Sunshine jumped as her alarm clock rang, and a hoof quickly shot out to silence it before she flopped back down with a groan. For a few long moments, she just lay there, mind blank as she slowly woke up. Soon though, she began to remember her plans, and a smile grew on her face as she slowly opened her eyes to greet the day.
She slowly got up and hopped out of bed with a yawn, heading toward her bathroom to get cleaned up for her day off with Silver Streak. She decided on a nice shower to start the morning, and soon she was standing in the tub, enjoying the warm water soaking into her coat.
As she reached for the soap, she thought back to the events of the past few days. Since she and Silver had their first date, he had indeed visited her every day after, but more than that he convinced their friends to come visit as well. Any loneliness she had been feeling before their date was mostly gone now, and she was grateful to her friends for spending time with her, as well as to Silver for encouraging them to visit.
She continued to wash up, and began to frown as she thought of the amount of business she’d be missing out on by taking the day off. Saturdays were always her busiest days, so she knew closing the shop meant a lot of bits down the drain; still, she could definitely afford to take the day off—one of the few benefits of being too busy to relax—and she knew she needed a break from her work.
All in all, Sunny was looking forward to spending the day with her new special somepony, and she couldn’t help but wonder what plans he had in store for them.
= = = = = = = = = =
Silver Streak stood in his kitchen, opening a cupboard door to retrieve a box of cereal for a quick breakfast. He didn’t want to take the time making anything extravagant that morning, hoping instead to get through his meal quickly so that he could meet up with Sunny that much sooner. He soon had a bowl made up, and he trotted over to his dining room, bowl levitating nearby along with a scroll.
He sat at the table, and the bowl and scroll were both placed upon it, the latter unravelling for him to glance through. He wrote down all the different activities he could think of for their day together, though he would let Sunny decide what they would do. This day was for her, and he was more than happy to let her do whatever she wanted, just so long as he could spend the time with her.
As Silver ate his cereal, he thought back on the past few days since their first date together. He made sure to visit every day, and even talked to the others to come visit Sunny as well. Granted, he didn’t tell them about her issues running the shop, as she wanted to keep that private, but he knew she’d enjoy the company. It had only been a few days, but already she seemed happier and more relaxed between talking with them and venting to him.
He soon finished eating breakfast, and rolled up the scroll with his magic before he levitated both to the kitchen. He put the bowl in the sink, and the scroll he placed on the counter before he headed out the door. He had memorized the various activities they could do, and he had plenty of bits to do whatever Sunny wanted, so it was just a matter of meeting up with her now.
As he made his way through the marketplace toward Succulent Sweets, he spotted the flower mares at their stall, and decided to make a short detour…
= = = = = = = = = =
Sunny sighed happily after she took a sip of hot cocoa she made for herself while waiting for Silver. They had decided to meet up at the shop sometime around ten o’clock, and after breakfast she decided to sit in her kitchen waiting for him to come knocking.
I’ve still got time, she thought to herself, glancing over to the cabinet that held her cocoa beans. Maybe I could just… She grimaced and shook her head, trying to clear her mind. No! No working today! Today is supposed to be a break from all that, a nice day spent with my special somepony. Anything she needed to do could wait until tomorrow, on her normal day off.
She frowned as she gazed at her hot cocoa, thinking about her special somepony and the plans they had started for that day. She tried to remember the last time was that she even had a special somepony, let alone when she spent a full day relaxing… She realized that she broke up with her last boyfriend, a pegasus, during her last year at the culinary school, which was years ago. Has it really been that long since I dated anyone? She could scarcely believe it, and she intended to make up for lost time with Silver.
Just as she brought her mug up to take another sip of cocoa, she heard a knocking at the kitchen door, and turned to see Silver’s smiling face through one of the windows. She smiled and put the mug down on the counter before she walked over and opened the door, sharing a tender kiss with the unicorn which he lovingly returned. They slowly broke the kiss, and she greeted him, “Hey there. I’ve been waiting for you, you know.”
He gave her a sheepish smile, though he had gotten over his shyness enough to not blush every time they kissed. “I’m sorry about that, but I had to make a little detour.” The bouquet of flowers he bought levitated in front of him, a half dozen peonies in assorted colors, to be presented to Sunny. “I thought you might like these.”
She gasped and smiled at him. “Oh Silver, that’s so sweet!” She took the bouquet in her foreleg and held it close, sniffing deeply. “Mmm, they smell lovely, and they look beautiful and delicious. I’d better put them in water so they don’t go to waste.” She motioned for him to come inside before she turned to find a vase.
He came inside and closed the door behind him, sniffing the air to smell the scent of chocolate lingering from her hot cocoa. “That smells nice…” he said with a dreamy look on his face.
She giggled as she found a vase and filled it with water, telling him, “I made some hot cocoa, you’re welcome to try some. I make the BEST hot cocoa around.” She put her flowers in the vase and placed it on a counter by a window.
“Yeah, I think I’d like a cup, if you don’t mind. It’ll give us time to go over our plans for today,” he said. Sunny pointed out the cabinet that held her mugs, and his horn lit up as one was levitated out before he got himself a cup.
She led him out of the kitchen and sat in the dining room across from him, taking another sip of her cocoa. “So, you’ve got a plan for today?” she asked.
“Well, more like ideas, really,” he told her, bringing the mug up to his lips to blow on the hot cocoa before he took a sip. “Mmm, that’s really good!”
“Told ya,” she said with a wink.
“That you did,” he replied with a smile. “Anyway, keep in mind that these are only ideas; I’m leaving it entirely up to you to decide what we do today. So, first idea; since you like reading so much, I’m thinking perhaps we could visit the bookshop, and see about getting you some new books.”
“That sounds nice,” she responded. “It’s been a LONG time since I got myself a new book, and I think I’ve read through my whole library at least twice by now…”
“And my mom’s books five times each,” he teased her, remembering their conversation about his mother on his tour of Ponyville.
“Very true,” she replied with a smirk. “Speaking of, I don’t suppose you could send her a letter asking her to visit? I’d love to get her autograph…” she added with a sly smile.
Silver chuckled, but nodded, “Sure, Sunny, I’ll ask her to come visit sometime.”
“Great!” She grinned, then asked, “So, what other ideas did you have?”
“Oh, uh…” He thought about it a moment, then continued, “I heard about a nice dress shop in town; the Carousel Boutique. I thought maybe you’d like to go there and do some shopping?”
“It could be nice to browse, at least,” she replied. “I don’t think I’ve gone anywhere that needed me to dress fancy in a while, but it couldn’t hurt to look anyway.”
“Another idea is that we could go bowling,” he said. “I haven’t played since our get-together, and I think I’d enjoy a game now that I know how to play.”
“And here I thought this was all about what I’d like to do?” she teased him.
He smirked. “We could play together, you know,” he retorted. “Or maybe I could enjoy a solo game while you’re shopping for dresses?”
“Oh no you don’t!” she said with a grin. “We’re sticking together ALL day, whether you like it or not! It was your idea that I take this little vacation, after all.”
“Fair enough,” he chuckled. “Anyway, perhaps we could go watch a movie at the local theater? There’s a new release that looks interesting…”
“I’ll consider it,” Sunny said. “What else have you got?”
“Well, we’ll have to arrange for lunch and dinner, but that can wait for later,” he said. “At any rate, whatever happens, I think we should end the day by dancing at the nightclub.”
“Oooh, I like that idea!” She grinned and clapped her hooves. “I don’t get to go dancing nearly often enough!”
“That’s why I suggested it,” Silver said, finishing off his hot cocoa. “So, what should we start with, Sunny?”
She hummed quietly as she thought about it, before she answered, “I’m thinking the bookshop first, if you don’t mind.”
“It’s your day off, Sunny, so it’s all up to you,” he replied.
“Well then, onward to the bookshop!” she declared, pointing a hoof at the kitchen door before she got up and headed toward it.
Silver levitated both empty mugs over to the sink before he followed her out, happy to start their day together. He was interested in checking out the bookshop himself; after all, Ponyville was home to Princess Twilight Sparkle, so who knew what kind of books they stocked there?
= = = = = = = = = =
It didn’t take them too long to reach the bookshop, and the pair strolled through the door, stopping near the entrance to look about. The shop was, of course, filled with bookshelves all filled to the brim, and separated by genre.
Sunny closed her eyes and took a deep sniff, before she gave a long, happy sigh. “Do you smell that, Silver? That’s the smell of brand new books…” She so enjoyed the scent of paper and ink wafting throughout the shop, as prevalent as the scent of chocolate in hers.
Silver snorted in amusement. “Shall I give you and the books some private time together?” he asked with a smirk.
“Oh hush!” she replied with a smirk and a gentle shoulder-bump. “Come on, I wanna look around, and you can carry anything I find.”
“Alright then,” he said with a shrug as he followed along. He was content to let her lead on, especially since he got to enjoy the view of her fine rump.
Sunny quickly led them to the fiction section, where she immediately went to work looking through the selection of books they had to offer. She murmured to herself as she looked through the books, a smile on her face as she spotted a book here or there that got her interest. Occasionally she would pull one out to hoof over to Silver, who began to levitate a growing stack of books at his side.
“Having fun?” he asked, glancing over the stack he held so far in his magic.
“You have no idea!” she said with a grin. “I’m so glad I decided to come here first.” She found another book and hoofed it over to her boyfriend, who started it on a second stack at his other side. “I’ve been wanting to go out and get myself some new books for a while now.”
“Well I’m glad I convinced you to take a day off, then,” he replied with a smile.
“So am I… OH!” she exclaimed as she pulled out the latest Daring Do novel. “A.K. Yearling put out a new Daring Do book! Daring Do and Ring of Destiny.” She looked at the cover closely, and frowned. “Hey, wait a sec… Is that Rainbow Dash on the cover?”
“Huh?” Silver asked as he cocked an eyebrow at the mare. She showed him the book, and his brow furrowed as he looked at the cover. “That’s one of the Element Bearers, right? Yeah… Yeah, it looks like her, alright.”
“What’s she doing on the cover?” Sunny wondered. “You don’t think she actually went on an adventure with Daring Do, do you?”
Silver snorted and gave her an incredulous look. “Is that really so farfetched? I mean, we fought Dr. Caballeron and his henchponies just the other week!”
Her brow furrowed as she thought about that. “Yeah, you’ve got a point there… Who’d have thought that Daring Do was real, anyway?”
“Certainly not me,” he admitted. “Not before that whole incident with the golden idol, anyway. Kinda makes you wonder what other stories are based in reality, huh?”
“Yeah… hmm…” she pondered that a moment as she hoofed over the book for Silver to hang onto. “At any rate, I just hope we never have to deal with anything like that ever again.” Being ponynapped by a literary villain and caught up in a brawl for a precious treasure was enough adventure to last her a lifetime.
“Don’t worry Sunny,” he told her. “I’ll always be there to protect you, no matter what happens.” Now that he had this wonderful mare in his life, there was no way he would let anything happen to her ever again, and woe to anypony who threatened her.
Sunny stopped her search for a moment, a small smile on her face as she glanced over at her special somepony. “Thank you, dear. That means a lot to me.” Silver merely nodded in response, and she turned back to the bookshelves to continue looking as he followed along.
She pulled out a few more books, hoofing them over to Silver to carry in his magic, before she finally decided to call it a day. “I think that’s enough for… now…” she said as she turned toward the unicorn, noticing the two stacks of books held up in his magic. “Uh… whoops? Guess I got carried away there.”
He chuckled and shrugged. “I dunno, I thought it was cute how excited you were.”
She blushed a bit at that, but the smile fell from her face as she looked at the more than a dozen books she had picked out. She knew she was already losing money by having the shop closed that day, and it wouldn’t help to spend so much money on top of that. She sighed sadly and said, “Guess I gotta put a few of these away… And I was so excited to read all of them, too!”
Silver frowned in confusion. “What do you mean, Sunny? Why can’t you get all of them?” he wondered.
“I can’t be closed on a Saturday and also spend so much money…” she whined.
“Well then, I’ll buy them for you,” he told her with a smile. After seeing her excitement when she was going through all those books, there was no way he was going to let her leave without every book she wanted.
Her eyes widened in surprise. “W-what? All these books?” She could hardly believe her ears.
“Yep,” he said simply.
“N-no,” she retorted with a small shake of her head. “I can’t let you spend so much on me.”
“You want these books, and I want to make you happy,” he told her. “Please Sunny, let me do this for you. Consider it a present from your special somepony.” He had no qualms about buying up all those books and more, if it would put a smile on her face.
Sunny stood there speechless for a few moments, glancing between Silver and the two stacks of books. “Silver, I…” A wide smile grew on her face, and she quickly stepped forward to pull him into a rather passionate kiss, the excitement and joy overwhelming her.
Silver’s eyes widened as he received a long, passionate kiss from that beautiful mare, and his whole face reddened as he felt her tongue caressing his. It blew their tender, chaste kisses prior to that out of the water, and the books fell onto the floor as he lost concentration. He could barely react before she eventually broke the kiss, panting for air.
“Thank you, Silver. I really appreciate this,” she said, smiling wide at the blushing stallion.
“…Uh…” was his only response, his poor mind blown from the unexpected and passionate kiss.
She snorted and gave him a gentle poke to his chest. “Uh, you alright there, Silver?” She hadn’t expected him to just freeze up like that.
“…Wha?” He blinked a few times, slowly regaining his senses.
Sunny couldn’t help but laugh at his stunned expression. “Oh my gosh! Did I break you?” If he reacted like this to a kiss like that, she could only wonder how he’d react when they reached… that point in their relationship.
“I-I’m alright…” he said, the blush slowly fading from his face. “That was… wow…”
She smirked at that, an idea forming in her mind. “Liked that, huh?” She leaned forward to whisper huskily into his ear, “There’s plenty more where that came from, stud…” A little mean, perhaps, but she couldn’t resist the urge to tease him.
His blush just came right back at that as he felt a stirring down below. His jaw worked silently for a few moments before he cleared his throat, and started gathering up the books in his magic. “So, uh, I’m just… Um, gonna get these to the cashier…” He turned toward the front, pausing to glance back and tell his lover, “If you wanted to, uh, get a few more books, then that’d be fine, I suppose.”
She had been snickering at her poor, befuddled stallion, but suddenly perked up at the offer of more books. “Ooh, alright! I’ll meet you up front, just give me a few more minutes!” She quickly trotted over to the harlequin section, looking to snag a few steamy romance novels. Oh, awesome! she thought with a smile as she looked over the selection, There’s a new book by Taffy Inkwell!
After a few minutes, she trotted over to the cashier with a few extra books, and added them to the stack that was being rung up. The total cost was even more than Sunny was expecting, having been more focused on the books than their prices, but Silver simply smiled and paid for it all. He gathered all the books in his magic once more, and the two headed out the door.
“I think we better drop these off at your shop before we continue with our day,” said Silver.
“Sounds like a plan to me,” she replied as they started making their way to her home. She looked over to the unicorn with a smile, which began to fall as the sight of him surrounded by books reminded her of the incident at the remains of the Golden Oak library.
“So, I guess you won’t be bored for a while, huh?” he asked.
“Uh, no, I suppose not,” she replied absently, thinking about the fear he showed that day. What was it about the library that scared him so much? she wondered.
Silver glanced over at her with a frown. “If you’re still worried about the cost of the books, then don’t be. Long as you don’t ask me to spend this many bits on you for EVERY date, I think I’ll be fine,” he told her, flashing a smile.
“What?” she asked, having been lost in thought. “Oh, no, it’s not that, it’s…” she winced, not sure if she should bring it up or leave it be.
“It’s what?” he wondered. “What’s wrong, Sunny?”
She sighed, and said, “The thing is… There’s something I want to ask you about, but I’m worried you’ll get upset and it’ll ruin our date.”
He frowned at that, thinking for a moment as they walked along, before he said, “Well, I suppose it’s okay to ask, and I can refuse to answer if it’s that bad.”
She nodded, and certainly wouldn’t push it if he became upset. “Do you remember that day I showed you around town?”
“Yep,” he answered simply.
“…And do you remember what happened at the Golden Oak library?” she asked hesitantly.
He paused, his ears folding as he remembered that time in front of the remains of the old library. “…Yes,” he answered quietly, before continuing along.
Sunny winced at his reaction, but when he raised no objections, she pressed on. “When you saw the library, you seemed really… scared. Why is that?”
Silver was silent for a long moment, thinking to himself. What do I tell her? he wondered. I’ve never told anyone my main reason for coming to Ponyville. Will she be upset with me for keeping that a secret? He glanced over to her, seeing her concerned expression, and knew that he could trust her. “Can we wait to talk about it until we get to your shop?” he asked, preferring privacy for their coming conversation.
“Of course,” she told him. “It’s not too much further anyway.” They continued on, the shop already in sight, and soon they reached the kitchen door. They went inside, and headed for the dining room to sit and talk.
Silver placed the many books on the table, and sat down next to Sunny. He took a deep, soothing breath, feeling nervous about the conversation they would have. “So… I assume you remember Tirek’s attack on Equestria?”
“Of course,” she replied. “I wasn’t caught up in it myself, but I know what happened.” She could tell by this point that whatever happened involved Tirek somehow, but she would wait for Silver to tell his story.
His ears perked up at that. “Wait, I thought Ponyville was the last place Tirek attacked.”
“It was,” she replied, “but before he came, the Element Bearers told everypony in town to board up our windows and stay inside. When Tirek came, he drained them, and Discord too, before he went off to find Princess Twilight.”
“So you were never…” He swallowed a lump in his throat, still horrified at the memory of being drained and helpless. Still, she deserved to know the truth, so he fought through it. “You remember what I told you about my dream, when I first moved into Ponyville?”
It only took her a moment to recall, “Your dream is to be a great wizard, to help Equestria, right?”
He nodded. “That’s right. My whole life, I wanted to learn all the spells I could, I wanted to know everything I could about magic so that I could help Equestria, like Star Swirl the Bearded centuries before.”
“And then Tirek attacked…” said Sunny.
Silver nodded. “When he came to Fillydelphia, draining ponies of their magic, I thought that perhaps this was it; this was what I had done all that studying for.” He gave a hollow chuckle and shook his head, telling her, “I actually thought I could stop him, and save Equestria.”
“What happened, Silver?” she asked, a hoof moving to hold his.
He squeezed hers gently in return. “He was there in the street, just finished draining some ponies that Discord had gathered. So I called upon my magic, I charged at him, and I hit Tirek with my best shot.” He grimaced and shook his head. “He barely flinched, and then he drained my magic and walked away while Discord just laughed at my failure.” He could still remember the pain of having his magic drained, still hear the cackling laughter of the Draconequus even now.
Sunny remained silent, though she gave his hoof a gentle squeeze.
His vision became blurry as he teared up, the emotions and memories being drudged up overwhelming him. “I was completely useless, even after years of study and a talent with magic. I failed the city, I failed Equestria… And you want to know the worst part? When I was laying there, weak and powerless, my dreams seemingly shattered, I realized that w-without magic, I-I had nuh-nothing!” He began sobbing as he finally admitted that painful truth.
Sunny wrapped her forelegs around Silver and held him close as he cried, a hoof gently stroking his back as she tried to comfort him. She knew he was talented with magic, but it hadn’t occurred to her until then just how much of his life revolved around it. His hopes, his dreams, his sculpting, all gone when Tirek attacked, and nothing to fill the void. It was a pain that Sunny couldn’t imagine, and yet she did her best to comfort her special somepony.
It took a while for Silver’s sobbing to ease up before he continued his story. “When I got my magic back, I was so relieved, but I was also afraid. Home didn’t feel safe anymore, so when I heard it was Princess Twilight and her friends who defeated Tirek, I decided to move to Ponyville. It was the only place in all of Equestria I knew I could be safe.”
Her brow furrowed as she asked, “But, why hide that fact? Why not tell everypony the truth?”
“Because I’m ashamed of myself, of my weakness,” he told her. “The fact that I couldn’t do anything even after years of study, the fact that everypony else just bounced back from Tirek’s attack while I remain traumatized…”
She smiled as she brought a hoof up to caress his cheek as she told him, “Silver, you shouldn’t feel ashamed at all, either for failing to beat Tirek OR for still suffering from the attack. For one thing, I think you expect far too much of yourself.”
He sniffed and rubbed his eyes with a foreleg. “W-what do you mean?”
She brought a hoof to her chin thoughtfully as she said, “Well, let’s look at everything that’s threatened Equestria in recent years, shall we? Of the many dangers we’ve faced, two of them were gods, one was an entire army of shapeshifting emotion-eaters that were long thought to be myth, and then finally there was the magic-draining centaur who escaped from Tartarus.”
She shrugged as she continued, “Now, I don’t know anything about Star Swirl the Bearded, but I can’t imagine he could have done much against Tirek, if anything.”
Silver’s gaze fell as he thought about that. “Well, no, I suppose not…”
Sunny smiled and nodded. “Exactly. So, if a wise and powerful wizard like Star Swirl couldn’t hope to beat Tirek, how could an aspiring wizard like you stand a chance?” She saw Silver grimace and look away, but she gently brought a hoof up to turn his gaze back to her, giving him a sympathetic smile. “Silver, my point is that sometimes a problem is just too big for one pony, no matter how talented, to handle. There’s no way you could have beaten Tirek, and there’s no shame in that at all.”
“I-I guess you’re right,” he said with a nod. “Even Star Swirl had enemies he couldn’t beat…”
“Exactly,” she said with a smile. “And as for the trauma you still suffer, well…” Her smile fell a bit, and she gently squeezed his hoof. “Until today, I hadn’t really thought about how much of your life revolved around your magic. You’re right; back then, when Tirek attacked, you didn’t have anything except your magic. Now though, things are different.”
“What do you mean? Different how?” he asked.
Sunny smiled and told him, “Now you’ve got us. You’ve got friends, and a special somepony, who all care about you. We’ll always be here to support you, to lend you a helping hoof when you need it, and I know we can trust you to do the same for us.” She grinned and added, “I think you can already see how wonderful life is with friendship, though good times and bad.”
He smiled and nodded, squeezing her hoof gently in return. “You’re right. I’ve got more than magic now; I’ve got all of you in my life making it better than I ever thought it could be. Thank you for that.”
She chuckled. “You’re quite welcome,” she said, sharing a tender kiss with him which he gladly returned. “And one last thing to consider; Tirek is once again locked away in Tartarus, for good this time. He can’t hurt you anymore.”
Silver simply nodded at that, and Sunny pulled him into a hug. “Thanks for trusting me enough to tell me all that,” she whispered to him.
He smiled and nuzzled her softly, before whispering back, “Thank you for being so understanding.”
She nodded and smiled, pulling away from him to pat his shoulder. “I’ll always be happy to lend you an ear, Silver. Don’t be afraid to talk with me if you’re ever feeling down, okay?”
“Okay,” he replied, rubbing away the last of his tears. “I’m sorry, Sunny. This was supposed to be your day off to relax, and here I am bringing it down with my issues…”
She chuckled and shook her head. “No need to apologize. After all, I was the one who brought it up to begin with.”
“I suppose so…” he said with a shrug. “Well, anyway, why don’t we get back to your day off, huh? What do you want to do next?” It did feel good to cry it out and get all that off his chest, but this was Sunny’s day, not his, and he was determined not to take up more of it with his issues.
She stroked her chin as she pondered that a moment. “Hmm, well, one of your ideas was that we visit the Carousel Boutique. It HAS been a while since I went dress shopping.”
Silver frowned, instantly regretting his earlier suggestion. “Uh, could I just stay here and wallow in self-pity?”
Sunny snorted. “Nope! You’re coming with! After all, this whole vacation day was YOUR idea.”
“Great…” he mock complained, a smirk on his face.
Sunny got off the chair and grabbed his hoof, dragging him out of the dining room and toward the kitchen door once more. “Come on Silver, the day is still young!”
= = = = = = = = = =
Silver sighed as he sat there in the Carousel Boutique, every bit as bored as Sunny was entertained. He was surprised to discover that the owner of the shop was one of the Element Bearers, one he only met after the incident with the golden idol. Like the others, she lived and worked as any ordinary pony, and he couldn’t help but wonder what it was about Ponyville that seemed to gather these heroes together.
While he pondered that, Rarity had led Sunny over to a rack of dresses, trying to find the perfect dress for her. She hadn’t really had reason to go dress shopping in a while, not usually doing anything that required dressing up, but she was thoroughly enjoying herself looking through the selection of fine dresses that Rarity offered.
And of course, as Sunny looked through the dresses, she and Rarity were gossiping all the while. Silver couldn’t help but smile at that; it seemed that no mare could resist a chance for some gossip. Rarity had plenty to tell Sunny, and she was eating it all up, eager to catch up on all the juicy stories told by the local fashionista.
After a time, Sunny decided on a simple, light blue gown, and Rarity pointed out the dressing rooms for her to try it out. While Sunny was busy trying the dress on, Rarity decided to go over and talk to the patient stallion waiting for his special somepony.
“So, how are things going over here?” she asked.
“I’m bored,” Silver admitted, “but I’m happy that Sunny’s enjoying herself.”
“She certainly is,” Rarity agreed. “She told me it was your idea for her to take a day off from her shop.”
“Yeah, it was,” he responded with a nod. “The chocolate shop’s kept her so busy for so long, she hasn’t had a chance to really relax in years.”
Rarity nodded, frowning at that. “Yes, I too know the difficulties of running a business, though I suppose she has it worse; whereas I can make dresses and store them for months, she needs to constantly worry about keeping fresh products in stock.”
Silver nodded in agreement, but before they could continue the conversation, Sunny left the dressing room to stand before them. “What do you think?” she asked.
“It looks nice,” said Silver with a smile.
“Hmm… It’s not bad, but I’m not really sure that blue is your color,” Rarity replied, going over to the clothing rack to find something more suitable. She soon found one, a flowing red formal gown, and she levitated it over to Sunny. “I believe you’d look absolutely stunning in this. Why don’t you get out of that dress and try this one on?”
“Alright,” said Sunny, looking over the gown with a smile. She carried the dress on her back as she trotted back to the dressing room, while Rarity walked back over to Silver to continue their chat.
“So…” she began with a sly smile, “I heard from Sunny that you got her quite a large gift of books earlier. I must say, I admire that generosity of yours.”
Silver smiled at that. “Well she needed new books to read, and it made her happy, so I had no issues pampering her a bit.”
Rarity smirked, and offered a suggestion, “Well, if you really want to pamper her, might I recommend the delightful spa here in Ponyville?”
He perked up at that. “Ponyville has a spa?” He wondered why Sunny hadn’t shown him that on their tour, but realized that it wouldn’t be something he’d be interested in anyway.
“Oh yes, it most certainly does!” Rarity said with a smile. “Why, Fluttershy and I go there every week to relax and catch up. I must say, the spa sisters do a fantastic job, and I feel so relaxed after every session. It’s how I keep my stress at bay when my work here at the Carousel Boutique becomes difficult.”
“A spa day…” he murmured thoughtfully. He’d have to figure out Sunny’s workload, and see if she could squeeze in a few hours on one of her off days, but it sounded like it would be worth the time. “Yeah, that sounds like a great idea. Thanks, Miss Rarity.”
“Oh, don’t mention it,” she replied with a dismissive wave of her hoof. “I’m sure Sunny will find it quite enjoyable.”
The mare in question walked out of the dressing room and over to the pair, showing off the red gown. It was a long, flowing dress that covered her tail, and around her chest it split in a V-pattern to shoulder straps. “Well, what do you think?” Sunny asked.
Silver gawked at her a moment, seeing how well the dress fit her and how it complimented her natural colors. “You’re beautiful…” was his awestruck response.
Rarity grinned and nodded. “Indeed! Red is certainly your color, my dear.” She glanced over to Silver and giggled as she added, “If the stallions around town react half as favorably to you as Silver here, then I daresay you’ll need to fend them off with a stick!”
Sunny looked over at Silver and giggled, nodding at Rarity. “Yeah, I think you’re right.” She went over to a trio of full-length mirrors to take a look at herself, moving this way and that to catch herself at several angles. “Wow, you guys are right; I look good!” She grinned at the fashionista and told her, “I’ll take it!”
“Splendid!” said Rarity. “You just take that off in the dressing room, and when you come out I’ll ring you up.”
“Sounds good to me,” Sunny agreed. “Be right back!” she said as she headed to the dressing room once more.
Rarity and Silver both headed to the front, waiting for Sunny to finish up and bring the dress on out. Soon enough she walked over to them, the dress sprawled over her back, and she paid Rarity the appropriate amount while Silver levitated the dress off Sunny to carry it in his magic. They bid the fashionista farewell and left, heading back to the shop to drop off the dress.
As they walked along, Silver smirked and said, “I’m glad you didn’t ask me to get that dress for you; I’m gonna be living off canned beans for a month already!”
Sunny frowned and turned to Silver. “What?! But you said it was gonna be okay…” she drifted off as she saw the smirk on Silver’s face. “You’re teasing me, aren’t you?”
He gave a look of shock. “No, really?” He held that expression for just a moment before snorting and laughing at Sunny’s scowl.
“You doofus!” she shouted with a grin, swatting Silver on the shoulder.
He kept laughing. “What, I’m not allowed to tease you?”
“I’m just not used to it,” she replied with a smile. “You never used to joke around or tease anypony before.”
“You want me to stop?” he asked.
“No,” she said, shaking her head. “I’m glad you feel comfortable enough to joke around with me. It feels good to help you loosen up and be the stallion I know you can be.”
He blushed and smiled, and simply responded by planting a kiss on her cheek. She smiled and nuzzled him softly as they walked along, nearing the chocolate shop. Soon enough Sunny had the new dress hanging in her bedroom closet, and she came down the stairs to meet Silver in the hallway once more.
“So, where to next?” he asked.
“It’s getting close to noon, and I’m feeling hungry. How does lunch sound?” she wondered.
“Sounds great,” he replied. “Where did you want to go?”
“I’m thinking a café not too far away from here,” she suggested. “Come on, I’ll lead the way.”
Silver nodded, and followed along, eager to fill his grumbling belly as well.
= = = = = = = = = =
It didn’t take them long at all to get to the café and be seated, and only a couple minutes more to place their orders. They sat at one of the mushroom-like outdoor tables, deciding to enjoy the sunshine after having spent so much time shopping indoors.
After they got their drinks, Sunny spoke up, “Just wanted to say, thanks for being so patient at the Carousel Boutique; I know you were really bored, but I had a lot of fun gossiping and looking through the dresses.”
“It was no problem,” Silver replied after taking a sip of his lemonade. “This day is for you, and as long as you’re enjoying yourself then I’ve got no complaints.”
“Even still, I think your patience deserves a reward,” she said. “I think I’ll let you pick our next activity. So, what shall it be?” She truly had been enjoying their time together, but she wanted to do something that he’d enjoy as well; this was basically an all-day date, so she thought that both of them should have a good time.
He pondered that for a few moments, before a smile grew. “How about after lunch, we go bowling? I’d love to play again, and it’s something we could do together.”
“Sounds great,” she replied with a smile. “And I think some physical activity would be a nice change of pace from standing around and shopping.”
The food came soon after, and Sunny received a hearty sandwich while Silver got a fine salad. They dug in, both taking their time to enjoy the food and the company, and soon Silver decided to strike up a conversation.
“Hey Sunny, I was wondering; how did you earn your cutie mark?” he asked. Everypony had a story about their cutie marks, about how they discovered their special talents and earned their marks. He and Sunny had never discussed theirs, and he was curious to know more about her.
Sunny smiled fondly at the memory. “Oh, that’s a story to tell. Well, it all starts with a family tradition we have during Hearth’s Warming, involving sweets made for friends and family.”
“Family tradition, huh?” he asked, his interest piqued.
She nodded. “Yeah. Every year around Hearth’s Warming, my mom and I would make these baskets of treats for friends, neighbors, and family living here in Ponyville. It was simple stuff, like sugar cookies, and chocolate-covered pretzels, but everypony liked it.” Sunny smiled and continued, “It was one of my favorite things about Hearth’s Warming, especially when I got old enough to help Mom in the kitchen making it all.”
She took another bite of her sandwich, and a sip of her drink, before she continued her story. “My mom was in Canterlot for business, so Dad went and picked up all the normal ingredients we needed for those Hearth’s Warming treats. When Mom came home a couple days later, she brought more supplies with her, so we ended up with double what we needed.”
Silver listened intently as he munched on another forkful of salad.
“Well, I asked Mom if I could try something with the extra ingredients she bought, and she was fine with that. We went ahead and made our normal batches of seasonal treats, and then after that I got my chance to try something new with the extras,” said Sunny with a nostalgic look in her eyes. “We had a lot of chocolate bars and colored melting candy, as well as candy canes we’d give with the treats.”
“So what did you do with them?” he wondered.
She smiled wide, and explained, “Well, I decided to combine it all, to make a basic treat called chocolate bark. What I did was, I melted all the chocolate down while I had Mom smash up the candy canes, then I mixed them up and poured them out on a few sheets of wax paper to harden. While that was going on, I also melted the colored candy to drizzle on the hardened chocolate for extra pizazz.”
Sunny giggled, and finished the story. “We broke it all up, and tried a few pieces. It turned out really good, and I was so pleased with myself. I loved making it, and the other chocolate treats as well. It was at that moment I knew that was what I was meant to do, and that’s when my cutie mark appeared.”
“That’s a lovely story,” said Silver. “I’m sure that must have been the best Hearth’s Warming ever for you.”
“It was!” she replied with a giggle. “And what about you? How’d you get your cutie mark for magic? What drove a little colt to decide he wanted to be a great and powerful wizard?”
“That’s a bit of a long story, but I’ll be more than happy to tell it to you,” he said, taking a sip of his lemonade before he started. “So, it all started years and years ago, a few days after the Summer Sun Celebration. I had an uncle visit from out of town, a historian, and when we talked about the celebration, he told me about the powerful unicorn wizards who raised the sun and moon before Celestia, and how they were led by the greatest wizard of all; Star Swirl the Bearded.”
“Oh?” Sunny asked, curious to hear the tale. Basic Equestrian history told of how the unicorns would raise and lower the sun and moon, back before the unification, but she never realized that it took the most talented unicorns to perform that duty, let alone that they were led by one great wizard.
Silver nodded. “I demanded to know more about this pony, Star Swirl the Bearded, and how he became the greatest wizard in the history of Equestria. My uncle told me about everything he did in his time, about the many spells he made, and how he helped Princess Celestia and Equestria.”
He chuckled at the memory. “I was in awe; to think that a regular unicorn like myself could be that powerful, that he could make spells still in use today, and that even Princess Celestia herself sought his council… I thought, ‘if he could do it, then why can’t I?’”
“If Star Swirl the Bearded was such a great pony, why don’t more ponies know about him?” she wondered. She hadn’t heard of this unicorn until Silver came to town, and she couldn’t help but wonder why such a pony was seemingly forgotten.
“He lived a thousand years ago,” Silver explained. “That’s a LONG way back in the history of Equestria, plenty of time for anypony to be forgotten. Anyway, I wanted to learn more about this powerful unicorn, and my uncle was happy to get me some books detailing Star Swirl’s spells and adventures. The more I learned, the more I wanted to be just like him, to help Equestria and Princess Celestia whenever they needed me.”
“And that’s when you started studying magic, I assume?” Sunny piped up.
He nodded. “Yeah, I began going through spellbook after spellbook, learning lots of different spells in my quest to become a powerful wizard. This continued for a while, until one day my brother was messing around with his friends and broke a beautiful vase my mom owned. She was upset, and thought she’d have to toss it out, but I told her that magic might be able to help.”
“And did it?” she asked.
He smiled, and explained, “I remembered a spell I had read for repairing things, and I had to find it in the local library. When I finally found the spellbook I got it from, I read through it a few times to memorize it before I went right home and tried it out.” He looked nostalgic as he continued, “I remember pouring a lot of magic into the spell, thinking ‘if I can’t fix this vase, then how can I help Equestria?’ My effort paid off when the pieces of the vase pulled themselves back together and fused. After it was fixed, Mom pointed out the cutie mark that appeared when I performed the spell.”
Sunny smiled wide. “And you’ve been working hard on your magic ever since. I can’t wait to see what you’ll accomplish in the years to come.”
He looked to Sunny with a small smile as he told her, “Who knows? To be honest, it doesn’t seem quite as important anymore…” He blushed, but reached a hoof over to hold hers as he added, “Not since you came into my life.” Sure, he still dreamed of being a powerful wizard, of making new spells and helping Equestria, but now that he had Sunny by his side it had lost some of its glamour; being with Sunny seemed more important to him now.
She looked at him in surprise, her cheeks turning red as she blushed deeply. “S-Silver…” A small smile grew on her lips as she squeezed his hoof in return, feeling a warmth in her chest from his admission.
They spent a short while like that, just gazing into each other’s eyes as they enjoyed this tender moment.