//------------------------------// // 8-10: Break through the darkness // Story: Pound and Pumpkin Tales 2 // by Never2muchpinkie //------------------------------// Mayhem snapped. They left the world of Spring’s memories and were now back in the hospital. Spring stirred, slowly rising up as she got her bearings. She eventually noticed everyone looking at her sadly. “W-what?” she said defensively. She got a thoughtful look on her face. “Wait, what happened? We were looking at my memories. Why was I sleeping on the floor?” “I put you to sleep,” Mayhem replied. “You’re already feeling tortured enough about what happened in your mind. You shouldn’t have to experience it in person again.” Her expression soured as her negative feelings came back to her. “Why not? It’s not like I should forget how I almost killed my brother, right?” “No, you shouldn’t forget it, but you should use that knowledge to better yourself, not to hurt yourself.” Spring just rolled her eyes. “We’re sorry,” said Clear mournfully. “We know that we haven’t been there for you lately, but please don’t think it’s because we wanted to avoid you or that we’re always talking bad about you behind your back.” “We’re going to be there for you more,” said Still. “You don’t have to hold onto that guilt anymore." “You don’t get it,” Spring replied emotionlessly. “I want to hurt. I want to feel this way! I don’t deserve peace and happiness and joy.” “You’re not a monster, Spring! You’re just a child who made a youthful mistake. I know it led to tragedy, but we’re not going to hold that against you.” Spring just stared at them blankly, unresponsive. “Don’t you get it?” Mayhem asked, tears shimmering in his eyes. “Your brother sacrificed himself for you because he loves you! Even if he knew the results ahead of time he would have saved you every single time. He never would have abandoned you to save himself. “Love is the thread that connects us all.” He put a claw to his heart, then lifted it and pointed, lights coming out in the shape of hearts. One sat in the center, attached to the others by a ray of light. “Every time we make a connection we share a part of ourselves with them, and they give part of theirs in return. When one heart suffers they all suffer, because our love is so deep. That love is the greatest source of strength, and it has the power to overcome anything.” He knew that first hand. When he had first taken over Pound and Pumpkin the twins had been completely under his thrall, but when he tried to kill the ones they loved they wrestled control back from him. Then, when they realized they didn’t have the strength to fight off his control forever, they attempted to sacrifice themselves so that he couldn’t use them as a host anymore. Even though they were just weak children their strength grew as much as it needed to in order to keep their loved ones safe. And, of course, he could never forget what Flurry had done in his world. When he broke her recent confidence by taking away her memories of her friends she had been so weak, but through the battles she fought she found that confidence again in order to protect the others. She hadn’t been wrong when she had told him that she had grown stronger than him. She had the hearts of all her friends with her, while he had been fighting alone. In the end, it was the love and desire to protect her friends that wiped out her fears. She blazed so bright that no darkness could exist, inspiring her friends and allowing her to create the Fire of Friendship to wipe out his own darkness. The tears that had been hovering in his eyes fell down his face. “True love,” he said with a sniff, “is being willing to do whatever it takes to protect the ones you love, no matter how much it hurts yourself. Your brother risked everything to protect you. Do you really believe he could ever hate you after that?” Spring showed a brief reaction, tensing as pain crossed her face, but then the walls went back up as her expression went blank again. Mayhem sniffed, his voice growing emotional. “I told you my story! I’m far more of a monster than you could ever be. If I could be forgiven, and a bunch of villains that tried to kill or enslave a bunch of ponies could be forgiven, then why not you? “I can’t… I can’t stand seeing you suffering like this!” He quietly sobbed. “You deserve to be happy too! All this time you’ve been attacking yourself and belittling yourself and thinking everyone hates you! But NO ONE hates you. No one has ever hated you. “I know you made a big mistake, but I did too. That’s why I’m here now! That’s why I’m here at this very moment, to tell you that you can start over too.” He wiped his eyes, but more tears replaced them. “You think I haven’t suffered over what I’ve done? You think I haven’t had nightmares and felt like total scum or that I should never have been forgiven? I’ve gone through that too, but there’s one thing that always makes me want to try again when I feel like giving up.” “What’s that?” Spring asked emotionlessly. “My friends! I told you before that we’re all connected, and recently I-” He paused for a moment, then decided it didn’t matter. As he had said at the start it didn’t matter what consequences came his way. The only thing that mattered to him right now was helping to pull Spring out of the darkness. “Twilight.” “Yes, Mayhem?” she replied. “If you want to punish me later I don’t care, but can you just save it for after this?” Her eyebrow went up. “What do you mean?” “I snuck into Flurry’s cutecenera disguised as a regular pony so I could be close to my friends during one of the most important days of her life.” Twilight wasn’t sure what she should say about that, but as he said that was a matter for another time. She closed her eyes and nodded, not wanting to shift focus away from Spring’s situation. “What’s the big deal about that?” asked Spring. “It’s because I went behind the backs of their parents, who hadn’t yet given me permission to play with their children again. “My friends didn’t know it was me at first. I was told not to reveal my identity.” Twilight’s eyes opened, taking note of that statement. That had to mean going to the party wasn’t his own idea, but someone else’s. Barred from his friends, and his nonexistent social circle outside of them, that only left Discord and Fluttershy. She could easily see Fluttershy feeling bad for him having to be alone while she was out partying. She could just as easily see Mayhem fudging the truth to protect her. She gave herself a mental kick, reminding herself that it was wholly unimportant right now. She had to keep her mind on the present situation. “When I was first talking to them I told them I had made a big mistake, and that I felt like I was evil. They told me if I felt bad about what I did I couldn’t be evil, and that I should work towards improving myself. “And then… they brought up me. They talked about another friend, me, that was missing from their group, one that had also made a big mistake recently, and that’s why I wasn’t at the party. I saw each of them expressing sadness at my absence. They talked about speaking to their families about me and getting shut down, because none of them were yet willing to give me a second chance. “What I saw there… was a bunch of aching hearts. Each of them felt like something was missing, and they didn’t feel complete without me there. It made me see how important I’ve become to them.” He looked at the ground, remembering the pain he had felt. “In the end, I was shown once again that I was underestimating what my friends are capable of. As the party came to an end they revealed that they had been aware of my true identity almost from the start. Not because I told them, or I had done something only I could do, but just from spending time with me. As one of them said to me, they were my friends, and I couldn’t hide my heart from them.” He put a claw to his heart. “Connections don’t disappear. What I heard at the party showed me that, even after they had time to process everything that had happened, they still thought of me as a precious friend. I saw it my duty to do everything I could to be able to see them openly. Otherwise, they would only continue to miss me. “Twilight understood this connection. That’s why she put me in a situation where I could use my powers to help others to enjoy their wildest dreams. She wanted me to grow. She wanted me to connect with other hearts, so that even if I did begin to think about going back to the old me I’d reject it, since she knows it would be meaningless to force it.” He slapped his chest. “I’m here now because she believed in me to be able to change despite the bad things I did in my past. After what happened with your brother I’m sure you’ve realized your parents don’t just tell you things to get on your nerves. “You’ve taken responsibility for your part in things and have strived to do something different than what caused the accident in the first place. You’ve done everything you could to walk down a different path than the one that led to tragedy, and now you have a second chance to do things right this time. “You’ve suffered enough. Isn’t it time you let the past be in the past?” Spring stared at him for about ten seconds, and then she growled, her eyes narrowing. “Maybe I don’t want a second chance! Maybe I don’t deserve a second chance. I don’t know who I’m going to hurt next with a careless mistake. It's for the best if I stay far away from my brother so I can't ever hurt him like that again.” Fluttershy popped into his mind, glaring at him, and suddenly he began to feel anger creeping into him. He suddenly understood why she had done what she did. “You don’t understand anything! Even after everything I’ve told you, you still don’t get a single thing.” “Hmph! Who cares what you think? All I asked you for was a wish to help my brother. I didn’t ask you to butt into my life or my personal business.” “Let me ask you something," he said coldly. "Why did you ask me to help your brother?” Her eyebrow went up. “What’s that supposed to mean?” “It means exactly what I said. Was it guilt? For your parents? For you?” She didn’t answer for a while, then finally she said, “What do you care?” Mayhem could see she was getting standoffish now. “Because just like I said before you don’t understand. Whatever happened, your heart is connected to your family. Seeing you suffer makes them suffer. “Ultimately, if you continue on hating yourself and drowning in your pain then what I did was meaningless. Your parents have seen your heart and know all the pain you've been keeping inside, but even without that it was still obvious that you were hurting over not having your brother in your life. They would still be suffering with or without your brother being awake. “But he’s different. While your brother was in his coma his mind was blank, but now that he’s awake he can feel again. He can hurt again. “If you can’t forgive yourself then he'll start to hurt watching you hurt. If that happens, all you will have accomplished with your wish to wake up your brother is making him suffer even more than you already have.” The glare cracked entirely as her eyes shrunk and Spring gasped, a shudder going through her body. She closed the distance between them and smacked Mayhem hard enough to knock him to the floor. “Mayhem!” Twilight called out as her parents called out Spring’s name. The filly sank to the floor, gasping for breath as her eyes shrank to little dots. Mayhem got up, rubbing his cheek. He wasn’t mad at all. He knew he had just touched a nerve, and almost expected the hit. Once more he thought of what happened with Flurry and Masky. He had touched the center of her pain, breaking her defensiveness, and he had to strike while she was vulnerable. “When my mother heard about what I had done to my friends she was devastated.” Spring looked up at him, still breathing heavy and looking lost. “However, her personality shifted immensely when I told her what I wanted to do. I tried to do what you did. I told her I was going to go back inside Discord and stay there forever so I could never hurt my friends like that again. “What she said then hurt, but she was right. I thought I was doing it to protect my friends, but I was only being selfish. I saw them hurting without me at Flurry’s party because a bond of the heart can’t be broken that easily. “I wasn’t really trying to protect them with my declaration. All I was doing was abandoning them to make myself feel better. She told me that if I really cared about my friends and what our relationship stood for then, instead of running away, I would do all I could to make it up to them.” Spring looked away from him, quietly sobbing. “Y-you… y-y-you don’t…” “WHAT?” Mayhem asked sharply. “I ‘don’t understand?’ Don’t give me that! I told you that I almost killed my best friends when my powers went to my head and I got too prideful to allow myself to lose! I understand it perfectly! “I don’t care how many times you hit me! It won’t make what I said any less true! I was being a coward when I tried to abandon my friends to protect them, and you’re being a coward right now by trying to abandon your brother when I’m sure the only thing he wants right now is to have you back in his life!” Spring flinched, putting her hooves to her face. “You’ve been granted a great opportunity to start over and do the right thing. I certainly didn’t feel I deserved it when my friends overlooked my behavior and Twilight agreed with them and gave me a pardon. I’ve suffered and agonized over it, feeling like I was being rewarded for doing the wrong thing. I’ve suffered guilt and nightmares and hated myself too, but in the end I found that the one thing I couldn’t ever give up was my relationships with my friends. I couldn’t live without them. “That’s why I’m still in this world. I want to do all the good I can for others so that I can earn the right to see my friends again. That’s what I owe them, both for hurting them in the past, and hurting them again through my absence in their lives. “No matter how bad I feel about the past, I don’t ever want to abandon them again, because I know they’d be devastated if they couldn’t ever see me again. That’s why I’m going to keep walking down this path. I’m going to keep fighting, no matter how much it hurts. That’s the form my love for them takes.” Twilight smiled at him, feeling his inner strength radiating off of him. He had found a purpose, and for that he would suffer whatever it took to get things back to the way they were. “So what about you?" Mayhem said angrily. "Your brother almost died saving your life. What are you doing for him in return, huh? You finally have him back, and all you can think about is abandoning your relationship? Now I understand why Mommy told me she felt disgusted by me.” A shudder went through Spring as she bit her lip. “Since he’s woken up you haven’t spoken a single word to him. You didn’t even say thank you for what he’s done. You’ve blamed yourself for everything, but have you even once said you were sorry?” “Yes! I have!” She got up. “And I hated it.” “You hated having to apologize?” “No! I h-hated being dismissed. All I w-w-wanted was someone to accept my apology, but everyone always treated it like it didn’t matter. No one took it seriously.” “Why do you think so?” asked Still. “We don’t feel we acted that way. We weren’t callous or mean about it.” “That’s not what I mean!” She turned to her parents, tears streaming down her eyes. “You talked to me like I should just get over it. ‘Don’t worry about it.’ ‘It was just an accident.’ ‘Don’t blame yourself.’ You… you never treated my feelings like they mattered! “It's just like today! It’s like I said at the start: this never would have happened if I had listened to you, but you always tried to act like I had done nothing wrong... like you thought it would make me feel better or something.” The two of them looked at each other, then back to their daughter, crying themselves. “We saw you were suffering,” said Still. “In a time of greatest pain what would it have accomplished to rub it in? It wouldn’t have woken Forest up.” Clear felt like she had a weight on her that was threatening to have her slide to the floor. “And yet we…” She sniffed, letting out a little sob. “We hurt you anyways, so focused on our injured son that we began to neglect you when you needed us the most.” Mayhem looked a little put out, the blazing fire of his passion dwindling. “I… I feel like I finally get it.” “Get what?” Spring asked, turning to him. “I understand your pain, having gone through the same sort of experience you have. I wanted this for me, to swoop in and save the day; to be your hero and unite your family… but I’m starting to understand I can’t do that. “No matter how much I empathize with you, in the end you were right that I’m just butting into your personal life when it’s not my place. This is a matter that should be settled between you and your brother. “If you feel so responsible for what happened to him then you should at least have the guts to say sorry to him face to face.” He pointed a claw at her and moved it in a gentle circle, picking her up and setting her on Forest’s hospital bed. She bit her lip and began to gently shiver, her breathing going up slightly. “I… I can’t.” Mayhem floated next to the bed, taking her hoof in his claw. “If you don’t have the courage to talk to him then let me add my heart to yours. “I can’t solve your problem directly, but I can stand by your side until you resolve things.” She looked over at him, her eyes filling with tears. She flinched as Forest called her name. “Spring. Please… look at me.” Her body tensed, but just as it seemed she was about to let go she locked herself away again. She yanked her hoof out of Mayhem’s grip, and she finally made eye contact with him, a scowl on her face. “Go ahead, then!” she said angrily. “Just go ahead and say whatever you want. I already know what you’re going to say, and I don’t want to hear it! I’m tired of hearing it! It makes me sick!” Forest stared at his sister, seeing how much she was suffering. Taking what he had seen and what she had just been saying to his parents he thought he knew what she needed. It wasn’t something he wanted to do, but he knew it was something he had to do for her own sake. “I think you’re right,” said Forest. Her eyebrow went up. “We can’t expect our parents to stop being parents. Caring about and protecting their children is their job, even if it gets on our nerves sometimes. “You felt like living a rebellion to prove yourself, and if I hadn’t been there to save you then you would have died. You did something foolish, and in the end you brought all this pain on yourself. Just as you said, this never would have happened if you had just listened, so you’re responsible for what happened.” “HA!” Spring said loudly, flashing an arrogant smile. “So at least you have the guts to acknowledge the truth. Someone is finally being honest for once.” “I lost three months of my life because of that accident.” Spring had an almost ecstatic look on her face, laughing creepily. “And so the truth comes out. Finally!” The grin faded as tears came down her eyes. “I knew it... I really am terrible.” “Forest!” started Still, but with a flash Twilight teleported in front of them. “Not a word,” said Twilight. “Trust your son. This is what she needs.” “What she needs?” asked Clear, her eyes narrowing. “Yes. Your daughter committed an error. Had your son not gotten hurt either he or you would have scolded her for her recklessness. However, because of his accident you never scolded her over things. You said that you didn’t want to rub in what happened to make her feel worse, but in the end she feels like she received no consequences for unintentionally causing such pain. Her sense of justice just can’t reconcile not receiving any criticism for her behavior just because it’s connected to a greater tragedy. “In trying to protect her you only deepened her sense of feeling unworthy of love. How can she make up for her mistake if you refuse to acknowledge it was a mistake? For her, you’re simply denying reality. “She won’t ever be able to release the pain she has inside until she feels she’s paid for her mistake. Was that not made clear from what she was just saying to you as well as the part of her memories where she wondered why everyone was being so nice to her despite setting off the events that led to her brother’s coma? “Now please stay quiet and listen.” Neither of them could argue against her. Forest took in a breath. Maybe it was necessary, but he hated having to hurt his sister to help her. There was so much he had missed out on. His own eyes filled with tears as he let out a little sob. That sound caught Spring’s attention, making her head shoot up towards him. “F-Forest?” His eyes clenched shut. “Maybe it’s true that you started the series of events that lead to this moment, but my own heart is aching too.” He sniffed. “I feel like I failed you.” “B-but you rescued me.” “What does that matter? As your big brother it’s my job to be there for you. While I was spending my time in this hospital bed I could do nothing for you. I couldn’t be there to sooth your pain and hug you. “All this time you’ve spent suffering, hiding your pain, and I feel I could have helped you through it so much faster if only I hadn’t been so weak.” Spring got a pained look on her face. “Don’t say that! DON’T SAY THAT! You’re not weak! You’re the coolest and strongest pony I know! It wasn’t your fault.” “If you can blame yourself for things then why can’t I do the same? If I had been just a little bit faster or stronger I could have gotten you out of danger without getting hurt myself. Then you never would have had to go through all this.” “Stop it! Stop it! Stop attacking yourself! You saved my life.” “And yet your life basically ended anyway. You’ve felt so lonely and isolated, stuck in the world of your inner pain with no relief. “You’re not the same Spring Meadow you were three months ago. You’re like a stranger. I can barely recognize you anymore. You don’t have the life and zest you used to. “But, in the end, I think you’ve repented for what you’ve done. The both of us did the same thing, did we not?” She gave him a confused look. “You don’t get it? Just as I saved your life you also saved mine.” Her eyes widened, her insides going cold. “W-what?” “When I saw you in trouble I acted immediately, racing as fast as I could to your side to protect you, getting hurt in the process. “When I was in trouble you heard about a creature with special magic, and you took off immediately, racing as fast as you could to my side to protect me, even despite all the pain you had already gone through. “Maybe you did cause my accident through your carelessness, but when you had the opportunity to undo your mistake you instantly took it. Who knows how long I would have been in this hospital bed if it hadn’t been for you. I owe you my life.” Her breathing got sharper. “No… don’t. I’m… I’m not a hero! Don’t… d-d-don’t… I didn’t do anything!” “Oh?” said Twilight, smiling. “Then who should we blame for today, then?” Spring sniffed, still breathing heavy as she pointed at Mayhem. “Him! It was his powers that saved Forest.” Twilight nodded. “That’s true, but unimportant.” Spring gave her a questioning look. “Today is no different than the events that caused us all to be here in the first place: you broke the rules to fulfill a desire close to your heart.” “Broke the rules?” asked Still. Twilight nodded again. “I’m sure running off alone without telling anyone isn’t something you’d approve of in normal circumstances.” “Oh, right.” “In the past it was a selfish desire, to prove yourself to your parents. Today your desire was to help your brother. “Think about it. Without Mayhem’s powers your brother wouldn’t have been healed, but as I said that’s irrelevant. The question that has to be asked is: how did Mayhem hear about your brother in the first place in order to heal him?” Spring went stone still. “I had never met you before you came banging on my door. Your parents never knew Mayhem before today, nor Sweet Pea’s family. And while Sweet Pea had met Mayhem, when she came home all she did was tell you about how much fun she had. “Did she suggest using Mayhem’s wish powers for your brother? No. When I brought you back home she didn’t think Mayhem could do anything for Forest because his powers were ‘just for playing games.’ She thought his powers were just about making realistic illusions. “That rules everyone else out. The only one who both knew about Mayhem and had the idea to save your brother was you. You didn’t cause your brother’s recovery directly, but without your actions it couldn't have happened.” Spring put her hooves to her face, quietly sobbing. “No. No. No. I… I wasn’t… I didn’t…” Mayhem put an arm around her, chuckling. “Isn’t it just like you said at the start? Whatever pretty words or excuses you use this was your fault. Today… you’re your brother’s hero.” Tears quietly came down her eyes. "I... I'm... it was... me? I... saved..." “I have another wish,” said Forest. “What’s that?” asked Mayhem. “Not from you. This is something only Spring can do.” The filly looked up at him uncertainly. Forest could see that a lot of the weight had vanished from her expression. “I feel guilty because of all the guilt and sorrow you’ve felt. I feel like if I had only been better I could have saved you without getting hurt, and all of this could have been avoided. “You’ve torn yourself to shreds emotionally, blaming and hating yourself.” Forest put his hooves out, pulling her closer. “I think I can forgive myself if you can do the same for yourself.” She didn’t fight the contact. “But I… I don’t…” “I know. I know it’s not going to be something that happens overnight. Nothing’s that simple. But we can both take steps towards making it happen together. My heart is with you, and all I want is to just spend time with you. After all, I’ve been out of commission for three months. I have a lot of big brothering to catch up on.” She moved her hooves, hugging him back. “I’ll try… for you.” “That’s all I’m asking for. “Do you want to hear my wish now?” “O-okay.” “My wish is just to see you smile. My heart is heavy with everything I’ve seen you go through. It’s been so long since I’ve been able to see that grin that lights up the world, and it would make my heart soar if I could just see it again.” She was quiet for a while. “Can you just… tell me one thing?” “What’s that?” She looked up at him, her eyes shimmering with tears. “Tell me… tell me you still love me. Everyone else has been saying how they think you feel, but I need… I need to hear it from you.” She sniffed, a lump in her throat. “I need to hear that you don’t hate me!” Forest moved one of his hooves, rubbing the back of her head. “I love you, Spring! Our parents love you. Sweet Pea and her family love you. You even have the princess of all of Ponyville here to help solve our family issues. The only one who ever hated you was… you. “Mayhem was able to start anew, and it seems like he’s learned a lot from the experience. I can feel that from the way he acts. He’s acknowledged the wrong he’s done, trying to use it as an example to help others to start over too. Now it’s your turn. “I don’t want to dwell on the past when there’s an amazing present to explore. You’ve taken responsibility for what you’ve done and have been punishing yourself all this time. Whatever happened, I think you’ve more than suffered the consequences. That’s how I feel.” He nuzzled her nose with his own. “You’re my special, precious sister. No matter what happens that will never change. I’ll always love you now and forever.” “I… I have been punishing myself. I… I... I thought that if no one else was going to punish me for what I did then I would take on that job. “All this time I never allowed myself to get too happy. I thought I didn’t deserve it. The longer you were unconscious the more I hated myself and the more I began to feel like everyone around me h-hated me too.” She let out a sob as tears came down her eyes. “I… I don’t even know if I can ever smile again. I still feel it in my heart. There’s still a lot of anger and hatred there. I don’t know what to do with all my feelings. They feel too strong to fight alone.” “You’re never alone!” Mayhem said cheerfully, taking hold of her hoof again. “Hatred may make you forget that and wear you down, but if you look inside yourself the love from your family and friends is always there. “Your brother, your parents, Sweet Pea… all they want is to see you happy, and now that they know the source of your pain I know they’ll be there to act as medicine to put together your broken heart, one bandage at a time.” Happy tears came down his eyes. “My friends gave me a second chance after all the pain I caused them, and I know they worry about me, but I’m not afraid so long as I have them. What do you have to be afraid of when you have so much love waiting for you to remind you how special and amazing you are?” She turned away from him to her parents. “Do... do you feel that way too? Please, I need to hear it from you too.” Clear and Still got up and walked over to the bed, kissing her forehead. “I love you, Spring!” said Clear. “I love you too!” said Still. Spring looked between the three of them, seeing them all giving her such warm looks. “Forest… I… there’s something I want to do.” “What’s that?” he replied. “I want… what I want the most right now… is just to grant your wish.” She swallowed, wiping away some tears. “I want to take away your pain... b-because I want to see you smiling too." She struggled a bit, but she eventually gave him a small smile. “There you are,” said Forest happily. “I can see it’s still frail, but I’ll help to make it more genuine over time. I want to make you smile every day until you remember how beautiful life can be.” Her smile only lasted a few more seconds before her emotions overwhelmed her and she broke down sobbing, holding tightly to him. “I love you! I l-love you so much! I’m… I’m so happy y-you’re back!” Still and Clear added their hooves to the hug, feeling like a family once more as they cried along with her. Mayhem put a claw to his heart. Tears shined in his eyes as he thought of his friends, thinking that they’d be proud of him. Their emotions got to him, and he felt a desire to hug something. He floated up and held Twilight. Twilight was beaming as she patted his back. “Good job, Mayhem! You solved your first friendship problem. How does it feel?” He looked up at her. “Amazing. “Can I have a hug?” She giggled to herself as she complied. “Of course.” She was a little surprised as he broke down like the rest of them, but then again he had his own past he was still trying to forgive himself for. She supposed it wasn’t that unusual, especially with his childish mindset. “Go ahead and cry,” she said gently. “I’ll hold you as long as you want. “I’m very, very proud of you, Mayhem. There’s nothing else I can say. You were amazing today.” He stopped crying for a few moments to look up at her, clearly touched by her words, then he buried his head in her chest again. Twilight gently bobbed, her eyes closed and a smile on her face. Past these tears would be the birth of new happiness.