"My apologies, Lady Rarity and Miss Twilight. That was most unbecoming." The prince finally says.
"I...well. Yes. But it is quite alright. I, too, can get alittle overexcited." You finally say.
"Lady Rarity, you are too kind." He smiles.
"Shall we go inside?" You return his smile.
"With Miss Sparkle's permission?" He looks over at the purple unicorn.
"Oh! Yes. Sorry." Twilight finally says after a moment.
You internally cheer. A prince from a foreign land! He might not look very good, but you could surely sell him some outfits? Maybe an entire wardrobe! Oh the chance to be the talk of an entirely different land! Beaming with possibility, you reach out with your magic and lift the trunk of your belongings.
You hear a tiny whine come from the prince and turn. The manservant, Fenris, has his claw over one of the grey boxes on his right thigh. Farle's left hand grips a strange device attached to his belt.
"Is something the matter, prince?" You ask carefully.
"You... have... magic?" His voice is uncertain and streaked with fear.
"...Yes."
"I...was once a...guest of a magic user, it was not an experience I'd wish to repeat."
"Have I done something to offend you, Prince? If so, I do apologise. These first encounters are very difficult. I promise you, you have nothing to fear here. We're friendly! We'd never use our magic to harm you."
Prince Farle and his manservant eye each other for a moment, as if silently conversing. Finally, the prince nods very slightly. The manservant moves his hand away from the grey box. The smile on Farle's face returns, but lacks the warmth from before.
"I must offer another apology, Lady Rarity, for old wounds that haven't fully healed." He bows his head slightly. "Lets not ruin our first meeting with such trivial things."
Whatever had caused that little scene was clearly not trivial. The prince's smile flickers. The manservant looks concerned and uneasy. Suddenly, the idea that these two creatures might be violent flashes across your mind. What have I brought to Twilight's? A new friend or a new foe?
Twilight finally interrupts: "So where are you gentlecolts from?"
Farle's smile fades to nothing. The manservant notices this and quickly speaks.
"We're from a planet called 'Earth'."
"Earth? What is it like?" Twilight replies.
"Blue skies. Blue oceans. Towns, cities and skyscrapers. Bout 7 billion humans, far as I know." Farle shoots him a look.
"7 BILLION?" Twilight exclaims.
"Its a big planet." Fenris shrugs, "Humans have been around awhile."
"Our homeworld," Farle interjects, "Is in the past. Let us look to the brighter future. You said you have books, Miss Sparkle?"
"...Yes. Come in."
As the two humans enter the library, you can't shake the feeling of utter wrongness. Why did the prince fear magic? Why the look when his manservant started talking about their home? What are these creatures hiding?
So many books. SO MANY BOOKS! Shelves and shelves of every delicious flavor of paper bound knowledge. Its a good thing you're wearing your omnisuit or these horses would be enjoying the glorious sight of your intellectual hard-on.
"A sizable library, Miss Sparkle, I am most impressed."
"Thank you, Prince Farle." She looks bashful.
"Please, call me Farle. No need for titles here."
"Ok, Farle." She smiles, "May I ask why you reacted to badly to magic? Only I'm reading 'History Of Magick Obscura' and wondered if your kind have had dealings with it before?"
You frown. Do you really want to scar this little library horse with that particular story? Pretty sure terrifying month long torture tales are somewhere high on the list of 'Things princes don't talk about'. You don't want to think about it either, matter of fact. What's a good way to spin this? Ah!
"In another universe, we met a creature similar to your kind. It had magic and was...rather unpleasant. It found me most entertaining and strived to..."
Oh spectactular work! Look at the expression on the purple one's face: fear! Its catching on! Switch the bloody tone you ass!
"...Make our visit most uncomfortable. But such is the nature of multiverse travel." You shrug.
"What a brute!" The lady Rarity speaks up, "To be impolite to a guest! Its so uncivilised!"
"Quite. There are things out there that are most uncivilised. Unlike your horsekind, Lady Rarity."
The temperature in the room noticably dropped several degrees and the 'Lady' looks at you angrily. Jesus christ, who let the psychopath out of the bag?
"Ponykind, PRINCE. Ponykind." She practically spits at you.
Nota Bene: Don't call these ponies horses unless you want 'em pissed off.
"Our homeworld had equines known as horses. We merely made an incorrect inference. You have my apologies if it causes you offense, for I did not intend any." That seemed to placate her.
"So your world has equines?" Twilight interrupted, "Could they speak too? What about magic? Or wings?"
"Our hors...equines had none of the above. They were simple beasts that were used as labour animals or for races. Some people kept them as companions."
Of course, some people used to eat them too. And make glue out of 'em. But that's not really appropriate conversations to have with an equine species who clearly don't get out much. You notice that everyone except you is now seated on the floor, You've been too busy staring at the books to notice, so you sit with them.
"What races? You mean like a 'cross the finish line first' race?" Rarity asks.
"Precisely, Lady Rarity, only a small human rides atop to direct it. Horses from our world are not intelligent." This information brings a look of disgust to the lady's face. She clams up.
"So, Miss Sparkle," You redirect your attention, "What can you tell me about your world?"
The purple pony's horn starts to glow and a pair of reading glasses appear as if by magic on its snout. Then she starts to speak in full-on lecture mode. This creature is FILLED WITH DELICIOUS KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THIS WORLD! ITS A PONY VERSION OF A JAM FILLED DONUT! OH LET'S JUST SUCK OUT ITS BRAIN AND CONSUME IT!. Steady on! We can't eat brains. MAYBE IF WE HAD A TRAWL WE COULD... Shut the fuck up and listen, dipshit.
Eventually the day turns to night. All that you've heard blurs into a singularity of insight that blazes brightly in your mind. The name of the land, the varying races of ponies, some magical theory and bits of backstory. Bit useless without a horn, but whatever. Twilight Sparkle finishes with the royal family. Its then you notice the other white pony has left and Fenris is relaxed against a bookshelf, softly snoring to himself.
"Your Princess Celestia can raise the sun?" You finally manage to say in awe, "You have a God for a ruler?"
"Princess Celestia isn't a God!"
"Where I come from: If a being can manipulate a stellar body like your princess can, it gets called a God!"
"She isn't a God!" She finally giggles. Most societies believe that their leaders can fuck with the sun, this one actually can!
"You are probably right. What do I know?" Another Nota bene: Do not piss off this 'princess' unless you want a fusion enema.
"Oh is it really that late? I should get some sleep. If you like, you can stay here!"
"That is very kind of you, although it would appear Fenris has already embraced the idea." You gesture at him and she lets out alittle sigh.
"I didn't think I was that boring." She huffs
"Please forgive him. He's had a long day. He's not one for the practical side of life. Give him some art or some high society stuff and he'll cream his pants."
Twilight gives you a shocked look. Ah fuck, that was a poor choice of words!
"You're not really a prince, are you?" She finally says.
"....No. Not really. Sorry."
Wait, what the fuck are you doing? She might be filled with delicious knowledge, but you just told her you lied! IDIOT! Still, it'll be nice to drop this princely persona, talking like a dick was getting old.
"Then why did you tell Rarity that you were?" She doesn't seem that angry at all. Huh.
"Most first encounters tend to end badly. Pretending to be royality tends to lend an air of respectability, of style. It also means people try and impress you first, stab you second rather than the other way around. It certainly seemed to work on the Lady Rarity." And usually, people are too stupid to see through it. Atleast until you're a world away.
"I suppose that makes sense. Rarity will be disappointed, but I think she'll understand your reasoning. May I ask what the markings on your armor means?"
"Well my armor is called an 'Omnisuit', which basically means 'All-suit', for future reference. The markings are mostly equations underlying the basics of the universe, stuff I can't keep easily in my head. The smiley face on the helmet is just for a laugh."
"What is an Omnisuit anyway?"
"Didn't you say you were going to bed?"
"One last thing." She smiles sweetly, "Please?"
You shrug.
"Omnisuits are basically modified survival suits. They boost your strength, filter or recycle air for if you're in a vacuum or somewhere hostile, it can withstand most projectiles and big falls too. Alot of other basic features including a camo mode."
"Camo mode?"
Oh boy! Its been ages! You chin a control. The equations on the suit fade first, then the coloration changes from dark green to a neon pink. New markings appear, but this time they are stylised tribal tattoos around your midsection and upper arms. Twilight's reaction is priceless. Her eyes go wide and she gasps at the display.
"And that's an omnisuit." You chin another control and it returns to green.
"Amazing. Pinkie Pie would love that little display."
"Pinkie?"
"A friend of mine." You both pause.
"Well Twilight, its been a very long night." You prop yourself up against a pillar, "And I think we really need to rest."
"There is another bed in my room."
Hello nurse! Fast movers in this town! Wait, could you really have sex with a pony? Buddy, we fucked a spider. You lost your veto power when you slipped her 6 inches of 'Farle's Finest'. But its a horse, how would that even work? Ours is not to question why, ours is but to do and do. NOW LETS RIDE!
"Usually people buy me dinner before asking me to their bed, but if you want to not beat around the bush..." You grin.
"I. I... I meant there is a spare bed in there." She's blushing furiously. "You could sleep there."
Damn. No horsey-horsey with this pony.
"Of course, I was just making a joke. A big joke" Your grin gets wider and you raise an eyebrow.
"What about your friend?" She's still blushing.
"Fuck 'im," She gasps at the coarseness, "He convinced me to sleep in a sewer once. Payback is a bitch."
"...Ook then. This way." She leads you off to the bedroom.
Well that certainly went better than expected. Much better than expected. Suspiciously better than expected. Maybe this 'verse wasn't like the others. A 'verse with talking ponies who have magic. Its totally like every other one we've ever been on! Shut up brain!