//------------------------------// // Chapter 8: More Than Priceless // Story: Right Beside You // by Godslittleprincess //------------------------------// Flash groaned as the sound of garbled voices stirred him back into consciousness. Even though Flash couldn’t make out what the voices were saying, he could tell they were in varying degrees of worry. As Flash’s head became clearer, so did the voices. Until— “WAKE UP!” First Base screamed as he grabbed Flash’s shirtfront. “Gah!” Flash cried as he startled awake and sat up banging his forehead on his younger brother’s. “Ow!” both brothers exclaimed. Flash recovered first. “Oh, my gosh! Bro, are you okay?” “I should be asking you that,” Base replied as he rubbed his forehead. Flash quickly scanned his surroundings as he recalled what had happened before he blacked out. He was still in the park sitting on the grass. His brother, Micro Chips, Twilight, and her friends were all either kneeling or standing in a circle around him. “Wha-what happened?” Flash gasped. “Oh, well, you got possessed by an ancient Equestrian evil, and just a few minutes ago, you, Twilight, Sunset, Micro, and Base blasted it out of your mind,” Pinkie explained rapidly. “It tried to possess a new host, but we managed to stop it from doing any more damage by putting it in this jar I happened to have with me.” From seemingly nowhere, Pinkie Pie pulled out a jellybean jar the size of her torso. Flash didn’t even know they made jars that big. The jar was filled with what looked like black smoke with eyes. “Is that all of it?” “We think so,” Twilight answered Flash before staring intently into his eyes, “but just to be sure, how did you propose to me last year?” Flash blinked twice and replied, “I had Sunset paint a huge sign that said ‘Twilight, will you marry me?’ in a bunch of little stars while the PianoStrings cover of ‘Rewrite the Stars’ played in the background.” Twilight sighed in relief and threw her arms around her fiancé. “Oh, thank goodness.” Flash awkwardly returned her hug and hesitantly asked her, “Did, did I hurt you while I was possessed?” “No, no!” she denied, tightening the hug. “YOU didn’t.” Flash did not consider himself particularly smart or clever, but he wasn’t so dumb that he failed to notice how deliberate Twilight’s word choice was. “Did the thing possessing me use me to hurt you?” he clarified. “Oh, never mind that!” Twilight snapped, her voice breaking. “I’m just glad that you’re you again and that you’re okay. I was so worried that I was going to lose you.” Flash could feel Twilight shaking as she held him tighter. He sighed deciding not to press the issue further and gently rubbed circles into her back. “So, where did the Dazzlings and Flash’s stepbrother run off to?” Applejack noted. “I don’t know, but those three imbeciles better hope I never see them again,” Sunset seethed. “As for Coin Bank, I have no idea where he went either, but hopefully, he hasn’t gotten himself into more trouble.” “You know, I think I saw him hiding behind Flash’s car on the way in here,” Rainbow Dash added. “He’s probably still there. I’ll go check.” Dash ran off using her super speed. Roughly three minutes later, she returned. “Yeah, he’s still there,” she relayed. “I tried to bring him over, but he’s totally weirded out by the experience. He called me a freak and kept yelling at me to stay far away from him.” “We can deal with that problem later,” Sunset replied before gesturing to the jar still in Pinkie’s hands. “Right now, we have a more pressing issue to take care of.” “So, what are we planning on doing with it?” asked Fluttershy as she peered at the dark cloud inside the jar. “I don’t think just keeping it in a jar is very safe. If the jar breaks, it’ll get out and try to find a new host.” “Sunset, darling, is it possible to send the, uh, ugh, thing back to wherever it came from?” Rarity suggested grimacing as she also studied the evil, magical parasite. “Princess Twilight had trapped it in Limbo over in Equestria,” Sunset replied. “That hole it came out of must have some sort of a connection to Limbo, but I think we might have to take a closer look at the hole before we do anything. Why don’t we just keep the dark magic as tightly contained as possible for now while I write to Princess Twilight about what to do with it?” “Okie-dokie-lokie,” Pinkie cheered. “In the meantime, we’ve got a par-tay to get back to.” Flash, Twilight, and their friends somehow managed to enjoy the singles party, which now doubled as a You Survived Getting Possessed by Evil Magic party, after all they’ve been through. Coin Bank, on the other hand, actually took a bus back to Flash’s neighborhood, so he could “get in [his] car and drive back to New York where [censored] makes sense,” not that anyone really missed having him around. However, after the party ended, and everybody went home for the night, Flash found that he had difficulty falling asleep. He couldn’t remember much from being possessed, but he did remember the pain and the burning and the attacks on his psyche. Did the darkness make him put his friends through the same torture? Did it make him force Twilight to suffer through what he had suffered? What if it gets out and repossesses him? What if, what if it didn’t need to repossess him? Flash thought back to all the times his words and actions have hurt people. Sure, brainwashing was involved a few of those times, but most times the worst parts of himself just came out because he had gotten too angry or because he made a bunch of bad choices. What if the next time he got angry Twilight ends up on the receiving end of his words and actions? Did he really want to put her through that now that they were about to get married? Flash turned towards his nightstand where his phone was charging. Tonight certainly wouldn’t be the first time he and Twilight have called each other to talk about their troubles in the middle of the night. However, Flash couldn’t bring himself to reach for his phone and call her. “She’s probably tired and exhausted from what just happened,” Flash thought to himself. “Better let her sleep.” The next morning, Flash got up and drove himself to the church he and Twilight were getting married in. Only three other cars were parked in the lot, most likely belonging to the pastor, the pastor’s secretary, and one of the custodians. He let himself into the sanctuary and looked around. Presently, it looked the same as it always had with its tight rows of perfectly aligned chairs facing the altar where the worship team’s drum set and keyboard stood. However, in two days, his and Twilight’s family and friends would start decorating the place with flowers and fabric for their wedding. Imagining the sanctuary fully decorated and full of people, Flash sighed dejectedly and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Well, you’re here pretty early,” said a voice from behind him. Flash turned around and saw that Pastor Gentle Stream had spoken to him. “Last I checked, service is tomorrow morning, and your wedding is next Friday.” “Hi, Pastor Stream,” Flash greeted not even attempting to hide the sad tone in his voice. The pastor frowned and asked, “Is everything okay?” “I guess so, but there is this one thing.” “Oh?” “You remember those weird, otherworldly goings-on that use to happen all the time back when I was in high school?” “Yes, as a matter of fact, I do. There hasn’t been one in a while though. Why do you ask?” Flash bit his lip as he explained, “Well, last night, some people were messing with things they shouldn’t have, and I somehow got involved, and long story short, I got turned into a horrible monster that might have possibly hurt people I cared about physically and emotionally.” The pastor blinked at him twice as he attempted to process what Flash had just told him. “I had no idea what you were going to tell me, but I certainly wasn’t expecting that. You didn’t cause any major or lasting damage to yourself and others, did you?” “Twilight and her friends insist that I didn’t, but I’m not entirely sure I believe that.” Pastor Stream nodded in understanding. “So, what now? Are you afraid that whatever turned you into a monster is going to come back and, well, turn you again?” he asked. “A little bit, but that’s not my biggest worry,” Flash replied. He sighed. “The whole incident has got me thinking about all the times I’ve hurt people either because of my own bad choices or because I lost control of my emotions, and,” he trailed off and bit his lip again, “do you think I’m making a mistake by marrying Twilight?” Pastor Stream blinked and shook his head rapidly unsure if he heard Flash’s question correctly. “Excuse me, what?” Flash groaned as he put a hand to his face and explained, “Okay, I probably should have gone to someone about this earlier before it got this bad, but I’ve been freaking out about my marriage failing ever since I saw my dad two months ago, and I think what happened last night just made it worse because now, I’m worried that I’m going to do something that ends up hurting Twilight, and oh my gosh, I just can’t put her through that. Maybe, maybe, maybe I should just call the whole thing off before it fails.” This time, the pastor’s jaw nearly fell off his face, but he quickly recovered and asked, “Flash, are you really sure that’s what you want to do?” “No!” Flash cried. “I mean, calling off the wedding is the absolute last thing that I want to do. I want to marry her and treat her well for however long we both live and make sure our marriage lasts for the same amount of time, but what if I can’t make that happen? What if I turn out to be a bad husband?” Pastor Stream put his hand on Flash’s shoulder and replied, “I wish I knew what to tell you, Flash, but I don’t. I do know this; you are a MUCH better man than you give yourself credit for. I also know that you have it in you to not only be a good husband but an excellent one. Don’t let other people’s mistakes or even your own keep you from believing that.” Flash couldn’t help but smile at that although he was still a bit unsure. “By the way,” the pastor continued, “are you and Twilight receiving any pre-marital counseling of any kind?” “Not professionally,” Flash admitted, “but we have been spending a lot of time with her parents, brother, and sister-in-law getting advice about what to expect from married life.” “Have you talked with any of them with how you’re feeling?” “No, but maybe I should.” Pastor Stream nodded in agreement. “As for your related problem, maybe talking to someone who’s been through the same experience can help you. Do you know anyone?” “Actually,” said a feminine voice from behind them, “he knows two people. We just haven’t talked about it in a while.” Flash and the pastor turned and saw Twilight standing behind them. She was frowning slightly and had a sad look in her eyes. “Twilight,” Flash gasped, “uh, how much did you hear?” She smiled and replied, “Enough to know what the two of you were talking about and enough to know that we need to talk.” “I’ll give the two of you your privacy,” said Pastor Stream before leaving the room. Flash and Twilight sat down in the back row of chairs neither of them looking each other in the eye. Finally, Flash spoke. “How did you know I was here?” he asked. “I went over to your house to see if you were alright,” Twilight answered. “Your grandmother told me where to find you.” Flash nodded as Twilight placed one of her hands over his. “It’s awful, isn’t it, seeing just how much damage the worst in you can do?” Twilight asked. “No kidding,” Flash replied with a sigh. “Are you really going to call off the wedding?” The tone in her voice was sorrowful. Flash felt a stab of guilt in his gut at Twilight’s question and shook his head. “I don’t know,” he answered sounding like he was about to cry. “Every time I think about last night or what went down between my dad and his wife, I keep thinking that maybe I should because the thought that I could hurt you scares me so much, but whenever I think about calling off the wedding, the thought of spending the rest of my life without you, well, it just hurts, and I can’t tell which of those two options is worse.” Twilight caressed Flash’s face with her other hand and turned him towards her. “Hey, look at me,” she said. Flash looked up and met her eyes. “Last night, while we were inside your mind, you said that you remembered who you are. Well, tell me, Flash. Who are you?” Flash looked away as he thought back to what had happened in his mind last night. Then, he looked up at Twilight again as he answered, “I’m someone who has gone through both good and bad times and came out a better person at the end, and I’m someone who refuses to let the bad times bring out the worst in me. More importantly, I am someone with a lot of love to give away and someone who has been given a lot of love by others.” Twilight smiled at him as she asked, “Now, does that sound like someone who could be a terrible husband?” Flash laughed a little bit before answering, “Well, the potential to be a bad husband is still there, but I think there’s even more potential to be a really great one. I won’t know for sure unless I actually take a chance and try.” “Then, take that chance and realize that potential,” Twilight urged. Flash blinked twice before giving Twilight a teasing smirk. “I’m sorry, but could you repeat that sentence?” “I said take that chance and realize that potential,” Twilight repeated huffily. “You better get it this time because I’m not saying it a third time.” Flash couldn’t help but laugh a little. “Okay, did I actually hear my high-strung, uncertainty-adverse fiancée just tell me to take a chance?” Now, it was Twilight’s turn to blink. However, when she finally understood what Flash found funny about the situation, she didn’t know whether to laugh with him or punch him in the arm. “I’m friends with six different girls who know how to push my buttons at least ten different ways each,” Twilight retorted. “If there’s anything I’ve learned from being friends with them, it’s that some people are worth taking chances for, and I’m willing to take a chance with you if you’re willing to do the same for me.” Twilight ended that statement with a smirk of her own before lightheartedly continuing, “Besides, Rainbow Dash only gets thirty days off a year, and she’s using one of them to attend the wedding and six to help with preparations and hang out with me and the girls. We are NOT changing the date or calling the wedding off, and that’s final.” Flash gasped in mock offense, “Hey, it’s my wedding day too. Don’t I get a say in the wedding plans at all?” Twilight crossed her arms with a playful twinkle still in her eyes. “That depends on what you’re going to say.” The two of them just stared each other down with smiles on their faces for a little while. Then, Flash scooped her up in a bridal carry and planted a quick kiss on her lips. “Flash!” Twilight cried in mixture of shock and amusement. “I don’t think there’s anything more for us to say,” Flash replied before going in for another kiss. This time Twilight was ready for it and kissed him back. When the two of them finally parted, Flash added, “Except for ‘I love you.’” “I love you too, Flash, and I can’t wait to be your wife.”