Lunchtime Learning
Celestia led Sunset to the table. Their lunch consisted of soup, sandwiches, and juice. Sunset identified the soup easily: tomato. It was an okay soup, not great though. She lapped it up a little worriedly, knowing that where she came from, tomatoes were poisonous to horses. She shrugged her concern off, though, figuring that Celestia wouldn’t serve anything lethally inedible. Then she looked at the sandwich and noticed something was definitely off.
“Am I supposed to eat this?" she asked the princess.
"Yes, is there something wrong with it?" Celestia's eyes widened. "Are you a vegetarian? Oh my. Here, I-I'll get you a different sandwich." Had she already ruined her relationship with this new Sunset? She cursed herself; over a thousand years an expert in diplomacy, and a simple assumption may have already blown everything. First her sister, then one of her best students, and now this poor girl. Celestia made few mistakes, but when she did, they always had heavy consequences. A sweat broke out over her cheeks.
Sunset noticed Celestia's panic and quickly interjected, "No no no, I'm just confused!" Sunset hoped to console the Princess. "I don't want to sound rude or anything, but there are so many things here that just seem inconvenient for people with hooves." Sunset flinched, hoping that she hadn't gone too far in saying that.
However, Celestia simply sat there, a hoof raised to her chin. After a moment, she said, “I never really gave it any thought." She shrugged before continuing, "I can explain a few things, but you do have a point. We have quite a few things that do seem rather unsuitable for non-unicorns." Celestia removed one of her golden hoof greaves and held her hoof up for Sunset Shimmer to see. "Watch." Sunset gasped when Celestia's hoof flexed inward and then outward. Celestia put her hoof back into the greave. "Other than that most other ponies use their mouth for grasping objects, though pegasi will use their wings. For now, though, I'll begin teaching you the most basic form of magic: telekinesis.
Sunset sat back in her chair, preparing herself for her first lesson. Celestia resumed, “Every unicorn has the power to use telekinesis. Obviously, it makes it much easier for us to use and manipulate objects. To start our practice session, first I want you to simply imagine yourself picking up and putting down your spoon in your original form." Celestia bit her tongue. "I'm sorry to bring it up, but having you practice like that will actually make it much faster and easier for you than for the typical unicorn. Unlike them, you've had experience first hoof, or should I say hand. I can teach you the traditional way if you want me to!" She blushed more, and couldn’t bring herself to make eye contact with Sunset.
"No, please don't worry. I'm not offended and I think I understand what you mean. I think I know why you’re reacting like that too." Sunset looked down at her hind hooves, "This is just as hard for you as it is for me, isn't it?"
"No Sunset, my situation is not as bad as yours. I'm not going to pretend that it is. You're in a new world, with a body that is and at the same time isn't your own, having to learn to do things all over again, and all with the help of complete strangers. However," Celestia closed her eyes, her barriers lowering, "my situation isn't easy. You see, Sunset Shimmer, though I may look young and vibrant, I'm really over a thousand years old, and though I've seen friends, family, and the rest of my subjects come and go in their mortal life, I've only truly lost very few of them. Your other I lost to her pride and lust for power. She's gone now, hiding in your world and planning who knows what. Long before this, though, was my sister.
"You see, I lost her to her jealousy of myself. Something I could have prevented if I had only realized it sooner, just like with Sunset Shimmer. It seems I didn't learn much from my past, as the cycle has repeated itself, only with more dire consequences. For you being here, I'm partially to blame; I should have paid more attention." A few tears fell from Celestia's eyes. "Let's focus on your magic lesson, it will keep us distracted from our current situation."
"All right," Sunset agreed. She didn't want to start crying again, she'd done quite enough last night. She focused her mind, imagining her hand picking up and putting down the spoon, over and over again.
"You have the motion in your mind?" Celestia asked, and Sunset nodded. "Now the next thing I'll have you practice is channeling magical energy. To channel the energy, focus your mind on your horn. Over time, this will become easier, and you'll be able to use telekinesis on a whim."
Sunset stared up at her horn, her eyes crossing. She concentrated, her teeth clenched, her eyes focused, and suddenly this odd aura enveloped her horn. She lost her focus and it sputtered out, little sparks flying out and dying mid-air. She looked at Celestia with wide eyes and her mouth ajar.
"You did it, and much faster than most do their first time!" Celestia said, a grin forming. "Okay, now what you need to do is start by imagining the action you're going to take, in this case raising the spoon, and then channel your energy while also focusing on the action. It will cost more energy at first, but with time you'll be able to pick up and use multiple objects at once."
Sunset cleared her mind, imagining raising the spoon then, while still imagining it, she focused on her horn. For a while nothing happened, then her horn lit up for a moment and the spoon lifted a couple of inches off the table, surrounded by the same aura on her horn. Then it clattered back as the magic faded. Sunset felt drained, as if she'd just run a mile, but she ignored it, proud of her accomplishment.
Sunset continued this until she started panting with exhaustion. The last time she lifted it she managed to get it a foot off the table. Celestia still smiled, and said to the tired pony, "Don't worry, it will take time. For now, feel free to enjoy your lunch. Don't worry about manners, considering your predicament."
As Sunset returned her tongue to the soup, Celestia asked, "Would you like to hear the tale of Equestria's founding?" Sunset nodded, and the princess began.
"A long time ago..."
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In a galaxy far far away....
5700983 Best franchise ever! At least until Disney killed it, Star Wars 1313, the best Star Wars game we'll never play.
:'(
5701278 So true...
I am actually planning something with pony Sunset Shimmer, and it overlaps this time period. When I actually write it, i'll give a link, but that won't be for a while.
Simple explanation: ponies and other hooved creatures represent a minority in their world, overall. Most sentient races-- minotaurs, dragons, gryphons, diamond dogs, etc.--- have little or no magic but DO have hands, paws or claws. The majority of manufactured goods would be made by, and for, creatures with hand-approximates. As Equestria seems more agrarian than industrial, they probably find it easier just to trade for manufactured goods... and if the products aren't really hoof-friendly, they just make do.
flexible hooves... meh. A soft, flexible hoof would be crippling for a species that runs on all fours. A better explanation would be that the frog of the hoof (the fleshy pad on the underside) is sticky, like a chameleon's toe, and lets them cling to things. Or... you know... magic clingy power.
Very nice work, well done.
You realize that unicorn levitation come from somewhere. It comes from telekinesis(magic) all ponies are born with. All ponies can pick up items with their hooves using this telekinesis or we could call it contact levitation. If they couldn't there would never be pony civilisation.
Even with flexible hooves they wouldn't able to pick up items.
6889860
From what we saw minotaurs will be probably near extinction, dimond dogs live underground and underground isn't good place to hold big population and dragons are too large to create big population. Dragons have no industry, because they are too big to gather materials or to build something and they would need lots of materials to build anything. Living underground doesn't give too much room to have any industry or population so diamondogs are out of the picture and minotaurs are too scarce to have any.
That means pony civilisation has the biggest population and industry in the world.