“ADRIAN! ADRIAN! ADRIAN!” The club cheered my name as I finished up my last few moves. It had only been about thirty minutes or so since I did my little boasting and thankfully, my dance moves were amazing. At least to these ponies, who had never seen them before.
I concluded by doing a few more spins and stuck another pose, one of my own creation, and was rewarded with thunderous applause. If I was looking for a distraction to take my minds off things for a bit, then this was certainly it and I was glad for it. Once the roaring ponies around me settled down and began to dance on their own, a few trying out my little stunts, I made my way to a booth to sit down. I wasn't winded but I just wanted a little break.
“Whoa~ You dansh good Adrian!” I heard someone say. Looking behind me, I saw a very drunk Cloudchaser and Flitter stumbling up. I chuckled a bit as they reminded me of the girls the first time I went out and partied.
“Thanks Flitter, you two doing ok?” I asked them.
“We ish good! Feeling funky fresh! Hehe!” Cloudchaser stated with a slight daze in her voice.
“Oh yeah! Lots and lots of stallions gave us pretty drinks!” Flitter said.
“Yes, we noticed” I heard a new voice say. Turning back, I saw a mildly annoyed looking Spitfire standing there with Fleetfoot right beside her.
“Uh oh, all the boys hitting on you?” I asked with a bit of a teasing voice.
“Yes and due to your dancing, they all tried to hit on me by utterly failing to copy you. One almost spilled his drink on us. While I enjoy the attention from time to time, these boys are far to early to try and get me to talk to them, let alone dance alone” Spitfire told me.
“Hmmm, I wonder if I should feel flattered or embarrassed. It is not every day when others copy you to try and flirt” I asked out loud.
“Well, you would of worked on us!” Flitter said with enthusiasm.
“Sounds like you two have certainly gotten enough attention tonight” Fleetfoot commented with a slight smile.
“Oh yeah we have! All them stallions saw we were with you all and kept on giving us drinks and asking questions!” Cloudchaser replied.
“But we might of have one too many” Flitter said with a chuckle.
“Ah, but with you two pretty looking mares its hard for them boys not to try and talk to you” Vinyl suddenly said as she popped up next to me.
“Yeah, but it quickly dawned on us that they were only interested in you guys and we were their way in” Flitter said in an annoyed tone.
“Yeah, sorry about that kid. That is what usually happens when we go anywhere” Spitfire stated with a defeated voice.
“Well, lets get out of here then! All of these guys are stupid drunk and are kinda killing my mood” Vinyl said.
“But aren't you the DJ for the night?” I asked her.
“Eh, no big deal. None of that is my stuff, all I need to do is set up a playlist and I can let that run for the rest of the night. The bartender knows how to turn it off since he likes to play now and then” Vinyl explained.
“Alright, we will wait here then” Spitfire told her.
“Roger that! Be back in two shakes of a tail!” Vinyl happily said before she sped up to the booth.
“So~ where we heading?” Flitter asked.
“Well, I would suggest our room but it might not be big enough for us all. How about you?” Fleetfoot said.
“Our place is kinda small as well, sorry” Cloudchaser replied.
“How about the castle? I'm in charge of it while Twilight is out on her mission, so we could hang out there for a bit” I said.
“Really? I was always curious about the inside of it when I first heard about it” Spitfire said to me.
“Sure, does that sound good with the rest of you?” I asked them.
They all nodded their heads in excitement and in no time Vinyl had returned, ready to go. We were just about to leave when a small bundle of stallions blocked our path.
“Hey, hey, hey! Why are our honored guests leaving so soon?” the first one said.
“Yeah! Come on ladies, we were just starting to have fun!” the second one on the left said next.
“It would be rude of you to leave us after such a warm welcome” the third one the right finished.
“No, what is rude is you three blocking our way. Now move” Spitfire calmly said.
“Oh come on, it is not everyday we get to meet the sexy captain of the Wonderbolts! We just want to show our appreciation as fans for you!” said number two.
“Eww, your one of those creepy ones? Yeesh” Fleetfoot retorted.
“Aww, don't be like that. You have your fine points as well. I especially love the color of your mane” number three replied back with.
“Wow, what a couple of jokers you three are. Where did you learn your smooth skills from? Douchebag 101?” Vinyl disgustingly said.
“Ouch, that hurt. Maybe what you need is a strong stallion to show you what you have been missing” the first stallion said. He then took a step forward and tried to caress Vinyls face with his hoof but I swiftly grabbed it and he looked surprised to see me.
“Don't. Just don't. Please” I said with an irritated voice.
“Oh come on, you already have yourself a marefriend. We are just trying to hook up too! Back me up here, you know you want to” number one said. He began to boast a knowing grin, as if he thought I was going to let him do what he wanted already. Boy was he wrong.
“Sorry, dude. I don't think you three are their type. Go home and sober up” I said as I gently pushed his hoof away.
The first one clicked his tongue in annoyance before he noticed Cloudchaser and Flitter stumble a bit and his grin returned. “Fine, then allow us to escort those two mares home. It appears that they have drunk one too many” he said with confidence.
“You were the ones who gave ush our drinksh in the ferst place” Cloudchaser said while slurring her words a bit.
“Well, you wanted to party and we helped! So let us take you girls home” number three said.
“No thanks, I would rather make out with a pile of dirt than go with you jerks” Flitter spitefully said.
“Now you listen here you little whorse!” number three charged forward and raised his hoof “We tried to be nice, now your going to listen to us now!” he said while he went in for the slap.
I felt a little burst of power within me as my arm shot through the still air and caught his hoof before it made contact. I had a strong and fierce grip on him and I gave it a tight squeeze, unintentionally letting out a little snarl.
“No, you listen. This is what is going to happen. You three are going to leave and go home as quickly as your scrawny little legs will carry you and never, ever talk to a mare again for as long as you live. If you don't, I will use my fire breath and torch off all your mane and fur, marking you so all of Ponyville can see you in your shame for trying to hit a mare. Do you understand?” I said with force and intimidation.
Number one and two seemed to perfectly understand as they began to cower in fear, but I think number three was in so much shock that he retorted by swinging his other front leg at me. Feeling that burst of power inside of me again, my hand let go of its death grip on his hoof and instantly went up to his neck and whacked it with a good karate chop. It hit so hard that not only did he get knocked out but he crashed into the other two.
“Take him and leave” I told them but they sat there in shock and simply stared at me.
So I dug into that power in my chest and while not exactly yelling, my voice seemed to boom when I told them this one word.
“NOW!”
The two snapped out it and began to furiously drag their unconscious friend away, soon the three disappeared in the dark of the night. It took me a few deep breaths before I felt that surge of power dissipate and I felt normal again. I looked down at my group and saw them all staring at me in awe, all except Spitfire who was grinning.
“Well, never had a knight in shining armor come and protect me before. Nice job sport” Spitefire said in a proud voice. I don't know why but I felt a little embarrassed that I let myself kinda go on auto-pilot there for a moment. But before I talked I looked behind us and saw that once more, we were center attention.
“Hey, lets go talk outside before the crowd rushes us” I whispered. Once we were outside, Flitter ungracefully flew up to me and hugged me.
“Th-thank you Adrian. I was really scared for a second when h-he tried to hit me” she said as she held back her tears. I brought my hand up so I could pet her mane a bit to try and calm her.
“No problem, I hate guys like that. Glad I could help” I warmly said to her. “Do you girls still want to hang out or do you want to go home?”
“I.... I wanted to hang out, b-but now I kinda want to go home. I'm sorry” Flitter said. I looked over at Cloudchaser and she nodded her head in agreement.
“It's ok, I understand. Do you want us to walk you two home?” I asked. They both nodded their heads again, leading us on our way. It was only a ten minute walk to their house and it was without incident.
“Are you girls going to be alright tonight?” Spitfire asked them.
“I will, but I am not sure about Flitter. She is really shaken up about it, it probably brought up some..... unpleasant memories” Cloudchaser said to us.
Spitfire and Fleetfoot looked at each, almost like they were having a mental conversation. After another moment or so, Spitfire took a step forward to say “Would you like Fleetfoot or myself to stay with you tonight? I doubt those idiots would do anything, but still”
Cloudchaser went over to Flitter and had a private conversation before Cloudchaser came back.
“She doesn't mind if one of you want to stay over. She would feel a little bit safer” Cloudchaser explained.
“I can stay with her boss, if you don't mind” Fleetfoot said.
“Sure, we can meet up in the morning at our room. Have a safe night you three” Spitfire said as she waved goodbye.
“G'night!” Vinyl said with her.
Before I could wish them a good nights sleep, Flitter came up to me with another hug “Th-thanks again for being a gentlecolt” she said in a timid voice.
I wrapped an arm around her as we hugged and smiled “No problem, sweet dreams Flitter. And to you as well Cloudchaser” I said. Once we hugged, she had a little smile on her face while the three went inside, leaving me with the other two.
“So, still wanna go hang out at the castle? I was able to sneak out a few bottles in my bag” Vinyl said with a wink as she patted her bulgy bag.
“I'm game” Spitfire replied. I nodded yes and with some idle chat we began our walk through the silent streets.
---------- 15 Minutes Later ----------
“-so then I said 'Here's some sugar for ya baby' and proceeded to smash the apple pie into his face!” Spitfire laughed as she finished telling her story.
“Oh man! I can't believe Soarin got that smashed at the Gala!” Vinyl said as she had to wipe the tears away from her eye.
“Oh yeah. We have not let him live that night down since. Though, one of the first questions he asked us when he woke up the next morning was if he said anything bad to Rainbow Dash” Spitfire informed us.
“Uh oh! Sounds like somepony has a crush!” Vinyl teased.
“I am not too sure if it will end well though. I can never really tell with Rainbow, she is such a wild card” Spitfire replied.
“Well..... I can neither confirm or deny this, but a certain cyan pegasus with a colorful mane might have a little crush on a stallion pegasus, who is on some sort of flying team” I told them with a wink.
This got a little grin out of Spitfire “Well, I will be sure to put this information to good use. Oh wow!” she said with a surprised tone as we came up on the castle doors. Even though it was dark out, the sparse lighting made the crystal texture gleam in the night and gave it a different kind of beauty to it.
“Welcome to The Castle Of Friendship” I said in a welcoming voice while I used my hands to display the castle.
“Very impressive, very impressive indeed” Spitfire said in awe.
“Yeah, now that I can actually see straight this time, it does look pretty cool” Vinyl laughed as she gazed upon the castle.
“Well, no point in standing outside. Lets go in” I said while I creaked open the doors. Making our way to the main library so we can sit on the couches.
“Wow, you certainly are living the high life. Eh?” Vinyl commented as she looked around.
“For the moment, yes I am” I replied.
“For the moment?” Spitfire asked in return.
“Yeah, I don't plan on living here forever. I don't like living on borrowed luck. I don't mean to sound ungrateful, I owe Twilight so much for taking me in and providing for me, all for free. She even gives me bits to go out and buy stuff. I know she is not doing it so I owe her, but I feel like I do owe her a great debt for all her kindness”
“So, once I start earning bits and save up enough, I want to find my own place to live or at the very least pay her rent” I concluded. After that I quickly went to the kitchen to grab us three glasses to drink from, which I did as soon as I sat back down.
“I understand your feelings and I think it is very noble of you, but in the meantime don't forget to thank Twilight from time to time and try not to over think the whole bit problem. Ponyville is a very cheap place to live and you have a Princess looking out for you. Just live your life day to day and enjoy yourself” Spitfire explained before pouring herself a big glass.
“Yeah dude! Just live your life and be happy!” Vinyl loudly exclaimed.
“Shhhhhh.... tone it down just a bit. I have a..... guest, upstairs who needs to sleep” I quickly said in a hushed tone.
“Oh, sorry” Vinyl quickly replied with a sheepish grin. “You have a guest over?”
“Yeah, she is a bit of a handful sometimes but thankfully she is asleep now” I said with a tired sigh.
“She? And who is she?” Spitfire said with a curious glance while she sipped her drink.
I was also taking a sip but coughed a bit when I saw her look cause I realized how it might of sounded “Ahem! Sorry, I guess that might sound weird. Um...... boy how do I explain this. Well, uh..., you see, the thing is is that she is, technically, my-”
“PAPA!”
POOF
“pa...pa~” Maelstrom sleepily said as she fell instantly right back to sleep, curled up in my lap. Almost immediately I heard a low howl echo in the castle and in a few short moments I heard the sound of claws scraping against the ground as Artemis made her way to us. Once Artemis saw that Maelstrom was safe in my lap she jumped up on the couch and proceeded to go back to sleep.
Suffice to say, when I looked back up I saw that Vinyl and Spitfire had very confused looking faces. Guess I should be used to telling the story by now, cause I saw no other way then to just be honest. So once again, I did the little dance and song number and before you know it I am looking at The Discord Look once more.
“So...... she is your... daughter that Discord... hatched?” Vinyl asked.
“Yep” I simply said.
“And she has magic, can fly, and her only words are papa?” Vinyl asked again.
“Yep, yep” I said again.
“AND you also have a timberwolf pup as a pet, the same pup that was part of the pack that cornered Fleetfoot and almost killed you?” Vinyl asked a third time.
“Yep, yep, yep” I replied.
“Dude.... you live a weird life” Vinyl concluded with a dumbfounded face.
“Yeah, welcome to a small part of my crazy life” I said with another tired sigh as I absentmindedly petted Maelstrom.
“Whats wrong kid?” Spitfire asked while she started on her third glass.
“Well, I am just kicking myself a bit cause I now that I think about it, I should not of gone out tonight. I left my child here all alone while I went out to think and ended up drinking and dancing. That certainly won't earn me a Father-of-the-Year award” I explained.
“Well, looking at it like that then you are right and it almost makes me want to smack you upside the head a bit” Spitfire told me.
“Yeah, I wouldn't blame you” I admitted as I finished my second big glass.
“Why did you want to go out though?” Spitfire asked me again while the two mares drank their glasses.
“I had just let my fears and worry creep up on me again about my own life and Maelstroms future” I sighed a bit as I took a moment to collect my thoughts.
“I just feel like ever since I came to Equestria my life has been all over the place, for both good and bad. It just feels so overwhelming sometimes and it scares me at how much my life has changed. Having so many friends, acquiring magic, almost dying, my physical appearance changing, owning a pet, having met and befriending all four Princesses of a foreign and alien land”
“Learning dark and terrible secrets from my past and my new life here, falling in love, and having a child made from my DNA and a mad beings magic all wrapped together in barely a month or so of living here. I was even having nasty nightmares every now and then, but Luna and Nightingale helped with that so I am fine on that front”
Taking a deep breath, I stopped a moment before taking another big drink from my freshly poured glass.
“So basically on top of all that, now I need to worry about Maelstroms future and in all honesty, that scares me more than anything. I have always been alone and never really knew what to do with my life, now at twenty three years old I have a child and have to give up my life to make sure hers is safe”
At this point in my confession, I felt myself tremble a bit as my emotions swirled around inside of me. So I poured my fourth glass and drank half of it in one big gulp before I continued.
“I-I am just scared that I won't be a good father. I never had a dad and I lost my mom when I was young, so I don't really have a good idea on what being a good parent should be. And how am I suppose to raise a magical baby that is a child of Discord and the only human in Equestria? I just.... I ju-just....” I stopped talking as I felt my insides swirl more and more, never noticing that my hand was actually shaking.
I also did not notice that Spitfire had quickly flown over and set my glass down, so she could look at me in the eye with concern. I don't know what it was but when I looked at her, I could see how mature she was when I looked into her eyes and much to my surprise she gently lifted up a hoof and gave me cheek a few strokes. That small action calmed me down and when I felt totally calm, I reached up and rubbed my eyes.
“Thanks Spitfire” was all I said.
“No problem kiddo. But I can certainly see why you wanted a night off now, even if in the end it was not exactly the right decision to make. I wish I had better advice for you, but honestly I cannot compare your situation to anything I have ever had to deal with in my life. That being said, I think the only advice I can give is actually something I just said earlier”
“Live your life day by day. If you worry so much about the future then you won't know how to deal with today. Have plans, of course, but don't try to live your life tomorrow. Live your life today. Do that and you can surpass any obstacle. You will have a rough life and everyday will be a challenge, but that is life and your life, while filled with a lot of bad, is overflowing with good”
“You have friends all around you and you even have all four Princesses as your friends as well. Do you think anypony else in all of Equestria as that honor? Not only that, but you are friends with the Wonderbolts, a DJ, heck you even made two new friends tonight. Your past does not define you, only you can define you. So make yourself the best that you can be, alright kid?” Spitfire ended with a lovely smile as she gently popped my chin.
“I will try my best, not only for me but for her as well” I said as I glanced down at the adorable ball of fur in my lap, cutely snoring away.
“Then that is all we can ever ask of you, now buck up and start having fun. You have two beautiful mares in your castle, make the most of it” Spitfire said with a playful wink and I could see Vinyl stifling her laugh. I could not help but laugh as well that Spitfire could suddenly switch from super serious to funny. I held out my hand and thankfully, it was stable so I safely picked up my glass again and finished the rest so I could move onto my fifth.
---------- 45 Minutes Later ----------
“-and then he says 'Only I can make your music treble sweetheart'. Let me tell ya, it was the lamest pickup line he had ever said to me. Celestia knows how I ended up dating him and sticking with him for a whole month” Vinyl finished telling us about her tenth and last boyfriend.
Sheesh, I don't know if it is the guys or simply where she finds them but either way, she has not had the best relationships. But not like that matters much right now, since we just got done with our third and final bottle and we were all pretty drunk.
In the middle of my laughter I felt something moving in my lap, looking down I saw Maelstrom re-snuggling herself into my lap and she had snagged my finger in order to use it as a teddy bear. Normally this amount of cuteness would be tolerable, but due to the alcohol it transformed into ridiculously super levels of adorableness. So I could not help but have a huge smile, rivaling that of Pinkie Pie, as I watched my daughter sleep.
“You really love her, don't cha?” Spitfire tiredly said.
“More than anything, well maybe just as much as Derpy. I will wait till she is older before I hold a contest between them to decided who I love more” I chuckled as I finished.
“Totally rad idea! A contest of love! Maybe you could hold it during Hearts and Hooves day coming up!” Vinyl excitingly said while keeping her balance.
“Oh yeah, I almost forgot about that. Bah, I will deal with that in the morning. I am still following Spitfires orders and enjoying the night with two beautiful mares!” I said with a toothy grin.
“Heh heh heh. Well, this beautiful mare needs to find a bathroom. Where to?” Spitfire asked.
“Just go through this door behind me, keep left till the first turn, then turn and it will be the first door on the right” I instructed as I tried to point behind me. With that she tried to fly her way but lost her balance a few times in the air before deciding to walk the rest of the way.
Just as I turned my head back, I felt a soft thump to my right. Looking, it was a smiling Vinyl with her shades off, giving me a clear view of her red magenta eyes as she stared at me.
“And. What. Can. I. Do. For. You~” I playfully said as I flipped her mane.
“Oh, nothing. Just wishing I could clone you” Vinyl said.
“Clone me? Now what in the world would you do with a clone me?” I asked her.
“Oh, just have him accompany me and follow me everywhere and have him protect me and watch out for me and other stuff like that” she replied with a grin.
“Heh, sounds you want clone me as a boyfriend or something” I said back.
“Yeah, I suppose it does. Since I can't have the real you anymore” she stated before resting her back against my arm.
“Vinyl?” I asked her with concern.
“It's nothing big guy. I am just being silly, as you just heard from all my previous boyfriends I have not had a good relationship and I was honestly starting to think all stallions were idiots and jerks. Then here you come, an alien dude and you are the most chill and awesome guy ever. Just wishing I had a guy like you” she sadly stated.
With my free arm, I quickly slipped it around her and brought her in for a hug which surprised her.
“Don't worry Vinyl, there is someone out there for everyone. Though I had to fall through a magical well to find mine, so I might not be the best example” I said with a sheepish grin. “But no matter what, we will always be best friends and I will do my best to be here for you. Though try to limit the girl stuff, I am not good with those kind of talks”
I could hear her chuckle while she punched my arm, before saying “Jerk”
“Goofball” I replied back with.
“That being said, I am still kinda jealous of Derpy for being brave. Though there is always the second option~” she tried to say before letting out a big yawn. I could tell she was about to fall asleep any moment.
“Second option?” I nervously asked.
She yawned again before saying “Well.... thought not common....some form-” another yawn erupted her speech “-herds”
“Herds?” I nervously asked again.
“Usually...one guy... loving...multiple....girls~” she tried to fully say before finally giving into sleep.
At first I was getting kinda sleepy but strangely, I found myself completely awake and I had a nervous sweat coming falling down my head.
'Herds. One guy. Loving. Multiple girls'
Uh oh.
---------- Same Time, Library Door ----------
“Usually...one guy... loving...multiple....girls~” is all I heard before the second set of snores filtered the air.
I stopped at the door when I heard Vinyl starting to talk about stallions and her previous relationships, hoping it was just small talk and wishing I did not need to interrupt. But now I wish I had interrupted before she dropped that bomb shell on the poor guy.
He has enough on his plate to worry about and now he has this whole new world of possibilities thrusted upon him.
“Uh oh”