Sand on the Doorstep

The night was dark, the sky moonless and blanketed in thick clouds. Yet the three saw none of it from under their dome of black fog. No light could enter, and no noise could escape. What better place to hold palaver than that?

Yet before any of the questions could be asked, a moment had to be taken for greetings to be properly made. Barely a moment after he entered the sphere of darkness Roland was embraced by Luna; the little Princess was now just a bit tall than he was' and deceptively strong for her slender figure. Her sister, who still dwarfed them both, waited patiently for her to finish with that display of joy before cutting in. "We are both very happy to see your return to this world, Gunslinger, but I can only assume that you have not come back simply to take us up on our original offer."

Before his departure the last time they had met, two young, inexperienced, and incredibly brave little Princesses had begged him not to leave. The younger had offered him a home in their world, the older offered to make him their Grand Knight. Both had wept, though only one in the view of others, when he had turned away and wordlessly moved on. It may be that he had not had the heart to tell them that he couldn't stay, that his Tower was still calling him... Or perhaps, he simply wanted to spare them the tears attempting to force themselves from his own eyes. He had had paradise, in one form or another, in his very grasp that day, yet in the end he had given it all up. Given it all up so that he might spend the next millennia wandering the deserts of doubt, pain, and death. All for his precious Tower. Always for the Tower.

But the pains of the past are easily forgotten when one considers those yet to come, and such struggles were weighing heavily on Roland's mind now. " 'Fraid not, though you know I would if I could. But that road was closed to me long ago, my only home is far and away now. No, I'm afraid I came here for something far less-"

"It's the assassin, isn't it?" Luna was staring at him with one wide, glimmering eye, the other hidden behind the drape of her mane. "did thou not come here to stop him? Thou knew we were in trouble and came back to make sure we made it through safely."

"Sister, I have told you already, these are two unrelated events. The assassin is one of our own kind and has been in this region for month. Roland and his target arrived at the same time as each other."

"I admit, I knew nothing of this assassin before arriving here, nor that the two of you were in any peril, but I feel it unlikely that the events are entirely unrelated. These things do not happen by accident."

"Ka." Luna was looking at him closely once more, though it felt to Roland as though she were looking through him. "That is what thou called it, is it not? Ka? Fate."

"You remember our discussion well. Yes, ka paves the paths the walk and all roads lead to the Tower. I have no doubt that the same applies to this meeting of ours. Now, what is it that you really came here to tell me? As much as I treasure these pleasantries, there is something more serious that you both felt it necessary to ask. I would hear it."

Luna stepped back, she knew it was her sister's turn to speak now, she knew these things were best left to the elder ruler in cases like this. Celestia moved forward, standing between them both under the dome of night. "We... We believe there is a traitor among us. Someone who wishes to see the downfall of this empire and, if we are not misreading this traitor's intentions, bring the entire world to ruin. We believe that this fire you were faced with was merely an offshoot of our enemy's attempt to separate us from our greatest weapon-"

"Tool, sister. Our greatest tool. That it what you told me when we first used them, thou assured made it very clear to us that they were never meant to be weapons."

Celestia looked taken aback by her sister's scolding, but quickly regained her composure. "No, you are quite right Luna, this is all weighing a bit heavier upon me than I would like to admit. The point remains that we have reason to believe someone within our council has been aiding this assassin whom my sister mentioned earlier."

Roland thought about all of this carefully, surveying the situation in his mind as she spoke. "A coup would hardly be unexpected if Walter is involved in this somehow. But what has led you to believe that your entire world is in danger?"

Celestia hesitated a moment before explaining the final portion of what they had learned during the past month. With so much developing in this case over such a short time, Roland's unexpected return earlier that day had been one of the first pleasant surprises that either sister had had for quite some time. As such, she was hardly eager to discuss such grave happenings with him so soon after his arrival. "We have looked at everything that has happened in relation to this very carefully, and we believe there is something far darker at work than a simply power-grab attempt. Some of our councilors are undoubtedly greedy and self-centered, but none would be brave enough to attempt something Ike this unless someone with the power necessary to keep them safe from Luna and myself were involved. I fear that a more ancient evil than this Black Wanderer of yours may be at work here."

She took another step toward Roland, meeting the gaze of his pale blue eyes unflinchingly. "There are very few on that council that we truly trust any more, but letting them know that could easily cause this entire situation to escalate too quickly for us to stop. You are one of those few whom we know we can trust now, so if it is at all possible, we humbly request your aid in this matter. The one whom you are hunting, if what you have said is true, is likely involved in this. I am by no means asking you to stop your pursuit of him. Instead, we would simply ask that you help us uncover exactly who it is he is serving, and what it is that they are planning to do."

Their meeting concluded only a few moments later, with the Gunslinger agreeing to aid the Royal Sisters in their plight. A few other topics were discussed, a few more pleasantries were exchanged, and a few more questions were answered. But those moments all belong to the three of them, to their little tet. And who are we to intrude upon what may be one of their last happy memories together?