Freeze Pop stirred in her sleep, squinting a little as she awoke. It was still very early in the day; the golden rays of sunlight from outside only just beginning to glimmer through the blinds. However, as her mind slowly pushed its way through the fog of sleep, a realisation hit her. A smile spread across her face, and she gently prodded the sleeping form of the smaller black pegasus who lay asleep next to her still.
“Blackie! Wake up!”
Her prodding rose no more reaction from her companion, save for him rolling over in his sleep, and continuing right on resting. She frowned slightly at that, and proceeded to prod him a bit harder, a grin forming on her features.
“Oi! Wake up, you lazy bugger!”
She was mildly impressed to find out that Blacklight was, as it happened, quite a deep sleeper. I suppose I should be used to it by now. she thought to herself, as he still didn’t stir from his rest. Her frown pervaded a little longer, but it was soon overtaken by a mischievous look as she decided to change her tactics. She leaned her face down close to his ear, and softly began to whisper into his ear.
For a few moments, nothing happened… but then Blacklight’s eyes flew wide open and he sat up, his cheeks tinted purple. “...uhm! Good… good morning?” he said, looking round at Freeze and then quickly away. She let out a bit of a giggle in turn, and pressed her neck gently against his in a loose hug.
“Have some nice dreams?” she intoned softly.
“Well, uhm…” he replied, not daring to say anything about what his unconscious mind had done with what she’d fed to it. He did, however, peer at her suspiciously for a moment. “...somehow I have a feeling you may have started saying… things… into my ear while I was asleep…”
Freeze Pop put on an air of shock, albeit a very obviously faked one as she stared at him in mock surprise. “Blackie! Would I do that?” she asked, barely disguising the devious grin on her features.
“...so that was your doing, then…” he concluded, averting his gaze to the side as his cheeks burned. His attention was caught once again by Freeze Pop, however, as she let out a small giggle.
“You’re adorable, Blackie. C’mon though, you should get up. Do you know what day it is?” she questioned, stepping off her bed.
“What day?” he echoed, thinking for a moment as he stepped down off the synthetic cloud in turn. “Well, it’s Saturday, isn’t it?”
Freeze Pop blinked at his reply, then smiled. “Well yes, but that wasn’t what I was getting at.” she replied , before reaching over and poking gently at his still-bandaged wing. “Today’s the day they said you should be able to use this again, remember?”
“...right! They said next Saturday, and it’s now next Saturday!” Blacklight confirmed.
“Yeah, something like that.” Freeze Pop agreed, with a slight tilt of her head. Bit of an odd way of putting it, but he’s right, she thought to herself as she moved to grasp the bandage wrap. “Lemme get that for you…”
Blacklight found it difficult to keep still, even as the larger mare began to carefully unwrap his wing. “I can barely wait… I really wanna fly again!” he stated, shuffling his hooves a little in place. He heard Freeze Pop laugh through a mouthful of bandage as she worked the material free from his wing.
“I kngow, I kngow! At leatht try to hold thtill, though…” she gently chided, a smile spreading on her face as she unwrapped his feathered appendage.
“I’ll try… but I mean, well, have you ever broken a wing and not been able to fly for several days? Or even move it?”
“I’ve not, no.” Freeze replied with a shake of her head as she pulled the last of the medical wrapping free. “Never broken one… but I have had them severely damaged before.”
“Oh… sorry.” Blacklight said in a muted tone, his ears flattening a bit as he lowered his head.
Freeze Pop smiled reassuringly, dropping the last of the bandage as she did so. “Hey, just means I know how you feel, dude.” she stated, her attention shifting then to his newly-revealed wing. She swept her head down to it and began smoothing over the feathers, plucking out the more tattered ones that would no longer be of use in the process. “Frostbite, it was.” she added distractedly as she preened his wing. “My time spent pushing myself almost killed me a few times. But you know how the old saying goes.”
“Yeah… ‘what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger’, right? Though, it’s not always true.” Like a lot of sayings. he added mentally.
“...it’s not, no.” Freeze Pop agreed, after a thoughtful pause. She plucked and preened his wing a little more. “You taste of chocolate.” she added, all of a sudden.
“I… huh? Oh you know what? I bet that’s from a few days ago. Remember I spilled some of that ice cream?”
“Yeah, I remember.” Freeze nodded, a chuckle escaping her. “I shouldn’t have left it on your wing.”
“Hey, I asked you to, what with it being a little sore.” Blacklight countered. “And I guess I paid the price for it, too.”
“Well, whatever.” the white mare replied with a shrug of her shoulders, before teasingly dragging her tongue along the edge of his wing. “It makes you yummier, anyway.” she stated, a tinge of pink painting her cheeks as she brought her head back up to smile at him. She was internally pleased to see her companion blushing in turn at her remarks.
“I’m not edible!” he protested, subconsciously aware of his wings stiffening slightly. He ignored it for the moment as he went on. “I mean, just because I taste like chocolate…”
“You might not be edible, no, but you are tasty.” Freeze countered with a sultry tone, a wicked grin spreading on her features as she brought her face close to his. She could see his cheeks turn an even brighter shade as she did.
“Ah… why does it matter… how I taste…?”
“Because of this…” the mare replied, before pressing her lips to his. SHe closed her eyes, making an exaggerated “Mmm~!” sound as she did so. She felt her partner lean into it a little, though she was sure she’d felt him flinch slightly in surprise when she’d kissed him. She was happy to note that he seemed to be finding it less startling now, however.
“Ahh. Now that’s one thing at least I’m glad to see you lose some of your shyness over.” she purred softly, nuzzling his nose gently as she broke from the kiss. “C’mon then. Let’s go get you in the air again, shall we?”
“OK!” Blacklight nodded, following her to the apartment door with a spring in his step. It was clear that he was impatient to make use of his wings once again as they headed out and down the stairs.
“I know somewhere nice and safe for you to test out that wing.” Freeze Pop went on, as they made their way outside. “There’s a good-sized park near here, with plenty of hills and nothing but grass and hedgerows to fall into if you take a tumble.”
“I’m sure it’ll be fine.” Blacklight enthused, his wings already fluttering a little. “Honestly, it feels like it was never broken.”
“Alright, but don’t get too carried away.” Freeze warned, a hint of consternation in her voice.
“I won’t, promise.”
Presently, the two pegasi arrived in the park. It was, as Freeze Pop had said, both large and lushly adorned with grass and hedges aplenty. With the weather being both clear and dry, there were already some of the city’s other denizens milling about in the early morning sunshine. Kites dotted the sky here and there, and the occasional shout and laugh of young foals wafted through the air, accompanied by the notes of various birds chirruping from the hedges.
Perfect day to take wing again. Freeze thought to herself, as she glanced round at Blacklight.
“Well, Blackie, I won’t hold you back any longer. Let’s see you fly. Be careful though, alright?”
“I’ll be fine. Just watch!” the smaller pegasus replied, before spreading his wings and taking to the air. Sure enough, his wing showed no signs of seizing up or cramping. It was, as he’d thought, as though he’d never broken it, and he paused mid-flight to hover and look down to where Freeze Pop still stood, keeping an eye on him. “You coming with me? Hey, I know… race you to that cloud!” he called won to her, pointing to a cloud some distance off.
Freeze looked back up at him, tilting her head a bit. Her eyes narrowed slightly, as a competitive smile spread across her face. Oh, that confident, are we?
“You oughta be careful there, Blacklight!” she replied, as her own large wings unfurled and she launched herself into the air, drawing alongside him. “You shouldn’t strain yourself too much when you only just got back into the air. Oh, and you know what else?”
“What?” he smiled back at her, a certain giddiness evident in his voice.
“You definitely shouldn’t challenge a gal like me to a race. I’ll leave ya eating my trails!” she grinned, positioning herself on a path towards the cloud he’d indicated. “Ready when you are!”
“Heh… you’re probably right. We’ll see!” Blacklight replied, readying himself in turn. “Ready… set… go!”
As soon as the word left his mouth, the black stallion surged forward. He was slightly surprised, though certainly no less thrilled, to see that he had a lead on the large mare who he’d challenged. His adulation quickly shifted to alarm, however, as he realised she was very rapidly closing the gap. He beat his wings harder, though he was quite aware how little exercise his flight muscles had been given recently as he attempted not to strain them too hard. He could see that his fellow racer had started to get a bit of a cocky smirk on her face as the gap had closed, one which vanished as he sped away from her a bit more. Still, as it was, he was panting heavily when he touched down on the cloud – at exactly the same time as Freeze Pop.
“...tie…?” he panted, wincing a bit at some unexpected discomfort as he folded in his wings.
“Looks it.” the sturdy mare replied with a smile, though she frowned slightly when he folded in his wings. “How’s the wing?”
Blacklight unfolded his wings once more and shook them slightly, then folded them back up once more. “I’m sure it’s fine,” he said, waving a hoof dismissively, “just a little sore, because I’ve not used it for a week.”
“Mmm.” Freeze Pop nodded, apparently satisfied with that. “Like I said… don’t push it too hard. Last thing you want is to be grounded again from a cramp or a pulled muscle, you know?”
“Yeah, I think I’ve had enough time out of the air.” Blacklight agreed, plopping himself down on the cloud. He buried his face in it for a moment, closing his eyes. “Mmf, I’d nearly forgotten how good this feels. I could fall asleep right here on this cloud, right now.”
Freeze Pop chuckled softly at that, dropping herself onto the cloud next to him. “I totally agree, on both the cloud and the not being grounded bits.” she affirmed, before reaching a hoof over and vigorously rubbing at his back, just between his wings. “I’d far sooner have you fly and able to enjoy yourself than stuck on the ground.”
“Mmhmm!” Blacklight agreed, then let out a giggle at her touch. “That feels good.”
“Uh huh?” Freeze smiled, bringing her other front hoof to his back. “Well here, lemme do it properly, then. I learned a fair bit about this when I was younger. Helped my aunt and uncle out with running their lodge up in the mountains, so I know how to give a good massage when it’s needed. Lemme know if I’m too rough though, I dunno my own strength sometimes.”
Blacklight felt himself relaxing under the mare’s firm touch, and he shook his head slightly. “Mmm, don’t worry. That feels fine.”
“Good, good…” Freeze nodded absent-mindedly, letting her sense of touch guide her. “It might not be a bad idea to take a little nap up here for a while, I did wake you a bit earlier than usual after all. And besides, it’s a lovely day for a nap in the sunshine.”
“It is… hey, speaking of weather, d’you ever wonder if there’s places without pegasus weather teams? How’d they control the weather, do you think?”
Freeze Pop pondered that question for a few moments. “Well… in my experience, if they don’t have direct control over the weather, they kinda let it do its own thing.” she stated.
“You… you mean, like, the way it does in the Everfree Forest?” the smaller pegasus asked, a slight shudder in his voice. “That sounds a bit scary. Heck, just thinking about that place makes me shiver a bit.”
“I know, right?” Freeze chuckled. “Though… apparently the Everfree’s not too bad, so long as you have someone that knows where they’re going. I heard from Octavia that she’s been in there a few times… with a guide, of course.”
“Huh? Really?” Blacklight chimed, turning his head slightly to look at her with an inquisitive glance. “I really wouldn’t have expected it of her. She doesn’t seem the sort to want to go in there.”
Freeze Pop’s expression softened into an affectionate smile as she gazed down at him, her hoof movements slowing a bit. “Mm, but ponies can be full of surprises. After all, you wouldn’t have thought of me as the kind of gal to fall for a guy like you, would you?”
“Well, maybe not at first glance…”
“And I wouldn’t have expected you to be the kind of guy I could fall for, either.” Freeze continued, lifting her front hooves from his back. She then flopped down gently on top of his back, draping her forelegs around his smaller frame, before rolling onto one side, pulling him with her into a gentle embrace. Blacklight in turn rolled over to face her, his forelegs finding their way around her broad shoulders.
“Also true.” he smiled, before hugging her tightly. “I love you, Freezy.”
Freeze Pop felt a rush of blood to her cheeks as he said that, and she instinctively returned his affections, squeezing him tightly to herself. “I love you too, Blackie.” she sighed out softly, tucking her head under his chin. A short few moments later, she had gone quiet save for the sound of her breathing evenly. Blacklight had to suppress a chuckle.
Couldn’t stay awake any longer? I suppose you did wake up rather early. he pondered to himself. Were you worried about me? Or excited, perhaps…?
Whatever the cause, he couldn’t help but find the situation very relaxing, and his own eyes began to slide shut in turn.
It was only a short hour or so later that the two of them stirred once more, with the sun now having risen higher overhead. Freeze Pop was the first to awaken, stretching out where she lay and letting out a refreshed-sounding yawn.
“Well, that was a lovely little nap.” she noted, absent-mindedly nuzzling Blacklight’s ear. “I slept quite well. How about you, Blackie?”
Despite him becoming more and more accustomed to this kind of treatment from her, Blacklight couldn’t help a small hint of a blush spreading across his cheeks.
“I’m feeling refreshed, certainly…” he agreed. His stomach then gave a bit of a growl, and he let out a slightly self-conscious laugh. “And hungry as well, apparently.”
“Well, we didn’t really stop for breakfast, to be fair to you.” Freeze noted. “Heck, I’m starting to feel it as well. Shall we go drop by Graze and say hi to our favourite sandwich chef?”
“Sounds like a plan!” Blacklight nodded, a smile creasing his features as he rose and spread his wings. “I bet she’ll be relieved to see me flying again.”
“Probably almost as relieved as me.” Freeze chuckled, spreading her own wings in turn. The two of them dove over the edge of their impromptu rest spot, gliding easily down toward the parkland below. It was an easy thing, Freeze had to admit, to forget what a gift it was to be able to fly simply because you were born with wings. Not that the gift of flight was exclusively the domain of pegasi, as far as ponies were concerned: airships had been a fact of life for long years before she was born, after all, but she simply could not imagine going through life without being able to take to the air as she saw fit.
I bet a unicorn without magic’d feel the same. she thought to herself as she and her stallion companion touched down on the grass and trotted out into the street. It’d be like some essential part of you was missing, something you knew you needed to function properly.
She stole a glance at the smaller pegasus next to her, and flashed him a smile as he caught her gaze. I guess… that’s probably how it would feel being separated from someone you love, for any great length of time.
The two of them continued on, the sound of their footfalls mixing with those of so many other ponies walking the streets of the bustling capital now that the sun had fully risen. It didn’t take them long to find their way to the sandwich shop on its busy street corner, and the two of them headed inside. They were welcomed by the familiar tinkle of bells from overhead, followed shortly by Salad’s characteristic “Good morning! Welcome to Graze!”, though her greeting soon changed in tone when she caught a proper look at her customers.
“Well hay there, Freezy! An’ Blacklight too! Good t’ see yuh up ‘n’ about!”
Blacklight smiled at that, flexing his wings briefly. “Good to be up and about! I’ve been down for far too long!”
“Mm? Ooh, I getcha!” Salad chuckled, nodding as the pegasus flexed both of his wings out. “How’s it feeling?”
“Well, we already went for a flit about above the park.” Freeze cut in with a chuckle. “So, either he’s feeling fine, or he’s good at keeping secrets from me.”
“I’ve never been a particularly good secret-keeper…” Blacklight noted, shuffling his hooves a little.
“Then I guess we can say you’re feeling fine.” Salad concluded, a cheerful as always tone to her voice. “Ah’m gonna assume you two didn’t just come in to say hi though, right?”
“Not just to say hi, no, but we certainly didn’t come in to not say hi, either.” Freeze assured her friend, earning herself a tilt of the unicorn’s head.
“Thanks, Ah think?” she said, quirking an eyebrow at her friend.
“She means we came here for both the food and the friendship.” Blacklight clarified.
“Right, that’s what Ah thought she meant.” Salad nodded. She paused for a moment, however, then clapped a hoof to her mouth as she began to giggle for some reason.
“...uh. Sally? Something you wanna share?” Freeze Pop questioned, exchanging a confused look with her black-coated friend. Salad quickly got her mirth under control, shaking her head a little.
“Oh, ah, it’s nothin’, hon. Just, well. Ain’t it normally s’posed to be him that makes the wordy statements an’ you that explains ‘em?” she grinned, having to put a hoof to her mouth once more.
The two pegasi blinked, looked round at each other slowly… and then proceeded to crack up, although not as badly as Sally had.
“You’ve got a point!” Freeze snorted, shaking her head with a huge grin. “You see Blackie? You’re a bad influence!” she joked.
“Oh, I’m the bad influence, am I?” Blacklight grinned, shoving against her lightly.
“You’re right, we’re both awful.” Freeze decided after a moment. “But yeah, Sally. We’ll have some breakfast – and some chatter, if you’re free.”
“Sure thing.”
A few minutes later, the three of them were sat in one of the shop’s booths, with the two pegasi sat on one side, a pair of empty plates now sat in front of them and Salad sat across from them. There was a pleased look in her eyes as she regarded her two friends, one which she soon gave a reason for.
“Ah gotta say, guys, Ah’m so happy to see yuh together. Feels like only yesterday Ah was seein’ Sketchy an’ Tavy gettin’ together, and now Ah got you two as well. Seems like there’s a lotta love floatin’ around.”
“Mmm, sure feels like it.” Freeze Pop smiled. “...not jealous, are ya Sally?”
“Huh? Naw…” Salad replied, though it was a little unconvincing. “Well Ah mean… Ah’m happy fer ya, Freezy, an’ yew too Blackie, honestly Ah am… but, well. Would either a’ ya really blame me if Ah felt, well, maybe just a teensy weeny tiny lil’ bit jealous?”
“I know I wouldn’t, Sally.” Freeze Pop said, her face creasing into a gentle smile. “I’ll admit I felt it a bit, when I saw those two getting together, so I can understand you feeling it again now – even if the reasons are a bit different.”
“Well yeah hon, Ah ain’t into girls much.” Salad giggled, raising a laugh from her fellow mare. Blacklight, however, looked as though the joke had just flown over his head.
“...did I miss something…?” he asked, looking at Freeze Pop for clarification.
“Uh? Oh, er… well, that’s Sally’s choice if she wants to explain…” Freeze Pop told him a little awkwardly, having forgotten for the moment that her coltfriend was not as up-to-date on her friends’ affairs as she was.
“Hm? Oh! Er, right. Hon, all ya gotta really know is that I kinda sorta had a crush on Sketchy, an’ it made me do some stupid stuff.” Salad explained hastily, keen to not dwell on said events for too long.
“Ah. Right. Sounds like something I don’t need to pry at.” Blacklight stated sagely, with a nod of his head.
“Ah’d certainly say Ah’ve had ma finer moments.” Salad concurred. “But yeah! Ah can’t help it if maybe Ah feel a little like it really oughta be ma turn soon, y’know? Ah don’t wanna be the sad loner gal that ain’t got nopony.”
Freeze Pop frowned to herself for a moment. She did a good job of putting a cheerful veneer over it, but it was clear to her that, at this moment, her friend was being quite honest about her feelings – and perhaps felt them more strongly than she let on. She reached a hoof over the table and gently pressed it against her friend’s, a comforting smile etching itself across her face.
“I can’t see that happening, Sal. There’s not a girl quite like you in the entire kingdom. And if anyone should know, it’s me.” she said, in her usual confident tones. It had the effect she’d hoped, as Salad perked up somewhat almost immediately.
“Y’always were a big sap at heart, weren’tcha Freezy?” she smiled. “But heck if you ain’t also right. Ah shouldn’t go mopin’ about that, Ah ain’t got a clue when Ah’ll meet the right guy. Heck, all things considered, p’raps some day he’ll just come waltzin’ on in with one of the Princesses.”
“Mmm? You’d like a guy in uniform, then?” Freeze Pop teased. Her friend’s cheeks turned a bit more pink at that.
“Hee! Hay, Ah wouldn’t say no, necessarily hon. If there’s one thing your work does well fer you lot, it’s keepin’ ya in good shape. Am I right, Blackie?” she added, casting a teasing look at the black pegasus.
“Uh? H-hay, how would I know? I mean, I don’t go staring at Guards!” he blurted, a blush turning his cheeks purple.
“No, but you do like looking at me, don’t you Blackie?” the white mare pressed, fluttering her eyelashes at him with a mischievous grin. His only response was a small squeak, which earned him a giggle from Freeze Pop and Salad both.
“Ah think maybe he was right, Freezy. Yuh are terrible!” Salad laughed, starting to get up from the table. “Ah gotta get back to work. It’s gonna get mighty busy in here soon enough. Ah reckon I’ll haveta be hirin’ in a few more hooves if th’ place keeps on staying this busy.”
“Uh-huh?” Freeze smiled. “Mmm, that Royal Endorsement wouldn’t happen to have anything to do with the increased business, would it?”
“Eeheehee! Stoppit!” Salad giggled, her voice coming out in a rather foalish sounding squeal. “Ah swear hon, ya just mention that to make me giddy!”
“Maybe I do.” the guardspony admitted, grinning broadly at her friend. “Though it has been good for business, hasn’t it?”
“Yuh-huh it has! We’ve actually been givin’ a lil’ bit of thought to carryin’ a bit of a wider range of eats an’ extending our openin’ hours a bit, possibly. Cos well, seein’ as it was Princess Luna gave us her endorsement, it’s gotten her own honour guard kinda interested in seein’ what we have.”
“Luna’s honour guard?” Blacklight piped up. “Wait, do you mean…?”
“Batponies? Yep she does.” Freeze confirmed. “And they do have some, well, somewhat more specialised eating habits and tastes.”
“Yup, they do. Ah’ve been talkin’ to one or two of ‘em about it.” Salad nodded. “We still ain’t certain exactly when or even if we’ll actually do it, but it’d be a good opportunity to expand on the business a little. That and, well, maybe help ‘em feel a little more welcome ‘round us day-ponies, y’know?”
“I’m sure they’d welcome that. It’s not been easy for them, from what I’ve heard.” Freeze Pop chimed in. “I mean, heck, the Princess took her time about even telling the rest of us guards they were a thing… probably cos she was worried about how we’d take the news, I suppose.”
“Ah can believe that.” Salad nodded. “Ah mean, heck, Ah still ain’t quite used to seein’ ‘em about, when Ah do.”
“Remind me to introduce you to their CO sometime.” Freeze Pop mused. “She’s… quite a character I have to say.”
“Hey, if it brings us some more business, Ah ain’t about to say no.” Salad chuckled. “Ah oughta get back to work here, though. Ah reckon it’s gonna get real busy around lunch, and Ah’d like to have plenty of bread ready to go fer that.”
“No worries, Sally. I was thinking we should shoot off anyway. I’d like to show Blackie some more of what’s on offer here in the big city while I’ve got the time to do it.”
“There are only so many hours in a day, after all.” Blacklight noted with a small smile.
“Ah won’t keep yuh then, hon.” Salad nodded, turning to head back behind the counter. “Don’t hesitate to drop by again sometime though, alright?”
“We won’t!” Freeze smiled, watching the unicorn go.
“...she’s really nice, you know.” Blacklight noted after Salad had returned to her station. “I hope she does find somepony.”
“Believe you me, she’ll find herself a nice guy sooner or later.” Freeze Pop chuckled. “I mean, I’m actually a little surprised she hasn’t already… she’s quite easy-going, she’s cute, and she knows how to cook and all. That’s a whole bunch of qualities a lot of guys want, right there.”
“Sure, though it’s not what everypony wants.” Blacklight noted, following Freeze Pop as she rose from the table. “Though you’re still not wrong. And besides, she doesn’t have to worry about getting involved with the wrong kinda pony either, cos she’s got you to chase them all off.”
“Ha! You got that right!” the sturdy mare agreed as the two made their way out of the shop. “I love that girl like she was my own sister, so of course I’ll look out for her. Same goes for Sketchy, too, so any guy looking to hook up with her better have their head on straight if they don’t wanna have to deal with us.”
“No kidding. And hay, I’m sure both of them would look out for you, too.” Blacklight pointed out, a smile on his face. “They’re good friends, after all.”
“They are. Give it enough time, I’m sure they’ll be your friends too, Blacklight.” Freeze replied. “I mean, you and I are already pretty close. I know I’d like it if I could include you in our circle, so to speak.”
“Mmm… do you mean similarly to how Octavia’s been getting to know you two?”
“Mmm. Well, that’s a little different, though.” Freeze chuckled. “I mean, she already knew the both of us before she met Sketchy, in one capacity or another. But I suppose the relationship between us is less business and more personal nowadays.”
The sun had already risen to its zenith as the pair took wing, leaving the bustle of ponies’ hooves below them. Even though it was quite late in summer, it was still a comfortably warm day. The two of them fell mostly silent as they glided through the air, enjoying the ease of soaring on the warm air that wafted up from below.
“Hey, so lemme show you a few things, Blackie.” Freeze called out to her fellow pegasus. “See that building down there?”
Blacklight looked down towards where she was pointing, to see a large, primarily white-coloured building, with a fairly flat roof and a comparatively bland construction. Outside it was a large courtyard, across which he could just make out several armoured ponies making their way back and forth.
“That’s a lot of guards down there.” he noted. “Something to do with the military?”
“Yup!” Freeze Pop replied, adjusting her flight path to glide alongside him. “That down there is the Horse Guards building, along with the parade ground. It’s where they train up new Guards, as well as where some of them are garrisoned.”
“It’s kinda dull-looking.”
“It is!” Freeze chuckled. “But then again, it’s just dull enough to not look particularly special. Probably just as well, or it’d be an obvious target if the city ever came under large scale attack – but as I understand it, that’s not happened for several decades.”
“Yeah. Must make your job really dull, huh?” Blacklight grinned.
“Hey, ‘s like I told you before! You enjoy the dullness while it lasts, cos the moment a Life Guard has to spring into action is the moment it stops being dull!”
“Yeah, you told me about how you earned your nickname after all. I bet that was anything but dull.”
“Too right.” Freeze nodded. “It’s not every day you have to apprehend a dragon. And even if it was just a small one, a dragon’s still a dragon. He coulda toasted me if I wasn’t careful.”
“And then you’d have been a toasted marshmallow!”
Freeze Pop looked round at her coltfriend with an expression that was both amused and slightly perplexed. “I… suppose so?” she chuckled.
“Well, cos you’re already soft and white.” Blacklight clarified.
“Oh! Ha, yeah, guess I would’ve!” Freeze laughed, rolling under him mid-flight, and looking up at him from below. “You come out with some interesting things sometimes.”
“I guess that’s just the way I think. sometimes.”
“And am I as sweet as a marshmallow?” Freeze questioned, a teasing note to her voice as she fluttered her eyelashes a bit at him. She was pleased to see a slight blush appear on his cheeks, even if he tried to play it off a bit.
“I’m kinda obliged to say yes, I think.”
“Heh! So long as it’s what you think, then yes.”
“Well, I won’t say that it’s not.” Blacklight replied. He then caught sight of something below that he hadn’t really noticed before. “Hey… what’s that big tower over there? It almost looks like a bit of the palace, but it’s all the way over here…”
“Hmm?” Freeze replied, looking towards where his gaze had fallen. “Oh! That’s the White Tower. No prizes for guessing how it got that name.”
“Well yeah, it’s definitely both white and a tower.” Blacklight agreed, his gaze still fixed on the tall building that had caught his attention. “But… it’s nowhere near the palace. It kinda looks like it ought to be attached to it.”
“Oh, that’s cos it’s actually older than the palace, Blackie.” Freeze explained. “See, that was built a long while back… roughly around the time Princess Platinum was still trotting about and touting unicorn supremacy.”
“Wow, really? That’s pretty old, then.”
“Yeah… it’s one of the few places we know of that pre-dates the Celestial Age. See, the unicorns already had an outpost here on the mountain long before Canterlot was ever a thing. There’re a network of mines under the mountain that stretch for miles. That tower there is where they hoarded their finds.”
“Huh… so what’s it used for nowadays?” Blacklight inquired, turning his gaze from the building to Freeze Pop.
“Funnily enough, much the same thing.” Freeze replied with a slight laugh. “Nowadays, it’s where the crown jewels and the royal collection are housed. I’ve been in there once or twice myself, though not on guard duty. That’s left to a different part of the Guard.”
“...so it’s the Princesses’ jewellery box?” Blacklight suggested.
“Pretty much!” Freeze nodded. “We should maybe take a look in there some time, if you’re of a mind to look at some shiny trinkets and such.”
“Maybe some other time. There’s plenty out here to look at.” Blacklight replied. There was a certain sincerity in his tone that brought a flush of red to Freeze Pop’s face.
“Heehee… well, fair enough.” she smiled, inwardly grateful that neither of her best friends had just witnessed her having such a girlish moment. “I know I said it earlier, but it’s great to see you airborne again.”
“It’s good to be airborne again. That, and to be up here with you.”
Freeze Pop gave no answer to that, other than her smile widening as her expression softened a little. I am still not used to that! she thought to herself. It was, after all, still an entirely new thing to her for someone else’s words to have that much of an effect. It wasn’t that she was any stranger to having comments aimed her way, both good and bad. There had been other ponies, in the past, that had tried to win her affections by means fair and foul, and she’d seen off every last one of them one way or another.
The difference is choice. she finally concluded. It’s different when it’s coming from him, because it’s not unwelcome.
“...bit for your thoughts?” Blacklight piped up, interrupting her internal musings.
“Heh! Picking up some of the slang, huh?” Freeze said, shaking her head a bit. “Sorry, I was just a bit lost in thought. Guess I could say I’m really growing an appreciation of you not being a typical meathead.”
“Uhh… thanks?”
“Ahaha… I suppose that was a little obscure. I mean that I’m still getting used to hearing compliments aimed my way that aren’t coming from someone I’d happily give a hoof sandwich to.”
“Oh, right… ponies have tried that?” Blacklight asked, tilting his head a bit. “I mean, I can see why, but… well, didn’t they realise you could wallop them if you felt like it?”
“Maybe some of ‘em are into that.” Freeze commented with a roll of her eyes. “Either way, you can rest assured I quite enjoy hearing you compliment me.”
“I quite like hearing your compliments as well.” Blacklight smiled. “I, ahh, haven’t really had too many ponies offer me them that I can remember. I guess maybe that’s, uhm, because of my talent for going unnoticed…”
“Well whatever the reason, Blackie, you’re not about to escape my gaze any time soon.” Freeze replied, a warmth in her voice and a look in her eyes that almost made the stallion skip a few beats of his wings.
“Yeah. I know.” he said, a similar smile on his face.
The rest of the day was calm, peaceful, and without incident. The sun was starting to sink towards the horizon by the time the two pegasi had returned to Freeze Pop’s home, their day spent mostly enjoying each other’s company and re-familiarising Blacklight with the city’s layout. The two of them were now settled in a contented heap on the sofa, watching the sun set through the huge window that dominated one wall of the living room.
“You know, Freezy…” Blacklight began.
“Hmm?”
“It’s a lot more peaceful here than I thought it would be, for a city.”
The large mare let out a small laugh at that. “You sure it’s just your surroundings and not your present company that’s got you at ease?” she teased, earning her a laugh from him in return.
“Well yeah, there’s that as well.” he nodded. “But I mean even so, it’s real quiet up here. Reminds me of Cape Sunrise in some ways.”
“Mmm. Well, I’d say enjoy the peace while it lasts, Blackie. It’s gonna be a heck of a lot noisier here soon enough.”
“Oh?” Blacklight said, looking round at her with a quizzical look.
“Yeah. One of my higher-ups is getting married soon—actually, now I think on it, you met him already.”
“I did? ...oh! Oh, you mean, uhm, Captain, er…”
“Shining Armor, yeah. It ain’t been officially announced yet, but it’s gonna be a big ‘un.”
“It… is? I mean, I know he’s a Captain and all, but why would it be a big deal? Ponies get married all the time.”
“Yeah, but not all of ‘em marry princesses.” Freeze Pop pointed out. “Lucky sod’s engaged to Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, or Princess Cadance if you prefer. Don’t worry if you haven’t heard of her, she’s always been somewhat in her aunt’s shadow.”
“I was going to say, I’m not familiar… who’s her aunt?”
“I’ll give you a hint, Blackie. She likes cake and she raises the sun every day.”
“Well, yeah. If your aunt is Celestia herself then it’s no wonder no-one’s heard of you.” Blacklight chuckled. “When is that gonna be happening?”
“They’re still trying to figure it out.” Freeze replied. “You know how much planning goes into a regular wedding. This one is between a Princess and a Guard Captain, so I expect they’re having some major administrative nightmares.”
“I bet… do you think they’ll call on you?”
“Hmmm… probably, Blackie. I wouldn’t be surprised if they have the entire Life Guard on duty. Big event like this, there’s gonna be a lot of important ponies all in one place. If someone wanted to rid Equestria of its movers and shakers, they’d not have a better opportunity to strike than there. Of course, they’d have to be pretty stupid to: it is gonna be presided over by Celestia herself, and you do not want to mess with her.”
“I certainly wouldn’t want to make her angry.” Blacklight agreed, trying for a moment to picture it. he shuddered slightly. “I bet she’s scary when she’s angry.”
“Wouldn’t know, Blackie, and I’m in no hurry to find out!” Freeze chuckled. “But yeah, if they find a date they can use, I’ll be obliged to work for that. Keeping ponies safe is my sworn duty, after all.”
“Mm… well, it’ll only be one day out of several that I’m getting you to myself.” the stallion pointed out as he settled his head against her shoulder again.
“It will, you’re right.” Freeze sighed, settling her chin on top of his head contentedly. “I could get used to this.”
“Me too.”
There were few words exchanged between the two, but it didn’t matter. As the sun slowly sunk out of sight, all that mattered was the shared feeling of content between them, and the reassurance that whatever tomorrow would bring, they could experience it together.