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// Story No. 9 
// Story: THIS IS A STORY 
// by _NAME_ 
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The stallion felt the wind rush through his mane as he pulled out of his dive and landed on a passing cloud, folding his wings neatly against to his side.

On the cloud, some hundreds of feet above the ground below, the stallion caught his breath for a few moments.

He had been out for his night flight, something he did maybe once a week, for a little over an hour and had begun to feel the muscles in his wings begin to strain with each flap.

Content to just rest for a moment, the stallion looked out over the surrounding countryside.

The lights of the city twinkled and danced in the distance, but it did little to detract from the calm, natural beauty of the scenery down below.

The moon shone high from its perch amidst the stars, its light beaming down on the ground below, highlighting everything with a warm, silvery tinge.

The night was beautiful, to say the least.

The stallion sighed and leaned back on the cloud and stared up at the stars, which, so far from the city, stood out as if they were just mere meters above the stallion’s head, though he knew better.

The stallion stargazed for a few more moments before he realized with a start that it was getting to be late.

With a flourish of his wings, he leapt off the edge of the cloud and used an updraft to propel him back towards the city.

After a few minutes of vigorous flying, by far much faster than the pace he had had when leaving that evening, the stallion found himself on the city limits.

With a soft thwump, the stallion landed on the grass just on the edge of the city and began the short stroll back to his house.

As he walked down the empty streets, illuminated only by streetlamps and the occasional light spilling out from an uncovered window, the stallion thought just how peaceful and quiet things were, not only in the city, but in all of Equestria, and felt pleased for being a part of such a wonderful time.

This, he thought, would how he would like his retirement to feel like, however many years down the line that was.

He was happy.

The stallion trotted up the walkway to his front door and let himself in, turning on the lights as he entered.

Finally in the safety and comfort of his own home, the stallion went about his business for the rest of the night.

The next day was the weekend, so the stallion did not have to work, something he capitalized on as he worked on various things around his house that needed to be done and took care of some odds and ends.

Then, a few hours after midnight, the stallion, exhausted after his flight and after working so hard, collapsed into his bed and was asleep within moments.