//------------------------------// // Stellar Friends // Story: Bonding by Contrast // by Foxy Socks //------------------------------// Stellar Night couldn't wait for her next meeting with Honey. When she returned from being out at an odd time, she was lucky enough for nopony to notice her gone by then. Getting back in was a bit of a risk, but she managed to successfully do it. She had wondered how many more times she could do it though. She wandered the halls, not having much to do that hour, trying to figure out what to do with Honey visiting. It would have to be at night for the best experience, but all of the ponies on her side were awake by that point, making it hard to find a way for their meeting to be secret. She debated to herself telling her parents, but knowing them they would not approve. She didn't think they approved of anything involving the outside for her. Thinking hard, Stellar had an idea. A risky one, but if she could manage to pull it off, it would be worth the risk. With a slight smile on her face, she explored the building she was so used to being in, examining it. The halls were long, cold, and empty, with a darkness surrounding it. There was not much light in it, and everything was a dark color, pillars, walls, and even the floor. It was like striding into the very idea of night itself. Hundreds if not thousands of glimmering specks appeared on the ceiling and upper walls, resembling the stars. Each speck placed carefully, modelling the patterns of the stars in the night sky. Due to Canterlot being a city, it was the most detailed view of the sky they usually got. Stellar stopped for a moment, before thinking to herself, I know the perfect place... She galloped down the comforting coolness of the night halls, toward the library. It was a distance with the mansion being so large, and Stellar was panting when she got there. There were two massive wooden doors, with them carved intricate designs of constellations, and the sky itself, a familiar sight in the building. Pushing the doors open, the library sprawled on, with dozens of bookshelves that even Stellar had yet to completely consume the knowledge of. It was her favorite place in the whole mansion, if not the world. "This is perfect!" She said to herself, planning the rest of the night. The next night would be a fun one, she hoped. When she was done planning, Stellar went to bed "early", hoping everything would work out. She would miss the sunrise in the morning, but even that couldn't compare to impressing her new and only real friend. Stellar woke up at 6:40 in the afternoon, a little earlier than she liked to. Gold and crimson radiated from her stained glass window, one of the few bright things in her home. While the sleepy rays usually dozes her off more, she didn't allow that to happen that night. There was much to be done. While it was still "early," Stellar raced down the halls, heading for the library. While normally she would go there to relax and study and read the vast selection (though not as large as the Canterlot library), She went toward the back, which mostly contained books that would to other ponies probably seem boring. It was fortunate for Stellar as there was a window she had planned to use as an entrance for Honey, and the lack of ponies there would help. Not that there were multitudes of them in the library, but there were a few that would come there frequently. Hoping it would open easily, Stellar unlocked the window, before giving it a powerful vertical thrust. It hadn't been opened a lot, but it scraped its way up, enough for her to be satisfied. Stellar quickly shut it again, as she was just checking. She did, however, leave it unlocked. It was improbable anypony would check for it. It was a weakness most ponies didn't even know of. Stellar sat next to the window, reading, but found it a challenge to pay attention due to her excitement. Though she may not look it from another's point of view, she can become emotional and caring, at least when she cared about something. Stellar grew tired, as she woke up earlier in the night, or later in the afternoon depending on how one views it. Before she know it, her eyelids closed, leaving her asleep. Honey Suckle went out on what would be her third time to meet Stellar. Even still, she had to be careful not to be caught, though she seemed to have gotten by easily that time. She headed towards Stellar's home, which that time she was determined to walk through. Honey wasn't worried about being noticed though, as she was wearing something of her own that night. She wore a dark blue dress covering most of her body, with a violet hood covering most of her mane and face. She could still see, however. She made it to the impressive mansion only a few minutes early, as Stellar wasn't one known to be punctual. She kept her distance from the fence, looking for any sign of her friend, but she couldn't see her. Not again. Doesn't she know where to find me? "Halt, young mare. I haven't seen you in the area before, what is your purpose being here?" A stern voice called only a few feet from where Honey was standing. She looked up to see a Night Guard, a tall gray stallion, who was staring directly at her. He didn't seem happy. "Oh, sorry, I was just passing through, you see, I live not far from here..." Honey stammered. "Really? I cannot allow you to pass through so close as a stranger though. Please remove your hood so I can see you better." Honey started to panic. If they found out she was from the other side, surely things would only get worse. She maybe could pass if she wasn't so vibrantly and sun colored, but there wasn't much she could do. Slowly lifting her left hoof, she brought it to her hood, about to push it off, before hesitating for a moment. She thought about running, though she surely would only escalate the situation. Sighing, she pushed it off, revealing her carrot mane and her violet eyes. "I see you aren't from here. I advise you leave this area immediately and never return. I do not tolerate trespassing into this area." "I am sorry, I just became lost..." "Leave, now before I alert the others. This is your only warning." Honey sighed, looking down, before suddenly she heard hoofsteps behind her. She tensed, even though he didn't call the others, she assumed they were more of the Night Guards that took notice. Honey couldn't move; she could only close her eyes. She expected the worst. "Excuse me for bothering you sir, but I think I can handle things from here. I can have her pass through here quietly without any problems, I promise," Stellar said behind her. Honey didn't say anything, as she knew she had to play along. "Is that you, Stellar? I apologize, but I have not seen her before and could only do what I could. I would advise you don't get into too much trouble here and that I should do it. You don't know what she might try." "Trust me, she seems harmless to me. Besides, even if she isn't from here why can't she pass through, at least once?" "As long as you are sure. Please alert us if there is any trouble with her," the guard said, giving a cautious look toward Honey. "Don't worry. I will have everything under control." Stellar then motioned for Honey to follow her, intending to walk her away from the guard. Honey followed, and soon they were out of sight. "Not many ponies are out," Honey said to Stellar. "Why would they? They mostly like to stay inside if they can. It's rare to see one outside." "I see, everypony else I know is frequently out though, not just from my side. Your family is quite strange," "Indeed they are. Now be quiet, I know how we can get inside." "You do?" "Shh! What did I just say?" Stellar said scolding Honey, pointing toward the side of the house. Honey had many questions, but decided to keep them to herself. She was worried as she had never gone inside before, but she obeyed Stellar and sneaked around the side, toward a dark, unnoticed corner. Honey wouldn't have noticed it herself had it not been pointed out. "We're going to climb through the window, I unlocked it. It leads to a mostly empty section of the library. Wait for me to go first. I'll tell you if it's okay to enter, alright?" Stellar whispered. "All right," Honey said in an equally quiet voice. She watched Stellar fly up with her silent bat wings, carefully reaching the window. With a little effort, she pushed it up to open it, and pulled herself inside. It seemed efficient and simple to Honey, and her wings flapped a few times before she remembered to wait for a signal. Only a few seconds later Stellar peered out of the window motioning for Honey to come up. Honey did so, flapping her wings wildly as she was not one who was skilled in flying. This created excessive noise, which was audible from inside the library. Stellar shouted, "Quiet! You're going to get us caught!" When Honey finally reached the window, Stellar pulled her through, which was a bit of a squeeze due to the window not being made for ponies to climb through easily. Stellar and Honey both let their guard down when finally in. It was then that Stellar noticed hoofsteps coming toward her, giving her only seconds to react. "Oh no! Quick! Get behind the bookshelf!" Stellar pushed Honey toward one, and could only hope she made it on time. "I see you're back again Stellar. I'd imagine you'd run out of things to find here," the librarian said, who was an orange, but not too brightly colored mare. "I heard quite a bit of noise over here, do you need help with something?" Stellar's mind raced as she tried to come up with an excuse for the commotion. "Oh, well, I was trying to reach that book up over there, but it seems a bit out of reach." Stellar pointed at a random book on the shelf. "I thought you were a pegasus, nothing should be out of your reach." "Well, um, my wings are tired from earlier and I can't really use them right now." Her words were partially true, they were tired as she had been practicing her flying before Honey came by. "Alright then, though you should really ask for help before you try to disturb others here." The librarian reached over and easily removed the book from the shelf. It looked quite familiar to Stellar. "Wait a second, didn't you read this before?" "Yeah, but I liked it so much, that I would love to read it again." Stellar replied with a smile. "'An in Depth Lesson of the History and Culinary Influence of the Equestrian Egg Beater?" "Um yep, that's the one!" Stellar took the book from the librarian, who she noticed roll her eyes, and waited for her to leave. "You can come out now," Stellar whispered. Honey came right out, looking curiously at Stellar. "You actually read that before?" "What? I was bored one day," Stellar said before putting it down. "That's the great thing about these places, you can find books on just about anything, at least one this big." "Really? When I read I prefer fictional stories, not so much this section." "Well I never really go there, as what's the point wasting time on silly stories? I prefer to get real information." Honey smiled, replying, "I'm sure if you read some you'd find some interesting ones. What's not to like?" "Well, for one they are filly's stories. All silly and not interesting at all." "Really? There are plenty that are more for our ages. In fact, there are ones for anypony, you just have to look!" "Either way it seems pointless. I don't care for fake stories." "They aren't made to be informational, they are made to be enjoyable to read. Some even are based on historical events in fact," Honey thoughtfully said. "Well, I don't know. The way you put it doesn't sound too bad..." "Then follow me! You might like it!" "Wait, let me lead the way." "Good idea." Stellar lead Honey to the opposite side of the library, slowly weaving their way through the shelves before reaching the fiction section, to which Stellar scowled at. She had no interest in those books, even if it took up a large portion of the library. "Come on, you're missing out, you need to give it a chance. Here, why not this one? It looks interesting." Honey pulled out a book, which she hoped Stellar would take interest in. Honey held it up and showed Stellar. "I haven't read this one before, but we can read it together? What do you think Stell?" Stellar didn't know what to think of her new nickname, but she sighed. "Alright, but it won't be for long. Besides, we can't spend too much time here." Stellar grabbed the book out of Honey's hooves. She opened it up to where the first page was, and sat down. "Are you sure we should read it out in the open? I mean other ponies could come by," Honey warned. "Oh yeah, let's move behind there. We should be able to hide without getting caught." Stellar walked toward a bookshelf that was situated in a corner, and moved it enough for them to hide behind. Once hidden with Honey, Stellar began to read aloud, which at first seemed to be annoying and embarrassing to her, but she persisted. She was glad when she finally passed it to Honey for her to read the next part. Stellar was impressed that she did it without any hint of nervousness in her voice, as if she enjoyed it. In the meantime, Stellar closed her eyes and listened to Honey. She felt relaxed, absorbing the story and it's words calmly, as it was read. Stellar was able to almost see what was going on with her eyes closed. She imagined the characters and what they wore, with precise detail. She felt the characters as they spoke, as if she was really there. It was quite an adventure for Stellar. "Your turn." "Wait what? Huh? Oh right..." Stellar sat up and read again, become slowly more confident in reading. As the night wore on, they continued to switch places, from telling and listening, and Stellar's voice became less nervous and more loud and confident as she read. They both lost track of time, and only when the daylight shone through the windows had Stellar and Honey realized they were late. "Alright, we'll go through the same way, I mean, you will," Stellar told Honey. She hesitated a moment, before continuing, "You know, next time... could we do the same thing again? I mean we haven't finished the story yet so..." "You actually enjoyed it?" Honey smiled as she spoke. "I thought you said you had no interest in it." "I didn't. At least then. I don't know, but I can't stand not knowing what happens next. You know what I mean?" "I do, and feel free to read it on your own." "I prefer to read it with you though." "Alright then, see you next time, and oh, meet me again the day after tomorrow at the park again. Same time!" Honey quickly left after that, leaving Stellar alone in the library. Honey Suckle and Stellar Night continued to meet for two months, with Honey showing Stellar around the park and the surrounding areas, and Stellar not only reading but taking Honey around different areas around the mansion. The two had a very strong friendship, and they almost could consider themselves family despite being so different. Stellar grew an interest in the day, and Honey grew an interest in the night. Their love of the opposite time of day they were used to made their relationship unique, but also stronger. Eventually, they realized that perhaps they didn't belong where they were born into, and preferred to be in the other's place. "I would love to be in your place Honey," Stellar admitted one day. "I feel like I don't belong in the nighttime anymore. I know it must sound strange to you." "Not at all, I would love to be in your place too, if only we could," Honey also admitted. "Yeah. If only we could switch places. I don't think my parents would agree, nor would yours. I just don't belong where I am. You know?" "I guess, but I doubt anytime soon we could do that." "Maybe..." It wasn't long though, before both sides' parents caught wind of what was going on. It started when Honey ran into her father while walking with Stellar one day.