//------------------------------// // 21. Day Off // Story: Sweetie's Shadow // by Note Sketch //------------------------------// Sweetie Belle shuffled around in her seat as she kept her head down. To her left sat her sister in a calm demeanor, drinking her usual morning tea. To her right was her teacher, who was arching up a brow at the tale she was just told. "So..." Cherilee began as she took up her own cup to take a sip of the tea. "You're telling me that Sweetie Belle was part of a very important expedition?" "Mhm." Rarity responded sweetly as she lifted her gaze at her. "But don't take my word for it. You have key witnesses right here, isn't that right?" Rarity gestured to the others sitting with them at the table. Princess Luna was also drinking some tea as she kept her formal appearance. Her eyes remained closed, as if dismissing what had been going on around her in her Royal Canterlot mannerism. Beside her was Iron Wall, who struggled to get comfortable in the small chair that was clearly not made for Minotaurs. "We understand thine reluctance, but rest assured that the truth is being spoken. Sweetie Belle was an important contributor in traversing a difficult maze." Luna said, finally opening her eyes to peer over at the pink mare. Cherilee felt chills go down her spine as she made eye contact with her. Clearing her throat and trying to recover some of her composure. Cherilee turned to the larger guest who was currently using every ounce of restraint he had to keep from shattering the cup of tea in his hands. "Iron Wall, was it?" Cherilee asked. "Do you also think that Sweetie Belle was very important to your late night...adventure?" "I cannot say for certain. Most of my time was spent with Sombra." Iron said as he took a drink, easily finishing the entire cup without meaning to. Sighing and putting it down, he looked over at the mare. "But I will say that it is not like Sweetie Belle openly disregarded her studies." "Y-Yeah, I finished a good half of it." Sweetie Belle said, finally adding her voice to the mix. "I just didn't think it would take this long to come back from Canterlot. Before I knew it, it was morning already and well..." A yawn escaped the poor filly mid sentence, proving her point. With a sigh of resignation, Cherilee could no longer deny all the evidence presented for her. Smiling at them, she stood up. This made everypony eye her intently, awaiting her response. "Then I suppose I have no choice. I'll give you an extension on your assignment. You have a couple more days before you have to turn in your homework." Cherilee said with a happy smile. Instantly, Sweetie Belle erupted into a gleeful squee and was quickly joined by her sister in a hug. Sombra, who was hiding back behind a corner, also smiled softly as he overheard the situation. He had asked Luna to help the night prior. He knew full well that upon arrival they would get a stern lecture from Rarity. Sweetie Belle would not have the time needed to finish her homework. "We thank thee." Luna said in a softened Canterlot Tone as she moved closer to the teacher who was getting ready to leave. "Oh, it's no problem. Besides, it would sort of be hard to go against what the Princess says huh?" "Indeed." Luna joked. "We had already sent word to prepare a dungeon if thou had declined to excuse the filly." Cherilee chuckled softly while sweating nervously. Even though it was obvious she was joking, it didn't make her threat more comforting. Instead, she began to make her way out, nodding a good bye to the other guests. "Anywho, I really need to get going. I still have the rest of my class to pick up. Um, Sweetie Belle?" She said as she looked over at the filly. "I can tell you're not ready, meet me at the Gazebo by eight won't you?" "Yes ma'am!" Sweetie shouted out happily. Returning the gesture, Cherilee made her way out of the boutique. By coincidence, she was also heading in Sombra's direction. Deciding against being caught, Sombra simply stepped back and merged into the ground as a shadow, cleverly avoiding the mare all together. He made his way to Sweetie Belle, where he awaited for Cherilee to exit all the way out before jumping back into the world. "That still impresses me." Iron Wall said as he stood up, no longer seeing any point in keeping himself uncomfortable. "I told you didn't I?" Sombra said as he stretched his neck to pop his bones. "I'm dead?" "Still can't believe it." "Neither could I when I first saw him." Luna said stepping forward. "Ah, finally talking normally?" Sombra teased as looked over at the Princess. "This was a formal meeting with an instructor. Did you expect me to act casually?" Luna asked, half flustered by the question. She clearly was still figuring out the rules of the Royal Canterlot Voice. Not that there were any for it in this era. "Anyway." Sweetie Belle said as she jumped from her seat. "I better go get my things ready." "Wait, Sweetie Belle!" Rarity called out to the filly as she began her run. Almost falling as she came to a sudden halt, she turned toward her sister who was now grabbing on to her. "What happened to your cheek?!" "Huh? What do you mean?" Sweetie asked as her sister messed with her face. As soon as Rarity placed her hoof on the small gash on her fur, she flinched in a small jolt of pain. "How did you cut yourself?" Rarity began the interrogation. Noticing that the wound was on the same cheek he had received from Iron Wall the previous night, Sombra reach for his face. His eyes widened as he felt no cut. His own injury was gone. "I don't know." Sweetie said as she pulled away, her hoof on her cheek in slight annoyance. "It wasn't there this morning!" She managed to say before Rarity pulled her away. No doubt it was time to clean the cut to make sure it wouldn't get infected. "Did that..." Sombra began in a hushed whisper. Though his attention was shifted to the hoof at his shoulder. "Sombra, have a moment?" Luna asked, her expression slightly awkward. "Uh, yes." He said as he looked back at the sisters walking away before returning his eyes to her. "What it is?" Luna led him outside, almost far enough away from Sweetie to activate the tether. A single hoof step forward and he'd be shot back to her. Yet this is as far as they could go if they wanted some privacy. Sombra remained just outside the door frame to the boutique. Luna, on the other hoof, began to pace back and forth in front of him. He could tell how much trouble she was having trying to convey her thoughts into words, no doubt it would take a long time for her to treat him like a friend and not an enemy. "About the favor you asked of me." She began. "You wish for me to see your dreams?" "Yes. I told you that my memories are sketchy. My dreams seem to be the only thing I can go on. I would really appreciate any help you can give." Luna remained silent. Her eyes were sternly fixed on him as her mind raced with thought after thought. "First off, you realize dreams are products of your subconscious right? They could very well just be an illusion you created to fill the gap in your memories." "I doubt I would create such a terrible memory for myself." Sombra said as he recalled the most resent dream he had had. His pained expression was soon mimicked by Luna as she began to feel some sympathy. "Which brings me to my number two. When a pony shuts away their memories, it is usually so they could forget a terrible past. When and if you regain your past, are you willing to accept it? Whatever it may be, however, gruesome, and frightening?" "Luna..." Sombra said softly. "Do you think you would be happier having the memory of your transformation into Nightmare Moon be a well kept secret? Would you fare better not knowing of the evils you committed while everypony else did? Good or bad, I want to know who I am. Who I was before I was King Sombra." "Fair enough." Luna said as she closed her eyes. "I'll help you. Though do not say I did not warn you of what could happen." The Princess extended her wings outward, causing a feather or two to fall from them. She looked over to Sombra who remained still and unmoved by their conversation. Smiling softly at him, she took flight and began her return to Canterlot. "I'll keep my eye out for when you sleep. I'll meet you in your dreams then!" She shouted before flying off. Sombra couldn't help but chuckle at the grand exit the Princess had made. Though he was not one to talk. He loved making a grand entrance. Unfortunately, his train of thought was interrupted by a sudden surge of inner strength. Sweetie Belle was getting close. By the time he turned around, he saw a small filly with a bandage on her cheek and a smile that almost reached it. "You seem happy." Sombra said as Sweetie Belle stopped half a meter from him. "I am! Because I just thought of something awesome." "Are we going to end up going half way across Equestria to do something ridiculously stupid with your friends?" He teased. "What?! My friends and I aren't always doing something stupid!" "Just most of the time, right?" Sweetie Belle puffed out her cheeks in annoyance as Iron Wall began to exit behind them. Crouching down to get out of the boutique, he stretched his back and let out a long chain of loud bone popping. "Are you ready Sweetie Belle?" Iron asked as he continued to stretch out his limbs. "Ready for what?" Sombra asked as he arched a brow. "Well..." Sweetie said as she was picked up by the Minotaur and placed on one of his shoulders. "I just thought that you deserved a break." "From what?" Sombra asked. "From, like, everything! Ever since you came to Ponyville it's been one thing after another. You need a break from fighting and running and stress in general." "I volunteered to take Sweetie Belle to school today so you may rest." Iron said. "That's all well and dandy." Sombra said as he gestured with a hoof. "But you're forgetting that I'm bound to you. I can't exactly rest when I have to stay close anyway." "That's just it." Sweetie said with a grin, making Sombra almost nervous to whatever she was about to do. "King Sombra!" At her voice, Sombra felt himself revitalize to his days of King. His body glowed and revealed the shackle markings on his fur from the curse as his eyes were set ablaze in purple flames. "Do whatever you want this afternoon!" Sweetie Belle shouted her command. The light that shinned so brightly from Sombra quickly dimmed and he was left back in his previous state, though the power from within him still fueled his body. For the first time since his revival, he felt alive again. "Say what?" Sombra asked as he looked over himself. "Today is your day off!" Sweetie Belle shouted from Iron's shoulder. Her sudden jolt of excitement almost making her fall. "You're giving me the freedom to do whatever I want this afternoon?" He asked, still unable to process what had just happened. "You realize how crazy of an idea that is right? I could pillage the town. Kill civilians. Attack Canterlot." "You could." Sweetie said with a smile. "But I trust that you won't." Letting out a heavy sigh, Sombra turned to Iron Wall. "What about you? Aren't you supposed to guard the Canterlot underground?" "Princess Luna said that she placed some of her own guards there in my absence. She even said she would speak to her sister about the Iron Contract from all those years ago." "Isn't it great?!" Sweetie Belle shouted again, something she seemed to be doing a lot of lately. "Yes, yes it is." Sombra said as he forced a smile on her behalf, though truth be told he didn't know how to feel about the situation he was in. "Is everything alright Sombra?" Iron asked at his lack of enthusiasm. "Of course. Now what are you two waiting for? You're going to be late for class if you don't get a move on." Sombra said as he stepped to the side, his usual firm expression back. Iron nodded and began walking forward. "Have fun on your day off!" Sweetie Belle shouted as she turned to wave at Sombra. He slowly raised his hoof to wave back and remained still. He waited there for a while. Time passed and he finally accepted that he would not be pulled back to Sweetie Belle due to the distance. A sigh escaped him as he walked off in a random direction. He had all the freedom he had once wanted, yet it felt empty. He was back at permanent power, he could easily take advantage of the situation and create havoc if he wanted to. But he felt no need to, no drive to do any of that. Worst part, was the light feeling he felt at his back. There was no filly sitting on it. Sombra quickly found himself walking into a sort of market place. His instincts made him immediately crowd together with other ponies, as if he was trying to hide from somepony. It was more out of force of habit no doubt. Still, with his tall physique and red spike of a horn, it would be hard not to spot him. "Hello Sombra." A voice called out to him. He blinked a few times as the words registered into his mind. Turning to look, he found a smiling Princess with a saddle full of scrolls and books. "Hello mare- uh, Princess." He said, quickly correcting his previous method of referring to her. "Twilight." She said, formally introducing herself. "And I must say, I'm a bit surprised to see you be so formal with me." "Sweetie Belle told me to be more respectful of Royalty." He said, glancing away at how dumb it sounded even to him. "I see..." Twilight said with a grin. She could clearly tell Sombra had not been commanded to be respectful, yet here he was doing it anyway. "Speaking of which, where is she?" She asked as she looked around the busy market. "At school." "And you're not with her? Did she tell you to come buy something for her or Rarity?" "No...uh..." He began. "She uh, gave me the day off." "Off from what?" "From keeping her saf-" Sombra stopped and cleared his throat. "From being her familiar. She said it was best if I took the afternoon for myself." He finished and quickly began to walk away. He was not willing to stay any longer and explain things further to her. "Uh huh." Twilight said with a soft giggle, following him. Sombra could feel Twilight's eyes look him over. He could also feel her large grin as she no doubt began to think of all the ways he had 'changed'. Still, it was something he was aware of. He knew that he truly did change, if only a little, since he had come back. "You know..." Twilight said, getting Sombra's attention again. "Word around town is that some lunatic ran at super fast speeds with three fillies on his back yesterday." "Is that so?" "Also, on an unrelated topic I'm sure, there seemed to be a break in at Canterlot Castle last night." "Truly?" "Mhm, strangest thing was that nothing was stolen and Princess Luna was gone for the rest of the night after that. Some say whoever broke in fillynapped her." "That seems a little far fetched." "I know right? I mean I saw Princess Luna this morning. Flying away from Carousal Boutique." "Uh...huh..." Sombra said as he began to sweat nervously. "Is there something you're trying to say to me?" "No, not at all. Just exchanging gossip with a friend." She said with a smile, a genuine smile. "Friend? You realize I tried to kill you?...Twice." "Yeah, but I've forgiven you." Twilight said as she nudged him. "Not to mention we kinda sorta killed you too." Sombra smiled and chuckled. Out of all the mares he had met, Twilight probably was the one least aggressive against him, not counting Celestia of course. One could never tell with her. Still, it was sort of nice to be able to talk calmly with another pony that wasn't an eighth of his size. Suddenly a pony rushed in front of Sombra, making him return his thoughts to the real world. He and Twilight looked over to the crowd of Ponies beginning to form around a unicorn on a table. He rolled a pair of dice and kept a large grin that showed off a gold tooth. "Come one come all, how quick are your reactions hmm?" The pony shouted as he picked up the dice with his magic, gently levitating it into a cup before shaking it around. The sound of the dice hitting the inside of the cup was muffled by the constant chattering of the crowd around them. Twilight and Sombra quickly made their way to the crowd, the former with a disgruntled frown. Taking a deep breath before stepping forward, Twilight flew up and landed right in front of the table with the smiling stallion. "You realize public gambling is illegal right?" Twilight said as she placed her hooves on the table. By now, Sombra had managed to squeeze by the other ponies and see the two confront each other. One look at the stallion and his expression changed completely. There was something extremely familiar about him, something that reminded him...of himself. "Twilight." Sombra said in a very familiar and lively tone. It was the calm, happy-go-lucky persona he took on when he spoke to Cherilee and Twilight knew at once he was up to something. "It isn't hurting anypony, why don't we let him continue?" "What are you doing?" Twilight asked in a whisper. "There's something I need to find out." Sombra whispered back before making his way to the table and smiling ear to ear. "So what is this game about?" "So we've got a contester eh?" The stallion said as he kicked his hind legs onto the table, the dice still rattling in the cup. "Though first things first. I believe introductions are in order." "I'm Sombra. Just arrived at Ponyville actually." "What a coincidence! I just got here too, name's Dice. I'm sure you can guess why." The stallion said with a large smile to match his. Both he and Sombra had the exact same expression of delight, only making it eerie for Twilight to watch. "So how do we play?" "You're just itching to get started huh? Well it's a simple game. I just roll the dice and we call out the combined number of the dice we think it will be as they land. Call it too fast, you get it wrong. Call it too slow, the other one get's the right number. Simple right?" "Definitely sounds like it." Sombra said as he placed his for hoof across the table in a relaxed manner. "Is a single bit too small to wager?" "No bet is too small a bet my friend." Dice said as he took the cup into his hooves and began to shake them about. Getting a nod from Sombra, he was signaled to let the dice roll. Sombra's eyes followed the dice. As if everything had slowed down around him, Sombra kept a close watch on the rolling objects, but quickly switched his vision back to Dice. Any sensible pony would have their eyes on the table, yet he was staring back at Sombra. Not willing to waste time staring at Dice, he shifted his eyes back to the table. One of the die had already stopped on 'one', the other was about stop and Sombra calculated the number it would fall on. "Seven." They both said ahead of time. The die came to a stop on 'six', making their answer correct. Sombra opened his eyes wide in surprise. His opponent was clearly still staring at him, so how could he had guessed the number? "A tie it seems." Dice said as he went to pick up the objects. "Best two out of three?" Sombra asked as he recovered his charade. "Since we both called out the right answer, it's a single point to both of us then?" He said as he began to shake the dice once more. "Sure." Sombra said as he nodded. He used his magic to grab the cup and bring it over to him. "But I'm sure you wouldn't mind if I roll the dice this time, right?" "Not at all!" Sombra grinned back at him and shook the dice around. Suddenly, he grabbed the cup with his hoof and slammed it down on the table, the dice trapped underneath it. The crowd of ponies began to whisper amongst themselves. Slowly Sombra began to raise the cup. Again, instead of having his eyes on the table, Dice continued to stare at Sombra as the dice came into view. There was a 'one' again. "Fou-" "Four." Dice said ahead of him. "Well would you look at that?" Dice said as he leaned back on the chair. "I think I won the 'two out of three', wouldn't you say?" "At remarkable speeds I might add." Twilight said as she looked over at the dice on the table. She too had been trying to play along, but she had barely any time to register the dice before Sombra and Dice were already shouting their answer. How Dice had managed see the dice ahead of Sombra the second round was a mystery for her. "One last round?" Sombra asked as he hoofed over the cup and dice. "Double or nothing." "For just one bit?" Dice asked before laughing to himself. "Sure, though I'm pretty sure I'll still win." As he shook the dice once more, Sombra smiled as he began to understand what it was that was happening. Dice was by no means playing the game. Actually, he wasn't even looking at the dice when they rolled. What he did was keep his eyes on his opponent's lips and read what he was going to say. At the speed he could talk, he could easily both read and repeat the word another was about to say to win the game. The fact he wasn't even looking at the dice was but an intimidation factor, making his opponents even more nervous. It was too bad he was against Sombra. His perceptive eyes allowed him to predict the dice roll ahead of time and speak the number quickly, making no lag what-so-ever between his words. If this kept up, they would end up as a tie once again. Except now Sombra knew his trick and the fact one of the dice was loaded to always land on 'one'. The way it rolled gave it away, no doubt so Dice could spot if the opponent was about to say the wrong answer and could react fast enough to still win. Dice flicked the cup to the table, sending the cubes rolling again. His eyes still locked onto Sombra, his smile still in place. Though it soon disappeared as Sombra's large grin stretched across his face. For a second Dice thought about looking at the dice to make sure everything was alright but decided against it. Instead he began to read Sombra's lips and speak out he answer faster than him. "Se-" "Seven." Dice said triumphantly. "-Nake eyes." Sombra finished with a smile. "S-Snake eyes?" Dice asked as he looked over at the cubes. He sat on his chair in disbelief as Sombra stood up and grabbed onto the dice. "You know, when two 'ones' come out of a pair, it's snake eyes." Sombra chuckled softly as he showed him the dice and gently placed them back on his cup before walking away. As he did, Dice shook out of his shock and called out. "H-Hey, what about your bits? Don't you want them?" "Nah." Sombra said as he waved his hoof in dismissal. "I don't have any bits on me, so I had nothing to gamble with. After all, it's against the law." "Y-You placed a bet without any bits?" "You could say...I took a gamble." Sombra said with a wink as he gestured for Twilight to follow him, leaving Dice back in the middle of everypony else, forced to clear his throat and continue on as if nothing had happened. They managed to make it far enough from the crowd of ponies for Sombra reverted back to his usual persona in peace. He let out a breath he wasn't aware he had been holding in and began to look around, ignoring Twilight's giggle. "Well that showed him." She began as she came to a stop. "Hope he stops trying to show off his gambling skills now. Hmm? Sombra?" Twilight looked up at the ever serious stallion. His eyes were looking around the street, as if searching desperately for something. Something very specific. "Is everything alright?" "That guy, Dice. He didn't make me place my bit on the table like most gambling parties. He was also using a flashy trick to draw in attention from ponies around, probably having ponies from across town come see him. He wasn't trying to make a profit through gambling." "And?" "He was trying to get attention. Twilight, could you discreetly ask every pony to take inventory of their homes? Make sure nothing's missing?" "Sure... but why? Dice might be a roguish fellow, but I don't think he'd put himself out like that if he was trying to steal something." Sombra squinted his eyes as he noticed a nearby house with a second floor window open. The curtain by the window frame waved in the soft breeze, a breeze it would not have caught had it not been accidentally pulled out. "Start with that house over there." "Are you sending me on some wild goose chase?" Twilight asked with a heavy tone of annoyance at being ignored. Sombra stopped and turned to look at her with a glare that froze her in place. His gaze softened up as he realized who he was talking and sighed before responding. "For your sake, I hope it is."