>Be Anon.
>Celestia's servant, and friend.
>Forever ago, when you were sent here, you were given a room at the castle while you adjusted to ponyland.
>Through various meetings and run ins with Celestia, you came to be a friend and personal confidante of hers.
>She found it easy to talk to you, as you were not raised with her as a princess, nor did you really see her as a goddess with the power to move the sun.
>To you, she was just a pretty pony with a little extra magic.
>You would find yourself helping her throughout the day, and eventually she just decided to make it official.
>Given a suit, tie, and keys to the castle, you became Celestia's personal assistant.
>(Different from Raven, Celestia's clerical assistant. She would probably shank you if you tried to encroach on her territory)
>Every morning started the same way.
>You would get up while the sun was still down and fetch her breakfast from the kitchen.
>Bringing it to her room, you would attempt to wake the Princess up.
>With previous pony servants and maids, she felt she had to attempt to have an aurora of royalness and authority, even in the wee hours of the morning.
>Not with you though.
"Rise and shine Sunbutt, time to get out of bed and ruin your sister's happiness."
>You heard a soft groan from the bed, covers pulled over Celestia's head.
>"Do I have to? Can't you just be me for the day? My regalia is over on the desk, no one will notice the difference!"
"As tempting of an offer that is, no thanks. I mean, if you want to give me wings and a horn, go right ahead."
>You set the tray down on the nightstand and go over to the bed.
"Celestia, if you don't get up soon, I'll be forced to take drastic measures."
>No reply.
"Ok, you asked for it."
>Using your world famous hands, you quickly reached under the covers and began tickling her belly.
>Her quiet sleepy groans quickly turned into wild laughter.
>"Ha ha ha, Anony-, ha ha! Anonymous, stop, ha ha, I surrender!"
>You pulled your hands back out as she caught her breath.
"Now will you please be a good princess and get out of bed?"
>She smirked.
>Not good.
>"Not exactly."
>Before you could react, you were enveloped in her golden aurora of magic, quickly stripping you of your jacket, tie, and shoes as she pulled you into bed with her.
>Wrapping her hooves around you, she nuzzled the back of your neck, rubbing her head against yours.
>"Lulu can have another half hour of limelight, and  my subjects can deal with it if they miss out of 30 minutes of sun."
>You got comfortable in her vice like grip and allowed yourself a catnap, and for the next 29 minutes and 47 seconds, you two dozed in a comfortable silence.
>(29:47 later...)
>You had gotten out of bed and redressed, reading the schedule for the day while Celestia sat in her bed, munching on toast.
"So, the first thing you need to do is raise the sun at 6 o'clo...I mean, 6:30."
>Celestia rolled her eyes, using her magic to raise the sun. You didn't need to turn around to tell the room was rapidly being flooded with light, and a reassuring warmth rested on your back.
"Hey, just gotta be sure."
>You looked at the schedule.
"Next, at 7:15, you have to meet with the Griffonia ambassadors."
>Celestia groaned.
>"Ugh, really? Ambassador Frostbite always stares at my flank, and Ambassador Gold Feather just rambles on and on about nothing even relevant to current issues, plus he smells like pistachios."
"Why's that bad? I like pistachios."
>"Well imagine your grandfather was a giant pistachio and rambled forever about how "Griffonstone was and will once again be the center of culture in all of the land!" You'd get tired of it really quickly."
"Point taken."
>"Anyway, what's after that?"
"You have a meeting with Twilight at 8:30."
>"That should be nice, as long as she's not still taking her 'Princess of Friendship' role too seriously...again."
"Then at 10:00, you have a ribbon cutting ceremony with Blueblood."
>"Oh great. What's it for again?"
"The Blueblood Home for Wayward Kitties."
>"How did they get him to attach his name to it?"
"They promised to put a statue of him out front."
>Celestia groaned again. You continued.
"Then from 11:00 to 1:00, you have to oversee some matters at the school."
>"Very nice."
"From 1:15 to 1:45 we break for lunch."
>"Also nice."
"Then from 2:00 to 4:00 we have court."
>"Perhaps one of the most interesting parts of the day."
"From 4:15 to 5:00 you have a speech to give."
>"And what was it on again? I completely remember, just need a refresher."
>You raised an eyebrow.
"You have no idea, do you?"
>"Not in the slightest."
"You have to give a royal decree on some of the new stipulations on the sale of apples."
>"For goodness sake, they really need me for that?"
"Yep. Then from 5:15 to 7:15 you're attending another charity function, this one for the Canterlot Orphanage."
>"I absolutely cannot miss that."
"Don't worry, Raven and I made sure that even if everything else had to be moved around or canceled, you could at least make it there."
>"Thank you so much Anon. Is there anything else?"
"No, thankfully even the snooty nobles and biggest court complainers don't want to stay so long on a Friday."
>"Thank goodness."
"So, with that out of the way, let's get you ready for the day."
>(7:15)
>Celestia walked into the delegation room with Ambassadors Frostbite and Gold Feather on either side of her, and Raven following behind. You had made sure this meeting was to go off without a hitch. You had fresh tea made, had a marble bust of the Griffon King put near a window to pretend that someone in the castle might care about him, and even managed to acquire the special pistachios that Ambassador Gold Feather absolutely loved.
>Celestia was right, these were strong smelling, and you liked pistachios.
>You caught the tail end of a probably long winded story that Ambassador Gold Feather was telling.
>"And that's when I told my wife, 'never set the rutabagas on the windowsill for more than 45 minutes.'"
>"And?" Celestia asked, feigning interest, "What happened to her."
>"She was covered in exploded rutabaga. Her scone cart will never be the same."
>They each took their seats at the table as Raven handed out documents detailing a new trade agreement. You tried your best to keep up with these every once in a while, but they were just so goddamn boring.
>"So," Celestia began, "I've been informed that the Griffon Kingdom has become less than pleased at the recurring trade deals?"
>"Yes your majesty?"
>"Why, may I ask? We've had an amicable relationship over this trade deal for centuries? What appears to be the problem?"
>"Well," Gold Feather explained, "That's just it. The trade deal is over 300 years old. It hails from the time where the Griffon Kingdom had just formed and King Sharp Talon had just finished unifying the various tribes and shires. Everything was still uncertain at the time, so he took that offer, that while generous, is almost insulting now."
>"I understand, what do you wish to propose?"
>"Well," Frostbite took over, "As we all know, the deal as it's been has been 3 tons of Equestrian wheat and grain for 8 tons of Griffon Kingdom iron. We wish to change that to a solid 3 tons of wheat and grain for only 4 tons of iron. Our population has grown quite a bit over the last three centuries, and we need to support our growing population, in addition to our own increased use of iron. Why give it away for so little when we need it ourselves?"
>Celestia's face looked as though you could see the gears of her brain turning inside her head.
>"Well, I understand the deal has faded in your eyes over the years, but I don't think we can take such an abrupt change so quickly. Perhaps we can offer you a counter deal of 3 to 7, with an option to return to the dealing table in 30 years to see what's happened?"
>"Most certainly not!" Gold Feather fumed, "You ponies are lucky we didn't completely cut you off! We are more than capable of producing our own grain, but only returned to the table out of respect, and furthermore-"
>Gold Feather began coughing, a piece of a pistachio getting caught in his throat. Nothing serious, but he excused himself out of the room for a few minutes.
>Celestia was alone with Frostbite.
>Perfect. Now was her time to strike.
>She sashayed over to the lone Ambassador, taking one of her giant alabaster wings and draping it around him.
>He nervously shifted in his seat.
>"Frostbite, how long have we been working together on these trade deals?"
>"Uh, 30 years your majesty."
>"Right, then you've plainly noticed that while I could send one of my advisers to work out a new deal, I take much interest in Equestrian/Griffon relations."
>"Correct."
>She pulled him ever so closer, they were now hip to hip, and even sitting on the floor, she was still taller then him in his chair.
>Tightening her wing, she rested his head against her chest.
>"Then I feel I can tell you personally, that this upcoming deal, if not handled correctly, may cause irreparable damage to the relationship between our nations. You wouldn't want that, would you? Then we may not be able to see each other anymore."
>"I mean, we wouldn't want that."
>He found it hard to look Celestia in the eye, and his heart was racing a mile a minute.
>"Good, then what do you say to 3 tons of Equestrian grain to 6 tons of Griffon iron? It may be the only thing to keep us together."
>She placed her hoof on his face, bringing his gaze up to her.
>"What do you say, dear?"
>"I...I don't see why that would be a problem."
>Hook.
>Line.
>Sinker.
>Celestia and Frostbite signed the documents, and before he left, Celestia kissed him on the cheek. It was the least she could do, considering he was probably going to be fired after negotiating such a poor result.
>As he left with the documents, she could hear him talking to Gold Feather outside.
>"Wait, what do you mean, 'you're already finished?'"
>You meanwhile, were with Raven behind an ornamental one way mirror as you both tried to hold in your laughter.
>If Celestia had done that any smoother, you would have guessed she was an escort propositioning him.
>Speaking of which, you saw the ambassador walk out in such a way that he seemed to be hiding something between his legs.
>Man, he is so dead.
>Once the coast was clear, you and Raven entered the room.
>"So, what's next? Tea with Twilight."
"Yep, she should be arriving in your study any minute now. Raven will get your papers in order for the rest of the day, and I'll hop down to the kitchen to fetch some tea for your meeting."
>"Sounds lovely. Cinnamon tea please?"
"No problem, I'll even see if I can beg Iron Ladle for a few gingerbread cookies he's doubtlessly making right now."
>"Oh, you two are just the best. What would happen without you?"
>You and Raven shot a glance at each other.
"Tyrannical dictator."
>"Famine and disease throughout the land."
"Mass chaos and hysteria."
>"Cats and dogs living together."
>"Ok, ok, I get it, you two essentially run the Empire. Raven, I'll see you at 11 at the school, and Anonymous, I'll see you in a few...and You better not eat the cookies this time."
"No promises."
>As you three parted ways, with you headed for the kitchen, you began to reflect a bit on your time here.
>When you were found, unconscious, naked, and bloody, in a crater outside of town, ponies didn't know what to think.
>Some thought you were some sort of space alien, a new manifestation of chaos magic, a horribly deformed minotaur.
>To you it just sounded like you had a really bad (or good) Saturday night.
>Saddled with this unknown, stateless creature, Celestia took you in, making you a ward of the crown until everything about you could be figured out.
>When you were unconscious, she visited you every day, wanting to make sure you were ok.
>Nurse Gauze said that she would spend a few hours each day next to you in the Infirmary. Doing paperwork, reading, softly stroking your head, just wanting to know if you were ok.
>She had no idea if you were good, bad, or downright evil, but she did not judge you based on your strange appearance.
>You were hurt.
>You were vulnerable.
>She just wanted to protect you.
>When you woke up-
>"Good morning Anonymous!"
>Oh, you're here.
>You can get back to that story later.
"Good morning Iron Ladle. I see you're doing well today."
>"You should know, I'm always good when I have spices at my side and a hot stove in front of me. Now, what can I do ya for?"
"If you could throw some of those amazing smelling cookies on a plate for Celestia's tea time with Princess Twilight, that would be fantastic."
>"No problem, no problem."
>As Iron Ladle piled a generous amount of gingerbread ponies onto a decorative plate, you threw a kettle on the stove to boil.
>After a few minutes, he thrust a small, warm bundle of wax paper.
>"And I made this cookie specially for you, in case you came down today."
>Unwrapping it, you found an honest-to-Celestia gingerbread MAN.
>"I thought, 'everyone has a chance to bite the head off a tiny version of themselves, except Anonymous.' I needed to change that. Spent an hour rebending a minotaur cutout, and now I can make you!"
>Laughing, you took a bite into the gingerbread man.
>It was just as delicious as you expected.
>There was a reason he worked in the royal kitchen after all.
>As you placed the cookies onto the tray with the tea kettle and cups, you bid Ladle a farewell and ventured back into the castle.
>Dodging tour groups, nobles, foreign emissaries, royal guards, and other castle staff, it was a wonder Celestia hasn't gone crazy over the past few thousand years.
>Passing into Celestia's private wing of the castle, and stopping outside her study, you set the tray down for a moment, making sure your suit was perfect, before lifting the tray onto one hand and knocking on the door.
>"Come in."
>Moving inside, your eyes settled on Celestia and Twilight.
>You dropped the tray on the table, giving a small bow to the two royals, causing them to giggle.
"Sorry for the delay, I had to fight off three nobleponies, two Minotaurs, and a gaggle of schoolchildren to make sure the cookies got here unscathed."
>"Our hero, truly an example for the guard."
>Twilight smiled as she poured herself a cup of water, dipping the tea bag in.
>"It's good to see you again Anonymous. I'm glad you're doing well."
>"Back atcha' Twiggles."
>As your two friends began to pick at the cookies, you bid them farewell and mentioned you would be outside if they needed you.
>Gently shutting the door behind you, you took up post across the hall from the door, ready if they had a request.
>Using this time to your advantage, you took out your planner and began going through the schedule again.
>As you flipped through the pages, your mind began to wander again...
------------
>The first thing you saw when you woke up in the infirmary was a big white horse.
>She had noticed you stirring and stared at you with a concerned look on her face.
>Seeing this white unicorn with a floating pastel mane and wings, you asked the obvious.
"Am I dead?"
>The look of concern on her face quickly changed to one of relief.
>"Thank goodness, no."
>She left you, just for a moment, to pull over a few of the on duty doctors and nurses.
>As more tiny talking horses began to crowd around you, talking to one another about your condition, you became quite confused.
"Something's wrong. Where am I? Horses can't talk. How do you talk?"
>The big horse, once again with a look of worry, asked all the doctors and nurses to move away, pulling the privacy curtain closed.
>She could see the tears welling up in your eyes.
>"I know you're worried, and I know you're scared, but I promise you, you're safe. I'll answer any questions you have, but first I have a few for you."
>You nodded.
>"How do you feel? Does your head hurt?"
"A little. Everything's sore."
>She nodded.
>"Now, where are you from?"
"I'm from...I don't know."
>The look of worry increased.
>"We can come back to that later. Now, what's your name."
>You searched and searched for an answer. You racked through every filing cabinet in your mind, but they were all empty.
>She could see your brain was trying to put two and two together, but getting five.
"I...don't know."
>If you were scared before, you were even more so now.
>In an unknown land, with strange talking horses, and you couldn't even remember who you were.
>Yeah this wasn't looking good.
>You tried to ramble off a string of questions to try to make sense of this strange situation, but all that came out was a jumble of syllables mixed in with heavy breathing.
>Before you struggled any more with this, she gently wrapped a wing around you, quietly shushing.
>"Everything's going to be all right. I promise. I know things don't make sense now, but I will help you put everything back together again. Just for now, relax."
>You're not sure how long she stayed with you.
>It was at least long enough for you to fall back asleep.
>Too be honest, you wouldn't have thought twice if you were actually dead.
>You were greeted by an angel after all.