Chapter 16

Dave stared up at the ceiling as he dropped the crown to the floor “This has to be a dream” He looked at a Celestia “A really messed up dream,” he whispered to himself

Celestia shuffled closer to Dave and resumed her slow breathing

“OK time to wake up now!” Dave quietly begged

‘Well this was unexpected’ Dave’s mind chuckled lightly

“Oh please tell me I’m dreaming” Dave begged “And if it is not a dream, do not find the memories from last night”

‘I’ll have a look for you’ his mind teased as it went silent

“Don’t you dare” Dave threatened by slamming his head into the pillow

Celestia groaned slightly as her eyes opened “Good morning Dave” she said happily

“M-morning Celestia” Dave said nervously “How are you?”

She shuffled as close as she could to him, wrapping her hoofs around him “Wonderful” she sighed

‘At least one of us is happy’ Dave thought irritably to himself “how was the party last night?”

“Great, I really enjoyed myself for a change” she opened and eye to look at him “and how about you?”

“Umm I liked it… up to the part were I forgot everything” Dave looked at the ceiling

“What do you mean you forgot?” Celestia raised her head in concern

“Well remember I drank that entire barrel of cider?” Dave looked over to see Celestia nod and then looked away again “Every bit after that I can’t remember”

Celestia was almost lying on top of Dave at this point “Y-you don’t remember?”

Dave shook his head “not a single thing” he looked over at Celestia who was looking around the bedroom

“S-so you don’t remember what we talked about?” her eyes began to shine as tears began to form at the edges

Dave began to feel really guilty for what ever it was he had forgotten “I’m sorry” he said as the alicorn sat up and turned her back to him “What exactly happened last night… well vaguely… no details”

Celestia continued to have her back to him and her body shook gently

Dave watched the princess buried her face in her hooves ‘is she crying?’ Dave began to regret waking up this morning “Listen Celestia, if you tell me some things I may remember” not too much, he hoped

Celestia slowly turned around, taking a deep breath to calm herself down “W-when the party was over everypony left, I told Luna that I would be staying with Twilight but I actually stayed here” she looked up at Dave with her eyes grabbing a hold on his “Then we talked”

Dave scratched the back of his neck “I think I remember a bit… you wanted to talk about me or something like that?”

“We were in here talking” she shuffled so she was seated on the edge of the bed “You were sat next to me”

“Alright” Dave played along and sat next to Celestia “what did we talk about?”

Celestia looked at the floor “I don’t think you want to hear it” she looked over at him her eyes on the verge of tears again, “it is different now”

Dave attempted to put an arm around her but she pushed it away “Please Celestia tell me” he pleaded softly

She stared at the floor for several seconds before finally continuing her story “I saw you were a bit sad about something, angry even” her eyes cleared as she tried to remember every detail about last night “I talked with you, we laughed” her voice grew quiet

“What next?” Dave asked like a child wanting their mother to read some more of a story

“Well you asked if you belonged here” she smiled at him “and I said of course” her smile faded “that made you cry though and I had no idea why”

Dave struggled to remember, “I was crying?” Celestia nodded

“You then asked what kind of pony would want you to stay here” she smiled to herself “and I said me”

“I’m guessing I stopped crying about then” Dave felt his heart being twisted in all directions, guilt that he upset Celestia, fear of remembering what went down and anger that he let this happen

Celestia nodded “then we umm…” Celestia laid Dave back and climbed on top of him “we went like this” she spread her wings out slowly and concealed her and Dave under her pure white feathers

Dave felt like him and Celestia were the only things around and obviously she felt the same as she smiled down at him, the only thing that stopped this being perfect was that Dave remembered that he was naked with a princess on top of him

Dave gulped nervously “and umm… t-then what?”

Celestia moved her head to Dave’s but pulled it back “we kissed” she began to get tears in her eyes again “and now it is different”

“How is it?” Dave asked as the alicorn wiped a tear that ran down her face

“You don’t like me” Celestia’s face began to flood with tears “You don’t want to be with me”

Dave tried to protest but she was partially right “listen Celestia” he wiped the tears from her face “if I could I would, but I’m a human and you’re an alicorn”

Celestia smiled slightly “you do like me?”

Dave returned her smile “well… yeah”

“It’s just because you and I are different species?”

Dave chuckled slightly “pretty much”

Celestia’s face tightened in concentration

“So how was I last night?” Dave gave in he was probably going to remember it all sooner or later anyway

“How do you mean?” Celestia asked, her eyes seemed to gleam with a new hope

“You know when we… mated” Dave was waiting to hear something horrid but instead Celestia blushed heavily

“W-w-we didn’t mate,” she said nervously

“We didn’t?” Dave looked down at his exposed body “Why am I naked? Why are you naked… well more naked? Why were we in bed together?”

Celestia looked at Dave’s body as if it was the first time she had actually looked “Oh well I couldn’t sleep in my royal attire and there was nowhere safe to put it so you wrapped them up in your clothes”

Dave raised an eyebrow “then how come I stepped on your crown and my pants are on the balcony?”

Celestia sighed heavily “ok we did get close” she blushed again in embarrassment “things got a bit excited and we did remove clothing but…”

“But what?” Dave asked ‘come on please do not tell me I was interrupted again! Royal guard maybe?’

“But we just lay in the bed looking at each other” Celestia rested her body onto Dave’s chest “Like this”

Dave had to control a very certain part of his body while Celestia’s face was only an inch from his own “so we didn’t… mate at all?”

Celestia shook her head “it was perfect like this” she seemed sad that she was the only one that seemed to be enjoying the moment

Dave looked out to the balcony and saw the moon descending to the horizon “have you got to go now?” he asked with sadness

Celestia smiled knowing that Dave would miss her “no I can do it from here” her horn glowed a bright yellow that almost blinded Dave

As the moon disappeared the sun took its place and Celestia returned her head where it was “I wouldn’t want to leave anyway” she smiled as Dave moved his head closer

“Neither would I” he whispered passionately as their lips met

Meanwhile…

Luna walked back into her quarters after lowering the moon ‘I’m so tired after all that partying earlier’ She giggled slightly when she remembered the dance Dave tried to do ‘what was it? The robot? What is a robot anyway?’

Luna sighed as she entered her quarters, two tall back pegasi guards stood to attention as she passed through the door

She closed the door behind her and removed her crown, necklace and shoes with her magic as she trotted over to her bed

She sighed as she began to climb into her bed, as she began to make herself comfortable her telescope caught her eye

“Hmm, I suppose one quick look couldn’t hurt” she said to herself as she took the telescope out onto her balcony

She knew exactly where she was going to aim it, Dave’s bedroom ‘let’s see if he is awake yet’ she giggled to herself as she brought the telescope into focus

She zoomed in on the balcony, it was her idea that the window faced Canterlot, summer was coming up so the nights could get very hot in that house

As she moved the view over to the bed, she sighed in disappointment “Aww he is gone already?”

Luna had a perfect view on a clean bedroom with a well-made bed, sighing again, she took the telescope back into her room and she climbed back into bed

“If I work hard again tomorrow night I should be able to have some time off” she muttered to herself as she fell asleep

Dave’s kitchen…

Celestia sat at the wooden table resting her head on her hooves, watching Dave attempt cooking in a pony kitchen “Are you sure you don’t need my help?” she playfully teased

Dave was trying to cook using earth pony equipment, the handles had grips that were designed to be held in the mouth or between some hooves, not for a human with fingers

“I’ll be WOAH… fine in a minute” Dave attempted to lift the frying pan but almost spilled the contents onto the floor

He carefully walked over and placed some of the food onto a plate for Celestia “it looks delicious” she smiled at Dave “when was the last time you made an omelette?”

Dave placed the rest of his creation onto his plate before placing the saucepan into the sink “About four years ago” Dave sat down and picked up a fork “and I never risked it since” he laughed along with Celestia

“Well,” she levitated the fork and picked up a piece of omelette “if it tastes bad I’ll have you thrown into the dungeon for treason”

Dave giggled, as he picked up a piece of omelette for himself “well here goes nothing”

They both placed their pieces of omelette into their mouths at the same time and stared at each other

“Good” they both said in surprised tones

“Hey did you doubt me?” Dave smiled raising an eyebrow

“Well of course not Dave… just your cooking,” she laughed as she took another bite of her breakfast “thank you for cooking it for me”

“Not a problem, least I can do” Dave was still surprised at the taste of his omelette

Celestia and Dave both continued to eat their breakfasts while enjoying each others company, once they had finished Dave washed up while Celestia had a bit of leftover cake

“That’s one thing I love about being an alicorn,” she said while swallowing a piece of chocolate cake “I can eat what I want and not have to worry about getting fat”

“Oh so your body is naturally that good” he winked at the princess as she blushed

“Well yes I suppose it is” she smiled as Dave dried his hands and sat down next to her “What are your plans for the day?”

Dave raised his eyes in thought before allowing them to rest back on Celestia “Absolutely nothing, maybe pop into town and do some shopping”

Celestia sat upright “oh but how will you pay? I can give you some bits”

Dave smile only widened “You know those chests I brought out from the cave?”

Celestia nodded “Oh did you open them?”

“Yeah and they were full of gold and gems” he said excitedly

Celestia happily reached over and gave him a hug “It’s good to see that you can take care of yourself” she hugged him tighter as if she didn’t want to let him go ever again

Dave eagerly returned the hug “Hey I can look after myself” he reminded her

“I know” Celestia unwillingly released Dave from her grasp “I should have a few hours free at the end of each day, if you would like me to come by”

Dave smiled and held the white alicorns hoof “I would like that” he said softly to her

Celestia stood up and gave Dave a farewell kiss “I will see you tonight,” she said wishing the day could go quicker

Dave smiled “It’s a date” he smiled as Celestia’s horn glowed and she disappeared in a flash of white light

Once he was alone Dave went to his bedroom and emptied his bag of items and replaced them with some gold

“Time for a normal day for once” he vowed to himself as he walked out of his house, locking it with his key before he began his walk to Ponyville “no problems hopefully”

After a few minutes of walking Dave came to the edge of Ponyville “alright Dave you can go solo, most of these ponies know you by now”

Dave took a deep breath before walking down the road and towards the market area

As Dave walked, a few ponies still gave him curious glances but they quickly resumed what they were doing as he passed by

Dave reached the market without much difficulty and began to look at some of the stalls and what they were selling some had soap, others had saddlebags and one was even selling various statues

Dave wondered for a bit before finding a stall he was interested in, a map stall

He walked over to the pale red earth pony, his mane was neat and of a darker shade of red, his cutie mark was of a small map with a quill

“Excuse me what kind of maps do you sell” Dave asked politely

The stallion looked nervously at him “well I umm sell maps of the local area, maps of famous locations and maps of Equestria”

Dave scratched his chin “Can I buy the largest map of Equestria you have and a few small ones of local areas please?”

“Why certainly” the red stallion paused “Can you pay?” he asked

Dave chuckled as he opened his bag and dropped a handful of gold coins onto the stall “Would this cover it?”

The stall keeper’s jaw dropped “that is more than enough kind creature”

Dave smiled “Well take what you need and I’ll put the rest away”

The earth pony took ten coins from the pile and handed the rest of the gold and a stack of maps over to Dave “thank you for your business” he bowed his head slightly in appreciation

Dave smiled and dropped an extra two coins onto the stall before walking away and stuffing the handful of coins into his pockets ‘right lets see if somepony here makes bags’ he thought to himself

As if by magic a small shop sat ahead of him, the sign above it had a picture of a variety of bags, Dave eagerly walked in and was greeted by a teal mare “how may I help youuuuu wow” she said as Dave smiled down at her, her cutie mark was the same as the sign outside so she must be the owner

“Can I buy the smallest bags you have please?”

“Why yes… how many?” her navy mane flowed in front of her eyes

Dave took all the gold from one of his pockets and placed it onto the counter “As many as I can get with these”

The mare looked at the gold happily “I’ll be right back” she dashed quickly into what appeared to be a storeroom out back

Dave still had another pocket full of gold and his bag was still stuffed with it “well I have definitely got to go on a shopping spree soon,” he muttered to himself as the mare returned with a box full of bags

“Thank you for shopping here umm…” she held a hoof out

“My name’s Dave” he said smiling as he gently shook her hoof “by the way do you know if where there is a jeweller in town?”

The mare smiled “why yes it’s just up the street from here”

“Thanks” Dave called as he picked up his box of bags and headed for the jewellers

Dave ran home quickly to drop of his bags and maps in his living room, collecting some more gold and running back to find the jewellers

“Hey Dave!” A familiar voice called out from above

Dave turned to see Rainbow Dash flying towards him “Oh hey Dash”

“Where are you going?” she asked as she landed and walked along side him

“Just of to the umm…” Dave decided to not say where he was going specifically but instead decided to keep it vague “Shops”

“Oh I was on my way to crash at your place but if you are heading into Ponyville we should go to sugarcube corner,” she suggested

Dave ran his hand through his hair “oh sure, if you go on ahead I’ll catch up”

Dash nodded and took flight into the air while Dave continued to run for the jewellers, he jogged in to the shop a few moments later and was greeted by a faint blue earth pony with a white mane that was reading a book

“Hi I need to buy something special,” Dave, panted

The stallion placed his book down and looked over at Dave “Of course what did you have in mind?”

“Well I was thinking…. Wait aren’t you freaked out by me?” Dave asked pointing at himself

“Business is business” the pony replied

“Fair enough” Dave shrugged “I was looking for something that a pony could wear casually, like a bracelet or something”

The jeweller hummed for a moment before picking a tray out from a shelf behind him “Do any of these grab your attention?”

Dave looked at the various bracelets and finally pointed at a wide silver bracelet with a large sapphire resting in the middle “That one please”

The jeweller nodded “ok that will be three hundred bits”

Dave scooped out some gold from his bag and the jeweller counted the money out into a bag that he then put in a safe behind him

Dave picked up the bracelet between his fingers “thank you very much”

“You’re welcome” the shopkeeper sighed as he returned to a book he was reading

Dave left the shop and placed the bracelet on his wrist, it was a little loose but he meant it for Celestia so obviously it would fit her better

‘Wow I just realised I am putting in a HUGE effort with her. Why Celestia?’

Dave pondered as he walked towards sugarcube corner and saw Rainbow Dash sitting outside with two chocolate milkshakes “Hey Dave take a seat”

Dave awkwardly sat down in the chair opposite Dash “how have you been?” Dave asked as he dropped his bag

Dash took a large sip from her milkshake “I’ve been good, last nights party was so cool”

“Yeah I know wild right?” Dave took a gulp of his drink and the cold drink could be felt running down his throat

Dash laughed “Oh yeah and you know that barrel of cider AJ gave you?” Dave nodded “She brought two to the party one normal and one strong, the normal one was meant for you but she got them mixed” Dash burst into laughter and Dave giggled as well

‘Good thing she did otherwise I might not have had the chance to talk with Celestia’

Dave drank some more of his chocolate milkshake “So what are you doing today?”

“I was going to practice a few tricks later but first I was going to meet Pinkie and play a few pranks on some unsuspecting ponies” A wicked grin spread across her face

Dave finished his drink and looked at her suspiciously “Wait if you wanted to go here and meet Pinkie for pranks that means…”

Dave was cut short by a loud bang going off behind his head, causing him to fall off his chair in fright, arms flailing to try to regain balance

Pinkie appeared and laughed along with Dash, Dave looked up and the ponies and began to giggle loudly as well, as he raised his arms to sit up he looked at his wrists one had his watch ‘oh that survived the dragon fire?’ he thought but his attention was quickly bought to his other wrist, which was blank

“The bracelet!” he said in disbelief, he looked around quickly and saw it rolling quickly down hill “you stupid ponies!” he yelled angrily at Dash and Pinkie as he charged after the bracelet

The bracelet rolled faster as Dave started to catch up, even with his new speed, it was hard to keep up with it

“I am not losing you! Not now!” he growled angrily at the bracelet

The bracelet bounced when it hit a small bump in the road and Dave attempted to dive and catch it, his arms stretched out but he fell an inch short of the bracelet and he watched as it rolled a few feet from him only for it to be stopped by a white hoof

“Oh thank you” Dave sighed heavily in relief as he rested his head on the ground

“Why are you thanking me darling?” Came a familiar female voice “I should be thanking you for this charming bracelet”

Dave raised his head slowly to see a beaming Rarity ‘uh oh’

“Why it even matches my cutie mark” she smiled happily as she held it next to her flank