It was late morning near the lively town of Canterlot. The proud sun was slowly approaching its zenith in the cerulean sky. It basked its golden rays along the kingdom. Princess Celestia felt the warm caress of its light fall against her, as she gazed out over the grassy field near the castle.

She expelled a sorrowful sigh. Sadly the princess was not her normal cheerful self. A harsh truth had been looming in the back of her mind. Most days she could easily dismiss this feeling, but after hearing the latest murmuring gossip among her guards and servants, she found it was impossible to ignore.

Ruling over a kingdom and taking charge of the raising and setting of two celestial bodies can take a toll on even the mightiest of ponies. Princess Celestia was no exception. That was why she was eternally grateful to have her sister, Princess Luna, back ruling the land with her. However the burdens of leadership and the obligations it brought forth were not what truly was bothering her. No, her sorrows were of a different nature. During the 1,000 years she was in charge of Equestria’s care, she was beloved and revered by all of her loyal and loving subjects, or at least that’s what she had come to believe. But as of late a harsh truth came to the princess’s attention.

At first it seemed like just another run of the mill rumor started by a bunch of gossiping castle maids. However, after looking into the matter and even inadvertently overhearing conversations amongst her guards and servants, Princess Celestia found out these were not just the subject of idle gossip. The harsh reality was that the alicorn wasn’t as sincerely loved and adored as she had once thought. In fact evidence suggested that this had been an ongoing development, taking place during the past several decades.

Princess Celestia couldn’t believe it was the truth. But the proof was overwhelming. The horrible things some had said about her left her greatly disturbed. The mantle of leadership brings with it serious obligations. Thus over time the princess was forced to adapt and even change her personality to match the needs of her subjects, in order to grow into a better leader. Sadly this ultimately altered the way she was perceived by many of the others. After once being revered as warm, joyful and loving, Celestia found out that many ponies now regarded her as rigid, uncaring, distant and overly strict, and thus no fun to be around. When in reality, this couldn’t be further from the truth. The princess still loved all of her subjects and cared deeply for the well being of each and every one of them. She only acted harsh and strict at times, because Celestia often needed to make the difficult decisions all leaders had to make at one point or another.

As the gossip spread, the truth about Celestia seemed to become obscured. Those harsh opinions were only perpetrated by the cold reality that many only pretended to love her. She learned that a large number of her subjects befriended and revered her only for the status claiming to know her would grant them in the eyes of others.

She didn’t want to believe any of this was true. After all there were still many of her friends and subjects who truly did love her…so then why did the fact that there were a large number of malcontents and phonies out there begin weighing so heavily on her mind? Perhaps it was due to the most harrowing truth of them all. Sadly Princess Celestia hadn’t known the support of a caring lover in quite some time. If she had a special somepony, she could have turned to them for comfort. The last one she had was a stout member of her royal guard. For a number of years he had been a good and faithful companion…or so she thought. When the truth came out, she discovered he had only been kind to her so he could brag to his friends that he was with the princess of Canterlot. To her dismay he wasn’t the only one like that. All too often did the princess’s relationships end when she learned that her suitors cared more about their status, than about her. In the many centuries she had been alive, only one stallion ever truly loved her the way she wanted. Tragically, he fell in battle saving her from a vicious demon. To this day part of Celestia never got over his death. It was a secret she never shared with anypony. Only her sister Princess Luna knew about it and she rarely brought the matter up, because she knew how it still saddened Celestia.

All these facts left her laying there on the soft grass with a heavy heart. A solitary tear rolled down her elegant white cheek. Celestia wasn’t feeling very much like a princess. She had removed her crown, necklace and her four elegant shoes, scattering them a few feet from where she lay. For a time she had no idea what to do. All she could ponder was how badly she wanted to get away from everything…if only for a little while. The loneliness she felt in her heart was almost palpable. It was never her wish to neglect her own well being, but despite her position of authority, Celestia seemed to naturally put the needs of others before her own. It was just part of who she was and went all the way back to how she had been raised by her parents.

Then an idea came to her just as the sound of flapping wings caught her attention. Craning her head up, she spied her sister, Princess Luna. Her sister gracefully landed and walked up to her.

“There you are,” called Luna. “I’ve been looking all over Canterlot for you.”

Celestia looked at Luna and feigned a smile. “Oh, hello Luna. Why have you been looking for me?” she asked.

Gauging the expression on her elder sister’s face, Luna thought the answer was pretty obvious. “I would think it obvious. There is something bothering you. Though usually you are better at hiding it in your eyes. And I’m not the only pony worried about you. Several of the guards and maids brought your well being to my attention,” replied Luna.

Celestia shook her head and let out a short sigh. “It’s sweet of you to be concerned dear sister, but I’m fine, really. Besides, I don’t want to trouble you with anything,” she explained.

“It’s no problem Celestia. Just know I am always here for you…just as you have been there for me,” said Luna giving her sister a warm smile.

Celestia walked over to Luna and patted her shoulder. “I know you are Luna. But I think, what I need is to get away for a while. It would seem the pressures of leadership are taking their toll on me. I’m a little embarrassed to admit it,” she noted.

Luna shook her head. “Nonsense. You haven’t had any true time off in months. And let’s not forget all those countless years you watched over things,” Luna remarked. She smiled again and looked at her elder sister. “I’ll tell you what. Take some time off. I’ll take care of the sun and moon and keep an eye on the kingdom while you’re away.”

A true smile formed on Celestia’s face. This was welcomed news. Perhaps some time off was all she needed. Then maybe she could make sense of things. “Thank you Luna. You don’t know how much I appreciate that. But are you sure you’ll be okay?” Celestia asked, continuing to voice her concern.

Luna placed a hoof across her chest and closed her eyes. “I shall be fine dear sister. Leave everything in my capable hooves. You need some time to rest.”

“Okay Luna. I trust you. Besides you’ve been doing a wonderful job safe guarding the night. I know you’ll do fine!” declared Celestia. The two sisters hugged and shared a short chuckle.

Celestia gathered her shoes and jewelry, and then placed them back on, before making her way back to the castle. Once she was alone in her room, she fetched a book from a nearby shelf. She flipped through searching for a specific passage. It was directly related to the idea she had just prior to Luna’s arrival. Now she was ready to indulge in a simple curiosity. She pointed her hoof at the desired passage of the book. Carefully she read the entry and confirmed her suspicions. A smile formed on her face, as she went to another shelf and removed a rolled up map of Equestria. She unfurled it across her desk. There she checked a region north of Canterlot. Her hoof slipped and creased the map along the area she had just checked. Thankfully the map hadn’t torn. Nodding her head, Celestia was ready to make the journey to this somewhat remote location.

She took her saddlebags and filled them with a few items and provisions. There was no need for her to take the map, now that she had reacquainted herself with the area in question. Besides Celestia was an excellent navigator, even if only a few ponies actually knew that.

After saying a brief farewell to Luna, Celestia left Canterlot, taking to the air. Spreading her elegant white wings, she rose into the cerulean skies of Equestria. The wind swept across her face as she sailed through the air, beating her wings majestically as she flew.

The vista was truly breath taking, but the scenery was of little interest to her. Celestia’s mind was focused on her destination. After flying for nearly half and hour, she spied a rocky outcropping along the side of a mountain. The princess landed along the flat portion of the cliff. There she stood overlooking the northern mountains. The sun’s rays shone across the valley and reflected along Celestia’s vibrant white coat. She gazed down at the forest along the valley’s center. There she would find the objective of her journey.

Following a short flight, Celestia landed just outside the forest, arriving at the ruins. It had been years since she had last visited this once sacred place. Nearly 2,000 years ago, the now derelict settlement had been home to a group of humans living in Equestria. For close to two decades their kind had dwelled in this majestic land.

The princess began walking through the remains of the once grand colony. A series of houses and various structures lay in ruins. Mostly it was due to the fallout of her father’s wrath. A calamity occurred long ago. The majority of the humans were kind and loving toward the ponies, but one fateful day a band of evil humans emerged from the colonists. They began rounding up the ponies with the intent of taking them through the enchanted gateway that linked Equestria to Earth. From there, they planned to take the ponies to their world and exploit their magic and various talents to fulfill their own plans.

When this news reached the king, Celestia and Luna’s father, he became enraged. He met with the leader of the human settlement – the elder assured the king that the humans in no way supported this splinter cell group of troublemakers. In fact the elder promised to help the king stop the perpetrators and free the captured ponies. In the end the sinister humans were stopped before any ponies could be seriously harmed or taken back to Earth. But the victory came with a terrible price. The king’s trust in the humans had been lost. He no longer felt he could risk the safety of his subjects by allowing the humans to remain in the pony world. Thus he issued an ultimatum – the humans were given a limited time to evacuate their colony, before he would use his alicorn powers to destroy it and any remaining humans.

The elder begged the king to reconsider, but he refused. Fear had taken hold and he would not accept any compromise that would allow the humans to remain. Reluctantly the humans withdrew from their settlement and returned through the gateway to Earth. Once the humans were gone, the mighty ruler went to the shrine housing the enchanted portal. Using his magic he cast a powerful seal upon it. The gateway would never be opened again, unless the magic of a member of the royal family was used to unlock it. With the door to Earth sealed, the king unleashed his might upon the settlement destroying most of the buildings. It was his hope to illustrate the point that none should ever threaten his kin, lest they bring down his wrath upon them.

It had been quite a while since the princess last recalled that tale. Back when it happened, she was only 18 and just learning the many hard lessons of life. As she stood there gazing into a charred house, she couldn’t help but feel saddened. A tattered plush doll that must have belonged to a child lay in the corner of the decimated home. Staring at the doll, Celestia couldn’t help but have the same feeling she had long ago following her father’s banishment of the humans. To this day she wondered if he was truly wise for having given into fear so easily. Was it right to deprive Equestria of humans just because of the actions of a few malcontents?

Walking away form the ruins, she was no closer to an answer then she was all those centuries ago. The princess sighed as she recalled some of her human friends from back then. Even Luna got along well with the humans. But that was so long ago, and unlike alicorns, a human’s life is snuffed out in the blink of an eye by comparison. Celestia was just grateful that her kind wasn’t immortal, unlike what many had come to believe. In truth, alicorns were just long lived, much like dragons. Though alicorn’s seldom lived to be 10,000 years old. Most lived for about 7,000 years, give or take a century or two.

The facts of her race and the history of this mostly forgotten settlement weren’t what had truly brought Celestia here. No she had another reason in mind. She made her way out of the fallen colony and into the adjacent forest. There she arrived at the shrine housing the sealed gateway to Earth. The princess entered the structure that had been constructed by Equestria architects centuries ago. The shrine had been built from quality materials that were in good shape considering the age of the building. Overall it was a simple structure consisting of a large rounded cathedral like chamber. At it’s center was a circle platform, which was raised a few inches off the ground. A small altar presided over the platform housing the enchanted doorway. The magic seal had condensed the portal into a small glowing dark blue sphere, which only gave off a small amount of light.

Celestia walked up to it and placed a hoof to her chin. All she could think about was how badly she wanted to get away from everything. There was no pony she felt she could turn to for true solace. Her faithful student, Twilight Sparkle, was living her own life, and the princess didn’t want to deprive her of any happiness, just to fulfill her own selfish needs. That’s why Celestia came to the ruins and this shrine. She figured if there was no means of comfort left in her world, she would simply seek it elsewhere. The princess quickly remembered the limitations of the seal. As a member of the royal family, she had the power to remove it and open the way to Earth. But naturally there was a part of her that felt reluctant. Was this the right thing to do, and could she find what she desired there?

Shaking her head she didn’t care. Her world seemed to have little left to offer her. After spending so much time caring for others, it was high time she put her own needs first for a chance. With her mind made up, Celestia focused magic into her horn. It began glowing a brilliant shade of orange. Aiming her horn at the small sphere, she unleashed her power upon it. After a few seconds, she cut-off her magic and stood there studying the magical orb. It began crackling with bolts of orange energy. The sphere lit up a bright blue and made a swishing noise. Then in moments a large circular blue portal formed. It rippled with mystical energy awaiting its traveler.

Celestia took a deep breath and stepped into the gateway. She entered completely and continued moving forward. Suddenly she felt a strong force grip her. In an instant she felt herself being pulled along by an invisible power. It moved her across a flashy void of blue and purple energy waves as she noticed an opening come into view just up ahead.

For a moment everything went dark. Then she opened her eyes and saw she had exited the portal. Turning her head back, she saw it was still there. The gateway continued to pulse with energy, as it remained open. Looking around, the princess wasn’t even sure if she had succeeded. The area surrounding the shrine on Earth looked very similar to the one in Equestria. But had she really made it?

She walked to the edge of the shrine and took a look at her surroundings. The forest around her looked completely different to her magenta eyes. The shear number of trees has been greatly reduced. Casting her vision skyward, she noticed an increase in cloud cover. Her home world’s skies had been mostly clear. She also glanced around the shrine and noticed it was in terrible shape, compared to its Equestria counterpart. A simple cursory check seemed to suggest she had made it to Earth. Celestia began feeling the pull of curiosity as it urged her to explore this new land, but she turned back and saw the portal still beaming with light. She walked up to it and cast her spell again. In order to safeguard her world, she sealed the portal. The princess figured if she wanted to return, she could simply recast her spell and open the way back at a later time.

Now that her homeland was safe, Celestia was ready to begin exploring Earth. But just where should she go, and what was she hoping to find here? It also dawned on her that humans haven’t seen a member of her kind in a very long time. It might be dangerous for her to simply go flying boldly into the sky.

After giving the matter some thought, she smiled. Celestia recalled a very useful protection spell she had learned long ago from Starswirl the Bearded. Channeling magic, her horn shone a vibrant shade of blue. In moments it rendered a protective barrier of invisibility around her. Now no one could see her while she ventured around her new setting.

The princess paused before she left the shrine. She wasn’t entirely sure where she should being her search. Realizing she wasn’t going to accomplish anything just standing there, she spread her wings and rose into the air. Her course took her high into the sky over the small forest. Celestia studied the area surrounding the shrine below. Since she had never been to Earth before, everything looked different. The one similarity she did noticed was that Earth’s shrine lay in a forest surrounded by tall mountains too. She flew onward and discovered Land spreading out as far as she could see. Off in the distance she noticed what looked like a town or perhaps a small city. Not far form her, she spied a series of sparsely placed houses. She marveled at how similar human architecture was to that of her own world.

There didn’t seem to be a clear path for her to take, so the alicorn decided she’d start flying and take in the sites. That was until she felt a strong tingle in her horn. Her eyes widened for a moment. She wasn’t sure what caused this strong reaction. For a second she thought she was imagining things. Then she felt the sensation again. For whatever reason she began feeling drawn somewhere west of her current position. She wasn’t sure why she felt this odd pull, but her heart told her to follow it. At this point she felt she had nothing to lose. Both her heart and her instinct had done all right by her during the many years she ruled Equestria. Smiling, she figured there was no reason to doubt them now. She learned a long time ago, that sometimes you just need to have faith and press on bravely into the unknown.

Keeping that in mind, she sailed majestically into the bright blue and cloudy skies of Earth. The princess certainly was heading to an unknown destination, but as long as she could keep that feeling in her soul, Celestia seemed confident she would find what her heart desired. She felt an abundance of excitement course about her as she took in the sights of this different world. From the air, it looked quite comparable to Equestria. There were large grassy fields, forests, farms, towns, cities, rivers, streams and as always in the distance, proud mountains.

She flew on for what felt like hours. Her course had taken her far from the shrine, but she could still sense its magical presence. It was then that Celestia felt her horn make her body twinge once more. The feeling was now its strongest. Glancing down below she saw a town, that almost reminded her of Ponyville, but it was far larger and the buildings had a much more complex design to them. The style reminded her more of structures commonly found in Canterlot or cities like Fillydelphia and Manehatten. Though it seemed her feeling was guiding her to a place outside the small metropolis. There she saw a series of clustered houses and then a large wooded area, with what looked like a small house isolated just along its edge. There were a few other houses nearby, but they were all a good distance apart. The lone house almost seemed to be calling to her, but she wasn’t sure why. Shaking her head, Celestia studied the area around the structure. There were several trees of varying size surrounding the building. They were accompanied by a series of bushes, shrubs, and what looked like flowerbeds. Along the one side of the house she saw a pretty flower and vegetable garden. Though she couldn’t be sure what was planted in there from her present altitude. Continuing to scope out the place, she noticed a series of gray and black roads connecting the structure to the rest of the immediate area. They resembled roads in Canterlot, but their color and composition seemed different.

As Celestia continued flapping her wings, she was suddenly hit with a wave of fatigue. Remaining aloft for so long was starting to take its toll on her. Thankfully she was still masked from prying eyes by her spell. She looked around and saw no signs of anyone. She figured it should be safe enough to land. Carefully she descended and touched down gracefully. For the time being she decided to leave her spell in place, just so she could explore freely.

The princess walked around the well-tended grassy yard of the house, which looked quite larger from the ground. It was a single level structure and had a simple covering of dark gray vinyl siding. The roof was covered with a black material that resembled brick. She noticed the house had a number of windows as well. Giving into curiosity, she peered into one and could just barely make out the inside. The bright light of the sun made the home’s interior appear dark and somewhat obscured. It was just as well, she couldn’t make much out and didn’t feel right peeping inside anyway.

Sadly it seemed as though no one was home. She saw what looked like a driveway and an adjacent connected structure that reminded her of a carriage house. Only there was no sign of the carriage. Celestia figured the owner of the home must be away, perhaps at work or running some sort of errand. Either way, she began to feel very tired. The surrounding air was very warm and the felt somewhat muggy. She let out a quiet yawn as she trotted over to the edge of the forest. There, Celestia found a number of big bushes and some tall trees. There was plenty of cool shade and the spot was nicely secluded. She deactivated her invisibility spell and allowed herself to become visible. The alicorn took a deep breath as she moved over to an inviting patch of grass. Using her magic, she undid the strap of her saddlebags and carefully set them down. Then she laid down and made herself comfortable, resting her head along soft blades of grass. Celestia closed her eyes and figured she’d just rest for a moment. She didn’t feel tired enough to sleep or so she thought.

Unbeknownst to her, a few hours had gone by. Celestia continued to rest peacefully along the grassy floor of the wooded area. She had never heard the rather silent engine of a human’s car pull up in the driveway as she napped. She did however notice a more distinct sound soon after. The princess heard what sounded like water flowing from a hose. She also heard some clanking and clattering of something metal digging into the earth. Her eyes opened and she cautiously stood on her hooves. She looked around the secluded area and saw she was still alone. Focusing her ears, she noticed the sound was coming from a short distance nearby.

She checked around being mindful of her surrounds as she left the woods and followed the sounds. Moving closer, she discovered the noise was coming from the garden. Celestia remained close to the side of the house facing the woods, doing her best to remain hidden. She peeked her head around the corner, there she saw a somewhat youthful man tending to his plants. There were a couple garden tools carefully placed on the ground, while the human watered the plants with a large green watering can. She studied him curiously. The human was nearly six feet tall, had a fairly toned physique, and possessed a head of short brown hair. She stood there waiting to see if he would turn around so she could get a better look at him. While she waited, Celestia noticed how different his clothing was from that of the humans she once knew. From what she could tell, he was wearing some kind of pants, but the blue material didn’t look familiar to her. The man was also sporting a short sleeve dark tan T-shirt. Celestia’s mouth partly opened in shock when she noticed how odd his footwear was. If those were shoes, they certainly had changed over the centuries, from what she once knew.

Shaking her head she figured she’d better stop staring and remain focused, just in case he did turn around. The princess wasn’t sure if she should reveal herself just yet. Though judging from the way this human was tending to his garden, he seemed to possess as strong nurturing quality. She found she rather liked that about him. Though her reluctance stemmed from the fact that not all humans are kind, plus how could she know what to expect if she did show herself to him? Celestia began to wonder if his kind even remembered her race. Just what happened after the humans had been banished from her world?

Celestia caught herself mentally trailing off again. She pulled back slightly, when she noticed the human start to turn around. Remaining cautious, she very mindfully looked around the side of the house at him. He had turned around and now she could see his face. Her eyes focused on him for a moment and she felt her mouth hang open softly in awe. The man had a very gently look to his face, it had some five-o’clock shadow, but that didn’t subtract from his friendly appearance. There was a pair of glasses partly concealing his eyes, preventing her form determining their true color.

The human took his garden hose and placed it back into the watering can. Celestia watched as he promptly filled it and then took it over to the flowers in his garden. She wanted to move closer so she could get a better look at him. While she remembered regarding some human males as oddly attractive back in the day, she had no idea they could be this handsome. Spying a nearby bush, Celestia deftly made her way over to it. There she remained concealed as she enjoyed a better view of the human. Though as she monitored him, she noticed him abruptly come to a halt. He set down the watering can and let out a rather bewildered sigh. The pony continued watching him intently. She had no idea what suddenly prompted his sigh. Then it hit her, could a human be suffering in a manner much like herself?

The man began walking along the edge of his garden. There was a noticeable glumness in his gait. Then Celestia heard him speak. “Well I guess that about does it for you guys. You’re all looking quite beautiful, but how I wish…” The human paused for a moment before continuing, “How I wish, I had someone special to share your beauty with.” He sighed again before finishing his thought aloud, “Get a hold of yourself man. You’re talking to the flowers again. Thank goodness no one’s around. It would be quite embarrassing if anyone saw me talking to my garden.” With his piece said, he picked up the watering can and gradually emptied the rest of its contents onto a group of rose bushes.

After hearing him speak, Celestia began to realize why she was drawn to this place. It would seem this man may be suffering form the burden of a heavy heart as well, but what could she do? Part of her felt resistant to the idea of getting too close to a human - still she always enjoyed making new friends. Perhaps simply introducing herself to him and offering to listen might help make a difference. She took a deep breath and slowly emerged from behind the bush. The human’s back was to her as he stood there staring at his garden.

“Your garden is really lovely,” she said politely.

His eyes widened in surprise for a moment. He heard a girl’s voice compliment his garden. Closing his eyes, he turned in the direction the voice had come from. “Why thank you, I…” he trailed off as he opened his eyes and caught sight of the alicorn. The human gazed at her in total awe. Her vibrant white coat almost seemed to be glowing. Immediately he knew he wasn’t looking at just any mere horse or pony. But had she really spoken to him, and was she really there? Maybe he had nodded off in his recliner and this was just a dream.

The human slowly and very cautiously stepped toward her. His eyes studied her enchanting features carefully. There was her flowing mane and tail containing: a light cerulean blue, a light turquoise, a dark lavender, and a dark pink. They perfectly accented her white fur that almost seemed to have a slight tinge of pink to it. She had an unmistakable horn protruded from her forehead, but how could she? After all unicorns are strictly make-believe or at least that’s what he thought. He also couldn’t help but notice the elaborate jewelry she was wearing. It made her look like something out of a fantasy or perhaps something from a wondrous dream.

“Did you just speak to me?” he asked incredulously.

She nodded and smiled at him. “Why yes I did,” she replied politely.

The human placed a hand on his chin. He was trying to make sense of her. “You haven’t come to take me to the afterlife have you?” he asked, a slight uncertainty in his voice.

She shook her head. “Of course not.”

“Then…who are you, and why are you here? Are you really here?” he said asking a series of completely reasonable questions.

The tone in his voice and quality of his demeanor left her to know she had little to dread. It seemed the human could hardly fathom her existence. Celestia smiled as she stepped closer to him. “Where are my manners?” she asked rhetorically. “My name is Celestia. As for why I am here, that’s rather complicated, but I would be happy to explain, if you’ll let me.”

He nodded slowly and smiled at her. “Celestia,” he said repeating her name. “That’s a very lovely name.” The human caught himself staring at her for a moment. He averted his eyes and hoped he wasn’t blushing. Then he cleared his throat. “It’s very nice to meet you. I am Daniel.”

Celestia continued smiling at him as she walked right up to him. The two stood almost the same height. The princess was just a little over an inch taller than he was, but their eyes met at pretty much the same height. Up close, she could see that Daniel had a pair of simple yet welcoming brown eyes, residing behind his rather stylish glasses. As he glanced back, he could see her vibrant magenta eyes, looking back at him.

“It’s very nice to meet you Daniel,” Celestia spoke, noticing a look of awe continuing to encompass his face. She giggled softly at him. “I gather you are still trying to determine if I am really here?” Celestia inquired.

“Well yes actually,” he replied with a nod. “Part of me wants to believe you are standing here, but I’ve never seen anything quite like you before.”

Celestia smiled as she turned to the side. “Here Daniel, go ahead and place your hand on my back. Perhaps feeling that I am real will convince you that I am not an illusion,” she suggested.

Daniel felt awestruck as he timidly reached at hand toward her back. His fingers came within inches of her and he halted his progress. He looked at her and asked, “You’re sure it’s okay?”

She softly snickered at him. “Here,” she uttered. Celestia moved bridging the gap between her back and his hand.

Daniel’s hand came to rest on her back. He immediately felt the velvety softness of her fur against his hand. Slowly he ran his fingers along her back taking in the startling yet welcoming sensation of petting her. “Oh my gosh! You aren’t just a figment or my…” he stopped in mid sentence. His hand inadvertently bumped into something soft and feathery. Glancing down by his hand, he noticed what looked like a folded wing. “Y…you have…wings?!” he asked in amazement.

Celestia giggled again at his enthusiasm. “Why yes, yes I do,” she replied. “Would you like to see them?”

He nodded his head several times. “I’d love to…uh please,” Daniel answered thoughtfully.

She continued smiling at him. Celestia stepped back and carefully unfolded her wings and took a deep breath in through her nose, and then she slowly exhaled out her mouth. “What do you think?” she asked.

Daniel gazed intently at her wings, following their contours. “They’re beautiful,” he said lightly gasping. He reached out a hand and then looked at her. “May I?”

She smiled at him. “Go ahead.”

Daniel reached out and gently ran his fingers along the underside of her wing. The feathers had an amazing softness to them, almost as soft as her fur. “Wow,” he said in awe. Celestia felt herself gasp quietly. She forgot that her wings were somewhat sensitive to touch. He heard her reaction and at first thought he might be bothering her. “Oh sorry, I hope I didn’t get carried away,” he uttered quickly retracting his arm.

“It’s all right. No harm done,” she replied folding back her wings. Celestia looked up and noticed that even as Earth’s sun was slowly beginning to set, it was still very warm. She wiped a hoof along her forehead, removing a beat of mounting sweat. “Whew, I just noticed how incredibly warm it still is today.”

“Yeah, it’s a bit of a scorcher. If you’d like Celestia, we could go inside to talk. It’ll be a lot cooler in the air conditioning,” he suggested.

She looked at him funny. “Air conditioning?” Celestia questioned.

“You’re new to my world aren’t you?” he asked.

She glanced at him sheepishly. “Is it that obvious?”

Daniel smiled at her. “Well we don’t get many reports of being visited by beautiful unicorns like you,” he said. For a moment he caught himself staring at her again. Shaking his head, he turned away, hoping to hide the rosy color of his cheeks. Little did her realize it, but Celestia was doing the same thing. His kind words made her blush. “I’d better put my garden tools away quick. Just hang loose for a moment,” he spoke.

“May I help you?” she asked.

He smiled at her. “Sure, I’d appreciate the help,” he remarked. Daniel picked up a rake and shovel and waited for her to walk over. Celestia picked up the watering can in her mouth. She could have used her magic, but for right now she didn’t want to startle him. If Earth doesn’t see many unicorns, or in this case alicorns, it was a good bet that they haven’t seen many use magic either. She walked over with the can in tow. “Now all we need to do is put these in my tool shed.” The two walked over to his shed. It was roughly twenty feet from the backside of the house. He stepped inside and mindfully place the tools in their designated spots. Turning back he saw her enter. “You can set the watering can right there,” he directed giving her a smile.

Celestia set the object down in its proper place. Lifting her head back up, she looked at Daniel and returned his smile. “Is there anything else?” she asked.

As the two stepped out of the shed, he said, “No, I just need to wind up the hose. Then we can go inside and cool off.”

“That sounds great,” she replied.

He promptly rolled up the hose in its little cart and turned off the faucet. Then he walked over to her. It was still a little hard to fathom her being there, but he was enjoying Celestia’s company. Daniel directed her over to the back sliding door of his patio. She came to a stop and said, “Oh wait, my saddlebags. I left them over in the bushes.”

He smiled and responded, “Then let’s go get them.”

She led him into the outskirts of the woods, where she had been napping. There by a pair of thick bushes, were her bags. He walked over to them and carefully picked them up. “Are these what you were talking about?” he asked.

Celestia nodded. “Yes. Uh, would you mind helping me put them on?”

“Not at all,” he replied. Daniel gently set them on her back and then knelt down and redid the strap. Once it was secured he rose to his feet. “There you go.”

“Thank you.”

As the two made there way back to the house, Daniel asked, “Are you thirsty Celestia?”

She smacked her lips and then licked them with her tongue. Her mouth was a bit parched. “Yes actually,” she answered.

“Well don’t worry, I have a good variety of cold drinks inside,” he said with delight as they arrived at the back patio. There, Daniel slid open the door, a wave of cool refreshing air poured out from the house.

Celestia pulled back a hoof in response to the wave of cool air. Then she stood firmly and left the air flow across her. “Wow, how are you doing that?” she asked looking at him with intrigue. Then she smiled slyly and asked, “Are you a wizard?”

Daniel found her words very amusing and broke out into a hearty chuckle. “Ha, ha, ha! Oh my…no, I am not a wizard Celestia. I just have this little gizmo,” he remarked pointing to his central air unit.

Celestia looked at the large cube-like metal box filled with strange slots. “What is this thing?” she asked placing an inquisitive hoof to her chin. The pony studied the device very intently and noticed the somewhat loud sound it was making.

He chuckled again. “It’s a machine that generates cold air and removes the mugginess from it as well,” Daniel explained.

Celestia looked at him again and smiled. “Wow, that’s an incredible invention. We don’t have anything like that where I come from,” she noted sounding quite impressed.

“And just where do you come from?” he asked.

Celestia giggled at him. “That’s a somewhat long story. One that would be best discussed…uh inside?” she replied dropping a strong hint.

Daniel tried not to grin, but she was right of course. “Good point. And I shouldn’t keep the door opened. So come on, let’s go inside,” he said.

He gestured for her to enter first. She smiled and slowly trotted inside. He followed behind her and then slid the door shut, latching it. He could only wonder what all they were going to discuss now that they were inside his nicely cooled home.