Questions
“Do I have to be there for this?” Rainbow grumbled irritably, looking up at Celestia with eyes begging for mercy.
“Yes, Rainbow Dash. You were the, shall we say, ‘victim’ of Blueblood’s rude behavior, so it is only prudent that you are present for a part of this discussion.” Celestia answered with a nod. She clearly didn’t like bringing Rainbow along for this little trip; the filly had been through enough already.
Rainbow scoffed and looked away to examine the houses as they trot by them on the street. Commoner ponies were making sure the two royals had their space, many of them giving respectful bows of their heads along the way. Celestia barely paid them any mind, but Rainbow was starting to shrink slightly.
“We’re almost there, Rainbow.” Celestia assured her softly, patting her gently with an extended wing before slightly increasing her pace.
“Which house is it?” Rainbow asked while scanning the street ahead of them, squinting in an effort to discern Canterlot architecture from more Canterlot architecture.
“The four story building, just there. See? It has the Equestrian flag blowing in the- Rainbow Dash?” Celestia asked before noticing that Rainbow had vanished. She looked around and then sighed in exasperation, but also amusement, when she spotted Rainbow coming to a swift landing in the front yard of Highblood’s estate. A couple of the ponies stationed out in front as the family’s personal guards came close to having heart attacks from the sudden appearance of the newly revealed royal, especially considering Cadance’s message earlier.
Picking up the pace, Celestia cantered past the ornate fence separating the estate’s grounds from the rest of the street. “Somepony eager?” she asked Rainbow with a small smirk.
“To get this over with and go home? Yeah, yeah I am.” Rainbow shot back before looking at the tall building before them. Her nose twitched slightly.
Celestia chuckled softly before turning her attention to the two guard ponies nearby, who both still looked rather pale. “At ease, gentlecolts. I assume Highblood and Blueblood are waiting for us inside?”
One of the guards cleared his throat and stood up straight. “Ahem- ah, yes your highness. Well, Highblood awaits you in his office. Blueblood is, er… not.”
“Where might he be?” Celestia asked with a raised eyebrow.
The guard shifted uneasily. “...Janitor work, your highness. Highblood saw fit to start his son’s punishment early, I think.”
Rainbow grinned widely. “Aw yeah!”
Celestia frowned mostly at Rainbow’s enthusiastic response. She put a hoof atop Rainbow’s head to get her attention before looking back to the guards. “Thank you. Resume your duties. I know the way.”
“Believe me, your majesty, I know.” The guard replied before giving a deep bow. He took up his position once more as Celestia and Rainbow entered the estate.
Rainbow looked up and blinked in surprise before squinting. “Okay, who’s idea was it to put up a chandelier of… of those things?! They’re reflecting more colors than I do!”
“Fire opals, Dash. The chandelier is made up of fire opals, and it was put into place by Highblood’s grandfather. He had a certain… passion for the gem.” Celestia answered, looking around the large central lobby with a neutral expression.
“It hurts my eyes.” Rainbow snorted.
“You and me both. But come, let’s not keep the prince waiting.” Celestia agreed while starting for the stairs in the back of the room. Rainbow followed, noting the deep blue carpet that led from the entrance to the stairs. The whole estate followed some very consistent color schemes, it appeared. Deep dark blue’s make up much of the floor, along with patterns of white and some black. The walls were white, albeit faded somewhat from age, while the trimmings were of a richly colored, well maintained wood. Even if she would always be partial to the old architecture and style of Cloudsdale, she had to admit, this estate wasn’t exactly hard on the eyes.
At the end of one of the hallways on the second floor, Celestia came to a stop before a somewhat more decorated wooden door. She paused and put a hoof on Rainbow’s back to stop her for a moment. Dash looked up with a curious tilt of her head. “What’s up?”
“Wait here for just a moment. I wish to speak with Highblood in private for a moment.” Celestia replied before knocking on the door.
“Come in!” came the response of an older stallion. Celestia opened the door and stepped inside. She turned to Rainbow and smiled.
“I’ll be only a few minutes. I’ll call you in when we’re ready.”
“Uh-huh, sure,” Rainbow replied casually, waving her hoof at Celestia. “Go ahead. I’ll be here.”
Celestia nodded with an appreciative smile before closing the door. From where she stood, Rainbow Dash could just make out the muffled voices of the two speaking to one another. For now, all Rainbow Dash could do was wait.
“Only a few minutes, she said. Wait right here, she said. It’ll be fun, she said!” Rainbow snorted to herself while anxiously pacing back and forth. She glanced at the grandfather clock of the small lounge she had slinked off to after the ten minute mark. At least now she had comfy chairs to sit in and the office was just down the hall. She’d hear Celestia opening the door, so it shouldn’t pose any problems.
It had been thirty minutes, though, and Rainbow was getting more than a little antsy. “What are they talking about?!” she groaned in frustration before looking around the room. There were numerous chairs, a few couches, a loveseat in one corner, numerous coffee tables and desks, a few lamps and plenty of bookshelves, each one full of books.
Rainbow had made a little mental game of taking the first letter of each word from the titles of two or three books, then come up with a cool sounding acronym. With a grunt, she decided one more round couldn’t hurt. She began to scan the shelves when her ears perked up. She could hear Highblood’s voice coming from his office. He was speaking more loudly and clearly than before.
Now with curiosity burning in her mind, Rainbow slowly trotted to the door and put her ear to it.
“If I may be so bold, Princess, why her? You’ve told me her story, but that doesn’t explain why.” Highblood asked, sounding slightly frustrated.
“And I already told you why. She needed a home, Highblood, and I was more than happy to provide one.” Celestia answered calmly. Rainbow could practically feel a slight tension in the air.
“With all due respect your highness, I don’t buy that at all. We’ve had enough of these meetings on account of my son that I know you better than many of the nobles do,” Highblood pointed out. “The Celestia I know wouldn’t have decided to adopt some unknown filly of no status unless there was a very good reason. What you’re telling me may be morally correct, but you are the ruler of this country, Princess. I know you have to think more practically than that.”
“Do not think, even for a moment, that I disregard the morals I swore myself to when I assumed the throne so long ago, Highblood.”
“That’s not what I am implying, Celestia, you know that. I just know you. And I know you’re hiding something. I merely wish to know what that is.”
Rainbow frowned and looked at the door quizzically before pressing her ear closer.
“Nothing gets past you, Highblood,” Celestia chuckled in amusement. “But, alas, this is not something I can easily tell others. I must ask you to simply trust me.”
“I trust you with my life, your majesty. I just can’t help but sometimes wonder why. You hide so much, even if it’s for our own good.”
Rainbow took her ear away from the door. “What…?” she looked at the door again before turning her attention to a nearby window. Acting on a hunch, she fluttered up and peered out onto the streets below. “Okay… yeah, I knew it. Twilight’s house is right there…” she remembered then that Twilight was apparently spending the night at home with her parents. “...Might as well see if she knows anything.” Rainbow carefully slid the window open and then shot across the street, leaving a prismatic trail in her wake.
“I got it honey!” Night Light called out to Twilight Velvet when he heard the sound of somepony knocking on his front door. He slid off of his seat and trotted out into the entry hall. It was decorated in deep blue, subtle gray and numerous shades of purple. He paused only very briefly to give Twilight Sparkle, who was currently seated in one of the seats in the room, a proud smile. He then pulled open the door and looked out. “Hello, what can I- ...what?”
“Down here, dude.”
Night Light looked down and came close to fainting when he realized it was Rainbow Dash standing in front of him. “Waoh! Your highness-”
“Don’t call me that. May I come in?” Rainbow cut him off firmly before putting on a somewhat more friendly expression.
“Uh…” Night Light’s mind took a moment to catch up. He shook himself and then nodded. “Oh, of course! Come on in and make yourself at home.”
“Thanks. Hey, Twilight! You in here?” Rainbow called as she stepped into the building, looking around curiously. The color scheme was wildly different from that of Highblood’s manor.
“Rainbow?” Twilight looked up from her book (‘From Salt-Shaker to Teacup: A Beginners Guide to Transfiguration Principles and Spells.’) and blinked in surprise. ‘What are you doing here? I thought you were at Highblood’s place?”
“I was and I wasn’t supposed to leave yet. I kinda gotta ask you something, though. I think it’s important,” Rainbow explained before glancing at Night Light and the newly arrived Twilight Velvet. “Anywhere we can talk in private?”
Twilight blinked again while her ears twitched in confusion. “Uh… sure, I guess?” She slipped off of her couch and looked to Velvet with an equally confused expression on both of their faces. “Princess Rainbow Dash and I-”
“Rainbow Dash is fine, Twilight.”
“...Rainbow Dash and I are gonna be upstairs for a minute,” Twilight looked at Rainbow again with a scrutinizing gaze before leading her out of the room and up a flight of stairs. At the end of the following hall, Twilight opened a door that led into her room. It was softly colored in deep blues and dark purples, most of the illumination coming from small lamps or candlesticks. Rainbow had to admit, it was easier on the eyes than the other rooms.
Probably easier to read in…
“Okay. Now that we’re here… what’s going on?” Twilight asked, turning to Rainbow and gazing at her intently.
“Okay, uh… You know Princess Celestia pretty well, right? You spend a lot of time together so…” Rainbow asked awkwardly, one of her forelegs making wide gestures that ultimately meant nothing.
“Er, I think? She’s over a thousand years old, Rainbow Dash. I doubt I can get to know her very well unless I have a comparable frame of reference.”
“Whatever. My question is… well, how much like her is it for her to, well, adopt me?” Rainbow asked, looking at Twilight as she recoiled in alarm. “Like, is it something she would normally do? If so, what would her reasons be?”
“I… I don’t... “ Twilight stuttered before sitting down on her haunches and rubbing her face. “I don’t know. I mean, she can be vague, cryptic and all that, but… I really don’t know how to answer that.”
“Well, Prince Highblood and Celestia were chit-chatting and, well, I overhead them talking about me. Highblood doesn’t seem to think it’s normal of Celestia at all to adopt me. She even went so far as to admit that she was hiding something. She just didn’t elaborate on what.”
Twilight’s ears fell flat against her head. “I… The Princess is-”
A knocking came to her bedroom door, interrupting her. Only a moment later, it was opened to reveal Twilight Velvet and Princess Celestia on the other side. Rainbow instantly shrunk away, as did Twilight.
Celestia looked at them both disapprovingly, though not harshly. “You know, Rainbow Dash, if you were bored you could have just knocked.”
Sensing an out, Rainbow shrugged. “I’ve only been here for a few weeks and it sounded like you two were having an important chat. I didn’t wanna interrupt or anything.”
Celestia smiled knowingly. “Well, you’re timing was rather poor. Pretty much as soon as you left I opened the door to let you in.”
“...Oh,” Rainbow face hoofed in exasperation.
“Come, then. Prince Highblood is waiting for you,” Celestia said before nodding to Twilight with a warm smile. “Have a good day now, my faithful student.”
Twilight nodded and waved uneasily, an enormously fake grin remaining plastered on her face until both, Rainbow and Celestia were out of sight. Once they were gone, she slumped to the ground and groaned. “Oh, boy…”
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this was way too short of a chapter. could have been more here.
8366326
I typically clock out at 2,000 or so words per chapter. Only on rare occasion do I have more than that.
Once more, very good job on this latest chapter. The characterizations are particularly well done. And, yeah, both Rainbow and Twilight are getting more and more curious as to what's going on (which is the maximum detail I can go into at this point). And, yeah, Twi DOES have a point about how hard it would be to find somebody with a long enough lifespan to REALLY know Celestia well (which is all I can say without too many spoilers).
But, at any point, I will most assuredly be looking forward to more. However, I also more than respect the fact that real world concerns must come first.
8366397
but not much progression though. could have finsihed it with the how Highblood discussions.
8367140
Heh...eh heh. Nah. I'm not Larson.
8367198
AWww poo, I wanted to see an Alicorn Twi and RD.
8367241
Maybe next time...
I feel like Dash's status as a Princess might have something to do with the Elements, but if I know any good mystery novel, red herrings are afoot... For now, I'm gonna keep my mouth shut to as to prevent myself from swallowing it. I can't wait to see more, including not just why Tia adopted Dash, but also if the other Mane 6 are gonna show up!
8367406
How does one even swallow their own mouth? That doesn't seem physically possible...
That author's note cracked me up.
!
8367923
You don't want to know...
8367923
Swallowing the red herring... Suppose that could've been clearer.
They're all used to Blueblood being a little shit.
You made that last bit up.
Forget to sound proof the room from the mischievous and curious filly RIGHT OUTSIDE THE DOOR, dear Celestia?
8368276
Nah... she probably meant for that to happen. Probably. Maybe. It's Celestia: Who the fuck knows.
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i0.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/facebook/000/340/275/bc0.png
8368288
I'm waiting for your explenation.
8368334
i dont think your getting one
8374430
Good.
s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/f5/53/f1/f553f1731725be9451602d7003d3fd7d.jpg
That author's notes tho
your
A part of me was hoping that Rainbow Dash didn't properly know how to tell time, and that it was actually only just three minutes, or she was looking at the second hand.
your
The story is so goo to read at.
But, the whole Highblood thing drives me nuts
Assuming this version of Twilight ascends, I can only imagine how much Dash will call her princess because of these chapters now.
The seed of doubt was cast, will it take root?
In my experience as teacher and tutor, unanswered questions are devastating to a student's ability to understand a topic. I believe that extrapolates beyond education. The statement "there is a reason, but I cannot tell you" can be infuriating, but it is honest. It is an answer, not a useful one, but it acknowledges the question and the feelings behind it. That itself is valuable.
8378591
I feel like that graphic should come with every creep-tacular Samsung smart TV. (After all, the TV's privacy agreements - which Samsung KNOWS no one will ever read - states that these smart TVs are always listening and transmitting audio recordings to Samsung in real time, even when turned "off".)
Not too much respect there Dashie.
11189043
It's Rainbow Dash. What were you expecting? XD