Now then, according to Fancy Pants, if I follow this road, it'll take me straight to the castle. With that in mind, I travel the streets, ignoring the stares that the passerby give me.

Eventually, I can see the castle looming above the rest of the town. Now that I'm this close, I can see the supports that are holding it to the mountainside, but it still seems physically impossible. Though I suppose the answer has something to do with magic, since the answer is always magic to everything in this world.

The road spirals around the city, taking me past thousands of ponies and different buildings of all kinds, from nightclubs to clothing shops, to corporate buildings. Unlike Ponyville, this is a real city, like Atlanta or New York. This place is so large and magnificent. I'm glad I came here, if only for the sightseeing. The ponies I could do without.

The path takes me underneath the castle itself, along the edge of the cliff that the city is built upon. This area is really soothing, since it's less populated than the rest of the city. But what really adds to that feeling is the waterfall that cascades from the upper cliff where the castle is and falls down the cliff just to my left.

Unfortunately, I soon pass out of that area and into the more elite sector I assume, as there are fucking mansions on either side of the path as I get closer and closer to the castle.

Finally, I reach two golden gates just in front of the massive castle that houses the royalty. There are two guards on either side, each standing stalwart, their eyes straight ahead. The path continues past the gate and crosses a river by a drawbridge to the castle entrance. I note that this river is the same one that I had just passed under a few minutes prior.

The guards' eyes snap to me the moment I pass within their field of vision. They don't take threatening stances, so I assume they knew I was coming beforehand. When I reach the gate, I push upon it, but it doesn't budge. I guess I have to talk to them first.

“I'm here to see the princess,” I say, somewhat awkwardly. One of the guards looks at the other, who nods.

“Come with me,” the second guard orders in a commanding voice. The golden gates open without a sound, surprisingly. I guess they've been maintained well.

The guard leads me through the gates and towards the castle itself. He doesn't say anything else, which is fine by me. I don't really want to talk to him either.

My feet thud against the drawbridge as I look up at the castle above me in awe. It looked large from Ponyville, but that's nothing compared to what I'm seeing now. This place is massive. What could you possibly use so much space for? Or is this place the living area of the royalty, and they're just incredibly vain?

An official looking pony mare comes out of the castle gate to meet us, wearing a fancy silver dress that contrasts with her reddish coat. She's wearing a set of half moon spectacles, though I bet they're for reading, as she's looking at me over them.

“Greetings, human. My name is Elegant Style, and I will serve as your guide during the duration of your stay in the castle,” the mare introduces herself in an overly formal fashion, bowing slightly. It doesn't fool me. I can tell by how stiff the bow is as well as the strange way she looks at me that she doesn't really like me. Not that it really matters. I'm here to see Celestia, not impress the staff. After all, she's probably not all that important. I watch as Elegant looks at the guard next to me. “Thank you for your service. You are dismissed.”

The guard salutes smartly, and then he proceeds to canter back towards the gate. Now it's just her and me. “I'm guessing you're here to take me to Celestia,” I prompt her, though I don't bother to talk in that uptight manner that she is.

“Not quite. The princess,” Elegant emphasizes Celestia's title in a peculiar manner, staring at me severely. “is currently conducting daily court. I will be escorting you to a waiting area, and then I will inform her of your arrival.”

“Are you kidding me? She invited me here, and then she's going to keep me waiting?” I demand incredulously. Also, I think this mare also tried to scold me on not using Celestia's title without actually saying so. Wow, I really lucked out with this guide. She's a total bitch.

“It is only a matter of due course. The princess deals with matters in the order of their importance. Surely you understand,” Elegant replies, a smug smile crossing her face at the insult hidden within her words. I open my mouth to give this bitch a piece of my mind, but before I can, she turns the other direction and begins walking towards the castle. “If you'll come with me, I'll show you inside.”

“Sure, whatever,” I grumble, inwardly seething at this treatment. I want to call her out on her shit, but I don't doubt this pony is important enough to get me arrested if I cause a scene. I'll make sure Celestia knows what a bitch she sent to get me. I better not be kept waiting too long.

When we pass through the gate, we enter into a grand entrance hall, with marble floors gleaming in the light that shone from electric lamps that lined the walls. A lush red carpet stretches out before us, my feet sinking into it at least half an inch. Ahead of us is a massive staircase that leads upwards halfway up the wall, before splitting to the left and right. Two silken tapestries hung from the wall at the platform just before the stairway splits. One of them is golden and emblazoned with imagery of the sun, while the other is a dark blue with images of the moon scattered across its surface.

Instead of taking me up the stairs, Elegant leads me to the left side of the chamber, through a hallway.

“Security's pretty tight, huh,” I remark, noticing the scores of royal guards lining the walls at regular intervals. I also notice that they're carrying weapons, surprisingly enough. These are the first weapons I've seen since getting here. All of these guards are unicorns, colored white or gray, and they're carrying spears or swords.

“But of course! This is the very pinnacle of Equestrian civilization, and it stands to reason that we'd want to protect it with all of our might,” Elegant answers with a hint of pride in her voice.

“I'm curious. Why are they all unicorns?” I ask. Elegant responds readily, happy to educate me or whatever.

“Security and defense of the castle falls to the Canterlot Royal Unicorn First Regiment, which you are seeing before you. Enforcing the law in the other major cities in Equestria falls to the Earth Pony Military Branch,” Elegant explains. “First” Regiment? Does that mean there's more than one? Right, despite how peaceful everything seems to be in Equestria, I don't doubt that this country has its own army. And if the Canterlot elite forces are all unicorns...let's just say I wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of all that magical firepower.

“And the pegasi?” I prompt.

“The Canterlot Royal Pegasus Corps are Canterlot's eyes and ears, extensions of the princesses' will,” Elegant answers. Hmm..so they're like a pony equivalent of our air force. Though I doubt they have any kind of aerial bombardment strategies. They're not like the princesses, who can use both magic and fly. That seems a little broken to me, but that's probably why they're still in power.

“Interesting...” I say, just to let her know that I heard her. I wonder if I can find a guard that'll tell me more. I never enjoyed history in college, but I did enjoy learning about the military composition of each of the countries. Of course, and probably because I liked that, my professors never focused on the military aspect of history. Go figure.

“Quite. Now then, here we are,” Elegant says, stopping after we enter a new room. This looks like a receiving room. There's several fancy couches and chairs lining the walls of the room, as well as a few tables, upon which bouquets of flowers rest in glass vases. Another hallway across the room leads to the other areas of the castle, and there is also another way out. This one seems to lead into a garden of sorts. I can smell a distinctly floral fragrance emanating from that door. Part of me wants to check it out. “If you'll wait here patiently, I will inform the princess of your arrival.”

“Got it,” I respond simply. She soon leaves me on my own, as she heads back the way we came. Good, now that she's gone, maybe I can take a look around. Like that garden. I'm not sure if I'm allowed to go in there, but if I get caught, I'll claim ignorance. And if that doesn't work, Celestia will bail me out.

Walking through the door to the garden, my senses are assaulted by a overwhelming amount of colors, sounds, and scents. The path I'm walking in leads me through a metal archway, which is decorated with a vine of roses and tulips.

On either side of me as I walk are arranged flower beds in which flowers of every kind are planted. I don't know very many flower names, so all I can really say is that there's blues, yellows, pinks, whites, and other colors. The amount of beauty in the garden is striking.

Two trees rise on either side as well. There's bird nests in the branches, some of which are currently occupied by blue jays and cardinals. I even see a squirrel run up the trunk, an acorn in its mouth.

Then it hits me. How the fuck are these flowers blooming anyway, considering its the middle of winter? That shouldn't be possible. But, there's no one for me to ask about that, so I'll file it away in my mind for later use.

Continuing on, I pass under another metal archway into a clearing with a fountain in the center, as well as other statues situated in the four corners of the area. Stone benches are arranged in a square fashion as well, their ends pointing to the statues in the corner.

One statue in particular stands out to me, at the far end of the clearing. I can't make out what it is from here, so I approach it to get a closer look. It depicts the weirdest looking monster I've ever seen in my life. It is standing on a Greek style pillar, a reptilian tail wrapped around it. Its body is a little like a snake, but it's head is that of a dragon with mismatched ears and a fucking beard, of all things. Its two arms are almost mismatched, as one is like an eagle's talon, while the other is like a cat's paw. Its legs are even more fucked up, one being a hoof and the other a claw.

“What the fuck is this?” I mutter aloud. How can this be considered art? It's like someone got super high one day and decided, “I'm gonna make a monster!” Goddamn, this is ugly.

“That's Discord, the Embodiment of Chaos,” a female voice responds, making me jump. I swear to god, if that's Elegant, I'm gonna...

It's not Elegant. Turning around, I see a rather tall pony approaching me. She looks like she came from deeper in the garden. Fuck, she's about as tall as I am, if you count that horn of hers. I guess she's a unicorn.

And oh my god, so much pink. Her coat is a light pink, and to my shock, she also has wings. Both a horn and wings? She's just like Celestia and Luna. What's up with that? Anyhow, moving past that odd revelation, her mane, which is short on one side of her head and cascades all the way down past her shoulders on the other, is actually three different color, arranged in three individual stripes: violet, hot pink, and cream. Lastly, her cutie mark is a weird crystalline heart thing.

“Not the most orderly of creatures, is he?” the mare remarks with an amused smile. She trots up to my side. I give a chuckle at her words.

“You're telling me. So that's this Discord I've heard so much about, huh? He certainly lost out in the looks department, if you ask me,” I agree. For all I'd heard about him, I'd expected him to look somewhat more...fearsome. But no, it looks like an artist took a potent dose of LSD and then tried to draw a dragon. The other mare finds that funny, giggling daintily at my words. Suddenly, I remember something important. “Is this actually Discord? Like, really him, or is it just a statue?”

“It's both, to be honest. This is what's left of Discord, after the Elements of Harmony took care of him,” the mare replies, confirming my suspicions. So I'm essentially standing before a god. A really demented, fucked up looking god that looks like he's high, but still a god. So you're what fucked the laws of nature as I know them.

Also, I've been talking to this mare without having any idea who she is. She's probably somewhat important, seeing as she's living in the damn castle. I turn around and look at her, and our gazes meet. I don't think either of us have any idea what to say. She coughs awkwardly, and I scratch the back of my head in a similar manner.

“So...what's your name?” the mare asks tentatively, breaking the awkwardness at last.

“Wow, you're asking my name first, before my species? Surely it's a miracle,” I say drily before I can stop myself. Rather than being offended, she chuckles.

“I'd rather know your name. I'd rather not ask your species, as I consider that rude of one to ask another, especially if we've just met. If you'd like to tell me, however, that's your business,” she explains to me. I blink, nonplussed. What kind of...what? Why is...well, I can sort of understand, seeing as whenever somepony asked what I am, it always pissed me off.

“Whatever, I guess. My name is Seth Rogers. Who the hell are you then?” I respond, though I'm nowhere near as polite as she is.

As if waiting for that question, the mare draws herself up in an attempt to hold herself regally, though I can tell she's forcing it. “My name is Princess Mi Amore Cadenza. It is a pleasure to meet you, Sir Rogers,” she says...and then immediately loses her composure, laughing. “I'm sorry, I can't do it. I've never really been good at formalities.”

“Princess Mi what now?” I repeat dumbly, unable to pronounce her full name. That almost sounded Spanish. “What? You're a princess?!”

“That's right. But, I'd rather that not be an issue. Just call me Cadance, please,” the mare answers kindly.

“I thought this was a Diarchy. You know, Sun and Moon Princesses...where the hell do you fit in?”

“My official title is Princess of Love, but I mostly handle diplomatic and trade agreements, as well as other minor administrative duties that Celestia and Luna can't be bothered with,” Cadance explains for me, being oddly forthcoming for a princess. She indicates back towards the deeper portions of the garden from which she emerged. “Would you like to walk with me for a while?”

“Might as well. I'm being kept waiting anyway,” I say, shrugging. Cadance smiles, and then the two of us pass under another metal archway into what's practically a wildlife preserve. Like, there's squirrels, birds, butterflies, and other small animal scurrying about. They shy away from us at first, but when they spot Cadance, they relax, continuing to go about their daily lives. You know, eating nuts and worms and shit.

“Princess of Love, huh?” I say, somewhat skeptically, causing her to look at me curiously. I mean, I hope she doesn't mean literally. Not sure how I'd feel about there being a sun princess, a moon princess, and a sex princess. Then it hits me. Duh...of course she didn't mean literally. “Is that because of your diplomatic role? Spreading 'love' among the countries and whatnot?”

“I suppose that's one way of looking at it,” Cadance admits with a nod of her head. “In fact, that's probably the best way of looking at it. Honestly, in a more informal sense, I just enjoy seeing the love between all living creatures flourish and grow.”

“So you're a people person, then,” I note drily. Cadance looks confused at that, making me realize I'd used human terminology again. “Ugh, I mean a pony who's skilled at detecting the relationships between other ponies.”

“Oh. Then, I suppose I am a...'people person,' as you put it,” Cadance says, quirking an eyebrow . She probably wants to know where that came from, but fuck it, I'm not explaining shit. I hate people persons. They tend to be psychologists, and those are usually stuck up windbags who think they know how people work. Idiots.

“Lovely.” The two of us soon enter an clearing surrounded by immaculately trimmed hedges, through which a small stream runs. It's deep enough that I can see small fish swimming through it. I guess the royalty really spared no expense with this garden.

Speaking of royalty, I really wish this one would stop following me around. I know she's supposedly important, but as a person...well, a pony, she's utterly boring me. I just wish Celestia would get her ass out here so I can leave this conversation.

“What brings you to Canterlot?” Cadance says in an attempt to keep the conversation going. When I give her a glance, she revises, “If it's okay for you to tell me, that is.”

“Why wouldn't it be? You're a princess too, aren't you?” I point out. “You should be the same rank as Celestia and Luna.”

“Officially, I am, but there's no way I can put myself on the same level as them. They have thousands of years worth of experience,” Cadance admits.

“So you're saying you're less important than them?” My words cause Cadance to pause, and then nod slowly. Interesting...so you're the same rank, but in name only. “Well, whatever, I don't really care about that. I'm just here because Celestia asked me to be.”

“Oh? Then I assume you're a diplomat or ambassador?” Cadance guesses. That gets me to stop walking and give her an incredulous look. She stops as well, looking nervous. “Did...did I guess wrong?”

I can't help it. I burst out laughing, doubling over in my merriment. The very idea of me being a diplomat is just ludicrous...oh goddammit this is priceless. Oh I'm sorry, you have a problem with America, foreign countries? Fuck you and die. Hah, I'd get kicked out of office in less than a month, since I'd probably murder after a week's worth of politics.

“What's so funny? I thought it was a reasonable guess,” Cadance looks sheepish, probably thinking that she fucked up. She didn't. She probably just made my night. I try to calm myself, but then I picture myself wearing one of those government outfits with that stupid hat, and that just makes it funnier.

“How the hell would you draw a conclusion like that? Do I look like a diplomat to you?” I chortle. Cadance shuffles her front hooves as she replies.

“I don't want to sound rude, but I've never seen your species around Equestria before, so I assumed you were here on behalf of your kind to perhaps negotiate trade agreements with Celestia,” Cadance reasons. I finally calm my laughter, and then I look back at her seriously again. That's sound logic for somepony who doesn't know me, I suppose.

“If that were the case, wouldn't I be talking to you? Trade agreements are your job, you said,” I remind her.

“Ordinarily yes, but in the case of a new species, responsibility falls to Princess Celestia,” she explains.

“Hmm, sound logic, but you've got one thing wrong,” I begin, my tone ominous. Cadance watches me curiously. “There's no new species. It's just me. I'm the only one.”

“A unique race? And...hold on...” Something like understanding sparks in Cadance's eyes. She peers into me, her eyes twinkling with excitement. “I understand now! You're human! I don't know how I didn't see it before!”

“Took you long enough .You'd think a princess would have some knowledge of the past,” I snort. Cadance recoils slightly at the sting in my voice, but her enthusiasm isn't dampened.

“This is exciting! It's amazing that you're alive, even after thousands of years! Did you know that most of our technology and culture is based on what we've discovered of humans? I wrote several papers in Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns on your...”

“Goddammit, shut up! You sound like Twilight!” I snap, realizing seconds later that I'd just told a princess to shut up. Thankfully, she doesn't seem to take offense, closing her mouth with a snap and looking apologetic.. However, she looks at me with surprise at my name drop.

“Little Twily? You're friends with her?” Cadance asks. I raise an eyebrow. The fuck did she just call her?

“Yeah...I've been living in Ponyville for the past week or so, but I wouldn't say I'm her friend,” I reveal. Cadance tilts her head to one side, but I don't let her ask what I know she wants to ask. “I'll ask you the same question.”

“Of course I know her. I foalsat her until she was old enough to attend the school as well. She's a remarkable filly, a lot like me in many ways,” Cadance relates. Foalsat? There has to be a human equivalent in there somewhere...oh, babysitter. Duh. So I just met Twilight's babysitter. Which means she probably has that same tendency to go over the top with things. Like she just did. Great. I can't stand Twilight when she gets like that.

“I don't trust her one bit.” That gets Cadance to stop completely and look at me as if I've grown a second head. “She keeps trying to get me to talk about my kind, pretending that she's trying to be friendly. That academic nature of hers is a dead giveaway though. I want nothing to do with her.”

“What...?” Cadance begins, but she stops before continuing, her eyes turning back towards where we came. I can tell what she's feeling as well, because I can feel it too. A subtle pressure falls over the air, pressing down on my skin and giving me goosebumps. I'd only felt this once before, but something like this you just can't forget.

I turn around, and sure enough, Celestia herself walks elegantly into the clearing, her mane flowing in the wind that isn't there, sunlight seeming to glow slightly from every strand. She's just a fucking pony, but every time I see her, it just takes my breath away. If she had been in my time, she'd have been a fucking show animal. That's beauty.

“About fucking time...did you really have to send some secretary bitch to get me?” is what I greet her with. Cadance looks at me in horror, having not expected such disrespect from me. “I mean it too, she was a total grade-A bitch.”

“My apologies, Seth. I wish I could have come sooner, but I was in the midst of conducting Day Court,” Celestia says kindly, completely letting my blatant rudeness slide past her. “I'd asked Miss Elegant to tell you as such, but it seems she lacked a certain tact.”

“You're telling me. As entertaining as shooting the shit with Cadance here is, I'd much rather get on with why I'm really here. I don't appreciate being called here like a damn servant,” I don't know what it is about Celestia, but I feel like I can say whatever I want to her, and she won't judge me for it. That's probably a bullshit feeling, but it's probably contributing to how loose-tongued I'm being. Next to me, Cadance hangs her head, ashamed at my conduct. I don't know why she thinks it's her problem though.

“In due time. I see you've met my dear niece,” Celestia says, indicating Cadance with an ivory hoof. Niece? But you're thousands of years older than her. And doesn't that make her Luna's daughter? Heh, Princess of the Night indeed. “I hope you two have been getting along well.”

“It's so amazing that there's a human left after all these years, but he doesn't seem to want to talk about it,” Cadance remarks.

“She's like Twilight.” My simple response earns a soft, musical laugh from Celestia, and a sheepish expression from Cadance.

“Indeed she is. Cadance, my dear, you shouldn't press him for details,” Celestia scolds her niece gently, vindicating my worries. Cadance ducks her head and nods shyly. “Now then. Are you ready to go, Seth?”

“Go? Go where? What do you even want from me anyway?” I demand. Celestia just gives me a coy smile. “And you're not going to tell me shit.”

“Of course not. That would ruin the surprise, after all,” she teases me. “Follow me. We've quite the walk ahead of us.”

“Lovely...I don't like this at all,” I complain, but I'm ignored, as Celestia walks back the way she came from.

“Farewell, dear Cadance. Good luck with the negotiations this evening,” Celestia calls over her shoulder.

“Goodbye, Aunt Celestia! Goodbye, Seth!” Cadance calls after us just before we leave that section of the garden.

So now I'm alone with Celestia. She didn't bring Luna with her, for whatever reason. Now to find out what the hell she wants with me.

Celestia takes me back through the castle, only this time she takes a different route, leading away from the entrance. Instead, we take a winding path through the ivory halls until I become hopelessly lost. She could leave me right now, and I'd probably never find my way back out. That's how big and confusing this place is. Can't they at least have color coded hallways?

I try to ask her where we're going again, but she won't tell me. She just says more shit like, “In due time,” or “Be patient, Seth.” It infuriates me that she doesn't seem to care about my feelings. Excuse me, I didn't want to come here in the first place.

So imagine how I feel when she takes us out the back of the castle and onto what looks like a mountain path.

“What, are we on a fucking hiking trip?” I demand, but I don't get an answer for that either. Just a knowing chuckle and a “Wait and see.”

The air gets slightly colder the higher we climb. I even have to force my ears to pop painfully as the path spirals ever upward. I get more and more frustrated as time passes. On the bright side, the scenery is nice. The path is rather thin, with cliffs rising high one one side, and pine trees on the othier. One time, we even pass beneath a massive thundering waterfall that falls to become a river further down.

Finally, as we reach a grassy clearing high above the castle, I lose my temper. “Okay, I'm fucking done. Now only do you treat me like shit by ordering me to come here like one of your subjects, but now you drag me on some trip to who knows where without even telling me why? What the fuck are you playing...” I notice that Celestia isn't even looking at me. She's gazing at something to my left. “Look at me when I'm talking to you, you stupid...whoa...”

I cut off despite myself, my rage dying in my throat when I see what Celestia is looking at. The clearing ends at a steep cliff, but that's not the interesting part. The view up here is utterly amazing. I can see for fucking miles.

Stretched out directly in front and below me is a large forest, through which a set of tiny looking railroad tracks pass. It all looks like one massive toy set from up here. To my left, I can see Ponyville, despite the fact that it's a long way from Canterlot. There's Sweet Apple Acres, the Town Square, Golden Oaks Library, and the Everfree sitting innocently next to the whole thing.

“What do you think, Seth? Isn't it beautiful?” Celestia asks me softly, not a hint of an “I told you so,” anywhere in her voice.

“It's one hell of a view, I'll give you that much,” I mutter in reply. I'm not as mad at her as I was a second ago, because this is breathtaking.

“Up ahead of you is White Tail woods, beyond which lies Smokey Mountain and Vanhoover,” Celestia describes for me, though I can't help but raise an eyebrow at the names. Vanhoover? Are you fucking kidding me? More human influence, I suppose. Who the hell finds the name of a city in ancient records and says, “I'mma make a horse pun from this?” Fucking ponies, that's who. “To your right, you'll see Cloudsdale, one of the largest cities in Equestria.”

Cloudsdale? Why do I get the feeling that's not going to be a pu..., “Holy shit!” I exclaim once I spot the massive cloud formation that's actually not a cloud formation. The oddly regular wisps of cloud jutting above the surface of the clouds are actually fucking buildings made from clouds! That's not even the best part. There's rainbows falling from the clouds like waterfalls. Like, I can hardly believe it myself. “So...Cloudsdale. a city on a cloud. Right what it says on the tin. Fucking magic.”

“As nice as the view is, I doubt you dragged me all the way up here just for this,” I say, sighing. Celestia smiles and gestures behind me with her head. Her horn glows ever so slightly, making me suspicious. I turn around to see what she's indicating.

To my shock, there's a fucking picnic set up on the grass where there had been none before, complete with a plaid quilt and a straw basket. There's already some food set out there, like fruits, salads, and sandwiches, as well as some drinks. All of them look exquisitely made.

My suspicion grows. “The fuck is all this for?”

“I wanted to talk with you about your experiences in Equestria over a nice meal, if that's all right with you,” Celestia answers warmly, walking over to the quilt and sitting down on her haunches.

“No, it's not fucking all right. What the hell is all this? The reason I didn't answer your damn letter beforehand was because I knew you'd pull some shit like this!” I rage, my suspicions true after all. Celestia's face falls slightly, but she doesn't look surprised. “I can't figure you out! Why go through so much effort for me? What the hell do you want?!”

“Seth...”

“You know what? Fuck this. I'm so damn sick of you ponies always trying to sucker me in with these favors of yours. I won't have it, you hear me? I WON'T HAVE IT!” I turn on my heel and storm back towards the path that leads down the mountain. Seriously, I don't know what I expected. Can't you ponies just talk to me without offering me all this shit? I know your game, and I won't fall...

“Seth, I am not that person!” Celestia's commanding words stop me right in my tracks. I whirl back around, my eyes narrowed. I step closer to her.

“What the hell did you just say to me?” I ask in a dangerously soft voice. She also used human terminology...what the hell does she think she knows?

Celestia meets my gaze, and once more I'm reminded of how imposing of a gaze she can hold. “You're scared, aren't you?” she says in an equally soft manner, though there's sympathy in her voice.

“Make some fucking sense, right the fuck now.” I'm starting to curse even more repetitively than normal. She better not be doing her mindfucking tricks again.

“Someone gave you something. Something wonderful, that meant a lot to you,” Celestia begins. My eyes widen. Oh no you fucking don't. You're not allowed to read me like this. How can you...you weren't there...don't you fucking...NO! “And then that same someone used that to control you.”

“Stop. Just stop,” I command her, but she's not listening to me at all. She rises and moves towards me slowly.

“What's been done to you is unforgivable, but you have to let that go,” Celestia advises me gently. Finally, she reaches me, and then she cranes her head forwards, resting it on my shoulder and nuzzling my ear. “I am not that person, Seth.”

I'm dead silent for several minutes, and she doesn't move either, attempting to comfort me with her physical presence. It's not working. I don't believe you. You're not her, but that doesn't matter. That same potential is present in everyone. Just because you hide it better doesn't mean it's not there.

“You can't fucking know,” I grunt, stepping back. “So you're not Janna. So what? Why should I care? You'll talk a good game, but if you'd been there, you'd have just gone along with the flow like everyone else. In fact...”

I jab a finger in her face. “You're just like her! You're the princess of an entire nation! You can have whatever you want, whenever you want! Nopony would ever say anything wrong about the 'great Princess Celestia!' If she's doing it, it must be right!”

Celestia doesn't react at all like I'd expect. After a tirade like that, everyone I'd know would just throw up their arms and say, “Fuck it.” Not her.

“I believe I understand. She hid her vile intentions behind a kind exterior, and used that same visage to manipulate those around her,” Celestia conjectures, rather accurately. “She must have had some influence as well, for you to compare her to me.”

“So fucking what?”

“So, it seems we're in a bit of a pinch, so to speak,” Celestia continues. “You have two choices before you.”

“And here comes the ultimatum,” I growl angrily.

“You can't prove that I am like this Janna. But neither can I prove that I am not. Therefore, you can leave, and distance yourself from the situation to prevent any chance of the same pain occurring again,” Celestia begins. Heh, I like that choice. In fact, I'll do that right... “Or you can stay, and put your long held preconceptions to the test. You don't believe that all of us are the same. There's always one or two individuals that are worth knowing, correct? How can you find out if I am one of them if you don't take a chance on me?”

“Because...” I start, but my voice dies in my throat when I realize that I don't have a logical comeback to that. She's right. I took a chance with Amaryllis, and I fell in love with her. I took a chance with my brother, and found one of the greatest friends I've ever had. I took a chance with Rainbow...and she's done right by me so far. “I guess I can't.”

Celestia smiles, and gives a nod of satisfaction. “Then I leave the choice up to you. Though I must say...” At that, I look at her suspiciously as her horn lights up golden and something flies out of the picnic basket, wrapped in plastic. Is that a piece of...are you...what the...I watch dumbfounded as Celestia unwraps the confection and takes a bite of what looks to be the most enticing piece of chocolate cake I've ever seen. “The cake is particularly delicious.”

I can't help myself. I give a chuckle despite my dark mood. The sight of this regal princess of the sun or whatever gorging herself on chocolate fucking cake like it's no big deal is just funny.

“Fucking...fine. I don't trust you, but I'll eat with you. If you hold this over my head in any way, shape, or form, I'll fucking murder you. Got it?” I snap, giving in with bad grace.

“Of course. I wouldn't dream of it.” Celestia replies with a bright smile, and then the two of us walk together back towards the picnic blanket.

Which is good, because I'm fucking hungry.

Author's Notes:

Just hit eighty likes! I'm really happy, as this is probably the most popular my stories have ever been. Which is rather funny, since this is still nothing compared to most of the site, but it's a milestone for me as a writer. I'm still holding onto the hope that my popularity will explode one night. Unlikely, but better to be positive. A LESSON THAT SETH SHOULD LEARN!

Finally got to introduce Cadance. That's why I didn't just include the whole scene with Celestia in the last chapter, because I wanted to spend some time with her and Seth getting to know one another slightly. Of course, she only just figured out that he's pretty dark.

Also, more character development, and more insight as to the whole situation with Janna. You probably have a pretty good idea of what all happened, but there's a lot more to it that I haven't developed yet. Stay tuned, and leave a comment! Dey make meh happy x3