Another summary here for everyone who wants to see it.
After a while of establishing a more powerful feeling of love between Celestia and Phil, Phil purchases a video game for Red and Celestia so they won't get bored. Chrysalis joins him without his permission.
Chrysalis reveals that she needs his help to recapture her guards in the human world and pays Phil in advance. The two travel to the guards. They get in a magical battle, and Phil protects Chrysalis by taking a powerful spell for her. The two emerge victorious and Phil transports the four changelings to an abandoned house Chrysalis broke into.
Phil reveals where he had been to Celestia, and after revealing that he knew about Chrysalis beforehand, receives a solid right hook from Celestia, who immediately breaks down crying in regret. The two share another emotional moment and decide to use Chrysalis's teddy bear to invite her to the home.
Red agrees to give up her bear in exchange for freedom from prison time in Equestria and Chrysalis is invited to the home, and she agrees. The group meet and create a treaty of sorts. While Chrysalis is trying to leave, Sarah shows up and demands that Phil join her for dinner. After a pleasant discussion, Celestia agreed to allow Phil to visit Sarah's parents.
Sarah was then taken home. Chrysalis was taken home next. Chrysalis reveals that she had been lying while talking to Celestia and actually does know how to travel between worlds. Chrysalis offers to take Phil to Equestria and try to take over the ponies with her. When he refuses, she gifts him three books and leaves for Equestria.
Phil takes the books home and gives them to Celestia, who begins studying them with her sister who is still in Equestria. The books are revealed to be next to illegible, but Celestia continues studying them. The next day, or two days later I don't know, Phil leaves to visit Sarah's family, bringing us to this chapter.
The date that Phil visits Sarah's parents is November 17 or 18. I don't know for sure. The year is probably 2016. It doesn't really matter. This story is taking place in southern Wisconsin.
And that is today's recap. Hope you enjoy the chapter.
I checked my clock as I pulled up to the curb near Sarah's house. I was right on time. Even in the darkness, it was very clear to me that her family was wealthy. Her house had to be at least twice the size of my own. It was much cleaner than mine and in a much better neighborhood.
Maybe I should just make them hate me. That'll solve something, I'm sure. Probably not what I want, but something.
I got out of my car and walked up the sidewalk. Maybe I should've brought a gift as a formality. Wine would've been good, parents like wine.
I knocked on the door. It opened soon after. Sarah knew I was coming. She was the one who answered.
"Phil! Come in, please." she said to me, stepping aside.
I stepped into the house. Everything was white. From the carpet to the walls to the curtains. It looked really nice, actually.
From the entrance, a carpeted stairway led upstairs, a living room was to my right, and a dining room was to my left, and a hallway was in front of me next to the stairway. The smell of food wafted through the air. It smelled like ham. I really like ham...
I saw shoes near the entrance, so I kicked mine off and slid them together.
Sarah was just smiling awkwardly at me.
"Is that him?" I heard a man ask from another room.
He walked into the dining room from another room, and looked to me. He was a rather large man with a mustache. Looked to be in his early to mid 50's. He looked kinda like Vernon Dursley from Harry Potter, except shorter. He smiled as he saw me.
"Ah, there he is!" he loudly let out as he approached us.
When he got close enough, I reached my hand towards him. We shook hands like gentlemen. It's been a long time since I've shook anyone's hand.
"It's nice to finally get to meet you, Mr. Lockhart. My name's Phil."
"The feeling is mutual, Phil. Please, call me Ben."
"Of course. I must say, this is a beautiful home you have."
"Thank you."
His grip loosened around my hand. I let go.
"My wife Olivia is just finishing up tonight's meal in the kitchen."
"It smells great. What is it?"
"She's decided to cook some roasted vegetables and baked potatoes to go along with the roasted ham we're having tonight."
"Sounds a bit much." I said.
"Nonsense. This is just our way of welcoming you into our home. That, and this isn't just any sort of meeting, is it?"
I flashed Sarah a look. "Guess you're right about that."
"Well, of course I'm right. Our little Sarah has finally gotten herself a boyfriend."
"Dad."
"Oh sorry, honey. Make yourself at home while we finish our dinner preparations. Shouldn't be long, now."
He gave me another smile before walking back to the kitchen.
I glared at Sarah.
"I am so sorry." she said to me.
"Well, I'm here... You look nice."
"Oh... Th-Thank you."
I managed to get a blush out of her. It made her look cute. She looked different than when she was at work. I noticed that she was wearing a thin layer of makeup. Her clothes were all very clean.
"There's a... There's a bit of a strong smell in his breath. Has he been drinking?" I asked Sarah.
"He's had some, yes. He lives life lavishly."
"Alright. So what now?" I asked.
"We... It shouldn't be long, now. F-For the food to be ready. I... have something for you to do... If you're interested."
"Yeah, maybe."
"You like fixing computers, right?"
"What did you do?" I asked her.
"I didn't do it, I swear!"
"Alright, I'll take a look at it. This was all a ruse to get me to clean your computer, wasn't it..."
"Not... all of it." she said with a small smile.
"Sly dog."
"My room is up there." she said, pointing to the stairs.
I followed her up. On the way up I saw three pictures. Sarah, her father, and her mother. The portrait of her mother was very eye-catching. I can see where she gets her looks from... There were a few rooms upstairs. All of the doors were closed. I bet this house has two bathrooms...
"In here." she said, opening a door.
"Are your parents alright with me being up here? I mean, we're both kinda adults."
"Oh, don't worry about that."
"That's not helping me."
"I... told my father that I would ask you to help."
"Ah."
We stepped into her room. She looked outside the door before closing it.
Her room was also white. The bed against the wall was large and well made. In general, the room was very tidy. There was nothing on the walls, but she had a few pictures in frames on her dresser. A closet door was closed in the corner of the room and a nightstand with a rather elegant lamp was next to her bed. A computer desk was against one of the walls. She had a sleek-looking laptop sitting on it.
I went to the computer, somewhat doubting her claim that it had viruses. It was already on, just in sleep mode.
As soon as I turned it on, ads popped up on the screen. I glared at Sarah again.
"Can you... fix it?"
"Yep, no problem."
"No problem? Is it an easy fix?"
I shrugged. "Should be."
I sat down at the chair and got to work.
The computer was somewhat new, and had an antivirus program on it, but it didn't seem to be working at all. It looked like she tried to fix it on her own with a few fake antivirus programs as well.
The homepage for the browser was changed to an ad site as well. There were so many toolbars.
As I always did for computers I wanted to fix, I downloaded Malwarebytes. After that, the process was automatic. "Easy peasy." I said.
"That's it?" she asked.
"Yep."
"Are you... sure?"
"Hey, who's the computer guy here?"
"Alright, fine. So... how much do I owe you?"
"I dunno. Don't care."
"I thought you computer guys charged for your work."
"It's no problem. I do this all the time. I could do this for money. I don't, but I could."
"Well... alright. Thanks."
"There are some other... things that I can do to it, but it's not as important as virus removal. What did you look up to get those viruses?"
"Um... N-Nothing..."
"Ah yes, I'm quite familiar with nothing. I'm more partial to lesbian nothing, myself. How about you?"
"It wasn't porn! It wasn't..."
"I don't care." I said, brushing at the air with my hand to indicate that it wasn't important.
She let out a small laugh. Her face was a little red. "We should head back downstairs. My parents are probably wondering what's taking us."
"I'm helping you pick out what underwear to wear to dinner, of course."
Another chuckle. She paused. "Oh wait, I know what I can give you! Hold on..."
She went to her dresser and opened a drawer. Underwear and sock drawer. Stay classy, Sarah.
"Sarah, I appreciate the gesture, but I actually don't want your underwear. Maybe some other time."
"No, no, no. It's something else." She dug around in the drawer a little while longer. "Where is it..." she mumbled to herself.
"Is it weed?" I asked her, curious.
"N-No... It's... Adderall. Why, did you... want..."
"No, no... Schooling getting you down?"
"It did."
"Your mom probably took it while putting your clothes away. See, you can't just hide it in your underwear drawer, you gotta hide it underneath the bottom drawer. You gotta pull it out and put it on the ground under your dresser. That, or tape it to the bottom of the drawer."
"You certainly seem to know a lot about this kind of stuff. I doubt she found it, I do my own laundry."
"I mean, it's not like you could hide it anyways. What do you think parents did before the internet? They invented this stuff, you know? Anyways, if you're gonna give me drugs, I think I'd just prefer the underwear."
"Oh, y-you're not... I thought... Sorry, sorry."
"What, you thought I did drugs?"
"Well... you're always happy all the time... I thought..."
"No, no... I'm happy 'cause I have a pretty lady waiting for me at home. I didn't think you did that kinda stuff."
"I don't do it often. It helped when I studied... My friend gave them to me, now I'm just trying to get rid of them."
"You could sell them."
"Are... Are you insane?"
"It comes and goes. Flush 'em."
"That's a waste." She closed the drawer. "I think we've been up here long enough."
I shrugged.
"Hey, Phil..."
"Hmm? What?"
"There are some things my father will expect from you. We're a religious family, understand? M-My father is, at least..."
"I got some notion."
"When... When we get to the table, pull my chair out for me. It's... the polite thing to do."
"Alright, then."
"My dad may seem nice, but he's very strict on the rules. Just be careful, alright?"
"It should be fine."
The two of us walked back down the carpeted stairs. The food smelled even better than before.
"Dinner's... Oh, you're back. Dinner's ready, you two." said Ben, standing in the doorway at the bottom of the stairs.
"It smells great." said Sarah.
I smiled at him and followed the two of them to the dining room. Food had been set out already. It was a rather large meal. There was way too much for four people to finish. Maybe this is how they live their lives. I'm not going to judge them on their choice of meal.
After we had gathered at the table, I did as Sarah had instructed. Ben did the same for his wife. Speaking of his wife... God damn... Ben must have more money than I thought. She's beautiful enough to rival Chrysalis on my list.
Olivia was a woman of medium height. She stood a few inches taller than her husband and was much slimmer. Her skin had a slight tan and her light brown hair was very sleek. Her boobs were actually pretty big... With Ben being as rich as he is... They might be fake...
The women sat at the table first. They both thanked us. The men followed. I saw a bottle of wine was on the table as I sat. There were four wine glasses next to it. The four of us had been given glasses of milk.
As far as I could tell, the meal itself followed no sort of religious rule. I did see a crucifix above the doorframe leading into the kitchen, though.
"Let us say grace before enjoying this wonderful meal my beautiful wife has prepared for us. Phil, would you lead us?"
Sarah shot me a worried gaze. She didn't know whether or not I knew how. I did, but it was a legitimate concern she was allowed to have.
"Of course." I said with a smile. I looked down and recited the typical meal prayer for a Catholic-Christian household. I ended it with an, "Amen." and performed the sign of the cross
"Amen." they repeated, doing the same.
The four of us began to collect food for ourselves. Ben, as the head, got to choose first. I took mine last, mostly because it felt awkward for me otherwise.
I got ham, stuffing, and mashed potatoes to start myself off. I think he was just showing off...
"It looks very good, Mrs. Lockhart." I said.
"Thank you, Phil. Olivia is fine."
I nodded, smiling at her.
"I must say, I am surprised that you knew the prayer of our Lord." said Ben, looking to me. He was reaching for the wine. As we spoke, he poured a glass for himself and his wife.
"My family was a bit religious. Both my brother and sister went to a Catholic school."
"And you?"
He offered me some wine, but I politely declined. He didn't offer any to Sarah, but there were four cups, so I imagine she could have some if she wants. Personally, I disliked wine.
"I've never been to a religious school myself." I answered, "I honestly don't know why. It just didn't happen. Even my older brother and sister went."
I took a bite of the ham. It was great. There was a distinct honey flavor.
"What a shame. Catholic schools are much more suitable for developing children. So, you met my daughter at work, is that correct?" he asked.
"That's right. I'm the manager. We met on the job and went out for coffee."
"That was the day I was late to come home." said Sarah.
"Ah yes, of course. I trust she's being a good employee for you."
"She's good at her job." I replied.
He chuckled. "And is he a good boss to you, Sarah?"
"He's... alright. I can't complain."
"I hope your relationship isn't interfering with your work." he said.
"You don't have to worry about that." I said.
"Yeah, w-we'd never do anything on the job." said Sarah.
"So you spend time together outside of work?"
"Not often." I said, "We talk to each other at work, but we don't spend much time together away from work."
"That hardly sounds like a relationship at all, if you ask me."
"We're taking things slow." said Sarah. She sounded nervous.
"I suppose it can be different for everyone." I said.
"A fair point."
"Now, you haven't been doing anything funny with our daughter, have you?" asked Olivia. It almost seemed like she wasn't even paying attention right now.
"Of course not. Like she said, we're taking it slow." I might not be able to keep this up. This is ridiculous.
"Nothing? Not even a kiss?" she asked.
I shook my head.
"Y-yeah, we haven't done anything."
"Oh. Well, good for you." she said.
"Indeed. I'm rather surprised, all things considered. I mean, she is my wife's daughter, after all."
Olivia smiled at him.
"Father..." Sarah seemed embarrassed.
It felt like this was going well, but Sarah still looked somewhat nervous.
The rest of the meal was filled of light conversation like what we had just been through. They didn't say a lot about themselves and I didn't ask. To be honest, I didn't care.
I did get some information out of them, though. They've been married for 24 years. Ben was 55 and Olivia was 44. They moved to town fairly recently from Maine.
Ben owned a company, but he seemed a bit protective of the details. It felt like even Sarah was missing some details. They said that it was a nationwide company. Whatever. A simple google search would fix that. Provided I really cared, that is. Sounded like a legitimate business, at least. He's probably not selling drugs. He better not be, he's in my territory.
God, she looked so good for 44... Lord forgive me for these thoughts in my head. Although I guess it's not God I should be praying to...
At the moment, Ben was talking about Sarah.
"She's gotten fantastic grades in her schooling, all the way up through her college years. You see, our Sarah's trying to become a veterinarian."
Sarah gave me another awkward smile. "I'm taking a break right now because of the move. I'm only halfway through."
"That's really impressive. I remember how difficult college was for me. I couldn't imagine going long enough to become a doctor."
"A veterinarian." corrected Sarah.
I shrugged. "Animal doctor."
"College was difficult for you? I've heard that you did rather well." said Ben.
"I did pretty good, but it was a lot of work to maintain that 'pretty good'. How... do you know that, if you don't mind me asking?" I asked him, confused.
"Oh, there's no need to worry about that. I am just a concerned parent."
That didn't really answer my question. Sarah seemed confused as well. It was probably best not to question it.
"Unfortunately, it was, after all, a technical school. Nowhere near as prestigious as the school my dear Sarah attended." Ben chuckled to himself. "My daughter is far, far brighter than you could ever be."
"Father?"
"Yeah, probably." I said, shrugging off his rather blatant insult, "Sarah's pretty smart."
How does he know what school I went to? I guess using Google would work. I'm not exactly private with my information.
"We've been looking for a school for her to study at in Wisconsin. Would you have any suggestions?"
"Depends." I turned to Sarah. "I know you're continuing your education, but does that mean that you'll be studying in an animal science field?"
"That's right."
"I can't remember offhand if the school I went to offered an animal care class. It wasn't my field of study so I didn't commit it to memory. Other than that, I don't know if any of the other schools offered anything."
"Yes, that's what I thought."
"I'm sure they did." I turned to Sarah. "There's a smaller vet clinic down by the Woodman's and I believe there's another in the area of town near ShopKo. You could ask for an internship there."
She nodded at me. "Thank you. Yes, I've looked them up before. It was a good idea, but neither had job openings. I need experience anyways."
"Ah, flipping burgers is a waste of your talents. Granted, you're not supposed to be flipping burgers anyways..."
She chuckled. "That's right. I just started."
I turned to Ben. "So Ben, is this a permanent move? How long are you planning on staying in town?"
"It may very well be permanent, unfortunately. At least until I retire, but I still have a lot of time before that happens."
Unfortunately? "So with this new move and all, is your family going to get involved with any... any community events? I know it's a bit late in the year, but there might be a few more gatherings."
"It depends, really. I'm not usually one to involve myself in those sorts of things. A gathering in a town like this would be rather uneventful."
"I guess I wouldn't know. I don't get myself involved much either. It's just not something that interests me."
"Are there any parades?" asked Olivia.
"Yeah, every so often. School parades, holiday parades. That kind of thing."
"I love parades." she said with a smile.
"They couldn't be as good as the parades we had in our old city." said Ben.
"Oh shush, you didn't go to any of them anyways." said Olivia.
"So what made you move to Wisconsin?" I asked him.
"It's in a central location to me." he said, "And the housing was cheap. Not that the price mattered, of course. I can afford any home in this backwater town."
I shrugged. "I can see that you've been settled in for a while. How have you been liking it?"
"We've been here about a month and so far, I have more issues than praises. If it were up to me, I'd move away again. I'm already sick of this town, but I'm even more sick of moving. I've had enough with the moving."
"I guess. I feel like the best thing about this city to someone like you is how close it is to some of the other cities in the area. It's not a long trip in just about any direction to other towns with their own forms of entertainment."
"I'm a busy man. That means nothing to me."
"I suppose."
"Are there any good stores in the area?" asked Olivia.
"Well... there's a mall in Janesville not too far north. It's not a very high end place, though. Other than that, there's a bigger mall in Rockford. Haven't been there in a few years, so I couldn't say for sure what they have."
She smiled. "That's good. I was thinking about getting some more clothes."
"You've lived here your entire life, right?" asked Ben, "Are there any places you would recommend for our family to visit?"
"Ahh... Hmm... Not too many, I suppose. There's a restaurant that sells fancy food near... It's not an elementary school anymore, but Cunningham. Yeah, near Cunningham school. Other than that though, I can't think of anything that would cater to your lavish needs."
"As I suspected. I knew it was a bad idea to move here."
I shrugged. "I'm not the most knowledgeable person on these subjects."
"Clearly."
"If you're taking a vacation though, the Wisconsin Dells aren't too far away. There are some very nice hotels and restaurants up there."
"Tell me Phil, if you were to move, where would your dream location be?" he asked me.
"I don't know. Anywhere with Google Fiber. Preferably northern America where it's colder and in a place with cheap housing."
He chuckled. "That is one thing I'm not complaining about. The internet prices are somewhat fair."
"I suppose fair is a good word for it."
He reached for the bottle of wine again and poured himself another glass. "Are you sure you don't want any?" he asked, tipping the bottle slightly towards me.
"Sorry, but no. I try not to have any alcohol in me when I drive."
He set the bottle down. "It's not a particularly notable wine, but it is wine all the same." he said, "Do you drink at all?"
"No, not often. I don't drink it at home."
He took a sip from his glass. "They say you can tell a lot about a man by the way he enjoys his alcohol."
I shrugged. "I suppose so."
It felt like he was looking down on me, as if I were beneath him. I don't think he liked me. I mean, he kinda has a right not to. No father likes their daughter's boyfriends. I know I wouldn't like my daughter's boyfriends. Still...
"I would imagine that everyone in this town would enjoy alcohol. Perhaps even a bit too much. Especially you, with your family's addiction problems."
"I'm... sorry?" I asked him, confused.
"You see, I don't know if I like the idea of someone like you dating my daughter."
I hesitated before saying, "Alright..."
"W-What do you mean?" asked Sarah. She sounded anxious.
"I think my biggest concern would be the addiction issues." he said.
"Addiction? I'm not... addicted to anything. I don't think, at least." Now was not the time to mention my crippling technology addiction.
"Your parents. Addiction runs in your genes, you know."
I stared right at him. It felt like he was laughing at me.
"Your father and your mother, both of them drug addicts, alcoholics... Both of them convicted for possession. Isn't that true?"
I stood up, still staring. "I no longer feel welcome, here. The meal was great, Olivia. Thank you."
"I'm glad you enjoyed it." she replied, seemingly ignoring her husband.
He continued to speak as I turned to leave. "I've looked into you, you know. You and your family."
I stopped.
"Many of them are known to be criminals. Your brother, for example. Well, he has felony after felony under his belt."
I turned back to him. He was still smiling at me. Sarah was horrified at his words. Olivia just sat there without a care in the world.
"Is there a point you're trying to make?" I asked him, crossing my arms.
"Most definitely. Simply put, you are unfit for our family."
"Is this how you treat your guests, Mr. Lockhart?"
He chuckled to himself again. "Only those like you."
Is this how he treats his daughter? Is that why she's always nervous? No, Celestia said he was more neglectful than anything... Or... Was it Chrysalis who said that?
"Like me? You mean from a poorer family? I obviously turned out better than you did."
"Better than me? Ha! You couldn't hold a candle to me."
"At least I didn't run a background check on your family like I was looking through newspaper funnies."
"Perhaps you should have. Then you would know exactly who I was, and why I'm rejecting you."
"Congratulations, your dick is bigger than mine. Can I go now?"
Olivia chuckled to herself.
The three of us looked to her as she returned to eating her meal in silence. Ben was not happy about her interruption.
I took in a breath. This old man was making me angry. I yawned. I guess I was getting tired.
"Well, I'm done." I said.
"What, leaving so soon? You haven't even finished your meal yet." he said.
"No. I'm not staying. I'm not arguing. I'm going to go home, then I'm probably going to go to bed. Goodbye."
"So you're a coward, then!" he let out, "Too scared to even face me."
"Goodbye!" I loudly repeated, turning around and walking away.
He let out more ego inflating insults as I left. I ignored them. I've been called worse by my best friends, this fat bastard can't hurt me.
"Phil! Phil, wait!" I heard Sarah cry out as I began putting my shoes on.
I looked up to see her panicked face.
"I didn't know he would do this, I swear!" she let out.
"Don't worry about it." I said, standing up straight. I wouldn't be able to convince her that her father's antagonism had nothing to do with my view of her.
"Phil, I..."
"Sarah, what are you doing?" Ben shouted. I heard loud footsteps as he approached us at the front door.
Sarah stood between me and her father. "What's wrong with him? He's done nothing wrong! He doesn't deserve this treatment!"
"Sarah, step away from him. I don't want you standing near such a lowlife."
"He's not a lowlife! He's my friend!"
"I don't care what he is. You're not to see him again, understand? You're getting a new job by the end of the week."
"Hey, don't make her quit her job." I said, "She doesn't deserve punishment for your shortsightedness."
"How dare you tell me how to raise my daughter?" he growled at me.
"She's 23, she can make her own decisions."
"She's living under my house, so that means that she's living under my rules."
Well... he's got me there...
"Wh-What if I moved out?" said Sarah.
"Where would you go?" he asked, "You can't make it on your own."
"I'd... I could live with Phil."
No the fuck you couldn't...
"What... What have you done to my daughter?!" he roared, rushing towards me.
"Father, don't!"
He grabbed my shirt and pushed me against the wall. It hurt my already injured back. "What have you done to her?" he asked again.
I looked down at his hands, then back to him. I took in a breath to calm myself down. "Alright, Ben... I appreciate that you're Sarah's father, and an old man besides... but if you don't take your goddamn hands off me, I will break you in half."
He stared at me for a few more seconds. He pushed me again, letting go of my shirt. "Get out of my house. Get out of my house, and stay away from my daughter!"
I turned around without another word and left through the door. I've had enough of this for now.
"Phil!" Sarah let out, following me outside.
"I'm not staying any longer." I said, continuing to walk, "I've had enough."
She stopped. "I'm sorry!"
I glanced back, but didn't say anything.
I got out my keys and got into my car. I looked to the lawn to see Sarah standing outside. She still had that same horrified expression on her face. Her father was still watching me from the doorway.
I turned the car on and left. Oh, I was so angry right now... I had to calm down... This wasn't how I wanted to return to Celestia.
If that escalated, I could've really hurt that old guy...
I took in a deep breath. It didn't help much. I would feel better in the morning...
I didn't like driving while angry. I didn't like being angry in general, really.
I just drove home. The drive itself wasn't very helpful, either.
I was just very unhappy right now...
I took in another breath before getting out of my car. Alright... Alright...
I tapped my steering wheel with my hand, then paused. I clenched my fist and punched the edge of the steering wheel in anger. I thought it might help calm me down. It didn't. All it accomplished was hurting my hand. The rubber surrounding the wheel softened the strike, but it was still gonna bruise.
I got out of the car and headed inside, rubbing my fingers, frustrated that I let myself slip back into an old habit by trying to calm myself with violence.
"Phil! How did it go?" Celestia asked me, a smile on her face.
"It... Uh... It went pretty bad." I said, "It went pretty bad."
"Bad?" She turned her body towards me, "What do you mean? What happened?"
"Sarah's dad... He... He insulted me and my family."
"He... He did what?!"
I explained what happened during the night. I told Celestia and Red that the night started off very well, but it quickly fell apart. I explained to them that I did not feel comfortable around her father. I also accidentally let slip that I thought his wife was pretty.
Talking about it helped calm me down, it seems. That's nice.
I took in a deep breath. "So yeah, long story short, Sarah is no longer my pretend boyfriend. Girlfriend, fuck. I meant girlfriend."
Celestia was absolutely horrified. Red also looked displeased. She probably didn't want to hear about it in the first place and was just displeased that I had included her in the conversation.
"He's so... vile..."
I shrugged. "I just hope he doesn't treat Sarah this way."
"I feel the same. Shouldn't we tell someone about this? He spied on your family."
"Criminal history is public records. And you don't have to be a criminal mastermind to look someone up online."
"D-Don't you mind?"
"Yeah, I mind. But it's not like I'm gonna punch the fat fuck, he'd probably die. And he's Sarah's dad. I like Sarah. She wouldn't appreciate it if I punched her dad, even if he was being an asshole. I can't just punch everyone that makes me angry. You get in trouble for that kinda thing." I was getting angry again. Ok, deep breath, deep breath...
"You're... more forgiving than I am." said Celestia, "I wouldn't have been able to stand by and allow him to insult my family."
"I don't know if it's as forgiving as it is... just... ignoring. I mean, he's not wrong. My family is full of criminals and drug heads. But that was in the past. We all do stupid stuff when we're young. My dad, my brother, they both gave up their old ways. That's..." I paused. "Red... you don't... You don't wanna hear this, right?"
"It's fine." she said, "I'm not gonna lie, I'm kinda interested in this."
"Well... alright... Yeah, my family got better. My older brother used to be... not a bad person, but... he did bad things. And my dad... he was the same. They made bad decisions. But it's not who they are anymore. My brother takes care of three kids now. My dad took care of my brother and sister and me."
"What about your mom?" asked Red, "You said your dad, but not your mom. Was she gone?"
I turned to her. I didn't really want to bring my mother into the conversation, but it was relevant as well... "My mom passed away, Red. Eight years ago. And... And she isn't innocent, either. She lived the same life as my dad. When she had kids... when my parents had kids... when they settled down, they quit that life."
Celestia gave me a compassionate look.
"Oh my gosh... I'm so sorry, Phil. I didn't know."
"It's alright, Red. It's..." My voice cracked. I looked down. I didn't expect this to be so hard to say...
"Are you alright, Phil?" asked Celestia.
"I... I thought I would be fine talking about this right now... but..." I wiped my eyes.
"I'm... I'm sorry." said Red.
"I know Red, it's not your fault."
She set her controller down on the table, then stood up. "I'll give you two some space." she said, walking towards the stairs.
"Thank you, Red." said Celestia.
I nodded, not looking at her.
After Red was gone, Celestia and I looked to each other. Her eyes were full of compassion and love right now. I don't... I don't think I've ever seen such caring eyes before...
"Phil... Are you alright?" she asked me.
"Yeah, I'll be fine." I replied, "Just... Emotions are... I'm... kinda... having trouble... holding back my tears..." I sniffed and wiped my eyes. "My mom died of a drug overdose, Celestia." I let out. I sniffed again. "I can't say it any other way. She died because of the life that Sarah's dad brought up... and Red asking about my mom like that..."
"Oh, come here." she softly let out, approaching me with arms open wide.
I gently returned her soft embrace.
"It hurts, Celestia. It's been eight years and it still hurts."
"I know, Phil... I know."
I took in a shaky breath. "It never stops hurting, does it?"
"No... No, it doesn't. But you can't give in to the pain, Phil... It never stops hurting... but that doesn't mean that it has to define who you are..."
Her voice was soft, yet powerful. Caring and wise... Just like the Princess she was.
"I know... It just... It hurts..."
"It's alright. I'm here for you."
"Yeah... Yeah..." I rested my head on her shoulder for a short while. "Thank you, Celestia..."
"Of course, Phil."
"I'll be fine..." I said, lifting my head, "I'll be fine... I just had to... I had to let that out."
"I understand." she said. She lifted a hand to my face and wiped away my tears. "Feel better?"
"Yeah..." I took in a breath and let out a sigh. "Thank you."
She smiled at me.
"I... I didn't... I didn't know a lot about my mom growing up. I knew she loved us, and as a kid, that's all I wanted. She was busy, most of her life. Busy and stressed..." I took in a breath. "He cut deep, Celestia... He cut deeper than I expected him to. I don't like when people... corrupt the memory I have of my mother."
"What you remember of her is special, Phil... My memories of my own mother bring me joy... I'm sure yours do the same."
I gazed at her for a long time. I felt myself tearing up again. She reached up and wiped my tears again.
I leaned forward. "I love you." I whispered to her. I held her tightly. "Don't ever leave me... please..."
"I won't... I promise..."
I let out a sigh, still holding her. I pulled back. We shared a short kiss.
"You've been going through a lot recently, Phil. I can see it in your eyes. You're exhausted."
"Maybe I am... Maybe I should take a little time off to rest."
"Do what you feel is right."
"Yeah... I guess I have been feeling a little stressed, though. You know? The last time that happened..." I smiled at her.
She let out a chuckle. "The last time you were stressed like this, it led to our first night together."
"Yeah."
"If you hadn't done that, I may not be here right now." she said with a small smile.
"What a weird way to start a relationship..."
"If we hadn't made love, I may not have fallen for you. Maybe I would have... I don't know... I think I was already developing feelings for you by that time. I felt young and free with you, things I haven't felt in a long time."
"That's cute, Celestia..."
She smiled. "It might help again."
"I dunno. I don't go out often, you know that. The last time we had a party like that, we had a few other guests."
"Yes, my guards."
"And my friends." I smiled. "It'd be pretty funny for Red when we get home. I'd be stumbling around like an idiot and I can just see her laughing at me."
"Well, we could invite her."
"Yeah, maybe."
Celestia let out a nervous chuckle. "Actually, that might not be a good idea. If there was... a repeat of last time..."
"Ah..."
"Although..." She paused, looking away. It almost seemed like she was having trouble continuing. She turned back to me. "It... It's not like I haven't... thought about it... I'm..." She glanced away. "I'm open to it... if you are..."
I gave her a curious look. "Open to it?" I asked, an assumption of what she meant already in my head.
"You know... a threesome... It... wouldn't be the first time I've done it..."
I shrugged. "That's what I thought you meant. Nah. Red wouldn't be up for that kinda thing. Besides, it wouldn't be fair to you."
"Hmm?"
"I mean, I'm not gonna do the same for you. Call it selfish, but I'm never gonna share you."
"No, no, that's... that's fine. I understand. It's not... something a normal couple would do, it... it was just a thought... I just... I'd be alright with it... That's all..."
I gave her a small smile. "You're more than enough for me." I said, reaching down her body and squeezing her bottom, "We got more important things to worry about than our sex life, Celestia."
"Yes... Of course..."
"Have you made any more progress?" I asked her.
"No, I haven't. It's still difficult to read his notes."
"Mmm... Is it really even in english?"
"Yes it is. We've made it that far."
"It'd be a lot harder if it wasn't."
She nodded.
I sighed. "I... I can't just let this slide like nothing happened. Celestia, why'd you bring that up? I'm curious."
"I... It was just a thought!" she let out, getting embarrassed.
"Mmm-hmm... And... This thought... You said you've thought about it before, so... how much thought have you given it?"
"Phil!"
"No, no, no weaseling out of this one Celestia. Is this something you've been... wanting to do?"
"No! No, it's... No. No, it's not."
"Are you lying to me?"
She wore a very embarrassed face. "I... Ph-Phil, I didn't... I..."
"Celestia, I am shocked. Shocked! Well, not that shocked."
"I didn't! I swear! Quit looking at me like that, you've thought about it, too!"
I shrugged. "Fair enough."
"Y-You have?!"
"I'm a guy, that's all I think about."
"Well... you didn't bring it up with me, so I thought... you didn't want to."
"You thought I didn't want to?"
"Yes!"
"Why in the world would you think that?"
"I... I don't know... You didn't... I... I just wanted to keep you to myself."
"Oh. So you wouldn't actually be alright with it?"
She sighed. "Phil, you know how I am." Her voice was quieter, probably to make sure Red couldn't hear. "Of course I'm fine with it. I've had sex with a lot of people. You're not the first I've offered this to and you won't be the last. If you do plan on it, get condoms. I don't want you getting another woman pregnant before me."
"Jesus Christ Celestia, I said no!"
She had a smug smile. "Fine. But..." She leaned in close to my ear and whispered, "The offer is still on the table." She pulled back. "So, you asked about my progress on the books?"
I was a little shocked by her words. "Uh... Y-Yeah."
"My sister and I have been slowly going through the books you've brought us. Each page of these illegible notes is being copied down by my sister as we go through it. So far, we have made no progress towards our goal, but the notes contain some rather interesting information. Whoever this Star Song pony was, he was incredibly bright." She picked up one of the books from the table and opened it to a page to show me how far she's gotten. "Again, it's a slow process." She let out a sigh. "My student would love to read these. "
"Well, that's good."
She chuckled. "Even if I told you what we've learned, you wouldn't understand what it meant."
"Nope." I said, shaking my head, "Probably not."
"It's impressive, really. This pony living undiscovered is a tragedy. We must put more research into him."
"Well, good luck with that."
She smirked. "You have no idea what this means to us."
"Nope... I wish I could use magic. That'd be so cool."
She had a smile on her face. "It would be an interesting challenge to teach a human magic. Perhaps if you were to become a unicorn when you entered our world."
"I've always wanted to fly, too." I said.
"It's very fun. Who knows, you may even just remain human.
"Maybe... Maybe... I don't know, I just think I'd work well as a unicorn."
"Oh? Why's that?"
"I dunno. But if I believe that I would, maybe it will be more likely."
"Why do you want to be a unicorn?"
"So I can use magic."
"Why do you want to use magic?"
"'Cause it's cool."
"I... suppose. Why?"
"Hmm?"
"Why is it cool?"
"I don't know. It just is. Magic's cool. Don't you think it's cool?"
"I... suppose. Magic is an interesting ability. Among us ponies, most unicorns can't cast a lot of spells. Beyond a simple levitation spell, the skills of a unicorn revolve around their cutie mark. Of course, most unicorns can learn most spells given proper training. It depends on their drive to learn these spells."
"I always thought it was kinda weird how that worked."
"Is that so?"
"I dunno. I don't know anything about magic."
She smiled. "That would explain it. My former student's special talent is magic, so she has a lot of natural talent for it. My sister and I, being alicorns, have a talent for it as well. This also includes my niece Cadance."
"Could any unicorn get as good as Twilight?"
"With enough practice, yes. Queen Chrysalis and Discord are also very powerful spellcasters. I imagine... given her innate abilities... Chrysalis has the potential to surpass even Discord. I suppose if I've been actively training myself, I could do the same. It's not easy to exceed my current level, by any means. Once you're as powerful as I am, it's almost impossible to gain more power. I'm sure... you don't encounter that issue often."
I smiled at her. "No, I guess I don't, oddly enough."
"I'll teach you magic if you become a unicorn. Or I'll teach you how to fly if you become a pegasus."
"And if I become an earth pony... nothing, right?"
"Earth ponies have talents of their own."
"Have you ever seen me work with the earth? Have you ever seen me work with animals? I know what they can do. What they can do is boring."
"I... I suppose... Earth ponies are important in our society. They give us much of the food we eat. But... If that doesn't interest you, it would be boring compared to a unicorn or pegasus."
I shrugged. "It don't matter much."
"No, not really. Maybe you would become an alicorn."
"I doubt it."
"It would be a rather unlikely scenario, but it's certainly possible."
"I guess. I'd be fine with anything as long as I can just come with you."
"I don't want it to be an 'if'." she said, "I need you in my life."
"You need m, huh?"
"I need you just as much as you need me. And I'm going to do everything within my power to bring you to my world."
I smiled at her. "I love you."
"I love you, too..."
We gave each other loving looks.
"So, uh... Just Red, then?"
She rolled her eyes and smiled at me. "If you want to invite someone I don't know, I would expect to meet them first, but I would be fine with it. Did you have someone in mind?"
"No, no... It's just a question."
"A question? You... didn't have anyone else in mind?"
I shook my head. "Nope."
"Is it Sarah?" she asked, seeing through my rather obvious lie.
"No, it's not Sarah."
"I don't... know her... do I?"
"If I said yes, it would limit the amount of women on the list."
"Oh come on, tell me who it is..." she let out with a small laugh.
"Alright, alright... Chrysalis."
"Ch-Chrysalis?"
"Yes, Chrysalis."
"Wh-Why Chrysalis?"
"She's a shapeshifter."
"Um... I... suppose... but..."
"I'm just kidding, I'm just kidding. I'm not having sex with anybody else, Celestia. You're the only..." I leaned forward and whispered something that would increase the rating of my story into her ear. "For me."
I could see her face reddening. "Well... If you could convince her, I think I would be fine with it..." she said to me.
"You what?"
"I'd be fine with it, Phil. I like Chrysalis. Or, I want to believe that I like her. Do you really think she's changed?"
"I don't know. You can't be sure with someone like her. I want to believe that she did. I like her, too. She's my friend." I remembered what she said to me before she left. "Hey Celestia, how powerful would she be if someone fell in love with her?"
She sighed. "I've wondered this myself. I couldn't say. Much stronger than I am. And... If it were a genuine love, the Elements of Harmony may have no effect on her. It's... a little scary, actually..."
"There'd be no fighting it, huh?"
She shook her head. "I don't know. You know... I've never actually seen her with a lover. I've never noticed her spending time with any men. I don't know if she even likes men in the first place. She could be a lesbian or even asexual for all I know. From what I know of her, she's never shown interest in a genuine relationship. I know that she doesn't have a lot of friends, even among her own kind. She's lonelier than I am." She chuckled. "This may sound a bit strange, but she may... appreciate an offer from us. Personally, I doubt that she would accept. It interests me, though... We could..."
I placed a hand over her mouth, stopping her from talking. "Celestia, I understand what you're saying. I appreciate it. But stop talking. Stop being dirty for like ten minutes. Please. You dirty lady, you."
I took my hand from her mouth. She was smiling sheepishly. "I'm sorry."
"Better?"
"I'm better, yes. I'm sorry, my mind wandered."
I finally stood up. I held my arm out and she took my hand. I pulled her close to my body and hugged her. She hugged me back.
"I love you." I said to her.
"I love you, too."
"Thank you for listening to me, Celestia."
"Of course." She moved her head back. We looked to each other. "If you ever need to talk again, just tell me. I want to help."
I nodded. "Thanks. Come on, let's watch that movie."
She gasped. "Yay!"
"Get some snacks, I'll start it."
"Will Red be watching?"
I shrugged. "If she wants."
"This is going to be fun!" she cheerfully let out, letting go of me. She happily bounded into the kitchen.
"I'm gonna go tell Red." I said.
I opened the basement door and descended the stairs.
"Red, I'm coming down." I called to her.
She was on the couch, just waiting.
"Hey, Red."
"Hey. Are you alright?" she asked.
"What? Oh, yeah. Yeah. Yeah, I'm good. Sorry about that, it got weird."
"Yeah, I guess."
I went to my computer and turned it on. "We just talked a bit. You know, like we always do."
After it had booted up, I navigated to my movies. The movie of the night was Storks, which I personally found hilarious. I'm sure Celestia would like it. And it involved one of her favorite subjects, too.
"Yeah..."
Honestly, I thought about asking her right then and there. I pushed the thought out of my head and asked instead, "Celestia and I are gonna watch a movie, wanna join?"
"Sure, that sounds like fun." she said, a small smile on her face.
"Alright, great."
Her smile disappeared. "Wait, you two are just gonna cuddle together the whole time, aren't you..."
"Uh... Well probably, yeah."
"Count me out, then. I'm gonna go upstairs and play the game."
"Alright, then." I said, shrugging.
She turned towards the stairs, then paused.
"What's up?" I asked.
She waited a few moments, then turned back to me. "Tampons." she said, "I need tampons."
"Do you need them now?"
"N-No... Not now. But... soon. I think. If humans are the same as ponies, I will."
"Yep, no problem. I'll pick some up for you... ah... tomorrow."
She hesitated before saying, "Thanks."
She turned and walked upstairs.
I heard from the front room, "Oh, hello Red. Did Phil tell you what we were doing?"
"Yes, he said you were going to watch a movie. I figured you'd just end up being all lovey-dovey and weird the whole time so I decided against it."
Celestia laughed. "I can't say you're wrong. Suit yourself." She came downstairs.
Celestia sat on the couch and waited for me. She smiled as I turned to her. She had placed a pile of snacks onto the table to the side of the couch.
I turned on the speakers and started the movie. After making sure everything was working properly, I sat down next to Celestia.
She grabbed the blanket she had pushed to the side and covered the two of us with it. She leaned against me, then looked up, smiling brightly.
"I hope you won't hold it against me if I'm not paying attention through parts of it." she said to me.
I wrapped my hand around her and held her against me. "Yeah, should've figured you'd say something like that. I know I said ten minutes, but apparently that was too much to ask."
"Hey, all that talk of threesomes got me excited."
"Yeah, yeah..."
"Oh, stop acting like you don't want it." she said, lifting a hand towards the computer. A bright aura appeared on the speaker. She moved her finger, turning the volume up.
"What, already?"
"Well, I can wait. I do like the idea of watching a movie with you."
"No doing that kinda stuff in a theater, you'll get us kicked out."
She chucked. "Oh, just try and stop me."
Should I be scared?
She paid attention to the screen as she laid against me. She seemed a bit interested in the movie, at least. She seemed to understand the storks delivering babies story we had in our world.
This movie was a kid movie, but I imagine since no parent wants to have their kid ask the question, it went a little underappreciated in theaters. It had a lot of childish jokes and clichés, which I thought made it a good film, at least for families.
Celestia enjoyed herself as she watched the movie. She laughed at the jokes and was smiling all the way through.
Every so often, she picked up a snack for herself. Sometimes she gave one to me.
About midway or so into the movie, she gave me an unexpected kiss on the cheek. I looked to her.
"I like this movie." she said, looking back to the screen, "Did you choose it because it's about babies?"
"A little. I like it too, you know."
She let out a sigh. "What should we name it?"
I looked to her again. I squeezed her side. "Depends."
"Yes... If it's a boy or a girl..."
"Do you want a pony name or a human name?"
"I... haven't really thought of that. Tell me some human names. For... For a girl. Tell me some human girl names."
"Jessica, Hannah, Kayla, Mary, Susan, Lydia... There's a lot of names, Celestia. I can't list them all."
"What about boy names?"
I sighed. "Jacob, Eric, Kyle, Steven, Franklin, Walter, Gus... I mean, I can go on for days doing this. And that's only American names."
"Did you have any... pony names in mind?"
"I dunno. I always have trouble coming up with names for you ponies. Could be anything, really. Maybe... Sunshine. Or Bright Sky. I don't know."
She chuckled. "One can only imagine what our child would turn out like..."
"Yeah..."
"If we're lucky... we could raise the greatest ruler Equestria has ever seen."
"Or he would just inherit our collective laziness and become the laziest child in existence."
She let out a short laugh. "He would undoubtedly be very bright. I can only hope that he would use his gifts to help others."
"Yeah. I like to imagine that our kid would take more from you. Your personality is more powerful than mine."
"Is that so?"
"It's how I feel. And you're perfect, so you'd make a half perfect child. I guess I'm decent myself, so he'd be like 55% perfection in total."
"Only 55%?"
"Maybe closer to 50.5%, I guess. I'm not that good."
"Phil..."
"So... have you decided where to have it?" I asked her.
"I want to deliver my child in Equestria. And I want you right beside me."
I smiled at her. "And I want to be there for you.
She sighed. "I love you."
"I love you too, Celestia."
She sighed. "I could be researching that book right now."
"But you wouldn't get to spend time with me."
"Yeah... You know, Phil... when you come to Equestria... We'll have our schedules 'down', as you say."
"Yeah, we will. I'll be able to propose to you."
She gave me a wide smile.
"I'm scared, Celestia."
"You're scared?"
"Yeah."
"Well, I'm not going to say no."
"I know, I know... I'm just... scared of getting married. I'm... I'm only 25, you know?"
"I'm scared, too." she said.
"It's a scary thing."
"Yeah."
"How would I even get a ring for you?"
"Unicorns can wear rings on their horns. If not my horn, then around one of my legs. You wouldn't necessarily need to get me a ring, Phil."
"I know, but it's symbolic."
"Yes, I suppose that it is."
"If you got married, everyone would know about it."
"Would you prefer to be wed in secrecy?"
"No, no, it's not that."
"Are you afraid to show the world our love?"
"I'm fine with a public wedding, Celestia. It's just that I never expected to be marrying a Princess."
"I never expected to be marrying a human."
"I never expected to fall in love with a pony."
"I never expected to be fucking a human." She just smiled at me.
"That sure is a subtle way of telling me that you're horny."
She giggled. "Do something about it."
"Why me?"
"I'm lazy."
"Lazy and demanding."
"Exactly. And I deserve to be punished for it."
I glared at her. She gave me her most innocent smile.
"You're lucky you're so cute." I said to her.
[Whoops, can't write that in a Christian story.]
She was cuddling against me after we had just had sex. We were both tired. Celestia was a bit more tired than I was. We were sitting together again. Well, Celestia was more lying than sitting, but we were still together. My arm was around her again.
"I really liked that movie." she let out.
"Yeah, it's pretty funny."
"It was a little difficult to understand towards the end, but I felt I got the message."
"It was difficult to understand because you weren't mentally here."
She giggled. "That would explain it. I got a little carried away. Do you think Red heard me?"
"Celestia, she knows we've been having sex. She's just being polite."
"She knows?"
"I dunno. Maybe. Probably not."
"Probably not?"
"Maybe she does. I don't know. She's got those thief ears. She probably even heard us talking about her earlier."
"Oh, I hope not."
"Yeah, same."
"I couldn't imagine what it would be like to hear that, especially in her position."
"That's why I said Chrysalis. See, she wouldn't mind hearing that kind of thing. She knows she's pretty."
"Do you have a shapeshifter fetish or something?"
"Who doesn't?"
She laughed. "You're right about that." She let out a sigh. "Say what you will, but I would have sex with Chrysalis."
"Yeah, same."
"Are you surprised?"
"Nah, I kinda always figured you were bi."
She shrugged. "Keep your hands off Red when I'm not around."
"Same to you."
She smiled. "We're gross."
"You're gross, I'm perfect."
"You're gross!"
"Are you sure?"
She grumbled.
"What, not gonna argue?"
"I can't argue with you after what I said to you a few minutes ago."
"No, no you sure can't." I patted her side.
I looked to her. She looked back at me.
"I'm so happy I found a man who likes making love as much as I do."
I smiled at her.
She lowered her hand and placed it onto her stomach, smiling at me. "Do you think that did it?"
"I don't know."
"Me either..."
"Quit being so cute."
"What?"
"You're too cute. Quit it."
"I'm not being cute on purpose!"
"Yes you are, nobody's that cute on accident."
"I'm no-ot!"
"Celestia, you're not allowed to be this cute after we have sex, you should know this by now."
"I'm not being cute! Phil!" She laughed.
I squeezed her against me with my arm. I smiled at her.
The movie was over. I didn't know what time it was. I checked my phone that in the pants on the floor.
"Oh hey, I got a text." I said, reading it.
"Hmm? Who's it from?"
"Sarah." I said, a little surprised.
Celestia sat up. "What does it say?" she asked, a caring tone in her voice.
"Oh, it's kinda long." I read the text aloud, my voice not reflecting the emotions that Sarah was trying to convey. "-Phil, I'm so sorry! I didn't know he would be like that! He's never done this before. He's never been this cruel. I don't know why he did that, I swear it! He's usually a nice man to us. He's not-..." I stopped reading aloud and summarized the rest. "She says that she's sorry for what happened and that she still wants to be friends with us."
"Phil, ask her if her father has ever been abusive to her." said Celestia, standing up.
"Alright." I started the message. "-Celestia wants to know if your dad has ever abused you or your mother.-" I sent it.
Celestia paused next to me, then started picking up her clothes and getting dressed. I did the same. A few minutes later, we received a message.
We both looked at the phone this time.
"-No, he's never been abusive. He's nice to us when he's here. Did you tell Celestia what happened? Tell her that I'm sorry, too. I can't believe my father would do something like this.-"
"Alright, so she's safe." I let out, "Her dad isn't that much of an asshole."
"Ask her what happened after you left."
I did as Celestia said.
"-My father stormed into his study. He's still angry.-"
"I wanna ask why he did that, but she already said she didn't know." I said to Celestia.
"Hmm..."
"-Does your dad know you're texting me?-" I asked.
"-No. If he knew, we would take my phone away from me.-"
"Ask her if she's safe." said Celestia.
"Didn't we already ask that?"
"Ask again. Confirm it."
I nodded, then sent Sarah a short and simple, "-Are you safe?-"
"-Yes, I'm safe. My father would never do anything to endanger us. I don't want to defend him after what he's done, but it's true. He loves us.-"
"Tell her that I'm worried for her." said Celestia.
"Alright." I sent Sarah a message that told her that we were both worried for her.
"-I'm alright. I'm sorry to worry you. I've never known my father was like this.-"
Celestia just stared at my phone.
"-What about your mom? He hasn't done anything to her, has he?-"
"-No, he hasn't. I think he's scared, Phil. I've never been this rebellious towards my father before. He doesn't want me to leave the house and live on my own. I think I might have to. I can't live with a man who does these things.-"
"She wants to move out?" asked Celestia, "Is she ready? A sheltered woman like her... Hmm..."
"She'll find a way if she needs to. -Do what you need.-" I replied to Sarah.
"-I know I told my father that I could stay with you, but that was a lie. I thought it would help him trust you. It just made things worse.-"
"She said she could stay with you?" asked Celestia.
"Her dad asked her where she would go. He said she couldn't make it on her own."
Celestia gave me a worried look. "Would you let her stay here with you?"
"I don't really want to, but I'd do it if I felt it was necessary."
"You won't be here for much longer." she said, "She could stay here if she needs to after you leave."
"Maybe... Huh... You know honestly, I was gonna give this place to my dad. When I left. Let him deal with it. But I could give it to Sarah."
"You... You'd rather give it to Sarah than your father?"
"My dad don't need it. He's not very good with decision making. And he's getting up there in his years. He's the kind of guy who would fix something himself, so he might just end up hurting himself if he wanted to rent it out or sell it. Sarah won't be able to afford an apartment with her current job. Or maybe she would, I don't know. I bought this place from my grandpa, it doesn't have any more payments that need to be made. You know, I could..." I paused. "Celestia."
"Yes?"
"I have thought about this before. Alright? Not the... Sarah part... but giving away my house. And my car. And everything else I don't need. If I go to Equestria, I won't need it anymore. So I don't need to care who gets it."
She sighed. "I don't know how I feel about this. I like Sarah, but this is a big decision."
"When we're done with this, I want you to get to work on that book. Alright?"
She nodded. "Of course."
"How do you think we should reply?"
I held up my phone. "-Don't worry about it, Sarah. You still have friends in Celestia and I. What will you do right now?-"
I showed Celestia the text I wrote. She nodded. I sent it to Sarah. The reply came a bit later than I expected because it was so long.
"-Thank you so much. It means a lot to me. I don't know what I'm going to do. My father would never kick me out. I know that for a fact. You don't need to worry about me. I'm going to make a plan for these next few months. I can't live with this man anymore. Not after seeing his true colors. My mother supports my decision to move out. She wasn't happy with my father tonight.-"
"-She seemed like she didn't care.-"
"-She knows my father better than I do. I have confidence in her.-"
"-Do you want me to ask my friends you can stay at their places for you?-" I asked her.
"-No. Thank you, but I can do this on my own.-"
"-Alright. If it's too hard for you, ask for help. You're not in a position where you can afford to be stubborn.-"
"-I know. I'm sorry. For everything. I have to go.-"
"-Will I see you at work?-"
"-Yes you will. Goodnight.-"
I put my phone in my pocket.
"Do you think she'll be alright?" asked Celestia.
"Yeah, she'll be fine."
"None of this feels right."
I shrugged. "It happens."
"If she says that she'll be fine, then I'll trust her, but I'm still worried."
"It'll be fine, Celestia. Sometimes people... Well, you gotta do what you gotta do."
She gave me a nod, then sighed. "I feel sorry for her."
"Yeah... It'll work out, you'll see."
She gave me a small smile. "I hope so."
"Come on, let's head up to bed."
She glanced at the couch. "I hope there weren't any stains..."
I looked to it, then sighed. "You know what, I don't really care right now."
She hesitated for a few moments before saying, "I suppose..." She looked to the stairs. "Are you going to bed?"
"Yeah, it's pretty late. Gotta brush my teeth and... stuff."
I turned off my computer and the two of us started upstairs. I went up after Celestia so I could look at her behind on the way up. I was pretty sure she knew I was looking.
When we got upstairs, Red asked us, "How long was that movie? You guys were down there for a while."
She knows... I shrugged. "I dunno."
"Wasn't it two hours?" asked Celestia.
"I don't know. It just seemed like a while."
She totally knows... "I think we're gonna head to bed soon."
"You do that, then." she said.
Well... I guess that's a proper response...
I headed into the bathroom with Celestia so the two of us could brush our teeth.
"Think she knows?" I asked her.
"I couldn't say. Would it be... so bad? If she knew? I mean... She knows we've done it before. You've told her that we have... which I don't have an issue with. It's alright if she... So would it be so bad if she knew we do it while she's here?"
"It's more that it's just really rude. What goes on behind closed doors between two or more consenting adults is no business of anyone else."
She chuckled. "Two or more?"
"Hey, you're the one who brought it up."
"Oh, shush."
After we were done brushing our teeth, I left to the bedroom. Celestia joined me a short while later. We laid together in the bed again. I always felt better when we could lay together at night. It made me enjoy the next day just a little more.
I heard Celestia let out a sigh. "I can't begin to tell you how much I enjoy this..." she let out.
I gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Haven't you said that already?"
"I'll say it as many times as I want."
I gave her a squeeze. "I feel the same."
"I can't wait to show you my bedroom."
"I feel like that has more than one meaning."
She gave off a pleasant hum. "Enjoy this while it lasts... The second Red leaves, you're mine."