"So how's your meal, Nebula?"
"It's good."
"Just... good?"
"Yeah... is there something I'm supposed to say?" I asked, looking at the bemused expression Luna has.
"No... just that if normally a filly that finds their meal to be good would say that with a smile," Luna answered, as the two guards nodded in agreement. "In fact, I haven't seen you once smile."
"Oh, that's cause I don't smile," I calmly replied as I stuff the last piece of my meal into my mouth as the trio just blinked at me.
Upon hearing my statement, Shade just tilted his head as he asked, "You... don't smile?"
"Yes, I don't smile," I answered, twirling a fork around in my hoof.
"But... that doesn't make sense, everypony smiles," Shade stated.
"Then I'm an excep—does anypony hear that?" I asked, my ears shifting towards a certain direction, as Luna's shifted as well.
"Hear what?" Grace asked, her ears shriveling about.
"It sounds like somepony screaming no off in the distance," I commented before I noticed that Luna was giving me an odd look. "What?"
"Nothing, though I doubt your refrainment from smiling won't last for long," Luna responded, causing me to quirk an eyebrow at her.
"I'm guessing it involves that 'no' I heard?" I asked, receiving a nod in return. "Very well then, challenge accepted."
"...You're one weird alicorn," Grace finally uttered out, causing Luna to stare at her while the servant ponies came in to clean up the table.
Waving a hoof at her, I responded, "Bah, normality is boring. Being weird helps make life more interesting," before turning my attention towards Luna. "So... umm... what next on the agenda, 'mom'?" I asked, watching as Luna ran her gaze up and down my body, making me a bit uncomfortable as a result.
"Next is giving you a bath, my daughter," Luna answered, her horn lighting up.
"...Wait, what?"
"This is utterly humiliating."
"Oh hush you, many mothers wash their own foals."
"Probably because they didn't know how to bathe themselves, which is something I am capable of doing this myself."
"Perhaps, but I need you to be perfectly clean for the morning, now hold still."
"Don't you have serv... watch what you're doing with my tail," I said as I felt Luna pulling my tail up. Thankfully, she was using her magic for all the dirty work, yet it was still a disturbing experience for me as I fought off the urge to dash out of the bathroom. I wasn't in the mood to be chased around by someone holding a soapy brush.
"Relax, I know what I'm doing," Luna said, to which I was about to shoot back a retort when a certain sensation stopped me in my tracks. This led me to be tight-lipped through the rest of the wash, though I have a determination now to procure the rights to washing myself, alone.
"I'm sorry my dear daughter, but mommy has some princess duties to attend to," Luna said as I bounced off her back with each step.
"I thought it was made apparent that I'm not some kind of simple-minded foal?" I shot back. We were heading down yet another hallway, which made me wonder why some royals insist on over the top castles or palaces to live in. I already counted eleven other hallways so far, and the twelveth one is making me wonder if the designer of this place has some kind of thing for hallways.
Pausing for a moment, Luna replied, "Sorry my child, I'm just so happy about your acceptance of my adoption of you, that I'm tempted to fall into acting like a mother would for a foal of your age. Though it pleases me that you appear to be brighter than foals of your age group," before she resumed her trot.
"Appeared to be?" I asked, a scowl appearing on my muzzle.
"Yes, appeared to be. You have yet taken any aptitude exams, so your words only carry an appearance of a gifted foal, no more," Luna answered as she stopped before a door. "Ah, here we are."
"Mind telling me what you're planning?" I asked, watching as Luna's magic engulfs the doorknob, which causes me to wonder why there are doorknobs when it's clear that some ponies don't have levitation, which I noted consisted of those that lacked horns.
"Since I can't attend to you while attending to my duties, I'm placing you under the care of a pony that I know to be a good foal sitter," Luna explained as she opened the door.
"Couldn't you just stuck me in some unused closet in this place?" I replied, causing the door to stop at half-opened as Luna turned her head to give me a shocked look. "That was a joke."
"A foal that doesn't smile yet makes a joke," Luna commented, narrowing her eyes at me for a moment as I gave her a blank stare in return. This lasted for a minute before she turned her head around and opened the door to reveal a well-furnished suite, that had a mini-kitchen, a pair of doors that may led to either a bathroom or a bedroom, and was completed by a pink alicorn sitting in front of a table that held what I assumed to be a large mug of coffee. Did I mention she was pink?
"Auntie Luna! How was yo—another one?" the pink alicorn said, one of her eyebrows raising when she caught sight of me.
"Greetings, my niece. By your reaction, I believe you weren't informed of the circumstances of your awakening by the messenger I sent?" Luna asked as she trotted into the room, as I kept my eyes on the pink one.
Shaking her head slowly as she matched my stare with one of her own, the alicorn replied, "No... I just told that you needed me to take care of a foal."
"I see, then I will make the messenger learn to give a more proper message next time," Luna declared as she used her magic to put me down next to the pink alicorn, before leaning her head down to nuzzle my cheek, to my discomfort. "Mommy will be back in a few hours with a surprise," she stated before getting up and leaving the room, but not without giving me a goodbye wave that I decide to return to placate her.
After waving back to Luna, the pink alicorn turned her attention to me, a smile on her face as she said, "Hello there little one, my name is Cadence. What's your name?"
"...You're pink," I simply answered, causing Cadence to rear her head back as she blinked in surprise.
"Why... yes, my coat is pink. But can you tell me your name, little one?" Cadence asked as she kept her smile.
"You're... pink," I repeated, causing her smile to falter. "Why are you pink?"
Tilting her head as her smile started to fade, Cadence replied, "Um... cause my natural coat color is pink? Do you have a problem with the color pink?"
Instead of replying, I instead stared at her for a few minutes, causing the fading smile to turn into a frown before I finally broke the silence. "The moment has passed."
"The... what?" Cadence could only utter out as she tilted her head even more.
"The shock at the sight of your pinkness has faded for me," I explained as I looked around, noticing that there were some toys meant for a foal scattered about in one corner haphazardly, looking like it was brought here in a rush. "Oh, and my name is Nebula."
"Okay... that's a pretty name you have," Cadence stated as I poked at some wooden blocks. Trotting over to me, Cadence continued, "Oh, do you want to play with the blocks?"
Sitting down, I looked at Cadence for a brief second before asking, "Yes, do you have a match?"
"What‽"
"A match, you know, a thing that you strike to lit a fire? I want to see what the guards will do if I start a bonfire here."
Looking agast, her mouth gaping at me, Cadence just stood there for a moment as I picked up one of the wooden blocks. "I.. what... no! You're not lighting a fire! Why in Celestia's name do you want to light a fire‽"
"Cause I can, that and your reaction is amusing," I answered as I put the block on my back, noting that my hooves have some sort of gripping mechanism, before trotting over to the kitchen.
Frowning, Cadence took a deep breath before saying, "That's not very nice... and what are you doing now?" as I headed over to the fridge, noting that it has a freezer.
"Putting a block in the freezer," I replied, eyeing the freezer door. "Mind lending a... hoof?"
"And why would I help you do something like that?" Cadence asked as she trotted over to my side.
"Cause it could be the start of a trend of finding random objects in unexpected places. Would be amusing to see how ponies would react to that," I answered as looked at Cadence.
Looking at the block, and then to the fridge, Cadence responded, "I have to admit, that could be funny... as long as nopony is harmed," as she gave me a serious look that one would expect from their parents.
"Then don't assume that I'm as simple as the rest of the foals my age," I shot back as I tilt my side to let the block fall off my back before sitting down on my rump. Grabbing the block with my forehooves, I held it towards her as I continued, "Now stuff the block in the fridge before anypony comes in."
Grabbing the block with an amused expression, she opened the fridge as she said, "Seems like you're just like the other alicorn that showed up recently."
"I keep hearing about this other alicorn that I'm being compared to, and it's starting to bug me. Mind telling me who this other alicorn is?" I asked as Cadence puts the block in the fridge.
"Oh, you'll find out soon," Cadence replied with a mischievous smile, causing me to frown at her. "So if you want to be treated differently from other foals, then what do you want to do, Nebula."
Lessening my frown, I looked about, spotting a bookcase nearby. "How about you get me a history book, and no reading it aloud to me."
Quirking an eyebrow, Cadence responded, "Okay, now you're reminding me of another filly, when she was your age," causing me to let out a sigh of exasperation.
"Can everypony stop comparing me to other ponies already? It's starting to get old fast."
After pulling a few books on the basic history of Equestria, the land that I probably ended up in, I was off in my corner of the room, reading to myself as Cadence sipped her coffee as she studied me from her table, to which I just chosen to ignore. However, that came to an end a few hours later when the entrance to the room opened as a white alicorn entered, one who was taller than Luna, who happened to be right beside her.
"I don't know what surprise you're withholding from me, sist—oh..." the white alicorn commented, her expression initially full of curiosity before changing into a deadpanned one the moment her eyes landed upon me.
I was about to shot out a remark to the alicorn, when something followed her inside, something that caused the hair of my coat to bristle. I glared at the second newcomer, a white alicorn colt with a red mane, light green eyes which first shown surprise before returning my glare with one of its own, I simply had one thought for that moment.
Oh fuck this shit, it's one of those time obsessed pricks!