Luna slept soundly on her massive bed of blankets and pillows. I picked up a large wool blanket, the threads of which were falling apart with the occasional tear or missing thread. I draped it over her as she slept, causing her to stir for a second, before rolling over and mumbling in her sleep.

“I’m glad you kept this old rag, but you need to throw it out eventually…”

She responded with mumbled words.

Quietly tiptoeing out, I slowly shut the large wooden door and looked at the two guards standing beside the door. Both had their heads leaning against the door and were softly snoring. I tapped the first one, and whispered good mornings to him as he rose. Before he could speak, I held a finger up to my mouth and shushed him.

He saluted, woke his partner up, and thanked me.

I left the door and made my way back to the stairs, dreading the slow climb down.

Each step was hell on my back, and my knees weren’t faring much better. After another good ten or twenty minutes, I reached the bottom and had to take a breather.

“One day… there has to be an elevator or something. Us old timers can’t keep doing this…”

After regaining my bearings, and grabbing the pipe out of my bag, I wandered through the castle looking for the courtroom. I had been in this castle several times, having been here since it was first built, but that didn’t change the fact that exploring it was always fun. There was a feeling of mystery to it, a sudden pull in my stomach like going down a hill too fast every time I wandered through the quiet halls. Only the sound of flames flickering on the candles filling the silence.

I stop and look out the window, it's the middle of the day, so the sun bears down onto the castle. The garden is just below me, a couple floors down, and I see ponies tending to it. I open the large glass window and lean over, breathing in. My pipe clatters against the stone archway around the window, reminding me to fill it up, so I do. I set my cane up against the wall.

I follow the same process every time. My old and practiced hands following a pattern that I’ve memorized. The method being so ingrained in me, that whenever I lose my sight, I’ll still be able to fill a pipe perfectly.

With the pipe filled, next came the light. Without missing a beat, and without looking away from the scenery, the pipe fit perfectly into my mouth. Clenching the mouthpiece between my teeth, a small box of matches found their way into my hand. Pushing open the small box and taking a single match out, I struck the red head against the starter and it burst into life. The burning smell reminded me of old times, and as the flames covered the opening on the end of the pipe causing the tobacco to burn, I pulled in. The flames drew closer to my fingers, so I shook the match causing it to go out. I tossed the dead match into a small metal tube I kept my spent matches in and took the pipe out of my mouth.

Every puff of smoke out of my mouth formed into a perfect ring, floating off and disappearing into the air as the gentle breeze blew through the opened window.

“Sir? Are you Grandfather Baccy?”

A female guardspony walked up to me, almost silently due to how hard I was focusing on the scene outside.

“Ah, yes. You can call me Baccy, or Grandpa, whichever you prefer.”

The scenery outside still demanded my attention. Ponies outside continued to work. The bird continued to sing. The animals of the small garden continued to scatter whenever a pony drew near. Some of the braver ones would stand strong, only to endure the incessant love the pony would bring in the form of small pets and nudges away from their work.

“The Princess requested your presence in the courtroom. Follow me.”

I stood still as she started to walk away.

“Sir?”

“Come here, the Princess isn’t getting much older by waiting a couple minutes. The beauty of nature is all around us, wouldn’t it be a shame to not enjoy it? Even for a sole second?”

“Sir, the Princess requested-”

“Oh I know what that young lady requests is always important. But I’m older, does that not mean my wishes are more important? I may not be royalty, but I heard ponies are taught to respect their elders.”

She huffed and walked over beside me. She brought her front hooves over the ledge and looked out, breathing in.

“Smell that? Thats time. That's nature itself growing, dying, and renewing itself. The wind itself is a force unstoppable. Nature is a true force.”

“Ponies have worked to work against that force. Pegasi can control the wind in some cases. Unicorns have magic to control wind. Earth ponies can harness and use nature.”

“Aye, that they can. But can any of them truly call THEMSELVES nature? To be a force so eternal, so elaborate, that scholars can write stories about even a single gust of wind.”

Puff after puff of smoke wafted from the pipe in my mouth as I leaned out. The guardspony beside me muttered something about ‘senile ponies’. I ignored it, for the most part.

I leaned back and motioned for her to step back as well. Closing the window, grabbed my cane, and took my pipe and checked it. A solid ten minutes or so of tobacco left in it. I looked around the still empty hall, besides the lonesome guardspony, there wasn’t a single other living soul in the way.

“Well, I suppose we’ve spent enough time enjoying the world as it is. It's not going anywhere after all. Maybe we should see what the Princess wants after all.”

“Yes, let us make haste. I feel we have wasted enough time as is.”

“Time spent enjoying life is not time spent wasted. It is when your tasks are filled with malice, that that time is wasted.”

“What are you, a seer?” She asked, looking over her shoulder as she began to walk away.

“To some, I may be. To others, I’m just an old coot!”

“I can see why some would think that…” She muttered.

“I’ve also noticed you’ve yet to introduce yourself. Truly a grown mare should know some manners?”

She began to seethe, being called out on her un-guardly mannerisms.

“My name is Sure Shine.”

“Sure Shine… Granddaughter of General Shoe Shine?”

She stopped her quick pace to look at me, “You knew my grandfather?”

I stopped as well, trying not to step on her back hooves. “Yes, I knew almost every guard in this castle. My memory may not be what it once was, but I try to never forget a cutiemark. Where I come from, it's more reasonable to say ‘never forget a face’ but I find you ponies almost always have similar cutiemarks compared to faces. Especially with your guards' outfits having enchantments to conceal your normal looks.”

She took off her helmet, causing her blue mane and white coat to suddenly shift to a dark brown mane and dark orange. The regulated blue eyes shift to light green.
“Yes, you look just like your grandfather, though your mane is a bit darker than his was.”

Looking down at the helmet in her hooves, she put it back on. The enchantment almost instantly shifts it back to the regulated look.

“I’m glad my grandfather made that much of an impression on you… And I’ve been told my mane is darker than my forefathers.”

“That it is, not a bad thing however. Now, let us make haste as you said.”

-=- -=- -=-

We made the rest of the way in silence, only stopping occasionally to let myself catch my breath. Every stairway we climbed down, and every long stretch of hall taking its toll on my old and withering body. This, of course, was not used as an excuse to clean out my pipe and fill it back up. I did this at every stop, much to the guardpony’s chagrin at being forced to wait on an elderly man.

“You know, I’m sure you wouldn’t be out of breath if you didn’t smoke so much.”

“I assure you, young lady, my smoking is no hindrance in this. If I didn’t smoke, I wouldn’t have made it halfway as fast as I am now.”

“Doesn’t that stuff hurt you more than it helps you?”

I looked down at my pipe. Almost as old and withered as I was. There were clear fingerprints at where I had held it over the years. It was hand carved, having been sanded down to a clean and almost soft finish. There were carvings all along the handle, the names of generations. From my oldest relative in family history, Sir Danield Evergreen. My some odd great-great-great grandfather. He had come to the United States back when it was still the colonies. Calling him only my four times over great grandfather was an understatement. There were over a dozen names carved onto the handle of the pipe.

The last name was of my grandson. A name I had almost forgotten as time went on. I rubbed my fingers over the name. He picked up the moniker “Mister Clean” after he had a fondness for cleaning. While not the most professional of jobs, I was happy he had found himself a suitable passtime. This nickname was carved over his name, one I had felt too fond to fix. I would remember his name in my heart and in my mind. He had carved his nickname himself into my pipe, who was I to fix that?

The pipe itself was wood, but the main centerpiece was of a feather tied to the head by a grey thread. A friend of my grandson had given the feather to me, after I had shown him my collection of pipes. He suddenly grew a fondness of pipes himself, even after a long attempt at persuading him not to start smoking, he had started anyway. I kept the feather and cloth as a keepsake. A friend of my grandson’s might have as well been family at that point.

“We’re here.”

I stopped my inspection of the pipe, taking a single puff of it in response. We stood in front of a large stone door, a line of ponies standing outside of it. Two more guardsponies stood beside the door, regulating who could come in and who had to stay and wait. The one who led me there saluted and let me in.

Entering the large courtroom, there was a single pony standing in front of a podium. In the centerhead of the room was Princess Celestia, sitting on a large stone throne. Not as regal as her normal throne, but made to be impressive and daunting for any other pony to sit on.

“Ah, Grandpa Baccy, glad to have you join us!” She called out, causing the pony at the podium to grow quiet.

“Ah, yes. I do hope I’m not interrupting too much. I’ll be quick in taking my seat.” I said, shuffling into the room and finding my place beside the Princess.

“Yes, we were in the middle of a small discussion. Would you care to listen in? Perhaps throw your own two bits in?”

“Don’t mind if I do actually, let me just get situated first. Go ahead and repeat the important stuff young man, I’m listening.”

The pony at the podium was fairly regular. A pegasus, with a blue coat and darker blue mane.

“Ah yes, alright. So, basically, the idea is I want funding for a pegasi show.”

I grabbed a couple cushions from behind the throne and set them on the ground. My cane sat against my legs, leaning on me just so I could grab it if I needed to stand.

“You’re part of the Wonderbolts, correct?”

“Ah, yeah! I’m Soarin. Our leader, Spitfire, is busy dealing with other matters, so they sent me in.”

“Alright, and by funding, how much exactly do you need for a show like that? I’ve seen your work, you must pull in a bunch of money from merchandising?”

“Merchandising?”

“Yes, as in producing your own memorabilia and selling it to the massing, procuring the funds you need to continue making the shows you are so famous for.”

“Well…”

“Well?”

“We usually let our fans do that.”

“Alright, let's work on the money first, then we can talk about that. How much do you need?”

“We were thinking a good… 10,000 bits would work?”

I nearly coughed on the smoke from my pipe as I breathed in too hard.

“What in the sam hill would you need that much money for? Your entire theater is just a bunch of clouds?”

“Well, for advertisements!”

I sat there quietly, wondering if the pegasus was being serious.

He sat there quietly, waiting for a response.

“Celestia, I think 100 bits to pay for several copies of fliers would suffice. As for you, I would say make your own official merchandise for ponies to buy, and have viewers pay for express seats. Seats that you would specifically fly closer to, so ponies could get a… ‘front row seat’ as it is.”

“I think that would work too, what do you say Soarin?”

He looked confused for a moment. “But what about advertisements?”

“How many competitors do you have to deal with, that you would have to out-advertise against?”

“Well, we’re the only ones that-”

“Exactly. You could probably get by with just word of mouth to pull in a large haul of viewers. Just take the 100 bits and be done. How much did Spitfire tell you to ask for?”

“Well, she didn’t necessarily. She asked that I go and tell Princess Celestia and ask that she appear.”

“And you thought asking for 10,000 bits is what she meant?”

“Well, I dunno…”

“Exactly. Celestia, do you think you’ll be able to make it to their show?”

She stopped and thought for a second, calling for a pony to come up with a ledger.

“It depends when I’ll be free… I should be good in two months to attend any show that comes up.”

“That works perfectly! Our next show is in literally two months and five days!”

I clapped my hands together, nearly dropping my pipe. The cane clattered against the ground as it slipped off my leg.

“Oop, sorry. But yeah, that makes everything perfect then! What's say we wrap this one up.”

“Oh, I think that's a perfect ending to this little charade you call a court hearing!” came a voice, echoing through the room.

The pegasi stopped before he could say anything and looked around.

Celestia, for being a nice shade alabaster, appeared to pale even more in comparison.

Suddenly, in the middle of the room appeared a mismatch of creatures. Every limb was a different animal, griffon claws, lion paws, horse hoof and dragon leg. Two different wings, two different horns, and what looked like a donkey’s mane. This creature stood easily taller than Celestia, Luna, and I combined. In his mouth was a single fang, like a snaggle tooth.

“Oh, it is so fun being free from that stone prison you trapped me in, but I think it's time I caused some true mischief, wouldn’t you say ‘Tia?”

Author's Note

Good evening, my grandchildren.

Your grandfather is still quite alive, and still telling stories for you to enjoy.

So take a seat, enjoy a nice drink, maybe even a smoke, both of which if you are of the appropriate age, and enjoy a continuation of our little tale.