By the time Precipice snapped out of her thoughtful haze, the unicorn was joined only by one of the hospital staff, whom was cleaning down the operating room.
“Ah, pardon me,” Precipice excused gently, trotting out of the room.
The nurse gave her a confused look, but continued about their task.
Precipice trotted down the hall and to her room in the barracks, shaking herself off. Her mind raced, and she briefly felt her heart pounding in her ears. The terran guard was large enough to have their own quarters, separate from the solar guard. She walked past the first room of beds and pushed the door to the second open, walking into her room. Rooms were divided into four quadrants with two beds each; the sparse additional furniture (a desk and a single working chair) was shared by each quadrant.
Precipice carefully magicked a thick notebook out from under her bed and wrote down her notes on what she had felt today. She wasn’t super familiar with writing about such personal matters, but a few of her colleagues had recommended it as a way to organize her thoughts.
Concluding her more therapeutic writing, she turned to the back side of the book and reread her resignation.
“Dear Princess,
It is with the winter months approaching and the blessing of peacetime that I formally extend this letter of resignation for your appraisal. I wish to resign for the following reasons:
I hold a great respect for the work you have done, and believe that my talents lie in a similar field. Know that this letter finds you with the highest regard possible.
Signed, Precipice Spire”
Precipice chewed on her pencil irately. Technically, only two reasons needed to be provided, but her first reason wasn’t very good. It was overly personal, and mental health still wasn’t really understood yet, aside from very obvious things like shellshock or madness. Truthfully, her mental state wasn’t declining at all: she was developing feelings for the pony she was supposed to be guarding, which was just about the biggest no-no a guard could commit.
CRUNCH!
Precipice jumped a bit as her pencil splintered beneath her teeth. She pulled the cracked implement from her mouth and grunted softly in annoyance. Even better, her focus was broken as she heard shouting coming from outside her room.
Carefully, she poked her head outside.
Stoneheart, Aerated Turf, and May Showers were all lined up in front of a particularly well-kitted stallion: The housing inspector.
“And just what exactly were you three relaxing from, hm?” The stallion asked sternly, “A bit of a rigorous nap?”
The group fumbled out some kind of hesitant response.
Precipice blinked. Had they really gotten caught, well… “Trying?” And more importantly, the three of them? That would be one hell of a story… If they lived to tell the tale. Precipice ducked behind the door and casted her invisibility spell. Once she was confident she could not be seen, she resumed her head-poking from the door.
When she re-emerged, the stallion was already leading the three ‘crooks’ out of the barracks. “You three are damn lucky you report to a different princess; if I were in charge, I’dve…” The housing manager’s voice dulled to an unintelligible murmur as the door shut behind him.
Precipice opted to follow after them. She couldn’t really protect them, but she’d at least be a witness if something went awry.
Gustopha perked up at the knock at her bedroom door, walking over to answer it. She was surprised to see the housing manager and three of her most trusted guards looking awfully guilty behind him.
“What’s wrong?” Gustopha asked, stepping out into the hallway.
“I found these three ‘relaxing’ after taking some leisure time out for themselves!” The housing manager snarled.
Gustopha looked at him puzzledly. “...Why would they need relaxation after leisure time?” She asked.
The housing manager hesitated a bit.
“He caught us trying,” Aerated admitted softly.
“Oh, that’s fine,” Gustopha replied as she perked up, “They asked me about it while we were traveling.”
The housing manager cocked a brow. “All three of them?” He asked.
May offered what could only be described as a hesitant smile.
Gustopha blinked once or twice. She wasn’t aware May was involved with trying. In what limited research she had done into copulation, it seemed to be a two-pony activity. “...Ah, I see,” She replied, “Leave them with me, I will ensure they’re dealt with appropriately.”
The guards flinched at the sudden sternness in the Princess’ tone, but the housing manager simply nodded. “Of course. They’re all yours, Princess,” He remarked, turning and leaving.
Stoneheart, Aerated, and May all looked up at the Princess expectantly as the housing manager turned the corner.
Gustopha gazed quietly at them for a long moment, before quietly remarking, “Come inside.” She opened the door to her room and walked in.
The three guards followed her inside, and she closed the door.
“Whatever you do, Princess, punish me the most severely,” Stoneheart requested, “It was I who facilitated the event.”
Gustopha nodded a bit. “Very well,” She replied, “Your punishment will be explaining how exactly you got into this mess,” She explained, “I’d rather not punish you at all, but I am wondering how May got involved, so we'll call this a compromise.”
The three guards shared looks. “Princess, you aren’t suggesting I explain to you the fact we fornicated in the barracks, are you?” Stoneheart asked.
Gustopha simply nodded. “That’s exactly what I’m suggesting,” She hummed.
Stoneheart felt his heart skip a beat. This was not how he expected to be spending his afternoon. Gustopha hadn’t anticipated spending her afternoon like this, either, but she’d rather “punish” the guards herself rather than letting some bullheaded stallion exact the law’s way on them. Gustopha just got herself good and comfy as she awaited the explanation.
“...It was near the end when I came in,” May admitted, “I was pretty tired after not getting enough sleep and kind of grumpy, so… I threatened to report them when I walked in on them mid-’planting’.”
“I was already done by that point, but Stoneheart still had a bit left in him, so… We offered May a turn, to help her mood and keep her quiet,” Aerated continued.
“It’s… Perhaps a good thing you found out now, rather than later,” Stoneheart admitted, “I did not father only a single foal today.”
Gustopha’s eyes widened a bit. “You impregnated both of them?” She asked.
Stoneheart grimaced slightly at her tone, but nodded. “That’s… Correct, Princess,” He admitted.
Gustopha blinked once or twice. Luckily for her guards, she looked at this from a purely academic perspective: She now would have two verdant-fathered foals to study, rather than just one. “Well, my conditions apply to both foals, then,” Gustopha expressed, “I will be in charge of ensuring they’re healthy, as I’m not entirely certain what sort of effect being a verdant might have on a foal.”
“Of course, Princess,” May replied, “You’re the best doctor any of us know, I think.”
Gustopha chuckled softly. “You don’t have to compliment me, you’re not in any further trouble,” She promised.
“I mean it, Princess! Look at how effective you’ve been in verdant production! You’ll be a legend in medical books,” May reasoned, “Well, assuming medical textbooks have legends.”
Gustopha smiled a bit. “Well, if you say so,” She replied softly, “You’re free to go, now. If he asks, you were punished thoroughly,” She hummed.
The guards nodded and slowly filed out of the princess’ room, leaving her to her own devices.
More time passed, including a meeting with the court. The success of the verdant trials meant that Gustopha was now permitted to begin civilian testing, which Gustopha was quite nervous about. With the royal guards, she could keep them for as long as she wanted, and watch over them even after they’d recovered. With civilians, however, she’d have to let them go eventually. That meant standardizing on not just the procedure, but the recovery time as well. Winter’s approach only seemed to hasten as she planned things.
With the princess occupied by her own research, the terran guard found themselves operating with more and more autonomy; the Blightsbane verdants proved a wondrous success against the blight, and with dozens of them on standby, they appeared far and wide in their familiar bronze armor, cleansing the land and driving back the disease in all the places it was reported. It seemed, at least for the time, that things were on the up-and-up for Equestria.
As the days went on, Gustopha received a surprising amount of applications from ponies all across Equestria; then again, the subjects would be compensated for their time. A fair amount of applications had to be thrown out immediately; parents, volunteering their children for science. Gustopha was not comfortable with working with children. Beyond her own moral compass, their smaller size ensured more could go wrong, and their magic wasn’t as properly developed.
Her first test of a non-Blightsbane plant was soon upon her. Her subject was sedated, a scion of her chosen hay-style plant implanted, magic altered, and rest administered. It all went smoothly, of course; Gustopha had done this procedure around fifty times before daring to test anything on a civilian, but it still got to her nerves. At the very least, the first step was always the hardest. They woke up, spent some time recovering, and were eventually joined by another civilian; this one having received berries of some kind.
Berries were particularly easy to graft to ponies, Gustopha noticed; the slender vines took well in flesh. That, admittedly, had caught her off-guard. Gustopha had started noting what took well to pony bodies and magic, and what didn’t. An odd subject for her to write about, but one she still treated with the utmost respect. Her notes would, at the very least, serve as a good guide should she ever decide to train another pony in her ways. Admittedly, doing the surgeries repeatedly was a bit draining, even given adequate time to rest her mind and magic. However, the court demanded she prepare Equestria for winter, and thus she progressed with her trials.
Five civilians, then ten, then fifty. The tedium of being an immortal had already begun to set into the alicorn, and she hadn’t even been so for a year yet. Then, however, something interesting happened, as she was interrupted during yet another foray into the biology of plants. Her door was knocked on. She couldn’t remember the last time she was disturbed in her room, really; the month or two of tedium had starved her memory.
“May we talk for a moment, Princess?” Asked Precipice Spire, noticeably lacking her armor.
“Of course, come in,” Gustopha replied, “Is something the matter?” She asked.
Precipice walked inside and offered a very neatly folded note to the princess.
Gustopha took it and read it over briefly.
“...You wish to resign?” Gustopha asked, a bit surprised by how suddenly it seemed to come. Precipice had seemed very intent on sticking around her as of recent, and now the guard seemingly wanted nothing to do with her.
Precipice nodded hesitantly. “I have… Been planning this since I was back in the solar guard,” She admitted, “As outlined in the letter, I believe my passions and talents lie elsewhere.”
Gustopha nodded gently. “Well, it’s very sudden, but I have no critical reason to keep you at the moment,” She expressed, “I can only wish you the best of luck in your studies.”
Precipice gave an awkward smile. It looked as though it was masking something else, though what exactly it was was beyond Gustopha’s judgment.
Gustopha pulled her into a hug. “I won’t forget you, you know. You were the first unicorn under my command, after all,” She expressed.
Precipice felt as though she were about to melt in the warm, tender embrace of the earth princess. “It has been an honor to serve under you, Princess,” Precipice replied softly, “So see you come so far in such a short amount of time… You’re an inspiration.”
Gustopha held the guard at legs’ length and smiled gently. “You’ll have to come and see me when you’ve finished your studies,” She expressed, “I’d love to see what sort of practice you’ll go into; and if nothing else, the infirmary staff wouldn’t mind a bit of help,” Gustopha chuckled.
Precipice smiled a little, soaking in the Princess’ warmth for as long as social comfort would allow. “I will, Princess,” She promised, “I will make you proud.”
After a few more moments, Precipice stapped away from the princess. “I should be going, now, Princess. Technically, I’m not a guard, now…” She admitted.
Gustopha nodded. “Well, you’re always welcome back here,” She promised gently.
Precipice nodded. “Thank you,” She replied, bowing her head respectfully before leaving.
Gustopha pondered the unicorn’s sudden departure for a long moment, but had decided against looking too far into it. Precipice was not her guard anymore, and thus, Gustopha was not in order to demand answers from her.
Precipice heaved gently as she left the castle, walking to the seedier side of town and slipping into a hotel room for the night. She had plenty of money, given that she had saved almost all of hers from her time in the guard.
Once settled in, Precipice unpinned her soft lavender mane and grabbed a large razor. Taking a deep breath, she twisted her mane into a tight ponytail with her magic, and slashed through it with the razor, letting the freshly-cut hair fall to the ground. She had only spared some of her bangs, which she tied into a braid. She then similarly cropped her tail, and took a deep breath as she went to get some sleep.
Precipice woke up early in the morning and left the room with her cut hair still in it. Precipice no longer cared. She wouldn’t be staying in the capital town for much longer anyways. She approached the train station with grim determination on her face.
“Can I help you, ma’am?” The ticket attendant asked.
“A one-way ticket out to Old Fort Delta,” Precipice requested.
The attendant nodded. “Name for the ticket?” They asked.
“Spire,” Precipice replied dully.
The attendant banged out some letters on a typewriter, and passed the ticket to the unicorn. “The train should be here in the next ten minutes,” They explained, “Safe travels!”
Precipice gave a neutral smile as her horn ignited to take out her ticket. “Thank you,” She replied.
Precipice took a seat near the loading bay and sighed softly. She felt a bit shaky, really, but she knew that she had to do this. She needed to make the princess proud, after all, even if that meant giving everything else up.
Some more time passed, and Gustopha noted the day on her calendar. Walking down to towards the barracks, she prepared herself. It had been about three months since Stoneheart and Aerated (and May) had first “tried”, and now Gustopha set herself to the task of ensuring all was going well.
“Hello, both of you,” Gustopha greeted gently.
Aerated and May both offered awkward smiles. “Hello, Princess,” They replied, roughly in unison.
“Today is just going to be a light check up to ensure your bodies are handling the pregnancies well,” Gustopha explained gently, “Do either of you have a preference as to who I examine first?”
The mares shook their heads.
“I’ll start with Aerated, then,” Gustopha replied, settling the mare on her bed, “You’ll feel a light tingle from the dowsing spell, but it shouldn’t hurt; please, let me know if anything feels uncomfortable.”
Aerated nodded. “Yes Princess,” She replied softly.
Gustopha closed her eyes and leaned down. Her extensive practice in surgery meant she had much more skill working about the pony body. She could now probe for most diseases without incising anywhere at all, and even small operations like realignments or basic anti-disease action were feasible for her to perform without any kind of invasive action. Of course, none of that accrued knowledge would matter much today; she was just taking a look around to make sure everything was okay.
Aerated shivered a bit as the tingle of magic slowly moved around inside of her. It felt a little bit like something was crawling around inside of her, but the pegasus forced those thoughts back. This was for the baby, after all.
Gustopha smiled gently as she pulled away. “All done,” She hummed gently.
Aerated nodded a little. “And?” She asked awkwardly.
“Everything seems alright; you might want to consider eating a bit more, though; especially fresh fruit from the courtyard,” Gustopha expressed, “You’re getting a bit lean, despite what your physique says.”
Aerated blushed very slightly. She, like many pegasi, was fairly finely-built as ponies went, and a baby bump was already making itself noticeable in her stomach. “Err… Yes, of course, Princess,” She replied awkwardly, fumbling her way off the bed.
May was next, settling herself before the princess and allowing the alicorn to inspect her. She didn’t bear her pregnancy as much as Aerated did, but a noticeable lump was starting to form in her underbelly. May didn’t react much to the princess’ dowsing spell at all; it wasn’t much of a source of discomfort for the verdant.
“Your body is handling the pregnancy well,” Gustopha said gently.
“Oh, good,” May replied gently, rolling over to stand up, “Do I need to do anything?”
“My fresh fruit recommendation applies,” Gustopha said, “Never hurts.”
May nodded a bit, looking over Gustopha for a moment, noting the start of bags under the alicorn’s eyes.
“...If I may, Princess, you look tired,” May expressed, “When was the last time you took a day for yourself?” She asked.
Gustopha bit her tongue. “I believe it was when we went and visited the Groves,” She admitted.
Aerated blinked. “Princess, that was months ago,” She expressed, “You haven’t given yourself a break since?”
Gustopha sighed. “Winter’s almost upon us,” She admitted, “And the court has requested I produce five hundred verdants.”
“What!?” Aerated exclaimed, “Five hundred!?”
Gustopha nodded. “As of my current count, I’ve a hundred and twenty six, not counting your foals. The court seems convinced that verdants should have a large enough population to stand as their own tribe.”
May hesitated. “But if you only do one a day…” She trailed off.
“I’ve over a year of solid work left before me, yes,” Gustopha admitted, “Today is, in essence, one of my days for myself. Ensuring the health of your foals, as the children of verdants, was enough of an excuse that I could put aside a few days.”
“You’re really putting everything on the line, Princess. Aren’t you worried your quality might start to suffer if you overwork yourself?” Aerated asked.
“I retain my one surgery a day pace to avoid such issues,” Gustopha explained, “I could probably do two a day if I pushed, but I’d rather not wear myself thin when I’m messing around with the bodies and magic of civilians.”
Aerated nodded a bit. “If you say so, Princess,” She replied softly, biting her tongue, “Just make sure to step back if you need a breath. I wouldn’t blame you.”
“Thank you, Aerated,” She replied gently, before shaking herself off, “Now, I should be going… I’d like a couple more varieties of graftable plants before I get too much further into the trials,” She said.
Aerated nodded a little. “Take care of yourself, Princess,” She replied gently.
“Take care,” Echoed May.
Gustopha nodded and left the room, heading back to her own as she took a deep breath of the castle air. Had she been working herself too hard? Even if she had, what was there to do? The court was clear of their expectation, and Gustopha could only work so fast.
When she returned to her room, she dropped to her haunches before her desk and returned to pouring over her assorted manuals and textbooks. Acres of knowledge, that the princess expected herself to absorb in a more or less timely manner. She’d a fair few graftables assembled already, covering most of the staples: Hay, berries, citrus, beans. All crucial cornerstones of a balanced pony diet. But Gustopha wanted a few more assorted items to give the verdant population more starting diversity.
It was sometime later when Celestia entered the room, coming in and approaching the fervently studying earth princess.
“Do you have a moment, Gustopha?” Celestia asked gently.
Gustopha nodded and looked up from her studying materials. “What is it?” She asked, voice gentle despite the blunt wording.
Celestia walked further in and sat down next to Gustopha, draping her in a wing. “Some of the terran guard have expressed concerns that you’re overworking yourself,” Celestia explained.
Gustopha froze for a brief second, but leaned into Celestia’s embrace. “They have?” She asked, some intrigue piquing in her voice.
Celestia nodded. “I have, as well… The court and I are not pushing you too hard, are we?” She asked.
Gustopha shook her head. “No, no,” She promised, “I am strong.”
Celestia bit her lip. “Being strong is one thing, Gustopha. Being healthy is another,” She expressed, “When was the last time you spent some time outside? Took a walk, greeted some townsponies…?”
“I interact with civilians every day, now,” Gustopha remarked.
Celestia let out a small, frustrated chuckle. “That’s not what I meant,” She replied, attempting to keep her tone jovial, “Even though I have royal duties I attend to each day, my schedule varies. I might have to sort an urgent issue, manage military matters, handle some proposals for large-scale constructions, or so on,” She explained, “So although it is all work, it rarely feels routine.”
Gustopha hesitated. “I have done nothing but create verdants for the past three and some odd months,” She admitted, “With the occasional plant manipulation in addition to that.”
Celestia sighed gently. “That is the sort of tedium I am referring to. Even though it is productive, and necessary, you are still grinding your hooves to the bone doing the same thing, over and over again,” She expressed.
“What else do I do, Celestia?” Gustopha asked, her voice raising slightly, “We are already slipping into winter’s chill, and I’ve barely a quarter of the populace created.”
Celestia sighed a bit. “That’s, in part, my fault,” She expressed, “If I hadn’t made that first stupid deciding vote…”
Gustopha leaned a bit more on Celestia’s shoulder and took a deep breath. “You are starting to sound like you did during our first fight,” Gustopha chided.
Celestia tensed. “...I see,” She replied softly, “Thank you.”
“I don’t think I was ready for all this,” Gustopha admitted, allowing some weakness to show, “Not for so much of it.”
Celestia looked at her. “Whatever do you mean? You’ve been doing an amazing job,” She expressed, “Better than I could have done.”
“I don’t mean that kind of ready,” Gustopha replied, looking up at Celestia, “I know it is hard to remember, given the accelerated aging, but it’s only my eleventh birthday in a month, Celestia.”
Celestia froze. “Eleventh…?” She murmured.
“I was born the winter the war broke out,” Gustopha explained, “And died just short of the first anniversary of its end.”
Celestia’s eyes began to water. She hadn’t actually given much thought to Gustopha before the forced aging. “...I can’t believe myself,” Celestia muttered.
Gustopha bit her lip. “It’s not your fault, sister,” She reasoned, “None of the guard know of my true age, either. It’s not something I ever felt was relevant.”
“Once again, I am reminded how I robbed you of your foalhood,” Celestia heaved, her hoof now pressing hard into the floor, “What else did I take from you?”
Gustopha shook her head. “It was never you, Celestia,” She said firmly, “It was the blight, the doctor, and the world they effected on that took those things.”
Gustopha took Celestia’s muzzle in her hooves and stared deep into her eyes. “I want you to know that I don’t blame you for any of this. I have had every opportunity to back out. If I really wanted to, I could jump off that balcony one day and fly until Equestria just becomes a distant memory.”
Celestia’s eyes continued to leak tears as she returned Gustopha’s gaze. “Gustopha, you…” Celestia sniffled, “Why do you put yourself through all of this?”
“It’s my purpose, Celestia,” Gustopha expressed, “I wasn’t meant to be happy. I have a job, and I was prepared for it, and it alone,” She reasoned, tone even.
Celestia shook her head and took Gustopha’s hooves in her own. “Gustopha, don’t you realize how awful that sounds?” Celestia asked, “You deserve happiness. Everypony does. If work your yourself until you’re miserable to make one pony’s life better, the amount of ponies suffering in the world stays the same.”
Gustopha took a deep breath. “But I’m helping more than one pony, Celestia. I’ve seen the news of towns healed by the Blightsbane,” Gustopha forced a smile, “It’s late, but… This is my trial.”
Celestia hesitated. “Your trial…?” She asked.
Gustopha nodded. “Alicornhood is earned, Celestia, and this is how I earn mine, even if it’s late,” She expressed.
Celestia pulled Gustopha into a tight hug, and Gustopha didn’t fight it.
“I’m proud of you, Gustopha. I’m so, so proud,” Celestia expressed, tears streaming down her cheeks, “No matter what anypony says, keep that thought in your heart. I, and many others, are very proud of you,” She insisted.
Gustopha took a deep breath and nestled herself into Celestia’s embrace. “Thank you, Celestia,” She replied gently, “I’ll try and keep that in mind.”
Celestia smiled a bit as an idea popped into her head. “How about you and I go eat somewhere in the castle town for dinner?” She asked, “I’ve heard the selection is quite good, what with all the blight being cleared away.”
Gustopha gave a small nod. “That sounds nice,” She replied gently.
After a bit of preparation straightening out her somewhat disheveled mane, Gustopha would follow Celestia outside into the castle town. It had grown somewhat significantly in the past few months, now that Equestria was finally getting back on its hooves. The population now sported a limited verdant presence; the first of Gustopha’s civilian subjects, in addition to a few royal guards who were out on patrols.
A few families with newly verdant-ized family members would approach the Princess, expressing gratitude over the care taken to return their family members happy and healthy. It made Gustopha happy to know she’d been doing an adequate job of being a benevolent doctor.
Celestia smiled at Gustopha. “Sounds like the public can see that you know what you’re doing,” Celestia remarked.
Gustopha smiled a little. “It’s nice to see I don’t have a mad scientist’s reputation,” She expressed.
Celestia nodded. “Diligence pays in respect,” She hummed.
As the two walked into a decently nice restaurant, a few patrons moved aside for them. After being led to a table, they each took a seat and looked at the menu.
Gustopha started chuckling to herself, and Celestia looked up at her.
“Is something wrong?” Celestia asked, unable to resist a small smile.
“I’ve been studying so much that each time I get to the end of the sentence describing an item I’m expecting another paragraph about it,” Gustopha remarked.
Celestia laughed a bit and shook her head. “And this is why you need to get out of the castle more often,” She remarked.
Gustopha sighed a bit. “I suppose you’re right,” She conceded.
“At least go out onto your balcony and get some fresh air now and then,” Celestia requested.
Gustopha nodded a little. “I’ll try,” She replied gently.
As the waiter came to the table and took their orders, Celestia shook some tension out of her neck and took a deep breath. “I will say, it’s been too long since I let myself enjoy a change in scenery,” She admitted, “Usually, I still have business to attend to when I’m out.”
Gustopha nodded and smiled a bit. “I’m glad you suggested this,” She admitted, “It’s nice to think about unimportant things for once.”
Celestia nodded a bit. “I do hope you’ll take some time to relax after we’re done here,” She expressed.
Gustopha hesitated. “I’ll think about it,” She replied softly, “I’ve still three hundred and seventy four verdants to make for the court to be satisfied,” She sighed.
Celestia bit her lip, but nodded. “Of… Of course,” She replied with a soft sigh, some guilt panging in her tone. Gustopha had most certainly been consumed by her work, but that was her fault, wasn’t it? Celestia couldn’t help but feel responsible, at least.
“...I’d like to organize something special for your birthday,” Celestia eventually said, trying to get the conversation off of work, “When is it?”
Gustopha blinked. “It’s the eleventh of November,” She replied, “I don’t need fanfare for getting older, though, really…”
Celestia gasped a bit. That was in a matter of a week or two. She didn’t consider early November “winter”, but then again, Old Fort Delta was stationed fairly far northward. “Well… Would you like something special for your birthday? I could ask the castle cooks to make something nice.”
Gustopha thought for a long moment. “I don’t think I’d like any kind of large celebration,” Gustopha expressed, “Perhaps a chocolate cake, to be shared among myself, you, and a few of the guards who I’m close to.”
Celestia smiled a bit. She’d had a hunch Gustopha liked chocolate for a while now, but this just confirmed it. It was nice to see that there was something besides work rattling around in the young alicorn’s head. “That sounds very nice, Gustopha,” She replied gently.
The table fell quiet as their food arrived; Gustopha had gotten pasta. Something a bit heavier to keep her energy up.
Celestia herself had gotten a chef’s salad; she wasn’t particularly worried about her figure, really, she just liked a good salad.
Gustopha thought to herself as she ate. She really did desire some break from work; of course, living in the castle, her work was always around her. She considered visiting the Groves again, but didn’t wish to overstay her welcome.
Once they were done, the two returned to the castle.
Gustopha found herself falling back into routine again. Surgery and studying, two words she would be intimately familiar with by the time her first year and a half of service was complete. Of course, respite would come, particularly in the form of Celestia’s plans for Gustopha’s birthday.