An Angel from the Deep

The sun shined upon the two as one of them dragged themselves onto the shore. Roxanna finally got the chance to rest and catch her breath as she lay on the warm sand. She looked over at Squirt, who bobbed in the water and gazed at her. "You know, I always wondered what you would look like as a pony." He scanned over Roxanna's new form one more time. "I must say, you look more beautiful than I could've ever imagined." She blushed, and the words 'thank you' were formed on her lips, though no sound came out. She was quite disappointed at the loss of her voice, and a bit nervous if the use of actions instead of words would ever reveal to the other ponies who she was. At the moment, Roxanna was too nervous to care too much. "You look tired." claimed Squirt. "Get some rest. I'll watch over for you." She smiled at him as she got comfortable in the sand, closing her heavy eyes as she drifted for a short rest.

"Roxanna...Roxanna wake up! Someone's coming!" The princesses eyes slowly opened, the blazing sun shining in her eyes. After a moment of adjusting her sight, she saw Squirt pointing in the other direction. Off in the distance, a small spot could be seen getting closer. She quickly got up, only to wobble and fall over. Roxanna then realized she still had her mermaid top on, so she quickly shook it off and hid it in a patch of reeds. The spot got closer, revealing a pleasant sight. A purple alicorn was casually trotting her way. Squirt went and hid among a spot of tall grass. Roxanna's hair was quite the mess, but that was the least of her worries. She sat in the sand, waiting for the mare to arrive.

Twilight sighed. "That voice...I can't get out of my head." she said to no one in particular. She decided to head down to the beach one more time. Maybe today she would strike some luck. When she looked up, something caught her eye: a green figure, sitting on the beach, and it seemed like it was looking straight at her. Curious, she quickened her pace to examine the mysterious object. As she got closer, she realized that this wasn't a thing, but a pony. "What is she doing here?" Twilight asked herself as she approached the mare.

Roxanna fidgeted in her spot, the distant blur now focusing and becoming the young princess she rescued that night. "Okay, Roxanna, stay calm and collected." she thought to herself as Twilight arrived. "Excuse me!" called the purple alicorn as she came closer. Roxanna looked at her, a mixture a shyness and excitement in her eyes. "Hello, there." she greeted, Roxanna still seated in front of her. She smiled shyly and turned her head to the side slightly. Twilight chuckled. "Oh, there's no need to be shy." She took a good look at the mare in front of her, then tilted her head slightly, a small look of confusion on her face. She didn't think she saw this mare before, but then why did she look so familiar? "You know, I think I've seen you somewhere. Have we met?" Roxanna nodded excitedly. Suddenly, something clicked in Twilight's mind. "Wait, you're the one! I've been looking for you for days! Please, I must know your name!"

Caught up in the excitement, Roxanna tried to say her name, but all that came out was air. She lowered her head. "Are you alright? Is something wrong?" She put a hoof to her throat. "You...can't speak?" In reply, she shook her head. "Oh, I'm sorry. I must've mistaken you for somepony else." "I knew that trade would make this nearly impossible." she thought. "Well, I haven't seen you around here before. Are you new?" Roxanna nodded. Then, she had an idea. She pointed to the sea. "Um, you...used to live out there?" Once again, she nodded. She made a swooping motion with her hoof, like it was going underwater. "Sinking?" Before she could reply, Twilight gasped. "Were you in a shipwreck? Oh dear, that's terrible! Two in one week! Are you far from home?" At this point, Roxanna realized there was no way she could convince Twilight she actually lived underwater without her voice. She decided to just go along with the whole shipwreck thing. She nodded her head in reply to her question; she was pretty far away from her home.

"Oh, I'm so sorry. Until we find out where you live, allow me to offer you a place to stay. Follow me." Walking, she didn't even think about practicing walking when she arrived on land; she was pretty worn out anyways. "Maybe it's not as hard as it looks." With that in mind, she slowly started getting up on her hooves. They were a little sore, but not that bad. She wobbled quite a bit, but she eventually got her balance.

"Good, nice to know you can still stand up." claimed Twilight. Roxanna tried to remember how the ponies walked: one hoof in front of the other. She started to move forward, but as quickly as she started, she stumbled over. Luckily for her, Twilight leaned against her to keep her upright. "Whoa, careful!" Roxanna smiled, more in embarrassment than in thanks.

"Don't worry, I'll help you." Twilight grabbed her right hoof and draped it over her back for support. Roxanna looked back at Squirt and gave him a wink, while he waved his best friend goodbye and good luck. Together, the two ponies walked (with Roxanna wobbling most of the way) towards Ponyville to the Golden Oaks Library.

After walking became easier for her, Roxanna took the time to look at her surroundings. Colorful ponies trotted around the village, some casting glances at the two alicorns. Though, nopony knew she was royalty, for her horn was covered up by her big mop of messy hair. Soon, they arrived at the library. She gasped at the mass amount of books around her. Even under the sea, they had books, but not this many!

"Welcome to Golden Oaks Library!" said Twilight. "Feel free to make yourself at home. I have a spare bed you can sleep in tonight, so you don't need to worry about that. My assistant, Spike, will help you get situated. SPIKE, WE HAVE COMPANY!"

From upstairs, they could hear a loud yawn as the young dragon woke up from his deep slumber. As he came downstairs, loud thumping emitted from his footsteps, and he dragged his blanket lazily from behind. Roxanna slightly gasped at him. Sure, she'd seen him before, but she never thought she'd him this up close.

"Yeesh, Twilight, not so loud." he said, rubbing his eyes.

"I'm sorry Spike, but we have a guest staying with us for a while. She was washed up on shore in a shipwreck.

"Another shipwreck?" asked Spike, surprised, now starting to wake up. "Yep, and this young mare doesn't live in Equestria, so it's our duty to figure out where she lives so she can get home."

"Uh...can't she just tell you where she lives?"

"She's mute, Spike. She can't talk."

"How convenient. "

"Spike! That's not how we respond to somepony with a disability! Please apologize."

"...Sorry..."

Roxanna smiled forgivingly and ruffled the scales on his head, causing him to giggle. "Spike, please help her get situated. I'll bring the girls over." The girls? Did she mean the other ponies she rescued that night? It must be.

"Come on, I'll help you get set up for the night." called Spike, motioning her over. The two went upstairs to Twilight and Spike's bedroom. On the wall, there was a rope. Spike pulled it, and the wall opened to reveal a spare bed. He pulled it from its hiding spot and placed it in front of Twilight's bed.

"There we go." he said, smoothing out the bed's sheets. "Now you'll be all comfy and cozy for the night. Though, just to let you know, if you hear thumping downstairs during the middle of the night, it's probably Twilight. Lately, she's been doing her midnight pacing and reading after an accident a couple days ago. You won't believe what she told me!"

He sat down on the bed, Roxanna doing the same. "So, on Hearts and Hooves Day, Twilight had this big plan for her brother, Prince Shining Armor, and her sister-in-law, Princess Cadance, to sail on a huge ship and have a big party

with a ton of ponies. Then, all of a sudden, this crazy storm appeared out of nowhere! The pegasi didn't have any plans for a storm that night!"

"The pegasi?" thought Roxanna. "Is he saying they actually MAKE the weather? I'll have to figure that one out later." Spike continued his story.

"This huge lightning bolt came down on the mast, and lit the whole thing on fire!" Fire, was that the Orange Light Roxanna saw? All these new words and such would need some getting used to. "Then, the whole thing collapsed and landed on my tail!" He showed her his tail, bruised and with some damaged scales. She gasped and stroked it gently. The princess leaned down a gave it a kiss. "Aww, shucks." he blushed. "Anyway, Twilight and her friends got me out, but the floor started collapsing.  At the last second, they threw me overboard onto a liferaft. Then, the floor gave way and they fell to the bottom of the boat!"

By this point, he was really getting into it. Spike was doing little actions while telling the events. "Everypony waited to see if they would come out, but they never did. Instead...BOOM!!!" He jumped off the bed and shot his arms into the air. "The whole ship exploded! I thought they were gonners, I tell you. The royal guards went to check the wreckage while the rest of us sailed back to shore. After an hour passed, the royals and I decided to go check the beach to see if the guards brought them back alive. To our relief, they were! But then, Twilight said something crazy. She said that a MARE rescued them, not a royal guard! And that's not even the craziest part! She also said that this mare was singing to them and playing music!" Spike chuckled at the thought. "But that can't be possible, because they were the only ones on the boat when it exploded, and no mare could've carried them a mile back to shore! Nopony believes her, not even the other girls! Even I have trouble believing her."

Roxanna thought about what Spike told her. She knew the story, but she wanted to see it in the dragon's perspective. She slightly giggled at the thought that Spike was saying this stuff to the very mare Twilight said rescued them. Suddenly, they hear a door open. "That must be them! Come on, I bet they'd love to meet you!" They went downstairs to see a group of ponies gazing up at her.

"There she is!" claimed Twilight. "Girls, this is the mare I found on the beach this morning." Each of the ponies gave their greetings to her.

"So, you're the pony who got caught in a shipwreck?" asked Rainbow Dash, her wing still in bandages. Roxanna nodded. "You're lucky you washed up on shore alive. We have hooves-on experience with this kinda thing."

"It must've been just terrible!" cried the timid Fluttershy. "Alone, cold, wet, and worst of all, stranded in the middle of the ocean!"

"Oh, come on, girls!" cheered Pinkie Pie. "Now's not the time to talk about scary shipwrecks!" She put her hoof around Roxanna's shoulder and drew her against her face. "We need to welcome this pony to Ponyville! We need a party!"

"But Pinkie Pie, she's not ready for a party!" claimed Rarity. "No offense, darling, but your hair looks like it's been in a hurricane." Using her magic, she received some hair supplies from her saddlebags. "Luckily, I always bring these in case of emergencies."

"Of course ya do, Rares." said Applejack, rolling her eyes.

"Come along, dear." said Rarity, pulling her by a hoof. "When I'm done with you, you'll feel much better and more refreshed." And with that, Rarity and Roxanna went into the bathroom, slamming the door behind them.

"Yeesh, does Rarity always have to play fashion police?" asked Rainbow Dash.

"Apparently so." said Twilight. "You know her, always wanting everypony looking picture..."

"SWEET CELESTIA!!!"

"...perfect..."

The bathroom door opened revealing a nearly hyperventilating Rarity. "Rarity, what happened?!" asked Twilight, worried for her friend. The unicorn didn't need to answer. From behind her, Roxanna appeared, confused, and her mane still a mess. Everypony gasped loudly when they saw when they saw that not only did the pony have a pair of wings, but she also had a unicorn horn protruding from her head.

"YOU'RE A PRINCESS?!" they all cried, causing her to flinch.

"Why in Equestria didn't you tell us this in the first place?!" cried Rainbow, zooming up to her face.

"She's mute, Rainbow, remember?" said Twilight. She walked up to the alicorn, until Rarity blocked her off.

"No, Twilight! We can't afford any distractions from the matter at hoof!" She looked at Roxanna. "We need to get you to the spa, pronto!"

Once again, Rarity took her by the hoof and ran out the door. Everypony stood silent.

"Well, that was...interesting." said Twilight.

The two mares arrived at the Ponyville Spa. "Lotus? Aloe?" cried Rarity as she burst through the door. Immediately,  the two sisters appeared. "We have a spa emergency!"

The spa ponies gasped when they saw the princess. "Right this way, your majesty!" said Lotus, ushering her to a hot tub. In a matter of minutes, Roxanna was being bathed in bubbles, bath salts, and having a hair stylist wash her mane while another did her tail. Rarity watched from aside, not wanting to get a treatment for herself. She wanted the princess to get the best, and the more workers, the better. "Rarity, who is this young princess?" asked Aloe, the others listening in as they worked.

"The poor dear was washed up on shore after a shipwreck. She's a princess from another land."

"The sea has been pretty gruesome to ships the past week." said one of the spa ponies, who was filing one of Roxanna's hooves.

"Indeed." agreed Rarity. "Luckily, Princess Twilight is letting her stay at her place until she can return home."

"Why, isn't that sweet of her?" replied another spa pony. Now Roxanna was laying down on a massage table, her face covered with a fancy facial with fresh cucumbers over her eyes. After that, she got a mudbath, a seaweed wrap, a hooficure, and lastly, her hair done.

After a while, Lotus and Aloe went into the waiting room, where Rarity was reading a magazine. "We're done!" they sang with big smiles on their faces.

"Oh, wonderful! Let me see her." The two stepped aside, and the princess entered. Rarity's eyes widened and she gasped happily. Roxanna's coat shined, along with her silky, brown mane. It was wavy, with two cute, little, curly locks of hair on the side of her face.

"FABULOUS!" She cried, holding her cheeks and giving a kiss to each one. Roxanna smiled shyly and blushed. "You ladies did a wonderful job!"

"It was our pleasure, Miss Rarity!" said Lotus. "This was on us, today. No need for payment."

"Oh, please, allow me to at least give you a tip!" she claimed, tossing over a small coin purse. "Thank you for everything, dears!"

They bid their farewells as they left the spa. Rarity giggled as they left the spa. "I think fifty bits should be enough for a tip, don't you think?" she asked the alicorn.

Even though she didn't know the currency system, fifty bits still seemed quite a lot for a tip. Roxanna gave her a semi- surprised look.

"Tee hee, don't worry, darling. It was all worth it. Come now, the others will love to see how gorgeous you look!" The two trotted back to the library.

"Wow, that was amazing!"  thought Roxanna. "And I just got here! I wonder what else will be in store for me?"