• Published 25th Jun 2013
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The Dawn of a bright, new life. - Hallowedsoul



Two heart-broken souls are brought together in Equestria.

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Ch. 21: "Meeting the Family"

Chapter Twenty-One
“Meeting the Family”


After taking a shower and getting dressed in simple clothes, I decided to go to the kitchens to secure some food for the two of us while Twilight also took a shower and did all of her female prep work.

I had to ask a guard periodically to make sure I was on track ‘Amazing; a man, asking directions. Beware, Tartarus; Winter is coming.’, and they were more than happy to point me in the right direction. I got into an interesting conversation with two particular guards as I was about to enter the kitchens, one was a white pegasus stallion with a blonde mane in golden armor while the other was a strange kind of pegasus mare with golden eyes slitted like a cat’s, a black coat and midnight-blue armor, but her most interesting feature was that instead of the normal feathered wings, she had bat wings.

The white pegasus guard did not seem terribly thrilled at the prospect of a conversation, but his friend, who referred to herself as a ‘thestral’, was extremely interested in me and wouldn’t stop talking. Eventually, the white pegasus convinced her that she could continue chatting with me later and they wandered off.

Anyway, I got to the kitchens and they began cooking what I’d requested, though they gave me a confused look when I asked them to fry bread after dipping it an egg, cinnamon and sugar mixture. Once that was done, I turned and opened the door to leave, but I ended up bumping into someone coming in.

“Sorry about that, sir. I didn’t realize somepony was already here.” The newcomer said.

“Sorry, bud, I didn’t see you coming.” I replied at the same time.

We both looked at each other and laughed. He was a white unicorn stallion with a two-tone mane similar in color to Vinyl’s, but it was neatly maintained and it had an extra darker blue stripe running through it. He was wearing an outfit like what you’d see on military personnel that are off-duty and he was in really good shape. I held out my hand to him and he shook it firmly.

“Name’s Leon, you?”

“Leon, huh?” He replied giving me a warm smile “You must be the visitor Princess Celestia told me about. I’m Shining Armor and I’m the Captain of the Royal Guard, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

I stiffened and froze in place, my face faltering in its smile.

“Shining… Armor?” I asked carefully, to which he nodded, giving me a curious expression.

Oh crap… ‘Uh oh. Less than a couple of hours after sleeping with Twilight and you’ve already run into her big brother.’ Nica said, though there was a hint of amusement in her voice.

“Yes, that’s my name.” He replied, examining me carefully “Why, is there something wrong?”

“That depends, Shining Armor…” I said, shifting nervously “Actually, why don’t you come with me and everything will be explained when I return to my… marefriend.”

“Okay…” He replied carefully, and I led him back to the room, stopping at the door and turning to him.

“Alright, before I let you in, you gotta promise me something.” I said, and he crossed his arms over his chest.

“What’s that?”

“Whatever happens… please don’t kill me.” I replied and he cocked an eyebrow curiously, but nodded “Alright, here goes nothing…”

I opened the door and Twilight’s voice immediately called out from the bathroom.

“Welcome back, Leon. Did you find the kitchens okay?”

I did not react in any way, shape or form, instead turning a neutral expression toward Shining, who looked quite surprised.

“Um… yeah, you could say that…” I replied carefully “I… also found someone… quite unexpected.”

“Really? Who is it?”

“Twily?” Shining called out, and there was a surprised squeak from the bathroom followed by the sound of several things clattering to the floor.

There was a scuffling sound from the bathroom and Twilight flew out of it wearing a bright purple bathrobe that had her cutie mark embroidered near the bottom. The two of them stared at each other in shock before Twilight gave her brother a nervous smile.

“O-oh, Shining Armor!” She said, her voice cracking “What a pleasant surprise, I wasn’t expecting to see you until later this evening at Mom and Dad’s.”

He looked from Twilight, to me and back again, before turning to glare at me. I, for my part, was mentally crapping bricks.

“Would somepony please care to explain this… ‘surprise’ to me?” He asked flatly and Twilight’s mouth moved for a second before she remembered she needed words to go with those movements.

“Oh, um… well, I… we are…” She sputtered, not quite deciding on what she should say first, but I came to her rescue ‘Here Lies Leon; He died protecting his beloved Twilight Sparkle from her angry brother.’ Can it, Nica.

“Twilight and I are in a relationship.” I replied bravely and walked over to put an arm around Twilight’s waist, but mentally composed my Last Will and Testament.

Shining Armor stared at both of us for a moment, and I felt Twilight trembling slightly. Then he let out a sigh and gave both of us a relieved smile.

“Thank Celestia.” He said, and my beloved and I both stared at him in confusion “We were worried she’d never find somepony else…”

“What?” Was the unanimous reply and he looked at us sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head.

“Well, Princess Celestia told me a few months ago that Twilight was mourning the loss of a stallion she’d loved.” He replied and turned a sad expression to Twilight “And when you came up to Canterlot a few weeks later, you didn’t even acknowledge me or Mom or Dad…”

Twilight drew in a startled breath and looked away ashamed.

“Shiny, I-” She began, but her brother stopped her.

“Don’t apologize, Twily, you were going through a tough time. I’m just glad you’ve finally moved on.” He said, then cocked an eyebrow at us curiously “So… are things what they appear to be or…”

“Spoilers, my friend.” I replied with a wink before Twilight, blushing furiously at the thought of having to talk about her sex life in front of her brother, could respond.

“Leon… as much as I hate to say this, we’re not friends… yet.” Shining stated coolly “Right now, you’re her coltfriend and I’m her big brother, which means no funny business around me. Speaking of which…”

He walked over and pushed us apart, putting himself firmly between me and Twilight, who was now indignant.

“Shiny, just what do you think you’re doing?!” She demanded of him “If I want to be close to my coltfriend, you have no business trying to stop me! I’m not twelve years old!”

“It’s alright, Twi.” I replied, giving her a warm smile “He’s your big brother, which pretty much means he’s obligated to hate my guts until such time as he deems me worthy of you.”

He blinked in surprise, but nodded. Twilight looked at both of us in bewilderment before shaking her head.

“Stallions…” She muttered before walking back into the bathroom.

Shining walked over to me and leaned in close.

“Thanks for understanding, Leon; I truly mean no offense and I’m actually really excited to see Twilight with somepony who doesn’t crack under pressure.” He whispered, and I patted his shoulder brotherly.

“It’s cool, man, really.” I replied with a smile “Don’t tell Twilight, but I was terrified the whole time.”

There was a knock at the door and when I answered, it was a pair of maids pushing a serving cart with them that had some plates, silverware, glasses, a covered tray, a bottle of syrup, two jugs with orange juice in one and water in the other and a few rolls of napkins.

“Good morning, sir; your food is ready.” One of them said. I nodded and allowed them in. They made a beeline for the large round table and began to set it, with one directing the other on proper placement. Once they were done, they stood to the side for some reason. I glanced at them curiously, but then Shining Armor coughed and gestured to the table.

“They’re waiting for you to inspect it, Leon, to see if it meets your approval.” He said, but I still looked at him in confusion.

“Uh, I’m sure it’s fine the way they have it.” I responded.

“Apologies, sir, but it’s a rule that we cannot leave until you have inspected the table and have approved of it.” The one I assumed to be the experienced one of the two maids.

I sighed and walked over, checking out every single detail. After a few minutes I approached the two maids and leaned in close to the crew lead.

“Quality time with the rookie?” I whispered to her, and she stiffened in surprise but nodded “First time training?” Another nod. I smiled and patted her shoulder gently “Just do what you normally do and don’t worry about trying to meet somepony else’s expectations; you’re the one doing the training so do it the way you want.”

“Thank you, sir.” She whispered with a small smile.

I turned to the greenhorn and leaned in close to her as well.

“Recently hired?” I whispered to her and she nodded nervously.

“Just started today, sir.” She replied quietly. I smiled at her and also patted her shoulder gently.

“Let me give you some advice, honey.” I whispered, looking into her eyes “There’s not a single pony here that hasn’t been where you are today, though most of them tend to forget that when heckling newbies. Just stay calm, do your job as you’re taught and ignore anypony who tries to bully you. And don’t be afraid to ask questions.”

She gave me a surprised look, but smiled and nodded “Thank you, sir, I’ll remember that.”

You’re way too damn nice, Leon.’ Nica said, though there was approval in her voice.

I stepped away from the two maids and faced them calmly.

“The table is set in an acceptable manner; you two may leave us now.” I stated, and both mares curtsied and promptly left, taking the empty cart with them.

I turned to Shining Armor and saw that Twilight had rejoined us in her regular clothes and was smiling affectionately, while her brother gave a nod of approval.

“Gotta admit, I’m starting to like you, Leon.” He said cheerfully “Not many ponies are nice to the help and you’ve probably inspired those two to do better than they would otherwise.”

“I did this kind of job for a year back in my world.” I replied with a shrug “There are gonna be idiots and assholes everywhere and it’s not worth the energy you’d spend being angry at every nasty word they throw at you, because that’s all they’re brave enough to use.”

I gestured to the table, which had a tray piled high with the fried bread dish.

“Care to join us, Shining? It seems the cooks made more than Twilight or I can eat on our own.” I offered and he considered it for a moment.

“Okay, why not?” He said and both he and Twilight made their way over to the table.

I pulled a chair out for Twilight and helped her into it. Shining was about to take the seat to her immediate right, but she picked him up with her magic (her brother is no feather weight yet she lifted him off the ground like he was nothing) and placed him in a chair on the opposite side of the table.

I proceeded to move to the chair she’d saved for me, stealing a kiss from her on my way past, and sat down. Shining glared at me, but levitated some of the bread onto his plate and looked at it curiously.

“What is this?” He asked to which I smiled at him.

“It’s called French Toast where I come from.” I replied casually “its bread that’s fried in egg, really easy to make, which is probably why they made so much of it. Put some syrup on it, it’s good.”

“It certainly smells delicious.” Twilight replied with a smile “I can’t wait to try it.”

So we ate, having a nice conversation with Shining Armor. He seemed slightly perturbed when I told him I mostly just did the odd job around town, but he was amazed when Twilight had told him about Spectra.

“Really? I always thought the only alicorns in the world were Celestia, Luna and Cadence.”

“I know, I was so excited to learn about him!” She replied with a big smile, but then glanced at me nervously “O-of course, I was more excited just to be there with Leon.”

“Twilight…” I said, giving her an exasperated smile “I’d already told you it was alright if you wanted to spend the evening learning, all I cared about was that you enjoyed yourself.”

“Yes, I know…” She replied, sullenly “But I don’t want you to feel like that was all I cared about…”

“Twi…” I said, leaning in close and pecking her on the lips “I’m not gonna deny you your passion for learning, it’s one of the reasons I love you so much.”

She giggled and we sat there nuzzling each other for a second until Shining Armor gave a loud cough and we separated with a blush.

“Well…” He said, stretching “I think I’ll leave you two lovebirds alone for now; I’ll see you both at the house later, alright, Twily?”

“Of course, Shiny.” She replied with a warm smile.

With that, the Captain of the Guard departed and after a while Twilight and I left as well to get some nice clothes to wear that night when we met her family.

Though we spent most of the day talking about her family, my marefriend still fidgeted nervously as we approached the door to her parents’ house.

“Hey, Twi.” I said calmly, putting an arm around her shoulders “Everything’s going to be fine, I’m sure of it.”

“I know that, it’s just…” She replied, wringing her hands together “What if they don’t like you? What if this was all for nothing?”

We stopped at the door and I turned her towards me before kissing her briefly.

“What if, what if, what if. If everyone kept asking ‘what if’ all the time, nothing would get done. Don’t worry, they’re your parents and if they love you, they’re going to support you in whatever decision you make.” I stated calmly “And if they don’t… well, it’s not going to stop me from being in love with you, Twi.”

She took a deep breath and exhaled, and then looked at me affectionately.

“You’re right.” She said, leaning closer “I’m going to stop worrying so much and let the evening play out. I’m still a little nervous, though.”

I looked into her eyes for a moment before an idea struck me.

“Why don’t you tell me again who your parents are?” I asked and her eyes sparkled at the idea.

“Of course! To start with there’s my mother, Twilight Velvet. She’s a well-known author of fantasy books, primarily those that involve lots of adventure.” She said and I nodded sagely “She can be a bit obsessed with organization, but she’s really nice.”

“Just like her beautiful daughter.” I said softly and she giggled with a blush.

“I suppose.” She replied coyly “Anyway, then there’s my father, Night Light; he’s a professor at one of the schools here in Canterlot. He can seem a little… carefree, but I assure you he’s very sharp.”

“They sound very nice, I can’t wait to meet them.” I told her honestly and she smiled at me.

“I’m glad you’re excited… I just wish I wasn’t so nervous.” She said, before taking a deep breath and turning towards the door “Well… now or never, as they say.”

She took the knocker and knocked on the door a few times. After a moment, a light gray unicorn with a white and purple-striped mane and tail opened the door and smiled at us. She was wearing a maroon dress with silver slippers on her hooves. Her mane was done in a similar style as Twilight’s, but it was curlier in the back than my marefriend’s. She also looked remarkably like Twilight.

“Twilight, honey, it’s so good to see you!” The mare said when she saw Twilight, then turned her attention to me “And you must be the stallion she told us about; I must say, you’re rather strange for a pony, but you’re also fairly handsome.”

“Thank you ma’am, but I’m not a pony; I’m human.” I said with a polite bow, then held my hand out to her “My name is Leon, ma’am.”

The mare was surprised by my manners, but gave me a warm smile and shook my hand delicately.

“It is a pleasure to meet you, Mister Leon; I am Twilight’s mother, ‘Twilight Velvet’.” She said courteously “If you don’t mind, would you care to tell me where you came from? I was under the impression humans no longer existed in Equestria.”

I opened my mouth to reply, but Twilight interjected.

“Mom, now’s not the best time for that.” She said nervously “I’m sure Leon would be happy to answer your questions once we’re inside, don’t you agree?”

Velvet and I both nodded in agreement and the mare stepped to the side to allow us both in. Velvet led us both to the living room, where we would await dinner, which wasn’t going to be ready for a little while longer. I looked around for Twilight’s father, but he was nowhere to be seen.

“If you’re looking for my husband, he is getting dressed for tonight.” Velvet responded upon seeing my searching expression.

“Of course.” I said, and helped Twilight in to a chair, and waited for Velvet to take her own seat before sitting as well “Now, back to your question, ma’am-”

“’Velvet’, please.” Twilight’s mother interjected with a smile and I nodded politely.

“Yes, of course, Velvet. As for your question, I do not believe there are any Equestria-born humans. I came from a different world, though I would like to request that you not ask me about it; I’ve turned my back on that place and I have no intention of returning.”

She looked crestfallen “As you wish, though I was rather hoping to hear some stories about your world, maybe get some inspiration for my next book.” She said, and gave me a curious expression “If you don’t mind me asking, why have you abandoned your home?”

Twilight looked at me with concern, while I just looked away.

“Because it wasn’t home to me to begin with… if it’s all the same to you, Velvet, I do not wish to talk about it.” I replied carefully, and Twilight’s mother nodded.

We sat in silence for a moment and Twilight’s father joined us. He was a unicorn with a blue coat and a dark blue mane and tail, and he was wearing a fancy suit wealthy people would often wear to dinner events. I stood and walked over to him, with Twilight following at my side.

“Hello, honey, it’s wonderful to see you!” He exclaimed, giving a hug to his daughter before turning to me “And you must be her new coltfriend; I’m Night Light.”

“Leon, sir, and it’s a pleasure to meet you.” I said, extending my hand to him, which he shook firmly.

“Leon? That’s a good name, says you have a strong character.” He replied with a smile “We have a little bit of time before dinner is ready and Shining Armor has not arrived yet, so we have some room for a conversation; why don’t you start by telling us about yourself, Leon?”

Once everyone was seated, I began to tell them of my experience thus far, omitting the estrus incident, my threatening the life of another pony and the fact that I’ve already slept with Twilight (‘twice’), though both of Twilight’s parents seemed to notice that I’d left something out. They had curious expressions on their faces but they didn’t press it.

Just as I finished my story, Shining Armor showed up dressed for dinner.

“Hey, everypony.” He said, giving hugs to his parents and Twilight, while giving me a curt nod which I returned “Sorry I’m late, I had to pick up my own date for the evening.”

“You’re dating somepony?” Twilight asked, her expression somewhere between irritation and curiosity “Why didn’t you tell me when we saw each other this morning?”

“I wanted it to be a surprise for the whole family since we were all going to be in the same place tonight.” He replied casually “Anyway, let me introduce you to Princess Mi Amore Cadenza.

“Who?” Twilight said and I chuckled.

“He means ‘My Love Cadence’, somepony you know quite well, Twilight.” I replied and everypony in the room stared at me with jaws dropped “What?”

“I’m amazed you know that, Leon.” Cadence said with a giggle as she entered, then she and Twilight saw each other and did this cute little… something, I’m not sure what it was but it was cute.

Sunshine, sunshine, Ladybugs awake! Clap your hands and do a little shake!” They both sang while doing some kind of dance, ending with them laughing. I leaned in close to Shining and whispered in his ear.

“Gotta say, I’ve never been more attracted to Twilight in the short time we’ve been dating.” I said coyly, and he looked at me in irritation “Oh, come on, can you honestly tell me you’re not thinking the same thing about Cadence right now?”

He blushed and didn’t say anything, merely giving a small nod. The mares turned to us and Cadence gave a coy smile. In case you were wondering, she was wearing a gown that spoke of her status as a Princess, but not so much as to be impractical.

“And just what are you two whispering about?” She asked and I bowed politely.

“Oh nothing, Princess, only to say that I thought that little thing you and Twilight did was cute and incredibly attractive.” I replied causing Cadence to giggle and Twilight to blush. I chuckled and bowed again “It is a pleasure to meet you, Princess, my name is Leon.” I held my hand out to her to shake.

She took my hand and shook it gently. As she did, I felt a strange energy and then I felt my heart begin to quicken at her touch, while I felt my face flush slightly.

“It’s good to meet you, Leon.” She replied with a smile and I felt slightly woozy “If you don’t mind me asking, how did you know that’s what my title stood for.”

Brain, status report!’ Nica called out, alarmed.

An error has occurred in the run-time of most of the social aspects of Leon’s mind; rebooting in response, please stand by.

Cadence got a curious look on her face, like she’d heard something strange but she dismissed it with a small shrug. I, however, continued to stand there and stare at her like an idiot, trying to make my mouth work while also attempting to remember how to talk. Twilight noticed this and drew my arm to her.

“Do you mind if we step outside for a moment?” She asked and got a nod from both her parents “Thank you, we won’t take long.”

She lead me to the back door and out onto the porch, where the cool night air blew gently across my face and snapped me out of my stupor.

“Huh, Twilight?” I said, blinking and turning to her “My mind’s a little fuzzy, would you care to explain what just happened?”

“I don’t know, one moment you were fine then you shook her hand and spaced out.” She said, looking worriedly at me “What was it like on your end?”

I put a finger up to my chin in thought.

“It felt… a little like when I first met you, but without the whole ‘feeling sorry’ bit.” I replied calmly “My heart quickened and my face flushed and I couldn’t help but think she was awfully pretty.” I turned to my marefriend “I think I may have a crush on her, Twi.”

Twilight put her hands on her hips and gave me a deadpan stare.

“Oh, so do you think she’s prettier than me?” She asked flatly and I sighed.

“Of course not, Twi.” I replied calmly, drawing her into a hug “I think you’re the most beautiful mare in Equestria every time I look at you, and nothing’s gonna change that.”

“Are you sure?” She asked me quietly “I mean, I’m not as fun as Vinyl or as-”

I interrupted her with a kiss and while she was surprised at first, she quickly lost herself in it. After a moment, we broke the kiss and she stared at me affectionately.

“I love you, Twilight Sparkle, and nothing on this world or any other world is going to stop me from loving you.” I replied soothingly “What I feel for you goes beyond physical, Twi, I want you as a part of my life and I want to be a part of yours.”

She placed her head against my chest “I feel the same way, Leon… I’m sorry I doubted you, and myself.”

“I’m glad to see that’s resolved.” Cadence’s voice said from the door and we spun to look at her, breaking our embrace “I’m sorry to ruin such a tender moment between two individuals so deeply in love with each other, but I think I know what happened.”

Twilight and I glanced at each other before I motioned for her to continue.

“Well, as you know, I’m Princess Cadence and I’m an alicorn.” She began while Twilight and I nodded “Which means I have a special magical power not shared by any other being on the planet; I can create feelings of Love in other individuals. I’d heard from Aunt Celestia about you and I think your current sensitivity towards magic has caused you to experience some kind of backlash.”

“I developed a crush on you when I shook your hand.” I said and she nodded while I groaned “Is this something I’m always going to feel?”

“I don’t know, probably.” She said with a shrug and an embarrassed smile “I’ve only recently come into my power and I don’t quite have full control over everything I can do; I think you should be considering yourself lucky you didn’t fall in love with me.”

She was right; I dodged a bullet there. I was not interested in having to compete with Shining Armor for the affections of an alicorn princess that most likely wouldn’t give them to me to begin with. However, this did give me a new insight on the magical abilities of alicorns in general.

I sighed and gave Cadence a weary smile.

“That’ll do for now. As for your question, I know a few words from several languages back on my world, not enough to even attempt to begin speaking them but I get a general idea when someone speaks them. ‘Mi Amore Cadenza’, to me, quite literally translates to ‘My Love Cadence’.”

Both mares giggled at this and I felt Twilight take my arm and move close, looking at me with calm eyes.

“Are you going to be okay, Leon?” She asked carefully “This isn’t going to interfere with meeting my parents, is it?”

“Twilight…” I said, leaning in close to her ear to whisper “I was locked in my own home with you for a week while you were in heat; I think I can handle a small crush without it getting the better of me.”

She blushed slightly, but nodded. I turned to Cadence.

“I’m feeling better now, Your Majesty, let us return to the others.” I said and she smiled, but a held a hand up to stop me before I could go anywhere.

“You are right, but before we do, I would ask that you refer to me as ‘Cadence’, not ‘Princess’.” She said, giving another embarrassed smile “I’m not quite powerful enough to be considered in the same breath as Celestia or Luna.”

Are you powerful enough to hear me, Princess?’ Came Nica’s snarky response, which caused Cadence to frown in confusion.

“Is something wrong, Cadence?” I asked her, to which she gave me a conflicted expression.

“I thought I… no, never mind. Let’s return, shall we?” And she went back into the house.

She can hear me, but I’m not sure she can understand me; my voice probably comes to her as static or some junk like that. But enough of me flappin’ my jaw, get back to your evening, Leon!

Twilight and I followed Cadence inside, and I assured Twilight’s parents that I was fine. We sat and chatted for a little while, with the conversation mostly directed at either Twilight or Shining about their respective dates. Dinner was eventually served and we sat down, with each stallion (and me) seating our mares before taking our own seats ‘It was funny, they all did it at the exact same time.’.

It was a nice affair, a garden salad followed by a nice vegetarian meal, with dessert being extremely delicious ice cream (homemade vanilla with chunks of Red Velvet cake and raspberry swirls). Then we spent a couple of hours with small talk. I decided to share one of my theories with them, which delighted Twilight Velvet and Night Light as much as Twilight Sparkle (who had produced quill and parchment from frickin’ nowhere, gotta ask her how she does it). It wasn’t as big as my Reality/Time Travel one, so I’m not gonna waste time with the details.

Anyway, the evening wound to a close and it was time for Twilight and I to return to our room at the castle because we were returning to Ponyville early the next morning.

“Well, it was a pleasure to meet you, Leon.” Velvet said, giving me a small hug and whispered in my ear “You treat my daughter properly or you will regret it.”

“It was a pleasure to meet you as well. And you have my word that Twilight will be well cared for.” I replied calmly and turned to Night Light, who gave me another firm handshake.

“Wonderful to meet you, Leon, I hope we have the pleasure of chatting more in the very near future.” He said and I returned the sentiment.

We said our goodbyes to Shining Armor and Cadence, the former also giving me another firm handshake while the latter gave me a polite bow (neither of us felt comfortable touching each other for fear of exaggerating my crush on her).

Twilight and I were back in our room, with my marefriend in the bathroom finishing her pre-sleep stuff.

“Well, that’s over with… you weren’t too nervous, were you?” She asked from the bathroom while I lay on the bed, having finished my prep earlier.

“I was actually very comfortable around them, Twi.” I replied tiredly “The only bump in the evening was that first contact with Cadence; don’t get me wrong, she’s a very nice and friendly mare and Shining Armor is lucky to be m-, uh, dating her.”

Twilight poked her head out of the bathroom and looked at me curiously.

“What were you about to say about Shiny and Cadence?” She asked and I put a finger up to my lips with a calm smile, which made her give me a deadpan stare “Spoilers, huh.”

“You learn quick, padawan.” I replied with a chuckle and she rolled her eyes and ducked her head back into the bathroom.

Eventually she came out in her pajamas and crawled into bed next to me, laying her head against my chest. We lay like that in silence before she craned her head a bit to look at me.

“Tell me a story from your world, Leon; you must know some good ones.” She said and I cocked an eyebrow at her curiously.

“I know many, what genre would you like to hear? Horror, adventure, fantasy, Sci-Fi?”

“Anything but horror, please.” She replied and I smiled.

“Alright.” I said, wrapping my arms around her and she snuggled closer “I’ll tell you one of my favorites; it’s about a girl, born to unique circumstances but raised as a weapon for a war-mongering empire by an insane, sadistic man who wore the face of a clown.”

“It sounds like a terrible place.” Twilight said and I chuckled.

“Ah, but while the story is quite dark and the heroes face an event like none other, the story does have a happy ending.”

“Why is it your favorite, then?”

“Because I believe the best stories are the ones where the heroes face extreme adversity and the bad guys win at crucial moments, and this is a prime example of that kind of story.”

“I don’t understand.” Twilight said, giving me a curious look “Don’t you like it when the good guys win?”

“Tell me, Twilight; are you fond of stories that drop in the invincible hero who can’t possibly lose and never has to compromise his morals, the kind of story where the bad guy is a clueless twit and will lose spectacularly against the hero every time?” I asked her, and I felt her sigh.

“No… I suppose not. But do you enjoy the stories where the heroes have no chance of winning at all?”

“Only when the hero is constantly being beaten despite his best efforts.” I replied, kissing the top of her head and she sighed contentedly “My favorite stories are the ones where the bad guys are true villains that have brilliant schemes that knock the hero down at a critical time, but after which the hero rises again for an amazing final victory, a victory made all the more meaningful because of all the hardships the hero faced to get there.”

“I think I see what you mean.” She giggled and shifted in my embrace “But I believe we’ve gone off track; why don’t you continue with the story?”

“As you wish, my dear.” I replied, which garnered a giggled from the mare “Anyway, the story begins in a vast mountain range during a snowstorm, in a mining village called Narshe. Three humans approached the town in large mechanized suits called Magitek Armor and they belonged to a vast empire that had its sights set on conquering the world; leading this small band of soldiers was a mysterious, emerald-haired girl…”

And so I told the story from my world, though what Twilight didn’t know was that she actually knew the emerald-haired girl very well, and who was currently watching over Carousel Boutique in Ponyville. When I reached the end, Twilight fell sound asleep with a small smile on her face.

“Goodnight, my love…” I whispered, kissing her head again which garnered a small, sleepy noise from her and she shifted her head slightly.

I raised my hand gently and lowered it just as gently, extinguished the lights, leaving Luna’s Moon as the only source. I closed my eyes and fell into a restful slumber, holding Twilight gently.

Author's Note:

Enjoy!

And also... bananas!

Can't believe I had to do this, but the way I had it originally the individual chapters were too short on their own. Anyway, apologies for any inconvenience, please enjoy the full chapter!

Also, I wish I could've created a more significant conversation between Twilight's parents and Leon, but I just didn't have enough information about either of them (mostly her father) to commit to anything more substantial. I truly, deeply apologize for it.