The queue of ponies initially stretched along the entire length of the great hall and right down the corridor outside it. One by one the petitioners were called forward to speak to the Princess about whatever matter concerned them and Celestia would listen before offering advice or passing judgement. On an average day the cases brought to her could range from something as simple as a dispute between neighbours who felt they had no other recourse for justice, to intricate queries about legislation and matters of bureaucracy.

Mourne patiently waited his turn. In the guise of the Solar Guard he occasionally exchanged nods with passing courtiers and functionaries but as he was plainly waiting to address the Princess along with the others, he was mostly left alone. This was both a good thing and a bad thing, however. It gave him plenty of time to savour the many discomforts of this long wait. Like the way his hooves ached on the hard marble floor, the rugs doing little to cushion it; or the way the edges of the Solar Guard’s armour dug in under his wings while the straps were just a little too tight around his belly for him to take a truly deep breath before they cut into him.

Trying to barge further up the queue or demand to speak his piece would gain him nothing but unwanted attention when a little patience was all he needed to attain his goal. A couple of the ponies around him attempted to strike up conversation to pass the time, commiserating on their own assorted aches and pains as they saw him shifting in place. He simply replied with the thousand-hoofstep stare that all the Guard eventually perfected while standing post and they quickly gave up.

By late morning he had made it all the way up to stand within the hall itself, the doorway behind him still filled with ponies waiting to be heard. There she was, just a few feet away now and the knowledge that he was so close to his goal filled him with fresh energy. Aching hooves, chafed flanks and knotted shoulders? None of these petty irritations mattered any more.

She was right there. The one who would finally listen to him and put an end to this, who would understand that what her sister was doing was foolishness that needed to be stopped, that this was necessary to spare her the agony of what the nobles would do to her to stop this. He just had to speak to Princess Celestia and she would make this all right again. He just--

“Excuse me,” a voice from behind him interrupted his train of thought and he stepped aside without thinking, without even really listening, not until the pony stepped past him and began to walk down along the side of the line of ponies. Only then did Mourne’s eyes widen, his jaw threatening to drop open as he watched Emberfire making his way towards the throne.

Without thinking he stepped from the line and followed a few steps behind, ignoring the mutters of disgruntlement from the common ponies waiting to be seen. What was Emberfire doing here? He didn’t answer to Celestia! For a member of the Night Guard to be in the Day Court, something must be going on.

“Emberfire, isn’t it?” Celestia asked as the batpony approached the throne.

“Yes, Highness,” he replied, thumping a forehoof to his chest in salute as he stopped as the foot of the stairs leading up to the throne itself.

“Well then, you are most well met, Captain Emberfire. How can the Day Court assist one of the Night Guard today?”

Emberfire hesitated, looking down at his hooves, then back up at the gently smiling Princess still waiting patiently for his response. “A situation has arisen involving Princess Luna. As Captain of the Guard, the responsibility for this issue falls to me.”

Celestia sat up a little straighter on the throne, her smile fading. “I see. Might I know the details of this particular...situation?”

“Two days ago a member of the Night Guard staged an unprovoked attack on a civilian in Ponyville. I was the one who recommended him for the position there, he is my responsibility. As his commanding officer, his failure is mine.”

The two guards at the base of Celestia’s throne exchanged brief looks and the conversations of the waiting ponies suddenly fell silent as all eyes and ears turned towards the lone batpony.

“I see,” Celestia said again. “And yet I do not see. You are an officer in Princess Luna’s guard, not my own. Why have you come to me with this.”

Emberfire nodded curtly. “I have attempted to speak with the Mistress repeatedly since this was brought to my attention but she will not see me. She leaves me no choice but to turn to you.”

“And so you lay this at my hooves and...what? I understand that a search is already underway for this rogue batpony, I also understand that the one he attacked is recovering well. What further action is needed from the Day Court, Captain Emberfire?”

Emberfire took a slow, deep breath as he lifted his helm from his head, running a hoof through his mane as he stepped forward and set the helmet down on the floor before the Princess. “You can accept my resignation in Princess Luna’s stead. As Captain of the Night Guard, the responsibility is mine, the failure is mine. I will accept whatever further punishment you see fit.”

“Well, ” Celestia was beginning to say as she looked down at the helmet, her normally serene expression now darkened with a frown. “If this is what you truly feel is necessary then--”

Mourne’s jaw dropped. This couldn’t be. This...this wasn’t what he wanted. This was his choice, his actions, not Emberfire’s! Why would he…? Confusion rapidly gave way to anger. That damned farmer. Why? Why would Emberfire do this? Throw his career away for the sake of some earth pony he’d never even met?

“You can’t do this!” Mourne yelled, ripping the helmet from his head and tossing it aside, the glamour broken in an instant. He pulled the rest of the armour off, leaving it in a trail behind him as he glared at Emberfire. The Solar Guards froze for a second in shock, then surged forward as one to surround Mourne in a ring of steel, blocking his path. “Don’t do this for him!”

“For HIM?” Emberfire stared back at him, his eyes wide. “I’m doing this for HER, Mourne. Always for her. And for you. You’re my responsibility, my Guard, all of you are. Everything you do reflects not only on yourself, not only on me, but on her! Did you ever think about that?”

Mourne butted up against the circle of guards that surrounded him, only to be roughly shoved back, the look in their eyes warning him that if he tried to fly over them, he’d find himself under a pile of angry stallions before he’d taken a single wingbeat. Instead he reared to his haunches to yell over them. “I did this for her! She has to see that! Princess Celestia! You have to talk to Luna, you have to tell her to break things off with that--that--farmer! He’ll ruin her!”

“Celestia dammit, Mourne, SHUT UP!” Emberfire spat as the once silent crowd began to murmur at this new revelation. He had to nip this one in the bud before Mourne was able to blab this to everypony in earshot. “For once, just once, will you keep that yapping mouth of yours closed? Haven’t you done enough damage already?”

“No! I will be heard! You lost Luna once, Princess Celestia. If her relationship with McIntosh Apple is allowed to continue, you will lose her again!”

“Clear the hall! The Day Court is over for today!” The herald yelled, his voice squeaking in panic as he tried to drown Mourne out, but the damage was already done.

“You idiot,” Emberfire groaned as the crowd erupted with questions, slapping a hoof to his face. “You bucking idiot.”

“You heard him! Guard, forward! Clear the room!” One of the guard ponies cried as the crowd showed no sign of wanting to leave anytime soon and were, in fact, advancing towards the throne. Momentarily distracted, Mourne took his chance as the guards around him shifted their attention to the crowd. He leapt up and over them before they could react, landing heavily and racing towards Celestia, only to find his path blocked by Emberfire, the batpony’s face creased in fury.

“Get out of the way! I have to--” was all Mourne managed to say before Emberfire slammed a hoof into his jaw, sending him crashing down to his knees as the world spun around him, head ringing with the force of the blow.

“Sit there. Shut up,” Emberfire hissed as he leaned in close to Mourne. “If you try and get back up I’ll knock you down so hard you won’t walk for a month.”

He stood back up and glanced away from the dazed Mourne, watching as the Solar Guard formed a solid wall to push the crowd of ponies back and out the hall only to find that the crowd didn’t want to leave so easily, not when there was obviously something important playing out before them.

The crowd of chattering, clamouring ponies surged forward, pushing, shoving, and jostling, waving their hooves at the Princess as they filled the air with a cacophony of questions and demands. Under the sheer weight of bodies bearing down on them the Solar Guard was eventually forced to fall back one grudging hoofstep, then another. For a moment it looked like they were actually going to be able to force their way right up to the throne.

“Be still.”

Those two words reverberated through the hall with enough force to send every pony there to their knees, the crowd reeling back as the sheer power of Celestia’s voice rolled over and through them. The Solar Diarch stood proudly atop her throne, her wings spread wide as the aura of her power radiated around her in a shimmering halo. “Court is over, my little ponies,” she went on in a somewhat gentler voice. “You will all please leave peacefully. An official statement on this matter will be issued by the Palace if necessary but for now there will be no further questions. I will not have riots in my home, do I make myself clear?”

There was no anger in her tone, only something akin to disappointment, a loving mother gently scolding her children when they misbehaved. There was no argument from the crowd as they slowly stood and retreated from the hall, some still looking a little dazed as the guards directed them to the exit. Finally the last pony stumbled out and the guards closed the doors firmly, leaving Mourne, Celestia and Emberfire alone in the suddenly silent hall.

“Well,” Celestia’s voice was as calm and unruffled as always. It was likely only her sister would have noticed the subtle signs of her anger, the tightness around her eyes and jaw, the briskness in her movements as she stepped from her throne and descended the stairs. “You wanted to speak to me, little batpony, here I am. Now what could be so important to you that you felt the need to assault a civilian, assault a member of the Solar Guard, escape captivity and nearly cause a riot in my Court?”

Mourne shot Emberfire an angry look as he stood, rubbing at his aching jaw. “Princess Luna. Our Mistress. She’s begun a relationship with the farmer McIntosh Apple in Ponyville. I tried to tell her it was a terrible idea, that it would only end badly, but she wouldn’t listen to me! I tried to make the farmer change his mind, but he wouldn’t listen to me either!” Mourne’s voice rose with every word and soon he was pacing back and forward in front of the Princess, his tail lashing behind him. “Why am I the only one who sees the damage this is going to cause her?”

"What damage is that, Mourne? Who do you think is going to try and hurt Luna or Mac?”

“The nobility, who else?” he spat. “You see them every day. Scheming, sneaking, stabbing each other in the back, every hoof outstretched in friendship just a cover for the blade held in the other. You think they’ll stand for one of their very own Princesses being involved with some hick from Ponyville? They’ll do everything in their power to ruin him, to drive him away, to disgrace him and her if they have to, anything to protect their own status and prestige. If that happens, if she lets him in only to lose him…”

As he went on, Mourne’s voice grew higher and more urgent, his eyes wild, his ears pinned back to his head, tail lashing behind him. Suddenly he turned, throwing himself to the ground before Celestia, reaching out for her hooves. Emberfire jerked forward but Celestia stopped him with an upraised hoof. She looked down at the batpony prostrated before her and gently laid one hoof on the back of his neck, feeling his shoulders heaving with each sharp, ragged breath as she stroked his mane.

“Please. We can’t lose her again. We can’t go back to the way it was before,” he whispered, his voice thick with emotion. “You have to make her see that.”

“My Sister is not so fragile as that, my little pony. Come now. Please, rise. You’re making a mess of my carpet and Kibitz will never let me hear the end of it,” she added with a gentle smile as her hoof slipped along his muzzle to cup his cheek and urge his head up.

“You’ll speak to her then?” He pressed the issue as he slowly rose, rubbing at the tears that glistened on his cheeks, feeling the first faint stirrings of hope at long last. He knew the Princess would listen to him, that she’d see the truth of this situation.

“I already have. She approached me a few days ago,” she replied. “I have assured her that I will support her, no matter her choice of partner, be they commoner or noble.”

Hopes dashed, Mourne stared dumbfounded at the Princess, momentarily lost for anything to say. Celestia...knew? Celestia knew and APPROVED? But...this wasn’t how it was supposed to go. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go at all.

“Captain Emberfire,” Celestia turned her attention to the other batpony while Mourne was shocked into silence.

“Highness.” Emberfire came to attention, his hooves clopping loudly as he snapped them sharply together.

“While I understand your reasons, I cannot accept your resignation at this time. My Sister has need of your counsel, as do the batponies you command. The Night Guard would be diminished by your absence and in good conscience I cannot deprive Equestria of such a valuable soldier as you. I would ask that you resume your duties as usual. I will also ask my Sister to stop ignoring you.” Celestia leaned in a bit closer, her voice dropping to a more conversational tone. “Let her calm down a little more, Ember. She’s been off to see Mac today and that should cheer her up, even with everything that’s happened, so you may find her in a more receptive frame of mind this evening.”

“Highness.” Emberfire nodded curtly as he picked up his helmet and settled it back atop his head. He saluted and turned to leave then hesitated, glancing at Mourne who was staring bleakly into the distance. “And him?”

“Mourne and I have a lot to talk about, it seems. While I cannot condone the actions he has taken, it would seem they were driven by a genuine and fervent desire to protect your Mistress from harm, to ensure that the batponies are not left alone and directionless as they once were. I understand that his punishment is still to be decided, that an offer was made for him to serve out a penance?”

“Yes, Highness. That was, however, before he escaped custody and assaulted a member of the Solar Guard. I’m not sure that we can overlook that matter. His attack on McIntosh Apple was bad enough, but to then compound that with an attack on a fellow guard…” Emberfire trailed off, shaking his head. “I am not sure I can trust his judgement anymore, certainly not enough to trust him to guarantee the safety of Luna’s coltfriend.”

“In that we disagree, Captain. I think if anything this more than convinces me that there is nopony more suited.”

Celestia slowly knelt down till she was at the same level as Mourne, her hoof stroking his cheek as she urged his muzzle round till she could look into his eyes once more. A soft, wistful little smile curved her lips before she leaned closer and pressed a tender kiss to the startled batpony’s forehead. “Would that my Sister had a protector half as loyal as you all those years ago. Perhaps things might have turned out very differently.”

Mourne blinked, fighting the urge to touch his forehead. The brush of those lips had been enough to shake him from his reverie, but it did little to alleviate his fears. “I can’t protect her from the nobles, Princess. I don’t think even you can. They take what they want, they do what they want. Their pride and their egos are the only things that matter. Mistress is…”

“Luna is substantially wiser than some give her credit for. They think that her archaic ways and, ahem, occasional failures of tact mean that she is little more than a blunt instrument. They could not be more wrong, as some have been unlucky enough to find out personally. While I will admit that sometimes I do lament her lack of finesse, my Sister is far more cunning than most ponies know. The Night is where plans are laid, illicit liaisons are carried out and the slightest noise echoes far and wide.” Celestia paused, looking over Mourne’s head for a moment, gazing into the distance outside the palace. “I understand your fear, Mourne. There are times I too worry I will lose my Sister once more. It has been such a short time that I have had her by my side and there’s not a day that goes by that I don’t count myself blessed to have a second chance.”

“But then how can you support this? Knowing what she is opening herself up to…”

“I support it because my sister has a much right to love as anypony, be they noble or commoner. I support it because it has been a long time since her tower has echoed with the sounds of her singing, a long time since I have come to breakfast to find someone has slipped nettles into my salad, or stolen cakes from my secret stash and replaced them with carefully drawn cardboard cutouts.” She winked playfully at Mourne. “I support this because even though their relationship is in its infancy, Mac makes my sister happy in a way I have never managed to achieve in the years since her return. Thanks to him my sister has been truly returned to me. For that reason I will ask you to accept the Apple family’s offer. I would ask you to turn this fire and passion to something more constructive. You are right when you say that you cannot protect Luna from what may come of this, but she is not the one who needs you now. He is. Protect Mac. Advise him, warn him, educate him, lay down your life to protect him if need be. In doing so you will be protecting the heart and happiness of your Mistress, and through her you will protect all the other batponies both here and in the caverns.”

Mourne stared at Celestia, then blinked very slowly as he processed all this, his brow furrowing as he considered all the possible responses he could give. Wasn’t this what he had been trying to do? To protect Luna? Had he really been going about it the wrong way? He’d thought of Mac as an innocent, but when had innocence become a trait to be derided? Had he really been so blinded by fear that… He didn’t bother completing the thought, his aching jaw answered that question all too well. This was, he finally understood, likely his last chance. If he refused now, he would be locked away until they decided what to do with him, helpless, unable to defend anypony, not even himself. When the choices laid out before him were so simple, there was really no choice at all.

“Alright. I’ll do it,” he whispered. “I’ll protect the farmer. If this is...if you believe this is truly the best way to protect the Mistress, then I’ll do it. It’s all I ever wanted.”

“You have a strange way of showing it, little pony.”

Mourne froze in place, his eyes widening as a new voice echoed through the hall. Emberfire stepped back before dropping low and bowing respectfully as Luna stepped from the shadows behind Celestia’s throne, descending the stairs to join the trio on the floor, her expression blank, her voice flat. “A very strange way indeed. One would think that, in fact, thou hadst set out to accomplish nothing more than sabotaging our relationship with Mac. They would think that, in fact, our wellbeing and protection were the furthest things from thy mind. Over the last day or two thou hast shown an astonishing lack of tact and judgement that has, frankly, left us wondering what Emberfire could have been thinking when he assigned thee to our protection and left us with no choice but to question his suitability for his postion in our Personal Guard.” She barely acknowledged Emberfire’s flinching, the look of shame that crossed his face, her attention set on Mourne who was still staring helplessly back at her. “You have undermined our faith in thee, our faith in Emberfire, Celestia’s faith in our batponies and with thine outburst today, thou hast set events in motion that will have far reaching consequences for everypony in this room as well as those in Ponyville and beyond.”

She stopped before him, staring down at him, her eyes hard, her mane whipping around her face in that invisible wind. “Explain it to us, Mourne. Make us believe. Make us believe that we should trust thee with the safety and wellbeing of the one dear to us. Make us believe that we should allow thee a chance for redemption instead of throwing you into the deepest, darkest pit that we can find and leaving thee to rot in misery.”

Long moments of silence followed as Mourne stared down at the floor. Finally his shoulders lifted, then sagged as he sighed. “There’s nothing I can say. I see now that…I was wrong. Not in what I believed,” he added firmly, lifting his head to meet Luna’s gaze, “but in how I went about it. Do...do you know what happened to my sister, Mistress?”

Luna blinked, her head tilting to one side at the unexpected question. “We must admit that we do not. We were aware that thou hadst no immediate family, thy parents having died some years before our return from exile, but no mention was made of siblings.”

“She killed herself,” Mourne stated as simply as he could. If he kept the words short, kept them simple, kept them distant, he wouldn’t have to think too hard about it. About that night. About the knock on the door that roused him from sleep. About the carefully written note left on her pillow. About the trip to the hospital. About the limp, unmoving body on the table. He gritted his teeth and took a slow, calming breath before he went on.

He had to keep it together; they wouldn’t take him seriously if he couldn’t even get his point across without blubbering like a foal. “She killed herself to protect me, because they said they would not only ruin her life, they would make sure I was rejected by the Night Guard, that I would be lucky to find work as a bouncer, let alone a soldier. All because she had the gall to fall in love with a noble and they couldn’t stand the thought of their precious bloodlines being sullied by some filthy batpony. They couldn’t touch him, he was too well connected, too well protected, but her? Oh, they could get to her. She was all I had, my only family, and they bullied her, threatened her, broke her. In the end she threw herself from the mountainside and just let herself fall.” Mourne’s voice had grown thick as he spoke despite his best efforts to keep the memories distant and his emotions under control, the words sticking in his throat as Luna and Celestia listened with expressions of growing horror.

Luna glanced, wide-eyed, at her sister, who could only nod sadly. “I cannot comment on this particular instance but sadly I can believe that this sort of thing goes on. Your batponies had a harder time of it after your exile, Lulu. They were considered tainted by your betrayal and it was generations before they became even grudgingly accepted, but never entirely trusted. I’m sure Emberfire could fill you in on the more gory details if you asked him.” Celestia paused, then shifted her weight a little uncomfortably from one hoof to the other. “I consider it my failure that I did not do more to support them but in truth I ignored them for decades. Every time I looked at them...they reminded me of you. It was a long time before I was strong enough to be able to endure that pain.”

Luna found herself torn between Celestia’s obvious remorse over what had happened, and anger that her batponies had been all but exiled. But in truth, the only pony to blame for that was herself. Another penance to be paid, another wrong to try and make up for. Sometimes she wondered if she would ever manage to balance the scales. A conversation, either way, for another time. She returned her attention to Mourne, who had taken the momentary shift in the conversation as an opportunity to wipe the tears from his cheeks and regain some level of composure, and waved a wingtip for him to continue.

“The Canterlot nobility killed my sister, Mistress. Maybe not directly, but they broke her heart and her spirit till she couldn’t bear it and they’ll do the same to him. They’ll destroy him and they’ll break your heart. They drove my sister to her death for the crime of giving her heart to some minor noble. What do you think they’ll do to McIntosh for loving you?”

“They wouldn’t dare, surely?” Emberfire spoke up, doing his best to hide his surprise. So, this had been the secret that Shadowstep had refused to speak about. In hindsight he supposed he could understand that, but it changed nothing. If they had understood Mourne’s motives perhaps this whole thing could have been avoided. Well, thoughts for another time. “To attack somepony publically connected to the royal families would be a step too far. Not even …”

"Are you sure of that? Really, truly sure?” He retorted before turning back to Luna.

Emberfire opened his mouth again to argue the point, then lapsed back into silence with a slow shake of his head.

“You know them, Mistress,” Mourne growled. “You know what they’re capable of. My Sister didn’t have anypony looking out for her, she tried to deal with the situation alone and it ended up breaking her. Without me, the same thing will happen to Mac. He needs me if you have any hope of this having a happy ending.” Mourne paused, then blinked as he seemed to realise just what he’d said. “Without me. He...needs me. You need me.”

Luna smiled gently and leant down to brush her cheek to Mourne’s. “And there, at long last, is the truth. Celestia thought you would get there in the end. We--I remained less than certain, myself, but I am pleased to see that her faith in you was not misplaced.” She stepped back, lifting her head up, her star-filled mane spilling over her shoulders. “Night Guard Officer Mourne. You will report to Sweet Apple Acres at daybreak tomorrow to serve as McIntosh Apple’s personal guard and adviser in matters relating to Canterlot politics and social affairs. You will also assist the Apple family in whatever capacity they require of you around the farm. I am sure they would welcome the help.” Luna paused for a moment to see if there was going to be any comment or complaint about that addition but Mourne simply nodded. “I will send word to Mac, Applejack, Princess Twilight and Mayor Mare that you are there on our orders. You will serve in this role until we either decide it is no longer necessary or until such time as McIntosh Apple is confident he no longer needs your guidance. I take it I do not need to cover the penalties that await you should there be any more unfortunate incidents involving the Apple family? I am placing a great deal of trust in you, Mourne.”

“I know, Mistress. I...I won’t mess this up. I’ll do whatever it takes to keep the far--” he broke off at Luna’s frown of disapproval, clearing his throat before he went on. “Whatever it takes to keep McIntosh Apple safe.”

Luna nodded curtly, glanced at Celestia and offered her a ghost of a smile before she turned and walked out, pausing for a moment at the door. “Emberfire. Report to my chambers in an hour. I believe there is a discussion we need to have.”

“Mistress.” Emberfire saluted, then turned to look at Mourne. He stared at him for a long moment, then repeated the salute. “Just don’t buck this up,” he said at last before following Luna out and leaving Mourne alone with Celestia.

“I should go and get ready. If I’m to be stationed in Ponyville permanently I need to pack up my gear from the barracks.” He paused, then coughed abashedly. “I should also probably return this armour. I imagine there’s one angry Solar Guard who wants it back.”

"You may leave it in the barracks,” Celestia assured him. “I’ll make sure it gets returned to the officer.”

“Thank you, Highness.” Mourne saluted and turned to leave but as he started the long walk back down to the doors he was surprised to find the shimmering white alicorn pacing beside him. “Princess?”

“I do have one question. Your sister. Why was this never raised with the Guard? If this had been known at the time, perhaps we could have investigated and brought those responsible to justice for what they had done.”

“What good would that have done?" Mourne bitterly replied. “No offence, Princess, but nopony looks too hard at crimes involving bat ponies, especially not when the nobility is involved. That and I had no real proof of anything. Conversations with my sister, a suicide note, none of it would have stuck, they’d have made sure of that. As soon as they’d crushed me before a magistrate they would have ruined my life just like they ruined hers.”

The pair walked in silence for a few more steps, Celestia’s face troubled. The sad thing was that he was entirely right. Even now, prejudice against the bat pony tribe lingered just beneath the surface. She’d had too many reports of crimes against them going unreported or uninvestigated. She’d worked with Shining Armor over the last few years to instigate reforms within the Guard but they had come too late to help this poor pony’s family. Now with Shining gone to the Crystal Empire, she feared that standards were once again slipping.

“The noble, the one your Sister was involved with. Do you know his name?”

“Velvet Rhyme.”

“Ah, yes. I know the family well,” Celestia mused. “As you said, minor nobility in the grand scheme of things, but well-connected, with enough financial clout to make anypony think twice about meddling in their affairs. I had heard that the oldest son had moved out to Stalliongrad following some sort of scandal but I didn’t know the details.” The two walked in silence for a few more steps before Celestia extended her wing to touch Mourne’s shoulder and bring him to a stop. “I am sorry for what happened to your Sister, I truly am, and I can assure you that we have taken steps to try and improve things for the bat ponies. But this is not the same situation as your sister. Nopony will be allowed to interfere in this relationship regardless of tribe, family, rank or title. With your help, we can ensure that Mac and Luna have a chance to be together.”

Mourne stared at her for a long moment, his cat-like eyes unblinking, then sighed softly and glanced off to the side. “Watch Blueblood,” he grated.

Celestia blinked, her head canting to the side. “I beg--Prince Blueblood? What does he have to do with this?”

“Can’t say for sure, don’t have anything more to go on than a hunch. Just...watch him. His opinion carries more weight among the nobility than you know.” He saluted and walked away, leaving Celestia staring after him, a troubled frown again darkening her face.