Cadence

by bahatumay

Chapter 2

Celestia, suddenly mindful of just how tall she was and just far she towered over this little filly, crouched down to the ground, getting down on her belly so to be at the filly’s eye level. “Hello,” she said kindly.

The filly did not respond. She stared at Celestia with large, unblinking eyes. She lifted a forehoof, her defiant expression softening somewhat as uncertainty began to cross her face. Her eyes flicked to her horn and the wings at Celestia’s side, and her own wings seemed to twitch. This large white pony looked like her!

“Do you know why you are here?”

The filly shook her head.

“Do you remember what happened?”

The filly shook her head again. “I was with my minder, and then everything went dark. Then I woke up outside. It was snowy; but this castle isn't right.” She looked around herself again, taking in the sight. “It’s too dark.”

“I see,” Celestia said slowly. For some reason, she thought that the filly wasn’t just referring to the fact that it was currently Night. “Do you remember your name?”

This one she could answer. She straightened up and puffed her little chest out. “My name is Princess Mi Amore Cadenza,” she announced proudly.

Princess? Mi Amore Cadenza? Nopony named their foals like that anymore. Was she perhaps in the presence of a young time traveler? “Mi Amore Cadenza,” Celestia repeated. “That's a nice name.”

Mi Amore Cadenza dropped her hooves. “Princess,” she insisted. “And it's not supposed to be nice!” She scowled. “It's supposed to inspire fear and terror in all who hear it!”

Celestia had not expected this conversation to take that turn; but she prided herself on taking things in stride. “Do you want to inspire fear and terror?”

Mi Amore Cadenza looked down at the ground, and her wings wilted slightly. “I can't,” she confessed. “Not yet, anyway. I'm still just a little filly.” She straightened up and stomped a hoof on the ground. “But I'm training hard and when I'm big and strong and I'm Queen Mi Amore Cadenza, then I will strike fear in the hearts of all ponies!” she swore in her little wrath.

“I see,” Celestia said slowly. That was certainly an odd life goal. These words were words she'd expect from a seasoned tyrant, not a precutiescant filly. All that was missing was a practiced evil laugh. She cleared her throat. “My name is Princess Celestia, and I…”

“Celestia?” the filly squeaked, her front of defiance shattering. She skittered backwards until she hit one of the stone columns, her horn sparking as she tried desperately but failed to call up a spell to defend herself. Her once defiant expression had quickly morphed into horror. “My daddy said you were a bad pony! A monster!”

Celestia had been called many things, but ‘monster’ was certainly a new one. She frowned, feeling rather hurt that a filly would think that of her. “And who is your daddy?”

Mi Amore Cadenza frowned, stunned into lucidity by the simple question. Who was this huge, ignorant pony? “He's my daddy,” she said, as if it were obvious. “His name is King Sombra, king of the Crystal Empire.”

Celestia's jaw dropped. “S- Sombra?” Could it be…? Suddenly, her manestyle and attitude were all too horribly familiar. She had seen them before.

The filly nodded, then stood and glared again, her defiance returning as if suddenly remembering her father's power. “And if you try to eat me, I'll tell him and he'll use his purple magic on you and you'll regret it!” she threatened.

“Impossible…” Celestia whispered. She had made personally sure that all reference to casting his dark magic had been relegated to library rooms behind the strongest protections she could cast. She motioned a guard over, and magicked up a piece of paper and a quill. “Have your fastest pegasus patrol sent to these coordinates, and then report back directly to me,” she ordered quietly. “Order them to stop for nothing. Nothing.”

Though he undoubtedly found these instructions odd, the guard saluted smartly and departed.

Celestia turned back to the filly, who still glared defiantly at her. She put on her warmest smile as she shifted tactics now that she knew that she was speaking to the filly of one of the greatest threats ever seen in Equestria. Though the thousand years weren't over yet, thousand seemed to be more an estimate than a guarantee; and if Sombra had indeed returned, then it was time for a little damage control. “I'm afraid there's been a misunderstanding,” Celestia said kindly. “I don't eat ponies, and especially not nice fillies like you.”

Mi Amore Cadenza's glare intensified. Apparently, she didn't care for flattery.

Wise filly. Celestia seamlessly changed tactics. “I like eating other things. I like hay, and alfalfa, and oats—I really like oats—and cake and jam-filled doughnuts and hayfries and…”

That was as far as she needed to go; Mi Amore Cadenza's little tummy rumbled. She looked down and scowled at her stomach's betrayal, and shifted uncomfortably.

“Oh, my. Sounds like you're hungry,” Celestia said innocently. “I'm feeling a bit hungry, too. Would you like to come get some food with me downstairs?”

Mi Amore Cadenza glared at her suspiciously, but slowly nodded her head. There was no sense in starving to death.

* * *

Celestia was no stranger to visiting the kitchen at odd hours, and the night shift was always willing to prepare a snack or three for her. It wasn't much of an imposition; after all, the nocturnal night guard needed to eat, too, so there was always fresh food and plenty of fruit at any time of the night.

Speaking of which…

A young bat pony soldier stood guard outside the kitchen, probably standing here being punished for something—the sweet smells wafting out of the kitchen could have driven anypony mad. The bat ponies' foreign appearance tended to unsettle those who did not see them often, and this time was no different; the young alicorn filly froze and her wings flared in shock at the sight of him. He stood stiffly and didn't respond; but her eyes widened, and she crouched and shuffled around him, always facing him so as to not let him out of her sight. She nearly pinned herself against Celestia's hind legs as they passed him by.

As much as Celestia disliked seeing her guest in fear, she did find some consolation in the fact that Mi Amore Cadenza had trusted her enough to use her as protection.

As they arrived in the kitchen proper, Celestia suddenly realized that she was unsure what to serve Mi Amore Cadenza. After a thousand years, she could not remember what they had eaten at the Crystal Empire. She went with something light and safe: toast and jam, various breakfast pastries, and a glass of warm milk. She set the food in front of Mi Amore Cadenza, and sat back, letting her choose first.

She reached for a muffin, and then waited as Celestia made her choice. The filly looked at her food, but she did not eat. She looked around over her shoulder, as if expecting something; but nopony was there. She looked back over at Celestia as, in contrast, she began to eat readily. She squirmed slightly and bit her lower lip; clearly something pressing was on her mind.

Celestia paused and raised an eyebrow, wordlessly inviting her to speak.

“No one wants to kill you?” she asked suddenly.

Celestia paused. She blinked, and then wiped at her mouth politely with a napkin. “I should certainly hope not,” she said. “Why do you ask?”

“We have a pony who tastes all our food before we eat it,” she said matter-of-factly, “because lots of bad ponies want to kill my daddy.”

Celestia cracked a wry smile. Almost a thousand years ago, she was one of those ‘bad ponies’. “Well, it doesn't quite work like that here,” she said. “The ponies here like me, and don't want me to die, and I trust them.”

The filly narrowed an eye suspiciously. “Daddy says you should trust nopony, not even yourself,” she said.

“You're trusting me right now,” Celestia pointed out.

Mi Amore Cadenza was taken aback. She was, wasn't she? This wasn't right. “How do I know you don't want to kill me?” the filly demanded, suddenly looking suspiciously at her muffin. Maybe those little bits of fruit were actually poisonous bits of death!

Celestia reflected on this. Why would that be her first reaction? Still, from her perspective, it was a valid question. “If I'd wanted to kill you, I would have thrown you out in the snow earlier and let you freeze to death; or thrown you in a dungeon and let you starve to death,” she pointed out, sliding her plate closer to her. “But if it makes you feel any better…” Using her hoof, Celestia brought her fork over, scooped off a large portion of the muffin, and then placed it in her mouth. She chewed and swallowed, and then showed the filly her empty mouth so she could see that she had indeed eaten. She repeated the process with her cup of milk, and exaggeratedly licked off her milk mustache.

The frown on her face did not leave, but it did soften a bit, and the filly picked up her own fork and began to eat.

Once she'd decided that the food was not poisonous, she ate ravenously. She had probably been out there in the cold snow for a while before they found her. Luckily, Celestia reflected as her eyes traced over Mi Amore Cadenza's tiny frame, she looked as though she hadn't missed too many meals. Her mane was messy, but that was an intentional style clearly emulating Sombra's. Like his, hers was thick and luxurious; though it had three colors in it to Sombra's one. Her body still carried much of her foal chubbiness, and her coat showed signs of care and grooming. She couldn't have been very old at all. Mad though Sombra may have been, he had clearly reserved what little compassion he possessed for her.

When she had eaten everything before her, she sat back and waited; but though she hid her expression well—naturally, or through training?—Celestia could see that she was still hungry.

A slow smile crossed her face. She knew exactly what to give her now. She gestured over a chef and whispered an order, and she smiled and quickly departed. She more quickly returned with a large platter and slid it in front of Mi Amore Cadenza.

Mi Amore Cadenza stared blankly at the round objects in front of her. They were a golden brown, with dark brown chunks in them. “What are these?” she demanded to know. “Cow pies?”

“These are cookies,” Celestia said.

“Cookies?” Mi Amore Cadenza repeated slowly.

“They're delicious. You will like them, I'm sure of it.”

The corners of Mi Amore Cadenza's mouth curled down into a little scowl, and she did not make a move for one. Apparently, she did not put it past Celestia to feed her and then poison her.

Celestia knew these games. She slid a cookie over and broke it into fourths with her hoof. “Choose two,” she said, “and I'll eat mine first.”

“Do I choose yours, or mine?” Mi Amore Cadenza asked.

“Surprise me,” Celestia said with a smile.

Mi Amore Cadenza pulled one towards herself, then pushed another towards Celestia. Celestia popped it into her mouth and chewed contentedly.

Mi Amore Cadenza hesitantly slid one quarter into her mouth. She chewed once, and then her eyes widened. She reached out and quickly took not only hers, but Celestia's other quarter as well, and shoved them into her mouth.

“Slow down; I promise they're not going anywhere,” Celestia said with a smile.

Mi Amore Cadenza swallowed. “Are there more of those?” she half asked, half pleaded.

Celestia chuckled and slid another over. “Of course.”

Once Mi Amore Cadenza had eaten her fill (once the dozen cookies Celestia had requested were gone), Celestia glanced at the clock. “Oh, look at the time. It's time for sleep.”

Mi Amore Cadenza took this as a personal challenge. She stood and flared her little wings. “No! I'm a princess, and I take orders from nopony!”

Celestia waited until Mi Amore Cadenza had finished her yawn before continuing. “Well, I am an older princess; and I have learned that when you are tired, you make mistakes.”

“And if you make mistakes, you'll wind up dead,” Mi Amore Cadenza finished, nodding. She scowled, but couldn't deny this train of logic. “Ok. Where do I sleep?”

Dead? Celestia thought. “There are many spare rooms in the castle.”

“Fit for a princess?” Mi Amore Cadenza asked, raising an eyebrow.

Celestia chuckled lightly. “They're my rooms, and I am also a princess, so I certainly believe they are.”

Mollified, Mi Amore Cadenza followed Celestia down the hall.

* * *

Mi Amore Cadenza looked around her room. She stopped on the window and scowled. “What's with the window?” she asked accusingly.

“All bedrooms have windows,” Celestia said with a shrug. “All the better for seeing the sun rise.” And the moon, she silently added. Her lower lip tightened ever so slightly.

“More like opening up for an assassin to come in in the night,” Mi Amore Cadenza grumbled darkly.

It took Celestia a split second to remember the definition of that word. “I can assure you, there is no threat of assassination,” she said.

Mi Amore Cadenza scowled. “That's exactly what an assassin wants a ruler to think. How long have you been ruling, anyway?”

“Nearly one and a half thousand years, give or take a century,” Celestia said loftily.

Mi Amore Cadenza paused, and then scowled again. She had clearly expected a smaller, more inferior number, which she would then have compared to Sombra's rule. She settled for flicking her tail dismissively and grumbling something about taking care of herself before hopping up on the bed. She paused only long enough to appreciate the softness and bounciness of the mattress, but hid it quickly and trotted over to the center of the bed. She scrunched up her face and bent over under the strain as she lit her horn. Celestia couldn't suppress a wince as awfully familiar green and purple magic swirled around her horn, and purple magic trails flowed from her suddenly green eyes. A circle of dark light flashed into existence around the bed, an arcane circle with swirling runes. Then, as quickly as it had appeared, it faded away. Giving a self-satisfied snort, Mi Amore Cadenza lit her horn again, this time with a light cornflower blue glow, magically turned down the covers, then spun around three times and lay down.

Celestia swallowed and then left the room. That had been Sombra’s dark magic, for sure. And she had cast it so naturally and easily. What else had Sombra taught her?

* * *

The lunar guard commonly known simply as G stood staunchly at attention. Though nothing in her stance or expression betrayed it, she was a bit on edge. She knew there was something very wrong here in the throne room. Her royal highness Princess Celestia paced in circles like a nervous foal, continually looking out the window, as if waiting for a messenger bearing news. In all G's time as a lunar guard, Celestia had never been in the throne room when she stood on shift, even though protocol called for nearly a full squad of guards there just like during the day shift. Some speculated that this was an archaic practice for the protection of a long-lost Princess of the Night; but most lunar guards (including G) attributed it to general ignorance on the part of the Lightwalker brass on Night time logistics.

Finally, with a flurry of wings, three pegasi flew through the open window and landed, panting. Ice still clung to their armor, and Celestia felt a tinge of regret that she hadn't warned them to bring a scarf. Still, she rushed over, eager to hear the report.

“Nothing there,” one panted.

Celestia stopped short. “Nothing?” Celestia asked, frowning.

“Nothing but ice and snow.”

“And wind,” a second added, shivering hard enough to knock icicles off his armor. “Lots of wind.”

Celestia reached out her hooves, seized the nearest guard's head, and brought it close to hers so she could study his eyes; but they showed no sign of magical interference. They did, however, widen and show moderate surprise and confusion at being so forcibly handled.

“Thank you. Dismissed,” Celestia murmured as she dropped her hooves and resumed pacing.

A few minutes later, she had formulated a theory. Mi Amore Cadenza had been the outlier, the strange anomaly of Sombra's targets when he had cursed the empire; but she had been far enough away that the full effect of the spell did not take hold, and she had returned early.

This meant that Sombra's inevitable return was nearing. Perhaps even sooner than expected.

She glanced up at the moon and exhaled. There was another return coming soon, as well. Could her young student be ready in time to face two threats?

Comments

[Son of Sanguinius]

The plot begins.

[grabs bag of popcorn and slips on 3D glasses]

Let's ride, my friends.

[Cross Lament]

precutiescant

I love you.