Welcome back. I apologize if you have missed this story, but I'm back. And in great numbers. I have stopped posting to fanfiction because it sucks and have changed to fimfiction, and for this I apologize. Thankfully, I have a few chapters here that I will be posting frequently. I recommend rereading the story so far to see what I have edited, because I put a lot of work into it, and you will probably be better off reading it again than to be left in the dark after like a year of non contact. Or you could just read this summary that I made.
In the beginning, there was dust. Tiny particles of dust floating through space, orbiting a newly formed star. These particles, through the use of tiny gravitational fields, began to merge with each other, eventually forming planets.
Too early? Right, sorry.
Celestia arrives in our world in a parking lot and is found by Phil, who takes her to his home. The two bond over pizza and sunsets before Celestia's guards arrive and ruin the moment. The group gets drunk and Phil and Celestia end up doing the horizontal monster mash, afterwards revealing to each other the love they felt. After a few weeks of endless love making, Celestia is forced to return home, splitting our couple and ending their relationship.
While Celestia tirelessly works to find a way to return to her beloved, a new employee named Sarah tries to take Phil's mind off his missing lady friend with coffee. After driving Sarah home, Phil returns to find Luna in his home. The same night, Sarah reveals that she lied to her parents and said that Phil was her boyfriend. Her parents invite him to dinner.
Luna and Phil talk to each other for the next few days before Celestia finally returns to have sex with her boyfriend again. A few more days of endless talking take place where Celestia is informed of Sarah's lie and agrees to meet Sarah before allowing Phil to help. Before Sarah could be invited to meet Celestia, Celestia calls Phil and informs him that another from Equestria has come to this world, a thief named Red Shadow.
Phil returns home and the two embark on a journey to locate Red Shadow, who was stealing money from bar patrons. Red Shadow is convinced to join them in Phil's home after a very antagonistic Celestia calms down. Red Shadow drugs Phil's drink and attempts to escape, having thought over her situation. She is then captured and brought back by a very angry Celestia.
Phil wakes up and joins the two of them. He states that he's angry, but can't bring himself to punish Red because he's a little bitch. The next morning, he confronts Red again. She reveals that her fear of prison due to her younger age of 23 caused her to think irrationally and she broke down crying.
Celestia encounters the two in a hug and gets very angry. Phil and Celestia talk and Celestia reveals that she's jealous of Red and Sarah taking time away from them. Eventually the group makes up.
Chrysalis shows up and reveals that Red stole her teddy bear and asks Phil to retrieve it for her. She says she may have information that will allow Celestia to come and go to this world as she pleased, so Phil agrees.
Phil and Celestia prepare to leave for Phil's grandmother's house. Celestia meets some of Phil's family and they go home with a gift from his grandmother, which is revealed to be a strong alcohol. Celestia, forgetting that she is no longer a pony, chugs a lot of the bottle. In her inebriated state, she reveals that she kept the fact that she is unable to bear children from Phil. She says that she has always wanted a child of her own and the two share a tender moment topped with a cherry of love making.
And that is today's recap. Hope you enjoy the chapter.
I've managed to lift Celestia's spirits. She's much more beautiful when she's happy. Sadness doesn't suit her.
She was cheerful, she was giddy, and she was excited. And most of all, she was mine.
As long as I could keep her attention, she would be happy. That night, I made sure to spend as much time as possible with her.
Ideas were starting to form in my head. Even with Red staying with us, I could still entertain her.
The next day, I woke up at the same time I always do. Celestia was in my arms. She probably woke up to my alarm as well.
An hour and a half until I had to be at work. An hour until I usually get there. Fifty minutes until I usually leave. Thirty minutes until my next alarm. I didn't even have to wake up right now if I didn't want to.
"Are you going to get up?" she asked me.
"I should."
She turned her head up so she could see me, then turned her body onto her back. She was laying on my arm. She looked to me, smiling.
I gave her a small kiss on the cheek before pulling my arm out from under her. "Stay here, I won't be long."
I got out of the bed the two of us shared. She covered back up with the blanket and smiled at me.
As I told Celestia, it definitely didn't take long. I ate a small bowl of cereal and made sure I had a presentable appearance. That was it. I didn't think I needed to shower right now. I didn't smell and I didn't feel gross. I put on some deodorant and left the bathroom. I went back into the kitchen and retrieved a package of Pop-Tarts to bring back to Celestia. I walked back into the room and sat down on the bed on top of the blanket.
I held out the Pop-Tarts to her, dangling them just on the edge of the blanket in front of her face. Her eyes lit up when she saw it. She snatched it from my hand and sat up, opening the package. As she ate it, she stared at me with a smile.
"You still have almost an hour left here." she said, "You wake up too early."
"What are we going to do until then?" I asked her.
"Cuddle?"
"Haven't we been through this before?"
Her smile widened.
I sat next to her against the headboard. "An hour of this, huh? I can do that."
She just kept munching away on her Pop-Tarts.
We leaned against each other.
A short while later, we just ended up back under the blanket. I think Celestia fell back asleep. My second alarm went off. She just groaned and turned over.
"I'll be back soon." I said to her.
She gave me a small smile. "Goodbye."
I wish I could just stay here with her. Oh well. She was probably gonna sleep the day away. Good for her.
At work today, nothing of note happened. It was as normal a day as any. If it were to be added into a work of fiction, it would probably need a single line of dialogue to describe it.
When I got back home, I saw Red sitting on the couch.
"Your 'girlfriend' is being weird." she said to me, pointing to the kitchen.
I heard the clinking of glass in the kitchen.
"Celestia, what are you up to?" I asked her, walking through the doorway. Something smelled nice. She was making herself a meal, it seemed.
She looked at me as I walked in, a pleasant smile on her face. The kitchen was a little messy. She still had the braid in her hair.
"I made grilled cheese!" she proudly proclaimed.
I smiled at her. "Smells nice."
She turned and reached to a plate on the counter. On it were three very good looking sandwiches. She held the plate out to me, smiling proudly.
I took it from her. "What's gotten into you?" I cheerfully asked her, "You don't usually cook."
"Well, I just... thought I'd take a more... wifely role..." Her smile turned bashful. "Now that... everything's in the open like this."
"Wifely role?"
"Well... Maybe it's a bit much now, but... Oh! I... I did the dishes for you..." she said to me.
Sure enough, the sink was clear. She had even cleaned any water spots that may have been left behind.
"I was planning on getting a little more done before you got home, but..." She just smiled.
"Well thank you, Celestia. You know, not that I don't appreciate this, but you don't have to do these things for me."
"I know. I just... I want to. For you."
She was smiling at me. I smiled back at her.
"You're being really cute right now, Celestia." I said.
That got a huge smile from her. "Here, sit!" she excitedly let out, going to the table and pulling a chair out for me.
The table had been wiped down. Celestia had cleaned quite a bit while I was away. This feels kinda weird, but I suppose I can't complain.
I sat down. Her smile never faded. She was so happy right now.
I looked at my food again. The grilled cheese looked very, very good. Better than when I made them.
She sat next to me, still smiling.
"Watch, I've been practicing using magic again." she said to me.
She turned her attention to the counter. A medium sized bowl surrounded with a golden aura floated towards the table and landed just in front of me. It had tomato soup in it.
She smiled proudly again. "It's getting easier to use."
"Good job, Celestia." I said to her. I didn't understand anything about magic or why she could use it again, but she was happy.
Next, two cups of milk joined the bowl on the table in the same manner.
Spoons for the soup had already been set out for us. Celestia started to eat the meal she had made for herself, smiling away without a care in the world.
I liked her like this. She's happier than I've ever seen her.
I started eating as well. The grilled cheese was exceptionally well made. They tasted much better than the ones I made. They were really cheesy and perfectly cooked on both sides. They tasted phenomenal.
"My goodness, I've almost forgotten. Red, there's a plate in here for you, as well!" she called to the front room.
"You made me food?" Red walked into the kitchen. "Oh wow, that looks nice."
"Help yourself." said Celestia, "I made plenty."
She certainly did. Her own plate had six grilled cheeses piled on it. It was already down to five, now.
Red picked up the last plate of sandwiches that had been sitting on the counter.
As she turned back to the front room, Celestia spoke again. "Won't you join us, Red?"
Red looked at the two of us. "I'd rather not get in the way of whatever 'this' is." She gestured to us.
"Suit yourself." said Celestia, turning back to me.
Red walked back into the front room, leaving the two of us alone. Celestia cheerfully ate her meal. I was pretty happy, myself. Celestia made good grilled cheese.
"Phil." she said to me. She set down the sandwich she was eating. It seemed like she wanted to say something important.
I swallowed the food I had been chewing on. "Yes, Celestia?"
"I've been speaking with my sister again. She's rather furious with you."
"She is? What'd I do this time?"
"If I recall, she told you not to propose to me."
"I didn't. I haven't."
"That's not how she sees it."
"I know what I said. I chose my words very carefully. Well... almost very carefully."
"It seems she's a little envious of me." said Celestia, a giggle in her voice, "Seeing her older sister in love while she herself cannot find a man."
"What, is that it?"
"Well, she's a bit angry that you disobeyed her, but it's not something you need to concern yourself with. My little sister isn't someone who would stay angry at something like this."
"Are you sure?"
She gave me a smirk. "What, are you afraid of my sister?"
"A... little..."
She let out a small laugh. "I suppose she can be rather scary at times. I just found this whole thing funny, is all. My little sister is angry at the both of us because we have a relationship."
Celestia picked up her sandwich again.
"Did you talk about anything else?" I asked.
"Like what?" she asked, mouth full of food. She didn't care. She just didn't care.
"I dunno. Equestria? How's Equestria doing?"
"It's been doing rather well, even in my absence. Luna's been handling things well. She didn't speak much about it this time. She just argued with me a lot." She laughed.
I smiled at her.
"You see..." She stopped laughing. "The thing is, Luna has very valid claims. She understands my situation as much as I do. She knows why I've done what I've done and why I would do what I'd do. She's a very smart pony. A very smart woman. You already know that, of course. She very rarely lets her emotions get the better of her, and even then, she is quick to calm down. It's the same with me. I'm usually very calm and collected. When Luna started yelling my ears off about marriage and the future and Equestria..." Celestia burst out laughing. "She's supposed to be better than I am at staying calm! I was caught by total surprise. She was acting like a child! And I was no better! We argued back and forth for almost thirty minutes before we both gave up. Oh..."
"Sounds like you had fun."
She smiled at me, giggling. "I'm the Princess of Equestria! I've ruled over an entire nation for thousands of years! I am so many thousands of years old! And yet, I was arguing with my sister over love! Over something as simple as my love life... It's unbelievable. Really, after all this time, you'd think we'd be mature enough to have a civil discussion. I doubt I've matured past the mental age of twenty."
"Well, you got me beat. I'm still down there at four."
Another laugh. "It's an odd feeling when your little sister is more mature than you are. I suppose at our ages, it doesn't really matter how mature you are, does it?"
"Probably not."
"I like that I don't have to be mature around you. You don't care what I say."
I shrugged. "Not a lot you could say that would bother me."
"I suppose. I'm surprised Luna acted the way she did while she was here. It seemed like you and her made fast friends. It's almost a talent, of sorts. You got her to open up to you faster than anybody else I've seen speak with her."
"Well, I guess I was just a good friend to her."
"You did the same to me, as well. I've told you things that I rarely tell anybody. Private things. Things that nobody else should really know." She was gazing at me.
I shrugged again. "I suppose."
"Maybe that's your special talent."
"Hmm?"
"You know, like the talents that give us ponies our cutie marks." She lifted her sleeve to display the sun tattoo on her shoulder. "Mine represents my responsibility to move our sun across the sky. Cutie marks are a sign of maturity. I didn't get mine until much later into my life, many years after my sister and I were made leaders of Equestria. What do you think your cutie mark would be? Being easy to talk to might be one of your talents, but I don't think you'd have it as a cutie mark. What talents do you even have?"
"Well, I went to school for two years to learn about computers."
"You went to school?" She smiled warmly. "I never knew that. Such an important part of your life and yet I never knew."
"I've been wanting to talk more about our personal lives, but we got a little side tracked."
"So you think working with computers is your special talent?"
"Could be. I play video games a lot, too. I guess I wouldn't consider it a talent, though. I'm not really good at it."
"You seemed to be doing well the last time I watched you play."
"That's 'cause I grind the same thing all the time."
She smirked. "Grind the same thing..."
"Celestia get your mind out of the gutter."
"Maybe that's your special talent. There aren't any ponies with a sexual cutie mark. You've always been great in bed. Sometimes it's hard for me to get out of bed the morning after."
"Princess Celestia, you are disgusting!" Red shouted from the front room.
Celestia looked to the doorway to the front room, a shocked look on her face. She turned back to me. "I... forgot she was out there..." she said to me. Her face was red.
"I'm going back downstairs! Have fun discussing whatever weird thing you're talking about out there." With that, I heard her walking down the stairs.
Celestia laughed again. "She would have never said that in Equestria."
"Looks like you made a friend."
"It seems I have."
"I guess she's just lucky we have a bit of self-control. Well, at least one of us."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"You know what it means."
She gave me another bashful smile. "You big meanie."
I laughed. She laughed as well.
"Maybe your cutie mark would be a computer." she said.
"Maybe."
"Maybe you wouldn't even have one. You're human, after all. I have no idea if a human would have a cutie mark in the first place."
"Maybe. Maybe not."
"I suppose it doesn't matter, does it?"
I shook my head. "No, not really."
"Oh, I wish you could come with me."
"Yeah, me too."
She sighed, then she smile at me. "At least we can still see each other."
"I love seeing you."
She giggled.
"Celestia, are you sure you don't want me to stay home from work?"
"Phil, I know how important it is to stay at a job. If you take days off every time you want to be with me, you'd get fired."
"Yeah. I guess..."
"Besides, it makes the time we do get together all that much more special."
I smiled at her. "Yeah."
She smiled back.
"You know, I can see why you're called the Princess of the Sun."
"Hmm? Why's that?"
"'Cause you're so 'sunny' all the time."
She snorted, then started to laugh. "Phil, that was a terrible joke!" she said, still laughing.
"You're always 'beaming' with happiness."
"Stop it! Stop it!" She laughed harder.
"Such a silly Princess." I ran out of sun puns too quickly.
She was laughing for quite a while before she caught her breath. She looked at me, holding back giggles.
"I love you." I said to her.
"Phil!" She started laughing again.
I leaned in closer. "Love you."
"I love you, too!" she said through her laughs.
I moved my chair a bit closer to her and wrapped my arms around her.
This time, I was much more personal. "I love you." I whispered into her ear.
She slowly stopped laughing. Her arms wrapped around me. "I love you, too." she quietly let out.
We pulled back from each other and gazed into each other's eyes.
"This is the happiest I've ever seen you, Celestia." I said to her.
She just smiled sheepishly at me. I couldn't tell what she was thinking.
We held each other for a long while before letting go. I went for my last sandwich, which seemed to remind her that she had her own food to eat. She immediately began to eat what was left. She said nothing else the entire time.
Her smile was so wide. She was so incredibly happy.
I didn't understand this Princess of mine. She values normalcy so highly... Does she see us as normal? Doing all these things for me, these 'wifely duties...' Was that making her happy? Was there something more? Was she actually pregnant? That would certainly make her happy. Should I ask? It might ruin the mood. Later. If she was, she'd tell me.
"I'm... I'm so happy that you're my boyfriend." she said to me, looking up from her plate after a long bout of silence. Her eyes were teary. She was happy. She was genuinely happy.
I had made her this happy...
I smiled back at her. "I love you, Celestia."
"I... I love you." she replied. She hiccupped. Then again. Her body shook as she did. She was trying to ignore it. She was failing to ignore it.
The two of us started to laugh. Every time she hiccupped, she laughed even harder.
It took a while for her to calm back down. Her hiccups persisted even after she stopped laughing.
She picked up her sandwich once more and bit into it. She seemed disappointed. "Oh no, it's cold." She kept eating.
"You're too happy."
"How can I be too happy?"
"Like that."
"Like what?"
"Like that."
"What do you mean, 'like that?'"
"You know, like that."
"You're gonna make me start laughing again."
"What? No, that's something that I would never do."
"Never?"
"Nope, never."
"Are you sure?"
"I would never make someone laugh."
She just smiled. "Is that so?"
"You're just being silly."
"Just me?"
"Yep, just you."
"Oh, alright."
"See, you're getting it, now."
She took a deep breath and let out a long sigh. "I am so glad that you're my boyfriend."
Her food was gone. So was mine. I stood up and held my hand out to her. She took it and stood up.
"Here, let me clean this up." she said to me, turning back to the table. She picked up her own plate and cup.
I grabbed mine as well. "I'll help."
"Thank you."
The two of us worked on cleaning the rest of the table and the kitchen. As soon as I felt I was finished, Celestia found something else to clean.
"Alright, you've helped enough." she said after a small while, smiling at me, "I can handle the rest."
"The rest? It's clean, isn't it?"
"The floor isn't clean."
"What? I... Alright then." Whatever she planned on doing, I wasn't going to debate the importance of it with her. "You know, I've never had a girlfriend actually clean for me."
"Really? Why not?"
"Girlfriends aren't supposed to just pick up after their boyfriends. My old girlfriends were usually lazy. I picked up after them a lot."
"Oh. I suppose." She gave me an embarrassed smile. "I guess my ideals for a relationship are a bit outdated. But... even so..."
I shrugged. "It's not like I'm saying you can't clean. I really appreciate that you're doing this for me."
A smile. "I thought you'd say something like that. I like doing these kinds of things. Sometimes, at least. When it's... for someone I love..."
I smiled back at her. I opened my arms wide. She smiled once more and stepped forward into my embrace. We hugged each other.
I kissed her forehead. "You can do whatever you want here, silly sunflower."
"Whatever I want? You mean..."
"You're too loud, Celestia. You're too loud."
"I am not too loud!"
"You're too loud."
"I'm not... too loud."
"Celestia."
She let out a sad groan. "I can be quiet if I want."
"Really?"
"M-maybe... I... I don't really know at this point in my life..."
"We don't want to be rude to our guest."
"That's a stupid reason." she grumbled.
"I know. We'll get some time alone eventually." I squeezed my arms around her. She let out a cute sound.
We could do whatever we wanted when we wanted. I'm pretty sure she knew that. She was not 'too loud.' Celestia is a very vocal woman, but can be rather reserved when she wants to. With the addition of someone else at the house, doing funny things to my girlfriend would just be very awkward for the third party.
Shining Armor had a wife and Soulfire was like... thirty. Or however old he was. He wasn't as young as I was, I know that. They've dealt with this stuff before. Red would probably be having a Vietnam flashback the next time we saw her. Unless she joined... Joke. It's a joke. Don't hurt me.
Besides, if your lady isn't screaming, what's the point?
She pulled away from me. "I'll clean up the rest of the mess out here. You should take a shower."
"I don't smell that bad, do I?"
"Not really. Go shower."
"Alright."
With that, we parted. I went to go get a change of clothes from my room incase Red decided to come back upstairs when I was done and walking through the front room with nothing but a towel. Celestia wouldn't care if it was just her.
The shower was a very nice addition to my day. Celestia was right.
When I got out, I dried myself off and clothed myself. I stretched my back out. I felt nice...
Celestia was in the front room, laying down and relaxing on the couch. She looked to me.
She was taking up the whole couch. I sat down next to the couch and rested my chin on her arm.
"Hi."
"Hello." she responded.
"You're pretty."
She smiled.
I kissed her on the cheek.
"So what are we gonna do now?" she asked me.
"I don't know. Did you have any ideas?"
"I'm happy resting here."
"Let me on."
"Just pick up my legs."
"You're such a lazy pony."
She smirked.
I stood back up and went to her legs. I lifted them and sat down on the couch, setting them back down on my lap.
"You want the laptop?" I asked her.
"It's over there." she said, pointing onto the table just out of our reach.
"Alright then."
I started to lift her legs back up, but she held her legs down, stopping me. "I can do it." she said.
She reached a hand towards the laptop. It was surrounded in a golden glow, then started to move through the air towards her. It landed on her chest. She opened it.
"See?"
"That just seemed lazy."
She giggled. "Phil, my boobs are getting in the way again. The laptop is too close." She pushed the laptop to her stomach. "Now I can't even see it."
"Your boobs are never in the way."
"Yes they are! They're very annoying."
"Celestia, boobs can't be annoying."
"Yes they can!"
"You're delusional."
"You're delusional!" she retorted.
"No, no, you're crazy."
"They get in the way! They're too heavy and the bras you get me are too tight."
"We can go bra shopping soon. Maybe we can get you that bikini we were talking about."
Any irritation that may have been in her voice had completely disappeared. "Alright."
"You're just happy that you got me to buy you something again."
"Well... you're not wrong." A short laugh escaped her lips.
I squeezed one of her legs, then laid my arms over them.
It wasn't very late, but I was very content with my situation. I stayed on the couch with Celestia for a long time, almost until we should be going to bed. Red came back upstairs eventually and got herself something to eat, which made Celestia want something, which meant that I had to get up and get her a snack.
Celestia and I went to bed together that night. All in all, it was a nice day.
Another day, another dollar. Another day of waking up to the alarm.
As I neared the time I needed to leave, I was lost in thought. I wanted to give Celestia something to do, but what? Maybe something for both her and Red to do. Maybe...
I had a good idea, but it was gonna cost a lot of money. Who cares, I'm loaded.
I checked the front room to make sure that everything would work properly before turning my attention to Celestia, who was on the couch again.
"What are you doing?" she asked me.
"You know what, I'm gonna get you a gift today."
Her eyes widened. "A gift? What is it?"
"It's gonna be a surprise." I said, "But it's gonna be big."
"Big? What is it?"
"Don't worry, it'll be great."
"But I wanna worry! What is it?"
I walked over to her and bent over to meet her face. I pushed against her and gave her a kiss on the lips. "You'll love it, I swear."
"You're not gonna tell me? Fine."
"I just wanted to let you know because I would be late getting home."
She nodded. "I'm sure I'll like it."
"Course you will. I'll be taking the car today."
"Alright. I'll see you when you get home."
"Yep. Love you."
"I love you, too."
We hugged each other before I left for work.
I walked back into the house a few seconds later.
"You know, it might help if I had my car keys." I said to her, going to collect them.
She laughed at me.
"Let's try this again."
"Good luck, this time." she said to me.
Once more from the top, I left for work with my keys in my hand.
I got into my car and put my buckle on, thinking about the specifics of my purchase. I may have enough to buy whatever I wanted, but that didn't mean I should abuse it.
And this is only gonna be used for like fifteen days. At least she can use it after she gets back. Eventually...
Another boring day at work. A few people asked why I drove today. I just said I had to get something from Wal-Mart after work, which was true. The Wal-Mart area, at least.
After work, I headed straight to my car. To my surprise, a woman was standing near it. She seemed to be waiting for me.
"Chrysalis, people are gonna see you." I said to her.
"So what? We're just friends, aren't we? I hope you've enjoyed that bit of gold I gave you."
I stared at her, crossing my arms. "It's back at home. What did you want from me?" I asked her.
"Now isn't a good time. Besides, you seem busy right now. In fact, I know you're busy right now."
"Yes. Yes I am."
"You seem to be pushing me away. Where are you going in such a rush?"
"I'm gonna go buy something for Celestia."
"Is it a ring?"
"No, it's not a ring."
"Seems interesting. Mind if I tag along?"
"Actually yeah, I do."
"Oh, like you're going to stop me."
She smirked and turned around. She walked to my passenger door and opened it. She sat in the car.
"Chrysalis, what are you doing?" I asked her.
"I'm coming with, obviously."
"Why? Why do you want to come with? Why are you so keen on ruining my day."
"Don't you have something to do?" she replied.
I sighed. Getting her out of the car would be way more trouble than it would be worth, even if she was my girlfriend's nemesis.
"Buckle your seatbelt, Chrysalis." I said, getting in.
"Hmm... Seems uncomfortable."
"Seatbelts are non-negotiable." I said to her, "Buckle or get out."
She chuckled. "If I must. Why the hostility?"
"It's the law. You buckle or you get a moderate fine. And... for safety reasons as well."
"Aww, you care about me..."
"Sure. Chrysalis, why do you want to come with me?" I asked.
"It's easier to feed off your love this way."
"Really?"
"Perhaps. Maybe I just wanted a friend."
"Nah, that's not it."
"I'd much rather keep my intentions to myself and have you guess what they are."
"If I'm just guessing, I'm gonna give up quick."
"Oh, no fun."
I turned on my car. I won't be able to convince her to leave. If I used force, she'd reply with magic, and I didn't know what she was capable of.
"Being with you is weird. What if Celestia found out about this? She's gonna be so mad if she finds out."
"She may already know."
"I'm not so sure about that, but I'm pretty sure Luna knows."
"Ah yes, the sister. I know she's been watching me. Princess Luna is quite the resourceful pony. I've tried to hide from her many times but she always seems to find me again."
I looked behind me as I backed out of the parking stall.
"Chrysalis, I'm gonna start wanting answers from you." I said.
"Who in the world do you think you're talking to?"
"Hey, one word from Luna and Celestia's gonna hunt you down, alright?"
"Oh? Was that a threat?"
"Chrysalis, you are a threat to my relationship with my girlfriend. If you hadn't noticed, I happen to like my girlfriend."
"You're trying to threaten me... How cute."
"Hey, I'm still trying to get your bear for you, alright? At least give me some credit. She's shown me the bear, you know."
"She what?" she asked, surprised.
"Yeah. I told her that she should try to just sell it back to you."
"Hmm... I suppose I could offer her a deal. Pride can be expensive..."
"Great. Happy ending."
"You really seem to dislike me."
"You know why I dislike you. I can't do anything about this, alright? I had no choice in the matter."
"Oh? Why is that?"
"Well, what if I tried leaving on my own? What would you have done?"
"I would've likely continued what I have been doing elsewhere."
"See that's the thing, too! I don't know if you're lying or not."
"Well, I'm telling the truth, now."
"Yeah, how do I know that? How do I know you wouldn't just assault me or something?"
"You think so low of me that you would assume I would assault you?" she asked, shocked.
"You don't exactly have a good track record."
"And how would you know that?"
"Maybe Celestia told me. Who knows? I just know that you are not kind. You're manipulative. I feel wrong just being near you."
"Is that what you think I am? I'm not some cold-hearted monster! I'm just like Celestia or Luna. I still have feelings."
"You are nothing like them."
"Phil, why are you being so mean?" she whined. Her voice sounded sad.
"I don't know why you're acting like this, but I know you have some other motive."
"What ulterior motive could I have? You're accusing me of something that's just not true."
"You could use me to get to Celestia."
"Look, it... It's crossed my mind, yes, but I'm in no position to anger Princess Celestia. It's not worth it. What could I gain? Nothing! I'd just be digging a hole for myself."
I took in a breath. I felt her sorrow was fake, but I couldn't keep this up.
"You're much smarter than I am, Chrysalis. You're more cunning than I am. I'm scared of you, Chrysalis. I'm scared of what you can do. I offered to help you when I didn't have to. And I'm sorry, but I don't think I'll make any more progress with it. And you giving me that coin... You haven't told me what you wanted. You have the ability to sabotage my relationship with my girlfriend. So... If you come anywhere between me and Celestia... I..." I sighed. "Just pretend like I said something threatening."
"You really love her..." She sighed a pleasured sigh. "It feels nice..."
I glanced at her as I drove. How do I deal with this?
Regardless of how I felt, I drove the two of us to the other side of town. Chrysalis seemed to be taking in the sights. She seemed uninterested in general, but she liked the trip.
The purchase of the day: a Wii U.
But I couldn't just get the Wii U. What would she play it on? I had to get a TV as well. And where would that TV sit? An entertainment center was also on my list.
If I'm not careful, I could spend a lot of money with this purchase. It would be cheaper to do this online and go to different shopping sites, but then I'd have to wait for it to ship, or worse, I'd have to go get it myself.
I had compared prices online between Wal-Mart and the GameStop just across the street from Wal-Mart while I was at work. If I purchase the console at GameStop, it'd be a little cheaper, plus I can get it used, which makes it even cheaper. Or maybe I can get the Mario Kart 8 combo system. Whichever's cheaper.
I stopped at Wal-Mart first to pick up a TV and entertainment center.
Chrysalis seemed rather interested in the store as we got out of the car.
"So what are you getting?" she asked me, "If it's not a ring... Is it chocolate? I know she likes chocolate."
"No it's not chocolate. I'm getting her something to do. A game, so she can do something fun if she gets bored."
"I like chocolate, too." she replied, seemingly not caring about what I said.
As I walked into the store, Chrysalis followed behind at a somewhat slow pace. She was examining her surroundings. She seemed to be enjoying herself.
After we got in, she started picking up and examining whatever we passed. Whatever interested her, at least. I could probably just leave her here if I moved fast enough. I guess she's a little more attentive than that.
The electronics department was straight back down the main aisle. I just lazily pushed my cart along.
"So... Again, what are you here to get?" she asked once more.
"You wouldn't understand what it is. It's human technology. I'm just getting Celestia a game to play."
"I suppose... Can I play?"
"You... No. No, you cannot."
"Aw, why not?"
"Because Celestia hates you."
"How rude."
"Shush."
I managed to find a fifty inch TV for under $300. It didn't have to be that big or that expensive, but then again, I didn't have to buy it in the first place. I picked up the box and placed it into my cart.
Chrysalis was bewildered by the electronics area. The TV's in the back were all playing Frozen. She just stared.
Now would be a perfect time to just leave her here... She noticed immediately.
The entertainment center was much cheaper. I just needed something to raise the TV off the ground. Really, I could've just used the coffee table, but we liked putting our feet on it.
As I was in line to make my purchase, I grabbed a package of Reese's Cups from the snacks near the check out. After my purchase was completed, I threw it at Chrysalis, who seemed oblivious to why I got them.
She caught it before it hit her and examined it. She smiled at me. "How sweet of you." She opened the package and took off the paper, then took a bite. Her eyes opened wide. "This is really sweet!"
The other was gone in a few seconds.
"An actual gift from somebody. Feels weird..." she said.
It was a bit difficult to load these two items into my car. I ended up putting the TV in the back seat and the entertainment center into the trunk.
I went over to GameStop to complete my objective. A used Wii U, Mario Kart 8, Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, and three Wii U Pro controllers, because I hated using the gamepad for Mario Kart.
I had the Wii U GameCube controller adapter and a number of GameCube controllers at the home already. They worked with the Dolphin GameCube emulator.
$450. For video games. Video games that weren't even on the PC.
The totals from my purchases that day were around $800. More than I typically spent in a day.
"You've spent quite a lot." said Chrysalis, "All this for a game?"
"Well, two games."
"Two games? Still."
"Hey, they're great games."
"But worth that much?"
"Well, no. But Celestia's worth that much. To me."
"I suppose. You'd get her anything she wanted."
"Yep. Chrysalis, where do I drop you off?"
"What, you already want to get rid of me?"
"You can't stay with me."
"How boring."
"This isn't very fun for me, Chrysalis."
"Why not?"
"I've explained this like three times. I'm helping you because you're willing to help me."
"I understand your reasoning."
"Can you really not tell me what you want in return for that coin?"
"It's not a good time. I'm not ready, yet. You may use the coin however you wish. I don't need it back. Our supply isn't bottomless, but it's large enough."
"Yeah, yeah... Where am I taking you?"
"I don't like when you say that. We're friends, right? And you just want me gone."
"Look, if you and Celestia didn't have issues, I'd be fine being your friend. I'm sorry I'm acting the way I have, it's just that I like Celestia a lot more than I like you."
"Yes, I... I suppose Princess Celestia is a rather likable woman. But even then, you're acting as if you don't like me." She stepped towards me. "You... like me, don't you?"
That's a weird question coming from her. "Well, I don't hate you."
"But, do you like me, was my question."
"Why do you... want to know?"
She reached up and placed her hand over my eyes again, to my irritation. When she uncovered my face, I could see my girlfriend standing in front of me. Her hand slid to the side of my face. She took a step towards me.
"Do you... like me?" she asked once more.
Celestia's magenta eyes flashed a bright green.
I shot back away from her, moving a few steps away. I didn't know what she was doing, or what she was trying to do, but I didn't like it.
"What are you doing?" I asked her, a bit of caution in my voice.
"What do you mean?"
"Why are you disguised as Celestia?"
"I thought it would calm you down a bit if you saw your beloved again."
"I was already calm. I know what you do. You do something to ponies to control them... You just tried doing it to me, didn't you..."
"What? Of course not. I don't know how to control humans."
Likely story. "You just... get in the car." Get in the car? Did I want her in the car? "And get rid of that disguise."
"Fine." She was surrounded by emerald flames once more. She returned to her first disguise, then got into the car.
Was it was a bad idea to trust her this much? Maybe...
I sat in the driver's seat. I was still irritated.
"I'm not taking you to my house." I said to her.
"Very well. Just bring me back to your work. I'll take it from there."
"You're living in this world?"
"Maybe. Maybe not."
She's not answering me...
"You look angry." she said to me as I started to move.
"I am. You're irritating me."
"Why?"
"Could you stop with all these questions?"
"I could ask the same of you."
"Hey, I'm being left in the dark here. You're not telling me anything."
She just chuckled. "You'll know soon enough."
"You're being cryptic and I don't appreciate it."
"I'm the one who's paying you, you don't need to know why you're doing it."
"I don't even know what I'm doing!"
"There are still things I need to do before I give you your task. I may be being cryptic, but I assure you that it will not be a difficult task."
"If it's not hard, why'd you give me gold?"
"Leverage." she stated simply.
I grumbled. It certainly was good leverage. "What if I gave it back?"
"I would just force you to help me. Trust me, you don't want that."
"I feel like you're threatening me."
"Interpret that however you want."
I took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Hey Chrysalis... can we come to an agreement?"
"Hmm?"
"I haven't exactly been being nice to you today, and I'm pretty sure I'm not really in a position to say this, but... I will help you with what you need help with as long as you stay away from Celestia."
"You're right, you are in no position to say this."
"Chrysalis."
"If it will make you happy, I'll accept your agreement." She chuckled. "It doesn't matter. I'm sure you won't believe me anyways."
"I..." I grumbled. "Maybe not, but you know how I feel about all this."
"Yes, of course I know. I've been in love before as well. I'm finding all of this rather funny."
"No more therapy questions."
She laughed.
"So, I'm gonna drop you off at my workplace and then I'm going home and playing video games with my girlfriend."
Chrysalis yawned. "Fine."
"Are you tired?"
"A little. I haven't gotten much sleep recently."
"That's... unfortunate."
"As I've said, there is much I need to do."
For the most part, the rest of the trip was quiet. She spoke about the surroundings, much like Celestia did when I drove.
After she got out of the car, she leaned back down through the window to say something. "Have fun with that Princess of yours. She's quite a catch."
With that, she turned and left down the road. I had no idea what she meant by that. I had no idea where she's going. Not my problem.
I started to hear a voice speaking to me inside my head.
"What are you doing with that woman?" I heard Princess Luna ask me, "Why does she keep speaking to you?"
"You... know who she is, right Luna?" I said aloud, still not knowing how to respond to this type of conversation.
"Do you think me a fool? She's our enemy, Phil. She's the enemy of both Equestria and my sister, Celestia. Your girlfriend, Phil."
"She's... I'm not gonna defend her or anything, but you saw how she sat in my car, right? I couldn't do anything about that."
"What did you discuss?" she coldly asked me. I felt an icy chill run down my spine.
"I'm gonna... I'm gonna tell you what I can right now. I don't know all the details yet, but... Red stole something from her. I told you that. It's a personal item that would be embarrassing to her if it were to be revealed to the public. She's trying to use me to get it back."
"What item is it? What could be so valuable to her?"
"It's... Um... Can you promise not to tell anybody about this?"
"What? Pray tell, who do you think you are speaking to?"
"Please, Luna?"
"Very well." She was getting impatient. If she didn't like my answer, she would not hesitate to relay the information.
"Alright... It's... It's her..." I lowered my voice. "It's her teddy bear."
"Teddy bear?"
"Yes. Red Shadow has it. I've seen it. She's shown it to me. It's Queen Chrysalis's, no doubt."
She was silent for a small time before saying, "Continue."
"And... other than that, she's given me a gold coin as an incentive to help her with something else."
"Something else?"
"She hasn't told me anything about it. She keeps saying that she needs more time. I don't know what she could want."
"Hmm..." A pause. "Perhaps... Hmm... Continue."
"And... she implied that she wanted to be my friend."
"Your friend? Among the things you've said, I'm having trouble believing that the most."
"I don't know if she really meant it, but she said that we're friends."
"Are you friends?"
"I don't... I don't know. Maybe. I don't hate her, at least. And... you know me... I like making friends... But... If she keeps disguising herself as Celestia, I'm really gonna start disliking her."
"You're more accepting than I would be in your position." she said to me, "I suppose that's just another difference between us. If I were to inform my sister of this, I'm sure your new friend would be rather displeased. You have my silence. I'll not interfere with your retrieval of the Queen Chrysalis's... teddy bear." She let out a poorly concealed snicker.
"No telling anyone about that, right? I promised her."
"I'll not say a word. This is getting very amusing. She's been doing some very interesting things recently. I'm becoming curious. Congratulations, you've won my silence yet again. If you were anyone else, my sister would've known immediately."
"Y-yeah... Thanks."
"Be sure this doesn't last. I may not say anything, but I cannot prevent her from discovering anything on her own. Perhaps you should return home. She'll be getting anxious."
"Right. Thanks, Luna."
Luna chuckled. "Good luck."
I felt her presence leave my mind. I shivered. What a weird feeling.
I left the parking lot and headed home. It was almost dark already.
I pulled into my driveway and turned off my car. How should I bring these inside? What should I start with? I don't know... I guess I'll just start with the game console.
I picked up the bags from the front seat and got out of the car. Kinda heavy...
As I walked inside, Celestia stood up from the couch almost immediately.
"Phil! You took so long. I was getting worried. What's that? Is that my gift?"
"And a hello to you, too." I said, smiling at her.
"Sorry... Welcome home." she sheepishly let out, "What's in your hands?"
I set the bags onto the table. "Nothing you'd recognize." I said to her, "There's more in the car."
"More?"
"Yeah. Then I gotta set it all up and... you'll like it, you'll like it."
I held my arms out and wrapped them around her for a big hug. She hugged me back. Another happy day for my happy Princess.
We pulled apart and briefly kissed each other before I stepped back.
"Now, I may have been a little misleading this morning." I said, "Your gift isn't anything special like jewelry. It's a game that I know you'll enjoy playing. Well, it's two games, but I'll tell you more after I set it up. I gotta go get the rest of it."
"Oh, let me help!" There was nothing in the world that could stop her from helping me.
I smiled at her. "Right out here."
I walked out to the car and opened the trunk.
"What's that?"
"It's like a table, but better." I said, "This isn't the important part, don't worry."
"I'm just excited."
"Yeah, well you're also cute."
A wide smile.
"Gotta get this inside." I said, starting to pull it from the trunk.
Celestia grabbed it as well.
"It's lighter than I thought it would be." she said, looking behind her as we started to move.
"It's just big."
I walked at her pace as we brought the entertainment center inside. It was already put together, but it wasn't very big. It was just something to set the TV on.
"Where do you want this?" she asked me.
"Right there against the wall." I said, gesturing to the wall opposite the couch.
She backed up to the wall so we could set it down.
"Now what? I saw that other box in your car. Do we bring that in?"
"Yep."
"Is it gonna be heavy?"
"Nah. Just big. I got it in the car on my own, at least."
"Well, you're strong."
"So are you."
"I'm not strong. I am a delicate flower."
"Delicate?"
"Ok, maybe not delicate."
"Could you two wrap this up?" said Red, "I wanna see what you got."
"Oh! Red, you help him!" Celestia let out.
"What? I'm not helping him."
"It's my gift."
"He got it for you."
"I'm a Princess..."
Red seemed very bothered by that. "Fine."
"I got it, Red." I said.
"No, no... she's the Princess."
"Well, if it's any consolation, you can use this, too."
"Huh?"
"What?" asked Celestia.
"More than one person at a time can use these things." I said, "All three of us can play. Even a fourth can play. You know, provided there was a fourth person here."
"How exciting." said Celestia.
"That sounds kinda nice, I guess." said Red.
"I'm gonna go get the last box." I said.
"I'll help." said Celestia, following me.
Just like last time, the two of us went out to the car to retrieve the box. The TV was actually a bit heavier than the entertainment center. Even so, it was just as easy to bring into the house.
I knew there was a stand that I needed to attach to the bottom of the TV, so I had her set it on the ground in front of the entertainment center.
I used one of my keys to cut open the tape on the top of the box and opened it. I pulled out the separate stand on the top and placed it onto the table. I did the same with the detachable power cord and the remote.
"Hey Celestia, help me with this." I said, reaching into the box.
She did as I did.
"Ready?"
She nodded.
We pulled up. The box came with it.
"Uhh... Red?" I asked.
"I've got it." said Celestia.
The box slid off the TV we were pulling out.
"Ok, just put this on the table." I said to her.
The TV was heavy, but it wasn't too bad. We could still move it around with ease. After we set it down, I pulled off the Styrofoam that was used to package it.
I retrieved a screwdriver from a drawer in the kitchen to attach the stand to the TV.
"So this is a..." Celestia looked at the box. "Television?"
"Yep. Nice, huh?"
"I suppose."
I saw that she had a piece of Styrofoam in her hands. She was just playing with it.
I turned the TV right side up on the table.
"Gotta put it over there, now." I said, pointing to the entertainment center.
"Oh, right." She tossed the piece of Styrofoam to the side and grabbed onto the bottom of the TV with me.
Red was just standing to the side watching us work. She seemed pleased with her position.
I grabbed the cord and plugged the TV in, then went to the game system. I opened the box. Both Celestia and Red periodically asked me questions as I plugged the console into the wall and the back of the TV.
I plugged in the gamepad to the wall to charge it and turned everything on. After making sure the TV was on the right input, the screen turned white. The Wii U logo appeared on the screen.
"Turn the Wii U gamepad on, and then press the SYNC Button on the Wii U console." read Celestia, staring at the TV screen, "What does that mean?"
"I have to connect this little number to this doohickey right here." I said, gesturing to the gamepad.
I had to input a series of symbols to sync the gamepad to the Wii U. I didn't know it did this. Neat. After that, I followed the instructions given to me by the system.
"Wait what? I have to use my TV remote?" I asked, becoming confused with the instructions.
"Is something wrong?" asked Celestia.
"No, it's good."
I clicked the option for TV remote. It asked me for my TV's manufacturer, which I inputted into it.
"I can... change stuff with the Wii U?" I asked, pointing the gamepad at the TV and tapping the volume button that had appeared on the screen. The volume meter on the TV appeared as I did. "Holy crap, I didn't know that. Ok... configured. No remote needed, then."
I continued with the setup on the gamepad. I connected it to my Wi-Fi connection. Update? Yeah, sure.
I set the gamepad back down onto my entertainment center.
"What's it doing now?"
"Updating. Time to wait."
"All that for nothing." said Red.
"Not nothing. It'll work eventually."
"How long does this usually take, then?"
"I dunno. Oh... It's done. Or... it failed? Whatever. Now I gotta... make a Mii. Oh! Celestia, this is perfect for you!"
"What is it? What am I doing?"
I gave her the gamepad. "Here, make a person."
"Make a person?"
"Yeah, make something. It don't matter what it looks like. You can pick random if you want."
She stared at the screen, then used the stylus I gave her to tap one of the options.
She continued to stare. She backed off a bit, then sat on the couch, starting to tap away at the screen. She was smiling.
"Did you know this would happen?" asked Red.
"Not really."
She was actually working on the gamepad for a while. She was giggling as she worked.
Red went over her to see what she was doing, but she hid it from her and said, "It's a secret."
We were waiting around twenty minutes until she was finished. When she was, she giggled again.
"Phil, look. I made Red."
"You what?" asked Red, swiping it from her.
I looked over her shoulder. Red hair and everything. A pretty good likeness for a Mii.
I laughed. Celestia laughed. Red just seemed displeased.
"Oh, ha ha..." she sarcastically let out. She shoved the gamepad into my arms and looked away, crossing her arms across her chest. She smirked, then looked back at us. "Alright, I guess it's kinda funny."
"Are we gonna keep her, Celestia?" I asked, holding the gamepad up for Celestia to see the screen.
She nodded. "Of course."
"Ok. That's our Mii."
I accepted the created Mii and continued once more. After a small waiting period, The Wii U was finally set up.
"There we go! There we go."
"What's that?" Celestia asked me, continuing to be cute. She was looking at the TV screen.
"That's the main menu. It's not important. What is important though, is what you can do from here. Now I gotta..."
I opened the three Pro controllers and examined them for the sync button, which was on the back of them. Wait, do these need batteries? I opened one. No, it looks like they had battery packs. Probably empty. They came with chargers, which should've tipped me off to the battery pack in the first place.
I plugged all three controllers into the Wii U, then pushed the sync button on the console and the controllers. After a small while, I was able to connect them all.
Celestia seemed busy with the TV box right now. She was reaching into it, though I didn't know why.
The controllers were charging, but the cords were pretty long. If I moved the console a bit, we could probably sit on the couch and play with them.
"Now for the good part." I said.
I had their attention.
I opened the Mario Kart 8 case and inserted the disk into the console. I tapped it on the gamepad.
The TV went black, then the logo of the game showed up.
Mario's voice played through the speakers. "Mario Kart 8!"
"I love this game." I said.
"This is another video game." said Celestia.
"Yep."
Following my previous idea, I pulled the console forward and straightened out the cords. It wasn't a very big room, even being a living room, so the cords reached to the couch.
"Oh man, this is gonna be so fun." I said, grabbing the first controller and sitting on the couch.
I stared at Celestia and patted the couch next to me. She smiled and sat down. I handed her the second controller.
She held it a bit awkwardly in her hands, but replicated how I held mine.
"You too, Red." I said.
Celestia picked up the third controller and held it out to Red.
Red hesitated, but eventually took it and sat next to Celestia.
"Bit snug." she said.
"Oh, sorry." said Celestia, moving towards me. She had gotten really close, but I think that was the point.
"Alright, a few things you need to know before we start." I said, "First, this is a racing game where you intentionally sabotage the other racers to get ahead. Second, I am very good at this game and I will not go easy on you. Third... er... ah, whatever. We'll do a few practice rounds before we actually race. How's that sound?"
"Sounds great."
"What are we doing, exactly?" asked Red.
"I'm gonna tell you this now, it's gonna be a bit challenging to get into it, but once you do, you'll love playing. I've been playing these kinds of games for years. I'm gonna admit though, I don't remember all of the controls. They'll come back to me."
I went into the multiplayer option on the menu. Inside that, I chose verses so it was just us with no computer racers.
"You can choose racers here." I said, continuing my tutorial, "There are some differences in terms of stats, but don't worry about those for now."
I chose toad as my racer. Usually I chose Isabelle because she's cute, but getting the DLC would just be too much of a hassle right now.
Red was still fumbling a bit with her controller. Celestia was going through the characters one by one. It seemed like she was checking what each one looked like.
"She has a crown!" Celestia excitedly let out, looking at Peach, "Is she a queen?"
"She's a Princess. Princess Peach."
"That name is so cute."
"I'm taking her." said Red, moving her cursor over to Peach and pushing accept.
"No, I want her!" cried Celestia. She pressed accept as well, bringing us to the next screen.
"Oh, we can both pick her." said Red, "I don't want her anymore. Wait, where did the racers go?"
I went back to the racers. "Red, you're being mean to Celestia."
"Yay, I'm the Princess." hummed Celestia.
"Celestia, you already are a Princess."
"Bu-but I wanna be a Princess in..." She trailed off. She was mumbling on purpose and it was very cute.
"How are you the ruler of our nation?" Red asked her in bewilderment.
"There's another Princess if you still want a Princess, Red." I said.
"This one?" asked Celestia, moving to Daisy. She frowned and moved back to Peach. "I like this Princess more."
"What are you? Why did you pick that mushroom one?"
"Light racers have more acceleration." I said, "But they also have a low top speed."
"You really aren't going easy on us. So that means that heavy racers have a low acceleration and high top speed, right? So... A medium racer would be best. Is this one medium?" She highlighted Mario.
"Yep, he's a medium racer. Daisy is medium as well."
"Shut up." she let out.
"Is Princess Peach medium?" asked Celestia.
"Yep, medium."
"Am... I medium?" she joked.
I poked her tummy with a finger. "You're large."
She giggled.
I had chosen Toad, Celestia had chosen Peach, and Red had chosen Mario.
The next screen is where we chose our vehicle configurations. We could change our car into a bike, we could change the wheels, and we could change the glider.
Following my racer choice, I chose a low weight/high acceleration configuration.
I told them how to view the stats, but it didn't seem to matter to them. Red copied what I had inputted and seemed satisfied. Celestia just chose based off looks. It didn't matter what we chose. There wasn't much of a difference anyways.
After cart select, I was brought to a menu that allowed me to remove the CPU drivers.
I picked out a map for us. The map I chose was Sunshine Airport. This particular map took place in the middle of an airport and had us ride through the lobby and down the runway. It was my favorite map other than the Excite Bike map, but again, I didn't have the DLC.
Accepting the map brought up one final ready screen with a large 'go' on it.
"You hold this button to accelerate." I said, lightly tapping A and showing them.
They both looked to their controllers.
"And this one brakes." I said. I went through the basic controls with them, showing them how to drive and how to use items and drift.
When I was done, I looked back to the screen. "Ready?" I asked.
"Ready." replied Red.
"I'm ready." said Celestia.
They both held their controllers like I did.
"Right. Let's go."
I started the race.
The game camera panned around the map before stopping behind the three of us. I looked to the two of them. They were both focused on the game.
"Watch the countdown. Between two and one, hold A." I said.
Both of them followed my advice. When the timer hit zero, both Celestia and Red got a boost. I missed the timing.
Right away, I could feel that Red would be a very competitive player.
It wasn't hard to follow the map. It was hard to actually stay on the map. They kept bumping into walls around corners and the like.
"Make sure to watch your speed around corners." I said, "Going to the side of the track will slow you down. Try staying on as much as possible."
"You're a real Captain Obvious there, aren't you..." said Red.
Red got a red shell from the first item box. I got a coin and Celestia got a mushroom.
Since Red was in last place right now, when she used the item, it went straight to Celestia.
"Ah! You hit me!" she exclaimed, falling into last place.
Celestia used her mushroom as soon as the stun wore off, bringing her next to Red.
"No fair, I just got past!" Red let out.
"My goodness, you're really good at this game." said Celestia, watching my part of the screen. I was much further than they were. I was constantly drifting, which both allowed better cornering and gave me speed boosts.
"Celestia, watch your own screen. Red already passed you."
"What?!" She corrected her position and continued racing.
"Hey when you guys go off ramps, remember to hit the jump button. You'll do tricks and get speed boosts."
"Tell us these things earlier!" said Red.
In the end of our little race, I had finished far before either of them. Red finished in second and Celestia finished with a close third.
"Aw, I lost." said Celestia, her voice still cheery, "That was really fun."
"It was." said Red, "We need this in Equestria."
"How would you use the controllers?" I asked.
"Magic." said Celestia, pulling her hands away from her controller and holding it up with a spell.
"Fair enough."
"It would leave Earth ponies and pegasi out, though."
"Maybe pegasi could use their wings." suggested Red.
"Wings don't work like that." said Celestia.
"Fair enough. Let's play another."
"Alright, another map."
I did just that and chose our next map. Once more, Red ended up in second and Celestia got third.
They were enjoying this. This was fun for them.
I played two more maps with them before backing out of versus mode and going to the grand prix mode.
"Now in this one, we're gonna have other racers against us." I said, "It's much more fun. More fun than your body has room for."
"More fun than this?" asked Celestia, "It sounds wonderful."
"This is really fun." said Red, "I can see why Celestia was so excited."
"She didn't even know what I was getting her." I said, "I mean, I could've been out getting her an engagement ring for all she knew."
Celestia gasped and turned to me.
"Didn't you meet like... a month ago?" asked Red.
Celestia seemed to calm down, but she was listening intently.
"It was about a month and a half ago." I said.
"You definitely haven't been together long enough." she said.
"We've been together long enough to know that we love each other." Celestia defensively let out.
"I'm not saying you don't love each other. I'm just saying that a month and a half isn't long enough to know if you want to marry someone."
"What would you know? You've never been married." said Celestia.
"Well, I know enough to know that proposing after a month is stupid!"
"Easy, ladies." I said to them, "Here, I'll start the game so we can all calm down."
They both seemed fine with that. I started the first grand prix cup.
"How long would you want a man to wait, Red?" asked Celestia.
"I don't know. Two years, maybe? I've never exactly had a boyfriend, so I couldn't say for sure."
"You've never had a boyfriend?" asked Celestia.
"I've had boyfriends before! I just... haven't really had any... steady relationships."
"Seems strange. You're an attractive pony. Why haven't you had any steady relationships?"
Red was getting flustered. "I just haven't, ok? I don't have time."
I lowered the volume of the TV using the gamepad. The race was about to start.
"You don't need time to have a boyfriend."
"Yes, you do." Red retorted, "At least for the good ones. And who would want a bad boyfriend, anyways?"
"Celestia, apparently." I let out.
Red laughed.
"What? You're not a bad boyfriend. You're the best boyfriend I've ever had."
"How many boyfriends have you had anyways, Celestia?" asked Red.
"Oh... the number is very high..."
"High? Like how much? Ten? Twenty?"
"Red, do you have any idea how old I am?"
"Like 5000?"
Celestia chuckled. "I wish I was still 5000. I was so young back then. I've had a lot of boyfriends, Red. Even so, they were very spread out throughout my life. At times, I've spent many years with them."
"Well, how many husbands have you had? That you should remember, right?"
"I... I don't know if I should say this." said Celestia, "But... Red, I've never had a husband."
"You what?"
"I've never had a husband. I've... never been married."
"Really?"
"That's right."
"Huh... You'd think with how old you are, you'd have a few husbands."
"I just... haven't."
Red looked to me. "And... And you said you might want to marry her."
Celestia looked at me as well. She was smiling at me.
Red was looking back to the game. "That's why he's so special, huh? Yeah, I've never really had a special somepony back home."
"You'll find someone. Eventually." said Celestia, "If I can, you can, too."
"Yeah, but you had to go into an entirely different world to find someone."
"Well, you're in a different world, too."
"I seriously doubt I'm gonna fall in love with somebody when I can't even leave the house."
"Maybe Phil can invite one of his friends over for you to meet."
"Celestia, I am not setting Red up on dates! Besides, my friends are weird."
"Well, you're weird, and I still like you."
"What I'm saying is that all my friends are a lot like me, and Red doesn't want someone like me."
"What makes you say that? You're an awesome boyfriend." said Red.
"I know." said Celestia, a cheery glow in her voice, "That's why I love him."
"I mean, you went out and got this thing for her without any prompting. And we're loving this."
"Even though you're better than us at it." said Celestia. She wasn't wrong. The first race was already over and I had gotten first place. Red got fourth. Celestia got fifth. She was pretty consistently doing just a little worse than Red. We were midway through the second race already.
"How much did this cost you?" asked Celestia.
"About $800."
"$800? Isn't that a lot?" she asked.
I shrugged. "It's not a one-time thing. I can play this when you're gone, too."
"Still."
"Yeah, it's a bit expensive. I mean, rings are expensive, too."
"Are you two really getting married?" asked Red.
"We... We might." said Celestia, "Our situation is... not as easy as other men and women."
"Huh... What kind of ring would you get her?" asked Red.
"A plain platinum ring."
"What? Why plain?" she asked.
"Why platinum?" asked Celestia.
"Plain 'cause I'm not in it to impress ladies with diamonds. Also Celestia has enough gems already."
"You can never have enough gems." said Red.
"And platinum 'cause... Platinum is better than gold. Platinum is stronger than gold. If I give a ring to a woman, I want the ring to match how I feel about the relationship: Nothing special, but lasts forever."
"Oh, how romantic." swooned Celestia. She lovingly leaned against me.
"Or I could just give you the little plastic spider ring that comes on the top of a Halloween cupcake." I joked, "It'll fit around your pinkie. But it'll pinch your fingie."
Red laughed.
"We're not gonna get married for a while, though. Like she said, it's really complicated."
"We've talked about this too much recently." said Celestia, "I'm feeling almost worn out. I just want to race some more."
"Yeah, it's been a long couple of days for us."
"So this is... This game is... Like... This is what you do all the time? I heard you say you play video games all the time."
"Similar, but usually different kinds of games. I've never owned this console, myself. I just got this to give you and Celestia something to do while you were here. I doubt you were having a lot of fun."
"Not really. This helps."
"I got a whole other game, too. We can play that later. Maybe tomorrow."
"I like that idea." said Celestia.
We talked a bit more the next few hours as we played. It eventually got late. Later than it should've been. We definitely lost track of time.
I had to go to bed. No excuses. I had a job, I couldn't put that off. When I mentioned that, Celestia decided that she was done as well.
Red, on the other hand, was glued to the TV screen. She was like me when I didn't have anything else to do.
"You two go ahead." said Red, "I'm gonna stay up a little longer and play this game some more."
Celestia turned to me. She was smiling again. "Let's get ready."
I smiled back at her.
Like every other day, it took barely any time to get ready for bed. Celestia followed me around a bit.
"Goodnight, Red." I said to her.
"Goodnight." said Celestia.
"Yep, goodnight. Have fun with your girlfriend. But, like... don't actually have fun. I'm right out here."
"She knows, too?" asked Celestia. She shrugged, then looked back to me. "Come on, let's go."
The two of us retired to the bedroom and closed the door behind us.
We both got onto the bed and snuggled together under the covers. Celestia was loving all this snuggling.
"Hmm... Girlfriend... Hey Phil?" she said to me.
"What's up?"
"Can you... do something for me?"
"Yeah, sure."
"Instead of... calling me your girlfriend... could you... could you call me... your fiancée?"