Learning To Fly

by CrimsonWolf360


Chapter 6: I'll be your wings

David eagerly flapped his wings to gain more altitude as the morning sun warmed the world around him. He effortlessly soared higher and higher into the air until he was hovering several hundred feet above the ground. He looked out at the gorgeous scenery of Equestria as it spanned out in front of him. A grin quickly formed on his face and he purposefully flapped his wings to gain some forward momentum. Within seconds, he was flying at considerable speed, and the landmarks of Equestria breezed past him.

Canterlot, Ponyville, Apploosa, and even Las Pegasus blew past him as he accelerated to speeds unheard of by a mere pegasus. His mane swept back in the breeze, and despite the rushing air making his eyes water, he couldn't help but smile brightly as he flew. Even the world around him turned into a blur as his movement became fast as lightning.

Despite the thrill of actually flying like a pegasus was supposed to, David couldn't help but notice a faint mist to his left. It was a dark bluish color, that instantly reminded him of when he was lost in the fog during so many dreams all those months ago.

"Wait a sec... Is this a dream?" He thought to himself.

Immediately, his wings were gone, and instead of his red coat, he saw skin and hands again.

"Oh fuck, not agaaaaaaaaaain!" He shouted as he plummeted downward.

The whistling wind rippled past him as he fell towards the Earth. Buildings that were once small and tiny were growing larger with each passing second, and once again, David found himself desperately trying to stop himself.

"It's a dream, it's a dream, it's a dream, it's a dream!" He shouted to himself, but to no avail.

Even with his knowledge, he continued to fall, and the ground below only grew larger.

"Oh for fuck's sake! Why can't I do anything!?"

"Perhaps I can be of assistance?" A voice spoke in a disturbingly calm tone to his left.

David immediately turned to face the source of the voice to find none other than the Princess of the Night herself, falling alongside him, her mane and tail sweeping back in the updraft.

"Luna!?" He shouted.

"There's no need to yell, David. I'm right here." She replied, lighting her horn up all the while.

Not a second later, they both stopped in mid air. David hastily looked around to find them only a few feet above the ground. A moment later, they both dropped. Luna landed gracefully on her hooves while David belly flopped onto the grass below.

"Ugh..." He groaned.

"Oh, come now. You can't feel pain in a dream, David. I know that little fall didn't hurt." Luna teased.

David pushed himself off his stomach and rolled onto his back.

"I know... Just sick of this dream is all. Thanks for saving me by the way... Wait, how are you even here? I thought you couldn't get into my dreams?" David asked, furrowing his brow in confusion.

"Well, suffice to say that I finally figured out why I couldn't enter your dreams before and so I decided to try with my newfound knowledge, and to my surprise, I arrived just in time. You fall most elegantly, by the way." Luna chuckled.

"Ugh... yeah. What was the reason you couldn't get into my dreams before though? I'm actually kinda curious now." He asked, shuffling up into a sitting position.

"Well, as you know, I could not interact with you in your dreams when you were human. However, as time progressed, and your body absorbed more and more Equestrian magic, I was able to get closer and closer to your subconscious. If you recall, I did see one of your memories," At David's nod, she continued, "Well, I came to the realization that the reason I could not truly interact with you on a dream level was simply due to a lack of a magical presence in your body."

David tilted his head to the side, "Wait, I thought you said that you could see more because I was absorbing magic?"

"Indeed. That's exactly what the problem was. The magic was being absorbed by your body in a destructive manner. It completely bypassed any natural pathways of magical travel throughout the body and wrecked havoc instead. As such, I simply could not communicate with you the way I can with every other creature. However, once you became a pony, and magic began to correctly flow through you, that doorway was opened. Now, I can enter your dreams just like I would any other pony in Equestria." Luna explained, a triumphant smile on her face.

"Well... It's good to see you, Luna. Thanks for dropping in on me. That would've been the second time I would've gone splat in the last few weeks." David replied.

"You mean you've had this dream before?" She asked, clearly intrigued.

"Yeah. It was not a good time. I kinda figured it had something to do with the fact that I still can't really fly or do things like a normal pony would."

"Hmm... I am sorry to hear that. I shall monitor your dreams more carefully from now on. I do not wish for one of my friends to suffer in their slumber. I already regret those months you suffered through when I could do nothing to help you." She replied, slightly downtrodden.

"Hey now, don't you worry about it. I'm just glad you're here now." David replied, reaching out and scratching Luna's ear with his hand.

Luna's eyes immediately widened and she froze. After a microsecond, David realized what he was doing and retracted his hand.

"Shit... Uh, sorry. Forgot I wasn't supposed to do that." He apologized, casting his gaze to the ground like a child that was caught stealing from the cookie jar.

Luna did nothing for a moment, until a smirk found its way on her face.

"You are bold, I will give you that. Not many creatures would touch royalty so casually, even in a dream. That said..." She leaned down until her head was just a few inches away from his, "I did not give you permission to stop."

David's eyes widened before Luna's horn lit up, and his hand was pulled back up to her ear. He immediately scratched at her ear and on the base of her scalp, causing her eyes to flutter closed and her body to lean closer to his. David smiled at the effect his efforts were having and brought his other hand to Luna's neglected ear. She softly hummed as his fingers dug into her fur and softly scratched at her ears.

Casting any hesitation aside, Luna pressed herself forward and nuzzled her head against David's chest, causing him to chuckle. He brought one hand down to her neck and lightly scratched along her jugular. She let out a soft coo of encouragement before leaning more of her weight into him, causing David to lean back slightly. After a moment, he leaned all the way back until he was laid flat on the ground. Luna laid down with her head resting on top of his chest, and he continued to scratch.

For a while, they just laid there, both content to scratch and be scratched. However, a thought popped up in David's head that made him pause.

"Huh... I really miss doing this with Midnight." David said, sadly.

Luna's eye opened at looked over at David while he continued to scratch, "Hmm?"

"Ah, nothing. It's just that I haven't been able to do this since I was human. I kind of miss it. You guys are always so adorable when you lean into it and practically force my hands." He replied with a light chuckle.

Luna blushed for a moment, and she cast her gaze away from him, "W-well... It's not our fault it feels so nice... Besides, Tia told me that your fingers felt divine whenever you scratched her ears... Although, I can see why you'd miss doing this with Midnight."

"Yeah... Sometimes I wish I could go back, you know? Things were a little simpler when I was just the wayward alien living with her and we just did whatever we wanted." He replied, a smile readorning his face through the reminiscing.

Luna smirked, "Hmm... As I seem to recall, it was because of me that Midnight had the free time to spend with you."

"Hehe, yeah. Thank you for that."

"You can repay me by continuing to scratch my ears, thank you." She replied, matter-of-factly.

David chuckled again and continued to give each ear attention, "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were really only here for scratches and petting."

Another hot blush formed on Luna's cheeks, "I-I am not! I have a completely valid reason for being here that concerns both you and Midnight." She hastily replied.

"Oh yeah? And what's that?"

"It has to do with a certain crystal that Midnight acquired for you."

"What crystal? I didn't know she got a crystal for me." David said, tilting his head to the side.

"You didn't? Oh... That is... unfortunate."

David paused his scratching, much to Luna's dismay.

"How is that unfortunate? What's the deal with the crystal anyways?" David asked, sounding much more invested.

Luna pouted from the lack of scratches, but continued nonetheless, "Well... The crystal she was searching for has the potential power to make you human again-"

David immediately sat up, unintentionally shoving Luna off his chest in the process, "What?!"

"Oof... Um... yes. The crystal she was searching for has the potential power to turn you back into a human, however, there are some complicated issues involving said crystal. That is why I came to your dream tonight." Luna explained after landing on the ground.

"How? What issues? Tell me!" David exclaimed.

"Calm down, David. I promise to explain everything I know. As for the how, the crystal is made of a particular subsection of dangerous chaos magic found only in one location: The Island of Magicae Artes Earumque. It's said to be the birthplace of life and magic." Luna explained.

"Alright, so what are these 'issues' you were talking about?" He asked, using air quotes.

"Well... Not much is known of the Island, other than the fact that it is extremely dangerous, if not perilous, to travel there. As such, not much is known of the crystals native to the island. Their presence in Equestria is extremely rare and dangerous."

"How are they dangerous?"

"The few times my sister and I have seen these crystals in Equestria, they have began to rot and decompose within a matter of weeks. We don't understand why. Every time we've seen one, it was gone before we had a chance to properly study it, and going to the island is a perilous task at best. Staying there for prolonged study is even more dangerous. The magical nature of the island has been known to drive ponies insane and sometimes... outright kill them." Luna explained.

There was a moment of silence between them as David processed Luna's words.

"... And you were just gonna sit there and let me scratch your ears all night instead of telling me all that?" David replied.

"Well... It's not particularly dangerous unless a pony attempts to cast a spell through the crystal. Also, I can tell that you're still a pony at the moment, and I know for a fact that Midnight is dreaming right now, so I thought we had some time before it became truly pertinent that I inform you." She said.

"Alright... So what would happen if Midnight tried to cast a spell through the crystal? I mean, how long has she even had it?" David asked.

"As far as I am aware, Twilight gave the crystal to Midnight about two weeks ago. As for how long it has been in Equestria and off of the Island, I cannot say. As for what would happen... It depends on how long the crystal has been off the island. For all we know, it could turn you back into a human... or it could outright kill you. You're entire body could be vaporized down to the last atoms, and that's not even beginning to scratch the surface of all the magical abnormalities that could happen. You could be turned to stone, you could be liquidized, you could turn into a gas-"

"Alright, I get it. So what you're saying is that it's super dangerous and I shouldn't do it." David cut her off.

"Well... no. Not exactly," At David's confused look, she continued, "The reason I'm telling you all of this is so that you are acutely aware of the risks involved. From what Tia has told me, it appears Midnight has been suffering a great deal of guilt after what happened with you and this was her attempt at rectifying it. As for you, I know that the transformation has been difficult for you and attempting to learn how to be a completely different species is quite a challenge, so I completely understand why you might want to take the risk and tell her to go for it." She explained.

David's eyes scanned the floor for a moment before replying.

"So what should I do? I mean, what if the crystal's only been here since the day Midnight got it and it'll work just fine? Should I just take the risk and tell her to do it?" He asked.

"I'm afraid that the answer to that question depends entirely on your answer to another. Do you want to be human again? If the answer is yes, and you desire your humanity enough to risk what you have now, then the answer to your question should be obvious. However, if you are still unsure, then I would recommend you follow my advice."

"Which is?"

"Listen to your heart. It's never steered you wrong before, David." Luna's voice was soft and kind, almost reminding him of lavender.

"Hehe, you sure you're not Cadence in disguise?" He asked with a half grin.

Luna giggled, "I don't believe Cadence can enter dreams, David. Now, think on what I've said. You have a good heart, perhaps one of the best I've had the pleasure of knowing over my long life. Do what you think is right, and I, my sister, and especially Midnight, will support you."

David reached out and pulled Luna into a tight hug. She happily reciprocated, and for a moment, the dream was quiet. It was destined to be short, however, and they eventually pulled away from each other.

"Thank you, Luna. I really have missed seeing you these last few months. I'll have to stop by the castle soon and say hi to you and Tia." David said, a friendly smile adorning his face.

"I wouldn't miss that for the world, David. I must go now, but in the meantime, think on what I've said. I only want the best for you and Midnight." She replied, an equally wide smile on her face as well.

"I will. Goodnight, Luna."

"And a good night to you, David."

With that, Luna's horn flashed a brilliant white light, and the world began to fade away. Within seconds, there was nothing but a bright light, then, darkness.


David awoke to the sound of birds chirping in the window. He blinked his eyes open and looked around to find himself in bed. He glanced to his right to find Midnight's sleeping face just a few inches away from his. He couldn't help but smile at the peaceful look on her face and how her ears adorably twitched every few seconds. He gently brought his hoof over to her cheek and lightly stroked the soft, short fur on her face. Her eyes began to twitch as the soft, stroking motion against her cheek began to rouse her from sleep.

A moment later, her gorgeous sapphire eyes fluttered open, and focused on his. A smile instantly found its way onto her face, and she leaned into his hoof with a content sigh.

"Hey there, gorgeous." David whispered.

"Hey, handsome. How did you sleep?" She asked, her voice also a whisper.

"Like a rock. How about you?"

"Same." She replied.

"Good," David leaned forward and kissed her lips, "I want to talk about something with you today, but first, I want to make you breakfast. You wait here. I'll be right back." He said, keeping his muzzle just an inch away from hers.

"Oh? And what's the occasion for such generous treatment?" She asked, cocking her eyebrow in mock scrutiny.

"I just thought you looked so beautiful that I wanted to do something nice for you." He replied with a cheeky smile.

With that, he hopped out of the bed and trotted down the stairs, leaving a smiling Midnight behind. He found his way into the kitchen and pulled out two skillets to put on the burner. With an effortless flick of his hoof, the stove top came to life, and a flame appeared under each respective pan.

"Huh? I'm really starting to get the hang of this." He offhandedly mentioned.

David quickly made his way over to the refrigerator and pulled out several eggs, along with some hay bacon and a carton of orange juice. He hooked his foreleg around the bacon and juice while simultaneously holding the eggs in the fetlock of his hoof. He walked back over to the stove on three legs and set the eggs down on the counter, immediately followed by the items hooked in his foreleg. With careful attention to how much pressure he was putting on the eggs, he cracked them over the skillet, one at a time until they were all sizzling. He moved to search the pantry for some cooking foil, and found a sheet just above the stove. He removed a large enough section and covered the skillet to trap the heat before stepping away.

Taking a moment to admire his hoof work, David set about his next task and pulled out the hay bacon. He set a hoof-full of pieces down on the other skillet, and a relaxing crackling of heating bacon soon filled his ears. He removed the foil on the other skillet and glanced at the eggs to find them ready to eat. A smile graced his lips before he turned the heat off and deposited the eggs on a plate near the stove. A moment later, he retrieved a glass from the pantry and filled it with the orange juice.

The tell-tale sign of bacon crisping alerted his nose to it's presence, and David hastily removed the skillet from the oven before depositing the bacon on the same plate as the eggs. He scratched his chin in thought for a moment before heading over to the pantry and retrieving a blueberry muffin to place at the edge of the plate. Lastly, he returned to the fridge to retrieve a hoof-full of strawberries and washed them in the sink. He bit down on a knife and removed the tops of each strawberry before finally relocating them to the plate.

With a happy sigh, David admired his work and the smell it was putting off. He only enjoyed it for a second before withdrawing a fork and knife from a drawer and placing them on the plate. Lastly, he retrieved a tray from the cabinet and slid the plate and juice onto it with extreme care. He gently arranged himself under the trey and hefted it up with his wings, careful not to spill any of his hard work. With an extremely satisfied sigh, he headed for the stairs and began to climb. He tilted the trey just so that its contents wouldn't spill, and made his way up to Midnight's room.

Upon entering the room,he was confronted by a gratefully smiling Midnight, who, by the looks of things, could smell breakfast coming a mile away.

"Hey there." He said.

"Hey." She replied, her mouth already watering.

David suppressed a chuckle at her demeanor and made his way over to the bed.

"So uh, I managed to make everything, but I don't want to risk spilling anything all over you, so uh... could you magic this off my back?" He asked, a sheepish smile adorning his face.

Midnight giggled and took the trey in her magic. She gently set it down over her stomach and eyed each item with an intense gaze of longing.

"Wow, David... You really know how to cook. I wish I had you make food more often now." She mused.

"Well, if there's one thing I learned in the Army, it's that if you let leadership know you're good at a certain job, you're gonna have to do that job on top of your normal job too." He replied with a chuckle.

Midnight tore her gaze away from the food and stared at him with a slack-jawed expression, "Wait... So you pretended to not know how to cook... So that you wouldn't ever have to?"

"That and I just love your cooking." He answered, sheepishly scratching the back of his neck with his hoof.

Midnight stared at him, dumbstruck for a few moments before her mind rebooted, "You are... either the slyest stallion I've ever met in my entire life, or just a huge jerk... Right now I'm leaning towards the former, but ONLY because you made me breakfast in bed."

David beamed a bright smile back at her, "Well then, I guess there's only one thing left for you to do. Try it!" He exclaimed.

Midnight needed no second invitation and brought her magic to the fork. She eagerly attacked the breakfast from all angles, and within a few minutes, it was completely gone.

David simply stared with wide eyes, "Uh... wow... I guess you were hungry."

"Like you wouldn't believe." She replied with a happy sigh.

Midnight magic'd the tray off her stomach and over to the side of the bed before leaning over and planting a kiss on David's muzzle. He lightly chuckled at the affection before leaning forward and nuzzling his cheek against hers. She returned the gesture in earnest, and soon they lovingly rested their heads on each other's withers.

"You know, I'm not sure why this feels so nice. By all accounts, my neck should be straining right now, but this just feels nice." David mentioned.

"Hmm, just enjoy a good thing, David..." Midnight whispered.

For a while, they just stayed there, happy to be close to each other and to feel each other.

.

.

.

.

.

.

David placed the last of the used dishes in the sink and let the water wash over them. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a dark blur, and a moment later, he received a kiss on the cheek.

"Thanks for breakfast, David. You're the best." She whispered in his ear with a playful tone.

David shivered from the proximity of her soothing voice to his sensitive ear, and leaned his head over towards her. She eagerly nuzzled her cheek against his once more, and finished with a chaste kiss on his lips.

"So, about that thing you wanted to talk to me about..." She trailed off.

"Right. Here, let's sit down in the living room." He replied.

A moment later, they were both seated on the couch and facing each other. David took a deep breath before focusing his attention completely on Midnight, and began.

"Alright, we need to talk about something you went and did, Midnight." He said, his voice was soft and caring, lacking in any kind of maliciousness.

"What... did I do?" She asked, suddenly concerned.

"It's about the crystal you got from Twilight. Before you ask, I talked to Luna in my dream last night and she told me all about it. Where it came from, what it's supposed to do, and why you wanted it." He replied.

Midnight had a blank look on her face. She tried to think of something to say, but words wouldn't come out, and she cast her gaze to the floor.

"I really can't seem to keep anything from you, can I?" She asked, almost mournfully.

"Mid, talk to me. Please... I want to hear it from you, not from someone else." David said, softly placing his hoof over hers.

Midnight took a few seconds to respond, but she did not shy away from his touch, in fact, she leaned down and rested her head on David's hoof, "I just... I just wanted to give you a choice... After what happened, I just kept having this feeling in my gut that deep down... you resent me for making that choice for you. Every time I see you struggle and fail at being a pony, it feels like I'm the reason... and I hate that..." She trailed off, her eyes cast to the floor.

"Mid... I-" David began.

"I just... It's just that every time you tell me that you feel like a burden, I feel like it's my fault... Like I chose to cripple you rather than lose you because I just couldn't deal with that pain again... What I did to you might just be considered worse than murder... I took away your humanity... I took away what made you who you are because I didn't want to be alone again..." She trailed off again, this time with fresh tears forming in her eyes.

"Hey, stop it," David firmly replied, "You stop that right now-" At her quizzical gaze, he continued, "You stop blaming yourself for that Right Now. You didn't take anything from me, except for my heart. Did becoming a pony suck? Yes. It was a complete change from everything I've ever known, and I'd be lying if I said that I expected it or was prepared for it in any kind of way. That said, you didn't just save me... you gave me a fresh start. My humanity... that died with my friends on that ship... What you fell in love with, that was all that was left of me. I had nothing. No friends, no family, no home, but you... you gave me all three."

David leaned forward and placed a kiss on her muzzle.

"All my life... I've never really felt like I belonged. I know I said that I joined Nebula to make my dad proud, and to an extent, that's true... but that's not the whole truth. A big part of me wanted a fresh start.. That's the real reason I joined up with Nebula and left my life behind... and those guys... they were the only family I cared for after that. When they died, I fell into a pit of despair and guilt, but you pulled me out. You were strong when I was weak. You made a choice, that never should have been thrown on you in the the first place, but you did all the same... And I know it's hard to believe... but for the first time in my life, I honestly, truly feel like I belong." He finished, wiping away a lone tear of his own.

Midnight's lips trembled as his words registered in her head completely, and she hardly even noticed the tears freely streaming down her cheeks. She hesitantly cast her gaze to the nightstand next to the couch and her horn lit in a pale sapphire light. The middle drawer opened, and an ebony crystal quickly levitated over to her.

"B-but... You c-can have your hum-manity back... You can be h-human again..." She whispered through heavy sniffles.

"I don't want it." He replied, his tone soft and kind.

Midnight's eyes snapped wide open, and she fixed her gaze squarely into David's chocolate orbs, "B-but... really?"

David leaned forward until his muzzle was just an inch away from hers, "For the first time in my life, I can honestly say, without a shadow of a doubt, that the only thing I want, I already have." He replied, punctuating his sentence with a tender kiss on her soft lips.

That was all it took for the damn to break, and Midnight's horn fizzled out, unceremoniously dropping the crystal on the floor. She almost desperately wrapped her hooves around his neck and pulled him in closer, deepening the kiss. Unlike most of their kisses before, there was a distinct lack of lust behind it. Rather, the raw love pouring out from each of their hearts simply melded together in the shape of a kiss, and their bodies were merely along for the ride.

Midnight's entire body went slack, and all the tension evaporated away while her eyes softly closed. David followed soon after, and his body slightly sagged. His neck only retained enough strength to keep his lips connected with hers.

The kiss continued for only a few seconds, but for them, it might as well have been an eternity. When their lips finally parted, a hot blush was present on both of their faces, and they felt distinctly warmer than a few moments prior.

"So... you're sure about this? If we don't go through with it, then you might never get another chance to be human again." Midnight said, breaking the silence.

"I'm sure. I don't need to be human to be happy. I just need you."