//------------------------------//
// Decisions 
// Story: Beyond Me 
// by Boopy Doopy 
//------------------------------//

The bacon and oatmeal we were served tasted nice, and we ate while Celestia asked me questions about Earth. It was a couple of hours of discussion, with her asking many questions and me explaining and going through the history of the world. It was honestly kind of nice, being able to talk about something relatively normal for a change, and almost found myself enjoying the conversation.
“It is very nice to hear how far Earth has come in all this time,” she told me. “It was quite the… well, frankly, it was abhorrent. The last time Star Swirl and I visited was around eight or nine hundred years ago and it was… quite violent. One of the most violent places we’ve visited actually, which was why we put it on our banned worlds list.”
I frowned a little bit at that, mostly because of the fact that she said she went there, and replied, “Yeah, well… it’s much less like that, violent I mean. I mean, it still kind of is, but much less so, especially after World War Two.”
“You never explained the reason for that. Do you know the cause?”
“Well, um…” I started. “Well, the main reason is technological advancement, some of it good, some of it… not great…”
“Not great?”
“Well, uh, do you know what mutually assured destruction is?”
“I cannot say I’m familiar with that concept.”
“Basically, war… or, large scale war involving the major nations, doesn’t happen anymore because everyone, every major country I mean, has weapons that can kill millions of people all at once, so… attacking one of them would lead to mutually assured destruction.” I couldn’t help but cringe at the slight grimace Celestia wore when I finished.
“I see…” she trailed off, clearly uncomfortable with that thought, then put on a forced smile as she continued, “Well, I am still glad to hear that at least the lives there are better than what they were before, even given the circumstances. But now I do want to hear more about you. You said before you were an adult. What do you do?”
“I- I work in a restaurant,” I answered. “I’m actually the manager of a restaurant, a second assistant, so that’s two levels below general manager, and the lowest you can be to be a salary worker.”
“Do other workers not have salaries?” she asked.
“Salary just means you get a set amount of money per year versus getting paid by the hour. So I might be forced to come in and work more, but the amount I make is always fixed, even if I were told to go home early and worked less than forty hours a week. Not that that’s ever the case.”
“That’s very interesting. Would you say you’re good at it? Is it something you enjoy doing?”
“I guess I enjoy it kind of. It’s not really hard, I think, and I’m almost done with school for it. I have basically one year left on my Master’s degree.”
“Master’s degree?”
“Basically it’s a certificate that says I know how to run a business and will help me get better jobs. Or I can show it to a bank when I give them my business plan if I request a loan to start my own business.”
“I see. That sounds very interesting. I wonder if you’ll get a cutie mark in business? Or maybe a chef cutie mark since you work in a restaurant?”
“Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle told me what a cutie mark was, but could you tell me again please?”
“A cutie mark is a special mark that ponies get when they discover their special talent,” she explained. “It is normally associated with a pony’s destiny, and many times is tied to a pony’s name. For example, with a name such as Ashley, your special talent might involve working with stones or fires. Of course, it doesn’t always have to line up with one’s name, but as I said, many times it does.”
“So, like, you mean there’s predestination here?”
“Well, a bit like that. Each pony has their own destiny, although each pony also has the ability to shape their own destiny as well.”
“That’s… interesting, I guess…” I trailed off, fighting off the nervousness. “And you think I’ll get one?”
“I’m almost certain of it,” she replied. “Everypony gets one when they’re a foal. It could be tomorrow, or it could be five years from now. As I said, it comes when you discover your special talent.”
“Well, I already know what I’m good at, but I mean…”
“Well, perhaps if you did what you were good at, it would appear. Or maybe your special talent is something else? In any case, it does look like you’re feeling better, so I believe we’ll deliver you back to your guardians care.”
“We’re going back now?”
“Yes, unless you believe we should stay here?”
“I mean, I guess I don’t have that choice, do I? And I... think I liked staying with those two, and Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle sorta... But do we have to fly back? I really, really don’t like heights…”
“Hmmm… I suppose we can go back by train if you’d rather? Or we can teleport, although I typically prefer not to waste magic when it’s not necessary.”
“I- I’m not comfortable with teleporting somewhere, or using magic, but we could take a train? Please?”
“Certainly, it’s no trouble at all. I believe the next train should be boarding before noon, and it should only be a couple of hours to Ponyville from there. Although we might have to arrange for a car in the back of the train alone, but even if we can't, it shouldn’t be an issue.” She then put on a gentle smile as she added, "Also, it's very nice to hear that you are making friends."
I couldn't help but put on a bashful smile at that.



The train ride was quite the experience for Celestia, as well as other ponies who saw her. The ponies who saw her stopped in place, surprised that she was out and about, although not completely star struck like they were in Ponyville, seeing as they’d been around her quite often. However, they were quite shocked when they saw her bend her head down and board the train that had stopped in the gate. It was such a surprise that many ponies missed boarding and leaving the train and missing their rides to and from the destinations they needed to get to.
Asher walked behind the mare, Celestia slowing her pace so the filly could keep up, and before they knew it, the two were sitting in the back of the train in a cart of their own, speeding off towards Ponyville.
“I’m not making anyone else sick, am I?” Asher suddenly asked as they sat down alone. “I mean, I feel a lot better because of that medicine, but I’m also walking by a whole bunch of people…”
“That was and is being taken care of. If you noticed, the streets were quite a bit more empty than they normally are.”
“I assume they’re all getting vaccinated because I was sick?” she asked. 
“That is correct. A few were vaccinated late last night, but most of them are going out today. Even though Ponyville is being quarantined for the time being, with you being in Canterlot, we want to remain cautious.”
“I’m sorry,” she apologized. “I know I’m causing a whole lot of trouble for you. I know I’m annoying you at least and making your job more difficult.”
“I assure you, you are not annoying me,” the princess told her, “and there’s no need to apologize. It is the result of circumstances beyond your control.”
“You can say that again…” Asher mumbled, causing the two to sit in silence for a few minutes. Celestia watched the filly, who stared out the window as the fields of bright green grass passed her by, nothing more than that, the rolling hills, and the occasional house out in the vast openness of Equestria.
She found herself getting used to how unnaturally bright and unrealistic looking everything was. It was like staring out at a TV show or a children’s book. Everything was just so unnatural, the sky too bright blue, the clouds too pristine white, the hills rolling too perfectly. Even her own silver coat and gold mane looked completely and perfectly uniform unless she ran her hooves through them. And even then, they went back to seemingly perfect without much effort on her part. It was off-putting to look at, almost creepy.
“This is a gift,” she told herself as she sighed. “Even if I don’t like it, even if it’s just to learn a lesson, I’m being given an opportunity to learn something by God. Millions of other people can only dream of the chance, and yet I’m the one who’s here. I should be thankful and appreciative of the opportunity.”
“It’s quite a beautiful sight, isn’t it?” Celestia commented as they rode along. “As you might guess, I mostly view the land from up above, although it is quite nice to be able to see it from the ground.”
“Yes, it looks pretty,” Asher told her politely before turning around away from the window. “Um, how long will it be before we get there?”
“Likely just over two hours,” the princess answered, causing the filly to frown.
“Is there a restroom on this train?”
“I believe so. There should be one at the back of this cart.”
“Okay, thank you,” she replied, Celestia watching her walk off to the back of the long cart before stopping in front of the two doors that lead to each bathroom and staring at them for a long moment, which made the mare get up to follow her.
“I haven’t seen anypony go in there. What are you doing still standing here?”
“I don’t even know which one- I can’t read whatever language this is written in.”
“The one on the left is the mare’s restroom, and the one on the right is the stallion’s restroom,” Celestia explained, intentionally not telling Asher which one she should use. She was interested in seeing what choice she should make, and watched the filly grumble to herself and stomp her hoof.
“Is there a single person restroom for me to use?” she asked, sounding annoyed.
“I do not believe so,” the princess answered. “Although as I said, I don’t believe anypony is in there.”
Asher grumbled to herself again and frowned, the mare noticing her deliberation as the filly said, “I don’t… I can't go in the men’s restroom can I, because I look like this… ugh, I hate this.” She had her face in a deep scowl, and was almost grinding her teeth.
“You told me you are an adult, so that wouldn’t be my choice to make,” Celestia responded. Asher’s cheeks went red at that and she scowled harder as she looked at the ground.
“Can you… please make sure no one is in there?” she asked a bit quieter, having to force the words out.
“Which room would that be?” the mare asked, earning a frustrated huff in response.
“That one!” the filly practically yelled, using a hoof to point to the left. “I can’t use the other one because… ugh! I can’t stand this!”
The princess did as she was asked, just a little bit surprised at the tone she was spoken to with before remembering the filly was an other worlder, and came back out a few seconds later.
“The room is completely empty,” she told her.
“And will you make sure no one goes in there for me please?”
“I will make absolutely certain, I assure you.”
With that, Asher quickly hurried in, leaving Celestia standing alone in the empty car, staring at the door on the opposite end. She didn’t expect anypony to wander in, and tilted her head as she tried to analyze what happened.
“An interesting way of going about things,” she thought to herself. “He says he’s a colt but because he looks like a filly he uses the mare’s restroom, even despite his discomfort, even when expressly told it was his decision to make. Although it makes sense, given his current form. It would likely appear strange if he used the stallion’s room, and he probably figured so as well.”
 It was less than two minutes later when Asher appeared again, glancing up to Celestia briefly before blushing embarrassedly and staring back at the ground, her hooves dripping wet from the sink. The princess opened her mouth to speak, but Asher interrupted her before she could.
“I don’t want to talk about it at all,” she said, unable to hide how shy and embarrassed she felt as she unconsciously pressed her ears flat against her head. “I’m a man. I’m only using the women’s restroom for practical purposes.”
“I was just going to ask if you wanted me to order food for lunch. It’s past noon.”
The filly sighed at that, saying, “No, I’m fine. We just ate a few hours ago… I just want to sit back down and... look at the landscape passing by.”
“That’s understandable, we can do that. Let’s head back to our cart.”