//------------------------------// // A Victim of Circumstance // Story: Sunburst's Weekend Off // by milesprower06 //------------------------------// Their bellies full of cheesy hay fries, Starlight and Sunburst left the castle together to walk about Ponyville under the afternoon sun. Starlight talked about her continued studies with Twilight, and Sunburst told her about life in the Crystal Castle with Flurry Heart. "So, lesson learned; if you cast a spell that intense on your friends, they're going to be quite upset the next morning as they cope with the magic-induced hangovers." Starlight told her date as they walked past the pavilion. All the while, Sunburst would keep an eye out for restaurants he thought the two of them might enjoy, but none of them seemed to be the right choice. Like, he was certain that no matter where they chose to eat they would have a good time; no matter where they went or what they cooked themselves in Twilight's kitchen. There had to be something extra to go along with it; something that really hammered the point of "I care about you" home. Even as they had sat down in front of the projector to watch Harry Trotter with a bowl of popcorn, Sunburst couldn't get his mind off of coming up with the perfect way to end their weekend together. When the ending credits rolled and he noticed that Starlight had dozed off in the large beanbag chair they had been sharing, he slowly got up and went to Princess Twilight's study, where he found the Princess half asleep. "Sorry to bother you, Princess Twilight." Sunburst greeted after he announced his presence with a knock. "No worries," Twilight began, yawning. "I tell you, that Flurry can really wear you out, how do you do it?" "I wish I knew." He replied with a chuckle, then cleared his throat. "We've had a fantastic first day, but I can't get my mind off wanting to put the perfect ending to our weekend. I was hoping that you'd have some advice. We could go anywhere in this town, but I just don't think that would make it special enough." "Hmm," Twilight began, putting a hoof to her chin. "Well, have you thought about something out of town? You have plenty of future dates to become familiar with Ponyville, but if you want something special... Perhaps I could help you put something together for her." Twilight's horn glowed, and she floated a parchment and quill over to her, beginning to write. "Go get some rest, Sunburst. I'll come get you in the morning to tell you whether it'll work or not." With a smile and a nod, Sunburst turned and headed back down the hall to the projector room, where Starlight had stirred and woken up. "Hey there, where'd you go off to?" Starlight asked, going over and shutting off the projector. "Just trying to make plans for tomorrow night. Say, it's supposed to be a bit hotter tomorrow. Want to go swimming?" Sunburst asked as Starlight grabbed the now-empty popcorn bowl and shut off the light before the two of them walked back out into the hallway. "Sure. Rainbow knows a great swimming hole on the outskirts of town, it has a rope swing and everything. Actually, no, not everything... Just a rope swing. Pretty sure we'd have to bring our own chairs." After she quickly dashed into the kitchen to rinse the bowl out and set it on the drying rack, the two of them walked down to the residential hall, where bedrooms and guest bedrooms were. "Alright, well here we are," Starlight said, stopping in front of her bedroom. "So, see you in the morning?" Starlight asked,opening the door to her room. "Sure thing. Eight sound good?" Sunburst asked. "Sounds great." The duo said goodnight with a hug, and Sunburst walked further down the hall towards the guest rooms, and Starlight began to enter her room. At the last moment before closing her door, her heart urged her back into the hall. "Um, Sunburst?" She called, right before his star-patterned teal cloak disappeared around the corner. The crystaller stopped in his tracks and turned around. "Yeah, Starlight?" He asked, looking back down the hall at her, when her cheeks began to flush red. "W-W-Would... Would you like to stay with me t-tonight...?" Starlight stammered, her face growing hot. It didn't take long for Sunburst's face to do the same in return, as words failed him and he silently nodded, coming back down the hall to her doorway. After shaking herself out of her nervous stupor, she stepped all the way through the doorway and stepped aside, allowing Sunburst to enter as well. What greeted Sunburst's eyes was, honestly, not what he was expecting. Given what Starlight was like, her sheer magical ability, her vast applicable knowledge of the arcane, he imagined something far more mage-like. But what he stood in the middle of looked far more like a little filly's bedroom. An arch window was center on the back wall. Right below that was a pair of kites, one red, the other yellow, leaning against her nightstand, on which stood a picture frame, which held a photo of the two of them as filly and colt, playing their favorite game; Book Jenga. Next to that on the left was her twin size bed. Continuing on was a bookshelf with a few books, and an hourglass and potted plant on top. To the left of the window was a shorter, wider shelf-dresser combination. Leaning against the left side of it was a bear plush with a mage's cap. On top was a small potted sapling, purple crystal, and a large candle. Hanging above the shelf was a poster of a butterfly, a picture of a cartoon witch, and a castle. On the opposite side of the room, right next to the doorway, was a small desk and waste basket. "Not what you were expecting?" Starlight asked sheepishly, seeing her date take in his surroundings. "You could say that. I'd say it reminds me most of your room when you were a filly. I can only guess that's the point, right?" "Yeah... Twilight said I was free to decorate my room however I desired, and I didn't have any other ideas. I had spent the last few years building a town where every building, every room, was the same, and as ordinary as can be. My childhood was the only thing I had to go off of. I mean..." Starlight paused, and swallowed to hold back tears. "When you left Hoofington to go to Celestia's school... I was devastated. My mom and dad were never there for me. They didn't talk me through my separation anxieties that came from losing you. They didn't show me how to make more friends. When I got my cutie mark a year later, I didn't know how to feel or think. I didn't have that excitement that you did. I didn't have anyone to celebrate with. I left town as soon as I was finished with school. I... I just..." "Starlight..." Sunburst interrupted, sensing his best friend was close to breaking down. He glanced to the picture above her desk, a simple, crossed out equals sign. "What you did to your villagers... That's not entirely your fault. The blame is also shared with your mom, your dad, and with me. My parents had kept me in such a euphoric high when it came to my potential, my future, that I forgot all about you, and that was wrong of me, especially because I was the only friend you had. We did everything together. When my cutie mark brought an end to all that, you didn't have anyone else, so without guidance, going off and doing what you did... I'd argue that you were a victim of circumstance. You weren't out to purposely hurt anyone. You just got a little lost, and the important thing is you've found your way back, and we've found each other along the way." Starlight smiled at him, and came in for a hug. "Thanks, Sunburst. That means a lot." "Anytime," Sunburst began, releasing her from the hug. "Now I'm glad to spend the night with you, but I have a feeling that it would be more than cramped with both of us on that one bed." He said, pointing to the size of Starlight's twin bed. Starlight gave him a smirk. "Just look at who you're talking to." She said, before her horn began to glow. Her twin bed began to sparkle and expand; the sheets and blankets also becoming larger as the bed, frame, mattress; all of it slowly became longer as it expanded to the right, gently sliding the nightstand closer to the shorter shelf. Several seconds passed, and when the magic aura faded, Starlight's twin bed had been enlarged to a full size, with ample room for two ponies. "Ta-da." Starlight stated, stepping to the left side of the bed, starting to climb into bed. "Right. Wonder how long it's gonna take me to realize you can tackle problems like these." Sunburst said, removing his cloak and hung it on the bedpost before coming up to the opposite side of the bed, and slid in under the covers. Once they were situated in bed, the duo's cheeks once again began to burn as they looked at each other, heads resting on the pillows. "So... I haven't had any dating experience at all so... Does this mean that... You know... You want to..." Sunburst nervously said, beginning to sweat a bit. "What? Oh. Oh! No no no no, not at all." Starlight said, trying to quickly set her friend's mind at ease. "I think that would be moving a little too fast for a first date, or much, much too fast. I just figured if we wanted to spend as much time as possible, this would be a great way to spend our night together." "Ah. Well... Well, whew." Sunburst stated, relieved that Starlight didn't want to move that fast. He snuggled in closer for warmth. "Well in that case, good night, Starlight. See you in the morning." Twilight was only twenty minutes behind Starlight and Sunburst, and soon found herself making her way up to her quarters. She was nearly in the bed when she felt her horn tingle, and with a flash of light, a sealed scroll winked into existence in front of her, and fell onto the bed. She untied the seal, and unfurled it, reading the contents: Dear Princess Twilight It's great to hear from you again, and it sounds like a great idea! We'll get in touch with you first thing in the morning to get plans laid out.