//------------------------------// // Field, my field // Story: Sombra. Saga of Hatred // by HiddenUnderACouch //------------------------------// The weather was beautiful, simply marvelous even. It was that time of autumn which crystal ponies called Prancing Summer, usually happening around the end of September and the start of October. The autumn had already come, turning the once green leaves red and yellow, but the sky wasn't filled with grim clouds and it was relatively warm and sunny. A perfect time for a fair. Sombra ran quickly. Loud clopping resounded through the air created by the connection of his hooves with the stone pavement. The small bag strapped to his side clinked loudly as he dodged the bystanders in his way. They would turn around and wonder whither the kid was so desperately running. For them, it was just another fair like every year before it and possibly every year past it. But for Sombra, it was a special fair, a unique carnival – because the first time was always magical. Besides, he was eager to see Krystal as well. It probably wasn't the first time she would ever visit the coronation fair; she did seem like a pretty well versed girl in such matters. Sombra still remembered the fur-coat she had given to him. It was an expensive piece of clothing. Not many could afford to buy themselves something like this. But Sombra still wanted to show himself as the gentlecolt whom Krystal seemed to like. The sound of drums and the noise of trumpets got closer and closer as Sombra joined a group of ponies dressed in strange foreign clothes. They had wide-brimmed linen hats and leather jackets with several of them having ribbons tied to the rivets. They spoke in a weird language, drawing words out for so long that it seemed like entire sentences were only one word. They were obviously earth ponies, visitors from Earthville. One of them, a giant compared to Sombra, dropped a glance at him, the rough lines of his face softening in a smile. he spoke Common with a booming basso which he tried to soften in order to not scare the kid. It seemed he was the leader of the group, for such a voice could only belong to a leader of some sorts. Sombra replied, his Common still being quite weak. His sentences sounded unnatural, learned by rote, which made the earth pony laugh heartily. He had a very harsh voice and even his laughter sounded unnerving. the giant chuckled and Sombra quickly proceeded to leave the earth ponies as they laughed between each other, evidently adoring the young child. Sombra finally reached a hill wherefrom he could overlook the carnival and was astonished by its sheer size. There were hundreds of ponies walking and running between stands filled with things Sombra couldn't see from so far away. There were at least four rows of stands, disrupted only by small stages whereon some action was happening, probably dancing or singing. Sombra quickly rushed towards the entrance gate. Krystal patiently stood just near the entry and Sombra stopped for a second when he saw her. Her long mane was braided in a carefully combed braid with a softly pink ribbon coiled around it. Her cheeks looked slightly red, probably a slight layer of red powder. When she noticed Sombra, she waved her hoof in the air, dragging him out of his trance. He shook his head quickly and approached her. "You're a bit late." Krystal stated, looking at Sombra with a sly smile. He smiled shyly, still a bit confused by her fancy look. "Sorry. I got lost on the way here," Sombra said. He wanted to compliment Krystal's looks, but his shyness only let him to blush a bit. "Oh, my, there's just no changing you. Always remember: only ladies are allowed to be late," she said with barely restrained laughter. "Come on, there's so much to do here!" They entered the fairgrounds together and quickly got lost in the crowd. Krystal seemed to feel alright while Sombra tried to avoid any physical contact with the crowd. He tried to stick close to Krystal who seemed to know her way around. After a few minutes of turbulence in the crowd, they strolled through the rows of stands and caught sight of one that struck Krystal’s fancy in particular. Behind the counter of the stand was probably the fattest pony Sombra had ever laid eyes on. She wore a tiny white hat and smiled at any passing ponies. The stand itself housed all kinds of bakery: cupcakes, pies, cakes, pancakes and even the Empire's famous fritters. "Ohmibiss, Sombra-a-a! Ohmibiss!" Krystal squealed as she saw and smelled the freshly baked goods. The corners of her mouth went up in a smile and her eyes assumed a pleading look. "I do so want one! Oh, how I want one!" she said, coming closer to the stand. The trader looked at her and smiled. "And you may have one! Best bakery in the Crystal Empire only for the coronation day. Prices so low you can stuff yourself with pies and still afford to buy yourself a carriage! You want to try some, milady?" the fat trader asked, leaning over the rows of cupcakes to Krystal. "I would totally buy some... But I left my purse at home, because I'm on a diet! Aaah!" Krystal whined quite angrily, berating herself for following that stupid diet. "Don't worry," Sombra said, smiling, finally seeing that his job hadn’t been for naught "Two cupcakes, please!" Sombra wrapped several coins within his grey magic aura and dragged them out of the bag he was carrying. The trader happily caught them with magic of her own and passed two still warm cupcakes to Krystal. The girl almost exploded from joy. "Thank you, my gentlecolt! So kind of you!" Krystal chirped and gave one cupcake to Sombra. She took a bite of her own, making quite a lot of noise while eating. "Tastes like plus three kilos," she suddenly deadpanned, prompting a giggle from Sombra. He took a bite of his cupcake and it definitely tasted great. The trader wasn't lying – this was the product from the best bakery in the Empire. "Let's check some attractions, shall we? I want to see the dancers!" Krystal said eagerly, holding her cupcake aloft with magic. They started moving through the crowd again, but this time, Sombra could actually gawk around a bit. There was so much light around them. The different colors hurt his eyes, but he still liked the many ribbons and other decorations that were wrapped around the upper branches of trees and some stands, which looked like colorful streaks in the light. There were many posters depicting the great Emperor Lux along with his loyal servant, companion and friend Sanguine Procellar, the general of Legio Eternum. Lux was a huge crystal unicorn and bigger than any pony in the Empire. His long, pure white mane was always waving in the wind and his coat, not far behind his mane in terms of whiteness, was a sight to behold. On the posters, he wore the legendary diamond armor which covered his body completely except for his neck and head. His big gold crown with two huge spikes and a crystal between them, hanging right above his horn, rested upon his head. Sanguine was always depicted as the Emperor's sidekick because, well, he always was at his side, wearing a crimson colored helmet and armor. His panoply was always made out of crystal, as was the armor of all legionnaires of Legio Eternum. This was their distinctive feature: crystal armor, an expensive piece of art, which was nigh unto indestructible by brute force. Sombra tore his eyes away from the poster and noticed that Krystal had not stopped to look at them like he did. He quickly dashed after her and caught up quickly. The other stands were full of foreign goods: toys, food, books and even several pieces of art like pictures or figurines. Most of them were of Earthville's origin, though there were several pictures that looked like the work of a unicorn. There was a stand where a sinewy looking earth pony folded and hoofed out strange paper objects. They looked like tea bags, akin to those Sombra sometimes saw in the school’s cafeteria. Ponies that bought these would come to a table wherebehind a skinny unicorn stood and waited for the customer to bring her the newly bought bag. The unicorn would then proceed by emptying the bag onto the table and wrapping the contents into tiny paper tubes. When that was done, the buyer would take this little tube, put it in his mouth and light it on the end that was not in his mouth. If it was a crystal unicorn, he would simply use his own magic. If the pony was unfortunate to not possess a horn, the unicorn next to the table would light it instead. They would then walk into the crowd, leaving behind a smelly trail of smoke. "Ugh, I hate tobacco. Makes me want to retch!" Krystal complained when they were unfortunate enough to pass through such a cloud. The smoke seeped into Sombra's lungs when inhaling, creating an itchy feeling in his throat. He coughed for a few seconds in which his eyes started to water. He had finally cleaned his throat when they approached a stand with quite a huge stage whereupon several mares in vividly colored clothes circled around and hoofed to a catchy beat. Several of them would pair up and use each other as support to stand bipedal while dancing from time to time. Several male musicians were playing a beautiful tune just to the left of the performers, their clarinets and tambourines creating a beautiful symphony fitting for this dance. The dancers moved in perfect sync with each other and were unafraid to show their talents to the fullest extent, for they seductively shook their rears in front of the crowd, making other mares boil with jealousy while stallions drooled with wide opened eyes. If there were mothers in the crowd, they would firstly try to cover their children's eyes and secondly slap their husbands on the back of the head. Krystal looked at the dancers and sighed dreamily, tilting her head slightly. "Oh my, just look at this complexity, at these forms. Poor mares, they must be starving themselves half to death to have this kind of figure. Oh, my," Krystal spoke, looking at the fiery dance. "One day, I'll be just like one of them." Sombra stared at one of the dancers who caught his sight: a girl, younger than the others, probably at around 16 years. Her mane was pitch-black like his own and she had a light brown coat, creating a nice mix of colors. She turned around, her red skirt with black vertical lines cutting through the air. Their skirts were long enough to hide their lower bodies, but the effect they had on stallions when the tips of the skirt would fly up in the air and swiftly down again, just for a second revealing that seductive part most wives frowned upon, was impressive. The girl moved a bit closer to the crowd and, with the help of her fellow dancer, did a pirouette. She suddenly stopped thereafter, allowing her beautiful comrades to step up. She looked into the crowd all the way with a smile. Suddenly, it seemed to Sombra that she looked right at him. Her brown eyes over her rosy cheeks with several layers of makeup on them seemed to stare right into his soul. Sombra felt completely paralyzed, defenseless before the young enslaver of any stallions' heart. She smiled innocently, tilting her head to the left, her dark curls slightly touching her shoulder. A small strip of red cloth on her chest kept the dress on her. It looked so small and weak; a single movement would be enough to snap it, leaving her dress hanging like an unnecessary peel that could be easily removed by one movement of a hoof. It looked like her whole body was oiled as the visible parts of it shone in the sunlight. The girl played with this tug a little while continuing to smile, moving her hoof thereunder and pulling it. Just a few more seconds and it would snap. If she would move even a bit after that, the dress would fall off, leaving her gorgeous body to be adored by the crowd. Sombra's eyes widened and his heart started pounding uncontrollably. He even heard the blood pumping in his ears. He couldn't stop staring back at this girl and she seemed to enjoy having the young colt in her grasp. She would just need to say a word and the whole crowd would be staring at him, thinking him a pervert. But she remained silent, looking right back into his eyes. She gently blew Sombra a kiss and gracefully jumped back into the fiery dance. The boy felt completely desolated inside; his cheeks felt like he was chewing burning coal. Something in his chest was swirling and cracking, burning him from inside. All his thoughts were plagued by that girl, or to be specific, her looks. "Hey, Sombra! Are you there?" Krystal said, raising her voice. It seemed she had spoken something else before, but Sombra had been too busy 'checking out the view'. "Oh... yes! I'm here! I just... got distracted," Sombra replied, trying to calm down the storm inside of him. Krystal smiled slyly. "Sombra, I'm not blind. I could see how you ogled yonder dancer," she enunciated and Sombra turned as red as a ripe tomato. Krystal ignored his blush, rubbing her belly instead, looking at it with sadness as she flicked several cupcake-crumbs off her lips. "Can't say I blame you... Shall we go on?" she offered whereto Sombra quickly concurred. He was more than happy to oblige since he felt as though he would start drooling if he spent one more second near these beautiful mares. They continued their way through the carnival, mostly trying to avoid food stands while looking for toys and souvenirs instead. After about an hour of just walking around, they approached a big stage where ponies would just come up and dance while others cheered and howled in the tune of music. Sombra and Krystal observed for a while, watching adults whirl and dance around. Some danced solo, some danced in pairs, using each other as support, but they all laughed and enjoyed themselves. A strange idea came to Sombra's mind. An idea that might be crazy, but he decided to go with it anyway, feeling heated by the vivid images of yon beautiful mare, her piercing glance as well as his newborn desire to experience something new. "Krystal... would you..." Sombra said, turning red and pale at the same time, "dance with me?" She looked at him with surprise. At first, she glanced into his eyes, then turned away and blushed. It seemed like there was a hurricane of words she wanted to say, but she only uttered a few. "Do you know how to dance?" she asked and Sombra shyly shook his head. Krystal looked at him, blushing even more. "Mmm... I might... teach you a few moves. I don't know much about dancing in a pair, never did it before..." "I'm fine with anything. I just want to dance with you," Sombra said, almost choking on his own shyness. Pronouncing these words was difficult, but he realized that he really wanted to try it. The fire lit by the dancer demanded something new. Besides, they would undoubtedly have a lot of things to talk about when they had finished dancing. "Good... then… let's go? You're first," Krystal said, her cheeks burning like two separate stars as they walked onto the stage. Several adults noticed the new pair on the stage and moved out of the way to give them some space. The music changed from a lively fast paced carnival special to a slow, melodic composition of flute and piano. This was the main stage of the carnival as one could easily see by all the ponies there. Krystal unsurely took the first step towards Sombra, her face burning with bright red. Sombra, though just as shy, swallowed his fear and took a step forward towards her. "Alright... I think it goes..." Krystal whispered right into his ear as they moved closer to each other. The musicians finished with the intro and the main part began. "Left...right...left...right," the quiet whispers reached Sombra and he obediently followed the voice’s instructions. Only now he realized just how much he adored her voice. Though it was trembling right now, it still sounded melodic like the voice of a nightingale. "Left and right... left and right... and turn," Krystal instructed as they both turned to the crowd. Sombra glanced at her when he was sure she had cast her eyes to the crowd, noticing the girl's chest going up and down and small drops of sweat running down her muzzle. She wasn't tired, no. She was scared. Sombra swallowed the clot that was slowly forming in his throat, starting to regret his decision to dance. But there was no way back; he had started it, he had to finish it. After a brief break, Krystal turned to him. "Now, left...right...left...left...right," she told Sombra and he tried to copy her moves, which he managed quite well. The crowd didn't seem to burst out in laughter, at least. Krystal carefully shook her body around and moved closer to Sombra. The dance seemed a little bit like tap-dancing, though with less emphasis on taping and more on carefully moving one’s body around. Krystal's mane shook in with the slight momentum as she tapped the wooden floor with her hooves. After a few seconds, there came a part wherein they were supposed to stand very close to each other – side by side. Her braid was just on her right side when she and Sombra took a stand. It felt incredibly soft and tender, a little bit tickling as well. The boy just couldn't resist but to press his body against her side just a little bit harder. The tickling on the side gave him a bit of courage. Krystal turned even redder, but she didn't say anything. The dance continued and, in time, Sombra started to get the basics and to memorize them. Krystal no longer spoke; she was far too focused on keeping the tempo. The music continued and it seemed like it would never stop. Moving like this actually started to get pretty tense as the moves became more and more complicated and Sombra experienced difficulties keeping up with Krystal who performed more and more convoluted moves. The music thankfully ended and the crowd applauded to all the dancers on the stage before Sombra could horribly humiliate himself in front of so many ponies. He panted and breathed heavily as they got down from the stage. "That was... weird. I never danced with a beginner before. It was always my instructor," Krystal spoke up first, taking a deep breath, filling her lungs with fresh air. "You have a dance instructor?" Sombra asked with confusion. Krystal nodded in reply. It started to get a little bit unsettling. Sombra's guesses about how rich Krystal's parents might be were all over the place. However, he suppressed those thoughts for now, for it didn’t matter. "How did I do… out there?" Sombra dared to ask, filled with self-doubt. "You did okay for a beginner. Pretty nice, actually. Nothing spectacular, though," she replied. "Why did you even decide to go there, if you didn't know how to dance?" "I just thought we could have so much to talk about after we're finished dancing. Sorry, if I made you uncomfortable," He pawed the ground and looked away. "No, no! I liked it a lot. It just felt... so weird, dancing beside you. Not just because you dance differently, but because of this... aura of yours," she said, trying to pick the most appropriate words. "You have this strange... warm aura. I just felt comfortable around you. Though..." she blushed before finishing the sentence, "you do need to remember to keep a little bit of distance during some parts..." She spoke meekly, stuttering a bit. Sombra peeked at her and saw a smile, a shy smile on her face. Did she actually enjoy this and is this right now just her trying to keep the countenance of a lady? Did she actually enjoy being that close to me? Sombra looked at her again, scanned her with his eyes and hoped that the reply to his unspoken question was yes. He felt weird admitting it, but he really enjoyed being near her, listening to her voice. Never before had they been so close to each other, so... intimate, one might say. Sombra tried to look at her more closely, but he couldn't. He just lost himself in her mane, suddenly imagining himself touching it, playing with it, mayhap even chewing it a bit. It looked so sleek and sweet… The stage was taken by the musicians again as they adjusted their instruments in preparation to play again. However, they left a big amount of space in the center as if though something was supposed to stand there, or rather, somepony. A mare in snow-white lace dress slowly walked past the musicians while the crowd started loudly applauding on her sight. Sombra didn't even notice how she appeared as he gazed at her, trying to figure out whence she had come. "Omibiss! I can't believe it!" Krystal screamed when she caught sight of the mare in white. "It's Lucia! I didn't think she would come here! But she did!" Sombra strained his memory a bit, remembering where he heard that name before. His memory came up with a poster he had seen, depicting the mare in white in a graceful pose with the words: ‘Lucia, the angelic voice of the Empire’ thereunder. Also, Sombra remembered her from a music lesson at school back in the first grade. His teacher had called her the ‘muse in flesh’, a mare with the most beautiful voice to ever be conceived by mortal ponies. She always sung in a classical style, avoiding any new tendencies or styles. As foolish as some called her, she was the master of her style, and beloved by the citizens of the Crystal Empire. "Wow!" Sombra uttered while he kept his eyes on Lucia as she sat down on the floor and fixed the knot on her dress with simple manipulations of magical streams. Her horn flashed light grey for a second and the crowd immediately went silent. In fact, the whole carnival went silent. It almost seemed like the world prepared itself to taste her honeyed voice. Lucia started singing and her magnificent melodic voice filled Sombra's ears. She sung loud enough for many ponies to hear her yet she still sounded very calm. She wasn't even shouting. The timbre, the pitch – everything was in such harmony it felt magical. She was like a siren, charming the crowd with her songs. The song itself told the story of a field. A simple field that had existed long before the city had been erected here and would still exist long after this city had crumbled into dust and earth. She sung of what the field saw throughout its immortal life: life, death, love, suffering, glorious battles, horrible crimes, atrocious betrayals and true friendship. The field had seen everything; it bore the knowledge of millennia. There was something charming about travelling in the history of the field, something they could not even notice at all in their lives, for they ignored it completely. But even if they did, the field was still there. It gathered memories, it collected and kept them. And it would continue to do so even in a million years. "I… adore her. Her voice is so beautiful. Her songs are so magnificent," Krystal whispered to herself, but Sombra heard her. He noted every word, every whisper that came out of her mouth now. The memory of that poster was recent. It seemed she would hold a concert at the Sanguine's Opera theatre this winter. An insane idea crept unto Sombra's mind: he wanted to get tickets – two tickets, for him and for Krystal. This seemed like a wonderful idea, a perfect way to make her happy, and thus, to make himself happy. But the financial question arose quickly. The tickets had to cost a hefty sum, so what should he do? Where should he look for money? Sombra drove away these thoughts for now; he would worry about that later. For now, he would just enjoy the moment of peace, contemplating the ideas and expectations of that concert, hoping that Krystal would accept his invitation. Lucia finally turned silent and the air was immediately filled with the sounds of applauds and screams, hailing her, praising her. She elegantly bowed to the crowd several times, accepting the flowers some threw onto the stage whereon she stood, and then left the stage through the stairs in the back where she could peacefully leave the carnival escorted by her servants without being disturbed. The crowd suddenly turned silent as the musicians left the stage, too. Something stood still in Sombra's chest as he realized that the time for the main event had arrived. The whole carnival was building up to this, the reason why everypony had come here. It was the coronation day; that meant the Emperor would visit this place right here, right now. Sombra had heard stories and seen posters, but he had never seen the Emperor in person. Everypony went silent: Krystal, Sombra, the traders, husbands, wives and children. All were waiting for their monarch to appear. The ground started to shake and tremble as some kind of a cloud started forming right above the stage. Some looked up, but many were too scared to even raise their heads. The pure, milky-white cloud increased in size and the air started to crack and heat up with pure energy and raw power. The ground was shaken again, which caused several cracks to appear right under Sombra's hooves. "Loyal subjects of the Empire! Behold and stare in awe, for this only happens once a year. Our beloved leader, the exalted celestial monarch and our emperor: Lux!" a booming voice out of nowhere announced and the crowd was deafened by the sound of thunder as the white cloud spew out a beam of light which struck down onto the stage’s surface. The wind raised from the impact made some ponies take a few steps back. As the dust settled down, the firm sounds of several hooves hitting the wooden floor of the stage reached the ears of the crowd. From the dusty veil, the great Emperor Lux, wearing his golden crown and royal mantle, stepped forth. The crowd immediately bowed before the great monarch. Sombra fell on his knees as well, but carefully raised his head to take just a peak at the Emperor. The sparkling of his skin was blinding and he was just as gigantic as the rumors said. The mighty unicorn looked upon his pitiful subjects and smiled widely. He was accompanied by a pony in crimson armor who held himself in the background, wearing a scary helmet depicting the face of a demon. He raised his hoof in a commanding gesture. "Rise, Our subjects!" the white monarch commanded, his voice booming and vibrating. "We, the great Emperor Lux, The Burning Sun that shines upon Our land, the Endless Ocean that washes Our shores, the Mighty Wind that brings storm and prosperity alike, have descended upon you to declare that the celebration of Our coronation is officially open!" The six legionnaires of Legio Eternum raised their right forehooves into the air. "Hail to the Emperor!" they screamed at the top of their lungs as everypony in the crowd did the same thing. "Hail to the Emperor!" Krystal shouted, looking somewhere else, afraid to look at the Emperor himself. "Hail to the Emperor!" Sombra shouted, throwing his hoof up in the air, looking straight at the Emperor with amazement and pride for his country and for the Emperor. He was lucky to see the great monarch in person, hear his voice echoing in his ears and feel the incredible power of his magic that was enhanced by the Crystal Heart. "Well, since we're done with official greetings, I would like to congratulate you all. Our great country hath made several significant steps towards achieving the goal I dream to see accomplished during my reign: my dream of equality, where every pony is unbound of the chains of his birth, where a simple farmer is free to talk to a prince whenever he and the prince desire and not when the rules of etiquette allow. I wish to see my subjects live in beautiful houses made out of the best materials so none will mock one another about their empty purse. I wish to see my subjects eat and drink healthily, each pony unafraid to take another slice of bread if he deserves it. I dream of seeing our children play together on the same field, in one room, talking to each other like equals, and lastly, I wish to see marriages between commoners and nobility, for nothing must stop love. Nothing!" Ponies screamed loudly in joy as he finished his speech. Lux smiled, looking at the crowd, sometimes waving his hoof to greet a pony who was looking at him. Sombra was one of the lucky ones whom he waved to. "One day, that dream will be achieved. And then I will have no need for my title, my crown and the rules that I am subjected to. I will be able to just step unto you and greet you as equals..." Lux continued, suddenly grinning like a wolf, "like this!" He jumped into the air and the ground trembled from his massive weight. He aimed to land right in the center of the crowd. Ponies stumbled back, terrified of this sight which had the benefit of creating some space for Lux to land in. His horn started glowing with powerful magic in order to decrease his speed so he wouldn't crush anypony by accident. However, there was only one pony who didn't even move from his landing site. Sombra, completely paralyzed, stood still as the Emperor landed right in front of him. The boy was but an insect compared to this gigantic crystal unicorn. If Lux put his hoof on him and applied some pressure, Sombra would turn into soup. "Well, hello there,” Lux greeted the terrified boy nonchalantly, looking down upon him and lowering his head to get a closer look. Sombra almost threw himself to the ground, trying to bow before him, but was quickly seized by the powerful aura of his magic. Sombra felt incredible power that could crush him in one second if the wielder so desired yet it grasped him softly, almost tenderly. Lux took great care not to disturb or hurt the child in any way. "No, no. Do not bow. All you need to do is to greet me like you would greet your friend at school. Let's try again, ditya. Hello!" Lux spoke while he lifted Sombra up in the air. Sombra was paralyzed. Not because the Emperor himself held him in his levitation, but because of what he had said. ‘Ditya’ was a form of address that solely existed in Crystallian, though it was used rarely. It was like saying ‘Sir’ or ‘My Lord’ but instead of indicating formality, it was an invitation to informality, to speak to each other as equals. It was normally used by adults who wanted their children to speak freely. As that information finally reached Sombra’s brain, he stopped flailing his limbs uselessly in the air. The Emperor had spoken to him as equal! "Hello..." Sombra whispered which made Lux smile. "That's much better. Sorry for scaring you, though," he said while he carefully placed Sombra back on the ground. "I feel bad therefor… Here, have something as compensation." A small tower of coins flew from under the Emperor's mantle and landed in front of Sombra who was laying on the ground with his eyes closed. The stack of gold coins flew apart and each coin, wrapped in a white aura, found a way into Sombra's bag. After 'compensating' Sombra, Lux disappeared in a puff of white smoke and reappeared back on the stage. "I wish you all a pleasant day. Have fun!" he proclaimed once he raised his hoof in a greeting manner whereupon the crowd hailed him once more. Krystal quickly dragged a visibly shaken Sombra away, because now, everypony could get an audience with the Emperor and the crowd could simply crush the child without even noticing. They found safe haven near a wooden stand that sold books. "Wow... this is so awesome!" Krystal gushed while swiping the dust off of Sombra. "That was such a gigantic honor. If anypony finds out about this at school, you'll be the number one star!" "Krystal... please... don't tell anypony about this," Sombra pleaded between heavy panting which shocked Krystal greatly. "But... why?" she asked and Sombra sighed heavily. "I was... so... scared. The Emperor himself, I can't believe it... I think they'll laugh at me when they find out how cowardly I behaved in front of... him," Sombra uttered. "Please... let this be our secret – yours and mine, okay?" Krystal swiped the last specks of dust away, looked at him, and smiled softly. "He-he... Of course, if you want this to be our secret, I won't tell anypony." Her cheeks blushed just a little when she said that. "I think I'll go check out something else. Let's go?" "Yeah, you go ahead. I'll catch up with you," Sombra replied, wanting to get a few moments of rest. Krystal reluctantly left him and he took a few minutes to process everything in his brain. He couldn't believe how scared, how defenseless and how weak he had been in the grip of such a mighty pony. But at the same time while being at his mercy, Sombra had felt that Lux wouldn't hurt him. Such great power was used to protect, not to harm. The feeling of defenseless was completely different from the one he would feel when his drunken father approached to strike him. Sombra rose up and noticed the display of books before him. These weren't simple books; these were books about magic and quite professional and advanced ones, too. What a surprise to find them being sold at the fair. However, many things were sold and bought here. Besides several other fairs, coronation day was the only carnival where things like these could be sold freely and not in specific stores. Nature magic, elemental, arcane... and then Sombra noticed the black paper among this colorful library. Dark magic. Even now, Sombra felt its presence emanating from it. It had been the energy of a book like this which had allowed him to witness the horror that had forever scarred his soul. It was a quite big tome. The black front cover sported bright white letters which contrasted starkly with the black cover. The title read Arcana Abyssi. He knew what he had gotten last time he had seen a book like this. This energy had hurt him, made him suffer, but Sombra felt that this time it... fawned to him as if it recognized him. His chest started to hurt a bit and his vision blurred, but the young unicorn kept standing. It seemed this magic was attracted to him for some reason. He didn't know why or how that might even work, but mayhap the answers could be found in the book. All this seemed so interesting, so new. He had tried so much new stuff today already. Why not try some more? For a second, the boy thought of what his father would think if he found out he even considered learning about dark magic now. He would be furious, but should Sombra even care? That drunkard could get angered by a flick of light if it happened to wake him up at the wrong time. His anger was nothing now since Sombra had become so much quicker and stronger. He still was no match for an adult, but he could outrun him easily so there should be nothing to worry about. Sombra used his magic to withdraw several coins from his pocket and put them on the stand’s counter right next to a stack of books where it should be found by the owner. This had to suffice since the trader was gone, probably trying to get an audience with Lux. He then proceeded by wrapping the Arcana Abyssi in his grey energy essence and dragged it towards him. He carefully placed it in his bag, where it just barely fit, and quickly ran away to find Krystal. *** "Mmm... don't know which one to pick: pegasus or gryphon? Both look very pretty," Krystal pondered, looking at the wooden toys displayed at the stand. She couldn't make up her mind whether she wanted a beautiful pegasus mare with carefully carved wings and a pretty blue ribbon tied to her neck, or a mighty gryphon that proudly held a chalice with its massive talons while smirking proudly. Both figurines were masterfully made, presumably by the same master, since the way they were crafted shared quite a few similarities. "I like the gryphon. He looks so proud and powerful," Sombra commented as he thoroughly scanned both figures with his eyes. "He seems like the perfect protector." Krystal outlined the wooden gryphon with her sight and gently stroked it. "The surface is a bit rough and it's sharp around the edges," Krystal spoke absentmindedly, humming from time to time. "It's a wooden figure. Of course it’s rough," Sombra rolled his eyes behind her back and touched the pegasus figure. To his surprise, it was smooth and pleasant to touch. It seemed this figure was made from some soft type of wood. "So, how's the pegasus?" Krystal deadpanned. Sombra smiled in return. "It's soft... Really soft," he said and returned his attention to the gryphon. "I think I'll take the pegasus figure. Wait a second, I'll look for something to pay up with. Some traders still practice the old fashioned exchange trade.” Sombra quickly turned away from the figure and withdrew several coins from his bag. These toys were pretty costly, but they looked magnificent. They were worth the price. When Krystal noticed the money floating through the air, she squeaked. "No! No-no-no! You don't need to pay for me!" she protested, turning to Sombra. "I paid for your muffin, what's wrong with buying you a toy?" he quipped in a teasing manner. "Firstly, it was no muffin, it was a cupcake. Secondly, it didn't cost that much! Save the money for yourself, I don't need you to pay for me." "I insist," Sombra's short reply turned Krystal silent. It was clear she wanted to say something else, but the words seemed stuck in her throat. The trader accepted the payment and pushed the Pegasus figure towards Krystal. She looked at it meekly. "I don't know why you are doing this, but... it would offend you if I decline your present?" she asked and Sombra nodded firmly. Krystal took the toy and eyed it for a bit. "Thank you, Sombra. You are so generous... like a real gentlecolt," she complimented him, making Sombra blush a bit. For some reason, hearing praise from her right now felt particularly pleasant. Together they started walking towards the exit as the sun slowly went down. The horizon slowly painted itself crimson and the few birds that lived in the Empire started to cease singing to retire for the night. Sombra and Krystal were walking through the park, each holding something from the fair. The pegasus toy floated next to Krystal, wrapped in her magical grip, and Sombra carefully tried to cover the edges of the book that poked out of his bag. Most of the money had been spent on sweets and ice-cream, which they had eaten while discussing the recent events, the dancers (though Sombra kept quiet about the youngest of them flirting with him) and the Emperor's speech. Krystal wasn't keen on politics, but she listened to Sombra's rapt description of Lux. However, their roles were soon reverted when the topic changed to music, with Sombra becoming the listener and Krystal being the speaker. Sombra really enjoyed this regular change of roles; it allowed him to keep things fresh and interesting unlike with Iron Wheel who wouldn't shut up sometimes. "I like nature, you know. It changes so fast – from calm to furious, from beautiful to scary. You can never guess what will happen next," Krystal pronounced when she and Sombra stopped on the edge of a cliff overlooking a small field in the park. "It's so unpredictable... and adults hate everything that's unpredictable." Sombra slowly shifted his eyes towards her. "You remind of nature a bit... I mean, you are just as unpredictable. Just a few years ago, you tried to avoid me... now you buy me presents," Krystal giggled. "I feel so awkward right now... He-he." "Me too... feel awkward, I mean... but thank you... it's very nice to hear that... especially from you," Sombra replied, making pauses, partially because he waited if Krystal wanted to say something more. "You know, my mother always tells me that, one day, I'll have to choose a stallion that I would want to spend my whole life with..." she spoke and Sombra looked at her in great shock. He had expected some nice compliment, but he didn't expect that at all. Krystal herself realized what she had just said and turned almost completely crimson. She looked around in confusion with an awkward smile. "So... you wanted to say..." Sombra began and Krystal looked at him shyly. "Nothing... I just spoke rubbish there for a moment… He-he," Krystal said, looking around to calm her nerves. "I need to go now. Thank you for this wonderful evening. I enjoyed spending time with you so much." She looked down onto the ground, trying to prevent Sombra from looking at her, only sometimes peeking at him bashfully. Sombra started to feel really awkward. He wanted to look away and say that it was alright, but he couldn't stop looking at her pretty face which was half-hidden behind her lush mane with soft shades of red on her plump cheeks. "Ah.... I did...too." "Thanks for all the presents... Sombra," she replied, pronouncing his name with what seemed like affection. "Heh... don't mention it. You got to share, don't you?" Sombra tried to keep his cool in order to not fall into complete shyness as well. "Goodbye... see you tomorrow, then…" Sombra said his goodbyes and accompanied her with his glance as she left. He felt so weird right now. So much had happened today, so many weird things. It was so much for just one day. But there was only one thought Sombra couldn't let go of. Not even the surprise by the Emperor could be compared to this. He liked Krystal. He felt something strange, connecting him and her, something warm and fuzzy. He touched his chest right where his heart laid, remembering their dance and the fluffiness of her mane. He couldn't forget her now. Her image was stuck in his heart and in his mind. His mind was set. He was sure that she felt something for him too, something akin to the feeling he had; and he would make her confess it! Sombra remembered his plan on buying the tickets for the concert. They were sure to cost a large amount of money, but now, he was not fazed by anything. Sombra would gather the money; and he would buy these tickets, for him and her. He had to spend more time with her. He had to hear her confession. He wanted to know one thing… Was this warm feeling mutual?