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// Part 5: The Little Trickster 
// Story: Black Gold 
// by Cardinal Dan Productions 
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Gem awoke to a knock at the door. As her eyes opened, they met the morning light pouring through the window across the room. Outside, the clouds have finally given way to the sun. Pleased with the sight, she rolled over in bed and stretched her legs. Then, she heard another knock at the door, and she let out a subtle groan. “I’m coming...”

Stumbling out of her bed, she worked her way out of her room, past the bathroom, and towards the door leading out into the hallway. With a flick of her horn, the door opened, revealing her closest friend and lover. Gem smiled. “Azalea... It’s always a pleasure to see you, my love.”

The rookie guard chuckled and rolled her eyes as she stepped into the apartment. “You say it, but you don’t mean it... I brought coffee.” Then, she revealed the two cups full of steaming brown liquid in her magical grasp.

Gem’s heart fluttered in her chest. She truly did love that changeling. “Oh, you know how to get me going, you know that?”

Azalea bared her teeth and made a sort of ‘purring’ sound in response. “Indeed, my sweet.” The playful look dissipated, and her eyes darted around the room. “I heard you had taken in the colt that had caused us trouble the other day, but I didn’t think to bring him anything. Where is he?”

Gem froze.

She didn’t know where Carbon was. She hadn’t seen him since she woke up. A wave of panic washed over her, followed quickly by a sense of dread. If he wasn’t in the apartment, then the only possibility was that he had run away.

Azalea must have been able to tell from her expression that something was horribly wrong. She set the cups down and made for the door. “Come on, Gem. If he’s not here, then we’ve got to search for him.”

Gem nodded her head, coming back to reality. “Yes, I agree. Let’s move, quickly!”

Together, they dashed for the stairs, not bothering to wait on the elevator, and they made for the lobby before running outside into the brisk morning air. Breathing heavily, both mares looked up and down the sidewalk, past all of the ponies walking to work or whatever else it was they were up to. Gem pointed towards the left. “Azalea, you search that way. I’ll take the right. We’ll circle the block and meet back here.”

Azalea nodded her head, and without a word, she took off. Gem took a deep breath and did the same in the opposite direction, silently vowing that if she did manage to track down Carbon she’d kill him.

Gem pushed her way through scores of ponies walking down the sidewalk. Brushing past each one, she tried to apologize, but she didn’t stop for a moment until she reached the corner. She looked to her right, down the way she was supposed to turn on the block, but her gaze shifted back to the left, across the street. Then, she saw him. Carbon had his back turned. He was looking into a window.

Full of rage and fury, Gem bolted across the street, despite the signs telling crossers to stop and let carriages pass. She dove in front of two speeding carts, nearly being hit but avoiding them only just. The carts swerved but kept going, and she made it to the other side relatively unscathed. “Carbon!”

The colt turned to face her too late as she was on top of him in an instant, stomping her hoof down on his tail to prevent him from running. “You little brat! Where have you been?! Why did you leave?! Do you have any idea how much worry you’ve caused me?!”

The colt winced as he tugged on his tail, but Gem didn’t dare let him loose. “I’m sorry, alright? I wasn’t running away... I... I just...”

Gem wasn’t in the mood for any excuses. Adrenaline pumped through her entire body, more so than the battle on top of the train so long ago. “What?! What could have possibly driven you to leave and scare me like that?!”

Carbon pointed meekly towards the window. It was a bakery, and inside the window were several delicious looking loaves of bread and pastries. “I was going to come back. I was just really hungry...” He revealed a few coins on his hoof and showed them to her. “I borrowed these bits from your dresser. I was going to pay you back. I just...” His voice fell silent.

Suddenly, the rage was sucked out of Gem like an extinguished flame. She then realized that several ponies around them had stopped to stare at the event unfolding before them. Gem paid them no attention and fixed her eyes on Carbon, at last lifting her hoof and releasing his tail.

Then, she knelt beside him. “Carbon... I didn’t know.” Never before had she been in such a position. Words failed her, but she tried to speak as honestly as she could. “When I discovered you were missing and I didn’t know of your whereabouts, I feared the worst. I thought I had lost you...” Gem pursed her lips before rising back up to her full height. “Let me have those bits, and we’ll get you what you want. How does that sound?”

Carbon managed a weak smile and nodded softly as he returned her money. “Alright... Here.”

At that moment, Azalea came running up from behind. “Oh, joy! You’ve found him.”

Gem beamed at her. “Indeed... Oh, Carbon! I don’t believe I’ve introduced you to my... uh...” She paused herself, wondering if she should admit to the colt that she was in a deep and meaningful relationship with a mare. “Uh... my dear friend, Azalea. Azalea, this is Carbon, the colt I spoke of.”

Azalea caught on to her fillyfriend’s subtle wording. She smiled sweetly at him and offered a short bow in his direction. “Charmed.” Her eyes then shifted back to Gem. “I assume everything was worked out?”

Without making eye contact, Gem nodded her head. “Yes, we were just about to enter the bakery. Would you care to join us?”

Again, Azalea smiled, but she shook her head. “I think not, Gemini. I’d better report to Captain Amethyst and tell her everything is going well.” Then, she looked down at Carbon. “You two have fun. I’ll be seeing more of you, I hope.” The pink mare spread her wings and took off into the air in a flash, leaving a cloud of snow in her wake as she vanished into the morning sky.

Gem looked watched her until she disappeared from sight. Then, she looked back down at Carbon, and with the kindest smile she could manage, she urged him to enter the bakery. “Go on, Little one.”

Carbon looked up at her with wide eyes, then at the door, then back at her. Gem ushered him forward with a gentle hoof to his rear, and he moved into the bakery.

Upon entering the establishment, both of them were met by a variety of powerful aromas, as well as a wave of warmth from the burning ovens. They were sweet, strong, and fresh. In her few short years as a permanent resident in the Crystal Empire, Gem never recalled visiting this place, having spent most of her time at the palace or in the barracks.

With Carbon by her side, they approached the counter where a large stallion waited behind a register. A pony in front of them finished paying for her scone and coffee and paid the stallion. When they were next in line, he called them forward.

“Good morning, miss, and good morning to you too, son.” His smile was wide, and his voice sounded deep and friendly, matching his large and jovial appearance. “What can I get for the two of you?”

Gem eyed Carbon, who glanced back up at her. “Well, my...” She cleared her throat, as she wondered how to introduce Carbon. “... my... uh... my little one here and I were hungry, and we desire breakfast.” She managed a polite look, something she wasn’t use to.

“Well, wish granted! You’ve certainly come to the right place for that!” The large stallion let out a hearty laugh. “I’ve got just the thing you need.” He turned around to reach for the shelf behind him, causing Gem to raise an eyebrow. When he faced her again, he held two delectable pastries in his outstretched hoof.

“These came out not a moment before you walked inside. Here...” He offered them again. “Take them. They’re gluten free, if that’s the problem.”

Gem eyed them, and her mouth began to salivate. “I... Um, yes... What do I owe you for those?” Her hoof was already reaching for the bits she retrieved from Carbon when the bakery owner shook his head.

“For you, no charge. At least not this time. It’s not every day we get a visit from one of our proud empire’s royal guards.”

Gem paused, and a frown came over her face. “Forgive me, but I don’t recall telling you I was a guard.”

The stallion shrugged her tone off with a chuckle. “You didn’t need to. It’s obvious by the way you carry yourself, strong and noble. You know, with your shoulders back and your head held high. My father was a guard, you know.” He looked reminiscent for a moment before seemingly coming to and out stretching his hoof with the pastries once again. “Ah, you didn’t come here to listen to old stories. Take them, I mean it.”

Gem still didn’t want to accept something she hadn’t paid for, but she remembered that Carbon was hungry too, not just her. After a moment of hesitation, she took the offered delicacies and passed one along to Carbon. “Here... Thank the nice stallion.”

As he took the pastry in his cloud of magic, Carbon looked up at the stallion, and with a forced look of appreciation, thanked him.

As they stepped back outside into the cold, Gem could feel the stallion’s eyes on her up until the moment the door closed behind her, but she never looked back. Instead, her eyes fell on Carbon, who hungrily munched on the pastry. With every bite, a little bit of red jelly spilled from the sides. It really did look delicious, so she followed suit and took a big bite from her own.

It’s warmth and sweet taste made her feel better inside, so much so that she nearly lost her concentration on keeping up her pony form. It wasn’t until the pastry was half gone that she noticed a strange look in Carbon’s eyes as he watched her. “Yes, Carbon? What is it?”

He had already finished his. Gem figured he must have been famished. “Miss Gemini, I just... I wanted to thank you for doing that.”

Gem’s eyes widened, but before she could say anything, Carbon had already turned and began walking back down the block towards the apartment complex. Her heart thundered in her chest, but she couldn’t put her feelings into words. She felt as though she’d crossed a considerable hurdle with Carbon. She let out a long breath, and followed after him, galloping for a moment to catch up.

She didn’t say anything in response, understanding that it must have been hard for him to open up to her, even if it was just a little bit. Together, they entered the lobby and made their way to the elevator. On the way up, they shared the occasional glance, and Gem fired a wink his way, after which Carbon responded with a smirk. At their floor, they stepped off and crossed the hall to the apartment, but when Gem opened the door, they were met with an unexpected sight.

Amethyst herself sat at the table, and across from her was Azalea, who didn’t dare meet her lover’s eyes. Upon seeing them, the captain scowled, and her horn glowed, shutting the door behind them. “Gem, take a seat. We have a lot to talk about.”


***Up Next: Trauma Mama***