Author's Notes:

I finally got the inspiration to write again. I hope you enjoy!

The heart inside Andromalius' chest was pounding as his eyes darted around in search of the owner of the strange voice he had just heard in the gardens. Just a few moments ago, he was sure he was alone and undisturbed, left to his own thoughts. He didn't know where the sudden voice came from, but it sounded very close. There weren't many hiding spots, and those that were there seemed to be a bit too far away from the position of the voice. Confusion and puzzlement continued to rise inside his mind as he looked around and saw nothing out of place and nothing suspicious. It was as if the voice was never there in the first place. For a few long moments, nothing reached his ears but the thump of his heart and the sound of his breath. However, he didn't have to wait too long until the same voice finally spoke again.

"Don't fear, I don't bite," the mysterious female voice said playfully, "Well, unless you ask me to..."

"Who are you?" the hell stallion replied quickly, his eyes darting around the scenery. The voice sounded so close, seemingly right in front of him, and yet there was no one and nothing in the vicinity but a few small critters that couldn't possibly be speaking the words he had just heard. Before the voice could reply, Andromalius added another question in a lower and more confused tone, "Where... where are you?"

"My name's Inanna, and I'm a succubus," she replied, "As for where... Far from where you are. Have you ever heard of a thing called telepathy?"

"I have..." Andromalius reluctantly nodded, "So... you're talking to me from far away using magic, right?"

"Simply put, yes," the hell stallion felt her nod.

"And you're a succubus, so that means... you're a demon, right?"

"As if you aren't one," Inanna replied, and Andromalius could swear he felt her roll her eyes, "But yes, I'm a demon," and before the hell stallion could say anything, she added, "Oh, and you don't have to speak out loud. You know... telepathy."

"A-alright... But what do you need from me?" he asked as he nervously walked in circles around an invisible spot.

"That's a bit... complicated. I'm here to test you and to prepare you."

"Wait, wait, wait..." Andromalius stopped and shook his head, "That just... came out of nowhere. What test? And prepare for what?" he furrowed his brows, "Look, just... slow down a bit, alright? I have no idea who you are, I have no idea how you even found me, contacted me, and... What do you really want?"

"As I said, I'm here to test you. More specifically, find out who you are," Inanna replied, "But I can't tell you what it's all about just yet."

"Uh, alright, well... I don't know anything you might want to know," he admitted, "I don't even know what this whole world is. So, whatever you want to do with me, it won't really help you with... whatever you're after."

A pause in the conversation ensued, and Andromalius could feel Inanna's thoughts circulating. It was an odd thing; it was a feeling of thoughts that weren't his own. He couldn't understand them either, for they were faint and incomprehensible whispers at the edge of his mind. More precisely, the border between his and Inanna's minds, for the two were connected in a magical way, allowing either of them to feel the other's mind and the processes within to a certain degree.

"So, you're from... some other world?" Inanna asked. After Andromalius nodded, she continued, "Well, well... That's... huh..." her thoughts trailed off, leaving a faint trace. Soon, however, she spoke again, "That makes you very interesting indeed..."

"So, what's this all about?"

"As I said before, I can't tell you yet."

"Then, uh, what should I do?" Andromalius asked, hoping to hear something reassuring from the succubus. Having some goal was better than having none, even if it were vague.

"There's always an option to have sex," Inanna grinned and let out a giggle. The face of the hell stallion became red with blush, however, "Aw, it seems you're a virgin on top of being otherworldly. And you know, you can get on top of someone else too..."

"What does that have to do with anything?" he retorted, his blush intensifying.

"Being a virgin isn't a bad thing, and it's definitely not my place to shame you – or anyone else, for that matter – for being one," Inanna's grin remained on her face as she spoke, "My, that makes it even better... A muscular stallion with quite a handsome, masculine face... I'd say you're ripe for picking by a female. Or a male, whichever you happen to like."

"O-okay, whatever, let's return to, uh, the topic of things," Andromalius returned the conversation to its roots, "So, uh, what am I to do? Right now, I'm just... staying here as a guest, I suppose."

"You should definitely take your time. Read books, look around once in a while, and generally pay attention to things," Inanna advised, "No matter where you came from, I bet you'll find something interesting, be it something or someone."

"Okay, I guess that makes sense," the hell stallion nodded reluctantly as his blush faded away, "So, you came here to tell me to... read stuff?"

"Not really, but you can begin with doing just that," Inanna nodded, "It looks like you don't know anything at all about what happens around here, so I suppose I can help you get accustomed to things. However, you will still have to figure some of those things out by yourself. I can't exactly read books to you. Well, I can, but you're not a foal, are you?"

"I can read books..." he replied awkwardly, "And... you're going to be here? Like, in my mind?"

"It's not a bad idea, and I don't have much to do anyway, so I might as well make sure you don't do something stupid," the succubus nodded, "Not to say that you're stupid, but..."

"Hey!"

"Relax, stallion, I didn't say that you're actually dumb," she rolled her eyes, "I'm just saying that you might make something stupid just like a lot of others do. And since you don't know anything about this world, the chances of you doing something stupid are higher than average, let's put it that way. For now, just forget I'm here and go about your business. You can surely start by doing something productive."

Andromalius nodded and headed back towards the castle halls. Heeding Inanna's advice, he decided to find out where the local library could be. He doubted ponies had computers or the internet for the ease of access to information, so he most likely had to do everything the old-fashioned way. He didn't mind it much, however – it might just help him relax and think about something else other than the disturbing realization that his mind was basically invaded.

"I can't read your thoughts, by the way," Inanna said suddenly, "Well, outside of the immediate thoughts concerning me. I know you don't feel good about this, but I promise I won't pry."

The hell stallion remained silent, but it was enough for the succubus, for she too continued the silence. Almost instinctively, Andromalius pulled most of his thoughts deeper into his mind, only letting simple ones stay. One step, two steps, looking ahead and at the same time up, to the sides, and down; inhale and exhale; more steps. In just a short few minutes, his legs brought him back to the entrance. As the guards saw him, one of them went inside the hall and returned with Princess Luna a few moments later.

"I see thy thoughts are still plagued by uncertainty," she said, disappointment and a hint of guilt in her voice, "I thought the gardens would help thee relax, but it seemeth they haven't had much effect on thee."

"I guess I just need to get used to things, your majesty," he replied, omitting the part about Inanna. He wasn't yet sure about the succubus and whether or not he should tell anyone about her. Keeping to himself, for now, seemed like the best and probably the only reasonable thing he could do.

"Ah, I understand," Luna nodded, "When I returned, I saw a familiar but changed world. When thou appearedst here, thou sawst a foreign world full of things thou hast never seen before," Andromalius nodded to her statement, so she continued, "Thou certainly hast to spend plenty of time to accept this world as thy new reality. But thou dost not have to be alone, for I shall help thee as promised."

"And so will I," Inanna added, making him shiver as the voice once again seemed so close and yet not present outside of his mind.

"Maybe I can begin by reading some books," Andromalius said, remembering the advice, "I, um, think that's the best place to start."

"Thou art completely right, I wonder why I haven't thought of it myself," Luna nodded enthusiastically, "I need to visit the library also and especially study the language and the history. However, I have recently found out that the main library was moved outside the castle to the center of the city. I mean no offense, but thy appearance is... unusual, and thou standest out from the crowd if thou knowest what I mean."

"Y-yeah..." he nodded nervously. His heart sunk to the bottom when he realized that he would have to go through a crowd of ponies, and he couldn't just stay in the shadow and not attract attention. He was anything but unnoticeable, and even a cape or a robe wouldn't be able to hide all of his features. His big stature, his curved horn on the muzzle, his long tail, it all would stand out like a dark spot on white cloth.

"I understand thine anxiety, but I believe there is nothing we can do to help thee stay... relatively unnoticeable," Luna shook her head, "I suppose I can bring thee the books."

"You know you won't stay at the castle forever, right? Go outside, get some fresh air," Inanna encouraged, once again making him shiver, "Besides, I think they'll get used to you someday," Andromalius was about to reply but the succubus continued, "I know you're doubting it, but you can't really do anything about it if you just stay here, can you? And maybe you'll get to learn about this world if you, you know... care to go outside and actually see it. Get your muscular butt moving, Andromalius. I'm sure you can deal with a few stares and weird looks."

Andromalius furrowed his brows and almost snorted but ended up not retorting to her words. Despite the uncertainty, he knew she had a point, no matter how bad it seemed.

"No, I'll go," he told Luna, "I... can't just stay inside all the time."

"I suppose thou art right," the princess nodded, "I feel thou art afraid of what ponies might think of thee, but my sister is fairly certain they shall get used to me, and I suppose it translates to thee as well."

Princess Luna watched as Andromalius put on a cloak she had managed to find in her garderobe. Obviously, that cloak wasn't fitted to the figure of the hell stallion and ended up being shorter than needed, revealing his hooves and lower parts of his legs. Bumps were visible on the cloak where the exoskeleton was especially prominent, and the curved horn on the muzzle couldn't be hidden. His eyes glowed under the dark of the hood, but it was barely noticeable. The alicorn looked skeptical, but gave up on further attempts to conceal the demonic looks of the hell stallion, and let out a sigh.

"I suppose 'tis the best I can do for thee," she told Andromalius, "Far from perfect, and thou shalt still stand out among the ponies, but... perhaps not as much as thou wouldst have otherwise."

"Thank you, your majesty," Andromalius bowed, hoping to show that he appreciated what was done despite the obvious futility of her efforts. However, the hood that covered most of his face helped him feel somewhat safer; if not hidden completely, then just partially. He wasn't afraid of looking people in the eyes before, but now he wasn't sure. In any case, he had to make his way to the library through the streets, walk out in the open, and show himself to the world unfamiliar to him. He was a complete alien, both in mind and appearance, and that was what scared him most at that moment.

The troubling thoughts continued to disturb his mind as he accompanied the princess to the main entrance of the castle. Additionally, two guards followed them, keeping an eye out for trouble and making sure their princess was safe. No matter how they personally felt about Luna, they had their orders and they wouldn't dare to disobey them. However, they weren't so sure about Andromalius – his imposing stature made the guards worry that they were too few to stop him from doing anything bad if it came to it. Unfortunately for them, nothing could be done about it – Princess Luna requested no more than two guards to accompany her, and her word was law, no matter how much guards or anyone else disagreed.

The entrance to the Canterlot Castle and, by extension, the exit to the main Canterlot City, presented itself as a wide walkway with shaped trees at the sides along with a few featureless pony statues in different poses. A fountain ran along the middle of the walkway, separating it into two lanes. Guards stood at intersections of pathways, providing security to the whole area. Just a few regular ponies were enjoying themselves around this park-like area, but their peace was disturbed as Princess Luna and Andromalius made their way to the main city. The ponies went silent, watching the two carefully and fearfully, but they didn't dare to move from their spots. Andromalius averted his eyes, feeling out of place; he wanted to pretend like no one was around him.

"Good day, Our subjects," Luna spoke to them, "Please, do not mind us. We shan't trouble you."

The ponies nervously bowed, remaining silent. The alicorn turned away from them, disappointment and sadness encompassing her features. She continued on her way, clouds of darkness assembling in her mind. Each her step was heavy despite her best efforts to appear confident and at ease. The way from the castle gates to one of the main streets was painfully slow: each step brought her closer, and yet the path was impossibly long, each brick underneath her hooves lengthening and lengthening infinitely.

Andromalius walked mechanically, counting his steps to reduce his anxiety. One, two, three, four. A game from his childhood appeared in his head – don't step on the seams. Place the hooves right in the center of the bricks. He couldn't see his second pair of hooves, but it didn't matter. One, two, three, four. The steps were that mattered. Another four steps, and then another. He lost count many times, but it didn't stop him from restarting his count again.

The noise of a busy city grew louder and louder as the two neared one of the main streets. Different houses appeared in their view, all of them not higher than four floors. Each of them was unique and different from the other and yet all of them had a similar style, perfectly blending together. The main street was wide and entirely pedestrian – Andromalius could see the signs forbidding the use of carriages. However, there were special streets leading straight to the castle from other parts of the city.

As the noise of the living streets grew closer, it became quieter. Andromalius noticed many ponies silencing themselves and giving looks of fear to Luna and himself. Whispers arose in the air as it tensed and thickened with a heavy feeling of wrongness.

"Look, the princess..."

"Someone else is with her, look! Who is that?"

Andromalius tried to ignore the whispers, focusing on his steps once again. One step, two steps, three steps, four steps, and onwards. He felt his hooves moving him forward along the street to the destination. He didn't know where the library was, but he hoped to reach it soon lest something bad would happen. He had no idea what could go wrong, but he had a disturbing feeling about it, one that warned him about what was to come.

Princess Luna hid her emotions behind a calm mask on her face, stepping with regality and faked confidence. She uttered not a word as the whispers of her subjects reached her ears.

"This is Nightmare Moon, and that big... thing next to her is definitely some evil... thing!"

"Thou insolent welp!" Luna bellowed, shattering the quietness as she turned to the one who spoke the hurtful words. Andromalius folded his ears and looked away from her, fearing that his look alone would bring her wrath onto him, "Do not call me by that cursed name or I shall see thee..." as suddenly as her anger rose, it began to fade when she saw the frightened faces of her subjects as they scattered, fleeing her wrath. The last word fueled by her anger left her maw: "Punished..."

"I-I am sorry, your majesty!" the pony immediately bowed, shaking with fear, "I'm t-truly sorry! I didn't mean t-to say that!" and without waiting for a response, the pony bolted and soon disappeared among the alleys. The guards dashed for a chase, but Luna stopped them.

"No... leave her be," she ordered, "I..." she looked around the now empty street as her lip quivered. She turned away and quickened her pace, "To the library," she said raspily, hiding her tears.

For a short moment, Andromalius was frozen in place, trying to process the events that happened so quickly and yet so slowly. His ears were ringing after Luna's booming voice, and the fearful faces of the ponies remained in front of his eyes. Without knowing what to say, his only option was to follow the princess silently and leave her undisturbed. Even Inanna chose to be silent, having no words to use for this situation. The group continued on their way to the library, now through the empty, lifeless street.

The silence reigned.