//------------------------------//
// Afterward: Stocks and Armor 
// Story: A Flurrious Time Loop (Flurry's Little Time Loop) 
// by SparklingTwilight 
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Shining Armor trudged through the terminal portion of his trek, buffeted by windigoesque-cutting wind, chilling ice and slippery snow. Sniffling and struggling through an ear infection and the gash on his hindhoof, he'd made it back to the Crystal Empire from the Demense of the Deep Deer near the Halls of Tartarus where Flurry Heart's toddler-tantrum rage had sent him.

These... enjoyable... teleportations gave him time to think. And sleep. He could have returned a whole day sooner but he decided he preferred sleeping rough in the Cavern of the Colossal Arachnids with a quad-hourly-renewed security-bubble-ward to being crawled over all night and being given clown makeup and red bulbous noses in the middle of State meetings.

When he came through the Grand Gates, though, he beamed in true happiness.

Flurry Heart hugged her father. They had the homecoming party and she was spoiled more than usual. She got her candy, even chocolate. No more scolds about teeth decay. She rode on his shoulders and he took her around the hall, trotting happily. So happily. With worried glances over his shoulder.

They'd had a hundred trumpets and performers and Flurry Heart clapped in joy.

Shining Armor had once warned Cadance that throwing a party for teleporting him away might send the wrong message to their young alicorn princess but Cadance ignored him--the important thing was Flurry Heart was appeased. Shining didn't say anything this time. Next time, he'd take a lengthier vacation.




The banking pony penned quill to parchment and drafted the Crystal Empire Stock Exchange plan. Profits would not extend endlessly. Even the tulip bubble in the Minotaur Lands had to burst eventually. Why did Minotaurs love tulips so much? What about petunias or roses? Their "diamond hands" strategy of holding firm forever had to end sometime. Everything was cyclical--allponies would see it again and again and again like that legendary bunny-comet that kept going and going and going around the world after being wound up by the cosmic pony-pitcher. The question was how to exploit small differences, make improvements in the great cycle, turn a well-greased smaller wheel, analogize allegories, metaphors, and idioms and so on and so forth.




It was a good day. Flurry Heart hugged her already-slumbering mommy good night. "I love you Mommy."

Then she hugged her daddy. She usually embraced him at night. Mommy could be fun when she wasn't too deep into her "relaxation" juice, but Daddy had less duties so they usually spent more time together. And her unicorn-dad didn't have sharp and fluffy wings tickling her face at weird times during the night.

She also whispered, "I love you Daddy." And sent him back in time with her. The welcome-back party had been fun. Time to do it again!