Culture Shock

Twilight sat at her table, in her own private kitchen, in a chair that was the most comfortable she'd ever sat in. Despite that, every couple of seconds she would shift, fidget, grumble, or just find something to make a big deal over. Nerves have a funny way of showing themselves, and to Twilight she had to find something to do. After a while, the mare got up, pushed the chair in, and took out a pot. She didn't know why she was getting comfortable; she was only going to be here a few weeks. 'Or so you think.' she thought, setting the pot under the faucet. Turning the taps, she waited until the pot was full, then turned on the stove and set it there. She looked in the cupboard and sure enough there was tea. She tore open ten bags and threw them into the pot.

Trotting back out into the living room, she saw that her guest was reading a book on Equestria. He didn't seem to notice her until he looked up. His eyes glowed their strange gold-emerald, almost as if he had something very important and meaningful to ask. As a matter of fact, he did.

"Twilight... I know that you can't trust books sometimes. You have to hear things from multiple sources. So, in your country, what is it really like? How do you see your leader?"

"Well, my country's leader is my teacher." She boasted. "She singled me out as one of the best magical talents in my class and gave me a full scholarship to the Canterlot School of magic. She's kinda like my second mom in a way... she's wonderful, she lets me go wherever I want and gives me the funds to do all of my magical studies."

"Sounds nice..." He set the book aside. "But... Twilight, you keep talking about her from your perspective. What exactly does she do for the country?"

"Just about everything. She has the final word on whether something is passed as a law, no matter how trivial, she commands the royal guard, and she monitors what needs to be."

Aria nodded, going back to book. "It says here that she drove her sister to madness when they were younger and then banished her to the moon because she was a danger to the public... what's she like, the mad one? Is she still on the moon?"

"That isn't true. Celestia didn't drive her sister mad at all. Her sister got jealous and went on a rampage because she didn't feel appreciated." Twilight took the book off of him and put it back on the shelf. "And, Luna is fine, back in Equestria, helping Celestia rule."

"Do you like her? Do you hang out with her and do fun stuff together like you do with Celestia?"

The mare stopped, caught off guard by the statement. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"When you're alone so long with somepony that outshines you in every way, it makes you lonely."

"I don't want to talk about this anymore." Twilight got up and marched back into the kitchen. How did he know that she didn't spend any time with Luna? Why would he even bring it up?

Pondering these questions, she set about taking the pot off of the stove, turning the stove off, and pouring herself some tea. She put sugar in it, and then took a sip. The hot drink helped her immensely, and her nerves began to steady. Creature comforts in the middle of a place she didn't want to be. She thought about that. Slightly ironic, in her opinion. Taking her cup with her, she walked back out into the living room to find Empress Elusia sitting on the couch. Twilight hadn't even heard her come in.

"Sit down." She ordered curtly, gesturing to the side opposite from her.

"Miss I'm so sorry about what I said earlier, I didn't mean anything by it I just had to be sure-"

"This isn't about that, Twilight, it's about dinner. What would you like? It's customary here to ask the guest what they want and cook that over the preferences of the host."

"I always liked cooked asparagus and tomato lettuce sandwiches... aren't you a little mad at me for bringing up that thing to you? You looked a little angry and I just wanted to say that I'm sorry."

"I prefer not to dwell on the past, dear." The Empress sighed. "Although I will have you know that it did upset me at first. Although I do not blame you. The things one can hear from idle gossip are many a terrible tale, and most of those are designed to slander a good mare's name. But again, let's not dwell on things. I'm going to have the chefs bake you your dish and then I'm going to have something with more meat. Pardon that, by the way, as we griffons are indeed predators and we do have differed needs than you."

"It's nothing." Twilight sighed, relieved that she was in the clear. "Will that be delivered here?"

"If you so wish it I can have that arranged, but for now I want you to come with me. Aria, go tell the servants about the new dish I want them to make and have them get to it. I want that up here in an hour or less." With that the servant left, leaving only the two. "As for you Twilight, I'd like to show you something."

The griffon rose from her seat and walked towards the door, gesturing for Twilight to follow. The mare followed suit, ending back out in the hallway. It never ceased to amaze her how beautiful the place looked, with its crystal chandeliers and thick red carpet, the shields hung with crests emblazoned on them and the golden hue the walls carried. Elusia strode up to the door to her room, which was a few steps up to a raised landing, which then led to her door. The huge redwood double-doors looked far too heavy for Twilight to move, but the royal just brushed them aside and strode into her quarters. The mare had to make sure to squeeze in after her to avoid getting trapped on the other side.

The sight that met the librarian was roughly the polar opposite of Celestia's room. Equestria's dear ruler loved the colors pink and gold and blue, showering her rooms with them and making the whole castle seem alive with color and grandeur. But the color scheme of this room seemed to be two colors in hundreds of different hues. Black, and every shade of blue imaginable. Blue flames perched on candles, which sat atop the skulls of animals like lions and tigers, along with a few of more equine nature. A deep ocean blue ran the whole length of the floor, and the walls themselves were a light, pale aquamarine. Anything else was the darkest shade of black or grey.

On one end of the room there was a huge bed that took up over twenty feet of the room, sitting on top of a raised platform that had a set of stairs connecting it to the foyer; a large sitting area with a desk sat neatly in front of the window. The window, as Twilight found, took up the whole west wall of the tower, allowing very bright sunlight in. It helped with the gloom that seemed burnt into the quarters, the feeling of being trapped or that she could become lunch at any moment. The whole setting just made her feel... small. It didn't help that the ceiling was so high a dragon could sit rather comfortably in there or that Twilight could swear she could feel a slight breeze. Another thing she found was that the room was semi-circular. They were just at one end, the actual room stretched all the way around the side of the turret.

"That's about enough of this damned sunlight."

With a snap of her talons, the massive blackout curtains at the edges of the windows drew shut, plunging the once well lit room into total darkness. Twilight heard another snap and suddenly candles all over the walls lit with a flame the color of sapphire. The room was still rather dark by Twilight's standards, but the ruler seemed right at home. Elusia smiled and walked swiftly over to a table directly beside her desk. It was a tea set, and in it was already a brew of boiling hot breakfast tea. The royal took out two cups and poured them with a flourish, handing one to Twilight, who accepted it gratefully.

Having attended to her guest and her room in decent order, the ruler snapped her claws once again and a huge fire roared to life inside of a fireplace that had escaped the mare's attention. Even the flames there burned azure, but it did give off warmth, which she was grateful for. It helped make up for the lack of sunlight... and color. The Empress took a seat next to her guest, taking a large gulp of her tea. She seemed at home in the darkness, something that Twilight couldn't help but find odd. She was a pure white griffon, nearly albino save for her eyes and the occasional grey tip to her feathers. She stood out there, but then again she was what your eyes came to in the room full of black and blue. In some ways it did make sense, but it was still rather strange.

"So Twilight... I now want to take this time to break down some of these barriers between us." Elusia stated. "In this room, with just me here, me and you are not host and guest. I'm not under any higher an authority than you, I am not a royal nor are you, you aren't an ambassador and I'm not a leader. In this room you are merely my friend, and on that same note, I'd like to start over with you. Get to know you as more than a visitor that will critique me on how well I treated you when you stayed here." The Empress held out a talon, plainly showing her palm, a great sign of trust among griffons.

It was such a break in formality that Twilight was caught off guard. It seemed like a trick to Twilight, but then again, this might be her chance to do just what Aria had told her to do. She was sure that most of the other ambassadors that had come unintentionally insulted the Lady by taking her gesture of kindness for granted. Most of the visitors would decline, insisting on keeping their relationship as formal as possible as to not have too many strings attached when they left. A dangerous thing to decline when it came to a griffon so unstable. After all, what harm could come from getting to know her? Twilight held out her hoof in the same manner, meeting the Empress in a firm shake of hoof and talon.

(*Yawns*) Well it's three in the morning here and I need to get to bed. Hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and I'll see you all later. Comments appreciated as always, favorite if you really had a good time!