Prologue: Life in Technicolor
Life in Technicolor
Twilight lay next to Caramel, basking in his presence. He had been a great source of relief to her ever since her coronation one year prior. Being a princess had taken a great toll on her, both body and mind. Without Caramel, Twilight would have been lost a long time ago.
The two looked out over Canterlot from their place atop Violet Hill, Twilight's quiet place where she could escape from her job of being princess when it began to wear on her too much. Violet Hill was just as much a part of Twilight as Spike or Caramel. She had spent so much time there that the green grass and the tall trees felt like a second home to her. The place had even been named after her -violet for the color of her coat- because of her excessive use.
Canterlot looked sad and empty from where Twilight lay. Of course, the mountain-city was neither sad, nor empty. It was anything but empty. In fact, it was more crowded than ever. Within the past couple of months, there had been a large spike in the city's population. No pony was sure why it was happening, and none cared. They just marched on, going about their daily business.
Sad was not the best way to describe the city either, even though it was starting to degrade. Ever since Celestia and Luna had flown east to help the Griffons in their great war, the city had been slipping. Canterlot's economic situation had been slowly starting to slide, and eventually almost one in four ponies was without a job. Many of Canterlot's citizens blamed Twilight for their problems. She wasn't sure why they blamed her, but she didn't mind. She was the leader after all.
Caramel reached his foreleg around Twilight and pulled her close. She accepted the gesture graciously. The two hadn't been getting along for some time, and Twilight was glad to see Caramel was beginning to forgive her for spending so much time working. They weren't technically married -being royalty, Twilight could only marry a prince- but Celestia, and much of Canterlot, accepted their partnership. According the Celestia, being with a "common-pony" greatly helped Twilight's standing among the people, but that wasn't why she loved Caramel; she loved Caramel because he was the greatest pony she knew.
Twilight shifted her gaze to the south end of the city, where the poorest of the citizens lived. As uneasy as the thought made her, Twilight began to think about revolutions. She knew that there were probably many ponies living there who wanted to overthrow her. The thought scared Twilight. Not because she was afraid of stepping down, but because of what would become of Equestria.
Twilight moved even closer to Caramel and placed his wing around him. She turned and faced him, staring at his light brown mane.
"Caramel?" Twilight asked quietly.
"Yeah?"
"Do you think everything is going to turn out okay?" Twilight knew it was a strange question, and there was no good way to answer it. He could lie and say yes, or he could say no and they could sit in silence again.
"Yes. I think everything is going to be okay." Caramel said. There was a distinct tone of seriousness in his voice, something that Twilight was beginning to hear with increasing frequency.
Great, Twilight thought bitterly, he chose to lie. Lying wasn't something Caramel did often, but he did alter the truth sometimes to make somepony feel better. Twilight normally liked it, unless he was trying to make her feel better.
Twilight returned her view to the city. "Do you really think so Caramel?"
He nodded. "Yes, Twilight. I know that I may lie to make others feel better -and I know that you were just thinking that too- but I truly believe everything will be okay. Whether or not everything will end well for us, that's a different question. For example," he said, removing his foreleg from around Twilight. He stood and stretched as he continued, "many revolutionaries would be happy to see us dead. But let's face it, that really isn't all that great for us."
"Oh, it isn't?" Twilight said playfully as she rose from her place on the grass. A smile came to her face as she continued her joking. "You mean we don't want the revolutionaries to kill us? I would say I've been doing something wrong then."
Caramel smiled, which warmed Twilight's heart. She loved it when he smiled. "Well," he said lightheartedly, "I personally prefer the way where we end up with the happy ending, which means everypony ends up with the happy ending."
Classic Caramel, she thought, always trying to make everypony happy. Twilight stared at the stallion. She could see that he was happy, even though the two lovers had had a very bad string of luck recently. Between all of their fights, all of the death threats, and the numerous signs of revolution, Twilight was surprised that Caramel still managed to find time to be happy.
Twilight smiled at Caramel. "I love you Caramel."
He returned her smile and hugged her. "I love you too Twilight."
They broke their embrace and Twilight began to walk towards the castle. She could almost feel her happiness slowly ebbing away as she left Violet Hill. It was as if the small hill was the only place in the whole world where she could be truly happy, just sitting in the sun with Caramel.
After a few minutes, they arrived at the castle. Twilight let out a sigh. She didn't want to return to the real world; she wanted to stay in her utopia of sunshine and love. The large wooden door that stood before her was all that separated sadness and happiness.
Caramel stood beside her. The sun was beginning to set, and the light was shining off of his brown mane. "Twilight, I know this is hard for you, but I know you can do it." She nodded. "You're Twilight Sparkle after all. You aren't some common earth pony like me. You're a princess after all." He moved in front of Twilight and opened the door for her. "Now, go in there and be great mon amour."
Twilight put on her best fake smile and walked through the door, reentering her world of pure sadness.
Author's Note
I find that the name of this chapter actually works. It's like all the colors of life, all the light colors and dark colors, and Twilight is living her life in technicolor. Happy accident with the chapter name.
Chapter One: Cemeteries of London
Cemeteries of London
Quick A/N: For those of you who don't like that I left the title title as "London" instead of "Canterlot," sorry, but I just couldn't put "Cemeteries of Canterlot."
Twilight stared into the tall, ornate mirror that towered high over her. She disliked her new appearance, even if it meant that she was able to walk among the people as if she were one of them. Something about her dark blue mane, done-up to look like Fluttershy's mane, and the pale blue coat that went with it made her uneasy. I may look like a commoner, she thought bitterly, but I certainly don't feel like one.
She pushed the depressing thoughts out of her head as she looked in adjacent mirror, at Caramel. Twilight had always been okay with the way Caramel looked, but she preferred his disguise much more. His normal tan coat gave way to a grey that shined in the light, and his brown mane was replaced a jet black mane that fell far down to his shoulders. As much as Twilight loved how the disguised Caramel looked, he wasn't her Caramel, and she couldn't look at him the same way that she looked at her Caramel.
Caramel noticed Twilight's stare and smiled at her. "So Twilight, how do I look?"
"Dashing, just like always," she replied with a wink.
He let out a short laugh. "Oh Twilight," he said playfully, "you're so bad at lying." Caramel began to walk towards the door at the far end of the room, motioning for Twilight to follow him. "Come on, we better get going. Your magic only lasts for six hours, and the sun is already setting. We don't have much time."
Eiffel stared at his map of Canterlot carefully. He knew the city like the back of his hoof, having lived there his entire life, but there were many things that he still needed to plan: meeting places, demonstration paths, sabotage points; the whole process was much harder than he thought.
He sank into a chair that sat next to his makeshift table and buried his face in his hooves. Of all the ponies the people could have picked, why did they choose me? he asked himself silently. I mean, I know it just kind of happened out of a need for a leader, but I'm no smarter than any other pony in the city. He took a short look around his small, one-room home. And I'm certainly not rich enough to fund a revolution.
A short knock suddenly came from the door, startling Eiffel. "Mr Eiffel, sir?"
Eiffel took a sigh of relief. It was only Firelock, a small ball-of-energy colt that had taken a liking to Eiffel. Even though he knew that revolutionary work was dangerous, Eiffel still kept the small tan-colored colt around. He made good company, and a good assistant.
"Come on in Fire," Eiffel replied cheerfully.
The colt opened the door even before Eiffel finished his sentence. He immediately rushed to Eiffel's chair and reached into the bag thrown over his shoulder, throwing a letter onto the table. "Mail for you, sir. It's from the Puff Family. They wouldn't let me read it, so I-"
Eiffel quickly grabbed the letter, stood up and began to read it.
"Dear Eiffel,
We are very glad to see that your efforts of revolution have not been in vain. You have amassed quite a following; gathering five-hundred ponies to a single cause is no easy feat. It is because of this, that our family has decided to join your cause, and help you push for revolution. We intend on helping anyway we can, be it money, or power.
We look forward to our future endeavors,
The Puff Family."
Eiffel threw the letter back onto the table with a smile. "Do you know what this means, Firelock?" he asked. The colt shook his head. "It means that we can do it: we can finally get a revolution started!"
Firelock grinned. "That's great news indeed, sir!"
"Yes, it is," Eiffel said as returned to his chair again. "Fire, I need you to gather everypony who has pledged loyalty to us. Tell them there will be a meeting tonight at the south gate to the city."
"Yes sir. Is there anything else I should tell everypony?"
Eiffel let out a sigh of relief. All the demands that the Puff family had made were met, and Eiffel could finally relax. "Just tell them," he said, returning his gaze to the table, "that we're ready to start."
Eiffel walked through the streets of Canterlot, taking in every single face he saw. Before the addition of the Puffs, he was always paranoid when walking through the streets, thinking somepony would betray him and attack. But now, with the recent increase of power and money, he was virtually unstoppable, even if Twilight Sparkle herself tried to apprehend him.
Many ponies waved at him as made his way to the south gate. The south side of the city was Eiffel's home away from home. It was where all of his friends lived, and where all of his closest allies worked to overthrow Twilight. He spent more than half of his time in the south side, and he loved every minute of it.
The southern gate towered high over the large crowd that had gathered at its base. The sight warmed Eiffel's heart; so many ponies all gathering for one single cause, something he had never seen before. A large small flashed across his face as he ran towards the crowd. His heart raced. Now's the time! he thought happily.
A small crate was sitting a the front of the crowd and Eiffel raced towards it, all the while yelling "Ponies of Canterlot, the time has finally come!" Every eye in the crowd turned to him. Slowly, a loud applause broke out. Eiffel jumped up onto the box and continued, his heart racing. "Yes, you should applaud, though not for me, but for yourselves!" An even louder roar came from the crowd, but Eiffel hushed it quickly, wishing to continue with his speech.
"Yes," he continued, "applaud for yourselves more than anything. Because none of this," he waved his hoof vaguely in the air, gesturing to the crowd, "would've happened without the commonpony.
"Now, for the real reason we have gathered here: the revolution. I have received word from some very rich ponies atop Canterlot's social ladder, and they have agreed to help our cause. Which now means that there will be food for the poor, clothing for the naked, and weapons for our army!" Another loud roar arose from the crowd, which was hanging onto every word. "That's right," Eiffel said eagerly, fueling the crowd, "we are building an army to march on Canterlot's castle, and the princess herself.
"Too long have we been forced to live in rat infested houses that barely qualify as living quarters, let alone a home fit for families. Too long have we stood idly by while our jobs have been moved out of our beloved Canterlot, leaving us in despair. Too long have we been forced into the hole that that damn 'princess' has pushed us into!"
Just as the previous two, another, bone-shaking roar came from the crowd. Eiffel fueled the cheering this time, shaking his hoof in the air and yelling lines such as "It was the princess!" and "Off with her head!" But he eventually let the crowd die down once more before continuing, yet again.
"So now I ask you," a more gentle and pleading tone entering his voice, "to join me in arms. Because soon, we march on Canterlot Castle itself, and I cannot do it alone!"
The crowd became livid for a fourth time as Eiffel jumped off of his improved podium. He was met with a number of pats on the back and many ponies pledging their allegiance to him for life on the spot.
As he walked through the crowd, Eiffel couldn't help thinking of where he was just a year ago: sitting comfortably in his cozy Canterlot apartment, looking forward to his next day at his comfortable job where he would make many more bits than he would ever need in his entire life. He also couldn't help thinking of the financial collapse that had followed Twilight's coronation as princess, which had made him lose everything he had owned. His entire life, gone in just one week. House, job, lifestyle, bits; all had vacated his life in just a few short days once the financial collapse had hit Canterlot. He would have left, but he had no where to go, having no bits to live anywhere.
He remembered the bitter hatred that formed for the princess, and the dark thoughts of revolution that started to come into his mind, just a year ago.
And then, there he stood: watching the revolution literally unfold before his very eyes.
Eiffel had never had a more perfect day in his entire life.
Twilight stood in shock among the jeering and shouting crowd. She looked to her right, hoping for a look of comfort and compassion from her gray-bodied-black-maned pony she knew as her disguised love Caramel, but only saw a look of shock and fear. For once in her short career as a princess, Caramel was no help at all. She was alone.
Twilight began to sway on the spot. The thoughts that she had running through her mind were beginning to make her dizzy. She couldn't process it all at once: the utter hatred of the people, the looming revolution, and Caramel being of no help. Twilight felt as if she was about to be sick, and motioned to Caramel that they had to go.
"Hey, where you two goin'?" asked a very shabby looking earth pony as he saw Twilight and Caramel turn from the crowd and begin to walk away.
"Oh, she's not feeling well," Caramel said quickly. "She ate some bad bread earlier today, I think."
"Oh..." said the stallion, clearly with disappointment in his voice. "Well...Eiffel said he was going to come thank each pony individually for coming out tonight, and for pledging support for him. Do you want me to go get him for you two right now, since you're leaving?"
But it clearly wasn't a question, because the stallion had already turned and was rushing to the front of the pack.
Twilight shot a panicked and confused look at Caramel, who only offered an equally confused, though less panicked, look. If there was one thing that comforted Twilight, it was that Caramel was so calm under pressure, unlike herself.
The shabby stallion returned with Eiffel, who's dark red coat gleamed in the fire light of the city's torch-lined streets. Twilight and Caramel offered what they hopped didn't appear to be fake smiles, and greeted the unicorn.
"Hello, Mr. Eiffel," Twilight said nervously. She hadn't been this nervous since she first tried out for Celestia's private magic school.
"Hello to you too, Miss," Eiffel replied kindly. There was a certain softness in his eyes that made Twilight feel as though she could trust him. "And please," he continued with a small smile, "you don't need to call me 'Mister.'"
"You have quite the plan here, Eiffel," Caramel said. Twilight shot him a look that said "What are you doing?! but he continued anyway, though much more boldly. "However, have you ever considered political action before resorting straight to violence."
"Yes, I have," Eiffel replied darkly, "but I simply cannot get into that damned castle to talk to the princess."
"Well, do we have a treat for you then," Caramel said with a smile. "We happen to work up at the castle,as servants, and I think we can get you into the throne room itself for a private meeting with Twilight Sparkle."
Twilight did her best to hide the shocked look she knew had appeared on her face. What, she thought coldly, in the hell is he thinking?
Eiffel's face brightened at this proposal. "Oh I would love that so much! Can you really get me in?" He looked between Twilight and Caramel, hoping for an answer.
Twilight swallowed hard and nodded her head slowly. "Just...um....be at the gates early tomorrow afternoon....four o'clock..."
Eiffel beamed at the couple, elated beyond compare. "Thanks so much, how can I ever repay you?" He thanked Twilight and Caramel at least a dozen more times before heading back into the large mass of people to say his goodbyes and thanks.
Twilight and Caramel walked back to the castle in silence. She was so deep in thought that she didn't even notice when the spell to disguise her and Caramel wore off.
She had no idea what she had gotten herself into.
Author's Note
So sorry about making you guys wait so long for this second chapter (though I'm sure most of you have forgotten by now honestly). I'll be much better about updating in the future.
