Arrival - Edited 3/20/20

Chapter 1

The first thing I noticed when I woke up was that I was no longer in a cramped cabin with a bunch of teenagers. The bed was considerably larger and far more comfortable than it had any right being. The second thing I noticed is that the myst here was incredibly thick. For some, that term is likely confusing, but it's what I have always called the ambient magic that permeates the world around us. I rolled myself out of bed and found my trunk sitting right at the end of the bed. Reaching in, I grabbed one of my orange Camp Half-Blood t-shirts and began to explore the room that I found myself in.

After wandering around the large room for about an hour, I navigated myself to the door. It was at this point that I notice a somewhat familiar voice speaking to another I had never heard before. The Masculine voice was one that I recognized all too well, Lord Hades. The unknown voice seemed to be one that could only be described as one that should belong to a mother. I personally haven't been able to enjoy the voice of a mother, but it sounded a lot like moms on tv.

I walked down the halls of what could only be described as a palace toward the voices and, at the same time, subconsciously wrapping myself in myst to mask my presence. It wasn't invisibility per se. However, it did make me more difficult to notice. Your average person would find it difficult to look at me, their eyes being directed to look at something else. A more powerful being would be able to notice that there was a disturbance, but for your average person. It was basically just invisibility. I passed a few guards on my way, what really drew my eye was the fact that they appeared to be anthropomorphic horses. Being a demigod, things like this happened all the time. But what really drew my eye was the fact that they seemed to be completely identical to one another.

For now, I just ignored it, my goal already set in my mind. I moved through the hallway until I found the room that contained Lord Hades as well as the other voice. Squeezing into the room, to avoid drawing attention. What I found was a fascinating sight. Lord Hades, master of the Underworld, god of the dead, stood here and was requesting a favor from this being.

"Now, please tell me, Lord Hades, Why have you deposited this young man in my home without my knowledge?" stated the White mare.

Hades responded, the look on his face very evident that he was unhappy with having to give respect to this mare. I liked her already. "As I had said Princess Celestia, The young man in question had earned a boon from the gods of Olympus. We offered him a place among us as a fellow god. He turned the offer down and instead requested that he be placed in a realm where our influence, or more specifically the influence of the Olympians, is nonexistent. He apparently has a great distaste for us. I voted that we simply blast him for his insult; however, I was outvoted. The boy's mother made it a point to tell us that we would look rather evil if we reneged on the offer of a boon."

"I see. So the boy chooses to leave all that he knew behind for a chance at a new beginning. But that still doesn't answer my question as to why you choose here of all worlds that your realm is connected to?" She looked down at the lord of death with a gaze that would make anyone feel like a child.

"It was decided that your realm was the most peaceful. The child had relented that he was tired of fighting for his life. Apparently, he wanted an early retirement. I can't pretend to understand mortals. I don't really even understand my own children. Let alone Hecate's children. She has been a good friend for a long time, but she is still a mystery to most of us. She is a goddess, but at the same time, she did side with the Titans in the last conflict. Persephone, Demeter, and I are really the only ones that she talks to regularly, and even we don't know everything about her."

It was at this point that I started to ignore the conversation; I didn't much care to learn anything about the gods. While I may be a child of one, I will never consider her to be my mother. I instead decided to look at the giant white mare that commanded such respect from the lord of the dead. She easily stood at seven feet tall, if you didn't count her horn which rose another two feet higher still. Her rose-colored eyes seemed to trap my gaze. It looked like she had noticed me that easily could have been my imagination, though. Her hair flowed through the air in an ethereal cloud. To say that she was beautiful would not do her justice. She was gorgeous. But in my history, things that were that attractive tend to be equally dangerous. I had read the stories about Lady Aphrodite's jealousy toward other women's beauty. Wars had been started because of it.

It appeared that their conversation had come to an end when Lord Hades seemingly melted into darkness, and his presence left the room. I had turned to go when I heard a slight cough behind me. "You know it is terribly rude to eavesdrop." The tone wasn't accusatory; it had been stated as a matter of fact. Realizing that I had been found out, I dropped my glamor and turned around bowing respectfully.

"I apologize, your highness. My curiosity got the better of me. We have not been formally introduced, my name is Mágos Schmidt, although if you prefer, I do respond to Mag." At this point, I was sweating. I was sure that I had offended her in some way with my eavesdropping. If she had been any of the Olympian goddesses, I would already have been turned to dust.

"Oh please, you need not bow. I get rather tired of it, and please raise your head."

Her response was not one that I had expected or prepared for. "As you command your Highness." I brought myself up to my full height. I didn't think of myself as short, but I was nowhere close to her height. Her eyes trapped me in her gaze.

"If you would be so kind, Mag, please just call me Celestia. After a few thousand years of being referred to as nothing more than a title, it is truly a breath of fresh air to have somepony informally refer to me." With this said, she gave me the warmest smile I have ever seen. I felt as if the sun itself were praising me, gifting me with its warmth.

"O-Of course Celestia. I again apologize for eavesdropping. I was just confused. This was not where I fell asleep last night."

Celestia rose from her throne and walked down to me, "I understand completely. It is only natural that you would be a bit concerned that you woke to find yourself in a different land. Although if you would excuse the question, I was under the impression that you had requested to be brought here?" She waved us forward to indicate that she was asking me to follow her on a walk.

I followed along with her and smirked at her question "to be completely honest with you; I didn't expect that they would do it. I was half expecting to fall asleep and either find myself trapped in an endless dream by Lord Hypnos, that or to never wake up again."

I continued to walk, not noticing that Celestia has stopped. After walking a few feet, I saw that she was missing and looked back, upon spotting her standing behind me, I asked: "Is something the matter?"

She shook her head and responded, "You truly believe that the gods of Olympus would do something like that to you? From what Lord Hades said, you truly distinguished yourself in a great battle. You had earned a place with them."

I dropped my eyes from her and responded in a flat tone, "Why would I ever choose to join them. All they do is sit on their thrones, causing problems. Oh sure occasionally, they drop down to the mortal world and have a fling with a human. Then they disappear, never to be heard from again. Thanks, but I would rather not be someone like that. If I ever end up having kids, I'm not going to leave them as bastards. And you can sure as hell bet that I'm going to be a part of their lives."

Celestia was shocked by his response. "Do you truly hate them so? From what lord Hades said, your mother."

I cut her off before she could finish that sentence. "I hate to be the one to correct you there, Celestia. But I don't have a mother, and I don't really remember my father. Hecate may have given birth to me, but she has never been my mother. I will always see her as the one that broke my father. As far as I know, all I am to her is, at most, a potentially useful tool. And at the minimum, a receipt for a short fling." I continued down the hall, fully expecting her to come after me, so it was no surprise when I heard her walking up behind me.

"That is heartbreaking to hear that you think of her in such a way."

I realized that she was likely going to need more context, so I asked, "to have you fully see my side, please tell me. What would you consider a mother to be?" she had managed to reach me in just a few steps.

Her right hand rose to pinch at her lower lip for a few moments before she responded. "Well, for me, a mother is the one that raised you, they nurture you and give you unconditional love. A mother would teach her children morals. In short, a mother is one that you can always count on."

I had her trapped now. "Well then, what would you call someone that has never met her child, one that has never had even the shortest in-person interaction with them? Not even for a second. Because that is what I have, Hecate isn't my mother, she was my incubator. Once I left her womb, she stopped having anything to do with me. I didn't even know that she was the one that gave birth to me until I was ten, and she had only claimed me after I had taught myself how to manipulate the myst. I figure that it was at that point that she saw me as a potential tool. After all, that's all we half-bloods are to them, nothing but useful tools."

Celestia seemed like she was going to press the subject. However, she gracefully dropped it. "So you requested that you be brought somewhere that they do not influence so that you might live the remainder of your life in peace then?"

At this, I smiled "That would be the short of it, yes. I'm tired, Celestia. I've been fighting monsters since I was eight. Now that I have hit twenty, I'm... I just... I just want to live a quiet life, maybe even just study magic. It defiantly seems like there is a lot of magic here compared to my world. It feels almost like I could swim through it." Chuckling to myself, I said in a muted tone, "I bet with this much I could even stand toe to toe with Percy."

Celestia cocked her head to the side in confusion "What do you mean by 'it feels almost like you could swim through it?'"

Looking back at her, I couldn't help but expose a bit of confusion "the ambient magic in the air, there is a ton of it here. Actually, it feels like it is leaking from you. At least some of it is." I hoped that my lackluster clarification would get through to her.

Celestia switched the side her head was leaning to; I could barely hold my laugh in at the reaction. You expect to see that kind of response on a dog. Not a goddess "I'm not sure what you mean. You just said that you wanted to learn more magic. What does this world having more ambient magic have anything to do with your ability to use it?"

Trying to understand what she was saying, I clarified, "Just as a question, do you use mana to cast magic here?" Gods, I hope that term was the right one. Celestia nodded, and I continued, "Okay, I just wanted to verify something. To answer you, yes, I can use magic. Humans don't have magic naturally, though." the look of confusion on her face spoke volumes "Now I imagine that I have tripped you with that statement. Humans do not produce mana. We are still capable of using magic, at the very least demigods can. Children of Hectate have a greater and more natural ability. Still, any demigod can learn how given time to do so."

"For us to be able to use magic, we have to manipulate the myst, or as you would call it, raw magic; the magic of the world around us, unfiltered and wild. That raw ambient magic is very dense here. My half-brother, Alabaster, used to always outclass me with magic. He didn't need as much to get stuff done. But I knew that I had a greater knowledge of magic than he did. I just had to use more to make it do stuff for me. But here, here I think I could trounce him in a spar, if for no other reason than the fact that I feel like I have more flexibility in my use."
She smiled again "Well then I would be interested to see what you are capable of, please feel free to explore the archives, I will let the guards know that you have free access. There are a few areas that I am afraid you will not be able to go into, however. Those areas are off-limits for a reason."

The seriousness in her tone answered my question for me. However, I still wanted to clarify. "I am assuming that you are talking about areas that will likely have what is considered to be dark magic, stuff like Necromancy?"

Her eyes seemed to spark "you are correct, now I have to ask. You would not happen to be a practitioner of that foul branch of magic, would you?"

I knew that lying to a goddess was a quick way to end my existence "I will be frank with you. Yes, I do practice Necromancy. However, I am under the impression that the Necromancy here is very different from the Necromancy back in my world. My version of Necromancy isn't used to control the dead. There are indeed a few people that can do that. From my understanding, the current number of mortals on Earth that are capable of controlling the dead is one. That one mortal goes by the name of Nico di Angelo. And the only reason that he can do so lies with the fact that he is Lord Hades' son. I know of a few exceptions to that, but they don't really bear mentioning this point."

She was still a bit nervous, so I continued, "The few times that I have done it myself. Were mainly to verify that I could do it, to teach Nico, and one time to get an answer to a question on a test." I smirked.

Her face was one of shock, "You mean to tell me that you summoned the spirit of the dead, to ask them for help with a question on a test?"

My smirk never left my face. "Well, yea. I was taking some dumb math test and couldn't remember the stupid formula, funny enough I remembered the name of the mathematician that came up with it. So when I took a short bathroom break, I summoned him in the bathroom. Funny story, but he just wanted to talk for a few minutes, had to make the excuse that I had diarrhea for why I was gone so long. Kind of a roundabout way to answer your question, but there you have it. My version of Necromancy is one that lets me speak to the souls of the dead if they want to talk. If they don't want to talk, then they don't show up. If you would like, I could do a demonstration for you."

She looked like she was going to ask me to do just that; however, she relented that it wouldn't be necessary. As we walked through her place, she gave me information on Equestria and the various peoples that lived here. At one point, we passed a window that looked down on the training grounds.

"Hey, Celestia, would it be possible for me to use your training grounds? I know that I said I want to live a life of peace, but after spending twelve years training for sixteen hours a day, five days a week. You build a habit."

She looked astonished at my comment, "How did you train that much? And what were you training in?"

I responded, "well, as for how, I just did, and to what. It depended on the day. I have a total time of around 50k hours' give or take a few hundred hours, worth of training at this point. I have mastered four types of weapon and magic at this point. At least if you follow the proverb that it takes ten thousand hours to master a skill. To date, I have mastered the Staff, Bow, Sword, and Kusarigama. Other than that, my remaining time was spent learning magic. I just need something to do to keep me busy."

I caught a gleam in her eye "I think that could be arranged, in fact. Let us go down to the training grounds now and have a demonstration."

I muttered to myself, "good job, dumb ass. Now you have to play show and tell." I had thought that I had been quiet in my mutterings; however, she had heard it.

"now-now, show, and tell has always been my favorite part of teaching."

It took us nearly an hour to make it down to the training field, damn this place is enormous. Once we got there, I was introduced to the captain of her guard.

"My name is Shining Armor. And you are?" The Stallion stuck his hand out for me, thinking that it must be some test I clasped my hand in his and gave him a good squeeze. Fun fact, apparently, I am a lot stronger than I look. After Celestia fixed the cracked bone in his hand, I gave him a much gentler handshake.

"Sorry about that, guess I don't know my strength here. I know I wouldn't have been able to do that back home." I could tell that he was still a bit miffed at me for the whole thing, though.

His smile didn't have any forgiveness in it. "My apologies for the question but, if I may. Why are you on the training field today, Princess?"

Celestia beamed at him "Well dear Mag here wanted to take the opportunity to spar with somepony. He apparently has a good amount of skill, and I had figured that the captain of my guard would be able to test him."

And there it was the hidden agenda. Damn, I knew that this was coming. That is what I get for bragging about skill. Looking back over to Shining, I asked, "would you consider yourself a master in anything? I don't want humility; I want an answer."

He didn't look happy with my question, "I am the best spearpony in the guard." His statement oozed confidence. To be honest, he almost sounded like one of Ares' kids.

I shrugged, "Okay, one thing first, let me test something." I shook the bronze bracelet off my left hand; in a moment, it had expanded into a Celestial bronze kusarigama. In place of the traditional chain, a thin wire held the scythe and weight together. Not giving them a movement to react, I quickly brought the blade across his hand.

"WHAT THE BUCK ARE YOU…." His complaint died on his lips when he noticed that he didn't have an injury. In fact, the blade passed through his hand as if made of smoke.

"Oh good, it looks like I can use my normal weapons without you getting hurt." I felt a hand on my shoulder and looked up to see Celestia with a somewhat annoyed look.

"I would appreciate it if you didn't conduct tests like that in the future." She took the scythe from my hand, placing the edge of the blade over her thumb, I quickly noted that it did, in fact, cut her. As soon as I saw the drop of golden Icor. Any doubt that had been in the back of my mind regarding her divinity vanished. She handed the blade back to me. "if you would please begin the demonstration."

I felt a cold bead of sweat drip down the back of my neck, "O-of c-course your highness." I realized my mistake right away, "I-I m-mean Celestia."

She must have noticed the fear in my voice and bent down to my ear "I would ask that you try not to be afraid of me. Fear is not a form of rule that I enjoy. I much prefer to use love and happiness."

I was still terrified out of my mind, but I managed to hide it, at least from Shining, "I guess you heard her. Let's get this going then" we took our places at the opposite ends of the ring. Apparently, seeing the captain spar was a bit of a spectacle, seeing as all other matches had ended so that they could watch ours. I took a neutral stance and began to speak, "so how do you want to do this? Do we go until the opponent says stop and admits defeat, or do you want to do a point system?"

Shining looked at me and smirked, "let's go until the other can't go anymore or admits defeat." I sighed.

"If that is the way that you want it, just remember. My blade may not cut you, but the handle is made of ironwood, and the weight is Stygian Iron. Both materials can and will cause a good amount of damage."

Shining scoffed, "If you can hit me with that weird toy, then maybe we can talk." Of course, he was going to be a bit cocky. You don't get to be the captain of the guard for a goddess without some skills on your side.

My stance widened, I dropped the weight and held onto the wire as I began to spin the weight around. The natural weight of the weapon in my hands felt comfortable. Even now, after having it with me for as long as I have, it was still just a perfect as the day I had received it. I had to give it to them, Hephaestus' kids knew what they were doing when it comes to weapons. It had taken a bit of convincing to get them to agree to use Stygian Iron for the counterweight, but fuck. It was a gift from Nico for the magic lessons.

Shining didn't seem very impressed. He charged in, and now I have to say, dude has some skill. If it hadn't been a training spear, I likely could have been killed with the speed of his strike. As it was, I still ended up with a nasty bruise and torn shirt. "Very nice, you are indeed a master. If you allowed it, I would like to change the weapon that I am using."

He smiled at me, "Whatever you want. It won't change the outcome of this fight." He was brimming with confidence. And true, had I never been in a real fight, he likely would have won. But unfortunately, he exposed that he hadn't really been in a life or death situation before. Because of this, he only stuck with the approved strike pattern. Every strike was telegraphed, I did end up taking a few hits. However, he took quite a few more than I did. In the end, I had him pinned to the floor with my staff against his throat. "Submit, I would prefer to shake your hand again. Although if you would prefer, I can knock you out and get that handshake after you wake up in the medical wing."

There was a fire in his eyes that spoke of danger, but then it melted into one that spoke of respect he raised his hands to the sides of his head and stated "I submit, you are excellent. Not happy about that trip move though, cheap shot." Bending down, I grabbed his hand to help him up. Slapping him on the shoulder, I responded.

"In a real fight, there are no cheap shots, you either live to fight again, or you die." He had a haunted expression at that comment.

"Is it really that bad where you came from? The guard here is mostly a police force. Equestria hasn't seen a war in almost a thousand years." I blanched at this new information.

"You have had complete peace for nearly a millennium?!" I was in shock. Never in the history of my world has this been obtained. Shining nodded his head in affirmation. I had had my doubts about how real this place was before now. All my life, I had been fighting. I fought the nuns in that orphanage, insisting that I wasn't cursed or crazy, I fought with the monsters and even Titans. But here they had managed to have peace. I turned to Celestia, "This is true. You really have managed to keep the peace for so long." My voice shook.

She placed her hands on both of my shoulders and looked into my eyes "Yes Mag, I have worked very hard to build relationships with the other leaders of this world. In many cases, I have played nanny for most of them. I helped to raise them and instill a want of peace. As I told you, I far prefer the method of love and happiness to that of fear and power. Do not think that this is a sign of weakness; if anything or anyone tried to hurt my little ponies, I would bring the wrath of the sun and moon down upon them. But diplomacy has worked for most of my life at this point. As much as you seem to hate the gods, they did keep their word. They have given you peace."

I had been rocked to my core, a thought brought itself to me, and once it was there, I couldn't dislodge it. I knew what I wanted to do, "I want to serve." Looking up, I locked my gaze with her's "please let me serve you. This place needs to stay this way. I have been fighting for myself for as long as I can remember. But here, I feel like….I don't even really know. But there is one thing that I understand. I want to work to keep this place as it is. Will you let me help to keep this place as it is?"

She had a look of shock "I thought that you just wanted to retire? To live a peaceful life away from the fighting."

I nodded, "that is true, but if I can be a part of this." I spread my hands as if to encompass everything around me "I want to keep this place just as wonderful as I have found it to be. And if I find some way to make it better, then, by all means, I will work to do so."

The words spoken were lead in the air; I wasn't sure what was going to happen next. But I knew that I was honest in what I had spoken. This beautiful place had managed to prove that I was right. If the gods had worked to have a more significant presence in the world if they had shown themselves and acted as guides to the world. Who knows what could have been accomplished. Celestia had done just that. Her acts of kindness and selflessness have shown that gods could be trusted to guide the world, not with an iron fist, but with gentle words.

"I have to admit Mag; I had not thought that you would offer that." She looked over to Shining. "Captain" he snapped to attention,

"Highness"

"See to it that you test him thoroughly, I think I have an assignment in mind for him. I need to make sure that he will be ready for it." She looked back down at me, "You have many skills that I have seen so far, and likely many more that I have yet to see. Do you swear that you will all that you can to protect my little ponies?"

"I swear it on the river Styx. I will serve to the best of my ability, I will work to further your goals, and I swear that I will do as you ask within reason. Again I swear it on the River Styx. To truly show my dedication, I will swear a third time, and by doing so, bind myself to my oath, I Mágos Schmidt, son of Hecate, son of Klaus Schmidt so swear on the river Styx to serve you." The air seemed to shiver as the words fell from my mouth. There was no going back now.

"I believe you, Mag. While Shining may not understand what you have just done. I do. It humbles me to know that you feel so strongly about this. Tomorrow as I raise the sun, your duties shall begin. Report to the training fields to be tested so that we might know what duties will best utilize your strengths."

She walked away, leaving me there with Shining. The silence between us was deafening until Shining spoke: "I don't really understand, what happens if you break an oath on the River Styx?"

I shivered, "if you break an oath made on the River Styx, well, there are worse things than death. Even gods will honor an oath made. To triple your oath is to bind your very essence to it. Were I to break my oath, well my death would be the easiest part."

Introductions - Edited 3/20/20

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Introductions

My oath had been spoken three weeks ago; during that time, I had made it a point to continue my training regimen. Shining had proven himself to be a fair leader, and I could honestly say that I enjoyed working with him. His version of leadership was something that I hadn't really experienced before. It was refreshing, to say the least. He encouraged his troops to improve, yelling when it was necessary but never in excess.

I ended up seeing Shining almost every day on the practice fields. Conversely, I only managed to interact with Celestia a few times. Mostly at meals where she would ask any question about me that she could think of. I met Luna a few times, but it seemed like she was somewhat shy. She also had a slightly strange speech pattern that was quite archaic.

With Celestia, I found myself entranced with anything that she wanted to talk about. I understand that she is the ruler of this land, but she never treated me as if I were beneath her. Whenever we spoke, it was as equals, friends even. It got to the point that I became able to notice that she liked to play jokes on ponies reasonably often. I had to admit that it was quite humorous to see the varying reactions to her little pranks.

Now, three weeks later, she called me to the throne room. As I entered, I took note of the construction that was slowly changing the room from a single sun focused design to one that added moons and the night sky. A second Throne had been added to the right of Celestia's. It was presently occupied by the Lunar Princess herself. Understanding that this was an official summons, I made it a point to where my new armor. Well, it was my old armor with fresh paint; I will take the work of Lord Hephaestus' children over any other smith. The cause for the new coat of paint stemmed from when I had given my oath, Celestia had added me to her guard. Due to my new status as a guard. Most of the time that I had spent in Canterlot so far had been going through the regular guard training.

As I approached the throne, Celestia gave me a nod to indicate that I was meant to stop. As I came to a complete stop, Celestia addressed me. "First Lieutenant Mágos Schmidt, We have your deployment." I snapped to attention, waiting for her to continue. This time Luna spoke, "You shalt be sent to yonder Ponyville. Your task there will be of utmost importance."

Celestia nodded, then continued, "Your assignment is to be the guard of my personal student Twilight Sparkle."

To say that I was a little confused was as much of an oversimplification as saying that Cerberus was a large breed dog. How is going to a small town to play babysitter supposed to be a military deployment? I almost commented on that before I took a few moments to remind myself that they were both goddesses. They knew what they were doing. "Of course, you're Majesties. I will make my way there with haste. If I may ask," receiving the nod of approval, I continued, "Is Miss. Sparkle expecting me?"

Celestia smiled with a hint of mischievousness in her eyes, "Now where would be the fun in that. Everypony loves a good surprise. But do not worry lieutenant; her assistant Spike is aware of your arrival. He will make sure that you have a place set aside."

I was a bit dumbfounded; she was using me to troll her student, "permission to speak candidly your Highness." She nodded with a smirk, "You, Celestia, are a troll." Many of the guard in the room tensed up at my comment. Celestia's reaction broke the tension as she burst out laughing. Her laughter was infectious as I too began to lose it, quickly followed by Luna, then the remaining guards in the room.

After we had recovered from Trollestia's fun, Luna spoke up, "Travel with safety, Lieutenant." I bowed and turned to leave; she quickly added: "And beware of the pink one." I looked back with confusion on my face to find that both princesses had disappeared.

"Gods damned trolls the both of them." I chuckled to myself as I left the throne room.

Making my way through the halls back to my room, I reflected on the last few weeks. I had made a few good friends here. I would count Shining among them, even if he is my commanding officer. His assistant, Silver Lining, was a good guy as well. Silver was a cool guy in his own right, I mean it's not every day in Equestria that you get a chance to meet and even befriend a Drony.

Most wouldn't even be able to tell that he was different from a distance. Once you got close, though, It became rather obvious. His coat was a light Teal color with his mane being a darker shade of the same. The edges of his primary feathers were highlighted with silver. The top of his wings were covered with bright copper scales rather than more fur. He also had slitted pupils, much like that of a dragon and rather impressive fangs.

His father must have been quite the stud. Seeing as his mother was the dragon. Personally, my experiences with dragons had never lead me to believe that they would be interested in anything other than another dragon. Once again, I was faced with another difference between Earth and Equis.

I had been a little upset that I hadn't managed to meet up with Shining or Silver before I had to leave. But I figured that he had better things to do than see some grunt off to an easy assignment to guard some unicorn in a little village. Upon arriving at the train station, I was questioning whether or not to get on. The train looked like it had been made from those old pink frosted animal crackers I used to eat as a kid. (you know because I totally didn't have a massive bag of them in my trunk)

Sucking it up and trying not to let my manliness get too bruised, I got onto the train. Four hours later, I found myself stepping off the train with my trunk already having been offloaded from the baggage car.

I took a deep breath and was about to start walking to my destination when the sobering thought hit me. I began to mutter to myself, "Of course you dumb ass, you didn't ask where this mare is supposed to live, and of course Princess Trollestia didn't give me the info. She probably did that on purpose too." I started to walk off the platform when I bumped into a blob of bright pink; before I could apologize, I heard a loud gasp. I now found myself looking at what appeared to be pink clouds in the shape of a pony dissipate into thin air.

It took a few seconds before my brain rebooted. I stated aloud, "well, that was strange."

A voice to my right spoke up "yea, Pinks will do that, do ya." The scratchy yet feminine voice came from higher in the air. Turning to find the source, I found myself looking at another mare. Her cyan coat matched rather well with her rainbow-colored hair, and her rose-colored eyes looked like she could be a descendant of Celestia. Like most of the female population that I had run into, which, for some reason, happens more often than running into stallions. She was quite attractive in her own way, a slender athletic build… Okay, so I'm full of shit, she's knockout. She held herself with confidence, she seemed to exude an air of 'I will challenge you to anything and beat you at it.'

I turned my eyes up from her modest chest 'back off, I may be a gentleman. But she is flying, and it's hard not to notice considering she was only wearing a sports bra as a shirt. That shit draws your eyes' to her face. "Yes… She seems to be full of energy, Miss.?"

She laughed and provided her name, "the name is Rainbow Dash, Fastest flier in Equestria."

I smirked, "Really? The fastest flier in Equestria?"

She grinned, "Yep, that's me. And forget that Miss stuff. Just call me Rainbow. So what are you doing here?"

I cleared my throat "I am here on behalf of Princess Celestia; I have been assigned to be the personal guard of a Miss Twilight Sparkle. Do you, by chance, know this mare or where she resides?"
Rainbow looked at me with suspicion "I don't know if I should, Twi never mentioned anything like this."

I sighed with exasperation "She doesn't know about it. Apparently, in all of Princess Celestia's tolling wisdom, she decided it would be funnier to have me show up without telling Miss. Sparkle about it. She did, however, tell me that she notified Miss. Sparkle's assistant, a young colt by the name of Spike apparently."

Rainbow smirked at my response "Well I guess I can see her doing something like that if the ticket incident is anything to go on. And for your information, Spike is a baby dragon, not a colt. And speaking of the wrong species, what are you some kind of hairless monkey?"

I sighed, I was still getting used to ponies thinking I was some kind of hairless ape "No, I am a human. As far as I know, I am the only human in Equestria. I had no idea that Spike was a dragon, I meant no insult to him for the misunderstanding. Now, if you would be so kind, could you direct me to Miss. Twilight Sparkle's home?" She nodded.

I bent down to pick up my trunk, and she asked: "you need any help with that thing?"

I shook my head, "it's not necessary, I'll just rent a cart to use for a bit." She was about to protest when I added: "I could possibly manage to get it there without a cart, but no reason to tire myself out needlessly carrying it." She rolled her eyes and stooped down to try to lift the trunk.

"I wouldn't do that," I commented.

She scoffed and tried to lift the trunk. She managed to get one side about an inch off the ground before she had to let go "Holy buck, what is in that thing? Lead?"

I laughed and walked to the office. After getting a cart, I leaned down to heft the trunk off the ground onto the cart. Rainbow watched with wide eyes as I did so. "Okay, how is it that you can lift that thing? You're not all that bigger than me, and that thing must weigh a ton."

I thought about it for a moment before answering "nowhere near that much. But I would likely place it at around 300 kilos. It does have all my training equipment in it."

She gave me a blunt stare, "what is a Kilo?"
I rolled my eyes. "A Kilo is just over two pounds. So that would put this at around…" I scratched my chin for a moment, doing the math in my head "about 660 pounds give or take. Like I said, heavy enough to want the cart for the distance."

I started down the ramp as Rainbow flew up next to me, "So...uh, why are you looking for Twi again?"

"As I had said before, Princess Celestia assigned me to be her guard. I have the idea that she wants me to teach her some stuff as well."

I didn't notice the double entendre until Rainbow jumped on it, completely missing the comment about my being Twilight's personal guard. "Ohhhh, I get you. You like the egghead types. You have good taste, if Twi were a bit more into sports, I would see if she was interested in a date."

I stopped dead in my tracks "that's…. THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT. I MEANT TEACH HER MAGIC YOU PERV."

Rainbow was rolling on the ground laughing, furiously blushing I keep walking down the street. "Fine, if you're not going to help, I will find her home on my own."

I was still muttering to myself a few moments later when Rainbow zipped up next to me, "s-sorry about that." She wiped a tear from her eye "you just made it too easy. Besides, it will still be faster if I show you the way. She lives in the town Library, perfect place for an egghead."

Her comments about being an egghead were beginning to get to me "you know it isn't very nice to call your friends eggheads. It's rather rude."

She burst out laughing again, "Cool it, Roameo. I'm just yanking your reins, and Twi is cool with it. It's like if she teases me about being a jock. It's all in good fun. Come one, I will show you where she lives." She took off into the air and began to fly backward as if she were swimming in water. Having no other options at this point, I followed. To be honest with myself, I was rather impressed that she managed to get all the way to the library without hitting anything. As she flew through the air, my eyes were drawn again to her physique.

Her light build had signs of tone, while I didn't notice a defined six-pack; she did have a light tone in her stomach that hinted at one just beneath her coat. I attempted to keep my eyes focused on where we were walking, well at least where I was walking as she flew. Every so often, I would look up to make sure I was still following her. Each glance up for some reason always left me staring at her toned a perky ass. I was almost like she was taunting me with it.

About halfway there, she must have gotten bored and wanted to show off a bit. She began to loop through the air, twisting into different positions and shapes as she left a rainbow contrail behind her. I have no idea how she did that, but in a world of colorful talking ponies, I have learned not to question stuff like that.

It was somewhat distracting when she would show off how flexible she could be. Growing up around Dryads and Nymphs tends to broaden your horizons on what is attractive. Again, I would be lying if I said the rainbow-maned pegasus wasn't beautiful. She had a confidence in her that was intoxicating. But at this point, I am only drawing conclusions based on what little of her I had seen.

It would be interesting to see what she was actually like behind the face that she portrayed to the public. We had been walking for about ten minutes when we arrived at the Library tree. Rainbow had been attempting some new move that she had come up with, but at the last second, she must have hit some kind of turbulence and shot right toward a window. Seeing what was about to happen. I tugged on the myst to try to form some sort of soft barrier between her and the window.

I managed it, but only just. She still managed to hit the window somewhat hard. It didn't break, but it did make a rather loud sound. I rushed up to her to check if she was alright. "Holy shit, are you okay, you hit that wall kinda hard?"

She stood up slightly dazed and looked over at me and shook her head "Naw I do that all the time" She grinned.

The door to the library slammed open as a purple unicorn mare came out with a fire in her eyes "DASH IF I HAVE TOLD YOU ONCE I HAVE TOLD YOU 1251 TIMES. DO NOT PRACTICE YOUR STUNTS RIGHT NEXT TO MY LIBRARY!!!!" Looking over at us, her face lit up with a blush, now realizing that it wasn't just Rainbow outside.

"Twilight, it's been 1252 times, and this makes 1253. What's going on?" the voice of a young male was closely followed by a small green...thing.

I could only imagine that this must be the baby dragon that Rainbow was talking about, drawing that conclusion I introduced myself. "Hello, my name is Mágos Schmidt, I would like to apologize for not catching Miss. Rainbow Dash sooner. I had not realized where she was going to hit until it became too late."

The purple mare who I could only assume was Twilight Sparkle remained quiet. "I am guessing that Spike kept his directions and didn't tell you about my arrival." At this comment, Twilight's head turned to glare daggers at the small green dragon.

"Come on, Twilight, don't be mad at me. Princess Celestia told me to keep it a secret. I still have the letter if you don't believe me. She said she wanted it to be a surprise." He dropped his gaze.

Sighing to myself all I could think was, Gods that kid looks depressed, I couldn't take it "Please don't be mad at him, I'm sure Princesse Celestia had her reasons. I believe that I know your name, but it would be rude to presume. If I may have your name as well?" I knew I was a bit formal at this point, but she was kind of my boss at this point.

Blushing, she responded, "My name is Twilight Sparkle. Um...is there a reason that the Princess sent you here?"

I nodded and added, "Yes, in fact, there is a very specific reason that I was sent here, Miss. Sparkle."

She held her hand up "Please feel free to call me Twilight. I'm not old enough to be a Miss."

I smiled "Of course Twilight, Princess Celestia asked me to come here to be your personal guard."

Her smile vanished, and her face paled, "S-s-she asked you to be my what?!"

My smile faltered, "Um. She asked me to be your personal guard. Is there a problem with that?" I was beginning to feel a little unsure about this. I was going to stay until Celestia told me to leave. But it would be a lot easier if I didn't have to fight Twilight on this the whole way.

Her voice wavered a bit, "of course not. uh...where are you going to be staying?" I could swear I saw her mouth the words' please not here'.

"I was informed that Young Spike was preparing a spare room for me." Her head once again locked on the young drake.

"What room is he talking about, Spike?"

Spike shrugged, he seemed to have forgotten about his depression before "The Princess told me about an extra room in the basement behind a bookcase that we could use. It had a bed in there and everything. the sheets need to be changed still, and it has a bit of a weird smell, but Princess Celestia told me it would be the best room for him."

I wasn't sure why but Twilight's face seemed to flush at the mention of the sent of the room. "um, how much cleaning up in there have you done so far?" her voice seemed almost panicked.

"Well, she only sent me a letter a few minutes ago. I'm not really sure how he got here so fast, to be honest." Spike looked over at me.

I was confused, "Wait a few minutes ago? I've been on the train for four hours now. if you need help with the room, I am happy to lend a helping hand."

"NO!!! 'cough' um. No, thank you. I will go take care of it myself" She turned to Spike "don't worry about it Spike I will take care of the room, just help Mágos bring his luggage inside. I will be up from the basement when the room is cleaned out." Twilight shot into the tree and seemingly down the stairs.

"well, that was interesting" I turned to Rainbow "Are you going to be okay after that crash?"

Rainbow grinned and shook it off "Naw man I'm fine, Listen, I'll catch you later, I've got practice to be doing." She shot off into the air, and I couldn't help but catch another glance at her magnificent ass.

Turning back, I muttered to myself, 'girls got an ass like an onion. So fine it makes you cry' I looked to see Spike trying to push the cart to the door and failing to make it roll. "Cool it, little man, I've got it." Walking over, I grunted and got the cart moving up to the tree. Once there, I squatted down to lift the trunk through the door. I may have been bluffing a bit when I made it seem like I could have carried this thing all the way here. This shit is heavy. I maybe could have made it three-quarters of the way here, but I would have been forced to stop at least once to rest a bit.

Spike watched with amazement in his eyes "wow… how much does that thing weigh?"

"about 300 Kilos."

Spikes jaw dropped "No way that thing weighs that much, I don't think Big Mac can lift that much, and he is a huge earth pony."

I smirked "good on you for recognizing how much a Kilo is. That Rainbow Dash had no idea, but I'm not joking. This thing really does weigh that much. Technically at least it does."

Spikes eyebrow hitched up at this, but I just waved it off. "Don't worry about it. So should I just put this thing in the main room until Twilight finishes doing whatever it is that she is doing down there?"

Spike shrugged, "I guess. No idea why she wanted to clean that room out herself. She always makes me do that kind of thing most of the time. I didn't even know about that room. Not sure how she did."

I decided not to dwell on it. Placing my trunk in the room next to the door that Spike had indicated lead to the basement. I decided to browse the books on the shelves. After looking through them for a few minutes, I found an interesting one that stated that it was, in fact, written by the resident Unicorn. It was a dissertation about magic and its function in the world.

She made some excellent points. Others I didn't really understand or agree with, but I took her information with a grain of salt. Considering that magic was inherently different here than it was back on earth.

A few hours passed before Twilight made an appearance back upstairs. I had finished the first few papers in this bound copy and was beginning another when she came into the room. I hadn't noticed at first that she had come back into the room, that was until she spoke.

"I-I'm finished with the room down… what are you reading?!"

She sounded a little panicked, "I'm just taking some time to read up on the magic of this world. I have to say if you don't mind some constructive criticism." She nodded in response. "Your writing can be somewhat dry and technical, I fully understand that these are a collection of formal dissertations. But unless you add some whimsy, only the most focused of readers would be able to make it through the content that you have managed to shove into this. I would also change your font to be more substantial. This first paper is at a page count of 50, when if written in an easier to read font it would likely be over 100 pages. I am guessing that you were given a cap of 50 pages and decided to shrink the font so that you would be able to fix it. Am I right?"

I looked up and noticed that she was blushing "yes. Princess Celestia told me that my paper couldn't be over 50 pages. But it wasn't enough to get my point across." She sounded almost mad at me for making the observation.

"I can understand wanting to make sure that you get your point across. But frankly, you made an excellent point after your first 10 pages. I can understand wanting to be thorough, but at the same time you have to understand that most people aren't going to be as intelligent as you are, and due to that needless reinforcement to be convinced when presented with a solid argument." I kept my eyes on her as I gave my argument for a shorter paper. I noticed when I made mention of her level of intelligence. She seemed to glow with pride but, at the same time, shrink away, almost like she was ashamed of it while at the same time enjoying the praise.

"Now I could be wrong as well. At least for me, it was fine to stop after the first 10 pages. At least your handwriting is better than mine. If I had written this, it would be completely illegible. I tend to write rather quickly, and it makes my handwriting rather messy. But from the first 4 papers, you have here, you have an excellent grasp of magic. There are some sections that I would disagree with. However, that could be influenced by whether or not magic is the same here as it is where I'm from."

It must have been at this point that I managed to snap her out of her stupor because it was only at this point that she seemed to notice that I wasn't a stallion. "Wait a minute, what do you mean where you are from? You don't look like any pony that I have ever seen before. You're obviously not a dog, minatory, naga, or griffin. So… what are you?"

I smiled, "I am what is called a Human. I was brought here a little over a month ago. I've been in Canterlot up to today. Princess Celestia assigned me to be your personal guard, and likely she wants to see if you would be capable of learning my kind of magic."

As soon as I mentioned a new kind of magic, her eyes lit up again, "what kind of magic?" I swear it was like looking at a child right after you told them that they were getting a present.

Adding a little flare to my actions, I summoned a glass of water, "this kind of magic." Her eyes shot open.

"You didn't charge any kind of spell, how did you do that?!"

I smirked, "my magic is not my own. I use raw magic." Her pupils shrank.

"That isn't possible. Magic can only be used after it is refined through a catalyst, something like a unicorn's horn." I gave her a deadpan look.

"With that line of logic, how did I just summon this glass of water? As you can see, I don't have a horn, and I don't have any other kind of catalyst that I channel magic, though. Now, to be honest with you, it can be easier to do it with a catalyst. However, by not using one, you have far more options on how to use it." Her eyes seemed to brighten; I could tell that she wanted to learn.

"do…do you think you would be able to teach me how?" She sounded hopeful. Again I draw a comparison to a child that had been shown a plate of cookies.

I nodded, "I think that is one of the reasons that Princess Celestia sent me here, in fact." It will be some time before I can begin, though. I think the first area that we are going to want to start with is having you experience what it is to not be surrounded by ambient magic first. Once you get used to not feeling magic around you at all times. It will be easier to feel it once you're flooded with it again."

Her eyes sparkled with joy,

"yesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyes!" As she repeated herself, she danced around in place, and I once again got to observe a rather attractive Mare bounce around. Gods, these mares are beautiful. Where Rainbow was lean and toned, her bust seemed to be a pleasant handful; Twilight had some rather lovely curves. She wasn't even close to voluptuous, but she did have a beautiful figure eight figure going for her. Lovely hips, a pleasant rack, and a nice looking ass. I had to shake my head, 'stop ogling all the mares in this town you perv. You already yelled at Rainbow for this. Fuck, I just know that Celestia knew about this. Now our dinner conversations about what I found attractive were for. Queen of the trolls and her sister is no better.'

Bringing myself out of my perverse thoughts, I decided to ask, "So why was it that you didn't ask Spike to clean that room down there? From what he said, he didn't even know about that room till after the Princess told him about it?"

Twilight seemingly lost in her joy at the thought of learning new magic answered without thinking. "Oh, that was the room that I would use for private study and for waiting out my estrus each year." Right after the words left her lips, she realized what it was that she just told me, and her face lit up like a Christmas tree.

Now I had heard of the term estrus before, but there was no way that it meant the same thing here. I mean, ponies are fully sentient beings in this world. That kind of thing would have been phased out a long time ago, right.

"I'm sorry about taking your private study room. If it's too much of a bother, I can look for other lodgings in a few days. You know to minimize the impact on your life."

Her face was still beet red. "n-no, that's fine. If the Princess wants you to live here, I will just adapt."

She showed me down to the basement as well as the bookshelf that covered the door. I have to admit that I was kind of excited to be living behind a secret door. I loved this James Bond kind of shit when I was a kid. After setting the trunk down at the end of my bed. I decided to lie back and meditate for a while.

After sitting for around 30 minutes or so, I noticed that this room had some spells placed on it. "That's curious, let's see here." Probing out, I began to try to decipher them. "Let's see here, there is an ambient temperature spell, likely to keep the room comfortable, a cleaning spell on the floor, and a soundproofing spell." Thinking to myself again, "that is a strange combination of spell for a room guess she wants her privacy when studying."

It was during this meditation that I noticed a delightful aroma. It seemed to be a mixture of lavender, paper, ink, and a fourth sent I couldn't place. It was almost musky but not unpleasant. "I wonder if she scented the room with something. Meh, guess I'll ask her about it before I leave to go get an evening meal."

At this point, I had been downstairs for a few hours, and it was beginning to get late. Kicking back, I decided to go back upstairs and hunt for a sandwich or something, as I got to the top of the stairs I observed Twilight sitting at her desk in the corner of the room. "Hello Twilight, just wanted to let you know that the room is great. I'm sure the floor scrubbing spell took a lot of time to perfect. I have to say good work on that. I'm going to head out for a little to get some food, would you like me to pick something up for you?"

She seemed to beam at the praise for the spell "if you don't mind, I would enjoy an FLT." I looked at her with confusion for a moment before she realized that I didn't know what that was. "Oh, sorry, an FLT is a flower, lettuce, and tomato sandwich. I like daisies."

I smirked and turned to the exit. Turning back to her right as I left the room, I commented, "Sure, I will grab a sandwich for you. Funny, I thought you would have been more of a lavender mare. Thanks for adding the sent to the room. It smells great." With that, I left the tree and ventured out into the village to find food.

Back in the library tree, Twilight sat there with confusion on her face, "Lavender? I never sent……. OH, MY GODDESS, HE COULD SMELL IT!"

Clarification - Edited 3/21/20

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Clarification

Walking through the streets of Ponyville drew a lot of eyes. I expected this due to my unique situation. I mean, come on; when you are the only human on the planet, you tend to be a point of curiosity for a lot of ponies. It was a bit later in the day but still a bit early. I knew that I needed to get that food, but at the same time, I had a few errands that I needed to run as well.

My first stop was to the town hall to notify the mayor of my presence. In addition to being Twilights guard, I also found myself to be the only guard presence in the town. Apparently, they have been incredibly peaceful in later years, which lead them not to really need a guard force. After introducing myself to the mayor (who I found funnily enough to be named Mayor Mare), I showed myself around the town.

Overall it was rather quaint. There were a few places of business that were a bit strange from the outside. The local bakery looked like a giant gingerbread house. Apparently, there was also a fashion designer that lived and worked out of a building that looked like a carousel. I did notice that as it grew a bit later in the evening that the local populous seemed to disappear. The more it happened, the more curious that I became. It didn't appear to alarm anyone, though, so I just sort of shook it off.

After making my final stop at a local café to pick up the to-go sandwich for Twilight, I made my way back to the library. I felt a little sad due to how long it took me to get everything together, the sun was slowly setting, and it seemed almost like the village was deserted. As I got closer to the library, I felt like I caught the tail end of music being cut off. "weird? Oh well, I need to get this food to Twilight." I walked up to the door and pressed it open, "Hey Twilight, sorry about taking so long, but I got your sandwich."

No more than two seconds later, a blast of confetti hit me while noisemakers all went off "SURPRISE!!!!!" I fell back on my ass from shock. The entire library seemed to be packed with ponies. Again I observed mostly mares, but it looked like most of the population of Ponyville was currently sitting in the room.

"wereyousupprisedIbetyouweresupprisedIknowyoulookedlikeyouweresuprisedwhydidyoufalldownareyouokaywhyareyoureyesblackrightnowohhhyourhairischangingcolorshowdoyoudothatmynameispinkiepiewhat' syournamemmmhhhhhhhmmmmm."

I was saved from the onslaught of babbling by Rainbow, putting her hands over the pink mare's mouth. "Sorry about that, dude. She can get a little crazy when somepony new moves in. By the way, dude, why was Twilight so embarrassed when we got here to set this up?"

This really confused me "Embarrassed? I have no idea. I just complimented her on the smell of the room she gave me. I love the mixture of Lavender, fresh paper, and ink. I have no idea why that would be embarrassing." For some reason, Rainbow's face lit up with a little bit of blush as well.

"So, you were just saying that you like the smell of the room." She seemed to confirm.

"Um… yeah. Was that wrong? I'm still learning a lot about how things are done here." At this point, I was bewildered.

"yea, no big deal, I'll let Twi know it was just a misunderstanding" Misunderstanding, what would it be a misunderstanding for? I was blown away by the line of questioning but figured it was no big deal. Lifting myself off the floor, I looked around to see who all was at the party. Just like my assumptions, it would appear everyone was here. Strangely enough, even the stallion that worked at the café was here.

The music playing was something that I would really have expected at a child's birthday party. Deciding to take a little initiative, I quickly scanned the room to see if there were any foals around, finding none I went to find the party organizer. Her pink afro made that task a rather simple one.

Walking up next to her, "So you are the one that put this all together?"

She beamed at me, "you bet ya. My name is Pinkie Pie, and this party is just for you. It's your welcome to a new universe and Ponyville party."

I was slightly alarmed by that seeing as I hadn't told anyone that I came from a different universe "um… okay, first question here. How did you know that?"

"My Pinkie sense told me."

I was at a loss for words, and it was at this point that Rainbow Dash leaned around and gave me a look that says, 'don't ask, you don't want to know.' Deciding to take her sage advice, I continued to my reason for talking to her, "Well, miss. Pie, if it would be okay with you. Would I be okay to show you how I used to party back where I am from?"

Her eyes lit up, and I could swear I heard angels singing behind her
"OHMYGOSHYESYESYESIWOULDLOVETOLEARNABOUTNEWWAYSTOPARTYAFTERALLMYNAMEISPINKIEPIEANDPARTIESAREMYSUPERSPECIALTALENT!!!!!!"

I worked my fingers in my ears in a fruitless attempt at making the pop "well then. 'cough' I have to ask a few questions first." She nodded with excitement, "first off, do you know what Cannabis is, and are there any issues with it?"

She cocked her head to the side "I don't know what Can-ie-buss is. Is it something fun?"

"It can be. Let me clarify, are there any substances that are not allowed?"

She gave me a hard look "You're not talking about Salt, are you. That stuff is really bad for ponies. I know that the Princess wouldn't send you here if you used that kind of stuff."

I pulled my hands up to show surrender, "I swear to Celestia's glorious golden ass that is not the kind of stuff I was talking about."

At my comment, Pinkie began giggling with uncontrolled mirth as Rainbow joined her "H-h-he s-s-said G-g-g-glo-glorious golden ass." They seemed like they were about to pass out from laughing so hard.

"What can I say, I would be lying if I said she didn't have a fantastic ass. Not like I haven't told her that before. But we are getting away from the point. Cannabis or weed as it is more commonly known as a plant. It has a naturally occurring chemical that it produces called THC or Tetrahydrocannabinol if you want to get technical." Her eyes glazed at the long name "in any event it is a fun substance that can be smoked, concentrated, or baked with. It has more applications, but those are the main ones. I happen to have some that I would be interested in sharing, as well as some music from home. Now I have to say that I wouldn't let any kids have this stuff."

Pinkie was again confused "what do baby goats have anything to do with this? We don't have any goats that live in Ponyville. They mostly keep to the northern islands."

Slapping myself on the head, I clarified, "not what I meant. I meant children or foals. It's stuff for grownups." Realizing that I had never introduced myself, "by the way, my name is Magos or Mag for short, so what do you say? Would you like me to go grab some stuff real quick?"

Pinkie nodded so fast I was scared that she might just lose her head, but at the same time, I couldn't but help to notice that she was stacked. Like to the nines and back. A fantastic figure with a generous chest, now some would think that I was a bit of a perv. But let's face it when you grow up at a camp full of demigods that are all technically related to you, yea, it made things hard. I know that the relation wasn't close enough to care about, but I still felt like girls that I knew from back home were a little too 'in the family' for me to be comfortable with asking out. But I digress. It seemed like this village was just full of knockouts.

Running down to the basement, I jumped to my room to get my shit. Making sure that the door was closed, I approached my trunk. It was a rather unassuming addition to the room; it appeared to be made of plain hardwood with bronze fittings. What most wouldn't notice without training was that it radiated magic. This trunk was my most significant achievement.

About ten years ago, I got into a show called Dr. Who. The idea of having something that was larger on the inside became an obsession. Taking this in mind, I approached the Hephaestus cabin with the idea for the project. Lucky for me, they were always trying to do stuff that would get them some kind of recognition from their dad' poor dumb bastards,' and this was a big project. They finally managed to get a trunk that had an area of double the size of the exterior and with a fixed max weight of 300 kilos. The way that they explained it to me was that no matter what I put in the trunk. It would never weigh more than that benchmark. To date, they had never been wrong.

However, I wasn't satisfied with just double the storage space. It had taken them three years to get it to that stage. After they gave it to me, I began my work. Now seven years later, I had a trunk that held a small warehouse worth of space. Nothing too significant, of course, and it only lets you into the larger room if you opened it right. Using the standard method of opening the trunk, all you would see would be my clothes, but open it in the right way, and you got a ladder down into the room.

Flipping it open with the correct movements and application of magic, I dropped down to get my shit, letting the trunk lid slam close after me.

Perspective shift to party
_________________________________________________________________

Pinkie found Twilight sitting with a light blush on her face "Hey Twilight, what are you doing over here all alone? Are you sad?"

Twilight looked up at her friend and responded, "No, Pinkie; I'm not sad. I am a little embarrassed, 'looking around to make sure no one was listening' you girls know about my special room, right?"

Pinkie nodded, "yeppers. Every single mare has a room like that."

Sighing Twilight continued, "Yes, well, Princess Celestia apparently decided that was the room that I was supposed to give to Magos to stay in. I cleaned it up as much as I could, but apparently, it still had a smell to it." Her face was lit up bright red.

Pinkie was a little taken aback by this "did he say it was a bad smell?"

Blushing harder, "N.no… he said he loved the smell."

Leaning down, "What was that Twilight I couldn't hear you?"

Getting a little upset, Twilight burst, "HE SAID HE LOVED THE SMELL!" as soon as the words left her mouth, she felt like she had just slapped herself in the face.

Pinkie smiled "I don't see what the problem is then. Isn't that a good thing? I mean, he might look a little different, but he is still hunky. Why not give him a go?" her eyes lit up "ohhhhhhhh I know, we can share him."

Twilight couldn't believe her ears "what do you mean share him?! Like trying to establish a herd?! Pinkie, I don't know if I'm ready for something like that, besides he is supposed to be my guard, not my lover."

Pinkie just shrugged, "why not both?"

Twilight was stumped. How was it that Pinkie always seemed to do this to her. From behind the purple mare spoke a raspy voice "well, if you're not up for it egghead, I may toss my name into the ring. That guy is jacked. I tried to lift his trunk and only managed to lift it up like an inch. Dude grabbed it like it was nothing and dropped it down on that luggage cart. I bet he can give me a challenge." She grinned wryly.

At this point, Twilight was a bit upset, "why is everyone just rushing into this?! He just got here, and you are already after him?!"

Rainbow and Pinkie gave her a pair of deadpan looks "really Twilight if we don't, then he is going to get snatched up rather fast. Last I checked, there were only three unattached Stallions in this village, Big Mac, Poky Peirce, and that Dr. guy." At this point, they heard a familiar voice call out, "MY MUFFINS! DR. PLEASE, NOT SO ROUGH"

Looking back to Twilight, "correction two unattached stallions, and let's face it. I think Fluttershy is the only one with any chance with Big Mac, and I'm fairly certain that Poky is gay. So why not ask him out. At least we can give him a shot first. You know, see if he is the right kind of guy?"

Twilight couldn't believe what she was hearing. On the one hand, he was supposed to be a professional; she hardly thought that the Princess would do something like playing matchmaker with her.

Perspective shift Canterlot
__________________________________________________________________
Celestia sneezed, looked over at her sister as they shared their evening meal Luna questioned “dearest sister art thou well? We dost not recall when thou last sneezed without meaning to?”

Celestia smiled and responded directly, "It's nothing Lulu, somepony we know must be thinking about me."

Luna nodded and added, "So dost thou think that thine student will leap at the opportunity that thou hast set for her?"

Smirking at the younger alicorn, Celestia continued, "I think she will likely have to work up the courage to approach him. However, she might get some encouragement from her friends."

A sound came out of nowhere, "yepperonies."

Both Sisters looked at one another and shuttered. Luna spoke first, "The pink one, while we owe her our freedom, She scares us, sister."

Celestia just nodded.

Perspective shift back to Golden Oaks library Twilight, Pinkie and Rainbow
__________________________________________________________________

The room suddenly went dark, and the music cut. There was enough light to see but not much. A fog rolled through the library, leaning over to Rainbow, Twilight whispered "I don't like this Rainbow. You didn't mention any kind of fog tonight, and even if there was supposed to be some, it shouldn't be able to get inside."

Rainbow was at a loss for words "Don't look at me Twi, I have no idea what is going on."

Pinkie sat back with a massive grin on her face. "Just sit back and enjoy the show, girls he's about to start." They looked at her with confusion just as the song began.

The dance floor had cleared as soon as the lights went out, seemingly to get closer to the windows where more light could be found. The fog from around the room began to coalesce in the center as it began to take the form of a bipedal figure. The observing ponies were not used to such heavy music, something that Mag had been counting on. Not long into the song, the beat dropped, and the mist fell from him.

Twilight, Rainbow, and Pinkie were taken aback to see Mag standing there. He had changed his clothes from the crisp uniform of a guard to something one would likely see at a rave. Black Tripp pants with chains. Woven through the chains appeared to be glowing lights, his hands were covered in black fingerless gloves, and his shirt was replaced with a very tight under armor shirt.

As the beat dropped, he began to dance. His movements seemed to allow him to glide over the floor, almost as if his feet were propelling him. As the tone of the song shifted, his movements shifted as well, he began to rhythmically jump through the air in time to the music. As the music continued, more and more ponies stopped looking and started to let the beat take them as they joined in with the dance.

The trio of mares on the couch continued to watch. Twilight blushing, Rainbow with hunger in her eyes, and Pinkie just being Pinkie. After the first song ended, another began in short order. At this point, the temperature in the library had risen considerably.

"Fuck it's hot in here" unnoticed by Mag several ponies looked at him with shock at the langue. Their shock was short-lived as they watched him remove his shirt, finally giving a view of what more than one mare, and at least one stallion had been hoping to see.

What none of them had been prepared for was a torso that was covered with hard mussels and scars. But what really was shocking, were the tattoos. His body seemed to be covered in them, and each one seemed to be inked over a rather nasty scar. On his left side were four deep gouges, covered in the image of a massive paw that appeared to be made of the night sky. A deep cut in his right shoulder appeared to have a sword sticking out of it; his right bicep had an arrow shaft sprouting out while the other side had the arrowhead sticking through.

Ignorant of what the view was causing, he started up again as the next track began.

As he danced, he seemed to be utterly unaware of the effect that his appearance had on the gathered ponies. After the second song ended, the music continued, but Mag decided to take a seat next to the trio of mares.

Turning to them, "So what do you think of my music, Pinkie? It's not too hard, is it?"

Leaning forward, she appeared to have tears in her eyes as she brushed his right shoulder, "W-what happened?"

Seeing her attention, he shrugged, pointing to each in turn as he explained, "well that one is from the recent war, the enemy got through and managed to chop into me. I took care of him but this hurt like a bitch 'I tell ya wat,' the arrow happened at camp, Let me tell you, Son of Poseidon should stick to swords. Some guys should never use a bow. It's okay though, I filled his boots with sauerkraut the next day as payback, as for the big one." He gestured to his entire left side.

"Well, Quests are seldom pleasant, let's just say that carrying a javelin through Callisto's lands isn't a good idea. And believe me, she was pissed, luckily she decided not to kill me. She just gave me a parting gift."

Twilight's eyes grew wide at this, "you mean to tell me that you took on the mother of all Ursa Majors?!!!"

Mag was confused. "Mother of all? Isn't she the only one besides her son?"

Twilight shook her head. "Legend has it that over a thousand years ago the first Ursa Major fell from the sky and began to breed with the large bears of the Everfree forest. This would have been shortly after Princess Celestia moved to Canterlot. They aren't very densely populated, but I know of at least two within a day's journey from this town."

Rainbow and Pinkie looked shocked "You never told us that before." They said in tandem.

Shrugging Twilight continued, "I didn't think it was important, Ursa are territorial, as long as you leave them alone, they won't bother you."

Smirking Mag added "I can attest to that, I can't fully believe that she just let me live. But she did smack me out of her land. That is likely what saved my life. But we are getting off-topic; I get a tattoo after every battle to commemorate it. The only exception was when Jackson shot me. But it's not every day that you get shot by one of the big three's kids."

They all looked confused, "Big three?" Twilight asked.

Nodding with understanding "The major gods of Olympus, Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades; they agreed around a hundred years ago to stop having mortal children due to some prophecy. The only issue was that Zeus and Poseidon fell off the bandwagon. Lord Hades kept to his agreement. Although he does have a kid running around, nice guy. At least his boyfriend thinks so."

Twilight was stunned. This…man was talking about demigods as if they were a dime a dozen. "How can you talk about demigods like that, they are immensely powerful beings, and you act like it was no big deal!"

Realizing that he never actually told them he sighed, "Well, for me, it isn't a huge deal, but allow me to reintroduce myself." Standing up, he faced them. "My name is Mágos Schmidt, Son of Hecate, the goddess of Magic, demigod, and according to Princess Celestia, your new guard/teacher."

The mares in front of him were shocked, and only Rainbow spoke, "Damn."

Pinkie's party - Edited 3/21/20

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Pinkie's party

The girls were quiet after Rainbow's admission. "You see, this is why I didn't want to tell you." The girls were giving him looks of apprehension. "Please don't look at me as some kind of mega-powerful being that can't be touched. Please. I didn't have any say whose vagina I came out of, and I don't really care anyway. She may have been the goddess that gave birth to me, but I don't see her as my mother. The only ties I have with her, or at this point, that world is by blood. And even then, I don't really care. I asked to be brought here… well not here specifically, but I asked to be removed from their realm of influence."

All three mares were quiet for a moment before Pinkie spoke; her hair seemed to deflate a little "W-why, don't you think of her as your mother?"

I sighed, "I personally think that for a woman to consider herself your mother, she would at least have to talk to you. To be honest, I have only ever seen my mother in person once. And that was for all of ten minutes. I've never spoken to her before, never even really met her. How can you call someone you have never spoken to, never met, and to date only ever seen for all of ten minutes, your mother."

Shaking my head, I continued, "I'm sorry Pinkie but I am an orphan, my father died when I was five, I spent three years in an orphanage, and when I was eight I was brought to camp half-blood. I have been there ever since. The only family I have ever known were half-siblings I never really took the time to get to know and various cousins, nieces, and nephews that were all around my age. And I never took the time to get to know them either. The only ones I ever got even a little close to were Luke and Nico. Luke started a war that got most of my half-siblings killed, and Nico is never around."

The mares were quite, not really sure what they should say. Deciding that I was done with the silence, I stood up and walked over to the sound table put some softer music to finish out the night. Smirking, I started up my chill mix, Blue Oyster Cult, Pink Floyd, and any kind of chill Trance music. Right as 'Another brick in the Wall' by Pink Floyd started up I turned back to the couch, nodding to the girls I motioned them to follow me out to the front of the library.

https://youtu.be/5IpYOF4Hi6Q

The three of them seemed to be slightly curious as to why I stepped outside and followed me. Pinkie coming up next to me asked: "So Maggy, why are we headed outside?"

"Well, Pinkie, I was going to do this outside to respect Twilight. I doubt she wants us smoking in her house." Twilight looked mildly concerned when I mentioned smoking.

"Um… Mag, I don't want to tell you how to live your life, but smoking is terrible for your health." Twilight seemed to color.

Nodding "I agree with you fully Twilight, Smoking tobacco is a filthy habit, one that I am happy to say that I have never indulged in. I, however, don't intend to smoke that. I brought you out here to try weed; that is if you would like to." I made a motion with my hand and caused Excalibur (my water bong) to appear seemingly out of thin air. Sitting the delicate instrument down on the ground, I pulled a container out of one of my pockets.

The moment that I pulled it out of my pocket, Pinkie stuck her face right next to the container and sniffed it. "That's weird, that stuff smells a lot like those plants that Shy grows behind her house. She said she uses it for her anxiety."

I smiled at this information. Firstly because that would go a long way toward showing them that it was harmless, and secondly because I now knew that I had a supplier here. "That is a widespread use for this. I have known people to use it for anxiety, depression, joint pain, headaches, sleep aids, and a lot use it just to relax at the end of the day. My use tends to lean more towards depression/sleep aid. But I also like to use it to relax."

Twilight looked right at me when I mentioned depression. "And before you jump to conclusions, I have been dealing with depression for some years. When you lose your dad at an early age, you tend to have some emotional scars. I like to think that having it just shows that I'm still human."

Twilight seemed to want to ask a question, so I looked at her with expectation in my eyes. She began tentatively. "I didn't realize that demigods could have depression. There hasn't been one in Equestria for over a thousand years. Not since Princess Celestia and Princess Luna's last herd."

My eyes widened at that comment, "What's a herd?"

The three mares shared a look before Twilight asked: "didn't Princess Celestia tell you about social norms here?"

I shook my head and added, "My first month here was going through basic training for the guard. They didn't cover anything like that."

Twilight blushed. "Well, a herd is a group of ponies that are romantically linked, traditionally they are all married together as a cohesive herd, and it's the basis of a family. Normally it is formed by one stallion and anywhere from three to five mares. This had been done throughout the history of Equestria. Mostly due to the gender ratio being around five mares for every stallion born. The practice continues today because of this, as well as to keep with tradition. Although there have been a number cases where the entire herd is nothing but mares, or even in some rare circumstances nothing but stallions. But the second case doesn't happen often. Most stallions that are only into stallions tend to stay in monogamist relationships."

When I heard this, I just stopped for a moment. After gathering my thoughts for a bit, I packed the bowl and lit Excalibur up for a long pull. After around twenty seconds, I pulled off the bong and held it for a bit before letting out the deep breath, the cloud of smoke dissipating into the night air. After coughing for a moment, I looked back at the group and asked, now feeling the buzz at the back of my skull taking hold, "pony says what about herds now?!"

Looking a bit annoyed, Twilight repeated herself. "As I said, social norms dictate that herds are normally comprised of one stallion, and anywhere from three to five mares. This sometimes extends to more, but after five mares, it's normally expected to bring a second stallion into the picture. I don't care to repeat myself, so please pay attention."

Letting that information steep in, I responded: "Fuck me!" Turning my head to look up at the Catterhorn, right up to the palace, visible even here, I shouted up, "Princess Celestia, you are the biggest troll on this planet!!!!"

Twilight quickly slapped her hands over my mouth "SHHHHHH, don't talk like that. It's extremely disrespectful."

Pulling her soft hands away from my mouth, I noticed that they had that same scent of lavender, paper, and ink as my new room. "Don't be such a buzz kill Sparkles, I told her to her face this morning that she is a troll. Now, are you three going to smoke with me. Or am I going to have to finish this bowl by myself."

I could perceive that she didn't like the nickname, but I shrugged it off, at this point I was beginning to get a good buzz going and didn't want to ruin it. Pinkie looked at me expectantly, so I continued, "Just watch me first, also if you could be careful with this. It was my fathers, and it's the only thing I have left of him." I lit it up and took a shorter pull to show them again how. Pinkie must have thought that it looked fun because she was the first to ask to try it. "Now be careful, the stem can get hot if you hit it too often, and I will warn you, I expect that you will cough quite a bit."

I watched with anticipation, praying to the gods that Pinkie wouldn't drop it. My fears were unfounded, however, when she took her first hit like a champ. Unbeknownst to me, we had a new pony that had walked up to our group. A butter-yellow mare with pink hair, seeing her, I turned and gave her a warm smile. Apparently, she was still intimidated because she hid behind her hair. My smile dropped, and I quickly added, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you, my name is Magos Schmidt. I'm new to town; I'm guessing that you came here for Pinkie's party?"

She blushed and nodded, I smiled again. At this point, Pinkie was finished with her hit and turned to hand me back Excalibur. Once she saw it, the yellow mare she grinned "Flutter Shy! I'm super happy that you made it. This is Maggy, he's Twilight's guard and teacher. The best…." Her line of thinking ended abruptly as her surface thoughts flew from her mind. "um…What was I talking about again?"

Rainbow and Twilight were both a little concerned, so I quickly stepped in to clarify. "Don't worry about her, depending on the person, or I guess pony in this situation, forgetting what you were talking about is fairly common. I constantly will lose my train of thought when I smoke." Turning to the yellow mare, "Would you like some, if I remember right, Pinkie said you are familiar with this plant."

Fluttershy leaned forward to sniff at the bowl. "Oh, yes, I use it a lot. If you would like, well, I mean, if it's okay. Um…. Would you like to try some of mine?"

I gave her a warm smile and nodded. Taking the bowl off of Excalibur, Fluttershy pulled a bowl scraper out of her mane (I shit you not) and proceeded to clean the bowl before loading it again. She held it to me first, but I shook my head "I'm good for a bit, I just took two hits. Feel free."

What happened next made my jaw drop. She dropped down to take a seat and took a rip that burned the entire bowl. If it weren't for the fact that I watched her pack it, I would have said it was a light bowl. But having seen her pack it, I can honestly say that she packed it tight. Her rip must have taken almost a full minute, and then she just calmly let it out before looking up at me with red eyes and beamed. "When you feel like it, please feel free to ask. I don't really have anypony to do this with right now."

I smirked and looked back at Pinkie, who was presently trying to molest Rainbow while rubbing her face on Rainbows neck. "I don't think you will have any issues finding people to join you now. Looks like Pinkie loves this stuff." Turning back to Fluttershy, "by the way, you must have amazing lung capacity. I don't think I have ever seen anyone take a rip like that before. I bow to your mastery, Butters."

She looked confused, so I clarified, "Your coat, it's butter yellow. If you don't like the nickname, I can just call you Fluttershy."

For some reason, she seemed to blush and shook her head "n-no, I'm okay with that. It's a lot better than other nicknames I used to get."

I smile fell, "what do you mean?"

She looked distant. I knew that kind of look, it was the look of someone that had been emotionally abused, my mind clouded with good feelings wouldn't let me stand by and do nothing. I stooped down and pulled her into a hug, at first she tensed up, almost like a dear in the headlights, but after a few moments, she relaxed and leaned into the embrace. "It's okay, Butters. I have been there before. How about we go back inside in a few minutes and have some fun." She nodded, "First thing is first, though. I have to get your friends stoned first. Would you like to help?"

Butters giggled and nodded. Ten minutes later found us sitting in the lobby of the library on the couch. I have to admit, I was feeling great. I was surrounded by new friends, all of whom were knockouts, and better yet, for some reason, they were leaning on me. Deciding to show off a little, I pulled my guitar up from my room using a little magic that I had adapted and began to strum a little bit of a tune.

As I looked around the room, I could tell that the party was beginning to die out. At this point, it was close to midnight. Looking around, I noticed a White mare that had apparently brought an electric keyboard. It was currently set to sound like an organ, but the tune she was playing was one for the ages. Knowing what I had to do. I pulled myself off of the couch to stand next to the mare in question. As she played, I noticed what seemed to be an increase in the of magic in the air as Pinkie appeared behind us with a full drum kit. Rainbow pulled another guitar out of nowhere, and some Blond mare with an orange coat had a bass.

https://youtu.be/CqnU_sJ8V-E

I had seen something similar up in Canterlot, and from what Celestia had told me. Every now and again, the magic of the world would influence the ponies of Equestria into random songs. I can only imagine that my presence was affecting some of it because the song that the White mare had started playing was most certainly from my world. As it began, most of the party had gone entirely silent, allowing us to play for them. I felt myself singing the lyrics without meaning to, just letting myself get caught up in the flow of the magic.

Rainbow slid into position as the backup guitar, with Pinkie rocking it out on the drums. The mystery mare on the bass strummed along in the support role. We chugged along right to the halfway mark before I let loose and began the long line of guitar solos that this song offered. I had no idea how I managed to play them all without messing up. I know I have never been this good at guitar before, so it must be the magic giving me a boost to my ability.

As the song ended, the entire room exploded with applause. "Thank you, Ponyville! Thank you for welcoming me to your village with such open arms." Pinkie pulled me into a group hug with the others that helped perform before everyone began to leave the treehouse. As everyone retired for the night, Pinkie and Rainbow pulled me to the side.

"So, Mag, Do you have any plans tomorrow?" Rainbow asked with Pinkie bouncing up and down next to her.

I stifled a yawn before replying "Not really, I need to get to work putting together my magic faraday cage. But that should only take a few hours. Why?"

Pinkie spoke up at this point, "Just make sure that you are ready to do something tomorrow afternoon, okay."

My eyebrows rose at this, but I decided that it wasn't really anything to worry about. Walking through the room toward the stairs to the basement, I felt like someone was looking at me. Tracing my eyes through the place, I didn't notice anything out of the ordinary. Shrugging, I made my way downstairs to fall asleep, hoping that the next day would be as good as this one had been.

Perspective swap
_____________________________________________

An unknown mare had just managed to sneak out of the Library before Magos could notice her. Rushing through the village, she managed to get to the outskirts before anypony would have the chance to stop her. Dropping the hood that she had been wearing, she let her shoulder-length black hair down. Upon losing her disguise, it was revealed that this was no mare at all. But in fact was a beautiful woman, Her skin, pale as moonlight, it seemed to give a greenish glow. Her eyes, bright green, almost the color of leaves on trees.

But now her eyes, ordinarily clear and some would say even cold, were red with tears. She could barely believe what she had heard that night. Her son, one of the few that had survived that terrible war, didn't consider her his mother. It sounded as if he hated her with all his soul. As after having heard his reasons, she couldn't even blame him. When Magos had requested to be removed from their realm of influence, she had taken this as her only chance to really get to know one of her children.

The laws of Olympus has forbidden any of the gods from spending too much time with their children, lest the world fall to ruin. When he had asked to be brought here, she saw the most significant chance any of the gods had ever been given to get to know him on a personal level. Her duties were handled mainly by her underlings, leaving her much in the way of free time. But nowhere she stood, having been given her one chance to live out her fantasy of having a family. One without the duties or restrictions of Olympus and her son wanted nothing to do with her. She had burned her bridge before she had even seen it.

She fell to her knees and wept in the night, not caring for the chill in the air. "M-Magos h-hates me. My baby boy hates me, and there is nothing that I can do to fix this."

She felt the rip in reality behind her before the Sun and Moon goddess arrived. Wiping her eyes, she turned to face them. Both glowing with intensity, not bothering to hide their true natures from her.

Only a god would be able to stand here and gaze upon them without burring away. "Hello, Lady Celestia and Lady Luna. I hope that I find you well, and I must compliment you on this most wondrous night, Luna. I must admit that your moon gives a much gentler light than my own. I am a tad jealous, in fact."

The two Pony Goddesses were not amused; speaking first, Celestia retorted, "What are you doing here Hecate, you have no business here. This is not your realm of influence, and I don't imagine that your son wants to see you. At least not if what he told me is true."

She shrunk from the taller goddess. "I would imagine that you are correct about his feelings for me, Celestia. Surely you must understand that we of Olympus do not have the opportunity that you and your sister have to show our love to our children. My business here is concluded. I had hoped that I might be able to finally show my son the love that I have been unable to show him in the past. It was a futile effort. H-he h-hates me. He hates all the gods, and I can't really blame him."

Celestia was a bit shocked; this was not the reason that she had expected her to be here. "So you are saying that your reason for being here was not to try to use him. But to try to take up the mantle of being his mother. To be a staple in his life?" the shorter goddess fell again to her knees and began to weep once more, her head nodding all the while.

Luna turned to her sister and spoke in a hushed tone. "Dear sister, it would seem that she seeks redemption. We can feel her pain in this. Pray, dear sister, what dost thou think we should do?"

Celestia brought her right hand to her lip, contemplating for a moment as to what to do with this development. After a few moments, an idea struck her, "I have an idea, but I must receive a promise from you, and like your son before you. I will require that you swear on the River Styx. You will do as I say, and you might well be able to finally have a loving relationship with your son.

Hecate did not hesitate "I swear on the River Styx that I will do whatever it takes to make this right. I want to be able to hold my son in my arms once more. I only got a week with him after he was born. Like each of my children, he did not leave my arms once in that time. I want to hold him again." her tears continued to stream down her face "I want my son back. Please help me."

Celestia stretched out her hand to grasp Hecate's; in that instant, a bond was formed, and a light sparked before dimming away, leaving the clearing empty save for a single Torch standing out of a dittany bush. Sitting on a small hill overlooking this marvel was a single sunflower sitting next to a single moon lily.

Training begins - Edited 3/21/20

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Training Begins

The following morning found me waking up with the vestiges of my dreams slowly fading away. I brought my hand to my eyes to find that they were watering. “Why am I waking up crying?” I was thoroughly confused as I tried to grasp what my dreams had contained. All I could vaguely remember was a quiet glade lit by torches and some classic rock playing. It felt like…it felt warm. But as I tried to remember more, the dream fell away to nothingness, leaving a hollow feeling in its wake.

Smacking my lips in reaction to my cotton mouth, I dragged myself out of the warm bed and out into the basement to use the bathroom. After cleaning myself and grabbing a drink from the faucet, I returned to my room and walked over to my trunk. Putting the key in and giving it the required flick, I opened the setting that let me down into the storage room. I had mentioned this before but never really went into detail as to what it was like down there. The room was around 10’ by 15’ and had a ceiling sitting right at 9’. The back of the room was filled with shelves that contained various bits and bobs of stuff. Old trophies from past battles or monsters I’d slain. My entire book collection (best to not let Twilight know about them, at least not yet) even just random stuff I thought would have some form of use in the future.

The majority of the room was filled with stuff like this. However, leaning against the wall tucked between two shelves was one of my most important training tools. Through a lot of trial and error, I had managed to construct a magical faraday cage out of celestial bronze. The task had taken a good couple of months. The entire reason for having one, though, was so that.

A. I would be able to actively tell that I was in an area of high magical density by training myself to feel the myst and.

B. So that I would have a chance to directly get away from magic’s influence. At one point, I felt like being surrounded by the myst was getting me to close to Hecate. However, at this point in my life, I figured that actively trying to avoid places where she would be able to spy on me was fruitless.

As to the relevance of this now, I figured the best way to teach Twilight about using ambient magic was to let her get a feel for what it was like to not be surrounded by it at all times. Thus began the arduous task of hauling the thing out of my trunk. After twenty minutes of heavy lifting up a ladder, I managed to get the entire thing out. It wasn’t really all that heavy, but damn is it award to lift some of the panels up the stairs. After getting everything out of my trunk. I made my way to the kitchen with the intent of greeting my hostess, only to find that it was Spike in the kitchen making breakfast.

“Ho Spike. Does Twilight always make you put the meals together?”

Spike laughed “she doesn’t make me do it. But If I want anything even remotely edible, I do. Twilight can’t cook to save her life. I tend to do most of the household stuff, making meals, cleaning the library, shelving books, laundry, you know, stuff like that.”

I nodded with understanding, “you are going to make some mares very happy someday, little dude. At least if Mares are anything like the woman back where I am from. Some of the girls from camp used to talk about how they were holding out for a guy that can cook.” Spike blushed at my compliment.

“You really think so?” I nodded in assurance, and Spike looked around for a moment before continuing, “do…do you think a mare like Rarity would be impressed with something like that?”

I scratched the stubble on my chin “well, I don’t know who Rarity is, so I can’t really speak on that? Why, is she a mare that has caught your eye?” Spike blushed and nodded almost imperceptibly, so I pushed for more information, “well, tell me about her. How old is she, what are her interests?”

He got a dreamy look in his eyes “She’s wonderful. She had the purest white coat with a gorgeous purple mane. She is a bit older than me, though. I think she is in her mid-twenties, but she loves fashion and everything that comes with it. She’s….She’s perfect.”

When he mentioned the age difference, I noticed something that could end up biting him, “Hey Spike…how old, are you?”

Sticking his chest out, “I will have you know that I am 14.” He spoke this with a manner of pride in his voice.

I figured as much “Hey Spike, just a question but, is Rarity the only mare you have feelings for? Do you know any mares or colts your age that you find interesting?” His face told me very quickly that he seemed to be offended about the colt comment “Hey don’t give me that kind of look, I’m not one to judge, the Greeks were very open about that kind of thing. You would never have to worry about me thinking less of you for being interested in colts. I, for one, have no room to speak on that.”

It took Spike all of five seconds before he connected the dots “wait… you mean you like Colts and mares too?” He realized his mistake in words rather quickly as he slapped his hand over his mouth.

Smirking “nothing wrong with it, I say to each their own. As long as no one gets hurt, then there isn’t really a problem in my mind. But to get down to the brass of it, Spike, I think Rarity is a bit too old for you, mate. Now I’m not saying that it couldn’t happen, but I am saying that Women most often don’t go for younger men. At least not when the age gap is as big as yours is with Rarity’s. So I ask that you take this next bit of advice with a grain of salt.” He looked at me with confusion at this comment, “It means to look at the advice with a bit of skepticism. Don’t act on it as if I’m some all-knowing guru or something. But my advice is this, Start looking around for fillies or colts in your age group first. Get some experience under your belt. Then after doing so for a year or so, see if you still feel the same about her. If you do, try to pursue her, if not. Well then, at least you have some better experience to go off of. But I have to ask what kind of relationship do you have with her at this point?”

He was looking a little down at my suggestions. “Well, I help her out a lot when she is working at her boutique.” I rolled my hand forward to indicate that I wanted him to continue, “and well, I help her dig up gems when she needs them for her fashion lines. I spend a lot of time around her come to think of it.”

I nodded with understanding, “Well, has she shown any kind of interest in getting to know you better?”

Spike was a little glum thinking back on it. “No…no, I don’t think she has ever invited me to anything that wasn’t work.”

Thinking quickly, “Has anyone else ever tried to get you to go out and do something for fun before?”

He shrugged, “I guess Sweetie Bell and the CMC’s have invited me to stuff before, they tend to invite their friend Pip as well.” I noticed a ting of blush when he mentioned the younger mares and this Pip.

“Okay then, how about the next time that they invite you to spend time with them, you go. As long as you aren’t ditching out on getting something taken care of for Twilight, you should be fine. And if they wanted to hang out today, I don’t think that would be an issue. At least not this morning, I have some plans that involve Twilight that will likely take all morning, so that should leave you free. What do you say?”

He grumbled, “I guess it just feels weird to try to look for others besides Rarity.”

I dropped down so that I could look him square in the eye. “Hey, I know it sucks to try new things sometimes, but if I never did that, I wouldn’t be here right now. It worked out great for me, and I know that it will work out for you as well.” Spike looked at me with what could only be described as awe in his eyes.

“You really think I have a better chance with kids my own age?” I nodded.

“To tell you the truth, Spike, you are a good-looking guy, bring you up to eighteen, and you will be beating the mares and stallions of with a stick. So how about you finish up whatever it was that you were eating before I came in here and run off to find them. I can take over and get something made for Twilight.” Spike jumped at me and gave me a hug, at first I was shocked, but after getting over it, I hugged him back.

He pulled himself from me and grabbed a bowl of what looked to be sapphires off the table and ran out the back door. From behind me, I heard someone speak, “that was really nice what you did for him, you know.” I turned on the spot to find Twilight leaning against the door.

Shrugging it off, “Naw, kind of figured that he needed a male’s perspective for a change, nothing against you or your friends. But being surrounded by women all day will give him a skewed point of view when it comes to dating, kids going to be a Casanova someday though. I can tell he has what it takes to be a real knock out.”

She smiled, “So were you being honest when you told him you were bi too?”

Stepping over to the stove, I realized that Spike had been about to start pancakes. Picking up where he left off I began to put some together for us to enjoy “I never lied to him, Just because Hecate is one for secrets doesn’t mean I am. Why? Do you have a problem with us being the way we are?” I gave her a withering glare, almost challenging her to give me shit about it.

She held her hands up defensively, “not at all, most mares are. At least I know all of my friends are. I’m not really sure what kind of population of the Stallions are known to swing both ways. But I always figured that limiting yourself to only being with one gender would limit your options for happiness.” She was blushing up a storm and added in an almost inaudible mutter “not that I have any experience with dating that is.”

Realizing that she didn’t intend for me to hear it, I let it slide. “Cool then, glad to know that this world isn’t as full of bigots as my world it. But let’s drop that topic for now. Pancakes?” I held out a plate for her to take.

Taking the plate over to the table, we ate in silence for a few minutes before I spoke again. “So I figured that I would start us on training today, I want to see what we could accomplish.”

Her eyes sparkled at the thought of doing new magic, finishing off her current bite. “I would love to learn more magic. How are we going to star?”

I smirked knowingly, “Well first thing is first. After we finish eating, you may want to change into some workout clothes. My training will be both physical and magical.” She deflated at this.

“W-what does physical training have to do with magic?” She was nervous, and I could tell.

Looking straight at her, I continued, “technically, nothing. The kind of magic that I will be teaching you is almost entirely spiritual, but I have found that keeping a healthy body will go leaps and bounds toward having a healthy soul. Don’t worry, though; I plan to start us off slowly at first, just a lap around Ponyville to start. After that gets to be easy, we will increase the workload. While you finish your lap, I will put together my study aid.”

She was not happy with the prospect of running around Ponyville “do you have any idea how far that is?! And why did you say ‘while you finish your lap’ are you not going to do any running?!” her last statement was accusatory.

Smirking, “I didn’t say anything like that, I will be doing three laps. I just expect that I will be able to finish my three before you finish your one. Now please don’t take this the wrong way, but you don’t look like a mare that spends much time doing any kind of physical activity.” She blushed and nodded. “I thought as much, for me, this is a pervasive thing. I can run a five-minute mile myself and see as the entirety of Ponyville is only about a one and three quarters a Kilometer around. Well, I normally do a 5K three times a week anyway to keep fit. And before you ask, for me to train you, I will require the physical training. There is no option of getting one without the other.” She deflated at this. “Don’t worry, Sparkles. It will be worth it in the long run.”

She blushed at the nickname, “Why do you keep calling me Sparkles?”

Shrugging, “it’s just a nickname, but if you don’t like It, I can just call you Twilight.”

She shook her head and blushed again for some reason, “N-no, it’s fine.”

Shrugging, I just continued eating. After our morning meal was cleaned up and settled in our stomachs, we walked out of the library. Twilight was interested in the pile of stuff that I had moved outside before making breakfast. “Mag, um, what is all that stuff?”

Walking over to it, “Well, the large sheets of metal mesh is for after our jog, the clothes on the ground are for training.”

She still looked confused, “what do you mean training clothes, I thought that was the reason that you made me change?”

“Exactly what I said, Sparkles, you are currently wearing your workout clothes, the clothing in that pile will go on over your training clothes.”

I watched her as she made her way over to pile, I smiled to myself as I noticed that she was walking to my pile instead of hers. She bends down with the intent of picking up the shirt, only to find that I was far too heavy for her to life “What is wrong with this shirt. It’s way too heavy to wear and run around in. I can’t even pick this up, and you expect me to put it on and run around!”

Laughing, I walked over to her before lifting the shirt up over my head, “not at all, Sparkles, this is my pile of workout clothes. I don’t expect you to ever get up to this stage. At least not unless you push yourself that far. Your pile is the smaller one right there.” I pointed to the smaller pile sitting a few feet away from mine. “you pile doesn’t weigh close to what mine does, and just to be nice, I will only make you wear the shirt for the first week. It’s only an extra five kilos, no worse than wearing a backpack.”

She picked up her shirt and found it to be significantly lighter, bending down. I picked up my armbands and leg bands to add to my set. She must have been watching because she asked: “Um, I’m just curious, but how much does your stuff weigh?”

Twisting my head to crack my neck, I thought about it for a second to remember before answering her. “Well the shirt is 100 kilos, each armband is 25 kilos, and the leg bands are each 30. So altogether 210 kilos of extra weight.” I looked back at her and gave her my biggest shit-eating grin. “Demigods have a different training regimen than that of your average person, or I guess I should get used to saying pony.”

Twilight seemed to be doing a bit of math in her head before she shouted at me, “how can you possibly move in all that! You expect me to believe that you are wearing an extra 462.971 pounds and walking around like it was nothing!” I could tell that she was completely blown away.

Shrugging, I just started my stretching routine “Yes, Yes I expect you to believe me that I am wearing the extra weight. At least I’m not wearing it all the time anymore. I went through a stage where I would wear this stuff all the time. Blame DBZ for it.” I could tell from her confusion that she had no idea what DBZ was. And I didn’t really feel like clarifying it for her. “now I suggest that you follow my lead and start stretching, the last thing you want to deal with is a cramp when you run.”

We finished our stretching and began our run. As I ran, I noticed a few glances from the ponies of this village but paid them no mind. I just focused on my lesson plans. I figured that for the first week, at least I would only place her in the Faraday cage for an hour or so each day to make her get a feel for what the myst feels like as it flows syrup-like thought the air.

As I ran, I also took note of how fresh the air was here. It felt so alive, so clean. I managed to make my 5k run in just over 15 minutes before I made my way back to the library to put together the faraday cage. It took me another 15 minutes to get the pieces reassembled. Still, I managed to get the last part into place just as Twilight stumbled around the corner “y-you a-are e-evil.” she sounded like she was going to pass out.

Lifting myself up, I walked over to her and handed her a bottle of water. It was warm, but I didn’t want a bottle of cold water to shock her system. Taking the bottle from me, she drained it before plopping down on the ground. I shook my head before walking over to her and lifting her back up on her feet, her blushing up a storm as I pulled her up by her underarms, “W-WHAT ARE YOU DOING!”

“What I am doing is getting you back up on your feet so that you can cool down properly. Sitting all bunched up like that will give you cramps and won’t do anything for getting oxygen back in your system.” After getting her back up on her feet. I moved my hands down her arms out to her hand so I could pull them up to lace together with each other on the top of her head. “keep walking around a little bit and hold your hand up here with your arms out. It should help keep your diaphragm open enough to work better” As I did this, I notice a very pungent scent of Lavender, ink, and parchment coming from her all mixed with something I couldn’t place but almost smelt spicy.

Shrugging it off, I let her cool down until I was satisfied that she wasn’t going to pass out.

“Well, it wasn’t the best time I’ve ever seen, but we will work on that in the weeks to come.” I walked over to the door to the Faraday cage.

“Now, what I would like you to do is to come over here and have a seat in this.” I patted the top of the cage. “inside, you will find a pillow for you to sit on. While I will only run you around Ponyville three times a week. I expect you to spend at least an hour a day sitting here meditating on the nature of magic and how it flows through the world.

Walking over to the cage, she looked at it, curiously, “what is this thing?”

“I am glad you asked, this is one of my greatest creations, it’s a magical faraday cage!” She was still wearing a confused stare, so I elucidated further “as for what a Faraday cage is… well, the standard one is to block out electromagnetic waves, this one blocks out all magic. Inside this cage, you will be completely alone, the natural magic that you normally are surrounded with is completely absent within its walls. Now don’t worry about anything. The door will never be locked, and even it for some reason it ever did, the walls are made of a fine mesh of celestial bronze. they have some heft to them, but because you are not a demigod, you will be able to walk right out.”

She turned her head back to me with an unsure look in her eyes “I don’t know. It sounds a little far-fetched that something like this could cut out all ambient magic.”

Shaking my head, “Just trust me, okay. Go have a seat and do as I asked. I promise that this will be a new experience for you.”

She gave in and had a seat. As soon as I closed the door, she began to shift around as if uncomfortable “Why does the air feel so thin in here. It’s almost like the air is dead in here.”

I nodded my head in agreement. “That is what a world without magic feels like. For most of my life, that is what I felt. My world doesn’t have even close to the kind of ambient magic that this world has. when you can clearly tell the difference between an area with high magic and low magic, then we will move to the next stage.”

As we sat there, I noticed what seemed to be a build of magical pressure on the other side of the treehouse. Figuring that it wasn’t a big deal, I just ignored it, right up to the point that Celestia herself came running around the side of the library. It looked like she had vengeance in mind before she took in what she saw, after the flames of plasma left her hair she calmly walked over to me with an unhappy look in her eyes.

In a voice so quiet that only I could hear her, “Hello Magos. Would you be ever so kind as to tell me why I suddenly am unable to feel my student’s magical signature and to inform me why she seems to be sealed in a cage?” I could tell that she wasn’t happy with me right now.

“I-I apologize, C-Celestia, she is sitting in a magical faraday cage. She is beginning her training to learn my new kind of magic. I am teaching her how to feel the natural flow of magic around her by cutting her off from it for a while. Thus the reason for the Faraday cage.” At this point, all I could do was put up a brave face and hope that she didn’t just vaporize me right there. I couldn’t believe that I had done something so stupid as forget to tell her what my plans were. At least my last night alive was pleasant.

As these thoughts flashed through my mind, I was shocked to feel her place a gentle hand on my shoulder, “Please do not be afraid of me, Magos.” I turned my head to face her, each movement was jerky due to the adrenaline rushing through me in what I had thought would be my last moment alive. “It pains me to see somepony like you with such fear in their soul. I can not imagine what your world was like that made you fear gods in the way that you do. I only ask that you give my sister and I time to show you that we are different. I mean you no harm, nor does Luna. I was terrified that something had happened to her, ever since I first met her as a foal. She has been a staple of my life. She is very precious to me. When her magical signature disappeared, I thought I had lost her.”

I took a shaky breath “I’m sorry for worrying you. It was never my intent to do so.”

She smiled back at me with all the warmth of her sun, “I know Magos, I know. Please take care of her for me. I rest easier, knowing that she is protected.”

I stood up and bowed to her, “I will make sure she is.”

I didn’t notice her walking over to me before she lifted my head to look at her “I know you will keep her safe. For the both of us.” I had no idea what she meant by that, but before I could ask, she did something that nearly made me fall on my ass right there and then. She leaned down and kissed me on my forehead before disappearing in a flash of light.

shaking my head in a vain attempt to make sense of what had just happened, I uttered: “What the fuck was that for?”

Highs and lows - edited 3/21/20

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Highs and Lows

Still not entirely sure what just happened, I moved back to my spot on the ground next to the tree. Twilight was still in the cage, and it appeared that she was beginning to get uncomfortable. To myself, "I'll leave her in for another twenty minutes before I pull her out." Lying back against the tree, I noticed a bright flash to my right before a rather large box poofed into existence with a note attached to it. Reaching over for it, I realized that it must be a package from Hermes' delivery services. "Guess he is serious about delivery anywhere," I muttered to myself before reaching over to grab the Letter first. Opening the Letter I read

'Dear Magos,

Please find enclosed your order. I modified it to your specifications, but I'm still not sure what you wanted one of these things for. I took it to a range to test it, and I felt like it almost ripped my arm off. I made sure to give you two gross of shells. If you need more for some crazy reason, just let me know.

Good doing business with you.

Frederick Chase

P.S. don't tell Annabeth that I'm still messing with stuff like this. You know she will kill me for getting involved again. Keep safe, and good luck with whatever you are doing."

Reading the Letter a few times my face broke into a huge grin, reaching down, I hefted the package up to get it open. The thing was massive from everything it held. I can only imagine that it must have cost close to a hundred drachma to send this thing to me. "Remind me to send him a big tip with my next order," I said to myself, ripping off the packaging I pulled out the two ammo boxes filled with rounds. "Pretty cool of him to put a full two gross in with this. Good thing I got him so much celestial bronze." lifting one of the shells out of the case just put it into perspective how much this thing weighed.

Placing the heavy shell back into the ammo case, I moved to open the gun case. I put my hands on both sides with my thumbs on the clasps, slowly I let out a breath as I clicked open the case to finally get a good look at my brand new, customized Thunder .50 bmg. The most substantial handgun ever made. Of course, only in America could a gun manufacturer decide that they wanted to make a 'hunting pistol' that fired .50 caliber rounds, designed to be in a sniper rifle.

I hefted the massive hand cannon up and gave it a once-over. I looked down the sides and barrel to see the masterwork of scrolling that Fred had etched into it. The bronze and silver filigree making it sparkle in the light. I will admit that I got this thing mostly because I thought it would be badass to have one. But at the same time, I knew that I also wanted to go out and shoot it.

Lifting myself off the ground, I walked over to the cage and opened it. "Good work today, Sparkles. We are done for the day, go on home, and grab a shower. I would encourage you to spend the rest of the day relaxing. We will be doing the same thing tomorrow morning.

She groaned before noticing the pile of stuff where I had been sitting. As well as the hand cannon in my right hand pointed at the ground. "Um… Magos? What is that thing?"

I looked down at the Thunder and smirked, "This Sparkles is a human technological wonder. This is the Thunder 50 BMG hand cannon. It has a muzzle velocity of 2,895 ft/s with a total 14,895 ft.lbf. Or if you want to get technical 20,195 J., I think I will name her Guinevere." My smile could have cracked my face. I have been waiting for this thing for over a year now. At this point, I didn't even know if Fred knew where I was. But at this moment, I was ecstatic.

Twilight looked confused, still "um… that sounds like you are naming off the specifications of a crossbow." she gave a nervous chuckle, "but the numbers that you just rambled off are impossible. There is no way that that thing would be able to make a bolt go that fast. It would shatter from the force." She said that with confidence.

I nodded, "you would be absolutely correct were this thing firing bolts. However, Guinevere doesn't fire bolts. She fired bullets. Now go get a shower, and if you are fast, you can watch me test it out before I go see what it is that Pinkie and Rainbow have planned for me." For some reason, Twilight's face lit up with a blush at that comment, and it seemed almost as if she were going to ask to come too. I kept an eye on her, as she made her way to the Treehouse to make sure she got there safe, but at the same time started to manipulate the raw magic in front of her to see if she could notice.

She made it to the door without saying anything. So I figured that she would need more practice before she would be able to notice slight variations in the magic around her. Twenty minutes later found us walking out of Ponyville as we made our way out to a clearing that was far enough from the village that I didn't think that it would cause any issues.

About halfway there, low and behold Pinkie found us.
Jumping in front of me seemingly from nowhere, Pinkie appeared, "Hey Twi, hey Maggi. What are you two up to?" Her bright blue eyes seemed to sparkle as her happy attitude and smile seemed to infect Sparkles and me.

Holding a fist out to her to bump, which was apparently a prevalent form of greeting here, I responded, "I'm just off to try out a new item that I just got. Sparkles here wanted to see if what I told her about it is true. Feel free to come if you're interested. I haven't forgotten about you wanting to go somewhere with me today." I kept walking but decided to add, "And feel free to invite Rainbow as well." That seemed to light a fire under her, and she zipped off without saying another word. Shaking my head and laughing to myself, I commented under my breath, "Sometimes that Mare scares me."

As Twilight and I got to the point that I felt like would be the best place to test out Guinevere, I was shocked to find that Pinkie and Rainbow were already there waiting. Dumbfounded, I commented aloud, "w-what in the? I didn't tell you where I was going. H-how?"

From the side, Twilight placed her hand on my arm, turning to look down at her, she spoke, "Don't try to understand her. Even I have given up on trying to figure her out. You will only break your mind trying to figure it out." She had an almost haunted look in her eyes, so I took her for her word.

Turning back to the two, I decided to just ignore the fact that somehow Pinkie had both found Rainbow and managed to beat me to the meeting point without even knowing where I was going. "Well, good to see you both. Not sure how you made it here before us, but that doesn't really matter." I pulled out a couple of Target slips that I had in my back pocket before looking out to see some tree in the distance. Point to one, I spoke to Rainbow, "Hey Rainbow, could you do me a favor and stick this to that tree over there?"

Rainbow took the sheet from me and looked out at the tree, speaking to me Rainbow said "You sure you want me to put this out there. That has to be over 300 yards from us. What are you going to do?"
Nodding, I replied to her, "It will be just fine. I just want to test out my new toy and a spell that I have been working on for a while."

Rainbow shrugged and made to move before looking over her shoulder and commenting, "you know you can call me RD." She smirked and zipped away to hang up the target. In just a few moments, she was already back, smirking. "So hot stuff, what are you going to show us?"
My ears tinged a little red at her comment, but I decided to let it go. There was no way that she was flirting with me. All the women of this place are way out of my league, damn all the guys of this world were out of my league too. Well, that was a depressing thought. Shaking my head, I responded, "Well, as I told Twilight," I pulled Guinevere from her case, "this is Guinevere. She is my Thunder .50 BMG hand cannon. As for what I am doing. I am giving her a test run."

I closed my eyes to help me concentrate on folding the myst into the form of an invisible scope. I had been playing around with the idea of a scope spell for a while now. But at this point, I think I had it nailed. The scope would give me a perfect look down the barrel without me having to have my face anywhere near it. It was almost as if there was a tiny camera on the end of the barrel, and the screen was hooked up to my right eye. Wherever the barrel was currently pointed, is where my right eye was looking.

Opening my eyes together was a mistake, as doing so gave me two different views that my brain was trying to force together. Quickly before the sight could make me sick, I shut my left eye. "Fuck, that wasn't a view that I enjoyed!" I blurted out loud, now holding my stomach in an attempt to keep it steady. I shook my head and got my bearings back before I aimed the end of the gun downrange at the target.

Amping up the myst a bit more, I found it increases the magnification of my view to the point that it felt like the target was only a few feet away from me. Smirking to myself, I shouted out, "Fire in the hole," then turned my head to the left and right before repeating myself. Leaning back, I commented, "by the way, this thing is really loud. So you may want to cover your ears." Calming my breath, I exhale slowly before I began to squeeze the trigger.

https://youtu.be/nMkiDguYtGw?t=15s

The shot rang out and caused all three of them to jump in the air, but what scared them was when the tree that my target had been pinned to began to fall over. Turning my spell off, I opened both eyes and looked down rage, "Damn… This bitch has a hell of a kick." Grinning, I looked back at the three mares and felt my heart twitch with regret. All three of them had a split second look of horror on the faces before they notice me turning to them as the looks quickly left their faces.

Rainbow recovered quickly and shouted out, "What the buck was that?!"

Sparkles shook herself and gave me a forced grin "I guess you weren't kidding when you told me all that statistical data. Um… If you don't mind me asking, where were you going to be storing that thing? I… I uh…. I'm not sure how I feel about something like that being stored in the Treehouse while Spike is home.

I realized that I had made them uncomfortable, and that niggling little voice the back of my mind spoke up. 'Here you go again, ruining everything before you can even start. You didn't give enough forethought, and now she wants you gone.' Shaking the thoughts from my mind, I responded: "Don't worry about it, Sparkles, my trunk will keep it plenty safe." She didn't look convinced, so I figured that I would just show them. Flicking the back open so I could discharge the shell, I popped it out and tossed it in the air for a bit as it cooled down. "Just follow me, and I will show you." We made our way back to where I had left the ammo crates before we walked back to the Treehouse.

I was trying to walk with confidence, but at the back of my mind, I couldn't help but feel like they might just want to get away from me. Looking up in the sky to judge the position of the sun, I noticed that it was much later in the day than I had expected, likely close to 4 pm.

As we trudged down to the basement, I set everything down next to my truck before I squatted down to open it in the right way. Turning back to the three mares behind me, "My trunk is a little bigger than you think, and quite a bit more secure." Flicking the two hidden switches that were next to the regular ones in just the right way I flipped the trunk open, standing up, I picked up one of the ammo crates by the handle. I stepped down onto the ladder, rung as I began to climb down. Keeping an eye on the shocked faces of the mares as I descended.

Calling up the ladder, "Feel free to come down, and don't worry about the other crate. I can grab it in a bit."

Twilight looked over to Pinkie with a questioning look, only to find that she was already on here way down the ladder. Giving herself a couple of good slaps to the cheeks to syke herself up, she walked over to start climbing down and muttered, "please don't let him be a guy version of Pinkie. One is all I can take." what scared her though was a quiet, yet familiar voice that seemed to whisper in her ear. "One Pinkie is all this universe can handle." She looked around to see if Pinkie was playing a prank, only to find Rainbow waiting for her to descend the ladder.

"Come on egghead, I wanna see what he has down here, don't you?" Rainbow accused

"Of course I do Rainbow, Just give me a moment." Twilight shot back.

Dropping the Ammo box down on one of the shelves, I noticed my remote for the sound system, and I decided to hit play to see what I had left in there.

https://youtu.be/60LLKmpgzRM?t=17s

I chuckled to myself before muttering, "I must have been thinking about her last time I was down here listening to music."

Pinkie jumped up next to me before asking, "who were you thinking about?"

Sighing, I responded, "My birth giver, this song is called Hate. I felt like it expressed my thoughts on her quite well." I was so bitter at the thought that I didn't notice how her eyes seemed to go flat after I had said that. However, I noticed that my mood shifted to my ever-present depressed state. The thoughts of worthlessness hit like a train. I could almost feel the air grow thicker. Looking around the room, I took in everything that I had collected over the years.

Trophies from various monsters that I had killed, bits of tech that I had collected and given to the Hephaestus kids to tinker with, and all of it. My entire life's collection, I would have traded away to have someone that I could have come home to. A parent, my father. Someone that I know she could have saved if she really cared about him.

Twilight and Rainbow had been looking around with wide eyes as they listened to the dark music. Rainbow was drawn to the weapons, Twilight to the trophies. Turning to me, Twilight asked, "um… Magos? What is this?" She pointed to a Griffin Tallon that was sitting on my shelf.

Shrugging, I respond, "nothing really, I won that back a few years ago when I had to fight a griffon. It was causing problems in a populated area, and I was sent to deal with it. Why?"

She looked almost horrified. "Griffin's are sentient here. They live in Griffonia."

My face paled "shit, um sorry. They aren't sentient back where I am from. At least no more than any other monster is." I could tell that she was still nervous and wanted to leave. "Hey, how about we get out of here.

And as you can see, this is a safe place for me to store Guenevere. No one can get in here but me, okay. I'll go up last after everyone is up there, okay?" They all nodded. I waited a moment after the three of them had climbed up before I moved to follow them.

I wished I had waited longer as I heard them talking.

Twilight whispered, "how can he just have something like that sitting on a shelf?"

Rainbow responded, "Hey, I still think he is cool, but I have to admit it was a little creepy to see that. I have a friend that is a griffon, and I know she wouldn't be too thrilled by that."

Luckily, or perhaps unluckily, Pinkie didn't say anything. I decided to grunt as I made my way up to them, just to let them know that I was coming up. Turning to them, I couldn't judge their faces, so I spoke, "Hey, I know that we were supposed to hang out today, Guess things got carried away with other stuff. I'm feeling kinda tired, would it be okay if we postponed things a bit? I am still a little wiped out from the move and party." I swear that I saw Twilight breathe out a sigh of relief, that potentially imagined action seemed to twist my gut further.

I realized that I just imagine things right now. Over my life, I have been able to notice the signs of a low day beginning to form. Pinkie spoke up, "It's okay Maggie, My parties are super fun. We can always have fun later, right?" there was a look of understanding in her eyes.

Smirking, I nodded, "Absolutely. As for now, I think I'm going to get a nap in." They all nodded and walked out of the room. Now alone, I decided to fall into the bed and let the scent of lavender calm my mind as I drifted off to sleep.

I awoke suddenly without realizing what time it was. Turning over and groaning, I spoke to myself, "Fuck, I hate depression naps. I always feel like shit when I wake up from one." Looking down at my music player, I notice it reported that it was three a.m "Just love the ten-hour depression naps too." I bitterly laughed to myself. "Well, too awake to keep from going back to bed. Might as well go for a walk around" Feeling inspired, I jumped down into the trunk to grab my keyboard.

After leaving the house, I walked around the outskirts of Ponyville before I noticed a hill overlooking a pond. Dragging myself to the top, I sat down and pulled my keyboard over my legs before I began to play a piece that I felt fit my mood wonderfully.

https://youtu.be/S1T3UF1vhSk?t=4s

Each note seemed to strike a chord with me. I was never good enough to write my own music. Still, this composer was able to capture my feelings without ever having known me. So enraptured with the song, I never noticed the sound of wings or a figure landing behind me. Not until the final note did it become apparent to me that I was not alone anymore.

"Twas a sad melody. For what reason did thou place such a piece?" the unknown mare said.

I chucked now, realizing who it was that had snuck up on me "weren't you supposed to be taking lessons on modern speech Princess Luna?" I turned back to confirm that it was, in fact, Luna, who had snuck up on me, "not to say that you are unwelcome, of course. Although I am intrigued as to why you felt like gracing me with your companionship on this beautiful night." She seemed to blush at my comment. I was confused at first before I remembered that Celestia had informed me that Luna was the goddess of the night and that she composed each night herself. At least now that she returned.

"We...I am trying to improve our...myself. But you did not answer our...my question. Why play such a sad piece of music?" She responded.

I turned back to look at the moon before I responded, "I apologize for tainting your night with such sorrow. I should repay you with a song that doesn't feel so down. As for why I was not feeling all that great for a bit. Just a low point, but I'm fine." I thought about it for a moment before remembering a different song that would hopefully raise the mood. "I know a better song to play. It was written by a famous composer. It is called Clair de Lune, or Moonlight."

I began to play.

https://youtu.be/CvFH_6DNRCY?t=7s

I loved this song, it was one of my all-time favorites, As I played, I looked up at the full moon. The same full moon that I had looked at every night since being here. This was not Hecate's moon. No, this was Luna's moon, and for that reason, I was finally able to truly love its light.

I didn't see Luna's face as I played, I never took the chance of looking back, else I might have seen her eyes begin to water as I played the piece. The notes seemed to sing with new life in the presence of the goddess they might as well have been composed for. I swayed with each passing flow of the notes.

As I finished the song, I let out a sigh before speaking, not once looking back at her "You know Princess Luna, all my life, whenever I looked up at the moon at home. I always felt bitter." I heard a sharp intake of air behind me "you may not know this, but the one that gave birth to me is the goddess of the moon back where I come from. So in a way, I am a child of the moon. But up until I came here, the moon always seemed to mock me. It was the favored one, not me. Never me.”

Turning back to look at her, I continued, "But here, this moon is yours. It maintains its full nature. It is a piercing light that keeps even the darkest of nights from consuming it." turning back to look back up at her moon, I finished "It really is beautiful, your night sky. Maybe one day, you can make it as beautiful as it's creator?" I heard a pop and looked back to see that she was gone.

"Good job, dumbass. You're going to have to write her an apology letter for being such a creep." Shaking my head back and forth, I looked back up at the moon. "At least I can live with this moon looking over me."

__________________________________________________

Miles away in Canterlot
__________________________________________________

Luna runs through the halls of the palace to Celestia's chambers, her face a deep crimson, almost to black. Bursting into her room, Luna leaps to the bed before shaking her sister, "Tia wake up, I have to talk to you."

Celestia woke with a start from being so roughly handled "What, pray tell, would require you to wake me up so early sister." her face turned to worry "is something wrong?"

Luna blushed a deeper shade and shook her head. "Nay, dear sister. I am simply...I...I don't know where to begin."

Celestia looked into her eyes before placing her hands on her sister's "Just start from the beginning, Lulu. what happened."

Luna launched into a description of what had happened, starting from the moment that she had noticed that Magos had left the dreamscape and finished as he gave her his last words "And then sister, he...well he asked if it would be possible to make our night sky as beautiful as it's creator. We… I mean, I am not sure how we should feel about this kind of compliment. It has been many hundreds of years since last we were paid such a compliment. Not since before…"

Celestia wrapped her sister in a hug, already knowing what she was going to say. "It's okay, Lulu. I'm not sure what was meant by it. Magos was raised to pay compliments like that to gods and goddesses in fear of reprisal. But from what you described, it does not sound like that was the reason for him doing so. As I have come to believe, there is much about Magos that we do not know. But I feel as if it is something that both of us would love to find out."

Revelations - edited 3/21/20

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Revelations

It’s been a week since that night on the hill. Luna hasn’t returned so far, but I did get a letter to her the following day, apologizing for offending her in any way. Luckily her response was to tell me that is had not been offended in any way. Apparently, she had forgotten something important back at the castle and needed to return quickly. From what she had said in the letter, she had returned a few minutes later to find that I had left.

Twilight’s training has been progressing slowly. She still hasn’t gotten used to her weights or been able to feel the shift in the myst around her. Although I would be surprised if she had already figured it out this quickly, honestly, I would have been jealous if she had managed to figure it out already.

Currently, I am sitting in the room that Twilight has let me use reading. Early this week, I had moved my sound equipment out of my trunk and into the room so that I would be able to enjoy listening to music in the comfortable room rather than down in my chest wholly shut off from the world. Even if I still was cut off by sitting in the basement.

It was here that Twilight found me, Sitting in the corner of the room of a soft chair, my music playing quietly in the background. As she entered, she paused in the doorway and listened to what I had playing.

https://youtu.be/uT3SBzmDxGk

As the music played, Twilight spoke up, “This is rather interesting. What kind of instruments are these?”

Finishing my paragraph before placing a piece of paper in the book to mark my place, I looked up to her and spoke: “Believe it or not, but that is just two Cellos layered over each other.”

She looked at me and quirked her eyebrow. “What about the percussion?”

I nodded, and her eyes widened. “Why would anyone slap a cello like that?!”

I chuckled and responded, “The two men that made this were trained in all the traditional teachings. They just said, and pardon my wording her ‘Fuck it.’ They were tired of being told the right way to play and just did it their way. I love it. It shows that even a classical instrument, can still make it in a modern world.”

She seemed to contemplate it for a moment before shrugging and getting to the point of whatever reason she decided to come down here. “Well, as for the reason I am down here, Pinkie was wondering if you wanted to have that day together with Rainbow, her and I?”

I was taken aback slightly at that. I was under the impression that the other girls weren’t too fond of me after that little mishap down in my storage room. I have since moved all of the trophies out of the general area and put them in cold storage, so I didn’t offend anyone, again. I responded, “Um… Sure, to be honest, I thought… well, I thought that you guys were mad at me because of that stuff down in my storage room.”

Twilight blushed but just ignored it. “We understand. So.. um are you wanting to come out with us today?”

I smiled and responded with an affirmative, “Yea, that sounds like a good time. Should I bring anything?”

Surprisingly enough, Twilight nodded “Pinkie asked if you would be willing to bring your guitar along with you. She said that she and Rainbow wanted to do a ‘jam’ with you.” the way that she air quoted that was cute.

I hopped up and walked over to my trunk. “Sure, just give me a moment. I have it down in my other room. Be back up in a sec.” I jumped down to grab it before thinking for a moment and decided to grab another instrument as well. It was one of my more interesting ones. A stick bass. I doubt anyone here had seen one. I didn’t even know that they were a thing just three years ago. But since I found a youtube video of a guy playing one, I’ve been hooked. Plus, I wanted to see if I could get AppleJack to agree to a bass off.

Hauling myself back up the ladder, Twilight gave me a bit of a strange look when she noticed that I had two instrument cases. “What is the second case for, It seems a little small.”

I shook my head and replied with “It’s a surprise, you will just have to wait.” I adjusted the straps for the two instruments as well as the small amp on my back as I followed Twilight through town to find the other two girls. As we walked to what seemed to be Sweet Apple Acres, Twilight and I discussed the books that we were currently reading as well as how well she felt she was doing in her training.

“I just don’t feel like I have made any progress. I haven’t been able to replicate anything that you have been describing. Do you think I have been doing something wrong?” Twilight pleaded.

I responded with, “I feel like things are going about as well as I could have hoped for. To be honest, I would have been extremely impressed if you had managed to make any noticeable advance in this short of time. I do feel like you are getting close to feeling it. It’s just going to take a little more time. If there was anyone that would be able to do it, I know you can Sparkles.” I gave her what I hoped was a warm smile as we finally made it to our destination, which just so happens to be AppleJack's barn.

AppleJack turned to us and gave us a greeting, “Howdy Y'all. You ready to have a jam session. I know that I have wanted to play with you again after that party, Mag.” I smiled at her use of a nickname for me.

“Sure thing AppleJack, Where can I plug this in?” I responded.

Pointing over to the power strip next to Rainbow, she added, “Y’all can call me AJ if’n you like to. We are all friends here, right.” She gave me a bright smile.

I nodded and walked over to Rainbow to plug my amp in when she asked the obvious question. “What’s up with the second skinny case Mag?”

I smirked when Twilight spoke up. “That is what I asked him. He said it was a surprise until we got here. So now we are here. How about you tell us what that is now?!”

I smirked and set the case next to the amp. “Okay, I will, but first. AJ, how good of a bass player do you feel like you are. Don’t be modest. I want to hear an honest answer.”

She gave me a competent grin. “Well, if you want an honest answer, then I reckon you deserve one then. I reckon that I’m likely the best bass player in Ponyville.”

I shot back, “That is what I was hoping to hear. I would like your opinion on something, but first, would you be willing to show me an example of your skills?”

She gave me an even glare, “you want some kind of a playoff sugar?” I nodded, and she continued, “will if'n you're sure, you mind if I have Pinkie back me up?”

I shrugged, “Only if you allow me the same thing.” she nodded, and I smirked, “then feel free to start.”

Rainbow leaned over to me and whispered, “you sure you know what you are doing Mag. AJ wasn’t kidding when she said she was the best. I have never seen anypony beat her before.”

I looked her right in the eyes and countered with, “I’m not from Ponyville Skittles. I know what I’m doing.” Turning back to watch AJ, I looked like she was ready to start.

AJ looked right at me, and without saying anything, she started.

https://youtu.be/NimnGpBEEvY

I didn’t take AJ as a slap bass player, but I have to admit that she was terrific. Her fingering was masterful, and she added just the right amount of stank to the rifts to make the funk shine through. Pinkie was tapping away on a cymbal in the background to add just a little more.

I sat back and listened to her play through the entire solo. And once she finished, I gave her a warm smile and started clapping. “That was truly fantastic, AJ. I have always been a huge fan of slap bass. Give me a second to set up, and I will show you something neat.” leaning down, I got my amp set up and pulled my case over to me.

I started to mutter under my breath
“Alles klar, mein seltsamer Freund, lass uns sie aus dem Wasser blasen.”
(Alright my strange friend, let's blow her out of the water.)

As I was muttering to myself, I noticed that Rainbow was looking at me with eyes that made me think she just understood what I just said. So I decided to ask
“Verstehst du mich Skittles?”
(Do you understand me, Skittles?)

She turned away with a light blush, almost as if she was embarrassed to know a second language. Realizing this, I decided to try something, If I was right and she understood me, she would likely hit me while outting herself. And if she didn’t well, I got away with saying what I was about to say.
“Nun, ich denke es ist besser, dass du mich nicht verstehst. Jetzt kann ich darüber reden, wie schön dein Arsch in diesen Shorts aussieht und du wirst keine Ahnung haben, wovon ich rede.”
(Well I guess it's better that you don't understand me. Now I can talk about how nice your ass looks in those shorts and you won't have any clue as to what I'm talking about.)

The next thing I knew, Skittles was bright red and had a rather interesting look in her eyes before I looked away and finished opening the case to expose my Stick Bass. After plugging it in, I turned back to Applejack, and she looked confused. “Um… I’m not sure what ta tell you Mag, but that doesn’t look like any kinda bass I’ve ever seen before.”

Ignoring her question, I looked at Pinkie before nodding and starting right in.

https://youtu.be/NHcl6cyoU44

The look on their faces was priceless, and somehow Pinkie was able to anticipate what I wanted her to do and jammed along with me. I was glad that I bought a distortion pedal with me. As the song finished, I just placed the bass back in its case and smirked at all of them.

AJ came over and asked if she could give it a go. I pulled it back out of the case and handed it over to her to give it a go. The remainder of the afternoon was spent messing around and playing some good music. Twilight wasn’t talented when it came to playing an instrument, but once she got over her nerves, she showed that she has a fantastic voice.

After a few hours, Pinkie brought up how she was hungry. I agreed with her that It was food time. She quickly volunteered for us to get lunch for everyone else.

Pinkie dragged me out of the barn and back to town toward Sugar Cube Corner, her Job/home. As we walked, Pinkie turned to me and started up a conversation, “So, Maggie. How do you like it down here in Ponyville? I know it’s quite a bit different from Canterlot.”

I thought about it for a second before answering, “I have to admit that I like it more here than back up in Canterlot. It seems like all I did back there was train with the other guards or read. I still do a lot of both here, but at least now I have some spare time to just hang out with all of you.” I smiled, thinking back just a few hours to how much fun we had been having during the jam session.

Pinkie seemed to glow with joy “That’s good, I was kind of scared that we made you upset when we found that griffon tallon in your room.”

I took a sharp intake of breath before clarifying, “you knew I heard you all. Didn’t you.” She gave me a silent nod, “Does Twilight and Rainbow know that I heard them?”

Pinkie shook her head again and answered, “No. I don’t think they realized that you would be able to hear them.”

I let out a sigh of relief “that’s good. Twilight already told me that she understood that in my world, griffons aren’t intelligent. Where I come from, they are just predators that hunt whatever they can catch. I don’t blame you all for having that reaction. It was only natural.” I hadn't noticed that we had already made it to the shop, at which point Pinkie told me to wait outside while she ran in to get the food.

I sat outside for a bit while I waited for her to grab whatever she needed to. Once she came back out, we made our way back to the barn while making idle chit-chat. Once we got to the barn door, I was about to go inside before Pinkie stopped me.

Leaning up to me, Pinkie spoke, “Hey Magos, can I try something weird?”

I was feeling somewhat nervous and, without thinking, replied: “Um...let’s get weird.” As the words left, my mouth Pinkie pressed up against me, and our lips met. At first, I started to freak out but, after a moment, leaned into the kiss to enjoy it. She pulled back, and before I could do anything, she had already disappeared into the barn. Muttering to myself, “what the fuck was that?”

Shaking my head, I wandered into the barn where I saw Pinkie jabbering away with AJ, shaking my head I slipped back into my childhood tongue
“Ich habe keine Ahnung, was gerade passiert ist, aber Pinkies Lippen sind wirklich weich. Ich frage mich, ob Sparkles oder Skittles genauso weich sind?”
(I have no idea what just happened, but Pinkie's lips are really soft. I wonder if Sparkle's or Skittles’ are just as soft?)

I didn’t even notice that Rainbow was standing next to me. Apparently, this little comment was just enough for her to push past whatever strange embarrassment she had about understanding me before she blurted out. “I bet you would like to know, wouldn't you.” I don’t think she noticed what she had just reacted to for a moment, at least until I smirked at her.

“Ich denke, das hat meine Frage beantwortet, ob Sie Deutsch verstanden haben oder nicht.”
(So I guess that answered my question as to whether or not you understood German.) Was my quick retort as I called her out. I guess luckily for her nopony else noticed the quiet exchange.

Rainbow blushed before hissing “Don’t let anypony know alright. I don’t want to look like an egghead.”

That made me feel a little annoyed. “Warum macht das Wissen um eine zweite Sprache dich zum Eierkopf? Und was macht mich das dann ?!”
(Why does knowing a second language make you an egghead? And for that matter, what does that make me then?!)
I finished the line with a little bit of venom before leaving the barn to have a walk outside.

Walking away from the bard, I sat down under an apple tree and let my head fall against the trunk. After sitting there for a few moments, I heard the sound of something on four legs run up to me. “Ohhh, what’s this, what’s this? Someone new? I wonder if they want to play?” the voice was feminine, but it was a tone that I had heard before.

Lifting my head, I noticed what appears to be a collie dog looking at me, “Hey there, pup, what’s your name?”

The dog cocked her head to the side before casually answering, “Winona. But it’s not like you can understand me anyway.”

She started to walk toward me to show me her collar before I answered back to her. “Winona, that’s a nice name. Do you live here with AJ?”

Winona stopped in her tracks before looking me dead in the eyes. She opened her muzzle to ask something, but before she could, I continued, “and yes, I can understand you. One of the few gifts that I got from my birth-giver.”

Winona shook her head and responded, “wow! That’s amazing. Only that Fluttershy mare can talk to animals normally, and even she only barely understands what we are saying.” She walked right up to me and threw herself into my lap. “You can give me a scratch being the ears.”

The statement should have come out as a request, but I didn’t really care. It had been a while since I last spoke to a dog, so instead of commenting on her commanding tone, I just reached down and started to give her her scratch. We must have sat like that for a few minutes before I heard someone cough to get my attention. Looking up to see Rainbow, my glance hardened, “Can I help you with something Rainbow Dash.”

She flinched at me using her entire name “I just wanted to say sorry.” She almost seemed to whisper that. Like she was embarrassed to say it.

“I’m sorry, Rainbow Dash. I couldn’t hear that.” she flinched again.

This time in her usual tone, “I wanted to say sorry for insulting you. I just have this image that I try to keep. Knowing a second language doesn’t fit into it.”

I scoffed, “Why would showing anyone that you are smart ever be a bad thing? If you want my opinion, I take brains over looks any day of the week. If all someone has going for them is looks, well, then that is something that is going to fade one day.” I gave her a bit of a glare, “and while I still haven’t spent much time with Pinks, I can tell that she has a lot of depth to her that I am hoping to see.” Her eyes seemed to be misting. “So tell me Skittles, do you have some depth to you? Or is what I see on the surface all there is to you?”

She dropped to the ground across from me and held herself “I’m sorry that I made knowing Giffonian look like a bad thing okay. It’s just whenever I hear it all I can think about is...her.”

I cocked an eyebrow “what do you mean her? And what the fuck is Griffonian?”

Skittles looked back at me “um… Griffonian. That was the language that you were speaking. I don’t know what Deutsche is. As for her… My ex. She’s a griffon. She taught me so that we could have private conversations in the back of class at flight school.” Rainbow laughed to herself. “We always got into trouble when we were speaking it because the teacher couldn’t understand us and thought we were talking about her behind her back.”

I chuckled at the memory, “and were you?”

She managed a grin “Well yea. But you would have too. She was really boring, but she did have a nice plot.”

This time I burst out laughing. “That is a great story.” wiping a tear from my eye, I continued “well to me that language is called German. Or in the language itself, Deutsche. My father taught me… before he died.” I thought back on what little I could remember of him, just us sitting in the living room of the tiny apartment we lived in chatting away. I didn’t even remember what we were talking about, It was just us. “Keeping my skill of using it is one of the last things I have of him.” Looking back at her, “if… if you didn’t think it would bring back to many bad memories, I would love to talk to you in German so I could keep the skill.”

Rainbow was looking right at me as she nodded “I think I can try. Um…” she seemed to try to steel herself for what she was about to ask “W-Wäre es in O-Ordnung, wenn ich dich k-küsste? Pinkie hat mich zum ersten g-geschlagen.”
(W-Would it be o-okay if I k-kissed you? Pinkie b-beat me to the first one.)

I blushed as she seemed incapable of waiting for an answer before she crawled over to me and pulled me into a kiss. I was too shocked to resist and to be honest, I didn’t want to. Deciding to just go with the flow, I brought my hands up to the sides of her face and held her there for a moment before she pulled back “w-wow. I-I.” She stopped me from continuing by placing a finger on my lips.

“Nuh, uh. We need to get back to the barn.” She said before standing back up. As she did so, I noticed something out of the corner of my eyes. What seemed to be a Mare and Stallion looking at the barn with a forlorn look to them. At first, I didn’t notice it, but after a few moments, I realized that they were incorporeal, I could see the tree behind them. I got up and commented to Rainbow, “I-I’ll meet you inside Skittles. I just need to see something really fast.” She looked a little concerned, but I continued, “It’s nothing bad. I just want to check something that I just noticed.” that seemed to calm her down.

I made my way over to where the two were standing, walking up slowly, I stopped right in front of them. For a moment, it seemed like they didn’t realize that I could see them. Then after a moment, I spoke, “I can see both of you right now. My name is Magos. Who would you two be?”

The mare and Stallion seemed to be taken aback by my addressing them. Looking right at me now, the Stallion spoke, his voice sounded distant, and half faded “Y-you can see us? And hear us?” I nodded. “How?”

I shrugged, not really wanting to go into detail as to why. Call it another gift from the birth giver. Although it has been a curse before, “It’s just something I can do, both of you know that you’re dead, right?”

The stallion gave a bitter laugh, and the mare pressed into his side. “Yes, we know that we are dead. My name is Bright Mac; This is my wife Pear Butter.”

I looked a little closer at them and realized who I was speaking to. The Stallion in front of me had the same eyes as AJ; his hair color matched Big Mac’s coat. And last but not least, he had the same coat as Apple Bloom. So if that was the case, I was currently talking to AJ’s deceased parents. After making that connection, I continued, “So I take it that you are AppleJack’s parents then?”

The stallion gave a solemn nod. “That’s true. We are.”

I was shocked. From what little I had managed to find out about AppleJack, her life revolved around this farm, as did the lives of her family. I pried a bit, “Um… I hope this isn’t uncalled for, but why are you two still here? Shouldn’t you have moved on to the afterlife?”

The stallion had a bitter look in his eyes “we can’t move on. Not until we get our justice.”

I know that look. That bitter, hate-filled look. I had to clarify though, “you two didn’t die of natural causes, or an accident did you.” it could have been a question. Still, I was afraid I already know the answer.

Bright Mac shook his head and held his wife close. I could see the ghostly tears in her eyes. Whatever or whoever killed them had hurt her more than her husband, looking back into his eyes, I took a deep breath. “How can I give you Justice?”

They looked shocked at my statement, “What do you mean? You don’t even know us.”

I shook my head “It doesn’t matter. I know AJ, and she deserves to know that her parents are at peace. And whatever happened to you has trapped you here. If I can help, then I feel like it is my duty to do so. So please tell me, how can I deliver your Justice to you?”

They looked at each other before nodding “We will tell you. Later, if you are gone for too much longer, they might come looking for you. Where can we talk?”

I nodded at the wisdom. “I live at the Golden Oak Library. Do you know where that is?” they nodded, “good, meet me there tonight. Consider this a formal invitation to come inside and meet me in the basement. Look for the room that smells like Lavender. I have a large trunk at the foot of the bed. That is how you will know that you have the right place.” They nodded and moved away. I’m not sure what happened, but I was going to find out. Necromancy was one of the branches of magic that came naturally to the children of Hecate. It fell under her realm of power, and because of that, as one of her children. It came to me almost as easily as breathing.

Turning back, I went into the barn, as I pushed the door open, I stumbled back due to it opening from the other side. Twilight slipped and knocked me down to the ground. We found ourselves with me flat on my back with Twilight straddling me, her face less than six inches from my own. Deciding to speak without thinking, I blurted, “Wow, Sparkles, didn’t take you for a girl that likes to be on top.” Her face lit up bright purple-red, and she meeped. Placing my hands on her thighs, I gave her a light squeeze, “not that I’m complaining.”

She must have snapped out of it because she hit me on the chest before getting up. “What were you doing out here!” she wrapped her arms around herself before muttering under her breath “pervert.”

I lifted myself up and scratched the back of my head before answering her, “sorry, I saw an opportunity for a little prank and took it. And as for why I was out here. Well, I just met someone that needs a little help. I know this is sudden, but I need to head back.” lifting myself off the ground, I walked back into the barn.

Walking over to my stuff, I started to pack it up, turning to AJ, I spoke, “Hey if you want to, feel free to borrow that Stick Bass. Once you get the hang of it, it can be a ton of fun. Something just came up, and I need to head back to the Library. I had a lot of fun. We need to do this again.”

AJ looked a little put out that I was leaving but shrugged, “It’s alright sugar cube. Just let me know when you want to have another session. That bass lick you played was mighty fine.” She held out her fist to me, taking the hint, I walked over and bumped fists.

As I turned to leave, I looked over at Pinkie and Rainbow, “We should spend some time talking latter. About how this works.” they both smiled, Pinkie with her normal smile and Dash with a hint of a blush.”

“Absopatituly,” Pinkie rambled off. I chuckled and walked over to them and leaned in to give them both a quick peck.

Whispering to them, “Like I said, I would love to talk about us later. I’m just going to go deal with something that came up.” I walked out of the barn and back to the library to figure out what had trapped those two poor souls here.

As I left the building, I didn’t notice that Twilight was looking at the other two with a fire in her eyes.

I jogged back to the Library and made my way down to the room in the basement. That is where I found Bright Mac and Pear Butter. I set my stuff down and offered them a seat; Bright looked at me like I was stupid, so I clarified. “I understand that you don’t get tired, I am trying to treat you like I would if you were still among the living by offering you a common courtesy.”

He stiffly nodded before asking, “Is there a particular reason that you have us meeting in a mare’s heat room?”

That Honestly threw me for a loop “um… Heat room?”

Bright must have realized something, so he changed the subject. “Nevermind, it’s not important. I would guess that you wanted to speak about why we are still in this world, correct?”

I nodded to confirm, so he continued, “the answer to that is simple and, at the same time, very upsetting. We are still here because we were both murdered.”

I was shocked. “You were Murdered?!”

The Trial - edited 3/21/20

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The Trial

After hearing what had happened to them, I felt my tears begin to fall down my face. My heart ached with the injustice that had been given to them. My rage built as I began to contemplate all the things that I wanted to do to the two that had caused such pain and torment. Those… I couldn't call them people or even ponies right now. They were filth, vile, disgusting filth that didn't deserve what they had, and I knew that I would make it my ultimate goal to take everything from them.

I would crush them beneath my boot and grind their memories to dust beneath my heel. I looked back to Bright, and my resolve hardened further as I saw him hold his wife, even now in death. "I swear to you both. I will give you your vengeance. I will see that they will pay for what they did to you both. I will make them suffer what was done." Neither of them was in any place to speak right now, so I continued, "Give me one week. I will summon you then so that you can finally have Justice."

Bright and Pear hugged each other before fading away. Letting no more time pass before I made my move, I made my way quickly to the main floor of the Library. Upon finding Spike, I requested that he send a letter to Princess Celestia for me. At first, he wasn't sure if he should, but after getting down to eye level, I let him know that I wouldn't ask if it wasn't imperative. After drafting the letter, I only had to wait a few minutes before her reply was given.

______________________________________________
Lt. Schmidt,

Upon receiving your missive, I am making the decision to recall you to Canterlot for a short reprieve. Your day to day needs will be met, so there is no reason to pack. A chariot has already been sent for you and should arrive within the hour. Make haste and board the chariot. We have much to discuss.

Their most Royal Highnesses,
Princess Celestia
Princess Luna

P.S. Be safe, my friend. I know that what you need to tell me is for the best of Equestria. You have my total trust.

Celestia and Luna

______________________________________________________

I smiled at the postscript, knowing that I had earned Celestia's trust with my oath. Turning to Spike, I informed him of the situation "Spike, I have a critical job for you. I am being summoned to Canterlot and will be leaving within the hour. I need you to let Twilight, Rainbow, Pinkie what is going on. The Elements will likely be summoned to Canterlot in about a week. AppleJack's entire family will also be summoned. And before she freaks out at you. Let her know that I promise that I will see what I can do about taking care of her farm for them while they are there."

Spike looked concerned about what was going on "Mag… What's happening? Why are you leaving?" He seemed genuinely upset about what was happening.

Leaning down, I placed my hand on his shoulder and gave it a squeeze "a lot of stuff is about to happen, Spike. Some things that never should have happened here did, and I'm going up to Canterlot to make sure that those that were wronged will receive their Justice. Don't worry, we will all come back." I stood up and held out my fist. Spike bumped it and grinned with more confidence.

I rushed down to the basement and grabbed a few things that I was going to need. After getting all of my stuff together, I waited outside the front of the Library until my chariot arrived. I was pleasantly surprised to find that Silver was the one pulling it. Calling out to him, "Silver! Is that you? What did you do to have to be pulling a chariot like this?"

I smirked as he came in for a landing. Stopping in front of me, I pulled myself into the chariot as he started to run to build up speed before launching us into the air. He finally spoke as we got off the ground "So you think I had to have been in trouble to come and pick up a friend?" He gave me a copy of my own shit-eating grin.

I have to admit that for the month that I was in Canterlot, I had become somewhat close friends with Silver. He was a lot of fun to hang out with. I loved to learn about him and his heritage, and he, in turn, was interested in my life as well. We spent the remainder of the ride up to Canterlot with Idle chit-chat. He let me know that Princess Luna had made great strides toward using the modern vernacular on a regular basis.

Upon landing, I climbed out of the carriage and pulled him in for a quick hug. "Thanks, Silver. I wish I were visiting for pleasure. We should hang out sometime this week."

He grinned back at me and responded in the affirmative, "I would enjoy that Mag. It's been too quiet here without you around. You're the only one that can put captain Armor on his flank in a match. I think he might be missing you just as much as I am. We need that challenge."

I grinned back at him before turning to head toward the throne room, just before I left earshot I shouted back "I was hoping that you just missed my face. At least now I know that you are only interested in a good match." I could see the teal in his coat tinge a light pink before I left the courtyard and entered the palace proper.

Making my way to the throne room, I stopped outside the door and addressed the guards to stood to bar my path. "Lt. Schmidt reporting as ordered. Princess Celestia called for my return." I snapped to attention and waited for them to confirm my information.

Once that had been taken care of, I was let into the cavernous room. It would appear that the renovations had been finished since my last visit. I approached the thrones, of which only one was filled. Celestia sat on the throne by herself. Next to her was a new mare that I had never met before. She had a pale coat that was the color of the moon. Her mane was black as night, and her eyes were deep forest green. Something about this mare seemed to trigger a response in me, but I couldn't figure out why. Regardless I was here on a mission, not to guess at one of Celestia's assistants.

I stood up to the foot of the throne before taking a knee before it. "Princess Celestia, I am afraid that the reason for my coming here is not good news. I understand that you are informed on the lives of the Elements of Harmony, correct?"

I looked at her and received my answer in the form of a slight nod of her head, then she spoke, "Yes, Lt. Schmidt. I have made it a point to learn about the Elements and their families. Why?"

I continued, "So you are aware that the Element of Honesty, AppleJack's parents are dead."

She gave me a solemn look and confirmed, "Yes, I am aware of their loss. It happened many years ago. I was told that It was a nasty accident involving a pack of timber wolves. Why do you bring this up?"

I looked her right in the eyes, "Princess, I do not mean to insult the intelligence-gathering abilities of the guard. But you are wrong about the circumstances of their deaths. Bright Mac Apple and his Wife Pear Butter Apple were not the victims of a timber wolf attack. Although that would have been a far kinder fate. No princess, they were murdered." Her eyes snapped fully open as I said this, and before she could speak, I added: "by two of your nobles."

Her eyes looked as if there were flames that began to leak from the edges "I would suggest that you and I have this conversation in private Magos. What you are saying is extremely troubling and demands my full attention." She turned to the guards and issued a command "Guards, the courts are closed for the remainder of the day. I have some critical business to discuss with Magos here. Come along, Dittany, I may have need of your Scribe work here."

My ears perked up at the mare's name, but I again ignored it. I was here for Justice. And that is what I intended to get. After walking to a small tea room, some distance from the throne room Celestia turned to me and pulled me into an embrace. I was too shocked to do anything but reflexively hug her back. Placing her chin, on the top of my head, she spoke, "I have missed you, my friend. I wish that you were not here with such grim tidings. Please tell me what you know. I will not suffer one of my nobles to get away with such a disgusting act."

I was still numbed by the fact that Celestia had pulled me into her arms. But that was slightly overshadowed by the fact that she had drawn my face right into her chest. My mind was still a little fuzzy before I managed to mutter "Vanilla" Celestia must have noticed my tone because she pulled me back and gave me a questioning look. I shook my head to clear my thoughts before continuing forward with my information.

By the end of my report, Celestia was a bizarre combination of sick to her stomach, shocked with horror, and filled with an all-consuming rage. Her tone was even, but icy "Mag, I will leave their punishment up to you. If I were the one to give them their judgment, I would likely vaporize them in an instant. Show them the mercy that I cannot."

I stood ramrod straight and smacked my right fist over my left breast. "I will do so, Celestia. I came here to give them Justice. If I may, I would like to hold off the trial for one week. I left a message with Spike that we would be summoning all of the Elements as well as the entire Apple Family. I am not sure how long they will be here, but would it be possible to send them some aid from the royal gardeners to keep their farm running while they are here for a few days?"

Celestia smiled at me, "of course, Mag. I can never give them back what was stolen from them. But I can do this, at least."

I nodded, "Good, good. I will also need to bend some rules during the trial as well." Looking right at her "Celestia, I am going to have to use necromancy at the trial. I intend for Bright Mac and Pear Butter to give their testimony. That is also why I have to have the Apple family there. They will be able to verify that they are real and not illusions."

Celestia didn't look thrilled by the idea but conceded, understanding the necessity of it. "Very well. This will be a trial to remember. We will hold it one week from today. I will summon the Elements the day before and provide them with accommodations in the palace."

Having already been hugged by her, I figured that she would be fine with me pulling her into another one "Thank you, Tia. For trusting me." I turned to leave and spoke, "I have a lot to do. I took for granted that there has been general peace for so long. But even where there is peace, evil still grows." Turning my eyes to her, "I will search that evil out and remove its roots from your world." I left the room without another word.

_______________________________________
Perspective shift - Celestia
_______________________________________

I watched Magos exit the room with purpose, turning my head. I looked at the smaller mare for a moment before she shifted in appearance back to that of a woman. "He has a strong sense of Justice. You should be proud of him."

Hecate's eyes were brimmed with tears "I am prouder of him that you will ever be able to imagine. He is so much like his Father. Especially the blond hair and that little beard he is growing. They look so much alike. They share their love of Justice and a strong moral compass." Hecate turned to Celestia "I love all of my children, but there has always been something about Magos that has stood out. He has gravity to him, just like his Father. I don't know if Magos ever knew this, but he is the descendant of a powerful human mage as well. His many time's great-grandfathers name was Merlin. Even his Father could use magic." her cheeks grew rosy as she remembered years past. "I don't even know if Klaus knew that he was using magic, he just thought he was good at tricks."

Celestia smiled, when she had first encountered Hecate she had been furious that she had encroached on her realm without permission and more so because Magos and specifically requested to be left alone. However, since she had been here with Celestia, she had grown to spend time with her and learn what it was that motivated the ancient goddess. Turning to look back at the closed door, she smiled and spoke quietly "Magos has yet to give me any reason to doubt him. And I don't think he ever will."

_________________________________
Perspective shift - Magos
_________________________________

The past week has been hectic. I have been preparing my speech and how I'm going to present the entire court hearing. As well as planning for the punishment of the accused. But today was the day. The Elements had arrived yesterday and been shown to their rooms. Apparently, Celestia and Granny Smith knew each other back from when Ponyville had been founded. I had made it a point to avoid them all for the last day in preparation. Steeling myself, I made my way to their common room. Standing before the door, I gave it a firm knock.

I heard them talking on the other side before Big Mac opened it. He looked straight across at me and spoke, "Mag." I nodded, "Eyup," he stood to the side to let me see into the room.

"It's good to see all of you. As I expect Spike told you, I was called back to Canterlot for a short visit, now as I am sure you have been curious as to why." Looking out at them, I could see with their nods that I was correct "Very well, if you would all follow me, I will let you all know what reason you have been called here for." Turning to Granny Smith, I added, "I know that you can make it yourself, Mam, but I would be remiss if I didn't offer to fetch you a wheelchair and push you to our destination. It is quite a bit of a walk from here."

The old green mare shook her head, "Don't you worry about it, youngun. Mac there already has me covered. Thank you kindly for your concern tho." I smiled at the kindly old mare. At the same time, I knew that I was about to open old wounds.

We made our way to the castle throne room. As we got closer, Twilight tugged on my arm. "Mag, Why are we going to the throne room? What's going on?"

I looked at her with sad eyes, "you will find out in a moment. There is some long-awaited justice that needs to be given. You have been brought here to witness it." I turned away and threw open the doors. Both Luna and Celestia sat on their thrones in front of a crowd of nobles and guards. I ignored them all as my gaze locked on the two pieces of filth that were chained to the defendant table, Jet Set, and Upper Crust.

I walked right up to the raised platform between the princesses after directing my friends to the side in front. Once I reached the platform, I dropped down to one knee and bowed to the Solar and Lunar Goddess. I noticed that mare Dinitty was here again as well. She must be Celestia's newest right-hand assistant.

Celestia's voice broke through the murmuring of the crowd "Rise Sir Magos" My head shot up and looked her right in the eyes as I mouthed the word 'sir?' she winked, and I just said 'Fuck it' in my head.

Rising up, I turned and walked to the side out of the way as I waited for them to continue the court session. Luna spoke first, "My little ponies, we have gathered you here today for a grave matter. Before you sit, Jet Set and Upper Crust. Two nobles who are the last of their line, which stretches back to the founding of Equestria."

Celestia continued, "they sit here accused of some of the vilest acts possible of my little ponies." Her eyes hardened and looked right at the pair, even now, bound in chains they looked like they expected this to be pushed under the rug and made to disappear. "They have been accused of Ponynapping, assault, battery" Her voice seemed to crack "R-rape, and m-murder."
She looked as if she were going to spit the vile words from her mouth as if they left a foul taste. "How do you plead against these charges."

The two of them looked furious at the charges Jet Set spoke for him and his wife. "THIS IS COMPLETELY OUTLANDISH, AND I REFUSE TO BE TREATED THIS WAY! YOU HAVE NO PROOF OF ANY OF THIS. I DEMAND THAT MY WIFE, AND I BE RELEASED THIS INSTANT AND THAT THIS EXCUSE OF A GUARD BE STRIPPED OF HIS TITLE AND REMOVED FROM CANTERLOT. THIS FREAK HAD NO PLACE AMONG US!!!!"

Celestia's eyes seemed to drill into the stallion's mind as he flinched away from her gaze. "You would do well to hold your tongue when speaking to your princesses and their knight. I take it from that rather inappropriate outburst that you refute the charges against you?" He seemed to gain a little nerve and nodded. "Very well, Sir Magos, you may begin."

I took a deep breath before approaching "To begin with I would like to request that miss. AppleJack Apple comes up to the stand." The entire group were stunned by my request, but AppleJack came forward, turning to her. I asked, "Miss. Apple, you know who I am." She nodded, "if you were asked to describe our relationship, would you call us close friends? Remember, we need fully honest answers. No one will be upset with your answer."

She rubbed the back of her head before answering, "Well, Mag, I can't say that we are really close friends. I mean, we really only have known each other for just over a week now."

Inside I smiled, that was exactly what I wanted her to say. I hoped that her opinion of me would change in time, but for now, it was exactly what I needed. "Taking that into account, seeing as I am not what you would call a close friend, it would be safe to say that I know very little about your home life. Would that be accurate?" She nodded, "So to confirm, you would not have told me about your parents or what happened to them, would you." I looked her right in the eyes as I asked that.

Her face contorted with anger, "Magos, that is none of your business, and it ain't right for you to talk about that. But for the sake of the question, no, I have never talked to you about that."

I could tell she was furious, and rightly so "thank you, AppleJack, that was all I needed." I mouthed 'I'm sorry' to her as she walked down from the stand. Turning back to the crowd, I continued, "as you have just heard. I have never been given any information on who the Apple parents were, nor how they passed. However, today we are sitting at the trial of Jet Set and Upper Crust. The reason for the relevance of my line of questions to AppleJack. Is because they are the focus of the charges levied against this "noble" couple. Ponynapping, assault, battery," My eyes hardened as I said the last two "rape and the murder of both Bright Mac Apple and his wife, Pear Butter Apple."

The entire room went silent for a moment before Jet Set shouted, "This is ridiculous your highnesses, This" he gestured to me "thing has no basis in fact. His allocations are purely false, and I will not stand for it."

I turned to him, having made him dig his own grave. "So you are saying that if I presented proof, you would be unable to refute these charges?" He scoffed, "Very well, then I call to the stand Bright Mac Apple and Pear Butter Apple."

The entire courtroom grew silent once more, no one dared speak. I turned to the princesses and bowed, "With your permission, your highnesses. I would like to summon them."

The room seemed to wait for their answer before Celestia gave a slight nod, Jet Set shouted again "What this thing speaks of is necromancy! Princess Celestia, you banned its practice hundreds of years ago. To perform, it is to commit Treason."

She looked back at them both with hate in her eyes "I know what laws I have put into place. You seem to be all too fearful of what testimony from them would bring. Do you still refute the charges? If you do so now, you will be shown mercy."

I was personally hoping that he would keep digging his own grave, and I was not disappointed. Seeing that he would not accept the charges, I looked back at Celestia as she gave me the go-ahead. I stomped my foot down on the ground to tear open a rift through reality, which made it look as if a thick fissure had opened in the floor. I didn't need to stomp to do this, but I had a flair for the dramatic, plus it made me feel like a badass earth bender when I did it. Reaching into my breast pocket, I pulled out a flask of Nectar. Unscrewing the lid, I dropped a single drop into the fissure before speaking.

________________________________________________
Perspective shift - Celestia
________________________________________________

I nodded to Magos, indicating to let him continue. He stomped down on the ground as a rift though reality opened. His once blond hair had begun to darken to a deep black, his eyes shifted from their bright green to black, even the whites of his eyes changed as he channeled his magic. I noticed him take a flask out before letting a single drop of Nectar fall into the pit.

His voice rumbled quite a bit deeper than was normal as he spoke "RISE FROM DEATH, AND SPEAK ONCE MORE TO THE LIVING. RISE AND CLAIM THE JUSTICE THAT HAS BEEN KEPT FROM YOU FOR FAR TO LONG. RISE AND LET YOUR SOULS FIND PEACE."

Two forms began to solidify next to him. A large stallion with dark red hair and a light cream coat. He wore a checkered patterned shirt and blue jeans. His hair made it look like he usually would wear a hat. The mare next to him had bright orange hair with a softer orange coat. After they came entirely into view, Magos' hair lightened back to blonde again, and his eyes took on their prior green.

Magos turned to them before speaking, "If you would be so kind. Please address your family with something that only you would be able to know. To validate that you are truly who I say you are."

Bright turned to look at Big Mac, tears in his eyes as he looked at his son again, "Mac, you've grown up so much. I guess you finally figured out that sometimes you can say a lot more, by saying a little less." Big Mac's eyes grew from suspension to one of shock and awe "AppleJack… thank you for taking care of my hat. It fits you quite well now. Keep in in the family, and know that you will always be my little Apple Butter." AppleJack began to cry as she brought her hand up to her mouth to hold back her sobs. Finally, Bright looked at AppleBloom, who was the most confused by all this "My little AppleBloom, I wish I had been around longer to see you grow up into the mare you have become. Just know that I have been watching over you all your life, and we couldn't be prouder of you if we tired."

Looking at their three children, Pear spoke for the first time, "Eyup."

I cracked a grin, now knowing where Big Mac got his stoic nature from. Bright then turned to his mother. "Granny… Ma, I'm sorry that you had to bury me so soon after having to burry Pa. A mother should never have to bury her own children." Granny broke down and began to sob, reaching out as if to grasp Bright Mac's hand.

I spoke to the two lost souls, "Bright Mac Apple, Pear Butter Apple. Are the charges levied against these two true."

Bright looked at the two noble unicorns with disgust and hatred in his eyes. "I wish I could say it was false, princess. Because if it were, I would be sitting at home with my children enjoying this fine day of yours. They murdered and raped my wife and I. After they got through with beating us to the point we couldn't fight back."

_________________________________________
Perspective shift - Magos
_________________________________________

I walked up behind Bright and placed my hand on his shoulder, "Thank you, Bright, That is all we needed." As I was about to pass him, I whispered to him, "I charged this spell with 24 hours before you, and your wife will fade, hopefully, to move on and find peace. Until then, go spend time with your children and mother. Give them real goodbye." Bright pulled me into a hug before I could go anywhere.

"Thank you for all that you've done." He let go of me before he pulled his wife over to their children. As they approached, Pear stepped forward to look up at Big Mac.

Looking up to her son's face, Pear spoke again, "Mac."

Mac looked down with tears in his eyes. "M-ma" She nodded, and Big Mac, the giant of Ponyville, fell to his knees and pulled his mother into a bone-crushing hug that she returned. His sobs echoed off the walls as he held his mother again. AppleJack ran to her Father and tried to tackle him. AppleBloom just stood next to Granny, who had managed to collect herself, not sure what to do. I turned my head away from the heartwarming scene to look back at the filth.

Glaring at them, I spoke, "Tell me something, do you know what it is to be truly noble?" Jet tried to open his mouth before I slapped him, "That was a rhetorical question you piece of filth. You have never known what it was to be noble. To be noble is to hold yourself to a higher standard. To judge yourself more harshly than anyone else. To be better than the person you were yesterday." Turning my gaze to the entire room, "From what little I have seen of this place, That is the noblest family I have ever encountered to date." I pointed at the Apples.

With venom in my voice, I continued, "Your fates were already decided before you entered this palace. And your punishments have been left to me. For the crimes of Ponynapping, assault, battery, rape, murder, and Treason, you will be stripped of your titles and possessions. Not a single bit will be given to you. Both you and your wife will have your horns removed and your faces branded with the mark of a traitor and murderer. You will be placed under a geas that will compel you to continue living by finding food and shelter. You will be unable to harm another intelligent being unless your lives are endangered. You will be forced to tell any who meet you what you have done and what you are. Everything that you have will be given to this family, your home, your lands, your titles, and your finances."

The apple family had halted their reunion and stared at me with slack jaws. "Your names will be stricken from any and all records. You have become a blite on this land and its people. I will see you erased from history. The Apple family are now and will be from this day forward Nobles in title to match their nobility in nature. And on the day that you both finally pass into the next realm." My eyes dropped back to black, "I have connections in the underworld that will make your stay there considerably more difficult than it already would have been."

The two had been shocked to silence already, so I just waved my hand to the guards "take this filth away from me, to breath the same air as them makes me ill." I turned to the Princesses that still sat in their thrones. "I have completed what I set out to do your highnesses, I have given Justice to those that deserve it. I am yours to command."

Celestia and Luna rose to stand before me, I heard a light pop and felt a shiver as the broadside of two swords lay against my shoulders, guess they are doing this now. Celestia spoke, "Do you swear to continue to bring Justice to my little ponies. To serve as long as you are able."

Luna continued. "Do you so swear to keep the laws of this land and use your power for the betterment of our Ponies. To protect and guide them toward the light, and if needs be. To deal with those that stray too far into the dark."

I looked up at them from my kneeling position, "I so swear."

They lifted the bladed from my shoulders and spoke in unison "then Rise Sir Magos. Knight of Justice."

I rose and looked back at the gathered crowd. I spoke slowly "I can honestly say that I did not expect this to happen today. I discovered a wrong that had been committed and felt it was my duty to correct this heinous act. Know this, I will work diligently to protect you all." My gaze hardened as I looked at the nobles gathered. Some of which didn't look happy with the trial's outcome, and I made it a point to memorize their faces. "Even if I must first remove those that have strayed too far down the path of darkness." I summoned my bronze blade and placed the tip against the floor "The piercing light of the Sun and Moon will dig out the darkness in any heart, and I will deal with it." Dismissing my blade, I turned to find AppleJack standing there waiting for me.

I sighed and walked to her. As I expected, she slapped me. "Don't you ever do anything like that again." she then wrapped me into a tight hug, "and thank you for giving me some peace of mind about what happened to them. My pa told me that you gave them a day." She pulled back and looked up at me with tears in her eyes "I don't know how I can ever repay you for what you have done for mah family."

I placed my hands gently on her shoulders and pulled her forward to kiss her forehead. "Don't worry about it, AJ. Now go spend some time with your parents. As I told your Pa, I was only able to give them one day. Give this time to your family. Not me"

AJ choked back a sob before she nodded and ran back to hug her mother and father again. I ambled out of the Throne room back to my room. I didn't notice that I was being followed by three mares.

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Perspective shift - Celestia
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A few hours have passed since the trial. Magos had been harsh in his punishments, but at the same time, he had left them alive. Even if they would live the rest of their lives in misery. A flash next to me told me that Hecate had let herself into my chambers. "How can I help you, Hecate?"

The shorter woman bowed to me, "did you notice the strange magic that concentrated on Magos' shoulders during the trial?"

I smiled at the question, "Of course I did. It would appear that his history has finally caught up with him." Hecate was looking confused before I spoke again "you likely don't know this, but Merlin wasn't born on earth. He was born here, under the name Star Swirl. Later in his life, he took the title of Star Swirl the Bearded. He had an insatiable lust for knowledge that lead him to your world, more than a thousand years ago."

Hecate was speechless "you mean to say that…"

I smirked at her "yes, It would appear that Magos has earned…"

I was cut off when I heard a shout that sounded throughout the entire palace.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN I HAVE A FUCKING CUTIE MARK!!!!!"

Repercussions - Edited 3/21/20

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Repercussions

As I walked down the hallway from the throne room, I thought back to how I handled that entire situation. I really did feel like I had managed to give them justice. It felt right. Although I was a bit upset that Celestia and Luna sprung the whole Knighting thing on me. I wasn’t prepared for that.

It sounded like a group of people were running up to me, so I turned around to face them. Running up to me were three mares that had become a staple in my life. My student and charge, and with Pinkie and Rainbow. Maybe more. “Hoe there, girls. How can I help you?”

Twilight ran right up to me before looking me right in the face “You never told me that you were a necromancer! That branch of magic has been forbidden for centuries. Why would the princesses allow you to use it?!”

I nodded with understanding, “I know what you are scared of Twilight. My brand of Necromancy is something tied directly to my birth giver. It is one of the realms that she holds power over. It is also, at its core, different from the Necromancy used by beings in this world. That kind forces the dead into servitude. Mine requests them for aid or knowledge. Or in the case of the Apples, closure, and Justice.”

I turned to continue my walk when Twilight grabbed my arm. “Please don’t walk away from us. We just want to talk.”

I shrugged, “Then come with me, I’m rather tired and would like to sit down in a comfortable chair. There is a nice sitting area in the room that I have been given. We can continue our talk there.”

The girls looked at each other before nodding. We continued our walk down the hall until we came to the rooms that I was being allowed to use. Twilight looked at the door with what seemed to be almost horror. With my eyebrow raised, I asked, “What’s up, Sparkles? Something the matter with my room?”

Her face lit with a blush. “These are my rooms when I stay here. Normally at least. I had been wondering why I wasn’t allowed to stay there last night.”

I looked at the star pattern on the door then back to her. I take it that the Star pattern is your cutie mark?” she nodded in the affirmative “Heh. Trollestia strikes again, I guess. Well, I guess you will know where the most comfortable chairs are then. By the way, Sparkles, you really should clean up when you leave somewhere. When I got here, you had a ton of books on various tables open. I cleaned it up and reshelved the books. I had a bit of free time when I was here for my first month, so I changed the shelving system to something that makes more sense.”

She looked horrified that I had touched her books. So I added. “Don’t worry, it’s an advantageous system that almost every library on my world uses for its research books. I just had to modify it to add options for magic subjects. The nonfiction is ordered alphabetically by author last name, then by series, of course, shelved in order of the series.” She gave me a critical eye as we moved deeper into her old room to the sitting area.

After sitting down, I waved my hand through the air to summon a teapot filled with water as well as my favorite blend. Next was a set of four teacups. I set the pot over a small burner that was built into the table to let it heat up. “So, what did all of you want to talk about first?”

I lay back with my head against the back of the couch as I wait for their questions, Pinkie was first “How did you see AJ’s parents. Nopony has been able to before.”

My head snapped back up to look at her with a critical look in my eye. Something had been bothering me about her for a while now, and I wanted to prove a crazy theory. “Before I answer that Pinks. Would you answer a simple question for me?” she nodded “How many of us do you see right now?”

The other two looked completely confused by my question, but Pinkie just smiled. “You know the right kind of questions, Maggie. The answer is all of you.”

My mind tried to snap, but I didn’t let it. Pinkie had just revealed that her mind existed thought out all possible permutations of reality. In short, Pinkie proved string theory, “So that’s how your Pinkie Sense works.”

She nodded and placed the backside of her right hand against the left side of her mouth as if to make it look like she was trying to whisper to me in a regular speaking volume, “Don’t tell Twilight. I almost broke her once when she tried to figure it out.”

I grinned and mimed, locking my lips with a key and tossing it to her. “Well, to answer your question, Pinks, Depending on the situation. I can see the souls of people that have died but have been unable to move on. On the day of our jam session after Rainbow put her foot in her mouth, and I went out to get some air, I saw them looking at the barn.” Turning to Rainbow, “That is what I told you I had to look into. I was wondering what a pair of lost souls were doing hanging out around the barn. After I talked to them for a bit, I knew I had to help them.”

Rainbow smiled at me “That was really cool what you did for AJ and her family. Giving them a whole day to say goodbye for real. She deserves that, you know.”

I smiled at her “Everyone deserves to be able to hug their parents one last time Skittles. I can never do it again, but the chance to give that to someone else. I would never pass that opportunity up.”

Rainbow looked at Pinkie and Twilight before speaking up again, “I think that your good deed deserves a reward.” Looking right into Pinkie’s and then Twilight’s’ eyes, she licked her lips, “What do you say, girls?”

I could understand Pinkie, I had already exposed that she had kissed me to Rainbow, but why was she talking to Twilight like that. Twi’s face lit up cherry red before Pinkie spoke up “Twi hasn’t had the courage to kiss him yet, Dashie. So before we do anything, we need to let her kiss him first.”

I was dumbstruck. Looking at Twi, I noticed her blush. Speaking up, I addressed her, “Sparkles? What are you all talking about? Are you all trying to say that you all want to be with me?”

Her face deepened its blush as Pinkie began to rapid-fire nod while Rainbow just gave her usual cocky grin. Swallowing, I stood up and walked over to Twilight and sat next to her. “Just tell me if you feel uncomfortable, okay?” she nodded before leaning in.

As our lips brushed against one another, I felt a spark. It was almost static, but it also felt like it was charged with magic if only a little. As the kiss intensified, she started to struggle with air. Feeling this, I pulled back to let her breath, she gasped for air for a moment before speaking “W-wow. T-that was… That was incredible.”

I just smiled as I realized that she tasted like Lavender, and maybe wine. I was about to speak when Pinkies grabbed my head and pulled me into another kiss. Where Twilight was inexperienced and hesitant, Pinkie was much more forceful. She knew what she wanted and was going to work to get it. After she finished her assault of my mouth with her tongue, she let me breathe again. I swear I could see stars this time.

Rainbow looked like she had more on her mind that just a makeout session. She got up and sauntered over to me before sitting herself on my lap and putting her hands on my chest. “Wow, Mag, you really are jacked” the lust in her voice was unmistakable. I shivered as she traced her fingers across my chest. She hooked my shirt with her fingers before pulling it up over my head. After getting rid of my shirt, she pulled me in for a kiss as well. I could now call myself the luckiest man on the planet.

I’m not sure what Pinks and Sparkles were doing before, but it felt like they were tracing some kind of pattern on my shoulders. Pulling back from the kiss, I looked over to Sparkles, “Hey, not that it doesn’t feel nice, but why are you tracing a pattern on my shoulder?”

Twilight looked like she was lost in thought. “Mag? When did you get these tattoos? You didn’t have them when you were dancing at the party.”

That was news to me too, I hadn’t found a tattoo parlor here, and as far as I knew, there wasn’t one. With my arms still wrapped around Skittles, I looked at my right shoulder first. What appeared to be a set of golden scales being held by a robed figure how stood out in sharp relief on the arm. I jerked my head over to my left arm to find the same mark. “What the fuck is this? I never got matching Tattoos on my arms.”

Twilight got up and came around to look at the second mark with Pinkie. Her horn lit up, and the area around the mark started to glow with her lavender light. After a few moments, she gasped, “Magos! I think these are Cutie Marks!”

I looked utterly shocked. “I thought that only ponies get Cutie Marks! There has to be some other explanation. This isn’t possible.”

Twilight’s horn lit again as she examined the marks more closely. After a few seconds, she pulled back and looked at me with confidence. “I don’t know how this happened, Magos, but these are Cutie Marks. You must have earned it during the trial. I think that must mean that your special talent it delivering justice.”

My mind went into overdrive before I shouted out, “WHAT DO YOU MEAN I HAVE A FUCKING CUTIE MARK!!!”

I was quickly silenced as Rainbow caught my mouth in another kiss just to silence me. After a few moments, she pulled back, “feeling better now?”

I swallowed again before taking a deep breath, “Yea, I’m fine. Thanks for that, Skittles. I was freaking out there for a minute. But still, how is it possible that I earned a cutie mark? That doesn’t make any kind of sense.”

Twilight looked at me before asking, “Um… Magos, would it be okay if I took a little of your blood? I want to do some tests. Maybe I can find out what caused this.”

Not really seeing an issue with this, I nodded and agreed, “Sure, it’s no issue for me. If you can figure this out, It would be a lot of help. Now I know that things were getting a little heated there for a bit, but I really am tired girls. I’m going to take a nap for a bit. Is that okay?”

They all smiled, and each one, in turn, gave me a lite peck. Pulling myself up, I walked over to the bed that I had been using and chuckled to myself, now realizing that this was Twilights old bed. I lay my head down for only a few moments before drifting off to sleep.

In my dreaming mind, I began to float through space, not having fully formed the dream yet. But just as it seemed to be developing, the scene snapped away to be replaced by a sitting room. I was now in a comfortable chair sitting across from Celestia and Luna. Scratching my head, I spoke, “Um… Hi, is there something that I can help you two with?”

Celestia gave me a severe look “We have much we need to discuss Magos. The trial is at the top of it. Will will have to have a full press release about what happened. There are likely going to be a lot of ponies that will say that the trial was a complex hoax to take out two unliked nobles. We need to have something prepared for this. In addition to that, we will have to give a full interview on who you are and why I allowed you to use Necromancy.”

Luna spoke up, “What Celestia says is true. In the past, ponies would have taken our word on what transpired without question. However, things seem to have changed quite a lot. They will demand answers and more proof than just the testimony of two spirits.”

I nodded with understanding, “That is to be expected. Before we release the hold manor to the Apple Family, we will need to have it thoroughly searched. I would suggest that you use only guards that have never met me. And have no ties to anything to do with them or me.” Thinking on it for a moment more, I added. “And I think it would also be a good idea to have a private investigator, as well as an independent reporter, join the investigation just to put the public’s minds at rest. Bright and Pear never did understand why they were targeted. I expect we will find a lot more than dirty clothes in that place.”

The sisters looked grim, “I am afraid that we already have.”

I was confused, “What do you mean that you already have?”

“We had them arrested yesterday morning, Magos. The guard has been searching their home for the last two days with an independent reporter, carefully logging everything that they have found. It sickens me to say this, but Bright Mac and Pear Butter were not the first Victims, nor were they the most recent.” Luna said with a severe look in her eyes.

I knew that they were the scum of the earth, but I had no idea how bad it had been. “H-how much have you found?”

Celestia blanched as she repeated what they had found. Apparently, Jet Set was following a tradition. One that his house had been practicing in secret for almost a hundred years now. The head Stallion of the house would scout out a young couple that was from lower birth and stalk them before making their move. After capturing them and doing unspeakable acts to them, they would abandon the bodies in an area that was known to have Timber Wolves. The wolves would get a meal and clean up the mess.

I rubbed my head “I take it that this information is going to be released soon?”

Celestia nodded, “It is being realized as we speak. After finding this Magos, I am tempted to overrule your judgment and just have them executed. I won’t, but I am sorely tempted to.”

I nodded, “I know what you mean, but we have to be better than them. As for the interview with me, when will that happen?”

They looked at each other before looking back to me, “In about an hour.”

I groaned, “fffuuuccckkkk! It is always going to be like this?”

Luna giggles, “I am afraid so, Magos.”

Shaking my head, I groaned again, “Fine. Luna, do you think you could make me wake up. I need to clean myself up so I can get there. Where is it taking place?”

Celestia walked over to me “It’s in the throne room again, Meet us there in 45 minutes” With that, she kissed my forehead again before I shot up in the bed.

“Fuck, why does she keep doing that.” dragging myself out of bed. I grabbed a fresh shirt and pulled my shoes back on before jogging down the hall to wake myself up more. I stopped before the side door to the Throne room, took a deep breath, and walked in.

Celestia and Luna were already there waiting for me. “It is good to see that you are here early, Magos. That shows good initiative in a knight.”

I gave them a deadpan look “oh har har, is there a reason that you suddenly gave am a knighthood without telling me about it?”

They were about to speak when Dinnity entered the room and spoke up “Your Majesties,” She bowed to the princesses then turned to me “Sir Knight.” I may have imagined it, but her voice almost had a pleading edge to it. And it’s tone was one that was hauntingly familiar. I figured it was me being tired. She continued, “Your Majesties, the press is here and are becoming restless.”

Celestia nodded and directed me to take a seat in a chair that was set one level down from her and Luna. The press slowly began to move into the room and fill the benches. After around five minutes, the seats were filled with media. Celestia stood up and addressed them all. “Thank you for joining us my little ponies, I understand that many of you are here seeking answers for what happened early this morning. We will answer questions one at a time. And please be patient. We will answer all questions possible in the time we have to the best of our ability.”

The journalists all thrust their hands into the air as if they were sitting in class with a teacher. All trying to answer a question, only, in this case, they were the ones asking the questions.

Reporter 1.

“Princess Celestia, why did you allow the use of a banned form of magic in the courtroom?”

Regarding the reporter, she smiled, “Yes, I was expecting that question. To explain that, I will first need to have Sir Magos fully introduce himself.” she pointed at me.

Standing up, I bowed before the host of reporters before speaking, “Hello, My name Is Sir Magos Schmidt. I am a demigod born of my mortal father, Klaus Schmidt, and the Goddess Hecate. In my world, she is a goddess of many things, but chief among them are Magic, the Moon, spirits, Trivia, and Necromancy. My form of Necromancy is very different from that which has been practiced here. From what I have been told. The Necromancy of this world uses magic to force the dead to do as the summoner commands. Bending them to their will. My form of Necromancy doesn’t do this. I actually have to make a kind of bargain to accomplish anything. When using my kind of Necromancy, I call out the spirits of the dead that have been trapped in this mortal plane in order speak to them, or in rare cases, ask for aid. I fuel this by using the raw magic from the air as well as some form of catalyst.”

“In most cases, it is a form of food. Really it’s just something that helps to give spirits physical form for a short while. When I summoned Bright Mac and Pear Butter into the courtroom, I requested that they appear to seek their own justice for what had been done to them.”

“At any point, they could leave if they wanted to, I charged that spell to give them a full 24 hours so that they could give a final goodbye to their children and mother.”

The room of reporters seemed to take that in for a few moments before shooting their hands into the air once more.

Reporter 2.

“Even with that, why did we take only testimony from a couple of ghosts? No physical evidence was provided for this crime. Many are saying that this trial was a sham.”

Celestia spoke up to this “That is true that at the trial, there was no physical evidence given. However, that was due to the accused refusing to defend themselves after the testimony was given. After they were arrested yesterday in the early hours of the morning, their home was searched. A disturbing amount of evidence was found in a secret room of their home.” A tear slid down her face as she continued. “It has been discovered that Bright Mac Apple and Pear Butter Apple were not the couples first victims, and more disturbing, they were not even their most recent ones.”

Taking a deep breath, she continued. “As we have delved deeper into the investigation. It has been found that Jet Set and Upper Crust individually are responsible for the murders of at least ten other couples. From what their journals have said, Jet Set is following the example of his father, who was taught by his father before him. This disgusting act has been happening right under our noses for almost a hundred years now. I am ashamed that it has gone unnoticed for such a long time.” She looked right at me as she said, “We are lucky to have Sir Magos here, his abilities have helped to stop a great evil.”

“The findings of the investigation will be released in the coming days after they can be properly cataloged in evidence. There was also a private journalist that was allowed in during the investigation. I imagine that their publication should be released tomorrow at the earliest. But to clarify, It seems that Jet Set and his Wife would find a younger couple as a target. After establishing them as a target. They would stalk them using their power and money to pay ponies to keep tabs on their targets, never telling their pawns the reason for why they were doing this. After some time, they would then make their move and abduct the targets. Near as we can tell, they didn’t have any kind of pattern. They just looked for an attractive young couple and decide to target them. I wish there were some kind of reason that this happened, even if it was a terrible one. But it would appear from what we have found that Bright Mac and Pear Butter were simply unlucky and were targeted.”

There was a flurry of writing before the next reporter was called upon

Reporter 3.

“Princess Celestia, why have you given such a deep level of trust in Sir Magos? The ponies of Equestria deserve to know.”

Celestia took this one as well “I can understand why there would be the concern. In addition to the oath that Sir Magos gave as we knighted him today, he has already given us a far more binding oath. I must first explain something to you. As you know, Luna and I are goddesses ourselves.” The collected ponies all nodded in understanding. “As we are goddesses, certain oaths are held in greater confidence between us. Sir Magos has sworn an oath that is held above all others. It is very similar to the geas that Jet Set and Upper Crust will be sworn to. The Nature of his oath makes it impossible for him to knowingly do anything against Equestria. To break this oath would destroy him quite literally. That is why I have given him such trust. He has truly earned it with his devotion.”

I stayed silent. The press conference continued on for another two hours before we were able to leave. At this point, I made it back to the rooms just before I collapsed with exhaustion in the bed. I was just glad that this was finally over.

__________________________________________
Three days later
__________________________________________

The last few days have been hectic. All of the information that could be released to the public had been by this point. Some of the evidence was considered too graphic to be released to the general public. However, it was available to be viewed in controlled situations, given its explicit content. It was time to head back.

I hadn’t seen any of the Apple family since the trial. I wasn’t even sure if they were still in Canterlot. As I was leaving my private rooms, I found AJ waiting for me. Deciding to tease her a bit to lighten the mood, I addressed her with her new title, “Lady AppleJack, how can I be of service to you?”

She didn’t look happy with me, “Did ya really have to give us their titles too?”

I shrugged, “It seemed like a good idea at the time. It does mean that you can claim Sweet Apple, Acres, as your permanent family home and land. No bank will be able to take it from you. And you don’t have to pay land tax anymore.”

She looked surprised for a moment, “I guess that makes it okay. We’ve decided to sell everything that we can and send out money to any families that lost a loved one to them. You gave more than mah kin their justice.”

I smiled warmly “It makes me happy to know that. So what did you want to talk about?”

She seemed to choke back some tears “I just wanted to thank you again for giving me a chance to see mah, parents, again. And Granny wanted me to formally offer you a place in the Apple clan. After what you did for us, you are family too.”

Taken aback from the offer. I felt tears begin to build in my eyes, “really, you want me to be an Apple?”

She smiled at me and nodded, “You betcha Mag, I could come to love you like a brother. Ma and Pa agreed with Granny before they left. Twi told me how you lost most of your family. I’m just hoping that we can fill a little of the void for ya.”

I couldn’t help myself, I walked forward and pulled AJ into a tight hug “Thank you AJ. This means more to me that you can ever know.” buried my face into her strong shoulder, “more than you can ever know.”

We must have stood there for close to ten minutes before Dittany found us. “Um, Sir Magos, Lady AppleJack, your train is set to leave in one hour. Do I need to schedule a different time?”

I pulled back from AJ and looked down at her, a crooked grin on my face, “Come on, sis, we have a train to catch.” With my arm wrapped around AJ’s shoulders, we walked down the hall on our way to the train station.

Behind us, Dittany stood, watching us walk away as she whispered to herself. “You have family right here, Magos. I only hope that one day you will embrace me the same way that Big Mac embraced his mother.” she disappeared in a muted flash of light, leaving nothing behind.

Home Cumming (this chapter has skippable Clop) - Edited 3/21/20

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Home Cumming

After making our way down to the train station, AJ and I met up with the rest of the group. Pinks, Skittles, and Sparkles were standing off together, talking in hushed voices. I didn’t know why, but the sight of all three of them talking in hushed voices together made a chill ride up my spine. AJ must have noticed something because she turned to me, “Mag? Is something wrong?”

I shook my head to get myself running again. “It’s fine, AJ. Um, did you know that Twi, Rain, and Pinkie were trying to get me in a herd with them?” AJ’s reaction told me that they had talked about this to the rest of the group. “Oh. Well, surprise, I guess. They came to me about it after the trial. Now that I think about it, I’m guessing that Jam session was supposed to be the first date. Heh.”

AJ looked gravely up at me “Mag, just because you are mah brother now, doesn’t mean that I’m okay with you datin mah friends.” her face softened “But ah know ah can trust yah ta take good care of them. Besides, at least I know ware yah are if you ever make them cry.”

I smiled back at her, “Don’t worry about that, AJ. I don’t have any intention of hurting them. And if I ever do, I know that I have my little sis ready to point me back in the right direction.”

AJ grinned at me before she added, “I guess ifin you want AppleBloom to give you advice, that’s fine. But I’m your big sis Mag. I’m 23.” As she walked away, her tail slapped me across the chest.

Laughing out loud, I reacted, “Well, now I know better, don’t I.” Shaking it off and walking over to the trio of mares, I managed to sneak up on Skittles and hugged her from behind. Which caused her to jump.

“HEY BACK OFF YOU…” Rainbow shouted before she noticed it was me. She blushed before slapping my chest and pushing away “Back off dude, PDA’s are totally uncool.”

I pouted before coming up with an evil idea. Letting go of her, I swapped over to pulling Pinkie and Twilight into my arms “Fine then. If PDA is so uncool, I guess that means that Pinks and Sparkles are the two that get to sit next to me on the ride home.” She looked like that upset her, but mainly because I called her out on her bullshit. “You know you really do need to chill sometimes, Skittles. I get that too much PDA is bad, but come on, I just hugged you. As you are going to have to find out, I am a very cuddly guy.” I punctuated this by squeezing Pinkie and Twilight’s sides, making them both eep.

Pinkie giggles, and Twi just covered her face from embarrassment. Looking at her, I asked, “Hey Twi, why are you so embarrassed.”

About half a second later, a decidedly male voice spoke. “She is probably embarrassed that her father and brother just witnessed some strange stallion walk right up to her and squeeze her sides.”

The blood drained from my face as I let Twilight slip from my arm as I turned to face both the captain of the guard and apparently Twilight’s father. Swallowing, I snapped to attention, “Captain Armor. Um… Mr. Sparkle. I-I...I’m going to shut up now.”

Shining’s face was dangerous for all of two seconds before he burst out laughing. “Y-you know you don’t have to salute me anymore, right? You technically outrank me now, Sir Magos.” I winced at the title. “And besides, I had it from an excellent source that Twily had a crush on you.”

Twilight’s face lit up as she shouted: “Cady said she wouldn’t tell anypony about that!!!”

I was now officially confused, “Um… so, does that mean I’m not dead then?”

Shining shrugged before looking at his father, who then spoke, “My name is Moonlight Sparkle. As my son has said, I am Twilight and Shining Armor’s father. Going by how close you seem to be with my daughter, it would appear that you are her coltfriend.”

I kind of grimaced at the ponified name. “I don’t think coltfriend is the right term here.” I noticed Twilight tense up for a moment before I continued, “I’m not a stallion, so I think the right term would be, boyfriend. Which would make her my girlfriend, or I guess...fillyfriend, no, that doesn’t sound right. Marefriend then? Yea that sounds right, Twilight is one of my Marefriends. My name is Magos Schmidt.” I held my hand out to him to give him a shake.

I think he must have liked me, because he shook my hand with a firm grip, but not a crushing one. I had a better handle on my strength now, so I managed not to hurt him, and as our hands pulled back, I commented on it. “Good to see that I have learned to control my strength. First time I shook Shining’s hand, I cracked a few bones in it.” he looked less than impressed with the statement.

Shining spoke up for me, though. “I could tell he didn’t mean to dad. It was an accident. From what Princess Celestia told me, the world he comes from has higher gravity than here. He is just a lot more durable here than he was there.”

I looked at him with confusion. “She never told me that. Weird. In any event, Is there something that I can assist with, sir?” I said this to Moonlight. “Our train is supposed to leave soon, though.”

Moonlight shook his head “No, I was just seeing my daughter off at the station. She hasn’t been home to visit recently, and I wanted to see her.”

Hearing this, it hit me in a personal place, turning back to Twilight I looked right at her “Don’t worry sir. I will make sure that she comes to visit a little more often. I’m sure that I’ll end up with a few jobs that will take me to the capital. I’ll make sure she comes with as often as possible.” I turned back to him, “I don’t have any parents anymore, I won’t let her miss the opportunity to spend as much time as she can with you.” I looked back at Pinkie and Rainbow, hinting that I expected to do the same for them.

Moonlight smiled at that. “That is good to hear, I’m sure Twilight would love to hear that as well.” I gave him a confused look before he clarified, “My wife, Tiwly’s mother, It’s a family name. Twilight has been the name of the firstborn mare in my wife’s family for as long as anypony can remember.”

I nodded, “It is a nice name, I normally call her Sparkles. But I’m afraid that we need to get on the train before it leaves without us.” We all said our goodbyes and boarded the train. Just as I had mentioned, Twilight and Pinkie sat to either side of me. What I didn’t account for was Rainbow just laying down across our laps. I gave her a funny look before she just shrugged and got comfortable.

As we made our way down the mountain, Pinkie and Twilight ended up placing their heads on my shoulders, and my right hand ended up migrating up to Rainbow’s ear. As I started rubbing it, she let out a quiet moan that I’m sure no one else heard. Looking down, I noticed her face was lost in bliss, figuring nothing bad would come from it. I just keep doing it. It took all of five minutes of me doing this before I noticed that one of Rainbow’s arms had moved from under her head down to my lap. I was wondering what she was going to do for all of a moment before she cupped my crotch.

I stifled a grunt as my eyes widened while looking at her, hissing, “What are you doing, Skittles?!”

She looked at me and, with half-lidded eyes, replied in a hushed tone, “You can’t expect to tease a mare and not expect her to fight back, can you? And before you do. Don’t you dare stop, or I will squeeze, and not in a fun way. You can wait for the fun part until later.” She looked contemplative for a moment before continuing. “Let me ask you, do you know the cloud walking spell?” I gulped and slowly nodded, “Good.”

That was how I found myself spending the next three and a half hours being teased without a hope in the world. When we finally got down to Ponyville, I was having a hard time. Pinkie and Twi woke up and kissed me on the cheeks. I waited for them to stand up first but stayed seated for a moment before speaking up, “Hey, you go on ahead. I just need to get some blood in my legs again first. You know with Skittles laying across us.” AJ heard me lie, and it looked like she was going to call me out on it before she noticed my pleading look.

The girls made to leave before Skittles leaned down and whispered in my ear. “Don’t take too long, Twi already knows that I’m taking you home tonight, I just don’t want to wait until then to try having some fun.” It took a moment for my thinking to start working again, as most of my blood was nowhere near my brain at the moment. I nodded dumbly.

Giving a few moments to collect myself, I readjusted to hide my shame before walking off the train. Rainbow and Twilight were talking to each other again, as I walked up, I managed to overhear some stuff.

Twilight hissed through her teeth. “I can’t believe you have been teasing him the entire way home!”

Rainbow responded with glee in her eyes. “Don’t worry about it, Twi, I could tell he was into it. Besides from what I could feel, he is packing, and I want a ride.”

Twilight blushed hard before whispering into her ear. “Um… how big?”

Rainbow grinning responded. “More than enough. I know I want to see it.” thinking for a moment, she added, “You’ve been living with him right, have you ever managed to sneak a peek?”

Walking right up behind them, I leaned down, sticking my face right between them. “Yea Sparkles, have you ever given me a peek?”

They both jumped and turned back to me with heated faces, having been caught. I gave them my shit-eating grin™. “So Skittles, where do you live, and why do I need a could walking spell?”

She pointed over Ponyville at a large house made of clouds, thing looked greek as fuck, and it made me smile to think about. Just because I’m half German, doesn’t mean I don’t love Greek architecture, guess Rainbow does too. “Nice place, I love the columns, reminds me of being back at camp.” Without letting them recover, I started to walk over to the ground beneath her place. Looking back while I made my way forward, I shouted back, “You coming Skittles? I thought you wanted to show me your place.

She must have snapped out of it because she zipped up next to me in less than a few seconds. Looking back at Twilight, who stood at the station. I shouted back to her, “Don’t worry about me Sparkles, I’ll be back tomorrow morning for our morning training. I have missed doing that with you. I expect to see improvement. If you’ve done well enough, I can think of a few things that I can give to reward you with.” Her face lit up, and I laughed, My full intention was to give her an old book that I had, but hey, if she wanted to think dirty, I wasn’t going to stop her.

Making our way over to Rainbows place, I looked up to notice it was hovering in the air about 30 ft off the ground. I started stretching and cast the spell. Rainbow must not have seen that I was doing this because she had gone to grab me a small cloud, that I was guessing she was going to have me stand on, then pull up to her place. As she got closer, I slammed my foot down and used magic to force a column of earth up under my feet to lift me into the air rapidly before launching me off of it right up through the air to her front door. Laughing at my own dorkiness from using magic to make it look like I was earthbending again, I walked up to the door to wait for Rainbow to follow me up.

She flew up over the edge of the area in front of her house before coming right up to me. “Okay, what was that. It was so Awesome.” she squeezed her face as she said it, and I honestly had a hard time when she squeewed at the same time.

Shrugging, I answered, “It wasn’t that big of a deal. It was just some magic. Honestly, I didn’t need to do the whole pillar of earth thing. I was just being a dork.” I smirked as she just looked at me with half-lidded eyes. Apparently, I had wound her up more than I thought with the ear scratches.

She pushed me against the door and started to kiss me. I leaned into the kiss as she opened the door behind me. We stumbled through her home up the stairs and into her room. Once the back of my knees hit the side of the bed, I fell with her on top of me. Pulling back from the kiss, I held her back before talking. “Hey, are you sure you’re ready? I mean, we only just got together. I don’t want to rush things if this is too fast.”

She gave me a glare and a response, “Too chicken to give this pony a ride?”

I wasn’t amused, so I grabbed her ass hard, she yipped at the sudden move “I would love to give this pony a ride. I just want to make sure this is what you want. I don’t have any condoms with me, though. I don’t think the local ones will fit me either.” I thought back to times in the showers with the other stallions. A few had unsheathed around me, and I have to say. I liked what I saw, but with the vastly different anatomy, I highly doubted standard condoms would fit me.

She sighed with annoyance, “gahhh, I’m not in heat right now, and every minute that you spend not rutting me is a minute wasted.” She leaned down and bit my right shoulder.

I gasped and tensed up. “Fff-fine. Then let’s give this pony a ride.”

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Clop, if you want to skip just CTRL F Sex over
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Rainbow snaked her fingers under my shirt again to remove it. I lifted my arms to help her with it. After pulling my shirt off, she started to kiss down my neck. “F-fuck Skittles, what has gotten into you?”

She bit lightly on my right nipple before answering, “It’s not what’s gotten into me, it’s what you’re going to put in me.” She hit my belt and removed it while tossing it to the side. Gods am I glad that the cloud walking spell works on my clothes too. Having all my clothing fall through the floor down to the ground below would be bad.

After removing my belt, she bit the front of my pants to undo the button. My eyes were locked on her face the entire time. It looked like she was lost in her lust as she pulled my pants down. With them out of the way, she sat up and reached down to her waist to pull her shirt off. I beat her to the hem and started to lift it off her. I let my hands glide over her soft yet firm body, and I pulled her shirt off. She was wearing a sky blue bra with a rainbow lightning bolt embroidered onto the left breast. I started to kiss down her neck as she began to grind against me.

My hands slowly rubbed her arms up and down as I felt her shiver against my touch. Moving over her neck, I locked onto the hollow at the base of her throat and began to pepper it with kisses as well. She was giving me shuttering moans, and I worked. Speaking shakily, “h-hey i-it’s s-supposed to be the m-mares j-job to make the stallion feel good the first t-time.”

I smirked and nipped at the taut skin at the side of her neck, letting her feel my canines, but not hard enough to leave a mark. “That would be true if I were a stallion.” Licking the spot that I bit, I continued, “I would have thought that you would have understood that by now. I put my hands down on her hips as she continued to grind against me. Hooking my fingers under her hemline. Flipping her around until she was lying on her back against the bed. I lifted her hips up as I pulled her tight black shorts off.

The smell of a clean world after rain hit me in the face like a wave. It was intoxicating. Fresh wet earth with ozone mixed in. I could tell that she was soaked, the sky blue of her panties had been darkened with her arousal. Leaning down, I started to kiss the inside of her thighs. She was lost in bliss as she gripped the bed with her left hand, her right hand firmly grabbing her left breast. Chuckling, I spoke between kisses. “Guess I’m doing something right then.”

He looked down at me with fire in her eyes, “S-stop f-fucking teasing me. Y-you j-awwwwww.”

I was thinking that she was going to call me a jerk, but I interrupted her by dragging my tongue over her lower lips. Now tasting the same thing, I smelt. This was nothing like what I was expecting. Deciding that I was done teasing over the top of the fabric, I quickly grabbed the sides of her panties and pulled them down to expose her flower. Stifling another chuckle as I noticed that apparently, ponies have pubes. Rainbow’s were just a little longer than the rest of her fur, and they shared the same color as her mane and tail. She had even sculpted them into a lightning bolt.

I took a deep breath next to her as she blushed. Before she could speak, I dove in and gave her a long lick again. Her hand that had been gripping her tit now was in a fist around a handful of my hair as I worked her over. I had heard that a good thing to try was to spell the alphabet with your tongue. So I started to do that as she seemed to become lost in the feeling of my ministrations.

I could swear that I was getting light static shocks against my tongue as I licked and sucked on her flower. She was trying to be quiet, biting her lip to hold in her moans. I wasn’t having any of that, I was working hard to earn those sounds, and I wanted to hear them. Bringing one of my hands around, I started to rub her with a couple of fingers to lubricate them before slipping them inside.

She gasped but still managed to hold in her screams. Deciding to kick it into high gear, I latched onto her clit. I started to apply suction while grinding my right ring finger against a rough spot deep inside her. She threw her head back and tried to make a noise, but I guess it was too much for her, and all she managed was a squeak.

After she has finished her orgasm and could move again, she got up and looked me dead in the eyes before pulling me into another heated kiss. After she had finished cleaning off my face of her own juices, she spoke, “Wow. Never knew a stallion to do that before. That’s normally only something that mares do for each other.”

I grinned and spoke, “Does that mean I’m the first guy to taste your rainbow?”

She laughed and hit my shoulder before leaning in to kiss my cheek. “Yes. That would make you the first to taste my rainbow. But now it’s your turn.” she put her hands behind her back and unclipped her bra, letting her tits hang free.

I was mesmerized by them. The giant orbs that I was looking at did not look like they could fit in that tiny bra. I looked back at them, then to the bra a few times before Skittles spoke up, “Got to love magic, right? No way I could be as fast as I am if I had to leave these puppies hanging out, right.” I nodded dumbly again.

She smirked and wiggles them back and forth hypnotically. If I wasn’t already in danger of ripping through my underpants before, I was now. Rainbow got down on her knees, right between mine, she hooked her fingers under the waistband of my boxer briefs and pulled down to expose my equipment. After pulling them down enough, I sprang free right into her face. She looked at it curiously for a moment and asked, “Um… where is your flare?”

I understood. I didn’t have the usual stallion flare on my dick, nor the medial ring. “I don’t have one. I’m a bit different from what you may be used to seeing. She must have just said fuck it because next thing I knew, a long warm appendage was dragged across the bottom of my shaft right up to the tip.

I gasped as she stopped at the tip and began to suck for a few moments, pulling any precum that had been produced almost like she was sucking on a milkshake straw. Pulling back, she smirked at me, “sweet, glad that Pinkie gave you that Pineapple smoothie at breakfast.” I had been wondering why my breakfast had been delivered with a lot more fruit than I usually had. I guess the three of them had been planning this for a bit. That or Pinks cheated and bent reality again. Ignoring the break, Rainbow started up again with her ministrations. Licking up and down my shaft and occasionally sticking the entire thing into her mouth. The first time she did this, I threw my head back to gasp.

Not able to hold it in myself, I let her hear everything. She started to fondle my sack as she picked up speed I had been on a dry spell for a while now, so I was already so close. My hips began to buck as she kept going at it. Her right hand working my shaft and balls. Her left seemed to be firmly wedged between her legs. “F-Fuck Rainbow I’m about to”

I didn’t finish saying it before it happened. Her eyes widened for a moment before she started to suck me harder, trying to get every drop that she could. After firing off a few ropes in her mouth, she loudly swallowed before laying next to me on the bed. “That was amazing, Mag.” she looked forlornly down at my softening member “Wish I could have made it last a little longer. Guess we will have to wait until morning.”

I looked at her with confusion, “What do you mean, wait until tomorrow? Give me twenty minutes, and I’m good.”

She looked shocked “What do you mean give you twenty minutes?! Stallions have to wait a few hours before they can go again!”

I gave her what was quickly becoming my catchphrase. “I’m not a stallion, Skittles.”

She pushed me into the bed before kissing me again. As she felt me start to harden again, she looked down at me, “I thought you said twenty minutes?”

I shrugged, “Guess you’re just that sexy.” with my hands firmly placed on her thighs.

She smirked before adding, “I guess we’ll just have to see how many times you can go, won’t we.”

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Sex over
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I woke up the next morning next to a naked Rainbow feeling sticky and dehydrated. Muttering to myself, “Damn mare is going to kill me if we do this every day. I need a fucking drink.”

Pulling myself out from under the comatose mare, I wandered over to what appeared to be a bathroom. Once there, I used the toilet while trying to ignore how this works in a floating building. After finishing up, I pulled my pants back on and headed down the stairs to find her kitchen. After getting a drink, I looked through her fridge to see if I could find something to make for breakfast. We had made it down here a few times yesterday to take breaks and eat, but I didn’t feel like we had as often as we should have.

Finding the ingredients for french toast, I started to make some for the two of us. Rainbow had some berries as well, so I diced them up and tossed them in a pan with some sugar to make a fruit syrup. I guess my cooking drew her down from the room because Rainbow made her way into the kitchen wearing my shirt, and nothing else. She walked over to the table on shaky legs. “Morning Skittles, how many pieces of French toast would you like?”

She shook her head and grabbed the drink that I had left for her before downing it “What’s French toast?”

Once I explained, she seemed to get it. “Oh, you mean Prench toast. Make me four. I’m kinda hungry from yesterday.”

I smirked, “I’ll bet. Guessing that if you couldn’t fly, you wouldn’t be down here right now. Guessing your legs don’t work all that well right now’”

She blushed before muttering under her breath, “Pinkie and Twi need to try you out. I think you’ve ruined normal stallions for me.”

I burst out laughing at having heard her say that. “Glad to know my performance was up to par for you.” Finishing up the toast and taking the syrup off the stove, I walked over to her at the table before sitting down to eat. I was about to dig in before something hit me. I was sitting here now because of my...mother. I remembered what Lord Hades had said. Hecate had fought for my right to come here. Taking one of the pieces of toast off my plate, I walked over to the window before opening it. I summoned a small pedestal used for portable offerings. Placing the piece of toast on the stand, I covered it in the sweet syrup and lit it on fire.

Watching it burn, I looked up into the sky and said a silent prayer, ‘even if you don’t really care about me, Thanks for sending me here...mom.’ I felt a tear drip down my face before I wiped it away and sat back at the table with Rainbow.

She gave me a confused look before asking, “what was that all about Mag? The whole burning food thing?”

I looked at her and leaned forward to give her a quick kiss as I pulled back I gave her the answer “I was burning an offering, to my mother. I don’t know if she has ever cared about me before. But I know that she fought for me to be brought here. Without her input, I likely would have been vaporized for insulting the gods.” I laughed, “I guess, in a way, I have to her to thank for bringing me here to you three.” Rainbow smiled at me, and we finished eating our meal.

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Canterlot castle - Perspective Dittany
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Dittany sat at the royal table with Celestia and Luna as they shared a meal together. She had yet to choose something to eat when something began to form on her plate. She looked down with wonder in her eyes as she witnesses a single piece of French toast with a mixed berry syrup form on the empty plate. Her eyes began to water as she started to cry tears of joy “M-Magos sent me an offering.”

Celestia and Luna looked at her with confusion. “Magos did what?” they said in unison.

Dittany’s illusion fell as she revealed herself to be the goddess Hecate once more. “When our children give us a burnt offering of food, it will appear before us. Magos is the only one of my children here. It means he sent this to me. It means he doesn’t hate me.” she began to break down with joy, unable to help herself as her relief spread through her. “My baby boy doesn’t hate me!”

Celestia smiled at the goddess's reaction. “Then we have already made strides toward our goal.”

Inheritance - Edited 3/21/20

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Inheritance

After finishing up the meal, I helped Rainbow clean up the dishes before giving her another kiss. I tried to get my shirt back, but she had claimed it for herself apparently and told me to just head back shirtless to Twi’s. I laughed at first, playfully trying to pull it off. Deciding I was gonna get her back at some point, I let it drop. Once we finished up the dishes, we took a quick shower, with lots of helping each other out. I finally managed to make it out of her place and started to jog back to the library.

I found Twilight already awake and sitting in the Faraday cage meditating. She was so focused that I didn’t even disturb her meditation. I can honestly say that I was incredibly proud of her for sticking with it, even when I wasn’t here. Deciding not to disturb her, I went inside and down to my room to grab a few things for physical training. After putting them in the appropriate places, I figured that I would show Sparkles a little favoritism and put on a purple shirt that Rarity had made for me recently.

After brushing my teeth and running out back, I found Twilight right where I left her inside the cage. Walking over, I rapped on the door to snap her out of focus. “Hey, Sparkles, glad to see that you are sticking to it.”

She jumped at my sudden appearance, “M-Magos. I didn’t hear you get back.”

I smiled at her “Don’t worry about it. I have to say, I am very proud of you for showing such dedication to this. I think you are ready for the next step. It’s time to add martial training.”

Twilight looked a little nervous, “Um… Mag, I’m a scholar, not a fighter. Why would I ever need martial skills?”

I shrugged, “Same reason that I make you run. A strong body means a strong mind. You have the mind, now we need the body. I’m curious to see what we could accomplish by strengthening your body to go with it. Now come out of there. I need to take you down to my room to use some of my training equipment. It has more of a dojo feeling to it as well.”

Twilight seemed a little concerned with having to learn martial skills, but as long as she never had to use them, I wasn’t concerned. I have to admit that I was partly teaching her this as a way of self-defense. I don’t think Twi realized how attractive she is, and with that comes predators. I felt more comfortable knowing that she could take care of herself. Add to the situation that it would make my job as her personal guard easier. You could call it a win-win situation.

AJ came running up to the house just as we were packing up to go down to the basement. “Howdy Mag, Howdy Twi. What you up to?”

I waived to her, “We were just packing up morning training. I was going to walk Twi through some flexibility routines. What’s up with you today, sis?”

AJ smiled at me calling her sis before continuing “I was wonderin if Twi would be willing to Help RD and I out down at my farm. We’re lookin to have ourselves an Iron Pony contest to see who is the most athletic.” Turning to Twilight, she asked, “Would you be willing to give us a hand and keep score for us, Twi?” Looking back at me, she added with a laugh. “You can come to Mag, somepony is going to have to comfort her when she loses.”

I chuckled and looked at Twilight “It’s okay with me if you want to help them out. We can work on your flexibility when we are there between events. What do you say?”

She thought about it for a moment before shrugging, “Sure, that sounds like fun. I’ll grab Spike to help out.” After running inside, I walked next to AJ before giving her a hug.

“Hey, how is everyone doing now that you’re all home?” I asked.

AJ leaned into the hug “We are doing about as well as we can. It was a real shock to find out what happened to mah parents. But I know they can rest in peace now. Thanks to you.” She nuzzled my shoulder “Thanks again for that, Mag. Other than that, we are already looking to put some of that money to good use. Granny has needed a hip replacement for a while now. We don’t even have to worry about it anymore. We can get all new equipment for the farm and keep Sweet Apple acres running forever now.”

I beamed at her, “So have you had to keep Rarity from making new dresses for AppleBloom, Granny, and you?”

She grimmised, “Yea. She has been going nonstop for a bit now. Says that now that I have a title, I have to dress the part. How in the sam hill am I supposed to applebuck in a dress?”

I laughed, “I have no idea what applebucking is, but I imagine it’s good honest work. She is just going to have to deal with the fact that you are going to be a different kind of noble. The real kind.”

She blushed at that “I am still trying to wrap my head around that.”

She seemed like she wanted to say more, but Twilight and Spike had exited the building and were making their way over to us. Spike spoke up with some enthusiasm. “Let’s get this show on the road. I’m gonna be the announcer.” I chuckled when I notice he had a small stick held in his right hand that he was holding like a mic.

Waving my hands in the air, I summoned one of the announcer mics that I had stored in my room. Handing it to him, I said, “There you go, bud. An announcer needs a real mic to make announcements with.”

His face lit up, “really! You sure you want to let me use it?!”

I put my right hand on the top of his head. Surprisingly the central fins were quite soft and bent beneath my hand, allowing me to rub his head as if I were ruffling his nonexistent hair. Looking him dead in the eyes, I answered his question, “No, Spike, I don’t want to let you use it.” His face looked crestfallen for all of a second before I finished speaking, “I want you to have it. I have a couple of them lying around, you can at least give this some use. It’s magic, so it will work without a speaker.” Thinking about it for a moment. “Just don’t use it late at night, and we should be fine. I’ll get you the case latter.

Jumping into the air, he whooped and started to run toward the farm. Twilight walked up next to me and stood on her tiptoes to give me a kiss on the cheek. Resting her head on my shoulder, she spoke, “That was the second nicest thing you have done for him already. If I didn’t know better, I would think you were trying to buy my affection through him.”

I wrapped my arm around her and gave her a light, sideways hug. “I would never think that your affection could be purchased so cheaply. I just like to see the little guy happy. He is like the kid brother I never really got.”

We all made our way to the barn to find that Pinks, Rarity, and Fluttershy were already there setting things up. Guess AJ went to them first before coming to get us. After getting everything set up for the competition, we all gathered round to watch. The first few events seemed like they were neck and neck. They did this weird Barrel run thing that Rainbow won.

It looked similar to what happens at a rodeo, only instead of them riding horses. Which now that I think about it, would be really creepy, they ran. Next came a carnival game where you hit the target to make the weight raise to hit the bell. This one was a little different, as well. With no mallet, they had to kick the thing.

Rainbow went first and, with a firm kick, managed to get the bell to go off. During this entire thing, AJ had just been lazing under a tree nearby. After Rainbow hit the bell, she walked over to AJ with a triumphant grin. “Beat That Cowpony!”

AJ leaned her hat back to look at the game. “Sit back and hold onto your socks. Cuz I’m about to blow them off.” She calmly walked up to the game and looked at it for a few moments before turning her back on it. As she pulled her leg back, I realized that this was already over. The way that she was moving make this look like it was second nature to her. Her leg shot back and hit the target with such force the thing exploded into splinters. The weight shot up into the air and blasted the bell clean off.

I was glad that Twilight was there because she managed to stop the thing before it fell on someone’s head. “Good job, Sparkles. Once we have some more training in you, I expect you to be able to make a catch like that when the weight is headed right for you.”

She looked scared before I added, “Don’t worry, though. I don’t expect you to be at that level for some time now. When we do start doing stuff like that, I will start you off with Wiffle balls.”

She was confused at first before I summoned a whiffle ball and tossed it to her. She caught it and looked at it for a few moments. “This thing is incredibly light. What is it made out of?”

Shrugging, I turned back to watch more of the show. “Plastic. A mixture of a bunch of chemicals from where I’m from. I think that one is made of biodegradable corn plastic.” next up on the docket of things to compete in was a lasso competition. Spike sat in the middle of the area with a horned helmet on waiting for them to get it around one of the horns. I could feel his embarrassment from the stands that had been set up at some point. Looking around, it seemed that word had gotten out because more and more ponies from the town were showing up to watch. As each event passed, the two Mares seemed to be in a dead heat for winning. Each time one would get ahead, the other would come up right behind to tie up the score.

I had noticed that in a few of the events, Rainbow had been using her wings to win. I couldn’t say that I was too happy about seeing her use them. But at the same time, I never heard anyone say that she wasn’t allowed to. It all came down to the final event. A Tug of War over a mud pit. I felt for sure that AJ was going to win this one. However, Rainbow once again used her wings to fly into the air dangling AJ over the mud until her grip slipped and she fell.

After she hit the mud I jumped up to make sure she was alright, Big Mac jumped up as well. We got down into the mud and helped her up. “Thanks, Mag. Thanks, Mac.” She looked up at Rainbow with venom in her eyes. “That was cheatin, RD.”

Rainbow landed and scoffed, “How did I cheat?”

Growling AJ answer, “You used your wings in a bunch of the events. That’s not fair.”

I sighed and asked, “Did anyone say that she wasn’t allowed to use them?”

AJ looked a little hurt. “Well, no, but I didn’t think I had to say it. I figured she was have played fair.”

I nodded, “I understand, AJ. Believe me, I do. But because she was never told that she couldn’t use her wings. We can’t call her out on cheating. You can’t break a rule that doesn’t exist.” Rainbow beamed at me. I looked back at her a little miffed, “Not that it means I’m okay with what was done. She could have hurt you with that fall. How about we have one final event that decides once and for all who the Iron pony is? Something where everyone has to play fair. No wings. To keep it even.”

Twi spoke up, “What about the running of the leaves tomorrow?”

Cocking my head to the side, “I’m not sure what that is Sparkles.”

She giggled, gods, she was cute when she did that. “It’s okay, Mag. The running of the leaves is a tradition where all the ponies of Ponyville run a race through Whitetail woods. The vibrations of the running make the leaves fall from the trees in preparation for winter.”

It looked like the two of them liked the idea because they spat in their hands and shook on it. Figuring that the matter was settled, “Well good that that is taken care of.” I looked up and realized that It was quite late in the day already. “Let’s get back to the library for the night, Sparkles. You can show me that book series that you have been telling me about.” Thinking about it for a moment, I turned to Pinkie, “Hey Pinks, do you think you could think of something for the four of us to do sometime later this week?”

Pinkie zipped up next to me and kissed me on the cheek before answering, “You betcha. We are all going to have a bunch of fun together.” She leaned down and stole a kiss from Twilight, one that she wasn’t expecting, going by the shock on her face. I heard Skittles yip in surprise, so I can only imagine that Pinks did the same thing to her before disappearing to wherever it is that Pinks goes.

Skittles flew over to me and gave me a hug from behind and nuzzled into my next. “Don’t go too rough on her tonight, Mag,” she whispered into my ear before zipping away. I blushed when Twi looked at me.

“What did Rainbow mean by don’t go to rough on me tonight, Mag?” she was genuinely confused.

I sighed and started to rub my eyes with two fingers of my left hand “Skittles was being pervy. She was trying to make it seem like we were going back to your place to have sex.”

Her face lit up like a Christmas light, “W-wah, I-I-I, b-bu.”

I quickly silenced her with a finger “First thing I want to make clear about this relationship Sparkles, we move at your pace.” I said this while looking straight into her eyes. “At no point should you ever feel like I am forcing you into anything. And if you ever feel pressured, please tell me. Okay?”

She let out a sigh of relief “I will Mag.” she took my arm and leaned into my side as we made our way back.

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Perspective shift - Hecate in Canterlot.
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I was halfway through a chapter in this new book that Celestia recommended when I felt a chilling presence that I was very familiar with. My head snapped up, having realized that both Celestia and Luna had teleported into my rooms to find out where this power was coming from.

A man appeared before us. His skin pale as death, his eyes nothing but void. Looking up at me, I greeted the Black-winged angel of death, “Hello Thanatos. What brings you to this realm?” Thanatos and I have known each other for eons. His being the God of Death and me of Necromancy, we had a working relationship.

His voice chilled the very bones of gods “I have come to fulfill an agreement that was made.”

Celestia spoke this time “What agreement was that? And what agreement could possibly give you a reason to enter my home unannounced?” by the tremor in her voice, I could tell that even Celestia was worried.

Thanatos cracked his neck “I made a deal with a mortal many years ago for some work that he did for me. He stopped a plague that was causing my work to back up. So I agreed to keep some items safe for him, then deliver them when the time was right.” he turned to me, “You should know the mortal that I speak of Hecate. He was a grand magician, after all, do you remember Merlin?”

The eyes of all three goddesses widened with this news. Luna spoke this time, “What is it that Merlin wanted you to deliver?”

He turned to her. “A few things actually, first this set of armor.” a set of armor on a stand appeared before us. It was of an earthly wester design. A collection of half-plate with a dark robe. It seemed to have bells sewn onto the hems near the bottom. The armor itself was of a bright pearlescent sheen. I could not tell what it was made from.

Celestia spoke out in a hushed voice after seeing it, “That is the armor of Starswirl. It is made of orichalcum. The entire world’s known supply of orichalcum. It is light as a feather but stronger than steel. If it were ever to be damaged, it could repair itself.”

I looked at the armor with more interest now. Thanatos continued, “Second, a magical catalyst” A set of golden scales appeared next to the armor on the stand. They seemed to throb with magic. “From what Merlin told me, it was made from a branch of a tree called Harmony.” I looked at Celesta and Luna to find them with shock on their faces. It seemed that Thanatos was near the end of his list

“Third is his personal grimwar, written by his own hand” A book on a pedestal appeared next to the armor stand. “And last but not least, the blade.” Thanatos finished.

All I had to do was look at it to know what blade this was. Its name fell from my lips, “Excalibur.”

Thanatos nodded, “Merlin had to cheat a bit to make this. Forged from celestial bronze, Imperial gold, star metal, stygian iron, and bone steel. The madman combined very potent materials to make this blade.”

Celestia and Luna were confused. So I thought I would inform them of what this thing was “To give both of you some information, Celestial bronze was a substance used by Greek heroes to slay monsters. Imperial gold was very similar but used by the Romans. Both are completely safe to mortals. Were I to take a blade made of either material and move to cut off a mortals head, it would simply faze through them. I do not know what Star metal is.”

Luna spoke up, “It is a metal found here. Once a millennium or so, a star will fall from the sky and hit Equis. If you are skilled, you can remove the star metal from the crater and use it to forge magical items. It is extremely rare, though not as rare as orichalcum.”

Thanatos looked at her with a hint of annoyance “yes, well to finish the description off before I was interrupted, twice. Stygian iron is made from the iron ore found in the underworld, it is then refined and cooled in the River Styx. Unlike celestial bronze or gold, when a monster is killed with it, their essence does not return to the pit. It is absorbed into the blade. As for the final metal, Bone steel is made by mixing bone meal into the raw iron. Merlin told me that he had used his father’s bones for this.”

The mares looked horrified at this. “How could Starswirl do something so vile as to desecrate his father’s grave?!”

Thanatos smirked, “The dead, once dead. No longer need a mortal body. Bone steel is not of my pantheon. It is from the Nords. For them, making bone steel with a loved one’ remains is a great honor for them. After forging this together, he tempered the blade in a mixture of the blood of great evil. A final step in making bone iron. It imbues the blade with unique properties, making it stronger against it’s chosen foe. In this case, due to the number of mixed blood that Merlin used, I would say that anything evil has much to fear from this blade.”

He set the sword down next to the armor. “With that taken care of, I can finally say that I kept my end of the deal.”

He was about to leave when Hecate stopped him with a question. “Wait, Lord Thanatos, why have you come now?”

Turning back to her, he answers with a cold voice “All I know is what Merlin told me, ‘when my seed returns to my homeland, they will have grave need of this.’ that is the only explanation that he gave.” Thanatos then left, melting into shadow.

Hecate looked at the other two goddesses with concern in her eyes “I don’t like the way that he said that. What do you think it means?”

Celestia shivered, “Starswirl was incredibly powerful. Had he stayed here, he likely would have become the god of magic. He held the gift of foresight. I am not sure what he meant. But I fear for the lives of my little ponies.” she looked at me with concern in her eyes, “I fear for the life of your son.”

_____________________________________________________
Perspective shift - Magos
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I woke up and dragged myself out of bed. Stretching, I went upstairs to start on breakfast. Putting together a healthy breakfast of fruit, yogurt, and granola, I set everything out on the table. Fully expecting to have to drag Sparkles downstairs and out of bed. I was pleasantly surprised to find that she was walking into the room with a towel wrapped around her head, wearing a robe. “Good morning Mag, this looks good. Are you going to be joining us in the running of the leaves?”

I smiled at her, “Sure, sounds fun.”

After finishing up breakfast and putting away the dishes, Twi went back to her room to change, and I went downstairs to shower and change. After finishing that up, we made our way over to the start area. I almost guarantee that a month ago, Twilight would have been breathing hard after walking the entire way here. Now she wasn’t even winded. “You have been doing very well with your morning runs. I notice that you aren’t even out of breath.”

She blushed, “Um… I guess that is thanks to you. I have to admit that I was a little nervous at first. But I have to say that you were right. I have been doing my run every day, and well now I have a lot more energy throughout the day. I mean that first week was terrible but after a while. Well… just thanks, Mag.”

I smiled and kissed her cheek. “No problem, Sparkles. Let’s just have fun today. I figure we can leave our normal run out today. This should be enough.”

The race started just fine, Pinkie was commenting, and Spike was helping her do so from their hot air balloon. AJ and Dash were right up front for the first stretch, but I looked like AJ had tripped over a rock. Twilight stopped to help her up and get her moving again. I just noticed from where I was with the pack. After she dusted herself off, she got right back up to the front. I fell in the pack, not wanting to wear myself out too soon.

Interestingly enough, I looked like Rainbow had managed to trip over a small stump. I overheard her mention that she thought that AJ had tipped her. That didn’t make me too happy with her because I knew that AJ wouldn’t do that. The entire reason that they were doing this race was so that they could have a clean and fair competition.

However, it looked like that must have been the straw that broke the camel’s back. What followed was some of the most disgusting cheating that I have ever seen. And I have watched Aries cabin compete with each other. One thing after the next, first Rainbow would pull some kind of bullshit, then AJ. By the end of the race, I was just about done with the entire situation. Twi had managed to come in fifth, I was second. We had been sitting down at the finish line for little more than two minutes before the two of them rolled over the finish line, practically wrestling with each other.

I stomped over and pulled them apart by the colors of their shirts. Pulling them back roughly I tossed them to the ground away from each other, they both shut up once I did that. Looking back and forth between the two, then I spit on the ground in the middle. “Are you two about fucking done!? Because I feel like I am more than fucking done with this entire pile of bullshit.”

I looked at AJ “I would expect this kind of shit from a child, even a stranger. But you should know better.” I turned to look at Rainbow, who, for some stupid fucking reason, had a grin on her face after I had yelled at AJ, “And don’t even get me started on how pissed off at you I am Rainbow Dash! Last I was told, you are supposed to be the physical embodiment of Loyalty.”

She flinched at my use of her name instead of my nickname. “I-I am Mag. W-we just got a little heated.” She started to rub her arm, apparently ashamed of herself.

But I was livid at this point. “WELL, YOU COULD HAVE FUCKING FOOLED ME! WHAT I WITNESSED HAPPENING DURING THIS ENTIRE RACE WAS FUCKING DISGUSTING!” I looked at AJ “YOU LET HER GET TO YOU, AND BECAUSE OF THAT, STARTED TO CHEAT BACK!” Looking back at Rainbow, she looked like she was fighting back the tears “AND YOU…..” Now running out of steam, “I don’t even want to think about you right now.” I let out a long sigh. “I need some time to think.” Looking over to Pinkie, I muttered, “You might want to postpone that group date for a bit. I’m really not in the mood.”

I started to gather the myst around me. One of the first things that I had attempted to learn here was teleportation. And at this point, I am glad that I did, charging up I flashed away as it looked like Rainbow was about to jump for me. I appeared down in the basement of my room. Slowly walking over to my trunk, I unlatched it and dropped myself down, pulling the lid closed behind me and locking from the inside. I really didn’t want to deal with anything at this point.

I was angry, angrier than I had been in a long time. I had opened myself to Rainbow, gods fucking damn it, I had sex with her. But if this was the kind of behavior that she thought was okay. I just didn’t know if it was going to work out. I loved her competitiveness. It was a key component of her character, but cheating like she did during that race. I just didn’t know. Could that translate to other areas? I dropped into my favorite bowl chair and pulled Excalibur from the table that it was sitting on. I packed the bowl and kept hitting it and refiling it until I couldn’t feel the chair under me. My mind drifted, and I passed out in the chair, no longer able to keep my mind awake.

I drifted into the dream world, nothing really solidifying into a fixed dream. I felt a tugging and found myself in a cavernous hall. Looking around, I whistled and talked to myself, “wow… this place looks massive.” I looked at the windows and realized that this was the hall of history in Canterlot. “I always liked these windows.”

I voice spoke up behind me, A voice that I had only heard once, one that sent a chill down my spine. “They are rather nice, aren’t they Magos?”

I slowly turned to face her. Hecate, my mother. Even with this being a dream, my mouth felt dry “W-what are y-you doing here?” I was terrified. She had never spoken directly to me before. I didn’t even realize she knew my name. As far as I knew, she was just aware of my existence as her son.

She took a shuddering breath, “I asked that you be brought here so that we could talk Magos.” She walked up to me and held her hand out as if to caress my face. I instinctively flinched away, fearful of the touch. I saw her wince, “are you truly so afraid of me?”

My resolve hardened. I wasn’t in her realm of power. She couldn’t hurt me here without risking a fight with Celestia and Luna. “N-No. I’m just not very trusting of strangers. My father taught me that.”

I could tell that I hurt her with that statement. And it made me glad. This goddess, this woman had damaged my father in the worst way possible. And in so doing, hurt me as well. Hecate seemed to be...pleading, “I’m sorry, Magos. I wish I had been allowed to help him. I wanted to save him. But I wasn’t allowed to.” For the first time in my life, I witnessed a Goddess cry. And it broke me.

Barely holding it in, I spoke. “W-What do you mean you weren’t allowed to. Y-your, a fucking goddess. All you had to do was wave your hand and heal him.” I dropped to my knees, no longer able to keep it going. I was already emotionally compromised because of Rainbow, now this! “All you would have had to do was heal him.” I closed my eyes and started to shake as I began to cry. For the first time in years, I was really crying. Grieving for my loss, crying for what never was.

I felt a warm embrace fold around me, I tried to fight it back. But it was no use. She just held me as I cried. As she held me, I noticed a familiar scent, something that I felt like I knew. It was a mixture of lavender, myrrh, and mint. A strange combination to be sure, but at the same time, it calmed me like nothing else ever had. I felt her kiss my head “I’m so sorry. The fates had already cut his string. There was nothing that I could do. Thanatos had already been called. There was nothing that I could do.”

I don’t know how long we sat there. In a dream, time means nothing. At some point, she had started to hum while petting my head. I don’t know what the tune was, but it was also just so familiar. Finally, having calmed down a bit, I pulled back, “Why do I know that song, and why do I recognize this scent?”

She smiled at me before answering, “I would like to think they are good memories of me.” I must have looked confused because she continued, “Goddesses are allowed a short amount of time with their mortal children after birth. No more than a week, though. I don’t know about the others. But I use my week for every one of my children.” She looked at me with tears in her eyes. The same eyes that I share with her. “I didn’t put you down for that entire week, Magos. I couldn’t bear to do so. I have been waiting twenty years to finally hold you again.” the tears began to flow freely. “I knew that if you were removed from the influence of Olympus. That I could finally have a chance at being a mother to one of my children, without them having to ascend to godhood.”

I was blown away. Hecate, my mother… My mother wanted me. She fought to bring me here for the sole reason of having a chance to get to know me, but I had to be sure. I didn’t want to open my heart, only to have it crushed again “Is that why you fought so hard to have me brought here? You wanted to get to know me? T-to be my mom?” I was having a hard time speaking right now. Buy the gods, please if there is any mercy in this cosmos, please let her say yes.

Hecate gave me the kind of smile that I have craved my entire life, the smile of a mother “Yes Magos. W-will you let me?”

A goddess knelt before me, a being that commands respect and fear of Zeus himself. And she was begging me to let her be apart of my life. I leaned forward and pulled her to me, “M-mom.” The words escaped my lips in a hushed tone, barely audible to even myself.

The tears started again, but this time they were cleansing tears of joy. My most profound dream had been given to me. Hecate, my mother, had finally shown me that I mattered to her, not as a tool to be used, but as her son.

A cough behind us a short time later stirred me from my bliss. I turned to see Celestia and Luna standing behind us with smiles on their faces. I coughed and laughed at the same time before asking, “Did you two help with this?” They nodded, and I pulled away from my mother so that I could pull them both into a hug. “Thank you, both. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. If there is anything that I can ever do to even partially pay you back for this, I beg you, please ask.”

The two sisters looked at each other before slightly blushing and hugging me back, “Think nothing of it, Dear Magos.” Said Luna patting my head. They both pulled back, and Luna continued, “But there was a secondary reason we drew you here.”

I wiped my eyes to bring myself to focus “Ask away. I will do anything you need me to.” I snapped to attention.

They both laughed before Celestia answered. “There is nothing we need you to do. But we do have a gift for you. Your inheritance, if you will.”

My left eyebrow rose in confusion “Um.... what inheritance. After my dad passed, the state seized everything he owned to be auctioned off to pay his debts.”

I heard my mother hiss behind me, but Celestia continued, “I’m afraid it’s not from him, Magos. This inheritance is from your many time’s great-grandfather. You might know him as Merlin.”

My eyes shot open. FUCKING THEE MERLIN. The legendary wizard of western myth. He was my great-grandfather. Then Luna dropped the bomb, “We know him as Starswirl the Bearded.” This proved to be too much for me because somehow, I passed out during a dream.

I woke to Luna standing over me with her horn glowing, talking to Celestia and my mother “I have no idea how he managed to pass out during a dream. This was certainly strange, waking someone from unconsciousness while keeping him unconscious.”

I groaned and sat up. “What happened. I had a weird dream; Luna said my great-grandfather was Merlin, who was apparently the same guy as Starswirl the Bearded.” I didn’t see any hint from them that it was a dream. “So… I’m part pony then?”

If you have never seen three goddesses facepalm simultaneously before, I highly recommend it. It was the most bizarre thing I have ever witnessed. Celestia spoke, “Yes, Magos, that does mean that you are part pony. However, more importantly, that means that you are the direct descendant of the greatest magical mind ever known. Had he stayed here, he likely would have ascended to be the god of magic within ten years of his disappearance.”

This was exciting news but not what I was focused on at this point. I was curious about this inheritance. “So, what did he leave me?”

Waving her hand, my mother summoned a grouping of items. I noticed the blade first off. Walking over to it, I pulled it from the rather dull looking leather sheath. It glowed, appearing to ripple through the various blended metals, folded over each other hundreds of thousands of times. Down the length of the blade appeared symbols that stood out in sharp relief. I could see the greek right away without issues. What looked almost like nordic runes were etched in as well. But the most unusual marks seemed to burn into my mind. Not words, but what seemed to be ideas of magic. Magical concepts given a written form.

Celestia walked up behind me and slid the blade closed. “It would be best that you do not look directly at the blade just yet. It will take time before you can read that kind of magic. We will have to find out if you can use unicorn magic first.”

That seemed to trigger something within me, I might be able to use the same kind of magic that Twilight can. Fucking sweet.

“Come, I will tell you all about the items that your forebearer has left for you.” Celestia pulled me along as she began to tell me about everything that was here, and that it will all be placed in my storage area before I awoke. This really has been an excellent way to make me forget about the issues I was having with Rainbow right now. I will deal with that tomorrow. For right now, I want to spend time with my mom.

Magos gets mad. - Editied 3/21/20

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Mágos gets mad

My mind began to stir. As I notice a few things right away, first was that I was no longer in my chair. Two, this bed was more comfortable than it had any right being. Third, I was surrounded by that calming sent again. I slowly opened my eyes and realized that my mother was here, gently patting my head as I slept, humming. “Good morning Magos.”

I couldn’t help but grin. I have wanted to say these words all my life “Good morning, mom.”

She smiled at me “It really is wonderful to hear that you know.”

I snuggled into the bed a bit more “I don’t want to get up, just want to stay here.”

She rubbed my back, “I know, dear, but you have to face the day. There are three mares in your room right now that are worried about you. And one is terrified that you are going to leave her.”

I sighed, “I know, I just don’t want to have to face it.” I looked back at her “Do you know where AJ is?” I’m not sure why I asked her that she was a goddess of magic, not farming.

She giggled, “No, I am afraid not. But if you are really that concerned with talking to them, I guess we can wait a few moments. Would you like to try on your new armor?”

Looking into the room to see that the entire collection was just sitting there, waiting for me. Sitting myself up, I stretched on the bed before getting up to walk over to the armor stand. I traced my fingers over the metal, turning back to look at mom, I asked, “Could you help me put it on? I’ve never worn western armor before.”

She smiled before snapping her finger. The armor shifted from the stand to me. It was quite comfortable, but no sooner than I had noticed this before glowing runes lit up inside the helmet. An image popped up in my vision. An old Stallion “Greetings grandchild!” it was speaking to me, “I am glad that one of you has finally managed to make it back to Equestria. It has been a long time coming. If you are seeing this, I am likely long dead. This is to be expected. Thanatos promised me that he would deliver this armor as well as the rest of your inheritance. There should be this armor, my book, the sword, and the catalyst. I left these things for you so that you might protect the homeland I left many years ago. I had hoped to give back to my lost homeland.” The eyes of the image turned to mine, “Please use them in defense of our home.”

The image gave me a warm smile “Oh before I forget, the armor can be summoned to you at any time just by thinking about it. So brace yourself for the binding spells. Because this is going to hurt sorry about the pain in advance.”

I was slightly confused before I felt searing pain hist both forearms, my chest, and both calves. I started to cry out when Hecate rushed over to try to grab me “MAGOS! WHAT IS HAPPENING!”

As quickly as it started, it ended. The pain receded to a dull ache, “Fuck that sucked.” I thought about getting out of the armor and found that it dismissed itself. “Well, that is neat. It almost makes the pain worth it.” Looking at my forearms, I noticed the runes were fading away and left no visible marks behind. I then looked at the ladder up. “But I have been stalling long enough. I need to deal with this.”

After looking me over to make sure that I was genuinely uninjured, my mother smiled at me “I will be with you, dear. I know you are strong enough to handle this.”

I pulled myself up and started the climb up. After opening the lid, I found Twilight and Pinkie on my bed. Both holding onto Rainbow. She had dried tears on her face. My mother tapped me on the arm before handing me a warm washcloth to wipe her face with. I leaned down and started to do so, hearing her begin to mutter in her light sleep, “mmm… stop it. I don’t wanna ride the Ferris wheel Dad.”

I chuckled, hearing her mutter in her slumber, causing her eyes to open slowly to find me standing there, cleaning her face. “It’s time to get up Rainbow. I’m going upstairs to make breakfast. Get the other two up. We need to talk.” She nodded with fear in her eyes. I leaned down and gently kissed her forehead. “Don’t be scared of me. Please, we just need to have a talk.” She nodded without saying anything in response, but with a hopeful gleam in her eyes.

I made my way up the stairs, closely followed by mom. She took a seat at the table as I started putting together something for breakfast. “Is there anything that you would like?”

She beamed at me, “French toast with berry syrup?”

I looked back at her, that was the first offering that I had ever given to her specifically. Back at camp, it was expected that you burn an offering at every meal, and I did so. But not once did I ever do it while thinking of her. “That sounds great, mom.” I started to put things together as the three mares of my life entered the room. looking back at them, I asked, “Would one of you please set the table?” Pinkie jumped right up to do it while Twi and Rainbow quietly sat down, they looked at my mother, then back to me. Not sure what was going on, or who this beautiful woman was.

Pinkie bumped me, “Maggie, you should introduce her.” she whispered to me.

Realizing that she was right, I filled the plate with toast and grabbed the syrup, turning around, I set them on the table. Now looking at the three mares that had been silent up to this point. I addressed them as a group “Now as I can imagine you are quite curious as to who this lovely woman is,” they all nodded. “Believe it or not…” I paused to add a little effect “This is Hecate, my mother.”

Of everyone here, I think Pinke was the happiest “Oh my gosh, Maggie! You called her mother. Does that mean you fixed stuff between you.”

I smiled and looked back at Hecate, “Yes, Pinks. I think we have. I have been waiting for this day for a long time. I can hardly believe that this is happening. And even though I’m sure she already knows who each of you are.” I pointed to each of them in turn. “Mother, these are my Marefriends. I’m sure you already know this, but due to a lack of Stallions here, they readily practice polyamory. From left to right, we have Rainbow Dash, fastest flyer in Equestria and Element of Loyalty, Pinkie Pie Element of Laughter, and a fantastic baker, and last but not least Twilight Sparkle, personal student to Princess Celestia, Element of Magic, and my student.”

Mom looked at each mare in turn as I introduced them. She spent a few more seconds focusing on Twilight, though. I’m guessing it was because of her Element. “A Pleasure to meet each of you. I trust you have been taking care of my son.” All of them blushed, but Rainbow lowered her head in shame.

I saw this and addressed her, “We need to talk Rainbow.” she flinched, “You know that I am upset with you. Now that you have had time to think, Why do you think I am so unhappy with what happened yesterday?”

She gulped, “Do we really need to talk about this in front of your mom.” she whispered.

I responded, “We might as well, she will likely be watching whether or not she is here in person. At least she can hear it one on one. rather than looking at it through a scrying dish.” I notice Hecate’s ears lit up lightly, I can only guess that what I had suggested was exactly what she was going to do if asked to leave.

Sighing Rainbow continued, “You are mad because I cheated in the race. But that race was totally unfair, AJ” she was about to continue, but I stopped her by holding a finger up.

Taking a deep breath, “I know that the race was unfair. The other competitions early were unfair as well. You can’t have an earth pony, and pegasus compete in any form of physical contest and have it be fair. You physical builds are far too different from one another. You, as a pegasus, are at a disadvantage because you weigh significantly less than AJ does. Your bones are nowhere near as dense as hers. You also don’t have the same muscle structure, which will lead you to be physically weaker than her, or even Pinkie. It’s just anatomy. There is no changing that. I am upset that you cheated Rainbow, but at the same time, AJ cheated too. What was really disappointing to me was that even when Twi pointed out to you that you had tripped over a stump, you continued to insist that AJ tripped you.”

Her hair drooped and seemed to lose a little color. “But what upset me the most is that you let your competitive spirit push you to cheat. And I can’t help but worry that you are going to turn our relationship into another competition. Or worse... have that urge to cheat here too. I have been doing some reading on herd structure during my free time here. And I can honestly say that I want nothing to do with having a lead mare in my herd. At least as far as day to day, decision making goes. I understand it is necessary for some things involving legality, but as far as a social aspect goes, between us. I don’t want to have someone be the top pony. If we can’t function as a cohesive whole. Then it would be better that we end this now. I refuse to hold one of you higher than the others.”

The three mares were a little blown away by this. Twilight spoke first, “Does this mean if we continue that you won’t have one of us be in charge?”

I nodded, “Absolutely not. I only see that causing more issues. If we need to make a decision, then we need to talk to each other about it as a group. Not just leave it to a single person. A relationship should be a partnership.” I looked at my mother, “It won’t be easy, but if you are willing to give it a shot, then so am I.”

The three of them shared a glance. Rainbow swallowed her pride and spoke up first “Magos, I can’t promise that I won’t end up making something into a competition, I can’t help but do that kind of thing, it’s just who I am. And as for the other thing. I swear to you I would never do that. I know what it is like to be cheated on. But I can try to put more effort into keeping myself from being too competitive. And I can promise to try to curb my ego.”

She dropped her gaze down, but she had been honest, and I respected her for it. If she was willing to try, so was I. I leaned over the table and lifted her head with my right hand, gently lifting her gaze up with the tips of my fingers. “That is all I can ask Skittles.” I lent further and brought her into a gentle kiss. She seemed scared at first like I was going to take it back. But after a few moments, she returned the kiss. I heard a sigh escape her.

Pulling back, I looked at the other two, “What do you say? Are you two still interested?”

Pinkie bounced up and down, nodding all the time. Twilight smiled and nodded as well. I laughed at the both of them, “That is great to see. Guess that date is still on Pinkie. I expect that you had a backup plan for the backup plan?”

She giggles, “You know it. Plus, I get to use that ‘Magos, and his mom made up!’ party plan that I came up with.”

I smiled, “That sounds like a lot of fun, Pinkie.” I turned to mom, “when do you think you will be free to make it? I know that you have a lot that you have to do.”

She stood up and hugged me from behind, leaning down to kiss the top of my head “I don’t have much to do back on earth anymore. Few mortals believe in magic there. But I do have a job to do with Celestia.” She shifted into the form of the mare from before. “I can visit each evening if you like. Just call me.” He hugged me again before flashing away.

After breakfast was cleaned up and the dishes put away, I asked Twilight if she was up for doing some working out. Interestingly enough, she said she was interested. Rainbow and Pinkie asked if they could come to.

I walked them down to the basement to got down to my room. “I want to let you girls know, I moved the trophies. I know they made you a little uncomfortable last time we were down there.” I looked at Rainbow and whispered to her, “Ich werde das Ex-Ding nicht erwähnen. Das ist nur zwischen uns. in Ordnung?” <I won’t mention the Ex thing. That’s just between us. Okay?>

She blushed at me, speaking German to her, before whispering back into my ear. “Ja Mag. Es kann nur zwischen uns sein.” <Yes, Mag. It can be just between us.>

As we were about to descend down the latter, Pinkie spoke up. “Hey, Maggie? Who is in the picture?”

I was confused, “What picture?”

She pointed at a picture that I had never seen before. Slowly walking over to the frame and picked it up. As I did so, I noticed an envelope sitting under it. Picking the container up, I pulled out a DVD and a note. The DVD was titled ‘memories’ I opened the letter and read.

Dear Magos,

Words cannot express my joy at being let into your life. You are my little boy, and I love you. And I know that the loss of your father has profoundly impacted you. I had not known that you only had that piece of glass left of him. The photo is the only one of its kind. After I had to let you go, I visited your father on several occasions. They were brief visits, but it gave me a rare chance of being with the both of you. The photo is a family portrait, you are only three weeks old, but it is the only photo of us all together. The DVD is a recording that you father did for us. I asked a friend to convert it over from a tape.

Love,
Mom.

The letter slipped through my fingers and fell to the floor. With a shaky hand, I grasped the frame, bringing it to my eyes. I saw a picture of a small family. A newborn baby held in the arms of a beautiful woman with a broad smile on her face. Next to them, with a goofy grin, stood a man. He stood slightly taller than my mother. His dirty blond hair hung to his shoulders, a thick auburn beard on his face. “T-this is my father, Pinks. I-I couldn’t r-remember his f-face. And now I have a photo.”

All three of them rushed to me and pulled me into a group hug. I was having a hard time at this point. My emotions had been jerked around a lot in the last few days. After hugging it out for a while, I managed to pull myself together enough to open the trunk. We ended up spending the entire day down there too. Taking breaks for meals. We spent a bit of time working out, but then the girls found the projector and DVD player. Twilight demanded to know what it was, so I showed them the first Star Wars movie. The science and the political talk interested Twilight. Rainbow liked the fights but got bored during the long dialog segments. Pinkie kept rubbing up on me.

After watching that, Twilight asked if I had anything else. I grabbed my bin and let them look through it. Twilight ended up picking ‘Across the Universe.’ They asked a lot of questions about the plot, and I had to keep pausing the movie to explain so they could understand it as well as the geopolitical situation of the world at the time. Rainbow tried to act uninterested, but I caught her bobbing her head to the music every so often.

That was pretty much how we spent the day, so I guess we kind of had our first group date. Turns out that Pinkie and Rainbow had taken the day off to deal with this issue, but were happy to use it to their advantage. This has been an awesome couple of days.

________________________________________________________
Two weeks later
________________________________________________________

I was sitting at the table as Spike put together breakfast. He was making pancakes again. This kid must be some kind of pancake wizard, no matter how often we have them, he always managed to change it up enough that it never got old. Twilight walked in and hugged me from behind, Spike gagged and turned away. I laughed, “Oh come on, bud, don’t gag. I saw that little kiss between you and Pip two days ago. You know hugging isn’t gross.”

Spike’s response was to light up bright red. Kinda impressing to do that, when you are purple. “DUDE, DON’T TALK ABOUT THAT IN FRONT OF TWILIGHT!” He hissed.

I gave him my best shit-eating grin, “You know you love me.” I laughed as he blushed again, turning to Twilight. I asked: “What are your plans for the day, Sparkles?”

She giggled before her reply, “I’m going to go to Fluttershy’s place. I have some practice to conduct for an event I am providing entertainment for.”

I thought about it for a moment before guessing, “Is it that delegacy thing with the Saddle Arabians?”

She smirked and answered, “Yes. Yes, it is Ma… Wait a minute, why do you know about this meeting?! It’s supposed to be an unofficial pleasure visit. Princess Celestia told me to keep it a secret.”

I booped her nose “I’m providing security as Equestria’s knight Sparkles. I have to go to all of these things. I may be your personal guard, but my duty to Equestria trumps that.” She had a slight frown on her face, so I clarified, “Not that, that come above your safety. Or any of you girls safety for that matter. That comes first in my book. May the gods have mercy on whoever was to hurt any of you.” I put my hand on her arm, looking up at her.

She leaned down and kissed my forehead. “You’re a romantic dork, you know that.” she giggled before licking my forehead.

I was seriously weirded out by that “Di… Did you just lick my forehead?”

She smirked. “What are you going to do about it then?” She had a mischievous smirk.

Our calm was ruined when Rainbow slammed into the room, “Twilight! Come quick! It’s an emergency!”

___________________________________________________
Perspective shift - Twilight
___________________________________________________

Rainbow dragged us the center of Ponyville. Rarity was standing facing someone when a beam of magic hit her. Her lovely dress was shifted into some kind of brown, pink, and green argyle. Rarity’s hand went to her forehead before she cried out, “You beast! This shade of brown should only be used for accents!”

She started to faint when Pinkie and AJ ran over to her to keep her from hitting the ground. Pulling her away from the situation.” What’s going on here?”

A voice from across the answered, “Well, well, well. If it isn’t... Twilight Sparkle.”

Multiple ponies gasped at the voice, everyone here knew it’s tone. I called out, “Trixie!”

Spike stood up next to me “What is she doing back here?!” he was apparently upset by her return.

I looked back at Magos, who was just standing to the side. Watching with a calm look on his face. I knew that if things started to get out of hand that he would be able to help. Rainbow spoke up in reaction to the change of the dress “You call that great and powerful?!” she scoffed at Trixie.

A beam of magic hit Rainbow before one of her wings was forced to grow to three times its size. Rainbow had to land, as flying was out of the question at this point. I noticed a twitch in Mago’s left eye when the spell hit her.

The voice of two colts spoke up. The very two that had caused issues the last time Trixie was here Snips started “Oh! She’s Rainbow Wobble, now!” Snail’s added with his somewhat slow tone. “Yeah! Haha!”

Rainbow grunted the wing was apparently massive enough to cause pain. Magos went to her, and Snail’s spoke again, “Good spell, oh Great and Powerful Trixie!”

Trixie’s reply was harsh “You two! Quiet!”

Shooting another beam of magic at the two young colts, the tips of the young unicorn’s horns were fused together. They started to fight as I turned back to Trixie, “Stop picking on my friends, Trixie!”

Trixie responded with a cold tone, “You and I have some unfinished business. My magic’s gotten better since I was here last. And I’m going to prove it! Me and you, a magic duel. Winner stays, loser leaves Ponyville forever!”

My eyes hardened. “Forget it! I’d never make a deal like that!”

Trixie scoffed and replied, “Hm. Your choice.”

I heard Spike start to call out when she directed the magic at him, and then I felt it. A pressure wave of magic. Not the kind that came from a Unicorn, but the kind that came from Magos. I whipped my head to look back at him. The air seemed to shimmer around him from the pressure. His shoulder-length hair had turned jet black, His eyes back to the void that they became at the trial. I watched as his right eye twitched this time. Magos… Magos was mad.

The sky began to darken. Everypony in the town heard a dark piano start to play from the air. Clouds gathered and began to discharge lightning, but something was wrong with it. It didn’t flash with a bright light. When the lighting discharged, light from the surrounding area seemed to get sucked into it.

https://youtu.be/uSxM2IIABRg

He teleported right in front of Trixie, slamming his foot down she dropped into a hole up to her waist. He quickly grabbed her by the horn before leaning down to her and spoke with a voice that held no emotion “Do you know who I am?”

I could tell Trixie was unnerved by what was happening, but she spoke with her same cocky attitude. “Trixie does not know who you are, and she does not care. Release Trixie’s horn at once. If you behave, I might just keep you as a pet, you freak.”

I saw his grip tighten, and Trixie gasped in pain. “That’s the wrong response.” he pushed her head back by her horn, forcing her to look up at him “But since you don’t know who I am, I will give you a courtesy. My name is Magos Schmidt, Knight of Equestria. I don’t know who you are supposed to be. However, you have made a grave mistake today. You have already injured one of my mares. This, I could have forgiven with an apology. Rainbow can heal from this with a reversal of the spell and a days rest. But you injured two little colts that were not a part of this, and you attempted to hurt the child of one of my mares.”

The words hit me like a brick wall, Magos saw Spike as my son? He was this angry when someone tried to hurt us?! Magos spoke again, “So here is what you are going to do. You are going to reverse your spells, you are going to remove that thing from your neck, And then you are going to submit yourself for arrest.” Trixie’s response was to spit in his face. The flat tone left his voice to be replaced with rage, “Wrong answer, bitch!”

Trixie started to scream, I could see Magos’ knuckles grow white from the pressure he was putting on her horn. I could swear I could see cracks begin to form, but what was the worst part was that she started to scream about her legs. “PLEASE, STOP STABBING TRIXIE’S LEGS, PLEASE! IT HURTS, PLEASE I’LL DO WHATEVER YOU SAY, PLEASE STOP HURTING TRIXIE!!!!”

I was horrified, what was he doing. Torture was not condoned in Equestria. This was terrible. His grip on her horn relaxed, and I noticed that the cracks that I had thought I had seen weren’t there. With his tone returning to a cold one, “You have the until the count of three, cunt. One.”

Her horn lit and removed the spells that she had been casting, her hands flew to her neck, and she ripped her necklace off. “Good girl, now… SLEEP.”

The air around us cleared, the pressure of the magic fell away, and Magos was now sitting on the ground, holding Trixie as she lies next to him, completely unharmed. I slowly approached Magos, His hair, and eyes now back to normal “M-Magos? What did you just do?”

___________________________________________________________
Perspective shift - Magos
___________________________________________________________

“M-Magos? What did you just do?” Twilight’s voice was filled with fear.

I signed, “I’m sorry you saw that Sparkles, I was too angry to contain the illusion to just Trixie.” pointing at the necklace I spoke again “Don’t touch that thing with your hands or magic. It’s got some major bad juju coming off of it. Probably the reason she was acting like this.” I stood and swept Trixie into my arms, making my way to the town hall, where I knew that there was a holding cell for local criminals. It was set up to be able to hold any of the three primary races. I knew she would be safe there until I could have her transported to Canterlot.

Speaking again, “I’m taking Trixie to the holding cells until I can arrange a means of transport to Canterlot.”

Twilight ran up to me “Why are you taking her there? If she was under the influence of that necklace, why are you still taking her to be arrested? It wasn’t her fault!”

I continued to walk but spoke as I did so “She may have been under the influence of the item, it doesn’t change that she came into possession of it. Whether or not that was on purpose or an accident is what we need to find out. If she intended to find this item, then use its power to come here and subdue you. Then she is guilty of every crime she has committed since its acquisition. I need her to be transported to Canterlot to get to the bottom of this. I didn’t hurt her. I just used an illusion to make her think that I did.”

I turned to look directly at Twilight, still walking forward “this is some of the magic that I can teach you. A mind is a powerful tool, but it can also be the greatest weakness. If your mind is stronger than your opponents, then you can win without ever having to lift a finger. I managed to resolve this without hurting her, she will likely be scared of me for some time, but at least she isn’t hurt.”

I walked away and delivered her to the holding cell. After getting that taken care of, I went back to the library. I didn’t find anyone there, shrugging I went down to the basement. I went down to my sub-room and picked up a book. A low mood had hit me again. Flipping through my music, I chose a song that matched my mood.

https://youtu.be/7A07nayXc6s

The heavy music started, and I just sat down in my chair and listened, the fast music, and heavy beat made my mood all the darker, but that was the point. I didn’t want to feel happy right now. I had scared Twilight, I had likely frightened the entire town. No one wanted to be around me, I was dangerous. Just like Trixie had said. Here I’m a freak.

I knew that my thought patterns were just making me swirl down a darker line of thinking. Fuck! I hate it when this happens. My mind just slipped down a dark path, and I can’t dig myself out of it. But why should it matter? I’m here as a tool to be used. That is what I had made myself. An effective tool. Tools don’t need to be happy, they just have to be useful.

The sent of cake and frosting hit my nose, as a pair of pink arms wrapped around me from behind the chair. I turned to find that Pinkie was down here. That was confusing because I had shut the lid on my trunk. Before I could say, anything Pinkie squeezed me tight “You’re not just a tool… not to us.”

My eyes widened “Wha… H-how… how did you get down here?”

She nuzzles the back of my head and neck. “My Pinkie sense told me.”

I couldn’t help but let out a light laugh, “of course it did. What are you doing down here? I thought you all didn’t want to be around me right now.” my eyes dropped “I thought I had scared you away.”

Pinkie shifted around and sat on my lap. “I knew you weren’t hurting her, Maggie. It was scary, but you took care of it before anypony could get hurt. It may have been a bit scary, but seeing you react like that. Well, I know what you care about us.” She gave me her perfect smile. Her bright blue eyes staring into my soul. I couldn’t help but smile back. Her smile made everything better.

She leaned forward and kissed me. I leaned into it as she pressed herself against me, her hands lightly stroking my arms and chest. I began to breathe more heavily through the kiss, starting to get a little heated when Pinkie pushed back “I-I’m sorry, Maggie. I-I’m not ready for anything like that yet.”

I took a few breaths to clear my head. After calming myself, I respond, “It’s okay Pinkie, thank you for telling me. I don’t want to push any of you before you’re ready.”

She seemed to let out a sigh of relief “I know you won’t, but I was worried. I know that you and Dash have been together like that. I didn’t want you to be upset.”

I pulled her in for another hug “Never be upset about this. All three of you mean so much to me. I have no idea what I ever did to deserve any of you. But I’m glad that you are here.”

We sat like that for what seemed like an eternity. After chilling out in my chair, I thought of something. You know I still haven’t shown you any of the kinds of parties that we have back on earth. Are you still interested in seeing one?”

She smiled and nodded quickly, “if you don’t mind. I would love to see one.”

I thought about it for a moment before I thought of the perfect video to show her. Grabbing my computer and projector, I set it up. After I queued up the vid, I turned to her. “Watch this.”

https://youtu.be/41cbPPstxO8

As it started, Pinkie couldn’t help but get up to dance. As she jumped around, I just watched at first. Right up to the point that she pulled me up and made me dance with her. We enjoyed the music and the video until it ended.

Pinks turned to me, “Is that what all your parties were like?!!!!”

She was super excited. I chucked before replying, “No, most are nowhere near that huge. But that is one of the biggest ones. I’ve always wanted to go to Tomorrowland, just never had the time or money.”

Pinkie pulled me into another kiss. “It’s okay, Maggie, we can try to see if we can put something like that together here. I have a few friends that are DJs. I bet we can pull it off.”

I grinned, “Only you can pull something like that off here, Pinks.” I pulled her into a hug again.

I knew that I had to face the others soon. But for now. I just wanted to hold this pink mare in my arms and listen to music. The only thing that could make it better would be in Twilight and Rainbow joined us.

The thought had just come to my mind when I heard a cough behind us, “Um… Do you have room for two more?”

I turned around to see Rainbow and Twilight. “Um... Hi girls. Um… how did you.”

Rainbow cut me off, “Pinkie dude.”

I figured that I should just accept it. “Well. Feel free to join us. You know, if you want to.”

Pinkie was snuggled into my right side. Twilight sat down to my left, rainbow tossed a pillow down on the ground in front of my legs before she put her back against me, flaring her wings, so they did not get caught. I chucked to myself. I’m literally covered in mares right now. It feels nice. Rainbow spoke up, “Thanks for what you did, by the way. My wing feels a lot better, now that it’s back to normal.” she looked back at me, and I smiled.

Twilight spoke next “I know that you already told me this morning before this all happened that you would protect us. It was just a little jarring to see you go to such lengths to do it.” she wasn’t leaning against me.

I turned to her, “I’m sorry that I let myself get to that point. I was going to let you handle it, but when she went after Spike… Well, I kind of lost it.”

She blushed, “Do… do you really see Spike as my son?”

I shrugged. “From what you told me, you were the one that hatched his egg, right?” She nodded, “Well, I would say that kinda make you his mom. I know you call him your number one assistant, but I know from experience that not having a mom can screw you up. You have been with him from the day he was born practically. He is important to you, and I have to admit that I have grown fond of the little guy. I’m glad that he has been exploring his sexuality, he should never have to hide how he feels.” I gently brought my left hand to her cheek, “And neither should you.” I turned to look at each of them, “None of you should.”

Twilight leaned forward and kissed my cheek “Thank you, Mag.” she leaned into me, and we all just sat there listening to music and watching more videos. The day hadn’t gone as I had hoped, but at least it ended well.

NightMare Night - edited 3/22/20

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NightMare Night

I woke up with a desperate need to use the bathroom but found myself covered in mares. I’m not sure when, but we all evidently fell asleep on the couch. Glad that we grabbed those blankets last night. I know it doesn’t get all that cold down here, but still. I tried to wiggle my way out but found that it was a lost cause. Figuring that it was my only hope, I moved some pillows to be under Pinkie and Twilight’s heads before I teleported out of the pile. They fell against each over before Pinkie wound up in Twilight's lap, and Twilight was lying over her. Rainbow had made a kind of nest at our feet and was sprawled out on it.

I quickly excused myself to use the restroom. After finishing that up, I decided to go up and make some breakfast. I left a note letting them know what I was doing before I went up to the main floor. I started getting the stuff together to make some breakfast. I decided that Muffins sounded good. After finding one of Spikes recipes for Apple oatmeal muffins, I began to gather the ingredients. After getting almost everything together, I noticed that we had run out of fresh apples. As I discovered this, a knock came from the front door.

Crossing the library, I was wondering who could be coming here this early. I opened the door to find AJ. It had been a while since I had last seen her. In fact, now that I thought about it. I hadn’t seen her since the disaster at the running of the leaves. “Hey, sis. What brings you here this early?”

She seemed a little hesitant, “Um… Hi Mag. I uh… I have Twi’s Apple order with me.”

I saw the bushel in her arms, I leaned over and took it from her. “Thanks, sis, I just realized we needed more. Come on in, I’m making Apple Oatmeal muffins.” I turned and started walking back in, not leaving her a choice. As I was about to enter the kitchen, I hollered back at her, “Besides, we need to have a talk.”

I heard her sigh and close the door behind her. After putting down the bushel, I started to put together the dry ingredients. I slowly mixed everything together, hoping the silence would coax her to start talking. Luckily, it did “Mag, I need ta apologize. Fer what ah did during the race.”

I didn’t turn to look at her but just said: “Before you do, do you know why I was so upset about the entire situation?”

She gulped, “You were mighty upset about me cheatin. And ah can’t blame ya. Granny Smith gave me an earful when ah got home.”

I sighed, now having put the muffins in the oven I turned and sat down across from her “Yes AJ, I was pissed that the Mare that I just had welcomed me into her family as a sibling, cheated. But what really upset me was that you and Skittles took it as far as you did. I get that you two are probably the most competitive mares in ponyville. I understand, but at the same time, you were also expecting Rainbow to compete against you in unfair competition.”

AJ seemed to balk at this “What do you mean ‘unfair competition.’ I can’t fly, so why should she be able ta?!”

I shook my head, not particularly happy that I had to explain this again. “AJ, do you think that Earth Ponies have magic?”

She gave me a confused look “Mag, Earth Ponies can’t use magic, and how does that have anything to do with what we are talking about?”

I expected the answer, but I am still blown away by it. “AJ, Earth Ponies are every bit as magical as a Unicorn. If I had to put you in a category, I would have to say that you are the Twilight of Earth ponies. As for Skittles, she is easily the Twilight of Pegasi.” She looked genuinely confused, so I clarified, “AJ, I don’t think you ever noticed this, but Earth Ponies can grow things in places that should never have been able to support life. It isn’t some kind of hard work secret. You have powerful magic in you that lets you make things grow. It makes you stronger, faster, and have greater endurance. Your bones are likely two to three times denser than Twilight’s are, closer to ten times denser than Rainbows. That makes you extremely sturdy.”

AJ thought about it for a second before realizing it. “So what you are saying is. That I was trying to handicap RD in a competition that she was already handicapped in?”

I nodded. “Exactly, there will never be a way that two ponies from different tribes can compete against one another with it being completely fair. The closest thing I can think of would be to bind her wings and put heavy weights on your arms and legs. Even then, it wouldn’t be fair due to you having magically enhanced stamina. There is a reason that Rainbow takes as many naps as she does. Part of it has to do with her having to work harder to maintain altitude up high where the air is thinner, and part of it is because she just doesn’t have the same kind of stamina.”

I heard a cough behind me, “You didn’t complain about my stamina two days ago.” Rainbow walked up and gave me a hug from behind and kissed my cheek.

Deciding that I needed to fire back. “Not my fault you conked out after six rounds.” Turning back to AJ, “I’ve been working on her stamina, our first time I had her begging for mercy after four.”

AJ’s face lit up, and Rainbow flicked my ear. At that point, AJ must have wanted to confirm, “What does he mean six rounds?”

Rainbow sighed and kissed my cheek again. “Exactly what he said, AJ, I had a hard time walking the next day. So awesome.”

The timer on the oven went off, so I got up to pull the muffins out. AJ whispered to Rainbow, not quite quiet enough for me not to hear, “Ah really didn’t need to know that about him RD, Mag is kinda like my brother now.”

Rainbow snrked, “Too bad for you, AJ, he said it was a human thing, but I think it might have something to do with him being a demigod. I know that Twi and Pinkie haven’t done anything yet, but they need to get a move on. I don’t think I can handle him by myself for much longer.”

I laughed as I put the muffins on a cooling rack and walked it over to the table “Skittles, stop embarrassing my sister and go wake Pinkie and Twi up. Breakfast is ready.” I walked into the library and shouted up to Spike, “Hey Spike, get your scaly butt down here, I made muffins.”

I went back to the kitchen and found some orange juice in the fridge, pulling out a couple of glasses and some small plates. I set the table for everyone, including AJ. I sat down right next to her, “So now that we have that out in the open and dealt with, we good sis.”

She smiled at me “In the wise words of our brother, Eyup,” she pulled me into a hug that I quickly returned.

Twi and Pinkie came into the room, closely followed by Spike. “Hey, sleepyheads. I made some muffins, and it looks like we still had some OJ in the fridge. Let’s have a family meal, and then we can start the day.” I said with a smile on my face.

They all smiled and sat down. Spike took a seat next to me. I reached over to grab him a muffin, this one was special. I had found a few gemstones with Rarity a while back, and I had decided to put a little something extra in his muffin this morning. I put it on his plate “that one is for you, bud.” I leaned down, “Don’t tell Twilight, but I snuck some gems into it for you. I found them when I was helping Rarity the other day.”

He smiled, still half asleep “Thanks, dad.”

As soon as the words left his mouth, the table went silent. Every set of eyes locked onto him, then shifted to me. I decided to brush it off. “No problem, son. How are things going with you, the CMC’s and Pip?”

The mares in the room were still entirely silent, but Spike spoke in a shaky voice, “um… well. I…”

He seemed like he was at a loss for words, so I tried to bail him out “It’s okay Spike, I’m kinda dating your mom right? If things keep heading the direction that things are going, who knows, that might just be an accurate name for me in the future. But if you feel comfortable calling me that now, I can’t say it doesn't feel kinda cool to be called dad. So how are things going?”

He still seemed a little unsure of himself, but I had managed to break the tension enough for him to continue. “Um, things are going well, I guess. Sweetie Belle and I went to Sugar Cube Corner three days ago. And I guess you kinda know how things have been going with Pip.”

I raised an eyebrow “What about Applebloom and Scootaloo?”

His eyes kinda shrunk when I said Applebloom “um… D-dad, AJ is right here.”

I looked at AJ, “Are you going to go super sister on him if he talks about his dating attempts with Apple Bloom?”

AJ just shrugged, “I don’t really mind. I know Spike is a good colt and wouldn’t try to move things to fast.”

Spike muttered, “I’m not the one trying to move fast.”

That made AJ look at him “Now what does that mean Spike?” her eyes narrowed as she looked at him.

He seemed to shrink in his seat, so I bailed him out again. “AJ, it sounds like to me that Apple Bloom is trying to progress the relationship along a little faster than Spike had anticipated. Now I haven’t spent as much time around Bloom as much as I have around Spike, but I know that Spike wouldn’t want to move things to fast. He is still getting over the whole Rarity thing. As long as she isn’t trying to get into his pants yet, I’m cool with it.”

She didn’t look happy about that comment “Now listen here Mag, Just cause you are family, doesn’t mean you can get away with talking like that. Bloom is too young for that kind of thing.”

Spike spoke up. “That's what I told her.”

AJ shut up real fast, so I turned to her. “So tell me, AJ, did he just lie?”

She shook her head. “I need to go have a conversation with our little sister.” She got up and made to leave, I quickly got up and went over to her

Putting my hand on her shoulder. “AJ, I’m not telling you that you shouldn’t have that conversation with Bloom, but I want you to do it with a cool head. They are in the beginning throes of hormones, and she likely just trying to figure things out. I’m proud of Spike for telling her that he wants to wait. As Skittles so bluntly put it, Pinks, Sparkles, and I haven't been like that yet. I am waiting until they are ready before we do anything. I think that is what Spike told Bloom. He isn’t ready for anything like that and doesn’t think they should rush it. As long as you explain it to her in a calm manner, she should be able to understand. Okay?”

She took a deep breath before answering, “I know Mag, I know. But darn it if I don’t see her growing up, and it scares me to death. I know that she is mah little sister, but Mac, Granny, and I had to raise her. I just want what’s best for her.”

I pulled AJ into a hug. “That is all I can ask or expect. Just don’t make it worse than it already is. And not to let it slide that Spike said anything, okay? That is a fast way to get him into trouble.”

She chuckled then turned to Spike, “Looks like yer pa is covering your backside there, Spike.” She turned back to me, “I’ll try my best. But I really do need to get going. The stall is supposed to open in ten minutes.” I gave her one last hug before she left the building.

Walking back to the table, I patted Spike on the head before I sat down. “So before that got awkward, how are things going with Scootaloo?”

Spike shrugged and started to much on his muffin. “She is fun and all, but we kinda see each other as just friends. Don’t get me wrong, she is awesome. But I just don’t like her like that.”

I nodded, “That’s okay, Spike, sometimes you just end up as friends.” I turned to Twilight, who had been silent this entire time, “And as for you Sparkles, I think we are ready for your next level of training.”

That seemed to snap her out of her stupor “What kind of training?” she lifted her glass to her lips when she noticed that it no longer looked or smelt like orange juice. Instead, it now appeared to be an even smelt like grape Juice. She was apparently confused by this.

I smirked, “Illusions. As I said yesterday, the mind is a powerful tool. For the foreseeable future, I am going to be casting multiple illusions around you. It won’t be anything dangerous, of course. But little things. Like making you think your orange juice is grape juice.” I nodded to her, “Go ahead, taste it.”

She hesitantly took a sip. At first, she would be tasting grape juice, then I let the illusion fall, the sudden switch from grape to orange was jarring enough that she stopped and did a minor spit take “What was that! It tasted like grape juice then it suddenly switched!” Her eyes locked on my face “Illusions shouldn’t be able to change the taste! They shouldn’t even be able to change scent!”

I smirked, “That is the point Sparkles, a perfect illusion, can do even that. This is a minor one. All it does is cause your brain to perceive it as a different taste and scent, but as you saw yesterday, it can also go to extremes as well.” Twilight nodded

I leaned over to Pinkie and kissed her cheek to catch her off guard “So Pinks, what is on the docket for you today?”

She smirked, “In preparation for the best night of the whole year. NightMare night, the Cakes need my help to get everything put together.”

I cocked my head to the side, “What’s NightMare night?”

That spurned Pinkie to go on a twenty-minute tirade on what the Holiday was. At the end, I was mildly concerned, “So this entire event is scaring little children, using NightMare moon?”

Pinkie smiled, “Yeperonnies.”

I shook my head, “Who has been purified back into Princess Luna. The mare that fell to the NightMare because she felt like no one cared about her?”

Pinkie’s face fell a little, “Um… I guess.”

I groaned, “I don’t think she is going to be very thrilled by that.” I turned to Twilight, “has she been around for a NightMare night yet since her return?”

Twilight thought about it for a second before answering, “No, I don’t think she has. This will be her first one, now that she is back.”

All I could think was, ‘of course it is.’ I thought about it for a bit. Then coming to a decision, I looked at Spike. “Hey bud, can you send a letter for me?”

Spike blushed “um… sure Da... I mean, Mag.”

I smiled at him “Thanks, bud” I drafted a quick letter to Celestia, inviting both her and her sister to come to ponyville for a holiday. Spike sent it out.

Not ten minutes later, as I was cleaning up the dishes, Celestia replied. Spike burped up a letter before handing it to me “Thanks, Spike. I have the rest of this. Got finish up your chores, then go out and see what you can find to do, buddy.”

He smiled and ran into the main library. I opened the letter and began to read.

Dear Magos,

I would like to thank you for the invitation to spend NightMare night with you. I am unfortunately unable to join you due to prior engagements. However, dear Luna doesn't have any plans for the night. I will make sure that she goes. I have tried to explain to her that the holiday is meant to be a bit of light-hearted fun. She isn’t as happy about it, and I can’t blame her. I am leaving it up to you to make sure she has an enjoyable night. Please try to get her to have some fun.

Your friend

Celestia.

With that settled, the day began as usual. Twilight and I spent some time with our regular morning run. She has moved up to the next weight class on her clothes. She is picking this up surprisingly quickly, and I couldn’t be more proud of her. At this point, she usually wakes up with the sun and tends to go to bed early than before as well. Overall, even if she doesn’t take to using my kind of magic, she will still be a stronger and healthier mare overall.

_______________________________________
One week later
_______________________________________

I smiled at the end of the letter, but then I had to figure out something to make sure the night went off without a hitch. I realized that I was going to need some help. I finished putting away the dishes and went out to the central library area. Finding Twilight standing on a stool hanging up plastic bats, I snuck up behind her and cast an illusion on the bat she was holding to make it seem like it came alive.

She screamed and fell back into my arms. She looked up at me and realized what I had done. I was quickly paid back for the prank with her hitting me on the arm, “You are such a butt! Why does my boyfriend have to be such a jerk!”

Hearing her call me her boyfriend and not her coltfriend made me smile and lean down to kiss her. That quickly stopped her hitting me. After pulling back, I smirked down at her “I do it because I want to prepare you… that and your little reaction was kinda funny.”

She smiled and hit me again “Don’t do that again.” She turned away before adding, “unless you are going to catch me.”

I smiled, “Guess someone likes being held in my arms then.” I nuzzled her. I had found over the last few weeks that ponies liked to nuzzle each other. I had picked up the practice as I spent more time with the girls. They seemed to enjoy it when I did so, and Twi nuzzled me back. “So, do you have plans to what you are going to dress up as Sparkles?”

After getting back up on her hooves, Twilight slapped my chest again before getting back up on the stool before answering me, “It’s a surprise! I’ve been putting a lot of work into my costume. I know everypony is going to love it.” she beamed at me.

I chuckled “Well then, I can’t wait to see it” I kissed her on the cheek and took my leave. It was a chilly fall day, so I figured that until the evening festivities, I would just pick up a book and start reading. I made my way back down to the basement and decided to pick up the book that Star Swirl left me. I spent the next couple of hours just reading. I hadn’t realized how late it was until Spike yelled down to me.

“Da… I mean, Mag! Come on up, it’s time to go out for NightMare night!!!!”

Chuckling, I replied, “Alright, I just need to mark my page, and I’ll be right up.” I put a blue feather in the book before dragging myself up the ladder. After getting to the top, I noticed that Spike was dressed as a dragon.

I cocked my left eye up while looking at him. he looked confused and asked, “What?”

I just shook my head and shrugged, “Nothing, but I guess I’m not going to be the other one that dresses up as what I am for NightMare night.” He gave me a curious look, but I ignored it, not wanting to spoil the surprise. “Come on, Bud, let’s go get your mom, then we can go out and have some fun tonight. I know that Luna is supposed to be stopping by.”

I must be rubbing off on the kid because Spike just shrugged and followed along. After getting to the top of the stairs, I found Twilight. She was dressed in dark blue robes, the constellations of the sky has been embroidered into them, then on her head stood a large blue hat. Around the rim hung many bells. When she turned to look at me, I noticed that she had a rather impressive beard on her face. Chuckling asked, “So, Who are you supposed to be?”

I heard Spike groan next to me before Twilight responded, “I’m Star Swirl the Bearded. He was the greatest wizard to ever live. Normally I would have been upset that you don’t know that, but It’s not like you would know something like that.”

Spike tugged my arm, so I leaned down to listen to him “She is a massive Star Swirl freak. If you get her started, she won’t stop until you know everything there is to know about him.”

A mischievous spark hit my eye at hearing this, I decided to ask Spike something “What do you think she would do if she met a decedent? Or was able to look at some things that used to be his?”

Spike paled. “I don’t want to think about it. Celestia help, whoever the poor guy is.”

I smirked before saying, “Well, it’s a nice costume, Sparkles.” I walked up to her and pulled her into a kiss, not really minding the beard. After all, it wasn’t all that different from kissing a mare, the false beard was just as soft as her fur. It did make me think about what she would look like as a guy. I smirked at the mental image and decided she would still look good as a guy.

Pulling back, I added, “So shall we go out then?”

Twilight gave me a questioning look, “where is your costume? You can’t go out on NightMare night without a costume. It’s a tradition.”

I smirked before a bright flash caused her to look away for a moment. A moment before, I was standing before her in my lazy clothes, now I stood decked out in my full armor. My new blade hung from my hip. I had added an illusion of a thick auburn beard that fell to about the top of my chest. Not quite the length of Twilight’s, but still respectable.

She gave me a curious look before adding, “That looks really familiar, I can’t place my finger on it, though.”

I laughed “Tell you what, if you can figure it out without any help tonight, I’ll give you a present, if you can’t then you owe me one. I'll even give you a hint, it's somepony from here. How does that sound Sparkles?”

She thought about it for a moment, then nodded, “Fine, I hope you're prepared. I will find out.”

I smirked, “Then let’s hope someone else doesn’t say something first.”

We stepped out and started to enjoy the early evening. The moon had just begun to set as a Trio of fillies screamed by. Two of them in a wagon, the third on a scooter pulling them behind her. As they passed, the two in the cart grabbed Spike and hauled him into it in a fell swoop, claiming him for the night. Scootaloo shouted back, “WE’RE TAKING SPIKE FOR THE NIGHT BRO! HAVE FUN!”

I smiled at that. Over the last few weeks of spending time with my Mares. I had noticed that Scootaloo was a frequent companion of not only the other two fillies. But she loved spending time with Rainbow, and due to me spending time with her, she spent time with me.

Rainbow had told me that she had kind of adopted the young filly as a little sister. At some point, Scootaloo had started to call me bro. Twilight and I continued to go around the various stalls, looking to see the various wares that were being offered. As we were looking at AJ’s booth of caramel apples, we all jumped at a loud crack of lighting. Twilight screamed and jumped into my arms.

I looked back to see Rainbow sitting on a cloud, laughing up a storm, apparently amused by her own antics. I rolled my eyes, “Really, Skittles? You know that Sparkles doesn’t like being scared.” Not that I had any room to talk given what I had done.

Rainbow rolled her eyes “Oh please, get into the spirit of the holiday Mag. This is the best night of the year for pranks.” I sighed before taking a look at Rainbow's outfit. She was wearing a skin-tight full-body flight suit. The fabric left very little to the imagination. However, I could tell that she must have been wearing one of her special bras because there was no way in Tartarus that she wouldn’t burst out of the thing without it.

Twilight had calmed down but hadn’t let herself out of my arms. Rainbow smirked. “Besides, the old guy seems to like being where he is.” she teased. also poking fun at Twilight's costume.

She gave Rainbow a deadpan stare. “Well, sorry that I’m not some kind of sexy shadowbolt. I’m dressed as Star Swirl the Bearded, the greatest wiz...”

Rainbow cut her off “yea yea yea, magic mumbo-jumbo. So who are you supposed to be, Mag?”

I chuckled, “Well, funny, you should ask me. I’m here as...”

Twilight shut me up. “No! You can’t tell her yet. I have to figure it out first.”

I smiled at her before turning back to Rainbow “Sorry, I guess, we have a deal going that if she can figure out who I am by the end of the night, I have to give her a present. Conversely, if she doesn’t figure it out, or if someone spills the beans first, she has to give me one.” I leaned forward up to Rainbows year. “I am betting that I’m going to win” before I pulled back, I snuck a quick kiss.

I must have not noticed that the CMC had made their way back before I hear Scoot shout, “EEEWWWWW!”

I looked back at her, “what you jealous of your big sis? I have a kiss for you too.”

She shouted before running away. I laughed, giving chase. She tried to outrun me as I chased her around Rainbow. After running around her a few times, I managed to catch Scoot, and with doing so, I gave her a wet kiss on the cheek and blew a raspberry.

She started laughing and shouting eww again. I dropped her, and she glared at me, “You’re weird, Mag.” She stuck her tongue out and ran off with her friends. As she ran after them, I thought I had noticed a little bit of a limp on her right side, but as I saw it, we were interrupted by a flash of lightning and the boom of thunder from above. From above, a carriage descended on Ponyville. Pulling it was two dark thestral ponies, their silver armor reflecting the moonlight. A mare stood in the back, a long black cloak hid her features. As they landed, the dark cloak fell away into a cloud of bats, revealing Princess Luna in all her glory.

Luna descended on the group. “CITIZENS OF PONYVILLE! WE HAVE GRACED YOUR TINY VILLAGE WITH OUR PRESENCE, SO THAT YOU MIGHT BEHOLD THE REAL PRINCESS OF THE NIGHT! A CREATURE OF NIGHTMARES NO LONGER, BUT INSTEAD A PONY WHO DESIRES YOUR LOVE AND ADMIRATION! TOGETHER WE SHALL CHANGE THIS DREADFUL CELEBRATION INTO A BRIGHT AND GLORIOUS FEAST!”

A young pink filly standing next to a grey gone shouted out, “Did you hear that, everypony?! Nightmare Moon says she’s gonna feast on us all!” the large group of foals that had been surrounding her all broke into a run away from the night princess.

Luna looked confused and hurt, “What? No, children, no! You no longer have reason to fear us! Screams of delight are what your princess desires, not screams of terror!” She turned to Mayor Mare. “Madame Mayor, the Princess of the Night, hath arrived.”

The poor Mare looked like she was about to have a heart attack, and honestly, I couldn’t blame her. I had thought that Luna had been working on her tone over the last few weeks. When the Mayor didn’t respond, Luna huffed, “What is the matter with you? Very well, then. Be that way. We won’t even bother with the traditional royal farewell.” She stomped off away from the town.

Twilight tugged on my arm. “We should go talk to her. After all, you were the one that invited her to this thing, right?”

I nodded, “You’re right Sparkles, let’s go talk to her. I want to find out why she was using the royal Canterlot voice. I had thought she was working on that, at least she was the last time I’d spoken to her she was.” We chased after the night goddess, hoping to intercept her before she left entirely.

We finally caught up with her in a small clearing on the outskirts of White Tail Woods. She sat with her back to us, leaning against a statue of NightMare Moon. We approached her slowly, so as not to startle her when Twilight spoke “Um… Princess Luna? Are you okay?”

Luna looked back at us, now noticing us for the first time this night, “Twilight Sparkle, Sir Magos. Commendable costumes, did you plan to dress as the same pony?” She looked at me closer before adding, “Magos? Art thou truly wearing your inheritance as a costume?”

I shrugged, “Why not? I’m hoping that I only ever have to for things like this or official functions. But that isn’t why we are here. Are you okay? You seemed a tad bit...Well, upset about your greeting.”

Her eyes narrowed “Of course we are upset, we simply wanted to be welcomed here!” I had hoped that she would help deflect the questions that were undoubtedly brewing in Twilight's mind. Luna had commented that we were dressed as the same pony, then clearly stated that I was wearing my inheritance. It wouldn’t take much to be able to draw conclusions.

I scratched the back of my head. “About that…. yea sorry I completely forgot to let the town know that I had invited you to join us tonight. I will take full responsibility for the, well less than warm greeting. Sorry about that. I guess that I expected the first town that you were brought to after getting back would have remembered you.”

She seemed to brush it off “It is no matter, we guess. It’s not like we should have expected any better. It has always been like this for us.”

The way that she said that made it feel like a knife was twisted in my gut. I had invited her here to get her some recognition, some adoration. Now she felt like nothing had changed from the past. I decided to bring up the royal voice, “Um… Luna not to nitpick, but why did you use the Royal Voice when you arrived? I had thought that you and Celestia had been working on that?”

She looked confused “It has always been traditional to speak to the citizenry ‘WITH THIS MUCH VOLUME!’”

Twilight and I winced at the loud shout. After a moment, Twilight spoke, “Well, um… I don’t think that it is required to be quite that… loud to talk to the ponies here. The volume that you are using now is just fine for normal conversation.”

I nodded in agreement, “Twilight is right, Luna. I can understand the necessity of talking like that when you are shouting down at them from a balcony. Still, when you are face to face, a lower volume is much better. I do have to say that I liked the cloak trick with the bats. Just the right level of creepy for a good prank.”

I saw a glimmer in her eyes at the mention of pranks. “Dost thou mean to say that pranks are common on this night?”

I nodded, “Yep, NightMare night is very similar to a holiday that we have back on my world. We call it Halloween or all hallows eve. It’s basically a night where children go out and get candy from a bunch of houses and play jokes on each other. I guess here it ends with the kids giving a candy tribute to NightMare Moon. It seems like they have made it into a tame holiday that is meant to be enjoyed, rather than something to be scared of. Although lots of the pranks and decorations are meant to frighten people. It’s all in good fun.”

Luna thought about it for a moment before answering me, “So what you think you are telling us is that the foals thought that I was playing a prank?”

I shrugged, “That is my best guess. Although I have heard a little bit about that pink filly that started it is a bit of a bully. Still, we can always use her fear against her and play a bunch of pranks, I know a prismatic mare that has one coming to her.”

Twilight knew who I was talking about, and she grew and evil smirk “I agree with Mag, we NEED to prank Rainbow, maybe Pinkie too, if we can manage it.”

I laughed in response before turning back to Luna, “So what do you think? You willing to help us pull some pranks? I know Celestia told me that you used to love to pull pranks on her.”

I noticed her smile at that memory for a moment before she decided to answer, “Well then, if you can assist us, Sir Magos, we would love to try some pranks out.”

I smiled, “Good to hear Luna, also, could you leave my title out? As you know, I didn’t ask for it, besides I don’t use yours. Feel free to just call me Mag.”

The fur on her cheeks darkened “O-of course, M-Mag. It has been many years since somepony ask asked that I be informal with them.” She turned away with a snap of her head.

Turning to Twilight, I noticed that Pinkie had appeared like she tends to. “Hey, Maggie, Hey Twilight.” She leaned forward and kissed me then, Twilight. Before continuing, “Did somepony say something about some pranks?!”

Twilight.exe seems to have stopped running, so I booped her nose to reset her. “Yea Pinks, we want to reintroduce Luna as a fun-loving prankster. Give her a bit of a lighter tone. Think you can manage?”

Pinkie’s grin was almost manic, “You know it, Maggie!” She pecked us both again before disappearing with Luna.

I smiled and looked back at Twilight “So, I didn’t know that you and Pinkie were together like that. Neat.” I gave her a shit-eating grin. Call me a perv all you want, but having three girlfriends that are cool with it, and that are with each other is way hot.

Twilight seemed to take a moment to respond, “W-we aren’t, at least I don’t think we are? I mean, it’s not like I didn’t enjoy it, and Pinkie is really cute. I just didn’t even think about that. Are you okay with that?”

I smiled and gave her a hug, “Love grows when you share it, Sparkles. As long as we are honest with each other in how we express ourselves, I’m cool with it. Besides, I think I’m personally set with what I have right now. I still have no idea why you guys want to be with a weirdo like me anyway.” I smirked again.

Twilight just gripped me and leaned her head against my pauldron. She quickly lifted her head off of it when she realized it was made of metal. “Mag? This is made of real metal.” she paused for a moment “Wait a minute, didn’t Princess Luna say that this was an inheritance?”

I shrugged, “Yea, it looks like it was something that has been kept for me for a long time. I guess you would call it an ancestral inheritance.”

She looked closer at the pauldron before speaking again, “If it’s ancestral inheritance, why does it have Magical Equestrian script all over it?”

Trying to hide a grin, I answered, “Because my ancestor put them there. Duhhh.”

I could see the supercomputer that is Twilight’s mind boot up as she recalled one last piece of information that Luna had let slip. “M-Magos, can I please look at the back of your left gauntlet?”
I lifted my left hand and placed it in her's. Her hands traced over the surface, locked on the coat of arms carved into only the left gauntlet “M-M-Magos?! Why is Starswirl the Bearded’s house sigil on your gauntlet?!”

Her voice was shaking, and her knees were beginning to wobble. I swept her up into my arms bridal style and kept walking. “Because he was apparently my ancestor, although when he came to my world, he went by the name of Merlin.” That was evidently too much for the poor mare. Her eyes rolled into the back of her head, and she passed du fuck out. I smiled and dismissed the armor. “That should make this a bit more comfortable for you.” I walked her back to the Library. After depositing her in her room, I descended the stairs to find Spike in the main room with Apple Bloom and Sweetie Bell. It looked like Apple Bloom had him in a corner, and Sweetie was just standing back, trying to keep things calm.

“What in tarnation did yah tell mah sister about what we were doin Spike! AJ threatened to tan mah hide if she heard about me doing somethin like that so soon again!” Apple Bloom was upset, and she was taking it out on Spike.

I was about to intervene when Spike spoke up “I’m not apologizing for being honest with AJ, Bloom. I told you that you were trying to go too fast! Neither of us is ready to do anything like that yet. I’m not saying that I wouldn’t want to at some point. You and Sweetie are both gorgeous, but you are also my best friends. If we do something like that, there is no going back to the way things were. I want us to be 100% sure that we want to before we just haphazardly jump into something like that. I care about both of you too much to risk our relationship by moving too fast and possibly ruin not only our relationship but our friendship as well.”

That got Apple Bloom to shut up and think, after a few moments, her eyes widened, and she must have come to the realization that Spike was right. She rushed forward and pulled him into a tight hug with Sweetie Bell coming in close behind. She started crying and saying she was sorry about yelling at him. The entire thing was overly cute and heartwarming, but the good kind. I have to say that I have yet to be as proud of Spike as I am at this moment.

They finally managed to calm down and pulled back, Sweetie spoke, “So now that that is taken care of, do you want to go back to the fair?” she sounded hopeful.

Spike nodded and replied, “That sounds great, we shouldn’t leave Scootaloo alone with Rainbow Dash for too long. She’ll build bad habits. Let me go toss my haul upstairs first, I’ll meet you at AJ’s stall” the both nodded and ran out the door.

Spike started up the stairs, I retreated back to the top, around the corner and waited. As he turned, he caught sight of me, once spotted, he stopped dead in his tracks. “U-um. Hey Ma..uh. Dad?”

My arms were folded, and my face held a neutral look for just a few moments before I split into a broad grin “You make me very proud Spike. You handled that situation wonderfully and managed to get your point across without yelling. Come here and give your dad a hug.”

Spike looked unsure before he walked over. Once he got close enough, I pulled him in and hugged him, patting him on the back a couple of times “I’m not joking about that Spike. This is the proudest I have ever been of you, and I can’t wait for you to top yourself.” I pulled back and dropped down so I could look him in the eyes “I know you will accomplish great things. Spike, Just ask, and I will do what I can to help you.”

Spike blushed and rubbed the back of his head. “Jeez, Dad, you're embarrassing” was trying to play it off, but I saw his grin. It lasted for a few moments before he realized something “Hey, wait a minute, why are you home? Where’s Twilight?”

I scratched the back of my head. “Remember when I asked you that hypothetical question about what would happen if Twilight ever met someone that was a descendant of Starswirl the Bearded? Or had some of his old stuff?” Spikes eyes widened, and he slowly nodded “Well funny story. Hehehe. Turns out I’m part pony and kind of a direct descendant of Starswirl the Bearded. Changed his name to Merlin on my world, not that you would know who that was. Twilight kinda found out. When she did, she fainted. I just put her to bed.” I smirked and decided to see if Spike would help me play a harmless prank. “Hey, wanna help me pull a little prank?”

He looked unsure when he answered, “Um… I guess. As long as nopony gets hurt.”

I grinned, “Cool! And first things first, stop saying anypony and stuff like that. Your not a pony, and neither am I. We should say, anyone or someone. It’s more inclusive to other sentient species like you and I. As for the prank, all I need you to do is act like you already knew that I was a descendant of Starswirl and that it’s no big deal. It will be hilarious, I mean, for us. Rainbow and Pinkie won’t really care, but it will drive Twilight bonkers. If she gets to be too much, just let her know it was a prank and that it was my idea. What do you think, Bud?”

He realized that I had meant him and bumped his fist to mine. “Sure thing, dad. And just so you know, I will probably have to fold after less than a day. You don’t know how she gets with Starswirl yet.”

I chuckled “Don’t worry about it, we can get an hour or so out of the joke before we come clean. It will be…” I stopped when I heard the maniacal laughter, “What the fuck was that?!!!”

Spike and I ran out of the library, Spike having dropped his bag in the hallway. We hit the edge of the trees when we saw a large group of foals run past us screaming. I ran further into the clearing to find Pinkie and Luna at the statue of NigthMare Moon. Luna spat a pair of plastic fangs out and turned to Pinkie, “We are not sure that this went to plan Dear Pinkie?”

Pinkie held up her hand and counted down from five. As the last finger fell, a young teen's voice with a British accent, or a Trottingham here, spoke up “Um… Princess Luna, could you come back again next year and scare us again?”

Luna looked confused, “You mean that you like to be scared is such a manner?”

The colt vigorously nodded and answered, “Yea!!! It’s a lot of fun, scary, but fun.”

Luna grinned. “Then you had best bring tribute to NightMare moon next year as well, Lest she devour you.”

The colt ran off with a gleeful shout. “She said yes, guys! Princess Luna said yes!!! I told you she was the best princesses.”

That got Luna to blush and pump her fist a little, I laughed at the site before she notices me walking up. She quickly brought her fist down to an open hand and left it at her side. “Hey, Luna, Hey Pinks. It looks like you two are having fun.”

They both nodded, Pinkie ran over and gave me a hug “Hey Maggie! Where’s Twilight? I felt a doozy.”

I hugged her back and might have given her a little squeeze on the bottom, that may have earned me a light slap on the chest “She just learned something that blew her mind and had to take a nap.”

Pinkie smirked and licked my nose. I went cross-eyed for a moment, and she continued, “Okidoki then. Wana help Luna and me have some fun at the fair?”

I smiled and nodded. We made our way back to the fair and enjoyed the various games and shows. Luna won a stuffed bat at a spider toss game. I got an inflatable bat for Pinkie at the ring toss. The game was rigged, but I may have cheated a little to win. Okay, I cheated a lot, but if Pinkie noticed she didn’t seem to mind. Luna got more and more into the spirit as the night went on. She was very often caught doing little pranks here and there. At one point, she lept out of the Apple bobbing bucket and scared AJ as she was leaning down to give it a go. AJ ended up sitting on the ground as Luna just sat there leaning against the inside of the bucket, eating a red apple like it was the most normal thing in the world.

As the night ended, Luna approached Pinkie and me. “We must return home, friend Pinkie and Friend Magos. We enjoyed this night verily. We thank you for inviting us.” She gave us both a hug before teleporting away.

I smiled “I’m glad that Celestia convinced her to come. I feel like she needed this.”

Pinkie yawned. “Yep, she sure did. It’s time for this party pony to go to bed.” Leaning up, she kissed my cheek, “Night, Maggie.” I have no idea how but she closed the visor to a helmet that I wasn’t wearing just moments before and disappeared.

I shook my head and just muttered, “Don’t question Pinkie Pie. It’s healthier that way.” I dismissed my helmet and walked home. The Library was empty save the Owl. Twilight must still be asleep, and I bet Spike was as well. I dragged myself down to the basement and collapsed on the bed. I knew that I was going to have an exciting day tomorrow. Have to deal with never-ending questions from Twilight. That should be fun.

Home - Edidted 3/22/20

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The waking world greeted me with a bit of a hangover. Pinkie and Rainbow had convinced me to try some of AJ’s hard cider last night. As I woke up, I noticed that both Pinkie and Rainbow were in my bed, snuggled up to me. I was concerned that we had done something last night that I couldn’t remember, but when I pulled the sheets down, I found all of us still wearing our clothes from last night. I figured that they would likely enjoy some coffee and breakfast, I pulled myself out of bed and made my way upstairs.

As I finished putting some food and the Coffee on the table, Spike stumbled down the stairs, yawning “M-m-morning D-Dad.” His voice broke as he pulled more air in through his yawn.

I smiled at him, glad that he was getting more comfortable with calling me, dad. “Morning Bud. Did you four have fun last night? I spotted Pip near the end of the night.”

Spike cracked his neck and shook his head to wake himself up “yea, it was a lot of fun. I got a massive haul this year. Everypony…I mean, everyone loved my costume.”

I smiled “That’s good to hear. I haven’t seen Sparkles yet, you still good for the joke?”

He seemed confused for all of half a minute, then he remembered. “Oh yeah, totally. This is gonna be great.” He gave me a grin that looked a bit like mine.

I nodded and finished putting things on the table. “Feel free to start eating Bud. Pinkie and Rainbow spent the night, so I’m going to wake them up and tell them food is on the table.” I walked over to the top of the stairs and shouted down, “HEY YOU TWO!!! BREAKFAST IS ON THE TABLE, COME AND GET IT.”

Turning back to the kitchen, I noticed Twilight at the top of the stairs, and she didn’t look happy with me, “Hey Sparkles, did you sleep well?”

Her eyes narrowed for a moment. “This is a library, so please don’t yell.” She finished walking down the stairs, and I approached her.

Walking up, I pulled her into a hug and gave her a kiss, “I’m sorry Twilight. Rainbow and Pinkie crashed here last night. They convinced me to try some of AJ’s cider, and I guess we all passed out. Did you sleep well?”
She seemed to enjoy the kiss and apparently accepted the apology as she let the frown on her face fall away. She was leaning against me before muttering, “I had a bizarre dream last night. I dreamt that you were a decedent of Starswirl the Bearded, and had a bunch of his old stuff.” She chuckled and pulled back from me, “Crazy dream right.”

I shared a laugh with her for a few moments before, with a flash I was back in my armor. “Sure, just a dream. Does that mean that I’m not real then?” Her jaw dropped, and her left eye twitched.

Surprisingly, Pinkie walked out of the kitchen instead of the basement. She walked right up to Twilight and closed her mouth, and gave her a lite peck. “Silly Twilight, ponies eat cupcakes, not flies.” She walked over to me and flicked my nose, making my armor disappear so that she could give me a hug and a kiss. “How are you doing today, handsome?”

I feel like I have done well to ignore Pinkie’s abilities. Still, every so often, she does something that makes me question my sanity. “Yea, I’m doing okay. Guessing you found breakfast already, did you bring Rainbow up, or is she still asleep?”

She giggled and answered, “She is still downstairs. I didn’t want to wake her up with any movement.” She stopped, licked her finger, and held it in the air for a moment before adding, “I think she just woke up, though. I would expect her to be up here in three, two, and one.”

A blue pair of arms wrapped around my neck from behind. “Hey sexy, you know how awesome it is that you can cook.”

I smirked, “I like to think it adds points in my favor. Did you sleep well? Any hangover?”

She winced, “A little bit of one. Likely would have had a bigger one if you didn’t make me drink that water last night. And whatever that pill was.”

I kissed her arm “I have found that taking an aspirin before bed and drinking a lot of water after drinking helps keep the hangover at bay. I’m just glad it worked, let’s go get some food.”

Twilight seemed to still be stopped, so I swept her up into my arms and carried her into the kitchen. After depositing her into a seat, I sat down and started eating. About five minutes into the meal, I guess Twilight had managed to reboot herself before she shouted across the table. “YOU’RE A DECEDENT OF STARSWIRL THE BEARDED, AND YOU DIDN’T TELL ME!!!! YOU EVEN HAVE SOME OF HIS ARTIFACTS!!! HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE?!!!”

I twisted a finger in my ear, trying to get it to pop “A couple of things, one as you said not twenty minutes ago, this is a library. Two, I didn’t know that I was part pony until like a month ago, three. I didn’t know that you were a fan until yesterday, and finally, yes, I do have some artifacts that he left me. If you want to know how it’s possible, well apparently, when he disappeared from here, he made a trip over to my world. Once there, he apparently turned himself into a human and lived out the remainder of his days there under the name Merlin. Obviously, he must have found someone, because I am a decedent of his. But I guess it answers the question as to whether or not I’m compatible with ponies when it comes to having kids, so that’s cool.”

She turned to Spike, who looked like he didn’t really care about the conversation “How can you be so calm about this? This is a huge moment for the magical community as a whole. Besides, you know how much I love Starswirl!” She pouted, and I swear I got hit with diabetes from the cute levels.

I am proud to say that Spike kept a level face when he responded, “Meh, I already knew. I don’t get the big deal. Why does it matter that Dad is related? They aren’t the same person, as for the stuff, its Dad’s, so whatever he does with it is his business.”

Twilight looked like she was about to bust a gasket. “WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU ALREADY KNEW!!!? YOU KNEW, AND YOU DIDN’T TELL ME!!! SPIKE SPARKLE DRAKE, YOU KNOW BETTER THAN TO KEEP THINGS LIKE THIS FROM ME.”

Spike flinched at what was apparently his full name. I held my hand up to stop him before he started, “I guess that we won’t even get an hour out of the joke Bud.” I turned to Twilight “Twilight, Spike didn’t know until last night. So in a way, yes, he already knew. But just because he knew, does not mean that it is fair of you to jump on him for knowing that. I convinced him that it would be a bit of fun if we were to play a little joke on you, and pretend that he knew longer than he did. I didn’t mean anything by it, but I didn’t think you would scream at him about that. I take full responsibility for the joke, so please, don’t take it out on him. If you don’t already have some plans, please feel free to join me down in my room, and we can look at the artifacts together. We can make it a research date day. What do you think?”

I could tell that Twilight was upset about having blown up at the poor kid, but nodded, “Yes, that sounds nice. I just have the normal library duties to do, though.” She turned to Spike “I’m sorry about yelling at you Spike, you know how I can get when it comes to Starswirl, but that is still no excuse for yelling at you like that. Can you forgive me?”

Spike smiled and got up to hug her. “I forgive you, Twilight. I’m just glad that Dad took the heat for it.” He chuckled.

Twilight was happy to return the hug and asked, “So you seem really comfortable calling Magos, dad now? Did something change?”

He blushed and turned away from her, so I answered, “He made me extremely proud last night, and I let him know. Guess that solidified it for him.”

Twilight smiled and pulled Spike a little closer, “You make me proud to Spike.” She kissed his head, and he struggled to pull away, being every little bit his age. No teenage boy wants his mom to kiss him.
The meal ended, and we spent the rest of the morning, putting the library together. Twilight and I spent some time looking over my new book, and she even tried out my focus. The thing was remarkable, Twilight cast a simple teleportation spell that was supposed to take her to the other side of the library. When she came back, she told me that she ended up in the library in Canterlot. I’m not sure what the thing was made of, but damn it packs a punch.

As the day came to an end, Pinkie showed up to talk to Twilight. They went upstairs for close to two hours, and when they came down, Pinkie had a mile-wide grin, and Twilight was blushing up a storm. I’m guessing that they talked about their relationship and if Twilight’s hair had anything to say about it. I would imagine that they spent some time making out. I wish I would have been allowed to watch, but that would make me a creeper. I was getting ready for bed when Twilight knocked on my door. “Hey, Mag. Can I talk to you?”

I smiled and welcomed her in. “Sure, Sparkles, what you want to talk about?”

She shuffled her hooves for a moment before speaking. “Um… well, I was kind of… well, the thing is…”

She was blushing up a storm and had a hard time getting it out. “It’s okay Twilight, what did you want to talk about? I’m not going to judge you negatively, trust me.”

She took a deep breath to calm herself “I was wondering if you wanted to take our relationship to the next level.”

Now Twilight had told me that she had never been in a relationship before, so I wanted to clarify with her before I got my hopes up. “That sounds wonderful, just to be clear, though, what you mean by taking it to the next level?”

She blushed before answering, “well, I… well, could I sleep down here tonight?”

I had kinda figured that she didn’t mean sex, but I was glad that I clarified. “That sounds nice, Sparkles. With as often as Pinkie and Rainbow spend the night, I have to admit that I have grown fond of having someone to cuddle with as I fall asleep.”

She did an adorable little dance, “yesyesyesyesyesyesyes.” She realized what she was doing rather quickly and stopped, “um… I mean, thank you.”

I laughed and pulled her into a hug before pulling her into a kiss, she quickly melted into it. After pulling back I smiled at her “Well then, would you like to hit the sack? I know I’m tired after our all-day study session.” She grinned and hopped on my bed. I laughed at her antics and stripped down to my boxers.

Her face lit up with a blush “W-w-what, are you doing?!”
I gave her a quizzical look, “what? I always sleep in my boxers. It’s more comfortable.” She blushed more, so I added, “Just pretend I’m wearing swimming trunks, it’s not all that different.”

She thought about it for a moment before she realized that I was right. “I-I guess that makes sense.”

I laughed again and got into bed next to her. I leaned over and gave her a peck, “Good night Twilight, may Luna watch over your dreams.” I lay down and felt Twilight cuddle up to me. Overall it was a great day.

__________________________________________________________________

Almost two months have passed since I last updated this, crazy how time has flown by. Rainbow decided that she wanted to spend the day showing me what she does for a living. I sat on a cloud bundled up in a think jacket as I watched her work. She really was amazing as she flew through the air, moving clouds around to cover the ground with a thick layer of snow. I looked down and noticed a tuft of purple hair with an orange coat lying in an alley, just peeking out from under a pile. I muttered to myself, “Scootaloo?” before jumping down from the cloud and landed on my feet.

Walking over to the alley behind Sugar Cube Corner, I was given my answer. Scootaloo was sleeping under a pile of cardboard with a thin jacket on her. I was very concerned, so I rushed over to make her wake up. When I touched her cheek, she was ice cold. Without thinking I scooped her up and rushed her into the shop “PINKIE, WE NEED TO RUN A WARM BATH RIGHT NOW, I JUST FOUND SCOOTALOO HALF FROZEN IN THE ALLEY!” I could swear I heard a sonic boom as a flash of pink shot up the stairs.

I kept Scoot close to me and started to rub her arms, trying to pass my body heat over to her, whispering all the time, “Come on, Scoots, keep it together. I’ll take care of you. Please be okay. Please.” I could feel the tears falling down my cheeks. I can honestly say that I was terrified right now.

Then the most beautiful sound came from the young woman “ugh… M-Magos? W-where am I?”

A chuckle escaped my lips “W-we’re inside Sugar Cube Corner Scoots. I have you. Pinkie is running you a warm bath so we can get you better. You scared me, kid.” I hugged her tightly to my chest “I don’t know what we would do if we lost you.”

She stayed silent as Pinkie walked into the room “I have her bath ready Maggie, give her to me. I’ll make sure she gets warmed up.” I put her in Pinkie’s arms before she could run off, I pulled her into a passionate kiss.

“Thank you, Pinkie, for being you.” I gave her another small peck before she fled. Rainbow burst into the room, looking confused until she saw me. “Hey Skittles, sorry, I ditched you. Something came up and demanded my attention.”

She came over to me and slapped my arm “It had better have been important. I was showing off for no one for like ten minutes without anyone to watch me.” She boasted, but when I didn’t laugh, she looked closer. “Jeeze, did somepony die or something?”

I looked up at her “I just found Scootaloo half-frozen in the alley. W-We almost lost her Skittles. If I hadn’t noticed…”

The joy and color drained from her face. “W-Where is she Magos, where is Scoots?” She looked terrified, and honestly, I couldn’t blame her.
“She is upstairs with Pinkie in a warm bath. I managed to get her to wake up, but… Why was she sleeping in the alley? Doesn’t she have a home?” I was beginning to get mad now that I wasn’t as terrified of losing her. “Where the FUCK! Are her parents. Why was she left alone?!”

Pinkie walked into the dining area with a hopeful look on her face “Scoot is warmed up and sleeping in my bed. I got a message over to the hospital, Nurse Redheart says that she should be here within the hour.”

I shot up and pulled her into a tight hug, then noticing Rainbow standing close, I pulled her in as well. “Thank the gods that we found her. Thank you, Pinks, for acting so quickly. You helped me save her life.” Pinkie clung to me with Rainbow, they both were shaking as we held each other.

Red Heart found us like that when she rushed into the room. “Where is this half-frozen pony I was told about?!”

I pulled away from the group and walked up to her. “This way Nurse, I brought her in from the cold and managed to get her to wake up after rubbing her arms for a bit, after that we put her in a warm bath to bring her core temp back up. Pinkie put her in her bed after warming up to get some real rest. Follow me.”

I guided her up to Pinkie’s room, we found Scoots sleeping. Her head had signs of sweat, and I figured that she might have a fever. Red Heart rushed over and started to examine her, I kept watch as she did so, not wanting to leave Scoots alone with a stranger. “So, what do you think, doc? Please give me something.”

She looked at me for a moment before speaking, “You’re a guard, right?” I nodded, “Good, then I can tell you. She is still rather sick, but she should pull through with the right care. From what I can tell, she is suffering from exposure, but it also looks like she is rather malnourished. I also found several bruises that seem fresh and a few that are older but have healed. A lot of this points to neglect and abuse. I know Scootaloo, she and the other fillies in her group come into the clinic sometimes with scraps and cuts from them playing around, but… These aren’t the kind of injuries that are caused by being rough. It looks like somepony had been hitting her.”

I felt the rage grow inside me. I could see the hair that was hanging in front of my face shift from blonde to black, I haven’t been this mad since the trial with AJ’s parents. In a voice that was so calm, it was unnerving, “Do you have Scootaloo’s home address?”

Red Heart looked terrified. “Y-yes. It’s back at the clinic. A-are you okay?”

I responded, still with an even and neutral tone, “Good, if you would be so kind as to go fetch it, I have to make a quick trip, but will be right back.” I teleported to the front of Golden Oaks. I entered the library and walked down to my room. I made my way down to my room and grabbed my focus. After summoning my armor, I started to charge my magic, fully intending on teleporting to the throne room.

Spike entered my room just before I left, he seemed upset “Um…dad, is everything okay?”

I looked over at him, my eyes now black holes “I need to take a trip to Canterlot really quick. I have some Offical business to conduct with Their Majesties, I’ll be back soon.” He still looked scared, so I added “Don’t worry Spike, I’ll be back soon. Take care of Twilight while I’m out. I love you.” I shifted away and appeared right in the middle of the throne room.

I must have interrupted day court because a Mare screamed. I ignored the scared mare and walked slowly to the base of the platform that Celestia’s throne sat on. Taking a knee and bowing my head, I spoke, “My most humble apologies for my sudden and unannounced arrival Princess. I have had a rather…upsetting, bit of news for you. Its importance explains my sudden arrival.”

I don’t really think that Celestia minded much, but the noble in the room started to make a ruckus. “Princess, why must you let this thing interrupt us. We have essential business to discuss. Can’t you make it wait outside until we are finished!?”

I turned my black eyes to the offender. “Unless your business dealing involves a literal life or death situation, I suggest that you leave. Now! I am here to plead the case of a very sick filly that has been abused by her own parents.”

The stuck-up noble had the nerve to scoff “Oh please, the fate of some present has no real bearing…”

I imagine that he wanted to say more, but it was somewhat tricky with my right hand, gripping his windpipe. “You will be silent filth, or has it been so long without a knight in the land that you have forgotten what my position means. If I think it to be just, I could have you stripped of your power and wealth, your lands revoked, your holding burned. The only authority that I recognize at this time is of the Goddesses that share that throne.” I threw him back, and he fell to the floor “Now I suggest that you follow my advice, and get out.”

He looked like he wanted to say something, but chose the wise path and fled, closely followed by the other nobles. I returned to my kneeling position in front of Celestia, “I beg your forgiveness, Princess, but he was foolish to challenge me when I am this angry.”

I didn’t expect her to giggle, but that is what she did. “I must thank you, Sir Magos. But can we please drop the titles? I grow tired of them and would love to speak to my friend. Now, what was that about an abused filly?”

I took a deep breath to calm myself. “Scootaloo, the adopted sister of Rainbow Dash, is currently asleep in Pinkie’s bed. I found her half-frozen sleeping in an alley this morning, close to death. I don’t know why she was there, but when the nurse looked her over, she found signs of abuse. Scoots is apparently severely malnourished and has signs that she had been beaten. I have no idea where her parents are, but I was not going to trust myself to arrest them by myself. I don’t think there would be much left of them if I did.”

She narrowed her eyes “this is a serious charge Magos, I take the wellbeing of the foals of Equestria very seriously. If what you say is true, I’m not sure your version of justice is out of the question. Do you know where the Ponies in question are?”

I shook my head “I don’t Celestia, Nurse Red Heart went back to the clinic to grab the information. I grabbed my focus and came here as soon as I could. She is likely back at Pinkie’s place already.”

Celestia nodded, “Then we must make haste.” She turned to her assistant, “Raven, please tell Luna that I had to make an emergency trip to Ponyville.”

I looked at the mare in confusion. “Where is mom? I thought she was your assistant now?”

Celestia grinned “She had some business to take care of today. She is a goddess, after all. She can’t abandon all of her duties to stay here.”

I shrugged, “Guess that makes sense. Let’s go.”

I was about to shift back to Ponyville when Celestia put her hand on my shoulder “Let me take us, it’s been a while since the last time I was able to use my own magic. I need to keep my practice up.”

Her teleports were strange, it didn’t feel like we had teleported, we were just… there. I looked around for a moment before a pink, blue, and purple blur hit me. All speaking at once “Mag, what happened, why is Princess Celestia here. What is going to happen to Scoots?!”

I hugged them all “Shhhh. It’s okay. I brought Celestia here to help with the situation.” Turning to Red Heart, “Did you bring the information with you?” she nodded, “Good. Thank you for being so quick.”

Celestia put her hand on my shoulder. “Before we go charging off Magos, I need to check something with young Scootaloo.”

I shrugged and added, “Not sure if you are going to get anything out of her. Last I saw she was passed out with a fever.”

Celestia nodded, “I understand that Magos, I am going to scan her memories of the last 48 hours to see if I can get proof of the abuse. Also, Nurse Redheart, I will need to get your statement as well.”

Taking Nurse Redheart up the stairs, Celestia disappeared. I collapsed into the nearest chair. My head in my hands, I started to mutter to myself. “If I hadn’t noticed her if we had taken even another twenty minutes in the shower this morning.”

The smell of lavender and ink broke my train of thought. Twilight had managed to put herself right next to me in the chair without me noticing, so lost in my own mind, I didn’t even notice her pressed against me. She lifted my head to look at her “It’s okay Magos, you can’t keep thinking about the ‘what if’s,’ yes, what happened is terrible, yes, if you hadn’t noticed her, she might be gone. But none of that matters right now. What matters is that you didn’t take too long this morning, you did notice her, and you did save her. Today you are the biggest hero in Equestria, and I know that all three of us are happy to have claimed to your heart.”

Twilight has never been a bold mare, she usually is very timid and nervous. She has gained a lot of confidence recently with her training. Adding a little toning to your body will do that for you. But at this moment, Twilight apparently decided to be bold. Pulling my head forward, she crushed her lips into mine, then pressed her tongue to my lips. My mind emptied in moments, my worries about what was happening, what could have happened, fled. The entire world disappeared into that kiss.

Twilights tongue was wider than mine, longer too. They coiled around each other as she tried to hold her nerve, but after a few moments, I managed to press back and push my tongue into her mouth. I pressed it into her flat teeth, I have to admit that this is the strangest part of kissing one of my girls. It feels almost like they have molars for every tooth, the front ones were a little bit thinner, but they were still much thicker than mine. After I’m not sure how long, Rainbow patted me on the shoulder. I pulled back from the kiss, breathing hard. “Thanks, Sparkles, I really needed that.” I turned to Rainbow and started to speak before turning the full way around “you want your turn Sk…”

Redheart and Celestia stood there with bright red faces, I turned to look back at Twilight, only to just see her cherry-red face, right as she teleported away. My arms now empty, fell to my side as I turned to Celestia “um… well…” I coughed

Celestia cleared her throat “Well, I have confirmed the suspicions, dear Scootaloo has suffered from emotional, mental and physical abuse.” My eyes drilled into Celestia’s, trying to convey that I hoped that, bad as it was, that it didn’t go further. She must have understood, “That was the extent. She was untouched in other ways.”

I let out a breath that I didn’t know I had started to hold “Thank the gods. Do we know where her parents are?”

Celestia’s eyes turned down, “Parent, I’m afraid. It would appear that Scootaloo’s Mother passed away some time ago. During her foaling, actually. She died to give Scootaloo life.” My heart broke hearing that, but it got worse. “From the memories that I scanned. It would appear that her father has blamed her for the loss of his wife. It would appear that Dear Scootaloo looks quite a bit like her mother, and he banished her from home last night.”

The rage that Twilight had managed to calm started to kindle again. My voice grew flat once more, “Shall we apprehend the filth, Celestia?”

Her eyes took a hard edge as she looked at me. “Calm yourself, Sir Knight, he will be punished by the courts. You have already gone above and beyond the call of duty this day. I need you to keep a level head as we take care of this.”

I took a deep breath to center myself once more “I’m better. Sorry, Celestia. I just really care about Scoots. I feel responsible for her, no one should have to go through something like that. I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy, let alone a poor little girl. She’s just… I just... I don’t even know how to say what I’m feeling right now. I just want to see her happy. She deserves that, now that I know what she has been facing, I can say that she deserves it more than most.”

A spark lit in Celestia’s eye, the flash of a plan. “I will hold you to that, Magos.”

The next thing I knew, we were standing in front of what looked like a lovely home. The paint was fresh, the snow was pushed. Everything viewed from the outside to be a beautiful place to live. But I knew the truth. Celestia nodded toward the door. We strode up, and I pounded on it. When it opened, a blearily eyed stallion stood there. He had Scoot’s eyes, though his were bloodshot at the moment. They also shared the same mane color. His fur was blue, though.

He took a moment to look at me, then turned his head to Celestia. I noticed his grip on the door tighten, then the tale tells twitch of him going to slam the door as if something like that was going to stop a very pissed off demigod, let alone a full-blown goddess. Before he was able to move the door more than six inches, I had put my fist into his gut. He doubled over, the air knocked from his lungs. “Resisting arrest before we even tell you what we are here about looks mighty suspicious fucker. So before you manage to stick your hoof in your mouth, or make me put my fist there too. Just know that you don’t have murder listed in the charges against you. I managed to find her before that happened.” I leaned down next to his ear before whispering, “But know this, I will make sure that you suffer for what you have done to that sweet little filly. The only good thing that you have ever done for her was to provide the sperm that went into her creation. I will make it my personal goal to see you swing for this. It is the very least that I owe her.”

His eyes widened as the panic set in. I realized that the saying that I used wasn’t something that was said here. He likely thought that I was going to push for the death penalty by hanging. But I wasn’t going to let him know that I just meant that I wanted to see him convicted. After hyperventilating for a moment, he just passed out like a bitch. I heard Celestia sigh, “Must you frighten my ponies like that.”

“Don’t tell me this fucker doesn’t deserve it.” She shook her head, so I shrugged, “So...to the dungeon with his sorry ass?” She snapped her finger and poof he was gone. “Cool beans.”

She shook her head again. “Now that this is taken care of, I’m afraid that we still have the issue of what to do with Dear Scootaloo. She can’t live here by herself, I hate to do it, but it would appear that I have to involve foal services.”

When I heard her say that, my mind flipped back. It had been years since I had thought about my childhood. Those few good years with my father, his face and voice now something familiar, now that I had those gifts from my mother. Replaced by the faceless people that took me away. They left me in the big place, filled with crying children. A prison for abandoned children. I had endured years there, every day wishing that my unknown mother would rescue me. That one day, I could have a home again. For me, that day never came. I was taken to a new place two years later. This time to a camp. Where I spent the next ten years, training for a war that we never knew was coming.

I realized that my mind was already made up before I came here. “We can’t do that to her. Her entire life is here, Celestia. Her friends, her school. Everything that she has ever known.”

Celestia looked at me “I understand that you didn’t have a nice childhood Magos. But I promise you that she won’t be neglected again.”

I couldn’t hold it back “You’re damn right it won’t happen again. Because I’m going to take care of her. Even if I have to build her a home with my own two hands. I can’t ask her to come back here, to this house. And I don’t want anything to do with it. But I will make sure that she doesn’t have to lose what little she has left here!”

If there was a man on the moon at this point in time. Even he could have seen the smug grin on her face. “Very well, Magos, I name you as her guardian. I believe that she just woke up, and it would appear that your dear mother is spending a little time with her as well. Shall we return?”

I didn’t question how she knew that Scoots was awake, nor how she knew my mom was there. That is the kind of thing that you just have to roll with when dealing with gods. “Yes, please.” We shifted back to Sugar Cube Corner, I noticed that the girls must have convinced Twilight to come back. Scoots looked much better. She was awake and active. Almost as if she was completely healed. I looked at my mother, and she smiled at me. Walking forward, I pulled her into a tight hug, “Thank you, mom. She deserves every bit of happiness she can get right now. Not having to be sick… Just thanks.”

Mom hugged me back and patted my head. “If you are going to be looking after her, I wanted to make sure that it started off on the right foot. I haven’t told her yet.”

I mouthed ‘thank you’ again. Scoots was talking animatedly with Rainbow. I walked up behind her and crouched down to her level before tapping her shoulder, she turned around. When she saw me, I could see the tears start to form. I could tell from the way that she looked at me that she understood how close she had been. I pulled forward, and she wrapped her arms around me, trying to hide her tears. I held her close “shhh shhh shhh, it’s okay. You never have to go back there. He’s gone, and he can never hurt you again.” I pulled back and looked her in the face “You can’t live alone though, you’re too young still.” she looked like she was going to start panicking. Apparently, she realized what was supposed to happen, I shut it down before she could let it go that far. “If you want to, I have volunteered to take care of you. You will stay here in Ponyville with your friends, all your classmates. But it has to be your choice.”

She was in a bit of disbelief “Y-you mean that I won’t have to go away? Y-you, want me?”

This poor sweet filly had been through so much, she lost her mother before she had a chance to get to know her, she had only know neglect and hatred from her father. And just recently had she managed to make some friends. “Yes, Scoots. I want you. But most of all, I want you to be happy. I can’t say that I know what you went through. But I know what it is like to be in the system. I don’t want that for you. You have friends here, a life, and I want to see you keep those things. So again, I say, yes, I want you to stay here, and I would love to be the one that takes care of you. You’ve come to grow on me squirt. So what do you say?”

Her answer was to pull me into another hug. Twilight walked up next to me, placing her hand on my shoulder “where are we going to put her? Spike took the only extra room that we had left.” I felt Scoots grip tighten.

I put my hand on Twilight’s “She can take my room. I’ll just move my trunk into a closet on the main floor. I spent years sleeping on a cot, And I have a bed down there anyway. I don’t mind doing it for a while until I can get a house.”

I heard a cough from behind me. “That is where I come in, dear.”

I looked at my mother with a raised eyebrow. “What is that suppo…”

Before I could finish my thought, we were in a clearing in the White Tail Woods. Not far from the town, but still removed. In the middle of the clearing stood a small shack. Modest, almost like one of those tiny homes from tv. “...ed to mean? Is that a tiny home? Mom, I don’t think that is going to work. I could deal with that, but what about Scootaloo? Girls her age need privacy, at the very least, her own room.”

She looked offended. “As if I would let my new grandbaby sleep in the same room as the lout of a son that I have. Did you forget who I am?” She strode forward and threw open the door on the tiny abode. The interior was massive. “It is only small on the outside. You are not the only one that has had the idea of making a place larger on the inside.” She looked to lose herself in memory for a moment as she muttered, “I still don’t know how that man fit a star in his.”

I must have misheard her, but I was still blown away by the size of the entryway. “Mom, this is massive. How big is this place?”

She pulled herself out of her memory. “Well, there are a total of 11 rooms, not counting the master suite, and a nursery. Then you have the dining hall, the training hall, and the swimming pool.”

I gave her a stern look, “I could swear that I just heard you say nursery.”

She waved her hand. “Of course, there is. You are a healthy young man with three beautiful Mares. A mother can dream of more grandchildren, can’t she.”

I looked back at Rainbow, who was looking at anything but us, her face tinged red. Pinkie was being...well, she was being Pinkie. And Twilight was doing her best Fluttershy Impression while hiding behind her hair. Mom provided to give us a tour of the house. We still had a few rooms left when we stepped up to a room with a purple door. A nameplate was hanging on the back ‘Scootaloo.’ The filly in question looked back at us, excitement in her eyes. She looked up at us and asked: “Can I?”

I shrugged, “Go for it. I have no idea what is in there for you. This place is a surprise to me as well.” She grinned and bolted into the room.

Entering in after her, if found her standing in the center. Her eyes filled with awe. Along one wall was a workbench on it, tools, and replacement parts for a scooter. A brand new one sat folded on top with a ribbon. Next to it were a set of little skis that could be put on in place of wheels. Along another wall were posters of Wonderbolts, each showing some kind of aerial stunt. The light blue walls worked well with the decor. In the corner opposite the workbench was a sitting area with a table. There were a couple of chairs. The large bed stood apart from the rest of the room. The bedding depicted the Wonderbolts logo.

Scoots turned back to my mother and ran at her. “Thank you, thank you, thank you. This is the best room ever.”

We left her there to look around a bit more. Down the hall to the other side was a green door with Spike’s name on it. I raised my eyebrow at her, and she shrugged, “I have a feeling that you will have Spike over quite a bit. Besides, it’s not healthy to have to live so close to work. Why do you think Celestia’s castle is so large? It has more to do with keeping her personal life away from the duties of ruling a country. Than looking imposing.”

I thought about it for a moment before shrugging “I guess that makes sense, but I don’t see Twilight and Spike wanting to walk that far every day to go to work. And that is saying that they would want to live with me.”

She smiled “It’s there for him if he wants it. Besides, I would love to get to know my new grandson as well. He does call you dad, doesn’t he.”

I laughed, “Yeah, I guess he does now. Bet that is going to be weird for him. Calls a demigod dad, and his grandma is a goddess. Talk about playground bragging rights.”

We made it to the end of the hallway to find a set of massive double doors. Mom pressed them open to reveal the master suites. At least the sitting room of them. There was a pair of overstuffed couches facing each other. The dark upholstery made it look like leather. I ran my hand across it to find that it was just cloth. That was good, didn’t want to have to explain that to the girls. They still had an issue with my trophies.

The walls were filled with bookshelves. The shelves themselves were only half full at this point, my finger traced across the spines. Many of them were old stories of the heroes of the past. All of the classical epics. They also had almost every one of my personal favorites as well. My mother spoke, “I left room for Twilight and the others. Although I expect that they will not add quite as much as she will.”

I chuckled, “I bet you’re right about that. Sparkles loves her books.”

From the corner of my eye, I could see her blush. Next came the master bedroom. The bed here was massive. Like, could comfortably fit Twilight, Pinkie, Rainbow, and me with plenty of room left over to stretch out in. At least two more full-grown people could fit in that bed. Scoot must have caught up with us because she spoke out, “Wow! That bed is huge.”

We all looked at her, and I responded, “It sure is. Makes me wonder if my mom is scheming.”

She had a fake look of hurt on her face. “Why I never, scheming. As if I would do anything like that.”

I gave her a deadpan stare. “Yes. of course, because there has never been a Greek god that schemed.” My face broke into a smile, and I pulled her into a hug “Thank you for his mom. You really didn’t have to.”

I leaned into the hug, “Yes, I did. You deserve a place to call home every bit as much as that little filly does. Think of it as back pay for twenty years of missed birthdays and holidays. I want you to be happy, Magos. And if I can achieve that even a little with this small gift. Then it is worth it.”

She pulled back before pulling mine and Scoots hands into her’s “Welcome home.”

DragonShy pt 1 - Edited 3/22/20

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Dragon Shy Pt 1

Canterlot Castle, Dining room
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Hecate, Celestia, and Luna sat at the dinner table, the day finally has come to a close, and they were each enjoying a favorite dish. Celestia enjoyed a rose and Strawberry salad, Luna enjoyed her lily and eggplant carbonara, and Hecate enjoyed her meal of Meat sauce lasagna. The two Pony goddesses didn’t seem fazed by her choice, though the attending servants were a bit nervous. Hecate spoke first “So, my son has taken it upon himself to look after the young filly. What do you think of his choice Celestia?”

Calmly finishing her bite, Celestia patted her lips to remove any leftover dressing. “I worry that he does not know what he is getting himself into. Raising a child can be a difficult task. Though it has been many centuries since my last child. I recognize that Magos has the capabilities to be an excellent father, though.” Her eyes glided around the room, passing over Hecate and landing on Luna for just a mere moment, the unspoken agreement moving between them.

This was not missed by Hecate. “My my, are you saying that because you want him to be a good father figure for little Scootaloo? Or are you saying it because you think you found a new consort?”

Both Luna and Celestia blushed for a moment before Celestia turned to Hecate. “I have no idea what you mean. I simply wish to point out that as long as he has his friends and mares to assist him, I do not see any trouble with him being a father.”

Luna muttered, “I wish him to assist with something else.”

Celestia whipped her head to her younger sister, but it was too late. Hecate had already heard, “So you do wish to collect my little Magos. I shall have to put together interview questions for you and the other three. I have to say that he must get his magnetism from his father. If I hadn’t made my move first, he would likely have been Persephone’s son, While his father, Klaus was a wonderful magician, he was also a lover of nature. He never knew, but the woman that he purchased his cannabis from was just Persephone in disguise. I am happy to say that I got the pleasure of having his child.” Hecate’s eyes began to mist as she thought of the man. He had been strong but gentle. She truly missed him, the way that he would laugh, the tone that he would talk to Magos in.

Celestia placed a hand on her arm “I guess you caught us. Luna and I have been alone for a very long time. Unlike Olympus, here, we have taken many mortal husbands and wives. We love them to the end of their days, right to the point where they must go to the underworld. It is never easy.” She lost herself in thought for a moment before whispering, “If only they could have found their way to ascension.”

Celestia pulled away and instead chose to lean against her sister. “You should be proud of your children, Lulu. Midnight Breeze lead the Thestrals for many years and had many children. In fact, I would not be surprised if every one of your guards would be able to trace themselves back to her. She certainly shared your love of making a life.” Celestia giggled at her little joke.

Luna leaned her head against her sister, hiding her blushing face “We-I… Thank you, sister. I am happy to know that she lived a full life. Even if my own blunder caused me to miss it.”

Celestia hugged her “Please stop blaming yourself for that, dear Lulu. We can’t change what happened, all we can do now is press forward.”

Hecate had been quiet for this exchange, but once it was over, she asked: “Um… not to derail the topic, but what did you say about ascending?”

They both turned to her before answering, “We were not born as goddesses Hecate. We technically are not sisters.” Celestia clarified, “I was born as an Earth Pony,” and Luna added, “And I was born as a Unicorn.”

Hecate was confused “What do you mean? Did someone give you your godhood then?”

Celestia giggled “You could technically say that our godly parent was Mother Foust. She was the composer of this place. Though she left many eons ago. Neither Lulu or I have met her in person before, but she has sent communications in the past. Though it has been over three thousand years since the last time we got one. As for the ascension part, Luna and I managed to end a millennia-long feud between our two clans, and started the first pact between the three races. It was apparently a large enough goal that triggered us to ascend to godhood.”

Hecate was speechless, so Luna continued, “it would appear that this world is still very new, compared to yours. Our pantheon is quite sparse as of yet. We currently have a goddess of the Day, sun, growth, and battle.” she pointed to Celestia, “A goddess of the night, dreams, moon, and art.” She gestured to her self, “And Celestia has told me that we have a new goddess of Love, marriage, fertility, and kindness in our new niece Cadence. Her ascension was linked to defeating a mare that was using dark methods to enslave our ponies through corrupted love.”

Thinking for a moment, Hecate asked, “That truly is a small pantheon. To think that this world is that new,” an Idea/joke sparked, “you wouldn’t need a goddess of magic, would you?”

Celestia brought her hand up to her mouth to cover her giggle “I am afraid that I have a mare in mind for that position, provided my plans work out well. But that should not happen for a few years yet.”

Hecate thought about this for a few minutes as they finished their meal. This realm was very different than hers, here the gods interacted freely with their mortal charges. This was likely due to this world being so much smaller than her own. It genuinely was a smaller planet, She realized that there was just as much magic here as there was back on earth, only more densely packed into less space. It was unsurprising that Magos was stronger here than back on earth. Still, at her core, she knew that she would never be able to abandon her world for this one, not unless she could find a replacement.

Rather than dwell on things that she was unable to change, she instead decided to question the sisters, “So, Luna. What is it that attracted you to my little boy?” Luna looked annoyed at her question. So Hecate clarified. “I just want to know, what grand feet has he accomplished to attract the attention of a goddess, you and I both know that you could have anyone at all in this world, so why Magos?”

Luna took a deep breath before answering. “I cannot clarify it, as you now know, I was once banished for a millennium because of my jealousy and my greed. Since my return, it has been… difficult to reconnect with the ponies of this time. Many of them fear me. But Magos didn’t even flinch when he met me. He showed a measure of respect for what I am, he has always been kind.” Her ears tinged red as she recalled that night on the hill. “I think that what sealed it for me was that night on the hill.”

Hecate’s eyebrow rose, “Night on the hill?”

Luna smiled as she remembered back to that night. “I notice his mind his left my realm of dreams, I admit that he has a curiosity about him, he always has, from the moment that we… I mean, from the moment that I met him, there had been a bit of attraction. He is very pleasing to the eye. I found him on a hill overlooking Ponyville. He had a strange device on his lap, it sounded like a piano, but it was far too small to be one. When I found him, he was playing a piece that was filled with sorrow. I felt my very heart crack with the raw emotion of pain that he was showing as he played it. As he finished, he had somehow noticed that was there.”

As his mother, Hecate felt her heartbreak, she knew that this must have been before they had made up. The pain that he had felt was caused by her. The shame was almost too much. Then Luna continued, “He apologized for letting such sorrow taint my night.” Celestia and Hecate shared a taken aback look at this “He then decided to play a new song for me. He called it Clair de Lune, it was one of the most beautiful songs I have ever heard. He said it was a song that was composed for the majesty of the night. That it was only fair that he share it with one, it could have been composed for. Were that not enough, he asked if I ever thought that I would be able to create a night that would compare to the beauty of its creator. I have been around for a long time, I have heard every compliment that any mare could ever dream of hearing. But I do not think I have ever heard a single being speak such a compliment with such sincerity, with such open honesty. I think at that moment, I had decided if he has room enough in his heart for me, I wanted to be a part of his life.”

Tears had begun to form in both Celestia and Hecate’s eyes. Celestia rose and pulled Luna into a hug. Gently stroking her hair, she turned to Hecate, “This is why I wish to be a part of his life. He makes Luna happy with his honesty, he makes me happy with his steadfastness. He has sworn on the River Styx to serve us to the best of his abilities to keep my ponies safe, even the cost of himself. Truly he is one of a kind. I would be remiss to lose out on such a man. And I would be lying if I said that I have not dreamt of children again now that Luna has returned to me. I long to hear them running through the halls, laughing and playing together.”

Hecate smiled “It does my heart good to hear this, Magos is my wonderful son, I only wish that all of my children could come here so that I might be able to give them each this kind of attention. We will have to see if he has room enough in his heart for you both. But something tells me it won’t be an issue. He has always had a heart filled with love, and it has only grown since coming here.”

The three of them returned to their meal. Unaware of the dire message that was about to change their lives.

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Perspective shift - Magos’ house
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Scootaloo walked through the halls still half asleep. She wasn’t sure where the kitchen was from her room. Here it was a week later and she was still having issues finding her way around. She was beginning to get a little worried about not finding it when she heard the familiar raspy voice of Rainbow Dash call out to her.

“Hey, squirt! You seen Mag this morning? He was gone when I woke up.”

Shaking her head, Scootaloo responded, “I haven’t seen him today yet Rainbow Dash, I was… Kinda lost. This place is huge.” She dropped her head with a light bit of shame.

Rainbow walked over to her, quickly looking around to make sure nopony saw her she pulled Scootaloo into a light hug. “It’s okay squirt, I bet Mag is going to get lost here a few times too before he gets used to the layout.”

As she was comforting Scootaloo, the sound of aggressive music started to play. She couldn’t place the instrument that was being played, but it sounded almost creepy at times.

https://youtu.be/gHbwAd5gkMM?t=37

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Perspective shift - Magos
___________________________________________________

I bobbed my head along to the music. I loved these guys and the unorthodox way that they played their music. I stepped over to the skillet to flip another chocolate chip pancake. Next to the counter sat a small altar with a lit flame, the smoking remains of my offering sitting within. I smiled as I looked at it, I now knew that my mother cared, it made it all the easier to give her an offering, and this way it was like she was here for breakfast.

I flipped the last pancake onto the large plate with the rest of the ones already prepared. I turned to see Skittles and Scoots standing in the doorway with curious looks on their faces. “Morning, you two, have you seen Pinks, Sparkles, or Spike this morning?”

The answer to my question came in the form of a pair of pink arms wrapping around my neck from behind. And a kiss on my neck. “I’m right here, Maggie.”

Rainbow and Scoots looked just as confused as I felt. I didn’t hear her enter the room, nor did I see or feel her come. She just was. “Morning Pinks, uh… when did you get here?”

She giggled and replied, “Just now. I smell pancakes.” She pulled my head down for a kiss that left me gasping.

After my head cleared a bit. I realized that she had made off with some of the pancakes on a plate of her own. Muttering to myself, “Don’t question it Magos, Just don’t question it. You’ll live longer.” Shaking my head, I looked back over at Skittles and Scoots, “Well, let’s get started. Sparkles and Spike will get up when they get up. I will make some fresh for them.”

They shrugged and made their way to the table. As we sat down to enjoy our meal, we were interrupted by Sparkles shouting, “THE PRINCESSES WANT US TO DO WHAT!!!” We all shared a look as we waited for Sparkles to come down the stairs.

Running down the stairs, her hair in a mess, and her loose sleeping shirt slipping off her left shoulder, she addressed us. “We need to call all the girls here, I have an urgent message from the Princesses.” Turning her head to Pinks, Sparkles asked, “Pinkie! Can you get Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy over here? We need to have an emergency meeting.”

Pinkie responds by scarfing down what remained on her plate in a single mouthful, which was somewhat disturbing, considering that her plate still had quite a bit of food on it. After finishing her meal, she darted into the pantry. Raising an eyebrow, I walked over and looked inside. I found nothing but food. Slowly stepping back, I muttered to myself, “Don’t question it, Mag, Don’t question it.” I was still a little freaked out when Sparkles rushed over to me and pulled me into a hug while she was trembling.

Skittles picked up on her anxiety and came over to hug her from behind, trapping her between us in a hugging sandwich. “It’s okay, Twi. We’re here for you, what are the princesses asking us to do?”

Sparkles shook her head “I would rather wait until everyone is here first. I don’t want to have to repeat myself. It’s going to be hard enough talking about it once.”

After giving her a kiss on the forehead, I spoke, “That’s fine, Sparkles. Do you want anything to eat while we wait for the girls to get here?”

She nodded and sat down at the table. Putting a few pancakes on a plate for her. I walked back and sat them on the table in front of her. “Eat up; I made plenty.” She strained a smile, and I realized that it must be something difficult if Sparkles was faking smiles. “It’ll be okay. I’m sure that the Princesses wouldn’t give us a task that was too difficult for us. I mean, they are goddesses, I’m sure that they know how to judge someone’s abilities.”

That seemed to calm her down a bit as she finished up her meal. After eating and putting the dishes away, we moved to the front sitting room as we waited for the rest of the group to get here. After around half an hour from the time that Pinkie left, they all arrived. Sparkles stood and addressed us as a group. “As I can imagine, you are curious as to why you have been called here. I received word this morning from the princesses that a dragon has taken residence in a cave in the mountains to the north of Ponyville. This is concerning because the dragon has begun its century-long nap, and it’s snoring.” The girls shared a confused look with each other.

Skittles spoke up, “Um… What does that mean for us then?”

Taking a steadying breath, Sparkles continued, “The issue is that it’s causing a huge amount of toxic smoke to pour out of the cave. If left unchecked, it will cover all of Equestria in it. Blocking out the sun and killing our crops. This needs to be dealt with before it goes on too long, and the dragon enters the deepest reaches of its sleep. If left unchecked for too long, it will be impossible to move it later or even wake it up. We have to go as soon as we can to try to convince the dragon to wake up and move.” Her Eyes locked on Butters “Fluttershy, you will be our best help against the dragon. Your ability to talk to animals will be a huge help here.”

I coughed, “Um… Sparkles, Dragons aren’t animals. They are sentient, and I really wouldn’t call a dragon an animal. You know, considering that your son is a dragon.”

Twilight paled slightly and looked at Spike. “Oh, Spike; I didn’t mean it like that, I… I wasn’t thinking. I guess… I guess it just slipped my mind that you are a dragon.”

He was trying to hide it, but I could tell that it was bothering him. “It’s okay, Twi, I get it. I don’t act like a dragon right.” He stood up and left the room. Sparkles moved to go after him when I held up my hand.

“Don’t worry about it, Sparkles; I will go talk to him. Keep briefing the rest of the girls. I will take care of Spike.”

She gave me a nervous smile “I didn’t mean anything by it. I just see him as… well, I just see my little boy.”

I kissed her head and hugged her, “I know Sparkles, I know. I will go smooth things over with him. Just let the girls know what we need to do. You can give me the rundown when they leave to go get their stuff.” She gave me a weak smile and ran to grab her things. I followed Spike to his room. He sat here and looked around at the room and everything that had been placed in it by my mother.

“Hey Sike, how you feeling?”

He scoffed at me, little shit is getting an attitude. Teenagers, what are you gonna do. “How do you think I’m feeling. My mom basically just called me a wild animal. I’m pretty pissed off.”

I sighed, “You know that she didn’t mean it like that bud. I doubt she even thought about the fact that you’re a dragon until after she said it. Just like I am guessing that she forgets that I’m human. All she sees are two people that she cares about. She didn’t mean to be rude. It was an accident. I know that your mother loves you. And you are right, you don’t act like any dragon that I have heard of here. You use your mind to improve yourself. You grow, you change, and you move forward. Most of the dragons that I have heard of here don’t care about anything but their own hoards. You love your family, you love your mom, and you love your friends. I don’t really know how you see it, but to me, you are far more than any dragon that has come before you. You are better.”

Spike silently got up and walked over to me. He wrapped his arms around my waist and pressed his muzzle into my chest. “Thanks, dad… please promise me to be safe. I’ve never had a real dad before… I don’t want to lose you.”

I pulled him close, “I can’t promise that I won’t get hurt Spike, I don’t know what is going to happen when we get there. I’m going to try my best to be safe and come home to you and Scoots. But I might lose, I might get hurt. But I need you to know this.” I pulled back and hunched down, now bringing myself to his eye level. “I will try my very best to come back to you bud, I will always give it my all to come home to our family, Pinkie, Rainbow, Twilight, Scoots and you. All of you are the most important things in my life right now, I can’t tell you what the future holds, But I can always promise that I will give it my all to come home.” I pulled him into another hug. “Now, can you come down and send us off with a smile?”

Spike nodded and followed me downstairs. The girls had already gathered a bunch of things together for the journey. The mountain in question was only a few hours away by walking. We would be able to get to the top without issue by the end of the day, but we would have to camp on our way back. Rarity was in an argument with AJ about the number of bags that she was trying to bring. “Now Applejack, I understand that you may not need as much, but a lady simply can’t be expected to go out into the wild without her necessities. I need these things.”

AJ rolled her eyes “Rares, we are only going to be gone for two days, and besides. We are going to be hiking up the side of a mountain, and I already know that you can’t carry those bags up one by yourself. And I bet that no one is going to offer to carry them for you.”

She scoffed, “Oh please, AppleJack, as if our knight in shining armor is going to make a lady carry her luggage.”

I walked up behind her, “I’m not wearing my armor right now, and there is no way in Tartarus that I’m lugging all that crap up a mountain.” I gave her a hard look, not letting her puppy dog eyes work on me. “You can bring a single backpack with two changes of clothes in case one gets wet with trail rations, I have a tent for all of us to use. And you will be carrying everything that you bring. I am not a pack mule, and I refuse to be treated like one.” I wasn’t going to tell her that my tent had an expansion spell on it, nor would I tell her that it had a full bathroom in it until after we had left and were ready to camp for the night. Gods above, I loved magic. I got this idea from Harry Potter.

After spending the next twenty minutes arguing with her about what was necessary for the trip, I managed to get her down to the single backpack. She wasn’t happy about it, as I wouldn’t let her bring any of her makeup. She was going to be borrowing a few of AJ’s flannel shirts and wool socks. I had to argue with her that she would be thankful for the clothing style the further up the mountain that we climbed. Fluttershy was another challenge.

Turning to the butter-yellow pegasus. “Hey, Butters, you ready to go?” She looked like she had completely shut down. I could tell that she was terrified. Walking over to her and placing my hands on her shoulders. “Are you going to be okay with coming, Butters? I have a feeling that you will do great on this. And if the Princesses asked you to go, then I bet that something will happen that only you can help solve.” I pulled her into a hug. She was still shivering, so I placed my hand on the back of her head “Shhhh. It will be okay, Butters. We will keep you safe. It will be okay.”

She shivered, “How can you promise that? This is a full-grown dragon. They’re big mean, fire-breathing, meat-eating, pony killing monsters.”

Sighing, I pulled her head up. “We just discussed this. We can’t judge all of them based on the actions of a few. What would Spike say if he heard you say that? It would crush him.”

She shook her head “Spike is just a baby dragon, and he was raised by ponies to be good. I have a terrible feeling about this Magos, somepony is going to get hurt!”

My left eye twitches as she said ‘somepony,’ I don’t like that saying, “Well then it’s a good thing I’m not a pony. We will get this done for the princesses, and then we can come home.”

Rainbow came up and pulled her into a hug from behind, sandwiching her between us Just like Twilight. “We got this Shy; the princesses wouldn’t send us if they didn’t think we couldn’t handle it. Besides… how can you expect the rest of us to stay brave if you can’t be? You’re the bravest one in our group.”

I couldn’t believe that she just said that, Rainbow Dash, biggest ego on the planet, just admitted that Fluttershy was the bravest mare in their group. Fluttershy was blown away as well “oh no Rainbow, I’m not the bravest pony here. I’m scared of my own shadow. How can I be as brave as you?”

I watched Skittles look up at me before she spoke, “That is exactly the reason you are the bravest Shy. Even though you’re terrified of going out, you still go out and face the world. Being brave has nothing to do with not being scared. Being brave is doing the things that scare you because you know it’s right. You do that every day.”

I locked eyes with Skittles. “She is completely right on that one Butters. We need your help with this. I have a feeling in my gut that says you will be our biggest asset on this trip. What do you say? Will you help us?”

Flutters took a deep breath and looked up at us before nodding. “I will try.”

I smiled and pulled her and Skittles close. “Then let’s get a move on. The sooner we get this taken care of, the sooner we can come home.”

Scoots walked into the room then. “Um… hey. Don’t worry about me; I’m used to being left alone.”

Feeling like someone just slapped me across the face. ‘Shit!!!! Scoots. I need to make arrangements to have her taken care of.’ As I had this minor mental freakout, AJ spoke up, “Not on your life Scootaloo. Y’all be staying at the house with your cousin Applebloom and Spike.”

Scoots gave her an odd look, “Cousin? Applebloom is my best friend, but why is she my cousin now?”

AJ just laughed, “Well, Mag is your dad now, right? An, Ah call him mah brother. So that makes Bloom your cousin now.”

I smirk and respond, “More like her aunt. If I’m your brother, that makes me Applebloom’s brother too. Which makes both of you her aunts.”

Scoots went a little pale at that, though “Does that mean I have to do everything she says?” She loved her best friend, but she didn’t want to have to treat her any differently.

I smiled and motioned for her to join the hug, She rushed up and joined us. “No, it doesn’t mean that you have to do what she says. Unless that something is a good thing, but, I would hope you would want to do it anyway. But I just think it’s a silly fact. If you feel more comfortable calling her a cousin, that’s great. I’m just happy that we have it covered, so you don’t have to be alone anymore.” I put my hand on her head, “never again. I promise.”

She pressed her head into my side and hugged tighter, so far this had been a great way to start a quest. Much better than I had had in the past.

“Aaalllright!! Let’s Do This!!!”

DragonShy pt 2 - Edited 3/23/20

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Dragon Shy Pt 2

After dropping Scoots and Spike off at AJ’s place, we made our way to the mountain. As we proceed to the base, Twilight spoke up. “From this point forward, we need to be extra careful.” Pulling the map out of her bag as she held it up with her magic.

I chuckled at her, “You have hands, you know. You don’t need to use your magic for everything.” She pouted, and I leaned forward to kiss her forehead “I’m just teasing Twi, are you using Mana or Magic?”

She snorted to hide a smirk, “Magic, once you get used to it, it lets you do a lot more with a lot less effort.” Now she smirked with genuine pride.

As we started to move up the trail, I looked back and noticed that Shy wasn’t with them, “Hey Shy, you okay?” She didn’t react, and I started to observe her body language to determine if I could figure out what was going on with the mare. She was tense, her arms wrapped around herself tightly, a woman at war with herself. Her eyes held a deep fear, but she seemed to be muttering under her breath.

Looking up from her mouth, I noticed that her eyes were still frozen with fear. Walking over, I knelt down in front of her, facing forward and put my hands behind me, giving her the signal to climb on. Looking over my shoulder at her, I smiled, “Climb on Shy, I will get us up there safe and sound.”

She still looked worried, but walked over and climbed on my back. As she sat down, I made sure to focus on moving up the mountain, and not on the pillowy softness of her breasts pressing into my back, nor the firmness of her ass in my hands as I held her up. Although Pinkie must have noticed my light blush at some point because she managed to maneuver her way around the group right next to Shy. I just managed to overhear her whisper to the butter-yellow mare. “I haven’t tried it yet, but Rainbow says that Maggie gives the best rides ever. What do you think, Shy.”

The comment was followed by an adorable ‘meep’ that ended with Shy burying her face into my back. Blushing, I shot back to Pinkie, “Pinkie! That is not something that we talk about in polite company. Especially around Butters!”

Pinkie rolled her eyes, “Don’t be such a spoilsport Maggie, it’s not like she won’t get her turn later in the story anyway.”

This froze the group for a moment before I managed to collect myself enough to form a coherent thought, “Pinks, This isn’t a story.” She smirked, leaned over to kiss me, then looked into the distance, winked, then skipped away. “I… but,” Looking back to Twilight, “Did… I… Buh?”

Twilight just shrugged, “Don’t think about it too hard, it’s better for you if you don’t.” Shaking my head, I just followed along. Shy shifted around a bit on my back but stayed quiet. The trip up the mountain wasn’t terribly eventful, we passed a rockslide area, but managed to get past without triggering anything. Which was good because it helped us to avoid having to jump over a ravine. As we moved up to the top, Twilight held us back.

“Okay, everypony” I shot her a stink eye, and she responded by rolling her eyes. “Sorry! Okay, everybody, We are just about at the mouth of the cave. My first plan is to try to speak to the dragon one on one and see if we can convince it to move. Failing that, we can each try a different tactic when it comes to getting rid of the thing.” We all nodded.

I was worried, but I knew that they would be able to handle this. I just had to have faith. Twilight managed to wake the dragon up, but it wasn’t about to leave and just cleared her out of the cave with smoke. Rarity then tried to charm the dragon out. She almost got it to listen before slipped up and decided to walk out with some gems, yea. Not a good idea, but the worse she got was getting yelled at.

The enormous red dragon roar shook the mountain as Rarity rushed out of the cave. She came out pouting about not getting the diamond. I gave her a deadpan “Really?! We are here to ask him to move, not steal his stuff.” she wasn’t amused, but neither was I. The fastest way to get killed by a dragon, is to piss it off by stealing its stuff.

No idea why Pinkie thought her getup was going to make it want to leave, but she did look rather adorable wearing the present. Though my opinion might have been skewed a little when she commented about me being able to unwrap it later. Now I will admit, while the sex with Skittles has been fantastic, I have been curious about being with Twi and Pinks as well. Twi has the whole, good little student thing going for her, and Pinkie is just Pinkie.

While we were discussing different options, Skittles must have been getting impatient. “Screw this noise, I’m going to go kick him in the snout and tell him to vamoose.”

I realized that she was serious as she shot off into the mouth of the cave “SKITTLES!!! NO!!!!” We then heard a rather loud roar as she darted out of the cave a few moments later.

“That was a bad idea!!!” she screamed as she flew as fast as she could away from the cave. In an instant, I saw the beast extend it’s head as it made to chomp her. Moving before I could think, I jumped up and shoved her out of the way as the jaws of the massive dragon began to close. All I knew next was the pain.

___________________Perspective shift to Fluttershy_______________________

I heard Magos cry out to Rainbow just before she flew into the cave. The next thing that we all knew Rainbow was flying out of the cave as fast as she could. I could tell that she hadn’t had enough time to build up speed to get away. I held my hands to my mouth as tears began to fill my eyes. As I thought I was about to see my oldest friend die in front of me, Magos jumped up and shoved her at the last moment.

I heard him scream as the dragon bit down on his left arm. It jerked him hard before sending him flying across the plateau, coming to rest next to the cliff. The world seemed to slow to a crawl as he flew past me. A stream of blood trailing behind him from where his arm used to be. I felt the bile rise in my throat for a moment before the wall of rage hit me. I have always tried to be soft-spoken. The thought in the back of my head that if I spoke up to much, nopony would like me. That as long as I was quiet and minded my own business, nopony would do anything to hurt me.

As Magos flew in front of me, I saw the pain in his eyes from his injury. But he still wore a smirk. Cocky about being able to protect Rainbow. Even now, heavily injured, he was always willing to fight. After a few moments on the ground, he groaned and rolled over. Looking over at what was left of his left arm, he swore as he screamed out: “GODS FUCKING DAMN IT, THIS IS GONNA FUCKING HURT!” My ears burned at his language, but what almost made me vomit was when his right hand seemed to ignite. He slammed his palm against the open wound and started to scream as black oily smoke began to pour from his side.

My anger at him being hurt boiled over, and I wound up right in the dragon’s face. My stare in full effect as I laid into the brute “YOU! DO! NOT! HURT! MY! FRIENDS! DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME!” Its pupils seemed to shrink, and its mouth quivered.

“B-but the rainbow one kicked me.” The entire group had frozen, even Magos had stopped screaming and was so shocked that not even the pain could garner a response from him.

Its winey excuse wasn’t going to cut it for me. “SHE KICKS YOU, SO YOU ATTEMPT TO MURDER HER!!!! YOU HAVE MAIMED ONE OF THE ONLY STALLIONS THAT HAS EVER BEEN GENUINELY NICE TO ME WITHOUT WANTING TO SLEEP WITH ME! AND YOUR EXCUSE IS ‘The rainbow one kicked me!’” I said to him in the most condescending voice I could muster. I don’t think I have ever been this angry before.

I have to admit, cutting loose like this would have felt right if it weren’t for Magos’ injuries. Staring at the beast, I continued. “Here is what is going to happen. You are going to leave. You’re not taking anything with you either.” At this, the dragon tried to get upset with me. My glare forced it to pause just long enough to continue. “Think of it this way, you leave everything here to Magos, and we convince the Princesses, not to declare war on the dragon kingdom for the maiming of their knight.”

The dragon apparently understood what this would mean because it cleared off after a few seconds of thinking about it, grumbling the entire time. I must not have realized how terrified I was due to the adrenaline, because as soon as it was a few thousand feet away from us, I collapsed.

_________________Perspective shift, Twilight__________________

I wasn’t sure what had just happened with Fluttershy, but Rainbow and Pinkie ran over to her as she fell, being the closest to her at the time. Rarity, AJ, and I ran to Magos. As we got close to him, my nose wrinkled at the smell of burning flesh, but that couldn’t stop me from going to my stallion. As I got closer, I finally got to see the extent of the damage. His entire left arm had been ripped off. From the looks of the wound, the flesh had been cut through cleanly. But the dragon must have stopped at the bone. If not for the charing from where he had burned it closed, I imagine I would have been able to see the open ball socket that makes up the shoulder.

I dropped down to my knees and lit my horn, pulling magic from within myself and the air around me, just as he had taught me to do. When I had started to learn from him, his methods of using magic were strange, almost kooky in practice. All my life, magic had been an exact science. Use the correct amount of mana, imagine or drawn the right formula, focus it in the proper pathways, maybe chant an incantation, and the described effect would happen. With Magos’ kind of magic, it was more of a spiritual experience. His type of magic made me peer deeper into myself than I ever had before.

As I cast the healing spell, Magos pulled some golden squares out of his pack and nibbled on the corner of one. As he did so, I was amazed to see that his wound started closing even faster than before. There was no way to give him his arm back, though. Maybe if we had been able to retrieve it, but the dragon likely had swallowed it before Fluttershy started yelling at the thing. “M-magos, it’s going to be okay. We can… We can make sure you get better, okay. Please.” I felt the tears start to well up in my eyes. I’ve been so scared of letting him in, and now I will never be able to feel him wrap me in his warm embrace fully again. He’s still Magos, but now. There is this massive part of him that is gone forever.

As I started to sniffle, Magos shakily lifted my head with his remaining hand. He then pressed his lips to my forehead. “D-don’t cry, I’m still alive, and so is everyone else. The dragon is gone, and it’s not going to come back.” He hissed in pain “This really fucking sucks right now, but I think I may know of a way to fix this situation.” Hissing through his teeth, he continued.” I really hate to ask you this, but do you think you could get us down to the bottom of the mountain with a teleport? I kinda want a Doctor to look at this.”

I didn’t know what to say, here he was, missing an arm and he was trying to make me feel better. I swallowed and nodded. “I think I can. From up here, I can see where I’m going, and I can focus enough magic on getting the job done, I just need a few minutes to prep.”

He nodded before adding, “My catalyst in is my bag. Feel free to use it.” He put his head back, and AJ told me that she would try to keep him awake. Rarity sat next to her and grabbed her hand as AJ tended to Magos, tears beginning to fall down her face.

________________Perspective shift Rainbow___________________

I looked over at Twilight, AJ, and Rarity as they took care of Magos. I was sitting with Fluttershy’s head in my lap. I was in shock. Magos just lost his arm, and it’s all my fault. If I hadn’t rushed into that cave and kicked that giant lizard, none of this would have happened. He might die because of me. One of the best things to ever happen to me might be lost forever, all because I was too hot-headed and rushed in without thinking about consequences. It was the running of the leaves all over again, but this was a million times worse.

I tore my eyes away from them, I couldn’t bear to look at what I had caused. Even if he lived, he was missing his arm. I ruined his life, why would he ever want to be with me. He probably hated me for this. I completely destroyed his life.

My mind began to spiral, the same thoughts circling around and around compacting and building on each other. There was no forgiveness for this. I would never be able to face him again after this. Tears began to flow down my cheeks before a soft pair of lips hit mine. My eyes shot open as I looked forward and was greeted by a wall of pink. I lost myself in the kiss. She tasted like the best strawberry frosting. Just the right amount of sweet and tart. All of my negative thoughts started to drift away, not forgotten, but not overwhelming either.

She pulled away from me and looked me right in the eyes, “Don’t you ever do something like that to us ever again, Rainbow.” My heart did a flip as I noticed the tears begin to flow down her cheeks “Don’t you ever scare us like that again. Please Dashie, my heart can’t take seeing you in that kind of situation. You’re part of our herd, I can’t bear to lose you. Please, you have to know that we love you. Maggie did that because he loves you. I don’t think he would have been able to live with himself if he had let you get hurt. He’ll be just fine. Give him six months, and he will be right back at it. But if you had died… Dashie, please don’t do that ever again.”

She pressed her head into my shoulder as she hugged me and, by extension, Shy, whose head was still in my lap. As she began to stir, she spoke with a shaky voice. “W-what happened? Where did the dragon go?” Picking herself up, she folded her legs under and sat up. Wavering for a moment before coming to rest against me.

I pulled her close to Pinkie and me. “It’s okay Shy. You scared the dragon off. It’s not going to come back any time soon. You were pretty awesome there, guess your Drill Sergent mom’s lessons paid off.”

She blushed for a moment. “Oh, no. I don’t think I could ever do the same job as my mother, you have to be so mean when you are doing training. I could never be like that.” She seemed to be feeling better before her face fell, and she asked, “Did I dream what happened to Magos? Or did he get hurt?”

I took a shaky breath “Yea, Shy, that really happened, Magos got hurt pretty bad. It looks like Twi is doing some kind of magic. So he should be okay.” I had snuck a peek at him while he was talking to Twi. At least he was doing well enough that he could be up.

Turning back to Shy, I started to break down again and held her close to me. “I’m so sorry Shy, this is all my fault.”

I was about to continue before a Deep voice that held a lot of pain stopped me “Don’t you dare try to take the blame for this Skittles.”

______________Perspective shift Magos_______________

Twilight’s spell had taken a lot of the pain off, but it still hurt like a bitch. “I am the one at fault for this. Had I remembered to equip my armor, this wouldn’t have happened. My oversite lost me my arm.” Managing to pick myself up, I stumbled over to her. Leaning down and wrapped my remaining arm around her, pulling her in close to me. Reveling in the fact that she was still her to do this to. “As long as I can keep doing this, I don’t think I’ve lost anything. Besides, I may have a way to fix this. But I need to make a call.”

Twilight had managed to finish her calculations and called us over to stand in the circle that she had drawn out. She charged her horn for a moment, and in a big flash, we found ourselves in front of Ponyville General Hospital. As soon as I entered the main lobby, I found myself swarmed by doctors. I was loaded onto a gurney, and shot will a pain spell faster than I could even attempt to tell them what had happened.

The next few days were a blur to me. I faded in and out of conscience a few times, but when I finally came back to full awareness, I found my room packed. Twi, Pinkie, and Skittles were sitting in the corner of the room with my mother. Sitting opposite them at a small table, were Scoots and Spike. It looked like he was helping her do some kind of homework. I smiled with pride at that. I looked back at the group with my mother and noticed that she had a photo album that she was showing them. I had no idea what it could contain, seeing as she wasn’t allowed to interact with me when I was a small child, but for some reason, I could feel a chill travel down my spine. The fact that the princesses were standing behind them didn’t fill me with confidence either.

Rarity and Applejack were sitting together next to Fluttershy, who appeared to be knitting something and would occasionally nibble a small cookie on the plate next to her. Somehow none of them had noticed that I had woken up yet. I had to admit, seeing that they were all checking on me at the same time felt nice. They were interacting with each other and seemed to be doing well, which made me feel better. Deciding to break the silence, I grunted, “Hey mom, what’s in the photo album.”

All chatting ceased s everyone looked over at me in the bed. The silence lasted for all of a moment before Skittles, Pinks, and Sparkles got up to rush me. However, the sudden rush of purple and orange beat them to it. The cry of ‘Daddy!’ kicked me in the chest. She jumped into the air and lept onto my chest. It seemed that she had used her wings to lessen the impact, though. Pressing her face into my chest, she started to cry, repeating, ‘you’re okay’ over and over again.

I wrapped my remaining arm around her and gave her the best hug I could. “Yea, Scoots, I’m okay. I’m sorry that I got hurt and had to leave you alone for longer than planned.” She was still shaking, her face pressed into my chest. “Tell ya what. How does going for a trip sound? I can introduce you to an old friend back where I came from.”

She looked up at me and nodded, a small smile began to spread across her face. “That’s my girl” I rubbed the back of her head, then looked over at the mares that had gathered around my bed. “How long was I out?”

Twi gave me my answer “It’s been just over a week now. The doctors did all they could, but they couldn’t give you your arm back. Though they said that you could leave as soon as you woke up and had a final exam.”

I smiled up at her. “Cool, as soon as we get out of here, I need to use your hose.”

They all looked at me, confused. Except for my mother and the princesses. “Need to make a call?”

“Yep, I need to see if Leo has made any progress on that project over the last few months.”

For some reason, my mom flinched, “Well, the thing is Magos dear, there is a bit of time dilation between Equis and Earth.”

I felt the blood in my face drain. “H-how much of a dilation?”

“Well, son, it has been a few years over there. Around 5 in fact. A lot has happened.”

I nodded, “Damn, that is a lot of time. Guess hearing from me is going to trip a few people out. Though this does help out when it comes to school. Now we can stay longer and miss less. Best yet, with Twi, she won’t fall behind. One of her moms is a teacher.” I chuckled just as a doctor walked in. After answering a few questions and doing some simple tests, I was cleared to go. Apparently, they had prevented any atrophy with some very clever spells. Gods I love magic.

As we left, Pinkie, Twi, and Rainbow cornered me. All with a serious look to them. Pinkie spoke up first, “Maggie, what did you mean when you said that Scoots has moms? We all want to know.”

I rubbed the back of my head, “Just what I said. Scoots have three great moms.” Pointing to each “The teacher, the coach, and the one that can make all her sad days happy. I know it was kind of sudden, but when you face death. Well, it puts things in perspective. I love all of you, and I see us as a family.” Chuckling, I added, “Spike calls me dad, and now so does Scoots. I have to admit that I never thought I was going to have kids. Now I have two that are already teens. I’m scared that I’m going to screw something up, but I know that you three are going to be there to help out.” They all blushed and smiled at my words, which made me happy as well.

Giving each of them a kiss, we continued on to the Library. Once there, we walked around back to grab the hose. I turned it on and handed it to Pinkie. “Pinkie, Could you spray this to make a big rainbow, please?”

She saluted and gigglesnorted before taking the hose and spraying it so that it made a large rainbow. As I went to grab a Bit or a Drachma, whichever could find first, my mom flicked a large Drachma into the rainbow “Isis dear, we need to make a call.”

A voice echoed out from the rainbow where the Drachma had disappeared “Who do you need to talk to?”

I mouthed ‘thank you’ to my mom before saying, “I need to talk to Leo at Camp Half-Blood, He’s one of Hephaestus’ kids.

the voice confirmed, “Connecting call now.”

The rainbow shimmered before the image glowed. What was once just a rainbow, now showed the picture of a well built half Mexican man, sweat pouring down his arms and face as he hit a glowing piece of metal. He dunked the item into a quench next to him as he turned to look at the Isis message. Once he saw who was calling him, he dropped the massive hammer he was holding and spoke in a whisper “M-Magos? Is that really you?”

I chuckled, “Yeah, man It’s me. How you been doing?”

“I-I don’t know how to answer that man. You disappeared five years ago after that meeting. We all thought you were dead. How are you still alive?!” He had managed to find a chair and sat down.

“It’s a crazy story, dude, and I will go into it later, but for now, I need to ask. Did you ever finish Project F-MAB?”

He shook himself and nodded, “Yeah, man, Finalized that thing like two years ago. Why?” He started to try to get a better look at me.

“I ended up in a situation that left me without my left arm. Wrong end of a pissed-off dragon’s. I will be coming over in a while. Do you think you could handle putting something together for me? It will likely be around a week or two from now. I have some stuff to take care of here first.”

He nodded “No problem man. I can get some stuff together. But you need to be here first before I can start to put anything solid together.”

I smiled, I had a plan to get my arm back. Well, at least a kind of an arm. I just needed two or three days on this side to prep, then we could go. Supposedly the path back was though Tarturs, so I did still need to ask Luna or Celestia if they would be willing to guide us through. But I had the makings of a plan.

Journey to Another World - Edited 3/23/20

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Journey to Another World

It turns out that they were more than happy to guide us through Tartarus. After explaining the situation and that I should be able to get a new arm, the princesses immediately offered to take us. They even offered to let us ride in my trunk while they delivered us to our destination. I was a bit shocked and tried to decline the offer, instead, saying I should be the one to carry it through, but I lost the argument when Celestia used some very sound logic, “Tartarus is toxic to mortals, and besides, it would take you weeks to cross it yourself, we can have it done in a few hours.”

Not being able to argue the point further with any kind of driving force, I acquiesced to their decision. The next three days consisted of everyone that was coming with, getting ready to take a few days off. I had to work with Cheerilee to excuse Scoots from classes for two weeks. At first, she was very against her missing class time. However, after I explained that for Scoots, it would be closer to two months where she would be personally tutored by Twilight five days a week. She agreed and even smiled, figuring that it might help her grades in the long run, and maybe put her a little ahead. Scoots wasn’t happy to hear what the plan was. Still, Twilight was ecstatic and spent the next two building a lesson plan and preparing materials.

It got bad enough that she asked if she could stay behind, for fear of the library mom. Laughing, I promised to make sure that Twilight wouldn’t go overboard. To be completely honest, I expected this to be a bit of a vacation for all of us. As well as some time to decompress from everything that had happened. Time flew by, and all of us gathered at my house to leave. After helping our group haul all of their stuff into the trunk, we stood outside in the front yard. Twilight, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Scoots, and Spike. Rarity and Applejack couldn’t afford to miss two weeks due to the time of year, they both had massive schedules to keep to.

AppleJack was still dealing with the new help that had been highered on at the farm ever since her rise in status. She had managed to get into contact with some of the extended family and highered them on as full-time ranch hands to work the orchard. As for Rarity, this was the beginning of her spring collection, and orders had been raining in.

Rainbow had a lot of vacation time stocked up, and Fluttershy had left things in capable hands of the royal groundskeeper. A favor that she turned in for that time, she helped the nice mare’s pet raccoon.

Pinkie Pie had apparently never taken a vacation day from Sugar Cube Corner sans the few times she had been called away on element business. Or for parties that she helped to organize, but that ended up being quite a bit of their business income. So it all worked out. Twilight ended up asking Dr. to take care of the library for two weeks.

Now that we had gathered will all our baggage, all we needed was the princesses to arrive. At that moment, a light breeze blew through the clearing, causing my empty sleeve fluttered in the wind. “That shits still weird.” I casually observed, only to be met with a hand bouncing off the back of my head “Ow!, what was that for?!” Rubbing my head with my remaining hand.

Twilight glared at me “Don’t curse in front Spike and Scootaloo, they shouldn’t hear their father speak like that.” She was upset, but honestly, she was right to be. Over the last few days, I had been a lot looser with my language around the house. I figured it was a mix of a few things. I was on a lot of magical and medicinal painkillers, and I was likely mildly if not entirely traumatized by what had happened. I mean, you don’t exactly get your arm eaten and bounce back without repercussions. There were going to be some scars left in my mind from this. To add to the physical ones.

“Sorry Sparkles, I guess I’m not really coping well right now, the sooner we can get there, and I can get my new arm the better.” I gave her a sheepish smile.

It was at that moment when a bright flash drew our attention to the two Goddesses that stood before us. “I see that everyone is ready. How are you feeling, Magos? Do you have any pain?” Celestia asked with a concerned look in her eyes.

My ears lit up, “I feel fine, Celestia, Let me help you with that.” I walked over and grabbed their duffle bags off the ground. As I moved to lift them, I was stopped by a dark blue glow.

“Don’t you dare, young man. You have been maimed, and until you have a new limb, you will keep your lifting down to a minimum. Take that as an order if you must.” I looked over to see the smiling face of Luna as she casually walked by, a slight sway in her hips. I blushed as I watched her walk to the trunk. Tearing my gaze away from her plot, I looked back at the rest of the group. Rainbow was talking to Fluttershy, and Twilight had gone over to talk to Celestia. Spike walked over to me and looked over the group as well.

“So we are about to go to a different world. Kinda weird.” He shuffled his feet back and forth. Putting my hand down on the top of his head, I ruffled his spines. “Don’t worry about it bud, things will be just fine, and you get to meet a bunch of new people that are going to think you are awesome.”

He gave me a brave smile, just as Scootaloo came over. Leaning against me, she smiled. “What kind of cool stuff is over there, dad?”

I smiled as I thought about it. “Well, there is a lot of really cool stuff. We have a thing called a plane, imagine a giant metal bird that can hold a few hundred people that can fly anywhere in the entire world in just a few hours. Then there are cars, kind of like a carriage that moves without anything to pull it. If you like, we can watch a few movies during the trip that have some of the kind of stuff you are going to be seeing. How does that sound?” The broad smiles and excited whoops answered for me as they ran to the trunk. Chuckling to myself, I made my way over to the chest, “All aboard whos going aboard. Let’s get this trip going, shall we.”

The princesses smiled at me and nodded, “Of course Magos, we are excited to see the camp that you grew up at as well. I shall have to pick up some wine from Dionysus while we are there, it had been centuries since I had any of his stock.” Celestia added with a smirk. Luna continued by including. “Sister, the last time you got into wine made by him, you tried to seduce Artimus. If it had not been for her vow of maidenhood, you might have succeeded.”

Celestia’s ears lit up bright pink, and I couldn’t help but feel the heat in my cheeks rise as well. The idea of a drunk Celestia hitting on another goddess was a bit much for my imagination. Trying to salvage the situation, I spoke up, “Yes… well then, Let’s get moving.” Celestia took the opportunity and agreed. After we had all dropped down to the bottom of the trunk, the trip began. Celestia joined us for the first half of the journey, then switched places with Luna at the halfway point. All in all, we were able to make the trip in around four hours, which I could tell made Rainbow feel competitive.

We worked our way through ‘Ferris Bueller’s day off’ and ‘The Mighty Ducks,’ and I was happy to say that I had a few more converts to enjoyed the films. I wasn’t a huge lover of sports movies, but Mighty Ducks held a special place in my heart. Right as we were all getting up and stretching, Celestia shouted down, “We are here. I have us at the border of the camp. I do believe you need to go first, Magos.

Ushering everyone up and out of my trunk, we all stood at the border of Camp Half-Blood. The large fir tree with a golden pelt hanging from its branches brought back a flood of memories. Crossing the threshold, I turned back and addressed the group, “I formally invite you to Camp Half-Blood.” They all smiled as they walked across the invisible line. Luna’s horn lit, and my trunk was lifted up and carried with her. Moments after we crossed over, a bright flash to our left drew our attention. Standing there in his Hawaiian shirt, was Mr. D.

Looking over our group, he sneered at me, but once his eyes fell on the princesses, he seemed to lose all of his annoyance. “Why if it isn’t Celestia and Luna, the most beautiful Goddesses of the next world over. What brings you here to my little corner of the world?”

Celestia must have noticed his less than favorable look at me and responded with a cold tone, “We are here with our dear friend Magos. The poor dear was hurt, and we discovered that he had someone here that could help with that. We have already cleared it with Zeus. No need to worry, we should be done here within two months. Please treat us fairly while we are here.” She smiled, and her tone was friendly, but anyone with intelligence could tell that she wasn’t messing around.

Mr. D just smiled and added, “Of course, you will be treated as you should be. Will you be staying in the big house?”

She smiled with her answer, “You need do not need to worry, Magos has something we can use.”

I turned my head and looked at her with confusion, the only sleeping arrangements that I had were the ones in my trunk. And they weren’t exactly the highest class accommodations. Beyond the fact that I only had one bed. Keeping my mouth shut, I waited for them to finish their conversation and turned to everyone else. “Welcome to Camp Half-Blood. The only safe haven for demigods in the west. If you look directly across from here, you will see the ‘Big House,’ ‘Volleyball Court,’ and ‘Arts and Crafts’ hut.”

The group looked out over the valley as I introduced them to where they would be staying for the next two months. “To the north is the Amphitheater, used for general entertainment, performances, and sports. We also have campfire songs and s’ mores.” I grinned like a madman, a wave of nostalgia crashed over me as memories of introducing this place to new campers came back to me. “Past that is the climbing wall. Watch out for lava and falling rocks.” The girls had a shocked look on their faces as I mentioned that. Spike looked excited, as did Scoots. “To the North West is Canoe Lake, and across from that are the cabins. Don’t enter one unless you are invited, it’s rude, and you might make someone mad. The mess hall is north of the cabins. We have an arena to the west and past that is the armory beyond that is the pegasus sta...bles.”

As the words left my mouth, I felt the blood drain from my face as I looked at Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash. I was at a loss for words before Luna stepped in to rescue me. “I remember the Pegasi of this world, they are quite strange. Highly intelligent, but they are quadrupedal and are unable to speak to most beings. At least not in the most common sense. Am I correct?”

Taking a deep breath, I mouthed ‘Thank you’ before responding, “Yes, you are correct, Luna. The equine race here could compare to many of Fluttershy’s friends. Highly intelligent, but lacking the ability to speak English, or Equis as you call it. They cannot also build things. But if you can earn their friendship, they will always look out for you. I will have to take you to meet them while we are here. My main aim is the Forge, That is where my smith is. The sooner, the better, but first, I will show you around. Is everybody ready?”

Celestia and Mr. D had finished their conversation, and Mr. D had poofed off. The group got back together, and we made out way down the hill to see where everything was. Deciding to make a loop, I started by going down to the Arts and Crafts area first. Pinkie and Fluttershy both loved it, Twilight was mildly interested but was a little let down that they didn’t have any instructional manuals. I feel like I was understandably justified in chuckling when she pouted over it.

She didn’t think so. After a quick kiss on the cheek and a squeeze with my arm in as much of a hug as I was currently capable of, she felt a little better, but she still stuck her tongue out at me. The most annoying part of showing them around had to be explaining multiple times what had happened to me. I had thought that I had asked Leo to prepare for me showing up. Kinda hoped he had thought to tell people. Apparently not though. That’s what I get for expecting a blacksmith to remember anything that wasn’t a design or project.

I remember meeting Jackson’s little brother for the first time. The kid couldn’t remember people’s names half the time, and he wasn’t terribly articulate. But give him some celestial bronze and a forge, and he would provide you with something amazing. Damn shame that his dad highered him to work in Atlantis, I mean it was an excellent opportunity for him, but Tyson was one of the best smiths here.

As we passed through each area, the girls had a bunch of questions, Spike was a bit quiet, he had noticed a few of the campers giving them some looks. I realized that we were going to have to nip this in the bud quickly before someone did something stupid like piss off two goddesses.

Dinner tonight is going to be interesting. After going through most of the camp, we ended up in the area between the Armory, Forge, Strawberry fields, and Stables. Celestia voiced an interest in visiting the stables to see what the local pegasi were doing. Fluttershy was apparently curious enough to follow, Pinkie said she was going to the stables first but was going to check out the fields as well. I made sure to get her to promise before picking anything that she would ask first. Mr. D didn’t have a lot of kids, but I didn’t want to piss any of them off.

Rainbow, Twilight, Scoots, Spike, and Luna joined me as we made our way down to the forge. As we got closer, the air got hotter, and the funk of sweat and burning metal hit us like a wave. It smelt like home. As we got to the entrance, I looked in the past the other campers, so absorbed with their work, they never noticed us enter, that is where I finally found him. The massive man stood next to a forge in the shape of a dragon’s head. The entire thing formed out of Celestial bronze.

I had no idea how a bronze Forge was hot enough to work with other metals, but I have learned not to question Hephaestus’ kids. They did things with metalwork and tech that no sane person had any business being able to do. They were wizards in their own right. Walking up to the smith, I shouted, “LEO! I thought I told you to prep for me coming to visit! Why did no one know I was coming!” It sounded like I was upset, but I had laced it with humor.

I must have spooked him because when he looked at me, he dropped his hammer. “Mierda!, I thought that was a dehydration hallucination. Magos! You really are alive!” Ignoring the dropped hammer, he rushed over and pulled me into a sweaty grip. The smell of a sweaty man that also reeked of whatever he ate for lunch wasn’t the best, though.

“Yes, Leo, I’m alive and back. I didn’t realize you were dealing with being dehydrated when I called, were you in the middle of a new project or something?” He had been working on something before, so I wasn’t sure if he was actively working on something, or just letting his hands do whatever they wanted. I had seen him do it a few times before. The things he made when he did that were amazing, he would often use them as inspiration for new projects.

Before he could answer, a woman’s gentle voice spoke up behind me, “Of course he was. If I wasn’t around, he would forget to eat.” She walked up and wiped his forehead of grease and kissed him on the cheek. I looked at him with curiosity, last I knew, was just a gangly kid that fiddled with metal, didn’t know who his woman was. She stood just a bit shorter than him, her Caramel hair tied back into a braid. She turned back to him before adding “Leo, dear, I don’t believe I have met Magos before, would you please introduce us.”

He gave a dopey smile before beginning the Introduction, “Oh yea, sorry, Sunshine.” Turning back to our group, he smiled again “This is Calypso Valdez, my wife. I met her a few years ago after the war with Luke.”

I was blown away, here he was, A grown man, and I guess he was older than me now too. I have to admit that the idea of that was strange as well. “Well, I must say, Leo, didn’t think you were gonna end up married so young. Calypso, interesting name. Didn’t know many Demigods would end up with that name.”

Leo smirked before adding, “Well, I don’t think there are any. Besides, it would be kinda weird to have demigods running around named after my wife.” I rose an eyebrow at his statement before he clarified, “After all, she had it first. Let me finish introducing her, Calypso, daughter of Atlas and Tethys.”

I stood gobsmacked, Leo Valdez, had married The Calypso, Queen of Ogygia, daughter of a Titan. And he was just casually introducing us. “Um... Wow. Nice one, dude. Guess it’s my turn then. Just to give you a quick rundown. As for where I went, the gods made good on what I asked for and placed me outside their influence. Turns out that to do so, I got shipped to a different world via Tartarus. This is Princess Luna, Goddess of the night, dreams, moon, and art. Rainbow Dash, Element of Loyalty and my Girlfriend, Twilight Sparkle Element of Magic, and also my Girlfriend. Spike Sparkle Drake, my adopted son, and Scootaloo Schmidt, my adopted daughter. Looks like what has been five years for you has been one for me. “

Leo and Calypso were a bit blown back when I mentioned that Luna was a goddess. And Calypso was giving me a cold stare when I said that both Rainbow and Twilight were my girlfriends. before I could explain it, Luna jumped in to save me. “I can see that it upset you when Magos made mention of his relationship with these two mares. Let me clarify. In our world, the male to female ratio is around 1:5. This results in the practice of Polygamy very common and actually encouraged to spread love as much as possible. His third herd mare is presently in the Strawberry fields, trying to see if she can figure out how to make hybrids with oranges.” I looked at her with a raised eyebrow and mouthed ‘Oranges?’
She giggled at my face and just responded with, “It is Pinkie Pie, you should be used to it by now.”

I shrugged, realizing that she was right. Turning back to Leo, I continued. “Well, now that introductions are out of the way, did you manage to start work on that project I asked about or did you just toss that off as a dehydration hallucination?”

Shaking himself out of his stupor, “Um, yea actually. I got hit with some inspiration for it after the conversation and started messing with some ideas. Lucky for you, I was at the camp giving some lessons. We live out in Indiana now. Opened a mechanic shop together.” Calypso smiled at him when he said that. The grin he gave me when he was mentioned that he was messing with some ideas was mildly creepy.

But knowing his work, it was bound to be amazing. Giving it a bit of thought, I pulled him away from his wife over to the side to speak with him privately. The girls looked on with confusion, sans Luna, who was just looking around the workshop with mild interest. Though her ears perked up a bit when she overheard the conversation. Having figured that it would be pointless to hide it from her, I didn’t try to conceal what we were planning to do from her. Though the others wouldn’t know unless absolutely necessary.

Rubbing his chin for a moment, Leo came to a conclusion, “Leave it to me, I will make sure to get it done and get it working for you. What is your time frame again?”

Smiling, I gave our answer, “I have two months to get this made, fitted, installed, and recovered from.” I knew what I was asking was a lot. Most people wouldn’t be able to deal with this kind of thing as quickly. But most people didn’t have literal goddesses that had requested to aid in his recovery with supplemental healing magic that was substantially better than anything available here.

I was mildly concerned with the look that Leo was giving me, Steam was rising from his body, and his hands ignited in flames. “Do you mean to insult me, I will have your arm done in three days. It will be up to you to figure out how to use it with the rest of your time.” I was kinda spooked by him right up to the point that he cracked up and bent over laughing. “Man, you should have seen the look on your face! Fucking priceless!”

He was quickly shut up when a rolled-up piece of paper smacked him upside the head, immediately followed up with a smart, “Excuse me, there are children here. Watch your language, please.” He turned to see the smoldering eyes of his wife as she held the rolled-up paper in her right hand.

Chuckling, I commented. “I think you and Sparkles will get along quite well. She does the same thing to me when I slip up around the kids.”

This must have been the moment when Leo noticed the group behind him for the first time. His eyes grew wide as his memories flooded back to him from the conversation. “Oh yea, I forgot they were here. Sorry about the cussing thing.” He grinned and scratched his head.

We shared a laugh together for a moment before we began by taking some measurements for my new arm. Leo had been working on some general blanks that he had been improving. Generally, it was easier for him to make generalized blanks that he would then go back over and customize to the right fit per the needs of the client. It cut out a lot of the work when he needed to do a rush job, and better yet, many of the intervals were universal due to the nature of how they worked. After spending a reasonable amount of time at the forge, Leo reminded us that it was time for dinner. If you missed it, you missed eating for the night. There were no leftovers here.

As a group, we made our way over to the dining area. Luna, Twilight, and Rainbow had drawn Calypso into conversation. Noticing this, I whispered over to Leo, “I think we might be in trouble, dude, the women are scheming.” Luna looked up at us and gave me a penetrating look before returning to whatever they were talking about.

As we arrived at the dining area, I noticed that there were a lot more tables than there used to be. Many of the minor deities that hadn’t had a place before, now had spaces reserved. I remembered what Jackson had requested and was again pleasantly surprised that the gods had kept their end of the deal in both cases. Guiding them over to the Hecate table, we all sat down as I worked through introducing them to members at the table. Interestingly enough, there were no new faces there. It wasn’t uncommon for a meal to go without a member for a while, but generally, they would see a new face every couple of years.

Forgetting about that for now. I looked up to the head table where Mr. D and the rest of the staff were sitting. Standing before the crowd, Chiron spoke with his smooth, even voice. “I would like to start this meal with some introductions. Likely you have all noticed that we have some guests with us. So to cure this, I am pleased to introduce you to Lady Celestia and Lady Luna. They are the Goddesses of the Sun and Moon of Equis, a world that borders this one.” The entire hall stood stock silent. Not only were there two goddesses eating with them that they had never met before, but this had just confirmed that this wasn’t the only world that existed.

Continuing forward before anyone could interrupt with a vomited question. “They are accompanied by, Twilight Sparkle, the personal student of Princess Celestia and Bearer of the Element of Magic, Rainbow Dash, Bearer of the Element of Loyalty, Pinkie Pie, Bearer of the Element of Laughter, Fluttershy Bearer of the Element of Kindness, Spike Sparkle Drake, Son of Twilight, and Scootaloo Schmidt, Daughter of Magos Schmidt.” This was interrupted by the shout of ‘What!’ which confirmed that there have still been people that didn’t know I was back yet. “And last but not least, Magos himself has returned for a visit.”

It was at this moment that Pinkie burst out from behind Chiron, a party popper exploding from her hands as she shouted, “So! Let’s get this Party Started!”

18 - Edited 3/23/20

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The party went way later than it would have likely gone otherwise. Me coming back suddenly after disappearing five years ago gave everyone a great excuse to break out the good food and games. Pinkie pulling a fully loaded pinata out of her hair and stringing it up in a matter of seconds managed to freak out quite a few campers. Given that concern soon evaporated when they got to the fillings, which Pinkie told me came from Sugar cube corner. I laughed at the reactions of everyone as they tasted the fantastic goods that Pinkie had made. The princesses never left my side, it was a little strange, to be honest.

As the night wore on, the younger campers all started to fall victim to the long day as they began to nod off in their seats. After the first person fell face-first into the cake that Pinkie had somehow pulled out, Chiron made the final call that everyone needed to get off to bed. The masses then began to move towards their respective cabins. Scoots ran over to me and jumped on my back. Wrapping her arms around my neck and her legs around my waist.

“That. Was. Awesome. Dad! This place is so cool. I got really good over at the archery range, and Spike made it up the climbing wall on his first try!”

I smiled and listened to her chatter away. I was just glad that she wasn’t treating me any differently due to the loss of my arm. “That’s great, Scoots! Do you have any plans for tomorrow? Or are you just gonna wing it?”

She launched off in a tirade about everything that she wanted to do the following day. Still, before she got into it, Twilight spoke up. “That is all well and good Scootaloo, but you and Spike aren’t going to be missing any of your schoolwork. You need to get that done first before you go out and play.”

Spike and Scoot’s face both fell into horror when they remembered that I had promised Cherrilee that they would be getting supplemental lessons from Twilight for the duration of this trip. Scoots jumped down from my back and ran around front, flanked by Spike. “Please!!! Don’t let that start already!!! Please!!!!” they both wore the same expression of a puppy that had been kicked.

I could feel my resolve crumble away as I looked at the two of them. Thinking fast, I came up with an idea, “Hey Twi, can’t you give them a bit of a break? Tomorrow is Sunday. After all, can’t school at least wait until Monday?” She didn’t look like she was having any of it, so I threw in, “If you let it off until Monday, you can be little spoon tonight.”

That seemed to break her resolve to have non-stop studying as she relented, “Fine… But we start up on Monday at 8 am sharp. Okay!”

The two of them jumped up, whooping and shouting, “Thanks, mom! Before they ran off to the cabin ahead of us.” Her hand jumped up to cover her mouth as they said that before darting off.

I walked over to Twilight and wrapped my arm around her “You know, I think that is the first time that I have heard Scoots call you mom. First time I have heard Spike say it too.” I looked down at her and realized that she was crying as she covered her mouth. “And it looks like you liked it quite a bit.” She tried to hold back the happy tears as she nodded. “Come on, I’m beat, and our bed is calling out to me.”

As we all arrived at the cabin, the rest of the campers were a little confused as to where we were all going to sleep. I shrugged it off after pointing at my trunk. My older siblings all had looked of revelation while the younger ones that didn’t remember me all that much had the situation explained to them. Spike and Scootaloo took over two beds that were empty so that they could spend some time with their technical Aunts and Uncles. After getting them situated, the rest of us descended the ladder into my mobile room. Looking over the queen bed that sat in the corner of the room. I realized that there was no way that we were all going to fit in that. “Sorry about the sleeping arrangements, I never thought I was going to need a bigger bed than that. Feel free to take it, Celestia, Luna. I can make up some sleeping pads for the rest of…”

At that moment, a flash went off as my queen bed was replaced by one that would have made even a California King look small. I was honestly a little confused as to how it fits in the room. “Um… well, I guess that works for all of you. I will… I will make up a cot so that I don’t disturb you.”

As I moved to turn around, I was stopped by a snow-white hand. Looking back, I realized that Celestia was pulling me toward the bed. “Now, I do not think that will do. You promised young Twilight that she would get to be the little spoon tonight, and going back on your word is not something that I would expect from my knight. Besides, I won the right to big spoon, and I will not be denied.”

It took me all of three seconds to realize what it was that she was implying “You don’t mean that you…”

She put her finger across my lips to stop me in my tracks. “Magos, you are adorable but very dense. Luna and I have been watching you ever since you first arrived in Equestria. I have seen how you have interacted with my little ponies and how you have made Twilight and the rest of the girls here very happy. And you managed to entrance Luna with that song that you played for her. We have both been alive for a very long time, and it has been over one thousand years since the last time that we have expressed any kind of interest in anyone. But we have been waiting long enough. We have discussed this with the rest of you herd and have already been given permission. That if you are okay with it, to join you.”

The gears in my head ground to a stop as smoke began to billow from my ears. Princess Celestia, a goddess, just asked me if she and her sister, another goddess could join my herd. I was still trying to wrap my head around it when a very timid voice spoke up “Um… if you don’t mind, um… well, if it was okay with you...I well...I want to be a member too… um... If you are okay with somepony like me.”

If I had thought that the revelation from the princesses was enough to break my mind, hearing Fluttershy ask that as well, nearly made me pass out from shock. I mean, I was living proof that gods and goddesses occasionally got together, but Fluttershy was so timid and meek. I didn’t even know that she was interested in me like that.

I mean, I was still completely lost when it came to Pinkie, Twilight, and Rainbow being into me. Not sure what to say, Pinkie spoke for me “Well duh, he is okay with this. His brain is just rebooting for a moment. After all, it’s not every day that you get three smoking hot mares asking to be in your herd. He just needs a little forced restart.” She ended her little rant by walking over to me and pressing her lips against mine to force a restart. At first, it may have well been an innocent little kiss, but after around five seconds, she pressed her tongue into my mouth, dominating my own for the next twenty seconds or so.

After pulling away, I swear that I could see a blue screen, Magos.exe has stopped responding, force restart. Magos.exe rebooting, reboot completed. After my brain had made a recovery, I spoke, “I… well, I don’t know what to say. I mean, you are all amazingly attractive mares, and any stallion would be thrilled to have you join them, but are you sure that… well, that I’m good enough for you?” I was torn, I mean I knew that I loved Rainbow, Pinkie, and Twilight, and I cared a great deal for the princesses and Fluttershy. But I wasn’t sure if I could give them the kind of attention that they were due.

Celestia smiled at me with enough warmth that I swear that the room grew a little brighter, and considering who she is, it likely did. “As I stated before, Magos. Luna and I have been around for a very long time. And I would like to think that we have developed an excellent eye for the kinds of people that are, as you say, ‘good enough’ for us. You have devoted your life to helping our little ponies, even though you had asked to come to our world to escape the trials that you faced here daily. You had been given a way out, an opportunity to just be an average person, you still threw yourself into helping others. The things that you have done have proven your worth a thousand times over. I would say that the most significant reason that Luna and I have made up our minds about pursuing you is mostly in part to how to treat everyone that you meet. You strive to be the best person that you can and means a lot to us. So if you would give us a chance, we would love to share in this life with you.”

Gulping, I nodded. In another flash, I found myself in the bed, surrounded my mares. Each of us dressed in some beautiful nightclothes that I could only assume were gifts from Luna. As I lie there, surrounded by the mares in my life, all I could think of was that I couldn’t believe how lucky I was to have had the opportunity to go there and meet them all. Pulling Twilight close as Celestia snuggled up to my back, I drifted off to sleep with a smile on my face.

My excellent sleep was ruined by the presence of two young children jumping into the massive bed “DAD! Moms, come on, breakfast is going to be ready soon, and everyone upstairs said that they don’t wait for anyone.” Spike was very adamant about getting food, so we all dragged ourselves out of bed. Spike and Scootaloo were a little shocked to see both princesses in the bed with us, but before I could explain, Celestia and Luna walked over and kissed my cheeks.

After my head had resumed is a natural color, Spike chuckled, “Wow dad, five mares within a year. That has to be some kind of record.”

Sighing, I responded, “It’s actually six. Fluttershy has apparently been looking to join as well. I don’t know how I’m to survive. You know, when I was growing up, the other guys here always said that having more than one girlfriend would be awesome. But as I have found, it just means that they outvote you on everything. Keep that in mind, bud.” I likely would have gone on a bit more. But a flick to my ear told me that I had already said too much.

After we all got up and made it over to breakfast. We started the meal just like any other that we had here. After thinking about what we wanted, we all stood in line to offer up a portion to the gods. Luna and Celestia offer up to Foust, but the rest of us gave to Hecate. I smiled, knowing that she really did appreciate it. Though the smile on my face as I made my offering seemed to confuse my siblings. They had known that I didn’t have the best feelings for our mother before.

The days began to pass in a rush, and true to his word, Leo had my arm ready for fitting after just three days. We made our way to the forge only to find what appeared to be an Operating Theater that had been set up next to it.

“Now girls, I have to warn you, I am going to scream when this thing gets plugged in. It may even sound like Leo is trying to kill me, but I promise. It has to be done, and when it is. I will finally be able to hold you all again. Most importantly, I can finally give you two a proper hug again.” Spike and Scoots looked at me with concern in their eyes.

“Is it really going to be that bad dad?” Scoots asked.

I nodded, “It really is Scoots. Leo has to plug it into every nerve for this to work, and it’s going to hurt like a bi..” Looking at Twilight, I noticed that she was giving me the stink eye. “It’s going to hurt a lot, but I know that I can take it. I will do anything it takes to make sure that I can get my arm back.” I brushed the tear from her eye as I said it. Just before walking into the shop, Scoots and Spike jumped up to give me a good luck hug. After they had their fill, the girls stepped up.

“Do you want me in there with you, Magos?” Celestia asked with concern in her eyes, “I can help with the pain, and should even be able to help with the healing as well.”

Not wanting the others to see, I nodded silently, “Truth be told, I’m not sure if I would be able to deal with this otherwise. Leo told me that for the few that he has already done this for, most of them ended up passing out and vomiting everywhere from the pain. And more than one of them still gets phantom pain from the lost limb.”

She smiled at me and gave me a kiss on the forehead “Don’t you worry about that. I will make sure that you come out of this whole once more.” She smiled at me. Then leaned in closer, placing her lips right next to my ear, to ensure that no one could overhear her. “Besides, Rainbow has been quite vocal in your abilities. Apparently, she loves it when you grab her ass with both hands during. I have to say, I would love a sample of that myself.”

I nearly choked on my own tongue as the words left her mouth. As she pulled away, her eyes that had only moments before been filled with gentle love were filled with a lust that quite frankly made me sareroused. “Meep.”

Giggling, she pushed me towards the door. “Good boy, now let’s get you fixed up.”

Still being unable to really speak due to what she had just whispered in my ear. The other girls were a bit confused at me, suddenly lighting up red and being shepherded away. “Um princess Luna, what did Princess Celestia just say to Magos?” Rainbow asked.

Luna, who still heard what her sister had just said, smirked, “She told him what she has planned for him. Apparently, you have quite a few stories to tell when it comes to our dear Magos.” Rainbow blushed as Luna looked at her with a predatory stare. Speaking up again. “Well, I do believe the children should go out and enjoy themselves. It’s time that the adults had a nice chat” She then placed her hands on Rainbow’s shoulders and directed her towards the cabin so that they could have a private conversation. They were quickly followed by the other mares. Who were all curious as to what the discussion was going to be about?

Spike looked over at his adoptive sister and commented, “Grown-ups are weird, and Princess Celestia needs to remember that Dragons have excellent hearing. Didn’t need or want to hear that personally.” Scoots looked at Spike and cocked her head to the side.

“What do you mean? What did Princess Celestia say to dad?”

Spike sighed and shook his head “I will tell you when you are older, or if you want, ask her. I’m not going to open this can of worms.”

Mágos Schmidt - Demigod in Equestria

by Sky Trotter

Arrival - Edited 3/20/20

Introductions - Edited 3/20/20

Clarification - Edited 3/21/20

Pinkie's party - Edited 3/21/20

Training begins - Edited 3/21/20

Highs and lows - edited 3/21/20

Revelations - edited 3/21/20

The Trial - edited 3/21/20

Repercussions - Edited 3/21/20

Home Cumming (this chapter has skippable Clop) - Edited 3/21/20

Inheritance - Edited 3/21/20

Magos gets mad. - Editied 3/21/20

NightMare Night - edited 3/22/20

Home - Edidted 3/22/20

DragonShy pt 1 - Edited 3/22/20

DragonShy pt 2 - Edited 3/23/20

Journey to Another World - Edited 3/23/20

18 - Edited 3/23/20