be used to sleep in the day instead of the night. Her study was hard and she was sure Luna wouldn't mind if she was to sleep a bit. After all, she was still very young. She put her head on her hooves. Yes, a few minutes would be perfect. She closed her eyes as something tickled at the back of her mind. She recognized it and faked being asleep.
A few moments later, a cloaked figure came out from behind the curtains and approached the sleeping filly without a sound. This unexpected visitor was draped in a long black cloak that completely covered his face and body. A few hooves away from her, a sharp dagger came out floating from the garments of the intruder, wrapped in a red aura. The weapon came close to the filly, ready to strike, but it simply stayed there hanging.
To his surprise, the pony in black was unable to move a single muscle. To his even bigger surprise, he was unable to move his dagger with his magic. Everything felt as if it was frozen in time. He tried harder, putting all his strength in moving a hoof, but it was in vain. He would have more chance in physically pushing the castle. His eyes felt dry as he couldn't even blink.
He couldn't turn his head to see the shadows blobbing up behind him, nor could he see them emerging out of the floor and taking the shape of a tall dark blue mare. The pony's mane sparkled under the Moon's light as she walked up to him. She stood beside him and whispered in his ears, "You choose the wrong pony to mess with." The floating dagger turned to ashes, erased from existence. Both the mare and the cloaked pony disappeared in a flash.
Azure opened her eyes and looked around, wondering what event of importance she had missed. With her eyes closed, she didn’t hear much of what happened. She sighed and grabbed her pen, those equations wouldn't solve themselves.
"Good morning, Tia!" greeted Luna with a fake smile as Celestia came out of her bedroom. Celestia knew her sister very well, if she was there that early in the morning, it wasn't without a good reason.
"Good morning, Lu, how was the night?" Celestia noticed her sister was looking around, noting the different guards present.
"Mind if I take a breakfast with you?" Luna asked. That ticked Celestia's mind, she knew very well that Luna took her breakfast late in the afternoon. After all, she slept in the day and lived mostly in the night. She would sometimes take a late meal with her, but never a breakfast.
"Of course not," Celestia answered as she started walking toward her private dining room. As she came in, she noticed her breakfast and a large pot of steaming coffee was already on the table. The cook was used to Celestia's timetable being like clockwork. She sat down and took a sip at her cup, the black beverage finished waking her up.
Luna closed the doors behind her, leaving the guards outside. She then took time to inspect the room. When she felt nopony could hear or see them, she sat down at the opposite side of the small table. She didn't have to wait for long.
"What's wrong, Lu?"
"There was an assassination attempt last night," she calmly said.
Celestia closed her eyes and lowered her head while putting her cup back on the table. "Azure?" she asked between her lips.
"You knew?"
Celestia opened her eyes back and stared at her sister. "I suspected it could happen, but I deeply hoped it wouldn't."
"Who?"
Celestia took a deep breath and looked at the window, the Sun slowly going up in a blue sky empty of clouds. "I think you know who."
Luna frowned and thought about it for a minute. "What? No, they disappeared over sixteen centuries ago. We hunted them down to the last."
Celestia took another sip at her coffee, the black liquid bringing her no joy this morning. "That's what I thought too, but eight hundred years ago they tried to kill me again." Luna's eyes widened in surprised. "When we hunted them down back then, they simply went underground. They took their time and built their forces. After a third attempt, I managed to meet their leader, or one of their leaders. Even now I don't know how their leadership operates. Anyway, we came to a truce; they would never try to seize power again and I would leave them alone. The high council was one of the points I conceded them."
Luna had a hard time to digest the information. "Why did you leave them alone?" she asked with anger.
Her sister lowered her head again. "It was getting close to a new civil war. I couldn't let that happen and they gave me a way out, one I truly believe was for the best. No matter how stupid or corrupted the high council can sometimes be, it's still a direct link with the population. The ponies can communicate quite easier with the council then with me. And well... it's a way to prevent the errors we made a long time ago. As for them, they kept their words. Since then, they stayed underground as a kind of group of influence." Celestia looked at her sister's eyes and could see rage burning in them, one she knew very well. One she used a long time ago to seize power of Equestria. "How did she react to it?"
"She saw nothing. I put a sleeping spell on her before he attacked. I doubled the protection wards in her room and put a warning spell on her, in case anypony with bad intentions comes close to her," Luna explained.
"For the best, I guess. Where's the assassin?"
"In the dungeon. He is dead," Luna answered softly.
"What?"
"I didn't kill him. He killed himself before I could interrogate him. The spell he used on his body when I released my constraint was... messy," Luna said avoiding her sister's eyes. "The same spell they used back then. Knowing he was part of them, I wouldn't have released my spell."
Celestia stood up and walked to the balcony. "I hoped very hard they would forget their roots, that they would leave the past behind. That... they had learned what ponies could build when working together. However, that they could infiltrate the castle like that and avoid all the protection and detection spells..." Celestia knew very well that Luna came to the same conclusion, their enemies had allies in the castle.
"You know I will hunt them down, every one of them?" Luna said, letting a bit of her cold rage surface.
Celestia knew that nothing could change her sister's resolve, not even her. Luna had found a friend, one to take care of and it wouldn't end well for anypony trying to hurt her. She let a small smile show up. "I know. It won't be as easy as it was. Today, I couldn't even name you a single one of them. They stayed deep underground. When I saw that filly... Azure, I knew it would be a turning point in Equestria's history, one of evolution, like it was two thousand years ago. I know it's for the best, but I feel there will be dark times ahead. Too many ponies are afraid of changes. And some... some can't accept it."