The Smell of Black Tea in the Morning
It’s just another day in Canterlot. Nothing unusual, just the casual sounds of the birds chirping outside, ponies casually walking down the halls and corridors of the castle and a somewhat ambient presence of emptiness that always fills the void in the many rooms and open spaces that the royal epicentre happened to boast. The grandeur and pure quality and craftsmanship that went into the design and construction of such a magnificent structure that is something of a true monument to ponies who lived and breathed outside its pearl gates was nothing more than simple working conditions to the ponies of Celestia’s Royal Guard.
Yes, of course there was a time where the guards of the castle held a deep fascination with this place, being the cultural centre of Equestria’s Royalty, but they’re used to these grounds now. It’s their duty to protect them, after all. They know every single corner, drape and vase in the entire complex. It is in the mindset of a Royal Guard to observe and remember his or her place. On the many things the mind can achieve; the complete memorization of its surroundings.
It’s early in the morning. The sun had just been raised, and the sky remained a belligerent but melancholy shade of orange across the dome above, from horizon to horizon. No clouds today, which can be sort of a worry to the paranoid; the most disastrous events in history happened usually under a clear, blue sky. But, of course the events themselves had no connection to it, the weather was just an omen; the perfect storm to compliment the perfect weather above.
Two guards stand at the glistening and glaring gates of the castle with their helmets off and at their feet in respect to Equestrian Peace Day, an occasion celebrated across the lands to promote world peace. The day that Equestria finally enjoys world peace, however, won’t come anytime soon. After all, the magic of friendship had only just been completely studied. It will be a long time yet before everyone understands it. In the meantime, one must do whatever he or she needs to protect itself, and the great Equestria needs an army to protect herself.
These two guards are two important pieces in a great wall of power. One with a bent-back black and white mane, standing with utter dignity to protect the people he cared about; his family, who reside under the protection of Princess Celestia after his and his family’s downfall. The other, boasting his Canterlot-inspired brushed light blue mane stood to serve his duty to the land that he loves as a patriotic Equestrian. The two guards stood there like any other guard; still in place, without blowing emotion or composure. A statue to allies, but a death stare to enemies. Both armed with an arrow-derived rod that can pierce the hearts of many in a single blow, as such to make a flesh-and-bone kebab, and protected by the traditional gold-plated uniform of the Royal Guard, they stand on watch for those who wish to enter the castle at such a daunting hour of the morning.
They both see a figure in the distance, against the backdrop of Canterlot’s magnificently bold skyline, slowly trotting towards them on the cobble-paved road that leads their very way. ‘Stand your ground’, guards would always do when they encounter an approaching traveller, but these two guards don’t feel that they had to; this pony is an exception to them personally. He comes to the gates striding in, boasting the uniform of the Royal Guard as well. He comes to a halt at the feet of the gates, where he has a soft exchange of emotions with the two guards monitoring the entrance. He looks to his left to the guard in black and white. He gives the guard a simple, but warm smile, to which he compliments by doing the same. Looking to his right, the stallion in blue gives the traveller a more interactive greeting, giving him a mate’s greeting of a simple nod and calling him by his nickname, as a best friend would do.
“Flash…”
He nods back in recognition before he sets off to perform his daily routine. The guards give Flash access and then leave him off trotting into the massive complex. The day has once again begun.
Upon entrance, he embraces his surroundings, gracefully swinging his light head back and forth, up and down to see the sights and sounds of this one-of-a-kind visual spectacle. Of course, he recognises everything. He’s seen them all before in his many trips up and down the corridors of this maze, but he is still amazed and dazzled by the pure craftsmanship and endless effort that was put into the birth of this mass art piece its creators called the Royal Canterlot Castle. The spirals and forks that seemed to touch the heavens and the fine detail in the castle’s many diverse sculptures and embedded architectural works always made Flash’s head spin quite literally, weaving himself up and down to give himself a wide view of the castle’s beauty in stone. He walks the many corridors of the castle and looks up to find the many stained glass windows, each one of them depicting a scene in Equestrian history.
Although he’s seen them countless times before, he is still intrigued as he passes underneath the panels, inscribing the many images the glass depicts.
He spots a tale of a young unicorn stallion, excluded from his society after a freak accident in the science lab gave him wings, making him a false Alicorn. After showing his abilities after becoming an alicorn, however, he is worshipped as a god. Unfortunately, the young stallion, being the innocent pony he always was, never wanted all this and only ever wanted to be seen as a normal pony.
He looks onwards and sets his eyes on another fable that tells the story of a mare of legend that came down from the stars and gave knowledge to the whole of Equestria. One of those religious things, he supposes.
Then he finally lays his eyes on his absolute favourite of all the glass tales; the founding of Vanhoover, Flash’s beloved hometown that he hasn’t got to see in a very long time.
Here was the story of a cavalry of ponies who fought desperately to find the ocean, a vast, endless sea of water that allegedly resided at the far reaches of the land in all its glory. Through rough mountains and deep forests, they stuck together through the harsh days and cold nights to find the place they were looking for. They followed a trail that led the group of twenty or thirty odd mares and stallions across deep gorges, endless plains and high mountains before they found what they were looking for: water that seemed to stretch to the end of the world on the horizon. From here, they settled along the edge of the water, building a city and linking it to Canterlot by rail, and they called it Vanhoover.
Sentry starts to overhear some chatter as he proceeds down the corridor. The loud bickering and chit-chat seemed to be coming from Twilight’s room, being as he had just realised, it was literally around the corner! The ominous talking seemed a bit urgent and frantic as well, to Flash’s ever-growing curiosity. He does not bother to listen in properly though, for the sake of one’s privacy. He had, at this point in his life, developed a set of morals for himself that exceeded even the toughest of babysitter’s expectations! Flash would have not wanted some random pony spying on him, after all, but it still somewhat interests him. He takes the turn around the corner to find Princess Celestia backing out of her room. She turns and spots Flash walking towards her almost immediately.
“Oh dear!” she frantically exclaims. “Sorry, I didn’t expect you to be there! You startled me!”
“Nah, it’s okay your highness! I’m sorry if I scared you!”
“I’m not scared, I was, just, not expecting you to be here!”
It’s a rather awkward meeting at first, considering the two didn’t expect to see each other so randomly. The Princess and the guard had been good friends with each other for a while, being one of Celestia’s top-priority guards, but the friendship had only really worked from afar, not personally in the literal sense.
“What brings you here today, my loyal guard?”
“Oh, I just, well, was walking around, that’s all!”
“A bit bored?” she remarked.
“To be fairly honest, sort of. Nothing much happens nowadays with no sign of danger, although I’m not saying that’s a bad thing either! It's Peace day, after all!” Flash replied.
“It’s okay, Flash Sentry. Every guard gets bored sometimes. It’s a manner of life to be bored. Not many ponies have had a life like yours, Flash, so do have some sympathy for those who find themselves bored on occasions. Not everypony’s life is filled with action and suspense, after all!”
“Yes, your highness!”
“I’ll see you another day, honourable Flash Sentry!”
It is a strange thought for Flash to think over as the Princess trots off into the maze of marble halls. It was indeed a truthful statement to make though, but he had never thought of his life in such a manner before. Most ponies really never did have the life he lived or made memories quite like his own. It was a different outlook for Sentry this time, standing there in his polished gold-plated uniform and cross-helmet where he would usually reminisce upon his glory days as a nopony was now looking back on those memories with conscience. He’s grateful for his life, the ponies he had the opportunity to meet and become great friends with, the lessons he’s learnt and especially grateful for a certain mare who, despite her flaws, was the true reason Flash ever got up and made a life for himself…
RING
The loud, indistinguishable drone of the morning bells startled Flash out of his deep thoughts and brought his mind into the centre frame again. He was standing in front of Twilight’s doors, which were just slightly open after Celestia made her exit. Sentry imposed a decision on himself – ‘Should I pay Twilight a visit?’ It had been a long time since Sentry saw her face, and the two had grown to be very close friends, but it just doesn’t seem like then and there was an appropriate time, considering that the pony of all ponies had just given her a visit. He casually turns to his left and spots a tray with a teapot, teabag, a cup of sugar, shot of milk and an empty cup and saucer sitting on a lonely table on the side of the room underneath a remarkable portrait of Starswirl the Bearded. Flash knows if he is to see Twilight at such an hour, he could at least offer her favourite morning beverage to accompany her.
Taking the initiative, he takes the initiative to cook up a cocoa-flavoured storm. Taking his helmet off to let free his spiky blue mane and throwing the teabag effortlessly into the cup, he sits beside the table waiting for the pot to boil. As he does, he scrolls his eyes upward to the painting of Starswirl once more. A very important figure in Equestrian history, he’s one of many who took on the challenge of becoming one of Celestia’s loyal. He, like those who succeeded him, including Twilight herself, studied magic, and he was one of the first ones to do so, being the pioneering researcher whose work carried on from generation to generation of unicorns who wanted to gather the full potential of magic and it’s profound abilities as a practical part of unicorn life.
It was funny though, that Flash knew all this off the top of his head, since he is a Pegasus. Flash at this point realises that Twilight maybe getting into his head, being she is a massive fan of Starswirl’s work. She even has a Nightmare Night costume modelled after him for Pete’s sake!
The screeching of the boiling pot signalled the time once more. He once again puts his tea-making skills to the test, a practical thing that Flash loves to do as he prepares Tea. It was something he had learnt to do as a child, but hadn’t found a reason to do so in a very, very long time. Flash ironically doesn’t drink tea, but he had learnt from his mother during his childhood days in Vanhoover, when the city had class, compared to what it is today. Something he has a fond memory of, being the happiest days in his entire life.
Without reminiscing, however, he needs to remember what his mother taught him all those years ago. Digging through the many great memories of his hometown, he found it like a book in a library shelf.
All you need is boiled water, a teabag, a dash of milk and some sugar. There was a box of cream on the side of the table, but Flash didn’t use it. Since Vanhoover was so hell-bent on science, they found that Milk and Cream both contain casein, and the stashes of leaves in the teabag contain tannin, which can really wake you up if you drink it straight from the cup. Science dictates that casein renders the tannin in tea insoluble and helps reduce the sap-in-the-face effect of raw tea. This is why milk should always be mixed in with your tea. After all, Flash certainly doesn’t want to subliminally slap Twilight in the face in any way!
Cream, however, has less casein than milk, so it shifts the flavor more in a way that make the tea seem like the catalyst in a game of guess-the-flavor! You honestly don’t know what you’re end up with if you don’t play your cream cards right. Milk does not change the refreshing flavor of black tea. It only ever reduces the bitterness of it. However, these dodgy Canterlot creams are essentially thickened milk, so it’s possible to use it…
Actually no. Flash doesn’t rely on dodgy Canterlot alternative, no matter how much his love for Canterlot may be!
In addition, some ponies, thanks to their insanity for taste, tend to put more milk, however, than there is tea. Unfortunately, these ponies are just very paranoid, since more milk than tea cancels out all the refreshment and astringency of tea and essentially renders it a cup of warm milk with somewhat annoying additives!
There’s also been a debate ever since he was a child whether or not the milk should be poured into the cup first or poured into the tea last. Milk-firsters (yes, they have names now!) insist that milk scalds perceptibly if dumped into hot tea, and therefore the milk should be warmed slowly by the addition of tea. Milk-lasters insist that one can measure the proper amount of milk to add only by watching the color of the tea change. Flash’s incredibly generous and loving mother, who, with his father, always took care of him and gave him a wonderful childhood to remember forever, only had one philosophy about milk and tea:
It’s milk. Who gives a flying feather?
Flash, carrying on his mother’s beloved and sacred philosophy carelessly dumps a spit of milk into the cup, but not so much to cancel out the tea and enough to reduce the shark bite of the tea itself.
Adding sugar isn’t necessary, but just like salt on a potato chip, you got to add some uniqueness to your conformative black tea. You should really consider yourself a conservative if you honestly don’t feel the need to mix up your tea. Some ponies feel that sugar is an unnatural additive to tea, and masks the true flavor of it. However, Twilight loves a dash of sugar in her tea, and she honestly couldn’t care less what the “elite society” said. Neither did Flash nor his mother, so in the sugar goes.
After a good stir, clanking the sides of the tea with the spoon every two seconds just for the fun of it, since no one was around to criticize him for doing so, he’s ready to give Twilight some room service.
He carries the cup and saucer in his hoof and lifts his other hoof to the door.
KNOCK KNOCK
He stands there with the cup and saucer, staring at the fine details of the door design, which were oddly unique to the rest of the castle. While Canterlot’s architecture and art is mainly centred around geometry and curvature, Twilight’s room was closed off by a door that had a particular shine to it. It was glistening with the curvatures of Canterlot art, but were encased with a ruby and sapphire-like gem layer that seemed to reflect the famous six-pointed star that embraces Twilight’s cutie mark.
“Yes? Who’s there?”
Flash hears the reply, and sticks his big head into the open space of the door Celestia had left open.
“Hey Twilight! Mind if I pop in?” Flash cheerfully proposes to Twilight.
The young Princess Twilight Sparkle, having made a fresh start to the morning only half an hour earlier, sits on a couch on the side of a virtually empty room, accompanied by an elegant king-size bed, a nightstand, drawers and a Grand Piano for entertainment, if she’d actually knew how to play one!
“Flash! Oh, it’s great to see you again!” she exclaims. “Of course, come in!”
“Fancy some Tea?” he says as he raises his hoof to offer the Princess a nice, fresh beverage.
“Oh Flash, that’s so nice of you!”
She takes the cup and saucer through her magic, allowing Flash some free movement so that he could stride into her room.
“How’s the day going? I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation with Celestia earlier. Is there something wrong?” Flash asked.
“Well, nothing in particular, really. It’s just that there’s… things tying me down at the moment. Some issues in my life that I’ve recently dealing with”
“Some issues?” Flash asked.
“There’s so much pressure on me at the moment, and I just don’t know how to deal with it. I haven’t been seeing much of my friends for a long time and there are so many things to do that I just couldn’t take the time to sit here and have a rest.”
Forgetting her frustrations, she got herself off the couch and took a sip from Flash’s carefully prepared cup of tea.
“I’m glad that you came, Flash! I really need a good friend to talk to at the moment.”
“Nah, it’s okay Twilight, that’s what friends are for!”
“Don’t try and tell me what friends are for! I saved the world a dozen times with five other friends!” Twilight said sarcastically with a innocent smile. “Thanks for this nice cup of tea by the way!” she complimented him.
Virtually proud of himself, Flash took the compliment as yet another success in his creative abilities.
“….still not better than Cadence’s tea, though.” She mumbled into the cup, giving Flash a dirty look.
