Chapter 15 - Royal Affairs
As the sun continues on its way, Twilight and her friends sit around Derpy’s kitchen table. Crumpled up notes and various papers lie strewn across the room. Rainbow Dash groans.
“Argh! All of us have been over every one of these papers at least three times!”
Twilight sighs. “Right. I guess there really isn’t anything else to learn from them.”
Derpy sighs. “That’s disappointing.”
Applejack groans. “I thought for sure if we just kept at it something would jump out at us.”
Rose shakes her head. “Not always. At least from my experience as I said before.”
Rarity looks to the others. “I’m not sure how I feel about this.”
Fluttershy turns to her. “What do you mean?”
“Well, like Rose said earlier, the fact we didn’t find anything shows that somepony went to a lot of trouble to remove certain facts from the official record.”
Twilight nods soberly. “That in and of itself is a clue. If we just had something to go on. Anything at all…”
The sigil in the corner lights up as a portal forms. Derpy gasps as she runs over to it.
“Dinky must’ve found something!”
Everyone walks over and waits patiently. Eventually a piece of paper drops though. Derpy snatches it up and reads as fast as she is able. Pinkie gasps hugely.
“Good news?!”
“Yes! They found Arc’s dagger!”
Rainbow Dash’s eyes light up happily. “Where?!”
“On a riverbank some distance from the castle!”
Applejack frowns. “I don’t want to sound like a wet blanket, but could it have floated there by itself.”
Twilight shakes her head. “Metal objects don’t typically do that.”
“They found it near signs of a struggle!”
Rarity gasps. “You mean Arc was fighting somepony!”
Pinkie jumps up. “Are they sure?!”
Derpy nods. “Yes. Dinky says Sereb saw the signs of battle. Whatever those are.”
Applejack grins. “Could he pick up Arc’s trail?! Maybe he really is alive!”
Derpy shakes her head. “Sadly, no. But it says here that they’re going into to the forest to investigate.”
Applejack puts a hoof to her chin. “River that leads away from Canterlot. Forest… uh oh.”
Twilight turns to her friend. “What is it, Applejack?”
“I might know where they are.”
Rainbow Dash gaps. “Great! Where?!”
“There’s two forests on that route. The Foal Forest at the base of Foal Mountain just east of Canterlot.”
Pinkie shrugs. “Nothing too scary there! Just the odd rabbit and squirrel to worry about!”
Twilight puts a hoof to her chin thoughtfully. “Yes, nopony really goes out that way, but I can’t remember ever hearing about anything too big coming out of there.”
Rarity appears relieved. “Good!”
Derpy turns to Applejack. “What’s the other forest?”
“Well… it’s not too likely they would’ve walked THAT far, but… there’s also the Hayseed Forest far to the east of Dodge Junction.”
Fluttershy gasps. “That IS quite a walk from Canterlot!”
Rainbow Dash grins. “Yeah. I don’t see them walking THAT far.”
Pinkie frowns. “They could if they were riding Sereb!”
Twilight sighs. “Right. So it’s equally possible that they might be at either location.”
Fluttershy shudders. “Oh, I do hope they’re not at the Hayseed Forest.”
Derpy looks to Fluttershy. “What kind of things are there?”
“Timberwolves, manticores, cockatrices, and even a few… other scary things.”
Rarity grimaces. “Oh my! We need to get over there and make sure they’re okay!”
Applejack nods soberly. “Right!”
Rainbow Dash groans. “But what if they’re at the Foal Forest?! We’d be searching at the totally wrong place!”
Pinkie frowns. “She has a point!”
Derpy looks to the others. “I think we should split up and check both forests.”
Fluttershy nods. “That’s a good idea. The only question now is who goes where?”
Twilight puts a hoof to her chin. “Well… the Foal Mountains are pretty safe. So we only really need one of us to go there.”
Rainbow Dash grins. “How about…?”
Rarity smiles. How very nice of you to volunteer.”
“Uh… I was actually going to say Fluttershy should go.”
“Oh? Why me?”
Applejack sighs. “Um… well… you see…”
Pinkie shudders. “The Hayseed Forest will be REALLY scary! So you probably shouldn’t go there!”
Twilight sighs. “That was putting it delicately. But they are right, Fluttershy.”
“Thank you, everypony. But I think I’d rather go to the Hayseed Forest with all of you.”
Derpy gasps. “But what about all those bad creatures you said were there?”
“If anything, you’ll all need me to try and talk to them. With any luck we can reason with any creatures we come across. Maybe one of them even saw what happened!”
Rainbow Dash shadowboxes. “Yeah! And if that fails… POW!”
Applejack sighs. “Well, somepony needs to check out the Foal Forest.”
Rarity turns to her. “Why don’t you and I go?”
“Really?”
“Sure. After all, that’s probably where they are.”
Derpy appears hopeful. “You really think so?”
Twilight nods. “It stands to reason they’re there, yes.”
Derpy grins. “Then I’ll go with Applejack and Rarity.”
Rainbow Dash shrugs. “Well, I guess the rest of us will head to the Hayseed Forest then.”
Pinkie giggles. “When do we go?!”
Rose looks up at the clock. “There’s still the afternoon train to Canterlot. We could be there before dark.”
Rarity appears hopeful. “Perhaps Princess Luna would let us stay the night in the castle again.”
Applejack nods. “That and we should report what we’ve found.”
Fluttershy puts a hoof to her chin. “While we’re there should we pick up our Elements?”
Rainbow Dash shrugs. “Probably. Or we could grab em on our way back.”
Pinkie bounces toward the door. “Either way, let’s go!”
Twilight nods as she stands up. “Okay. Everypony meet at the train station at noon.”
They trot out the door together. Meanwhile, Arc opens his eyes to the sound of the barn door opening. He sits up to see Sunshine walking in with two bowls of oats. She steps gingerly, wincing with every step.
“I thought I’d find you two in here.”
“Snowflake couldn’t sleep so I suggested we come out here. Um… are you okay?”
Sunshine sets the bowls down and rubs her flank with a hoof. “I’ll be fine in a little while.”
She looks to Snowflake’s sleeping form.
“I thought I’d let you two sleep in a bit. After all, when Shadow and I have a late night, everypony does.”
“Yeah, thanks. Um… is Shadow coming out anytime soon?”
Sunshine shakes her head. “As hard as he celebrated last night I don’t think he’ll be up until this afternoon.”
Snowflake raises her head and yawns. She looks up to her mother.
“Mom? Are you… okay?”
“I’m fine, dear. Now then, eat your breakfast and, um…”
She looks away nervously. Snowflake sounds confused.
“And… do my chores?”
Sunshine shakes her head. “No, dear. Your father wanted you to go foraging today with your pet.”
Snowflake raises an eyebrow, confused. “But I thought you said dad was still out.”
Sunshine sighs. “He is.”
Arc grimaces. “So he wants us to go out there without him?!”
Sunshine nods. “Yes.”
Snowflake gasps. “What?! But…!”
“He was convinced the other day that your pet is more than capable of handling whatever comes your way.”
“Are you sure, mom?”
“Those were his words, yes. Quite high praise for… what did you call your pet, dear?”
“Big Brother.”
“Right. So you two had best eat quickly and do as he says.”
Snowflake sighs. “Okay mom.”
She smiles nervously and leaves the barn. Arc looks to Snowflake as they eat.
“Can we really do this?”
“If my dad says so, yes.”
“You really put that much faith in him?”
Snowflake nods. “He’s the best at what he does. That and he’s been trying to think of a way I could go out without him for months now. Purchasing you was probably his way of insuring I’d be okay.”
“Not sure how I feel about that. But I’ll try my best to keep you safe.”
“Thanks, Big Brother.”
They finish eating and bring the dishes back to the cottage. Sunshine is busy sweeping up glass while Snowflake puts the bowls in the sink as Arc waits on the porch. Snowflake runs upstairs to put on her armor. Returning to Arc’s side a few minutes later with her mother she trots in place nervously as Sunshine looks her over.
“You think I’ll really be okay out there, mom?”
Sunshine sighs. “If your father says so, yes.”
Arc nods. “I’ll watch out for her.”
“Thank you. Both of you be careful, and don’t take any more risks than you have to.”
“We won’t. See you this afternoon, mom.”
Arc and Snowflake walk down the steps and toward the forest as Sunshine looks after them. She sighs nervously.
“Be brave, Snowflake.”
Meanwhile, Dinky, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Sereb walk slowly through the forest. Sweetie Belle looks to her friends.
“So… do either of you actually know where we’re going?”
Apple Bloom shrugs. “Kinda. If worst comes to worst, I can use the sun to get us back to the river. From there we can just follow it back to Canterlot.”
Dinky rolls her eyes. “You two are forgetting that we can just teleport.”
“Oh… right. Keep forgetting about that magic stuff.”
Sweetie Belle sighs. “Me too. Which is really embarrassing, what with me being a unicorn.”
“Either way, keep your eyes peeled for clues. You got anything, Sereb?”
Sereb sniffs the air. “Nothing. I do not believe anything or anyone has come this way in quite some time.”
Apple Bloom turns to him. “How long would you say?”
“At least a week. After that my nose can’t tell. A bloodhound I am not.”
Sweetie Belle pats the wolf’s side. “I’m sure you’re doing your best.”
Apple Bloom spots something out of place. “What’s that?”
Dinky looks around. “Where?!”
Apple Bloom trots over to a thorny bush. Peeking inside it she squints.
“There’s something in there?”
Sweetie Belle shrugs. “I dunno. Let me try to fish it out of there with my magic.”
Carefully tugging at the item, she pulls it free and levitates it over to her friend. Dinky takes it in her shaky hooves.
“I… think this is a piece of my dad’s royal raiments! More accurately, his tunic!”
Sereb steps forward. “May I see it?”
Dinky holds it up to the wolf. He sniff it a moment before nodding.
“Unmistakable. This cloth bears the scent of Arc.”
Apple Bloom grins. “So he DID come this way!”
Sweetie Belle looks around. “That might not be a good thing.”
Dinky frowns. “How so?”
“Flip it over.”
Dinky turns the scrap over in her hooves. Dried blood coats the other side, robbing it of its original deep purple color. She sits down on her haunches silently for quite some time staring at the cloth.
“He… he’s alive. My dad’s alive and he came this way!”
“Let’s not jump to conclusions here, Dinky. After all, the wind could have blown that there.”
Sweetie Belle points a hoof. “Then how’d it get so deep in the bush?”
Sereb nods. “That is true. Such would have required the cloak to be dragged through it with significant force. More so than a normal wind would have allowed.”
Dinky stands and continues on. “We have to keep going!”
Apple Bloom grimaces. “But… um…”
Dinky turns to her. “What’s wrong?”
“I want to find Arc too. It’s just… well…”
She paws at the ground before continuing.
“You might not like what you find.”
Sweetie Belle scoffs. “What are you talking about?! Of course Dinky would like finding Arc!”
“I meant his body.”
“He came this far! Who’s to say he isn’t just holed up somewhere trying to heal?!”
“If that was the case, he has a sigil at Ponyville Hospital! Doctor Horse would have had him patched up and on his feet by now!”
“He didn’t have his sigil gauntlet, remember?! I’m just trying to help reunite Dinky with Arc!”
“And I’m just trying to keep her from finding a rotting corpse!”
Dinky clears her throat. “Hey.”
The pair stop arguing and look to Dinky. She keeps her gaze on the cloth in her hooves.
“I understand where you’re both coming from. It’s not likely my dad’s still alive at this point. But if there’s ANY chance he might be, I have to find him.”
Apple Bloom sighs. “And if he isn’t?”
“Before we left Ponyville, I made a promise at my dad’s grave. I would either find him and bring him home to mom. Or I’d make sure his body was recovered for a proper burial. And I intend to keep that promise.”
She walks over to Sereb and open his saddle bags. Pulling out the small bundle she adds the cloth to her collection. Gazing at the items, she smiles.
“Each of these is a piece of who my dad is. His life, how he lived, and even evidence of his death. But I won’t stop looking just because I might not like what I find. My dad deserves better than that.”
Apple Bloom walks over. “I’m… I’m sorry, Dinky. You’re my friend, and I don’t want you to… be sad at what we find out here.”
Sweetie Belle joins them. “And I’m just interested in seeing you and him together again.”
Dinky forces a smile. “Is that the only reason?”
“And to bring him back to Rarity. She really likes him.”
Sereb grunts. “We will not find Arc here though. Shall we continue on our way? After all, there is quite a bit more daylight left.”
Dinky nods. “Sure. Let’s get moving.”
Rewrapping the items, she puts them back in Sereb’s saddle bag and turns to look deeper into the forest. Several hours later Twilight and her friends, along with Derpy and Rose, arrive at Canterlot Station. They quickly make their way down the street and toward the castle. After being admitted, they are escorted to Luna’s chambers by half a dozen Royal Guards. Arriving at their destination they see a dozen more guards stationed outside the room. The doors are opened and they are allowed to enter. Luna stares out the window as she did last time as the guards close the doors behind them. Twilight addresses the monarch.
“Princess Luna, we…”
Without warning, Luna Blinks on top of Twilight, pushing her to the floor and covering her mouth with a hoof she speaks louder than normal.
“Twilight! So good to see you and your friends again! Tell me, did all of you enjoy that book on the history of magical physics?!”
She leans forward and whispers into Twilight’s ear.
“Say ‘yes’, and play along.”
Luna releases her hold and Twilight and steps off of her.
“Um… yes, Princess Luna. I’ve… already read it cover to cover several times. In fact, I was just telling my friends here all about it on the train ride over.”
Applejack nods as she forces a smile. “Yes, indeed! It was riveting!”
Rarity nods. “Quite a read, that one!”
Rainbow Dash shrugs. “Meh, I’ve read better.”
Fluttershy appears confused. “I couldn’t put it… down.”
Derpy grimaces. “It’s a great book to just… sit in front of the fireplace and read cover to cover.”
Rose nods. “While certainly not light reading, I would categorically say…”
Pinkie frowns. “What the hay is everypony…?!”
Twilight puts a hoof in Pinkie’s mouth. “Would you like to hear about my favorite part?!”
Luna nods. “Yes I would, Twilight. Tell me every detail, and don’t skip over the historical excerpts.”
“What about the ancient parts?!”
“Start with those! Oh, but where are my manners?! All of you must be terribly sore after your long train ride!”
Twilight nods. “Yes we are, Princess Luna! What do you recommend?!”
“Let’s continue this conversation in the bathtub! You and your friends can soak those tired muscles and we can continue our lengthy talk there in comfort!”
“Of course!”
“Follow me, everypony!”
Leading them toward the bathroom door, Luna raises her hooves especially high. They clop on the marble floor noisily. A few steps before they reach the bathroom, Luna’s horn glows. Slamming the door noisily she immediately begins casting another spell. The room grow2 suddenly silent as Luna turns to them.
“My apologies for the… out of the ordinary greeting everypony.”
Applejack sighs. “It’s okay… I think.”
Rarity appears confused. “But what was that all about, your highness?”
Luna sighs and gestures to the couches. “All of you should sit down first. I believe this is going to take a while.”
Shrugging, everyone does as they are told. Luna paces in front of the fireplace as she speaks.
“Now we can talk freely. That Silence Spell should keep what we say here private.”
Pinkie pouts. “Does this mean we don’t get to take a bath?!”
Twilight shakes her head. “Not now, Pinkie. I’m guessing we’ve got bigger problems right now.”
“That we do.”
Applejack motions to the door leading to the corridor. “Can you start with why castle security is so tight?”
Derpy nods. “I’ve never seen so many guards before.”
Rose frowns. “Did something happen?”
Luna sighs. “That’s complicated.”
Rainbow Dash groans. “Can you give it to us in bite-sized pieces then?”
“It all started the other night when all of you broke into the Archives.”
Twilight gasps. “Oh no! Did somepony figure it out?!”
Luna shakes her head. “No. While I’m certain Captain Decimus has his suspicions, Sergeant Sandstorm Mirage assures me that he is treating the incident as a series of unfortunate events and blamed it on two guards whom apparently left their posts.”
Applejack frowns. “Those guards from the ambassador’s office?!”
Rainbow Dash appears remorseful. “Did they get in much trouble?”
Luna nods. “A bit, yes. Both of them are currently in the dungeon for a month.”
Rarity gasps. “Can’t you commute their sentences?!”
Rose looks to Luna, pleadingly. “Yes. After all, they truly are innocent of any wrongdoing.”
“I would like to, but that would only serve to prove my involvement.”
Pinkie grits her teeth. “But… but that’s just so unfair!”
Derpy nods soberly. “Like the time Arc was sent to Tartarus for nothing!”
Twilight sighs. “I can understand your position, Princess Luna. But as the somepony whom sent an innocent to Tartarus…”
“It cannot be helped. Believe me when I say that they will be properly compensated when this matter is over. Now, let’s return to the matter at hoof.”
She clears her throat before continuing.
“Captain Decimus used last night’s breech to insist on even tighter security. My sister is magically teleported nearly everywhere now, and is always surrounded by well over a hundred guards at any given time.”
Rainbow Dash’s eyes grow wide. “Woah! Talk about paranoid!”
Derpy sighs. “Well, she was kidnapped right under everypony’s nose last time.”
Applejack nods. “The captain might actually have a good idea there.”
Luna frowns. “I am not arguing the validity of his orders. However, total security was not his goal.”
Twilight raises an eyebrow. “What else could he have wanted?”
“Control.”
Derpy appears confused. “Of what? The castle?”
Luna shakes her head. “No. Over myself and Celestia.”
Rarity gasps. “But you’re the princesses. Can’t you just order the guards to leave?”
“I could, yes. But they would almost immediately return on the orders of my sister. We could go back and forth forever on this matter, of course. But the soldiers aren’t accomplishing anything by wearing a rut in the corridor floor leading up to my chambers.”
Fluttershy puts a hoof to her chin thoughtfully. “Captain Decimus already has pretty much unlimited power though, doesn’t he? Why would he need to keep you two under house arrest like this?”
“To separate us from each other and ween the public from us.”
Rose puts a hand to her chin thoughtfully. “An interesting concept. Given enough time the population would simply accept this as the new normal.”
Applejack grimaces. “All the while Captain Decimus would be free to put forth any order he wanted under Princess Celestia’s name!”
Derpy shudders. “It all sounds so cold and calculated.”
Luna nods. “It is. Now then, were you able to discern anything from the files you took?”
Twilight shakes her head. “Nothing of interest.”
Pinkie nods fervently. “But somepony tried REALLY hard to cover something up! That’s for sure!”
Applejack frowns. “Right! Thanks to what will most certainly be blamed as a clerical error, all the incriminating information is conveniently missing.”
Rarity steps forward. “The fillies did have a bit of a breakthrough on their ends though.”
Luna appears hopeful. “Oh?”
Derpy holds up the note. “Dinky wrote to me this morning saying she found a chunk of Arc’s armor, his dagger, and a piece of his royal raiments to the east.”
Luna frowns. “Contrary to what Decimus told us. “
Rose nods. “They are continuing their search as we speak.”
Pinkie puts forth her best smile. “We came here to look for them!”
Rainbow Dash continues where her friend left off. “In the two forests to the east, she means.”
Derpy sighs. “We’re sure they’re okay. But…”
Rarity frowns. “But it just doesn’t seem right for fillies to be roaming the countryside without adult supervision.”
Applejack looks to Luna. “If nothing else, we’d like to join them in the search for Arc.”
“The chances of him being alive grow with each piece of evidence that is found. I do wish I could help, but my every move is observed and scrutinized.”
Twilight nods. “We understand. But is there anything we can do to help?”
“Actually, there is.”
She turns to Twilight and looks her over for a long moment.
“Tell me, are you still worried about my sister?”
Twilight nods. “’Very much so, yes! Is there any way you could arrange for me to see her?”
Luna shakes her head. “I cannot. At the moment the only one’s whom see Celestia are Decimus and anypony she personally summons.”
Rose puts a hand to her chin thoughtfully. “So you would either need to convince Captain Decimus to give you access to her, or wait for the princess to call for you, mother.”
Rainbow Dash groans. “There isn’t ANY other way?!”
“Short of breaking into the Audience Chamber or her personal quarters, no. So we’re left with only one other recourse. She must call for you.”
Rarity appears hopeful. “Do you have a plan, Princess Luna?”
“I do. But it will require Twilight’s complete cooperation to put into motion.”
“What do I need to do?”
“This may sound a bit… odd, but Celestia has always kept her ear to the ground in regards to castle gossip.”
Applejack raises an eyebrow. “Really?”
Pinkie giggles. “She can’t help herself, huh?!”
Rarity nods matter-of-factly. “It’s practically an aristocratic sport here in Canterlot.”
Rainbow Dash rolls her eyes. “So we need to create a rumor so incredibly juicy she summons one of us?”
Fluttershy sighs. “Probably just something about Twilight.”
Luna nods. “Yes. As I believe my sister will listen to whatever Twilight tells her, my planned rumor will be about her.”
Rarity gasps. “But if it’s THAT big it could forever tarnish her reputation!”
“I’m willing to do it, Princess Luna.”
Rose appears surprised. “Mother?”
“This needs to be done. I’ll convince Princess Celestia that Captain Decimus is a traitor and a murderer. Then he’ll be deposed and everything can go back to normal.”
She turn to Luna.
“So what rumor did you have in mind.”
“One that my sister cannot ignore. A steamy love affair.”
Rainbow Dash frowns. “So… your plan is to make your sister believe Twilight has a stallionfriend?”
Luna shakes her head. “Not exactly. It needs to be so over the top that my sister sends for Twilight over the protests of Decimus.”
“Fine. Whom will I supposedly be having an affair with?”
“Somepony whom is also very close to Celestia. And is capable of spreading a steady stream of outlandish, but also somewhat believable, gossip fodder to the guards and Hoof Maidens. To the best of my knowledge there is only one pony whom could pull this off.”
Luna looks Twilight in the eye soberly before uttering a single word.
“Me.”
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Ugh, you just had to use "the new normal"
they are going to run into each other in the forest.
wow luna you already put that in motion did you hm
"oh my castle gossip
"
if this does not work then they at least know for shur that somesing is deeply wrong with celestia
At least Luna hasnt had to pull the Louis option yet.
Arc is either going to run into the kids, or end upmaking suce a mess of the local Alpha group that noones going to be able to get any hunting in?
11013445
He's... somewhere in here...
i.pinimg.com/originals/00/0e/4b/000e4be115a118629b00c67375762046.jpg
Luna's plan is extremely simple and complicated at the same time.
11014120
Louis?