"She's quite the sight, isn't she?" said the princess with a chuckle. Philomena, at this point, realized she would have to get up. When she did, she was greeted by the sight of a nervous looking purple unicorn and a cream colored pegasus, both staring in shock. Philomena looked around. This get-together was just a bit...off. Three particular ponies stood out to Philomena in particular. A pale white unicorn shrieking in the corner got her attention. This unicorn was running around, avoiding ponies carrying food and drinks, whining that they would leave stains on her dress. Philomena chuckled. Any get-together with the princess would not be casual, and this unicorn proved it.
Looking to the left, Philomena noticed a very distraught brown earth pony. She was looking in a panic at the various foods in front of her, going to eat one, then going to eat another. Screams of glee caught Philomena's attention as she looked over. A very...bouncy pink earth pony was running around, marveling at the various selections of food. At one point, she sticked her entire head into a nearby chocolate fountain, and ate some while it hardened. "How primitive," Philomena thought. If anything, the pony could have just used a cup.
"Oh, um, yes. She is, um, special?" said the nearby cream colored pegasus. Philomena let out a cough. Her throat was incredibly dry today. She realized she hadn't actually drank anything today. She looked at the princess. Two ponies were rushing to her side, constantly filling up her teacup. Philomena just sighed. The princess probably forgot to give her her water. This was typical behavior of the princess, but usually she remembered by the end of the day.
Apparently, not today.
Philomena thought that the princess would be vigilant for this kind of thing. You know, with the whole rant not two minutes ago about celestia caring for all beings big and small? So, here she was. Humiliated in front of everypony, throat dry, and neglected by the princess herself.
Worst shedding day ever.
One of the two guards accompanying Celestia came up and whispered something in her ear, wiping the smile right off of her face. In a cruel way, Philomena was glad. The princess had neglected to give her a drink, and that didn't blow over with Philomena. The princess and her guards strolled out of the building.
But they forgot Philomena.
The cage and pheonix were still sitting on the table where Celestia had sat just moments ago. The cream colored pegasus turned to look at the cage. The pink pony cartwheeled out the door, while the white one backed up delicately through the door. Following the pair was the brown pony, balancing a number of foods on her nose. These ponies were really odd.
But then Philomena heard the cage door open, and two cream hooves reached towards her. Philomena, at that point, would usually have run straight to Princess Celestia. But it seemed that Celestia didn't quite care today. Still, she was a little annoyed. Nopony birdnaps Philomena and gets away with it! There was suddenly a lot to do. Maybe today won't be so bad.