“Sean P. O’Farrel? Quite an interesting-and rather unusual- name.” Princess Celestia’s voice was soft, so as to not disturb the others resting in the infirmary.
Still, it was enough to make the unicorn lying in the bed in front of her jump, landing back on the bed heavily panting and visibly shaken. “P-Princess C-Celestia! Oh my, how… unexpected!”
The princess smiled at the stallion, noting that, oddly, the stallion's cloak had been left on. She made a mental note to talk to the nurse about it late. “I felt that, since it was I who put you in this room; it would be only right for me to make sure you were quite comfortable during your stay, which, as the nurse kindly informed me, should only be the rest of the night.”
Sean grinned, having visibly recovered from his earlier shock. “Well, I guess I brought it upon myself. I’m usually more alert, but I guess, being in a castle, with royalty, I felt safe. Of course, I probably am safe…” his grin widened,” unless my attacker is a princess.”
They both shared a quiet laugh, after which, a comfortable silence enveloped the room. Sean shifted so he could look the princess in the eyes, letting the silence drag on for a moment as he thought about his next question.
“Did you like the gift I have planned? I know you saw it. You were standing behind me the entire time!”
The princess smiled. “I think it’s lovely. Though I don’t know how you’ll ever get a clear view of what Everfree castle used to look like, much less the city.”
The unicorn smiled mysteriously. “I have my ways, princess. Thank you for your concern, though. As for my name, however...." The black-coated unicorn suddenly seemed a bit nervous, and, for a moment, Princess Celestia thought the stallion would refuse to finish his explanation. Finally, however, he seemed to relax, and leaned forward, lowering his voice even further. "I picked it up during my travels. Some ancient ruins in Saddle Arabia contained several fascinating books, a few of which happened to be fairy tales from a long-dead race. Sean P. O'Farrel was one of the names, and I liked it so much I decided to try it out. After all, Nightsong Redtail sounds so....," he paused a moment, "...unoriginal."
"Yes. Pony names have become a bit repetitive after so many millennia. Still, yours seems rather...familiar.... It is no matter. However, I should prefer that you use your real name from now on, as the other one may be... confusing for some."
"Very well, Your Grace." And with that, the two moved on to talk of the distant lands they had both visited at one time or another, sharing experiences and lessons that were timeless in the face of time.
An hour later, the nurse came in to find the two chatting comfortably. “Princess? Visiting hours are over. I’m afraid I’ll have to ask you to leave.”
Bowing, the nurse backed out of the room.
The princess stood, smiling down at the black-coated stallion. “Well. This visit has certainly been informative. I hope you enjoy being here at the castle.” Leaning closer, Celestia whispered, “Between you and me, my sister enjoys jazz as well as classical. Keep that in mind.”
With that, the princess walked out of the room, leaving Nightsong to rest.
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“Applejack!” Twilight’s voice rang out over Sweet Apple Acres.
The mare in question had been about to buck an apple tree. The unexpected interruption caused her kick to miss, sending her crashing into the tree. She managed to pick her head up before a mountain of apples fell on her. She dug her way out, only to be knocked out by the last apple falling from the tree.
“Applejack!” Twilight walked over, helping the fallen earth pony to her feet. “You really should be more careful.”
The glare the lavender unicorn received from making this statement was short-lived, before both mares burst into laughter.
“What can Ah do fer yah, Twi?” Applejack asked as she set about cleaning the mess that her startled kick had created. The apples had scattered on impact, so it took some work gathering them together, but she was never far from her friend as she talked.
“Well, Applejack, I’ve got a sort of problem. You know we’ve been invited to Princess Luna’s birthday party, and that there’s going to be… D-d-drinking….” Twilight had trouble getting the word out of her mouth. To actually say it was to admit that it was a problem that her books couldn’t solve, and to her, that was blasphemous. To admit it to Rarity hadn’t been easy, but Rarity knew the values of being well read. While Applejack enjoyed reading, she considered it to be a waste of time that could be spent working, and, while she wouldn’t admit it, Twilight knew that Applejack considered the lavender unicorn’s constant reading a testament to her laziness. She had been surprised by Twilight’s entry in the Running of the Leaves, and the subsequent win, but still thought Twilight had too much time on her hands to be healthy. And, if she heard Twilight admit that her books didn’t have all the answers…. It didn’t bear thinking about.
“Yeah?” Applejack turned to her friend, raising her brow. The uncertainty and hesitation in Twilight’s voice had alerted her that something was wrong and that she was afraid to admit it.
“Well… I-I… I’m nervous about it.” Twilight almost whispered. As it was, Applejack still had to strain to hear what the lavender unicorn had said.
“Nervous? About what, sugahcube?” Applejack looked confused.
Twilight began to pace as she told Applejack about her problem, going on about how she had been taught the dangers of drinking since before Celestia had taken the unicorn on as her apprentice, going into detail about how a guardsman had come in and told the class she had been in about arresting those who had delved too deeply into the drink, and not being able to save others who had fallen off the side of the city.
Applejack shook her head. “Twi, Ah don’t reckon I rightly know more about drinkin’ than the next mare, but what Ah can tell yah is that we’ll all be there fer yah iffin’ yah do get a little carried away…Well, all of us except Pinkie. So tain’t nothin’ ta worry ‘bout.”
Twilight stopped pacing and turned as Applejack caught her in a friendly hug. “Thanks, Applejack. I knew I could count on you to have an answer.”
With that, Twilight trotted off, leaving Applejack to finish harvesting apples.
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“Princess Celestia! There is a visitor for you! One Nightsong Redtail. He says he has questions which only you could answer.”
The Princess of the Sun jumped at the unexpected voice, startling her from her deep thought. It had been a few days since she had last visited the unicorn in the infirmary, and she had been puzzling over him for the past few days. “Allow him to enter,” she called to her guards, “and have a somepony bring us some red wine.”
As soon as she said it, the guards sprang into action, opening the door to allow the red-maned unicorn into the throne room, his signature cloak trailing behind him. After that, one stopped a passing servant, repeating the Princess’s request to him before sending him scurrying off to fetch it.
Celestia wondered for a moment what enchantments the unicorn had placed on what seemed to be his favored peice of clothing. From what the nurse had told her, even the more powerful magics of the doctors that had looked after the red-maned stallion had been unable to shift the cloak, and any tool they had attempted to use on it seemed to simply pass staight through the strange material. She quickly dismissed such wonderings for another time, however, and she watched as the staillion in question
trotted silently across the floor to sit before her throne, staring directly at her, not blinking, not moving. She had only seen this action done twice before, once by her own student… And once, long ago, from somepony she could barely remember.
“Princess Celestia, I have come to ask your permission to enter the Everfree Forest and examine the ruins of Castle Everfree. I have need of a guide, as well, and wish for your recommendation. I feel that I will be adequately able to protect myself, and therefore have no need of an armed escort.” Nightsong’s voice never faltered, and his eyes never left hers.
After a moment of silence, the door to the throne room opened, and a tray with two glasses and a bottle of red wine was carried in by a white-maned servant. Celestia dismissed him with a smile, waving off offers of food.
“You certainly do not waste time with meaningless drivel, do you?” Celestia asked with a small frown. She poured the red liquid from the bottle with her magic, then floated one of the glasses over to the unicorn who sat before her, sipping her own as he removed the drink from her magic with his own, blood red aura.
“There would be no point in it. I do not have much time as it is. I have no time to mince words.” The dark unicorn sipped from the glass, his gaze never faltering from Celestia’s own. The ivory alicorn couldn’t help but feel that she was examinee as well as the examiner.
The Princess of the Sun smiled. “You have spoken the truth there. As for a guide, I have a pony in mind….
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Later, as he waited on the train outbound from Canterlot, the unicorn reflected on the meeting. “ Well, that went…. Better than expected, considering I expected her to blast me out of existence at any moment.”
He checked his watch as the train pulled in, adjusting his cloak as the door to his car slid slowly to a stop directly before him, then boarded it, even as the conductor shouted, “Outbound train for Ponyville! All aboard!”