Ledger sighed as he led the familiar nymph along, thankful that she’d chosen her Earth Pony form for this introduction. Now, if only she would agree to stop pestering him…
“So, who are we here to see?” Sugar asked as she trotted along, taking in the sights.
“A friend,” Ledger answered. “I said she might get a hoof to help around and apprentice under her in learning how to brew, and you told me you wouldn’t mind learning. Turns out she needs help today, so today’s perfect.”
“...Why do I get the sense that there’s more to the story?” Sugar asked with a smile. “Still, introduce me to your friend.”
Ledger barely kept his sigh in check as he knocked on the door of Cider’s home. The door swung open and Fritter greeted him with a friendly smile. “Well howdy Ledger,” and then she laid eyes on the cute Earth Pony mare. “And hello to yer cute friend there~”
“Oooh, I’m liking this place already Ledger,” Sugar purred. “Would you be the owner of this establishment, then?”
“Naw, that’d be mah big sis,” Fritter said, holding out her hoof. “The name’s Apple Fritter. You?”
“Sugar Darling,” the white mare said, taking the hoof and kissing it. “Known for being sweet on all my friends.”
“Ah reckon you are,” Fritter giggled and blushed. Just as Cider pushed her to the side and sighed.
“Forgive my sister,” the mare groaned as Fritter just poked out her tongue. “Ah’m Apple Cider. Proud owner of Cider Falls Farm. And y’all are a friend of Ledger’s ah take it?”
“Indeed I am,” Sugar said as she repeated her greeting on Apple Cider. “Ledger said that you needed help today, and I always did want to learn how to brew the drinks I serve.”
“Ah, alright then,” Cider nodded. “Why don’t ah take y’all out to mah shed, and Ledger here can help mah sister with the last of the trees.”
“Aw, why can’t I show her the shed?” Fritter complained.
“Because that’s not the only thing you’d show her,” Cider complained. “Try an’ be professional fer once Fritts?”
Fritter just poked her tongue out again.
“Considering where she worked previously, that may not be such a bad outcome,” Ledger snickered before turning to Fritter. “So, the orchard then?”
“Yup, get ready to work up a sweat," Fritter grinned as she dragged him off. Cider chuckled, hoping Ledger would be able to walk after all this.
She looked back to Sugar and smiled. “Well then, shall we?”
“Do lead on,” Sugar said, a small glint in her eyes. She’d told no lie: she was very interested in learning what this mare had to offer.
“I’ve said it before. I’ll say it again. Magic, when properly applied, makes everything fun,” Ledger said with a slightly smug tone as he tugged apples loose from one tree before depositing them in a basket.
Apple Fritter reared up and slammed her hooves into one tree, as the apples rained down into the waiting buckets. Several farmhooves would take the full ones and place new empty ones as Fritter went from tree to tree. Despite having magic, Fritter still had several trees on him as she smirked.
“What’s wrong hornhead?” she teased as she slammed another tree. “Can’t keep up~?”
“Not every unicorn is Twilight Sparkle,” Ledger deadpanned. “I can pick a tree carefully and slowly, or many quickly and incautiously...which would only get Cider to yell at me. I choose to do what I can to avoid that.”
“Fair ‘nough!” Fritter grunted as she bucked another tree. “Ah wouldn’t wanna get on her bad side... but then again, ah can beat ‘er in a wrasslin’ match.”
Ledger smirked as he turned to the next tree and started picking it clean as well. “Depends on the type of wrestling we’re talking about,” he teased.
“Y’all better not be picturing that,” Fritter said, as a few farmhooves tilted their heads and shrugged. “Cause ah’d be more than happy to buck those thoughts outta yer head.”
“Pretty sure she’d take offense to you hurting her workers,” Ledger commented as he finished with the tree and put the apples in a nearby basket. “Unless there’s a different sort of bucking you were talking about?”
“Don’t flatter yerself Ledgie,” Fritter giggled as she flexed a leg. “You’d never survive.”
The sound of wingflaps could be heard as Scope Lens landed in the orchard, panting and glaring at Level.
“Do you have any idea how difficult you are to find?” she asked as she walked over to him.
“I was unaware we were playing hide-and-go-seek,” Ledger returned as he turned to the next tree.
Scope sighed and counted backwards from five. Midnight would be even more upset if her stallion was murdered and fed to the orchard as fertilizer. “Well excuse me, and here I thought you’d be interested to hear that your mare is flying around the city crying. Oh well, see you later then,” she said as she turned and spread her wings.
“...What happened?” Ledger asked evenly. Which was the scary part. There had been a flare of concern at the mention of Midnight crying, but he seemed to have gotten his emotions under control very quickly.
“Some disagreement with that Griffon that showed up,” Scope explained, a little concerned that his emotions had just done that. “He did something to her, and now she can’t do that emotionless thing of hers.”
“Huh,” Ledger said, scratching the back of his head with a hoof. “On the one hoof, Ace is her teacher slash mentor, so if he did it, it was probably for a good reason. But on the other hoof, he made Midnight cry.” With a nod, Ledger turned to Fritter and tilted his head. “Think we can finish up here before too long, so I can catch me a runaway bat?”
“We’ve taken care of most of it. Unless you leave yer cute little bird here as a replacement?”
“Up to her, she’s her own pony,” Ledger said as he turned to the next tree. “I’d likely want to take her with anyways, she’d be able to find Midnight faster than me.”
Fritter nodded, “Ah well, I guess ah’m all alone. Go on, ah think Cider will understand.”
“And tell her it has to do with Midnight if she doesn’t,” Ledger said with a smile, before offering Fritter a hug. The mare accepted, pulling him into a chitin-crushing embrace and let him go soon after. She also hugged Scope, only it looked much more gentle as she rubbed the Pegasi’s mane.
“I swear she’s doing this on purpose,” Ledger hissed as the pair of ‘lings left the farm. “Any idea where Midnight is?”
“I liked that hug, I wonder if she’s single?’ Scope mused as she flew next to him. She closed her eyes as her ears swivelled. “I can sense... something. Could be her,” she said. “Coming from the Tower Restaurant.”
The tallest building in the city, it dwarfed any other pony construct in Equestria. ‘To offer everypony the cloudlife’ was it’s slogan. And a pissed off Thestral was currently perched on the very top.
“Bucking Tartarus,” Ledger sighed, before looking around and spotting a sufficiently cluttered alleyway. With a flash of silver, a drastically different pony walked out from between the two buildings.
His coat was cloud-white, his mane was sky-blue, and his wings were appropriately sized. His eyes had turned silver, so that others might be able to figure out from his voice and eye color who he was. With a few flaps to help get the memories flowing, the drone in pony’s clothing was up and flying towards his mare.
Midnight lay on her back as the wind whistled around the tower. She barely took notice though, just staring at the endless blue sky.
‘Was it really that bad?’ she questioned herself. ‘I didn’t hurt anypony...too badly.’
That was about when the unfamiliar stallion landed nearby. Midnight turned her head to look at him, blinking a few times.
“If you're gonna yell at me for being here, I’m a trained Guard and I won’t hurt myself.” The wait-staff for the building had already expressed their concerns about her roosting here. “So save your breath alright?”
“Eh, I might yell at you in the future,” the stallion said, the voice sounding familiar. “But you’ve really given me no reason to yet.”
Midnight blinked at the voice as Scope landed soon after. “Ledger?’ she asked. The stallion pointed at his silver eyes and smiled.
“Sometimes it’s fun being me,” he said.
“Glad somepony’s having fun,” she muttered. “So what are you doing here?” She noticed Scope and sighed. “So she tattled then?”
“Perhaps,” Ledger said as he simply sat there. “I’m not going to force you into telling me anything, Midnight. But I want you to know, I will always listen to whatever you have to say.” He made an expression like he was thinking before speaking up in a snarky tone. “Y’know, since you only saved my life multiple times, agreed to keep the secret, and agreed to even pursue this whole relationship thing in the first place, I think lending you an ear is the least I could do.”
“What’s to tell. Master took my ability to use Lyrica away. If somepony tries to hurt you again, then I can’t help you,” she stated. And if Canterlot was mentioned again...
...Bucking dammit. She could already feel her nerves setting in and she couldn’t suppress them this time. She instead just decided to curl into a ball. Then she felt something weird, given that Ledger was normally a unicorn.
He had approached and given her a full-on wing-hug, complete with normal hug as well.
“Shh, whatever it is, you don’t have to tell me,” Ledger soothed. “Whatever happened then, I’m here for you now.”
“What...happened then?” she said as her body shook. She couldn’t suppress the memories again. The feeling of those empty black eyes, the pain as it ripped something intangible from her body. And the screaming... Oh gods the screaming! It wasn’t until later, that she was told the screaming she had heard that day was her own...
“I-I can’t...”
“...You met a Black, didn’t you?” Ledger sighed. “I don’t blame you. That’s why we have border control. It’s why we try and make sure, make damn sure, that only the best of us ever cross over. The damage that idiot did when she brought so many in...It stands to reason that more than a few undesirables found their way into her army.”
“...I tried... to fight but...” Midnight pulled free from his grasp, scrambling to her hooves. “What’s to stop it from happening again!?”
“Simple,” Ledger said, not offended. “We know better now. And in fact, I’ve been trying to reverse the damage that you suffered. It’s not easy, but I am doing my hardest to help you recover from...the things that happened.”
“You...did what?’ she said, taking another step back. “What did you do?”
“I put the clues together, Midnight,” Ledger said, still sitting still. “I figured out you met a Black and had Scope here poke around for information about how to reverse the things that were done to you.”
“What! Didn’t trust me to handle it! Just like Ace!” she spat, pacing in a small circle. “You said you ‘helped’ HOW?”
“I’ve been giving you love,” Ledger said, waiting for the statement to sink in. He’d been giving her something so precious, so powerful to changelings...just so she could heal.
He valued her life more than his own.
Unfortunately, she wasn’t really thinking right now.
“You-You messed with my emotions? Again!?” she said, her pacing stopped. “How long? How long have you done this? How true are the feelings I have, or are they a lie as well? Just another emotion you planted!”
Ledger actually took a step back, and Scope could feel the depth of pain Mistress had just inflicted on him with her words alone. “I...I need a minute to think,” Ledger said, before unfurling his wings. “Otherwise I might let my mouth say things I can’t take back.”
With that, he flapped once and took off into the sky, leaving Scope with Midnight.
The Thestral paused as he flew off, as what she said sunk in. “No...wait...” She took a step to chase him, forgetting that she was already on the edge and soon found her hoof grabbing at thin air as she fell from the tower.
“Mistress!?” Scope cried, racing forward and diving off of the building. The Thestral was too stunned to move, between the shock of the sudden fall and what she’d said to Ledger... her wings wouldn’t...didn’t open.
‘Maybe I shouldn’t. Ledger can live with Cider... she makes him happy...more than I did...’
Her fall was slowed, as a little Pegasus grabbed her tail and pulled. Her frame was too small and Scope grunted, trying to keep the batpony from becoming an addition to the obituary pages... again.
“Not. The fucking. Time for this!” she grunted as her body was engulfed in azure flames and her form changed, burning most of her love reserves as she changed into something bigger, something more powerful.
Midnight was going to have to explain to anypony who asked, on why she was saved by a teenaged dragon.
Ledger was sitting in their...his...dammit, still their, room. He may not be sure of a lot of things at the moment, but he knew that Midnight’s stuff was still here. Until she decided one way or another, the room was still ‘their’ room. And…
...And words didn’t always hurt, but she seemed to find all the right ones to throw at him.
With a soft sigh, the drone changed from his pegasus form to his unicorn one and looked around at all of Midnight’s things. It...it would really suck if she’d meant any of that. She’d been a good influence on him, and he’d hoped to have been a good one on her.
...Hives, she was his second sexual experience, the one he wished he could have lost his virginity to. She even scared off his rapist from dragging him back to the Lands.
...He did love her. He really did. But...a relationship can’t be built on just one-sided affection, and she seemed to be doubting hers because of what he’d said.
With another sigh, Ledger left the bedroom and trotted over to the living room, laying himself down on the couch he and Midnight had picked out.
And with thoughts of them possibly being over running through his head, the stallion softly cried until he dozed off.
The sun was already setting by the time Midnight stepped up to the door of their shared apartment. She’d avoided the farm, as she didn’t want to worry Cider about this. But she’d sent Scope Lens off to keep the peace for her, after the little Changeling had saved her life.
She was sure that Fritter would give her a good amount of energy...
Walking inside, Estate gave her a look and nodded his head. He’d not let anypony else in for the evening. Midnight trotted upstairs, each step feeling like it was harder and harder. And by the time she reached the door, just raising her hoof to knock felt like it was made of lead.
But knock she did. And it took a great deal of willpower not to start running...again. Especially when there was no answer for a long while.
She knew he was here, Scope had told her as such. She almost left, wondering if she just left and never came back, would he be happier? And it took far longer than she cared to admit before she remembered that she had a key.
Opening the door and taking a tentative step inside, it didn’t take long to find Level Ledger asleep on the couch. His chest rose and fell, and even as the fur covering his body ruffled gently in the breeze the open door let in, she knew of the dark, black carapace that lay underneath.
‘Stop it! He’s not like that. You know that!’
‘Do I? What if... if it’s all a lie. That he’s just...biding his time?’
‘Sweet Celestia you are a fucking moron! Scope said that emotion transfers are temporary at best. And require direct contact. You fell for him long before he ever kissed you.’
‘Why is my brain smarter than me?’
‘It’s my job. Now stop being crazy and losing an argument with yourself, and go and do what you came to do.’
“Dammit,” she muttered as she stepped closer, until she was sitting in front of the couch, watching him sleep.
...Shut up! It’s not creepy!
Ledger muttered a little in his sleep, before turning and showing a slightly familiar sight to Midnight.
His tear-streaked face.
“What have I done?” she whispered to herself as she nudged him with her nose. “Stupid Midnight...”
Level stirred a little, but ended up only turning over and batting a hoof in her direction, muttering something about potatoes stealing his bits.
“I bet Luna is laughing her ass off,” Midnight smiled very slightly. Not a forced one, a genuine one at the stallion... no, Changeling that she loved so much. She poked him again, and leaned down next to his ear.
“Scope’s eating all your sugar again.”
Ledger yawned, smacked his lips a few times, opened his eyes, and took note of Midnight sitting in front of him. It took him a second to react, but when he did, it was not promising.
The stallion simply closed his eyes again and spoke aloud. “Very funny, Luna. Try something a bit more realistic for my next dream.”
Midnight paused, her body shook as she heard that. Okay, he was pissed and was getting her back. That was fair and she’d let him have that one. But fucking hell, if this was what he was feeling, then maybe she was better off ending her earlier freefall.
“Y-Yeah, what was I thinking. The real Midnight is much sexier,” she said, her voice cracking. “I guess...you’re pretty upset huh?”
Ledger’s eyes shot open at that and examined Midnight. “You’re...actually here? You came? I...thought I would never see you again after what you said to me.”
“Would you...prefer potatoes stealing your bits again?” Midnight chuckled dryly. No, stop making jokes and face the topic already! “I...hurt you. So much. I can’t... expect you to forgive me for that. I know...that you wouldn't do that. You’re not like...that thing.” That last word was filled with so much hate, and even greater fear. “Just..say it. Say you hate me! Make this pain go away!”
Ledger responded in a shocking way. He shook his head.
“Midnight, I can’t...can’t hate you,” he said softly. “I love you too much, trust you too much, to hate you. You’ve helped me become a mostly-normal member of society again. The thought of losing you...hurt me. When you thought I could betray you so badly, it nearly broke me all over again. But...I still can’t hate you. The most I can conjure up for negative feelings around you are...disappointment and sadness. But...I suppose if you really think that I or any other in this city could do those things, would do those things...then I’ll not stop you from leaving me.” At the end of his little spiel, the disguised drone had laid his head back down on the couch and awaited Midnight’s verdict.
She had hurt him, as much as that nymph had. She was no better, she had just used words, instead of violence. Ledger might not be able to hate her, but she more than enough for herself. “I don’t...” she finally whispered. “Even though... I can’t shake these feelings, I don’t want to go...please, don’t let me go...I’m sorry, I’m so, so sorry...I want to stay...”
“If you want to stay, then stay,” Ledger said simply, not raising his head or opening his eyes. “I’ll take the couch until I can convert my study into my own bedroom.” Even now, he was planning around keeping her and Scope comfortable.
“I don’t want that!” Midnight’s voice had gone from dead quiet to screeching loud. “I want to stay with you! Not in some empty room! But why should I? I don’t deserve it! You didn’t deserve that! Why did Scope even bother saving me!?” She panted as she stared at the indifferent stallion. “Why is this so fucking hard!?”
“I can’t answer the last one, but as for why you are worth anything,” Ledger said, opening his eyes and turning to Midnight before pecking her muzzle. He’d infused this kiss with as much love as he could scrounge from himself.
All the love he felt for Midnight, he poured into this kiss.
“It’s because you are loved, and so long as somebody loves you, you’re worth saving,” Level said after he broke the kiss, feeling the drain starting to creep up on him. Gah, that was at least a day’s worth of life he’d just shaved off!
“Stop it!” she said. “Stop giving it up to save me!” She pounced on him, her muzzle pressed against him to give it all back. She would muster up every last ounce of the feelings she had for him. Ledger, however, shook his head and lit up his horn, levitating her off him and setting her on the old couch.
“Keep it,” Level said with a soft sigh. “You’re...more damaged than I am. And I can get by on other emotions. You, however, need someone else’s love to repair you.”
“And you need it to live!” Midnight argued. “I’m...not worth that.”
“The fact that you are loved...is proof enough,” Ledger said with a smile. “So long as I love you and you need it, I will gladly give what I can to help fix you. I can survive off of other emotions, for a little while.”
“You stupid, stubborn...” Midnight’s body shook again. She looked at him and swallowed the lump in her throat and started to talk.
“It was... several months ago. During the wedding...”
“Not...our proudest moment,” Ledger winced.
“It was going so well,” she continued. “Captain Shining Armour had his shield up. The Elements of Harmony were barely a stone’s throw away. What being in all of Equus would be stupid enough to attack?”
“Midnight Song,” Celestia stated as she walked in. “You must know how important this day is yes?”
The Thestral nodded and saluted.
“I have a special assignment for you. One I know you can carry out like none other.” Midnight gulped and nodded again. What could be so important?
“I want you to guard my sister. You are one of my best, and it would put my mind and heart at ease knowing that you are keeping an eye on Luna for me.”
“Princess Luna?” Song questioned. She had her own Guard, so why...
“I have Shining Armour, as well as the Element Bearers by my side, so I will be just fine.” Celestia smiled, that annoying, enigmatic one she wore when she was looking ten steps ahead. “I fear, that something is amiss. I don’t know what, but it doesn’t sit right with me.” She placed a gilded hoof on Midnight’s shoulder. “Luna’s magic is still recovering. Loathe as she is to admit that fact. I know that no harm will come to her while you watch.”
“I will follow your orders Your Highness,” Midnight saluted, and squeaked as Celestia pulled her into a wing-hug.
“I know, and I know that you will succeed,” she said, before letting her go and resuming her regal posture. “Now, to your post.”
Midnight saluted once more and left the room. This job was shaping up to be easy... and maybe a little boring.
“It was...anything but,” she said.
“I know a little of what happened,” Ledger said. “It was in all the papers, and I really should have just run when I read about it instead of sticking it out.”
When Midnight reached the Lunar Wing, it was so quiet. Everywhere else, the castle was filled with the hustle and bustle of the royal event. But here? One could hear a pin drop and complain on how deafening it would be.
Luna’s room was also easy to find. Great oak doors that held beautiful carvings that were rumoured to take over a hundred years to complete. The Princess enjoyed her privacy above all else so Midnight didn’t knock on the door, merely taking her position at the entrance.
It was dreadfully quiet, just as she had predicted. So her ears swivelled, trying to catch any sound at all, save for her breathing and occasional clank of her armour. She jumped a little when she heard hoofsteps, as two of Luna’s Thestral Night Guard approached.
Midnight was on good terms with most of the Thestral community, most still ribbing her for serving the sun, ironic given the Thestral’s mostly nocturnal nature.
Something was off though. The way they walked was so uniform, so professional. Their stares were straight and focused, their faces hiding all emotion.
These were not Thestrals.
“Halt!” Midnight said, causing them to flinch. “Name. Rank. State your business!”
One of them, his eyes flickered for a moment and seemed to shine in the dark hall.
“Same as you Midnight, protect the sister,” he laughed. “I see Princess Celestia has her finest doing our job for us.”
“Name. Rank. Business.” Midnight said again. Her coat itched and her heart raced. Something wasn’t right here. She recognised these stallions, yet didn’t. What was this feeling?
“Shadow Wing, Corporal. Protect Princess Luna,” he replied, rolling his eyes. “Since when have you been so uppity? Haven’t had any in a while?”
Midnight frowned and spread her wings. “I will protect Princess Luna from any threat. ANY!”
“Seriously Midnight? Have you hit the cider early or something?” Shadow Wing smiled.
“Not buying it...‘Shadow Wing’,” Midnight said, drawing her swords.
“What?”
“If you were really him...then you’d remember tapping this plot during shift yesterday.”
Midnight paused in her story as she looked at Ledger. “What?”
“Only you...and some Violets, I think, would use sexual experiences as passcodes,” he retorted.
Midnight just shrugged and continued.
“She’s not buying it, because you’re an idiot,” the second Guard said. His voice was like ice, a creeping chill that worked it’s way to Midnight’s core. “Can’t you feel it? The love this mare has is a veritable buffet. I bet I could be as strong as a Queen if I drained her dry~”
“Oh come on!” ‘Shadow’ replied. “You heard the Queen, no draining anyone dry. It’s a rule!”
“Rules were made to be broken,” he smiled. He locked eyes with the mare and she took a step back. Why was she stepping away from him?
“Don’t worry, I’ll be sure to leave enough for you to have...fun with!” he smiled. “Maybe you could keep her as a pet or something?”
“Yeah, fine,” Shadow huffed. “Just, lemme go over there. You guys are friggen creepy when you eat.”
“As you wish. I will so enjoy this~”
Midnight found herself flying at him. She didn’t know why, but she felt that this...thing, whatever it was. It had to die, or she would be in for a much worse fate. She didn’t know what happened, but she felt herself slammed against the wall. It was like the world suddenly shifted, overwhelming nausea and then he was an inch from her face, those black eyes staring into her very being...
And then the pain, the overwhelming, excruciating pain. There was also an odd sound. Like somepony was screaming in agony, but Midnight couldn’t tell who it was. She just didn’t care really. Her job? So what?
Her life? Whatever...
There was a distant noise, like an explosion, but Midnight barely heard it. Then there was pink, why was it always pink?
Then... nothing…
“I’m going to guess, and this is just a guess mind you,” Ledger mused. “That you barely escaped with your life thanks to what happened. Not only did the shield blast him off of you, but it probably helped restart your emotions a little bit, to the point where everything that wasn’t his target managed to fix itself. Your ability to love, though…”
“I woke up, staring at a white ceiling,” she said. “I don’t know..what happened, but the Princess was there. Celestia, and Luna a bit later. They said... that they found me outside Luna’s room. She’d heard a noise, even through the soundproofing spells. Somepony screaming. That noise I heard, that terrified, agonised scream? It was me...”
She curled up on the old couch, shaking so much it affected her voice. “It was what happened after that hurt the most.” Tears fell from her eyes. “Did-Did I ever tell you I had a marefriend. One that I...that I loved?”
“No you did not,” Ledger said, mind racing. “Was she…” He stalled, trying to find the right words for the question, before giving up and leaving it hanging there as it was.
“Her name is Moondancer, a cute Unicorn at Celestia’s School,” she said. “We had been dating for about four months by then. She was safe too, by the way. She and a bunch of students holed themselves up at the school. But, after a day in the hospital, she came to visit. She was, so worried. She told me how scared she was, and that she loved me so much. Do you know what I said?”
“Oh no,” Ledger gasped, putting a hoof to his mouth. “Oh no oh no…” He could very well guess and didn’t like the idea...
“I told her that I didn’t love her. As if I were commenting on the weather.” she said in a muted tone. “At the time, I didn’t get why she cried so much. That destroyed, defeated look in her eyes. But she kept coming back, day after day, saying the same thing... and I kept giving the same answer. And one day? She didn’t come... she never came back.”
Midnight was crying now, a river of tears that stained the couch. “And I never cared. It was just, ‘Oh, she’s not here today. Oh well.’”
“...Do you want to see her again, now that you’re a little better?” Ledger asked.
“After a few weeks, I woke up one day, after a visit from my family and the Princesses... and I remembered. I felt everything. What I did to Moondancer... I can’t, could never forgive myself.”
“She deserves an explanation at the very least,” the stallion pointed out.
“I told her that day,” Midnight explained. The tears wouldn’t stop. “She was...surprisingly forgiving. Apparently the Princesses themselves had already explained everything. But... the damage was done. We couldn’t... I couldn’t get back what I had so casually tossed aside.” Her voice cracked over her wracked sobs. “And I’ve done it again. Only this time? I don’t have anything to blame...nothing besides my own stupidity.”
“It...did hurt when you accused me of such deception,” Ledger admitted. “To think that you didn’t trust me, couldn’t trust me without your ability to suppress your emotions. If...if you really want to stay, truly want to stay with me, I only have one stipulation to add on to our old ones.”
Midnight hiccuped, but she still looked up at the back of the couch that her Changeling lay on.
“Trust,” Level said. “Total and absolute trust. You have mine. All I ask for is yours in return.”
Midnight was silent for a good while, the only sound was her crying. But that stopped as well. She’d run out of tears now, almost. “I...don’t know, I don’t trust anypony really.” She looked up, at the Changeling that refused to meet her gaze. “But, I can try. I want to try. I will try.”
With that, Ledger’s horn lit up as his disguise peeled away, waiting to see what Midnight would do now. Would he still be her cuddlebug...or would she recoil in fear? He almost cried again when he sensed her fear, until she leapt across the room and held him tightly.
“Whatever it takes. I want...to be together with you and Cider. Always,” she whispered, her tears flowing again, running down his chest. Ledger hugged her in return and sighed.
They had a lot of work to do…
“I told you fried spinach was a good thing to snack on when you’re feeling down,” Ledger poked Midnight with a hoof.
“Yeah, yeah,” she sighed stuffing another forkful in her mouth. “Still tastes like ass though.”
“You did just cry roughly a gallon of tears and general sadness out all over the place,” the changeling pointed out. “Your emotions being in such flux is bound to wreck havoc for a little bit with other things. Buuuut...I might have something for you.”
“What could you possibly have, to make up for eating this...I’d like to say foals diarrhea?”
With a smirk, Ledger’s horn lit up, and a small bag drifted out from the fridge.
One that smelled delicious.
Midnight swallowed hard as her eyes locked onto that bag like a tractor beam spell. “That,” she said, licking her lips, her eyes unblinking. “Is that what I think it is?”
Ledger smirked. “And to earn the bag, all you have to do is answer either a series of difficult questions regarding your emotions and how you feel about me...or finish your snack,” the changeling said, pointing at the fact that she still had half of the fried greens on her plate.
“Questions,” Midnight said without a moment's hesitation. Yeah, she did feel better, but goddamn, spinach was the worst thing ever grown. That and pumpkin…
“Question one,” Ledger said as he pulled a mango from the bag. “How do you feel about changelings as a whole, excluding Blacks?”
“I don’t...blame all of them,” she said. “That’s your influence actually. Ever since I discovered your little secret club here in Las Pegasus? I have a bunch of Changeling friends now. The Ladies, Scopey, maybe even Amy. But... please forgive me, but I don’t think I could face a Black changeling. Not right now at least.”
“You won’t have to,” Ledger said as he flipped the mango to Midnight. “The reason you won’t normally see a black in pony lands is because that’s...the color the Broodmothers turn once the initiation process is complete. They burn out all the positive emotions, leaving no color behind. They feed on negative emotions and by forcibly taking another’s love.”
Midnight grabbed the mango in her mouth, her fangs piercing the fruit as it sprayed a little, before she gulped it all down, a small amount of juice running down her chin. She moaned softly at the sharp sweetness. “Well, been there, done that,” she said.
“Too bad you forgot to get the T-shirt, the emotional trauma and life-changing wounds will have to suffice,” Ledger lightly laughed at his forced joke before pulling another mango from the bag.
“I don’t look sexy in a shirt,” Midnight hummed. “You should see me in a swimsuit though~”
“I’ll put it on my to-do list,” Ledger said. “Now that you know you’re more likely to see an alicorn in pony than you are to see another Black, how do you feel?”
“Well, I already met both Alicorns, kissed them both,” Midnight smiled, that was a good memory. “But yeah, I do feel better. Better than I have in a long, long time.”
Ledger flipped the second mango over, pulling out yet another as he thought of the next question. “Do you still think of me trying to heal your love-deficit as emotional manipulation?”
This question was a little harder to answer. “I know, that you were trying to help,” Midnight said. He wanted trust? Then he had best be prepared for blunt truth as well. “But the fact is, you went behind my back and tried to fix a problem you were only guessing on. You could have asked, we could have talked... though I suppose I would have avoided the topic as well.” She sighed as she nibbled her second mango. “This was bound to be a sucky situation no matter what.”
“Yeah,” Ledger agreed. “I tried to go around fixing a problem that I was fairly certain was there without pressuring you into talking about it. Instead, I get accused of being a mind-controlling bug, felt like I lost my marefriend, and cried myself to sleep.”
“And I nearly fell to my death, forced Scope to burn a ton of love to save me and just told you things that nopony else beside a select few know. I feel like the worst mare alive and still believe that I don’t deserve the love I get. Can we call it even and move on?”
“Sure thing,” Ledger said as he pushed the third mango to sit next to Midnight. “Hmm...how about, for your next question...now that your emotional blinders are off, what do you really feel when you think about dating me?”
“Scared,” Midnight said, and continued before Ledger could respond. “I ruined one relationship already, and this one is on its third leg. So I’m scared that I’ll screw something up. Maybe I’ll hurt you again, maybe I’ll hurt Cider... maybe one of you will hurt me. But...” She placed her half-eaten mango on the table. “None of that matters. I love you, more than anything. Nothing can take that away, and if something tries...then that’ll be the last thing they ever do.”
“A solid answer,” Ledger admitted. A thought occurred then, and he moaned in response to it. “I’m going to wake up to ‘my roommate is a changeling’ again, aren’t I?”
“I dunno,” she shrugged. “Maybe? You could wake up to a hundred different things happening. All part of the fun of dating me I suppose. Screaming and a punch to the muzzle is one option, just as much as waking to a mindblowing blowjob.”
“Knowing you, I’ll get one after the other,” Ledger deadpanned. With that, a fourth mango was pulled out and put next to Midnight’s other spoils as she had technically answered the question. When the fifth was removed, Ledger frowned as he waved the empty sack around. “Whelp, last question then.” He tapped his chin with a hoof for a few moments as he thought of a good one. His face softened as he looked at Midnight.
“Do...you really still want...us?” he questioned softly.
“After everything that’s happened. What we discussed and what I already went through before.” Midnight sighed as she stood up. “What do you think?” She took another step, her features giving nothing away. “I destroyed my last relationship. I can’t guarantee that it won’t happen again...” She was standing over him now, looking down at him. Then she leant forward and kissed him deeply, with a fervent passion that she hadn’t done before.
It wasn’t the tender-loving kisses she would give.
Nor was it the hungry, lust-filled kisses.
This was one that promised no matter how hard things got, she would be here. Always.
Eventually, the kiss had to break, as both beings needed air, but when Ledger finished taking his breath, he reached forward and grabbed Midnight in a hug. “As long as you want me, I will be yours,” he whispered to her.
“Good, I don’t wanna lose my cuddlebug ever again,” she whispered. Eventually, Ledger leaned back and pecked Midnight on the cheek, smiling a little as he did.
“You’re already healing a little,” He said. “Trust the emotivore on this: the wound you suffered is closing. The fact that you were so moved at the thought of losing me...it speaks volumes. Will you let me keep healing you?”
“Yeah...” She said and hugged him gently. “After all...I trust you.”
“And I trust you,” Ledger replied before just leaning into the hug with a sigh. “Now and forever.”
It was a scene of tranquility, the two broken lovers finally picking up the pieces...
“So are you two done canoodling yet?” Scope’s voice asked from the doorway. Ledger turned and shot the disguised nymph such a glare, it was a wonder there wasn’t a hole burned through the wall behind her.
“Oooh, scary,” she giggled. “I actually came to see if the two of you were alright. Or has my constant worry been misplaced and you’re hugging an illusion of her?”
“You just killed the moment,” Ledger said in a deadpan voice. “We just finished getting most of our shit sorted out and you killed the nice, peaceful moment.”
“I live to serve,” she said as she stumbled through the door and fell over. “Whooo, guess I’m still a little dizzy...”
“Are you okay?” Midnight spoke up, still hugging Ledger, but was now dragging him across the room so she could hug Scopey as well.
“Yeah...just really tired...drained...” she looked at them with big puppy dog eyes. “Love me?”
“Get her in this hug already,” Ledger said with a roll of his eyes. “As long as she promises to watch herself, it should be fine.” Midnight giggled and pulled the little nymph over, their dysfunctional family almost complete now. But Midnight wasn’t sure if she could drag two Changeling’s all the way to Cider Falls.
“It was still cool that you turned into a dragon,” Midnight hummed. “But, why didn’t you just teleport me?”
There was nothing but silence, before Scope interrupted that moment too, as a chitinous hoof met her forehead.
“...Scope turned into a dragon,” Ledger said in a small voice, as the statement finally sunk in.
“Yeah, I kinda fell off of that building after you flew off. Scopey here saved me, but she was too little, so she turned into something bigger.”
“It was the first thing that came to mind.” Scope pouted, a red tinge to her face. “Used up all the energy I’ve been storing though. You owe me Mistress.”
“Well, I’m sufficiently terrified,” Ledger said, a tremor of fear in his voice. “Let’s...think of a way to properly reward Scope for her actions that doesn’t involve the Violets later. I think it’s nearly time for us to get some rest.”
“Actually,” Midnight replied, looking at the nymph. “You saved my life earlier. Correct me if I’m wrong, but doesn’t that settle your life-debt with me?”
Scope Lens paused. She...hadn’t thought about that. She was right though, Scope was free to do whatever she wanted now. But, then again, hasn’t she been able to do so for a while now?
So what should she do?
“I guess...you want me to leave soon then?”
“Only if you want to,” Ledger said, surprising them both. “You’ve shown yourself to be trustworthy enough that maybe having you around wouldn’t be a bad idea. I’ll not force you one way or another.”
Both girls stared at him, before Scope looked away for a second, before giving Ledger the briefest of kisses on the cheek and running for her room, her whole face lit up in a fierce blush.
“Aw, I think she likes you~” Midnight teased. “Then again, who wouldn’t?”
Ledger just raised one hoof to his cheek, rubbing at the spot where Scope had kissed him. “Did that just happen?” he asked no one in particular. He was a little stunned that it had occurred, apparently.
“Yes, and no, you can’t add her to our herd,” Midnight sighed, before a teasing smirk appeared on her face. “Unless you want to~”
“I’m...not going to comment on that right now,” Ledger said with a sigh. “It’s going to take some time to get my panic reflex regarding her back down to unnoticeable levels again. She’s a nymph that’s apparently showing affection for me...and that hasn’t ended well before.”
“I think she was just thanking you, so don’t overthink it so much,” Midnight giggled, kissing his opposite cheek. “Wanna get some rest then? I get the feeling tomorrow is going to be exhausting.”
“If tomorrow is going to be exhausting, what the Tartarus do you call today?” Ledger snarked as he opened their bedroom door with his magic.
“Wednesday,” she replied as she walked inside. “Now, let’s see what I can do to restore some of that love energy hmm~”
“Tired right now,” Ledger said. “Today was a rollercoaster for my emotions. I just wanna snuggle and sleep for now.”
“I can do snuggles,” she said, pulling him over as the little spoon.