Author's Note:
Here it is, chapter 7. And a day late, ugh! Oh well, better late than really, really, late, right? I think we are almost finished with the introductory arc, probably one more chapter before the next one starts, but who knows, anything could happen.
Oh right, a note that actually matters. I changed chapter 6 a bit, adding about 1000 words or so. The note in that chapter will explain why. If you did not read the version with Diamond Tiara, you might want to check it out again, though it's not exactly a huge impact on the overall story.
Joeker: Thanks for your advice, you and one other individual were the confirmation I needed to edit chapter 6, I really appreciate your honesty. On that note, you can pm or review, whichever you prefer. If it's something specific that you like or dislike (such as the school scene), reviews would be helpful for informing others as well. If it's "cool story bro," maybe just pm, but again, whichever you prefer is fine by me.
Morzan191: Thank you again, you're an encouragement to such a newb writer as myself. As for Twilight… we'll just have to wait and see!
MMM: Read on and find out…
Guest: I know right? Sometimes I worry about the feels being too much. I think it has to do with the rather unplanned way I write. Sort of like with Applebloom, I didn't really mean for her to have so many scenes, but… well… I just couldn't say no. (shrug)
Chapter 7:
I awake this morning to the sunlight just starting to stream in my window. I feel as if I was having a very good dream, since I'm smiling, but I can't remember it for the life of me. Oh well.
As I start to wake up fully, I take note of the warm fuzzy lump at my side, indicating that Applebloom is still asleep as well. I roll over carefully to see her curled up in the crook of my arm. I wonder if she's ever going to go back to sleeping by herself. I sort of hope not.
Okay, so I crawl out of bed and get dressed, as usual, before heading to the restroom to brush my teeth. I can't stand morning breath, uguah…
Once finished, I reenter my room and bend over the sleeping filly. "Applebloom… time to get up…"
She starts to grumble before rolling over and letting out an incredibly cute yawn. She half opens her eyes and looks up to me. "'Morning there, Leon."
"Good morning , 'Bloom." With that, I scoop her up in my arms, eliciting a bit of a giggle from her. "Ready to head to breakfast?"
She swipes a hoof through her mane. "Eh, I think I need to get my mane fixed first."
"Yeah, you probably should." I reach up and ruffle her hair, chuckling at the same time.
"Hey, you're not supposed to say that to a lady!"
Stopping in front of the bathroom, I carefully lower her to the floor. "Oh, my mistake, miss. I meant to say that your sloppy bedhead looks divine."
She sticks out her tongue at me before giggling and walking into the restroom. I turn and walk downstairs to help Granny with setting up breakfast. She's already got everything prepared, so all I'm doing is bringing it to the table, where I find Big Mac seated and reading a newspaper.
Once all set up, I take my seat just before AJ and Applebloom come walking downstairs. We all dig in, making small talk and reviewing the plans for the day. AJ and I had told the others at dinner last night about our trip, so there's not much explanation needed now. Big Mac agrees to help AJ and I with the bucking this morning to ensure we're not late for our train.
Once finished eating, Granny starts on the clean up while Mac and AJ head outside. Applebloom's about to start helping her grandmother, but I pick her up suddenly and bring her into a hug.
She's a bit surprised. "What's up, Leon? You're not usually this cuddly."
I'll just ignore being described as 'cuddly' for now. "Well, I don't think I can walk you to school today, so I just wanted to say goodbye now. So… goodbye, 'Bloom." I don't want to explain that there's a small chance this might be the last time I see her.
I'm pretty sure she realizes that there is something up, but she doesn't ask about it. Instead, she just returns the hug and nuzzles against my cheek for a second. "Goodbye, Leon. I'll see you tonight, right?"
Ah, she does suspect something. "If I have any say in it, definitely." It's true. Even if Celestia does make me leave, I'll do everything I can to say goodbye to this filly first.
I lower her back to the floor and we go our separate way, with her into the kitchen and me to the outdoors. Meeting up with the two farm ponies near the barn, I see that Mac is already hooked up to the cart and they are about to start. I join them and we head into the orchard.
We do the usual, with me taking care of setup and lifting, while they do the bucking and checking over of the apples. At some point, I really need to ask them if they have some sort of system for which section of the orchard they harvest each time. Thus far, it seems like we've been working in the same general area all week.
Anyways, the chores pass without much incident. It does go a bit faster with both ponies working, but I get about the same amount of lifting in. Doing the same amount of work in less time leaves me sweating more than usual, so after the final load is brought in and Mac is headed to town, AJ and I both agree to get cleaned up first.
Makes sense, I think. Wouldn't want to meet the princess smelling all sweaty, right? So, AJ takes the restroom first while I go to pick out some clothes. Looking through my options, I eventually pick out some tan slacks, a dark blue dress shirt, and a dark purple tie. I'm not one for ties typically, but again, meeting royalty today.
Now that I think about it, there's something weird about these three ties that Rarity made for me. There's the one I'm wearing, the purple, and the other two are solid cyan and light grey, respectively. Hmm, there's something about that color combination…
Oh well. I grab my clothes, drape them over my arm, and head out into the hall to wait next to the restroom door. I'm only waiting a couple minutes before I hear the water shut off. Another minute or so and I hear the door open next to me. I glance over to see AJ walking out. Both her mane and tail are untied and a bit damp looking.
She gives me a quick smile before turning down the hall and calling over her shoulder, "It's all yours, Leon."
Man, she should really wear her hair down more often. Anyway, back to business. I enter the restroom and quickly take a shower and shave, grateful that Mac had been able to recommend me to a place to buy a razor recently. I give myself a once over in the mirror, making sure that I did not miss anything. Personally, I like to keep completely clean shaven, though I'm typically too lazy to shave every day.
I note with mild interest that I seem a tiny bit darker than I used to. That's probably from working out in the sun much more than I ever did back home. My light brown hair looks fine, I think. I've never liked to gel it or anything like that, so it usually just sits flat. Hmm, I wonder what I'll do once it needs to be trimmed. I'm not sure that pony barbers (if there are such things) would know how to handle my preferably short hair.
Moving on. Everything looks acceptable to me, so I give my face a quick wash before heading downstairs. I'm double checking that my tie is the right length, though for the life of me, I cannot remember whether it's supposed to go to the top or bottom of the belt. Well, where the belt would be if I were wearing one. I didn't ask Rarity for one, so I actually don't have one. Guess I should be grateful that I don't need one to keep my pants up yet, due to all my clothes being made to exactly my size.
I walk downstairs, still fidgeting with my tie, and meet AJ down near the dining room. There's no sign of Granny Smith, and I'm pretty sure Applebloom already left for school.
As I enter the room, AJ gives me a quick once over before commenting, "Looking pretty good there, Leon."
I chuckle, realizing that, by human standards, I actually look pretty funny wearing semi formal clothes with old tennis shoes and no belt. "Yeah, thanks. You look good too, as usual." Oh, dang, I didn't really think that over before I spoke. It's true though. She's wearing her usual Stetson and has her hair tied up again, but it looks great.
"Aww, thanks Sugarcube. Ready to mosey?"
I give her a nod and motion toward the front door. "I think so. Shall we?"
She nods and we head out the door and down the toward the farm entryway. We talk a little on the way, but not about anything of importance. It does not take too long before we reach Ponyville proper. AJ has to take the lead from here, since I've no idea where the train station is.
I'm following her for about five minutes before it comes into view, though it's not what I typically imagined for a train station. It's really just one small building for the ticket booth and information, and then a raised roof covering a small section of the tracks, where the train is sitting. And that train… oh man, it looks like something from a little girl's play set, being decorated with pastels and hearts.
Well, I draw my eyes away from that eyesore to see a familiar purple unicorn approaching from the ticket booth. As she comes closer I can see that she has three tickets floating nearby in her magic.
"Hello, Leon, Applejack."
I give her a wave and AJ greets her as well, "Howdy, Twi. Yall ready to go?"
She nods and floats two tickets over to AJ and myself. "Here you go. It's about to leave, so we should get going."
I sound my agreement with that. "Yeah, let's get going." I take the lead as we walk over to the first car behind the train engine, and we each offer our tickets to the pony standing at the entrance. He deftly tears them and returns the stubs before we enter the car.
The ceiling is a little bit low in here, only being an inch or so over my head. It makes me instinctively droop my neck a bit. I look around to see that each side of the car is lined with backless seats. Considering the way ponies usually sit, I guess that's not too weird.
Twilight takes a seat across the middle of one seat and I sit across from her, taking a look out the window. AJ saunters over and sits between me and the window, propped up on her haunches. She's seated very close to me, but I think I've gotten fairly used to these ponies being overly affectionate.
Looks like we were just in time, as the train is starting to lurch into motion, and I see the scenery slowly accelerating past outside. This is supposed to be long ride from what I heard, so I decide to start up some conversation. "Hey, Twilight, how much do you know about Canterlot?"
I look over to her to see that she is apparently staring at the small space between AJ and myself, looking almost disappointed. Her expression quickly changes though, as she brings her gaze to meet mine. "Oh, um, a good bit, I guess. Have I told you that I used to live there?"
I raise an eyebrow slightly at that. "No, I don't think you have. When was that?"
"Well, it was for most of my life actually. I was born and raised there. I came to Ponyville when I was sixteen on assignment from the Princess. Before that, I lived at the palace."
"Wait, what? At the palace? Are you related to royalty or something?"
She gives a small giggle. "Um, no. I am… well was, I guess, the Princess' personal student up until I graduated. She took me in when I was six years old. My parents entered me into her school for unicorns, but at the entrance exam, she decided to take me under her wing, and I stayed with her from then on."
"Wow, that's incredible. I knew that you're really smart and everything, but I had no idea you were that talented with magic."
She averts her gaze and gains a light lush. "Oh, it's not that big of a deal. I'm not really that good, I just love to study."
AJ, who's been following our conversation with a gentle smile, speaks up here. "Aw come on, Twi. There's no need to be modest. I'm pretty sure you're one of the most powerful unicorns in all of Equestria."
"Thanks, Applejack, but I wouldn't exactly say that."
We fall into a short silence as we each look out the window and watch the scenery go by. After a moment of thought, I realize that I have not told Twilight yet bout my big decision. I clear my throat before speaking up.
"Hey, uh, Twilight. I guess I have some news to share with you."
She looks over to me with a curious expression. "What is it, Leon?"
"Um, so I… uh, made a decision yesterday." I glance over a AJ real quick and see her smiling. Looking back to Twi, I continue, "I've decided to…stay. If I can, at least."
"You mean, you want to stay in Equestria?"
As I give a nod, she jumps over to the seat beside me and grips my torso in a tight hug. "Oh, I'm so glad to hear that! The thought of you leaving was really making me sad. So, what convinced you to stay?"
I set one hand on her mane as I answer. "Well, AJ just helped me realize what all I'd be leaving here if I did go."
Twi leans forward to look at AJ on my other side. "Well, thank you Applejack. This is the best news I've heard in quite a while."
AJ just gives a happy smile and nod in response. I speak up again, wanting to clarify the situation. "Of course, this is only if I'm allowed to stay. It's sort of up the princess, I think, right?"
Twilight tightens her hug around me for a second before letting go and leaning back, with me removing my hand as she does so. She stays in the seat next to me though. "Well, yes, she could make the decision to have you leave, but why in Equestria would she do that?"
I give a slight shrug. "I don't know really. I mean, I'm an unknown race in her country. If she thinks I'm dangerous or something, it'd be in her best interest, right?"
AJ answers here before Twilight can, causing me to turn back toward her. "Well, Leon, you don't exactly come off as a real dangerous sort, you know."
Twilight nods in agreement. "I wouldn't worry about that. That's sort of the point of this meeting, I suppose. She wants to meet you and hear your story, straight from the… human's mouth." I chuckle at her word choice there, but she continues, "I'm sure she'll like you just as much as we do. I'll vouch for you, if necessary, though I think she's already aware of my opinion."
AJ echoes the sentiment. "Same here, Leon. We'll do whatever we can to make sure you can stay, though like Twi said, I don't think it'll be problem."
That's really heartwarming to hear, especially coming from two of my closest friends. I reach an arm around each of them and pull them both into a light hug. "Thanks, girls. I feel much better about this meeting, now. I'm really grateful you both came with me."
We all share grins back and forth before I let go and we each settle back into our seats. We've got another hour and forty minutes left, so I let the two of them know I'm just gonna take a nap. Since these benches are wide and back-less, all I have to do is lean backward till I'm laying flat. I place my hands behind my head and close my eyes. I can hear the two mares next to me talking quietly as I start to doze off.
….
I lurch to consciousness as I feel the train start to decelerate. I rub my eyes and note the relative silence around me. Opening my eyes, I look downward to see a certain freckled blonde sleeping with her head on my thigh. Twilight has returned to her seat across the way, and is looking out the window.
Following her gaze, I look outside too. "Whoa…" Just outside, I can see tons of really tall buildings close by. I mean, some of these are at least twenty stories tall. I had no idea ponies were capable of this kind of construction. I sit up and brace myself with both my arms behind me as I try to get a better look.
Twilight looks over to me after hearing me move around. "Ah, good you're awake. We'll be at the station in just a few minutes."
I give her a nod before looking back down to Applejack. She's looking very peaceful and content. I lean forward and whisper to her, "Hey, Applejack. We're here."
She starts to stir, letting out a mumble and a yawn before slowly sitting back up. She rubs her eyes for a second before looking to me. "Well, you ready for this, Leon?"
As the train finally starts to come to a stop, I answer, "Heh, I hope so."
We all rise to our feet (and hooves) and start heading to the exit as it opens. We step outside and I get my first good look at the city. Of course, all I see for now is the station, which is much larger than the one in Ponyville. There are several trains parked in the area, and the entire station is inside of a large hanger type building, where the front side is completely open.
We start making our way through the crowds toward the front of the building, with me making sure to stick close to my two friends. Once outside the station, Twilight calls out, "This way," and starts leading our little group down the street.
I guess we are heading straight to the palace, but I pass the time by taking in the sights around me. As I saw before, the buildings here are much larger than in Ponyville, mostly being large spire type structures built from pastels. Down closer to ground level, I also notice some differences in the ponies themselves.
While in Ponyville, about half the ponies are of the earth variety, it seems like three quarters of the locals here are unicorns. What's more noticeable, though, is that they are almost all wearing some kind of clothing. The ponies I'm used to are usually au natural, but these are wearing various types of "upper class" clothing, including coats, gowns, eyeglasses, and all sorts of jewelry.
I also notice that I'm getting lots of stares, much like my initial arrival in Ponyville, but these don't seem the same. Back home, the ponies seemed to just be really curious, but these looks I'm getting now, seem sort of… judgmental and pompous. Who knows, maybe I should not be judging them without knowing the culture here a bit more.
Anyways, we make our way through the streets at a good pace, with Twilight occasionally pointing out places she remembers, mostly consisting of different restaurants or stores that she has been to. She gets a bit excited as we pass a rather large library, and AJ and I have to half drag her away to keep from getting sidetracked.
Without too many distractions, we eventually make our way to what is obviously the palace. The palace seems much larger at first, though I think it is because there is more open spae between the different towers here. The style of the building is different too, consisting of mostly white wall with gold accents and either blue or dark purple roofs.
We make our way up to some large golden looking gates that have two guards standing attention. Yep, guards. These guys are the first semblance of military I've seen in this land, as they are decked out in partial golden colored armor. They also seem to be the same exact fur colors, which is a bit odd in this world.
The gates are open, so we just start to walk through, but only after Twilight stops to let one of the guards know that we are here to see the Princess. He gives a small nod, but does not break his disciplined gaze straight forward. We approach the large front doors (and I do mean LARGE) of the palace, and two more guards here use their magic to open the doors as we approach.
We head through, as I quietly tell them thanks. I hear the doors close behind me as I take in the huge entry hall before me. There are many doors on either side of this room, but what's really eye-catching is the large, grandiose looking stairway straight ahead. It goes up about half way to the next floor, before splitting up to either side and reaching the next landing.
The three of us just stand there for a few seconds, and while I'm trying to take in all the architecture here, I hear a voice call out from upstairs. "Aw, Twilight Sparkle and Applejack, you have arrived."
I glance over to the top of the stairs to see a dark blue pony prancing down from the right side. This pony, though… she's like nothing I've seen yet. I look her over as she continues down the stairs.
The first thing I notice is her hair and mane. They're primarily a dark blue, just a shade lighter than her fur, with a light blue edge. The weird thing is that they both seem to be continually billowing, as if in a gentle breeze, though there isn't one here. As she gets closer, I think I can see something sparkling in the dark blue parts of her hair and tail, almost like stars in a night sky.
The next thing I note is that she's wearing what appears to be a black crown and some kind of very thick black necklace, which bears the a moon symbol. She also has some grayish blue slippers on all four hooves, which sparkle similarly to her hair.
Finally, I notice the more natural parts of her appearance, realizing that the moon on her necklace is actually a match to her cutie mark, which is set in a large dark patch. Her eyes are a dark teal, I think. Over all, she seems relatively tall compared to the other ponies, being about one and a half times their height, coming almost up to my chin, not counting her horn.
Speaking of which… she has both a horn AND wings. Whoa, I guess that means this is an alicorn, which then means she is a princess. Which one, though? Twilight said there are three, though she looks way too young to be Celestia.
Anyhow, getting past my weird habit of categorizing ponies… She reaches the bottom of the stairs and looks me in the face. "And you must be Mr. Leon Jefferson, correct?"
"Um, yes, I am. And you are?"
Her lips curve into a very small smile. "I am Princess Luna. It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Jefferson, though you may address me as Luna."
A bit too late, I give her a bow. "Uh, okay. You can call me Leon, if you like."
She continues to give that small smile while looking me over. "Quite…"
Twilight speaks up here, maybe noticing that I'm not certain how to address a princess. "It's great to see you again, Luna."
AJ is quick to agree, "Right, it's been way too long since you came down for a visit, you know."
Luna finally shifts her gaze to my companions. "Indeed. It is regrettable, but my royal duties have been keeping me rather occupied recently. I had been hoping to make a stop in Ponyville for a while now."
Twilight answers her "Of course, you're always welcome to visit anytime." Her smile drops just slightly now as she continues, "So, um, might I ask where Princess Celestia is?"
Luna glances back at me before answering her. "My sister is currently occupied with the day court. A particular case has taken longer than she was expecting, and she has asked me to entertain you for now."
Twilight and AJ both nod in answer, and I decide to speak up here. "Okay, so, um, what are we going to be doing?"
She looks me in the face again for several seconds before answering. Why does it feel like she is studying me? "I was thinking perhaps we could take a walk through the gardens. What say you?"
Of course I have no objections, so Luna leads us through one of the side doors down a long hallway. The three mares are just ahead of me, talking about something or other, though I'm more distracted with looking out the windows on one side of the hall, taking in the view outside.
As we continue walking, my view outside is obstructed with a large stained glass window instead of a normal clear one. I give it quick look before doing a double take at the intricate picture portrayed there.
Near the top, there are two very slender representations of what appear to be alicorns. One is white and standing near a picture of the sun, and the other is black and near an image of the moon. About halfway down the window, it seems to show some kind of battle between the two, with the lighter one blasting the dark one with a bright beam. Then near the bottom is a large picture of the lighter alicorn in front of a combination of both the sun and moon.
I stop in my tracks, mesmerized by the artwork here, and wondering exactly what it means. I don't notice that the conversation ahead of me dies off until I hear Luna's voice right beside me. "What do you think of it, Leon?"
I look to my side to see her standing right next to me, again wearing that small smile, with the two other mares right behind her, wearing neutral expressions. I bring my gaze back to the image before me as I answer. "It's… it's beautiful. But what does it mean? Does this represent some kind of war?"
Her eyes move to follow mine in looking at the window. "Of a sort, yes. This tells the story of my fall into the being called Nightmare Moon, and how my sister was forced to banish me."
Wow, I'd sort of forgotten about that. I remember I was wondering how that all was resolved, since she's obviously back to normal and everything. Well, I guess there'd be no better pony to ask, right? "Eh, would you mind if I ask something about that, Princess?"
"Of course not, but remember, please call me Luna."
I nod, but keep my eyes on the stained glass. "I was wondering… how did this end? I read you were transformed by some dark magic and emotions, but now you're back again. How did you return from being Nightmare Moon?"
She looks surprised at my question. "You don't know?" Without waiting for an answer, she turns to AJ and Twi. "You haven't told him?"
They both look a little embarrassed. AJ is rubbing the back of her neck with her forehoof, and Twi is grinning sheepishly. What's the problem here? Is this some important part of history that everyone here is supposed to know?
Luna brings her eyes back to meet mine. "Well, how about I just show you."
"Uh, sure, sounds good."
She motions me to follow her, and we continue down the hallway as she explains. "We commission these stained glass designs to help commemorate important events in our history, and we have them reproduced in several widows throughout the palace. I believe there is a copy of the one we are looking for just around the corner."
Sure enough, just a little bit farther and we come to another intricate window. "Wow…" This window is a bit more straight forward. It shows a dark blue and black alicorn near the top being engulfed in a large explosion of purple light. The light is being shot from the foreheads of six small ponies reared up on their hind legs.
The dark alicorn is obviously Nightmare Moon, but the six ponies also look familiar. There's a purple one, a yellow, a pink, blue with rainbow hair… wait, I've only seen one pony with that kind of mane. If that's Rainbow Dash, then… that would be Twilight there, and Rarity, Pinkie, Fluttershy, and finally AJ.
I turn around to face the two smaller ponies beside me. "Is this you?" They both give slightly shy nods, and I continue. "So what happened? How did you all defeat Nightmare Moon?"
Surprisingly, Luna is the one to answer. "It is quite the tale, and I'm sure they can tell you all the details sometime, but let me give you the abbreviated version. These six brave mares searched out the Elements of Harmony, the only weapons that would be able to defeat Nightmare Moon. They then used the power of their friendship to activate the elements and purify the dark magic from my mind."
"Wow… that's incredible. So you all are basically national heroes. Why didn't you girls tell me about this?"
AJ answers after a second or two. "Eh, well you know… it just never came up."
I facepalm at that, and Luna lets out a small giggle. "Yes, well now, how about we continue on to the-"
She's interrupted by one of the unicorn guards coming around the corner, carrying a small scroll in his magic. He walks purposefully up to the Princess and bows slightly as he passes the scroll to her. She accepts the message in her own aura before thanking and dismissing him.
She unfurls and reads the short note before speaking. "Ah, it would seem that my sister is ready to meet with you now. We shall have to see the gardens another day, I think. Follow me."
She takes the lead again and starts walking back the way we came, with Twilight just behind her. AJ and I are bringing up the rear, and I take the chance to whisper to her. "So, this is it, huh?"
She glances at me for a split second. "Yeah, I guess so. You nervous?"
"Eh, sort of. I mean, Luna's a princess too, and she's not too bad. Is there anything I should know about addressing the ruling Princess?"
Her eyes point upward for a few seconds as she thinks. "I don't think so. Just be yourself, and you'll be fine."
I nod in response and we just continue following Luna for a few minutes in silence. Eventually, we come to another large pair of ornate doors flanked on either side by more guards. They give a small bow before opening the doors, allowing us to enter.
Inside, I find that we are in some kind of grand hallway or atrium. There's a luscious red carpet leading down the room to a pair of golden looking thrones, and the room has large ivory colored pillars on both sides. Off to the right I see what must be the princess herself talking to a couple of ponies.
Luna starts walking toward her, and the rest of us follow. Hearing us approach, Celestia glances over her shoulder before she quickly dismisses the two ponies and turns to meet us. Now that we are within speaking distance I can get a good look at her as her sister moves to stand next to her.
The first thing I notice is that she is HUGE. I don't mean fat, just really freaking tall. As in, I think she is actually taller than me, before counting that two foot long horn. Similar to Luna, she has both a crown and a large necklace, though they are golden with inset purple gems. She also has the whole magical looking hair going on, though hers is colored a mixture of pastels, including pink, green and blue.
Her fur looks white at first, but with maybe has just a tinge of pink to it, and her cutie mark seems to be a stylized image of the sun. Her eyes are a soothing shade of pink, just slightly darker than her hair. Those eyes are staring right at me now as she takes a last couple steps towards us.
AJ breaks into a bow before her, which I follow with my own, but I'm surprised to see that Twilight just trots right up to her. "Princess Celestia!" she cries out as she reaches her. She arches her back up as Celestia bends down to give her an equine hug. They're both wearing warm smiles, which reminds me of how Twilight had said they are practically family.
"My faithful student, it's so good to see you again. I see you have brought your new friend as I requested. Ah, and Applejack, you were able to come as well, welcome."
AJ tips her hat slightly, "Thank you kindly, your highness."
Celestia stands back to her full height and Twilight takes a couple steps back. The Princess' eyes move back toward me as she continues. "So, Mr. Jefferson, I've been told that you are looking into how to get home."
Her expression is completely neutral as she says that, which seems a bit out of place with how happy she was just a moment ago. "Um, yes, I… I was…but…"
Twilight helps me out here. "What he means is that he was but has since changed his mind. He'd like to stay here in Equestria."
Celestia keeps her expression quite controlled, though her eyes do widen just slightly. "Really? Is this true, Mr. Jefferson?"
I drop my eyes downward. "Yes, it's true. I'd like to stay, if you'll let me."
She furrows her brow a bit and seems to be studying my face very closely. "Well, I certainly see no reason why you cannot stay, though I must ask what brought this on." Luna also looks very curious and is studying me as if the answers are written in small print on my face.
"Well, it's just… you have no idea how much better this place is compared to where I'm from. I've made more friends here in a week than I have in years back home. I… I just can't imagine being happier back there."
I finally bring my eyes back up to meet Celestia's, and I can see that she looks both pleased and a little sad. "Very good. I'm delighted to hear that, and you are very welcome to stay."
A large smile breaks across my face, and I feel AJ leaning into my leg with her side. I look down to see both her and Twilight smiling. At just above a whisper, AJ says, "Told you it'd be alright."
Before I can respond, Celestia continues. "However…" I bring my gaze back to her to see both her and her sister with serious expressions, as if they are not looking forward to something. "…I need to speak to you about something. I believe it would be best if this were done in private."
Twilight takes a half-step forward. "Is there something wrong, Princess?"
Celestia looks to her student with what should be a reassuring smile. "No, Twilight, not really. There is just something I need to tell Mr. Jefferson. I believe it is something that he should hear alone."
Luna speaks up for the first time through this whole conversation. "Come along, Twilight Sparkle, Applejack. Let us give my sister some time. Shall we go have some tea?"
She starts to walk slowly toward the exit, and the two smaller ponies, after each giving me another look, follow her out. I turn back to face Celestia, and she motions me over toward a bench near the wall. I take a seat, and she levitates a large cushion over from somewhere for herself. She drops it next to the bench and takes a seat, still propped up on her front legs.
With the way ponies keep most of their height when sitting, she's now towering over me. This would probably seem more intimidating if she weren't… you know… a giant pink and white pony princess.
Anyway, once we are both situated she looks me in the face. She's wearing that serious and slightly sad expression still. "So, Mr. Jefferson, tell me what you know of how you arrived in Equestria."
Huh, I though Twilight had already sent my story to her. "Uh, nothing really. I just… woke up here. I was sure at first that it was all a dream."
"Hmm. What is the last thing you remember from your world?"
I put one hand to my chin, thinking back. "I guess… it was going to bed. Then, next thing I know, I'm waking up under a tree." Why is she so interested in this?
She gives a slow nod. "I see…" She seems to think for a few seconds before going on "I have something to confess to you, Mr. Jefferson. It was I that brought you here."
"What?! How… why… why would you do that?"
"Let me explain, starting at the beginning. Several centuries ago, a friend of mine showed me how to look through the veil between worlds and view other dimensions."
Whoa, that's pretty serious. Wait, is she saying I'm not just from another world, but another dimension as well? I choose to hold onto my questions for now.
"Over the centuries, I explored with this ability, looking through many barren dimensions. However, about thirty years ago, I discovered… yours. I observed your species for many years before deciding to try and make contact."
Man, this is like every sci-fi fan's dream, being contacted by an outside race.
"So, I began the slow process of crafting my own spell for not only viewing through the veil, but also traveling past it. I also started searching your world for the ideal individual to contact first."
"Wait, and you chose me? Why? There have to be better qualified ponies, err, people for something as monumental as that."
She gains a warm smile here. "Believe me, I was very careful in my choice. I actually found you about ten years ago, and I observed you and many others for a long time. I was looking for an individual who would not only be open to meeting my little ponies, but would be able to appreciate our world and culture."
I guess she's correct there. With the kind of childhood I've had, it's probably easier for me to accept this than most others. Sometimes I have to remind myself how weird it is to be talking to magical ponies.
"About two years ago, I finally came to the decision that it would be you. However, I was still having trouble getting my spell to work. A few months later, though, I was blessed to have my sister back again, and I put this situation on hold for a while. Last year, I brought her in on this, and we started working together on the spell."
She loses her smile and looks straight ahead of her at this point. "As of about a month ago, I was comfortable that we had finally done it. My original plan had been to go through the veil myself and speak to you personally. We were just waiting for the right time, but…"
She looks like she might be on the verge of tears with whatever she is remembering now. "Something happened. I was passing the time observing your world again, and you were headed to your job in your automobile when… there was an accident."
I feel my stomach tighten a bit at what I think she is about to say. She does not take too long to confirm my suspicions. "You were hit by another driver on one of your 'highways', and your vehicle rolled several times. You were quite wounded and… dying."
I can feel my knuckles growing white from the tight hold I have on the bench underneath me. This is pretty heavy stuff she's telling me. "So, what happened?"
"Well, I sort of… panicked. My sister was not around to help me with the spell. Without somepony here to anchor me, I would not be able to come back, so I chose to try and pull you through."
She brings her gaze back to meet mine. "I'll admit that I had grown rather attached to you from watching you grow up, and the thought of you dying just… I couldn't let it happen. The problem is that the spell had been designed to be performed by both my sister and I. I struggled to do it myself, while at the same time trying to heal your wounds, for you were fading quickly."
"I… I felt that it was working, but then it just became too much for me. I lost my hold on you about halfway through the veil. I had… I'd thought for certain that I had lost you there. I was overjoyed to hear of your arrival from Twilight Sparkle, so I requested for you to come here."
I'm about to say something of my gratitude, but she continues, finally letting a couple tears fall. "There is still a problem though. In my rush to save your life, I… I shattered the veil around this world."
"Wait, what do you mean?"
"I mean, there is no way for you to ever visit your world again. The veil will heal eventually, but it could be anywhere from a century to many millennia." She droops her head down and closes her eyes, letting a few more tears drop. "I'm so sorry…"
I only think for a couple seconds before deciding on what to do. I lean over and wrap both my arms around her neck in a hug. She stiffens for a second, but then relaxes in my hold. "Princess Celestia, you have nothing to apologize to me for. You've honored me by choosing me as an interdimensional ambassador, saved my life, and brought me to this wonderful world. I've told you already that I don't want to go back, so don't you worry about that."
I can feel her lower her head over my shoulder as I continue. "You've… You've done more for me than anyone else in my entire life, and that was before we'd even met. Thank you. Thank you so much. You've proven yourself to be an amazing friend."
I hear her voice down by my ear. "Thank you. I don't deserve your praise, but I do appreciate it, Mr. Jefferson."
I chuckle a bit and pull myself back a bit to look up at her. "I think that after all you've done, Princess, you can just call me Leon."
She smiles and quickly wipes a tear from her cheek. "I'd like that. And… if we are friends now, you may call me Celestia."
Wow, royalty asking me to address her as a friend. "Okay… Celestia."
I finally let go of her and return to my seat. "So, um… where do we go from here?"
She glances over to me beside her. "That's up to you, most likely. I do have an offer to make, though. I'd like for you to join me here at the palace. After everything that's happened, I think it would be fair for me to take care of you."
That's quite an offer, being able to live with royalty. However… "Thank you, but I can't. I've made too many friends in Ponyville. I don't think I can leave there… if that's alright with you."
She smiles and gives me a nod. "Of course, I understand completely. I suppose this is one more reason for me to visit Ponyville more often then."
"I look forward to it, Princess… I mean, Celestia."
She smiles at my words, and then stands to her hooves. I rise too as she says, "Well, shall we rejoin your friends?"
"That'd be great."
She starts to lead me out of the throne room, and it's only a moment or two before we come to a comfortable looking sitting room. My two friends are seated next to each other discussing something, but they both look up as we enter. There's no sign of Luna around.
We quickly exchange greetings, and then the Princess invites us to a late lunch. As she leads us out of the room again, with Twilight next to her and AJ and I following behind, the cowpony whispers up to me, "So, everything is okay with you, right?"
I give her a broad smile before answering. "Yeah, everything's great, Applejack. I'm definitely here to stay."
She leans her head and neck into my side again as we continue walking. "That's great to hear, Leon. I was getting kind of worried there for a while."
I bring a hand up to rest it on her neck. "Heh, me too, actually. I'll, um, I'll fill you in on what she needed to speak to me about later, okay?"
She just nods in response, and we keep walking, following the other two in front of us. I take a quick moment to reflect on my circumstances. I'm glad that I'll be allowed to stay, but I'm not sure how to feel about this 'veil' thing being broken. I'm not really looking forward to informing the girls about my near death experience, either.
Oh, well, this trip was really enjoyable otherwise. I was able to see the capital city, I met (and befriended) the ruling Princesses, and I learned how I got to this land. Of course, by far the best part was learning that I will never, ever have to leave here.
Right?
