• Published 29th Aug 2021
  • 4,165 Views, 509 Comments

First Hoof Account - TCC56



Sunset Shimmer wants to become an alicorn. The newest Princess, Cadance, obviously knows how to become one. There's only one answer: seduction.

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5 - Down

"You had me worried."

Cadance got no response - she was talking to a closed door, after all.

"I've only seen a pony teleport once or twice, and both of those were Princess Celestia. I wasn't expecting you to just..." She shuffled uneasily, head drooping. "I didn't mean to scare you, Sunset. That's why I've been trying to keep my distance since the coronation." Another pause. "It's only been two days but you know what I mean." Her voice dropped to silence as she listened for even a hint of response. None came. "They said-- I mean, I heard one of the castle staff saying they had seen you outside of your room earlier. I thought that maybe you were coming out again because you felt better. But, um, I guess... I guess you aren't."

Cadance sighed quietly, mostly to herself. "Maybe this was stupid, but I wanted to say I was sorry. And that I hope you'll want to talk to me again soon. I miss my first friend here in the castle." Another moment of hesitation, then she pressed again. "I didn't know that you were going to react like that. Where I'm from - my home village? It's all earth ponies. No unicorns, and I was the only pegasus there. My parents always liked my wing-hugs." Cadance wrapped her own wings tighter against herself. "They said it was like being wrapped in a silk cloud. You looked so angry and I just thought... I wanted to help."

Her head thumped against the door as she leaned forward. "I'm sorry, Sunny."

Cadance's hooves scrambled to regain themselves as the door cracked open. It was barely an inch, but that was enough for her eyes to blaze to with eager life.

One of Sunset's teal eyes - far less lively - looked back through the narrow crack. "Don't call me Sunny," she dourly commanded.

And yet, Cadance smiled at her.

"And you didn't scare me, you surprised me."

"Surprised. Of course." Cadance kept smiling - it grew by the second. "I stand corrected."

Sunset squinted. "You've certainly gotten sassier in only a couple of days."

"I think I'm finding my hooves better, that's all. Things aren't as... as strange now that a little time's passed. I think the shock is wearing off." Cadance took a half-step closer - hesitantly, as if expecting the door to slam on her. "Sunset? Can I come in? I really have missed you."

With a grunt, Sunset stepped back and let the door open the rest of the way.

It had only been two days, but Sunset's room was already a mess. No maids meant everything had been left under the care of a teenage filly who classified cleaning as half a step up from sewer maintenance. The bedsheets were scattered, half her closet was emptied onto the floor in a pile and one of the lamps in the room had already run out of fuel and guttered to darkness. Sunset's eating habits were also on display: she had been snatching food out of the castle pantry, teleporting in and out before eating sullenly in her room. Two days worth of dishes (and stress eating at that) lay scattered about. She had kept her working desk clear, but that meant books had been pulled off the shelves and piled into makeshift table surfaces to hold the empty plates and bowls.

Almost reflexively, Cadance started to pick up the room - grabbing several of the plates with her wing and gathering them up.

They all hit the floor with a cacophonous clatter as Sunset's magic batted them away. "I didn't let you in to clean," she snarled. "You're not a maid."

"I can still help." Cadance trotted across the room to the heavy blackout curtains. "At least you could get some light in here so you can see."

A bright teal aura enveloped the curtains before Cadance could touch them. "Don't you even." Sunset stormed around in front of Cadance before jabbing her with a hoof. "You came to see me. Get to the point of why and stop messing with my life choices."

Cadance pursed her lips tightly. "I was worried about you, alright? So is Princess Celestia."

"Which is why it's just you here." Sunset scoffed, turning away from Cadance and dropping into her desk chair.

"She's a bit more hooves-off," Cadance admitted as she walked an orbit around Sunset, ending up in the middle of the room. "But that doesn't mean she doesn't care about her brilliant student."

Several seconds of dead silence ticked past. Then - frustratingly slowly - Sunset turned her chair around to fix Cadance with an intense glare. "I'm not asking about her. I'm asking about you." (Both of them ignored that lie.) Stopping herself, she took a long, deep breath. "Look. Yes, you surprised me in front of every pony in Canterlot worth mentioning. Yes, I was already in a bad mood. Yes, I could probably have handled things better. But I'm fine." The pieces started to come back together - and Sunset's plan managed to retake control from her anger and embarrassment. "I guess... thanks. For coming to check on me."

"You're welcome." Cadance shifted from hoof to hoof, waiting to see if Sunset would respond more. But after a few nervous seconds, she threw herself into the conversation again. "I've gotten better with my horn," she eagerly noted. "It's a lot easier to get it lit and I can keep it up for almost two minutes now. You were right, it's just a matter of practicing until I get used to it."

Sunset grunted. "Good." She let that hang for a beat before continuing. "You'll keep getting better and you're still at a foal's level, but we can start working on the basic lessons. Tomorrow morning."

Cadance hesitated. "Actually, I can't tomorrow. Princess Celestia is introducing me to some of the nobles she says are important."

"Afternoon, then," Sunset grudgingly adjusted.

And a shake of Cadance's head. "Tutoring on the mechanics of parliament."

A frown. "Day after?"

"Etiquette lessons," Cadance apologized.

Sunset snorted. "Yeah, and I said you needed those. Alright, when, then?"

"After etiquette." Cadance jumped at that. "I mean, I'm supposed to be having afternoon tea with somepony but I can move that."

That got an appreciative nod from Sunset. "Yeah. Magic is more important than tea."

"Ugh, especially with Prince Blueblood." Cadance stuck out her tongue.

Sunset froze. He was already making his move - she had been too passive and left an opening. It took effort to not swear audibly.

Cadance didn't notice. "He's nice enough, but something about him just seems off. Plus the palace staff already started to warn me about him." She paused awkwardly, eyes flicking to Sunset before darting back away again.

It wasn't hard for Sunset to fill in the gap. "Like how they warned you about me?"

There was shame in it, but Cadance confirmed it with a nod. "They, um, aren't really fond of you."

Somehow Cadance was surprised by Sunset rolling her eyes with a snort. "Yeah, figures. It's not like their opinion matters anyway."

"They're ponies too," Cadance pointed out. "Just like us."

Her response was another snort. "Not like us," Sunset observed. "You're an alicorn, they're nothing like you. And..." She smirked before motioning at herself. "I mean, me."

Cadance bit her lip to stop from saying anything.

Sunset pushed on regardless, but even she knew it was time for a change of subject. "So. Blueblood, huh."

The agonized groan Cadance let out as she tossed herself onto Sunset's bed told more than her words. "I thought he just wanted to introduce himself, but after talking with some of..." She stopped, frowning as she ran a wing along the purposely itchy blanket. "Sunset, how do you even sleep with this thing on? It's like it's made out of currycombs instead of wool."

She didn't, but Sunset wasn't going to reveal that part. "My business, not yours. Now get back to ponies badmouthing Blueblood."

Cadance let out a thin giggle. "Alright, if you insist." She settled onto the bed, wiggling a little in spite of the rough, scratchy blanket. "He asked me to tea the morning after my coronation. At first, I was overjoyed! I mean, I don't know Canterlot's nobility very well yet, so a prince wanting to know me sounded really good. Princess Celestia had been saying I needed to make friends and allies, and he seemed like a great place to start."

Quietly, Sunset chuckled and leaned forward. "Here's a secret for you - he's not really a prince. His name is Prince. It's a family tradition. About three hundred years ago, one particularly uppity noble named his son Count - so he was Baron Count Mincing Fop, in the hope that ponies would forget the first title and just assume he was higher ranked. That turned into a naming fad for a few generations before dying off again, but Blueblood's family still does it because it's tradition at this point. And they've been doing it for so long, it's actually worked and everypony's forgotten he's just a duke."

Sunset had no idea if that was actually factual, but the idea amused her enough that she considered it truth.

Evidently, Cadance agreed - she broke out into wild giggles. "That sounds so much like him!" She leaned forward, voice at a half whisper full of conspiracy. "Almost every pony in the castle warned me about what he was like."

They shared the laugh - then Sunset turned more serious. "I gotta ask, though. Why are you listening to them about him but not about me? I know they tried to warn you away from me, too."

For a moment, Cadance was quiet. "Well, there's a few reasons. For one, I have a choice about associating with Blueblood. But you were right when you said that we have to live with each other. You're Princess Celestia's prized personal student. We can't avoid each other forever. Second, there's..." She trailed off, searching for the right word. "I'm still going to have tea with Blueblood at some point. I want to give him a chance to show me he's not who they say he is. With you, I've already gotten to know you a little bit."

"And?" Sunset tried to not be too leading, but she couldn't deny her hope that the plan was already working.

"You're abrasive." Cadance didn't pull her punches. "And you're very... confident. But when I look around and see so many nobles and businessponies with fake smiles, it's refreshing that you're more honest about how you feel. Plus I like to think I see something more to you than just an angry filly with a lot of power and a chip on her shoulder."

Sunset's lips drew to a thin line. If she didn't know better, that almost sounded dangerously intelligent of Cadance. She also couldn't deny there was truth to it. "Yeah, well, I'm Princess Celestia's brilliant student for a reason."

Smiling, Cadance nodded. "Exactly! So I want to get the chance to get to know you and be friends. Or at least, you know, tolerate each other?"

Her response was a smirk. "Let's start slowly, yeah."

Eagerly, Cadance clapped her hooves. "Great! So, um, anyway. Since I'm here, maybe we should do some magic practice?"

Sunset considered it, scratching her chin in thought. "Hmm. Nah. I've got a better idea." Grabbing a bell (silver with gold filigree) from her desk, she levitated it outside the door and rang. "I'll have the servants bring us some food, and we can keep talking about how stupid the nobles are. The castle chef, Gastro, does this awesome rose petal sandwich with mustard on sourdough."

Cadance's smile widened. "That sounds like a great way to spend the afternoon."