Chapter 50

Odio sat quietly in Dave’s mind as the human walked through Ponyville. Dave avoided the busy streets as he walked back into the park to see Celestia talking to some of her subjects, there were three mares each bowing deeply as they neared their princess

“There she is Dave,” Odio said in a low tone as Dave watched from afar “The one you love and your undoing”

“She would never try to hurt me on purpose” Dave dropped his gaze to his feet “she has gone public with our relationship… doesn’t that show that she cares?”

Odio growled slightly “So she blurts out that she loves you and you think that is enough?”

“She doesn’t care what the public think” Dave returned his gaze “She cares about my feelings”

“You think you are special to her?” Odio growled, “She cares about nothing”

“Shut up” Dave refrained from punching the tree “She cares about me!”

“You and your powers” Odio sighed, “If you weren’t better than her then she wouldn’t give a shit”

“But…” Dave opened his mouth to respond but slowly closed it again

Odio chuckled “Now you see… now you understand why she must keep you safe from those that would use you”

Dave merely looked at his hand “I wouldn’t hurt her”

“Your resistance to this world’s magic means that Celestia’s immortality is pointless” Odio faded as Dave took a few deep breaths and began walking towards Celestia “If you weren’t different then you would be trash in her eyes”

“Hey Celestia!” Dave cheered in a happier tone as he got closer and the white alicorn turned from the small group with a smile

“Speaking of which here he is” Celestia smiled as she pulled Dave in for a powerful kiss, gaining a gasp from the three ponies near her

The mint coloured mare managed to shake her head back to normal “So he is your special somepony?”

Celestia broke the kiss with Dave to smile at the trio of gawping ponies “Why yes, for sometime now I had been making mistakes but…” She turned and smiled to Dave “I think we are going to be fine from now on”

“I hope so” Dave fake smiled as he decided to take a break from the harem and spend a few minutes with Celestia “I hope so…”

Meanwhile…

Strong Shield groaned as he readjusted his cream, scarf before he knocked on the front door of a small wooden house on the edge of the Manehatten slum district, he waited patiently until the door opened revealing a scruffy, navy Pegasus

“Are you Pickpocket?” The retired guard asked as he spotted the cloak and dagger cutie mark

The Pegasus looked up and down the unicorn “Yeah what do you want?”

“I am going to search your house” Strong Shield started to enter but was stopped by a navy hoof

The Pegasus chuckled “Heh no offence grandpa but you aren’t coming in”

Strong Shield nodded before head butting Pickpocket out of his way and entering the house. He closed the door before dragging the injured Pegasus into a small, poorly lit kitchen

“Now I am gonna look around, ask you some questions and if you answer correctly then I won’t have to get tired beating you to death” Strong Shield sat Pickpocket into a chair before tying him to it using his scarf

The pegasi struggled against his bonds as Strong Shield began searching the small house “Do you know who I am?”

“Pickpocket, Pegasus, thief, male, one sibling” Strong Shield began tapping the floors “You only steal when you need to or it is your little sister’s birthday”

“YOU LEAVE HER OUT OF THIS!” The Pegasus yelled, “What do you need and I’ll get it for you, just… don’t hurt her”

Strong Shield stopped tapping the floor and he walked back into the kitchen and placed a frying pan onto the rusting cooker “So what kind of things have you stolen for your sister?”

“Toys, books and once a gem” The thief glared as Strong Shield turned on the cooker and began heating the frying pan “Why are you here?”

“Have you done many ‘jobs’ in Canterlot?” Strong Shield watched as the frying pan began to glow a bright red

“Yeah I was in Canterlot for a year” Pickpocket dropped his head “I had to leave when I broke into the castle”

“a secret tunnel” Strong Shield nodded “That‘s how you got in”

Pickpocket looked at the unicorn “How do you know?”

“I allowed you to leave and I made sure that I kept a tab on you” Strong Shield turned off the cooker and levitated the searing hot frying pan into the air “Where is the entrance outside the castle?”

“Why do you want to know?” The Pegasus struggled harder as the frying pan neared his face

Strong Shield stopped and glared “I need to know where the only unknown entrance is to the castle is”

“What? If I help you in then I could go back to jail! It‘s treason!” The Pegasus began to sweat as Strong Shield stepped over and moved the glowing metal near his mouth

“Either tell me how you got in or I will shove this in your mouth and buck you in the jaw” Strong Shield frowned harder “Now tell me how I can break into the castle”

Meanwhile…

Dave and Celestia waved goodbye to the small crowed that gawped at their relationship and as they left Celestia placed her head on Dave’s shoulder

“So have you done with the harem?” She asked as she watched the birds play in the air

Dave wrapped an arm around the princess “Applejack and Rarity were both pissed, the others I still have to talk to”

“So who are you going to talk to next?” Celestia looked up at Dave’s vacant stare into the distance “Dave?”

“Huh? Oh I am gonna try and find Rainbow Dash then Fluttershy and then finally Twilight” Dave smiled at Celestia briefly before looking away again

Celestia noticed Dave’s odd behaviour “Is everything alright?” she asked with an obvious worried tone

“Yeah I was just thinking about something” Dave applied another fake smile “It’s nothing to worry about”

“Are you sure?” Celestia moved her head into Dave’s vision “it looks like it is really bothering you”

“I said I’m fine” Dave turned his gaze again as Celestia recoiled slightly

“Ok now I know it is serious” Celestia placed a hoof under Dave’s chin and gently turned his head to look at her “Now talk to me”

Dave sighed, “I was stabbed in the ass and was beaten up by three children and I…” Dave stopped when he noticed Celestia holding back a smile “Forget it”

“No, I’m sorry” Celestia to a breath to calm herself before sitting quietly again “Continue”

Dave looked at the serious face of the princess beside him “I was wondering how I managed to get you”

“How do you mean?” Celestia shuffled closer so her chest was pressed against Dave’s arm

“Why were you attracted to me?” Dave looked at her out of the corner of his eye

“I suppose it was the way you treated me” Celestia dropped her gaze “You looked at the mare rather than the princess”

“And it had nothing to do with my resistance or healing?” Dave stared into Celestia’s eyes as she looked back up

“No, your powers have nothing to do with it” Celestia placed a hoof on Dave’s hand “and don’t you dare think otherwise”

Dave looked at the white hoof “what if I lost my powers tomorrow?”

“It wouldn’t change how I feel” Celestia joined Dave in looking at her hoof on his hand “do you regret loving me?”

“No” Dave responded instantly “I love you”

Celestia looked at the side of Dave’s face, ready to look him in the eye “Do you want to keep the harem?”

“I’ll go and find the rest now” Dave looked at her “I want you to be happy”

Dave hugged the alicorn gently as she responded with one of her own. They both held each other for a few moments before they finally relaxed and stood up

“I’ll be waiting at your home for you to return” Celestia smiled at Dave as he nodded

“I’ll go and talk to the rest of the harem” Dave sighed as he walked past Celestia “I won’t be long”

Celestia watched Dave walk around the edge of town until he disappeared from view before she began walking to Dave’s home. Dave meanwhile kept looking at the floor until he reached Fluttershy’s cottage. Dave knocked on the door, tapping his foot as he heard various noises of animals inside

Fluttershy nervously opened the door until she spotted Dave “Oh hello Dave, d-do you want to come in?”

“Umm… yeah I think it would be best” Dave stepped into the cottage and made his way over to the sofa

Fluttershy came sat down next to Dave as he shuffled his feet nervously “Are you ok? You left for a while”

“Yeah I had some things that I needed to sort out” Dave snapped back to the task at hand “But the reason I’m here is because I need to talk about us”

Fluttershy began to blush heavily “Oh do you want to try again?”

“What? No not that” Dave couldn’t help but chuckle at Fluttershy’s sigh of relief

“So what is it? That is... if you want to tell me” Fluttershy looked up at Dave but he turned his head away

"I have to" Dave whispered to himself as he scratched the back of his neck “Well basically I’m breaking up with you and the rest of the harem”

“W-what?” Fluttershy’s bottom lip began to quiver “But I thought you loved us”

“Well I kinda did it so you and the others stayed friends” Dave sighed as he turned back to look at the yellow mare “Umm… are you ok?”

“Y-yeah I’m fine” Fluttershy could not hold back a large wail and a flood of tears “So you didn’t love me?”

“Well I um” Dave had planned on physical attack not a major guilt trip “I will always care for you like friend”

“So you don’t find me attractive?” Fluttershy continued to cry as she hid behind her mane, “I’m not pretty?”

“You’re pretty!” Dave held out his hands in an attempt to calm the mare “Any guy that loves you will be lucky”

“So why don’t you love me?” Fluttershy’s eyes were barely visible through her mane

Dave did not have to think, “Because I love Celestia and I want to make her happier than she has ever been”

“B-but what about making me happy?”

Dave sighed, “Well I’m sorry I have to say this but… you can’t make me as happy as Celestia does”

Fluttershy managed to calm herself down to repeated sniffs “So Celestia makes you happy”

“Yes she does” Dave nodded as he turned away “I’m sorry I messed you around like this”

“It’s ok” Fluttershy replied in her nervous tone “It’s nice that you are happy”

Dave opened his arms “Are we still friends?”

Fluttershy hurried into Dave’s hug “Of course”

Dave smiled in relief that he still had one friend “I still have to talk with Twilight and Rainbow Dash”

“Oh Rainbow was going to see Twilight today” Fluttershy wiped the tears from her face “At sugarcube corner I think”

Dave stood up “Thanks Fluttershy” he walked over to the door sending back a weak smile

“I hope it goes ok with you and Princess Celestia” Fluttershy smiled until Dave left her house before dropping her head into a cushion

As Dave started walking into Ponyville again to see the final two mares, Odio returned in a surprised tone, “Well I wasn’t expecting her to get that… whatever it is that creature does”

“She was upset and she isn’t the violent type” Dave looked back over his shoulder “But I felt really guilty doing that to her”

"What did you expect? Fluttershy was the only one to give you a chance" Odio shrugged off Dave’s sigh “Not to mention you know that being with Celestia is wrong but you can’t face it”

“You won’t drop that will you?” Dave rolled his eyes "And me being with Celestia is right... we love each other"

"Love again?" Odio growled slightly before responding, “Don’t think for one second that she is doing this for love”

“Just let me talk to Twilight and Rainbow” Dave shook his head “Then tonight you can show me whatever it is that you wanted to show me”

“If you aren’t sleeping with that vile creature” Odio spat

Dave frowned “Don’t talk about her like that! Besides I don’t feel like doing that right now”

“Fine… I’ll show you tonight” Odio’s tone became unnervingly darker “I hope you will see the truth behind it”