Cassie's eyes widened as the huge orcas approached her, rolling over like puppies and nuzzling her gently.
"These are the orcas that I swim with every morning!" she gasped, looking over at Luna, who was visibly nervous.
"Mom," Cassie said, "it's okay; these guys know me. I sneak out of the palace every morning at sunrise and come down here to swim, and they all join me. These are my orcas. They all have names." Cassie's eyes grew large with excitement. She sent a signal from her horn, calling over the largest female in the group, who approached Cassie excitedly, taking a breath through her blowhole and expelling any excess water with a loud puff as she surfaced between Cassie and Luna.
"Polaris!" Cassie squealed, wrapping her hooves around the massive orca, who squeaked happily and nuzzled Cassie's side. "Hello, pretty girl." She reached out to rub under the orca's huge flipper. Luna made a beeline for a nearby outcropping of rocks, climbing out of the water as quickly as she could.
"Cassiopeia, art thou crazy?" Luna called. "These are orcas! They are not puppies; they are the ocean's most feared apex predators! What art thou doing? We command thee to come out of the water this instant!" Cassie giggled at Luna's sudden use of the "royal we" and the traditional Royal Canterlot Voice.
"Mom, it's okay, these guys are my friends," Cassie reassured Luna. "As long as I am in the water with them, they will not hurt you; besides, there has never been a documented case of a wild orca attacking a pony. These guys are so intelligent, and we understand each other; I have bonded with all of them, so there's mutual respect between us. Come over here, and I promise you will change your mind about these orcas." Luna slipped into the water warily, recoiling a bit as Polaris rolled over on her side to look at her.
"Polaris just had a baby a few days ago," Cassie said, smiling as she rubbed the orca's back. "Where's your little one, mama?" she cooed, continuing to rub Polaris down. "I don't see her. Oh!" Cassie pointed to an incredibly small baby orca, who surfaced next to Luna, startling the dark blue alicorn.
"That's Elara," Cassie said, giggling. "She's Polaris' youngest baby, and she's only about three days old. See the little white marking right under her dorsal fin? It looks like a clover. That'll help you recognize her." Luna tentatively reached out to stroke the young orca's back, smiled at the soft smoothness of Elara's skin, and received a cheeky splash from Elara in return. She laughed, clearly beginning to relax in the presence of the orcas.
"Who are these two?" Luna asked, looking over at two other female orcas, who were swimming up to greet Cassie.
"This one is Domino," Cassie said. "See these little black spots under her chin? The other one is Aurora, and she's Polaris' middle daughter. She is quite the little troublemaker. She loves to mess with me. Polaris' eldest daughter is named Hoku, and she has a little black star under her chin. All of these guys love to get rubdowns. I always try to give individual attention to each one of them. Elara, can you lift your flipper up for me, you little cutie?" Cassie smiled as Elara lifted her pectoral fin so that Cassie could rub around it and underneath it. The orca made a low purring sound as Cassie reached the sweet spot under her flipper.
"Ohhh, I know. That feels sooo good, doesn't it? What a good girl," Cassie cooed to the baby orca. "Mom, how would you feel about swimming with them?" Luna's eyes widened, but she nodded.
"I may never have this opportunity again," she said firmly. "Let's do it!"