//------------------------------//
// 8 - Going Out 
// Story: A Summer for Couples 
// by BlackWater 
//------------------------------//








Days went by and, though sunrise and sunset blended together in a vague sense, neither of the royals thought it was a bad thing. They were having the time of their lives in a paradise without the smallest worry to bother them. This was actually the first time that either of them had felt so free. Shining Armor had grown up nearly as much a perfectionist as his little sister and always worried about his duties in the Royal Guard. Cadance had likewise always worried about her princess-related obligations and political performance.
The two were having as much fun as could likely be possible at the Hello Tropics resort. Currently, the two were engaging in an activity that would have been ill-advised should it have been any other pair. They were paddleboarding near Beach 5 and were doing so atop a special two-pony board. The resort staff had warned that it was incredibly difficult to master due to the scientific balance required, not to mention the teamwork involved.
Shining Armor was laughing himself silly as they paddled further out from the beachfront. The day was bright, the air was invigorating, and the water was cool. He and his wife were sporting a pair of goggles that had come with their diving suits, though they weren't wearing the suits presently. Reflected light from the water's surface was easily filtered out by the shading on the goggles they both wore.
Cadance tried to get more comfortable, but they were sandwiched so close together that movement had to be calculated or else they'd dump themselves off the board. “What's so funny?” she asked, her voice stiff from concentration.
“We're acing this, Cady!” he replied enthusiastically. “Loosen up. You're tense.”
“I wonder wh-” the alicorn mare stopped and righted herself before she could slip off the side of the board. “They weren't kidding when they said it was hard. Maybe we should have started with the single boards.”
“Single?!” Shining gawked. “We're married, Cady. I'm not leaving you.”
Though Cadance rolled her eyes, she did crack a small smile at his obsessive loyalty. “Nor I, but we may have bitten off more than we can chew.”
“Marriage isn't supposed to be a walk in the park.”
“No,” she rolled her eyes as she continued to stroke her right hoof through the water to propel them. “I meant the paddleboard.”
Shining Armor dismissed the notion and stroked the water on his side. “I've got an alicorn princess with me. What could go wrong?”
“Being an alicorn makes the situation safe? I'm not seeing your logic,” she said and wanted to nudge him. The action was put on hold since it would have dumped them over the side. “I suppose you think auntie would be incapable of falling off one of these.”
“Princess Celestia,” Shining Armor beamed. “Yeah, imagine her and Luna trying to do this.”
Cadance couldn't hold back the giggle-inducing thought. “That would be the most priceless thing to happen in the history of Equestria.”
In an effort to distract themselves from their gradual loss of confidence, Shining proceeded with the topic. “They'd have to make...” the stallion trailed as they fought to recover from a near capsize. “They'd have to make a paddleboard just for them. Since the Princess is so big and all.”
The pink pony licked her lips subconsciously as her hoof moved through the cool deep water. The rick blue and decline of transparency was testament to how far out they had gotten. Though the wind and water were mostly calm, a few drafts continued to threaten their balance.
“Big? You calling auntie fat?” Cadance played.
“I mean 'big' as in 'tall,'” he corrected. “She has a very nice...”
The mare caught that he trailed again because he was focusing on stabilizing against a small wave. Still, she couldn't help but tease. “Nice what? Have you been looking over my aunt?”
“Never,” he retorted quickly. “You know I only have eyes for one alicorn at a time. By the way, we're losing this thing.”
“Yeah,” Cadance admitted along with him. “Here comes a big wave. You ready to swim?”
“Wait! I've got an idea!”
She knew that tone in his voice. It always meant he had some silly couldn't-possibly-work scheme racing through his mind. Temporary increases to ego were common in such circumstances, especially with the more ridiculous ideas.
“No time to explain,” he continued. “Come closer to my side until you're in the center of the board.”
“But-”
“Quick!”
She did as he instructed, fully believing they would topple even before the wave reached them. As far as waves were concerned, this coming one was tame almost to the point of not being a wave. However, their lack of raw skill didn't allow them to endure much. She moved and found that he shifted when she did so.
A thin spray of seawater came up at her face and goggles as she moved to the center of the board. The sensation that she took greater note of, though, was Shining Armor's body moving atop hers. It was a very familiar sensation, but she noticed more for the fact that his body warmth was a contrast to the cool waters. She would have hummed in contentment if it weren't for the rocking of the paddleboard and the imminent doom they faced.
“Spread your wings,” the prince commanded the princess.
Having nothing better planned besides flailing off the board - which they would probably do anyways - she obeyed his instruction even while he settled his hooves around her. Two pink wings with purple tinting were stretched to either side above the water. There was a lightening feeling coming from a blue magic aura that Shining had begun forming around the board.
“Hey,” Cadance called out from below. “I thought we weren't going to cheat.”
“It's not cheating if you don't know proper water-handling spells.”
Her husband's words only began to register in her mind when the wave hit them. The blue magic encasing them glowed a little brighter and seawater washed through it as their board tilted up from the rolling hill of liquid. The taste of it became prominent in her mouth when she opened it at the wrong moment, easily catching water from her position at the board's tip.
“What's that supposed to mean?” was her question that was lost in the sound of the crashing water and Shining Armor's holler of excitement.
The prince stretched his forelegs outwards when their board tipped to the peak of the wave. Momentum from the collision allowed his weight to begin lifting from the board and Cadance's back, which almost caused him to fall into the water. The mare relented to herself that the surge really was invigorating.
“Woohoo!” he shouted to the sunny sky.
Just as Cadance began opening her mouth to add her voice in, the blue magic flickered and then frizzed out entirely. Shining Armor only managed half a curse before everything went to pot. The stallion fell away from the board towards the right, the mare tumbled off to the left, and the board itself shot from beneath them like a rocket.
Two loud splashes and a more reserved skipping sounded off as the three items found their places in the ocean. A moment of quiet serenity passed, seagulls squawking in the sky without a care in the world. It passed quick, though, and was interrupted by two heads bursting back from beneath the surface. One was pink and the other white. They both began laughing.
“We're pretty terrible at this, huh?” Shining laughed and half-choked on seawater.
“Practice makes perfect,” she added in. “Maybe if we perfect that spell of yours. It was working well until the end.”
“I don't know,” he doubted and began splashing her with water while keeping himself afloat. “You called me a cheater.”
“Did not.”
“Did too.”
The wet and swimming mare turned back to her go-to half-lidded expression. “I know you never cheat on me, Shiny. Not when I always give you everything you want.”
Shining Armor's mouth opened a bit, but no sound came out.
Cadance smirked, swam up to his face, and placed a warm kiss on his lips. “We should probably get the board before it's too far away.”
Shining shook his head to clear it and joined her in heading towards the disloyal paddleboard that had dumped them. “I'd forget the board if it meant another minute to kiss.”
“But you're guessing we'll do plenty of that after getting back tonight,” his wife finished his unspoken thought. “Drowning certainly doesn't improve the duration of our future private time.”
The physically larger stallion bumped her side as they swam next to each other. “What happened to having innocent fun?” he chuckled. “What are we supposed to tell ponies when they ask us what we did on our vacation?”
“Lie,” she said simply and calmly.
The evenness of her tone made him laugh even harder as he grabbed the drifting board and attempted to climb it. His mare read his moves and timed her climb from the other side. Soon the white and pink royals were battling once more to balance the board with them on it.
“Seriously,” she smiled at him, a mere hoof's distance from his own face. “We've done plenty and will do plenty more 'innocent' things before our stay is up.”
“Like what?” he narrowed his eyes in concentration as they paddled in opposite directions to turn the board towards the shore. They almost flipped themselves off of it for the millionth time.
“Like paddleboarding,” she answered and managed by sheer skill to flop her wet tail over his.
“Successful paddleboarding,” he returned. “We'll lie and leave out the part where we cheated and failed.”
“That's my hubby,” Cadance beamed.









After the large board was returned to the Beach 5 center, the pair was sufficiently tired and ready for a relaxing lunch. Feeling the need to melt into a nice sit-down place, they wound up going to Hello Tropic's niche restaurant pavilion at Beach 6. It was a short drive on their custom mini-ship, so Shining thankfully didn't pass out.
The walk was perhaps a tad long, but the end point was worth it. The restaurant they went into was the one that seemed most low-key with dim natural lighting and open air. It was on the far side of the plaza, where the artificial paths bled off into natural rock and beach sand. The dining location was nestled into a crack that a beach cliff had adorning it. They were lead by the “front-door” waiter through the open sky canyon, passing little trickles of water pouring down the sides and filtering back along the edges towards the ocean.
Ferns somehow managed to knife themselves into the crags along the cliff walls. Small tropical trees waved overhead in the breeze at the top edges of the canyon, casting gentle shadows on the ponies below. A colorful exotic bird was jumping from branch to branch on the plants, following them along the path and singing a cheerful but calm tune. All in all, it was just the kind of serene atmosphere they both needed after being defeated by the sea.
“We,” the blue-vested waiter continued his talk, “have reserved the best tables for such esteemed guests as yourselves. Would you like the alcove or the terrace?”
Cadance glanced to her husband.
“The terrace,” Shining shrugged. He figured both would be nice and he liked the sea breeze, so the higher-up terrace would likely be a refreshing place to be seated.
“Perfect,” the server stallion soothed in a tone tinted with corporate training. “If you would simply follow me.”
They took a turn to the right a few steps ahead and entered a cave entrance in the canyon side. Or, at least, it looked like a cave entrance at first. It turned out that it only seemed dark because the outside was so bright from the midday sun. The tunnel-like place was lit sufficiently by theme-oriented torches along the walls. A craggy stone stairwell came up quickly, which they climbed in a spiraling direction.
Natural light flooded their eyes when they reached the top of the stairs and exited back out of the canyon wall. Their hooves were now clopping against the raw rock of a raised outcropping. In a way, it really was like a terrace. It was part of the beach canyon side that reached out and hung over the ground-level path below. The distance seemed to be a good two-stories or so up in the themed restaurant, which was now recognizable as such. Tables previously hidden from sight could be seen below, filled with ponies, griffons, mules, and others.
The bird that had followed them before was now resting on a branch of the sole tree nestled on the edge of their terrace. It was barely on the inside of the stone railing along the lip, which was all shaped to appear natural. The table and chairs were likewise, though the mass of plush cushions couldn't manage it. The restaurant was apparently willing to relent on the theme in the interest of keeping top clientèle comfortable.
“Please make yourselves at home,” the waiter gestured to the seats, which the royals took slowly due to their fatigue. “A waitress will be with you shortly to take your drink orders.”
They both thanked him courteously before he left back into the tunnel-like stairwell that was the only way to the terrace. When the couple fully sank into the massive ocean blue cushions, they both sighed in relaxation. Their tone and timing was so similar that they couldn't help but stare and then laugh at the moment.
“They say married couples that are close for a long time eventually end up identical to each other,” Cadance smiled and then looked to the menu before her on the smooth stone table.
“Can't argue,” he commented and also looked at the menu. “Especially when you make my face turn pink all the time.”
A long moment passed as they both scanned the listed lunch items.
“Everything looks good,” Cadance sighed again when she found she was indecisive. “I don't know what I want.”
“I recommend the Seasoned Seaweed,” a tiny female voice drifted over the air and startled the two royals.
The prince and princess looked to the side of the table to find a small fuchsia unicorn mare standing with an order notepad levitating in a near-pink magical aura. She was small enough that she could have passed for a teen on the left side of the age scale. There was, however, a white apron on her with the restaurant's rocky emblem on it.
“Um,” Cadance blinked. “Are you...”
“Your waitress?” the small mare finished in her equally quiet and small voice. “Yes, ma'am. I'm just petite, not underage for work. I get that question a lot.”
The waitress' attached smile made the couple relax.
“The Seasoned Seaweed is baked into a crispy perfection with spices and butter that will make you want seconds. I've had it myself on several occasions. But you can keep looking at the menus if you want because I'm just here to take your drink orders. Take as much time as you need.”
“Wow,” Shining rose a brow. “Well then. How about two orders of that and some strawberry lemonade for drinks. Tea with the meal. Just normal black.”
“Done,” the miniature mare beamed. “I'm Star Reach, by the way. You can call me anytime by pushing that button over there.”
Cadance followed her pointing hoof to a button on the terrace railing. “Sophisticated,” she remarked.
“I'll go get your drinks,” she concluded while a pen finished writing on the floating notepad via magical grip.
The couple watched in awe as she left as soundlessly as she had come.
“Must be very light,” Cadance concluded.
“She is small,” Shining added.
Cadance returned her attention to her husband and closed her menu on the table. “How'd you know I wanted all the same stuff as you?”
“Remember what you just said about becoming identical?”
The pink alicorn stuck her tongue out and flippantly waved a hoof at him. “Silly me.”
Their accompanying bird on the tree limb decided the moment was right for a change of tune. It chirped a slightly more energetic song that matched with the sound of the wind and waves they had gotten used to. The creature appeared to brighten even more when Cadance tossed it a warm smile.
“I wonder if it's trained,” Shining's mouth line turned lop-sided in thought.
“No doubt,” his wife agreed. “Could be one of those birds Fluttershy trained. Remember the ones at our wedding?”
“How could I forget?” he shook his head. “It was one memorable moment.”
Cadance's mood fell a bit, but she tried to perk it back up. “The music was lovely, though.”
“Indeed,” he saw her caring look and kept himself from turning sour in remembrance. “They were beautiful at it.”
“Drinks,” came the small voice from before.
This time, Shining Armor nearly fell out of his seat from surprise. “Great Celestia,” he let slip.
Cadance blurted as she held back a laugh. “That was...immediate,” she directed her words to their returned waitress.
The unicorn levitated two large strawberry lemonades to their places on the table. “I try to be timely.”
“I think you gave my poor Shiny a heart attack,” Cadance grinned.
“My apologies, sir,” she bowed.
Shining tried gesturing for her not to do so. “No, no. I just didn't hear you come up. Did you have to run to get back here? I mean, that was really fast.”
“This restaurant prides itself on a revolutionary new kitchen and delivery system that makes modern use of unicorn magic,” she explained. “I would certainly not run up any stairs with drinks in hoof - or magic. Your food is cooking and will be ready soon.”
The pair gave their thanks before the waitress left again. The bird had continued singing throughout, though it respectfully lowered its volume whenever conversation was ongoing. The sun coming down into the elegant beach canyon kept their cushions warm so that every movement they made let them discover a freshly heated part of their seating.
Cadance took a sip of her lemonade and squealed conservatively at the perfection of it. Shining, on the other hoof, looked at his forlornly.
“What?” she asked after leaning back.
He turned sad. “I was kind of hoping for one of those straws that spirals into a heart. So we could share...”
That only made his mare coo. It was nice to hear something romantic from him every now and then. He really was a softer stallion than most ponies realized. All the better since he was all hers anyways. “I can still take a sip from mine and share it with you mouth-to-mouth.”
Now he blushed.
“Sorry,” she backpedaled. “I forgot it makes you nervous. How about we think of something else? Like what we're doing tonight, for example.”
The pink drained a bit from his cheeks, but Shining Armor didn't hesitate too much with his response. “How about we try the hot springs? We've got a private pool and I bet it's super relaxing under the stars and lamplights.”
“I think 'romantic' would be more the definition,” Cadance rested her head on her forehooves she had propped back onto the table. “I couldn't imagine anything better. Let's do it.”