The Global Weather Manager sat at his desk in the high towers of Cloudsdale, twiddling his hooves in a circular motion. It was past time to go home, but the weather crews were still out controlling the storm, leading it over Ponyville towards Seaddle and Manehattan. He sighed and looked to the left of his desk at a map of Equestria, his eyes catching for a moment on Canterlot.

“Heh, just a few more months and I can be living there,” he thought to himself. A grin wiped across his face, and he stood up from his desk. The weather crew would continue through the night on the suicide shift, bringing the storm around the country. His hooves sank lightly into the cloud beneath him as he made his way to the door, his wings fluttering softly as he prepared to take flight back to his home.

However, his silent, cheerful thoughts were cut short by a green pegasus rushing through the door, knocking him flat on his back.

“Wha…” he grumbled, rubbing the back of his head.

“Sorry sir!” the pegasus shouted, prancing in place nervously. “We have a problem… uh… sir!” The Weather Manager braced himself on his desk as he pulled upwards, coming back to his feet.

“What’s the problem?” he grumbled, casting a sideways look towards the pegasus. She lowered her head to the floor.

“The storm, sir. It’s out of control.”

Princess Celestia gazed off of her balcony in Canterlot, her eyes scanning the countryside. She should have been asleep a while ago, since the moon was high in the sky. The princess let out an airy sigh and tilted her head upwards, allowing her lightly flowing mane to find a more comfortable spot to lie in.

The moon was bright, and if she knew her sister well, which she did, she would be putting more energy into the moon than usual. The storm sweeping around Equestria wasn’t going to light itself, and the meagre amount of light the cloud cover would let through on a normal night wouldn’t be enough for anypony to see where they were going.

She smiled at the care her sister put into their citizens, and turned back inside, shutting the doors behind her with her golden aura. No sooner than she had gotten inside, however, she heard a commotion out in the hallway. A light scuffling with some grunts and whines directly outside her door. She trotted over and opened the door ajar, peering out into the hallway.

The Global Weather Manager and another pegasus with him. They were talking in a very animated manner to the guards outside, who were not letting him pass. The princess sighed. Her guards were always so uptight.

She put on her usual happy smile and opened the door completely, the yellow light from the hallway spilling into her quarters. The guards turned around and balked at the sudden movement while the weather manager sighed as if saying “finally” and turned his head to face the princess.

“Your majesty,” he started. The green pegasus beside him smacked him on the flank with her hoof and motioned in a bowing motion. The weather manager looked confused for a moment, and upon understanding almost buried his face in the hallway floor due to how quickly he snapped to the ground.

“At ease, all of you,” Celestia said in her casual, light tone. “What seems to be the problem?”

“May I-” another smack from the green pegasus, “-... we… speak to you for a moment? Your majesty?”

“By all means,” the princess stated, gesturing for her guards to leave. They begrudgingly did so, hitting each other on the shoulder as they trotted away from Celestia’s room. “You may continue.”

“Yes… well…” the weather manager started, but was cut off by the pegasus beside him, who rolled her eyes - a very exaggerated motion - and spoke.

“The storm. It’s out of control.”

Celestia’s cheerful grin melted.

“Get me Rainbow Dash,” she said, walking down the hall.

“That’s the problem,” the weather manager said, catching up to Celestia. The princess raised an eyebrow, as if asking him to continue. “We don’t know where she is. Or her assistant.”