Chapter 7: A Night Not Long Enough
Not you too...
I just layed there, not knowing what I should and shouldn't do in the situation like that. I certainly did not expect the things turn out that way. Such a sweet and innocent question... could lead to the most unpredictable consequences. Not only it could reveal my true identity, but also... I might end up losing her...
I had caught myself off-guard with that though... Why would I even be concerned about what's supposed to be such an insignificant little detail for me in the dire situation like that?
"Darky...?"
The voice of the sweet little filly had brought me back to the earth, as they say. Wait... what?
"Ehm... what have you just called me?"
It was Apple Bloom's turn to fall silent. I didn't even need to look at her to understand that she was blushing again.
"It's a... nickname Ah've given you," - she had finally mumbled.
"A nickname...?" - I raised an eyebrow at her response, though I doubt she could see that gesture in the dark.
"Y-yeah... Really close friends give each other nicknames, ya know," - she explained, blushing harder. She really wants us to be close, does she not? - "But that's besides the point. Ya'll still said nothin' 'bout why Ah can't hear yer heartbeat, no matter how... how... how close I snuggle against you..." - she finished in a mere whisper.
That was a good thing that I didn't have any heartbeat, or else it would be thumping harder than any drum. But then again... I wouldn't be in this situation if I did have one.
"Are... are you sure?" - I had offered, once again putting on a mask of a confused child.
"Darky... You're terrible in lying," - she replied, seeing right through theat mask. You have no idea how good I actually am at that. I admit, I didn't expect her to be that... sagacious though. What do I do now?
"Apple Bloom... " - Perhaps, I should be a little more honest, - "...you don't want to know the answer."
At first, her facial expression had turned into the one of sadness, but then... it looked like she had realised something, and it changed to the one of fear, and then... to the one of regret. What is happening in her head?
"Ah'm... so sorry," - she had finally offered in a meek voice. Sorry? Whatever for? - "Ah... didn't mean to bring any bad memories up."
It was my turn to have a look of realisation on my face. So... she thinks something bad happened to me which had lead to my heartbeat disappearing entirely? It would be... convenient to let her hang on that thought.
"It's okay, Bloomie..." - I tried my best to sound kind and comforting, letting my hoof stroke her mane gently, - "...Maybe I'll tell you one day."
A few moments had passed in a silence. And then...
"Wha... what did ya'll just call me?" - it was her turn to ask that question. Exactly as I intended.
"That's my nickname for you, silly. After all, we are close, are we not?" - I chuckled a bit, displaying my amusement at that little role reversal. Needless to say, she blushed much harder than before, silently praying for the darkness to hide her face from me. That would be pointless.
"Why do ya just always know what tah say?" - she mumbled, burying her face in my chest fur in a further attempt to hide it.
"And why do you just always get so flustered around me?" - I countered her question in a playful manner, being glad to move further away from the topic I wished to avoid. But, it seemed, that was just not meant to happen. After a few more moments spent in a complete silence, she said.
"It's a secret. Ah'll tell ya when ya tell me yers..."
Clever. Very clever, indeed. What else did I expect? She was a really clever filly... definitely not something I had expected from a farmer's child.
"That's a lesson I've learnt a long time ago," - the voice of Princess Twilight rang in my head. I couldn't help but agree with her on that thought, - "Everypony should be judged by their actions, not by their appearances or their nature."
"If that happens... " - lost in those thoughts, I had blurted out the next phrase before I could properly think it through, - "...you wouldn't even want to talk to me again," - and only then I had realised the gravity of what I had just said.
"W...wha?" - the little filly seemed to be taken aback by my phrase not any less than I was, - "Why would ya'll think that?"
"It... it's complicated, Apple Bloom," - I tried my best to explain it without accidentally revealing anything else, - "Sometimes... things are not as they seem."
After remaining silent and thinking my words over for the next few moments, she just had to surprise me again.
"No," - Apple Bloom said firmly, - "Stop bein' that harsh on yaself! No matter what ya're hidin' from the others, it makes no difference tah me."
...
This filly is full of surprises... to the degree where it starts getting frightening.
"How can you say that?" - my question was no longer a part of an act. I really wanted to know.
"Because Ah owe you my life," - she stated simply, but in a voice that had put a much deeper meaning into that phrase, - "Ah don't care if ya'll end up being a timberwolf in disguise."
Those were some really strong words, indeed. Especially coming from a little filly. Trying to lighten up the mood and dig a little deeper on that matter at the same time, I asked, chuckling playfully.
"And what if I was a timberwolf in disguise?"
She fell silent for another couple of moments, obviously thinking it over. And then...
"Ah wouldn't care."
...she had managed to place a strike right at my lack of heart. That warm feeling, the one she was the first to make me experience in that world, had returned and filled me with a new-found force.
"Whoevah ya'll might really be, Ah wouldn't care, because Ah know who ya ain't," - she continued, sinking me deeper into that feeling, - "Ya ain't no monster."
"Why are you so sure about that?" - I simply had to ask.
"'Cause no monster would ever be so... nice," - she explained, a deep blush was returning to her face.
"Nice?" - I countered, - "Your family had openned it's doors for me, accepted me, shared their home, their food, their... care with me. Who's being nice?"
But the smart little filly had once again caught me by surprise.
"Exactly!" - she exclaimed before remembering to keep her voice low, - "That's exactly what Ah'm talking about. Ya'll spent so much time with me during these days. Ya've joined our club, become friends with Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, carried me when Ah couldn't walk... and all after ya've saved my life! And before that, ya've helped me out with mah homework when we barely knew each other. Ya've been so nice every step on the way, and ya'll haven't even noticed that. That means ya've been sincere in every action of yers."
That little filly... She just couldn't stop surprising me, could she? Whenever I thought that I had her all figured out, she just had to throw in another surprise like that. The surprise that once again had left me completely astonised. She was right... about everything. It's true that I did my best to keep on the image of a sweet and innocent child, but while doing that, I didn't even notice how much of the nice things I did was... unnecessary. I could just... not do them, and that wouldn't crack my disguise even a little. It's as if... I wanted to do those things. It's like... something deep inside was pushing me in that direction all the time.
"You're right..." - I simply admitted, having no reason to deny something that obvious.
"Darn tootin', Ah'm right! No monster would ever be so nice, not to mention... ehm... Ah mean..." - the confident filly suddenly stumbled upon her words before growing silent. That had picked my curiousity, and I smiled at her kindly, trying to encourage her to continue.
"What is it, Bloomie?"
After remaning silent for an entire minute, the heavily blushing filly had finally pushed the words out of her mouth.
"Ya'll snuggle me... every night... And it feels so... nice..."
So, that's what it's all about.
In response, I simply snuggled her closer to me. For whatever reason, our proximity felt much... warmer today. Does this always happen when you grow closer to someone? Needless to say, she didn't resist at all. Instead, she had only buried her face in my coat, embracing me in return. And then, she whispered something... But with her voice being that quiet and her words getting muffled by my fur, I couldn't understand what she said. But for whatever reason, I suddenly felt even warmer.
"...what was that?" - I tried to inquire.
She didn't reply. On a closer look, she was already asleep. I reached to plant a gentle kiss on her forehead and stroked her mane. Yet another completely unnecessary thing... that I simply wished to do.
"I wish you have a nice dream, Bloomie..."
I had a lot to think about that night. Most of all... it was the certain smart filly that wouldn't stop surprising me. And, given all of my sheer age and experience, it would take something really impressive to do that. Definitely not something I would ever expect from a little filly. But... I was wrong. In my entire life, I had never been that wrong about anything. She was so smart, so tough, so nice, so beautiful, so...
As I was thinking about Apple Bloom, I had suddenly caught myself at the direction my thoughts had taken without me even noticing. It's true, I was impressed with her. Really impressed. But... Where did these thoughts even come from? And, more importantly... Why do they make me feel so... warm? That didn't happen to me before... not until I had met her. Not until Apple Bloom and I had become so close. And then, there was the thought that had never been in my head ever since I had woken up in that strange new world...
I don't want anything to change.
That was true. I really didn't want the things to change. In that short period of time I had grown to like them the way they had turned out to be. I wanted them to last... and I couldn't quite explain why. To be honest, there was a lot of things I could no longer explain. And the most disturbing fact was... the most of those things were happening inside of me.
I wonder... what has she whispered?
Whatever that was... it had to be something special. But what words could make me feel so warm without me even hearing them? Did she use some other kind of... magic? Perhaps, something I don't know about yet? No matter how silly that thought was, I had to consider it for I really could not explain those things in any other manner.
I took another look at the sleeping filly in my embrace. She looked so calm... so peaceful. It's like she felt really... safe in my embrace. Like she knew that nothing bad would ever happen to her for as long as she was in my arms forelegs. Oh, Apple Bloom... if only you knew what a monster you have let into your heart. And just like that, as if in response to my thoughts, her sweet voice sounded in my head:
"Ah wouldn't care."
Something warm and wet slid down my cheek. I reached to touch my face and check what that was, but before I could do that, the same feeling had appeared on my other cheek. Those were... The tears. Am I... crying? That was yet another thing I couldn't explain. It's true, wearing a mask of an innocent child on a daily basis, I cried a few times for Miss Bradley. But... never before had I cried on my own. And just like with the warm feeling... I couldn't explain that. It simply... happened.
Why am I... Pride... The First Homunculus... crying?
A tear of mine had landed on Apple Bloom's mane. She had wrinkled her face at first, but then... she had embraced me even tighter. She no longer looked just safe in my embrace... she looked like she wanted me to feel safe in hers as well. That was a really endearing display. I had leaned my head closer to her and quietly whispered in her ear.
"Thank you..."
Whatever dream she was seeing, a wide smile had spread over her beautiful face.
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Yas! This is beautiful!
Beautiful chapter.
8165046
8165119
Thanks to all of you. Receiving such comments from my thankful readers surely helps my inspiration.
So cool.
8165153 Thank you. It is a pleasure to see the new readers enjoying this story of mine.
P.S. Your icon is cute.
this made my day
Why does it seem when I find a new story and start reading it. It starts getting really really good then boom last chapter. At least this one is still being written and not canceled.
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Thank you both for reading and enjoying my story. And this chapter is not the last one. I don't cancel my stories... I simply procrastinate a lot.
8165386 no worries, procrastination certainly is the most common reason why good stories are written at a snail's pace, but so long as there's an update every so often when I least expect it, I'm happy. keep up the good work
8165553 I wonder if anyone had payed attention to "Author's Note" section, that contains a valuable piece of information.
8165656 ohh boy, did I? I actually had a broad smile on my face at the implications of that
MORE
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8165748 Dat Gluttony face though...
btw, what happened to gluttony? pride absorbed him and his abilities, so does that mean little Dark Side also still has them? or are you just going to say "god took it away before sending him here"?
8165773 Ah, that appears, I have completely forgotten to mention that in the prologue, huh? But even though I have, it should be obvious by now that Gluttony had been separated from Pride by Truth at the Gates. After all, he would have used that smell by now, would he not? A timberwolf could have been avoided. I'm going to have to mention it though...
So, indeed... "god took it away before sending him here". But...
Someone else is still there...