Canterlot What Shines and Sparkles in the Distance (Sparkle Family Thread)

[SteelEagle]

Oh geez, what a question that was! Twilight's mind almost broke as she tried to remember every book she was reading. An easier question would be what wasn't she reading. A smile grew on her face as an insane spectator might have had happen at the sight of a resource filled valley of dreams.

“Oh! "Administrative Logistical Concern Reports of the Northern REN", "Formations of Antiquity", "Practical Applications of Macroenomic Policy in a Arcane-Utopian State Economy", "Collected Taxation Reports in the Modern Era", "Tax Codes Revisited Volume IV", "Aural Dispersions in the Inflection State of Magical Expulsion", "Advanced Tactica in the Arts of Magical Defense", "Disposition of the Aether in Relation to Aura", "End of an Aura: Magic Loss in Unicorns and the Impotence of Treatments", "Rollcheck's Theorem and other Theoretical Explanations for Magic Death", "The Crowning of Hope: The Rise of Equestrian Royalty"-” Twilight rattled off before the ball, hit by her big brother, slammed into her head and fell to the ground. Her smile didn't dim as she brought it back up with her telekenisis and absent mindedly backhoofed the ball back over in her own eager serve. She hit it with a great deal of force, smacking Crescent- who himself was going in for a high hoof- in the chest. The ball bounced back up for Shining to take advantage, should he desire it.

Twilight continued unabated.

“Ancient Treaties and Customs of the Maretonian Tribal Ponies", "The Saddle Arabian Transcripts", "Report on the Manners and Customs of the Griffon", "Royal Etiquette Volumes One through Six", "The Aspects of Many-Layered Love According to the Principles of Moot's Philosophy of the Mind Revisted: How Love Works in the Aetheral Plane's Physical Manifestation of Chemical Balances of the Mind and Heart", “Equestrian Wedding Do's and Dont's: Traditions from Seaddle to Fillydelphia and Beyond", "How To Express Yourself to the Mare You Love", "The Night Sky's Mysteries Explained", "Archao-Tech of the Caribou", "Education Roundup Volume IV", "Relateable Lessons for Teaching", "Daring Do and the Saddle of Seaddle", "Beating Hearts and Hooves", and the fictional account of the Saddle Arabian Transcripts"!” Twilight ended, more than excited by at least three quarters of that list.

[Rosewind]

Velvet cracked a smile, her eyes sparkling as she listened intently to her daughter. She dropped in now and then with a light "Oh yes, that is a good one!" and "Hmm, I'll need to add that one to my book list." She had a "book list" comprised of a large pile of books she kept stacked neatly next to her night stand. More than once she had woken up to use the bathroom and tripped over it, causing a large stir that 1. Woke up her husband. and 2. Woke up the wiggle plants downstairs that -- in addition to harassing Velvet or saving her from balls of yarn (depending on circumstance) -- caused them to rustle in alertness. They made excellent middle-of-the-night guard plants. This was altogether quite creepy and disturbing, which more or less would take Velvet from her bladder-filled half sleep. She would spend the rest of the night just getting back to sleep before she would be required to wake for her morning yoga while Cressy prepared breakfast.

The rest of the day she would be tired and somewhat grumpy, but she would at least get a good nights' rest until the next book topple. So was the cycle of the Sparkle hour of the wolf.

She lifted one of her ears as a crack of thunder sounded in the distance. The soft smell of ionized air wafted over the meadow, cold and damp. This followed by a few raindrops, followed by several thousand. Ugh, rain. It made her neatly-prim mane sopping wet. Even though her bangs and tail were somewhat short by pony standards, wetness was just wet. And cold. It would also make her look like hell, and at her age, hell was not an option. She saw her son was serving, but alas, this would not do. "Honey pumpkin, I think we should put our game on hold. Do we even know what the score is anymore?" She flattened her ears as more thunder sounded, her mouth twisting into a pert frown. "I do believe it's raining on our parade. Cressy darling, did we bring the tent? Or...something tentish?"

[Hippo]

Shining set up to serve, but before he could smack the ball into play, mother interrupted just as lightning struck above them. Shining could hold the barrier up fine, but with him being distracted between the ball game and family conversation, the lightning penetrated and broke away his shield. He could easily attempt to put it up again, but yielded to his mother's pending advice. "I guess we could end it here. Can we take the picnic inside maybe? All the halls in the castle are likely to be full of ponies getting out of the rain, but I'm sure we can find a way to get into one of the royal rooms where only the prestigious of ponies can get us into." Shining of course, was saying this as a question at Twilight.

​

[SteelEagle]

Velv wanted to forfeit? Well, that means the girls lose. Maybe they wouldn't see it that way, but it was truth. All over a little rain and thunder? Heh. Well, facts were facts and he would only bring it up to Velvet once or twice. It was weird to win. His scorecard didn't at all register many victories in conflict with his lovely wife. Even victories became defeats. He usually lost even when he won that way and started to wonder why the couch became his greatest friend in all of the world. But here he just won without qualm or circumstance as far as he was concerned. Good for him. Good for stallions everywhere.

“Well, for the record, the stallion Sparkles were winning when the mares forfeit. Son, good job. Relish this because every husband gets only a smattering of victories in his life,” Crescent said with a smile and a wink as he started to look around for the nearest shelter. They were a bit aways from shelter but a little bit of wetness didn't harm a pony any.

Twi realized the same factors but didn't see the need to settle when there was so much more she could do for her family. Never let a family day get ruined by poor weather- that was in “Family Day 101 by Giggling Whispers” and it was a good piece of advice. She knew more than enough spells for a like occasion and wasn't afraid to use them. While shield spells belonged to her brother, the simple transmutation of aether would allow her to create a temporary shelter. It may be a bit dark, but it'd work. Her horn started to glow and it shot out around the family, varying in subtle shades of color until te right one was found and the very air around them started to take on the form of solid, if semi-transparent, earth.

“Oh don't worry Shining. If you can't keep it up-” Twilight began, momentarily engrossed and giddy with the idea of showing off a bit. It was fun to show off. Of course Shining came in with an even better idea. What place would suit them? The castle wasn't too far. Hmmm...third floor, east wing, tower two. Nice little place for a nice family. “-or we can do that. I can just teleport all of us! On the count of five, okay? One...two...three...four...FIVE!”

[Rosewind]

Yes yes, of course the stallions "won." The mare rolled her eyes, shooting a baleful gaze at her husband. Technicalities didn't count. They would have won if it wasn't for the storm, and the well-being of her family was more important. She chalked that up as a win. Her maternal pride was quickly interrupted by the impromptu teleportation spell. She barely managed a "Honey, wait a se..." before her vision was clouded, she heard a sharp snap, followed by purple mist and a hazy pop. Bright torch sconces lit the hallowed halls of Canterlot Castle; in the distance, heavy pattering and cracks of thunder, loud and sharp. She found herself surrounded by her family, slightly soaked, near the Castle Library. Of course the library. The reminder of the storm outside made her concede her daughter had Done The Right Thing. The girls of the family always did.

She groomed her wet-slick mane with a free hoof, shaking water out of her coat. "I'm very impressed, sweetie! Cressy, remember when Twili was first learning teleportation magic?" She gave a toothy wince, recalling a memory that she probably should have let be...

[Hippo]

Shining hadn't expected Twilight to show off her teleportation spell off so quickly. In the five seconds she counted down, Shining took notice at the picnic basket that was to the side, getting rained on. He still hadn't actually finished his sandwich, and figured he should probably eat it now before it was too wet to eat. He hurried to the picnic basket, levitated it slightly and started looking for the sandwich. But before he could grab it, he was teleported, the basket left behind, falling back to the ground out of Shining's telekenisis.

When shining arrived at the library, he shook some of the wetness off himself carefully. The halls were mostly quite, the pitter-patter of rain hitting the roof and windows echoing all throughout the open corridors of the palace. The room they teleported to seemed to be a study room of sorts attached to the deep library it was adjacent to. Shining remembers this place, but he didn't walk here very often to do his duty. Instead he sent his less competent guards here to survey the area for mischief, having not once ever having an issue.

When mother mentioned memories of the past, it seemed like the conversation was heading towards a family meeting of reminiscence. Shining would invite that himself. He spoke before father could respond. "I remember. I remember Twilight teleporting her jello into my mane." He gave a cheeky smile at Twilight, the sister that pestered him so often before. But he wouldn't change a thing about it.

​
 

[SteelEagle]

The teleportation spell went off without a hitch, not that Twilight should have expected otherwise at this stage. She was the world's first and foremost expert on teleportation and the aetheral inflection that came with the aural dispersion related to the transportation and arrangement of the aether bubble that they used to travel. Teleportation was not necessarily a pony vanishing and appearing in another place. It was more like a wormhole through the aether that they traveled safely in a ball, appearing wherever the tunnel ended. Depending on the power of the unicorn using the spell one could teleport a few inches away or a few miles. Some were capable of slightly faster travel- measured in fractions of a nanosecond which actually had an impact on immediate post teleportation health- and some of slightly longer distance, but they were utterly devoted to the craft. Nopony did it as nonchalantly as Twilight and she was at the very tip of the spear in both other categories.

 

This was all just a fancy way of explaining why she was so good and why teleporting through aetheral barriers built into the castles were still difficult, even for her. And that helped explain why her father appeared a few feet above the rest, falling to the ground with a thud as they phased back in. Twilight laughed nervously as she watched him stagger back up. “Sorry dad. The barriers of the castle cut into any outside spell. You're not hurt, are you?” She asked sympathetically as Crescent stood back up, shaking his back legs to get the wibbly wobblies out. “I'm fine, sweetie. This is just like when you went ahead and teleported jello in your brother's mane! Hah, and remember what Shining did with the jello after we painstakingly pulled it out of his mane?” Crescent directed his question at Velvet, holding back a laugh at the memory. Meanwhile, two servants approached Twilight with towels and started drying her off, much to Twilight's embarassment.

[Rosewind]

Thunder crackled again. Velvet's mane stood up slightly. She inched into her husband's damp side, grinning awkwardly. She wasn't afraid of thunder per se, but she was of loud noises. Being part of a heavily magical family, loud noises meant run, start writing an apology letter, start counting body parts, or all three. Preferably not at once. Velvet had an amazing long-term memory, especially with incidents related to her children. "Why yessss, I do remember what Shiny did with that jelly!" she crooned playfully, winking in his direction. "I actually have a picture of it in my scrap book! It was quite adorable when he stuffed it into his...oh, excuse me!" Velvet raised a damp hoof to the castle servants. "You wouldn't happen to have an extra towel for uh, a Mother of Royalty and her husband would you?"

 

Velvet was part of a humble magical family, but she was also an insatiable opportunist. She turned her attention back to her family "Since the picnic is suspended for the moment, why not show your Father and I around the Castle? We haven't really been here for a while. Especially since that incident with the fire. And the cake." She pressed her hoof to her mouth, politely coughing.

[Hippo]

Shining Armor turned a quick shade of red at his mother's comment. He always underestimated the level on which she could embarrass him. Although, it was a lot easier to endure, considering his little princess sister was a few ponylengths away getting a drying service from the ponies who seemed to follow her from a distance. They waited all day for this moment, and now they could perform, rubbing several towels on Twilight in order for her pelt to be comfortable dry. Shining was relieved to share some embarrassment, but more impressed at Twilight's center of service. "Wow, I never got any treatment like that while I was here. Princess Celestia really set that up for you?" Shining took a spare towel on the ground and dried himself a bit more as well, although it was nothing close to the quasi-massage his sister was getting.

"Hey, yeah, Twilight. Mom and Dad aren't really familiar with this place since things changed recently. You should show them all the changes and additions the Twin Sisters made in the castle so that there could be space for you. The barracks and the training halls for the guard haven't really changed much, and any changes that happened after Cadance and I moved to the Crystal Empire I don't really know about."

Since this thread started before season 5, we should just assume Twilight's castle hasn't appeared yet for the purpose of this tour.

​
 

[SteelEagle]

 

Twilight's embarrassment continued for some time as the aides went to work on her, scrubbing what seemed to be every little molecule off moisture off of her as gently but, if needs be, harshly as required. Could a pony ask for better aides, honestly? Not that Twilight could imagine. They also helped her find research notes and did all manner of small errand for her. Juggling what she gave them and what she gave Spike had proven to be some trouble as Spike was well known for his tendency to take any delegation of duties outside of his own a slap in the proverbial face. In any case, the pair were eager to serve and capable of doing any job well and fast, probably why they both found themselves finished in relatively short order. Luckily for them that their chance to serve did not end there, as Velvet asked for their aid. They technically needed Twilight's approval to render such aid but she couldn't imagine a situation where she would say no to her mom and the pair knew it.

They went about drying off Velvet in a flash, levitating a new pair of towels over for the job. “Mom, this is Golden Glimmer and Happy Folklore. They are wonderful aides! Golden here came recommended from Stalliongrad's Academy of the Educational Arts and Happy here is a published academic from Seaddle and Prance. They've been a wonderful boon to my work here! They weren't hoofpicked by Celestia but rather myself. I always need new research assistants. Being this helpful was more...their idea,” Twilight mellowed her voice near the end, still unsure as to why as she went about flapping her wings in place to ease their dampness. Then the prospect of a nice tour came up, and Twilight found it rather agreeable. She had spent more time in this castle than any other build as she grew up and knew it, as well as the newest additions to it, like the back of her hoof. She perked up at that possibility. “Oh, that sounds nice! Sure, I'd be glad to give you a tour. Golden, Happy, get something to eat and meet me in the study in three hours, fourteen minutes, and seven- no, five- seconds. We'll discuss Celestial Bodies then!” She relayed with great mirth, both aides bowing.

“Da, Your Majesty,” Golden said before trotting off, her full and firm body bounding down the hallway.
“Oui, Your Majesty,” Happy replied before gliding gracefully out of view.
“I think I read something Folklore wrote. She does a great job with body discussion. Great theories on intermingling movement and growth spurts of Celestial bodies. Good pick, Twilight,” Crescent added absentmindedly. Twi coughed to clear her throat. “Thanks, dad. I think you'll find the recent changes to the Guard station very intriguing. I actually wanted your input on how to best structure it to aid in the deployment of Guards in case of a large scale attack. Also that hidden room...anyway. I guess we'll begin with the library...”

[Rosewind]

Velvet perked up. A tour of the Castle? She grinned awkwardly, glad that the Guards didn't remember her last foray there with Cressy. As the Sparkles were a highly magical family, they tended to attract trouble like, well, magic. She bobbed a small curtsy to Golden and Happy. "A pleasure! I'm glad my little girl has such talented and helpful ponies under her watchful and wise tutelage. If we have time I must show you her foal photos!" She winked at her husband, giving her tail a swish to dispel the remaining dampness. As she stepped forward, she just had to drink in the grandeur of the Castle proper. Her every hoofstep resounded with a powerful echo that bounced off golden sconces, shiny marble flooring, and fancy filigree the likes of which she could only hope to weave into her hobby garments.

 

"I happen to be a fan of celestial bodies," Velvet replied. "My husband and I like to watch the stars often. Every night. Sometimes until dawn. Sometimes after dawn, too, if he has any energy left."

 

Velvet trotted after the group, her chin held a little higher than usually, quite proud of her children for being so royal. "Sooooo, the castle is great and all, but I was wondering if we could see, ooooh, I don't know...Celestia's room? I'm sure you two have the sway to at least let us have a peek inside, right?! I bet her curtains are something to behold!" The mother mare grinned widely at her children, hopeful.

[Hippo]

Shining found it odd that the term 'celestial bodies' was coming up more and more as the family started walking through the echoey chambers of the castle.  And he rolled his eyes at dad becoming so infatuated with the history and development of science and astronomy, something he definitely had passed on to his daughter.  But what did that mean?  Was he himself a closer reflection of his mother?  He turned and looked to her, her smile staring right back at him.  She was a great mother, always looking out for them, but at the same time sometimes intrusive and a little bit embarrassing at times.  Her curiosity of Celestia's room was a little interesting, if not a bit nosy.  "Um, maybe.  I don't think I've even seen Celestia's body before.  I MEAN ROOM.  Her room is what I meant."  Shining facehoofed.  He was part of this family, whether he liked it or not.  And he would be dishonest to say that he didn't like it for the most part.

​
 

[SteelEagle]

 

Twilight listened to the request with a bit of trepidation. She could do so- almost assuredly, actually. Once she had moved into the castle to learn from Celestia herself, Celestia's private quarters often hosted the little filly. She had tea parties with a Princess- every little filly's dream became just a standard fact of her life. Now as a Princess it was really a matter of just going there, the guards bowing their heads in reverence. But it always felt like an invasion of Celestia's privacy when she did so and the Princess of the Sun wasn't there. She didn't really want to. Luckily, her brother's comment was distracting enough for Twilight to think about a place her mother might enjoy just as she laughed and shot her brother a faux disappointed look.

 

It was a silly thing to say. He had seen her body many times. “Shining, what would Cadance say if she was here? Haha. Anyway- Celestia isn't here now, mom. I wouldn't feel right intruding on her personal space that way, especially knowing how you are with fabric. But if you'd like, I can take you to the royal kitchens- I think know is when they are baking tonight's deserts!” Twilight said excitedly, pleased to enjoy such a day with her family. Her father agreed, though he was lost in thought. Celestia's body was likely very firm and strong, not to mention she had such large...wings. Not that- anyway. So. Yes. “Yes, dear. All night. Into the dawn. Celestial bodies!”

 

[Rosewind]

Velvet's ears drooped down. She let out a disappointed sigh, her aqua-hued eyes welling up with dampness. At least she tried. "Hmph! I...have to agree. I wouldn't want just anyone trouncing into my room. I'd have to tidy up a bit first! Maybe put on some tea, maybe some light jazz." She nuzzled the side of her daughter's cheek. "But you must have us over to see the Princess once she is available!"

 

The mother mare winked at her son as she caught his gaze. She was proud of him in every possible way. She was also sure he had inherited the best of her genes. What was the saying? Sons frequently take on the best qualities of their mothers. She broke away from her prideful reverie at Twilight's next suggestion...the kitchens? Velvet choked out an awkward laugh. Her and cooking? Hoo. Yeah. She certainly liked to dine out with her husband now and then, but her culinary skills made a blind wombat playing darts in an orphanage-funding glass shop look like cake. She couldn't boil water. She couldn't chop salad. She certainly couldn't bake without burning down most of the Canterlot Commons. Bringing Velvet into a kitchen with her natural curiosity was a spellbindingly bad idea.

 

Velvet responded the best way she knew how to.

 

"Great sweetie, let's go there! I might be able to give the staff down there a few tips! You never know what you might pick up from an author, regardless of your vocation, you know!" She nodded resolutely, her trot picking up pace as the pony menagerie journeyed deeper into Canterlot Castle..

[Hippo]

As Shining followed his family through the Castle, Shining's thoughts started to reminisce on the times he had while serving in Canterlot in the guard. The Castle became a second home to him, even though he never officially resided here. And it made him remember some of the ponies that used to work here. "Hey Twily, you remember Hash Slinger, the old chef when you were here studying under Celestia? That old guy always made the best eggplant sandwiches. And he was funny too. It didn't matter if sometimes the food was questionable, he always put a smile on my face, even when I was a stiff green recruit. And he was always complaining about how they don't pay him enough for this, haha. Hahhh... Oh! And that one mare that did the party planning for the palace, like the state dinners and that sort of thing? What was her name again?"

​
 

[SteelEagle]

 

 Twilight was overjoyed that her mother took to the kitchen idea well. She remembered so much of her mother's cooking and remembered that it was always so good! Rarely had somepony been able to hit the right stomach notes and soothe the raging hunger of a little filly quite so well. Other ponies just didn't have the refined tastes and experience to judge mother's cooking. It was an important step to understanding a family and how they worked if you could manage to understand their cooking...and if you didn't understand why her cooking was the best, then maybe you just didn't need to know Velvet, as far as Twilight was concerned. Maybe a little bit of familial know how could ramp up the quality of the kitchen and make Twilight a little more comfortable. That was never a bad idea, was it?

“Oh, I'm sure they'll be more than happy to get some tips and tricks from somepony like you,” Twilight said without the barest hint of sarcasm as her brother started to remind her of the old cook, which brought a smile to Twilight's face swiftly and easily. “Oh, he made the best hashbrowns ever! Not sure I agree about the eggplant sandwiches, but the one time I tried them after you told me to I was sick and maybe that colored my perception. He retired not too long ago. The head chef now is one of his brightest students though, so it is more or less the same. Well, maybe not for me. The Royalty have special ingredients used for their meals. I can't wait for all of you to get a taste!” She leapt with delight, almost kicking her father in the face. He ducked into his wife, playing it off like the suave stallion he is, giving her a hearty half-hug as they trotted down the castle hallways.

"And...hmm, I can't remember what her name is. The newer one is Lemon Hearts."

[Rosewind]

Velvet stopped at a stout oaken door, emblazoned with a filigreed spoon and fork. This was either the fanciest storage closet for silverware known, or the Canterlot castle kitchens.

 

She gently pushed open the door. The door, of course, smacked into a buspony carrying a heaping stack of dishes from lunch clean up. Several of these flew into an area containing massive kettles of vegetable soup. These, of course, were knocked off balance and promptly flooded the kitchens with boiling hot soup, causing every worker to flee in myriad directions, in a symphony of different reactions, resounding with a cacophony of disbelief mixed with disgust and despair. This sudden commotion caused several pans with forgotten contents to burst into flame. Somewhere in the Castle, a foal cried.

 

"Whoops! I think we caught them at a bad time. Eeheh..."

[Hippo]

Shining winced with every slip sound and crash coming from the kitchen, the moment mother attempted to open the door. The calamity coming from there struck Shining with the opinion to do something else. "You know, actually, I'm kind of tired of food for the moment anyway. I'm still full from that great lunch Mom provided. Let's go check out the residential hall. Twilight, you can show us that right?" Shining almost certainly had access too, but he wasn't often stationed in that part of the castle. Shining looked up at the cieling, admiring the structure, and completely ignored the fact that he currently lives in a giant crystal palace. "Sure is a thing of beauty, isn't it?"

​
 

[SteelEagle]

 

When things went south, they tended to go south quickly. With one flick of the door, Velvet had managed to cause unbridled and unrestrained chaos that threatened to destroy the kitchen. Perhaps that was a little too dramatic. No doubt it would survive and Twilight was certain that this time tomorrow, it wouldn't be brought up. But this specific version of the culinary apocalypse did manage to sink Twilight's appetite, albeit briefly. Shining was right. They could do something else. But first she had to do something to help the staff- while they were capable of doing it themselves and they were paid well to do, this was on guests she had invited in. She levitated pots and pans off of disorganized portions of the counter and the floor, taking away at least some of the clutter as she put them back were she thought she had seen them come from.

And if not- well, small improvements counted for something, did they not? “Yes. Full. Residential hall, we'll head there. Now,” She said, trotting away with some speed as the door closed.
“Ya know, that reminds me of the first....every year of our marriage, oddly enough,” Crescent said to nopony in particular, though if Velvet wanted to take notice of it she could. He laughed, “so Twilight, tell me, the residential hall- I hear that outside of the balconies in the royal rooms, they have the best view of the night sky in the castle. Is this true or was somepony pulling my tail?”