The door to the royal bath house was hard to miss, even if one wasn’t intentionally looking for it. It was a darker stained Everfree Tree door that they had carved from a massive hollow trunk growing near the bottom of a ravine. It had a peculiar property of letting water climb through the bark and turning itself into miniscule bubbles, releasing a soothing steam. The more water that was added, or the higher the humidity, the faster and thicker the wood would produce the bubbles. Better yet, the vapor that was created didn’t “feel” like natural steam and it didn’t take away the natural air, keeping it easy to breathe. This made it an ideal material for a bathhouse, giving any pony almost instant privacy.
The edges of the door were trimmed with gold and molded into waterfalls trickling down the surface. Its surface was slightly convex, its only flaw.
Of course, this wood was an extreme luxury. The trek to reach the location of this miracle wood was blocked by an almost impregnable force of monsters and insurmountable obstacles. And the tree that made it had long since been dead and none others had been found in the ravine, making it scarce.
So it was completely logical that Celestia had ordered to line the entire royal bath with the exotic wood. No one else knew of it and surely the creatures there, which there were none at the base of the ravine, wouldn’t take note of its absence. And plenty was left for anyone else who happened to stumble upon it.
There was only one other thing of notable interest inside the bath house; the bath itself. Some ponies rumored that the room was enchanted, distorting space around it so it could fit the mammoth-sized tub; others speculate that when they were designing Canterlot Castle, the princesses had to fork over a lump of treasure to the main architect to compensate for their lavish desire.
Regardless of the case and the suspicions, the bath was enormous. Its length was half of a Hoofball field with a matching width. As for how deep it went, that varied on the section of the pool. In one corner it may have water jets and in another it may have readily available scuba gear. And near the back of the room was the excess release gate that kept the water at an appropriate level.
And it was all gold plated except for the walls. The chairs, the tub, the towel racks, even the water valve.
“You still haven’t told me where all of this gold came from, sister,” Luna said as the question pulled at her mind once more. “I admit, I looked through the records of our finances but there’s not a bit missing.” She placed her belongings in the gold plated reclining chair at the north end.
“I paid for this room out of pocket, so to speak,” Celestia humbly replied. “It’s one of the few places I have left to relax.”
Luna nodded. “If you don’t mind me asking, how much did it cost you?”
Celestia looked over her shoulder as she placed down her towel near the edge of the bath. “Cost me? Not much, gold was much easier to obtain back then.”
Luna grinned. “Hey, sis’.”
Celestia turned around only to see her lunar counterpart jump directly above her. Her eyes widened as she knew what was coming next.
“Cannonball!”
Celestia’s spine contracted and tried to defy the sudden shiver of cold water that ran over her backside. She spun around and grimaced as her tail dragged like a paintbrush on the ground. “Must you do th-ack!” She recoiled as a splash, nearly a wave, covered her face and soaking her hair too.
“Yes,” Luna giggled happily as she pushed a smaller wave towards her soaking sister.
“At least let me warm the water first. I can’t begin to understand how you like it so cold.”
Luna levitated her duck into the water and ducked her head under so her eyes were level with it. She watched it bob back and forth aimlessly and pulled it back to her when it strayed too far. Underneath her hooves, she could feel the heaters begin to work. She swam closer to the center unknowingly, getting lost in her own observations.
“Hey, Luna.”
“Yes?”
“Think fast!”
“What does that even mea- oh!” She only needed a fraction of a second to see the bottle that defined her bathing childhood memories flying just past her. Desperately, she shot a line of magic, hoping to ensnare it in levitation, but her sister had thrown it too fast… and she missed.