//------------------------------//
// The First Date 
// Story: The Life of a Young Colt 
// by Rakoon1 
//------------------------------//

Shining woke up early in that Saturday morning. He woke up before his parents, who were the early risers of the house, unlike him who was often the last one to wake up. That was a very important day for him and Shining wanted to be at his best.

He got down to the kitchen where there he prepared a big breakfast, making pancakes with strawberry syrup, preparing the oats and the juice and then barring Twilight's toasts with raspberry jam, as she liked. When his parents woke up and came down, they become speechless when they found the breakfast on the table and Shining had already eaten his.

"You're already awake?" Night Light asked, impressed.

"And you made breakfast?" Velvet asked, openmouthed.

"Yes and yes" Shining replied, finishing his pancakes and drinking his orange juice. "Today I woke up full of energy and in a good mood."

He stood up, going to take the dishes into the sink in the kitchen with their parents observing him, still speechless at what they were just watching. When Shining returned from the kitchen, he asked:

"Do you mind if I spend the day out. I have something very important to do today."

"No, of course not, son" Night Light answered, quietly. "Today, by chance, is our day off."

"Perfect!" he exclaimed, gleefully. "I think I'll take a shower and prepare myself."

And having said this , he climbed up the stairs. His parents, still stunned, sat down at the table and Velvet asked:

"But what's wrong with him?"

"If you ask my opinion, there's nothing wrong with him" Night Light said, wondering what could give such a huge happiness to his son. "But you know what? He reminds me of when I was his age and I had my first date."

"Wait, do you think that's the very important thing he has to do today is a date?"

"It would explain his joy."

"I can't believe it" Velvet said, smiling. "Our son at his first date. And to think that not long ago he was a newborn foal."

"Time passes and kids grow up" Night Light said.

"But who do you think is this filly with whom he will go out with?"

"I'm not sure, but I have a suspicion of who she is."

Shining Armor went to the bathroom and took a long shower. After that, he looked himself in the mirror and began to arrange his coat and mane, washing the teeth with the toothpaste which could give him a great fresh breath and after that he polished his hooves. He took up so much time in the bathroom that, when he finished, he saw that it was half past nine. He left the bathroom, down the stairs, said goodbye to his family, dealing with questions from Twilight (who was already awake) about where he was going, and then left the house.

He went to the alicorn sisters fountain and when he arrived he saw that there was nopony there. He must have been the first to arrive, because, after all, it was not yet ten. When the ten o'clock arrived, she didn't show up, or after a few minutes. When it had passed ten minutes from the appointed time, Shining sighed sadly. Probably, she thought better and decided not to appear. When he was preparing to go away, he heard a voice saying:

"Sorry I'm late."

He turned and then encountered Cadance. She was immensely beautiful, more beautiful than usual. Her mane, before picked up by a ponytail, was loose and wavy, her coat shone with the sunlight and her eyes were more beautiful than ever. She had also brought a dress that, besides looking good in her, also covered her wings. It was probably a way to get overlooked.

"I hope you have not been waiting so much" Cadance said, approaching. "I could have come earlier, but I lost track of time when I was deciding what to wear."

"It's okay" Shining said blushing slightly.

"Wow, you're amazing" Cadance commented, looking to Shining's well-cared look.

"Well, thank you, Cadance" Shining thanked, blushing even more. "But of course it's nothing compared to you. You're more beautiful than usual. In fact, there is no words to describe you right now."

That made Cadance also blush. They stood a moment in complete silence and then Shining cleared his voice and said:

"Shall we?"

"Yes,of course."

They started walking and then Shining asked:

"Do you want to go somewhere in special?"

"Well, I was hoping you could show me Canterlot" Cadance replied. "I have not had much time to get to know the city, and since you grew up here..."

"As you wish" Shining said.

So, Shining began to show Cadance the city. He showed her his favorite places, such as the bookstore where he used to go buy his favorite books and stories to read to Twilight before she fall asleep, besides being the best place for meditation, or places that he knew Cadance would like, like the antique store of the city, where there were several very fascinating and ancient objects. Cadance marveled with that and Shining, spending time with her in that place, also learned to see the beauty and elegance in ancient objects, the value they had and their unique characteristics. When it wasn't pass too much from midday, Shining's stomach grunted.

"Oops, looks like I'm a little hungry" he said, blushing slightly and scratching his neck.

Cadance laughed slightly and then said:

"You know what, I think I would also eat something right now. Do you know some nice place where we can have a good meal?"

Shining didn't need to think twice on that subject.

"I know the perfect place."

Shining then took her to a restaurant near the park. It was a pretty nice place, with a terrace where the ponies could eat and enjoy the fresh air and daylight. At that time, the interior was very crowded due to be lunch time so Shining and Cadance got into one of the terrace tables.

"But what a beautiful place" Cadance commented.

"It belongs to the family of a friend of mine" Shining said. "A great friend. He is the one who persuaded me to... well, to ask you to go out with me."

"So I thing we have to thank him for this date?"

"You can say that."

The two exchanged a laugh and then heard a voice saying:

"Do you want something?"

They looked and then saw Blue, with a big smile.

"Blue, my friend, it's so good to see you" Shining said. "I was just talking about you."

"Good things, I hope" he joked, then turning to Cadance and greeting her with a slight bow. "Welcome, Princess Cadance. My name is Blue Sword. I'm Shining's best friend and colleague."

"Please, call me Cadance" she said, always keeping her friendly smile. "The Princess thing makes everything too formal for me."

"As you wish" Blue said, bowing his head gently.

"Pay no attention to Blue" Shining said to Cadance. "He likes to be very cordial."

"It's the faster and more practical way to establish a relationship of friendship" Blue said. "Well, but let's move on, what will you wish?"

"Wait, you're really taking orders?" Shining asked, surprised. "I thought you hated do it because of that problem of yours with memory."

"And thank you for sharing this information in front of other ponies, Shining" Blue thanked sarcastically, making Cadance laugh. "And, in fact, I shouldn't be taking orders, but Dahlia remembered to go out with her coltfriend and leave all work to me."

"Well, then it's best to facilitate it to you" Shining said. "For me it can be one of those fantastic salad, tomato and daffodils sandwiches your mother knows to do so well."

"Right away" said Blue, taking notes on a pad, using his magic.

"And for you, Cadance?" Shining asked.

"For me can be the same" she said. "You made this sandwich sound so delicious that gave me the will to try it."

"So are two salad, tomato and daffodils sandwiches" Blue said, eventually writing everything down. "And to drink?"

"Apple juice" Shining said.

"For me, a lemonade" Cadance said.

Blue just take notes and then said:

"I'll be right back."

And he turned away, going into the restaurant. While waiting for their lunch, Shining and Cadance talked. They talked about them, about their lives and what they liked to do. Shining found out Cadance came from a land outside of Equestria where she and her family lived, having been blessed with both unicorn horn and pegasus wings at birth. He also discovered she liked walking through beautiful places, reading, music, and especially foalsitting. Cadance also told him how she discovered she could fix the love between two ponies with her magic and that was why she received her Cutie Mark, story that left Shining amazed.

"What fantastic story!" Shining exclaimed. "A good way to get a Cutie Mark."

"Thank you" Cadance thanked. "Of course it's not as fantastic as the way you have obtained yours."

"What do you mean?"

"Twilight told me how you saved her when she fell down the stairs, using your protective magic. It was an act of sheer bravery and love."

Shining blushed when she praised the way how he saved his sister. Then Blue returned, bringing via levitation a tray with Shining and Cadance's food.

"Here you have" he said, placing the plates and the glasses on the table. "And it's on the house."

"Oh, Blue, you and your family don't have to do this" Shining said.

"Shining, you're family" he replied. "Enjoy, okay? Have a nice lunch."

And then he walked away.

"You must be really good friends" Cadance commented.

"We're best friends since our first day of school" Shining said.  "We have been supporting each other since then and we share the same dream and tastes. He's a great friend."

The two then ate their respective lunch continuing to know each other better and, after eating, they bade farewell to Blue and his family and left. Shining then decided to take Cadance in a stroll through the park. He knew she already should know it, because Twilight liked to go there, but he could show Cadance places there that she couldn't know. They spent a long and peaceful time together, laughing and talking. With each passing moment, Shining felt increasingly drawn to Cadance and he could feel the feeling was mutual.

Later, they went to a candy store for a snack and then they strolled through the gardens of Canterlot, full of many magnificent and interesting statues (except one of a creature with pony head, deer antler, goat leg, lion pawn, bat wings and a snake tail that gave him chills).

Then the day began to end. It could be seen the sky was starting have orange shades mixed with its usual shade of blue. Cadance turned to Shining and said:

"It seems that our date is finishing. It's a shame. I got a lot of fun with you, Shining."

"And I with you, Cadance" he said. "But you know, this is not over. I've a surprise for you."

"For me? What?"

"Come with me."

Shining took her hoof and began to take her to the where Canterlot was laying. They began to climb. Shining, which was already used to make that climb, no longer got tired, but Cadance tired quickly. Seeing that, Shining crouched down and told her:

"Come on..."

"No, I can't do that" Cadance said. "I would only make you get tired."

"Believe me, I don't care about it" Shining replied. "What matters to me is that you're as comfortable as possible."

Cadance smiled because nopony had never been so kind to her as Shining was being. He approached him and said:

"Look, I'm heavier than I look."

"I can handle it" Shining said confidently.

Cadance then climbed onto the Shining's back and he, using all his strength, stood up. He stumbled a bit, but quickly stabilized. Cadance was worried about him, but Shining, determined, moved forward, slowly but firmly. They eventually arrived where Shining wanted to go and when they arrived, he kneeled down so Cadance could get out of his back. She was astonish for what she was seeing. That part of the mountain had a beautiful field of beautiful flowers of various colors. But the view was the most impressived. They were able to have a perfect perception of the sun setting in the sea to the west. She had no words to describe it.

"This is... wonderful!" she exclaimed. "I never thought there could be a place like this in Canterlot."

"I found it a few years ago when I was doing a hike through the mountain. It's been my hiding place ever since."

"And you wanted to share it with me?" Cadance asked, not wanting to believe. "I don't know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything" Shining said, approaching her. "I promised myself that I would only bring here a pony that was very special to me, a pony that would make me happy, except my family. And I think this pony... is you, Cadance."

"Oh, Shining..." she said.

He then handed to her a beautiful blue lily, saying:

"Cadance, they say lilies represent eternal love. That's what I want our love be: immortal. I want us to be together forever. So, Cadance, offering you this lily before this sunset in this beautiful place, I ask you: do you want to be my marefriend?"

Cadance got no reaction to Shining's question. It had been the most romantic question she had ever heard. The place, the flowers, the sunset... everything was so perfect. But what was really perfect was Shining's words and the way how he had said them. It only showed the immense love he had for her and Cadance could feel it, not only with her magic, but also with her heart. She had never had a colfriend before, nor kissed anypony, but she knew exactly who would be the first colt to share with her that moment so special.

Taking the lily and then smelling it, smiling, she turned to Shining and then, without warning, gave him a passionate kiss on his lips. At first, he was taken aback, but after two seconds he spent to savor that kiss. He had never kissed truly a filly before, but he never thought it was something so incredible and magical. Cadance's lips were so soft as silk and had a sweet taste of berries. That kiss did more than pleasing Shining. It made ​​his heart flutter at such a speed that he was afraid it would jumped out off his chest and his stomach was jumping out of joy. Cadance felt the same feeling as she was kissing Shining, knowing at the time who was the stallion of her dreams. The two eventually separate themselves and then Cadance replied:

"Yes, Shining, I want to be your marefriend."

Shining was still stunned by the kiss he had just received. He tried to find words to say, but he couldn't get any. So, having nothing else to say, he smiled, with Cadance smiling back, and then the two embraced each other. Feeling the appealing aroma of Cadance's mane, emerged in Shining's mind four words that he said almost immediately:

"I love you, Cadance."

She replied:

"I love you too, Shining Armor."

And then the two were just hugging each other, watching that wonderful sunset that brought them together.