Dapper had never been to Ponyville before, he knew of it, but never visited.
Princess Celestia had however asked him to accompany her to the small town in order to observe an event called, the Running of the Leaves. It seemed to be a simple race, and an opportunity for his lady to visit her student. They would not be there for the event to start, Celestia had not wanted to take the focus off the race, not when she had an opportunity to observe it.
Flying high above the events, Celestia watched the race in her very own royal balloon. It was bigger than any normal balloon, had a deck, and a lounge, Dapper was almost tempted to say it was an airship more than a balloon, especially because it had a small crew to operate it.
Celestia herself stood out on the deck, looking down at the scenery below. Dapper had rarely seen his lady so excited, it was nice, and it suited her. He made his way out of the lounge and joined her on the deck. "Tea, ma'am?"
She shook her head, and instead waved him closer, not for a moment taking her eyes off the events going on below. "It seems my student has decided to participate in the race!" She sounded happy and excited about that, like if it was some sort of achievement. Maybe for Twilight it really was, Dapper had still to meet the mare herself, but he had heard the stories from the staff. "Here," said Celestia, offering him to look through the telescope.
Dapper was hesitant at first, but seeing how much fun Celestia was having, he could hardly refuse. So he walked up, looked through, and right as rain, he observed the race below. It seemed fun enough, he could understand why ponies would make this a tradition. A good race between the community members to strengthen their bonds and friendshi-wait that Pegasus just cheated! While running ahead of an orange earth pony, she had grabbed a branch and made it so it would snap back and hit the mare, giving the Pegasus a better lead.
"Well, that's interesting.."
"What is?" Celestia asked, taking back the telescope. "Oh... It would seem my student's friends are taking this competition a bit too seriously."
"Ah, Applejack and Rainbow Dash?" Dapper asked, recalling their names.
"Indeed, Dapper. I think this will be a good opportunity for a friendship lesson."
"Do you plan on interfering?"
Celestia shook her head with a gentle smile. "No, I do believe this will solve itself. However," her smile turned into a smirk. "It will be quite entertaining to watch, care to join me Mr. Dash?"
Dapper had been in the service of Celestia and Luna long enough to know they both had a mischievous side to them, something he could not help but find entertaining. So far only Luna had tried to prank him, it had failed, but he was too much of a gentlecolt to get revenge, which was in itself a prank, as he knew it frustrated her that he refused to play their games.
Celestia was more subtle, she knew how uptight ponies could get around her, and so she used that to make them lighten up. She would find ways to make them fail in small harmless ways, and then let them know through her reactions that she was not angry, did not expect perfection, and she was content, it helped ponies relax more. Though that didn't mean she couldn't pull off some bigger pranks, there was a reason the staff had nicknamed her, Trollestia. It was said with affection of course.
"I would not miss the chance to see the famous elements of harmony competing." Dapper finally replied. Celestia seemed pleased by that very diplomatic answer.
She knew Dapper well enough to know he kept a respectful distance, while also somehow managed to be just close enough. Although Celestia respected him for that, she found herself wanting to see more of the real him. Luna had made more headway in that department, maybe because she was less guarded than Celestia was.
She'd nearly spit out her tea when Luna mentioned Dapper was massaging her before bed. Celestia had turned very red, something Luna had teased her with ever since. Dapper kept his distance, but was so unafraid of approaching them. Of course it was his job to tend to their needs, but he had gone far beyond the call of duty. He had even shut down her cake smuggling operation, which was annoying, but he did it to take care of her, and without fear of what she might think of him, a trait she admired.
Unlike so many other ponies, though well intended, had a tendency to please her and almost worship her to a degree that it made most real connections with her ponies impossible. Of course Celestia had her beloved and faithful student Twilight, but even she saw her more as her mentor than her friend at times.
Perhaps it was just wishful thinking, perhaps naïve of her, childish even, but with Dapper she truly felt there was a possibility of making a real connection. He already knew about almost every aspect of her life, he was there when she woke up, there when she went to bed. Although he was clever enough to phrase his thoughts in such a manner he never directly said what he meant, he had never been afraid to speak his mind.
Celestia longed for a friend like that, someone who she could really talk to and confide in. Maybe she should try Luna's approach? Maybe getting a massage could open them both up? Luna did not give many details, mostly to tease her older sister, Celestia suspected, but she had told her how good his hooves felt. Especially when he moved them right between her wings.
Her cheeks warmed ever so slightly at the thought of him doing that to her, even to the point her wings fluttered just a tiny bit. Dapper didn't notice it as he kept his eyes on the race, but suddenly he looked at her and said, "your majesty, it seems your student's friends almost crashed into the residents with a large rock."
Celestia let out a small chuckle. "My student's friend can be a bit-wait what?" Quickly she looked, and indeed she saw Rainbow Dash and Applejack sitting on a large rock on the road. The dust behind them suggested they had slided off the cliff, it seemed it was pure luck they didn't crash into the other ponies running. Letting out a sigh, she looked to Dapper and said, "I think it's about time we land, please inform the pilot."
Dapper inclined his head. "Very good, ma'am."
After landing, Celestia made her way towards the crowd, the race had just finished and it seemed a winner had been declared in Twilight. As they came closer, Dapper could hear Applejack speak. "You're right Twilight, our behavior was just terrible.."
Rainbow Dash seemed to agree, and added, "we weren't very good sports."
The crowd gasped and bowed as they noticed Celestia trotting towards them, but she kept her attention to her student and her friends. "Sounds to me like an important lesson was learned."
"Princess Celestia?!" They all exclaimed, confused and shocked.
"What are you doing here?" Applejack asked after the initial shock had worn off.
Celestia smiled and explained, "fall is one of my favorite seasons, so I came to celebrate the running of the leaves."
Both Rainbow and Applejack looked downcast and ashamed, and so Applejack apologized for their shameful behavior. "I'm sorry you had to see us being such poor sports, princess."
It was like foals apologizing to their mother, Dapper thought. Celestia however responded as one might expect, gracefully and calmly, with a hint of motherly warmth. "That's alright, Applejack. Anypony can get swept up in the excitement of competition."
Then Twilight cut in, "it's important to remember that the friendship is always more important than the competition." Dapper was not sure if it was because he was on painkillers that he cringed, but that seemed like basic common sense, but her teacher gave her points anyway.
"Exactly, Twilight." Gold star, Twilight, gold star. "But because the two of you were busy tricking each other, you didn't get to enjoy a fair race."
"Why, princess, I bet we can make up for that lickety-split." Applejack responded, then turned to Rainbow Dash. "What do you say, friend? Want to go for another run?"
Rainbow smirked. "I'd love to stretch my legs." And with that, they were off, leaving Celestia and her student alone, as well as Dapper, who stood near Celestia.
"So, Twilight," Celestia smiled, turning her attention back to her student. "I hear there is a celebration after the race?"
Twilight nodded excitedly. "Yeah! There is a big lunch back at Sweet Apple Acres, the others should be waiting for me there."
"Do you think they would mind if we joined you?" Asked Celestia.
"Not at all princess, I'm sure Granny Smith would-wait did you say we? Who's we?" And then suddenly she spotted Dapper Dash, standing barely a meter behind Celestia. Her eyes looked him over, and she genuinely seemed surprised, like she really hadn't noticed him before now. Then again, Celestia did draw a lot of attention to herself, which made his job easier at gatherings at the palace. "Oh, sorry, I didn't see you." Twilight apologized, clearly feeling a little embarrassed.
"It's quite alright, Miss Sparkle." Dapper replied calmly. "Congratulations on your victory."
"Thank you! Uhm, but who are you? Are you a noble from Canterlot?"
Celestia giggled. "Twilight, this is my personal butler, Dapper Dash."
Twilight was surprised, having lived with Celestia for quite a while she had never seen any personal butlers. She had seen a lot of butlers, but nopony that would follow her this closely. She gave Dapper a smile, but to him it looked a little forced, maybe because she was a bit unsure how to feel about this?
"It is good to meet you, Dapper Dash."
She said, and Dapper simply inclined his head in response. As a butler he was not the most talkative pony when it came to Celestia's guests, or acquaintances. He was there to serve the princess, letting her enjoy herself, and him making it as comfortable and easy for her as possible. He was supposed to not even be noticed when serving.
"Well then, let us depart." Celestia said, sensing the awkward mood.
Teacher and student started to trot down the road, with Dapper following a few steps behind them in order to give them some space. He was a servant, and so it would be improper for him to trot too close beside his mistress. Twilight happily chatted with her mentor, though at times she would glance back at Dapper with a puzzled expression.
Finally she could not hold it in anymore, so she looked to Celestia and asked, "so, since when did you need a personal butler?" Intended or otherwise, Dapper grasped the root of that question, but he did not react to it. He was not a part of this conversation, no matter what she may say, but it was clear she was uncomfortable with the idea of Celestia having a personal butler. Why that was the case, he had no idea.
As always, one could not tell if Celestia noticed it as well, she kept calm, smiled, and gave her an answer. "Well, with Luna here we can split our royal duties, which means we have more time on our hooves. Although, our duties can still be tiring, so we were convinced in trying to hire a personal butler, one that could serve our more personal needs." Celestia's face was the picture of perfect innocence, but Dapper had an idea she was actually teasing Twilight.
"Personal needs..?" Twilight repeated, as if going over what she could possibly mean. As she was running the options over in her mind, it quickly became clear to Dapper she was reaching the wrong conclusions, evident by how much she was starting to blush.
"I have been very pleased with his services so far." Celestia continued. Now Dapper was sure that she was doing this on purpose, teasing Twilight and trolling him! "Luna is also very satisfied, though she refuses to share any of the details."
Twilight seemed to be close to having a mental overload, Dapper could even swear he saw steam above the purple unicorn's head. He himself could not help but blush, despite his best attempts to never reveal his thoughts. In the moment Celestia knew she had gotten to him, it was just some friendly teasing, friends could do that, right?
After finally getting Twilight to calm down, the three of them arrived at Sweet Apple Acres. Dapper had of course heard of the place, and he was impressed by the beauty of the farm. Dapper himself always made sure to get the best ingredients for the princesses, which included apples from this very farm.
Walking past the fence they were quickly met by the rest of the elements, and of course Applejack's family. All of them bowed in respects, but Granny was the first one to rise. "Ya majesty, ah would like to welcome you to our humble farm."
Celestia gave a small nod, and said, "you have my thanks, and hope to enjoy your hospitality."
Granny gave a small smirk, "why princess, you don't need to ask that. Of course yer welcome! You and your fine lookin' fella behind ya!"
And just like before, it was like only now did the ponies around them seem to notice Dapper. It didn't bother him, it allowed Dapper to work without anyone really being bothered. Now however, a pink pony suddenly appeared in front of him and started talking a million miles per hour. He only caught her name, and asking something, the rest seemed to just blur together.
Before Celestia or Twilight had a chance to explain, Rainbow Dash and Applejack appeared behind them, panting. "Whew.. That was some run.." Applejack said with a smile and trotted closer, along with Rainbow Dash hovering beside her. "Oh, princess!" They bowed once again. "You've decided to join us?"
Celestia nodded, "that's right, Applejack."
"Cool!" Rainbow exclaimed, and then, like the rest, noticed Dapper Dash. "Who's that?"
This time Dapper decided to introduce himself, and so he straightened his posture and politely bowed his head to them all. "My name is Dapper Dash, I am in the employment of the princesses as their personal butler."
Pinkie burst out laughing, and the large group went from surprised, to confused. "What's so funny Pinkie?" Asked Twilight.
She wiped a tear from her eye, pointed in the direction of both Dapper and Rainbow, and exclaimed. "Mr. & Mrs. Dash! Ahahaha!!" The others quickly understood, and gave a few chuckles and laughs of their own. Rainbow however was not amused, but she kept quiet for the sake of the princess, who of course, also was amused.
Dapper just kept a neutral face, wishing he could take another pill, or two, in this moment. When the laughter finally died down he turned to Celestia and asked, "do you require my services for the time being? Or would her majesty prefer I wait with the balloon?"
For a second Celestia seemed confused by the question, but regained her composure quickly. "Dapper, you are free to join us at the celebration."
Once again, Dapper found his mistress wanting to include him in engagements he had no business of participating in. He didn't like that he had to reject her, and he didn't like that she kept putting him in that position, but he knew it came from a good place. So, like all the other times, he inclined his head, politely refused, and reminded her of his duties.
Celestia kept herself composed, but Dapper could have sworn he saw her right eye twitch with annoyance. "Very good then Mr. Dash, then will you be so good to render your services available for all present?"
Now it was Dapper's right eye that twitched, was she just punishing him now. He kept a stiff smile, and as did she as they stared at each other. "Very good, ma'am. I shall do my utmost not to disappoint you." The two kept looking at one another, almost like a battle of wills, a battle, the rest of the ponies were unaware of.
Tables had been placed outside, all set, and all having food. Dapper moved between the tables, serving each pony as Celestia had instructed. Rainbow Dash seemed to enjoy it the most, although, not for the right reasons. Whenever she had a chance, she would call Dapper over and give him some strange command. Food, drinks, anything she could think of.
Pinkie soon joined in, thinking it was just a game, which it was, for them at least. Dapper did however impress them all, never did he show he was tired, never did he lose speed, and everything was done with a certain grace and elegance, even Applejack could see that.
Even so, Dapper started to feel his wing acting up, the pain was getting worse since he had not taken a pill since before they went to Ponyville. Thankfully however, the two of them started to run out of requests, but that was only after Rarity gave them a stern look and a little scolding.
For Celestia, she had hoped Dapper would take this as a lesson, hoping he would stop working and finally take the offer to join them, rest, eat, and have fun. To her annoyance, Dapper didn't stop working, he stubbornly refused to back down, and the two of them, while smiling to each other politely, knew exactly what the other one was trying to do. Dapper simply refused to back down, and Celestia wanted him to finally give in. It was like an immovable object versus an unstoppable force.
It seemed Dapper was determined to take any challenge Celestia could throw at him, but suddenly a voice, while not loud, still cut through the air with this one question. "Mister, how come you don't have your cutie mark yet?"
And so, once again, Dapper found himself the center of attention. Just like when they had first noticed him, they all only now seemed to notice he did indeed not have a cutie mark. He was what ponies would call, a blank flank. While the word itself was not an insult, the term was being used as such.
Nopony spoke, nopony dared to ask about it, as it was a deep personal matter for most ponies. The pony, or rather, the filly, that had asked the question, was Apple Bloom, flanked by her two best friends. All three looked up at him in confusion, none of them understood how an adult could not have his cutie mark yet. It was then Celestia felt a little bad, while she had wanted to tease Dapper, give him a little lesson, she had not wished for him to become the center of attention like this.
Dapper however, while not happy with all this attention, smiled at the little filly. "Well, I guess it is because I like to try a lot of things.. Finding my cutie mark has been a lifelong adventure, and while looking for that special talent, I have met a lot of ponies, seen a lot of places and tried a lot of things."
"But you still haven't gotten your cutie mark yet?" Sweetie Belle then asked.
Dapper shook his head, "no, but that's okay. I like to think of it as an opportunity to grow as a pony, and never limiting myself to just my cutie mark. I have learned a lot, and experienced a lot, and I probably wouldn't have done that if I had found my cutie mark at an early age. So, I see it as an adventure that never has to end."
All gathered listened to Dapper in surprise, Celestia especially. She had thought Dapper would be closed off from the fillies, trying to shoo them away or give a very flat answer in order to get back to work. That had not been the case however, he had given them a warm smile, given their question real consideration, and finally gave them a deep and thoughtful answer. Celestia was amazed, Dapper, while always being guarded, yet clever, had shared something about himself. While not giving any details, his answer, and treatment of the fillies, spoke volumes about his character.
The three fillies even seemed satisfied, then one said to the others. "Why don't we start and try to find our cutie marks?"
"Yeah! We can try a bunch of stuff, just like Mr. Dash!"
The three of them let out a squeal of delight, and ran off. Letting out a sigh, Dapper, thinking he was going back to work, started to serve again, but was suddenly pulled into a bone crushing hug from Pinkie Pie. "You're so cute and kind!!" She laughed, but Dapper was not laughing, or smiling.
The hug put pressure on his wing, and he had to bite his lip in order not to let out a scream of pain. None noticed, but Celestia did. Dapper rarely let his guard down, but this time, while subtle, could see Dapper was holding back a scream of pain. Then, to her horror, when Pinkie finally let go and returned to her seat, Dapper continued to serve.
Taking a tray he still masterfully made his way to her table, serving drinks for her and the others around her. While nopony else noticed, Celestia could see his wing twitched, and it required effort to not let it drop. He continued to serve, a polite smile, but his eyes were filled with restraint.
"Why..?" Was her only thought.
Why did he do this? Why did he insist on carrying on like this despite being in pain? How much pain was Dapper in? She couldn't take it anymore, she would not force Dapper to continue this, he was in pain, and she did not want him to do this. She was about to stand and announce she had to go, when suddenly Dapper cleared his throat, catching her full attention.
"If I may, your majesty, I would like to take you up on that offer and join you for a little while, if that is okay?"
Celestia was stunned, something that didn't happen often. She had just been about to give them an out, but Dapper had stopped her. Why? Did he see what she was planning to do? If so, did he decide to stay for her sake? Despite the gesture, Celestia knew he did not ask for his own sake, his actions and character had proven he would fight through every challenge, and whatever pain might befall him. He was doing this, for her.
The infuriating thing was, she could hardly say no, it would look out of character, and Twilight especially would know something was wrong. Dapper was clever enough to know that as well, and so he had maneuvered her into agreeing, and staying. Deep inside she was happy, she had wanted to stay and enjoy a simple lunch with these ponies, but she had not wanted to prolong Dapper's suffering. He knew, he had always known, and so put her need before his own, even to the point he forced her to accept.
Her eyes looked deep into his, and she nodded. "Please, join us Mr. Dash."
Dapper inclined his head, and said. "Thank you, ma'am."
Checkmate.