Author's Notes:
Thanks to Deadinlight for beta-reading and helping me edit
Chapter Eight: Catching Up
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Darkness flows forever away from the light, and the road leading through it has a gradual decline so slight, you never notice how far you have gotten until you look back and see where you started. It is the same with evil, but I hope I never look back, I don’t want to know how far I have fallen, just to survive…
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The next morning Shadow Eyes awoke feeling completely refreshed and when she activated her magic to see she froze for a sec, not recognizing the room before she noticed Rich Quick laying beside her, and she remembered laying with him again, telling him over and over she forgave him. She also remembered that she was in his apartment, she had told him her story, and he accepted her still. Granted, it was not that damning of a story, the more she thought about it after going on the run in the first place the more she realized she damned herself by doing so. She could have been home right now, with her family, possibly married to Silver Hoof by now… No… She wouldn’t have found her special talent had she stayed.
Cutie Marks, even with her vision she could see a cutie mark, and she normally could not see smooth images, what was more she could see them in their particular colors, unaffected by the bluescale of her vision…
Slipping out of Rich’s hooves she trotted out into his kitchen and started to rummage through it in search of a coffee can so she could make the stallion and herself a cup of coffee.
Upon hearing someone in his kitchen Rich awoke with a start, and feeling a cold spot in his bed he figured that Shadow Eyes had left to go home, so for a second he was worried that it was a guard so he stumbled out of bed groaning as he hit the floor, only to hear Shadow Eyes yell into the room.
“Hey, where is your coffee?” Rich felt foolish, of course she wouldn’t just up and leave. Not after pouring her heart out to him, but he also felt odd. It was nice waking knowing someone was there for him this morning, but he also felt like that was dangerous for the both of them. Both of them wanted ponies, more dangerous for him because he would be known for associating with a Tenebrosus Magus, something that would yes, help him with his underworld connections, but would forever damn him in polite society, was that something he was willing to risk? Was he willing to damn himself to living only in the criminal underworld? Getting up from his position on the floor Rich made his way to the kitchen where he watched Shadow Eyes finally finding the Coffee, and he watched as she worked around the kitchen with a smile on her face as she started making breakfast for the two of them, almost as if she liked the mundane aspect of it. “Well? Are you going to help me?” she asked as she turned to him smiling at him, and he decided right then that he was going to risk everything. He was going to be with her as long as she wanted him, she poured out her heart over the course of the night before they retired for the night, him offering her his bed even though her apartment was just a few doors down.
“You look beautiful” Rich Quick suddenly said and the mare stopped what she was doing and turned to face him.
“Don’t. Don’t you say things that you can’t back up, Rich. Don’t try to start a relationship you know will end badly for both of us”
“You were fine with having a relationship with me as Blinding Sunrise, why change that now?” challenged Rich and Shadow Eyes gave him a sad look.
“Because as Blinding Sunrise, I could pretend to be a regular mare, a mare that hadn’t done all I have done, all for survival’s sake”
“And if I told you I prefer you over your imagined persona? If I told you that I would rather have you? And not Blinding Sunrise?” Shadow Eyes narrowed her clouded eyes at him.
“And why would you say that? You know next to nothing about the real me, and the first time we actually had a conversation I was strangling you, and before that we were trying to kill one another” said the mare and Rich just looked at her surely she hadn’t forgotten about telling him her story?
“I know why you are on the run, and you told me about your first love. You showed me you at your most vulnerable, and you trusted me. Why don’t you tell me what you really are afraid of” challenged Rich and Shadow Eyes snarled at him.
“You think you know me? I am not the mare I was then! I have done things, things I would have never done as Bright Star! Are you sure you want to risk everything to be with a mare who, if discovered will be the end of your life as you know it? I don’t think you truly understand the risk you are taking!”
“Isn’t that my decision? I want to know more about you, I want to know everything, and I want to share everything about me! I may be a thief but there is so much more that I am.” said Rich as he got nose to nose with her, as he did, he felt the urge to kiss the mare, but he bit back that feeling…
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Moonlit and Glory Star had been searching for months, but the more they searched the less certain they were that Princess Luna was right, sure Shadow Eyes was a Tenebrosus Magus, but in every sighting of the mare, she had been seen helping citizens, aiding the weak and helpless, and stopping other criminals…
“Glory… Are we doing the right thing?” asked Moonlit and the bat pony bit her lip as she turned to look at her partner, and sometimes lover.
“We have to trust the princess. We can’t allow doubts to cloud our minds now…” said the mare and Moonlit frowned, it sounded like the mare was trying to convince herself as much as him.
“Glory…” he started before the mare her face suddenly grew firm.
“Are you thinking about betraying our princess, Moonlit?” she asked baring her fangs and Moonlit frowned at her, his horn suddenly glowing as he readied himself for a fight. “It’s our job to follow the princess’s orders!”
“And to protect her! Even from herself, Glory Star!” snapped Moonlit as soon as he said that Glory Star leaped at him fangs bared, the stallion barely dodged them as he fired a magical bolt at her, the bolt missed and crashed into a wall leaving burn mark on said wall.
“The princess doesn’t need traitors like you protecting her!” said Glory Star as tears started to well up in her eyes as she readied herself to attack her mate once more when he grabbed her in a telekinetic field and slammed her against a wall and held her there.
“If I am a traitor for trying to protect the princess from making a grave mistake, then so be it, but I will not fight you Glory Star. Long live the night and all its glory, even you, the most beautiful star I have ever had the pleasure of meeting” said Moonlit before he cast a sleeping spell on the mare before he placed a call to Princess Celestia, the Solar Princess may be able to talk some sense into her sister, but if need be, he would commit treason to protect his princess from damning her soul to Tartarus by killing a mare whose only crime was practicing magic that was forbidden to protect them…
- - -
ESIS agent Seeker 019 was surprised to hear from a pony that reported directly to Princess Luna, a member of the Lunar Guard, a ranking member at that…
“Yes, Captain Novel, you said you had something to report?” asked the agent and Moonlit proceeded to inform the stallion who was even more surprised to learn one of his agents had disobeyed direct orders from Princess Celestia to keep her sister out of the loop and in fact had kept Princess Celestia out of the loop saying that they had lost track of the mare known as Shadow Eyes. “I take it you will need help then? I don’t think your partner, nor the Lunar Princess will take kindly to you informing us about this”
“No, I am going to continue my mission, but instead of killing her, I am going to protect her, but… I need somepony to help my partner, she obviously has conflicting feelings about this mission, but her loyalty to my princess… And to myself… Is causing some serious issues” said Moonlit as he sighed looking over his shoulder to the sleeping mare, still under the enchanted sleep he had cast on her, which he renewed every so often as to not be surprised by her attacking him. “We are currently at…”
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“Princess Celestia, I bring news, Seeker 028 has been disobeying your orders for the last few months and also has been feeding us false information on the Tenebrosus Magus known as Shadow Eyes, on the orders of your sister Princess Luna” said agent Silver Hoof, he had been recalled from his post on the Friendship Express. As he had requested when he first joined ESIS he was kept up to date with information about the mare known as Shadow Eyes, he knew who she really was, he had known ever since she surfaced, it was the mare he had fallen for in school, the heiress to the noble house of Star, Bright Star, and he would see her home safe, he knew what happened and so did Princess Celestia, but Celestia’s sister did not, all she saw was a pony who was practicing dark magic and was obviously corrupted by it. Foolish mare…
“I see… I take it you want to go after her? After all you are the one that told me who she was, and what happened” asked Celestia and Silver Hoof shook his head. Even he knew that would be a bad idea… She might recognize him, and if she had fallen off the deep end with her practice of dark magic, then his love for her would make him an easy target for spells that would control him…
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“You do not get to tell me what I can and cannot do Rich!” snapped Shadow Eyes and Rich unperturbed by the magic she was now channeling through the apartment stayed nose to nose with the mare before surprising her and pressing his lips to hers.
“Not anymore than you can tell me what to do, heiress, if we aren’t in a relationship, you have no say over what I do, short of me returning to my criminal ways of the past” he said pulling away, the kiss had shocked her enough that the magic she was channelling ceased. the shocked look on her face quickly changed to one of anger before she kissed him and the timeless dance began anew…