“You requested my presence, your Highness?”

“Indeed, give me a moment,” said Celestia from her throne.

Spearhead stood at ease, waiting for the beloved ruler of Equestria to finish her letter. Though it wasn’t the first time he’d seen her dealing with government business, Celestia seemed worried — and not the kind of worry he was used to see on her face. Quill and parchment hung in her magical grasp, unmoving, whilst Celestia fidgeted. Spearhead knew what that meant: the letter she was trying to write was intended for Miss Twilight Sparkle.

“No, that won’t do,” she said after a moment, crossing out something with the quill.

“Your Highness?” asked Spearhead in an attempt to break her from her visible anxiety.

He was pretty sure that half of Canterlot’s nobility would have demanded his resignation for having dared interrupt the Goddess. These snobs didn’t know her like he did, though. Spearhead was proud to belong to a small circle of guards who spent countless hours with the princess and, therefore, truly knew who the real Celestia was, whilst the nobility only saw her during official events. Fortunately for his position, he and Celestia were the only ones in the room.

“Lieutenant Spearhead, I need your help.” Okay, that was something new. “The time has come for my student to spread her wings. I must send her away to Ponyville for two very important tasks, but I don’t want her to think I’m leaving her. I need to find the best way to tell her.”

“By sending her a letter, huh?” More than his resignation, the nobility would have wanted his [i]head[/i] for that comment.

“Touché, but I have my reasons. She isn’t ready to hear it bluntly from me and, well, I’m not really ready to tell her too.”

“And thus, you chose an indirect path.” Celestia gave him a disapproving look, but remained silent. “Have you thought about making it into some kind of game?”

“I have, but she isn’t a filly anymore.”

“I see…  Why not using her sense of responsibility, then? From what my friend Shining Armor told me about his sister, she takes great pride in performing her duties. I’m sure you can trust Miss Sparkle to do more than what you asked her.”

Celestia stayed quiet for a moment, a thoughtful look on her face.

“Right,” she said at last, with a weak smile. “Even if it sometimes tends to drive her crazy, she would never turn her back on a task. Thank you very much, Spearhead.”

“Anytime, your Highness.”

[center]*****[/center]

The following day, whilst on patrol, Spearhead heard laughter from the throne room. Intrigued, he entered to find Celestia in a position rather unsuited for a divine ruler. She was slouched on her throne, chuckling from something only known to her.

“Princess?” he asked.

“Spearhead!” she exclaimed. She jumped from her throne and ran to him, grabbing him in a hug and spinning in place. “Spearhead, that’s wonderful! You were right all along.”

“Hmm… you’re welcome?” he managed to say as he was crushed between her forelegs.

“She has even exceeded my expectations!” Celestia added jumps to their hectic round dance.

“Your Highness... please, put me down. I’m... starting to get dizzy.”

She released him. “I forgot you were a wimp,” she jested, laying a wing on his back.

“I’m an artist,” he replied, raising his head in a parody of these aristocrats he despised so much. “A very sensitive heart; not a thousands years old lady with a heart of ice.” She only chuckled in response. “So, from your behaviour I’m guessing,  that everything turned out alright?”

“Better than alright! Twilight has friends now, and they even managed to bring me back my sister!”

“You… had a [i]sister[/i]?”

“Haven’t I talked about her before? Silly me!” Celestia giggled. “Follow me, I’ll introduce you. She’s an artist too, so I’m expecting you to both get along. Remember she has missed one thousand year of arts, so don’t be surprised if she seems a little out of date.”

“You’re telling me she’s as old as you?”

“Pretty much.”

“Great, now I have [i]another[/i] crazy old lady to handle,” Spearhead groaned. “Can we talk about a raise after that?”