~~~~~~The Twilight Hall~~~~~~

Celestia forced her mind to remain calm. She put up her very best polite smile, and nodded gently. "Greetings, Captain Winterlight." She arched an eyebrow at Twilight. "The Shadowbolts you say. A little overly dramatic, don't you agree my faithful student?" Celestia asked in her best glib tones, even as her mind raced faster than Rainbow Dash on a caffeine high.

What Celestia couldn't figure out how she'd survived, and more importantly how she hadn't recognized those thrice damned uniforms. Captain Winterlight. It's only been a thousand years, hasn't it? she thought faintly. She thought she'd seen the last of her when she'd banished Nightmare Moon - and yet, there she was as bold and daring as she'd been all those centuries ago.

The Shadowbolts. Nightmare Moon's personal wetworks team, among other things. Celestia could lay untold numbers of crimes at their hooves, not the worst of which was assassination, torture and brainwashing. They had been the Nightmare's most loyal followers, and the last ponies to follow her mad reign at the end of the war. Celestia had been certain they'd been wiped out by the final spell which had banished her sister to the Moon. Not as certain as I should have been, it seems. she thought faintly, as her steps took her into the little circle of couches and chairs.

Twilight smiled faintly. "Not really, Princess. It's just a name." She giggled softly, as if in high good spirits. "Names don't hurt anypony. Besides, it's hardly the first time a guard unit wanted to give itself an intimidating name." Twilight waggled her eyebrows. "Don't you remember when Shiny wanted to name his guard unit 'The Doombringers'?" Twilight giggled again, obviously still quite amused by that old joke.

Celestia forced a soft laugh of her own, going along with Twilight's attitude. She has no idea what they were, or who they are. Was the obvious thought. That's going to make trying to remove them nearly impossible. Directly, at any rate. Celestia perched on one of the more comfortable chairs and smiled. "Yes, I also remember how they reacted when we told them they'd be called 'The Daisy Eaters' if they didn't suggest something more appropriate."

Twilight giggled again, and Celestia shared in her laugh with a bit more enthusiasm. And of course, it couldn't have been one of the stupid ones. Oh no, It had to be Nightmare Moon's favorite. Captain Winterlight was nothing short of a legend - so much so in fact, that Celestia wondered why Twilight hadn't cottoned on to the name. Likely dismissed it as a coincidence.

At that moment, a pegasus appeared from one of the shadows of the couch and began to distribute cups of tea and a platter of cookies and donuts. Celestia busied herself making her tea to her liking while Winterlight settled herself on an easy chair with a knowing smile directed at her. The Cloudsdale kidnappings. The burning of Trottingham. The Potato family massacre. And those were just the highlights. Even Celestia didn't truly know the extent of Winterlight's legendary career as Nightmare Moon's right hoof.

Twilight spoke up not too long after that, sipping happily at her own tea and nibbling a donut. "So what brings you here so suddenly, Princess? I've got to confess, I'm a little worried there's been some kind of disaster." There was sympathy and concern etched in Twilight's voice. Real sympathy, and real concern. Celestia exhaled. Concentrate on what's in front of you, Tia.

Celestia smiled softly. "Well, your last letter concerned me, Twilight. I had worried that perhaps I had been a little too short with you lately. After all of the hard work you've been doing, and the difficult task I'd set for you, I thought you might like to spend a little time together." Celestia winked. "Catch up a little, perhaps you can show me around the town. I'd love to see what you've done with the old palace." She waved her hoof, gently around her with a smile.

Twilight arched an eyebrow at her - but there was also a faint reddish blush in her cheeks. Celestia had to pride herself on that quick bit of mental hoofwork. Twilight blinked, a sudden look of thrilled excitement passing over her face. "Do you mean it? Ohmygoodness, of course!" Twilight was practically bouncing up and down - much to the amusement of the other ponies around her. A moment later, twilight blinked and then visibly forced herself to calm down. "I mean, that would be lovely."

~~~~~

If there was one thing Celestia was happy she could rely upon, it was Twilight being excited to talk about the things she had learned and done. The two of them walked together through the corridors of the ancient palace as they quietly discussed this or that painting, book and artifact that had been uncovered. Celestia confessed herself quite taken in by the old paintings of herself and Luna, some of which she was astonished to find in such superb shape.

Even more vitally, Captain Winterlight had been dismissed to 'other duties', giving Celestia time to calm down and think about what might be done about her. Luna has to be informed immediately. I can only hope she still remembers enough about her to be useful. Her thoughts quietly moved as Twilight gushed over the prospect of reading books otherwise only found in the Canterlot library. And I shall need to double check all of these titles with the restricted lists. Celestia heaved a mental sigh, but gave Twilight a wide and approving smile.

The castle was equal parts worrying and reassuring. Celestia saw no servants - no outright servants anyway - but she also saw nopony other than the two of them as they traversed the halls. Twilight is being isolated here. That must be Winterlight's doing. The thought process was obvious to Celestia, as she'd seen it before. Twilight was being kept from realizing anything was wrong with her by keeping her away from those ponies who would tell her. I'll need to send Shining Armor here immediately. Cadence as well. Between the two of them, they ought to be able to counter any move Winterlight makes.

While Celestia was no longer moving at a desperate pace, the presence of the Shadowbolts added a new impetus to her actions. Focus, Celestia. Right now, you need to reinforce Twilight as much as you can, and then get back to Canterlot quickly.

Sure enough, as Celestia came out of her thought trance, Twilight's voice piped up as they wandered through the book stacks. "... And of course, ever since Pony Joe moved a store here, I've been going there for lunch all the time again! Hmmm, actually - Lunch is sounding quite good right now..." Twilight chirruped, and Celestia found herself quite enamored with that prospect. Well. Perhaps not too quickly.

~~~~~~

It was nearly nightfall by the time Celestia took her leave. She did promise to visit more regularly, which lead directly to a particularly ecstatic Twilight merrily skipping into her library. So happy was she that she almost didn't notice Spike until he was right underhoof.

The little purple dragon gave out a cry of alarm, and Twilight's mind instinctively dodged around him - sending her tumbling hoof over flank. A moment later she was staring at the warm wooden ceiling of the library, with a concerned looking spike standing over her. "Whoa. You okay, Twilight?" he asked, in a concerned tone. "Sorry I didn't seeya there. I swear you keep getting sneakier on me." spike drawled in a mildly accusatory way.

Twilight blinked and gently laughed at him. "I'm fine spike, just a little trip and fall. At least there's room in here for me to do it without hitting the shelves." Twilight rolled back onto her hooves and dusted herself off. "So, find anything new in the library today?" That had been Spike's job lately, ever since her need for a research assistant had gotten a little thin.

Spike shook his head, but grinned. "Nope! But I think I might be on to a couple more hidden caches of books. I'll letcha know if something turns up." The pair of creatures wandered back through the library together, spike's claws making much more noise against the hard wood floors than Twilight's hooves. "So I heard you got to spend some time with the princess today." Commented the dragon slyly. "I don't suppose she finally told you that you could go back to Ponyville, did she?"

Twilight smiled a little sadly. "No, Spike. I didn't even bring it up this time. I think we're going to have to get the town fully built and working before she'll consider that request." Spike pouted and Twilight sprouted a grin. "Oh stop that, Spike. I know you like it here too sometimes. Besides, she left you a little treat..." Twilight's voice sing-songed and Spike's head snapped up with a look of glee and greed on his face. Heh. It works every time. Sometimes, I think Celestia knows a lot more about raising a dragon than she lets on.

Spike bounced up and down. "Well then, what're we waitin for? Come on!" He grabbed her hoof and practically was dragging her back towards the door to the library. Twilight laughed and let herself be pulled for a few moments before breaking out into her own trot. Spike had a bright cheerful grin on his face that seemed to be the capstone to an already fantastic day.

As they walked down those halls together, Twilight felt some of her happiness abate a bit. Oh spike. I know you miss Ponyville. So did she, if she was being really honest with herself. She missed every single crazy pony there, even Lyra and Bon Bon. She missed being able to see her friends without making a day trip of the whole affair. She missed Sugarcube Corner and most of all, she missed her home. Life isn't always fair, Twilight Sparkle. Sometimes you need to do hard things you'd rather not do. she reminded herself firmly, pulling spike closer to her with one hoof in a hug that was comforting for them both.

She would go home one day. She wasn't going to live in this stuffy mansion or this strange town for the rest of her life. For now at least... Her thoughts began to wander, a devilish smile on her face. At least I'll be able to enjoy a little fun with Rainbow Dash tonight. A wicked grin crossed her face that Spike didn't see. He was too busy running into her room and grabbing up the envelope that contained a shiny new sapphire for him to munch on.

~~~~~~~

Princess Celestia leaned for a moment against the bannister of a balcony overlooking the central gardens of Canterlot Castle. Luna had been sent for, and the sun had been successfully lowered, but Celestia was well and truly bushed. For once, I might actually get a really good night's sleep. I ought to exhaust myself more often. she chuckled to herself, then sobered up immediately. The situation is not as bad as I'd feared, but in some ways it is even worse. she sighed deeply, laying her head on the railing.

"Now, what in the world could get little 'lestia so low?" A smooth, smug voice spoke out from one of the statues of a guard pony. A pair of mischievous golden eyes appeared upon the pony and rotated around to focus on her. "I don't think I've seen her quite this moody for months!" Celestia closed her eyes and pressed her hoof to her forehead as that voice laughed quite vigorously. Oh please, not now. she muttered in her mind, as the stone guard pony hopped off its pedestal with a grotesque grin upon its face. "Now here's a strange sight indeed! The Sun's Glorious Alicorn, reeking with the power of the darkness. Where have you been slumming around, Celestia?" The guard pony waggled it's stone eyebrows in a grinding sound. "Hanging out with King Sombra? Getting wasted with Chrysalis? Come now, do confess! Who's the lucky villain that our beloved queen is schtupping?"

Celestia looked up and growled softly at the statue. "Put that thing back, Discord. I don't have the time or the patience for this right now." She paused for a moment - wait a minute... "Wait, What was that about darkness?" Her voice went sharp, and the Stone Pony paused in its sulky ascent back to where it had been before smirking at her and continuing to airily push itself back up onto the stone. "Discord!" She spoke sharply, her eyes narrowing.

The Stone Guard pony lounged on top of the dais and smirked at her, a hoof planted firmly on its hip. "Oh, now you want to talk." It grumbled, a glass of what looked like some kind of milk appearing out of the ether in its hooves. "Well I suppose I can indulge you. You're practically covered in dark energy, dear princess. I don't need to be some kind of expert to tell that you've spent the day with someone very naughty." The stone pony drank down the milk - for once, not the glass - and smirked at her again around a bright white mustache. "Emphasis on naughty. There's a lot of sex tied up in that magic you're wearing like mud."

Celestia's mind raced for a moment as she pushed herself up to her hooves again. I hadn't even considered using him as a resource, given his unreliability but... But no one else had been able to sense this power the way she and Luna had. Discord was grinning at her like a fool, but he was a powerful fool. "Alright, Discord - what do you want for helping me?" She asked quietly, determinedly. He's going to have some kind of ridiculous request. And I might just have to let him have it...

The Stone pony grinned triumphantly, and took up a silly looking pose before the golden eyes vanished from it - Then reappeared in the form he'd been taking around the castle lately. Likely in mockery, he had taken on the guise of a brown coated unicorn pony with a magnificent goatee, and wearing a silk suit as though he were some kind of teacher. He'd even given himself a scroll and quill cutie mark.

Those gold eyes were still as obvious as ever though. "My terms are simple, oh glorious princess. I want a fun day." His eyes gleamed in anticipation. "One day." he held up his hoof, with a sly smile. "Where I get to do whatever I want, wherever I want. And I promise to put all my toys back mostly as I found them. But I reserve the right to take that day whenever I want, without warning." He smirked in a way an ordinary mare might call attractive, and Celestia bit her lip a little in thought.

Not as bad as I thought. Bad enough all its own, but.. Celestia made a command decision. "Alright. I'll accept your terms If what you have to tell me helps." She glared halfway at him. "And I mean real, concrete information Discord. No prophecies or mysterious hints. I don't have time to be unraveling riddles." Discord's grin was the size of the moon - and he nodded his agreement to her terms and Celestia blew out her cheeks. "Alright. I want to know everything you know about this power. Everything, Discord - not one thing left out or the deal is off."

The scholarly looking chaos god bowed over his hoof and trotted over to the railing to stand next to her. "Frankly, Celestia - I'm not surprised you don't know very much. The Shadow's one of those nasty things that was knocking about long before you or even I were born." Discord was being serious, despite his still jovial tone of voice. That, more than anything else scared Celestia.

The brown pony crossed his hooves over the railing, those frightening eyes narrowing a little. "Oh yes, I know a thing or two about the Shadow, Celestia." He turned those eyes on her with a sober look on his pony face. "None of it is pretty. It makes everything it touches more like itself. That's how it's survived as long as it has - in spite of a lot of attempts to wipe it out. Closest anypony came was locking that thing into the Dark Book." He scratched his chin. "That was about four millennium ago, if I remember properly. I was a little busy at the time, so I could be off by a century or two."

Celestia's mind ranged back to Star Swirl's journals, and she kept silent. Star Swirl, you poor fool. Of course, his intentions had been noble. Still, the road to Tartarus and all that. She perked her ears up as Discord kept speaking. "Getting rid of it is the hard part, of course. Unless you just start killing everything its infected." He smirked, knowingly at her shocked face. "But Since you're too much of a bleeding heart to do that, Celestia - Let me warn you. The answer isn't going to be the same as it was the last time or the time before it. The Shadow changes constantly. It shapes others, but it is also shaped by them. You're going to have to outsmart it, if you want to beat it."

He flicked a hoof at her, a sly smile on his face. "And sorry, I can't win this fight for you my dear frenemey. The Shadow and I have a longstanding agreement to stay out of each other’s way." He smirked knowingly at her. "But if you really want my advice? Start making plans to deal with it the old fashioned way, Celestia." His tone had gone deadly quiet, and deadly serious. "This isn't something that's going to play games with you like I might."

Celestia was about to speak when a firm knock came at the door of her room. She glared at it in irritation. "We'll continue this tomorrow, Discord. And don't you dare try to weasel out of it." Discord smiled slyly at her, then vanished in a puff of lemon scented water. Celestia sighed at the mess on her balcony, and called out. "Enter!"

Luna pushed through the door a moment later, a murderous look upon her face. "Tell us thou art playing sister." Her voice was quiet, intense as she brandished a much crinkled bit of parchment at Celestia. "Tell us this is some kind of word game or code!"

Celestia shook her head once. "I wish that it were so, Lulu. Take a seat, we've got a lot that we need to discuss."

~~~~~~Back at the Twilight Hall~~~~~

Two forms lay on a vast ocean of red silk sheets, deep within the Twilight hall. The room was dark, save for a single lit candle by the bedside. The first form, a pegasus pony had her forehooves bound to the head of the bed - stretched tightly out above her head. While the second gently teased the first, gentle hooves brushing over a sweat-matted coat, her lips seeking out and tasting the pegasus little by little.

"M-mistress! Please!" Whimpered the pegasus mare, breathy with the sound of heavy breathing interspersed with soft moans. "M-More! I want m-more!" she cried out, arching her well-muscled back off the bed with the aid of a broad pair of wings. A gentle giggle seemed to fill the mare's world, and she looked up to see those shadowy eyes staring down into hers. They looked like the eyes of a dragon, multifaceted and deep violet in hue. The pegasus stared up into them, enraptured by the light glinting off those eyes.

A soft and loving voice escaped from the lips of the beautiful creature above her, leaning down to nip softly at her neck. "Mm, well - since you asked so nicely." that beautiful voice filled the mare's ears, and for a moment there was naught but the ache of anticipation. Then the touch of a hoof to her burning loins, and a world of impossible pleasure. The feeling of being filled with that glorious power surged through her body, and her hips came up again - trying desperately to push in to the slowly rubbing hoof even harder.

The sweet voice laughed, and the mare was dizzied by it. More than she could ever remember the voice doing to her before, but that was before the shadow came. Suddenly, the touch stopped, and the voice was whispering into her ear. "Say it, Dash." she spoke, gently stroking the rainbow colored mane back from the sweating face. "Remember the words I taught you? Say them, and I'll give you more..."

For some reason, Dash felt incredibly scared. Yet she also felt incredibly safe. It was confusing and disconcerting for her - she ached for another touch of that power, but some little voice inside of her was worried about what might happen. The dark form that loomed over her smiled slowly, sexily. Dash felt her body moving without her permission, her hips aching up towards the mare. She wanted that touch again. Needed it, like she needed to fly, like she needed to crack jokes and perform pranks.

Dash felt her mouth open, a heady breath exhaling from her lungs, over and over again. The conflict inside of her boiled and churned, as shadow power matched against stubborn will. Yet neither of these things were a match for a pair of sweet lips pressing together, tongues gently pressing against one another. For a few long, silent moments - all that could be heard was the sound of a kiss that felt like it went on forever.

When a shuddering breath escaped from Dash's lips again, it was followed by words - deliriously spoken, fervently declared. "D-Dash worships her Mistress.." She whispered, as though it were some kind of holy oath. "D-D-Dash is obedient to her mistress." What was she saying? Did it matter? "Dash will do anything for her mistress..." No, it didn't matter. All that mattered was the feeling of calm.

The deep sense of belonging. Of being loved on so fundamental a level, that just being near her was enough to make her wet with desire. Dash's breathing came out softly, and her lips formed a few more words - the very act of speaking arcing pleasure through her core.

"Dashie loves Mistress Twilight Shadow..."

There was a soft laugh, and Twilight Shadow leaned down to press her shadow-born body against Rainbow Dash - her mane dripped like thick syrup all around and onto the cyan pegasus beneath her. When it hit Dash, the power sizzled a little and melted into her friend's flesh. Her hooves gently stroked down Dash's thighs and she purred in an almost feline satisfaction. "Very good, my little Dashie." She whispered softly. "Mistress is pleased with you. I think you've earned a little reward."

The shadows molded around Twilight like a physical thing - changing her physical shape a little here and there. Her hips thrust into Dash's, and the pegasus' mouth opened in a sweet moan that echoed off the walls of the room. Her legs snapped up and wrapped around Twilight's waist, pulling her in closer - and perhaps squeezing a bit too tightly for comfort. Yet the shadow-imbued Twilight didn't much mind a little pain - it was a sweet pain. All new births had pain, and her little Dashie was being reborn beneath her hooves.

Dash's eyes were already starting to darken again as the shadow power slowly seeped into her body. Her gorgeous lips moved gently, the words almost a plea. "Take me, Shadow Mistress." Twilight had to smile at the words, leaning in to brush back that wild mane again and push a firm and loving kiss onto her. Dash didn't even put up a token resistance, allowing Twilight do whatever she pleased to her. It was an exultant feel of power, even as she poured more and more power into her friend, almost able to feel that sweet body changing beneath her hooves.

They had a long night ahead of them. Twilight intended to take her time.

~~~~~~

Twilight slowly walked out of the room many hours later, her eyes going to the smirking Shadowbolt captain who leaned against the wall. Twilight felt a smirk of her own come on as she swayed past her. "Put her on the training roster, Captain. Starting tomorrow." She purred out, then a tendril of shadow lashed out from her hair - grabbing Winterlight around the throat like a leash and collar. Her voice went from pleased to smoldering in moments. “Oh yes, and come with me. I think we need to have a little discussion of our own."

Winterlight's eyes widened in surprise - and more than a touch of fear - before the two of them vanished into another nearby shadow.