Ch.3 - A Mid-Summer's Suprise
The city of Manehattan began its day just like it had thousands of times before. Trash collection carriages went up and down both residential and business-lined streets, throwing the bags of garbage haphazardly into them, taxis left their stations in force to collect the first fares from the metropolis’s early risers, and alarm clocks from one end of the city to the other began their symphony, much to their owners’ eternal hatred. Manehattanites didn’t have the luxury of sleeping to whatever time they liked, like those royal snobs in Canterlot. They worked for their fame and fortunes, if they were lucky enough to get them and were damn proud of their accomplishments, even if they had to wake at the crack of dawn like country farmers. Even those who were unknown and had little money were proud of their city, it being made by (mostly) honest work and (mostly) self-earned credentials.
Yes, Manehattanites were proud of their city and even rain that was wine that fell from soufflé’ clouds, dancing skyscrapers, and fire hydrants that did to dogs what they did to them couldn’t dampen their view of it. With said weird events and more lasting only a few hours, the residents treated the whole affair like a bad dream and continued with their lives. Yes, it had been a weird day but stuff seen on the streets everyday could be just as weird, if not as disruptive.
In one of the skyscrapers that had been doing the polka during its brief, animate time, an elevator with two passengers rode to the top floors. Both were white unicorn mares, however one had a blue mane done up in a loose beehive and wore a tie and collar while the other had a yellow mane done up in a bun, small glasses, and a clipboard hovering in front of her. “Has all the commotion been resolved?” the blue-maned mare asked.
“Almost, Miss Ice. Most of what’s left is sorting through clients’ paperwork that spilled all over the office and getting them squared away.”
“Good. The faster that gets righted the faster we can get back on schedule.” The elevator *dinged* as it reached the requested floor and the two mares stepped out into a wide hallway and turned toward an office door down the hall. A chocolate-colored earth-pony mare behind a desk greeted them as they entered.
“Good morning Miss Ice. Your coffee, scone, and newspapers are all at your desk as usual.”
“Thank you Swiss,” Summer Ice said to her second secretary. If it wasn’t for Swiss and Spark her job as an executive at the Manehattan branch of Fancy Pants Modeling would be almost impossible.
“Um… I got you large sizes for today,” Swiss told her boss, cringing slightly.
Summer stopped and looked back at her, concern clear on the face. “Is it really going to be that bad of a day?”
“Well, you recall that several clients and interviewees canceled their appointments due to the recent events. Now they’re all rescheduling and demanding to see you as soon as possible, so your schedule is booked for today and tomorrow. Next week doesn’t look too empty either.”
Summer drooped her head slightly at the amount of work before her. “Thank you for letting me know, Swiss. And thank you for the bigger breakfast; I’m going to need it.
“Of course Miss Ice.” Swiss gave the daily schedule to Spark and the two unicorns proceeded past her and down the suite’s only hallway.
There were three other doors in the small hallway. One led to the conference room and the one across from that lead to the vice-executive’s office. The door past them led to Summer’s office. Her vice-executive, Even Stitch, would be in soon and, hopefully, could at least blunt the swarm of ponies who wanted to see her.
As soon as they entered her office Summer went to her chair and flopped down in it. Already she wanted to be back at home and in bed, cuddled up next to her husband and maybe even their young daughter curled up between them. She looked at the picture she had of them on her desk and wanted to be home all the more. Her husband, Orange Glow, had basically left his job as a professional photographer to watch over their now three-year-old daughter while Summer went to work. They both knew she was the one that made more money and that, with his reputation and connections, getting back to work when Autumn finally went to school would be easier for him but it still didn’t feel right to her. The last time she had (seemingly) chosen work over family life, the result had been… well, it wasn’t like she could have stayed home once he left and never showed up again, and when she had thrown a fit like it was all her fault…!
For a moment the two ponies in the picture turned into two others, and a sudden swelling of anger just as quickly dissolved into an old ache. No, no matter how angry she had been, or still was, with them, she could never stop caring about them. They had been her family after all.
Summer shook her head clear of the memories and reached for the coffee. It was going to be a long day. “Who’s first on the list today, Spark?"
The mare brought the schedule up to her face. “Mrs. Perry Winkle and her daughter Merry Weather.”
Summer groaned and took a draft of her coffee. Perry Winkle was one of those ‘pageant mothers’ that were basically living through their children. They were pompous, preening, self-centered creatures that certainly earned the title of ‘bitch’, and if Summer could have her way she’d find those abused children parents that actually loved them. Tartarus, even sport moms could be considered sane compared to them, and they actually brawled with each other sometimes. Merry Weather was, thankfully, young enough that if Summer could get her into the business, she could at least mentor her so that her mother’s… eccentricities wouldn’t rub off on her. It was the only reason she would agree to even see Perry Winkle. That and she’d feel guilty for leaving the business of turning them away to Swiss. She hadn’t done anything to deserve that.
Taking some solace in the fact that at least they weren’t there, yet, Summer took another sip of her drink and picked up the first newspaper.
Astounding Victory Over Chaos: Eight Mares And A Baby Dragon Defeat Discord!
The headline blared out at her. Not really surprising; the news had been filled with details of the incident since the previous day. Now it looked like the nation would finally know who was responsible for saving them all. She took a quick look at the article’s large picture, then began reading. Apparently the leader of the group was a unicorn named Twilight Sparkle and she was the apprentice to Princess Celestia herself. Not exactly a big surprise there that she’d been able to defeat Discord then, but it was curious that the princess herself hadn’t contributed to the victory. The other five mares, who apparently wielded the “Elements of Harmony”, the force they had controlled to ultimately beat the chaos-wielding beast, were an apple farmer, a bakers’ apprentice, a weather manager, an animal care taker, and a dress maker. She thought she recognized the dress maker, a white unicorn like herself but with a stylized purple mane and tail, from descriptions offered by several guests at her boss’s many social events. On top of that they all lived in the same small town just outside of Canterlot called Ponyville. Again, the name of the town rang a bell, but nothing really concrete came to mind. Her job was in hiring and managing models, not the dresses they wore or the designers who made them.
The baby dragon was apparently either Twilight Sparkle’s assistant, pet, or adopted younger brother; there apparently was some question of his everyday role. The other two mares mentioned in the headline weren’t named, but it was said that just the two of them and the baby dragon held off Discord’s army until the Element’s had finally blasted him back to stone. ‘Just three of them held off an army? Sure wouldn’t want to run into them on a bad day’ Summer said to herself.
She finally scanned back up to take in the picture. The six Bearers stood out prominently in the center of the picture, each with varying degrees of either pride or humble smiles on their faces as they accepted awards for their actions. Behind them stood Princess Celestia with her wings outstretched in a regal fashion. Looking away from the princess she caught sight of the baby dragon, grinning sheepishly. He was definitely a baby alright; no dragon she’d ever seen had been that young-looking. Next to him must have been the two other mares that had held off Discord’s forces. The first one was a dusty-brown pegasus with feathers in her mane and tail, looking as proud as could be. And next to her… next to her…
Summer froze as she stared down at the picture, her scone and coffee frozen halfway to her mouth. Tears started to form in the corners of her eyes.
“Miss Ice, is everything alright?” Spark asked with a hint of worry in her voice.
‘She’s… but how… what the… Faust in the Great Plains, can it really be her!? After all this time!?’
“Summer!” Spark practically shouted.
That seemed to jerk Summer out of her thoughts and look back up her assistant. For a second she just stared at her, then the desk was alive with activity as Summer’s horn lit up. A desk draw slammed open and a pen and paper flew onto the desk while a pair of scissors began cutting the article out. Another draw slammed open and an envelope, stamps, and rubber stamps flew onto the desk as well.
Spark took a step away from the desk to avoid getting hit or cut by something. She’d never seen Summer in such a state and to be honest it scared her.
Summer finally signed whatever she had been writing and crammed it into the envelope, stuck several stamps on it, then stamped it with an address, return address, and marked it urgent with a third. It then nearly flew into Spark’s face. “That needs to get to Fancy Pants before lunch. I don’t care where he is or what he’s doing, he needs to read that now, and I want his response before I leave today! I won’t take any excuses!” Summer slammed her hoof down hard on her desk in an uncharacteristic show of panic and urgency that brokered no tolerance for questioning.
“Yes ma’am!” Spark said, taking the letter and bolting so fast out of the office it almost looked like she fazed though the door.
A part of Summer felt she had acted rather harshly to her assistant, but looking back down at the cut-out article it was quickly forgotten. “Midnight Storm,” she said quietly. “I’ve finally found you.”
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“Calm down Summer,” Summer told herself as the train finally sped towards Ponyville. The unicorn had woken up early that Saturday morning and had gotten on the first train she could to Ponyville. The problem was that, since it was still just a small town, there were no express lines to it. She had been forced to hit every stop along the way, and the only reason Summer hadn’t gotten an express train to Canterlot first and then hopped on a local one heading back to Ponyville was because she was paranoid that by overshooting Ponyville, Midnight Storm might not be there when she got back. Now she was passing halfway up the aisle and back, her face a perfect visage of worry. “She’s walking around undisguised so she’s not running. She WILL be there,” she told herself.
Summer looked up and out a window. She had looked for the kirin for four years without a trace, only to find out where she was from a newspaper… it was as if she had found out about a wedding from a close relative through the invite. She sat back down and pulled out a photo from her bag. The faces of Autumn Light and Orange Glow smiled back at her. ‘How am I going to explain Orange and Autumn?’ she wondered. ‘Or Midnight to Autumn?’
Other things crossed her mind, each one following on the heels of the other until the stream of thoughts and questions became as loud inside her head as the train itself speeding down the tracks. With a sigh she put the picture of her family away and leaned back into her seat. She just wanted this train to hurry and get to Ponyville. She didn’t want the kirin to get away again, not after all this time.
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Ponyville Station was the complete opposite from Manehattan Grand Central Station. Besides the obvious difference in size, scale, and grandeur, there was the amount of ponies milling around the station. Summer estimated it at a grand total of five ponies tops. Only one other pony got off the train with her and only one boarded before the locomotive pulled out and began its final run to the capital.
Summer took the moment to examine the town from her place on the platform. The small, two story homes, the scarcity of ponies on the cobble and/or dirt streets, the open air market that she could just see down the main street leading towards what she assumed was town hall… it all brought back memories from when she lived with her father in a very similar town north of Manehattan, back before she had been discovered by Lens Flare, father of the now famous Photo Finish. Back before she had met him.
It may have been a small town but the question of where to start looking still loomed over her. Town hall would be the fastest way to find out, but then they could just as easily make a fuss about giving out addresses like they did in the city and would likely take far longer than simply asking a pony on the street. That also carried some risk as another pony could overhear the conversation and tell Midnight somepony was looking for her first and Summer wanted to give Midnight no warning about her arrival. Catching Midnight by surprise was the only sure-fire way to make sure Summer would see her again. A bit paranoid but after four years of nothing it was justifiable.
After a few more minutes on the platform Summer finally made her decision and made her way onto the main street. She would head for the market and simply look around. Hopefully she’d either see Midnight herself or overhear a conversation about her and ease her way into it.
As she proceeded down the street and sights, smells, and sounds met her, she again drifted back into her childhood memories. She had always loved going to market with her parents where her father would sell his chopped wood and her mother her herbs. Besides their neighbors, there would always be ponies who were visiting or passing through attending the market place, which meant that each day was a chance to meet somepony new. The smell of the open air market had always been a comfort to her, and eating the fresh produce from a neighbor’s stall had always been a treat. It was, in fact, in that very market where Orange, her friend since foalhood, had begun courting her and where Lens Flare had discovered her after making a wrong turn while heading to Canterlot on hoof to see the sights and become inspired, or so he claimed.
She had always liked posing, be it in photos or for wood or ice carvings. Several ponies living in her home town bought her father’s wood to make wood carvings for travelers and they often asked her to model for them, even as a filly. She enjoyed seeing the work they made out of wood which had been inspired by her and she never complained about how long she had to hold a pose. She had been so highly praised by those carvers that a visiting ice sculptor during one Hearth’s Warming had asked her to pose for a centerpiece for the holiday. Summer had to hold the desired pose for nearly two days (she had been allowed to sleep and eat during that time while being supervised by the town school mistress) but she had loved every second of it. After the sculptor had finished, Summer had eagerly jumped off her pedestal to get a better look at the ice sculpture, only to find her cutie mark, an ice sculpture of a pony, reflecting back at her.
From that day forward she had wanted to make a career out of modeling, but who in their right mind would want a mare from the country to pose in magazines that the elite would see? She kept herself contented with modeling for the local wood carvers, even helping Orange with his love of photography, evident by the cutie mark of an umbrella and light fixture used by professionals, until Lens Flare had found her in the market one day when she was in her late teens. After an impromptu photo session during which Orange had to take over the camera from Flare’s own ill camera pony, Lens Flare whisked them off back to Manehattan with him to start the careers of their dreams. Of course, that was until Summer met a certain someone…
Lost in her thoughts, Summer failed to notice the other white unicorn with a stylized purple mane and tail walking straight towards her from the market, also distracted by her own thoughts. They impacted each other with a twin “oof!” and fell back onto their haunches. The few groceries the local unicorn had fell out onto the ground.
“I’m sorry!” Summer said when she realized what happened. “Let me help you with those!” Summer enveloped several items in her light-blue magic and began putting them back into their bags.
“Thank you and please don’t worry about it,” the other mare told her as she rubbed her head and checked her mane. “I wasn’t paying any attention to where I was going.”
“That makes two of us,” Summer said with a chuckle.
“Again, thank you,” the mare said as they refilled the last of the bags. “Now, I really must be going. An order has just come in and-” The other mare stopped as she finally got a good look at Summer. “Sweet Celestia! You’re Summer Ice, the head of Fancy Pants Modeling’s Manehattan branch!” she exclaimed.
Summer was more than a little surprised any pony living in such a rural town would recognize her. “Yes, that’s me,” she said cautiously.
“Oh, forgive me; it’s just that when I was younger you were on the cover of practically all my fashion magazines! You’re one of the reasons I wanted to become a dress maker! Oh, but where are my manners; my name is Rarity, Mrs. Ice.”
‘Rarity; I could have sworn I’ve heard that name before,’ Summer thought. “I’m just surprised anypony would know me out here in the country.”
“I’m surprised a mare such as yourself would be out this far in the country,” Rarity said. “I’d imagine you’d spend your weekends at events and the like.”
“Well, actually…” Summer hesitated for a second as she tried to figure out whether or not to tell Rarity the truth when something finally clicked. Not the name, but the face. “Hold on a moment,” she told her, using her magic to flip open her saddle bags and pull out the newspaper article which was the whole reason she was there. There, among the six mares who wielded the Elements of Harmony against Discord, was the very unicorn she was talking to. That meant… “Forgive me, but this is you, correct?” she asked as she stuck the picture practically right under Rarity’s nose.
“Oh, yes, that is myself and my friends!” she confirmed. “THAT certainly was an interesting day.”
“Then do you know this pony here?” Summer indicated Midnight.
Rarity looked at where she was indicating. “Oh, Midnight, of course I know her! Silly thing helped save Equestria but refused to let the photographers get a good shot of her.”
A wave of relief swept through Summer. Whether by accident or providence she had literally walked into one of the ponies in the best position to help her. “Please, if it isn’t too much trouble, could you take me to her? It’s the whole reason I’ve come here today.”
“Right now?” Rarity asked, concern starting to cross her face.
“If it’s too much trouble you could just point me in the right direction,” Summer suggested.
Rarity thought for a few seconds more, turning her head from one side to the other as she thought, then a smile reappeared on her face. “No, it is no trouble at all darling; I work even better under a bit of pressure. Just follow me and we’ll be there in no time.”
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“I thought I recognized your name!” Summer said as she and Rarity walked through Ponyville to where Midnight lived. “Hoity Toity mentioned you at Fancy’s Hearth’s Warming party; he said your dresses were simply amazing.”
Rarity was practically glowing. “I’m just happy he liked them, especially after the disaster the first showing was.”
“Oh, it couldn’t have been that bad,” Summer said, noticing how the other unicorn’s glow seemed to dim at remembering the incident with her friends’ dresses. “If they were, he wouldn’t have let you do a second.”
Rarity shook her head. “Trust me dear, they were horrid, and what’s worse they were for my friends for the Grand Galloping Gala. I don’t know how he did it, but Spike was able to get him to stay for one more show. The rest, as they say, is history.”
“Well, good for you. By the way, may I ask who Spike is?” ‘Rather odd name for a pony,’ Summer thought.
“Oh, Spike is my friend Twilight Sparkle’s assistant and either a surrogate younger brother or son. The way those two act with each other you’d think they were siblings but then again she did hatch him, so…” Rarity shrugged.
“Oh, yes, he was mentioned in the article. Wait, she hatched him? How did she even get an egg?” Summer asked. She gave Rarity a look of puzzlement.
“Twilight was participating in an exam to get into Celestia’s School For Gifted Unicorns and it called for her to use her magic to hatch a dragon egg. Later on she found out that the exam really was just to see her range of spells as well as her endurance. From what she told me the dear nearly failed when the sonic rainboom passed over Canterlot. The surprise jolted her magic and, among other things, caused the egg to actually hatch! It was so impressive that Princess Celestia herself took her on as her personal protégé!”
That sure was a surprise. “Wait, the princess’s personal protégé is staying here in town?” Summer asked, a look of disbelief on her face.
Rarity nodded. “Indeed she is. The princess has her studying the magic of friendship and while I do agree it sounds ridiculous, if it wasn’t for our friendship we never could have wielded the Elements and beat both Nightmare Moon and Discord.”
“Well, I guess that explains how a dragon can live with ponies,” Summer said. “If she’s studying under the princess, she must know some great illusionary or invisibility spells.” She said this in a lowered voice, but Rarity still heard her.
“What do you mean?” the other unicorn asked, slowing her pace a bit.
“Well, surely she isn’t just letting him walk around town? That would start a panic,” Summer said.
This time Rarity stopped completely. “Um, Mrs. Ice, ponies around here do not have a problem with Spike being a dragon. They barely even bat an eyelash at him.” Then something hit her. “You… you do know Midnight isn’t a normal pony, correct? I mean the photo makes that clear, but…” She remembered what Midnight had said about ponies in the cities and how they reacted to her. “I think you should know that Midnight has a bit of a temper. If you’ve come all this way just to do something akin to, well, gawking at her, she might become a bit… irate.”
She was prepared for scoffs of “no such thing,” or “of course not!” What she didn’t expect was for Summer to begin turning red.
“Excuse me?!” She said, truly offended by the implication. “I’ve been searching high and low for her for nearly four years now, and you think that I would do so simply to gawk at her like a common carnival side show!?”
Rarity took a few more steps back from the enraged mare. That certainly seemed like a ‘no’ to her. “Please, forgive me, it’s just that Midnight has told us of how she was treated during her travels and you could say we’ve developed a bit of a protective streak when it comes to her and ponies from the city. Rainbow Dash nearly knocked out a reporter that shoved his camera into Midnight’s face at the party, although that might have been more to save the reporter from Midnight.”
Summer almost snorted at the mental picture of what Midnight would have done to the reporter, but then something else registered in her head. Rarity had called Midnight a friend, something the kirin had actually avoided doing since the incident with her cutie mark. Could things really be that different in Ponyville?
“I’m sorry as well,” Summer apologized. “I guess you could say that I also have a protective streak towards her and you just happen to hit the right nerve.”
“I am sorry again darling, but I had to be sure. Now, her house is just a little farther; shall we continue?”
Summer nodded and began following her again.
The house came into view a few minutes later and Summer wasn’t sure whether or not to be surprised. It looked like all the other normal houses of the town with their germaneic style and two stories but it was also situated near both the school house and an imposing forest. It looked out of the way enough for her but the proximity to the school wasn’t. For a moment she thought Rarity would lead her into the forest and that Midnight was actually living as a hermit there, however she lead them straight to the front door which had a name emblazoned on it. “Storm’s Firewood?” Summer read out loud.
“Yes, she’s Ponyville’s only wood cutter. She mainly sells firewood but you can special order lumber if you really need it.”
‘She’s a… but how? I never told her...’ Summer followed Rarity inside and was met by a rather sparse front end. There was a rather big area for customers to mill around in, a counter that went the length of the front, and a few shelves behind said counter with wood piles placed on them. The room smelled of cut wood and Summer’s memories of her youth began to play in her mind again, although they were quickly sent to the back of her mind.
“Welcome to Storm’s Firewood!”
Summer looked over at the counter and saw a dark-on-light blue pegasus mare smiling back at her with kind, orange eyes.
“Is there anything I can help you with?”
“Actually Sapphire dear, Mrs. Ice here is looking to meet with Midnight; do you know if she’s in?” Rarity asked.
The mare shook her head and the smile faded to a straight line. “Sorry; she left to visit Derpy earlier this morning.”
“Do you have any idea when she’ll be back?” Rarity asked.
Sapphire’s face turned thoughtful. “I think she said she’d be back by lunch. If Mrs. Ice really needs to see her that badly you could take her to Derpy’s if it isn’t too much trouble.”
“Perhaps Windrunner could shoot on over and let Midnight know?” Rarity tried.
Sapphire shook her head. “Windrunner is out flying with Rainbow. They could be half way to Cloudsdale by now if her retellings of their times together are any indications.”
“Oh, I see…”
“Are you sure she’s going to come back?” Summer asked.
Sapphire looked confused by the question. “Of course she’ll be back. This is her home and business. If you want to wait here I can bring out a chair or cushion if you’d like; I don’t think she’d like strangers hanging around the house.”
Strangers. The word stung Summer. “Thank you; I think I’ll wait.”
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Summer sat and talked with Sapphire for the first half hour; Summer learning all she could about Midnight’s life in Ponyville so far. Rarity had excused herself soon after the conversation began so she could return to getting her latest order finished. When Sapphire finally asked why she was so interested in Midnight, Summer told her that she knew her from Manehattan and just wanted to see an old friend. Sapphire had given her a look at this.
“We were all under the impression that Midnight had only one friend growing up and that she was a filly about the same age as her,” Sapphire said.
‘She told them about Soft Glow?’ “Yes, well, what foal ever calls an adult a friend?” Summer said, hoping she’d diverted suspicion. Again, the paranoia had won out.
“I… suppose that’s true. Midnight did say a few adults other than her mother and father knew about her. I take it you know them or, at least, know her mother?” Sapphire asked.
“You… could say that,” Summer said uneasily.
“Well, when you go back to Manehattan, could you tell her where Midnight is?” Sapphire asked. “We know Midnight wouldn’t like it but we all feel it’s about time she tried and made up with her.”
Summer allowed her hope to grow a little more. Maybe there really wasn’t anything to fear if Midnight’s friends, something she was still coming to grips with, wanted that to happen. Maybe Midnight really wanted to reunite with her too after all this time.
They both heard the side door open and shut loudly.
“Sapphire, I’m back!” a high-pitched voice called from the back.
Sapphire opened the door next to her and stuck her head through. “Hello Squeaky; back so soon?”
“Uh-huh.” Sapphire pulled her head back and held the door open as if to let somepony through although Summer didn’t see anypony. Then she realized that the speaker must be a foal. “Pinchy still has homework to finish, Twist is helping her parents at their shop, and Dinky went with Miss Top to pick up Miss Hooves’ younger sister.”
“That’s right, Midnight is helping Derpy with Sparkler’s welcome party,” Sapphire said, remembering why Midnight had gone over to Derpy’s.
“And Miss Pinkie, too,” Squeaks added.
“Right, and she asked Carrot Top and Dinky to go to meet her instead so they could get ready,” Sapphire guessed, and was rewarded with a nod from the filly. Sapphire nodded back. “Well, I’m sorry none of your friends could play today.”
“That’s okay,” Squeaks said, her voice betraying her disappointment. “I still have some books I haven’t read or colored yet.” Then Squeaks got an idea. “Can I color some of them up here with you?”
Sapphire looked up and over the counter. “I’m sorry Squeaky, but there’s a visitor up front with me already, and you know the rules.”
There was a pause. “Is your mom back again?” Squeaks asked with a hint of fear in her voice.
Sapphire snorted as she tried to contain a burst of laughter. “No, it’s not my mom; the visitor is for your mom.”
Summer’s ears went fully erect. ‘Did she just say…?’ The next moment the filly stuck her head around the corner of the counter and Summer got her first look at her. Cream-colored fur with an orange mane with a white stripe through it, leathery wings, fangs, and yellow, cat-like eyes. Squeaks certainly had the looks to be Midnight’s child, but each one of those features also felt… off somehow. For example, Summer felt that Squeaks’ eyes were more cat-like than draconic and her wings were more bat-like. Then there was how old Squeaks looked. “Dear?” Summer asked. “How old are you?”
“I’m eight.” Squeaks replied, sounding uneasy after being stared at.
‘Eight? But that would mean Midnight had to be about fourteen and a fourteen-year-old just can’t hide that!’
“Midnight adopted her this past winter,” Sapphire provided when she saw the confused and alarmed face Summer was making.
“Adopted… I see. It’s just that they look so similar...”
“I’ve noticed that myself,” Sapphire agreed. “But Squeaky is a threstral, bat pony, so it’s just coincidence.”
Summer was at a loss for further words. The Midnight she knew was reclusive, anti-social, and, to put it bluntly, often was just plain nasty. The thought of her having friends, going out to places, and being of all things a mother was just alien in the extreme.
As Summer continued in her own thoughts, Sapphire brought Squeaks around the back of the counter again. “Why don’t you go ahead and color in your room, Squeaky? I think Mrs. Ice here is a bit nervous about meeting with Midnight.”
“Did I do something wrong?” The bat pony asked.
“No…” Sapphire said carefully. “But finding out Midnight is a mother must have freaked her out a bit. Just go upstairs and wait for me to call you down for lunch, okay?”
Squeaks nodded but before she could leave they all heard the side door open again.
“-And that last eel almost took our tails off!”
“The two of you are going to end up in the hospital sooner or later and trust me when I say it isn’t fun.”
At the sound of the second voice Summer stiffened and her ears shot up again as if to listen to the voices more closely.
Seeing this, Sapphire reached over and opened the door again. “Midnight, could you come to the front? Somepony is here to see you.”
Sapphire stepped back and allowed a large, black, draconic-like figure Summer hadn’t seen in nearly four years to appear in the doorway. “See me? What do they… want?” Her blue draconic eyes fell upon the visitor and suddenly Midnight couldn’t move or speak. She stared, speechless as the white unicorn with the mane and eyes the same colors as her own took a tentative step toward her.
“Midnight?” Summer asked, her eyes becoming shiny with tears.
“M-Mom!?” Midnight finally croaked.
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Midnight stared across the table at her mother as different emotions fought for dominance inside her. Relief, anger, joy, sadness, and confusion came one after the other and was barely there long enough before another emotion swept in. The only constant was the stare she shot across the kitchen table at her. Summer, for her part, held the look, although a mix of happiness and confusion reigned clear on her face. The silence in the kitchen was palpable and it was clear the happy reunion Summer had hoped for was quickly becoming less likely.
Whatever was brewing, Sapphire and Windrunner knew they had no right to be in it and had retreated, along with Squeaks, upstairs to wait it out.
At long last Summer broke the silence. “So… I see you have a nice place for yourself.” She smiled hopefully.
“It’s home,” Midnight said evenly.
Summer tried again. “I… uh… I hear you’re the town’s woodcutter. You know, your grandfather was the town woodcutter back where Orange and I used to live.”
Midnight’s eyes narrowed. “I didn’t know that. You never told me about that or him,” the kirin said, the last part coming out as a slight snarl. “And, of course, you just had to mention Orange, didn’t you?”
“I’m sorry about that,” Summer said, “it just seemed like-”
“No, that’s fine,” Midnight said, cutting her off.
Summer stopped for a minute, then tried something with a bit more shock value. “You know, you’re a big sister now.”
That elicited a surprised look on the kirin’s face. “Really?” But then her eyes narrowed again. “Let me guess who the father is.”
“Yes, it’s Orange,” Summer confirmed, weariness leaking into her voice. “Even so, it would be great if she finally got to meet her big sister.”
“Maybe,” the kirin said in a tone that was clearly negative.
“And maybe I could get to know my… granddaughter… later as well?” That was still something Summer was having a hard time wrapping her head around but maybe the filly could act as a sort of common ground for them.
Unfortunately, this only seemed to agitate Midnight. “We’ll see,” was all she said.
Silence fell over the table again as Summer fished around for other things to talk about that hopefully wouldn’t set the kirin off more. Midnight was more than ready to be confrontational. As she scanned the kitchen, her gaze fell on the staircase Sapphire, Windrunner, and Squeaks had gone up. They all had looked worried as they left. “I see you’ve gotten yourself some new friends; I’m happy you did.”
Midnight snorted again but it did look like some tension left her at the mention of the other three in the house. “Believe it or not, I actually have quite a few friends here in town.”
“I’ve heard.” Summer let out a small breath of relief as she found a topic that didn’t rile her eldest daughter up. “Do you do anything together?”
“We have poker nights and watch each others’ foals. Sometimes we just hang around; those sort of things.”
Summer nodded. “Maybe you could introduce me to them later?”
Midnight sighed. “I guess, but I’m pretty sure they’re all busy today.”
“Oh, well, maybe tomorrow?” Summer tried.
Something flashed in Midnight’s eyes but she didn’t say anything.
Realizing that this subject, too, was going downhill, Summer looked around the kitchen for some subject to try when she saw the clock above the stove saying it was almost noon. “Why don’t we make sandwiches for everypony? It really wouldn’t be right if we hogged the kitchen while the others are standing around getting hungry, especially Squeaky.” Bringing Squeaks back up had been a gamble, but it seemed to pay off as Midnight sighed again and nodded.
“Time for lunch!” Midnight called as she got up.
Summer stood up as well and moved to the counter with Midnight as the others tentively came back down stairs. Squeaks went around through the living room so as to get close to her mother while avoiding Summer.
“I can’t believe how hostile Midnight is being,” Windrunner said as she followed Sapphire to the cupboards. “I mean, it’s been four years, right? You’d think Midnight would be happy to see her mother again.”
“Midnight’s always been a bit terse about the subject,” Sapphire offered. “She’s never once talked about it.”
“Maybe she’s angry about her mother starting a new family,” Windrunner guessed. “She’s made it clear she doesn’t like whoever this Orange stallion is.”
“That might be part of it, but I think…” Sapphire trailed off as she turned back towards the table. The other two turned to see Midnight glaring at Summer again. The butter knife that had been brought out was clutched in the kirin’s wing-claw and also surrounded by Summer’s light-blue, almost white, magic.
“Really Midnight, let me do this for you,” Summer said politely as she pulled on the utensil.
“As the host, I insist,” Midnight growled, pulling the knife back towards her.
“But I haven’t seen you in so long, let me make you a sandwich for old time’s sake.” Back to Summer, who was visibly becoming irritated.
“My house, my way, now let go!” Back to Midnight who was also getting her dander up.
Squeaks looked over at Sapphire as if pleading with her to stop them. Sapphire was baffled that Midnight and Summer would be fighting over a simple butter knife when there were plenty more in the utensil draw. Was Midnight really so ready for an argument that she’d start one over a small piece of metal?
“Stop being so stubborn!” Summer grunted, her venire of politeness finally wearing off.
“Stop trying to take over my life again!” Midnight shot back.
“I am not!” Summer yelled, indignant.
“You won’t even trust me with a butter knife!” Midnight roared, her fangs starting to show.
“I do trust you-!”
“LIAR!”
Both mares gave a final pull and the knife shot out from both their grasps. It went up, bounced off the ceiling, then fell to the floor, nearly hitting both Squeaks and Midnight. There was dead silence as everypony either looked at the feuding mares or at the butter knife on the floor.
Summer broke the silence first. “Are you two alright? I didn’t mean to-”
“WHAT IS YOUR PROBLEM!?” Summer jumped back at the explosion. “FOURTEEN YEARS LATER AND YOU STILL ACT LIKE THAT!? A FAUST-DAMN BUTTER KNIFE AND YOU ACT LIKE I’M-!” Midnight’s tirade was cut short as she seemed to realize where she was and who was around her. She snorted, growled, and paced her front legs a bit before she spoke again in a more controlled fashion. “You and me need to have a talk. Now.” With that Midnight carefully spun around, making sure not to accidently kick or step on Squeaks, and headed for the side door.
Summer stayed rooted to the spot for a few seconds, just as shocked as any of them at the kirin’s outburst. She finally came around as Midnight was almost out the door. She gave them all an apologetic look, then followed Midnight out the door.
“That… escalated.” Windrunner said, not sure what else to say.
Sapphire nodded as Squeaks practically crawled over to her. She’d never seen Midnight so angry. Even Pinkie and Twilight had said she was more irritated than hostile when they first met her. Midnight had admitted she and her mother had an argument which was why she had left, but had it really been that bad? “I just hope it doesn’t get worse.”
-----------------------------
Midnight angrily yet quietly stalked off into the edge of the Everfree, Summer coming up close behind, hesitating only briefly at the forest edge. Midnight decided she would lead her far enough into the forest so that they couldn’t be overheard, but not deep enough to tempt an attack by the local wildlife.
She had told Sapphire, Celestia, and others that she had run away from home because of a fight she had gotten into with her mother had turned out badly, and that pretty much was correct. As to the reason for the fight, she had told nopony. Midnight had never liked Orange Glow, something both she and her mother felt was something she had taken after her father, and had confronted Summer on the subject one night. Midnight had accused her of being unfaithful and in a rare moment Summer had lost her cool and yelled back that Windstorm being gone for fifteen years without a word made him the unfaithful one. She went on to say how she had put up with the charade until then so that Midnight would have some hope to hold on to, but in truth she had given up long before that. She told Midnight that her father wasn’t coming back and that it was time to grow up and face it. Yes, Summer still had feelings for Orange from before she had met Windstorm and that she was going to act on them whether Midnight liked it or not. Midnight had nearly thrown a fit and yelled back that she would find her father and live with him instead. If her mother could so easily stop loving him, how long before she stopped loving her? The last part had gone unsaid and Summer hadn’t taken her seriously until the next morning when she discovered Midnight, as well as several of the kirin’s personal possessions, gone. Midnight had spent the next three years wandering Equestria until finally settling into Ponyville.
They followed a trail through the forest for a bit before it forked off. The left trail led up to the top of the cliff behind Midnight’s house while the right trail led to a clearing. Midnight turned down the right path with Summer close behind and in less than a minute they were standing under open sky. They reached the center of it before Midnight whipped around on Summer, her tail-blade flying a bit close for the unicorn’s comfort.
“Fourteen years,” she growled again. “Fourteen years later and you think I can’t even handle a BUTTER KNIFE!? Unless you’ve forgotten, I have THIS,” she swung her tail-blade into Summer’s face, causing the unicorn to back up a step. “I don’t need a butter knife, or any knife for that matter, to hurt myself! Do you actually think I haven’t picked up anything sharp in all this time!?”
“And after what you did to yourself!?” Summer shot back, her own quick anger startling the kirin a bit. “Do you really think I felt nothing after seeing what getting your cutie mark did to you!?” No matter how large or even dangerous Midnight may have gotten in the four years she was gone, she was still her daughter and Summer was not about to sit back and be yelled at by her.
“You became terrified of me!” Midnight shouted back. “Every time you looked at me I could see it! ‘When is she going to do it again, who’s she going to go after, how much of the city is she going to destroy?’ I was nothing but a ticking time bomb to you!”
“I was afraid you were going to hurt yourself!” Summer countered. “I was afraid that you were going to do something you would regret the rest of your life! THAT’S what terrified me! Yes, I was scared you would hurt somepony while like that, but I was more scared about how it would have affected you! If you had hurt or even killed somepony how would you have felt then!?” Here some of Summer’s anger seemed to leave her. “What you did to yourself when all you did was scare a few fillies… what would you have done if you actually hurt them? That is what scared me every time I looked at you, because that if was far too close for comfort.” She looked Midnight square in the eye. “A mother never forgets, not even after nearly a decade and a half.” Then she thought of something. “What if Squeaky did what you did? How long would you keep wondering ‘what if’?”
Midnight actually calmed down a bit as well. Her mother made a very good point and it had brought up some things Midnight had worried about when it came to Squeaks. What if she was doing the wrong thing by not giving Squeaks blood to drink? It was part of thestrals’ diets, so what if she was actually hindering or even hurting Squeaks in some way? What if it caused her to lose control one day and she attacked a friend or classmate? It was a frightfully similar situation, but Midnight really hadn’t considered it until just then. Still, she shook her head.
“Even if something did happen, she would always have me to fall back on, which is more than you did!” Her temper flared up again. “All you did was move the knives to a top shelf and go back to work! You took off two days to make sure I was alright and then it was back to leaving at dawn and not coming back to well past sunset! While I was at home trying to figure out what was wrong with me you were in your office playing dress up! I didn’t need a pent house, I needed YOU!”
“You’re damn straight I had to work!” Summer shot back. “Not every pony eats gems, Midnight! And yes, you’re right, I should have stayed home more, a lot more, but you eating animals around the city also endangered the secrecy your father and I agreed on! What if you were seen killing and eating a family pet? That would blow the secret right out of the water, wouldn’t it? Ponies need to mine for gem stones and they’re expensive as Tartarus! Your father told me that you needed either gems or meat to grow up healthy; I chose to provide for you rather than make you hunt on your own and risk getting spotted!”
Midnight snorted. “Well congratulations; you have a normal family now and don’t need to worry about any of that ever again! No more worrying what dead carcass I’ve brought home, no more worrying about what I could have done to myself while you were gone, no more worrying about having a… a… a FREAK of a foal!”
Summer felt as if she’d just been slapped. “I… I NEVER-!”
“OF COURSE YOU DID!” Midnight roared. “You weren’t afraid, you were ASHAMED! You had to give up your modeling career and go into the business side because of ME! You had to work all day and into the night because of ME! You couldn’t spend time with any friends because of ME! All I was to you was a BURDON and I bet you danced with joy when you realized I was gone!”
*SMACK*
Midnight stared in shock at a place somewhere to Summer’s left. Summer hadn’t raised a hoof to her since she’d gotten her cutie mark.
Slowly, Summer lowered her trembling hoof. “I… I was never, EVER happy that you were gone. I can’t even believe you would think of me like that. You were… are my little girl, and only a sick mind would be ashamed of what you are or be happy that you left. How can you ever believe I thought those things?”
Slowly, Midnight looked at her again. “How many times did you have nightmares about me?”
Summer was tripped up by the sudden change of topic. “Uh… I… I don’t know? Why?”
Midnight took a step forward. “I can’t remember how many nightmares about you I’ve had because I’ve lost count.”
Summer took a step back as Midnight took another step forward. The unicorn had gotten used to the fangs and fire from the many arguments with her teenage daughter. What she was not prepared for was the ice cold tone in her voice or the cold stare she was now getting from the adult one.
“Even before I left I had nightmares, although they were thankfully only a few nights a week. I could never talk to you about them because, of course, you were always at work. No matter what the situation was, there was always one constant. Do you know what it was?”
Summer shook her head.
“You. You were always there, and do you know what? That’s all you ever said. ‘I hate you, you’re an abomination, I WISH YOU WERE NEVER BORN!’ I guess I could have just shrugged them off, but after I left that’s what I looked forward to almost every night. And it didn’t stop at words, either. You turned mobs against me, found me for them, THREW ME OFF CLIFFS WHILE LAUGHING!” Midnight took a rattling breath. Her fangs were fully extended, fire played on her breath, and her wings were open to the point they were trembling. For a few seconds Summer really thought Midnight was going to go after her. “You aren’t my mother; you’re a walking, talking nightmare come to haunt me again but this time we’re in the real world and you don’t have any power over me. Now, why don’t you do us both a favor, go back to your little family, and never see me again.” Midnight held Summer’s gaze a moment longer before turning and beginning to walk away.
Summer stood there, stunned. This… this was beyond anything she had expected. The four years apart, no matter how much she had tried to find her, had only made the rift between them worse than ever. Summer couldn’t even begin to try and figure out what to do next. Summer whipped her head up at the sound of fire being breathed to see Midnight waiting by the edge of the clearing. She was staring back at her, all anger and hostility apparently gone and replaced by a cold, uncaring look.
“Are you getting out of my forest or not?” she growled.
Summer stared at her for a few moments more. “Midnight...” she finally said. “I’ve spent the past four years praying I’d see you again. I thought of you every day and no amount of work or time spent with Orange or Autumn made me stop. I’ve tried to follow every lead I could hoping that it would lead me to you. Now I’ve found you and… and…” Summer closed her eyes as she felt tears begin to well up. “Those were just nightmares Midnight, things made up in your head. Are you really going to let that rule what you think of me? That those things are really what I would say to you? Are you really going to let it end this way?”
Midnight sneered. “Why not!? I want nothing to do with you! You’ve done nothing but make my life miserable! They may have been nightmares, but they were still you! You still said those things! You still did those things! And now you want to act as if everything is ‘forgive and forget’!?” Midnight slammed her front hooves into the ground with enough force to send out a small tremor. “Well I can’t! I can’t forget! I can’t forget being on my own! I can’t forget being treated as a monster and having to move almost constantly! I can’t forget the times I went hungry! I can’t forget the countless nightmares! I can’t… I can’t…!” Midnight suddenly whipped around, sat down, and was silent. Only the occasional angry grunt or a hoof striking the grass made any noise.
Summer waited for Midnight to start yelling again. When she didn’t she slowly made her way over. Midnight was shaking when she reached her but from what Summer couldn’t tell.
“I just wanted to blame you for everything.” Midnight said in a quiet, yet strained, voice when she sensed Summer was close. “I thought that if I could find dad, if I could just ask him why the bucking Tartarus he left, then maybe, maybe, we could go home together and we could…” Without warning tears began running down Midnight’s face, although she screwed up her face in an effort to hold them back. “I just wanted everything to go back to the way it was. No cutie mark, no nightmares, no fights, I just…” Midnight clenched back a, just as unexpected, sob.
Summer, unable to stand it anymore, reached out and touched Midnight’s hoof, trying to comfort her. She was angry at Midnight, for running away, for not coming back, for the yelling match they just had, but seeing her suddenly breaking down like that, Summer just couldn’t stay that way. Even if the problem was herself, something was hurting her little girl and she needed to help fix it.
The kirin flinched at the touch at first, but then tentively took it in her own hoof. In the many times Midnight had gone over this very scenario in her head, none had ever turned out like this. There was supposed to be mutual understanding of never wanting to see each other again because her mother was just as horrible a pony as the rest. But if that was the case, then why, after all the shouting and accusing, did she not want her to leave?
Summer reached out and wiped one of the tears away. “Midnight, after all is said and done, please, if nothing else, believe me when I tell you I never, past, present, or future, will think of you as anything but my beautiful, wonderful little girl. Just promise me you’ll never forget that.”
Midnight finally looked at Summer. Every nightmare, every fight, every reason Midnight ever thought she had to be angry with her mother came to mind again but this time they all seemed petty and childish. If she really hadn’t cared, then why did she put up with her all those years? Why had she even come looking for her? The monster in her dreams would never have done that… but her mother would. Her mother, who raised her alone when her father left, who worked from dawn to dusk so that she could have a proper diet and roof over her head, who, even after every fight they had, still smiled at her and held her close. Four years of near-constant nightmares had done a lot to ruin that image of her. She now knew how wrong she had been. “Mom… I…”
Without warning, Midnight Storm pulled her mother into a hug and began balling her eyes out. “I-I-I j-just w-w-wanted t-to c-come h-h-home s-so m-much b-but e-every t-time I-I h-had a-another n-nightmare a-and-!”
Summer was momentarily shocked at the suddenness of the action, then embraced her back. “Shhh. There, there baby girl. We’re together again.” Summer patted her daughter as she also began to cry. “And as long as we have each other, we’re home.”
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An interesting point to end on, but nice to see this updating.
I will never play 'Baby Mine' while reading anything. The mere thought of that song makes me sniffle... and want hugs.
Damn dude. This made me go all teary-eyed at the end.
you good sir have blown my mind have a cookie
This made my feel buds tingle with the sweetness that is love.
Got enough mood swings in yet, Midnight?
Welcome back man. An awesome chapter.
It's alive!
YES! New Chapter!
And a awesome one, too^^
I'm sure Midnight will be a great big sister.
Daww... The feels.
But... that said. I want at least one chapter of Kirin sexy times.
Also, could use some griffons for more multiculture fun.
5437725 No a changeling!
Wahhh.
Right in the feels!
I came out of the scene rather confused.
I mean yes, its feelsy, but I feel that the emotions switched left to right too quickly from angry angry to heartbroken sad, and the use of dreams as Midnight's beef with Summer seems... so entirely irrational that I can't exactly sympathize with it. Midnight was understandably scared of her mother, which was what caused the dreams..... but the tragedy of the situation is the lack of communication between the two who did love each other, resulted in this screw up and that isn't concentrated on long enough to show the reader how sad the situation is.
5437576
ooo, cookie!
you know i was just thinking about this story and then it updates, epic timing
5437725
new creatures coming down the pipe.
no guarantee on kirin sexy time.
Ok, I am confused. Once is a mistake, but more than once it switches from saying 4 years and 14 years, even once 'a decade and a half'. So I am confused as heck. *scratches head*
5438168
four years ago was when Midnight ran away, fourteen years ago was when she got her cutie mark
I'm feeling a little upset with Midnight here. She's really let everything in her head rule her judgement about her mother, nightmares are just nightmares. It seems like the entire scenario that just unfolded was the product of her own doubts about her family. Maybe she's just mad at herself for not finding her father, the final thread that caused all of this.
I wish Midnight would put herself in Summer's shoes. Her mother was left with a child and a husband that was nowhere to be found. She was put into a tight spot and she had to sacrifice a lot to keep Midnight happy. That's the side of the argument that I don't think she's seeing, how much Summer herself went through to keep Midnight's eccentric behaviors kept quiet. Then in the end, you lose all of your family, where do you go after all of that?
I wonder how Squeaks will react to having a younger aunt?
5438237 Ah, I see. They kept switching from it being "4 years ago", to it being "14 years old", I wasn't sure what was going on xD
I wish i could shed tears, but due to...past events in my life, I am unable to.
still, a very touching chapter
No she didn't. Rarity only said they were protective of a local when it came to big city types.
5438168 Not to mention that the scene with Squeaky doesn't really flow well if she was only gone for four years. Running away from home at eighteen? Yeah, that's not running away.... that's just moving out. Plus every time she has spoken about being on the run it was always blown up way more than a mere three years.
... i think me saying that all that took it to the featured box was a single chapter to be published that shows how good this story is keep up the good, no GREAT work
5438403 I know the Feeling quite well
Oh man...if only I could unlike and then re like it or double like this story...so awesome <3 I so love the love in this chapter :D
5438123
How about a bribe?
pinchmysalt.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/img_3160-version-2.jpg
imagizer.imageshack.us/a/img545/531/yvxa1.png
Very well done, can't wait for more
5438237 you horrible horrible man! that last scene with that song .fc06.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2011/323/3/6/rainbow_dash___crying_by_thelawn-d4gom9i.png
that's hitting in my childhood! but overall a beautiful chapter. ~sniffles~ will there be more characters added into the story?
You missed a closing quote there, you might want to skim it now that it's up and see if you can spot of your other errors, nice to see chapter finally posted (I've been looking forward to this for months).
*Reads chapter to song*
Damn you...
Aw so sweet I'm actually crying right now, wow right in the feel bro, beautiful chapter as always.
5438121 I know right I did the same thing, then boom an hour later update. YAY
I forgot how.... strange this story can be at times.
Not in a bad way, of course.
5439292 I was actually woundedering when the next chapter would come when it was updated
I smile and I almost cried.
Dude, you know how to write.
I had to step away and let the rage cool before finishing. My mom thought I has nuts, mumbling and fuming. If I were a dragon, I would have been spitting fire.
Where's that Like button, Imma smash it.
O_O
;_;
*Pats StarRunner's upper back* There there...
I... holy shit...
Oh, I forgot to mention:
IT LIIIIIVVVVVVVVVESSSSS!!!!!!!
YOU HAD TO MENTION BABY MINE?!
U sir have hit me in the feels... DAMN U AND YOUR FEELS WRITING SKILLS
I was honestly a little disappointed in the end there. I liked the whole thing with the working to earn the gems and not spending time with Midnight, but the nightmares thing was a bit weak. I was really hoping for some kind of a serious problem, not just a misunderstanding that gets resolved in one meeting. All the elements were there, but the resolution was just so quick it was hard to really have any feelings for it.
Oh well, that nit pick aside, I really liked that chapter. I'm looking forward to seeing what'll happen from here on out.
Damn, its been months since I read your work, but 3 chapters later and I'm in love again.
You don't need to play 'Baby Mine' to cry while reading this chapter.
And what did happen to Midnight's father?
That was beautiful. Sorry it took me so long to read this chapter. I've been busy with the holidays and my fav list blew up.
5438520
Do I look like a giant blue sock-puppet to you? And just sugar cookies? Don't want it that bad, do you?
5438898
is there going to be a fifth season?
5443707
