Chapter Twenty-Two: Wanna Play?
“But… You should be dead!” I screamed, my mind unable to process any of the information it was getting, “Luna said it was your time!”
“Good to see you too, Moon-butt,” Fire Breeze smiled at me before her expression turned serious, “And about that. Maybe Luna wasn’t really honest with you.”
“What do you mean?”
Luna coughed, “That means that we lied to you and sent Fire Breeze away from the Castle.”
“But why?” I asked.
“Maybe because she wanted you for herself,” Fire replied bitterly.
I sat down on my flank. It was too much. Way too much. The first love of my live, banished, but not dead. And then my Princess, the pony I vowed to die for lied to me and took her, just to replace Fire with herself.
All my thoughts stopped as I felt a soft wing embracing me. It was purple, and looking up, I saw Twilight smiling gently at me before glaring at the princess, “Do you even know what you’ve done?” Twilight hissed at the princess with barely contained anger.
I was shocked. No title, no friendliness, nothing. Twilight was outright pissed.
“You betrayed her heart! Not only that, you stole the mare she loved most, just so that you could replace her yourself!”
“Not as we planned, we have to thank Golden Glory for that,” Luna whispered, but Twilight stayed on like a dog with a bone.
“Are you insane? You lied to her! You betrayed her! You are a princess, such things should be way beneath you!” Twilight yelled.
“We were insane at that time,” Luna hollered.
“Yeah, right. Sorry to interrupt you, but the time I was with Fire Breeze, everything was still fine between you and Celestia,” I spat.
“We do not ask you to forgive us. We invited Fire Breeze here so we can all talk, and maybe revive the past,” Luna spoke gently.
I looked at Twilight, who looked at the ground. That is, until I unfolded my right wing to pull her muzzle up and kiss her. Her eyes went wide, but she soon leaned into the kiss.
“Hey, don’t even think about it. No matter what, nothing changed for me. You are my princess and I stick to my promises. I’m not going to leave you,” I whispered before looking at Luna, “I have no idea what you thought would happen, but I promised my heart to Twilight. Fire Breeze died for me, just like you told me.”
Fire Breeze looked rather downtrodden at that, “Not even a chance?”
“No,” I glared at her, “You might not be at fault for Luna’s actions, but I belong to Twilight now. Yes, of course I never forgot you and never stopped loving you. But those feelings aren’t as strong as they would need to be for me to take you back.”
“Can we at least start again as friends?” she whimpered.
I looked at Twilight who nodded and smiled, then sighed, “Alright. I guess that’s fine, Fire-butt,” I smiled slightly.
“You had nicknames as well?” Twilight laughed before blushing, “We need new ones for us,” she added in a whisper.
“Maybe we should go inside and talk. Just us four,” Fire Breeze suggested.
“This sounds like a good idea, indeed,” Luna said before looking at the other guards, “Back to your posts and duties,” they all bowed before quickly leaving.
We followed Luna inside the castle and up a hallway that looked surprisingly familiar. It was of the same design as in Luna's wing of the old castle.
Some things never change.
It was a short walk before Luna suddenly turned to the right and opened a door, motioning us to go in. We did that, finding ourselves in some kind of meeting room. A surprisingly large table with some chairs around it was positioned in the middle.
I took a seat and looked at Fire Breeze and Luna, who both sat down across me, while Twilight took my side, “So you simply banished Fire Breeze directly after promoting her to keep her away from me?” I asked Luna, but it was Fire who answered.
“Well, no, you see, I was reassigned. Permanently, I guess,” Fire Breeze explained, making a little shrug that made it seem like she wasn’t entirely sure how to word it herself, “One minute I was part of the Castle staff, and the next I was given the ritual of initiation and then whisked off to some forward operating base in the Zebra lands,” she said, giving a huff as she did so.
“The Zebra lands? Why would you ever be there?” Twilight asked, looking a little baffled at the idea of having a military base in the Zebra lands.
I cut in, “Ah, that’s easy. Back when we were together, we didn’t exactly have a good relationship with the Zebras. At the time, our relations with them were… fragile, to say the least,” I explained for Twilight before turning my attention back towards Fire Breeze, “But really, you were sent off to the Zebra lands right after your initiation?” I asked completely surprised at this new information.
“Yup, that’s about right. Went through the ritual, got to drink from a goblet, lots of candles, singing and dancing, and then whoosh! Out the front door and to the Zebra front lines. Funny how that works, innit?” Fire Dancer replied, giving an ironic eye roll as she explained how she was so easily just taken from me and the castle.
Luna just pouted, “It wasn't that bad!” she defended, crossing her hooves in front of herself and looking away with a pout.
“There was nothing but desert and zebras for miles! Of course it was bad! We didn’t even know about your rebellion until we were already banished,” Fire Breeze replied with a sarcastic laugh, shaking her head as she did so.
“And here I thought you loved the heat,” I replied teasingly with a coy little smirk on my muzzle.
“Oh, ha-ha, very funny. I just love the heat, especially when it’s constantly hot and there’s never any rain,” she replied, fixing me with a deadpan look as she spoke.
“In nearly a hundred years you had no way to message me or talk with Luna before the rebellion started?” I asked in complete and utter surprise.
Fire snorted, “Well, it's not like Luna just left me there without any watching eyes. There was no chance. I'm sorry.”
I glared at Luna, “All that time you were just lying to me. I can’t believe I crawled into your bed and didn’t even see it!”
“Calm down, please,” Twilight said, “We can argue as much as we want, it’s not going to change the past. It’s up to you if you forgive her or not.”
I snorted, but a look into her beautiful eyes made me shut my muzzle. She was right. Arguing wouldn’t help anypony, but was I even ready to forgive her already?
“We do not ask for your forgiveness,” Luna stated calmly, “We simply ask you to talk with us,” she motioned between herself and Fire.
“Speak for yourself, Princess,” Fire Breeze retorted, looking at the alicorn with a small smirk, “I want to be forgiven eventually. You can keep being humble all you want, I just want my friend back,” the bat pony said, turning her attention back to me.
I gave a little scoff and shook my head. It was typical Fire Breeze; brash, quick and careless. It was no wonder that she was a firedancer. She was really just like her namesake, in that she could be warm and caring, but burn wild and free the moment the right breeze came blowing through. And she always spoke her mind, which was a trait that I loved, and absolutely baffled most.
That's not to say that I loved Twilight and her hesitant, sheepish art any less. It was just of a different sort, and that made me love her that much more. And not only that. The purple alicorn simply had qualities in her character that stole my heart. She was unique. And she was mine.
“Well, you’re going to have to work for it, fire-butt. But I don’t see you having too much trouble with it,” I said, giving my old lover a subdued grin in her direction before looking back at Twilight, subtly leaning closer to my current lover. It was odd how even though I could be so close to my first love, I was no less attracted to Twilight. I would have thought that it might change, that I might fall head over hoof for Fire Breeze again. And yet, there I was, still incapable of going a minute without looking at my beautiful purple alicorn.
Fire Breeze coughed, “Can't you keep this to a minimum?” she asked, looking a little uncomfortable.
I was about to answer, but Twilight surprised me with a kiss before replying, “No.”
Sneaky mare. Show her that I'm yours. I simply grinned at that.
“Captain, she has a right to do this. You shouldn't try to stop it,” Luna chuckled, and my eyes went wide.
“Captain?!” I asked with wide eyes, jerking my attention over to Fire Breeze.
“Yep, Moon-butt! Since you were off playing solo guard for Princess Twilight over there, I got promoted,” Fire giggled happily.
“You sure you didn't just do this as some kind of apology for what you did to her?” I asked Luna, my eyes narrowing slightly in her direction.
“Hey!” Fire complained, fixing me with a glare.
“She earned it,” Luna simply answered with a slight smile.
“How?” Twilight cut in before blushing, “Sorry,” she said, giving me an apologetic smile before returning her attention to Luna and Fire Breeze.
“She did the test,” Luna whispered in a nearly inaudible tone.
“The test?” I asked loud, “When you say ‘the test’, you mean the test?!” I asked with wide eyes, to which Luna gave a simple nod.
Twilight looked at me with confusion evident on her face before I gave a heavy snort and crossed my hooves, “She bucked Luna.”
“What!?” Twilight exclaimed, looking at the two in complete surprise.
“You say that as if it's something bad,” Fire Breeze rolled her eyes, “Besides, we're not together.”
“As if I would care if you two are together or not,” I laughed, shaking my head in response to the defense.
Fire Breeze chuckled, “You sure don’t,” she replied with a nod, seeming not to believe my claim.
“Fire, seriously, I don’t give a buck. I know who my heart belongs to, and it isn’t you,” I replied cooly, gripping Twilight’s hoof into my own.
I could practically see her smile slipping. A small part of my mind told me that I was being too mean, but another part of me said she still loved me and wanted me back. If that was an attempt to do so, I had to extinguish the sparks before it could grow into a proper fire.
“Let’s not overdo this,” Luna cut in, “We said we can talk, there is no need for those insults,” she scolded, giving me a frown that suggested I had overstepped the boundaries.
“Then let me ask directly,” I turned to Fire Breeze, “What exactly is your plan now? Because the only thing I’ve gathered from this little talk is that you want me back! Otherwise you wouldn’t talk so bluntly about you and Luna fucking, trying to make me feel jealous about you,” I snapped, squaring my jaw and glaring at Fire Breeze without looking away.
Luna blushed upon my bluntly words while Twilight’s jaw fell open. Fire, however, she just glared at me.
“Is it wrong after such a long time?” she asked, looking me square in the eyes as she asked with a straight face.
“It is wrong to think the past can be revived. I’m at the side of a wonderful mare. I won her heart, along with her trust, and I’m definitely not going to waste it,” I replied, and to make my point, shuffled ever so slightly closer to Twilight’s side.
Luna hummed before tapping her chin, “You know, how about we play a game of hoofball like in the old days? Maybe that will help you two reconnect, even a little,” the princess said hopefully, giving a little smile as she offered the suggestion.
“Bat pony style?” I asked with a wide grin, a bit of my competitive eagerness resurfacing at the idea of kicking my ex-lover’s flank in hoofball.
“Of course, what else?” Fire replied before getting up, seeming to be just as eager at the idea.
I got up and motioned for Twilight to follow me, “Where do we play?”
“If you wait a second, I’ll get some of the other guards to set up a playfield,” Fire Breeze smiled.
“You can explain the rules to me in the meanwhile?” Twilight asked me, which served to make me worried pretty quickly.
“Twilight? Are you sure? Our hoofball games aren’t exactly kind,” I explained with a bit of a wince, worried about her getting hurt.
She smiled before nuzzling me softly, “You explain everything to me and I’ll be fine,” she reassured with a nod.
“Who are you, and what did you do to my lovely bookworm?” I asked teasingly, playfully giving her a nudge.
“I’ll stay at your side, and I trust that you’ll protect me, right?” Twilight said hopefully, giving me a soft and trusting smile as she leaned into me.
That smile could always melt my heart. Seriously, if she kept that up, I was really worried my heart would burn out someday.
“Alright, alright,” I chuckled, “Let’s go over the basics. Hoofball is usually played by pegasus or bat ponies, six in each team. One goalkeeper, the rest to score the ball. There are two goals made out of clouds at each side in the sky. You have to throw the ball into the cloud goal to score, and the first team to get five points wins. But everything is allowed. You can tackle, kick, punch, bite. Pretty much everything.”
Twilight’s eyes went wide with my description before asking very quietly, “Will Luna join us as well?”
“Of course we will, ”Luna chuckled behind her, “And being a princess comes with some advantages, of course,” She closed the distance between her and Twilight before whispering something into her ear I nearly missed, “Everything is allowed, including magic,” she explained in a conspiratory tone, a small smirk cracking her muzzle.
The grin Luna wore told me she was more than serious. And, oh Tartarus, I really remembered some of the games where she used magic. Needless to say it never ended well for the rest of us who were stuck with nothing but wings.
“Why do we have the feeling this will end bad for us, Lulu?” I asked her dubiously, my eyes narrowing into suspicious slits.
“We do not know what thou art talking about,” she replied mischievously, returning to her proper posture as her smirk turned into an evil grin.
“Royal canterlot voice?” Twilight asked as she rolled her eyes at me, “Really?” despite the tone, I could tell from the small smile that she was only making fun of me.
“Heh, it’s hard to drop old habbits,” I chuckled with a noncommittal shrug.
Luna turned and addressed Twilight, “We will be gentle against you.”
Twilight smiled, but I raised an eyebrow, “Don’t expect the same from me if you harm one single hair on her fur, Lulu,” I threatened, only half joking.
“Hey, enough talking,” Fire Breeze suddenly yelled, sticking her head back into the room, “Everything’s ready!”
Damn, she’s fast.
We followed Fire Breeze outside to the gardens in front of the castle. Up in the air, I could already notice the playfield. The large neutral cloud in the middle where we would start along with the fairly sizeable cloud goals at each end. Directly under the playfield, around a dozen bat ponies talked and chatted. They were all excited, and I knew that feeling.
“Well, I’ll let you choose first. I guess you want Princess Sparkle on your team?” Fire Breeze asked with a really not-too-friendly smile.
I nodded and looked over the bat ponies standing in front of me, “Heh, let’s make this fair, Fire-butt. I’ll take Night Breeze and Moonlit Sparks.”
Fire Breeze growled at me, but chose her players while I did the same. In the end, we each had five members. We both took our positions while I made sure that Twilight would stay close at my side. Of course, Fire Breeze took Luna right to the front while she placed herself in the goal.
“Ready to eat dust, Captain Fluffykins?” Luna asked with a really offsetting grin as we took our position in the middle of the field, directly opposite each other.
“Bring it on, Princess,” I chuckled, glaring at her as we waited for the game to start.
A pegasus in proper Lunar armor hovered in front of us with the small blue ball in his hooves, “All set?” he asked, to which Luna and I nodded, “Alright, play!” he exclaimed as he threw the ball into the air.
That’s when the slaughtering really began. Really, I had never expected it to end like that..
Of course, Luna was the first to catch the ball in her magic, and galloped past me and straight to the goal. To my surprise, Twilight was hot at her tail, chasing the princess. Sadly, she was no match for Luna’s flying, but Night Breeze caught the ball expertly. Just like I had hoped.
Some things you never forget, not even in a thousand years, I chuckled silently.
What happened next, surprised me as well as any other pony. Twilight asked for the ball, and after a nod from me, Night Breeze passed it to her. My marefriend made her way to me and I tried to meet her in the middle, but Fire was faster. She rushed towards her, shoulder angled to simply rush her down, and I knew I would be too late.
What followed was a surprised shriek, followed by a midnight blue streak bouncing away from a purple shield. I simply had to laugh as Fire was reflected by a good few meters through the air thanks to Twilight’s shield.
“Not fair!” Fire yelled.
“I thought everything was allowed?” Twilight smirked before shooting the ball off with her magic.
To all of our surprise, she made the goal.
“You should stay in your goal,” I laughed at Fire Breeze who had seemingly thought Twilight would be some easy target.
Needless to say, Luna was furious. Upon the ball being released, I found myself head-first in a cloud as Luna rushed by, the ball tightly in her magical grip. Rounding and blocking players, she approached Night Breeze. The poor mare stretched herself, and I could swear I heard her wince and curse as the ball flew past her hooftips and straight into the goal.
“One to one, I guess this is turning out interesting,” I smiled at Luna, who grinned.
“We never said it would be boring.”
The rest of the game went like quite like the first round. One side made a goal, the other one closed up right in the next turn. It was just like in the old times, just not exactly as bloody as it used to be. And I was happy about it, since Twilight participated. But what made my day was that my marefriend actually stood her own.
Twilight and I shared each half of the goals and won, but oh dear, it was so close. In the end, Luna accidentally burned our goal cloud down, “We are sorry,” she just grinned.
***
“This was surprisingly fun,” Twilight exclaimed as she hovered down behind me.
“You were awesome!” I replied before sweeping her off her hooves and gently laying her in my wings, kissing her passionately.
The kiss wasn’t long, but full of love, and to see her eyes flutter and the blush on her cheeks was worth a million bits to me, “Thank you, but anypony with the basic knowledge of magic could’ve done it,” she said sheepishly.
We both broke away and stopped as we noticed more than one bat pony landing heavily with various wounds on their body. Night Breeze was between them, holding her sides and panting hard. One of the balls Luna had shot with her magic hit her square in the ribs.
“Maybe not everything was that fun,” Twilight mumbled.
“Tis’ normal,” Luna replied with a chuckle, “They will be in excellent shape by our night again.”
I simply shook my head, “I should’ve known that you wouldn’t spare anypony. I’m glad I still remember your tactics so I fared better than anypony else.”
“We would’ve stopped if something bad happened, Captain Fluffykins,” Luna rolled her eyes mockingly.
“Of course,” I replied sarcastically before my eyes spotted Fire Breeze.
She had a grin on her face as she wiped her muzzle clean of the leftover blood where I had hit her with the ball, “Nice game, Moon-butt.”
I smiled slightly, “Indeed, Fire-butt.”
“How about you two stay in the old tower, Twilight?” Luna suddenly asked.
Twilight shifted her hooves and looked at me, but I just shrugged, “One night?” she whispered to me. I sighed before nodding, which she rewarded with a grin and another sultry whisper, “I can show you my old bedroom.”
That made the trip immediately a hundred times better, at least in my book. Hoping nopony had heard it, which was impossible since everyone around were bat ponies, I smiled at Luna, “Alright, we stay.”
“Huzzah!” Luna suddenly cheered, earning her some confusing glances before she calmed down again, “We shall talk to our sister and prepare thy room at once, Twilight.”
With how quickly she was gone, I really had to smile upon the realization that it was Luna’s plan after all. She had wanted us to stay from the beginning, but what her exact plan now was, I had no clue.
Twilight gently nuzzled into my side and we followed the others back into the castle. It turned better from how it started, but I was still worried about what was to come. At least, and I was sure about that, I would be able to face it without problems with my beautiful princess at my side.