Chapters I had been lucky in life – winning the lottery just after leaving university meant I didn't have to work, so I didn't and haven’t. I had just brought a lovely country house and farmland on the edge of a small town, and spent my life to date with no stress and no commitments. It was a little bit of a lonely life, living by myself but I could not trust other people to like me for me, and not my money…
*****
It was a late autumn night. The sky was clear and I was just sitting in my house minding my own business as I always do, watching TV whilst surfing the internet on my phone. It had been a lovely day catching up with some old friends in the big city, but returning to my secluded farm meant returning to my little slice of heaven.
Flicking through the channels with one hand whilst playing a town building game on my tablet with the other, I did notice the TV had the usual rubbish on. So I went over and looked at my DVD collection to see if any of the films caught my eye, although bed was also feeling like a very tempting option at this stage.
Suddenly, I heard something that sounded like thunder. I looked out of the window and noted that the sky was too clear for a thunderstorm. The wind then seemed to pick up, blowing around some of the loose hay and leaves that was lying around the yard. This was followed by some flashes of lightning and more thunder. Something about the storm didn't feel right, it wasn't like anything I had ever seen and seemed unnatural. Snapping back to reality, I started to worry for my animals so I went upstairs to get changed into some outdoor wear.
When I was busy upstairs, suddenly there was a huge bang followed by the sound of wood being snapped and a heavy thud.
Finishing getting changed, I quickly put on my boots and ran outside noting that the storm seemed to be disappearing as quickly as it started. I could just about hear the sounds of an animal whining in pain. Running over to the stable, I found the few horses I had were fine, and I quickly tried to sooth them. I then ran over to the barn, and whilst the chickens and pigs were scarred, nothing else seemed wrong. I was relieved that the animals were fine and looking around the wood snapping I had heard didn't seem to have been any of my buildings.
The animal moans sound seemed to have stopped, so I thought the best thing to do would be to see if I could find if a tree had broken. If this was the source of the breaking noise, I could stop worrying, go back inside and deal with it tomorrow. Doing a quick lap of the farm on foot, I soon spotted a grouping of trees at the edge of a copse had been knocked over, and an animal was lying on the ground.
As I run over towards the animal I could see through the darkness that it was a white horse, but I soon noticed something about it which made me stop. The animal appeared to be a horse to which somebody had stuck some wings onto. It also had something sticking out of it’s head, which I feared would have branch or something else causing a mortal injury. Based on the fact the trees had all been snapped the same way, it looked like the animal had been thrown into the trees.
Fearing for the worse for this poor creature, getting closer I notice the animal seemed to be breathing but in a lot of pain. The horses coat was a brilliant white, whiter then any animal I had ever seen, and apart from the wings (Apart from the wings!) the body also seemed to have the wrong dimensions. I hadn’t yet even started to think where it had come from, my first thoughts was the more instinctive concern that the animal was hurting.
Looking from a distance, the horse clearly had a broken hind leg, with some cuts and bruises at a minimum on the other legs. One of the wings seemed to be very different to the other, and I suspected one of them was broken (I wasn’t sure if it was natural or artificial, my brain simply couldn’t process this, but either way it wasn't right). The forehead seemed to have a white horn on the horses forehead, which seemed to have a crack down the middle of it and was glowing.
The horse spotted me and startled tried to get to its feet, managing to do so with great agony and emitting a terrible cry. One wing started to move, but the other hung limply and the horse looked at its wing, before started to try to move away by foot. The poor animal was in agony and could barely move.
I instinctively started making calming sounds like I do to my horses, and the animal stopped and turned to look at me. I could sense great pain and confusion in the animal’s eyes, which were bigger than a normal horses’. The horn started to glow a little brighter, then faded suddenly causing a visible bolt of pain across the animals face, causing the horse to look up at its horn.
“Shhh, you have no need to fear me” I softly cooed and slowly approached.
The animal backed away at the same speed, but the standoff gave me a chance to look closer. The body was definitely different to any horse or pony I had ever seen, and the coat looked too white to be natural, almost if it glowed. The wings seemed to be fully integrated into the body, as did the horn and neither looked like artificial attachments. The horse also had a long tail and a very long hair on its head like a humans hair, both of which were multicoloured.
This didn't look like anything I knew, and the alternative was mind blowing – I was looking at some sort of Unicorn…or Pegasus?
“I am not sure what you are, as I haven’t seen anything like you before” I softly spoke. It seemed a redundant phrase, but just wanted to speak soothing words. And my brain was too confused to currently think of anything more poetic.
The horse looked back to me, seeming to understand my words, but still backed off as I spoke.
“I understand your fear of me, I am a stranger, but you are hurt and I can help you” I cooed
The horse seemed to start to look around, like it was trying to find a route to escape. I stopped walking forwards and then the horse stopped, seeming relieved at not having to move it’s damaged body.
“That’s better, isn’t it?” I gently whispered, trying to get the horses trust. I slowly backed off a little to give it some space “It will hurt less if you lie down” I chuckled, but to my surprise the horse actually lay down, the poor thing probably needing to rest. I looked at the animal, and it appeared to have a tear in its eye.
“Please, let me help you” I pleaded to the wounded animal “You are injured and need to heal which I can help you with”
The animal looked at me as if it understood, and gave me a look up and down, before resuming searching around the farm with it’s eyes. I wondered if this creature could somehow comprehend my words, my mind trying desperately work out how to communicate with this strange beast in front of me.
“However, I won’t try to stop you should you decide to leave... If you decide to go, I recommend going to the north away from town into the forest by the hill” and I pointed away from town “I suspect that others may not let you leave if they saw you”
The horse looked at me as I said, and I swear it had a look of confusion on it’s face. It was then I realised that the face was much more expressive than any animal I had met, and I swear it had false eyelashes on. At this point I decided the horse must be female. Of course I was sure I was dreaming, but it was so weird I thought it was best to go along with it – afterall, as dreams went, it was a cool dream.
“You appear to be some form of winged unicorn. These…do not exist and so other people are probably going to want to know what you are!” This seemed to startle her so I continued “But you are safe here, I don't know what you are but I can see you are hurt. You seem to be unable to walk, or fly”
The horse gave me another look over with a slightly more aggressive look in her eyes, like she was trying to work out if I was a threat.
With this I slowly backed off a little and then stood up “I don’t know what you are, or where you have come from, but I would help any hurt animal I come across. Rather than hide in the woods, you can come and hide on my farm over there” I pointed “Its remote and I don’t get many visitors”
The horse almost nodded in agreement, or at least seemed to relax at me a little. I explained to her to wait whilst I went and got a trailer she could sit in. I went back to the farm, and brought the trailer over by hand fearing the loud noise of a motorised vehicle may scare her away. After looking it over, she slowly got into it and I pulled her back towards the farmhouse. She was heavy, not as heavy as a normal horse, but it was very hard going to pull the trailer by hand up the slight hill.
When we got to the yard, I set up the ramp to let her down and she slowly limped down “Sorry I can’t carry you down but you look too heavy for that” I joked
The pony stood there looking at me at a face that basically said she was un-amused. She was about the same height as me, before the horn, and our eyes were at the same level. I smiled again, trying to show that I was no threat.
“So, do you want to stay in the stable with the other horses, in the barn with some of the other animals?” I asked, not expecting a reply but just thinking out loud. The creature in front of me looked at the horses, who all had their heads sticking out the stables looking at the strange pony infront of them.
I decided that she would probably resist going into a small stable, so I went over to the large nearly empty barn and I opened the door, motioning inside “If you go in, I’ll return with some medical supplies”
She limped towards the barn as indicated and I headed to a storage unit where I grabbed bandages and equipment for a splint. At this point I must have been in autopilot mode, as if I had stopped to think about the logistics of putting a splint on a winged unicorns leg, even in a dream, I would have had to commit myself to an insane asylum…
I walked back to the barn and noted that she had lay down in the centre of the barn, in a big pile of straw. I approached her and said I was going to clean her wounds with antiseptic, which may hurt. I gingerly knelt down beside her, worried about her striking out at me, and started to clean the cuts. She flinched a little but didn't kick out as she seemed to understand it was medicine and I was trying to help.
I also explained about splinting the leg and she seemed to allowed me to add the split, although she was a little more wary as I had to get much closer to get a good grip.
“What about your wing?” I asked “I don’t know if you splint a wing or not?”
The white pony looked down at the wing hanging limply at her side. I looked over to the other wing which was folded up against the body “Perhaps I should bandage the wing to hold it in place like you have your other wing?”
She looked at me in a dispassionate way that I took as agreeing and folded the wing as gently as I could, although it must have hurt a lot as she cried out a little. I wrapped the bandages around her body to hold the wing still, leaving the other wing free.
Once I was done, I got up and brought over a bucket filled with water. “I’m going to close the door to ensure nobody else sees you and keep the wind out”
She gave what seemed an approving nod and laid her head down to sleep. I walked back in the house, and went straight to sleep, pretty convinced I would just wake up from the weird dream...
Chapter 2 - First Contact
The alarm went off the next morning as usual, and I slowly started to remember the weird dream. I seemed more tired then usual, which I put down to spending the day with my friends which involved a lot of walking around. Having thought about having a lie in, knowing my animals needed me forced me t made my way downstairs to make some breakfast before cleaning out the horses. It was just as I was about to turn on the stove that I noticed the trailer in the middle of the yard, which is not where it is usually kept. Wait, I wasn’t dreaming?
I rushed upstairs to get dressed, and quickly went to the barn and slowly opened the door. The white horse was in there, standing looking over the chickens which were on one side of the barn. The barn was currently mostly empty except for my chickens and pigs, as I had decided to quit getting people in to do the farming of more animals and crops at the moment, preferring just the company of myself.
I looked at the unicorn, or whatever you called a winged horse with a horn, in amazement. It suddenly hit me that I hadn’t been dreaming. I thought of the discovery I had made and wondered if I should report it. But then I knew that if I did, and they captured her, no doubt she would be studied and tested on. There was no reason to wish harm on the creature, who apart from being one of the most beautiful creatures ever, seemed almost intelligent.
Also, despite the potential profit to be made, I had no need for money.
I knocked softly on the door and slowly walked in. The visitor turned towards me firstly in shock, but then smiled.
“Good Morning. Are you hungry?”
She looked across to a pile of hay in the corner that had clearly been munched on and then looked back at me with a little guilty look in her eyes
“No problem” I laughed “It’s only a bit of cheap hay! Do you want something a little more substantial? I don’t know what you eat but given what you are I'm sure it’s more than hay”
Looking at the chickens, she licked her lips. A horse that eats meat, surely not? I thought to myself, but I went over and picked up a chicken “One of these?” I asked gingerly.
If horses could give dirty looks, I certainly got one! Racking my brain, put down the chicken and instead picked up an egg “Ahh, perhaps one of these?” which was met with a bit more of pleasant response Do vegetarian animals eat eggs? Seems a strange behaviour, but then nothing about today was likely to be normal.
“Okay, I’ll do you some eggs. It’s still dark so if you want you can come into the house and I’ll make you a breakfast. The house is more comfortable than the barn. However, you would have to spend the day in the house as the sun soon comes up, you don't want to be seen outside, understand?”
“If the sun comes up?” she absent-mindedly corrected
“Huh? I don’t understand”
“Nevermind” she smiled. She suddenly froze up, and I nearly fell over in shock, but managed to slump to my knees instead
“Wait, you can talk?”
She looked at me and didn't respond for a while, and a few moments passed at us just staring at each other. The silence was very telling, and neither of us took out eyes off each other. “Oh, by Luna’s moon, I shouldn't have spoken!” The horse suddenly cursed “Yes, creature, we seem to share the same language”
“You…you…don’t understand, horses can’t talk!”
“I am obviously not from around here!” the animal responded sarcastically.
I sat there on my knees, the horse towering over me. “Well, I guess that was obvious from what you are!”
“But I need to leave this place”
“You mustn't leave, it wouldn't be safe”
“What do you mean?”
“You appear to be some form of talking, winged unicorn. These…do not exist, at least in our world, and so people are probably going to want to know what you are.”
“I see, that would not be good at all. I need to keep low profile until I can get home” the horse looked me over “Is that what you are, ‘people’?”
“Well, we are called humans and my name is Tony.”
“My name is Celestia, and I am an Alicorn. I will be aiming to leave as soon as I am healed”
“Are you hurt badly?”
“I can still defend myself!” she replied slightly aggressively, narrowing her eyes.
“Whoa whoa whoa, no need for that” I replied calmly.
“How can I trust you?”
“I’ve done nothing but help you so far, and given you’ve been here all night I would have had ample time to do something”
She pondered on this for a moment “How very true. Thank you for tending to me last night, I am very grateful for your help. I need to stay for a while to heal.” And she eyeballed me again “But if you are tricking me you will regret it”
“Is there anything I can do to help you? I’ve splint your leg which will help but your…er…horn seems to be damaged, and left wing is broken? Not sure what to you about them”
“They will all heal quickly and the more I rest the better”
I slowly got back to my feet “Okay, so do you want to come into the house. It’s warmer, and probably more suited for me to look after you.
She slowly walked towards me, slightly faster now the leg was in a splint and followed me into the house, seeming to enjoy the warmth compared to the slightly cold barn. I ushered her into the front room, and ran and got some blankets she could lie down on the floor. She lay down in a kneeling position, and I noted that she flapped her wing when getting down, which probably helped her put less strain on the leg.
“Can I get you a drink first? Water I guess?”
“Yes thank you, I’m very thirsty”
I went outside and filled up a bucket and brought it in next to Celestia. She looked at me in a strange way and then started lapping at the bucket.
“Do you eat toast? I could make you fried eggs on toast?”
“I presume toast is some form of bread to go with the eggs? If so, eggs on this toast would be lovely”
I went off to make a breakfast for both of us and returned about twenty five minutes later with two trays, one with a plate of normal breakfast, the other filled with many plates of food. I noted that Celestia’s muzzle was very wet from drinking.
“Do you want me to dry you muzzle first?”
“If you don’t mind, I’m not used to drinking from a bucket” she replied, with a hint of condescending in her voice which I picked up on.
Picking up a towel I gently wiped her nuzzle “Sorry, I didn’t know what I should do?”
Celestia smiled at me “I’m used to being served, but you are too kind” She looked down at the food “Normally it wouldn’t be a problem for me, but I guess I’ll just have to eat off the floor”
“Wait” I replied, and picked up a piece of toast with an egg on it and brought it up to her mouth. She took a bite and I spent the breakfast kneeling on the floor, feeding Celestia her mountain of breakfast and eating mine by hand as well. When we were done I gave her muzzle another gentle wipe and cleared away the plates.
“Well, we’ll have to talk later about how to deal with everything, but first I need to tend to the animals. Are you okay to stay here for a little while alone?” It was a half truth, but rather than worrying about the animals, I needed some time to think about what was happening.
“Thank you Tony, I will just wait here and sleep which will aid my regeneration.”
I left the house to tend to the horses and chickens, my mind buzzing from what was happening. I should have been freaking out but something was keeping me calm. When I thought of it, Celestia seemed to be oozing a sense of calm despite the situation we was in, so I wonder if she was having some effect on me.
*****
Returning to the house after about an hour, I saw Celestia staring out of the window at the raising sun.
“It’s beautiful” she said with a longing look in her eye “I wasn’t sure it would rise.”
This coupled with the earlier comment seemed a little strange. I then noticed the sun markings on her flank, and my interest piqued. “So, is that some sort of tattoo?”
Celestia looked down and over to me “What is a Tattoo?”
I explained what a tattoo was, and showed her the one on my arm.
“Not exactly a tattoo, but the idea isn't a mile away. These marks come when we find what our special talent is”
“And yours is something to do with the sun. I guess your name is a bit of a give away as well”
Celestia looked at me with almost a smile on her face, and we both sat down watching the sun rise – it was a lovely clear day and the view from the farm was breathtaking at the worse of times, but sharing it was a mystical beast was something else.
After a while Celestia broke the silence “I’ve never seen a sunrise like it. It’s so…slow, but the beauty really shines through” She rolled her eyes and giggled “Pun not intended, it’s just nice to see something through different eyes for once”
“So, what do you do?”
“It’s…complicated” Celestia responded “First, what do you do?”
“Not much really” I honestly replied “I look after a few animals on my farm, and just enjoy life”
“Sounds nice. Was that your calling in life?”
I explained that unlike her, we don't get given a calling in life and explained how our world worked. We soon discovered that in some respects it wasn't too dissimilar from hers – people/ponies had jobs, there was money, art, love. The conversation was a bit one sided, as she was a little reluctant to give too much away except for point on the similarities.
After a while, Celestia started to yawn “Is there anything you need or want, or should I leave you alone?” I asked
“It’s your home, so do what you want, but I think I will nap if that’s okay with you?”
I went over and partially closed the curtains to block out most of the light “Sweet Dreams” I said and went into the library to try to collect my thoughts.
*****
After spending all morning reading about unicorn myths on the internet (Well, couldn't really find any unicorn science references), I decided to check in on Celestia to see if she needed a lunch. She was asleep on the floor, and with her head resting on her hooves, and her mane flowed out behind her, she looked very cute. I was very tempted to grab my camera and take a picture, but I wondered what the consequences would be if Celestia caught me.
I sat down and just watched her sleep for a while, until she started to stir a little.
“Good Afternoon” I welcomed her
“Is it afternoon already, I feel like I just nodded off”
“I guess that your injuries may have taken more out of you then you suspect, Celestia. Do you need anything else to eat or drink?”
“I would love to have some tea, if you have any?”
“Tea, my favourite drink” I smiled back. I got up and went into the kitchen to make tea. “Won’t be too long Celestia” I called out. “Do you take it with milk and sugar?”
“Just milk if that’s okay Tony” she called back.
“Celestia, your name is lovely but is a little long for me to say, do you have a shorter nickname?”
“I’m afraid I only go by three names, Celestia, Sister and Princess?”
“I guess sister is for your brothers and sisters?”
“I have a sister, Yes”
I returned to the living room with a tray with a mug, a bowl, and two large teapots.
“And Princess is what your, er, husband, calls you?”
“No, I don’t have a special some-pony” she looked a little awkwardly “My subjects called me Princess”
“So, you’re a royal?” I said a little surprised. Why did THAT surprise me when I’m talking to a Alicorn?
Celestia nodded almost with a little blush. I guess that I’ve been the first person to not know who she was for a long time and she looked like she regretted letting that slip.
“Well, I guess I should call you Princess then” I’m smiled in response as I poured tea into the bowl, followed by some milk.
“There’s no need for that Tom” she half pleaded
“Well, it’s easier to say and if you are royalty I should respect that. Besides, it sort of suits you as you don’t exactly look like the horses in our world. And I really like your mane…it’s very regal”
Celestia laughed a little “It’s usually a little more controlled then it is now. Back home it flows lovely in the air, and my crown helps to keep it under control”
I raised the bowl up to her muzzle, and between us we managed to get her a drink with the minimal of spillage. We kept chatting about various things whilst we both enjoyed our tea.
*****
As Celestia was still tired, I left her alone to sleep all afternoon whilst I drove into town to get more food. I hadn't asked her what she ate, but from our chats I worked out that her kind were obviously vegetarian. Apples and salads seemed to be the pick of the foods, so I brought large amounts of both from the supermarket. Whilst she had said that hay and so on was fine, given that she was “Royalty” I felt it was only right to get some nicer food in
And besides, she was also fast becoming my friend and I liked to treat my friends well. Okay, she may have just needed me, but at least she seemed genuinely grateful for it. That’s more than can be said for some of my previous friends!
*****
That evening as I prepared us both a large salad, Celestia got up and stretched out a little, making sure to protect her hind leg. She then started to have a wander around the living room.
Hearing the hooves against my wooden floor, I called out “Everything okay Princess?”
“Yeah, just getting a bit stiff, just wanted to move about a bit”
“Excellent, let me know if you need anything”
As I finished the salads, I put mine on a plate whilst I left the majority of it in a big salad bowl for Celestia. Whilst I was tempted to go back to the living room, I decided instead to take it through to the Dinning Room. Given I so rarely had visitors I’m not sure why I had a separate room for entertaining, but given the size of the house I had to fill the rooms with something.
“I’m in here” I called out and a few moments later Celestia stuck her head round the door “I thought it would be good to get a change of scenery, and now you’re up it’ll be good to stand for a while"
I put the bowls down on the table, and moved one of the chairs out of the way to allow her to stand. I then took the seat opposite and we both ate in a bit of silence. Celestia seemed to be content at looking around at all the pictures I had on my wall, photos of the many trips around the world I took when I was younger. I had spent some of my money to explore many of the wonders of the world but it all seemed rather hollow, exploring by yourself.
“There seems to be so much beauty in your world” she remarked after a while, munching on some mixed salad leaves.
“Yes, there is a lot of beauty, although so much is being lost to cities and so forth”
“That indeed is a shame…but I guess we have the same problem” the ruler remarked “It’s a constant battle with the main cities wanting to expand, we keep having to tell them no in order to protect the countryside”
I laughed a little, which seemed to hurt her feelings “What’s funny about that?” she snorted
“We may have exactly the same arguments, but its hard not to laugh as the mental image of a group of alicorns arguing over the same small things us humans is pretty amusing”
“I guess every world has the same sort of issues” she remarked “Although being the Princess I tend to always get my way in my world” she finished with a wink.
“So, where exactly is your world?” I asked
“I’m not really sure” she pondered “It’s probably some form of alternative dimension or something. I think given that some of our laws of physics are different I doubt it’s the same universe as yours”
“Oh, in what way”
“Well…In my world the sun doesn’t rise by itself, nor the moon. They have to be raised and lower by me or my sister”
I looked at her in disbelief “What? How?”
“We use our powerful magic to raise and lower them, bringing forth the warming sun and the beautiful night”
“Wait, Magic?” I exclaimed
“Do you not have magic here?”
“Well, not like that no”
“Oh, I thought being a farmer you were just an Earth human” and Celestia went on to explain the four different pony races, ending up with the Alicorns. I then explained that humans were pretty much just human. Some were stronger, some smarter, others faster etc but none could fly and no creatures at all had magic.
After dinner, I introduced Celestia to what she referred to as the magic television. Of course I explained that it wasn’t magic, and she sort of accepted that and instead wanting to know how this ‘electricity’ thing worked as it would revolutionise her kingdom. I said I would explain in more details for her later, and we settled down to watch a film. I choose to put on a kid’s film, not wanting to expose the Princess to anything containing war, violence, swearing etc. I wanted to try to hide humans dark side for as long as possible, as I wasn't sure how she would take it.
Once nighttime had fallen, Celestia decided that she would retire back to the barn to sleep, saying she found it oddly soothing to be close to the outdoors. She explained she always slept with her balcony door open, and that the home was a little small for her liking. “Not all of us can have castles, Princess I joked back with a deliberate sarcastic tone at the end, causing her to snigger a little.
A couple more days went past with myself and Celestia just spending time around each other. She was slowly getting better each day: Her leg had healed and the wing could now been extended. She couldn’t yet move it enough to fly, but it was coming along nicely. Seeing her with her wings fully extended was an impressive sight, and I'm glad we never fought as she was very impossing. Her horn was still damaged thought and none her magic had not returned.
We sat around the breakfast table eating Scrambled Eggs, and I had some bacon on the side - I had managed to persuade the Princess to try eggs scrambled and she enjoyed them so much she said it was going to be declared the national dish on her return. I thought this seemed a little extreme, but then when you have eaten the same foods for thousands of years, any new combination was something to be celebrated. It was just a shame they didn't have potatoes back in Equestria as bringing chips to the population would have probably been good enough for her to be considered a god...if she wasn't already thought as such.
We chatted a little and then suddenly a pain flashed across her face. She sat there grimacing like she had a really bad migraine. “You okay” I rushed over and put my arm round her, hugging her close. I hadn’t done this before, but from the pain on her face I felt she need the physical closeness.
“Yes…I’ll be fine” she yelped back. I stood there hugging her for a while until the pain started to fade. “It’s just …my horn…I think it’s starting to heal but it hurts as it mends. I sat with her for a while, until it was clear that she was back to normal and I left to go and look after my animals.
*****
After cleaning out the pigs and chickens in the barn, I went over to the stables.
“Hello Pickle, Nightlight and Butterfly” I welcomed my horses as I came over, greated by three nosy heads sticking out of their stables. I moved the horses to the spare stables I had prepared with new straw, and started cleaning out the dirty stables, humming away to myself.
“Anything I can do to help” I heard a soft voice behind me.
I turned and in shock saw a Celestia standing behind me. Well, most of her. She no longer had her horn or her wings, her mane had gone and her tail looked much like a normal horses.
“Celestia…how did you end up here? What’s happened to your wings…and horn?”
“My horn has started to heal - I can do basic magic again!" she exclaimed excitedly "One of the most basic spells Alicorns have the ability to hide our features to blend in with other ponies. Normally I can also make myself smaller, like my subjects, but no need for that here.”
I smiled at her “Well, glad to see you up and about. You don't need to help out, but feel free to have a wander round. But if you see any other humans, quickly run back and hide in a stable. From a distance you’ll look like a normal horse, but not up close. Your far too slender to pass as one of our ponies.”
“Understood” the Alicorn nodded, and went over to look at the other horses. The three heads were stuck out of their stables, and they seemed to be fascinated by the creature in front of them. Once I had finished I came over to her “I’m going to take one out for a ride, want to come along?”
“Oh, that was be delightful” she cooed “No offence Tony, but it’ll be nice to get out and stretch my legs for a while”
“Okay, but stick close to me. If we see anyone, stick right by my side and people will think I’m leading you”
I grabbed Pickles saddle and bridle, and tacked the mare up. Celestia watched with fascination as the horse allowed me to tack her up, looking forwards to the ride.
As I finished up, Celestia started talking again “Funny really… we still have saddle in Equestria, to help carry young ponies or in one pony's case a baby dragon around. But bridles…they hark back to a much darker time”
“Sorry if it’s upsetting to you, but they don’t really hurt.”
A mounted Pickle and started walking out of the courtyard
“No, not really upsetting, just strange. Before my time, ponies were not always the leading creatures of our land. Other creatures used to use ponies for work and transport, much like you do now. Some of them still try, like Diamond Dogs, and they mistreat any ponies as well. But I can tell you care for your animals, so I guess it’s not so bad”
Having warmed up Pickle, we broke into faster gaits, cantering and galloping around the edge of my estate. Her body was fully healed so Celestia could keep up and it was great to see her enjoying herself. She had hidden her mane, but her longer than average tail was flicking around and flowing freely. I wondered how great it would be to see her long hair flowing as well.
After about an hours hacking, we returned to the farm and I let all three horses out into the fields. Celestia and I returned to the house and whilst she had gotten a little dusty, she used her magic to clean herself before entering. I was so glad not to have to wash her down again.
*****
I had prepared our lunch and brought it into the living room, but it was clear something was wrong Celestia was stood in the middle of the room, anger spread across her face.
“What’s wrong?” I asked
“I thought I could trust you” she spat
“You can…what’s happened”
Celestia just pointed at the TV with a hoof, and my face had dropped a little. Celestia had found the news channels, and it was covering the current war. Some of the images were, as the news call it, disturbing in nature.
“I thought you were a civilised society” she growled “You led me to be that you were kind creatures, but you’re not. You unslave animals, eat them and kill them. Not only that, but do the same to each other!” Her wings flared in anger, and a soft glow started to form around her horn.
I wasn't sure how best to react, but I knew I shouldn’t have hidden it for so long. I sat down on the floor in front of her, making myself as small as possible. She kept an eye on me and I looked up deeply into her eyes.
“Well Tony, what do you say for yourself?” She stood, looking very regal and imposing. She seemed to naturally fall into this role, and that was my plan – let her feel as important as possible so she wouldn't feel personally threatened, and then I could convince her.
“Dear Princess Celestia, I know I should have been a bit more honest at our flaws. But I am not a warmonger, I have never killed anything for fun, revenge or for anything else but for food or if the creature was suffering.”
“But you are the same creatures as them, so you must be evil”
“Are you the same as any bad subjects in your kingdom?”
“No…no ponies are evil!” she shouted at me
“So…why do you have guards if there is no evil?”
She stopped speechless for a moment “Actually, the guards don’t really protect me, but my citizens”
“Protect them from what if there is no evil?”
“Other creatures in my world are evil…The changelings for one”
“So, there’s never been a pony who has hurt other ponies”
“No! no…not really”
“Not really?” I saw an opening, and took it
“Well, there was one who threatened other ponies, but never killed any”
“Is that because the pony was stopped?”
“No…my sister would have realised her mistake after a while!”
“Your sister?”
Celestia explained Luna’s incident with her Nightmare Moon persona, how Celestia had stopped her before the crops failed, and her she has since been cured by her student and her friends.
“Well, I’m glad about that, but surely it shows that not all your ponies are the same. So why do you think us humans are?”
She looked at me “Nopony but my Sister or Twilight Sparkle ever argues back against me. It’s refreshing, especially as you also make good arguments. I have been a guest in your house, and I suppose you have not shown me a single aspect of your personality that’s aggressive or evil”
She knelt down infront of me, and bowed her head “Please forgive me for accusing you of such things”
I gently put my hands on her muzzle, and lifted her head back up “Oh Celestia, there’s no need to apologise. It must be hard to be in this strange land, I wonder if I could keep as calm as you if I landed in a strange world filled with flying and magical ponies, who control the weather and even the sun and moon."
"If only it would be possible, I would like to see how you, and my subjects, would react to a human in Equestria. Given how you would tower over most of them, they would likely be scared! But I don't think you would have to be hidden away like I have had to be here"
"Too true..."I mused "It would be lovely to let other people see and get to know you, I feel almost selfish keeping you to myself. But you have seen that not all humans are kind, and I would worry what some of them would do to you if they knew you were here"
"After seeing this news thing, I finally understand why. It seems like fate brought me into the safety of you, rather than a more dangerous area"
*****
I lay in bed that night, thinking. The rest of the day went off without further problems, and dealing with this issue had allowed us to be even closer. We both discussed our history of our worlds, both amazed by the various parts. Her worlds problems were resolved by magic, something called ‘The elements of Harmony’ and love, whilst ours were more solved by guns and bombs. But we both also had some core values that the majority cared about – families, friends and love. It's hard to remember that sometimes when there is such much evil in the world.
Just as I was finally dropping off, I heard talking downstairs. I decided to investigate, and slowly crept down to the living room where Celestia was spending the nights. She had decided that it was much more her to be inside, even in a small house, then a rustic barn. Although she had made me swear never to say that to somepony called ‘Applejack’ or any pony with Apple in their name. Celestia was curled up asleep, looking completely relaxed and at ease, and she looked so sweet and cute.
The Princess was talking in her sleep, in some language I couldn't quite understand, but rather than random sounds it seemed to be a proper conversation she was having. I was surprised she wasn't dreaming in the same language as she spoke, but then it was surprising she spoke the same language in the first place. I stood there for a while watching her, and whatever she was dreaming seemed to make her happy as she was contently sighing and a smile spread across her face. After a while I left her alone, almost feeling like I was intruding into a private moment, and went upstairs and tried to go back to sleep.
*****
First thing in the morning, I woke up and went downstairs, where Celestia was still laid out asleep on the floor, so I gently coughed to try to wake her up. She yawned as she woke and stretched herself out.
“Good morning Celestia, interesting dreams?”
“Good morning Tony. Yes, how did you know?”
“You were talking some language in your sleep, I don't know what.”
“Ahhh, that must have been ancient Equestrian. Its not been spoken for thousands of years, and only the immortals can now remember it. Works out quite well for secretly being able to talk to my sister or niece behind everypony else's back, although I think her husband is trying to learn what we say about him! Not that we talk too much about him of course."
I laugh, seeing how easily Celestia gets distracted talking about her niece and her husband, wondering how long she had been waiting for her niece's marriage.
"But yes. It was great news" she perked up "Now my magic had returned Luna was able to contact me in my dreams?”
“Wow, entering eachs others dreams? You ponies can do that?”
“Only my sister, Princess of the Night can enter other ponies dreams, it's a spell I've never been able to learn. She was relieved to finally find me as she had been worried as she had not been able to contact me for so long. Everypony back home had feared for the worse, but today the news will spread that I am fine!”
“So, what did happen? You never said how you ended up here?”
“Well, there was a great enemy attacking my kingdom, a whole swarm of demented dragons. Myself, my sister, my niece, Discord and the elements of harmony were all defending the kingdom, and we were battling the evil leader who had corrupted the others with his dark magic. Just as we were defeating him, he turned his final bit of magic just on me as a desperate act of vengence. No doubt he was trying to either kill me, corrupt me or something, but somehow he ended up sending me here"
I sat there completely speechless as Celestia told the story
"The good news was that he was defeated, no other ponies were hurt and the kingdom is safe” She started to cry, and I went over and put my hand on her neck, gently stroking her. Suddenly she used her wing to pull me into a deep hug, which took me by surprise. She felt so warm and soft, yet her wing was so powerful she probably could crush me.
“Oh Tony, I’m so glad my sister and my kingdom is safe! I’ve been so worried!”
“I didn’t know, you hadn’t let on at all!”
“Well, I had faith in my sister and student to cope. So to start with I was more concerned with my own situation. But it’s so nice to know it’s all safe”
“And presumably this is another sign that your magic is returning, so you might be able to return soon?”
She released me from the hug, and turned her head to look at me “Not for a while yet, but it does mean I now have worked out a way of tracking my way back to where I belong”
"So thats all good news" I nodded to her
"Yes, and even more important than that my crown and shoes are safe as well" she deadpanned, before bursting out in laughter.
*****
I made breakfast and sat it down as usual. However, as soon as went to reach for the food, Celestia laughed “No need to feed me today” she explained, and my forks started to glow yellow. It then levitated up and she started feeding herself by magic.I just sat there staring at her, causing her to giggle and then started trying to feed me as "obviously today I was unable to feed myself." We laughed, and I went and got myself a second fork.
After breakfast, Celestia joined me outside again, and today she started using her magic to help move the stuff around. I didn’t really need the help, but I think she was glad to have some of her other abilities back. She helped move around the supplies of hay and straw, and I also let her collect all the eggs from the hens. She levitated the chickens up, and they seemed to be completely relaxed at this, such must be the relaxing side effects of a magic levitation.
The rest of the day went pretty much as usual, except Celestia could now help me out around the house. We also had great fun starting to play some board games and the like, as Celestia could now more the pieces around herself. I had fashioned a simple crown out of some fabric, which Celestia put on with pride and then fashioned one for me. Yeah it was a little childish for a fully grown adult and a royal alicorn, but little things like that help make the days a bit different. She seemed to be even happier as usual, which I put down to being in touch with her sister again and getting the use of her magic.
And I think the fact she beat me in more than half the games helped!
Another week had past and Celestia and I were enjoying a nice gallop around the farm. But today was different than the other times. Normally I would be riding one of my horses and she would gallop or canter alongside me, but today was different – today I was riding her.
At our usual time when I exercise or turn out the horses, I had gone out to the stable to find Celestia already out there, with her magic hiding her features as usual. But then I noticed that she was wearing one of the saddles, and was levitating over a bridle and reins. As she was putting on the bridle, she explained that she wanted to thank me by giving me a ride around the farm.
Initially I had argued against her idea as it just didn't feel right to ride the Princess. But she argued back that she wanted to do this for me, having no other way to thank me, and she was more then powerful enough thanks to me helping her heal. The argument took a little time, as neither of us wanted to back down. I eventually relented, knowing from our other arguments and discussions that if she had made her mind up on something, the mare was not for turning. She then finished putting on the bridle without a bit, and then beckoned to me to climb on.
Getting onto her was an unnerving experience. She looked so much more slender than a normal horse, and I was worried that I would hurt her. But having slowly mounted she was surprised how light us humans were compared to our sizes.
The trip around the farm was fairly magical. She was much faster and bouncier than the normal horses which made for a fun ride, and we chatted as the rode. Whilst I always spoke to my horses, they never seemed to speak back and you could never be sure how much they understood. This was the way to go riding, with somebody to talk to!
As we was reaching the end of the usual route, Celestia sped up a little more. “I’ve got a extra special treat for you” she said, undoing the magic hiding her wings, horn and mane, allowing her hair to flow all around me.
“Wait Princess, somebody may see you!” I nervously declared, looking around to see if anyone was looking.
“I’ve made us both invisible” She laughed back.
“Why?”
“You’ll see…hold on”
As soon as she said that her wings flared out and we sped up a little more. Then I noticed that the ride became very smooth, like she had stopped moving. It was then I realised that she had taken flight and we were airborn!
“Wooooo” Celestia whooped as she gained altitude “It’s been so long since I’ve flown for fun. And I don't mean just being here, I never get to do this anymore!”
I was speechless as we sped upwards and forwards, gaining more and more speed. I could see a faint aura around me, which I guessed was Celestia’s magic helping me stay on. Afterall, whilst I'm a confident rider, there wasn't much I would have been able to do with the wind rushing over me at what must have been very fast.
We sped over the neighbouring town, swooping down to follow the valley and then started sweeping around the farms neighbouring fields. Her mane and tail swished around in the wind, and she seemed to really enjoy the freedom of flying. Of course whilst I had been on an airplane before, and even done a skydive, nothing could have prepared for the feeling of soaring like a real bird. With the magic aura also making my skin tingle, I had the ride the like no other human had probably had before.
After a couple of hours of flying over the countryside, we approached my farm, and landed softly in the middle of the courtyard. Checking no-one was around, Celestia removed the invisibility magic and I dismounted from her back. I helped her untack all the equipment from her, as it just seemed to be the thing to do for any horse.
“Thank you so much for today” I wept as I gave Celestia a hug
She put a wing round me “I have a confession. Tonight I will be going home. I didn’t know how to tell you, or to thank you for everything you had done, but this seemed the most appropriate thing I could actually offer you".
*****
Our final day seemed to pass all too quickly. We spent all day together, and I made the final meal as special as possible, making her favourite salad with chips again. It had been a lovely day, but the fact we were shortly to never see each other again filled our hearts with sadness.
As darkness fell, we went outside back to the copse where I found her. We didn’t know how to say goodbye to each other, as we knew that once she left there was no chance of ever seeing each other again. It had been a little over two weeks, but we had grown to be good friends. Some of that was no doubt down to the fact we had spent a lot of time together, but I think we had both found something unusual in each other. The Princess had found a kind samartain who treated her as an equal, rather than royalty. And I had found a mystical beast who seemed as down to earth as anybody else.
She stood there, and she looked up at the moon. I looked up and seemed to notice a faint horse head appear – this was a sign from her sister Luna and would help Celestia navigate her way home. Her horn started to glow, and soon we were both bathed in a light as bright as the sun. She spread her wings and started slowly lifting up for the ground, stretched out with her horn up and her wings fully spread. Suddenly, she and the light disappeared, leaving me in darkness, alone…
*****
The day after Celestia left I woke up to find myself with an empty home for the first time in a while. I didn't really see the point in getting up, and just wanted to wallow in my bed. However, life had to go on. I went downstairs to fix myself, just myself, a breakfast but to my surprise I found an old fashioned looking Scroll on the breakfast table. I approached it slowly, as scared of it as if it was a bomb or something.
Having eventually picked up the scroll and unfurling it, an object fell out and looking down there was a heart shaped ruby on the table. Ignoring the gem for now, I started to read the old fashioned style scroll
Dear Faithful Tom
I have made it safely back to my homeland. Although I am happy to be back with my Sister and my subjects, I left you with a heavy heart. Without your kindness and generosity I am not sure I would have been able to survive, and you put my interests above your own.
You also took time to keep me happy and laughing which greatly helped my healing, as well as looking after me by hand without any magic to assist you. This is the action of an honest and loyal being, one I would be proud to call a friend.
Since my return, I have made sure that you have been honoured and will continue to do so. I have renamed the defence magic wing at the Magic University after you, and there is also now an annual celebration on the day I was sent into your care. Of course only a few ponies know who you actually are, the majority cannot be told about Humans. But you will be recorded as a hero of our kingdom throughout the ages.
The temporal vertex (as my student has called it, she's big on the science and is looking forwards to experiment with the electricity thing) is closing, and this will be the only letter I will be able to send. I enclose a small gem as repayment of your kindness – unfortunately I cannot send anything bigger but I hope this small gesture shows how grateful I truly aim.
Please put this gem under your pillow tonight…
In your debt forever, Princess Celestia
I stood their choking back the tears, so glad she had been able to make it back home. I picked up the ruby and studied it. The cut heart-shaped gem must have been worth a lot of money - based on it’s size, colour and flawless interior, I would probably have guessed many millions. And if this was classified a small gem in her world, I wonder what the large ones were worth. She had mentioned that dragons ate gems, and I wondered just how much value her students dragon friend consumed on a daily basis.
But the memories and friendship it represented was priceless to me. I put the gem pride of place on the sideboard, and went to muck out the stables…
*****
I settled down for a good nights sleep after a busy day. I had decided to take more animals back onto the farm and had started sorting out everything, which was very tiring. I remember at the last minute to put the gem under my pillow as Celestia had written, which I presumed was simply some Equestria tradition. I wasn't sad like the previous night, but having re-read the letter before bed just made me miss Celestia even more.
After a while, I realised that I had fallen asleep and was in fact dreaming. I didn’t usually remember my dreams, so I was surprised to realise that I was having a lucid dream. Looking around, I realised I was in some sort of walled garden, with immaculate flowers and statutes. However, only when I looked closely at the statutes I realised they were of various ponies, some with wings and others with horns. There was also a weird creature with all sorts of body parts, looking like he was frozen solid in fear.
Suddenly an Alicorn seemed to appear, very similar to Celestia's shape but was smaller, and very differently coloured. She had dark fur, a dark mane and wore a dark blue crown, light blue hoof shoes and a dark blue necklace. Realising who this was, I decided to bow.
The alicorn started to speak “Hello, My name is…”
“Why Princess Luna, it is a pleasure to finally meet you!” I interrupted
The unicorn seemed taken back, but then started to laugh “Ah, I must have the correct pony. My sister warned me you were a bit of a joker”
“My reputation seems to have preceded me”
“As did mine obviously” the Princess retorted with a smile “I’m so glad you got our little gift. It took a great spell to send it to you, but this way we will be able to keep in touch via dreams. Not every night, it takes a lot of magic to get into a creatures dream trans-dimensionally.”
“I bet!” I laughed back “So, glad to get your sister back?”
“Of course, why wouldn’t I be?”
“Well, with her out of the way you must have had the palace to yourself, as well as being the only Princess left in the kingdom, with Cadence in the crystal empire”
She laughed, realising I was joking rather than making a Nightmare Moon reference. We talked for a while, before Luna explained she had to go as she was getting tired from the spell. She explained she would connect whenever she could to keep in touch, although it was likely to be weeks between dreams due to the amount of power it took. But that I should keep the gem with me every night so we never missed each other.
*****
A few years had passed since Celestia dropped into my life, and a lot had changed. I had just woken up from Luna’s latest update, with a smile on my face. Princess Cadence and Shining Armour were expecting their first foal, and Celestia had declared she would make an excellent foalsitter. Cadence, who was the most experienced out of the Princesses in this area, had challenged Celestia to prove how foalsiting wasn’t easy.
Celestia had accepted her nieces challenge and had just spent the day foalsitting a young pair of twins called Pound and Pumpkin Cake, with hilarious flour based results. But everypony was surprised on how patient she could be with the youngsters, until she reminded them of the patience she endured of spending weeks stuck without magic or wings.
I lay in bed thinking over the discussions I had had with Celestia regarding foals, and hoped that she would someday find the special somepony of her own and have her foals that I’m sure she wanted, or had until this run in with the mischievous twins.
I looked over at my sleeping wife, and gently rested my hand on her swollen stomach. We were expecting our first child in the next few months, life having moved on quickly after Celestia left. I had become much more social, and soon fell in love with a fellow animal lover, who was just as shy as I was. I gave her the nickname Fluttershy, although she had no idea why.
We have fallen in love quickly; as it was clear she wasn’t interested in my money. We bonded, married within the year and had decided to start a family. I looked back at my time of loneliness without regret, as otherwise I wouldn't have met Celestia, but was glad I had moved on.
My wife was obviously awake, as she linked her hand with mine on her belly.
“You had that dream again, didn’t you?”
“What dream?” I asked surprised
“I’m not sure, but every few weeks you have a dream where you mumble in your sleep and always wake up happy”
“Can you hear what I say?” I gently asked
“No, it’s not like a language it’s just soft sounds. Can you tell me what it is?”
“I’m not really sure” I lied
“Is it related to that stone you keep under the bed?”
I thought about my response carefully “Maybe, it reminds me of one of the few happy times before I met you”
My wife sniggered a little “What, you were happy before me?”
“Once” I laughed back “And not as happy as I am now”
“So, who gave you that heart?”
“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you...”
The next day started the same, Celestia coming in from the barn for breakfast followed by me tending to the animals, whilst the Princess watched the sun rise from the living room. Once I was done I made her a bowl of tea and gently served her kneeling on the floor again. Once finished, she thanked me but she looked a little nervous.
“Princess, is there something on your mind?”
“Yes, but it’s a bit embarrassing as you have done so much for me already” she said shyly, almost hiding behind her mane.
“Okay Princess, but you should know nothing is too much trouble”
She sighed deeply. “Well, my landing got me a little dirty and my mane and tail need some work…” her voice trailed off a little as she spoke. I realised that what she was asking was obviously quite personal in nature.
I looked over the Alicorn who was looking a little messy “Princess, do you want…wait, lets call it need me, to clean you up a bit?”
“Yes, I wouldn’t ask but my mane and tail are getting very matted. And some of the dirty is getting a little…itchy. Normally I use my magic to clean myself but it hasn't returned yet.”
I looked at Celestias’s hair and it did look very sorry for itself even compared to the day before “Well, I don’t mind helping you but I am going have to touch you, are you okay with that?”
She turned to me and before I had a chance to realise what was happening she gently stroked her muzzle against my hand “I think you’ve done enough for me to trust you”. Her muzzle felt so warm and soft, unlike any horse I’ve ever touched, it was more like a rabbits coat.
“Good, because if not the only option was to spray you down with a hose, and I can’t imagine doing that to royalty!”
“Oh, like your horses outside? Yes, somehow if you did that to me you wouldn't want to know what I'd do to you once my magic returned” she laughed
I left the room and grabbed a bunch of stuff. It seemed a little cold outside, so I decided to give her a wash inside – the kitchen was stone tiles and despite not being waterproof would probably be okay. I put down lots of towels and asked Celestia to come into the kitchen. She hobbled through to the kitchen, looking around the strange room for the first time. I asked her to stand over the towels and filled a bucket with warm water. I poured some shampoo in the bucket and slowly started to sponge down Celestia’s front legs.
“This is a strange room” Celestia asked whilst seeming to enjoy the warm water.
“It’s a kitchen; if you cook don't you have them back home?”
Celestia had a puzzled look “I guess we do, but haven’t seen one for a long time. I guess I just because I don’t have to cook back at the Castle”
I gently undid the bandage holding the wing in place and we were both glad to see that she could hold it in place already. “I don’t think I could stretch it out yet, so just avoid the wings if you can” celestia asked. I gently started washing her body, surprised to see all the cuts were already healed. I slowly cleaned around her wings, avoiding moving them or getting soap over the feathers.
Once I reached the hind legs, I slowly took of the split. Celestia said she could sense that the split wasn't needed anymore, although she couldn’t put much weight on her broken leg. I continued to clean her body and after about twenty minutes her impossibly white coat looked even whiter. I rinsed off all the soap trying to use as little water as possible, the kitchen slowly starting to look like a small flood.
Once her body was done, I decided to clean up a little before tackling the very long mane and tail. “Perhaps we should have done this outside?” Celestia remarked as I used a mop to get rid of some of the water
“It’s a little cold out there, I didn’t think in your current condition you could do with getting a cold”
“I may be a Princess, but I’m not some sort of weak and pampered pony” she retorted a little defensively.
“No offense intended Celestia, but I don’t want to get myself wet and cold outside, it’s not good for me!”
“But it’s good enough for your horses?”
I laughed a little “Oh, Celestia. It’s kind that you’re looking out for them, but they have thick hair and are built to take the temperature better. Humans are not, and from the looks of your more slender frame, I doubt you are as well!”
“Tis true I suppose, the Earth ponies are much more rugged then we magic types”
Having finished getting rid of a lot of the water, I then started to wash down her mane. With her mane being about eight foot long, I knew it was going to take a long time. I gently kneeded shampoo into the very fine, soft but strong hair, gently teasing out the knots.
“My my my, those…what do you call them?”
“Hands?” I replied
“Yes, those hands are wonderful at this. Don’t get me wrong magic is nice, and the spa ponies do what they can with hooves, but these hands are simply sublime. I'm sure some of my subjects will do anything for such things!”
As I continued to wash her mane, she closed her eyes and let out a soft moan. I was nice to see her enjoying something so simple, and it made the long and laborious task worthwhile. It took over an hour to wash the mane, rinse it, dry it off and then half an hour just to comb it.
Once I had given myself a well deserved rest and we both had a cup of tea, I started on the tail, which was even longer than the mane, and much dirtier with more of it brushing on the ground.
Despite having washed down horses loads of times before, washing Celestia’s tail felt kind of…well…awkward. I suppose it was because she was a sentient, intelligent being. Celestia must have either picked up on my awkwardness, possibly from the strange silence, or felt the same herself as she suddenly blurted out
“It’s strange…bathing is such a personal activity, yet we do often share it with others. I mean, we wash our young and we go to spas etc”
I could sense she was trying to reassure me, and possibly herself “Very true, except I’m not too into spa’s myself” I replied.
“But I guess having somepony…”
“Some person” I corrected with a laugh
“…somePONY” she laughed back “who isn’t a family member or professional touch you does feel a little different.”
“There has been a lot of study into this. It is a very intimate thing to let anyperson…”
“Anypony” Celestia corrected me this time
“…anyBEING touch you for more than a few seconds. I mean, we kind to do it a lot when we are young, or when we are sick, and of course with our lovers…”
Our eyes met for a second, and I quickly thought I better change the subject
“Er…Do you have any children?” I asked, instantly regretting the subject Way to make yourself sound like a perve .
However, Celestia didn’t seem to make any connection “No, neither myself, my sister or my niece who is also an Alicorn, have brought foals into the world. We aren't sure if it’s a good idea or not”
“Oh, why's that…if it’s not too personal”
“Well, you see, we’re practically immortal unlike other ponies, and we don't know what genes our foals would have…there are no stallion immortals. It would be heartbreaking to bring a mortal child into the world, as well as fall in love with a pony, who will die as we live on” a little tear started to form in Celestia’s eye.
I pondered on this “Immortal…I can see why that would be a problem. I guess until one of you tried you have no idea what would happen, and it’s not the sort of thing to experiment lightly!”
“I suspect that we may find out soon though as my niece is recently married”
“Oh, congratulations” I instinctively responded
The subject seemed to perk Celestia up again “He is a wonderful colt! He is the leader of my royal guards and also my personal student’s brother”
“Why that’s quiet a coincidence” I remarked
“Yes, coincidence” Celestia remarked a little cryptically. I suspected there was more to it than that, but thought it best not to pry. Afterall, what business was it of mine to wonder about the delicacies and possibly politics of a royal magical Alicorn pony family lineage. And I bet no-one else has had to have that thought before I thought to myself with a smile.
After more than an hour of cleaning and drying, Celestia tail was also finished. It had taken in total half a day to clean her, but she looked even more radiant than she had before. She said that even if it wasn't really healing her, to feel and look clean again at least made her feel better, especially as it then wasn't a constant reminder of her lack of magic. Celestia limped back into the living room to rest whilst I started to clean up the kitchen again.
Once I was done I realised that we had missed lunch, so I made us an afternoon tea with a few sandwiches and cakes. We ate whilst watching a game of rugby on the TV, and I explained the rules as we went along, Celestia on the floor and me lying on a sofa. At first the Princess didn't really get the point of the game, explaining pony sports tended to be more straightforward and basically what humans called athletics. However, it wasn't long into the game before she was hooked and joined in with me cheering as my country scored another try.
After the game had finished, we both started stifling some yawns. The bathing in the morning had been tiring on my arms, and I guess standing around for a long time had taken it out of Celestia whilst she was still injured. I had wondered if she could almost sleep standing up like a normal horse, but her physiology looked different enough I guess that wasn’t possible. So no doubt the standing around was tiring.
“Well Tony, time for another nap I think” the Princess yawned, and shuffled around a bit to get comfortable. I turned off the TV and she lay down in a kneeling position again, but seemed to want to shift her weight a little
“Everything okay?” I asked, looking over from my comfortable prone position on the couch “You don’t look very comfortable today”
“Well, I am getting a little sore from this position”
“Well, ponies and horses here can lie on their sides, although normally only when they feel safe…” I paused for a moment “Do you still not trust me?”
Celestia turned her head towards me “No, that’s not the issue” she smiled “Actually, usually my ponies do lay on their sides, and mostly on their backs like your species did seem to in the film last night. Even the peagsi and alicorn wings are designed to fold away. However, being a Princess I can’t been seen lying around in what the ‘Society Ponies’…” she done little air quotes with her front hooves “…call an undignified manner so I’m used to this more regal pose”
“So what about when you’re in your private quarters?”
“Well, I never know when the royal guards, my sister or my faithful student will come bursting in, so I never really feel like I can let my hair down”
I paused again before answering “Well, you don’t have to be all fancy around me. If you want to lay on your side or back, please do so, Hey, if you want to wallow in mud I wouldn’t think less of you…but just so you know I’m not washing all that mane and tail again!”
Celestia gave out a small laugh and I watched as she shifted to lay on her uninjured wing side, letting out a very contented sounding sigh “Thank you very much Tony, you are too kind”
*****
Evening meal was approaching, and I had a bit of an internal dilemma. I had a delicious steak in the fridge I was looking forwards to, but I wasn't sure how Celestia would react to me eating such a thing. So far I had stuck to the vegetarian meals with her, not wanting to approach the subject given to how she reacted when I thought she wanted to eat the chicken on the first morning.
A big part of me wanted to just throw away the steak and not bring the subject up – it wasn’t really worth upsetting her. But then, I wondered that she might be here for a while, maybe for a long time or forever, and if so she would eventually find out about such things. So I decided to bring the matter up on my terms now. Celestia was just watching some more TV, so it was a good time.
“Princess, can I ask you something?”
“Sure Tony”
“Erm, I want to be honest with you. So far I have been eating the same food as you…although not as much as you of course”
“You calling me fat?” the princess teased in response. We both laughed, and it was amazing to think that we had become such good friends in a short space of time. I guessed that from her side she didn't have much more to do, and she probably felt safer trying to be friends than enemies.
“Well, the thing is, us humans don’t just eat fruit and vegetables…we eat other animals”
She looked at me with only a little shock “Thank you for being honest. I sort of guessed that when you offered me a chicken on the first day. There are creatures in our world who eat other animals, although they are considered wild creatures who hunt for prey in the darker areas of our kingdom”
“Well, we don’t hunt anymore, we farm. But we make sure the animals are treated well” Of course this was a lie, as not all animals are well looked after, but I only brought good quality ethically raised meat so it was only a small lie.
“I guess if you have to eat meat, then that’s not really your fault, is it?” The Princess did look a little repulsed at the idea, but for a vegetarian creature who could blame her.
“Well, to be honest, that’s a cause of great debate for humans. But much like some of these animals in your kingdom, we are designed to eat meat and we can get sick if we don’t have a balanced diet…”
“Wait!” she interrupted “Do you eat ponies…and horses?” She looked at me aggressively for the first time since the first night,
“Me, no no no.” I tried to calm her down “I have never eaten horse, and it’s not part of the culture of my country…”
“But what about other intelligent animals?” she interrupted again
I sighed deeply “I’d admit, we are a little confusing in this regards. We don’t eat dogs, cats and horses, but do eat birds, pigs, cows and other animals which do have intelligence. There is no real reason except for that’s how we developed. ”
Celestia eyed me up again, and I wondered if I should have mentioned it at all.
“I’m sorry to bring it up, and I promise not to eat any meat whilst you are a guest in my house” I added
She looked at me with her big round eyes, which then softened a little “No, I’m sorry. I have no right to tell you what to eat. If as you say you care for animals then I guess you’re not evil.”
“That’s okay, I’m sorry to bring it up. I don’t need to eat meat every day, I’m sure I can cope until you are well enough to leave”
“No, I insist that you don’t change. In fact, I’d now be angry if you don’t eat some meat tonight!”
“You Princesses always have to get your own way” I half laughed trying to lighten the mood
“Nothing to do with being a Princess, just a mare…” she joked back
This then led to a very interesting debate about the natural Matriarchy that her kingdom has. Being that the rulers are all female and immortal, and four out of five ponies were female, it wasn't surprising that most of the main figures of authority outside the royal guards were female. It seemed that it wasn't considered a problem in her society, probably due to the simple fact everypony gets a cutie mark telling them what their fate is, and so didn't worry about who was in charge.
The whole democracy thing that we have intrigued her, on the basis that as we don't get given a calling in life, we get to choose everything. She wondered if she should set up a royal court based on such 'elections', but then wondered if that would just confuse everypony and make them fear Cutie Marks were losing their power or something. Of course sensible ponies would be okay, but given her subjects can panic over a baby rabbit stampede, she wasn't sure they could all handle it.
*****
I started preparing dinner for the both of us, nervous at Celestia’s real reaction. To my surprise she had followed me into the kitchen, and watched as I started preparing my dinner. I decided to cook some chips, and the pony decided she would try some guessing they were similar to the hay fries she ate back home.
I started warming up a pan to cook the steak, and turned to Celestia “I’m about to start cooking the meat, okay?”
“Don’t mind me” she replied
I went to the fridge and took out the steak which was wrapped in paper. I unwrapped the steak, and brushed on a little bit of oil. When I went over to the grill to check if it had warmed up, she came over and had a look at it “Strange, it doesn’t look like an animal I’ve seen”
“Well, most of us only buy the food after it’s been prepared by an expert called a butcher” Again, a little white lie, but I wanted to try to make it sound as grand as possible.
“I guess that is a little more civilised then eating a whole animal” she retorted
I put the meat on the pan, and slowly cooked it whilst preparing the large salad for us to share, and also finishing up the chips. I took our food to the dining room table again, and we started eating.
“These chip things are excellent” Celestia remarked having eating and clapped her front hooves gently but noticeably on the floor.
“Glad you like them, try them with some tomato sauce, or mayonnaise…it’s eggs and diary” I put some of the edge of her plate, dipped one in and fed it to her. She seemed to enjoy it, so I spread the sauces across her chips, and she tucked in getting it all over her muzzle. I had to laugh as she made a bit of a mess, but I think she felt that she didn't have to act fancy round me anymore.
Having finished up, I gave her muzzle yet another wipe down and we spent the evening watching some more TV and chatting. It started raining heavily outside, and Celestia decided that she would rather stay indoors in the dry and warm than the barn. I explained she was more than welcome to stay, and we wished each other goodnight.
