//------------------------------// // Hallucinations // Story: Thirteen Reasons // by canonkiller //------------------------------// Celestia hadn't slept that night. Or the night after that. Her weary shakiness and general dizziness had enforced her 'sickness' lie, and most ponies steered clear of her room. And 'most' meant all but one. Celestia pushed herself into a sitting position as the door opened. Cloudy Sky entered quickly, trying to avoid getting hit by the door as it returned to its original place. He gripped a large silver tray in his mouth, his wingtips touching each side to keep it balanced. "Oh. It's you." Celestia slid back down the headboard, sinking back under the covers. "Wm hmlm mm mm mu." He replied, rolling his eyes. "What?" He set the platter on the foot of her bed, frowning up at her like the mother of a disobedient child. "Well hello to you to." He deadpanned. "Now eat." "I don't want to." Celestia replied. "I made this myself!" Sky protested, hopping up onto the bed. He shed his Pegasus skin in order to levitate the tray. "The cooks said you 'needed to fast to recover'. There's nothing a crapload of herbal tea can't fix." "You made tea." "Oh, of course not, it's toilet water." He drawled. "Drink it." She glared at him from the edge of the blankets. "No." During the past week, the two had become close friends; even more so when she agreed that being her slave footstool helper was a much better punishment than banishment to the moon. He had refused to leave the room on numerous occasions and brought her meals against both the wishes of the kitchen staff and herself. Close friends was putting it lightly. It was more along the lines of 'I want to kill you but I'd get arrested' and 'there is a signed document that keeps me from leaving you for more than an hour', which is basically what friendship is anyway.' "I am royalty!" Celestia shouted. "There's nothing you can do to make me eat!" "I will tickle you." Sky hissed, a dead-serious glare focused on Celestia's skinny frame. "Nopony will hear you scream." Celestia gulped and vanished under the covers with a yell. "Tactical bedfort!" "Wha?! No! Get out of there!" Sky chattered angrily as he attempted to haul the blankets up. "You are a Princess! You shouldn't act like this!" The pillows in front of him lifted into the air with a golden glow. "I hate you so much." He sighed, resigning to his fate. Feathers flew as each of the plush headrests collided with gray shell. One tore open while gliding along his horn, catching on the tip and dumping feathers all over his face. Celestia peered out from the blankets, cautiously levitating the rest of her arsenal. "You made me spill my tea." Sky pouted, setting the mostly-empty teapot on the table at the other side of the room. He faced her with a devilish grin, a few feathers sticking out from his fangs. "Nopony gets away with that!" He leaped towards Celestia's head, and she withdrew under the blankets again. She hooked his hoof upon landing and pulled him into the self-proclaimed 'bedfort'. Sky squealed in protest and scrambled to escape, mistakenly kicking her chin. The resonding 'clunk' froze both captor and escapee. "It's spread, hasn't it?" The way Sky said it, it had stopped being a question. Celestia turned away, intending to hide the armor. Instead, she heard Sky inhale sharply. "What?" "It's gone all the way down your neck." She felt a vague pressure along the base of her mane, and realized she couldn't truly feel his hoof. "Beyond, actually." As he continued running his hoof down her back, she felt a mixture of fear and pleasure. It terrified her that she hadn't noticed, but something about Sky being so close to her made her feel... full. Did you hear me? "What?" Celestia tilted her head to see him. "I zoned out." He wasn't smiling like usual. In fact, his expression could only be called shock. "You were broadcasting your thoughts." "What?" "You were using a hive link." He paused, before considering her ignorance and continuing. "It's a method Changelings use to communicate; we think out our plans, and nearby Changelings can hear and respond. It works much further than yelling, as well." There were rapid taps at the door, encouraging the two ponies to emerge from the blankets. The door swung open, revealing Luna and about ten of her guards. She looked about to speak, but blushed heavily upon seeing the two. The guards managed to avert their eyes after a few stunned seconds. "Luna, why are you..." Celestia slowly came to a realization, focusing her gaze on Sky as he reached the same conclusion. "This isn't what it looks like!" "We're not I mean she's not nothing - AUGH!" Sky let out a yell as he was unceremoniously shoved onto the floor. "We weren't doing... that!" "O-of course, sister." Luna replied, her voice much meeker than normal. "Um... the Changeling guards," she nodded to her companions, "said they all heard something. Apparently is sounded like you. Are you... um... alright?" "Something about 'feeling full'." A guard elaborated, blushing heavily. His shimmering blue eyes seemed to glow against his gray coat. Celestia was somewhat impressed by his closeness to his Changeling skin, while distant enough to avoid suspicion. "Um... thanks." "For what?" Celestia asked. "Complimenting my disguise." He replied, frowning slightly. "How can you use the hive link if you're not a Changeling?" "Okay, you caught us!" Sky suddenly shouted. "We're together. We're so in love that we can understand each other." "Sky?!" Celestia shouted. "I must have just thought too loudly while I was trying to figure out what she was saying." He sighed. "If we could have some privacy, please?" All of the ponies in the room were blushing now, Celestia included. Luna and her guard quickly turned tail and fled, slamming the door behind them. A few awkward moments passed before Celestia finally regained her voice. "Sky, why did you say that?" "Would it have been better if I told them you were turning into a Changeling?" He replied calmly. "They already suspected it. The least I could do was save your reputation." "Oh..." Celestia felt somewhat let down. "Thank you." He blinked, as if he expected her to react differently. "You can thank me once you finish her memories." Celestia looked towards the ball on her bedside table, currently disguised as a 'broken' lamp pull. "...okay."