//------------------------------// // Chapter 25: A Friendly Outing... // Story: Harmony and Courage: Running Parallel // by SSJRandomMaster //------------------------------// Chapter 25: A Friendly Outing... ------------------------------------------- The meeting at Sugarcube Corner took a weird turn after Silver and Azure finally got there. For one thing, it turned out Rainbow Dash was the cause of the rainbow Azure (and the others) saw on the day they got their cutie marks. Apparently, she was racing bullies, and something happened to her during the race that caused her to perform a Sonic Rainboom. Everypony in that room who actually saw it had wound up getting their cutie marks long before the group had ever met one another. However, while that in itself was interesting, it did little to soothe Azure's mental state. A few minutes prior to all of that, he'd learned a shocking truth: he met Twilight on a day a few years ago. Moreover, she was the filly he might have had a crush on a long time ago. He never saw Twilight again after that day, and had completely forgotten she'd existed until the night Nightmare Moon. "How'd I miss it..." Azure mumbled. "Silver, you didn't even see what happened; your magic wasn't exactly the level it is now either, and yet you were able to pick out all the details I'd missed..." "I didn't actually start thinking about it at first," Silver said. "Twilight didn't remind me of that filly because she didn't have any issues berating you for letting a blind pony freegallop. However, now that she's become awkward around you--again--it was a lot easier to pick up...especially when you gave her the book she'd dropped..." "Do you think Twilight knows?" asked Azure, not turning to face Silver, still reliving that memory in his head. "Knows what?" Silver responded. "That I was the pony she ran from that day--" "She didn't start being awkward until now, Azure." the blind pony became awkward. "Maybe, but...your hearing's better than mine," Azure needed some kind of reassurance, positive or negative, about his latest revelation. If it was true, it would add yet another complication to the triangle he was in. "Couldn't you tell if it was her if you tried?" "Two things, Azure: one, she barely spoke at all that day; two, even if she had spoken up just a little bit, voices change when a pony grows up, so chances are I couldn't tell anyway," Silver responded. "There's only one way to know for sure..." Azure turned to Silver, not bothering to mask the fact he knew what Silver was implying he do in order to figure things out. "That being...?" But he had to make sure all the same. "You ask her about the day yourself." Silver responded. Azure's heart started beating fast all over again as dread set in. He'd only just gotten the confidence he'd needed to speak to the two mares he was in the triangle with. If Twilight wasn't the filly, it'd only set him back a bit. But if she was, he had no idea how she'd respond to that knowledge. "There isn't another choice, is there?" "Not unless you know a time travelling spell..." Silver responded. Azure sighed. He was once again finding himself hesitating, but he knew it would have come to this anyway. "You're right," Azure said. Stalling wasn't going to get him anywhere; besides, he'd been painfully aware he had been given more than a reasonable amount of time to think about his predicament, and he'd been wasting a majority of it lamenting he'd hurt them and chasing his tail. "Silver, sorry if I'm being difficult." "It's not like I can blame you for being like this, given your situation," Silver reminded Azure once again of his failure to heed his advice. Azure sat down, tormented with the fact once again he might have been able to avoid it had he merely listened to the blind pony. "...I..." Azure started. "I'm going to go talk to Twilight." The colt immediately stood back up and proceeded toward the door. He heard hooves following him, and turned to see Silver walking towards him, clearly concerned. "Are you sure you're ready to do this?" Silver questioned. "No," Azure admitted, "But I've got to try..." Azure opened his door, and found a somewhat rare sight. It was a white unicorn mare--Rarity. She was standing right in front of Azure's door, her hoof outstretched, clearly about to knock on his door. "Oh, Azure," she said with a little surprise as she lowered her hoof, "Your timing is impeccable." "Oh, hey, Rarity," Azure was confused, no questioning that, "Why'd you come to me? Usually it's the other way around..." "I was asked by Pinkie to invite the two of you to a picnic with the rest of us," Rarity responded, and Azure immediately began to panic. "A picnic? When?!" If the picnic was later today, there wasn't a chance he'd be able to talk to Twilight alone. Especially with Applejack in attendance... "Um...tommorrow." Rarity took a step back, not liking the emotion Azure had projected while in the middle of his panic. Azure sighed in relief, and stood up straight again. "Tommorow, at noon." "Good. I still have time to talk to Twilight, then." Azure observed, preparing to get the planned talk over with. "Well..." Rarity started, "It's good to hear that you are able to bring yourself to speak with her again, but she's not home right now." Azure's heart dropped straight to the pit of stomach. Fearing the next thing that was going to come out of his mouth would be the refreshments he ate back at the random party Pinkie had just thrown, he spoke again, "W-where'd she go, then?" Azure stepped towards Rarity, who took another step back, clearly uncomfortable with the fact he was getting closer. "I don't know, Azure," she responded, "She said she had something she needed to take care of; she mentioned she wouldn't be back 'til late." Darn it all! Just when I finally make a possible breakthrough, I can't catch her alone! "I could barely muster up the nerves needed to talk to her, and now I can't do that until tommorrow when everypony else is going to be there, including Applejack! How can I talk to Twilight if she's there too?" Azure wasn't aware of it, but he wasn't in Rarity's face anymore. He was now pacing back and forth, through his living room. Rarity followed Azure in, and her tone of voice suggested she was worried. "Silver, is he alright? ... Silver?" "What do I do now?" Azure paid no mind to the world around him, once more swimming in guilt and self-loathing. "He will be in a second..." Splash! Azure was brought out of his panic attack faster than he ever thought possible. Cold water drenched him, causing him to gasp and immediately stop in his tracks. "How's that feel?" Silver asked. Azure turned to him, to see an empty bucket floating next to him, wreathed in the usual dark blue glow. "Thanks...I needed that," Now Azure was slightly annoyed. He was really getting tired of being drenched in water every time something went wrong. Even if most of those situations were his fault... "No problem," Silver responded, now floating a towel over to Azure. Azure took it and began to dry himself off. "Is this a bad time?" Rarity asked, and when Azure turned to her, he could see she was about to leave. Azure was indecisive on this. Should I tell her too, or should I leave it alone? "Well...do you think you need to tell her?" Silver asked, almost as though he was reading his mind. It was clear to him that without Rarity, Azure likely wouldn't have gotten this far. "Yeah..." Azure responded, nodding. "Rarity, there's something new about the situation I'm in. Close the door. I don't want to risk anypony else hearing this." Rarity was confused, yet intrigued, and her face showed it. She did as she was instructed, being a guest in Azure's home. As soon as everything was in order, Azure began to tell the story of how he once met a filly as a foal... And how that filly may have wound up growing up to be Twilight Sparkle. ------------------------------------------- Rarity could hardly believe her ears. Azure's tale was truly something remarkable. The filly in his story had to have been Twilight; what other pony would have carried around a saddlebag filled with books at that age? "Oh my, this is something straight from the pages of a romance novel!" The fact she went there did not surprise either of the colts, "Love at first sight, only to be seperated afterwards. Then, as if guided by fate, they meet again!" "Wait...love...what?" Azure asked, clearly off-guard from Rarity's comment. "Easy, Rarity, no need to add to his list of problems." Silver reminded her. Rarity looked to Azure; it was clear he didn't really comprehend what she was getting at. "I apologize, Azure, darling. I may have pushed it a bit far in using that word." "It's fine, Rarity," Azure brushed it off with a sigh, "But I still don't know what to do now...the longer I wait to talk to Twilight about this, the harder it's going to be for me to do it." "If that is the case, darling, then why not just talk to her during the picnic?" Rarity suggested, plainly as she could. Azure's look of doubt was unrivaled. "How can I get alone from her then? The others would get suspiscious, for sure..." "Leave the others to us..." " 'Us'? " Azure asked, clearly confused. "Silver, care to help me keep the others away from them?" Rarity didn't exactly like the implications of that, given she didn't know how deep Applejack's feelings for Azure were, but the situation needed to be resolved soon. Twilight was starting to get restless... "Alright, Rarity, I'll do what I can..." The relief was clearly visible on Azure's features. "Thanks, you two...for helping me with all this." "Hey, don't give me all the credit," Silver said. "Rarity's the one who helped you the most..." ------------------------------------------- The night came and went. Everything seemed to be in place. Rarity had no doubt that the others, except for maybe Fluttershy, would go along with the suggestion Silver suggested for the distraction so that Azure could get some alone time with Twilight. It was almost time for the picnic now and Rarity was already leaving her shop with a basket floating next to her. She believed everything would go smoothly as soon as everypony arrived. It was a nice spring day: a gentle breeze was blowing and the temperature was just right. All was set for the picnic today. Rarity trotted along, wondering to herself who else would already be there by the time she arrived. Rainbow Dash probably wouldn't be able to wait it out, so she'd be among the first there. Neither could Pinkie, since she was always the one starting these get-togethers anyway. Twilight was the student of Princess Celestia herself, so naturally she'd either be early... "Oh, Rarity!" Or right on time. "Oh, hello, Twilight," said Rarity, waving her hoof as she turned to the purple pony. "Heading toward the picnic as well?" Twilight looked around before answering her question. Rarity did so as well while waiting for the pony's response, and noted that aside from other ponies just outside of earshot, the two were virtually alone. "Actually, Rarity, I was heading for your shop first..." "Oh, is there something you wanted to talk about?" Rarity asked in response. "We can talk about it along the way, if you like." Twilight stopped for a few moments, gathering her thoughts. "Have you ever felt like...you've met somepony before?" Rarity blinked twice, wondering if Twilight was going where she thought with this. "Let's keep going, Twilight, we musn't be late..." "A-are you sure, Rarity?" Twilight asked, looking around nervously. "I don't want the others to hear us..." "No need to worry, dear, I doubt we could run into any of them from this side of Ponyville." Twilight still looked unsure after Rarity said this, but she agreed. The two walked a few steps before Rarity restarted the conversation. "Now then, you mentioned you feel like you've met somepony before?" "Well, after what happened at Sugarcube Corner, after we found out that Rainbow was the cause behind all of us getting our cutie marks, I started to think about my past. At first, I remembered things like the first book I read, or the time I became Princess Celestia's student. But then, I remember something else...I think it was the week before I was to start my lessons, but other than that I can't work out the details of it." Twilight recounted. Rarity had her ears open the whole time, now more curious than ever as to where this was going. This certainly sounded familiar so far... "Well, what was it about, if you don't mind my asking?" "It's hard to say. There was this young colt, and he did something for me, but I can't remember what..." she said, sounding a little frustrated by her inability to remember much of anything about it. "Is there anything about him you remember?" Rarity asked, blinking. "Just his mane...it was bluish-green in color, I think." Oh my, is it true after all? Rarity had to know more. "Is that all you can remember?" It was difficult not to act surprised. This situation was familiar, and it stood to reason this was Twilight's side of the story Azure had told her the night before. "Yeah, it's just...the detail stuck with me for some reason. A green mane isn't rare among ponies, and I've seen several colts with that mane color before." Twilight recounted. "None of them ever reminded me of that colt...not until yesterday." Rarity had just about heard all she neeeded to. "Do you mean...?" "He was the only pony that came to mind when that memory surfaced...but I don't know if it was really him then, or me just wanting it to be him..." Twilight sounded honestly unsure. A very rare sight coming from her. "Well, why don't you just ask him yourself?" Rarity asked of Twilight, hiding her excitement at what she knew was going to happen the instant Azure and Twilight started talking. "Couldn't hurt to try." "W-what..? I couldn't do that; not with everypony else being around..." Twilight said, almost panicking. "Especially...you know who..." Rarity wasn't sure exactly why Twilight was talking in code. The two were still relatively alone, and nopony seemed to be listening in. They were almost to the picnic site, but Applejack wasn't present, not from what Rarity could see. Still, Azure wasn't present either... "Now, now, Twilight, darling, do not allow something like that to stop you. It will not hurt anypony for your to ask a simple question of him." she assured her. "But, how can I talk to him about it, and not have somepony else hear us..." Twilight said. "Everypony will know if I just ask him to talk alone in front of everypony else..." Rarity withheld the urge to smile; the whole moment was ironic. One didn't want to talk with the others present; the other didn't know how to make that happen. "Just enjoy the picnic. If you see your chance to talk to him, do not hesitate to take it, Twilight..." ------------------------------------------- It wasn't that much later that Twilight and Rarity arrived at the site where the picnic was to take place. Sure enough, like Rarity thought, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie were already there. Twilight was not surprised to see Spike there already; before going to see Rarity, she sent Spike to see if the party pony needed any help carrying stuff. Judging from the fact Spike seemed just a little winded, she had quite a bit to carry. "Hi girls!" Pinkie chirped on sight. "Hi, Pinkie, have you two been here long?" Twilight responded, trying to bury the recent conversation into her subconscious. "Nah, me and Pinks got here a couple minutes ago," Rainbow confirmed, reclining on a cloud she'd lowered herself. Rarity, meanwhile, walked over to the blanket that had already been placed and set her basket down next to the three already there. Though it would have been nice of the pegasus to bring her own basket, it was far more likely that Pinkie had brought all three herself. "That just leaves Applejack, Fluttershy, and the guys," The studious mare looked around, seeing if she could spot anypony else. Strangely, Azure wasn't present. It was odd; on the days he was last to know, it was during days that couldn't be helped. He didn't work today to her knowledge-- "Scratch that, I'm right here," The familiar voice alerted them to the presence of the farmer mare. All turned to see her trotting up, a basket balanced perfectly on her back. Twilight couldn't help but wonder where Azure and Silver were. They were closer to here than Sweet Apple Acres, right? "I'm beginning to think we have too much food for this picnic," Rarity observed as Applejack set her basket down with the others. This brought the total to four, and all looked jam-packed with tasty treats. "Should be fine, I know Rainbow could eat for two mares," Applejack commented. "What's that supposed to mean, A.J.?" Rainbow was now paying full attention, but her response only got a laugh from the others. "Hey, sounds like we missed a joke..." Another voice, this time male, sounded. It wasn't Azure, Twilight knew that much. She turned, and saw a somewhat familiar sight. It was Fluttershy, with Silver. Yet... "Wait a sec, where's Az?" Rainbow pointed out. Twilight didn't quite know it, but both she and Applejack were both really interested to know this information. "Oh, he got called in to work. Emergency, but he should be here later so he said to just go on without him." Silver replied. The purple mare gave a small nod to herself. It made sense; Azure was certainly...dependable, when it came right down to it. "So, you wound up walking into Fluttershy on the way here?" Rainbow was the one asking all the questions now. From personal experience, Twilight usually knew that didn't end well, but since it was Fluttershy, it was likely not as bad. "Oh, well..." Silver started, a smile on his face. "You could say that." Twilight wasn't immediately sure if she imagined it, but Fluttershy actually smiled a bit wider than she thought. Normally, the mare would have blushed just a little. It seemed...odd. "Don't you think..." Fluttershy started. Twilight wasn't sure if she imagined it, but the mare's statement definitely lacked an "um" at the start, "that might be a little too much food?" "Don't worry. I'll work up an appetite by practicing some stunts, no big deal..." Rainbow assured, adding a flip into the air ending in a hover for emphasis. "Not a bad idea, Dash..." Silver said. "But why don't we all try to work one up with a couple games?" "Oh, picnic games!?" Pinkie immediately came to life--well, even more to life, "That would be super-de-duperly mega incredible!" She bounced around afterward. "Not a bad idea, Silver," Applejack commented, "Got any in mind?" "...Got any rope?" Silver questioned; Applejack's look of confusion afterward was unmistakable. "Um...yeah, I always have some on me...why do you ask?" "How about a six-legged race?" The word "race" got Rainbow's full attention. It was clear she was interested, even if it meant being on the ground. A certain incident in the fall made sure she at least didn't use her wings anymore in ground-bound competitions... "A race, huh? Doesn't sound half bad..." "Great, how about everypony else?" Silver inquired. "Sure, why not?" Applejack was in. "I'm in!" Pinkie chirped, "It'll be so much fun!" "I'll participate as well," Rarity stated plainly. That raised a few eyebrows. "What? Even a lady such as myself has to have fun sometimes!" She turned her head away slightly, seemingly offended, but somehow, Twilight had a nagging feeling that wasn't it. "How about you, Fluttershy?" asked Silver. Unlike everypony else, unsurprisingly, she wasn't too sure about it. "Um...I don't know," Fluttershy replied, "I-I'm not a very fast runner..." "C'mon, you can run with me, if you want..." "Well, okay," Fluttershy smiled again at Silver's offer. "I think I'll sit this one out," Twilight noted, "Somepony would be left out anyway, and Spike can't participate..." Everypony agreed. The teams were quite odd pairups no matter how you looked at it: Rarity and Pinkie were a team, Applejack and Rainbow were another team, and Silver and Fluttershy were a team as well. All seemed set for a fun six-pony race. Twilight couldn't help but feel a little left out. "Don't worry, Twilight, I can wait back here and keep you company..." Spike assured, tossing aside a stick which had been used to draw the start line and the finish line in the dirt. "Care to come along for the ride, Spike?" Rarity asked. Immediately, Spike abandoned his previous statement; he ran up to the white unicorn, who immediately placed him on her back using the levitation spell. The finish line was in a spot ahead out of sight; the start right in front of the group. "Are you sure about this, Silver?" Fluttershy asked, her trademark lack of confidence showing through, "I don't think we can win..." "It's okay, I don't care about that anyway," Silver responded. "On your mark," Rainbow took immediate control, eager to get this event started. "Get set...go!" Applejack and Rainbow took off, somewhat synced up, while Rarity and Pinkie struggled along a bit before finally getting their pace; Spike bobbing along like a buoy on water as Rarity tried to keep up with Pinkie. Silver and Fluttershy, surprisingly, did not immediately take off. If Silver was anything like Azure, this wasn't too shocking, but-- "Um...shouldn't we start?" Fluttershy questioned again. Silver didn't even so much as move. "Do you want to run?" Silver answered with a question of his own..." "Well...I...um...no..." "Then, we can walk. Maybe talk along the way...I didn't get to know you well enough the last time I was here, and I'd like to know you a bit better." Silver smiled. Fluttershy's eyes shot open and she immediately began to blush. Even though she knew he couldn't see, she hid part of her face behind her mane. "...O-okay..." Twilight barely picked up the meek mare's words, and now she felt herself become confused. As she watched the two walk, a single question formed in her mind. "Did...I miss something?" she blinked once, twice, and sighed. She was all alone at the picnic table, and was likely to remain that way for quite a while. It was funny, really. When she first came here, alone time was all she wanted, but couldn't get. But now...all she wanted was somepony there with her. A friend...or a more trusted friend...or... ------------------------------------------- Close by, a colt was furiously thundering to the picnic. His mane and tail, spiky and bluish-green. His coat, cyan. His eyes, brown. The colt was breathing slightly hard. "Shouldn't have spent so much time brooding...!" Azure scolded himself, making rapidly for the picnic site. "Please, let me be in time..." The plan was simple, so simple it was almost guaranteed to work. To seperate Twilight from the others, Silver would suggest a long party game that needed to be done in teams of two; with the lack of numbers, Twilight would likely sit it out. He wasn't sure yet what kind of game his blind friend had picked out, but it had to be one with a competitive element to get Rainbow's attention and Applejack's attention. So, he likely wouldn't have much time. But Azure hoped it'd be enough. Azure continued at a gallop just short of a full sprint, but he soon slowed to a trot as he drew closer to the picnic site. He could see Twilight now, but he couldn't see what her facial expression was. However, the others were in the distance, but continuing to retreat. A race, huh? Classic. I won't have much time, though... the pony thought to himself, taking a deep breath. It's time...to find out if Twilight was that filly from that day... As Azure continued forward, something in his head suddenly went off. Silver's goading the day before...this recent event...he wasn't yet sure why, but he felt closer to the answer than ever before; close enough that he could reach out and pull it close to him if he just knew the right way to do so... I don't know why...but...I feel like I'll find the answer...if I talk to her here and now. I feel like most of this problem will be solved for some reason. Yet...I can't, for all the magic I have in me, figure out why... Azure's feet began to feel as though they were made of lead as he drew closer and closer. C'mon, get this over with... "U-um, hey, Twilight..." Azure hesitantly said, if only because he didn't know how to go about this. Twilight's ears flicked up immediately on hearing his voice. Though it was clear she was trying to hide it, she was clearly excited to see him...yet, Azure could tell that wasn't all she was feeling right now. "Oh, A-Azure!" she called out. "What happened, you know, at work?" Azure blinked, trying to come up with something. He didn't know why, but he felt a secret sense of gratitude it wasn't Applejack he had to deal with right then. "Well, it was a pretty simple fix that nearly got blown completely out of proportion...where are the others?" "They're all running a six-legged race..." Twilight responded. As I thought...I think I'd better cut to the chase... Azure quickly moved to talk about the flashback he'd had. "Twilight...I have a question." "W-what is it?" she asked. "Have you ever...felt like you've met somepony before?" Twilight stood straight up, the look on her face suggested that perhaps she was going through the exact same thing he was. It was a good sign... "Y-yes, I-I have..." Twilight said. "I-I was actually hoping to talk to you about it..." This is a very good sign... "Alright...I'm just going to cut straight to the point." Azure began, taking a deep breath. "For a while now, I've been trying to answer an important question. As days turned to weeks, I just couldn't figure out the answer. But something happened yesterday. Something big...I feel like I'm finally getting closer to that answer..." Twilight's reaction to his words continued to give Azure the pointers he needed to make sure he was likely on the right road. "A few years ago, when I was younger...I met a filly, one that stood out like any other I'd seen. She had a saddlebag bursting with books, and she dropped one. I picked up that book for her, and she gave me the most silent 'thank you' I have ever received." Twilight's eyes widened this time. He felt as though he was starting to finally get on the right track. "For days afterward, I thought about her; I wasn't even aware I was doing it until Silver pointed it out to me...yesterday. I wound up using my recently discovered cutie mark and my developing freegalloping skills...to run all over Canterlot just hoping I could see her again. But I didn't. I eventually forgot about her, a more malefic thing taking over most of my interests. I think you know what I'm referring to..." Now he remembered clearly: his Nightmare Moon fixation...it might have affected his memory of meeting that filly, even when she'd grown up... "Now, I think I may have met her again...and not even realized it." ------------------------------------------- Twilight Sparkle could not believe it. It all sounded so familiar. Though, the path she took afterward was far different from Azure's, assuming he was the colt that had done that thing for her. Rather than hope to catch a glimpse of that colt as she continued onward... I-I...ignored him, and all other ponies... Twilight thought. I...I remember now. After that day, I couldn't focus as well as I used to be able to. My stomach felt weak, and I was always spacing out thinking about him...I began to think that other ponies would get in my way. Over time, I believed that ponies would only interfere in my studies. If that colt is the same colt in front of me now... "Azure...there's something I want to tell you too..." Twilight started. She felt herself starting to become nervous, but she still couldn't see any of the others approaching. She knew she probably didn't have too much time to say it... Races were fast, after all... ------------------------------------------- As Twilight relayed her side of the story to Azure, another development was taking place along the racing trail. Fluttershy walked alongside Silver-not that she had a choice, considering their forehooves were tied together to one another, same with their rear legs. However, since they weren't running, Fluttershy found she had little trouble adjusting to the art of walking with a conjoined pony on one's side. They weren't even past the halfway point yet, but Fluttershy didn't mind. She never was a competitive pony. "Wow, you scolded a dragon?" Silver asked. The two had just finished talking about the trip up that mountain. That was the day she figured out the meaning of the word "Courage", and had an example to go by too. The blind colt had asked if she had ever stood up for herself; having heard about a time from Azure, as well as her fear of dragons. He seemed surprised to hear the news. "Well, he hurt my friends like some kind of bully, and I don't like bullies..." Fluttershy responded. "Yeah...I can relate." Silver replied, his pale eyes seeming to trail off into the distance, as though they hadn't been already. "Y-you...?" Fluttershy started, unable to believe it. A friend of Azure's...bullied? "You were bullied?" "School is a difficult place when everypony can see you have a weakness...but I guess that can be anywhere," Silver began. "The other foals would always pull pranks on me. Moving my stuff when I wasn't paying attention, throwing paper balls at me because they knew I couldn't see who threw it. Actually, this one time, I hear they tried to paint eyes over my eyelids once when I fell asleep in class, though that one was actually funny." Fluttershy was no stranger to bullies. She was the weak one, the defenseless one. However...she didn't think other ponies would do that to a blind pony. It was unfair to her; it really was. He didn't have a choice... "So...um...what's it like, being blind?" "Well...at first, it's scary. You can't see what's in front of you or what's not there. You can't tell if its day or night. It's like standing in a room without any light..." Silver explained. Fluttershy gulped lightly. The mere thought of it...even for a day, terrified her. Yet Silver had made it clear he had been like that all his life. I...I...can't imagine...how's he...like this now? Before she could ask her question, Silver spoke again, "But, eventually you get used to it. You learn to turn your weaknesses into a strength, and you look back and wonder if it had ever been a weakness to begin with." "W-what do you mean?" Now Fluttershy was just a little confused. He had been the kind of pony that didn't seem to know what it meant to be blind; at least, that's the impression he gave off when it all came out last time he was in town...So...? "Sure, I can't see. I still learned that it was important to slow down and enjoy what's around you. I can't see it, but when I'm in a garden, or a forest, I listen to the animals around me, take in the scent of the flowers. Not many ponies do that these days, especially back in Canterlot." Silver finished. "I...I think I know what you mean," Fluttershy responded after some silence, and it was true. She hadn't really talked to him, she decided. It had been quite a long time since she last met him; she'd only chatted with him for all of five minutes, if that; and yet she felt she found somepony that could enjoy nature as much as she did. "Everypony else is always so busy that they don't always have time to enjoy the outside. Well, I guess Azure, Applejack, and Rainbow are all exceptions...but even then, Rainbow's all about speed, and Azure and Applejack both spend most of that time working...They don't seem to have a lot of time to enjoy it. But...even though I also work a lot outside, I always take the time to enjoy where I am...I love nature..." "And that's what I like about you, Fluttershy..." Fluttershy came to stop, almost sending both ponies off-balance since they were tied together. D-did I...did he...? "H-huh...?" "You may not be as assertive as the others, and you tell me you're not as strong as them, but even so, you have your own qualities that make you stand out. You never forget what's important in life, and you care so much for the ponies you love that you're willing to stand up to anything, even your greatest fear...and you're one of the best singers I've ever heard." Fluttershy felt her face heat up. For a moment, she wondered if her face was on fire. It was easily the best compliment she had ever received in her life. When she was younger, no colt really complimented her or approached her, and the ones that did were bullies. She hid her face behind her mane again, knowing full well he couldn't see anything let alone her. For a moment, she wondered if she could hide...until she remembered she was still tied to him. ------------------------------------------- Silver could hear and slightly feel Fluttershy's heart beating due to how close he was to her. He had told her the truth about how he felt about her, currently, anyway. It was a bit more than simple flirting he'd just done, and yet the pegasus next to him was at a total loss for words... "Oh-um...I...t-thank you..." Her voice was so soft that Silver wondered for a moment one simple thing: if his ears weren't made sharper by his lack of sight, would he have been able to hear her? "No problem," Silver echolocated something familiar, "And speaking of the others..." He pointed to where he knew they were. They must have been on the way back. He fully expected Rainbow and Applejack to have won. Not that it mattered... "Looks like we lost," Fluttershy mused. "I don't know...I think I won before the race even started...." He lowered his free forehoof and raised the one tied to Fluttershy's. He could tell she was happy to have heard that. "Now...I guess we'd better head back." "Y-yes, we should," responded Fluttershy. Silver undid the rope tying their feet together. Soon, the pegasus and unicorn turned and began to make their way back. Azure, I hope that's enough time, he thought to himself. Rarity and me can't buy anymore time if we tried... ------------------------------------------- "...so that's all you remember?" Azure asked. Twilight's story seemed to check out, but...she hadn't gone into the detail he had. It made him wonder if the picnic was the right venue to talk to her, even with the plan. "Y-yeah," Twilight responded, "as much as I've tried, that's all I've been able to figure out..." "Do you think that...maybe...?" Azure began, hoping she'd a bit more about it. "I..." Twilight began, squinting her eyes. It occurred to Azure that for the first time in a while, she wasn't wearing her glasses. However, he knew it'd make him an idiot to point it out now. "I don't know..." She motioned past him. "B-but I think we'd better talk about this later..." Azure turned, already seeing the others make their way back. He gritted his teeth for a moment. Knew I wouldn't have enough time...if I only had a few more minutes with her...I could get this sorted out... And yet...I don't feel like I missed anything... Azure returned his attention to Twilight, "Okay..." It wasn't that much longer before everypony returned. Rainbow was first back. "Az?" she asked, clearly confused at seeing the two alone together, "Good to see you made it, but you missed out!" I'm not so sure I did... Azure refused to let his mouth run until he was sure he knew what he was going to say. More importantly, he wanted to be sure he knew if what he felt right now, after talking with Twilight, was true before he said anything else that even sounded like he was flirting. Plus... The other mare he had to worry about was mere yards away. Applejack once more stopped, and it was clear she didn't know what to make of the situation again. He knew she had said she wouldn't hate him if he did happen to choose Twilight over her, but he believed it wouldn't be easy for her to contain negative feelings. "H-hey, Az..." Applejack greeted awkwardly. "H-hey..." Azure knew exactly what the scene looked like, but he did get something out of this. But he couldn't say it...not with the others present. Pinkie arrived next, "Hiiii Azie! Are you ready to play now?" "Hmmm...I...don't know..." Azure was clearly kidding. "C'mon, it'll be fun!" she chirped. And now I feel uneasy...His stomach dropped into his intestines as soon as he heard Pinkie say that. It had been quite a while, but somehow, every time she said that while he was in earshot, he always wound up getting hurt. Rarity returned, followed closely by Fluttershy and Silver. None of them had anything to say outside of a greeting to Azure, which he returned. It seemed like the picnic could finally get underway. However, before everypony could get completely comfortable, Applejack approached Azure with a simple question on her mind. "So, Az, I noticed ya'll with Twilight when we got back..." Applejack said, "What were you two talkin' about?" Azure blinked. "Just..." His eyes trailed up to the sky. "about..." Before he could finish his sentence, he noticed something, odd, in the sky above. "Az??" Applejack asked, noticing him squinting into the air. "...Hold that thought...I think I just saw..." Azure started, not quite sure what he saw. The unidentified flying object began to dive. As it drew close, Azure noticed some familiar features...blue-black skin, insectoid wings and body...the creature a mashup of pony and insect. "Ungh!" Azure's horn lit up fast as he fired a weak laser up towards the diving Shadow Ghoul, startling Applejack and drawing the attention of the others. The laser made contact, and the Shadow Ghoul fell to the ground like a sandbag, landing just to the left of Azure. "...A Shadow Ghoul...?" Azure asked. "At this time of...?" Silver stood up, his horn physically lighting up. "Everypony, watch out! I'm picking up something that shouldn't be here!" That was all it took. Within moments, Azure turned. There was a swarm of them inbound, all Shadow Ghouls. As the waves of ghouls approached, Azure could see, in the distance, a handful of Shadow Fangs also entering the fray. "O-oh no!" Fluttershy whimpered, caught off-guard by the sudden intrusion. "These things again?!" Rainbow called out, sounding very annoyed by the fact this had happened. "Of all days for this--!" Azure yelled, echoing the blue mare's sentiments perfectly as he began to fight again. -------------------------------------------- Fluttershy and Spike ran for cover, not being aggressive (though Spike tried to appear brave for Fluttershy's sake). Naturally, Azure Courage, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack went right in and began fighting the Shadow Ghouls using their own unique styles. Much to Azure's surprise, Twilight also got involved, using the laser spell just as he would against them. More surprising, Rarity, using levitation to convert tree branches into clubs, participated in the fight; Pinkie also participated in the skirmish in a way only she could. For some reason, every time she would jump on one, the number "100" would pop up out of the defeated Shadow Ghoul before it went away... Silver, to the surprise of all except Azure, also participated in the fight. He generally tried to stay in one place and let the stragglers come to him, and then used his sound magic to hit them with compressed sound waves. It was a crude, yet effective use of his magic, that much was certain. Rainbow flew low, a streak of rainbow cutting through the crowd of Shadow Ghouls. The mare eventually plowed through a good number of them, coming to halt in a circle of ghouls. She used her wings as balance, allowing herself to stand on her hind legs unassisted. The monsters charged. One tried to ensnare her, but she managed to throw it off with sheer physical force. Another came at her from the nine-o'clock position, but the mare threw a left side kick, knocking the ghoul back with enough force to cause it to vanish. The mare fought through all of them using the same martial arts that she'd practiced in her spare time--well, when she wasn't doing stunts, when a large Shadow Fang jumped down at her. Easily evading this attack with her speed, she slipped behind the wolf-like creature, and slammed her rear hooves into its back, drawing pain. As she busied herself with dispatching it, Twilight continued to blast lasers, keeping her distance from the assailants however she could. One rushed right for her, legs extended... Applejack intervened, snaring the beast in her lasso and swinging it around, treating it like a yo-yo as the beast continued to collide with its bretheren, eventually causing a double knockout and rendering the rope useless. "Thanks, Applejack," Twilight called out over the sounds of fighting. "Ain't over yet, sugarcube!" Applejack responded, going back to bucking two ghouls hard in the head, taking them out. Pinkie bounced up into the air, flailing her legs madly, landing on one Shadow Ghoul, strangely defeating it. Once again, a number floated up from the remains of the bug-pony hybrid before vanishing, but as she continued to bounce on a few more in the chain, the number that came out continued to increase the more she defeated. Eventually, though, her combo was broken by a Shadow Fang leaping down in front of her. Applejack had managed to yank her back a bit before the Shadow Fang could return the favor and avenge its friends. The monster roared, but Applejack roared right back. "I ain't scared of you no more!" she yelled bravely, smashing her back legs into the creature's face, leaving it open for Azure to use a charged laser shot on the chest of the creature, defeating it. Meanwhile, Rarity furiously batted away Shadow Ghouls with the nearest branches she could reach, huffing "Take that! And that!" ever so often. It seemed to be working well for her, at any rate. Closer to Fluttershy and Spike, Silver was playing defense. "Silver! You sure you can do this?!" Spike asked, noting the encroaching squad of creatures with a look of fear almost purely visible in his features. "Just because I'm blind doesn't mean I can't fight back!" Silver responded, his horn starting to light up. For just a few moments, he became truly blind. However, his magic was merely redirected to an offensive purpose. A ten meter area in front of him began to thrum violently as though it were made of guitar strings, and the Shadow Ghouls were blown back, seemingly incinerating from the high-frequency soundwaves. The fighting continued from there, each fighting pony tangled up with tens of opponents at almost any given time. Overall, the team was doing exceptionally well given the numbers, but they were slowly starting to get worn down from it all. Azure blasted a few more away, gritting his teeth, frustrated with the fact the fight was going on this long. -------------------------------------------- What's going on? wondered the colt to himself. These things shouldn't be able to take sunlight... "Azure!" Twilight called out, "Look out!" Azure turned to his left, spotting an injured Shadow Fang just about to claw at him. He leapt back just moments before it could cleave him, and finished it off. "This is crazy," Azure responded. "Their weakness is light, isn't it?!" "Yeah, that's what the books said, though it does just take more magic to control them under these conditions..." Twilight noted, frowning. "Alright then, I guess there's no choice," The cyan colt closed his eyes. "I've just gotta use...that spell." "You mean...that one that causes blinding light?" Twilight asked. "That one. That should take care of this in an instant. And if he's using up a great deal of magic, all we've gotta do is find that colt before he can recover!" Azure responded, stating his game plan. "I just need a little time. I've practiced the spell since I first tried it..." When I wasn't brooding over that situation I'd pulled Applejack, you and me into, anyway... "O-okay! I'll move away from you for a bit!" Twilight said. "Don't want to get blinded again!" Azure closed his eyes, focusing magic into his horn. He remembered the steps, having practiced them when he was in the mood to practice the light spell again. Though he hadn't suffered any more horn immolations since his first attempts, it still did take a lot of concentration and focus in order to get it down. However, Azure didn't need too long. The colt's horn glowed cyan at first, then the glow changed to whitish-yellow. "Alright, here we g--" Something strange happened at that instant. For some reason, Azure found that he couldn't feel his magic. And it felt like his horn had gone numb. He looked up, to find that his horn had stopped glowing. At the same time, the Shadow Ghouls appeared to dissipate into thin air. Rarity was no longer weaponizing random objects; her magic was not working. Twilight was having similar problems, from the looks of things, judging from the deep, disturbed frown on her face. "What the--" Azure began, unsure of what just happened. Before he could consider the implications further, there was a sudden, shrill cry. The scream sounded familiar. "Ugh?!" The colt tried to turn to see what had happened, knowing it was a friend, but something heavy and hard crashed into the back of his head, knocking him flat on his stomach in an instant. Already, Azure could feel himself starting to lose consciousness. He looked up, seeing four gray hooves, and a cloaked figure. "Really, Shade?" the figure asked a pony. "You couldn't stop playing around--that's why you lost to this one..." And that was the last word Azure heard before slipping into unconsciousness...