Mending Light

by Kiromancer

37 - Fighting

The harsh emotions of the past night contrasted sharply to the peace I felt following our talk with Bellerophon. The warlord was still there, still sitting in the back of my head like an itch I couldn't scratch, but now his demeanor was different. Everything he had revealed spoke of a life of tragedy, and a long, pained existence. He made no efforts to talk to me, nor to even respond when I tried to get his attention. If that strange void where I'd found myself struggling was where he existed now, I couldn't help but feel some sympathy for him.

Not that it wasn't a relief to know he wouldn't be working against me, or against my friends. A sense of self is such an odd thing to take for granted, and the more I considered those moments where I hadn't been in control, the more I shuddered. It wasn't even just the thought of Bellerophon taking control that disturbed me most. No, the most terrifying thing was that not long ago, I'd have given it to him.

Mere months ago, I'd thrown myself uselessly in front of a magical explosion thinking I could save Dusky with some useless sacrifice. The bargain with Bellerophon had been the same kind of well-intentioned stupidity that could have cost me everything, that could still cost me everything, and for what? I trembled as I thought about it.

When I first saw Dusky, I could have never foreseen how it would change my life. Most shocking of all, that the path I walked since then had led me to be happy with who I was in a way I wouldn't have believed possible. It was a new feeling, and I felt selfishly unwilling to give it up.

Instead, I was fighting. I fought to train my body, to keep my own mind in dealing with Bellerophon, and now, to carve out a job and a life where I could do the things I needed to do to be happy.

To that end, I waited in an empty office in the Weather Factory, staring at the nearly barren desk between me and the door. Bree had made the final arrangements, and I was here to ensure the most difficult and unpredictable piece fell into place.

The knock came quickly, and with a deep breath, I answered. "Come in."

Spring was already talking as she pushed the door open. "Okay, look, I can explain. I don't know what I did, but I probably had a very goo—" She blinked as her eyes settled on me. "Nighty?"

I smiled warmly, standing to walk around the desk and give my sister a hug. "Spring, good to see you."

She twitched, and then hugged back fiercely, tears and words spilling out of her. "Good to see ya, nothing! Last time, you're in some bar and there's that crash and that mare and th-that Guard, and oh Celestia, Nighty! I've been worried sick, even when Mint said you were just fine!"

I coughed out a laugh through her hug. "I told you, I promised we'd figure things out between us. And, in part, that's why I'm here."

As she released me at last, her cheeks puffing out like a foal who wasn't getting her way. "In part?"

"I admit, this is a business meeting. It's why I had them call you off the factory floor. We need to talk about careers."

Spring groaned dramatically. "Careers? Boring! Night, you cannot seriously be here just to talk about my job, after everything else?"

I nodded, trying to keep a straight face. "I am. I want to know about your job here at the weather factory."

She dropped back onto her haunches and slumped. "Sheesh, Nighty... I just, well. It's a job, right? You know. It's... fine."

"Just fine?"

"Well, yeah, I guess." She started to scuff her hoof across the floor, tracing some pattern only she could see.

I turned back to the desk and flipped open her file to one of the dogeared pages Bree and I had marked. "You transferred positions a lot. Must have finally felt good to find one you enjoyed?"

She responded with an exasperated sigh. "Right. Enjoy. I guess. I just... found a position I could do that I didn't really need to think about."

Bree's guess that she'd given up sounded more and more likely. I watched my sister a moment as she distractedly eyed the floor. Much like when she'd come to the bar, this was not exactly the Spring I remembered. Hopefully, that was something I could help change for the better. "So, you're not happy here." I feigned making some notes on some loose paper.

"Well, I mean, happy enough. I'm fine." She lifted her head. "Say, what's up with the twenty questions anyways, Nighty? Not like you're my boss. I've had this discussion with them like, a billion times. I do my work just fine."

I grinned. "Well, no, I'm not your boss at the moment." I continued to doodle, trying to make it look like I was doing something important. "Of course, I was trying to find somepony to work with, and was hoping to find somepony to do me a huge favor. It'd mean a lot to me."

Spring stared at me as the words sank in. "Mean a lot to— what? Are you hiring me?"

"I wanted to think of it more like, I'm offering you an opportunity."

She wasn't getting it, her confused expression giving way to a more familiar mischief as her mind went in a completely different direction. "So, you want... me to embezzle from the weather factory? Smuggle you extra snow clouds? Is this a scam? Are we going to be in cahoots?"

That was more the Spring I knew. I laughed quietly. "The truth is, Spring, I'm getting promoted. Not just that, but I need to be able to plan ahead for what I hope will be quite a long trip." I grinned. A summer trip that I hope to repeat. "So what I need is somepony to take my old shift. Somepony I can train, show them my routines. Somepony I can trust."

"So... you do want to hire me!" Spring grinned triumphantly, then shook her head. "Whoa, whoa wait, you want me to do weather work? Like, actual weather work? I'm not qualified for that! I'm barely qualified for anything!"

"Did you realize you've worked nearly every position in the weather factory?" I tried to do my best impression of Bree, whenever she'd given her most inspiring talks to me. "The Weather Bureau has agreed that your breadth of knowledge might make this a perfect test on a temporary basis."

Her face slowly fell. "I mean, I can't make any promises Nighty. I don't think I'm as good at that stuff as you think I am."

"Well, if you're willing to try." I kept my face stern. This didn't feel entirely great, I wasn't exactly good at this whole teasing thing. This was something I thought I needed to do. "If you take the job, Spring, I'll forgive everything you did to me in the past."

"Wh-what!?" Spring sputtered, flailing a limb. "N-not fair, Nighty! That's evil! Th-that's just... fine! Fine. I'll do it. I thought we were going to like, work stuff out now? Figure out the family-ness? Is that it? Just 'Oh ho, Spring, work for me so my career advances and I'll forgive you' blackmail?"

"It's really important to me that this all works. Although, I admit, I, um... I kinda lied about one thing." I closed her folder and moved back towards her. I hugged her again, feeling more than a little bad about this whole thing. “I can’t forgive you because I already have.”

"Fine! I'll throw you a freakin’ party too! And I'll w-wait what?"

"Spring, you're my sister. And honestly, I probably owe you an apology too." I squeezed, feeling the water collecting in my eyes. "I shouldn't have left. I... I should have talked to you, or to somepony, or... or something. I should have done more, and you didn't deserve to feel like I didn't love you."

She broke, sobbing as she squeezed back. "You're a butt, Nighty. A complete butt"

I broke as well, the tears welling up cutting paths down my face. "I, um... I learned from the best."

"D-don't think I won't get you back for this."

I smiled. "I'm counting on it."

---

A few apologies, a few more hugs, and a promise to see her again soon, and I was winging back to Ponyville. Spring would be following soon enough, and after I made her arrangements, she'd be staying in my house while I was gone.

It was perfect. I needed somepony to take my shift, and somepony to watch my house while I was gone. Spring coming to Ponyville would hopefully solve it all. My sister back, a new employee I knew I could count on, and somepony living in the guest room of my house while I hopefully traveled Equestria. So long as Dusky wanted me along, that is.

Whether she wanted me along or not, I wanted to be ready, to see the world, and to be at her side while I saw it. The first step had been to get my job in order. Step two was to get my home in order.

Though, I suspected that second step had been sabotaged. Spring's retaliation for my teasing had come swiftly, in the form of an obscure list of 'necessities' that she required for her stay in Ponyville. To find these oddities, my path led me towards an obscure shop with a hoof painted sign. Terra's Knickknacks. I’d never visited it before I'd become friends with Terrabona, and just hadn't had occasion since.

The window was crammed full of all sorts of random toys, trinkets, furniture and anything else a pony could imagine. As I pushed open the door, I found that initial impression proved true for the interior as well. The store was quiet and it was difficult to see very far through the cramped shelves. They were stuffed to overflowing with random junk with no discernible organization or purpose. It honestly made me a little twitchy.

Working my way towards the back of the store, I at last found Terrabona sitting at a counter. Her horn glowed as she idly flipped through a magazine. Her eyes shifted over towards me and she grinned wide. "Flurry! I didn't hear you come in."

"Afternoon, Terra. I'm, uh, just looking for some, um," I glanced between the list and the cluttered shop. "Stuff for my guest room."

"Oh? Thinking of asking somepony of moving in with you?" She waggled her eyebrows. "Well, I'm sure I can help pick a few things out that suit her tastes, though hopefully not just for the guest room~."

I tilted my head at her tone, "Not... just? Well, maybe if you have ideas. I mean, she gave me a list, to um, be sure I knew what she liked."

"Huh, I guess that makes sense. Gotta say, I figured by now you'd have some idea abou—" She scrunched her nose. "Wait. Wait, who are we talking about?"

"Err... my sister?"

"Oh? Oh! Okay, different plan!" Terra hopped off the stool she'd perched on and came around the counter. "Let's see this list, then."

"So, room stuff, so you need, like, wall shelves or..." She levitated the paper from my hoof and stopped short as she read the list. "A stuffed toy dragon-fish plush, pancake-scented candles, six large 'fort quality' cushions or pillows, candy dishes with candy separated by color, a crown, and a framed photograph of you in a dress?"

I chuckled awkwardly. "My sister has, um... odd tastes."

Terra smirked. "Well, I've got candy dishes, but you'll have to sort your own candy. I know there's a seapony plush around here somewhere which is halfway there. Pancake candles? I think there's some syrup-scented candles I found around here, and I got plenty of spare cushions, as well as a toy crown and a picture frame, though you'll have to get that photo yourself. I wish I had one of those."

I blushed slightly, watching as Terra trotted through the store, her horn glowing as she glanced left and right. While I feared finding anything, let alone something so obscure, would be impossible in this mess, Terra navigated the aisles with ease.

Soon, she was trotting back to her counter with a pile of items floating behind her head. "There we go! Turns out, I did have some pancake-scented candles. Cinnamon toast and strawberry jam-scented too. So we lucked out!"

"W-Wow, that was fast. How did you even know where that was?"

She winked as she opened up her receipt book, recording the items. "Talent, Flurry. It is my shop, after all."

"Was pretty impressive. Never got to see you at work." I watched her write each item down on a receipt. "So, um, what do I owe you?"

"Total for all this is going to be seventy bits." She paused, her eyes flitting over to her magazine. "Hmmm. On second thought, I think I can cut you a deeper discount, if you don't mind answering a question for me about you and Dusky."

I shifted slightly, keenly aware of what kind of questions she was most likely to ask. "I'm not going into any personal details, Terra."

"What?" She chuckled. "Oh! Oh, yeah, no, no. This is more just, like, your opinion kinda thing."

"Alright?"

Her eyes dropped down to the magazine on the counter, and she turned the page to show me. The opened page showed various styles of necklaces, bracelets, horn rings, all set with various gemstones. "Yeah. So, would it be weird if Dusky asked you to marry her?"

I sputtered, glancing down at the magazine. "T-Terra! That's what I was talking about. It's too early for me to even think about... about anything like that."

She shook her head with a laugh, but her expression sobered quickly. She looked past me. "Not about you two getting married, though, I mean, c'mon Flurry. That's just a matter of time now. I just mean, would it feel weird if Dusky asked you? Like, is it weird for the mare to ask the stallion?"

I paused. That I hadn't considered either. Not just marriage itself, but about the proposal. "I think... I think I would be honored that she asked. Though, maybe it's a bit weird. I might wonder if I'd taken a misstep, or taken too long to ask. Though, none of that really matters, right? I... I know I'd say yes."

I grew silent. Would Dusky say yes if I asked her? It was silly to even think about, we'd not been dating terribly long, not even known one another for much longer. It was ludicrous to think she'd marry me.

"Yeah, me too." Terra sighed, then let her eyes sink down to meet mine. She coughed, pulling the magazine back to look at the jewelry. "I mean, yeah. Right. You and Dusky are good together. Me and Stalwart too. Just a matter of time."

Letting a grin creep onto my face, I smiled at Terra. "Well, when the time comes, I'll be there to wish you the best."

She nodded back, her smile mirroring my own. "Yeah. Same here, Flurry. When the time comes."

Terra finished packing up Spring's ransom, and I dug out the bits to pay her. With a quick hug, I headed for home.

I couldn't stop smiling as I lifted off from the streets of Ponyville. Terra was searching for a path that I had only just realized existed. A path to achieve a wonderful, incredible, unreal dream. It was something I had only recently discovered I wanted my whole life. I was fighting for it, in body, mind, and job. I was fighting for happiness, but I was starting to see that it was not only my own happiness I wanted.

Just as I'd told Terra, It was too early, certainly, but she'd planted the seed in my mind, that maybe it wasn't too early to start thinking about it. Just a matter of time. And maybe not too early to start looking at engagement jewelry either.

Comments

[Yami Vizzini]

Just... such a relief to have things just go nicely for once.