Piece by Piece

by Eltirions

Chapter 19: Preparations 7

11 December 1008

Rarity hadn’t done anything like this in a long time; Sweetie had stopped playing with dolls and other such toys long before she had moved in with Rarity.

But it was fun nonetheless. There wasn’t much story to the playing, of course, but truth be told there didn’t need to be.

Rarity pulled her mage away as Flurry moved the evil wizard forward, making sure that her figure wasn’t struck by the attack Flurry was no doubt going to use.

Damn, I still have to teach her telekinesis. I totally forgot about that.

‘’Flurry,’’ she spoke up, ‘’I just remembered I was going to show you how to lift more than one thing at a time today.’’ Perhaps now wasn’t the greatest time to mention it, but perhaps they’d remember it properly if spoken aloud.

Flurry’s eyes lit up. ‘’Oh yeah!’’ she said. ‘’Can we do it now?!’’

That, Rarity hadn’t been expecting. ‘’Are you sure, darling?’’ she asked. ‘’Don’t you want to spend time with your friends?’’

‘’We can do it here, right?’’

They certainly could. There were more than enough things lying around that both Rarity and Flurry could easily lift at the same time, after all.

But the idea of distracting Flurry from the final few hours with her friends before they left still didn’t sit right with Rarity. Alas, there was no going back now.

‘’We can,’’ she agreed. ‘’If we make a little room, that is.’’

She had room in less than half a minute, as all the foals and Rainbow made space for her.

‘’Now,’’ Rarity began, putting on a ‘teaching’ voice she’d used when visiting schools in Equestria during the Thestral Rights Campaign, ‘’it’s not that hard, darlings. It’s simply a matter of concentration, after all.’’

She lifted up one of the toys with her magic. ‘’Flurry, please do what I do.’’

‘’Okay auntie!’’ Flurry lifted up one of the other toys in her own magic.

‘’Hold it up for a few seconds,’’ Rarity instructed. When those few seconds had passed, she continued, ‘’now try to grab another toy with your magic.’’

Rarity followed her own instructions and lifted another toy in her magic, placing it next to the first one, then proceeded to watch Flurry.

The filly glared frustratedly at one of the toys. ‘’Come on!’’

The toy wobbled in an equally wobbly yellow aura, floated up a few centimeters, and then both it and the toy Flurry was already holding dropped to the ground.

‘’Aww…’’ Flurry pouted.

‘’Try again,’’ Rarity coaxed. ‘’You can do it, I’m sure of it.’’

‘’Okay.’’ Once again, Flurry’s horn sprung alight, and the toy she had tried to pick up floated into the air without any trouble. ‘’Now come on!’’

Once again, the other toy inched up into the air, before dropping again. This time, however, Flurry didn’t drop the other toy, which was an improvement, at least.

‘’Look at that!’’ Rarity complimented. ‘’You’re already getting better!’’

Flurry didn’t reply, and tried again. And again, and again.

Time kept on passing, and though Rarity tried to be helpful, she was no teacher of magic. Rainbow and the other foals watched mostly in silence, sometimes offering words of encouragement to Flurry.

‘’I can’t do it!’’ Flurry finally shouted in frustration as she dropped the toy she was lifting and pouted mightily.

‘’I didn’t get it right the first time too,’’ Rarity consoled, before moving forward and sitting down next to Flurry. ‘’You have all the time in the world. It’s not a problem, Flurry.’’

‘’Really?’’

‘’Of course,’’ Rarity said. Was Flurry really this conscious about something so comparatively small?

‘’I just wanted to get it right,’’ Flurry said softly. ‘’I wanna show auntie Luna I learnt things.’’

Oh, Flurry.

Rarity put one of her forelegs around Flurry. ‘’If you practice, I’m sure you can get it before she arrives here.’’

Sure, it had taken her months, but Flurry was far more powerful than Rarity had ever been (discounting the usage of the Elements and the Rainbow Power, of course), and probably had more talent with magic than her too, if her father and aunt were any indication. If any four-year old could do it, it was Flurry.

‘’If you say so.’’ Flurry snuggled up against Rarity’s side. ‘’Thanks for teaching me, auntie.’’

Rarity turned the embrace into a full hug. ‘’It’s my pleasure, Flurry.’’

|-x-X-x-|

11 December 1008

When Lilac and Ocellus got back to the Crystal Palace, she found a brown stallion waiting for her at the entrance.

‘’Good day,’’ he greeted. ‘’You are Miss Merrimare, the Governess’ new secretary, correct?’’

Lilac nodded, before extending her hoof in greeting. ‘’That I am, and this is Sugar Petal, my niece and ward. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr…’’

‘’Tight Ship,’’ the stallion answered as he shook her hoof. ‘’The pleasure is all mine, my ladies. I am the Chamberlain of the Palace, and I understand the Governess wished for you to receive a tour?’’

‘’She did,’’ Lilac confirmed. Though I certainly didn’t expect the Chamberlain to be the one leading us around.

‘’Good!’’ Tight Ship said. ‘’I’m sure one of these fine gentlecolts can take those bags off your hooves, and then we can get started, no?’’

So said, so done, and after one of the guards had taken the bags both Lilac and Ocellus were carrying, Tight Ship began the tour in earnest.

‘’So, this is the Palace’s central hallway. All the floors on this hallway connect to it. If you follow it straight ahead from here,’’ he pointed down the hallway, ‘’you’ll eventually reach the throne room. But before that, you’ll come across what is known as the Fountain Square.’’

‘’Fountain Square?’’ Ocellus asked.

‘’You’ll see,’’ Tight Ship said with a mysterious smile.

And sure enough, they did. Fountain Square, in Lilac’s opinion, was aptly named: it was quite literally a small square with a fountain in the centre. To the left, right and directly ahead of her (behind the fountain, obviously) were hallways, while staircases ledged between either left or right and the hallway ahead led up to a balustrade from where one could look down on the scene, and presumably go into other hallways.

‘’This is Fountain Square,’’ Tight Ship said. ‘’The hallway on our left leads to the kitchens, the storage rooms and some offices, while the one on the right splits apart later, with a hallway leading to the barracks and the armoury and another leading to the gardens and the pools.’’

‘’The Palace has pools?’’ Lilac asked, one eyebrow raised. Given how old the building was, such a feature was surprising.

‘’Oh yes,’’ Tight Ship confirmed. ‘’They were constructed on the order of Emperor Amoriac the First, in 412 BLB. A few of them are available to the staff and diplomatic guests, but most of the pools are reserved for the Imperial Family only.’’

‘’Speaking of guests,’’ he continued, ‘’every member of the staff has their own quarters, though some share, obviously. However, as the secretary of the Governess, you have been given private quarters in the Eastern Tower, on our left. You can reach that one from here, but there is also another staircase closer to the pools. Shall we?’’

‘’Sure,’’ Lilac agreed with a nod, and once again Tight Ship took the lead, guiding them through the crystal halls until they’d reached the staircase he had spoken of.

‘’We go up here for a while,’’ he explained. ‘’The towers don’t get narrower until almost at the top, and they’re quite tall, I’m afraid.’’

Lilac craned her neck upwards. The Crystal Palace was the only building she’d seen so far that outshone the spires of Vesalipolis in height, and it outshone them by quite a margin.

‘’Can we fly up?’’ Ocellus asked, because of course she did.

‘’You can, of course,’’ Tight Ship acknowledged, ‘’but I’m afraid I can’t, and the lifts won’t be constructed until the summer. So I, at least, have to walk.’’

‘’Then we might as well walk with you,’’ Lilac decided with a side glance at Ocellus. Behave.

Ocellus tilted her head a little in acknowledgement. Good. Lilac didn’t disagree with the idea of flying up there, in theory, but it was rather impolite and even insulting to do so when their guide would have to walk all the way.

And the stairs weren’t that tiring to climb, even though their number would have suggested otherwise. Lilac had ensured neither she nor Ocellus lost the endurance and stamina they’d built up during their escape and subsequent time in the wild, and it showed. Tight Ship, obviously used to doing this every day, leisurely kept pace with them.

‘’The second level has some higher-class rooms, for guests, as well as offices and the ballroom,’’ Tight Ship explained as they continued to climb. ‘’The third and fourth level have rooms too, but less, and more offices and such. The fourth floor has the library as well.’’

The explanation continued for quite some time, until they’d reached the twelfth level. ‘’Right, this is our stop,’’ Tight Ship quipped. ‘’This level only has a few big rooms; the tower is already getting narrower here, seeing as this is the second-last level before the pinnacle. Come, I’ll lead you to yours.’’

They went into the hallway directly in front of them, coming across doors on both sides, until reaching the end of the hallway, where Tight Ship turned right. ‘’This is yours,’’ he said, before fishing a set of keys out of his pockets and sliding one into the door. It unlocked with a click as he turned it.

Tight Ship pushed open the door, then stepped aside. ‘’After you.’’

The room was, in one word, massive. It was, perhaps, only a little smaller than Winter’s entire apartment, and all that for a single person, where Winter’s apartment had been constructed for a family of three.

‘’Nice,’’ Ocellus whistled, and Lilac found herself agreeing with that, though nice was not the word she would have used.

‘’The Mi Amore dynasty has always believed in treating their staff right,’’ Tight Ship remarked. ‘’Even the menial servants have quite comfortable accommodations, especially for the time they were built in.’’

‘’I can believe that,’’ Lilac absently said as she looked around the living room. Because there was no need for a kitchen, the living room was huge, with a table large enough to seat ten people at, as well as two couches, two sofa chairs, and a coffee table. Of course, there was a fireplace, crackling merrily behind crystal bars.

‘’Thank you for the tour,’’ Lilac said as she turned towards Tight Ship. ‘’I would’ve never found this otherwise.’’

Tight Ship tipped his head. ‘’You’re welcome.’’ He glanced at the clock on the wall. ‘’We’ve some time yet until dinner, if I recall correctly. What do you want to do?’’

That was a good question. Tight Ship would probably show them more of the Palace if they asked, Lilac reasoned, but she wasn’t sure if there was more they needed to see.

‘’So, where is the Governess’ office?’’ Ocellus asked just as Lilac was coming up with the idea of asking that.

‘’In the Northern Tower,’’ Tight Ship answered, ‘’which is used for ambassadors and other such high-class delegates. She has neglected to use the Central Tower, though as the Regentess of the Crystal Empire she has that right.’’

Good to know. ‘’And how can I get to the Northern Tower? I assume my office will be somewhere there.’’

‘’Ah, for that you have to go back to the second level, and then take the hallway that leads in the direction of the gate. I’d suggest heading to Fountain Square first; it’s the easiest path. You may get lost in the corridors otherwise,’’ Tight Ship advised.

Lilac inclined her head in acknowledgement. ‘’Thanks.’’

‘’It’s my pleasure, my lady.’’

|-x-X-x-|

11 December 1008

After the heartwarming moment between Rarity and Flurry, which Rainbow would freely admit was adorable to anyone who asked, they all went back to playing, but not with the same heart as they’d had before. And pretty soon, Rarity cleared her throat and drew everyone’s attention to her.

‘’Darlings,’’ she said, ‘’it’s almost dinnertime. Shall we clean this up and head for the dining room?’’

‘’Okay auntie!’’ Flurry agreed with some of her usual cheer, which in turn served to cheer up the others.

With seven people, the room was easily cleaned of the toys and such that had been scattered throughout it. We still have to pack, but this should make it easier, Rainbow dryly thought.

She wasn’t used to cleaning up; her house was usually something that could generously be called ‘semi-organized chaos’, at best. And in the military she didn’t have much to clean up in the first place, aside from her uniform and the letters she’d sometimes received.

Still, Rainbow had always been good at doing things quickly, and cleaning the room, especially with others helping her, was no big effort.

‘’Right, so what’s for dinner?’’ Rainbow asked as they made their way through the Palace, Rarity at the head of their little column with Rainbow flying next to her.

‘’Would you believe me when I say I have no idea?’’ Rarity mused aloud. ‘’I don’t usually place orders; the surprise is most invigorating.’’

That made sense, kind of. Still, it seemed strange. ‘’You don’t have a list of things you like?’’

‘’Of course I do,’’ Rarity said as if that was obvious, ‘’and the kitchens know that, just like they know what I don’t like. And a lot of things need to be imported here first, of course. We’re not starving, but many things simply don’t grow here, and I don’t want to take away from the things that do overly much.’’

‘’How is the food situation anyway?’’ Rainbow inquired.

‘’Could be worse,’’ Rarity said. ‘’He didn’t destroy it, but some of the fields were damaged or destroyed in the war.’’

And the ponies that tended to them too, Rainbow carefully thought and didn’t say aloud. From the look in Rarity’s eyes, it was obvious she knew that too.

‘’We’ve had to import a little every month, which was harder then than it is now,’’ Rarity continued. ‘’We’ll be back to normal before the coming harvest, if everything goes well, and then we can start reducing the imports to what they were before.’’

‘’Huh. Neat.’’

They arrived at the dining room, where two stallions in suits were waiting on them. ‘’Good evening, Princess, Governess, Commander, ladies and gentlecolts,’’ one of them greeted. ‘’With your permission, we shall wait for the new secretary to join us before beginning the dinner.’’

‘’Of course,’’ Rarity agreed with a nod. ‘’Did she arrive yet?’’

‘’Yes, together with her niece,’’ the stallion answered. ‘’The Chamberlain took them on a tour of the Palace.’’

‘’I see,’’ Rarity remarked. ‘’In that case, I think we shan’t have to wait for too long, no?’’

At that moment, the door opened again, and Lily Merrimare stepped through it, followed by a younger, yellow pegasus with a mane coloured similarly to Lily Merrimare’s coat, who was probably that niece of hers.

‘’Good evening,’’ Lily Merrimare greeted them all. ‘’Are we late?’’

‘’Not at all, darling,’’ Rarity assured her before Rainbow could say something. ‘’We’ve just arrived ourselves. And is this your niece?’’

‘’She is,’’ Lily Merrimare confirmed. ‘’Sugar, introduce yourself.’’

‘’Evening,’’ the third pegasus in the room said, ‘’I’m Sugar Petal. Nice to meet you all.’’

Rainbow wasn’t sure if she found the lack of respect irritating or refreshing.

Rarity didn’t seem affected in the slightest. ‘’It’s a pleasure to meet you, darling. Come, let’s all take our seats.’’

There was more than enough room at the table for all nine of them, of course. Rainbow ended up with Rarity on her left and Lily Merrimare on her right, with Flurry and Star Glitter being left of Rarity and Flurry’s other friends on the other side of the table, together with Sugar Petal, leaving one empty chair.

‘’So,’’ Rarity began what was sure to be an interesting conversation, ‘’how did you find your room, Lily?’’

‘’It’s impressive, Rarity,’’ Lily Merrimare replied. ‘’I’m not sure what I’m going to do with so much space.’’

‘’I’m sure you can find something,’’ Rarity said in a reassuring tone.

Stars, this is boring.

Rainbow tuned out the conversation and began to think instead. Rainbow Falls was sure to be interesting, but she didn’t know anything about the other places they would be visiting. Rarity was probably going to take that book of hers, of course, so Rainbow would have plenty of time to look through it.

But first, dinner.

Author's Note:

Evidently this is not the last chapter set on the 11th. I won't apologize for that, obviously.

Also, I made a blog yesterday. Go read it here: https://www.fimfiction.net/blog/966475/commentary-on-my-favourite-fics

Until next chapter!

Update: I have finished editing/rewriting my first story: https://www.fimfiction.net/story/495171/the-crystal-story-flurrys-tale
Please, go check it out if it feels like something you'd enjoy.

Comments

[The Great Scribbly One]

Nice glimpse into life in the palace!