//------------------------------// // 42. Turning It Around // Story: Secrets of a Royal Guard // by Anzel //------------------------------// The moon was full and beautiful. Princess Luna had done an exceptional job on it as summer started to give way into fall. We stood together on her balcony, looking up and admiring her work. “I don’t care how many times I see a full moon,” I said softly. “I still always find it beautiful.” Princess Luna looked over at me, tilting her head. “Indeed? For me, it is bittersweet.” “Bittersweet?” She nodded. “Of course. I am proud of what I’ve learned and what powers I command, but looking at the moon sometimes reminds me that it used to bear my visage. A reminder of my failure.” “Failure? You were taken, Princess. It wasn’t your fault.” Princess Luna chuckled softly and shook her head. “Is that what you believe? That I was just taken by some dark magic? Used and inhabited? Hardly.” I moved closer to her. “Hardly?” “Silent Knight, when we parted ways before for me to travel to Haven, do you not recall what I said? I was so jealous of Celestia. I wanted ponies to love me like they loved her. My heart was filled with anger and sorrow over the loss of my mentor. No ponies paid me mind, so I sought to make them love me.” Awkwardly, I tried to slip my wing around her. She was too tall for that, so I just set it lightly against her side. “The darkness comes to you. It makes promises. It will give you what you want if you give up a little of yourself to it. It clouds your mind and urges you to make bad choices, but they are always choices. When it came to me, it preyed on my jealousy. It sensed the sorrow and anger. It tempted me and, ultimately, I invited it in. Then I was too weak to fight it off.” I didn’t like hearing the princess talk like this. The fact that I felt like I could relate made it somehow worse. “We all make mistakes. You were young and angry.” The alicorn snorted. “Yes, a mistake that nearly cost Equestria dearly. Thank goodness my sister loved me so much that she couldn’t bring herself to destroy me, but I wouldn’t have blamed her.” “Assuming she could…” I mumbled softly. “What?” I quickly shook my head. “Nothing. She loved you and banished you. Then you returned, and the darkness was driven away. Now you see things clearly.” She nodded. “I do. Do you not love me less for knowing that I walked willingly into it?” Me? Love her less? I just shook my head. The alicorn slipped her wing over me and held me close. “You’re too loyal to me. Perhaps blindly so.” “There are far worse things to be blindly loyal to.” “I suppose.” She gave me a small squeeze before pulling back. “Are we prepared to leave for Haven at the end of the week?” “Yes, Princess. I’ll take you myself and Iridescence will retrieve you. I thought I should spend some time here to prepare for my wedding, and I have some other business I need to attend.” Her ears flicked lightly, and she peered down at me. “Yes, Crystal Wishes has told me you’ve set a date. But what is your other business?” Finding my own replacement, but I wasn’t about to tell her that. “I’m going to be looking at some officers. Consider it another one of my little security projects.” I waved a hoof to dismiss it. “Sunny also needs some time off. We’ve run her ragged and I think she is having some personal problems. Please don’t repeat that to your sister.” Princess Luna blinked. “You think Celestia wouldn’t understand?” “Oh, I think she would. I think Sunny would feel betrayed. She talked to me in confidence.” “I see.” She sighed, shaking her head. “How are Celestia and I so blind to the plight of the ponies closest to us?” With a bit of affection, I nosed against the side of her chest. “You rule most of the known world and are responsible for the heavenly bodies above us. Perhaps cut yourself some slack?” “Perhaps. On that topic, how is your therapy going?” My nose wrinkled, and it took some effort not to pull away. I was still a little angry with her about that. “I like my therapist. She’s helped give me clarity. I don’t appreciate being forced into it, though.” “Yes, Orchid was distraught.” She looked at me with apologetic eyes. “You’ll simply have to forgive me for trying to do what is best for you.” I snorted. “You could have asked.” “And you’d have gone?” My ears folded. “Probably not.” “Exactly. Silent Knight takes orders.” Her tone softened. “Are you truly that upset by it?” “Yes. Maybe.” I sighed and leaned against her. “No… I need it. I see that now. I’m more upset by what you did before.” “The academy?” I shook my head. “Less the academy itself and more why you did it. You can’t try to protect me from harm. I have to protect you from harm, and we both can’t protect each other.” “Why not?” “Why not? Princess! If something happens again, you must live. Must. Don’t you understand that? You can’t stop for me, you can’t look back for me. You have to escape and live.” She frowned down at me and asked softly, “Whereas you don’t?” I felt my feathers ruffle as I exclaimed a little too loudly, “I’m not an alicorn princess!” “No, little stallion, you are not.” Then she fell silent, and I did as well. There was nothing else to say. We didn’t seem to agree on this point. Finally, she slipped her wing free. “I’ve kept you past your duty hours. Go home to your mare and plan your wedding. We’ll have a shower shortly after Nightmare Night. Alright?” I nodded. “Yes, Princess. Good evening.” ☾ There were several files on my desk waiting for me to review. Each one belonged to a fairly new lieutenant who’d had exceptional early careers. All ponies that were good at their job but could still be easily molded. None of them were from wealthy families and a couple were even mustangs. It was a good start. That wasn’t my focus right then, though. Dream Dancer was standing in front of me in her new armor. She was a pegasus mare that had served with Sunny for quite some time and was now my newest sergeant. On the whole, I was pleased with Iridescence’s choice. It had taken her far too long, but she’d done her homework. Dream Dancer had been ready to be a sergeant for a while and was committed to the House Guard. “How are you fitting in?” I asked. “Fairly well, sir. You run your Guard differently than Lieutenant Day, and Princess Luna is very different from Princess Celestia.” “That is certainly an understatement,” I said with a small chuckle. “No offense intended, sir.” I waved a hoof. “None taken. You’ll be coming with me to Haven. I want you to become familiar with it and the locals. Your squad will be a good resource and I’ll also be there if you need me, but I make it a habit of not looking over my sergeants’ shoulders. Even new ones.” “It won’t be necessary, sir. I’ll make you proud.” “I have no doubt of that. Welcome to Princess Luna’s House Guard. Dismissed.” She stiffened and said before leaving, “Thank you, sir!” She’d work out fine. Another mare, though. Always mares. Me and Mountain were outnumbered. I looked at the folders on my desk. Mostly mares there, too. Oh well, they already ruled the world. Why not the House Guard, too? I got up and left the office. It was time to stretch my legs and do some rounds. There wasn’t much going on, but it is always a good idea to be seen by your ponies. The renovations to Princess Luna’s wing continued and would be completed while she was away in Haven. I was supervising all the security and running the Palace Guard detail that was responsible to, literally, fill the holes. It was extremely disruptive. All of my guards were in place. Without me working on off-books projects, I had more time to keep an eye on them. Beyond that, Iridescence had really stepped into her role. Everything was running smoothly which meant it would be easy to replace me. Of course, figuring out what I was going to do was a whole different problem. Not that I wanted to leave. It really bothered me but staying was no longer an option. There was too much risk for the princess and I knew she had a challenge coming. No, we’d just have to part ways and I’d watch her from afar. Or perhaps not that far. Just far en— “Lieutenant?” a small voice called from somewhere nearby. I turned to look for the source just as Azurite skidded to a stop inches from me. “Yes?” She huffed and puffed a bit, catching her breath. I guess she’d galloped to find me. I hoped she wasn’t mad about the thing. “I need a favor!” she squeaked. A favor? “Mm, that is fair, I guess. What can I do for you?” She sat back on her hindlegs and held her forehooves together as if to beg. “Can you call a meeting with Lieutenant Day? In your office.” “Yes, but why?” “She’s still avoiding me! I really need to talk to her, too. She’ll come for you but not me. Please, I need to trap her.” Trap her? Trap my partner? I’m not sure I liked that idea. “It seems dishonest.” Azurite squeaked and wiggled her hooves. “I know but it is super-duper important! Please, sir. Please! It really is important.” I looked down at her and she stared back with the same big eyes Dot used. She wasn’t actually a filly, but she looked like one. How can you say no to a tiny unicorn mare begging you? Plus, I had a suspicion I knew what this was about. Azurite wanted to talk to Sunny, but Sunny didn’t want to talk to Azurite. Something about bad candy. Maybe Azurite hadn’t moved on so quickly to Soarin after all. There was nothing I wanted more than to see Sunny prancing through the halls again, so I nodded. “Very well. I’ll arrange it. My office. One hour.” “Yes, sir! Thank you so much, sir! Bye!” she then galloped off down the hall. I turned to head back to my office just as somepony shouted, “Hey! Watch it!” It was then followed by the sounds of something falling. Quickly, I hurried off in the opposite direction. Construction problems were somepony else’s domain. When I was back in my office, I wrote a note summoning Sunny to a meeting, then I sent it off with one of the guards outside in the hall. Once that was done, I started to flip through the folders again. Not long after that Azurite arrived on time. We exchanged some awkward pleasantries and then she hid. The whole thing was somewhat ridiculous. At the appointed time, Sunny walked through my door without much warning. “Silent Knight, do you realize how busy I am? You sent a palace guard to invite me up here? What is so important that we have to meet in you—” Her eyes found Azurite. The unicorn had been crouching in front of my desk after telling me I was scary and feeling silly about it. I’m not sure why she thought I was scary, but I wasn’t going to question it today. I stood up and walked over to Sunny. “Forgive me for deceiving you. She said it was important enough to trick you, and I know her well enough to take her word.” I leaned in and whispered, “I tried. It worked out.” Then I cleared my throat. “Talk to her.” Sunny simply nodded at me, her eyes not leaving Azurite. I excused myself and the door was shut behind me. This was an opportunity to do my rounds again since I didn’t have an office, but I didn’t want to go too far just in case I’d made a mistake in setting this up. I lingered in the hallway near an empty office, trying to pretend I was waiting for its owner. “It ISN’T!” Azurite practically shrieked. I heard it loud and clear through the door, and I was pretty sure I wasn’t the only one, either. To confirm that thought, a few heads poked out of the adjacent offices and everypony nearby looked my way. I cleared my throat and waved them off. “Do you know how hard that is for me?” Azurite shouted again. “You drop off Mr. Peepers without a word? You won’t talk to me? You won’t even look at me. How can you not care! You CALLOUS CRABAPPLE!” I’d helped set up an ambush. No, a massacre. Sunny was going to be furious with me. Ponies were starting to come out of their offices. I cleared my throat again, louder this time. Slowly, I moved down the hall. “Everypony out.” I waved them the opposite direction. “Take a break, go get some water or fresh air.” “Not easier for YOU!” Sunny shouted. I really needed to talk to the contractor about better soundproofing for the offices. Miley peered past my shoulder. “What is going on in there?” With both forehooves, I pushed her along. “Down the hall like everypony else. Go. All of you go now.” Numerous eyes peered at me and they weren’t moving that fast. “FOR ME!” Sunny yelled. “That’s an order!” I growled. “Everypony out. NOW!” My sergeants, the support ponies, and the guards in the hall cleared out, leaving me alone. Thank goodness for rank. I went back down to my door and cleared my throat again. Maybe they’d quiet down. “Do you think I’m happy?” Sunny said loudly. Seriously, what was my door made of? Paper? “You two are something I can’t have and you’re all I want. You have to stay away from me!” she went on. My brow shot up. ‘You two,’ huh? So Azurite was dating the both of them. Or, rather, they were all dating each other? That sounded complicated to me. One mare was hard enough. How did Soarin manage two? I kept vigil at the door. Anytime a pony came around the corner, I shooed them away. The two mares continued to shout back and forth at each other. Thankfully, it was starting to sound conciliatory. “You slapped me!” Sunny gasped. Or not. After some additional arguing, the two finally seemed to quiet down and I could barely make out what they were saying through the door. Not that I was intentionally listening. Although their relationship was fascinating to me. The door opened and Sunny gasped when she found me there. “Were you listening the whole time?” she asked, her voice filled with despair. “The two of you were shouting a lot. It was drawing undue attention, so I remained behind and kept other ponies away,” I explained. Sunny blinked. “Why?” Why? What did she mean, why? “It was none of their business and I didn’t want it to hurt your career.” “But you heard.” “What do I care what you do off duty or who you love? You’re my partner and an excellent officer. You’ve been slipping, though, and all those extra hours are barely covering it up. You’ve been sad, drunk, and not prancing. I notice that kind of thing.” I set my hoof on her shoulder and continued, “I thought it was work at first, but Azurite was upset, too. You’d best listen to her and fix whatever needs fixing. If I noticed a difference, I’m sure other ponies would, and I’d be sad to see you promoted to some obscure command.” Sunny’s eyes met mine. She’d been crying, but there was joy in them. “You’re actually sweet under all of that dark armor and muscle, aren’t you?” Well, one problem solved. “Yes. Now, would you please get out of my office so I can do my job?” “Of course,” she said softly before kissing the side of my helmet and heading off down the hall. I reclaimed my office and peered down at Azurite. “That means you, too. Out.” Her ears turned pink and she replied, “It is perfectly natural for three ponies to—” “Not my business! Out!” “Okay, okay!” she squeaked, hurrying out. My office was thankfully still in one piece, so I returned to my desk and went back to work on the files. A few hours later I locked my door and headed down the hall. Mountain’s door was open, so I stuck my head in. “All yours, Sergeant.” He nodded. “Yes, sir. Have a good night.” The palace was relatively quiet. All of the workponies generally got off in the middle of the afternoon. My hours always went into the early evening. I usually got home just in time for dinner. When I got out into the courtyard, a trio of ponies approached me. The lead one said, “Lieutenant Knight.” I nodded at him. “Yes, good to see you all again.” “Yes. We went over to the campus like you asked. I hate to take your bits, though. We didn’t see a little unicorn. A pegasus just slammed the door in our faces before we could finish.” It only took a moment to find the bits in my saddlebag. With a chuckle, I gave them to the lead pony. “Mission accomplished. Have a good night.” He peered at me curiously and then shrugged. “Alright, then. Take care.” Mission accomplished, indeed. At least I could do a few things right, even if I’d just been guessing. With a small running start, I leapt into the air and flew to Crystal’s condo. When I arrived, I let myself in. It still felt rude, but evidently that was where we were in our relationship. “Well, well, well, look who is on time for dinner,” Velvet said as I came through the door. “Yes, indeed. Are you joining us tonight? You don’t have some place to be?” Velvet huffed. “Oh? Trying to get rid of me?” I shook my head and replied, “No. I just don’t see you much. I thought it would be nice if you ate with us.” “Oh, well, yes that would be nice. Still, you should go back to work. You’re normally later than this and you’re cutting into my time with Crystal. I had her first.” I laughed and winked at her. “I will first thing in the morning. Then I’ll be leaving for Haven for a while. I just wanted to spend some time with her before I left. Then she is all yours again. Besides, don’t be jealous. Green is not a good color for you.” The pink mare’s eyes narrowed. “Wanna fight about it?” Her tone was a mixture of teasing and wildcat. She climbed up onto the couch. Her, fight me? What a silly notion. I’d call that bluff. “Bring it, tiny dancer!” With little warning, Velvet leapt from the couch and onto me… which was wholly unexpected. When our bodies collided, I was barely moved. She wrapped both forehooves around my neck and her back hooves around my middle when she landed. “You were supposed to fall over,” she said plainly. I started to walk towards the kitchen as she squirmed on my back. “You don’t weigh enough for that. It’s just physics, ask Runic.” Velvet wrestled me more. She shifted her weight to the side and tried to pull me over. “What are you made of!” “Steel and vinegar,” I replied before peeking at Crystal. “What’s for dinner?” Crystal was just watching with an amused look. “Velvet, he’s well now. Just because I got one over on him didn’t mean you would, too.” Got one over on me? The armor incident? I won that battle! Velvet roared and bit my mane. She tried to tug me over that way. I kissed Crystal on the cheek. “So, Velvet and I are going to go take a shower. Dinner will be ready soon?” “Nope!” Velvet said, letting me go and flopping onto the floor. “Nope, nope, nope!” Crystal giggled. “Enjoy your shower. Tonight, we’re having stuffed squash. Also, I need you to make a lot of fast wedding decisions before you leave.” “Mm, great,” I replied before heading off to the shower sans Velvet.