Spark sighed heavily as he let Sapphire groom him. They were in the bathroom, knee-deep in dirty water. The white Pegasus let the water out, then turned the shower on, the warm water pouring over both of them.
Taking care of Storm gave Sapphire feelings of warmth and mother-like care, but it also put other feelings she'd had for him in perspective, a few of the feelings that made her blush, too. Something about this situation made her heart flutter, but she knew she was too young to even think about stuff like that yet, so she put those on the back burner for now.
Sapphire lathered Spark's mane, using immaculate care to get his once shining and beautiful mane to sparkle like before when he was a child. She was careful with his wings. She knew what messing with her own wings felt like, and she tried not to imagine what it felt like for him. If it affected him, he was making no effort to voice any complaints.
When Sapphire was satisfied with bathing Spark, she lead him back to his bed and had him lie down on top of his towels as she started to dry him off. He gave her one pleading glare, trying to take the towel from her. "Nuh uh." "Sapphire, you've really done enough. Just..." Sapphire smiled down at him and poked his forehead with a hoof. "Nope. This is your punishment." Spark crossed his eyes briefly, concentrating his focus on her hoof. "Punishment for what?"
"Punishment for letting yourself get so dirty. You didn't take care of yourself, Spark." The dark Pegasus frowned at Sapphire, then looked away across the room. "Yeah, well...I wasn't really myself, was I." Sapphire reached down and touched his face to make her look at him. "Your mother wouldn't've wanted you to waste away like that, Spark. You have to promise me you'll take care of yourself from now on...Or I will take care of you again." It was a flirting threat, but a threat nonetheless. Spark felt himself blush, but he said nothing and let Sapphire dry him off. He supposed she had a point...
Finally, after 20 hours of sleep, talking, bathing, and preening, the two Pegasi emerged from the room. After nearly a whole day in the same room, both preteens needed to get out and stretch. It was after midnight now, and the hallway torches had been lit. "Come on. I think it'd be cool to see the stars. There are some great towers to watch from!" Sapphire said as she took off down the right hallway.
At the top of the tower, in the cold April air, they both shivered. Their fur still a little wet from the shower, they huddled close together and looked to the stars, so bright and so clear. Spark Storm's eyes gazed over the sea of stars. He'd never seen so many before, not even in Ponyville. Ponyville...He tried not to let out a sigh, but it slipped out of his lungs anyway.
Sapphire laughed quietly. She knew Spark Storm was trying not to be down for her sake. She'd heard the whole story, so she knew the things he'd been through would take a long time to get over. For now, she was content just sharing the night sky with him. She turned to face him and looked up into his eyes. He looked back at her. Why was she staring at him like that? Was she going to kiss him again?
She leaned in slowly, just to see what he would do. Would he let her kiss him? She gently nudged his chin with her nose before she tucked her head under it and snuggled against him. Her teasing brought out a sigh from him again. This time, she just settled for being close to him, her forelegs wrapped around him. She let out a contented sigh as he wrapped his forelegs around her shoulders.
Spark Storm smiled as he held Sapphire Snow in his arms. He'd waited such a long time to have her this close to him, and now that he was staying here...he paused in his thoughts as he looked up at the moon. There was something there that he'd never really noticed before, a shape.
His focus on the shape became more and more clear, and it was almost as if the moon was whispering things to him. Sweet things...sweet little nothings into his ear. It seemed like the moon was looming closer and closer down upon him, until it completely filled his sight. It's brightness encompassed everything he saw.
Suddenly, he was there. He was on the surface of the moon. He could see the his planet off in the distance, but his gaze had not deterred from the tall figure before him. It was completely black, adorned with silver armor. It's mane and wings were as a starry mist, weaving and bobbing like silk sheets blowing in a nonexistent wind. The figure loomed closer, and closer. Whispers reached his ears, whispers he couldn't understand.
As he watched the figure, he witnessed a line of red flowing from it's most definitely feminine form, reaching out for him like a thread trying to find it's way through the eye of a needle. He could not move, he could not speak, as the thread suddenly found it's way to his heart, the red ribbon now connecting him with the other figure's heart.
A soft cackling pierced the silence. Unlike the figure before him, the voice was definitely male. "Hm...the puzzle pieces fit together perfectly. Wouldn't you say, my dear?" The voice echoed in the silence of space. The shadowy figure before Spark Storm seemed to regard him with interest, before her own voice boomed out into the silence surrounding the apparently three of them. "Yes...Yes, your promise holds true...He needs more time, but he shall be perfect. Your promise pleases us."
Spark's eyesight returned to him, as he returned to the turret, Sapphire Snow wrapped around him. He was about to talk to her about it when his mind began to cloud. The strange dream was disappearing. Small details remained, but even those eventually drifted out of his memory to be forgotten. He looked back down at Sapphire, and merely remembered how happy he was at this moment in time, the memory of the encounter on the moon completely wiped from his memory.