Bookplayer's 50 Questions

Since I haven't been active here for a while, I thought I'd answer these questions that Bookplayer posted over at her blog.

The Princesses:
1. How old are Celestia and Luna?
I tend to think of them as about 2000 years old. That's probably for mostly subconscious reasons. I think of Sunbutt and Moonbutt as fulfilling a kind of religious role in pony society, and having been raised by Christian parents, the thought of significant religious figures appearing 2000 years ago comes naturally to me.

2. How old is Cadance?
I'd say she's the pony equivalent of early thirties. That's based on other headcanon I'll get to in later questions.

3. Were Celestia and Luna always alicorns, or did they ascend?
Always alicorns, and in my headcanon, the first two.

4. Are Cadance and Twilight immortal?
No.

5. Have there been other alicorns in the past?
No.

6. How much authority do Celestia and Luna have in Equestria?
I view them as having basically absolute power, but choosing not to exercise it most of the time. Celestia especially is more of a referee than a ruler, letting the ordinary ponies govern themselves, and only stepping in when a particularly serious threat arises.

7. Does Shining Armor rule The Crystal Empire along side of Cadance?
Yes, technically, but I don't think he's particularly interested in doing so.

8. Other than Twilight, Luna, and Cadance, what relationships have been important to Celestia in her lifetime (students, close friends, lovers, family)?
In canon, Starswirl and Sunset Shimmer (and maybe Sombra, depending on where the current comic story arc goes). I also like to think that there were more primal forces, sort of like the Titans, who created Celestia and Luna, and probably had some relationship with them.

Ponies and Equestrian Culture:
9. Are there still cultural differences between earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns, or is the culture homogeneous by the time shown in canon? Are there cultural stereotypes (positive or negative)?
There are still differences, but ponies have a lot more freedom to choose their culture and migrate to where they'd prefer to live, Cloudsdale being the obvious exception. As a result of Cloudsdale's relative isolation, pegasi tend to harbor a bit more distrust toward the other races than Earth ponies and unicorns.

10. Are there foods or items native to Cloudsdale that are uncommon on the ground? Are there foods or items on the ground that are uncommon in Cloudsdale?
There's been no suggestion in canon that the pegasi have their own special agricultural practices, so I doubt there are basic foods there that aren't found groundside. But I'm sure they've developed their own cuisine, which probably remains more distinct than Earth pony and unicorn cuisine.

11. Can all unicorns learn all spells, given the time and effort spent practicing them, or is magical talent usually limited in some way?
As a musician, I find it most natural to think of magic as working like music. All unicorns can learn some, and most can improve to a fairly high level of expertise with enough study and practice. But there are virtuosos, like Twilight, who are born with that extra something that allows them to reach a level most ponies just can't achieve. And of course that means there are also some unfortunates who "can't carry a spell in a bucket" so to speak.

12. Earth pony magic: Does it exist? What is it?
It exists, but its uses are very specific, and it can't be directly manipulated by Earth ponies. I think of it as functioning almost like dowsing, allowing them to find the optimal conditions for agricultural development (or the use of agricultural products, as with Pinkie and the Cakes), geological study, etc. It's not substantively different from unicorn and pegasus magic, it's just not directly accessible to the "caster".

13. Some pony families we’ve seen seem to have naming conventions (the Apples, Twilight’s family) and others don’t appear to (Rarity’s family, Pinkie’s family), which is more common? Are there reasons for one or the other?
I would say that Pinkie's family has this convention more than Twilight's, but regardless I tend to think of it as old families vs. new families—or close-knit vs. scattered. The Apples have always stuck together, and having a family name shows their pride in that fact. Rarity and Fluttershy don't seem as attached to their extended families (or even immediate families, in Fluttershy's case), so there's no desire to show that same level of pride through naming conventions.

14. How much formal schooling is an average, middle class pony expected to complete?
Based on the comics, high school seems to be average, but I would also suspect there are apprenticeships for those who aren't pursuing academic careers and don't have family members to teach them a marketable skill.

15. What’s the average lifespan for a pony? At what age is a pony expected to be independent of their parents?
I think of it in human terms. 18-21 is the age of independence, and the average lifespan is 70-80 years. That includes princesses not named Celestia and Luna.

16. Are there roughly an equal number of male and female ponies?
I think women significantly outnumber men, maybe 60-40 or even 70-30 percent. If not, the show is presenting a weirdly skewed vision of pony society.

17. How informed are most ponies about things that happen in other parts of Equestria? What about other parts of the world?
Mass media seems not to exist in Equestria, so it takes some work to be in the know. I think even major events grow, or just change, in the telling as they travel around the continent with merchants, musicians, etc. Knowledge of the world outside Equestria is even less common/more distorted.

The Main Characters:
18. How old are the Mane Six? Spike? The CMC?
The mane six are early to mid-twenties. The CMCs are 8-10. Spike is 10-12.

19. Did Fluttershy remain on the ground after getting her cutie mark? Were she and Rainbow Dash friends all along, or did they drift apart for a while?
I think she went back to Cloudsdale, but came to the ground as frequently as possible, and moved there as soon as she was old enough to be independent. She and Dash have always stayed close, as evidenced by the exceptional level of patience Dash shows toward her.

20. Rarity and Applejack both seem to have grown up in Ponyville. What were their interactions like before the show?
Cordial, but infrequent. And probably less laden with sexual tension.

21. What do Twilight and Spike consider their relationship to be?
Twilight sees herself as mainly responsible for Spike's moral development, and Spike sees Twilight as a big sister, but also as someone who can't get along without him. They've been too close for too long to have a simple student-teacher relationship.

22. When did Pinkie move in with the Cakes? Is she a worker who rents a room, an apprentice, or is there some other relationship?
Definitely an apprentice, and probably moved in not long after high school.

23. Who among the Mane Six had the best parents growing up? The worst parents?
Applejack probably had the best, and based on the fact we've never seen them, I assume Fluttershy had the worst. Though you could probably go way dark and write a story that reveals AJ had abusive parents who she came to idolize after their deaths in order to cope with the trauma.

24. Why didn’t the CMC hang out more/know each other before Call of the Cutie?
They're young and still learning who their best friends are. Personally I had more friends, but fewer close friends, at that age, so I think of the CMCs as being the same.

25. Is Scootaloo an orphan? Will she ever be able to fly?
If she was an orphan, she's been adopted (based on what we've seen this season) and she will be able to fly when she gets serious about it. Right now, she's focused on literally everything else in the world.

26. Will Apple Bloom’s cutie mark involve an apple in some way, even if it’s unrelated to farming or baking?
It seems likely, but I really hope it doesn't. There's loads of potential for character development if they go that route.

27. How is Sweetie Belle’s relationship with their parents different than Rarity’s was?
I doubt it's much different at all. I have a feeling Rarity was just as impatient and impetuous at Sweetie Belle's age.

Side and Background Characters:
28. Is Mr. Cake the father of the Cake twins or not?
He is. I think the suggestion that he isn't was just a subtle joke thrown in for parents who happened to be watching with their kids.

29. Are Big Mac and Cheerilee an item, romantically?
No, they're old friends who find it funny (and a little annoying) that everyone thinks they are.

30. How did Prince Blueblood get his title?
Never given it much thought. I'd like it if unicorns just presumptuously gave themselves a bunch of meaningless noble titles at some point in history, and Celestia and Luna snicker at them behind their backs.

31. Is Silver Spoon equally as bad as Diamond Tiara?
I think she's possibly worse. Diamond is a bully, but Silver aspires to be a bully.

32. Is Zecora’s magic common among zebras?
No, she's similar to a shaman in Native American culture.

33. Why does Daring Do publish her stories as fiction?
I assume it's because she wants to make sure there's a record of all the important stuff she's doing in case she fails to return from an adventure, but she doesn't think ponies would believe them if they were published as non-fiction.

34. Do you have a strong headcanon for any non-speaking or one line background ponies that you want to share?
For the most part, I go with the fanon on them. However, I do think of Octavia as basically being ponified Holden Caulfield, and I think Lyra and Pinkie were briefly an item prior to the first episode of the show.

Other Species:
35. Does Equestria differentiate between speaking and non-speaking species, in terms of respect, rights and legal responsibilities? Is there some other line or scale used? (For example, how are cows classified? Diamond Dogs? A chimera?)
Non-speaking species are definitely treated as pets/work animals. I feel like any speaking species probably has equal legal protections, even those like diamond dogs and chimeras that tend to be looked down on.

36. Do other speaking species form their own nations, or are all nations largely integrated, with some having larger populations of a species than others?
Griffons and zebras definitely have their own nations. I suspect mules do, too. And let's not forget about non-Equestrian ponies, like the Saddle Arabians.

37. Are minotaurs related to cows at all?
I would suspect that minotaurs were bulls who were magically changed into another "race".

38. Do all zebras rhyme?
No, but maybe all magic using zebras do.

39. Do zebra cutie marks work the same way as pony cutie marks?
Yes

40. Do any species have types of magic, other than ponies and zebras?
Griffons seem to have the same magic as pegasi, allowing them to walk on clouds.

41. Is the lack of buffalo presence in Equestria cultural, or simply because most pony towns aren’t built to accommodate a full grown buffalo?
Given that they're obviously meant to be analogous to Native Americans, it's hard not to think that there are simply fewer buffalo than ponies in Equestria; however, that analogy really makes me not want to think about why there are fewer buffalo than ponies.

Headcanon and You:
42. Do you consider official sources other than the show (comics, card game text, movies, novels, etc.) to be canon?
I tend to decide whether other sources are canon based on how true I think they are to the show. For example, most of the comics are definitely canon. The characters act the same, the world works the same way, etc. G.M. Barrow's novels, based on the one I've read, seem a little shakier. (I'm happy to accept her Cadance origin story as canon, but her Trixie/Gilda friendship didn't feel true to those characters on the show at all.) And because I feel like the show portrays the mane six as adults rather than high school students, I think Equestria Girls is the equivalent of DC's Elseworlds comics.

43. Do you have one headcanon that you always use, or do you switch depending on projects?
I do have a fairly unified headcanon, though so far that hasn't really shown in the stories I've posted here, because there has been very little overlap of characters.

44. Can you easily accept the headcanons of different writers? Do you prefer when stories match your headcanon?
I do prefer when other writers happen to accept bits of my headcanon, but I can still enjoy stories that break it. Really the only thing I can't get behind is stuff that breaks the actual canon (like most grimdark fics).

45. Is there a part of your headcanon that you wish was more popular among writers?
I think all writers should ship Pinkie and Rainbow Dash. Seriously, though, I love my idea of Trixie as a kind of Catwoman figure who's willing to play both sides to get what she wants, and wish more writers took her in that direction.

46. Is there a popular piece of headcanon that other writers use that you dislike?
Even though I understand AppleDash shipping, I think it's boring and overexposed. I don't really mind the whole Lunar Rebellion thing as a bit of world building, but when it's the main point of a story, I have a hard time staying interested. And I hate anything to do with Colgate (Minuette, on the other hand, is awesome).

47. Have you ever written a story or blogpost just to explain some part of your headcanon (other than this one)?
Three Wishes basically exists to spell out my headcanon for Trixie and Gilda.

48. Does your headcanon influence things like your favorite pony, ship, or episode?
Absolutely. If I'm honest, my Trixie love is equal parts headcanon and canon. And my PinkieDash shipping makes me enjoy episodes like Griffon the Brush-Off and Wonderbolts Academy more than I would otherwise.

49. Would it bother you if the show proved part of your headcanon wrong? Any specific piece that would really bother you to lose?
At the risk of sounding really pathetic, Rainbow Dash being portrayed as straight would be pretty hard for me to live with. I know an openly gay character on a kids' show is still years away, but I feel like she's always been kind of a wink and a nod to those of us who want that kind of inclusivity in media. I'll also be sad if they ever revert Trixie back to the simple blowhard she was before Magic Duel fleshed her out. Generally, though, I think it's more fun trying to harmonize canon and headcanon.

50. Is there something that wasn't asked about here, but you feel like you need to explain to everyone?
No, I think I've embarrassed myself enough :)