It was Saturday afternoon, as I walked into a store and towards the bakery, to see what types of cake they had available. As I made it to the cakes, I looked through them and found a big chocolate cake that was perfect. I got to the counter and tapped the bell to call over whoever is available.
"Good afternoon." A small blonde lady walked up to me with a soft smile and stood up straight. "Is there something you'd like?"
"I was wondering,” I asked, “if you can get me that large chocolate cake, the third one on top row?"
"Sure, coming right up," said the lady, as she walked over to grab the cake.
The name is Bryan; thirty four years old and a retired police officer. I've been in the force since twenty eight, until I’ve decided to quit. I couldn't bear to handle the deaths I've seen. The one incident I witnessed death at first hand when I joined the force was when a nine year old boy has been kidnapped and I was trying my best to get over to said area. On arrival, I found the child dead on the floor with a gunshot on his back. I was so heartbroken that I fell onto my knees, picked the boy up and screamed to the ceiling. To this day, I couldn't forget it. It was the first time I have ever witnessed a dead body in reality, and not on some movie or show.
Besides being a retired cop, I now work on weekdays as a teacher's assistant at a high school few miles from where I live. The kids there are all so polite, and I still remember my first day - all they wanted to know was what it had been like, being a cop and all.
As for the reason why I got a cake today? It isn’t what you’d expect.
“Here you go," said the vendor, as she placed a large pink box in front of me, "that'll be $15.31, please."
I pulled out sixteen dollars and handed the money to her, as she put the money in and gave me back fifty nine cents.
"Have a good day," she said.
"Same to you," I replied, getting a hold of the box.
"May I ask, what's the cake for? You didn’t ask to write ‘happy birthday’ or anything. Just wondering."
"I'm gonna try and catch me that creature that's been on the news lately," I answered.
"You wanna catch it?"
"That's what the cake is for."
"Good luck," she said, giving me a thumbs up.
I smiled and made my way out of the store.
That's right, I'm using a cake to catch me a creature. For the past month, there have been rumors about a flying being that sneaks its way into people's home and apartments and steals food - especially cake. There was, for example, a family that had leftover cake, and when they woke up next morning, the cake was gone and there weren't any vegetables in the fridge either.
This creature has been a catch to my interest so much that I wanna catch it and see if it's true or not. The only proof of its appearance was caught on a teenager’s camera, when she filmed a three second video of something flying above her and disappearing behind buildings to her right.
So, here's how my plan will go: tonight, I'll turn off all the lights, place a cake on the coffee table, leave the sliding glass door open to make it think as though it’s free to enter. Once it starts eating the cake, I'll knock it out and take plenty of pictures before it can wake up. Who knows, I may want to call the cops and have this thing captured for everyone else to see.
Oh yeah, that sounds perfect.
It's 8:55 PM, as I began my plan for capturing the creature. I went to the kitchen, pulled out the cake from the fridge and placed it on the coffee table. Next, I opened the glass door and pushed curtains aside to let it know it's free to enter. Finally, I went to my room and pulled out my baseball bat and camera before coming back into the living room and turning off all the lights.
"And now I wait," I hid behind the couch, holding the bat tightly in my grasp.
I got very boring of waiting. As I look over to my clock, it said 10:25 PM. I let out a sigh and scratched the back of my head.
"This is getting boring," I whispered to myself, "perhaps I should call it quits for tonight and try ag--"
I got cut off as my ears picked up the sound of flapping wings coming closer and closer. My heart started beating very quickly, as the flapping stopped. My body shook with fear, unsure if this thing could kill me or, hell, eat me! Then, there were sounds of something eating. It made a few moans of pleasure, as it continued eating. Judging by the moaning, it sounded... female?
With my curiosity at its peak; I had to look over the couch. I slowly raised my head and looked ahead. What I saw was unexpected: an anthropomorphic unicorn pegasus... thing. The creature possessed a slender body of an hourglass shape. It had white fur and large, folded up wings. There's a horn on its head with a crown behind it, with a large purple jewel in the middle. Its mane and tail flowed like water, with multiple light colors of blue, green, and pink. On its wrists were gauntlets that looked as though they were made out of pure gold. On its buttocks were marks that looked like a sun.
"What is this thing?" I thought to myself. "Looks like something out of a kids show."
My mind became full of confusion to what I was witnessing. What kind of creature is this and why is it doing what it's doing?
The creature continued to wolf down the cake, as I sat quietly, still watching it behind the couch.
"I wonder if it's friendly... Yeah, this thing can't be that dangerous."
I gulped and slowly stood up.
"Uh, hello," I said, making the creature jolt and look at me with fright.
The creature immediately turned around and bolted straight for her exit. I took action and jumped over the couch to grab her tail, preventing it from flying away.
"Wait wait wait!" I shout. "Don't be scared! I'm not gonna hurt you!"
The creature looked back at me, and cocking an eyebrow.
"...You aren't going to hurt me?" it said with a feminine voice.
My eyes lit up; this thing can speak! "Y-you can talk?!"
"Yes, of course." I let go of the tail.
"Look, I'm sorry I scared you, but I knew you would come."
"And why's that?"
"You're quite popular in the media lately and I wanted to know if this 'creature' is real. They say you like cake, so I got one myself to lure you."
"Oh..."
"But now that I see you, you're not what I expected to be. I was imagining something like an alien, or a runaway science experiment, or some weird mothman."
"I'm not causing any harm for being here, am I?” She asked, worry in her words.
"If you were causing harm, people would try to capture you or even kill you. Did you kill anyone?"
"No. Never. I hate violence."
Talking to this creature is quite bizarre, but I feel as though I'm talking to a normal person.
"Would you like to come in? Have something to drink? I have many questions to ask you."
"How do I know I can trust you?"
"I swear I won't hurt you."
"You do?" She asks crossing her arms in disbelief.
"I swear." I hold out my hand to her.
She looked at me, then to my hand. Then, she slowly stretched out her hand and gently placed it in my grasp. Her hand was soft to the touch, like holding a soft blanket.
"Come on in," I said, bringing the creature back into the living room and setting her down on a chair before turning on the lights, "you may have as much cake as you want. I got it specially for you... creature."
"I have a name and it's not 'creature'." she retorted, albeit politely.
"I'm so sorry, where are my manners. My name is Bryan. Bryan Kicks."
"I'm Princess Celestia," She replied, "the Princess of Equestria."
"Equestria? Never heard of it. I don't know where that is, but it doesn't exist."
"It too exists."
"Wherever this place is, it’s not here. You're in New York."
"New York...? No. That can't be." Celestia placed her hands on her head, "Where is Equestria? Where is my home?!"
"I'm sorry Celestia, but there's no such thing as Equestria. Are you perhaps from another dimension?"
"Di… mention?" Celestia cocked an eyebrow.
"I'm not a scientist, but dimensions are different places with different things. Do you know how you got here? There has to be a reason."
Celestia pondered, as I took a seat on the couch.
"I... remember going into Twilight's home," she recalled, "then there was a bright light and then suddenly... I'm here."
"Perhaps something went wrong." I replied, "I don't know what happened, but you're stuck here."
Celestia's ears flopped and before I knew it, she began to sob. Seeing this poor crying really made me feel bad for her. Right beside me was a folded up blanket - I reached over for it and unfolded it. I walked up to Celestia and wrapped it around her, making her sobbing stop. She looks up at me with tears flowing down her cheeks. I took a knee to looked at her face to face.
"Celestia," I said in a serious voice, "don't cry. I can't stand to see a beautiful creature like you cry. How about this: I'll take care of you until a miracle of some sorts happen."
"You would do that?" she asked with a sniffle.
I took her hand and held it tenderly.
"I promise," I said, looking at her in the eye, "I'll take care of you."
She gave me a soft smile and pulled her hand away from mine, then hugged me tightly.
"Thank you... Bryan." she said happily, "Thank you."
We broke the hug to look at one another.
"So, would you like some tea?" I asked.
"I would love it. It's been a while since I’ve had some."
"Is lemon flavor good for you?"
"Sure."
I walked over to the kitchen and turned on the lights before opening one of the cupboards for a mug and a teabag. Then, I poured in the hot water and placed the teabag within it. I walked back into the living room and handed her the mug.
"Careful, it's hot." I said, sitting back down on the couch.
As she took few blows on her mug, I looked at and examined her. I have never seen someone like her.
"Do you mind answering some questions? Because I have a lot."
"Ask me some tonight, and we will continue the conversation tomorrow."
“Fair enough," I nodded, "my first question is: what are you? You look like a mix between a unicorn and a pegasus."
"I'm an alicorn," she answered, "I'm a princess where I come from, along with my sister Luna, my student Twilight, and my niece Cadance. We're a rare breed and there aren't that many of us."
"Are there any... male alicorns?"
"Sadly, no. All are female."
"Question number two: What's Equestria like?"
"Equestria is full of amazing things," said Celestia before taking a sip of tea, "many creatures, full of magic, and many friendships."
"Your place sounds better than what's going on here on Earth."
"Earth?"
"Earth is the planet that we are on. Right now you are on the continent of North America."
"What's so bad about here? This place looks amazing. I fly high at night and love looking at all the buildings and the lights."
"America has gone berserk since... never mind."
"What is it?"
"Never mind. It's something that's not that important. There's not much friendship around here, nor do we have magical creatures. Beings like you exist only in mythology and fantasy. There's no unicorns, no pegasi, no alicorns, and nothing else that's magical."
"Oh..." said Celestia, looking down at the floor.
"However, not everything about Earth is bad. There are good things. Movies, traveling to different places, beautiful sceneries and many other things to do. If you were human, I wouldn't mind showing you around New York. I grew up here and I've seen a lot of it. The Empire State Building, the museum, musicals, the theater, and much more."
"You have a theater?" she asked with amusement.
"Theater for movies and one for plays like The Lion King musical."
"The Lion King? What's that about?"
"Based off an animated film of the same name, and Hamlet by Shakespeare, it deals with a lion prince named Simba, who was destined to become king, but his uncle was jealous and wanted the throne for himself. He kills Simba's father and tells him to run away."
"Sounds amazing."
"If you like, I have the movie on blu-ray."
"What's that?"
"... I'm guessing Equestria doesn't have technology, does it?"
"Never heard of your kind of technology. I don't know much about technology, but I do remember this machine that one pony has that makes music."
"You have quite a lot to learn about us humans."
"Is that what you are, Bryan?"
"You are correct. That's what I am, a human."
"Tell me about yourself. That's my question for you."
"Well... I'm thirty four years old and I used to work for the police."
"Who are the police?"
"People who make sure everyone follows the law. Of course, there are those who abuse the privilege."
"They do?"
"All in all it's just another prick in the law."
"Why did you stop working there?"
"I couldn't handle the deaths I witnessed, especially the first one. The child was kidnapped and when I arrived... he was... dead..."
Just thinking about it made me wanna cry so hard.
"Out of all the deaths I've witnessed..." I said, a tear flowing down my cheek, "... why that boy?"
I placed my hands on my head and sobbed. The deaths I've witnessed were too much for me and they still haunt me to this very day, but most of all, that boy.
Then, I felt something soft and gentle wrap around me. I lift my head to see a white wing on my right gently pushing me to the left until I felt warmth. I looked up to see Celestia looking back at me, with sorrow in her eyes.
"There, there," she said tenderly, as she took a finger and wiped away the tear on my cheek, "everything will be okay. You're done with your job and nothing shall scare you when I'm here. Cheer up, Bryan. You're a kind and gentle soul and I can see within you that you are caring."
"Thanks... Celestia," I said, as I gave the alicorn a hug.
She chuckled and did the same. As I placed my head against her bosom, I could hear her heart beating. It felt... comforting. Celestia then gave out a yawn, and let go of me to stretch her wings.
"Oh my," she said, "I need some beauty sleep."
"If you plan on staying here, please take my room. I can sleep on the couch."
"Are you sure?"
"You are my guest, so please make yourself at home. I don't mind sleeping on the couch."
"You are such a gentleman," she smiled at me, "where is it, by chance?"
"Go into the hall and it's the second door to your left."
Celestia got up and walked towards the hall, but stopped. She looked back at me with a soft smile.
"Bryan... Thank you."
"You’re welcome... your highness," I replied, giving her the thumbs up.
And then she disappeared from my sight, leaving me alone in the room. I picked up her tea and went into the kitchen to rinse out the mug and put it in a dishwasher, before walking back and turning off the lights. I grabbed the blanket from the chair and laid down on the couch with a pillow behind my head.
"What a night," I thought to myself, "can't wait for tomorrow to hear more about her and everything else about this so-called ‘Equestria’."
Author's Note
Was originally gonna have this be a one chapter clopfic, but I decided to extend it a bit longer.
UPDATE 11/30/16: A special thanks to Grzby for proofreading this chapter
