//------------------------------//
// Chapter 6: Leaving Home 
// Story: Subject #7 
// by StarryDay 
//------------------------------//


Chapter 6
Leaving Home
June 10, A.C. 1014


"You knew her, then?" The two ponies walked along the castle halls heading for Theseus's suite. He hoped Fluttershy was still there. He still did not know how he felt. Everything was too jumbled in his head. He dragged his mind back to the conversation. "Were you her coltfriend?"
"Not exactly, but I suppose that's as good a description as any." Theseus grinned.
"So, her buck-buddy, then?"
"No!" he shouted. "Absolutely not! I would never use such a vulgar term. And we meant more than that to each other." Theseus moved his ears back and frowned.
"I'm sorry. That was insensitive of me."
"I understand," said the zebra, calming down. "You're young; you do not understand these things as I do.
"I'm not that young," said Theseus stubbornly. They reached the suite and stopped in front of the door. He opened the door, turning to his new friend. "I hope we meet again."
"I hope so, as well." He bowed. "Your Majesty." Theseus partially returned the bow and Zane rose to his hooves. He saluted with his left hoof and disappeared down the hallway in the direction from which they had come. Theseus then entered the suite to find Fluttershy nervously scuffling her hooves.
"Um... Is everything alright?" he asked. The yellow filly smiled gently.
"We should probably get back to Ponyville," she said. "My friends will be wondering where I am." Theseus nodded in agreement.
"We should." He looked around nervously before whispering in her ear with a smile. "To be honest, I'm kind of getting sick of this whole 'Your Majesty' thing."
"I'm not exactly used to it either," Fluttershy confessed. Theseus raised a hoof in the air triumphantly, earning a giggle from his friend.
"It's settled then! Tomorrow morning, to Ponyville!"

Theseus awoke the next morning to a wonderful smell. It smelled like... "Paradise" was the only word that came to his mind. He opened his eyes to see a smiling Zane standing by his bedside, a plate of food on the end table.
"Zane?" The zebra nodded before saluting. "Right. At ease." The stallion dropped his hoof to the floor, reached his mouth into his saddlebag and pulled out a sword, offering it to Theseus. He took it uncertainly in his magic, looking it up and down. It was a wonderful shade of silver, sparkling in the morning sun coming through the window. The hilt was encrusted with amethyst, the color of Theseus's own eyes. There was just one problem.
"Why do I need a sword?" Zane looked at him curiously.
"Training begins today, Your Highness. This is the sword you will use in your battle training. Its name is 'Valiant.' It was forged from the finest metal within a hundred miles. The amethysts in the hilt act as a name tag, specifying you as the owner. Any pony who tries to pick it up will feel a surge of guilt and an uncontrollable urge to return it to you." Theseus looked at the sword again. It did not seem to be enchanted. Zane continued speaking, laying out the sword's abilities and merits. "It is able to cut almost anything, it will never rust, and-" Theseus stopped him by raising a hoof.
"I don't want to train," he said. Zane apparently wanted nothing to do with his laziness. He was gentle, but Theseus could tell that he was holding back frustration.
"Please forgive me, Your Highness, but it is standard protocol, and you are already several years overdue for the beginning of training."
"But we're supposed to leave for Ponyville today."
"Don't be ridiculous," the zebra said. "You belong here. Besides, Crystal Lake would never let you leave." He removed his saddlebag and gave it to Theseus. "Here," he said. "If you must leave, take my saddlebag. I think it would serve you well."
"Thanks." Theseus took it and placed over his back, magically latching it around his belly. He discreetly slid it back until it covered his flank. Fluttershy, who had apparently been taking a shower, reentered the room from the attached bathroom with her mane wrapped in a towel, a small pink tuft poking out the top.
"What was that about leaving?" she asked. The two stallions were quiet. "If I'm not prying, of course," she finished. Theseus waved a hoof at the zebra in exasperation.
"Zane here says that Crystal Lake won't let us leave." Zane shook his head.
"He'd let her go in a heartbeat," he corrected. "He wants you to stay."
"What? Why? What's he need me for?"
"You are the heir!" he replied. "The rightful owner of the throne. He wants to abdicate his position to you!" Theseus became very uncomfortable.
"But I don't want to be King. I'm already having enough trouble being a prince!" Fluttershy tapped him on the shoulder. He turned around to see her pointing to the tray with the food on it.
"Is this yours?"
"You can have some, just leave a bit for me."
"Okay, thank you." She proceeded to grab the toast in her mouth, chomping on it quietly.
"Eat," said Zane. "You need to be strong for the training." He offered Theseus the remaining food and a fork. Theseus looked at the foreign substance uncertainly, then took a tentative bite. His mouth was flooded with flavor, a tornado of taste moving through his mouth.
"This is amazing! What is it?" He scarfed down another bite, and Zane looked perplexed.
"You've never had scrambled eggs before?" Theseus stopped shoveling the food into his mouth long enough to form an annoyed reply.
"When will the astonished questions end!?"


***


Crystal Lake sat with his legs crossed on his throne, spinning the crown around his hoof. After several revolutions, it slipped off and flew across the room, hitting the floor with a clatter. He then retrieved it with his magic and set it back on his head.
"I don't like waiting," he muttered to himself. "Where is he? I need that report." As if on cue, a monkey ran toward him with a scroll wrapped in his tail. "There you are, Arrowhide! What do you have for me?" He levitated the scroll in front of him. As he read, his mouth formed a shallow frown. "Really? That soon?" They were here early. He had hoped that he would have more time to prepare. He glanced down at the small mammal at his hooves. "Have the soldiers bring Golden Grove to the throne room. I'll need him later." The monkey nodded and scampered off with a series of yips. A voice emanated from the door to Crystal's right.
"Sir!" Crystal Lake turned his head with a wide smile.
"Oh, Theseus," he said, "You do not have to address me as such." Theseus frowned.
"Apparently, I do." Crystal raised an eyebrow. "Having power over where I go makes it seem an awful lot like you're my superior." The Advisor-turned-King smiled warmly.
"My King, I am only trying to do what is best for you."
"I don't want to be King." But Crystal Lake continued.
"You are an Earth Wizard. You belong in this city, with your brethren and your citizens. And the wild is a dangerous place. We wouldn't want you to get hurt on your way home, now would we?"
"I made it here just fine," he said, not moving. "I even took down a Timberwolf once. I think I can make it back." Crystal Lake was impressed with this claim, but he did not show it on his face.
"I'm certain that this Timberwolf you speak of was a weakling or a juvenile; one at full strength would have certainly killed you, rather than leaving only a scratch." Crystal quickly realized his mistake. The Everfree Forest was miles away; there was no way to explain how he knew of the Timberwolves. But Theseus must have assumed they lived in other places, because his expression turned ever so slightly toward uncertainty, and Crystal felt a small surge of pride in himself.
"No matter. I was planning to leave the city today, and you have no need or right to keep me from doing so. Am I understood?" Crystal nodded, though not without giving him a nasty look that he apparently didn't notice. "Thank you," he said with finality, and made his exit. Crystal whispered to himself as he peered after Theseus's retreating flank.
"That foal does not know with whom he is trifling..."


***


Theseus levitated the sword, looking it over one last time before placing it in its scabbard on his left side. He had decided to take the sword with him back to Ponyville, even after refusing the formal training that Zane had strongly suggested.
"Permission to speak, Your Highness?" Theseus groaned under his breath.
"Granted." Zane cleared his throat, obviously worrying about how to phrase his question.
"Are you sure that you want to return to Ponyville after... seeing the plight of your city? Why would you want to leave them?"
"Because," replied the red stallion, "I have friends in Ponyville. And many friends just outside it. I'm not going to leave my friends just because I have a royal inheritance."
"But you will come back, correct?"
"Yes," said Theseus, "obviously, but I need to return to Ponyville first. I will take the throne of Wither City when I'm ready, but for right now, I just need to think." That was clearly not quite the reassurance that Zane was searching for, but it satisfied. Theseus turned to Fluttershy. "Are you ready to go?"
"Yes," she replied. "I just need to grab my saddlebag." After saying goodbye to Zane and Fluttershy exchanging a hug with him, the pair walked downstairs and out the large main doors. The Guards all saluted at Theseus's departure.
"At ease!" he said, loudly enough for them all to hear. The Guards again all stamped their hooves down in unison, earning a nervous squeak from Fluttershy. They then walked back up the mountainside, pausing only for a two-minute rest halfway up.
"To Ponyville," said Fluttershy. Theseus lifted his hoof to the sky dramatically.
"To Ponyville!"