I let out a light sigh as I read through the document before me. It's just a standard requisition form from a small town. I guess a town down south needs some extra arms to deal with the local Bramble Coyotes. Completely reasonable. This is about as exciting as work has been for me. Reading forms and deciding the legitimacy behind their requests and whether or not to support them. Not exactly what I thought being a princess was going to be like, but Celestia says that these will soon be the days I long for. I understand her, knowing that any excitement could be dangerous for our subjects. It's a new realm of thinking for me, but she assures me that I'm doing great and that my time will come when it comes. Though there are times I question what my role actually is and whether or not I'll be able to rise to my title when the time comes.

A light knocking comes from my study door and a guard sticks his head inside. I straighten myself up and give him my full attention.

"Princess Twilight, Princess Celestia is here and would like a moment of your time."

"Of course! I'll be right there!" I tell him enthusiastically, packing some of my things away.

"Actually, she wishes to speak with you in here first," he tells me before stepping back and opening the door for Celestia. She thanks him and walks in, shutting the door behind herself. I quickly rise from my seat and rush over to greet her, sharing a quick hug with her. One would think that living in Canterlot would mean that I'd see her all the time, but it's been the opposite. Mostly because of Softy, but work plays its part.

"Hello Twilight, how are things today?" she asks casually, taking a seat before my desk. I used to offer her my seat, but after she refused for the hundredth time, I stopped asking. I still think another ten will make her take the seat, though.

"I'm pretty settled into the day-to-day tasks here. It may get a bit tedious, and I do miss my friends spontaneously crashing through my window, but I enjoy it enough," I tell her as I take my seat. It's a bit odd having her come into my office like this. Usually if she needed to talk to me she would just summon me to her office or we'd plan a lunch together. I wonder what's going on.

"That's good to hear. I was a bit worried that you would miss your friends too much to stay here as long as you have."

"I do, but I have a responsibility. That, and I wanted to make sure Softy went to the best schools possible. Or, at least, had the best teachers possible." I blush a bit at that. Though there are a few teachers that come and assist with her schooling, I tend to teach her the most... and by most, I mean mainly. "But, that's not why you're here, is it?" She chuckles at that, grabbing a few documents from my desk to read them over.

"No. Not even close. Are you aware with what the Spartans have been up to recently?"

"Are you referring to their operation in the Goblin Empire? Or has something else happened?" I know something has happened. Storm didn't come back right away, so something had to happen. For being a society with no secrets, there tend to be a lot of secrets. Celestia lights her horn up and marks the room with a silence spell, telling me something big has occurred.

"The Spartans have made an assault against the Kroth inside the Griffin Colonies." I gasp at that, but allow her to continue. "The griffins are trying to use this as an excuse to wage war against them, but have agreed to let the Summit decide. Alongside that, the Kroth and Miles have made... war pacts."

"War pacts? And how could they make a deal? Miles would have attacked them on sight! Or is he finally listening to you?" This is very sudden. If the griffins declare war on the Terradisians, they'll attack us as well. And if the Kroth and Miles are making deals... I don't even know what to make of that.

"It would seem that our king is ambitious. That's where you come in," Celestia tells me calmly, setting my papers down.

"Me? What am I going to do about this?"

"You are a Princess of Equestria. It is your duty to lead this nation and protect its citizens. If war is to come to this land, ponies will be looking up to you for guidance."

"I-I've never lead an army! Not to mention I know nothing about battle strategies! Maybe I could organize some sort of... ministry to handle affairs for... I don't even know! I can't-"

"Twilight, I'm not asking you to lead an army," she tells me simply. I let out a long breath and compose myself. Of course she isn't asking me to do that! That would be silly! I was just working myself up again! "I'm asking you to take my place when I go to battle."

"Wh-what!?" I nearly fall out of my chair when she tells me that. Take her place!? She wants me to take the place of the pony who moves the very sun! Is that even possible!? Is that even possible...

"Twilight, you need to listen very carefully to what I'm about to tell you," she tells me simply again. I look to her and nod, giving her my entire focus. She seems so calm about this, how does she do it? She's literally telling me that she's about to go to war, and she's completely calm. "I've discussed this with Luna and Miles briefly, and it's been decided that Miles would go to war for the Terradisians and I would lead the Equestrian army, if the need would arise."

"Well of course. Luna has Tempestive to take care of and Miles is the professional soldier. He's the obvious choice to go." Celestia shakes her head lightly.

"A Royal sister has to stay in Canterlot to lead the nation. It's part of the Union Agreement. But, with Tempestive being of royal blood, the rules have morphed. Before we would either have both wage war, or both stay behind, depending on the severity of the situation. But with him in the picture, one of us has to stay behind to ensure his safety. These are the laws that we made up thousands of years ago. Though we have discussed it, I fear that Luna may try to trick her way into the role of general."

"Why would she do that, though? It doesn't make sense."

"My guess is only as good as yours. Maybe it has something to do with Soul Fire, maybe she's just being bull-headed. Either way, I know she was passionate about aiding the fight, one way or another. And there's a way she can do it, if she so chose."

"How?" I ask, genuinely interested. The Union Agreement has always intrigued me, but I've yet to read it. Mainly because it's been a part of Celestia's personal collection.

"If she calls all of the nobles and royalty to cast a vote, they can decide to send her instead of myself." I think about that for a second before something clicks.

"And you've replaced a lot of nobles that support you, ever since Miles nearly took over." Celestia nods to me, keeping a stoic face about herself.

"That has been a blessing, but now may become a curse. If they are called to a vote, they may choose to keep me here instead of her. And I simply will not allow that," she tells me in a firm voice. I've only heard her use that voice a select few times. She's as serious about this as she can be.

"Well... why can't we just ask the nobles privately? I'm sure they'll listen to you." I try, but she shakes her head.

"Twilight, when in politics do you ever get what you want just by asking?"

"Good point." I rub my chin as I try to think of a way around this. There has to be a loophole somewhere... "Blueblood!"

"I beg your pardon?"

"In your last letter you told me about how he was disrespecting you. If you could alienate him in a way that he'd want to send you to war instead of keeping you, he'll use his influence with the others to keep Luna!" She thinks about that for a moment before smiling back to me.

"This is a good idea. I don't think I'd have to do anything either. It would seem he dislikes me enough already. But I'll have to be sure to make it my point that he's confident in that opinion to voice it with others... I may have to alienate a few others as well to ensure success."

"Others? Who else would you have to alienate?" I ask, leaning in. I've never been this political before! This is far more exciting than requisition forms!

"Believe it or not, Blueblood is an influential pony. Being royalty isn't enough to hold that much prestige. He has a web of connections that help maintain his image. And we're going straight to the top with him." She grows a smirk on her face that I've never seen before.

"Who are you talking about?" I ask, genuinely curious.

"Don't worry about that, at least at the moment. I need to set up a few details before I set this plan in motion. But I will need your assistance with this-"

"Of course, Princess! I-I mean Celestia!" Darn it. I just broke my record. Well, a hundred forty-seven days is the record to beat now.

"Before you agree to this, Twilight, I want you to know the possible repercussions. This is going to be a political battle, through and through. You will be put on the spot, ponies will call you out, and you will make enemies. There are risks to doing this, are you sure you're ready it?" I sit back and look her dead in the eyes, already knowing the answer.

"I'm ready for this. What's our first move?" She smiles to me, bowing her head slightly.

"Thank you, Twilight, I truly appreciate this. Our first move will be at the Grand Galloping Gala. We will speak with several ponies there, both positively and negatively. I need to map out the ponies that will be there, exclude a few, invite others, get the ball rolling. All I need from you that night is to play along. We'll speak closer to that night. I have to prepare the guest list again. In the meantime, we need to have a meeting with Miles and Luna. Bring some scrolls and follow me," she tells me as she rises and begins to leave.

I grab my bags and toss as many scrolls into them as possible before trotting after her. I can't believe it! My first political engagement! Given, I'm not really playing a major role and it's not really my fight, but still! Celestia came to me for assistance with politics! I've moved up in her view to the point where she can trust me with engagements of these sorts! I feel more validated as a princess now than when I received my crown! And all to send Celestia to war!

...

...

...

I... may have jumped into this without thinking it through.

"The discussion we're about to have will be... volatile, to say the least," Celestia say, bringing me back to our conversation. "Miles and Luna were... having a rough bit, to say the least."

"They were fighting? I don't believe it." I've never seen nor heard of them fighting before. Sarcastic jabs and firm tones, sure. But fighting! "What was it about?"

"Personal affairs. Sorry, but it is their business to discuss. I'm only warning you so you can understand the frailty of the situation. It'll be a good opportunity for us to practice social queues. Speak as you normally would and I'll try to guide you away from certain topics. But I'm going to be discreet about it. It'll be up to you to understand what I mean. Think you can handle this challenge?" She looks down to give me a smirk, which I return.

"I'll do my best." I tell her confidently. Her smiles brightens for a moment before she goes back to her stoic face. All I can really offer is my best, good thing I've been studying up on social etiquette. Though I thought I was going to use them on nobles, rather than Miles and Luna.

We come up to Luna's study and take a moment to collect ourselves. We glance to one another before the guard at the door knocks three times. We hear Luna inside give permission before the guard pushes the door open. Inside is what I've seen plenty of times before, Luna's study. Only this time, it's vastly different.

Luna is reading a scroll at her desk while Miles is standing at the windows, looking down at the city. To any outsider this would look completely normal. But, knowing what I know, this is as foreign as they get. Miles has been gone some time now. Usually they would be all over each other. Kissing, holding wings, reading over each other’s shoulders, dorky couples stuff. They're not even looking at each other. Even worse, they're both quiet. They're not the most talkative ponies ever, but this... this is almost creepy.

"Are we ready to get started?" Celestia asks as she steps into the room. Neither of them say anything, but they do give her their attention. "Good, we have a lot to discuss. Where should we start?"

"The propaganda war." Luna says officially, looking to me. "Are you aware of the events transpiring currently?"

"I have a basic understanding. Miles has to speak at the Summit, and if things go poorly we'll be at war with the griffins."

"Correct. The meeting is seven days from now, with the Gala being five away. I think that should be our selling point. Make it big, make it more public, and make sure everypony knows about it." I nod to her, levitating a scroll and quill over to take notes.

"Right. Big and public. Should we increase the number of ponies invited?"

"No, that won't be enough," Miles chimes in, still looking down at the city. "The Gala is a good idea, but we need something that will get the common people involved."

"I don't think so," Luna retorts, moving her chair to look at him. "We need to cater to the nobles who will be aiding our army. Equestria alone cannot afford to back an entire force. Plus, we'll need them to manufacture goods and arms."

"But they won't be fighting the war." Miles says calmly, turning to look back at her. "We're not preparing for a war that will happen in a few months. We're planning for a war that will happen in a few days. Money won't be the issue here, it's getting people to register to fight. You can call a draft, but your best fighters are going to be the people who want to fight. The people who believe in their country and are willing to die for it. It won't matter how advanced their forces are if the people here won't submit to their rule. We need to make the Gala about the people, or at least make them feel involved with it."

We all go quiet from that. They're both technically right. We can't sustain an army on our budget alone. But we have enough in the treasury to sustain something for the short run. I don't believe most ponies would rise to fight for us either. Not to say they're cowards, but that it's just not their calling. How are we going to get bakers and carpenters to join something that they would normally avoid at all cost?

"Why don't we just... throw a gala for the entire city?" I ask, trying the first thing that comes to mind.

"What do you mean?" Celestia asks eagerly. Everypony is staring at me, waiting for me to elaborate on this. Great... well... I'll just...

"Um... involve the whole city?" I ask, trying to buy more time. Celestia nods to me, moving her hoof to push me along. "Well... normally the Gala is just in the castle, for ponies that are only invited. What if we extended the festivities to the entire city?"

"Throw a party that will incubuses the entire city?" Luna asks skeptically. "In five days?"

"Genius," Miles says as he rushes back to the window. "Pure genius."

"How is that genius?" Luna asks him, standing and joining him at the window. "Miles?"

"It's genius because it's simple," he tells her, his mind obviously racing.

"And how are we going to accomplish this?" Celestia asks, joining them at the window. Feeling slightly obligated, I walk over to look down at the city. It looks as normal as ever down below. I really don't see what he's looking at.

"Every year the Gala happens and people watch from afar. Now, with a Queen and King finally becoming public, the gates are opened and everyone is welcomed. Think what that would do for our image with the people. Leaders for the people, erasing the line between upper and lower class. We'll send word to every city and make it known to the entire county: The King and Queen wish to meet with you, so come party with us."

"That would... fill the city to the brim," Luna mentions, looking down critically. "How is this even going to be possible? We'll have to call caterers from all over the country, musicians from all over, not to mention decorations and guards and-"

"It's genius," Celestia echoes Miles, growing a smirk. "Let's plan the biggest party in Equestrian history."

I take a slow drink of my brandy as I read through a letter in my study. It's just a boring tax form from my provinces, nothing out of the ordinary. As ordinary as it is, it's a godsend compared to the last few days I've been having. I should take a few days off. Go to the spa, see my favorite masseuses, relax.

Poof

I blink when a scroll appears before me. I grab it and inspect the seal, seeing that it's from the Royal Sisters. What could they need now? I open it and read it through, not believing my eyes when I reach the end.

Dear Blueblood

A major decision has been made between all royal cohorts. This year, the Grand Galloping Gala will not be held in the Canterlot Castle. Instead it will be taking place all over Canterlot, so that all may attend. With this ambitious move comes daunting tasks. We are appointing you to assist Princess Twilight Sparkle with publication of this event. Please speak with her in one hour to begin. Thank you for your service,

Queen Luna.

P.S. Please come speak with me after sunset sometime before the Gala. I am in dire need of your assistance.

The Purge.

Brony on!