529 - Crossed Line
“You should go home.”
“Hm?” Blinking, Line Byline struggled to hold back a yawn as he sat up straighter, turning his attention back toward Princess Luna. “I’m sorry, Your Highness?”
“You should go home, Line.” Luna’s smile was bemused, but not unkind, as she nodded toward the papers spread out on the table between them. “You can sleep on these notes that Nosey Newsy brought you without literally falling asleep on top of them. Besides, I’m sure your wife must be worried.”
Line shook his head. “If she got nervous every time I was out late running down a story, we wouldn’t have been married for almost thirty years now.” A rueful smile crossed his lips as his eyes turned vacant. “She told me once, ‘I don’t mind you chasing the news, just so long as you’re not chasing some filly on the side.’”
Luna’s smile softened at the anecdote. “And what did you say?”
“That anypony who’s dumb enough to have an affair when they spend every day surrounded by investigative reporters gets what they deserve,” he chuckled, rubbing his eyes. “That, and I promised that even if she went to sleep without me next to her, I’d always be there when she woke up in the morning.” Sighing, he picked up another paper from the pile. “So the faster we go over what’s here, the sooner I can make sure tonight’s not the night I turn into a liar.”
“I don’t think you need to be worried about that,” murmured Luna as she picked up a page of Nosey’s notes, looking it over. “Most of what’s here doesn’t tell us anything that we don’t already know. This one, for instance, is about the group of monsters who accosted Lex Legis when he made his initial foray into Vanhoover to seek survivors. Interesting, but hardly new information.”
The words made Line frown, not because he disagreed but because he knew Luna was right. It had been over two hours since he’d rushed Nosey’s notes to the castle, hopeful that they contained some nugget of information that could prove decisive in helping the princesses defeat this latest threat to Equestria. But so far, that nugget had eluded him and Luna both. “There has to be something in here,” he insisted, more to himself than the princess. “Nosey might be blind to the consequences of her actions, but she’s a good reporter.”
“I know that she is.” Putting down the pages she’d been examining, Luna picked up another set. “I spoke with her during my time in Vanhoover, and she told me much of what’s here…though there are certainly some new tidbits. Apparently, Lex Legis banished that scythe of his, Severance, after we departed the city.”
Line’s eyebrows rose at that. “And he let Nosey get wind of that?”
“He announced it to the public.” Luna passed the papers over to Line.
“That doesn’t make any sense,” muttered Line, skimming what Nosey had written. “Severance is a powerful weapon, Applejack confirmed it during the summit. For Lex to not only discard it but let everypony know that he did…” He stared off into space, trying to make sense of it, before shaking his head again. “It’s got to be a lie. He had to put it aside since he’s made it the scapegoat for trying to kill you, but he’s probably stashed it somewhere, waiting to bring it out the next time he needs it.”
“Perhaps.”
The doubt in Luna’s voice surprised Line even more than the news about Severance. “You don’t think so?”
“I’m not sure,” she admitted. “It might be as you say. But you mentioned Applejack’s testimony regarding the scythe, and I’m sure you remember that she described it as willful to the point of disobedience at times.”
“That doesn’t mean that’s what happened when Lex tried to kill you,” pointed out Line. “If anything, he’s probably just using that as cover, so he doesn’t look like a murderer.”
“And yet he didn’t wield the weapon when he fought my sister and myself, despite holding it within his telekinetic aura,” noted Luna.
“Princess, you can’t-”
“I know.” Holding up a hoof, Luna closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “I know. I’m not trying to excuse his actions. Do you really think that I, of all ponies, would think that Lex Legis was devoid of ill intent?”
Letting out a slow breath of his own, Line shook his head. “Of course not.” He took a moment to calm down before continuing. “So you think he’s being honest about banishing the thing?”
“I think Lex Legis is honest about his ambition,” replied Luna evenly. “He seeks to control everyone and everything, and if one of his subordinates were to act without his leave, then I find it eminently believable that he’d cast them out for it. As for announcing it…” She shrugged. “He wants to look legitimate in the eyes of the public. Nosey wrote that his admission was ‘well-received.’ Perhaps it’s worth asking her to expound upon that?”
Line cocked his head. “You want to meet with her?”
“If you think it’s a good idea. She and I shared information once, so I don’t see why she wouldn’t be amenable to doing so again.” Luna waved a hoof over the papers. “These notes of hers are expansive, but I’m sure that she can elaborate on them.”
Leaning back in his chair, Line considered the idea. “I suppose it couldn’t hurt. I just…I don’t like that she thinks that Lex is some sort of hero, even knowing what he did to you.”
“I’m sure that she’s not the only pony in Canterlot who feels that way, considering that your last headline about him painted him as the savior who saved Tall Tale,” teased Luna.
But her smile fell away in an instant as Line grimaced, looking pained at the reminder. “Your Highness, that wasn’t…if I had known what sort of pony he really was, I never…I promise you, once you and your sister give me the go-ahead to publish what’s here, I’ll run a piece amending that earlier headline! It won’t-”
“Line, be at ease.” Half-rising, Luna made a calming gesture toward at the distraught stallion. “I was only joking. No one blames you for that headline.”
“They should.” Line’s voice was morose, unable to meet Luna’s eyes. “I ran Nosey’s story without any wider context, not knowing who Lex was or what he’d done before then. If I’d just asked you or Princess Celestia for a comment, you could have told me that he’d already demanded that you abdicate in favor of him, and that he was clearly a tyrant in the making.”
“You’re being too hard on yourself,” insisted Luna, sitting back down. “The story came from Tall Tale, there was no reason for you to assume that it had anything to do with my sister or me.”
“It was still an unforgivable lapse in editorial standards.” Biting his lip, Line closed his eyes, looking tired in a way that had nothing to do with the late hour. “I knew something was wrong when you and Princess Celestia called me in afterward. You were both acting like you couldn’t tell me the whole truth, and you were right not to. Because of me, ponies in Manehattan and Baltimare and Fillydelphia and everywhere else only know of Lex as some pony who saved a city.”
“Then perhaps it’s time we gave everypony something else to consider.”
It took Luna’s words a moment to get through to Line, surprise causing him to meet her eyes again as he parsed her meaning. “…you want to go public with…” Not being sure how to finish, he nodded in Luna’s direction.
She didn’t answer immediately, instead fidgeting for a moment before eventually nodding. “I think that we should, yes. It can be part of my general announcement about forsaking my claim of being a goddess.”
“So you’ve informed all of your worshipers?”
“All but one,” confirmed Luna. “I’ve searched for him in the dream realm, but to no avail.” A shadow crossed her face then, looking similar to the expression Line had worn moments ago. “I think he’s avoiding me.”
If Line’s reporter’s instincts hadn’t been roused before, they were now. “How does somepony avoid you entering their dreams?”
“By staying awake,” answered Luna dryly, her morose expression reasserting itself a moment later. “Silhouette was part of my guard, along with being one of my most devout worshipers. He knows that my power over dreams is something that I use while awake, rather than when I’m asleep myself. If he simply matched his sleep schedule to mine, slumbering during the day and staying awake at night, I wouldn’t be able to locate him.”
“Wait, Silhouette?” Force of habit had Line pull his notepad out without conscious thought, flipping through it until he found what he was looking for. “The guard who was killed in action in Vanhoover? Who later exited the train you and Princess Celestia returned from Vanhoover on after Princess Cadance resurrected him, and had an, er, altercation with Prince Shining Armor?” When Luna nodded, he took a moment to process that. “I heard that his apartment had been raided.”
“It wasn’t a raid,” frowned Luna. “I sent some of my detachment to check on him and let him know that I wanted to see him, was all.”
“But he wasn’t there?”
Luna hesitated for just a fraction of a second before shaking her head. “No. The current theory is that he’s left Canterlot. Which I suppose is understandable, after what happened.”
“What Lex made happen,” corrected Line, before turning back to the subject at hoof. “So you’re hoping that a public announcement in the paper will get his attention?”
“It’s working for the missionaries that Cadance and Shining Armor sent out, at least according to the letters we’ve received from them.” Luna made an odd motion then, adjusting her shoulders in a way that wasn’t quite a shrug, and it took Line a moment to realize that she’d been attempting to flex wings that were no longer there, apparently without realizing it, since she continued talking a moment later. “I’d prefer not to let him know something so profound in such an impersonal way, but I can’t see any other course of action, especially since…”
“…Your Highness?”
“Celestia thinks it’s a bad idea, going public with what’s happened to me.” Luna looked at the wall then, except Line knew it wasn’t the wall she was gazing at, but rather the direction where her sister’s chambers were. “She says it’s pointless, since the Crystal Heart will be able to restore me very soon, but I know she’s worried about what the exposure will do to me.”
Line shifted in his seat, suddenly uncomfortable. “That’s not an unreasonable point.”
The comment earned him a wry look. “I spent a thousand years being feared as Nightmare Moon. Letting everypony know of the ignominy that Lex Legis has inflicted on me now is not a burden too great to bear. And as you noted, it can serve to let all of Equestria know what sort of person he is.”
Reluctantly, Line nodded. “Alright, I’ll start making the arrangements. There are plenty of reporters who-”
“Actually,” interrupted Luna. “I’d like Nosey Newsy to do it.”
“Wh-, Your Highness, that’s not a good idea!” Despite the informal relationship he’d cultivated with the princesses, Line still maintained a certain degree of decorum in their presence, one that he found sorely tested now as he struggled to put his reaction into words. “Nosey…isn’t the right journalist for this particular topic.”
“We’ve already decided to have her come here to tell us more about her time in Vanhoover,” countered Luna. “And she has more experience with Lex Legis than anypony else in Canterlot, You said she’s a good reporter, so I would think that she’d be the obvious choice to write about the consequences of his actions.”
Line leaned forward, silently begging Luna to understand. “Princess, if Nosey writes this story, she won’t make it about you. She’ll make it about exonerating Lex. She’ll…” He licked his lips, which were suddenly dry, and took a deep breath before continuing. “She’ll make it sound like you deserved he did to you.” He knew that was going too far, but if that was what it took to talk the princess out of having the reporter who’d be least sympathetic to Luna’s situation be the one to break the news of her humiliation to Equestria, it was a price Line was willing to pay.
Unfortunately, he could already see that it was having the opposite effect, watching with a sinking feeling as Luna’s expression hardened, clearly insulted. “Of course, I’ll still be the one editing the piece for publication,” he began, trying to backpedal. “And we’ll run other articles in the same paper explaining the wider context of what happened. But I still think that-”
“You’ve made your feelings on the matter clear,” snapped Luna. “Now get her here and set up the interview. No delays.”
His ears folding back, Line nodded. “Yes, Your Highness.” Knowing that he’d worn out his welcome, he started to gather up the piles of notes. “It might take a little while, though. I gave Nosey a week’s vacation-”
“I’m sure she won’t mind coming back early.”
A frozen lake was warmer than Luna’s voice by that point, and it made Line shudder to hear. “I understand. I’ll stop by her place tomorrow and let her know you want to talk to her. We can set it up for a few days from now.”
“For sundown,” corrected Luna, her voice still frosty. “I know my sister will want to be here for this, since we’ll also be discussing the current situation in Vanhoover, but I don’t want to put it off any longer than absolutely necessary. Let Miss Newsy know that I’ll speak with her at sundown today.”
The tight timeframe was enough to make Line grimace, but he knew better than to protest the princess’s decision. “Yes, Your Highness.”
A curt nod was the only response he got as Luna stood up, Line hurrying to copy the gesture; nopony remained seated while royalty stood, especially not while in their castle. “Good. In the meantime, I have royal duties in the dream realm to attend to. You may see yourself out.” She didn’t look at him as she spoke, marching toward the door and yanking it open with her telekinesis.
“Thank you, Your High-” The slamming of the door behind her as Luna left cut off his perfunctory farewell, leaving Line alone in the empty room.
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Well, guess Luna did not appreciate Line's attempt to 'help' maintain her image though it's probably just annoyance at worst due to his constant insistence that Nosey does not go anywhere near the princesses.
Still, at least we know the guards won't be pulling some impromptu rescue now though considering they let a certain group flee Canterlot due to ice-cream, I can't help but imagine that they didn't bother to think about asking those in charge of the shipyards, train stations and gate guards(if there are any) about Silhouette.
Though I do wonder how much help Line Byline would be in rescuing Nosey since I doubt he'd be able to do much even if he discovers Nosey's state. Part of me just can't help but think that when Nosey doesn't answer him at the door, he'd think she wasn't in or she didn't want to see him after their talk the previous night and with Nosey bound and probably gagged before Silhouette let her sleep, she won't be able to make much noise to attract Line's attention.
For all Line's talk about ethical editing and Nosey's bias towards Lex, he sure seems to have his head far enough up the Princesses' plots to be blind to his own bias.
10498395
I doubt a news editor would be much help against a fanatical ex-guard whatever the case.
10498578
True, at best he'd cause enough of a ruckus to attract attention from Nosey's neighbors or at least some guards(not sure if they'll even bother to investigate) but that depends on whether or not Line catches Silhouette at all.
Still, I can't help but think that Line is acting the way he is only after he was summoned to the castle to meet with the princesses and seen the aftermath of their encounter with Lex. I mean, if he hadn't, he'd probably release the story just as Nosey intended since it focused on his heroics.
Luna is going to be trying not to go Nightmare when noone turns up as she ordered, and Sillouette has been even longer without sleep, making him even more unstable and excessive?
I think Luna's starting to become aware that her judgement was altered in the conflict. Aria's betrayal has had wide ranging consequences.
10498395 For all that she seems to be together here, Luna is almost certainly still trying to come to terms with what Lex did to her. Or at least, that's how her reacting so badly to Line's advice comes across. My guess would be that she knows he's right, but the issue is still too much of an emotional flashpoint for her to be able to deal with rationally.
With Shining Armor gone, it's likely that the remaining members of the Royal Guard couldn't catch a cold, let alone a rogue member (if he's not already an ex-member) of their order. I can almost picture them looking around the city at random, shrugging, and deciding that if they can't find him he must have left the city. I mean, to be fair, the guards aren't meant to be a police force; their job is to protect the princesses. But then again, I'm still not entirely sure that they're not just eye-candy for the alicorns.
As for what will happen when Line goes looking for Nosey...well, I guess we'll find out.
10498578 Like a lot of people, Line doesn't consider his bias to be a bias, but rather the correct standard from which to operate.
He's very much of the stance that it's irresponsible to simply put information out there without taking into consideration the potential impact it could have. It's likely, for example, that he wouldn't publish news about somepony having an affair unless he thought there was some sort of compelling public interest, whereas Nosey (at least before she was traumatized by Xiriel) probably wouldn't care about that part of it. The issue is that Line (and, to be fair, many - or even most - other ponies) think "princesses = good" and operate from there. In other words, anything good for the princesses is good for Equestria, and anything bad for them is bad for Equestria. So clearly, Lex Legis is bad for Equestria.
10498769 Well, Silhouette is sleeping during the day, remember, so as to avoid Luna seeing his dreams. As for Luna herself, I doubt she has the power available to her to become Nightmare Moon in her current state.
10499054 Actually, that was Celestia; Luna wasn't the one Aria enchanted. Though there's clearly still some fallout from that, since you have to wonder if Celestia would have drawn such a hard line regarding Lex if not for believing that he wasn't trustworthy.