//------------------------------// // Chapter 92 - A Song from the Heart // Story: A Pony Displaced: Homeward // by NoLongerSober //------------------------------// It was a chilly Monday afternoon that saw Barrier leading his self-defense class through sparring. Barrier himself was paired with Fruity Punch while Short Circuit was trying to dodge Bea’s blows and Nickel flailed as she tried to toss Holly off her back and escape from the headlock she was trapped in. Punch charged towards Barrier, her horn brightly glowing purple as she gritted her teeth. As she drew closer to the charcoal stallion, she fired a volley directly towards his face. A shield swiftly winked into existence in front of his face to catch the blast, but it appeared as if it’d been a mere distraction, Punch dived into a slide to try and strike his forelegs. However, Barrier’s horn shone brighter as he dispelled the shield and teleported behind Punch. “Time!” Barrier’s bark echoed throughout the room as the students halted and turned their attention to the older unicorn. The sole exception was Short Circuit, who was pinned under Bea’s belly as she laid atop him while his hindlegs futilely kicked from under her. Holly slid herself off Nickel’s back and let go of her neck. Punch slowly rose back to her hooves and brushed some dust off of herself while a blushing Bea lifted herself off the now gasping Short Circuit. “You did well today, students,” Barrier said as the five straightened themselves out before turning his attention to Bea. “You did fairly well improving your speed, Wellington. I hope to see further improvement still. Same for you and your strength, Rangifer. Shorty, your movements are much less sloppy, I’m impressed. Nicky, you may want to follow his example.” “Punch.” As the pink coated mare stood at attention, he saw the clear signs of tiredness and soreness in her stance. “You’ve done well today, but I suggest you take some time off from training. It’s clear you’re overdoing it to the point it’s starting to negatively affect you.” Barrier leaned close before his voice dropped to a whisper. “I highly suggest we cancel the extra practice this week, for your health.” “I…” She started but stopped. “Understood,” Punch weakly finished, a note of shame clear in her tone. “There is nothing to be ashamed about with this, Punch,” Barrier said aloud. “But it’s important to know when your body needs proper rest. You don’t want to overtax yourself into an injury.” “No problem,” Punch replied before wiping some sweat from her brow. “I’ll definitely try to take things easy this weekend.” “Glad to hear it.” Barrier nodded before looking back to the rest of his class. “With that, I’d say class is dismissed.” As the earth ponies, cow and reindeer made their way towards the door, Punch walked up to the obsidian unicorn. The somewhat cautious look on her face made Barrier’s brow rise. “Barrier, can I ask you a favor?” “Depends what the favor is,” Barrier replied as Punch swallowed.  “Well… I plan on going to Midnight Melodies this Friday night to sing… It’ll be the first time I’ve been there since Spectral…” Barrier saw the fur on her neck bristle at the thought of what happened to her friend. “Anyway, I plan on singing this one song that needs two others, a male and a second female. I’ve got Honey doing the other female voice, but I still need to find a male voice for this. I was wondering if you’d be willing to fill the part.” “I… can promise only to try. I’d likely be better with a piano than singing,” Barrier replied as he looked into Punch’s blue-green eyes. “Why not ask Shorty to do it?” “Because I’ve heard him sing before,” Punch said with an annoyed, half-lidded look. “I’d be better off with a dying yak.” “I see.” Barrier winced at the thought of how terrible Shorty’s singing could be. “Could you tell me what song you plan on singing? I could probably stand to practice if I’m to sing it.” “It’s a song called Reunited,” Punch answered as she rolled her shoulders. “It’s a song from a musical adaptation of a choose your own adventure book and record set.” “Reunited, got it,” Barrier said as he nodded and Punch started to head for the door. “I should be ready to handle things come Friday.” “Thanks, Barrier. The show’ll start at seven.” Punch pulled Barrier into a quick hug before charging ahead towards her friends, only briefly looking over her shoulder to face him once more. “See you on Wednesday.” Once Punch and her friends were out of sight, Barrier groaned and slapped a hoof to his forehead. “I should have asked what musical it’s from.” *** Night had fallen as Barrier invited his housemates into the living room for a little house meeting, everypony waiting with rapt attention for whatever he had to say from his spot on the couch. Barrier took a breath before he faced the gathered eight and began. “Fruity Punch informed me she is going to be singing at Midnight Melodies for the first time since Spectral Image’s death, singing a song called Reunited from some sort of musical adaptation this Friday at approximately seven at night. I agreed to be one of her singing partners for this and I'd like some of you to help me practice, if you’re willing. Given the circumstances, I’d like to at least be passable… that said, does anypony know what musical this is from?” “Well, kinda,” Hatty spoke up as he nervously stepped forward. “I think I talked to Showtime about this song in the dressing room. I think it’s from something called Wonder Tale: The Musical or something like that. Still, I know she said Reunited was her favorite song from that show.” “Alright. I’d like you to get us a karaoke machine and the song so I can practice, if you don’t mind,” Barrier said as he rose from the couch. “I’ll be needing at least two ponies to help me practice the song ideally.” “Hold on a sec,” Hatty interjected. “I’ve got an idea about this.” “Well, that’s a first,” Verdant quietly snarked, only to wince slightly as he was roughly elbowed in the ribs by Gem. “While the bulk of the song only uses three singers, the very tail end of it has a large chorus join in.” Hatty continued without missing a beat, apparently not even hearing the insult. “I was thinking that since this is gonna be something hard for Punch, maybe it’d be best to get a bunch of ponies we know to join in, to help let her know she’s not alone and show that we care about her.” “That’s… that’s actually not too bad of an idea,” Daring said with a wingtip to her chin. “I wonder how many we’ll be able to get on such short notice.” “It can’t hurt to try,” Fleet spoke up from Daring’s right. “We should gather up who we can for Friday night and try to get them ready to sing this song.” “Well, that doesn’t seem like it’d be too bad,” Forge said as he rubbed a forehoof against the floor. He then turned his attention back to the captain. “Right. I’ll give it a shot.” After Forge, the rest quickly agreed to aid Barrier with his and Hatty’s plan. “Excellent,” Barrier said as he trotted up to Daring and Fleet. “I pray this goes well. Punch has suffered a great tragedy in Spectral’s loss. Hopefully this will bring her at least a little bit of happiness. *** The next evening, Barrier had just put the finishing touches on the grilled chicken salads he was preparing for dinner when he heard the front door opening. Looking towards the house’s entrance, he saw Hatty wheeling in a machine with a projector on top. By his side was a somewhat green looking Winter Gem, a cross looking Verdant and a somewhat uncomfortable looking Erica. The latter two headed upstairs while Hatty and Gem brought the machine towards the kitchen. “Good news. I managed to snag this karaoke machine and the song we need,” Hatty said as Gem rested her chin on the table.  “And the bad news?” Barrier asked with a raised eyebrow as he turned off the stove and started to move the pieces of neatly diced and fried chicken into the salad bowls. “Well, I learned we can’t make curry to save our lives… and Punch, Splash and Verdant are pissed at me because I puked on them,” Gem weakly said as she raised her chin from the table.  “Sorry to hear that,” Barrier responded as he drizzled some dressing onto the salads and gave them a quick toss. “I’m sure they’ll forgive you soon enough and I made plenty of spare salad. After what you went through, it sounds like a good meal should be helpful.” “So, we’ll practice the song after dinner?” Hatty asked as he walked up to Gem’s side and gently began to rub her back with his wing.  “Indeed.” Barrier started to place some of the salad bowls around the table. “Did you invite anyone to come on Friday?” “Yeah. Belmont, Red, and the rest of the family will be there,” Gem said right before hopping onto a chair and diving into her salad, wanting desperately to refill her empty belly.  “I got Showtime to come along and Tuxedo says he’ll talk to his wife and brother to see if they can make it,” Hatty said as he slowly sat down on a chair, stunned by how quickly his mate devoured her food. “I think I saw Verdant ask Erica and Splash once Punch was out of earshot.” Shortly after Hatty had finished speaking, Fleet, Windy, Daring, Forge and Swift arrived at the table to partake of their food.  “Good news, my friends,” Swift said as she stabbed into a piece of chicken with her fork. “I have asked Clean Cut, Drumstick and some of my other co-workers to come to the karaoke night.” “Snow and Snowy are also onboard,” Forge chipped in as he made sure his lettuce leaf was completely covered in dressing. “As are Asta and Silver Swirl.” “Summer Eve’s said she’ll tentatively be there, so long as Strawberry’s feeling up to making it,” Fleet said before biting down on a crouton. “And some of my friends said they’ll be there as long as their parents are okay with it,” Windy cheerfully chirped. “Fantastic, thank you all for this.” Barrier responded as he moved some of his salad around his bowl with his fork. “Windy, could you fetch Verdant and Erica from upstairs once dinner’s done?” “I think Hatty or Gem should do that instead,” the filly replied before munching on some lettuce and croutons. “I may like Miss Erica, but I don’t wanna risk walking in on the pair screwing.” “That… is a fair point,” Barrier admitted just before Gem rose up from the table, her bowl now completely empty. “I’ll do it,” she said through the bowl in her mouth before dropping it off in the sink. “Besides, this’ll gimme an extra chance to say sorry.” As Gem started to head for the stairs, Windy’s eyebrow rose in curiosity. “What’s she gotta apologize for?” “You don’t wanna know while eating,” Hatty replied, making the filly lightly shudder before returning to her meal. *** Barrier ducked under the buck Punch tried to launch at his head, barely striking the tips of his mane before he shoved his shoulder into her belly and sent her tumbling onto the bright blue mat. Just as he rose back to his hooves, he heard something heavy charging towards him. In a flash of light, he had teleported himself onto Bea’s back and delivered a foreleg strike to her shoulder, making her stumble and fall to the mat beside Punch. When Barrier landed on the mat, he saw he was now being charged simultaneously from both his left and his right by the earth pony twins. Tensing his legs, Barrier waited until the last moment before jumping back, making the two collide face first against each other. Just as he landed however, he felt himself being grabbed from behind by Holly. Gritting his teeth, he leapt up and spun so the clinging reindeer was slammed into the mat and under Barrier’s weight before rolling off. “Time!” Barrier called out before lightning his horn and bringing Holly to her feet with his magic. “Today went better than I had anticipated for all of you. Are you alright?” “Nothing too bad,” Holly said as she brushed herself off. “Still, I’m glad we have a day off before the next training session.” “I’ve been better,” Nicky answered before rubbing her jaw. “I swear I’ll get yah next time, Teach.” “Same here,” Shorty added as he rubbed his sore snout. “How ‘bout you, Bea?” “Well, Ah don’t feel totally tenderized,” the cow replied before turning to the unicorn mare. “Punch?” “I’m good. Thanks, Bea,” Punch said as she rolled her shoulders. “So, anything planned for tonight?” “Well, mah friend Kiko’s in town and Ah was hoping to introduce y’all to her.” The cow warmly smiled before pulling her nearby companions into a group hug. “Wanna come?” “Sorry, but I’ve got a date tonight,” Shorty said as he slipped out of the group hug.  “Hopefully Tiger Stripe doesn’t break your hips, Bro,” Nicky said with a smirk, to which Shorty blew her a raspberry. “Sorry, Bea, but I’ve got plans with Honey Droplet later.” “Oh, not a problem, Darlin’,” Bea said as she let her remaining friends go. “How ‘bout you two?” “Sure thing,” Punch said with a soft smile. “I didn’t really have any plans.” “Same here,” Holly chipped in before turning to face Barrier. “Anything else before we leave, Barrier?” “Just a quick word in private with Bea before you all leave,” the charcoal unicorn said. “Other than that, class dismissed.” Bea stepped towards Barrier as the other four headed for the door. Once they were out of earshot, the cow spoke to the shorter stallion. “Ah can guess what this’s about. Mah milk costs twenty bits per bucket and rest assured, it’s top quality stuff.” “What I wished to ask isn’t about your milk,” Barrier said, resisting the urge to face hoof. “I was wondering if you knew about Punch’s plans to visit Midnight Melodies this Friday and sing for the first time since Spectral Image’s death.” “Oh, well O’course Ah do, Barrier,” Bea replied. “She told all of us at her place the other day. The rest of us are all gonna be in the audience fer her, though she doesn’t know it. S‘gonna be a nice little surprise.” “That’s good to hear,” Barrier said, feeling some of the weight he’d felt slipping off of his shoulders. “I’m going to be singing with her and I was hoping to get as many as I can to attend to show their support for her.” “Ah, that’s so sweet,” Bea smiled before pulling him into a quick hug. “Ah’m thinkin’ Ah’ll invite Kiko tah join in as well. She might like it.” “Excellent,” Barrier nodded. “I won’t keep you any longer. I’ll see you Friday. Hope you and your children have a good time.” An amused chuckle came from Bea as she started to head for the door. “Ah don’t have kids, Barrier. Ah take hormone pills to make mah milk.” “Ah, well, I hope you have a good time, regardless.” Barrier shrugged his shoulders before he started to leave. “At least all my ducks seem to be in a row now.” *** After an uneventful Thursday, the big day had finally come. With class wrapped up, Barrier had decided to walk with Punch to Midnight Melodies. Their trip took them on a slight detour to Punch and Honey’s apartment building. The pair had to wait several minutes outside before Honey hurriedly flew down from the fifth floor. “Sorry, sorry, sorry!” Honey said as she came down next to the trio. “The heck, Sis?” Punch huffed as she started to lead the way. “Did you forget about all this until the last second?” “No! I didn’t!” Honey grumpily replied. “I remembered things exactly, but… um… I got constipated… That’s why I took so long.” “Eww… TMI, Sis.” Punch grimaced and tried to pull away from the pair. “I didn’t need that mental image.” After a moment, certain that Punch’s eyes were locked on the path ahead of them, Honey leaned close to Barrier’s ear. “That’s not really why I’m late,” Honey cautiously whispered into the stallion’s ear. “I had an unexpected guest that’ll be showing up for tonight’s song session.” “That’s fine. It will give what I’ve got planned more time to work,” Barrier softly replied, making Honey’s eyebrow raise. “Trust me. She’ll be pleasantly surprised.” After several minutes of walking, the trio had entered the Midnight Mall and soon came to Midnight Melodies. There were few lights on at the bar and on stage, masking the many guests from Punch in the darkness. Briefly talking to the manager, Punch led Barrier and Honey onto the stage, the lights pointed at her prevented her from making out the crowd. With a swallow, Punch grabbed a microphone, followed quickly by Barrier and Honey. The pegasus mare tended to the karaoke machine while Punch attempted to address the crowd. “Good evening, everyone,” Punch somewhat nervously said. “I hope you have a good night tonight. My friends and I will be singing a song that’s a tribute to a fallen friend of mine. Spectral Image, wherever you are, I hope you hear this song and that it brings you a smile.” Punch closed her eyes and took a deep breath as Honey pressed a button on the karaoke machine. A gentle music box-like melody came from the speakers as Barrier came up to Punch’s side.  The trio began to sing together in chorus before the song transitioned to a part with Punch’s leading and Barrier accompanying her. Barrier heard a faint wince in her voice at the lyrics, “So much pain”. Soon the song became a duet shared between the sisters, both singing in harmony with one another. Punch’s gentle, nurturing voice was accompanied by Honey’s high, somewhat childish voice. Once the song moved to an instrumental moment, Punch swallowed and stepped forward. “Specky, this is for you,” she whispered as a tear rolled down her cheek. “Sit down, children. Do not quail…” Barrier could hear the pain in her words before he soon joined in, repeating the words. When the song was about to move to another chorus, the stage lights shifted to the audience and Punch opened her eyes. She was shocked, but continued her singing without missing a beat, by the sight before her. The crowd was almost entirely filled by familiar faces that joined in with her song. All of Barrier’s housemates, Erica, Snow Sweeper, Snowy Skies, Clean Cut, Drumstick, Crispy Wings, Dolly, Summer Eve, Strawberry Sundae, Color Splash, High Gear, Pixel Flash, Silver Swirl, Asta and Einar, Bea, Shorty and Nicky, Holly, and many others she didn’t recognize were all there, singing together with her. A second tear, one of joy streaked down her face when the gathered harmony sang, “Let us not forget to say, all the friends they made on their way.” Punch felt Honey’s wing being draped over her back as the large gathering reached the end of their song, the ponies being met by thunderous applause.  “Thank you, all of you, for all of this,” Punch happily said as some more tears began to flow. “I didn’t know you’d all show up, but I’m very glad you did.” Setting the microphones aside, Barrier hopped down from the stage and made his way over to the table where his housemates were seated while Punch practically dragged Honey along to meet her classmates. *** Several more joyous songs were sung that night from the assemblage Barrier’s friends had gathered. After nearly over an hour, the gathered band started to go their separate ways. Barrier, his household, Erica and Snow Sweeper had offered to accompany Punch and Honey home. “Thanks again, everyone,” Punch said as they started to leave Midnight Melodies. “It’s just… really nice to know so many care about me.” “More than you know, my dear,” a deep yet feminine voice made Punch instantly come to a halt while the rest of her traveling companions slowed and looked over their shoulders to the source.  Emerging from the darkness of Midnight Melodies was a tall unicorn mare with a smooth yellow coat, a stunning straight crimson mane topped with a dark cerulean hairband, and piercing harlequin green eyes. “Hello, Punch. It’s been far too long,” the mare said as she drew near, allowing Barrier to see that her cutie mark was a glass of milk with a honeycomb printed on the glass. “M-M-Mom?!” Punch asked shakily as she drew closer to the older unicorn who quickly nuzzled her. “W-What are you doing here? I thought work—” “While vitally important doesn’t change the fact one of my children needs me,” the mare said as she gently gave Punch’s back a stroke. “I wanted to see how you were doing. I met Honey earlier, followed you three from a distance here and watched your little performance from the back. A merry chuckle came from her as her eyes swept over Barrier and the others. “I’m very glad to see my daughters are so loved.” She stepped away from Punch and held a foreleg out to Barrier. “Milk ‘N Honey, at your service. Thank you for being there for my children, Mister…” “Magic Barrier,” Barrier answered as he took her foreleg and gently shook it. “Ah, so you’re the one that’s been teaching my daughter self-defense after what happened to her friend,” Milk ‘N Honey said as her eyes swept over his young housemates. “Her letters have told me much about you all. A group of soldiers from centuries past flung through time. It’s quite an interesting tale. Still, I must ask… which one of you fed my daughters dog food?” A scarlet tinge exploded across Forge’s face while Hatty pointed at the unicorn stallion with his wing. “Um, that was me, ma’am. I’m deeply sorry about all that. I honestly didn’t know it was dog food until Erica told me. I just thought it was stew with a dog as its mascot.” “So I’ve been told.” Milk ‘N Honey chuckled as her eyes went over the privates. “At least it made our coats glossier.” Sweat poured from Punch’s brow as she rubbed the back of her neck. “To get to the point, I appreciate what you’ve done for my daughter, Barrier,” Milk ‘N Honey said before leaning close to his ear. “You seem like the kind of stallion who could give her some good loving, and I’ve heard you’re the sharing kind.” As she pulled back, she gave Barrier a wink.  “Mom, what’d you say to Barrier?” Punch nervously asked of the older mare. “Nothing to worry yourself with, dear,” she said before chuckling. “I was just thinking about how he can juggle two things and was wondering if he could handle three.” “Mom…” Punch groaned as her coat turned redder while only a faint tinge appeared on Barrier’s. “At any rate, I won’t be able to stay for too long before I’ve got to head back north,” Milk ‘N Honey said as she pulled away from the group. “How about we all head to your apartment and spend some time as a family before I leave?” “Uh, sure thing, Mom,” Punch said as Honey came up to the older mare’s side. “Would you like us to join you?” Barrier asked, to which Milk smiled. “Oh, most certainly,” she said with a warm smile. “I’d like to know everything I can about my daughter’s former guard friends.” The trip to Punch and Honey’s apartment was rather uneventful, save for the former guards regaling Milk ‘N Honey with tales of their past and present adventures, from the mundane to the bizarre. When they reached the building’s entrance, it was rather dark out. The stars twinkled brightly against Luna’s dark backdrop.  “Thank you for all you’ve done for my daughter, Barrier,” Milk said with a smile. “I wish you a good night. My daughters and I have much to talk about.” “Not a problem.” Barrier gave a respectful nod to the mother mare before turning his attention to the pink coated unicorn. “I’ll see you on Monday, Punch.” “Right. See ya Monday, Barrier,” Punch gave a wave as she opened the door for her mother and sister. “Later!” Once she had slipped back inside, Barrier led the remaining ponies and griffin back towards the manor. “Well, that actually turned out far better than I had expected.” “Always nice to see a plan pan out,” Fleet said from where she stood with Windy nestled on her back, trying to keep warm in the chilly winter evening. “Hopefully this helps her heart heal somewhat.” “Say, speaking of hearts…” Snow started as he walked closely beside Forge. “You guys got plans for Hearts and Hooves Day?” The cadets and Erica all gave affirmative responses before Snow’s eyes fell on Barrier. “Indeed, we do,” Barrier quickly replied. “Rest assured, I intend to make it a Hearts and Hooves Day well worth remembering.