//------------------------------// // Prologue. If I Had The Chance, Would I Do Things Differently? // Story: The Baltimare Incident // by Powerdrainer //------------------------------// I would like to thank Vates Despero for proofreading and editing this chapter. If I Had The Chance, Would I Do Things Differently? <<>><<>><<>> He moved through the hall of the house they'd just arrived at, carrying a bag on his back. It was an odd design, and not made to be carried by ponies, but that was hardly an issue for him, as it wasn't his, and he was merely carrying it inside to place it on the living room table. Looking around the home, he couldn't help but feel a bit small, as everything was much larger than any furniture designed for a pony. Which was to be expected, as humans were twice the height of any ponies, save for the Princesses. Using his wings to fly up a bit, he dropped the bag on the table, before dropping back on his hooves and heading back to the open door to help her carry inside more of her luggage. Why a mare… No, a woman, needed so much luggage with her for only a short trip he would never understand. But he would help her carry it nonetheless. She had him wrapped around her fingers, and he would do anything to see her smile. A small happy chuckle escaped him as he shook his head a bit. Never in his life could he have imagined that he would end up in a relationship with a human, especially considering the way they met. But, as he stepped back outside, Soarin couldn't stop the smile growing on his face as he saw Jazz wave at him, pointing at a suitcase filled with various items he would probably never be able to name. Mares. Woman. Some things don't change, no matter which world you're on. <<>><<>><<>> Everything was put inside, and the door closed behind them. The taxi they arrived in drove off, leaving the street empty and quiet once more. It had been a hectic few days for the both of them, as Jazz had to attend the conference to give a lecture about ghost induced PTSD. Something he was quite familiar with. Most of the suitcases she had with her were filled with books and paperwork about ghosts, her research, and anything else she believed might be useful. Soarin asked why she didn't used one of those computer thingies they had, but he only got a muttered response about books never running out of power. But he didn't complain, and he and Jazz carried the various books back to her study, leaving them there to be sorted out at a later time. Jazz also put away the bag with the clothes, knowing there was a lot of laundry to be done in her near future. Something Soarin didn't have to deal with nearly as much as she did. Hearing some odd sounds coming from down the hall, Jazz walked down and into the kitchen, seeing Soarin sitting on a chair at the table, his muzzle buried in the leftover pie she had stored in her fridge. Sighing and rolling her eyes, she slowly shook her head, a small grin on her face. "What?" he said with his mouth half full, giving a shrug, "I was hungry." "I can tell," Jazz said with a chuckle, and Soarin swallowed the last of the pie he still had in his mouth. "So, all done?" he asked after he cleared his mouth. "I am. Still need to do a lot of laundry, though. But that can wait for another time," she answered. "Yeah, what is it with humans and all their clothes?" he asked for the umpteenth time. "You know the answer to that, as I have told you that many times before," Jazz answered, placing her hands on her hips. "Oh, but I know you don't care much about clothes around me," he said with a suggestive tone, a devious smirk on his face while he gave her a suggestive eyebrow waggle. "SOARIN!" Jazz said loudly, a heavy blush staining her face. His only response was to give her a wink. Feeling the heat in her face slowly diminish, Jazz decided to just play along, for now. "Oh, so you have something in mind?" she asked seductively as she walked to him, wrapping her arms around him from behind as she kissed his cheek. "Maybe," he said playfully. "I'm amazed you're still up for it, after all those long nights at the hotel," she breathed into his ear. "Hah, you know me. I'm always up for it," he replied, his wings slowly rising in response to his excitement. "I can tell," Jazz said smirking, kissing the top of his head. "Unfortunately, I have a headache, and I really don't feel like it." "WAIT, WHAT!?" Soarin shouted as he turned to look at her, his wings at full display. Looking at her, he saw the devious, humorous, smug, and somewhat seductive smile on her face, and he knew he had just been played. Still, his wings didn't seem to care, as they remained at rigid attention. "Oh, you're evil," he said, pointing a hoof at her. "Oh, shut up. You love me," she replied and blew him a kiss. "Eeeeeevviillllll," he repeated, and Jazz stuck out her tongue in response, before giving a giggle as she saw Soarin trying to push his wings down with a hoof. "Need any help?" she asked, not even trying to contain her chuckles. "I think you have helped enough already," he said, trying to sound serious, but the small chuckle coming from him ruined this, "I'm going to get back at you for this," he said, and his wings finally folded flat at his sides. "Hmmm, I hope so. But it has to wait. I still have a lot of catching up to do, and you need to return to Equestria as well. Or did you forget about your training?" "I didn't, I didn't," he said, jumping off the chair and onto his hooves, "But can you blame a stallion for trying to get some lovin' from his girlfriend?" "Like you missed out on any during the last few days," Jazz replied with a wink, kneeling down to his level, and giving him a small kiss on the lips. Instead of replying, Soarin returned the kiss. They remained like this for a full minute, before they parted and Jazz slowly stood back up. "So, I guess I have to go back, huh." "It looks like it." "Well then, I better not let them wait too long for me. I don't want them to start getting the wrong idea about why I'm taking so long now," he said with small grin. "Would that be so bad?" Jazz asked smiling. "It is if there's nothing going on. They would never believe me if I said so, though." "It would seem some things between our worlds are the same," Jazz said with a laugh. "Yeah, I figured," Soarin replied with a short laugh of his own, "Well, best get going now," and he walked to the front door, followed by Jazz. Stepping out, Soarin took a moment to look up at the clouds, finding it strange no pony was in control of them, before his attention was drawn back to the woman standing behind him. "Well, this is it, I guess." "I'll miss you," Jazz said, and she knelt down to give him one last kiss. Having the breath stolen from him, he could only give her a cheeky grin in return. Giving a powerful flap of his wings, Soarin flew up and away, heading to the nearest tear facility to return to Equestria. Flying through the sky, feeling the wind rush through his mane and tail, the grin slowly fell off his face. He was happy with how his life had turned out. A job he loved doing, and a ma— woman as special as her in his life. He was truly lucky. Still, it was also because of his job that he met her. Or, more precisely, something that happened as part of his job. True, he was a Wonderbolt at heart. Somepony who would entertain the crowds with stunts, each more insane than the last. But it was the other portion of his work that was a bit of a sore spot after those events. Being a Wonderbolt also meant you could be called into service when a situation arose no normal team could deal with. They were the special forces, the best of the best. Although he wasn't all that sure about that, considering… Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, he picked up the pace. Yes, he was a stunt flyer at heart, but he also took great pride in the task of serving and protecting his fellow ponies. But, after what happened that day, even knowing what he would gain later in life because of it, he couldn't help but wonder: 'If I had the chance, would I do things differently?' As he thought this, his mind wandered back to that day, all those years ago. To the time his world first met the humans, and what would be the beginning of the events that would scar him for life. The Baltimare incident.