Egress

by Grey Vicar

Chapter 16 - Winter Frost Against A False Summer Sun

Princess Twilight Sparkle did not attend court that day. It was the very first time in six hundred years of reign that she had kept the doors to the throne room closed. The message needed to be clear. Princess Flurry Heart of the Crystal Empire was an intruder, and her presence upset the entirety of Equestria.

Moreover, she was just so, so tired.

Even as she ate the best pancakes of her best chef, she felt as if she didn't belong there. She felt the eyes of her staff, the hushed whispers and accusations. They knew. They knew. Flurry Heart unexpectedly showing up and disrupting court had shown them that… that… she didn't know what it had showed them exactly but it had showed them something. And she wasn't welcome here anymore. Flurry Heart was so much better. So much grace and poise and elegance, the princess of a kingdom that had returned from its apparent death and now blossomed. Who was Twilight Sparkle? The one who inherited the throne of a stable and prosperous country through the whims of—

Twilight blanked out, coffee cup hanging still against her lips. How had she ascended to the throne anyway? She'd always been there. Always guided her little ponies. She'd done so for six hundred years now. Her memory was a bit blurry, that was all. She shook her head. Why was she so stressed out anyway? This changed nothing. She would hear what that silly princess had to say and send her back, like she did many diplomats before.

But why did the idea of talking to her make her feel so cold?

“Is everything alright, Princess?” One of her servants asked in a hesitant voice. Twilight started. She'd had a piece of pancake hanging on a fork right next to her mouth for several minutes.

“Everything is fine. Thank you.” She ate the rest of the pancake and left the remaining one in the plate. She pushed it away. “I'm not hungry anymore, thank you.”

The servant gave her a strange look. Was that… pity? No she must have been imagining things. He collected her plate and walked back to the kitchen. She downed her third cup of coffee. Raising the sun always made her so tired. Guilt stabbed at her. Why couldn't she just be good at her job? Why couldn't she just raise the sun effortlessly like… like… like somepony who could raise the sun effortlessly? It was stupid. It was so stupid. She was raising the sun for pony sake! It was a monumental task that she alone could accomplish. That alone should have made her feel good about herself.

Yet… what if she lacked the strength someday? What if she tried pulling the sun up and it refused to answer? She often felt it try to slip away from the delicate magic she wove around it. If that happened… then everypony would know how useless she was. Twilight Sparkle, unable to accomplish the task every creature in the world depended on. Twilight Sparkle, failure of a princess.

There is a secret to it. There is a secret to the sun, to the meetings, to the documents. It lies in the white and gold hidden within the castle I know it I know it I know it.

“Princess Twilight Sparkle?”

Noble Duty laid a hoof on her shoulder. It was six o'clock. It was time to hold court.

There was a chill to the air of the court today. The paper crowd sat and traded hushed whispers, huddling together like hikers lost on a cold night trying to keep themselves warm. Petitions and requests were muted, uneasy. At the eye of the chill that bore down on the ponies of Canterlot, a conspicuous delegation made sure to make themselves seen. Princess Flurry Heart sat to the side, her crystal horn glistening in the light filtering through the blurred stained glass windows of the Canterlot court. Attendants surrounded her, a hoofful of crystal ponies, polished mineral coat standing out amongst the fur of the Equestrians. The attention of the court, which was usually solidly on Princess Twilight Sparkle, Benevolent Ruler Of Equestria, had been drawn to the representatives of the Crystal Empire as easily as a foal could be distracted by candy. It didn't matter what happened in front of the throne, the paper crowd was taken in by the unwanted visitors.

Twilight was restless on her throne. She knew what game Flurry Heart was playing. She was here to undermine her, to attack her by hurting her personally, and then showing her court that there was another, better princess that could lead them, one who wouldn't fail them like Princess Twilight Sparkle would. Somepony who could sit on the throne and look pretty like a perfect princess. Meanwhile, she could draft any trade agreement and treaties she wanted, syphoning Equestria's resources into her own little kingdom until the proud pony nation fell under its own weight. Even as she rose a hoof to silence the court, and the paper crowd settled quietly, their eyes on her, she knew. She knew that they were just waiting for their chance to pounce on her and rip her off the throne. They knew she didn't belong. She knew she didn't belong.

The throne is purple why is it purple there used to be an other throne and it was golden and beautiful and there she was the white and gold oh stars why am I here I don't belong here stopstopstopstop.

Jitters and cold sweats. Coffee, she needed coffee. She closed her eyes and breathed in. Breathed out. It helped a little bit. It helped out a lot, actually. Breathe in. Breathe out. She felt her heart settle down. Why had she never tried this? It was a good trick to stay calm. She opened her eyes, narrowing her gaze on the innocent-looking Crystal Princess. Had Flurry Heart inspired her to do this? Somehow?

What are you hiding?

She did belong on the throne. No you don't. She did belong on the throne. As long as her little ponies needed her. They needed her. She would be there for them. Stop lying to yourself you useless hypocrite. Her ponies needed her. Her ponies needed her.

Twilight needed to nip Flurry Heart's plan in the bud, before she succeeded in turning everypony against her. They were so frail and small and stupid. She needed to protect them.

She needed to catch Flurry Heart in her own trap. Yes, this was the way to go.

“Princess Flurry Heart,” Princess Twilight said with a fake smile, “how rude of me to ignore you when you gave us the honour of having you in our court.”

Whispers increased in volume around her. Princess Flurry Heart rose an eyebrow at her.

“As diplomatic envoy of the Crystal Empire, I'm sure you're burning with a desire to share those new, phenomenal treaties and agreements you spoke of yesterday.” Princess Twilight's smile widened as Flurry Heart frowned. “Why don't you share them to the court right now?”

Princess Flurry Heart looked uneasily around herself. That was it, as easy as pie. She hadn't truly come here to discuss politics and relations. And now she'd been caught in her own game. She'd have to expose the lies and backstabbing that were sure to be hidden within the agreements she'd proposed.

Yes, it was obvious. Twilight had expertly maneuvered Flurry Heart in a position she could not escape, how—

“With pleasure, Princess Twilight.” She bowed lightly and gestured to one of her attendants, who procured a rolled parchment. She undid it and cleared her throat as she walked in front of the throne, in the centre of the court. Twilight frowned. Where was the sweating, the nervous backpedaling? “Fillies and gentlecolts, what Princess Twilight says is true. We in the Crystal Empire have worried at the degrading relations between the Crystal Empire and Equestria, and thus, I have gathered the best minds in the Empire in order to try and make better arrangements for the both of our nations.”

What came next stunned Princess Twilight even more than she imagined it would. The Crystal Empire had discovered new magic-conducting minerals. They were willing to trade with Equestria at ridiculously generous rates. Researchers had dug up old territorial disputes between the nations. They were willing to fully return the lands and the mines that were in them. The Crystalians were ready to heavily finance and supplement the military forces patrolling the borders between Northern Equestria and the lands beyond. On and on the suggestions and deals poured forth from Princess Flurry Heart. She thought the Crystal Empire would have developed a solid hatred for Equestria with how she’d been neglecting them. But Flurry Heart spoke of how the Crystalians were scared of losing Equestria’s friendship, how they remembered how Twilight had liberated their city long, long ago. What Princess Twilight had expected had been completely reversed.

There were no cutthroat dealings in play. If anything, the Crystal Empire was willing to become even more subservient to Equestria.

“Our nations have always been strong allies, even historically, before our revival,” Flurry Heart said, turning to Twilight and genuflecting. “More than ever, however, we depend on Equestria for our wellbeing. The Crystal Empire is rich in minerals, and our ponyfolk is a fine one indeed, but without the food we trade in from Equestria, we would starve, and without her protection, we would be left at the mercies of the… forces harrying us.” She looked up at Twilight, eyes glistening. “And I hope this can bring us— our nations closer together.”

When Twilight left the court, the paper crowd was still cheering Flurry Heart on.

“Forgive me for asking, Princess, but what was that for?” Noble Duty stood to Twilight's side, unflinching.

“I thought I'd expose her for the liar she was. I thought she would… she would…” It was all so clear in Twilight's head, how Flurry Heart was going to manipulate them all into causing troubles and blaming Twilight for them, and eventually cast Equestria down in flames. But she couldn't express it. She just… she just knew. Or did she? Now, it seemed like a fleeting fantasy and she could barely remember why she'd thought so in the first place.

“Well they love her even more than before.” Noble Duty sighed. “Princess Twilight, I know things have been hard but… I think she genuinely came here to try and build up the ties between our nations. Cooperate with her.”

It was with confusion and uncertainty that Twilight rose the moon.

Comments

[Golden Tassel]

11366445
Thanks, but I stole it from somewhere that I've since forgotten

[dark_samus3]

Having read through all of this, initially I thought that Noble Duty might have been malicious or manipulative in some way. But at this point, I think that we're just seeing things through Twilight's severely broken view, and her issues with her duty are coloring the way the reader views her. Quite a fascinating story so far. Not quite sure what to think of it, but I definitely will be following it