Prim Rose's Redemption

by Hope

Chapter 26

“With this new council established, we shall appoint advisors to serve for the length of their employ in the court, as mediators to call upon in times of need or when the path ahead may be uncertain,” Luna explained, pacing the length of the royal dining room, while Prim sat near the door and listened patiently. “It would even have the authority to, if required, act as the governing body of Equestria, should both we and Spring fall.”

Prim nodded, holding her ledger to her chest and sipping a glass of water that floated in her magic. She’d been instructed by Glass to drink far more water than she was used to, to compensate for her rigorous training, so she now brought a glass wherever she went.

“So what dost thou needst from me, your Majesty?” Prim asked casually.

Luna, however, stopped and stared.

“Majesty? Thou hast never…”

“In honor of Tao and Evenstar, Princess. I hath spent much time in the company of Night and the others of late, so it has become something of a habit.”

Luna hesitated for a moment longer before shaking her head to jolt herself back to her prior frame of mind.

“Well… We had hoped that thou wouldst become a member of this council.”

Prim looked up quickly, surprised by the offer.

“An advisor? I wouldst become an advisor to thee? I am but Castalian, not a politician,” Prim said quickly, nervously imagining the complexities of the politics Luna was forced to deal with each day.

But Luna stepped up closer, sweeping a wing around Prim’s back and making the unicorn shiver slightly at the long craved sensation suddenly granted to her. She did her best not to make it too easy for Luna to tell how much her touch affected her, quickly drinking her water and focusing on the cool sensation instead.

“Prim, there shall be few members of this council that we trust, and fewer we know as well as thee. It would serve to offer us some comfort in knowing that thou wert there, seeking to protect Equestria, and ourself.”

“Of course,” Prim whispered, nodding and trying to resist the urge to lean into the embrace, and put her head to Luna’s chest, to breathe in the soft scent of her fur.

“So thou shalt take the position?”

“Yes, your Majesty,” Prim said in a daze, feeling a sharp pang of frustration as Luna drew away and clapped her hooves in joy.

“Most excellent! Then thou art our new advisor! Of course, by technicality an advisor to Prince Spring as well. Now, as our advisor, we must disclose to thee a frightening fact. The Griffins have landed forces upon the Eastern shore.”

The news shocked Prim out of her preoccupation with the lost touch she’d been mourning, and she looked to Luna incredulously.

“Already? There had been naught but vague threats by messenger until now. What prompted this sudden aggression?”

Luna sighed, looking out of the window and clearly weighing how much to tell Prim.

“King Grover has been sending us missives for some time now by a private method, demanding reparations for our strong reaction to his warning regarding our sister, a year past.”

“Reperations?” Prim asked reluctantly. “Of what sort?”

“Land. The southern deserts, even farmlands of late. Naturally we declined,” Luna said, turning back to Prim and looking annoyed. “He persisted, and recently the Griffin army began movements of aggression along the coast. Clearly the reluctance to publicly display their aggression was a ploy to catch us unprepared.”

“So… if they hath landed upon our shores, what shall we do?” Prim asked as she began to pace, using the motion to stir the aching longing out of her bones, and force her mind into motion.

“It is a debatable course,” Luna sighed. “For there are many courses open to us. The council's first issue of discussion shall be whether this action warrants a military movement or some other approach.”

“What wouldst thou prefer?” Prim asked Luna, looking back at her with concern and hoping for an easy answer.

“We do not know,” Luna replied after a short pause.

In that moment, Prim found that Luna looked so small and lost. It was new to her eyes, that Luna would be so uncertain and weary. For a bit, Prim didn’t know what to do, but then she realized that this was why Luna had wanted her to be part of the council. So she could advise her, and so that she wouldn’t make all of these decisions alone.

“It seems that a meeting of the council is in order, then,” Prim said calmly as she walked up to Luna and put a hoof on her foreleg. “We shall discuss the issue, and find a path to take. There is no need for thee to worry any longer, your Majesty.”

“My thanks to thee,” Luna said as she embraced Prim briefly. “There are times that we are forced to acknowledge how much we have yet to learn. Our sister had always been the Princess of diplomacy, with our own skill laying in the military actions when needed.”

“Then we shall see if such action is needed. I shall arrange for a meeting of the council this night, and ensure that a decision is reached before the next,” Prim reassured Luna as she let her head rest on Luna’s chest.

“Art thou so weary, Prim?” Luna asked as she lifted Prim’s chin to look in her eyes, concerned.

“Not overmuch,” Prim said as she pulled gently away, to force her mind away from the thought of leaning into a stolen kiss, and destroying the country’s stability and her friendship in the process. “But this all must be set to motion, if thou art comfortable with an absence, I shall see it all done swiftly.”

“Of course, “ Luna nodded with a fond smile. “We shall see thee again at Dawn court, if not sooner.”

“As thee wish, your Majesty.”

Prim bowed low and left the room, sipping her glass of water and barely noting the guards she passed as she entered the halls of the castle. She knew their names, she was certain, but they escaped her in the moment.

She strode to her own chambers and gathered a few supplies in her bags before moving on to the smaller room adapted for the Chamberlain. After three quick knocks, the door opened, and Filigree bowed slightly to Prim. As always, the former noble seemed muted and unhappy.

“The council shall need to be called to meet. ‘Tis at short notice but I trust the chamber is prepared?”

Filigree nodded again, before stepping out of her room and leading Prim to the chamber. Though Prim had her own key, she let Filigree open the door herself before walking in and examining it.

“Good, it looks excellent,” Prim said as she strode around the circumference and checked each surface. “Thou art truly discovering a talent for this, Fine.”

“I thank thee,” Filigree said softly as she checked the wine cabinet for anything that may have been left behind.

“A shade, I think… For future improvements. Dost thou agree?”

“Hmm?” Filigree turned to Prim, who was gesturing at the skylight, holding up a piece of parchment in her magic to shade it slightly.

“This chamber shall not be static forever,” Prim pointed out. “It shall grow, as we shall grow. A shade may allow for meetings during the day while allowing those of us who are nocturnal to attend meetings during the day.”

Filigree sighed as she looked up at the skylight, the bags under her eyes and the grey pallor to her coat becoming clear in the bright light. She looked drained of all spirit.

“I shall have a shade installed.”

But before she could leave the room, Prim stopped her with a hoof.

“Art thou so miserable here, Filigree? Or is this due to some other grief?”

Filigree carefully took Prim’s hoof in her magic and moved it aside so she could access the door. But before she left she turned back to Prim.

“I was ready to be executed. To be a martyr. I wasn’t ready to be forced to wear the colors of the moon, and pretend like my prior wealth and power were somehow invalidated by Princess Celestia’s foolish actions. Let me suffer, go about thy own work, and eventually I shall find some comfort in shades and wood varnish.”

Filigree then left the room and let the door swing closed behind her, leaving Prim to ponder what she’d said. Prim stepped out of the room and proceeded to Night Fury’s office, while thinking about whether Filigree’s attitude would become a problem. But before she could come to a conclusion, she arrived at the General’s office, and began gathering the council members.

---

“Thus the first meeting of the Ruling Council of Equestria is called to order,” Prince Spring said as he took a seat at the head of the table. “We shall represent the solar court until a representative to our interests is found to take our place. For the purposes of this council, we possess no additional powers or influence. Representing the Lunar court is Castalian of the Equestrian Castle, Lady Prim Rose. The noble interests and desires of the West are represented by Mint Mortar. Canterlot and the Central plains are represented by Countess Stratus. The Eastern shores are represented by Duchess Sandy Shores. Lastly, to represent the interest of the common pony, mister Fleet Hoof.”

Prim’s head snapped up at the last name, so she could spot the former spa assistant. He hadn't changed much, though he seemed much more confident and he had cut his mane short. Small changes, but they made him look serious, and made it hard for Prim to imagine the path that had taken the stallion from his prior position to this one.

He locked eyes with her and smiled a little, inclining his head in a small nod which she reciprocated.

“Firstly, we shall state the purpose of this council. Due to the rigors of operating a country as vast and complex as Equestria, and the most recent example of that toll creating a disaster, we hath created this Ruling Council to operate Equestria when the crown is not necessary, or when the action needs further deliberation than a royal decree. This must be said to be clear, none of thee are granted the power to perform changes alone. Only as a council shall thee decree even a single change. The purpose of this council is to improve and uphold Equestria and Equestria alone. If any of thee are discovered to be bending this council to thy profit or benefit, then we shall expel thee and determine an appropriate punishment. Now…”

Prince Spring took a deep breath and sighed before taking off his crown and setting it aside.

“This I tell thee now shall not leave this room. It is a sensitive topic and may be shocking… Griffonstone has landed troops upon our Eastern shore, and they have already taken control of one small town.”

There were several gasps around the table, but they remained mostly quiet. Prim noted that she was the only member who seemed unsurprised.

“This meeting’s purpose is to determine the actions that Equestria shall take. At this time the Solar court’s interests are in the halting of the progress that the Griffons have made, deploying our military to the coast. Thus we shall allow Prim Rose to speak on the Lunar court’s interests.”

Prim sat straighter and looked around the table.

“There is no set desire of the Lunar court, but to determine the most effective action there are some things the Lunar court would like to know,” she began before taking a scroll out of her bags and unrolling it to read off from it.

“We must know the number of Griffons on our shore, their position, and weapons. We must also be informed on the number of troops we have at our disposal, and where they are at this time. Lastly, where else could the griffons come from, were they to seek an additional ingress into our territory?”

The military portion of the discussion was really just a long period of scribes listing off information so that all present would be informed on the situation. They even laid out a large paper map of Equestria that showed the coastline, and marked where Griffin forces had been sighted.

“Alright, so we could meet them here,” Prim said as she tapped her hoof on a small farming town that the griffins seemed to be headed for. “But then a large portion of our forces shall be reserved for that encounter, and if an additional Griffin force were to land to the north, more vital cities would be in threat. May we instead channel them?”

“Channel?” Fleet Hoof spoke up.

“They seem to be set on approaching Everfree City, which though undesirable would leave them overextended and facing Princess Luna herself in battle, a threat more potent than any other we could offer. We could place our troops here and here…”

She put the troops in important cities, meaning that the griffins would be pushed towards their goal but denied resources.

“Forming a channel for their travel, to bring them here and allowing us to remove their means of escape upon their arrival, and deny them reinforcements.”

“I am willing to lose those towns in the path,” Stratus sighed. “For it shall spare a long battle requiring the formation of militias.”

“I would also endorse this plan,” Sandy nodded. “That one region being lost is a shame, but we must leave the coastal guard in place, to keep the shores safe.”

“And Lady Mortar?” Prim asked as she looked to the mint color pony who had refrained from speaking so far.

“Why not give the griffins what they want?” Mint said quietly, staying still in her chair while all the others had stood to see the maps better.

“Land,” Prim clarified. “They wish to be given Equestrian land, and you would have it given to them?”

Mint smirked, and Prim became certain in that moment that Mint was only there to make Prince Spring and Prim’s lives difficult.

“At least to give them some of the southwestern desert would surely prevent their aggression from continuing,” Mint said with a shrug.

“Those are Buffalo lands,” Fleet Foot said quickly, turning to face Mint with a scowl. “It is not ours to give, and surely we hath taken enough from the Buffalo in the last decade.”

“Oh, so the representative from the common pony is more willing to send an army of his country-mares to die than anger some sub-equines that Equestria already conquered? I would say I am shocked, but really I’m not. Stallions can be so emotional.”

Prim was surprised that Fleet didn’t lunge across the table at Mint. She knew that she would not have been so composed if Mint had said something so aggressive to her.

“We have three treaties with the Buffalo, just from what I may recall at the moment,” Prim said cooly. “I shall not allow Equestria’s word to become worthless through recanting our actions. Secondly, if another emotional assault upon Stallions is carried out by any member of this council, I shall seek to have them removed, am I clear?” Prim said as she watched Mint’s scowl become a grimace of restrained fury.

Without anypony replying to Prim’s declaration, she folded up her papers and cleared her throat.

“I motion that a channel solution shall be passed along to the general, and we shall begin preparations for the Griffon advancement towards Everfree City. Provided they continue their current path, they should arrive in full force within the month. Motion seconded?”

“Seconded,” Prince Spring said as he stood.

“All in favor?”

Every pony but Mint raised a hoof.

“All opposed?”

Mint was the only opposition, and Prim smiled cruelly as she wrote a brief note on her papers.

“Opposition noted. Prince Spring?”

“This concludes the first meeting of the Ruling Council, to reconvene when matters arise requiring our attention,” Spring said, before standing and walking out.

Prim could tell that the meeting had shaken up the prince, likely as well as Fleet, but while Fleet Hoof had left quickly, she still had a chance to speak with the prince.

Rushing after him, she caught up quickly, but realized she didn’t quite know what to say. Luckily, he spoke first.

“Thee have our thanks, for the response to Mint’s behavior. If we had responded as such, then there would have been claims that we favored the issues of stallions over that of mares.”

“Ah. I had wondered why thy Highness had remained silent,” she agreed. “A sensible withholding, but one I wish was not necessary. None accuse Princess Luna of favoring the interests of Mares,” she pointed out.

“No, but they do whisper of her favoring those of mares who love mares,” he said quietly.

Prim stopped dead in her tracks, feeling the sudden change of topic like a blow to the back.

“I didn’t…” she started hesitantly.

“Nothing was meant by it, Lady Rose,” Prince Spring said as he turned and looked to her sympathetically. “I simply… feel you should know.”

Then he walked away, leaving Prim to stand there, wondering what those whispers meant for her.

Comments

[Skyfall_Blitz]

Prim and Luna's situation breaks my heart a little