//------------------------------// // Saudade Silverstream // Story: Dual Discovery // by Jonny Manz //------------------------------// “Gallus, I-just… I can’t be a distraction to you anymore. I don’t think this is going to work out,” Silverstream somehow managed to get out, biting her bottom beak. “Hu-huh?” Gallus replied, his pupils shrinking to little pins. “Well, I mean, it’s just that, you’re up-and-coming in the guard, and I’ve got my new teaching responsibilities at the School… Maybe we just need to focus on that, is all I’m saying…” Silverstream trailed off, grasping at her forearm. “Oh, uh, okay, I guess that makes sense…” a clearly defeated Gallus replied. He started to raise his right hand, but pulled back at the last second. “But wait… no, no, you’re right…” Silverstream felt her resolve start to waver. No, no this had to be done. “Hey, c’mon, you’ll find someone else – someone a lot better than me!” Gallus chuckled wryly. “I doubt that, but I doubt you’ll have much trouble finding someone better than me.” Silverstream smiled. “Nah.” An idea then occurred to her. “Hey, let’s remain friends, like Princess Cadance talked about when Headmare Starlight brought her in to guest lecture about the different forms of love!” “Yeah… yeah! I think I’d like that,” Gallus replied, a not-quite-full-but-close smile upon his face. “Alright, friends it is then!” If only it were that easy. “Um… Professor Silverstream? You there?” Silverstream snapped out of her daydream. “Whu-huh?” She looked around – that’s right, she was teaching the class on the history of friendship and its effect on laughter in the School of Friendship! “Sorry about that, class, where was I?” The creature that had piped up previously – a brown kirin with a shrub-green mane; that’s right, Earth Gleam! She was one of Silverstream’s favorites – informed her, “Well, you were talking about how you were among the first group at the School, and you were also the first hippogriff. I think you also mentioned you made friends with the other 4 non-ponies in that initial group, as well as a pony? You were about to tell us about them when you trailed off like that.” “Oh, that’s right! Thank you, Earth Gleam!” Silverstream exclaimed, feeling an upsurge at the smile that grew across the kirin’s face. “Yes, me and my five friends helped to demonstrate that friendship wasn’t something exclusive to ponies – and even save the world!” The class leaned in intently. “I’ll tell you all about that next time.” They groaned. Silverstream had to suppress a chuckle. Smolder was right, sometimes a bit of friendly teasing could be fun! “Anyway, you should already be familiar with 2 of my friends – of course I mean Professors Smolder and Ocellus!” There were general murmurs of acknowledgment amongst the students, so she continued. “Then, there’s Yona, the yak –“ Silverstream paused so the yak student she had in class, Ingrid, could shout out “Yona best friend!” as she knew she would. “-who lives in Yakyakistan, and oversees former Professor Rarity’s fashion branch up there, Carousel Yakyakistan. She was down here, not that long ago, watching over Carousel Boutique while Rarity was up there working on it, in fact. Then there’s Sandbar, the Earth pony, and also Yona’s husband.” She waited for a reaction, and when none came, she continued. “Oh good, not that long ago, there would have been at least a little gasp at that – you might not believe it, but a mere 12 years ago, when they tied the knot, it was somewhat controversial – interspecies marriage was something still a bit taboo!” A reddish orange griffon – Silverstream finally remembered her name was Gerline – piped up out of turn, as Silverstream remembered she often did. “Wait, really?” “Yes, indeed! But the times keep on changing, and soon enough, it wasn’t that big a deal anymore! Sure, it’s not accepted everywhere, but then, what is?” Silverstream chuckled, ignoring the breach of decorum. Earth Glow raised a hoof. “Um, Professor Silverstream? Who’s your 6th friend?” Silverstream snapped back to reality. “Oh, right. The 6th one is actually now the Guard Captain of the Equestrian Royal Guard! He’s actually the first non-pony to even be admitted into the Guard, let alone make it that far! His name is… Gallus…” She began to trail off again. “Uh, Professor Silverstream?” “Oh, right, right! On with the lesson!” She really didn’t want to, but she was sure she was gonna have to talk to Smolder and Ocellus about this for sure. “It’s been a while since all 6 of us got together, huh?” Ocellus observed, cup of tea in hoof. “Yeah, it’s been kinda boring with just you two around here,” Smolder quipped, earning her an eyeroll and chuckle from Ocellus. “How long has it been since we saw the other 3?” Silverstream pondered aloud. “I mean, wasn’t it just a couple of months ago that Yona and Sandbar were down from Yakyakistan while Rarity traveled there?” “Yeah, that seems about right,” Ocellus replied. “What about Gallus?” Smolder asked, nearly causing Silverstream to spit out the sip of tea she had just taken. It was an action that did not go unnoticed. “Silverstream, you all right?” “What? Yeah, tea! I mean, uh, never better!” Silverstream exclaimed awkwardly. “Is there something you want to talk about?” Ocellus asked. “Wh-I, no!” Silverstream protested, but she soon realized it would be pointless. “Alright, yeah, it has to do with Gallus.” “That’s right, he hasn’t been down here to see us in quite a while,” Smolder responded. “I wonder if it has to with how you guys called off your relationship-“ This lack of tact earned Smolder a swift elbow to the gut from Ocellus. “What? I’m just kidding, alright? Can’t a dragon snark?” “No, it’s alright, I had been meaning to talk about this with you guys – I keep drifting off whenever I think of him now. It happened on and off before, but it's gotten way worse of late. I mean, I was in the middle of class, telling them about all of you, and when I got to him, I just… I couldn’t help but think back to when I broke it off with him,” Silverstream admitted. “Really?” Smolder couldn’t help but interject. “Yeah, I guess, ever since Yona and Sandbar visited that last time, I couldn’t help but think of what me and Gallus had. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m happy for them, but – oh, I know this’ll sound terrible, but… I was also kind of jealous. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t regret taking this teaching job for a second, and I really hope Gallus doesn’t regret his position in the guard, but I do wish it could have worked out for us. It was... it was just too much of a strain, being apart so much of the time.” “So, you’re having some regrets? Have you tried dating anyone else?” Ocellus asked. “Yeah, but… it never really got past the first date in any of those cases. I dunno, it just never quite worked out – and working as a teacher here, with all the prep, it gave me a distraction to pour my attention into,” Silverstream replied. “It really convinced me that it was hopeless, trying to find any creature else. I wonder if he feels the same way? Part of me really hopes he found someone, but another part of me…” “Yeah, come on, Ocellus, she’s clearly got it bad for him!” Smolder interjected, an obvious teasing tone to her voice. Silverstream ignored the teasing and continued, “Yeah, as the years went on, I felt more and more sure that he was the one for me. I mean, teaching is great and satisfying, don’t get me wrong! And having the two of you always around is great, but… it just feels like there’s something missing.” Smolder raised an eyebrow. “Gee, thanks.” “Actually… I know Smolder was teasing you, but I think she was right. My senses might not be as strong as they once were, but I know how to read them with the best of them. I can tell how deeply you still care about him, Silverstream,” Ocellus said. “Wait, really?” both Smolder and Silverstream responded, the latter equally as credulous as the latter was skeptical. Ocellus nodded. “And I think you’ll need some closure to move on – either that, or you’ll manage to get back together. Either way, staying in limbo like this will just continue to eat away at you.” “Well, alright – you know what? That sounds like a great idea! And it’s perfect! With the school letting out for Hearth’s Warming next week, I think I’ll plan a surprise for him then!” “So, what exactly do you have in mind?” Ocellus asked. “Oh, I’m starting to get a pretty good idea,” Silverstream chuckled, a mischievous glint in her eyes. “Oh no, you’ve unleashed a monster,” Smolder deadpanned. Ocellus rolled her eyes. It hadn’t been easy, but it was finally Hearth’s Warming Eve! Silverstream was flying to Canterlot now, to put her plan into action. Hopefully that note she’d had Spike – who she had fortunately managed to bump into, and without who she would have never known that Gallus had the night shift every Hearth’s Warming – would cause the Princess to expect her. As she approached the castle and landed, a guard greeted her. “Ah, Silverstream. We were informed by Her Majesty that you might be stopping by. Come, right this way.” She was always impressed by the hallway to the throne room – it was always nice seeing the stained-glass window she and her friends earned for stopping that rogue sun beetle. But now was not the time to be distracted by that. “Silverstream! Good to see you!” Twilight embraced her former student. “I got your note. What kind of surprise are you planning?” “Well, um, I guess I should’ve checked this earlier, but, um, Gallus isn’t seeing any creature at the moment, is he?” Silverstream asked with trepadation, her claw once again grasping around her other forearm. “What do you mean?” Twilight asked, before her face lit up. “Oh, oh, like that! Oh, no, no, he’s doesn’t have any creature like that – and hasn’t in quite a while, I might add.” “Really?” Silverstream asked, hope sloshing off her voice in waves. “Yeah, I pay attention and notice more than the guards give me credit for! For instance, how Glinting Sword always manages to refile Super Naturals just one place off in the Royal Canterlot Library whenever he's on duty,” Twilight said, clearing her throat, “But, I don’t think that’s helpful right now. Suffice to say, I’m 100% positive he’s not seeing any creature like that.” “Oh good! Then could I have copies of the keys to his apartment?” “Hm… what exactly does your surprise entail?” Twilight inquired. “Well…” Silverstream whispered the plan to Twilight. “Hmm… I dunno…” Twilight seemed to look Silverstream up and down, making eye contact for an extended period, before finally continuing, “Yeah, I think that just might work. Alright, just let me know when you’re done setting up so I can give the order for the shift change.” It took all Silverstream’s control to not burst into tears upon seeing the state of Gallus’s apartment. It was so… so sterile, so impersonal! There was just a bed, an unexceptional kitchen, and a boring bathroom! There were no pesonalizations that she could see aside from the landscapes calendar and a clock with an image of Princess Twilight and her friends on it! This might take longer than she thought. At last, she had managed to pick out the perfect Hearth’s Warming tree, as well as the box to go underneath it. Princess Twilight said she would give the order for Gallus to shift out at midnight, right on the dot. She checked the clock. 5 minutes ‘til midnight. Perfect. She crawled into the box, and began mentally preparing herself to try and get Gallus back, or go down swinging! After what seemed like no time at all, she heard the doorknob turn. It was go time. She heard the steps approach the box. Soon, a sliver of light crossed her eyes. She sprung to attention. “Happy Hearth’s Warming, Gallus!” He could only manage to spit out, “Silverstream?!” before she pulled him into a beaklock, down into the box with her.