//------------------------------//
// Chapter 65. 
// Story: Embrace of Light and Dark 
// by Knight of Crows 
//------------------------------//

Fluttershy POV

Twilight and I rushed upstairs upon hearing the colt's screams. He was clutching his head and laying on his side, Nightshade, one of the kittens a few weeks old, was a short distance away from him. Twilight immediately used a sleep spell on him to stop this from getting any worse before helping me lift him back on the bed.

"Do you still think he's a threat after that?" I asked her as Nightshade climbed on the bed, then his chest and made herself comfortable. He's already making a friend.

"I don't know, ponies don't just collapse and start screaming because of a headache from out of nowhere. Regardless, the others should know about this." She answered.

"Twilight, please?" I pleaded with her.

"You know I can't just ignore this. There's no telling what's going to happen as a result of his arrival alone, that's not getting into whatever caused this even if nothing comes from him being here."

*meow*

We both looked down at Nightshade, she climbed on top of the colt and was licking his cheek, brushing her head against his every so often.

"She isn't like that with me or any of the other animals." I commented.

"Maybe he has some sort of-"

"If you're going to say he brainwashed a kitten, you can leave right now!" I interrupted her.

"How do you know this isn't some kind of trick?! We all thought Cassiel was just a colt with a mouth and he turned out to be a murderer incapable of feeling or showing any emotions not related to rage! He was close, if not the textbook definition of a psycopath!"

"How do you know this is a trick??!! This colt isn't Cassiel!! How can you not see that??!!" I yelled at her, shocking every creature in the room.

"I-..." She didn't say anything before leaving, her head down. I sat down on the bed and extended my arm towards the colt, pushing his hair to the side.

"We'll have to give you a name, won't we?" I asked nopony in particular. "How about Equinox?"

I'll tell him later.




Equinox POV 
(S2 E20)

"Come on Fluttershy and Equinox, the party can't start until the party supplies get there!" Pinkie Pie floated along with a few balloons as Fluttershy and I carried several bags of 'supplies' for her. She threw me a party the night we met a few weeks back, but almost nopony showed up. Is her hair supposed to just drop at times and 'poof' itself back up?

"H-happy to- help!" Fluttershy struggled. These bags are light, is she tired? "But next time, c-can I carry the balloons?" She asked before Twilight crashed into her. Twilight jumped onto the nearby bridge and spoke of being visited by her future self to warn her about a disaster coming Tuesday morning, but got sucked back into the future before she could say what. A warning makes sense, but if it's Heartless, is it wise to incite fear?

"If that's true, then wouldn't it make sense to leave it to the guards? The weather is controlled by the pegasi for the most part, so the only disasters I can think of would be Heartless or the kind caused by ponies like a fire." I said.

"You most likely." I think I heard her mumble under her breath. "Regardless, we can't leave anything to chance! We'll have to work all across Equestria to make sure!"

"I don't think that's how time travel works. Law of Causality? Everything you're going to do will lead up to 'that' future. If not, then you're about to cause a paradox. Wait, whe- AGH!" I fell to my knees as the sudden spike of pain also made me dizzy enough to lose my balance.

"Oh gosh! Are you alright?!" Fluttershy immediately knelt down, placing a hand on my forehead and back.

"Well 'she' shouldn't have been possible either, but here we are!" Twilight sounded annoyed. Was it directed at me? She went on to explain her plans to everypony, but demanded I stay home with Fluttershy. Does she not need me? Is there something else going on?

I heard from Fluttershy a few days later that Cerberus apparently left his post and Tartarus was without a Warden because of it. Twilight left with him and returned him to his post. After a series of other events, I learned from Spike that I was right from the start. Maybe it's for the best?




(Remnant, Island of Patch, Summer's grave)

A young girl kneels in front of a grave stone, clutching a large key shaped weapon, similar to that of what her mother wielded years before. It is as much a gift as it is a birthright, but to her, the gift she holds is not worth the price paid. A promise to return, that is the only other thing she has left of her dear friend, her brother, who willingly sacrificed himself to stop the greatest threats the world had ever seen. She tries to speak, but grief's hold on her heart prevents anything other than her cries of loss.




(Atlas)

The heiress to a wealthy and influential family name stands before a recently constructed statue in front of the nation's most prestigious academy. This statue depicts a man in a hooded robe and mask with three large key shaped weapons on him, the one with lions on his back, a hand on one stabbed into the ground, and the other held behind him in a reverse grip. This statue was built at the request of this nation's General to celebrate the man's victory before he retired and stepped down as Headmaster of this academy.

To the heiress though, she couldn't bring herself to celebrate anything, for she also lost a brother on that day. She walks closer to the statue, a single tear falls from her face as she looks up at the mask, she knows the face underneath, she wishes that wasn't hidden. She turns away after leaving Schnee processed Light Dust, the first her company had to work with at the foot of the statue.




(Anima)

A girl searches on her motorcycle once again for someone she would rather not. She clings to words spoken by one she loved as a brother, hoping he can be found somewhere with this person's help.

"I'm returning to Darkness."

She hopes these words mean he is still alive in some tangible way, so she searches for the one who may be able to take her to him. She refuses to believe he is truly gone, so she steels herself until she has her answer. No uncertainty or nightmares will hold her back.




(City of Vale)

Perhaps the closest to the man who sacrificed himself, not a day goes by that she doesn't feel an even greater pain than her team. These days, she is working to reclaim the school that once housed and taught others like her team. To this day, it is still overrun by monsters. She spends the rest of her time mourning the loss of her love and ensuring his man made weapon is properly maintained, even using it on her hunts, as if to make herself feel he is still with her.