//------------------------------// // A Place to Lay Your Head // Story: Equestria: A Flux Tale // by Star Sage //------------------------------// The next morning, you wake up to a multitude of faces over you. Everypony seems to be there, from the Bolts, both types, to the Element Wielders, to Octavia and Vinyl, and Deasly too. You do ask after DawnChaser, and learn that he vanished sometime during the train ride along with Big Macintosh. Where they went is speculated about, but Deasly says not to worry, that the Professor will be fine, and he likes the big red stallion too much to let him get into trouble. He's sure they'll pop back up sometime in the near future, and probably much in need of a bath. That gets a chuckle from the Six, Octavia, and Vinyl, considering what you know of the Professor, but the Bolts seem perplexed, though they don't inquire farther. The rest of the day is spent on a tour of Canterlot, with you floating while the ponies all trotted. For the first stop, you are taken to where everypony will be staying while they're in the grand capital city. The Six are housed in a single tower, near where Princess Celestia herself sleeps, apparently at Twilight's suggestion. She even said it was her old room, and when you arrive, it's the same library from the first scene of episode one, so you believe her. Mind, trying that trick to make the statue look like Nightmare Moon, looking at it through the glass ball, doesn't seem to work, and you give up when Applejack notices what you're doing. Still, you get to see where the Six are staying, before Dash and the Wonderbolts take off, flying towards a much more squat looking building in the distance, looking like some barracks. When the rest of you arrive, Rainbow Dash is already zipping around, asking questions, to which the Wonderbolts happily respond, telling her what's in what locker, and even letting her try on a suit, which causes her to faint in excitement, much to the laughter of her friends as they help her stay on her hooves, and then wake her up with an application of rain water, giving her a wet mane look as the tour continues. The next stop is Octavia and Vinyl's place. It had the look of being lived in, mostly because two of the windows had seemingly been blasted out by an explosion, and there was a bulge in the roof, that Octavia said was all Vinyl's fault. Not that Vinyl denied it, she just said that sometimes rock came with a power greater than magic, and she always enjoyed power. You are shown their bedrooms....bedroom, with a single bed. You don't know what to make of that exactly, though according to Applejack when you take her aside to ask about it, it's not a big thing, and doesn't mean anything's happening. She then jibs you about if you're interested in a certain gray music mare in a bow tie, which you deny, though you blush furiously at the idea. After that, you get taken to where the Professor and his assistants will be staying, which are just outside the city itself. This place....well, while Vinyl's looked lived in, this looked like it was going to cave in. The place was built from various pieces, like somepony had broken apart a dozen homes, and just randomly jammed the pieces back together in a slapdash style. It was even leaning to one side, and the top story, which there we five, wasn't straight with the others below, causing a shadowed overhang that creaked a little as you made your way toward the front door. Mind, Deasly says it's perfectly safe, and after watching him fearlessly trot inside, you all join him, and are instantly assaulted by a multitude of odors. This place, Deasly explained, was one of several labs the Professor had, setup all over Equestria. This was the oldest, and went back to his own days when he studied in the School for Gifted Unicorns, before becoming a globe-trotting adventure pony, and finally to a professor at Hayvard. Mind, that brought up the question of age again, which Deasly turned aside, though you made a mental note to confront him about this, when there wasn't so many cool things to look at around. Dials, switches, and beeping panels covered almost every wall of the lab, and there were bookshelves seemingly randomly placed, each with an odd collection of books, from story, to science, to some that looked like magic books you'd seen in cartoons...which upon reflection were probably the ones least out of place. Deasly also said the DawnChaser's other assistants would be coming in, now that the Professor was setting up shop in Canterlot for a while. That brought out a couple of questions, mostly the usual like, he wasn't the Professor's only assistant, and how many there were, and more importantly, what they were like. He didn't really answer any of them, any more than he had about age, but he did say the first to arrive was likely to be an earth pony they'd left to handle things at Hayvard itself, as he'd been the only one they'd known right where to send the letter to. The others were scattered about Equestria, some on missions from DawnChaser or the Princesses, some just doing their own studies, and some lazing about. This brought up the question of why Deasly was the one traveling with him, for which the answer was easy, Deasly had drawn the short straw that month. The assistants apparently considered playing nursemaid to their instructor a chore, and so took turns at it. He didn't mind though, since he'd been able to have some fun this time around, and hadn't once gotten stepped on, or forgotten about in some ruin, which, according to him, was a constant danger for DawnChaser's assistants. Not that the Professor allowed them to get hurt mind, he always saved them from dangers, both ones that just happened to be around, and ones the Professor himself put them in through absent mindedness, so it all balanced out....usually. Next stop was lunch. Rarity was the one who suggested a lovely little spot, and she even seemed to be well known to the staff, ordering for her friends, and Vinyl and Octavia, though letting you and Deasly order for yourselves, since she wasn't sure what you would like. Sadly, you couldn't tell what anything was on this menu, and just asked for something without grass or flowers that came in small portions. What you got, interestingly enough, were normal french fries, a small plate of them, which you greedily tore into, idly wondering if they had ketchup, but then figuring it wasn't worth it, and instead just tearing into the food, something normalish, in a world of abnormality. After lunch, and a bathroom break, you all walked outside, soon followed by DawnChaser and Big Macintosh, neither of which would say where they'd been, though they both smelled of bathroom soap, like they'd bathed in it, and Big Macintosh said something about Fluttershy being cute from any angle, which earned him a poke in the ribs from the Professor who told him to shut his trap. This also got both the red stallion and creme colored pegasus blushing, and laughter from the others, as you now made your way to your own rooms, back within the Royal Palace. "And these are the quarters that the Princesses ordered to be made ready for our tiny guest," said the Lord Chamberlain, an Applebee, or so you thought you'd heard her called. It had taken your small group an hour or so to make your way through the traffic of the street, and to finally return to Canterlot Castle, where you're own quarters would be furnished. You had thought you'd be bunked somewhere near the Six, or at least in that wing of the palace, but as the Chamberlain climbed the steps, you quickly realized your own room was in the tower near the Princesses' chambers. In fact, you had to go one floor above it, before you came to the place where the Chamberlain stopped, and looked at you expectantly, making you wonder if you were supposed to tip her or something, as you stood in front of a blank wall "Uh, I think those are what she means by quarters," said Applejack, pointing a hoof down, and you noticed a much smaller door than all the others lined the corridor. In fact, it seemed sized just for you. You descended from your flight, landing amid a forest of legs, while trying not to look up at all the massive faces. Reaching out a cautious hand, you twisted the handle, and opened the door, and were instantly assaulted by light, causing you to blink away in surprise, and take off into the air again. "Surprise!" shouted a royal voice, and as you blunk away the spots in your vision, you beheld Princess Celestia, standing on the floor, sized just perfectly to enter your own room. You had to admit, even tiny though, she commanded authority, as everypony in the hall, Chamberlain included, bowed to their tiny monarch. Not wanting to seem rude, you did the same, landing, and then leaning forward on one knee, with a fist on the ground. After a moment, you felt a gentle touch on your shoulder, and looked up at Celestia, who was giving you a smile one could only describe as radiant. "Heh, I apologize, but it's not often I'm able to pull a jump out scare like that on my subjects. Still, if you do want to see the quarters I've prepared, come inside," she said, and motioned with her hoof towards the door. You started forward, but then turned to look at all the eyes on you, the Chamberlain trotting off and muttering something about childishness of her rulers, while the others just tried to smile. "Um, so, do we part company here then?" asks Rarity, and Celestia, looking up from the floor, chuckles a bit to herself, and then turns to DawnChaser. "How silly of me. Professor, if you would do the honors?" she asks, and the purple stallion nods, smiling himself as he closes his eyes. In a flash, everypony is now of a size with Celestia, and for once, you aren't looking up at anypony...well, except the Sun Goddess, who is still a good foot taller than you. Everyone else though, is looking up at you instead, with the tallest, Big Macintosh, just coming up to above your chest when he's on all fours. "Oh, wow, so this is how you see the world," comments Octavia, looking up at everything. Doing so yourself, you have begun to realize how normal it had all started to become, seeing things from the floor, or at least, from a smaller perspective. The others stare open mouthed at the nearby table, which towers over them all, and you nod. The chamberlain, looking down, figures her services are no longer required, and trots away, her hooves clacking on the floors. "A bit. Though I've gotten used to it. Besides, if I want to get bigger, all I have to do is think hard enough, and summon a mecha," you tell her with a casual shrug. Octavia seems to see through this bravado though, and trots over to hug you, followed by Vinyl, who just kind of slams her way into it, and then Pinkie Pie who....well, she's standing at the back of the group one moment, the next, she's part of the hug. You've started to realize that reality, for Pinkie Pie, is a fluid thing, and though you wonder about it, you figure, if it's normal for everypony else, you can get used to it. "Humph," coughs Twilight, and the four of you quickly untangle yourselves, before entering your room. And what a room. It was almost as well furnished as the Princess' in which you'd spent the previous night. Heck, it was better than the apartment you'd been living out of for the past few months, by far, and thinking about what a place like this would cost back in your old world, you realize just how far you've come since then. "So, do you like it? I can change anything about it you find lacking, or Luna can. She's the one who decided to add the balcony for instance," said Princess Celestia, and you look towards what you'd thought were windows, and see that in fact, they are actually fancy looking doors, with handles much like most of the other doors in the palace, designed to be pressed down easily for those with hooves. This means they're even easier for you, and so you open them, and look out in the waning daylight, staring into the sky. It's actually a rather large balcony....to you, and soon, all of your friends are out on it, looking around. As you do, your head suddenly is drawn down, and you see another balcony just below. "Am I right above your rooms?" you ask the sun goddess, and she smiles at you, before winking, and nodding, "I thought it best, if you naturally absorb magic, to be nearest the greatest fount of such things in Equestria, which happens to be myself. This also means I'm on hoof if anything should go wrong, or you need aid. Luna's own rooms are one level above, and to the left, if you need her as well," she informed you, pointing, and you notice a similar balcony above and to the side. "Oh, I think she's about to raise the moon," says Celestia, and she flutters into the sky, growing larger as she moves away from you, and assuming her true size as she flies to her sister's balcony. She vanishes above it for a moment, before her and Luna's faces peek over the side, and then Luna closes her eyes in concentration, the group being covered in her light, before teleporting to where the Princesses are standing, everypony appearing at their correct heights, so you launch yourself upward, resuming your now standard floating at about eye level, though you are saddened. That was the first hug you'd gotten here, and it had felt nice, to be in somepony's arms...legs. "So, shall we watch as my sister does her duty?" asked Celestia, nodding towards Luna, who seemed to stand up straighter as your eyes locked with hers. Before that could go on even a heartbeat, Luna turned towards the sky, and closed her eyes, her whole body soon encased in the soft, warm glow of her power. This power, you could taste it. It was massive, and looking at it, you could feel lines of it moving towards the horizon. You held back from touching them though, not sure what such contact would do, but it felt so...so powerful, and it tasted as good as the ambrosia from the night before. Your body yearned for this power, and it was via a force of will that you kept yourself from grabbing it, as Luna herself began to weave a new night. That's what it felt like too. The lines of forces, like threads, tied and twisted together, slowly but surely taking shape just over the horizon. When she's done, she pulls at it, and like a blanket, night begins to cover the land, the sun setting, as the moon rises into the sky, becoming a shimmering sphere, while all around it, stars twinkle, shining brighter than you had ever seen in your own life, and had failed to notice here on Equestria. Truly, the night was a thing of beauty, and you wondered how your people could have forgotten it, as everypony in your group turns to Luna. "You weaved a lovely evening sky," you say before anypony else can, and for an instant, you think you see Luna blush at that, but then she recovers, and makes you wonder if you'd been imagining it. "Tia and I had been trading this duty, so that I might recover from my time gone and relearn the skill of it. Though I am happy to say I have been doing this on my own for several months now," she informed you, and you could hear the pride in her voice. "Heh, you've learned it well, Princess of the Night. Speaking of night, Big Macintosh and I were going to go sample the night life of Canterlot. My friend has never seen the royal city after evening, and I must admit, since I graduated, I have been lax in visiting the bar scene, is anypony up for joining us?" asks the Professor, and you can see Deasly facehoof out of the corner of your eye, obviously not thrilled with this idea, while the others all seem to be considering it. For your own part, you respond before anypony else can and tell him you'd rather rest and recuperate, which a rowdy bar night is not conducive to. "I doubt that out there would be the safest place for one of my stature," you tell him, remembering how much trouble you had gotten yourself into with just three drunken mares, and then trying to imagine that multiplied by a few dozen, and then shaking your head at such a thing. It wasn't a pleasant image at all, especially if you got lost somewhere along the way. "Suit yourself. Anypony else up for it?" asks the Professor, and Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Deasly, Applejack, Rarity, and Vinyl soon join the group going out. Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie are going for the party, Rarity to keep an eye on everypony, and Applejack to specifically keep an eye on her brother, as Deasly went along for the Professor, and Vinyl....because Vinyl. That soon left the Princesses, Octavia, you, Twilight, and Fluttershy on the balcony, and moving into Luna's personal chamber. Considering that Celestia's was decorated with an airy, sun motif, it wasn't surprising to find the opposite was true of her sister. Luna's chamber seemed to just grow drapes from the ceiling, light things that almost seemed not to be there, save for their dark colors. Oddly, it felt sheltering, rather than oppressive. "So, what are we going to do? Turn in for the night?" you ask, curious what everypony plans on. "Well, no, I have Night Court to preside over, so I'll be up most of the night, helping to decide a few territorial issues," said Luna. "And I'm thinking of attending myself, just to see how it works, and to compare it to Princess Celestia's own Sun Court," Twilight informs you. "I was going to visit with the animals in the garden myself, before I turned in for the night. Philomena as well, if she's up," said Fluttershy quietly. "I'm sure she'd love to visit you, Ms. Fluttershy. She's in the aviary downstairs, along with a few other birds who might enjoy your company this evening," says Celestia with a chuckle, and Fluttershy smiles. "Oh, that sounds lovely. If you'll excuse me," she tells you, and slowly trots to the door, quietly letting herself out of the room. "Well then, what about you, Tia? Are you going to come to Night Court tonight?" asks Luna, and Celestia smiles at her sister, but shakes her head. "No, I think it's time I turned in for the night. After all, I have my own long day tomorrow," she admits, and with that, walks out on the balcony, to presumably fly to her own room from outside the castle, leaving you, Twilight, Octavia, and Luna alone. "Alright then, do you want to go watch the Night Court proceedings then, Octavia?" you ask, and she taps her hoof against her lip for a moment, before nodding, and so the four of you begin the journey downstairs. It's actually quite a long one too, considering the size of Canterlot Castle, so a good ten minutes later you find yourself in front of a heavy set of double doors. On the other side of which you can hear a multitude of voices bantering back and forth about something. "Hmm, sounds like a lot of supplicants tonight. Probably some petitioning about that new dam that the earth ponies in New Mexicolt built just above Buffalo lands," says Luna to herself, before using her magic to open the doors, and you are met with a tumult of noise as it spills from inside the massive throne room chamber. "OYEZ! OYEZ! OYEZ! The Night Court is now in session, presiding authority of Princess Luna will now hear those with grievances and issues to bring before the throne!" shouted an older stallion, and everypony in the room bowed as your little group made their way inside. It seemed this wasn't the first time Luna had brought guests with her into the court, as none of the eyes that turned to the group were turned towards the girls. Instead, everypony in the room stared at you, and suddenly you wished you'd gone with the others, a good drink sounded nice about now. Still, you couldn't change the past....yet, note to self, research that spell, and so you made your way, floating along with your friends, until you reached the throne. Luna sat in it, laying on it as she had the cloud on Nightmare Night, while Twilight and Octavia took up similar positions in smaller chairs they were rushed beside them. Not knowing what to do with you, they didn't provide you a chair, but you decided to test what power you might have regained, and just to show off a bit, as so many of the eyes looking at you seemed to silently be calling you a pest. Still, those same eyes went wide, as a floating wireframe appeared behind you, and then slowly took on solid form, becoming a flying chair, like something out of a scifi novel. It hovered via its own power, and you sat in it like you'd seen Dracula do in a few castlevania games. Oddly, you really wanted a glass of wine now. Not to drink, just to hold and look menacing. "All ponies, attend Our words. Our guests this evening are Twilight Sparkle, the Wielder of the Element of Magic, and Ms. Octavia, somepony We're sure whose of you who listen to the radio know. Our third guest is a human, a visitor from another world, and We ask that you show them all the same kindness you would show Ourself," she instructs, referring to herself in the royal we, and sounding much more authoritarian than she'd been speaking. Oddly, you find her use of that voice slightly compelling, though you cross your legs to hide anything that might show. "So says the Princess of the Night Court. Now, first supplicant, present your case," commanded the Major Domo of the court, and an older mare stepped forward from the crowd. What followed was...well, boring, in the extreme. For the next several hours Luna held her court, and it heard cases from far and wide. The first case was simple, and easy to decide, a simple matter of what to do with a certain surplus in the western provinces, which was quickly turned to the southlands that had had a major drought recently. Next came the issue of a school that had been hit hard by a fire, and where to draw funds from to fix it, as well as replace the books. With that matter settled, there were more territorial disputes, including as predicted, the thing with the buffalo, which was settled, seemingly to the benefit of all in a few short words by Luna. "Be there anypony here with further business for this court?" asked the major domo pony, and when there were no responses, he nodded. "Let it be heard that this court is closed for the night th-" he began, when suddenly, there's a pounding at the doors, and you find yourself intrigued for the first time in over an hour, as they open wide to admit, first a line of ponies in police uniforms, followed by Big Macintosh and DawnChaser, the two looking like they’d had a rough night.