For longer than anypony could remember, Princess Celestia had never worn any other finery except her royal regalia. In a city where the nobles would have a new wardrobe every week if they could help it, this had been considered odd since Celestia had taken the throne. Being the “helpful” ponies that they were, the nobility had tried, time and again, to get the princess to wear something else.
Some ponies would even go so far as to slave over their sewing machines, using the finest materials that money could buy, each master clothes maker praying to whatever god that they thought would hear them that the princess would be seen wearing their designs. But in the end they all would walk away disappointed because every day Celestia would wear the same crown, horseshoes, and chest plate that she had worn for fifteen hundred years.
Because of this, there were many, many rumors circulating about the princess and her lack of tact and frilliness. Some said that she couldn’t take her regalia off even if she wanted to; a curse placed on the armor forcing her to wear them every second of every day. Others would say that her finery was crafted by someone close to the princess and she wore the gift to remember them by. And there were others that just said she liked her crown, horse shoes, and chest plate, so she just wore them every day.
If her silly ponies would have simply asked their princess instead of making up insane theories she would just have told them that she liked to wear her spiffy get up. “It is just enough finery for me to look the part,” she’d say with a smile, “and I really don’t find today’s fashions as enthralling as you do, my little pony,” she might add with a chuckle.
But just because she almost never wore fancy dresses or pearl necklaces didn’t mean she didn’t have a dress or two of a piece of jewelry that would catch the eye; in fact, she had almost a closet full of them (not one under five hundred years old) but they were only used for very special occasions. So, with butterflies flying around in her stomach, Celestia decided to bite the bullet and consider this night to be of the very special variety; being that she may or may not lose a friend tonight, depending on how Anny was going to take what she was going to say.
Throwing open her over-sized closet, Celestia was met with a roomful of utter masterpieces, dresses and finery and jewels made from some of the greatest craftsmen and women in the history of Equus, and, because of a simple spell that she had cast on the room so long ago, every article of clothing was in perfect condition.
To her right was a gown claw-stitched by Hightlier, a gryphon whose clothes lead to three civil wars. To her left was a summer dress created by Hand Stitched, who spent over thirty years financially ruining himself and alienating friends, family, and loved ones to make it for her.
On and on and on and on Celestia could have looked at each and every one of these dresses and see the hours of blood, sweat, and tears that had been put into them. These things all around her were art that you could wear, masterpieces that had and have determined the fashion of the world. They deserved respect, from the one wearing them to those that were lucky enough to see them being worn; which, consequently, was the exact opposite of what Celestia did.
I’mgoingtobelateI’mgoingtobelate, she thought, rushing inside the room, grabbing every dress that was in magic’s reach, and teleporting them into her bed. Bulldozing through her coffee table—which, oddly enough, was just one that she had bought at a flea market years ago—she threw off her crown, horseshoes, and chest plate so she could see what she was working with.
“Mirror, I need a mirror!”
With another burst of magic, a mirror as tall as her and twice as wide appeared before her, showing the alicorn just how frazzled that she had gotten herself. Her mane and tail were out of place, she had worry lines on her worry lines, and her eye twitched every so often, truly giving her the classic look of a mad pony that she was sure her sister would get a kick out of.
“I only have ten minutes, I ONLY HAVE TEN MINUTES!”
A pearl white dress trimmed with the finest fire-red rubies was given a once over and tossed off the bed like it was a hunk of trash, a fall ball Victorian dress that had been spun from ice spider silk was ripped in half after a moments frustration, and many, many ponies, gryphons, minotaurs, and other people who had been dead for longer than most could remember were quietly rolling in their graves at what the sun princess was doing to their babies.
“I can’t be late! Everypony will think something’s wrong and then Anny might leave andthenIwouldn’tgettotellwhenwhat’s—“
It had been a long, long, long, loooooonnnnnnnnnggggggg time since Celestia had felt this level of panic; something that no villain, no world ending imminent disaster had ever made her feel. It was almost ironic that one of the first things to truly scare Celestia, a princess who emphasized friendship as one of the most important things in a pony’s life, was the thought of losing someone that was truly dear to her, someone who she could honestly call a friend, just because of her selfishness, cowardliness, short-sightedness; you name it, Celestia thought she had done it to Anny at the moment.
But, even in the face of disaster, a princess had to be graceful (at least when ponies were looking) in the face of danger, so with five minutes, twenty ruined dresses, a broken chair, table, vase, and #1 princess coffee mug, Celestia was dressed and ready to pay the piper.
…Probably…
You are Princess Celestia: Lady of the Sun, Sol Invictus. You have faced down monsters born from pits of madness and horror, you’ve kept your people safe and happy and free from war for over a thousand years. You can tell Anny what YOU NEED TO BUCKING TELL HIM!
Taking a deep, deep breath, she slowly trotted to and opened the door. “Alright,” she muttered, “it’s time to go mingle with some ponies, get something to eat, and go do… what needs to be done.”
&~~~&
Anny had always strived to look whoever he spoke to or whoever was speaking to him in the eye. It made one look respectful, he liked to think, and it showed someone that you were paying attention to what they were saying. No matter how boring or terrible or dry the conversation, he tried his very best to look him or her in the eye and appear interested.
Usually.
Right now though, he was cradling his head on one of his hands, toying with his half empty glass, as Fleur talked and talked and talked - what about, he had no idea, though Blueblood looked like he was hanging onto every word she said.
And let’s just not think about the puppy dog looks he keeps giving her, Anny thought with a smile, his eyes slowly scanning the party. Sure, she’s pretty and all, Blue, but… Anny remembered that he was trying to court a princess.
…Actually, never mind, you do you, Blue…. All you need to do his man up and tell her.
He was seated around a group of boring nobles at an admittedly boring party and he was going to be there for a lot longer. Why couldn’t have Celestia just answered my letters? Anny thought, his mood souring slightly when he thought of the mare. He could only hope that she would tell why she had been cooped up in her castle for so long… And she wasn’t keeping herself in there because of him.
Even though he was someone that had very little experience in dating, he could tell when someone was actively avoiding him, which led to him questioning himself about everything. Sure, he was able to keep up a strong front when he was around the Sparkle family but he was still riddled with the beginnings of doubt. Is Celestia really not interested? Was he pushing her too hard? Was he doing something wrong?
…Should he just give up and go home?
…No, everything will be alright, he thought, looking down and noticing that he was holding onto his glass so hard that it was starting to crack. She’ll say that she had to get some princess work done and she really didn’t want to stay away from everyone and—
“Anny, are you alright there?”
Anny wrenched his gaze away from his glass to look at a concerned Blueblood.
“Oh, what did you say, Blue? I was a million miles away,” Anny said, looking around and noticing that Fleur had gone to mingle with some of the nobles.
Blueblood cocked his head at the human, a small frown appearing on his face. “I just asked you if you were alright, Anny,” the prince said, touching Anny’s shoulder. “You looked like you were in pain for a moment.”
Anny waved him off, a fake smile coming to his face. “Oh, I was just thinking about how boring this party is,” he joked, nudging Blueblood with an elbow. “I don’t know how you’re able to do this all the time.”
The prince gave him a lingering look before a smile worked its way into his face. “Oh, it isn’t that bad,” he said. “If you spend enough time coming to these than you learn to drown out the drabble.”
Anny’s grin became genuine. “And it helps that you get to look a Fleur all night, huh?”
And just like that Blueblood lit up like a Hearth’s Warming Eve tree. “What are you—well you see--,” Blueblood stuttered, trying think of something to say before sighing and looking down at the table.
“…Don’t tell Fleur, please,” he whimpered.
Anny patted his back. “I wouldn’t do that to you, Blue,” he told the stallion, leaning closer toward him, “you’re my bro.”
Blueblood smiled. “Thank you, Anny, that means a lot.”
“Not that it’s really any of my business, but why don’t you just tell her, Blue? You two seem pretty close.”
The prince looked to his left and then to his right, and, seeing that no one was close enough to do any good eavesdropping, he leaned forward and whispered, “I’ve been trying, for years, but every time I work up the courage…” He desperately looked over at Fleur, who was in the middle of a group of nobles who appeared to be hanging on her every word. “I just… freeze.”
Anny patted him on the back again. “Take advice from a guy who, up until a few weeks ago, wasn’t even interested in love, that it’d be worth it to tell her.” Once again, Anny looked around for his favorite pony princess. “…It’ll be worth it in the end…”
&~~~%
“Announcing, Princess Celestia!”
Celestia couldn’t help but wince as her announcer cried out her name. She winced even more when everypony in the garden turned to look at her.
Oh by all that is holy, please let me fit this dress, she thought, a mask of confidence coming to her face as her subjects gasped and started whispering to each other at the sight of their princess in a dress. A hot, uncomfortable, itchy, and hard to move around in dress, but in a dress still.
Why didn’t I just put on the yellow sundress? Everypony looks good in a sundress and a hat! Or maybe— Her eyes widened when she saw Anny, who was sitting next to her nephew, was staring at her like she was the greatest thing since sliced bread.
After seeing his expression, she couldn’t help but mentally hoof pump into the air. Hah, it looks like all of that workout out actually has some benefit after all!
&~~~$
“Announcing, Princess Celestia!”
Anny sat up in his seat, his eyes widening as he looked around. It looks like she’s finally here, he thought, a mixture of excitement and nervousness welling inside him. Now I can go and—
“…Oh sweet Faust, will you look at her,” Blueblood murmured, his mouth wide open as he looked a little off to the left.
Anny frowned. “Whatcha looking at Bl—Oh…”
Everything that he thought he was going to ask or tell Celestia when he saw her evaporated once he got a good look at the princess, who was calmly looking around the garden with her usual air of majesty. Just like the majority of the stallions (and more than a few of the mares) that had attended the party, the only thing that Anny could do was look at the beautified princess.
Her usually free flowing mane had been curled and bobby-pinned into a tasteful hairdo, she was wearing a simple but very cute light blue gown with a set of matching shoes and she had a pearl necklace tied around her neck to finish it all up. It was almost jarring to see the princess, who was naturally beautiful like she usually was, all prim and proper, but boy was she breathtaking.
…Wow, Anny thought, slowly closing his jaw with his hand, and almost managing to close his mouth too, but then the princess looked over at him and smiled, so his jaw went right back down onto the floor where it belonged.
“Anny,” Blueblood hissed, nervously eyeing Fleur, whose eye was starting to twitch. “will you please stop gawking at my aunt?”
“…No,” Anny muttered, his heart leaping into his throat when he noticed that Celestia was slowly starting to shuffle towards him. She’s coming this way! Shescomingthisway!
“Good evening, my little ponies,” the white alicorn said, weaving through the stock-still crowd of nobles. “It is a lovely outside tonight, is it not?” A little smile graced Celestia’s lips as many a noble shook themselves out of their stupor (or were hit by their wives on a few occasions) and tried to get back to chatting with their neighbors.
Without realizing it, Anny’s hands were already straightening his coat and tie. Leaning over towards Blueblood, he whispered, “Blue, how do I look?”
“Oh, Anny, there you are!” Anny almost fell out of his chair as the smiling face of Fleur invaded his vision.
“Oh there you are, Fleur,” Anny said, resisting the urge to raise an eyebrow when he saw the supermodel’s eye twitch. “How are you finding the party?”
With a giggle, Fleur sat next to him. “Oh, it is that same as it always is, my dear,” she said with a little swoon. “My dress is pulled by every stallion that has had too much punch, I ignore wives’ glares, and I make idle chit-chat.”
Anny sighed. “Why couldn’t we have had this party at a bowling alley?”
Fleur bit her lip to keep from bursting out laughing. “Oh? And why would we go to one of those establishments?” she asked, looking toward Blueblood and waving a single hoof. Blueblood nodded and went to start the first step of the plan.
Anny looked over and saw that Celestia was being swarmed by nobles. “Well, we all could have had fun for on—“
Fleur let of a quiet squee as the beginnings of a slow song boomed throughout the garden. “Oh, the dancing is about to start,” she said, her eyes shining. “Anny, ma chérie, would you be a dear and be the first to dance with me this night?”
Anny frowned. “I don’t know, Fleur,” he said, shrinking in his chair, “I’m not much of a dancer… In fact, I’ve been told that I have two left feet.” Looking around he spotted Blueblood, who was in the front of all of the musicians. “Why don’t you go over there and dance with Blueblood? He looks like he could use some company.”
A tiny whine escaped Fleur’s throat. “Please, Anny?” she begged, giving him puppy dog eyes. “You are one of the few stallions that is big enough for me to dance with comfortably!”
“I don’t even know how to dance with a pony, Fleur,” Anny said, reaching down for his punch. “I’m more likely to hurt you than to spin you around and—“
Fleur whined again, making him groan.
“Alright, alright,” he grumbled, getting out of his chair. “But don’t forget I warned you, so if we look like morons or one of us gets hurt it’s not my fault…”
Grinning hugely, Fleur grabbed Anny’s sleeve with her magic and started to drag him to the dance floor. “Oh don’t you worry, Anny,” she purred, her smile becoming predatory, “I am quite the dancer myself, so I will help you pick it up as we get along.” She looked over her shoulder at him. “Now why don’t you and I go out and make some memories, mon ami?”
&~~~@
“Oh my princess, you look ever so lovely in that dress! May I be so bold as to ask where you acquired it from? You see, my niece is having this—“
Celestia looked to her left, then to her right, before sighing in irritation. Will you all just please move? she thought in irritation. I would much prefer if you all would bother me some other time, thank you very much.
The nobles, not being mind readers, continued to hound the poor sun princess, trying to make up for lost time of brownnosing the ever-loving heck out of her. Where did she get her dress? My did she look beautiful! May I be the first luck stallion to take you to the dance floor, my princess? Questions after questions after questions were dumped into her preverbal lap and she didn’t like it in the least.
But, since a princess does not tell her subjects to buck off, she stood there and dealt with it like a big filly… Even though she really didn’t want to. Just smile and nod your head, she thought, using her distinct height advantage to see where Anny had run off to.
He’s not by the food… He’s not near any tables that I can see… Is he—Celestia’s eyes widened when she saw Fleur dragging the human onto the dance floor just as the music turned from lively to slow and loving.
…I need to get over there, she suddenly thought, looking around for a second before buckling down and slowly starting to push through her subjects to get to the dance floor.
“Blueblood, honey,” she called. “Could you come over here and talk to your dear aunt for a moment?” I need somepony to help me get away from these nobles!
&~~~#
“Alright, Anny,” Fleur brightly said, looking up at the man. “Now give me a moment to see how I am going to adjust towards your… stature, then we can begin dancing.”
I thought you said you were a good dancer, Anny thought, giving her a weak nod and smile. I thought that meant that you knew how to dance with bipeds!
A dance floor was not a place where Anny cared to go if he could help it, and it showed. The human kept his gaze low to the ground, he was scratching his arm nervously, and he couldn’t help but feel like every eye in the garden was looking at him, judging.
This is just like what happened at prom, he thought, desperately trying not to run off the dance floor. The next thing that gonna happen is I’ll be in the bathroom throwing up for the next hour because someone spiked the punch!
Fleur wasn’t helping him any, the mare slowly circling him while humming to herself. “Alright,” she said, standing in front of him with a smile, “I think I’ve figured it out!” With the slightest of grunted, Fleur rose to her back legs and took a step forward. Using Anny to balance herself, she wrapped her forelegs around his neck. “Now, Anny, if you’d be a dear and hold my sides so I you can keep me from tripping over myself…”
Anny, shrugging, did as the mare asked, bringing her a little bit closer so she could lean up against him a little more. Fleur practically purred, her head resting on Anny’s shoulder. “Good, good, now just follow my lead. I will go slow for you at first but we will be speeding up by the third or fourth song.”
“Alright, Fleur, you just keep us moving and I’ll make sure neither of us fall over,” Anny replied.
You know, I may not even need Celestia’s help tonight, Fleur thought, slowly stepping to the right, Anny following her lead. How romantic would it be if, after all of this dancing, I lean over and kiss the silly man on the lips and tell him I love him? Fleur’s face became uncomfortably red, though, luckily, Anny couldn’t see her blush since he was too busy keeping from looking like a moron.
Like she had promised, Fleur started out slow, humming along with the music as she gently turned and circled and moved with Anny, who was trying his hardest to keep up with her. Luckily for him their first song was a slow, pattern-heavy, almost sleepy song, so the human could get acquainted with his equine dance partner.
The next song was paced a little quicker, with the cello and violin leading the other instruments. Anny was forced to turn in slow but tight circles before Fleur used one of his arms to lean herself towards the ground. With every little mess up, Fleur would gently point out of mistakes and move herself in such a way (or use a simple spell) to give Anny’s body the best chance of doing what his mind wanted to do.
“Very good, Anny,” she breathlessly said while he hiked her back into his arms, “but now the music’s tempo will start to pick up, I’m afraid.”
The next song did just that, a group of trumpets sounding off in an almost jazzy sort of way, forcing a slightly panting Anny to spin a giggling Fleur up and around the air. Why is dancing so hard? he thought, swinging the supermodel between his legs, throwing her into the air, and catching her all in the span of a second.
“Just like that Antaeus!” Fleur praised, keeping a firm eye on the human’s movements. “You, as they say, are a natural.”
Anny smiled when he snuck a peek outside of his dancing circle. All around the edges of the dance floor were ponies, each and everyone of them watching him and Fleur in nothing less than shocked awe. Each and every one of these ponies had stopped their eating, their talking, their dancing, to watch the two of them shuffle around the floor. Not because he was different, not because they were getting ready to laugh of mock him, but because of their rhythm and flow and grace.
They weren’t a pony and a human at that moment, but one being made up of two parts, parts that helped and balances and made the other better at what they were doing, it is honestly almost brought tears to the human’s eyes.
Fleur, Anny came to realize, was right when she said she was a very good dancer. She was able to turn him, a guy that had trouble doing the chicken dance, into a pretty decent dancer.
Well, I never thought this places cooky magic would ever get to me, he mused to himself, appreciating, for a moment, the way Fleur’s eyes sparkled in the light, but I guess when you live in a place where magic makes ponies break into song every five minutes, it stands to reason that I’d be able to instantly learn how to dance when I needed to.
Laughing quietly, he dipped Fleur towards the floor before pulling her up again. Looking her in the eye, Anny gave her a final, happy little spin, before setting her back down on all fours, taking a step away from her, and sighing hugely.
“Boy, that was a lot funner than I thought it was going to be,” he said, right before every pony in the garden starting cheering.
“Well, done!”
“Did you seen them move!”
“Meh, if I stood on two legs I’d be able to dance like that too…”
Anny and Fleur bowed to their audience. “I told you I was a fine dancer, Anny,” Fleur teased, nudging him.
Anny laughed quietly. “You weren’t wrong, Fleur,” he said, giving her a little pat on the head which she seemed to enjoy, “You’re a pretty great dancer.”
Fleur nodded. “You were far better than you led me to believe, Anny,” she complimented, giving him a quick look over. “Now, how would you like to go again?” She nudged her head to the musicians. “I could go and ask them to put on a different song or…”
All around them, ponies were coming back into the dance floor with a partner, most of them hoping to try some of the dance moves that they had just seen. Anny, noticing that someone had all but thrown Blueblood in his direction, grabbed the dazed stallion and put him in front of Fleur.
“Actually, Fleur, I’m kinda pooped,” he said apologetically, “you had me out there for a while. But how about you dance with Blue? He was telling me for about an hour how much he wanted to show you his dance moves.”
Blueblood looked up at him, a bit of pink creeping onto his white cheeks. “I-I never--”
Smiling, Anny shoved the two together, Fleur gawking and Blueblood looking like he wanted to go crawl into a corner, before starting for the tables. “You two have fun, I’m gonna go and sit down for a little bit; catch my breath and all of that jazz!”
Laughing to himself, Anny lost himself in the crowd (as much as he could, towering over most ponies and all). I wonder if Cadence is running around here with Shining? he thought, dodging and weaving through ponies. I’d like to see if those two could boogie or--
“Hello Anny.”
The world seemed to freeze as the calm and gentle voice carried over the crowd of voices and the music and made its way into his ears. Turning around, he was greeted by the sight he had been waiting for and dreading since he had gotten to this party: a smiling Princess Celestia. Said alicorn looked even lovelier up close, her dress and pearls shimmering in the moonlight.
Hey, dummy, you need to stop staring at her like an idiot and say something! Awkwardly clearing his throat, Anny smiled at the princess.
“Hello, Celestia how--urk!”
Anny had to brace himself as the princess burst forward, tackling him in the tightest and softest hug that he had experienced this month. “I missed you, my little human,” Celestia whispered, nuzzling his cheek.
Anny wrapped his arms around her neck. “I missed you too, Celestia,” he whispered back, closing his eyes and smiling.
“I saw your little stunt with Fleur a few moments ago,” Celestia casually said, not bothering to break the hug.
“You did huh?” Anny chuckled. “How did I do?”
Celestia gave his neck another nuzzle. “You were fantastic,” she praised, looking him up and down. “I didn’t know you were strong enough to throw Fleur around like you did.”
Anny shrugged. “It was kinda a spur of the moment thing,” he told him, not noticing all of the looks that the two were getting, “but it was actually a lot funner than I thought it was going to be. It was pretty exhausting, but I’d do it again.”
With a tinge of regret, Celestia broke the hug and looked Anny right in the eye. “So you wouldn’t mind taking me around the dance floor for a song or two?” she asked, looking unsure of herself for a second.
Anny was instantly going to give her a heck yes but he controlled himself. I still want to know why she locked herself in the castle for so long, he thought, trying to work up his courage. “Actually, Celestia, could I ask you about something first?” he asked, almost apologising when he was the alicorn’s hopeful face fall. “I just wanted to know what’s going on… with you….” he waved his hands around. “...Why you hid in the castle… and all of that stuff… If that’s alright with you that is.”
The princess sighed, a resigned look coming to her face. “...I do owe you that much,” she admitted, looking away from him in guilt, “and I promise that you will get your answers before the night is over, but…” she looked at him desperately, “Could just the two of us dance for a song or two… Please?”
The desperation in her face hit the human like a punch in the gut. Before he could stop himself, his arms were wrapped back around her neck with his cheek rubbing up against hers. “Alright,” he said,” we can dance, for as long as you want, but I still want my answers afterwards, alright?”
When he broke the hug the giddiness that she saw on Celestia’s face almost made him laugh, and he had to bite the inside of his cheek hard to keep himself from doing it. Giving the mare a little bow and stretching out his hand, she asked, “Celestia, may I have this dance?”
Giggling to herself, Celestia put a hoof in his hand and let him lead her toward a less crowded part of the dance floor.
Anny looked her up and down before spreading his arms wide. “I think you need to get up on two legs, Celestia,” he said, suddenly looking unsure. “And I hope that you’re a good dancer like Fleur was, cause I’m, still a little new to… all of this.”
While Celestia could have told him that, while she had been to many, many balls over the years, she had, in fact, not danced with somepony in a few long while, but she decided to hold her tongue. Dancing is just like flying, she thought to herself, beginning to bring herself up onto her hind legs, I just need to get started to remember how to--
Not used to how her dress clinged into her lower body or her slightly bigger than she would have liked horseshoes, the moment she rose up onto her back legs three things happened:
One, there was a loud rip and the bottom half of the alicorn’s dress ripped down the middle. Two, Celestia slowly began to close her footing and began to panic, her wings unfurling and her eyes bugging out in her head while she gasped in surprise. And thirdly, Crimson Shores, a pony who had been buried three centuries prior slowly started to scream in rage in the afterlife, the majority of her curses centered around a certain alicorn who needed to lose some weight.
“Oh horseapples,” Celestia muttered, trying to catch herself while she flailed around wildly, “Why did I have to wear this stupid--”
His own face lit up in panic, Anny rushed forward. “I got you, Princess!” he said, trying to grab her and tripping in the process.
Over two hundred ponies had a front row seat to watch their esteemed ruler fall on top of their resident alien, the two hitting the ground hard and ending up in a mess of hooves, legs, and wings.
Luna, who had been watching the whole thing next to a dance partner she may or may not have stolen, snorted.
“Way to go, Sister,” she called, trying not to laugh, “thou hast shown the nobility of thy grace and majesty!”
It took some maneuvering but Anny was able to pull the big alicorn off of his chest so he could breath. “Well, this dance is going to be interesting,” he wheezed, trying to get some air into his poor lungs.
Her face as red as could be, Celestia rolled off Anny and onto her feet. “Anny,” she shouted in worry, lifting him to his feet with her magic. “I’m sorry!!! Did I hurt you? Come, let’s get you to the--”
With a sigh and a grin, Anny clamped her mouth shut with a hand. Gently reaching down, he pulled her upward and wrapped her forelegs around his shoulders so she could balance herself. Putting his hands on her sides to help her further, he looked up at the blushing princess and said, “How about we take this slow, alright?”
“I fell on you hard, Antaeus,” Celestia protested, trying to wiggle herself back onto all fours. “Just let me get a look at you so I can see if you’re alright and--”
Anny looked up at the now much taller princess. “Celestia, calm down,” he said calmly, trying to look like the fall hadn’t hurt, “I’m fine. Now, come on.” He started to slowly shuffle her around. “There you go, let me work my crazy new human dancing magic and just calm down; ponies are staring.”
The alicorn took a deep breath and willed herself to look around, wincing at what she saw that the music had stopped and everyone was looking at her in panic.
“...I may have jumped the gun when I asked you to dance, Anny,” she whispered, adjusting her footing so she could take a bit of her weight off of the human’s shoulders.
Anny patted her side and gave her a smile, albeit a nervous one.
“We’ll be alright.”
He looked out at the crowd. “You guys might want to watch out for any flying wings of elbows though,” he told the nobles, getting chuckles out of the group as they all slowly began to look toward their partners.
Anny looked back at Celestia as the music picked back up.
“Alright, ready Princess?”
Celestia nodded, Anny letting her take a deep breath before he slowly started stepping to the left.
For the first few songs, Anny and Celestia’s movements were slow, awkward, and jerky, but as the songs changed, they slowly grew accustomed to each other. With every accidental dump of smack with the wing, Celestia apologized, her face etched with a nervous happiness that she had not felt for many, many years. With every bump that he was given, Anny could forgive his friend, an understanding smile as he kindly helped her through each step, all the while mentally shaking his head at this world’s crazy magic.
Song after song the two’s movements became more fluid, more confident. While Anny could never pick up or toss around the princess like he could with Fleur or a normal pony, and while Celestia was almost a foot taller than him standing up like she was, the two were smiling hugely.
Just like with Fleur, Anny could feel the connection between him and Celestia that every one who was dancing with a partner. It was a bond, physical and almost spiritual, that had an amazingly simplicity to it.
Anny helped Celestia whenever it looked like she was going to fall and Celestia helped keep Anny’s movements smooth while also making sure that she wasn’t weighing him down too much. They were one singular being, like Anny had been before, and while their movement didn’t feel as smooth and they may have looked silly dancing like they were, but it felt right, and that’s all that mattered.
Anny closed his eyes, letting Celestia lead their little dance. “It’s nice to see you again, Princess,” he said, dipping her toward the floor before pulling her back up. ...Lets not do that again, I almost popped my arms out of their sockets doing that…
Celestia’s smile reached ear to ear for a moment before it fell away. “I’m sorry for keeping you away for so long,” she said quietly, her forelegs tightening around the human’s neck, “and I’m sorry for what I have done to you.”
Ignoring Anny’s confused look, she broke the hung and too a few steps away from him. “Excuse me,” she said aloud, “could I get everypony’s attention for a few moments please?”
Ponies stopped what they were doing and the music halted once again, every eye in the garden on Celestia. She ignored all of the eyes, instead opting to look right into Anny’s, her gaze strong, unwavering, and unflinching.
“My subjects, Antaeus,” she began.
Fleur couldn’t help but grin. I never thought she would get to it, she thought, giving Cadence and Luna a wink before turning around to watch the scene unfold. Now all she needs to do is tell him off and I will be able to swoop in to “save” him…
“I must admit that I, Princess Celestia, Lady of the Sun, Ruler of Equestria, have done a great and horribly selfish and cruel thing!”
Fleur’s smile diminished while, on the other side of the crowd, Luna looked at Cadence and Twilight. “What are you playing at, sister of mine?” she muttered, not seeing Cadence’s giddy smile.
“Shiny, it’s going to happen!”
Shining looked over at his wife, who’s horn was glowing with magic. “What’s happening, Honey?”
Celestia took a step forward toward her human friend. “At first I thought my actions were justified and noble, but as the days, hours, and minutes went by, I began to question my reasons.” She looked away from Anny for a moment before forcing herself to look him in the eye.
“Anny, one of my closest friends,” she smiled bitterly. “Maybe one of my best friends, I have to confess that I no longer deserve your friendship.”
“Celestia, darling,” Fleur called, sensing that this wasn’t going the way she had originally planned, “you look sickly, why don’t you come over here and si--”
“Anny, for the past two months I have tried to push you onto another mare so I could be rid of you.”
The words sounded far more blunt and hurtful now that she had said them out loud, and it almost physically hurt her to see the confusion and beginnings of hurt on Anny’s face, but she forced herself to press on.
“You have been nothing but honest and upfront about your feelings about me, Antaeus. From the very beginning you simply looked me in the eye and told me that you loved me, and that alone shows what kind of person that you are… A better one than me.” Anny looked like he wanted to take a step toward her, but she took a step back from him before he could even move a muscle.
No longer having the strength to look him in the eye, Celestia stared at his feet. “I, on the other hand, have tried to trick and cheat and use you as though you were nothing but my plaything, someone with whom I could play matchup with because I was too afraid of my growing attachment towards you!”
Everyone in the crowd jumped slightly when Celestia stomped her foot down hard, the stone floor cracking under her strength as tears started to stream down her face.
“I have dishonored everything I’ve stood for. How can I claim that my land is one of friendship and tolerance when I look at what I’ve done to my friend?” Choking back a sob, Celestia sat down, still staring at Anny’s shoes. “Y-You may not believe m-me, Anny, but I am sorry… I’m sorry… I’m sure you ha--”
The alicorn froze when she felt arms wrapping around her neck, burying her face against Anny’s chest. “I don’t hate you, Princess,” Anny said quietly, though his voice seemed to echo throughout the garden. “I could never hate you…”
Trying to make himself smile, he brought his hands to her cheeks and used his thumbs to brush her tears away. “Everyone sometimes does things that they wish they could take back, and it’s a friend’s job to forgive them if they’re sorry.” He started gently running his fingers through her mane. “And besides, it’s not like I didn’t push you into…” he stopped and looked around the crowd. “...Trying to hook me up with Fleur… It was Fleur, right?”
Still crying softly to herself, all Celestia could do was nod.
“I was the one that was hounding you every day,” he said sadly. “I was the one that wouldn’t give you a moment’s rest with all of the silly nonsense.” The human let out a pearl of pained laughter. “Heck, I was expecting you to be trying harder to get rid of me.”
Giving her a final squeeze, Anny broke the hug and stepped away from her, looking like he himself was trying to hold back tears. “It wasn’t fair of me to do that to you as a friend, so I’m sorry about putting you through that, Celestia.”
Nodding his head, he turned away from her. “I’m the one that put you through all of this pain,” he said, starting to walk away, “and as your friend I’m not going to do that anymore; I’m going to be the one that hurts you for my silly little crush.” His shoulders slumped for a moment before he straightened them. “I’m going to back home to Ponyville so--”
“NO!”
Faster than anyone at the part could see, Anny was bowled over by a sobbing Celestia, who wrapped her forelegs around his neck and placed her muzzle on his chest. “Please don’t leave me,” she whimpered, staining his jacket with her tears. “I don’t know if I can stand being alone again… P-please don’t go… Please, Anny…”
The two stayed like that for who knows how long, a slightly confused Anny holding a crying Celestia while hundreds of teary-eyed ponies looked down at the two. Finally, the princess’s sobbing turned into whimpers which then turned to sniffles which finally turned into her just laying on top of her friend.
Anny was still running his fingers through Celestia’s hair, enjoying the warmth and presence of his friend. Not a single pony had moved from their spot, every noble, servant, and commoner watching them with baited breath, each and every one of them waiting to see what was going to happen next.
Anny himself barely noticed all the stares, instead looking down at Celestia, who had a pleased smile on her face as she kept her tight grip around his body. Her eyes were still red from crying, and her dress was shredded and muddy, and Anny couldn’t remember the last time he had see her this happy.
Well, this night turned out to be pretty interesting he thought, reaching down and wiping a lingering tear from the princesses face. I guess that Celestia doesn’t want me to leave Canterlot. Trying to wiggle out of the white alicorn’s grasp, he bit his lip to keep from laughing when Celestia’s grip around his waist tightened and she quietly growled. ...Alright, it looks like she doesn’t even want me to move from this spot… That thought made Anny smile as he started to scratch his favorite princesses ears.
All of that hard work, all of that hoping, and it looked like it had worked; he had gotten the Lady of the Sun herself to like-like him. He had gotten this caring, beautiful, and wonderful creature, that at this moment nuzzling herself against his chest, it tell him that she cared for him. To say that Anny was happy was a complete understatement.
Though he was content just lay on the grass like this for a while, a crazier and braver part of his mind came up with an idea, an idea that could either make this night a heck of a lot better or it could ruin it. ... Well, strike when iron’s hot and all of that stuff… Boy I hope this doesn’t blow up in my face…
Keeping his gaze up at the night sky, Anny swallowed thickly and looked down at Celestia, who looked up at him questioningly. Trying to ignore the butterflies in his stomach and his rapidly beating heart, he asked, “Princess… now may not be the best time for asking this and all…. but will you go out on a date with me?”
“...Please?” Ponies leaned forward, hopeful looks on their faces as they waited for the Princess’s answer.
The Princess of the Sun continued to look up at the human, her gaze so neutral that Anny was worried that he had just ruined everything…
But then he saw a smile come to her face and new tears come to her eyes.
Chuckling dryly, Celestia nodded. “I’d love to,” she murmured, nuzzling his chest.
All throughout Canterlot, ponies were awoken from their slumber at the shouts of joy that thundered from the castle. It was long and long and happy, with a lot of hat-throwing and hugging, but in their shouting and hooting and hollering, nopony saw a certain Fleur de Lis grit her teeth and storm away from the scene.
You wish to play, Princess? she thought, her mind creeping into darker waters. Fine, then we shall play!