My Little Pony: Small Town Life

by Mythic Night

Ep 20 - Family in Fillydelphia - Part 3

On the morning of the third day, Sunny was once again the first to awaken, albeit late in the morning; their activities the night before kept them up a while. She laid in bed, watching her lover sleep as she thought about the day ahead. They had planned on visiting some of the major tourist destinations around Fillydelphia, of which there were many, and she couldn’t wait to see them all.

A frown grew on her face as she thought about the other event planned that day; Silver’s talk with his brother, Swift Wing. It was for this reason that she would wait to tell him of her talk with his mother, seeing as he was already going to deal with a lot of family drama. Sunny had no idea what would come of their chat, but she hoped that it would finally start the healing process between them.

She heard a soft grumbling from the stallion lying next to her as he slowly woke up, and she planted a kiss on his snout. “Morning, love…”

“Morning…” he yawned, reluctantly leaving dreamland behind to greet both the day, and the beautiful mare sharing his bed.

“Sleep well?” she asked, gently stroking his side.

He snorted in response. “Yeah, when you let me…”

Sunny couldn’t help but giggle at that, rewarding her lover with another tender kiss. “You weren’t complaining last night,” she observed.

“True…” he muttered, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. “What time is it?”

She raised her head to glance at the clock resting on the nightstand behind him. “Ten-thirty.”

“Oh, wow, we really slept in, huh?” he said, sitting up on the bed. “Guess we won’t have much time to do a lot of sightseeing, unless you wanted to spend another day or two here.”

Sunny shook her head. “I’d rather just see a few things today, and head home tonight. We can do more sightseeing next time we visit.” She frowned, and added, “Besides, I don’t want you putting off that talk with your brother any longer than necessary.”

Silver winced, having forgotten about that. “Oh, yeah, that…” He did want to talk with Swift Wing, but that didn’t mean he was looking forward to it. Until recently, he’d viewed his brother as little more than a bully, before certain things had come to light. “I don’t even know what I’d say to him,” he admitted, not quite sure how to talk to his brother about their relationship.

“When the time comes, I have faith that you’ll know exactly what to say,” she replied, hopping out of bed. “First thing’s first though; we both need a shower, and after that we can see about the rest of our day.”

He lifted a foreleg to sniff at himself. “I guess we’re both a bit smelly after last night, huh?”

“We sure are,” she giggled, heading for the door. “Did you want to take a shower together, or should we take separate showers?”

He gazed at Sunny, his eyes lingering on her shapely rump for a few moments, much to her amusement. Her own eyes were drawn to certain parts of Silver’s anatomy as well, her mind going to the same places as his. Eventually, he said, “I think it’d be best to take separate showers. We’ve already got a late start as it is, and I don’t think we’d get out of the shower anytime soon.”

She grinned and nodded. “Quite true. Well, anyway, I’ll try not to take too long.” With that, she gave a playful flick of her tail as she left the bedroom, and headed to the nearest bathroom. It wasn’t long before she had a nice shower running, and she stood underneath the stream for a while, enjoying the feeling of the hot water soaking into her coat.

She couldn’t linger too long though, and so she started to lather herself up. While she washed herself, Sunny let her mind wander, and her thoughts drifted to Silver, and their ongoing relationship. She reflected, not for the first time, on how nice it was to wake up next to somepony, especially after the past few years spent alone.

That reflection gave her pause, as she thought about just how often they woke up together now. Nearly every night was spent together, romantically or not, and usually they spent those nights at her shop. As they’d told both their mothers, it was too soon to talk about marriage, but maybe it was time to take the next step in their relationship.

Sunny made a mental note to bring that up to Silver later as she worked to finish cleaning herself. Right now, she had to hurry up in the shower, get some food in her belly, and then plan out the day. There was a lot to see in Fillydelphia, and not much time for her to see it.

A short while later she left the bathroom, and headed to the bedroom to let Silver know it was his turn before she trotted down the stairs and to the kitchen, hoping for some breakfast. She frowned as she noticed a distinct lack of breakfast, and she went to the family room where she spotted Fable and Lightning Strike sitting on the couch, relaxing.

“So, uh, what’s for breakfast?” Sunny asked.

Strike snorted as he looked up from his newspaper. “You two took so long to wake up, I was starting to think you’d miss breakfast entirely.”

Fable, who was drinking coffee next to her husband, told her, “We have corn flakes and puffed wheat cereal if you’re really hungry, but I wouldn’t recommend eating too much; we’re going someplace special for lunch, and you’re going to want to bring your appetite. When you’re done eating, we can plan out the rest of our day.”

“Sounds good,” Sunny replied, heading to the kitchen.

= = = = = = = = = =

Their first stop, at Sunny’s request, was the Fillydelphia Zoo. She had a wide grin on her face as they made their way inside, eager to see all the different animals that called the zoo their home. Silver couldn’t help but chuckle at his lover’s youthful exuberance as she galloped over to a directory, trying to figure out where to go first.

Silver trotted up to the mare with a grin on his face. “What’s the rush? Never been to a zoo before?”

“Not a proper one!” she told him, turning away from the directory to smile at him. “Ponyville obviously doesn’t have a zoo, and there’s too little space in Canterlot to have anything bigger than an aviary!” She looked back to the directory, glancing between all the exhibits. “Oh, I just don’t know where to start!”

Her enthusiasm was infectious, and he couldn’t help but feel a tad bit excited as well. It had been years since he last visited the zoo, and he found himself eager to see all the different animals on display. His parents chuckled at the pair of them, acting like a couple foals, and they followed along as Sunny lead the way.

They stopped as Sunny and a few other ponies let out a gasp at the unique sight of a tiger strolling above them through one of the many chain-link tunnels built around the zoo, allowing such animals to roam around and explore. “Silver, would you look at that!” She quickly snapped a couple pictures of the tiger, who looked down at all the ponies visiting its home.

“I don’t remember that,” he said, watching as the tiger lost interest and continued on to other parts of the zoo.

“They added that a few years back,” Strike told them. “I remember reading about it in the paper. It’s pretty wild to see the animals able to just wander around the zoo like that.”

Sunny let her camera hang around her neck as she grabbed Silver’s hoof. “Come on Silver, I want to go see the monkeys!”

He laughed and allowed himself to be dragged along by the strong and energetic mare. The zoo was large, over forty acres, and every exhibit was built to be as natural as could be, which made the animals feel at home no matter where they came from. It took a little while for the four of them to reach the monkey exhibit, and Sunny smiled as she watched the monkeys climbing around.

“I can’t believe your parents never took you to a real zoo,” Silver said. It seemed the sort of thing that any filly or colt should have experienced at least once.

Her smile fell only a little as she admitted, “Well, we’ve never gone on vacation before. Mom’s company had her touring Equestria through the summer, and performing in Canterlot during fall, so in the off-seasons she just wanted to stay home and relax with us.”

He reached over to wrap a foreleg around her. “I guess that means we’ll have to make the most of our trip, then.”

“We sure will,” Sunny replied, leaning against him as she snapped a photo of a nearby monkey.

= = = = = = = = = =

Three hours and many photographs later, four weary and hungry ponies left the zoo, and gladly climbed into a cab for their next destination, the Reading Station Market. Sunny hadn’t heard of the place before, and so she asked, “So, what is the Reading Station Market, exactly?”

Strike spoke up, telling her, “It’s one of the largest farmers markets in Equestria, offering all kinds of fresh produce, baked goods, dairy products, cooking supplies, and great restaurants. Whatever you’re hungry for, you can either find it there, or you can get all the best ingredients to make it.”

“It’s why I told you not to fill up on breakfast,” Fable said. “You’ll be glad you came here on an empty stomach!”

“Can’t wait to see what they’ve got,” Sunny replied, watching the scenery as they were pulled along through the city to the market. Fortunately for them, the trip didn’t take all that long, and after they paid the cab driver, the four of them headed through one of the many entrances into the large, indoor marketplace.

They trotted inside, and Sunny’s jaw dropped as she saw the market for the first time. “Wow… Would you look at all that?” The Reading Station Market was huge, filled with dozens of different shops, and each one had a colorful sign hanging above the many aisles crossing through the marketplace.

“Impressive, isn’t it?” said Fable. “You can get just about anything you’d want here.”

Sunny looked at the few shops they could see from the entrance, and the dozens of ponies walking through the aisle. “Where do we even start?” she wondered.

“I’ll leave that up to you,” Fable replied. “There are several restaurants located throughout the market, and while we could easily eat our fill at any one of them, I’d recommend trying a bit of everything while we’re exploring.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Sunny agreed, leading the group through the marketplace. As they walked along, she looked around to see all the many different shops selling their wares at the market. There were a couple standard shops, including a bakery and a candy shop, but she was surprised at the variety she saw, including one shop that specialized in a variety of condiments, and another shop that sold only spices.

As they made their way through the market, Sunny found that the restaurants were a minority, and that the majority of the shops were selling various ingredients like fruits and vegetables, along with other specialty goods like coffee and cheese. Any chef would give their left hind leg for the variety of fresh, quality goods found at the Reading Station Market.

They made sure to get their fill of the delicious offerings from the various restaurants, which included pizza, oat burgers, pretzels, salads, and of course a desert of rich, thick milkshakes. There was even more exotic fare from distant lands, though Sunny wasn’t feeling quite adventurous enough to try them.

By the time they left the market, the four of them were completely stuffed, the grumbling of their bellies long since gone, and it was decided that their next activity should be slow and relaxing while they worked to digest their meals.

= = = = = = = = = =

After filling their bellies, their next stop was the Academy of Natural Sciences, where they could feed their minds. The academy featured several exhibits about the natural world, though their biggest draw had to be the fossil exhibits.

For a time, they visited Dinosaur Hall, where fossils of more than thirty different dinosaurs were on display. Sunny stood before a tyrannosaurus rex fossil, and shivered at the sight of it. The large, ancient carnivore towered over her, posed as if it was hunting the little ponies all around it.

“You okay, Sunny?” Silver asked, trotting over to her.

“Yeah,” she said, nodding. “Just… Kinda freaked out, is all.”

His brow furrowed as he asked, “Why?”

She grimaced, looking embarrassed. “Well, these fossils creep me out, and I mean beyond some of them being giant, pony-eating monsters,” she added, motioning to the fossil in front of them. “I knew about dinosaurs since I was a filly, I saw drawings of dinosaurs and photos of fossils in my old school books, but to see them in pony? It really drives home that these things were real, and they actually existed.”

Silver was silent as he simply cocked an eyebrow at her.

She rolled her eyes, and explained, “I knew about dinosaurs, but I guess somehow they just never seemed completely real to me. Now, though? Now, they’re way too real, and it creeps me out to think that these giant things were roaming the land long, long ago.”

He looked up at the dinosaur bones, thinking about her words. “I think I know what you mean. It’s one thing to hear about dinosaurs, and a whole other thing to actually see their fossils. And, yeah, seeing it looking down at us with all those teeth makes me feel just a little nervous. Still, we have modern monsters to worry about.”

Sunny chuckled and nodded. “Yeah, I suppose it’s silly to worry about some old fossils when we live near the Everfree Forest, huh?”

“Sure is,” Silver replied. “But don’t you worry, I’ll always be there to protect you.”

“My hero,” she giggled, rewarding him with a kiss on the cheek.

= = = = = = = = = =

Their last stop for the day was the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, a place filled with ancient artifacts from many different civilizations, both pony and otherwise. History was brought to life by the various items on display, and ponies from all across Equestria visited the museum to view the massive collection.

One of their main draws was an exhibit called The Three Tribes, detailing the history of the original three tribes that would go on to make Equestria. Well over a thousand years ago, unicorns, pegasi, and earth ponies all lived separately, living on a shaky agreement where pegasi would control the weather, earth ponies would grow food, and unicorns would use magic to raise the sun and moon. The artifacts on display showed the way these three groups lived before the unification.

Sunny and Silver stood before a display of ancient Pegasopolian armor, a proud symbol of the militaristic tribe. It had certainly seen better days, even after polishing, as could be seen by the minor dents and scrapes all over the armor. While Silver stood there, reading information from the placard next to the armor, Sunny couldn’t help but think about the way things were so long ago.

“It’s funny how different things are now,” she mused.

Silver looked curiously to the love of his life. “What do you mean, sweetie?”

“What I mean is, way back in the old days, you and I couldn’t be together,” she explained. “They didn’t even believe in friendship between the tribes, let alone love; our relationship would have been frowned upon, at best.”

He nodded as he thought about her words. “I suppose way back when, I would have never been born,” he said, looking over to his parents as they looked over at some old Unicornian artifacts. He and his brother had come about because his mother, a unicorn, fell in love with his father, a pegasus.

It occurred to Silver that being a child of mixed parentage gave him a certain appreciation and understanding of other types of ponies; while he himself was a magical unicorn, he understood the quirks and mannerisms of pegasi thanks to his father. He began to wonder just how much Equestria benefitted from mixed relationships like his parents, where love made ponies understand and appreciate one another regardless of their differences.

“You’re right about that,” Sunny replied, breaking Silver’s train of thought as she commented on his observation. “You wouldn’t exist, and I’d be working the fields to make enough food for everyone in all three kingdoms.” She smiled, and added, “But nowadays, ponies can do whatever they want; pegasi don’t have to be warriors, earth ponies don’t have to be farmers, and unicorns don’t have to be wizards.”

“It’s amazing how much progress we’ve made since then, and I have no doubt it’s because all three tribes came together,” said Silver. “There was only so much that ponies could do separately, but by coming together as one, working for the good of all, Equestria has become a greater nation than any of our founders could have ever dreamed.”

Sunny smiled and nodded. “And all it took was friendship.”

“Friendship truly is magic,” he agreed.

= = = = = = = = = =

It had been a fun day for everyone, visiting a few of the many tourist attractions in the city of Fillydelphia, but now it was time for Silver to have a talk with his brother. It seemed a shame to ruin a perfectly nice day with what was sure to be a drama-filled shouting match, but he knew it would drive him mad if he didn’t figure out his relationship with Swift Wing.

For all those years, he and Swift had been bitter enemies, his brother always ridiculing him no matter what their parents did, and Silver could do little but endure it as he focused on his dream. Oh, there were other things he could do, especially with all those spellbooks detailing some interesting spells, but Silver was a unicorn with a strong sense of right and wrong. The thought of testing some of those spells on his big brother only occurred to him once or twice.

As far as he had been aware, their relationship was pretty simple; they hated each other, and that was that. At least, it appeared to be that simple, until a couple days ago when Swift told Silver he was proud of him. Now he was left confused, wondering how a stallion who spent his life tormenting him felt anything positive for him at all.

“You okay, sweetie?” Sunny asked, breaking Silver out of his thoughts.

“Oh, uh, yeah, I’m fine…” he told her. “Just thinking about the talk I’m going to have with Swift.” He looked out the window at the sun hanging low in the sky, soon to be put away by Celestia so Luna could raise the moon. “By the time I get done, it’ll be too late to head home.”

“We’ll leave in the morning then,” she told him. “It’s important you get this thing with your brother sorted out. We can stay another night if it means you and Swift Wing can start fixing your relationship.”

Silver snorted derisively. “’Fix?’ I really don’t think that’s going to happen, not after all these years. I’ll just be happy to find out what he meant.”

Sunny frowned, but said nothing. She wanted to see them fix things, but she knew that nothing would change if they were both pushed against their will. It was up to the two of them willingly talking with each other to start the path to healing.

Lightning Strike decided to speak up, “Now Silver, I know you’re gonna go over there looking for answers, but the thing is that you may not like what he has to say.” He frowned as he thought back to his own childhood, and interactions with his siblings. “Sibling relationships can be complicated. Sometimes you’re the worst of enemies, like you and Swift, and other times you’re the best of friends. There are many reasons for things to turn out the way they do.”

“And your point is?” Silver asked.

“My point is that things may not be as black and white as you’re hoping,” Strike answered. “But whatever he says, whatever his reasoning is, remember that he’s your brother.”

It was only Silver’s love and respect for his father that allowed him to bite back several angry responses. It was obvious to him that being brothers didn’t mean much to Swift through all the years of torment, and there would have been no love lost if he went back to Ponyville that night, never to see Swift Wing again.

Fable trotted up to Silver, filled with motherly concern as she said, “Silver, I know you and Swift have never gotten along, but please, promise me you won’t hurt him.”

He blinked, stunned by his mother’s plea. Does she really think I’d do something like that, after all this time? He grimaced as he remembered the other night, so angry with his brother that he’d charged his horn, ready to strike. He could understand his mother’s concern. “I promise I won’t hurt him.”

That seemed to calm his mother’s fears, and she hugged him. “I’ll have dinner made when you get back. Nachos sound good tonight?”

He chuckled softly as he hugged her in return. “Nachos sound great…” He slowly pulled away, and smiled at his mother. “Hey, while I’m gone, why don’t you and Sunny talk about your books? I know she’s been dying to ask you about your work, and you still haven’t signed her collection.”

Sunny grinned sheepishly. “I have a few dozen questions…” She had wanted to ask Fable all about the Scarlet Sword series while they were out shopping, but that time had been spent either gossiping, or answering the many questions Fable had about their friends in Ponyville; considering their somber conversation that afternoon, she could see why his mother was so curious about Silver’s new social life. Now that she and Fable had a couple hours to talk while he was away, she was planning on making the most of it.

Fable giggled and nodded. “I’d be more than happy to sign your books, and answer any questions you have.”

“Awesome!” Sunny cheered. “Let me just grab my books, I’ll be right back!” She got off the couch and ran up the stairs, much to the amusement of all.

“I suppose I’d better get a quill and some ink then…” Fable said, heading to the stairs. She paused, turning to look to her son. “I hope your talk goes well, Silver.”

“I hope so too,” he replied, and she headed up the stairs while he headed for the front door. Once outside, he made his way to his brother’s apartment. It was slow going, walking all the way there, but it gave him time to think about just what to say. After all, it wasn’t every day you questioned a lifelong relationship.

As long as the trip took him, however, he couldn’t figure out what to ask first. He had so many questions for Swift Wing, questions he had never thought to ask before this trip, and he wasn’t sure that he’d like the answers. All too soon, he found himself in front of Swift’s apartment building, and pressed the buzzer.

“Yeah?” came Swift’s voice through the speaker.

“It’s Silver, can I come up?” he asked.

There was a long pause, before Swift answered, “…Sure.” The door buzzed, and Silver went inside, heading up to his brother’s apartment.

He found the door, and only had to wait a moment after knocking to be let inside. His brother looked apprehensive when he asked, “Did you want something to drink?”

“No thanks,” Silver replied, looking around the apartment. It seemed pretty basic, though a few posters lined the walls, including one for the Fillydelphia Hoofball team. The main entrance lead to a living room and the kitchen/dining room, the latter of which Swift Wing headed to, and Silver followed.

Swift grabbed himself a beer from the fridge, and took a long swig from the bottle while Silver waited, sitting at the table. “So, I’m guessing this is about what I said the other night,” Swift presumed.

Silver snorted. “Gee, ya think?” He looked at his hooves, shaking his head. “All this time I thought you hated me, and then you go and tell me you’re proud of me…”

He didn’t see Swift grimace at that. “I never hated you, Silver.”

Silver looked up, scowling. “Oh really? Then what do you call all those years you spent bullying me?”

“I was just trying to help,” he answered.

Silver was stunned into silence for a moment, before he glared at his brother. “Just trying to—are you kidding me?! In what way, shape, or form was any of that supposed to help me?!”

“Would you just let me explain?” Swift asked.

“Explain what? That you’re insane?!” Silver shouted.

Swift Wing ran a hoof through his mane, and took another swig of his beer. “Look… I know we were never close, I know that we’ve always had issues, but you’re still my brother, and it upset me when I learned that you were going insane from loneliness.”

“What the hay does that have to do with anything?” Silver asked, hoping Swift would get to the point quickly.

Swift frowned, but answered, “I knew you wouldn’t socialize on your own, so I thought I’d have to push you to it.” He glanced to the nearby hoofball poster as he explained, “When I played hoofball, my team was led by a gruff coach named End Zone. He wasn’t nice, and he didn’t encourage us; instead, he pushed us hard, and always complained that we weren’t good enough.”

He chuckled and shook his head at the memories. “He got us angry, and that anger drove us to work harder, to become better players. It felt good to shut him up, to prove to him that we were good enough, and I thought that would work for you.”

“What do you mean?” Silver asked, curious despite himself.

“What I mean is, I thought if I bullied you enough, you’d go out there and make some friends just to spite me,” Swift explained. “Hay, I figured at the very least you’d leave the house to get away from me, and meet ponies that way. Instead, all you did was get angry and retreat further into your studies…” His brow furrowed as he gazed at his beer. “I didn’t know how else to get you to socialize, and I see now that it’s not what you needed.”

“No, really?” Silver replied sarcastically. “So you’re telling me that all this time, all those years of you bullying me was, what, tough love?” He fumed at the implication, that all those years of bullying could somehow be positive.

“Yes, it was,” Swift answered.

“So what do you call that remark the other night, about me being a cashier?” Silver wondered.

Swift winced at that. “That… that was just me being a jerk. I have no excuses for that.”

Silver just shook his head unbelievingly. “Do you really expect me to believe that all this time, you actually cared about me?”

“Is that really so hard to believe?” Swift asked.

“YES!” Silver shouted. “All those years you bullied me, the last thing I felt from you was concern or affection! And what was that about being proud of me? Do you want to explain that one?”

Swift finished off his beer, then told his story. “On the day that Tirek attacked, I was just busting up clouds in my assigned sector with the rest of my team, when all of a sudden we saw ponies running and screaming in the streets. We went to investigate, and that’s when Discord caught us in a giant butterfly net, and dropped us at Tirek’s hooves so he could drain our magic.”

Both brothers could only grimace at the thought of that terrible day, but Swift continued on. “So there I was, laying helpless on the street while Tirek went around draining magic from more ponies, and then I saw you come running.” The ghost of a smile showed on Swift’s face as he told Silver, “When I saw you coming, I actually felt hopeful; you studied magic for all those years, and you knew dozens of spells, so if anyone could bring him down, it was you.”

Silver snorted derisively. “We all know how that turned out…” He remembered how he hit that centaur with his most powerful spell, only for Tirek to simply block it right before he drained him of all his magic.

Swift winced. “Yeah, I’ll admit, seeing him beat you like that… it was heartbreaking. Even so, I still felt proud of you for trying to fight him. Everyone else ran away, and had I known what was happening at the time, I would have too, but you stood up to that monster and tried to stop him. That was really brave.”

“That wasn’t brave, it was stupid!” Silver growled. “I saw Tirek attacking the city, and I was stupid enough to believe that I could save everyone just because I’d read some books. All I ended up doing was getting drained like everyone else…”

“Seems like it turned out alright in the end, though,” Swift observed. “Because of that terrible day, you moved to Ponyville, where you made good friends and finally found love. I’ve never seen you so happy before, and it makes me glad. All I ever wanted was for you to go out and enjoy life.”

Silver couldn’t argue with that. Since moving to Ponyville, his studies had fallen by the wayside as he found it more important, and more rewarding, to spend time with his friends and help Sunny with her shop. Magic would always be important to him, but now he cherished his friendships and his relationship with Sunny above all else.

“I should have told you that in the first place,” Swift said. “But I have to admit, I got so angry every time I saw you studying. I hated how you were letting life pass you by, and I hated how much it was hurting you, even if you couldn’t see it for yourself.”

Swift got up from the table and headed to the fridge to grab himself another beer as Silver sat there, silent. He was surprised to hear his brother talking like this, like he actually cared. In all their years together, Silver felt like Swift Wing was his mortal enemy, and now he appeared almost brotherly. It was a strange turn of events.

Swift Wing sat at the table again, and took a long sip of his beer, before he continued on. “I tried forcing you to socialize, but it’s obvious that what you really needed was kindness, patience, and love. You needed Mom, and Sunshine, not some jerky older brother pushing you around.”

“No kidding,” Silver grumbled.

Swift grimaced, and looked to his little brother. “Look, Silver, I know it probably won’t mean anything to you, but I want you to know that I’m sorry for everything. I’m sorry for bullying you, and I’m sorry that I hurt you.”

Silver simply blinked in response, hardly believing what he was hearing; in all his years, he never expected to hear an actual apology from his brother. It was hard enough to comprehend that all those years of torment had been “tough love,” and finding out that his brother actually felt remorse for his actions just blew his mind.

Without getting a response, Swift added, “I should have been a better brother to you. I wanted you to get out there and socialize, but that’s no excuse for the pain I put you through. I just… I hope you can forgive me someday.”

Silver’s ear flicked, and he started gritting his teeth as his anger grew. “You want forgiveness…? After all those years you spent mocking me and my dream?” He shook his head, and glared at his brother. “No, I don’t think I could ever forgive you.”

Swift winced, but nodded slowly, his gaze falling to the table as he took another swig of his beer. It was to be expected, even if it hurt; he’d tormented his little brother for years, and his reasoning wasn’t good enough to excuse his actions. It didn’t surprise him that Silver wouldn’t forgive him after all that.

Silver, however, thought about what their father said before he left the house. If sibling relationships could be complicated, then theirs was about as straightforward as the Equestrian tax code. Swift had been right; his intentions couldn’t excuse his actions. But he’s still my brother, he reflected, remembering their father’s words. And he wanted what was best for me, even if he went about it all wrong.

“But… You’re my brother, so I guess I can try,” Silver finally said, much to Swift’s surprise. “I hate you for everything you said and did to me” —Swift flinched at that— “but you were trying to help me, in your own way. It’s not something that’s going to happen overnight, but, maybe I could forgive you someday.”

“Is there anything I can do to earn your forgiveness?” he asked. “I’d like to fix our relationship, and be the brother I always should have been.”

Silver’s brow furrowed as he thought about it for a while, before he replied, “I-I don’t really know. Maybe… Well, perhaps you could come visit Ponyville sometime, and we could hang out for a while.” He shrugged, and added, “Perhaps spending time together could make me see you as a pony instead of a bully. And who knows? Maybe, eventually, I could even start to see you as a brother.”

Swift nodded, a small smile on his face. “Yeah, sure… Not like it could hurt our relationship, right?”

“Long as you don’t do or say anything disrespectful to my friends,” Silver told him. “I plan on introducing you to them, and I swear if you cause any issues…”

Swift quickly shook his head. “I won’t, I promise.” He took another drink of his beer, and told Silver, “I’d have to see what kind of vacation time I have right now, so I’ll send you a telegram when I’m planning on visiting.”

“That sounds good,” Silver replied, getting up to leave. “I’d better head back home. Mom’s making nachos…” he snorted, and added, “assuming Sunny hasn’t been talking her ears off about her books.”

“Tell Mom and Dad I say hi,” Swift said as Silver left the kitchen, and his ear flicked as he heard the door open and close when his brother left. Swift finished off his beer, and reflected on how lucky he was that his magically-talented brother hadn’t vaporized him.

= = = = = = = = = =

Sometime later, Silver and Sunny were lying in bed, simply cuddling after a long day. Silver felt weary, between all the walking they did while visiting several tourist attractions, and the difficult discussion he had with his brother. In the morning, they would be leaving on a train back to Ponyville, which would be a long and boring trip; it was the reason why they’d come on an overnight train, and had hoped to leave on an overnight train as well.

As Sunny laid there, being spooned by Silver, she thought about her idea earlier in the shower, about taking that next step with the unicorn she loved. “Hey, Silver?”

“Hm? Yeah?” he asked, lifting his head a bit to look over her shoulder.

Having gotten his attention, she told him, “I’ve been thinking about our relationship, and how well everything’s been going for us.”

“And?” he wondered, the stallion not sure where she was going with this.

She wondered how to ask, before she decided to be blunt. “And I was thinking that maybe you’d consider moving in with me?”

That got his attention, and any drowsiness he’d been feeling was suddenly gone. “Where’s this coming from?” he asked.

She squirmed anxiously in his forelegs. “Well, I mean, you spend most of your nights at the shop, even when you’re not working, so why not make it something more permanent? Unless, of course, you don’t think we’re ready for that step…”

“I didn’t say that,” Silver quickly replied. “It’s just, I hadn’t considered moving in together, that’s all. I’m still new to this relationship stuff, remember?”

“So, what do you think?” she asked.

His brow furrowed, and he silently pondered the idea for a few long moments. “Well… I’m not sure it’s practical for me to move in with you. I mean, I don’t dislike the idea, but I don’t think all my things would fit in the space you have.” Sunny had a couple spare rooms on the second floor, one of which he’d already taken as a secondary library and workroom, but it wasn’t quite enough space for his furniture and arcade cabinets, not to mention the rest of his personal library.

Sunny felt disappointed by that. “Oh… I see…”

Silver, however, smiled as he said, “So, why don’t you move in with me instead?”

That snapped her out of her temporary funk. “Wha?”

He chuckled at her response. “My house may not be all that big, but you don’t have too much you’d need to move over. Plus, I have a whole family room to relax in, including that comfy couch you like.”

Sunny giggled and pressed herself against him as she slowly nodded. “Well, when you put it like that, I suppose I could move in with you.”

Silver smiled and held her close. “I’m happy to hear that.”

After a few very interesting days, ending with a new living arrangement, Silver and Sunny dozed off. Whatever the future held, the two of them would continue to face it together as roommates.

Comments

[harts fire]

this is a vary happy chapter, with a intense slice of life flavor.
I am wondering how thing will develop at home now with Sunny and Silver moving to the next steep?

[Grekoy]

Roomies yay!