"Letter, Your--"
"Silver's fine, Ambassador is also alright, but I haven't earned any royal addressing yet." Silver smiled at the messenger and accepted the hovering letter into his own magic. "Thank you very much."
"Quite welcome, sir. Have a nice day!"
Silver closed the door lightly and trotted over to his desk with the letter. It had the familiar purple seal of a lavender princess he knew well and fondly. He gave it a gentle sniff and shook his head at himself. Twilight didn't wear much in the way of perfume or really carried much in the way of a scent to begin, certainly not much to leave a powerful impression on her magically-scribed stationary.
He broke the seal and pulled out the letter, his eyes already starting to sweep across the page in eager consumption of the words.
Salutations, Ambassador Silver Watch,
Did I read correctly? Do I address a fellow ascended? That's amazing! Did you see Celestia in that place? I can still remember it so clearly, as if it had occurred just yesterday. As a human, do you feel dizzy or disoriented? I can only imagine your sense of displacement may have been even greater than my own. My wings were new, but I at least grew up with the idea of what wings were and how they basically functioned. Are you alright?
Sorry, I don't mean to come across as quite so... worrisome, but if you need a friendly face to confide in, well, we're already used to exchanging missives like this. You can talk to me. I've been where you are, royalty without a purpose, or even a castle. It's alright to feel a little overwhelmed right now, but you're anything but alone. In fact, give the word and I'll schedule some time in Canterlot and we can go over this personally. That's what friends are for, right?Respectfully,
Princess Twilight SparklePS: Jake wouldn't stop laughing when I told him about it. What's so funny to a human that another human should reach this level of progress? I admit I may never understand him entirely...
Silver carefully folded the letter back up and let out a little sigh, a smile on his snout. Twilight was a good friend, but perhaps that was how she became the Princess of Friendship. Were they still true friends? He could still remember when they were more than friends, but that was a disturbing and violent world. Twilight had initiated him with a blaze of arcane fury, destroying him without even knowing he was in danger. He shook his head quickly. This world was better, for all its quirks.
He wasn't sure he could take her up on that offer without making things awkward, however. He pulled out a piece of paper and got to writing with a quill that danced in his magic, making his words manifest across the sheet in neat little scrawlings. He smiled a little at that. He'd always had poor handwriting, but apparently hornwriting was a different skill and one he seemed to manage well enough.
Hello Princess Twilight,
Do we have to use honorifics and such in letters? We are friends, as you wrote. I can be Silver if you can be Twilight. I think I'm alright. It may be hard to imagine, but I've had a strong dream of this happening, and I feel more like I've returned home than I've turned into something strange. A curious question, however. Could you tell me how best to preen my feathers? Asking the servants to take care of it for me is extremely embarrassing. It's a very personal thing, like asking somepony to wipe my mouth for me, brushing my teeth or bathing me. Any help would be appreciated. As for visiting, don't worry about it. I'm not too worried.
You have your job and I have mine. I have, oh, that's right. I'm not accepting the title of prince until I've earned it properly. When I'm offered the title by an eager royalty, then, and only then, will I take that step. Until then, I'm a human in a pony world and I won't claim to be entitled just because I have some extra bodyparts. I'm glad to hear Jake is doing alright. Tell him to laugh it up, but I plan to take this seriously.A Friend,
Silver
Silver folded the letter carefully before setting it into an envelope and sealing that. He'd send it off towards Twilight shortly. He spread his new wings wide and stretched them, feeling the muscles within play off one another. They were wings, ultimately, like the leathery ones he once had, and yet... not, in so many ways. He grunted softly with sudden annoyance. He wouldn't let them be alien on his back. He nudged open the window in his office and with a sudden jump, he was outside, then he was rising.
His wings beat powerfully and carried him higher with every stroke, carrying him higher and higher in slow circles around the castle as he looked out over Canterlot as a whole, taking in the glorious vista of the city Celestia had built for her kingdom. It glittered like a jewel beneath him and he smiled. Equestria was worth serving, and worth being a part of.
"Hey!"
Silver brought himself to a sudden halt, narrowly avoiding barreling into a passing pegasus. "Sorry."
"Who taught you to fly?" The pegasus mare scowled at him. "You didn't signal or anything."
Signal? Had his dream skipped over an important detail? "I'm sorry, really I am. I didn't mean to cause any trouble, but nopony told me about any signals."
She blinked with wide eyes. "You don't know?! You'll get yourself or somepony else hurt if you fly around a place like Canterlot without knowing the rules of the sky." She tilted her head left and right. "Are you a late bloomer? A pony your age should really know this."
Silver gave a sheepish smile. "I could only start to fly very recently."
Her expression of rage softened to sympathy. "Oh! There I go sticking my hoof in my mouth. You poor thing, but congratulations!" She spread her hooves wide. "Welcome to the air! You'll want to enlist in a flight school before taking to it in a city though. You might get away with that in a small town, but this many ponies in this small a space means you follow the rules or two ponies or more end up splattering into each other and making a mess."
School? Silver thought of a young Rainbow Dash. "What school do you recommend?"
She opened her mouth to reply, but her eyes tracked upwards. She noticed his horn. "O-oh! Um... Princess Celestia's School for Talented Pegasi, I bet for you."
Celestia had a school for pegasi? "Pretend you didn't see that. If I was just any pegasus, where would I go?"
She tilted her head a little. "But you're... alright, suit yourself. Hmm, there's a nice school just over there." She thrust a hoof down towards the city. "They give the basics and don't stress about being the fastest or the best, just keeping the air safe. Perfect for most fliers."
That sounded perfect. "Sounds lovely. I have too many balls in the air to even consider trying to become an expert flyer. Thank you very much." He bowed mid-air and pivoted towards that school. There was no time like the present, so he launched himself down towards the city. Mindful of the pegasus' words, he scanned left and right carefully as he went, looking for others he may crash into and reached the safety of the ground without creating an incident.
He trotted down the street, thankful that many of the ponies around him seemed blissfully unaware of his hybrid status. He would earn his... did pegasi have flying licenses? He walked through the open door into 'Spread Wings' and was determined to find out.