Bringing Up Blueblood

by InsertAuthorHere


Chapter Five: Show, Don't Tell

Luna knocked on Celestia’s door at about three o’clock, exactly as her sister had asked. The Nightly Court had already been dismissed, having actually accomplished a great deal for once, and the Night Mare had decided to bring along more than a few scrolls worth of new laws, treaties, and declarations for her sister to look over before signing. In fact, showing her sister this latest batch of paperwork was the only piece of state business she had yet to complete this night. Once this was done, she would be free to pull up a chair on the balcony, pour herself a glass of wine, and watch Blueblood suffer with the guards below.
 
And that will be nothing compared to what comes next.
 
After a few more moments, the door finally opened, revealing a slightly sleepy but otherwise normal Princess Celestia. “Good morning, Luna. How was court?” Her eyes widened as she saw a stack of papers almost as tall as Luna herself floating behind the Night Mare. “My goodness, you’ve had a busy night. Do you even still need me anymore?”
 
“Very funny,” Luna scoffed. “First off, as long as the sun is down and the moon is up, it is still nighttime in Equestria, so please do not refer to this hour as ‘morning.’ And second, you invited me yourself, remember?”
 
Celestia nodded along and motioned Luna inside. The Moon Princess floated the stack of papers over to Celestia’s nightstand and gently set them down on the wooden surface, lest she drop them too hard like last time and send her hard work smashing down straight through to the Old Canterlot catacombs.
 
A smile crept across the Sun Princess’ face as she floated over the top of the forms, detailing plans to renovate the Baltimare sewer system. It was an important consideration, especially considering what happened to Celestia the last time the she was down there. It was the most lucrative year in the perfume industry’s history. “I thank you for coming. Now, I know you’ve been very busy lately, and we have a lot of work to do, but I was planning to take a few hours away from the palace this Saturday.”
 
Luna shrugged. “That does not sound too unreasonable. Pray tell, what is the occasion?”
 
Celestia pointed to the top of the desk, right next to where Luna had dropped off the latest round of paperwork. There, sitting underneath a copy of Flower Arranging for the Giftedly Ungifted, was a small invitation. The Night Mare’s eyes widened as she realized exactly who this invitation was from. “I see. Sister, I have no objection to you wishing to spend time with a friend, but would this not draw undue attention to your friendship with Miss Dream’s daughter?”
 
“Actually, that’s why I called you here.” Celestia took a step back, straightened her back, and looked Luna dead in the eyes. “I want you to use the Youth Restoration Spell on me again.”

 

Luna’s entire body flushed a pale white. The tiny electrical charges in her brain completely stopped, causing her to drool slightly. Her heart began to skip beats like a filly jumping rope, while her throat suddenly became very dry. Fortunately, such things were temporary as far as Luna was concerned, and after years of putting up with her sister’s antics, she was well versed in how to nurse herself out of a coma. “Y-You want me to do WHAT?!”
 
Celestia smiled sheepishly, or at least as sheepishly as a pony of her (relatively) gargantuan proportions could. “It’ll be for one afternoon, that’s all. I just go to the party as Sunlight, Lofty and I have some fun, and then I come back like nothing happened.”
 
“Celestia, have you lost your pony mind?!” Luna snapped. “What about your royal duties?”
 
“I will simply have to attend to my responsibilities earlier than usual,” said Celestia. She smiled and wrapped a foreleg around Luna’s neck. “It’ll be for just one day, little sister. Equestria survived my absence for several days last time. What harm would a few hours do?”
 
Luna’s eyes narrowed as, once again, Celestia’s attempts at reassuring her sister failed miserably. “The amount of time does not matter. What does matter is that you are trying to avoid responsibility yet again so you can act like a child. Meanwhile, I will be stuck here and cleaning up after your messes once again.”
 
Before Celestia could say anything else, Luna twisted her neck free of the obstructive leg and started trotting towards the door. Celestia’s eyes opened wide as she raised a desperate leg towards her departing sister. “Luna, please! I wasn’t going to…”
 
The door slammed shut on her last words, leaving Celestia alone in her bedroom. Sighing in defeat, she trotted over to the nearby window and flung it open. A cool autumn breeze struck her almost immediately, sending her mane flying back in a cascade of colors. The Princess took a deep breath and turned her attention to the gardens below…
 

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It was a fine winter afternoon in Canterlot, and Canterlot Castle was already buried under a nice layer of ice and snow. Princess Celestia herself was sequestered in her own bedroom, looking over new expansion plans for Equestria’s corn production. The land’s population had boomed yet again, and the only way she was going to find a way to produce more food was to find some way to either expand the workable farmland or start a war with their neighbors for more land. And as easy as it would be for her to march her army into some kingdom and vaporize her way to victory, she really did not wish to take any lives if she could avoid it. And besides, everything else on the planet was already leery about having a physical goddess on the throne; there was no need for her to add more fuel to the already raging fire.
 
From her open window, however, she could hear the rustling of tiny hooves in the gardens below. A smile crept across her face as she took in the wonderful sound of foals at play. Pushing away her assignments for the moment, Celestia rose from her pillow and trotted over to get a closer look.
 
Sure enough, a number of foals, all of them children of the various noble houses, were busying themselves making snow ponies and throwing snowballs at each other and, if they were feeling especially brave, the passing guards. Even with each filly and colt wearing no less than twelve layers of coats, sweaters, jackets, and snow boots, she could still make out who most of them were.
 
So naturally, she easily picked out who they were picking on.
 
Buried beneath a light pink-and-blue jacket was Princess Mi Amore Cadenza (or “Cadance” as she was quickly beginning to prefer), staring at a small group of youths that had broken off from the rest of the players. Most of the aggressive ponies were, much like their parents, simple thugs masquerading as the upper crust of Equestrian society, but she could clearly make out who the leader was: Lemon Lime of the House of Frazzleberry.
 
Oh, not these foals again. Celestia right forehoof rubbed vigorously against her temples in a vain attempt to drive away the migraine demons nesting in her cranium. So far, she was proving unsuccessful. Her horn lit up like a torch briefly before the magic she commanded teleported her to the ground floor, leaving only a brilliant aura of golden light behind. Cloaking her presence was a simple matter as well, with barely the tiny glow of her horn to announce she was even there. The snow lifted and shaped itself around her, until she had an entire army of snowponies standing at her back. Soon, the streets of Canterlot would run white with snow…
 
Then she saw Blueblood gallop out of the shadows, no doubt coming from where his parents had been scolding him for skipping on his history lessons or some nonsense like that. It was rare that she got to spend any time with her nephew at all anymore, ever since her lovely chat with the oafs that sired him, but he was still allowed to play with the children of the other nobles.
 
In any case, Blueblood came to a stop right between Cadance and the others. Frazzleberry and her nephew began shouting something, but Celestia wasn’t quite able to pick up on everything. Her magic was still tied up holding her indestructible snow army together, and she didn’t have enough energy to spare to cast an eavesdropping spell.
 
Not that she ever did that, mind you. Such intrusive magic was only to be used when it was a matter of national security. It wasn’t her fault that there were a lot of matters of national security.
 
After a few moments of talking, Frazzleberry muttered something that would most likely land a bar of soap in his mouth and sulked off, followed by his cronies. Once they were gone, he turned to Cadance, the two said a few words, and then both walked back inside through the kitchen door.
 
Once the danger had passed, the Princess dropped her spells, revealing herself to the world once again as her snow army collapsed into piles of mush. She smiled as it seemed that, perhaps, things might finally work out with a member of her extended family.
 
After all, Blueblood was acting like quite the Prince…
 

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With a shake of the head, Celestia fought off yet another nostalgia assault. I really need to stop doing this. Focusing on the past won’t fix anything. I just need to…
 
Her ears flicked as a smile grew across her face. Wait…I think the past will help me right here…
 

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Shining Armor’s whistle blew out another shrill cry, signaling the end of yet another morning of exercise and healthy living for Canterlot’s benefit. And yet again, the exhausted Prince Blueblood was in attendance. The Captain’s forewarning that this would be a part of his daily routine was enough to hustle the colt to bed early, but all that accomplished was ensuring he was two steps away from death instead of one.
 
Fortunately, this morning brought no new inductions into the Royal Guard, so Shining Armor simply recited the same orders as the day before and the band was dispatched to their usual posts. The Captain stayed behind only long enough to undo the straps on Blueblood’s costume before turning to leave, only to stop when he heard Blueblood’s voice shout out from behind. “Hey, you forgot this thing!”
 
Grumbling, Shining Armor spun around and faced the colt. Lying at Blueblood’s hooves was the guard costume, its gold fabric surface frayed and worn from doing two days of more extensive work than it had been built for. “Aren’t you supposed to take this with you? That’s what you did yesterday, after all!”
 
Shining Armor slowly trotted up to the foal, a look of determination in his eyes. Blueblood shrank back as the gaze locked onto him like a disappointed father staring at his failure of a son. “Actually, today we’re trying something different. Each guardspony is expected to clean and maintain their armor and equipment, and since I am supposed to give you the whole Royal Guard experience, you need to start pulling your own weight.”
 
Blueblood cocked his head. “Maintain my… Shining Armor, this is just a stupid dress-up toy! I could buy another one just down the street!”
 
“And how do you plan to do that? Princess Celestia seized all your assets, remember?” He smiled and patted the colt on the head, drawing a very frustrated glare from Blueblood. “Now remember, the costume doesn’t hold well to magic washing, so you’ll have to clean it by hoof. Don’t use any bleach, either. I want your armor shining and glistening by the time I see you tomorrow.”
 
Blueblood’s lower lip quivered slightly as he stared at the bottom of his legs. His once pristine hooves were now covered with mud, dirt, and soot. “B-But…cleaning is…”
 
Shining Armor suddenly spun to his right, raised a hoof to the  top of his eyes, and scanned the towers of Canterlot Castle. “Oh my, I think I can see Princess Luna up there. Perhaps I should tell her one of our recruits is refusing to perform his official duties. I just know a pony like her would love that. Wouldn’t you agree, Blueblood?”
 
The sound of a door slamming was enough to tell him which direction Blueblood had ran towards. His costume was missing as well, and the Captain had little doubt that when it came back, it would look absolutely wretched. One small laugh at his victim’s expense later, Shining Armor turned to leave.
 
He stopped as two Pegasi members of the Royal Guard approached him. Both ponies flashed their commanding officer a salute, which he quickly returned. “Sergeant Razorwing, Sergeant Flyover, anything I can help you with?”
 
The one of the left, Razorwing, loudly cleared his throat and rubbed his front fetlocks together. “Actually, sir, we…have a concern about Prince Blueblood.”
 
“If it’s about having him out here, I know.” Shining Armor let out a small sigh. “The stuff we do really isn’t meant for little ponies. But these orders come from Princess Celestia herself, and as much as I may dislike some of the orders she gives, I am still a member of her Royal Guard, and I am bound by whatever decisions she makes.” He looked about suspiciously, then whispered, “And she’s really scary when she gets mad.”
 
Flyover tugged at the neckline of his armor as worry spread across his brow. “Actually, a few of us were talking it over in the barracks last night, and…don’t you think you’re being a little rough on the kid?”
 
Shining’s eyes narrowed, causing his soldiers to sink even deeper into a panic. “May I remind you, sirs, that this ‘kid’ was but two weeks ago the most obnoxious, most vile, most downright sick Unicorn in all of Equestria? Didn’t he call your wife a ‘common turnip farmer,’ Razorwing? And how about you, Flyover? Do I have to remind you of what happened he caught you and Firelight together?”
 
The two guards looked at each other, nodded, then turned back to the Captain. “Yes, we know, and we were all glad when the Princess took up punishing him. But do you really expect a colt to do every single thing we do and not get hurt?”
 
“His body is still developing,” added Flyover. “For all we know, we might end up killing him ourselves.”
 
Shining Armor said nothing at first. He simply pushed his helmet back down and stared at an ant scurrying past his hooves. He could already imagine Blueblood trying to clean that stupid costume; knowing him, he would just fall into the wash bucket, tear the costume in half, and then beg forgiveness. He even already had another packed away, just in case.
 
They do make a good point, though. Maybe I should…
 
“Had we not been able to, however, she would have been trapped as a filly until she had aged back the natural way.  Even worse, he could have seriously hurt her.  She’s powerful, but if that horn hadn’t just hit the suit…”
 
The Captain’s nerves, as well as his resolve, tightened in an instant. He slowly turned his eyes back to his waiting guards. “Your concern is noted, but Princess Celestia’s orders are absolute. I am going to keep working that colt until he becomes a proper soldier. And I will NOT tolerate any of my guards trying to undermine her authority. Now, gentlecolts, I expect you to be back at your posts and protecting the castle by the time I get back from breakfast.”
 
He turned to leave, marched five steps, and then spun right back around. “We’re still on for poker night, right?” The stunned scowl on his loyal subordinates’ faces was enough to answer his question.
 

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Blueblood’s muscles may have been sore beyond belief, but his mind stayed as sharp as ever. His bathing finished, he stood in front of the bathroom mirror, his hind legs perched on a silver stool, and scrubbed his face with a towel. By the time he had finished drying his body and combed his coat, he was already beginning to formulate the first steps in another awesome plan.
 
That snow globe is a gift from Princess Celestia herself, a proof of my superiority over all these little ponies. All I have to do is rework the story a little, perhaps have my fake parents receive it for fighting off a dragon or some nonsense like that, and I can win the esteem of my peers by proxy! Then with them at my back, I can prove myself a changed colt to Aunt Celestia, and she’ll turn me back to normal! Prince Blueblood will be back for good.
 
A wicked grin spread across his lips, showing a few of his teeth in the process. Yes, this is all too perfect. Prince Blueblood, you are such a genius. Even your parents knew that…
 

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Blueblood stifled back a yawn as the passing sun shined itself upon his face, threatening to blind him if he didn’t move his caboose away from the window. The colt’s limbs slowly slid along the surface of his mattress, entangling themselves with the many, many layers of sheets, blankets, and other assorted coverings his mother had forced the servants to throw on last night. Even with it being colder than the highest peak in Equestria outside, he would rather freeze to death than continue baking like a potato.
 
After a great amount of difficulty, some grunting and groaning, and muttering a few choice words he had picked up from some of the guards at Canterlot Castle, he finally managed to pull himself out of his snuggly-wuggly restraints, tumble onto the wooden floor, roll around on his back six times, and only then pull himself back onto his hooves.
 
Letting out another yawn, Blueblood stumbled his way into the washroom, climbed on his wooden still, and reached out to start brushing his teeth. Just as his body began to twist, however, he noticed something that hadn’t been there a day before.
 
Sitting on his flank was a pair of four-pointed stars, each laid out on top of the other until they resembled a compass. His hooves instinctively scratched at the intrusive thing, but when they felt only discolored fur, his mouth flipped into a smile.
 
“I GOT MY CUTIE MARK!”
 
All sleepiness vanished from Blueblood’s mind as he galloped through the household, stomping past and over everypony in his path until he reached the dining room. His parents were already sitting at breakfast, slowly munching on buttered biscuits while pausing occasionally to sip on tea. They barely even acknowledged their son sending both doors flying open, outside of nonchalantly scolding him for running in the house.
 
“But mom! Dad!” Blueblood shouted. “I just got my Cutie Mark. Isn’t it the best one you’ve ever seen?”
 
The parents finally broke free of their morning ritual, if only just enough to turn their heads towards Blueblood to see the mark on his flank. Scarlet Letter nodded in appreciation as he sipped his tea. “Interesting. If I recall correctly, I saw that mark but a few days ago in one of the old history books.”
 
“Yes, indeed,” said Velvet Cushion. “That was the symbol of our very family, was it not? You should be proud, son. Your Cutie Mark traces your ancestry all the way back to the Pre-Classical Era.”
 
Blueblood’s smile grew. “Great! But…what does it mean, exactly?”
 
Scarlet shrugged. “Well, Cutie Marks are always a little metaphorical.”
 
Blueblood cocked his head. “Meta-four-call?”
 
“It means they don’t mean exactly what they show,” said Velvet. “That symbol, for example, was first used in the Unicorn Kingdom, before the Windigoes invaded. As far as we know, the pony who created it was a powerful pony within the Kingdom, and worked behind the throne to cement their power.”
 
“But what does it mean?” he whined.
 
“It means our study sessions have paid off,” said Scarlet. “After breakfast, I want you to meet me in the study. It’s time we began teaching you everything you need to know about being a Prince.”
 
Blueblood’s smile returned, his joy of spending time with his father easily trumping his hatred of studying. “And tonight, I can still show off to Aunt Celestia, right?”

Both parents looked at each other, sighed, then turned back to the colt. “We will see her in a few weeks time, for the Hearth’s Warming Eve celebration. Until then, however, it would probably be best to keep her from knowing.”
 
“What?!” The colt felt something terrible wash over him. “Why can’t she know?”
 
Scarlet leaned back in his chair, feeling more than a little content with himself. “You will see when you’re older, Blueblood.”
 

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To Blueblood’s amazement, he was not alone for breakfast this morning. To his utter befuddlement, he was not only not alone, but he had BOTH of his aunts in attendance. Celestia was chewing a bit of dried toast when the colt entered, while Luna was busying herself with some tea and the Manehatten Express. Both gave the colt an acknowledging nod before returning to their exquisitely complicated tasks.
 
Blueblood pulled himself onto his seat and grumbled at the simple plate of scrambled eggs sitting before him. Nonetheless, his body’s daily requirements overrode his desire for something that wasn’t fit for a peasant, and he soon began munching away on the runny, yellow pieces of bird embryos. He was halfway through his meager meal when Celestia finally spoke. “I had a nice chat with Luna last night, and it appears I won’t be able to attend Lofty’s party after all.”
 
From behind her newspaper, Luna’s eyes cocked slightly towards Celestia, as if to silently mock her very attempts to expunge Blueblood of such thoughts. “It would not be proper for a Princess to forsake her duties simply so she can show favoritism to one filly. Not to mention that she would have no way to get back here, nopony to pass off as a parent, and a pair of wings to hide.” She creased down the top of the paper just enough for Blueblood to catch a full glimpse of her hateful gaze. “And you, my dear nephew, are still under arrest. I would never allow you to leave the castle grounds without somepony to make sure you will not run off and become a common highwaypony.”
 
“Oh,” the colt sighed. “Oh well, it probably wouldn’t have been much anyway. Just a bunch of screaming foals running around and smashing piñatas or whatever it is the little ponies do.”
 
The room soon returned to the same quiet, virtually lifeless state as when Blueblood had entered. Having finished her toast, Celestia began levitating her teacup to her lips, all the while casting occasional glances towards Luna. Alright, Celestia. If you’re going to do this, then do this now, before you change your mind.
 
“Speaking of parties, have I ever told you what happened at Luna’s very first birthday party?”
 
The newspaper tore clean in two as Luna’s face twisted into the same one a condemned killer would wear before being marched to the gallows. Blueblood own look wasn’t that far behind. “What?”
 
“N-Now, Celly, surely there is no need to tell him such…silly stories!” Luna chuckled.

Celestia took another sip of honey, never once letting her guard drop. “It was thousands of years ago, shortly after the Three Tribes had united under Equestria’s flag. One night, Luna was flying by Old Canterlot and saw that Princess Platinum was having a huge celebration for her and Commander Hurricane’s daughter. So she went down and, like any good filly, landed right in the middle of the celebration and asked what was going on.”
 
Luna’s smiled nervously, even as she sank closer and closer to the floor. “P-Please, sister!”
 
If Celestia had noticed her sister’s growing desperation, she paid no visible heed to it. “Well, one of the guards was nice enough to tell little Luna all about birthday parties and how the aristocracy loved to throw big festivals for important ponies. And she thought…” Celestia pushed her eyes out until they were almost as cartoonishly large as an actual foal’s. “‘I’m an important pony. My most wonderful big sister lets me raise the moon by myself. I should have a birthday party!’”
 
Blueblood’s fear of his Aunt Luna barely managed to beat back his urge to laugh his flank off at her youthful naivety. Luna, on the other hoof, was currently planning her sister’s long, torturous demise. “I never thought like that! I just…just thought it would be fun to have a big party like that once in a while.”
 
“So then what happened?!” Blueblood asked excitedly.
 
Celestia giggled under her throat was completely free of mirth, then continued. “She flew right back to me and asked why she never had a birthday party. Now, it was getting late, and I was really tired, so I told her it was because I didn’t remember when her birthday was.” Which is, sadly, the truth. Stupid modern calendars. “So she cried and whined and bit my ears and pulled my tail and threw the most spectacular tantrum ever seen by pony eyes. Finally, my heart could take no more, and I decided to throw her the biggest party Equestria had ever known!”
 
“Th-That doesn’t sound too bad,” Blueblood said. Even if it was for stupid reasons.
 
Luna failed to show the same general disposition. Her breath began slow, labored, and punctuated by what looked to be multiple small panic attacks. “Please…don’t…continue…”
 
“But we were getting to where the cake fell right on top of you!” Celestia pouted. “The Canterlot bakers invented the shortcake just for you, and the least you can do to honor their sacrifice is let me tell our nephew how dear Woona got buried under her own desert and then flooded our home with mead.”
 
Luna’s face went blank, while a few sounds roughly resembling a screeching guinea pig worked their way from her vocal chords. Her face was so red she looked more like a sunburn victim than a millennia-old princess, while her eyes were dried out like raisins. Blueblood couldn’t help but laugh uproariously at the thought of his cruel, monstrous aunt drenched in…whatever this “mead” thing was.
 
After a few more inarticulate moans and growls, Luna let out a defeated sigh. “…You win. You always win. I will let you two go to this waste of precious time. But we shall see what horrors await you when you come back. I will have an entire castle to myself, dear sister, and I assure you that…”
 
Celestia giggled. “You’re invited too, little sister.”
 
“And when the scorpions…what?” Luna recoiled slightly, her eyes half-cocked in disbelief. “What is this? You made no mention of this last night.”
 
Celestia barely managed to fight out another outburst of laughter. “You didn’t really think I would leave my little sister all alone here, did you? You can be like a chaperone for the two of us. You walk Blueblood and I to the park, we have fun, you socialize with the other adults there, and then we come back a few hours later like nothing happened.”
 
Blueblood, sensing that there was no more dirt to dig up on Luna at this time, returned his attention to his breakfast, only to stop as a grandfather clock banged seven times. Sensing that the time of his victory was fast approaching, the colt scarfed down the rest of his meal in an undignified fashion before trotting off to brush his teeth. Once he was well out of range, the Night Mare snapped her face right towards Celestia. “You…I thought you learned something from last time, you…”
 
The words died in Luna’s throat as she saw her sister’s face. What had once been a mask of sheer triumph now looked like her sister was on her way to a funeral. “I’m sorry. I knew it was wrong before I did it, but…” She sighed. “You were right. I really have my priorities skewed, don’t I?”
 
Celestia slowly sank down in her seat, looking more humiliated than Luna had only moments before. The younger sister was quiet for a moment, then sighed and poured herself another cup of coffee. “Celestia, I am sorry I called you irresponsible earlier. I was just…so worried back then that I had lost you forever. And besides, it was a funny story, even if I lost what little good name I had after that.”
 
“Actually, Princess Platinum found it quite humorous.” Celestia perked her head up slightly. “In fact, she and her daughter made it a custom to dump shortcake onto the happy birthday filly or colt every year after that until Discord came. And besides, the old palace didn’t take that long to scrub out.” She pulled herself away from the table and rose onto all four legs. “In any case, I have two days of work to do in one, so I must be going. I shall see you tonight for sunset.”
 
Luna nodded and sipped her caffeine. “Very well. And tomorrow morning, I shall share the story of how you once went on a days-long cider binge. I am certain our nephew would enjoy learning how Ghastly Gorge was formed.”
 
Celestia chuckled and feigned blushing in embarrassment before trotting off to work. Well, after the other part of my morning routine, of course.
 

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Blueblood looked around the playground in confusion. His little gathering of friends were already there and accounted for, playing around in the sandbox with Gusty’s beloved dolls. All, that is, save for a certain feathered member of the posse. “Where’s Lofty? I thought she had recess the same time as us.”
 
“One of the students in her class did something really, really bad,” answered Ribbon. “So now she’s stuck in class all of recess. At least Miss Brightly isn’t mean like that.”
 
Perfect. Now to start lining up the pieces. “Actually, that’s all right. I have to ask you guys something without her here anyway. What kind of present should I get for her party tomorrow?”
 
Gusty looked up from her Daring-Do dolls, her face contorted in surprise by Blueblood’s perplexing declaration. “So wait, Lofty is actually inviting you?”
 
“Of course!” said Blueblood. “I mean, I am her friend…right?”
 
Buttons shrugged. “It didn’t look like she liked you when you met. And every single time she talked about you when you’re not around, she says you’re just a stupid old colt.” The darling would have continued from that point, had Gusty not given her a hoof-to-barrel reminder not to reveal everything Lofty said about Blueblood. It was already too late, in any case. Blueblood had heard everything he needed to hear.
 
“Yes, I know. We’ve had our disagreements in the past, but I want to make up for those.” He nodded his head towards Gusty’s toys. “What I need to know is, what is she interested in?”
 
Ribbon raised an eyebrow. “You mean, like in a present?”
 
Blueblood clapped his hooves together, spun about on his hind legs, and pointed an excited leg at his classmate. “Exactly! I need something that will amaze her, make her forget everything that’s happened.” He dropped his leg back to the ground. “So, what does she like?”
 
“Well…she likes Daring-Do,” said Buttons. “I guess you could get her one of the toys.”
 
No sooner had the words left the filly’s lips than Gusty was right back on her hooves, glowering through Blueblood with her left eye and Buttons with her right. “Hold it right there! In case you’re blind, I already have a bunch of Daring-Do toys! My folks even got me the Griffon’s Goblet Playset!”
 
Blueblood shrugged. “So?”
 
“Soooo, you can’t get the same toys one of your friends has!” Gusty shouted. “Especially when I just got a whole bunch of new ones. You have to wait for the paint to chip off mine first!”
 
“Um…why?” asked Ribbon.
 
Gusty’s jaw slacked in dumbfounded frustration. “B-Because! Just because! It’s, like, a law or something!”
 
Blueblood rolled his eyes at this. He had studied just about every law in Equestrian history, and so far he had found nothing on toys and their usage, outside of something forbidding winged unicorns from stealing royal regalia and using it like a costume. “Well, is there anything else?”
 
“She does like drawing,” added Buttons. “Mom and I got her some colored pencils and a few coloring books.”
 
“And I got her the Amazing Amethyst board game,” said Ribbon.
 
Blueblood began to say something, but stopped as the bell rang. In any case, he knew what to get Lofty for her birthday. And once that’s done, her silence will be assured.
 

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The hour was late, and Luna was still working on her scheme. All she had to do was finish this one letter, and Blueblood’s greatest nemesis would be back to finish what the Prince himself had started…
 

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As the class filed back in from lunch, Blueblood’s fetlocks were itching with excitement. He could already feel the love and adoration of his fellow inmates at this pre-correctional facility washing over him like chocolate rain. And once I have that, it’ll be only a matter of time before I’m back to normal.
 
“Alright, my little ponies!” Miss Brightly said as the last foal plopped themselves down in their seat. She levitated up a piece of chalk and began writing out the words “Show-And-Tell.” “Now, today is Show-And-Tell day, so I hope you all brought something wonderful to share with us. Just remember to be respectful this time. I don’t want to have to drag anypony over to the principal’s office this week. Isn’t that right, Snowball?”
 
The white cold gulped as a small chorus of laughter echoed through the classroom. “Well, now that we have an understanding, it’s time to get going!” A hat, surrounded by the same magic Miss Brightly always used, floated over to the teacher. “When I call your name, please come up to the front of the class and present your item to the class. I think we’ll start today with…”
 
A small scrap of paper floated out of the hat, stopping just in front of Brightly’s eyes. “Pier!”
 
A small grey colt pushed his chair back and hopped down, a ship-in-a-bottle tightly wrapped in one of his forehooves. Blueblood smiled and leaned back in his seat. Yes, this should be easy if that’s the kind of competition I have…
 

----------

 

“…And that’s why these scissors are awesome!” finished Orange Peel.
 
The class politely clapped their hooves together, if only to avoid a scolding from their teacher. Orange Peel, of course, failed to pick up on the sarcasm and just soaked up the applause like a victorious general. With a quick bow, he and his safety-handled scissors were back at his desk.
 
“Thank you for that…exquisite show,” said Miss Brightly. “And our next presenter will be…” The next name floated up to her eyes. “Ribbon!”
 
The blue filly jumped out of her chair, crying a high-pitched scream of joy before galloping up to the front. She had reached the presentation spot when she realized she had forgotten her item in her saddlebags, necessitating a run back, some rummaging, and finally her trotting back up like a prize fighter after a victorious bought. Held in her mouth was a large bit of poster paper, on which was drawn a surprisingly decent (for a five-year-old) crayon-generated picture of a small pony and three adults standing amongst what looked like bread.
 
Ribbon wrapped a fetlock over the picture and removed it from her lips. “This is a picture I drew of my family,” said Ribbon. She pointed her free hoof towards the little Unicorn pony and the two big Earth ponies. “This is me, and these are my mom and dad. They run a bakery in East Canterlot.” She circled the semi-oval brown circles. “That’s why we have lots and lots of bread. We also have pies, cakes, tarts, and other stuff.”
 
“Then why didn’t you bring any of those?!” shouted Orange Peel. A quick glare from Miss Brightly quickly shut the colt back up.
 
“That’s a wonderful picture, Ribbon,” said Miss Brightly, “but who is that other pony?”
 
“Oh, him?” Ribbon’s hoof moved over to the adult Unicorn. “He’s my uncle, and the only Unicorn in my whole family. He helps me study sometimes, even though mom and dad don’t like him. They say he did some bad things, but he doesn’t seem so mean to me.”
 
Blueblood huffed. It sounds like somepony looking for a prison sentence.
 
The class gave Ribbon a golf clap, while the teacher made a mental note to have somepony look into her student’s living situation first chance she got. The filly cantered back to her seat with a big smile on her face. “That was a lovely presentation, Ribbon. And now for our last presenter, Leon!”
 
Blueblood slowly rose from his chair, making sure to take just enough time to keep the required level of dignity for one of his station. He motioned his hooves as if to straighten an invisible bowtie, slicked his mane back, and only then hoisted the snow globe under his leg and hobbled over to the designated spot. With a grunt, he hoisted the object in place and lined up to face the classroom. “Fillies and gentlecolts, I present to you this snow globe. It belongs to my parents, who got it during Hearth’s Warming Eve a long time ago.”
 
He paused, waiting for the accolades. It took a few moments before he noticed the rest of the class was completely silent. In fact, the entire class appeared to be bored out of their little pony skulls. Miss Brightly started to step forward, both to usher Blueblood off the stage and to comfort him in case the cold reception hurt his feelings, but stopped as the colt began to speak again. “Did I mention it was given to them by Princess Celestia?”
 
Now everypony’s ears turned towards the presentation space. Cherry turned to Snowball and whispered something, Orange Peel just looked absolutely bewildered, and even Ribbon seemed entranced at the spherical novelty gift now. His audience enthralled, Blueblood moved in for the kill. He grabbed the globe with both hooves and gave it a good shake.
 
The little flakes swam across the watery interior, finally revealing their true nature in the process. Each image of Celestia was painted a different color, featuring every shade that appeared in a rainbow. Light bounced and reflected off the painted sides, creating a cascade of wondrous shapes and images that seemed to bounce off the walls. Even the tiny castle inside seemed to come into a life of its own as the prisms rebounded off its own surface, making it look larger and animated to the untrained pony’s eyes.
 
After about a minute, the last piece fell, and the show was over. Blueblood bowed, picked up his treasured globe, and trotted back to his desk. He reached his bags just as the bell rang out, signaling the last recess of the day.
 
Blueblood began to open the flaps on his saddlebags, but paused as a sinister plot came to his mind. I could use this to secure Buttons and Gusty’s loyalty, as well! No sense keeping something this important lying around…
 

----------

 

Buttons grinned like the silly little filly she was as she looked at the globe’s surface. “So this was really given to your parents by Princess Celestia?”
 
Blueblood smiled and nodded, sticking his nose upwards with pride. The snow globe was set down on the sidewalk for all five to see, admire, and worship. “I don’t know why she gave it to them, but they always said it was one of the best moments of their lives.”
 
“Oh, please,” Lofty moaned while rolling her eyes.
 
“My thoughts exactly.”
 
Everypony froze in terror as Orange Peel’s voice rang in their ears. Behind him were his usual cronies, Snowball and Smokey, and all three had their eyes on one thing: Blueblood’s snow globe. “Did you really think I’d believe that Princess Celestia gave a bunch of noponies something like that?”
 
Lofty growled and spread her wings. “None of us gave a flank what you stupid poopie-heads thought!”
 
“Um…Lofty?” whispered Ribbon. “Watch your language.”
 
Smokey snickered. “Hey, Orange. Why don’t we just take the thing to get checked out. You know, make sure it’s official and all that?”
 
Orange Peel smiled evilly. Their five targets sprang to their hooves and matched their cold-blooded glares, if only to make the ensuing beatdown less of an embarrassment on the schoolyard. “Why, yes, that’s a great plan. Now how about we…”
 
“Hold it right there!”
 
Everything froze in an instant as Miss Brightly walked up to the three bullies. All of them looked up at the teacher in false confusion. “W-Why, Miss Brightly!” said Snowball. “W-What’s going on?”
 
“Oh, I think you know,” said the teacher. “Now, unless you promise to leave these ponies alone, I will have no choice but to report what’s happened to your parents. And you know what happened the last time I had to do that, don’t you, Orange Peel?”
 
The orange colt came very close to emptying his bladder right there. He could already remember his father’s belt along his backside. “I-I understand! I’ll be…going then…” And with that, all three bolted off for the swings. Miss Brightly smiled, nodded to the group, and then trotted off to monitor the rest of the grounds.
 
“Well…at least that’s over,” said Ribbon.
 
Gusty humphed and turned back to the globe. “Stupid bullies. I hate them so much.”
 
Lofty sat down on her haunches and turned to her nearby friend. “Why would they even bug us with you here? You creamed Orange Peel the last time he tried to take you.”
 
“It doesn’t matter why,” Blueblood said. He walked over to the nearby grass, his eyes locked on Orange Peel and his cohorts. The gaze was returned in kind, chilling Blueblood’s very soul. “The point is they won’t be bugging us today. We’re free to do whatever.”
 
Buttons trotted up next to him, her eyes locked on the flapping ribbon. “I think I figured out a way to finally get that thing down, but it will take all five of us.” Lofty and Ribbon joined the two, their faces twisted in determination. “If we can just get up high enough, one of us can climb on the branch and untie the knot. Gusty, what we need you to do is…”
 
It was right then that they realized one member of their group was missing. Everypony turned around to see Gusty still sitting next to the now-activated snow globe. Blueblood’s eyes bulged in absolute terror as the filly lifted the thing back up, holding it haphazardly by the spherical top. “What are you doing?”
 
Gusty sighed and rolled her eyes at Blueblood’s question. “I just want to take another look, that’s all.”
 
In an instant, Blueblood had galloped right next to the filly. He could already see his precious object’s weight shifting in Gusty’s hooves. “You’re not holding it right! You can’t…”
 
Before he could say anything else, the snow globe slipped from her hooves…
 

----------

 

Luna’s quill stroked the bottom of the page as a cruel smile crossed her lips. With this, my dear Blueblood, your fate is sealed.
 

----------

 
Everything on the playground came to a screeching halt at the sound of glass shattering. Every filly and colt, grown and small, slowly walked over to the sight of the scuffle. Orange Peel and his cohorts were savvy enough to start blending away into the crowd, just in case Miss Brightly or one of the other instructors decided to blame them for this mess. Lofty, Buttons and Ribbon could feel the urge to at least try and approach the two, but their own fears of being grounded and punished for something they were innocent of stayed their hooves. That left only a stunned Blueblood and a horrified Gusty standing in the center of the madness.
 
Blueblood’s jaw hung slack as tiny streams of tears threatened to burst forth and wash down his cheeks. His eyes scanned the wreckage, picking out the tiny flakes of confetti, the crushed remains of the castle, and the broken bits of the base. Gusty slowly walked around the mess and towards him, looking as guilty as a murderer standing over its victim. “I…I’m sorry. It was an accident.”
 
Blueblood didn’t hear her. He didn’t hear anything. All he could do was think about that globe…
 
She gave it to me. She…She said she loved me. It was…why…like this…that…you…
 
Deep within the recesses of Blueblood’s mind, something snapped into place. A rage he had not felt since leaping through a tower window coursed through his very bloodstream. In an instant, the old Blueblood was reborn, and his eyes soon left the wreckage to focus on the wrecker herself.
 
“I-I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean to…it was…”
 
Blueblood front hooves slammed into the base of Gusty’s neckline and pushed down with full force. The filly, unprepared for such an attack, flew back on her rear legs and slammed hard to the ground, mere inches from the glass pile. Every muscle in her body erupted in pain upon impact. “What are you doing?!”
 
“YOU…YOU STUPID FOAL!” Blueblood’s voice carried no sense of innocence or guilt, only a growing madness. “That was the one thing I still had, and you took it from me! You are the worst pony I have ever known! I hate you! I hope you die!”
 
“Now that is quite enough,” said Miss Brightly. She pushed her way up through the crowd until she was standing directly over Blueblood and the downed Gusty. “I think it’s time the both of you took a trip to the…”
 
Before she could say anything else, Blueblood spat in Gusty’s face, turned about, and ran through the crowd. So great was his rage that he plowed through the other ponies with no difficulty, turned a corner like a trained track star, and was soon back inside the building. The other teachers quickly left in pursuit, leaving only Miss Brightly and a few others to keep a watch on things.
 
Sighing sadly, Brightly leaned over the shocked and injured filly. “Let’s get you to the nurse’s office. I think you’ve been hurt enough today.”
 
As she levitated Gusty off the ground and onto her back, the filly’s sobs only grew worse. The bravado and gutsiness she regularly displayed were instead replaced by wracked cries and absolute pain. “I-It was an accident! I-”
 
“It’s okay, honey,” said Miss Brightly. “We’ll get all this sorted out, don’t worry.”
 
Her student firmly attached to her back, Miss Brightly galloped towards the nurse’s office. In her haste, she failed to notice a certain pegasus watching her leave, a look of pure hatred on her face…
 

----------

 

For once, Blueblood’s early morning training finally paid off, and he was able to slip away from the chasing adults long enough to duck into the colt’s restroom, locking the door behind him. Nevertheless, he could still hear hooves scrapping along outside, and he knew it was only a matter of time before he was found and dragged back for an explanation. He only had a short time to prepare himself.
 
His eyes were still stinging from crying, but he still managed to catch a glimpse of some nearby sinks, all conveniently at an average colt’s eye level. Closing his eyelids to help fight off the pain, he trotted up to the porcelain tubs and turned on the faucets. His forehooves dived down to scoop up as much water as they could carry before splashing the liquid over his face. Gradually, the agony lessened, only to be replaced by feelings long since repressed.
 
He thought back to his parents. They were the only ponies who ever cared enough to teach me how to be a true prince. The only ones that thought I could surpass them in the games the court played. And was I not successful?
 
He thought back to Cadance. I tried to teach her how to be a proper princess, and what does she do? She marries a worthless commoner, with far too little noble blood to even qualify as a Baron, and then calls me a monster when I reveal her treachery to all?
 
He thought back to Shining Armor. And that excuse for a knight, a pony who cannot even utilize a proper Canterlot accent, is going to be called a prince just because he married somepony that’s far too good for him? Then it is my responsibility to make sure they both understand the price of betraying their station.
 
He thought back to the Grand Galloping Gala. Those ponies violated our most sacred of festivities, the very celebration of Equestria’s founding, and were given no punishment? If Celestia would allow such dissent, who could tell how far rebellion could spread? I tried to help her. I tried to have the village that harbored these fugitives destroyed, its ponies killed or imprisoned, as an example for everypony else. And she calls me a monster?
 
He thought back to Celestia and Luna. My Aunt, the pony I once trusted as a wise and just ruler, has allowed a traitor to stand alongside her and rule Equestria in her place. Princess Luna tried to destroy all life everywhere, and she is forgiven without so much as a second thought, while I have to wallow through this misery for that fiend’s amusement?! No! I shall make them all pay! I will expose their little game to the public. Let us see how the Princesses explain this away!
 
And finally, his thoughts returned to the snow globe and Gusty. I’m not sorry I hurt her! She destroyed something that belonged to me! I don’t care if it was just a stupid globe! I don’t care if the pony who gave it to me has proven herself undeserving of my affections! I will see her family pay! I will have her home burned, her parents sold into indentured servitude, and when she’s tossed into the orphanage, I’ll pay her keepers to trap her there forever! And the rest of my friends will be forced to follow, lest they suffer the same fate!
 
He snickered evilly. My enemies will all suffer! Prince Blueblood is the only Unicorn fit to rule Equestria, and under my hoof, this land shall return to the old ways! I will finally restore this land to the days of Unicornia! Mother and Father’s work shall be-
 
Then he opened his eyes.
 
Blueblood almost fell on his back when he saw the face staring back at him. When he had plotted before, he was always able to keep himself under control. Years of surviving a cabal of backstabbing, affection-hungry aristocrats were a testament to his ability to keep his head cool and plot his schemes. Were it not for that stupid filly and those Gala-destroying curs, he would have been able to keep his charade of civility even longer.
 
But now, all he saw was a colt staring back at him, teeth barred in rage, eyes dilated and bloodshot, mane unkempt and frazzled from his frustrations, and even a small froth building from the sides of his mouth. He struggled to return his emotions to some semblance of normalcy, but whatever control he once had began to erode against the unstable mindset of a foal and their incredibly low frustration point. His rage soon transformed into absolute terror, his eyes burning with tears. What’s wrong with me? I am Blueblood, Prince of Equestria and nephew of Princess Celestia! I trained myself to specifically avoid embarrassments like this! Why…Why isn’t it working? Why can’t I stop crying?!
 
Whatever fear his body conveyed was nothing compared to what was going on inside his mind. Already, thoughts were beginning to reshuffle, his vision becoming clearer and more precise with every passing moment, and he did not like what he was seeing. Something cold and unrelenting began to pound away at his consciousness, drilling past the rationalizations and cruel logic until it struck at Blueblood’s very core.
 
His thoughts returned to his parents. I was just a tool to them. They only wanted me to accomplish their life’s dream, not my own.
 
His thoughts returned to Cadance. She was a wonderful filly, and even if she did break every rule in the noble court, I should not have done things like I did.
 
His thoughts returned to Shining Armor. He is not so bad as a Captain, and even if he and Cadance make a poor match, perhaps what I did to him was too much.
 
His thoughts returned to the Grand Galloping Gala. That mare cared only about her romantic dreams, and I crushed them forever. I could have told her I was uninterested, and yet I used her just like I use everypony else around me. What happened was an accident, not an act of malice. Perhaps I was too hasty to consider their foolishness to be an act of insurrection.
 
His thoughts returned to Celestia and Luna. Luna has had many opportunities to destroy Equestria, and yet has not taken any of them. Perhaps she is not the foal-devouring monster legend makes her out to be. And perhaps Celestia was right the whole time about her. About everything, in fact.
 
And finally, his thoughts returned to the snow globe and Gusty. It was an accident. She was just trying to help me, and I pushed her away. She only wanted to be my friend, and I injured a small filly just because I was angry. That globe was precious, but it…it…wasn’t worth doing that.
 
Blueblood collapsed onto his haunches, all while the storm of emotions raging inside him began to erode whatever ego he had left. No…NO! Snap out of it! Remember, you are Prince Blueblood! You are above all these lowly peons, and unlike Celestia you remember your proper place in Equestria. Who cares if your aunts hate you? Who cares if your dear cousin wants to throw everything she was raised to be away so she can marry some military brat? You shouldn’t! You weren’t raise to feel! The only thing that concerns you is making sure the old ways are upheld! That’s why mom and dad wanted you! That’s why they dragged you away from Celestia and Cadance!
 
He let out a low squeal. That’s…why nopony…likes you.
 
In an instant, Blueblood was no more. The proud stallion he once was crumbled to dust against this new, most unwelcome feeling welling up inside him. His emotions broke free completely and horribly, reducing the colt to a sobbing, coughing, crying mess of a pony. All rational thought vanished, instead finding itself replaced by an unrelenting wave of crashing emotions. Indeed, Blueblood was so distraught he didn’t even notice the janitor and Miss Brightly unlock the door and walk inside the restroom.
 
The teacher knelt next to her student, a look of concern on her face. “Are you all right, Leon?” Blueblood made no verbal response, unless another wrack of sobs counted as such. “I know that snow globe meant a lot to you and your parents, but what you did was still wrong. You’ll still have to answer for it.”
 
Blueblood sniffed back the wracking pile of mucus trying to worm its way out his nose. “I…I…I didn’t mean to do it. I was just…”
 
“It’s okay,” Miss Brightly said. “When we’re angry, we do all sorts of stupid things. A part of growing up, though, is learning how to control how you feel. You can’t go around hurting ponies just because they did something wrong.”
 
“B-But…I…”
 
Miss Brightly sighed. “We don’t have to go right away. When you’ve calmed down, we can talk this over with the Principal. Just let it all out.”
 
Blueblood nodded, lowered his head into his hooves, and kept sobbing away. And through it all, his teacher never once left his side.
 

----------

 

The principal’s office was just as stiff and imposing as Blueblood had imagined. From the moment he stepped in there, he knew his time on Equestria was coming to an end. When he saw that Gusty was also there, a small bruise still on one of her legs, a cold shiver ran down his entire body. The glare coming from both her and the principal, a stoic stallion with a grayed mane and silvery coat, didn’t help matters.
 
Miss Brightly closed the door behind them and took a seat next to another Unicorn, no doubt Gusty’s teacher. The Principal cleared his throat, straightened his red necktie, and leaned back on his pillowy chair. “Leon, I trust you understand why we brought you here.”
 
Blueblood nodded his head. “Yes.”
 
The Principal turned to the filly in the room. “And Gusty, I take it you also understand what you did.”
 
Gusty pouted and turned away. “It was an accident.”
 
“What was that?”
 
The filly sighed. “Yes, I understand.”
 
The Principal and teachers nodded, with the principal adding a heavy sigh to the motion. He pushed himself back onto his hooves and approached the two foals, towering overhead like some long-lost titan. “Fortunately, neither one of you was seriously hurt, but that doesn’t excuse what happened. School is a place where ponies learn and expand their minds, not get into fights. Ponies like you should be friends, not enemies.”
 
He bent down next to Leon. “Now, I understand that the snow globe was very important to you, and I can understand you being angry. But it was an accident. You shouldn’t hurt somepony that was just trying to help you, right?”
 
Blueblood’s old mind wanted to yell something right back, probably involving shoving and an orifice, but something held his tongue. He couldn’t tell if it was that new thing worming its way through his heart, or just a side-effect of the spell trapping him in this body, but he couldn’t bring himself to rain death and destruction upon the stupid stallion lecturing him like a common kindergartner. “I-I’m sorry,” he said weakly.
 
The stallion then turned his attention to Gusty. The filly buckled as his eyes locked with hers, a new fear coursing its way through her gut. “And I understand you wanted to help, but you have to be more careful when handling something that belongs to somepony else. Would you like it if one of your friends broke something you cared about?”
 
Gusty slowly shook her head, even as a few tiny tears began to form in her eyes. “N-No.”
 
The principal smiled and pulled his head back. In an instant, his very demeanor became much less stern and far more graceful and, for lack of a better word, fatherly. “Now, I want you two to apologize to each other.”
 
The two foals turned away from the only male adult in the room and locked eyes with each other. Tiny beads of sweat began to course down his forehead and neck as he prepared for the inevitable. Any moment now, a horn would be embedded in his throat, or his liver would be torn out with her bare hooves. There was no telling with these common folk.
 
Gusty took a deep breath, lowered her head so her horn was pointing straight at his eyes, and…
 
“I’m sorry. I should have been more careful.”
 
Wh-What?
 
Blueblood reared back a few inches in amazement, his eyes widening to the size of saucer plates, while his tail began to frizz and stretch out in amazement. Every sense in his body tried to tell him this was some kind of magnificent scheme to humiliate him in front of the other ponies, or to let him drop his guard so the filly could position her knife just right. But as he regarded the filly more closely, he couldn’t find any of the telltale signs of treachery, and after surviving the Royal Court for much of his life, he was very adept at picking up on all such plots before they could get off the ground.
 
She was genuine.
 
She was forgiving him.
 
He had assaulted and yelled at her, and yet she was still taking blame for breaking his snow globe.
 
“I…I…” He bit his lip as something he hadn’t felt in decades began to seep its way to the forefront. “I…I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have hit you or called you names. I really am a bad pony.”
 
“Now, I don’t want to hear any of that,” said Miss Brightly. “You did something wrong, but that doesn’t make you a bad pony. You just have to remember that it’s never right to hurt another pony, even if they did something wrong themselves.”
 
Gusty took a small step forward. “I’m not really hurt. All that crying was just to keep the rest of the foals from being left out, honest.” She blushed and shied away. “L-Look, I know we’re both in trouble and all, and you were kinda mean back there, and you pushed me and…anyway, you still wanna be friends?”
 
As if to seal the deal, Gusty’s hoof shot out and hung in the air. Blueblood stared at the outstretched limb with more than his fair share of skepticism. After all, less than an hour ago, he had taken the same pony and shoved her down on a slab of concrete. Had his aim been just a little off, she would have landed right on a pile of glass shards.
 
In the Royal Court, such an action on Prince Blueblood’s part would have brought unimaginable consequences. His home would have been torched, his possessions divided up amongst the other noble houses, and his very name drowned in the mud until nopony could even remember who “Prince What’s-His-Blood” was. He, a grown pony, had struck a filly.
 
And she was asking him to be friends.
 
Blueblood’s hoof laboriously lifted itself into the air, pausing for a brief moment before taking hold of Gusty’s own. The tense atmosphere gradually melted away, fading into the ether until a general sense of relaxation took hold. The Principal smiled and nodded towards the two. “Well, I can see you two have learned your lesson. I’m still going to have to talk to your parents, of course, but I’ll make sure the letter tells them to go easy on you.”
 
“M-My parents?” Gusty gulped down an entire mouthful of oxygen as her pupils dilated in terror. “Couldn’t we just call it even right now? I mean, there’s no reason to get mom and dad involved. I’m sure they can just, you know, hear about it, let’s say, thirty years from now?!”
 
The non-Miss Brightly teacher shook her head. “No dear, that’s not how it works. We’ll discuss an appropriate punishment when we get home.”
 
“When you get…” Blueblood snapped around to Gusty, his surprise managing to break through his self-pity and guilt. “You mean your mother’s a teacher here?”
 
Gusty facehoofed herself and shook her head sadly. “Don’t remind me.”
 
“And I’ll see to it Leon’s mother gets her notice,” added Miss Brightly. “I’m sure once she knows everything that happened, she’ll…”
 
“HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!”
 
Everything in the office froze at the sound of the high-pitched squeal coming from the door. There, standing like an avenging superhero, was Lofty. The Principal himself practically spat something out at the sudden shock. “Can I help you, miss?”
 
“No, but I’m here to help you!” The filly cantered into the office, her tiny wings extended. She pushed aside Blueblood and, after a bit of difficulty, climbed onto one of the nearby chairs. “I saw everything that happened! It was all Leon’s fault!”
 
The three educators looked amongst each other in confusion. “Wait…what do you mean?” asked Gusty’s mother.
 
“Leon’s the one that started the fight, not Gusty!” added Lofty. “And there’s more than that! Before he even set foot on this school, he wasn’t…”
 
Blueblood sighed and hung his head down. He could already feel a prison cell waiting for him, and right now, he didn’t care.
 
“Stop right there, Lofty!”
 
The yellow pegasus halted mere seconds from revealing Blueblood’s secret. Confused, she slowly lowered her gaze towards Gusty. “Why are you stopping me? I’m trying to defend you here!”
 
“And I don’t need any help!” said Gusty. “We already talked it over. I got in trouble, Leon got in trouble, and we’ll be fine! I dropped his snow globe, remember? You don’t need to come charging in here shouting up threats and trying to act tough!”
 
Lofty’s heart sank in her chest. Her wings folded back against her body as a small whimper emerged from her lips. “I…I was just…”
 
“I can understand wanting to help, but we have the situation well in hoof,” said Miss Brightly. “Your friends have already forgiven each other, and promised they won’t do anything like that again.”
 
“B-But…”
 
“And furthermore,” added the Principal, “you know it’s wrong to break into a room uninvited and interrupt what somepony else is doing, right?”
 
Lofty whimpered out a few sobs and sank into the chair. I-I’m gonna be grounded. Right before my birthday! Wh-Why did that stupid Blueblood have to…
 
“Um…I don’t think Lofty meant anything bad.”
 
Everypony’s eyes turned to Blueblood. The colt’s legs were wobbling from all the attention, as well as his sheer disbelief with what he was doing, but he managed to close his eyes and continue on ahead. “Gusty was her friend before I even got here. She wanted to make sure her friend was all right, after all. When I got hurt on my first day, she gave up recess so she could make sure I was okay. That’s just the kind of pony she is.”
 
The three adults stared at each other, confused that such a small pony had such a decent sense of empathy, and especially after everything that had occurred. Gusty, meanwhile, found herself fighting back to urge to roll her eyes at her new friend’s eggheadedness. Lofty’s own emotions simply shifted back and forth like a taffy puller, never managing to settle on whether she should be surprised that he wasn’t joining in her denouncement, or angry that he still existed and had contributed to her future grounding.
 
“Look, we’ll overlook Lofty’s misbehavior this one time,” said the Principal. The lone Pegasus’ ears and head perked up in surprise. “Now, all of you need to get back to class. We still have a lot of educating to do and only a short time to do it. And I expect to see the letters signed and turned in to your teachers on Monday. Am I understood?” The foals nodded. “Good. Miss Brightly, Mrs. Hurricane, please take these ponies back to class.”
 
The teachers nodded, rounded up their students (plus the one from Flight Kindergarten), and departed. Blueblood tagged behind the rest, his head filled with traitorous thoughts. I actually pulled it off. I managed to salvage my situation and keep Lofty and Gusty as allies. And now that Lofty is indebted to me, she will be far less willing to reveal my secret. I just need to keep the act up, and soon I’ll be right to normal.
 
He blinked away a frustrated twinge. That’s the only reason you did it, remember. The only…reason…
 

----------

 

Luna awoke just as the sun began to drop over the horizon. After letting out the traditional royal yawn, performing the traditional royal stretches, and wiping the traditional royal eye crust, her attention returned to the rest of the day’s scheduled activities. She still had a nephew to torture, after all.
 
The letter still sat on her desk, rolled up and sealed for quick and easy delivery. All Luna had to do was will the thing to where her new ally lived, and she would soon have Blueblood put back in his place for good. And then she could…
 
Her scheming came to a halt as she heard a loud pounding on her door. “Luna? Are you awake?”
 
If I wasn’t, you would have just fixed that problem. Luna rolled her eyes and telekinetically pulled the door open, revealing her sister in mid-yawn. “G-Good evening, Luna. I take it you slept well?”
 
“Far better than you,” Luna said between giggles. “I take it everything is finished for tomorrow?”
 
Celestia yawned again, smacking her lips a few times. “Yes, everything. Thanks to this party, we have an entirely new property tax system, we have increased the budget for medical research, and we will have enough wool to make sure everpony has a scarf this winter. Also, I have developed a deep hatred for the pony that invented the quill, and plans are already in motion to travel back in time and remove them and their infernal device from existence.”
 
Luna raised an eyebrow. “Wait…was it not you that invented the quill?”
 
Celestia gave an obviously fake gasp as her eyes popped out. “You’re right. Well, I suppose you shall be an only child, then.”
 
The room was silent for but a moment, before the two erupted once again into a chorus of laughter. Once the glee had simmered down to a mere chuckle, Celestia cleared her throat and continued. “Still, I’m really glad you changed your mind. I’ve been going through some disguises as well, and I think I found the perfect thing. All we need are some glasses and…”
 
“Actually, I have a stipulation to make,” said Luna. Celestia raised a worried brow. “Rather than disguise myself, I shall attend this party as I truly am: Princess Luna of Equestria, Steward of the Moon and Co-Ruler of our fair principality.”
 
Celestia shook her head vigorously. “Absolutely out of the question. How can we possibly spin you being there?”
 
“Like you said, the party would only be for a couple of hours,” said Luna. She pointed out her window towards the streets below, her hoof forming an invisible path towards the park. “Since Princess Sunlight is ostensibly my niece, it is our responsibility to look out for her. And since Princess Celestia will be so busy ruling her country, it shall be my duty to make sure our visiting niece gets there and back safely. We will then say that we picked up Blueblood on the way to the party, as his parents were sick and couldn’t take him. And with that, we shall all partake in fun together.”
 
“Little sister, there are so many ways that can go wrong,” said Celestia.
 
“It’s either that, or we don’t go,” Luna said curtly. “Now, if you shall excuse me, I have a great deal of work to do.” And with that, she cantered off to manage her nation yet again, leaving a stunned and bewildered Celestia.
 
D-Did Luna just…pull something on me? I really need to stop teaching her that.
 

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Blueblood struggled to sleep, but rest eluded him. Whenever he closed his eyes, he couldn’t help but think back to how everything went wrong.
 
Gusty had apparently forgiven him, and Buttons and Ribbon seemed to follow suit, but he could still feel something was very wrong. It just seemed off with how easily they forgave somepony that assaulted and spat on their friend. He had barely managed to convince Lofty to let him go, and even then, he could tell she was getting ever closer to revealing his secret.
 
And yet, the one thing he was worried about was how much this was worrying him. Months ago, he wouldn’t have given a care to losing any friends. Years ago, he wouldn’t have cared that he had assaulted an innocent pony. But now?
 
His reflections paused as a hoof rattled against his door. A few seconds later, a golden light enveloped the entire wooden entrance and pushed it open, revealing Princess Celestia. She slowly entered the room, doing her best to remain dour. “Blueblood, Sky Bloom told me about the snow globe. I-I’m sorry.”
 
“It wasn’t your fault,” he muttered, his face buried in his pillow.
 
Celestia took a few more steps forward. “I know things have been rough these last few days, and…”
 
“It’s fine,” he said. “I’ll make it through. I always have and always will.”
 
“I see,” Celestia said. She hung her head and turned to leave. “I shall see you in the morning, then.”
 
“Wait.”
 
Princess Celestia froze just a step away from the door. For the first time, Blueblood turned his face towards his aunt, and she could see the wear this day had taken on him. “Aunt Celestia, can you be honest with me? Am I…just a bad pony?”
 
Celestia was quiet at first, her mind shuffling through the right thing to say. Finally, she managed to find something that might, at least, be of a little comfort. “I don’t believe there’s such a thing as an inherently bad pony. You just made a lot of bad decisions, that’s all. But as bad as things got between us, I never really hated you. I was disappointed, upset even, but I never hated you.” And with that, she walked out in the hall and closed the door.
 
Once again, Blueblood was alone in the world.