Chapter 05: Housewarming
~~* Erin *~~
Her hooves were cracked and broken as they pounded along the dark soil of the forest floor. The air smelled damp, of rot and of things growing in shadow. Branches whipped at her coat, cutting and bruising her as she ran. Her breathing came in gasping sobs, the painful stitch in her ribs like a knife being driven in every time she drew a breath.
She was being herded, or pulled, towards something horrible, all while a voice muttered and laughed in her ears. Her heart was thudding, and a panicked sense of desperation was welling in her as she tried, and failed, to stop herself from running.
On some level, underneath the terror and pain, Erin was aware of it being the same old nightmare once again. There was a clearing ahead of her. She couldn’t see it, but the part of her that was aware she was dreaming had been anticipating it for some time, now. She broke through some bushes and stumbled into the clearing with a sense of relief welling up behind her terror, only to have both fade away in mute confusion.
Princess Luna stood alone in the clearing, tall and regal, with her dark ethereal mane streaming away from her. This was something that Erin was almost certain had never happened before.
“Hello, Erin,” Princess Luna said.
The pain faded the instant Erin stopped thinking about it. She took a few steps forward, her mind whirling in confusion as her sense of what was real and what wasn’t started reasserting itself. “Princess Luna. What...?”
“You were having a nightmare. One that you have had before, I presume?”
“Yes.” Erin glanced around the clearing, noticing for the first time how the landscape around her blurred and fuzzed at the edge of her vision, like it was only actually there when she was looking directly at it. It was… disconcerting. “Not for a while though. This is the first time in weeks.”
“My apologies.” Luna bowed her head. “I would have offered my assistance earlier, but I could never find your dreams before now.”
“Oh…” Erin glanced down at herself. She was dreaming of her previous body, the one resembling an earth pony. She frowned at the bleeding cuts up and down her legs, which vanished even as she looked. “Because I wasn’t part of the magical field?”
“Most likely,” Luna replied. She looked around the clearing with a thoughtful expression on her face. “When I spoke to you in Canterlot about your feelings regarding Prince Verdant, I was unaware of exactly how much harm Malachite had done to you.”
“I... see.” Erin hesitated before continuing. Luna’s statement had the feel of an apology to it. She took a moment to consider her answer. “Well, what I said still applies. I can’t blame Verdant for what Malachite did to me.”
Luna titled her head and perked her ears forward. “Though, perhaps, he serves as a reminder?”
“Uh, I…” Erin shuddered and she dropped her eyes to the forest floor. “Yes. He does. I’m sorry.”
Luna shook her head. “No need to apologize. It is something we will keep in mind, should you visit the castle again. We can keep him away—”
“Don’t do that!” Erin blurted without thinking. She blushed as Luna arched an eyebrow at her. There probably weren’t that many people who said things like that to the Princesses. “I mean… I don’t need to be treated like I’m broken. I’m not. I’ll deal with it.” A resolve firmed in her chest, and, out of the corner of her eyes, she could make out several indistinct figures standing on either side of her. “Even if it takes a while, I can deal with it. I have my friends with me.”
The look on Luna’s face was unreadable for a long moment as she stared at her. Then she looked at the figures: Twilight, Applejack and Pinkie to Erin’s right, Fluttershy, Rarity and Rainbow on her left. Luna looked back at her with a gentle smile. “Very well. I am glad to see that I am not needed here.” Powerful wings unfurled like twin sheets of midnight and beat downwards. As Luna rose into the air, she called out, “I shall leave you, then, to the care of your friends. Erin, sleep well!”
The dream distorted, the forest dissolving into a fractal kaleidoscope of colors, all centered around the Princess, who promptly vanished. The colors of the dream started to fade and wash away as the shapes became blurry and indistinct, like a watercolor in the rain. Erin looked to her left, and then her right. The dream-created versions of her friends still stood with her, smiling gently.
“Well. That was sure different,” Erin said. And then a giggling dream-Pinkie smacked her in the face with a coconut-cream pie.
~~* Raka *~~
“So, this is nice.” Raka looked around her friend and colleague's office. Various small items, mostly touristy stuff, were displayed prominently on bookshelves, sharing space with what looked like scrapbooks and family albums. Photos of grinning children and young adults beamed at her from every wall, and even from the desk itself. She quirked an eyebrow at her friend. “Very homey. Very you.”
Maggie Henson laughed and waved her hand. “Well, you know how it is. I spend so much time in the office, it might as well be my second home.” She leaned forward and said, “I wasn’t expecting you to show up the very next day after I called you. Didn’t I mention that we can’t open the gate to Harmony for another month?”
“Maggie, I have to be honest with you.” Raka cast a wary glance over her shoulder, as if someone might be listening in, before leaning in and stage-whispering, “I’ve grown to hate being on the road.”
Maggie gasped with a look of mock-horror on her face. “No! Not Raka ‘Rockstar’ Nayar, the globetrotting biologist!” She clasped her hands together under her chin. “Say it ain’t so!”
Raka giggled like she hadn’t done in a long time, at least not since she’d last shared an apartment with Maggie during grad school. Of course her oldest friend would still want to use that stupid old nickname.
“Well, I thought the sooner I came out, the sooner I could fix all the mistakes in the mission plan,” Raka replied, leaning back with a smirk on her face. “Is my team assembled, yet?”
“Most of them work right here,” Maggie replied. “So, yes. We’re interviewing a few geologists, meteorologists, and some other specialists. We’ll also need some medical staff, security and engineers.”
Raka raised an eyebrow. “Security?”
“There’s life on the planet.” Maggie shrugged. “No signs of civilization so far. No structures, no radio transmissions, nothing. But that doesn’t mean that the local wildlife can’t be dangerous. So, yes. Actual security, with actual guns.”
“You know how I feel about that.” Raka’s eyes narrowed as she folded her arms across her chest. “We shouldn’t be going armed to a new world.”
“We shouldn’t be going helpless, either,” Maggie countered. She sighed and laid her hands flat on her desk. “It’s not up for negotiation. I’m not going to have my best friend end up in the belly of some alien carnivore.”
“Fine.” Raka rolled her eyes. “Though, you have to admit, that would at least be an interesting way to go.”
They both chuckled at that, and for a while the conversation lapsed into a comfortable silence. Then Raka noticed a look come over her friend’s face and sighed, knowing what was coming next. She’d been expecting this, but that didn’t mean she had to like it. Especially not from Maggie.
“I’m sorry about this, Raka, but you know I have to ask,” Maggie asked in preparation for the inevitable question. “How’s your health these days?”
Raka grinned at her through clenched teeth. At least Maggie had the decency to look apologetic about it, rather than pitying.
“I’m fine, Maggie,” she said. “Full remission, currently cancer-free.”
“Right,” Maggie said, nodding. “It’s just that—”
“For goodness’ sake, Maggie, I’ve gotten this from everyone I know.” She scowled across the desk at her friend. “Yes, I’ve lost a lot of weight. Yes, I look awful. But I’m fine. Really.”
Maggie frowned right back at her. “That’s not what I was going to say.”
Raka leaned back, eying her warily. “Oh?”
“What I was going to say is that we have an Ascent facility here. You may have heard of it?”
Maggie grinned at Raka’s suddenly-sheepish expression. “Oh.”
“Yeah.” Maggie folded her arms and leaned back, looking altogether too smug. “We could use our Ascent facility to double-check and make sure you’re fine, and correct any problems before we send you out into the field.”
“Oh,” Raka repeated. “Well. How long would that take?”
Maggie grimaced. “It’s an older facility. We can’t do targeted fixes like the new ones. We’d have to put you under for a week, maybe longer.”
“Oh. Hmm.” Raka considered this for a moment before shaking her head. “No, let’s hold off until I get back. I want to make sure we have plenty of time for planning.”
Maggie leaned forward in her chair, eyebrows knitting. “Raka, we have a month. Over a month, actually. There’s plenty of time.”
Raka laughed and shook her head. “Maggie, I know you don’t go out into the field much, but you have to trust me. There’s never enough time for planning.”
“Fine, fine.” Maggie held up her hands in a gesture of surrender. “How about we start with an introduction to some of your soon-to-be teammates?”
“Oh, yes!” Raka sat up eagerly, her eyes sparkling. “You’re sending a unicorn with me, is that right?”
“Just the one, though there will be a team of ponies from Canterlot as well. But Spectral Charm will be reporting directly to you.”
“Oh, I can’t wait to meet him!” Raka clapped her hands excitedly. “I bet he’s wonderful!”
Maggie’s face froze for a second before thawing into a careful smile. “Oh, he’s something else, all right. Let’s go and meet him, shall we?”
~~* Twilight *~~
It was early enough in the morning that the regular hustle and bustle of Ponyville’s streets was just getting started. Twilight stifled a yawn, momentarily regretting the time she’d spent the night before perusing the thick and densely illustrated tome Fantastical Flora and Fauna before finally turning in. It had been a fascinating book, but right at that moment she’d rather have had the extra hours of sleep.
Pinkie Pie was apparently having no such trouble, seeing as she was bouncing happily along next to her while humming a song that was entirely too chipper for that time of day, at least as far as Twilight was concerned. Pinkie had stopped by the library a half-hour earlier, and only the basket full of freshly-baked warm muffins she’d been carrying for breakfast had stopped Twilight from grumpily suggesting that she come back in an hour or two. Or possibly even three.
The muffins had made a pretty good breakfast, all things considered. There were still a good half-dozen left in the basket that Pinkie was somehow managing to balance on top of her head as she hopped along.
Twilight’s admittedly bleary mind wandered its way back to the subject at hoof. “So, Fluttershy actually refused to take the money?”
That got Pinkie to stop bouncing. She landed with a thud on all four hooves and started walking beside her with a frown on her face.
“She sure did,” Pinkie said, her ears drooping. “Something about it being a gift from Sunflower and she couldn’t take money for it, now.”
“But the four of us agreed,” Twilight said, frustrated. “We’d all chip in and get Erin a feather-care set. And I know AJ and Rainbow Dash would chip in, too, if we asked them.” Then what Pinkie said sunk in. “Wait, she said it was a gift from Erin?”
“Yup.” Pinkie shook her head. “I didn’t get it, either. Dangit, I’m usually the one who’s random, not Fluttershy!”
Twilight shook her head. “Well, we can talk to her later, I guess. After we check on Erin, of course.”
Pinkie’s face returned to its normal sunny expression. “Of course!”
They walked, or in Pinkie’s case, bounced, until Erin’s house came into view, the sight of which caused Twilight to feel a small spark of satisfaction. She’d been lucky to find the place for her friend, and Erin’s obvious appreciation of her new living space had really done wonders for Twilight’s spirits.
The pair of them let themselves through the gate and then knocked on the door. A few seconds later, Erin opened the doorway, eyes widening in surprise as she saw the two of them.
“Hey, guys!” Erin said as she broke out into a wide smile.
“Hiya, Sunflower!” Pinkie said. “Can we come in? We brought presents and muffins!”
“Housewarming gifts, actually,” Twilight added with a smile. “Just some things we thought you could use.”
“Of course you can come in!” Erin stood aside to make room. “Please excuse the mess, though.”
“Oh, I’m sure it’s not too…” Twilight trailed off, staring at the boxes, some of them open with their contents scattered across the floor. “Wow.”
“I know.” Erin was clearly embarrassed, judging by how she ducked her head and scuffed a hoof along the floor. “I’ve been looking for something.”
“Do you need any help?” Pinkie asked as she passed the muffin basket over. “I’m a great finder!”
“Oh! No, Pinkie, that’s okay!” Erin said with a wide-eyed, frantic grin. “I actually just found what I was looking for. And I’m glad you’re here, actually, because they’re presents for you guys!”
Pinkie gasped. “We get presents, too?”
“Yes!” Erin’s eyes twinkled as she laughed. “But first, can I get you guys anything? I have all sorts of goodies left over from last night’s party. Oh! And I also found a care package my mom somehow managed to sneak into my stuff. It’s got a bunch of cookies in it.”
“Ooh, cookies!” Pinkie’s ears perked up. “What kind?”
“Well, there were chocolate chip, of course,” Erin said.
“Naturally,” Pinkie said with a sage nod.
“There are also some peanut-butter ones, some sugar cookies, and some snickerdoodles.”
“That sounds great!” Pinkie said. Then she frowned and shot Erin a sidelong glance. “What’s a snickerdoodle?”
Twilight looked at Pinkie in confusion. “Um, Pinkie?” she started to say.
Erin tilted her head at Pinkie. “You’ve never had a snickerdoodle?”
“Hmm… I don’t think so! What is it?”
Erin grinned at her. “Only the best kind of cookie ever! I’ll go get you one!” She trotted off into her kitchen, calling over her shoulder, “Twilight, do you want one too?”
“Um, sure?” Twilight said uncertainly.
“Okay, one minute!” Erin said as she disappeared through the doorway.
Twilight turned to Pinkie Pie, who was grinning hugely. “Pinkie, I’m pretty sure you know what a snickerdoodle is.”
Pinkie fluttered her eyelashes innocently. “Oh?”
“Yes,” Twilight said with a frown. “I’m positive. I think you’ve even made them before.”
“I have?”
“Yes. In fact, there’s even a mare in town named ‘Snickerdoodle’. She has a snickerdoodle for a cutie mark.”
“Really?”
“Yes!” Twilight stomped a hoof. “How can you not… remember…”
She trailed off, looking at her friend’s face. There was that grin, of course. But now it had been joined by a mischievous glint in Pinkie’s eyes.
“Oh…” Things started to click in Twilight’s mind. “Oh!” She cast a wary glance at the entryway to the kitchen, where the sounds of dishware clinking around could be heard. She leaned towards Pinkie and whispered, “Is this a prank? Are we playing a prank on Erin?”
“I’m going to be honest, Twilight,” Pinkie Pie said with a smirk. “I have no idea what you’re doing.” The big grin erupted on her face again. “But, yes, I’m just playing a little joke.”
“Oh, goodie!” Twilight clapped her hooves together and giggled. “Can I help?”
Pinkie's eyes narrowed for for a moment, her mouth setting in an even line. Twilight stood rigidly as Pinkie studied her, presumably judging her readiness to assist her with the pranking. When Pinkie's face suddenly erupted into a full-blown smile, Twilight sagged with relief.
"You sure can, Twilight!" Pinkie replied with a grin. Her twinkling blue eyes narrowed as she leaned in to whisper conspiratorially into Twilight’s ear. “You have to make absolutely sure you relax and act casual. It’s really super-duper important that Sunflower doesn’t catch on, or else the whole joke is ruined.”
“Right!” Twilight nodded vigorously. “Oh! Here she comes!” Twilight couldn’t help a little hop of excitement at being on the giving side of the joke for once.
Pinkie’s eyes widened. She whispered fiercely, “Twilight, remember to act casual!”
“Right!” Twilight took a deep breath and let it out, trying to settle her nerves. “Right.”
Twilight quickly put on a casual smile as Erin trotted back into the living room with a plate loaded with cookies balanced on her back.
“Well, here we… go?” Erin stopped and cocked her head as she stared right at Twilight. “Everything okay, Twilight?”
“What?” Twilight felt a moment of panic at the thought that Erin might have already figured out the prank. She shot a frantic glance over at Pinkie, who widened her own eyes back at her. She looked back at Erin and put even more effort into making her smile look casual. “Why would anything be wrong?”
“Well, it’s just… Never mind.” Erin shook her head. “Not a big deal. Anyway, snickerdoodles! Here you go.”
Twilight breathed a sigh of relief as Erin, apparently still fooled, reached around and pulled the plate off of her back with her teeth. She sat down, transferring the plate to her upturned hooves and holding it out so that the other two ponies could select one of the golden brown cookies. Twilight nabbed one with her magic and took a small bite.
“Mmm!” Twilight was too distracted by the prank to even notice the taste of the cookie aside from a vague sense of something cinnamon. “This is really good!”
“Your mom is a pretty good baker.” Pinkie was licking her lips. Judging by Erin’s shocked expression, Twilight could only assume that Pinkie had eaten the whole thing in one bite. “Can I have another?”
“Oh, um. Sure.” Erin held out the plate again so that Pinkie could take another cookie. Then she looked at Twilight and asked, “Are you sure you’re okay?”
As far as Twilight could tell, the look on Erin’s face was one of suspicion. With a sense of dread, and with a few strands of her mane breaking away from her normal straight style, she forced an even more casual smile towards her friend. “Yes, of course! Why wouldn’t I be, ha ha?”
Pinkie snickered next to her, and it was all Twilight could do not to start laughing too. This prank was getting really hard to maintain!
“It’s just… well, if you need the bathroom, it’s right over—”
Erin wasn’t able to finish the sentence because Pinkie fell on the floor shrieking with laughter. The dam burst in Twilight, and she started laughing, too. Mostly because of the successful prank, but also in relief that it was Pinkie who broke first. Erin just gave them a bemused look with an uncertain smile, which made Twilight laugh even harder.
“Um, guys?” Erin said as the laughter started to die down. “Everything okay?”
Twilight’s ribs were aching from laughing so hard but she still managed to say, “Yes! It was a prank! We actually knew what snickerdoodles were this whole time! We so got you!”
For some reason, this set Pinkie off into a new round of guffaws. Twilight giggled, though she wasn’t really sure what had set Pinkie off again. Erin joined in, finally getting the joke. Or, at least, that’s what Twilight thought at first.
“That,” Erin said, wiping a tear away from an eye with a fetlock, “was almost too lame to even be a prank.” Then she grinned at Twilight and added, “That look on your face… I thought you were constipated!”
"I wasn't—" Twilight started to say.
She was interrupted when Pinkie whooped with renewed laughter, rolling onto her back and kicking all four legs in the air. Erin joined in, laughing so hard that her legs went a little wobbly. Twilight was the odd one out, now, chuckling along but confused.
After a minute or two, the latest round of laughter started dying down.
“Thanks, Twilight.” Pinkie let out a happy sigh while still lying on her back. “Considering it was such a silly idea for a prank, you helped it turn out so much better than I expected.”
“Wait, I don’t understand.” Twilight looked back and forth between the other two mares, feeling totally lost. “How was it a silly idea? We got her!”
Pinkie looked up at her, snorted with laughter and then groaned, holding her ribs. “No more, Twilight. My tummy hurts from laughing too hard!”
Erin was looking at her with an entirely too amused expression for somepony who’d just had an awesome prank pulled on her.
Twilight shook her head, confused. “I don’t get it.”
Any attempt to gain further understanding of the current situation was complicated by her friends' renewed laughter.
~~* Luna *~~
Princess Luna, Warden of the Night, Guardian of Dreams and the Regent of the Moon, was assaulted very nearly the moment she opened the door to the Royal Sisters’ private dining hall. She had been planning on a hearty meal and a calm discussion with her sister before retiring for the day. What she got instead was a small green alicorn colt dodging between her legs to reach the hallway behind her, followed a moment later by the colt’s beleaguered nursemaid slamming into her with a startled cry.
Luna blinked as she was knocked half a step back. The mare who had run into her staggered backwards in a protracted fall that ended up with her finally landing on her rump. The nursemaid, a light golden unicorn mare named Honey Heart, shook her head before looking at what she’d run into.
When she saw that she had, in fact, run full-tilt into Princess Luna, Honey Heart’s eyes bulged as she gasped and scrambled to her hooves.
“A thousand pardons, Princess!” Honey Heart bowed with her muzzle very nearly on the floor. “The young prince is being… rambunctious this morning.” With a grimace, she added, “As usual.”
Luna rotated an ear, catching the sound of the giggling colt as he bolted recklessly down the hallway. A moment later, Prince Verdant squawked indignantly as Luna lifted him in her magic and began floating him back towards the dining hall.
“It is of no concern,” Luna said as she brought the prince back towards the doorway. “I believe this is what you were looking for?”
“No!” shouted the somewhat-less-than-regal prince. “No no no!”
It was one of only a small number of words that he knew, though new words were appearing with startling regularity. Some, apparently, he had learned from his guards, which had prompted Celestia to pronounce that certain words and phrases were not allowed to be used near the young prince.
“Thank you, your Highness,” Honey Heart said with a bow. “The young prince has been quite a—”
“Butt!” Verdant cried out, demonstrating yet another word from his ever-expanding vocabulary.
Honey Heart froze with a very cautious look descending over her features. “I was going to say ‘challenge’.”
She cleared her throat and, horn lighting up, took the little prince from Luna. Verdant’s legs began galloping in midair while his little wings flapped crazily. Once again, he demonstrated his unhappiness by unleashing the most terrible invectives in his vocabulary.
“Butt! No! Butt!”
“That is language quite unbecoming a prince,” Luna admonished.
This, apparently, was when Prince Verdant first became aware of the fact that there was another pony involved in his re-incarceration. He left off glaring at his nursemaid and instead gaped at Luna.
“Auntie Wu!” he shrieked directly into his nursemaid’s left ear.
Honey Heart flinched and folded down her ears. Luna offered her a sympathetic smile before addressing her nephew.
“Good morning. How are you today?”
“Good. Hug!” Verdant’s struggles ceased as he flung his forelimbs out.
Luna arched an eyebrow at him. “What do we say when we want something?”
Prince Verdant looked puzzled for a long moment. Then he broke into a sunny smile. “Please, hug?”
“Very good, nephew.” Luna offered him a gentle smile. She leaned in and, while he was still floating in Honey Heart’s magical grip, gave him a gentle hug and graciously endured a sloppy kiss on the cheek. The guards on either side of the doorway maintained an air of stoic indifference regarding Luna’s en-slobbering, much to their credit.
Honey Heart bowed again. “Thank you for catching him, Princess. He always gets a little squirrely during breakfast, and he is quite the escape artist.”
“We can’t have that, can we?” Luna said as she finally entered the dining hall fully and shut the door behind her. She put a serious look on her face. “Now, nephew. Are you going to finish your breakfast properly, like a big pony?”
His answer was the rarely-used “Yes!”
Verdant ran over and plumped himself down on a cushion next to the low breakfast table and remained sitting there with relative calm as his nursemaid began helping him with his breakfast. One of the palace servants, a mare in a nondescript black dress and white apron, took her breakfast order. As the servant left to prepare the meal, Luna turned to speak to Honey Heart as the mare tried to entice the young prince into eating.
“My sister is once again too busy to join us?”
Luna hadn't intended to sound critical of her sister but, judging by the way the nursemaid's face tightened in apprehension, it seemed that her statement was taken that way. When Honey Heart answered, it was in the carefully measured tone that the palace staff seemed to use so often around her.
“Yes, Highness. It seems Princess Celestia has a very full morning scheduled.”
“Hmph. What could be so important as to miss yet another mealtime with her sister and adopted son?”
Luna was certain that Honey Heart would know that she wasn’t just asking an idle question; in her duties as nursemaid, she was kept informed of Celestia’s schedule down to the minute, just in case she needed to reach her in the unlikely event of an emergency.
“Ah, well.” Honey Heart fidgeted with her hooves. “Princess Celestia mentioned that she would be joining us after meeting with the Nobles' Council.”
“I see.”
The mares lapsed into a silence, broken only by Verdant’s incessant babbling. The prince, though technically only a few months old, had the physical and emotional development of a colt at least two years in age, and all of the energy and curiosity of a roomful of kittens. Luna suppressed a smile as she looked at him, while Honey Heart did her level best to keep the young prince eating his breakfast.
“You are quite good with him,” Luna noted.
The compliment made Honey Heart beam happily. “I can only do my best, Princess.” The humility implied in her statement at odds with her confident tone and level gaze. “I raised several of my own, after all. And the young prince is very much a joy to care for.”
Luna winced as a large glob of airborne applesauce impacted with a wet splat against the side of the nursemaid’s head and began to ooze viscously down her neck.
“Very much a joy,” Honey Heart repeated with a fixed smile.
Luna chuckled as the nursemaid used a linen napkin to clean herself off. A short time later, a unicorn wheeled the breakfast cart into the room. In addition to the bowl of sweet porridge she had asked for, Luna also chose several small tarts and some fresh fruit from a silver tray. The addition of a carafe of fresh apple juice rounded out the breakfast nicely.
The servant bowed and began to back out of the room.
“Leave the cart, if you would,” Luna said. “Celestia may join us later.”
The servant bowed again. “Of course, Princess.”
Once again, the only ponies left in the room were Luna, Verdant, Honey Heart, and two servants who were waiting on any orders that might be forthcoming. Luna ate her porridge as Verdant, temporarily out of energy and with a full belly, began yawning hugely.
“I think it’s nearly time for a nap,” Honey Heart said softly.
“Nuh,” the prince replied.
Luna shook her head. “Not quite yet. Celestia will want to see him before he takes his nap.”
“Of course, Princess.”
Luna ate quietly while Verdant’s head bobbed lower and lower, only to snap back up as his eyes blinked owlishly every minute or so. Eventually, no amount of willpower was enough to keep the prince awake. He flopped over onto his cushion and curled up like a puppy.
Luna caught Honey Heart’s eye and gestured her closer. The mare stepped quietly in order to not wake the prince and sat down, eying Luna curiously.
“Honey Heart, perhaps you can answer a question for me,” Luna asked in a low voice.
“If I can, Princess, I would be happy to.”
“My sister has never raised a child before. The closest she’s come is taking on the occasional apprentice. Granted, she relies upon you and several other palace servants, but my curiosity is piqued. How well does Celestia do with Verdant?”
A panicked look washed over the mare’s face. “I wouldn’t presume—”
“No, of course you wouldn’t,” Luna replied quickly. “Have no fear, this conversation will remain between the two of us, I swear it.”
Honey Heart eyed the two servants in the room out of the corner of her eye. Luna sighed and faced the pair of them.
“Now would be a good time for both of you to get some refreshments for yourselves, don’t you think?”
The unicorns exchanged a glance before looking back at Luna and bowing in unison. When they left, they closed the door softly behind them.
“I shall speak frankly,” Luna began once they were alone. “I am concerned. My sister seems to delegate most of Verdant’s day to various palace servants. Is there cause for alarm?”
“I… I can’t say, Princess Luna, I really—”
Luna leaned forward and placed a hoof on Honey Heart’s leg. “Have no fear of reprisals. I simply need to be sure that Celestia isn’t shirking her duties towards her son.”
Honey Heart’s eyes flashed as her spine stiffened. “She would never!” she whispered fiercely as she pulled her leg away. “Celestia is extremely caring and patient with him. Considering how many other duties she has, I’m amazed how calm and serene she manages to be.”
Luna couldn’t help but chuckle over that, which seemed to confuse the nursemaid.
“I continuously find myself reminded that a thousand years have passed since my incarceration on the moon,” Luna said by way of explanation. “The Celestia you describe and the one I remember are almost completely different mares.”
“How so?” Honey Heart asked carefully before quickly adding a belated, “Princess!”
“Equestria was wilder back then.” Luna shook her head slowly. “The Celestia I remembered could never be described as ‘serene’ or ‘calm’.”
“How would you have described me, then?”
Luna froze for a moment and then turned towards the now open door of the dining hall. Celestia was standing there with an amused smile on her face.
“I would have said ‘passionate and headstrong’.” Luna grinned back at her and nodded towards an empty cushion. “Please join us, sister.”
As Celestia moved towards the cushion, she spared a happy smile for the slumbering Prince Verdant. Several bakery items, wrapped in Celestia’s golden aura, floated off of the breakfast cart and towards Celestia’s place at the table.
“So, did I hear you were concerned about how much attention I can spare Verdant?” Celestia asked as she lay down on the cushions. She took a nibble of a pastry as Luna answered.
“Yes, sister. Though I meant no offense. I know how difficult it can be for a Princess to find the time for personal matters.” Luna flexed her wings and ruffled her feathers. “The stars know I have a challenge warding the Dreamrealms all night. The population has expanded greatly in my absence.”
Celestia sighed. “Yes, well, that’s the price of peace and stability, but I’m glad to pay it.” She took another bite of her pastry, her expression thoughtful as she chewed and swallowed. “Nevertheless, you may have a point. I’ll try to delegate more of my duties, to make sure I spend more time with him.”
“Yes,” Luna said, nodding. “It's only for a short while, after all. Once he’s old enough, he can join us in ruling this land.”
Celestia snorted in a very un-Princess-like fashion. “Don’t be so quick to map out his future, Luna. We didn’t get much of a choice in our lives, but I would like for him to decide his own course.”
“Then, perhaps we can enlist Erin as a fourth princess?” Luna asked lightly, attempting to hide her resultant grin behind a lemon tart.
Celestia choked briefly on her pastry before levitating a glass of applejuice up to her muzzle and taking a quick sip. “Don’t even joke about that!” she said, vexed. “I had to spend the last hour attempting to convince that stone-headed Noble’s Council that she’s not going to have any titles or political powers.”
Luna laughed at the thought of the panicking nobles, who probably thought that their “ancient” bloodlines were under threat.
“Did they truly believe we’d make her a co-ruler of Equestria?” Luna asked, grinning.
“Either that, or they hoped we would use Ascent to make anypony of noble blood into an alicorn.” Celestia snorted again, this time in disgust. “And, I should add, only nobleponies.”
Luna rolled her eyes. “Naturally.”
“Um, I beg your pardon, Princesses?”
Luna started. Verdant had been sleeping, and Honey Heart had been so quiet that she’d quite forgotten that they were there while the two sisters had talked.
It was Celestia who responded to her. “Yes, Honey Heart?”
“I don’t mean to interrupt, but it would probably be for the best if I brought the young prince back to his room for the rest of his nap.”
Celestia looked longingly at the little colt for a moment. “Yes. Yes, of course. And, thank you.”
“My pleasure, Highness,” Honey Heart said as she rose and bowed.
The nursemaid’s horn glowed and the prince, cushion and all, lifted gently into the air. She managed the feat so gently that Verdant didn’t even break the rhythm of his breathing. Celestia, a wistful expression on her face, watched as the nursemaid left with the little colt floating on his cushion ahead of her. Once the door closed behind them, she turned back to Luna as her expression turned determined.
“I won’t fail him, Luna.” Celestia scowled briefly. “I’ll give him the childhood he never had before, I swear it.”
Luna got up and walked around the table, finally settling next to the elder princess. She draped a wing across Celestia’s back and nuzzled her shoulder.
“I know you will, sister,” Luna said gently. “I know you will.”
~~* Erin *~~
Things had finally calmed down at Erin’s house, though Twilight had sulked for a little while after finding out that the “prank” was nowhere near as funny as her attempt at acting casual.
Still, there were presents to hand around, and that brought everypony back to reality pretty quickly.
“And here are some baking spices,” Pinkie said, pushing a bag towards Erin. “And here are some recipes!” She passed the recipe book over as she shot a sly glance at Twilight, adding, “There’s even a really good snickerdoodle recipe in there.”
“Ha, ha,” Twilight said, though she smiled when she said it.
“Thanks, Pinkie.” Erin smiled as she gathered the items up and set them on an end table.
“Well, I brought over a few things, too.” Twilight pulled a book out of her saddlebag with her magic and floated it over to Erin. “This is The Complete History of Ponyville. I thought you’d like to read it!”
“Oh, Twilight! Thank you!”
“That’s not all! I also brought Beginner’s Magic Exercises. It’s a foal’s book, but I figured, since you’ve never used magic before, this would be something of some use to you.”
“Oooh!” Erin said, eying the book appreciatively. Then she looked around the room. “I should probably remember to buy a bookshelf while I’m out shopping today.”
“So, where are our presents?” Pinkie asked, her eyes sparkling.
“Pinkie!” Twilight scolded.
Erin laughed and held up her hooves. “I’ll get them for you. Hold on.”
Pinkie and Twilight waited with varying degrees of patience as Erin made her way around to the other side of the large, central pile of boxes. There were eight smaller gift-wrapped boxes stacked against the wall and, after checking the labels, Erin pulled two of them out. She stacked the two boxes on her back and walked, carefully, back to where the other two were sitting.
“Now, before you open them, I need a promise from each of you not to tell the others. I want it to be a surprise for all of you, okay?”
Twilight nodded immediately. “Of course.”
“Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.” Pinkie mimed the actions as she said them.
“Well, that will do, I guess,” Erin said with a grin.
She passed over the gift-wrapped boxes, the one with birthday cakes and balloons going to Pinkie, and the one with a star motif being given to Twilight. Unicorn magic made short work of the wrapping paper, and Twilight gasped when she saw what was inside.
“Is this..?”
“Oh, my gosh!” Pinkie said, gaping at Twilight’s present. Damp bits of paper flew as Pinkie started using her teeth to pull off the rest of the wrapping paper on her own gift.
Meanwhile, Twilight was reverently opening the box, the cardboard sliding open with a soft whisper.
“Oh, my… Erin, this is amazing!”
Erin grinned hugely. “You like it?”
“I love it!” Twilight cautiously removed the tablet from the box. “Oh! It has my cutie mark on the back!”
“What?!” Pinkie mangled her own box a little bit in her haste. Inside was a glossy pink tablet computer and some accessories. Eyes wide, Pinkie slowly and reverently pulled the tablet out and flipped it over to reveal three balloons stenciled into the back. “Oh, wow…”
Twilight’s own was a purple that matched her coat, with her starburst cutie mark on the back. She stared at it for a long while before looking at Erin. “All of them have our cutie marks on them?”
Erin nodded, joy bubbling up in her as she saw how much her friends enjoyed the gifts. “I found a place that will customize tablets for you. Also, each one comes with three styluses, if you don’t want to just use voice commands.”
“Oh, wow… oh, wow!” Pinkie was turning hers over and over in her hooves, making Erin glad that she had asked for a heavy-duty screen protector to be applied. “What kind of things can it do?”
“Well, let’s see.” Erin tapped a hoof thoughtfully on her chin as she considered. “A lot of the apps won’t work until the wifi gets set up in Ponyville, but when it does you can all call each other, send pictures, messages or movies… um… Oh, Twilight, yours has a bunch of science and history books, along with some fiction. Some documentaries, too. Also a journal, if you want to use it. Pinkie, yours has a bakery database and a ton of music and movies.”
Pinkie’s eyes snapped up. “A whole ton?” she asked, hefting the thing with a hoof.
Erin laughed. “Well, not literally a ton, but you could probably play everything on it non-stop for over a month without repeating anything. I remembered that you like cartoons and comedies, so I put a bunch on there when I was loading it up.”
“Erin, this is…” Twilight looked on the verge of tears, Erin was startled to see. “This is amazing! Thank you!”
Erin smiled as her heart swelled happily. “It’s my pleasure, Twilight.”
“Sunflower, I only have one question,” Pinkie Pie said, her voice unexpectedly serious.
Erin seriously doubted that Pinkie would end up asking just one question. “Yes, Pinkie?”
“How do I turn this thing on?”
Erin laughed. “Why don’t I take you both through a quick course on how to use them?”
It was generally agreed that this was, in fact, the best course of action possible. The three friends settled down while Erin happily began teaching them the basics of how to use their new high-tech toys.
Stats
Page generated in 0.031 seconds
Total duration
1,097 users online
1,550,643 hits today, 1,822,946 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Yesss, more!
Well, this was a pretty good chapter.
Well done as always, great story. Do you still need pre-readers, or do you prefer editors. Ether way, if happily do it in exchange for a sneak peak of your upcoming chapters, andaybe getting a few views and likes on my own stories ;)
Well done as always, great story. Do you still need pre-readers, or do you prefer editors. Ether way, if happily do it in exchange for a sneak peak of your upcoming chapters, andaybe getting a few views and likes on my own stories ;)
I humbly request MOAR of this.
4310820
Nice to see you on Fimfiction! I didn't know you made an account! Oh, by the way, I put up some of your art in the author's notes of the original story, the ones that pertained to whichever chapter it was. I hope that's okay? I feel like it really enhances the story
I should have put more of a description in, but yes, before they created Erin's new body, they did check with some Equestrian experts. It would be a little irresponsible to just toss her into an untested body like that, I agree
As far as the design, they did alter Malachite's original body to an extent, making educated guesses where they had to. One of the things that Erin is very good at not thinking about is the fact that she's basically a feminized, shrunk-down and color-swapped clone of Malachite's "alicorn" body that was altered to look like her original pony body.
Kinda creepy when I put it that way... Sorry, Erin
As far as wingboners go, they're not canon in Sunflower (sorry to anyone who likes them!) My editors and I had a discussion about this a while ago. A pegasi's wings will flare on occasion, sometimes reflexively, but not due to sexual arousal. If it does happen, it's a "make myself look bigger/get ready to fly away" response to something that scares or startles them, or an attempt at a domination display. At least, that's the way I'm writing them. So, no wingboners for Erin (again, my apologies for anyone who wanted that...
)
Oh, Spectral Charm... hmm, seems familiar. Either way, I bet he's a real... charm to be around.
*watches her introduce Pinkie to snickerdoodles* Oh Pinkie, you sneak!
Really hope Verdant gets a better life. Things... didn't go his way last time, for a whole eight hundred years.
The Great Erin comes bearing gifts!
Alright there is no way that was 7k words! The words just... evaporated! I... need... MOOOAR!
I wonder what sort of culinary variety Harmony will bring to the table.
"Just act casual!"
I think I see where this is going...
Oh god, I was right!!!
I still want a movie night to contain Watership Down
Bit ironic that I read from my tablet
This is totally awesome!
When Pinkie couldn't identify a cookie, I thought for a second that she was a changeling. I wonder what ever happened to those guys anyway. As far as I can remember in this storyline, they haven't been brought up once, which I think is a real shame. Oh well, this story isn't about them anyway.
Also, the scene of Celestia with her new son reminded me that Cadence was pregnant when we last saw her at the end of the first book. If months have passed since that time, has she given birth? Is Twilight an aunt now?
Nondescript takes pride in her talent for being innocuous. Oh, and also in designing uniforms for the entire palace staff.
nursemaid's
Capitalize the whole title - Beginner's Magic Exercises - , and consider using italics instead of single quotes to format it.
Dear Hoopy McGee, you... you... I just wanted to go and hug the pillow, and BOOM! - new chapter of Sunflower. Sleep will go to hell, I can't resist this!
Silly Erin/Sunflower... Should have waited for the lessons for once everypony had theirs!
Also, just an idea for transitions, instead of names, how about using their cutie marks? There was another story that did that that made it easier to follow who was speaking. I think it was... The Immortal Game?
Anyway, just an idea. Not that using names is confusing, but it might look slightly classier. Just a thought!
4363698
Yeah... you are probably right.
Hrm...
Also: snickerdoodle is best cookie!
Ooh, finally an update! I need my fix!
4364057
Brought to you by the Department of Redundancy Department
4363983
"Whoops" and "Thanks!" comes to mind
4363760
I'm sorry everyone. I fought for them as hard as I could.
Ponies with tablets?
Welp, the already-anachronistic Equestrian technology level is running off the rails with a JATO rocket.
Raka's definitely going to regret not getting that cancer screening/cure. Now that Chekhov's Tumor has been mentioned in the first act, it'll metastasize by the third. (Unless, of course, that's just what you want me to think...
)
On a happier note, it was nice seeing Verdant doing well, and Twilight's adorkability is always a delight. Definitely looking forward to more, especially Erin's first attempts at unicorn magic.
4364198 Which, of course, will mean that the appropriate action will be to totally replace her body in such a manner that the cancer has no further foothold -- meaning, she has to go whole pony.
s2.quickmeme.com/img/53/53c771bb526f75cd85fd6c06d3b1ae6a73c6f92cc90f0b17495ffb913147d6c6.jpg
Awesome, always happy to have more of this story.
Wonder what shenanigans the girls will get up to on the internet
It's funny, the more we learn about Harmony the more I'm reminded of my home planet Joita.
Will I get a cameo later on when they explore Harmony?
~The lizardman feels a little homesick now
Okay, so they got tablets...
Which means they will eventually be able to access the Internet...
Pinkie on the Internet...
Who knows what she will get into.
Hmm, Pinkie would start taking pictures of everything she sees with hers.
I bet that Raka will end ponyfied or at least transformed into a non human creature.
4363983
That's a great name for a background pony. I'm stealing it.
I hope Erin had the good sense to include an instruction manual for Twilight.
img0.joyreactor.cc/pics/post/full/my-little-pony-mlp-other-Twilight-Sparkle-413396.jpeg
Has Fluttershy or Rainbow Dash watched Princess Mononoke yet? In the last story, they skipped watching it out of ignorance and I'm curious if that's been rectified yet.
Don't feel bad, Twilight. I didn't get the prank either.
Good thing she specified 'rugggedized' tablets for her pony pals.
We in 2014 long for the crystalline carbon or transparent aluminum screens of the future.
Fluttershy: "turn on. turn on please. on. tablet on. %$#@!"
Tablet: "Ching!"
I would suggest changing both "Noble’s Council" to "Nobles' Council".
4364880 At least the carbon materials are coming soon... Also, we made transparent aluminium in 2009, so that's coming soon too.
I have a feeling that Raka turning down the Ascent offer is going to bite her (and possibly the entire expedition) hard.
Far be it from me to argue with Pinky, but I'm not sure Twilight was ready to help with that prank.
Children are so much fun.
But seriously, I'm liking Verdant. Here's hoping that this life goes better for him.
Oooo, tablets for everyone. Neat.
4364880 Actually, we already have "transparent aluminum". It just costs too damn much.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aluminium_oxynitride
Any world that can reshape a human body via nanite can mass produce Alon.
Ohoh -LAWDY- Pinkie on teh interwebz? Hilarity ensures.
Now taking bets on who's gonna brick theirs first.
There was an episode of Dave The Barbarian where his sister discovers on-line shopping
without understanding that the items have to be paid for.
4365608
Oh man, I remember that episode.
Good times. Good times.
4365570
I wager 5000 yen on Applejack
Another adorable chapter. You continue to impress with your impressive writing skills, don't you?^^
(Twilight Sparkle receives tablet computer)
Six months later...
"Hey, has anypony seen Twilight? She just vanished off the face of Equestria about six months ago..."
4364025
Cutie mark transitions don't work when some major characters don't have cutie marks.
Okay... I just realized I'm reading a story with an alicorn OC... and loving it.
Only you, Hoopy!
4365702
Not sure there. While AJ will probably use hers the least, Twi has Spike to claw up the screen, Dash lives in a house made of water vapor and flies around like a nut, Pinkie has Gummy and the Cake twins, Flutterahy has her animals especially Angel, and Rarity will probably lend hers to Sweetie to keep her occupied while wotk gets done, meaning the CMC might take it on adventures.
Nice. I was concerned when you said that you were starting each section with the POV character's name. I thought it would break immersion, but it worked out really well. I think you should stick with the names instead of icons, though. I've seen a few stories that went that way, and I found it much more intrusive than just the text.
4365783
True, but to me Applejack seems to be the least tech savvy.
My thoughts for Applejack is at best she's a little clunky with tech, and at worst she's Seijuro Shin levels of terribad with tech.
4366108
Maybe Erin can trade one to Zecora as a new doorstop for a nifty new necklace.