//------------------------------// // Epilogue III: Perception // Story: Perception // by Valen //------------------------------// Perception ~~~ “Life is a matter of perception.” ~~~ Epilogue III: Perception “Can I get a round of ciders?” I asked. The unicorn mare behind the bar nodded, smiling. “Sure you can. You alright there? You look pretty down in the dumps,” she replied in a pretty voice. I smiled ruefully back. “Eh, I’ll be fine. It’s just been a rough week, that’s all.” She raised an eyebrow as if asking me to continue as she grabbed a bottle in her aura. “It’s a pretty long story. In short, I lost a dear friend of mine along with my eye.” I gestured towards the now-grey orb. The mare smiled sympathetically. “I’m sorry to hear that, but don’t worry about it. Life keeps on going, right? All you gotta do is make sure that tomorrow is better.” There was a calm wisdom to her words that struck a chord in me. I thanked her, then took the drinks and made my way back to the booth Firelock had gotten us towards the back of the club. I had to navigate my way through a dance floor of writhing and stomping ponies, dancing to the beat of the music. A strong bass pumped through the floor as a cyan blue pegasus mare with a wild, yellow mane bobbed her head behind a set of turntables. This was Bee Bop, a good friend of Firelock and Alula’s who had been the one to get us the booth. She spared a grin my way as I passed her, which I returned. I hadn’t talked to her much, but Bee Bop seemed like a good pony. Unfortunately, I found it hard to focus. My mind kept warning me that something was going to go horribly wrong. That nothing can ever go just fine. I’d come out to get away from the worries of the real world, but they seemed intent on following me. I pushed those thoughts aside as I finally made my way out of the crowd and approached the booth. I could deal with them later. Sweetie was sitting on one side of it, animatedly telling a story to a happy Firelock and Alula. “So this one time I was performing the visual acuity test because the normal doctor was out. I placed the patient twenty feet from the chart and began, ‘Cover your right eye with your hoof.’ He read the twenty-twenty line perfectly. ‘Now your left.’ Again, a flawless read. ‘Now both,’ I requested. There was silence. He couldn't even read the large E on the top line. I turned and found out that he had done exactly what I had asked; he was sitting there with both his eyes covered. I was laughing too hard to finish the exam!” They burst out into laughter, and I couldn’t help but chuckle too. I slid into the seat next to Sweetie and placed our drinks on the table. She smiled at me, shuffling a little closer and leaning into my shoulder. “Here ya go girls, ciders for all!” I exclaimed. Firelock grinned back at me, raising a glass in her magical aura. Alula and Sweetie followed suit, and I hooked my own hoof around my drink. We clanked them together, and took a swig. Or rather, me and Firelock took a swig. Alula sipped it, and Sweetie managed to get one gulp before coughing and sputtering. She placed the drink down, her cheeks turning a bright red. I smiled at her, rubbing her back with my wing a little. “Thanks,” she said after finishing her coughing fit. “Not a problem. So, Firelock, you were gonna tell us about your plans for the whole Elkenheim thing weren’t you?” “Yeah, I was. So I got to thinking, after all the stuff that’s happened over the last week or two, we could all really use some time away. So why don’t we go to Elkenheim? The music festival is starting in a few months.” Alula tilted her head for a second, before nodding. “That actually sounds pretty wonderful. What about you two?” I thought about it for a moment. I’d only just got back to Ponyville—I didn’t really have all that much money. Still, if I worked pretty hard for the next few months, clocked some extra hours, I’d probably be able to do it. Besides, Firelock was certainly right about one thing: I really did need some time away. The stresses of the past two weeks were beginning to mess with me. “Yeah, yeah I’m in. I’ll need to work some overtime but I should be able to afford it. Besides, I’ve always wanted to visit.” “Well, I wouldn’t want to be left behind now would I?” Sweetie Belle added. “The music festival will be on! There isn’t a larger gathering of musicians anywhere!” I could practically feel the anticipation radiating from her. I loved it when Sweetie got excited about something, she always looked so adorable. “Awesome, so we’ll go in June?” Firelock asked. “Sounds good,” I replied, taking another drink. Firelock’s smile widened and I saw her mouth a small ‘yes!’ We sat there for a little while, drinking and talking about anything really. When we ran out of cider, Firelock and Alula volunteered to get the next round, leaving me and Sweetie alone. Finally I decided to voice the question which had been plaguing my mind since my awakening. “Sweetie?” “Mhm?” she replied, looking up at me. “I was… thinking.” She sat up straight so that she could face me more directly. She knew just as well as anypony that I didn’t like to think, so what I was about to say must have been important. “It’s just, I don’t know if it’s a good idea to go into this relationship. I mean, I don’t think I’m even alive. Even worse, I’ve spent the last week hurting you. I’m not good enough for somepony as incredible as you, you deserve somepony bett—” Sweetie cut me off with a kiss. She pulled back and smiled at me. “Scoots, you really don’t see the good do you? Yes, things have been tough since you arrived, but they would have been anyway. Without you here, I don’t think I would have been able to hold myself together. Just having you around makes me feel stronger.” “But Sweetie, I’m not even alive, I’m a half-blind freak!” I replied, still convinced that Sweetie was simply too good for me. She shook her head, gently brushing a lock of hair away from my scarred eye. “You aren’t a freak, Scoots. You are a wonderful mare who has had some awful things happen to her, and before you say it, I don’t want to be with anypony else. Ever since I was a filly I had a… a thing for you,” she said, blushing a little at the end. “Really?” I asked her, baffled. I’d had no idea. “Heh, yeah. You were just always so strong, so focused. You never gave up, no matter how hard things were at the time. They were always your best qualities. And even if they were buried for a while, you still haven’t lost them. I never said anything because I was afraid you’d hate me.” Now it was my turn to kiss Sweetie. I pulled back, my mouth forming a small smile. “I could never hate you, Sweetie. You saved me from myself.” She blushed brightly, but didn’t hide. Instead she moved closer, laying her head in the crook of my neck. “So, do you still want to date then?” she asked in a small, hesitant voice. I wrapped a wing around the pretty white unicorn, smiling. “As long as you don’t mind the eye, then I’d love to.” Sweetie laughed a little at that, looking up and kissing me just above the eye. She pulled back, grinning widely. I had to admit, I was feeling pretty great too. It felt like a great shadow had been lifted, like my worries and fears were slowly being stripped away. Sweetie Belle was my candle in the darkness; with her by my side, I knew that I could face anything. I was… what was that word? Emancipated. Free—not entirely, but I was making a lot of progress. It felt good. “Awh, look at you two!” Alula squealed from nearby. Sweetie scrambled back, sitting back and looking away casually. I chuckled and looked up to see Alula biting her hoof, her eyes shining. Firelock simply shook her head, carrying another set of drinks in her red aura. She gave Alula a small nudge, eliciting another squee from the frozen mare. She chuckled, her horn glowing brighter and creating a small flash in front of Alula’s face. She snapped back to the present, blushing as she quickly took a seat. “So, you two have a deep heart-to-heart while we were gone?” Firelock asked with a knowing grin. I glanced across at the still blushing Sweetie Belle. “Maybe a little bit. You’d have to ask Sweetie for the details, and she looks to be out of commission,” I replied. Firelock gave a laugh, taking a sip of her cider. I sat back, drinking my own as I thought. I considered all the changes that had overcome me since my confrontation with Gaurus. The more obvious physical changes, and the less obvious changes to my very character. “What are ya thinking about, Scoots?” Firelock asked. I looked up, startled out of my thought. My mouth worked silently for a few moments, before eventually finding a way to voice my thoughts. “Y’know, ever since I lost my eye, things have been getting clearer,” I said. Firelock raised an eyebrow, motioning with her hoof for me to continue. “I mean, before I just looked at stuff and they were there. That’s it. But now I’ve really gotta focus, I really have to see. It’s all about perception. Life, I mean.” I paused, looking around for something to help illustrate my point. “It’s like… like looking through a glass.” I picked up one of our empty glasses in my hoof, holding it up for the others to see. “When you look through a glass. It’s all blurry and messed up, the world just looks wrong. But if you take the time to clean it up, everything takes on this whole new appearance which you would have never seen before.” I chuckled. “Too bad it took me losing one eye to figure it out.” “Since when did you get so introspective Scoots?” Sweetie asked. I smiled, nuzzling her. “Since I fell in love with you,” I replied, earning a blush from her. Alula practically choked, her grin becoming so wide I thought her face might split in two. Firelock simply shook her head, reaching across with a hoof which I promptly bumped with my own. “Damn you’re getting suave, Scoots,” she said. “I learned from the best,” I replied. We shared a laugh, and she suddenly sat up a little straighter. “I just want to say that you girls are the best friends I’ve ever had. Seriously, I don't know where I'd be without you all,” she stated, her voice dripping with emotion. My smile grew wider. “Awh, Lockie!” Alula enveloped Firelock in a hug and I laughed. Firelock had been right—going to the club was a good idea. I glanced to my left and saw Sweetie staring at her hooves mouthing something. I wrapped a wing around her, startling the focused mare. She looked up and gave a small smile, leaning into the hug. “So! How about we move on from our incredible sappiness onto some stories?” I asked. I heard a muffled response from Firelock which probably translated as a ‘yes’ or something similar. I hoped so anyway, because I was going to tell a story anyway. “Awesome, so you all remember m telling you about Daisy, right? Well I’d only recently arrived in Las Pegasus, and we were sitting in the back of the warehouse when this huge crate comes in…” * * * The night was drawing to a close. Slowly, ponies made their way off the dancefloor, leaving only us and a few other tables left alongside the staff. We were laughing at a story of Alula’s about one of her childhood Nightmare Nights when Bee Bop arrived at our table, a wide grin on her face. She was wearing a black jacket and some hoofbands, a set of headphones dangled around her neck. The cyan mare’s head still bobbed to some unheard music. “Hey everypony, you girls have a good time?” she asked. “Oh yes, it really was wonderful, Bee Bop. You’ve done a great job with this place. I think the opening night has gone extremely well,” Alula said, making the DJ’s grin widen even further. “Yes! I really hope it did, It’s taken me quite a while to get this place set up. Oh and Sweetie, you still on for Thursday?” “Of course! I can’t wait, Bee Bop,” Sweetie replied with her gorgeous smile. Sweetie’s smile was infectious and soon I found myself grinning too. “Great, well I hope you girls had a great night—Luna knows you needed one. Anyway, we’ll be closing up now, so if you could all finish your drinks then that’d be cool.” I nodded, downing the rest of my cider in one great gulp. Firelock followed suit, Alula and Sweetie taking things a little bit slower. “Damn, Scootaloo. You know how to knock one back, huh?” “Heck yeah!” I replied, wiping my mouth with a hoof. Bee Bop gave a laugh. “Hey, we should go out drinking sometime? I’ll bet you have some great stories,” Bee Bop offered. I nodded at that. “Yeah, actually that sounds pretty fun.” “Awesome. Well I’ll leave you all to it. I think you have about fifteen minutes ‘til we close up.” “Great. Thanks, Bee Bop,” Firelock said earnestly. “Not a problem,” Bee Bop replied, turning back around and trotting towards one of the other tables which still had ponies on it. I sat back, happily considering the day. It seemed that my fears had been entirely unfounded. Maybe things didn’t always have to go wrong. Maybe—just maybe—things were going to start changing? I glanced across at Sweetie who was still sipping her drink and sighed. Maybe it was time to finally let go of the past. I had spent so many years trapped in my own history, never moving on. Well, enough was enough. I may have wasted one life, but I wasn’t going to waste another. I was really going to do something with this one. I gave a little chuckle as a phrase came to mind. It seemed that my vision really was clearing up. Until now I had been seeing everything through a dirty glass, but now it was clean again and I could really see that as long as I worked hard at it, life could be incredible. All you had to do was see it. Life really was a matter of perception, and it was finally time for me to start looking. It was finally time to move on and make things better. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted the warped, Elysiate version of myself. The shade. She looked better: some of the scars criss-crossing her body had begun to heal, and she also now wore the same goggles which currently rested on my head. The shade smiled at me, pulling a mock salute before fading away. Maybe it wasn’t too late to save her, I thought with a small smile of my own. Maybe with the help of Sweetie, Firelock and Alula I would be able to heal more than just my physical wounds. It would be hard of course, there was no doubt about that. The shade had been right when she said that we’d get hurt. There was pain in the world, there was hate and anger. A burst of laughter drew my attention back to the table. Alula had accidently swallowed the wrong way and ended up snorting her drink, spraying it back into the mug. I chuckled too. Sweetie looked up at me and gave me a quick kiss on the cheek. Yes, there was pain and hatred and anger, but there were other things too. There was happiness, there was laughter, there was love. And no matter how hard the fight was, I knew that it would always be worth it. Life was a matter of perception after all. I could focus on the bad and end up just like the shade has been, or I could take a look from a different direction and see what really made life worth fighting for. “I won’t give up, Rainbow. I promise,” I whispered, then turned my attention back to the present. Life wasn’t going to wait, and I didn’t want to miss a single second of it.