After the train had stopped, and all of us had gotten our items and baggage, we made our way to the Castle. Princess Celestia had anticipated our arrival and sent quite an entourage to assist us with all the material we were bringing with us. I tried to get Trixie to trot beside me, but she galloped ahead of everypony and dashed as quickly as she could toward the Castle. I was starting to get a little angry, perhaps a bit nervous as well. Twilight trotted beside me with Spike on her back.
"You know, Twilight, I'm starting to have doubts about this. I half-way wonder if marrying her was such a good idea to begin with," I stated sullenly.
"Well, Ammy, you've been after her for this long, why give up now? If she's not the real Trixie, perhaps Princess Celestia can find the real one for you," the lavender mare offered hopefully.
"I should be able to detect Trixie's magic signature, but I can't pick it out with all the other magic users in Equestria. I'll see if the Princess can help me, but considering how busy she usually is, I don't know if she'll make time for me. I sure hope she can help me, though."
"Tell you what, Ammy, I'll have Spike send her a letter informing her of your suspicions and we can formulate a plan of action from that point."
"Sounds like a good idea, Twi," I said softly, smiling at her.
Twilight instructed the young dragon to write a letter to the Sun Goddess addressing my concerns and asking for some advice on how to proceed. The response was fairly swift, simply stating to trust instinct and allow events to continue as scheduled and that the matter would be resolved in due course. Celestia's response also included reassurances that certain measures would be taken to ensure my state of well-being and that I should not worry too much.
"She always was a bit cryptic with her explanations," I stated with a hint of exasperation in my voice.
"I would place my trust in the Princess, she seems to have the right answers nearly all the time," Twilight said in an attempt to assuage my unease.
We arrived at the front gate of the Castle to see Trixie in a heated exchange with one of the Royal Guard unicorns. As soon as we arrived, he opened the gates for us and she dashed in as quickly as she could. A Royal Guard unicorn stopped her in his telekinesis, though.
"You are to stay with your entourage, Trixie," he instructed her. His voice was deep and gruff, his appearance almost intimidating due to his large size. Trixie protested vehemently at this treatment.
"Hey, Trixie, shouldn't you be trotting by my side?" I asked her, flashing her a quick smile.
"You're next to Sparkle! Trot with her, Trixie does not care!" she shouted back to me angrily. "Maybe you should marry HER instead of Trixie!"
I turned to the lavender mare and stated, just above a whisper, "She shouldn't tempt me like that," and then giggled a little. I saw a light blush come across Twilight's cheeks and she tried to stifle a small giggle of her own. Trixie continued to maintain her distance from all of us, trotting beside a Royal Guard who was leading our entourage. We were shown to our guest rooms and informed that dinner would be served in about an hour. The train ride had taken several hours and we had already missed lunch, though I wasn't particularly hungry.
"Hey, Twilight, do ponies have bachelor parties? I was kinda curious about that," I asked, almost facetiously.
"I don't know what you're accustomed to on your homeworld -- did you have a bachelor party before your first marriage?"
"Well, no -- Brenda and I got married in a courtroom by a justice of the peace -- we couldn't afford a proper wedding, so we just took care of legal formalities," I stated flatly.
"I'll go see if my BBBFF can arrange for a bachelor party for you," the librarian offered.
"Isn't he married already? What would his wife think about him going to such a party?"
"Yes, he is, but his wife knows about your marriage tomorrow, so she'll allow him a small indulgence as long as he behaves himself!" she chuckled. "Besides, since you've never been to one before, I'm sure you need the stress reduction that it'll offer. We'll set up a bachelorette party for Trixie! You're okay with that, aren't you?"
"Yeah, perhaps it'll put her in a better mood for the wedding tomorrow," I said optimistically. "At least, I hope so."
"Oh, I'm sure it will, Ammy, and if that doesn't work, perhaps Pinkie Pie can brighten her mood for you."
"Thanks for your help, Twi, glad to know I have you for a friend. I'm going to take a shower and get ready for dinner -- seeya later!"
"See you soon, Ammy." Twilight made her way to her room which was down the hallway from mine. There was a part of me that wondered if the lavender unicorn would be spending time with her mentor. I was about to turn the water on in the shower when I heard another knock at my door.
"Hey, Amethyst, my sister tells me you were interested in having a bachelor party," said a white stallion with two-tone blue mane and tail.
"Shining Armor, what a pleasant surprise it is to make your acquaintance once again," I said brightly. "Last time you saw me, I was in Twilight's body."
The Royal Guard Captain thought pensively for a moment. It took him a little bit to remember the incident when I had my human wife with me when we encountered him. A smile came to his face. "You had the name of Michael, didn't you? So what happened with you and ... your wife?"
"It's a long story, Shining, perhaps I'll tell you later. So if we're going to a bachelor party, where's it being held, and who else is coming with us?"
"There's a club we're going to visit, and Applejack's brother is coming along with a couple of off-duty Royal Guardsponies."
"This ought to be interesting," I mused.
"I believe you'll approve of the entertainment," he chuckled. He left to go visit his sister at that point. I took a quick shower and fussed with my mane and tail for a bit before making my way to the Grand Dining Hall for dinner.
I was rather surprised to see every chair at the very long dining table occupied. Spaces had been reserved for Trixie and me to sit next to each other, but she would have none of it. She sat about as far away from me as she could at the opposite end of the table. I was completely mystified by her behavior, but figured everything would turn out okay for the ceremony itself. Once again, a great variety of foodstuffs were presented to us to sample from, impressing me with the quality and taste as well as the texture of the food as well. That which appeared to be made of meat was actually textured vegetable protein, made with a mix of hay, soybean, corn and whatever other vegetable happened to mix well with those three depending on the desired flavor and texture. The sauces used to enhance the flavors of the foods were everything from sweet to piquant to downright hot and spicy.
"Wow, this is some of the best food I've ever eaten," I commented. "If there were restaurants that served this kind of food quality, they'd be rated at five stars!"
"This, coming from a four-star pony," chuckled Rarity, which drew some chuckles from the rest of the Mane Six who sat across from me, except for Twilight, who sat between Princess Celestia and myself. Twilight smiled politely at the comment.
"Thank you, Amethyst, my chefs are quite skilled at food preparation," the Sun Goddess responded to my compliment.
"Your Majesty, I just hope things work out okay for Trixie and me," I offered. "But I still cannot fathom her bizarre behavior."
"Have some patience, Amethyst, trust me when I tell you that beneficial circumstances shall arise as events progress."
"I place my complete trust in you, Princess Celestia," I replied. She and Twilight smiled in approval at my comment.
Presently we finished eating and I left the table fully satisfied. I trotted over to Shining Armor to ask about the bachelor party. He gave a big grin in response. I trotted over to Big Macintosh to see if he was joining us. He gave a quick "Ee-yup" and followed us.
"Let me reconnoiter with my friends so we can travel together. This club isn't far from the Castle, so you don't have to worry about drinking too much -- if you drink, that is!" he laughed.
"Depending on what happens, I may need a drink!" I chuckled.
"I've let the club owner know you're the guest of honor, so the featured entertainer will pay special attention to you."
"Um ... Thanks?" I offered meekly.
"Now, now, don't be too worried, she won't take things too far," he said, still chuckling slightly. We trotted along a hallway to the corridors reserved for Royal Guards. Shining called out for two of his buddies who were off duty now and would accompany us to the club. They trotted over to us and greeted us warmly, surprising me with a strong hug.
"This the lucky stallion?" one of them asked, pointing a hoof at me.
"Yeah, that's him," Shining replied, grinning broadly. "We've got a special treat for him. Let's get going, don't want to be late now."
We left the Castle, making our way down well-lit cobblestone streets towards a darker section of Canterlot -- not as well lit, the stones of poorer quality. We continued trotting towards our destination, but it sure seemed like it was a lot further away than what Shining had told me.
"I thought you said this place wasn't too far from the Castle," I complained.
"Well, it's not that far for me," Shining chuckled. "Well, if it's any consolation, we're almost there."
The club was little more than a store-front painted black from top to bottom, no windows, and a black door with a peep-hole at eye level. Shining gave a quick patterned knock of seven strikes of his right fore-hoof. Sounded like the traditional "shave and a haircut" knock. I chuckled softly at this. The door opened and a very large burly dark brown stallion with a very close-cropped mane and stubby tail allowed us to enter the establishment. He gave me a wicked grin.
We made our way to some seats which had been reserved for the five of us, around what appeared to be a raised platform about three or four feet above the floor. There were three poles which ran from the floor of the platform to the ceiling, placed at strategic intervals. I immediately recognized what this place was.
"A strip joint, Shining? Really?" I asked, almost incredulously.
"It was what we could manage on such short notice," he chuckled. "Trust me, Ammy, this will be worth it!"
"I certainly hope so," I responded almost indignantly.
We hadn't even sat down for two minutes before very loud music with a heavy bass beat started coming from loudspeakers adorning the walls. A deep baritone voice boomed out of the speakers.
"Gentlecolts, may I present for your edification tonight's featured entertainer: The Hot and Sexy Xerxei!"
An azure unicorn mare came out of the mist created by a fog machine. She was wearing a very sexy nurse outfit, her mane and tail dyed a bright crimson red. Her eyes were a giveaway, though. I recognized her immediately as we made eye contact. She grinned seductively at me and gyrated her hips to the bass beats. The music was so loud that even as I shouted her name, my voice was drowned out by the heavy beats. She winked at me and made her way over to me. She turned and wiggled her hindquarters very provocatively not more than three feet away from my face. I was almost completely convinced that this was Trixie herself, but I recognized a particular scent which contrasted sharply with Trixie's normal scent. "She may look like Trixie, but this is not her." I thought. I racked my brain trying to identify the particular scent but was drawing a blank on it.
"Trixie" continued her dancing, even going so far as to give me a lap dance in front of everypony, which drew loud whistles of approval from everypony present. Shining gave me a very broad grin. "You sly dog, you!" he chuckled.
"Uh, Shining, that's not Trixie," I said to him.
"Yeah, she is! Just look at her!" he laughed.
"No, no, she smells funny," I protested.
"Your mind is playing tricks on you, Ammy! Enjoy this! It's for you!"
"I need to check with Twilight on this -- maybe she knows this scent," I thought.
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"Hey, Trixie, you ready for your bachelorette party?" Pinkie asked her.
"Trixie is tired -- she thinks she'll go to bed early tonight. Busy day tomorrow!" she said quickly and made her way to her room.
"You know, she's sure been acting strange," Pinkie said softly to Twilight.
"That's all Amethyst has been talking about," the lavender mare replied.