Morbid Curiosity

*Many Years Later*

Doctor Forensics poured Celestia another glass of bourbon. He had barely gotten through his second, but Celestia was on her fifth. Forensics chalked this up to Celestia’s Alicorn physiology; he however was a little less resilient, and could feel his mind beginning to slow a little.

Forensics breathed in the cool night air. Celestia had invited him to the rooftop patio of the castle, and had set up a small table and chairs to have the conversation. The entire building was lit up by moonlight – one never had to worry about the position of the moon for moonlight when they sat with the being that controlled celestial bodies. There was not a consistent breeze in the air – the night was still and crisp. A little chilly, being winter, but Forensics’ Griffon feathers kept him insulated. Looking around, he wondered if the guard came up here in their spare time. One could see the royal gardens in their entirety, illuminated in the beautiful glow of the moon – a beautiful, but somehow disturbing sight. Moonlight played tricks on the mind – made the statues of the garden appear to shift in their stillness. Made every whistle of the wind and every bush shaking something moving unseen in the dark. Yet still, the full moon's light made everything simultaneously that much more tranquil. Most would never experience this beauty though; they were all sleeping.

“So,” Forensics continued. “You were saying you hadn’t slept?”
“Not for the last 2 weeks.” Celestia clarified. “And yes, I know I don’t sleep properly as it is. This is … different.”
“Would you care to explain further?” asked, Forensics taking another sip of his drink.
“I can’t explain it. I’m just, always awake.”
Forensics furrowed his brow. “Is there something you think might be keeping you up?” he asked. Celestia became contemplative for a moment. “I’ll remind you I know about your student and her … quirks, shall we say.” Forensics added.

Celestia slouched a little and took a swig of her Bourbon. “For the last few months Twilight has had more exploits. Almost thrice a month now.” Celestia looked over to the horizon.
“She hasn’t killed anypony!” Celestia rushed out, her words barely formulated by the time they left her mouth.
“I would never accuse her of doing so … are you worried that might be a possibility?”
“I’m not going to lie to you – I worry about her. She says that-” Celestia did a mock-up Twilight impression. It wasn’t insulting. The imitation actually mimicked Twilight’s now slightly deeper voice quite well. “‘-The acceleration in subjects is to compensate for the repetition of their types - ’” Celestia resumed her normal tones "- You know; there are no elderly criminals I can trickle down to her, for example.”

Forensics nodded in response.
“I explain to her that I have to pull a lot of strings to get her the … subjects, as she calls them. But Twilight sometimes asks me why I can’t just give her live subjects. ‘A matter of convenience’, she says."

Celestia looked lost, her eyes unsettled and unfocused until they landed on the glass in front of her. Then, Celestia took a second gulp of the bourbon in her glass. “It’s like she doesn’t care about others. All living things to her are just an experiment waiting to happen.”
Forensics considered this a moment. “So, you’re saying you don’t think she cares about life? She doesn’t consider that a life has any inherent value?”

Now it was Celestia’s turn to consider the statement. “I’d agree, yes.” she spluttered out after a short time. “I don’t think she cares.”

Forensics leaned back a little in his chair and took a sip. He was going to need to be alcohol fueled to get this out.
“Celestia … may I speak freely?”

Celestia nodded in response.
“I think that Miss Sparkle is, to put it in layman’s terms ... a psychopath. She doesn’t experience any kind of empathy to others so doesn’t feel anything over a murder for example. I’d almost give you congratulations for stopping her thus far.”

Celestia was silent. She simply stared at the liquid in her glass.
“But the problem is.” Forensics continued “That you’re partially responsible for her wish to do these things in the first place.” Forensics waited a little. Though he was relatively sure he was fine, he knew not of Celestia’s mental state – he’d rather not continue if the Princess was going to break him and throw him off the roof.
“Go ahead,” Celestia said flatly. “I trust your judgement doctor.”

Forensics nodded. “You took Twilight away from her family. You kept her largely inside the castle’s four walls. On top of that, you never reprimanded her for her original actions. Tell me, does Miss Sparkle ever go out? Ever see friends or interact with others?”

Celestia continued to stare blankly into her drink. “No ... Twilight was always the bookish sort. She still doesn’t really leave her room most days.”

Forensics nodded. “There is absolutely nothing wrong with being the bookish sort. But I know that you never gave Miss Sparkle the opportunity to meet others. She never attended a public school – you tutored her one on one. It’s this lack of interaction with others that causes her mental state – she never knew other living creatures as sentient; she experiences no empathy because you raised her in a bubble, Milady.”

Celestia gulped audibly, and then downed what was left of her drink. “She never got to know other life besides me. All she knows is the service those like you provide; so she sees you as just that – a service. Everypony she sees isn’t another pony to her – she doesn’t understand their emotions – so she doesn’t care for them …” Celestia concluded. “And it’s my fault …”

Forensics remained silent. He wasn’t sure where to look. “If you’d like to receive my recommendation, I’d suggest you expose her to others quickly. Get her to make some friends, have a connection with others. My hope is that doing so will mean she actually learns to care for others.” Forensics told Celestia, taking the glass away from the Princess.
“Teach her to make friends … I can certainly do that. I’ll order it; by the end of the week Twilight can be studying friendship.” Celestia concluded. “But I’ll need to send her somewhere new. Staying here wouldn’t work. She’s already blocked out most other ponies here.”

Forensics thought for a moment, already standing up and packing away the glasses and decanter. “There’s a little hamlet not far from here a place called Ponyville. You can see it from the city gates; it’s at the bottom of the mountain. It’s close enough to keep an eye on her, but far enough away that it wouldn’t receive much interference from Canterlot’s inhabitants.”

Celestia nodded. “Thank you doctor. Twilight will be moved to Ponyville.”