//------------------------------// // Four: Additions & Sweet Treats // Story: Obsidian: Daughter of Sombra // by Randimaxis //------------------------------// So the easiest way to get rid of Thunderclap was proposing a race and then ignoring it? Good to know. With that thought she left the suite. "I want to know about... everything. But I suppose that's a bit too much for a short discussion, I'm afraid. However, could you remind me how old are you two...?" She wasn't sure if they told her in first place, though. Had they? She was still reeling a bit from Cupcake's display earlier, so she wasn't exactly certain if she'd asked at all. Mica nodded, his smile slipping back into his neutral expression. "Thunderclap is fifteen summers, going on five," he shook his head, "and I am just recently of seventeen summers, myself. For all her bravado and brashness, I do hope you don't see Clap too unkindly; she's loud and somewhat arrogant, but I promise you, if you're ever in trouble, she will most likely be the first one to stand up for you." He sighed again. "Her first impressions may be... less than stellar... but she has heart where it counts." He then cocked his head a bit. "So, since we're relaying information... may I ask how many summers you've seen?" He gave a slight shrug. "Apart from the 'frozen-in-time' moments, that is?" After meeting Cupcake, Obsidian wasn't going to dislike Clap... too much. It wasn't her fault she was born a simpleton, even if her mother was a member of lesser nobility. She didn't say that aloud, though. "Sixteen... at least as far as I am aware of," she admitted with some hesitation. Mica nodded. "I guessed you were about the same age as we were. I'm glad to hear it - there's always room for more friends around here. If you're actually interested in friendship; with your particular background, I wouldn't be surprised if you said you didn't have any interest in it at all." He nodded. "I would be disappointed if you didn't want me as your friend... but I would respect your decision." Friends, friendship, friendly... unfortunately for Mica, Obsidian had heard this particular word today more times than during her entire life before. What was the meaning of that? The purpose? How could anypony be interested in friendship? Probably, these commoners had their mysterious, lowly reasons, but as a princess Obsidian had to see the world in more... precise ways. "As far as I'm concerned, I don't even know what's so alluring in this 'friendship' you are talking about. And truly, even if I could understand it, the current circumstances would be probably inadequate for discussing it". It wasn't 'no'. It wasn't 'yes'. At best, it was a 'maybe'. Mica lifted an eyebrow. "I suppose the most succinct answer I can give you is that friendship is its' own reward. Clap and I have been friends for quite some time, and though she may be... challenging to deal with at times, she's still worth knowing." He didn't look as though he was trying to instruct or belittle her words; he seemed to be making an earnest attempt to give Obsidian an idea of what the subject was about. "Friends... tend to be concerned for your welfare, and can ally with you against trouble. They can help you solve problems. Plus, honestly? It does feel good not to be alone. And I should know - I was... highly studious, shall we say? And I spent my time pouring myself into learning, barely coming out of my room or the library." Mica now gave a tiny smirk. "Thunderclap changed that for me. She discovered me by accident, then seemed to be determined to annoy me constantly until I came outside to join her in playing games. For fun." "At first, it was slow going, and I really didn't want to make time for this... foolishness either. But she was persistent, and eventually I decided to humour her one time, just to get her to leave me alone." Lost in thought, a full smile spread across his features - and he seemed to enjoy it. "The problem was... I had fun. I actually ended up being quite entertained by not only the games we played, but by Clap's shenanigans also. She made me laugh - out loud - and I discovered I had more enjoyment when I was around her than when I went back to my studies." "I began looking forward to her visits, and soon I found myself going to visit her. We became good friends, and I truly have her to thank for helping to bring me out of my proverbial shell." He sighed, the smile melting away as he looked at Obsidian again. "But I had to come to that conclusion myself - and not everypony, or anyONE, will have the same feelings and experiences as I did. As I said, I'd understand if you wanted nothing to do with the concept of friends..." He looked to the distance. "But I will say you'd be doing yourself a disservice if you didn't try it at all, Obsidian. Just food for thought." It left Obsidian a bit distressed, though not for any 'friendship' or 'fun' reasons. "What for thought? I don't have any food..." Mica reached back into his satchel and brought out a shiny red apple. Holding it out to her, he simply sighed. "You'll figure it out for yourself, I'm certain. Just keep an open mind." And so, he had food. It made everything even less understandable than before! "No, I don't need any food. You just said... nevermind." She looked forward, to see how far they were from the main hall. "Let's advance; I think your friend may be already at the academy, considering her speed." The academy itself was... opulent. It looked as though it would be the college of royalty alone... yet there were so many others here. And not just ponies, either! Griffons, hippogriffs, changelings, yaks... even dragons!... were all here, milling about, or headed to classes, or even just chatting in groups. There were beings everywhere! What were these creatures? Some of them looked familiar - but most of them didn't. Were they even discovered by ponies during her sleep? Or perhaps she just never got her education up to where she would learn about them? She wondered if her illustrious father had this knowledge. Was it possible to gather so many creatures in a single building? None of them were wearing slave collars! While it was obvious that this world of future was different, she still had trouble understanding how much different it was. It was making her a tiny bit anxious - and, though she didn't realize it, she was trying subconsciously to walk closer to Mica. It also took some effort on her side to walk upright. She had never seen so many creatures so closely. At the front doors, there stood Thunderclap... along with two others. One was a tall, lanky-looking and dog-like biped, and the other was a rather short unicorn mare who appeared to have a scowl on her muzzle. When Obsidian approached, Clap rolled her eyes and groaned. "You two didn't even try, did you!? I mean, I know I'm GOOD... but it's no fun when you give up before I can win!" Mica gave Clap a glance. "But this way, you're still the best, yes?" "Doesn't mean much when you're the only one competing," Clap grumbled. The scowling mare's eyes flicked between Mica and Obsidian before she spoke. "Is this who you were talking about, Thunderclap?" The large pegasus nodded. "Yeah, that's Siddy - she's all royal and stuff, so be nice." "Royalty?" The mare gave Clap a skeptical look, but turned to face Obsidian. "How? What's your lineage?" The little mare could have passed for a filly... save for those eyes, which were intent and mature. She had a grey-colored coat, and a stark white mane and tail that was trim and short. Her cutie mark was a pair of longswords crossed behind a tower shield; fitting, as she looked as though she might be somewhat combative. The dog, a male, simply gave a sheepish, shy wave. Was this bipedal creature next to her sentient? Just what was it? Obsidian was starting to regret leaving her room... oh, and how wonderful; it seemed that Clap was already spreading rumors about her. "I'm the daughter of the illustrious and honourable King Sombra. And who are you...?", she focused her eyes on this unknown little unicorn. She didn't seem half as 'friendly' as Mica or Clap were. The unicorn's eyes widened... then narrowed quickly. "Sombra!? You'd-" "Before you EVEN get started, Wart," Clap interrupted, "we already went through all that, me and Mica. She's NOT evil, she's new to here and confused, and she's coming to Friendship School too. So don't even start with the speeches or talk about 'if you don't behave' stuff - she probably already got all that from Custard, honestly." The unicorn seemed to ponder this for a moment, then simply said, "Fine... but I'm watching you." Her eyes, a vibrant green, said that this pony meant what she said. Mica nodded. "She knows that, and I'm sure she appreciates you saying it," he said with a roll of his own eyes and a reassuring glance at Obsidian. The dog-being lifted his paw... but seemed to crumple at the last second and shuffle a bit more behind Thunderclap. "Gypsy," the large pegasus turned and spoke, "there's no need to be scared or stuff like that - it's just SIDDY, for cryin' out loud - she's not here to enslave everyone or some junk like that. She's here to learn how to be a friend!" The dog (Gypsy, was it?) stepped out a bit from behind the towering mare. "... th-this one will w-w-wait to be addressed, p-p-please. H-he wishes not to i-i-intrude." He looked nervous, but repeated the little wave again. The little unicorn didn't reply to her question - which was rude, and Obsidian didn't like when others were rude to her... at least, as long as they didn't have the authority to behave that way, like her father did. At least it seemed that this... uh, strange creature was both sentient and well-behaved. The princess wasn't used to the others behaving like that in her presence, but it was easier that way. And, hmm, enslave everyone? She never even thought about that... perhaps she should? "Watch me as much as you'd like, I am quite used to it. However, you didn't respond to my question," Obsidian said to the unicorn mare in a somewhat bored voice. The unicorn closed her eyes and took a deep breath, seemingly to calm herself, before she spoke again... this time, with a calmer tone. Those eyes, though, were piercing. "Stalwart Stance. I'm in training for the Royal Guard, so it's best that I know of royalty as they show up. And, though your... heritage... has some dark history behind it... a princess is a princess." Surprisingly, Stalwart then bowed to Obsidian. "Understand that it's my duty to stay vigilant... but that..." she sighed, "... hardly excuses being rude. I'll try to keep it in mind. Princess." Clap laughed, "Don't worry about Wart, Siddy - she's just all gung-ho for being a royal guardspony. Honestly, she's not gonna hurt ya." Stalwart balked. "CLAP! I... I w-would never-" "Yeah, yeah... we know. 'I would never harm any hair upon a royal head, except for those who stand against my country'. We get it.'" Clap sighed. Obsidian glanced at the creature next to Thunderclap. "Do you want to say something... uh... Gypsy?". As 'Wart' was now shooting angry looks at Thunderclap, Gypsy took a single step towards Obsidian and nervously smiled. "Th-this one is... Gypsy Rover. He w-wishes to greet y-y-you, and h-he would b-be quite interested i-i-in asking ab-b-bout your l-lineage, as he i-is currently tr-tr-trying to m-master pony h-history." "Gypsy," Clap groaned, "I don't want to have to sit through a history lecture! I wanna show Siddy around the school! Y'know, since she'll be here and stuff, she might as well see what she's in for!" "You two can always talk later, if Obsidian doesn't mind, of course," Mica spoke up, nodding to Gypsy who returned the gesture. "A-as you s-say, Mica." Ah, so finally she's met two pon... er, creatures that were able to behave in a proper way in her presence. It was nice to feel acknowledged - especially after she was treated in such a less-than-royal way by Lemon and his brother. Two insolent, rude fools... "Wonderful. I am pleased to meet you both," she said, honestly relieved. Being in presence of four familiar creatures was easing her anxiety a bit... though standing there was still wrecking her nerves, with so many others walking around her. "I can reply to any questions you have, Gypsy... but later. Especially as I have a thousand years of pony history to catch up on." Gypsy's eyes lit up like little stars. "Oh! This one w-would be very happy to sp-p-peak about Pony History! I-if she wishes, th-this one w-w-would be m-more than honored to assist her in learning about what has taken place s-since the days of Sombra!" Gypsy's tail was wagging madly behind him; was that how they showed excitement? "Y'know," Clap started, "you don't always stutter - like, when it comes to boring ol' history, you barely do it at all." Gypsy blushed a bit. "Th-this one... knows this, C-c-clap." Almost everything that Obsidian had seen in this odd world of the future was strange, distressing or outright utterly alien and confusing - but learning? That was something she knew and liked, quite a lot. Of course, up to this moment in her life she was used to learning either with her most honourable father or with teachers chosen by him, but Gypsy's offer was good enough. Even if listening to him was a bit painful. Obsidian has never explored so much - but it seemed that it was only a beginning. Mica looked to them all. "Well, now that we've arrived, we should show you around." "Yeah!" Clap grinned. "Classes might be kinda boring, but this place is at least 20% cooler than the grimy ol' schoolhouse! C'mon!" With that, Clap, Mica, Wart and Gypsy all looked to Obsidian. The small unicorn mare stepped forward and opened the doors, gesturing inside while the rest waited for Obsidian to go first. She followed the rest of her, uh... pack? Acquaintances? Entourage? The grand hall was... well, grand. This place was certainly befitting of a princess; it seemed no expense was spared in its' making, and each and every hallway, classroom and section was tastefully opulent and beautiful. The classes were... interesting, to say the least. Certainly, there were maths and writings and history... but there were also classes on things like 'teamwork' and 'introductions' and 'listening' - which seemed quite unlike an average school. Though, granted, this was no average school. All the while, the others surrounding her interacted with each other in ways Obsidian hadn't experienced before: Thunderclap lightly teased, Mica made observant remarks, Wart seemed to be all business and Gypsy stuttered his way through explaining things. And all of them interacted with her from time to time; they weren't trying to overwhelm her, but each gave her a portion of their attention during the rather eclectic tour. At the lunchroom, Gypsy sniffed the air and licked his lips. "Th-this one smells something d-d-delicious... could his n-nose be r-right? Does he sm-sm-smell..." he sniffed deeply, closing his eyes to savor the scent... then, they popped W-I-D-E open. "... cupcakes!" He took off like a shot, towards the cafeteria. The others looked after him, then Clap looked to Obsidian. "Siddy, you hungry? They always have good stuff in here - it might be one of the baking clubs, doing some extra credit work... and I loooooove eating me some mistakes!" Clap trotted off after Gypsy, and Mica and Wart turned to her. "Are we following? Or would you rather not?" Mica asked. It wasn't the kind of school Obsidian was used to - after all, during her education she was the only young pony around as she didn't know about any other foals in the castle and young slaves were, obviously, not learning with her - but it was... vaguely familiar. Some of the classes more than the others - 'math' and 'history' were, obviously, known to her. 'Listening', though? Why would anypony want to learn that? However, in a way, her most honourable father had taught her to listen. Oh yes, he taught her well... ... and what was this smell? ... wait, what? WHAT did the dog just say? Though Obsidian was a little bit hungry, she immediately lost her appetite as soon as Gypsy spoke his word and immediately ran away from them. "... I, uh...", Obsidian stuttered, not sure what she should do. This future world was surely strange, and each time when she thought she understands it, something confusing was happening. "... I can't say I liked Cupcake, but I don't think that baking and eating him was an acceptable idea." Were these ponies cannibals? The two stared at her for a moment. "Obsidian," Mica said slowly, "cupcakes are a baked sweet treat." Oh. Wart cleared her throat and spoke up, "They're a bit sweet for my tastes, but as royalty, you might find them delectable." She shrugged. "After all, Princess Celestia loves her cake, and cupcakes are no exception." "They're called cupcakes because they're usually contained in little paper cups - be sure not to eat those," Mica warned. Oh. It was now starting to make more sense. And now she knew why Cupcake was named like that... though it didn't change the fact that her cheeks were burning right now. "Oh. Oooh. Erm... well, I can try that, I suppose," she coughed a bit to clear her throat. "And... Princess Celestia? She is still alive? Wouldn't that make her..." ... more than a thousand years old? Perhaps she slept most of it as well.... Obsidian had already heard ponies swearing with her name, but it was still a bit surprising to hear about Celestia in present tense. "Well over a thousand years old, yes," Mica finished for her. "She retired from her position as ruler of Equestria about ten years previously. Lives in Silver Shores, now." Retired? Royals can retire? Alicorns can retire? It just couldn't click in Obsidian's mind - one is usually royalty until death. Perhaps it was different for creatures that can, well, live far longer than an average pony? At least she learned where she lives now - it would come in handy, if she would ever want to avenge her fallen father or something like that. Beating an old, retired alicorn wouldn't be too glorious, but, eh... a victory is a victory, right? The three of them began making their way to the kitchen, where the sounds of talking could be heard. She could pick out Clap's laughter, and even an embarrassed giggle that might've been Gypsy. Wart led the way into the kitchen, with Mica gesturing to Obsidian to enter before him. The kitchen itself was quite large; big enough to be a classroom on its' own! There were multiple ovens and grills, and what looked to be a walk-in pantry (where someone was currently digging through ingredients), and a massive rack of hanging pots, pans, and other baking paraphernalia hung within reach of the stove areas. At one of the ovens, Clap and Gypsy were standing there; the diamond dog's entire muzzle was smeared with what looked like colored sauce and crumbs, while the large pegasus laughed at his dishevelment. They were eating what looked like fat mushrooms with colors on top that didn't look like natur- Then, the scent hit her nostrils. It was the first time in Obsidian's life when she had ever walked into a kitchen. Obviously, back in the crystal palace, she wasn't allowed near it - or, to be more precise, she was told it was beneath her. That it was a place for slaves, and she shouldn't waste her precious time near it. As such, she was completely unprepared for the mix of scents, heat and noise. However, it also reminded her that she is a bit hungry - but she tried to stay cool. "So... those are the cupcakes you were talking about, I assume?" She moved closer. Clap turned to the group. "Siddy! You have GOT to try these! They're incredible!" She strolled over to the three of them and held out a cupcake with lime green... stuff... swirled on top of it. "Here," she offered, smiling, "I usually love the green ones, but you can have it - it'd be cool to share a favorite cupcake!" Wart looked to Gypsy. "Clean yourself up! That's no way to appear in front of royalty!" Gypsy blushed, then extended his tongue - a very dark purple color - and swished it around his muzzle madly, licking clean even the slightest hint of his food. Clap laughed, Wart sighed disdainfully, and Mica just shook his head. "C'mon - it won't bite!" Clap waggled the cupcake in front of her. It probably won't bite - though Gypsy looked as if a whole pack of these things had attacked him. Obsidian carefully took the offered green cupcake with her magic, checking it out. So... a baked treat. She took a bite. ... It was overwhelmingly, utterly, completely sweet. Frankly, it was the first time in her entire life when she had something so sweet in her mouth. It was almost as if she poured sugar onto her tongue. She swallowed. Maybe the second bite would be easier... it took her a while, but she eventually finished it, leaving only a paper cup. "... interesting, that's for sure." Especially this green stuff. Frankly, it was so sweet that she was feeling a bit sick right now. "Are you kidding!?" Clap looked incredulous. "Cupcakes are, like, only the best thing ever!!! I mean, really, you just can't go wrong with them! They can be made to fit any occasion! They can be super-sweet, not-so-sweet or even slightly sweet, and they'd still be absolutely awesome!" "Thunderclap!" Wart spoke up. "You can't talk to royalty that way! That's almost insulting!" Clap looked at Stalwart. "And? I mean, it's Siddy; what, I can't be all friendly-like to her? I figure she should try some of the others, after maybe a sip of punch!" She motioned to a pitcher, half-filled with blue water. Exceedingly blue water. "Blueberry punch?" Mica asked, and Clap nodded. Mica shrugged and got one of the plastic cups from the countertop, pouring some of the blue water into it, then offered it to Obsidian. "Here - in case the cupcake was too much." Obsidian was starting to like Stalwart - the little unicorn mare was very respectful, and it was making Sombra's daughter feel better. She gracefully took the offered cup and took a sip. Strange... the blue water didn't taste like water. If anything, it was very sweet too - but not as much as the cupcakes had been. Still, she was thirsty after eating it, so she quickly dried the cup. "Is there anything... less sweet, perchance? I won't be able to stomach anything else so very... cupcakey, methinks," she muttered, feeling a little bit strange. Hopefully she didn't overdose on pure sugar... "Well, I guess that'd be up to the baker..." Clap pointed a hoof towards the pantry, where somepony was backing out. "... okay, that should do the trick!" She knew that voice... The stallion turned as he spoke. "Now I should have enough ingredients to..." He stopped short as he saw Obsidian... it was Cupcake Sprinkles!