Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Die

by cosmicbiscuit

Welcome, Ghosts

She had no explanation for the way her heart fluttered when she saw it.

The aura around the pendant had just… seemed to call to her; the way it shimmered in the sun had an almost hypnotic effect. She’d vaguely heard Rarity say something about time period, but nothing that had registered as particularly important. She’d barely even noticed the stall owner telling her the price and had floated over the bits almost mechanically.

And then it was hers, settled comfortably, seemingly happily around her neck, and just like that, she felt better. All the stress of their negotiation efforts around the market was gone and so was the headache that had been growing behind her eyes for the better part of the day.

“I must say, that rather suits you.”

Twilight came back to herself with a confused blink. “Sorry, what? I was kind of off in the clouds there.”

Rarity muffled a laugh with her hoof and deftly picked up Twilight’s drooping bag in her own magic. “So I see! I was saying the colors work for you. And you certainly seem to enjoy it.”

Her face went warm. “There’s… something about it, definitely. Something I’ve never come across before... possibly something magic even. How old did you say you think it was?”

“Well, I couldn’t tell you exactly how old that particular little bauble is, but the way the gems are placed inside the glass like that was a favorite make of unicorns just after the first Hearth’s Warming. It would be nice if it came back in style, that’s a lovely design.”

“Huh.” Twilight lifted a hoof and touched the pendant at her throat. “Would you happen to have any books or some such about that?”

“I have a few on the history of jewelry design, yes. Would after dinner be a good time to bring them over?”

“That would be great,” Twilight said with a smile, and tried to put her curiosity aside while they continued their shopping.

—

Hours later, the pendant was lying innocently on the main table of her library, and Twilight hummed to herself as she began taking down books on the enchantment of jewelry to flip through.

“Need anything?” Spike called from the door, a massive bowl of popcorn in one claw and a stack of comic books tucked under his other arm.

“No, I’m good. And don’t go leaving kernels everywhere!” Twilight said with an accusing point of her wing. “Those are hard to get out of the carpet!”

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll clean up. Don’t forget Rarity’s coming over.”

“I won’t.” At the click of the door closing, Twilight plopped onto her favorite cushion, still paging through her options. “Runic etching, no… Metal binding, no…Hmm, maybe essence spellwork?”

A little ‘ping’ in her senses made her drop all but the book directly in front of her with a startled hiss, the feathers and fur between her wings standing on end. “What in-?”

The pendant hadn’t changed in appearance, but she had felt the aura shift, she was sure of it. Now a mix of both curious and cautious, Twilight picked it up in her magic, gently prodding at the matrix she found in an attempt to find what had twigged her so sharply.

Whatever she’d been expecting, the pendant erupting in smoke hadn’t been it. She stumbled backwards, her magic winking out, but the pendant remained suspended in the air as the smoke flared into light-

-and when she’d finally managed to blink all the little sparkles out of her vision, she gaped.

“Ohhhh, this a lot more than I had planned to deal with tonight,” she murmured to herself as she cautiously circled the crystal earth pony that now lay on the floor, the bauble dangling from her neck. “H- hello? Are you okay? Um… Miss?”

With a dazed, confused noise, her new guest raised her head, looking even more disoriented than she sounded.

Oh… and she was translucent.

Definitely not what Twilight had planned for.

She swallowed and sat down to begin collecting her nerves as the new pony -ghost pony- shook her head several times to get her bearings back.

“Uh-”

The stranger was apparently too preoccupied to acknowledge her at the moment, looking around herself with an expression that started out as curiosity, then closed up into suspicion. “Where is Silver?” she finally asked, her voice seeming to be coming from all directions in the room at once.

Twilight felt that prickle between her wings coming back. “Silver?”

“Silver Swirl,” the ghost replied sharply as she got to her hooves. “We are supposed to be together. We designed it so we would be together!”

“I- I’m sorry, I don’t know any Silver Swirl,” Twilight said hesitantly, trying to will feathers and fur to lay back down. “Your pendant was the only one-”

At that her visitor stiffened, reactively putting a hoof over said jewelry before looking down. Her nose wrinkled in confusion as she stared at the pendant through her hoof, then raised her hoof and waved it back and forth in front of her face, comprehension slowly dawning.

It was kind of cute, Twilight thought, but that observation died almost immediately as the ghost whirled on her and the temperature in the room took a sharp drop.

“You stole this off my body?!”

“Wha- N-no! No, no, no, no! I bought it in a market! Like a normal pony! I swear!” Twilight squeaked, nearly tripping over her own tail as she stumbled backwards from the enraged spirit.

For a moment she thought the room would freeze, then the ghost pony dropped onto her haunches and bowed her head, and everything switched back to normal so fast that Twilight’s fur stood on end for the briefest moment. Carefully, she crept closer to her visitor, making sure to keep her movements open and obvious lest she accidentally spark another lightning fast emotional change.

Lucky for her, the stranger merely shifted to hold the pendant between her hooves, her ears laying back. “A market, you said?” she asked, and even with the strange echo surrounding them, her voice was so soft that Twilight had to strain her ears forward to hear the question.

“Yes, ma’am,” Twilight replied, sitting in front of her. “Just this afternoon.”

“And you are absolutely sure there was no other?”

The pained longing in the other mare’s voice made her throat feel tight and she automatically reached out to comfort her before her mind reminded her -ghost- and she drew her hoof back. Then she scowled at herself and made another attempt. Finding that her guest was more solid than she appeared, Twilight gently rested a hoof on her back. “I promise, yours was the only one being sold.” She took a deep breath, then decided to bite the lightning bolt. “I apologize for changing the subject, but who are you?”

The other mare made no move to acknowledge the question for several seconds, then sighed and straightened, keeping one hoof on the pendant as she regarded Twilight with an even gaze. Twilight automatically sat up straight as well, years of lessons having taught her to recognize the beginning of a diplomatic conversation.

“I am Sunsparkle, once leader of the Regents’ Council of Equestria, and former aide to the Sister Princesses.”

---

Twilight paced the room in agitation, her magic yanking every history book she owned off the shelves to trail behind her.

Her guest sat at the table, forelegs crossed primly and her demeanor placid, and yet Twilight couldn’t help but think she was finding her rapid-fire searching amusing. When Sunsparkle did finally speak again, however, the question made her freeze in mid-step. “So. Are you Luna’s?”

“Ah- w-what?”

“Are you a child of Luna? She was the most likely to be the first to-”

“No!” Twilight all but yelped, her feathers fluffing in shock at the implication. “Nothing like that! I- ah- I was a student of Celestia. I… well… I sort of ascended,” she said, running a hoof over a wing, both in an attempt to smooth her feathers back down and in a moment of remembrance over how she’d gotten them.

Sunsparkle rested her chin in her hooves and regarded her with interest. “Fascinating. The girls had also told me they ascended instead of being born as they were, but I was unaware the process could be repeated.”

“Actually… I’m not even the first. My sister-in-law, Cadance, she was.”

“May I ask how you did it?”

“Oh!” Brightening at the chance to answer something simple, Twilight laid all of her chosen books on the table and sat down. “Actually, I did it by completing an unfinished spell by Starswirl the Bearded.”

She wasn’t prepared for the way Sunsparkle’s gaze hardened at the mention of the name. “Did you, now?”

“Yeah. Did… Did you know him?”

“Hmph.” Sunsparkle looked away towards one of the books that Twilight had picked. “I would much prefer not to discuss him.”

An awkward pall settled over them like a particularly heavy blanket, and Twilight was much relieved when the door to the library clicked and swung open and Rarity trotted in, fussing with heavy saddlebags.

“I apologize profusely for being so late, but there were so many Nightmare Night costumes to deli-” The white mare’s voice died as she looked up from her bags to take in the room before her. Specifically one part. “Ah… Darling, are you aware that I can see through your guest?”

Twilight snorted, grateful for the feeling that she was back on familiar ground. “Yeah, I’m aware. Rarity, this is Sunsparkle, the source of the magic in the pendant. Sunsparkle, this is Rarity, a good friend of mine.”

“Charmed.”

“Likewise.” Rarity floated her saddlebags to lie on the table and pulled out several books with another wisp of magic, then flashed Sunsparkle a smile. “At least you’re a ghost with manners,” she chirped, earning a chuckle.

“It seems like you were -oh, thanks- right about the time of manufacture,” Twilight said as she accepted the books from her friend. “Sunsparkle here is… um, actually, I don’t think we specified how old you actually are. What year are you from?”

“I was born in Post-Unification Year Fifty-Two. The Third Regents’ Council first convened in Seventy-Four and disbanded in favor of the Sister Princesses’ crowning in One-Fifteen,” Sunsparkle replied, then raised an eyebrow at the sudden flurry of page flipping that prompted in Twilight. “Is that a problem?”

Twilight bit her lip and put down the two books she’d been searching through, then grabbed three more. “A-haha, no problem! No problem at all!” she said in a nervous giggle as she skimmed. Then she winced when she glanced up from book number five to find both of the other mares regarding her with expressions of flat disbelief. “Ugh, fine.”

She laid all the books out then rubbed her temples with her hooves. A light hoof rubbed at the tense spot between her wings as well, and she shot Rarity a thankful glance before huffing and resting a hoof on one of the books. “This drives me absolutely nuts to say because that means my books are missing something, but absolutely nothing here has any record of a Third Regents’ Council.”

Sunsparkle frowned. “Then what do you have?”

Twilight awkwardly rubbed the back of her neck as she avoided looking the ghost mare in the eye. Staring at words! That was a lot better! Less stressful!

Except for the fact of what they said. Having to tell Sunsparkle just whom the history of the time period was primarily attributed to...

“Um… Well…”

“Surely it’s not that bad,” Rarity prompted gently.

“Yes, it is," Twilight muttered. "Hnn… Okay, so. The fact of the matter is, my books kind of... “ Twilight clenched her jaw for a moment, then braced herself and blew out all the words in a rush of breath. “Only a generation after Unification, Starswirl the Bearded came across two alicorn fillies and brought them to be placed on the throne and stayed with themtoteachthemdiplomacyandmagicfortherestofhislife.”

Silence fell over the room, but it only lasted for a few seconds before ghostly hooves slammed onto the table and the room once again went frosty. “Excuse me?!” Sunsparkle nearly snarled, mane and tail seeming to electrify around her in an invisible storm. “The record-keepers had the sheer... gall to claim that… that… insufferable brat-!”

“Ah, why don’t I make us all some tea?” Rarity jumped in before Sunsparkle could get a good head of steam on her rant. “Except… Dear, can you even drink tea?”

The look Sunsparkle shot her made it clear she knew exactly what Rarity was doing, but she did calm down somewhat nonetheless and sit back down. “I highly doubt it. And it would be rude to ruin my host’s carpet trying to find out.”

“Fair enough! I’ll just get some for Twilight and myself, then.”

When the library door closed, Twilight finally chanced to look up from her books. Sunsparkle had apparently recovered enough that her mane was no longer whipping in a wind that only affected her, but the rigid tension in her body was still there and the room was still chilly.

Gulping hard and hoping she wasn’t about to make a huge mistake, Twilight gently closed all of the books with her magic and folded her forelegs on the table. “Sunsparkle… why do you hate Starswirl so much?”

Sunsparkle glanced up, eyes icy, then sighed and rubbed her face with her hooves. “Silver Swirl… my partner… She was his mentor. Took him in when he was a wide-eyed fluff of a foal that still had a heart in him and taught him until he decided he had learned all he needed from her and flounced off to search for fame.”

Twilight’s eyes went wide and she leaned forward. “She was- wait… but how? No offense, but you hardly look-”

Sunsparkle snorted softly then put a hoof over her pendant and stared down at it with a wistful fondness. “None taken. Silver and I… well, it is rather hard to explain, but the simplest words for it is that we somehow shared a loop between us. It drastically slowed down our aging and extended our lives.”

“Is that why you’re a crystal pony?”

“Ha! Oh, no, no, that was… a very awkward magical accident many years after we met. But. To further elaborate on your last question, Silver Swirl was heartbroken to see what Starswirl grew to become after she had tried so hard to give him all the love and patience he could possibly want. I do not think he so much as wrote her an incident report in between the time he left and the time the Sisters were located.”

Thinking back to the time she had spent with her idol when the Pillars returned from being sealed away, Twilight did well not to cringe. That… unfortunately sounded a lot like the Starswirl she’d met. A soft clink brought her attention back to the present and she smiled at the cup Rarity had set beside her. “Thanks.”

“Not a problem,” Rarity replied with a smile of her own as she sat down with her cup. Twilight didn’t miss the small plate of cookies the unicorn subtly nudged towards Sunsparkle either.

Taking up her cup in her magic, Twilight took a sip, relishing in the fact that Rarity had remembered just the right amount of honey and ginger. The tea improved her nerves immensely and, after sipping a little more, she rested her cheek on a hoof. “So… about the Princesses. Starswirl didn’t raise them, I take it?”

“Pfft.” Sunsparkle’s temper thankfully didn’t make another appearance, but her irritation was still visible as she prodded the cookies to see if they would go through her hoof. Satisfied that she could pick one up at least, the ghost mare did so, though she ended up using it more as a prop for her gesturing rather than attempting to eat it. “He was the one to begin their magical training, I will grant him that much credit,” she said. “In fact, we had high hopes for him at the time. He had joined up with the Pillars, it seemed like he had begun working magic for his fellow pony instead of gaining renown for himself… We thought that whatever madness had spawned such arrogance in him for years… that it had passed. So Silver was more than happy to name him the girls’ magical teacher, and for the times that he was too busy to handle them, we placed our dear friend Majesty as their personal guard.”

“Majesty?” Twilight asked, ears perking up. “The Majesty that records say defeated the Vetala and the South Marsh Kelpies?”

Sunsparkle smiled. “The very same,” she said before regarding the cookies once more and then gently pushing the plate back over to Rarity. “And she excelled as their protector for several years,” she added, before her expression closed again. “Until the attack by the Pony of Shadows.”

Twilight quickly pulled her cup away from her mouth, glad she hadn’t taken a sip while listening. She glanced over at Rarity and found her friend returning her uncomfortable look. “The Pony of Shadows?” Twilight asked hesitantly.

“Surely your textbooks did not neglect to mention that.”

“No, no, it’s in there. I just don’t remember ever reading that Majesty was there,” Twilight said as she floated over her cup to accept Rarity’s offer of a refill.

“A pity. Though if the turmoil of the rest of the Post-Unification Era was glossed over, I suppose I can understand. Her death caused a great deal of the unrest that the Council had been fighting to swell back up.”

The clatter of the teacup falling to the table made them all jump, and Twilight skittered back from the table as she hurriedly cast a cleanup spell to keep her books and Rarity from getting soaked by the tea spill. “Sorry!”

Rarity tutted and added some magic of her own to repair the chip broken from the cup when she’d dropped it, then fixed her some fresh tea. “There we go. No harm, no muss, no fuss. Now then, Sunsparkle, you were saying?”

“Right! Right…” Twilight murmured in agreement. “You said that Majesty… The Pony of Shadows killed her?”

“So we were told by the girls when they returned,” Sunsparkle said as she put the cookie back on the plate and began to toy with her pendant instead. “Our poor girls. We had never allowed them to go on a mission with the Pillars before due to the fact that they hadn’t had enough lessons in defensive magic, but they had begged to get to see such legendary ponies in action just once. One little simple mission. And then to see the Pillars stolen away, to see Majesty fall… They had nightmares for so long.”

Rarity put a hoof over her mouth with a soft gasp, eyes visibly shimmering with welled-up tears, and Twilight bit her lip. To think of the Princesses as foals, crying in the dark because they had been through something so awful too soon… “What happened after that?”

“The tribes were in panic. The Pony of Shadows may have been gone, but so were everypony’s greatest heroes. It seemed everypony forgot that we had been keeping the peace just fine before the Pillars came, and despair turned to anger, then turned to blame. We had no choice but to end the reign of the Council and put the Sisters on their thrones to bring back some semblance of order.”

“And… if Starswirl and the others were already gone, then it was the Council members who taught Celestia and Luna to be princesses?”

“Myself and Silver Swirl, to be exact. We did hire assistants for them, but they needed someone around to teach them all the intricacies of leading, and since they already regarded us as family, the rest of the Council voted that the task fall to us two, and left to enjoy their retirement. Not that I hold that against them.” she added with a little wave of her hoof. “They’d more than earned the right and Silver and I loved our girls.” Sunsparkle rested her chin on her hoof, the last vestiges of her anger fading into a sort of resigned tiredness. “And there you have it.”

Twilight finished the last of her tea, more as a stalling tactic than anything, then laid her cup down. “I don’t… I’m not calling you a liar, I swear I’m not, but, um. Is there any way to prove all this?”

Rarity frowned in thought. “Perhaps we could-”

“Do they still reign?”

“Beg pardon?” Rarity asked.

“Celestia and Luna. Are they still on their thrones?”

“Um, yeah, actually,” Twilight said. “Celestia was my teacher, like I told you, and Luna’s back fr-ow!” she yelped as Rarity none too subtly trod on her hoof under the table. Looking back and forth from Rarity’s brittle smile to Sunsparkle’s curious head tilt, she wondered what the-

Oh.

Right.

That.

“Yep, they both still reign,” Twilight said, trying to manage a casual smile. Judging by Rarity’s slight eye roll, it wasn’t her best.

But at least Sunsparkle didn’t press her about it. “Very well,” the ghost mare said as she got up. “Then we will go speak to them. They can easily verify what I have told you, and it has been too long since I have been able to see my girls.”

“And after that,” she added, her voice gaining a sharp edge. “We will find out what has happened to my dear Silver Swirl.”

---

Twin poofs of raspberry magic and green flames lit up the room as Twilight and Spike sent off the letters she’d written. That task done, she looked over her list of supplies, checking each item three times against the ones on the table before moving on to the next. “Sure you don’t want to come along, Spike? We should be gone at least a few days.”

“It sounds like a lot of fun, but I’d rather not risk missing out on the Nightmare Night candy,” Spike replied, tossing more popcorn in his mouth before leaning in. “And someone’s gotta keep an eye on Starlight during her first time passing out the goods,” he added in a conspiratorial murmur.

“...Fair point,” Twilight acknowledged, then looked up from her checklist as Rarity came in, her saddlebags freshly laden. “What’s all that?”

“Why, I’m coming with you, of course!” Rarity said as she trotted over to examine Twilight’s chosen supplies.

“Wait, what? I thought-”

Rarity held up a hoof. “All of my Nightmare Night orders have been completed and delivered and, quite frankly, this would spare me the stress of finishing my own costume. And besides,” she added, expression becoming distant and misty as she clasped her hooves together. “Didn’t you hear her? The poor dear, so desperate to reunite with her lost love! How could I possibly look at myself in the mirror tomorrow if I didn’t support her?!”

Spike snickered quietly behind his claw and Twilight gave him a light elbow in the ribs. “Well… I guess it would be easier with someone more experienced than me when it comes to jewelry,” she admitted. “Alright, then. Go wait with Sunsparkle, okay? I’m just about done here.”

Rarity made a giddy little squeal and practically bounced out of the room, then Twilight turned to Spike, raising an eyebrow. “Suuuure you’re staying behind?” she asked teasingly.

Spike scrunched his nose and scratched under his chin as he mentally debated. Finally, he sighed. “Nah, better make sure Starlight doesn’t hex some poor kid. Bring me back something?”

Twilight gently scruffed his head fin with a smile. “You bet. Sweets and gems, I promise.” she said as she magicked everything into her saddlebags and headed off to the front hall. “Okay, ready to go!”

---

Logistics had narrowed their choices to taking the train. The balloon would have made for a longer trip in the weather they’d been having, and Twilight had no idea if she even could teleport a ghost.

Of course, this came with its own problems. Namely the fact that Sunsparkle was examining everything about their surroundings as they walked with a curious and critical eye. “How old is this hamlet?”

“You mean the town? Uh, not all that old, really. Four, five generations, right Rarity?”

“Well, that entirely depends on Granny Smith’s actual lifespan,” Rarity replied, her mouth quirked in an impish smile. “But yes, that’s about right.”

“And these decorations. None of the harvest festivals I remember were so… macabre.”

Twilight giggled awkwardly. “Well, uh, it’s kinda- I mean to say it’s-”

“A festival for Princess Luna,” Rarity cut in smoothly. “A celebration of all things, um, nightly.”

“Oh! I can only imagine how pleased she must be,” Sunsparkle said with a smile and a nod. “Little Moonshine always was fond of her black humor. I am glad she has finally found a way for others to enjoy it as well.”

“Yes! It’s all in good fun!” Twilight said a little too emphatically. Fortunately, Sunsparkle was still too distracted by all the fake spiderwebs and grinning pumpkin faces to notice. Rarity, however, slowed her pace to match Twilight’s and leaned in close.

“Twilight, dear, are you alright?” Rarity asked sotto voce, keeping an eye on the ghost mare ahead of them, whom had appeared to become fascinated by a string of plastic bats. “From what I heard, you weren’t this anxious when Luna herself found out about Nightmare Night.”

“I’m not anxious,” Twilight muttered. “Okay, maybe a little,” she amended at Rarity’s disbelieving snort. “But can you blame me? I mean, you had to remind me that we’re essentially dealing with Luna’s adoptive mother, if everything she’s told us is accurate. And I almost blabbed twice that her daughter went villain! It would be like having to tell my mom that Shiny started mind controlling ponies, or you telling your mom Sweetie Belle led a coup to take over Equestria!”

“Frankly, there were several occasions I almost expected her to do so,” Rarity replied airily before turning serious again. “But I do see your point, especially considering the fact that you’re an abysmal liar.”

“Gee, thanks.”

“Why not hoof discussion of Luna over to me for a bit? I may not be as well-versed in history as you are, but that also means I know less to accidentally spill. You can take over technological speak instead, since you enjoy that.”

It would be a big weight off her back… “Okay, that sounds goo- uh oh.”

“What oh?” Rarity asked, then turned her head back in the direction they’d been walking just in time to be half blinded by the flash of a camera somepony had aimed at their companion. “Uh oh indeed,” she muttered, rubbing her eyes as Twilight rushed ahead to get between the unlucky photographer and Sunsparkle before the latter could bristle.

“Hey, guys! I know her costume is really cool, but our friend’s kinda camera shy, so if you could move on that would be fantastic!” Twilight half-babbled as she pulled Sunsparkle away from the photographer and his friend.

“Costume?”

“Just roll with it,” Twilight hissed softly.

“A ghost costume that actually makes the wearer transparent, though!” The second pony gushed as she whipped out a notebook and pen, then turned to Rarity. “How did you do it?”

“I’m afraid that’s a trade secret.” Rarity batted her eyes at the pair then joined Twilight in gently guiding their charge. “And we really are in a hurry, excuse us.”

“What was that?” Sunsparkle asked when they were some distance away. “And why was he attempting to burn my eyes out with it?”

“He wasn’t. Trying to burn your eyes, I mean,” Twilight said. “It’s a camera. A sort of…” She paused. Much as she wanted to give a full explanation, her memories of trying to help Luna integrate reminded her not to overwhelm the poor mare. “It produces images of what it sees in a few seconds, rather than having to wait for a painting.”

“How interesting! But what about the lightning bolt contained in glass?”

“Oh, that’s the flash. It’s there to light up the area the camera is pointing at so the pictures don’t come out muddy.”

“I see- oh, wait. Are we not going to see the Sisters?” Sunsparkle asked, and Twilight didn’t need to look in the direction she was pointing to know where she meant.

“Ah, they… moved. We’re going to the replacement castle in Canterlot.”

Sunsparkle put a hoof to her heart in concern. “Replacement?”

“Oh, yes,” Rarity said. “There was a terrible accident in the old castle. And since it would have cost the same whatever they chose, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna chose to live where the city had grown.”

To their surprise, Sunsparkle laughed at the explanation. “Oh, that sounds exactly like the logistics young Miss Starflower would have argued. She would be so pleased to learn the girls were actually paying attention to her for a change,” she said, tail tossing in amusement, then paused. “But how do you intend to get there? By my view, it would be over a day’s walk.”

Twilight grinned. “You’ll see. And you can tell me more about this Starflower on the way.”

---

For a moment, Twilight wished she had a camera to capture the moment.

Sitting on her haunches and clutching her pendant between both hooves, Sunsparkle stared at the billowing smokestack of the train with almost childlike awe, and the sight made her own feathers fluff with glee.

"Stars…" Sunsparkle finally whispered. "And you say this works on coal and steam?"

"And only a very tiny bit of magic," Twilight said, managing to keep from sounding a little smug. It wasn't her invention, after all, as proud as she was to show it off.

"Is this Canterlot place its only destination?"

"There's more than one, actually, and stations for them in most cities and towns."

Sunsparkle put a hoof to her mouth, and her expression made Rarity gently reach out to pat her shoulder. "Silver would have loved to see this."

"We may yet get the chance to show her, depending on where we find her," Rarity said with another soothing pat.

"Until then, why not put it on a list?" Twilight suggested. "Everything you want her to see on the way to getting you two home?"

"Yes… Yes! I want to see more of these new cities of yours so I can show her!"

---

"I have changed my mind."

Twilight groaned softly and put her face in her hooves as Rarity muffled a giggle beside her. Three years ago, it would have made her immeasurably happy to see other ponies actually giving half a bit about a Starswirl costume.

But now was probably the worst possible time for what seemed like dozens of shop windows to be proudly displaying the familiar starry cap and cape in even more sizes.

She peeked over her hooves just in time to see Sunsparkle vanish, the glass and gem pendant continuing to float where she had just been standing. Biting back a curse, she quickly grabbed it in her own magic and pulled it over her head to rest around her neck before anypony could see.

“All things considered, she actually took it better than I would have thought,” Rarity said as she adjusted her saddlebags.

“Ugh,” was Twilight’s only reply as they started on the path up to the castle.

They had made it nearly halfway when she stopped and stamped a hoof, her wings fluffing out in frustration. “Ponyfeathers.”

“What’s the matter?”

“I haven’t told her he’s still alive.”

“And? It’s not as though they’re going to be crossing pa-” Rarity cut off when she saw the look on Twilight’s face. “That’s… not a happy expression. What did you do?”

Twilight winced. “I may have written to him to tell him about what happened.”

“Oh, my. Well, I suppose we’ll just have to hope he has no interest. She did say they had very little to do with each other.”

“Somehow, I doubt we’re going to be that lucky. But yeah, okay, hoping.”

---

The number of castle employees bustling hither and thither as they entered took them both by surprise. Frowning, Twilight snared a maid passing with what looked like a load of tablecloths. “What’s going on?”

“Wh- oh! Your highness!” The maid started to kneel, but Twilight gently waved her off. So instead she leaned in close. “These… dogs have shown up demanding parley with the Princesses. Horrible things they are, all black fur that’s just put on them wrong and sucks up all the light around them and glowing eyes.”

Twilight sucked in a breath and swallowed hard, shaking her head at Rarity’s concerned look. “Thank you for telling me. You’re free to return to your duties.”

The maid bobbed a quick bow and bolted down the hall.

“What in the world is so important about these dogs?” Rarity asked.

“Depending on whom you talk to, they’re either called the Grim or the Cu Sith,” Twilight said as they continued towards the throne room. “They’re omen-speakers from Tartarus, and they only come out to predict imminent war. If they’re wanting to speak to the Princesses, something big is coming.”

“Oh. Oh, dear. Do… do you suppose it might have something to do with our guest?”

“I really hope not. But if it does, we better find that other pendant soon.”

The guards at the doors of the throne room simply nodded to them and moved aside to let them pass and she returned their nods in passing. The Princesses themselves were seated on the pair of thrones on the dais at the end of the room, speaking quickly and urgently to several other guards and courtiers.

Twilight waited until most of them had cleared, and then stepped forward. “I apologize for the short-notice visit, especially since it looks like things are… um… hectic,” she said.

Princess Celestia gave her an affectionate, yet clearly exhausted smile. “A bit of a situation has come up, yes, but once the Cu Sith have given their prophecies, we can begin making plans to deal with it. And your visits are always welcome, Twilight, so long as…” Celestia’s voice trailed off, and Twilight took a step back nervously, acutely aware of what her former mentor was staring at. And when she chanced a brief glance at Luna, the night princess’s eyes were fixed in the same spot, gaze intense.

“Twilight… where did you get that pendant?”

Sitting back on her haunches, Twilight tapped her front hooves and tried hard not to let her wings fluff, anxiety beginning to swell in her chest. Letting Sunsparkle vanish on her had not been her best move. “Ah- well… fu- funny you should ask, because… um, that’s actually why I’m… Er-”

A cold, but gentle hoof touched her shoulder, and she turned her head to find that her ghostly companion had thankfully chosen the right time to re-manifest. Her fears quickly deflating in the face of not having to prove she wasn’t losing her mind, she turned back to the princesses.

If the situation hadn’t been so important, the dual expressions of gaping shock from such powerful ponies probably would have been incredibly funny. Instead, Twilight swallowed hard and was grateful when Rarity leaned into her other side to support her.

Of the pair, Luna -mostly- recovered first, taking a hesitant step forward from her throne. “Aunt Sunsparkle?” she asked in a near whisper, tears welling in her eyes.

The former regent of Equestria gave Twilight’s shoulder another pat, then moved past her to approach the dais, her smile fond. “It has been a very long time, my little Moonshine.”

Author's Note:

Writing earlier pony generations into the FiM lore is always a great deal of fun.

Comments

[cosmicbiscuit]

Apologies for the missing comments, but they concern something no longer part of the fic description. Any new comments will not be deleted.

[Ice Star]

The former regent of Equestria gave Twilight’s shoulder another pat, then moved past her to approach the dais, her smile fond. “It has been a very long time, my little Moonshine.”

So based on the way she still uses this, is she trying to imply it’s more than Luna’s nickname?