Celestia sat on her throne, boringly sifting through documents; her Sunday sun shone brightly through the open windows. Someone had to deal with the burgeoning amount of laws to accommodate Equestria’s ever-expanding populations. She stifled a yawn. Ever since her apprentice’s ascension, one or another, they’d absorbed many lands and species at an unprecedented rate, becoming an unofficial empire. No-court work days were now necessary.
Just as she stamped another document, a horn blew. This was a mild surprise because she had not planned for any visits today. But such was royal life, making room in her life for others. She set aside the royal seal, moved the stack aside, and presented herself as tall and proud. Two horns blew in tandem as the throne room doors opened. A most welcome surprise entered.
In walked King Thorax, newly crowned King of the Changelings, as bright green as she had recently heard. Two black, menacing-looking guards walked beside him. He waved them to stand next to her guards. The guards all stared at each but tolerated it. Thorax swiftly reached the base of her throne’s stairs.
Each monarch dipped their head in respect. She initiated the conversation.
“King Thorax, quite an unexpected visit.” Celestia made sure to act warm and polite.
Thorax emitted an aura of positivity. “Princess Celestia, I do hope it is not inconvenient.”
She smiled slightly. “I rather relish an occasional break from the monotony of Sunday”
“As do I,” he sighed, “As do I.”
Such a statement tickled her in an amusing manner. To share the burdened feeling all monarchs do reminded her of own humility and duties. Still, on to business instead of wondering thoughts.
“What brings you to Canterlot?”
Thorax nodded. “A matter of importance, to my people, regarding citizenship in any manner.”
This was not something she had foreseen; a rarity.
“I believe I thoroughly worked with your delegation to properly accommodate your peoples into our land.”
“Well, yes, that is true.” Thorax acknowledged, “But,” he hastily added.”Your delegation, however…” He took a moment to breathe in. “Do forgive me for my following bluntness.”
“The faster we resolve, the better, do go on.” Celestia double checked her mane flowed in a friendly manner.
“They forgot or overlooked possibly the most critical item on the agenda.” Thorax spoke rapidly, perhaps nervous in the face of a former foe. “It’s regarding the listing of sexes.”
“I cherish clarity.’ She truly did welcome it, compared to fancy language. “Before we move forward, what shall we do regarding my subjects?”
“Perhaps a newspaper entitled ‘Those responsible have been sacked’, Princess?” Thorax let out a small grin on his otherwise serious face.
“Perhaps so, perhaps so.” Celestia returned with a gentle giggle. “Yes, I shall be sure to talk with them.”
Thorax tapped his foot. “Now, we shall move on.”
“Of course.” Celestia used her horn to grab and float the pending law in changeling rights. “Regarding that, Equestrian law equally supports all, male, female, and nonbinary."
Thorax spoke gruffly. “You forgot a rather special item.”
“I….” Her face went awry. “I…. am not certain what we did wrong. May you enlighten me?”
“Enlighten the sun queen?” Thorax chucked. “Very well–intersex.”
Celestia felt confused but maintained her composure. “I believe I have heard that term tossed around, I admit. But I thought it was something covered by our law.”
“And it is not, hence I sought your audience to plead my peoples' case due to your oversight, as well as for those in your own ‘empire’.”
The princess rubbed the back of her head in awkwardness. “Heh, yes, haha, ‘empire’.” She looked at Thorax, whose eyes glowed with understanding. “Anyway…. if you can help me understand, I shall implement it quickly.”
“Very well,” Thorax said. “I begin with some questions.”
“Proceed.”
“What are the sexes assignable at birth, and later changeable, by law in Equestria?”
This was simple, though Celestia realized it now was not. “Male, female, and neither.”
“And what genders, and as such identities?” Thorax gestured his hoof at the copy of the current Equestrian lawbook Celestia had nearby.
“Well, of course male and female are the most common," Celestia began listing, “The term transgender represents those who feel opposite opposite to their birth. And non-binary is an a broad term for that to not fit in those aforementioned, such as non-conforming and genderfluid."
“Therein lay the rub.”
“I know intersex is being born with an ambiguous mix of physical or genetic characteristics, but I do not realize the problem.”
Thorax sighed, “The ‘problem’, Celestia, is that changelings, by definition, are born intersex, not ‘neither’. Nor do you seem to fully understand everything within the term non-binary as a result.“
This further clamped on what she thought she comprehended. “I am aware that transgender is to feel you are the other side, regardless of if you commit to the physical change to appear as such. Does that not apply to your case?”
Suddenly, Celestia heard a clinking of armor from one of her guards as he shifted in place. Clearly, Celestia could tell what she had just said was wrong on so many levels that everyone in the room knew it. How out of date was she with the modern world?
“Um, Princess, it is… very, very wrong to say that.” Thorax laughed a little nervously,
“Do tell, do go on!” Celestia hoped to clear this up rather quickly.
“Intersex, Celestia, is to be born with an undefined mixture. We changelings may identify as either, another, or a mix, of sex and gender later in life, that much is true.”
Celestia shuffled herself a little. “I think that’s where … I, er, muddle at.”
Thorax continued. “But that does not equate to already being one and choosing the other, nor choosing nothing. Intersex is not necessarily equivalent to non-binary and trans.”
“I… I think… I'm starting to understand.” She felt like she was doing mental gymnastics.
Thorax continued, pacing around some. “Now, currently, the law denies us our sex to be assigned as ‘both/ambiguous’.”
“So, you’re… binary, in gender and sex?” Celestia squeaked out.
“Perhaps not the most technical use of the word,” the changeling king noted, “but in a sense, yes.”
“That…” Celestia hammered her head with the law book. “That… feels so obvious now…”
“It is also for a practical purpose. Changelings are able to ‘emulate’ either sex for the purposes of reproduction.”
“I can… imagine that, I think.” The princess felt flushed.
“The majority of us identify and stick to one spectrum, but a still significant amount continue as intersex as they choose to.”
“What does that mean for their gender, though?” Celestia asked.
“That is distinct from what they scientifically choose to be.”
Celestia tapped her hoof on her throne. “Hm, I can grasp the concept now, though truly understanding will take me some time.”
“I imagine some of your population also chooses both, but due to Equestria’s sluggish nature at times, to be blunt again, it has not quite become a problem enough for you to notice until us.”
Musing this would indeed take time for her thousand year old mind to awaken to.
“I take it there are no objections, then?” Thorax sounded every so slightly fast-tracking.
“Nope, none at all!’ Celestia spat out.
“Then I bid you farewell, and thank you for allowing me to represent my peoples’ plight.”
Once more, the monarchs mutually dipped their crown-laded foreheads in respect. The changeling guards said farewell to their new friends and accompanied their king. Celestia immediately tended to write out drafts of new laws as soon as the doors slammed shut. Besides accidentally being offensive, she was lucky it was a private matter.
Celestia shuddered at the thought of that public relations disaster. Thus, she quickly wrote out the reformed version of proposed laws on changelings. She also stuck down a new birth assignment well, with an override to extend to all existing laws. A constitutional measure would take a few days more than this. Once she was done, she teleported them to the relevant offices.
Sighing, she breathed out
“Phew!” Celestia then turned to one of her more trusted guards. “Flash Sentry?”
“Yes, Princess?” he beckoned back.
“Go grab me some books on intersex creatures.”
Saluting, he trotted away. Celestia gazed blankly as she went back to her paperwork.
“I think it’s about time I taught myself. I’ll need to establish a ‘Council of Equality for all Genders and Sexes and Identities and Orientations and Romanticisms of Any Manner Regardless of Totality in the Population’. Though, I will want to workshop that name…”
The rest of Sunday passed by very slowly.
Author's Note
Please do let me know if I made any critcal errors in terminology or defintion usage.
