Last extra one for a while. Announcement (Ruby Palace) & Vignette - No Dogs Allowed! · 1:14am Apr 1st, 2023
Announcement: I've got a tall stack of chapters edited and beta read. That's right. We're about to launch this puppy! Like, within 4 weeks at most. Three more vignettes to come and one will have an exact date for the launch of EQG:SAO Ruby Palace. Putting this vignette out before finalizing the date cause I'm super excited!
Vignette – No Dogs Allowed
August 18 – Thursday
Twilight walked up to the house’s front door and noticed two different cameras watching over it and the front of the house. They were not there the week prior when she had been to the housewarming. Shining Armor was increasing his home security, which was a good thing.
She looked at Spike by her feet and smiled at her beloved pet. The dog smiled back at her, as best as any dog could. Shining Armor didn’t know Spike could speak and he was going to be taking care of Spike while she was away. At least for the first half. Their parents, Night Light and Twilight Velvet, were going to be spending six weeks touring Europe, a trip which was two years in the making. It worked out perfectly that Twilight would be gone, not that she couldn’t have cared for herself.
After she had finished packing, Twilight had spent a wonderful night with Spike, snuggling and talking through most of the night. It was only four months, but it would be four months where he would always have to look like a regular dog. Especially if Shining Armor had cameras.
Twilight rang the doorbell and waited. Shining Armor hadn’t been on shift today, so he had invited her to come over early and drop Spike off, along with Spike’s stuff, before the family went off to dinner together. It seemed like there was something else going on, but she couldn’t tell with him. Not recently. Her B.B.B.F.F. had been quite busy and working a lot lately. Buying the house was unexpected, but his apartment lease was up in three months. He certainly could afford it. Shining Armor had just made Lieutenant and been placed in charge of Canterlot Police Department’s Special Weapons and Tactics Unit.
The door opened. “Twily!” Shining Armor exclaimed. “And Spike. Come on in you two.” Shining Armor took both bags from Twilight before letting Twilight and Spike enter. He set them off to the side. “Glad you could come by early so we could get some sibling time in before dinner. It’s been too long and we won’t get to for a while.”
“Four months isn’t that long, but it will be a while,” Twilight said. “It certainly will feel longer and I won’t be the same girl when I get back. I’ll have a whole world of experience. I look forward to sharing it with my big brother when I get back, we can only post so much on our social media account, then we can have some fun catching up. Should I bring you back something personal, or for the house? It’s still a bit sparse. You opted to get cameras instead of furniture.”
They sat at the kitchen island’s seats where Shining Armor had glasses of iced tea for them. He had left the dining table with his roommate. It was too small for a house, but perfect for that apartment.
“I still haven’t figured out the decorating direction, but home security is always a smart bet,” Shining Armor said. “Especially with my job. But this is a good neighborhood, pretty safe. You know that no matter what you bring me, I’ll always cherish it. I’m certain you will find the perfect thing.”
“Well, this place better have more furniture when I get back,” Twilight poked. “Four months is plenty of time to figure out what to do with your house.”
“I don’t think it will have anything new,” Shining Armor said. “I wasn’t planning on it-”
“Then why did you buy such a big place?” Twilight asked.
“Well, if you would give me a moment and not interrupt-”
“Sorry,” Twilight apologized.
Shining Armor rolled his eyes and smiled. “I bought it because it’s the right direction for having a family. And that’s also why I don’t plan on buying any more stuff.” Shining Armor set a box on the countertop and opened it to display an engagement ring.
Twilight almost dropped her glass of tea in shock. She was aware that Shining Armor was seeing someone with what little time he had with his job, but an engagement ring was more serious that she thought the relationship was. She didn't even know who he was seeing. He had always casually blown it off, indicating that it wasn’t that serious. Or rather that’s what Twilight had understood it as.
It absolutely explained why he bought a house without anyone hearing he was thinking about it. The same for the furniture, or lack of furniture. Why buy new stuff you don’t need when you may replace it or your future spouse already has what will be used.
“Who?” Twilight stammered. “I don’t even know this girl. I would have thought you would have let me meet her first!”
“Relax,” Shining Armor said. “First off, you know her. Second, we kept it quiet for a while for professional reasons. You may have spent your junior year at Canterlot High, but I wasn’t sure you would stay there. It’s been exactly what you needed, but in case you needed, or wanted, to go back to Crystal Prep, well we didn’t want to cause more stress or make things awkward for you. But now you are about to leave for Japan, a semester abroad, so I don’t have those concerns. I haven’t figured out when I’ll ask, but I don’t think you will be back by the time I propose. If, for some reason, I don’t ask before you get back, well at least you know I’ll be asking, which is better than finding out after I ask.”
“Okay,” Twilight said with a slow nod. “But who are you seeing!”
“I’ve been seeing Cadance,” Shining Armor stated. “As in Principal Cadance, the former dean of Crystal Prep.”
Twilight was taken aback even more by that. She loved Cadance. Cadance had always been good to Twilight. She understood Twilight better than Principal Cinch ever had. She still kept up with Twilight, checking in from time to time. Cadance had written a letter of recommendation to the foreign exchange program for Twilight.
What was an even bigger shock was that Shining Armor had been seeing her without Twilight knowing. Twilight didn’t even realize they knew each other’s names. Cadance was a few years older than Shining Armor and she wasn’t at the school when he was a student. Many alumni were engaged with the school, to varying degrees, but the only time Twilight could remember seeing the two of them in the same room was when Principal Cinch used Shining Armor to convince her to join Crystal Prep’s Friendship Games team.
“When did you two start seeing each other?” Twilight asked. “I didn’t realize you knew her.”
“Remember freshman year, when I picked you up after school for your birthday?” Shining Armor asked.
Twilight nodded to him. Shining Armor had been at a training academy for advanced S.W.A.T. tactics and was supposed to miss her birthday, but he had surprised her by getting back early. Really, he had told her the wrong date in order to be able to surprise her. Shining Armor had stayed outside, or so she had thought. That was where he had surprised her. She had found him leaning against his brand-new sports car. It was also the first time she had seen that car.
“I got to the school early, so I walked the halls a bit, remembering my time as a student,” Shining Armor explained. “That’s when I met Cadance. We spoke for a bit and I convinced her to meet me for coffee at a later date. Then we kept it quiet for your sake. You had enough trouble fitting in. We didn’t want to eclipse you and make you the younger sister of one of the school’s former stars who was dating the dean.”
That was almost three years ago. Twilight had been thinking that Shining Armor was rushing things a bit, but that was certainly enough time to get to know Cadance and decide if she was the right woman for him, to decide if they could make a family together.
Twilight didn’t know what to say. She just threw her arms around him, hugging her brother in her joy. She was happy for him. Very happy for him. The one thing she missed about Crystal Prep was Cadance. It wouldn’t be that long until Cadance was her sister-in-law. She would always be in Twilight’s life, assuming she said yes. Twilight knew Shining Armor; he wouldn’t be asking if he either wasn’t certain she would say yes or that he could convince her to say yes.
“I’m so happy for you,” Twilight finally said. “The two of you must make a cute couple. I guess I’ll have to celebrate your engagement when I get back.”
“Definitely,” Shining Armor said as he hugged her tightly. “And thank you. I look forward to celebrating both the engagement and hearing about your time in Japan.”
“Wait, do mom and dad know yet?” Twilight asked as they broke the hug.
“Dad knows, I asked him for some advice,” Shining Armor answered. “Mom doesn’t. She doesn’t know any more than you did. Neither did dad until I needed his guidance.”
“Are you going to tell her tonight?” Twilight asked. She was getting excited. It was titillating knowing before her mother, even if it was only for a few hours.
“I wasn’t planning on it,” Shining Armor said. “I didn’t want to ruin your last night here. It’s supposed to be about you, not me.”
“Giving mom something to think about besides me would be nice,” Twilight said. “She got a bit clingy and sentimental this past week. I wasn’t expecting that to happen, but I guess their trip is still far enough out that it hasn’t completely engulfed her yet.”
“Do you want me to tell her tonight?” Shining Armor asked. “It’s up to you. I wasn’t going to.”
Twilight could feel her cheeks flush. “I really want to see her face when you tell her,” she admitted. “It’s fun knowing before she does. It will give us all something to celebrate as a family before we temporarily go our separate ways.”
“Okay, then I’ll tell her,” Shining Armor said, flashing her a sly grin. “It’s been hard to keep it to myself.”
Shining Armor’s phone chimed and then Twilight’s did. Either they had both gotten a group message, or two people had texted them separately. It was their father, confirming the time for dinner.
“Well, we have to leave soon anyway,” Shining Armor said as he typed the response. “It’s a bit of a drive to Silo’s.”
“Oh, that’s fancy,” Twilight said. “Who picked that place?”
“Dad and I did,” Shining Armor said. “It hit my radar after he took mom for their anniversary. It seemed like the perfect place for your sendoff dinner. But before we go, is there anything I need to know for Spike?”
“All of his stuff is in the bags,” Twilight said. “Bowl, food, leash, bed, and toys. Heartworm pill at the first of the month. He just had a bath yesterday and hasn’t gotten himself dirty. You know how to take care of a dog.”
“I installed a doggy door,” Shining Armor said, bending down to Spike. “Comes with this special tag that locks it unless it senses this tag.” Shining Armor clipped something to Spike’s collar. “So, Spike, you can go out whenever you need to. Do mom and dad know Spike can speak?”
“You know!” Twilight blurted out in her surprise.
“Cadance let it slip,” Shining Armor said with a shrug. “Well, it was more of part of the tale she told me about the friendship games. The fact that you two have been keeping it from me all this time was rather funny.”
“Oh,” was all Twilight said. She was still trying to process that surprise.
“Oh yeah, they know,” Spike said with a chuckle. “They couldn’t help but hear at times. Twilight talks to me a lot as she does schoolwork.”
Twilight rolled her eyes. “I couldn’t get it past them. Plus, Spike is a great conversationalist. Thanks for taking care of him while everyone is gone.”
“Think nothing of it,” Shining Armor said. “I look forward to our guys' nights while you are away.”
“Oh, now I’m intrigued,” Spike stated. “Plus, things are going to be much easier now that I don’t have to play dumb. I got used to verbally answering Twilight.”
Twilight bent down and hugged Spike. “I’m going to miss you so much. I wish I could take you with me.”
“No you don’t,” Spike said. “Having to take care of me, in a city like Tokyo, it’s way too much to worry about on top of having to do school in another language and everything else you will be doing and experiencing. I’ll be fine. You two go have dinner. We said all we needed to last night.” Spike licked her cheek as a parting gesture.
“See you later tonight, Spike,” Shining Armor said.
Twilight followed Shining Armor to the garage where his car was. It was the same sports car he had picked her up in on her birthday, the same day he had apparently met Cadance. Twilight was leaving a lot behind in Canterlot, but she would be coming back to a whole lot more and with a mountain of life experience and memories.
So, there's a possibility that the next story will be out within some time in late April or early May?
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It will be out before May.
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Sweet, can't wait!
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Neither can I!
I just finished reading all of EQG:SAO and the vignettes a couple hours ago and now you announce this. That makes me very happy indeed.
The whole story was a blast to read through I could barely put it down long enough to perform human tasks. I cannot wait to see what the rewrite will be like, kudos to you!
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I'm glad to hear you enjoyed Aincrad. Perfect timing too. I constrained myself in Aincrad to cannon SAO, which absolutely stopped me from doing certain things. Writing a true Alt-U crossover of the two has been fun. A lot of fun. I'm excited for people to read it. I'm excited knowing I'm not done writing it and still have adventures to discover. lol
Can I make a request that you dont relese befor the 27?
Thats when I have my biokemestry exam and I know I will lose study time.
Perfect! Just when my interest in SAO has started to return. I can not wait for the launch
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Have a great day,
SonicDJM
Yeah baby I'm excited too