Chapter 6 ; Chapter 7 ; Chapter 8 ; Chapter 9
So far, Pinkie Pie thought, humming a song backwards as she
walked frontwards with her friends into the already darkening
throne room of the Day Palace, it had been the best day ever.
Of course, she thought that about every day. And weirdly
enough, it always turned out she was right.
She was wearing her dress again, the one Rarity had given
her this morning, the one that hugged her tight with one part of
it while the other part flared out all poofy and made her feel
just exactly the way a balloon would feel, she was sure, if a
balloon ever wore a dress--
And that was such a great idea--dresses for balloons!--she
almost stopped to get her notebook out to write it down for when
they got back to Ponyville.
Except she didn't have her pack on so she didn't have her
notebook. Which meant she had no choice but to start muttering
it to herself over and over--"Dresses for balloons! Dresses for
balloons!"--since that was the best way, she knew, to let it
squirm into her brain like bees into a tree stump--
Oooo. Dresses for bees...
"Ministers?" somepony was saying, and Pinkie looked up to
see Princess Luna, her Highness drifting down the carpet from
the throne, her mane definitely fuller and more flowing like her
older sister's. "Good evening."
Pinkie's heart grew about three sizes bigger every time she
saw one of Equestria's two royal ponies, and as much as she
wanted to start laughing and dancing at the feeling, she knew
that sort of thing would summon Twilight Sparkle's grumpy look.
So she bowed instead which was even better 'cause all her
friends bowed at the same time and that made it just exactly
like a dance!
"Captain Destrier?" the princess said, and the gold and
orange pegasus that Dashie liked so much stepped forward with a
bow of his own. He was really good at it.
He straightened, turned smartly, gave a whistle, and a slow
sort of waltzing music started up. It wasn't sad, but at the
same time it kind of was. Just exactly like evening, she
realized, the way it's sad that the day's over but not really
sad since night time can be fun, too, and then there'll be the
next day and the next day and the next day after that, each one,
she knew, destined to be the best day ever.
The captain began marching toward the big doors at the end
of the throne room, and Princess Luna followed, all Pinkie's
friends falling into step behind her. So Pinkie did, too, tried
her best to match her hooffalls with the tapping of the
princess's silver shoes, but with the princess being just that
much taller and her legs just that much longer, Pinkie ended up
kind of hopping rather than walking.
Oh, well. Close enough.
Ignoring the narrow-eyed almost-glare Rarity was giving
her, she concentrated on the looks Rainbow Dash was so
purposefully not giving Captain Destrier. He wanted to be
looking at her, too, Pinkie could tell, and she started thinking
about the fun of being Auntie Pinkie to a little herd of blue
and orange flying foals even though she knew it would never
happen. The captain was married to his job and Dashie was
married to the open sky, and that pretty much was that!
More soldier ponies lined the hallway, the arch at the end
showing the late afternoon sunlight against the dark but still
sparkly walls of the Night Palace across the courtyard.
Princess Luna stepped outside, and Pinkie couldn't help noticing
that the crowd was a lot smaller than it had been this morning
when they'd walked the other way along this same path: three or
four dozen ponies instead of the three or four hundred that had
filled the place earlier. They weren't all standing together,
either, not crammed in like a group but spread out like each
pony was here all by him or herself.
Pinkie blew out a breath. They really needed to get
organized, have a party and start getting to know each other.
"Tomorrow night," she said out loud, and when Rarity and
Twilight both looked at her with their lips all tight, she
explained, "The party. Tomorrow night."
They were halfway across, now, the music and soft lights of
the Day Palace still washing over them from behind, and Princess
Luna turned her head to look west down the long, broad plaza.
"The sun sets," she announced, and her voice settled into
Pinkie's ears so much like a great big bell tolling that she
wanted to slip her hoofs into some tambourine shoes and start
tapping out a rattling clattering counterpoint of her own.
But again, she didn't have her pack! She shook her head.
"I am so totally unprepared for this," she said.
"You're not the only one," Dashie muttered, and Pinkie
looked around, saw the Night Palace squatted dark and silent in
the sudden shadows ahead, Captain Destrier bowing to Princess
Luna and marching back toward the Day Palace. "Like flying
through a cold front," her pegasus friend went on.
"Yes," Princess Luna said, her voice soft and normal again,
her shoes still striking the paving stones a bit too far apart
for Pinkie to match her pace. "I hadn't...hadn't noticed the
contrast before..."
They moved along in silence till they reached the big
archway that led into the Night Palace, and that was when Pinkie
noticed the line of other ponies. "Hey!" she said, excitement
surging through her. "Maybe those guys're here to spark the
place up!"
The ponies all stood silently a little ways to the east of
the archway and watched with what Pinkie could only call hungry
eyes as the princess led the way through the archway and into
the big empty corridor that ran to the doors of the throne room.
And even though she'd only seen their faces for a couple seconds
in the gathering dusk before the wall of the Night Palace cut
off her view of them, Pinkie was pretty sure they looked way too
solemn for ponies who'd come to party even though the longing on
their faces made her think they wanted--she might even say they
needed--to be inside.
Twilight Sparkle's little gasp echoed. "Your Highness,
have you been holding general audiences each evening?"
"What?" Princess Luna gave Twilight a startled look. "No,
I...I never saw the need."
Twilight swallowed. "But you said earlier that you were
following Princess Celestia's schedule, the same one she used
when she ran both night and day?"
Princess Luna's eyes unfocused for an instant. "Ah. Yes.
I..." Her mane seemed a lot less flowing all of a sudden. "I
saw the listing there for audiences, but I hadn't expected...I
mean, why would anypony show up now? I was sitting over there
dealing with petitioners most of the day!" She jabbed a hoof
back in the direction they'd come. "Why didn't they just come
then??"
Pinkie cocked her head. "Y'ever notice how some ponies are
more comfortable at night, your Highness?"
All her friends and the princess stared at her, and Pinkie
laughed. "Just like you, y'see?" She bounced forward to the
big wooden doors, pushed them open to reveal the recesses of the
Night Throne Room. "They wanna be your biggest fans, but this
is prob'bly the first time you've given 'em a chance to come and
tell you so!"
The others had all followed her in, the only light the
barest grey afterglow washing down the corridor behind them.
"But...," Princess Luna said. "We can't hold audiences here!
Look at it!" Her horn glowed, the pillars casting shadows all
along the bare floor and walls. "There's no proper receiving
area, no way to record their petitions, no one to escort them in
and out, nothing at all like the set up Sister has in the Day
Palace!"
"All right," Twilight said in what Pinkie recognized as her
'problem solving' voice. "We'll just need to...to put something
together, something that'll--"
"How can we possibly??" Princess Luna stomped a shoe
against the floor as loud as a lightning strike. "Those ponies
are expecting to meet the ruler of all Equestria! And I'm in no
fitter state for that than this room is! I--!"
"Hey!" Pinkie had been looking around and was surprised to
see her pack leaning against the base of the carpeted ramp that
led up to the Night Throne. She trotted over, picked the pack
up--and was even more surprised to see the great big switch it
had been covering.
Until it all come back to her. "Oh, yeah!" She stomped on
the switch, and the fire pots she'd found while poking around
the Night Palace's kitchen all reacted to the trigger spell and
flared to life. "I knew I'd spent all afternoon doing
something!"
Torches crackled softly, their flames illuminating the
walls and making the whole chamber glow. The big fire pit in
the center of the room sputtered and caught, too, and the effect
of the pillars and the friendly fire light, Pinkie was overjoyed
to see, really did give the hall the look of a summer campout in
the woods.
Giving a nod, she turned to the others, staring around with
their mouths hanging open. "We want to keep it simple, cozy,
and intimate, right? So maybe ponies can meet you here by the
fire, Princess, instead of up on the throne."
"Pinkie!" Twilight didn't have her grumpy face on at all,
the torchlight shining in her eyes. "It's...it's--!"
"Perfect," Princess Luna said. She stepped forward, bent
down, touched her horn to Pinkie's head so soft and warm and
gentle, Pinkie thought about being a balloon again so she could
drift up to the ceiling and float around there for a while. "I
can see," the princess went on, turning to smile at all Pinkie's
friends, "that I really need to just stop worrying about
whatever impossible task might next confront us. Because with
the six of you here, the word 'impossible' loses all meaning."
And Pinkie really had no choice then but to pull open her
bag, slip her front hoofs into her tambourine shoes, and shake a
quick rhythm up and around everypony, grins perking their faces.
"OK!" she told them. "I'll be hostess and guide our guests in
and out. Twilight, you be here with the princess and write down
anything that needs writing down. Applejack, you keep an eye on
everything." She waved a shoe at Dash, Rarity, and Fluttershy.
"You can go about your business, but I'll wanna hear all about
it at breakfast tomorrow!"
***
"You're sure?" Rarity asked again, still a little
overwhelmed by the lovely and tasteful decorating job Pinkie
Pie--Pinkie Pie!--had done in the throne room.
"Go," Pinkie said, tapping her ridiculous shoes alongside
Rarity and Fluttershy down the main hall toward the huge stone
archway of the Night Palace's main entrance. "Laugh. Sing.
Dance. Party." And she punctuated each word with a rhythmic
rattling step.
"Well, if you insist." Rarity shook herself so the
traveling cloak fell more completely around her: she'd had her
and Fluttershy's gowns set out all afternoon, so they merely had
to slip into them once they'd made that lonely procession into
the Night Palace. "Although if Orrery Stargazer truly turns out
to be as boring as Twilight Sparkle says, we may be back here
before you're done with your duties."
"Oh!" Fluttershy perked up. "A nice, quiet little party
would be so nice!"
Pinkie rolled her eyes at that, Rarity saw, but they
emerged from the archway at that moment and came into sight of
the ponies queued up outside: not more than twenty, it seemed to
Rarity, but she was more interested in the black stallion
standing a bit to the side and looking quite dapper, she
thought, in his evening clothes, a stylish white shirt front and
black bow tie visible under his own cloak.
"Ooooo," she heard Pinkie say softly. "A lotta things
there, but boring ain't one of 'em." Rarity turned to give her
a quizzical look, but Pinkie had already started tapping toward
the line, was calling out in a voice that barely sounded like
her, "Thank you so much for coming tonight, dear friends. Our
beloved Princess Luna is gratified that you would take the time
to seek out her company, so--"
She moved out of earshot, then, Rarity and Fluttershy
continuing on toward the stallion. "Good evening, Mr.
Stargazer," Rarity said, not quite sure how she felt about the
little smirk she saw now on his face. "I do hope we didn't keep
you waiting."
"Not at all, Miss Rarity." He gave her a slight bow, his
eyes straying to the dark bulk of the Night Palace. "I was just
standing here doing my best not to become a crotchety old plow
horse."
"Indeed?" She cocked her head. "Is that a likely event,
sir?"
"I fear so." He waved a hoof at Pinkie, leading the first
of the waiting ponies through the archway, the rattling of her
shoes echoing as they stepped inside. "For you see, back when I
was undersecretary of the Night Ministry, we had an honor guard
for our receiving lines and banners with--" He stopped, shook
his head, smirked his smirk. "But there I go, living in the
past. Princess Luna is not Princess Celestia, and expecting her
to have the same tastes and manner is utter foolishness."
"Yes," Rarity said, the thought occurring to her suddenly
that Orrery might very well be a suspect in this whole roof
collapsing incident Applejack was investigating. His entire
family had lost their jobs, after all, had in fact been thrown
from the only home they'd ever known when Princess Luna had
returned and disbanded the Night Ministry...
It quite gave Rarity palpitations, wondering if she and
Fluttershy were perhaps on the verge of entrusting their lives
to some sort of fiend, and wracking her brain, trying to think
of a clever way to expose his guilt, she found nothing coming to
her but etiquette. "I don't believe you know my friend
Fluttershy." She turned, her smile phony enough to feel painted
on. "Fluttershy, this is--"
"Fluttershy?" a small voice asked, and Rarity blinked to
see a young filly gallop from the line across the paving stones
toward them. "Oh, Miss Fluttershy!" She clattered up, the
night too dark to see more than the red ribbon tied around her
horn. "And you must be Miss Rarity!" The little unicorn was
practically dancing in place. "You're even more beautiful than
your pictures!"
Rarity smile became quite real, then, more than a little
pleased that Orrery was watching all this. She was about to ask
the clever child her name when Fluttershy spoke up: "Juniper! I
thought you told me you were going home!"
"I did!" She waved a hoof back at the line, two slightly
older unicorn fillies edging from their places, their
nervousness so palpable, Rarity was sure she could smell it.
"But when I told my sisters I'd met you and you'd given me this
ribbon to wear, they wanted to get ribbons, too!"
"Ribbons?" Rarity did some more blinking, then recalled
the story Fluttershy had told earlier. "Oh! Yes! Of course!"
She turned her smile toward the slowly approaching fillies. "Do
you also wish to be special friends of Princess Luna?"
"They do!" little Juniper cried out, jumping up and down.
"They were afraid to say anything at home 'cause Mom and Dad
always got so mad at me for talking about Princess Luna, but
when they saw my ribbon, that was it!" The two other unicorns
had sidled over by now and were looking as mortified as only big
sisters can when confronted by the antics of a younger sister.
"So I showed 'em how I sneak outta the house, and we all came
over here to maybe see Princess Luna and maybe get some ribbons!
And now we can!"
Nodding, Rarity sparked her horn, made two lengths of the
ribbon she'd cut earlier float from her cloak. "May I ask your
names, please?"
The oldest of the three stepped forward. "I'm Aurora
Borealis, Miss Rarity, and this is my sister Zephyr. We--"
"Aurora?" Orrery asked, his horn lighting up bright enough
to cast a glowing puddle all around them. "I thought I
recognized your voice."
All three of the little unicorns stared, and Aurora looked
like she wanted to be anywhere other than where she was. "Mr.
Stargazer! I...I didn't...didn't know it was...was you over
here..."
He gave a charming smile. "Oh, now, don't fret. I won't
tell your parents you were here--if you follow Miss Fluttershy's
advice and head home straight away."
Juniper's face fell even further. "But Mr. Stargazer! We
wanna tell the princess that we--!"
"And you will." Ory's voice made Rarity think of sweet hot
tea. "Tomorrow evening when I shall be more than happy to
escort the three of you to Princess Luna's salon."
"You will??" the Borealis girls all said at once.
Ory held up a hoof. "With your parents' permission."
Their horns practically drooped. "They'll never let us do
that!" Juniper said, her lower lip trembling.
Rarity let her horn spark again, touched it to the tip of
the filly's. "Perhaps we can persuade them."
***
The streets of Canterlot at night simply took Rarity's
breath away, tiny twinkling lights strung between poles and
along the towers giving quite a festive air to the bustling
cafés, bookshops, and boutiques, these last nearly calling out
to Rarity as their little group trooped past. Just the designs
she could see in the windows started ideas tumbling through her
head, and several times, she found she had to force herself to
keep walking.
Fortunately, the fillies were so overwhelmed at meeting
Fluttershy that they clustered around her talking of the various
small joys and anguishes inherent in a schoolgirl's life,
Fluttershy's gentle nature, Rarity saw once again, more than
enough to win their hearts completely.
Which was just as well as it allowed Rarity to drop back a
few steps and ask Ory, "The sentiment against Princess Luna, Mr.
Stargazer. I understand it's not confined merely to the elders
of the Borealis family."
His mouth went sideways. "If one wished to strike a fear
into the heart of Canterlot greater than any threat of
earthquake, flood, or even the suggestion that the volcano
beneath us is perhaps not quite as dormant as we might like to
think, one should merely whisper the word 'change' along our
ivy-covered streets."
She started to laugh, but when he turned his dark eyes upon
her, the intensity there made her mane stand on end. "Make no
mistake, Miss Rarity: I love Canterlot. But being home to
Princess Celestia for so many generations has solidified the
general opinion here that we are indeed the center of the
universe. By the simple act of returning, Princess Luna has
reminded the citizens of our fair city that they don't know
everything, that there was a world out there before they were
born, a world that will continue after they're gone. And we
Canterlotians don't take kindly to that sort of thing."
"I see." Determined to keep the atmosphere light, Rarity
tossed her mane. "Rather like the crotchety old plow horse you
mentioned earlier?"
"Exactly like him." Ory gave her a slight smile. "We know
how things ought to be done since we've always done them that
way." He shook his head. "Never mind that Princess Luna was
doing things her way a thousand years before any of us were even
born, and who's to say that this change might not be for the
best?" His smile became much broader. "I for instance have
returned to my study of the jazz trombone now that I needn't
worry about besmirching the dignity of my office and the good
name of the Night Ministry, as my mother so often put it."
She stared at him. "The trombone?"
He gave a little shrug under his traveling cloak. "I've
sat in on a few small gigs around town, received more than a few
invitations to return, have started picking up some coin here
and there for my efforts. Nowhere near as steady as ministry
work, but then, well, there is no more ministry. Yet life goes
on, does it not?"
And for all that jazz was not at all her choice of music,--
"Are you playing anywhere this week?"
"There's always a session somewhere." Ory gave her a
sideways glance. "Would you be interested in--?"
"We're here!" one of the fillies called, and Rarity looked
forward to see that they'd come into a residential part of town,
the houses not large but immaculately kept, hedges and trees and
the lovely towers that seemed to crown most buildings in
Canterlot all tasteful and delicate. Fluttershy and the three
Borealis girls had stopped at the base of one of the many
stairways that wound up from the street, were all looking back
at Rarity and Ory with expressions of fear and excitement mixing
over their faces.
Ory's ears flicked, and he bowed to Rarity. "If you'll
excuse me, I believe my diplomatic skills are called for."
***
Rarity wasn't at all surprised when Hibernus Borealis and
his wife Hesper recognized Fluttershy at once, but she got to do
a little preening herself when Hesper came all over gushing
about some of the hat designs Rarity had sent to Hoity Toity
last month. The young couple ushered them all into the family's
sitting room, and there, over cups of green tea, Rarity learned
that they'd both worked in Ory's office at the Night Ministry.
"And a better boss no pony could ask for!" Hibernus insisted.
So they readily accepted Ory's story about coming across
their three daughters just a few minutes ago a mere block from
home-- "Although," he went on, "when they said they were headed
for the Night Palace over your objections, well, I'll admit I
didn't know what to think."
Hesper's face hardened, and Hibernus shook his head. "I
can't understand it myself," he said. "You try to raise your
girls right, and bam! Outta nowhere, they get all weepy about
this...this--" He looked around and lowered his voice. "This
usurper Luna!"
"Usurper??" Rarity couldn't keep the indignation out of
her voice. "Now see here!"
Ory resting a hoof on her shoulder stopped her. "I should
perhaps inform you," he told the Borealises, "that Miss Rarity
and Miss Fluttershy are here this week assisting Princess Luna
with her duties."
Both the dun-colored unicorns went wide-eyed, their ears
folding back. "No!" Hesper blurted out. "How can you??"
Fluttershy ruffled her wings. "She's our princess."
Hesper sniffed, and Hibernus shook his head. "I've no wish
to quarrel with you," he said. "So perhaps we'd best let you be
on your way." He looked at Ory. "Thanks for bringing the girls
back, Ory. I'll give 'em a talking to, don't you worry about
that."
Rarity started to open her mouth again, but Ory was faster.
"How're you two doing?" he asked.
Hibernus shrugged. "I got one of the new positions over at
the Parks Department, and Hesper's sister's done so well with
her shoe store, she needed an accountant." He flashed a grin.
"It's taken some adjusting, but yeah. We're doing OK."
"And the others from the old office?" Ory took a sip of
tea. "Harlow and April and all? Heard from them lately?"
Brightening, Hesper proceeded to tell several stories about
ponies Rarity didn't know, all of whom had found a greater or
lesser degree of success in other positions around town after
the closure of the Night Ministry. "Give good ponies enough
time and the chance to do so," she finished up, "and they'll
turn every challenge into an opportunity!"
"Exactly." Ory's eyes got deep and intense again. "Might
I ask, then, that you give Princess Luna that time and that
chance?"
Again, both unicorns went wide-eyed, and Rarity's heart
swelled in her chest. "We've all been there," she said, picking
up Ory's words. "In difficult situations like these, all we can
do is our best, and all we can expect from those around us is
that they do their best as well. I can assure you that Princess
Luna relishes the opportunity to serve the ponies of Equestria,
but to succeed, she needs friends."
Rarity found that she'd leaped to her hoofs, and she let
her voice rise and ring out as dramatically as she knew how.
"Friends who can forgive her her mistakes, who can give her
advice on how to avoid those mistakes in the future, and who can
help her settle back into her rightful place among us! Half the
day is night, after all, and having the true ruler of that half
in our midst once again can only bring Equestria greater
happiness and greater prosperity!"
Cheers went up from the three fillies in the corner of the
room. A look from their mother quieted them, and Rarity thought
perhaps her words had missed their target. But then Hesper
sighed. "We have been a bit hard on the princess, I'll admit
that." A bit of her former hardness can over her face. "But is
she willing to listen? Really and truly listen?"
Hoping the princess wouldn't mind, Rarity said, "She's just
this very evening reinstated her sister's practice of holding
general audiences. I know she'd love to hear from those who are
as concerned about the future of Equestria in general and
Canterlot in particular as she is."
"In fact," Ory added, "I was thinking of attending the
princess's salon tomorrow night." He tapped a hoof against the
floor. "Why don't we all go together! Hi? Hesper? Show
Princess Luna that we're willing to give her a chance if she's
willing to take it!"
"Please, Mama?? Please, Papa??" Juniper was jumping up
and down, the ribbon around her horn flouncing with her. "And
we can all wear ribbons so she'll know we don't hate her!"
"Indeed." Ory turned to Rarity, his dark eyes sparkling.
"Which reminds me, Miss Rarity. I never did get my ribbon from
you."
***
She'd tied the ribbon behind his ear, strangely thrilled to
be stroking her magic through his mane. Each Borealis got one
as well, and promising to see them all the next evening at the
Night Palace, she, Fluttershy and Ory had stepped back onto the
street to resume their interrupted journey.
"Wow, Rarity." Fluttershy sounded more like herself than
she had all day. "That was a really great speech!"
"Yes," Ory said, and Rarity couldn't quite place the tone
she was now hearing in his voice. "Quite stirring."
She tossed her mane. "One does what one can. My real
concern, of course, is that we not arrive too late for your
party, Ory. I'd hate to think--"
"No," somepony said ahead of them, and out of the doorway
of a shuttered grocery store stepped a figure wrapped in black
from ears to fetlocks. "Sorry, filly, but that's not your real
concern."
"Who--??" Ory began, but he stopped when a second black-
clad pony stepped out to join the first. A clatter behind her,
and Rarity glanced back to see at least another five shadowy
figures moving to block any possible retreat.
"You." The first figure gestured with a metal-shod front
hoof. "Stargazer. How 'bout you just trot on home, huh?"
"I beg your pardon??" Ory drew himself to his full height.
"What manner of--??"
The first pony made another gesture, and the pony behind
him rushed forward, spun around, and kicked at Ory's head;
Rarity gasped, but the pony didn't seem to make contact, her
rear hoof flashing past Ory before she whirled again to face
frontwards.
But Ory cried out, too, his hoof touching his cheek, and in
the dim light of the tiny street lamps, Rarity saw a red streak
against his dark hide, the awful and salty stink of blood
suddenly in the air.
"That's one," the first pony said quietly. "You really
don't wanna see what two is. So how 'bout you get on your way
before--"
"How...dare...you??" came a voice Rarity hadn't heard since
the time she'd been standing on a mountain peak with a full-
grown dragon glaring down at her; she glanced over, saw
Fluttershy hovering above the paving stones next to Ory, the air
crackling with static electricity. "Attacking my friends??"
Fluttershy demanded, and even though it wasn't aimed at her,
Rarity felt the force of Fluttershy's stare like a winter wind
brushing by. "Oh, I don't think so!"
The full brunt of the stare struck Ory's attacker, and the
pony froze in place. "Run!" Rarity shouted, slamming her head
into Ory's side in the hope that it would shock him awake if
he'd caught any of Fluttershy's backlash, and following her own
advice, she galloped full-tilt toward the one pony ahead of
them.
"Hey!" he yelled, but by then she'd whisked past him, was
heading for the open street.
Hoofbeats behind her: she looked to see Ory following,
blood still welling from his cut, Fluttershy airborne at his
side. "Who were those ruffians??" he panted out.
"I've no wish to make their further acquaintance!" Rarity
forced herself to slow till the two caught up. "Might you have
some thoughts as to how we can get away from them?"
"Ummm,...here!" He wheeled up a sidestreet, and she
followed, let him take the lead. Another turn, a quick stretch
of street, then he was skidding to a stop at a small stone shack
of the sort Rarity had seen squatting here and there between the
buildings they'd been passing all night. His horn glowed, a key
floated from beneath his cloak, and he jabbed it at the stone
shack's metal door, the door sliding open without nearly as many
creaks and groans as Rarity had expected from it. "Quickly!"
Fluttershy swooped in, but Rarity had to stop, her nose
wrinkling. "It looks filthy!"
"It isn't!" Fluttershy popped her head back out. "Please!
They're coming!"
Shuddering, Rarity leaped through the doorway, Ory right
behind her and pushing the door closed with a boom. His horn
still glowed, though, the key turning the inside lock, and
Rarity glanced around to see nothing but a set of wooden steps
leading down, a strange whooshing noise reaching her ears, her
nose twitching at the scent of--
"Fresh water?" she asked.
"Canterlot's aqueducts." He turned, the key tucking back
into his cloak. "They pass under the city from the wells at the
center of the volcano's caldera." Giving her a grin, he started
down the steps.
Fluttershy looked at her. She nodded, gestured with her
nose, and followed. The whoosh became a rush as they approached
the first turn in the stairs, and rounding the corner, she
almost had to squint at the rush becoming a roar, a flood of
water crashing through a vast stone tunnel to her right, the
little wooden walkway built into the wall ahead lit only by
Ory's horn.
He started out onto the walkway, turned that grin of his
back over his shoulder. "Its perfectly safe!" he called above
the water. "These paths are so very handy for getting from one
end of town to the other without worrying about street traffic,
I kept these keys when I left the Night Ministry!"
Fluttershy had moved out onto the walkway as well, her eyes
wide and fixed on the torrent beside and below them. Rarity
shuddered but stepped out just as a voice beside her whispered,
"So many of us did."
Snapping her head over, she saw a shadow moving to the side
of the walkway. The boards shivered below her hoofs, shivered
and cracked and tipped, her inner ear spinning, the walkway
slowly heeling over beneath her. "Ory!" she shouted, but the
whole stretch of walkway was going, Ory and Fluttershy both
looking back at her with their mouths open just before the whole
thing fell, water swallowed them and lashing against Rarity
worse than any rainstorm she'd ever been caught in.
How she clung to the walkway, she had no idea, but it
bobbed up under her, let her open her eyes, her mane drenched
and plastered against her head. Ory's light still burned ahead,
he and Fluttershy also clinging to the boards, and she saw the
tunnel flashing past, the water barrelling them along at a pace
that made Rarity's stomach yaw and spin.
"Where??" she tried to shout. "Where does this go??"
Ory's head was up staring into the blackness they were
hurtling into, but then he turned and shouted one word, a word
that made Rarity go even colder than she was: "Waterfall!"
For an instant, she saw Canterlot from Ponyville, saw the
shimmer that even at that distance danced below the domes and
spires of the Day Palace, the great waterfalls and the seemingly
magical mist they shed over the whole valley below.
And then she was back on the whirling wooden walkway, a
darker darkness looming in front of her, Ory's light suddenly
just a pinpoint, the flood of water dropping away, the open sky
surrounding her, stars shining in the blackness.
A second or two of suspension, then the end of the walkway
arched downward, and Rarity felt them start falling.
Chapter 11
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