Umbra held a book close. No, it wasn't that book. Why would you even think that? A book of shadow magic would avail her not at all. No! She held a book of dense knowledge of an entirely different sort, but no less magical and wondrous. It was a book of adventure and excitement. It held the rules for a game both familiar and strange to her.
Its cover had a big mean ogre with a club raised high. It was still adorable. It couldn't help it, being a creature of the same universe that housed ponies. The ogre stood guard before a trap door. Beneath the trap door could be seen an, appropriately, trapped pony looking quite pitiable.
Adventurers stood ready to do battle with the ogre, to rescue the trapped one. They were tastefully obscured, making it hard to make out exactly what they were, just that they were there. It was up to you, dear player, to decide who they were! Umbra giggled with naked joy. She had feared it would be way different than D&D, but it had more similar than not. She was ready. "Thank you for inviting me!"
"You're actually not the only new player this week," noted the Story Master. Like Umbra and Shining, he was not a crystal pony. "But how could I say no to Umbra the Brave and Glorious? If you want to heed the call to adventure, I will not stand in the way." He pointed to her book. "Have you played before?"
Umbra's dark magic wrapped the book as she lifted it over to sit on the game table. "I played a game like it, so call me out when I get the rules confused. I'm going to play Tonia Stargazer, imbued with the virtue of kindness, she wishes to explore the world, meet new creatures, and right all the wrongs she can find!"
"Ah, kindness." The Storymaster nodded knowingly. "The party could use one of those." The others at the table made confirming noises. "A pony?"
"Well." In her magic, the book flipped rapidly to the chapter on races. There were a number of them, even if it was noted the chapter was optional. "Is that required?"
The Storymaster steepled his hooves, a sly grin appearing. "The new player already has things in mind. Do share."
Shining cleared his throat. "Pony is the default. Other races can get complicated. You sure?"
"I want to play something with hands." She tapped at the picture of an Abyssinian cat on the page. "So, if I may, Tonia will be a kitty cat. Meow!" She said the last with a feline meow of a noise, giggling.
"I love it." The Story Master's approval obtained, Umbra pumped a hoof. He was looking at their other new player. "How about you?"
Sunburst adjusted his glasses. "Oh, I've played before. I have my character sheet." A paper drew free in his magic, floating over to the Story Master for inspection. "Thanks, um, for inviting me."
The Story Master's eyes swept left and right quickly. "Hm. Hm! Hm... Looks like a fairly standard Magic. No problems here." He looked up at the whole of the table. "Last we left off..."
"Complete honesty." Active nodded lightly at the two before her. "Cadance, I'd hear your side first today."
"If we're being completely honest--"
"--We are," assured Active without room for doubt.
"Then... I miss our alone time." She reached towards Shining without making contact. "I miss being able to hug my stallion whenever I wanted to, or more, if that's where the mood leads. I am a physical pony, but knowing each and every contact is being shared ruins it. It makes me... well, sad, and mad..."
Shining's blushing ears danced. "I didn't know."
Active smiled at Shining. "Were you busy thinking only you had those wants?" At his worsening blush, Active nodded. "It's not uncommon for a pony of either sex to think the other side can't be like them. However... You two are in a unique position. You've felt what the other side is like. Different, surely, but... Also a little of the same, hm?"
They looked across at one another, then back at Active. Both nodded slowly. "But, even knowing that, you both know you're sharing with Umbra, who I still haven't met. Why is that?"
Shining sat up straight at that. "She's been throwing herself full heartedly into a few projects and I didn't want to distract her. Um, sorry."
Cadance inclined her head faintly at that. "What projects?"
Active nodded with that question. "Do share, if it's not confidential."
"Not a secret," Shining rushed to assure. "First, she found a book of magic, shadow magic. She is a shadowy pony, so she's super excited to get better at it." He smiled gently. "I think she fancies herself as a shadow wizard, and she wants to use it to help ponies."
Cadance burst into soft giggles. "That sounds lovely. I'm not sure how one throws shadow at most problems constructively, but I'll let her figure that one out."
"Shadow magic?" Active made a note on that. "That's a very rare form of magic, prone to misuse. You seem to be untroubled by her being involved with it?"
"You haven't met her yet." Shining smiled at that, thinking of Umbra. "She is a terrible shadow pony, really. Her smile is like a rising sun in its brightness, and her attitude usually matches. Her teeth may be a... tad sharp, and her horn is intimidating, but her eyes are full of affection for any pony she knows, and she likes to meet new ones.
Cadance nodded along. "I will agree with my hubby on this. She's a cream puff with fake fangs, in terms of how actually intimidating she is once you've gotten to know her at all. She doesn't seem to have a mean bone in her body. I'm very curious to see how she bends shadow magic around to make good with it. Did you know she already made a few helpful magic items for the hospital ward?"
Active pricked up at that. "Magic items? Do tell."
Shining clopped his hooves. "The daydarks?! Oh, they're very useful." He made a gesture, a long straight one. "They look like staves, but if you put your magic in them, they make the room dimmer and dimmer. They use them for patients who are trying to get peace and sleep."
"Huh." Active took new notes. "That is darkness. That is literally just dark, but it is being used in a constructive way." She fixed Shining with a look. "Does it make you jealous that this new magic user made a magic item long before you ever did?"
"I never made any," noted Shining.
"My question remains." Active tapped her hooves together.
"I am my sister's brother," countered Shining with a grin. "Being around ponies that are way more focused on magic isn't new to me. She's way into that, and good for her. Umbra will make a fine wizard. Me? Not my thing." He pointed at Cadance. "Like Cadie! She knows magic, but she isn't into magic."
"That I am not," agreed Cadance. "I mostly stick with the 'built in' magic. You know, my talent."
Active nodded once at each of them. "So you two are comfortable with a blossoming shadow wizard, knowing their personality is as kind as their magic has a reputation for not being." It wasn't a question, rather a summary of the situation. "It goes without saying, but you should keep an eye on her, as much for her sake as anything else. She's playing with fire, even with the best of intentions. She could burn herself, and in the dark, nopony may notice."
Cadance lifted an ear at that. "Well, in our current state, if she were to burn herself, physically, we both would be aware, whether she wanted us to be or not."
Shining cringed at that mental image. "I'd hope not, but, yes. We can feel when she's practicing. She... giggles a lot when she gets it right, so if I pay attention, I can even tell pretty well how she's doing. She's... kinetic."
"The sort that'll stomp when she's angry and cheer and dance when it goes right?" proposed Active.
"Exactly." Shining bobbed his head at their therapist. "So she tells us how she's feeling without a word if we pay attention."
Cadance smiled gently at that. "That part, I don't mind. It's nice, being that close to a pony; both her and Shining. It's the lack of privacy..."
"Which is why we're going to advance on my idea." Active pointed one hoof at either of them. "You two. Your doors are opened, as I've mentioned." Her horn began to glow, forming the image of a door between them, swinging open wide. "Through this open door, you can see each other, always. There is no privacy. The door used to be a wall, or maybe it was always a door, just locked and barred." She pointed at herself. "I could have a door up in front of me, but, again, stuck and locked, so we don't need to worry about it."
Cadance's eyes suddenly widened. "You don't mean!" She let her vision slide to that of the connections between ponies. She could see the thick pretty ribbon that connected Shining and Cadance to Active. A bold yellow shade of happiness, though yellow had other meanings.
The connection between herself and Shining was brilliant crystal. Cadance had done nothing with that crystal tether, other than note it was there. "The connection." She reached out with both hooves, feeling the crystal line carefully. "Is this the open door?"
Shining inclined his head, unable to see the crystal thread. "You see it?"
"How do I close it?" Cadance was clearly asking Active, ignoring Shining's question for the moment.
"Try just... doing it." Active made a closing motion with her hooves. "Nice and gently."
"Just do it. Easily said," laughed out Cadance. It was a crystal string, not an obviously open doorway one could brush close. She reached out, putting her hoof against the thread flat, as if to cut it off with the frog of her hoof. "How's that?"
Active rose to her hooves and moved to give Cadance a poke in the side. "Shining?"
"I... Felt that, but quieter?" He couldn't even be entirely certain.
Cadance's smile grew two sizes that day, changing the angle of her hoof. "Again!"
Active obliged, poking the princess in the same place with the same force.
"Definitely softer that time." Shining inclined his head. "What are you doing?"
Cadance brought up her other hoof, doing her best to block the line. "Once more!" She was swiftly tapped. "Did you feel that?!"
"N... No?" Shining collapsed back. "What'd you do?!"
Cadance lowered her hooves. "I was ph--" She was suddenly poked. "I didn't ask for another."
Shining rubbed the spot on his side that matched. "Felt that one."
Active nodded along. "Good, so the door can be closed, but it can also be opened again. It is not a wall. Now... I'm going to leave. The situation has changed, and I think you two need space to think about it."
Shining thrust out a hoof. "You're going back to Canterlot?!"
"I'm going to my room," she got out mid-chuckle. "This situation is not entirely resolved, but we have made a firm step forward today, I think." She nodded at Shining, then Cadance. "Keep practicing. When you can close the door whenever you want, then normalcy will return. At least mostly."
Cadance let Active Listening depart, her eyes instead on Shining. "I've told you about the connections before, haven't I?" He nodded quickly. "That is what is... That's the door! I blocked it, physically, with my hooves, but... Now that I know for sure that's what's going on, we can try other things, like magic." A relieved smile spread. "Now that I've felt the door, closing it doesn't seem like such an impossible task."
Shining pointed at himself. "I can't see connections like you can, babe. How do I shut my door?"