//------------------------------// // Falling Deeper // Story: My Guiding Light // by Infinite Affection //------------------------------// The covers were tucked in neatly around the pegasus as the morning sun crept in through the window; the golden beam illuminating a wide smile on the sound asleep pony. RIRIRIRIRIRIRIRINGGGGGGGGGG……….! Greenfly looked round in surprise. Oh! Looks like I forgot again. The wide awake pegasus got up from his chair and walked over to his bedside, placing a hoof down on his alarm clock to silence it. He usually rose before his alarm went off and consequently he normally forgot that he had set it the night before. Greenfly sighed in satisfaction of his tranquil work atmosphere returning and retraced his steps back to the mahogany desk where his latest sketch was nearing completion. He sat back down on his chair and continued working. It was handy having his bed so close to his workspace since if the evening weather was not ideal for a twilight fascination then he could instead finish his “sketch-load” for the day before retiring to slumber. His bedroom wasn’t grand either; circular in shape so that everything was conveniently located from one another. It was composed of his bed and desk featuring a rather unkempt pile of rough or practice sketches along with a dresser and bookshelf. The bookshelf though hardly had books in it but rather was another stockpile for his endless plans for completed and upcoming drawings. They too had their worth as occasionally some ponies would even ask to buy his plans, shabby as they were. So he kept them around knowing however to throw some out if the stack became too large. And that wouldn’t take long either. Greenfly had space aplenty but it was still a modest-sized home. In addition to his bedroom, the green pegasus owned a kitchen and a bathroom too. But both were only built big enough to accommodate himself. In fact, his front door was just a little away from the bedroom. His profession while fun wasn’t the most profitable and the artist could really only afford the basic essentials on top of his supply of paper and utensils. But the pegasus wasn’t any unhappier. He lived in a wonderful town, he had wonderful friends and Greenfly could ignore the former two reasons anyway as nothing could make him happier than see her smile. Chisel…chisel… KNOCK! KNOCK! Greenfly’s ears twitched at the sound of the front door. He placed his pencil stationary next to his newest drawing and slipped off the chair. The pegasus made his way through his bedroom arch to his front door and opened it. His sight came upon the friendly smile of the familiar professor. “Hello Greenfly!” greeted the doctor in his rich Trottingham accent. “I hope I’m not a bother but I just wanted to check to see if my order was ready yet?” Greenfly nodded in response. “Yes. I’m just putting the finishing touches on it now. Would you like to come in?” “I shall, thank you.” Greenfly stepped aside to let the earth pony enter. “Can I get you anything?” “No, I’m quite alright. Thanks for asking.” “Not at all. Well, the picture is on my desk if you would like to see it.” The pegasus gestured towards his bedroom and beckoned Doctor Whooves to follow him. The drawing laid on the desk just as he had left it with the pencil having not budged an inch. He took it back up in his hoof and began adding the final adjustments to the sketch. He felt the presence of the doctor’s head peering across as he continued drawing. He heard an excited gasp escape the earth pony’s lips. It was rather a cute drawing, Greenfly had to admit. A grey pegasus with blond hair tugging the sun streaked bed covers around her; her eyes closed and a joyful smile on her face while she dozed. The artist grunted happily to indicate he was finished and presented it to the doctor. A knowing grin appeared on his face. “Awww…that’s my little muffin alright…” The doctor stared at the picture for a good minute before Greenfly had the courage to break the silence. “So…are you satisfied?” “Wha-wha-what? Oh! Uhh…yes! I’m extremely satisfied! Thanks very much, Greenfly!” He blushed before continuing. “Uhh…Greenfly old chum…can you avoid telling Derpy about this until…until I have managed to…ummm…” The doctor trailed off. “Yes of course, Doctor,” stated the artist. “Client confidentiality, you know?” “Indeed Greenfly, indeed!” chuckled the doctor nervously. A pause followed as the embarrassed doctor steadied himself. “Now…how much do I owe you?” “Uh…ten bits.” The doctor gave the creative pegasus a questioning look. “Is that all? I would happily pay more for this.” Greenfly shrugged. “Ten bits is fine for me. Besides I couldn’t let one of my good neighbours go out of pocket now could I?” “Well if you are sure…ten bits it is!” The professor hoisted the sack he had been carrying around his head and from it took ten coins and gave it to the pegasus. “Thanks! Do let me know if you need something else sketched,” Greenfly said warmly. “Well actually Greenfly now that you mention it I-” The doctor was unable to finish as a melodic sound soon wafted its way into the room and interrupted their conversation. The sound grew louder and soon other ponies’ voices joined in. “What do you suppose is going on?” the doctor asked. Greenfly shrugged and began trotting at a brisk pace towards the front door to inspect the sudden commotion. Opening it, the pegasus could see a crowd of ponies straight in front of him all with excited happy faces; going somewhere. Doctor Whooves came up behind him and they both shared a confused look. “Doc, Doc!” Greenfly looked in the direction of the voice to find Derpy racing towards them; evidently addressing her secret admirer. “Doc! Ya gotta come see this!” “What’s going on Derpy?” he asked. “Those troublesome fillies finally got their cutie marks! Everyone’s going to see what they are!” The green pegasus woke as if out of a dream. He knew some troublesome fillies. She couldn’t have… “Oh that sounds marvellous! Don’t you think…” The doctor’s breath caught in a gust of wind that blew past him. It had come from beside him. “…Greenfly?” The doctor looked round but the excited pegasus had already bolted. The airborne pegasus couldn’t believe his behaviour of late. First his near breakdown the other night and now – for the first time since he came to Ponyville – the feeling of air rushing past his tufty orange mane reunited with him as he sharply rounded the corners of the town buildings, looking for that which compelled him to leave the ground. That which never left his thoughts. She just got…How? I…I… I must go to her. A cheer erupted from under Greenfly, prompting him to look down. He appeared to be hovering over the famed eatery square where Sugarcube Corner and various other restaurants sat. He stretched his wings to glide down for a closer look. Adjusting his wing power to a steady hover once more, the pegasus took in the sight he couldn’t believe he was witnessing. Deep in an embrace with Rainbow Dash, the orange filly beamed happily as she continued to nuzzle her sister-like friend. At least Greenfly was content that she had some form of sibling relation in her life. More dominant in the awestruck pegasus’s mind though was the new feature that had appeared on the orange pegasus. Etched onto her flank, a characteristic lightning bolt painted over a shield of crimson, white and orange was now evident. She had finally got her cutie mark. Greenfly couldn’t hold back any longer. A grin grew on his face; its weight clearly too much for the pegasus as his lips trembled under the extreme pressure exerted on his mouth. His eyes began to water and they would have probably emptied onto the ponies below, if the pegasus had not thought of that and floated back down to the ground. “Oh there you are, Greenfly!” He heard the greeting come from behind him but didn’t turn to see who it was. The pegasus instead found himself utterly transfixed at the emotional sight in front of him. The filly had parted from Rainbow Dash by now and – quite like the cyan pegasus – began to show off her enhanced flank to the passers-by who had evidently come to see the newly cutie-marked trio. “I wondered where you’d gone off to, old cha…is something wrong?” Greenfly took a while to notice that the doctor had caught up to him and was in fact standing right next to him. “Oh…no it’s nothing…” he replied softly, wiping the excess tears off his face. He had been crying gently it seemed and had been unaware of it until the doctor’s remark. “Hmm…” Greenfly saw the professor was eyeing him ponderously. He became nervous at the stare and his once vivid smile faded. Luckily for him, a shout caused their heads to jerk round to the excited trio once more. “You’ve made your mark…now Equestria’s so proud…you’ve made your mark…and we’re here to sing it loud…” “It certainly is great that those fillies finally earned their cutie marks eh old chap? Their families must be really proud!” the doctor enthused. “I a-” I mean, I am. Greenfly cleared his throat. “Yes, I feel very happy for them.” Truth be told, the pegasus was trying hard to not let his river break its banks; he didn’t want to attract any attention, least of all from her. Pretty soon though, the crowd of ponies began to disperse; the excitement of the happy event returning to normal levels. “Doc! Doc! Did you see their cutie marks?!” The walled-eyed pegasus flew over to them. “Yes Derpy, it’s extremely interesting to think they got their cutie marks at the same time! I must do some study into the science behind this.” Derpy sighed. “These moments make me think how lucky I am to have my own little filly, Dinky.” The scientist scratched the back of his head. “Well Derpy, I actually wanted to talk to you about something.” “Sure, Doc! What is it?” Greenfly saw the doctor incline his head to perhaps signal Derpy to walk with him a while. The doctor turned back to him with wide eyes and bit his lip. The green pegasus chuckled slightly. The two of them started off with the doctor making a stammered start to his conversation. “I think…perhaps…it would be best for Dinky…to have…a father…figure in her life…” Their voices faded as Greenfly remained to watch the daring filly a little longer. Wait! Where is she? Oh there…she’s leaving? The pegasus hastened to follow her but his brain suddenly caught his heart from doing anything foolish. No matter how much he wanted to congratulate her and wrap her in a hug, he knew it would cause nothing but sorrow for the jubilant pony. And today of all days was one that Greenfly wouldn’t want tarnished. The square became quite vacant as the remaining ponies departed to continue with their daily routine. Drooping his ears, the pegasus stifled a whimper. With his head down, he let the pipe leak slightly, knowing nopony was watching him. His brows twitched and soon the introvert pegasus felt rage boil within him. Greenfly knew this was wrong. But he didn’t care anymore. He had never felt so annoyed in all his years of living in the comforting earth pony town. I’m never going to have the guts to tell her. Greenfly cursed under his breath and shot his wings back up in temperament. He shot up into the air in a manner most unbecoming of the typical timid pegasus. What happened to walking? Know what, I really don’t care anymore! And with that the pegasus vigorously flapped his wings and made a beeline straight for his home with only one thing on his mind. Drawing.