I don't want to set the world on fire~
"So... uh, heh, It's a funny story..."
Oh, Twilight was certain that it was. But, at this point, she didn't feel like laughing. No, she felt like smothering. There was a slightly charred pillow on the ground beside her, and it looked oh so inviting. It would fit right over her student's dumb, stupid face, and-
No. No, there would be time for smothering later.
"Starlight. Did you, or did you not have anything to do with... this?"
It was a simple question. Anypony could answer it, even children. Heck, even Rainbow Dash could do it with enough prodding. And yet, Starlight's expression morphed into what could be best described as "complete and utter bewilderment."
"Uh..."
Maybe she didn't understand? The situation was a bit much. After all, her castle was literally on fire, after what seemed to be slightly exploded. And it was made of magical crystal, which, if Twilight recalled, wasn't high on the list of things that could burn easily. It would be a bit to take in for most, and besides, she looked more than a bit punch drunk. She'd just have to be a bit more specific.
"Starlight, the castle's on fire."
The mare, for what it's worth, looked back to look at said flaming castle in what best could be described as dawning horror, before nodding. "Oh, uh, yeah."
Good, that was a start. They had confirmed the basics. Maybe she was actually punchdrunk. The castle was slightly exploded, after all. Perhaps she hit her head? Maybe a falling crystal crossbeam struck her on the way out?
No, didn't matter. She needed answers, and she needed them yesterday.
“Did you do this?”
Starlight just stared blankly at her again, as if she had once more broken down into a devolved form of gibberish. The silence after that grew from a couple seconds into almost a minute, with the pair staring at each other, one with horror and growing twitchiness, and the other with less and less patience, until Twilight herself broke it.
"Starlight. Did you, or did you not ignite my castle?"
Another moment of silence, the pair once again resuming the routine of blank, almost mindless silence, before Starlight finally did what Twilight should've expected her to do from the start. There was a bright flash of light, and then, her student was gone. And with her gone, there was no answer from her.
Twilight let out a loud growl at that, furious at both her student and herself for falling for what had to be the oldest trick in the book, before sighing. She'd just have to hunt her down later.
Then, there'd be smothering.
So, she turned to the next possible culprit, Spike. Of course, the poor guy was currently ablaze as well, and while she knew very well that he was fireproof to the nth degree, he still didn't see to be enjoying it, if one considered the continual screaming and running about as a sign.
Heck, even Owlicious, who was sitting on a nearby branch and covered in soot seemed to feel pity for him. And he never felt pity for any living creature.
"Spike!"
The drake stopped in place almost immediately, out of either duty, or the well-trained instincts she had honed over a decade into immediately obeying her commands without question or even self-preservation.
It wasn't evil.
"Did you start the fire?"
The drake didn't answer immediately either, instead sitting several seconds in place before giving a response, the flames that surrounded him moving and waving in concert as he spoke.
"Oh, uh, no."
It wasn't the most convincing statement, but Twilight would have to take it, as she couldn't spot his features through the conflagration that surrounded him to spot any deception. So, Twilight looked back to the burning crystal castle, and back to Spike, who still sat there, burning brightly.
And then, without warning, the castle reached the end of it's metaphorical rope, and collapsed, turning immediately to Ash with an almost comical "Poof". Twilight stared at what used to be her home, before sighing and looking back to Spike.
"So, what happened?"
Twilight had high hopes for the answer, she really did. Spike was her most loyal assistant, and surprisingly bright. If he was there at the start, he'd not only have the truth, but a idea of what caused it, even if it wasn't obvious. Yes, he'd be most-
"We threw Celestia a birthday party. You and the girls were at that thing, and no one was around for it besides Luna, so..."
There was a moment of silence for a moment, with Twilight staring at the castle, and Spike being on fire.
"Was it the-"
"Yeah, it was the candles."
At that, Twilight mumbled a swear. Curse Celestia's long lifespan. Even if they went for a 1/10 ratio, it was still an extreme fire hazard, as she had learned long ago, when she accidentally burned down the south tower upon the eve of her first year as Celestia's student.
Oh well, at least the fire was-
At the very thought, the ashes reignited, much like Twilight's exasperation. However, her irritation didn't stop her from staring at the burning ashes for a moment, slowly trying to decipher it's secrets. It wasn't often something would burn down twice.
Maybe it'd explode twice too?
"Huh. So, where is she? Did she not show up yet, or...?"
At that, there was what Twilight assumed was an awkward silence for several moments, until Twilight realized that Spike was actually looking at the castle, his expression completely unreadable underneath the hellstorm that was his face.
The castle that was a pile of ash.
Correction, the castle that was a pile of ash that was also somehow still on fire.
At that point, Twilight decided that she wanted to look up at the sky. The wonderful, not-on-fire sky. But, alas, the sun was awfully high up for being so late in the day...
"And she was so excited for it, too."
Author's Note
A quick little thing. Not sure what it is, but it's here.