On the inside
Griffons have their proud military... and their shrewd merchants; they see the other races as possible business partners and like to see the opportunities everywhere. They've had dealings with changeling hives long before Equestria even deigned looking at them.
Griffons are also the most human-like of the races. Had the council been a Griffon one, the meeting would probably last the whole afternoon. You can't lead a Griffon that easily, nor are they easily intimidated; you need a whole lot of charisma to get the same effect you'd have on a pony.
Hence, I'm just friends with them, instead of anything else one might think of. Even if I keep getting invited to all sorts of events by them.
For you see... (ugh, do I have to?)
...
Fine.
There is a weak side to me, obviously... I am, after all, just as fallible as anyone else. Not only was I already a bit twisted, even before Discord's deal, but I have some other characteristics.
I am very adaptable, yes, and can respond more or less normally to all situations no matter how absurd or unreasonable... but it's at the expense of a fair bit of individuality (actions-wise, not personality-wise). It is very hard for me to do extreme things, and I dread having to change most situations on my own (as in, unprompted and without aid). It's a bland side to me.
Sure, I came up with the idea to scare Equestria's enemies... so that there would not be need to do anything extreme. I bluff my way out of nearly everything. Well, I guess I have done some rather outrageous changes around, and there is a limit to what I can take before I do something - like protesting a treaty so incredibly stupid, I got mad enough to threaten to use my powers without anyone's consent, without taking their opinion in count, or giving them choice beyond 'think if that treaty is worth screwing over the world'; I had very few choices myself, since the chaos thing is a world-spanning phenomenon with only a handful of options I consider 'acceptable' (and that particular treaty was just going to get a country to turn into World Wound Central, and I am so not going to spend that much power fixing a problem with a cause that moronic)...
(No Celestia, I won't tire of telling you how bad you goofed.)
There is also the weird-slash-insane things I do from time to time, but my unwillingness to be so decisive is the reason the princesses can just lead me along.
Within reason, of course. I don't like people that want to have everything their way, incapable of compromise. I get along poorly with Applejack, and I've gotten in an argument or two with Rarity. Rainbow is surprisingly compatible, since she views my mad-wizard side as 'cool' rather than 'egghead-ish'. I guess she liked the idea behind 'Skybloom'. More on that later.
Yeah, I'm a bit antisocial, and a bit of a directionless guy. Which is why the people around me need to be a touch special - overall, most of them would have to be the kind of people that can do things on their own, but still want moral support (or the type to stick around regardless of my personality). In short, the kind of friends Twilight would have.
...
(You know it to be true, don't give me that look.)
Celestia read me like an open book, hence the maids she assigned to me are the type that don't mind that part of me at all. The kind that are supportive of what direction I do have; they ignore the blandness and admire the aspects that are of actual interest. Though not even Celestia had any idea that what happened was actually possible.
Oh, and my assistant... God, I love that guy... He can actually find neat solutions to the problems that piss me off to no end.
If you're wondering why I'm telling you this, it was 'suggested' that I admit my shortcomings as a way to start the process to overcome them. That, and it is evident once you go back and analyze the things I do - though getting to the conclusion usually requires being an expert in reading people's behaviors. Like Celly.
It's a strange contrast between the three of us - Celestia, for all of her ability to put more energy in a single spell than either Luna or I can (without risking off-the-deep-end insanity), is the sneaky one that hits all the weakspots quickly and with ruthless efficiency (both in battle and out); Luna, despite being a freaking ninja jedi sorceress is more of a straight-up warrior princess than Celestia, with her preferred approach being 'do it my way or I blow you up'; I, of course, can use more energy in a wider area in a safer manner faster, and while I, too, favor the same approach as Luna, I am not as quick to act and I try to avoid moving if I don't have all the info, then strike with surgical precision (usually by scowling at the right guy instead of whole crowds, like Luna does).
And the guards are all mixed up: Celestia is in charge of the Solar Guard, which are the guys most often called when you need strong ponies and direct presence; Luna has the Night Guard, which, while also proficient in (for example) the arts of monster-slaying and such, are more known for the fact that, if you can see one, there are two already aiming at your head, while other three are looking around (if you can't see them, you. Are. Screwed); I more or less made the Equestrian Black Ops with the Whisper Guard I 'suggested' (I am rather fond of changelings and anyone that can get me the results and info quickly, you see)... They would be Black Ops, if it weren't for the fact that breaking the law means that you waive your right to be protected by many of them anyways (mostly the ones that would allow you to use the law against itself), so they are more of a 'regular' stealth/espionage division; similar to the Night at times, but without as much fighting and more subterfuge and sneaking around.
Hmm... I guess that is so that we look over each other and cover our blind spots.
The Royal Guard are... a mix of them, and they can give orders to the other three if necessary.
The normal police (town/city guard), while recognizing Shining's authority, don't necessarily take part of that chain of command. Unless there is something large going on, of course.
...
Is that enough, Celly?
...
If I talk too much, I'm gonna bore the audience.
...
Of course there's an audience! What the hell do you thing this contraption is for? Baking daisies?
...
Well, of course! This world is fine and all, but I'd like if some others knew just how insane things get in here.
...
Is that so?! Well, two can play that game!
"You wouldn't dare!"
Try me, princess!
...!
Pixar movies make Celestia cry!
"Not fair! You said those make anypony cry!"
You mourned Wall-E.
"Cried like a foal, twice, at that."
"I'm not talking to you two anymore."
Good luck with that.
(Celestia keeps popping in and out of my room, figuratively most of the time.)
After Gerardine left, she dropped by for a bit. Celestia does that all the time.
She didn't get the chance to open her mouth before I twitched from a sudden drain in energy, then the feeling of suction and wrongness that accompanied a Wound.
Then, while my magic was responding automatically to one, I felt another drain and one of my knees wobbled.
I caught myself, but Celestia was already at my side, offering a supporting shoulder.
"Either Discord's retirement did something to the world, or these things are more common than I thought." I said, cracking my neck as I felt like I had just exercised. It turns out... yep! One of those, as well as many more that followed, were formed as a consequence of that treaty (highest incidence rate of the world).
Luna came in to say that tomorrow morning the maids would be ready.
Oh, and that Shining Armor and Cadence were about to arrive in Canterlot any second now.
"Is everything alright?" The moon princess asked, once she noted I was hunched over.
"Peachy. Just getting rid of a double feature." I straightened, cracking my back. I felt that a portion of the... vitality I had gained from Ponyville had been depleted, but I still had the energy from my appearance before the hall full of ponies.
"Alright, maybe not so good." I rubbed my neck. "These things drain a fair bit more than just magic; they eat what I use instead of calories."
The news didn't sit well with them, and now you understand why I take extreme measures to prevent those things from happening. Just because surprises and changes 'feed' me that doesn't mean I want to waste energy like that.
"Don't worry, I can get more." I scratched Luna below her chin, and she smiled contently.
At least until she remembered her dignity.
"Wait, no!" She shook her head and pulled away from me. "I shall not be treated... like some house cat!"
She left herself open with that phrase - I read pony comics, and knew the response to that.
I scratched the inside of her ears.
"Ahh~" She sighed and hugged me. "You have redeemed yourself, human."
Really, did she have to speak the exact same line? Well, fingers do make a nifty 'weapon' against ponies...
Celestia was starting to giggle, but I ran my finger along her ears, and I had both princesses figuratively eating out of my hands. (The literal sense requires careful management of the foodstuffs.)
Celestia loves hard-boiled eggs, like me, only more. And God have mercy on your soul if you take the last moon pie without Luna's OK. Those two personally banished innumerable... things to Tartarus yet anypony with cookies and creme chocolate (and the right words) can get Celestia to lie on her back and get belly rubs.
I plonked down on the couch, all the while I thought up new and exciting ways to wreak non-destructive havoc... like getting some random junk, the foals in the castle, some drumsticks, and then have our own little performance of 'Stomp'.
Besides the news of the maids, I was informed that my pony self got an account in the Royal Bank of Equestria, while my human self got one set up in the National. I know what you're thinking; I know that many in my position would feel bad for having two incomes from one job, and I'd agree! I would feel bad if I got paid twice for the same job just to keep up an act.
Given the things I have to do, I think I'm not paid enough.
I took the form of a regular, normal-sized pegasus. Being in a state of undress didn't bother me because it didn't bother other ponies, so I didn't expect it to bother me... it's a little confusing, but it has consistency so I don't complain.
Despite -or, perhaps, given my cutie mark, thanks to- the hodgepodge of magic I was able to get ahold of the individual magics and the more intricate of their nuances fairly quickly. Which is why I used pegasus form; something caught my attention.
Other than a non-magic mane and tail, I didn't change much about myself, as such, my cutie mark was still magic-related. I like my coat, it's all shiny and makes me look like I'm made of polished wood.
Another huge benefit to being human is that I was not raised as a pony, so I don't have any preconceptions about what I 'should know' I can or cannot do. It was a highway to develop some interesting stuff, though of course after I found out the cores and roots of said 'stuff'.
If, just a month (from pony perspective) after my arrival, I had been turned into a regular, non-chaos-empowered pony of any kind, I'd still be able to use abilities that can be classified as spells (impose my will or direct the will of the world in some way or another) and other skills that count as non-spell abilities (they are either bordering on instinct or an extension of my own nature rather than an imposition of my will). Throw in dark magic, enchantments, artifacts like my staff, runes and magic circles, and there would be little difference in me being any kind of pony.
(Other than whenever or not I'd need a spell to fly, that is.)
After all, I already have my cutie mark and know the meaning behind it; I just have to get creative. There is a reason why it's called the Royal Canterlot Academy of Magical Studies, you know? It's not just for spell-casting unicorns; all with a magic-related talent or interest are welcome there.
Though only a really small portion of ponies have discovered the same things I did (even if I 'cheated' by being ignorant of the socially-induced mental blocks), and since we keep this to ourselves... well, the guards have yet to figure out that I can construct crude -but functional- wards with pegasus magic on the fly (literally), and Shining Armor took a while to figure it out himself. Being a 'normal' pony would still land me somewhere around the fifteen percent most dangerous ponies abilities-wise... unsurprisingly, Twilight is in the top one percent.
Or, if you want a different example, I'll have you know that Leadfoot's prosthetic leg is special beyond the immediately evident and that his hooves are much too heavy for a pony of his size and build (no larger than Applejack). Under the right conditions. he can stand so firmly, he's virtually immovable and pretty much a freaking steel statue. He's some practice away from making mini-earthquakes, I'd guess. If it weren't for his fake leg requiring some serious reinforcements to do so, he'd be able to move very fast and jump very high.
And just you wait until we reach the part where I tell you what Trixie learnt about magic...
General opinion through the world was that non-magic-talent unicorns (and even some that are) were the crummiest of spellcasters, what with the general disinterest in learning more than a couple of spells and all. As you can guess, I like to change the status quo in my favor, especially if it's something as simple as adding a new perspective to Twilight's view, then letting her scholarly nature take over.
I didn't know how pegasus magic worked to detail back then, but I had seen and read about interesting air magic tricks. I willed everything else inside of me to be quiet, to prevent distractions from the other special pony senses and the like. I used unicorn self-visualization and some breathing techniques I either practiced or saw on TV to 'push' the magic pooling around in my heart towards my wings. I tried something similar to what I did in the council chamber, but slower (MUCH slower) and without dark magic involved.
I closed my eyes, and steadied my breath, using it to 'push'. It tingled, like static building up. I fanned a wing, and I could... sort of feel as if I was touching things with the magic and air that I moved, and I could 'see' around me. It wasn't long before I was 'seeing' the way things moved around me... I could even 'see' the breaths the princesses took! And the air permeated with magic from my wings felt and looked a little different, too.
No one had any time to explore or comment anything else, though, since the partially-opened door allowed us to hear somepony stomping up a storm and somepony else yelling stuff like 'Shiny, wait up'.
"Shining doesn't seem too happy." I sedately commented - that state can be very relaxing, I'll have you know. The key to pegasus magic is centered in emotion, but not everypony realizes that even quiet emotions can be incredibly powerful. Love, even the silent loves, are the great movers of energy for the source residing in the heart.
Both sisters decided to turn invisible and look from the balcony, since they kind of wanted to see how Shining Armor reacted without them around and didn't want to leave me alone with the married couple. Understandable, since neither one held any illusions about controlling me; the prince thing is more to keep me busy than it is to get me to follow them.
I just willed the door closed; then, as it was covered in Shining's magic, I rotated my wing, imagining a sphere I could pour my energy into, and then threw it with a good push towards the door. Even if he was angry, he was still restrained enough that my magic overcame the burst he used and the door failed to open, leading him to smack against the door because he didn't slow down at all.
After a quick stream of almost-curses (Cadence was within earshot), Shining Armor entered my room just to see a blind-folded pegasus lying on a couch as if a minute away from falling asleep.
"Can I help you?" I said, trying to make something out of the feelings floating in the air. I could at least detect their breathing, so I knew where to face. The odd, stuffy feeling I got from the air during my first days was severely reduced, too.
I think I broke him, because he stared at me for a few seconds.
"Uh... I was told I would find Discord's replacement here." Having played the political games for a while now, his recovery time is better than mine.
"This is the right room; is something the matter?" I asked, and Cadence showed up at that moment.
"He'd better not think of hurting my sister!" Righteously-angry big brother... and, unlike Macintosh, he has the right training to hurt me. It wouldn't be serious, but it'd hurt a lot.
Shining goes on a tirade, while Cadence alternates between apologizing to me for the disturbance and trying to get 'Shiney' to acquiesce (Hey, I didn't know I knew that word).
I flicked my wing in their direction, making the world a confusing mess of greyscale blobs to my eyes, but I could tell they felt it.
"I don't think you have to worry about anything." I said, standing up and flicking my wings very, very slightly.
Cadence mutters and apology, but Shining's eyes...
"A circle?" He said, and the world started coming into focus as I began to see something resembling shapes.
"That one is a hundred-percent mine." I turned around. "This one..."
"It's you!" He shouted, making a little bright spot in my 'vision'.
"Yup! The one and only, the one that got fax'd and even blasted by the Elements!" I said, popping into 'prince' form.
"The... Elements?!" They both asked, incredulous - though Shiny was of the opinion of 'oh snap!'. The image got a little less blurry.
"Come on, I actually like the ponies, is it really that hard to think I might be nicer than Discord?"
"You were chosen by him." I could practically hear his scowl.
"Point, but you see..." I... well, I vanished from view and reappeared inside a painting, which turned into a replay of the critical point of the second episode instead of a generic landscape.
I walked about in human form, looking at Nightmare Moon smashing the stones. Her laugh made Luna wince, I could tell. I was pensive, and I could see it gave Shining pause.
"I was in a rather dreary point in my life, just going with the flow... and sometimes not even that." Shining Armor cringed at the sight of his sister, and Cadence brought a hoof to her face in shock.
"And then..."
The sound of the other five made Twilight turn around in the 'screen', and then it happened.
Zzt!
"She... the change she went through was so powerful it was physically manifested." The show replay faded, replaced with the tree on a sunny hill from before. I laid down at the tree's shade, looking at the sky... it was weird, like reality got a 'painting texture' filter applied to it, with a window to a place a cartoon filter was applied.
"I was touched." I wiped my eyes... "I had the impression I was feeling less and less, but then Bam! Ponies!"
I popped right on the couch, elbows on my knees and hands over my mouth in a contemplative gesture. "I care, believe it or not. I don't know how much you know, but I could even see your wedding... I wish there could be an easy way to show you- there is. Cadence." I said, sitting properly now.
"Yes?" She looked unsure, kind of like she believed me, but not fully.
I was over by the piano. And a girl. Curiously, I'm more or less immune to the hormone switch; whenever I'm the other I just think and act as if I had been born that way... not like I change in any way other than clothing choices (darned mental androgyny) - I still like blowing stuff up and sweet stories.
"This day is going to be perfect."
She gasped.
"The kind of day of which I dreamed since I was small...
Everypony will gather 'round
Say I look lovely in my gown
What they don't know is that I've fooled them all."
Dang, singing the evil part was pretty hard for me. But that didn't matter! I softened my voice with greater ease that I've ever done.
"This day was going to be perfect
The kind of day of which I've dreamed since I was small
But instead of having cake
With all my friends to celebrate
My wedding bells, they may not ring for me at all…
I felt heavy, and I think a degree of help from the music enchantment was what made me avoid mistakes on this one.
"I could care less about the dress
I won't partake in any cake
Vows, well I'll be lying when I say
That through any kind of weather
I'll want us to be together
The truth is I don't care for him at all
No I do not love the groom
In my heart there is no room
But I still want him to be all mine"
Shining Armor looked uncomfortable, but Cadence was teary-eyed... and noticed that I was twitching.
"We must escape before it's too late
Find a way to save the day
Hope, I'll be lying if I say
'I don't fear that I may lose him
To one who wants to use him
Not care for, love, and cherish him each day'
For I oh so love the groom
All my thoughts he does consume-"
I ended it there as my hand sliped and slamed on entirely the wrong way and my breath hitched. I am much less guarded with my displays of emotion as a girl, and I had to actually use magic to prevent myself from being bowled over by Cadence.
Yeah, I had a hug session with a really pink pony princess, so what? Cadence was convinced as to the sincerity of my intentions.
What happened later, after Luna and Celestia 'decided to drop by' was more private... basically, I told them how I really, really felt at ease watching the show, and how I loved the songs and all. We even spoke a little about magic... and, well...
How I thought I should help Luna with her rounds on the dreamscape. I predicted that there would be a lot of human-related nightmares, and boy, was I right on the money.
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He caused the human related nightmares? :P?
3084003
More like being told that the boogeyman is real. It'll cause nightmares, even if the boogeyman is actually nice.
It must have been shocking for Cadence to learn Chrysalis was singing half of her song.
That part really did my day
Also, are you going to introduce Trixie and her magical discovery?
3084215 yeah, I don't see why everyone hates him.
3084694
Well, not only are we talking about boogeymen, but also nasty previous encounters (though there is something the ponies hadn't realized), we are also talking about Discord's heir! Sure, sure, he had to pick someone that would not make the Elements act negatively, but try telling that to an entire country.
3084536
Well, it's more of a group research effort... it's just that Trixie benefited a whole lot from it really quickly. But yes, it'll be part of the story - though there is still a long way to go.
3084777 the majorities refuse to listen! Kill them all and replace them with minorities! And fire!
I nave nightmares about humans occasionally, they usually deal with the book of revelations and the "beast" being unleashed. For In the end the destruction of all worlds and universes will be caused by a single satanic ritual.
But that's just me. In order to give the rest of you nightmares I will tell you that, I play poker with slenderman every third Friday night.
I wanna know what happen.