Chapter 70
The day was starting to turn up now, as I decided I was equal parts amused and relieved at the same time. Obviously, I knew my own weaknesses and didn't exactly look forward to spending an agonizing dinner in a fancy, high priced restaurant. Tilting my head, I took in the sight of the quaint, cozy look
ing street café instead. It was a clean looking place, with two eating areas separated into a higher and lower zone with a pleasant looking hedge barrier. Flower arrangements also added a dash of color along the side of the building that was probably their storage and cooking area. Each table seated either four or eight, with a few joined together with custom-designed fittings, it looked like. Each had a nice umbrella-like fixture over them that expanded out from the table at least a meter in each direction, which should provide adequate protection from lesser elements. Friendly looking waiters and waitresses walked about as well, seeming quite happy. The entire place was lit softly by garden lights extending off the hedge walls and candles resting on each table, giving almost a fairyland appearance that caused me to relax a bit.
Rarity stared blankly at the place, mouth partially open from mid-sentence when she froze to look at the 'restaurant' instead. I tried really hard not to laugh, and Twilight shot me a smirk as she probably felt my mirth down the link. Octavia seemed knowingly oblivious to Rarity's inner struggle in an oddly paradoxical sense, and rotated to face us as we stopped in front of the entrance to the place.
"Here it is. This place is nice and cozy, and I love to come here for supper after playing late at places. Eating here in the candlelight always relaxes me after a long day, and like I said, the food is amazing. Although I believe you're a bit overdressed for the occasion. That's my fault for not explaining, I imagine," she mused, seemingly more amused at that aspect than genuinely sorry. Heh.
A little twitch shot through Rarity's demeanor, and she quickly shut her mouth before taking a deep breath and relaxing. "Yes, well, I imagine I might have jumped to conclusions. This... This will work, too. Improvise!" she declared, seemingly mostly to herself. Uh...
Her horn flared up a second later, and I contemplated diving for cover when she lifted my outer suit jacket off and put it in her saddlebags. Applejack's and Twilight's dress coverings came next, leaving them in only their sleeker under-dresses that were beneath the cloak-like frilly pieces. Rainbow's fluffy, cloak-like frill was pulled off her dress, shortening it by quite a bit into more of a skirt than anything. She ironically looked more delighted in the new look than the old, but that didn't surprise me much.
Fluttershy took her frilly 'shirt' piece off, leaving more of a strapped upper dress piece instead, and smiled as she gave it to Rarity, who nodded. Spike just removed his outer suit jacket like she had done with me, which just left Pinkie, who put the hat back in the saddlebag and gave back the oddly poofy yet strangely appropriate scarf accent. Wow, amazing! We looked far more casual suddenly. Which surprised me, as I noticed Cadance and Shining were already in more casual attire, as were Twilight's parents. Eh?
Noticing my stare, Shining smirked and preemptively answered with, "We already knew where we were headed. Octavia's a regular here."
The gray mare smiled pleasantly at that and added, "Oh my. To attract the attention of the royal family! Maybe my career is a bit more influential than I realized."
"You're head cellist of the Canterlot Orchestra and lead mare of your own quartet. Plus, I know how in-demand your talents are at all the fancy Canterlot parties," Cadance teased, adding a more mirthful smile instead.
Octavia grinned in return and nodded before turning and walking up towards the podium that sat near the entrance. A friendly looking waiter sat on a short stool behind it, and looked up at Octavia as we approached. His smile was immediate, then shifted to mild surprise as his eyes drifted past her and to all of us instead.
"Oh my, Miss Octavia! You have quite a crowd tonight. New orchestra members?" he inquired softly. She really was a regular here.
She released a quiet giggle before shaking her head no, however. "Not tonight. These are very important guests to me, Cufflink, including the one I told you about that saved my life?" she reminded, smile widening a little. I felt my face heat up slightly as I wished she'd used a less grand introduction. What if he recognized me as the 'nutcase' from the Herd and Marriage Offices?
His gasp was almost immediate and I winced, feeling a spike of apprehension from each mare I was linked to. Oh hell. He'd recognized something. Was I the nutcase? A 'hero'? That would be arguably worse. "Princess Cadance! Prince Shining Armor! Oh wow!" he exclaimed, hooves extending to his mouth. Crap, I knew it would be the nutc- wait, what?
Octavia gave a slow, mildly confused looking blink as she turned to look back and behind me to the left at the royal couple instead. Uh, right! Was 'totally ignored' better or worse, though? It honestly felt maybe a little closer to the 'better' end of the spectrum.
Other ponies, both those already eating and those on the street behind us gasped, the ones not currently eating, turned from their tables to also look. Shining flattened back his ears and gave a concerned glance to the unfazed-looking Cadance before quickly looking back to the waiter. "Uh, I don't mean to be impolite, but my wife and I are actually part of Miss Octavia's group, as are the Elements of Harmony and their group. We were hoping to get a table," he corrected, giving a sheepish smile afterwards. My ears perked and I turned back to Octavia, who looked mildly surprised but smiled towards him and nodded. The waiter looked suitably horrified, however.
"Oh my! I'm sorry, Miss Octavia. I should not have assumed, of course, that they were part of your group as you suggested. Please forgive me," he apologized, sounding surprisingly sincere.
The gray mare giggled, however, and held her hoof up to stop him, assuring, "Cufflink, you know you can just call me Octavia. And it's fine. I'm a bit beyond my normal station, I realize. The Prince and Princess are actually guests of Mender's, not mine. He himself is my guest, however, as are the Elements of Harmony and Spike, the young dragon." Spike himself perked up at that title, seeming to puff up a little at being called 'young' rather than 'baby' or something.
The waiter known as Cufflink looked us over momentarily, not really paying me much attention, which I was sort of thankful for. He appeared more fascinated by the Elements and royalty than anything, which honestly made sense. Spike at least was readily identifiable, I considered, much to my amusement. Fluttershy shrank away from the growing crowd from the street, and the rapid whispering coming from the gathering collection of ponies. I gently rubbed her left shoulder as she pushed against me again, hiding herself partially behind me and under my saddlebag.
"Ah, yes! Come right with me, and we shall get your group seated in the elevated section. I'm honored that we can host such distinguished guests!" Cufflink exclaimed shortly thereafter, thankfully recovering quickly. There were a few disappointed murmurs from the crowd as we were led away from the street level, but Fluttershy relaxed as we walked, her heartbeat calming again, as I could feel it when she pushed against my side. Twilight slipped up on her other side and shot her a soft smile, more fully covering her from view as we moved and settled into a large, connected set of tables the waiter directed us towards. Yes, it was up to us to make sure our herdmate felt more secure. I took comfort in my newfound responsibility and what it meant, honestly.
Seating arrangements were a tad on the tricky side, however. Even the connected tables only sat ten ponies, and we had twelve plus a dragon! I hadn't considered seating when I'd invited Shining and Cadance, of course. The waiter helped Shining and me move a small table over next to our larger one, however, giving us an additional four seats. Given their guest nature, it was decided, with no small amount of protest from Night Light, that Twilight's parents and the royalty would sit there. Velvet said she wanted to catch up anyway, and they were literally all of a meter from us, so I didn't really see what the fuss was apart from not getting to sit at Octavia's table.
That said, Spike was to my left and Fluttershy to my right as we settled in. Twilight was to Fluttershy's right and to my surprise, Rarity sat to Spike's left, appearing to be really laying it on thick for the dragon, who was rapidly getting overwhelmed. Heh. Had she changed her mind then about him? I didn't want to ask, of course, so I simply looked across the table instead. Octavia was straight across from me, looking less than pleased that Pinkie was to her immediate right. I'd have to ask her about her frustration with Pinkie at some point. To her left was Applejack, and then Rainbow, who was already staring at the menu. Heh, she had been hungry.
"Well then, now that we have seating out of the way, we can finally relax," Octavia muttered, leaning back in her chair as it tipped slightly, bumping up against the massive cello case behind it. There was something to be said about Earth Pony strength, given that the case was larger than her yet she easily moved about with it. She smoothed her black dress out again after getting situated, and exhaled softly.
Glancing up, I sniffed the warm air, noting the pleasing smells coming from the kitchen, a far away and subtle smell of engine oil, and a stronger scent of leaves as they fell from the trees all around the city. It was warm, which surprised me, considering we were halfway up a mountain. The docks were also nearby with those interesting balloon ship things, which was probably the source of that faint oil smell. It was probably some sort of lubrication they used in their gearboxes, as I’d yet to see any sort of combustion-based engine. They had maintained the shape of a water vessel as well, despite being airborne with a large balloon and propeller attachments. I doubted that was an aesthetic choice, and considered the aspect of them making water landings as well. I'd have to ask Twilight about that later!
"Equestria to Mender. You're spacing out again," Rainbow suddenly spoke up, giving me a start and snapping me out of my consideration for the engineering involved. Oops. Everypony at the table was looking at me now, as was Velvet from our neighboring group, and I blushed a little. Ugh!
Twilight smirked, however, revealing, "He had his head on the airships he saw on our walk over. He is an engineer, don't forget." Of course, Rainbow knew that already, given the smirk she shifted into after Twilight said that. Most of them did, actually, given direct input from me when I popped out of my daydream. I also noticed that images were really hard to transmit over our links, but a particularly strong or detailed one could be managed. When I slipped back into my fully aware state, I had no doubt that lingering airship image was still at the forefront of my mind.
Octavia, however, looked deeply curious at that. "Wait, do you mean that you've linked with him already, Miss Twilight?" she inquired almost instantly. Oh, err, whoops. Well, technically her vocabulary was accurate...
Twilight blushed at that and coughed lightly, and I was suddenly keenly aware of both her parents' gaze on us, her father turning around to look back at her in surprise. Oh. Oh hell. Octavia blinked, then flattened her ears back slightly as her gaze wavered briefly over to her parents before snapping back to her, the mare suddenly looking uncertain. Still, the clever unicorn could recover this, if she just made up something convincing! "Ah... Hahaha! Of course not! I mean, Mender's an engineer and I know him well enough and, uh, saw him looking at the airships!" she quickly and loudly denied. Crap.
There was an awkward tension at the table for a long five seconds, Rainbow's face going blank and Applejack giving the lavender unicorn a skeptical stare. Yeah, that was totally bogus, and even I would have been able to tell that much. That really said something, sadly. Regardless, I was so, so very screwed.
"Twilight... We need to have words," Night Light spoke softly but adamantly behind her. Her ears dropped downwards as her pupils shrank a little. Damn it...
* * * * *
Okay, it didn't matter what I did. Everything would eventually devolve into a complete and total disaster. As strong and capable as my cybernetics were, they did absolutely nothing to help me against the problems I usually faced. What use were ten-meter long, bladed tendrils that could rip rock in half when my enemies hid out of sight and used politics to strike at me? Oh, and they didn't help much against Twilight's parents, either.
I lay with my head on the table, trying really hard not to cry hysterically as they continued to scream at each other. Of course, for 'privacy', they had taken it away from the table and behind the shrub wall to the alley, but air was hardly effective soundproofing, let alone when the conversation degraded into screaming.
"No, there is no redeeming factor for this, Twilight! I will not stand to see my daughter manipulated by some random colt!" her father continued to scream. Well, ironically, I kinda saw his point. I mean, the link he thought we had was essentially equivalent to getting engaged, if I understood it properly. Or was it married directly? I didn't really understand it properly. Regardless, I'd only known Twilight for the better part of a month and a week, which was rather soon to be asking her to marry me. Although that was probably inevitably to follow at this point.
"He's not some random colt! He's a stallion, and... And I've never felt this connected to anypony before in my life, until the herd! Why can't you respect my own decision?!" my fillyfriend, herdmate, and equally best friend shouted back. I also agreed with Twilight. He, while wanting to protect her, was doing a fairly amazing job of trampling her own decision-making capacity. That wasn't exactly a show of trust.
Her mother sighed wearily a moment later, adding, "I understand you care for both of them, Dear. But don't you think this is, well, a little sudden?" she reasoned, far more calmly than her husband.
Shining Armor groaned as well, having followed Twilight over there with Cadance, apparently making it a whole 'family' occasion. "We can't avoid it, Sis. There are some things about the situation that they don't understand, and they deserve to at least be told that much," he suggested. Oh, goodie! Now they were voting to reveal my secret instead. This would go over so well. Sadly, Fluttershy had also gone over there to attempt to support Twilight, leaving me as the only one technically not part of the family. There was, unfortunately, only one of her. Really, I'm glad she was with Twilight anyway.
I hid my eyes behind my own forelegs, trying to ignore the gossiping whispers of the random ponies near us who were probably getting quite a bit of free entertainment at my expense. Although that was probably a good thing, as they certainly weren't sitting there for the food anymore. I kind of wished that I could literally crawl entirely behind my own forelegs and hide for a few hours, maybe crying for a bit and getting a good nap in. Maybe that's what the chef had done when he barged out of the kitchen in a stressed state, spewing frustrations in a rather peculiar accent. Apparently he refused to work in such disruptive environments, which I honestly couldn't blame him at this point.
Applejack let out an annoyed huff from the darkness somewhere in front of me, and to the left. "This is ridiculous. Mender's proven his worth on more than one occasion. They're actin' like he's some scary stranger!" she spat out, sounding irate.
Rarity sighed towards that, now next to me and gently patting my right foreleg. "Well, to them, he is. Uh, a stranger, I mean, not scary. Still, they are most definitely following a 'guilty until proven innocent' model," she admitted, halting her pats for a moment as she thought her words out.
"Ugh. That sounds familiar," Applejack murmured back, a bit of the spite leaving her tone. Octavia, however, let out a sorrowful sigh. It was maybe her sixth one in four minutes.
"I'm terribly sorry about all of this again, Mender. Me and my big mouth started all of this when I was supposed to be using this time to thank you for saving my life," she apologized, sounding utterly miserable over it.
Pinkie giggled lightly at that from the other side of me, adding, "Well, actually, injuring or humiliating him has sort of been an icebreaker for Mender ever since he arrived in Ponyville." Heh, at least she was trying to lighten the mood. I felt a twinge of annoyance from Applejack, but it shifted to confusion instead as I started snickering.
"Actually, now that she said that, I think she might be right. It's like I have some hidden quota that has to be met before anypony can be my friend. Heh," I agreed, looking up again. Pinkie smiled happily towards me and nodded twice, pleased that I was at least smiling again, it would seem. Well, I thought she was happy, anyway. Her link worked more off images and colors than direct emotions and thoughts. Right now she was a dark pink, which meant happy, but fighting to maintain that, from prior experiences with the mare.
Sadly, they must have at least gotten to the volatile point in the story, as my thoughts were interrupted by Night Light shouting, "You're kidding! You seriously expect us to believe that?!" Ooh, which part? I found myself curious, in a disturbed sort of way.
Twilight let out an annoyed growl, shooting back with, "Yes, because it's true! Ask any of the girls, or even Princess Celestia herself if you don't believe me!" I thought I heard Cadance clear her throat after that and softly mutter something about it being a bit loud, and supposed to be secret, but I couldn't be sure. Not that it mattered, as Night Light drowned her out a moment later anyway.
"This is ridiculous! If what you're saying about him is true, then he's actually a-" he started to shout back. It was cut off prematurely, however, as a light blue bubble popped up over the entire area around them, shielding them from sight completely and also seemingly soundproof. Oh, good! All of Canterlot wouldn't know my secrets now. Thank you, Shining!
Flopping back over onto the table, I gave out a sigh and started contemplating if it was possible to ride out of the shield on one of those sky ships, and then leap off to my death. No, knowing my luck, I'd have some sort of emergency armor reaction from falling, and I'd just make a sizable, pony-shaped crater. Or maybe the ships had their own safety shielding?
Rainbow surprised me by joining a second later from the other side, her forehead wracking down just above mine. "Ugh. I hear ya! We didn't even get a chance to order before this, and now we can't!" she complained, whacking her hoof on the surface of the table impatiently.
Spike, who had been rather quiet until now, snickered at that and suddenly suggested, "Ya know, they might be in there a while. Mender and Rainbow were hungry before we even got here, and will be starving probably by the time they're finished. They'd probably understand if we just, I dunno, went back to the palace and ate there?" Uh... Huh. Well, honestly, I didn't see a huge amount wrong with the idea. Especially as Dash was really hungry, too.
"Spike, what about them? Would it be polite to start eating without them?" Rarity asked, frowning towards the dragon.
There was a light, yet visible twitch from Applejack before she pointed out, "Ah dunno. Is it polite o' them ta start this hogwash up before we could even order, fully knowin' that several of us are downright starvin'? Ya fully know he's just raisin' ah stink because he don't like Mender. He didn't say ah thing about Flutters! This is downright immature." It was kind of amazing, the things she had the guts to say. Sadly, she was also true to her nature and not lying. That implied that he simply hated my guts, however...
"Oh, yeah! Fluttershy and Twilight would understand. Besides, we can at least tell them that we're, uh..." Pinkie started to suggest before dwindling off. I was suddenly keenly aware of her feeling the raw anger and hostility coming from Twilight. Uh? "...right. Um, Fluttershy! We can tell Fluttershy where we're going!" the pink mare appended, giving a hesitant giggle afterwards. Oh, yeah, right. Didn't want to indirectly become a target of Twilight's wrath.
Octavia's ears flattened a little bit, but she nodded at that, saying, "I understand. I suppose I can treat you the next time you're in Canterlot. Might as well drop this case off at-"
Shaking my head, I held up a hoof to stop her, earning a questioning expression from the gray mare. "No, no, Octavia. You can treat us the next time we're in Canterlot, yes. I have a sneaking suspicion we'll be back sooner, rather than later. For now, however, you get to come to the palace with us instead and eat there. We kind of ruined your plans, after all. I shouldn't have invited the others after all, it would seem," I corrected, frowning to myself as I glanced back over at the bubble. To have things degrade this far, I must have made some sort of faux pas at some point. Probably that moment when I offered for Shining and Cadance to come, too... Octavia's gasp drew my attention again, just in time to see her eyes get huge.
"I couldn't... But... The palace?! I've only been inside on the rare occasion of a musical performance, and never as a royal guest!" she exclaimed, sounding utterly shocked.
I blinked at that, not quite understanding her reaction. "Uh, technically you're just a normal guest of mine. I'm just a normal pony, after all. But I don't think Tia would mind either way, especially if we tell her what happened and she can laugh hysterically at it," I mused, that last part largely to myself.
Applejack chuckled at that, nodding along before agreeing with, "Eeyup! Ah imagine bein' ah Princess can get mighty stiff sometimes. Cuttin' back an' havin' ah good laugh is good fer her."
The ecstatic sensation from Pinkie caught me off guard for a moment, as she momentarily let images of the royal bakery products drift down the link. Heh, she had more than one reason for wanting to go back to the palace to eat, I realized. "Yes! Let Fluttershy know, and then we can get going! I'm starving," the pink mare ordered, hopping out of her seat instantly and abandoning any pretenses of sorrow over the ordeal. Heh. Never change, Pinkie.
Closing my eyes, I focused on just Fluttershy and softly sent, "Fluttershy, several of us are hungry, and this situation has shut the restaurant down. We're going to head back to the palace in order to get food, hopefully before Rainbow passes out from hunger." It took her a moment of surprise to realize I was talking to her, and then she sent her characteristic innocent smile sensation back down the link.
"Oh, um, I didn't realize we were being so loud! Oh no. I'm sorry. Uh, yes, you should get Rainbow Dash back to the palace to get some food quickly, then. I'll let the others know, uh, when things calm down a little," she assured back, sounding stressed out already, and this only adding to it.
I tried my best to send assurance down the link before adding, "Keep us informed. The links will operate essentially anywhere. And hang in there. None of this is your fault." No, if anything, it was Twilight and her father who were oblivious to everything around them.
I felt a bit of relief come from her, and a steadier smile as she 'nodded' back. Relaxing, I returned her nod, then opened my eyes again and smiled for real. "We're clear to go to the palace and get some food, then," I informed. It didn't even take two seconds.
"Woo! Let's go!" Pinkie shouted before blasting off back in the direction of the Palace. I wasn't surprised in the slightest at this point, of course. Rainbow shot after her, grinning, a second later, while Rarity, Spike, and Applejack hung back with Octavia and me. Octavia was my guest now, so I should probably stick with her. Of course, Rarity was probably too dignified to race, the risk of getting her mane, coat, or dress dirty being too great. Spike was glued to her side as well, so yeah. Smiling, I realized I at least wouldn't have to walk alone...
* * * * *
We walked slowly down the cobbled path towards the main gate leaving the castle grounds. My stomach was pleasantly full at this point, having had at least four sandwiches, a nice salad, and these delicious slices of fried bread that were dipped in cheese and tomato sauce. Whoever first thought to squish tomatoes and mix them with bread and cheese was a genius! Undoubtedly one of Pinkie's ancestors. Given my link to the mare, I knew she was still enjoying them alongside Rainbow and Applejack. Heh.
Rarity smiled pleasantly as she walked along to my left, a very full looking Spike curled up on her back, looking really sleepy. She'd insisted on only a salad and one of the slices that I insisted she try. I got her to admit that they were 'oh so wrong and right at the same time' anyway, and I assumed she meant for her figure. Heh. Regardless, she apparently forgave me enough to help me walk Octavia out.
The gray mare in question ate what could only be twice her body weight while fitting into the common room 'scene' fairly well with the rest of us. Rarity finally relaxed around her, apparently realizing that she wasn't quite the 'fancy' pony she'd initially thought. No need to put on airs, so to speak. I think it was a good thing, overall. Octavia currently walked to my right, her impossibly large cello case still perfectly strapped to her back. She didn't even sag while walking!
I saw her smirk out of the bottom of my eye, and shifted my gaze back down to her as we walked, curious now. She warned a moment later, "You can stare at me all you want, but a mare might think you mean something if you keep ogling her cello case." What?!
Rarity started giggling in amusement for a few seconds before pointing out, "It is a rather large case, Octavia. You must admit, it stands out." The gray mare glanced up at the top of the case that swayed back and forth above her head as she walked, then smiled more honestly, nodding.
"I don't normally carry it around, of course, but it does seem fairly obvious, doesn't it? I've had this one for a few years now, though, and I should probably replace it soon. The newer cases are so much lighter, though. It might throw my balance off!" she complained, going in the totally opposite direction I had anticipated.
"Huh, normally lighter is better," I muttered, looking back up at the case. For something you had to carry, that was almost universally true, but she was right. Balance had to be taken into account. Adding dead weight to a design was for that reason, but that was usually for vehicles I'd made. Dead weight, of course, being defined as 'non-functioning'. Although was balance a function? That sort of separated it from armor, or a bulkhead. I suddenly realized that I was confusing myself.
An odd creaking noise came to my attention as we neared the large gate, two guards opening it slowly for us at the same time. Eh? My ears perked a bit as I swiveled them around, looking for the source of the strange noise as I nodded to the two guards, who returned it. Heh, at least I was recognized here.
It didn't take me too long to realize the creaking was coming from Octavia herself, who just started talking again with, "Normally lighter is better, yeah, but I'm so used to carrying this huge thing around that I might start over compensating my movement if-"
The creaking noise became loud enough to stop her, mid-explanation as she frowned instead. Wait, that was the sound of leather... The strap buckle for her case came free a second later, and I sighed, bringing my subdermal armor up barely a second before forty pounds of musical instrument crushed me into the cobblestone.
The guards rushed over surprisingly quickly as Octavia let out a startled squawk, followed by, "Ah, Mender, are you okay?!" Rarity looked significantly less concerned, smirking down at me in amusement, while Spike yawned and sat up again.
"Eh, I'm fine," I muttered, not really having felt much of anything after my armor popped into place under my skin. Sure, it had less shock absorption than my full, ablative plates, but it was far subtler.
The guards pulled the case off me easily enough and helped me get back to my hooves. Meanwhile, Octavia slipped around to the other side of me and started picking things up off the ground. Eh? It didn't take me long to notice that the entirety of my left two saddlebags had been spilled out. Damn it! I knew I should have just left them back in the room. It had been my subtle hope to meet Twilight and Fluttershy on their way back, and I was hoping the saddle clasps would cheer them up.
"I'm still sorry, Mender! This is all one huge disaster! I didn’t think the strap would give out for at least another week yet…” she groaned, scrambling to pick my stuff up as fast as she could. Week? Oh. My gravity probably didn’t help matters there. The guards looked at each other speculatively, then back at me, slipping back into attention stances, oddly enough.
“Octavia, relax. I have, uh, notoriously bad luck, and honestly, it didn’t hurt me,” I tried to assure, giving what I hoped was a calm and reasonable smile. I felt more like an idiot instead, of course. Eh, close enough.
She gave me a concerned frown before shoving my map and Twilight’s coin purse back into my bag absently, then reached down again and froze, eyes widening a bit. Huh? I glanced down, and then stopped as I noticed she was staring down at Prudentia instead, which I just remembered had been in my left front bag. Ah!
“Hmm?” Rarity hummed curiously, glancing around Octavia at the book. It was just as I remembered it, of course, with its dark blue cover and brass binding and accents. I didn’t fully understand why she was staring at it.
Octavia’s eyes shivered a little as she slowly reached down and brushed a hoof across the worn book. “Oh my. This is gorgeous! Are you borrowing it from Twilight? It looks positively ancient!” she cooed, smiling finally as she lifted it up. Uh…?
Purdue’s eyes opened in my mind an instant later with a sharp glare, surprising me. Octavia let out a startled squeak as the book flashed away an instant later, re-appearing at my side before sliding gently back into my saddlebag, my small friend’s image disappearing as fast as she woke up. That was… strange.
“Ah, sorry. Uh, technically it’s my book. It’s one of the few belongings I woke up with, and it’s, uh, particular about who it lets hold it,” I explained, coughing lightly and shifting awkwardly on my hooves.
Octavia looked more than a little surprised, and Rarity gave me a concerned eyebrow raise at the same time. “That’s not… normal. Is Twilight studying it, then?” the gray mare asked, sounding even more curious than before. Crap!
Rarity smiled softly, however, and nodded to her, not missing a beat. “Why of course, Dear. She is our resident expert on all things magical, and also happens to love books, so it’s right up her alley. Mender’s a bit sensitive about it, however, it being one of his few possessions from before he lost his memory,” she explained, lying completely in an amazingly graceful and competent way. It was kind of frightening.
The gray mare looked at her for a moment, almost sharply in her stare, before relaxing and smiling again, nodding. “I imagine. I’m sorry for bringing it up, Mender. Anyway, we appear to have reached the gate, so I guess this is where we part for tonight,” she reminded, nodding her head towards the large double gate as she talked. Oh, right. Thankfully, Rarity wasn’t as flustered as I was.
“Oh, of course. We must wait for our friends to return here regardless, however. What shall you do about the case?” she inquired, looking back over to where it fell.
Octavia shook her head as she walked over to it, threading the strap back through the buckle using her hoof and the ground before adjusting it carefully. “It looks like it just slipped loose. Weird, given that it’s meant to hold something a bit heavier than the case itself, just for safety. It should be fine, but I’ll hurry home just in case,” she muttered, sliding it back up onto her back before rotating to face us again. She seemed keenly aware of where the other end of it was, deftly avoiding the guards as she spun. The guards who were still sitting there in rigid stance in front of me… I was starting to get a bit creeped out.
Regardless, I decided definitely against mentioning my gravity effect. “Well, if you’re sure you can make it home okay. We’ll look you up the next time we come to Canterlot?” I offered, smiling towards her finally.
She grinned fully this time, nodding and adding, “Right! I’ll be fine, as I actually don’t live too far from here. Canterlot Heights apartment suite. I’ll mail Twilight the address for you. I still owe you dinner next time, my treat. And this time, let’s not invite the grumps.” Ha!
Smirking back, I waved to her as she trotted off and turned to the right past the gate, waving back momentarily before trotting onwards, presumably towards her apartment. Rarity mused for a moment, watching her go with a soft smile on her face. “Interesting mare, she is,” she murmured, after Octavia got out of earshot.
“She’s a lot more relaxed than I thought she’d be,” muttered Spike, who yawned again immediately afterwards and lightly pushed into the back of Rarity’s mane. I noted he was very, very careful not to part or mess up even a single hair, and she smiled back at him.
“Oh, I agree fully. I expected her to be a bit more supercilious, given her high standing, audience for her music, and apparently where she lives. Canterlot Heights! My, my, what a prestigious place. She even noticed that I was lying,” Rarity pondered out loud, as if amused. Wait, what?!
Rarity noticed my startled glance, then giggled, pointing out, “She didn’t push it, so it accomplished what we desired regardless, no? Anyway, I’m guessing you didn’t intend for Purdue to react that way?”
Frowning, I looked back at the book in my bag before carefully closing the top again, making sure to firmly clasp it shut this time. “No, I didn’t. Although it’s rather, uh, partial to me,” I reminded. She momentarily raised an eyebrow to my use of ‘it’, but turned back to the guards a second later, suddenly remembering they were there, probably. Yeah, they weren’t members of DReg, so they didn’t know my secrets.
“Uh, is there something you two need? I’m not entirely familiar with protocol here yet,” I warned, rubbing the back of my head slightly.
The one on the left threw up a salute, still not moving, before asking, “Permission to speak freely?” Oh! Right.
“Granted,” I assured, tilting my head towards him. The day guards were really serious compared to the night ones.
He quickly explained, “Our protocol dictates that whenever there is an event needing direct intervention, such as your incident with the cello case, and there is a commanding officer of higher rank nearby, we are to wait on alert standby afterwards until being dismissed or receiving further orders.” Huh? Was there a higher ranked officer nearby? Oh. Oh!
“Oh! Sometimes I forget that I’ve been granted ranking again. Apologies. You’re dismissed back to your posts, of course,” I assured, nodding to both of them. They both saluted sharply before heading back towards the gate with a confident strut. Yeah, they were way more serious. Oddly, I didn’t see where the discrepancy would have rested, given that Tia and Luna didn’t seem that different in their dealings.
Rarity let out a soft cooing noise, which shifted into a faint snicker. “You handled that quite remarkably, Mender. You’ll indeed make a fine prince one day,” she complimented. Psh, I didn’t handle it that great. I mean, uh… Wait, what? For the second time in rather short order, I found myself giving the pearly mare a blank, dumbfounded stare.
“P-Prince?!” I asked, suddenly totally uncertain of what she was talking about.
Spike yawned sleepily again, rubbing his eyes before answering for her. “Any pony forming a bond through marriage with direct royalty, or the blood relative of direct royalty, shall be considered a Titled Prince or Princess, offering more direct influence in the workings of Equestria, and its citizens,” he quoted, as if from memory, while looking equal parts bored by it and sleepy. Rarity nodded along to it, of course.
“Well said, Spike! Twilight’s taught you well. By marrying Twilight, who is a direct blood relation to Shining Armor, a full Prince, you will become a Titled Prince, just like she is a Titled Princess already. Fluttershy, I imagine, will also become a Titled Princess. It stops there, however, as you cannot grant that status to your foals,” she elaborated upon, looking pleased about the prospect. My head spun, not only with mention of me being a prince, but foals in the future. I wobbled a bit before sitting down again, blushing.
“I… that can’t be a good idea. They don’t have any, uh, duties, do they?” I asked, dreading the answer even as I requested it.
Rarity looked a bit exasperated at that, if nothing else. “Hardly. They’re merely looked to as outstanding members of society, which they usually adhere to. You, however, have nothing to worry about there. Oh, and as you’ve seen, their signature may also grant special rights and justifications,” she reminded. I wondered idly whom she was referring to with her exception she implied there, but she looked a bit irked by the statement, so I decided not to ask. One furiously pissed off mare was enough per day.
Exhaling softly, I sat down again and straightened out my saddlebags. “I’m glad. I don’t think I’d be up to being full royalty. While I’m used to leading soldiers, I, uh… I’m not very good at leading anypony else,” I admitted, frowning but feeling a bit better for getting it off my chest.
She puffed a bit of air upwards, making her curled bang sway momentarily before sitting down as well. Naturally, Spike slid off her back, but she lifted her tail up and cushioned him as he landed, gently moving him around to her side with it. He looked a bit surprised at his sudden repositioning, but quickly decided he so didn’t care, if his smile and blush said anything. If anything, Rarity didn’t appear to notice, which actually said something for their relationship, honestly.
“I understand that it can be scary. I used to be terrified of what ponies would think of me. Making dresses uses a lot of my own sense of style directly, and really puts me out there, after all. It’s frightening, and I’m always nervous when others are reviewing my work,” she revealed, looking back up at me afterwards. Oh? She seemed so confident normally that I honestly didn’t think anything outright frightened her.
Considering it, I decided to just be honest. “It’s strange to hear you say that. You always seem so confident on the outside that thinking about you worrying and nervous seems, I dunno. Against your character. I never realized how stressful it all can be,” I admitted, flicking my left ear a little as I chose my words carefully.
Rarity looked momentarily surprised at my confession, and then smiled, a very faint red tint appearing on her cheeks before she shook her head. “You give me too much credit, Mender. I’m sure you’ll eventually see how I act when the stress gets to me. My friends have always been there to help me get through it, though, and I’m glad I can count you amongst them now,” she said, nodding to me afterwards as if confirming it.
Spike shifted a little bit, then hugged the tip of her tail to himself before chipping in with, “I’ll do anything for you, too, Rarity. You can rely on me, too.” Heh. I think she knew that already, but him saying it was rather adorable, I had to admit. Especially the way he said her name, like he was trying to savor its taste as it left his tongue.
She smiled down at him smoothly, with measured practice and no hesitation, nodding to him as well. “Of course, Spikey Wikey. You’ve been, uh…” she started to confirm. Oddly, she hesitated, momentarily losing her smile as her eyes opened again, looking more fully down at him. He stopped shifting about, looking up at her instead with a rather curious stare, a nervous twitch going into his tail as she faltered. Eh?
It wasn’t a very long hesitation, before her smile came back, this time a bit warmer as her eyes softened. “What I mean is, you’ve always helped me out selflessly all along. Thank you, Spike. You mean a lot to me, and I know I will always have your support,” she thanked. For a moment, it almost looked like Spike was going to melt into the cobblestone, slipping between the cracks like so many drops of rain. He really did heat up a little, however, as I was able to feel the temperature shift from here.
“O-Of course, Rarity! I’m never going anywhere. You and Twilight are best friends, so she doesn’t have any reason to go anywhere either! So I’m going to stay and help you with anything you need,” he reasoned on the fly, nodding furiously. Heh. Oddly, my mind ran over what she had said to him prior, feeling an odd sort of relief that I didn’t hear the word ‘friend’ from her anywhere in it. I didn’t quite understand my own concern, however. Was that from my other self, instead? Weird.
I chuckled regardless and smiled to him, nodding as well. “She usually doesn’t listen to me, but if she tries to take you away, I’ll stop her, Spike,” I assured softly. It wasn’t going to happen anyway, but he still had youthful impulsive tendencies.
Rarity huffed at that, however, giving me a soft scowl before asking, “She listens to you, Mender. Twilight just isn’t very skilled at picking up on things. When has she specifically not listened to you?” I gave her a blank, disbelieving stare for a moment.
“Today, maybe? I tried telling her that those sorts of trust building exercises weren’t really what we needed. I’m not afraid of what she can do to me physically so much anymore. I’m… more afraid of what she can do to me emotionally…” I admitted, lowering my eyes a bit after I said it. It was true. It didn’t take a trained expert to see how screwed up I was on the inside. I was outright crazy in a few aspects. It hit me then fully, however. I didn’t realize how close I’d become to the mare, until I fully realized what she could do to me.
There was a pause, and I glanced up again at Rarity, who was giving me a sad frown. “I… I admit to guessing as much. I recommended those more for her sake than yours, both to show her that she’s not going to break you by doing things with you without planning every waking second of the event, and to try to show her that you’re more forgiving towards her than she realizes,” she explained softly. I paused at that, and then considered it, closing my eyes. Twilight was a compulsive planner, and I doubted that much would ever change. Part of it was because she felt safe and in control when everything was planned out, I imagined. Still, sometimes I did just like doing spontaneous things. Like maybe just settling in and snuggling with her while we did our separate research and reading. Just having Fluttershy close to me felt warm and happy, and I had no doubt the same would apply to Twilight if she just tried it.
Rarity suddenly perked up and glanced to the left. The sudden movement caught my attention, and my ears flicked up again, looking to my right to follow her gaze. Twilight stood across the street, ears dropped while she looked at me sadly, before slowly walking towards us. Fluttershy followed behind her, looking a bit tired and weary with her tail sliding along the concrete. Of course, Twilight looked rather worse for wear, too, stray hairs stuck here and there out of her mane, which usually indicated stress on her part.
“Why didn’t you stop me, Mender? If they weren’t helping you at all, why did you go along with all that stupid stuff?” she asked softly as she reached our end of the sidewalk. I noticed the guard to my light look uneasy in my peripheral vision, subtly wincing. I sort of agreed with him as I rotated to face her.
Fluttershy slipped up next to her instead, however, and pressed her right side into the lavender mare. Twilight stopped and glanced over towards her, uncertain, before widening her eyes a little. I felt my own heartbeat suddenly, gently being pushed through Fluttershy like a sort of empathy link, into Twilight. It was soft and warm, as I momentarily shared the sensation with the yellow pegasi, feeling the soft fur against mine. I instinctively nudged back, my earlier desire to just snuggle close to them both kicking in before I realized it. Both mares blushed, and Rarity tilted her head at the display they put on. Thankfully, the yellow mare explained a moment later.
“Do you feel that, Twilight? That sensation he just had for us?” she asked quietly, leaning back and smiling up at the mare timidly.
The lavender unicorn remained faintly rosy in the cheeks and managed to nod twice before looking back over at me in surprise. Fluttershy smiled fully at that and explained, “That means he really cares for us both. That’s why he went along with what you wanted. He wanted to make you happy, Twilight.” Heh. The pegasus was subtle when she wanted to be, yet amazingly observant. Maybe not quite as much as Rarity, but she definitely had an eye for body language and the empathy to match.
“She’s right. I just wanted you to be happy. I just, uh, don’t know the best way to do that, sometimes,” I admitted, wondering how much she’d heard.
Giving a start, I tried to look up as I felt her flick away again, appearing right in front of me. The same alert I made for Discord fired off whenever Twilight teleported, too. Instead of anything hostile, however, I just felt her push into me softly, moving in closer as I looked up. My eyes widened a little while hers closed, her lips gently pushed against mine as her forelegs slipped under mine. For a moment, I was startled, but slowly I relaxed and slipped mine over hers, pulling her closer as she lazily pressed against me, no sense of urgency at all. She broke the kiss a moment later, but kept her snout resting up against mine as she stayed there, soft heat dancing in her cheeks.
“You’re right,” she finally whispered, her eyes shifting back to the smiling yellow mare who was walking up behind her and to the right before continuing with, “Just being close feels pretty good…” Oh, Fluttershy had felt what I ‘wanted’ earlier, too.
Twilight felt just slightly surprised as I smiled against her muzzle and pulled her chest against mine. I slipped past her face more for comfort of our necks, and pushed my muzzle just under her jaw on the left side, kissing her lightly and rather enjoying her soft scent. She shivered and relaxed more against me, letting out a pleased murmur before resting her head against the side of mine. “I know. I like having you close,” I admitted, smiling to myself a little.
Her smile came back slowly. “I understand that now. I’m never going to hurt you again, Mender. Never. Not physically, or emotionally,” she assured. Ah, she had heard that much. I didn’t say anything, as I really didn’t know what to say. Fluttershy slipped up against where we were connected, to my right, and snuggled in, too, looking happy regardless. Heh, that view I could live with forever. This moment was perfect enough. It was the simple things, really, that made it the best. We didn’t need complicated rules and statuses with each other like being in a herd or married or linked. Just this closeness made it worth it.
Rarity smiled at us from my left, appearing pleased at the results as well, despite the slipup of the accidental eavesdropping. Spike would probably look disgusted if it didn’t appear that he’d fallen asleep sitting up next to Rarity, his head hanging low and his breathing deepened. Heh. We should at least get him back to the room. I sent that much to the mares against me, and Twilight perked up, looking back over at her assistant.
It would seem the pearly unicorn was a step ahead of her, however, suggesting, “We should probably head back to the guest rooms. Spike needs his rest after working so hard with the new letter codes. Oh, I also have one last trust exercise you could try that’s a bit, well, different. It’s more tailored to your specific issues.” She glanced towards me when she said it, and my ears perked, twisting towards her as I raised an eyebrow.
“Oh, is it that thing you brought?” Twilight inquired, only serving to make me even more curious!
Rarity looked more amused than anything, and nodded to her in return. “Quite. Shall I retrieve it once we get back to the tower?” she offered, regaining that impish expression I knew so well, and always dreaded when it was turned against me, like now. It just felt like I was in for quite a surprise.
Twilight nodded twice, shifting over and extending her hoof towards Rarity as the unicorn walked closer to us, sliding Spike along with her tail. Oddly, he didn’t even appear to notice. “Yes. If it’s more tailored for us, I want to try it. Anything to help get us closer!” Twilight declared, shifting to her more determined expression.
Blinking, I gave her a somewhat confused glance. “Uh, Twilight, I think we’ve gotten closer just with today. Really, we don’t have to rush-“ I started to explain. It was then that I learned how absolutely strange it felt to be in the middle of saying something while teleporting, as Rarity touched Twilight’s hoof with her own. The world imploded inwards and I momentarily heard my own voice doubling over itself for just a split second, moving faster than the sound waves that traveled outwards, before everything was sucked away.
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come on....3 more thumbs.....
thanks for the update!!
Tiny horses don't have thumbs... O_o
Hm... titles by marriage also transfer to in-laws? That honestly doesn't make a lot of sense. It's something you can be sure the nobility would endlessly abuse through arranged marriages.
Reading through this I realized that the story's basic plot would, on the surface seem like a bad fanfiction in terms of Mender's powers and his little menage a trois.
Thank you for turning a boring cliche into my favorite story on Fimfiction.
Well, this next chapter ought to be interesting.
Dear Kiroberos,
I find at least a few errors in all of your posts and they are most all of the same type. I hope that by taking the time to point them out, you may avoid more errors in the future. There are always the misspellings that go undetected by spell-check such as the word "light" in the line
There is another problem in your writing that simply causes confusion.
The fourth "her" technically refers to Pinkie when you mean Octavia. This time the error is harmless, but this same type of error has shown up many many times and has on more that one occasion forced me to stop, go back, and reread a passage.
Don't get me wrong, I want you to continue writing. I just get bothered that it's the same type of error over and over. I do my best to skip over them, because the error is not what I'll remember when I finish the story. I would call it bad, however, when it affects readability.
I hope you see this as constructive. Also, I'd be willing to proofread for you. Ta ta.
You have a keen ability to leave me wanting more, dear sir.
Kinda curious how Night Light is gonna treat Mender now. Two more weeks and I may get an answer!
im still kinda really hoping Night Light is going to be a high ranked member of the organization.
the argument must have ended on fairly good terms. otherwise id think Twi would have been in more of a sour mood. especially after what she heard eavesdropping
I guess u finally decided you needed to explain how Twi is a princess without being an alicorn. always seemed to confuse a lot of readers.
Octavia knowing about the linking, and Purdue’s reaction is defiantly pointing to something.
just to point out an error in the first paragraph that onlyinprivate missed and the only one to actually bother me
man ive read enough clop to have some wild thoughts on what this 'trust exercise' is going to be. and since u gave the warning of clop next chapter..... im kinda hoping for it.
keep up the good work!
4517268 I know, right
. Not to mention you have what, at first glance, is a Gary Stu, but in truth he is so wrapped up in self-doubt and fear of his own abilities that he's nearly helpless. At the same time, you can get a feeling for why he thinks that way. Would any of us be any different in his place? I doubt I would. Definitely my favorite fic right now.
Correct me if I am wrong but Twilight never said (in readalbe context) anything about the link before Octavia asked. What is Octavia psychic? There are also places where I double took as they threw me for a loop, such as Octavia's frustration with... Octavia? Too many hers, context not found. Are we going to get any insight into Octavia's inner struggle?
"Should she really have worn THIS dress, will she ever find TRUE love, WILL SHE ORDER THE SALAD OR THE SANDWICH? Find out next time as we reveal the inner monologue of OCTAVIA!"
Sorry that got away from me and its late, it had to be wrote. Anywho, that is the only bit from 70 that really bothered me.
"Police arrested the man who killed Adolf Hitler, today. He is being sentenced to 100 consecutive life sentences."
Context is important, lets continue reading this headline.
"Scientists report that John Doe, age 37, used a time machine to go back and kill the sleeping two year old, Adolf Hitler, in his bed. John Doe appears to believe that he has killed the evilest man in history, however there are no records of any evil deads done by this young boy. John Doe himself has earned that title, as the first chronological criminal."
I get a bit silly when I am tired, however I am sure you understand now how context is indeed important, because I forgot where I was going with this.
And thus begins another chapter of Mender tempting fate.
Well, Mender has to have a problem with somepony in his personal life! I guess Night Light fits the bill well enough. Last time he ever gets invited anywhere.
Twilights parents are looking to be shoo ins for the legue against Mender given how quickly they dropped on him.
Pity about the resteraunt. Wonder if it was LaGrande, or Ram-sey 8}
4518628
In this story Unicorns can form some sort of link between each other as well, and it seems that it is something only done by married couples.
She was referring to that type of link.
4516669
Then it would also need 8 more dislikes.. With that choce, it can stay the way it is.
4518479
A. Gave the Censorship warning, not directly a clop warning if I'm remembering last few updates correctly. Might encounter evil with guard-exploding powers or something overnight.
B. "Wild thoughts"? Perhaps I can one-up them.
- Rarity will transform herself into the triple-headed toy they must use.
- Mender will be split/copied into 8 of himself and has to work out the logistics of hims in bed with two.
- Mender must attempt genderswap but accidentally changes each leg into a shaft.
- Roleplay. So many ways to go, but I'll say "Vinyl" "Twilight Velvet" and "Winona". Random assignment.
- Fluttershy. Wings-deep.
- A normal intimate experience with all that entails. In a pool of milk and with giant cereal bits.
Maybe should have said the roles are the CMC...
EDIT: Nowadays, I sometimes wonder if Kiro sees my comments and sighs heavily.
Mender should confront Twilight's dad and say. Hey if you want to compare dick sizes I can change mine Ha!
4519161
No, I know this however Octavia, in the dinner table scene, DIRECTLY REFERENCED something that was never mentioned in SPOKEN DIALOGUE prior to her asking
This leaves you to wonder, 'WHAT THE BLOODY HELL! CAN SHE READ MINDS!?' And Twilight's parents already kow about her linking MINDS\ENERGY with Mender, they already had a fight over that aswell. Therefore Twilight's parents have no reason for surprise as to hearing that she already has formed a link.
I'm more curious as to why Octavia doesn't ask why no one let Fluttershy know that they were leaving.
Mender did it with his mind, but Octavia doesn't know about that.
Every time I read the word "Heh" after the fifth time, I cringed. Maybe it's just me, but it felt unnatural, for some reason. I might just dislike the "word" in stories. Who knows
4520165 actually i think this was merely a grammatical error. There is a comma missing or perhaps another question mark.
Instead of
"What do you mean you've already linked with him?"
it should be
"What, do you mean you've already linked with him?"
or
"What? Do you mean you've already linked with him?"
that clears it up. She isn't asking a question, more of an observation of disbelief.
personally I would go with the Question mark Kiro, it makes more sense.
I keep forgetting whose side Shining is supposed to be on. If he's on TwiMender's side, I can see one possible way the whole thing could have been stopped.
"Dad, don't make me arrest you for disturbing the peace."
4516867 I think they're disincentivized to abuse or publicize the potential abuse of this sort of thing because careless use of it could dilute the value of noble titles massively. It might also only apply to princes and princesses. Depending on how Blueblood came by his title, he might not even be able to proliferate it any further for example.
Condoms?
I've only just started this book, as I only just found and finished the first one. So far, it's been great.
Now, here's an interesting tidbit that I'm somebody else may have pointed out. At 700,000 words, if you were to print this story in a novel format, it would be over 2500 pages at an average of 275 words per page.
That's a lot of book!
4532396 no need for condoms if there not in heat
4519341 ya sounds about right. cant forget about all his tentacles however
4533690
Not to mention he can fire blanks anyways. can't remember if rarity knows this or not. but it would definatly bring them "closer".
4533944 as much as id love Kiro to ship all the ponies, its already been decided that isn't going to happen
4533225
If you check Kiro's blog, he actually keeps track of the words to page count. He even factors in the blank space at each chapter's end and gives it a statistic.
4533690
Too cliche to mention. If he gave each of them a mouth however...
4539657 this is Mender were talking about. of course he would have to start slow for Flutters and Twis sake. but after they get use to the idea then who knows what crazy things Twi will have him do with them.
4534920
I don't recall ever wanting this.
4532396 "animal" toy?
So Twi just shows up, no talk about the shouting match with family earlier, and then we move onto 'trust exercises'. What the hell happened? Is Mender not interested?
4559655
HA! She'll do it anyways.
Finally caught up!
After a massive archive binge over the course of several days, I finally managed to read all of this story so far...Oh God! My head!
4569053 you should hydrate yourself and keep the number of a doctor handy before starting a binge on a fanfic as monstrously big as this one!
4664128 I started three days ago. Its not that big.
Unnecessary space
Oh Mender, you do not want to go down that route!
Can I slap Nightlight? I'm sure Velvet would understand.
i may be reading to much into it..or just over thinking things...but pleeeease dont tell me Octavia has something to do with the group hounding Mender :(
You used light instead of right when mender looked at the guard
Every one of them have a learning disability. I can't count how many times each character has repeated the same thoughts/feelings, come to the same conclusions only to magically forget what they learned in the next chapter. Honestly it's getting frustrating now, and I could really use some character growth.
Considering Shining Armour's magic colour is pink, that's more likely to be Cadence.
Reading through this the first time, I always assumed that the hints that Octavia was part of the Conspiracy were just a red herring because it was too obvious.
Then again, the whole Conspiracy subplot ended up being pretty pointless anyway, so I guess it doesn't really matter.
7409872
Use the fucking spoiler tag thingy.