The week passed in near silence. Celestia barely spoke with Rawsthorne and he seemed fine with that. Her shame slowly slid into the past and the pony no longer found her face coloring the instant she saw her owner.
'There has always been a chance,' he had said. A chance for them. She wanted it! Not the physical aspect of it - that had really been just the heat - but the emotional connection.
The mare threw herself into housework until every surface gleamed, every carpet was spotless and not a single speck of dust was to be found anywhere in the house. It helped. Finally she could face the man again. On Saturday she made them a casserole - an interesting dish from the cookbook and very tasty if she replaced meat with broccoli. A bit of squash and a few mushrooms really perfected the dish. Even the human couldn't help but praise it.
When they had finished and Celestia washed all their dishes, she went to the living room, placed herself between the human and his TV and stared him down.
"What happens now?"
Of course he didn't immediately understand. "Hmm? What are you talking about, Celestia? Did something happen?"
"No. Between us. Things have been... quiet. I'd like for that to change."
The human leaned back against the couch and crossed his legs before answering: "Then talk."
When she saw the slight smile, the pony realized that her owner intended to have some fun at her expense. Undoubtedly he was trying to fluster her. It was unfair! He had seen her just about as embarrassed as she could possibly be and she had no way to turn the tables on him!
One of these days she would face Rawsthorne with the green bottle and make him empty it, just so she could see the human completely drunk. Except not today. For now, she decided to play along. Act as if everything was normal. Deny him his fun.
Celestia hopped on the couch and nestled against Rawsthorne's side. She sighed in comfort. "Do you wish to do something over the weekend? Go someplace?"
Maybe Rawsthorne was disappointed that she hadn't taken the bait, but he answered readily enough: "Actually, it will rain most of the time. I arranged with Maggie to bring Glitter Dust tomorrow. You two are going to clean the gutters and check the roof."
The two statements seemed to conflict. "You just said it would rain."
That smile was back. "I did."
"But you expect us to work on the roof?"
The human was too still. He was holding back laughter. "It wouldn't be much of a punishment if it was pleasant, would it?"
Celestia opened her mouth to argue, but then thought better of it. She was still a little mad at the pegasus for tricking her. An afternoon of rooting through wet and slimy gutters would be the perfect punishment.
Except the Princess wasn't cruel. "Okay, but when we are done, we get to use the steam room."
"Agreed."
So far, so good. "Then there's work. I guess I start again on Monday? The trade guide?"
The human nodded. "Yes, but you're a bit behind. If you can't finish it before the robbery case starts, you'll switch to that and finish the guideline later."
It didn't much matter. Celestia didn't care what sort of work she would have to do to atone for her overspending.
"Now, about your heat-" Instantly her ears were down and the mare froze in trepidation. The human didn't seem angry, or annoyed. He spoke a bit too calmly. Obviously he had been thinking about it. "I understand it was your biology and you couldn't help it, but that wasn't entirely pleasant to witness, you understand?"
The pony sighed. It wasn't as if she'd had any choice! She considered stomping angrily away, but that would not have helped either of them.
"It could have been very pleasant for us both! All you had to do was say 'yes'!"
Rawsthorne turned slightly to look at her. His face went all frowny and clouded. "You know that wouldn't have been fair of me."
"It was unfair one way or the other, Gregory! If you said yes, maybe I could have retained my dignity. Why are you so adamant about this?!"
Now there was a response. Her owner looked away and put a hand over his eyes. He drew a long breath. Something else was bothering him, and the mare couldn't say what, but she was intensely curious. She reached out a wing and tipped his face back to look at her.
"Please - you can tell me, I won't mind."
For a while it seemed he wouldn't, but Celestia waited and eventually he spoke: "My early career - it was criminal cases. Abuse, to be exact. Sometimes children."
There were a lot of memories there, she saw, and many of them were bad ones. The mare rested her wing around Rawsthorne's shoulders for the comfort it would bring. She still didn't speak.
"Some of them were quite bad. I often wished I didn't know the details." The human moved his hand from his face, but he didn't seem to know where to put it. It looked like he wanted to grasp her wing for comfort, but changed his mind. Celestia quickly prodded his fingers with a hoof and he gripped that instead.
She also smiled gently. "I understand. You have seen how bad it could be and you were worried I would feel like that once the heat was over."
"Exactly," Rawsthorne replied quickly. He seemed relieved she understood without having to hear the specifics. Thinking about it, so was Celestia. She didn't particularly want to hear details of such things.
"It was good for my career, but not good for me, you see?"
"You should have said. Okay, I don't mind, but it would have been easier if I had known! As it was, you just seemed prudish and obstinate. I wondered if maybe it was because you didn't find ponies attractive. We are a different species, after all."
Now the human shook his head. "No, that's not it at all. It was just that in heat you seemed remarkably similar to being drugged."
It was a relief. There wasn't something wrong with her. Rawsthorne didn't find her ugly or repulsive, even after seeing the mess she had made. It was just the human being reluctant because of the things he had seen. Worried that she would change her mind about being willing after the fact, maybe? It was a little flattering and sweet, now that she thought about it. He really did take her feelings into consideration.
Though perhaps a bit too much. "I appreciate your concern, really, but now it is over. I'm not 'drugged' anymore. So what happens now?"
The human didn't seem to have an answer: "I don't know."
She didn't either, but she knew it would take some work and patience. "Let's take it slow, then. How about a dinner sometime?"
For a moment the mare remembered that she was technically his slave. A slave asking her master out to dinner, no less. It was funny and she chuckled slightly to herself. "Don't worry - the quality of my housework will not slip, Gregory. I will not get ideas above my station."
Now he laughed as well. It was good that her owner had such a relaxed attitude toward her. It would make it easier to explain when she had to tell him the truth. At least she hoped it would.
"Oh, that reminds me. We are invited to lunch next weekend. It is Sally's birthday and Christine asked me to bring you."
It was only a child's party, but it sounded like fun and, naturally, there would be cake!
The mare gasped a little. "I will make the cake! I insist! Call Christine right now and tell her not to order it from anyplace else."
Rawsthorne paused to think for a moment, then brightened up. "Good idea. I know how you like to bake and you're good at it."
She nearly pumped her hoof in victory. Finally her owner had admitted it! More than that: here was an excuse to spend an entire day or two in the kitchen, just fiddling with biscuit and filling and decorations. In fact - the mare decided - she would make two! A chocolate cake and a fruit cake. The alicorn hadn't had much of a selection since she had started working for Rawsthorne, so it would be a nice excuse to remind herself of the taste.
Even as she began planning the treat Celestia noticed that the human was a little nervous. He was looking away, so she prodded with a hoof and demanded:
"There's more. Say it." Rawsthorne didn't quite look at her. "Actually, I already have an idea for a different gift. Well, Christine asked for it, actually."
"Oh?" The mare was curious to hear what the humans have come up with.
"This is only if you agree to it, understand? I will not force you to go through with it, Celestia."
He was very worried about her reaction. It sounded ominous, but she was burning with curiosity. "Yes?"
"A little saddle," he answered, but didn't say anything more.
The alicorn frowned in confusion. What would a young girl want with a saddle? The humans didn't give other humans rides, as far as she knew.
"Why a saddle? Why would Sally want a saddle?"
Rawsthorne caught her misunderstanding and he grinned a little. "Actually, it's for you."
"What?!" He had been right to be nervous! Celestia wasn't sure she liked the idea at all!
He explained quickly: "Christine asked me if you would be willing to give the kids pony rides. Nothing too strenuous, just a short walk with each of them. Besides, there's not that many. I'll buy the saddle, if you would do it."
They intended to use her as a beast of burden! Ride her! Her! Princess Celestia! The ruler of Equestria! She was about to give Rawsthorne a resounding 'no'. That ride she had given the child had been a one-time thing! He should have known that. The human should have told Christine that from the onset!
Cake, yes. Pony rides, no!
Then she paused. An insidious memory crept in - of the child laughing and bouncing up and down on her back and her grateful face, and her excited babbling to her mother about it. They were only children. Perhaps she could make an exception?
The mare hung her head. The request went straight into her heart. There was no way she could show up and disappoint the little girl and her friends. "Only those friends who are the same age as Sally, or younger. It's not to become a regular thing! Do you hear me Rawsthorne? I like that child, but you will not rent me out as a riding pony!"
He was starting to chuckle at her apparently fiery demands, but it only spurred her on. "I mean in, Rawsthorne! It is a special occasion, and I'm doing this for Sally only! The next time you promise someone a pony ride, it will be you wearing the saddle, understand?!"
The human just ended up laughing harder. Celestia sighed and slumped back against his shoulder. "Promise me it will not become a regular thing, Rawsthorne?"
He still didn't answer, so she tried another angle: "I know I offered you a pony ride, but that was for you only."
That shut him up. The human turned a pleasing shade of pink. She quickly pushed it a bit further: "You know, if you get a bridle, and some reins..." She didn't finish the thought. The way Rawsthorne was suddenly coughing was most amusing.
Celestia considered it a victory and it put her in a good mood again. It really did seem that her embarrassment was forgotten, and now that she understood why Rawsthorne had been reluctant to - as he saw it - take advantage of her, she didn't feel as bad about the messes she had made.
"When you said you liked me - that night before we got the ring from Mrs. Turner - was it a lie to make me feel better during my trying time?"
It took Rawsthorne a while to remember, but then he shook his head. "No, I don't think so. I do like you, Celestia, but perhaps not in the way you'd want."
"But you're open to that way?"
She held her breath until her owner gave a slight nod. "I suppose I am."
He nudged her in the ribs with his elbow. "Besides, you're not really acting like a slave at all. Sometimes I feel like we're already married or something."
The pony froze with trepidation. He wasn't figuring it out, was he? "Sorry. I'll try-"
A hand came up to push her mouth shut. "I don't mind. I got you for the housework, but I'm keeping you for the company. You're fine. Just remember - keep it professional in public."
She smiled with relief. "Yes, Master."
The talk had done her a world of good. She was happy to know that she hadn't irreversibly ruined her chances with Rawsthorne. It looked like their life together would go back to normal, more or less. On the other hoof, he owner had agreed to take her out to dinner. In that setting, she could start building something more between them. She was sure she wanted it, now.