Return to Society

by Silent Sir 224

Like Teacher, Like Student

The thought of being so late to meet the Princess' student sent a shiver up Dusk's spine, I don't want to think about what's going to happen, he thought. I don't know if she'll cause me to go deaf or worse! Fluttershy must have noticed Dusk's increasing anxiety with every step, he was sweating bullets and began to shake a little. She stopped and turned back to face him, she knew she had to say something before he gave himself a heart attack.

"Everything will be fine, don't worry" she said. "Twilight's a good friend of mine, she will be a little upset but when we explain the situation I'm sure she will understand." These kind words allowed Dusk to calm down a little, Fluttershy's right, he thought. As long as she is with me when I meet Twilight, I might get off alright.

"Thanks, I needed to that," Dusk admitted. "Was it really that obvious?" As she started walking on, Dusk could have sworn he had heard her giggling, making him blush slightly. He followed closely behind as darkness was approaching, many houses had their lights turned off already, but one building stuck out among the rest. A tree re-purposed to be a house sat with one ominous light on. It was clear that was the building where the two were headed.

The final steps to the library were the most difficult for Dusk in a long time, the last time he had anywhere near this much trouble was his first steps into the Everfree Forest. Only this time, he had Fluttershy with him instead of Celestia and for that he was grateful. On the final step, he felt a lump formed in his throat as he held up his hoof to knock, the door slid open and his pupils shrunk.

The door was open and a purple unicorn was standing in front of him, showing a shade of red that he couldn't have imagined. She was screaming in a voice that would have put the Royal Canterlot Voice to shame. "WHERE IN THE NAME OF CELESTIA HAVE YOU BEEN? I HAVE BEEN WAITING ALL DAY FOR YOU TO GET HERE!"

If the pegasus next to him was even a little startled by that windfall, she certainly showed no sign of it. Dusk on the other hand simply bowed his head in shame, the same way he did when he was yelled at by the Princess. The only difference was, that it was not at that high a volume.

Fluttershy walked into the library and gestured for Twilight to follow her inside. Leaving Dusk on the front step before closing the door behind her, the silence that followed inside the library left him confused as to what was happening. After roughly a minute of apparent silence the door opened again. This time the unicorn was a much lighter shade of red, not so much in anger but perhaps embarrassment. Fluttershy was standing behind her with a small smile on her face Thank Celestia that Fluttershy was here, Dusk thought. I don't want to think about what would happen if she wasn't. I owe her so much right now. Maybe dinner... wait. Stop right there, you need to re-adapt not find love.

The unicorn looked down at Dusk on the door step, "Come inside please," She directed. "We have much to discuss." Dusk followed the directions into the library and found a seat at one of the tables with the two mares sitting on the opposite side. He prepared himself for the imminent scolding he was about to receive. "My apologies, I hadn't realized Fluttershy was helping treat your injury from today," the unicorn stated. The statement blew right through Dusk, he had expected something different. But then again, he was being treated for a wound, one would be hard pressed to not to allow the excuse.

"I am terribly sorry, time seemed to get away from me," Dusk confessed.

"Twilight, is everything alright down there?" A voice called from further in the library.

"Yes, Spike. Come down here for a minute, there's someone here you should meet."

A small, purple dragon with green spines came from the stairs and approached the three. "Hey, who's the unicorn?"

"Spike this is Dusk. Dusk, this is my assistant Spike. If you need his help don't be afraid to ask."

"Whoa, wait a minute! I never agreed..." Twilight gave him a silencing glare. "I mean... yeah if you ever need anything I'm usually here. Now if you will excuse me, I need to get some sleep." With that Spike walked up the stairs and vanished. He must have been worn out to leave without giving Dusk a chance to at least say hello. But he paid it no mind as there were more important things happening.

"So I am under the impression that you are Twilight Sparkle and that Princess Celestia had sent you a letter enclosing the details of myself, my time here and the purpose of my visit here. Correct?"

"Yes," Twilight answered. "She also explained that you have had a terrible time these past few years, care to elaborate? I want to fully understand the situation you are in."

"I... I'm sorry but I can't," he sighed, fighting the emotion that was trying to force it's way out. "It's... it's too painful right now. It's been five years since it happened, and I still can't bring myself to talk about... them."

"Talk about who Dusk?" Fluttershy asked.

"My... my parents."

"Oh my... I understand if you don't want to talk about it. But, do you know if they are... still here?"

"I, uh, don't follow."

"Have they, um, passed on?"

"Oh, well, I, uh... I don't know," Dusk admitted.

"You don't know?" Twilight asked, dumbfounded. "How do you not know?"

"I just... I just don't, okay?" He really didn't want to answer that question.

"How can you go five years without talking to them? Did they do something?"

"N-no."

"Well, there has to be a reason. What happened?"

"Twilight, stop," Fluttershy requested.

"Dusk, what happened?" She ignored her friends request.

"Twilight," Fluttershy tried to get her attention again.

"Did you do something?" Dusk just shook his head and covered his ears, in a futile attempt to stop hearing the questions. They were breaking down his resolve to keep it in."What did you do to have no contact for five years!?"

"Twilight!" It became more of a demand than a request.

"What. Did. You. Do?"

"I PUT THEM IN HOSPITAL, OKAY?!? THERE I ADMIT IT!" The two were taken aback as Dusk lost control of his emotions. Tears broke through the dam and flowed freely down his cheeks and falling to the floor. "I... I put them in the hospital!"

"Twilight! We need to talk, now!" Fluttershy demanded, before the unicorn could protest the pegasus dragged her into another room in a similar fashion she dragged Dusk to her home.

Despite being in a separate room, he could hear plenty. But, that was probably a good thing, considering any thought he had at that point involved some form of an angry mob chasing him out with pitchforks and torches. I had to read that story didn't I?

"What do you think you were doing!? You can't just do that to ponies! Especially, ones who have gone through so much!"

"I was learning more about him."

"That wasn't learning, that was interrogation, Twilight! Why do you think he kept saying that he didn't want to talk about it!? Why would he hide something if it wasn't worth keeping to himself!?"

"I needed to know."

"You had no right to press on him so hard! How traumatic do you think that is for him!? We are suppose to be helping him, remember!? Celestia asked us to help him readjust and to be his friends, and you were sitting there, grilling him for information! You have no right to interrogate him or anyone else!"

"Why are you getting so upset?"

"Because... because... because I know what it's like to be all alone! To be all alone and have no one there to help!" What?

"Fluttershy..."

"No, Twilight! If you want answers, we do this my way, not yours! You can't possibly relate to what he's been through! Maybe I can't relate either but I at least understand! From here on I ask him questions! If he doesn't want to answer a question, we drop it right there! No prodding and no pressuring!"

"But-"

"No, you've pestered him enough as it is, tearing open an old wound like that. We do this my way, or I take him to his room at the inn! No middle ground, no exceptions, got it?" He heard a hoof tap the ground, as if to emphasize the point.

"...Yes, Fluttershy, I understand."

"Good, now let's go make sure you didn't hurt him too much. Just apologize and listen, that's the best way for you to learn anything about him at this point. You have no reason to say anything else right now."

The two re-entered the main room and sat back down. Like she said, Fluttershy handled the questions, "Are you okay, Dusk?"

"Y-yeah, I'm... I'm better now, at least," he confirmed, wiping the stray tears out of his eyes.

"Everything's fine. The next time you don't want to answer a question, we leave it. You shouldn't answer a question if you don't want to," she glanced at Twilight. "Okay?"

Dusk took a calming breathe, "Okay."

"Now before we get back to the questions, Twilight has something to say."

"I'm... I'm sorry, I just... I didn't considered your feelings. And that was wrong of me." Dusk took a short breath and nodded before Fluttershy continued.

"Now, you said you've been in contact with the Princess, right?"

"Yes. She's been the one I have had contact with these past two years in the Everfree."

"I see, what have you been doing in the Everfree?"

"For lack of better words, 'self-imposed exile' with the support of the Princess."

"Because of your parents?"

"Yeah, yeah because of what I did to them," he looked down at the table, unsure of what they thought about him at that point.

"Don't worry Dusk, we won't talk about it if you don't want to. Twilight had no right to interrogate you like that."

"It's... alright."

"No, no it's not! We are here to be your friends and help you. Not put you under a microscope."

"But, you... you deserve to know."

"Dusk, that's not necessary. It's a very emotional topic, you don't have to tell us."

"But, he wants to tell us!" Twilight protested. Her outburst was met with a glare from the pegasus.

"...I believe that's enough for one night. Dusk?" Fluttershy stood up.

"Yes?"

"Would it be too much trouble to have you walk me home?" She walked toward the door.

"O-of course." Dusk followed closely behind. "Good night Ms. Sparkle."

"Good night, Dusk, Fluttershy." She sighed heavily.

The two left the library quickly, but slowed down once the building was a good distance behind them.

"I'm sorry, Dusk. I told Twilight to stop, but her desire for knowledge distracted her. She crossed a line, I should have done more to stop her. I'm sorry."

"I heard you put your hoof down about it in the other room. You've done more than enough to help me. Heck, you've done more in a day than anyone else has done in a number of years," he gave a weak smile.

"I was just being a good friend. That's my goal here, to be your friend."

"Do you have time to hear a story tonight, Fluttershy?" She deserves to know and I don't want it bottled up anymore, it's been tearing me apart for too long now. Twilight proved it, but it needs to be with someone I can trust.

"Sure, we can talk at my cottage."

Author's Note:

My first story, I like constructive with my criticism.

Comments

[Starcat5]

Err... Why was Twilight upset at the beginning? Wasn't it stated during the Timberwolf attack that he was now a day ahead of schedule? And that she had asked Fluttershy to keep an eye open today in case he was early? (Which he was.) In short, even showing up in the evening like this, he's still early.

[Brony2893]

"Thanks, I needed to that," Dusk admitted.

derpicdn.net/img/view/2012/6/19/9001__safe_fluttershy_wat_reaction+image_source+needed_artist-colon-speccysy.png

Still no description for Dusk's appearance, besides a male unicorn.
Tisk tisk.

[Vates Despero]

OoC-ness and lack of internal consistency. I'm out.