//------------------------------// // Questria! // Story: The Best of Friends // by SociallyAwkwardPegasus //------------------------------// Chapter 5 The forceful hoof of an agitated noble rang out across the conference room, denting the red-oak table from his sign of aggression. “Damn that bucking human. That should be one of us with them, not him,” The stallion stated, receiving a collection of nods and murmurs of agreement from the other nobles who had also gathered. “This is a disgrace to the Royal Bloodline. That creature should be in chains and locked away in the deepest dungeon in all of Equestria. Not parading around as the Princesses’ soon to be husband.” Several more nods and murmurs of agreement filled the room for a brief moment. “What should we do though? The princesses have already chosen a suitor. What left is there?” One particular stallion voiced, sending the room into a quick bout of silence. A minute or so passed before a blue-coated, unicorn stallion addressed his peers. “The solution is simple really. We must come together for the greater good of this nation,” the noble started, waiting until he had garnered his audience’s full attention before continuing. “I know we have all had our differences and disagreements in the past, though now is not the time to squabble. Soon, there will be a farce of a king upon that throne. We need to unite and rid Equestria of that so called human, so a real noble can be made king!” Several loud cheers soon erupted across the room as the stallions looked at one another with agreeing nods. “As our first act, I believe we should petition the selection of their suitor. Most of us are part of the Council of Nobles, which would allow us with a majority vote, to postpone the decision of the royal suitor for further evaluation. This will at least give us more time to devise a plan and figure out a way to dispose of that wretched creature.” As the stallion lit his horn, a light blue aura of magic soon enveloped a piece of parchment before floating effortlessly in the air and towards the edge of the table next to a quill and inkbottle. Lighting his horn once again, the stallion was the first one to sign his name along the top left hand side of the page before the others followed suit. “We will take back what is rightfully ours. We will protect our fair land and way of life from foe both foreign and domestic. We will bring out nation into an era of prosperity. We will make Equestria great again!” Only a couple of hours had passed by for the human as he slowly began to stir from his slumber. The time was now well into the evening as he smacked his lips with a loud yawn before looking over and noticing the empty side of the bed. Guess she woke up before me. Better get to it then. Mentally motivating himself, Eric lazily threw his legs over the side of the bed, while his upper torso was still lying horizontal on the bed, unwilling to cooperate from the warmth of the soft sheets. “Come on Eric. Move your lazy ass,” the human chided himself as he managed a sitting position before standing up from the surface of the bed. Luckily, a pair of automatic candles soon flickered on from the motion of the human, allowing Eric to navigate his surroundings and locate his missing shirt from the morning. “Better go find Luna and Celestia. They are probably enjoying a bit of food in the dining hall right about now,” Eric thought aloud, not caring that he was indeed talking to himself. While some ponies found it a bit abnormal to do such a thing, Eric didn’t really care. It helped him concentrate and gather his thoughts, along with driving some of the more skittish ponies away from him; a win-win situation according to him. Scooping his shirt from the ground, Eric threw it over himself with a shiver before making his way out the door. The trip to the dining hall was slow but enjoyable in terms of the human. There was really no need to rush since he assumed Celestia and Luna would be enjoying their time together, along with the fact that it was Luna’s time of the year again. The thought about last years’ incident gave the human an uncontrollable shiver. The sound of a human’s rumbling stomach filled the quiet halls of the castle. Having forgone a late dinner for some well needed rest; Eric stumbled into the dining hall in the middle of the night to rustle up himself something to eat. Sure he could have woken the chef up to do it for him, though Eric was one of the few residents in the entire castle who knew how to cook. Not to mention that it would have been a dick move to wake up the poor mare just because of his inability to eat at a regular time. He may have been living a high life, but he still had standards. Pushing open the large door, Eric lazily found his way inside a supposedly empty dining hall. However, he was greeted with an eerily empty room aside from one pony sitting at the main table. To Eric’s surprise and horror, he had just stumbled into the Princess of the Night devouring the poor carcass of an unidentified animal. Bright red blood stained the perfectly blue lips and chin of the princess, her regalia cast aside as she gave into her primal instincts. Eric couldn’t quite fathom what he was witnessing, though the thought of the usually loveable and silly princess was slowly being replaced with the haunting images of a bloodthirsty killer. Suffice to say, one look from the princess’ yellow-slitted eyes and blood dripping face was all it took to send the human barreling towards his room and using everything in his power to barricade the door. Unfortunately, the thought of barricading the large, double-door balcony entrance had slipped past the human’s mind as Luna easily landed and made her way inside. “Please do not fear us Eric. Allow us a moment of your time to explain the situation.” The sound of Luna’s voice sent the human into a paralyzed state of fear. Turning his head slowly, Eric locked eyes with the princess who wore an expression of uncertainty. Though to the human, all he saw was the still blood-stained face of one of his beloved friends. Taking a few steps towards her friend, Luna stopped her advance as she noticed the human backing away from her and towards the door. Her eyes filled with the pang of regret as she knew one day he would discover her dark secret. “Eric, please do not fear us. I will not harm you,” Luna addressed, though her voice was shaky and also filled with uncertainty. To her, Eric was her best friend. Someone she could confide in for advice or just an ear to listen to her troubles. The thought alone of pushing away the one person she cared so much for frightened her just as much as her image now frightened the human. It didn’t take long for the princess to crack as small tears began to stream down her face. The sight shocked the human, as he contemplated how fast he could make it to the bathroom along with why his friend was crying. It took a moment for the human to realize what he had just thought. ‘Friend’ the word danced around in his head as he continued to stare between the bathroom and princess. The stalemate between the two soon came to a close. As if given a gift by god himself, Luna’s shaky legs soon gave out on her as she sprawled herself out along the floor like a newborn fawn who couldn’t walk. This was exactly the opportunity Eric had been waiting for. He could easily make it past Luna and towards his bathroom, though after a few more seconds, he felt a strange pang in his heart. Despite the haunting images from before, Eric could now clearly see something behind that frightening face of hers. As Eric decided on his decision, he cautiously approached the mare, taking light steps before finding the bawling princess at his feet. Slowly leaning down, Eric hesitantly reached a hand towards Luna, though paused for a few moments before committing to the action. The soft palm of the human’s hand soon brought Luna from her thoughts. She could feel the hesitation and fear, which didn’t bode well for her self-esteem; though after a few seconds of contact, another feeling. Looking up towards Eric, Luna noticed the determination in his eyes. It was a quality that she adored about the human, his willingness to put aside his own needs, wants, and fears to help those in need, especially his friends. Slowly raising a hoof up to the human’s hand, Luna turned her head sideways as she guided her friend’s hand into a comforting nuzzle along her cheek. The feeling and realization was almost too great for the mare as she threatened to become a puddle of tears once again. Through her strong will, she was able to avoid such a fate as she looked up at the human with indecision. Knowing that it was either now or never, Luna steeled her determination as she righted herself onto her rump to explain the situation. “Eric, there is something I have to tell you. I...” Eric was soon pulled from his thoughts as he practically ran face first into the large door that separated him and a bountiful feast. Wasting no time, he pushed open the door as several of the maids and guards bowed upon his arrival, shocking the human for a moment. “Good evening sir. May I get you something to drink or eat?” a yellow-coated, brown-maned earth pony politely asked with another bow. She wore the standard French maid uniform, which was something Eric couldn’t quite understand, though didn’t really care. The guards seemed to love them, as Eric could obviously guess. And had even caught one particular guard and maid in the utility closet having a quickie. Long story short, both the guard and mare were mortified after being caught in the act, along with an equally mortified human from having to witness such a thing. To make matter worse, or better in the case of a lot of stallions, both the maid and guard were mares, as Eric now understood why they were in the utility closet. He can never look at a wrench the same way again. Pulling himself from the traumatic thoughts, Eric turned his attention to the familiar mare. “Hey Butter Cream. You don’t have to address me as sir. Makes me feel kind of old,” Eric playfully jested. Butter Cream let out an adorable giggle, though nodded her head. “As you wish Eric. May I get you something though? You must be starving.” “Yeah, just get me a salad to start off with and some water. Not quite sure what I want yet.” Butter Cream nodded her head with another bow before venturing off into the kitchen to place the order. “Well look who decided to join us this evening,” A sarcastically drawn out voice stated. Eric couldn’t help but chuckle as he made his way past Luna, cupping his hand against her cheek in his definition of a friendly nuzzle, before sitting down in a seat next to the white Alicorn. “And look who still has her face buried in paper work as usual?” Eric retorted. Instinctively, he raised his left arm above his head as it collided with a rolled up newspaper. “Your reaction time is getting better my dear human. I may be able to make a guard out of you yet,” Celestia playfully chided. Eric rolled his eyes before noticing a stack of papers magically floated in front of him. “I need you to sign these. Just some legal documents, nothing you need to concern yourself with.” Letting out a loud groan, Eric laid his head on the table in a sign of protest. “Aww, come on Celestia. Can’t you just sign them for me? You know I don’t read half the stuff you put in front of me,” He added with another drawn out groan. “Stop acting like such a little foal and sign them already. I already took the liberty of reading through everything for you.” “Fine, fine. But you owe me... and Luna too,” Eric stated, growing a small smile across his face. Setting down her quill, Celestia gave the human a questionable stare. “And what exactly do I owe you two?” Her voice was curious, though also hinting with a small amount of hesitation. “Don’t worry about it. Tonight, you and Luna meet me at my room at,” the human paused for a moment as he looked down at his watch. “At like nine. That will give you a couple more hours to do whatever you have to do.” Celestia continued her curious gaze, though knew from experience that her friend wasn’t going to give her anything else. “As you wish. Luna and I will meet you at your room at the specified time. Should we bring anything?” Eric thought about the question for a moment before nodding his head. “Maybe just a scarf. I’m not sure how cold it is going to be tonight.” Nodding her head, Celestia excused herself from the table before nuzzling her sister and Eric and returning to her office to attend to some last minute work. “She really needs a vacation,” Eric added once Celestia was out of the room. Luna took this time to change seats and lovingly nuzzle the human’s cheek. “Indeed she does. She still bears much of the responsibilities of this nation,” Luna agreed. Eric nodded his head before letting out a soft sigh. “Well hopefully when this marriage thing is final, we can all take a vacation together. And I can start helping you two out with some of your more mundane tasks.” Luna’s eyes quickly shot open with a smile on her muzzle. “You would take on the responsibilities of listening to the snooty nobles for us?” Luna pleaded, receiving another small nod from the human. “I don’t mind. I could just tell them to fuck off if the issue is stupid.” The human promptly received a light smack in the back of the head from the princess’ wing. “Language my friend. That is no way to behave in front of royalty,” Luna playfully reprimanded. Eric just rolled his eyes as Luna stood from her seat. “We will see you tonight. There are matters we must attend too.” With one last nuzzle, Luna soon exited through the main door before being replaced by an unexpected guest. “Human, you and I have much to discuss,” the sound of a familiar voice rang out.