//------------------------------// // Chapter 12 // Story: Halcyon Hearts // by TheMyth //------------------------------// As the sun rose from the horizon, shining through the windows of the Ponyville Library, Twilight Sparkle stirred from her sleep as beams of light shined in her eyes. She rose groggily from her sleep and rubbed out the dust from her eyes. A smile formed on her muzzle as she stood up and walked towards the mirror, seeing her disheveled look and her unbrushed hair. She chuckled as she lifted a brush. “Can’t be seen like this,” she said to herself as she brushed her mane, to its normal style. She blinked and squinted her eyes as she turned her head from one side to the other. I wonder if he’ll like it with a different look? Twilight stepped out of her room, hearing snoring coming from the room above her. She walked upstairs and popped her head inside, smiling softly at the sight of Spike sound asleep. Twilight moved her way towards her son and nuzzled him softly, awaking him from his sleep. “Morning, Spike,” she whispered to him, only receiving a groan from him as he turned to the other side. “It’s time to wake up, Spike,” she said a bit louder. “Five more minutes, Mom...” Twilight shook her head, grinning as an idea came to her head. “Sweetie Belle is waiting for you downstairs...” Spike skyrocketed out of his bed, landing on his rump next to Twilight. His head went from one place to the other as his eyes widened. He stopped when he heard his mother’s suppressed laughter. He furrowed his eyebrows as he sighed. “That’s not funny...” “I-I know, I’m sorry,” Twilight said as she swallowed her laughter, helping her son up from the ground. “But today is the talent show, and you need to be energized for that...” “I know, I know! I just hope my lyrics don’t stink.” Twilight placed a hoof on his shoulder and looked him right in the eye. “None of that now, you’re writing is far from mediocre, Spike... the same goes for your lyrics. You must just believe in yourself and you will be fine, you hear me?” Spike nodded. “Yes, Mom...” “Good,” she said as she removed her hoof. “Now why don’t you start breakfast for us?” “Should I include Blaze behind you? It was Twilight’s turn to panic as she turned sharply behind herself with her eyes nearly popping out of her head. She saw nothing, but heard Spike laughing from behind. She turned slowly and was met with her colt on the floor rolling in laughter. “Classic payback!” “Very clever,” Twilight said with a grin. “Now please go start breakfast before...” A knock at the front door interrupted her. She sighed. “...before anything can happen today. Don’t worry, I’ll get it.” As Spike went to the kitchen, Twilight trotted down the stairs, opening the front door. “I’m sorry, the library is...” “Make way for her royal majesty,” a guard droned as Twilight saw who it was. “Princess!” Twilight exclaimed, giving a bow. “I wasn’t expecting you! Please, come in.” “Wasn’t expecting me? I find that hard to believe,” Princess Celestia said playfully as she entered, leaving her guards outside. “You write and tell me you want to leave your duties as a parole officer. Might I ask why?” Twilight squirmed a bit, avoiding her mentor’s gaze a bit. “Well... it’s just... me and Blaze, we kind of... started dating...” There was a silence that hung in the air. For a few moments, everything stopped. Then, Celestia engulfed her student in a feathery embrace. “Twilight, I think that’s wonderful!” She blinked. “Really?” “Twilight, I think it’s great that you’re finally beginning to find love. I must say I am a bit surprised at your first, but I was hoping that you would find true love one day.” Twilight breathed a sigh of relief. “I’m... I’m glad you approve.” Celestia’s eyes became slightly moist as she smiled at her student. You’re growing up so fast, my most faithful student... From the little filly I taught, you've turned into a very beautiful mare... she blinked more as her eyes watered more. “Princess?” The alicorn blinked away the build up of tears and chuckled softly as she looked to Twilight, who was showing concern as she furrowed her brow. “Are you alright?” “Yes Twilight, just a little dust in my eye,” she said dismissively as she raised her muzzle to the air, taking a sniff. “I believe that Spike is finished with your breakfast?” Twilight looked back to the kitchen, smiling as she nodded. “Yes, would you like to join us, Princess?” Celestia shook her head as her lids became half-hooded. “I’m sorry Twilight, but I must be off now... there is much work to be done today,” she told her student as she nuzzled her. “I will see you again, Twilight.” “I will see you later too, Princess,” Twilight said as she led Celestia out to the door and saw her take off. She sighed as she walked back inside, the smell of Spike’s breakfast filling the library. Celestia looked to the ground from the sky and saw a familiar red pony walking alongside a white foal in the direction of the library and she decided to drop before them. Blaze and Light stood still as a rather large pony landed before them and they both bowed to the pony they recognized as Princess Celestia. “Yo! I-I mean...morning, Princess,” Blaze uttered out as he kept his head down, looking to Light who was doing the same thing. “Please be calm, Blaze, I just wanted to greet you,” with that said, she saw Blaze raising his head from his bow and looking to the princess. “And I wanted to congratulate you, too.” Blaze cocked his eyebrow. “Congratulate me on what Princess?” “Is his parole over!?” Celestia looked to the eager Light, her smile fading as she shook her head. “I’m sorry, Light, but it isn’t,” she said and saw Light’s smile turning to a frown as he slumped to the ground. “I just want to congratulate you on finding love in my student.” Blaze’s cheeks burned, lucky for him though it was difficult to see him blush. “Oh! That... thank you very much, princess.” Light’s eyes looked to the ground as he fidgeted with his hooves. “It’s not that great...” he muttered to himself, luckily nopony heard him. “Hey Light, why don’t you go on ahead?” “Ok.” Celestia waited until the little colt was safely out of hearing distance before turning to speak. “I must say, I was hoping my student would find true love one day. I’m very happy for her.” “I’m glad to hear... we were worried how you would take it.” “...Blaze, do you know what the Sun Run was?” The red pegasus blinked. “No, I don’t.” “It was a particularly painful method of execution found back in the days when Commander Hurricane’s father lived. He retired the method, of course. Would you like to know the method?” “Well, I’m not really...” The Princess got to eye level with Blaze. “I think you want to hear what it was.” “...Sure,” Blaze said, sounding uncertain. “Well...” Blaze was nearly as white as the Princess by the time she was done. “Now, obviously, we don’t practice such barbaric tactics in modern times. But if, say, somepony were to get me angry enough, through, let’s say, upsetting a pony I love like she was my own child, I might be tempted, in a moment of irrational thought, to revive the punishment.” She looked at him carefully. “Do we understand each other?” “Yes,” Blaze said weakly with a squeak. “Good, we’re in agreement then. Now I must be off. You take care of Twilight, alright?” “Yes, ma’am,” Came the equally weak reply. Celestia then took off, leaving a frightened Blaze alone. Blaze looked up with his lips quivering as he slowly looked back to the library. What did I get myself into?! Spike finished his breakfast before his mother finished hers, and he took his plate to the sink. Using his magic, he cleaned the plate and placed it on the rack. He heard a knock on the door. “I’ll get it!” Spike went to the door and opened it, revealing it to be Light on the other side. “Oh... morning,” he said flatly to him. “Morning...” Twilight came in view and she smiled when she saw Light. “Oh, Light! Good to see you!” she said as she looked up and didn’t see Blaze. “Where is Blaze?” “He just had a word with Celestia, he should be coming over now,” Light said as he walked in and turned to Spike. “Ready to go?” Spike rolled his eyes and groaned. “Like I have a choice,” he muttered as he used magic to left his saddlebag and placed in on his back. “Let’s go,” he said to Light and both of them made their way to the door, but stopped when they saw a red stallion standing there. Spike arched his eyebrow when he saw the sunken eyes of Blaze. “Woah, you look like you seen a ghost!” Twilight blinked and scrunched her lips as she went to check on Blaze. “Blaze, what’s wrong?” “N-nothing wrong!” he answered her immediately and gave two quick kisses to Twilight’s cheeks. “How you been, though?” The lavender mare giggled as her cheeks turned red and she averted her eyes from his. “Better now that you’re here,” she whispered as she gave him a kiss on his lips. “Urgh! Get a room, you two!” Twilight’s eyes opened as she departed from her kiss and she looked at Spike’s frown with humour. She walked up to him and she nuzzled him, giving him a kiss on his forehead causing him to blush. “You better go on ahead before you’re late for school, Spike.” “M-Mom!” Spike stammered out as his cheeks continued to burn. “Not in front of my friends!” Light chuckled at this sight, before he was brought in a hug by Blaze. “You better rush or you’re gonna be late, Light!” he said and gave him a peck on the cheek. Light’s eyes widened in shocked as jerked away from Blaze. “W-what was that for!?” “I can’t give my boy a goodbye kiss?” “But...ugh... I’ll see you later!” With that both colts shot out the door and ran toward the schoolhouse, hoping to avoid their incredibly embarrassing guardians. “Your mother is ruining my brother!” Light wailed. “He’s gone all sappy!” “Oh, cry me a river!” “Both of y’all, cut it out!” Apple Bloom scolded. “Th’ show is tonight! We need ta get to work!” The two colts looked at eachother, then sighed. “Fine. Come on, Apple Bloom, let’s see if you can get the song this time.” As Spike walked off, Light watched him go feeling a little angry. “It isn’t Spike’s fault,” Scootaloo reminded him. “He doesn’t like it, either.” “I know,” Light sighed. “I’m just so... I mean, things were finally great! We were free and safe, and Blaze would have gotten out of his parole soon. Why did this have to happen now? Twilight ruined everything!” “What’s so bad about Twilight? Sure, she can be boring sometimes, but she’s royalty! If her and Blaze hook up, you’d be the richest colt in town, next to Spike.” “I don’t care. I just wanted things to be quiet.” “Look, it’ll be fine. Twilight will be a great family member, you’ll see,” Scootaloo told him softly. Light sighed as he closed his eyes, opening them up again and looking to Scootaloo. “Thanks for trying to cheer me up, Scootaloo,” he told her and gave her a nuzzle on the cheek as he went to the stage where Pip was. Scootaloo stood still there as she stared at Light, not moving one bit as she slowly raised a hoof to her cheek. Her ears twitched when she heard giggling, and she turned Sweetie Belle standing behind her. “You look so funny!” she squeaked between her giggles. Scootaloo puckered her lips and rolled her eyes. “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” she said to Sweetie Belle, who was not relieving her mirth. Sweetie Belle finished and placed a hoof to her shoulder. “You really like him don’t you?” she asked Scootaloo as she looked to where Light and Pip were. “Well, duh! He's my friend, after all!” Sweetie Belle groaned as she placed a hoof to her face. “Don’t play coy with me! You want to be his special somepony!” Scootaloo huffed as she widened her eyes, looking from one corner to the other. “Nuh-uh! None of that mushy stuff!” Her unicorn friend shook her head with a smile. “I see it on your face all the time you look at him, there’s always that grin on your face every time you give him that look.” “Oh, like how you look at Spike all the time?!” It was Sweetie Belle’s turn to blush as her eyes nearly popped out of her skull. “Who told you that!?” she whispered to Scootaloo, but was only met with a snicker. Scootaloo cleared her throat. “C’mon! It was clear as day the other day when you yelled out ‘Oh come on!!!’ in class,” she told her and looked to see Spike being frustrated with Apple Bloom’s appalling voice. “Why don’t you tell him?” “Don’t you dare!” “Spike!” Scootaloo’s mouth was covered by Sweetie Belle’s hoof as she tried to silence her, but Spike’s attention turned to them and he walked towards them. Oh no! What am I gonna do!? Sweetie saw Light and a grin formed on her face. “You want to tell Spike, I’ll tell Light, then.” “You wouldn’t!” “Light!” Scootaloo tackled her friend to the ground in a desperate attempt to keep her quiet. “Okay, okay, you made your point. Just... keep quiet, okay?” Sweetie smiled. “My lips are sealed.” As the two fillies rose from the floor, she spoke again. “I don’t get why you like Light, though... he doesn’t seem like your type.” “What do you mean?” “Well... he’s kind of a wimp. No offense.” Scootaloo blushed. “Well, yeah... but he’s nice. And... I don’t know. It’s weird.” “Rarity’s always going on about how weird love is. She keeps saying you can’t control it, but I think that’s just her being all mushy and weird.” Scootaloo gave a haughty laugh. “Ha! I’m never going to get all namby-pamby like your sister!” Across the classroom, the former editor of the Foal Free Press let out a sneeze. “You’ll see, me and Light will be different.” “We’ll be different about what?” Scootaloo froze, her face turning crimson as she whirled around to see the object of her affection looking at her curiously. “Light! I... uh...” “She was talking about the stage you two are making,” Sweetie said quickly. “Yes! Yes! The stage! We weren’t talking about anything else! Just the stage... that we’re building... right now. So let’s... uh... let’s go do that.” Scootaloo quickly ran toward the construction area, leaving Light confused. “I think Blaze was right... mares are weird.” Blaze signed his name in a few more places. Twilight took the form and looked it over again. “Everything seems to be in order... but you know this can’t go through until you’re off parole, right?” Blaze nodded as he sighed. “I know that,” he said, standing up from the chair he was sitting on. “But you know, what’s a few weeks to me, anyway?” Twilight blinked as her eyes went moist for a moment, before returning ridding the wetness with her lashes. “Well, all I can say is that I think it’s the right thing to do...” The red pegasus chuckled as he went over to the couch and chuckled. “Yeah, I suppose so...” he turned to the clock and saw it was four in the afternoon already. “Time will fly, that’s for sure...” Looking to the clock, Twilight smiled a bit before turning to the kitchen. “I’ll be right back,” she told Blaze, giving him a wink before moving into the next room. Blaze sighed as he reclined on the couch and looked up to the roof, his eyes drifting lazily. He felt a slight irritation coming from his neck and placed his hoof to the source, only to be blocked by the magical collar that was still in place there. He rolled his eyes as he groaned, letting his hoof fall down to the side. One of the many joys I will have when this thing is off... ridding myself of that itch. His ears turned to the sound of hooves coming from the kitchen and he saw Twilight walking out with two plates held in the air thanks to her magic. Both plates had sandwiches on it, rather large sandwiches. “Here you go Blaze, hope you like it.” Twilight gave Blaze his plate and she sat down next to him. Blaze turned to the Twilight, smiling at the mare. “You shouldn’t have...” he said to her as he took hold of his meal and took a generous bite out of it, swallowing it after chewing on it. “This is great, what you put on here?” “Oh, just some lettuce, avocado, green peppers, cucumber, tomatoes and some paprika to spice it up,” she answered him as she recalled each ingredient. “Where’d you learn to cook like this?” Twilight giggled as she finished her bite. “Well, I just saw these cooking cards for meals and just memorized them all...” He grinned. “Needed to learn to cook since Spike can’t do it for you anymore?” She blushed. “Well, there’s that, too,” she admitted. Before the conversation could go on any further, the front door opened with a ring of the greeting bell. Just as Twilight was rising to greet the new customer, she was startled to see a pony she had never met before. “Is Blaze here?” the pony asked, pushing her half-moon glasses up her face. She had jet-black fur and a dark-blue mane, and her body, cutie mark included, was covered in business attire. “That’s me,” the stallion said. “Who are you?” “I am Ms. Autumn Lily, your new parole officer.” Suddenly Blaze felt nervous. “Oh... uh, I see. Well... how can I help you?” “I simply need to go over a few things with you,” the pony declared, lighting up her horn. A clipboard levitated in front of her as she readied a quill. “Do you have any plans once you are released?” He shrugged. “I’ll probably stay with the Wonderbolts... pay’s good, and coming here in the offseason would be a good place to raise Light. Why?” “Light himself. You’re filing for custody of him, I wanted to make sure you had his interests at heart. Stable occupation is part of that. No problems with anypony in town?” “None. Everypony seems to like me... well, they don’t say anything to my face.” “Alright, then,” Autumn Lily lit up her horn once more. Blaze suddenly felt a strange sensation. It took him a moment to realize what it was. The collar. He had gotten so used to it that its absence felt strange to him. It was laying on the ground, where he and Twilight just gaped at it. “Just like that?” Twilight said. “Just like that. Celestia told me it was a mere formality that he were to be put under any sort of restraint anyway. We now consider this matter resolved. You two have a nice day.” And with that, the pony walked out the door. “Ms. Lily, wait!” Twilight said, running out the door. But when she arrived, their mysterious visitor was gone. Blaze walked up from behind Twilight and stood next to her, looking baffled at what just transpired. “Now that was odd...” Twilight could only nod as she looked up to the sky and gasped softly. “We’re going to be late for the Talent Show!” Blaze blinked as he saw the sun set over the horizon and sighed. “Well, we better hurry then... otherwise we’re both going to be in trouble,” he said as he turned to where Twilight was, but she was gone. “Twilight?” With a flick of her magic, Twilight came from behind Blaze. “I just had to lock the library,” she told him as she held a checklist in front of her. Her eyes darted through the list before raising them to meet Blaze, who was now standing before her arching his brow. “You have a checklist just for today?” “Of course! Today is special day for Spike and Light...” “And their friends.” “True,” she said as she walked past him, using a quill to check off some boxes on the list. “Oh, wait!” she shouted out as she stopped abruptly and turned to Blaze with her eyes widened. “I forgot something!” Blaze raised his eyebrows and stopped behind Twilight. “What?” “This.” Without any warning, Twilight planted her lips to Blaze’s and slowly closed her eyes. Blaze’s wide eyes closed too and he brought Twilight in closer. As their lips stayed connected, Blaze could feel Twilight’s tongue begging entry. He gladly complied and the taste of strawberries roamed for the duration of the kiss. When both of them let go, Twilight batted her lashes as her cheeks burned with her giggling. “The first kiss in your freedom,” she said softly and felt the gentle hoof of her stallion caress her cheek. Blaze smiled softly and gave Twilight a nuzzle followed by a kiss on her cheek. “Glad to have you in my life... got it memorized?” he asked her as he pointed to his head. “Always...” From a safe distance away, Autumn Lily watched from the air, her wings keeping her in the air. Despite her doubts over the instructions she had been given, she was now utterly convinced that the right call had been made. Twilight Sparkle was known for making good judgements in the past, after all. Breathing a sigh of relief, she began to grow, her legs and wings restoring themselves to their proper height. Turning into her mortal form was always so tedious. Stifling a yawn, Princess Luna flew back to Canterlot. It was far past her bedtime. She looked back over her shoulder and saw the figures of Blaze and Twil lined up to see the show. She laughed merrily as she flew off into the distance Sweetie peered out from behind the curtain at the crowd of ponies lined up to see the show. She felt dizzy. She was so glad it was Apple Bloom going out there and not her. Shifting, she readjusted the dress Rarity had made for her, once again creasing out the wrinkles in it. She couldn’t let it get messed up before Spike saw it. “Sweetie?” The young filly gave a jump, letting out a little squeak as she turned to see Spike looking at her curiously. “What... why are you dressed up like that?” Sweetie felt her cheeks heat up. “Uh... Rarity made it and insisted I wear it.” “It... it looks nice,” Spike said awkwardly. “Th-thank you,” she sputtered out. There was silence. “It really does look nice,” Spike said, half-wishing a meteor would land on him and alleviate the awkwardness of the situation. “Yeah, it really does,” Sweetie said, wishing the same thing, only it involved a group of timberwolves running through the stage. There was another awkward silence. Sweetie looked at Spike. He looked back. They just stared at one another. Then, gulping, Sweetie leaned forward and kissed Spike on the lips. Spike stood still there, frozen on the spot as his whole face become red and hot. His eyes widened as Sweetie’s kiss lasted. When she finally released him of the kiss, all he could do was blinked and a smile formed against his will. Sweetie Belle giggled and shuffled her hooves as she looked down from Spike’s gaze. Both ponies’ ears perked when they heard a whistle from behind them and saw Pip standing there with the biggest grin he could pull. “Now that’s one fer yer foals to hear!” Spike furrowed his brows as he glared and growled at Pip, who was chuckling as he waved his hooves. “Cool yerself down! Ah’m just breaking yer shoes, Spike, ‘bout time though fer ye two lovebirds...” he said gave a pat on Spike’s back. “Ok,” Spike said and looked back at Sweetie, who was still flushed in the face. When they made eye contact, she looked away coyly and looked back at him with her cheeks burning anew. “We got a problem!” Sweetie, Spike and Pip turned to Light, who was flying towards the group with Scootaloo right behind him. When they landed, Light stood in front of Spike catching his breath and wiping his sweat away from his forehead. “What’s the problem?” Light and Scootaloo looked at each other, concerned dormant on their faces before turning to the others. “It’s Apple Bloom!” Light said as he turned around and saw Apple Bloom approach them slowly. Sweetie came to them and cocked her brow looking at her earth pony friend. “What’s wrong with her?” When Apple Bloom opened her mouth, she let out a wheezing sound. “Don’t tell me...” Sweetie Belle said as she backed away from her friend, with her eyes becoming wider by the second. “She lost her voice?” “Yes.” “Then... then what are we supposed to do?” Sweetie cried. “The show’s now! What are we...” “Sweetie!” Spike suddenly declared, “You could sing it!” “...What?” “It’s perfect! You know all the words and you sing great!” Sweetie blushed at Spike compliment, but also at the thought of going onstage. “N-no, I can’t...” “Apple Bloom?” Miss Cheerilee called. “You’re up.” “We don’t have a choice,” Pip said firmly, beginning to push Sweetie to the curtain. “Come on, we need you.” “What? No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no!” It was no good. Spike and Pip both pushed her out, through the curtain and onto the stage. The statues in Celestia’s Garden could move better than she could at that moment. As she looked at the crowd, and dozens of faces looked back at her, she was silently praying she would hurry up and faint to save herself the anxiety. “Come on, we need you.” Remembering Pip’s words, she gave a nervous swallow. Closing her eyes and trying to pretend she wasn’t there, she sang. “There is a place, where the grass is what's for dinner.” She prayed the notes were coming out okay. “Charmed, fun, and wild, there must be something in the water. Sippin' rainbow juice, talking Elements of Harmony. Our bronies, hang out too, ‘cause they know we're awesome fillies.” She felt her body move around. She was losing herself in her singing. “You could travel the world, but no one can groove like the girls with the hooves, once you party with ponies, you'll be seeing Rainbooms! O-oh o-oh o-ooh!" “Equestria girls, we're kinda magical! Boots on hooves, bikinis on top. Furry coats, so cute, we'll blow your mind Aoaoah oh, aoaoaoh! Equestria girls, we're pony-fabulous, fast, fine, fierce, we trot till we drop. Cutie marks represent, now put your hooves up! Aoaoah oh, aoaoaoh!” Sweetie dared not open her eyes, but at the sound of hooves stomping, she opened them slowly. She was greeted by the cheering of the audience stomping their hooves to the ground, emitting a thunderous applause to the filly on stage. Sweetie looked around her and saw some familiar faces, until her eyes fell on Rarity who was openly crying as she was cheering for her little sister. Sweetie’s own eyes began to turn watery as she started to sniff the tears of joy away. She gave a final bow to the ponies before rushing off to backstage, where she was greeted by her five friends. “That was so awesome!” Scootaloo yelled out as she gave Sweetie a soft noogie but stopped when she was pushed off by Sweetie. Sweetie could only blush as she sniffed with a few droplets of tears coming from her eyes. “I never knew I was that good...” Spike approached her and placed a hoof to her shoulder smiling. “Well, your voice is one of the best I’ve ever heard...” Without warning, Spike tackled by Sweetie as she hugged him tightly and nuzzled him. “Your song was amazing, Spike! Those words just clicked to me!” she told him in her squeaky voice and gave him a kiss on the cheek. “You’re the best!” Light chuckled as he looked on to the two ponies. “Looks like Spike just found his special somepony,” he whispered to Scootaloo was only nodded. Apple Bloom laughed as she saw Sweetie still hugging Spike. “Well Ah’m glad you sang that song there... Ah couldn’t do it to save Equestria!” Sweetie and Spike’s eyes went wide as they turned to Apple Bloom. “Your voice... wasn’t sore?” Apple Bloom nodded. “Well, Ah thought since Sweetie had a better voice than me, only fit she sang that song...” Pip smirked as he approached the two. “She came to me, Light and Scootaloo to tell ye two that her voice was out of order and ye did the rest,” he said proudly as he smiled broadly at the stunned unicorns. “Do I feel sheepish...” Sweetie muttered as she looked down on the ground, shuffling her hooves. “And, well,” Apple Bloom said nervously, “maybe another pony talked me into it.” She glanced nervously at Rarity, who was coming backstage at that moment. “Sweetie, darling! That was wonderful! Oh, I’m so proud of you! You sang like a little angel! It was so wonderful!” She took her sister and kissed her on the cheek, causing her to blush. “Aww, Rarity, you don’t have to...” Then she trailed off. “I feel tingly all of a sudden... Spike! You got your cutie mark!” The lavender colt jumped, then looked at his flank. Sure enough, there it was, a piece of parchment and a quill, all contained in a red heart, on his flank. “Wow! It is there!” “Oh my gosh, Spike!” Spike tensed up. His mother scooped him up and peppered his cheeks with kisses. “Oh my boy, I’m so proud of you! Getting your cutie mark! Oh, it’s so special!” “Ah! Hey! Stop it, Mom! Quit it! Mom! Not in front of my friends!” Sweetie, let me check something,” Rarity said suddenly. Using her magic, she lifted her little sister’s dress up. She gasped. “Sweetie... your cutie mark is there, too!” Sweetie’s eyes widened as she looked. It was a music note, a beamed note, also encased in a red heart. “I got my mark! Guys, I got my mark!” “Sweetie, that’s wonderful!” Rarity cooed. “I’m so proud of you!” “Oh my gosh,” Twilight said suddenly. “That means we have work to do! We need to talk, Rarity, I’m sure they’ll both want their own parties. We need to set dates, send out invites, get Pinkie to start baking cakes...” “Hold on!” Sweetie said. “I don’t think I want my cuteceañera yet!” The adults stopped and looked at the filly. “You don’t want a cuteceañera? Sweetie, whatever for?” “Cause we all need to get our cutie marks before we celebrate! That’s the Cutie Mark Crusader way!” Sweetie said to Rarity, with her friends standing by her side and her holding Spike close with her hoof over his back and him doing the same. Rarity and Twilight looked at each other before blinking and smiling before nodding. “Well, if that’s what you wish, we’ll wait...” “Oi! Why do yer two cutie marks look alike?” Pip asked as he looked between Spike’s and Sweetie’s. Twilight arched her brow as she took a look too, before gasping and smiling. “I’ve read this before! When a colt and filly both get their cutie marks at the same time and same place, they are bound together forever!” Sweetie and Spike raised their eyebrows, turning to each other before looking back at Twilight. “Meaning...” “You’re soulmates!” Rarity shouted out as she beamed, pulling her own hair in ecstasy. “Oh, this is so wonderful! My little sister finally finding her special somepony for life!” she yelled out as she took hold of Twilight. “And to think, it’s with your precious son!” “What’s this about soulmates?” The ponies all turned to the source of the new voice and saw Blaze coming from backstage entrance to be met by six foals and two mares. “Blaze!” Light shouted out as he tackled the elder stallion. “Where were you, huh?!” “I was on stage with Twilight, watching Sweetie sing,” he said and turned to Sweetie. “By the way, well done on that voice of yours... must have practiced hard?” “Actually, she didn’t practice at all.” “Really?” “Really,” Light answered him and took notice of Blaze’s neck. “Hey Blaze, where’s your collar?” Blaze only chuckled as he walked past Light and stood next to Twilight. “Well, since Twilight here stepped down as parole officer and I got a new one... the new parole officer, Autumn Lily, found it best to end my parole and release me back into society...” “You mean-” “That’s right, I’m free.” Light beamed as he tackled Blaze again, but Blaze was ready this time and grabbed hold of the little white pegasus. Both pegasus were laughing, with Blaze ruffling Light’s hair. The hug lasted for a few seconds before they let go, with Light joining his friends again. “Oh that’s wonderful!” Rarity exclaimed. “Will you be staying in Ponyville?” “I think so...” he said as he tapped his chin. “Light here has how many friends and I do not want to deprive him of that,” he said as he looked to Light standing with his friends. “Also, I want to stay around my fillyfriend too.” Rarity blinked. “You have a fillyfriend? Who?” “Why don’t you ask Twilight?” Rainbow Dash huffed, flying up with her forelegs crossed indignantly. She blinked again. “Twilight? Twilight and Blaze? Oh that’s wonderful!” she cheered. “Oh, Twilight, darling, I always thought you needed a stallion in your life.” Twilight stared at her blankly. “And what’s that supposed to mean?” “Oh nothing,” Rarity said quickly. “Well, let’s still go out and celebrate! Why not take a trip to the spa?” Twilight only smiled, looking from the two newly cutie marked foals and her coltfriend. “That sounds like a good idea.”