I yawned as we waited at the train station. It was 6:30, Twilight, Spike, and I arrived and had our tickets since 6:00, and the train wasn’t here yet. It was dreadfully dull, but at least the sun was already warming things up. I liked the sun. No chance of being burned made it that much more enjoyable.

In the really early morning dullness, I found myself nodding off on the bench a bit. Twilight seemed like she was able to stay awake and alert though. She even hit me with magic bolts when I was beginning to fall asleep. It stung a bit, but otherwise didn’t really hurt.

There were other ponies up at this hour waiting for the train too, but they kept mostly to themselves. A couple of them looked like they were at the meeting that I took over last night. They certainly kept their distance from me.

Finally, at ten minutes before seven, the train pulled into the station. I stood up and stretched, getting a bit of energy back in my body. “So, how do we do this, Twilight? I don’t have much train experience.”

“Anyone onboard gets off towards the front of the car, and anyone getting on gets on towards the back” Twilight explained. “It’s a pretty efficient system. Certainly better than when the cars only had one door on each side. Everyone had to get their things and get off before the new passengers got on.”

“That does sound efficient.” Certainly better than the airports with their jetways.

“It is. In fact, it’s almost our turn to get on.” Twilight and Spike started going towards the last car of the train, and I followed along.

“What about our stuff?” My suitcase was indeed light to me, but it still took up space, and since things were generally a bit small here for me, leg space was a valuable thing.

“There’s storage over the seats. It’s a new thing that’s actually proving to be quite useful and popular. By giving ponies space to store their belongings in the car, it actually saves time with the luggage car not having to hold everything for everyone.”

“Cool.” I had to duck a little bit to get in the car, but the inside was spacious enough that I could fully stand up. The inside looked nice, and I was able to very easily access the overhead storage. I was expecting compartments like the kind on airplanes for some reason, but these were just simple sloped shelves with dividers. I put my suitcase in the one over where Twilight had chosen to sit at before joining her.

I’ve been on planes before, so I wasn’t unfamiliar with tight leg space. I actually had it a bit easier than most because I was so scrawny and thin. In fact, I was still thin overall. However, these pony train seats did not work well with my legs. They were set up like restaurant booths, including a table. I had to go to a modified cross-legged position to be able to sit down. It was an awkward position for me.

“Hey, Twilight, what are the rules for standing up and walking around?”

“You can move about the passenger cars freely after the conductor has checked your ticket. Before then, just stay in or near your seat. It’s one of those things that’s not really enforced, but is more just how it works” As Twilight gave her explanation, the train started moving.

I pulled out my ticket when Twilight and Spike got theirs out. I found it kind of odd that the tickets were checked after the train started moving, but didn’t say anything on that matter. Maybe I was too acclimated to planes and regulated airports.

After the tickets were checked, I noticed that the three of us were the only ones on this car. Everyone else was on other cars, apparently. I decided to stand after the tickets were checked. It wasn’t often back home that I could stand during the entirety of a ride. “So, what are we going to do for this two hour trip?” I asked.

“Well, I have a friend, her name is Sunset, and she has access to a ton of information on humans” Twilight began, then immediately continued. “Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve asked her for as much medical information on humans as possible, and two days ago, I got a book detailing human female anatomy and biology from her. It also includes general information on human anatomy and biology. I don’t know what the authors were thinking, publishing a male and female version of the same book, but it worked out for us this time.”

I did not like the potential implications. “Uh, are you sure this is the time or place to, uh, examine me?”

“Don’t worry Yang, I managed to talk her out of performing a full examination on you while we’re on the train” Spike said.

“That does not help me very much. Twilight, can you simply not examine me?”

“Yang, I need to know what your body is like in case there’s an emergency and you need medical attention. Here in this world, you are a mystery. A friendly, gentle, and powerful one, but still a mystery. We’ll just do the simple things first.”

“Like what?”

“Your heart rate.” Twilight pulled a book, scroll, quill, inkwell, and stethoscope out of her saddlebags. “I’ll check your pulse at your neck.” She cracked open the book and put the stethoscope on, then put the listening end on my neck. I was prepared for it to be cold, but it surprisingly wasn’t. For a whole minute, I didn’t move while Twilight did her thing. “And, according to the book, your relaxed heart rate is within a healthy range.”

Well, that was good to know. “What next?”

“I’d like to check your teeth.” Twilight flipped her book to a different section. With only a sigh, I opened my mouth to let her look around. She didn’t look around for long before allowing me to close my mouth. “Once again, all looks healthy, though I’d rather get a second opinion from Colgate. She knows more about the mouth than I do.” Colgate? A dentist pony? Wow. “I’d like to check your temperature next. I’m sure you know how to use a thermometer?” She pulled an old fashion glass thermometer out of a case in her saddlebag with her magic.

“The bulb part goes under the tongue, right?” I snagged the thermometer from Twilight’s telekinesis.

“Correct.”

I put the thermometer in my mouth and waited for it to do its thing. It actually didn’t take long at all for something to happen. After what was probably only ten or twenty seconds, the tip of the end sticking out of my mouth turned green, Twilight gently pulled it out, and recorded what she saw. “No, this can’t be right.”

Now she had my attention. “What’s going on?”

“According to the book, at your temperature, you should be experiencing a myriad of other outward symptoms, which you are not.”

“Give it to her straight, Twilight” Spike said.

“Alright. Yang, you’re running a temperature that even ponies, who are naturally warmer than humans, would call a fever.”

I thought it over. “So I’m hot blooded?”

“Check it and see.” Twilight floated the thermometer back to me.

“I’ve got a fever of 103?” That sounded bad, but I felt just fine. Strange.

“Come on baby, can you do more than dance?” Pinkie said as she popped out from the overhead storage.

“Whoa!” I fell backwards onto the floor from the surprise.

“Oh, too soon? Sorry!” Pinkie went back into the storage area, and when I looked in the shelf, she was already gone.

“How does she do that?”

“I don’t know, and I’m not sure I even want to know anymore” Twilight said. “I wound up in the hospital last time I tried to figure that out.” That sounded like a story. “Now then, on with the examination!”

Twilight had come prepared. She checked my body mass index (pretty low), my weight (just above the low end of the healthy range), my eyes and ears (both good), and checked my temperature again (still 103). Then she wanted to check my breasts. “No, Twilight.”

“But it’s important! Any problems there could spread or be indicative of other problems.”

“I will not deny that. However, I don’t want anyone poking and prodding them. They’re still a bit weird to me, and I’m not about to expose myself like that.”

“Alright then. Let’s move on down to your v-”

“No.”

“Yang, this is a very important part of your health. It has to be done.”

“Twilight, I’ve only had that opening for about a month. I’d rather ignore its existence as much as I can. I’m not denying its presence though.”

“But surely you’ve, ah, explored it?”

“No, I haven’t. And I don’t plan to either. Who would do that kind of thing? Besides, I thought you wouldn’t do a full examination of me. And how do you think Spike feels about this conversation?” When I mentioned the dragon’s name, the conversation stopped. We looked around, but didn’t see him in the car. “Where is he?”

“He’s probably in the dining car getting drinks for us. He does that when he senses girl talk and feminine matters on the train. The funny thing is that the drinks often pull us out of those discussions.”

“Clever dragon.” I decided it was time for some fresh air. I went to the rear of the car and went out onto the attached platform. It was railed in and secured, so at least there were safety measures in place.

I sat down on the platform to one side of the door and simply watched the rails retreating. I briefly looked back on the conversation with Twilight when she wanted to examine my more feminine parts. I think I handled it rather well. I told her not to do it, even if she did have some good points, and I didn’t even have to mention or demonstrate my strength.

My peace was interrupted by the door opening. I looked over and saw Spike coming out with a couple of drinks. “Twilight said you were here.”

“And she was right. What do you have there?”

“Lemonade. Want one?”

“Sure.” I accepted the offered glass and took a sip. “It’s good.”

“I think the train lemonade is better than other lemonades. I don’t know why.”

“Maybe it’s because you’re on a train that it tastes better? I know I’ve had that experience.”

“Really? You think it’s because you’re travelling that it might taste better?”

I took a sip before continuing. “Yeah. At least based on my previous experiences.

“Say, didn’t you tell me you talked Twilight out of doing a full examination? It certainly seemed like she was going to full examination mode on me.”

“I’ll talk to her. Hold my drink? Also, there’s a turn coming up.”

“Sure.” I took Spike’s drink and he went inside. A moment later, the train turned right. I held onto both drinks as the train continued on.

It didn’t take long for Spike to come back out. I gave him his drink as he explained what happened inside. “So apparently, she decided to not do anything that directly involved bodily fluids. Technically, she upheld her word, but she seemed to be getting at your more sensitive areas?”

“Yeah. I mean, she had good intention, what with my health and all, but I don’t feel comfortable allowing her to examine those areas.” I didn’t like the idea of examining them myself.

“I think you did the right thing. Besides, we don’t want you acting all weird because of an examination like that on the train.”

That was actually a good point. “So, how did Twilight feel?”

“She felt kind of bad once she realized that she was pushing your limit. She was happy with what she got though. It looks like your body temperature is way high though.”

“Apparently it is.”

“She thinks that your temperature, assuming that 103 is your normal temperature, may be the reason you haven’t gotten sick outside of that bad reaction you apparently had with the Chineighse food.”

“Huh?”

“Fevers are a reaction of the body to various diseases. They help kill off whatever’s making you sick. With your temperature being so high, you’re probably immune or at least highly resistant to a lot of diseases here.”

“Wow. Hey, I remember Apple Bloom saying I felt warm to her. That was probably why.”

“Well, nobody likes getting sick, so you’ll probably be fine. I mean, with your temperature likely keeping you from getting a lot of diseases, you’ll be able to easily build up your immune system here.”

“Yeah. Yeah, that’s pretty cool. I like not getting sick. Not being sick is good.”

“Yeah. Hey, want to come in for our real breakfast?”

“Now who could refuse that?” I got up and Spike and I went back inside. Twilight already had the leftovers out and warmed up, if the steam was anything to go by. And it looked like there were more leftovers than I thought because there was practically a whole meal’s worth of the pasta dish for each of us.

After breakfast and an apology from Twilight, I went back out to my spot on the platform. I liked it there. In fact, I’ve found myself outdoors quite a bit since I’ve been in Equestria, just to enjoy the weather and do stuff. Without the internet, there wasn’t much else to really do. That, and the seats in the car were uncomfortable.

I sat out there for most of the rest of the ride until I had to use the restroom at the front of the car. When I finished, we were close enough to Canterlot that I didn’t bother going back out. Instead, I just stood in the car with my suitcase as we pulled into the station.

I followed Twilight out of the car and took a moment to take in the Canterlot train station. It was bigger than the Ponyville one, but that was to be expected since Canterlot is apparently the capital of Equestria. I also saw a lot of ponies stopping to look at me. To them, I was this strange clothed creature following Princess Twilight Sparkle off the train.

“Sweet Celestia, it’s Yang Ziao Long!” a random pony called out. Seems my initial idea wasn’t true.

“No, it’s Yang Shou Long!” a different pony corrected.

“You’re both wrong!” a third pony called out. A shouting match soon erupted over the correct way to say that part of my name.

Meanwhile in Ponyville, Discord was chuckling. He saw how everypony froze when Yang stepped off the train. With only a little bit of his magic, he had prompted the first pony to call out Yang’s presence.

Discord had been hoping to see the ponies in the crowd rush up to her, then get knocked back and talked down to by Twilight, but the fight that was erupting over the simple pronunciation of one part of her name was so much more amusing.

“Well, that’s enough chaos for today.”

“Hey, Twilight, how about we just leave?” Spike suggested.

“That sounds good” Twilight agreed. “Yang, if you get separated from us for whatever reason, just stay out in the open. I’ll find you from the air. Spike and I know Canterlot, so we’ll be able to help you get to the castle.”

“Thanks” I said. “But now I’m a little concerned.”

“As long as we stick together, we should be fine.”

I hope Murphy didn’t hear what Twilight just said.

Murphy did hear what Twilight said. Somehow, I’d lost her and Spike, and now I was lost in Canterlot. At least I was staying out in the open, as she had suggested.

“Hey look! It’s Yang Xiao Long!” a stallion called out.

I sighed. “At least he got my name right.”

I was soon swarmed by a lot of ponies of all kinds of colors, each calling out for my attention. Almost all of them were unicorns, and many of them had scrolls with them.

Dear god, I had fans. Some of them even looked like they had colored and styled their manes and tails to look like my hair. I was honestly a little bit scared by that.

It didn’t take long for me to be surrounded from all sides by the swarm of ponies. Jumping out of the swarm wasn’t really an option either due to the pegasi in the air. “Help me, Twilight.”

Some of the unicorns might have gotten a little zealous to meet me because a few different colored layers of magic formed a cylinder around me. I put a hand on the inside and found it to be quite solid. It also muffled the bickering that was starting up, mostly among the unicorns with their horns alight.

While the crowd was occupied, I was able to test my confines a bit. I wasn’t quite able to stretch my arms fully out to my sides, and I had a couple feet of space above my head. As I stood in my cylindrical cell, I thought about what I could do.

I could try to punch the barriers down. I did have the pouch that would allow me to put some shells in if my fists couldn’t do it themselves. I also had no idea how the projectiles would act. They could get stuck, bounce around inside, or pass through into the crowd. Certainly, that would be my last resort.

I could try pushing on the barriers. If stressed, they’d probably break the concentration of the unicorns holding me here and give me a distraction to use so I could try to escape. At worst, it would do nothing, which was a safe choice.

I could also just wait for Twilight to save me. Celestia or Luna would also be good. The only problem I could see was that I might fall asleep and miss something that could get me out of here.

At least they let me keep my suitcase with me.

In Canterlot Castle, Twilight and Spike arrived at Celestia’s chamber door. Twilight knocked on it.

“Come in” Celestia said from the other side.

Twilight opened the door and walked inside. “Good morning, Celestia” she greeted. “How are you?”

Celestia’s eyes were closed as she enjoyed her tea. “Quite well, Twilight. How was your trip here?”

“It was. . . Alright. I forgot about how Yang is with her personal space while running some medical tests on her on the train, but we’re past that now. She’s quite healthy, but her base temperature is 103, which is odd.”

“That is indeed odd. So, Yang, what do you think of Canterlot?” Celestia’s question was met only with silence, prompting her to open her eyes. “Yang?”

Twilight, Spike, and Celestia looked around the room, none of them seeing the only human on their planet. “Maybe she’s just afraid to meet you right now?” Twilight suggested as Spike went back out of the room. “She was kind of rough with you after defeating Tirek.”

“Maybe. Spike, is she out there?”

“No, she isn’t” Spike reported. “And I know she wouldn’t just run off to explore the castle.”

“Oh no” Twilight said. “Where is she?”

“Calm down, Twilight” Celestia said as she stood up and started writing a note. “You and I will fly over the city to look for her. Spike, I need you to take this to the guard station down the hall. They will scour the castle for her. She is in Canterlot, right?”

“She got off the train and left the station with us, so yes.”

As soon as Celestia gave Spike the note, he ran off towards the guard station. “Let’s go, Twilight.”

“Yes, let’s go!” Twilight dashed out of the room and to the balcony, where she jumped off and began flying over Canterlot. Celestia followed at a more sedate pace before taking off as well.

Inside the castle, the guards were on full alert for Yang. Those not stationed anywhere began scouring the castle and asking around.

It’s been almost twenty minutes since I got captured. I had opted to do nothing for the time being. In the meantime, I’d found out that the suitcase I was borrowing was fairly strong in its construction. I was able to use it and the layered barriers around me as a chair of sorts.

I had also decided to try meditation to pass the time. I had some success with the breathing portion, I think. Maybe, if I did it right, I could meditate my way to THE TRANQUILITY. Of course, that would require the right environment and mental conditions. Probably a flat, sunny roof in a quiet area. Maybe the barn I helped build on Sweet Apple Acres? I seem to recall there being a flat section on the roof.

I was brought out of my musings when I heard something land on my bubble. I looked up and saw four large hoof shoe things and the underside of Princess Celestia. She was, somehow, sitting on the bubble, and my eyes began to wander down to her - okay, I’m just going to stand and disapprovingly look out at the crowd in the same direction Celestia is.

I was able to clearly hear her through my cell. “My little ponies, I ask of you all one little thing: please give Ms. Long some space. I can only imagine how scared she might be right now, trapped under all these barrier spells. I’m sure you would be scared too if you were trapped under nearly two dozen barriers and surrounded by overly eager ponies.

“I will be escorting Yang to the castle. Anyone who pulls us aside for something that isn’t important will be heavily fined. Now, step back, lower these barriers, and we can leave this behind us.” As Celestia made her orders, the crowd stepped back, allowing the alicorn to step down just as the barriers went down nearly simultaneously. “Thank you.

“Yang, would you mind stepping a few feet away from me?”

I complied with the odd request, giving her about ten feet of space between us. I was about to ask about it when the answer, covered in lavender fur and feathers, crashed right between us. “Princess Celestia, I just remembered something!”

“Not now, Twilight. Let’s walk and talk, yes?”

Twilight quickly took stock of the situation before she and Celestia walked off, the crowd parting for them. I followed them, eager to get to safety safely. I’ve had enough thrills in Canterlot for the trip already, and I was still carrying my suitcase.

“What was it that you remembered, Twilight?” Celestia asked.

“We were going to get something at Pony Joe’s for you and Luna, but we forgot to go there” Twilight said. “We can still go. My treat.”

“Get Spike and tell the guard that they no longer have to look for Yang. I will take her there myself.”

“Spike wouldn’t like it if we went there without him. Yang, I can take your suitcase to a room for you.”

“Really?” I said. “Thanks.” I let Twilight take the suitcase in her magic.

“Put her belongings in my room, Twilight” Celestia said. “We can go there once we’ve had our treats.”

“Sure thing, Celestia” Twilight said before she took off, leaving me with Celestia, who reached out with a wing and pulled me to her side as we walked.

“You really are warmer than a pony.”

“Yeah, I am” I said. “It doesn’t feel any different to me than the 98 degrees I used to have though.”

“Ponies tend to be at 100 degrees. But enough about biology. What do you think of our land?”

“Ponyville’s a very nice place. Everyone there has come to accept me as a fellow citizen. Heck, Rarity offered to house me herself when she met me for the first time.”

“She is quite generous.”

“No argument there. How much further?”

“It’s just up ahead. How about you tell me about your welcome party?”

With a bit of trepidation, I told Celestia about the attempted surprise party as we walked. That memory still scared me a bit. One does not simply forget a scare of that magnitude.

Twilight and Spike landed in front of us as I finished the story, feeling a bit better about it too, and Celestia and I arrived in front of a donut shop.

“It’s too bad my sister can’t join us” Celestia said. “We should get her something.”

We walked into the shop. Behind the counter was a yellow earth pony stallion who did not seem surprised at the Prnicesses’ entrance. “Hi, Celestia” he said in a very casual tone.

“Hi, Joe. Got room for four?”

The stallion looked around the empty shop like he was looking out towards the horizon. “I’m not sure. It’s really packed in here today, so you may have to wait a bit for enough spots.”

“Ah, but I am Princess Celestia. I can sit down anywhere I want. If I so order it, a spot will be made for me.”

I turned to Twilight and Spike. “Is this normal?”

“Yeah, it is” Spike said.

“The only spot you’ll be getting here is the single spot of chocolate icing on your donut” Joe retorted.

“A diet chocolate icing?” Celestia asked. “How could you do such a thing? And to your Princess, no less?”

“Like this!” Joe put a plain donut on a plate on the counter and put a tiny dot of chocolate icing on it.

Celestia walked up to the counter and scrutinized the pastry. “You make a very good point there. Fine then. I shall dine here this morning.”

During the whole exchange, it never felt like the tension was real at any point, mostly due to the grins that never quite left Celestia and Joe’s faces.

“So, what does everyone want?” Joe asked us. “The usuals for the three of you?”

“And Luna’s usual too” Twilight said. “Hot chocolates for everyone as well. We’ll also get some more to go before we leave. Yang, what do you want?”

“I’ll just go for a plain glazed donut” I said. “Nothing fancy.”

“Really?” Joe said. “You can have a whole order for free, my way of saying thanks for defeating Tirek. Anything, any amount.”

“Then I’ll stick with a plain glazed donut. You can add my hot chocolate to that if you want. That’s my whole order.”

“Yang did something similar when I told her right after she defeated him that she could have anything she wanted” Celestia said. “All she wanted was a small decorative fountain, a spa trip, and her clothes cleaned. She didn’t ask for any money, even though she was in a position to set herself for life.”

“I didn’t even consider doing that. Money wasn’t exactly at the top of my mind.”

“Sounds like you’re a modest one” Joe said before leaving us. It didn’t take him very long to get back to us. “I have your orders.” The first thing out was hot chocolates for all of us. The first plate out was Twilight’s, which was three eclairs and two donuts arranged in a cone that reminded me of a pod from the moon missions. The next one was Spike’s, a pile of six donuts with pink frosting and loads of sprinkles. Celestia’s was a variety box with a dozen donuts in it, no two being the same. Then came my single plain glazed donut.

I suddenly felt like I had ordered off a kid’s menu at a restaurant compared to what my companions got. Still, it was all I wanted, and that was enough. “So, why do you three have so many?”

Spike answered. “They need lots of energy for their magic, and I’m still really young in dragon terms. I will be for a while. Also, these donuts are really good.”

“Oh, right.” I took a bite and discovered that it was really good. It had a perfect consistency, wasn’t too sweet, and wasn’t very sticky. Most other donuts I had met only one or two, if any, of those descriptions.

As I took normal bites of my single donut, everyone else was eating theirs in three bites, at most. Their food was just vanishing at a pace that had me concerned in the back of my mind.

Celestia was actually the first of us to finish. “Are you going to finish that, Yang?”

“Yes” I said before popping the last bite in my mouth. “Why would you ask that?”

“Well, you were taking it so slowly, I was afraid you were just forcing it down.”

“Just because I’m not finishing a donut in two big bites before moving on to the next three does not mean I don’t like it. These donuts are actually bigger than the ones back home too.”

Celestia was quiet for a moment. “You’re just watching your figure, aren’t you?”

“What? No. But now that you mention it, my figure hasn’t really changed at all since I came here. At least my clothes are all fitting the same as they have been. I don’t really like looking in the mirror, to be honest.”

“Not even just to make sure you look good?”

“I’m not really worried about that.”

We talked about me for a while, much to my unexpressed annoyance. Eventually, Twilight ordered more of what we had, but to go, in addition to Luna’s usual, whatever it was. We got a large box with the pastries in them, all neatly divided and labelled, and Celestia teleported it to her room. Twilight paid and we left the donut shop.

I liked the place. My lone donut and hot chocolate inside had come to a collective four bits, and Joe gave the one to go for me for free as well since it was just one donut. I’m sure that, as willing as he may have been to allow me a huge amount of pastries, he may also be glad that I only had a small amount of them, since it didn’t cost him as much dough.

The second walk through Canterlot was much better. None of us got split up from each other this time, and we made it to the castle easily enough. Not even the sharper upward inclines along the way slowed me down. They probably would have worn me out before I got turned into Yang.

Celestia was able to get us into the castle with ease. Wherever we went in the castle, ponies cleared a path for us and bowed for her. It looked like Celestia, Twilight, and Spike were used to it. I don’t think I’d get used to it.

“So, what are we going to be doing?” I asked.

“I would like to talk with you, Yang” Celestia said. “I’m sure Luna would as well. Not as Princess and Heroine, but as friends.”

“And Twilight and Spike?”

“We’re going to visit my parents” Twilight said. “I’ve got some stories for them to hear.”

“And I’m sure she’s going to talk about you a lot” Spike said. “You are the most interesting thing to happen to Ponyville in a while.”

“And considering just how many strange things I hear about that come from Ponyville, that’s an achievement” Celestia said.

Our walk was soon interrupted by a white coated unicorn with a blonde mane and tail. I think he was at the meeting I was dropped in charge of. “Auntie Celestia, may I have a word with you?” he asked, stopping our walk. I’m not sure if he noticed me or not. Probably not.

“What is it, Blueblood?” Celestia asked.

“Last night’s finance meeting at the Ponyville castle was badly disrupted, and nothing got done. We need to hold another meeting, and as soon as possible.”

“And how was your meeting disrupted?”

“This strange creature I’ve never seen before was summoned in by Princess Twilight to take her place and made a mockery of our bills. We would like Princess Luna to lead the meeting here tonight.”

“A strange creature, you say?” Celestia looked like she was imagining something while she slowly reached her wing over my shoulders. “Would it happen to look like this one?” Celestia pulled me to her side and right into the stallion’s sight.

“Hi” I said.

“That’s her!” Blueblood exclaimed. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m just here on personal business with the Princesses.”

“And what kind of business would you have here with them that would take priority over the nobility?”

“Blueblood, today is my day off from my duties” Celestia said. “Please move aside and let us pass before you have to be moved.”

“Auntie, I demand action be taken to fix this problem!” Blueblood was certainly being a stubborn pain.

“Then action shall be planned. Are you satisfied?”

“I want to know what kind of action it is.”

“You will find out later, if it happens. But now, I must move you.” Celestia picked Blueblood up in her magic and made him vanish.

“Where did you send him this time, Celestia?” Twilight asked.

“Two floors down.”

“That doesn’t sound very far” I said as we resumed our walk.

“The stairs are a long way away. It will buy us enough time. Once we are in my chambers, he will not disturb us.” The rest of our walk was uneventful, thankfully.

Celestia’s room had two guards by the door, and they let us pass with no problems. The room inside was opulent. The floors and walls were made of marble, the furniture was made of white wood with heavy amounts of gold detailing, there was an expansive balcony outside, and there was even a kitchenette. I was able to see into the bathroom as well, and it looked just as elegant. It even had a giant tub in it that looked like it could hold all of us and Luna with no problem. It probably wouldn’t, since I’d rather not do that, but it could. There was also another door on the opposite end.

“So, where’s Luna?” I asked.

“She’s in her room” Celestia answered. “She often sleeps during the day since she holds her court at night. Her room is right through the other door in the bathroom. We visit each other regularly.”

“Wouldn’t that cut into the sleep time though?” I can’t imagine how much rest would be needed for running a country.

“Normal ponies work best with around eight hours of sleep” Twilight explained. “Alicorns can operate on four hours due to how much magic they have. More than that is just a bonus.”

“We can wake her up later for lunch with us” Celestia said. “Or at least the treats we got from Pony Joe’s.”

There was a sudden scrabbling of hooves and the sound of a door being slammed open, and in a few seconds, Luna had joined us. “You got us things from Pony Joe’s?”

“Yes, we did” Celestia said. “Twilight, Spike, and Yang are also here.”

“Hm?” Luna pulled her attention away from Celestia and looked at the rest of us. Twilight and Spike waved at her while I was finishing recovering from Luna’s sudden entrance. I really don’t like being startled like that, especially by something bigger than me.

“Hey, Luna?” Spike said. “I think you might have scared Yang a bit.”

“Did I? I’m sorry, Yang. I heard Celestia mention that she got goodies from Pony Joe’s and I just had to rush over. I honestly didn’t know you were here.”

“I understand” I said. If my lone glazed donut and the hot chocolate were anything to go by, Luna had every reason to bolt up and over here like she had.

“So, when will we begin with these treats?”

“We will have them together after lunch, just the five of us. After all, Pony Joe’s might be good, but it’s even better with company.”

“As is any meal.”

“Oh, Blueblood wants to hold a finance meeting tonight with you as the head.”

Luna groaned. “Isn’t it your turn, sister?”

Celestia got a sly look on her face. “Now who said that’s what he would get?”

Luna, Twilight, Spike, and I had to think for a moment. Twilight was the first to think of something. “Wait, Celestia, you don’t mean?”

“Yes, Twilight. We will hold a meeting tonight like what happened at the end of the meeting last night.”

“You’re going to make me the head of the meeting?” I asked. “Wait, how do you know about that?”

“Twilight sent me a letter last night. Fancy and Fleur even visited to tell us about it.”

“We found their story quite amusing” Luna said.

“We won’t force you to do it, Yang. You can refuse the offer if you’d like.”

I thought about it. I did kind of like seeing the reactions of the nobles that didn’t like me, which was most of them. Fancy and Fleur would probably be there too, and they were cool in my book. “You know, I think I’ll take them on again. How long do these meetings usually last?”

“The shortest one I can remember lasted three hours” Spike said.

“Then let’s see if we can do it in two.” It certainly felt like an easy enough challenge to me.

“I actually have an idea for how we can do it” Celestia said before gathering us all in an ultimately pointless huddle, though it did make the planning feel that much better.

After the huddle was done and the plan was made, I got down to my business with Celestia and Luna. A small ceremony, simply me swearing not to abuse the privileges I was about to receive, was done. Once it was done, I was hit with a small spell that would simply tell the guards that I was permitted anywhere in the castle and on its grounds.

Twilight was apparently the one to come up with that spell, and an enchantment to go with it in the guards’ helmets, about a year ago after one of her trips, which she still wouldn’t tell me the details of. Apparently, free access to Canterlot Castle did not include divulgence of Twilight’s secret trip information.

Now that my business here was done, and it wasn’t anywhere near lunchtime, I wasn’t really sure what to do for the rest of the day.

Author's Notes:

I refuse to apologize for the pace at which I am churning out chapters right now. Not that anyone would really complain, but it's there just in case. You never know who could be "offended" by such a thing these days.