The world spun, danced, and shifted into focus overhead as Thunder Shock began to wake from his slumber. His mind reeled and swam as he tried to force himself up.

'W...what happened? Had this crazy dream that I met Princess Celestia and drank some magic sleep potion she gave me. I REALLY need to stop eating spicy food before bed.' he thought in a dizzy haze.

After a few groggy minutes of shifting around, Thunder began to notice of the view that was overhead: the beautiful noon sky with a few clouds peppered here and there.

'Well, at least it's a nice day out. Guess I better...wait. Where's my roof?'

As he finally stood up, he was taken aback at the sight that he saw. He had somehow found himself in the middle of a lush garden, with all manner of colorful plants and luscious trees planted everywhere the eye could see. The only sounds in the air were the chirping of birds and the cool wind blowing. Directly in front of him were stone steps that appeared to lead deeper into the area.

'This is...different. Very, very different.'

"Uh...hello? Anypony here?" He called out.

"Ah good, you're awake! How are you feeling?" a regal voice called out to him.

Thunder quickly flapped his wings, still trying to get his body up and about. He thought he recognized the voice, but he was taking no chances. "F-Fine. A little groggy but I'll get over it."

"Good. I apologize for knocking you out like that. The potion I gave you allowed your mind to be more receptive to dream magic. It shouldn't take much effort in the future to bridge our minds again." the voice said as it appeared to be getting closer by the second.

"W-What are you talking abo-!"

Thunder quickly shook couldn't believe his eyes as he finally saw the source of the voice. It was Celestia, but without her regalia or her golden horseshoes. Her ethereal mane and tail were no longer flowing in the wind; both were much shorter, and her mane was draped over her shoulders. Thunder quickly brought his hooves over his eyes to obscure his sight of the goddess before him.

"Thunder Shock? What's wrong?" Celestia asked.

"Y...Y...You're...You're completely..."

"Nude? I know. Why are you covering your eyes?"

"Because I don't want to do anything that we might both regret later!" the terrified Thunder Shock called out.

Celestia could only giggle slightly at the stallion's attempt at nobility. "It's quite alright. You can look at me. I'm not going to banish you."

Thunder Shock timidly lowered his hooves and gazed upon the nude Celestia. Her beauty had inspired countless poems, songs, paintings, and fables; but none could hold a candle to the sight before him.

After a few seconds or so, Celestia cocked her eyebrow slyly. "Like what you see?"

"Yeah...I MEAN NO! I MEAN...I'm really out of my league here." Thunder replied.

Celestia shook her head slightly and began to trot through the garden.

"Come Thunder Shock, we have things to discuss." she gently commanded.

Thunder quickly began to trot along side her as they made their way through the garden.

"Ah, this is nice. It's been so long since I've been here. I can barely remember the last time I was able to relax like this." Celestia said as she stretched her neck and wings as she trotted through the garden. Thunder was not far behind, still in awe of the sun goddess's incredible body.

"Well, I-I'm glad you're enjoying yourself your highness, but I still don't see why I'm..."

As the two of them trotted into a clearing, Thunder was amazed at the nature before him. They had come to the edge of a cliff, the green plains below seeming to go on forever. To the left was a path into more of the garden. To the right, a path which seemed to lead to a nearby set of stone buildings. The wind blew ever gently as they stopped at the edge.

Thunder began to examine their surroundings more closely. In spite of the splendor of everything around him, he couldn't help but feel something was a bit off. The whole environment had an almost ethereal energy and peace to it. Usually around this time of day, an errant pegasus would be flying around going about their business. But here, aside from the wind and the calling of the far off birds, all was quiet. It almost felt like he and the princess were the only ponies in the world.

"So, what do you think?" Celestia inquired.

"This place is absolutely beautiful your highness. I've never seen anywhere like this before in my life. Actually, I'm not quite sure where we are. I can't imagine we're still on the castle grounds, and I can't see Ponyville. In fact, I can't see any other towns at all..."

"Quite observant Thunder Shock. You're quite right. We are not on the castle grounds. We're not even in Equestria."

Thunder began to get slightly worried. "So, where are we?" he asked.

"We're asleep. My sister Luna is allowing our minds to share this dream. Think of this place as...my safe haven. A place where only I and whoever I bring with me can go. We shouldn't need her assistance in the future." she replied.

"...what?"

Luna gently hovered over the sleeping bodies of Celestia and Thunder Shock; her eyes alight with an ethereal glow. Her dream magic had to work overtime to bridge his fragile subconsciousness to her's. After another hour or so, she finally landed in front of the bed and relaxed her magic.

'There we are. Now for the rest of Equestria.' she thought as she trotted quietly out of the room, turning the lights off as she did. As she closed the door behind her, she looked one last time at the sleeping pair.

"I hope you know what you're doing, Tia." Luna whispered.

Celestia and Thunder felt a slight tug in their minds as her sister released them from her embrace.

"Ah, she's done. Usually it doesn't take as long for everything to become stable. I hope it wasn't too hard on her." Celestia commented.

'Don't freak out Thunder. Don't freak out. Don't freak out. Don't freak out. Just...be calm, relax, and enjoy the view.' Thunder internally pleaded.

He gently sat down and slowly breathed in the cool air. After a few minutes of silent admiration for the beauty around him, both the garden and the princess, he turned to her with humility. "With all due respect your highness, why did you bring me here? I highly doubt you just wanted to show me the view."

Celestia sighed heavily and sat next to him, her face now hung with deep reflection.

"Thunder Shock, how old do you think Luna and I are?"

Thunder was taken back by the question. In his mind, a mare with such prestige as Princess Celestia would never ask a common pony something as personal as this.

"Well, I-I know that you banished your sister to the moon over a thousand years ago, so you're at least over a millennium old. I've never really thought about it. You two always just been here for us. Aside from, you know." he replied.

"Actually, We are...quite older than that. I have had many names and titles in my life. Princess, Empress, The Goddess of Fertility, The Holy Light, countless others. I have seen entire civilizations grow, prosper, wither, and die. I've seen countless wars fought for many reasons: Love, Power, Wealth, Land, Pride. I have always been, and will always be, until the very end. And...and I'm afraid."

Tears began to flow ever slightly down Celestia's face.

"I'm afraid that if I'm by myself for too long I would lose perspective, only see the big picture...or worse. I can't begin to imagine what would happen if I lost my mind."

Thunder inched closer to Celestia, hoping he could find a way to make things better for the sorrowing Princess. Celestia began to compose herself and looked deeply into his emerald eyes.

"Sorry. I...I get that way sometimes. Now, onto business. Tell me Thunder, do you know what a consort is?"

Thunder scratched his head and thought hard. "Um, vaguely. It's a companion of sorts. Someone who comforts another. A close friend. That kind of thing."

"Close. Actually, it's a royal title. A mortal pony who is close to us. They provide us advise, counsel, comfort...they help me keep things in perspective. They help me see the little picture, because 'the big picture' is made up of untold numbers of little pictures."

Thunder was baffled at what he was just told. "I've never heard of anyone like that working in the castle."

"Not surprising. Consorts are kept secret from the general public, and there hasn't been a proper consort in quite some time." she replied.

"Princess, forgive my brashness here, but why are you telling me any of this?"

"Thunder Shock, what if I were to tell you that Luna and I have decided to take on our first new consort in over a millennium?"

"Well, I-I would say that that pony was truly honored to be alongside one such as..."

Celestia quickly brought her hoof to his mouth. "And what if I said that we have selected you?"

"...what?"

"After careful consideration, We can think of no other stallion to hold this esteemed title than you."

Thunder was taken back at the sheer magnitude of Celestia's decision. He stood and began to trot around aimlessly, breathing heavily as he did. "N..No...I...I...I CAN'T....I mean, why me? Out of EVERY SINGLE STALLION in the WORLD, why me?!"

"Because you have an innate ability to see what truly troubles a pony. You listen well, and you have no qualms bearing another pony's burden on yourself. All the qualities of an excellent consort." Celestia gently replied.

"WHAT?! But...I CAN'T...I...I have a job!" Thunder called out.

"I know."

"I have friends! I have a life!"

"To my knowledge, you have only one close friend and a life that you don't necessarily live."

"H-How do you know about ANY of this?!" Thunder exclaimed.

"I like to be prepared." she replied as she then cleared her throat and stood at attention.

"Thunder Shock. Male Pegasus. Age twenty-six. Single. Born in Cloudsdale. Son of Lightning and Violet Shock. Currently employed at the Equestrian Weather Service Canterlot office. You make two hundred bits a month, enough for a comfortable if lonely life. You prefer Earle Grey tea with three drops of honey in the morning. You-"

"ENOUGH! I GET IT!"

Thunder stopped in his tracks, closed his eyes, and took a massive breath. He continued to breathe heavily as he tried to comprehend the situation at hoof.

"Ok. Let's...let's talk about this for a bit. Say I actually DO accept this job. First, what would my duties be exactly?"

"Well, Well, you would attend to me in the evenings and on the weekends when the day court is recessed. Luna is sometimes up and about during the day, so you could be called to keep her company when I am busy." However, anytime that I or my sister are in need of companionship or advice, you would be summoned to aid us. We will keep our discussions private, so you don't have to worry about anypony talking out of place. You would have your own room in the castle, but should a need arise you would spend the night with either of us."

Celestia leaned in closer to Thunder, just inches away from his nose.

"There is one other duty you should be aware of. With all of our power and authority, Luna and I are still ponies. As such, we do have certain...physical needs that only a stallion can satisfy. Tell me, would you have any concerns with being...intimate with either of us?"

Thunder choked and gasped for breath at the word 'intimate'. He never in a million years thought he would ever be in a conversation with a Princess about intimacy.

"Thunder Shock, are you alright?!" Celestia asked with concern.

" 'gasp' 'cough' I..I'm fine. Just...wow. I mean...WOW! I..." he managed to squeak out.

"I apologize. I didn't mean to make uncomfortable."

"NO NO, it's..it's fine. It's just...I've never been...'intimate' with anypony, much less a mare of your...standing. Of course I would...help in that situation...if it is absolutely necessary of course."

Thunder's heart dropped to his knees. 'Oh GREAT! How in Faust's holy name would I pull THAT off? I...I guess just one step at a time, but that's gonna be one BIG step.'

"Good. But keep in mind. You would NOT be a whorse or token call pony. You would be treated with the utmost respect in the castle. If any other servant or guard hurt or disrespected you in any way, they would be punished. Severely. Your well being would be important to both of us."

Celestia's face hung again with deep reflection as Thunder gazed into her eyes. Looking past her sadness, he saw the long trail of tears in eyes that had seen far too many atrocities and deaths for anyone to endure, much less the ruler of an entire nation. He saw lonely eyes, eyes that called out for someone, anyone, to simply care.

"You need me don't you? Not just my body, not just an adviser, but...me. Don't you?"

Celestia hung her head low and simply whispered "Yes.".

Thunder gazed at the goddess in front of him and saw what she truly was: Not an ethereal being with an entire race of subjects who idolized the very ground she walked on, but a pony. Simply an old pony in need of a friend.

With that in mind, Thunder trotted right up to Celestia and humbly bowed.

"Princess Celestia, I thank you for this prestigious and most gracious honor you have bestowed upon me, and I humbly accept."

Celestia smiled and quickly grabbed the stallion within her forelegs, giving him a very big hug.

"Thank you Thunder Shock. You've made Luna and I very happy today. I assure you, you will never regret this decision."

Thunder basked in the warmth and love of Celestia's hug for as long as he could, until the inevitable curiosity kicked in. "Um, so uh, where do we begin? I mean, is there some kind of ceremony or ritual or som----"

He was quickly interrupted when Celestia brought him up to her face and nuzzled him passionately. Thunder could only respond with a few stifled murmurs as he was being embraced by the sun deity.

After a few moments for air, Thunder was the first to speak. "So...what part of my duty was that?"

"Comfort. Definitely comfort." Celestia responded.

Suddenly, a loud rumble echoed across the land, the ground beginning to crack and warp.

"W..What's happening?!" Thunder gasped.

"We're waking up. A shame, I really wanted to spend more time here." Celestia responded as a large wave of darkness began to envelop the land, destroying everything in it's wake.

Thunder opened his mouth to scream, before realizing that nothing was truly real and could hurt the two. He then closed his eyes and laid his head down upon Celestia's chest, waiting for the inevitable.

"We have a busy day ahead Thunder Shock. Brace yourself." she said as the darkness enveloped the two, plunging them into the oblivion of their own minds.

Author's Note

So, the next few chapters are going to be exposition / world building, but I hope that you like what I have so far. Now I do have my own plans and ideas for this story, so forgive me if I don't go with ALL of the opinions given to me, but I am open to feedback. So, what do you guys want to see?