CYCLED

by The REAL Mister Pkmn

Rthö Pxafüf- Night At The Gala: Part Three~ Simmering Down

The silence in the hall was deafening. Twilight wanted to run and hide, but Maestro’s magic was just too strong. He sighed. “I knew, you know. I was waiting for you to admit it to yourself, and to approach me on your own terms. I just didn’t expect it to be this soon.” He looked around, and chuckled. “It’s not just our friends that know; I think the whole castle might have heard!” At her deepening blush, he scratched the back of his neck. “Ah, sorry. My bad.” He cleared his throat, and continued. “You may be wondering my response to all this… Well…” He shook his head. “I do enjoy your company, that much is certain. But I also enjoy Trix’s company, so I’m in an odd spot. I don’t know if I like either of you as more than a friend as of yet, so here’s what I’m going to do.” He went over to Twilight, and let her go from his magic. He extended a hoof. “I have already danced with Trix tonight, so… Shall we dance?”

Hesitantly, Twilight accepted the offered hoof. Suddenly, a sharp tango started to play as She was drawn in close to Maestro. He lead like he had done this many times before; and perhaps he had. She followed as best she could, trying to not slow him down too much. She did manage to start a bit of a conversation as they danced. “So Maestro… how many girls have you danced with? I’m guessing many, if you’re this good…”

At that, Maestro chuckled lightly. “Oh, that’s just the tip of the iceberg, Sparks. Let’s just say that it’s more than the amount of mares I’ve dated, and leave it at that.”

The outside world seemed to fall away in the eyes of Twilight, as she was drawn further into Maestro’s eyes. She’d never felt anything quite like this before. Sure, there was that royal guard named Flash Sentry that she’d had a crush on in the last cycle, but this felt deeper than a simple crush. There wasn’t much she could really say she disliked about Maestro, if anything at all. He was a bit rough around the edges, but that was to be expected with all he’d gone through to get to this day, in comparison to her.
She hardly knew what he was like before, but she somehow could sense it. He was once more open and kinder. He was still as honest, and just as dedicated. He still had his generosity, his humor. But his shining quality was his attitude of never giving up. That, above all else, was something that she felt had only grown since his earlier self. The more he was put down, the more he’d fight. She decided to distract herself from these thoughts, and ask another question. “Maestro… what exactly is your opinion of Trixie? Be honest with me.”

A sigh escaped him, and he shook his head. “I see both of you equally at this point, Sparks. You’re both my friends, both of whom are interested in me beyond that. As for my feelings towards either of you… I don’t know anymore. I know for a fact that I at least consider both of you my friends. But recently… things have started to feel different. I haven’t felt this way towards anyone in a long time. The last time was… Rainbow, back in one of the earlier cycles, but that went nowhere. It may end up like that again, I don’t know for sure. I may go back to seeing both of you as just friends. It’s something I’ve come to terms with, seeing as I’ve long had a bit of a disconnect with my emotions. But even if it does end up like that again…” He smiled sadly. “At least I’ll have tried.”

The expression on his face almost broke Twilight’s heart. Maestro had done this song and dance before, and had no luck. Before she’d convinced him to try again, he’d long since accepted that such a relationship just wasn’t in the cards for him. She could hardly bear seeing the sad look on his face. She took a deep breath, and decided to try and cheer him up. “Listen, Maestro. It may not be me. It may not be Trixie. It wasn’t any of the ones you tried before. But I promise you, there is somebody out there for you. Even if we’re only friends after this experiment is over, you still need to keep trying to find the one for you. Everyone deserves happiness, especially you after all you’ve been through. It’s not like the Maestro I know to give up.”

Maestro blinked, then chuckled. “It sure isn’t.” He sighed, nodding. “Thank you, Sparks. I don’t say it often, but… I appreciate that you’re here for me. You and the others are my friends, but among them, I connect to you and Trixie the best. Her for slightly different reasons, but that is not important. The two of you are the best friends I’ve had.” He looked around, and set up the silence field spell once more. “Listen. You know that all my issues with friendship comes from what’s happened with the previous cycles, namely my difficulty connecting to any of you before this one. But I can safely say… that I don’t regret my choice. You truly were the best option to help me connect to them, and we have connected rather well, so far. It means the world to me that I even have friends that listen at all.”

Hesitation came from Twilight’s heart. He’d mentioned Trixie in the same breath as herself. Sure, he had said that he saw the two of them as equal in his eyes… but something inside refused to accept that answer. But, she didn’t want to hurt her chances by doing something rash. So instead, she just smiled. “I’m glad you feel that way. It means a lot to me that you are starting to open up more. You said it yourself, after all. We need to be connected as best as possible with others before the final showdown.”

Maestro sighed, and looked away. “Yes. It’s hard for me to do so, though. I’m so used to being ignored and pushed aside. Because of that, I find it difficult to open up like I used to. But… I’m getting better. I haven’t felt quite like myself in a long time, and who knows if I’ll truly feel like my old self again. But if I have to settle for a modified version, so be it. As long as it gets a future for this world at last, I’ll pay practically any price.”

That last line caused her to gasp a little. Practically any price? What did that mean? What was the edge of what he would willingly pay, and what he wouldn’t? He didn’t seem like one to give up his friends, so that was likely out of the picture. But then, her eyes widened. “Does that mean… if necessary, you’d lay down your life?”

A pause as he looked away. He sighed, and nodded his head. “If there was no other acceptable way, yes. You must understand, Sparks. I’ve seen so much more than anyone ever has in their life. I want to live out the rest of it after the cycles are gone, sure. But if the price of life must be paid… I’d rather that it be my life that is laid down for the future to finally come, rather than anyone else.” He shook his head, and smiled. “Let us just pray it doesn’t have to come to that, alright? Let us enjoy the rest of this night.”

Twilight smiled sadly and nodded. “Yes.” They danced for a little while longer, until Trixie decided to cut back in. Twilight sighed as she saw them dance together. She spoke to Applejack and Rarity, who had approached. “Look at them. So perfect together. He may not know if he returns either of our feelings, but… I think I know who he’ll end up with among the two of us.” She turned to them, a few tears in her eyes. “It was foolish for me to even entertain the idea that maybe… He’d fall for me instead.”

Applejack and Rarity looked amongst themselves, uncertain what to do. Rarity decided to approach, and wiped her tears away. “Nonsense, darling. What you did was very brave. But he said it himself, didn’t he? His heart has yet to decide. So try and win him over. It may end up the way you suspect, but you can’t just give in because of that. So, ask him out. Don’t give up until his decision is made. Just don’t quit.”

Applejack nodded. “She’s right, ya know. Just dust yourself off, and get back in there!”

Twilight smiled, nodding. “Thank you, girls. I’ll do just that.” She stood, and approached Maestro again. She tapped his shoulder. He turned, and she curtsied. “May I have the next dance?”

Maestro smiled. “Of course.” the music changed, and he once again started to dance with her. His smile widened. “So, come to ask me to a date later as well? That’s what Trix did, so…”

Twilight fumed a little, but shook it off. “Yes. When would you…”

He chuckled lightly. “Oh, next Saturday, after my date with Trix. Remember, Discord will return this Saturday, so we can’t do it then.”

They continued to dance in silence after that, the night ebbing away. Things were now going to change...

Author's Note:

Well, that's the end of the "Season One" arc! Next time: Chaos!

Comments

[Starlight Nova]

If the main OCs in this story were voiced, what would they sound like?

[The REAL Mister Pkmn]

9748411
I don't exactly know how to describe it, really. It makes sense in my head, but I can't really put how the voices would sound into words.