Radiant Night

by Not

Forever for Now

Not a lot happened until they were nearing Rose, Lily, and Clover's stop. Radiant pulled Clover aside into the hallway. "I never told you about the inn did I?"

"What do you mean?"

"The Cozy Inn is a brothel."

"What." He was dumfounded.

"A cathouse, a whore house, a bordello, whatever you want to call it!" She calmed herself down a bit. "I wasn't old enough to work rooms, but I will be when I get back. I just wanted you to know. Meet somepony who's better for you. Don't wait years for a brothel girl." Her head hung low by the last sentence.

He lifted her chin to see into her eyes. "What if I want to wait?"

"Huh?"

"You're fun, and nice, and beautiful! Who cares about the rest?"

Radiant smiled. "Can you really wait six years just to say hi again though?"

"I can try."

"Let me rephrase myself. Are you going to wait six years for a mare you met two days ago? You've got plenty to offer, and there are plenty of fun, nice, beautiful mares out there if you look for them. Let's both find good mares, okay?"

"Okay." He smiled at her for a moment before realizing something. "Wait, what?"

"Hey, I like both teams in the game. I just chose you over your sisters because frankly... they're kinda boring. Don't get me wrong, they're nice and all, but you're more fun, and I need that in a pony."

He felt an odd mixture of happiness from the compliment and sadness that he had to leave. "Can you promise me one thing"

Now it was her turn to be confused. "Sure, what?"

His eyebrows were still sad, but he smiled as he said it. "Promise you'll remember me in six years when I stop by."

He was cheesy, and she loved it, but she'd still only known him two days. "I don't think I'll forget anyone as fun and weird as you've been." She pulled out a small notebook from her pack, wrote down the address, and tore the page out for him. "Try to show up a little late so I can be settled in first."

He took the paper, and hid it amongst his belongings. "Fashionably of course."

The train let out a puff of steam. Radiant looked off to the side and saw his sisters waving for him to hurry. She sighed. "Hurry off to your family. We're going to see each other again."

"See you later inebriator!" He chuckled as he ran off to his sisters.

She smiled to herself. "I don't have a rhyme for that." He was too far off to hear her over the sounds of the train regardless. Radiant watched as they made it off just in time, then returned slowly to her now empty train car.