The Rhythm of Love

by lockheed

16: Afflitto

"It's beautiful!" I exclaimed as I looked at the ring held in my hoof. It was a beautiful silver ring with sapphires going all around the outside of the ring with the heart shaped ruby I'd got from the changelings set on in the middle. "Between the heart ruby and the sapphires to match his eyes, it's absolutely perfect!"

"We are happy that you like it." Luna said with a smile before holding her hooves up to her mouth in excitement. "Oh, we do so hope he says yes!" Next to Luna stood Drum Cadence, who wore only a pearl necklace instead of her usual uniform.

"I'm so happy for you, Swing." Drum said as she stepped forward to give me a hug. I returned the gesture as Luna's magic took hold of the ring and slipped it into a black ring box. "So when are you going to pop the question?"

"Tomorrow night." I replied with a smile as I took the ring box from Luna. “It's our seven month anniversary. Now, here’s to hoping he says yes.”

---

The train to Ponyville slowed to a stop and I looked up from my book to see my hometown outside the window. With a smile, I slipped on my coat and trotted down the aisle towards the door. I put the book into my pocket and made sure that the ring box was still inside. The door opened and the steam from the train was still somewhat lingering around the platform, making it look as though Ponyville was shrouded in fog. I stepped down off the train and onto the wooden platform where the chilly autumn air made me turn my coat collar up to cover my neck. Trotting out of the station and onto the streets of Ponyville, I set off for Test's old home. It was a bit of a walk from the train station but the cool breeze made it rather enjoyable.

After about twenty minutes of slowly walking along the familiar streets of Ponyville, I found Test’s old home and made my way across the front yard. I stopped in front of the wooden door and reached a hoof up, the knocking seeming to echo in the eerie silence around me. A few moments later and the door opened to reveal a grey earth pony stallion with a forest green mane. “Can I help you?” His deep, baritone voice and Germane accent making me want to back away slightly.

“Y-yes. Are Test Tube’s parents here?” I asked, my voice suddenly seeming very quiet.

“I am his father, Redstone.” The stallion replied. I swallowed hard and I noticed that suddenly my mouth felt very dry. “But vhere are my manners? Please, come in.” He stepped aside and I slowly trotted in. The house looked a lot different in the middle of the day. As I looked around, I noticed things I hadn’t the last time I was there. On the wall hung a cuckoo clock and several black and white photos of Redstone. “All things from my home nation. Germaney is a lovely country this time of year. I do vish the younger children had gotten to see it.” He smiled with nostalgia before looking at a specific picture; one with him, three other young stallions, a stallion who looked to be in his fifties, and an older couple. “Those are my brothers Atlas, Titan, und Saturn as well as my father Mercury and my mother Gemini with my uncle Apollo.”

“Such a nice looking family.” I said with a smile as I looked at the picture.

“They are. I’m the first and only one to leave Germaney. All the rest are back there working on rocketry. But enough about that. You were here about my son? He’s not in trouble is he?” Redstone looked over my Guard uniform with slight concern.

“No, sir.” I replied with a chuckle as I removed my coat. “Quite the contrary actually. I have something I need to discuss with you involving your son.” He nodded and slowly walked over to sit in a chair as I took a seat on the couch across from him. “Sir, I’m not sure if you are aware, but your son and I have been dating for almost seven months now.” He hesitated before his eyes widened.

“So you’re that guard my boy has been courting!” He smiled wide as he turned to face the kitchen of the house. “Aurora! Komm her!” An older mare with a midnight blue coat and a greying mane resembling Celestia’s in color trotted out of the kitchen and looked at me. While I might not have spoken Germane, it wasn’t hard to figure out a moment later that they were talking about me.

“Wer ist er?” she asked as she eyed me up and down, all the while slowly walking over to stand by her husband’s chair.

“Er ist der Wächter, der unseren Sohn umworben hat.” he replied and her face immediately lit up with a smile.

“It ist so gut to finally meet you!” she exclaimed as she walked over to hug me, a move I hadn’t been expecting. “I am Aurora. And vhat ist your name?”

“I’m Swing Rhythm, ma’am.” I replied as she stepped back to get another look at me. “I take it he told you I’m dating Test?” She nodded as she sat down by her husband. “That’s actually why I’m here today. I would like your blessing to ask your son to marry me.”
They looked at each other, their eyes wide at my request.

“Was sagen wir?” Aurora asked as she looked at her husband with short glances at me.

“Ich weiß nicht. Er scheint ein guter Hengst zu sein. Vielleicht sollten wir ja sagen,” he replied before looking over at me. “Do you swear that you will treat our son with the utmost respect and give him your unconditional love?”

“I do.” I said as I looked Redstone in the eye. “I swear to love your son until the end of time.” He looked at Aurora and nodded his head. With a smile, he looked back to me.

“Then we give you our blessing to marry our son.”

---

I sat at my desk in front of Princess Luna's office, my eyelids drooping and my head slowly dropping as I began to nod off. "Swing?" Luna's voice said from her office, snapping me from my near sleep and up onto my hooves.

"Yes, Princess?" I asked as I stuck my head into her office.

"It's almost six o'clock. You should be heading home to your coltfriend, shouldn't you?" She looked up at me with a raised eyebrow as she removed her reading glasses. "Go on now. Shoo. You’re work is done for the day." Luna told me with a knowing smirk on her face. I nodded and turned to leave but she stopped me before I was completely turned. "Oh, and Swing?" I looked back at her as she smiled at me. "We wish you the best of luck tonight."

"Thank you, Luna." I replied with a smile of my own. Trotting out into the corridor, I patted the small ring box in the pocket of my jacket. "I think I might need it."

---

I opened the door of our home and welcomed the heat that was inside. While it wasn't quite to freezing temperatures yet, autumn was definitely in full swing as a icy wind kicked up leaves in the yard. The sound of music in the kitchen made my good ear perk up as I hung my jacket on the coat rack by the door. A band playing something akin to swing music blared from the speakers of the phonograph on the dining room table as I rounded the corner. At the stove, Test stood swaying his rump along to the music as he watched whatever he had cooking. I snuck up behind him and grabbed him, dipping him like a dancer would and planting a kiss on his lips. Pulling back from the kiss, I chuckled at the red faced stallion I held in my forelegs. "I see somepony is enjoying my record collection." I said as I carefully let Test return to a normal standing position.

"Yeah, I just figured I'd listen to something besides my Walkman and your records were right there," he replied as he looked over at the phonograph. "Although, you have some records with the same songs as some of my cassettes," Test said with a glance over at the spinning record.

"I hadn't expected you to be cooking." I told him as I looked over at the pan full of cooking vegetables. "I actually planned to surprise you because I made us reservations at Jardin des Etoiles for tonight." His eyes widened in shock at that as he stared at me.

"I thought reservations had to be made months in advance?" He asked as he turned off the stove.

"Oh they do. But when a reservation request arrives with Luna's royal seal on it, they tend to find room." I said with a grin. "Before you ask, Luna approved it. As long as I have them send some food to the palace for her."

"I'm not surprised that was her only request." Test replied with a smile as he put the vegetables onto a plate and then put them into the refrigerator. "You know, I've heard that it has the best view of the night sky of any place inside the city limits."

"Well I figured that after dinner, maybe we could go for a walk outside of the city and maybe go stargazing. How does that sound?" I asked him as we trotted over to the front door to put on our coats.

"Sounds good." He replied with a smile as he slipped on his coat. I grabbed my jacket from the rack and failed to notice the quiet sound of fabric ripping as the pocket's inside snagged on the base of the coat rack.

"Ready?" I asked while I slipped on my jacket. He nodded that he was and I smiled at him in response. "Alright then, shall we go?"

---

We looked up at the night sky as I pushed my plate away from me. I felt fit to burst from the amount of food I'd eaten and yet somehow Test had managed to eat even more than I had. Sure, he was a bit pudgy around the middle but I didn't think that he could eat that much. I mean, I could understand a couple slices of carrot cake for dessert, but a whole cake? Where had he even put it all? His legs had to be hollow for how much he'd consumed. Test clearing his throat made me look away from the sky and to the handsome stallion in front of me. "So, what's the occasion?" he asked, making me raise an eyebrow at him. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I love tonight. But usually we don't do something like this unless it's a special occasion. So...what is it?"

“Oh, well, it’s our seven month anniversary today and I figured we could celebrate. You know; nice dinner, stargazing, and just sitting together under the stars,” I replied with a smile, hoping it was a believable lie. He raised an eyebrow at me but shrugged as I picked up the bill. Looking it over, I reached into my coat and grabbed the right amount of bits plus three more for a tip. I set them on the table and slipped on my coat. “Shall we get going then?” He nodded and I didn’t notice his magic grab a small black box off the ground by where my coat was sitting. With a raised eyebrow, he looked at the box then up to me as I walked ahead of him. With a shrug, he slipped the box into the pocket of his coat and followed me.

---

“And that one there is the Ursa Major.” I said with a smile as Test looked through the small telescope I had set up in the field earlier in the day. A cool breeze floated by and made Test’s long mane flow with it. He leaned back from the telescope and looked at me, his mane still waving in the wind. My face felt warm and he smiled at my reaction, trotting over to sit with me. Test leaned against me as we both sat there looking up at the stars. “Hey Test, do you remember our discussion about marriage awhile back?”

“I do,” he said as he leaned against me even more.

“Well, I want you to recall the length of time you’d said before you’d consider it.” He sat for a few moments and then looked up at me, his eyes not showing much besides confusion.

“Okay. I said seven months. What about it?” He asked as he continued to look up at me.

“I swear, sometimes you’re so dense that light bends around you,” I replied with a small laugh and a smile. “I brought you all the way out here so I could ask you something really important.” Reaching into my pocket, I felt around for the ring box but my heart dropped into my stomach when my hoof felt the hole in my pocket. Standing up, I quickly turned around and looked on the ground where I’d been sitting. Not seeing it there, I looked around where we’d been standing and walking. The ring box wasn’t there either. My panic continued to rise as I failed to find what I was looking for.

“What’re you looking for?” Test asked me as he trotted up alongside me, my head lowered and eyes scanning the ground.

“A little black box.” I answered without looking up.

“Like this one?” Test asked and I quickly looked up at him as his magic held the box I’d been so desperately looking for.

“Where did you find this?!” I asked him as I snatched it away from him.

“It was on the ground next to you at the restaurant. I wasn’t sure if you’d dropped it or not so I just put it in my pocket in case you did.” He replied innocently.

"Have you...looked in it?" I asked him, my heart sinking again.

"No, I just figured it was cufflinks or something of the sort. I've heard Luna can be pretty generous with her staff." Test said with a shrug of his shoulders. His answer made me feel slightly better as I held the box in my hoof. "Now, what was it you said earlier about something important to ask me?" If he knew what was about to happen, he certainly didn't let on. Maybe he was more oblivious than I'd previously thought? I smiled as I sat down in front of him, still holding the ring box in my hoof.

"Test, I love you with all my heart. You mean more to me than the sun, the moon, and all the stars in the sky. You're the most amazing stallion that I've ever met and I will love you until the end of time itself. Test Tube..." I opened up the box to reveal the sapphire and ruby ring inside. "Will you marry me?" He frowned and I felt my heart sink at his face. “Test, what’s wrong?”

“Swing, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. But I’ve sorta met somepony else.”

Comments

[Brasta Septim]

“Swing, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. But I’ve sorta met somepony else.”

Oh shit. This is not gonna end well..

[Empress]

The suspense! The suspense is killing me!!!!!l

I will throw a hammer at you if you are not joking. I will grow a hammer at you if you are not joking! I WILL THROW A HAMMER AT YOU IF YOU ARE NOT JOKING!!!! Deep breaths....Deep breaths....In...Out...In...Out...Okay...Now that is out of my system, awesome story! Really great content! Keep up the good work!
Oh! And Rythm's humor! I love it! Best humor I've seen in awhile!

[lockheed]

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I should have the next chapter out by New Years so you shouldn't have too much of a wait.