• Published 3rd Jul 2018
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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'.

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Scarlet Revenge (RB and BS)

After their sentencing had been handed down, the noble couple of Jet Set and Upper Crust were promptly escorted back to their home and were fitted with two enchanted bracelets. The two items were to serve as traces, making sure the guards were informed and aware of their every move. If they ever left the premises without authorization, the bracelets would lead to their swift recapture. The pair gulped at the memory of Princess Luna's promise of what will happen if they ever break that promise. A silently fuming Jet set asked a guard, "Are we done here?" as the guard continued to mutter incantations, placing even more enchantments in the house.

"Be grateful that the princess was kind enough to grant you a choice of food and the possibility of visiting hours. If I had been the one rendering your sentence, I would have found a nice dark hole, put you in a cage there, and left you both there to rot." the guard responded with a clipped tone and a glare before finishing his work. "That is all. The moment we step out of the house, your sentence will start. Visiting hours will be from 2 to 3 pm, your community service will begin tomorrow at 8 am sharp. Be ready by then, or be prepared for a rude awakening. In case of a medical emergency, the cauldron to summon aid is right there." He droned out, pointing at the object in question. “Do you have any questions?”

"How much community service we will have to do?" Jet inquired with a tilted head, honestly curious.

"As much as the Princesses tell you." The guard responded sharply before leaving the premises with his comrades.

The moment the last one exited the house closing the door behind him, Upper Crust sighed and plopped herself down onto a nearby couch. "Sentenced to house arrest and community service indefinitely; by the stars, the girls in the country club will NOT let me hear the end of this when we finally do get out." She complained, placing her hooves on her face.

"Would you rather we take that bath of nightmares or have gotten sent to Gelid Maiden?" Jet Set asked with a shiver that made its way down his spine before approaching his wife. "Let those ponies speak their minds, honey, it will just be a passing trend. Heavens know that not a day passes in Canterlot without some new piece of gossip waiting to be told makes the rounds." Jet comforted Upper Crust as he nuzzled her cheek.

"Oh sweetie, you think so?"

"I know so, and if not, we will make it happen. After all, we ARE the face of nobility. Blueblood might be the prince, but we know how high society works here. And there is nothing they can say that will keep us down." He assured with confidence, bringing a smile to Upper Crust until they both were startled by a familiar chuckle.

"You chose the wrong profession, Jet, dear." Looking around the couple started searching for Scarlet until they found her lounging in a spinning chair as she slowly turned around to meet them while slowly shaking a glass of wine in her magic grasp. "You could have been such a wonderful actor," she continued while regarding the contents of her drink.

"Scarlet Lips? But the guards were here less than a minute ago, how did you get in?" Upper Crust asked in anger as she stood up. "And more importantly, did you just break into our house to gloat?" She questioned with raising ire. Scarlet responded with a lilting giggle as she took a sip of her beverage before responding. "Oh Upper Crust you have it all wrong, I didn't come here to gloat, though since you brought it up…" She finally looked up to regard them both with a crooked smile"…I told you so~."

"Go ahead Scarlet, kick a couple when they are down, a real professional." Jet lambasted with an irritated shake of his head before freezing as the feeling of weightlessness overcame him. His body was lifted into the air, and he soon found himself face to face with the angry frown of Scarlet Lips, her eyes staring right at his soul.

"Do NOT lecture me about professionalism!" She hissed out with poison in her voice before letting him go and smiling cheerfully again. "Now then, shall we begin?" She inquired before finishing her drink

"Begin?" Upper Crust echoed. Her body language was noticeably confused, making Scarlet Lips chuckle again. "So soon; did you forget about your re-education sessions? Honestly, Upper Crust, I expected better from you," she shook her head in disappointment. "Such a poor first impression are you two making to your court-appointed counselor."

"WHAT?!" Jet Set exclaimed, recovering from being dropped and joining his wife in shock, the couple glanced at each other before blurting out simultaneously. "You are our rehabilitation teacher?" they asked in fury.

At that moment, the couple started to hear more female voices coming from multiple directions. "Oh, please, like you could be that lucky. No, I'm not going to be in charge of your education." Scarlet's smile suddenly turned malicious. "I'm just here to watch."

"W-Watch what?" Jet Set demanded, doing his best to keep the fear he felt growing in his stomach at bay. Giving up in finding the source of the chuckle, he returned his gaze to Scarlet. All of a sudden, his heart skipped a beat when he felt something grabbing his shoulders. "Our first lessons." A low feminine voice answered him in a whisper.

Startled, Jet Set lept forwards while pivoting to regard his assailant while backing away. A statuesque female diamond dog, with white fur, and a slim body with an hourglass shape stepped out of the shadows. Jet Set continued his retreat until Upper Crust reached his side and stopped his movements while eyeing the new intruder. The canine completed her ensemble with spiky short ginger hair framing her face and accessorized with a diamond necklace adorning her neck. Her tail was straight and fluffy, and her form wore a long clean vest and fedora. Her beauty was marred only by the smile that she wore. Her grin was full of fangs, and her eyes did somehow had a sharklike quality, predatory. As she padded forward with silent paws, the couple discovered that she was twice the size of a fully grown male Diamond dog, and despite having sharp nails, on could quickly tell that they were well cared for by an excellent pedicure job.

"Aww, he's shy. Good!" The diamond dog tittered in excitement before her gaze suddenly turned wicked. "That means that he will listen to instructions!"

Sensing a threat, Upper Crust instinctively moved forward and glared at the canine, stepping between her and Jet Set.

"Oh? And the mare has moxie? I like that, and it can be terrific too. The name's Roxy by the way, you'd better remember." She continued, winking at Jet Set. "Because you are not going to forget me."

"Scarlet, what is the meaning of this?!" Upper Crust demanded. Her fury building while the Roxy kept eyeing the two ponies.

"Roxy just told you" A new voice was heard, and coming from their bedroom where a glowing pair of eyes could be seen in the darkness. An anthropomorphic cat, with long messy hair, and fur black as a new moon night slinked forwards. The dark felines form contrasted by the crisp white of the nurses uniform that she wore as she glided into the room. "This is your first lesson, and as your nurse, I suggest you stay calm. My name is Velvet, by the way, it's nice to meet you." She addressed them with a polite curtsey.

"So these are the recruits?" A dark purple dragons tail lifted Jet Set into the air until he was face to face with a pair of reptilian yellow eyes. Upper Crust craned her neck around and saw a humanoid dragoness with two long horns at the top of her head and four smaller ones running along her jawline. Her belly had light purple scales, which grew darker as they spread across the dragon's form. This was observable through the police officers uniform that had its middle tied tantalizingly on the dragon's hip. Her beauty was only complimented by the silver choker that rested neatly at her collarbone. She draped herself around on the rafters while inspecting Jet Set with a critical eye. "A bit small for my taste, and I don't see much of a muscle here, but I suppose I can work with this." She informs the growing group with a shrug.

"Come on, Uru, you are judging too fast!" A griffin, half cougar and the half eagle called out. Her eyes were accented by purple eyelashes and three feathers on the top of her head in a fauxhawk. She was also wearing a police uniform, and the end of her wings had decorative purple plumage worked in with her feathers. After circling him, the griffin perched herself next to the dragon and looked over to her dragon friend. "He can be perfect for the underdog act. Nobody would expect a pony that looks so weak to pull anything off! Oh, I'm Feral, by the way, its a pleasure to meet you."

"HEY!" Jet Set complained in anger.

Upper Crust moved to try to intervene, but before she could do anything, she was levitated into the air and into the arms of Roxy who restrained her in a hug. "Ah, ah! Upper Crust, remember" To the shock of the two ponies. None other than Princess Luna walked toward her with a smile and her horn shining. "You have to assist in these lessons." Suddenly her body burst into purple flames revealing a tall and slim female changeling wearing a copy of Princess Luna's armor and regarding Upper Crust with a smirk. Her body was dark blue, her hair was long and silver, and her wings resembled those of a dragonfly.

"So it will be in your best interest that you don't resist too much, and instead start with the introductions, I will start. my name is Gerbera, but when I'm in character, you can address me as 'your highness.''" she informed, turning back into Princess Luna and putting her hoof under her chin as she looked at Upper Crust. "Now let's see. What role would be fitting for you? The damsel in distress?"

"Isn't that old cliche done to death?" Velvet complained, followed by a roll of her eyes before thinking too. "Oh, maybe the peddler? It's a cliche but a classic if done right, with so much potential."

"Get away from ME!" Upper Crust yelled in frustration, teleporting away from their grasp, Jet Set soon following suit and soon both reappeared in the corner of the room away from the group, before eyeing Scarlet Lips who had a look of barely contained amusement on her face. "What is the meaning of all of this Scarlet?! I want an explanation, and I want it now!"

"There it is! The fire, the passion! That mare is pure dynamite!" Roxy praised her and clapped her padded hands. "I vote for the villain role. She was born to do that!"

"What?" Both Jet Set and Upper Crust replied, confused by that reaction. Scarlet merely shook her head. "Honestly, do I have to spell it out for you? This is your first improv class." She finally explained.

"What? You mean…oh no, not in a million years, if you think I'm going to degrade myself for your amusement…!" Jet Set complained but stopped by the roar of Uru, who was now glaring daggers at him.

"Choose your words carefully, sir. Unless you wish for your next role to be a roman candle." She warned a telltale trail of smoke escaping her lips as she spoke and her throat glowed with the barely contained fury of Dragonfire.

"Scarlet you can't be serious, improv class? Really? You can't do this to us this…this can't be legal!" Upper Crust demanded with a big blush. Jet Set decided to keep quiet so as not to anger Uru even more.

"But that's the thing honey, starting today, it IS!" Scarlet answered brightly before standing up and approaching a nearby desk. "Approved by none other than Princess Luna personally and put in circulation effective immediately." She showed them a small packet of documents with Luna's stamp and royal seal affixed on it, shocking the two. "And guess what fortunate couple just agreed to be the first test subjects in Canterlot's newest rehabilitation project?"

"Rehabilitation? How does improv class help reintroduce criminals into society?" Jet Set asked, confused and a tad bit curious with this whole ordeal, while Upper Crust put her head underneath her husband's neck in a protective manner.

"Criminals? Oh, honey, I'm afraid you got it all wrong. True you did attack royalty and all but kicked Equestria into a very nasty financial crisis. Oh, and you broke various rules, but to call yourself criminals? That sounds a bit excessive." Gerbera answered as she slowly approached the two. "I prefer the term, attention seekers."

"Hey!" Upper Crust complained, insulted for being compared to a toddler, even if the observation was a bit on the snout.

"And to answer your question, the solution is fairly simple actually," Scarlet continued as she places some ink, a feather, and some blank scrolls down. "You see, despite the horrible things you did, and the suffering you forced the crown and country to endure for one whole month, nothing you did had any true malicious intent. At its core, all you ever wanted was some attention."

"We are not toddlers!" Jet Set insisted, but his opinion was promptly ignored as Uru got closer to him, and taking advantage of his surprise, slipped a dampening ring on his horn. "Oh honey, I'm sorry but, even if you weren't, you sure acted just like one."

"Both of you, actually." Roxy tells placing a similar ring on Upper Crust before she could do anything, "Not that there is something wrong with that of course. I respect those that seek out what they want." She confided, flashing her a smile full of fangs.

"And that is why a certain suggestion came to the princess' ear, on how to help purge you of such childish behaviors," Scarlet commented while grinning at both of them. "By helping you imagine different scenarios and situations! A proactive way for you to see more points of view in a safe and more importantly, supervised way."

All the other woman started to approach the couple, and they now saw that they had dresses at the ready.

"Can we at least choose what to act out? "Jet Set asked, gulping when he saw the garb of homeless individuals mixed with that of peasants.

"I was going to give you the option, yeah," Uru explained. "But after hearing some of those comments, I believe someone needs a lesson in humility."

"Just as I promised…I will be next." Scarlet commented in a low tone as she dips the tip of her feather on the ink.

"Scarlet, what are you doing?" Upper Crust asked, taking notice of her actions.

"Oh, this?" she asks, lifting her feather, "Well I suppose I was lying when I said that I wouldn't do anything. It seems that while you are going to be reenacting various theatrical plays, you will be helping me construct my latest book by acting out the scenes I write." She states with a cheerful tone. "Don't worry. I will make sure to give you credit for your assistance. As I have done with all of my friends here." She finished, pointing at the other woman in the room.

"That's right." Velvet nodded as she started to move the furniture to make more room. "We have helped Scarlet with hundreds of books for years now, reenacting scenes and giving her suggestions on what to do or not to do. It is pretty funny and most of all, refreshing."

"You should be honored; normally these sessions would require a lot of determination and stamina, for Scarlet to offer you to be part of the experience means that you can be something else," Gerbera confided to them with a smile. "So what do you say if we work together and have some fun?"

"And refrain for any other comments about this being some form of degradation."

"S…sure, sure! Let work together! Teamwork improved!" Jet answered, not wanting to get on the dragon's wrong side.

Upper Crust sighed in defeat and rolled her eyes before smiling slightly. "Fine, still better than the alternative."

"Now that is the spirit!" Feral cheered, bringing them into a group hug. "You will see! The two of you will love this. Scarlet wasn't lying either, and I think you could be a great actor Jet Set!"

"Oh that reminds me, I should warn you now with the length of my books and how many tries it usually takes us. One improv session could last at least eight hours." Scarlet warned the couple who stared at her flatly for a couple of seconds before making a mad dash for the door. Unfortunately, Velvet and Uru caught both of them using their respective tails.

"Remember, it's this or the bath~" Uru reminded them. "Better just accept it and comply or it will just get worse for you two."

"Ok! Ok! Then what about this? Since this is our first day, we spend it just introducing ourselves, and telling each other such in a reaaaaallly long story form?" Jet suggested with his wife nodding in agreement rapidly, but the gathered cadre of women shook their heads as Uru lifted him into the air. "Nice try."

"Ok ladies, back to the first problem, what role do we start with?" Gerbera asked her companions.

"Got you covered dear," Scarlet called out with a smile before looking at the couple, "I say, explorers, lost in a jungle! And I know how to start things off!" She charged her horn, and the room suddenly transformed into a dense jungle, complete with vines, bugs, and stinging bushes.

"What the…?" Jet asked, confused about what happened.

"Just an illusion dear, to help you get into character," Scarlet answered before she disappeared with her friends. "Now let us begin, Chapter One: After weeks of grueling exploring and fighting starvation, we find ourselves trapped inside an uncharted jungle…"

To the surprise of the couple, the second Scarlet finished the sentence, the couple could feel their stomach grumbling, and their hooves were aching.

"Scarlet…how realistic can these sessions get?" Jet Set asked worried about the level of realism they were in now, a natural mosquito biting his snout.

"It's best if you don't find out, now if you please, start exploring." Scarlet directed them as two machetes appeared in front of the two. Looking at one another, the couple could only shrug and ultimately decided to go along.

8 hours later

A refreshed and happy Scarlet Lips stepped out onto Upper Crust and Jet Set's balcony, before stretching and look at the moon.

By Celestia mane, I haven't felt so invigorated in years!

She looked back with a smile as she sees all of her friends happily sleeping while laying around in the living room, the noble couple in the middle of the room wholly exhausted, dirty and bruised by the experience.

Hmm, maybe I was a bit harsh on them for the first lesson. I should go easier on them in the next class. She nodded to herself before looking back at the castle and leaned on the rail of the balcony.

"And once I'm through with them. You're next. Rest well my charming prince, soon enough I will get you." She whispers to the wind with dreamy eyes until the unmistakable voice of Pinkie Pie called at her far away in the distance.

"No, you won't!"

Scarlet's eyes widened in surprise before she glared at the castle. "Yes. I will!"

"Noooooope!"

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