You Called For Me

“So you just boil water in this and put the little bags in?”

Celestia returned from the balcony after starting the sun on its upward path and found Novo —now as a hippogriff— fussing over her coffee table’s tea service.

“You steep it, actually. Have you not had tea before?” Celestia asked, amused. “Teabags are good for beginners.”

“I’ve had tea before, just not this kind,” said Novo while she lifted the small bag in a pinch of fore and thumbclaw. She made a very deliberate dip with it into the kettle’s water which soon changed color. “Oh, would you look at that. Squeezing a mackerel is so much tougher.”

“Squeezing a ma—” Celestia began to ask when a scrambling sound came from the bedchamber doors. “Yes? Hello?” she called.

The large sun-marked door opened and the wide-eyed muzzle of Raven Inkwell appeared. “Princess! We saw the sunrise, you're here!”

“Where else would I be, my most observant assistant?”

Raven adjusted her glasses as she entered and stood at attention. Muzzle raised and prim enough to balance a book on her hairbun. “The guards said you were at the old palace, but nopony there had seen you and then the sun didn’t rise on time…” she gave a nervous glance over her shoulder. “There’s a situation.”

“Is there? I haven't seen any cannon fire in the streets which is an improvement from yesterday.”

“It’s the visiting Queen she’s mis—” Raven blinked at the sound of the teakettle pouring and finally peeled her eyes away from Celestia to notice the hippogriff at the table.

“She’s here,” Raven said dumbly.

“If only all our problems today could be solved so quickly,” Celestia cheerfully replied.

Raven fumbled in place before crouching on her forehooves in a bow. “Your majesty… majesties. My apologies!”

“Hello,” Novo said distractedly as she meticulously added sugar to the cup and stirred. “Did you need me for something?”

“It’s… Princess Skystar she’s—”

Novo’s head snapped around. “She’s what?”

Raven cringed at the pinning raptor glare, but before she could respond she had to stoop again when a blue and yellow feathered rocket flapped over her and zipped at Novo.

“Mom!” Skystar cried as she clung to Novo’s front. “You’re alright!”

Novo chuffled and combed over Skystar’s mane with her talons. “Of course I am. Why wouldn’t I be?”

“I couldn’t find you anywhere!”

“Funny. Usually, you’re the one trying to hide from me.”

“It’s just that you were gone! Like gone gone, like super no-pony-or-griff-saw-you-for-hours-and-hours gone!” Skystar’s eyes turned up in worry. “Where were you?”

“I was rolling in the hay with a pony,” Novo noted dryly. “Sound familiar?”

Skystar’s eyes fell to pinpoints, and she blanched. “H…How did you know?”

“I’m the queen. I know everything. Especially when you’ve been misbehaving.”

“M-M-Mom, it wasn’t like that. I mean I know you said I was grounded, but I didn’t fly at all. I just walked the whole way there. Well except for the parts I couldn’t, but that wasn’t like a lot of flying. That was just a little flying, more like a flutter and fluttering doesn’t count as flying it’smorelikejumpinglotsoftimesreallyreallyfast—”

“Enough!” Novo interrupted firmly.

Skystar cowered in place with her feathered ears splayed. “Are you going to double ground me?”

“Worse,” Novo intoned. “I’m going to give you a job.”

“Aieee! Not that! Anything but… that?” Skystar shrieked before her panic diffused halfway. “Umm... what?”

Novo smirked. “It’s about time a princess like you had one. I’m making you our diplomat to the ponies. Every time I visit here or the Princess visits us you’re going to help.”

Skystar straightened from her slouch and looked on with curiosity. “Help how?”

“Oh, decorations, food, arrangements, and the rest. I expect you to work closely with the pony ambassador,” said Novo before glancing over to Celestia.

“Pinkie Pie has done wonders with the Yaks, and I can think of no better pony who would also make a splendid delegate to the hippogriffs,” Celestia said with a smile.

Skystar’s eyes sparkled. “You mean I’ll get to see Pinkie all the time? That’s gre—” she paused, and her expression fought itself as she remembered she was being punished. “— I mean… ohhhhh nooooo.”

Novo couldn’t help but laugh at Skystar’s exaggerated frowny-beak and leaned to give her forehead a peck. “Go share the good news with your pink friend, mmm? She ought to know, we are going to be visiting plenty enough when they build that new train track.”

Skystar hugged at Novo’s neck and nuzzled happily. “Thanks, mom!” She splayed wings and turned to flutter off but hesitated. “It’s… uh... nice to see you smile.”

“Eh? What’s with you? I smile plenty.” Novo made a rather ferocious grimace full of beak teeth.

Skystar raised her claws up to cover her own beak and giggle. “L-Like that. You’re happy again.” An expression of fear struck Skystar suddenly, as if by pointing it out, Novo would remember to be unhappy.

Instead, Novo shook her head and chuckled. She glanced again over at Celestia. “A friend helped me shake some of those blues. I have a lot to look forward to now.” A grin returned to Novo. “You too in fact, why you might get a surprise around your birthday if we are lucky.”

“Aww but that’s months away!” Skystar complained. “Can’t it be now?”

She pouted when Celestia and Novo shared a long hearty laugh at her. “Fine, be that way! I’ll find out, you’ll see!” Skystar blew a raspberry and flapped towards the door, passing a heavily blushing Raven who followed her out.

“I suppose if she did the whole world would know by then,” Novo chuckled.

“It might happen sooner than you think. Raven was looking at the bed,” Celestia replied.

“Oh drat. Would she talk?”

“No, but the maids might. Gossip has its own kind of magic that has it finding its way to the loosest lips.”

Celestia turned to the balcony to perch her hooves on the railing. The morning crowds were starting to amble out in the courtyard below, starting their day now that she’d raised the sun.

Novo stepped in close beside her in a shameless brush of shoulder and flank. With a claw, Novo reached to take her hoof. “Pity. I wanted to get to the jewelers first. Maybe something coral themed.”

“Like I wouldn’t bury you in gold and amethysts before that,” Celestia teased. “You could do with a collar.”

Novo eyed Celestia’s neckpiece. “Like yours?”

“No. This is a peytral. I mean an actual collar for you.”

That drew a snort out of Novo, but she leaned close all the same. Celestia opened a wing and hugged it around her lover’s shoulders.

Distantly, there was the rare sight of one of the pegasi guards starting his patrol. He did a double take at the balcony and nearly flew into the tower.

“Are you nervous?” Novo asked quietly as she snuggled underneath the wing.

“Immensely,” Celestia replied, her eyes following a pair of ponies on the ground as one turned and pointed up at them. “But you said it yourself. There is much more to look forward to now. We’ll do it together.”