Something Sparkling

by Captain_Cosmos

Chapter 14

Autumn awoke. Noticing that was the case as her mind restored to normal, she thought, Well. That was something. in reference to the dream.

She had to run a memory refresh on the entire event. Okay, so I was flying with Sparkler; aww, that part was so sweet! We’re great together in the dream realm too!

You know, that would be fun to do in real life. If Sparkler is strong enough, that is.

Okay, so then Luna came along, and she told me about… oh. Right.

Autumn felt her body tense up as she came to the realization that the info she was revealed in that dream…it applied to real life too. She looked at the mare laying right next to her; Autumn knew about her deepest, darkest secret. Without Sparkler knowing.

Man… I get what Luna was saying, but I feel like a privacy invader.

At that moment, ruffling sounds came from the area beside Autumn. A sign that Sparkler was waking up. Autumn sighed. I’m going to have to handle this day.

Sparkler slowly opened her eyes and looked up to see Autumn already awake. “Oh, morning Autumn.” She said as she sat up.

“Morning!” Autumn said. But she knew her enthusiasm was very fake. Now she was thinking, My goodness, how am I going to handle the days until she actually comes out? When I know something about her that she doesn’t think I know?

“How’d you sleep last night?” Sparkler asked.

Autumn really wanted to talk about her dream. It was stuffing her mind field and not in a good way. But she couldn’t talk about it. Way too risky. “I slept fine, I guess.” She said.

“That’s good. I slept alright too.” Sparkler replied. Indeed, despite the disaster that was her first coming out practice, she oddly felt better about the whole thing now that she actually did it.

It’s oddly refreshing to get it off my chest somewhat. Though it was only practice.

Which was a disaster because I royally screwed it up.

But practice makes perfect. It didn’t have to be perfect first time.

I guess you’re right.

“So, breakfast?” Sparkler asked Autumn.

“Yep!” Autumn said, hopping out of bed. “Let’s do it!” This reaction was genuine, though breakfast wouldn’t be quite the same.

“Awesome. What should we have?” Sparkler asked as she left the bed.

“Hmm. I don’t know.” Autumn said.

“I could make us some pancakes while you go do your morning routine in the bathroom.” Sparkler suggested.

“Okay!” Autumn said. “I like pancakes, and that’s a good timeline. See you at the table later!”

“The pancakes will be waiting for you. Want syrup on yours?” Sparkler asked.

“Sure.” Autumn said.

…

Ah, the shower. Perfect place for my inner thoughts to run wild. Coming on the heels of that dream.

And of course, her inner thoughts running wild is exactly what happened.

I still feel like a privacy invader. Being around Sparkler is uncomfortable right now, and that’s really bad. I shouldn’t feel uncomfortable around her.

But what else could I feel when I’m hiding my knowledge of her deepest, darkest secret? I’m really in dangerous waters here. If she finds out about this, I cannot see her being happy.

Like, what if it costs us our friendship? And our roommate status?

Autumn couldn’t help but sit down on the shower floor and shed a few tears.

A while later, Autumn thought she had an idea… for less than a second.

What if I talked to Flappy about this? ...oh, no. That would still be spilling it out. I’d assume he also knows about Sparkler’s wings, so that’s someone else I could upset.

I don’t know what to do…

Meanwhile, in the kitchen, Sparkler was working both her literal and figurative magic in the process of making pancakes. While also talking to Flappy about what had happened the previous night.

“Squawk! So you and Princess Luna are gonna practice coming out to Autumn? Squawk!” Flappy asked

“Mm-hmm.” Sparkler replied. “Last night, she made a construct of Autumn that I could come out to without it being a permanent thing. And while it went horribly, I actually feel a lot better about this whole thing.” Sparkler explained.

Flappy nodded. Admittedly he didn’t fully understand the situation, but he was still happy about what he was hearing. “Squawk! Well, Least now you can perfect your coming out. Squawk!” He commented.

“Yeah. I can.” Sparkler replied.

The two heard the bathroom door open. Cue to change the topic. “How are the pancakes going?” Autumn’s voice called out.

“Ready and waiting!” Sparkler called out as she floated over two plates of pancakes with syrup on them to the table.

“Awesome!” Autumn said as the sizzling pancakes with golden-brown shining syrup came closer in her sights.

“Yeah. Pancakes are awesome aren--” Sparkler stopped as she suddenly felt a tingle in her spine. “...What is that?”

“What’s what?” Autumn asked.

Sparkler shook her head and smiled. “Oh, somepony just activated the tripwire spell I placed around...my studio...oh no.” Sparkler lit her horn and cast a scrying spell. A dodgeball sized orb appeared and everypony saw a picture of what was undoubtedly the door to Sparkler’s studio in the Appleloosa tavern.

When Sparkler saw who it was, her jaw dropped and her eyes widened. “I..is that…”

“What’s going on?” Autumn said.

“Autumn, that’s Airwave!” Sparkler exclaimed. “That’s the Airwave!”

“Oh? Where?” Autumn said, relatively quietly compared to Sparkler’s outward excitement.

“Squawk! Right in front of the door to Sparkling Harmony Records. Squawk!” Flappy answered.

Sparkler lit her horn again and started brushing her teeth and combing her hair. “Sorry to make breakfast and run, but I am not missing this opportunity to meet my idol!” She explained.

Before anypony could say anything, she downed her breakfast, lit her horn, and teleported out of the house. Presumably to her studio.

Silence…

“Well, that happened. Guess we’re trying a new lineup at breakfast time today.” Autumn said.

“Squawk! Sparkler’s idol shows up at her record studio. What’re the odds? Hehe. Squawk!” Flappy commented.

“Hehe. Indeed.” Autumn said.

“Squawk! So. How was your night, Autumn? Squawk!” Flappy asked.

Autumn hoped Flappy didn’t see her jolt. How was my night? Oh… um, I don’t know how to explain that…

Flappy did not in fact miss that jolt. He raised an eyebrow. “Squawk! Something wrong, Autumn? Squawk!”

Autumn did not know to respond to this either. And she couldn’t think of anything in time. “There is something wrong, but I do not think I can say it. At all.”

“Squawk! Autumn, if something is on your mind you can tell me. Whatever it is, I'll listen. Squawk!” Flappy assured her.

“In general I believe that, but does it apply if I, well, did something bad?” Autumn said.

“Squawk! I still think you should get it off your chest. Worse case scenario we just forget we had this conversation. Squawk!” Flappy suggested.

“Ah… the topic would definitely not be forgotten about. It’s that kind of topic.” Autumn responded.

“Squawk! Oh, will you just say it already? I mean, how bad can it really be? Squawk!” Flappy asked.

Now Autumn was really stressed out. She was being pressured to say it, when what happened was something she was not supposed to know. She saw a reveal of it as dangerous to her friendship with Sparkler.

Flappy noticed Autumn’s behavior and gave her a reassuring smile. “Squawk! Autumn. Whatever it is, I promise to listen. Trust me, Sparkler’s had that same expression repeatedly and it’s always helped her feel better to get whatever was bothering her off her chest. Squawk!” He assured her.

“But was it ever that she ended up doing something bad?” Autumn asked.

“Squawk! No. But still, it’s always better to get it off your chest. So spill it. Squawk!” Flappy told Autumn.

Autumn breathed heavily. Internally, she was like, I can’t… I can’t…

“Squawk! You know about Sparkler’s wings, don’t you? Squawk!” Flappy asked.

Autumn felt like she needed to run out the front door as Flappy’s question made her literally jump in the air. “W-w-where did you get that idea?!”

“Squawk! Sparkler told me about the other night where she had a nightmare and you cuddled her. Ever since I had a gut feeling you would eventually figure it out. Am I wrong? Squawk!” Flappy asked.

Okay, that made sense. Autumn could pause her muscles. “Oh. She told you?”

Flappy nodded. “Squawk! And am I right that you know about her wings? Squawk!”

Autumn nodded. “I felt something at her sides, then it was confirmed, when, get this, Princess Luna came into my dream and asked me to help Sparkler practice coming out.”

Flappy processed the information, and came to a realization. “Squawk! Wait, so Sparkler doesn’t even know that she came out to you? Squawk!”

“She doesn’t. Luna told her she was creating a fake construct of me for her to practice coming out to. But it was the real me. That’s the problem. I tricked her. I stand here today, fully knowing about her wings, while she does not know that I know. Like, I violated her carefully-kept secret.” The tears reappeared.

“Squawk! Sounds to me like it was more Luna that tricked her. And you just played along. Squawk!” Flappy said.

“Well, true, but I shouldn’t have played along. I should have told Luna to actually create a fake construct.”

“Squawk! Au Contraire. I think you did the right thing here. Squawk!” Flappy said.

Autumn sniffled. “Really? How so?”

“Squawk! Let me ask you something. Do you care that she has wings? Does it bother you that she’s an Alicorn? Squawk!” Flappy asked.

“No, not at all, and in fact, during the dream, it was confusing to me why she felt the need to hide such a thing. But regardless, she felt it, and I didn’t respect that.”

“Squawk! She feels like she needs to hide them because she feels that’s the only way she’ll make friends. But here’s a kicker. She wants to tell you. She just can’t bring herself to do it. It’s actually a good thing that it happened like this. Squawk!” Flappy explained.

Autumn let out a sigh. “That is what I remember from the dream, is that she wants to come out. I just think Luna and I went about it the wrong way.”

“Squawk! Don’t get me wrong. Tricking Sparkler like that may not have been my first choice. But now. We have actual proof to show her that she can be herself and have friends at the same time. That’s the goal here right? Squawk!”

“Where exactly is our proof, if the reveal and such happened in the dream world?” Autumn asked.

“Squawk! We could use this to show her that you don’t care that she has wings. I’m guessing you agreed to keep doing these practice sessions right? Squawk!”

“Yeah, we did. Luna said she’ll keep coming back.” Autumn said.

“Squawk! So when we tell Sparkler about this, we can say that you did it because you wanted to help her. Like a true friend should. Squawk!” Flappy explained.

“My intentions were definitely good; like, yes, I wanted to help her, but she still might be upset by the trickery.” Autumn said.

“Squawk! Maybe at first. But she’s a smart girl. Once we explain it to her she’ll be very happy. Squawk!” Flappy said. “Squawk! Once she realizes you were willing to help her, she’ll overlook this one minor detail. Squawk!”

“I sure hope so.” Autumn said.

“Squawk! Trust me. I know her. Squawk!”

“True, you have known her for a long time.” Autumn said.

“Squawk! You know it. Squawk!”

---

Autumn couldn’t exactly say she was looking forward to dinnertime, as much as she wanted that to not be the case. Ugh, I hate feeling uncomfortable around Sparkler. That shouldn’t happen. She’s my friend and roommate. But, you know, the wing thing and all.

“Dinner’s ready!” Sparkler called out.

Autumn still tried to fake enthusiasm. “Smells great!” She said.

Sparkler smiled and set two plates of macaroni and cheese on the table. “So. How was your day, Autumn?” She asked as they sat down.

Another tough question. Shouldn’t be, but this day was a different circumstance.

“Everything ok, Autumn?” Sparkler asked after a moment of silence.

“Well...my day was awesome.” Sparkler finally said, deciding to start the conversation. “I wasn’t dreaming this morning when I saw Airwave standing at the door of Sparkling Harmony Records.” She said.

“So proud of you, Sparkler.” Autumn said, smiling. “It must have been one of your happiest moments.”

“It was!” Sparkler exclaimed. “Imagine your idol coming to your door asking to negotiate a regular record deal. I have the chance to work with my favorite music artist! How awesome is that?!”

“Very awesome.” Autumn said. “I’m sure it will be awesome.”

“Squawk! Yeah. I think you’ll like him, Autumn. He seems like a cool dude. Squawk!” Flappy commented.

“Oh yeah. I’d love to meet him.” Autumn said.

“Let’s do lunch sometime!” Sparkler suggested.

“That would be awesome. Let’s make plans for it sometime.” Autumn said.

“Deal!” Sparkler smiled and held out her hoof for a hoof-bump.

Autumn responded to that hoof-bump hard. She sure felt the impact of the hit, as she rubbed that hoof afterward.

Her mood could be said to be a little better with this distraction topic, but that was inevitably temporary, and she wouldn’t be surprised if somepony called out that something looks off about her. Also with the fear that she wouldn’t be able to respond, just like before. What was bothering her, after all, was bothering her because it was dangerous to talk about.

“Squawk! So. How was your day, Autumn? Squawk!” Flappy asked.

Autumn sighed. “I guess you could call it… nothing in particular. I really just can’t choose an actual term.” Not that this was true either; her day was definitely in the bad tier.

“Average, you could say?” Sparkler offered.

Autumn really could not think of any words to speak here. She was just waiting for somepony to ask her what’s wrong again, only to be left without a response because she couldn’t say what was wrong!

“Squawk! So. Couple of my bird friends mentioned something called the Summer Sun Celebration happening soon. Squawk!” Flappy commented.

“Oh yeah, the Summer Sun Celebration!” Autumn said. “The celebration of Celestia’s victory.”

“Victory over what?” Sparkler asked.

“Oh, right. You’re not from these parts.” Autumn said. This was fun; Autumn got to tell a little history lesson from where she’s from! “Well, it’s a really big story, but to put it simply, Princess Luna was not always Princess Luna. For whatever reason, she was a villain before. Known as “Nightmare Moon”, she was evil and wanted eternal night. And she was that way for… a long time.

“But Celestia eventually won out and her sister was restored to her real form.”

“Squawk! From what my bird friends told me, it was your cousin and her friends who ultimately restored Luna to her former glory. Squawk!” Flappy interjected.

“Very true.” Autumn said. “Applejack is one of the bearers of the Element of Harmony, if you’ve ever heard of them.”

“Yeah, we talked about those before. Though prior to moving here, we knew nothing like that. Again, the most remote and boring place on the planet, Kilihima Village.” Sparkler commented.

“Funnily enough, even if it is boring, one day I’d like to visit your old home, Sparkler.” Autumn said. “Would be nice to explore where my friend grew up.”

“Oh yeah. Going back to the place who’s younger generation is seemingly anti-Sparkler. What a fun time that will be.” Sparkler said sarcastically with an eye roll.

“Oh… right, that. Yeah, then we probably shouldn’t go.” Autumn said.

“Nah. We can still go. At the very least my parents’ll want to meet you.” Sparkler replied.

“I would love that.” Autumn said.

“Squawk! And they’ll love that you’re Sparkler’s friend. I think they were getting sick of me being her only friend for faust knows how long. Squawk!”

“Yeah. I bet they’ll be proud.” Autumn said. “Proud of you too, Sparkler.”

Sparkler nodded. “Wouldn’t surprise me if they invited you to spend Hearth's Warming with us.” She commented with a chuckle.

“Squawk! And would insist you come along every time we visit. Hehe. Squawk!”

Autumn giggled. “Well, that would be fun.”

“And it’s a quiet town, there’s still a few things to do. The races are fun to watch.” Sparkler said.

“Races. Nice.” Autumn said.

“Squawk! And sand sledding. That’s always fun. Squawk!” Flappy added.

“Now that’s clever.” Autumn commented.

“Oh, riding down sand dunes on sleds built for snow travel. We should try doing that here!” Sparkler suggested.

“We should! Definitely!” Autumn said.

“Squawk! Just make sure to bring a bowl for me to sled in. I freaking love sand sledding! Squawk!” Flappy exclaimed, flappy his wings excitedly.

“Noted.” Autumn said. “Such an awesome idea.”

“Yeah. Hehe.” Sparkler replied.

This conversation looked nice and happy, but that was the result of Autumn trying with all her might to keep her dreary inner thoughts locked up as she acted out the fake normalcy. And she suspected Sparkler was doing the same.

After all, she did say “Oh no” sometime after I touched her wings, didn’t she? Yeah! I heard it. I just remembered that she said that! And what could she be feeling with that dream last night?

Flappy glanced between the two mares, and in that moment... an epiphany happened. It occurred to him that he was now essentially a double agent. On one wing, he was keeping his beak closed about Sparkler’s wings, and on the other wing, he was now keeping his beak shut that Autumn knew about the wings.

Well, this is quite a pickle I’ve gotten myself into. It was not in any way lost on him the delicate situation he was now in. He was essentially the last stable leg in the stool of this friendship circle. With both Autumn and Sparkler starting to crack.

One wrong move, and this friendship could break apart faster than a pegasus going at the speed of a Sonic Rainboom. His mind raced. He had to do something to help. He knew that time was running out. Sparkler would eventually figure out that Autumn and Luna had been reading her astray.

And when that happened, not only could this friendship fall apart, but so could she. It is theorized that, if an alicorn holds in their emotions for too long, they can die from a magical breakdown.

While Flappy’s mind continued racing, he noticed Sparkler getting up out of her seat. “I’ll be right back.” She said. “Gotta use the bathroom.” With that, she left.

Flappy watched her go, and shook his head. Gah. This can’t go on. If Alicorn magic is more powerful than unicorn magic, I don’t even want to think how one’s emotions come into play.

“Squawk! Autumn, we have to find a way to help Sparkler come out in the waking world. Squawk!”

“How am I to do that, though, when I already found out in a way that wasn’t technically approved by her?” Autumn said.

“Squawk! Maybe give her a suggestion. She’s unlikely to question it since she’ll think it’s Luna's power. Squawk!”

“What kind of suggestion?” Autumn asked.

“Squawk! I don’t know...Maybe…” Flappy ran through ideas in his head, until one stuck out to him as the best one. “...Music. Squawk!” He said in a hushed voice.

Autumn felt potential and wanted to know where Flappy was going. “How would that work?” She asked.

“Squawk! Back in school. There was always one thing you could count on to cheer Sparkler up and boost her confidence. What do you think that one thing was? Squawk!” Flappy asked.

“Music.” Autumn said, smiling.

“Squawk! Ding ding ding. Bingo Dingo. No matter what was going on, when she would play an instrument or sing a song, you could ask her to pull off shooting a moving target while she herself was moving and she would have no doubts about herself. She would go through with the attempt. Squawk!”

“So, you’re thinking that if we get her to play, say, a certain song, she’ll come out because of the effect it has on her?”

“Squawk! No, the way to do this is you suggest that she writes a song to come out in her dream. When she wakes, I’m certain she’ll tell me. And then I’ll convince her to actually do it. And once she gets going, she’ll follow through with it. Squawk!” Flappy explained.

Autumn didn’t quite get it. “Could you elaborate on that a little more? Sorry.”

“Squawk! Ok, I’ll break this down step by step. First, you suggest she come out through song. Squawk!”

“No, I mean, I’m confused about the timeline.” Autumn said. “In the dreams, Sparkler is still practicing coming out to me under Luna’s watch. If I’m suggesting that she come out through song, doesn’t that mean I’m helping her to come out to the public?”

“Squawk! You would make that suggestion in the dream realm during your practices. Squawk!”

“But for coming out to who? Me or the public?” Autumn asked.

“Squawk! Right now, we’re taking the baby step approach, first you and then the public. Squawk!”

“But how do I suggest a way that she comes out to me? Like, how does that work?”

“Squawk! You make the suggestion as if you’re still a construct. If I’m right, Luna told Sparkler that you were a construct of her own making that had the capability to replicate Autumn to a T. Is that right? Squawk!”

“That’s right.” Autumn said. “She thinks it’s a fake construct, right in front of the real me.” And of course, that still bothered her.

“Squawk! So Sparkler will likely be expecting the “construct” to maybe make the perfect suggestion if she can’t come up with it herself. Because who knows Autumn better than Autumn? Squawk!”

Autumn had to pause and think. Flappy managed to actually reach her this time.

“I mean… yeah, if she thinks it’s a construct, she probably does expect help from me, I would think.” Autumn said.

“Squawk! So the way I see it. You suggesting she sing her coming out is the best route for this little scheme to take. If we want the best chance of this ending happily. Squawk!”

“Sing her coming out… well, it is fitting for her.” Autumn said, smiling.

“Squawk! Right? When she is out on stage singing. You’d swear she lives up there. Squawk!”

Autumn giggled. “It is awesome to be on stage.”

“Squawk! Granted I think that when the time comes you two should be in her studio. But still, the concept is the same. Squawk!”

“The studio would work. Pretty much any place would work, I think.” Autumn responded. “But yeah, I see what you mean.”

“Squawk! So you agree to do this? Squawk!”

“Sure.” Autumn said. “Do you think Sparkler will ask ‘my construct’ for advice in the next dream? The last one featured only Luna guiding her.”

“Squawk! Maybe. But I wouldn’t wait for her. To me the night to offer the suggestion is the next dream. Squawk!”

“Suggestion… okay. We’ll see what happens.”

“Squawk! Trust me, Autumn. The sooner you give that suggestion, the better off we’ll all be. Squawk!”

“...Yeah, I see what you mean.” Autumn said. “Like, what kind of things could happen if we delay it for too long?”

“Squawk! Worst case scenario...Sparkler starts breaking down into insanity, Holds in her uncontrollable magic...then literally blows up. Just a theory. Squawk!” Flappy said flatly.

That last part didn’t make Autumn feel much better. “Where did that theory come from?”

“Squawk! Sparkler’s an Alicorn. Her emotions can have a severe impact on her control over her magic, for all I know. Squawk!” Flappy replied. “Squawk! But the point stands. We need to act before it’s too late and we lose more than this friendship possibly. Squawk!”

Oh gosh, that last part. Plus what Flappy already said. “Yeah. We must act now.” Autumn said.

Autumn definitely solidified her plan to suggest to Sparkler the musical coming-out. In the dream, of course; it still wasn’t yet worth the risk to reveal everything in real-life yet. But she had to make that the case as soon as possible.

Author's Note:

Ooh. things are getting interesting. How will things play out? Stay tuned!

THX FOR READING!

Comments

[Bronycommander]

interesting indeed!

[Player 4]

11037611
Thank you!

[Bronycommander]

11038380
You're welcome