Star Skies was furious. The trip to the Crystal Empire had been a disaster, he not only hadn't had the opportunity to be with Luster Dawn as he would have liked, but had also attracted Princess Flurry Heart's aversion.
As if that weren't enough, Flurry Heart had also warned the teachers of the inappropriate behavior he had had, and upon returning they had subjected him to an exhausting interrogation and he hadn't been able to back down.
"I fell in love with Luster Dawn and was pushy with her." he had said, with downcast eyes.
"Princess Flurry Heart said she saw Luster crying at the foot of her bed. I don't know what exactly happened between you two, but it's sad to see that our school's lessons haven't taken root in you. As punishment, you will accompany me during my class hours and explain why it is wrong to force your will on others." Sweetie Belle had said.
A nightmare week followed, where he had to answer the other students' embarrassing questions about why he had joined Professor Belle, for example. He was no longer in class with Luster, he had been moved and only saw her during Sweetie's teaching hours, and she carefully avoided looking at him or participating in asking questions.
But Star Skies hadn't learned anything, no. His resentment towards the professors, towards Luster, towards Flurry had grown out of all proportion. He felt he was the victim of an abuse, and a malicious idea started in his mind.
On the high hills surrounding Hope Hollow, his birthplace, lived a mighty tribe of wild boars. The chief of the tribe was a young warrior named Murdock.
He knew him by fame, he was an ambitious boar who was not satisfied with ruling his tribe in an old-fashioned way, as his father and grandfather had done before him. Murdock wanted to expand, to be heard around the world.
And Star Skies had every intention of helping him.
He met him one evening in mid-October, during a weekend of family reunion, with the mist descending towards the plains and the three-quarter Moon shining high in the sky.
Murdock was twenty-eight, brown with darker undertones on his ears, muzzle, and paws. He had a turquoise mohawk, and a tuft of the same color at the end of the tail. His goatee fell short and tied with a ribbon.
His eyes were golden and solemn.
"You are late." he immediately pointed out, accompanied by his faithful guards.
"I had to make up an excuse with my family."
"Come to the point." the swine pressed him.
"I met Princess Flurry Heart in person. Beautiful girl, a real dream for the eyes. Apparently she is looking for an ideal match. You could be that match, with your strength and your ambition."
A flash of interest lit up in Murdock's eyes.
"Say more."
"It's not yet time to act. The right occasion is the Hearth's Warming, which will fall in two months. During that event you will have to go to the Crystal Empire and ask for the hoof of the beautiful princess. It will cause a sensation and she won't be able to refuse, or she'll ruin her image as a sovereign open to dialogue and interspecies exchanges, don't you agree?"
Murdock seemed to think about it for a moment, but then squeezed Star's hoof.
"Perfect."
When he was gone, Star Skies was joined by his childhood friend, a koala named Ocean, who had arrived in Hope Hollow with her parents at the age of four.
She was petite and pretty, dust-colored, with sweet black eyes and plump pink cheeks.
"Star... What do you think you're doing?" she retorted. She had always been her talking cricket, because the earth pony had never possessed a true conscience. He was a sociopath and his parents had underestimated this aspect, mistaking it for simple bad attitude.
"I think I'm using this idiot pig to get Luster away from that crystal prissy." was the pony's brutal response, who had never hidden his true character in front of Ocean, since he considered her insignificant, harmless.
Meanwhile, Luster had been divided between her lessons, her group of friends, and Flurry Heart, with whom she had kept in touch by sending letters.
One afternoon, the pink unicorn asked her mentor a specific question:
"Princess Twilight, could you tell me something about Flurry Heart?"
The sovereign smiled, happy for that unexpected connection that her pupil had established.
A strong wave of heat pervaded her, as she chose to narrate the sweetness of the moments in which she had foal-sittered her:
"When she was born I was as old as she is now. A little girl with attitude, who knew how to impose herself even on adults... She liked playing with puppets with me, we invented many different stories and eventually collapsed on the sofa... Flurry filled my heart with happiness and sometimes I wonder if I will..."
Twilight paused as a painful thought crossed her mind like a comet.
"If you will?" Luster continued, worried about the sudden darkening of her mentor.
"… Sometimes I wonder if I'll ever have a family of my own. I'm forty-seven years old and even though I deeply love my kingdom, I can't help but feel melancholy..."
Luster's ears dropped; she had never stopped to ask herself if the sovereign of Equestria ever suffered loneliness or the lack of a normal life. Apparently, yes.
Behind the closed door of the throne room, Gallus had heard everything.
His experience was, in some ways, similar to that of the princess he served, and at thirty-five he too was still without a family, completely dedicated to work. He had even turned down Silverstream's courtship years before.
He sighed, and when Luster was gone, he couldn't help himself:
"Your Highness, you know you can tell me anything, and confide me any of your problems."
Twilight was moved.
"Thank you, Gallus. It means a lot to me."
At the end of the month, Nightmare Night came, and Twilight threw a nice party in her castle.
Luster disguised himself as Chrysalis, Griselda as an angel, Stardrop as Tirek, Gold as a vampire and Gallop… as Cozy Glow.
"I thought you were going to dress up as Star Skies!" Gold teased her friend, nudging her.
"How funny!" she answered, and the two laughed.
It was a pleasant evening, which eased the tensions Luster had accumulated due to her annoying suitor a little and also gave her the opportunity to meet her mentor's parents, as well as Flurry Heart's grandparents, who had visited their beloved daughter.
They wanted to meet her, so Luster made introduced herself, a little trembling:
"Very pleased, my name is Luster Dawn and I'm Princess Twilight Sparkle's student!"
The two elderly parents looked at each other, smiling.
"My dear, don't stand on ceremony like that. A polite pony like you doesn't need it." pointed out Twilight Velvet, stroking her face.
Luster smiled back at her. She was grateful that she had known so many kind creatures.
When she returned to the crowd, she found little Cheese clinging to her arm; he was dressed in a cute Gummy costume.
"Luster, help me!" he shrieked in amusement as Pumpkin Cake appeared behind him disguised as a lion.
"But how, are you asking the evil queen for help?" laughed the unicorn, and him with her.
Throughout the evening she played and had fun with her friends, young and old, and when it was time for her to go to sleep she retired to the room that Twilight had made ready for her.
Slowly, the bad feeling that Star Skies had made into her would've disappeared and she would've no longer suffered, nor would've she woken up at night in the throes of nightmares.
She closed her eyes, and slept a pleasant sleep, of dreams and hopes.
She still didn't imagine that Star had hatched a diabolical plan, which certainly would have aroused the admiration of the wicked creatures represented by the party costumes.