Heavy hoofsteps and the clanging of metal armor echoed through the empty corridor in one of the many passageways in Canterlot Castle. A pair of guardsponies on their rounds were silently arguing over something. The taller white stallion by the name of Winter Snow, a sergeant in the ranks of Celestia’s Guard, didn’t exactly agree with his long time friend’s idea of having a good time.

“I’m telling ya, it’s not as bad as it sounds,” repeated Rising Star, looking up and down the corridor to make sure no one could hear them. “Some of the other guys did it too and they were as happy with it as I was. Hell, if it weren’t for my damn schedule, I’d ask him out again!."

Winter crinkled his nose. “Hey, just because you enjoy it doesn’t mean I have to. Besides, I’m straight,” he huffed, turning away from his friend and locking his eyes on a point ahead. “I’ll be fine. It’s not like it is a particularly long dry spell for me.”

Star sighed in exasperation and jumped in front of his superior, stopping him with a hoof to the armoured torso. “Listen, I’m as straight as a crossbow bolt myself,” he sneered, half-grinning, “and I can assure you that most of the other guys are as well. But really, just hear me out,” he growled, stifling the other stallion’s protests. “He’s not a burly workhorse type like the rest of us. If anything, if you didn’t know any better, you’d say he’s a pretty damn cute mare,” smiled the soldier. He seemed lost in thought for a second before snapping back to reality and continuing. “Just try it, okay? One blind date. If you don’t like it, that’s fine. We’ve all been in your horseshoes and know exactly what you’re thinking. All I ask is that you trust a friend, okay?”

Winter rolled his eyes and looked to the side, through the slightly tinted tall window. The city below was bathed in bright light, ponies strolling around like tiny ants. What was he to say? He already tried explaining to the private that he wasn’t interested in relieving his tension with another stallion. Especially since it’s quite obvious this one fancied military types and some of his colleagues already bedded him.

“If it were a mare, you’d be more than happy I set you up, wouldn’t you?” huffed Star, recognising the stubborn look of apprehension on Winter’s face. He hung his head in defeat, stepping back to the side of his superior. “Okay. Fine. Have it your way. I can’t force you to have fun, sir”

* * *

By the end of his uneventful shift, Winter was approached by a few other guards and invited for a drink. Having nothing else to do, the stallion agreed and soon the merry group plus Snow was off to one of the less fancy, but still decent bars.

The inside was loud and cheerful as always. The patrons were mostly military, both day and night guard, so despite a few friendly nudges to the ribs here and there the place was orderly and clean. Behind the bar there was a mare that Winter saw a few times before - she was a nice girl, somewhat flirty but already engaged, much to the dismay of many a guardspony.

The white stallion sat behind the bar and was immediately served a cold cider in a wooden mug, which he chugged down in one go, topping it off with a satisfied sigh. The chilly beverage was a welcomed relief after several hours trapped inside corridors with hot, stale air heating the gold plate of his armour.

The maid winked at Snow and started pouring another one, all the while chatting up the other patrons, leaving the guard to lay comfortably on the smooth bar top.

“Mind if I sit next to you?”

Winter tilted his head noticing a batpony pointing to the stool next to him. He didn’t recognise the colt, but that wasn’t something out of the ordinary - the day and night guard hardly interacted with one another and there were a lot of unknown faces in the bar.

“Sure," replied the sergeant, scooching slightly to the side to make room for the slender equine. The newcomer had an ashy, short fur with his spiky mane going from dark grey to a lighter shade on the tips. His tail bore a similar pattern, looking almost like a black thunderbolt ran all the way to his flanks. He had his bat wings tucked securely to his sides, right above a yellow present wrapped in red ribbon cutie mark.

The batpony smiled sincerely at the stallion and ordered grape juice, something Snow didn’t know the bar even carried.

“Hey there Wing," cooed the barmaid, sliding a glass with purple liquid across to the newcomer. “Waiting for a date hun?”

“Oh no, not today Silver," chuckled the stallion, sipping his drink. ’’Just came by for the excellent drinks and jolly company.” He turned to the side, towards the slouched Winter staring into his foamy drink. The batpony cocked his head from side to side, silently observing the stallion and sipping his own beverage.

From the corner of his eye Snow noticed this and was growing steadily irate. The ash colt wasn’t even pretending to be discreet about his ogling - he ran his blue, slitted eyes up and down the guard’s body, stopping only to take a gulp from his glass. After what seemed like an eternity, the sergeant got tired of feeling watched. “Is there something I can help you with, guardsman?” he groaned out, tilting his head slightly to get a better view.

The batpony jumped slightly, quickly putting on an apologetic smile. “Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to stare. It’s just that I haven’t seen you around here before, and I like to think I know most of the patrons here.” He tilted his head to the other side again. “I’m Wing Dancer, and sorry again, but I’m not actually a guard. I work at an arcade nearby,” he said, pointing a hoof somewhere towards the bar.

Winter raised an eyebrow and sighed internally. It was rare for anypony to just come up and strike a conversation with him, save for a select few friends. The stallion didn’t have any hobbies in particular and was mostly focused on his career as a guard, a path that many perceived as futile due to low wages and simply boring work description. He got so used to being left alone that this sudden change of state actually annoyed him.

“I’m Winter Snow,” he finally replied, turning back to his mug, “and excuse me, but I got a mug to down.”

The other pony’s ears drooped slightly for a second before perching back up. “Oh, I’m terribly sorry, I didn’t mean to disturb. I was just trying to be friendly,” he said, rolling his glass between his hooves. He was going to continue the thought when a passer by nudged him, causing the drink to spin out of control and splash all over Winter’s back.

“Oh sweet sun, I am so, so sorry!” gasped the batpony, beckoning the maid over. “Are you alright?”

Winter was frozen in place, trying to maintain composure as the wetness on his back spread further down It reached his flanks before he felt a towel being thrown over him. He was really tired and annoyed, the frantic rubbing against his skin adding to the fire. It was time to cut losses and call it a night.

The guardspony shoved a hoof into the saddle by his side and threw a bunch of coins on the top before wordlessly standing up, saddling his belongings and making for the exit. Before he could take even a few steps though, his way was blocked by Wing Dancer putting a hoof to his chest.

“I am terribly sorry, Mr. Snow, sir,” he said, his ears flat against the back of his head. “Please, let me make this up to you. How about a free go at the arcades? Please, that is the least I can do for leaving that awful stain on your pristine coat.”

Winter slowly turned his head, looking with a deadpan expression at the massive dark stain on his back. It would probably take a lot of soap scrubbing to bring it back to a respectable state. It’s not like the stallion planned to have a good night’s sleep before his morning shift anyway.

“No, thank you,” he hissed through grit teeth, forcing past the batpony’s feeble attempts at blocking his path. “Now, if you’ll kindly excuse me, I have to hurry home.”

Outside, a gust of fresh, cold air helped Snow regain at least part of his composure. He closed his eyes and took in a deep breath, smelling the faint scent of ozone. There was probably a small downpour scheduled soon.

“Sir, I’m really, terribly sorry," stammered out a voice behind the guardspony, shattering what little peace of mind remained in him. “I didn’t mean to do that. Please, let me apologise and take you for a free spin at the arcades.”

Snow slowly turned around to face a rather determined looking Wing Dancer. In the faint light of the moon the batpony’s pupils were dilated to the point of looking like those of a puppy, which in heavy contrast to his serious face and stiff posture made the sergeant chuckle involuntarily.

Noticing the crack in the (mostly) white stallion’s attitude, the nocturnal equine loosened up a little and smiled slightly. “I’ll keep asking until you accept my apology, sir. Fair warning.”

Winter lightly shook his head and gave up, smirking. Between the tiring day, his drowsiness and the well known persistence of the batpony race, he decided to entertain the idea of visiting the arcades, if only to get rid of the pesky bat. “Fine," he finally groaned, looking Wing in the eye, “as long as you promise to leave me alone afterwards.”

* * *

On their way to the establishment, Wing Dancer kept hammering away at Snow’s patience, asking questions about his job, rank, ambitions and hobbies. Despite the mostly one line answers, the batpony seemed pretty satisfied, commenting on the military with authentic enthusiasm and passion. Never before has Winter seen anyone so interested in what a guard does - most just assume it’s standing in one place and complaining about how boring or hot it is.

“I tried applying for a night guard once," chirped the nocturnal pony, happily backwards strutting in front of Snow. “Unfortunately, there was something wrong with one of my hind knees. Luckily they didn’t find any arrows,” he snorted, looking expectantly at the large white stallion. “You know - arrow? Knee? No? Okay," sighed the batpony, turning away from Snow’s puzzled expression. “Anyway, we’re here! The ultimate den of games, the finest time sink in Canterlot!”

Winter looked up at the giant flashing sign portraying a yellow, round creature opening and closing it’s mouth, probably in pursuit of three bluish ghost figures, the word “PACOPOLIS” between the entities. He glanced back at the ash stallion who was grinning widely, beckoning for him to enter with an exaggerated bow.

Slowly, the white stallion entered the dimly lit establishment. Never before has he actually visited an arcade, and the mechanical noises, beeping and squeaking startled him at first. He stopped at the doors, looking around hesitantly, glaring at all the ponies running around or standing on their hind legs, propped against machines with colourful and flashing screens. Before he managed to make up his mind about the place, he felt something bump and push his hind quarters.

“C’mon, get inside, I’ll show you around!” shouted Wing, barely audible over the racket of the place. He grabbed Snow’s front hoof and started dragging him between the various machines, heading straight for one of a larger build. “That one is my favourite, and I hold top score on it too! It’s called ‘Midnight Assassin’ and it’s a crossbow simulator!”

Winter looked at the machine, noticing the rather odd crossbow secured to a claw-like appendage sticking from the front panel. While the frame of the weapon was mostly accurate, if a bit small, there was a strange lever sticking out from the side and a cable running from below the contraption to the main machine. The screen had the sign “MIDNIGHT ASSASSIN” floating around, some characters visible in the background moving about.

“In this game, you have to eliminate as many enemies of the Lunar Empire as possible while not being shot yourself,” explained the batpony, grabbing the crossbow device in his front hooves. Winter was pleasantly surprised by the stance the ash stallion assumed - sitting steadily on his hind legs he had his back arched slightly backwards, the weapon lying on his right forehoof and based against his shoulder while the other leg upheld the front of it.

“Straighten your back and relax your shoulders,” barked out Snow without thinking. He received a surprised look from Wing. “Oh, sorry, force of habit," explained the sergeant, scratching his head in embarrassment.

Dancer cocked his head slightly before looking back to the screen. He wobbled a little bit, straightening himself and adjusted the crossbow on his hooves, lowering it. “Like this?” he asked with a small smile, glancing at the military pony from the corner of his eye.

“Umm," began the guard, hesitantly approaching the batcolt. He sat down and softly pushed the other stallion’s back a bit, quickly grabbing him with the other one to stabilise the wobbling. “You need to have a strong back for this and sure footing. Your hind legs must create a stable platform for you to shoot from,” he instructed, using his legs to gingerly adjust the batpony’s stance. He felt awkward touching him - the colt was just a civilian and he wasn’t sure if he should be sharing military techniques like this.

“Okay, what about the forelegs? My shoulders are already tired holding it like this," said the batpony, turning his head to face Winter who recoiled slightly.

They were too close to one another for the sergeant’s comfort. He could feel the faint scent of lavender, and from this up close the batpony’s eyes looked huge, with the blue irises almost electric around the dilated black pupils. Snapping out of it, with a bit more decisiveness the stallion put his hooves around Wing Dancer. “You don’t keep it like this at all times. You assume this stance only when you’re about to shoot. Of course it’s tiring if you hold it up like this for too long.” He shoved the other colt’s hooves down, causing him to tip over.

The two lost balance and despite Snow’s attempts of pulling back he fell on top of Wing, nearly crushing the slender pony. The guard felt him desperately squirm below, his leathery wings twitching frantically under the weight. He rolled away as fast as he could, quickly picking himself up. Dancer was still lying on the ground, stifling moans as he feebly tried to pick himself up.

“Hey, Wing, you alright?” asked a passer-by, stopping over the ash stallion. “Need some help?”

“No, no, I’m fine, just a bit out of breath," coughed Wing Dancer, finally getting up on all fours. “Was just learning how to properly do the crossbow thing. Seems it’s much more complicated than it looks!”

The two shared a quick laugh before the patron decided to leave the two alone. Snow didn’t know where to put his eyes, murmuring something under his breath and dabbing the red carpet with a hoof.

“I’m sorry," he finally muttered out. “You sure you alright?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. Boy, you sure must be good at wrestling,” smiled Wing Dancer, picking up the toy weapon again. “If you don’t mind, I’d still like to know more about handling the crossbow!”

* * *

At first, it seemed kind of boring to watch the ash stallion lean against the wide frame of the machine, ducking out and pulling the trigger ever so often to make a character on the screen fall over with a bolt in his body. It was irritating to him that distance and wind played no role in aiming and that the reloading mechanism was limited to pulling a lever. He also couldn’t grasp the importance of points for the hits made - as far as he knew, how an enemy died was irrelevant.

With time the game became more intense however, with Wing Dancer having to duck, reload, spring into stance and shoot more frequently. Snow started barking out orders to the stallion on instinct, spotting enemies and getting into the game to the point where even he ducked into cover, peeking out and advising the batpony on the best course of action. Together, the duo managed to gather the attention of a sizeable crowd who gasped and cheered them on as they started approaching the previous high score.

“Okay, now is the tricky part,” whispered Wing Dancer, lowering his muzzle to Winter. “That guy managed to take Princess Luna hostage and is using her like a living shield. There’s a small window of opportunity to shoot him when he dives into the ferry, but...I-I never could hit him,” he said, frowning and weighing the weapon in his hand.

“Nonsense, you can do it. You’ve been doing great all this time," Snow whispered back. He took a quick peek out of cover, registering a small hooded figure on the screen, barely visible from behind the majestic alicorn shape who was calling out for help. “You can do it. Trust me.”

“No, sir," replied Wing, dramatically looking away and sobbing. “It’s too dangerous. My hooves are trembling even now. Look. This is too much for me. You have to do it, sir. You are the one destined to save her.”

Snow was taken aback by this sudden turn of events, as was the silent crowd around the two. Nearly the whole population of the arcade was gathered around them, gasping and whispering feverishly between one another.

Slowly, the batpony hoofed the weapon to Snow. It was a lot lighter than it looked, but the familiar shape made his heart race. He felt a sudden rush as he looked back at the serious face of his pretend subordinate.

“I know you can do it, sir. I believe in you. The fate of the kingdom is in your hooves. Let the bolt fly true, my Sergeant.” The batpony saluted the guard, as did the crowd around, silent words of encouragement bolstering Winter’s excitement.

As carefully as the sergeant could, he peeked out from cover, eyeing the black shape heading for a ferry. It was a really far shot. There was no wind, so he shouldn’t have to take corrections. Just breathe, slowly, till the right moment presents itself. Slow down his hammering heart and focus. Block out all the whispers, all the images and lights. Only him, the weapon and the target.

The black figure on the screen lept. Time slowed down as it soared through the air, it’s head and upper body exposed from behind the lunar alicorn. In one fluid motion Winter Snow whipped himself around, facing the screen in a rigid stance, the crossbow at his eye level, his strained muscles keeping it in place with the force of a vice.

The sergeant slowly let his breath out, pulling the trigger.

* * *

It was well past 10 PM when the dazed Winter Snow and bouncing Wing Dancer left the arcade. The celebrations went on for a very long time, everyone talking about the amazing shot the guardspony gave, beating the previous record by a perfect headshot. The sergeant was being carried around, offered soda drinks and even asked to sign posters of the game, being the first person in the arcade to achieve such an amazing score.

“You should come more often! There are a ton of games that you’d probably like still!” chirped Wing Dancer, noticing the large grin on Winter’s face and smiling back.

“Maybe. Who knows," he replied. The stallion felt really good about himself - not only did ponies applaud his skills which he honed for a very long time but he also managed to set a new record, achieve something that will be appreciated by others.

“I hope this made up for the earlier mishap," continued the batpony, coming in close to inspect the stain on Winter’s coat. “It’s not so bad after all.”

“I guess it did," shrugged the guard, having totally forgotten himself in the fun he was having. Slowly but surely he was coming back to reality - a reality in which it was late and he had to get up in the morning. “I guess it wasn’t as bad. I even enjoyed myself. Thanks.” The batpony smiled and nodded as the guard continued. “It is late though, so I have to get going. Maybe we’ll get to meet up in the bar sometime later and-“

“Oh wait!” interrupted Wing, jumping in front of the startled sergeant. “There’s one more thing I’d like to show you! Maybe it could help a bit with that stain. I’m sure it will! C’mon, just this one more thing, okay? After that I promise to let you go straight back home!”

Winter pursed his lips together, weighing the options he had. The batpony was standing in front of him, wagging his tail like a foal, to the point his whole behind was shaking. Something in his playful stance and sparkling eyes made the guard finally cave in to the request.

“Yay!” squealed the nocturnal equine, jumping and fluttering his wings slightly “C’mon, it’s not that far away!”

The batpony started bouncing away towards the center of Canterlot, followed by a head-shaking, smirking Winter.

* * *

“So, what’s so special here? It’s just the fountain," commented Winter.

The center of Canterlot plaza was indeed the biggest water fountain, with water usually running in jets from several holes in the ground. There were platforms of various sizes and shapes all around that would break the water up or shoot jets of their own. All this was turned off during the night since hardly anyone strolled under the light of Luna’s moon.

“Just gimme a second!” sing-sang Wing Dancer, fiddling with something near a control booth. It was a small shack, out of sight, where the maintenance ponies would control the fountain. Somehow, the batpony managed to gain entry and vanish behind the door. Before Snow could say anything, the water started running, splashing all around.

The white stallion backed away, looking at the ash colt who stuck his head out from the booth briefly before diving in again.

“Hey, you-” he started, but was again interrupted, this time by something he did not expect. Suddenly, the water became illuminated by a soft light, making the clear liquid turn blue, almost like on an exotic beach. The patterns and shapes that the jets of water produced lit up one by one, undisturbed by the light breeze, making the guardspony’s eyes go wide.

“Pretty impressive, huh?” asked Wing Dancer, appearing out of nowhere by Winter’s side. “Hardly anypony remembers this. It used to be a popular thing when Princess Luna came back to us, but as with all things, everypony quickly grew tired of it. As in, it bore them,” he sighed with a frown. “There wasn’t enough money to keep it going, and there weren’t enough interested to fund, so they now just turn the fountain off during nighttime. Such a pity, no?”

Snow had to sit down to take the view in. He didn’t consider himself to be a touchy-feely stallion, but the sight of this peculiar beauty simply stunned him. The longer he looked, the more details he could appreciate. The way the water splashed into tiny rainbows, how the jets interlocked with one another, making it seem that the water was climbing illuminated stairs…

A hoof grabbing his own snapped him back to reality. Wing Dancer was giving him a toothy grin and pulling him towards the fountain, warm droplets of water gently raining down on them.

“C’mon, it’s really fun! We can have a water fight!” he shouted, jumping nimbly over a jet of water, splashing Winter thoroughly. The white stallion squinted at him, throwing his saddle back near the benches. “I bet you can’t catch me, my Sergeant," he laughed, springing one of his wings and whipping it at another geyser.

Snow stood there patiently, getting hit time and time again by splashes of water from the giggling batpony. As soon as the nocturnal equine decided to jump to another position, Winter lept in that direction, whipping his tail around expertly, smacking a body of water towards the gliding colt.

Taken by surprise, Wing was cast into another jet, soaking him thoroughly as he nearly crash landed into a platform. He got a pretty good gulp of water and could hardly see through the mane in his face, but between coughing and hacking Snow could tell he was laughing. His lean body was glistening in the pale blue light, thin bat wings trying to sweep aside the long, wet mane in his face.

“I’ll give you that one," coughed the stallion, managing to uncover one eye to look at Snow below him. “But you should know that each action warrants a reaction!” he shouted, spreading his wings over two particularly strong jets of water and angling them towards the soldier. “Suck on Hydro Pump, assassin!”

Under the unrelenting barrage of water, Snow scrambled on the slippery floor, hiding behind a pillar connected to one of the platforms. Blowing his wet, short mane away, he grinned widely. “You’re in for it now, kid,” muttered the sergeant.

* * *

“Oy, you there! What’s this commotion!” barked out a batpony guard, clad in traditional purple-tinted armour. He was called to an instance of night disturbance, and was frankly taken aback by what he saw.

One of his kinsmen, an ash colored batpony, was staring at him from the highest fountain platform, thoroughly soaked. Dangling from another platform was a white earth pony stallion, probably in the process of climbing to the other one. For reasons unknown to him the fountain pumps were working, and there were even lights which he didn’t knew existed.

“Uh, sorry, guardsman," quickly replied Winter, jumping down and assuming a wide stance. He saluted, keeping his eyes locked on a point above the other guard’s head. “We were just, uh...maintenance,” he stammered out. “This batpony here was running maintenance and I was assigned. As escort.”

The night guard raised an eyebrow. “You don’t look like one of ours. Are you even a guard at all?” he asked suspiciously, lowering his head slightly and squinting.

“Yessir, I am sergeant Winter Snow of the Day Guard. I know this was unexpected, but it was a last minute assignment. I can fetch my papers if you’d allow me to get to my saddle.”

There was a pregnant pause in which Wing Dancer silently tried to stay invisible, huddling down on the platform and observing the situation with a worried expression.

“I’ll get it for you. Over there, yes?” he asked, indicating a bench with a damp bag on it. Without further ado, the batpony walked over and started rummaging through the saddle. It didn’t take him long to find the official badge and number, confirming the earth pony’s identity.

“Alright, sir, sorry for the confusion. We weren't informed,” said the batpony guard, turning to salute a superior officer. “Please, just try to keep it a bit quieter, if you could, sir.”

Winter visibly relaxed and nodded. “We’re pretty much done here anyway. Right?” he asked, putting emphasis on the last word. Seeing Wing Dancer’s vigorous nodding, he turned back to the soldier. “Sorry for making you come all this way, soldier. I hope this will be the last incident on your shift today," he said, winking. “As you were," he finished, making his way slowly towards his saddlebags and strapping them on.

As soon as the night guard took off, Wing glided down to Winter. Before he could open his mouth to thank the sergeant, he was discreetly hushed by the stallion.

“He’s still watching from a higher vantage point. Turn off the machines and let’s get out of here.”

Gulping, the ash pony nodded and darted for the maintenance shack. Within a few seconds, the fountain was dark and silent once again.

* * *

“So, we’re here," said Wing Dancer, turning towards Winter. They arrived to the batpony’s doorstep after much bickering over who should walk who home. Despite the colt’s protests, the guard did have a point. Strolling in the middle of the night alone was a lot safer when you had years of military service experience to fend for you.

“Place looks nice. Safe neighbourhood, I guess,” summed up Winter, looking around. Most likely everyone was asleep, and it must’ve been way past midnight.

Wing looked away for a second, letting his ears drop flat to the back of his head before taking a deep breath. “So, uh...it’s late, right? You sure you wouldn’t want to...you know. Stay...over?”

It took Snow a few seconds to process what the blushing batpony had proposed. He looked at him, then at the door, then to his sides, not sure what he was really looking for.

Stammering, the batpony continued, taking a small step towards the stallion. “I mean, it’s a chilly night, a-and you’re all wet. Wouldn’t want you to c-catch a cold, right?” He took another step, his muzzle inches away from Winter’s shocked expression.

“I, uh, I mean,” stuttered the guard, looking into the batpony’s eyes. Why was it always that the lighting was dim enough for them to look...amazing? At this point he could feel the scent of his damp mane, something reminiscent of lavender. “I-I don’t think it’s a good idea, I-”

Before he was allowed to finish, the batpony took the last step forward. He twisted his head to the side, closing his eyes and pushing his lips into Winter’s open mouth. The pony yelped startled and pulled back bit, breaking the involuntary kiss. Before he fully understood what had happened his muzzle was again pressed against the batpony’s. As the feeling of the kiss sank in, he realized that it was his muzzle that was diving into the ash colt’s, not the other way around.

He was confused. Conflicted. He knew he should back out, spit and run away, probably not sparing the batpony harsh words about his sudden move. At the same time, he did nothing to stop what was happening, going so far as to even move his hoof slightly forward. The smell of lavender hit him in unison of the sensation of touching lips, a feeling he hadn’t experienced in a long time. He felt powerless, but not in a terrifying way, like in a fight. It was a good feeling.

Still in shock, the stallion remained still as the furiously blushing batpony pulled back, sighing. “H-How about now?” he asked in a shaky voice, his half-lidded eyes looking hopefully into the sergeant’s face. He shyly moved his muzzle to the guardspony’s ear, whispering: “You’ll really get a cold here...and it’s nice and warm inside.”

Author's Note

First chapter of my very first serious romantic love story, yay! I'd appreciate any feedback and help with editing,

Hope you enjoyed it!