When I woke up that morning it turned out that I had only slept for three or so hours. It was six in the morning if the ringing of the clock chimes was something to go by. The nightmare was still stalling and I needed to keep watch… but I also needed to blend in. So far I had done well enough. Aside from coming back to Ponyville covered in blood from head to hoof and freaking out Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash alongside scaring Octavia, Vinyl, and Sunshower everything was going pretty well.
‘Who am I kidding… I’m hanging on a goddamn thread even with the training I received. Gotta be better about things from this point on. The home I’m getting will be situated close to the Everfree Forest and I’ll be keeping close track of whatever heartless might try to get out of there. It’s not prevalent but I have smelled darkness emanating from that area. There were also areas I felt when I first came into the world over by the Badlands I guess. I won’t be anywhere near there for now but they were still just as light over there. The darkness has a lot of trouble focusing in Equestria.’
“I wonder if they have a Cornerstone of Light here…”
I mused some more but it was finally time to get things rolling. Today apparently would be Spitfire’s day. All focused on actually getting to know her better while also letting her get to know me… Instantly I wanted to escape into space. I didn’t have a history here and while I’ve found out that the Badland Thestrals are very remote even with other thestral tribes I didn’t know if anyone knew of them more in detail. At the very least I’m not dealing with Twilight. She would probably figure out who I really was within a few days of meeting me and that was intolerable under my own reservations. From my memories I knew I had to at least keep things going on a general same path. I had ideas of what I could and shouldn’t change but when it came to the season threats I had to deal with them personally. Not for glory or fame, but for the item they each possessed. Nightmare Moon had dropped something I now know as the Envy Orb. For some reason it had resonated with my keyblade armor.
That still hadn’t gotten anywhere in terms of solving how to use the orb with the armor but it was on the list of constant mysteries I needed to solve. First on the list was figuring out why six random mares like me and why they seem fine with making a herd, Second was finding the Nightmare that got away apparently and destroying the permanently, and the armor was third. I had strange priorities at this point and little to go on. Even detective skills are useless if I have nothing to detect. Equestria while nice is also very boring most of the time. Peace and quiet were so rare on Earth that the entire time I had been staying near Octavia and Vinyl’s house very little actually happened.
My thoughts were brought to an abrupt end when the front door was opened. Spitfire had stepped out followed by a concerned Octavia. That didn’t sit well with me but I didn’t break their conversation mostly due to not knowing what it was about. When they noticed me actually awake both mares clammed up.
“Something wrong?”
“Nothing.
“No problems here.”
Both of them were pawing at the ground with their hooves and twisting their heads to not look at me. Ponies are very bad liars most of the time… at least from what I’ve seen so far. Perhaps one of them will surprise me but for now I didn’t question it.
“Mind if I use the shower Octavia before I start the rest of the day?”
“Huh… Oh, of course, go right ahead.”
“We’ll head out when you’re done Gray. Got a lot to do today.”
I merely nodded and went upstairs. Only Sunshower and Redheart were awake at this point and luckily they had finished getting ready before the other two came outside. I closed the door after saying hi to both of them. They looked a bit pensive and worried when I passed by them. Warning bells went off in my head and I was really getting that feeling that something was going to happen on this date… I was most likely going to be put through the wringer but I waited until I finished a shower before I even wanted to mull that over.
“Are you certain this is the only way?”
“Yeah… Octavia right? Look this stallion seems tough so I gotta make sure he’s up to snuff for a pony like me.”
“Well yes… but challenging him to a duel to see if he’s tough enough seems a little extreme don’t you think?”
“It’s how I chose my last coltfriend. He was able to stand up to me and keep up. Look it’s just the standard I have ok. If he’s not up to code I probably won’t be part of this herd.”
“I know it just seems… extreme to me. There are better ways to get to know somepony.”
“I know. This way is mine. Everypony here is going to be finding out more about him during their dates and when we finish that we’ll pool all the info together.”
“Please make sure he comes back in one piece. We already had a scare a while back and we don’t need another so soon.”
“He’ll be fine. I actually have high expectations for him already. No stallion has ever had the spine to pick me up like that and keep a cocky attitude against me in a long time.”
“He picked you up? Wait… What!?”
“Nothing! You heard nothing!”
I finally finished and exited the shower. It took a bit to trot downstairs since both Sunshower and Redheart both gave me hugs before I left. They acted like they might never see me again. Also noticed that Sunshower is still the cuddler while Redheart is very motherly with her hugs. Nice little tidbits to store away in case I needed more insight on how they acted.
When I reached the front door I saw both mares still locked in an intense debate. I think they heard my hoofsteps because they both stopped when I appeared. Pony ears are not for show apparently since I saw them twitch in my direction. Will have to be more careful from now on to get through places and I should figure out their range.
“Ready.”
“Good. Come on we have a bit of a flight ahead of us.”
“Got it. See ya later Octavia.” I gave her a hug. It felt like a thing I should do. I had done it for my niece everytime I left the house to either go to work or let her head to school. It was… no gotta focus on the now. I don’t think she noticed me getting pensive but I didn’t look too long before Spitfire pulled me into the air and led the way.
It was a nice flight. Though the entire time we were traveling I noticed that she would speed up forcing me to increase my speed. I was not a speed flyer and I still didn’t know what kind of flyer I was. Endurance flyers would be able to fly for hours on end, power flyers would probably be able to tear through their obstacles without too much trouble, speed flyers are possibly like Spitfire, and technical flyers are stunt ponies to an almost crazy extent. I couldn’t dwell on it much because she then dived down forcing me to follow along. We flew through several trees dodging and weaving around them. By some miracle I managed to keep her in my sight and not make a complete fool of myself. Perhaps I was getting better.
I ran into a thundercloud as soon as I took my eye off of her. Before I could be overcharged I summoned the kunai blades around my hooves keeping the electricity off of me. After I got out I unsummoned them before Spitfire could see.
“You ok?”
“Yeah… I’m good… It was just really tingly.”
She looked at me really closely as she stopped to make sure I was fine. My body wasn’t showing the signs of being electrified. Maybe I should have been affected by the static instead of blocking it entirely. She looked specifically at my hooves but since there were no marks there she looked back into my eyes. I wasn’t nervous at all… My eyes were darting around for an excuse.
“You don’t look like you were affected at all by the lightning in there.”
“I guess I’m just naturally resistant to electricity. I’ve never been in a thundercloud before. First time for everything.”
“Didn’t you do weather control for your home?”
“Lived in a cave system in the Badlands. We only dealt with rain showers whenever we managed to get the rain clouds for it.”
“Hm… sounds tough. I might want to hear more of that another time. Right now we should probably get to the Academy.”
“Right. Why are we heading there? Wasn’t this supposed to be a date to get to know each other better?”
“Don’t worry about that Gray. We’ll be getting to know each other real soon.”
I, obviously, didn’t panic when she said those words. My back legs weren’t shaking from anxiousness at all. My wings didn’t even nearly close up on me when she purred the word ‘real’… Christ this was turning into something weird… and I still had no idea about pony aesthetics.
When we reached the large academy I saw multiple teams of pegasi in their blue and yellow outfits performing complex maneuvers all over the skyline. An arctic blue mare with a nearly white or really light gray mane seemed to be leading the drills. When she saw the two of us flying down she immediately zoomed over forcing her trainees to fly another lap. Spitfire looked expectantly at her approach.
“Welcome back Captain. Are you done with your sabbatical or… Ah do you need the place now.”
“Yeah Fleetfoot. Gotta check on a few things. I still have another day off before I come back. You don’t mind do you?”
“Not at all.”
“That will be all Fleetfoot.”
“Right…”
I didn’t know what was going on but that weird feeling in the pit of my gut was working it’s way up. Clearly my libido had lied to me. Also there was also something… underlyingly wrong going on.
“Good luck pony… Your funeral.”
She muttered those words when I trotted past her. I really should have found a book on pegasus dating manuals. This was going to be one of those days. It felt like I was back on the force and had that fling with… what was her name… crap I don’t remember. She had used me to get back at her boyfriend. Didn’t work apparently from what I remember. Learned a lesson that day though… never trust a pair of pretty eyes cause they are the most dangerous of the bunch.
“So… where are we going?”
“You’ll see…”
I followed her through one of the longer hallways and noticed there were no ponies patrolling the area. Probably seeing Spitfire here scared them all away. We finally reached one of the far doors and she led me in. As it turned out she brought me into one of the training rooms used for hoof to hoof combat.
“Uh…”
“So… here’s the thing. You seem like a good stallion and I know you seem strong enough but I gotta see if you can keep up with me in a little spar. I like my stallions to be as tough as me.”
“That sounds like you don’t get a lot of romantic options.”
“Ugh… Don’t remind me. Only one pony has ever managed to keep up with me and I’m never gonna be with that bum ever again.”
“That bad huh? Sorry to hear that.”
“It’s fine. I’m over it. I got a new prospective coltfriend right in front of me. He just has to keep up.”
“I’ll admit that hoof to hoof combat was never my specialty…”
“Weapons pony?”
“Yeah… I had more weapons training. I mean I did complete basic combat training.”
As a cop I only knew submission holds because of course the rules behind apprehending suspects. Problem was that I didn’t have hands anymore… also I’m not even sure if my arms bend that way. I never thought of it before but the fact my back legs seem to bend the opposite way freaks me out more that I thought it would. Ignoring it I took position across from Spitfire who smiled at my eagerness. I was cringing the whole time which made her chuckle.
“Glad you’re enjoying yourself.”
“Don’t worry ‘bout that. This is just a friendly spar… maybe more than friendly if you keep up.”
The wink she gave me didn’t drop my guard. I made sure to be ready for anything she sent my way which was why even though I smiled my eyes were locked on her. She noticed the intensity of my gaze but returned one of her own. She was smirking though, which put me on edge. Neither of us moved first. While I never was formally trained my time fighting the heartless for Yen Sid had taught me the wonders of waiting for the opponent to make the first move.
It worked especially well when fighting Neoshadows. It would possibly work well for fighting other ponies. I hoped.
Spitfire slowly took a step to the left while I stepped to the right. A slow circle was made as we kept a sizable distance from each other. Both of us were very much predators and neither could make the first move. I was full of holes in my defense hoping she would fall for the feint. She was smarter than that and kept her distance. Her smile never broke either. My wings started to get agitated as they slowly opened and closed ready to move. Hers did the same. Step by step, inch by inch we moved in that concentric circle.
With a sudden lunge at a dashing speed Spitfire launched herself at me managing to grasp onto me only for me to fling her off before her hooves could get their grip. She slid to a halt on the floor while I rushed in low attempting to get her to the floor and pin her. She flapped her wings dodging the sweep and jumping on top of me. I instantly fell backwards hoping to knock her off by crashing against the floor. She let go and used the momentum to roll away while I crashed to the floor. Luckily the mats on the floor made it tolerable.
She instantly jumped back towards me forcing me to pull my legs in. As soon as she touched down I pushed my legs forward tossing her away causing her to skid on her side. I got back to my hooves as did she. She was actually really excited and her tail seemed to be flicking around… a lot. I took my stance again and waited for her.
While she was very skilled at combat I managed to be a bit stronger than her. Probably the outcome of facing so many heartless within a short amount of time giving me the experience to match her. I wondered briefly if I could see other ponies stats like I could with mine. She then lunged for me managing to toss me on my back. Once again, losing myself in thought was turning out bad for me. Instead of fighting against her I grabbed her sides shocking her and forced Spitfire to the mat. Placing my front hooves on her arms and making sure I didn’t let her legs get between mine I pinned her down.
She was breathing heavily though I really don’t think it was from fatigue. Wait… were her pupils dilating… Well I think she’s warmed up to me. Also this position seems really compromising. Police training definitely didn’t cover this for submission holds. Maybe my mind’s being more pony again.
“Done?”
“What?”
“I’m asking if you give up Spitfire.”
She tried to push my hooves off but I actually put my weight on her. I think she started blushing when she noticed the position of her back legs. She didn’t try to move them because things could turn awkward. I also didn’t want our relationship to go that fast. Barely knew enough about Spitfire and this date/interview was still ongoing.
“Yeah… fine I give. Mind letting me up.”
I stepped off her and took a few steps back. She stopped visibly breathing heavily but I did noticed that her chest was still rising rapidly. She was also pretty red as she made her way closer to me. This might get a bit out of my control.
“Looks like you managed to beat me. You’re up to my level and I am going to enjoy this.”
“Um… Right. Remember we’re still figuring out the whole herd situation. Heh heh…”
“Oh I know that. Don’t worry about that. I’m just kind of happy since I don’t meet a lot of stallions that could keep up with me. Now I found one and I’m gonna make sure you want to stick around.”
With a small wink she stepped up to me and nuzzled against me. I didn’t tense up but I felt a bit warmer than usual. Probably nothing and I didn’t feel nervous… not nervous at all. Then she pushed me down to the mat because I was distracted. She mounted on top of me and decided I was far too protected so she planted her lips against mine and made sure I was focused entirely on her. My eyes instantly bugged out and my arms wriggled around in shock. Wait… is she… is that her tongue? As our lips parted she nuzzled against me leaving me shocked.
“I think I’m gonna enjoy this a lot.”
“Mph… huh? Right. Yes. Enjoy. Yes.”
I think I instinctively wrapped my arms and wings around her and we laid there for a while just relaxing in this empty training room. All thoughts in my head were racing around at millions of miles per hour. Eventually we both got up and she quickly nuzzled me again before we decided to leave. She started to talk a bit more about herself including a mother that lived out near one of the mountain ranges but I didn’t know which one. I did learn that she was very passionate about leading her team as well.
“Anything about the team I should know in detail?”
“Well… You might see my Ex around if you stick around long enough… Then again he is still recovering.”
“Recovering?”
“Found out he was seeing another pony while we were relaxing in Manehattan. It had been going on for a while. As you can tell I’m not exactly one to take betrayal like that lightly. At least right now I know you aren’t going to do something that hasn’t already been talked about.”
“This has been talked about? Where was I when this happened?”
“When you took that nap a few nights ago. Each of us decided on some ground rules. Trust me if we didn’t agree to some things we wouldn’t have left the training room.”
I think my eyes bugged out again. I think I was red. They were very serious and I think I was understanding the aesthetics of ponies though I wasn’t sure if the kiss was the catalyst. I shook my head and chuckled.
“Good to know I’m in such good standing with you mares. I guess I’m really lucky.”
“So… what about you? What’s your story?”
“Well… I guess I can say that I had an ordinary family life and eventually joined a small police force we had. I worked hard at it and eventually became one of the head detectives of the branch. Parents were proud of me and my brother was supportive. It was a good day. Incidents turned me loose on the rest of Equestria. That made it a bad day.”
I grimaced… I really didn’t want to say much about things that involved my past… only because it would be very crazy to anyone who was listening to it. Still I gave enough details that would at least be believable. She frowned but came close to me and gave me a very quick hug. We were already walking the halls of the Academy so she kept her affection to a minimum. I wanted to laugh at the absurdity but I understood the need to keep the facade up. Better she have the mask around the recruits and not be seen as emotional.
After that we trotted out of the building to a nearly darkened sky. Fleetfoot was telling the ponies still flying to pack it in for the night as she walked over to the two of us. She smiled lightly and handed Spitfire a ledger which seemed to have plenty of recruits that needed more training apparently.
“Looks like we call this a night then Gray. I got some things to work on for the Academy. Thanks for making this interesting.”
“Huh? You survived. Guess you were better than I thought.”
I thought I saw her sigh in relief but I was distracted by a wink from Spitfire who sashayed away with Fleetfoot. I felt her tail rub against my chin as she trotted away while the two snickered a bit. I needed to take a very cold shower eventually before I get too worked up. I needed to leave right that moment… Very soon… I was not watching her flank. Damn it I was.
“I’m not gonna survive anymore encounters if they end up like this. Also I think that being a thestral made me very open to the nuzzling.”
I opened my wings and flew off towards Ponyville. It was a very slow flight because my head was still spinning slightly. I didn’t meet any resistance along the way home and I managed to make it back outside of their house. I knocked and was received by Octavia apparently. She let me in and allowed me to use the shower. I used a lot of cold water. She also seemed really excited because she and Fresh Coat worked out who would be next. After the shower I went outside and took my position on the porch.
“Why do you stay out here Gray?”
“I kind of like it. Can’t explain it well but being upside down is kind of fun. Plus the night is always fun. I’m just gonna power nap for now though. Then tomorrow will be our day Octavia.”
I think she made a squee sound as a smile was plastered across her muzzle. I chuckled while she closed the door. When I thought back to it I noticed that only Fresh Coat was still here. I didn’t see Sunshower or Redheart. The probably had a home here in Ponyville already so it made sense.
When I looked out into the forest I didn’t see any of the nightmare creatures or Nightmare either looking out at me. I closed my eyes and quietly tried to sleep but the constant idea that the threat was waiting for me to make a mistake making my rest turn to suffering. I woke up multiple times during the night only to see nothing out in the forest. My sleep schedule was already disturbed enough so I decided to do anything else to curb those thoughts. I looked through my saddlebags and felt something really warm within them. I pulled it out only to realize that it was the wayfinder. One of the petals was glowing a bright golden color. I blinked in surprise until I thought back to every game in the series I’ve played. I don’t think I knew much about the D-Link system but this felt connected in some way. Sighing I placed it back into my pack and fell asleep.
I awoke the next day with a mixture of worry and anticipation. The Nightmare was still out within the Everfree Forest but made it a point not to make themselves known in the first place. The anticipation, I couldn’t place, was filling me with dread. I merely prepared for today the best I could. Octavia was the only pony on my mind right at this point. I needed to focus on her like I focused on Spitfire yesterday. I only knew a bit about Octavia and one of those things was that she loved classical music. Also that she was very empathic. She seemed to be the most worried when she heard I was covered in blood. Can’t really blame her that moment in my life was a real wake up call. Also probably got seen by two of the Elements of Harmony when I should have never been seen in the first place.
“Hindsight is always against me isn’t it?”
Mumbling to myself seemed to be a more common occurrence whenever I was alone. I landed back on the ground from the porch roof and knocked on the front door. Octavia stepped out and immediately shut the door behind her. I quickly put two and two together and figured that she wanted to go enjoy our date right at this moment.
“So where shall we go then Octavia?”
“Well I was thinking we go out to a small coffee shop up in Canterlot. I know you could get us there faster than the train can.”
“Sure I can do that. You’d have to hold on tight.”
“Hold on tight?”
I didn’t answer and decided to just pick her up in my arms and lifting my wings up. I did notice that she seemed a bit heavier than Spitfire did. One of my arms was wrapped around her flank and I couldn’t say I didn’t enjoy the curves… I shook my head and noticed she was blushing heavily until I dived into one of the nearby shadows as we exited out around one of the Canterlot alleyways. I placed her back on the ground. She quietly readjusted her fancy bowtie and fixed her mussed up mane though during that she leaned up against me. Surprisingly, she wasn’t actually doing this on purpose which kind of made it adorable. When she noticed that she was leaning against me she too a few steps away and regained her regal composure for the rest of the ponies in the city. I merely chuckled and allowed her to lead the way.
Once again we same the same unicorns with the same attitudes they held the last time I walked around with Octavia. Still she held herself with the dignity that she always held herself with. After a short trek through the streets we made our way to a small coffee shop called Cocoa Sizzle’s Cafe. I was still confused about the naming conventions of businesses but I didn’t make much of a fuss about it. So far the puns that nearly made me sick like that one city which wouldn’t be mentioned anymore hadn’t come up again which made me kind of happy.
“Here we are. It’s not something grand but it’s a place I really like.”
“It’s good Octavia. This is an interesting place. Besides I’m here to get to know you better.”
“Y-yes, of course.”
We were ushered in by one of the servers towards a booth in the back. If I didn’t know any better than they were making coffee bars exactly like the new age retro style some of the people from back home has done. It was even stereotypical with the one obligatory pony wearing the beatnik beret. I think that this might have done wonders for my sensibilities of society… and promptly wanted to immediately turn into an outcast. I didn’t have problems with beatniks though. I had problems with the people who would go too far into character. Still this was about Octavia and not my problems with stereotypes.
“So… What can you tell me about yourself?”
“Me? Gray you seem to know more about me than I do about you.”
“Perhaps but I just find you more interesting than me. I’ve had to life with myself for long enough as is.”
She tittered politely as her posture started to finally relax. I couldn’t fault her for being on edge. Apparently I was slightly intimidating. From what I observed everytime I would unconsciously move my wings others would take it for signs of agitation which would make other ponies want to get away from me. When I found out I took several steps to quit that habit and that included the idea of strapping my wings down. That was shot down by Sunshower.
“Well I was born here in Canterlot to a small noble family over in the northwestern quadrant of the city. I was always well taken care of and wanted for naught. Eventually I made friends with Vinyl which of course turned my life around. You’ve already seen what happens whenever I decide to indulge in her habits though.”
“Yes I noticed. I probably will ask her more about that another day. Sorry if I had shocked you too much that night.”
“I-i-i wasn’t shocked. I was just… surprised to have somepony come out of nowhere like a knight. I suppose chivalry is still alive.”
“I’m no knight. I’m just a lucky pony who happened to be around and capable of doing something. So as long as you were ok then I was good with that.”
“You are to me…”
I could barely hear what she said but the redness of her ears told me it was probably embarrassing or flattering and about me in some way. It was pretty cute and I was about to slide closer to her when the server came back. I ordered a very light caffeinated drink. I really didn’t want to be wired for the rest of the day. Octavia chose a cappuccino and when the orders came she gingerly drank from the mug. If she had pinkies I’m pretty sure they would be extended. She was the very picture of poise.
“So what would you like to know about me?”
“... Why are you doing what you are doing? Why let yourself be hurt so badly for the sake of a mission?”
That was not the first thing I was expecting to answer. My eyes widened surprised from what I could feel. This was not the first question I ever thought I would be answering today at least. I looked down at my drink and chugged the entire thing. I hadn’t really thought about these things but I decided then and there to put words to my reason. I looked up and was surprised to see her staring intently into my eyes. I didn’t break my line of sight.
“I do what I do because it’s something I want to do. When I was younger I trained to be a cop and eventually became a detective. I knew what it meant; to do whatever I could to make sure others were ok. I guess I dedicated my life to make sure that others would always be in good graces. I do these things so nopony else has to.”
“W-w-what happened to being a detective?”
“... The one’s I worked under turned out to be… corrupt. There was nothing I could do without becoming a monster to change things so… I decided to leave under the most amicable terms I could get. It was barely enough to get out from under that… oppressive environment.”
“Your family knew?”
“Family was already gone. It’s not that bad.”
She begged to differ as she had inched closer near me through the entire time I was speaking. Even then the only thing I could wonder about was how she got so close without me noticing. Before I could ask she leaned against me and gave me a hug. I was a little confused though. I didn’t feel sad about what happened back on Earth… at least as much as I did when I first came to Equestria. Sure I never had the chance to dwell on it. It wasn’t on my mind all the time. I never thought back to holding the dead body of my niece and crying about it. My face felt wet now… crap.
Octavia looked up at me. From her position she was leaned against my chest and wiping the tears that had managed to get out of me. I shook my head and absentmindedly stroked the back of her head. I didn’t want to think much right now. We eventually went back to our original positions and drank in a comfortable silence. As it turned out Octavia might have been the most emotional out of the mares I’ve met. She wasn’t open about them but it seemed like if you got close she would open up.
Before we could continue our conversation something unexpected came up. This weird unicorn stallion with a light blue coat, black mane, and treble clef as a cutie mark came trotting up to the two of us. I tilted my head in confusion as I was apt to do whenever I felt something stupid was about to come up. He smiled up at Octavia who merely grimaced at his presence while I felt the strangest sensation that he was trying to glare at me. While I was used to glares I never quite felt this intensity before except from criminals I was forced to fire at when they wouldn’t surrender. The sheer hatred was surprising. It was worse when Octavia actually sidled closer to me.
“Hello again dear Octavia. It’s a pleasure to see you again… although in such… interesting company.”
He sneered a lot while saying that. I could feel that aneurysm building up from my temples to the bridge of my muzzle. Also I was certain that he was insulting me. I ignored him and let my eyes instead peer down at Octavia who was curled against me at the moment. She obviously didn’t like this pony in any way, shape or form.
“Of course Treble Clef. I’m in better company than most I would say.”
“Quite… even though he seems to have a penchant for unicorns and pegasi.”
“Who?”
“You’re roommate for one and the Wonderbolt captain. I thought you would find someone more trustworthy than that.”
“Oh. You mean our herd.”
If there was glass I am pretty sure I heard it shattering. His eyes widened as he looked at me in both disgust, envy, and hatred. I think he planned this wrong and wound up paying for it. I merely shrugged at him and wrapped my hooves around Octavia.
“I see. My apologies Octavia. I didn’t realize what was going on. Seems I might have overstepped my bounds. Though as your… colleague I thought I would try to look out for you.”
“Of course. I am glad for your concern but I know what I am doing. Now if you’ll excuse us we were busy speaking about the future. Isn’t that right Gray?”
“Yes. We were Octavia.”
She pulled herself closer to me and waited until Clef trotted away. Even though he was muttering to himself I’m pretty sure I hear something like ‘pretentious bitch and avaricious bastard.’ I frowned at his choice of words but I couldn’t move due to the adorable pony clinging to me. If I had the chance I would have done something about him.
Octavia finally let me go and went back to her original position demurely fretting as her hooves wrenched together in perfect tandem. I didn’t mind the consequences of what had happened but she seemed a bit troubled.
“Everything ok there?”
“I’m sorry for being so… forward. I know some stallions don’t enjoy the clinging… I just… didn’t want you to think I believed his words on the matter. Had he said two other ponies I don’t know if I would have reacted as I did.”
I thought about things for a bit looking at her while her eyes turned away from me. She seemed to like me but… I could see she was still working out whether or not to believe in me. I was after all an outlier. I was lying about certain things. I clenched my jaw and thought about my options. I wanted this bond between us to work out… but that required me to be truthful. Problem is that being truthful all at once would probably make them run away in fear from me. It was something I don’t think I could prepare for, at least, not on my own. I mentally sighed because I knew what I had to do. Unlike Spitfire who knew what she wanted and how to get what she wanted, Octavia was a different breed of pony. Not just literally either.
Octavia was demure and while she was much tougher than she appeared, in terms of romance, she was still learning. While she could trade barbs with the best of them she couldn’t force herself to instantly trust someone with something as important as their heart.
“Octavia…?”
“Y-yes?”
“I’m going to tell you something important and I need you listen till the very last word.”
She got real quiet and while there was no frown, there was no smile either. I got close to her and looked her straight in the eyes.
“I know I have yet to earn your trust. While I know you have affection for me it is only that. Affection. I can’t tell you everything about myself yet because we both have to earn each other’s trust before we can grow closer. Trust is earned, never given. I will find a way to earn your trust I just hope you can believe me when I say that I really want to tell you… all of you more about me but I have to maintain secrecy while I do my job. I am sorry that I can’t tell you more.”
Her face was impassive and I couldn’t get a good read off of her. She seemed uncertain or scared? Maybe she was glad or angry. I couldn’t tell because she hadn’t moved. What was merely seconds felt more akin to an eternity. She sidled back over to me and without warning kissed my cheek. She nuzzled against me and looked me in the eye again. They had no tears but there was a certain warmness within them.
“That’s all I ask.”
From that point on our conversation became far more lively. Music had become our connection point. While I was not well versed in classical music I did like the blues genre which intrigued Octavia. I found out that most blues styled singers faded as Equestria became the land it is to this very day. Several songs were still in circulation and were taught to any musical students who showed interest but few kept up with it. When we came to the idea of lyrical and instrumental we found that we both agreed that instrumental music was superior in our opinions. Though even we had our weaknesses. Eventually afternoon started to fall upon us. After we got outside I scooped up Octavia in my arms and flew off for Ponyville, taking the long way.
Octavia was surprised when I didn’t immediately head for her home. I got up to a stray cloud that had no one around it and was a bit far out of Ponyville territory. I landed on it and startled Octavia when I fell onto my back. I spread my wings out and immediately positioned Octavia to the point where she could lay on top with me. She was frightened but I held on tightly to make certain that nothing would happen to her.
“W-w-why are we up here?”
“I wanted to cuddle you.”
“What!?”
She looked incredulously at me only to blanch when she noticed I was serious. I had planned this a while ago. Only for a few moments before I took her home. She nervously brought herself closer to me.
“Why would this be the best place for that?”
“It’s quiet and remote and you don’t have to worry. So long as I’m here, you shall always be safe.”
She sighed contently as she snuggled her head against my chest. I just held on to her.
“Thanks… Thank you for being sweet.”
“My pleasure.”
We didn’t speak for the rest of the night. It wasn’t even the awkward kind of silence either. We were both comfortable with each other. Personally, I felt as though I was being pretty quick about things. I also thought back about these last two days.
In the grand scheme of things I was working within an already established system with pre-established rules set in place. The darkness which I was fighting wasn’t striking out at me just yet and was content with watching me… for the moment. I’m pretty sure I’m also going to be dealing with jealous stallions and/or mares if any of them were/are bi. I still don’t know Fresh Coat or Redheart as well as I should yet. The Nightmare was hiding within the Everfree Forest growing stronger by the day or trying to at the very least.
Instead, I laid my head on a cloud holding one of those mares that had decided to take a chance on me. Priorities dictated that I should take on the monsters in the forest while my emotions went immediately to creating bonds with these six mares. After an hour I carefully picked Octavia up who curled closer in my arms and flew her back home. She hugged me before she went off to rest a bit and I took my position on the ceiling of the porch awning once again. It was still early but I decided to sleep before the night came.
When I woke up I saw that the moon was high in the sky at this point. I gazed out on the outskirts of the forest and noticed the eyes of the Nightmare had returned. They were less numerous at this point… but all of them were eye level with a pony now. I think I even heard something snarling as well. For the rest of the night I watched them watch me. It was a stalemate and we both knew it.
Ignoring the obvious threat I felt something warm in my bag once again. I pulled out the wayfinder I received from eclipse and noticed that another of the petals was shining again. This one was shining a shade of purple that I couldn’t really tell at this point. I knew shades of blue due to an old friend from school, but I didn’t know every shade imaginable like that nut.
“A golden petal, and a purple petal… looks like I’ve made a bond now. Maybe I will be better eventually.”
I placed it back in my bag and looked out on the forest again. The eyes were all gone and I could finally return to sleep… at least for the moment.