Noir was bored.

In a city that never slept, over which she had complete creative control, she was bored. Of course, it was hard to be anything but, trapped in the opera box at this concert which she was obligated to attend. The hell was this, anyway? She glanced at the programme: "Young Musicians of Equestria." Ye gods...

Still, being the ornamental figurehead of Manehatten had its perks. She wanted not for bits - the Crown took care of room and board and whatever else her dark little heart desired. As long as Noir kept her... proclivities... in the shadows.

The young mare snuggled at her side nuzzled her neck, murmuring something inaudible. The shimmering black aura of Noir's magic lifted the wine glass to her lips, and the alicorn took a slow sip, flicking an ear as the violinist on stage below hit the sourest of sour notes imaginable.

"How much longer am I required to endure this?" Noir asked with a sigh. The mare snuggled against her further, though to Noir it felt as if she were a parasite attempting to burrow into her chest. She'd seemed fine at dinner, and an amiable concert companion, but once they'd reached the box, the mare had indulged in more than her fair share of cider, and was becoming increasingly less charming.

"Four more performances, my lady."

"Thank you, Grecio."

The diamond dog nodded, remaining at his post near the door. He was short in stature, and almost comical in his finely tailored waistcoat and starched white shirt, but something about his stance warned against testing his mettle. That, and the sword he carried at his belt. Noir stifled a yawn with her good wing.

"Bored?" the mare asked with a half-lidded smile.

Noir looked down at her, arching an eyebrow. The mare's eyeshadow had smeared across her face in a most unflattering way, and Noir fought the urge to stand from the cushions and let the inebriated pony fall to the floor.

"Such is this life, my dear," the Poet Laureate responded with a forced smile. She flicked an ear again as another sour note reached the balcony, followed a thunderous clapping of hooves. "Thank the Sisters that's over," she sighed.

"I know how to make this exciting," the mare - what was her name? - purred, rising on wobbly legs. Noir eyed her as one would an interesting spot on the floor.

"I think it best if we listen sitting down, my dear."

"How can I be out on the town with the Noir de Plume and not have any stories to tell the next day?" the mare continued, her tone seductive. Or, it would have been had her syllibants not slurred together in a gross mockery of language.

The next performer was announced on stage. Soft music rose from a piano.

A piano? Noir thought. No pony in Equestria can possibly-

"Let me help you focus..."  

The mare leaned forward, open mouthed, hungrily going for Noir's horn. Something tickled Noir's brain, something she'd not felt since her time in Canterlot all those centuries ago... She leapt up. The mare crashed to the cushions, face first, with an indignant squawk, haunches in the air most unladylike.

"Grecio!" Noir snapped. The diamond dog was instantly at his mistress' side, eyes on her as she stared intently at the young unicorn seated on stage. "Who is that?"

"Er... it says her name is Armistice, my lady," he replied, pointing to the programme with a claw-tipped finger.

Noir's eyes narrowed. The flow of magic from the stage was so strong, it was nearly intoxicating. The alicorn's head swam as though she'd imbibed a bottle of the Mirror World's finest vintage. The keys depressed as if touched by fingers, yet this cream colored filly named Armistice simply moved her hooves and summoned forth beautiful sounds. How was it possible? Such bliss on her young face as she played, framed by a brunette mane that was both simple and meticulously straight. It fell to her shoulders, and swayed ever so slightly with the subtle motions she made with her torso to send her forehooves across the ivory keys.  Noir was both entranced and baffled. Mesmerized, she sent a faint tendril of magic at the stage, reaching out, to test, to touch, to see... and the eyes of the young pianist snapped up. Their sapphire hue rivaled the icey blue of Noir's own, and the artfully applied eyeliner the young filly wore would have looked silly on anypony else, but only accentuated her jes ne sais quois. Her head did not move, and the steady gaze that locked with Noir's sent a chill rolling from the base of her skull to the very tuft of her strange, lion-like tail.

"Fetch her. And bring her to me," she commanded, shaking her head to clear the sensation. Noir reached back and adjusted the half cape she wore with her teeth, ensuring her left wing was covered. Grecio extended a hand up. "No. I'll be fine. I can manage it home on my own." She offered the diamond dog a kind smile. So loyal. Noir reminded herself every day how much she truly owed him.

On the floor, the mare had gathered herself into a bundle and made another indignant noise.

"So, you're, like, just going to leave me here?" she asked, eyes wide, a look of sheer disbelief on her face. Noir paused in the doorway, looking back at the mare. She titled her head and leveled her with a cold stare.

"I'm trying to decide what I find more unattractive," Noir began. "How easily you were being led to stable, or how awful that braying sound coming from your mouth is."

The mare's jaw snapped shut. Noir nodded curtly at Grecio.

"Make sure this one gets home." Noir snapped her good wing in an annoyed gesture and exhaled through her nostrils as her brain began to churn a thousand thoughts at once. The filly's cutie mark was burned into her cornea; sapphire rose facing outward, petals parted, but still closed enough to be innocent and coy. The mark had seemed to be alive, reflecting the lights of the stage, interacting with the environment. "Armistice," she murmured. How do you wield such subtle power at such a young age? And how do you smell of the Mirror?

"A filly?! You're ditching me for a filly?!" the mare squealed. "She's barely be of age! I heard you were into some twisted shit, but you can't be into something that-"  

"Sleep." Grecio waved a gray paw before the mare's snout, and her eyes drooped once, twice, and the drunken pony crumpled to the floor in a snoring tangle of legs. Noir drew herself up and smiled. The diamond dog offered her one of his rare, toothy grins. "Thought it best before my lady did something that would take me hours to clean up."

"You are my hero, Grecio," Noir purred, dropping her front half in a mock curtsy. "Every day, I am more and more thankful I schooled you in basic spells."  The diamond dog bowed, then waved her away with both paws.

"Go. I will handle... her." He kicked at the snoring pile of pony. Noir nodded.

Music rose from the stage and reached the alicorn's ears. She flicked them.

The crescendo was starting. Next Chapter: Armistice - The Opening Move Estimated time remaining: 31 Minutes