//------------------------------// // XLVIII: Warmth // Story: Memoirs of a Magic Earth Pony // by The Lunar Samurai //------------------------------// We didn’t say much as the deluge continued, but I don’t think there was much we could say at all. Amethyst had completely stunned me, however now I’m not sure how I didn’t see it coming. I suppose hindsight is always twenty-twenty. Regardless, as the rain continued on, I noticed I wasn’t as cold anymore. Obviously this wasn’t the only thing that had come about by Amethyst’s actions, but it was the only thing that confused me. Naturally I was going to have feelings of elation, my adrenaline was coming off of its incredible high, but the warmth… I couldn’t explain it. It was as though my body was hopeful for my future as much as my mind was. She had, in one simple action, said everything I had needed to hear. I was so close to giving up, to letting my life sink away to mediocrity, and she just stopped it in that brief intimate moment. To this day, I look back on that kiss with that same sense of wondrous confusion, as though everything that happened was a dream too wild for my mind to conjure up. A few hours later, and the rain finally began to wane. By the time we could venture out of the protection of the awning, the day had grown late and we were both rather miserable. The warmth I felt was nice, but it did little to keep the soaked cloak off of my back. Amethyst’s was equally drenched, but it didn’t seem to bother her as much as mine did me. For some reason, she seemed almost disappointed as the last few drops fell from the sky. “We should probably get back,” I said as I strode out into the road. “What’s the rush?” Amethyst asked as she slowly stepped from the awning’s shade. “The rain’s gone, let’s just… you know… walk for a bit?” I was about to retort with a list of reasons why I wanted to be back indoors, but her plea made each one feel like a cheap excuse.There’s no rush… Just walk. “Alright,” I said a moment later with a shrug. “I guess it will take a while to get back to the university anyway.” Amethyst nodded eagerly as we started down the street. It was funny how I felt as we walked back. I could, for some unexplainable reason, feel her standing by my side. My mind was almost completely focused on her presence, and stranger still, I liked it. I liked the sense that there was somepony beside me in the mess around us. Every step splashed as we walked the puddles that littered the cobblestone path. The buildings around us seemed almost as if they were crying as the last of the rain trickled down their sloping roofs. It wasn’t as cold as it was before, but the air was still crisp and filled with strong smell of the rain. My cloak was still dripping, and I found myself struggling to keep Amethyst’s slower pace as we meandered back through the city. “Is something wrong?” Amethyst asked as I shivered slightly. “I’m just cold, that’s all.” “Well… I… I mean if you want to go back…” “It’s fine, don’t worry about it.” I didn’t want to make her feel like she was the source of my problems, even though she was in a roundabout way. She was silent for a moment as we trotted down the road. Initially I thought I had upset her, and regret took center stage in my mind, but it was soon dispelled when she spoke once more. “I love the rain.” She said almost wondrously as we rounded a corner. “Really?” I asked as I glanced toward the sky. “It’s dreary, cold, and uncomfortable.” “Well, yeah… but it’s nice in a way. It makes everything feel clean… like everything’s new again. And I love the sound of it. I don’t know why, but it always makes me feel… calm.” As we strode back through the city, I began to realize what she meant. No pony was out of their homes, and I’m sure the ones inside were cozily sipping on their tea. The clouds that hung just above the roofs were dark, but they still lit the world in a soft shade of white. Everything was pale and muted along the road, but as I watched the world wait out the storm, I noticed a glimmer in the corner of my eye. The sun had finally peeked through the clouds just on the horizon and casted a fleeting ray of orange through the road. Amethyst and I walked a bit further, the two of us beginning to relax as we meandered back to the library. I remember feeling at peace as we strode together, just like I had felt the day when Amethyst and I had simply enjoyed our solitary company together in the lab. It felt nice, like every hint of pain and anguish had been muted by a warmth that came from her presence. I couldn't, to this day, describe that feeling without grossly underrepresenting its subtle power, but it made everything fall into a new perspective, one where the world around me seemed a bit less hateful and a bit more kind. A few minutes later and the sun breached the clouds once more. This time instead of lighting only a small sliver of the street, the entire road seemed to catch fire in its warmth. I felt the rays land on my back, gently caressing my skin with the heat that it had craved. A chill ran down my back, welcoming the relief of the sun. “It feels nice, doesn't it?” Amethyst said quietly. I could only hum in agreement as I tried to shift my surprisingly chilly cloak off. “Oh, here…” Amethyst said as she lifted it from my back. I felt a twinge in my heart as she removed and folded it with ease in the air. Her magic, it had always been one of my stumbling blocks, but she never seemed to realize the impact it had on me. I suppose I had hidden it well enough. I figured that hiding my feelings of isolation and despair would only make things worse for our relationship, one that may, one day, grow into something much more profound. However, in spite of that thought, I felt like she needed to know. It was something that had a profound hold on my mind and I wanted nothing more than to let her know the truth. “A-Amethyst?” I asked, trying as best I could to deceive myself as I began to open such a personal subject. “Mhm?” “I… uhhh…” Well, saying I don’t like your magic is insulting. How on earth are you going to phrase this? She stopped and looked at me with a cocked eyebrow. “Are you alright?” “I… well…” I took a deep breath and composed myself. “I want to say something, but I really don’t know how to say it without…” Just shut up, you’re not doing yourself any favors. “Without what?” “Without insulting you.” “I’m not easily insulted,” she said with a smile. “Well… I uhh… alright, before I ask the question, I’ve got to ask another one first. Why did you kiss me?” Immediately her cheeks grew bright red. “I-It was a spur of the moment thing. I… well…” Now you’ve really done it. See, you should have just kept your mouth closed. Now you’ve upset her. “I just really can’t explain why I did it then, but I know why I wanted to.” She looked to the brightening sky for a moment, as though the parting clouds could give her the words to say. “It’s something I’ve always wanted to do. You’re not like the other stallions, at least, not the other unicorn stallions. I never would have thought I would have been attracted to an earth pony…” To be completely honest, her implication hurt a lot. I froze, and I think the shock on my face prompted her apology. “N-No… I didn’t mean it like that. I just… well… you see…” As she stumbled over herself, grasping to undo the pain that she had inflicted on me, I realized something about her. She was caught in it too, that strange realization that a horn on one’s head shouldn’t define who they were. She had been raised on the other side of the wall, where luxury, wealth, and magic were the distinguishing factor between their race and the earth ponies who served them. It was disgusting on multiple accounts, but that was the way the world worked. However, she and I, and maybe more, were beginning to realize that we weren’t all that different, that the two could work together to achieve greatness. I remember the rest of that interaction as an awkward walk back to the library, but that implication has stayed with me to this day. I wasn’t alone, Amethyst had shown that, despite our differences, we could continue through this world together. And, looking back on everything I had accomplished until then, that’s all I was ever searching for.