My Little Ponytales

by Rainbow Sparkle

S1 E4: Tea for Two

Author's Note:

This took less time then the next chapter, but both are done finally and I can say Huzzah!

Anyways, if you read these and enjoy them, please leave a comment, even if it's a small one. Feedback and comments are the mana from the heavens for many writers and I am no exception.

The soft sound of porcelain clacking and tinkling filled the air as bright sunlight filtered in through the large window covering the ceiling and the wide windows lining much of the room’s walls. It was the only sound in the magnificent chamber besides the barely audible hum of magic.

Normally, the setting of the table and the preparing of the tea was something that the palace servants would attend to, rather than the most powerful individual in all the land.

But then, the guest she was about to entertain was not a normal guest, and even if he was, he was quickly becoming one of those few people that the Guardian of the Sun, Bringer of Harmony and Stewardess of Spring and Summer, her Royal Highness Princess Celestia of Equestria, was coming to see as a good friend.

“Almost… perfect…” She murmured softly to herself as she worked to make sure every plate, cup, and spoon was set absolutely as she liked it. She used her magic to gently nudge the cup of sugar cubes a bit to the northwest of the table’s center, the bowl of honeyed cream sitting opposite to it and the platter in the center occupied by a single large kettle of Golden Flower tea.

“There!” She declared, just as she heard the sound of footsteps and voices in the stairway leading down into the rest of the tower.

She recognized both of them, though it was her aide, Raven Inkwell, whose words she picked up first. “She is expecting you your Highness. And do not fret about being a little late… the Morning Court went on a bit longer than expected.”

The rumbling laugh of her newest friend, and a growing confident followed that as King Asgore, of the Ancient House of Dreemurr, King of the Monsters, replied, “I understand that all too well Miss Inkwell. Still, one should always try to be punctual, even if with friends. And thank you kindly for guiding me along again.”

She smirked a bit, her expression no doubt mirroring that of Raven as she heard her aide chuckle. “It is alright your Highness, there have been a few times when even I get lost in the palace. Wandering minds can distract even the best of us.”

It was then that Celestia saw the tips of his horns, and soon enough the towering form of Asgore himself ascended the final steps. Like her, he was dressed in his royal regalia, even though she had already told him several times this was meant to be more of a casual affair and that he could wear whatever he pleased.

“Celestia, as always it is a pleasure to see you.”

“And to you as well Asgore. The tea is ready, and per your suggestion last week, I went ahead and brewed some Golden Flower tea.” She smiled as she added, “I’ve had time to try it over the last few days and I find that it is quite enjoyable.”

Asgore beamed as he took a seat across from her, taking a moment to get comfortable on the large cushion. “I’m glad to hear it. It has long been a personal favorite of mine, though I have grown quite fond of the wild lavender you brewed during our first few get-togethers.”

As Asgore got situated, she poured tea for each of them, putting in the spoonful of cream and a single sugar cube and leaving the honey for the King. He gave a thankful nod as he prepared his own cup, and for a short while the two simply sat and enjoyed the silence. Every so often they would take a sip and let out a content sigh.

Celestia was the one to finally break the silence as she finished her first cup.

“How is the family doing? Are things getting better between you and Toriel?”

Asgore stiffened a bit, then sighed and shrugged. “They aren’t getting worse at least… which is about all I can ask for right now. We still sleep in separate rooms… but we are civil enough with each other.” He smiled a bit as he added “We have only had one argument this month though… and we made sure the children weren’t present for it, so that's an improvement.”

That earned a soft chuckle from Celestia as she lifted a tea cake to her lips. “As I recall, the first month you had what, ten arguments? One of them in my throne room if I recall?”

Celestia watched in amusement as Asgore squirmed a bit at the reminder of that. “It’s hard to forget… especially as that one pony, Pinkie I believe, decided to provide Toriel with pies to throw at me instead of fireballs.”

“I admit, I’m glad she did. Magical scorch marks are quite difficult to get off.” Celestia remarked, though she tilted her head as she said, “It did remind me to never get into a food fight with Pinkie Pie… or Toriel. Pinkie for her seemingly inexhaustible supply of cakes and pies, and Toriel for her aim.”

Asgore simply shook his head at that, chuckling a bit as he said “She has certainly improved her aim… or maybe she just really wanted to hit me.” His smile faded somewhat at that, and he sunk back into the cushion slightly as he said “I can’t say I blame her for that.”

Celestia gave him a sympathetic look, watching as his gaze became distant. She had a feeling she knew what he was thinking about, and decided to provide him a potential distraction.

“You didn’t say how your children are doing you know.”

Asgore blinked, then coughed as he said, “Right, right, sorry… the children are doing just fine. Asriel hasn’t been having nightmares since your sister visited him, and Frisk is starting to get the hang of unicorn magic. Chara’s been working on their flying… says they’d like to join the Wonderbolts someday. And all three of them have been helping Toriel in getting her school ready.”

He set his cup down as he turned the question on her. “How about you and your sister? How are things going for the two of you?”

Celestia let out a rueful sigh, stirring a bit more cream into her second cup as she thought best how to answer. “Luna has finished catching up on all studies I had prepared for her return… she knows all the current laws and customs of Equestria and how things have changed from before her banishment. But… knowing them and applying them aren’t always the same thing.”

“That’s always the trick, isn’t it?” Asgore asked, and Celestia gave a soft nod. He hummed a bit, eyeing the platter of delectable goodies before settling on plucking a cucumber sandwich nearly hidden amongst a few other pastries. “I take it that has something to do with the grumbling I’ve heard amongst some of the nobles in Canterlot?”

The Princess let out a frustrated nicker at that. “She got to hold her first Night Council this week, and since I have been ignoring my nephew’s various proposals and complaints of late, he decided he would try bringing them to her and her Council. Blueblood may not be the easiest to make friends with, but his place in the line of succession and his family line gives him a great deal of clout and… respect of sorts among the other houses. And it’s expected that when he is given a chance to air whatever his newest grievance is, he’ll be given the same respect any other noble is given.”

Asgore winced a bit. “I have a feeling I know where this is going.”

That at least earned a smile from Celestia. “What, that after hearing his silly dispute with the Duchess of Hoofington and what he wished done about it that Princess Luna told him he was a dunderheaded buffoon for bringing such an issue before her council, and that if he ever did so again she’d see him stripped of several of his titles and spend a few days in the palace dungeon for wasting her and her advisers time?”

The King let out an ‘oof’ sound at that, shaking his head as he said, “I hadn’t heard the exact details of the incident, but it certainly created waves.”

Celestia nodded, sighing as she took in a long breath of air, letting the scent of the tea soothe and relax her. “As much as many nobles may agree with her sentiment, if not her phrasing, it wasn’t a good start for her in interacting more directly with the nobility. Compared to when she and I ruled in the early days, the noble houses have more privilege and influence than she is used to. I had to remind her that her council can override any of her decisions if a majority votes against her.”

“I suspect in time I might have to deal with such things to some extent.” Asgore murmured softly to himself. “The old houses didn’t really matter much when we were Underground, and the few that remain don’t seem too concerned or bothered right now… and it helps that to an extent I’ve had a bit of a hands off approach anyways… but that could change as we begin to grow up here on the surface.”

Celestia tilted her head a bit in thought at that, being reminded of something they’d discussed at their last tea time. “How are things going with getting more Monsters moved out of the Underground? Any issues I need to know or can help with?”

“It is still taking time, but I am confident most will have moved out of the Underground by the beginning of next year.” Asgore said, taking a long draw on his cup before setting it down. “You must remember, many of us were surprised to find Equestria when we left the Underground, rather than the surface of the Earth.”

“You weren’t the only ones.” Celestia said, thinking back to the pulsing she had felt from the Elements, and receiving a letter from Twilight and her friends not five minutes later that they too had sensed something coming from within the Everfree.

It had taken a few minutes more for her to feel the surge of magic, and she’d briefly feared that it might be enough to free Discord again, but he remained inside his stone prison. Still, something like that had required her to act quickly, mobilizing a portion of the Royal Guard, the Wonderbolts, and preparing her and her sister’s airship’s so that they could quickly provide backup to the Element Bearers should it be necessary.

Thankfully, it hadn’t, but Luna and herself had been just as caught off guard by the group of figures who had been gathered around the Tree of Harmony, still trying to figure out just how two of their number had gone from bipeds to quadrupeds.

“I wish I could provide an answer on what had happened.” Celestia said after a moment as she looked at her own cup. “Even with the rather… amazing information young Frisk was able to provide about these… RESETs and what Alphys and Sans have been able to tell us about the Barrier… none of my scholars have been able to come up with a reason why the barrier being broken this time resulted in your Underground being brought to our world.”

Asgore finished munching on a cookie, another deep, rumbling chuckle coming forth. “Do not be upset that you cannot figure it out. To be honest, from what Frisk told me, I am actually rather glad things turned out this way. They said that the reception we Monsters got seemed to change each time they reset as they tried to figure out a way to save our two lost children. Considering how you and your sister have welcomed us all with open ar- erm, hooves, and that there haven’t been any major incidents…”

“And for that, I am quite glad. And rather proud of my little ponies as they follow our example.” Celestia said with a smile, eyeing a raspberry tart that was being dug out from the pile as Asgore snatched another pastry. She considered it a bit, then shook her head as she thought about something her sister had said.

“I think next time I shall have the cooks prepare some light salads or sandwiches instead. I’m not keen on admitting it, but according to Lulu my figure is a bit more full than it used to be.”

Asgore, who had been about to bite into his treat, froze a bit, then blushed as he sat it down on his own plate. “I~I think one sign that things are improving between Toriel and I is that she has begun to tease me about my own weight… though the children don’t seem to mind. More King Dad Guy to hug, as Asriel and Chara have put it.”

That earned a soft titter from Celestia, which evolved into giggles as Asgoe joined in with a chuckle. Their mirth petered out after a bit and the two once again let a comfortable silence descended between them.

Celestia took the moment to just sit and breath in the soft, soothing scent of the floral tea, letting her mind just casually wander a bit… until that is something Asgore had mentioned reminded her of something.

“Ah yes, Asriel and Chara… are they are still doing alright after their restoration and resurrection respectively?”

Asgore stopped for a moment, humming a bit… then gave a tired nod.

“Yes… though Toriel, Frisk and I worry about them both every day… probably will for a very long while. Alphys checks up on them both twice a week… Asriel will sometimes gain some flowery traits to his appearance if he gets really upset, but there’s only been a few moments of such. She says that this world being so full of magic is helping his soul rebuild itself faster as it also draws from Toriel and I.”

He finished his glass of tea and set it down, letting out a rumbling sigh as he continued.

“Chara’s soul has stabilized and is beginning to regrow to its full strength as well, same as Frisk’s. I am still amazed Frisk was willing to try something so dangerous… even with the safeguards Alphys insisted on, we were worried we were going to have regained our son and our freedom, only to lose another child once more.”

He shook his head, letting out a soft laugh. “But Frisk is such a determined child… perhaps one of the most determined children in the world.”

Celestia had to hum at that, smirking a bit as she remarked, “I don’t know, there’re three fillies I’ve come to know about via my student’s letters who might be able to give them a run for their money.”

Asgore groaned. “Don’t tell Frisk that… they might think of it as a challenge!”

Peels of laughter left Celestia’s muzzle at the way Asgore dramatically threw his face into his hands and groaned, shaking left and right a bit as he mumbled about how all three of the children could already be a bit of a handful at times.

The rest of the next hour was spent talking about small minor things that the two had dealt with over the course of the last week and things that were likely to come up in the next one. Aside from the incident with Luna and Blueblood, the height of Celestia’s week had been settling a dispute between two street food vendors from Manehatten by telling them to work together, and then offering them a chance to cater the food for a meeting she had with the Duchess of Maretonia next month.

Their reactions had left Celestia giggling like a school filly once they left.

Asgore’s of course had been the chance to snuggle with Toriel on the couch during their weekly movie night with the children. Something that left him feeling rather hopeful that with time, things would get better between them.

Sadly, as all things must, the time for their little party for two had come to an end. Celestia carefully began stacking all the empty plates and cups, while Asgore carefully took a napkin and gathered the rest of the leftover treats to take home and share with the family.

“Same time next week?” Asgore asked, and Celestia nodded.

“If the time is ever to change, I will be sure to let you know ahead of time.”

Asgore nodded, then stopped as he stood, considering the table for a moment. He smiled softly as he said “Perhaps next time I could host our little get together? And you could see if Luna would be interested in joining us for tea.”

Celestia thought about that, humming as she too considered the table before her. She then smiled and nodded as she said “As long as Toriel has no problem with it, I don’t see why not. Though I do wonder if you’re wishing to include the children in our little tea party.”

The King of Monsters shook his head. “As mature as all three of them can be at times, I wish for them to spend more of their time enjoying their childhood, especially Asriel and Chara. Besides, while Chara likes tea, their not fond of tea parties, even if their not the frilly fru-fru sort.”

It couldn’t be helped, that earned a soft titter from the Princess of the Sun. “Very well Asgore. Let me know what Toriel thinks, and I shall see if Luna wishes to come along.”

Celestia stood, giving a soft nod of her head to Asgore as she said “Until next time, your Majesty.”

Asgore returned the gesture, smiling as he said “Until next time, your Highness.”

Their goodbyes made, Asgore turned and strode back down the stairs as Celestia carefully began to tend to the plates and cups across the table, already looking forward to their next little get together.