//------------------------------//
// Chapter 2 
// Story: Off Duty 
// by awf 
//------------------------------//

Incredibly, fantastically soon, Celestia was sitting in the back seat of a car, heading to her new home. They had deemed it safest that she remain in disguise during her travel, so the pony that looked out the window at the rushing landscape was 'Supple Branch', a plain earth mare. Of course her new owner - a certain 'Mr. Gregory Rawsthorne' - knew her real name and what she looked like. The auctioneer had chosen his customer well and Mr. Rawsthorne had no clue who or what she was. He didn't have a clue about alicorns or their status. To him she was just another pony.

"Tell me about him again, Mr. Plain. And this time, please do not skip details."

His first introduction of the buyer had been nothing more than a few hurried sentences as he bundled the mare up and led her to his car.

"Okay. He's a moderately wealthy man - naturally, since he was able to afford you. Some big lawyer, I think. Has his name on the building, so he's an associate or the owner, I'm not sure which. Single, never married, no kids. Apparently he's a workaholic, much like you, Your Majesty."

The mare waved a hoof. "Please, 'Celestia' will do at this point. Let's not reveal too much to Mr. Rawsthorne."

"Sure thing. Anyway, he's forty-something, lives in a house some ways from the city. The main reason he bought you is for the housework. He has a maid over occasionally, but nothing on a permanent basis. It sounds to me he read about your... subjects, and now he wants one to keep his house in order and cook. That's about all I know."

"So, my tasks will be..." She left the sentence hanging in the air and sought out Mr. Plain's face in the rear view mirror. He glanced back, then kept on talking.

"Cleaning the place, cooking, serving the meals, that sort of thing. Also laundry and maybe some light gardening. Nothing too onerous. It may not even be a full-time job, so you'll have plenty of freedom."

There was one big question left. She had considered making it a stipulation of her contract with Mr. Plain, but in the end decided against it. 

She had heard rumors. Some humans were very... affectionate toward ponies. Celestia was certain she could fend off any untoward advances, but maybe it would have been wise to have some form of legal protection written into whatever contract her buyer signed.

In the end she hadn't mentioned that. Even when Mr. Plain had brought the question up, she had simply waved it away and moved on. It was an embarrassing thought, hidden deep down where nopony could find it. The alicorn was lonely. With the stress of ruling Equestria, there never seemed to be a good time for a dalliance. And with her subjects either afraid, or in awe of her, there had been very few chances. She didn't know yet how she felt about... a human. But the mare didn't want to rule it out completely. Legal stipulations were far too definitive for her taste.

"Will he require... my affection?"

It didn't take long for Mr. Plain to answer. "I'm not sure, but I'm leaning toward 'no'. The guy isn't exactly a public figure, but at first glance he appears to be a gentleman. I don't think you need to worry about it."

"That is good." The pony firmly squashed a tinge of disappointment. "Anything else I should know?"

"You memorized the phone number?"

Celestia quickly recited it to herself. It was a very important piece of information - a means for her to contact Mr. Plain once she was done with her 'vacation' and escaped from this Rawsthorne. She would have to find a public pay phone and dial the numbers he had given her. Then, someone from the auction would come to collect her and they would arrange for her return to Equestria. The machine didn't seem too complicated, but she had memorized the instructions too.

"It's a box with the word 'Telephone', usually blue or red. Inside, I pick up the 'headset' from the hook and drop the coins in a slit. Then I wait for the slow beeping noise and type in... hmm, yes. Plus, one..." She quickly recited the long sequence of numbers. Mr. Plain fished a piece of paper from his coat pocket and checked it. "That's right. Make sure you remember it. If you don't, I'll make up some excuse in, say, about three months and drop by for a visit."

"Thank you, Mr. Plain. As discussed, you will be paid in small jewels - such as are easily secreted about your person - when I am safely back in Canterlot."

He grunted and focused on his driving again. The mare was, at the same time, calm and worried, so she focused her gaze on the distant hills. The world was drab and uninspiring. Most of that was probably due to the weather, which was overcast and rainy. In addition, the day was coming to an end, so the darkness seemed even more oppressive. She knew that humans didn't have the ability to control their weather, like ponies did. But now she wished they could. She didn't believe in omens, but meeting her new owner on a day like this would surely be a bad one.

The alicorn closed her eyes and felt for the sun. It was impossibly distant and she sighed. There was no way for her to budge it, no matter how hard she tried. Truly, this was an alien place. For a moment, worry overtook her excitement and Celestia wondered if she had made a mistake in coming.





"We're here."

The words brought the Princess from a thoughtless reverie. As she came to, Celestia saw the house. At first she thought it wasn't very large - used to the scale and grandeur of the Canterlot Palace - but when she realized that Rawsthorne lived alone her opinion changed. The place really was big for one human. It was still ugly. All straight edges and rectangles. 'Modern', she had heard Mr. Plain say once.

The pony focused on the surrounding countryside instead. The view was amazing. Rolling hills and forests, exquisitely painted in the colors of autumn. She had spent most of her life in ornate rooms and finely decorated hallways, but now her hooves itched to run through the resplendent countryside. Celestia smiled to herself. Maybe the house wasn't all she had hoped for, but the scenery was lovelier than she had imagined. She could see that, even in the rain and the dimming, overcast daylight.

"Come in, come in!" a new voice was saying. While she had been taking in the view, Celestia hadn't been paying much attention to Mr. Plain, who had gone to knock on the door. Now she was awarded her first glance of her 'owner'. Rawsthorne was shorter than her. Somehow, that seemed important. Beyond that, the pony had little reference. The face looked normal. The eyes seemed fine. The hair was graying a little, but still thick. Her owner, the mare decided, was a very unremarkable human.

Mr. Plain introduced her simply as 'Celestia', which was perfectly fine by her. But Rawsthorne just looked at her uncomprehendingly. Too late she realized that she was still disguised.

"I thought I was buying some kind of unicorn," the man said with a touch of disappointment in his voice. His invitation to enter seemed to be revoked because he kept blocking the doorway.

"You did! Sorry, Mr. Rawsthorne. I travelled in disguise." In moments she released the spell and felt herself return to her accustomed height and shape. She had never truly thought about where her wings went, she just knew that she couldn't feel them at all. For that matter, since her little demonstration to Mr. Plain, Celestia had also amended the spell so it would hide any clothing she wore and return it when she changed back.

That part wasn't strictly essential, but she had had some extra time while she waited for the auctioneer and working on a spell was better than pacing up and down the room nervously.

The human was impressed, but also suspicious. He eyed her peytral and hoofguards briefly, before dismissing them as unimportant. "And why do you need to travel in disguise?" he asked. He addressed his next question to the auctioneer. "Did you sell me a stolen pony, Mr. Plain? I explicitly said-"

Celestia quickly tried to take charge of the conversation. "Forgive us, Mr. Rawsthorne. My appearance might raise some comment and we wished to escape undue notice. I assure you, Mr. Plain had gotten me perfectly lega-"

Rawsthorne raised up a hand and she fell silent in shock. He barely glanced at her and continued talking to Plain. "You also promised she is well behaved." 

Even the auctioneer was a little taken aback. "What? She was just answering the question."

Her owner shrugged. "True, but I did not ask her. I asked you."

Plain sighed and opened a slim briefcase. He brought out a sheaf of papers. "Here, this is all the paperwork. I assure you that Celestia came to my auction legally. All the documents are in order, you can check."

"I will," the man said simply. He stood aside to let the pair inside. Mr. Plain went first, because Rawsthorne wanted to speak with the pony.

"You can perform simple household tasks?"

"Yes, sir. Sorry! Yes, Master!"

He frowned a bit at the title. "No, I don't like that. You will call me 'Mr. Rawsthorne', or 'Gregory' for preference. None of that 'Master' business."

Celestia was quick to spot the hypocrisy. "But you are, in fact, my owner. I have to obey every command?"

For the first time since she saw him, Rawsthorne smiled, at least a little. "To answer the first: Yes. And the second: It depends. I expect you to follow reasonable orders without question. I will not mind you asking for clarification, but I will not have you demanding my reasons for every single request I make. Do you understand?"

"Of course, Gregory. I am- I used to be a skilled diplomat. I know when to obey and when to ask for details."

"Good. Your first task is to brew a pot of tea for me and Mr. Plain. You should find everything you need in the kitchen. Second door on the right. When you are done, bring it to the conference room, that is two doors down and across the hall. You may also bring a cup for yourself."

She paid very close attention to the instructions. It would not do to fail such a simple task so quickly after her arrival. She almost ran off to do it, but remembered just in time and looked back to her owner.

"Of course, Gregory. Anything else?"

It earned her an approving nod, which in turn made her happy. The man was strict and precise, true. But he also seemed reasonable. She would not be subjected to whims, at least. Even from their first interaction, Celestia knew that she could expect fair treatment and precisely defined work. And - most importantly - she would not have to make many important decisions! No lives would hang in the balance. The worst that might come from her mistakes would be a stern talking to. Rawsthorne didn't look like the sort to beat her.

"That is all, for now. When we're done with the paperwork and the money, I will show you to your room and explain your tasks to you."

The mare sought for something to say and went for the line her own Palace staff had been saying to her for millennia.

"Very good, sir."