The sun ascended over the horizon, its rays spilling through the dusty window of an old castle bedroom. In its bed lay a lavender coated alicorn mare, twisting and turning with her eyes shut close and her covers tightly wrapped around her like a cocoon. The light spilled around the room as the sun went further up, until it reached the alicorn’s eyelids.
Twilight Sparkle’s eyes shot open, fixed to the roof above her, studying every crack and stain. She was perfectly still, not even daring to breathe. Could she even breathe with such a heavy sensation on her chest?
A nightmare. The feeling of sadness and fear lingered in Twilight’s heart and the darkness still plagued her vision. No matter how much she tried, Twilight could not remember what the nightmare was about. The increasing temperature of the room motivated her to put the dream in the back of her mind and work on disentangling herself from her covers.
Then, she stood up from the bed and stretched, taking a deep breath only to sneezing and cough afterwards. Right, this room was old, unkempt and dusty. Sure, she had fallen asleep in a fair share of dusty libraries with side effects, but this was a whole new level of dusty. There were layers of it and even spider webs in the old furniture. Twilight just wanted to get out of here. She had yet to decide if she only meant the room or the whole formerly abandoned castle.
She walked to the vanity, blowing away some spider webs and dust from the mirror. With her magic, she took a brush from her saddlebags and quickly combed her messy mane. She then stretched her sleepy wings and scrunched up her nose at how messy her feathers were. Twilight didn’t have much time for preening, but she plucked out a few interfering feathers and smoothed out others.
Judging from the horrible taste in her mouth her breath was unbecoming of a princess and more proper for a dragon, but she doubted the old decrepit place even had any water running. So as she levitated her regalia out of her saddlebags, she also took two of the many mint candies Pinkie had slipped in without her knowing and put them in her mouth.
Twilight looked at the slippers, then at her hooves, then at the crown. No. Just no. It had been months, maybe a year since her coronation, but she still felt uncomfortable with those things on her. The difference was that by now it wasn’t too much about not wanting to seem better or superior to others, but that the things were uncomfortable to wear.
Maybe it was okay to just be "Twilight Sparkle", instead of Princess Twilight Sparkle, while she stayed at this castle. A mare who just read all day in her library and loved mysteries and adventure with her friends. That unicorn she used to be still lived in her heart, she just didn’t have as many opportunities to show up as much as before, and now was perfect. It had been one of the two reasons she had accepted Princess Celestia’s invitation. There was a mystery to solve, a chance for Princess Twilight to be just Twilight again.
After sprinkling some perfume over herself, she happily trotted out of the room. The halls were decent-looking despite the cracks on the old, lifeless walls and Twilight could see some dust being lifted from the dark carpet with each hoofstep. It may have looked better in its prime, beautiful, luxurious, and majestic, but now it had a different kind of beauty to it. Twilight felt this castle was a book with a story to tell.
But then Twilight felt a chill running up her spine. Her light canter became a slow walk as Twilight nervously glanced around her. She swore she heard voices, but there was nothing behind her, or no one next to her. In moments like these, she wished Spike was with her. Twilight wasn’t sure if she wanted to read this book’s story anymore.
This had been the reason for the three princess’s visit to the castle. Lord Talonhart, who according to Luna was an enormous, powerful and imposing dragon, had moved in not too long ago with his servant. He had reported some paranormal activity, angry spirits who couldn’t, and some wouldn’t willingly, pass on to the afterlife. There was very little known about ghosts or spirits in general and only alicorns had the power and knowledge to deal with them.
At first, Twilight had been skeptical and confident that there was some other, more logical explanation to these phenomena, but the princesses seemed certain and serious about these being ghosts. On top of that, just in her first night in the castle she already felt the problem in her bones. Twilight shuddered thinking of when she had to explore the rest of the castle.
A different kind of chill went up her spine when she remembered she had yet to meet Lord Talonhart and she was not appropriately dressed for the occasion. To top it off, she was already standing right in front of the grand dining hall gates.
Twilight groaned and shook her head. This castle was messing with her brain. Princess Celestia was going to be so disappointed, oh that look in her eyes Twilight still dreads even as an adult, powerful alicorn princess. That look she reserved particularly for her, filled with sadness and regret…
Or Princess Luna’s coldness and anger. She was usually a surprisingly warm, though quiet, pony. A great listener, and she would give honest opinions and personal anecdotes to back it up. She was an amazing storyteller, and whenever Twilight was with her she felt… safe, as if she wouldn’t judge her, but just reflect her with those crystal clear eyes of hers. Luna was a great friend and protected Twilight from everything but the truth.
But when she a nerve… the safety was gone. She couldn’t help but feel naked and abandoned. And you could see nothing more than a pathetic pony in that pair of mirrors that were Luna’s eyes.
Twilight sighed and rubbed her temple with a hoof. There was no helping it, no delaying the inevitable. With her magic, she opened the noisy wooden doors and strode in with a face that expressed nothing but indifference.
To her surprise, she only saw Princess Luna sitting at the far side of the table with a cup of tea and two books in front of her. Her teal eyes were fixed on Twilight as she entered with a much more relaxed posture and expression.
“Good morning, Twilight.” Princess Luna warmly greeted her with a nod and a smile.
“Good morning, Luna.” Twilight sweetly smiled back, glad to have found her instead of anyone else. She sat next to her, shifting uncomfortably since the silence had settled between them once Luna returned to her books. Before Twilight could begin looking for things to say, Luna spoke up.
“How was your night?” It was an ironic question considering who it came from.
“It was… unnerving.” Twilight tried and failed to suppress a shudder as she tried to remember her nightmare, only to be met with those sickening sensations. Her eyes were glued to the table in pure horror and her brows furrowed. A freshly served cup of tea was shoved into her field vision and Twilight looked up just in time to see Luna place the teapot back on the table.
“I tried my best, but I couldn’t do much. It is best if you don’t try to remember what you dreamed.” Luna said with a serious and somewhat sad smile, her eyes never leaving the text. Something gave Twilight the impression that Luna had stayed awake for a considerable part of the night, but there was nothing physical that could prove it.
“Yes. Th-thank you.” Twilight said, knowing what Luna had meant. “So, what are you reading?”
“Some modern material about ghosts and spirits. Paranormal matters in general. You should also take a look, tonight we will begin what we came here for.” Luna levitated the second book that rested closed on the table towards Twilight. “Here. There really isn’t much recent detailed information that is not the product of some silly fantastical speculation.”
“Alright. I’ll be sure to read this carefully.” Twilight studied the cover and its title. How could they be so certain it was about ghosts? Old Twilight would've laughed at the idea, but after everything she had experienced and faced, her mind was much more accepting. She opened the book and began reading its first words. However, something kept her from focusing no matter how many times she went over the first sentence. “Where is Celestia and Lord Talonhart?”
“We won’t be seeing them until later today. Around supper. Old friends catching up.” Luna closed her book and sipped on her tea. “I was never too close to him, but we do owe him a favor.” Sensing that a story was coming, Twilight closed her book and gave Luna her full attention.
Luna rustled her wings and poured herself more tea. Twilight realized she had been neglecting hers and began to discreetly drink as much as she could.
“It happened long ago.” Luna continued. “Discord had been taken care of, the nations were going back to normal, slowly rebuilding and recuperating. Of course, we had been credited for the wellbeing of Equestria and beyond.” Levitating her cup, she stood from the table and began walking around the room. “Our troubles were far from over. Some envied our glory and power, though at the time it was more… Celestia’s glory and power.”
Twilight fidgeted nervously in her seat, watching Luna with worry. She wasn’t sure what she was listening to or witnessing, but she had to be careful and trust that Luna knew what she was saying.
“We were exhausted from our confrontation with Discord, but we had no time for rest. Taking the kingdom’s reigns was something that could not be delayed; the longer the kingdom went on without a leader, the more chances there were for another disaster to happen, like outsiders wanting to take advantage of Equestria’s potential and attacking in a moment of weakness. And… it did happen.” Luna brought the cup to her lips only to realize she had long since drank the whole thing, so she simply let it rest on the table.
“The kingdom got invaded again. Groups of individuals of various races tried to lead it to downfall by… eliminating us. Lord Talonhart was part of this group, but then he had a change of heart after meeting Celestia.”
“Did they…?” Twilight asked with cheeks flushed red. Luna paused her walking, turned to look at her with a raised brow and her eyes slightly widened in realization. Serenity returned to her posture and features and she nonchalantly poured herself more tea, looked ahead and answered.
“Maybe.” And took a sip of tea. “Anyway, he believed both me and Celestia would make great rulers. So he stopped the riots using some convincing and everything went back to normal. Or at least as normal as it could get.”
“Well… he sounds like a nice dragon.” Luna snorted and rolled her eyes.
“He is a grumpy old bastard. Only a fresh young face will pull a smile out of that scaly shell.” Her eyes scanned the landscape outside of the window. The castle was located at the outskirts of Equestria, not too far to the north or south. Beyond the trees and grass the ocean stretched infinitely, the morning sun’s reflection being distorted by the waves. “I do not blame him. Backstabbing was a hobby. Lord Talonhart considers tea a better company-“
“Watch out!” Luna turned, gasped and ducked, only to find Twilight struggling with all her might to keep the flying teapot from hitting the window behind Luna. Whatever force was pulling, or pushing, the teapot nearly surpassed that of Twilight’s telekinetic abilities, but it soon gave up.
Twilight, still gasping and sweating, slowly and carefully placed the teapot on the table and reluctantly released it. Both princesses seemed to hold their breaths, waiting for something to happen. But it didn’t, much to their relief.
“Looks like whatever ghost is in here doesn’t like tea.” Twilight said with a nervous giggle at the end. Her comment was meant to be a joke to break the ice, a bad one, but Luna seemed to be seriously pondering her statement while still sitting on the floor.
“It doesn’t have to be a single entity.” Princess Luna stood up and took the book she had been reading for the table. Before leaving the dining room she turned once more to Twilight. “You should study as much as you can before tonight. I will meet you before sunset at the gardens. Lord Talonhart’s servant will take you there.”
“Understood.” Luna closed the door behind her, leaving an echo in the room that lingered for a second or two.
That was all the time Princess Twilight Sparkle stayed in the dining room before realizing she was by herself in a possibly haunted castle and admitting she was terrified. She ran from the room before any more teapots could fly towards anypony else.
Twilight Sparkle had a lot in her mind. And when that happened, it usually didn’t let her focus on studying. She was supposed to be reading that book Luna gave her and she had been obediently doing so in her room earlier, but what had happened in the dining room still haunted her. It was understandable if she took a break under the circumstances, or so she thought, so she threw herself out of the window and flew high above the castle, just to stretch her wings and let the fresh air from the outside wash away some of the uncomfortable vibes the castle gave her.
The force with which the teapot had flown from the table towards Princess Luna had been alarming. It had taken Twilight, a powerful gifted alicorn, all of her might to stop it. Whatever was in the castle could be incredibly dangerous. Right after thinking that, Twilight facehoofed. It was obvious it posed a threat if Lord Talonhart had called three of the most powerful beings in Equestria.
But why did the teapot fly? What did it mean? Maybe the ghost really wasn’t into tea, or they didn’t like something Luna said, or Luna herself… Before leaving, she had behaved rather strangely, as if she had realized something, and suddenly left the room.
Twilight soared around the castle, barely flapping her wings. The sea breeze was strong that afternoon and she let it guide her. It wasn’t the biggest castle in Equestria, definitely. The outside felt less tense and oppressing, but she still felt the vibes of sadness, despair and anger coming from inside.
The roof was broken in various places, most of it stained and falling apart, leaving the inside exposed to the afternoon sun. Some faint designs that had been engraved on it could be seen, but Twilight couldn't discern the shapes completely. The stone brick walls looked sturdy, but most had deteriorated with time and collapsed, taking roofs and entire towers with them. Vegetation seemed to be swallowing the whole abandoned structure, with vines twirling and twisting around the outer and some visible inner structures.
Twilight wondered just how many creatures inhabited and roamed around the place; if only Fluttershy was around to keep them at bay, just so nothing decided to make a nest on, or in, her coat during the night.
A sudden ringing in her ears cut her small tour short. Her whole body went tense, and her wings half-closed before becoming rock-hard. Twilight gritted her teeth and urged her eyes to focus, her body to move, or her magic to do something, but the ear-splitting sound was too much for her to bear.
Then, she was falling, flailing her hooves and screaming at the top of her lungs, about to crash into the unreliable roof below her, until she saw bats flying from the holes in it and obscuring her vision completely.
Her eyes opened abruptly. She pushed herself up with her hooves and realized she had fallen asleep on the book while reading. Twilight had never jumped out the window to begin with; it had all been a bad dream.
Her breath was ragged and her eyes wide open, scanning the room and making sure she was back into sweet, sweet reality. She turned to the book and checked for any drool stains and sighed in relief after seeing it was safe. With a hoof on her chest, she concentrated on calming her agitated breathing, until a knock on her door interrupted her.
“Yes?” Twilight said after opening the door to the slightly shorter unicorn mare in front of her. The mare had silvery cherry mane, a strange color she didn’t know how to describe, and a brighter cherry coat. Her amber eyes were energetic and her posture straight and confident.
“Good day, Princess Twilight.” The unicorn bowed. “My name’s Piece Of Wheel, Lord Talonhart’s personal servant. He’s asking me to fetch you for lunch.”
“Um, alright.” If Twilight hadn’t been too focused on not panicking she’d be questioning the strange way this mare had been named. But she had just been summoned for lunch with two princesses and an ancient dragon. and she probably looked miserable. “Just… give me a second.”
Twilight closed the door on the mare’s face without thinking twice and proceeded to brush her mane and coat, shove some mints into her mouth, and sprayed some perfume all over herself at the same time. Her hooves slipped into her regalia and her crown levitated onto her head. After a glance in the mirror and nodding at how Rarity would be proud of her, the door opened and a decent looking princess came out of it.
“I’m ready.” Twilight said with a confident smile, passing right beside Piece, who scrunched up her nose at the strong scent of perfume.
“I, uh, probably should have told you about the working shower at the other side of the castle,” Twilight’s eyes shot open at the mention of water. “But I didn’t even know you, so…”
“What?!”
Piece of Wheel feared for her own life when the mighty Princess of Friendship she had heard so many tales of stopped in her tracks to give her a side glance. However, Twilight couldn’t allow herself to lose her cool with someone who really wasn’t at fault for anything. She let out a deep breath and continued her walk.
“It’s alright… I’ll be alright. Yes.” She said breathily with a weary expression, bracing herself for the comments that were sure to come from the princesses and the impression she’d cause on Lord Talonhart. “I’d like you to show me the way after this, though. I’d really appreciate it.”
“I promise.”
Twilight felt a sense of dread as they took the final steps towards the doors of the dining room. They suddenly seemed taller and heavier. This wasn’t the time to back away, and Twilight wasn’t a mare that ran away from her problems.
“Uh, let me.” Piece of Wheel walked forward and easily opened the doors with her bronze colored telekinetic hold. Twilight strode inside and the doors closed behind her.
It had been a while since she last felt so alienated, so small, but seeing the enormous, ancient, emerald scaled dragon with gray hairs and beard sitting right next to Princess Celestia and across from Princess Luna, sipping tea and eating biscuits, brought her the inevitable reminder of just how old these mares were, and how insignificant she was despite all her feats and the relatively new wings at her sides.
“Good day, Twilight Sparkle.” Greeted Princess Celestia with a gentle smile. Princess Luna remained silent with her gaze distant, more preoccupied about her own tea.
“Good day too you too, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, Lord Talonhart.” Twilight answered politely, greeting every single occupant of the room with a small bow and a smile. She tried her best to ignore the sisterly glare Celestia shot at Luna at her lack of courtesy for the sake of not breaking down in giggles.
“Ah, so this is your little princess.” Lord Talonhart’s booming, raspy voice and the way he slowly articulated every word only made the feeling worse. The knots in Twilight’s stomach tightened and she could only smile nervously as the dragon who could barely fit in the room stood from his seat and walked towards her. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Princess Twilight Sparkle.” He bowed, or at least that’s how Twilight interpreted that slight bending of his neck long scaly neck.
“The pleasure is mine, Lord Talonhart.” Twilight said and returned the bow with as much grace as a librarian turned princess could muster.
“Celestia has told me much about you, and she is not even halfway through. Please, have a seat.” His claw waved in Luna’s general direction. Twilight gave an inward sigh at these seating arrangements and she had a very faint idea of why.
She didn’t hesitate to do as the dragon instructed. As soon as she did, a blue aura poured her tea from a white teapot while Celestia and Talonhart resumed some personal conversation only they understood. Twilight muttered her thanks to Luna and mirrored her, using her tea and biscuits as the main distraction.
For the first time since she was a little filly, Celestia looked so distant and aloof. The wings and crown on Twilight seemed to be part of a silly costume; she felt like a filly trying to dress up like a grown up to feel more important in that family dinner with her aunts and uncles. Princess Luna was like her cousin, another young face that brought her comfort and security because she was not the only one who had to wait in painful, awkward silence. Yet, it’d still be awkward; it is rude to interrupt the grown up’s conversations, after all.
It was still a mystery; Luna was still hundreds, if not thousands of years older than Twilight. Perhaps it was because she was visibly uncomfortable and upset about being stuck in this awkward meal, or the way she and Luna made small, simple conversation with mere glances.
Twilight had resigned herself into trying to think about the real issue at hand. She had only arrived the night before, so naturally she didn’t have many leads. The book Luna had provided only gave away some speculation about spirit behavior, but it didn’t make any sense; wouldn’t each and every entity had a unique way of behaving? A different kind of negative feeling tying them to this world? If so, books with such general and broad information wouldn’t really help her, instead she’d have to learn about the history of the castle and its occupants.
This only meant exploring every single corner of the castle, which could be very dangerous.
Twilight made a mental note to discuss these things with Luna. Just like an animal curiously checking its surroundings to see if winter had come, Twilight came back to reality from her thoughts. Time seemed to be effectively passing quickly without much incident and in due time, she’d be able to get out of there. That is, until Lord Talonhart turned the conversation towards her.
“It is certainly pleasant to see such a young face working towards the wellbeing and harmony of Equestria. Has she successfully livened up court?”
“Oh, Twilight and her friends have livened up more than one event. Cleaning up the disaster is always worth it.”
“Celestia, darling, that is not exactly what I meant, and you know it. I am aware how such a talented, knowledgeable mare could receive the admiration of those around her, or am I wrong, Twilight Sparkle?” Lavender ears perked up. The mare in question raised her gaze with a confused face, which made Celestia giggle gracefully while Lord Talonhart cackled loudly. Did the tea ever run out?
“Well,” Celestia casually sipped on her tea with a faintly mischievous smile. “There was this colt in my royal army that was obviously infatuated with her, but considering Twilight’s lifespan… that might be inconvenient.”
Twilight had to admit she had thought of that before. Being an immortal goddess of friendship probably robbed her of her romantic life almost entirely, but she saw herself incapable of giving that any importance, even as a grown, developed mare. Rarity fussed over this, constantly reminding her to go out and meet some people, even to talk to this ‘Flash Sentry’ colt, but Twilight couldn’t bring herself to care.
“W-well…” Before Twilight could explain herself, Celestia interrupted her with an unexpected statement.
“Unfortunately, my feelings towards Twilight are mostly motherly. Lulu, however…”
“E-excuse me?” Lavender nearly became red as soon as Twilight caught up. She turned towards Luna, who merely rolled her eyes and shoved a biscuit in her mouth. Clearly she didn’t want to hide her displeasure.
“Oh? Perhaps Luna here does view Twilight Sparkle as a potential partner?” Lord Talonhart said, and both he and Celestia expectantly looked at Luna. Twilight’s eyes darted from dragon to alicorn in disbelief. However, Luna took her time chewing on her food and drinking the last remaining drops of her drink until answering.
“Perhaps.”
“Huh?!”
Twilight’s eyes were impossibly wide and her jaw nearly hit the floor. That had been the first time Luna had spoken up during the whole meal, and the only time needed to send Twilight’s mind into a frenzy and half of her blood into her face.
By the time Twilight stopped shaking her head from side to side to recover her senses, the seat next to her was already empty, and the sound of closing doors echoed throughout the room. Celestia and Lord Talonhart had resumed conversation, and her tea had already gone cold.
The rest of lunch was a blur. Whatever they talked about was completely unknown by Twilight, and she could only wonder how Lord Talonhart managed to hold that teacup with such huge claws. In the end, she had stayed out of courtesy and need of information from Lord Talonhart about the spirit issue, but for a while that subject seemed to be in the back of their minds. What little he said was about his servant providing the information needed and guidance through the castle.
When supper came to a close, Celestia was the first to leave the dining room. Twilight was about to go out after her, but Lord Talonhart stopped her.
“There’s something else I needed to tell you. While Celestia and Luna both owe me favors, you can keep whatever trinkets you find around here.” He said with a smile, stroking his long gray beard with his claws. “For now, I’d like you to accept this little treasure my servant found lying around.” Only when he pointed towards the teapot that had been sitting on the table the whole afternoon with his claw did Twilight take time to drink in its details.
She wasn’t sure why he would call it a treasure, having such a simplistic and general design, but then she remembered this was a dusty old castle. The teapot was pure white and completely untouched, though one curious detail might be that it had a handle designed for creatures with thumbs.
It could’ve been of someone who had recently gotten to the castle and left it there. However… did that mean they had been drinking from this teapot they found lying around? Had they even made sure it wasn’t dirty or had any weird bugs inside? Still, Twilight politely thanked the dragon and took the object with her.
Twilight had been so lost in thought she didn't realize she had walked to the shower at the other side of the castle where the showers were located, scrubbed away the perfume from her coat, and walked back to her bedroom. The strong smell of perfume was gone and she felt much cleaner and comfortable. The sun was dipping below the horizon and golden light poured from the window as she resumed her reading on the bed. The white teapot rested on the dusty nightstand, as white as ever, and the letters in the book in front of her came and went just like Twilight’s focus.
The book snapped shut and Twilight released a heavy sigh. She was well into the book and had received plenty of information, but the room’s temperature was… rising. The hairs on the back of her neck stood as a very tense atmosphere filled the room. Twilight just couldn’t read in such a place. So she stood from her bed and cast a glance towards the teapot.
Something had changed. The pot was not so white anymore. Four dark, long lines surrounded it, as if something with very dirty claws, almost as big as Lord Talonhart’s, had grabbed it. But it obviously hadn’t been him, or Twilight would’ve noticed the stain much, much sooner.
Her brow went up. After much pondering, she cautiously let her magic wrap around the teapot and lift it from the nightstand. Attentive magenta eyes inspected the object closely; there was no dust or dark spots at the base. It was spotless. Then, she tried to clean off the four dark lines with the bed’s sheets despite how improper it was, but nothing came off.
The tension and temperature had skyrocketed in the room. Twilight began sweating, and she was sure it was not from concentration. Her breath was shaky and her eyes darted around the room for any sign of an unwanted presence; she wanted to get out of there as fast as she could.
Her loud heartbeats almost made it impossible for Twilight to hear the knock on her door.
“Excuse me? Princess Twilight?” She nearly dropped the teapot at the sudden voice.
“Just a second!” Twilight said after a few moments, letting the object in her magical hold return to the nightstand. Collecting her breath and calming her heart down came first. When she opened the door, she saw Piece of Wheel with a strange device hanging from her neck looking rather distressed.
“Oh, thank goodness you’re out. This place is creeping me out. Princess Luna is summoning you. Please follow me.” While Piece walked ahead, Twilight glanced back at the teapot, pondering whether she should take it or not. Being alone there was the last thing she wanted, so she took the mysterious object with her and caught up with the servant.
