The Rise of Passion

Starlight awoke to a slap from Cozy's hoof. She'd settled down for a short nap, as had most of the house, but Trixie had been watching the roads, being the only one of them who'd managed to sleep the night prior. "Wake up!" shouted Cozy, hovering over her.

Starlight bolted upright. "What happened?" she asked, knowing that something had to be off.

"Twilight's coming," scowled Cozy, "and she's bringing a selection of guards. I can't be seen or mentioned!"

Starlight jumped out of bed and rushed to the window. Sure enough, Twilight was on her way, with nearly twenty guards in tow. "Shit."

"Shit's about right to describe this situation," nodded Cozy. "I'm going to hide out in the vault with our prisoners. You need to drive her off. We're not ready to take her yet, especially with this many armed and armoured stallions watching her every move."

"Right," nodded Starlight, rushing over to the nightstand and brushing her mane. "I'll try diplomacy first. Maybe she doesn't know anything."

"Then why does she have so many guards?" reasoned Cozy. "She knows something. Probe if you can, but be ready to come to blows. She might be here to arrest you."

"I'll go quietly if that's the case," spat Starlight. ""There must be some mistake, Princess Twilight! I have been by your side for so long! You have to believe me!" Think she'll buy it?"

Cozy folded her front legs. "Maybe. I'm still going to seal myself up. I can't let her find me."

The two left the room and went off in opposite directions, with Cozy heading to the vault and Starlight going to the front. She had to act like she'd been awake all day, and that Trixie hadn't been watching the road.

They managed to synchronize their story with ease. Starlight had asked Trixie for help with a friendship problem a short time ago, and they'd ended up sleeping together. Trixie had been here ever since, helping to build their relationship from the ground up. They'd been here all night, exploring their sexuality, and Trixie had fallen out of bed and hurt her ankle. A lot of it was actually true.

They sat and waited for Twilight. Before too long, there was a loud pounding at the door that sounded very urgent. With a deep breath, Starlight approached and pulled the door open.

Immediately, five guards filed in. One grabbed Starlight and pressed her against the wall, the next tackled Trixie, and the other three dispersed into the other rooms.

"I specifically told you not to do that!" shouted Twilight, walking in. "Put them down, right now!"

"B-but princess," growled the knight holding Starlight against the wall. "What if they're the ones that did it?"

"What if it's you?" demanded Twilight. "You, giving orders to mercenaries when I'm not looking?"

"Princess, I would never!"

"Neither would they! Put them down. They're no danger to me."

"Oh, yeah?" growled another guard, coming back into the room as more filed in from outside. "How do you explain this?!"

"That's a cheese knife," explained Trixie. "I was making lunch." A loud beeping started coming from the kitchen. "And now it's burning. Can you at least go shut of the stove?"

The next few minutes were spent in much the same way, with Twilight having to convince the guards to first let her friends go, then to stop pulling apart the house, and finally to wait outside. Not all of them, of course. Three of them refused, by order of Princess Celestia herself to keep Twilight safe. They stood at the back of the room, though, as Trixie brought out a tray of four burnt cheese sandwiches with tomato and radish slices.

"Sorry about all of that," sighed Twilight, sitting down opposite them. "Did they hurt you, Trixie?" she asked, pointing to the bandage.

"No, that's a preexisting injury from last night. Trixie was lost in a swirl of emotions and fell out of bed."

"Ah. I'm sorry to hear that. I had something bad happen to me last night, too."

"Is that why you're surrounded by guards?" asked Starlight, pouring some tea.

"Yeah," sighed Twilight, "and also why they're being so aggressive."

"Well, what happened?"

Twilight took a deep breath. "Princess Cadance, Shining Armor and Flurry Heart are missing."

The two feigned shock. "Did they just run off?" asked Starlight.

Twilight shook her head. "I don't think so. They weren't scheduled for a trip, and they would have told the guards if they needed to leave. They would have had to, to reschedule meetings and such. They wouldn't just leave their guests hanging like that. I think they were kidnapped, and Celestia agrees. Somepony snuck in there without the guards noticing and made off with them."

"Or some creature," added Starlight. "I'm not pointing to any one in particular, as I don't know the details, but do you think it might have been a dragon or hippogriff or gryphon? They are supposed to have equal access as the rest of us."

Twilight shook her head and leaned in. "I think I know who it was."

"How?" asked Trixie. "And if you know who it was, why aren't you trying to take them out?"

"Because she's hiding from me," answered Twilight. She took a deep breath, then pulled an envelope out of her saddlebags and gave it to Starlight. It showed the statue in the locked-off section of the Canterlot Gardens. Trixie leaned in and saw Chrysalis and Tirek, but that was it. "Cozy Glow has escaped from stone."

Starlight and Trixie simultaneously swallowed hard and shrunk down.

"I've taken steps to ensure the other two are still locked away," continued Twilight. "I trust that you'll keep all of this under your hats, of course. We don't want to cause a panic."

Starlight nodded. "But how are we supposed to find out where she is if we're not supposed to ask about her?"

Twilight shook her head. "You two don't need to worry about that. If you see her, let me know immediately, of course, but for now, I just wanted to keep you in the loop."

"We appreciate it, Twilight," bowed Trixie. "Please, if there's anything else you need from us, do not hesitate to ask. We may be deep into a personal study in friendship, but what kind of friends would we be if we didn't help you out in this trying time?"

"Oh, trust me," smiled Twilight. "As soon as I come up with something I need your help with, I'll let you know right away. I'm through with thinking I can tackle things on my own." She leaned back and sipped at the tea Starlight had poured for her, then scrunched up her face.

"Something wrong?" asked Starlight. "It turned cold while waiting, didn't it?"

"No, the tea's fine." A smile crept across Twilight's face. "I suddenly had an idea, and I needed to make sure it was a good one in my head before saying it out loud." She looked right into Starlight's eyes. "I have just come up with a way you can help."