Bright Valor woke the next morning to a brand new day, excited that the weekend was finally here. This meant that he could go to Ditzy's house or the first time. He hopped out of bed and began to hum to himself.
A quick shower woke him from his tiredness that made his eyes heavy and he brushed his mane the way he always would. One looked at himself in the mirror and saw that there was no more blackness around his eyes. He brushed his mane up and over, out of the way of his left eye, and he smiled at how his reflection looked.
He grabbed a piece of toast and a plate of eggs his parents made for him. At the table, Heart was sipping a glass of orange juice and reading the newspaper. Diamond was eating an apple and looking at a magazine.
"Hey, mom?" Bright said, with a mouth full of toast.
"Yes, dear?" Diamond answered, flipping the page.
"Can I go to Ditzy's today?" Bright asked taking a spoonful of eggs and popping it in his mouth.
"If it's okay with her parents." Diamond said smiling at her son.
"Okay, I'll head over there later." The colt said, finishing his glass of juice.
"Thats, fine. Just be nice around her parents." Diamond said, sounding motherly.
"Okay, mom." He said putting his plate and glass in the sink.
Hours had passed since breakfast, and Bright had been doing his regular chores around the house. He cleaned his room up, and made sure that all of his homework had been completed. Looking at the clock, he noticed it was a little past noon. A smile grew on his face as he couldn't wait anymore. Brightgrabbed his jacket and put his head and hooves through. The door to his room opened and he trotted though to the front door.
"I'm going to Ditzy's house!" He called opening the door.
"Alright, be home by dark!" Heart responded from upstairs.
Bright stepped out to the chilly day and closed the door behind him. The road kicked up dust as he trotted to Sugar Cube Corner. He looked at the houses as he passed. A small gray bolted into a house and slammed the door shut. Bright thought that must have been Ditzy, so he trotted to the door and knocked on it with a hoof.
A white mare answered the door. Her mane was yellow, but brighter than Ditzy's.
"Hello ma'am, does Ditzy live here?" Bright asked the mare.
"Yes she does, and she has had enough of you three!" She said slamming the door in his face.
"Huh? What do you mean!" He said, loud enough to sound through the door. Again the door swung open, but faster and the mare looked angry.
"You bullies had made it rough on her, and she has had enough!" She yelled to Bright Valor. His heart sank as he thought of what he had done to her.
"I-I'm very sorry to hear that... But I'm no bully, though. The three... They have messed me up too." He said feeling the bruise on his head.
"Wait... What is your name?" She asked opening the door a little wider.
"I'm Bright Valor. I met Ditzy a while ago, and we made plans to hang out today... I'd like to see her, but if I need to leave I-" Bright was cut off by the motherly mare.
"Oh! She told me about you." The mare said with a sheepish smile on her face. Bright blushed, thinking of what Ditzy may have told her mother. "Her room is the first door on the right." She said pointing a hoof to a hallway.
"Thank you." Bright said stepping into the house and the door closing behind him.
He slowly approached her door and let a small knock on it. He listened and heard sniffling from inside and movenment. After a minute, he knocked again.
"Go away, mom! I don't want to talk right now!" She yelled from inside.
"It's me... Bright." He said softly from the hallway.
He heard hoof-steps and the door opened. He stepped inside and the door closed behind him. He turned to Ditzy, noticing the redness in her eyes and the streams of tears on her face.
"What did they do to you?" He whispered, feeling a sharp pain in his heart as he looked at her.
"They pushed me around. Called me names like cross-eyed retard and dumb-flank." She said lowering her head and ears flopped agains the side of her head.
Bright saw a tear hit the floor and her mane covered her eyes. He sat down in front of her and sighed. He gathered his words in his head, and his stomach ached again. A sigh sounded from him again and he leaned close to her. He brushed the golden mane that covered her eyes. She looked up at him with her gold eyes. The beautiful gold orbs were scorched red from crying. A smile grew on his face as he wiped a tear from her face. She smiled back as his hoof rested on her shoulder.
"I know their words hurt. But you know what? They don't have what we have, the will to take all of their words and hate. We can overcome this together, Ditzy. You're even stronger than I am Ditzy." Bright said smiling at her.
"How is that." She said sniffling and looking at Bright's warm, welcoming eyes.
"I get punched and beaten by them. Sure it hurts, but the pain goes away. Scars and bruises soon heal. But words aren't like a scar. They stick to you and begin to eat away at you. But you take their words and can overcome them. They have words as their weapon, but you have the upper hoof. You have this." Bright patted his hoof on Ditzy's chest.
"A heart, and not just any heart. A heart that can withstand any painful words. I see that you are sad right now, but I also see the bravest set of eyes in the world. That is why you are stronger than me." He set his hoof back down as he finished talking.
"Then I can't be stronger than you!" Ditzy spoke, a grin on her face. "Because you have a heart too... Nopony has shown me this much care, Bright." The young mare said, holding a hoof to his chest as well.
She smiled and looked at him in the eyes. She wrapped her hooves around his back and pulled him close to her. She rested her head on the back of his neck and she sighed. Bright began to heat up and his heart pounded in his chest. His wings gave a small flutter as he smiled again. He set his head down and nuzzled it agains the back of Ditzy's neck. The embrace made the whole world melt away around them. Thousands of burdens lifted off his shoulders as he felt the warmth surround him.
"Thank you." Ditzy whispered as she nuzzled him back.
"Its okay... Nopony deserves to take as much as you do." Bright said patting her back.
"Why do you like to help me so much?" She said, pulling away from their embrace.
"Well..." He began to gather his words again in his mind.
"I'm not going to lie. But ever since I saw you getting bullied, I though it was the worst thing I ever witnessed. Something inside me made me approach you and help you cheer up. But when I sat with you and talked with you. I felt strange, and I was so comfortable around you. When I see you so torn apart, I feel like my world doesn't matter anymore. All I feel is to help you. And to be honest, I like being around you, and helping you be happy." The ache in his stomach returned and he waited for her reaction.
She smiled as she understood what he meant. A tear streamed down her cheek, and a frown appeared on Bright's face.
"What's wrong?" He said concerned.
"Thank you. That means alot, and its nice to know how you feel." She said wiping the tear from her eye.
"Well, I guess you want to be alone, so I'll see you later, okay?" He said making his way to her door.
"Um... Okay, I'll come by your house when I can hang out, okay?" She said stopping him from leaving.
"That sounds great! I can't wait to see you!" Bright said leaving the house.
He passed through the gates to the house and turned back. Ditzy held happiness in her eyes again as she smiled at him. Bright waved goodbye and she returned the gesture. He felt so light and care free again. He heard laughter and he looked around the street. He saw the three bullies laughing together and sitting on a bench. He took a step in their direction, but his fathers words rang in his head.
"Not yet..." He said to himself, continuing to his house.
He entered the door and greeted his father as he trotted up to the stairs to his room. He sat at his desk and pulled out his notebook for homework and set it on his desk. A knock filled the room and the door opened. Heart trotted into the room and sat on his bed.
"Your jacket is wet." Heart said, pointing out the small wet-spot.
"Oh, Ditzy was a little upset. I talked to her and let her have some time to herself." Brght explained leaning back into his chair.
"Bullies?" Heart asked looking out the window.
"Yeah." He said, turning back to his desk.
"And you were the one who held her... Right?" Heart said approaching his son.
"Yeah! I guess I was." He said looking up from the paper, remembering the time they shared today.
"That's my boy." Heart said with a grin on his face, patting his son on the head. "So, what are you working on now?"
"Just boring stuff... Learning how to multiply fractions. Stupid math..." Bright turned to his dad. He was looking out the window with a smile on his face. He chuckled and gave a strug.
"You got me there son... I don't like math either!" His dad said with a laugh, standing up from the bed.
"You're really good at protecting someone you love, keep it up, and you'll be a great pony someday." He said trotting to the door.
"Thanks, dad." He said, finishing up the first problem. "Wait, what?... LOVE?!" Bright exclaimed, hearing his dad laugh from the hallway.
Moments had passed and the sun began to set, his room illuminated by the sun from the horizon. Bright closed his notebook and put it back in his backs, looking out and smiling towards the sky.
"Bright! Ditzy is here to see you!" Diamond called from downstairs.
The colt left his room and quickly. His dad told him to be back by dark again as he patted his back. Bright trotted downstairs went to the door. He saw Ditzy sitting at the doorway with her bags.
"Hey! What would you like to do?" Bright said closing the door behind him.
"Follow me." Ditzy said spreading her wings.
She flapped hard and took off. Bright hasn't flown in a while and he stretched his wings through the openings his jacket. Air began to blow from underneath him as flapped his wings harder. He got a few feet off the ground and followed close behind Ditzy. They flew together to a hill with a single apple tree near the edge. They landed and Ditzy sat under the tree reaching into her bags.
"I would always come here to get away from things." She said pulling out a small bottle. "Watch this."
She opened the cap to the bottle and dipped the stick in the liquid. She held out the stick and waved it around. Bubbles began to form in the air and shone in the light of the setting sun. As each bubble crossed the sun, each beam shone through, making an array of colors fill the shade of the tree. The reflections shudder and sway from the bubbles. Ditzy and Bright watched as the beautiful orbs danced in the light.
"They're so beautiful. No wonder bubbles are your cutie-mark. You turned something so simple, into a beautiful piece of art." Bright said looking at Ditzy, who was blushing.
Bright suddenly felt something warm on his shoulder. He looked down to see Ditzy resting her head on his shoulder. He turned his gaze back to the sky and watched the sun on the horizon.
"Hey Bright ..." Ditzy whispered moving her head.
"Hmm?" He mumbled looking down to her.
Ditzy's face was blushed red as stretched her neck up to him, and landed a kiss on the cheek. His eyes spread wide as he turned beat red and his wings let out a small flutter. His heart ponded again and he felt like flying to Luna's moon and back. His stomach flipped as he smiled at her.
"Thank you... For being there for me." She said resting her head back on his shoulder.
That warm peck on his cheek set his heart aflutter. His eyes darted open as his face got hotter than Celestia's sun. He felt so tranquil with her by his side. All of the hate and pain left from his mind. He felt freed from a trap that he has been stuck in for years. Ever since he met Ditzy, his heart was so broken, but now its warm and full again. He will protect Ditzy forever and be there to let her cry on his shoulder.
"Anytime, Ditzy." He said wrapping a hoof around her shoulder.