Chapter 10

Back in the royal bedroom of prince Blue Blood, the prince was now seated on his bed and getting viciously chewed out by Celestia about his violent conduct with Danny earlier this morning. He felt ashamed of himself that he actually did such a thing after learning what the child had endured, and Celestia's hard chewing out was not helping his issue either, he felt completely guilty, and he didn't even know he could feel such a thing until now.

"How dare strike that poor boy out of anger! If you knew what this child had been through, you would have never placed your hooves on him, we expected so much more from you Blue Blood!"Celestia yelled down to the prince as his thoughts were interrupted."What do you have to say for yourself?!"

"Well... He struck first, what do you expect me to do once I have been assaulted?"Blue Blood questioned.

"He only did it because you pushed him, that child has been raised in a hostile and violent environment from the day he was born, It would not surprise us if he intended to be a bit violent, but we plan to help him turn from that violent path,"Celestia explained before letting out a sigh."Blue Blood... This child has been abused and harmed by a monstrous father for a while, he did not need to endure such horrors again, and he won't while we're around, you better get use to him from now on, or you can leave the castle forever."

"I didn't know that he was abused..."Blue Blood said as he looked down in shame.

"Well he was Blue Blood, and he doesn't need more abuse from you, I hope you will have a proper apology to give this child tonight if you ever want to be back in our good graces,"Celestia warned as she then began to leave.

"Yes aunty..."Blue Blood said with his head still low.

"*sigh*... There was only so much we could do to try and ween you from your mother's greedy ways... It's up to you now to make things right, or you can forever be greedy and become her Blue Blood..."Celestia said in a low voice as she exited Blue Bloods room and magically closed the doors behind her.

Celestia let out a frustrated sigh and cleared her throat as she then began calming down from her intense moment, she then allowed a soft smile to stretch across her face before slowly making her way down the halls. She began replacing her furious thoughts of her nephew with the thoughts of Luna and Danny getting along, in her heart she felt her sister truly reaching out to the child, but she could still sense some doubt and despair within Danny, his father may have done more to him than they had previously thought.

She brushed those troubling thoughts aside as she walked to a window and opened it in time to see princess Twilight and Rarity just making their way to the train to get back to their home in Ponyville. She gave them a polite wave as they boarded the train, but not without them seeing her from the train window and waving to her as the train made its departure, Celestia let out a chuckle before heading back inside.

Celestia once again found herself walking through the halls of her home now a bit more pleased than she was before, but it was not long before she heard a certain rumbling going on in her stomach. She blushed with a bit of embarrassment as two guards had passed her and noticed her rumbling tummy, she was hungry, and thankfully for her, lunch time was only in a few minutes.

Not wanting to keep her stomach waiting, she quickly began walking down the hallway with no intention of stopping, but she knew that from where she was at, it might take a bit to maneuver herself all the way to the dining hall. She made a quick turn around a corner and passed through the dining hall for the guards, watching the stallions gorge themselves on food just made her more hungry. She quickly ignored them as she continued on towards the royal dining hall, as she rounded a corner towards Luna's bedroom, she was then presented with a little distraction from her stomach.

She suddenly felt her hungry tummy disappear and replace with warmth as she saw Luna carrying Danny around on her back and appear to be sharing happy thoughts and words with each other before noticing Celestia.

"Ah...! Hello sister, and how did your little talk with Blue Blood go?"Luna asked with a sly smile.

"It went just fine, I'm certain he will not try another stunt like that again, and how are you doing Danny? How is your cheek?"Celestia asked the boy as he sat up to see her.

"Yeah I'm fine, It's nothing really,"Danny said bravely while Luna just chuckled at his bravery.

"You certainly are a brave one aren't you? Today we learned about generosity, and it's safe to say he passed with flying colors,"Luna said as she levitated the boy off her back.

"I bet he did, I saw Twilight and Rarity leave for Ponyville, did something come up at Ponyville?"Celestia asked out of curiosity.

"Yes, Twilight said that she should really be getting back, but I'm certain we will see her again, besides I promise Danny that we may visit Ponyville on Nightmare Night,"Luna replied as she then looked to Danny."That means we will need to see if Rarity will make a scary costume for you."

"Wow... I really get to go trick or treating again,"Danny said with hidden excitement.

"You sure do Danny, now then, how about we all depart to the dining hall for some lunch, I myself could really use a bite to eat, and I had gotten are special food for Danny this morning, I think he'll like it,"Celestia explain sparking Danny's interest.

"What kind of food Celestia?"Danny asked out of curiosity.

"You'll see soon enough, now lets hurry and get to the dining hall so we can eat,"Celestia said as she took the lead with Luna and Danny right behind her.

They small group were now making their way through the halls in a slight hurry as they quickly made a left into another hallway, Danny had no problem keeping up with them as he was slowly passing by Luna. He was now at Celestia's side and suddenly felt a warm rush through his body, it felt a little like the feelings he had when ever his father was around, but this one was different, it felt good to him. It felt good to feel this rush, it was not a feeling of pain and fear that was rushing through him, it felt more like a rush of happiness and even a bit of fun as he began to race pass Celestia.

He even began laughing as he noticed the mares now broke into a little jog to try to keep up with him, he could hear them giggling showing a clear sign that they too were enjoying this little race and they had accepted his challenge. They began to catch up to him, but that was when he decided to break into a jog as well, he began to get far ahead of them before they quickly broke into a full run to try to catch him, but it was not long before they finally reached the dining hall.

Danny quickly stopped at the door and waited for the princesses to catch up to him, he turned around to see them finally arriving only to see them panting and struggling to catch their breathe. They took a minute to catch their breathe before standing tall once more and giving the boy a small chuckle, but they couldn't help but be impress by Danny's gifted speed and stamina.

"My goodness Danny, you are quite the little racer, how did you manage to get so athletic?"Luna asked before taking a deep breathe.

"I really liked gym class, I always do my best when I do gym,"Danny answered before laughing at the exhausted mares."Wow... That was pretty fun."

"Indeed, well at least we actually got a little work out before we ate, and I will admit... That was quite fun,"Celestia admitted as she magically opened the doors.

"I'm going to assume that Blue Blood will not be joining us for lunch,"Luna guessed.

"Yes... He will be remaining in his room until he comes up with a proper apology for Danny, and I'm certain that he is going to be thinking real hard after the scolding I gave him,"Celestia said with a sly smile.

They all walked into the royal dining hall and circled around the table to find their seat, Celestia took her seat at the head of the table while Luna seated herself right next to her sister. Danny gladly took up a seat right next to Luna as they all continued to wait for their food to arrive, Celestia then decided to strike up another conversation.

"So what did you learn today Danny?"Celestia asked out of interest.

"I learned how to share and be generous to others, and I learned how to be generous in a way so others won't take advantage of it,"Danny answered.

"I see, did Rarity tell you about the time she was once tricked because she showed too much generosity?"Celestia asked once again.

"Yeah, the mare that tricked her ended up losing in the end... Serves her right,"Danny said.

"Now I grant you that she did to deserve this, but we don't need to hold things against others, we don't know why some ponies turn out to be bad in their own way, but we should always at least respect them for who they are,"Luna explained while Danny turned to her and listened.

"So... You're saying I need to keep liking them no matter how bad they are,"Danny assumed.

"Not like them, just tolerate and respect them, but there are others out there that even ourselves can't help but to loath and hate for their awful ways, your father was one of those characters,"Luna explained as she lifted up his chin to look Danny in the eyes."There are some that don't deserve respect or kindness, but if one should respect through all that terrible stuff, it would be the bravest and most honorable thing one could ever do."

"And what if I were to end up like one of those people?"Danny asked out of concern.

"You won't become like one of those bad people, you may not think it, but you have a very kind and gentle spirit,"Luna said with a smile.

It was then that their heavy conversation was interrupted once again by the dining hall doors swinging open, and a crowd of stallions and mares in chef attire entered the room with trays and platters full of food. While the food was being set up for them, a stallion chef suddenly approached Celestia and cleared his throat to gain her attention.

"Excuse me princess, the food is ready, but we couldn't help but feel a bit nervous for the dish we prepared for the... Child... It raises a bit of concerns for some of the ponies around the castle knowing this type of food is going to be consumed,"The chef explained as he gestured to a few waiters that appeared to be a bit nervous.

"I understand your concern chef, and I will put your spirit to rest, the food isn't really what you think it is, it is simply an imitation of the food you are thinking of, it's not real,"Celestia informed as the chef then took a sigh of relief.

"Well thank Equestria for that, but why go to these lengths to get this child such a sustenance?"The chef asked out of concern.

"He needs this food to grow strong, he can't properly develop his muscles correctly if there is no protein in his diet, and this is the next best thing for a protein source next to real meat,"Celestia explained once more.

"Well... If it is what you wish, we will see it attended, Servers...! Bring the child his personal meal!"The chef called to his servers.

The servers quickly responded by rushing over to Danny's side and wrapping a white cloth around his neck and bringing over a slightly smaller platter, they placed it in front of him, sparking his curiosity. They then put his curiosity to rest as they lifted up the platter and showed off what appeared to be a dinner he thought he would never see again. It appeared to actually be a big fat juicy ham sandwich with Swiss cheese and three layers of ham, Danny could not believe his eyes at what he was seeing, and he believed that his stomach was not believing it either as it growled with hunger.

"Is this...? A ham sandwich?"Danny asked out of disbelief.

"Why yes it is child, how did you know about this recipe?"The chef asked.

"My mother use to make it for me, It was my favorite food, but I thought you were all vegetarians,"Danny said with confusion.

"It's okay Danny, this meat is not really meat, it is an imitation meat that some cities of the Griffon kingdom use for diets and taming predatory animals,"Celestia explained as Danny was once again given a clothe around his neck.

Meanwhile the servers were tending to the princesses as white cloth were wrapped around their necks and all the main dishes were revealed to them all, the dishes consisted of salads, soups, and a few types of sandwiches. The mares licked their lips in interest as they immediately used their magic to create their very own salads, Celestia decided to also decided to have a bowl of vegetable soup while Luna took of a dandelion sandwich and a rose sandwich.

Danny in the meantime was given a small bowl of soup and a small glass of punch to go with his ham sandwich, he immediately began to dig into his sandwich and was given the wonderful taste of a dinner he had not had in quite a while. It tasted smooth, meaty and moist, it was topped with a perfect glaze of mayonnaise on both slices of bread, it was hard to believe that this was basically a type of tofu meat. He quickly drank up his punch and continued on his meat loaf, as he finished half of his sandwich.

Celestia and Luna on the other hoof were slowly but surely eating their meals at their own leisure, Celestia enjoyed her salad as she tasted the sweet and slight tang of ranch dressing on her salad. She felt her stomach finally being satisfied from its earlier hunger with each bite of salad, and each sip of her vegetable soup. She was immediately poured and served with a small cup of tea, she took a quick sip of her tea before returning to her salad and soup.

Luna had just finished her rose sandwich before turning to her salad and quietly eating her salad as something started to bug her, she now had to tell Danny about a dark secret that she had hoped that she would never have to think about ever again. These new thoughts made it a bit more complicated to eat, but she continued to eat slowly as she let out a small sigh, but there was no hiding her complicated thoughts from Celestia who had noticed her small struggle almost immediately.

Celestia and Luna both finished their soups and looked to each other before finishing up their salads, Celestia could see the frustration in Luna's eyes, but she realized that she would not dare bring it up while Danny was in the room. She had finished her salad first and was offered Luna's sandwich which she gladly took while Luna had finally finished up her salad and sat there.

While Celestia was making quick work of her sisters sandwich, they once again heard a small belch and turned to see Danny giggling and covering his mouth as he then turned to them and blushed with embarrassment.

"Excuse me..."He politely said.

"That's alright Danny, I take it that you enjoyed your lunch?"Luna questioned already knowing the answer.

"It sure was Luna, it was delicious,"Danny said as he stepped out of his seat and approached Luna."So what do you wanna do now?"

"It is only a little bit in the afternoon, how about I take you for a ride around the wondrous city of Canterlot, just so you can see your entire new home,"Luna suggested with a soft smile.

"Really...?! We get to actually go on a flight around the city?!"Danny said with sudden excitement.

"Of course Danny, how about you go wait outside while I talk with Tia, and then we'll go on our little flight around the city,"Luna suggested once again.

"Okay, I'll wait right outside for you,"Danny said as he walked to the dining hall doors.

He stopped and looked back at the sisters before smiling at them, he then opened the door and quietly left the dining room, leaving the sisters to talk while the servants and the chefs cleaned up the rest of their lunch. Celestia immediately frowned as Luna appeared to be looking down in guilt and shame before rising to see her sister giving her a worried look.

"So tell me... What is troubling you Luna?"Celestia asked while a chef removed the cloths from their necks.

"Well... We were talking about Nightmare Night and... Nightmare Moon was then brought up, now Danny is curious to know who she is,"Luna said in a quiet tone.

"So... Why not tell him?"Celestia asked.

"This isn't something that you can just tell a child Tia, am I suppose to just go up to him and tell him that I was once and evil mare who tried to throw Equestria into an eternal night?"Luna questioned in an irritated voice.

"Of course not Luna, but you cannot hide this past self of yours from him, if you truly want him to trust you, you have to be honest with him, you know many things about him, why shouldn't he get to know you?"Celestia questioned while Luna snorted in frustration.

"Danny has already dealt with an evil father, the last thing I wanted for him was to know that he is in the presence of some pony that was once evil herself, and I don't want him to fear me as all other subjects once did!"Luna said fiercely.

"Luna...! Calm down...and think, do you want him to trust you?"Celestia questioned while Luna panted in frustration.

"Of course I do, I want him to feel safe and loved here Tia,"Luna said in a low voice that almost sounded shaky.

"Yes... And do you want him to accept you as his mother?"Celestia asked once more.

"Yes... More than anything Tia,"Luna replied as she looked to Celestia with tears threatening to leave her eyes.

"Then you need to be honest with him, if what you said about his father was true, then he may not fear you at all, and if you are honest with him, he may just finally open his heart completely,"Celestia said as she walked over and wiped away a tear from Luna's eyes.

"A-are you sure about this Tia?"Luna asked nervously while struggling to subdue her sadness.

"Luna... You have come so far from the time you had first been returned to me, you have matured greatly since that day, you are now taking on an important responsibility with Danny and you have to do what is right for him,"Celestia said while they shared a gentle hug.

"*sigh*... Perhaps you are right Tia, I can't hide this secret from him, and I want to be his mother more than anything, if that is what it takes for him to truly trust me, then I will do it,"Luna said as they slowly parted from their hug.

"Good... Now then, don't you two have a little trip around the city to make?"Celestia asked with a sly smile.

"Oh...! Yes of course, I am not one to break my promises, especially to him,"Luna said as she then got out of her chair and began to leave.

"Remember Luna...! If you do this, he will trust you and you will be much more closer to him seeing you as his mother,"Celestia called out to Luna.

Luna had just made it to the dining hall doors before stopping and turning towards her sister with a small smile, she then gave her sister a small nod before magically opening the door and leaving the room. Celestia was now sitting in her chair with her thoughts to herself about her sister, she let out a sigh and threw her head back as she felt relaxed and could feel good things coming their way.

"Oh my little sister, you have come so far since that day, now comes your true test as a mother, do not be afraid Luna,"Celestia said to herself while she sat back and enjoyed her moment of peace to herself. Next Chapter: Ch: 11 Estimated time remaining: 3 Hours, 11 Minutes