Anon leans down to look into the hotel's mini fridge and peruses the contents. After thinking for a bit, he decides on a soda can. Just as he opens the can with one of his dexterous fingers, you fire up your magic, and the soda can's contents spray out all over him.
"Okay, now I KNOW it's you doing that," He says as he tries to peel his sticky shirt off himself.
Your gut begins to hurt as you laugh even harder.
"Sometimes you get cans like that," you lie to him mid-inhale for much needed oxygen.
"Moonie, you were sort of convincing at home but it's not working here. I saw your horn glow."
As you roll onto your back, laughing heartily, you kick and flail your legs about in childish glee. It's been a month of this. Sometimes, you make the cans just fizz a lot, or spray, and a couple times you have them only make a loud sound to cause Anon to flinch.
"Right, well, I can't go out like this," he groans as he finally strips the wet layers and replaces it with a new clean white dress shirt.
"How much longer have you got?" You ask, glancing at the clock.
Anon notices the time too, takes a big gulp of his drink then hands it to you before rushing out the door as he tries to do his tie.
"Oh, and behave. I won't be long," he states after reopening the door.
You roll your eyes. There isn't much mischief you can get up to in a hotel room all by yourself. Well, there is but you've never seen Anon truly angry and something about the bill for wanton destruction of a nice hotel room would likely see that you do.
"What is the plan, my queen?" Sir Bearington asks with a bow from the chair you left him on.
"Uh... I guess keep busy for an hour, then go cause menace outside somewhere."
"Is that wise? Sir Anon is likely to be cross."
"Did he really think he could take me to a whole new town and contain the horror that is NIGHTMARE MOON!"
As always with great minds such as your own, boredom sets in quicker than a paper mache cast under the summer sun. The analogy brings to mind the time you pretended you had broken all four legs as an excuse to get out of school on an exam day. But Anon just borrowed a wheelchair and left you at school in the casts all day.
"Slave driver," you grumble trying to be bitter but hindsight has made the ordeal a little funny.
You step outside with Celestia's sun hanging brightly overhead. There's something odd about it, you feel. Perhaps it's the fact that you're in Canterlot, so close to the one in control of it but it feels watchful. Like some great fiery eye searching the domain to make sure order is being upheld. Of course, you know that's not possible. During the time you spent "with" Luna, you couldn't do that sort of thing with the moon. Then again, they are two different rocks.
After doing a wonderful job of building on your own paranoia, you dive under some shade and venture about the town while making a game of staying out of the light as much as possible. Kind of like how some fillies will skip over cracks for fear of breaking their mother's back. Then you notice a small crack in the pavement. You eye it carefully and think.
"In my case... Would 'mother' be Anon... Or Luna?" You think grimly as there isn't really any other candidates.
The strange conundrum rattles about in your mind until it becomes boring and opt for just carrying on with your day. You often tend to subscribe to the principle of 'Oakram's Razor' where if any question doesn't have an easy answer, it's just a headache.
A mare of snobbish upbringing gasps at the sight of you in the middle of her brunch.
"What is the matter, dear?" Her fellow bruncher asks in that slow and overly-enunciated drawl that the 'upper-crust' always seem to have before looking to where she is pointing, you.
"Oh," you say with a wry grin, "You two can see me?"
They both take a gulp and nod in unison. Slowly. Beads of sweat begin to cascade off their foreheads like shooting stars which causes your devilish ego to grow three sizes in that moment.
"After my defeat, my ghost has been wandering these grounds plotting my revenge. If you two can see me then I'll be needing... YOUR SOULS," you break out into a mirthful cackle, ensuring to flash your shark-like teeth, as the brunchers shriek before breaking into a panicked getaway.
You make a hasty getaway yourself as you do not wanting to be around when they try explaining to onlookers. It always adds to that dramatic effect.
You're not sure how exactly your wandering led you here but you stand at the castle gates. The pearly white walls stretch into the heavens and seems inviting if it weren't for the golden gates baring the way. The scene almost is reminiscent of some holy scene so often depicted. Everything looks so carefully sculpted from the castle bricks to courtyard lawn, as well as the statues and flora that lead all the way up to it. It'd be an even more spectacular view if it weren't for the two guards at the gate. One of which has a lazy eye that he tries to focus on you, switching between them in a constantly distracting and confusing pattern to any who'd politely try to look him in the eye.
"Oi, this ain't no place for a filly," a guard states in a guttural accent.
"What was with the double negative?"
"Double negative?" The second guard asks, his accent being a little cleaner but still a hard to hear clearly.
You shoot both an exploratory glare to find that they're both genuine in their bewilderment.
"I guess standards have fallen a bit in the past millennia," you loudly mumble to yourself so they can hear.
"Look, I don't know what you're on about little miss but you best be on your way."
"Why?"
"Because this is no place for little ones."
"Why?"
"Well... It's a castle Innit?."
"So?"
"Well... Uh, you tell her, Sarge.."
"It's cause this is where them Princess live. And all them dip-lo-mat-ic dig-ni-tari-es," he says taking careful notice to sound each syllable as if he isn't quite sure of what he is saying himself followed by a confident nod.
His fellow salutes him then they both look at you in wait for your retort.
"So, you're saying... It's no place for a child because of all the adulting?"
"No, the adulting in on Grope Street--" one guard goes to say before the other deliberately coughs very loudly.
"You alright Sarge?"
"Constable, that ain't any sort of talk to be having with no filly."
"There you go again. Double negative."
"Whattsat?"
"It's any sentence that has two negative words," you sigh as you think of the simplest way to explain it, "Basically the two negative cancel each other out making the sentence a positive. When you said, ''that ain't any sort of talk to be having with no filly." What that ends up meaning is "that is the sort of talk for a filly." Understand?"
Two guards look at each other then the one called Sarge says, "If that's the case, then how come you knew what we meant?"
Again they share a look, giving a confident grin as if they just won the war.
"You know, they're saying Nightmare Moon has returned."
"What?" The guards say in unison.
"Yeah, over in the food district or whatever it is. Lot's of cafes," you mention without much conviction as you feel you don't need to expend the energy to convince these two.
"Well, we better get over there then Constable."
You chuckle a little as they buy it.
"Hang on Sarge, how will we know if it's her? I've never seen what she looks like."
"Good question... I guess--"
"She looks like me, only taller. Good looking. Wears battle armour."
"Right, there we go! If we catch her, I bet we'll get promotions."
"You mean, I'll become a Sergeant?"
"What?! No! You'll be a Senior Constable, otherwise you'd be skipping like three ranks there."
"Senior? But I'd not even that old."
"I swear lad, you're a bit slow sometimes. Just--Come on."
The two guards scurry off like some kind of comedy routine and as they disappear into the horizon, you feel the tension leave with them. And then you open the gates, and begin to wander the once familiar halls of Canterlot Castle.
You peer through door after door to gather your bearings and then head to nowhere in particular. An idle thought of checking the throne room crosses your mind but you'd rather just walk until you find someone else to subject to your presence.
"Good afternoon Moonie," voices someone who sounds warm and motherly.
When you spin around you see the towering figure of Celestia, smiling at you. And the worst part about her smile, is it seems genuine.
"Ah, my most hated and vile arch enemy. BUTTlestia," you mock as you poke your tongue at her.
She laughs softly.
"Anon is right, you have a charm to it now."
"A what?"
"The adorable brattiness. It suits you well," Celestia beams, "Oh, I mean no offence by it. I like it."
"No! Loathe me," you bellow.
Your voice echoes down the hall for a bit then silence falls. Then, with a confident swagger, Celestia walks on. Her hoofsteps echo too as she passes you and then she pauses a ways away from you.
"Aren't you coming?"
"Where to?" you asks with distrust.
"To Anon."
Oh, lead on peasant!"
Celestia giggles again then two of you walk side by side. You take note of the fact that she is walking a little slowly so your normal pace keeps up with her. It makes you wonder if this is just a natural reflex for her or if she's being polite to you. Then you internally dry retch at the 'p' word.
"I believe he should be in here," Celestia whispers as she peers through a crack in two large golden doors.
You peer inside too to see a large table with various creatures around it. Most are ponies but you note there also a yak, minotaur, two griffons, and Luna at the table.
"What's going on?"
"Oh, just a fiscal meeting. A little boring to be perfectly honest."
"That's it?"
Celestia nods.
"Then why aren't you in there?"
"Luna wished to represent Canterlot. Fine by me, then I can have a bit of fun."
Your ears prick up at the possibilities, "Like what?"
"Like pouring a bit of purple-burple potion into Luna's lunch."
There's a bit of a pause while you take a moment to imagine the scene, and then another moment to muster your willpower so you don't laugh.
"One day, you and I need to collaborate."
"I look forward to it. Now, have you eaten?"
At lunch, you caught wind of Celestia's foreshadowing and switched the drinks only to find Celestia thought you'd try that. And in the end you both ended up purple-burple'd. So the two of you spend lunch trying to eat in between all the laughter and burping when Anon arrives.
"I heard the echoes of burping down the hall and figured you had to be here," he remarks, trying to hide a smirk.
"Celestia *burp* did it!"
"Oh, Moonie. How impolite to go around *burp* I do apologise," Celestia states in her most formal and innocent tone.
She slyly shoots a grin your way to let you know she's going to get out of this and you aren't. You would smile at the surprisingly devious Princess if it weren't for the fact she is throwing you under the cart.
"You know what... Let me have a go," Anon laughs with his hand outstretched.