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Secret of Flying

by Hiver

Chapter 31

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Princess Celestia sipped at her cup of tea before she blinked and looked down at it. “What is this?”

“Tea,” I answered and relaxed on the couch opposite to her, stretching my wings as I sipped my own tea. “Like?”

She frowned and took another sip. “…Not sure. Saddle-arabian?”

I shook my head. “Not even close,” I said and smirked. “Are you losing your touch?”

Celestia stuck her tongue out at me and then smiled, tasting the tea again. “Hmm… Cinnamon… something else… clove?”

Nodding, I sipped my tea with milk and honey. “Amongst other things. It’s a blend a café down in the city is making for me. Good, yes?”

“It is,” she agreed as she looked at me from the other end of the couch, Luna’s normal place. “Think you could give their name to the kitchens? I would not mind being able to get some in the mornings.”

“Do you now?” I asked with a grin.

“Mhmm.”

I just smiled at her, refusing to allow her to turn this around on me. “Well, I’ll give them the contact details then. I would recommend their other teas too, best in the city in my opinion.”

“I can believe it,” the large alicorn answered and closed her eyes, taking a slow sip, her wings lazily folded on her back.

I watched her for a second and did the same before I spoke up. “Are you okay?”

Celestia blinked and looked at me. “How do you mean?”

“You are tense.”

Her ears flicked and she smiled, looking down at her tea. “…A bit, I suppose. Most ponies wouldn’t have noticed.”

“You don’t relax with most ponies.”

“True.”

I then smiled. “Besides, most ponies are too in awe of your glorious self to see anything other than their Princess.”

“And what do you see?” she asked as she regarded me.

I looked at her for a second in thought before I shrugged my wings and sipped my tea. “Celestia.”

We stayed silent for a moment as she nibbled at a cookie before I spoke up again. “So what has you tense?”

“No sign of Discord yet and… It’s making me nervous,” she admitted. “Then there is the minotaur envoy that’s arriving tomorrow. They are always so aggressive in their negotiations, they get exhausting.”

Minotaurs, huh?

“Never seen one of those.”

“They usually keep to themselves,” she answered with a nod. “Not like the griffons, forced mostly by distance and an ocean, but by choice. They are isolationists…mostly."

“Mostly?”

Celestia nodded. “We do plenty of trade, primarily iron for wheat and other goods. They just dislike anyone else entering their territory.”

“Ah,” I said and finished my cup before I sighed. “Want company? Can’t promise I’ll be of any help, but…”

“I was thinking of turning it into a teaching moment for Twilight, so far she hasn't interacted much with officials from other nations directly,” Celestia said and then nodded. “I think it would be good for you as well.”

I frowned at her so she continued. “Page, even if you never pick up a crown of your own, you are my sister's Herald and I suspect you will at some point be her official Consort,” Celestia said with a smile, stretching her wings before relaxing again. “The sooner you start to get used to diplomatic negotiations that don’t involve punching somepony, the better and easier things will get for you.”

Sighing to myself, I had to admit that she was most likely right about that. Finally, I nodded in agreement. “When?”

“Tomorrow evening. They like to start negotiations late so their opponents have time to tire themselves out during the day,” she explained and shifted a bit to lean her side against the backrest, looking mildly annoyed about it.

There was suddenly a knock on the door and I wrapped an illusion around my wings in seconds before I relaxed again. “Enter.”

The door opened to allow Twilight inside. “Princess Celestia! Page!” she said with a smile as she trotted inside.

“Twilight,” I said and lifted the teapot. “Tea?”

She paused and then nodded. “Yes please,” she said before she moved over to jump up and sit down in one of the armchairs. “I'm just coming from Starlight Glimmer's cell.”

Celestia lowered her cup of tea onto the table. “She talked to you?”

Twilight shook her head. “No. But when I got there she was curled up in bed. She was crying…”

Oops.

Villain or not, I just made a girl… mare… cry. That’s never a nice feeling.

“When I got close, she latched on and wouldn’t let go until she fell asleep again,” Twilight continued. “She didn’t say anything, she just cried.”

Celestia picked her cup up, sipping it and glancing at me before she lowered it again. “Do you think she was sincere, Twilight?”

Twilight hesitated and sighed. “I don’t know. Maybe? I think so. I have to actually get her to talk to me.”

“Perhaps asking Sunset to talk to her later might help,” I suggested. “From former villain to villain, I mean. Maybe it’ll help?”

Twilight looked thoughtful and then nodded. “I think so. But not yet? Sunset did capture her after all.”

Good point.

Next Chapter: Chapter 32 Estimated time remaining: 46 Minutes
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