A Visit to Canterlot Castle

1

It was about an hour before sunset on a pleasant summer day at Canterlot Castle. The classes for gifted unicorns, which were held in one wing of the castle, were finished for the day. The day’s royal visitors had been dismissed. The castle’s residents had finished supper, and servants had cleared away the dirty dishes. Princess Celestia was busy with paperwork in a small, tidy office tucked away behind the throne room; Princess Luna was reading a novel nearby, stretched out on a cushioned couch on the castle parapet beneath the clear blue sky, where she could watch the sun dip toward the horizon. When night fell, Luna would fly away in order to make her usual nightly rounds, ensuring that the kingdom was safe throughout the hours of darkness. For now, Luna was resting. In truth, she was spending more time dozing than reading.
A guard appeared in the open doorway of Celestia’s office. “Princess,” he said, “I’m sorry to interrupt, but we have visitors whom I think you should see.”
Celestia looked up from her paperwork. “It’s rather late for visitors,” she remarked. “Anyone I know?”
“No, Your Majesty. They’re strangers from some other kingdom. And they really are STRANGE.”
She blinked. “In what way, guard?”
He pawed the tiled floor, searching for the right words. “Well, Your Majesty, it’s kind of hard to describe them. I haven’t seen anything quite like them before.”
“Are they dangerous?”
“Uh, well, I guess they might be,” the guard admitted.
“Then why do you think I should see them?”
The guard became even more nervous. “Well, you see, Your Highness, it’s just that we don’t know what to do with them, so we were thinking that maybe you could … uh …”
Tia sighed. “I see. Well, please describe them as best you can, so I’ll know what to expect when I receive them.”
“I’ll try,” he shrugged. “There’s two of them, a male and a female. The male is kind of like a lion, and the female is kind of like a fox. But the lion is a little smaller than a regular lion … though he’s not MUCH smaller. And the fox is bigger than a regular fox, although she’s not nearly as big as the lion. They both walk on two legs. Oh, and they wear clothing.” He paused. “I guess that’s about all I can think of.”
“Hmm,” Princess Celestia mused. “They do sound strange. Do you know what they want?”
“No, Your Highness. They were found wandering the streets, frightening everypony. So they were brought here. But we can’t decide what to do with them. They haven’t done anything wrong, so far as we know, but we don’t feel comfortable about just turning them back out onto the streets, so the captain said that it would be best if we bring them to you and let you … uh …”
She interrupted the guard with a wave of her hoof. “I understand. Fine. Give me a moment to prepare, then bring them to the throne room, and I’ll receive them.”
The guard bowed. “Yes, Your Majesty.”
Luna came striding briskly into the office. She had overheard the conversation, and she was now fully awake. “I’d like to be on hand to see these visitors as well,” she announced.
Tia smirked. “Anxious to see the show, Luna?”
The other princess seemed offended. “Of course not! That’s not why I want to be there! It’s just that, if they prove to be dangerous, you might need my help.”
“We’ll send a full contingent of guards,” the guard insisted. “We won’t leave either of you alone with the strangers.”
“That’s good,” Tia nodded. She turned back to Luna. “You’re welcome to join me in the throne room if you like, sister.”
“Thank you,” came the reply.
The guard left to summon the strangers, and the two royals took their places in the throne room. Celestia ascended the throne; Luna sat on the plush red carpet to the right of the throne. The two sisters had a moment alone while they waited, and during that time Luna turned to her older sibling. “What do you plan to do with them?”
Tia sighed. “I’m not sure. I suppose the main thing is to determine whether they pose any sort of threat.” Suddenly she had an idea. “Could you cast a truth spell before they arrive? I’ll ask them some questions, and it would help to know whether or not they answer my questions truthfully. If they lie to me, I want to know about it.”
The younger royal nodded. “Good idea, sister.” Her horn flashed and glowed for a few seconds. The spell was cast. It wouldn’t last long, but it would let Luna know if any untruths were spoken in the room.
A moment later the captain of the guards entered the throne room. There were two other guards behind him, and behind those guards strode the two strangers. There were two more guards behind the strangers. Clearly the captain was taking no chances. The guards were stern, and also somewhat nervous, as if expecting trouble. But the visitors were calm, and they seemed to be behaving like tourists being led on a guided tour.
Celestia saw that the guard had described the strangers quite well. Even so, their appearance was somewhat startling. The guard had never seen humans, so his description had of course omitted any reference to humans; but Celestia had seen humans, and these visitors seemed quite human-like in many ways. Perhaps the best description would be that they appeared to be half human and half animal. Like humans, they did not have four legs; they had two legs, on which they walked in an erect fashion (they wore no shoes), and they had two arms. Their faces were not human-like, however; the male, as the guard had said, had a lion’s face, while the female had a fox’s face. The lion, who was mostly golden in color, was quite large, and he was obviously very, very strong; he wore trousers which covered his legs, but from the waist up he wore nothing, thus providing a clear view of his powerful muscles. He looked as if he could pick up a guard with one hand and hurl him from completely out of the throne room, a fact of which the guards were clearly and nervously aware. But the lion’s expression was pleasant, even rather gentle, and he seemed innocently fascinated by the stained-glass images along the walls of the throne room. The fox walking alongside him had a vivid orange-red coat. She was much shorter; the top of her head barely reached the lion’s shoulder. Like the lion, she wore trousers, but she also wore a black halter top, trimmed in white lace, around her breasts, which were human-like and quite large. The fox wasn’t muscular like the lion, but she was slender and fit, with a pronounced hourglass figure. She had a long, bushy tail; the lion, oddly enough, had no tail. Tia noticed that, while the lion seemed fascinated, even somewhat overwhelmed, by the majestic appearance of the throne room, the fox seemed far less impressed. There was cunning in her face, and her eyes glittered with obvious intelligence. The princess made a mental note that, while the lion looked more dangerous at first glance, the fox was the one to be wary of.
The guards halted a dozen paces from the throne, and the visitors did the same. The captain of the guards turned to the strangers. “Bow to their glorious majesties, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna.”
The visitors bowed deeply, then rose again and faced the two princesses. The lion was smiling; the fox’s face wore a slight smile as well, but her eyes were narrowed and tightly focused as they carefully moved from one royal to the other.
Tia spoke in her best formal voice, a voice which was polite, even friendly, but also powerful and authoritative. “I bid you greetings,” she said. “If you will, please introduce yourselves.”
The fox was the one who answered her. “I’m Kira, Your Majesty. I’m a wizard from the kingdom of Aloria.” She nodded to the lion at her side. “This is my husband, Sir Toby.”
“Hi there!” said the lion. Then, noticing a frown on the face of his mate, he added, “I mean, hello, Your Majesty.”
The fox turned back to the princess seated on the throne. “Toby is a captain in the order of knighthood known as the Holy Brotherhood, Your Majesty.”
“Very impressive,” Celestia replied. “May I ask why you have to come to E?”
“We’re adventurers, Your Majesty,” said the fox named Kira. “We’ve traveled to many different lands. And when we heard about your kingdom, we decided that we’d like to visit it.”
“I see,” the princess replied. “And please, let’s not be so formal. You’re my guests, so I hope you’ll just call me Tia.” She smiled. “I’m afraid we may not have any adventures for you, however. Everything is peaceful at the moment.”
“That’s what we heard,” said Kira, “and that’s another reason we chose to come here. You see, we need a vacation.”
“There’s a third member of our adventure team,” Toby added. “He’s a barbarian warrior named Ulf. But he didn’t want to take a vacation, so he didn’t come with us.”
“That’s a shame,” Princess Celestia replied.
“No, it isn’t,” the fox retorted. “Let me tell you, Your Maj --- I mean, Tia. You’re better off not meeting Ulf.”
“Now, love,” the lion admonished his mate. “Ulf’s not so bad.”
“Compared to what? A rabid hellhound?”
Toby sighed. “Look, I admit he’s a little rough around the edges.”
“Rough around the edges!” the fox exclaimed. “He makes Conan the Barbarian look like Casper the Friendly Ghost!”
“What a shame that he hasn’t come,” Luna remarked to her sister.
“Yes, isn’t it,” Celestia replied in an ironic tone.
Toby turned to face the two princesses. “Please don’t think that Ulf has anything against your kingdom. He just said that he didn’t want to go on a peaceful vacation. He --- uh --- he likes lots of action.”
“He likes killing monsters,” Kira huffed. “And that’s about the only thing he likes. He isn’t really happy unless he’s up to his elbows in blood and gore.”
“He sounds like a charming person,” Tia ventured.
“Oh, you have no idea,” Kira groaned. “And I have to put up with him because he’s my husband’s friend.” She glared at Toby. “I love you, dear. But you have terrible taste.”
“No, I don’t,” he replied. “After all, I married you.”
“True. I guess you only have terrible taste when it comes to choosing friends … not when it comes to choosing a mate.” The fox turned back to the two princesses. “Anyway, your kingdom is safe. Ulf refused to come here because was afraid that he wouldn’t find any monsters to kill.”
“Actually,” Princess Luna noted, “we do have monsters here.”
The fox was surprised. “You do?”
“Certainly,” Luna answered.
“Well,” Tia hurried to explain, “not here in the castle.”
“Not as far as we know, anyway,” the other princess added.
Her sister frowned. “Luna, what are you insinuating? You know very well that there are no monsters in Canterlot Castle.”
“Do I really? Some of the dungeon passages beneath the castle haven’t been explored in years.”
Tia rolled her eyes. “All right, that’s true. But if there are monsters living down there, they’re awfully quiet monsters.”
Toby took a step forward and bowed to the two royals. “If it would be of service to you, Your Majesties, we’d be happy to explore those dungeon passages for you.”
An expression of horror crossed Kira’s face. “Dear,” she said through clenched teeth, “we’re on vacation, remember?”
Princess Celestia smiled and shook her head. “Thank you, Sir Toby, but that won’t be necessary. I’m sure that there’s nothing more dangerous than spiders in our dungeons. And we wouldn’t think of asking guests to perform chores for us. You’re here to rest and refresh, after all.”
Kira seemed deeply relieved. “Thank you, Tia.”
“Excuse me a moment,” Tia replied. She leaned down so that her face was only a few inches from her sister’s. “Have they been truthful?” she whispered.
Luna nodded. “They haven’t told any lies yet,” she whispered back.
Tia gave a satisfied smile and turned back to her visitors. “May I ask where you plan to stay while you’re here in Equestria?”
The two adventurers shrugged. “We haven’t looked into that yet,” Toby admitted. “Are there any hotels nearby?”
“Of course,” Tia replied. “But I’d prefer to have you to stay here in the castle.”
The lion and fox seemed quite surprised by this offer, and Celestia noticed that Luna and the guards were even more surprised --- they in fact appeared rather shocked by the suggestion. But Tia was not deterred. The visitors had come to her kingdom for a vacation; they had stated that, and Luna’s spell had confirmed that it was the truth. Moreover, they seemed pleasant enough. They clearly had interesting stories which she would like to hear. And besides, she couldn’t send them out into the street; it would be rude, and the strangers’ appearance would frighten the citizens. The only solution was to house them in the castle. There they could rest without frightening anypony. There she could hear their stories and learn about their kingdom. And if they were in the castle, she could keep an eye on them. Yes, that was for the best. Luna and the guards might not approve, but Tia’s mind was made up. The strangers would stay here.
The fox, for the first time, seemed as overwhelmed as her mate. “Your Majesty, we greatly appreciate your kind offer, but we certainly don’t want to put you to any trouble.”
“It’s no trouble at all,” the princess replied with a smile. “We entertain guests all the time. We have plenty of guest rooms where I assure you that you will be very comfortable. And I couldn’t think of sending you out to search for a hotel. It’ll be dark soon, and you aren’t familiar with the area. No, you’ll stay here tonight. I insist.” She turned to the guards. “Please lead our honored guests to the visitors’ wing. The admiralty suite on the top floor is vacant, I believe; take them there. And see to it that they have everything they require in the way of food and drink.”
The captain bowed. “As you command, Your Highness.”
Kira took a step toward the throne. “Thank you for your hospitality, Tia. We really didn’t expect this, and we’re very grateful.”
“Think nothing of it,” the princess replied. “Go and make yourselves comfortable. I’ll come by soon to make sure that you have everything you need.”
The visitors bowed again, and the guards led them out of the throne room. The two princesses watched them go. As soon as they were alone again, Luna turned to her older sister with a dark frown. “Tia, have you lost your mind?”
Celestia sighed. “Look, what would you have me do? Turn them out so that they could go spread panic in the streets? It’s better to let them stay here. Your spell proved that they were telling the truth; they came here for a vacation, not to make trouble. And besides, I’m a firm believer in hospitality.”
“All right,” Luna grumbled, “but just to be safe, we need to keep an eye on them.”
“Of course,” her sister replied. “I’ll assign a guard to watch them.”
“The lion looks like he could be dangerous if he chose to be,” Luna continued. “But the one who really concerns me is the fox. There’s something about her … I just don’t trust her.”
Tia nodded in agreement, and her expression became solemn. “Neither do I,” she replied. “Neither do I.”

2

An hour later, Toby was walking around the admiralty suite for at least the tenth time, marveling at its luxurious furnishings. “Can you believe this?” he asked his mate.
“What I can’t believe,” she replied caustically, “is that you were presented to two princesses, and you greeted them by saying HI THERE!”
The lion’s faced flushed red enough to be seen beneath his golden fur. “Well, I’m not used to meeting royalty.”
“That was obvious,” Kira snapped.
“Tia didn’t seem to mind,” Toby shrugged. “She was super nice.”
“Maybe a little TOO nice,” the fox muttered.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean that it makes me suspicious when somebody does something that doesn’t make sense. Why would she insist that we stay in her castle when she doesn’t know anything about us?”
Toby frowned. “I thought you were happy about it.”
“I was at first,” Kira admitted. “But the more I think about it, the more it bothers me. I get the feeling that she has something up her sleeve.”
The lion laughed. “She doesn’t have sleeves.”
“Well, something under her crown, then. Just keep your guard up, that’s all I’m saying.”
“Hey, you know me,” Toby replied as he flopped down onto the suite’s bed, an enormous piece of sumptuous furniture. “I’m a knight of the Holy Brotherhood. I’m always on alert.”
The fox wizard glared at her mate as he lay upon the soft bed. “Yeah, it sure looks like it.”
There was a knock upon the door that led into the suite. The two visitors heard Princess Celestia’s voice calling to them. “May we come in?”
Kira glanced at Toby. “Why is she asking that? It’s her castle.”
Toby rose from the bed. “She’s just being polite.”
“We’ll see,” Kira retorted.
They left the suite’s bedroom, made their way through the parlor and opened the door. Princess Celestia stood there in the hallway; Princess Luna was with her.
“Is everything satisfactory?” Tia asked. “Are you comfortable?”
“Everything’s great!” Toby beamed. “Come in, come in!”
The two princesses entered the parlor. The visitors noticed that Luna’s horn was glowing slightly, and then they saw the reason for it --- she was using her magic to bring a teapot and four teacups into the suite. The pot and cups were floating in the air behind her. “I brought tea,” she announced.
“That sounds great,” said Toby. “Thank you.”
The four settled down in the parlor, with Toby and Kira sharing a sofa while the two princesses simply sat upon the carpeted floor. For several minutes they sipped tea and made small talk; Celestia wanted to be sure that they found the accommodations to their liking. Did they like the décor? Was the bed large enough? Was it soft enough? Was it perhaps TOO soft? Toby and Kira assured her again and again that everything was perfect and that they were grateful for her hospitality. Eventually she seemed satisfied.
“I should be going soon,” announced Luna, who seemed rather bored by the mundane chit-chat. “I’m the Princess of the Night. It’s my duty to patrol the skies above the kingdom each night, to ensure that all is well.”
“That sounds like an important job,” said Kira.
“Indeed it is,” Luna replied.
“So,” Tia asked her guests between sips of tea, “what do you plan to do while you’re in Equestria?”
“Nothing in particular,” Kira answered. “Rest. Take life easy for a change.”
“I’ll probably spend my time working out,” said Toby. “And playing games.”
Luna’s ears perked up. “Oh? What kind of games?”
“Oh, all kinds. Board games. Card games. Sports games. I’ll just need to find someone to play with. Kira gets bored with games pretty easily.”
A broad smile spread across Tia’s face. “I think I know someone who might play with you.” She turned her gaze toward her sister.
Toby’s eyes widened. “You like to play games, Princess Luna?” It had never occurred to him that a princess would enjoy such things.
Luna shrugged. “A little.”
Celestia laughed. “A little? Luna, be serious. You LOVE playing games.”
The younger princess seemed annoyed, as if a great secret had been divulged, but she didn’t try to deny it. “There’s nothing wrong with playing games.”
“Of course not,” Tia assured her. She turned to Toby. “I warn you, though, Sir Toby … she’s VERY good. And she doesn’t like to lose.”
“I never lose,” Luna remarked. “But sometimes the game ends before I can win.”
The lion grinned. “I bet I can find a game where I can beat you.”
“Doubtful,” the little princess replied.
“Oh, that sounds like a challenge!” Sir Toby roared cheerfully. He turned to his mate. “Could you summon the chest, love?”
The fox sighed. “Right now?”
“Sure! I want to show Princess Luna some of our games before she needs to leave for her patrol.”
Kira frowned, but she set her cup of tea upon a nearby table and gave a wave of her right hand. There was a puff of magical energy, and suddenly a large black trunk with shiny brass facings appeared on the floor beside the sofa.
Toby rose from the sofa, opened the magic chest and began rummaging through it. “We keep all of our stuff in here,” he explained.
“A magic chest,” Tia marveled. She looked at the fox. “You really are a powerful wizard, Kira.”
“Of course,” the fox replied. “You didn’t suspect me of lying to you, I hope.”
“Oh, no, I would never have even considered such a thing,” Tia assured her. No one noticed Luna rolling her eyes.
Toby pulled a small box from the chest. “Here’s a card game that I really like. It’s called Hearthstone. Have you heard of it, Princess Luna?”
“Certainly,” she replied. “I’ve beaten everyone in the castle who has dared to play me.”
“Well, you haven’t beaten ME,” the lion reminded her with a broad smile.
“But I soon shall,” Luna replied.
And so for the next few hours the gathering in the admiralty suite’s parlor broke into two groups. Toby and Luna played Hearthstone while Kira and Tia chatted. And before long, everyone in the parlor was getting along so splendidly, an observer would have thought that they were old friends.
Luna had always loved playing games, but she found that Toby made the experience even more enjoyable than usual. He was a worthy opponent who provided a real challenge, and while Luna took the game seriously --- she refused to admit that she ever lost a hand, and so when Toby won she simply remarked that her cards had failed her --- Toby kept the competition from becoming too serious. He complimented Luna on her strategies, laughed when she beat him, asserted that he’d been lucky when he won, and teased her when she played an especially powerful card, accusing her in a joking fashion of using her magic to summon just the card that she needed. Soon Luna was laughing and teasing him as well. It also helped that Luna won about three out of every five hands that they played. Had Toby won the majority of the time, Luna’s mood would have been far different.
Meanwhile Tia and Kira chatted about all sorts of things --- the challenges of working magic, the differences between Aloria and Equestria, the weather ---but the topic which really animated them a discussion on washing and styling one’s hair. Luna joined in this last discussion, managing to play a winning hand while simultaneously providing a long dissertation on the problems she faced due to the fact that her mane was saturated with magic.
Every half hour or so, Tia reminded Luna that it was time for her to start her nightly patrol, or that she was late for her patrol, or that she was VERY late for her patrol. Luna always replied that she was in the middle of a hand, or that she was going to play one more hand before she left, or that she had just encountered a hand in which her cards had failed her and surely she couldn’t be expected to leave without giving them a chance to redeem themselves. The party broke up well after midnight when a couple of nervous guards came pounding on the door of the admiralty suite, announcing that Princess Celestia was missing and asking if the visitors had seen her. The guards were simultaneously confused, startled and relieved to see the princess emerge from the suite, bidding good night to her guests. She then made her way, yawning and sleepy-eyed, to her personal quarters. Her sister stayed behind for “one more hand.”
Tia overslept the next morning; a valet finally roused her. She apologized for missing a staff meeting and for being late for breakfast. Luna didn’t turn up at breakfast, so Celestia sent a servant looking for her, and suggested that he start with the admiralty suite. The servant returned to report that he’d found the princess sleeping on a sofa in the admiralty suite’s parlor, and that she would be along shortly. Luna arrived in the breakfast room just as Tia was finishing her meal.
“Well,” Tia asked, “did you win?”
“Of course,” came the reply. “I always win. Well, almost always.”
“Poor Toby,” the older princess smiled. “A valiant knight, beaten by a mere wisp of a pony.”
Luna yawned. “He’s quite good, actually. Beating him was a challenge. And I greatly enjoyed playing with him. He just needs to play more aggressively.”
“So you’re more aggressive than a lion?”
“Does that surprise you?” She picked at a bowl of fruit and cereal but didn’t seem particularly interested in it.
“Did you ever go out on patrol?”
Luna shrugged. “I’ll go tomorrow.” She yawned again. “How long are our visitors staying?”
“They haven’t said.”
“I hope they stay awhile. I like Toby.”
“Kira seems nice too,” said Tia. “And she’s very intelligent. Do you know that she was valedictorian of her class at the College of Wizardry?”
“Yeah, I heard her mention that. Three or four times, I think.”
“Well, there’s nothing wrong with being proud of one’s achievements.”
“Good, because I’m proud of the fact that I just conquered a lion.” Luna decided that she wasn’t hungry, and began walking away. “I’m going to bed. Tell Toby that I’ll give him a rematch later.”
“What if he wants to leave?”
Luna seemed startled. “Why would he want to leave so soon? He just got here.”
“Well, we don’t know what he and Kira intend to do on their vacation. Perhaps they’ll want to leave and visit other parts of the kingdom.”
“They can do that later,” Luna insisted with a frown. “If they want to leave, you need to tell them that it’s rude to stay only one night. That’s like saying that they don’t like it here, or that they don’t appreciate our hospitality. Tell them that we insist that they stay for at least a few days.”
Celestia smiled again. “I thought you didn’t want them here. Now you don’t want them to leave?”
Luna sighed. “Whatever, Tia. I’ve got to get some sleep. Good night. I mean, good day.”
“Good day, sister.”
Princess Celestia watched her sister go, and a smile spread across her face. Luna was happy because she’d won a card game, but Tia was even happier, because her decision to house the two strange visitors in the castle had been validated. Thanks to that decision, she and Luna were happy, her visitors seemed happy, and the citizens of Equestria hadn’t been thrown into a panic by the sight of a large lion wandering through the streets of C. "Maybe my judgment isn’t so bad after all," Tia said happily to herself.
Before going to bed she had dispatched a trusted guard, Sergeant Cloudrunner, to keep watch over the two visitors. Now it was beginning to appear that this would not be necessary; there certainly didn’t seem to be any reason to worry that Kira and Toby would cause trouble. Even so, the princess decided not to rescind the order. Better to be safe than sorry. Besides, Sergeant Cloudrunner had been serving in the castle for years; he was a fine fellow, and he knew the castle like the back of his hoof. He could serve as a guide, helping to prevent Kira and Toby from getting lost in the castle’s maze of corridors.
Celestia had no idea that assigning a guard to watch her two new guests was going to cause a serious problem.

3

Toby and Kira had been sound asleep in the sumptuous bed provided by their hosts when Tia’s servant had come knocking at the door of their suite in search of Princess Luna. The princess had awakened at once, and she had been embarrassed to realize that she’d fallen asleep in the suite that her sister had provided for their guests. She was also alarmed by the realization that it was morning and that she had neglected her nightly patrol. But Toby and Kira assured her that they weren’t offended by the fact that she’d slept in their parlor, and the servant assured her that all was well in Equestria. The princess then left for breakfast, still offering apologies to the two guests as she stumbled drowsily out of the admiralty suite.
“What time was it when you came to bed?” Kira asked her mate.
“I don’t know,” he admitted. “It was late. Luna was having so much fun, I couldn’t bear to tell her that I wanted to stop playing. And besides, she’s royalty. It’s hard to tell royalty what to do.”
“Must be nice, being royalty,” the fox mused.
There was another knock at the door. A look of annoyance crossed Kira’s face; it seemed that no one in the castle would leave them alone and let them rest. Some vacation! But her attitude changed when Toby opened the door to reveal another servant bearing a huge platter heaped with bacon, eggs, toast, butter, jelly, strawberries, grapes, hash browns and orange juice. “Are you ready for breakfast?” asked the servant.
The two guests cried “Yes!” at the same time. Lions and foxes are always ready to eat.
Twenty minutes later, their bellies full, the two vacationing adventurers agreed that life in Canterlot Castle wasn’t bad at all. “But there are two more things that I need in order to make everything perfect,” Kira informed her husband as she sat back on the cushioned sofa.
“What’s that?”
“First, I’m tired of having these ponies knocking on our door. So I want you to put a DO NOT DISTURB sign on it.”
“All right,” Toby replied. He found pen and paper in a desk, scrawled the words DO NOT DISTURB on the paper, then propped the makeshift sign in front of the door. He then turned to his mate. “What’s the other thing you want?”
She gave him a coy smile. “I want to know what it’s like to make love in a royal castle,” she replied. With that she rose from the sofa and strode into the bedroom. And, needless to say, Toby quickly followed.
It was nearly noon when they awoke again, nestled in each other’s arms where they had fallen asleep after an hour of expressing their love together. Kira and Toby were very different in many ways, but they both truly loved each other, and they both greatly enjoyed expressing their love in bed. Even after their initial passion had subsided, they had continued to kiss and stroke and hug each other. Each one relished the feel of the other’s body. They were still newlyweds, really; they often fell asleep while pressed close together, and woke the same way.
They woke now to find bright sunlight streaming into the bedroom through a nearby window. Kira gave her mate a good-morning kiss, then disappeared into the bathroom, where she turned on the shower. A few minutes later, Toby mischievously joined her in the shower. She told him to get out --- then wrapped herself around him and refused to let him leave.
Eventually the two adventurers dried themselves and got dressed. They were late for Lunch now, but thanks to the large breakfast they had eaten, they weren’t all that hungry, and surely they could find a sandwich or snack somewhere in the castle to tide them over until supper.
Kira was running a brush through her hair when she stopped and looked at her mate. “What do you think about these ponies?”
Toby beamed. “I think they’re great. They’ve been even nicer than I’d expected. Letting us stay in the royal castle, feeding us, playing games with us … I can’t see how they could be any nicer.”
The fox pondered for a moment. “I agree. Last night, when we first settled into the room, I started wondering whether they had some ulterior motive for insisting that we stay here. But they seem too nice for that.”
Toby laughed. “You’re always suspicious.”
She shrugged. “I’m a fox. That’s the way we are. And with good reason, most of the time.”
“We lions aren’t like that.”
“No, because you figure that if someone tries to harm you, you can just flex your muscles and roar at them, and the problem is solved. I can’t do that. So I always keep one eye fixed on an escape route.”
“You want to escape from this wonderful place?”
“No, not at all. I love it here. I think I’d know if we were being spied upon, and I don’t see any evidence of that. It’s not like they’ve got guards watching us, or spies listening in on our conversations. They really are treating us like honored guests.” She smiled. “I could live like this forever.”
The lion grinned. “Somehow I don’t think Tia would want us to stay quite that long.”
“Probably not,” the vixen agreed. “But it looks like we’re finally going to have a nice vacation. And I hope it lasts for a long, long time. I don’t know when I’ve ever been this happy.”
They finished making themselves presentable, then left the suite. As soon as they stepped into the hallway, however, they found themselves facing a guard who was lounging against the wall just a few paces from the door of their suite. And suddenly the expression on Kira’s face turned from brightest sunshine to darkest night.
“Hello,” said the guard, who had a pair of wings sprouting from beneath his armored jerkin. “I’m Sergeant Cloudrunner. I’ve been assigned to you today.”
Kira and Toby looked at the guard for a moment, then at each other, then back at the guard. They said nothing, because they were too shocked to know what to say.
The guard broke the awkward silence. “Where would you like to go?” he asked. “I know you’re not familiar with the castle, but I can take you wherever you like.”
“We can find our own way, thank you,” Kira replied in an icy tone.
“Oh, no, ma’am,” said Sergeant Cloudrunner. “I’ve been ordered to stay with you at all times.”
The fox’s eyes grew even colder and darker. “Who gave you that order?” she demanded.
“Princess Celestia,” he replied.
There was another long, awkward silence. Once again the guard broke the silence, though he was now becoming as uncomfortable as the two visitors. “If you’re hungry, I can lead you to the smaller of our two dining halls, the one where lunch is served.”
Kira just continued to glare at the guard, but Toby shrugged and decided to make the best of the situation. Eating lunch sounded like the best option. “Sure,” he said to the guard. “Lead the way.”
So the lion and fox followed Sergeant Cloudrunner through a maze of corridors and down a flight of stairs to an informal dining hall set with a dozen small tables rather than the one long, ornate table which was used in the formal dining hall. It was true, both Kira and Toby had to admit to themselves, that it would have been very difficult to find the place without the guard’s assistance. Even so, they weren’t cheered by his presence. On a more positive note, they were welcomed by a servant who acted as if they weren’t late for lunch at all, even though it was an hour past noon. They were encouraged to order whatever they liked. Soon they were enjoying a flank of roast boar. But they still weren’t able to fully relax, because Sergeant Cloudrunner stood nearby throughout the meal, never letting them out of his sight.
When Kira and Toby announced that they were ready to leave the dining hall, the guard asked them where they would like to go. They replied that they had nothing in mind, so he offered a tour of the castle. Kira decided that this was an excellent idea; it would allow her to familiarize herself with the place in case it was necessary to escape later. And indeed she was beginning to feel that it was time to formulate an escape plan. So the sergeant led the two on a tour of the immense fortress.
The visitors found themselves deeply impressed. The castle was even larger than they had realized, and whereas it had been a quiet place with lots of empty rooms and corridors when they’d arrived the previous evening, they found it a lively place now. The classes provided for gifted unicorns were in progress in one wing of the castle; the fox and lion found dozens of young unicorn ponies staring at them as Sergeant Cloudrunner led them past the classrooms where various spells were being practiced, often incorrectly. At one point a young pony’s attempt to impress the visitors with a small burst of fireworks instead resulted in a cloud of black, reeking smoke that struck Kira directly in the face. She coughed and choked as she hurried away. “I hate amateurs,” the fox wizard grumbled.
They were leaving that wing of the castle when they came upon Princess Celestia, who was entering the education area in order to see how her teachers and pupils were doing. The princess greeted the visitors warmly, said that she hoped Sergeant Cloudrunner’s services were proving useful, and invited them to join her in the formal dining hall for supper at six o’clock.
Kira decided upon a little test. “We hope that we’re not putting you out by staying here,” she said to the princess.
“Not at all,” came the reply. “Please stay for as long as you like.”
“Thank you,” said the fox. “But we really don’t want to overstay our welcome. So perhaps we should be on our way after supper?”
Tia seemed horrified by this suggestion. “Oh, we really don’t want you to leave us so soon. Why, we haven’t had a chance to hear very much about your adventures in Aloria. And Luna would like to play more games with Sir Toby. Please stay with us for at least a few days.”
“All right,” Kira replied coolly. But then she aimed a meaningful glance at Toby, and the lion swallowed hard. It was definitely starting to appear that his mate had reasons for her suspicions. These ponies didn’t seem to want to let them go.

4

Kira and Toby were back in the bedroom of the admiralty suite. They were alone, but all thoughts of romance had now been pushed aside; they had other matters which needed to be discussed. And they discussed those matters in hushed voices, since they feared that Sergeant Cloudrunner might have his ear pressed against the door of their suite.
“Do you really think that they’d stop us from leaving if we tried to go?” Toby asked his mate.
The fox frowned. “I guess it’s impossible to know for sure, but it sure seems like they want to keep us here. They have a guard watching our every move, and Tia made it clear that she doesn’t want us to leave. It’s like we’re prisoners.”
Toby tried to inject some levity into the situation. “Maybe we should have brought Ulf. Then they’d be happy to let us go.”
“They’d have kicked us out already,” Kira agreed with a grim smile. “But this is no laughing matter, love. We might be trapped in this place. We don’t know that for sure, and we don’t know WHY they would want to force us to stay here; but I guess it doesn’t really matter why. The important thing is to find a way out.”
“We could slip away during the night,” the lion suggested.
“Princess Luna patrols the place at night. And she can fly. There’d be no way to hide from her, or to outrun her.”
Toby pondered the matter for a moment. “Well,” he said at last, “maybe we could escape through the dungeons beneath the castle.”
Kira’s eyes lit up. “That’s brilliant!” she exclaimed. “She couldn’t possibly see us if we were underground!”
The lion beamed. “I’m just full of brilliant ideas.”
His mate gave him a teasing smile. “That’s not what you’re full of, love.” Then she grew serious again. “We don’t know if the dungeons have an exit, though.” She tapped a finger against her chin and considered the matter. “Hmm … maybe we could get Tia to give us a tour of the dungeons after supper.”
“Won’t that make her suspicious?”
“Maybe. But we could just casually mention that Sergeant Cloudrunner showed us the rest of the castle, and that we’re curious to see the dungeons as well. After all, we’re adventurers. We like to explore dungeons, right?”
“That’s what everyone thinks,” Toby said, rolling his eyes as he did so. “But the truth is that I’ve had an aversion to dungeons ever since that crazy king of the Diamond Kingdom chained me to the wall of his dungeon.”
“Don’t remind me. When I protested, he chained me up next to you.” She frowned at her mate. “For that matter, I seem to recall that you chained me to the wall of that dungeon on Harbor Isle.”
“I had no choice, love. You were under a vampire’s spell. Anyway, I freed you as soon as the spell was broken.”
“I’m surprised Ulf let you unchain me.”
“He tried to talk me out of it,” Toby admitted.
Kira shook her head and sighed. “And now it looks like we might be trapped in a royal castle by a bunch of little ponies.”
“Just another day at the office for us, wouldn’t you say?”
The vixen laughed. “More or less. We’ve been through a lot of weird stuff. Being held captive by ponies on our vacation is something we probably should have expected.”
Toby grinned. “We should write a book about our adventures.”
“It wouldn’t sell,” his mate shrugged. “Nobody would believe a word of it.”
“Probably not,” the lion agreed. “Well, anyway, we’ve got almost three hours until supper. I think I’ll go work out in the gym that the guards use.”
“Fine. I suppose I’ll take a walk through the palace gardens. Make sure that you don’t stay at the gym too long. You’ll need to leave time for another shower before we go downstairs to supper.”
Toby’s eyes brightened. “Maybe we can shower together again?”
Kira responded with a coy smile. “That depends on how sweaty you are.”
“In that case, maybe I’ll skip the workout and go straight to the shower.”
“Oh no you don’t!” the fox replied with a laugh. “Get out of here!” And he didn’t argue, because he was ready for some exercise. Besides, although he hadn’t been married to Kira for very long, he had already learned that arguing with her was always a bad idea.
The rest of the afternoon passed by without incident. Toby’s weightlifting session left the guards gaping at him and giving him a wide berth; even by lion standards, Toby was unusually strong. Meanwhile Kira enjoyed a calming stroll through the carefully-tended palace gardens. Back in the castle, Princess Celestia devoted herself to her usual daily duties, and Princess Luna slept. All was peaceful. Kira found herself wondering, as she sat on an ornate stone bench surrounded by roses and violets, if perhaps she had jumped to conclusions. She certainly didn’t feel like a prisoner now. There wasn’t even any sign of Sergeant Cloudrunner; it turned out that he had gone off duty after leading the two visitors back to the admiralty suite, and Tia had apparently failed to issue an order for another guard to take over the task of watching the visitors. An oversight, perhaps? Or perhaps the princess had decided to stop spying on her guests? Kira pondered the matter and debated whether she and Toby should try to leave. She still hadn’t reached a decision by the time she went back inside the castle.
The fox and lion shared another shower, a long and luxurious shower punctuated by plenty of wet, warm kisses. But they were dried and dressed by six o’clock, when a servant arrived at the door of their suite to escort them to the formal dining hall. They found it an extraordinarily elegant room, and it was large enough to seat as many as thirty guests. But around the long, polished wooden dining table, the vast majority of the seats were empty. Besides Kira and Toby, the only diners were the two princesses (Luna was still yawning, having only recently risen from bed), four ponies who were members of the local nobility, and a somewhat crotchety old stallion named Kibitz who served as Tia’s advisor and schedule-maker.
The meal was excellent, and it was served in several courses. Before long even the fox and lion were too full to eat any more. The dinner conversation was light and pleasant; Tia introduced her adventurer guests to the other diners, then the princess adroitly divided her attention between the various dinner guests, managing to keep all of them feeling that she was deeply interested in each and every one of them. No one felt left out. It was clear that Tia had mastered the art of dinner conversation. Luna meanwhile was mostly silent; she ate what was put in front of her and she listened to what was said, but she seemed still half asleep. Or perhaps she was just bored. Unlike her sister, Luna didn’t find dinner conversation particularly stimulating.
Kira waited patiently for an opening that would allow her to bring up the possibility of a dungeon tour without seeming to specifically request it. Finally she saw her chance. Tia asked her if Sergeant Cloudrunner had done a good job of showing her and Toby around the castle. “Yes, certainly,” the vixen replied. “He showed us everything except of course your private living quarters --- and the dungeons. I suppose he felt that it wasn’t appropriate to take castle guests into the dungeons, although it wouldn’t have bothered Toby and me to go down into them. We’re professional adventurers, after all. We’re right at home in dungeons.”
Tia took the bait at once. “Oh, would you and Sir Toby like to see our dungeons, then? I’d be happy to take you there.”
The fox smiled. Sometimes it was almost too easy for her to get others to do what she wanted. (That was especially true of Toby; he provided no challenge at all.) “Why, yes, I think that would be interesting,” she said to Tia. “We’ve seen the rest of the castle, so we may as well see the dungeons.”
The princess hesitated. “I should warn you that it’s rather dark and musty down there.”
“We wouldn’t expect anything else,” Kira purred. “Every dungeon we’ve ever entered has been like that. It won’t bother us.”
“All right then,” said Tia. “We’ll go down there after supper, if that’s agreeable to you.”
Luna became alert for the first time. “Sister, I was planning to play Hearthstone with Toby after supper.”
Tia shook her head. “Our guests want to tour the dungeons, Luna. There will be time for gaming afterward.”
“No, there won’t,” Luna retorted. “I’ve got to start my patrol at nightfall. By the time you finish showing them the dungeons, I’ll have to leave. I suggest that the gaming should come first, and the dungeon tour should come after that.”
Tia started to object, but Kira hurried to smooth things over. “That should work just fine, Princess Luna,” said the fox. “We’re in no hurry to see the dungeons. We can certainly wait until nightfall.”
Tia nodded to her guest. “Thank you, Lady Kira, for being so flexible.” She frowned at her sister. “And so courteous.” Luna pretended not to notice, choosing this moment to take a long drink from the cup of tea in front of her.
Kira also now chose to take a drink from the ornate golden goblet that had been provided for her. Holding the goblet in front of her prevented the others at the table from seeing the smug, self-congratulatory smile that had begun to spread across her face.

5

After supper, once the other guests had left the castle to return to their homes, the two princesses and their adventurer guests retired to a drawing-room beside the formal dining hall. Kibitz joined them there; apparently his purpose in doing so was to harangue Princess Luna about the importance of her nightly patrol. He had been made aware of the fact that she’d failed to go out on patrol the previous night, and he clearly wasn’t happy about it. Luna grimaced, assured him several times that she would most certainly go out on patrol tonight, and finally grew tired enough of the subject to begin using her Royal Canterlot Voice, at which point the old stallion wisely decided that it was time to retire for the night. The four remaining in the drawing-room split up into the same groups as the previous evening; Tia and Kira sat together and chatted, while Luna and Toby played cards.
Tia wanted to hear more about her guests’ adventures in Aloria, and Kira was always happy to talk about herself, so the vixen spoke at great length. When after awhile she journeyed a bit further into her past, talking about her education at the College of Wizardry, Tia mentioned something that caught Kira’s attention. “I never went to college,” the princess mused. “I received my training in magic from Starswirl the Bearded, Equestria’s greatest wizard. He’s gone now, sadly, but I think of him every day. He was a wonderful mentor and friend. He kept a library and a laboratory in the dungeons. I’ll show them to you when we go down there.”
The fox’s ears perked up. “There’s a library containing books about magic in your dungeons?”
“Why, yes,” Celestia replied. “That library is rarely used, however. I have my own library in my private suite, and the school that we operate for gifted unicorns has a library as well. Every now and then if I find a gap in my spellbooks I visit Starswirl’s library, to see if any of his books might shed light on the subject. But that’s rarely necessary nowadays. I’ve added to my spellbooks over the years, and they have become quite complete.”
“I’d be thrilled to see an ancient wizard’s private library,” said Kira, and this was the first time she’d spoken about the dungeons without a hidden agenda; these words were entirely true. She was fascinated by the idea of seeing Starswirl’s collection of spellbooks.
“I’ll be happy to take you there,” Tia smiled. Then she nodded toward her sister. “After Luna has finished her card game, of course.”
“There’s no hurry,” the other princess snapped without looking up from her cards. “Starswirl’s library has been down there for centuries, and it’ll still be there an hour from now.”
Tia sighed and glanced over at one of the nearby windows. “Oh, look, it’s dark outside. I can see the moon rising over the treetops.”
Luna scowled. “All right, all right, I get the hint.” She looked at Toby. “I guess this will have to be our last hand. Unless my cards fail me, that is. If that happens, I’ll be obligated to give them a chance to redeem themselves.”
But Luna’s cards provided her with an easy victory, and she was smiling again as she rose to leave the drawing-room. “I enjoyed playing with you, Sir Toby. Better luck next time.”
The lion smiled back. “Thanks, princess.”
“Call me Luna. Shall we play again tomorrow?”
“That’s fine by me, Luna.”
“Then it’s settled. We’ll play again tomorrow after supper. That’s a promise, now.” She glanced at her sister. “No excuses. Any tours or other nonsense will have to wait.”
Tia rolled her eyes but made no objection. Satisfied, Luna left the room.
“Well,” Tia asked her guests, “would you like to tour the dungeons now?”
“Yes, thank you,” Kira replied. The fox had been eager to tour them all day, and now that she’d heard that the dungeons contained a library full of books about magic, she was more eager than ever.
The princess nodded and led the way through a series of corridors to the rear of the castle. There in front of a set of ancient doors stood a bored guard who came to attention upon sight of Tia. There was a heavy wooden beam across the doors, and the beam was fastened in place by a large iron padlock. “Please allow us entry into the dungeons,” the princess said to the guard.
The guard saluted, produced a key, unlocked the padlock, and raised the wooden beam. Tia thanked him. Then her horn glowed for an instant and the ancient doors opened to reveal a stone staircase leading down into utter darkness.
Celestia turned to her guests. “I’ll light the way with my magic as best I can, but even so, please watch your step. We won’t be able to see as well in the dungeons as we can see elsewhere in the castle. Also, the staircase is extremely old and some stones may be loose.”
“We’ll be careful,” Kira promised.
The three descended the steep staircase. Kira glanced back over her shoulder and was relieved to notice that the guard had left the doors open. Like any fox, she disliked being trapped behind locked doors. Toby, on the other hand, didn’t bother to look back. He always figured that if he found himself trapped behind a locked door, he could just break it down.
The feet of the two adventurers made no sound on the stone staircase, while Tia’s hooves clattered across the stairs and sent echoes reverberating through the dungeons. Her horn lit the way, but only for a short distance; even with their keen fox and lion eyes, the two adventurers could see no more than a dozen paces ahead. Beyond that was utter darkness. Though this made for an eerie sensation, there was no thought of turning back. Kira and Toby had been in dungeons before, so while the darkness put them on their guard, they weren’t afraid. They had met and mastered far more dangerous dungeons than the one beneath this gentle pony’s castle.
They reached the bottom of the stairs and found themselves in a small room with two open doorways, one of which led to the left and the other of which led to the right. There was a painted sign on the wall, advising visitors which way to turn. The sign stated that Starswirl’s library was to the right, so Tia led her guests in that direction. To the left, according to the sign, lay an armory.
Kira purposely lagged behind the other two as they made their way down the corridor which led to the library. When the fox was certain that she was far enough behind them that they couldn’t see her, she quickly cast a spell. This spell produced a sliver of softly glowing light upon a nearby wall. Kira touched the light. “Invisible,” she commanded in a whisper. The light disappeared, but the magic remained. Kira had created a magic portal. It wouldn’t last longer than a day or two, but while it existed, it provided her with a way to return to this very spot. She smiled; she now had her own secret entrance into Tia’s dungeons. The fox then hurried to catch up with the others.
She found them waiting for her. “We lost you for a moment there,” said Tia, with obvious concern in her voice. “Was there a problem?”
“Nothing serious,” the fox answered. “I had a pebble stuck between my toes, and it was bothering me, so I stopped to remove it.”
The princess looked closely at Kira for a brief moment; she had the distinct feeling that the fox had just lied to her. But then she pushed that thought aside. The only time she’d had a spell cast to determine whether or not her guests were lying to her, she’d learned that they were telling the truth. So she wouldn’t jump to any conclusions now, based on nothing more than intuition. Still, foxes were known for their sly and somewhat devious nature, so if Kira should disappear again, perhaps it would be a good idea to start keeping a very close eye on this particular fox.
They resumed their march through the dungeon corridor. They came to a closed door, and Tia paused there. She turned to face her guests. “What you see behind this door may startle you, but I assure you that it’s nothing that can harm you.”
Toby shrugged. “We’ll be fine. Go ahead; don’t worry about us.”
The princess nodded and pushed the door open with one of her hooves, then led the way through the doorway. It opened into a very large cavern. There was some sort of phosphorescent material embedded into the walls to provide light, enough light to see the entire cavern. At the far end of the cavern there was another door, and the word LIBRARY had been carved into the rock above that door. Between the three dungeon visitors and the library door was a trench in which lay the skeletal remains of some huge, snakelike beast.
Tia gestured toward the long-dead beast. “In Starswirl’s day, this giant basilisk served as the guardian of his private library and laboratory. But both Starswirl and his guardian are now long dead.”
“Poor thing,” said Kira, looking at the basilisk’s dusty bones.
“Oh, don’t feel too badly, Lady Kira,” the princess replied. “This basilisk led a happy life for one of his kind. They enjoy living in dungeons, you know. When he was alive, that trench was kept filled with water. He liked that. Starswirl fed him well, and whenever I came down here, I always brought him a treat. I called him Mister Fangs. He became more of a pet than a guardian, really. He would even wag his tail when he saw me.” She smiled at the memory. “When he died, I offered to have him removed, but Starswirl said that it would be too much trouble to carry such a huge beast up the stairs, and besides, he said that every dungeon should have a skeleton or two. So we left Mister Fangs here.”
Tia turned away from the remains of the basilisk and walked calmly toward the door which led into the library. She entered, with Toby and Kira close behind. At last they were in the old wizard Starswirl’s private library, and the two visitors weren’t disappointed in the least by what they found there.
Bookshelves crammed full of ancient tomes lined three of the library’s walls, and in addition, there were desks and tables strewn with various fascinating artifacts, devices, experiments and doodads.
Kira strolled around the room, taking it all in, her eyes glittering. As she passed a bookshelf, she turned to Tia. “May I take a look inside one of the books?”
The princess smiled. “By all means.”
The vixen selected the oldest-looking one that happened to be within arm’s reach. She skimmed a few pages, murmuring to herself as she did so. She found the material fascinating, for after all she was a professional spellcaster, but she also quickly realized that there was probably very little in the library which would be of great use to her. The spells and incantations all related to unicorn magic; they dealt with using one’s horn to produce certain types of effects. Kira had no magic unicorn horn; she produced magic by means of words, thoughts and hand gestures. Still, even if the material wasn’t something she could use, she found it extremely interesting.
Toby thumbed through a book as well but soon put it back onto its shelf; it was just meaningless jargon to him. He was drawn more to the dusty artifacts arrayed on the desks and tables. Meanwhile Celestia wandered across the room, a room which was familiar to her and yet one which she hadn’t visited in … how long? A year or two?
The princess halted at one of the bookshelves, spied a particular book, and smiled. Her horn glowed and the book jumped off the shelf, then hovered in the air before her. “Lady Kira, come see this. This is the first book that Starswirl used for teaching me the basics of magic, when I was just a filly.”
Kira shelved her book and walked over to see the book that Tia had selected. She scanned a few pages and laughed. “Very simple stuff, but a good choice for a beginner. I bet Starswirl was an excellent teacher.”
“Oh, yes. And very patient with me.” She sighed. “Such wonderful memories! It doesn’t seem like it was so long ago. And yet it was. Oh well.”
Tia turned away from the old schoolbook and nodded toward another door, one which the visitors had scarcely noticed amid all the exciting objects in the room. “That door leads to Starswirl’s laboratory. When you’re finished with the library, we can go and see that.”

“I could spend days in this library,” Kira replied. “But let’s go ahead and see the lab. We kept you up awfully late last night, and we don’t want to do the same tonight.”
“It’s kind of you to think of me,” said Tia. “And I’ll admit, I do want to get to bed earlier tonight. I’m a little old-fashioned, I fear; I generally retire early, and rise early. Anyway, let me show you the laboratory.”
The lab proved to be just as fascinating as the library. There were magic objects of various sorts, including a full-length magic mirror which Tia said she and Starswirl had used for a time in the distant past as a way of visiting another world. “But it’s been disenchanted now,” she said. “Which is a good thing. We eventually learned that visiting that other world caused problems in our world.” The guests examined the various objects, and in most cases Tia was able to explain their use or tell a story about what Starswirl had done with them. But there were a few objects which she couldn’t explain. “Only Starswirl knows what that was used for,” she said in those cases. “And since he’s gone, I guess that will remain a mystery.”
At last they left the left the lab and library, and returned to the small room at the foot of the staircase where they had begun their dungeon tour. Tia started to ascend the staircase which led out of the dungeons.
“Wait,” said Kira. “Aren’t you going to show us the rest?” She pointed to the corridor which, according to the sign, led to the armory.
“Oh, we can go there if you like,” the princess replied. “But there’s really nothing to see down that way, just a few racks of weapons that have been stored in case of a siege. And some escape tunnels.”
The fox’s ears came fully erect. “Escape tunnels?”
“Yes. They’ve never been needed, and hopefully they never will be. But if the castle is ever overrun by enemies, there are hidden tunnels which lead to safety beyond the castle walls.” Tia wrinkled her nose. “I don’t think you want to see those, however. They’re just long, musty corridors, nothing but wood and earth and stone, and I’m sure they’re full of cobwebs by now, since nopony has set foot inside them for years and years.”
“I see,” Kira nodded. “But they lead outside?”
“That’s right.”
The vixen and lion exchanged glances. Now they knew of a way to escape from the castle if necessary. And that was why they had wanted to come down into the dungeons in the first place.
Toby spoke up. “I don’t suppose there’s any need for us to see the armory. Let’s just go upstairs. It’s getting late.”
Tia smiled, and it was clear that she was relieved by this suggestion. “I agree, Sir Toby. We’ve seen enough for one night. And it’s time for bed, anyway.”
The princess and her guests left the dungeons, and as they walked off toward the residential wing of the castle, Kira saw the guard re-locking the double doors. By doing this, he undoubtedly felt that he was preventing anyone from being able to enter the dungeons.
But the guard was wrong, Kira said to herself with a smug smile. She now had a secret way to enter them whenever she chose.

6

Kira and Toby returned to the admiralty suite and were soon asleep. But Kira’s sleep was fitful and troubled; finally, in the wee hours of the morning, she woke and found herself unable to get back to sleep. She nudged her sleeping husband several times --- the last nudge was more like an assault --- and so Toby woke up as well.
“What’s wrong?” the lion asked. “Is something bothering you?”
“Yes,” the fox sighed. “I can’t stop thinking about those escape tunnels.”
Toby narrowed his eyes; he didn’t understand this at all. “Why are you upset about the escape tunnels?”
“I’m not upset about the escape tunnels,” she retorted. “It’s just that I didn’t get to see them. I didn’t get to confirm that they really provide us with a way out.”
The knight was still confused. “You think Tia might have been lying?”
Kira gritted her teeth. “Not exactly. Look, I know it sounds crazy to you, but I need to see the escape tunnels. I’m a fox. I don’t feel comfortable if I’m trapped. And I still think we might be trapped in this castle. So until I know for sure that I’ve got a way out, I just don’t feel safe here.”
Finally the lion understood. “I see. So you’ve got to see the escape tunnels or you can’t sleep.”
“Exactly.” She sighed. “You probably think I’ve lost my mind, but …”
“No, I don’t think that, love.” He sat up in bed. “Tell you what. If you need to see the escape tunnels, I’ll tell Tia that we want to take a tour of them tomorrow.”
Kira frowned. “Actually, I want to see them right now.”
The lion blinked. “Now? All right, I’m starting to think that you’ve lost your mind.”
“Listen, the sooner I see them, the sooner I can get back to sleep. And this is the perfect time. Everybody in the castle is asleep, except maybe for a few guards. We can check out the escape tunnels, then come back to bed, and nobody will ever know we were down there.”
“But the doors leading to the dungeons are locked and guarded,” Toby pointed out. “How are we going to get down there without anyone knowing?”
“That’s not a problem. While we down there, I set up a magic portal. It’ll allow us to enter the dungeons without using the doors.”
“Really? When did you do that?”
“Never mind.” The fox rose from bed and began getting dressed. “Come on. Let’s go and get this over with so I can sleep.”
Toby groaned. “Do I have to go with you?”
“You don’t expect me to wander around in that dungeon alone, do you?”
“No, I guess not.” He reluctantly left the warm bed. Then he had another thought. “Why do we need to get dressed? We aren’t going to meet anybody down there.”
“We are NOT walking around in Tia’s castle naked,” Kira shot back. “You never know; we might meet someone. Now get your clothes on.”
“Tia doesn’t even wear clothes,” Toby pointed out.
“But we do. Get dressed!”
There were no further arguments. A minute later, the fully-dressed adventurers were ready to return to the castle’s dungeons. Kira cast a spell to set up another magic portal, one which was linked to the portal she’d created earlier. She demonstrated to Toby that it functioned like a doorway; walk in such a way that you come in contact with the portal, and you’re immediately teleported to the other portal. And so, just like that, Kira and Toby found themselves standing in the total darkness of the dungeons.
“Oops, forgot to cast a Light spell,” the fox mumbled. She made a quick gesture that lit up the dungeon corridor in which they were standing. Then she led the way toward the corridor that reportedly led to the armory --- and the escape tunnels.
They walked quickly and silently through the dark, musty corridors. There was nothing to say, and they both felt that they should be as quiet as possible, just in case some pony with unusually sharp ears might be able to hear them. They found the armory without difficulty, and they found several narrow passages leading away from it. Presuming that these must be the escape tunnels, they chose one at random and began walking through it. As Tia had predicted, there were cobwebs galore. The tunnel continued for quite some distance, to the annoyance of both adventurers, who were anxious to reach the end of the tunnel so that they could confirm that it provided them with a way to exit the castle, at which point they could return to their nice warm bed.
Finally they reached the end of the tunnel. But what they found was not what they’d expected at all. And at once they realized that something was very wrong.
There was a small but sturdy wooden door at the end of the tunnel. At one time it had been locked from the inside, with a wooden beam reinforcing the lock. But now the beam lay broken on the floor of the tunnel, the door was slightly ajar, and upon the floor nearby were at least a dozen large, rubbery eggs of some sort. Moreover, there appeared to be something wriggling around inside each egg, as if the creatures contained within the eggs were about ready to hatch.
Toby examined the door and found significant damage. “Someone or something broke this door open from the outside,” he deduced.
“But why?” Kira wondered. “And how did these eggs get here?”
“I don’t know, but I’m sure they’re not supposed to be here. None of this is good. Tia said there was nothing down here. She needs to know about these eggs. And about the fact that something has broken into her dungeons. Although I gather that the break-in didn’t happen very recently. There’s a trace of a scent on the door, but it’s pretty faint. Whatever broke into this tunnel did so months ago, I’d say.”
The fox became nervous. “We can’t tell her about any of this, love.”
Toby frowned. “Kira, she needs to know.”
“Yes, but if we tell her, she’ll know that we came down here without her permission. And then she’ll be asking how we came down here, and WHY we came down here, and, well, we’ll be in a lot of trouble.”
The lion folded his massive arms across his equally massive chest. “It doesn’t matter. This is important. We can’t let some enemy invade the castle just so we can stay out of trouble.”
The fox frowned back at her mate. “So you believe it’s more important to keep Tia and her little pony friends out of trouble than to keep you and me out of trouble?”
“I believe in doing the right thing,” came the answer. “Tia has been good to us. And even if she hadn’t been good to us, she deserves to be safe inside her own home. Everyone deserves that. If she’s in danger, we owe it to her to let her know. If we kept quiet about this and then learned later that some enemy had sneaked into the castle and harmed her, would you be able to live with yourself?”
Kira thought about that for a moment, then gave a defeated sigh. “No. You’re right. We have to tell her.” Then she glared at her mate. “But if she chains us to a wall down here for sneaking around behind her back, it’s all your fault. And I’ll never let you forget it.”
He rolled his eyes. “I can definitely believe that. All right, let’s go give her the news, before these eggs hatch. From the looks of them, that could happen pretty soon.” He decided to take one of the eggs along to show to the princess, so he selected the nearest one and tucked it under his arm.
Kira and Toby retraced their steps and soon found themselves back at the bottom of the dungeons’ main staircase. They considered walking up the staircase and leaving the dungeons via the double-doors at the top of the stairs, but they decided that this might give the guard a heart attack. So they used Kira’s magic portal instead. It sent them back to the bedroom of the admiralty suite.
Kira hesitated. “Should we at least wait until morning to tell her?”
Toby shook his head. “What if the eggs hatch before then?”
“All right,” the fox sighed. “Let’s go wake her.”
The two visitors didn’t know exactly where Princess Celestia slept, but they knew which wing of the castle contained her living quarters, so they headed in that direction. They met a guard, who was understandably stunned to see castle guests wandering around in the hallways in the middle of the night. It also seemed more than a little strange that one of the guests was carrying a large egg. But when the two informed him that they had important information that they had to share with the princess immediately, the guard didn’t argue. He led them at once to her private quarters.
There were other guards in that section of the castle, and they were reluctant at first to wake Celestia, but Kira and Toby made it clear that this was an extremely urgent matter, so finally a guard summoned a maid who quietly entered Tia’s parlor. A few minutes later the maid returned with a sleepy-looking Princess Celestia in tow.
The princess became wide awake when she saw her guests. “Lady Kira? Sir Toby? Why have you come here at this hour? Is something wrong?”
“Yes, Your Highness,” Toby replied, addressing her more formally than usual; that seemed appropriate in front of the guards and the maid. He held the egg out to her. “We found more than a dozen of these in one of the escape passages in the castle’s dungeons. And there was a door nearby that had been broken open from the outside.” He hesitated. “We thought you should know right away.”
Tia stared at the egg, then at Toby, then at Kira, then back at the egg. She had questions, so many questions that she was having difficulty determining which one to ask first. Finally she decided to focus her attention upon the egg. “That’s a changeling egg,” she observed. “And it appears to be almost ready to hatch.”
“What’s a changeling?” Toby asked.
Tia’s face grew hard. “It’s an enemy, Sir Toby. Changelings are winged creatures, and they’re very vicious. A few months ago, an army of changelings attacked the castle. We defeated them, but it was a hard-fought victory. We haven’t seen any evidence of them in Equestria since then.” She glared at the egg. “Until now.”
Kira spoke up. “Did any of them succeed in entering the castle?”
“Yes. But I wasn’t aware of any dungeon doors being broken down, or any eggs being smuggled into the dungeons.” Tia sighed. “We checked every inch of the castle to make sure that they hadn’t left any spies behind, but apparently we should have checked the dungeons beneath the castle as well. It would appear that some of the changelings were clever enough to hide a few eggs in an unused part of the dungeons. I guess they figured that eventually, when the eggs hatched, they’d have some young comrades in place who could grow up unnoticed underneath the castle. And when those young changelings grew big enough, they could break out of the dungeons and attack us from where we least expected it.”
One of the guards scowled and took a step forward. “Your Highness, if your guests will show us where to find these eggs, we will destroy them at once.”
The princess considered that for a moment. “I don’t believe in destroying living things if I can avoid it,” she replied. “Especially helpless little things that haven’t even hatched yet. Let’s just send them to Queen Chrysalis. They can hatch in her kingdom, where they belong.” She turned back to Kira and Toby. “Would you please lead us to the rest of the eggs? We can talk later about how you came to find them.” There was the slightest hint of anger in Tia’s voice, something that the two visitors hadn’t heard before, and they winced slightly. They knew that upsetting a royal personage was never a good thing, and they feared that they might soon be banished from Equestria or punished in some other way. But it also bothered them to realize that they had angered Tia. They both liked the princess very much, and were disappointed in themselves for upsetting her.
There was a sudden rustle of wings nearby, and an instant later Princess Luna flew into the hallway through a nearby open window. “What’s wrong?” she cried. “I saw the lights in the castle windows. Are we under attack?”
Tia answered her sister. “Not exactly, but our visitors found a nest of changeling eggs in the dungeons. And the eggs appear almost ready to hatch.”
Luna blinked. “Changeling eggs? How did they get there?”
“We don’t really know,” Tia admitted. “But clearly we need to deal with them right away. We’re on our way to the dungeons now if you wish to join us.”
“Of course,” Luna replied.
And so a group consisting of the two princesses, the two visitors and four guards hurried out of the residential wing of the castle. They raced to the locked double-doors which led down to the dungeon. Unlike the previous visit to the dungeon, this was to be no pleasant little tour, so everyone in the group was silent and stern. The guard at the dungeon doors was more than a little startled at being approached by this large, serious-looking group in the middle of the night, so he unlocked the doors with record-breaking speed and flung them open.
Once the group reached the bottom of the stairs, Kira and Toby led the way, since they were the ones who knew which corridor to take. The group marched quickly and quietly, and soon they were all gathered around the eggs, which fortunately had still not hatched. The princesses and guards briefly examined the eggs and the broken door; Tia then had everyone stand back while she cast a powerful spell. Her horn glowed a deep scarlet, and a few seconds later all of the eggs vanished, magically transported to the changeling kingdom. Tia’s horn then stopped glowing. She sighed and closed her eyes for a moment, exhausted by the effort of casting the spell. Finally, she turned to leave.
“Guards,” she said, “please search the dungeons for more eggs, and summon me if you find any. One of you however should remain here, to guard this passage until the royal carpenter has repaired the door. I’ll send him down as soon as I can.” Then she turned to Kira and Toby. “Meanwhile, would you two please come with me and Luna so that we can talk in private?”
The visitors nodded glumly. They were in trouble; the only issue remaining was to learn just how they were going to be punished. When they’d upset the king of the Diamond Kingdom a year earlier, they had been chained in a dungeon cell and an order had been issued for them to be hanged. They had escaped that, obviously. And they couldn’t imagine the kind, gentle Tia treating them as harshly as the Diamond King had treated them.
But then, they’d never seen Tia angry before, either.

7

Once they had returned to the castle’s ground floor, Celestia led the way to a small conference room. In the room was a round table surrounded by a dozen chairs. She gestured for her guests to be seated while she firmly closed the door to the room. She and Luna then seated themselves and faced their guests.
“So,” Tia asked, making sure to keep her voice calm and non-threatening, “please tell me how you happened to come upon those changeling eggs.”
Kira sighed. “It’s all my fault, Your Majesty.” She was no longer calling the princess by her name; that didn’t seem appropriate under the current circumstances. “I felt like I had to see the escape tunnels.”
Tia frowned. “Why? And how did you get down there?”
“Well,” said the fox, “let me answer the second question first. When you led us on the tour of the dungeons, I cast a spell that would allow me to return there if I needed to.”
The princess’ eyes darkened. “Why did you do that?”
Kira sighed again, a sigh that was almost a groan of despair. “Because I wanted to be able to return to the dungeons later.” She paused for a moment, and when she continued, she was nearly sobbing. “Please understand, Your Majesty. I’m a fox. I have certain instincts. And one of those is that I can’t stand to feel trapped. By placing a magic portal in the dungeon, I gave myself a way to escape from the castle if necessary.”
Tia’s dark glare turned into a look of puzzlement. “A way to escape from the castle? Why would you need a way to escape from the castle? You and Sir Toby are free to leave any time you wish.”
“Are we?” asked the fox. “I haven’t felt so sure of that, Your Majesty. After all, you had a guard watching our every move.”
“Oh,” said the princess, and now it was her turn to feel embarrassed. “I didn’t mean for you to feel like you were being watched. I dispatched Sergeant Cloudrunner to help you find your way around the castle. That’s all.”
“I realize that now,” Kira replied, “but at the time I was afraid that maybe we weren’t going to be allowed to leave. You kept insisting that we stay, and the guard was watching us constantly, and … well …”
“You thought I might be holding you and Sir Toby as prisoners,” Tia interjected, sounding horrified. “Lady Kira, I’m terribly sorry that I gave you that impression. Truly I am. I assure you that I never thought of you two as anything but welcome guests.”
“I know,” said the fox, sounding miserable. “I’m sorry. But instinct is a powerful thing, Your Majesty. When I started thinking that I might be trapped, I decided that I’d better do something to make sure that I had a way out. Just in case, you know.” She looked down at her feet. “So I set up a magic portal in the dungeons. Then, when everyone else was asleep, Toby and I went back to the dungeons, to make sure that there was an escape route we could use if necessary. We weren’t actually planning to leave the castle. It’s just that I couldn’t sleep until I was sure that I wasn’t trapped, that I had a way out if I ever needed it. All I was planning to do was to confirm that there was an escape route, and then I was going to go back to bed.” She shook her head sadly. “But then we found the changeling eggs.”
Toby spoke up. “Once we found those eggs and the broken door, we knew that something was wrong and that you needed to know about it, Your Majesty. So we had you awakened right away.”
“Now I understand,” said Tia. She pondered the situation for a long moment. “You know,” she said at length, “you could have just gone back to bed. You didn’t need to wake me. If you’d just gone back to bed, I’d never have known about your nocturnal dungeon visit.”
“No, Your Majesty,” said Toby, “we couldn’t do that. We knew it wasn’t right for those eggs to be there and for that door to be broken open. We couldn’t just go back to bed knowing that everyone in the castle might be in danger.”
“So you decided to warn us,” Tia concluded, “even though you realized that it meant you might place yourselves in danger, by revealing that you’d gone down into the dungeons without my permission.”
Toby nodded. “Exactly, Your Majesty. I’m a knight of the Holy Brotherhood. I believe in doing what’s right, not just doing what might keep me out of trouble.” He paused, then added, “Besides, Kira and I wouldn’t be able to live with ourselves if we didn’t warn you about the danger. Think of how we’d feel if one of those changelings hatched and then went upstairs and hurt you. We couldn’t let that happen, Your Majesty. We had to warn you.”
“I see,” Tia replied in a quiet, thoughtful voice. She remained silent for a long moment. “Well,” she said at last, as a smile came to her face for the first time since she had been awakened, “I suppose there’s nothing more to discuss. Do you agree, Luna?"
"I do," her sister replied.
Celestia turned back to her guests. "Then please follow me.”
She led the way out of the conference room and down a corridor. Crossing into the throne room, Tia made her way to the main hall at the castle’s entrance while Luna and their two guests followed. They emerged from the castle out into the darkness, where two guards stood at the ready.
Tia spoke to the guards. “Hello, gentlemen. Would one of you be available to escort my guests into town, if they choose to go?”
“Certainly, princess,” replied one of the guards.
“Thank you.” She turned toward Kira with a smile. “There, Lady Kira. You see? You and Sir Toby aren’t trapped; you may leave wherever you wish. You may go by yourselves, or you can have a guard escort you.”
“I appreciate that, Your Majesty,” Kira replied. “I feel better now. Thank you.”
The princess nodded. “Please call me Tia. And now I’m going back to bed. I probably won’t be able to get right back to sleep, however, after all this excitement, so I think I’ll settle down with a cup of tea. Please feel free to leave if you like. Or,” and here her smile grew brighter, “if you prefer, you and Sir Toby may join me for tea in my suite.”
Princess Luna gasped. “Tia! We never allow visitors in our private quarters!”
“I think we’ll make an exception for these visitors,” said the older princess, “seeing as how they were willing to put themselves in danger in order to make sure that you and I and everypony else in the castle was safe.” She smiled at Kira and Toby. “If you’re leaving, please allow me to wish you safe travels and to let you know that you’re welcome to return whenever you like. But if you prefer to join me for tea, you’re very welcome to do so.”
“We’d be honored to join you for tea,” said Kira.
“Then let’s go,” Tia replied in a cheerful tone.
She led the way back inside the castle. A few minutes later, the two princesses and their guests were in the residential wing, where the guards stood open-mouthed at the sight of the guests entering their ruler’s private suite.
Kira and Toby found Celestia's parlor quite homey and comfortable. There were cushioned chairs and a beautiful leather sofa, but what they noticed first was the princess’ pet; she had a phoenix sleeping on its ornate golden perch at the far end of the parlor, and the bird uttered a loud squawk at sight of the fox and lion.
“Calm down, Philomena,” Tia said to the exotic bird. “These are friends.”
Luna instructed one of the guards to send for tea, and a fresh pot arrived soon afterward. Then the four settled down for a late-night (or perhaps early-morning) chat.
“I think you should know,” Luna said to the two visitors, “that this is quite an honor my sister is granting you, allowing you to enter her private living quarters.”
Tia waved a hoof. “Oh, let’s not make a big issue of it, Luna. Lady Kira and Sir Toby have proven themselves worthy and honorable friends. And while it’s true that I rarely permit ordinary castle visitors into my parlor, my friends are welcome here any time.”
“We’re honored to be considered your friends,” said Kira. “But I’m not sure we really deserve such an honor, seeing as how we had the foolish thought that you might be forcing us to stay in the castle against our will.”
Toby gave his mate an ironic smile. “Oh, WE had that thought?”
The fox frowned. “All right, love. YOU didn’t have that thought. I did. And I feel pretty silly about it now.”
“It was just a misunderstanding,” Tia shrugged. “And I made it worse by assigning Sergeant Cloudrunner to you without explaining why. Anyway, let’s forget about all that. The misunderstandings have been cleared up, so now you and Sir Toby can resume your vacation.”
This comment cheered up everyone, and the conversation shifted to the subject of how to best enjoy a vacation in Equestria. Luna described a few of the local attractions, and Tia offered to show the visitors around Canterlot once her duties permitted. Eventually they made plans for the upcoming weekend, and everyone was enthused. But by then everyone was also sleepy … except Luna, who was accustomed to being awake at this time of night. So they bade each other good night, and Luna volunteered to guide the two guests back to their room in the admiralty suite, since they hadn’t yet mastered the maze of corridors within Canterlot Castle.
Tia went right to sleep. She wasn’t entirely pleased when her morning alarm sounded; she would have liked at least another hour in bed. Still, duty called, so she rose, showered and prepared for her day. She cheered up at breakfast; she was quite hungry this morning, so the breakfast fare tasted delicious. And she was pleased to hear a report from the captain of the guards to the effect that every inch of the dungeons had been searched, with no more changeling eggs having been found. Now she could feel certain that there were no dangers lurking beneath her castle. She was humming to herself and enjoying a croissant when Luna showed up, looking unhappy.
“Why, sister,” said Tia, “what’s wrong? It’s a beautiful morning and the latest threat from the changelings has been eliminated. Why so glum?”
“I took our visitors back to their suite,” Luna grumbled, “and suggested that we play a hand or two of Hearthstone. But Toby fell asleep midway through the first hand, so Kira took over for him.”
“What’s wrong with that?” Tia asked.
Luna grimaced. “She beat me. She beat me seven hands in a row.”
“Oh,” Tia replied. “Well, she said that she was a college valedictorian, so you should have expected that she would be clever.”
“That fox is very frustrating to play,” Luna continued. “She lures you into traps. She makes you think you’ve got her in trouble, then springs a surprise. It’s maddening.”
“Well, don’t feel bad. She tricked me too. She sneaked into my dungeons, and I didn’t have the faintest clue that she was down there.”
“I’m going to beat her,” Luna muttered. “I don’t know exactly how, but I will. Playing aggressively doesn’t seem to work. I guess I need to be trickier.”
Tia shook her head. “You’re going to try to out-fox the fox? Perhaps you had better try playing some other game with her. Monopoly, for example.”
“I’m going to beat her,” Luna repeated over her shoulder as she stalked away. “Just you wait and see.”
Tia watched her sister go, then suppressed a chuckle and took another bite out of her croissant.

THE END

Author's Note

This novelette introduces Princess Celestia and Princess Luna to two of the main characters from the webcomic CHIVALRY AND KNAVERY. To see what those characters look like, go read the comic at . It's free, and it's a lot of fun!