Life in Another Pony's Hooves

by HonorBound

Chapter 05: The Punishment

Spike and I cleaned that entire dining room until it shined. If you were to look at it at the right angle you could actually see it sparkle in the light. Once we were done, Spike led me to one of the royal bath houses in the castle, so we could clean ourselves from the food fight.

The place was breath taking. There were three wading pools each with its’ own little waterfall. They were fashioned into a circle around a big hot tub, which could easily fit ten ponies. The walls were all carved out of marble, while the floor was covered with an exquisite design of the princesses’ cutie marks in tile.

“Wow,” was all I was able to utter from the pure beauty of it all.

“I know, right. Me and Twilight used to come here to unwind after particularly hard study sessions, back when we still lived here. Come on. Last one in is an old rock.”

Was that a Tom reference? Huh. Guess it doesn’t matter.

Spike sprinted towards the hot tub, running along the path that divided two of the wading pools.

“Slow down Spike. There’s no hurry.” I was trotting behind him at a much slower pace.

“What? Can’t keep…” He didn’t get to finish his taunt. Spike slipped on the wet tile floor, and into one of the wading pools. He came up to the surface shortly after, flailing his little arms about.

“You OK Spike?”

‘Cough’ “I’ll…‘Cough’ …be fine. ‘Cough’ Just swallowed some water.”

I started to ease into the hot tub at this point. “Good, because you’re the old rock.” I chuckled.

“Awwww.” Spike pouted the rest of the way over. He looked to me, lounging comfortably up to my neck in water, and got an evil grin.

My eyes were closed, so I didn’t see him back up a few feet. Once he shouted “Cannonball!” I knew something was wrong. I opened my eyes just in time to see Spike drop into the water, causing a big splash. Well… big for a baby dragon. The hot liquid washed over me drenching what was above the surface.

“Spike! What the Hell!?”

Spike came to the surface, and proceeded to spit water into my face.

“Yuck! God damn it Spike! That’s gross.”

“That’s for making me clean up all that food. My claws are still sore.”

“It wasn’t a cakewalk for me either.” Oh God, did I just make that horrible pun?

Spike chuckled a little. “Yeah well, I guess Princess Celestia will give you your… just desserts.”

I will have no part in this.

“Ugh, just stop, Spike. I don’t think I can take it.”

“What’s wrong? Is this pudding you down?”

Ugh, make it stop!

As if to answer my prayers in the worst possible way, the doors to the bathhouse opened to reveal… Spectrum.

Oh no. I groaned internally.

He came trotting in with his head held high, and a towel wrapped around his waist. He only paused a moment, when he noticed Spike and I in the hot tub. The smile that formed onto his face creeped the hell out of me.

“Mmm. So we meet again, it would seem.”

“Y…yes.” Crap! How the Hell do I get out of here? He’s blocking the only exit.”W..what are you doing here?”

“Oh, I always come here after my shift. I find it relaxing after a stressful day of working magic with my horn.”

Yeah, I bet.

While Spectrum came closer to the hot tub, Spike and I pressed ourselves closer to the opposite wall in a fruitless attempt to be further away from the pony. Spectrum removed his towel, with a little more bravado than was actually needed, and slipped into the tub.

“Ahhhhh. Oh that feels good in all the right places. There’s only one thing that could make this feel even better.”

I gulped. “W..what would that be?”

I was shivering, despite the hot water surrounding me. Spike was clinging to my neck, obviously just as scared as I was.

“Bubbles!”

I flinched at his enthusiasm, and then relaxed as the word processed its way through my head. “Huh?” was my eloquent response.

“Bubbles?” Spike asked.

He nodded, turned around, and a moment later bubble jets, built into the hot tub, turned on.

“Mmmm, that hits the spot.” He said.

It did feel good, but I was far from relaxed. What is he playing at? I need to stay on my guard. Nothing good can come of this... What is he doing?

I don’t know why but for some reason, as soon as the jets came on, Spectrum looked like he was in his own little heaven. His tongue was lolled out of one side of his mouth and everything. Then it hit me, and the color quickly drained from my face. Oh God! I can’t see what he’s doing under the water!

“I.. I th..think w..we need to get going.”

“We do?” was Spikes response. I nudged him under the water for him to get the hint. “Oh, right! We do!”

“Awwww, so soon. But, I just got here, and… you have some things stuck in your fur. Here, let me help you with that.”

Spike and I looked at each other, then back at Spectrum.

“No! We’re good!” I shouted a bit too loudly.

In unison, Spike and I began scrubbing the leftover food off of ourselves as fast as we could. It was coming off a lot easier than I thought it would.

Maybe the water is enchanted or something. None of the food I’m scrubbing off is floating around in the water. It doesn’t matter. The sooner I’m clean; the sooner I can get the Hell out of here.

“I was hoping we could play a quick game of ‘Find the Banana’ before you have to go.”

My eyes widened in fear at the sudden innuendo. Screw this! Gotta go! I scrambled out of the hot tub as quickly as I could. Spike grabbed onto my neck as I moved to exit.

“Sorry, but the Princess is expecting us. Can’t keep her waiting, you know. We really gotta go.”

Spike only nodded in agreement. I inched my way around the tub. Again, I was trying to keep my hind end away from the questionable stallion.

“Aaawwww. Perhaps, another time then. You shouldn’t keep the princess waiting.” Spectrum pouted.

I didn’t wait for a better time, to sprint away, to present itself, though it was probably a bad idea to do so. About half way to the door, I slipped, and fell into one of the wading pools. I floundered a little, but regained my bearings shortly after. To be honest, I’m surprised Spike was able to hold onto my neck through the whole thing. A bit later the door was swinging closed from our semi-swift exit.

___________________________________________________________________

Spectrum sat in the hot tub alone after watching the door close.

‘Sigh’ “Nopony ever wants to play ‘Find the Banana’ with me.”

He reached under his discarded towel to retrieve the lone fruit from its’ hiding place. Spectrum pealed it, and began to eat his tub time snack.

The jet, he was sitting in front of, continued to blow bubbles against his enflamed back muscles.

“Aahhhh. That always feels Soooooo goooooood. Mmmmmmm, This is defiantly the best way to end the day.”

He popped the rest of the banana into his mouth, discarding the peal near his towel. Spectrum leaned against the jet, completely relaxed. So much so, he began to slide down into the water, until just his muzzle remained above the surface.

___________________________________________________________________

I was running down the hall as quickly as I could, water droplets were trailing behind me on the carpet.

How many times am I going to have to run away from that stallion today? At least I’m clean… or reasonably so. I always feel dirty after being around that guy.

A shiver ran down my spine.

Something’s just not right about him. I should talk to Celestia about it. See what she can do.

I slowed down to a trot, reasonably certain that Spectrum wasn’t going to be jumping out at me.

“What is with that guy?” Spike exclaimed. “He always acts so strange, and what was up with that game? ‘Find the Banana’. That sounds like a stupid game, if you ask me.”

“He’s just a creep. It’s best if you’re never alone with him. Bad things will happen.”

“Like what?”

“Things, that you will probably spend the rest of your life, trying to forget.”

“Like what?”

“You ask too many questions, Spike, and that one shouldn’t be answered until you’re older.”

“How much older?”

“No idea, but I’m not answering it. Now, which way to the throne room?”

We proceeded on to where Celestia was expecting us. Speculation, as to what the punishment she was going to give us, became the main topic of conversation. Well… Spike speculated. I remained silent and listened to Spike prattle on, as he slowly spiraled into a panic attack. He was close to hyperventilating by now.

We had crossed a number of hallways and corridors on our way back to the throne room. My fur was just about dry from the walk.

“What if she banishes us, and throws us into a dungeon, in the place that she banished us to?”

“’Sigh’ Spike, in all of the time you’ve known her, has Celestia ever done that to anypony?”

Spike looked at me with a deadpan expression. “Luna just came back last year, in case you forgot.” Spike inhaled with great force. “What if she banishes us to the Moon?”

“That’s not going to happen Spike. You’ll see. She’ll probably just give us a slap on the hooves, and be done with it. I mean, she was just as responsible as us for making that mess.”

“Whatever you say, pal. Oh hay look; we’re here.” He said glumly.

I pushed the doors open to reveal the huge chamber that was the royal court. Celestia and Luna were sitting on their thrones on top of a dais. There were two guard ponies on either side of me and Spike as we entered the throne room.

We proceeded down the red carpet, that lead to the base of the platform. Celestia looked pristine and collected, while Luna was grinning from ear to ear.

What’s she so happy about?

As I walked, I admired the stained glass windows that depicted the history of Equestria. It started with the first Hearts Warming Day, the three races planting Equestria’s flag on a hill, going all the way to when the main six defeated Discord. I smiled at recognizing that one.

Of all the creatures in Equestria, I would have thought it would be Discord to bring a human, like me, here.

I was drawn out of my reverie by Celestia, clearing her throat.

“Honor Bound, you were called here today in light of a misdeed done in the royal dining room, earlier this afternoon. You are charged with assaulting royalty with food products. How do you plead?”

Needless to say; I was shocked. Assaulting royalty is a serious offence, no matter the circumstance. All of a sudden, I was wondering what the moon was like this time of year.

“B.. but, I didn’t.”

What’s going on? This is too much like a bad court drama. We weren’t arrested, so why is this happening?

“Let it be known that the accused has pled his innocence of the crime. If proven guilty the punishment shall be that much worse.”

Spike spoke up hurriedly, “I would like to plead guilty, and not be banished, and put into a dungeon in the place I’m banished to.”

Celestia smiled a little at the outburst, and nodded to Spike. “Noted. Luna, did Honor Bound attack you with food products?”

By now, Luna was no longer smiling. Instead, she was feigning distress. She raised her hoof to her forehead and as dramatically as possible she proclaimed, “Yes, dear sister. He is a monster. He just would not stop throwing those delicious treats at us, no matter how often we pleaded for him to stop. We will not be able to sleep for many nights to come, because of what was done to us. What of you, dear sister? Did he not throw those delectables at thee as well?”

“That he did Luna.”

I was speechless.

They’re ganging up on me. Why would they do this? See if I try to help Luna again.

My thoughts were interrupted in light of celestia’s verdict.

“Honor Bound, you have been found guilty of assaulting my sister and I with tasty treats.”

“I move for a mistrial!” I don’t know what made me blurt that out. Too much TV, I guess.

“Denied. In light of your actions; you are hereby banished to…” Celestia paused, giving me the time to think of all the worst places that she could send me.

Why!? I don’t understand. All I did was cheer Luna up. Was that so bad?

“…Ponyville.”

That doesn’t deserve banishment to the moon. At least she isn’t making a joke of it, by asking if I like… Wait. What did she just say? Did she just say Ponyville?!

“I..I’m sorry, but I don’t think I heard you right.” I rubbed at my ears to make my point. “Did you just say Ponyville?”

Celestia simply nodded in the affirmative. The smile she was wearing threatened to leave the confines of her face.

“I did.” Her voice had returned to being soft and kindhearted. “You are to leave the palace in the morning to live in the local library with my prized pupil, Twilight Sparkle. There; you will be her student, and learn from her the arts of magic and friendship.”

I’m gonna be living with Twilight.

The princesses noticed the goofy grin that formed in the wake of this knowledge, and giggled a bit. I was glad Spike was still sitting on my back. He would have recognized the look I had, as he, himself, has made the same look dozens of times for Rarity.

“We see that thou are pleased with thy ‘punishment’. We wished to thank thee for what thou did for us. Though, it was our sister’s idea to host this charade.”

I really don’t care if this was the biggest troll to ever be concocted. I’m just happy to finally be able to go to Ponyville.

“Wait… what just happened?” Spike asked.

I looked back to him sitting on my back. “They just played a prank on us.”

“That is not completely true.” Celestia interrupted. “While my sister and I do not have any misgivings about your behavior in the dining room, those of the upper class will expect some form of punishment for the display from your window earlier in the day. I’m sorry, but you are not to return to the castle until further notice. They need time to forget about your transgression.”

Well… Shit. That kind of sucks, but I’m strangely OK with it.

“What did you do that got you kicked out of the castle?” Spike asked.

I blushed from embarrassment. “I may have, sorta, kinda…”

“He relieved himself from his bedroom window, in front of many dignitaries.” Luna answered for me.

“Y..you w..what?” Spike managed to say between giggles. “Why would you do that?”

“It wasn’t my fault. I was having trouble moving at the time, and there wasn’t a bathroom in my room.”

“So the next logical thing was to go out the window?”

“Pretty much, yeah.”

“Speaking of your mobility. You seem to be moving normally now. I take it you are no longer weak from the procedure?” Celestia asked.

Huh, I hadn’t noticed. I raised a hoof into the air and shook it a bit. It must have been all the running I’ve been doing.

“I guess not.”

“That is good to hear.” Celestia let out a very large yawn. “Excuse me. It has been a long day for me, and I think I will retire early.”

I mimicked Celestia and gave a yawn of my own. That sounds pretty good at the moment. A lot has happened today, after all.

“I think I’ll go to bed as well.”

“We shall walk thee to thy room. We have something we wish to discuss with thee.” Luna said.

“Good night, Luna.” Celestia nuzzled her sister for a moment, then teleported away to her bed chambers.

“Shall we go then?” Luna made her way from her throne to begin our trek to my room. I followed next to her. The guards opened the doors so that we could pass.

“We wished to thank thee. The last time we had that much fun was last Nightmare Night.”

“Think nothing of it. I’m just glad you’re feeling better.”

“We are still sad for the passing of Star Swirl. However, we have learned that we should not let that sadness get in the way of making new friends, and making new memories with those friends.”

I laughed a little. “That sounds a lot like a friendship report. Perhaps you should write a letter to your sister about it.”

She giggled at the realization. “Maybe we will.”

Spike stared at me for a moment. “How much do you know about us?” He asked.

“I know enough.”

I wasn’t sure if he was content with that answer or not, but he didn’t ask anything else. We stopped in front of my room’s door.

“All else aside. We… I thank you. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.” Luna bowed her head to me.

I smiled at her. “You shouldn’t have to bow to a friend Luna.”

I stepped forward, and put an arm around her neck in the best hug I could manage in this new body. She tensed up, but soon returned the hug.

“I’ll see you in the morning, before I leave, won’t I?”

“Yes, we would not miss it for the world.” With all she wanted to say being said, she released me and turned to walk away.

"Good night, Luna."

She looked back at me for only a moment. "Good night, Honor Bound," and I’m pretty sure I heard her utter, “and thank you,” one last time, under her breath.

I entered my room, and gazed at my huge bed.

I really am tiered.

“Dude, what’s with the mirrors?” Spike asked.

“They’re Blueblood’s.” I answered absentmindedly.

“What? Why do you have his mirrors?”

“Huh? Oh, um… He’s… repainting his room… and… needed a place to put them.”

Wow, that’s a bad lie. I hope Spike believes me.

Spike eyed me suspiciously for only a moment, and then he relaxed and shrugged his shoulders. “Ok. So, where am I going to sleep?”

I hadn’t thought of that. I looked at the only bed in the room. I guess the bed is big enough. It’s not like he’s going to try anything funny.

“We can share the bed. You stay on your side, and I’ll stay on mine.”

"Sounds good to me."

He jumped off my back, and scrambled onto the bed. I moved to my side and slipped under the covers.

Tomorrows going to be awesome.

Comments

[Platinum2094]

WooHoo New Chapter!

[Inkling Idea]

Tomorrows going to be awesome.

Eeyup

[Witness Me]

Next chapter is going to be awesome.

[Emerulf]

Woo, new chapter!

That "Spy" excuse is going to really bite Honor in the flank later, much like "relieving himself out a window" did right now.

Anyway, let's hope that he can keep his cool near Twilight. Wouldn't want him to leave a bad first impression, right?

...I'll be over here counting how long it'll take for him to make a fool out of himself.
Ten bits it'll take the first 200 words of the next chapter.

[loststone]

Damn you making us wait for another chapter of this all to good story

[Honor Bound]

509160
I'm just stringing you along. It's never going to happen. Mwahahahahah.

Seriously though, next chapters going to be fun.