//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 // Story: Glint of Hope. // by ShyHeart //------------------------------// Chapter 1 Why can I not escape this? Why won't it leave me alone? Was it my fault?These questions are constantly reverberating in my head, as a constant reminder of what happened that horrific day, the day everypony I knew and loved vanished. No matter where I go, the chilling memory still follows, even after I had gotten rid of everything relating to the incident, it still persists! Why? I'd like to forget, but I just can't... my therapist told me to move to a more rural area, as to calm my nerves, Ponyville, to be exact. I'm riding on a train right now, it's bright and cheery on the inside, much like a child's room, but with an air of sophistication as well. As I saw the town approaching, I could't help but let out a small sigh of relief, seeing that it was a small town, with no real traffic on the streets. I was also given a ticket which contained the address of a mare who could give me a place to stay until I find and rent a house or apartment . 1489 Everfree Road... The train made a stop, and I grabbed my bags and headed off towards the address given. It took a bit of walking to find, but I eventually found a direction's officer at what I presumed to be the town square, lazily sitting behind a tall booth with many vouchers on the sides. I walked up to her, and began to speak. "Excuse me, miss? Can I have some directions on how to reach this address?" I said, handing the slip to her. "Alrighty, I'll just be a second." She said, pulling out a map of Ponyville and marking the point specified with a dot and arrow."There ya' go, need anything else?" "No thanks, but thank you for the directions." I trailed off in search of the house, but I was stalled by a purple dragon pulling a cart of boxes down the street, and seemed to be exhausted. I decided to go up and offer assistance to the little guy. "Hey, do you need any help there little guy?" "*Huff*...*Huff*...Yeah, I guess I could use a little bit...*Huff*.." I pulled the harness around my neck, and levitated the dragon onto my back, making sure to put him in a position where he could relax. "What's your name, little drake?" "Spike, the proud assistant Dragon of Princess Twilight Sparkle, who're you?" "Cobalt Glint, I'm from the Crystal Empire, used to be one of the Chefs for the royal family...but some issues arose." "Ouch, must suck to lose such a high-class job." "Yeah, hey, listen... could you tell me what the best route to take is if I want to reach this address quick?" I flashed him the card, and he got wide-eyed as a result. "Hey! You're headed to the same place I am!..Wait, you must be the pony who's staying with Sweetie Belle!" Sweetie Belle...Have I heard that name before? "Yeah, I'm moving in with her until I can get a place to stay. Is she nice?" "Nice as you can get, just...don't get her mad. Trust me." "Don't worry, I'll remember." I guess It'd be in my best interests not to piss this mare off... We walked down the road for a bit, cutting corners and such to get there faster. After about 15-20 minutes, we arrived at the house. It was big, at least 3 stories, and had many windows. The top had a flag with what appeared to be a young foal with a cape on it, and the letters "CMC" on it. I snapped back to reality, and let Spike off, and he knocked on the door. A light grey mare with a lilac and dark purple mane stepped out. "Hi there Spike! Did you bring the items I ordered? Oh...who is this?" "Hi there, my name is Cobalt Glint, I was supposed to be staying with you?" "Oh, that's right! My name is Sweetie Belle, come on in! Spike, grab his bags please! Do you want anything to drink Cobalt? This mare is kinda cool. "Oh, uh...water is fine. Thank you." "Okay, be back in a jiffy!" I wonder what she does for a living. her cutie mark has a Microphone and a heart...I wonder what that portrays...Meh, It does not really matter right now, I could always ask her anyways. Hmm...this house is even bigger on the inside than on the outside. The layout is pretty weird too, the kitchen appears to connect to the bedroom, (Or at least what I think is the bedroom.) and that connects to a bathroom from what I can see. Geez, this place is going to take some getting used to. Oh, she's coming back. "Here you go, one glass of water!" "Thanks, Ms. Belle." " *Giggle* You can just call me Sweetie, you know!" "Alright then, thanks Sweetie." "Come on then, let's get you unpacked!" She pointed towards the stairs, and I levitated my stuff above my head, making sure I didn't knock over something. These stairs led to the second floor, and what could pass as a separate house for all intents and purposes. It had the same rooms as before, just confined to a smaller space. I headed towards the bedroom, set my luggage down, and began to unpack. "Remember Cobalt, if you need anything, don't hesitate to call me!" " Ok Sweetie, It's getting late, I should probably finish unpacking then go to bed." "Alright, I understand, with the whole train-ride and all. You're probably REALLY tired, aren't you?" "Yeah, It was a 9 hour drive." "Woah, that's a long drive, where did you come from?" I hesitated to tell her at first, but then decided it was OK to tell her, since she is my landlord. "Crystal Empire." "Oh wow! It must of been really awesome there, huh?!" "Y-Yeah...it was okay, I guess."