Harmony
Twilight Sparkle needed some air. For that reason, the two of them found themselves trotting out onto the balcony outside the Crystal Palace's throne room. The night's sky was still alive with a tapering aurora, but the fireworks had long stopped. The hour was late, and the bulk of the partygoers were trotting off to their homes and hotels to sleep away the exhaustion of the Empire's festivities.
"To be honest, Flash..." Twilight's voice was hoarse as she attempted to process the situation at hoof. "...I wouldn't even know where to begin. I mean, the legalities of what you're proposing—"
"Princess Celestia already gave her blessing," Flash said bluntly. "You heard her just a moment ago—"
"What she gave was a lack of condemnation," Twilight said with the hint of a frown. She leaned against the balcony's railing for support, her mane kicked lightly by the evening breeze. "There's a difference."
"She didn't seem to think so."
"Flash—! Have—?" She clenched her eyes shut, inhaled sharply, then looked at him as calmly as she could. "Have you thought of how your family is going to react when they learn that their son isn't coming back? That he's chosen to stay in a magical pony world where he has wings?"
He shrugged. "They've been through worse."
"Flash..."
"And even if the news does shatter them," he droned, gazing out at the reflective buildingtops with disinterest. "It's probably for the best. They're miserable together."
"Really?"
He took a deep breath. "Over two decades of being married to an idea. It's not about love. It's not even about the contract. It's about who can outlast the other amidst the relentless waves of mundanity—and who'll take the blame into the grave first."
Twilight's muzzle contorted into an incredulous smile. "If that's the low bar you set for a relationship, then I really shouldn't feel too flattered."
Flash gazed at her. "You're nothing like my mom or dad, Twilight," he said. "It's like a whole 'nother universe compared to—"
"Oh please, Flash." She moaned, eyes rolling. "Just because I'm a pink pony princess doesn't mean I'm completely naive." Her nostrils flared. "You think you ditched a cesspool on your side of the mirror? Equestria's no stranger to dysfunctional relationships."
"You're wrong."
"What?!" She gasped. "I'm trying to tell you that not everything here is sunshine and rainbows like you thi—"
"You're a pretty prancing pink pony princess," he said, winking.
Twilight blinked. "I... it... what...?"
He smirked.
"That... it..." Twilight stomped her hooves, wings flaring. "Cut it out! I'm trying to talk about your future, Flash!"
"Heheheheh..." He pointed at her. "Holy crap—you are turning pink!" He teetered back, full-on laughing now. "Hah hah hah! I thought you were supposed to be a lavender unicorn!"
"I'm a lavender alicorn! I was a unicorn before I first met you but I've since—What's so funny?!"
"Hah hah hah hah!" He hugged himself with his forelimbs, almost falling over.
She blinked at him. Her lips curved. Soon she was giggling helplessly, tail flicking with strange euphoria and relief.
The stallion leaned against the edge of the balcony for support. At long last, his chuckles diminished, and he exhaled with relief.
Twilight calmed as well. Her smile persisted, warm and intrigued. "...that's the first time I ever heard you laugh." A thoughtful breath. "I... Isuppose that says something."
"Mmmm... perhaps..." He gazed out at the shiny, shiny streets. The wind kicked at his handsome bangs as he absorbed the moment with contemplative poise. Melancholic, deep. "Perhaps it says nothing. It makes little difference either way."
She blinked. In a quiet voice, she said, "Flash... I... I really hope that—by choosing to stay here—you're not expecting for... for you and I to—"
"I don't want to be in a relationship with you, Twilight."
She blinked. "Oh." Her ears drooped slightly, but it was barely noticeable. "For a second there—"
"I was more in love with the idea of being in love with someone," Flash said. "I realized it long ago."
"So..." She brushed her bangs aside, studying him nervously. "That's all it was?"
He was silent.
Her eyes narrowed. "That's all it is...?"
He shut his eyes tightly. A hard breath. "Yes..." The next part came out harder. "Please... don't feel bad."
"I don't. Believe me."
Flash reopened his eyes. "Alright..." He breathed easier and easier... but his shoulders stooped more and more. "Alright... alright..."
She fidgeted with her hooves against the balcony's edge, avoiding his gaze suddenly. "You must have hated me for so long."
"No," he said instantly. Then, just as instantly—"Well..."
She bit her lip.
He sighed. "Angsty teenagers gonna angst."
"Huh?"
He looked halfway towards her. "I went through phases, okay? And it wasn't all about you. It was also about... a-about Sunset... about your friends—about her friends. How happy they seemed to be all the time. How lucky I thought they were... to have been gifted magic... to have become popular... to have gotten all of the things that I never got... or thought I never got. Then—before I knew it—I had hated and angst'd my way into a corner. I felt as though they ignored me every day... that they had moved on past me... like I no longer made a difference to them or anyone... that I had become invisible..."
"You know that none of that is true, now, right?" Twilight's voice lilted with compassion. "You... you still have friends to go back to if you only wan—"
"I'm not going back, Twilight," he said with a hint of a growl.
She didn't flinch from it, but rather stood taller and more resolute. "They miss you deeply."
"I have friends here," Flash declared firmly. "I'm not about to abandon them."
She nodded. "Yes. So I've heard. You really should be proud of yourself."
"It's... it's not about pride..." He looked at her, arching an eyebrow. "I just wanted to make a difference in someone's life! To be useful for once and not some... pathetic loser!"
"I hear you, Flash—"
"Is that such a crime?!"
"I never said that it was!" Twilight exclaimed. "I was trying to say that you've done a lot of good in this world and it's a remarkable thing!"
"Yeah... well... uhm..." Flash looked off towards the night-kissed urbanscape, exhaling. "Yeah..."
"It'd be just as remarkable back where you came from," Twilight said. "Perhaps... even more so."
He blinked. His eyes darted towards her. "Huh?"
"Well... being the Princess of Friendship and all..." She rolled her eyes at herself and stifled a giggle. "Not to toot my own horn or anything... but it comes with experience."
"Sure. Totally."
"And no matter what angle I look at a situation—at a friendship lesson learned through blood, sweat, tears, or cupcakes—it all comes down to one thing. Harmony. Harmony—and the courage to engage in harmony—is what makes friendship work. Doesn't matter who's involved or what's at stake. It's all about sacrifice... about going against the grain at times to make the impossible to work."
He nodded thoughtfully. "What... was your hardest lesson?"
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."
"Are you kidding?" he muttered, turning to face her. "'Fess up. What was the hardest?"
She had already prepared a knowing grin. "Canterlot High."
He sighed, gazing back out at the rooftops surrounding the Palace. "Bull piss."
"Cussing in front of the pretty prancing pink pony princess?"
"Meh."
She cocked her head aside. "Want to know why it was the hardest?"
He exhaled... then glanced patiently at her.
She said, "In Equestria... harmony is more than just a word. It's magic. It's attuned to my very own Element. It reaches into the essence of this world and pulls hearts and minds into the warmth of togetherness. It's a very real fabric that you can touch. Even smell at times. You think sparkles and glitter just exist in the visual spectrum?"
"So... you're saying that you've been cheating."
She giggled. "No." She smiled at him. "What I'm saying is that when I came into your world, I had to work harder."
"Why?"
"Because there—harmony is just what it sounds like to you... like it is with all humans from birth, seemingly. An abstract term." She swallowed. "And I found it... very humbling to try and bring people together without magic to assist me... to make it easy."
"You still got a lot of good done."
"Yes. Miraculously. Thanks to lucky circumstances... to lucky people." She nodded. "People like you."
He looked at her. "You were being framed for something that you didn't do. It was a sucky situation. I had to help you out."
"But you didn't have to. You didn't know me. I was a stranger. What if you put your neck out for me and I took advantage of it?"
"But you didn't."
"But you didn't know that I wouldn't," Twilight said emphatically. "You took a risk... a potential sacrifice. It was... It h-had to have been like helping a crazy person on the street. What good would it have done for you? For anyone?"
Flash's throat tightened.
"It was because it was the harmonic thing to do. Helping someone in need. Making sure that someone around you—even a crazy outcast with nothing to show for herself—got to experience the prosperity that's due for all of us—in essence." She smiled beautifully. "I don't know about you... but I think that what you did for me back at Canterlot High far outshines what you've done since you came here to Equestria. I mean that... it had to have been a lot harder to do... a lot riskier. That's... why I just can't write off humans. They can accomplish so much in places without magic... because they possess a measure of harmony in their hearts. And that's... pretty amazing." She swallowed, gazing off. "Every letter that Sunset writes me fills me with... such pride and wonder. If you want to know the truth... I-I really haven't gone back there because... b-because I lack the courage that she has to stick it out. Me? I'm the Princess of Friendship, and I've done a lot for Equestria. But there are times when I think... I know that what she does for those around her stands out all the more. It's... it's really amazing. Truly, it is."
He gazed at her for a lengthy period. Then he said: "Would you really have let Sunset Shimmer destroy the mirror? Back when she was still evil, I mean." He leaned lazily against the balcony, exhaling through his everything. "Would you really have stayed in the human world... knowing in your heart all that you've just told me now?"
It was Twilight's turn to deflate against the balcony's edge. She gazed tiredly at the dark horizon. "...I don't know. It would certainly be very difficult... very hard to give up everything I'm accustomed to... to strip myself of magic forever. But... that's something I've learned after having so many crazy adventures and brushes with evil..."
His ears perked. "What?" He blinked. "What have you learned?"
She looked plainly at him. "That doing what's hardest is usually what's best... for oneself and for others... in the long run." She gulped, looking past the stallion. "I still haven't figured it all out, Flash. Like I said, I'm always learning. Someday—I hope—I'll have it figured out. Maybe Sunset will eventually help me understand." Her eyes met his again. "Perhaps you will too."
"Me?" His lips pursed. "How?"
"Well, if you're staying here, it must be for a supreme reason," she said with a gentle smile. "As a pony, you're bound by harmony now. It's how everything flows here."
"Mmmm... magic, right?" he said.
"That's the surface of it, yes." She nodded. "But there's far... far more. I truly hope you get to discover as much as you can, Flash." Her eyebrows lifted above a hopeful smile. "It would be very fascinating to see a person like you gets to grow."
"Yeah..." He nodded, eyes drifting. "...grow."
Stats
Page generated in 0.031 seconds
Total duration
1,013 users online
1,662,475 hits today, 2,280,440 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
A wonderfully satisfying conversation. Thank you.
There was a moment there when I thought Flash was about to make the same commitment as his Equestrian counterpart did. He loves Twilight still, but it is not Eros that burns in his heart. Putting himself into Twilight's hooves as her first guard wouldn't be the stupidest thing Flash has done in his life, but it could be the second best (right behind making the positive effort to pull himself away from destructive behavior).
I am eagerly looking forward to more.
I'm pretty sure that Twilight was already an alicorn the first time she went through the mirror.
That detail aside, this was a lot of food for thought for Flash. Let's see if he internalizes it.
Is Brad going to end up with anyone at all, or just a cluste of associates and freinds that can drift with him without having to worry about having o leave their tight core of family behind as Brad moves on?
Not so much Homeward Bound, as Wandering Star?
There's light inside your eyes
Is it for tomorrow's dreams
That you believe, light of hope
Could it be the tears you cry from those sad memories
Come let me hold you in my heart I'll always be here for you
Close your heart and rest your soul
There's so many dreams to see, just let your heart go free
Sail on the winds of time
Keep on searching cause your dream(s) are just touch away
Hmm.
I'm honestly left a bit wanting for the explanation as to WHY Flash pulled this. I think many of us were expecting a hell of a lot more satisfying explanation than "emo teen is emo".
I mean, it's just kind of a flat payoff for something that's reached this length.
I don't think Flash is confronting his problems here. He's avoiding them. He's saying "I am leaving because the problem is the world." Rather than confront... anything? I mean, literally, everyone else in his world works it out, what makes it different about him? But he's not talking about himself, or his feelings, or even specifically his own life (including his relationships with others), but he's trying to shift all of that onto that his world sucks. It's not that his life was bad and he is having a hard time coping. It's that the world is bad! Of course!
Also, I think I'm disappointed that nothing about Sunset includes that he would express disbelief that she would care. Like he's avoiding that as well, that when he was in his world basically all he could think about was that she wouldn't care. Ironically, this one is kinda the opposite of the previous issue, where he's taking all the faults onto himself, and saying "oh. She did care? I just didn't notice." But, sorta, in a same way it's still avoiding the real problem by trying to inordinately accept the blame onto himself. Instead of asking "why didn't I believe she would care", instead he just said "oh whoops guess I didn't notice. Probably the world's fault."
It's like another weird depersonalization technique. That he doesn't make it about having to solve the friendship issues in his life, even if he might blame or accuse others, that it's just ephemerally about the world being bad and needing to be replaced and that "I guess I just didn't do it well."
It's not that I don't like you being in Equestria, Flash. It's that the reasons for you staying are clearly even more avoidance.
Yeah I'm sorry but I have to say: the real world fucking sucks. None of Flash's exploits in Equestria would have even come close to happening on Earth, and the world would have beaten him down, even if he had the motivation to try. At some point Twi needs to face that.
8874566
Shining star
To be honest I could kind of understand it based on the wings detail.
I don't care what these two say, I still ship it.
That right there, that other shoe still waiting to drop.
And now you're a science experiment, Flash. Run while you can!
three chapter with a huge conversation.
and at the same time a bigger meaning, so much to think about.
Summarize How to Disappear Completely in four words.
I kid, I kid. This was a very deep and satisfying conversation, but even Twilight hasn't exposed all of the layers Flash has wrapped around himself. He still feels it's better to escape to another world when it's clear that his real problems came with him. Time will tell if he dares to confront the real issues.
Poor Flash! Twilight is still rejecting him!
Cruel, cruel vixen!
I think this is best for the both of them, They start over and have no expectation of each other or in picking up where they left off, they can start an actual friendship without any lingering resentment, wished it was that easy to do. I thought that Flash stating that he already was at the bottom of the barrel in terms of friendship and Twilight was a ray of perfection and goodness that he could hope to find for himself. Still I wonder what he will be doing now that he has decided to settle in Equestria, could he join the the Wonderbolts of go the same path as as his pony counterpart in Luna's Night Guard, wonder if he will meet his coworkers there? As for his parent he could always send them a letter(magically without leaving Equestria) telling them that he is alive and well, that he has decided to to find a place for himself and carve out a life for himself on his own, it could even be a semi-regular thing that he could send them letters over there.
It seems like Flash doesn't see any reason to go back to his home world. Arguably he's avoiding his problems, whatever truly ails him will rear it's ugly head no matter what. But still, why return? He has no reason to believe his parents are going to stop being shitty (wouldn't be that easy to begin with), no real friends to go back to, no particular career plans or objectives or anything.
Staying might be a crutch, but from his perspective there's practically no downside, other than the hurt from the people in his homeland who care. To be fair there aren't that many to begin with. I mean, there's no way Sunset doesn't feel in some way guilty towards Flash, not that she doesn't genuinely care but there's more to her pronounced response.
It is pretty selfish of Flash to just leave and never come back, you might call it dishonorable even. At the same time he's free to pursue happiness or whatever else wherever he can.
I honestly do have a feeling that Flash will end up going back home especially after this conversation because that is obviously what Twilight is trying to get him to think about. Is staying in Equestria really the hard/best thing to do?
This is great. You have kept it at a point where I'm not sure which option he really should choose.
On one hand, he still has problems he's leaving behind, and just leaving poses a lot of problems, especially emotional ones.
On the other hoof, he can accomplish way more as one pony in Equestria than he ever could on Earth, and he has friends in Equestria - friends he can't just abandon.
To me, the ideal solution would be to go back to Earth, settle as many things as possible, then return to Equestria permanently. (Maybe visiting Sunset and the alt. Mane Six if he manages to repair their relationship.)
Also, you've managed to make me ship Flash and Twilight. Sweet Celestia, I wasn't expecting that.
Or Derpy, actually. I could see that happening.
...What have you made me into‽
Part of the oddest thing with this conversation, is that Twilight doesn't challenge him when he said he had no friends, no bridges.
Nor does he challenge her when she calls the Mane 7 his friends.
And yet it still seems to flow naturally. Like a councilling session, where both parties have decided their are far bigger issues to discuss, or are trying to avoid an arguement.
SADLY it means the crux of Twilight's arguements, at least to begin with, hangs on a statement Flash believes is false. That he has something to go back too, and something waiting for him. Its good when latter, she shifts her approach and tells him something more useful...
That he can do this at home.
Honestly I think he should go home to visit....he has problems that still need resolving, debts to pay and appologies to give. One of his ex band mates at the very least still gave a shit. But if he is truely happier here....
Getting out of the environment is seriously helpful with depression. Distances helps on deal with the issues.
Twilight should just let him stay with him. He dessert dessert a place over his head to sleep under. So he have place to come and go as he pleases!
Hey Flash I hear there is a school of friendship opening soon.
They may need some additional staff.
I'm not surprised Flash is choosing to stay, even with the assorted Princesses urging him to return. He might go back and visit much later, once he's healed and built himself up, but right now he needs Equestria like a car-crash victim needs a heart-lung machine.
8878554
*Loud Pinkie whisper* I didn't like it that much.
Twilight, Sunset and the others could have decided to not wait until Flash hit rock bottom before offering help from his spiral into depression.. just saying .. I dont think he would have just rejected it out of hand because they actually Did notice even if they did nothing about it.
They did not say it outright but since the big worry was that he was dead the assumption they seemed to make was that he committed suicide. The appropriate phrase is "a dollar short and a day late".
The story seems to be leaning towards him going home to face the problems he left behind.
If I was him I would think of it more as a rebirth in a new world. (with a possible cathartic trip back to say good by to the people who abandoned him to his depression)
8879429
Yup. If a portal to another world opened up in front of me--not even necessarily Equestria. Hyrule, Manticore, Faerun, Tamriel? All crazy dangerous, but all with far more opportunity for someone like me to flourish--I'd be through it before the post-it note I'd leave behind for mum hit the ground.
She'd understand...she's the one introduced me to fantasy books in the first place. Including a couple of her favorites that involve accidental world-hopping, falling in love, and deciding to stay.
My brothers? Psh. One never talks to me (not just me--he's in the military and has a kid, too busy to talk to people 3000 miles away I guess--kind of the same thing, without crossing dimensions!) and the other'd have to stop crashing on my couch. ...he might come along, even if he doesn't like ponies, actually.
Some folks just don't feel like they fit in; we've been told that so much over the years that it's just part of who we are, now. I like to think it's because I've internalized a sense of honor that is offended by the state of society, but I have to admit... a fair bit of it is having been so adamantly and repeatedly rejected.
Don't worry, though. I'm too cussed and determined not to let the blaggards win to leave this world anyway but via random magical portal!
If only I could figure out how to get rid of the damn barrier across the one in my living room.
...Pinkie, a lil help with this fourth wall?
...
...well, it was worth a shot.