//------------------------------// // Chapter 9 // Story: My Dearest Dusk // by CrackedInkWell //------------------------------// Dusk and Spines went to the head of the car where there was some space and took their seats. Dusk sat by the window while Spines flopped onto the green seat, reaching her claw into the bag to pick out her next snack. As soon as the train started to move its way towards Equestria’s capital, the lilac Prince reached into his bags at the scrolls. So far, he had already read six of the nine remaining letters. After he pulled them out, he searched for the ones he hadn’t seen yet. Once he found the other three, he put them by his side and the rest back into his saddlebag. Dusk picked one of the unread letters at random and began to read. My Dearest Dusk, This is it! Tonight’s the night! It’s been two weeks since your coronation, and you’ve accepted my invitation to dinner. I will keep this letter brief since I’m not sure when you’ll arrive. While I admit that I do feel, as your pink friend coined it, “nervous-cited,” I’m overall looking forward to the dinner tonight. I’ve already planned out the reservations in advance at the Autumn Leaf, made sure the most critically awarded chef would be there and even got Octave Melody to perform his interpretation of Horseshoepin’s Nocturnes. I confess, with all the planning for tonight, down to the very hairs of my beard, in the back of my mind, I couldn’t help but remember old Murphy’s Law: Anything that can go wrong will go wrong. In that no matter how prepared you are, there will always be something to get in the way. This is because I’m taking a huge gamble on my part. This dinner is so much more than an excuse for us to see each other. I’ve decided that by the time dessert comes around, I will try to make my confession to you. Yes, this is the night that I will finally tell you what I have felt for you all this time. To let my heart reach out for yours, in hopes that you might do so in return. For you see, since your ascension, everything has changed. To be honest, you, Dusk, have exceeded and gone beyond any expectations that I had for you. You become not only an alicorn, but a Prince has, I believe, made it easier for both of us. Now you are no longer my student, but my equal. Do not misunderstand me; I had never planned for your ascension to alicornhood. However, what you’ve done, your enlightenment in friendship has elevated you above any student, any master -- even Stars Swirled the Sorceress -- and has pushed me into the decision of letting you join our ranks in Equestrian Royalty. Dusk, my beloved Dusk Shine, the day you ascended, I still cannot put into words how proud I am of the stallion you’ve become. The fact that you’ve even come this far since the day you became my student has my heart swelling with joy beyond description. I can see in you that you’ll become something greater than I or my brother could ever be. My love, no matter what sort of criticism you may hear from these Canterlot aristocrats, in my eyes, you have the potential, heart, and mind of a great leader. Do not let anyone tell you otherwise, you have gone through so much and you deserve so much more than what even I could give. I’ve just been told you’ve arrived. I’ll see you soon. And if it goes well, maybe I can finally show you all of my letters that I’ve been writing every day. All for you. Hoping for the best, Forever yours, Forever mine, Forever us, -Solaris Everfree. ‘Hold on,’ the young Prince thought, ‘he was going to tell me after the coronation? But… I don’t remember him telling me that at all. I do remember the dinner and some of the conversations. Yet, he never told me that he’d loved me. Why?’ Looking out the window at the trees that flew past his view, Dusk Shine thought back to that night. _*_ “How are you doing with your new wings?” Solaris asked. Dusk cautiously extended his wings. “I guess I’m still getting used to them. It’s still weird to have new appendages.” “I can imagine,” the elder alicorn nodded, picking up the remains of his meal with a spoon. “It isn’t every day that ponies turn into alicorns after all. But I assume your friends Rainbow Blitz or Butterscotch have tried to offer you a helping hoof, haven’t they?” “They did actually,” the younger Prince folded his wings back to his sides. “They both came to an agreement that Blitz will help me with flying lessons while Scotch will teach me about taking care of them.” “I am glad to hear that,” Solaris smiled. “I could also imagine you’re still getting used to being a Prince as well?” “In a way,” he shrugged, lifting a pitcher of water and pouring it into his cup. “The ponies in Ponyville are still trying to figure out how to treat me: either the same as usual or throwing rose petals at my hooves whenever I go out to get some milk.” The Prince of the Day laughed like a rich-sounding bell at Dusk’s remark. “Consider yourself lucky that you haven’t gotten a court following yet.” “Yeah, I guess I’m still trying to figure out where I fit in. I mean, I’m still figuring out what I could now. As important as this responsibility you’ve given me is, I’m still questioning if I’m even ready for something like this.” “Nonsense,” his old mentor replied. “Your friendship reports have demonstrated your leadership skills, wisdom, and difficult decision-making more than I could count. And considering the number of times you and your friends have saved everyone, I think you’ll end up becoming a greater Prince than you give yourself credit for.” “I guess so,” Prince Shine said. “I just hope that everything will turn out okay.” Solaris didn’t say anything for a moment. After taking a sip of his glass, he stated, “I’m still curious about your decision to stay in Ponyville. You do know that you’re still welcomed here in Canterlot.” “Well yeah, but coming back here, Canterlot doesn’t feel like home to me anymore.” “How come?” Dusk took a moment to think about his answer, “Because in Ponyville, I have trustworthy and insightful friends that have taught me so much. I have a library that I look after, and the ponies there are much more open than here. Granted, the town can get rather crazy on some days, but Ponyville is a place where I can truly feel like I’m home.” “Ah,” Solaris nodded thoughtfully. There was a pause again before the white alicorn spoke up, “Dusk?” “Hm?” “I… I think there’s something that I think I need to say to you since we’re here.” “Oh sure, what is it?” Dusk Shine noticed his former teacher’s hesitation, but before he could say a word, a voice interrupted, “So, did Your Majesties’ enjoy your meals?” Pulling the curtain to the private room of the restaurant was a unicorn in a white chef's coat, pushing a cart that had a cake that looked like it had a mountain of cream, a bottle of rum, and a lighter. Clearing his throat, Solaris responded, “Why yes Chef Crème Brûlée, that was very excellent.” “I’m glad to hear that,” the head chief smiled, “I have brought the dessert, just as requested.” Dusk looked up to the Solar Prince in confusion, “We didn’t order dessert, did we?” “I did long beforehoof,” Solaris explained. “Thank you for bringing it out.” “My pleasure Your Grace,” he said as he took the plates off the table and replaced them with the smaller dessert plates. The chef then put the cake down on the table before pouring the rum over it. “What are you doing?” Dusk asked, eyeing the alcohol being spilled on the cake before turning to the lit lighter. “It’s called glace au four,” the chief explained, holding the lighter over the cake. “What it is is a cake that’s made up of ice cream, lined with sponge cake, and topped with meringue. Now for the final touch…” As the small flame made contact with the cake, the dessert caught on fire… as did the tablecloth. In an instant panic, Dusk’s wing’s opened up, the added air causing the flames to spread. All three ponies, in shock, tried to put the fire out. Dusk took whatever that had contained liquid and dumped it on the table. The problem was that he has forgotten that some of those said containers had alcohol in them. Solaris lit his horn to create an air bubble around the table, hoping that the fire would die out from a lack of air. As for the chef, he reached down his cart to grab the fire extinguisher. “Let me through,” he said, Solaris taking notice of this and lifting the shield. The chef sprayed the table until the fire was gone, leaving nothing but smoke behind. “I am so sorry for that Your Highnesses,” the chef apologized. But Solaris didn’t pay attention to the head chef; his eyes were on Dusk, who had his hooves around his mouth, completely horrified. “Dusk?” Solaris asks softly. “Oh… I-I…” Dusk’s ears folded back, he looked down at the floor, “I-I’m so sorry.” “Dusk-” “I’ve ruined everything, have I?” he moaned, and then suddenly the lilac alicorn quickly got up. “I-I need to go.” “Dusk wait!” But his former student was already quickly headed out the door-- “Dusk!” --completely embarrassed and humiliated from his newly given wings-- “Dusk, come back!” --he galloped out the door. _*_ “Oh…” Dusk folded his ears back as he remembered exactly what happened. He recalled the shame he felt after that accident. Suddenly, his question of why Solaris never brought it up suddenly made sense. “Um… excuse me?” Dusk looked up, as did Spines to find a stallion pulling a cart of goodies, “Can I get either of you anything?” “Nah, I’m good,” Spines said, popping an emerald into her mouth. “And what about you?” he asked. “Water’s fine,” the Prince told him as the stallion gave him a small glass. After he went away, Dusk downed the cup before looking out to the window again. By now, they were halfway to Canterlot, so the Prince took out another unread letter. My Dearest Dusk, It’s been quite a dull day at court today. I’m afraid that I have nothing much to report on my side except for the usual petty complaints from our citizens, another mountain range of paperwork, and having to scold Bluebelle… again. There wasn’t a single joke from sunrise to sunset that was told around me, nor was there anything to make me crack a smile. Everywhere I go, from my guards to butlers, everypony’s always too polite and afraid that I can’t take a joke. Whenever I catch somepony messing up, they grovel at my hooves, begging to not send them to the moon because a drop of water hits the tablecloth! I hate this. I really hate this sometimes. On one hoof, you’re treated like a god, yet on the other, they see you as a god that has a short temper – that if anypony does something wrong, even the most microscopic mistake, I would become angry enough to unleash the fury of the sun upon them. But despite all this, at the end of a boring, predictable day, I was surprised to receive your letter. In it, you described what you’d learned while you were in Appaloosa, “Friendship is a wondrous and powerful thing. Even the worst of enemies can become friends; you need understanding and compromise. You’ve got to share, you’ve got to care.” I must say that when you went into detail, describing what occurred between the settlers and the Buffalo tribe, I was quite impressed. I’ve also made a mental note to take a trip over to Appleloosa to help finite some of the relationships to prevent future conflict. Yet overall, I am astounded in how much you’ve grown, my Dusk Shine. You’ve gone from a bookworm with very, very few friends to going on these adventures with your friends for the good of Equestria, and each other. The fact of the matter is that I miss you. I miss having you here in Canterlot, in the castle, by my side. I’m still getting along as best as I can and working on getting my brother back on his hooves once again. I meet nobles, representatives, and ambassadors daily, yet the feeling of loneliness still haunts me. Each day, I tend to remember the times you were here. Besides, the palace seems empty when your laughter is missing. Please keep writing, my most faithful. As of now, it’s the only way I can hear from you. I still wait each day for something to arrive. A new lesson perhaps, or possibly a problem you may have. Whatever it may be, I always look forward to reading your letters, Dusk. I hope that you won’t forget about me in your new home of Ponyville. It would be a dark day for me to find that you have ceased to write to me. As a side note, I’ve recently had someone try to offer a hoof to court me today. She was from Manehatten, upper class (of course) and tried her best to be polite as can be. However, I’m glad to say that I’ve turned the offer down because there’s already one pony out there that has my eye for quite some time. Someone that I’ll wait until the sun dies to hear from. Have a good night, my Dusk Shine, Forever yours, Forever mi- “Canterlot,” the train’s conductor called out as Dusk noticed the train was slowing down, “this stop is Canterlot.”