Life in the Fast Lane

by TheAmazingMe

Can't Get You Outta My Head

Rays gleamed through the scattering of clouds, dappling the cityscape with patches of light and shade. A breeze blew lightly, stirring my mane occasionally. Out on the streets, things were surprisingly quiet; only a few lone ponies were about in spite of the lovely weather. I was alone with my thoughts, as Bruiser sat quietly beside me.

Div was under the influence of an aura I didn't know I had. We wouldn't know how badly I'd influenced him until Princess Luna took another look at him. Normally, influencing the mind of another pony was seen as morally questionable at best. The fact nopony, myself included, failed to notice this low level aura was the only saving grace. I'd never intended for him to fall in love with me based on a spell. Could a pony even call that love?

Pushing the thoughts away, I gazed out on the road ahead. We'd passed Prominence District and entered the massive park between the city of Canterlot and the castle gates. Our taxi carriage moved along the cobbled roads smoothly. Departing the carriage near the gate of the castle, I paid the driver and we made our way through the great Corona courtyard. We passed the Royal Guard and Wonderbolt campuses, the Supreme Court and Parliament buildings. Up the wide steps to the main palace courtyard, up the castle steps and through a door was the appointment desk. A cutie mark check and some shuffled papers later, Bruiser and I were led to the Night Court throne room.

The sisters ruled jointly from the Joint Throne-room, where the flags of both Luna and Celestia flew and two thrones stood. In the Night Court throne-room, Luna's purple. black, and silver dominated. Her deep blue throne stood, unoccupied as the Princess of the Night rose to greet me. "Thank you for coming, Mr. Story."

I bowed. "Your Royal Highness, the honor is mine."

She waved a hoof. "I know this is an appointment and all, but please, forget the formalities. Sogni?"

My husband stepped forward from his place near the throne. His purple PLHG armor blended in well with the decor, likely on purpose. As he was on duty, he maintained his composure, but his amber eyes lingered on me.

Princess Luna nodded to Div. "With your permission, Sogni."

"Granted, Highness." He nodded, removing his helmet.

"You both know that, no matter what we find, it will take time to reverse the influence Mr. Story's aura has had. This will mean time apart, I'm afraid." I winced. I knew it was a possibility, but hearing it was another matter entirely.

"What?" Bruiser asked, his agitation clear.

Div's amber eyes locked onto my emerald. "Did you know?"

I sighed. "I knew it was a possibility, Div. I also knew you wouldn't like it."

He stomped a hoof. "Damn right I wouldn't! We've been apart before and it nearly broke me..."

I huffed. "Which only goes to show you how bad this influence is over you! You quit your job, joined the royal guard and even dropped all of that to come out and get me!"

"Because I love you!"

I shook my head. "Because my magic made you obsessed with me. I can't let you live like that, Div."

He walked to me, eyes intent. "I do love you, Life Story. How can I prove that to you? When will it be enough to convince you?"

I felt my heart flutter against my chest. My knees grew weak, but I stood firm and answered him. "Let's get my magic out of your head and see how you feel then."

He kissed me, passionately. It caught me by surprise, my eyes flew open and locked on Princess Luna. She looked at me a moment and then looked away, her expression neutral. Gently, I laid a hoof on his chest and pushed him away. Our lips broke contact and he gazed into my eyes deeply. "You'll see. I will always love you."

"Div..."

"Are you ready, Guardspony?" The Princess asked, her tone indicating patience but insistence. "And you, my little pony?" She continued, looking at Bruiser.

Div and Bruiser nodded, turning to face her. Her horn lit up and a matching glow ignited around their heads. Within a few moments, small flickers of green emerged in the cobalt blue around Bruiser's head. Green that matched the color of my eyes. I shook my head. A few moments later and much larger flickers of green erupted around Div's head. I looked down, ashamed.

Cancelling the spell, Princess Luna regarded me seriously. She confirmed. "It will take careful work to remove these artificial ties. As much as it pains me to recommend this, you will need to be away from each other until that work is done." She regarded Div just as seriously. "Proximity to him and his magic could make removing the influence he already has over you difficult. It will take about two weeks to undo the influence in Bruiser's mind, and a further three months of work to undo what has been done to you."

I nodded, numb at the notion of spending even a few months away from Div. "Is it possible I've influenced other ponies?"

"Possible, but the length of direct exposure is key. The magical field of another unicorn would render them mostly immune. A pegasus or earth pony would be more susceptible."

Div spoke up, his voice quieter than normal. "We'd hate to put you out, Princess, if there is another specialist we could see..."

She shook her head. "No. I'm afraid I will not allow that. You are of my House Guard, Sogni. This matter will be handled by me, personally."

I looked up. "What do I do about my aura until then? I don't really have the money to stay on the move for three months to avoid doing this to another pony."

"I have an amulet." She levitated the object in question, a small clear stone set in a silver medallion on a silver chain. As it fastened around my neck, the clear stone took a slight green tint in the center. "It will collect your aura. I also suggest you learn meditation and calming methods to keep your anxiety under control. High levels of stress are what activate your unconscious ability. You will be able to write to each other, but only if Mr. Story does so by hoof, no magic."

"Thank you, Princess Luna." I said, relieved to have a preventative measure against influencing more ponies.

"Your Highness, with your permission--" Div started, but Luna merely waved a hoof. Gear Grinder entered through the rear door and stood in Div's place.

"I've already arranged a relief, Sogni. Go, spend the day with your family." Luna said, dismissing us all with a look of love.

And pity.

***

"I am going to miss your company, mon amie. Are you certain there is nothing else for you here?" Jaune Colteau asked, one hoof resting on the completed manuscript of his biography.

"I have to go where there is work. And I have to keep my family safe. Besides, the Crystal Empire is something new, the publications there are just starting back up again and could use some help modernizing." I said, stepping forward to extend my hoof.

Jaune shook his head. "Canterlot will lose a great writer, but I understand. Please, don't be a stranger. You know where we are. Perhaps we will see you at the premiere?"

I shrugged. "Perhaps."

***

We walked together down the main road through Basking. Div's armor gleamed in the afternoon light. There was a bit of late afternoon traffic so the walk was slow, but not so crowded that we had to fight the bustle to stay together.

"Do you have to go all the way to the Crystal Empire?" Bruiser asked, for what seemed like the millionth time.

"It's where the work is, Bru. Canterlot is a tough nut to crack, even with a portfolio like mine. And I've been out of periodical publishing for too long. If I don't find a way back in, I'll be stuck taking freelance jobs. That's too much stress.

"And your father needs to avoid stress." Div said calmly.

"There's a new magazine in the Empire, Clarity. They offered enough to get me a studio place in the Empire and my parents were kind enough to offer to help with my part of rent while I'm gone. We'll make it through this."

"What about me? You can't just leave your foal behind!" Bruiser exclaimed.

"It should only be a few weeks to get my magic out of your head, Bru. After that, you are going to visit me on the weekends and holidays, okay?"

"Can I bring a friend?" Bruiser asked.

"I'll probably have to arrange a weekend for your friends too."

"What about our home? Your magic is practically all over the place there." Div asked.

I shrugged. "Not as much as you'd think. But, I hired a magical clean up crew. My magical signature is being scrubbed out of our place."

Bruiser shook his head. "You arranged all of this so quickly."

"The quicker I'm gone, the quicker you both can get better."

"I don't feel bad." Bruiser huffed, looking up at me. His eyes shimmered with tears threatening to fall.

I reached out, but Div had a hoof around his shoulders first. "It'll be okay, Bruiser. We know where he is, we can send letters, and you can take pictures for me in a few weeks. Also, I hear that there's a theme park in the Crystal Empire."

"Div..."

"And if you ask Nana Story really nicely, I'm sure she and grandpa would pay for you to take your dad there." Div finished, his eyes twinkling with his trademark humor.

"Div!" I protested, with a laugh.

It wouldn't be easy to live without my family nearby, but I had to do it. For them. We'd make it through. I had to believe that.

Author's Note:

Time to get out of the Fast Lane. Writing through this story has been an adventure, though. Next up, we'll follow the story from Life and Div's perspective.

Keep an eye out for DIV|VIE, the next installment in the series.

Comments

[Skarsnik]

What a sad way to end this part :(

[Grekoy]

[Bruno]

Well, that was... something, indeed. I’m not quite sure how to feel about this. The aura revelation definitely puts a dark filter on all of the chapters read prior.