A New Ruler

Chapter 4: Canterlot Spa

“Man, my legs feel wierd,” Ted said as arrived with our escort at the spa a short while later. The guards left us as we entered the spa.

The spa was quite large and extravagant, as one would expect from a palace. There were private baths as well as communal baths, as well as hot tubs of both the private and communal type, all made from completely white marble. We saw a few Nightguards were in the communal baths. I had noticed them throughout the palace, something I hadn’t seen in the show.

We arrived at the private baths to find two Nightguards and two humans guarding the entrance, but they let us through. Luna and Winter were already there, Luna in one of the baths while Winter had just finished getting a massage.

The ponies that had been attending to Winter came over to us. The were both pegasi. One had rose fur, white hair and a rose bud cutiemark, the other had cream hair, black hair and an apple blossom cutiemark.

“Hello,” I said, “I’m Ella, this is Ted.” He nodded as I said his name.

“My name is Rose Bud,” said the pony with the rose bud cutiemark, “This is mt sister, Blossom. This way to your baths.”

Ted followed Blossom to the bath on the far wall. I decided to sit in the middle, between him and Luna.

“Would you please remove your clothing, miss,” asked Rose Bud before I stepped in. I looked over to Ted and saw he‘d already removed his clothing to reveal two chestnut wings.

“Great, I’m going to be a walking chocolate bar,” he joked as he entered the bath. I stripped down and entered the my bath after.

“What to you think of my Nightguards,” asked Luna as I lowered myself into the tub.

“They do look odd,” I said, “I’ve always thought bat wings on a pony looked weird.”

“I know,” said Luna, “But doesn’t it make them look fiercer?”

“Indeed it does,” I replied, and she was right. A flying pony was one thing, but one that looks like a giant bat? In the dark, one would probably wet themself if they didn’t know what it was.

"But what about the two human guards," I asked.

"Oh, that's Captain Stormcry and Corporal Frostbite," Winter said, "They're members of the Solstice Royal Honor Guard, highly trained guards tasked with protecting me and doing anything I command them without hesitation, which is how they differ from the regular Solstice Royal Guards."

I nodded and turned my attention to Rose Bud. “It must be strange to have a human like me here,” I asked.

“Oh, not at all,” she said cheerfully, “Prince Winter and his personal guards comes here all the time! And Tsar Nicholas sometimes comes on his visits. He once said, and I quote, ‘The spas of Equestria are the greatest in all the galaxy’ you know.”

“You know what,” I said, sinking into the tub, “I think he was right.” I looked over as Ted pulled out one of his cigars. He was about to light it when Winter intervened.

“Light that in here and I’ll turn you into a filly in body and mind,” Winter said.

“Yeah? What about Ella,” he shot back, looking over to me.

“She’ll braid your mane and tail.” He put his cigar away at that as Winter took out his own.

“Now these,” he said, “Are some of the finest in Solstice. They have flavour but no smell or smoke, and are used to cure cancer instead causing it,” said Winter.

“What flavour,” said Ted as Winter came over gave him one.

“Chocolate,” Winter said, “Also non-poisonous to ponies.”

We sat talking for some time. Luna joined in whenever we hit an interesting topic, and Ted seemed to be enjoying himself too much to even care. After awhile, I began to drift off when Ted screamed.

“What’s wrong,” I asked, turning to face him.

“My legs,” he said, “I can’t feel them.” He lifted one f his legs from the water as it finished turning into a pony hoof and rear leg.

“Well, that’s new,” I said jokingly.

“Ha ha, not funny,” Ted shot back, “How am I supposed to walk?”

“You’ll be fine,” I reassured him.

“Okay,” he said, calming down.

I turned to Luna and Rose Bud. “Men,” I said sarcastically, making them both giggle.

The spa was quiet for the next while, save the conversations of the Nightguards coming from the communal baths. I started to feel a pain in my back, but shrugged it off as just my back beginning to ache from being against a hard stone wall. The pain came again, sharper this time, making me wince.

“Somthing wrong, miss,” asked Rose Bud.

“Yeah, there’s a pain in my back,” I replied.

“Let me take a look,” she said. I complied and turned around to hear her tell Blossom to find Zecora. I turned back to face Rose Bud.

“Wings,” I asked as another wave of pain surged through me.

“Indeed,” she replied, “Only the bones, though.”

“Looks gross,” said Ted with a smirk. I turned to reply, but another wave of pain surged through my body, this one not going away. Winter saw I was losing control of my body, and ran over to the side of my bath to keep me from slipping under the surface.

Ted joined him seconds later, saying somthing I couldn’t hear as I was focused on the pain in my upper back.

Zecora and a few other ponies arrives a few seconds later. Zecora approached the bath and placed a bottle with a strange liquid to my lips while Celestia took over holding me up, using her magic to do so.

“Drink, child,” Zecora said. I did as instructed, finding it hard to argue when you feel nothing but pain. I suddenly didn’t feel the pain any longer, and noticed I had begun to float out of the tub. I turned around to see myself, still int the tub, shaking violently from the pain. I looked around the room. The only ponies and people here were Luna, the two spa ponies, Ted, Winter, Zecora, Celestia, and a few Nightguards who came to see what all the commotion was about. Zecora motioned to Blossom, who nodded and lifted her wing. I looked back over to myself to check on my wings. The long bony fingers of my wings were extending from behind my shoulders whenever a spasm passed through my body. I looked back to Zecora and Blossom as Blossom lowered her wings to her sides. Wait, her sides! I looked back to my body as another spasm passed through it. My wings were growing from my back, not from my sides. As the spasms became less violent, my wings stopped growing and muscle began to cover them, followed by fine orchid feathers. I admired myself, noticing the white strands in my mane. So, lavender fur and an orchid mane and tail with white highlights. It looked very nice, actually. I started to feel the pain again as I drifted back to my body. I took one last look before I returned to reality.

Though a lot of pain still lingered, the brunt of it had passed, and my wings were done.

“Is it over,” I asked.

“I wish I could say it was,” said Luna, “But it’s far from it.”

I laid my head on the side of the bath, “Somepony shoot me.”

Everypony except Luna, Winter and the spa ponies left after a little while.

“Your wings look very pretty,” Ted said as he lifted his black wings, “A lot nicer than mine.”

“Oh, you’re just being paranoid,” I said, “Look.” I spread my wings with a great amount of pride before realizing I was naked, which brought me down from the feeling of pride.

“Somthing wrong,” asked Ted.

“Well,” I said, “I’m naked.”

“Silly,” he replied smartly, “Everypony in this room is naked.”

“Well at least you all have fur,” I said. At some point since Ted’s legs had changed and now, they had grown a fine black fur to compliment his black wings and white mane and tail.

“Rose Bud,” said Ted, “Anywhere we can get some clothes?”

“Oh, I’m sure we can find somthing for Ella,” Rose Bub replied, “But you I’m not so sure about.”

“I have some old pants in Luna’s room you can use Ted,” offered Winter, “Not like I fit them anymore anyway. I’ll go get a pair.”

“Thanks,” said Ted as he helped me out of the bath. I looked at my old clothes. I noticed a pile of rags but a lack of pants. “Um, what happened to my pants,” I asked.

“Well, I had a bit of a field day and pretty much tore them up,” Ted said, “Funny you only just noticed. Then again, they probably didn’t pull your tail when they came off, being so torn up, and wouldn’t fit you now, seeing as you’ve gotten a bit shorter.”

I had noticed that I was a bit shorter, as Winter said I would get due to being only eighteen, but had hoped nopony would bring it up.

“Well, I should be off to meet up with Celestia before lunch,” said Luna.

“See you there,” I replied. I turned to Rose Bud, who had been waiting paitently. “So, any ideas on what I should wear,” I asked.

“Hmm, how about a skirt,” Rose Bud suggestd.

“Good idea,” I said, “My old shirt should still work, being a tanktop.”

Rose Bud gave me a quizzical look, but shrugged and sent for the court tailor.