Title: Captain Anonymous - Chapter 19 - The Train Ride Author: somewritefag Pastebin link: http://pastebin.com/w3jRMRCA First Edit: Sunday 9th of August 2015 10:54:55 AM CDT Last Edit: Last edit on: Sunday 9th of August 2015 12:20:04 PM CDT                                         Captain Anonymous - Chapter 19 - The Train Ride ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- >The three of you run as fast as you can, making it just in time as the last call for passengers to board is made. You show your tickets and seat yourselves, the three of you heavily panting and gasping as the train departs the station.   >When she finally catches her breath, Twilight leans forward, resting a hoof on your knee and looking into your eyes lovingly.   >”I’ve never seen Rarity that happy before, Anon. I don’t think any pony in the world has ever made her as special as you just did. That was very, very sweet of you. You’re so caring and gentle by nature, you might try to hide it behind a tough persona, but I see right through you. I always have. You have an incredibly loving heart, and what seems like an infinite capacity for being kind. It’s really no wonder I ended up falling in love with you.”   >You smile at Twilight, blushing a bit as some of the other ponies on the train start taking notice of your impressive attire and admiring it.   “You know, I just realized… we forgot to go to the hospital,” you say, running your fingers over your still somewhat swollen eye.   >”That’s fine, Anon, there’s one in Canterlot. We can go there and be treated when we arrive,” Shining says.   “Oh, okay. Good,” you reply. It’s not long after that you begin to hear muttering and whispers from the other passengers that cause your smile to fade.   >”Did the princess say she was in love with him?”   >”What!? No way! Like, love love?”   >”Yeah!! She said something about him having a good heart and ‘it’s no wonder I fell in love with you’ or something like that.”   >Your eyes dart around, Twilight looks confused by your expression for a moment until she hears the whispers and chatter as well.   >”That’s crazy! The Captain and the Princess? Together? Romantically!?”   >Word continues to spread throughout the train car, eventually every pony there is whispering amongst themselves, the chatter beginning to grow louder. One or two of them slip into the car ahead and the car behind yours.   >Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit.   >You and Twilight sit stone-faced at each other. One little slip of the tongue in public overheard by another pony, and your secret isn’t so secret anymore. Like Twilight said, word travels fast in Equestria, it won’t be long until it’s common knowledge now. Neither of you have any idea what to do or say, so you sit in silence, wishing you could find a hole to crawl into and hide it. There’s no containing this now and you both know it. You feel like you should be panicking, but instead you’re just numb, continuing to stare at Twilight with an expressionless face.   >”Do you think they’re going to Canterlot to get married?”   >”That might explain why he’s looking so dapper.”   >”I mean it’s a little strange but the Captain is helping everypony out of a really dangerous situation, maybe he wanted the princess’s love in exchange for his help or something.”   >You tilt your head slightly as you pay closer attention to the contents of the chattering around you. All eyes are on you at this point.   >”I think it’s kinda neat, Princess Twilight has saved us so many times, and now Captain Anon is going to protect us. Heroes belong with other heroes don’t you think?”   >”A bit unorthodox, but yes, I would have to agree. If the princess is in love, good for her!”   >You can’t believe your ears. Twilight looks shocked as well, as most of the chatter you two can decipher seems to be positive. Eventually you hear a tiny voice cut through the chatter, the two of you looking down to see a young filly sitting on her haunches staring up at you as she speaks loudly, every single other pony around you falling completely silent, and every pair of eyes falling on you with intense stares as she speaks.   >”Princess Twilight? Captain Anon? Are you in love with each other? Like, like in the way ponies that are coltfriend and marefriend kind of in love? Cause everypony on the train says you are,” the adorable little filly tilts her head and smiles, waiting for a response.   >She looks back and forth between you as she continues speaking. “I heard some of them saying mean things so I wanted to come talk to you.”   >She rears up and rests a hoof on your knee, continuing her heartfelt speech.   >”I just want you to know it’s okay if you really are in love. Don’t be sad or scared if ponies are mean to you cause of it, just cause you’re different,” she says, shooting some of the other ponies angry glances.   >”You should always be happy if you’re in love, cause, cause love is the most important thing you know! Love is always, always the most important thing, and loving somepony is something you never ever, ever have to say you’re sorry for. Always remember that if you get sad or scared okay?”   >Out of the mouths of babes…   >The entire cabin of the train car is still dead silent, save for the rhythmic sound of the wheels running over the tracks below. Shining Armor is clutching a hoof to his chest, sniffling and struggling not to cry. Your heart pounds rapidly in your chest as adrenaline shoots through your veins.   >Even as you’re about to have a full blown panic attack you can’t help but smile back at the filly, her words absolutely melting your heart. You gently pick her up and set her on your lap, she looks up at you in awe.   “What’s your name, little filly?” you ask her softly.   >”Jasper Jewel, Captain Anon,” she replies eagerly, smiling up at you with excitement in her eyes.   “Well, Jasper, you’re a very, very clever little filly,” you say, patting her on the head gently as you smile at her. “You’re also very wise, too, little one. In fact, you’re even a lot wiser than some grown-up ponies I know!”   >She gasps and smiles as wide as she can.   >”Gosh, really? You mean it!?”   “Why, you sure bet I do! You’re so little, and so very young, but you’ve already figured out one of the most important things about life that you can, something that takes some ponies their whole lives to understand completely, and that some ponies never even do at all.”   >You scritch her ear a little bit and pat her on the back as you continue to praise her.   “You should be very proud of yourself for that, Jasper. Don’t ever let anypony tell you you’re wrong about that, either, okay? If they do, you just tell them Captain Anon and Princess Twilight said you’re right and they’re wrong.”   >The little filly squeals with delight and hugs you as tight as she can. Some of the ponies on the train look a little ashamed, some look on in curiosity, some are smiling as widely as they can at your interaction with the innocent little filly, there are a few hushed awws. Twilight seems to have relaxed significantly, looking over at you and the little filly with relief, your interaction with her seeming to have averted what might have ended up as a minor crisis or public outrage.   “Can I ask you a question, Jasper?”   >”Uh-huh!” she nods enthusiastically.   “What makes you say what you just said to me and Princess Twilight? Where did you learn it from?” you ask her out of genuine curiosity.   >”Well I’ve always known it, Captain, ever since I was a foal! My uncle got married to a griffin when I was still just a baby, and I remember some ponies in the family being mad at him and stuff. It always made them really sad when anypony was mean to them about being in love,” she gets a sad expression on her face and looks away from you.   >“My uncle is the one that taught me they were wrong, and that love is always the most important thing no matter what, even if some ponies are mean to you about it. He says when ponies are mean you just have to stay strong because you’re right and they’re wrong.”   “Well the next time you see your uncle, you thank him for us, okay sweetheart?”   >”Yes sir, Captain!” the filly says with a salute. She’s really gotta stop being this adorable or you’re going to fall over dead.   “By the way, how is your uncle now? Is anypony mean to him and his wife?”   >”No sir, Captain Anon, sir. It took the other ponies in the family some time to understand it, but now they all know it too. I don’t know why it took them so long, it was really easy for me to figure out from the very start!”   “Well, you go right on telling every single pony you meet that, okay?” you say, gently setting the filly back down.   >”Okay!” she chirps happily.   >Twilight speaks to the little filly after you’re through.   >”Take this, Jasper,” she says. She just happens to be wearing her crown, which she levitates off of her own head and places on the filly’s, though it’s way too big for her, “tell your mommy, daddy, and aunt and uncle that Princess Twilight loves you and is very, very proud of you for being more mature than some grown-up ponies.”   >The filly’s eyes go wide and her mouth hangs wide open as she gasps when the crown comes to rest haphazardly on her head.   >”Oh my gosh! Oh my GOSH!! Princess Twilight, you really mean it? For me to keep forever and ever?”   >”Forever and ever, sweetie,” Twilight says as she smiles down at the filly lovingly.   >The filly jumps up on Twilight and hugs her, and then does the same to you, yelling as loud as she can as she does.   >”I love you Princess Twilight! I love you Captain Anon!”   >She giddily scampers back to her seat, most of the ponies watching her as she does so. Gradually all of their attention turns away from you completely and they return to their various normal conversations.   “That couldn’t have possibly gone any more perfectly,” you mutter to Twilight under your breath.   >”Thank Celestia for innocent little fillies. We owe her for saving us like that,” she mutters back to you.   “Twi that little girl is the single most adorable creature I’ve ever had the pleasure of interacting with in my entire life. The cuteness level was nearly fatal, it’s a miracle I survived the encounter.”   >Twilight giggles softly.   >”I know, my heart almost couldn’t take it, watching the two of you. So very incredibly sweet, innocent, nonjudgmental, and full of nothing but pure unconditional love for others. She didn’t even care who we were, or that we’re adults and she’s just a filly, or that I’m a princess and you’re a completely different species.”   >Twilight looks past you trying to catch a glimpse of Jasper again, smiling when she sees her with her mother and father, both of whom are showering her with affection.   “She just thought we were in trouble and she wanted to help us, with no fear of those ‘mean ponies’ as she called them. I really hope she stays that way as she grows into an adult. It would tear me up inside to find out she lost that kind and loving heart of hers. If she stays as brave as she is now and doesn’t succumb to negative influences, that little filly is gonna go places in life. I just wish everpony else in Equestria felt the same as she does,” she sighs.   “Well, I just hope our wise-beyond-her-years weapons-grade-cute pint-sized brave and curious little savior put a lid on this thing for us for the time being.”   >”Me too. We have enough to worry about as it is without the added trouble of our relationship going public in a bad way.”   >You don’t hear any of the other ponies mention a single word about it the rest of the ride to Canterlot, which you’re thankful for. Maybe hearing that little filly say what she said caused them to think twice about things. However, if word happens to get out anyway, that’s a fire you can always put out later. It really doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things. You find yourself drifting off to sleep, only to be snapped back to your senses by a pony walking down the aisle.   >“Next stop, Canterlot. All passengers travelling to Canterlot please gather your bags and prepare to disembark, we will be pulling into the station in less than five minutes.”   >The pony repeats himself as he walks down the aisle, and eventually to the next car. You nudge Shining Armor, who had fallen asleep a while ago, his face pressed against the window, the fur on his cheek matted with his drool.   >”Hey, Shining, wake up, we’re almost there.”   >Shining mumbles in response. “mmm.. Cadance… just five more minutes honey, just five more minutes I promise…” his last words are followed by loud snoring. You grab him and shake him vigorously, raising your voice as you repeat yourself. He jumps and pushes you away, trying to calm his breathing and heartrate, having been badly startled.   “Sorry, you weren’t waking up...” you offer.   >Shining rubs his face and his mane, trying to make himself look presentable.   >”It’s okay Anon, I’m a deep sleeper. Cadance has to deal with me every morning. I don’t know how she has the patience,” he says, his voice trailing off, “I love her so much,” he sighs.   “Speaking of Cadance, we should ask Celestia to send a chariot for her if she can, she really needs to be here sooner rather than later,” you say looking at Twilight. Both she and Shining Armor agree.   >You squeeze through the crowd of ponies as the train pulls into the station and stops, the doors to the passenger cars opening. When you finally disembark and put a little distance between yourselves and the crowded train station, you discuss how to proceed.   >”Hospital, then blacksmith, then castle would be the most efficient use of our time,” Twilight says.   >”I think we should go to the castle right away before anything else if we’re going to be sending for Cadance. The sooner the chariot leaves the better, then we can take care of everything else.”   “I agree with your brother, Twi. We swing by the castle, ask Celestia to send for Cadance ASAP, tell her we’ll be back to explain, then go to the hospital and the blacksmith before returning to the castle. If we can shave a couple hours off Cadance’s arrival, we need to do it.”   >”Fine,” Twilight sighs, “since I’m outvoted it looks like we’ll do it your way. Come on, then, let’s go.”   >More than one set of ears and eyes perk up and in your direction as the three of you make your way through the streets of Canterlot to the castle at a hurried pace. You pay no attention to any of them, just wanting to get to the castle as fast as possible. You’re caught off guard when a mare you pass turns around and wolf-whistles at you; it’s only when you see Twilight shooting her a death glare that you realize it wasn’t directed at Shining Armor.   >You reach the castle not long after that, and Twilight asks a guard to summon Princess Celestia. Within minutes she’s standing before you, her same warm, benevolent smile on her face and comforting, motherly voice as usual.   >”Twilight, Shining Armor, Captain Anonymous, what a pleasant surprise. I wasn’t expecting to see you unti-“   >Celestia notices the injuries to your face with a gasp, and instantly voices her concern.   >”Anonymous, what happened? How did you get injured?”   “Respectfully, your highness, it’s a long story that I don’t have time to tell right now. We’ve been discussing some modifications to our plans, and since time is sort of critical we came here first before taking care of other business. With the train derailment between here and the Crystal Empire delaying travel by rail, we wanted to request that you send a chariot for Princess Cadance immediately.”   >”Of course, I’ll dispatch one to fetch her at once. Has something important happened? What do you need me to do?”   “Sincerest apologies, your highness, we don’t have the time to explain at the moment. We only came to request that Princess Cadance be sent for right now. I promise we will explain, in full, when we have finished our business in Canterlot.”   >Celestia tilts her head slightly before nodding and responding.   >”I will do as you ask, and eagerly await your return to be fully briefed on these new developments, Captain Anonymous.”   “Thank you so very much, Princess Celestia,” you say, bowing to her, “your eager cooperation is appreciated and invaluable. Would you mind also rousing your sister from her rest in about, three hours or so, so that she can be ready for our briefing?”   >”Of course, Anon.”   “One more thing. Can you give an ETA on when Cadance will arrive?”   >”It’s obviously a matter of great importance if the three of you came here to see me. I’ll send my very best and fastest chariot team. I shall instruct them that this is a matter of great urgency, and they will push themselves as hard as they can to get there and back as fast as possible. I have faith in their ability to carry out my instructions, and they should return with Cadance within four hours.”   “Marvelous, absolutely marvelous, that should work out perfectly. Princess, I appreciate you sending your fastest team, and while it is urgent, please make sure they don’t push themselves too hard, I don’t want anypony getting hurt over this. A minor delay is acceptable so long as your team stays safe. Thank you again, your highness,” you bow again to her, “we must depart now, but we’ll be back as swiftly as we can. We’ll see you then.”   >Celestia nods as you turn to leave the castle.