Twilight's Story

by Damaged

8 - All Wrapped Up

Pirates aren't all that bad. They really love the sea and every time I am on deck they keep saying how much they like wenches and booty. I am not really sure what those words mean, of all the books I managed to bring none were comprehensive dictionaries. Night makes me think of strange things whenever I look at him. His shoulders look so strong and his tail, when he is out of his armor, is so silky smooth. Not that I felt it. Much. Captain Sharp tried to tell us she needed to make a little detour, but that is silly and odd scribbling ship ahoy?

Twilight put down her quill, angry that she had smudged her diary a little. "I will have to sand it off later." She heaved a sigh and trotted out on deck to find out what all the yelling was about.

"You promised us no pirating!" Night was in full armor, staring down the captain. Twilight shivered at how gallant and perfect he looked.

Sharp's grin was infectious, however. "That was the previous deal, this one just said to take you to Equestria." The mare raised a hoof, pointing at the ship they were chasing down. "Equestria is that way and… oh no! Somepony sailed their ship in the way!"

"Sharp-" Night saw the jovial look in the mare's eyes change to anger in a mercurial millisecond. "Captain Sharp," the smile was back on the Captain's face although now Night wore a defeated one, "okay, just… just let me take off this damn armor." He was defeated the moment he caved to her title.

Twilight's eyes widened as Night stalked past her into their shared cabin. She left him to get out of his armor himself. "Captain, what are we doing?" Trotting over to the Captain, who had a telescope up to one eye to spot the other ship.

"This is a pirate ship. We are pirates. What we are about to do, being pirates on a pirate ship, is colloquially known as 'pirating'." Sharp's eyes danced. "Get yourself a big hat, find an old shirt'o somepony's, and join in!"

It was only after the Captain turned back to watching the other ship slowly get closer that Twilight realized her mannerisms of speech had dropped in her excitement. "No hurting anypony." Twilight stepped up beside the captain and bumped her. "I said-"

"I heard what you said. If'n you help, I's sure we can subdue 'em easily. If'n you don't…" Captain Sharp left unsaid that, without her help, there likely would be harm done.

"Alright, alright." Twilight marched back to her room, only to see Night coming out, wearing a dirty shirt, a rapier sheathed at his side. The mare's heart skipped a beat, the stallion looked more than just cute, he looked dangerous. "I… I better put something on, too!" She rushed past Night, slamming the door behind her.

Inside, her other two friends were glaring at her. "And I suppose you are going to go and 'pirate' as well?" Frida crossed her forelegs over her chest. "Look, Twi, we shouldn't do this."

"What else can we do? Sharp implied that if we don't help fight she would rough up the other crew." Twilight slumped her rear onto a hammock.

"Well, I have an idea." Staccato smiled and opened her mouth, posing as if she were about to sing.

Twilight grinned. "Okay, but we should do it quickly, before we get too close to the… oh, no! We do it right as we are getting close." The unicorn grinned wide. "Let's get up on deck, but a little cotton in the ears will be perfect."

Together, the three dressed the part, finding a barrel of old rapiers lashed into one corner of the room. Heading up, the ocean was a little quieter than usual, thanks to the ear-plugs. Twilight blushed at her plan. She spotted Night, the stallion looking more than a little nervous. "Night!" Twilight's yell was probably a little louder than it needed to be, but it had the desired effect. Her step was bouncy on the deck, but she trotted right up to him and reached up to grab the stallion she really liked, by the ears.

Night was pulled roughly into the kiss and, all around him, the crew cheered and wolf-whistled. Then it all went quiet. As Twilight pulled back from the kiss, he realized she had stuffed cotton in his ears. He wasn't stupid, there was only one reason she would do that. He turned to look at Staccato and got a wink from her.

Twilight beamed as the stallion brightened and turned to look at the slowly approaching ship. She wanted to tell him the plan, tell him that it was all sorted, but with the plugs in their ears that wouldn't have any hope of working, even if she dared risk it with the crew so close.

Suddenly, the ship ahead of them seemed to drop something overboard and suddenly was turning violently to face them. Even with the plugs in her ears, Twilight heard the captain yelling. Their anchor dropped and the long chain played out quickly. The moment it dug in their own ship did a similar turn as the other had. Ponies raced to the side as the two ships drew alongside each other and the grappling hooks were cast and tied off.

Staccato smiled and opened her mouth to sing. Her lullaby was a little quiet, but the sound had a way of rising above the sounds of the ocean, even of the shouting of the two crews. Then a pony yawned, and another. Pirates and merchant marines alike dropped their weapons and slowly fell down to the decks and curled up with happy smiles.

Twilight could see the siren still singing, slithering across the gap to the other ship, just as she finished, the last pirate dropped to the deck. Lighting her horn the mare pulled the plugs form her ears and quickly gathered rope.

"Got them all! I really got them all!" Staccato was slithering in a cute dance. "Nopony can resist my voice!"

"I am not sure whether to be scared of her saying that, or happy for her." Night had the plugs from his own ears, apparently having heard the end of the happy siren's exclamation. "I think I will stick with happy, she doesn't seem to be a bad pony."

All the pirates were tied up by the time the first few were waking. Captain Sharp taught Twilight a lot of new words that she really hoped she wouldn't, ever, need to repeat. Staccato quickly slithered over and behind Twilight. "Help!" The siren was fleeing from two marines. "I saved you, sillies!"

"She did, stop!" Twilight clopped a hoof on the deck. "This is the ship of Captain Sharp-"

"I know, lass. Thought we would have a tough fight ahead'o us." A stallion clopped up behind the two marines, one of his forelegs replaced below the knee with a wooden peg. "Stand down you colts, can't you see the only enemy here is all tied up?"

"Sir!" Both snapped to attention. Twilight had noticed Night had slipped away but grinned as he returned in full armor.

"An' whatta we got here? Royal guard?" The captain of the merchant ship was in a great mood, his crew hadn't been hurt and all his cargo was still where it should be.

"Sir, yes. We were working undercover to insinuate our way into Captain Sharp's crew. Figured this was as good a moment as any to spring our trap, sir." Night saluted the old sea-dog.

"Want a lift back home now, I gather?" Captain Long Leg grinned. "Just left Manehatten, but to bring these in for justice I would sail thrice around Equestria."

"Sir, a lift home would be great." Night breathed a sigh of relief. The old captain could have treated them much differently, things had turned out a lot better. He trotted over to where Captain Sharp was tied up, a blocking ring fitted onto her horn. "Sharp, you couldn't just deliver us…"

"You would have broken your word and betrayed us!" The angry mare, bound up, thrashed in the ropes. "You would have!"

"I really wouldn't have." Night sighed, not sure if he could even make this a lesson in trust for her. Another pony drew up beside him. Twilight.

"He would have. Surely you realized how straight laced and perfect Nighty is." Twilight Velvet leaned up and kissed the stallion on the cheek. Both of them blushed at not only the kiss but also that Twilight had a pet name for Night.

"Ugh, disgusting. That's it, I surrender! I want death at sea! Just get these two sappy love-birds away from me!" Sharp closed her eyes and yelled.

Night didn't hear the desperate cries from the captain. He looked only at Twilight and felt his heart race, faster and faster. He wasn't sure why he was kneeling suddenly, looking up at the mare who made everything both brighter and duller. "Twilight Velvet, will you be my special somepony?"

Neither heard the captain's fake retching, as Twilight replied. "Yes." Certainly once they returned to kissing even the cheering drowned out Captain Sharp's mummery.

---

Land had never felt this strange, to Twilight. She looked down at her hooves and realized she couldn't feel the ship's gentle rocking. "You too?" Night trotted up beside Twilight and leaned in to kiss her cheek. "Come on, let's get to the train, the Captain can take care of Sharp."

"Oh no, no sneaking off without us!" Staccato slithered down onto the dock. "I am not letting you two out of my sight until your wedding." The statement got the desired result, both unicorns blushed hotly. "And then I might just go and see my grandfather, I hear he lives near a little town south of Canterlot."

This was the first the others had heard of Staccato's relatives. "You have relations that live inland?" Frida seemed attached to the group as well, gliding down off the ship to land beside her monstrous friend. "What is he, a river monster?"

"Yup! Grandpa Steve." Staccato undulated with delight. "I wonder what he is up to, he… sort of left the ocean in a huff, or so mom said. I don't blame him."

"Well, I am sure he is a nice… uh, river monster." Night grinned and started off at a trot with Twilight at his side.

"Night Talon?" Twilight looked at Night, her question sounding suspicious of something. Night gulped and looked to her. "Where did you get that name from?"

The stallion blushed. "I... My name was Night Light but… that isn't a cool name for a guardpony!" He clopped a hoof sharply, getting a giggle from each of the three females. "Oh come on, it is cooler!"

"Oh, of course it is, but then I couldn't say you Light up my life." Twilight blushed as she said the pun. The three of them were walking out of the dock area and toward the train station.

"That was terrible." Frida made a gagging gesture. "Stick with Talon, a good griffon name!" She held up a foreleg in demonstration, clutching her claws a few times.

"Oh, I almost forgot!" Night paused and rummaged around in his pack, pulling out a book. "When I borrowed this, the spine was falling apart, I-"

"You fixed it?" Twilight floated the book over and examined it, finding the stitching and glue work to be perfect. "This is wonderful, thank you, Night!" The stallion was wrapped in a tight hug and he couldn't help himself, he hugged back.

"You're welcome, Twilight." There was something that niggled at the stallion's brain. "And your name is really, really cute." He blushed, but he had learned one thing very well. Even if something makes you blush, you shouldn't hold back from doing it.

Particularly when it makes the mare you love blush back.

Author's Note:

And there we are. Twilight and Night are well on their way to becoming parents to two of the most powerful ponies in Equestria. They have good friends with them and leave more scattered in their wake. Who knows, maybe even Captain Sharp will meet up with them again, once she is done breaking big rocks into little tiny rocks?

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Canary in the coal mine
Daremo
Mary Rowland

Comments

[Daremo]

that without her - that, without her
there is only one reason - there was only one reason
long rope - long chain
Land never felt - Land had never felt
both unicorn blushed - both unicorns blushed
monsterous - monstrous

*****
Such a sweet ending to a lovely little story. There are still plenty of hooks to use for a sequel as well.

It would be interesting to see Captain Sharp again. With the slip in her speech pattern, I get the sense that she's acting like she thinks a pirate ought to for the adventure of it all.

Steve Magnet being Stacatto's grandfather caught me off guard in a "Please make the universe stop taunting us", kind of way.

Well played, sir.

*****

"Night Talon?" Twilight looked at Night, her question sounding suspicious of something. Night gulped and looked to her. "Why did your parents name you 'talon'?"

The stallion blushed. "They… they didn't. My name was Night Light but… that isn't a cool name for a guardpony!"

Twilight found out about this back in chapter 5.

Cerise magic reached out and grabbed the helmet out of the air and Night's eyes were pulled to Twilight, she had apparently been listening. "Night Light. I like that better than Talon, just feels… more reassuring." She gave the stallion the biggest smile she could and got back to her book.

[Damaged]

7329664 I somehow missed this. All fixed, inconsistency corrected. Thank you!

[tsaukpaetra]

Makes you wonder what they use for glue...
Wonderful little story!
Keep going! ;)

[EnderPony293]

The relationship was too fast, it went from unknown to marriage in about a few seconds. For me at least

[LightningDashes]

such an underrated and lovely story!
loved it :D

[Damaged]

8149236 Thanks.