The night we got back to Ponyville Pinkie set up an awesome party for the whole town in the town hall for all the qualifying teams. And because it was Pinkie’s party, it was a big hit and went on practically all night long. There was strong drink there, but I didn’t have much of that. Matter of fact, between all of us that drank, excluding Fluttershy because she doesn’t drink at all, I only had one glass. The rest of the girls got drunk, including Twilight. Philomena was interesting. She drank as much as the girls and didn’t even have a buzz. You could say she burned it off.

Anyway, bad jokes aside, the next morning was fun. I got up with the sun as per usual and went in to take a shower. And because I only had one drink, I didn’t have a hangover. But Twilight did.

I was in the shower, with the shower running, and the curtain drawn when I heard the bathroom door opening. Curious as to who it was, I pulled back the shower curtain to peek out. Twilight walked in while hanging her head and groaning because of the hangover. She winced at the bright light. “Too bright,” she groaned as the light exacerbated her headache and flipped the light off. Now the only light was the morning rays that were filtering in through the bathroom window.

I had a feeling that this morning was going to be fun.

She was wearing a simple light blue nightgown, which she lowered the straps from her shoulders to let it drop to the floor. Directly over my shorts, I might add. Then she reached back and unhooked her bra and it too dropped to the floor. Her panties were next and I let my eyes roam across her figure as she stepped out of them.

“At least it’s already warm,” she moaned, walking over with her eyes almost fully shut. She definitely had the sexy librarian look down pat with the perfect body figure for it. At her height, her head came up to my chest, her horn to my nose. During my time here I noticed the large rubber-like pads on the tile floor of the bathroom and in the shower to prevent slipping. Hooves and wet tiles don’t mix well you know. I quietly closed my end of the curtain and watched her slip into the shower from the other end.

The shower was large enough for two, so I was standing against the far wall away from the showerhead end. She had stepped in at the front by the showerhead and shut the curtain. She took a deep breath to take in the thick steam before letting it out a long sigh as she dunked her head into the hot water. Her hands reached up to brace herself against the wall as the water flowed over her. Her bedhead flattened out as the water flowed over it. Instinctively her wings fluttered a little to get them wet. Her tail swished back and forth lethargically as it too started getting wet.

My body responded to the glorious sight before me as my member gave her a proud salute while I leaned back against the wall to watch. I had an itch to massage those wing joints, back and shoulders of hers to try and ease her pain. But I highly doubted that she would be receptive though. Especially after not voicing my presence.

With much regret, I decided to do just that. Regret because it would stop a wonderful show that I was enjoying. “Good morning, Twilight,” I kept my voice soft and quiet, keeping in mind her hangover.

She was still startled though and straightened up so fast that she started falling backward with a yelp of surprise.

I caught her in my arms with her back hitting my chest, “Careful, Twilight. Showers are slippery when wet.”

“Oh no,” she groaned in annoyance as she stabilized herself, putting her hands on her face.

Changing tactic, I leaned my head down and gently kissed her cheek then her neck. My voice was still soft and gentle as I shushed her, “It’s alright, Twilight. No joking or anything embarrassing this morning. So, why don’t I help you with your headache? Let me massage your neck, shoulders, back, and wing joints. Hmm?”

She let out a long tired sigh as her body seemed to relax. “Sure, why not? At this point, I shouldn’t be surprised and just accept it.”

“Step into the hot water and breath in the steam,” my voice was quiet and gentle. My hands reached up, wrapped around her soft neck, and started to massage her. Gently at first as she stepped back into the water. Slowly the palms of my hands and fingers dug into her neck working around it gently. Feeling the warm water wash over her again and my hands.

“I really shouldn’t have drunk that much last night,” she said with deep embarrassment and pain.

“Live and learn, Twilight,” I whispered before giving her another kiss on her cheek. “Live and learn.” I spent a good few minutes on her neck before going down to her shoulders. Twilight gave me a soft groan in quiet response. Slowly the palms of my hands and fingers kneaded into her shoulders. “My human Aunt Luna is quite a party animal. So, every now and then she’d get a hangover and I’d sit there with her the next morning to help her through it.” Honestly, I loved the feel of her wet coat against my skin. My fingers were able to glide smoothly as I worked out her morning hangover.

After a silent few minutes, her back and wing joints were next. And just looking at her backside reminded me of where the erogenous zones are on a pegasus. I first started with long slow firm strokes down her back through the valley between her wings and back up again. She hummed softly in response. My eyes spotted her head tilted forward and her eyes closed.

“Is it helping?” I whispered, now shifting to slow firm circles up and down her back.

“Yes, actually,” her voice was slurred slightly as her wings started rising. “It feels really good.”

“I’m glad you enjoy it, Twilight.” On one way down her back, my hands stopped at her wing joints and focused on the right one first. Using both hands, my fingers dug and kneaded the muscles around the joints. Teasingly, my fingers massaged around the joint without touching it. “Let it go, Twilight. Picture the pain draining down from your head and leaving your body through your feet. With each touch and stroke of my hands and fingers, picture the pain going away.”

Twilight let out a slow moaning sigh, as if in relief.

I hadn’t touched the actual wing joint yet before switching over to the other side to work around the other wing joint. And doing the same. My fingers kneading and teasing around the joint. And yet with all my ministrations, her wings were spread wide and her wing muscles stiff with arousal.

“All the pain is leaving to be replaced by bright warm comforting white light,” I whispered to her, leaning forward for a light kiss against her neck. Her tail had become more active as it swished more quickly from side to side. And her deepening breathing told me that she not only was relaxed but aroused as well.

It was a few minutes later that I started to focus on the joints directly. “You’re good, Fred,” her voice still slurred a little when she let out a long sigh. Using both hands I focused on the left joint. Working my fingers into the skin and stiff muscles underneath.

“I can stop anytime, if you wish,” I tried adding a bit of lust to my voice when my lips were near her ear.

“No,” her head shook slow and lazily, “don’t stop.”

“As you wish.” When she said not to stop, I decided to go all out. With firmer pressure and a little bit faster speed I worked my hands and fingers against both joints simultaneously. “The pain is leaving and only pure white-hot light remains.”

When she hummed in acknowledgment it was one of those aroused hot and bothered hums. The kind of hum that told me her headache was almost all forgotten and was focused on something more pleasurable. Now that she was hot and bothered it was time to preen her wings, something that I was oddly looking forward to. As it was, the shower was large enough to accompany her wingspan. So, my focus was on one of them as I plucked and straightened her feathers while massaging the main bone.

“Thank you,” her voice was whisper quiet as I worked on her wing.

“You’re welcome,” leaning forward I planted another soft gentle kiss on her neck.

“I also realized that you’re an ass hole.” And she said it with such conviction and pleasure at the same time.

A chuckle escaped me in spite of trying to hold it in, “You’re just now figuring that out?”

She continued where she left off as if I hadn’t said anything. “Making me forget about my headache by getting my body aroused is, while clever, also torture because you’re not going to finish what you started.”

That last part got me to stop everything for a couple of seconds while my mind processed what she just said. Is she serious? Moving my hands from her wing, I slipped them under them to the side of her chest, almost touching the sides of her breasts. Fingers rubbing firm circles just behind them. “I can, but you’ll have to get Philomena’s permission first.”

Twilight grabbed my hands to bring them forward just under her breasts with her fingers intertwined with mine. Her fingers gripped mine as she relaxed against me with a long moan, resting her head against my chest with her eyes closed. “Remember when you placed me into your bed?”

“Yes?” I was wondering why the sudden change of subjects and where she was going with this.

“It was true that I was mad at you, but I also realized something else.” Her voice was soft and now taking on a bedroom quality to it.

“What’s that?”

“That I didn’t mind being in bed with you,” she finally said after taking a deep breath. “The main reason I was mad, wasn’t because of what you did, but how I felt about you. I used that anger to hide from that.” Then she opened her eyes, turned her head, and looked directly up at me, “I don’t know why, but…I’m…drawn to you, Fred Justice. I’ve just been denying it out of insecurity and fear. But I like this, I want this, and I guess I was doing this subconsciously all along.” Her hands shook, just barely, as they moved my hands up to caress her breasts. “I’ll talk to her, woman to woman. One stallion having multiple mares isn’t unheard of because of the male to female ratio. And if she agrees then, she’ll be head mare.”

My hands gently squeezed her breasts as she leaned up giving me a gentle kiss that quickly turned passionate. Fortunately, or unfortunately, it didn’t go any further as she wanted to stop and talk to Philomena before doing anything else. Which I wholeheartedly agreed to. One thing I didn’t want was to be on the receiving end of one of her talons.

^_^

That was three days ago. Twilight got a letter this morning saying that Cadence was coming to visit her. She wanted to talk with her former foalsitter about a relationship with me. She, Philomena, and I have also been talking about Twilight having a relationship with me. And from the impression that I got is that Philomena is open to the idea because as Twilight pointed out, polygamy among ponies is pretty common. More than one mare per single stallion is pretty common in Equestria because of the ratio of mares to stallions.

“CANTERLOT!” Yeah, so right now Philomena and I were on the train and pulling into Canterlot station. While Twilight was talking with Cadence, Mother wanted me to visit her to talk about my father. Which was fine with me, I wanted to hear about him.

I fully expected to see mother flying across the station platform like she always does. But she surprised me this morning when she walked up to me and hugged me when Philomena and I got off the train. Mother hummed happily as her arms and wings wrapped around me in a tight hug. “Welcome home, my sunshine boy.”

“Thanks, mother,” I replied hugging her back.

“Welcome, Nephew,” Aunt Luna came up, hugging me as well when Mother finally let go.

“Thanks, Aunt Luna.” After our greeting, we made our way through the morning crowd from the train station. Philomena hanging on my arm as we walked.

“So,” Mother started slowly with a knowing expression on her face, “Twilight wants to enter into a relationship with you.”

“Yes, and we’ve been talking about it since she told me three days ago,” I told her. “Today she wanted to talk to Cadence about it before coming to a decision. After she made a decision then she’ll talk with Philomena to get her final approval.”

“What do you think Philomena?” Mother asked her as we left the station, toward the waiting chariot. “Multiple mares to one stallion is still common in today’s world.”

“True,” Philomena agreed with a nod as we got into the chariot. “I am open to idea. Still need to think on it.”

“That’s quite understandable,” Luna looked over at her. Luna, and Mother, sat across from us as the chariot lurched forward, heading toward the castle. “Aren’t phoenix’s normally only with a single mate?”

“Yes,” Philomena acknowledged with a nod. “Now that I am this. (Referencing her new anthropomorphic form) Maybe there is need for change. Other options.”

“And while I appreciate you keeping an open mind,” I leaned down to rub my head against her appreciatively, “there’s no need to rush into it. Like me, for example. The human world frowns upon such a family structure as polygamy. Here it’s normal.”

“Quite,” Mother nodded. “So what of other news from Ponyville?”

“Well, Fluttershy is off to see some tiny creatures called the Breezies at the behest of some organization,” I told them with a shrug. I had no clue what a Breezy is.

“Oh they are wondrous small creatures,” Luna told me. “Very small bodies with delicate wings. They come from a place where a small portal appears and disappears per pollen season. Within a short period of time, they go out to collect pollen and bring it home before the portal to their home closes.”

“Interesting,” I whispered in awe. “This world never ceases to amaze me. Anyway, other than that and Twilight seeing Cadence, there’s not much interesting happening with the other girls. What all about my father did you want to tell me?”

Mother’s heart was in her smile, “Everything. I’ve already told you how we met. From there he started to serve me as any servant would. But he surprised me when he wanted to do more than what I called on him to do.”

“Such as?” I wondered but had a good idea of where this was going.

She giggled before leaning her head back and closing her eyes to reminisce. “Well, one day, after a very long and stressful time with the nobles, he asked me if I would like a massage.” Called it. Now I know where my great hands come from. Philomena echoed that thought with a soft chirp of a giggle up at me. “At first, I thought it would be repulsive for a mere human to do such a thing. Further, that he would even have the knowledge, or the skill, for something so relaxing. However, he surprised me with how good he actually was. And without formal training in the art.”

“Sounds familiar,” Luna giggled and winked at me.

“Yes,” Mother lowered her head, opened her eyes, to smile at me. “You are so much like your father. From giving Twilight a massage in the shower the other day to ease her hangover to how she keeps walking in on you, it does seem that history is repeating itself. However, for your father and I, it was always him that interrupted my shower. I remember when that first happened between us. It was a few months after he started regularly give me massages, help me dress, whatever else I would need. I had just gotten done with a shower and got the shock of my life when he was standing right there in front of me when I turned around.” She laughed remembering about it. “Well, you can just imagine my reaction.”

Luna was barely able to stay sitting in the seat due to her mirth.

“Probably about the same reaction Twilight did when it happened to her for the first time,” mirth was in my voice and on the wicked smirk on my face.

“Quite,” Mother agreed as the chariot came to a stop at the castle entrance. After we got out, Mother put her arm around me as we made our way up the steps. “Of course, talking about your father isn’t the only reason that I wanted you to visit. Besides spending time with me and Luna, I had a thought of you talking with the council as well.”

I almost stopped walking. “You want me to what?” I almost couldn’t believe my ears.

“I know it’s not something that you want to do,” she said as we walked into the castle. The look she was giving me told me that she didn’t want to drag me into it either. “I don’t like dealing with the council either myself, but the council can do many things that I simply don’t have time for. With your knowledge of what happened to slavery in the human world, I have hopes that they’ll listen to reason.”

I raised an eyebrow at the hidden meaning. “Because they aren’t listening right now?”

“Tell him, sister,” Luna gave my mother a firm nod.

Mother stopped us in the hallway and turned to face me. I didn’t look the sober look on her face. “I think Blueblood may be influencing the council from his prison cell. Two of the ponies that were arrested were on the council and so was Blueblood. Those three ponies have had visitors since their incarceration.”

“Sounds similar to how gangs operate within human prisons,” I mused aloud. “They’ll operate from within the prison through the visitors and often through code words. One of the more cliché terms is how someone is doing, or take good care of them, and the like.”

“That is similar to what we have heard Blueblood telling the visitors,” Luna added somberly.

“Then I would suggest this. That those three ponies have no visitors at all for the rest of their lives. Because if they do then they will always think of ways to put secret words into their conversations, even if you listen in on them. Recording conversations of prisoners is what the human prisons do, so if anything happens then it can be traced back to the person of interest.” After a calming breath I continued, “In this case, I would also suggest following closely the ponies that visited those three. Who did they speak to and where?”

“I agree,” Mother said with a sad smile and put her arm around me again after we started walking. “I’m fearful that Blueblood is trying to turn the council against me. I was hoping that your knowledge of what happened in the human world will bring some sense into them.”

“Some things are, unfortunately, universal it seems,” I muttered quietly. “I agree to talk with them. When is it?”

“This, morning actually,” she gave me an over-exaggerated smile as we turned a corner. It was a classic look of ‘Please go with it.’

I gave her a deadpan look.

“Oh don’t look at me that way,” she waved off my look, “I know you will do just fine. You’re smart, educated, and can think on your feet. You have proved it to me time and again. So, don’t worry.”

With a silent grumble, I just went with it and followed my mother and Aunt Luna to the council chambers.

^_^

The council chambers were about half the size of the throne room with a very simple layout. Two thrones stood underneath a sun and moon tapestry across from the large double doors. And on either side of the room were three rows of chairs per side. Which were reserved for the councilponies. And mother said there was just enough time for me to change into my suit and tie before the session was about to start. I changed into a normal black jacket, white shirt, and tie suit in my room that I brought with me in my bag.

Soon after changing my clothes all four of us were walking into the council chamber. The double doors opened by the two unicorn guards with Mother and Aunt Luna entering first then Philomena and I.

“All rise,” came the guard’s call. Every pony in the room stood up as we entered as if it was a courtroom with the judge arriving. Oddly enough the tune “Here comes the judge” by Sammy Davis Jr. entered my head. “Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, Prince Fred, and Philomena presiding.” And that was our cue to walk directly across the room, in front of all of them, so my mother and Aunt Luna can take their respective seats. There was just enough room for Philomena and I to stand between the two thrones. It was only after mother and Aunt Luna sat down did the others do so.

“Now that the council is now in session,” my mother began calmly and with a regal tone of voice with a slight edge to it, “I would like to have my son address this council.” That edge in her voice was also in her eyes as she looked around the room. She looked up at me from the throne with a smile, giving me a nod to start when I was ready.

With a calming breath, I stepped forward. “Equestrian Council,” I began slowly, not knowing what I was going to say. “All of you know who I am and what I am. I am human, but I am also pony. I am the product of love between a pony and a human.” Lifting up my hand I ignited it with fire. There were a few quiet gasps at the sight. Dissipating that, I went a step further and raised my hand toward the nearest purse that a mare had in her lap. She gasped as it slowly raised from her lap, did a few twirls in the air, and then landed in her lap again. “As you can see I look human, but I can do magic. Thus proving that I am part human and part pony. I was born here and raised in the human world.”

Some ponies whispered quietly among themselves at that. “My mother once believed as some of you. That humans are of lesser creatures. Until my father stole her heart and made her see the light of the evil which she partook in. And here I stand because of their union.” I looked around the room, heartfelt. “In the human world, ponies are four-legged non-sentient animals. Humans are the only sentient species. And even then we still fought among ourselves. And we still enslaved our fellow humans. You want to know why?” Oddly enough, they were paying attention, some with rapt attention. “Because they stupidly believed that they, due to the color of their skin, was the highest evolved of them. That because they were the smartest and highest evolved among them, then they had the right to enslave the lesser beings.”

I shook my head and started pacing back and forth in front of them. “They failed to realize that there is no greater or lesser human, but simply humanity itself. That led to a civil war within the country. Brother against brother, family against family. For years, growing up in the human world, I had never heard of Equestria. Magic was nothing but a myth and legend for fairy tales, songs, and moving pictures. Then Sunset Shimmer stole Twilight’s crown of the Element of Magic and brought it to the human world. And right into my hands. That changed everything for me. I remembered images of a human-like pony.”

I motioned toward my mother, who was smiling along with Aunt Luna, “My mother, Princess Celestia.” I started pacing again. “And when I heard that humans were enslaved here and that my birth-mother was trying to end slavery I knew I had to come. Not only to see, meet, and get to know my own mother, but to help this world from falling into a civil war that nearly destroyed the human one. You don’t want that, trust me.” As I stopped to think about what to say next I continued to pace, not really knowing what to say. As luck would have it, one of the council ponies solved that for me.

“All humans are evil and deserve to be a slave for what they did and what they are.” Turning around I looked up to one of the councilponies that I didn’t know. A stallion.

“Really?” I scoffed at him. “And so because a group of humans wanted a war the rest of humanity should forever be enslaved?”

“Yes!” he cried out with some nodding in agreement.

I rounded on him immediately. “The sins of the father forever haunt his son, and so on and so forth!”

“Yes! No human can be trusted with peace!” he cried out, glaring at me, and even raising his fist into the air. With some voicing their agreement.

“The females?” I stepped up to the railing in front of him.

“Every single one!” he stepped down, getting into my face. The number in agreement with him started to falter.

“The young?” I demanded to know, nearly shouting at him.

“Yes!” he said without hesitation, though faltering. I heard only a couple agree with him.

“The babies?!”

“Ye-” he started saying before quickly shutting up.

“The old?” I shouted at him, demanding he answer. Which he didn’t. No one answered or agreed with him. He stood alone. “The peaceful?! The pregnant?!” Now the stallion wasn’t looking so sure of himself. “HATE THEM ALL!” I shouted at the top of my lungs at him. “ENSLAVE THEM ALL! AND IF THEY GET OUT OF LINE? WELL WHO CARES, THEY’RE LESSER BEINGS THAN US ANYWAY. PUNISH THEM BY KILLING THOSE WHO GET OUT OF LINE. THE OLD, THE WEAK, THE PEACEFUL, THE PREGNANT FEMALES, ALL OF THEM!” Stepping back, while still glaring at him, I spread out my arms, “LET THEIR BLOOD FLOW FROM THE ELDERLY TO THE INNOCENT CHILD IN THE WOMB! SACRIFICE THEM UPON THE ALTAR OF ALL PONY KIND!” Most looked horrified and by good reason. I wanted to paint a mental picture of where their hatred would ultimately lead them. “THAT,” I shouted again, stepping back up to him and looking at him in the eyes over my pointed finger, “IS YOUR LEGACY OF BLOOD AND HATRED MISTER COUNCILPONY!”

I let my words ring for a couple of seconds before stepping back. And while still looking at him, my hand swept toward Philomena. I motioned her toward me. “This is my legacy,” I told them all, but still focused on the councilpony. My arms came around Philomena and wrapped around her as she laid her head back against my chest. “Philomena, once my mother’s pet Phoenix, now turned into anthropomorphic due to a spell from Princess Twilight Sparkle. Now my mate.” It was so silent in that room you could hear a pin drop. “This is my legacy Mister Councilpony. The love of a mate and my fellow Equestrians, no matter what creature they may be.” Gently at my urging, Philomena started to walk back to where she was. And before I turned to follow I finished with, “What will yours be?” As I walked back toward the two thrones, I noticed that much of the council was looking a little ill. Good, let it sink in.

The room was still and silent even when I retook my place between the two thrones. I had stepped behind Philomena, wrapped my arms around her, closed my eyes, and rested my head on hers. She felt my distress because as her body relaxed against me she started humming softly and quietly. Just enough for me, my mother, and Aunt Luna to hear.

Nothing seemed to happen until my ears picked up the voice of the same councilpony that had argued with me. This time, however, his voice was soft and sounded thoughtful, “I’d...like to request...a recess.”

^_^

“You didn’t mince words, nephew,” Luna added after we left the council chambers. It was time for her to rest, so we were walking toward her bedroom.

“Just pointed out where all this was headed,” I said after taking a steadying breath. Philomena had my arm again and walking beside me. “Hopefully, it will give them something to think about. This slavery might have started with the ideology that they’re evil because they attacked us, but it won’t stop with that. It will inevitably turn to, ‘Enslave them because they’re lesser beings.’ And that’s a dangerous slope to be on because then what species is next? Griffons? Dragons?”

“Quite right my son,” Mother put her arm around me in a sideways hug as we walked. “Quite right.”

“One of man’s greatest atrocities has been the enslavement or slaughter of other humans because one race thought the other was a lesser human. A whole race was enslaved simply because of the color of their skin. Another was mass murdered due to their religion and was labeled less than human. I’ve said it before. If you enslave someone because you think they are a lesser creature than you, that doesn’t negate the evil. It just helps you sleep better at night.”

“Indeed,” Luna agreed as we turned down the hallway leading to our bedrooms. Hers, mother’s, and mine. “As much as I would enjoy hearing from you and John, sister, I need rest.”

“Yes sister,” mother hugged her once we reached her door. “Sleep well.”

Luna then hugged me, “Have fun, nephew.”

“I will Aunt Luna,” I hugged back as she opened the door to her room. “Good night.” From there we walked toward my father’s grave.

^_^

Mother, Philomena, and I stood before my father’s grave in the garden. Mother had her arm and wing around me on one side with Philomena on the other side leaning against me with her arm in mine. “You really would be proud of our son, John,” Mother said softly with a sad smile on her face. “He is everything we hoped he would turn into. And so like you in many ways.” Mother giggled, “Even has your sense of humor and charm with the mares.”

Philomena giggled quietly, bumping me with her hips.

“He’s smart, having your sense of justice. And my ability to use magic,” she continued. “I’m so happy that he chose to return home, even after knowing the risks.” A couple of tears started falling, so I leaned against her. She laid her head against mine. “Perfect.”

“Be nice and cool to have wings though,” I added as an afterthought.

“This is Equestria, son. You never know what might happen here,” Mother winked with a smile. “You were so curious about everything around you. Ever since you learned to walk you wanted to explore everything around you. I was so scared for you around stairs, thinking that you would fall and break something. And once you learned to run there was no stopping you.”

I laughed at that, which mother looked at me with curiosity on her face. “If only the human Rainbow could hear you say that, she’d wonder why she had to push me so hard during P.E. class.”

“One day you’ll be able to tell her.”

I nodded, “Yeah, unfortunately, the portal only stays open for a short time. There won’t be hardly enough time to really catch up with them.”

“You certainly have had quite an adventure so far, haven’t you son?” she asked with a happy giggle.

“Yes, I have and I’ve got a feeling that it’s not over just yet.” My head turned to her, wanting to switch subjects a little, “What’s your plan for the rest of the day?”

She smiled and leaned down to kiss my cheek, “Just spending time with you, son. That’s all.”

“I like that,” I smiled back.

“Then I have an idea,” she told me excitedly, “why don’t we go into the city? I can show you where your father and I frequently went to.”

“Alright.”

^_^

“This was one of the few places that your father and I could come that we didn’t have to fear the wrath of my little ponies.” Mother took us to the last place I would have thought. The place was located in the middle-class part of the city, which was pretty much in the center of Canterlot. It stood three stories tall and well maintained between two apartment buildings. It was a relatively quiet morning with only a few ponies and humans out, but peaceful.

“Canterlot’s Delight?” my voice held the same shock that was on my face as I stared up at the sign. “Is this what I think it is?”

“A brothel? Then yes, it’s what you think it is.” Mother looked down at me with mischief in her eyes.

“Uh…Mother?”

“Oh now, stop looking at me like that,” she chided gently with a wave of her hand. “Your father and I needed places where we could be ourselves.”

“Yeah, I get that. But why bring me here?” I asked motioning toward the building.

“Because it was more than just a brothel, son.” Ok, now I was curious. “Yes, we spent some intimate times here. But the ponies, and humans, here live together with each other as equals. Your father first discovered it. Come on, I’ll introduce you to the head mare.” She urged us forward, with me first.

The first thing that I noticed was how the interior was similar to an apartment building. Heck, it probably was before it was taken over. The bottom floor was mainly the head office, large living room, bathroom, and kitchen with the living room doubling as the dining room. Upstairs seemed to be nothing but rooms and bathrooms. And the front door opened up into the living room, which was occupied by two beautiful mares, one earth pony and the other a pegasus, and one human woman, also pretty in her right. And all three wearing only underwear.

“Hey handsome,” the pegasus mare leaned back on the sofa she was relaxing on, spread her wings and legs out wide for me, and curled her finger at me with an alluring grin. She reminded me of Rainbow, just with different colors. The other two girls giggled at me. Can’t imagine why. Can’t because I was ogling at her. And it can’t be because it took a few pokes from Philomena to put my brain back into gear.

Philomena’s eyes held the look of jealousy and disapproval in them as they met mine.

“Sorry,” I sheepishly apologized to her.

Mother giggled and turned left toward the office, “Let’s see if Simple Pleasures is still here.”

Simple Pleasures? Really? I could only guess that it wasn’t her real name.

Mother knocked on the door. We heard an older mare’s voice call out, “Come in.” As we walked in, there was an earth pony mare sitting at the desk. Similar to Pinkie’s size and build but with long straight blond hair wearing a simple deep v-cut dress with just enough cleavage to draw the eyes. Her eyes brightened as they looked up. “Celly,” with an excited happy voice she immediately got up to give my mother a hug. “Been a while since you’ve been here.”

“Yes,” mother hugged back saying softly, “it has. How are you?”

“Oh me and the girls are fine,” the mare waved a dismissing hand before motioning for us to sit down. Which we did. “I was there when your son was introduced,” she continued as she looked at me with a wink. “And a handsome one he is too.”

“My mate,” Philomena intervened with a predatory look while gripping my arm tighter. “I am Philomena.”

The mare laughed in amusement, “And taken already it seems. Relax honey, everyone flirts here, including me. It’s not surprising that he’s been nabbed already.”

“Uh…Thank you?” I didn’t really know what to say to that.

“You’re welcome, honey,” she winked at me before turning back to my mother. “So, what brings you here?”

“Telling him about his father, so I told him about this place and how we were always welcome here to be ourselves. Because everyone and everypony are equal here.”

The headmare smiled, “And we still are. I remember John.” She laughed and winked at me, “I also remember how territorial your mother was with your father too. Just like Philomena is with you. But oh, was he ever a looker. And with a great sense of humor could get almost any girl to laugh or swoon.”

“He is so much like him,” mom praised me again. “He’s already befriended the Elements of Harmony and helped secure the city of Appleloosa from a plot to murder the buffalo tribe.”

“Sounds like you’ve had quite a time so far, cutie.” As the headmare smiled at me, Philomena was still on edge. I tried calming her down as best I could by putting my arm around her, letting my fingers massage her shoulder and arm.

“It’s been an adventure, yes. Difficult sometimes, but I’m here for the long haul. I’m not going anywhere.”

“Glad to hear it.”

“Any of the other girls back then still here?” Mother asked her as she leaned forward a little clearly eager to know.

The headmare shook her head, “No, they all have moved on. Except for me. The other girls have all married and have kids.” Now she leaned forward on her desk, looking to mother with a knowing grin. “Two of the pony girls have human husbands.”

Now that was interesting.

“Are they happy? Have they had any trouble with the public?” Mother asked the very questions I had in mind.

She leaned back in her office chair, as it creaked softly, and smiled, “Luckily they were able to find a nice small suburb of Fillydelphia and settle down. Of course, they have to be careful but last I heard they’re happy.”

“Oh, I’m so happy to hear that,” Mother leaned back in her chair happy with the news.

“Yes, looked like you and John have had more of an impact than you think,” the headmare smirked. “And on that, I’d like to invite your son and Philomena to come by anytime for any reason. Either for a simple talk or relaxation by themselves or with the girls or to have some fun on their own in one of our soundproof rooms.”

“Soundproof?” I asked curiously.

She nodded to me, “Oh yes, completely soundproof.” Then she winked with a wicked smile, “Of course we do have some non-sound proofed rooms as well for those who like others to hear.” And once more, I had no idea what to say about that last part. She laughed at the look on my face. And Philomena was blushing but smiling though.

All in all, it was a very interesting visit there and look into my mother’s and father’s past. The headmare had the mare from before, from the living room, give Philomena and I the tour of the place. That was kind of fun with the mare flirting on me while Philomena was figuratively beating her off of me with a stick.

From there, we went to eat before spending the rest of the day together. And when Aunt Luna woke up she wanted to go out on the town. Just the two of us. Philomena wanted to come, but was too tired for one and wanted it to be just us two. Although a little downtrodden Philomena agreed to sit this one out, mainly because I was with Aunt Luna. I mean, what could happen to me with her with me, right?

So, after bidding my mother and Philomena goodnight, I turned to Aunt Luna, “Alright, Aunt Luna, where are we going tonight?”

“They call it clubbing,” she told me while clapping her hands together and bouncing almost like Pinkie before a party.

A smirk worked its way onto my face, “Well, that explains the semi-fancy slash dancing dress you’re wearing. And the semi-formal casual suit I’m wearing. Suit pants with a button-down white shirt and no tie with dress shoes are the usual casual formal look for guys even in the human world.”

“Huzzah! We have guessed your attire correctly. I was introduced to it two years ago by Octavia Melody,” she told me as she decided to walk tonight. She said that it wasn’t far from the castle, which was a little surprising, and it would give us more time to talk. “If you don’t know her,” she continued while we made our way down the street, “she often plays the cello for the Gala and events for the nobles with the Canterlot Orchestra. She is also friends with the famous DJPon 3, also known as Vinyl Scratch.”

“Vinyl I’ve met yes, but I don’t think I’ve met Octavia though. At least, not the one in this world. So, what is this place like?” We turned off the main road leading from the castle and onto a street that looked to be the entertainment street of the city. The nightclub was easily seen a few buildings down because it was the brightest one on the block. Lit up similar to any human world casino it cast a bright enough light to make it seem like daytime. Among this nightclub was also other bars and a brothel, not the same one I went to earlier. “I wonder which one it is?” I smirked at the rhetorical question. “It’s not like it’s the most brightly lit place on the whole street. Are you sure you just didn’t find it on your own by following the brightest light at night?”

She knew I was joking and went with it by suddenly grabbing me by the arms as if in panic. “My moon isn’t the brightest and most beautiful in the sky?” Then she leaned her head back, closing her eyes, as if in heartfelt remorse, “No, say it ain’t so.” Laughing, she faced the building, put her arm around me, and marched us by them. And right up to a couple of earth ponies that look similar in build to Big Mac. Obviously, the bouncers for the place stood on either side of the beautiful glass double doors. One with a pencil, pad, and paper with the other one watching the gathered crowd. Even though the closed doors, I could hear the rhythmic pounding beat of the music and the seizure-inducing flashing of lights.

Of course, not everypony standing in line thought the best of us when we passed them. There was one or two that would try and hush the naysayers after we passed them. Luna paid them no mind and walked right up to the one holding the pad. “The mistress of the night and my nephew wish entrance,” she said simply at him, but with a slight glare that dared him to say no.

Without a word, he motioned his head toward the other one where the door opened for us a second later.

“Thank you,” she nodded before gently pushing me into the chaos of lights and music. “Come nephew, the night is ours.” I didn’t know how to sing, but at least I could follow a beat and dance. However, what I spied when we walked in seemed to be just jumping in place and acting silly or dumb and stupid instead of actual dancing. The layout was pretty simple. Offices and the bar on the left with stairs leading up to the second floor, which led to who knows what. The rest of the bottom floor was nothing but the DJ booth at the far end, one big floor, with speakers and lights all over and around the dance floor.

As the doors closed and the music and lights surrounded us, Luna raised her hands in the air. And with her horn glowing her coloring changed slightly. Her whole look now differed from before. Her coat color, hair, and tail hue had darkened. Her eyes as well when she stepped up and turned her head to grin at me. Suddenly her black dress with lace trim and plunging neckline made a lot more sense.

“Aunt Luna?” I nearly had to shout to make myself heard. Especially because of the shouting and screaming of applause that had just started.

“For tonight, my nephew, I am Aunty Nightmare Moon,” she said before letting out a very convincing evil cackle. Turning to the crowd she raised her arms again, “The mistress of the night and the prince of the dawn has arrived.” Then proceeded to dance her way into the waiting crowd.

Prince of the dawn? I blinked at her with my mind trying to wrap itself around the sudden change. Is she using this as an outlet of sorts? If so, this would be a good way to do it. The whole place suddenly darkened with the lights dimming and the music changing to a more edgy tone. The dancing crowd parted for her, but still dancing, like submissive subjects to a great leader. Well, if anything, this is definitely going to be an interesting night. It would also be interesting to see how I’m treated while I’m here.

While largely being ignored, no one was hating on me. More than likely that was because of Aunt Luna. In for a penny, in for a pound as the saying goes. I was about to start dancing and work my way into the crowd when my eyes caught the sight of a mare walking out of the crowd and toward me. With the lights dimmed, and her actually wearing clothes, it took me a second to recognize her from the brothel. It was the pegasus mare that greeted me. Blending into the shadows was easy for her with her black coat and long gray hair and tail. Before she was wearing just underwear and her hair was styled up. Here her hair was long and thick, but it was her dress that caught my eyes. It was a nearly full-length black tube dress with a deep plunging neckline that drew my eyes first. Then my eyes traveled south toward a leg that was always outside of the dress due to the slit that ran down from her hip.

She. Was. Hot! My heart started beating in time with the music as she slowly, and provocatively, sashayed up to me. Part of her hair fell forward to frame her face which brought out her bright blue eyes. The same eyes that were looking at me rather possessively. Those eyes were like headlights on a car at night and it was hard to look away from her.

“Hey, handsome,” she told me again, this time putting a hand to my chest. “You looking for some fun tonight? Name’s Dark Harmony, by the way. We were never properly introduced earlier.”

And my brain had just shut down, so I could only let out, “Uh…,” that she could barely hear. At least my brain kicked itself back into gear again before she could do anything else. After shaking my head to clear it, I took her hand in mine and lifted it to my lips giving it a soft kiss while bowing slightly. “I can honestly say, you definitely capture my senses.”

“Only your senses huh?” she smirked with amusement, looking at me over her hand. “What if I want the rest of you?”

I chuckled, while still holding her hand, “Then you’ll have to get Philomena’s permission. And good luck she won’t give that out lightly.”

“I like a challenge,” she said before I started leading her into the crowd of dancers. The type of music being played wasn’t hard metal for slam dancing. No, it so happened to be the slow R&B style that had her grinding up against me. As soon as we were on the dance floor she turned her back to me, grabbed my hand, and brought it to her stomach. And when she started dancing to the slow beat, she had put her hand over mine. Her head laid back on my chest, under my chin, with her other hand behind my neck. When we first started to dance we weren’t in time with each other, which meant she was grinding herself against a certain member of my body.

At this moment I was so glad that Philomena wasn’t here. Dancing was one thing, but what she was doing was public fondling set to music. Just without hands. As soon as I started to move with her, she changed it up to go in the opposite direction. When that didn’t work, I tried to move just enough away so it wouldn’t affect me. She just pressed herself against me even harder. To the other dancers, including my Aunt Luna, it was as if we were having fun slow dancing to some R&B. Albeit, in a rather risqué way.

As the music continued, and she kept up her moves, her tail had snaked its way around my waist and was literally pulling my waist against hers. I must find out how they get tails and wings through clothing sometimes. I could pull away, but not without physically hurting her. She even went so far as to turn her head and plant soft kisses against my neck.

She could pull this off because we had migrated to one of the dark corners of the dance floor. Her wings were outstretched as she moved my hand further down. And just when I thought she had stopped she moved it toward the slit in her dress. She had to be feeling the beating of my heart through the pulse in my neck as she kissed it. A low moan escaped her lips as my hand rubbed against the soft coat of her exposed hip.

“Why are you doing this?” I asked huskily.

“Does a mare have to have a reason?” she asked in return as her hand moved mine up and down her hip.

“I’d like to think so, yes.” My voice was firm as Philomena’s upset face popped into my head followed by her angry face and sharp talons. She may have her tail wrapped around my waist, but she didn’t have control of my hands. The hand on her hip twisted around and gripped her wrist and my other one gripped her other wrist. And brought them down to her sides firmly, “Sorry, but this isn’t happening.”

She giggled and quickly turned up her head to me, giving me a quick kiss on my neck. “Philomena?”

I nodded and pushed myself away from her even while her tail tried to keep me. “Yes, and I’m not going to be put into a situation where my relationship with her could be put into jeopardy. If you really want a relationship with me then there are two requirements. One is to talk with Philomena and get her approval. And second is to stop working at the brothel. I don’t like to share.”

Her tail let me go, and I let her arms go when she turned around to face me. She had a smirk on her face and a determined look in her eyes, “Alright, my prince. I accept.”

That shocked me and it showed on my face. I thought for sure she’d walk away. But why is she so determined? “Ok. First off, that won’t be easy. And secondly, why do you even want a relationship with me?”

“Where is my nephew?” came Aunt Luna’s call, I mean Aunt Nightmare Moon's call. I stepped away from her as the lights brightened up to reveal her standing just in front of the DJ’s booth. I gave her a wave as she spotted me. “There he is,” she waved me over, much to my relief. “Come, my beloved nephew. It is time for our subjects to show their devotion to their mistress.” I had no clue where she was going with this and it seemed that I was to be included because she grinned at me saying, “And their new master.”

“And just how are they going to do that Aunt Nightmare Moon?” I asked, taking my place by her side. There were two spotlights on us, but they were dimmed down and blue instead of white. Not to mention the why of it all.

“But a contest of course,” she explained, motioning toward the crowd of mares and stallions. “For only the bravest and strongest among them will earn the right to show their devotion to their mistress and master.” This had to be some sort of game. I may not have known this Luna that long, but it was obvious that she was enjoying herself. She was practically bouncing in the seat with excitement. “The stallions will go first in a free for all,” she explained to the crowd, “until only one remains. That stallion will earn the right to show their devotion to their mistress for the rest of the night. Next will be all willing mares. The last mare standing will have earned the right to show their devotion to their master.”

As the mares in the crowd parted to the sides of the large room, I was left to wonder what this devotion was all about. “Just what are you planning?” I asked in a whisper.

“Relax, nephew,” she whispered to me, now that she could do so because the music had stopped. “This is just some fun. The last stallion and mare get the right to go on a date with us tonight. That’s all.” She waved her hand as small pistol looking devices appeared in front of them. Another wave of her hand and a large shield went up around all the stallions. She saw the concern in my eyes, so she leaned over to explain. “It’s nothing but a mild knock out spell they are projecting.”

I nodded in relief.

“Begin,” she all but shouted at them. Most were knocked out within seconds as the blasting started. It was odd how it sounded like a phaser blast from star trek. And now that I really looked at them, the little pistols had a similar shape to the original phasers too. After a few minutes, it came down to two. A couple of minutes and a few shots later was just one. Aunt Nightmare Moon started clapping her hands to congratulate him, but then my eyes spotted movement.

It was from a young skinny looking earth pony stallion. He had a suit on, but it looked to be a hand-me-down. Still looked decent enough. I watched him carefully as his eyes opened and took a quick look around.

“And it appears that we ha-”

A phaser blast interrupted her. The skinny short stallion had raised himself up and shot the last stallion standing in the back. Which had enough time to looked shocked before slumping down onto the floor. You could hear a pin drop from how quiet it was. “YES!” his excited voice echoed through the places as he stood up with his hands in the air. “It worked!”

Even Aunty Moon was stunned by his performance.

I, however, started clapping for him with a chuckle and a grin on my face. He stepped up with the biggest smile I’ve ever seen that was well earned. “Bravo. Well played.”

“Indeed!” Aunty Moon snapped out of it and started applauding as well, which was followed by the rest of the crowd. Mares only as the stallions were still out. “Playing possum until the last one was standing is quite clever.”

He took a low bow before her, “Thank you, my Mistress of the Night.” He then paid his tribute in the old fashioned way by kissing her hand, which I think genuinely impressed her. “It will be my ultimate pleasure to pay my tribute to you in any way I can for the rest of this night.”

Is he even old enough? He looked awfully short. I trusted whoever was in charge though as I’m sure this place had age restrictions on it.

“Come then, good, and clever, warrior, be by my side,” she motioned for him to stand on the other side of her. Which he did and from what I could tell he was probably only two or three inches taller than Fluttershy. He was grinning from ear to ear when Aunty Moon put a wing and an arm around him. And with a wave of her hand, the stallions started waking up. The first one awake was the former last stallion. Mister skinny just waved to him as the big bulky former last stallion stomped off to the side. “Next is the mares for my nephew,” Aunty Moon announced with another wave of her hand reset everything. Once the mares were in place and each one had a pistol she announced for it to start. “Begin!”

I was surprised at the number of mares that wanted to participate. I wasn’t surprised, however, that Miss Harmony was in it. Unfortunately, she was shot and knocked out halfway through the match. It was interesting to watch how different the stallions and mares fought. The stallions seemed to be simply better at it while the mares didn’t seem to have the same aim. It seemed that way because the beams were going all over the place instead of their intended targets.

Though it all there was one mare that caught my eye. Not in a sexual way, but how she performed. If I didn’t know better, I’d swear that she was trained in something like that. She was a pegasus similar in build and bust to Fluttershy. Maybe a little taller. But she had the look and maneuvers of a trained soldier. She bobbed and weaved, flipped and rolled, and ducked and dodged her way to the last mare standing. And when she stood there looking around, it was like watching a policewoman from the human world. If my hunch was right, then it was no wonder why she got where she was.

Her light turquoise hair was short, only to her shoulders but thick with no curls in it. She had a light pinkish red coat underneath the light blue evening dress. Her tail swished from side to side as she started backing up toward us.

I had to admit I was genuinely impressed with the way she handled herself. “Well done,” I clapped for her as the stallions applauded as well. “And your name miss?”

Aunty Moon waved her hand as the pistols and barrier disappeared. The mare turned toward me and started walking this way as the other mares woke up. “Eve Delphia,” her voice sounded just like a policewoman on duty as she walked up to me and saluted, “m-master.”

“Indeed,” Aunty Moon praised her, “Well done and masterful performance.” Dark Harmony looked disappointed, but she gave me a small smile anyway as she accepted the outcome.

“Thank you, Mistress Moon,” she bowed to her.

“Now that the contests are done, it is time for their nightlong tribute,” Aunty Moon announced before ushering all four of us toward the front door. But as we walked toward the front door, I put my arm around the mare’s shoulders. In like manner that my Aunt was doing with the young stallion. She kept by my side and even walked closer to me, all the way out the door and back into the street. That is when Luna dropped her disguise. “And what is your name young stallion?” she asked him.

“You can call me Dusty, your highness,” he said excitedly.

“I am impressed with your cleverness.”

“Thank you, your highness. My friends had suggested it when I told them I wanted to come and try it in celebration of my graduating,” he said to her, practically leaning on her.

“What school?”

“High school, just turned nineteen at my graduation a month ago.”

We walked down the street heading in the general direction of the castle as they talked. Miss Delphia remained silent but stayed by my side. Almost up against me, actually.

“Well then, my congratulations to you young stallion. What is your wish for tonight?” she asked him and then leaned down to him when he motioned. He sure knew how to whisper because I couldn’t hear a thing. A few seconds later, Luna straightened up with a long wicked cackle as she turned back into her Nightmare Moon form. “Very well, then young warrior. You shall serve Nightmare Moon this night and pay your tribute.”

He looked to be over the moon at this point.

Aunt Luna turned to me, “Will you two be alright for tonight?”

“Yes, Aunty Nightmare Moon,” I waved off her concern with a smirk. “Go on ahead, we’ll be fine.”

“Very well, nephew,” she acknowledged and drew the stallion up against her. “Tonight will be a night you’ll remember.” And with one flash of magic, they were gone.

I shook my head with a chuckle, “If I understand correctly, that young stallion will have the night of his life.”

She nodded curtly with a look of disapproval, “I’m sure.”

Maybe it’s best if I changed subjects. “What would you like to do Miss Delphia? If you don’t mind I’d be interested in getting to know you.”

“Whatever you wish to do or go, master,” she said the last word with hesitation and with a slight edge to her tone of voice as if she didn’t want to say it.

With a sigh, I stopped her and stepped in front of her. “Miss Delphia,” I told her with a calm, gentle, and patient tone of voice, “relax. You can drop the master bit, alright?” She nodded to me and visibly relaxed. “It’s fairly obvious that disturbs you. Wouldn’t sit too well with me either, except in...well...intimate situations. I meant what I said though, I’d like to get to know you a little if you don’t mind.”

“Then we can come to my apartment then,” she said turning around to face the other way. “It’s not far.”

“Alright,” I told her, putting my arm around her again. “Lead the way.”

^_^

She led us toward a nice looking well-kept apartment building just a few blocks away. Just a simple-looking two-story building. “It used to be a house one of the nobles owned. But they sold it and the department decided to buy it and rent it out to the officers,” she said as she opened the door walking inside.

I followed her. “Really? That’s really cool, actually. This area of town reminds me of some places in the human world where its residential buildings are up against one another. No front lawn or backyard and if you had a side window you could literally reach out and touch your neighbor.” I shut the door behind me.

The front door opened up into the large living area. She stopped just paces in front of me after she heard that last part. “There really is a human world?” she asked turning to look at me with mixed emotions. Anywhere from curious to terrified was written on her face.

“Yes,” I confirmed with a nod. “That’s where I was raised by my mother’s and Aunt’s human counterparts. I was born here and lived for two years at the castle before Blueblood stormed the place, killed my father, and made my mother flee to the human world. There she left me, for my safety, to be raised by her human counterpart.” Her eyes just blinked at me, as if she didn’t know what to do with that information. So, I decided to change the subject again. “So, tell me more about this place. Who all lives here? How does the rent work and all?”

She shook her head slightly before motioning me to follow. “Only mare officers live here,” she told me as we walked through the living room to the stairs in the back. Only mares? Odd, but alright. “And there’s only four of us because there are only four bedrooms,” she explained while we walked up the stairs. “And the rent is taken out of our paycheck.”

“I’m impressed,” I told her with a hum as we approached a door just to the right of the stairs, “even the human world’s police departments haven’t thought of that.”

She opened the door, stepping in first before I followed her in, and shutting the door behind her. It was basically a large bedroom. Spartanly furnished with only a simple bed with a small nightstand on either side with lamps, a dresser with a large mirror on top, a standalone closet next to it, and a simple desk and chair for workspace. That was it. Whoever had it before must have taken their stuff with them because this wasn’t top of the line. More like simple middle-class. I stood there looking around as she went over to her desk chair and sat down.

“Not bad,” I told her with a nod. “Nice quaint simple room. A little spartan on the decorations though.”

She shrugged nonchalantly, “Don’t need it. It doesn’t need to look pretty, just functional.”

With a chuckle, I moved over to the foot of the bed and sat down facing her. “Man, if only some of the guys back in the human world could hear you. They’d try and snatch you up in a heartbeat.”

“Why?” the look on her face showed genuine confusion.

“So, all the money doesn’t go to expensive jewelry, bobbles, or make-up for her. Though it would make it more difficult to shop for on your birthday or a holiday,” I shrugged. “And if you don’t mind me asking, why the name Eve Delphia?”

And without missing a beat she told me, “Because that’s the name that my captain gave me when he found me as a filly. It was in the evening in the city of Fillydelphia.” Hence the name. “I only have bits and pieces of my life as a filly.” She shuttered slightly and put her arms around herself. “Which are the stuff of nightmares. I don’t remember much and I don’t want to.”

I shook my head at her with a heartfelt look for her. “I don’t blame you. So, I’m assuming that this captain who found you belonged to the military or a police force? I’m sure it was one of the two based on your performance earlier.”

She gave me a short nod, “Yes. At the time, he was only a lieutenant for the Fillydelphia Police Department. I was five at the time when he found me, adopted me, and named me Eve Delphia. Shortly after that, we moved here.”

“Wow,” my whisper of awe was echoed in the look I gave her. “That means ever since then he’s raised you and even trained you for police work, right?”

“Correct. I made detective last year and will transition from night watch to daytime watch in a month.”

A wide smile spread across my face, “Congratulations detective, and my respects for creating a life for yourself in spite of an unpleasant childhood.”

“Well...thank you,” the look she gave me was one that wasn’t used to handling compliments. Even now as she answered my questions it was more like getting a report from a soldier.

“You’re welcome, but I’m curious. Why enter the contest tonight? You don’t seem that type to me.”

She perked up a little at my question. “That was to examine the pistols used tonight.” When I just gave her a confused look she clarified. “Police departments over Equestria don’t have anything like that in their arsenal. Not for earth ponies or pegasi. We have to use swords, spears, or more deadly tools. Unicorns have their magic. This is why they try to team one unicorn with a non-unicorn for when non-lethal means are necessary. But that’s not always the case. And when I heard of those little pistols I decided they were worth a look. If I won then I would bring it up with the Princess.”

I nodded in understanding. “That makes sense actually. You see in the human world, we don’t have magic at all, unlike here in Equestria. We use technology to create lethal and less-lethal means. I wasn’t in the military or police force, but I did know the school’s guard and we talked a lot about problems they faced. I could bring it up with Aunt Luna for you considering you got me instead of her.”

“Thank you...um...my prince,” she said awkwardly.

“You’re welcome, but just call me Fred. I may have been born a prince, but I want to earn that title instead of being handed to me.”

“Alright, Fred,” even though she still said it she still looked a little uncomfortable.

“You alright?” I asked with concern. “You seem nervous and uncomfortable.”

She hesitated before she spoke as if she was arguing with herself. “I’m not, but I should be and that’s what’s confusing for me.” And that got me confused and it showed on the look I gave her. “Because of the abuse of my father,” she spoke slowly, as it was difficult for her, “I can’t stand males of any species. Except for a few that work with me.”

I nodded slowly, “That would seem to make your job difficult sometimes, wouldn’t it?”

She shook her head, which surprised me. “On the job, I can cope with it. I focus on the job and put everything aside. But alone, such as now, is different. Or at least it should be different with you. And it’s not. That’s what’s so confusing.” Then she looked up at me, right into my eyes. “It’s just the opposite. For some reason, I’m drawn to you.”

My mind flashed to when she was almost walking up against me. “Well, while I don’t mean to be confusing to you. I am glad that you don’t hate me or dislike me. I’d like to be your friend if anything.”

She nodded and even gave me a small smile, which I returned. “You said that you grew up in the human world. What was it like?”

I smiled at her and began telling her about growing up. And after we talked more for a while I noticed that she started loosening up toward me. Even came over to sit with me on the edge of the bed. From there we talked for the rest of the night until it got toward dawn. And at that point, I was practically falling asleep. So, I bid her goodnight, or good morning in this case, and was going to leave for the castle. However, she surprised me yet again when she invited me to sleep on the couch downstairs. Which was good because I felt like passing out any second now. And headed downstairs while thinking how interesting this mare really is. To have such a bad childhood and yet rise up from that to make a meaningful life from it was admirable. Plus there is another pony to call my friend and being a mare was just a bonus.

Next Chapter: Chapter Twenty One: Pinkie's Pride Estimated time remaining: 12 Hours, 7 Minutes