You watch the oyster drift away from your fins, only to realize you didn't even try to open it.
You shake your head again. For whatever reason, you were finding it unnecessarily difficult to keep yourself focused today. It was a bit jarring, really. You had never slacked off so heavily during your pearl-hunting.
Of course, you knew the reason why. It was all about that little, awkward encounter you had engaged in yesterday. It just refused to leave your mind, no matter how hard you tried to focus on the current task. A plethora of questions never ceased to swirl around in your brain.
What if she's wondering about you?
What is her name?
Was it a mistake to let her see you?
No matter how you went about clearing your mind, thoughts of her and your little stare-off with her never failed to reemerge. Though you welcomed the slight daydreams yesterday, it grew a bit annoying now, seeing as it was hindering your pearl finding.
You close your eyes and take a deep breath, letting the crisp ocean water flow through you. Filtering it through your system, you shake your head lightly once again and swim back to the ocean floor. Reaching the bottom, you lower a fin and scoop up another oyster. You begin the process of slowly loosening the oysters vice on its pearl.
As your fins do their duty, you idly let your mind wander. It was a rather serene day at the beach yesterday. Normally more ponies could be seen scampering around the docks at that hour. Not many ponies would lounge around on the beach, given the lack of sunlight, but you could still often see them running around on the docks. Mostly a few stragglers, but they were there nonetheless. You wonder why there wasn't more ponies besides that purple mare on the dock.
Just what was that mare doing there anyway? You had never seen her there before. Even with as frequently as you go to the surface, you were certain you had never seen her. Was she a tourist or something? No, if she had been, why would she be lazing about on a dock reading a book, rather than out on the town having fun?
Speaking of that, what was she reading? You hadn't gotten a very good look at the cover, so it was still a foreign title to you. Granted, you didn't know of many novels that the land ponies read, given that they don't function all too well underwater, but it still interested you to know what a mare like her would be interested in reading.
Perhaps it was something about that wizardry of hers. You were still baffled about that little trick she did. Are all ponies capable of doing things like that? You had never seen any ponies do anything similar to that. Maybe it was a specialty of the unicorn. Were all unicorns capable of magic in that way, or was this mare just special?
Well, she definitely was special. That sleek purple coat, those short cut bangs, those mesmerizing eyes...definitely the eyes. They were one of the key factors that prevented you from breaking your awkward gaze. There was just something about her that stuck in your brain like glue, and you couldn't shake it out. It was almost like-
Your thoughts are suddenly cut off as you feel a poke at your side. You look over to find Linnaeus pressing a stubby tentacle into your ribs. He tilts his body slightly, giving a curious gesture. Before you can respond, he points to your fins with a tentacle.
Looking back down, you find the oyster was no longer in your grasp, and was instead resting on the ocean floor again, completely undeterred by your 'prying.' You slap a fin across your muzzle and groan.
"Alright," you say, to no one in particular. "Forget it. I can't do this today."
Linnaeus seems a bit disheartened. You give him a sheepish smile, feeling a little bad. You didn't bring him with you yesterday, and on the day you do bring him, you decide to cut off the hunting early. You would have to make it up to him another day somehow.
You pat him on the bulb a few times in reassurance, but he just gives you his equivalent of a pout. You chuckle slightly, and beckon him with a fin to follow you back home.
Your pearl hunt didn't take you too far from home base today. Just a short swim west of the cave. You prefer to alternate the area you hunt in regularly, to allow some new oysters to make their way to the surface of the ocean floor. There were about six different areas you regular, but there were also a few special areas you only visited on occasion. These areas often resulted in the best finds, but only if given enough time to bear 'fruit.' You decide to give it a few more days before you visited one of them.
Within only a few minutes, you've already arrived back home. Just the same as you left it, of course. Not like you expected any sudden developments. Of course, with that one scenario involving a pesky pack of dolphins, you wouldn't be surprised if something like that had happened again.
Swimming inside, you find it to be unusually calm in the abode. You are put off a bit by the strange serenity. Normally Swift would be home by this time of day. Swimming throughout the cavern, you find it to be completely barren. He must still be out in the sea, doing whatever.
Shrugging it off, you figure he would be back in due time. Pulsing your tail again, you propel yourself into your own room. Not opting to seal off the room this time, you swim over to the opposite wall and lift your satchel over your head, placing it near the edge of your bed. Resting yourself onto your bed, you sigh lightly and wonder just what you could do.
Immediately, the idea of visiting the surface pops into your mind.
Was that a good idea though? What if she was there again? You were normally experienced enough to avoid being spotted by anyone, so it's not like that was your main concern. If anything, she was. If she were to be there, would she be purposefully looking for you? Given how engrossed she was in that book, that might not be the case. Still, you never know. You weren't an expert on those land-dwellers, after all. You only knew the bare basics.
It was a bit of a tough call. Go to the surface or wait it out for a bit? There really wasn't a huge amount of danger in going. It's not like if she was looking for you that she would really be able to do anything to you. Then again, she does have wizardry on her side. What if she could catch you with her magic? Would staying at home for the day be for the best?
Well, one thing is certain. Staying home would be boring as heck.
Eventually, you just decide to say 'screw it, why not?'
However, you can't leave right away. Last time you left without leaving any notice, Swift was breathing down your neck for the rest of the week. Lifting yourself off the bed, you exit your room. Passing through the main lobby, you swim into the kitchen area.
The kitchen room in itself was a bit more complex than the rest of the house, though still simplistic overall. Several specially crafted coral structures protruded from the walls, serving as shelves and holding food items. Near the wall was a large stone structure, giving a surface for easier preparation of meals. Small alcoves held utensils, ingredients, and other items.
Your focus, however, was fixated on the small, wooden chest in the corner. Swimming over to it, you lift up the lid and pull out a small pink conch shell from the pile. You give it a few taps and bring it up to your ear, listening closely. Not hearing any sort of sound being emitted from the object, you bring it to your mouth and speak.
"You weren't here when I got back. Going out for a bit, be back later." You keep it simple. No need to give him a speech or anything.
You tap the shell once more and bring it to your ear again. Listening in, you can hear your previous sentence being echoed to you. It was an odd concept to grasp when you were younger and you still don't right understand it. Speaking into empty conch shells can store the voice of the speaker. The only trouble is that it can never be removed, and the only way to erase the message is to destroy the shell itself. Other than that, it was a great relay system. A small bit of knowledge you gathered was that these messages don't carry themselves onto land. Apparently, the only thing that can be heard above water from these shells is the ocean itself, or so the land-dwellers say.
Satisfied with the message, you set the shell onto the counter to let Swift know of its presence. With that, you head for the exit, your destination in mind. You are still a tad nervous about this, with your previous surface outing still fresh in your mind, but still decided that it's better than sticking around here for who knows how long until Swift returned.
Reaching the entrance of the cave, you bid Linnaeus the usual farewell, and head out.
~*~*~
The ocean was unusually calm on the way to the surface today.
It only took you but a few minutes to reach the surface. The lack of wildlife on the way here was kind of strange, you admit. There were usually at least a few schools of fish swimming around up here. But today, it was incredibly serene. Almost eerily so. You shrugged it off as just being a low-traffic day, or no-traffic day in this case. At least it made reaching the surface a tad easier.
The orange sunlight lazily filters into the ocean water, giving a faded glow to the area. It was a sight you love, like the calm entrance to a new world. There aren't many ponies who could get as much joy out of this as you, you would bet. It's not like breaking the surface of the water was an unusual action for surface-dwellers. For you, it's a journey. The breaching of new, uncharted territory.
Granted, you visited the same place every time, but it was exciting nonetheless!
This time, however, you are still on edge a bit. Tiny bits of unease rest in your mind about having to run into that mare again. You manage to subdue them the entire way here, but now that the surface was right above your head, they start to come a bit more forcefully. You continue to push them from the forefront of your mind as you slowly approach the surface.
With only a sliver of hesitance, you slowly break the surface. Moving slowly as to not warrant any unnecessary attention, you swivel your body around until you are facing the shore. Once it is in sight, you find it to resemble the condition it was in yesterday. No ponies are trotting around the pier today and the beach is barren once again.
You feel both relieved and disappointed. On the one fin, you don't have to worry about any extra eyes in case you go looking for that purple mare again. No need to have any hindrances in case she may be lurking around. On the other fin, you don't get to observe any land ponies today. Isn't that the whole reason you come up here?
Either way, the beach doesn't house any life other than the occasional crab. Scanning your eyes across the dock, all the vendors of the usual snacks are all closed up. No pony would be buying those things they call 'funnel cakes' and 'cotton candy' today, it seems. You've always wanted to try those things. The land-dwellers go on and on about how sweet they are. There isn't much in the way of sweet food in the sea.
As your eyes pass over all the kiosks, your gaze eventually settles on the dock she resided on yesterday.
...or rather, resides on today. She's there!
Your head recoils slightly. Much like yesterday, she rests peacefully, her legs folded beneath her. Her gaze is fixated on the book at her knees. Her mane ruffles slightly in the calm breeze, yet her gaze remains undeterred. She occasionally flips the page with her snout, yet her eyes never leave the paper. She's got quite the focus, you give her that.
You submerge yourself beneath the surface once again and begin to swim forward. You realize this is a bit of a gamble, yet you continue to move through the chilly water. If your little encounter is still fresh on her mind, she might catch you. Still, you are a pretty damn good swimmer, if you do say so yourself. You aren't too worried about the consequences. Then again, perhaps that isn't why you're nervous.
You shake your head slightly to dispel the worry. Once you are a fair distance closer, you slowly reemerge from the water. You cautiously peek forward to the mare once more. It looks like she's too engrossed in her reading to notice you. You hope to keep it that way.
Just like yesterday, you can't help but be astounded by her. You've actually managed to close the distance more than yesterday, despite your worries. Her features are absolutely flawless. Not a single blemish or scar, and her mane doesn't have a hair out of place. Her coat does not change in hue at any point on her body. Though it might seem somewhat dull, it's actually rather beautiful to you. She is but one color, and she does that color perfectly.
Her eyelids move quickly as she blinks, as if she's trying to prevent obscuring her vision from the book for the shortest amount of time possible. She must be quite the avid reader, given her attention to the novel before her. Perhaps that's her special talent. Then again, the image on her flank doesn't really give a clear indication as to what that talent might be. You gathered that those things on their flanks represented their special abilities, or just whatever they were best at. What did they call those images again? Booty Marks? You can't remember.
As your eyes scan over her, you suddenly feel a bit concerned. Now that you're this close, you can't help but notice that she bears a small, awkward frown on her face. It almost looks like she was forcing her expression. Her brow is furrowed slightly and her reading almost seems a bit frantic. Is she nervous over something? Maybe there is something in her story that's getting her flustered. Whatever it is, you suddenly begin to feel a tad uncomfortable over it.
At that moment, her horn begins to glow again. This time, you keep your gaze steady. No way you're passing up an opportunity to see this! Once again, the bag next to her is enveloped in the reddish aura, and the flap raises on its own. A bottle floats out from within and sets itself in front of her, a straw following close behind. Once they've assembled themselves, she takes a calm sip from the beverage.
No matter how many times you see it with your own eyes, you can't help but be amazed. You've never seen any other unicorn pull something like that off. Maybe that's her special talent, being a wizard. Either way, it's something you found fascinating, and it only made you more curious about this mare.
And it looks like the same could be said of her, as she stares at you. Mouth agape, no less.
Without a second thought, you turn and begin to swiftly pull your head underwater.
"WAIT!"
...only to freeze in place.
Your eyes dart around and your mind begins to race. What should you do? Go under and ignore her plea, or turn and face her? It's already too late to escape unseen, but that doesn't mean the possibility of fleeing isn't there. Yet you feel compelled to at least say something, if only for the sake of manners. You have no idea how she would react to either action, but you can't help but feel the need to confront her. Would it be fair of you to run away without giving her a chance? Though it's what any creature in the wild would do, you're beyond such cowardice.
For whatever reason, the decision of facing her slowly overpowers your innate fear. You begin to turn, albeit very, VERY slowly. Keeping your eyes closed until you are facing her direction, you slowly open them, as if you were about to gaze upon a forbidden sight. For you, that isn't too far from the truth.
As your eyelids release their hold on your vision, you find the mare now standing. One of her forelimbs is stretched out to you, as if she were trying to physically withhold you from the ocean below. Her face is strained in an expression you struggle to describe. It looks like a mixture of fear, pleading, intrigue, and even a bit of despair. Her gaze is locked onto yours as you stare into each others eyes.
An odd feeling settles upon you. You had only ever seen her eyes sideways. Now that you're staring directly into them, you find a strange new depth to them. The pools of amethyst seems to deepen with each passing second and you struggled to find a bottom to them. The outside world seems to silence itself as you gaze into her eyes, feeling a fleeting sensation within yourself.
The only thing breaking yourself out of your trance is her. She retracts her outstretched forelimb slightly, and her eyes dart about. She seems to be searching for the right words to say. Then again, what do you say when you realize some random pony has been spying on you?
At last, she seems to find her words again.
"Wh...Who are you?"
Not what you were hoping to hear. Then again, what did you expect her to say?
Either way, you don't really know how to respond. Do you just flat-out tell her just what and who you are, or should you avoid it? It was a tough call. She probably has no idea that seaponies like you exist. On the other fin, she does read quite a bit. You wouldn't be surprised if there were books on your existence. Whether or not she believed them is another question.
Now that you've chosen to confront the mare, the option of answering her still overpowers the desire to flee.
"Uh, I'm just, uh, your average stallion, taking a swim!" Even you aren't convinced by your tone. Still, you decide to dodge the truth.
"But this beach is closed for today..." She responds, still holding a bit of intrigue in her face.
"O-Oh, uh, it is? Ha, my bad!" You respond in a very uncool manner. Why you're speaking like this is beyond you.
She seems to double-check herself before continuing. "But, I saw you out here yesterday at this same time..."
"O-Oh?" Crap. She does remember. Did you expect her not to? "Ha, guess I'm just bad with the time!"
Understandably, she doesn't seem to buy it. Her face scrunches up in confusion and she seems to be examining you. You hope she can't see your body beneath the surface of the water. Suddenly, she takes a rather strange look on her features, as one of her eyebrows raises.
"Well, why don't you, uh, come here? I mean, you have to get out, right?"
Crap. "Oh, I'm good, th-thank you!" Why are you stammering?
"Just one second!" She calls out.
She suddenly turns and heads back down the pier. For whatever reason, you stay put. Even though this is ample opportunity to turn and book it, you feel compelled to respect her wish. You watch as she descends a staircase onto the beach. She approaches the edge of the water. Once she reaches the brink of the beach, the water lazily flowing around her hooves, she reaches out to you.
"Come on!" She says, beckoning for the hoof you don't have.
"N-No, really, I'm good!" You respond shakily.
"But this beach is closed, you have to get out, right?" She replies cheerfully. Is she oblivious to your stature, or is she doing this on purpose?
Your options are few, but the few you have are radically different. Either turn tail and run, or approach her. Without even thinking, you know the consequences of both. Even with as harsh as the former might be, you really consider doing just that. There is nothing binding you to accepting her plea and approaching her. She's just some random mare. A rather pretty one, sure, but no one you know in particular. Why should you listen to her?
Maybe because of that tiny feeling in your gut telling you to?
Something in your chest wanted you to. Some tiny, indescribable urge to approach her. Is it out of fear of hurting her feelings? Is it out of desire to get closer to her? Is it out of respect for a lady? No matter what it is, it's steadily growing. Growing to the point where it's impossible to ignore it.
You begin to wave your fins, pushing yourself in her direction.
This is a stupid idea. You know this is stupid. Yet for some reason, you can't help but do it. Some tiny, unknown desire to fulfill this wish of hers.
Within moments, you've arrived at the edge of the beach. She's but a few feet in front of you, still offering her hoof with a gentle smile on her face. You were almost convinced that she really was oblivious to your being.
You feel a strong tension in your stomach. This is it. You are about to reveal yourself to a land-dweller. His voice echoes loudly in your mind, reminding you of all the warnings and restrictions about the very act you are about to perform. There is still the availability of turning back, but...you know you can't simply do that. Not now.
"Um...are you alright?"
You snap out of your stupor to find her giving you a concerned expression. You suddenly feel a good portion of your angst wash away at her caring gaze.
You let out a loud sigh. "...Guess there's no avoiding it now, huh?" You say quietly.
"What do you..."
Before she can finish, you close your eyes and calmly lift a fin above the water.
Though you can't see it, you definitely hear it. Her shocked gasp is testament to her surprise. Not like you expected her to be calm about this. You are only one of a very rare breed, after all.
Following her initial gasp is a long, unsettling silence. The only sound breaking the quiet is the ocean water washing up and down the shore and the occasional cry of a seagull. You don't sense any movement from the mare in front of you. You can only picture her expression in your mind. Eyes wide, mouth agape, head retracted. The quiet is almost painful. How long was she going to stand there? You pray for her to do something.
"Are you really a..." She starts.
"A seapony?" You finish for her. "Yeah..."
Another moment of silence. At least this time it was cut off quickly by an excited gasp from her.
"Oh my gosh..." You slowly pry your eyes to meet hers. In place of the fearful gaze you expected her to have, she was actually smiling. Very widely, at that. "This is incredible!"
"Huh?" You respond weakly.
"I always thought seaponies were just myth! I can't believe this! All of the reports I've read on seaponies were so inconclusive, I doubted their existence, but now I'm seeing one with my own eyes!" She begins to let out a spree of excited giggles which you can't help but find to be cute.
At least one thing was made clear. She knows what you are, at the very least. The fact you could help confirm that for her made you feel a bit at ease. That nagging voice in the back of your mind that sounded very much like him was still there. You try to suppress that voice as best as you could.
"This is so exciting! What is it like down there? What do you eat? Is it dangerous? Do you know other seaponies???"
You're suddenly being slammed with a barrage of questions at lightspeed. Eventually, you begin to lose track of everything she is saying as her words begin to fly at several thousand miles per hour. It all just blurs into a mish-mash of voice.
"Uh, ma'am?"
"Where do you live?"
"Uh, I-"
"Do you have some special methods for traveling?"
"I-"
"Is there some big seapony tribe!?"
"MA'AM!"
Only after you yell does she snap out of her interrogation. Blushing slightly, she begins to chuckle awkwardly.
"Ah, heh heh, sorry. I just kinda got, um...yeah." She says.
"It's alright," you reassure her. "I can understand."
"What do you mean?" She takes a confused look on her face.
"Well, this is my first time meeting a land-dweller, to be honest." You subconsciously rub the back of your neck with a fin.
"Oh my gosh, really?" She takes that excited look on her face again.
"Yeah, there's kinda this rule about that, actually."
"Huh?" There's that confused look again.
"Uh, it's a long story..." You fidget your fins slightly.
"Oh, I see. Oh!" She giggles quietly. "Silly me! My name is Twilight Sparkle!"
"The honor is mine, Ms. Sparkle." You extend a fin to her, which she meets with her hoof, albeit with a tiny smidge of reluctance. You don't blame her, to be honest.
"Please, Twilight is fine. And I'm the one who should be honored! I still can't believe this! I have so many things to ask you!" She still holds that ecstatic nature from her earlier interrogation.
"Heh, yeah, I noticed." You tease her.
She blushes a bit in response. "Oh, yeah, sorry about that. But really, it's not every day I get to meet a seapony!"
"I could say the same thing about land-dwellers."
"So, am I the first pony you've talked to?"
"Well, as far as land-dwellers go, yes. I've got quite few questions myself, actually."
"Oh?" Her face suddenly lights up like an angler-fish. It almost looks like she was waiting for you to ask that. "I'd love to tell you anything you want to know! But you have to answer my questions in return!"
"Deal. So, where to start..." You ponder it for a second, but a glimpse at her horn gives you an idea of what to ask first. "Tell me, what was that thing you did with your horn earlier?"
Her face scrunches up in confusion slightly before it dawns on her. "Oh, you mean my magic?"
"So you are a wizard! I knew it!" You exclaim without a second thought.
She laughs heartily at your statement, and you suddenly begin to feel a bit bashful. "N-No, I'm not a wizard! Magic is an innate ability of all unicorns!" She says through her chortles.
"Oh...heh, I just thought it was a special thing, or something..." You rub the back of your head again.
"Well, to be honest, magic is kind of my special talent. My forte, if you will. I practice it more than most unicorns do." She says proudly.
"Oh, so is that what your Booty Mark is?"
She suddenly clams up and her face goes beet red. Her eyes widen and she backs up ever so slightly. "...M-My what?"
"Your Booty Mark, you know, that...thing..." You point to the image on her flank with a fin, indicating your point.
She follows the fin to the object in question. Upon seeing the image, she begins to snicker. "Oh, you mean this?" She points to the image with a hoof.
"Yeah, it's called a Booty Mark...right?"
After only a split seconds worth of a pause, she suddenly bursts out into laughter. You suddenly feel like you just said something very stupid, and given her reaction, that is very likely the case. She falls onto her flank in her laughter, clenching her torso with her hooves. You have to admit, her laughter is very cute. You even find yourself chuckling nervously.
After a moment, she finally manages to calm down a bit. "N-No, i-it's called a C-Cutie Mark!"
And now it was your turn to blush. "OH, oh, I-I'm sorry, I didn't, uh..."
She giggles slightly as she speaks. "No, it's fine, don't worry! This is all new to you, right?"
"Well, for the most part, yeah. I know some of the bare basics, but none of the fine details..." You say with slightly warm cheeks.
She finally manages to subdue her giggles to the point where she can speak uninterrupted. "Well, now it's my turn. What is it like living down there, under the sea?"
You consider the question for a moment. Do you just flat-out tell her that you find it boring, or would she be disappointed by that? There really wasn't a whole lot to say. Then again, she might find it as fascinating as you find her world to be. Either way, there was one small detail you wanted to avoid telling her.
"Well, it's kind of...lonesome, to be honest. I don't really know any other seaponies." It wasn't a complete lie. Other than Swift, you really didn't know any others.
She suddenly looks a bit crestfallen. "Oh my goodness, really? You don't have any friends?"
"Heh, a bit blunt, but I guess you could say that." You chuckle bitterly.
She seems to realize the bluntness of her statement as she suddenly looks very apologetic. "Oh, I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that!"
You wave a fin dismissively. "It's fine, don't worry about it."
She doesn't seem to feel any more comfortable. "Still...is it really that lonely?"
"Well, I have my pet jellyfish, but other than him, I don't have any actual friends..." You lower your gaze from her. Just saying all of this begins to make you feel depressed. You've never told anyone anything like this, not even Linnaeus. Not only would it hurt his feelings, but you just never really brought it up either way. Getting this all out, even if it's to someone you barely know, it hurts you a bit to hear yourself say all of this.
"Oh my...I'm so sorry..." She takes on that crestfallen look again.
She seems quite distressed over this. You really didn't think much of it. It was just how you lived your entire life, in such a state of solitude. You never gave it too much thought. It would arise in the back of your mind every now and then, but you never thought a whole lot of it. Twilight seems to be rather upset by this fact, given her reaction.
"Well," she starts. "If it means anything, could...could I be your friend?"
"Huh?" Your bring your eyes back up to her. You find her giving you a small smile and offering a hoof.
She was serious. She was offering her friendship to you.
A friendship with forbidden ponies? You can only imagine his fury. This one tiny scenario, this entire encounter would have him writhing with anger. If he found out, he would yell at you, no doubt. He might even shun you. Banish you from the home.
Yet how could you possibly bring yourself to say no to those eyes?
"That would be...nice."
You lift a fin and meet her hoof. The contact is very gentle, but it sends and oddly warm feeling down your fin and into your chest. Perhaps this mare was more than just astute at magic. Something about her brought about this very comfortable feeling within you. Something you struggled to describe. Could it possibly be...
*BOOOOOooooonnnnggggggg.....*
You both jump at the sudden sound. Twilight immediately whips around to look back to the city. After a few seconds, the sound repeats.
*BOOOOOooooonnnnggggggg.....*
After a brief moment, it looks like she has a sudden epiphany.
"Oh my gosh, I'm late! Ohhh, I promised Rarity I would be there on time! Oh, no no no!" She says frantically.
"Twilight?" You ask cautiously.
"I'm really sorry, but I have to go! I promised I would meet with a friend!" She suddenly takes off down the beach towards the pier, sand kicking up behind her hooves as she runs.
You can't help but feel a bit saddened by her sudden departure. You don't hold it against her. She made a promise, and has to keep it. She must be a very honorable mare to make such a big deal over being slightly late to a meetup. After all, she-
"Will I, uh, see you again?"
You hear her voice coming from your side. Looking toward the voice, you find her calling down to you from the dock she was reading on.
"Um...yeah, tomorrow maybe? Here?" You reply hastily.
"Great! Great, uh, I'll see you then!"
With that, she takes off towards the city, berating herself for being late all the while.
You find your mind to be blank. That really just happened.
You spoke with a surface dweller.
THAT mare, no less.
And she actually considers you a friend.
That probably explains the stupid grin you're wearing on your face.
With a great amount of gusto, you flip yourself back into the ocean behind you. Swimming through the currents in a carefree manner, you can't help but cherish the warm feeling in your stomach. You feel greatly at ease, and you suddenly don't have a care in the world. It all stems from one, tiny fact.
She actually likes you.
As a friend, sure, but still. Twilight Sparkle likes you!
To think, this all might not have happened if you had decided to swim away...
Feeling as giddy as can be, you quickly swim for home. Within only a few minutes, you can already spot your cave coming into view. You don't even care if Swift is home or not, why should that ruin your mood? Swimming through the mouth of the cave, you casually drift into the main room. Almost as if on cue, the familiar head of a stallion pops out from the kitchen.
"Hey, you're home a bit later than usual." He starts off, sounding a tad apprehensive.
"Hi! Sorry, guess I lost track of the time." You reply coolly, keeping your demeanor intact.
"You seem awfully cheery today..." He says with a bit of suspicion in his voice.
"Really? Guess I just had a good day." You keep up with the simple responses.
"Uh huh...Anyway, you hungry?" He still sounds questionable, but he doesn't address it any further.
"Nah, I'm good. I think I'm gonna hit the coral, kinda tired."
"Alright then...night."
With that, you begin to swim to your room. He's still suspicious, you can tell that much, but you're not worried. It's not like it's hard to keep this a secret from him. He isn't too bright, you admit.
Passing through the main room, you enter your corridor and seal of the entrance. Turning around, you're greeted with a small blob assaulting your chest.
"Linnaeus!" You exclaim happily. He squeaks in response, clearly curious as to your strangely enthusiastic greeting.
"You'll never guess what happened today..."