Roadtrip In Equestria

Gabriel and Spike had returned to the library and spent the rest of the morning tidying up the mess created last night. When they'd finished, they decided to have a glass of orange juice in the living room while Twilight slept next to them. Gabriel had to admit that she was rather cute when she was asleep, but he kept the thought to himself.

The two were having a rather lively conversation, focusing on the culture of his world, and Gabriel wasn't quite sure why, but they'd ended up talking about superheroes. Spike had even picked up one of his comics and started telling the whole story.

Gabriel didn't understand much of what he was saying, but he pretended to so as not to have to hear any more explanations. The sound of voices finally woke Twilight, who sat up and yawned. Spike noticed and said, “Well, you're finally awake, Twilight! Would you like a glass of orange juice?”

“What the... Why am I on the couch? What time is it?”

“Uh... right now it's 11:30 I think...”

“WHAT?!” Twilight jumped to her feet and started pacing. “Why did you let me sleep? The princess will be here soon and nothing's ready! It's a disaster, it's..."

“Whoa, calm down, Twi! We've all tidied up already, look!”

Twilight stopped suddenly, then looked around before letting out a small, “Ah yes...”

“Yeah, lucky Gabriel was there to help me...”

“You asked Gabriel to help you? Come on, Spike, that's no way to treat a guest...”

“But... I told him I didn't need any help, but he insisted!”

Twilight then turned to Gabriel and said, “Well, that's very kind of you, but you didn't have to...”

“Well, I owe you one, and it was also to reward Spike for taking me to Rarity's.”

“You went to Rarity's? Why?”

“Well, I asked her to make me some new clothes, because I don't really have any spare ones and I'm not too keen on meeting the leader of your country in this state...”

Twilight glanced at the dirty work clothes and nodded, “Yes, maybe that's not such a bad idea. But why didn't you just take those off and wash them?”

Gabriel sighed, then asked Spike, “Will you explain it to her, please?”

“Uh, okay...” Spike turned to Twilight and said, “Well, apparently in his world it's forbidden to walk around without clothes on and it bothers him.”

“Really?” Twilight replied “I find it a strange law...”

“Oh, you find it strange? You know what I find strange?”

“Er... What's that?”

“ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS FUCKING PLACE!” Twilight and Spike looked at him in astonishment, surprised by his sudden irritation. Gabriel resumed apologetically: “Sorry, sorry... I'm sorry, I don't know what came over me, I... I guess my nerves are a bit frayed at the moment...”

Twilight stepped closer and placed a hoof on Gabriel's shoulder. “It's okay, it can happen to anyone to lose their temper...”

“Yeah, even you, we saw it earlier...”

“Excuse me?!”

“Uh, I mean... Say, Spike, we're gonna have to go!”

“Go where?” Twilight asked.

“To pick up my clothes at Rarity's, of course!”

“Well, this time I'm coming with you!”

“Um, Twilight, maybe you'd better go and get ready for the Princess's arrival,” said Spike, pointing to his tousled mane.

Twilight raised her eyes to look at her hair, then blushed slightly and said: “Uh, yes, maybe you're right, Spike. Well, see you later!”

“Yeah, bye!” Gabriel and Spike said.

“Ho, before you go, maybe we could grab a bite to eat in town before the Princess arrives, what do you think?”

“Oh yeah, that'd be great!” Spike says, jumping up and down with excitement.

“Alright, we'll just go to Café Hay, you know where it is, right?”

“Of course!”

“Great, we'll meet there around half past noon then?”

“Sounds good, see you then!”

“Have fun!”

Gabriel and Spike made their way back to Rarity's, and it seemed even shorter than the last time. At one point Gabriel thought he heard the sound of a 2-stroke engine and looked around for the source of the noise. “Is someone out there riding a moped or what?” Finally, in the distance, he spotted the three fillies he'd seen yesterday, including the one with wings on a kind of scooter towing a small trailer in which the other two were standing. They were all wearing helmets and it was in fact the little pegasus who was pushing the convoy forward and making that noise with her wings. “Holy shit!”

He barely had time to observe them before they were already gone. Gabriel was about to ask Spike what that was all about, but gave up when he saw that he was still lost in thought and probably hadn't seen him. Shortly afterwards, they arrived at their destination.

This time it was Gabriel who knocked on the door. Instead of opening it, Rarity simply shouted “Who is it?”

Gabriel replied, “Uh... It's me Rarity, you told me I could drop by around noon...”

“Mr. Couset! Please come in, it's open.”

Gabriel and Spike entered and headed for the workshop. As they walked, Gabriel said, “You know, you can just call me Gabriel...”

When they returned to the other room, Rarity was just finishing sewing the hoodie. “There you go, just in time!”

Gabriel's eyes widened as he saw what lay on the table. All the clothes he'd asked for were there, including, to his great relief, the boxers.

“Holy cow, I don't know what to say it's... it looks perfect!”

“Well, what are you waiting for to try them on?”

“Uh, yes, of course!” Gabriel grabbed the clothes and went behind a screen to change. When he showed himself again he was proudly brandishing his new clothes. “Honestly, I can't believe how impeccable it looks and it's exactly what I wanted. I couldn't have wished for anything better, thank you very much!”

Rarity looked flattered. “Ho, it was nothing really, but I'm glad you like it!”

“Seriously, you're a lifesaver!”

“You're going to make me blush!"

“Well, how much do I owe you?”

“Come on, darling, I told you it was on the house!”

“Well, can I at least help you with something?”

Rarity raised a hoof to her chin as she pondered, then finally said, “Well, there may indeed be something you could do for me, but we'll talk about that later!”

“Okay, well, I'll have to be going, thanks again!”

“You're welcome!”

“Wait, Rarity... I was wondering...” began Spike.

“What's wrong Spikey-wikey?” Rarity replied, blinking several times.

Spike blushed as he replied “Well, we're going into town for lunch with Twilight and I was wondering if you'd like to come with us...”

“I'd be delighted! It's been a while since I've been to a restaurant, I must say I've been so busy lately with all these orders!” she said dramatically. Gabriel wondered if she wasn't doing it on purpose.

“Great!” Spike replied, jumping up. “Let's go then!” He headed for the door accompanied by Rarity.

“Okay, I'll be right behind you...” Gabriel said before setting off.

They soon arrived at the meeting place, and it seemed to be just a normal terrace café except that the seats were simply haystacks on the ground and the tables looked like giant mushrooms. There was also a sign displaying three-leaf clovers, and Gabriel didn't know what that was supposed to mean or even if it was supposed to mean anything.

Twilight was already waiting for them at one of the tables, well rather at one of the mushrooms, and greeted them when she saw them coming. “Well, hello Rarity! You've decided to join us?”

“Yes, it was Spike who invited me!”

“Well, I'm glad to see you, how are you?”

“Very well thank you and you?”

The two ponies started chatting about things that didn't really interest Gabriel, who was too busy paying attention to the surrounding environment. He couldn't help thinking how surreal this place was. He was having fun observing the surrounding ponies and their special features. For example, he could see a very light yellow earth pony with pink and dark blue curly hair and a candy tattoo sitting a little way off, while opposite her stood a very light blue unicorn with a even more light blue and white mane and an lyre mark, chatting away.

Both seemed to notice him watching them and suddenly looked at him. Gabriel quickly averted his gaze and his attention was caught by the oncoming waiter. This time it was a light yellow stallion with blue hair and a mark of a serving dish. He also wore a sort of white waiter's suit with a red bow tie and was holding a napkin.

“May I take your order?” He asked when he reached the table.

“I'll have the usual, a daffodil and daisy sandwich please” replied Twilight.

“I think I'll have the same, dear” added Rarity.

“And I think I'll go for the hay fries again” said Spike.

The waiter finished noting, then turned to Gabriel, “And you?”

Gabriel, not quite sure what to have, replied hastily, “Um, I think I'll have, well if you have, a ha...” Then he suddenly stopped in his sentence, remembering that he was in a world populated by ponies, and last time he checked, ponies do NOT eat meat. And he didn't really know what it seemed like to slaughter animals and eat them here. He quickly made up for it by saying “uh... Cheese! A cheese sandwich! Please...”

The waiter raised an eyebrow but made no comment, merely noting before continuing, “What about drinks?”

“Well, personally, I'd love some iced tea” Says Rarity.

“I'll have the same” said Spike.

“Me too” Continued Twilight

“Um... Me too...” Finally said Gabriel.

The waiter grinned, then said “All right, I'll be back in a moment” before heading back into the building.

Gabriel wiped his brow, telling himself he'd probably just avoided a disaster. He really had to be careful what he said in the future... Twilight noticed his anxious expression and asked, “Is everything all right? You look a bit stressed...”

“Yes, yes, I'm fine...” Gabriel did his best to look relaxed. “Anyway, I was wondering something, and I know this might sound stupid, but... How should I behave in front of, well, Princess uh... Celestia, right?”

Twilight frowned slightly as she replied “Yes, uh... What exactly do you mean?”

“Well, I mean... well, she's the leader of your country! You certainly don't address her like any other, er... pony... And the last thing I'd like to do is offend her by not knowing how to react...”

Twilight raised a hoof to her chin, thinking. “The ponies have a habit of bowing when Princess Celestia makes her appearance, so... Maybe it would be a good idea if you did too...

“Bow down? Right... And uh, anything else?”

“Then, apart from calling her your majesty, I think that's it...”

“What? Really?”

“Well, yes... As long as you speak to her with respect, I don't see what could go wrong...”

Rarity added: “Oh yes, dear! Princess Celestia is absolutely charming! And she's very understanding!”

“Really?” Gabriel asked, still puzzled.

“Yes!” Spike joined in the discussion. “One time she came to taste at Sugar Cube Corner, and she was about to eat a cupcake, when ALL OF A SUDDEN...” He stood up to accentuate his words. “... Pinkie Pie took it from her hooves and gobbled it up!”

“Are you kidding?”

“No! And you know how the Princess reacted?”

“Er... she locked him up in a dungeon?”

“No! She just giggled!”

“Ah well... ”

Once again, they were interrupted by the waiter who came to bring the requested dishes. Gabriel was impressed by the speed of the service. He watched his cheese sandwich for a moment, making sure it didn't have an end to anything weird inside, but it seemed perfectly normal. He then took a bite, continuing the conversation. “And, actually Twilight, I know you told me yesterday that the Princess was really able to move the sun and stuff, but, like, is that really true? She can move the whole SUN with her... magic?”

Twilight, herself enjoying her meal, rolled her eyes as she replied, “Yes, of course it's true! Why would I lie to you?”

“I don't know, sorry, it's just... well, it just seems so strange, I mean... First of all, it doesn't make sense! It's the earth that revolves around the sun, normally! ”

“What the... What?” Twilight replied, looking genuinely astonished. “What the hell are you talking about?”

”Well... I'm telling the truth! It's logical: the earth revolves around the sun, so logically it's the earth that she should move, this, er... Princess! That is, if she really knows how...”

“Of course she can! And you're talking nonsense! It's the sun that revolves around the earth, just like the moon! Everyone knows that!”

“No, you're the one who's talking nonsense!” Gabriel glanced at the sun in the sky, then his expression went from passably annoyed to livid. “Unless..." He looked at the sun again, straight into his eyes, and as on the first occasion, it hurt his eyes as much as if he were looking at his car's overhead light.

He stood there staring at the sky for several long, awkward seconds, before Twilight resumed: “Uh... Can we ask what you're looking at?”

“Nothing, it's just... the sun...”

“Er... yes?”

“It doesn't hurt my eyes...”

“...and?”

“At home... you can't look at the sun for more than 2 seconds without burning your retina.... Because our sun is enormous! It's I don't know how many thousand times bigger than the earth! But here...” He opened his arms to accompany his words. “...in this world, or dimension, or whatever.... It's the sun that revolves around the earth, so that means it's smaller than the earth, right?”

“Uh, yeah...”

“So that's why it doesn't hurt my eyes! But he's still able to keep us warm and light... And it's controlled by a pony... I just... I still find it hard to believe...”

“And I find it hard to believe anything you tell me! Is your sun really that big? What about your moon? You do have a moon, don't you?”

“Uh, yes, uh... It orbits the earth...”

“So... it's not the same size as your sun?”

“Oh, no! It's much smaller...”

“Ha! Okay... So for this it's like here... And, so, who is it that controls the... movement of your earth and moon back home?”

“Uh... Nobody...”

“What? What do you mean?”

”Ugh... The Earth orbits the sun and the moon orbits the Earth... It's gravity, it's... it's physical. There's nothing magical about it and nobody controls it...”

“It's... very interesting... It's looks like our worlds work very differently!"

“Yeah... But there's also so much similarity, it's... so weird...”

“ Similarities? Like what?”

“Like, I don't know, lots of stuff! The food, the tools you use, the furniture.... We have stuff that's exactly the same at my house!”

“Really?”

“Yeah, but what I find most bizarre is that you speak the SAME language as me, I mean.... I'm from another fucking universe and we speak the same language! How is that possible?”

“Well, I admit it's rather strange, indeed. Maybe there's an undetectable translation spell hovering around you, who knows?”

“A... a translation spell?”

“Yes! There are a variety of spells that not only translate lyrics but also texts!”

“Ah yes... it's true that you can do anything with magic here...”

“Not everything... but a lot, yes! Why, don't you humans use magic to make spells?”

“Well, actually... We don't use magic at all...”

Twilight had another shocked expression. “Eh, well maybe not to make spells, but you still use it a little bit unconsciously, like all living beings...”

“Er... not really, no...” This time, it wasn't just Twilight who had a questioning look, but Rarity and Spike, who were interested in the conversation too. “I... I haven't told you yet? I guess I've been a bit off my game lately... Well, in my world, magic... As you know it, anyway, that... Well, it just doesn't exist. I know it must be hard for you to believe, just as it's hard for me to believe that I'm not in a dream, but it's the truth.”

Twilight thought for a moment, just long enough to swallow the information, before saying, “But that's... It's impossible! We can't live without magic! It's essential!”

“Maybe here, but not where I come from. Ho, of course there are many old legends or invented stories that speak of magic. There are even people who claim to be magicians and who impress the public with so-called magic tricks, but everyone knows that it's all fake and that there's no real magic... So there you go, we don't have any magic and that's the way it's always been.”

“But... but you must miss it! How do you people get by?"

“For one thing, we can't miss something we've never had. And to get by, we get along, we invent things. The things you do with your magic, we do with our technology... Well, I suppose...”

“Um, um...” Rarity cleared her throat to speak. “Excuse me for interrupting your fascinating discussion, but it's getting late and we've all finished our meal” she said, pointing with her hoof to the four now empty plates. “We wouldn't want to miss the Princess's arrival, would we?”

Twilight looked at her quizzically. “Would you like to come with us, Rarity?”

She blushed slightly as she asked, “I was wondering if it was possible.... Because, you see, I like Princess Celestia so much, and I'd really like to be able to see her again!” She then turned dramatic again, adding, “Of course, I'd completely understand if you were too busy for me to join you...”

Twilight smiles and says, “No, of course not. I'm sure the Princess will be very happy to see you again!”

“Did you say Princess?” Said suddenly out of nowhere a tomboyish voice that Gabriel recognized well, even if he'd only known it for a short while. He raised his head to see none other than the famous blue pegasus with the multicolored mane that had chased him yesterday and was flying in parked again.

“Well, hello Rainbow Dash, what are you doing here?” Rarity asked as she saw her friend in the air.

“Hi guys!” Rainbow said cheerfully. She then moved closer to Gabriel and her expression changed to a more wary one. “And hello to you, uh... The humare..."

“Uh, it's pronounced human...” Gabriel corrected him, backing away slightly.

“Yeah, whatever...” She then threw herself back higher before continuing. “Well, actually, I happened to be flying above you and I heard you were going to meet the Princess! Is that true? Well, I'm just asking...” it sounded like she was pretending not to be excited.

“Well indeed. I think I kind of forgot to mention it to you and the others. I've been a bit distracted lately...” Twilight replied, blushing.

“At the same time, you're always busy!” Rainbow said, laughing. “But that's okay. Anyway, did you think I could see the Princess with you? In case you need my superb talents, hehe....”

“Well, here's a modest-looking one...” Gabriel thought, looking glumly at the scene.

“Well, the more the merrier, as Pinkie says... I'm sure the Princess will be delighted to see you again!” Twilight says.

“Yeah great!” Rainbow cried out in excitement as she spanked loops in the air, before collecting herself and saying more calmly. “I mean, cool...” Gabriel couldn't contain himself from letting out a chuckle, so absurd was his behavior. This caught the attention of the blue Pegasus, who approached him again, saying. “And you, don't try anything stupid with the Princess, I've got my eye on you...”

Gabriel looked at him, sweating slightly, both amused and still a little worried about Rainbow Dash. Part of him wanted to respond with a sarcastic comment, but he wasn't sure WHAT she was capable of. He imagined himself being lifted a few meters off the ground by this blue menace, only to be released and crushed to the ground. A shiver ran down his spine at the thought and he just decided to reply: “Okay, got it...”

Twilight paid the bill and they all headed for the tree/town library/Twilight's house, where another surprise awaited them. Indeed, Pinkie Pie, as well as the other one with the word “Apple” in its name and the shy yellow one with wings were also there. In fact, now that Gabriel could see it, his 2 “tattoos” if you could call them that, were butterflies in groups of 3. All greeted each other when they met and Twilight asked. “But, what are you all doing here?”

“Well, actually...” Apple Jack began, (now that Gabriel had heard his name again... ) “Pinkie Pie told us that the Princess was supposed to come here to see you, and...”

“WE CAN'T WAIT TO SEE THE PRINCESS!!!” Pinkie interrupted Apple Jack, jumping for joy.

“Ah yes, that's right you knew about it, Pinkie. I'm sorry I didn't tell you girls.... “ Twilight said, turning to Apple Jack and Fluttershy. (He knew her name, too, now).

“It's okay, sugarcube, you were busy... And if we're bothering you, we can go. We'll see the Princess another time...” Apple Jack said with a sympathetic smile.

“Oh, no, you can stay! I'd love to, and I'm sure the Princess would too!”

While the 6 pony friends (and one dragon!) were obviously enjoying their friendships, Gabriel stood slightly aside with his arms crossed. While observing the scene he noticed a strange golden dot in the sky, which seemed to grow larger the longer he looked at it. He pointed to the strange shape and asked the others. “Um... Excuse me for interrupting, but what's that?”

“THE PRINCESS!” they all said in chorus, more out of observation than in response to his question. Gabriel put his hand over his eyes to get a better look at the shape, which was becoming clearer and clearer, and he couldn't believe his eyes. It was in fact an enormous solid-gold chariot pulled by four white pegasus ponies who seemed to be wearing the armor of golden Roman soldiers, with blue manes and all. The carriage had two small wheels at the front and two larger ones at the back with a strange moon-shaped symbol, and there was also a small mauve flag flying above it. But what was most interesting was the one on the cart itself. Gabriel couldn't see her very well at this distance, but she was undoubtedly Princess Celestia. For a second, he wondered how the Pegasus could tow the heavy-looking cart at such speed without it falling off with its contents. But he soon began to worry about something else. It was that the convoy was heading straight for them...