Meet an Old Friend

"Wake up!" was the first sound Joy woke up to the next morning as he felt a gentle nudge on his shoulder. "Rise and shine, my sweetie!"

Joy slowly opened his eyes to see Bubble sitting in front of him with a messy mane and a charming smile on her face. Joy couldn't help but smile to see that beautiful face, the face of his very special somepony, Bubble Heart. Not only that, but his surroundings were giving off a beautiful aroma. The aroma coming from Bubble's hair. The fragrance from it tickled his senses as a smile appeared on his lips. He sat up on the bed.

"It's morning… already?" Joy yawned.

"Mmhm," Bubble nodded. "It's 8 o' clock, you know."

Joy looked towards her once again and snickered. "8 O' clock? Gosh! Time really flies…"

"Especially when you're snuggled up with your special somepony," Bubble smiled as she kissed him on the cheek. "Now, we should get up." She giggled. "You don't wanna miss the first morning of spring, do you?"

"Not at all, never," Joy giggled at this as well. "I know how much you love the spring season, sweetheart."

Spring was Bubble's favorite season, so she was excited to spend time watching the most beautiful views of nature: the flowers. The flowers of different colors, scents and even tastes (for edible flowers only) were the most beautiful of natural sceneries. And Bubble was surely one of the great admirers of beauty, and so was Joy.

Bubble gave him a reassuring smile and they both got up out of their bed. Bubble took some time to fix her messy mane, and then they had their breakfast. Then, as decided, they headed outside to witness the one of most beautiful mornings of all the years, the first day of spring. It also was their very first time in Ponyville during this time of the year.

They started to take a stroll around the town. The sunshine was enjoyable and felt really good after three months of winter. They could hear the sweet chirping of birds, all of which had come back from the south after winter. The chirping of the birds and sound of the wind passing through the leaves of the trees nearby felt like music. It was like a song that was being sung by nature herself. And Bubble decided to hum along merrily with it.

"So, how do you like it?" Joy smiled at his question's silliness.

"Huh?" Bubble cocked her head at him. "Oh, I love this."

"I like this too," Joy said while looking around.

"I know." Bubble giggled

Joy blushed and smiled at this. Meanwhile, they saw that ponies were dispersing around going towards their houses. Some of the ponies looked towards them and waved a hoof; in return they did the same. But even with all those sceneries, all those distractions Joy couldn't help but to think about… his dreams. Not the dream he usually had about traveling a far away land, fighting a monster, or walking on clouds and swimming under the seas with his special somepony Bubble. No, but the dreams with blurry sceneries and tall figures mumbling something to each other and… maybe to him as well.

Lost in his thoughts, he wasn't aware where he was going until a sudden jerk brought him to reality. He was a little stunned and looked towards Bubble, whose horn was glowing. The glow faded away as she spoke to him.

"Phew!" She sighed. "Are you alright?" she asked with concern. "You almost… walked into a tree."

Joy looked in front of him, and saw she was right. He was standing barely a foot away from the stem of a huge tree. Then he realized what just happened.

"Oh, thank you Bubs," he said.

"It's alright," She replied. "Now, tell me… are you worried about something?"

He only shook his head before looking into another direction and saying, "I'm alright, my sweetheart."

"It doesn't seem so…" Bubble said to herself, and then looked towards him with a charming smile upon her lips as they both came to a stop near the garden of flower sisters. "Is there something bothering you?"

Joy sighed, knowing that he couldn't hide something from a pony who knew him so well.

Still, he smiled and said, "Hmm, it's… I'm just confused, I think…" before giving a good look to the plane ground where three ponies were watering their flowers without any worry in the world. Bubble gave him a look of disbelief and then she giggled.

"Confused?" She remarked as to be reassured. She gave him a thoughtful look.

"Yes," Joy nodded. "I don't why… but…"

"It's alright…" she said and stood on her hind legs, "… and I have just the right remedy for your worry." Then she grabbed him into a tight affectionate hug and nuzzled with him.

"Just all your worries slipped away now," She said as her horn started to glow with a light purple aura. "Just don't tense yourself now."

Joy returned the hug with relief and nuzzled her back with equal affection. After a few moments, they released each other from the hug.

"Feeling better?"

"Much better," Joy replied. "A hug is really the best remedy."

"Awe, aren't they looking beautiful?" A voice came from the garden and they looked towards the direction of the voice. This happened to be Daisy, who happened to see them standing from the garden along with her sisters.

"Morning Prince Joy, Miss Bubble," Lily greeted as she waved a hoof towards them.

"Would you like to buy some flowers?" Rose asked.

"Would I?" Bubble answered. "Yes, of course."

"Great!" Rose exclaimed.

They bought a variety of flowers, from roses and daisies, to tulips and lilies. Bubble really loved the flowers, both as her favorite delicacies as well as to adorn her mane. She usually used daisies and pink roses for her mane and knew that Joy really loved those flowers as well.

"These look great on you Bubble!" Joy exclaimed. Bubble just chuckled at this. Joy was looking alright now. He didn't look confused about anything anymore.

<I wonder what exactly he was confused about. Should I… no I don't think asking him directly would be any help.> She thought. Instead, she just walked along, talking with him about some other topics to keep him distracted from confusing thoughts. Then Bubble suggested a good way to start their day was with a spa treatment. That seemed like a fine idea for both of them, so they headed towards the Ponyville Day Spa.

...

After some refreshing time in the spa, the couple was once again strolling in the streets of Ponyville. There they saw little foals running around here and there, playing joyfully. They both smiled as a few foals gathered around them. Joy really loved the foals and they seemed to like him as well… maybe because unlike grown ups, foals were never scared of him that much. Instead, they watched him in awe and curiosity, because of his unique form among all other creatures.

"It looks like they really love being around you," Bubble said.

"It seems so," Joy replied. "I don't mind them being curious anyways."

Then after walking for a while they saw themselves standing in front of an… unfamiliar face. She was wearing a dark brown hood though her face was uncovered. The white mane with black stripes was enough of an indication that she wasn't a pony. She was a zebra and right now, she was standing in front of a shop. As she turned her face towards the couple, a gasp of surprise escaped her mouth. They kept looking at each other for few moments without speaking a word before.

"I know, I look a little odd," Joy said with a smile. "But there is no need to get scared ma'am."

The zebra in front of them simply chuckled unexpectedly at the couple. For a pony or zebra who had seen him for the first time, this was an odd reaction. Then she spoke.

"I'm not scared, just surprised. Is it really you I'm looking at? I can't believe my eyes," she said.

"What?" Joy asked in confusion, while Bubble just stared at her.

"I see. Surely you don't remember me," the zebra spoke again. "But I remember who you are; you're the joy of Celestia, Prince Joy Star."

"Joy," Bubble asked, "Do you know her?"

Joy shook his head slowly. "I... don't, Bubble." He then looked towards the zebra and said, "Sorry, but I don't recognize you."

"I know you can't, because when Princess Celestia called me to Canterlot, you were barely an infant," the zebra replied. "I am Shaman Zecora. My apologies for ado, but I was quite amazed to see you." She chuckled.

"Zecora?" They exclaimed in unison as they remembered that Twilight had told them about a zebra mare who lived in Everfree named Zecora. They didn't expect to see her in person this early, much less expect that she would know him as well. That was a real surprise for both of them. Zecora paid the shopkeeper for herbs and flowers, and put the stuff in her saddlebag before giving them a nod.

"I see you've grown up much; I must say I'm so glad to see you as such."

It was a little confusing for them to keep up with her rhymes, but nevertheless it was clear that Zecora knew about Joy since he was an infant. That was a little surprising, as he had thought that only the members of the Canterlot castle knew of his existence back then.

"Well, I guess that makes sense." Joy smiled "In that case, it's nice to meet you Zecora. And in case you're wondering, she's Bubble Heart…" He said, giving a look to his marefriend. "She's my childhood best friend and now my…"

"Very special somepony," Bubble finished with a blush. "You probably have seen me as well if you've seen him all those years ago."

Zecora smiled to herself, looked towards the sun and then towards them.

"I'd love to tell you, but you see, I must head home and I must hurry. So you will have to come along, if you wanna hear more of this story."

"Okay~" Joy replied. "Bubble?"

"Fine with me," She giggled.

"Now… I may need some details to start. How old were you then, Bubble Heart?" Zecora asked.

"Hmm... I am sure I was almost a year and a few months old back then," Bubble replied "As I am just a year older than Joy."

"Then I only saw you briefly, for I was forced to move swiftly," Zecora answered. "His life was hanging by a thread, and we all were filled with dread. It is nice to see you more properly and to speak to you personally."

"Likewise," Bubble said before making a thoughtful expression. "You saved… his life…?" She realized what Zecora just said. "You mean to say, his life was... endangered?"

"My life?" Joy asked in surprise. "Can you... tell me what exactly happened?"

Zecora made a thoughtful expression at this.

"Well, it would be hard to say in my own way," Zecora noted, then suddenly stopped speaking in rhymes. "So instead I'll tell it to you like this: When I was called to Canterlot, Joy had caught a terrible plague or disease. None of the unicorn doctors were able to stop the plague, so they called me as a last resort. I used what forms of alchemy I knew from my land, and found a cure for his plague. As such, I managed to save him from a fatal death."

Joy and Bubble were both a little shocked as they heard this. That answered most of their questions they wanted to ask from her. They didn't speak for a while, and just kept walking in a certain direction which they knew led to Everfree. Then Bubble spoke.

"So, you know about his kind?" Bubble asked. "As you were able to find a cure for him…"

At this Joy looked towards Zecora somewhat hopefully. "Do you-"

"Sadly, that's not the case, you see. The method I used to heal him was known to work on many species," she explained.

"Oh…" Joy said and smiled to himself. "That's alright."

Bubble then looked towards Zecora and said, "I know that it's not necessary, but thanks."

"No problem, my friend," Zecora made a humble bow. "I only did what was right when I saw his condition that night." Then she continued, "Our paths were meant to cross, so Celestia would not have to suffer your loss."

They saw that they were standing at the edge of Everfree's darker part. The couple stopped right there and they looked towards each other, both giving each other a look that inquired if they should go there.

"Zecora," Joy spoke up as she stopped at her tracks and looked towards them with a questioning look. "I am not sure, if…"

"I understand," Bubble nodded. "Zecora, I hope we'll meet you again soon, but for now we should go back to Ponyville."

"In that case, farewell my dears," Zecora said with a bow. "Seeing you both again was truly a pleasure."

As she disappeared in the forest, they both decided to head towards the town, before Bubble noticed something which caught her eyes.

"Joy, look!" She smiled as she looked towards a field of blue flower plants and went near them.

"Bubble, wait!" She plucked one of them and tried to sniff its scent, only to make a loud sneeze.

"ACHHOOOO!"

"Bubble, are you okay?" Joy asked as he got close to her.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Bubble answered as she rubbed her muzzle. "I didn't know I have an allergy to such plants."

"You know, we shouldn't touch anything we don't know about," Joy said and smiled as he picked up the flower only to take a closer look and threw it away. "Especially in Everfree."

"You're right." She smiled sheepishly. "Let's get back to Ponyville."

So they headed towards town once again. After a while Joy suddenly felt something suspicious and stopped on his steps as he looked behind only to see that there was nothing at all.

"What happened?" Bubble asked with concern as she stopped on her steps as well.

"It almost felt like…" Joy trailed off as he shrugged and then smiled. "No… nothing," Joy said as he started to walk along Bubble once again.

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At Canterlot, Celestia was in her throne room looking through her schedule for upcoming days as a smile was apparent on her face. Sitting alongside her was her niece Princess Cadence, smiling as she was looking through some schedule papers as well.

"You know auntie," Cadence said. "This is a great idea, but are you sure he'll be ready for this?"

"I know he should be," Celestia replied with a giggle. "Now he's not a foal anymore, and it's about time we assigned him with some of his own duties."

"It's good," Cadence nodded. "So, what duties do you want to assign him? There are several I guess he'd do."

"It'd be better if we start with something rather easy," Celestia smiled. "I don't wanna burden my son."

"So, what do you have in mind?" Cadence asked. "A noble or something…?"

"Nothing of the sort," Celestia said and showed Cadence a schedule. "I am assigning him with these duties."

"You sure… he can handle this?" Cadence asked. "Not like I don't trust in my cute little cousin but…"

"Trust me," Celestia chuckled. "He definitely can."

Cadence giggled at this as well.

<Oh Joy, won't you be surprised!>

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Joy and Bubble returned to Canterlot near the evening. All of his family asked him about his trip, and whether he enjoyed it. And as usual, he received a big warm wing hug from his mother, who was so glad to see him safe and sound. Joy giggled at this.

"Mom," He chuckled as he returned the hug. "I was just in Ponyville."

"Yeah," Bubble smiled ."It isn't like we have gone beyond Equestria or something."

Celestia just giggled in response as she kept hugging him for a little while longer. "I know, I just love my foal so much."

"Mom~" Joy protested as the others giggled at this.

"I know you're not a foal, but you'll always be a foal to your mother," Celestia said as she released him from the hug. "And I love that pout on your face"

Bubble chuckled at this while Joy blushed a little. During dinner later on, Joy remembered something and he decided to ask his mother about it.

"Mom, do you know a zebra Shaman named Zecora?"

Celestia choked on her tea as she heard this. She coughed a couple of times before asking, "Tell me you didn't go into the Everfree!"

"We didn't," Bubble replied. "She came to Ponyville for some shopping."

Celestia gave them a thoughtful look before giggling. "Then, that's okay. Yes, I know her."

Bubble and Joy looked towards each other, then Joy said "Well, she told us that she knew me, since I was a foal." Then he paused for a while before adding, "And cured me of some kind of disease."

"I thought so," Celestia smiled. "So, she does, but why are you asking this?"

"You know me," Joy smiled. "Just curious."

At this, all of them gave a light chuckle.

"It's okay," Celestia said. "I used to be so curious as well."

"That night was one of the most horrible nights of my life," Cadence remarked with a serious expression. "I never wanna see that again. But, as they say, all's well when it ends well." Joy and Bubble gave a reassuring nod at this.

...

After setting the sun, Celestia sat with her son in her chambers. Joy was telling his mother how much fun he had there wrapping up the winter along with Bubble, Twilight, and the others. Princess was also giggling at some certain events.

"So, you enjoyed your trip to Ponyville once again," She said. "I'm glad to hear this. Now, I want to tell you something really important."

"Yes?" Joy asked. "What is it?"

"Now it's time for you to take some responsibilities of your own," Celestia told him. "So, I decided I'd assign you some really important royal tasks. How does that sound to you?"

"That sounds great," he replied. "Tell me, what will be my new royal duties?"

"Well," Celestia began, "It's nothing too difficult…"