12
12
Twilight watched as Spike and Starlight waited for the train to Canterlot, unable to join them in their excitement. They were chatting it up like old friends on their way to college, which the alicorn would have normally found adorable. Instead she felt in pain, and it took every ounce of her will to keep the façade of her composure from collapsing. In truth, she wanted to beg them to stay, but she knew that wouldn’t work and was, frankly, beneath her station. She had to be strong and supportive of her charges.
Still, their decision was so sudden. How was she to adjust to it? She had expected at least two more days with her faithful former student and number one assistant, but now she would return to an empty castle. She couldn’t help but feel this was all the direct result of her blowing up at the two of them over race issues and Cutie Marks a week ago. Had it even been a week? It felt far longer than that, as if months had passed. Would every day without her closest friends feel like an eternity, as well?
The Princess of Friendship felt the sudden need to hyperventilate, but kept her cool; she had to stay strong so Spike and Starlight wouldn’t feel obligated to stay for her sake. They deserved the chance to explore new fields of study. Why couldn’t she be like Trixie? The magician was propped up against her steamer trunk, snoozing away as if nothing mattered.
“I made it!” Fluttershy said as she landed next to the Princess, catching the attention of the departees, as well, “I won’t miss you this time around. Here – Discord and I made you some trail mix. There are also some spare bags for the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Would you two be so kind as to hand them along? If that’s alright.”
“Of course, Fluttershy,” Starlight said, levitating most of the bags into her saddlebags and opening one for her and the dragon to share, “thank you so much for these!”
Twilight glared at the two of them sharing the same bag… She shook her head. Friends sharing a bag of trail mix was not an implication of romance; they were probably sharing with Trixie, anyway. She needed to stop spending late nights reading Rarity’s cheap romance novels.
“Where are the others?” Twilight asked, a little desperate for moral support.
“Oh, well…” Fluttershy looked at the ground, “We had a tiny falling out the other day, so we’ve kind of been avoiding each other…” The pegasus perked up, though, “I-I know Applejack is busy with the fall harvest, though – and Rainbow Dash always works Wednesday morning.”
“I’m pretty sure Pinkie mentioned something about planning a Nightmare Night celebration,” Starlight tapped her chin, “You know how she gets when there’s a party on her schedule.”
“And Rarity?” Spike asked, causing Starlight to roll her eyes.
“Oh, that’s an easy one,” Fluttershy giggled, “She couldn’t bring herself to say goodbye to you so soon after saying goodbye to her sister.”
Twilight nodded; that made sense.
“She did ask me to give you this letter, though,” Fluttershy produced a letter from her bag, but looked frustrated, “before rudely insisting I leave her boutique.”
“Is it really that bad?” Twilight groaned. Seriously, couldn’t her friends just get over the political thing? Equestria was a monarchy, like it or not, and regular ponies weren’t equipped to handle the myriad threats surrounding them.
“Nice, rose-scented!” Spike inhaled the letter. Starlight looked like she could melt rocks with her glaring.
“Fluttershy, why don’t you make sure Spike is familiar with the fauna he might encounter in Canterlot? I want to make sure he’s properly prepared for any hazards,” Twilight asked, turning towards Starlight after the pegasus nodded, “Starlight, why don’t we get some drinks from the vending machines in the meantime? After all, wouldn’t some nice juice go great with that trail mix?”
“Uh, sure Twi,” the unicorn blinked, moving to follow.
“Ooo,” Trixie crooned from under her hat, “you’re in trouble…”
The duo ignored her and walked out of earshot towards the vending machines. As soon as they rounded the corner, Twilight rounded on and cornered the unicorn.
“Do you have a crush on Spike?” Twilight demanded, quietly.
“What the-?” Starlight’s eyes widened, “What in the name of Equestria makes you think that?”
“Your interest in dragons, for one,” Twilight deadpanned, “Your kite? Your toothbrush?”
“Oh, that!” Starlight giggled, though there was a light blush, “Remember my favorite game growing up was Dragon Pit. I’ve always thought dragons were cool!”
“Especially purple ones?”
“Purple is one of my favorite colors,” Starlight snorted, stroking her mane, “though I’m a little biased.”
“With green spikes?” Twilight raised a skeptical eyebrow.
Starlight stayed silent, choosing to look at the vending machine as her blush grew.
“Let’s suppose…” she began, “that I might have a tiny crush on Spike. What would be the problem with that?”
“Oh, a hypothetical situation? I love these!” Twilight feigned enthusiasm, “Let’s see… Oh! For starters, he’s a minor!”
“By pony standards, maybe,” Starlight countered, “and yeah, he’s a baby dragon, but he’s nigh-immortal! He’ll still be a baby even when I’m dead, and his growth is, like, dependent on personal achievement and wealth! At least, that’s what you’ve said.”
“He’s still only fourteen!” Twilight hissed, checking around the corner to make sure they hadn’t drawn any attention, “The age of consent is-”
“Sixteen in Canterlot and the Crystal Empire,” Starlight declared, “and the Dragon Lands don’t have an age of consent.”
Twilight blinked.
“Law is one of my hobbies…” the unicorn blushed even more, “I swear I studied that as soon as I started living with you.”
“Just… just promise me you won’t make any advances until he’s, er… legal. Please?”
“You’re so cute when you get protective,” Starlight giggled, trying to defuse the situation. Seeing it wasn’t working, she cleared her throat and forced the blush from her face. “I don’t plan on making any advances or romantic hints. I-I don’t want to.”
“But you just confessed you had a crush…”
“I simply asked a hypothetical question,” Starlight smirked, “Now, if Spike – upon reaching the age of consent – decided to hit on me, well, I’m not getting any younger and there aren’t many stallions interested in dating a former dictator.”
“I… I guess I couldn’t really stop either of you…” Twilight sighed, “It’s just kind of weird, the idea he might date some pony my age…”
“The Cutie Mark Crusaders are in Canterlot,” Starlight said, looking a little cynical, “I’m sure he’d fall for Sweetie Belle. I mean, she looks a lot like Rarity, and they’re closer in age…”
Twilight saw the crestfallen defeatism in Starlight’s eyes and growled in frustration at what she was about to do.
“Did you know…” Twilight sighed, wondering why she was encouraging this, “did you know Spike used to sleep with a plushy of Rarity? He hasn’t for some time, now. I think he got over the crush for the most part.”
“Oh…” Starlight blushed at that. Realizing how strange the conversation was, she smiled meekly. “It’s probably just a school-filly fad; I’m sure I’ll get over it. Still… thank you.”
“Don’t mention it,” Twilight said, “Seriously, don’t. Now let’s get those drinks.”
Twilight and Starlight got the beverages and returned to the station as the train appeared in the distance.
“That took a while,” Trixie muttered, taking her juice, “Was there a line, or something?”
“The machine was acting weird,” Twilight explained with a knowing smirk, “but we worked it out.”
“Yeah,” Starlight felt the barb, but smirked back, “it was having a hard time giving up its juice, but it realized that’s what it had to do.”
“Self-aware vending machines?” Spike’s pupils shrunk, “This is just like the twenty-ninth issue of the Power Ponies!”
“Don’t worry, Spike,” Starlight snorted, “we won’t need to resort to Dr. Chaotica’s death ray.”
The two shared a laugh at that, though it went over every pony else’s heads. Trixie only rolled her eyes and muttered something about “nerds”; Twilight and Fluttershy exchanged confused expressions, unfamiliar with comic books. The train arrived as their laughter died out. They both looked wistfully at the train, then back at Twilight, as if for approval.
“Go,” the Princess mouthed, smiling through her tears.
Starlight and Spike dropped their bags and ran towards Twilight, startling her with a group hug. Her eyes widened in surprise at the sudden movement, and at the fact both were crying.
“I-I’ll miss you, Twi!” Spike sniffed.
“Thank you,” Starlight murmured, “for everything.”
“Geeze, calm down!” Twilight found it hard to maintain her laity, her voice cracking with emotion, “It’s not like you’re going to war.”
“I-I’ll write you every day!” Spike promised.
“Me too!” Starlight said.
Both looked back at the magician who only sighed.
“Fine,” she said, “Trixie will write, too.”
“That’s very thoughtful!” Twilight scrubbed at her eyes with a wing, “Once a week would probably be better, though I would love to get letters daily.”
The pair dried their eyes and resumed their position to board the train, sparing another look back at Twilight. Trixie, too, spared a sad look at the Princess, but once Twilight caught her, she merely turned around, flustered.
“Remember to behave!” Twilight called after them as they boarded, “And don’t freak out at how much you have to read! And remember to wash behind your spines, Spike! I’ll know!”
“Okay!” Spike chuckled out of the window as the train blew its whistle and started pulling out, “Twilight!”
“Yes, Spike?” the alicorn found herself trotting alongside the train as it picked up speed.
“I…” the dragon looked conflicted, wondering how to say what was his on his mind. Seeing them running out of platform, he blurted, “I love you… mom!”
Twilight’s eyes widened again and she stopped at the platform’s edge, watching the train disappear, her friends waving out of the windows. Twilight was all but sobbing, watching them go, scrubbing at her eyes furiously and trying to control her breathing. Fluttershy stood beside her and wrapped an encouraging wing around her shoulders.
“It’s alright, Twilight,” the pegasus said, gently, “I won’t tell any pony about you crying; you just let it all out.” After the alicorn finished, hiccupping and sniffling, the pegasus asked, “Would you like some ice cream?”
“Y-” Twilight hiccoughed as she tried to get her breathing back to normal, “Yes, please.”
Meanwhile on the train, Spike was groaning into his hands. How embarrassing.
“Relax, Spike,” Starlight rubbed his shoulder, “That was really sweet.”
“Positively adorbs, actually,” Trixie agreed, sifting through the trail mix, “No peanuts?”
“She didn’t say anything back,” Spike sighed, “I just made everything super-awkward!”
“Believe me, Spike,” Starlight giggled, looking back at the distant train station, “She feels the same way.”
…
Celestia entered the room set aside for studying to check in on her students’ progress between her duties. She had passed out earlier than usual the night before and felt as if she had forgotten something important, but it was already nearing lunchtime and no pony had informed her of a crisis. Entering the room, she smiled at the sight of her students working together in an impromptu study session.
“Hold on, I thought Starswirl’s Theory of Cordiality was the precursor for his Tenets of Politeness?” Flim asked, nibbling on his quill as he looked at his notes.
“You’re confusing his Theory of Cordiality with his Theory of Tactfulness,” Sweetie Belle said, absently, levitating a cup of coffee to her mouth. She already had bags under her eyes, just like all the others… except one.
“You know; I’m seeing a lot of Starswirl’s philosophy in Flint Lock’s A Practical Practice, and in Iron Cross’ Doctrine of the Crown,” Apple Bloom said, sifting through four open books at once, “Even Starlight’s Manifesto has some of his teachings – namely the Equine Equality subsection of his Tenets of Politeness.”
The others glared at her, but Celestia smiled in approval. Apple Bloom was as studious as Twilight, putting all her impressive energy into studying for both courses, simultaneously. Eying the page the farm-filly was currently at, Celestia was impressed that far more than the daily sixty pages had been read.
“How goes the studying, my little ponies?” the Princess of the Day asked.
“Well, we finally got through the sixty pages,” Flim said, “but we’ve been up since dawn…”
“…and our notes don’t make much sense,” Flam sighed, “How many theories did Starswirl have?”
“Twenty-seven,” Celestia and Apple Bloom answered, simultaneously, surprising each other.
“I might have to drop Luna’s political course,” Sweetie Belle sighed, “I like her, but the subject doesn’t interest me… plus, it’s a lot of extra reading.”
“Yeah, me too…” Scootaloo confessed, “We shouldn’t feel bad, though; Spike, Starlight, and Trixie will be here tonight, and Starlight’s definitely taking her course.”
“I fear she will still take it poorly,” Celestia frowned, “You will attend her weekly courses, though, yes?”
“Absolutely!” Scootaloo beamed, “I can’t wait for the chivalry one, and that’s tomorrow!”
“I’ll definitely take the magic course,” Sweetie Belle agreed, “but it’s only offered on Monday, since that’s when her power’s strongest, or something. She has an ancient lore course, too, and that one is this Friday.”
“I’m interested in the Old Ponish and ancient lore courses, myself,” Apple Bloom said, eyes still scanning the books, “I’d also take the chivalry one, but I think I might be overdoing it.”
“You think?” Scootaloo deadpanned.
“Anyway, the Old Ponish course is tonight,” Apple Bloom ignored her friend’s sarcasm, “I think understanding Old Ponish will help me better grasp the ancient lore, which in-turn would help me better understand some of Starswirl’s more difficult concepts.”
“Very astute…” Celestia mumbled to herself, “Has she always been so eager to learn?”
“Her interests have been pretty varied,” Sweetie explained, “She’s a skilled carpenter with an interest in potion-brewing and dance. I’m not surprised she likes to study.”
“Yeah,” Scootaloo agreed, “Carpentry, brewing, and dance all require a lot of study and practice, and usually very rigid patterns.”
“I thought dance was supposed to be expressive and fluid, not rigid?” Celestia wondered.
“They never said I was good at it,” Apple Bloom snorted.
“Well, I have it on good authority that your apothecary skills are excellent,” Celestia smirked at the abashed twins, “You two might consider taking a few weekly courses, too.”
“Hmm…” Flim rubbed his chin, “One has caught my eye…”
“Mine too, brother,” Flam agreed, “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”
“Chivalry!” Flim cried at the same time Flam said “Old Ponish!”
Surprised at each other, they both cried, “What?!”
“How could you not be interested in chivalry?” Flam exaggerated the offense, “Imagine us acting as nobles, carrying ourselves with the grace and charisma of royalty! And we’d get to learn martial combat, too!”
“Oh, you’re only interested in that course to impress mares!” Flim scoffed, “We don’t need to be knighted just to be charismatic! Knowing Old Ponish would be far more useful. Imagine the relics we could study, the books we could translate (and sell)! We’d be like Daring Do!”
“Knights!” Flam growled.
“Daring Do!” Flim growled back.
“I had no idea you two wanted to be adventurers,” Celestia’s eyes widened at the thought. An image of Flam in a suit of armor came, unbidden, to her mind, and she banished it. She was over that, wasn’t she?
“What?” the twins looked horrified as Flam spoke, “No, ma’am! Adventures are dangerous and unpleasant.”
“We could die!” Flim added.
“So heroic…” Celestia murmured.
“Why don’t you take both?” Apple Bloom suggested.
“It’s so much work, though…” Flim groaned.
“You two can handle it,” Apple Bloom beamed at them, “I thought we agreed you shouldn’t sell yourselves short.”
“D’aw,” Celestia tilted her head, “I’ll leave you five to your studies, then. Oh, and Flim, Flam?”
“Yes?” the twins answered.
“I hear mares, even today, are enamored with knights,” the Princess said, “and there are plenty of mares who still swoon to Old Ponish poetry, even if they can’t understand what’s being said. If your interest was getting a certain farmer’s attention, or… maybe some pony else.”
With that, she left. The two twins had their mouths firmly closed, sweating slightly.
“Both it is!” Flam declared.
“Wise decision, brother!” Flim agreed.
Apple Bloom rolled her eyes as she saw the twins dive back into their books with renewed vigor.
…
It took extreme effort not to get angry at the proceedings. News of the rift between city-states had spread beyond leadership. The main chamber was filled with arguing stallions and mares, representatives from both within and without Equestria, demanding something be done. Celestia’s efforts to remind them the city-states had a right to determine their own government was drowned out by their bickering. Worse, members of the Royal Guard had clustered into their own groups, based on the region of their birth and upbringing, glaring at one another.
Disharmony within her own castle? Celestia was not pleased.
“Enough!” she declared, frustrated at having to use the Royal Voice just to be heard. The bickering silenced rapidly as her subjects turned towards her. “We have been united for over one thousand years. Why is it that all of you suddenly wish to throw that away over something as trivial as politics?”
“Trivial?” a republican representative gaped, “Is it not in your teachings that ponies are supposed to be treated with love, kindness, and respect?”
“Yes, every pony knows this!” Celestia snapped, then muttered, “At least, I had hoped every pony knew this…”
“The democratic system is the only way to ensure fairness amongst ponies of all classes,” the representative continued, earning cheers of approval from the other republicans, including some of the Guard, “By giving even the poorest ponies a say in government, are we not giving them the respect they deserve? Is it not kind and loving?”
“I suppose next you’ll want the wealthy ponies to give up their land and fortunes to bring equality to subjects?” the Germane representative sneered, “Equality is a cancer, and there is no mention of it in Celestia’s teachings!”
“There are ample references to it!” the Marexican representative spoke up, “Besides, one does not need to redistribute resources; merely to offer equal opportunity!”
“I don’t know,” another representative spoke up, “redistribution would go a long way… An unfair amount of power is held by the wealthy, and it interferes with our democratic model…”
“See?!” the Germane said, “Even within their own camp they are in disagreement! Within our ancient and sacred system, we are united! For the glory of Celestia and the crown!”
The other conservative city-state representatives cheered, repeating the mantra.
“Perhaps my hooves-off approach to governing isn’t working out as well as I thought it would…” Celestia admitted to herself, drawing the attention of the crowd again.
“All the more reason for you to bind us under a single system, Your Majesty,” the Germane bowed, prompting the others to bow, though the republican representatives did so with hesitation.
Celestia looked at the crowd of representatives before her, one for nearly every pony city-state in Equestria and several beyond its borders. They were calling for unity, and was that a call she could deny? Democratic city-states were commonplace, but imperial city-states were far older. Binding the ponies together under one nation was problematic in that forcing them to adhere to one body politic rather than another would seriously damage the city-states of the losing philosophy. Conversely, letting them continue the practice of operating under different constitutions was just as problematic, since that was what was causing the disharmony in the first place. Practically, for a unified pony nation, there needed to be a universal political system governing laws and protecting standard rights across its entire length; allowing each city-state to have varying laws wouldn’t make them any more of a nation than they already were.
“I suppose…” Celestia began but was distracted by a yawn.
“Sister?” Luna asked as she entered the hall, drawing eyes from the gathered ponies, “What is happening?”
“Remember that problem I mentioned last night?” Celestia sighed, remembering what had been bothering her this morning, “Surprise…”
“Whatever is the matter, subjects?” Luna asked, doing her best to sound sympathetic. She lacked the warm charisma of Celestia, but that didn’t make her concern any less genuine.
“We need to unite as a single pony nation!” the Germane declared, “In order to defend ourselves from the military alliance of those non-ponies!”
“Our problem stems from the fact we cannot determine which system to operate by,” the Marexican stated, “A great many of our city-states, especially within Equestria, have more democratic forms of government, but these backwater holdouts from outside Equestria want us to adopt their form of feudal oppression.”
“Canterlot is one of those backwaters, wench…” the Germane warned and the two glared at one another.
“The republican city-states are the more numerous, are they not?” Luna frowned at the ‘military alliance’ bit; what had she missed? “Should we not adopt the majority?”
“There may be more of their city-states, especially within Equestria’s borders,” the Germane confessed, “but our city-states are far older and far larger. I would say our populations are about even. Besides, we are not a democracy! We all defer to the Princess!” The Germane blinked before adding “…es.”
“Indeed…” Luna mused, eying her sister, “What were you about to say, before I arrived? It seemed like you had reached a decision on how best to unite the ponies.”
“It’s not even three yet, Luna,” Celestia noted, motherly concern in her voice, “Shouldn’t you be resting?”
“Your decision, sister?” Luna asked, a little hardness in her voice. In truth, the volume of the bickering and ripped her from her dreams.
“I… thought the obvious solution was to bind Equestria under the model of Canterlot,” Celestia admitted, feeling tension building. Between Luna’s lack of sleep and fondness for democracy, this wasn’t going to end well if the Princess of the Day lost her tact.
“The authoritarian model, then,” Luna snorted, earning murmurs of agreement from the republican representatives, “I do not agree. Ponies should be given greater freedoms and more equal opportunity in government and careers – not born into their station.”
“Oh, like you’d just hand over your title as Princess!” Celestia rolled her eyes, losing her cool at her sister’s churlish behavior.
“Absolutely,” Luna said, startling those gathered, “It is not as if I would forsake the duties that come with my powers; I’d merely be handing over the right to rule from myself to our subjects.”
The republican city-state representatives entered a frenzy of excited murmurs as the imperialists only looked on, horrified. A Princess? Forsaking her divine right to rule so commoners could run the nation? The idea was absurd and offensive. It had never been done before because it was never really needed.
“Sister, I think this is best discussed in private,” Celestia said, trying to recover her poise after her outburst, but now stunned by Luna’s admission. Surely the Princess of the Night was lying. “Alicorns are designated as rulers; that’s simply the way of things. We are given incredible power over aspects that control every living creature in the world.”
“So we should rule the world, then?” Luna asked, haughtily.
“That’s not what I… where is this coming from, all of a sudden?” Celestia demanded.
“You neglected to mention that restructuring Equestria’s government was an issue,” Luna snapped, “I only found out because I happened to be woken up! Is this what happens during my sleep? The true governance of Equestria?”
“I…” Celestia found her eyes wandering over the divided ponies, each watching with the blank-faced attention of professional politicians not wanting to give up their true intentions, “Sister, I know you have a fascination with democracy, and on a local level it works fine, but if we’re going to nationalize, we cannot be bound by democratic institutions that take power from us. For Equestria’s security, the Alicorn Princesses must rule.”
“Hear! Hear!” the Germane said and his comrades cheered.
“Please excuse me for being so bold, Princess Celestia,” the Marexican bowed, “but is this not a co-regency, as you said? Should it not be agreed upon by your sister, as well?”
Celestia narrowed her eyes. Of course now they’d choose to recognize Luna as an equal.
“Very well,” Celestia sighed, “we shall discuss this in more detail later, Luna. Tonight, between the classes.”
“So be it,” Luna nodded agreement. As she turned to leave, she stopped and turned back, addressing the ponies before her. “Remember the lesson I have learned the hard way, however, my fellow Equestrians... even a Princess is susceptible to corruption.”
And with that she returned to her bedchamber, leaving a room of murmuring politicians and a stunned sister behind. The Royal Guard who were supporting the republican city-states seemed to be discussing something with excitement, but the Princess of the Day couldn’t hear them. With the assembly clearly over, the representatives filed out, eyeing members of the other faction, bitterly. Left alone, Celestia slumped in her chair, wanting to weep.
There was division in her own utopia of harmony.
…
Hours later, after their class ended promptly at 6:00, the students were informed by Gutsy Gust that the Princesses were otherwise detained by other responsibilities and could not join them for their usual pancake dinner. Instead, he informed them, they would have to get their dinner from the mess hall, where the Royal Guard and servants usually ate.
“Princess Celestia ordered me to let you know you would not be alone, however,” the pegasus informed them, wearing his golden armor, “Starlight Glimmer, Trixie Lulamoon, and Spike the Dragon arrived a few minutes before your class let out. Big Macintosh is keeping them company in the mess hall.”
“Ooo,” Scootaloo smirked, “Let’s go, ladies; your favorite dragon, awaits.”
“Scootaloo, I swear…” Apple Bloom blushed.
“Oh, lighten up,” the pegasus filly giggled, leading the way, “I know it’s just a crush, and I’m not stupid enough to tease you in front of him. We’re all just here to study, anyway.”
They trotted into the mess hall, easily finding their friends. Big Mac’s red coat, along with Spike being the only dragon, made them stand out amidst all the drab-colored guards in gold armor. The newcomers waved them over, and soon the two parties had merged at a table, an odd mix of stallions, mares, fillies, and a drake.
“Trixie wondered where you two disappeared to,” the magician eyed the two former swindlers, “Last she saw you, you two were swooning over the farmer. Trixie does not understand why every stallion goes after her.”
“Jealous?” Big Mac asked.
“Perhaps if her suitors were not so…” Trixie reexamined the twins, failing to keep a grimace from her face, “…unique.”
“Well, you’re no peach yourself,” Flim shot back.
“Or apple, dear brother,” Flam added and the pair chortled at the bad joke.
“Are you still trying to date my sister?” Big Mac asked, a powerful, unspoken threat in his bearing.
“Uh…” Flim paled considerably, deciding to deflect the question, “Flam here is more into alicorns these days.”
“Exact-” the mustachioed twin shook his head, “Don’t start spreading that around! I’d have better luck dating rocks!”
“Don’t knock it ‘til you try it!” Starlight winked, earning worried looks from her friends, “Uh… Maud and Boulder seem quite happy.”
“Boulder is just a friend, Starlight,” Trixie scoffed, “Even Trixie knew this…”
“Anyway, is the political course fun?” Starlight decided to change the subject, “I’ve been dying to take it!”
“Apple Bloom loves it,” Scootaloo sighed, “Sweetie and I are probably going to drop it, but we’re taking some of Luna’s other courses.”
“Oh, it’ll just be me and Apple Bloom?” Starlight frowned, “Poor Luna… She’ll probably feel hurt.”
“Well, since I’m not really taking any courses, I guess I could take the political science course…” Spike sighed in defeat, “Is it easy?”
“It’s easier than our friendship ethics course, that’s for sure…” Sweetie grumbled.
“All we have to do is read three short books and think about them, really,” Apple Bloom explained, “Luna also likes to have political discussions.”
“Ooo! A dialogue!” Starlight got misty-eyed, “It’s everything I could have wished for!”
“It should be even easier for you, Starlight,” Scootaloo giggled, “Your book is one of the three Luna assigned.”
“Oh…” Starlight blushed, embarrassed, “So… you’ve read it, then.”
“Most of it,” Apple Bloom nodded, “It seems to deal almost exclusively with Cutie Marks and equality; there doesn’t seem like much of a political framework.”
“Yeah…” Starlight eyed the farm filly, suspiciously, “Well, it was more an amendment to the existing Equestrian government. I got the ideas for equality from Scarlet Banner’s old work, but I only had access to an abridged version. Really, I kind of threw most of her ideas out the window and just clung to the equality arguments, and the unfairness of job placement.”
“Scarlet Banner?” Apple Bloom asked.
“An old radical,” Starlight smirked, pleased the filly still had some stuff to learn, “Maybe if we ask, Luna will assign some of her works, too.”
“It’s the second day of class and you want Princess Luna to assign more work?” Spike deadpanned, “You’re not making this any easier for me to enjoy…”
“Oh, I’m sure a smart dragon like you can manage a few books,” Starlight said in a very complimentary tone, flicking the spines on his head, “After all, you were the assistant to the Princess of Books, herself.”
“That’s what we call Twilight,” Trixie explained with a smirk.
Apple Bloom didn’t hear the blue unicorn, too intent on watching Starlight and Spike. It was small, but to the mind of some pony with a crush, even small signs were obvious. The playful flick, the admiring tone, the demure eyes and affectionate smile. Okay, so maybe her crush on Spike was obscuring the facts, but he had definitely blushed. Was there something going on there? Shaking her head, she felt silly for over-thinking it; like Scootaloo said, they were all there to study.
“W-well, I guess four books isn’t that bad…” Spike chuckled, “I’m actually a quick reader; sort of have to be when I write so many letters.”
“Say, where is Princess Luna, anyway?” Trixie asked, “It’s almost time for her class, isn’t it?”
“We usually just meet her there,” Sweetie Belle explained, “You guys can go ahead; Scoots and I are sitting this one out.”
“The Compendium of Compassion is a pretty long read,” Apple Bloom giggled, leading her fellow night students to the class…
…
Immediately after Celestia’s class had ended, however, the Princesses of Day and Night had met in their private study. They sat upon their smaller, more comfortable thrones, and glared at one another in consternation. Silence stretched between them, as each tried to outwait the other. Ultimately, seeing their time slipping, Celestia made to speak first, only to be cut off by Luna.
“Why are all the matters of governance left to you, sister?” she asked, quietly.
“We were going to discuss this…” the older sister replied, evenly.
“Really?” Luna raised a poignant eyebrow, “It seems like you already had an answer.”
“Lulu, surely you don’t really believe the average pony is capable of overseeing an empire?”
“No, I don’t believe any pony can maintain an empire single-hoofed,” Luna replied, “but I do believe allowing ponies greater autonomy will make them happier.”
“You wouldn’t seriously relinquish control to them…” Celestia said.
“Do we not already do that?” Luna asked, “What is the difference between your hooves-off approach and allowing them to run themselves, other than the fact you still have the option to control them directly?”
“Luna, don’t be absurd, I would never do that,” Celestia tsked.
“Is that not what unifying them under an imperial system will do?”
“Not necessarily,” the Princess of the Day tried to smile, “The constitution I have in mind will allow the individual city-states the same degree of autonomy. It will be virtually the same system, but they will be ‘united’ as a single nation.”
“A constitution has already been selected?” Luna scowled, standing to pace, “I’m curious, sister, what exactly is there left to discuss?”
“Lulu, please relax,” Celestia felt herself losing her temper, “You’re acting like a petulant child. I know you would not relinquish authority to common ponies. It’s not in your nature to-”
“My nature?” Luna rounded on her sister, bewildered, “You think I will not relinquish power? Why? Because a thousand years ago I was ensnared in the belief I could be the sole ruler of Equestria? It is precisely because I lost control all those centuries ago that I would gladly relinquish my station!”
Luna approached an increasingly stunned and agitated Celestia, glaring down on her with skepticism.
“I’m now forced to wonder why you would hang on to that authority…” Luna mused aloud, “You detest the royal duties, and you have shown you care neither for battle nor direct rule. Why are you clinging to the title of Princess when it holds no interest?”
“It is our birthright,” Celestia stood, staring down at Luna, fiercely, “I cannot forsake my responsibilities to our subjects just because I hate the bickering of politicians! We must defend them, and we must be united, especially in the face of this supposed military alliance.”
“We can protect them without ruling them,” Luna retorted, “and we can unite them in a progressive system that best embodies your teachings. This is an opportunity to liberate every mare, stallion, and foal.”
“I always thought you favored our archaic customs, Luna…” Celestia wasn’t sure how she liked being less progressive than Luna all of a sudden.
“Certain elements, yes,” Luna sighed, “but two years of living in this new age have shown me the cost of a thousand years of ruling in the old way. Dreams are different than they used to be; our subjects call out for freedom and progress, yet are bound in traditions they don’t understand. Things were different a thousand years ago, but the dangers of our past have come and gone.”
“I cannot concede in this, Luna,” Celestia said, quietly.
“Allow me to compose an alternative constitution,” Luna said, a slight desperation in her voice, “I’m sure we can reach a compromise, something that would appeal to all sides.”
“Democratization would raise problems in the imperial city-states.”
“They have declared loyalty to us, sister,” Luna argued, “they will accept whatever you decree.”
Celestia eyed the younger alicorn with sadness, then looked away.
“I will allow you until the 28th to compose an alternative constitution…” she conceded, “If it looks promising, we can explore it further.”
“That is not much time…” Luna gaped.
“It is all I can offer,” Celestia sighed, “These ponies are crying out for unity and are fearful of the non-pony alliance. They are calling themselves the Orduud.”
“Hmm, Old Yakish…” Luna noted, “I believe there was an account of an ancient war between the ponies and the yaks, and that is what they called themselves then.”
“It does not bode well,” Celestia nodded, “Our subjects will go into a panic if we do not act quickly, and that panic will disrupt any attempt at a peaceful resolution. If we adopt the model of direct rule, I could also implement a stricter education of my teachings to the city-states so they don’t embarrass us at a Friendship Summit, again.”
“Do not jump ahead too soon, sister,” Luna said, quickly, “I will come up with something before the month is out. Now, if you will excuse me, I have a class to teach.”
They said their goodbyes, though colder than usual, and the Princess of the Night made her way to the classroom. Celestia was afraid to relinquish power, even though she rarely exercised it. Luna felt herself shiver at the realization; had she not been so defensive of her own power not too long ago? Luna had changed much in two years, dropping the Royal We and many other archaic traits and practices, studying and adopting elements of the new age she had come into. Was it possible that Celestia had changed, too? The dusky alicorn fearfully pondered this as she strolled into the class, a mixture of pleasure and disappointment filling her. Starlight, Spike, and Trixie had joined Apple Bloom, but it looked as if Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo had dropped the class.
“Good evening, my little ponies,” Luna greeted them in the traditional style, “I see we have some new faces here, and I have enough books set up for each of you.”
The Princess levitated the spare copies from where she had stored them earlier, placing one copy of each book before the newcomers.
“Princess Luna?” Starlight said, catching her attention, “We were wondering if you could also assign one of Scarlet Banner’s old books – preferably unabridged, of course.”
“Absolutely, Starlight,” Luna smiled, pleased to see she had at least two eager students, even while Trixie and Spike groaned, “For the next week and a half, however, we’re going to do a little… project.”
“Project?” Apple Bloom asked.
“Yes,” Luna smiled, pleased with her idea, “You shall help me create a draft for a new constitution of Equestria – a republican model.”
“Whoa, what?” Starlight gaped, “You want us to help you create an entire constitution in a week and a half?!”
“Not from scratch, and I will be doing most of the work,” Luna assured them with a giggle, “Our first discussion, then, will be which republican city-state’s constitution to build off of. Shall we begin?”
A brief exchange of curious looks occurred between the students before they began nodding, one-by-one.
“Excellent,” Luna said, a smile on her lips that didn’t quite reach her cold eyes.
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Hmmmm, already the Royal Sisters are showing cracks. Only a matter of time before the rest pick sides. Interested to see how the AB-Spike-Starlight love triangle will be affected though.
I can see what Luna is doing. She is using them as a focus group of sorts. Applebloom represents of the average pony who is just learning about politics, Starlight represents those who are in the upper crust and well versed when it comes to politics, and Spike who stands for the non-ponies, who are willing to learn and adopt, but also what equal opportunity and either the integration of their own traditions or for them to be respected. It's a good starting point, but for something on this scale you'll need more people on this.
8789227
Pretty spot on, but Starlight also is supposed to fill in for radical viewpoints. Also, I never promised their constitutional draft would be perfect; it is called the "New" Lunar Republic for a reason
Woot! Definitely enjoying the story! Also Applebloom and Spike... Nice.
Not trying to assume or jump the shark here or anything but I don't suppose a version of the Iroquis Articles of Confederation are going to make an appearance?
Also I can only think that a mixed system alike to what the British Empire went through seems like it could mark some clues on how things ideally could go.
Just looking forward to the journey and I cannot help myself in making some guesses.
8792149
Good suggestions, actually. I had no idea what the Iroquois Articles of Confederation, sadly, but after browsing a brief summary of them I'm realizing this was pretty much what I intended to do with the Orduud, lol. As for the British Imperial model, I wouldn't use "ideally" to describe that at all, but as far as a kind version of the Solar Empire would be run, that would be the best historical model. However, since the Solar Empire/New Lunar Republic is a fandom spoof of Star Wars, I'm attempting to make both sides have their merits and downsides. So, while I would like the NLR to be the model of a social democracy, and the Solar Empire to be a more progressive and equality-driven British Empire, for conflict purposes they both need to be a little darker. That said, these are some good ideas for the endgame resolution. I'll have to mention the IAC when the Orduud reappear and start organizing.
8792634
Cool! As for the British... I meant more of the fall and splitting apart area of that empire with hopefully avoiding more of the bloody bits. Also how their colonies eventually responded in some surprising ways.
More to the point it seems a good portion of the awfulness of Britania was in the expansion and keeping of land and property (the Opium wars and the semi losses/compromises of a number of it's vassals.).
Not to say they weren't brutal. But after Ghandi and the world wars they just seemed to become alot less objectionable around then.
But alot of this is opinion and imprecise knowledge...
8792876
Well, part of the reason many of their former colonies are still close allies is because of economic dependency; when you exploit all the resources out of a country, turns out they need to trade with you to get it back. However, the peaceful co-dependency breakdown of the Solar Empire might be a good way to end the story, though I have a non-historical idea in mind.
I feel kind of like the city-state ambassadors and Celestia is kind of analagous to real-life constitutions or holy books. Nobody can quite agree on their interpretation of the original text and how it should be interpreted in the context of modern times. What makes it worse is that this time, the original creator of Celestia's teachings right there, and they still argue about her intent!
9447215
That's exactly what I was going for