It was dawn when Applejack woke up; to her surprise she was lying in the barn in the hay. As her head rose, she recognized it rested on Tyler’s chest, with Tyler lying right beside her. A big blanket was lying over them both. As her memories came back of what happened last night, she gasped. Yes, there had been kisses, she remembered them quite good. Longing kisses as far as she could tell and his hands where all over her body. As she searched for her Stetson, she found it near the barn wall, were the wall was deeply scratched.

More flashbacks came to her mind as she remembered how she leaned against the wall, her hooves slamming against it while he stood behind her and pounded into her. She blushed deeply at the memories of the moans she had let out in that situation. As her eyes followed the scratch marks down, the image took place in her mind. At one time, her legs gave in and Tyler lifted her up and carried her over to the hay. That’s when she blushed again like a tomato. She remembered sitting on his lap with her haunches before she laid down on him while he banged her from beneath. This unfamiliar position was it that brought both of them to orgasm and Applejack bit her bottom lip.

She remembered the feeling, the ecstasy, the spanks on her flank, the… the neighing she let out in this moment. It was before everything went black. This memory made her blush deeply. Neighing… She really let herself go to her herd mate. And how great it felt to be herself in front of him. The feeling of security, the intimacy, the trust. With him she could be herself and he took her the way she was. A small shiver came to her body and she crawled closer to him. As she nuzzled her lovers face, he slowly woke up. As he saw up to her, a sleepy smile came to his face. “Hello there, number one country girl...”

Later the Apple family sat together during breakfast and Tyler had his first slice of bread with Zap Apple jam.

Immediately his eyes widened,
“This is by far the best jam I‘ve ever tasted in my entire life, Mrs Smith!”

The old mare smiled to him,
“Ah thought ya would like it, mah boy! Ya know what’s good for ya. Zap apples are the hardest and most complicated apples to harvest. It needs a lot of patience and wit to make that kind of jam. And pink polka dots too! It was not too long ago since Ah’ve heard the Timberwolves howling for Zap Apple harvest time...” As he arched a brow while looking at the old mare, she leaned to Applejack. “Although Ah must say, mah girl… Tyler sure treats ya good if he can manage to make ya neigh like that. The last time Ah heard such lustful neighing from the barn was when yer Ma and Pa were at it.” This caused Tyler to choke on his bread.

With wide eyes and a red face Applejack stood up,
“Granny! Yer embarrassing us!”

Apple Bloom looked up to her big sister,
“What does lustful mean?”

Looking down to her little sister Applejack showed a stern, yet blushed face,
“It means yer goin’ to yer room while the grownups have a talk!”

With that the little filly went upstairs with a pouting face,
“Ah’m a grownup, too!”

Looking back to the rest of the family, the orange mare now turned to her brother Big Macintosh,
“Big Mac! Say something, big brother!”

The red stallion looked at Tyler and gave him a stern look,
“Yer comin’ with me pardner! Ah wanna have a talk with ya outside!”

Applejack looked to her brother as he went outside,
“Big Mac!”

Tyler held his hands up in a calming manner,
“Ease down, sweetie! This won’t end in a fight! I promise!”

As they went outside, Granny Smith gave Applejack a warm smile,
“Ya don’t have to worry, dear. Big Mac loves ya, he only wants to know if yer in good hooves.”

Applejack sighed,
“He’s new to that, Granny… In his world he would have only one girl. Ah’m lucky he’s acceptin’ being part of a herd, otherwise Twilight Sparkle would be his girl right now.”

Granny Smith now nodded her head,
“Twilight Sparkle… Oh yes, that bright girl from the library yer friends with. Ya have a fine herd there, mah girl. Ya make sure ya keep it together nicely. Two mighty fine mares like ya two are such a good fit for a boy like him. Well… When can Ah expect some foals from ya three?”

Applejack’s eyes shot open wide,
“WHAT? Now, Granny!”

“It’s been a while since Ah’ve had the pleasure of the beautiful laughter of a foal in this house since Apple Bloom is a little filly now. Ah’ve always hoped ya would change that one day…”

Outside Tyler approached Big McIntosh who was sitting on a meadow in front of the farm house,
“You angry, Big Mac?”

The stallion looked over to him and shook his head,
“Nnope! Ya see… Without mah Pa being around, Ah’m the one responsible for the security of the family. That’s what big brothers are there for.”

Tyler sat down beside him,
“So you see yourself as your sister’s and Granny’s keeper…”

“Eeeyup!”

Tyler nodded as he looked straight forward as the stallion did,
“I can respect that. You see… I’m new to the whole concept of being in a herd, but I’m willing to try for her. She’s a good girl. I’ll honor her! I would never raise a hand against her! If you have a problem with me, fine! We don’t need to be friends and hug each other… But Applejack? She’s happy with me…”

With that the stallion looked to Tyler,
“Ah think that is all that matters, don’t ya think, brother?”

Tyler nodded with a chuckle,
“Oh yeah… Me taking care of her sort of makes us brothers in law! Well I hope you talk more with me now!” Both chuckled and that chuckle went into full laughter after another “Nnnope!” came from the stallion.

As Tyler went back to Ponyville, Applejack waved after him,
“I’m coming back later!”

Twilight grinned widely,
“I take it, it went smoothly with the Apples?”

Tyler chuckled,
"Granny Smith already expects foals. I must say I love this family.”

Arching a brow, Twilight then shook her head,
“Foals? Well… Too bad this won’t work. We can have recreational sex, but you can’t impregnate us. Although… I’d like to have a blood sample from you. You know, to study your cell structure a bit. We know almost nothing about you. If you become sick and magic can’t help or Zecora’s potions fail… Then what to do?”

Tyler nodded,
“Yeah… Good thinking…”

* * * * *

Later, back in the library Applejack and Twilight sat together with Tyler around a table where all letters were stacked neatly. Tyler’s head was supported by his hands which held his own cheeks as he saw the four stacks with a hacked of mood,
“There are 192 letters… Each one is a mare of Ponyville. 192 letters of refusal… Ugh! This is major bullshit! Well, since I’ve got plenty of time since the orchards are idle growing fruits now, What do you girls say, we have a walk and answer to each and every mare?”

Applejack corrected her Stetson,
“Ya mean in person?”

“Why of course, AJ! What kind of a man do you think I am? A girl confessed to me, so I have to give her a proper answer. This of course includes that I talk to her in person. And you two will come with me. As of now, I feel a bit uneasy with going out alone.”

Twilight shook her head with a giggle, as they stepped outside,
“Aw, come on, Tyler… It’s not that you would cause a stampe-”

She was cut off as one mare at the end of the street pointed her hoof at him,
“It’s HIM!!!!”

Tyler gritted his teeth,
“You were saying?” With this he dashed for it as a screaming mob of mares went after him. “I’M BEGINNING TO HATE HEAT SEASON!!!”

As he ran down the street, Rainbow Dash flew beside him,
“Hey there, T-man! What’s this about? Some race I haven’t heard about?”

“Rainbow! Thank goodness you are here! Care to give me a lift? That mob behind me wants to rip me to shreds!”

When Rainbow looked back, she grimaced,
“I see. YOU are the price here… Not cool!” Lifting him up, she took off, flying towards Twilight and Applejack again. As she let Tyler down, Twilight’s eyes narrowed as she saw the incoming mob. When her horn began to glow, a purple force field built up around the little herd.

The mares crashed and ran against the field and the librarian shook her head,
“I’m sorry, Tyler… THEY behave like seeing an enchanted doll…” As the mares calmed down, Twilight continued to shake her head. “You think you can win him like that?”

Applejack held her head high,
“Well if yer thinkin’ like that, think again! As of this moment, Tyler will be the one in our herd to decide who will enter! And Ah will accept no mare in mah herd who will give him that kind of a hard time!"

Twilight then summoned a checklist out of thin air with all the names of the 192 letters. As she called each and every mare out, one was allowed to step into the force field and Tyler gave her a hug, whispered some words in private, what caused each mare to bow her head, but each also smiled up to him again and nodded.

As no mare was left anymore, Tyler sighed,
“I guess you can turn the force field down again… Do we have everyone?”

After Twilight checked her checklist, she shook her head,
“There is one letter left. Somepony didn’t show up in this mob.”

While they went to the marketplace, Tyler arched a brow,
“Did not show up? Well either she stayed home or she’s not that crazy… Show me the letter from her, please.” Twilight nodded and gave him the envelope. Unlike the other envelopes, this one was black and the sweet scent of perfume emitted from it. “Oh, that’s original… This was the only letter with something so out of the ordinary… Let’s see what we have here…”

My dearest Tyler,
I must say that I’ve never saw a being as you are, and I must confess that I never believed such a being could exist. Since I first saw you, you had my immediate attention; I had this feeling that you are something special.

If I should describe myself… Oh dear, that is so difficult… I’m different to other mares. Surely I stand out. It’s not easy being who I am and my work schedule is quite off, meaning I’m sleeping most of the day. This of course leaves very little time to make new friends or maintaining relationships. Right now I have only a few friends and it’s hard to see them due to my daily duties. Of course there’s family, but this can’t replace friendship or love for that matter.

As you are the first and only human ever coming to our land, I think you might be equally lonely as I am. If you like to let it happen, I’d like to meet you at the Grand Galloping Gala since I was invited there and I think someone as important as you would be invited as well.

In love,
Moonlight Noir

“Moonlight Noir?” Applejack asked.

Tyler looked up from the letter,
“You know her?”

The earth pony shook her head,
“No and that’s the point! There is no mare in Ponyville with the name Moonlight Noir! Ah must know; Ah lived here all my life! There is NO Moonlight Noir! Not as an earth pony, not as a Pegasus, not as a unicorn!”

Twilight shook her head,
“This writing is far more refined… Like Canterlot writing. Maybe she’s a maiden or one of the servants in the castle that saw you there?”

Tyler hummed deeply. Something was odd with this peculiar letter,
“Twilight? This letter won’t get a refusal!”

Cocking her head, she looked at him,
“Why not?”

“It got my interest… What does the only letter of a mare not living in town have to do among all these other letters of citizens of Ponyville? No! One pony placed it there, wanted this letter to be read. One pony... didn’t sign truthfully.”

Twilight’s eyes widened,
“You think somepony signed it with an alias? But why?”

He shrugged,
“I don’t know exactly, but I think I have a hunch I could check. You two really won’t mind if I court someone as well?”

Both mares looked at each other before they shared warm smiles with him,
“Of course not, sugarcube. Since ya new to this herd thing Ah think it’s only proper we let ya decide who should be the third mare among us. Just remember to talk to us before ya take action. We wish to like the girl ya choose as well."

Another knock came from the door. Tyler looked to the door and frowned,
“Who might that be? It’s getting late already…” As he answered the door, Derpy Hooves stood before him once again. “Derpy! What brings you here at this time?”

Derpy saluted before him,
“Sorry, Mr. Jones! But my boss said we have this special delivery to get to you. He said it was very important!” Another big container approached the library.

Tyler shook his head,
“No… please, no!” As the letters and packets gushed inside the room, he took a step aside this time and narrowed his eyes. “Oh for the love of…”

As Twilight approached the door, she arched a brow,
“What is it this time, Tyler?”

“You have to excuse me…” He muttered while going to the table. “I feel a hysterical crying building up in me.”

As she opened up two letters, her stern face brightened up,
“These are letters of excuse, Tyler!”

“They are?” As he approached the mountain of mail again, he took a letter and read it.

Twilight observed the mountain of mail with a smile,
“Seems like everypony is sorry for giving you such a hard time!” After levitating a packet in front of her, she opened it and waved some sweets in the air. “Some even sent you something to soothe you."

Tyler chuckled,
"Now isn't that sweet... But right now i need a bath. Running for my life sure made me sweaty..."

As Tyler went into the bathroom, his backpack canted aside and the playboy magazine fell outside. As the girls noticed it, they came nearer,
“Twilight… Ya think that it’s what Ah think it is?”

“Yes… It seems like the equivalent of the playcolt magazine in our world…”

As they looked inside their eyes opened wide,
“So… This is what human mares look like? Ah must say… They… Whoa nelly! Are those her…?”

Twilight cocked her head,
“I think so… Those must be her papillas…”

Applejack blinked at her,
“Her what? Ya mean teats? What in tarnation? They’re huge!”

Twilight then hummed a bit in thought,
“But the pose is strikingly nice, don’t you think?”

Applejack tried to analyze the picture before her and nodded,
“It looks like she was trying to seduce somepony…” Then both mares gave each other a sly grin.

After an hour Tyler came outside the bathroom again with only a towel around his waist,
“Ah… That was refreshing…”

As he heard a nice playful giggle from above, he saw both his herd mates on Twilight’s bed,
“Oh, how about this?”

“That sure looks nice, Applejack!"

While they giggled along, he cocked his head and went upstairs,
“Now girls what are you doing up there?” When he saw them both posing on the bed, the playboy magazine between them, his eyes opened wide and his nose began to bleed a bit. “What the…?”

As they looked towards him, both girls gave him seductive looks,
“Well, waddya know… It’s our strong stallion…”

Twilight giggled,
“Don’t be mad, it got out of your backpack when the big thing canted. We took a look and you know…”

He nodded and sat between them,
“I know… You and your never ending thirst for knowledge.”

When he caressed her back and flank, Twilight began to purr like a cat while Applejack leaned onto him,
“Those mares in that book of yers, Tyler… Do ya miss them?”

“Human women you mean? Sort of… But with you two at my side I have two wonderful relationships that let me forget. Why think of things I don’t have any more when there’s so much that I have here?”

As the orange mare leaned in even more, they both shared a kiss while Twilight was smiling at them. Applejack rubbed his chest with her hoof again, whispering something in his ear. Tyler shook his head,
“Again? But we just did it three times this night!”

This prompted Twilight to giggle once again,
“Earth ponies have a strong libido during heat season. Quite the strongest heat of all ponies, if not taken care of.”

Applejack grinned widely,
“That we have! And it’s all yours, pardner…”

With a sly smile Tyler rose up and got dressed. The girls watched him with arched brows,
“Tyler? Is something wrong, Sugarcube?”

“Did we say something we shouldn’t have said?”

He shook his head,
“No, but I want you two to wait a bit. As far as I can tell, the longer you girls wait, the heavier the ecstasy is you get. Isn’t that right, Twilight?”

The unicorn chuckled slightly embarrassed,
“I think I get you… You want us to wait so that it is even better. I’m fine with it…”

Applejack nodded as well,
“Ah think we should do it that way the whole heat season. Just don’t let us walk a tightrope there, Tyler.”

He grinned and caressed Twilight’s cheeks, giving her a kiss,
“I know that from Twilight. Without a good satisfaction once in a while she goes wild during heat season…” Looking into her eyes, his thumbs caressed her cheeks further while he held her face. “But that’s what showed me that Twilight wanted to be with me even if it would mean she would show me her deepest sides.” He leaned forward and whispered into Twilight’s ear. “My kinky little girl here goes wild when she just can lie down and take it…”

The unicorn blushed and looked to the side,
“Tyler… Stop! Don’t talk like that… You know what that does to me…”

* * * * *

After some weeks, the day of the Gala finally had arrived. Tyler wasn’t sure what to expect from this evening since the girls had told him of some mixed results during their last visit. In the Carousel Boutique they gathered around, curious to see his outfit. The vermilion suit fit perfect and as he stepped outside the changing room, the girls gasped.

Rarity looked up in both excitement and pride,
“My… I must say that this truly is my masterpiece for the Gala night! Truly a suit to recognize!”

With the sound of his new polished boots Tyler stepped towards Twilight and Applejack, who looked up to him in awe,
“Well? What do my girls think about it?”

“That sure is some fancy stuff Rarity made for ya!”

“Yes, it looks quite perfect on you. I never imagined that humans have such high class attire…”

Tyler chuckled,
“Believe me, Twilight, there are certain attires even more pompous as this one. To think of all the stuff they wore in France before the French revolution… But I digress! This suit is from a musical I told Rarity about. It turned out perfect, Rarity! I’m more than satisfied with it…”

The white unicorn giggled,
“Oh Tyler, you charmer! Take it and wear it with pride! Everypony shall see you in that smashing outfit of mine!”

Tyler nodded,
“That I will! And I stay to my word. If you ever need help, I will be there!” kneeling down to her he gave her a hug.

She closed her eyes and giggled,
“Oh Tyler, you are flattering me! I will remember it.” Looking over to Twilight and Applejack she winked at them both. “If you ever let this gentlecolt go, you will regret it! I would claim him and never share him with anypony else!”

Both mares gave her a smile,
“Not gonna happen, Rarity! He’s our pardner for lifetime.”

Twilight then looked around,
“Speaking of time… We should prepare as well…”

While the girls prepared themselves, Tyler sat downstairs with Spike. While the baby dragon in the tuxedo gave Tyler a stern look, Tyler waved it away,
“Don’t be ridiculous, champ! I won’t take your girl away!” This brought back a smile to the dragon’s face and he tried to tie his bowtie in front of a mirror. Tyler stood up and knelt down to the dragon. “Come, let me help. Bowties are cool! You’re going to rock tonight, champ!”

As the girls finally came downstairs, Tyler felt compelled to gulp,
“Girls, you all look breathtaking! Isn’t that right, Spike?” As the baby dragon’s eyes were locked on Rarity, he simply nodded. “Uh-huh…” Tyler approached his girls and caressed their ears. “Well, what do my eyes see? The loveliest magician and country girl I’ve ever seen…” Both gave him a nudge into the ribs as a “Flatterer!” came from them both in unison.

On the ride towards Canterlot, Tyler looked outside the window,
“Twilight… Um… How do I put this? How is Princess Luna? What kind of person, or rather pony is she?” As the lavender unicorn looked to him, he shrugged. “Only saw her due to the ceremony where I got my citizenship. She’s a beauty like Princess Celestia, I might have to watch my tongue in her presence.”

Twilight began to smirk as if she saw a young colt in love,
“Tyler?”

“Y-Yes?”

“You’re not up to flirt with the princess, are you?”

He blushed while avoiding the young unicorn’s eyes what transformed her smirk into a wide grin,
“Get serious, Twilight! I mean it’s not that I’m after her flank now, right? Because I’m not! Really!”

As he looked towards Twilight, he blushed even more, causing Twilight to giggle,
“You’re a bad liar!”

“Oh, alright! I think I’m curious about her. But since she’s a princess I’m not sure if she deems me proper as a friend. Royal standards you know? I know I wouldn’t find anyone for me if I would be a prince. I wonder what kind of character she is…”

With a sigh he looked out of the carriage towards the Castle of Canterlot,
“This whole thing of me being curious about her is like a social minefield… You know, I’m not the kind of guy used to ruling class, aristocracy or monarchy…What if my opinions insult her in any way?”

Rarity looked to them shaking her head,
“Darling! You are a polite gentlecolt, and not only did you save us, you also sacrificed your way home for our sake. I dare to say that Princess Luna would never reject friendship to someone with a heart of gold like you! Quite the contrary! She will welcome a new friend like you.”

Twilight leaned in to Tyler and lowered her voice,
“Do I get this right? You think SHE was the one signing as Moonlight Noir?”

Tyler nodded,
“Think about it, Twilight… Moonlight said her work schedule is off and she sleeps all day. She’s lonely, has only a few friends and has difficulties to find new ones. Remind you of somepony you told me about during your explanation about Equestria?”

Twilight thought about it for a minute,
“Now that you put it that way, there are indeed similarities. But somepony like her in our herd? That’s a nice dream there, Casanova, nothing more. A dream…”

Tyler smiled,
“Sometimes dreams come true.”

This was the second time Tyler was in Canterlot and this time he was there to enjoy the sights. The last time he wasn’t in the mood of recognizing the wonders of the capital city. Canterlot at night surely was different as during the day. Now, the lights of the city bathed the towers and walls of Canterlot Castle into a magical sea of lights, and the fireworks going off did their work too. Placing his mask on, Tyler helped each of the girls out of the carriage. “Miladies?” As they approached the castle they conversed among another. “So… You girls tell me last year was rather horrible?”

“It sure was!” Rainbow replied. "None of us got what she expected, but in the end we were having fun because we spent the night together!”

Twilight nodded,
“The princess said there are several changes this year, as the princesses want to enjoy the Gala too, once in a while their assistants will greet the arriving guests. Like that, they can partake in the enjoyment, and converse a bit as well. But every half an hour or so, at least one of them will greet the new guests again."

As they walked up the stairs, two stallions in formal attire greeted them. One was dressed in a white, the other in a black tuxedo. Tyler was greeted by the one with the white tuxedo,
"On behalf of Princess Celestia, welcome to the Gala, Mr. Jones! It's quite an honor, Please, go right in!"

Once Tyler opened the large hall gate and stepped in, the crowd of ladies and gentlecolts gasped upon him. The whole hall was silent in an instant. Tyler was in the center of everypony’s attention being the only human. A black silver, highly ornate half mask rested on his eyes and forehead as he was dressed in a vermilion suit with a rapier attached to the belt. Twilight giggled nervously behind him. “Oh dear…”

Tyler on the other hand closed his eyes while turning his face to the unicorn,
“So it is like this…” Princess Celestia, you prankster… “The ruling class and the guards know who I am, yet the high society is completely unaware of my whereabouts!” With a dark smirk, he approached the throne, his vermilion suit shimmering matt while his mask glittered bright. He had foreseen this and was prepared. But the outcome of his preparations was unsure as he opened his arms.

“Why so silent, good monsieurs?
Did you think that I wouldn’t dare to attend?
Summoned by our princess I have come, good monsieurs,
On behalf of good relation and battle’s end.
Here I stand before your eyes…”
With a swift move he pulled out his rapier in a triumphant manner.
“Offering my service!”

Before the two princesses, he knelt down with one leg, presenting his rapier to the two rulers with both hands, bowing his head.

“Fondest greetings to you all,
Never have I seen such a glamorous Gala hall…
As for our festive night
I wish to fill it with joy and laughter,
Not with fright…”

Luna blinked in surprise at Tyler,
”My, how keen and eloquent this lad is…” she said silently.

Celestia nodded at her younger sister with her usual warm smile,
“Now, now, Luna… Why don’t you say some words to ease the tension?”

With a brief nod Luna rose and levitated the rapier out of Tyler’s hands, doing an accolade on his shoulders, careful not to cut the human who once fought beside her,
“We welcome thee, Tyler Jones! May thy restless efforts be indicative to our beloved subjects.”

In gratitude, Tyler raised his head,
“Milady flatters me. This defender did what he had to do.”

“Thus, sacrificing thy home on our behalf. We are grateful for thy presence, good friend.”

Tyler blushed slightly behind his mask,
“Milady flatters me again while honoring me with the offer of friendship to one of the co-rulers of the land. I gladly accept.”

After their conversation ended, relief calmed the elegant ponies of the hall. The looks upon his person changed from suspicious to curious. As Luna returned beside her sister, Celestia chuckled,
“You were nervous, hm?”

“As was he… I sense he and I are… alike.” He reminds me of myself trying to convince others not to be afraid… The young princess thought. Oh what a struggle that was only to speak of Ponyville. If her big sister hadn’t intervened in Canterlot, introducing her to the capitol, there surely would have been a stampede right away. Luna sympathized with what Tyler was going through right now.

With a polite giggle, Celestia mustered her younger sister who seemed in another place right now,
“Lulu, you and him are alike? Mind to go into detail?” Luna’s eyes widened and a deep blush began to rise on her.

“Tia! Nay! Thou think I show affection to this bipedal lad?”

“I never claimed such a thing, little sister. But still he fought off a spell of mind control to save your life. Does this mean nothing to you?”

Found herself caught, Luna harrumphed once,
“Pray tell, what are thou trying to achieve, big sister? Tis only proof of that he is strong, and will not to harm the innocent. Tis for this reason above all, that I grant him my respect.” The blush on her cheeks darkened as she shyly looked down. “Thee think he shows affection towards me?”

Celestia bowed her head towards Luna’s and looked to the corner of her eye for a second and began to whisper,
“I can’t see into his heart… But I see that he’s looking at you…”

“WHAT?” She yelped with widened eyes. As the sapphire blue alicorn looked around to spot Tyler in a panic, her older sister chuckled. Luna ducked her head as the blush almost turned her sapphire blue to a dark purple. ”Oh, thou art mocking me! I’ll take a short walk into the royal garden!"

It was then when Tyler spoke up,
“Alright, everypony please gather around! I offer you a song from my world. It is part of a musical. It’s a story about a phantom living beneath an opera house. Well, actually it is a man, only known as a phantom since he never gets seen by the others. One of the choir girls, a girl named Christine Daaé catches the eye of the phantom as he falls in love with her and her voice. He becomes her teacher behind the scenes as she thinks he’s an angel sent by her dead father. I give to you the song the phantom sings to Christine as he brings her down to his lair far beneath the opera house and welcomes her. This song is called ‘The music of the night’.”

Half on her way out to the garden now, Luna stopped as the lights were dimmed down. A song about the night? About her precious and finely crafted night? This caught her attention and she returned to look to the human. The orchestra now exchanged the sheets for the right song. Twilight prepared them carefully. The Thought to Sheet spell was most helpful.

Tyler made sure he performed well in Ponyville already, rehearsing a lot, not embarrassing himself with performing one false note. He wasn’t a professional, but he never claimed to be one. He only offered a piece of culture to the Gala, hoping to enrich the Gala night with some cultural exchange.

“♫Night time sharpens, heightens each sensation
Darkness stirs and wakes imagination
Silently the senses abandon their defenses”

“Slowly, gently night unfurls its splendor
Grasp it, sense it, tremulous and tender
Turn your face away from the garish light of day
Turn your thoughts away from cold unfeeling light
And listen to the music of the night♫”

Tyler now laid an arm around Twilight and stretched out the other arm as to inspire her to imagine what he had in mind.

“♫Close your eyes and surrender to your darkest dreams
Purge your thoughts of the life you knew before
Close your eyes, let your spirit start to soar
And you live as you've never lived before♫”

As the princess of the night heard these verses, she blushed deeply as in her point of view, the song praised her beloved night, preferred it over the bright and lively day. As she watched further, the other ponies seemed to like the performance as it was well performed and they seemed to imagine said phantom welcome his beloved. It was then when Luna noticed that Tyler was looking at her. As he continued, he opened his arms while coming right at her.

“♫Softly, deftly, music shall caress you
Hear it, feel it secretly possess you
Open up your mind, let your fantasies unwind
In this darkness that you know you cannot fight
The darkness of the music of the night♫”

He then encircled her, eyeing her smile as he seemed to give this song to her. In an instant she was in the center of attention which made her blush deeply.

“♫Let your mind start a journey to a strange new world
Leave all thoughts of the life you knew before
Let your soul take you where you long to be! ♫”

To her shock he fell on his knees before her, prompting the whole gala hall to gasp. As she took a step, backwards, raising one hoof, he gently grasped said hoof and presented a hoofkiss on it before looking up to her, singing the next verse.

“Only then can you belong to me”

By this point, Rarity and several other mares fainted. It seemed as Tyler was the Phantom and Princess Luna was Christine. Tyler rose up again and backed away, facing the crowd again.

“♫Floating, falling, sweet intoxication
Touch me, trust me, savor each sensation
Let the dream begin, let your darker side give in
To the power of the music that I write
The power of the music of the night♫”

Now a clopping applause filled the hall and Tyler looked around with a kind smile. As he waited a bit, he gestured to the audience that he wasn’t finished yet and they had to calm down.

“You alone can make my song take flight
Help me make the music of the night”

As Tyler turned around to his friends, the princess of the night was already gone and nowhere to be seen. He frowned a bit and searched the windows, to spot her maybe. Not successful in his search, he sighed. Shoot! The one I sang for flees the hall… Is that good or bad? Meanwhile Applejack approached him,
“Ya sure know how to impress there, Tyler… All the uptight gentlecolts and mares seem to talk about ya.”

Tyler shook his head,
“I didn’t do it for attention, AJ… I did it to get somepony touched.”

Applejack winked at him,
“That ya did! She went outside into the garden. But leave her some space. A guy shouldn’t force a girl. And in all that royal flapdoodle Ah guess it’s even more complicated.”

It was then when Twilight approached them with another unicorn stallion,
“Shining, I’d like you to meet Tyler Jones! Tyler? That’s my brother, Shining Armor.”

The stallion gave Tyler a brief shake with both front hooves,
“Twilight told me about that void beast invasion! Remarkable! It takes a lot of courage to sacrifice your very own way of life on behalf of others.”

Tyler chuckled,
“I don’t regret it. Life is good to me here in Equestria. Well, it has become quite bumpy during the last weeks. I wasn’t used to mares in heat and to be hunted down the streets.”

Armor laughed,
“So, how did you make that stop?”

Tyler and Twilight shared a glance before they stood together with Applejack,
“I founded a herd with the girls who love me.”

Shining Armor first was puzzled, then harrumphed and gave Twilight a stern look,
“Twily? Do you have to say something?”

Cocking her head, Twilight arched a brow,
“I wrote you a letter about this, didn’t you get it?”

He shook his head,
“No, I-”

Now Shining was cut off in midsentence as another alicorn stepped in,
“He did get the letter, Twilight… But he obviously was too busy to read it among all the other paperwork.”

Twilight beamed happily,
“Cadance!”

With this Armor nudged Tyler,
“Watch it! You’re going to love this!” Tyler arched a brow as both mares now did something he identified as a sort of a greeting between them both.

“♫Sunshine, sunshine, Ladybugs awake
Clap your hooves and do a little Shake! ♫”

After this, they both laughed and hugged each other,
“Twilight, so you finally found somepony special for you! I’m so happy for you! You’re as well, aren’t you Shining?”

Stammering for words, the young stallion tried to formulate a complete sentence,
“Well… uh, I sorta…”

He then got a nudge from Tyler who leaned in,
“Psst! Just say yes!”

“Yes! Uh… Yes, I am!” Giving Tyler a stern look, the human simply grinned as Cadance and Twilight conversed on with each other.

“Never argue with women or mares, buddy… They get you in the end! They always do…”

The former Captain of the royal guard nodded, slightly amused of this insight of Tyler’s experience,
“So you and Twily…”

The human nodded,
“Yes!”

“Since when?”

“A few weeks?”

“And when-”

Now Tyler cut the unicorn stallion off,
“Is this going to be an interrogation, Shining? My last one was many years ago back on Earth but if you wish I can comply.”

Slightly baffled how Tyler steered through the conversation, he sighed,
“You’re right… I’m just worried about her, you know?”

Tyler patted the stallion’s shoulder,
“I can respect that. Applejack’s brother was the same way. So… You and Cadance, huh?”

With a dreamy look he looked to his wife,
“Yeah… She’s the love of my life…”

“Can’t say you didn’t make a nice catch there, buddy. You hold her dear. Meanwhile we’ll take good care for your sister. We can’t replace you though, only succeed. Nothing can replace a big brother. Isn’t that right, Applejack?”

The orange mare at his side nodded,
“Nothin’ beats family!”

Giving her a brief kiss Tyler then whispered into the air,
"I’m getting some fresh air. It’s getting crowded in here."

Tyler then grabbed himself a lute lying around near the orchestra before heading out, away from all those noisy ponies. He wasn’t in the mood of praise or hearing the same stories over and over again. He could already hear it. 'Being the only human in Equestria', 'unusual and different from ponies in oh so many ways'… Ugh! Despite being so adaptable, the thought to permanently smile to all of this sickened him. He was adaptable no doubt but he preferred people, or in this case ponies not so uptight and overzealously aristocratic.

Most fortunately, the three princesses were more than OK, both charming and beautiful. For ponies that is. In fact, alicorns seemed to be way more beautiful. Fitting because all alicorns he met until now were female and their beauty surpassed by far any pony he knew without being offensive. He began to play in the midst of the garden, despite animals being there. He looked up to the moon and imagined the power needed to make it orbit around the planet. But maybe the two sisters only altered the rotation of the planet. Only after a while he recognized he was playing “Moonlight”, a song from an anime he once saw. He began to chuckle as he realized he played a song about the Earth moon for the Equestrian moon. With the moon as only audience, he slowly calmed down as the cold moonlight shined upon him.

Meanwhile Luna walked in the royal garden, she felt her cheeks burn as if she was blushing deeply. In all honesty, no one ever appreciated her night that much, left alone in such a melodious manner. It was a bit too much all together. Certainly, Celestia expected her to be grateful and regal, to stand above such things and showing grace and manner, but such praise from a male subject, in such a charming and pleasing way… She felt her heart begin to race for the first time in over 2000 years. Somehow, she felt more alive than ever before. It felt… good. She couldn’t explain this right now, couldn’t tip her hoof on it precisely, but on the other hoof she didn’t make any bonds on the moon for 1000 years for that matter while Celestia had all the chances to do so. Her big sister was more experienced in this. It was then that she heard music in the garden.

As she approached the source, she gasped. Tyler sat there playing a lute,
“Tyler Jones? Aren’t thee going to spend the night with the rest of the guests? I guess many want to speak with thee after thy outstanding performance!”

Tyler seemed more interested in the nightlife of the garden,
“I deem high society boring. All the chat about rumors, business and other useless talk about gathering more riches… I prefer to play for the moon while she shines upon me…” His eyes widened as he recognized who was talking to him. “Princess Luna! I…”

She seemed pleased that he wasn’t being pretending for her sake,
“At ease, Defender… I have to thank thee for this wonderful song thou performed. Never before was my night appreciated in that manner.” She then looked to the lute. “This music… Tis beautiful… Please continue, Tyler Jones, let me enjoy thy fine music. I and my moon want to listen to it…”

While Tyler continued to play the lute, she sat down beside him, listening to the sleepy melody. Suddenly she began to sing. It was only vocal singing without text, but her vocal cords seemed to be out of gold as her voice was… divine. Yes, that was the word he saw was fitting the best. Never before had he heard such a sweet singing voice. Tyler slowed his pace until he stopped to play,
“Milady has the singing voice of a goddess…”

Luna suddenly stopped and looked at him, but turned away and harrumphed a bit to fight the blush,
“Why, I thank thee, Tyler Jones, But I would prefer if thou address me with Luna.”

He nodded and played the lute again,
“Not Moonlight Noir?”

She waved the thought away,
“Nay… That’s only my ali-” Her face suddenly went to a deep purple. As she bowed her head in defeat, she looked down embarrassed. “I couldn’t fool thee?”

He chuckled,
“You almost did, Moonlight… But as you wish, I shall call you Luna henceforth… You on the other side, please, call me Tyler…” And while he continued to play, he looked up into the sky. “Such beautiful stars…”

Shyly she eyed over to him,
“I thank thee… I arranged them myself.”

His eyes widened as he turned his face to her,
“All of them?”

“Every single one of them in every constellation…” she replied proudly as she turned towards him. Both gazed in each other’s eyes.

Tyler took a gulp and a deep breath as something deep inside him compelled him to spit the next sentence,
“Not those two bright shining cyan ones right before my eyes…”

Her heart skipped a beat at the meaning of his words and deep inside her heart a fire self- kindled and sped up as she leaned towards him,
“Thou are so different from other stallions, Tyler… Thou are not afraid of me… Nor my title…”

“Why should I fear the beauty of a lovely maiden? A maiden who brings up the moon so I can see her beauty at night… But you seem lonely, Luna. You have… such lonely eyes. I don’t know… The sweet music of the night should be savored with a companion.”

Her eyelids closed half as only inches were between them,
“Oh what a sweet dream that would be… Please, Tyler… I want thine company tonight to ease my loneliness…” The sweet music stopped and Tyler gazed into her beauty.

Ok, you can do this… You should consider yourself lucky a princess like her has the hots for you… But you should slow down the pace to treat her right…

With this thought he leaned forward her and held her cheeks, giving her an intimate kiss. Her heart stopped for a second as she opened her eyes wide in surprise, and then closed her eyes to savior this moment. Forgotten were the years of loneliness, the anger and hatred of the nightmare who once dictated her doing when her lips melted from his sweet kisses. A lonely tear rolled down her cheek as she wished this night would last forever. As their lips parted, Tyler gasped for air,
”Tears? No… No need to shed tears…“

As he caressed her cheeks, wiping away the tears, she closed her eyes,
“Tears of joy, my Defender…”

At those words he gulped another time,
“Listen, Luna…I’m new to this whole relationship thing if it’s the Equestrian way… And the last thing I want to do is to insult you with clumsy phrases. Would you mind if we slow down the pace so I can follow? You’re a princess after all. You deserve… proper courting…”

She looked up to him and shook her head slowly,
“Nay… I wouldn’t mind…I… I know of thy little herd with my friends… I take it thou want to court me into thy little community?”

Tyler was baffled for a moment. He then nodded,
“They sure are my guides to a better me. And I want to court you into our little group. I think company would sooth your lonely heart and there are things I could learn from you as well. The night is so much less lonely when shared with loved ones…”

And while the unusual couple sat in the moonlight, Twilight was about to come out into the Garden. It was then as her way was blocked by a wall of white feathers on a wing. Recognizing who was standing in front of her, she raised her head,
“What is it, Princess Celestia?”

“I think we should leave those two some space, Twilight… Don’t you think?” As she pushed the little unicorn back inside with a warm smile, she chuckled while looking to her younger sister. “Why don’t you tell me how your little herd is doing back in Ponyville?”

However, the silence of the night was breached as a shriek came from the park near the garden. Tyler instantly raised his head,
“Rarity!”

In the park was a big commotion as one white unicorn stallion pushed Spike harshly aside as he approached Rarity,
“So you have the guts to attend this year as well? Well, how about an excuse?”

Rarity gasped for breath,
“Ha! I have to excuse myself for YOUR rudeness? You can wait long for this, you ungrateful self-centered scoundrel!”

With this the prince hauled off,
“You foul country wench! It seems you speak only one language!”

There was a slap, but Rarity surprisingly felt no pain on her cheek. As she opened her eyes, Blueblood’s hoof was stopped inches away from her face as it was in Tyler’s tight grasp. With a judging stare the human glared down to the unicorn stallion, his voice calm and collected, yet a subtle anger boiling within it,
“I beg your pardon… But you weren’t actually about to slap this mare, were you?”

The stallion glared towards Tyler,
“What insolence! How dare you touch me!”

But with a swift movement Tyler twisted the hoof, not breaking it, but forcing the stallion to go down in pain what prompted the bystanders to gasp,
“WELL?” Tyler had a strict tone in his voice and his eyes were filled with anger. “Rarity! What did this lout do to you? Except that he was trying to hurt you.”

Rarity shook her head as she trotted to Spike,
“I’m actually fine, but he was harsh on Spike as he tossed him aside to get to me.”

Blueblood sneered,
“You don’t know who you’re messing with! I am Prince-”

Tyler cut him off,
“WHAT? A prince? What kind of a lousy prince are you to pick on the weak or to slap a lady?”

“Is this some sort of lousy joke from this wench? What is this?”

Only split seconds after those words Blueblood felt a sharp pain as Tyler’s fist buried itself into his face,
“It’s called a punch and it’s probably less than you deserve for hitting a mare!”

By now several of the mares in the crowd cheered for Tyler,
“Woo! You tell him!”

“No one slaps a mare!”

As Tyler left the prince behind and took care of Spike and Rarity, Blueblood got back on his hooves,
“How DARE YOU?!? For this insolence I want you DEAD!!!”

Tyler stood still again and looked back over his shoulder. He then turned back and approached the prince, pulling off a glove,
“A duel it is…” With this he slapped Blueblood with the glove and threw it to the ground.

The prince visibly was boiling at this behavior while other gentlecolts took it quite well,
“I say… This fine lad knows how to deal with a challenge…”

Blueblood growled angrily at Tyler as he spat out the word. “Swords or pistols?”

“Pistols, you excuse of a prince!”

As the weapons were prepared, Twilight ran to Tyler,
“Please don’t do this! One of you will get killed!”

Tyler shook his head,
“I will not back out so this ruffian can have his victory, Twilight. I’m sorry I make you worry, honey!”

Blueblood sneered upon this,
“Honey…? Please… A mare shouldn't court such an hairless ape!”

This prompted the crowd to gasp in outrage. Tyler on the other hand looked to Twilight,
“There you have it! I shall back out of a duel with a pony like that? NEVER!”

Both duelists now faced each other until a guard controlled both weapons. Both had one bullet in it. As he nodded, the two of them looked into each eye. Blueblood had a sly grin on his face,
“Afraid yet?”

“You wish!”

While they stood back to back now, Tyler held the pistol in his right hand while Blueblood levitated it with his magic.
Rarity held a hoof in front of her eyes,
“Oh, I can’t watch this!”

The guard then raised his voice,
“Both duelists! 10 steps! 1! 2! 3! 4! 5! 6! 7! 8! 9! 10!” Both Tyler and Prince Blueblood turned around and a shot sounded through the air.

Raising his left arm, Tyler felt his hurting left ear, His cheek and earlobe were bleeding although the bullet only missed a few millimeters before ripping off more of the ear. Giving a glare on his hand which was covered in his own blood, Tyler’s look raised up to Blueblood. There was rage in his eyes. A silent steaming rage, which made Prince Blueblood see something far worse than he could ever imagine. Tyler began to grin. It was not a good grin, more filled with sadism. The girls recognized it immediately. It was the same grin he showed to the void dragon,
“Oh… Ohohoh… Waddya know! The boy really pulled the trigger on me… But his aim is as shitty as his manners!”

Tyler now raised his still loaded pistol, taking aim perfectly as he approached Blueblood, giggling while he did it. The prince now backed away,
“No… No please! I give you bits! I give you privileges! SPARE ME!!!” Pointing the pistol right at Blueblood’s forehead, Tyler cocked the weapon, looking down to the prince, what caused another gasp from the audience.

Twilight ran to him,
“Tyler! No! Don’t do it!” By that time, the prince shut his eyes tight, fearing for his life. It was in this moment when Tyler lowered the gun and shot into the grass. The shot was enough for the prince to squeal in fear and wet himself.

Tyler’s rage was gone now, transformed into disgust,
“Don’t do WHAT? Waste a bullet on this pathetic bed-wetter? No worries!”

He then grabbed Blueblood by the scruff of the neck and growled at him,
“You will never forget this night! Tonight a commoner spared your bed-wetting ass! Now… If you EVER AGAIN raise a hoof against one of MY friends, not even Celestia herself will save you from me!” He pointed to Rarity while saying this. The white mare seemed deeply touched by that. Her friend then tossed the ruffian prince into his own puddle and turned away.

The prince however focused some magic in his horn and gritted his teeth,
“THIS ISN’T OVER YET!!!” With that he fired a magic arrow at Tyler and the girls.

But before the magic arrow could reach Rarity or the other girls, Tyler jumped in front of them, taking the blast. It was then when Tyler felt a strong spark going through his back, followed by a dull pain, almost like numbness. His jacket was torn apart and he fell down. As he fell down, everything seemed to happen in slowmotion. The girls started to shout and stormed right at him before the numbness turned into a sharp pain. Not knowing that the skin on his shoulder blades was burned and bubbles started to build from them, all he could manage to do was to get on his knees.

The two regal sisters stormed out to the balcony on a higher floor. Suddenly the ground in the park began to shake. First it only was a slight tremble, but seconds later it was a full out quake, shaking the leaves of the plants. Rarity, Twilight as well as some other nearby unicorns shrieked up in surprise as their horns gave small, sizzling electric shocks, just as strong as licking a battery while Tyler’s body seemed to be electrocuted.

Several little visible white lightning bolts danced over his body. Applejack yelled over to Twilight,
“Twilight! What sorta spell did this feller use on Tyler?”

Twilight shook her head, not entirely understanding,
“That was a simple magic arrow! It shouldn’t do that to him or the nearby surroundings!”

Rainbow looked around as the one or another window broke apart,
“Those tremors are unbelievable strong! What the hay is going on?”

Luna’s eyes widened,
“Tyler Jones… Was that his first bodily contact with magic in our realm, Tia?”

Meanwhile Tyler screamed in pain before the magic that had entered his body shot out of it from two spots on the shoulders, ripping off the bubbled skin and leaving his flesh bare. The girls stepped back, not knowing what was happening. Then the skin restored itself faster than any healing magic could muster. What was now on Tyler’s back prompted the crowd as well as the two regal sisters to gasp,
“Oh my… Tia… Are those…?”

As the tremors ceased to exist, Celestia gazed amazed on those two markings on the restored and steaming skin, something that should never be possible on a being that is not a pony. The Mane Six dropped their jaws as they looked to Twilight,
“Twilight! Those…those are…”

Twilight shook her head in disbelief,
“Cutie marks…” From the free spaces in his symmetrical tattoo the two markings showed the Cutie mark like a silver shield as a star trail.

Blueblood shook his head in disbelief as well,
“Nice stunt! Let’s see, how you can handle my next-”

He wasn’t able to complete that sentence as a strict voice interrupted him,
“THAT’S ENOUGH!” The crowd suddenly gasped as Princess Celestia herself jumped from the balcony landing between the two duelists, eyeing Prince Blueblood with angered eyes as the unicorn stallion stopped in an instant. “Out of my sight, nephew…” Her voice was in an unusual strict tone. “…Or you will face most unpleasant consequences!” Once that was said, the unicorn stallion ran away. Tyler on the other hand gasped, just recovering mentally from the event that just occurred within him.

A short moan of pain later, his right hand raised to the place the pain was only seconds ago. To his wonder, no open wound was found. Twilight slowly approached her human friend,
“Tyler… Are you alright?”

Slightly disorientated he grabbed her shoulders before raising the head, looking up to her,
“What happened to me?”

Twilight shook her head, gulping down a big lump,
“I believe your first touch with equestrian magic transformed you slightly. You now have a cutie mark…”

His eyes widened slowly,
What… What’s it look like?”

“Like a shield… Or a star trail? Maybe one can depict it as a shielding star trail?”

Tyler gazed into the eyes of the lavender unicorn mare,
“A… A shielding star trail… Like someone coming to the rescue…”

Twilight nuzzled him caringly,
“That’s right, Casanova! Once again, you saved us!”

His face first looked down before he spoke up with a solid and strong voice,
“Princess Celestia! I have found the answer to the question you asked me!” The princesses looked down to Tyler who now stood up. “Why do I fight? To protect home and family!” He then looked to the six mares in front of him, his best friends in Equestria, prompting Twilight and Applejack to fight the tears. They all replied with friendly warm glances as he approached them and continued his speech. “To preserve peace and to bring harmony.” Now between the girls he caressed the manes of Twilight and Applejack, as he looked up to the princesses.

“For me, the true question is:” Before he made his final pronouncement he knelt down and embraced the girls who gladly gave him a group hug. “What is worth fighting for?” The girls then looked around as all the bystanders and guests of the gala present now were clopping their front hooves to the ground in a big applause, the second one Tyler achieved this night.

Luna went close to her big sister and smiled to her,
“Well? What do you think, Tia?”

Celestia nodded and smiled to the group of friends in her own special smile, understanding and regal,
“Yes, that was well said. Friendship and harmony truly are worth fighting for…” She then approached the group. “But I must say I’m intrigued by your reaction to equestrian magic. Cutie marks only appear when the pony is in harmony with the land and finds his or her special talent. But seeing you have plenty of talents, I expected all sorts of things. Maybe because fighting is in the human nature, your special talent is fighting for others. Still, from what my faithful student has reported me, you already fought for others. So maybe it was magic as well what was a key element in this ‘transformation’? Twilight, why don’t you do some field studies with Tyler together, seeing how he reacts on magic?”

Tyler gulped,
“H-hey… I’m not a guinea pig!” As the girls laughed in unison, he rubbed his neck in embarrassment before laughing as well.

Unnoticed from the guests, the princesses or the guards, there was a unicorn who levitated a clean fork from the buffet table and fetched up the shreds of skin from the grass. After a while, the unicorn went inside and levitated a test tube to another unicorn.
“The tissue samples have been collected, Commander Areku. That is… I had to fetch them with a fork. They can’t be levitated… Doctor Ubermane will be most satisfied. These few shreds of skin are very promising! But now I have to keep a low profile. I will inform you if there will be further samples…” With this both unicorns parted.

* * * * *

As the night went to an end, Tyler escorted Luna to her room. He was happy Princess Celestia had allowed Rarity to stitch up a fast replacement so he had at least a shirt to wear. It was nothing special for this occasion, but it served its purpose just fine. And at this point, nopony dared to insult him in anyway after he served a beating to Prince Blueblood. In front of a large door with the fresco of a crescent moon they stopped as Luna turned to him,
“Tyler… Listen… I have to thank thee for this most wonderful of nights! I…“

But then he put a finger onto her lips,
"I enjoyed this night with you as well. Plenty of action, lots of music and a beautiful moon. I probably will return to Ponyville today. I won’t be able to repeat this night with you tomorrow… After all, the Grand Galloping Gala is only once a year.”

“I think that’s better this way. Otherwise, you would have to beat up Blueblood more often.” Both chuckled wholeheartedly, as she looked at him with some disappointment “But… why can’t thou stay here? In Canterlot I mean?”

With an intimate kiss on her cheek he hugged her dearly,
“I have my duties elsewhere… Besides, we decided to start it slow, remember?” She nodded in sad approval. “But my heart will stay here in Canterlot with you, Luna… Twilight Sparkle and your big sister are in contact with each other. Why don’t you write me a scroll each night? I’ll surely answer it on the spot.”

With this she snorted with laughter,
“Oh, Tyler… Have pity with this baby dragon!”

Then Tyler raised her chin and gave her another deep kiss,
“I will treat you right, my Maiden of the Night… Sweet dreams to you, Luna. This night was one I’ll cherish until we meet again…May I dream about your beautiful cyan eyes…” As the sapphire blue alicorn parted from her human friend with a seductive look in her eyes, the doors closed with magic. As his hand rested on the door, he suddenly creaked his teeth. Boy, watch your manners… He disciplined himself in his thoughts. What would people think if you jump at her?

While he walked backwards through the hall, the door still in sight, a voice sounded behind him,
“I take it you both have had a good time?” Electricity shot through his backbone, he knew that voice all too well. As he slowly turned his head, the white alicorn crossed an eyebrow. “Well then, young man… Lost your tongue? Maybe I should ask my little sister if it’s still in her mouth.”

He raised his hands in a defensive manner, shaking his head wildly,
“Oh no! No, no, no, no, no! I didn’t mean to-“

“To what? Kissing my younger sister? Firing up her imagination with romance? Making promises about staying in contact although you already have a herd? I didn’t say anything about you beating a lesson into Blueblood. My nephew is a lout and probably needed this, but Luna?”

Tyler bowed his head in defeat. Somehow she knew what happened in the garden and didn’t seemed pleased with it,
“Will you punish me for this, Milady?” His head rose again. “If it’s a crime to feel for her like this I am guilty as charged! Punish me in any way you deem proper!”

With a strict look the Princess approached him,
“My, my, Tyler Jones… You sure as hay are a keen one! It seems you don’t fear anything! Not even me! But only a fool does not fear… If you make Luna sad or make her cry, then I swear to you, young man… There won’t be any place on Equestria where you’re safe from me!” Her strict tone and look returned to her usual warm smile, “Fortunately for you, I do believe your feelings for Luna aren’t make-believe. But be warned… You are on thin ice and I’m beneath it.”

As she turned her back on him, she insisted to have a walk with him. This time the young man obeyed her order, “Luna is far older than you, Tyler. The lifespan of a human surely is but a mere fraction of her lifespan. Or rather... We alicorns live forever. But that’s not the point here… Are you familiar with the royal equestrian customs of courtship?”

Tyler stood there for a brief moment,
“Now that you mention it… No, I'm not.”

“I see. You did the right thing to part from her for now. As far as I’m concerned I would leave those things to you, but Luna is more of a traditionalist… And according to royal protocol the young colt has to part from the mare after the first encounter.”

A frown was forming on Tyler’s forehead,
“But she asked me to stay…”

Rolling her eyes, Celestia grinned,
“Oh, that inpatient girl… Finally after thousands of years she found a colt she shows affection for and then she has to wait.”

“Wait! Thousands of years? But she seems younger than you are, so that makes this here…”

She responded with a brief nod,
“Yes, indeed. You ARE her first love. As for that, you now surely understand my strictness with you?”

Wincing a bit, Tyler nodded,
“The understanding is quite there.” Facepalming himself he shook his head. “Oh, Celestia, what have I got myself into?”

Almost snickering, she eyed him,
“Matters of love are Cadance’s specialty. But to inform you: Since you are unprecedented as the first human in Equestria, no law could prevent you to court her… That is until I enact one…”

Puzzled he saw to her,
“Will you?”

His question prompted her to laugh,
“No, of course not. You see, before her dreadful mistakes in the past, Luna was very unhappy and lonely. Her refined craftsmanship was and still is beyond anything I could emulate in her place. All she demanded was gratitude, somepony to thank her. Unfortunately, our beloved subjects were not ready at that time. Nowadays Ponies love staying out all night for several reasons. Festivals, fairs, even technology made it possible to shed more light at night. With this the ponies lost their fear of the night. But this is only balm for her heart. If she really is to recover to her former self, she needs a companion. A special somepony or ‘someone’ if you want, who shares the ‘music of the night’ with her…”

Tyler gulped at the importance of these words. It was obvious what she was trying to say,
“You… You want to make a match between us?”

Opening a door with her magic, she simply gave him a warm smile,
“Come… We have to talk…”

Now Celestia explained to him that she wanted to build a telepathic connection between them to see into his mind, he accepted to do this with her, yet he imagined it to be very painful. If he understood her right, it would be like the sum total of his knowledge blasting out to her from his fragile neural network with the full power of the Equestrian sun. Thousands of years of civilization compressed into a single searing burst of revelation. Yet maybe that was his best chance to win himself the trust from an almost all-powerful equine goddess. He hesitated for a bit, but Celestia urged him to go on,
“Do it, Tyler! You want my trust. Then I need yours as well.”

As the pictures appeared in her mind, Celestia’s eyes widened,
“I… I see…” After pictures of history both recent and ancient, culture in all its wonders sprang to mind. As the recent history stepped forth into her mind, the pictures more and more became violent. The pictures showed marching armies, tanks firing and airplanes dropping bombs. Children soldiers wielding weapons and victims of war, either covered in blood, burned, crying or dead in mass graves. Tyler never felt so guilty and ashamed of being a human. The feeling of disgust rose in him and he was tempted to hide away all of this from her. What his mind showed the princess was the deepest hell mankind could muster.

The climax of those pictures was the mushroom cloud. While Celestia gasped in shock at the picture of the destructive force mankind was willing to muster, Tyler finally let go with a loud “NO!” He fell down on his knees, cowering like he was sick. This last revelation was everything he as a human could ever be ashamed of before her. Recollecting herself with several breaths, Celestia looked down on him. He was ashamed of and disgusted by these things, shivering, feeling reduced to pulp.

Bowing her head down to his cheek drenched in tears, brushing her head and mane against him in a comforting manner, she spoke up,
“So this is why you wanted me to secure and contain any further human… I won’t judge one individual for the atrocities of his kind. You never harmed a pony. You are a good man, Tyler Jones. Fear not for we have nothing to fear from each other.” With this, he looked up to her, wiping his tears away.

Celestia then continued. “Did you really think I would judge you, a man who had sacrificed everything, to be like this? Mankind may have its flaws, but I’m glad that the one human who had reached us is such a good soul by heart. Your people are young, but a fierce fire burns in your hearts. You only lack the way to utilize this fire without hurting each other. I want to see if you can utilize this fire of yours. I think the time may come that Equestria may need this bright fire in your heart.” With a nod, he stood up and hugged her. She didn’t object. With a warm and caring smile as usual she just stood there until he was able to recollect himself. “Do you feel better?”

“Yeah… Yeah, I do…”

“Seriously… You humans landed on the moon? Wait until Luna hears from this…” As he looked up to her, she giggled. “You really don’t have reason to fear me anymore, Tyler… You have given me what I wanted. It will take some time until my mind will understand all these images as a whole, but you have shown that you despise cruelty against the weak and defenseless. Come… Have a seat. What I’m going to tell you must remain between you, me and these walls. You are not allowed to tell anypony, especially not Luna. She was a foal back then…” With that the princess sighed heavily.

“There was a war… an alicorn war. The one and only war they waged. My people fought themselves for the fate of all of Equis. And they lost. They lost… Everypony lost... I was a little filly back then and as I saw the misery, I knew that all this had to end for the sake of all creation. But the price was terrible. Our mother, Queen Faust, sacrificed herself to wield the most powerful of banishment spells she was able to muster, sparing only the foals and young ones of the alicorn race. She had to stop them, so she turned the alicorn race to stars. The very stars Luna crafted into the night sky.” Tyler remained silent. He didn’t know how to answer this. So there actually were many more alicorns… if all of them, even the queen trying to save this world had to be banished, the cruelties must have been equal to Earth’s atrocities… His thoughts were interrupted as Celestia spoke up and nodded to him. “What I told you was meant for you and only you. I want you to know that we share a similar past... Now come... I have to give you some things out of the royal library… Follow me and remain silent…”

On the way to the library he stayed at her side. He was nervous and she knew it. Somehow he felt that she knew it. As he turned his eye to her, she simply giggled,
“Now, now… Do you still feel uneasy because of me?”

“Sort of…”

With a warm smile she shook her head,
“Don’t be! Remain keen as you were before, Luna loves that in you. I can tell…”

“How do you know, princess?”

“Similar taste maybe?”

Now he watched her slightly puzzled. Wait! Does this mean she likes that as well?

As they arrived in the royal library several minutes later, the princess continued to talk,
“Tell me, young Tyler: Do you really think my sister should be part of your herd? Do you think you and the girls could ease her loneliness?”

Tyler remained silent for a brief moment, thinking for a bit of his true feelings for Luna before he nodded determined,
“With every fiber of my being!”

“You hesitated for a moment…”

“I…” He looked down. “I tried to look into my heart for my true feelings for her only to realize that her eyes have absolute power over me. It was hard parting from her.”

Celestia nodded,
“Yes… Yes, she can have this subconscious effect on stallions she deems interesting. I think your human willpower is strong enough to withstand her passive magic.”

His eyes widened in disbelief,
“Are you saying these feelings are caused by a subconscious spell?”

“Yes and no… This spell wouldn’t have any effect if there’s nothing to start with. Tell me: What was your first thought when you first laid eyes on Luna?” Tyler hesitated again, this time for a longer duration. He was blushing deeply red about this question. Celestia giggled at his reaction. “It’s Ok, I guess… After all, you were a healthy young man with no chance of releasing male desires with a proper lady of your own kind at that point.”

“Hey! It’s not like that!” he replied harshly. “She’s just… How do I put this to words? Not only the most beautiful thing I’ve ever laid my eyes on… I wouldn’t disgrace her feelings for me by reducing her to her body. No! Her whole type, her eyes, looks, approaches, the shimmering of her coat when she breaths… Even the way she stands perfectly still… All this makes her the perfect mare in my eyes.”

“Aha!” The princess announced, “But she is a mare, you are not a stallion by that definition.”

“So what?” he answered with angry eyes. “I may be human, but I do have feelings for her!!!” His eyes suddenly widened as he realized he shouted towards a Co-ruler of the land. “I, err…”

Celestia replied only with a warm smile,
“Well, if that’s your opinion, I guess there’s nothing to stop you both then.” Four books floated towards him. “Here… You’ll need all four of them if you want to court her properly.” As they fell into his arms, Tyler looked upon the titles.

‘To recognize royal advances’,
‘Royal courtship for beginners’,
‘Mare in the moon’ and
‘Erogenous zones of the alicorn body – A hitchhiker’s guide by M. O. Lestia’

His nose began to bleed,
“WHAT?!? These?!? Ok, two of them I get but the third and especially the fourth?”

“Sssshhh! You’re in a library at night time! Oh and don’t be shy… I think you might find these… most interesting…” With a mischievous giggle she spanked her flank with her wing and vanished through a doorway. Tyler was baffled. It’s like she’s serious and a regal ruler in one moment and a prankster and/or seductive mistress in the next…Must be the age… Living for thousands of years must come with boredom… Soon after that, he left the library and headed for his room.

proofread by Rythmns