//------------------------------//
// Chapter 22 
// Story: The Eyes Are Blind 
// by Fe94Knight 
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Chapter twenty two
A single leathery wing drapes over a four year olds body, as he is pulled in closer to his mother on the couch. Snuggling even closer to her warm form, the young Midnight eagerly leans his head back against her soft rising, and falling chest as she plants a tender kiss a top his fore head. Simply enjoying the little things in life, like spending a simple moment with her son. 

“What happened next mom?” He asks, trying to read over the story book in front of him now as she holds it open.

“Hehe,” Golden giggles with pride at her son’s eagerness from him being wrapped up in the story, “Well let’s continue, and we shall see… ‘The lone knight tracks his way through the forest onwards to his beloved. Not a single mountain is too tall, or forest to dense to stop him in his quest. The only one that is in his mind, and heart is the one who stole it from him-’”

“A sweet tail none the less,” Sky calls out from the kitchen as he leans out with several splatters of blood draping over his own face from the carving of the meat. Stepping out in to the living room, and in the middle of the story. 

Knowing the tail all too well by now. Seeing as Golden has read it to their son at least a dozen times, and the book was originally his own. Though he can’t complain, as it is one of his favorites. Wiping off his hoof with a towel to avoid drenching them in the life fluid, the father runs his hoof gently through his sons jet black mane as he can only admire the shiny fangs that stick out from the little smile he receives, “How’s it going sport? Hungry?”

“Starving dad,” Midnight’s stomach growls while mouth beams even more so at the larger colt he is proud to call dad.

Using his own magical horn, Sky levitates a single strip of flesh from inside the kitchen without even needing to see. Quickly peeling it from the bone, and hovering it next to him to cool for a second, “Here ya go…” he hands the cut off to his kin, “Dinner will be ready soon, but that should wet your pallet for-” Sky is cut off at the sudden release of magic from his son’s muzzle in the form of a green flame. Already feeling some of his own hairs singed shorter from the heat, the father only wipes off some of the char as he watches his son cough a bit after the taste of flesh.

“You put a lot of pepper on it, didn’t you?” Golden raises her own brow at her husband. Trying to hold back her giggles as she dampens out the smoke coming from her son’s mouth, and brings a glass of water from the table next to her so Midnight can take a sip.

The slight shrug of her husband’s shoulder, lets her know that she was spot on with the judgment without even a word from him, “It’s a habit,” he cleans the last bit of black from his coat, “Though I will say his magic does seem to be growing with age.”

“As do most unicorns magic,” Golden fills in after taking the now empty glass from her son’s grasp, “Let’s see... he’s already been able to launch a shock wave spell, shoot fire from his mouth, and Midnight’s vomit had a nasty acidic effect when it nearly ate away at whatever it touched.”

Sky slides in next to his wife, and cradles both of them for a moment, “Then our Midnight learned he could levitate items with his hooves… oh and who could forget, blast apart objects with a head butt, or punch, so long as he covered it in a protective barrier,” Sky thinks about any other talents that their son had picked up, though a single thought keeps filling his mind, “All of them though seem to be combat spells, besides the telekinesis.”

“Well look who his parents are,” Golden reminds him. Giving Sky a quick peck on the cheek.

After eavesdropping on those around him a sadden filled expression on Midnight’s face greets his father’s own, after hearing both parents talk about his little gift. For all his life he has been sheltered from most other ponies. The only ones he would see is Fall being a family friend. Even the doctor in town, when he would be sick, though that wouldn’t happen often. In terms of other ponies his age, there were none really. 

Any time he would go in to town, his parents would cover him over in a cloak, and sit him atop their back. From day one, he always knew that he was different, that something was just off with him. From his mother reading him all sorts of adventure stories, it seems the unicorns that would use spells to hurt were always the bad ones, and those spell just happen to be the ones that come naturally to him. 

“Is… Is that bad?” A single tear wells up in his eyes, as Midnight wonders what makes him so different, “I… I don’t mean to make bad spells. It’s just all I know how to do.”

Both parents remain shocked at this development. After all, their son never really took the time to talk about such things to them. Though with his magic growing in his age, so does the questions of how he is able to do it all. For a unicorn with not only the ability to use magic, but one that is also the colt’s father. Sky takes his son’s body in to his own grasp, and brings him over in to his lap. 

“Hey… there is no such thing as a bad spell, Midnight,” He corrects his son with a lighthearted bump on his muzzle, “You’ve seen the spells that I can do in the back yard, right?” Sky waits for his son to nod at him before carrying on, “The same Fire spell that you can do, I can use to start a camp fire. The Shock wave spell, I’ve seen unicorns use that to knock ripe fruit off of trees, instead of bucking them off. The levitation spell that you probably think is just harmless? Well that all matters how fast you throw the object, and how big it is in the first place.”

“Then why is it that-” His lower lip starts to quiver as Midnight fights to get the words out while holding back a few more tears from his own revelation, “All the bad guys in the stories that mom, and you read use the same spells as me? Does that mean I’m bad because I can only really do bad magic?”

‘So that’s why he was asking,’ the slight chuckle in the base of the father’s throat eases his own curiosity as it escapes between the two colts, “Son, Midnight… as I said before. There is no such thing as bad magic. Magic is just a tool to be used by us. It doesn’t make you who you are. You decide what you want it to be… if you do bad with it. Then it’s called evil, but if you help others using it, well then how bad can you really be?” He kisses the top of his son’s forehead before putting him back in Golden’s lap, “You’re a sweet little colt, and will grow up to make quite the noble colt one day.”

“Thanks dad,” Midnight smiles back at him, wiping away any tear that remains with his leathery wing. Happy to have that little issue that dwelled in the back of his mind, at ease now.

Sky meanwhile walks over to his wife’s side, and gives her a heartfelt kiss on the cheek, “However, in my haste to try, and start dinner earlier. I forgot to get something for later to preserve the meat, so I just have to run in to town real quick to grab some salts.”

“It’s starting to get late now,” Golden looks out the window, and sees the sun start to peak down behind the tree line while the horizon remains not too far after that, “Are you sure about that?”

“Well it will be bad in the morning,” He puts a small satchel around his collar before heading towards the door, “Don’t worry now, there are few ponies out at this time anyway. I’ll be back soon. I love you both now.”

“I love you too, dear,” Golden blows him a quick kiss.

“I love you too, daddy,” Midnight waves at him with flailing little hooves.

Sky can’t help but get his own waterworks from the warm nature of his own son, as he pushes open the door way, and steps out in to the night. Closing it gently behind him so the pair inside can get back to the story, of the knight in shining armor.