//------------------------------//
// Falling apart 
// Story: Flurry Heart and the Imprisoned King 
// by ddstory25 
//------------------------------//

Flurry was staring down the table at her parents. They seemed to be looking at her more than usual; they were also very quiet today. She finished eating her waffles questioning both her parents.
“Are you guys okay? You're acting odd.”
“What? We're fine honey, just interested in you is all.”
Cadence admitted. Shining gave her a reassuring smile. Flurry smiled back as she got up to leave. Shining yelled. 
“Hold on Flurry!”
She stopped in her tracks and gazed at her father. She sat down in the nearest chair, asking.
“What is it?”
“Uh, how are the studies going?”
“They're great did you know Canterlot Castle is older than the original castle of the two sisters by about two hundred years.”
“Oh, how fascinating.” 
Shining said painfully. Cadence held her hoof to her forehead thinking to herself. 
Shining, what are you doing, just ask her about the roses. If you won’t, I will. 
Cadence smiled and lowered her hoof.
“So, Flurry, did you take any crystal roses from the garden? Tulip Star, the gardener, noticed some missing.”
Flurry looked at her mother, internally, she was screaming that she was busted but externally she played it cool.
“I did. Sorry, I should have told you. I took some to make a potion but it didn’t quite work out the way I had hoped it would.”
She smiled at Cadence as her parents both exchanged glances at the other. They returned to looking at her as both asked in union. 
“What potion?”
“Oh, one to help with fires but like I said it didn’t work.”
She shifted uncomfortably in her chair, she hated lying to her parents but if they thought she was seeing Sombra they would have asked her directly about it instead of tiptoeing around the issue. She then got up before they could question her anymore. 
“Well, I’m heading to the library now. I’m going to look through Celestia’s school archives next. I want to know how many students she’s had as personal students. You know before Auntie Twilight.” 
They watched her as she exited towards the library, the two of them shared disappointed looks. They asked each other.
“What are we going to do?”



Flurry reached the library and grabbed the record books in her magic. They were delicate since they were from a thousand years ago. She had Twilight send them over a few days ago. She started looking through them trying to find anything about Radiant Hope. She remembered that in Sombra’s journal, he mentioned that she had gotten a letter to attend the school after her cutie mark appeared. She was looking to see if she did attend the school after Sombra and the Crystal Empire had been sealed away. She read through countless books at a breakneck pace reading about a hundred words per minute. She finally found her name in record book number twelve. she yelled triumphantly.
“Ah ha! There you are, now let's see. ‘Radiant Hope, unicorn, of the Crystal Empire, healing magic that rivals the princesses' own magic. After losing her home to the curse of King Sombra she studied with Princess Celestia and Luna as their personal student. However, shortly after she quit her studies and left the school. She was seemingly depressed about losing her home to the evil king’s curse. She was also the one who informed the princesses about his rise to power and the only one to escape his curse. Some ponies believe that she knew the evil king. Their relation is unknown, however, it is suspected that she loved and cared about him.’”
She read the page over and over again looking for more information about her. She bookmarked the page as she grabbed another book on the royal history of the princesses. Looking through the book carefully making sure she didn’t miss a page but there was no record of a Princess Radiant Hope either. Flurry put the book down and again turned to the record books from Celestia’s school, her brow furrowed.
“She never became a princess? But why?”
She looked over the information again, her eyes landing on the sentence that mentioned how she allegedly loved Sombra. Putting the book down she could only guess as to what that truly meant.
“She didn’t leave her studies because of the empire. She left because of Sombra. I bet that she loved him just like how he loved her.”
Tears formed in her eyes.
“How sweet. Somepony did love him…But why did he listen to that red crystal? Fear and anxiety can't overcome true love. He should have known she loved him. Unless they never told each other how they felt.”
She just looked down letting her tears fall, just then she heard a voice.
“Flurry are you ok? How's the research coming?”       
“Uncle Sunburst!”
She wiped her tears away. 
“Oh, it's coming along here.”
She bookmarked the pages she was reading and slammed the books closed. She quickly pulled a map out of her saddle bag and tossed it over to him. It was the map she had made, she didn’t forget about the lie she had told him and was keeping up with it. She had been marking and checking out secret passages every night before dinner knowing he would ask her for a map soon. He looked at it while adjusting his glasses.
“Amazingly, there aren’t a lot but the ones that are here are very extravagant and seem to have branching paths. Amazing work Flurry. Oh, how was that one in the garden by the way?”
“It led to a dead end so I didn’t bother adding it.”
“Oh, okay. Uh, are you sure you're okay? I saw you crying?”
"I'm fine just some dust in my eye is all."
He nodded his head as he looked at the map. He started to head towards the exit of the library. Flurry watched as he left the library lost in thought, she turned back to her research.



Cadence was on her way to the library when she spotted Sunburst, eyes glued to a piece of paper in front of him. She trotted over to him and started walking next to him asking.
“What are you reading there, Sunburst?”
“Oh, it's a map Flurry made of all the hidden passages in the castle.”
Cadence perked up at hearing this as a slow knot started forming in her stomach.
“So, Flurry made it.”
“Yes, it's quite detailed. I’m surprised she made it in only four or so days.”
“Is there a passage in the garden on that map?”
“Oh, Flurry didn’t add it, she said it was a dead end and she didn’t want to add any dead ends to the map.”
“Is it really a dead end? How do you know she didn’t lie to you?”
Sunburst finally tore his eyes from the map to look at the pony who just suggested Flurry Heart was a liar. As he did his eyes met a lovely pair of purple eyes and the only pony who could make him stumble in his horseshoes.
“Oh, P-princess Cadence! I-I didn’t see you there. I um.”
He cleared his throat
“W-why would you think Flurry lied about that passage in the garden...w-wait how do you know there's a passage in the garden?”
“You just told me.”
She smiled warmly at him, as he returned it with an awkward smile.
“Oh, right well, I uh wasn’t supposed to tell you this. Sorry.”
“Why are you sorry?”
“Well, it was supposed to be a surprise about all the passages. Flurry was studying them so she could map them out and give you a completed map of them. So, there wouldn’t be any more surprises in the castle.”
Her stomach felt heavy.
“Funny, she told me and Shinny that she was studying the Canterlot Castle and Celestia’s school. I wonder why she’s studying both?”
Sunburst knew she was an advid researcher and studying three things at once wasn’t a problem for her but the way Cadence sounded bothered him. 
“Well, it was supposed to be a surprise for you and she does tend to study multiple things at once. She is a fast reader so she didn’t really lie, she just didn’t tell the whole truth.”
He smiled nervously; Cadence shook her head in disagreement. 
“No, Sunburst she lied to me, Shiny, and you. I think there is a passage in the garden and it leads to the dungeons.”
Sunburst shuddered at the mention of the dungeons; he knew who was down there but he had to keep it a secret until Flurry was ruling over the empire. He asked cautiously.
“How do you know she lied to you?”
“Some guards brought Shining Armor, a small bouquet of crystal roses that were placed in front of that monster’s cell. We asked her if she took some and although she admitted to taking some she lied about where they went. Said she used them for a potion.”
Sunburst's heart sank as he fell to the ground in shock, Flurry lied to her parents and him about what she was doing. He looked at her as one question came to mind.
“What are you going to do?”
“I don’t know Sunburst, I don’t know.”