Chapter One

Author's Note:

Because of the deadline, I was unable to properly edit the second half of this, so I'm sorry for any mistakes, I'll fix them later on.

Also, I might write an epilogue later.

Loyalty - By Redemption

Rain poured from the sky. Constant lightnings illuminated the forest below, accompanied by thunders. This place isn’t always like this, during normal days the Whitetail Woods are a beautiful sight, often visited by those who wish a nice and calm atmosphere. However, right now this isn’t the case, not for the many figures wondering the forest at this very moment. Their shapes are occasionally shown by the lightning, a few walking, others flying, all of them wearing heavy sets of armor and with a single goal in mind.

Their voices are muted by the storm, as they continue to venture further into the woods. Separated from the larger groups, is a particular figure, one with a different and far more personal task. Her golden coat and armor are wet and cold, causing constant shivers as she moves. Beneath the helmet, her honey mane is also not doing much better. However, unlike most mares, she prefers to keep it short, which avoids dealing with normal issues a longer and more common length would present.

The name of this unicorn mare is Golden Flame. Her eyes snap as she moves, searching for any unusual movements amongst the vegetation. Despite the rain and cold, her body is tense and steady, ready to act in case of a threat, just like a trained Royal Guard should do. Her breathing is fast and her heart is beating furiously, pumping more and more adrenaline into her bloodstream.

“I can’t believe it…” she thought to herself. “I knew what might happen, but still, I wish there was a different way, something simpler and easier…”

Officially, her mission was exactly the same as the rest of the Royal Guard, to hunt down any Changelings still left in Equestrian territory. After the invasion of Canterlot and the subsequent skirmishes with Changeling forces across the nation, the Guard had launched a full operation to reestablish order and quell any kind of hostile resistance. This bold move is supposed to not only aid in the war effort, but to serve as a morale boost for all Equestrians.

Each regiment was assigned a specific part of the country to go. Golden’s unit was send here. Therefore, despite the awful conditions, they moved in, engaging any enemies they identified. Golden Flame did the same, however, she isn’t looking for some random love-sucker to kill or capture, no, she had a very specific target in mind.

She remember how it used to be, when all she had to care about was how much longer her shift would take. He always showed up to have a little chat, making some casual jokes and asking the usual questions a friend would… How could she be so stupid?

The Castle had always been a pleasant place to be. No matter how many times Golden patrolled its halls and gardens, her eyes would always look in wonder at the amazing architecture of it. Sometimes he would also comment on that, sharing her amazement and making her long shifts more interesting. He was really good at that, she had to admit, Golden enjoyed his company like no other friend could make. After a while, she would smile whenever he came, bringing his good company and distractions from the boring routine of her duty.

However… it was all a lie, a careful and precise scheme he created to deceive her, to make Golden believe he was indeed just an honest guard. He used her, nothing but a tool to get what he wanted, all those times, the good memories and fun times, nothing but a lie…

Nevertheless, none of that matters now. Her search has ended and she has settled the score. This isn’t ideal, far from it, but it’s what happened and Golden is content with it. Part of her still questions what occurred just moments ago, unable to accept it. Despite that, there’s nothing she can do; from the very beginning, this was a one way road.

Golden Flame slowed down. After what had felt like an eternity, she had finally left the damned forest. Her breathing got steadier; she stopped for a few moments to compose herself. Her face still carried the same expression of swift determination she had used throughout the night.

Feeling calmer, she walked towards a group of royal guards, not far from her. Amongst them were the officers of her regiment, constantly shouting orders to troopers and scouts nearby. They had built a more or less organized base of operations, with a few tents and defensive positions around.

The guards at the entrance quickly recognized her, allowing her to go in with a nod. Once she was close enough to the small group of officers, one of them, a lieutenant, spotted her. As his eyes analyzed her, Golden Flame saluted.

“Private Flame, good to see you in one piece,” He said in a calm tone. Silver Shield was always polite with those around him, no matter who they were. “What do you have to report?”

“We’ve managed to locate enemy positions along the forest; the unit is pushing forward without issues,” Golden replied in a sharp and pragmatic tone.

He nodded in acknowledgement. “Are there any problems?”

“Nopony injured so far and the enemy is not showing much resistance.”

“Good, I’ll be heading there soon to make sure everything is going smoothly,” He looked at a few maps spread around for a bit, before turning his attention to her again, “Is there anything else?”

Her body tensed a little at that. This is it, time to give the news. “I… I found private Blazing Winds…” Her tone was much more unsure, a shadow from her former determination.

“And?” He questioned, raising an eyebrow.

“He’s dead.”

With that, it was over. Perhaps now she can sleep in peace, still, part of her can’t help but to wonder if this is the right thing. Her previous feelings of anger and determination now gave way to emptiness and exhaustion. There’s still a lot of doubt in her mind, but for now, all Golden can think of is having a good night of sleep.

----------x----------

Silence, everything in this hall was quiet, too quiet. This place, like the rest of the castle, is still beautiful but ponies tend to overlook that after a while, especially when you spend almost every single day of the last two years patrolling that place. That is the reality of Golden Flame, currently assigned to keep guard in the halls leading to the Royal Guard Archives. Sure, it’s kind of an important place, where they keep every file on their operations and units, which made her a little proud of being chosen for this task. However, for the most part, it’s still boring to just stand there for hours.

“Ugh… what I would give for something to do…” The mare thought to herself. “I should probably have brought a book with me or something.”

She walked a few times from one end to the other. The view from the windows was also pretty nice, but she had already seen it in other days. How much longer until the end of her shift? Perhaps Golden could go out with a few friends, once her time was up. The idea brought a vague smile to her face. Yes, that would surely make things better.

Nevertheless, that would only come later. For the moment, the mare will have to endure, without anything to distract her from utter boredom. Well, it’s not all that bad, at least it’s not hot today. At the high of summer, staying there wearing full armor could be a torture; sweat would drip all over her body, making some places annoyingly itchy.

There was a crack behind her. Her ears stood up in attention and she turned around, towards the source of the noise. Standing in the doorway was a blue pegasus wearing golden armor. Another Royal Guard, Golden Flame assumed. Why was he here? She couldn’t see any officer badges on him and nopony told her anything about other guards coming here today, strange.

“Hey there,” She called. The pegasus looked slightly tense, with wide eyes. “You okay?”

He shook his head a little. “Oh… sorry, I think I took the wrong turn somewhere.”

Took a wrong turn? That pony is probably new. “How did you end up here?”

The pegasus scratched the back of his head with a hoof. “I was patrolling the area but I think I got lost at some point…” Yep, definitely a new one.

Golden looked at him with a smirk. “So you’re new to the job?”

“Actually, yes, just finished my training a few days ago.”

“Well, don’t worry about this, I also got lost in my first days.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Really?”

Golden nodded. “Yep, had to ask some of the veterans a few times for directions until I memorized the whole place.”

The pegasus smiled. “Doesn’t help that every room looks pretty much the same,” He added.

“Ha, it sure makes things difficult.”

“So, what’s your name?” The pegasus approached her. He was taller than she was, with green eyes and a strong set of wings. His coat was a dull light blue and looked nice.

“I’m private Golden Flame,” she replied. “You?”

“Private Blazing Winds,” He said. Blazing looked around a bit. “You guard this place?”

Golden Flame rolled her eyes. “Yes, eight hours a day, five times a week.”

“Must be a pretty quiet job, didn’t saw anyone on my way here.”

“Yes, it tends to get boring, but this is kind of an important place you know, Royal Guard Archives and all that.”

He nodded. “Yes, can’t say my post is much better.”

While this small talk was a nice break from her previous boredom, Golden still found it unusual, so she asked, “Shouldn’t you be going back to your patrol?”

Blazing Winds shrugged. “Meh, I guess I could, but I don’t think anyone will mind if a take a few minutes off.”

Part of her told her she should be focusing on her job and not on idle chat. The other said screw it, if she has to spend another minute alone she’ll go insane. The second part won. “I guess you’ve a point,” Golden Flame said, “So, why did you join?”

Therefore, that’s how their friendship began. Soon, Golden discovered to have much in common with the pegasus. It became a routine for the two of them to have a small talk once or twice a day, whenever Blazing decided to show up. These little breaks made her day a lot less boring and eventually led her to enjoy her time there. Not that she hated being a Royal Guard, far from it, but having his occasional company surely made things better. Sometimes, they would even meet after their shifts to have snack.

A few weeks later, Golden Flame was again guarding the same hall. Unlike previous times, her mood was fine and the unicorn mare found herself even a little bit excited at the prospect of seeing Blazing again. He was an unusual pony, with a strangely cheerful personality, always making jokes and lifting her spirit. Of course, it wasn’t all good, he also had an annoying tendency to show up right behind Golden without her noticing. How was he able to do that? She’s a trained Royal Guard with more service time than him… although that doesn’t really mean much, since there hasn’t been actual conflict in over a thousand years. In addition, every time something bad happened, Princess Celestia always sent the Elements.

“Wonder what he’s up to. Maybe we could go to a bar or something afterward, not like I have anything else planned for today,” Golden thought. “Now that I think of it, he never told me much about his family or where he came from, only after he came to Canterlot.”

Making a mental note to ask about this later, the mare continued her watch. A few more hours passed without anything interesting happening. That wasn’t much of an issue, since the mare had brought a small book (suggestion by Blazing) with her this time, allowing her to have a little distraction. However, her reading came to a halt as she heard something coming from inside the archives. At first, she thought it might’ve been the pegasus, but it couldn’t be, not from that place.

She approached the door. Maybe it was just her imagination? There wasn’t any other way inside that she knew off, and nobody had passed through her during this day. Sometimes somepony would come to pick up a file or add something, but other than that, nothing. Still, it’s her duty to guard this place, so she might as well see it, just to make sure.

The very moment her hoof pushed the door open, there was a small, almost unnoticeable green flash. However, the mare noticed the flash and took a step inside. Just as her eyes began to scan the room, they locked in another pair.

“Blazing? What’re you doing here?” Golden asked, noticing the open window behind him.

“Oh, I was flying by and I noticed the open window over here, so I decided to see if there was somepony here…” For a second, it appeared as he couldn’t look her in the eyes for some reason, but the mare shrugged it off.

“Weird, maybe one of the cleaning staff forgot to close it the other day.”

“Yep, that’s probably it…” He agreed.

Figuring this was nothing but a false alarm, Golden decided to continue her watch. “Well, if this is everything, I guess I’ll go back to my post,” The pegasus nodded and moved to the window. However, before he could fly out, the mare called him, “Hey Blazing, do you want to go out later?”

He gave a quick glance over his shoulder. “Sure!”

That wasn’t the only strange moments she had with him. However, that did little to quell their friendship. They continued to talk and occasionally go out from time to time. Golden couldn’t help but to wonder just how nice he tended to be, always knowing what to say and how to act around her, as if he could read her feeling or something…

----------x----------

Days went by, and Golden began to question their relationship. Like, did she see him as possibly more than a friend? Sure, it wouldn’t be the first time this happened. The mare already had a few romantic adventures before, but still, he was a Royal Guard like her, couldn’t that make things a little bit awkward?

He’s a great friend and also good looking, but that doesn’t mean she should risk their friendship over something that could just be a bad idea. Nevertheless… what if this isn’t a mistake? Just because Blazing hasn’t demonstrated this kind of interest doesn’t mean he wouldn’t accept to go on a date or something. By Celestia’s sake, that sounded even more awkward…

Maybe she should make a small list. Yes, that might help; put everything good about this on one side and everything bad on the other. Golden Flame couldn’t help but to blush a little bit when thinking what might happen. It would be nice if things worked out, she could easily see them together.

It took a few more days for Golden Flame to make up her mind. So far, she hasn’t been able to walk up to him and ask. Every time the opportunity comes, Golden is unable to take the step. But after a while, she became annoyed with her own lack of confidence. What was so important about this? It’s not the first time she asks someone out, and even if he refuses (which he definitely won’t) that doesn’t mean they can’t just keep being friends. Sure, it’s far from ideal, but it isn’t the end either.

The next day, Golden was determined to ask him. No more beating around the bush, no more waiting. She was going to do it. Once the mare had the time, she went to search him around the castle. Luckily, Blazing had told her where he was assigned to, making this a lot easier. Eventually, she spotted him; the stallion was walking at the edge of the royal gardens. Strangely enough, he appeared to be anxious, walking at a fast pace and looking around a few times. Why is he acting like that? Hopefully not something bad.

As Golden stepped near, the pegasus gave a little jump, quickly turning to face her with a spooked expression. “Cra-! Oh… it’s just you, Golden…” His body appeared to be slightly tense, which added to his behavior made her think something might be wrong.

“Hey Blazing, is everything okay?” She asked, looking at him in confusion.

“Yes! It’s just… uh… you got me by surprise, that’s all,” Despite the little explanation, there was still something else lurking beneath, but Golden didn’t pay attention to that. “Why are you here?”

This is it… time to make a big question. Golden opened her mouth to speak. Her mind was rushing with possible outcomes, which were few; it’s either yes or no, nothing else. For a moment, her will hesitated, slightly afraid of being wrong about what he or even herself felt. However, that was shoved aside by her desire to find out the truth. It doesn’t matter what might happen, she has to do this, because… she likes him, yes, she really does. Her chest felt a little bit warm as she thought that.

Suddenly, Blazing stood stock still, his face devoid of emotion. “Blazing… you sure you’re alright?” Was it something she did? She didn’t say those things out loud, did she?

“Yes… I am,” He replied.

Golden nodded. “Okay then…” she remained a few seconds in silence, gathering courage. “Blazing, I wanted to ask you something.”

“R-really? What is it?”

“Would you…” Come on! Just spit it out, already! “Would like to go out sometime?”

“You mean like go to the bar or something?” Did he just sound… hopeful?

“Uh… nope.”

“So you mean…” Golden begged Celestia and Luna that his tone of… disappointment was just her mind playing tricks on her. “Like a date?”

“Y-yes.”

He took a step back, eyes darting around. This is it; he’s going to say no… after all this effort… Golden Flame could already feel embarrassment coming. Well, it’s not all bad, maybe he still wants to keep being friends? She can always dream, right?

“I-I… I don’t…”

“It’s all right,” Golden cut in, before he could finish. “You don’t want to, that’s okay…”

Instantly his eyes went wide. “No! It’s not like that!”

She waved a hoof. “Look, don’t worry about it, it was just a question.”

“I want to!” It was her time to go eyes wide. “It’s just… I can’t do it right now.”

Was he being serious? “You mean you’re saying yes?”

“Yeah, I just can’t do it right now… sorry.”

Golden began to think. She hadn’t really planned for that. What now? Did she just wait for a few days? Or maybe something else? Why can’t things be simpler… just say yes or no, dammit!

“So… how do we do this, then?”

He looked away. “Look, we can speak about this later, okay? I’ve to go now…”

“O-okay then…”

He gave her a little nod and a reassuring smile, before flying away towards the… Whitetail Woods? Why would he go there?

Golden Flame would soon find out.

----------x----------

A few days later, the invasion happened. Changeling invaders suddenly overwhelmed the once proud capital of Equestria. The Royal Guard was caught completely by surprise, and without their captain to guide them, their attempts to mount a defense were almost useless. Enemies roamed the streets freely, preying on the civilians and attacking any guard units nearby.

“Come on, fall back!” An officer shouted, as his unit retreated deeper into the military complex of the city. They were having a hard time keeping their opponents at bay.

Amongst those soldiers was Golden Flame. The mare used her magic to lift her spear and defend against incoming enemies. One of them got too close and was greeted by a smack to the head, throwing him back. Another tried to flank her; the mare turned around and bucked him in the chest. Slowly, she moved back, following her comrades. While the guards were able to maintain formation, they were too outnumbered to make an effective line.

“We need to link up with others units!” The same officer shouted. “To keep fighting like this is hopeless!”

One of the pegasus nearby was knocked down, and Golden moved to cover him. Before one of the creatures could get him, the unicorn mare thrust her spear, hitting her target in the chest and shattering his frontal carapace. The wounded enemy fell back in an instant. After helping the downed pegasus back to his hooves, she drew her sword and kept fighting.

A million questions flew through her mind. “What in Tartarus is going on?!” She thought, “Where’s Blazing? Where did these monsters came from?”

Eventually, her unit made into one of the barracks, which was still secure from enemies. With the aid of soldiers already in there, they were able to halt the enemy advance, forcing them to disengage for the moment. This little pause was a blessing to those inside the crowded building, using this moment to rest and get ready to further combats. Golden Flame also used that moment to drink some water and rest.

“I can’t believe it… they just flew into our city without problems!” One guard spoke.

“So much for the captain and his amazing shield…” Another added.

Golden Flame herself was in deep thought. Just how could this happen? The whole attack had been (from what she was able to see) strangely organized. Whoever these creatures were, they’re surely well prepared for this and knew precisely where to strike. But how could they know that? She doesn’t recall hearing anything about them until now, nor did she knew of any thefts or kidnaps within the military that could lead to this leak of information.

Finding no answers to her questions, she decided to ask the officer. “How do you think they were able to do this?”

The stallion shrugged. “No idea, they would need to have access directly to our archives to do all of this,” He replied. “You were stationed over there, weren’t you? Did you happen to notice anything unusual?”

The mare thought for a while. She couldn’t remember anything strange, except that time she saw Blazing in there. Where was he, anyway? Last time she saw him was when he left to Whitetail Woods. Who could be behind this? The cleaning staff? An officer? Those can be likely answers, especially given the ability of those creatures to shapeshift into perfect copies of ponies (that stuff had really creep her out).

About an hour passed, and her mind began to wonder about Blazing. She didn’t see him as a suspect, but there were a few… concerning things about this. His behavior the last time she saw him was very suspicious and a few days after he left, they were attacked, could that be a mere coincidence… or something else, something worse.

No, it couldn’t be, he was her friend, they knew each other for a good time right now and she never had any reason see him as anything less than a good pony. Golden could remember the warm memories of the times they shared together, his jokes, his cheerful personality. She isn’t about to discard everything they shared together without solid evidence. A few weird moments are hardly enough to assume the worst. Of course, none of that matters right now, not until the fight is over.

Soon, their enemy renew their efforts to brake in.They kept fighting for hours, keeping the enemy at bay and holding what little ground they could. For a moment, it appeared they had no chance of winning; it was either surrender or stay locked inside the barracks. However, their prayers for help were answered in the form of a massive blast.

A huge pink ball of energy expanded out of the main castle, blasting all changelings away. The soldiers were momentarily struck by this sudden change of tides, before jumping into cheers of commemoration. The fight was over, and everyone went to the unavoidable task of cleaning the mess left by the battle.

“Well, that could’ve gone better…” Golden thought, as she walked through the streets. Around her, other guards continued to work. She’s tired, the fight took a lot out of her. However, right now sleeping or resting are the last thoughts on her mind.

The mare is searching for Blazing. She needs to know if he’s fine and also… to diminish the doubts in her mind. At first, Golden had shoved away any suggestion of Blazing having something to do with all this, but as she began to find out more about these Changelings, more questions began to surface. These creatures were perfect spies, they could change into ponies and imitate their personalities with ease, not only that, they can also feel emotions.

These facts made Golden question her previous interactions with the pegasus. The way he always knew how to act around her, how his personality was fitting and nice… perhaps a bit too nice. The more she thought about it, more gears began to turn in her head. Could it be true? She still remembers the time when she found him inside the archives, which is very suspicious… especially the small green flash she noticed right as she burst in.

Celestia, no… it couldn’t be, not after everything they had done together. She felt a tight grip in her heart. To think she… to think she even considered dating him! How could he be so cold, taking advantage of her!

Golden could see clearly now. He didn’t stumble upon her post by mistake, no, he intended to go there to steal information regarding patrols and defense plans. Once he noticed her, he made a split decision to befriend her in order to have an excuse to go there from time to time, getting closer to his objective with each day. Now, the whole city and her comrades in arms had paid the price for this… for her foolish mistake.

Blind rage and a crushing sadness filled her mind. Just how many innocent ponies had been hurt by this? She has to do something, she won’t allow this bug to just get away with this, she’ll find him and have her revenge.

----------x----------

This realization is what led her to Whitetail Woods. The storm had already began when she and the rest of the guards went in. The mare quickly moved away from the main group, her anger urging her to find him by herself, to avoid any other guard taking what was rightfully hers.

When questioned, Golden had refrained from telling her superiors about Blaze. They didn’t need to know about her failure, she would make up for that on her own. Determination dominated her mind as she moved, her hoof steps silenced by thunders and sounds of fighting already popping around.

Her eyes watched every little detail nearby and she kept a tight grip on her sword. It’s only a matter of time before she stumble upon some enemies. The only problem is how she’s going to identify Blazing. As far as she knows, these creatures look almost identical to each other. That’ll make things harder, but she’ll find a way, even if she has to question every single bug in this forest by herself.

Soon enough, a few enemies tried to jump on her. Golden took care of them with ease, using her magic to throw them around and her sword to finish them. The mare didn’t really kept a score of how many she dealt with the deeper she went, because she didn’t care. After about an hour of fighting, most guards would feel slightly tired, but not Golden, her body was fueled by her desire of revenge.

More enemies came, and once again she took them down. Despite her efforts, it appeared none of these bugs were blazing, which is beginning to piss her off. Golden won’t leave this forest until she has found him, no, he won’t have a single moment to rest. The deeper she ventured, the darker it became, almost if the light was mimicking her feelings.

She saw something moving in the left corner of her vision. In an instant, her body shifted to a fighting stance while her horn glowed. Golden waited for her new opponent to make his move. After seeing how these creatures fought, she was fairly sure she could predict more or less how this one would engage her.

For the most part, these Changelings tried to cap on what their opponents lack. If they face a unicorn, they use their wings, if it’s a pegasus, they use magic. At the battle of Canterlot, she had also noticed they often kept away from earth ponies, probably to avoid their superior strength.

However, the creature did the last thing she had predicted… he moved away. That shouldn’t happen, every single changeling she had faced always fought till the end. Not once did they ever stopped, even when it became clear they would lose. Yes, sometimes they fell back a little to gather strength and change tactics, but they never retreated. Why would this one be different?

Unless…

“Blazing!” Golden the mare shouted. The changeling stopped for a short moment, it’s him…

Just as the bug began to move again, Golden rushed with all the speed she could muster. A new waves of anger, sadness and determination washed through her as more adrenaline filled her bloodstream. With her heart pounding like a hammer, the mare got surprisingly close to him in record time. Noticing that, the bug attempted to get fly away.

Golden isn’t having any of that. She fired a stun spell at him. The blue sphere of energy hit right at his back, throwing him back at the ground. The mare approached him and he attacked her. He managed to get a few surprise hits before her training kicked in. Golden dodged his blows, delivering a few of her own. The spell and her other attacks were taking a toll in him, as each minute passed, he became slower and weaker. Nevertheless, she was still slightly surprise at how much he endured.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity of blocking, striking and dodging, the mare gave a swift buck to his chest, sending him straight to an old tree. The energy of the impact almost broke his back carapace. He stayed down, still conscious but too injured and confused to do anything. Before he could act, Golden was upon him, pressing her sword against him.

For a moment, she considered just trusting the blade in and finish him, but a small part of her mind convinced her otherwise. Yes, she had every reason in the world to end this and move on with her life, but… she just couldn’t, not until she had answers.

The bug moved a little, before noticing the sword pressed against him. “Why?” The mare asked in a strong tone. He looked away, refusing to answer. “I know it’s you, Blazing.”

Those words made his eyes widen a little (she couldn’t tell much, since his eyes were just two plain blue orbs). He opened his mouth, attempting to find the right words. “I… I had to…” His voice was almost the same. His words brought rage to Golden.

“You… you had to?” How dare he?

SMACK

The changeling grabbed the top of his head in pain. “How dare you!” The mare shouted, “I trusted you, Blazing, I thought you were my friend, not a dirty spy looking to… to use me like that!” If it wasn’t for the storm, the whole forest would hear Golden.

“I’m… I’m sorry Golden…”

“You think that’s enough? We did so much together… for Celestia’s sake, I even asked you out on a date! All of that because you wanted to get into those damned archives!” Her throat was sore from so much shouting. Her body shook and sweat mixed with rain dripped from her coat.

Blazing looked at her. “That’s not true,” His tone was surprisingly calm.

She narrowed her eyes. “Than what is it?”

“Because I’m a soldier too.”

“What, th-“

“Don’t you think I know what I did!?” It was his turn to shout, he no longer cared about the blade pressed against him. “I’m sorry, but this what I am! I’m soldier of my hive, Golden, and I also have friends and family back home!”

“Oh, don’t come with that! This is hardly enough justification!”

“What you want me to say? I’m sorry for serving my country? Would you say no if Celestia asked you to infiltrate Gryphonia?” That… that actually made a little sense. She was still mad at him, but she could see the whole picture a little better. “Look, if it helps, I never planned getting to know you, my mission was just to get inside there and take what I needed…”

“Then why did you?” Did he had any idea just how hard this was for her? He didn’t answered right away. “Answer me!” She said, pressing very close to him.

He didn’t say any words, instead, he kissed her. It was a light kiss, nothing too forceful (he was still aware of the sword) just a simple motion of pressing his lips against hers. Once again, Golden was surprised, stunned by this action. Her mind was unable to process a quick response. Noticing that, the changeling took advantage and pressed deeper, wrapping his arms around her.

As a million thoughts and sensations surged through her mind, Golden’s instincts kicked in… and she allowed him to go on. The warm feeling of being kissed consumed her previous anger and mixed with her sadness. This was wrong… but she just couldn’t bring herself to care anymore, everything she had faced in the last days was too much and this small moment was just too good for her to stop.

Eventually that small kiss ended. They pulled their heads back, refusing to meet eyes. The storm still raged around them, as they remained in silence. To Blazing, this had been a weight lifted from his shoulders, he wasn’t lying when he said he didn’t planned getting close to her, their relationship had been, for the most part, real. Of course, he also didn’t expected her to get attracted to him, and that had made him guilty but also hopeful. Now, at last, he had expressed those feelings. He didn’t really mind if she killed or arrested him now. That wasn’t what she did, however.

SMACK

Once again, he grabbed his head I pain. “You bastard!” Golden said, her voice shaking, she’s obviously crying. “How… you just had to make things even worse!”

“You wanted an answer, didn’t you…?”

“What am I’m going to…” She could barely speak through her sobs. “Why, for Celestia’s sake, why did I have to like you?!”

Noticing she had dropped her sword, he stood up and approached her. “Look, Golden…” He placed a hoof on her shoulder, she tensed a little, but allowed him to touch her. “I’m sorry, I feel just as conflicted as you but…”

“What am I going to do now?” Her voice was barely a whisper.

“We go our separate ways…” She looked at him, eyes red from crying. “I don’t want to fight you and I know you don’t want either.”

Golden just nodded at him. They both stood and took a few steps away from each other. The kept their eyes locked, a few moments passed as none of them had enough courage to turn away. Both of them were calmer and also sadder at this, but it had to be done. Finally, Blazing mustered enough courage and prepared to fly away.

“Blazing…” The mare called, interrupting him. “Do you think, maybe we could… after all of this is over…”

The changeling nodded. “I’ll try to find a way.”

He left. Golden picked her sword, took a deep breath and walked away, hoping to exit the forest. She had done it, it wasn’t ideal, but she’s willing to deal with the consequences.

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