• Published 3rd Jul 2018
  • 43,993 Views, 5,439 Comments

The Humble Prince - Lighting Ace



A man wakes up to find he's inhabiting the body of a cartoon horse who wasn't exactly Mister Popular, judging from how shocked the locals are when he says things like 'please' and 'thank you'.

  • ...
189
 5,439
 43,993

PreviousChapters Next
A Blue Dawn (Edited by CC, YB And GT4)

The morning started as it often did for the Diarch of the Sun. A sweet, cream-stuffed donut and a newspaper before the hustle and bustle of Day court.

Normally a staunch professional, Princess Celestia would have bathed and been clad in her regalia by now but, due to a last-minute cancellation, she found herself a small window of free time this morning. Enough that she was allowed to kick up her hooves and ease into the day for once.

Her comfy pink robe, a birthday gift from Cadance last year along with her silver satin slippers, was a luxury she was allowing herself, today.

By my sun, why can't every morning be like this? Celestia mused while she finished her donut.

She was in the middle of drinking her coffee when an earth pony stallion with gray fur and a black mane and tail entered the room and gave her a small bow. "Apologies for disturbing your breakfast, Princess, but I have urgent news."

The Princess looked up at her butler and folded her newspaper downward. "Oh my, what is it, Flicker? You seem concerned."

"It’s…" Flicker glanced to the side, chewing his lip. "…It’s Prince Blueblood, Princess."

That earned a groan and a roll of the eyes from the princess before she returned to her newspaper. "What did he do this time?"

"It’s not so much what he did, rather more of what he is…doing?"

"Hm?" Celestia turned to him with a raised eyebrow.

"He is acting strange, Your Highness. More so than usual, that is. Two of his hoofmaids found him this morning in his room wrestling with his bed sheets and yelling something about missing limbs and how he has lost the ability to walk," Flicker explained.

Celestia rolled her eyes once more and took a gulp of her coffee. "Oh Flicker, I think you and those poor maids are the victims of a prank. My nephew is probably trying to make them carry him around like a trophy or something, " she said with a knowing smirk. "I will have a talk with him later."

"That is what I thought at first too, Your Highness, but he continued to put up such a convincing act that it has me worried. I had him sent to the infirmary to see what was wrong and that’s when the weirdest thing happened. He…he thanked me." Flicker shivered.

AS if on cue, Celestia spat her coffee right into the newspaper and looked at Flicker in complete shock, all pretense of decorum tossed to the wayside. "He thanked you?"

"Yes."

"My nephew?"

"Yes…?"

"Prince Blueblood?"

"I know! Princess, this might be serious. For a moment I thought he was replaced by a changeling but when the guards used a detection spell on his body they confirmed that it is, indeed, who he appears to be. I just don't know what is happening but it’s scaring the staff. Your Highness, I think you should see to him immediately."

"I couldn't agree more, Flicker," Celestia declared as she stood up. “This couldn't possibly be Chrysalis. That would be the poorest infiltration attempt imaginable. And Thorax wouldn’t think of pulling this kind of prank, so there must be something else at stake here. By my crown I'm going to find out what it is." Determined to shed light on this conundrum, Celestia left the dining room, making a beeline to the infirmary.

This is strange…my nephew suddenly forgetting how to walk and showing respect? It's almost like the wish I…NO. That is not possible. There is no way that star did this. Get your head in the game, Celestia, this could be a new villain trying to take over Equestria! Somehow using Blueblood to do so. I need to get to the bottom of this.


A pegasus stallion with a white coat and a stethoscope around his neck returned to his office carrying a clipboard, checking the X-rays and finished test results written on it.

"Alright, Your Highness, we are almost done with all the tests. Now I only need to ask…" The doctor had to stop himself when he saw how the infamous Prince of Canterlot was currently struggling to stand up as one of the maids that brought him was encouraging him to take small steps like he was a giant colt.

"It’s okay, sir, you are almost there," the maid said to him with a smile as the prince in question glanced about like he was standing on lava. He took small, shaking steps, almost tripping over himself on more than one occasion.

He doesn't even remember how to walk? The doctor wondered in confusion as he watched the scene unfold.

"I…I think I'm doing it, Mist! I’m actually doing it!" the prince said gleefully before tripping with a small yelp of surprise. He would have tumbled if not for the maid in question, who managed to catch him at the last second.

"Good work, sir! You’re almost ready. Soon you will be able to walk again without any problems."

Blueblood just smiled and nodded, not caring or understanding how ridiculous he looked.

"Ahem!" The doctor cleared his throat, catching the attention of both ponies. Mist suddenly let the prince go and backed off with a blush of embarrassment on her face. Meanwhile, Blueblood, without anypony there to support him, ended up falling onto the ground with a thump, his legs splayed out in a rather undignified fashion.

"Prince Blueblood!" The maid panicked and rushed to help him up again. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," Blueblood said with a groan, massaging his head. "Thanks for the assist, Mist."

The staff in the room went silent, staring at him in complete shock.

He said it again! Mist screamed in her head, still not believing her ears. How, what, and why?!

"…What?" Blueblood eventually asked with a raised eyebrow as he leaned on a table for support.

"N-Nothing! Nothing, Your Highness, it’s just…surprising, is all. You’ve been acting out of sorts since this morning," Mist replied in haste.

Blueblood suddenly grew nervous. "R-Really? Sorry, I just, uh…must be feeling a bit dizzy or something," he said with a laugh.

"Anyway," the doctor interrupted. "Miss Mist, would you mind leaving us alone for a moment? I need to ask the prince a couple of questions."

Mist nodded. "Yes, of course, Dr. Caliber.” She looked at Blueblood and offered him a small smile. “I will be in the hallway if you need me, sir.”

Blueblood waved as she departed. "I’ll try not to take too long!"

Both ponies looked at him with questioning stares for a moment, but Mist soon recovered and trotted away while Caliber helped the prince sit on the table.

"Right then, as I was saying, I got the results for your tests right here, Prince Blueblood. Everything seems in order: no fractures, punctures, illnesses, or concussions of any kind. Physically speaking, you are perfectly fine."

"That’s good to hear."

"That being said, there are still some worries I would like to address, so if you don't mind, I have a few questions I would like to ask."

"Sure, go ahead doctor," Blueblood said with a courteous nod.

Caliber continued to look at him with some intrigue.

No boasting about being the image of physical health? No snarky comments? No demeaning my profession? No talking my ear off? Not to mention, he’s friendly and respectful. Do I…really want to help him return to his old self?

Caliber cleared his throat once more, took his clipboard in hoof, and flipped some papers before taking a pen and pressing it against the paper. "Okay, first question: do you know what day it is?"

"Hmmm." Blueblood tapped his hoof against his chin. "Monday?"

Caliber looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Are you asking me or telling me?"

Blueblood glanced left and right before nodding with confidence. "Telling you."

The doctor stared at him with an emotionless expression. "Prince, if you want me to help, I need you to be honest with me. Do you, or do you not, know what day it is?"

"Well, okay, I don't know."

Dr Caliber nodded and checked his list. “Alright. Do you know what your name is?"

"Blueblood."

"Good." He checked again. "Do you know where we are right now?"

Once more the prince looked to his left and right until he spotted the window in the office and took a small peak. "I would like to say somewhere in Europe?"

"Somewhere in what? Your Highness, if you don't know the answer, just say so. There is no need for you to start making up names," Dr. Caliber huffed, shaking his head and checking another point on the list.

"Right, I will keep that in mind," the prince said with a nervous smile

Okay, so I can safely say that I'm not on Earth. That is nice. That is…fine. For now, let's just keep playing along, and try not to end up in the loony bin.

"Okay then, moving on. This is the last question: before waking up, what is the last thing you remembered?"

Blueblood closed his eyes as he recalled his last memories before waking up. Memories of screams, fire, and pieces of a building collapsing around him flashed in front of him, forcing him to jerk back in fear, startling the doctor. "I…I just don't know. I think I was having a nightmare. Waking up, then going back to sleep. Everything is too foggy," he groaned, holding his head.

"It’s okay, Prince Blueblood," Caliber said, placing a hoof on his shoulder. "You don't need to force yourself to remember."

Blueblood nodded and looked back at him. "So what happens next?"

"Now, you wait," Caliber replied as he marched to the door. "I need to do one more thing before I can safely allow you to leave."

"Is…is there something wrong?" Blueblood nervously asked.

"Oh, no. Don’t worry, Your Highness, everything is fine," Caliber reassured him. "I just need to take these results to be studied further. It won’t take too much time, so please wait there."

"Ah…well, okay.”

Caliber nodded and left the room, leaving a very confused, very nervous Prince Blueblood on the table.


Moments before in the hallway

As soon as Mist left the infirmary, her friend, Clean Breeze, confronted her with a question burning in her mind. "So? Has he finally lost it?"

"Breezie!" Mist scowled. "How could you say that? The poor colt is scared as Tartarus in there."

"Yeah, but we are talking about a colt named Blueblood," Clean remarked.

"Even so, the moment he looked us in the eyes…those puppy eyes he gave us. It was like looking at a poor colt lost in the park. I just didn't have it in me to leave him like that. I suppose raising Pearl has left some motherly curse on me," Mist confessed with some degree of embarrassment.

"So that is why you were so quick to teach him how to walk again?" Clean asked.

"Say what you want. Even though he is a grown stallion, seeing him put forth the effort and listening to what I have to say for once was both satisfactory and, to a degree, almost cute."

"…Wow, Mist, I didn't know you were into those sorts of plays," the other maid teased with a smirk.

"Oh, poor, naive Breezie. Trust me, you will understand when you’re older."

"Hey!" Clean glared at her while Mist only chuckled at her outburst.

After her anger faded, Clean cleared her throat and looked at the infirmary door. "So, what do you think will happen to him?"

"I honestly don't know, Breezie. I really would love it if this new Blueblood was here to stay, but if he isn’t able to fit into society, Celestia knows what will happen to him."

"I say this is divine punishment. Karma was sure to catch up with him sooner or later. I say that he got what he deserved," Clean said, the memories of last week still fresh in her mind. "But yeah, I hope he doesn't end up in an asylum. As much of a jerk he is…was, not even he deserves to end up there.”

"Don't worry, Breezie, he’ll be ok. I'm sure the Princess wouldn't allow that to happen."

Right on cue, the aforementioned princess walked toward the infirmary followed closely by the head butler, Flicker. The moment they saw them, the maids offered small bows to the princess.

"Your Highness," both mares droned respectfully at the same time

"At ease, my little ponies," Celestia said to them in her renowned motherly voice as they looked back up at the two newcomers.

Flicker gave them both the stink-eye. "And may I know the reason why you two are standing here instead of attending to your duties?" he asked, narrowing his gaze.

"Uh, well, Mister Flicker, you see, today we were supposed to look after Prince Blueblood, but since he is like that…" Clean stammered.

"I thought I was clear when I told you that you were dismissed from your current duty and instead were to go clean the empty guest rooms," Flicker scolded.

"But the prince asked us to stay!" Mist argued.

Before Flicker could explode on the maid for her mild insubordination, Celestia put a hoof on his shoulder. "At ease, Flicker, they were following the prince’s orders," she said, and then addressed the maids. "Now ladies, I am very thankful for your concern for my nephew and you can rest assured that he is in good hooves. You two may take your leave without any worry."

"But Princess―" Breeze took a step forward "―you don't get it. The prince, as he is right now, can't even walk on his own."

"What?" Princess Celestia asked in surprise.

"I'm afraid it is far worse than that, Princess," Dr. Caliber announced to them as he emerged from the infirmary with a grim expression. Once he looked at the princess he gave her a short bow before addressing her. "If I had to describe the Prince’s medical condition in one word right now, I would have to say it’s 'enigmatic'."

"What do you mean, doctor?" Celestia asked, confused.

Sighing, Caliber proceeded to give her the X-ray and blood samples that were taken. "All the tests I took came back negative. He doesn't have any type of concussion or fracture, his magic and ley lines appear nominal, his brain activity is stable, the spell scans all returned green, and there are no signs of poison or hypnosis on his being. For all intents and purposes, he should be perfectly fine."

Celestia looked at the results before looking back at the doctor waiting for him to continue. "And yet when I quizzed him with the basic mental tests he failed almost every single question. Princess, I can confirm it. He not only doesn't know how to walk or even stand, he also doesn't know where he is, how to read or write, how magic works, or even who he is. I fear he only knows his name because the maids yelled it at him this morning."

"So you’re saying he is now like a newborn baby?" Clear asked.

Caliber shook his head. "No, his basic motor functions are still there. That is why he still knows how to talk and understand us. He should be perfectly capable of functioning once he learns how to walk, read, and write again." He rubbed the bridge of his nose with his hoof. "I don't know how or why, but from what I have seen, it seems like his brain simply started over. Right now his mind is a blank slate."

"So this is like some kind of amnesia?" guessed Mist.

"For lack of a better term, yes. And as such, until his mind starts to settle in, I would advise that we let him rest and slowly reintroduce him to Equestria."

"And there it is," Celestia spoke with an exasperated sigh, much to everypony’s surprise. "I knew he was up to something, but I just couldn't place my hoof on it. Now I get it — he wants to weasel his way out of his duties while at the same time earning our pity, just so that I agree to future requests. Oh, that scheming nephew of mine, always the actor.” She shook her head sadly. "He is making the act of his life, I will grant him that, but by my mane, he is wasting it on something so petty."

"Princess, I can assure you, this is not an act," Caliber reaffirmed.

"Oh, doctor, please don't feel bad. Blueblood can be extremely good when it comes to acting. Even I have been made a fool by his schemes in the past," Celestia responded. "You need to give him credit though, he can really commit to the bit, can't he?"

"You mean to tell me that all of what he’s doing is just an act to skip all of his royal duties?" Mist asked with confusion. She looked back at the entrance to the infirmary, beyond which the prince waited. It had all felt so real to her.

Celestia nodded solemnly. "Don't worry, my little ponies, I will clear the air soon enough. Just let me have a word with my nephew,” she replied, her voice turning dark as she stepped into the infirmary. "Blueblood! We need to talk," Celestia called with a stern voice.

The stallion in question nearly jumped clean out of his skin on the examination table, startled. "Ah, h-hi, miss." He gave Celestia a nervous smile as he waved at her, backing up slightly.

"Oh, cut the act, would you?" Celestia growled, stomping a hoof on the floor. "I know you’re faking it, Blueblood. So why don't we cut this song and dance and skip right into what you want. More money? Do you want to rent my throne room for your snobbish friends? Some expensive tour around Equestria?"

"What? No!"

What the hell is wrong with this pony? Blueblood thought frantically to himself.

"Then what?!" Celestia demanded.

"I swear, I really don't know. Why are you so mad at me?" he asked, suddenly fearing for his life.

"Why am I so mad? Are you truly going to pretend that you don't know who I am?" Celestia pressed on, determined to squeeze the truth from her deceiving nephew.

However, in the back of her mind, a lone doubt wormed her way into her thoughts. Why was he still continuing this charade? Surely he knew it would never work, right?

Suddenly she wasn’t so sure.

"No, I'm sorry! I don't know!"

"She is the princess of all of Equestria, you inconsiderate brat!" Flicker yelled as he entered the room, upon hearing the commotion. "And I’d advise you to address her as such!"

"P-P-PRINCESS!?" Blueblood shouted in alarm as he attempted to get down from the table and bow to her. Or rather, he flopped sideways off the table and wriggled himself to her hooves in an attempt at groveling, failing successfully as he still didn't have complete control of his legs.

The display was enough to make both the princess and the butler flinch at the impact to the floor and how he didn't even attempt to cover his face as he started to shiver and tremble like a pony in winter time in front of her.

"I'm sorry, princess! I'm so sorry, please don’t be mad!"

"Blueblood, why are you on the floor?" Celestia asked, completely lost on what was happening. Her anger had faded, being replaced by befuddlement.

Seriously, now this doesn't amount to anything other than to drag his dignity even further through the mud. What is your endgame nephew?

The prince, for his part, lifted his head slightly as he looked at her, fearing for his life once more. "T-trying to bow to my princess?"

"You do know that you are also a prince right?" Flicker informed him, arching an eyebrow.

The blood of the prince froze in that instant as what was happening slowly dawned on him, and that he was making a fool of himself in front of what was essentially a family member who didn't particularly like him, and for how she talked to him, was strict and temperamental. Not only that, but it appeared that this Blueblood pony needed her help to get money, and chances were that she outranked him. If she didn’t believe his story, she would only need to say the word and he would be put in an asylum, or even worse she could declare him dangerous and put him in the dungeon, maybe even order his execution.

He needed to think fast, to think of something, anything to save his skin.Thinking as quickly as he could, he slowly sat up, convincing himself that the next words that came from his mouth could very well be his last. He scanned everything in the room, looking for clues, any ray of hope that might save his life. Then he noticed the princess’s fur and how it matched his own perfectly. He was a prince and she was a princess. Maybe they were related? A sister perhaps, but she looked older than himself. The solution was so obvious!

"I'm sorry, mom. Please don't be mad at me…" the Prince whispered to Celestia in a melancholic voice, sniffing and looking down at the floor. He closed his eyes and prayed that by some miracle he did actually defuse the situation.

Unbeknownst to him those exact words not only were the one thing Celestia wasn't expecting to hear that day, but also served as a trigger for a memory she thought was long gone in a chapter of her life. For a brief moment, reality dissolved around her, and the memories flooded into her mind like a torrent…


It was the night of the funeral of Blueblood’s parents, and it was rainy and stormy outside. The princess was devastated when she saw how her little nephew, who was only three years old at the time, was trembling and crying his little eyes out in his sleep. When trying to comfort him, she brought him closer to her belly and used her wing as a blanket while humming a quiet lullaby to calm him down. It was a small change at first, but soon the trembling stopped and when she looked back, she found him sound asleep as he was hugging her tight like she was his personal teddy bear.

It was at that moment that, even unconsciously, he said his first words since that horrible incident:

"Mom."

Celestia was both moved and teary as the poor colt was not saying that word out of happiness but rather, of longing wishing to be next to his real mother and trying to reach out for her in his sleep with his little hooves. It was that night that Celestia made the promise to ensure that Blueblood would never be denied anything else, and subsequently the first pure moment he had with her.


The memory faded away and she returned to reality, but she didn't see the bratty nephew she cursed herself for creating. Instead, the scared little colt she once knew was once again shaking like a leaf and asking for his mother, but this time, he was addressing her directly.

There was no way Blueblood knew about that night. She had never told him. He never recalled knowing it, and he always, always called her 'Aunt' or 'Aunty' the moment he started to talk properly. She never admitted it, but part of her heart broke when she came to terms with the fact that she would always be just 'the aunt'.

So for this Blueblood to suddenly appear and say that to her could only mean one thing.

"By the stars…it's true," Celestia whispered at last, loud enough for Blueblood to hear. He opened his eyes and looked at her with a terrified gaze. "You really have lost all of your memories,”she said a little louder. He was pure again. Smiling and teary-eyed, she stared at him like she just saw a lost civilization come back to life.

Blueblood couldn’t believe what was happening, or how this pony just went from being about to rip him in half, into this crying, joyful mare from just one sentence. He just couldn't bring himself to believe that sentence was enough to save his skin and the shock was enough for him to collapse right then and there.

Dr. Caliber poked his head into the infirmary once more and sighed when he saw the prince’s state. He motioned to Flicker with a hoof. “Let’s get him back onto the table.”

Author's Note:

Thanks for the comments, I really didn't expected for this small little story to be so well receive. I will try to come with a next chapter as soon as possible

PreviousChapters Next