"Power (WIP)"
By BoltGreens (https://pastebin.com/u/BoltGreens)

URL: https://pastebin.com/BMsaR2dK
Created on: Monday 14th of January 2019 11:05:23 PM CDT
Retrieved on: Saturday 31 of October 2020 05:39:26 PM UTC


>You are Anon, and it’s your first day.
>You are the newly elected representative of the Equestrian government, and boy is it fucking terrifying
>You’re also the only human in Equestria, so you have no idea what to expect exactly.
>Of course, you expect some of the older, more reactionary members of parliament to despise you.
>On the other hand, those members who know you, [spoiler] or funded your campaign, [/spoiler] will surely accept you with open arms.
>You already owe favors, it seems.
>You just want to do a good job representing the ponies you’re honored to call your constituents.
>You open the door to your new office in Canterlot castle.
>It’s relatively large, all things considered. You even have a little couch and table.
>Having friends in high places pays well.
>This isn’t going to be your main office, of course. Have to stay in Ponyville if you ever want to get re-elected. Which, you do.
>You take a deep breath and sigh.
>This is gonna be your home away from home.

>You hear a knock on your door.
“Come in.”
>An eggshell white pony with a black mane enters the room.
>”Hello Mr. Mous, I’m Paper Trail. I’ve been assigned as your personal assistant, so I’ll be traveling with you from here on out.”
>You get an assistant? You ran the campaign without one, but you must admit it would be incredibly helpful.
“Alright then, Paper Trail. Please just call me Anon. You have a desk right across the hall.”
>She smiles and nods, turning to leave; giving you a view of her cutie mark: a pair of plump, red lips, zipped up tight on a piece of printer paper.
>You have to wonder what that implies, and if it may come in handy later on.
>Just as she’s about to close the door something hits you.
“Oh! Uh, Paper, what’s my schedule for today?”
>She turns and pops her head back in. “You have 3 meetings today. One with the Committee of Foreign Affairs at 10, one with the head of the party at noon, and one with the princesses over dinner. After that, you’re free for the day. I’ll update you if anything comes up.”
>????????????????????????????????????
>The princesses?
>Since when did you have a meeting with them?
“The p-princesses?”
>”Yes sir. They personally had me arrange it.”
>Fuck.
>Okay, don’t panic. Just meeting with the two most important beings in the world.
“Alright. Thank you.”
>She nods. “If you need anything else, I’ll be setting up my office,” she says before leaving.

>You make your way through the castle, getting bombarded by some press outside the representative chamber.
>You push your way through and head inside.
>You’re baffled by the size of both the doors and the foyer.
>You’re a small town fella, afterall.
>You shrug off your awe and make your way to the CFA meeting room.
>You were quickly voted into the committee since you, yourself, are foreign.
>Albeit in a much different way.
>You enter the meeting room and take a seat in the middle of the table, next to Filthy Rich.
>Filthy helped fund your campaign, so he’s an ally of sorts in this committee.
>He smiles at you. “Anon, my boy. How’s your first day as a mover and shaker going?” 
>You shrug
“Meetings.”
>He laughs, patting your back.
>”I remember my first day. I thought it would never end. And when I got home, my wife gave ME a hoofrub for once.”
>You laugh to be polite.
>”Trust me, kid. You’ll do fine.”
>You smile. If Filthy thinks you’re cut out for it, you’ve gotta be.
>He’s been in office for close to 25 years now.
>He leans over to you as more ponies stream into the room.
>”Let me give you some advice I wish I had in my first meeting,” he whispers. “If you want these people to respect you, show them you deserve it,” he continues, waving to a buddy of his.
 “How?”
>”Just. Talk,” he says, giving you a wink.
>You nod, catching his drift.
>Soon enough, all of the members are present, and the meeting begins.
>The head of the Committee, a cream pegasus with slicked back, black hair and a pair of smirking lips for a cutiemark, takes the head of the table.
>”To everyone re-elected, congrats and welcome back! To our sole newcomer,” he points to you, “welcome. We hope you can help us make the right choices.”
>You nod to him and the ponies around the table, most of which seem to be sizing you up.
“Of course. Happy to be here...?” you pause, asking for a name
>He smirks, matching his cutie mark to a tee.
>”Bold Move,” he says, nodding to you. “Now, down to business…”

>The meeting drones on for about an hour before something of personal importance arises.
>”Moving on to the current tension with the Buffalo Nations,” Bold Move looks to one of the representatives of Appleoosa. “Have you been maintaining contact with the Chief Council?”
>The representative, an old stallion in an equally old Stetson, looks over the documents.
>”Well, We’ve been trying, but the Council doesn’t take to kindly to the new drilling operations on the edge of the Everfree.”
>You decide to speak up.
“The ponies in Ponyville have noticed some fires out in the Everfree at night. I’ve also gotten reports of stray Buffalo coming into town to trade.”
>The Appleoosan representative, as well as Bold Move, nod while listening.
>Filthy jumps in.
>”It wouldn’t surprise me if they’re scouting the drills for an attack if things don’t go their way.”
>You nod.
“Some of the blacksmiths in Ponyville have gotten requests for high quality spears and swords. Filthy’s probably right in that assumption.”
>”Have the requests been filled?” Bold asks with a raised eyebrow.
“Of course not,” you respond.
>Bold nods. “I’ll write up a report on this and send it to the Princesses.”
>You smile to Filthy, who nods like a proud dad.

>After that meeting, you head to the office of one ‘Sworn Oath,’ the current head of your party, and majority leader in the Congress, and the stallion you owe many favors to.
>After knocking, a young mare opens the door.
>”Right this way.”
>She leads you through a bustling hallway to a big set of double doors.
>”He’s right in there,” she says, nodding for you to head in.
>You thank her and open the doors.
>Oath’s office is massive, easily three times the size of yours.
>So is his desk, it seems.
>”Ah! Anon! Come in, please.”
>The stallion jumps down from his chair and walks over to you, offering a hoof.
>You take it and nod.
“Sworn Oath. How’ve you been since the elections?”
>He sighs. “I’ve been better. Scrounging up bipartisan support for a new trade bill…” he trails off, before shaking his head. “But I didn’t arrange this meeting for that.”
>He motions to the couch in the center of his office. “Please. Sit. Would you like some coffee?”
>You wave him off, taking a seat.
>”Now then. I just called you here to congratulate you!” He says, taking a sip of what you assume is whisky.
>You know for a fact that’s not why you’re here.
>But you let him continue.
>”It’s... impressive that you managed to sway the hearts and minds of enough ponies to beat out the incumbent in your district,” he takes another long sip.
>He’s obviously trying to intimidate you, but you don’t understand exactly why.
>”You represent Ponyville, the residence of Princess Twilight, correct?”
>There it is. Probably wants to call in a favor to get him closer to Twi. The question is, what for?
“That’s right. She and I are fairly close. She played a big part in getting me elected, actually.”
>He struggles to hold back a smile.
>You internally roll your eyes.
>”Well, I’ll get straight to the point, then.”
>Please.
>”Could you possibly convince her to toss in her support for my Lordship bid?”
>Oh boy. That’s a big ask.
>The House of Lords is basically a lifelong position of semi-royalty, and the only way in is to petition all of the Princesses, and the current members.
>Getting the support of one princess is enough to almost guarantee entrance, since most of the lords are massive pussies who lick the boots of the real royalty.
>You think for a minute.
“You think your bid will work?”
>He nods. “If you get Princess Twilight, I can nearly confirm it myself.”
“What’s in it for me?”
>He raises an eyebrow.
>”Well, you’ll have the eternal gratitude of a Lord, for one,” he pauses, finally finishing off the glass.
>”I might also be able to pull some strings around and get you a more… favorable position in the party.”
>You honestly couldn’t care less about that. You just want to help your friends in Ponyville.
>Although, having more control of legislation makes creating jobs in your district easier.
>Finally, you nod.
“Fine. I’ll see what I can do, but don’t hold your breath.”
>He smiles wide. “Thank you, Anon. You won’t regret this.”
>As far as you know, Twi hasn’t supported anyone yet, so you’re not exactly sure if the Lords would bite. There’s no real precedent for Twi, or anything she does, really.
>Well, it’s worth a shot.

>You now stand outside of the Royal Dining Hall™
>A lowly representative standing before the dining hall of two goddesses.
>You take another deep breath and prepare yourself for anything.
>You push the doors open and are presented with 3 things, none of which you were prepared for.
>1: The wonderful scent of pancakes.
>2: Princess Celestia, face buried in a massive cake.
>and 3: Princess Luna laying, hooves up to the sky, on her chair; her mane draped across the floor.
>You stop in your tracks, trying to properly take in the sight before you.
>Both of the Princesses freeze the same as you.
>Celestia’s eyes poke out just above the top of the cake
>Luna huffs some hair out of the way, her wide eyes meeting yours.
>She looks cute.
>You turn 360 and exit, shutting the door behind you.
>You wait for 10 seconds, rustling and crashing coming from the door.
>Take two
>When you push the doors open, both of the Princesses look refined and elegant.
>Celestia sips some tea, while Luna sips some coffee.
“Princesses.”

>They both nod to you.
>Luna is the first to open her mouth, “Anon E. Mous. A pleasure.”
>You bow respectfully, causing Celestia to giggle.
>”You don’t have to do that, Anon. This is a casual meeting.”
>Based on the way it started, it had better be. Otherwise this’ll be awkward as shit.
>You rise, making your way to the table.
>Luna follows you with her eyes, a slight blush tinting her cheeks.
>Jeez, this might be awkward as shit anyway.
>You take a seat opposite Luna and smile to Celestia.
“S-So, what’s on the menu today?”
>She giggles
>”Do try to relax, Anon. I don’t bite,” she says, looking to her sister. “Luna, on the other hand…”
>Luna’s eyes widen, and she blushes harder, throwing a piece of bread at Celestia.
>”Sister!”
>Woo, okay, they’re normal. Thank God.
>You laugh at their antics.
>”To answer your question,” Luna says, shaking her head at her sister. “Whatever you’d like.”
>Oh shit, really?
“I can have ANYTHING?”
>Both of the Princesses giggle. “Of course,” Luna answers.
“Well, uh, where do I order?”
>Someone clears their throat next to you
>JESUS
>You look to your right and see an older stallion in a nice suit.
>”That would be me, sir. What would you like today?”
“C-can I have a steak?”
>Luna smirks
>The stallion nods. “Of course, sir. How would you like it?”
>Oh baby
“Rare, please.”
>He nods. “As you wish.”
>FUCK YEAH
>You must look like a kid in a candy store, because Luna and Celestia snicker
>You reach for your water and take a sip.
>Despite them being more normal than you expected, and they’re insistence that you relax, you’re fucking terrified.
>You’re glad you’re not a neurosurgeon because jesus you’d fuck someone up with how bad your hands are shaking.

>”Well Anon, we just wanted to say congratulations on getting elected,” Celestia says, taking another dainty bite of cake.
“Thank you, Princess. It certainly doesn’t hurt that Twilight vouched for me.”
>”Well, my student does have a penchant for helping her friends,” she says, magicing the water to her mouth. “You are her friend, right?”
>You cough a little. 
“O-of course! She’s a great friend. Those lessons really work well.”
>Luna nods. “My sister is very patient with Twilight. I could never handle dealing with her long rants or sudden outbursts,” she pauses, taking a closer look at you. “I’m surprised at your own patience for her.”
>You chuckle, scratching the back of your head.
“Sitting through her examinations and all of the city council meetings made me plenty patient, trust me.”
>This makes her giggle.
>YOU’RE NAILING IT ANON
>”So Anon,” Luna continues, “How has your first day gone? Is it as riveting as you had hoped?”
>You shrug.
“It’s honestly more of the same, just on a bigger scale. With the exception of this particular meeting,” you say, finishing your water.
>Celestia takes an interest in that. “You know, most of the new representatives respond with great joy. You may be the first to treat it as ‘business as usual.”
>You smile.
“Well, regardless of what they tell you, it is. I learned a long time ago that no matter how high you go, it really is ‘just politics,’” you smell the steak and turn your head, spotting the old stallion with a tray.
>Luna glances to her sister, communicating something you can’t even begin to guess at.
>”Well, I hope that it’s not ‘just politics’ for you,” she says, worried.
>You dig into your steak, and boy is it the best fucking thing you’ve eaten since arriving here.
>You make sure to stay polite, never speaking with your mouth full
“Of course not. Honestly, I got into politics to help my friends. Twilight gave me the idea. I hate all of the politicking and backstabbing, but if I want to truly help those closest to me I need to have some power.”
>Luna and Celestia nod in approval.
>”You’re very forthcoming, Anon. I hope it doesn’t end up hurting you out here in Canterlot. I know that there’s plenty that would use information you provide against you,” Luna states, concerned.
>You look up at her.
“The trick is, Princess, if you’re willing to tell anybody everything about you, it doesn’t matter what they say to others. You never let them have any power over you if the information doesn’t have any in the first place,” you say with a wink.
>Luna blushes, and Celestia giggles.
>”My my, Anon. You seem to have it all figured out, then. Sister,” Celestia turns to her sister. “It seems we have nothing to worry about after all.”
>Luna nods. “I agree.”
>You let the tension in your body out. You’ve passed the tests.
“This steak is amazing! Where do your chefs learn how to cook it?”
>Celestia smiles. “We often get diplomats from the Griffon Kingdom and The Dragon Lands. They absolutely adore steak.”
“Well so do I, my compliments to the chef, and to you as well, Princesses. You’ve been gracious hosts.”
>Luna smiles and nods to you. “Please, Anon. Just Luna and Celestia will do. At least, when the press isn’t around.”
>You smile and stand.
“Will do, Luna.”
>You nod to the both of them and take your leave.

>You are Luna.
>He is quite the interesting character, isn’t he?
>You’ll have to keep an eye on him.
>You look to your sister.
“Tia, what do you think?”
>She looks up at the door, eating her cake.
>”He’s nice. Honest, kind, all around genuine; he’s a lot different from the other representatives. I think... I like him. You?”
>You nod, thinking about it.
>You glance to the door.
“I think I like him too...” you say, a smile tugging at your lips.

>You really hate these meetings.
>They make you feel like the only thing you’re good for is favors.
>But, they’re necessary if want to get anything done.
>You’re Anon, and you’re sitting in your office getting lectured by a lobbyist.
>”You don’t understand, Mr. Mous. The Everfree is teeming with natural resources! Imagine the profit!”
>You shake your head.
“No, I don’t think you understand. The Everfree forest is one of the natural wonders of the world. Not only that, but I personally have reason to see it continue to exist. I’m not going to sell out a slice of my old life for some money in the next election cycle. Now, if you have something else to discuss, I’d be happy to. If not, then I suggest you leave.”
>You’re standing now, pointing to the doors. The pony shrinks back, probably noticing your bared incisors.
>One of the advantages of being a human.
>The pony scrambles out the door, bumping into someone on the way out.
>You hear her screams of sorry from the other side of the door.
>Before you can sit, a head pops into the doorway.
>Good thing you didn’t sit, because you’d shoot straight out of your chair if you had.
“P-princess! To what do I owe the honor?”
>Luna smiles and enters, closing the door behind her.
>”What was that all about?”
>You sigh and sit, rubbing your temple.
“Damn lobbyists want to turn the Everfree into a giant logging enterprize. I’ll die before I let that happen. Can you eve-” you pause, shaking your head. “Anyway princess, what can I do for you? Would you like some coffee?”
>She giggles, nodding. “Black, please. I thought I told you, it’s just Luna.”
>She takes a seat on your couch.
>You shake your head, pouring out some coffee for her.
“You know it’s gonna take some getting used to, Luna,” you turn and hold it out, letting her grab it with her magic. “I mean, you’re my boss.”
>She looks taken aback by that.
>”O-oh, is that why?”
>You nod.
“Never been one for casual workplace environments. Gets me too comfortable,” you explain, taking a seat across from her.
>”You look pretty comfortable to me,” she says, raising an eyebrow.
>You laugh.
“That’s another one of my secrets, Luna. Let them think you’re comfortable, but always keep your guard up.”
>”You’ll have to teach me all of your tricks, Anon. I find myself so overwhelmingly bored during night court,” she says, grimacing at the mere thought.
“Unfortunately I don’t have any tricks to stave off boredom other than talking to friends, and I’m not so sure you’re allowed to do that during court. Might wanna check with Celestia to make sure, though,” you say, sipping your coffee.
>She sighs. “No, I think you’re right,” she says, glancing around the room.
>Her gaze rests upon a picture hanging over your office fireplace.
>”Who’s that?”
>You look over.
“That’s an old photo I had on my phone when I got here. It’s my dad,” you say, standing and moving to it.
>”You look a lot like him.”
>You chuckle and glance back at her.
“You think so? Well, I’m glad. He was a good man. Raised me right.”
>She stands and moves to your side, looking to the photo.
>”Well, if he was half the man you are, I’m sure he was a great person.”
>You raise an eyebrow and look down to Luna.
“What makes you think I’m a great person?”
>She smirks and looks up to you. “The way that lobbyist bumped into me on the way out.”

>”What do you think, Anon?”
>You’re Anon, and Filthy wants your opinion on the Griffon situation.
>In hindsight, you’re very glad you made friends with Filthy.
“They’re posturing. It’s what they do. Listen,” you voice, looking around at the CFA members. “If you think the Griffons are willing to sever ties with their biggest trade partner over a pile of rocks, you’re nuts.” That gets a handful of nods around the room. “They want to see how much leverage they hav-”
>Suddenly, the conference room doors open, revealing none other than the Princesses.
>Everyone in the room moves to bow
>Celestia waves it off. “No need. Now, I believe we have a situation to discuss,” she says, nodding to you.
>You nod back as Bold Move gestures to two open seats, right across from you.
>The Princesses take their seats, Luna directly across from you, Celestia to her left.
>”So,” Luna opens, looking to Bold. “What is the current situation regarding the Buffalo?”
>Bold sighs. “In a word, dangerous. They’ve made themselves valuable to both the Yaks and the Dragons, while continuing to be a painful thorn in our side.”
>Celestia nods, looking to the Appleoosan representative, who you recently learned is named ‘Big Iron’
>”Mr. Iron, how much of a threat do they pose to your constituents?”
>He frowns. “They’ve launched a handful of midnight raids on our oil rigs, but I understand that Mr. Mous has had the bigger problems,” He says, pointing to you.
>You nod.
“The Buffalo have become more easily agitated when they come into town to trade. We’ve had fights break out in Ponyville, with no casualties thankfully. Not only that, but their movements in the Everfree have gotten harder to track,” you sigh, shaking your head. “I’m worried they’re gearing up for something bigger.”
>Luna and Celestia consider this.
>Luna looks to you with a smile. “What do you think we should so?”
>The entire room shifts their gaze to you.
>This is a big moment.
>Not just for you, but Equestria.
>You think for a minute.
>Finally, you make a decision 
“I want to talk to them.”