Iron Wheel shivered, rubbing his hooves against each other and blowing at them, trying to warm up as much as he could. The winter had started unexpectedly—just a few weeks ago, there hadn’t been any signs of snow. Now, a thin layer of the white dust was covering the earth, turning his travel from his home to school into a real challenge. He wasn't too resistant against cold, and now Sombra was probably taking his sweet time, taking a sweet stroll through the park.
Iron Wheel quickly looked around and rubbed his hooves together again. His breath produced small clouds of vapor—from a distance, you would think he was smoking.
Would be very bad if his mom saw him right now: firstly, without a scarf, and secondly, she would think that he was smoking and he could therefore kiss freedom goodbye for another week of house arrest. At least that was what had happened last time when his father had perceived the weak odor of tobacco coming from him.
He hadn't felt that guilty ever since he broke mom's favorite cup.
He looked around, checking if Sombra was nearby or hiding behind the bush, and, after making sure that wasn't the case, he galloped towards the school's entrance. The snow he kicked while running flew up into the air, but he didn't notice anything—he just wanted to get to a warm place.
He ran past the ponies, who were hanging out in the yard— mostly kids, but there were teens—talked to each other or went behind the school: probably to take a smoke.
"Hey, Iron! Wait up just a minute," he suddenly heard a familiar voice. Iron Wheel stopped and turned around.
Three 11th graders approached him. The one leading them, with gray coat and blue mane, was a son of one of his father's friends—a nice colt, from what he heard. His name was Bright Wave if he remembered correctly.
"Oh, Bright Wave, haven't seen you in a while." Iron replied, looking at him.
"We don't really talk at all," Bright Wave noted, prompting an awkward chuckle from Iron.
"Yeah... we don't," he said, rubbing his forehead. "So... how's it going?"
"No offence, Bright, but this guy is dumb," one of Bright's companions said, a pony with short maroon mane.
"Anyway, Iron Wheel, what I wanted to talk about was that your father owns mine a sum of money, remember?" he said, ignoring his companion's rude remark. "My father goes away for a week, so he won't be able to come and collect the debt. Inform your dad that he should wait for a week or two, before my father returns, aye?"
"Oh, that's good to hear," Iron replied. He didn't have any idea about his family's economical state, so there wasn't any other reaction he could have had, though, he was relieved to hear that they just wanted to send a message—and a positive one at that, because sometimes, messengers would have come to beat up the one in debt instead.
These three really looked like they could pack a punch. Each of them was quite big, with Bright Wave completing the picture with a few small scars on his side. He would brag that he got them in a fight, though in reality, he just lubberly passed by a spiny bush.
"Don't take too long, or you know what's going to happen to you! It won't be fun," another one of Bright's friends said, grinning evilly. Wave quickly slapped him on the forehead.
"You're an idiot, aren't you?"
"Come on, Bright, it was a joke, okay!" his friend replied merrily. "All for good fun."
"This 'for good fun' will get you in big trouble. Don't flap your lips around for nothing!" Bright said angrily and his friend lowered his head, mockingly parodying an offended child.
"Anyway, Iron, we'll go. Not gonna bother you anymo—"
"Stay right where you are, pal!" a loud voice suddenly tore through the merrily falling snow.
"Sombra?" Iron Wheel asked nopony in particular, looking past the colts standing in front of him. He was right—Sombra was standing not far from them in a position like he was about to charge at them.
"So, what are you three dumb pimps doing there with my friend, eh?" he called them out, smiling. "Did he wrong you in any way?"
"Hey, look, we don't want any trouble—" Bright started to speak, but his companion interrupted.
"But you can find some if you are looking for it!"
"Trouble! Oh, fuck yeah; I'm all in for trouble!" Sombra growled, slowly walking to them. "What did they want, Iron Wheel?"
Iron Wheel was paralyzed, his face slowly turning pale. He didn't know what to do.
"M...money..." he replied while Sombra walked around the three, approaching his friend.
"Money, huh? And for what reason, may I ask?" he questioned, sitting down near Iron Wheel.
"Listen, friend, we didn't ask for money. You're exaggerating—" he wanted to say something else, when Sombra started slowly going towards him.
"'Friend'? You'll call me a friend when I bash your head in, you shithead," he growled with some excitement in his voice. "What? Too scared? Come on, chicken!"
He peeked at Iron.
"So, Wheel, do you want these morons gone? I'll be very glad if you say yes," Sombra said, grinning like a maniac. "These three look-alikes are such an eyesore".
"Iron..." Bright Wave said, looking strictly at Iron Wheel, who turned away, remembering seeing that kind of glance far too often. He suddenly remembered how his father always looked at him whenever he did something wrong. Or, to speak more appropriate, not like his parents wanted to. In reply, he just uttered some sounds. He didn't want to speak. He just wanted to be left alone for a moment.
"You heard him. Piss off!" Sombra said, looking at Bright Wave like a victor. "Why are you still standing, dumbass? Move!"
Bright's friends bared their teeth, showing their will to kick the ignorant pony's behind, but Wave just gestured them to go back.
"This attitude won't get you any friends," he said in a bitter voice, turning away.
"If I can't make friends, I'll make them my bitches instead!" Sombra shouted back. Oh, how bold, how arrogant he felt today. Though, it really sucked that they just walked away. He hoped to let out some steam.
"Alright, that's it!" one of Bright's companions suddenly shouted, turned around in a blink of an eye and punched Sombra right in the face. Being a bit taller and stronger than him—and having the element of surprise—the boy knocked the arrogant unicorn down.
"Aw, you..." Sombra barked, helping himself up, when suddenly he felt the metallic taste of blood on his tongue. The skin of his upper lip had been torn from the punch and blood was slowly dripping from the wound. It wasn't anything serious, but the smell and the taste of it threw Sombra into a fit of rage. He remembered the taste of his blood—he used to taste it so often when his father caught him outside of his room back in the day.
"Oh, so you want to play rough?" Sombra growled, slowly rising, looking at his enemy with fire dancing in his green eyes. "Good!"
One moment and the poor pony flew away with his nose broken. The poor stallion fell right beside Bright, who quickly turned from calm to enraged.
"Get him!" he commanded his leftover-friend and they both rushed at Sombra. He smiled; how easy it was to turn some quiet giant into a raging destroyer. Though, that was the most fun part. He finally got to let out some steam.
Sombra rushed forward, looking his opponent straight in the eyes. He saw anger, irritation, a desire to hurt. Sombra was basically looking into a mirror. Though, if he were to analyze his own feelings, he would add excitement to the list.
Bright Wave was about to ram his head into Sombra, but the dark unicorn quickly countered his charge by dropping himself to the ground, using himself as a rock to trip over. Bright burrowed his face deep in the snow. Sombra got up, preparing to face the last opponent. What he didn't expect was that his opponent didn't waste any time and, instead of watching his two downed friends in horror, he shortened the distance between him and Sombra just enough for him to punch the arrogant unicorn in the stomach.
He bent over and the snow cooled his head off while he tried to gather his thoughts and suppress the pain. The metallic taste of blood still lingered on his tongue, but it was more than enough to send Sombra into frenzy.
"Come on, Bright, get up," his friend's words helped Bright gather his thoughts and, using his shoulder as support, he got up, spitting out snow.
"Pff, what an idiot!" Bright blurted at Sombra while the young colt slowly got up, though reeling. A small line of blood could be seen dripping from the side of his mouth.
"You shouldn't be picking on those stronger than you!" Bright Wave angrily shouted. Sombra looked around. Ponies started to gather around them, interested in the fight that was going on. There were no teachers anywhere yet, thankfully.
"And you should have stayed down on the ground!" the unicorn growled as his horn lit up in grey energies. Before Bright's friend could say anything, a rock, formed from energy, hit him right in the face. Even though the rock wasn't real, it left a huge bruise under the boy's eye and a bleeding tear on his cheek. Sombra smiled, satisfied with his successful attack, and rushed at Bright Wave, concentrating even more energy in his horn.
He intended to form a battering ram in front of his head wherewith he’d crush Bright Wave, probably breaking a few bones. Though, it would be funny to see him be carried away to the hospital by these two grunts who went down with such pathetic resistance.
A sudden blow to the spine made Sombra lose his balance. His horn sparkled with energy, and when he felt the cold snow wrap around his muzzle, he was blinded by a bright flash of energy and a sudden headache. He quietly moaned of the sudden pain. The snow started to turn red from the blood that was slowly dripping from his nose.
The sudden energetic pressure was far too much for his capillaries to handle. When Sombra opened his eyes, Iron Wheel was horrified to see his friend's left eye turn completely crimson except the green pupil.
The pony who had hit Sombra from behind walked around him and approached Bright Wave with a smug smile on his face. A small line of blood was visible above his lips.
"Bright, let's get outa here. This guy's nuts," he said whereto Wave silently nodded. He looked back at Iron Wheel, piercing him with hateful glance. He could have prevented this fight and yet that pansy had done nothing!
"Br...Bright..." one of his companions whispered. Even though Brave still wanted to punish the coward a little more, his friend's worried tone made him turn around.
He froze in place with fear when he saw Sombra standing up tall, bruised and beaten, but still eager to fight. He bared his sharp teeth, his horn glowing menacingly.
"Sweet Emperor, what's this guy made of?!" Bright exclaimed, slowly backing away. This seemed almost suicidal: Sombra was badly beaten, bruised, and clearly no match for these three, and yet he was still looking for a fight? This was taking a turn for the worse, but there was no other way. Another fight was unavoidable.
The three took the small moment of relaxation and used it to full effect. They were ready and able, which couldn't be said about Sombra, who could barely stand. Only several steps were now separating the opponents, only several steps before the brutal school yard fight could turn into something worse.
"Stop! Now!" a loud female voice reached the ears of the fighting ponies, just before they were about to charge each other. Krystal dashed right in front of the three crystal ponies, shielding Sombra with her fragile body.
"Don't touch him!" she shouted once again, looking angrily at the three ponies. They stopped dead in their tracks.
"Oh, lookie here. You pose yourself as some kind of a badass and yet you hide behind a girl!" Bright Wave said, earning a hateful growl from Sombra.
"You shut your babbling hole this insta—"
"Stand! Down! All of you!" Krystal commanded strictly, looking at Sombra before turning to Bright Wave. "I suggest you keep your commentaries to yourself. Please, leave now."
Bright Wave sneered. "Of course, no problem, missus. Just keep a close eye on your friend here. He’s a bit unstable!" he remarked and proudly walked away along with his friends. They were limping a bit from the beatdown, but at least they left as victors.
"Krystal, what the... Ouch!" Sombra suddenly screamed as Krystal silently smacked him on the head.
"You're coming with me. We need to talk. Seriously!" she said strictly, cold anger dancing in her pretty eyes. The 'untamable' pony submissively lowered his head and followed his conqueror.
The crowd quickly dissolved, preferring to forget the brutal fight they had just seen. Iron Wheel was left to sit alone in the middle of the yard. He lowered his head and looked at the bright crimson stains on the snow. He sighed. Several moments later, he ran away unto the school's entrance, seeking protection from the eyes around him.
***
The small, in herbal extract soaked cloth wrapped itself around Sombra's hurt eye, tickling him behind the ear when the ends tied themselves. The cold liquid streamed down his face, a few drops seeping into his mouth. It tasted like tea, only with no sugar or any kind of flavor, there were just herbs.
"Oh... there you go," Krystal whispered as her horn dimmed, letting go of the cloth. "Keep it on for a while, it should help."
"Thanks, Krystal! I really appreciate that." Sombra replied, smiling.
The visible bruises on his face were covered with brilliant green ointment, which in the Crystal Empire was used as an antiseptic. A few bruises were hidden behind the soft surface of a plaster. It was a bit red, but the bleeding itself had stopped quite long ago.
"Now tell me, what were you thinking when you picked a fight with those ponies?" she asked, approaching the stallion. "Were you high? Or drunk?"
"What? Krystal, I don't drink, nor do I do drugs. I even smoke much less than usual!" he noted. It was true; he hadn't smoked in quite a while, though that was only worsening the situation. Without a peaceful way to calm himself, his overflowing energy could be used only by fighting.
"Or mayhap both," Krystal suggested and Sombra snorted loudly.
"Well, alright! I was drunk and high as heavens! So what?" he replied, his voice oozing sarcasm, but that didn't faze Krystal not one bit.
"Sombra, you’ve gotten seriously hurt. If I hadn't intervened, you would have lost your eye! You would have been half-blind! Do you understand that?" she said loudly, but Sombra only sneered.
"Bah, relax. Nothing would have happened!" he shrugged, jumping off the bed. He flexed his muscles a bit, and, so it seemed to Krystal, was showing them off to her.
"I would have picked those guys apart. And you know, you really didn't need to intervene," he said with some reproach in his voice. He seemed embarrassed by what had happened there, for he blushed when Krystal looked at him sideways.
"Sombra, be honest with me right now: why do you keep behaving like that?" she said, walking to the nurse's table and checking if she needed to apply anymore medicine.
The medical room in the school was supervised by an old nurse mare. Thankfully, she would oft leave the cabinet unlocked while she was away somewhere. It was the perfect opportunity for Sombra to get patched up, and for Krystal to have a serious talk with him.
"Like how? Protecting my friend, you mean?" he replied.
"No. I mean beating up ponies for no reason!" Krystal scolded him. Sombra glanced at his wounds.
"It seems this time it was the exact opposite," he joked, though his marefriend wasn't impressed.
"This may look like a joke to you, Sombra, but it isn't for me! I'm worried about you!" she cried, looking at him with scorn. "Do you know how scary it is for me to know that you constantly put yourself in danger?"
"Krystal, I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself. I'm an all grown up foal, you know," he replied, smiling. He approached Krystal. "Deary, I like doing what I do. What's wrong with that? I don't protest when you drink tea just because you could get something nasty inside you."
"That's a very clever analogy!" Krystal cynically exclaimed. "You are not going to take anything seriously, am I right? The fact that I may die from worry doesn't even faze you?"
"Kryssie, relax! There's nothing to worry about. It's just a hobby of mine. I'm not hurting you in any way."
Krystal was at a loss. Sombra didn't want to hear anything. He was fully consumed by his own wishes and that only wish was to break. Perhaps he just condemned the world as a boring place and this was his way of bringing colors thereinto.
Suddenly, a bright yet bitter idea came to Krystal's head. It might be that his behavior was connected to his mother: Sombra was raised without a mother, thus he didn't know how mothers could guide their children. He didn't know the Heart's Song.
Krystal sighed heavily. Maybe, she could pull it off. Maybe she could give Sombra what he needed, what he was probably longing for right now: a gentle song.
She wearily wrapped her forelegs around Sombra's neck and pressed his muzzle right to her chest. She felt his warm breath touching her skin as it rapidly sped up. He wanted to say something, but she shooed him, slowly caressing his mane.
"Sombra... what do you hear right now?" she cooed quietly. "Listen carefully... and tell me."
Sombra had thousand questions and warnings swirling in his head right now. Why was she doing that? What would happen if the nurse came in? Should he stop her? Instead of answering those questions, he closed his eyes and listened.
Her chest went up and down as she breathed in and out. When it went up, the short, soft fur tickled Sombra's ear a little. He felt the breath flowing, slowly coming and going. He heard the merry heartbeat thump after thump.
"I hear... breath... and heartbeat," he spoke, hypnotized by Krystal's calm voice. It was nigh unto perfect... perhaps even more dulcet than Lucia's.
"Yes, it's a heart you hear—my heart," she whispered softly. "And you have to know, you have to understand—it's very easy to shatter."
She closed her eyes and remembered an old legend that her mother told her in the same way when she started to misbehave.
***
Thousands of years ago, when the Empire had just been born, the noble family of Lighthearts assumed the throne. They ruled fairly and justly, bringing prosperity and order to the Crystal Empire. But the Golden Age was over when the wife of the current Emperor, the beautiful Cassandra, died due to a terrible disease.
The great Emperor Lignum wept for her, grieved for his loss, and thus, he turned grim and bitter. His heart, once a place of kindness and benevolence, was soon consumed by hatred and anger. He decreed brutal laws, assumed complete control, turned the whole Empire into his slave, his tool.
He used to proudly wear the white colors—now, he turned dark, darker than the very night. He would never smile again, only flash his teeth when ordering another execution.
In his bitter anger, he forgot the most precious thing a stallion could have: a son. The young pony would weep every time he saw his father condemn another pony to horrible tortures and execution. In despair, he ran away, not being able to bear the sight of his father becoming a monster.
In distant lands, when sleeping, he was visited by the spirit of his mother. She begged him to return to the Empire and put an end to her husband's tyranny, to reunite him with her once again.
The young prince was confused at first; he was no match for his father's dark sorcery. But his mother commanded him to find her grave and bring her mortal remains to the biggest crystal cave in the whole Empire.
He obeyed her. The instance he put her lifeless body in the center of a giant cave, the crystals glowed in unison, creating myriads of colors. They all shone upon the mother's body, right where her heart was.
A bright flash blinded the prince. After a few minutes, he beheld a miracle: his mother's body had disappeared, and a humongous crystal in the shape of the heart was floating in the middle of the room.
The spirit of mother talked to the prince once again. It taught him to bring this crystal to the insane father, and use its power to defeat the tyrant.
The heart possessed incredible power. When the young prince carried it near ponies, their coats would turn bright and would shimmer like a million stars. It inspired hope and courage in their hearts, and they joined the young prince in his revolution. Not only that, but it was completely indestructible—powerful magic preserved it from any damage.
At last, father and son met each other in the battlefield. They came out to each other, prepared for everything.
The young prince wanted to save his father, and thus, tried to show him the power of the mysterious crystal. He said it was a blessing, a gift from his wife. However, the cruel Emperor didn't believe his son and malicious words seeped from his mouth. He blamed his son in all the troubles, calling him a bastard, a pathetic creature, worthless garbage.
The battle begun. The prince was winning, but suddenly, his father gathered a spear of dark energy and hurled it into the heart. The crystal, which was presumed to be indestructible, was shattered into tiny pieces.
All hope seemed lost, but the prince revealed the mystery behind the crystal heart: that it had been created by the sacrifice of one brave soul: his mother.
When the Emperor heard his wife's name, he realized what he had done. He had destroyed the last remains of his wife: her immortal soul. With that realization, he collapsed on the ground and the dark energies disappeared.
The Emperor was defeated, but the evil energy was still persistent, infecting the very ground. Without the crystal heart, they were doomed.
Emperor Lignum arose from the ground. He felt guilty for all the pain he had caused and offered his own soul to restore the crystal heart. With reluctance, bitter about losing his father once again, the prince commenced the ritual.
The Crystal Heart shone once again, destroying the darkness and giving the crystal ponies their name, turning them into shimmering creatures of pure light. The prince assumed the throne shortly after, and became the Emperor Sol, the future father of Lux.
***
"Sombra... do you know this legend?" Krystal asked when she was done talking. Sombra silently nodded, which Krystal noticed by the way his cheek rubbed against her chest.
"Yes... my mother told it to me when I was little, around five years old," Sombra replied. "What an old tale... an old fairytale, used to show the toddlers the importance of keeping the heart of those you love safe, for it can be shattered because of words, even..."
"Oh... I'm sorry. I probably stirred so many bad memories," Krystal gasped, starting to apologize, but Sombra calmed her down with a swift kiss on her chest. She blushed slightly since that kind of kiss was a bit too intimate, but she still allowed it. She actually kind of liked it, though she wouldn’t admit it.
"No, no you didn't. You only woke up good memories," Sombra whispered and gently kissed her on the neck. "I love you so damn much, Krystal. Sorry if sometimes it doesn't look like it, but it's the truth. I love you."
"Oh, Sombra, I know! I love you too, but I beg of you to be more collected. I'm very, very worried about your well-being," she whispered, tickling Sombra behind the ear. "You got yourself hurt today... what if something worse happens?"
"Dear, I'll behave however you want me to behave if you find me an alternative," he replied. "I'm just so bored! Can you imagine coming home and realizing that you have absolutely nothing to do?"
Krystal hummed for a second. She had lots of activities in her big house unlike Sombra, for whom all these shenanigans were probably a way of relaxation. What other activities had he been doing? What if some of them were illegal?
"We can hang out together. Starting tomorrow, we'll walk around the Crystal City. Adding some jogging," she smiled, suppressing the suspensions, hoping that if this idea would work, Sombra would abandon his activities and dedicate himself to something less dangerous.
"I kind of like that idea. Come to think of it, I didn't walk around the Crystal City in a while", he replied, moving away from Krystal, finally freeing her from his embrace. "I guess it would be fun."
"You can invite that friend of yours, Iron Wheel, if you want," Krystal noted.
"Oh, he's going to love this, I bet," Sombra replied, looking away at the same time. He would need to ensure Iron Wheel kept completely silent about their business in the streets.
If Krystal was so worried about a simple misjudged fight, he was afraid to imagine what would happen to her if she’d find out how he earned his living.
***
"A perfect day for a good jog, isn't it, Iron?" Sombra asked nonchalantly while stretching his hindlegs out, breathing deeply and squinting from the sun.
Though the winter had established its reign over the Empire, the snow banks were still quite shallow; it seemed this winter would be less cold than the last one.
"Yes it is. Though, I think it's a bit cold for a jog," Iron Wheel replied, fondling the red scarf he was wearing.
"Ah, don't be a pansy. It's not cold at all. Just a few kilometers and you'll be warmed up!" Sombra replied, bending his back until he heard a crunchy sound. "Ah, that felt good."
"Do you think Krystal will come soon?" Iron said, jumping in place, trying to preserve heat.
"Oh, sweet skies! You whine like a girl, Iron Wheel! Stop it already, you're annoying me!" Sombra groused, his patience worn thin with the freezing pony beside him. "She'll come when she comes. She's a lady, and ladies are allowed to come late."
Iron Wheel wanted to inform Sombra that this rule only applied to dates, but preferred to keep silent. He was still quite intimidated by Sombra's 'plea' to keep quiet about their stealing business.
"If I even hear a word about our fishy business slip from your tongue, if she finds out what we have been doing, I might reconsider my opinion on murder," these words still echoed in his ears. Iron knew Sombra was kidding... he was kidding...
Was he kidding?
"Oh, boys! I didn't expect you to come so early!" a happy voice reached them. Iron Wheel waved to Krystal, prompting her to reciprocate the salutation.
"Well, just about ti- Whoa-whoa-whoa!" Sombra turned around and his jaw almost dropped when he looked at Krystal.
She was wearing a puffy scarf carefully tied around her neck, which fluttered in the wind. On her legs, she was wearing warm furry shoes which covered the ankles, leaving the hooves untouched. Her coat shimmered in the sun as she smiled warmly at Sombra.
The most shocking thing was that Krystal wasn't wearing anything warm; it was winter and yet there were no signs of her fur-coat. With an immune system like hers, with even weak chilly wind being able to give her a terrible cold, this was a big don’t. However, this wasn't what amazed Sombra so much.
He always considered Krystal a beautiful girl, but right now, she looked beyond godlike. Maybe it was because ponies wouldn't normally wear clothes at all and official events required full dresses, so wearing an outfit like this was more of an attention-drawer than warm. However, Iron Wheel didn't seem fazed at all by her outfit.
It seemed that Krystal wanted to attract some attention. For now, all she got was Sombra's face on fire.
"Let's not waste any more time — less talkie, more walkie!" Krystal playfully sung and trotted forwards, following the stone road covered with a thin layer snow. Iron Wheel followed her, happy to get some warm up. Sombra follower suit, looking around Iron at Krystal, squinting his eyes in suspicion.
"Don't fall behind, my little smokers! We have a lot of ground to cover for today. First destination: the market!" she shouted over back to them before switching to a light gallop.
They ran through the park, sometimes looking around at the beauty of nature that lay outspread before them; the snow banks were thin and shallow, but quite colorful when light fell upon them and yet intact, unlike they would be later when it all started to melt. The sun made the snow look a bit golden as its rays were reflected from the surface, sometimes biting ponies in the eyes.
The snowfall was sparse and weak, the snowflakes drifted in the air, trying to land in Sombra's eyes from time to time, distracting him from his only goal: checking if anypony was staring at Krystal. He just couldn't get over it, how could she dress up so... so... slutty and not even consult him about it? What if there were some creeps out here? What if Iron wasn’t right in the head?
He was going to have to talk about it with her whenever he’d get a chance.
After half an hour of running through the snowy park, Krystal, Iron Wheel and Sombra approached the entrance of the market. Sombra gave Iron a meaningful look, reminding him to stay quiet. Wheel nodded to him and kept on going.
Sombra didn't exactly know whither Krystal was leading them, but none of them seemed to have any money on them, so they obviously weren't going to buy anything.
As Krystal switched to a careful trot, Sombra noticed that absolutely nopony was paying attention to her outfit. This was unthinkable. Usually, at least some ponies would comment on where such a girl belonged, but no! It seemed that Sombra was the only one who saw immodesty in these so-called 'morning jog' boots.
He pierced every stallion he noticed with a fiery glance, watching their eyes carefully, and if they’d even turn to stare at Krystal, he would rip them apart right there, no matter what promises he’d given. He bared his teeth slightly for better effect, though it was all unnecessary. Not a single stallion even glanced at Krystal; they were far too busy with their daily routine to stare at the young mare.
"Whew, that was nice," Krystal said when she suddenly stopped and swiped the sweat from her forehead. "I declare that a waterbreak is in order! Anypony got money on him?" she asked, turning to the two colts. Sombra shrugged in denial and Iron Wheel shook his head. Krystal smiled in reply.
"No worries, I'll buy you some, then. Stay here!" she sung, levitating a few coins from a secret pocket on her left boot and swiftly ran to the nearest stand, which was selling mead, ale and also water in special crystal bottles; these preserved the liquid’s temperature even in the hottest weather.
"There you go!" She hoofed both of them a bottle. Iron Wheel pressed his lips to the bottle in a second, while Sombra took a second to look at the bottle: the sparkly outside with pointy ends that could scratch you quite badly if swung hard enough. He had heard some rumors of ponies beating each other to death with these things. The inside of the bottle was covered in special glass imported from Conglomerate of Mountains since quality glass was aplenty there. Every glass, bottle or window was probably made from their materials.
Sombra's horn coruscated with energy and he removed the bung in an instance. The water was quite refreshing and cool; despite that it was winter, they had all gotten warmed up from running.
"Ah, this is bliss!" Iron Wheel exclaimed. "Thank you, Krystal! I owe you!"
"No problems. Since it's your first time jogging, it would be sensible of you to be prepared. Next time, always grab a purse. You’ll need some water on the way," Krystal advised, closing her bottle.
Sombra finished his drink and looked at Iron Wheel. "Could you give us a moment alone, Iron?" Iron Wheel nodded quickly and proceeded to leave the scene.
"Alright, Kryss, what the actual Abyss," Sombra heatedly began, "are you wearing?"
"Umm.... what's wrong with my outfit?" Krystal asked, looking quite surprised.
"No offence, dear, but you look like... like a..." Sombra considered saying 'slut', but that would be far too harsh, "a mare with questionable ethics!"
"What? A mare with questionable ethics?" Krystal said, chuckling a bit from surprise. "You really think I look like a whore?"
"No, no, no, no, I didn't mean to say that!" Sombra turned red as a tomato. "What I meant is that... it looks really suggestive."
He had no problem with Krystal looking that way when they were alone together, but they were in the middle of the market, and they had Iron Wheel accompanying them. Sombra suspected that he had a crush on his Krystal, and this didn’t help him get rid of this suspicion.
"If I wore something suggestive, everypony around us would be saying that out loud," Krystal replied with annoyance. "Besides, wearing revealing outfits isn't for my figure, and you know that! Are you mocking me, Sombra?"
"Wha— No, I'm not. I'm not."
Krystal looked at him with anger, then suddenly, her expression changed to laughter.
"Wait... Sombra... are you jealous?" She asked out of nowhere, completely freezing Sombra in place more effective than frost would. "Oh, I see that blush. You're definitely jealous."
"I... I am," Sombra replied, looking away. Of course he was jealous; he couldn't allow other stallions to even look upon his beloved. She was his and his alone, only his.
"Hey-o! Sombraaa! You're sleeping on me again," Krystal snapped Sombra from his descent into thoughts.
"Yes... Krystal. I am jealous. I'm sorry," Sombra apologized, but she only chuckled.
"That's actually alright... I never thought you would be jealous. That means you care about me."
She slowly caressed his cheek, the fur of the boots tickling him a little bit. Sombra smiled gently and moved forward, aiming to kiss her, but their little moment was interrupted by Iron Wheel.
"Guys, guys! You need to see this!" he shouted at them.
"What the Abyss? What happened?" Sombra replied angrily, berating Iron in his mind for screwing up the moment.
"You have to see this! Inquisition is here!" Iron Wheel replied.
Sombra and Krystal stood still, barely even flinching.
Inquisitors were the last remainder of the Ancient Crystal Empire, when it actually had a real religion; these ponies had the rights to arrest, judge and execute ponies all on their own accord. Lux wanted to get rid of them, but by some reason, they still existed to this day, now mostly solving crimes and helping crime-fighters. Quite gruesome stories and rumors existed about them: how a single Inquisitor once burnt down an entire village to demonstrate the Empire’s might; some said that it had even been an Imperial village. Even though that rumor had never been confirmed, they were still renowned for being ruthless, cruel and soulless ponies, which often utilized violence as a method of solving problems.
Krystal and Sombra followed Iron Wheel who was walking unto a stand selling meat, behind which a sickly looking purple-coated pony stood surrounded by menacingly looking guards dressed in bright red, which looked quite light.
"P-please... It's not mine, I swear!" the stallion uttered, and one of the guards violently punched him in the stomach.
"Shut your hole. We'll wait till the Inquisitor arrives, then we'll figure it all out," the armored guard replied. Iron Wheel stopped on the roadside, staring at whole scene. Krystal and Iron Wheel joined him in observation.
A murmur resounded through the crowd of ponies as said Inquisitor emerged from their midst, or to be correct, the Inquisitor-ess.
The crystal unicorn looked over twenty years old, had a flowing sapphire blue mane that fluttered in the wind, and showcased a sly smile on her pretty, young, and bright face. Her coat was dark violet, though, most of her body was hidden under warm, dark scarlet mantle, whereover a big, golden medal with the insignia of the Inquisitors rested upon her chest — a sun with its rays depicted as spears that sparkled in the sunlight. She walked slowly, enjoying every second that the guards bowed afore her.
She approached the suspect, smiling all throughout the way.
"So, this is the suspect, right?" she drawled. Her voice sounded incredibly charming and Sombra found himself thinking that he’d tell her everything she wanted to know if she’d ask him with that voice. She pronounced the alveolar trills, the rolled R, of the Crystallian language quite carefully, as though she wanted to make sure they’d be heard. It felt so... seductive, for some reason.
"Y-yes, Lord Inquisitor," the nearby guard replied and the mare chuckled.
"You know, girls can torture, torment and burn heretics even better than boys can," the Inquisitor cooed. "Or do you doubt my words, Commander?" She stretched her rolled R at the end of the last word.
"N-no... Not at all."
"Good. Now, what do we have here? A dust smuggler?" she went on quickly, looking at the suspect with contempt.
"Yes. We found at least three packs of dust with him," the same guard said. "He keeps telling that this is a mistake, though."
"Ooh, dust. What a stupid invention, made by impotents for impotents", the Inquisitor exclaimed with closed eyes. Some guards stared at her as she bent a little.
"Don't you agree, little pony?" she cooed, slowly and playfully scratching the sickly suspect's neck.
"It's not even mine! Somepony gave this package to me! I swear upon the Emperor!" he uttered, more scared by her teasing than enthralled.
"Lies, lies and even more lies. I don't like you," she replied disappointedly. "Take this pony away, and if he tries to break free, you have my permission to beat the crap out of him," she ordered and the guards, which led the suspect away after she finished speaking.
"Thank you, Ms..." the commander of the unit bowed to her, extending his hoof to her, expecting her to allow him to kiss her hoof, which was dressed in metal armor.
The young Inquisitress carelessly pushed his hoof away, belooking him with even more contempt than the suspect. "Lord Inquisitor Larissa," she replied.
"Is she an Inquisitor or a model?" Krystal wondered, looking at Larissa. "Her figure looks perfect! No, scratch that, she looks perfect!"
Krystal was right. Larissa was incredibly fit and even the mantle couldn't hide her alluring body.
"Krystal, is that all you think about?" Sombra noted. "You have to stop worrying about your figure, dear, and notice that she's an Inquisitor."
He had never seen an Inquisitor before; they were quite rare to see when one was just innocently walking the streets, and the first Inquisitor he had ever seen turned out to be a girl.
"Sombra, I can clearly see who she is. It’s you who is unable to notice that she's much more fit than me. Unless you ogled her from the snout to the tip of the tail," Krystal noted. Sombra laughed out loud.
"Oh yeah, because I would certainly ogle a mare while standing right next to you. Come on, Kryssie, I'm as loyal to you as I possibly can be," he replied with a wide, toothy grin. Blanket didn't count. That was only a dream.
"Yeah, I'm sure. But that's why I jog in the morning: to be fit, to be perfect! Like her," Krystal said, raising her hoof to point at the Inquisitor, only for it to cease moving when it bumped against something quite solid that was behind her.
Iron Wheel turned pale like snow, Krystal immediately went silent, and Sombra just stared at the mare Krystal had just inadvertently poked with her hoof.
"Thank you, darling. It takes me a lot to keep this figure. If you eat your vegetables, jog in the morning and listen to your mommy, you will have just the same complexity as I do," Larissa sung softly and then turned her eyes to the boys. "Though, if you don't mind, I shall steal your friend for a moment."
"You mean... Iron Wheel?" Sombra asked, pointing at his friend. Iron Wheel started what looked like a good imitation of a corpse: his cheeks turned white as chalk, and he shrunk, it almost seemed he would disappear. Quiet whimpers could be heard coming from him.
Sombra didn't look any better either. He wasn't breathing, he was gasping. His heartbeat had increased, blood pumped in his ears. He was ready to run if need be.
"No, honey, I meant you," the Inquisitor stated, casting a sly look at Sombra.
"Nothing serious. I just noticed one tiny detail, and I want to ask him about it," she assured Krystal. "Do not worry; I'll keep your coltfriend pretty much alive. All the required parts will remain intact."
She chuckled at her own joke, but nopony else could even smirk at that. Krystal swallowed nervously.
"Alright, Lord Inquisitor, we are glad to assist you," she nodded to Sombra and he quietly followed the mare. The color returned to Iron's face when he noticed her going away.
"Will he be okay?" he uttered to Krystal.
"Yes, he will."
If anything went wrong, she would utilize all the power her father had to save Sombra.
Larissa led Sombra unto a lonely alleyway not far from the marketplace. His heart pounded like a wardrum, and he couldn't stop thinking about running away. Did she somehow know that he’d stolen from ponies? Was it something else? Would she incarcerate him now? Would she kill him?
Larissa carefully looked around to make sure nopony was near before she stopped walking and turned to Sombra with an ever so playful smile that didn’t reveal her teeth.
"Tell me: what is your name, pretty?" she asked and Sombra slowed down as well.
"I'm... Sombra. My name is Sombra," he replied. His voice started to tremble. Larissa came a little nearer.
"Don't be scared. I'm an Inquisitor. You should always feel safe around me. It is my duty to protect you," she said. "My name is Larissa. You may hiss the S if you so desire. I like it when my name is pronounced this way."
She playfully touched Sombra's shoulder with her armored hoof. Her touch was soft, but at the same time unnerving. Sombra felt uncomfortable with how the stranger, who seemed to think she could touch him just like that, behaved.
Her behavior, her manners, even her dress and smell — this light arousing odor — it all seemed so familiar.
"So, cutiepie, when was the last time you used dark magic?" she cooed.
Sombra felt his heart stop. How could she know?
"Ah... I didn't use that. I never used that," Sombra uttered, but she only smiled slyly. How did she know? How? How?!
"Don't lie to me. The shark smile that you displayed… I saw everything. No need to beat around the bush," Larissa said, coming even closer to him. "Be honest, and I won't hurt you, sugar."
"Could we keep it official... please..." Sombra mumbled, not understanding why she was flirting with him. She was at least eight years older than him. "I never used dark magic. And, if you are talking about my teeth, that's just how I was born — nothing more."
He looked around, looking for possible escape routes. However, his head emptied in seconds when he felt his body go numb.
"I hate beating around the bush. Teasing is good, but I’m far better in that than you," Larissa said. Her horn coruscated in dark energies as small tongues of black flame slipped out of the nooks and crannies on the wall behind the dark colt and tied around him. With a flinch of her head, she slammed Sombra right into the wall, keeping him afloat in a hanging position like some kind of a doll.
"What the actual Abyss!" Sombra shouted in confusion. Larissa slowly walked to him, never ceasing to smile her small smile.
"You can't fool me," she whispered before she pressed her lips against Sombra's in a lusty kiss.
Sombra's heart stopped beating and his ears were set on fire. He couldn't move, couldn't push her away, and he was far too scared and confused to use spells.
This wasn't just a simple kiss like his and Krystal’s. This was a real, legitimate make out season as Larissa's tongue explored Sombra's mouth with no resistance whatsoever. She moaned passionately the longer she kept kissing him.
She slid her tongue over his sharp teeth, and Sombra felt how the metallic taste of blood filled his mouth. Larissa started moaning even louder when she tasted blood.
Suddenly, she broke the kiss and pulled away from Sombra, still keeping him bound.
"Krgh... What are you doing?! This is sexual harassme—" he was unable to finish as his lips were sealed shut by a magical aura.
"This isn't sexual harassment," Larissa drawled sultrily, "this is full-on rape."
She stuck out her tongue in a seductive fashion and swiped it across her lips, leaving a trail of bloody saliva.
"Ooh... No teeth could be sharp enough to cut a tongue. You definitely used dark magic, and it left its mark upon you," Larissa stated. "I must know, for I need it for my job."
Her smile widened, and, for the first time, Sombra was able to see her teeth; they were fang like, as were his. They seemed sharper than Sombra's, but maybe that was because she was older.
Sombra's blood felt frozen from fear; not only was this mare crazy, she was also versed in dark magic, and the odds were high that she was far stronger than Sombra.
Her manner of speech, her constant flirting, and the outright statement of the intention to rape him for some reason made him think about Blanket, but there were more important things to worry about than dreams, for Larissa was pretty much real.
"Do you know when I got these fangs? Two years ago, when I was twenty. And you look like a sixteen year old boy," she tsk’d. "The question: how did you get the proof of your first successful use of dark magic earlier than I did?"
She slowly walked unto Sombra. "Let me put it like this: I'll let you speak now, you don't scream, and you will answer my questions. If you do that, I'll let you go."
Sombra nodded to her and felt relief as the energy dissipated, letting him talk again. He wanted to scream, but the situation was dire; he had to obey the Inquisitress’ commands. He gulped loudly and prepared to be interrogated.
"Tell me how old you were when you got these fair fangs?" Larissa asked.
"Six.”
"Six? Six years old?" she balked. "So young…” she mumbled to herself for a few seconds. “Was it Visio Aeternum?" She surprised Sombra with the correct guess.
"How did you know?"
"I knew it! It's so easy to cast that spell, even a toddler can do it... and yet..." she assumed a somber expression and gazed into his eyes. "What gave you the power, the intention to cast the spell?"
Sombra stayed silent. Even under torture, he would not tell anypony about the horror he had had to live through. It was the secret he would never share. Never.
"Don't want to tell...? Alright, keep it a secret; I probably don't want to know anyway. Who knows why you might have needed to spy on somepony," Larissa concluded, and now, she was standing so close to Sombra that he could actually feel her warm breath on his skin.
She smiled again, letting a small drop of blood run down her lips and mouth and fall into the snow. It was clear she wanted something else, but Sombra couldn't think about anything right now, he just wanted to get away from her as fast as possible. He was still unsure if her statement about raping him was a joke or a serious threat.
But all these questions were answered quite soon, when Larissa leaned on the motionless Sombra, rubbing her chest against his. Only now he noticed that she was wearing something underneath that mantle of hers. When she playfully rubbed his cheek, he managed to glance at her chest. It appeared she was wearing a black latex corset which was being held together with a set of pink laces. The hard material rubbed against Sombra's skin, sending a strange spasm throughout his body. It was a weird sensation — pleasant and uncomfortable at the same time.
A clot was stuck in Sombra's throat. He couldn't utter even a single sound while the evidently horny Inquisitress looked at him with her eyes half closed and the tip of her tongue swiping across her lips playfully. It was clear: Blanket was the tame version of this mare. While the strange apparition of his dreams was just flirting, Larissa was not kidding in the slightest.
"Mmm...." she moaned as she pressed herself against Sombra ever harder, the tight latex squeaking under the pressure. “If only you knew how starved I am... So much time spent alone... I might just have a little fun with you right here, right now..."
The only reply from Sombra was silence as if she had shut his mouth with her magic again.
Larissa wrapped her hooves around Sombra's waist, moving him a bit away from the wall.
"Come on, boy. You can't keep innocence forever. You will lose it one way or another; why not now?" she whispered right into his ear. Her words were supposed to be like honey, but to Sombra, they felt like molten metal. He tried jerking around, wanted to free himself from her grip, but to no avail.
"Oooh, still resisting, I see," Larissa bit his ear playfully, drawing just a little bit blood. "Maybe I could show you my mark, huh? Would that persuade you?" The edge of the mantle lit up with dark red color and started slowly moving up, revealing the smooth surface of her hindleg completely. Sombra tried to keep looking away to the side, but primal instinct was forcing him to stare. His fear rose against it, keeping the boys eyes firmly locked on a trashcan down the alleyway.
"You impressed me, Sombra. Not many stallions can look away. To cast dark magic at such a young age! You’d need so much hate for it," she made a faux pouty face. "I had to build up tension for days and days before I could cast my first one.”
Somehow that didn't make the restrained unicorn feel better.
Suddenly, she pressed her lips against his chin and slowly went down, leaving a cold, wet trail as she was going lower and lower. Sombra's body shuddered, and his mind was all over the place, but one thought was clear; he wanted to run away!
Away! Away! Away! Away! Away!
"You're a lot of fun to toy with, Sombra.” She tittered dainty. “But, well, if you don't want it, I can't force you into it," she cooed and her horn finally stopped glowing. Sombra fell down on the ground, gasping for air.
"Go. Run unto your friends," Larissa commanded while Sombra crawled away from her. "We shall meet again one day. I promise I'll keep myself pretty... just for you, you hoofsome beast, tee-hee-hee," the Inquisitress giggled as she seductively stroked her own mane. Sombra didn't notice that however, he got up quickly and was already running away from her as fast as he could.
"A little tip from the pro: make advances on your marefriend right now. You won't believe how... delightful girls are at this age. Like flowers, they bloom just at the point of reaching seventeen," she cried out after Sombra, but the boy couldn't hear her anymore. She was all alone in the alley.
"Sombra, Sombra, Sombra. I shall remember this name. The boy is special... so special," she spoke to no one in particular and sniffed the air. It smelled of trash, snow and flowers.
She should have led him into an apartment of some sorts. He would have smelled her cologne much better that way without all the other odors mixing in.
Ah, the harmony of a perfect cupiditas, you're so easy to ruin.
***
"Sombra! You're okay!" Krystal gasped as she rushed to Sombra and encased him in a warm hug. "I told you he would be okay!"
Iron Wheel approached Sombra, looking pale. He noticed what an expression of shock his friend was wearing. His eyes were wide open, and he didn't change when Krystal hugged him.
"Are you alright?" Iron waved his hoof in front of Sombra.
"What happened back there?" Krystal asked. "Why... do you look so pale?"
Suddenly, Sombra wrapped his hooves around Krystal and pressed her hard against himself, burrowing his face in her soft mane. This surprised the girl very much; she even let out a quiet squeak.
"Something I'd rather forget," Sombra said, resting his head in his marefriend's soft hair. He thought he would never feel these curls again.
"Let's carry on... and get out of here as fast as we can."
"Will you tell us what happened?" Iron asked, surprised by the amount of warmth Sombra suddenly displayed towards Krystal. He would usually wait till nopony was around.
"No. And don't even ask," Sombra replied bluntly. "Let's just carry on."
"Alright, sweetie... if you say so," Krystal said and smiled. "We have a lot of ground to cover for today... Let's go."
She felt the worry and shock Sombra tried to hide quite unsuccessfully, but she decided to play along. This was neither the place nor time to bother him with questions. She would do that later when they are alone.
The three continued on, Krystal leading the way, Iron Wheel carefully looking around, and Sombra stepping fast but careful, thinking that even the smallest bank of snow might hold danger inside of it.
***
"Whew... we're here... whew," Krystal gasped, slowly slogging through the snow. The sweat was streaming down her face and her mane was completely wet.
She and Sombra finally reached the top of a small hill. They both looked exhausted, but satisfied. Krystal breathed in deeply and looked up into the sky, sniffing the air, while Sombra swiped the sweat that ran down his cheek away and shoved a patch of snow into his face.
The biting cold refreshed him a bit, but he still felt incredibly hot. He took a deep breath dived into a pile of snow, effectively burying his head therein.
"Oh... that was something... oh," Krystal said and looked around. The view from the hill was nice; the trees were covered in a thin layer of snow like powdered sugar. The whole park looked like a dessert right now.
"Argh!" Sombra shouted, as he burst out of the snow, splashing the now molten liquid everywhere. "Ah... feels damn good... damn good."
The exhausting workout helped him to calm down from the meeting with the Inquisitress. Though Iron Wheel, like a pansy that he was, hadn't been able to complete the run, and had asked if he could go home after but two hours of running around Crystal City. Sombra wanted to berate Iron, but Krystal had let him go.
He wasn't angry at his beloved for this decision. In fact, he actually loved her bleeding heart — she seemed even more fragile and in need of protection that way. And Sombra would protect her.
"Why did you want us to go all the way up here?" Krystal asked, turning to him. "You know, we could have been finished an hour ago."
"Yeah, I know. I just felt we could use some more time outside. Besides, isn't this a fair view?" Sombra said, pointing at the nature. "This is just gorgeous."
"Yes... it is," Krystal whispered dreamily and turned to the sun. Sombra just wanted to glance into her eyes, but his head was literally invaded by the Inquisitress' offer to see her mark, so he fixed his sight on Krystal's rear. Thankfully, she didn't notice as he turned away, shoving another patch of snow into his face.
This Inquisitor... it was like she had put out the fire of aggression in Sombra and had set his soul on another kind of fire. Talk about out of the frying pan...
"I would look at this scene for all eternity," she said, suddenly yawning. Her legs started to flinch a bit, and she slowly sat down.
"Whoa, Krystal, not in the snow, you’ll catch a cold," Sombra caught her before she could lie down.
"But... I'm so tired... Please, could we find a place to rest?" she uttered and Sombra looked around. They could go for a bench, which was not far from them, but he didn't want to drag her around. What if she’d faint?
This was a weird situation. Krystal was all covered in sweat, tired and exhausted, and the wind was getting stronger. She would catch a terrible cold at this rate if they stayed outside long enough.
"Come here, darling..." Sombra said, hugging her and dragging her down. She didn't resist, and in a second, she was laying on him, her head rubbing against his chest. Sombra wrapped his hooves around her and used magic to slowly transfer warmth from his body to hers.
Krystal made herself comfortable, and after a few adjustments, Sombra was used as a makeshift bed sheet, while his own sheet was the snow and ground. He didn't mind at all, she felt comfortable, and that was all that mattered. He can endure some minor freezes.
"You're so warm..." Krystal whispered, slowly stroking Sombra's right hoof, which he’d put near her cheek.
She moved a little bit upwards, so her head would be on the level with Sombra's, and continued her speech.
"Are you sure you don't want to tell me about what that Inquisitor di—"
"No," Sombra cut her short. "Please, mention it not again."
He knew that this would raise suspicion in her, but he didn't want to tell her. Nothing really dangerous had happened; it just happened he had been caught by a mare, who was probably in heat. Though, her awareness of him and her fangs disturbed him greatly. What if she knew more about him than he realized? Or was he just that easy to read?
"Okay, I won't ask again..." Krystal went silent for a moment and snuggled up closer to him. "Sombra..."
"Aye?"
"Your mother... if you don't mind... can you tell me more about her?" Her voice became quieter with every word she spoke, she was clearly scared to ask.
"Why would you ask that?" he wondered. "I didn't think that you could be interested in my... what was my family..."
"I just want to know..." she whispered and glanced into his eyes, the pretty color of pale blue flickering in them. "Will you tell me?"
"Heh, okay, if you really want to know," he replied. Krystal nuzzled closer to him and Sombra weakened the spell a bit, so he wouldn't exhaust himself.
"I and my mother... it would be an understatement to say that we were friends. She was more..."
***
"Come on, sleepy head, wake up!" Willemite gently tapped Sombra's back, but the foal only lazily waved his little hooves around, trying to drive her away.
"Aw, mom! I am not done sleeping yet!" the little boy replied, but he was the only one who understood what he said, for his face was buried deep in the pillow.
"Come on, come on, Sombra! We have a big day today!" Willemite said, but it seemed Sombra was intending to sleep through the whole day. Now, she couldn't allow that, could she?
She grabbed his blanket by the edge with her teeth and dragged it off to the side. Sombra tried to hold his fluffy cover, but he was no match for Willemite's power.
"Mo-om!" he cried, finally opening his eyes. "I don't want to go!"
He couldn't imagine anything more important than his sleep right now. What could be more important than burying your face in the pillow and flying away into the land of dreams, wherein you were a great knight saving princesses and defeating enormous demons?
"Are you planning to spend the rest of your day in bed? You'll become a vegetable this way,” Willemite noted, "with leaves, roots and green color."
Sombra immediately jumped from the bed, and in ten seconds, he was already standing in front of his mother, smiling widely.
"I am ready!" he informed, prompting loud laughter from Willemite.
"I should check my family tree, one of my ancestors has got to have been a jester", she chuckled. "Come on, dear. Breakfast is ready, and then we're off to the park.”
"Yay!" Sombra shouted, jumping in place. He loved going to the park, they would always have so much fun there. So many butterflies, so many colors, he would never get enough of it.
He looked at his mother and she smiled in return. She looked so young and happy today. Whenever Sombra saw his mother like that, it always filled him with enthusiasm and positive energy for the rest of the day.
After a nutritious breakfast consisting of sandwiches and some cold water, Amethyst took his purse and went away while Willemite prepared Sombra for the trip to the park.
"Don't forget to put on your scarf, dear. It's windy outside."
"But moom! It's the middle of summer."
"Still, put it on, just in case," she said firmly. "Don't want you to catch a cold from a breeze, do we?"
There were no clouds in the sky, so the bright golden color of the sun mixed up with green leaves and grass as Sombra and his mother walked by each other's side. The foal was wearing a puffy red scarf with white outline. He constantly scratched the surface of it as the spiny cloth made his neck itch.
"We're almost there, Sombra, just a few more minutes," Willemite assured.
"Good! Because the scarf is killing me!" he exclaimed, wrapping its ends in his grey aura. However, before he could take it off, Willemite quickly intercepted, by taking over the scarf and wrapping it even tighter around his neck.
"When we're there, I'll let you take it off." She looked around for a moment, and then sighed heavily. "Why even take it off? You look fabulous."
Sombra only replied with a short grumble.
Soon, the two reached a small hill with a small paved road leading to the top. There seemed to be no ponies around at this time, but that was benefiting them; Sombra could go crazy all he wanted.
"Here we are," Willemite exclaimed and finally took the scarf off Sombra. Then, like she had unleashed a wild demon, she was almost knocked back by the amount of dust he kicked out when he charged into the green vast.
Willemite sighed with fondness as she saw her son rolling around in the grass, laughing and turning his belly to the sun, hungry for its warmth. She sat down on one of the benches and observed her little sonny run around and have fun.
He always was a bit crazy, very active and hungry when it came to doing something. When devoid of action, he would certainly grab some pencils and draw a pretty picture.
He also loved hugs. Willemite chuckled slightly at how Sombra, when he’d been much younger, would never go to sleep unless he got himself a portion of warm hugs from her. Sweet, honeyed memories.
She stretched out on the bench and closed her eyes. The morning sun was finally getting to her, she felt somehow exhausted and tired. Just a quick nap, she thought to herself, and lost herself in the dream world.
"Mom! Mom! Mooom!" A persistent call of her son finally dragged Willemite out of her sleep, and she opened her eyes. To her amazement, the sun was in the middle of the sky, which meant she had slept all the way to the noon. She quickly turned around, only to find her darling standing right next to her.
"Oh, thank the Emperor!" Willemite sighed with relief, seeing that Sombra had been smart enough to not run away while she’d been asleep. She actually felt very proud.
"Did I sleep for too long? Are you tired?" she asked him, but he shook his head in denial. "You must have been pretty bored, yes?"
"Well, a bit, but you were sleeping and I didn't want to wake you up," he replied. Willemite chuckled and got up from the bench to stretch her back a bit and to encase Sombra in a warm hug. Oh, how smart, how caring her son was. He was a true angel.
"Mom, I brought you something!" Sombra informed her, broke out of her hug and ran away to return several moments after... carrying a pretty red rose in his mouth.
"So... Sombra... Is that for me?" she stuttered. He nodded with a toothy grin on his face and stretched his muzzle forward, expecting Willemite return the gesture.
Willemite blushed. It had been so many years since somepony gave her flowers. She couldn't even remember the last time it had happened. As she levitated the rose to herself and smelled it, she couldn't drive off the feeling of pride. She was observing a real stallion grow up. Not only that, she was raising this stallion, the future protector of his own home, his own family, and maybe her. Though who would she be to him when he was older? An unnecessary nuisance, that's what.
"Yes! I thought it was very pretty and thought you would like it," Sombra replied. Willemite approached her son and hugged him once again.
"Sombra, when you're older, and your mommy will seem like a nuisance..."
"Don't say that! You'll never be a nuisance!" he interrupted her and Willemite pressed the boy harder against herself. Now, she knew for certain that the future for her son was bright. He had a loving soul and heart. He would live a happy life, she was sure of thereof.
***
"Yeah... I think it was on this very hill," Sombra said, looking dreamily into the sky. "This place looked so much better during summer."
He noticed that Krystal had been incredibly quiet during his whole speech. He carefully bumped her to the side to see if she was still listening to him. He feared that she may have lost her conscience, but there was nothing to be afraid of, however. Just a few moments later, Krystal lovingly poked him to the side of his neck with her snout.
"You really miss her, don't you?"
"I—" Sombra stuttered for a moment as the memories flooded his head. Bitter and sweet, happy and sad — they all came at this very moment.
"Yes... I do..." he replied quietly. "You could say she was the first mare I have ever loved... And don't get any kinky ideas in your head," he frowned slightly, but Krystal only giggled at this remark.
"Hee-hee... Don't worry, I understand what you mean."
Several minutes of awkward silence passed.
"Sombra... if she had a chance to see who you are right now... I think she would be the proudest mare in the world," Sombra turned to his beloved with surprise clearly visible in his eyes. "I, as a mare, can say for certain: you are a dream for any mother… a real diamond."
She glanced over at her beloved and smirked. "A bit rough around the edges, though."
"Hah, more like a hunk of rock covered in sparkly dust!" Sombra said cynically, earning a poke to the side from Krystal. "Ouch."
"Yes, you can be a little... ass-y from time to time," she allowed herself the courtesy of swearing. She wasn't in the noble circle right now, so the freedom was hers. "Sometimes you can be an outright ass... But you're the ass I love, still."
Several seconds passed before they both burst into laughter. The situation turned out more awkward than necessary.
"I swear, one day I will write a book — Phrases, that sound best when taken out of context, by Krystal”, she laughed. "Oh my, that sounded terrible."
"That was funny, however," Sombra noted and increased the warmth inning, also pressing her harder against himself to give her some natural warmth as well. "So, have you rested? Because I'm freezing my 'what-you-mentioned' off."
"Ha-ha-ha! Yeah, I'm all done. Let’s go," she said and got up, stretching out a bit. "You're warm... can't say that you are soft, though."
She accidently waved her tail near Sombra's face, which his mind was considered as some sort of flirt, so he immediately looked away in order not to start staring. The words of the Inquisitress were still fresh in his mind and they ridiculed his young teenage mind, flipping his image of a mare upside down.
"When it's spring, I will make sure to invite you for a date or two," Krystal said. "We haven't had those since.... fifth grade, I think. What do you think, love? Want some tête-à-tête with me?"
Sombra swallowed once again. If she had asked him before, he would never think anything other than some nice company, a good conversation and tasty food. Now — damn that Inquisitress — he was thinking something else entirely.
"Of course, love. I would... really like some dates".
"Perfect!" Krystal said and flexed her hindlegs. "Just wait till spring. Nature is at its fairest at such time."
Sombra silently nodded to her, trying to clean his head of sticky thoughts. He had certainly chosen the worst time to drop smoking. He could definitely use a drag or two right now. Just to calm down, of course.
***
"Just up ahead!" Krystal exclaimed enthusiastically as her horn flickered, moving apart the bushes blocking her way. The fresh green grass crunched under her elegantly polished hooves and small drops of sweat were quite close to ruining her makeup. The expensive shades and rouge could be easily ruined by even a slight touch of water.
Sombra followed her obediently, sometimes stopping to deeply breathe in the early spring's air. It was very, very warm, but the breezes were constant, refreshing the ponies, which would tire of the heat, if they felt one.
"We're near. Just a little bit further," Krystal assured, carefully swiping her left forehoof across her forehead.
"I'm a bit worried, to be fair," Sombra said, looking around. "What if anypony busts us?"
"Busts us? Come on, Sombra, it's not like we're going to do something horrible!" Krystal exclaimed. "A simple picnic. What could be so bad about that?"
"But did you really need to invite me over to your house? It kind of freaks me out — your garden is probably bigger than the whole park... and the mansion itself looks like a castle," he said, looking at the beautiful mansion, looming just behind the birch trees that obstructed the view of it slightly.
"Duh, just relax, love. It’s going to be alright. My parents are away for the whole week, and I ordered servants to take some days off. We're all alone here," she sung and continued tearing through the bushes. Sombra sighed and followed her.
Spring had arrived unexpectedly and much earlier than expected. For many farmers and other business ponies, it was a disaster; and yet for the loving couples, it was the best gift the nature could have given them. Many had planned their dates and Krystal and Sombra were no exceptions. The opportunity granted the girl a chance to lead her sweetheart to her house.
Though, Krystal didn't invite him to the house per se. Instead, they had decided to have a picnic in the garden. Krystal had eagerly awaited that day while Sombra went to bed with many doubts, not knowing what to expect.
"And... here we are!" she said, opening a passage that revealed a peaceful glade before them. There was a small pond with butterflies flying thereover, a hill covered in blooming flowers, and soft grass with tiny insects crawling in this forest of grass blades — a picture straight out of an art book.
In the middle of the clearing, a colorful sheet was placed with a huge picnic basket in the middle thereof. The cutlery — dishes, glasses and so on — was already in place, just ready to be filled with delicious food.
"Krystal... this is gorgeous!" Sombra said in awe. Krystal turned around and smiled.
"Thank you! It took a lot of effort to make it how it looks today," she replied. "My mother and I did so much planning. The pond was my idea, actually."
A little bit of bragging wouldn't hurt.
They approached the sheet and sat down opposite of each other. Krystal's horn sparkled as all kinds of food levitated out of the basket: sandwiches, a few cupcakes, a cake and a bowl of hay salad. Sombra's tongue instinctively tried to get out of the mouth and hang on the side. He hadn't eaten for the whole day and seeing the display of food made him quite eager to try everything offered.
"You know, you've been doing very well at school lately," Krystal noticed, gracefully biting a sandwich. "I'm very proud."
"Thanks... Though, this stupid math is the bane of my existence," Sombra replied. Well, as far as 'very well' goes, he had just stopped getting the lowest grades all the time and started getting them just 'often'. Still, Krystal considered this a success.
"Math isn't stupid. You just have to learn the formulas and memorize them. It's not that hard. Can’t see why you are having trouble. If it's trigonometry, then..." and then she descended into rambling. Sombra stopped listening to her at that point. Instead, he looked at her, admiring her beauty.
Krystal had really prepared for this date. Her mane was carefully combed and fluttering in the wind. The long curls would frizzle around her shoulders and Sombra wondered what was softer: her mane, or her skin?
It had to be her mane. After all, she took great care of it: all kinds of shampoos, morning jogs and healthy food made her hair look sweet and fresh. At the right angle, it would look like threads straight out of heaven, used to make golden dresses for beautiful goddesses.
But her skin wasn't far behind. Smooth, short fur akin to a peach sparkled in the sun, looking so inviting like a freshly cleaned bed. Anypony would want to touch it and Sombra was no exception. While Krystal was all consumed by mathematical formulas and problems, he enjoyed the view of her sides and belly. The plumpness Krystal hated so much was eye candy for Sombra. It made her look special, unique.
Out of boredom, Sombra started to compare Krystal and the self-called 'ideal mare', Blanket. The latter had the complexity of a queen, or how they looked in on tapestries — as beautiful as a goddess. Krystal had flaws, quite a bunch of them. Too much flesh there, not enough there, and the imperfect balance in the middle.
Sombra was quite surprised; he had never done this before, never compared Krystal to anypony. Not even after Blanket. But after that curious thing with Larissa...
"And that concludes... Were you even listening?" Krystal exclaimed, snapping Sombra out of his trance.
"Yeah, yeah. So, plus what, you said?" he said something blindly, prompting a frown from her.
"I figured. Let's change topic, okay? What do you want to talk about?"
"I don't know..." Sombra replied and they sat silent for a minute. He looked for the right words, desperately tried to make up a joke or a funny comment.
"Hey... what did the green grape say to a purple one?"
Krystal gazed at him with surprise, even lifting her eyebrow as if asking: what did you smoke this time? Though, after having a bite of the delicious sandwich, she played along.
"You don't exist?"
"No... Breathe, idiot! Breathe!" Sombra replied, enunciating the answer of the green grape unto his dying brother.
"Huh... funny," Krystal promptly replied. She looked around, took a deep breath, realizing that inviting Sombra to her house probably hadn't been a good idea. He just couldn't get used to the environment. But she knew just the right cure for this parasite of Sombra's shyness.
"Hey, dear, it's your first time in my house... well, not really in, just near it. Still, I brought us something very relaxing. You'll love it, I promise," her horn lit up and Sombra heard the ringing of glass.
Out of the basket, Krystal levitated a big bottle of wine. The red liquid floundered about in its prison of glass and the only thing preventing its release was the bung with a string attaching a label, reading Le Fruit du Serpent, probably Unicornian.
"Wha... what is..." Sombra stuttered, pointing at the bottle. He had expected anything, but this!
"What? It's wine. You've never seen alcohol before?" Krystal smiled warmly.
"I did. And I don't want to see it ever again," Sombra grumbled in reply. He felt so much hurt in his soul, the day seemed ruined. He scowled and turned away.
"Oh, come on, love! Don't be a grump. It's just a drink!" Krystal wanted to change his mind, but to no avail. She sighed heavily, putting the bottle down.
"Sombra, you will have to drink alcohol one day or another. Why not try now?"
There was no answer.
"Just try a sip. It won't kill you!"
"No! I'm not going to drink! And that's final!" Sombra cut in before she could persuade him any further. The girl smiled once again and looked at her beloved.
"Sombra, if you think drinking is bad, you're wrong! Drinking too much is bad. Drinking alone is bad. Drinking with a pony you love is not bad. Or do you not consider me company for you?" she pronounced with feigned sadness. Sombra looked at her with mixed anger and sadness. He finally sighed heavily.
"Just a few sips... nothing more," he said, glancing into her bright eyes. Krystal clapped her hooves while levitating the bottle unto Sombra's glass.
"Would you kindly help the lady to open the wine?"
Sombra's horn glowed grey as the bung flew out of the bottle with a loud pop. The crimson drink poured into the limpid glass, filling it almost to the brim. The sun was shining through the wine, giving the ground underneath this glass a shade of red.
"There you go. Now, drink slowly, not all in one gulp."
Sombra lifted the glass up to his muzzle and smelled the drink. It had the distinct smell of spice, a bit sour and yet partly sweet. The unicorn took a deep breath and poured the drink into his mouth.
To his big surprise, it tasted very, very nice. He expected his stomach to reject the drink immediately, but the sour taste and biting flavor of alcohol actually appealed to him. He felt a slight headache, but it was gone in a second.
"Woah... this is actually... pretty nice!" Sombra declared and Krystal smiled widely, pouring herself a cup.
"You see? Nothing horrible happened. Your first glass of wine. And you feel fine and dandy!" she cooed. "Want some more?"
Sombra nodded and waited till Krystal had filled her own glass and then got to his.
They lifted the glasses into the air and clinked them together. But right before drinking, Krystal suddenly hummed, wanting to get Sombra's attention.
"Did you know that clinking glasses was once used to test trust in the royal court? They clinked them so hard that the drinks would spill out and mix with each other. So, if there’d been poison in the drink, both the royal and the other pony would die when they drank their wine! Quite inventive, isn't it?" Krystal explained and sipped her drink. "Ah, pure bliss. This is my favorite wine. My father has a whole basement full of the bottles like this."
"And I'd imagine you didn't ask his permission when you took the bottle?" Sombra asked, and, after seeing the pink blush on Krystal's face, he was certain of a positive answer. It appeared that Saint Krystal was guilty of some crimes as well.
"He wouldn't have allowed me to take it otherwise... But isn't it more fun like this? Kind of... your style," she tried to appeal to Sombra's pride.
"My style? What style would that be? Please, clarify."
"Well... 'Rules Go Screw Yourselves' style," she said, prompting a cluckle from Sombra. Yes, she was right, that was his style.
Time passed on and the amount of wine in the bottle decreased whenever Sombra and Krystal ran out of things to talk about. A full glass of the delicious drink would give them a second breath. They talked and talked while the surroundings became brighter and happier for them. The blooming flowers looked like smiling faces and the clouds assumed the shapes of ponies or animals.
"Just a bit... more," Krystal said, covering her mouth just before the hiccup hit her. "Oh, sorry. Most unladylike of me."
She noticed that Sombra was sitting with an empty glass, peacefully chewing a salad leaf, so she poured him a full one.
"Have some more... I've got... another bottle in the basket," Krystal assured and smiled awkwardly. Sombra looked at her, her image dividing in two just a little bit. Despite all that, he could see the pretty blush on her cheeks very akin to the color of Fuji apples: pink, or very light red. Her eyes were bright and happy, she thoroughly enjoyed this picnic. Looking at her, Sombra wanted to have fun too, he felt free and unshackled, and even the dreaded, disgusting memories of his father couldn't ruin this beautiful moment. This wasn't mead or ale. This was wine, the drink royalty and noble ponies. They both deserved it.
After three more glasses, Sombra felt mighty strange. The bottle was, alas, empty, and so was his mind. It seemed like whatever idea he had at the time would quickly burrow itself into the depths of his mind and run away. He tried to look around, and felt sick after doing so. The world started to passively roll around him as though he was riding a merry-go-around. Krystal, however, seemed completely content with the amount of what she had and she didn't want to stop.
The loud pop pierced the air, when she opened another bottle. She asked Sombra with a gesture if he wanted some more, but he gently refused the offer. After two glasses, she seemed to have brightened up.
"So... what about tha... that orange round-macha-thingy?" She asked, shaking a bit when she leaned forward, smiling widely.
"It was a rape... I mean a grape. A green grape and,” he hiccupped. “sorry... a purple grape," Sombra mumbled. "What did he say to the... purple one?"
"He burned him on a cross?" Krystal guessed, trying some racist jokes, though Sombra was too drunk to recognize that.
"No... He said...” he hiccupped again. “Breath-fff... Idiot, breathe!" Sombra mumbled and covered his ears as Krystal burst into loud laughter. She fell on the ground holding her belly, barely managing to breathe between spasms of laughter.
"Oh... Ha-ha-ha! Breathe! Ha-ha-ha! Oh my... Sombra, you're so funny!" she hollered. "You're a real comedian. Ah, you're killing me, oh my!"
"Yeah... I get that a lot," Sombra mumbled in reply. He felt quite weird, it was nothing he had ever felt before. This feeling was strange, and very, very pleasing at the same time.
"Ah, Sombs.... Ah, oh boy. I don't I've ever drank this much before!" Krystal said, having just come up with diminutive for 'Sombra'. "This is awesome."
"You don't... say," Sombra replied, putting a leaf of salad into his mouth, hoping it would relieve the effect of alcohol... somehow. He still felt quite in his right mind, but walking back home would be a major pain in the croup.
After another glass of wine, Krystal finally had enough, threw the glass back into the basket and fell on the grass. She rubbed her back against the soft, warm earth and closed her eyes, enjoying the massage. Sombra looked at her with a slight dash of 'what the Abyss'. In reply, Krystal only rolled around a few times more before finally spreading her hooves and allowing the sun to grace her with its touch.
"Aaah.... this is beautiful... I love this! Yay!" she drawled and turned her head to Sombra. "Would you be so kind, my prince, to stroke me a bit? I've got an itch right," she pointed at her belly, "... here."
Sombra slowly approached her, managing to hold his balance, and touched her where she pointed. Her fur felt much softer than he could imagine, soften than any fluff he could imagine! And the alcohol, combined with her natural warmth, made her feel ever so much warmer. Sombra felt pleased just by touching her.
To add insult to injury, Krystal started to purr for no reason. It seemed she loved this little game no less than he did. She waved her forehooves in the air as if she was a cat, and meowed.
"Just a few inches above, honey, if you don't mind..." she informed and when Sombra tickled her where she pointed, she shuddered. "Oh, yes... Meow..."
"Krystal.... I think you might need to stop... You see, I kinda need to... a few minutes of relaxation," Sombra tried to enlighten his marefriend, for he could no longer hold back his deepest primal desires and her behavior wasn't helping him at all.
"And if I say no, what will you do? Kick your lovely, purring kitten, mmm? Meow," she teased him with a quiet, inviting voice. While Sombra managed to preserve his cold sense, Krystal had drunk too much to understand what she was doing.
She was lying just near him, all open and welcoming, somewhat willing. But using this moment would be a betrayal of her trust! Sombra looked into her eyes. They stared at him with love, compassion and trust, and yet he couldn't fight the desire that was born inside him since that passionate kiss, four years ago.
This desire slowly grew bigger and bigger, and now, it might find its release and fulfillment.
"Would you be so kind to give lady her drink?" Krystal demanded, pointing at the wine.
"I think lady had had enough for today," Sombra retorted, which didn't please Krystal at all.
"Lady demands her drink! Perform this simple task and lady might reward you gently," she cooed, slowly caressing Sombra's cheek. She probably meant a kiss.
This little tease was the last straw, and Sombra finally snapped as he pressed his lips against her mouth, practically nailing her against the ground. Krystal widened her eyes in surprise. Even through her buzz, she was able to guess Sombra's intentions.
The kiss was different. Sombra remembered Larissa's little 'test' well, and now he was using what he’d learned therefrom to its fullest extend. He wrapped his hooves around his beloved and made the kiss last even longer.
She didn't fight back. After a few seconds of staring in surprise, she gave in as well, her decision affected more by alcohol than the mind.
They broke the kiss for a second to take a breath and calm down the raging fire of feelings.
"That was... unexpected,” Krystal said, breathing heavily. "Something new... I like that immensely."
"Krystal..." Sombra didn't find any right words. The buzz swiped all the poetry and romance straight out of his head, so he cut the trash talk. "...Will you be mine?"
Krystal smiled once again, but this smile looked so... lustful.
"I shall... with pleasure."