Zero Punctuation - Equestria
Chapter 7: Yahtzee Reviews - A Light Breakfeast
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A trio of loud knocks sounded through the room, waking Yahtzee from his pleasant dreams, much to his happiness. It gave him a semi-feasible reason as to yell at whoever it was that woke him up. He rolled off the bed and shuffled towards the door, then reached for the handle. He took a deep breath and pulled it open. What he saw was neither of the Princesses, nor was it a guard. Instead, it was a small envelope with a seal that resembled the sun keeping it closed. He then closed the door and went to the edge of his bed to read the letter.
Dear Yahtzee,
My sister and I hope that you had a wonderful dream last night and we hope you will join us for breakfast this morning. If you do accept this invitation, take a left outside of your room and walk down the hallway until you reach the door with the guards in front of it.
-Princess Celestia.
Yahtzee finished with a yawn, thinking of going back to sleep. His stomach then growled and he closed his eyes and rubbed the back of his head. Not eating wasn't going to bring him back home any faster, so he might as well accept her offer. He then chuckled to himself. "Never look a gift sun goddess in the mouth."
Yahtzee jumped off his bed again and pushed through the door thinking; the room with the guards out front. As he turned to the left his eyes dropped to the floor and he began rubbing the area between his eyes. Every door in the hallway had a pair of guards standing at the ready. He then shrugged and walked up to the nearest guard who tensed at the sight of him.
"Mr. Croshaw," the first guard said firmly as he raised his hoof to his head to salute, eyes looking straight ahead.
"Er, at ease," Yahtzee said quietly. "Do you happen to know where the dining room is?"
"It is the door with thee two guards out front, Mr. Croshaw," he said firmly.
"Right, which two guards?" Yahtzee groaned.
"I was just told to relay the information to you that the Princesses are eating in the room with two guards out front."
"Alright, can you at least point me in the right direction?"
"No, sorry, sir," the other guard said.
"Why not?" Yahtzee asked, almost snapping at him.
"Because I was told not to."
"And I am telling you to tell me. The Princess told you to treat me as you would treat them!"
"I'm sorry that I could not be of assistance. You have to check each room on your own to make it to breakfast today."
"Fine, I will," he said coldly, whipping around to walk down the hallway.
Yahtzee then tilted forward and began his search for the room, checking by each one to make sure he didn't miss it. Now it wasn't even about getting food in his stomach. Now it was about not letting Celestia get the better of him. He had to fight for his pride, something that was relatively easy over the internet that he was accustomed to entertaining. After roughly half an hour of searching for the room, he came to the final door of the hallway. Annoyed that he had wasted all that time, he kicked the door open and walked in smugly, happy that he had beaten Celestia at her game. He then looked around. He was outside. His eye twitched when he realized he made a small mistake. He stomped down the hallway, glaring at the guard he spoke to and stopped in front of him.
"Sir?"
"It's this room, isn't it?" he asked quietly. The guards nodded. "If I had teeth to grit, they would be gritting so hard that the teeth shavings that came off would make me look as if I got hit in the face by a briefcase filled with Scarface's most recent business venture."
He punched open the door and saw an extremely long table with Celestia on one end, and Luna sitting next to her with her back facing the door.
"Hello," Celestia smiled as bright as the sun she rose that morning. "Sleep well?"
"Not particularly," he muttered, taking a seat at the other end of the long table.
"Is there anything I can do that would make this easier for you?" she asked, sipping out of a cup of tea.
"Besides embarrassing me, no, I am quite alright," he insisted, grabbing a croissant from the tray closest to him. "I don't suppose you have any-"
"Certainly," she nodded, using her powerful magic to do the simple task of levitating the brick of butter over to Yahtzee.
"Much obliged," he said reluctantly and saw Luna with her eyes closed, nose lifted, looking away from him spitefully. "What's eating her britches?"
"We believe you know why," Luna said, clearly trying to act above him.
"What's with this we business?" Yahtzee asked, somehow taking a bite out of the croissant without a mouth. "I know you may not be all there in the head, but I didn't honestly think you had a multiple personality disorder."
"We do not have a personality disorder," she huffed annoyingly. "We simply decided it was best to refer to ourselves as we are accustomed."
"Mhm..." he said shiftily.
"Much like the way you treated me the way you're accustomed to." She finished icily.
"Oh, so that's what this is about," he said, laying his sarcasm on as thickly as possible. "Sorry love, but this brilliant example of a man changes for no other, particularly horses with personality disorders."
"We do not- no," she said quietly. "We are above that."
"Keep telling yourself that, love," he said, smirking to himself on the inside as he finished his croissant. He grabbed the folded napkin and cleaned the area around his no-mouth, folded it on the plate and gave a small bow. "That was less painful than anticipated. Now may I go back into my room and scream louder than those insufferable bronys who would kill to be in my position?"
"I'm afraid not," Celestia said quietly, wiping her own muzzle clean of crumbs and the like. "You see, I believe we agreed that you would go to Ponyville during the day to learn more about our culture, hopefully learn how-"
"We never agreed that!" he growled.
"We didn't?" she asked playfully, pretending to search her thoughts. "Well, I was almost postivie we did. But I suppose I'll propose it to you again just in case. You go to Ponyville while I reign and return when it is my sister's time to rule."
"I decline that offer and decide to be more of a shutout than a kid who gets picked last in dodgeball."
"Oh, I'm sorry. I said it was a proposition, but it really was a recommendation. On of which you must take to heart."
"Why should I?"
"Because if you don't at least try to learn more about friendship, I won't send you home," she smiled as Yahtzee's cheeks turned a deep crimson.
"You can't do that..." he grumbled.
"Why not? I am not the one that summoned you here. I did not want an alien being living in my home. You are the reason you came here, not I. I have no reason to help you get home, but since I am being nice enough to do so I want you to be more gracious towards my subjects and I," she said. Her eyes shifted to Luna, who coughed abruptly. "And to my sister."
Yahtzee shook his head. There was no analogy brutal enough for him to describe what he was feeling towards Celestia at that very moment. He never felt this way often, but when he did he practically foamed out the mouth whenever he tried to explain it without tearing the world asunder. The words he would speak would shake mountains and create tsunamis with the force it would create to say the words out loud due to how powerful it was. It was a feeling he started to feel when he first met her, and it haunted him that if he told her how he felt she would simply use it against him.
He respected her.
"Very well," he said, tipping his hat at her, temporarily trying to be sincere, as hard as it was for him. "I will try." He said forcibly, then his eyes narrowed at her. "But that's all you're getting."
"And it was all I was asking," she smiled, but it wasn't one of condescension, but out of a small frame of mutual respect. "Now, I will teleport you to Twilight's and send her some instructions soon. Do you want me to try and locate your friend while I send the letter?"
"Friend? Oh, right, the imp." Yahtzee said nonchalantly. Celestia leaned in closer, expecting him to continue. Yahtzee saw that she was waiting for him to finish, so he obeyed as plainly as possible. With a shrug. "Eh."
"Eh?" she repeated with a bemused smile.
"That's right. Eh. Eh, as in eh don't really care seeing as he isn't exactly what i would call a friend. Besides, there are hundreds of those brainless lackeys where I come from. I'd say they're a dime a dozen, but I'm afraid that would be understating just how many of the buggers there are."
"If he finds that he enjoys his stay here, will you allow him to stay?"
"Oh, what a delightful idea." Yahtzee said, shaking his hands like a schoolgirl getting asked out by her crush. "One less of them to deal with. Maybe we can arrange a way to send them all here."
"Maybe. Until tonight, Yahtzee," she said, lowering her head. The room filled with a golden flash, forcing Yahtzee's eyes shut out of instinct.
When Yahtzee opened his eyes he found himself surrounded by the books of Twilight's library. He then looked ahead of him and saw Twilight Sparkle sipping on a mug of coffee while Spike sat at the table, eating a sandwich.
"Yahtzee," Twilight nodded politely, unaffected by his sudden appearance.
"Seems I may truly be stuck here indefinitely. As such, to gain access even the slimmest of chances of getting home..." Yahtzee took a deep breath. "...I must try to be your friend."
"Are we supposed to be happy about that?" Spike asked curiously, earning him a glare from Twilight. "What?" he mumbled. "This guy isn't the nicest of guys."
"That doesn't mean he can't get any friends," she said to him, then turned to smile at Yahtzee. "Isn't that right?"
"Well, I already have many friends." Yahtzee coughed. "It's just none of them are ponies. Or Princesses."
"Then I guess we should start," she said quietly. Her horn glowed vividly and a chair came out from under the table.
"Alright," he said and slumped into the chair.
"So, tell me about your other friends."
"Aren't you supposed to ask about me?" he asked with a look of confusion in his eyes.
"That can come after. Before that, I want to know what kind of friends you had back on your world. It will help me figure out what you look for in friends, and though I won't pretend to be what I'm not, I can hopefully find something in common between myself and your friends."
"Ah, that does seem like a better way of going about it," Yahtzee nodded. "Very well, ask away."
"Thank you," she said, taking a notepad and quill out from a desk. "Now, what are your friends names?"
"Is that really important?"
"Yes, and I could explain why, but I feel that would just be wasting both of our time."
"Well for starters there is... um... hm," he said quietly, rubbing his chin. "Er, Billy?"
"Okay, what are some of your friend Billy's traits?" Twilight inquired, dipping the quill into a bottle of ink.
"He is... Australian?"
"And that is your nationality, correct?"
"Yes."
"Nationalities are not a personality trait, Yahtzee."
"If you've met other Australians, you would disagree," he said with an awkward chuckled. He took a sharp breath and began tapping his boots. "Yeah..."
"Anything else about them?"
"Nothing noteworthy," he admitted. "I usually only play with him if I am to review a game that has coop as a main selling point."
"Anyone else?"
"Oh, there is that one man I call up about fighting games!" Yahtzee said, clapping his hands once out of excitement.
"Any personality points besides being Australian?"
"He is a bit obsessive, but that isn't why I'm friends with him."
"I see. And his name?"
"I... don't know," he said quietly, but now he wasn't looking at Twilight.
Twilight frowned at him as he shifted uncomfortably in the chair. She sighed and put the tools back in place with her magic and stared softly at Yahtzee.
"I guess I don't have friends as much as I have colleagues," he admitted.
"And that's fine." Twilight said, trying to assure him. Spike's eyes shot open and he let out a rambunctious, green-flamed belch, sending a letter out of his mouth just for it to land in front of Twilight. She quickly unrolled it and gave it a few once overs. "I guess that means it's time to get started."
Twilight hopped out of the chair and began walking towards the door, but Yahtzee remained in place.
"Are you coming?" Twilight asked, glancing back at him.
"Yes, but may I ask something?"
"Anything," she beamed, hoping to help in any way she could.
"Do you have any alcohol?" he asked, a gleam of desperation in his eyes. "I think I need a drink..."
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